In this chapter, Bakugou does what he can to make Uraraka notice him.
Bakugou didn't know where to go from here.
An entire day was almost over, and he had nothing to show for it.
He'd stopped by home first, to test if Xochitl was telling the truth about the quirk and how it worked.
When Bakugou arrived, his father was nowhere in sight, and his mother had just been advised by the school not to contact anyone, or ask around about her son - to simply let things play out.
Despite the tough exterior she always put forward, her worry trickled like a crack in a levy, slowly leaking across everything.
He tried following, calling out to his mother as she calmly walked from the kitchen to her room. But once she was through her bedroom door the depth of heat and anguish that crashed through the threshold hurt him, shooting straight through the emptiness of his ghostly existence, overwhelming and permeating every crevice of his home, leaving him unable to get near her.
So he left.
It took some time wandering just to shake the sensation of her pain away. She was a fucking pillar of strength. She wasn't supposed to crack.
He hated being the reason for it, but he would never have guessed that she'd feel this so deeply. She had always said it was showing weakness.
When he got back he'd have to give that woman a piece of his mind.
Eventually, he stopped by Kirishima's thinking, if it worked, at least he wouldn't have to get buddy-buddy with Uraraka to come back to life. But no dice.
similar to his mother's, Kirishima's energy seemed to override everything else around him as he went from one activity to the next, prepping and training for the upcoming trip that was surely about to be canceled.
This, for some reason, was unsurprising to Bakugou.
If Kirishima didn't work then he wouldn't bother trying Kaminari or Sero, "Not like those idiots would know what to do," Bakugou thought, really wishing Xochitl had given the flower to anyone he gave a minutiae of a shit about instead of Uraraka.
Nonetheless, finding her indeed seemed to be the thing that would save him.
Fucking how though?
The clock ticked on as he wandered from place to place in the hopes of finding her.
After listening to and overhearing so many of the stupid triad of nerds conversations between Uraraka, Iida, and Deku, he thought he should know where to look.
Uraraka was driven, by what he couldn't be sure, but she thought deeply about training and school, and clearly strategized well on her own if the festival was anything to go by.
Maybe Xochitl was onto something with Uraraka.
That fight had been great - one of the highlights of the year for him. She'd gone all out and pulled him right along with her. Before she'd tapped, he was wondering how Todoroki would top it, what with half-in-half lacking any kind of passion.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad being… assisted by Uraraka.
Just like that, something jarred him.
Like a pulse replacing his absent heartbeat, a tug in his chest set him on a path. Something he felt more than knew. Twisting and turning down alleyways and busy streets until he came to a small complex, up onto the second floor, and into Uraraka's cramped apartment where she sat enjoying dinner with her parents.
As expected, they continued eating, unaware of his arrival save for a sudden flick of Uraraka's concerned gaze around the room. The atmosphere was light, a little on edge but otherwise, Bakugou felt optimistic about his task.
In the kitchen space, on top of a rack full of pots and dishware, sat a small cup with a yellow flower, confirming that Xochitl had indeed met Uraraka.
That was all he needed to be sure this would work.
"Alright..." Bakugou said, stretching as if in preparation for a fight. "...let's get going, Round Face."
Being unable to touch things was making getting Uraraka's attention considerably fucking harder than expected.
None the less, Bakugou continued prodding while Uraraka and her parents chatted and played koi-koi all night.
At the very least, he got to hear her serious renditions of events and stories she told of their classmates, and the misadventures of class 1-A. Though it grated on his nerves how she talked up Deku, Iida, and Todoroki like they were hot shit.
"Yeh, it's so amazing because now he finally doesn't have to break his fingers every time he fights and then maybe he won't be so scared of Bakugou-kun."
"Oh, that boy. Don't get me started…"
"What's that old man…" Bakugou started, mid-flick of Uraraka's fringe.
"Papa! Please, not this again!"
"Well, you have to admit, your fight did seem a bit...violent. And then from what you tell us about how he still treats that poor Deku boy."
"No...err...yes, I know. But it's not...it's really complicated between them, I think. And I've talked to Bakugou-kun about it. Even though he doesn't like the things I have to say, I know he still hears me because Bakugou treats me like equal." She defended, causing Bakugou to settle on his butt beside her, simultaneously affronted and surprised that she was defending him. "Yes, fighting him hurt, but he gave it his all, and because he did that I was able to do the same. He's so cool and powerful; I want to be that too! I can't wait to fight him again! I was hoping camp would give us another chance, but now that it's canceled, I'll just have to keep working hard so that when we do fight again, I'll win." She said with a smile, heat, and determination twinkling in her eyes.
Bakugou's razor-sharp grin split across his lips at the unexpected praise and excitement in her declaration, and the same thrill he felt during their match bloomed in his veins, thrumming under his skin. "Bring it, Cheeks!"
Uraraka gasped, clutching at her chest momentarily in a way that instantly shifted Bakugou's emotions, splashing him with the same confusion and chill he felt when he watched her go down after their match.
"Alright there tiger, I didn't mean to work you up." Her dad said coming over to rub circles into her back and make sure she was okay. "You're all we've got so it's tough not to worry. But I can't argue with that look in your eye." Her father said a bit tiredly.
Bakugou quirked a brow at the older man.
"We'll clean up Chako, you go ahead and do whatever you usually do before bed." Her mother called after her.
"Chako? Heh." Bakugou chuckled at her nickname.
"Thanks, Mama, I'll try to be quick." She said, looking unnerved, retreating into the bathroom. Bakugou didn't even consider following as his eyes checked the time on her cell phone.
With the evening drawing to a close, he had exhausted every idea he could think of to bother her. Trolling her with trash talk while she sat with her parents, poking through her and stomping around - all to no avail.
She clearly felt something.
But he still couldn't reach her.
After some time, Uraraka emerged from the bath in loose violet pants and a tank top, looking refreshed, carrying the soft scent of her shampoo with her.
Her parents had laid out futons while she bathed and Bakugou went to the sole room in the apartment, assuming Uraraka would be sleeping away from her parents.
The room was small, plain and sparse. A futon beside a desk with a small monitor atop it, drawers, a small sliding closet for her bed things and some clothes.
Exhausted, despite his condition, Bakugou just sat beside her desk, waiting and watching her hug and kiss her parent's goodnight before shutting the door behind her.
"Isn't that fucking sweet." He wrinkled his nose, thinking of how he still occasionally fought against his parent's attempts at affection. But the memory of his mother's emotions and the sound of her sob before he left his house hit him like a slap, and he sat uncomfortably in that feeling, unsure of what to do.
Uraraka, oblivious to him, slipped under her blankets, her mood completely changed from the one she put up for her parents as she clicked off the lamp. The cheery facade was gone, replaced by a sullen expression he didn't know what to make of.
Completely aware that he was seeing a classmate in a vulnerable position, Bakugou felt like he was just now realizing he was a ghost, invading her home, a meter away, witnessing some conflict play out at a time most people let things get to them.
"Go to sleep Round Face, whatever you're thinking, just stop." He commanded, wanting to get rid of his discomfort.
She sighed and closed her eyes.
...
Strangely enough, almost as quickly as sleep took her, did Uraraka wake to the droning of a voice.
"What a lot of people probably don't realize is that the registration system wasn't the only reason Destro started gathering people with quirks to rebel against the government. If you read outside of textbooks, disappearances of people he knew, and rumors of experimentation being done by private companies, facilitated by corrupt politicians, did way more than just erode his trust in the systems being built..."
Rolling over, she cracked open her eyes just enough to see, none other than, Bakugou, sitting beside her, leaning against her desk, going on about the events that led to the development of the quirk registry, the villain Destro, and the Meta Liberation War like he was telling some kind of grim bedtime story.
Just a dream, She thought and smiled, strange as it was, snuggling in deeper, happy to listen to his seemingly bored yet content drawl and the gritty quality to his voice that sounded like a mean cat purring.
Dreams really must be built on the foundation of one's waking thoughts if Bakugou was here. After the festival, final exams and the special class, it was difficult to get out of her head how far she still had to improve, even if it seemed like he had some trust in her abilities.
He talked on, staring at the wall, sounding resigned.
Other than making her a bit sad, Uraraka thought it wasn't the worst dream she could be having. His cadence would help her get to another dream.
Just as she was falling back to sleep, he stopped, sighing in a way she'd never heard - like he was on the verge of defeat, and her eyes snapped open.
Even in her dreams, she wouldn't accept that, because the real Bakugou would never make that sound.
"Bakugou-kun…" she'd said, lifting up on an elbow to get a good look at him, tapping him on the knee. Ochako could swear she surprised him. Strange considering it was her room and dream. "Don't give up. That sound doesn't suit you. You're doing great," she whispered with a smile before turning back over, chuckling at the slight reddening of his ears under the light of her window.
"Wait, Uraraka." He whispered back harshly.
"Please, Bakugou-kun, I have to get up early to see my parents off. When I dream like this, I don't feel like I've slept at all."
"No, Uraraka, wait, it's really me! I need your help!"
She chuckled softly to herself. "Bakugou-kun wouldn't come to me for anything." She laughed again, this time a touch of melancholy riding the lilt as she thought of his raw strength, the heat of envy tugging at her heart. "'Sides, it's just studying. You're perfect." She sighed. "Night Bakugou-kun."
The sound of his ranting revved up.
Finding it much more comforting than whatever Bakugou was doing before, she closed her eyes, willing herself to dream different dreams.
Next Time: Bakugou is running out of time...