Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia and any of its characters used in this fanfic.

A/N: Dun, dun, dun! Introducing...the third one-shot for Katsuyu Week 2018! The prompt for Day 3 is Changes. (If any of you want to contribute, head on over to katsuyuweek on Tumblr to see the prompts, rules, and guidelines!)

Once again, this is another aged-up AU, but not that much. They're younger than they are in the previous two one-shots, but they're still adults, of course.

A bit of heavy stuff is mentioned because I felt it really tied with the prompt for this day. I also did my best to really hone in and focus on the relationship these two had in this one-shot because it's a lot more different from the previous ones due to the heavy stuff mentioned.

As always, fair warning: expect some coarse language. (Katsuki doesn't curse as much in this, but he still curses.)

With that said, enjoy!

Eventual

Day 3: Changes

Katsuki continued to watch the movie, stuffing his face with buttered popcorn whenever he was done chewing as he laid back on his couch. The large bowl was on his lap, and he was close to finishing it—with no help from Tsuyu, of course. Somehow, she had fallen asleep, and Katsuki honestly didn't even notice until he heard the slow, steady sound of her breathing.

Katsuki didn't mind her falling asleep or the fact that she was resting her head on his shoulder. Her hair didn't bother him since it was tied into a messy bun, and her oversized shirt dress hid most of the curves he knew she had. The only curves he could see were her shapely legs because of her black leggings. Somehow, she made that outfit work, compared to him, who just wore a simple black t-shirt and black athletic gym shorts.

To be honest, he had gotten comfortable with Tsuyu. He didn't know how or when, but maybe it was because they had started hanging out more frequently after she had caught him punching the flooring of a building's flat rooftop late in the night again and again to the point where he had bloody knuckles and had to bandage both his hands.

He didn't like the fact that she had caught him so off-guarded—because hell, he just wanted a space away from society on one of the tallest buildings in the city to think—to reflect on what he had fucking done.

It didn't help that the media had caught onto his stupid mistake either. He had wanted to say it was an accident, and he had thrown around the words of killing and stabbing and exploding so easily that…that he forgot that even villains, no matter how small they were, had family, friends—that they were just like any other human being except that somehow strayed from the path most people would've stuck with.

"Oh… Is it over already?"

Katsuki blinked, realizing that yes, the movie was over, but he didn't dare move a muscle. It was comfortable—too comfortable with her head on his shoulder, in fact. Honestly, a part of him was tempted to lean his on hers, if he could.

Katsuki tried his best to ignore those thoughts, deciding to finish the last of the popcorn instead. "Yeah. You fell asleep like halfway through or something." He paused. "If you were that tired, you could've just stayed at home and slept."

Tsuyu finally moved her head away from his shoulder and blearily looked at him with a sleepy gaze. She stared at him for a few seconds before she finally shook her head. "No."

"No?" Katsuki repeated, placing the bowl aside on the couch.

"We've been planning this for weeks now, and we always had to change it because one of us would have some last-minute superhero emergency." Tsuyu yawned, covering her mouth. "Missing this would mean it would get pushed off until who knows when."

Katsuki stared at Tsuyu, watching how she was on the verge of closing her eyes again, and he sighed. "I knew we should've done this at your place."

"But you're the one with Netflix." Tsuyu paused. "Oh, and your couch."

"We could've watched some other movie. DVDs and Blu-rays are still a thing, you know." Katsuki paused before he frowned. "Wait, what does my couch have to do with this?"

"It's a very comfy couch."

"Don't you have one at your place?"

"Yes, but I like yours more," Tsuyu replied, leaning back on the couch. "It's a lot bigger than mine, too."

Katsuki sighed in exasperation as he grabbed his PS4 controller to log out of Netflix. "Okay, well, what's the plan now? You still hungry?" Katsuki then grabbed the remote to turn off the TV as he waited for her response, but when she didn't reply, he frowned, put the remote down, and turned to face her. "Hey, wake up."

Tsuyu blearily opened her eyes again. "Huh?"

"For fuck's sake, what time did you go to bed last night?"

Tsuyu's eyes widened for a second before she pursed her lips.

Katsuki frowned even more, realizing that she was now fully awake based on her reaction. "Well?"

"I…didn't sleep until 5:00 A.M."

Katsuki's eyes widened. "What the hell? Why?"

"I…" Tsuyu sighed, looking away. "I was thinking about what happened last year. You know, with you, I mean."

Katsuki frowned. "Oh. That. Look, you don't need to worry about that. I'm over it."

"You say that, but there are times when I've seen you hesitate with finishing off your opponent in battle."

"Hey, I do finish off my opponents—"

"I meant to the point where they're dead, Bakugo."

Katsuki's mouth stayed open for a few seconds before he finally shut it and pursed his lips. He tried to say something, but when Tsuyu turned her head to look at him, he immediately averted his gaze and sighed. "Why are you even bringing this up? It happened in the past—"

"Because I'm scared."

Katsuki raised an eyebrow.

"I'm scared that if something like that happens again, you might lose yourself," Tsuyu replied softly. "That's all."

Katsuki felt a part of his heart wrench once he saw Tsuyu's expression turn into one of concern—and God, she looked downright frightened—so he sighed. "I'll be fine. I promise."

There was a moment of silence before Tsuyu brought her knees up, almost curling into a small ball as she looked down.

Katsuki resisted the urge to reach out to her. He didn't know why he had that feeling, honestly, but seeing that look on her face made him want to make her feel better somehow.

"You'd think the media outlets would be on our side," Tsuyu muttered loudly enough for him to hear.

"Yeah, well, they'll do anything to get a story."

Tsuyu brought her gaze up to look at Katsuki. "But to do that to an 18-year-old new superhero?"

Katsuki shrugged. "Like I said, they'll do anything. They're just lucky I'm a superhero. Otherwise, I would've gotten away with exploding their headquarters by now." Katsuki paused. "Maybe I should become a supervillain."

Tsuyu immediately slapped his arm.

Katsuki snorted, smirking a bit at her. "I was kidding. Damn."

"Don't joke about things like that. I mean it."

"I said I was kidding, though." Katsuki paused, seeing her expression turn into one of fear and panic, and he frowned. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"I…I had a nightmare the other day. With you in it." Tsuyu paused, pursing her lips. "And in it, you became a supervillain after you killed an actual villain and the media forsook you for it. You started going after villains one by one, not even caring if they were a small-time low-ranked robber. And then…you started going after superheroes." Tsuyu paused again, her breath hitching. "You…You went after me."

Katsuki's eyes widened.

"I-I don't remember much of it. I just remember how scared I was of you and how you screamed about how I never should've shown any pity to you. And you mentioned something about revenge for mocking you from back in high school, and… I…I don't know." Tsuyu's breathing had become unsteady, nearing hyperventilation.

"Hey, hey, hey," Katsuki said, reaching his hand out to rub Tsuyu's back, and he didn't like how she had initially flinched before relaxing into his touch. Once she had calmed down, he sighed. "Just so we're clear, I'd never hurt you. Ever."

Tsuyu turned her head to him in response.

"I mean it," Katsuki confirmed as he narrowed his eyes. "So that nightmare you had was just it—a nightmare. It wasn't real. None of it happened."

"But—"

"And I'm not going to make the same mistake twice," Katsuki interrupted before he frowned. "I learned my lesson the first time."

"Okay," Tsuyu whispered, pursing her lips.

Katsuki stared at her in response before he blinked in realization, remembering that he needed to check the time. He looked at his watch and saw that it was already 10:00 P.M. "Want me to drive you home?"

"No, I can take the train home."

Katsuki frowned. "It's pretty damn late, though."

"I'll be fine. I'm Froppy, remember?" Tsuyu replied, smiling a bit.

Katsuki rolled his eyes and stood up. "Okay, I'm driving you home, period."

Tsuyu blinked in surprise. "What? Why?"

"Because you're exhausted, and the trains will stop running in about 30 minutes."

"I can make it to the station—"

"And given with what you just told me, I don't want to leave you alone by yourself right now," Katsuki interrupted, raising an eyebrow.

Tsuyu frowned a bit before averting her gaze in guilt.

"You're better off with me driving you home, so come on. Get up already."

Tsuyu let out a small sigh before she stood up from the couch and stretched. "Okay, Mr. Bossy Explosion Pants."

Katsuki glared at her in response.

Tsuyu smiled before she turned around and began heading to the doorway.

"She just always has to have the last word," Katsuki grumbled before he frowned, grabbed his keys, and followed her.

Still, he'd rather see her smile than be sad, so maybe Tsuyu poking fun at him wasn't so bad if she had the energy to do that. He knew they at least enjoyed hanging out with each other and that she was one of the reasons why he managed to stay sane during that whole media fiasco—and it was that same closeness that made him feel so comfortable around her and not so hot-tempered, even though she did like to push his buttons.

"Bakugo?" Tsuyu called.

"What?" Katsuki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You okay? You seemed like you were zoning out. I could always take a taxi home if you're tired."

"I'm fine, Asui. I can easily drive you home."

"If you say so."

When they both left his apartment, Tsuyu's hand had accidentally brushed against his. Neither of them made a comment, and he was thankful for that. Even though it was for a few seconds, he enjoyed that feeling, and surprisingly, he began to crave it a lot more than he thought he would.