A/N:

I'm contemplating having a couple of chapters from Izuku's point of view. As much as I want this to be entirely Katsuki's story, I feel like there's more to be seen and learnt from Izuku's perspective.

Let me know what you think :)

Katsuki's smart watch vibrated harshly, Deku sending him a warning that something was coming up from behind his right side and Katsuki, already in the air, threw his right arm out to his side, letting out a blast and forcing his body to the left, narrowly missing the giant spear like quill that had been launched his way.

Shit had hit the fan so quickly that Katsuki had lost sight of the green idiot but the buzzing on his wrist was all he needed to know that wherever the nerd was, he wasn't far away. Katsuki let out another blast, turning his body in midair to face his target on the ground, a porcupine like villain with a pointed snout like face and a back of large quills. The villain reached back with teeth bared, wrapping their three fingered hand around a quill and pulling it out effortlessly before taking up a javelin throwing stance, aiming their weapon of choice Katsuki's way again. The villain had strength behind their throws, enough for it to be possible to be skewered by their quirk and therefore Katsuki needed to close the distance fast, before they could pull another one out and take the asshole down so he could get back to the original villain he had been chasing after. That villain was quickly creating distance between them, a thought that made Katsuki's face screw up with rage at the present distraction before him.

Katsuki and Deku had been on a simple patrol until three villains burst from a building after robbing it. Katsuki had gone after the quickest of them, Deku taking on another whilst their buddy decided to get in their way rather than flee. As much as Katsuki would have mocked the porcupine villain for being a coward, he wished they had made a run for it, then Katsuki would have more time to take down the escaping villain, get Deku's villain under control and then they could hunt down the spiky one. Usually Katsuki would put checking in on Deku at the bottom of that priority list – Katsuki couldn't deny that Deku was plenty capable – but with the knowledge of the idiot's heart condition he couldn't escape the irritating concern that gnawed at his insides every time anything of interest happened. The nerd currently being out of his line of sight did not help with that either.

With lips pulled back to reveal a hopefully horrifying sneer, Katsuki maneuvered through the air with multiple blasts, dodging the villains next projectile and closing the distance before they could pull another quill. Katsuki's feet touched the ground, knees bending as his momentum slid his body towards the villain, hands coming forward to let loose a blast at close range. And with that, the villain was down for the count.

Katsuki stood back at his full height; face still plastered with a sneer as he quickly took in his surroundings in search of Deku. There was a flickering of green coming from an alleyway, but before Katsuki could head for it, something flew from it and collided with the front of the building across the street, breaking through the glass of a store front.

Deku of all people emerged from the building, hero suit torn in places, skin marked with bleeding scratches and broken glass glittering in his hair. The greenette bared his teeth across the street at the villain emerging confidently from the alleyway, but he had no time to make a move before the villain lashed out, kicking a car from their side of the street and launching it towards Deku. He used an air force flick to stop the cars momentum and let it drop back to the street, but right behind it was a second car and a third, being picked up like they weighed nothing and launched Deku's way.

Katsuki was in the air instantly, blasting himself into the path of the hurling vehicles. He took on one, hands coming forward and blasting the car off its trajectory and back down onto the asphalt of the street where it would cause the least amount of damage. Deku's black whip dealt with the third and final car, swinging his arm to throw it off to the side and down the street in the opposite direction to Katsuki, directing it to land a little more gently than Katsuki's had. But taking that extra second to do so was a mistake, a fourth car following behind. Katsuki had only just landed on the street and turned back to see it flying through the air right for the greenette.

Katsuki's heel was grinding into the grit of the asphalt as he turned his whole body, arms reaching back to get himself into the air. While Deku braced himself, knees bending, stance widening and hands rising to catch the vehicle and protect the civilians hiding deeper in the store behind him.

Katsuki's wrist vibrated a warning.

The car hit the store front, sinking into it with its momentum. Deku disappeared behind it or under it, Katsuki had no clue and he felt like his breath had caught in his throat. Katsuki wanted to rush there, to reach in and find the damn nerd, but he was suddenly faced with a bigger villain had turned their sights on him and without Deku to warn him, Katsuki was lucky that the motorbike being tossed his way only swiped a couple of fingers, no doubt snapping them. But the pain only made Katsuki's snarl fiercer as he swung his body towards the villain getting in his way and brought his hands together – throbbing fingers be damned – to fire an AP shot right at the meat brained villain. They were solid and strong, but too slow to dodge Katsuki's blast and once they were down, Katsuki came in closer just to make sure they would stay down long enough for him to safely reach Deku and the trapped civilians.

The car crammed into the face of the building was butted out harshly, scraping across the asphalt, stripping the paint from its side to reveal Deku still standing inside. His face was bloody from a cut along his hairline but even with one eye closed he looked strong and fierce, holding up the caving in ceiling with both hands over his head, his foot landing back down on the trashed floor firmly, having kicked the car out of the way. The civilians inside gushed out, moving around him like water flowing around a rock. There weren't many, but after the car had taken out the stores structural integrity and with the ceiling crumbling in above them – the worst of it being where Deku stood holding it up – several were hesitant to pass him to escape. It was foolish of them really, but after being a hero for so long, Katsuki got it. People's brains did stupid shit sometimes when they were scared, shocked or panicked. With a growl to himself, Katsuki headed for them, approaching the store front so he could yank them out and Deku could finally get out from under the lumps of concrete and metal he was holding up. As Katsuki neared he could see the nerd's mouth moving, telling the dumb fucks to hurry up and get out.

Katsuki's watch vibrated again.

Deku's face had already been hard, one eye closed due to the bleeding and teeth bared from the effort of holding up the damn ceiling, but after that second warning that changed. Deku shut his other eye tightly, nose and brows scrunching as he felt his heart do whatever the fuck it was doing this time. He opened his mouth wider, calling with more urgency for the civilians to get out, and something in his voice worked that time, three of the remaining five in the depths of the store making their legs moved and scurrying past the greenette, who's mouth now hung open, panting for air.

Katsuki was running now, so close and desperate to reach the nerd, to tackle him to the ground and hope his body was enough protection against the falling rubble. If only to make the nerd stop like the doctor had ordered him too.

One of the remaining two seemed to pick up on Deku's worsening condition and began to move forward.

The smart watched buzzed again.

Then the ceiling dropped.

Katsuki shot awake with a sharp intake of air chilling his throat. He blinked furiously, his eyes taking a moment to adjust to the darkness to reveal his bedroom surrounding him. The air suddenly attacked him on another front as it chilled the sweat on his skin, his bare torso and face feeling the brunt of it. Within mere seconds his brain pieced together that it had all just been a bad dream, but that did little to settle his mind.

Regardless of it being a dream, Katsuki couldn't resist the urge to look to his smart watch and open the app that monitored Deku's heart remotely. It was there, the line zig-zagging up and down to the rhythm of a normal, sleeping heart rate.

Usually after waking up sweaty and gross in bed Katsuki would just get up and have an early start to the day, featuring putting on a load of laundry – complete with Katsuki's own special detergent to combat his sweat in particular – and a new bed to make, but Katsuki couldn't bring himself to do any of that in that moment. He didn't even look at the time or stop to shower before he was slipping on a shirt over his head, pulling pants on and shoving feet into shoes.

If his mind and heart wouldn't slow, then neither could his body.

Only minutes later his fist was beating against Deku's apartment door having blasted his way there. He had no time or patience for running there or catching a taxi. It was still dark out and the streets were mostly absent so no one had paid him much mind and he had mastered the skill long ago to control his quirk to release more frequent small explosions to propel him more quietly – he could only hope that was still the case.

The door opened to reveal a brightly lit room and a groggy, sleepy eyed nerd blinking at him. A second later and Deku snapped into alert mode, grabbing Katsuki's arm and pulling him into the apartment before sticking his head out to glance up and down the walkway.

Katsuki waved his hands about, catching the nerd's attention, explaining quickly that he wasn't under attack. His heart was racing like he had just run a marathon so he didn't trust his words to come easily without him having to stop and catch his breath.

The greenette turned his head to blink at Katsuki questioningly at that, but before he bothered to lift his arms and sign anything, he more calmly stepped back inside properly and closed the door.

What's wrong Kacchan? It's – he paused to look at his smart watch, it's default non-hero work function being that of a standard watch – two in the morning. Did something happen?

Katsuki didn't want to waste time. They were due to return to their first patrol later that day and even though it was hours away, Katsuki's heart pounded like he was racing against the clock. He was glad the heart monitor function didn't work both ways.

Let's take a year off, Katsuki signed. Deku's face screwed up at that with confusion. He didn't need to lift his hands to ask the "what?" that was written all over his face.

Let's not go back to being heroes for a bit longer. We'll take time off.

Kacchan, what are you on about? Deku signed back, the scrutiny of his features lessening, but the confusion remained in his eyes.

A gap year, Katsuki called it after a recalling his conversation with Kirishima, let's take a year off from being heroes and just do what we want for a year.

Deku raised his hands; eyes closed and gave his head a little shake. A universal gesture for "hang on"

Where is this coming from? I thought you would be eager to get back to work, Deku looked to Katsuki again with a frown. And he wasn't wrong. Yes, Katsuki wanted to get back to being a hero. He wanted to sign up with a good agency. He wanted to be the number one hero in Japan, the world even. None of that had changed, but slowly his priorities had been shifting and it wasn't till Kirishima had said what he had that really made Katsuki face things head on.

There were things out there more important that being the best hero, more important than himself and his own aspirations. And that was life. Katsuki had been so focused on his goal to be the best hero that he had pushed every other aspect of his life away. That wasn't some new realization of his though. He had turned his nose up at the thought of romantic relationships, sexual pursuits, investing in friendships and spending quality time with his family for as long as he could recall. He had always placed being a hero above all else and because of that he had missed out – was missing out – on living life. And more importantly than that was Deku. Deku who was allegedly running out of time. Katsuki could sit there and argue to himself that he would always have more time to do those secondary things later in life after he had made his dream a reality, but the reality was that it could take years, it already had and could take several more. Deku on the other hand, if what the doctor had been saying turned out to be true, didn't have the luxury to just put such things like traveling and having unique experiences in his back pocket for later.

And even if the doctor was wrong, and Deku would recover, that didn't mean the nerd was free from the risk of death. No one was. Deku could die from something unrelated to his heart any day. A villain attack, an accident, some other illness, anything could happen. And it could happen to anyone. Kirishima could die on the job tomorrow; his parents could be in a car accident or get caught up in a villain attack. Katsuki himself could die any day. Shit just happened sometimes and could happen to anyone.

So why had Katsuki not seen it before, the importance of living? Everyone was mortal and only had the one life – some quirks aside – and if Katsuki died that today, he would have regrets. He'd regret not making more effort with friends, for not spending more time with his parents even though they got on his nerves, for not taking the time to stop and breath and take in the world around him without it always being through the eyes of someone expecting an attack.

And Katsuki wanted that. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to take the time to stop and experience what life had to offer. It didn't mean his desire to be a top hero was being replaced, it was still there and burning as bright as ever, but if it was just a year, several months, whatever he could manage to get Deku to agree on, then that would suit him fine. It was just a break after all. More importantly than that, he needed Deku to agree with it. Because at the end of the day, Katsuki needed Deku to be a hero, but Deku didn't need him like that. If Deku decided that he didn't want to take any more time off of hero work than he already had, then there was little Katsuki could do other than stick with the nerd despite it all or leave him. A displeasing thought.

Is this because of my hea- Deku began, but Katsuki suddenly waved his hands about between them, not signing anything in particular, but just to stop the nerd from going down that rabbit hole. Because yes, it was to do with that, but that wasn't the sole reason to it and he needed the nerd to see that. Once the other man lowered their hands, Katsuki took over.

All we've been doing since graduating is work. Other than with me, when have you taken time off outside of health reasons? Katsuki pressed lightly. He needed Deku to see reason, not flare up and make the nerd dig in his heels. Deku twisted his lips slightly with thought, but in the end he didn't have an answer.

I was talking to shitty hair about it – he signed "shitty hair" rather than spending the time to spell out Kirishima since they hadn't made a custom sign for the other man yet and Deku would know exactly who he meant – we both did things we hadn't before. Don't you want to do more of that stuff? Deku pursed his lips together and dropped his gaze a little. In the bright light of the living-kitchen area Katsuki caught a glimpse of pink dusting Deku's cheeks and the moment Katsuki realized why, he felt heat creep up his own neck and carried on quickly.

Your bucket list, Katsuki went on, Deku's eyes focusing on his hands, we can work on that.

Deku's green eyes lifted to gaze up at Katsuki for a moment, lips relaxing back to a more neutral frown before he raised his hands to sign in return.

We? The nerd asked, so this is because of me. You don't have to stop being a hero because of me Kacchan. If you don't want me to be your partner anymore, I can help you find someone else who –

Katsuki barked out loudly for Deku to stop and the nerd's hands froze, bright green eyes locking onto red. The blonde closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, channelling Kirishima's patience.

It's not about that crap, Katsuki enforced with slow, firm signs, all I'm saying is that we hold off going back to being heroes and just live our fucking lives for a bit. Katsuki paused, eyes narrowing on the nerd, waiting for the freckled man to reply with some sort of argument against it. But Deku's eyes looked right back onto Katsuki's as though he were searching for something there before he finally raised his hands again.

Hold off for how long? The greenette asked, his eyes looking downward again as his brows creased with thought, We have less than three months left before our permit is up and then we were supposed to choose an agency before then, Katsuki could see Deku starting to spiral, we are so close Kacchan, emerald eyes lifted to Katsuki's again, if we stop now then the chances of an agency taking us will decrease and it won't look good for us. We've already taken too much time off as it is. If we take more time off now than it will negatively affect our careers when we come back and – Katsuki reached forward with lighting speed and caught Deku's wrists in each of his hands to halt his increasingly frantic signing.

He repeated for the nerd to simply stop with a sigh. Anything the nerd had to say, Katsuki had already mulled over himself, but the nightmare that had woken him had been a stark image of Katsuki's concerns; Deku not stopping or being in no position to stop what he was doing when his heart gave protest and he could all too easily envision something like that event occurring in reality. Katsuki was a damn good hero, but he was also human, despite how much he wanted to, he couldn't lie to himself that he would be at Deku's side one-hundred percent of the time, because shit like annoying extra villains to deal with could happen any day on the job. He couldn't guarantee that he would be glued to Deku every second of their shift.

It didn't have to be said that Deku knew Katsuki wasn't saying the whole truth and that's because Katsuki didn't need to say it for the nerd to know it. The greenette's health was the main reason Katsuki was pushing for this and he'd be lying if he wasn't worried that the nerd would shake his head and turn his back on Katsuki, choosing to continue being a hero at the cost of his health.

Deku relaxed his arms, allowing Katsuki to slowly push them down and back to the nerd's side before he released his hold on them and took another deep sigh before he opened his mouth to tell the nerd that he had already thought of all that crap and that at the end of the day did it really matter? They were made to be top heroes and the media looking down on them for taking a break and putting themselves first for a change would do little to stop them from having a powerful come back. Deku thought on that for a moment with his lips pressed together before he looked Katsuki in the eye again and gave a slight nod.

And that was all Katsuki had needed.

With that one small movement of agreement, a weight lifted from Katsuki's shoulders and he felt he could breath more deeply again, more freely than before. Until that moment, it had felt like a vice had slowly been crushing his chest from the inside as he toiled more and more over the complications and risks of Deku returning to hero work.

Katsuki took a step back, doing his best not to let his body visibly sag with his relief. He let his eyes close for a moment, breathing deeply as he reminded himself that he wasn't doing this just for the nerd's sake – though it was the leading factor for sure – but for himself too. Kirishima had been right and although the red head was living life through a romantic relationship, Katsuki could achieve the same by experiencing new things; climbing those mountains, walking those trails, visiting those places he had always told himself he would do someday. Now that day was that much closer.

It's early, did you want to stay here Kacchan? Katsuki had let his gaze lower, Deku's hand signs bringing his attention up again.

You must be tired, the nerd went on, a ghost of a smile touching his lips and Katsuki couldn't decide what he saw in those green eyes, whether it was a touch of sadness or something else. Or perhaps the sleepiness was starting to come back to him. It certainly was for Katsuki now that the overwhelming urge to push the issue with Deku was over.

Katsuki gave the waiting greenette a slight nod of his own and the nerd's smile grew a little, his eyes lightening with something more natural before he turned for his bedroom and returned a moment later with a spare pillow from his bed and an all too familiar All Might throw blanket. The nights were still warm enough that Katsuki probably wouldn't even need that seeing as how his body ran a little hotter than Deku's did. Rather than handing them to Katsuki, Deku laid the items out on the sofa, pulling the cushions away to allow more room for Katsuki to lay. He fluffed up the pillow and placed it to one end while he shook out the red, blue, yellow and white striped blanket before laying it out evening over the surface. It was more care than Katsuki needed and thankfully the pants Katsuki had pulled on were simple track suit pants so he didn't need to borrow any of Deku's shit to sleep in.

Once satisfied with his work, Deku stood up straight again and smiled lightly Katsuki's way. His smile seemed a little forced but faded back a moment later as a thought crossed the nerd's mind.

Kacchan, the shitty nerd started, why did you come here at two in the morning to talk to me about this? His stupid little green head tilted to one side like a curious puppy and Katsuki instinctually felt his teeth grind. He marched over to the sofa, tore the freshly laid out blanket from its surface and barked a good night Deku's way aggressively before practically letting gravity carry him onto the sofa, turning to lay on his side with his back to Deku and shoved an arm beneath the pillow to firm it up some.

Deku flicked the light off a moment later and assumedly returned to his own bed to sleep, leaving Katsuki frowning on the sofa in the darkness of the apartment, surrounded with Deku's scent.

Katsuki wondered when he had become so damn soft to put his career second. A year ago he would have seethed at the idea. This wasn't just for him, he told himself, but for the both of them.

A/N: Look at Katsuki trying to find every reason possible under the sun to convince himself that taking time off work to experience what life had to offer wasn't all about Izuku because it's not after all... LIES! Izuku's health is more like 99.9% the reason Katsuki is pushing for time off and despite what he tries to tell himself, both he and Izuku know that Katsuki would still be putting his hero career first if it wasn't for Izuku. perhaps this shall all be a good lesson to the blonde to really absorb that there is indeed more important things in life than one's career and all of his self-convincing words aren't all that empty after all...

Originally I was going to have an argument break out between Katsuki and Izuku over the whole postponing work thing, but I figured that 1. That could drag it on for another chapter and 2. Izuku may be passionate about his hero work - and Katsuki's too - but he's also not dumb, nor reckless (most of the time) so I could see their interaction going one of two ways, one being emotional and with tempers flaring (in my mind this led to Deku refusing and going back to hero work alone until Katsuki finally calmed enough to attempt to convince Izuku again) or that Izuku would be more calm and rational about it, weighing up the pros and cons in his mind (Pro: would prevent his health deteriorating at a faster pace, get to spend more time with Kacchan and do fun new things. Cons: not only affect his hero career, but impact Kacchan's too, damaging his reputation when Izuku couldn't physically go on being a hero anymore. Despite his health, Izuku has plans to fulfil and that includes getting Kacchan a solid footing in a good agency so when Izuku is gone, that Kacchan can go on being a top hero)