A/N: This is my first attempt with this fic to include Izuku's perspective. I don't yet know how I feel about it, but I do plan on a couple of chapters of his POV later on also. It just feels so late for me to include it but seeing as this fic is still evolving and growing, I wanted to include his POV now so it would feel even less odd later :/ I just feel I should have had an Izuku POV chapter earlier on also now.

Kacchan always looked peaceful when he slept. Despite Izuku knowing the blonde practically all his life, it was still a rare sight. He had more opportunities to glimpse it when they were really young, but back then Izuku had never even considered that their friendship would have ever changed and he would lose that closeness to the blonde. There was also the fact that at that age, one did not look to their friend and think such things like how relaxed they looked. Izuku hardly ever saw the blonde sleeping throughout their school years, Kacchan taking his hero training far to serious to waste any daylight hours with sleep – on the odd field trip where their class would have to share sleeping space – while Izuku woke up several hours later in the morning like majority of the class did. That did all change briefly when their relationship seemed to mend and Kacchan would start banging on Izuku's door, waking his neighbours in the process, or even letting himself in if it was unlocked to drag him out to train at the crack of dawn.

But things were different now.

Back then Izuku had thought that Kacchan was just a natural morning person, but that turned out to not be the case, the blonde struggling to wake without an alarm. And having stormed over at two in the morning, the blonde was still fast asleep on the sofa. Having been woken up at such an early time himself, Izuku usually wouldn't have been up so early, but the growing pit of guilt deep inside Izuku's gut had kept him tossing and turning throughout the rest of the morning until he eventually just gave up once the sun had risen.

Their conversation from mere hours ago played on loop inside Izuku's head, only weighing him down with negative emotions more and more with each play through. Kacchan was risking his career because of Izuku. The blonde had only ever wanted to be the number one hero and his strong determination had always amazed Izuku ever since they were little. Kacchan could never be moved on that and yet here he was, the most stubborn person Izuku knew, throwing it all away for his sake. He would be lying if he wasn't moved by it, but he couldn't feel any warmth blooming inside his chest from it when all he could feel was the dread of what he had unwillingly caused.

Coming into this arrangement, Izuku had known he wouldn't be able to stay at Kacchan's side forever. All he had wanted was to restore his old childhood friend's dream and to hopefully somewhat mend their friendship while he was at it since it was the last chance he would have of repairing things with the blonde. He hadn't expected his health to decline as quickly as it had and it had put a spanner in the works, halting Kacchan's hero career in the process, which is NOT what Izuku wanted. The plan had been to get Kacchan back on track with his hero career, get him signed up and in a secure position with an agency and then ever so slowly Izuku could step away. He hadn't planned on disappearing but sharing that the quirk All Might had given him was destroying his body hadn't been a part of the plan either. Originally Izuku had just wanted to aim to upgrading the gear or finding Kacchan a new partner or something along those lines to make it that Kacchan didn't need him as a partner anymore so when Izuku would start to pull away under the pretence of doing other things, whether that be an overseas job or undercover mission, Kacchan could return to being a hero on his own. And Izuku knew Kacchan would do just that. He had always been a capable man.

It was frustrating though, being so close to taking that next step and signing on with an agency, then suddenly Kacchan didn't want to anymore. But Izuku knew Kacchan and knew that once his mind was made up, the blonde wouldn't budge on anything. That and that behind everything Kacchan had to say on the matter, he was doing it for Izuku. He could see reason within it. The more Izuku used his quirk, the more damaged his heart would become and doing hero work without his quirk – though he would like to believe not entirely impossible – would be foolish and risk those around him. Izuku had seen it coming for a while now, knowing that his time as a hero was limited and admittedly he hadn't stopped to put much thought into what he would do when that time came or what he would do after because no doubt there would be a period of time stretching between when he was no longer able to be a hero and before he passed eventually. His heart weakening at a faster rate than what his original doctor had estimated had thrown a wrench into all of his plans and now he had to face the consequences, that being; one, that Kacchan was now being affected and two, he now had to rethink his own future plans much sooner than he thought he'd have to.

That had ultimately lead them to here. With Kacchan insisting that they put a pause on their hero work and focus on the bucket list that Kacchan had pushed Izuku to create in the first place. That night, Izuku hadn't thought much of it as he spewed out things that he had always wanted to do – and some things that he knew would make the blonde's eyes twitch – but he had never thought anything would come from it. Izuku had never once wanted to be treated like he was dying. Kacchan had gone on about living life and having new experiences, but all Izuku wanted to do was go about his day like nothing was ever wrong with him until he physically couldn't anymore. Because that is what made him happy. He didn't want the people around him worrying over him or fussing over every small blip of his heart. He didn't want to be treated like he was dying. Izuku wanted to protect the people he cared about from such worries and that had included Kacchan.

Izuku had noticed the change in the blonde. It was minor but there none the less, he could see how the blonde watched over him in his own way, coming along to all of Izuku's appointments, having their watches fixed with a new function so Katsuki could be altered whenever Izuku's heart played up and even now, insisting that they put a stop to their hero work and do the things Izuku wanted to do.

With a sigh Izuku let his eyes close for a moment, forcing acceptance to wash over him. He couldn't fix his heart, nor take back what Kacchan now knew and if he could go back in time, he would have still chosen to be Kacchan's partner because at the end of the day Kacchan wouldn't ever stop being a hero. He would bounce right back onto the hero scene in his usual explosive fashion in no time. And at the end of it all, Izuku still had one thing to be happy about and that was that Kacchan wanted to spend time with him. Their friendship had experienced many up and downs over the years, but here and now it felt stronger than it ever had before and that was something Izuku could bask in. Being close friends with Kacchan was all he had ever wanted most of his life and here he was with the blonde waking him up and demanding that they take a break from hero work and experience life together. They were friends again, a team, partners. Not in the romantic sense of course – Izuku shook his head at that, letting his eyes open again as he gazed back down at the peaceful blonde before him and doing his best not to dwell on a certain key event between them – but an unstoppable duo, just as All Might had envisioned.

Izuku's stomach gave a growl to remind him of how long he had been awake for without breakfast and he turned on his heel towards his small kitchen to do something about it. A positive side to Kacchan being deaf – not that Izuku would have ever have wished that upon his friend – was that he didn't have to tip toe around the kitchen in fear of waking the blonde, who never was one to wake in a cheery mood. And the best way to prevent that was to have a meal waiting for Kacchan when he did wake.

Kacchan woke himself to the wafting scent of sizzling bacon and frying eggs as Izuku laboured away in the kitchen. He had never been the greatest of cooks and wasn't about to attempt anything beyond some basics and nothing was more basic than a western breakfast. It was something simple All Might had shown him once, the man having learnt it himself during his time abroad and though simple to make, the smell and taste was mouth watering enough to stir the glaring blonde from the sofa and had him trudging into the kitchen to inspect what Izuku was making from over his shoulder.

Without turning around to greet the blonde, Izuku laid down his spatula for a moment, freeing both hands and rose them to sign a good morning to Kacchan. They were both so familiar with sign language now that neither had to orientate themselves to face the other properly to sign. Kacchan gave an unamused snort and turned on his heel for the bathroom. The blonde had always taken pride in being able to sneak up on others, but after losing his hearing, it hadn't taken long for Kacchan to also loose his skill in silent stalking either. Izuku merely dared to allow himself a small smile of amusement at that as he finished up making their breakfast.

Bacon and eggs were served on buttered toast and topped with various seasonings, the grouchy blonde eating it without complaint which was really the best Izuku could have hoped for. Of course, Kacchan covered his in hot sauce, not something Izuku liked himself, but kept a small bottle at his place just for Kacchan ever since they had agreed to become partners and they had each crashed at the others place from time to time. Izuku also wasn't much of a coffee person but did have a little jar of it beside his kettle just for Kacchan also who occasionally – this morning included – partook in it.

Kacchan silently picked up both of their plates once done and took them to the sink, flicking on the kettle on his way before he dove into doing the dishes. He had never been much of a conversationalist in the mornings outside of yelling at others back in the dorms, so seeing Kacchan being so calm – once you could look past his I'd-rather-still-be-asleep glare – was always something that made Izuku feel special.

Izuku got up from his seat and tackled the stove top, wiping down its surface and surrounding area after his cooking had spit grease here and there.

"Here" Izuku turned at Kacchan's gruff morning voice to see the blonde holding a steaming mug to him. Izuku put down his cloth and accepted the drink in both hands, giving the blonde a smile and nod of gratitude. Kacchan gave a grunt of acknowledgment before taking a sip of his own and moved towards the sofa again, sitting there rather than laying back down. Izuku watched on as he brought the mug closer to his face and inhaled the strong coffee scent deeply. He associated the scent with Kacchan these days, so it was always warm and comforting to him.

At the sofa, Kacchan reached for his phone before scowling at it's lack of battery and throwing it down to the cushions with a rumbling growl. Izuku granted himself a small smirk at that before he placed his mug down on the countertop beside the stove, leaving his task for the moment as he fetched his laptop, unlocking it and placing it down open and ready before Kacchan. The blonde frowned Izuku's way before mumbling a "thanks" and opened the web browser while Izuku turned his attention back to his cleaning.

So what is the plan exactly?, Izuku signed in question once he was done in the kitchen and Kacchan had glanced up his way as he approached the sofa. He plonked himself down beside the blonde. Kacchan raised an eyebrow accompanied with a frown Izuku's way.

It's your idea to not go back to work, so what's your plan then? Izuku dared to roll his eyes and smirk almost teasingly. Kacchan responded with a huff through his nose.

We'll work on your bucket list, Kacchan lifted his hands in reply.

Right, Izuku dragged out, but where exactly? And what about things you want to do? Izuku added on with actual interest. As nice as it was for Kacchan to offer to help Izuku with his bucket list, it felt awfully selfish on top of the fact that Izuku was now the reason Kacchan wasn't returning to hero work.

I'm not the one dying apparently, Kacchan waved back with a scoff.

It hadn't escaped Izuku's attention that since Kacchan had become aware of his health, the blonde often used words that strongly hinted towards the idea that Izuku wasn't actually going to die. Something that was both warming and yet saddening at the same time. Izuku had never made a point of correcting the blonde or enforcing that he was indeed dying and that Kacchan had to accept that fact. For whatever reasons Kacchan refused to believe in it entirely was the blonde's business and Izuku was just going to be happy with his company for the duration of his journey.

Right, Izuku repeated again, what did you want to tick off first though? Not that they hadn't ticked items off already….

I don't fucking know, Kacchan threw back with some frustration, It's your damn list, you pick something.

Izuku had to think on that a moment. Did Kacchan mean to literally start working on it that very day? They still needed to contact their administrator to let them know that they didn't need to return to work either. And set up an automatic email to let anyone know who tried to contact them that they were unavailable. Maybe they should contact the agencies that had already reached out to them and let them know that they would require more time to make a decision. Or maybe Izuku could gently push Kacchan into choosing an agency now and therefore securing a timeframe for returning to work. Perhaps make a statement about why they were taking a break from hero work, get ahead of it before the media jumped to poor conclusions.

"Oi, nerd" Kacchan growled out, "stop fucking thinking and just pick something" despite his rumbling tone and occasional mumbled word, the blonde's eyebrows betrayed that he was more relaxed.

Today? Izuku asked but Kacchan just rolled his eyes and gave a sneer to let Izuku know that that should have been obvious. That put on some more pressure and Izuku had to rake his brain for things he had listed that they could do on the same day. So travel or anything that was further away wouldn't be suitable. Perhaps, Izuku thought, it would be easier to just think of something he would like to do locally in general rather than something that was bucket list level.

We could go to the museum, Izuku offered with a smile. Kacchan looked at him like he had just offered him a dead rat to eat. Izuku shot the blonde a quick sheepish smile and decided to think of something else.

How about the aquarium? Izuku tried again, flashing another smile the blonde's way.

A hand shot out and bopped Izuku atop his still messy – messier than usual from sleep – green hair and he tensed, frowning at the blonde. It hadn't been hard enough to hurt, but Kacchan was fast when he wanted to be and had caught Izuku off guard. A fact the blonde surprisingly didn't take the moment to bask in before he barked at Izuku.

"We're not going on a fucking date!" Kacchan growled, "We are supposed to be doing shit you haven't before"

Izuku twisted his lips with a mixture of thought and a pout at that.

I wasn't suggesting a date, Izuku threw back, they are things I would genuinely like to do.

"You've been to those shitholes before," Kacchan argued in return and rolled his eyes, pick something else, he finished, switching to signing before he turned his attention back to Izuku's laptop on his lap. The computer was at the wrong angle to let Izuku see the screen without making it obvious that he was looking. Despite it being his laptop, he knew the blonde would most likely snap at him again if he pried.

I don't think there's anything on the list that we can just drop everything and decide to do today, Izuku pointed out, his movements catching Kacchan's attention again as she blonde watched on through the corner of his ruby eye. Kacchan's eyes went back to the screen. He typed a little more before reaching what he was looking for and turned the screen Izuku's way. On the screen sat Kacchan's personal documents he had accessed through his account and there before Izuku was a typed out list of the things Izuku had listed for his bucket list. Along the list were notes here and there of ideas, follow up questions and comments Kacchan had thought of, places to visit where they could tick those items off the list and so on. It was all very impressive. And touching.

When did you do this? Izuku asked with parted lips and wide eyes.

"Quit gawking nerd," Kacchan grumbled in return, Izuku knowing the blonde well enough to here the tiny hint bashful pride there, "It's not that impressive. Just pick something" he mumbled the last part but Izuku heard it and smiled Kacchan's way.

It's very impressive, his smile widened and Kacchan frowned at him harder before shooting Izuku a sneer which clearly translated into "are you going to fucking pick something?"

Izuku turned his attention back to the screen, picking up the laptop and bringing it to sit upon his own lap to read. Kacchan had written down everything, including the ones he had thought were dumb and what Izuku had said at the time to just make Kacchan's eyebrow twitch. The blonde had divided the list into categories representing the ease of getting that item ticked off the list or in regard to if some pre planning would be needed to do it along with notes along the side with ideas, questions and suggestions.

Easy:

Get a piercing Dumb idea.
Get a tattoo Even dumber. Put some thought into it. Don't get something random.
Try pufferfish Restaurant XXX and YYY.
Kiss a guy Easy.

Mild Planning/Travel:

Horse riding Can't do in city. Place about 1.5hr train ride from here.
Racing car Another dumb idea. Can pay to be driven on track in one.
Motorbike ride Idiot has a death wish. Get someone experienced.
Bungee jumping Place up north does it.
Cooking class Nerd is shit. Will need several classes.
Skydiving North.

More Effort:

Snow trip Ski resort up north?
Swimming with sharks Dumb.
Wrestle crocodile Shit nerd being an idiot. Will feed him to one.
Travel Would help if he picked a damn place he wanted to go.
Camping Make a weekend out of it? Week?
Mountain climbing Would a steep hike do? Proper climb will need training and gear.

The list at least made things simpler and Izuku focused on the "Easy" list. Katsuki had already crossed off the "kiss a guy" item seeing as they had done just that – Izuku tried to not let his cheeks warm at how that memory flustered him – and Kacchan was right about the tattoo. Izuku felt that a tattoo should be something he should give a little more thought to rather than walking into a random place and pointing at some random design. Something more meaningful would be nicer. That only left getting a piercing and trying pufferfish. The restaurants Kacchan had listed were well known high end ones – figures the blonde wouldn't settle for anything other than the best – and would most likely require a booking of sorts so that probably wouldn't work for the day either.

Decision made, Izuku closed the laptop with a smile.

Let's go with getting a piercing, Izuku grinned, his body starting to feel the excitement of doing something he had never quiet been brave enough to do till now. Getting hurt in the line of duty was one thing, you just didn't have time to stop and think about it in the middle of everything else, but paying someone to stick you with a needle was something else.

Kacchan stared at him with narrowed eyes and frown for a moment more before leaning back with a huff.

"Right," he rose from the sofa, "let's do this then"

Would you stop fidgeting, Kacchan signed with a snarl.

Sorry, Izuku signed quickly in return and the blonde crossed his arms over his chest with a huff. They had found a piercing shop that accepted same day walk-ins AND was up to Kacchan's standards. Izuku hadn't thought it possible at first for the blonde to have standards for things like piercings – after all it wasn't as though Kacchan had any of his own – but of course Kacchan had standards for everything so it really shouldn't have surprised him. But now that they were there, sitting side by side in seats along one wall, Izuku was nervous.

He had settled on something simple and to get a single ear lobe pierced and at Kacchan's pushing had decided on a simple small stud rather than a small hoop or anything like that so it wouldn't be at risk of getting torn out if ever they had to jump into hero work again while out and about. Kacchan wasn't thrilled about that aspect but Izuku could at least nod in agreement and was glad that the blonde knew that neither of them had the capacity to stand by while crime was happening right in front of them. And even if they were just going to take an extended break this time, that didn't mean the commission would put their hero licenses on hold till they officially came back, because even they knew that a hero on vacation would be leaping into action to help others in need. That's what made them heroes after all. That of course got a little trickier when it came to international travel for heroes seeing as they needed permission from that government to act as heroes, but neither of them would have to think about that stuff any time soon.

Two woman came around the corner from the back, one being the piercer and the other having just gotten a piercing. What piercing they got though was a mystery to Izuku as they had so many already. It was rather impressive.

"Thank you again and have a lovely day" spoke the woman and the customer left. Once the door had closed behind her, the remaining woman turned to face them in their seats.

"Hello there, are we read-" the woman froze with her mouth hanging wide open. It was not an uncommon reaction to encounter when you were well known heroes, though peoples' reactions between passing them on the street or saving them was always very different to when one walked into their place of business.

"Sorry," she snapped herself out of it with a quick head shake and leapt back into sales person mode, "how may I help you both today?" she asked with a smile. Kacchan glared her way.

There had been a movement going around over the last few years, even before Kacchan and Izuku were pros, where it was becoming more common place that when a hero wasn't in their hero gear, that the general public avoided approaching them. It had become a thing after several heroes back in the day had gone underground or, like All Might, kept their real identity a secret – which was a heroes right to do if they so wished, but that just always seemed to make the general public and media outlets all that more interested in finding out their secrets – some heroes even quit and moved away, they were so tired of not having any peace. Some heroes basked in it obviously, but others still wished for normal lives outside of work. Some media outlets respected that while others didn't.

"Uh, I'm here to get a piercing," Izuku smiled in return, rising to his feet.

"We" Kacchan spoke up with a slight growl to his voice. Izuku had been moving his hands about, signing without really thinking on it when he had replied and Kacchan turned his unimpressed glare Izuku's way.

You're getting oen to?, Izuku quickly signed Kacchan's way.

I'm here aren't I, Kacchan waved back, I'm not doing all that research and picking the damn place just to sit by and watch you piss your pants.

Izuku's spine stiffened.

Kacchan, that's not nice, he frowned in return.

Hurry up idiot, the lady's waiting.

Izuku turned his attention back to the woman, feeling a little ashamed that he had forgotten about her standing there still. She looked a little out of place with the two of them signing away and having a private conversation right in front of her.

"Sorry," Izuku smiled her way, "I didn't realize he wanted one too. I hope that's not a problem"

"Of course not," the woman waved a hand in return, "do you both know what you are after?"

Izuku quickly relayed her question to Kacchan.

"Same as you, idiot!" Kacchan barked back, the woman flinching at his suddenly raised voice. Izuku apologized to the woman for it and she waved his apology away before telling them to follow her into the back room to get started. If Kacchan had noticed that he had been louder than usual, he didn't look apologetic about it at all as he rose to his feet and followed Izuku through to the back room.

The room itself was small, yet clinical with several different seating options including a high stool and a reclining chair that made Izuku think of a dentists clinic. One side of the room was lined with a large mirror with cabinets on either side. When the woman asked what they were after in particular Izuku relayed that they each just wanted a plain stud on one lobe each and she explained the general after care that would be needed, signs of infection to look out for because nothing was risk free and that they would have to leave the studs in for six to eight weeks before they could remove them and put something else in. Izuku signed all of the to Kacchan who just shrugged and gave a grunt that he didn't care in return.

"So which of you would like to go first?" she asked with a smile, turning around from her cupboards with a needle gun in one hand and a plain needle point in the other – which looked far less intimidating.

Rather than stopping to sign to Kacchan to ask him if he wanted to go first or not, Izuku just raised his hand at chest level to indicate himself.

"Great. Would you prefer the gun or the needle?" she asked, raising the hand holding each as she mentioned them. Izuku could feel Kacchan's eyes on him. Neither option looked pleasant.

"Which ever you think is best" Izuku didn't allow his voice to stutter or reveal any of his nerves. Surprisingly that was more for a show for Kacchan than the woman before him, who had no doubt dealt with far more nervous customers than Izuku.

"Alright" she beamed, opting to put the gun down, "take a seat where you'd like" Izuku walked across the small room and perched himself on the high stool.

"Silver, gold or black?" she asked, turning her back to Izuku as she opened up a drawer beneath the cabinets.

"Silver" Izuku replied.

"Sure," she grabbed what she needed and turned back around, coming Izuku's way, "it'll be over in a moment" she reassured him. All Izuku could manage was a small smile and nod.

"Quit touching it" Kacchan growled across the table quietly and Izuku lowered his hand with a pout.

It feels funny, Izuku tried to explain but Kacchan only rolled his eyes at him.

"No shit, you just put a whole in your ear, you expect it to feel fine right away"

Don't go acting so tough, Izuku pressed back, you flinched too.

Not as much as you did, big baby, before Izuku could throw a retort, Kacchan lowered his gaze to the menu.

Izuku twisted his lips at the blonde's attitude. He was used to it by now sure, but after experiencing a gentler side of him, it was hard not to fixate on what he now knew Kacchan could be capable of and be more accepting of his harsh personality still. Then again, it was just a kiss and Izuku shouldn't fixate on it so much. Sure, that kiss had made Izuku feel special, really special, but he had to stick to what Kacchan had said that following day about not dwelling on it. Kacchan surely showed no indication that he even recalled that moment so the best thing Izuku could do was drop it from his mind also. Something that was proving to be difficult to do.

Back then, in that moment inside that little room at the inn, with the sound of waves outside, Kacchan had tasted sweet. There had been the lingering touch of beer there but Izuku could look past all that easily as he overcame his initial shock at the blonde's move and could let go and drink it in after he had pushed back all the nagging voices inside his head wondering if Kacchan was actually drunk or just messing with him, ready to pull away and laugh the moment Izuku gave in and kissed back. He had taken the risk and it had been amazing. Kacchan's lips had been soft, his movement's almost thoughtful and beneath all that, he had tasted sweet. That had made Izuku wonder if there was more to Katsuki's sweet smelling nitroglycerin like quirk than he had original thought, affecting more than just the blonde's sweat.

But that only lead to Izuku wondering if Kacchan's sweat tasted sweet itself. An odd thought, yes, but if his sweat tasted sweet then that would certainly be a strong link to the idea that his saliva did to because of his quirk. After all, it wasn't like Kacchan had eaten anything sweet that evening beforehand. But Izuku couldn't surely just ask to lick Kacchan's hands, nor was he bold enough to just rush in a do it, both would result with an explosion in his face no doubt and Izuku certainly didn't want to do anything that may push the blonde away.

"Oi nerd," Kacchan's voice came loud enough to startle Izuku out of his thoughts, "do you know what you want yet?" he asked surprisingly with little hiss to it, but when Izuku looked up and noticed someone else in his peripheral he could see why. A waitress, wearing a tight smile, was waiting to take their order. Izuku quickly apologized and requested Katsudon and a lemonade before she turned with a smile. He hadn't even heard Kacchan ordering for himself before him.

"And people say I'm the deaf one" Kacchan grumbled to himself with an eye roll and Izuku turned his head to glare at the blonde. But Kacchan wasn't looking, instead having his phone in hand and scrolling through whatever it was he was scrolling through.

Izuku leaned back in his seat with a sigh, annoyed that he had done to opposite of what Kacchan had told him and let his mind think back to their kiss and gone from there as the analysis part of his mind had taken the wheel. To take his mind off of it, he raised his scarred hand again to poke at his new piercing, feeling it throb still.

"Stop touching it" Kacchan told him without even glancing away from his phone. Izuku dropped his hand and shot another glare Kacchan's way, knowing now that the blonde could see it.

"Why'd you fucking order Katsudon anyway?" Kacchan grumbled, putting his phone down on the table and frowning Izuku's way, "I could make you that shit, if you're out you should get something different"

How'd you know I ordered that?, Izuku threw back. He hadn't been signing when speaking to the waitress.

"Because I know you," Kacchan rolled his eyes and leaned back himself, "that and by now I know what shape your mouth makes when you say it" he dared to smirk at that and Izuku was left speechless, unable to think of much else to do but frown back at the blonde. Something that just made Kacchan's smirk widen. Seemed while Kacchan had lost his stealth and sometimes mumbled his words, he was picking up new skills like lip reading, though then again, he could be messing with Izuku on that one. Izuku had been caught of guard when the waitress came and had asked for Katsudon out of habit AND Kacchan was already well aware that it was Izuku's favorite….

"Do you ever stop thinking?" Kacchan asked with a cocked eyebrow, smirk fading back to something more neutral.

At least I do think, Izuku threw back. It was a weak retort and he knew it, but it was enough to get Kacchan leaning forward again with a frown.

I think plenty, the blonde signed back.

Did you think this whole time off work thing through? Izuku dared to press, because-

Kacchan slapped his hand back down.

Don't start with that shit again, the blonde narrowed his eyes before letting a breath out through his nose as a huff and leaned back, closing his eyes a moment before looking Izuku's way again more calmly, though still frowning.

I've thought about it plenty and I don't care about all that other shit, Kacchan waved on, We've got all the time in the damn world to be heroes so let's just enjoy ourselves first.

Izuku rose his hands again to sign a rebuttal but Kacchan narrowed his eyes at him in a manner that urged Izuku not to argue that if they had all the time in the world that they should secure their future in a top agency before taking the time off. But at the end of the day, Izuku knew Kacchan and Kacchan knew Izuku. Kacchan knew that was what Izuku had been about to reply with and Izuku knew that Kacchan would have already thought of that and already decided to take the path he had already chosen for them.

In the end, Izuku conceded. With his health the way it was, continuing to be a hero was not the wisest choice for him and he knew that, despite his own stubbornness. He just had to trust Kacchan and have faith in the other man's plans.

A/N: Hello dear readers, I will be taking a short break on this fic for several weeks to focus on the final chapter of another one of my fics, In His Possessive Hold. If you have enjoyed this fic so far, please check out In His Possessive Hold as it is no where near as much of a slow burn as this one is. Just make sure to read the tags/warnings on it.

I will be back in several weeks with the continuation of this series :)