A/N: Here you have it, chapter two where we explore Katsuki's condition a little more.
This chapter is very explanatory and after re-reading I found very boring but that is only because I know what is to come - Or maybe it's because I'm so tired after my week of work that even after my three hours nanna nap, my eyes and brain were still tired and slow to give this chapter a final proof read and edit. How annoying.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy
Sleeping was the biggest problem for Katsuki as now he couldn't hear an alarm to save his life, or more so, wake him in the morning. He didn't have to worry about work anymore, having received an email approving his leave, no questions asked thankfully. But that didn't help much when he still had places to be. This morning in particular he had been woken by his mother using her spare key to let herself in and prodding at his exposed shoulder. He thanked himself that he wasn't the type to sleep naked, settling for boxer briefs and sometimes loose shorts when he slept, or that could have been more awkward than needed. Mother or not, he was a grown man now and didn't need his mum seeing him naked.
She had figured that without being able to hear, Katsuki wouldn't have heard his phone going off or her calling and knocking at his door so she had simply let herself in. They had been texting the day before, her telling Katsuki what time she would come pick him up to take him to the specialist. Katsuki had set an alarm out of habit but it had been pointless. Luckily his mum had come early enough to allow him time to wake up and eat so after ensuring Katsuki wasn't going to fall back into bed and sleep, she let herself out of the room, closing the door behind her and from the aroma drifting through the apartment shortly after, making herself a coffee.
Katsuki got straight into it, showering, shaving, brushing his teeth and changing into casual dark jeans and a tight black V-neck tee before stepping out to find his mother making a simple breakfast. He ate while she finished her coffee and followed her out to her car. Katsuki, living in the inner city so close to everything, had no need for a car so Mitsuki had no trouble finding a parking space by using his assigned one.
He felt like a kid again, sitting in the front seat, staring out the window as the city passed by. His eyes remained fixed on the window. It wasn't like his mother could use her phone to talk to him while driving and he felt a little irritated that he couldn't hear the radio playing. Katsuki had never been heavily into music, but he listened to it when he worked out or cleaned around the house. He had never thought that much about it till he couldn't have it anymore and he missed it. It was the small things he missed most. The background noise of the city that never stopped, the sound of music playing in the distance, the chatter of voices a room away, all the small things that would have made him grind his teeth and reach for ear plugs in the night he now missed.
They had left the inner city and were in the outer suburbs when they finally reached the specialist's office the hospital had recommended them too. Katsuki checked the clock on the dashboard to see they had arrived twenty minutes early so he sat up and spoke aloud, accidently asking too loudly – judging from how his mother jumped in her seat – if she had indeed told Inko about his hearing loss and therefore she had told Deku who was now pestering him by showing up at his door with sign language books.
His mother blinked at him for a moment before reaching for her phone, setting up the voice to text function and spoke while holding the phone out for Katsuki to take. Her lips moved and Katsuki had to lower his gaze to the phone in his hands.
Yes I did tell Inko I'm sorry sweetie I didn't know she was going to tell Izuku about it but I'm honestly also not surprised.
She paused long enough for the phone to recognize it as the end of a sentence.
It's probably not such a bad thing though you boys have always been close he could really help you through this if you give him a chance you know how passionate and devoted he can get to a cause.
Katsuki lifted his gaze to see his mother smiling to him. He simply narrowed his glare and frowned back at her. Her smile dropped and her own brows creased, having read Katsuki's mind as some mothers do, and her lips started moving again while she pointed a finger at him. Katsuki glanced back down at the phone, feeling he was getting scolded.
Now Katsuki you know Izuku only wants to help there's no need to let your pride get in the way of having support.
Katsuki held the phone back out to his mother. He didn't want to hear – read – it. She had no idea what kind of friendship, or lack of, he and Deku had and he wasn't about to sit idly and get chewed out over not being welcoming to the nerd's helpful advances when he didn't want him around to begin with. The moment the phone was out of his hand, Katsuki was out of the car, slamming the door closed behind him and marching towards the entrance of the single story building with his mother frowning in tow. Katsuki walked right by the reception desk, the receptionist there looking very confused and flustered by Katsuki's irritated glare until Mitsuki walked in after him and assured them that they had an appointment and signed them both in. Katsuki turned and plopped himself down in a cushioned seat in the small, vacant waiting room and crossed his arms over his chest, refusing to look his mother's way so she couldn't start chewing him out again over something he shouldn't be getting chewed out over in the first place. Deku had let the friendship they had built shrivel up and die. So Katsuki figured he shouldn't be held responsible for it.
He more felt than heard his mother settle down in the seat beside him and he occupied himself by surveying the room carefully. Perhaps it was another habit of being a hero, always checking out a new area thoroughly, mapping out clear escape routes and counting the civilians in the area. But the waiting room was pretty bland and aside from them and the receptionist, no one else was around. There were three pastel teal doors surrounding them, one of which had a toilet sign on the door while the other two held plagues of the doctors names within them.
One opened and a middle aged man with hair loss, small horns and thin round glasses stepped out with a kind smile, his eyes fixing on them both as he approached. Mitsuki rose from her seat and stepped forward to meet him while Katsuki got up to follow. Mitsuki and the doctor shook hands with smiles and exchanged a few words before both faces turned on Katsuki. The doctor simply nodded and turned to lead the way back into his office. The inside was bland too with a desk, a pair of seats opposite it and instead of a bed, a large plush reclining chair that reminded Katsuki more of a dentist than anything else. They sat in the seats opposite the doctor's desk and the man turned his computer screen around, attached to a flexible arm, to face their side with a blank screen open and waiting. He pointed to a flat round device on the desk between them all, then opened his mouth to speak, his eyes fixed on Katsuki as he pointed from the disk on the table to the computer screen where words were appearing.
This microphone is set up to pick up everyone's words and show them on the screen so you can be a part of this conversation as well seeing as it is your health and body we are discussing.
Explained the doctor with a friendly smile. Katsuki simply nodded slightly while the doctor waited to show that he understood and for them to continue.
Now, I have been going through your past medical history and can see here that you have suffered from head injuries and a concussion before as well as having Tinnitus, correct?
Katsuki nodded again. It was a small difference but it was satisfying to see that this computer picked up the words clearly enough to arrange them into their own sentences and add the correct grammar where needed compared to his mother's phone which just created a large unbroken block of text.
What we will do now is I'll get you to get comfortable on that seat over there, I will place some large headphones over your ears and will play a variety of sounds varying in frequency and volume in each ear to test your current hearing level. This sort of test is known as Pure Tone Audiometry. All I ask of you is to raise a hand to indicate that you heard a sound in your ear. Raise your left hand for your left ear and your right hand for your right. It doesn't matter how faint the sound may be, as long as you hear something, raise a hand. Sound good?
Katsuki nodded again and the doctor simply rose from his chair, still smiling gently and waved a hand gracefully towards the dentist like seat for Katsuki to move to. He sat in the chair with his arms up on each armrest on either side while the doctor moved behind him, coming back around to place the large, cushioned headphones over Katsuki's ears from the front – a small gesture that Katsuki appreciated – before settling down on a stool before him with a laptop on his lap that was connected to the headphones.
The doctor made eye contact through his glasses and raised three fingers, lowering each of them a second apart like a countdown before turning his attention to the laptop, pressing a button and them turning his attention back to Katsuki and watched on curiously. It made Katsuki uncomfortable and he averted his gaze to look anywhere than directly back at the doctor's watchful gaze, intense enough for his smile to drop away. Katsuki assumed the test had begun but he heard nothing. He opted to close his eyes, leaning back into the cushioned dentist chair to focus all his attention on listening but he never heard anything. Never raised a hand. After a couple of minutes he felt a light tap on his foot and he opened his eyes again to see the doctor closing the laptop and getting up to remove the headphones. Behind him Katsuki could see his mother frowning tensely as she watched from her seat opposite the desk. Judging from the text on the screen, nothing had been said in the few minutes that had passed during the test.
The headphones were removed but the doctor held up a hand to ask Katsuki to remain seated while he pulled a tray on wheels over to him covered in various tool. The doctor lifted one tool at a time and held them close to his own ears. Katsuki nodded to let him know that he understood and the doctor got to work, leaning in close one side at a time as he looked into Katsuki's ears with the various tools. He even felt the ticklish scrape of a tool like the doctor was removing ear wax from deep inside Katsuki's ear and wiping the wax on a white cloth, a different cloth for each ear, before putting them in a sample bag and labelling them with a marker. After all that was done he waved a hand to let Katsuki know he could return to his seat opposite the desk again. The doctor took his place in his own seat and started to speak to them both. Katsuki's mother listened to him intently while Katsuki had to turn his attention back to the screen to know what was being said.
Unfortunately that little test was unsuccessful. It appears that Bakugo here has lost his hearing completely in both ears and was unable to pick up any of the sounds being played.
What can be done?
That was his mother asking the question Katsuki realised with a quick glance to her as she leaned in almost desperately.
I will have to put in an order for further tests to be done. I will have the samples I took today checked for any cranial fluids that may be present from brain damage but I will also refer you to get an MRI scan completed to check for any possible acoustic neuroma tumours and a blood test to screen for other possible disorders that may have caused such rapid hearing loss.
Meniere's disease crossed Katsuki's mind though he hadn't picked up reading more on it yet.
After looking into those we can start to look into possible treatments or hearing aids but until we know the cause we can't fix it and with Bakugo's medical history, past injuries and the effects of his quirk on his hearing, it's possible that it may have worsened whatever underlying issue may have already been present.
The doctor paused to take a deep breathe before leaning their elbows on the desk and looking to them both seriously.
The other possibility is Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss or SSHL. Have either of you heard of it before?
His eyes flicked to each of them and both shook their heads.
It is a condition used to describe sudden unexplained loss of hearing in one or both ears and has been known to happen over several days or overnight, much like Bakugo's case. SSHL happens because there is something wrong with the sensory organs of the inner ear.
Beside Katsuki, his mother leaned back with a hand over her mouth and the doctor waved his hands for her to remain calm.
SSHL affects about one to six people per five thousand each year and about half manage to recover some or all of their hearing within a few weeks of treatment. For this case until a diagnosis is confirmed I would like for us to start treatment right away. It has been proven that the longer treatment is delayed the less effective it is.
What is the treatment?
His mother asked.
Treatment consists of corticosteroids which involves taking pills daily to help aid the recovery of the inner ear and reduce any inflammation that may be present. Here I can perform it in the form of injections directly into the inner ear. I would highly recommend getting a corticosteroid injection in each ear today and then I can send you home with a script for the pills.
Is it safe to use such treatment when we still don't know the cause?
Mitsuki asked, leaning forward in her seat again, clutching her purse in her lap tightly.
Yes. It is best to start on the steroids as soon as possible until we get the further tests completed and to go from there. In the meantime I will write up your referral here quickly for an MRI. You will need to call a local hospital to book in a scan and I will give you paperwork for the blood test. You can get the blood test done wherever suits you and they will send it off for the tests I will request on the paperwork. I will arrange for all test results to come back through me and I will contact you as soon as I have the results. How do we feel about that?
His eyes looked between the two of them and Mitsuki turned in her seat to reach for Katsuki's shoulder bringing his attention back to her. She spoke to him gently, her expression soft and gentle before Katsuki glanced to the screen to see what she had said. Her hand remained on his shoulder while he read.
What do you want to do sweetie?
Katsuki opened his mouth to reply, hoping he was keeping the volume under control as he calmly gave his response, though inside, his heart was beating against his ribcage with all the possible things that could be wrong with him. He watched as his own words came up on the screen.
I'll get the injections and do everything else too.
Mitsuki gave his shoulder a squeeze and smiled at him proudly. The doctor nodded before rising from his seat, asking for Katsuki to move back to the dentist chair with a wave while he riffled through some draws to pull out two syringes placed them on the metal tray already beside the chair and ventured out of the office to return with the steroids. Katsuki did his best to do as the doctor instructed, laying on his back in the fully reclined chair and letting the doctor take his head and chin gently and turning his head to one side so the doctor could hover over his ear. He felt a swab press down inside his ear with a numbing solution before he felt a microscope – the doctor having explained how the procedure would work before hand – press against his ear, shortly followed by the needle. As the doctor had explained, the injection was to go through the Tympanic membrane and into his middle ear. Katsuki then had to remain with his head turned to the side for a while before he could turn his head and have the process repeated on the other side.
Afterwards when he was finally allowed to stand again he had expected to feel the irritating feeling of water in his ears but the doctor assured him that thanks to the numbing solution that by the time it wore off, he wouldn't feel anything.
His mother bowed her head to the doctor, grateful for his help while Katsuki dipped his head lower than he usually would and they left the smiling doctor behind with a folder of papers containing Katsuki's new treatment history, his new pill prescription, a signed referral for an MRI and a list of requested tests to be given to whoever it was taking his blood. Mitsuki stopped at the receptionist desk to pay for the appointment before Katsuki could step in a shove his own card in the way and they both returned to the uncomfortably warm car. Mitsuki turned the engine on just to blast the air conditioning while she typed in her phone and handed it to Katsuki, worrying that the air flow would be too loud at the moment for speech to text to work.
I'll organize the MRI for as soon as we can but we could get the blood test out of the way today if you'd like.
Katsuki simply nodded with a grunt, believing that the sooner everything got done, the better off he would be. Mitsuki drove them to a nearby drug store that the GPS led her to and put in the script. While they waited she spent her time on the phone, calling local medical clinics to find one that would accept walk ins for blood tests. When she found one on her third try she used the speech to text function on her phone to let Katsuki know and he nodded to her with a hum. They retrieved and paid for Katsuki's pills before they got back in the car and Mitsuki followed her GPS to the clinic. There they walked in, waited for ten minutes before being called in and Katsuki sat wordlessly in a seat while a nurse took his blood and Mitsuki handed them the paperwork to be sent off with it. It was all done very professionally and efficiently. Katsuki received a little Band-Aid for his troubles and back in the car they went, his mother insisting now that they stop somewhere for a filling lunch after having blood taken. Katsuki didn't argue. He was just glad the blood test was over.
Blood wasn't something that made Katsuki squeamish at all, he had no problem with it. Nurses were another thing, especially the blood taking kind. It wasn't so much that he hated them as he had just had a bad experience before with a nurse that hadn't quite done it right, leaving Katsuki's arm sore and bruised afterwards, not to mention it took so much longer than it should have. Being a hero meant dealing with doctors, nurses, hospitals and check-ups. Some agencies even required frequent urine and blood tests to prove the health of the heroes they employed. Katsuki had spat at the idea when he had first gone pro and been subjected to them, thinking they were just scanning their heroes and sidekicks for drug use, which of course was unacceptable but Katsuki despised the idea that everyone had to be subjected to it. That was until a biannual blood test saved someone's life when it came back showing signs of illness that if it hadn't been caught on early, would have killed the hero in a few years time. After that Katsuki and many others didn't feel the need to complain anymore now that they knew for certain that they were being checked over for much more than just substance abuse. Katsuki wondered for a moment if Deku's old agency had such measures in place but then he shook the thought away, not wanting to waste more time thinking of the nerd.
Katsuki had a large lunch that he insisted he pay for since his mother had been driving him around for the better part of the day and was dropped off at home, again opting to climb up the flights of stairs rather than take the elevator for the sake of exercise. He had moved his runs to the evenings since he wasn't able to use an alarm to wake himself before dawn now and he had forgone his usual gym visits for the same reason. He wasn't a fan of when the place was busy and he had to wait for certain equipment to be free or be conscious of others waiting to use what he was so he had avoided it for now, not being able to wake early or stay up late enough for it to be empty to use. So instead Katsuki settled on the couch with one of his new books in hand to pass the time with.
His mother sent him a text later that night letting him know that she had arranged for an MRI scan at a hospital an hour away because they couldn't get in any of the local hospitals for another week and Mitsuki knew her son well enough to know that he didn't want to sit on his ass waiting. That appointment wasn't till the day after tomorrow so Katsuki still had an annoying amount of time to pass in silence.
Kirishima messaged him too, asking if they were still good for their fortnightly sparring match and meal and Katsuki frowned down at his phone for a long while before finally typing a reply with an excuse to get out of it. He didn't feel ready to face anyone and admit to them that he couldn't hear them. Kirishima had been a good friend since high school and that remained strong despite not working in the same city but Kirishima was also emotional, a lot when compared to Katsuki's usual indifference, so he didn't want Kirishima to know. If the red head learnt about it Katsuki had no doubt he would storm in through his front door and demand to spoil Katsuki with food and attention and try to make everything feel like it was normal when it wasn't. He admired Kirishima's passion when it came to the wellbeing of his friends, but Katsuki was not ready to deal with that amount of energy either and if he already had a green haired idiot pestering him, he didn't need to add a red headed one to the mix.
So he lied. Said something came up and he was busy. And Kirishima, being the good friend he was, was alright with that after making sure everything was all good, which it was as far as Katsuki told him. As far as Katsuki was concerned, there was little point in bothering to even talk to anyone about his problem until he knew what it actually was.
Katsuki put his phone back down on his stomach so he could feel it vibrate is anyone else decided to message him and stuck his nose back into the novel he had gotten himself and that's all he did for the rest of the night.
The next morning Katsuki woke restless. He felt like he had been cooped up in his apartment too long despite it not really being that long at all. The air felt suffocating even after he had opened all the windows. This was the longest he had gone without working since graduating U.A where he had been working his ass off ever since to power his way through the hero ranks on his way to being number one. And it had been paying off. He was the highest ranked out of their old class and even several places ahead of Deku of all people. When they had first gone pro, Deku had been the top of their class in the rankings and had kept that position for almost a year before Katsuki surpassed him and had kept his lead ever since. If they had been in a position to have been talking, Katsuki would have wasted no time rubbing it in Deku's face, but at that point Deku was still on the other side of Japan working with a different agency and would be for another year before being recruited into Katsuki's. At that point, Katsuki had been ahead for so long that he didn't feel the need to confront the nerd and shove that fact in his face anymore.
So Katsuki went out. He went for a run along his usual track despite the sun still being up, showered and did what weights he could in the house, but he was still restless. Too restless to sit and read and too restless to sleep so many hours after the sun had set, Katsuki gathered his things and sent himself to the gym which was a fifteen minute walk from his place or in his case, a seven minute run. By some miracle the gym only had two other people in it and after signing in they left soon after, leaving Katsuki with the place to himself and he felt like his breath was coming easier knowing that he was alone. Usually he would have put in some earbuds to listen to music while he worked up a sweat, but now that wasn't an option anymore he found himself pushing himself harder and further than usual just out of annoyance at it all.
It was a relatively successful night as far as work outs were concerned until he took a break, using a towel to dab away the sweat from him face and taking a much needed drink of water from his bottle when he felt a hand smack his upper back in greeting. Katsuki had been so startled that he spat the water he had in his mouth and turned to look back to the burly man laughing down at him. He recognized him. He was another gym goer who enjoyed avoiding the busiest hours, so they had crossed paths several times before and even spotted for each other on more than one occasion, though Katsuki couldn't recall his name. He was a much larger man than Katsuki was, broad and muscled all over with dark skin and bright eyes. Katsuki simply stood from the current machine he was one, throwing his towel down to clean up any sweat left behind as was proper gym etiquette. When he glanced back up the man was smiling down at him in waiting. When Katsuki said nothing the man spoke, his head tilting to one side, confused as to why Katsuki wasn't replying.
Katsuki hardly knew the man, so he shouldn't have felt as bad as he suddenly did when faced with his inability to communicate with someone. He felt embarrassed more than anything else and that didn't sit right in his gut. He hadn't felt embarrassed when he found out that Deku knew, so why should he feel that way when a stranger did. The man's smile dropped, his lips moving again as he leaned in more, arms out in some kind of offering and his bright eyes tinging with concern.
Katsuki threw out an excuse about having to go, the man flinching back and Katsuki bit his tongue with irritation for being too loud before he scooped up his towel and drink bottle and marched off to his locker to pick up his gym bag and leave. He didn't look back to see if the man was calling to him or what expression he was wearing. A long shower at home and a good sleep is what he needed most right now.
This time Katsuki had managed to wake himself and get ready before his mother had shown up at his apartment, letting herself in with the spare key again Katsuki had given her when he had gotten the place. He frowned at her as she pulled off her shoes and made her way right into the kitchen to make herself a coffee like she owned the damn place. Katsuki was irritated that she hadn't even bothered to text before just letting herself in and she knew it, shooting him a wide grin as she passed him. Katsuki grumbled into his mug and tilted his head back to drink some more of his own coffee.
The drive to the hospital was long and boring and silent. On the plus side – not that there was much of one to begin with – he didn't have to listen to his mother talk his ear off with home town gossip or listen to her taste in music either so at least the drive was a peaceful one. They arrived at the hospital, found a park and walked in through the main entrance, signed in and then followed signs to their designated waiting area. After waiting a short period of time they were ushered into a room with a bed, a curtain surrounding it and after some quick words between the nurse and Mitsuki, Katsuki's mother turned to him after typing some words down on her phone to relay instructions to Katsuki. He glared at the text on the screen.
Can't wear any metal so pants will have to come off. They have a gown for you on the bed to change into.
Katsuki frowned at the phone. The only metal he had on him was the little bits of metal of his jeans. He turned his head towards the waiting drab gown on the hospital bed amd narrowed his eyes at it with disgust. He kicked off his shoes and shed his pants, not bothering to get behind any curtains and held them out to his mother who took them with a small shake of her head and the hint of a smile. Katsuki turned his glare to the nurse who looked a little surprised but then nodded her approval. There was no way Katsuki was going to willingly put on a shitty hospital gown. He'd much rather just walk around in his boxer briefs.
Once that was settled they moved on through another door and into a room that connected directly to the room containing the MRI machine. It was a large circular thing that stood in the centre of the lit room, all smooth plastic and white with a stretcher like table before it that looked just as white and smooth as the machine itself. On the far side of the room was a large window where a technologist sat behind a computer. The nurse motioned for Katsuki to step inside the room and patted the stretcher for him to lay down on while Mitsuki hovered nearby. Katsuki did what was asked of him, lying down on his back while the nurse moved around him, pushing his legs and arms here and there to get him in the perfect position.
Mitsuki came forward, the nurse talking to her quickly and held out her phone over Katsuki's head for him to read
You will have to stay still for 15 minutes or until they pull you back out.
She had typed out. Katsuki nodded his head in understanding, she smiled down to him reassuringly and then stepped back to allow the nurse to take her place again.
Next the nurse picked up an item that looked like a large white cylinder with large parts missing and gently lifted Katsuki's head to feed the cylinder over his head. It was like a big white cage designed to keep his head still. A little more poking and prodding and then the fancy stretcher bed began to move, rising up and moving back slowly until Katsuki's head was being fed into the hollow part of the MRI machine. With his head inside, the stretcher stopped and Katsuki was left alone. Little lights on the machine came on but aside from that nothing else happened. Katsuki had never had such a test before but he had heard that MRI machines were loud and claustrophobic. In his case, he couldn't hear a thing and Katsuki had been in far tighter spaces than this one so he was feeling alright. It was just going to feel like a long wait with nothing to do other than breath and blink.
Finally after what felt like an eternity, the little lights turned off and the stretcher began to move, pulling Katsuki out. He remained still and patient while the nurse removed the cage around his head and he was finally free to sit up again. Mitsuki was waiting for him with a smile. She shared a few more words with the nurse before they both bowed their heads to each other in thanks and Mitsuki turned to lead the way back to the changing room where Katsuki slipped on his pants and shoes and they were free to leave, all his necessary tests done. All they needed to do now was wait to hear from their specialist and to continue taking his pills each day.
It was a given that the tests would take at least several days, maybe even a week or more to be done so Katsuki had nothing to do than sit on his ass at home, which didn't sit well with him. In the days that passed, Katsuki had cooked almost a week's worth of meals in advance, changed his exercise routine to two runs a day and upping his weight routine at home just so he didn't have to visit the gym, dodged more plans that Kirishima threw his way and finished the novel and manga he had gotten himself. With nothing to occupy himself with, his eyes drifted to the bottom corner of his bookshelf to the only books in his apartment he hadn't read yet. The sign language books Deku had brought him. He tore his eyes away with a scowl to himself.
Katsuki had done all the tests and was merely waiting for results now. They would find out what was wrong and start a more customized treatment plan to get his hearing back so Katsuki could function again and return to work which he missed like a fish missed water in the sense that he felt like if he didn't get back to work soon he would lose his mind. So there was no need for him to learn sign language. It was a final resort because even if he did put the time and effort in, majority of the population still wouldn't be able to communicate with him. Their words would fall on deaf ears and his hand signs would be nothing but erratic movements to them, so what was the point.
On the other hand - his eyes drifted back to them - it would give him something to do and keeping his mind sharp was something his valued highly. On top of that, a hero that knew sign language would look good on him. If ever he did encounter someone who used sign language in his line of work, at least he could communicate with them and that counted for something right. More than anything, his mind itched for something, anything to do and learning was something. Something productive. So Katsuki pulled out one of the books and fell back heavily on the couch and opened it. Deku had gotten him a literal sign language for dummies book and it looked over simplified and childish which Katsuki frowned at but he flicked through each of the pages anyway, seeing how far it went before he put the book down and tried out the movements with his hands. He felt absolutely stupid doing it, glaring at a book and moving his hands around and shaping his fingers in a multitude of different ways but it was admittedly better than doing nothing so he stuck to it
His mother texted four days after their most recent hospital visit to inform him that the specialist had his results, that she had made an appointment for them later that afternoon and that she would pick him up around one. Katsuki simple texted back an 'ok' and went back to his current task which was doing his laundry. He had been doing what he could to not stress over everything.
The first morning he had woken up deaf had shaken him the most but he had swallowed back his panic and pushed forward knowing that he could get through it. Reading what the specialist had to say on the matter had only made the panic flare up in his chest again but there had been a chance of recovery, even more so if the tests determined an underlying issue. Katsuki had been taking his pills each day and had noticed no improvement. But that was fine, he kept telling himself, trying to keep his growing agitation at bay, healing took time. That had been a solid reminder since leaving U.A and the magic that it was to have Recovery Girl around to solve most problems related to injuries, but in the outside world, doctors with her level of ability were few and far between. So Katsuki knew the gruelling amount of time it took for a bone to heal or for a large bruise to disappear. At least with a broken bone, once he had a cast on, he could still return to the agency even if it was just to do mundane things like paperwork. A broken bone was nowhere near as debilitating as his loss of hearing was. Yet Katsuki could feel anxiety pooling in his gut at the thought of finally getting his results back and seeing what options were available to him. His whole hero career depended on it.
His mother arrived, letting herself in yet again only for Katsuki, who was already ready, to turn her back around and push her out the door to follow her to her car. He frowned the whole time but inside his gut was twisting as the anxiety rose. He wanted to get it all over and done with as soon as possible. His mother drove, they arrived and signed in before sitting down to wait. Katsuki couldn't keep his anxious energy contained anymore and instead of standing up and pacing the waiting room like a caged animal, he settled for crossing his arms and bouncing one knee. His mother noticed but let him be.
Finally they were allowed into the room, the doctor greeting them both with a smile and they sat in the same seats they had last time, the doctor turning the computer screen again and had it ready to type out his words.
So Bakugo how have you been coping since I last saw you?
Asked the Doctor.
Have you been taking the medication each day?
Katsuki simply nodded in reply, his eyes hard and determined. He had no interest in wasting time in formalities and verbal check-ups. He wanted results. The doctor seemed to pick up on this and thankfully jumped right into it.
Well, getting to business, the wax samples came back clean which rules out direct effects of head trauma. Your blood tests also came back free of any illnesses and disorders that may have been the cause of your sudden hearing loss and your MRI scans came back clean too which rules out any tumours which is a good thing.
The doctor looked to them both with a more serious expression.
As good as that news is it also rules out easy treatment options for us and leads me to the conclusion that this is an unfortunate case of SSHL. It is quite rare for the condition to affect both ears, only one in every ten patients are affected in both –
Katsuki didn't want to read anymore. He lowered his head, letting his gaze fall to where his hands clenched into fists in his lap as a silent conversation rolled on around him. He had refused to let himself dive head first into the internet in search for what was wrong with him after that first day for fear of only working himself up. He knew the internet wasn't a good place to look up health issues and to leave that to the trained professionals.
Google a headache and you'll be told you are dying from brain cancer, that is what Katsuki had always believed, so he hadn't looked anything more up. He didn't need to feed the anxiety beast that he had tucked away inside him. Yet, from what he understood from their last visit here, SSHL was the worst possible outcome – second realistically. A tumour would have been terrible and could lead to so many other health issues but at least a tumour could be cut out, treated or maintained, usually.
His mother's hand came into view, reaching over to hold his closest clenched fist and giving it a light squeeze. Katsuki lifted his head to see her smiling to him softly, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. She and the doctor were looking to him patiently as he quickly lifted his gaze to scan over the text he had missed on the screen. He hadn't missed much, mostly the doctor explaining how unfortunate the condition was and that he recommended continuing the steroids for another three weeks to see if there was any improvement. He suggested getting another round of inner ear injections while they were here and after the three weeks were up he would test Katsuki's hearing again to check for improvement.
Katsuki simple spoke up to agree to the injections again, his words appearing on the screen as he did.
This will be your second round of injections in just under two weeks, to maximize your chances of good results I would recommend returning for another round of injections each week until you've received all four.
Katsuki nodded his agreement to the idea before turning to his mother who also gave her approval, not that she needed too since Katsuki was an adult. He figured it was just the polite thing to do. The doctor rose to gather his supplies and gestured with a graceful arm for Katsuki to lay in the dentist like chair again for him. Katsuki did as he was asked and laid down. More than anything he was taken aback that it had been two weeks since he had woken deaf one morning and had been struggling through the silence ever since.
A/N: And there you have it, SSHL is a real thing, but rare. During my research I read through many peoples' personal account with sudden hearing loss and how it affected their lives and the tests some had to go through to remove the possibility of underlying issues just as Bakugo had too. I had to watch videos on how MRI's worked and so much more BUT AGAIN I must push that I do not have any personal experience. I have never spent much time in a hospital and certainly not inside an MRI machine at that and I have no experience dealing with hearing loss either so I do apologize if anything in this fic isn't quiet right.
Thank you for reading! I will attempt to post chapters weekly as long as I have content to post.