The embodiment of emeralds slowly revealed themselves when tired eyelids fluttered open. Their owner looked around, adjusting to the darkness of the room as a yawn tore itself from his being. Curiosity urged the sleepy figure to grab his phone which lay next to his face and check the time. Seeing the hour lighting up on the device forced a long groan from the freckled male, realizing he let himself sleep the rest of the day away caused irritation and guilt to fill his groggy mind. 'You had one job moron,' Izuku thought to himself.
Sluggishly moving into a sitting position, Izuku threw his tired legs over the bed and pulled his phone back out. Knowing his plans for the night had to change quickly, he dialed a familiar number and brought the ringing object to his ear. The ringing went on for a few seconds before the familiar pause of the line being picked up and a voice softly answered, "Hello?"
"Hey mom," he replied while rubbing the sleep out of one eye. "I'm so sorry mom! I'm such an idiot! I fell asleep when I got home and I didn't set an alarm so I wasn't able to start dinner and bring it to you I'm so sorry I can leave right now and bring you something from the market or maybe a cafe, your choice, anything you want, how's that sound?" Izuku finally asked, completely unaware of his rambling.
The pause in his panicked apology was met with the angelic sound of Inkos laughter chiming though the phone. "Calm down sweety, its alright!" He waited for her to continue, noting a hint of amusement lacing her voice as she spoke. "Chiyo was able to grab something from the cafeteria for me before they closed, don't worry over it baby." Izukus shoulders relaxed with her response feeling far less distraught at the situation.
Before he could ask how she was doing, a chorus of coughing rougher than he's ever heard erupted from the otherside of the call. It was almost like a cosmic answer to his unasked question he thought as worry welled up inside him at the sound. Izuku's grip on the phone tightened in response to the frustration he felt at his inability to comfort her. Her coughing calmed down enough for him to ask, "Mom? Mom are you okay? Should I call doct-"
"Im fine!*cough*I-I'll be okay, they*cough* just gave me a new liquid medication earlier and they said it*coughcough* may have my condition flare up every now and then. Until my body gets used to it, mostly..."
Izuku chewed on part of his lip as he listened to his mother struggle to speak. "If you need anything mom just call me or text please? Anything you want and I'll get it for you. I'll come visit you tomorrow okay?"
He heard his mother giggle then ask, "Promise?"
Izuku smiled and didn't skip a beat as he answered, "Promise. I'll let you get some rest mom."
She hummed in agreement, "Okay sweety, love you. Goodnight."
"G'night mom, love you too." He clicked the red call button on his phone to end the connection then rubbed the space in between his eyes as if to massage the stress away. Looking up he realized he was standing in the middle of his room, unaware of doing so he clicked his tongue before seating himself on the edge of the bed.
His mother's words soothed the concern building inside him. His heart ached at the idea of her going without proper food while she lay in the hospital bed. He was beyond grateful to the nurse taking care of his mother, vowing to give her many thanks next time he visited for providing what he couldn't. The sentiment further cemented his guilt at the same time. He remembered how his mothers weekly visits to the hospital turned daily, then on some nights she stopped returning home altogether. Days turned into weeks and before he knew it, his mothers condition got to a point where she ended up with a room and nurse all to herself.
To Izuku, he was supposed to take care of her, it was his responsibility. She was his mother and the love he had for her was endless. He took it upon himself to at least bring her home cooked meals when she started spending nights at the hospital a year and a half ago. Unable to bring today's dinner weighed on his mind despite her alleviating words. He didn't bother voicing that knowledge to his mother, opting for a chance to make her worry less about him. Troubling her further with his own concerns was not an option to the dark haired swimmer.
Feeling restless, he stood from his seated position and made his way downstairs. 'Might as well make something to eat,' he thought. Making it to the kitchen he flipped the lights on and started rummaging through cabinets for the rice cooker and a small pot. He measured out enough for himself then set the timer for the rice and closed the lid. He filled the other pot and placed it on a burner in the back of the stove then covered it as well. With that done, he proceeded to look throughout the refrigerator for something that would pair with his rice.
Izuku was too preoccupied with the contents of the ice box to hear someone fiddle with the house's main entrance, successfully unlocking the door. He was still unaware when said door swung open and a large figure walked in. Their large boots clambered on the floor, uncaring of the mess they made to the polished floor. A pair of dark, weary eyes peered through the wall that allowed for the space between the living room and kitchen to connect. Sneering at what they saw, the figure slammed the door shut with enough force to shake the thin panels that made up a long glass window next to the entrance.
The sudden 'BANG' of the door shutting roughly echoed throughout the room. Its abruptness startled Izuku, his hand instantly letting go of the refrigerator door as he went stiff and rigid. His lowered hands balled into fists at his sides whilst he slowly angled his body to face whoever walked in. The sight of figure he saw standing with their massive body blocking the entrance to the kitchen halted any words about to leave him.
"What, no hug?"
Izuku mentally kicked himself at his stupidity. He was so caught up in distracting himself from the night's events he completely forgot to make sure the individual standing before him was already in bed. The other option, if it turned out he wasn't, Izuku would have holed himself in his room without leaving it. Looking back at narrowed eyes the color of obsidian, Izuku didn't respond to the man but watched as large arms crossed over a bulky chest. The individual leaned on the wall next then gave Izuku a hard look with amusement written all over his toothy grin.
"You got some nerve brat," Izuku felt his nails dig in his palms but remained silent.
The male speaking tilted his head at the counter where the rice cooker sat, "You got enough energy to cook for yerself but not for your own sickly ma? Kind'a lousy of her only son if you ask me." He sneered at Izuku when black irises saw the smaller one in the room pale. "Didn't think you could be so selfish," he gave Izuku a look of scrutiny that had said male making the slightest wince.
Izuku wasn't in the mood to deal with the man in front of him. Shaking his head, Izuku turned to continue gathering his ingredients from the refrigerator. "I already called her and apologized," he responded plainly. "I'll make it up to her tomorrow."
Izuku failed to see the larger of the pair adorn an intense expression at his words, one that didn't spell good intent for the freckled greenette. Irises pitch black in color followed the movements of the swimmer, their owner frowning at the actions his saw. His irritation spiked to levels never reached before at the smaller male's nonchalant attitude.
Grabbing a couple bowls off the shelves, Izuku made a move to return to his cooking. "I'm a little busy right now so if you need something hurry up and ask already," he said in a short tone. He looked for a pan under the cabinets next to the oven whilst trying his best to ignore the other man standing in the room. Before he could decide which pan he wanted Izuku felt a tightening at his collar. Then, realizing too late, a large hand had grabbed hold of him so there was little he could do as he felt himself getting pulled upward. Without much time to react his body was shoved aside, hard. The force sent him falling into a cart that sat across the room, one made of light colored wood with many shelves inside. The sudden action led to a very loud sound echoing in the tight space as the cart and all its belongings crashed to the floor alongside Izuku.
He let out a harsh yell when he felt his elbow connect with something and searing pain flared from spot. He looked down and saw a sizable chunk of glass had made it's way into his arm. The object jutting out his scraped flesh dripped slowly with liquid crimson. There were smaller glass pieces embedded around the larger one making the area sting and burn with every twitch of his arm. The sizable shard seriously concerned him the most right now. His attention to it sticking out his lower bicep kept him from seeing white projectiles hit the floor by his legs.
Looking up at the sound he felt a vicious anger spark in him as he saw the eggs he grabbed earlier were now broken on the floor. He aimed his rage at the man responsible and with all the energy he could muster yelled, "What are you doing? That's all we have! You can't waste th-" His words were silenced at the sight of the large male holding a pot of boiling water, one Izuku had prepared moments ago for the eggs.
"What was that? I can't do what now?" Izuku said nothing as the man looked at him with mock interest. The man with short cropped hair leered at the fallen male as he continued to taunt him, "You had so much to say earlier brat, whats wrong? Go ahead and tell dear ol' step dad what's on yer mind! COME ON," he shouts before bringing the pot of steaming water closer to Izukus fallen body. Notably, the boy's legs were in perfect reach of the man's outstretched arm holding the scalding water. His gruesome smile grew as he took in the fearful expression freckled features morphed into.
"Go on now, really. No? Seriously? See, I-thought brats that liked ditching school had more balls than this."
Izuku paled at the mention of his latest adventure. He had hoped the school didn't catch on or at least thought they had no time to report it since it was the beginning of the semester. "When did y-AH!" A scream tore threw his lips as a searing pain flared from his ankle.
"W~oops! Sorry, must 'ave lost my grip for a second there kiddo, you alright?" The larger of the two said feigning concern for the freckled swimmer curled up on the ground.
Izuku gripped his leg, clenching his jaw as waves of pain from both his arm and leg assaulted his senses. He peered up through scrunched eyelids at the dark eyed menace and succeeded in forcing his body still. He wanted nothing more than to get further from the man looking down at him with corrupt joy spread across his face. The black orbs looking at him were silently mocking him and held no real ounce of concern or worry for him. Suddenly, the taste of bile was very close to reaching his tongue. He felt sick. It wasn't the glass in his arm or the pain from his burned ankle that brought a nauseous feeling to his stomach. Seeing his own mother's boyfriend enjoying this very awful moment to his heart's content may very well be the cause.
"Hey here's a fun thought," he heard the mad man say. "How 'bout we make a trade! You don't squeal about this little accident and I don't tell your mom about you ditchin'! You wouldn't want her worried about all that nonsense would you? Not with her ill, oh! Don't forget, she's still behind on all the hospital bills I'm helping her pay, right?" A smug expression was all Izuku could see written across the face of the monster that taunted him. His anger made him want to act accordingly but what the bastard in front of him said struck something in him that halted any response.
He looked down, anger deflated as the larger male loomed over him with a crazed smirk on his face. "Ha, s'what I thought." Izuku didn't so much as flinch as the pot was flung down next to him, luckily the scalding contents inside splashed away from him. He listened in silent pain as the other in the room began to speak, "Be grateful your mother wasn' able to answer the school the first time they called. Who knows how she would react if she knew her son was turning into a degenerate."
The hulking male responsible for the chaos displayed around the kitchen walked away. Before he fully exited the kitchen he turned to the swimmer and sneered, "Hurry and clean up this mess, worthless brat." Footsteps echoing down the halls of the house made it clear the man had gone to his room.
Izuku sat on the floor for a couple seconds before he took a deep breath to calm his racing nerves. He slowly got to his feet, all while avoiding the broken glass underneath him. Reaching the first aid kit under the sink he carefully rinsed and patched up his ankle. Although the process worried him, even lightly pouring water over the fresh wound caused him to grimace and wince at the pain. Brushing the thought aside he changed his focus to the pieces of glass in his arm. Carefully, he pulled out each of the small ones until the largest remained. He placed a clean washcloth in his mouth to bite down on before pinching the glass between a set of tweezers. Inhaling sharply, Izuku's pained scream was muffled in the towel as he pulled the shard out in one quick motion. Finding the medical ointment, needle and thread along with plenty of bandages, he went to work on his bloody arm.
Finally done cleaning up the kitchen, Izuku dragged himself back to his room with a belly full of rice. The only thing to survive Goto's assault from earlier so he helped himself to all of it. Still, he would have liked a bite of egg or two with his dinner. Shaking the matter off he let his body topple onto his messy bed for the second time that day. Izuku looked at the clock in his nightstand for a second and saw it was nearly midnight. It had taken him nearly two hours of cleaning to put the kitchen back in it's original state. Minus a few broken items unfortunately, he made a mental note to replace the broken cart in the future. An enormous wave of fatigue came over him at the thought as he lay with his face pressed into comforting sheets.
Izuku was all too used to this routine. The other man's torment of the green haired swimmer didn't start early on. It wasn't until Izukus mother started relying on the man's money that the taunting began, then reached physical levels after she was admitted to the hospital. It was no coincidence the Izuku but he found ways to avoid the mans habits. Finding out that being in the males's presence as little as possible worked most of the time. Although, he knew the patterns quite well at this point since it was always the same insults thrown at him. It usually starts with demeaning him, sometimes he'll get real nasty insults then shoved around or stuff thrown at him. The outbursts occur, in his humble opinion, less often when the man is drunk because the lumbering fool can barely stay awake long enough to do anything.
Frightening levels of anxiety welled in him at the thought of his mother finding out about it all. Her being bothered by this information just meant she wouldn't be dialed into her own recovery. Izuku knew she needed her full attention on getting better and nothing else.
Izuku believed wholeheartedly that he could tell her about the true nature of the man she was in a relationship with and she'd probably cut things off with him on the spot. Although a part of him kept this from happening, not wanting to ruin his mother's only source of happiness while she endured an illness that brought her many sleepless nights. Despite the man's treatment of Izuku, he treated his mother like a real significant other should. He visits her weekly if not daily, showering her with gifts, flowers and all sorts of expensive treats. Above all that, he picks up the slack in the financial department where his mother cannot. Her constant gushing feels so genuine to the green eyed teen that it would hurt him to see his mothers heart broken. '"These flowers are beautiful don't you think?" "Izuku look at this, it's perfume! Doesn't it smell nice?" Look what Goto brought me this time Izuku."' She would say to the boy with a smile attached to her beautiful features, all excited about what he brought her that day. Izuku didn't have it in him to take it all away from her.
The thing that worried him most meant the treatment she'd need in order to get better could be ripped away. They didn't have a lot in terms of wealth, enough to help them keep the house no doubt but Izuku knew his mother couldn't work as much as she used to. Not in her current condition anyway. It was especially hard with their medical bills being abysmal as of late. Thus an annoying amount of debt slowly crept up on them in no time. Izuku adamantly refused to let that halt his mother's treatment so he toughed it out. He was getting good at avoiding the oversized brute nowadays and they mostly never came in contact.
However, this time things had gone a little beyond the normal level of torment. Izuku wondered if it was because he hadn't seen the other for some time and felt like being extra nasty. No matter the reason, Izuku was numb by the time he was left alone. Regardless of his choices, Izuku would be lying to say it would bother him if he never saw the man again. In all honesty, he really would have preferred it that way. Living in the same house as the scumbag made it difficult obviously. You can only avoid each other for so long in a two bedroom house.
Izuku sighed heavily, feeling the full brunt of his exhaustion as sleeps embrace nearly took hold while he curled up on the warm bed. That is until a notification bell went off from his phone and it's screen lit up near his face before quickly shutting off. Curious to know who would message him this late he grabbed the device bringing it to his face. Anticipation buzzed through him as he checked the name of the sender and realized he in fact had three texts from the same person. It felt as though a great heat engulfed his body seeing the name of the man who came back into his life.
It was incredibly recent that they started to pick up the pieces left from their past. It seemed to the green eyed boy like the spikey haired blonde intended to hurry and move forward with that by leaving his phone number in Izuku's device earlier that day. He recalled how the male asked the greenette for his phone with little tough to say no since he practically leaned over him. Izuku was stunned by the action and the pleased expression adorning those chiseled features. It didn't cross his mind what he wanted until he saw the man add his number to his contacts list. Bakugo asked if it was okay as he typed away, something Izuku found amusing since he didn't bother asking for permission prior to taking the phone. Izuku had quickly stuttered out it was fine which made the red eyed athlete smile.
He never said aloud how much it made his heart flutter wild with happiness. Izuku had been thinking about asking for said man's contact info but found himself unsure. Especially with the knowledge he holds about the blond and his feelings constantly stirring up his thoughts every time he looks at the man. Even though he delighted in Bakugo asking first, Izuku had the faintest feeling that he might be moving too fast. The thought of this person claiming to possess feelings for him having access to his number so soon made his pulse race. Remembering the same person is also Katsuki fucking Bakugo almost sent his veins alight as if liquid fire coursed through him.
Returning the favor by adding his own info to the blonds phone was the only thing he had the nerve to do in the end. Izuku couldn't help being annoyed at how his shaking fingers tapped each digit. He was beyond flustered and shaky with scarlet eyes lingering on him the whole time. The drive home was pleasant enough, both sitting quietly with music softly playing from the radio to fill the space. He was not as nervous on the journey back shockingly. Izuku almost felt calm, as if all the anxiety hold up inside him had found a different host to torture. When they finally pulled up to Izukus house, the green haired boy had turned to Bakugo. "Thanks for the ride," he said, opening the door to leave. He heard the seated blonde respond with a simple, "Anytime." The overly pleasant smile aimed his way nearly stilled Izukus heart. He thought his body had frozen in place at the sight of something so rare and foreign to him but somehow he managed to nod and exit the car.
The whole ordeal played in his mind, the entirety of the day's events felt like some fever dream he whipped up after watching one of his mothers dramatic tv shows. He wouldn't believe it if you told him a week ago that a single encounter in his stale life would set his world spinning wildly. A single moment, one allowing him to move forward with his long ago friend, one so amazing he could hardly think properly. The knowledge of the older teens' feelings weighed heavily on his mind. The information consistently bubbled up feelings of his own that have plagued him for so long, years even. Now it felt as though they've been amplified ten times by the actions of one spikey haired classmate. It was all so surreal and too good to be true in his opinion.
Izuku suddenly felt a bit dizzy knowing things were changing in his life faster than he ever expected. Izuku had to admit, he was having a hard time keeping up with it all. His emotions were like roaring storms battling within him as twin emerald orbs gazed at the messages. Realizing the first couple had been sent to him earlier before he took a nap, Izuku was certain a new shade of red would exist if his face got any hotter when he started reading the last.
MSG From:
"Kacchan"
Its me nerd
Don't worry, cars alright. Mostly
Btw Im really lookin forward to our nxt session, hopin I have a dream or two about todays. Night
Izuku looked at the last message with glassed over eyes. 'Does he have to be so honest!' Izuku frantically thought, succumbing to the blistering feeling floating around his mind as he read the text over and over. The dark haired swimmer allowed the fluttering in his stomach to linger. It was hard to believe the texts were from the same person that avoided him like the plague throughout the years. Now he wanted to make up for lost time, a fact which still amazes Izuku. His mind raced as reality sunk in, he agreed to meet up with that same person regularly.
''Im going to make you mine.''
Izuku threw his arms over his face in an attempt to hide the heat rushing to his cheeks. Remembering those words said to him with blinding certainty lacing every syllable stole his breath away. He could hardly believe the words spoken even happened if it weren't said to him directly. Izuku wasn't sure if he was allowed to feel this good about someone normally annoyed by his presence either. He let himself enjoy the attention nonetheless, seeing no harm indulging in this once in a lifetime experience. It wasn't everyday the most beloved man in their district confessed to someone as vanilla as himself. However, the lightning flickering around in his veins at the memory of sultry spoken words weren't due to something as shallow as the males looks or popularity. It was purely that man. Katsuki Bakugou, the lava eyed athlete always caused such a familiar stir in his heart. It was a feeling believed to be snuffed out by time and years of loneliness shadowing Izuku's short existence. It occurs to the green eyed swimmer with unruly hair the feelings that have clung to him so desperately for this long may never disappear.
A faint smile sprouted across freckled features, 'not while I live and breathe.' Izuku giggles at his thought, bringing the phone close to him. The man with bright jade orbs for eyes felt anticipation build behind his musings as he pictured what the next day may bring. It came as a surprise since he rarely looked forward to anything nowadays. He couldn't help but wonder what a certain spikey haired blonde would say if he saw him or what he would do if Izuku asked him for something simple like a ride home. Would the man eagerly look at the green headed swimmer with trepidation swimming in pools of dark scarlet? Maybe not, he thought, remembering how the man basically embodied confidence. Izuku imagined Bakugou fearlessly looking back at forest colored eyes with a striking smirk planted on his flawless features as he agreed to something so trivial. The excitement enveloped him like water brimming through streams too small for its enthusiastic flow to contain. He wasn't bothered in the slightest by the throbbing in his leg or the sharp sting radiating from his arm while he typed at his phone. Izuku had completely forgotten the brutal event from earlier as slender fingers held the glowing device in front of his heart shaped face until he finished and the 'send' button was pushed without hesitation. He looked at the message in the process of sending and sighed heavily, a blush unlike any before overwhelmed his cheeks at the same time. Izuku turned to lay on his side and he prepared to let sleep take him.
MSG sent:
Me too
Get some sleep, idiot.
Goodnight
