I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.


"Ugh…?" Mineta groaned as he slowly sat up. Everything he felt was either numbed, throbbing, in pain, or a combination of all three. He couldn't move his left arm, see out his right eye, or even breathe very well. As his senses finally steadied themselves, he realized he wasn't on testing grounds G. Instead, Mineta was sitting on one of the beds inside of Nurse's Office.

He quickly looked, as fast as his sore neck would allow, to the bed next to him and found Bakugou laying there. He was also heavily bandaged, with both wrists and one leg having casts around them. His face was also wrapped up, only leaving his mouth and intense red eyes free. And they were open.

Mineta could tell Bakugou was waiting for him to wake up. So knowing it was impossible to delay a conversation, he faced the inevitable.

"We lost, didn't we?"

"Damn right we did. Why else are we here?" Bakugou, rather calmly, answered. Mineta began mulling over the human grenade's mild reaction. Why was he so tranquil? Shouldn't he be blowing up in Mineta's face? After all, if the shorter boy had just done his part and ran for the goal, they wouldn't be here. Well…

Bakugou would, but at least with a passing grade.

However, before Mineta could apologize for getting them in this mess, the door to the room opened. Mineta looked over and saw Recovery Girl sorting through a folder. The elderly Heroine looked up before walking over to her desk. And wordlessly, she picked up a clipboard that no doubt had their recorded injuries.

"Good eve–" Mineta began, trying to be polite.

"It's already the next day. But good morning to you too." Recovery Girl interrupted as she walked over to Mineta and Bakugou. The shorter boy felt like his eyes fell out of their sockets, including the one that was covered. They were knocked out for an entire day? Mineta quickly began to jog his memory, trying to find some clue as to what happened. But he could only remember his and Bakugou's daring charge and everything before it.

Anything past that was a blank.

"I wouldn't put too much thought into it. Both of you received so much head trauma that I'm surprised it was still attached to your shoulders. I've already scolded All Might for not holding back enough, you boys had some pretty close calls with your injuries. But..." Recovery Girl began. The elder then began poking the two in the, still sore, ribs with her syringe shaped walking stick. Of course, since Mineta knew he was being chastised, he silently took the prodding.

Bakugou, however, was a little more rebellious to the action.

"We fucking know you hag; we're dumbasses for fighting All Might. You don't have to rub it in." Bakugou said, squirming away from the implement. Recovery Girl just stared at the human grenade. It was as if she was asking him if he had learned his lesson. But when he wasn't giving in, she turned to Mineta, who had begun meditating on yesterday's events.

"What were you both thinking? Taking on someone well above your weight class? If that test had been an actual Villain attack, neither of you boys would even be here." Recovery girl asked.

"… I just wanted to prove something to that idiot over there. But I guess there could've been a better time…" Mineta said, still thinking over his actions. Bakugou simply grunted in agreement to that. Recovery Girl momentarily looked to the human grenade before letting out an exasperated sigh.

"I've treated more than my fair share of bullheaded students over the years… But you two are by far the most chaotic pair I've encountered, and that's saying a lot given my age. It's like there isn't a shred of normalcy in your body!"

"That's because I have no business being normal. I'm aiming for the top, so I can't let mediocrity slow me down." Bakugou replied, trying to wave an arm at Mineta. The shorter boy felt his eyelid twitch. After all the nonsense they went through with All Might, the bastard's still calling him mediocre? Well Bakugou's about to be reminded that two people could play this game.

"Says the guy who needed help from mediocrity…" Mineta muttered loudly. The shorter boy wasn't looking at Bakugou, but he could tell he was glaring at him. He had to suppress a smirk when the human grenade's voice was audibly angrier.

"Care to say that to my fucking face?"

And since Mineta now knows he prefers it if people were direct with him… The shorter boy turned to Bakugou, looked at him dead in the eye, and said this in a way he understood.

"I, mediocrity, helped. So what does that say about you?"

Before the explosive blonde could shout something back, Recovery Girl poked them both. The two of them immediately quieted down as she placed their school uniforms down on their beds. Mineta, at first, stared at the articles of clothing before him. Then the realization dawned on him that, because it was the next day, class was going to start soon.

Although…

"What about our injuries?" Mineta asked, gesturing to the cast on his left arm.

"Oh no, those have already healed, I was about to remove them. However, you'll be putting up with your other injuries for the rest of today. Think of them as a reminder of what happened yesterday. Are there any other questions?" Recover Girl answered as she pulled out a cast saw. Mineta and Bakugou only shook their heads before the elderly Heroine began to cut open their casts. The two soon began to change out of their costumes and into their uniforms in silence.

And as this occurred, Mineta began thinking about what to say to the rest of 1A. Assuming they weren't the only ones who failed, the shorter boy wanted to have some encouraging words ready. But no matter what he thought of, nothing sounded natural. A failure was a failure; nothing was going to change that. Not for him and Bakugou or for anyone else. So with a deep sigh, Mineta decided it was better to just take it as it came.

"Also, could you both to come by during lunch with Midoriya? I need to perform another examination before finalizing the healing process." Recovery Girl said as Mineta and Bakugou limped to the door.

"… The nerd fucked up his hand, didn't he?" Bakugou asked, already annoyed at the need return.

"That sounds like something Midoriya would do… But yeah, I'll bring him around." Mineta answered, nodding to the elderly Heroine. She gave a satisfactory hum to that before starting to sort through UA's medical records. This was the cue that allowed both Mineta and Bakugou to leave. And already did they see proof of how long they've been out. Outside, it was cloudy and drizzling.

The complete opposite of the fair weather they've had the other day.

"Today's going to be awful…" Mineta groaned as he put one hand on his face.

"Whose fault you think that is?" Bakugou asked as he limped off. The shorter boy let those words rattle around in his head. And as it continued to echo, he began to accept the situation more than he already did. It was then that he realized that he still didn't apologize. But while apologizing to his nemesis was something he wanted to avoid at all costs…

Mineta couldn't in this case.

"Bakugou, I'm sorry for getting us into this mess. If I just went for the goal like you said–"

"An apology changes nothing, what's done is done… But even if we bit it hard, you still showed me spine. And that's worth more to me than a passing grade. So, good work rat bitch, you've earned some respect." Bakugou interrupted, turning to face Mineta. The shorter boy proceeded to just stare in abstract confusion at the human grenade. Did that just happen? And as his mind continued to process this strange turn of events, Mineta pointed to the nurse's office.

"Are you still concussed? Should I get Recovery Girl?" Mineta asked, question marks still flooding his brain.

"Oh fuck off. I'm finally acknowledging you and this is the thanks I get?"

"But you realize this isn't normal for us, right? Before we had detention with the Principal, we were at each other's throats. Both of us wanted to destroy the other in the most painful and/or humiliating way possible. And now, we're acting all buddy-buddy." Mineta said, making all sorts of gestures to paint their tumultuous relationship. It honestly made him look like Iida, but the message was clear.

"Oh don't get me wrong, I still want you to perish like the pest you are. But you stood and fought instead of running and hiding. That proves to me that you're not just a sniveling shit wit that needs Deku for everything, that you're a real Hero-in-Training. You're going to need a lot more work before I can call you a Hero though." Bakugou answered. His normally intense red eyes were strangely composed, level. It gave a weight to his words that was different than usual.

Instead of kicking you after knocking you down, he was helping him up.

"… When my internship Hero came around, she asked me why I hated you so much. I told her that, for all your power, you only use it for yourself. I couldn't stand that selfish way of thinking; it wasn't Hero like at all. But after yesterday, when we charged All Might, I understood why Midoriya and Kirishima still follow you. Despite how you treat people, your strength was something admirable. Hell, even I was jealous of you for having so many things I don't have." Mineta said after a moment of thought.

"Okay, maybe you're the one that's concussed. No way would the imp shit I know admit that." Bakugou said as he pointed to the Nurse's Office. Mineta practically hissed at the human grenade, which caused him to fold his arms. His calm red eyes then turned to a scrutinizing glare. It was almost as if he was saying, taunting, 'prove me wrong'.

"With Fenghuang Shifu, I learned more than just fighting. I learned about finding my true feelings and being honest with myself. Without those two things, I wouldn't be able to grow as a person. So if bettering myself meant admitting secrets… Then I wouldn't mind spilling my guts." Mineta answered as he placed a hand over his heart. Granted, secrets involving All Might and Midoriya's One for All Relationship were completely off limits.

So Mineta had to silently settle on the irony of his dramatic answer.

Bakugou began muttering something about 'self-reflection', causing Mineta to raise an eyebrow to that. But seeing the shorter boy react, the human grenade's brows furrowed deeply and harshly glared at him.

"So, uhh… Are we cool?" Mineta asked, trying to dodge the subject.

"Not really, but close enough." Bakugou said before starting to limp off again. So with a sigh of relief, Mineta began limping after him. No other conversation occurred for a little while as they traversed UA's halls. But a thought occurred to Mineta that he needed to try and ask. He just hoped this line won't raise the lax tension between them again.

"Are you going to apologize to Midoriya any time soon?"

"… Nerd's not ready yet. So don't push me." Bakugou replied after a brief pause. As Mineta's brain registered those words, he found something off about that response. He wasn't sure why, but the actual words and what Bakugou meant didn't line up. And though Mineta began mediating on that thought…

It was soon overtaken by a more nonsensical one.

Mineta's mind focused on the second half of Bakugou's response, allowing a 'brilliant' idea to form. It's been a while since he's done this… But doing that would no doubt sour their somewhat mended relationship. He looked over to the human grenade and found him looking back with a confident smirk. Almost saying 'go ahead, I dare you'…

So with that… Mineta shoved Bakugou and began power limping away. It didn't topple him, but it did make him lose balance for a moment.

"Fucking rat bitch, you're dead! And walk behind me you little shit!"


And that was Chapter 59!

Whenever I think about Bakugou, I always find myself sorting through all of his characteristics. From the prickly prick of a bully to the incredibly maladjusted young man... There's no end to the controversial yet deep topics surrounding him. But the one I want to focus on this update is how Bakugou determines who gains his respect.

It's a hard thing to do, figuring out who is worthy of your respect. As for Bakugou, I believe he likes people who prove their strength in unfavorable situations. Because of what All Might represented to him, our explosive turd could only see value in power, of body or of will. Uraraka showed him her determination, allowing Bakugou to respect her. It's the same deal with Kirishima, he showed Bakugou the lengths of his cheerful stubbornness. It's also why Todoroki isn't part of his list, he lacked power in a certain way.

It's why Bakugou could finally acknowledge Mineta in this chapter... The Rat Bitch finally looked at the Explosive Turd dead in the eye and said "Fuck you".

But, hang on... What about Midoriya though? He neatly fits into this rather narrow criteria all too well... So what's stopping Bakugou from respecting his rival's power? Well, that's a discussion for another day during a specific event, you know which one.

That's all I have for this update. Next chapter, a bunch of idiots are brought back to life by an unexpected twist. So with all that said...

Until Next Time. T1.