*Breathes in Annoyance* Work is still work, but when my new promotion starts I'll hopefully have more time to write since I like to write at night and I'll be doing more mornings. :) Check out my other stories if you're interested!
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Learn To Breathe
Chapter 7
Midoriya and Bakugo swam side by side the following week, heading back to the cove where Todoroki and Kirishima would hopefully be waiting. There was a tense silence between them that had been ongoing since their fight, and Izuku could feel the distrust and irritation emanating from the blonde.
"So… what are you going to do when we get there?" he asked hesitantly.
"Tsk! You little shit. I'm going to protect your dumb ass just like I swore I would." Bakugo grunted, his hand instinctively gripping his spear more tightly.
"Kacchan!" Midoriya whined in exasperation. "You can't just hover around me and wait to stab Shoto or something! Why don't you spend time with Kirishima? He's really nice and would probably enjoy some company."
"Ahh? I'm not following you to make friends with some shitty-haired half breed. I'm here because when that land walker turns on you—and he will turn on you, Deku—I'm going to kill him and drag your naïve ass back to Yuuei."
Izuku sighed loudly and swam a little faster, ready to relax with Todoroki and just forget this terrible feud between their species for a little while. He decided not to argue with Bakugo on the matter right then, hoping that he would come around eventually.
By the time they reached the familiar reef, his heart was beating loudly in his chest, now very nervous that Todoroki might not show after almost getting killed the last time. He popped his head out of the water, surveying the shoreline and bluffs.
To his immense relief and happiness, Todoroki and Eijiro were waiting there as they usually did. He squealed loudly and swam to the shallows as quickly as possible, ignoring how Katsuki cursed for him to wait.
Midoriya tackled Todoroki, knocking them both underwater as he hugged him tightly. "Shoto! You came back!"
The teen smiled and blinked at him, his cheeks swollen as he struggled to hold his breath. They floated in the water for another moment before Izuku remembered that Shoto didn't have gills and he pulled them both to the surface.
"Sorry! Sorry… I just got excited!" Izuku apologized, his face flushed with embarrassment. "I'm so happy you didn't let Kacchan scare you away… He came with me today and probably will from now on but he promised to behave!"
Todoroki wiped the seawater from his slightly burning eyes and glanced around, unable to see the other Mer. It made him shiver to not know where Bakugo was, but he tried to push the unease aside and just focus on Izuku.
"So, what did you want to do today?" he asked, changing the subject.
Midoriya immediately looked a little on edge, biting his lip nervously. "Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to go off the reef today and see the ocean floor…"
Todoroki quirked his eyebrow slightly. "Izuku… You've tried to show me that before and I could never hold my breath long enough."
"I know! But… I have an idea that might w-work… It's a little out there though…"
"Okay…" Shoto agreed hesitantly, noticing how red his friend's face had gotten. "What's this brilliant idea?"
"Well… my gills allow me to filter out water and just suck in oxygen, right? So, I was thinking that I could do that and then umm… breathe it into y-your m-mouth when you n-need more air…."
Todoroki's face lit up then too. If he went through with this then he'd be practically kissing Midoriya every two minutes at least. "Let's try it!" he stated a little too quickly, turning even darker with embarrassment. "I mean… I'd like to see what you do…"
Midoriya gave him a brilliant wobbly grin and dipped back under the water. "Kacchan! I'm going to swim with Shoto for a while. Stay here with Kirishima and don't attack him."
The blonde growled in irritation but swam by them so that he could get closer to shore. He had no intention of buddying up to the redhead, but also really didn't want to see Midoriya doing this 'breathing' thing with Todoroki.
Izuku popped back up and waited for Shoto to put on his goggles. "Are you ready?" he asked, taking his hand.
The Prince nodded and filled his lungs as much as he could, letting Izuku whisk them deeper into the ocean. It was beautiful, coral and fish of all colors around them with sunlight pouring through the water, making the Mer's scales glitter stunningly.
Midoriya didn't swim anywhere near his full speed, knowing that humans couldn't handle the pressure changes as well as he could. It was about halfway down when he felt Todoroki tightening his grip, reaching the end of his air supply.
He stopped and turned, the two of them suspended in the calm water. He hesitantly gripped Shoto's cheeks and smiled when the boy's hands held his slender waist, both pulling each other closer. "Are you sure you're okay with this?"
Todoroki nodded, his lungs burning while his face turned red from nervousness and oxygen deprivation. He held still as Midoriya slowly pressed their lips together, his eyes fluttering closed as electricity flew through his body. At that moment, he didn't even care if he drowned; he could die happy knowing that he was kissing the Mer.
Shoto opened his mouth slightly and sucked in, his body greedily taking the air Midoriya provided. He blew it out and let the Mer push another few lung-fulls' into him, re-stabilizing his lungs until he could hold his breath again. They stared at each other, both blushing and nervous but so incredibly happy at the same time.
"Want to go lower?" Izuku asked, grinning brightly as Shoto nodded. He dragged the human down once more, holding him so that he could plant his feet in the wet, heavy sand.
Midoriya let go and swam around him gleefully, grabbing his hand once more when Todoroki started to float up. He giggled loudly at the awestruck look on his crushes face, finding him adorable with his two-colored hair swirling around in the water.
Todoroki almost lost the little breath he was holding onto when he saw Izuku laugh, finding the Mer even more beautiful in his natural habitat. It was hard to imagine ever hating a creature like Midoriya when he saw him so peaceful and happy.
He pulled the teen back to him quickly, wrapping one arm around his waist and tangling his other hand in the boy's blackish-green hair. Their bare chests pressed against each other as they stared, both pausing for a moment.
Todoroki pressed their lips together once more, accepting the air that Izuku breathed into him. But this time he didn't try to get any more. He moved his lips slowly against the Mer's, fully kissing him and letting the world fall away, taking all of his problems with it when Midoriya shyly kissed back.
Bakugo sat on some of the underwater rocks and angrily sharpened his blade, grumbling at the sound of Midoriya's sing-song laugh from somewhere below the drop-off. "Stupid fucking Deku…"
"Do you always curse so much?" Kirishima asked, his voice slightly distorted as he tried to breathe and speak at the same time.
"Tsk… Your half breed gills don't work as well as they should. You're going to start choking if you don't shut up." Bakugo grunted, refusing to look at the boy.
Kirishima grinned widely though, chuckling at the insult like it was more of a joke. "But your lungs work perfectly right? Why don't you come and sit with me on the bluffs instead of underwater? That way I don't choke and we can get to know one another!"
"Has that damn red hair of yours infested your tiny brain? I'm on duty, not here to make friends with a dumb shit like you. Go. Away."
Eijiro started laughing loudly, only to do exactly what Katsuki had warned and breathe in without filtering the water out. He gripped his chest tightly as he coughed, surprised when he felt strong hands grabbing his shoulders and yanking him above the water's surface.
"Damn it, you stupid fuck. I warned you!" Bakugo growled, holding him steady as he continued to sputter and choke.
Kirishima's smile soon returned though as he shook his wet hair from his eyes. "Thanks, bro… that was really manly of you to help me! You do know I'm tall enough to stand up on my own though, right?"
Katsuki's face turned the same color as the teen's hair and he roughly shoved him away. "Yeah, well… I wasn't sure you wouldn't drown and Deku would be pissed at me if I let you. Don't fucking read into it."
"Then I guess you should come and sit on the bluffs with me! I'm just going to keep trying to talk to you whether you stay underwater or not!" Kirishima chuckled, turning to wade over to the rocky area. He laughed harder when the blonde cursed a storm behind him but ended up following.
When they got to the bluffs, he pushed himself up and stood, stretching. "You can sit on the edge if you want! That way you don't have to hold onto the side or tread water too long."
"I already told you I'm here to keep that two-colored bastard in line. I need to stay in the water so I can get to Deku quickly if he needs help." Bakugo explained gruffly. He couldn't help but stare a little at the teen's chest as he stretched though, eyeing how Kirishima's muscles rippled and tensed beneath his clothes.
Eijiro shrugged, blissfully unaware of how the blonde swallowed hard and averted his gaze to avoid being caught. He started stripping off his soaking wet shirt to wring it out. "So, what's your beef with Shoto? It seems kind of unmanly to hate on someone who never did anything to you."
"Humans are scum. Every last one of them. Don't you know what they do to my kind when we are weak enough to get caught?"
"I'm aware…" Eijiro replied, his voice losing its excitable edge.
The change in tone made Katsuki look back up, his jaw falling slack. The redhead had his back to him as he finished squeezing his shirt and began putting it back on, allowing Bakugo to easily see the harsh white whip marks that crisscrossed over the otherwise smooth tan skin… the keloid scars that wrapped around his wrists and ankles.
Kirishima turned around, catching the regretful, angry look on the blonde's face before he had a chance to school it. He sighed and sat down on the edge of the rock, letting his legs dangle down in the water. "I've only talked to you twice, but I have a feeling not much makes you speechless."
Bakugo grit his teeth together and almost snarled. "Those bastards did that to you? You couldn't be that much older or younger than me so how fucking old were you when that happened?"
"I was fifteen going on sixteen when I was found out and taken prisoner. I only ended up being kept imprisoned for a few months though, so it's no sweat!" Eijiro explained, leaning back on his hands. He grinned softly at the blonde, his expression showing no signs of ill will.
"Just because you're part Mer? How can you fucking defend that weird-ass looking human when his kind are the ones who punished you for something entirely out of your control?" Bakugo questioned.
"Because Shoto was the one to convince the guards to let me go… He's taken care of me since then. I know he can be a little temperamental but he's actually a really manly dude."
"Tsk…" Katsuki scoffed, pulling himself up to sit beside the boy. "I guess if your dumb ass isn't chained up anymore because of him I don't have to worry too much about that little useless Deku."
Kirishima gave him two thumbs up and then slung an arm around Bakugo's tan shoulders, his carefree laughter ringing out when the blonde started cussing and shoved him back into the water.
Midoriya swam in little loops while they headed back home, humming happily to himself as he remained on cloud nine from kissing Shoto.
"Oi! Cut that dumb shit out, Deku. We need to get back already so that no one gets any ideas." Bakugo grunted, turning back to glare at the lovesick teen. He rolled his eyes, less irritated than he usually was even though Midoriya wasn't listening to him.
"Come on Kacchan! Wasn't today fun?" Izuku cooed, hurrying to catch up to him before returning to his carefree gliding.
"Tsk… What could possibly be fun about waiting around for hours as you sucked face with that ugly land walker? I thought my fucking ears would start bleeding with how much shitty-hair talked."
Midoriya's whole upper body turned the color of Bakugo's tail and he covered his face with both arms. "We didn't kiss the whole time!"
"What the fuck, Deku! I was just meaning that you helped that human breathe underwater! Did you actually kiss him?" Bakugo growled, the anger in his voice dragging Midoriya from his happiness.
Midoriya stopped swimming and began to fidget like a child who'd done something wrong but wasn't entirely sorry for it. "I… Y-yeah…"
"You stupid useless—ARGH! How could you fall for a fucking human, Deku? You're the next ruler of Yuuei and are supposed to protect OUR people! MERFOLK. Not. Humans. Do you have any idea what could happen to you if anyone fucking found out that you were courting with the enemy?" Bakugo hissed, grabbing the boy's shoulders and shaking him as if he could jolt him out of his feelings.
"You don't think I know that?" Midoriya shouted back, tears merging with the salty seawater surrounding them. "I know what I'm supposed to do and how stupid this is, but I can't help how I feel about him, Kacchan! You've always called me stupid, and maybe I am for wanting to be with Shoto but he wants me back and doesn't care that I'm from a species his kind hates!"
Bakugo yanked on his blonde hair until he was sure he'd ripped out a chunk or two, fighting the very powerful urge to throttle the smaller Mer. He took a deep breath to try and force down his impulsive rage, attempting to persuade him one last time. "Deku… You live in the water and he's a human that can't hold his breath longer than a couple of minutes at a time. Even if you let your tail dry so that you could grow legs and spend time with him on land, it would only last for a few days before killing you—and that's if you weren't discovered and executed first… It won't work between you two."
"Kacchan… I know that… really… But I don't care… I'd rather be with Shoto once every so often than have a mate back in Yuuei that I can see whenever I want to…"
Katsuki's shoulders sagged in defeat; in the years he'd known Izuku, he'd found that once the boy's mind was set on something it didn't ever change. The only thing he could do now is protect the young heir from what he considered to be an inevitable disaster. "Whatever Deku… Just… Don't forget your responsibilities to Yuuei and our people. We need you more than that two-colored prick."
"You… You're giving me your blessing?" Midoriya nearly gasped, his disheartened tears turning to ones of happiness. "Really, Kacchan?"
The blonde rolled his eyes, letting his signature scowl return as he twisted and began swimming once more. "I swear you cry just to cry…"
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