"Are you coming?" Mina hopped between her feet in the doorway.

I nodded, gathering my bag. "I just have to talk to Aizawa about what I missed, and I'll be there once we're done. Don't wait up." I gave her a wave as she and the others left.

Aizawa cocked his head. "I already gave you what you missed – or did you get concussed while with Redemption?"

I began to stammer, flustered. I let out a breath and handed him the envelope in my bag. "Here's the homework I missed and the design for my new hero suit." Sirius and I had made a new design since Akari and I were not going to be heroes together anymore.

He hummed, taking the new design out. "You're okay with it taking a while to make?" I nodded – since the fabric was made with my own hair, it would take a long while to weave the fabric to use in the suit. "Well then, I'll get this sent out. How is the cultural event coming along?"

"Everyone's been working so hard – I'm sure it will be amazing," I watched as he perused the pages, nodding at each assignment.

He closed the envelope, tucking it under his arm. "Remind your classmates that you can hang the lights in the gym this weekend, and you have the next weekend to load in to set up the rest of the stage. Now, get out of here."

I gave him a small smile before exiting the classroom. I almost ran into Katsuki leaning against the wall outside of the class. I stiffened as he stood in front of me. "You didn't go ahead with everyone else?"

He frowned and grabbed my hand, pulling me along with him. "I can wait to walk back with you." I tucked my head down and stared at the floor. The halls had emptied quickly – everyone was excited to put this festival on. He interlaced his fingers with mine as we made our way down to our shoe cubbies. We let go of each other; a few of class B were at their lockers. We changed our shoes and headed back to our dorm. We walked close enough together that his hand brushed mine. "One of the Shiketsu losers keeps asking me out."

I stiffened. "Oh? Are you…" Was he dumping me for her?

He let out a growl in the back of his throat. "Dumbass. I told her I was dating you – Todoroki was fucking standing there, too, so he knows now. An airhead like that is a waste of time." Oh. He wasn't ashamed of being with me. I ran my tongue over my molars. Wait – I had spent a good portion of last night with Todoroki and the rest of the special effects team, and he had not said anything. "Do you not trust me?"

I stopped on the sidewalk. "No - no, no. Absolutely not that." He turned and stood before me, his hands shoved into his pockets. The group ahead of us kept walking.

"Then why do you keep thinking I'm just going to dump you and move on to some other extra?" Katsuki towered over me.

I flushed, wanting to avert my eyes, but could not. "I'm not as strong or pretty –"

"Stop right there," Katsuki growled, grinding his teeth. "You are strong. You're one of the strongest people here. I thought you were a stuck-up bitch after that first hero class. You beat Kirishima and me so fast we didn't even know what happened. But then you helped save Aizawa and All Might at USJ. That was when I fucking fell for you. You're beautiful when you fight, and you're fucking breathtaking when you smile." He lifted a hand to cup my cheek. I could not help but give him a small smile. That was what he really, honestly, thought. He leaned forward, capturing my lips in his. I leaned into the kiss until we heard voices nearing. We pulled away, swiftly walking back to our dorm. I covered my face with my sweater's sleeve, trying my best to hide the blush on my face. He had liked me since then?!

"Makoto!" Mina trilled, waving to us as we approached the dorm. "Hurry and get changed!" Katsuki snapped at her as we approached.

"I'll be down as fast as I can," I walked into the dorm and up to my room. Katsuki stayed in the living space – taking his place at the drums. I changed out of my uniform and into black leggings with an oversized grey t-shirt. I threw my hair up, exiting the dorms to the front. The dance team was already so in sync.

[B&M]

"You're such a fucking klutz," Katsuki laughed. I frowned, watching as Katsuki gently moved my propped-up ankle so he could sit with me on my bed. "What did you even do?" He moved the ice pack to get a better view. My ankle sat on a pillow in his lap. Thankfully it was not bruising.

I sighed, laying my forearm over my eyes. "I was trying to follow along with Mina and everyone else – but I tripped over my feet and fell into the hedge." He snorted. "It's not funny! I should have just said no. I'm not a dancer."

He reached up and flicked me in the forehead. I swatted at his hand. "You just need some practice. Even dunce face is on his way to being half-decent on the guitar. The sprain isn't that bad, thankfully." He looked over the rest of me, grabbing my hand. "You scrapped yourself, though."

"I missed one?" I took my hand back and dragged my thumb over the scrape. The wound disappeared.

Katsuki gawked at my hand. "When the hell did you learn that?"

I sat up, my hands splayed out behind me. "Over the weekend. I can only use it on small cuts and scrapes, though." A few of the vigilantes returned Monday night battered and beaten, so Sirius had shown me how to manipulate the atoms surrounding the wound to close it.

Katsuki gave me a small smile. "I fucking told you." I let out a chuckle. A knock sounded at my door. Katsuki gently moved my ankle off his lap and got to the door before I could react.

Uraraka stood at the door, her face flushed. "Oh! Bakugo, you're here. Can I ask Makoto for a favour?" He opened the door enough for her to come in. "I'm sorry for interrupting you two, but you're the only girl in the dorm right now, and it's kind of an emergency…"

I gave her a smile. "You're not interrupting." I rose from my bed, gently applying pressure to my ankle, and gathered the last of my feminine supplies from my bathroom. "Sorry, it's not much, but it's all I have."

Uraraka lit up, taking the box. "Thank you! But are you sure?"

"Yeah," I reassured her, "you need it now."

"I'll pay you back," she bowed her head and turned to exit – seeing Katsuki standing with the door open, looking annoyed as usual. "I'll let you two get back to studying now." He slammed the door behind her.

Katsuki picked me up easily and plopped me back onto my bed. "Stay off your goddamn ankle!"

[B&M]

I floated a lighting unit up to the ceiling, affixing it to the lighting pipe. Sero and Koda placed the lights on the floor in the correct orientation while I put each in place individually. The band team was still practicing back at the dorms, and the dance team ran through their routine where the stage would go. Mina had taken to running one-on-one lessons with me so I could get the dance down. Thankfully, I would only be on stage for a tiny window of time – but I needed to survive that small window. Katsuki was even able to learn the dance and looked fabulous doing it. If I was able to learn the dance – could I even do it on the stage? We had just over a week until the performance. I had to get over it and do it. Crap. Not only was the performance only a week away – the pageant was too!

"Mineta!" Hagakure shouted, throwing her shoe at the small man. "Stop trying to look up Makoto's skirt and pay attention."

Sero laughed. "Too bad for you – she's wearing shorts!" I moved to the far side of the gym.

"No fair – you got a proper peak!" Mineta whined. Todoroki and Kirishima worked on the spotlights on the balcony. Once the lights were hung, I joined the dance team. I was awkwardly dancing alongside them. We continued working until we were kicked out of the gym for curfew. Once we returned to the dorms, I grabbed my pyjamas and bathed downstairs with Mina and Momo.

"When are we going to see that dress the Bakugo's are making for you?" Mina smirked, flapping her brows.

I avoided her intrusive gaze. "I don't know – maybe next week?"

Momo sank deeper into the bath. "It was lovely of his parents to offer to make the design too. I'm getting butterflies just anticipating it." His parents were absolutely amazing people.

"Hey, Koto," Mina mused. Her toes splashed the surface of the water. "What kind of boyfriend is Bakugo anyway?"

Momo hummed. "You would think he would be the angry and controlling type – but Makoto would not have started dating him if that was the case."

Mina nodded. "You're right! He must be different with you than he is with all of us."

"I wouldn't know how to describe what type of boyfriend he's like," I sighed, watching the ripples in the water.

"Does he yell at you?" Mina pressed.

"Sometimes – but it's not angry," I explained. "It's like… he wants me to stop minimizing myself." The girls cooed.

"Does he call you names?" Momo looked at me with stary eyes.

Mina perked up, bouncing in her spot. "Is he a good kisser?" I sank into the water, covering my nose, and quickly nodded. I thought so – but he was also my first kiss.

"What about you and Kirishima?" Momo turned to Mina, finally giving me a breather.

Mina giggled, a large smile spreading across her face. "It's great."

I excused myself, getting out of the bath. I dried myself off, changing into my pyjamas. I held my clothes tightly to myself and left the bath, faltering in the kitchen. Katsuki sat, scrolling on his phone at a table, his hamper beside him. "Hey." He looked up at me, his lips lifting into a smirk. Voices chatted and chortled in the common space.

"Want to go watch a movie?" Katsuki stood, picking up his hamper. I nodded, walking beside him toward the elevators.

"Oh man!" Mineta groaned from the common space, "I can't believe our maid café and topless café ideas were turned down. Our class has some bombshells!"

"I know, right," Kaminari agreed. "I'd love to have Jiro serving me tea."

"We know which babe in our class has the best breasts, boys. Satoshi's quirk has let us see it all." Mineta drooled. My face flushed. "I'd love for her to sit on my face with that ass." I froze, staring ahead of myself in horror. I felt Katsuki move to stand between us – his body against mine.

"Whoa, dude," Sero nervously chuckled, "I don't think you should be talking about her like that." Katsuki scoffed.

"What?" Mineta laughed, "she doesn't have a boyfriend, so she's fair game."

Katsuki dropped his hamper and stalked into the common space, explosions coming from his hands. "You bet she fucking does small fry!" I watched half in horror, half in stunned awe as Sero and Kaminari tried to hold a raging Katsuki back while Mineta cowered under the coffee table. "Let me go! I'm going to kill that bastard!"

"Bakugo!" Sero struggled to hold one of Katsuki's arms. "Calm down! You know he's all talk and no bite." Katsuki let off explosions with each threat.

"Ididn'tknowthatshehadaboyfriendIwouldn'thavedoneanythingifIknew." Mineta shook, crying in fear. Kaminari looked back at me – pleading for help.

"K-Katsuki," I forced out. He growled, balling his hands into fists. Mineta took that moment to run from the dorm.

Sero and Kaminari waited a moment before releasing Katsuki's arms. He hit them both over the head immediately. "Why the hell did you let that pervert get away?!"

"Come on, man," Kaminari held his head, retreating to hide behind me. "Why didn't either of you tell us you were dating – aren't we friends?" He rested his chin on the top of my head. Sero congratulated Katsuki while he shouted back.

"I-I'm going to bed." I shook my head and out of Kaminari's grip. I was too overwhelmed. Katsuki picked up his hamper and grabbed my upper arm as he pulled me into the awaiting elevator. Katsuki led me into his room, locking the door behind him. He dropped his hamper and then enveloped me in his arms. I was overwhelmed but not panicking. Katsuki's entire body, however, was stiff as a board. His jaw clenched tight. His face rested in the crook of my neck. His hot breath hit my bare skin.

"If that pervert lays one finger on you – I will murder him." Katsuki spat, tightening his grip on me.

I weaselled out an arm, rubbing circles on his back. "I'm sure he won't even look at me for a while." He was not relaxing. He lifted his head from my neck and looked down at me. I rose on my toes and locked our lips together. I felt his shoulders fall as he kissed me back. He lifted me off the ground. I gripped onto his shirt as I gasped. Katsuki's tongue slowly ran over my inner bottom lip. His tongue met mine. This was not our usual kiss – this was much more heated. He lowered me back onto my feet. I vibrated my abdomen and backed away from him – holding my hands over my face.

He looked dejected. "I pushed too far." Katsuki stared at the floor for a moment before gathering his laundry. "I was just pissed off at what that pervert said about you."

I held my breath and set my clothes on his desk before sitting on the edge of his bed. Katsuki put his laundry away. "It's… It's not that I didn't like it. It just surprised me."

He cleared his throat, closing his closet. "I'd like to do that again. If it's okay." I nodded, hiding my face with a hand. Katsuki set up his laptop before joining me on his bed. He pulled me onto his lap. One hand wrapped about my waist to keep me in place while his other rested on my thigh. I laid my hand over him as the opening scene played. "We just told the three loudmouths in the class I was your boyfriend. I'm glad."

I turned to see his smirk. "You're glad?"

"I can do this more often now." He leaned down and kissed me gently.

[B&M]

Masaru adjusted a few of the pins in the dress, taking a needle and thread to hand stitch the finishing touches. The dress was absolutely gorgeous – but did it suit me? Mitsuki stood in front of me with her phone, grinning while she took a few photos.

The door opened. "Are you almost-" Katsuki froze, staring at me. The tops of his cheeks flushed.

"Is it that bad?" I bit my lip, looking down at the slit in the side of the dress. Katsuki stayed quiet and shook his head firmly. His parents chuckled.

"We'll be out in a minute," Masaru sighed, sewing a dart at my bust. Katsuki backed out of his father's office and shut the door quietly.

Mitsuki snapped another photo of me. "Do you know what you're going to do for your showcase moment?"

I bit my lip. "I was thinking of breaking part of myself down." I could break down my legs and lose the silver shoes she had picked out – or I could break down my arms. But what would I do with those atoms? My quirk was not flashy like Nejire's.

She rubbed a hand over her face. "We've gotta remind Kats to get a video of you too. Though – with how awestruck he was – he'll probably forget." I looked at the door he had left through. Was that true?

"I can ask Redemption to take it." I offered them up. "Our principal hired a few heroes to guard the school during the event, and he was hired." Masaru left the room so I could change. She unzipped the dress for me and put it into a garment bag. I rebuttoned my shirt.

"What's your number so I can send you these photos?" Mitsuki smiled, ready for my number. "Kats is probably up in his room since it's raining. He's always been such a baby when it rains. Why don't you head on up there? Third door on your left." I nodded, thanking her. I left Masaru's office and headed up the stairs. The stairwell was lined with dozens of family photos. Katsuki in various grades with and without Midoriya. Masaru's and Mitsuki's wedding photo. Photos of Katsuki being held as a baby. Photos of extended family. This was nice. I jumped. Banging and crashing sounded from upstairs. I continued to the third door on the left and knocked. The sound continued. Wait – those were drums. I swallowed, opening his bedroom door.

Katsuki sat in the corner of his room, headphones pulled on, smashing away at the drum kit. His bed sat opposite with a bare desk in front of the window. He had a few more posters and figures of All Might – but his room was normal. "Have you played before?" Katsuki grabbed the crash cymbal and took off his headphones. I shook my head, refocusing on him. Katsuki motioned with his drumstick for me to come closer. I closed his door and crossed the room. I stopped in front of him. He stood, grabbed my hand, and pulled me around the drum set. "Sit." He turned the stool towards me, put his hands on my hips, and pulled me down into his lap. Katsuki put his feet under mine, setting our right on the bass drum. He put the drumsticks in my hands, adjusting my grip. He held my hands in his, starting with a slow beat. His foot started to tap below mine.

[B&M]

I froze on stage. My body shook like a leaf. The band and the special effects team stood on the floor, watching us. The others continued to dance around me. I covered my mouth and rushed off the stage – beelining for the bathroom. I let my dinner out into the toilet. I knew this was a bad idea. I cleaned myself up – and took a long moment before reluctantly going back to the stage.

Mina, Uraraka, and Hagakure ran to me. "Are you okay?" Uraraka checked with the back of her hand for a fever.

I sighed, whispering, "I get horrible stage fright." I covered my face with my hands, wanting to shrink away once again.

"Makoto," Hagakure huffed as she waved her arms about, "how come you didn't tell us? We could have been helping you work through that this entire time."

Mina pushed me back onto the apron of the stage, "does anyone have any stage fright tips? We've gotta help Makoto overcome this!" I stared back at her – she had just announced my dirty laundry to others again.

"Why don't you try to imagine us in your underwear!" Sero suggested with a smile. "Isn't that supposed to help?" I shook my head. That never worked for me. I did not have the nerve to imagine everyone in that state.

Iida rubbed his chin as he approached us, "what helped you participate in the sports festival?"

I hung my head. "Aizawa said that minimum participation was required. I didn't expect to get as far as I did – once it was just Akari and me, I tried to forfeit, but she attacked me before the match even started. You know what? Thank you for trying – but I won't dance. I'll just bring out all down."

"What will you do for the pageant?" Midoriya pressed. I shrank into myself. Right. Regardless, I still had that disaster to deal with. I rested my head on my knees. What the hell was I doing to do? "Kachan – what are you doing?" I looked up. Katsuki was stripping off his shirt and pants down to his black boxers.

"If imagining people in their underwear is supposed to help – why don't we just do it." Katsuki placed his hands on his hips as he stared down the others. "Eh?!" Sero and Kirishima began to take their clothes off as well.

"Y-you don't have to." I stammered as the boys on the floor all began to undress.

"Well – it might work," Kirishima smiled, hardening his abs.

I shook my head. "Now I'm embarrassed for you."

Todoroki set his folded clothes beside him. "I'll wear only my underwear on the balcony if it'll help you." They were all trying so hard to help me.