A/N: I finally started writing again! This is an extra long chapter, so that's exciting, and I know where the story is going now, so hopefully the last few chapters will come out faster haha, but no promises... Warnings for this chapter: brief mention of SA, but nothing graphic

Normally, he would take the bus to school, considering how far it is from his house, but today Bakugou decides to jog. It's only 3 AM, he has hours to kill before school starts, and he wants to run. He wants to feel a burning ache in his legs, the kind that lets him know that he's getting stronger. His life is spiraling out of control right now, but at least he can control this. It takes an hour to jog to the school, and upon arriving he realizes he may have made a mistake. It's now only about 4 AM, and the gates are still locked, which means that he is stuck, a gross, sweaty mess, waiting for someone to come and open the school. He also realizes that it would look suspicious if the first person to get to the school sees some kid with a full ass backpack waiting at the gates to be let in. He walks away from the gates and finds a suitable place to hide where he can still keep watch.

In hindsight, his mistake was thinking he could sit with his back against a tree while waiting. I mean, technically, he wasn't wrong. He does sit with his back against the tree while he's waiting. Unfortunately, it hinders his ability to keep watch considering he's asleep within the hour. By the time he wakes up and checks the time, he has fifteen minutes to get to class. So much for getting a workout in before class. He heads in to the school. After a quick detour to his locker, (somehow he manages to shove his backpack inside, he's still not sure how) he finds his homeroom teacher's room. At least if he goes to class before the rest of the extras he can blend in better.

He's the third person to arrive, the other two in the room being Ponytail Girl and Grape Boy. Katsuki has every intention of ignoring them, until he sees the little fucker reach out his hands and deliberately grasp at the front of Momo's shirt. She looks deeply uncomfortable, and cowers in on herself a bit, but doesn't say anything, and to Bakugou's utter disgust he can practically hear Mineta panting. In an amount of time that feels like an eternity, but is in reality probably only about three seconds, Bakugou crosses the room and jerks the smaller boy away from his classmate, holding him by his lapels in the air and shaking him a bit.

"Get your hands off her, you fucking pervert," Bakugou growls.

"Aww, come on," he whines. "I just wanted to see how they felt. Besides, she must want some kind of attention with how revealing she made her hero costume."

"Nobody wants that kind of attention, especially from you Grape Nuts," he shakes Mineta again, for emphasis. "People like you deserve to die a horrible death."

"Bakugou, put Mineta down," Aizawa drones from the front of the room. When did he come in? How much did he see? "Both of you see me after class." Bakugou drops Mineta, who runs back to his desk looking offended. He walks to his own desk, and sits down, pulling out his homework, and a notebook for taking notes. Slowly but surely the rest of the class trickles in.

Most people, thankfully, pay no attention to him, talking amongst themselves as they head to their desks. Deku comes in, takes one look at him, and quickly averts his eyes to avoid the death glare Bakugou sends his way. Shitty Hair and Dunce face walk in together, talking loudly about something. They stop at his desk, one on each side.

"Fuck is this?" he rolls his eyes. "An ambush?"

"We're having… a party… on Friday," Kirishima pants, and Katsuki notices that he's breathing heavily and his cheeks are a little flushed. A glance at Kaminari confirms that he is in the same condition. Dumbasses must have raced each other to class, he figures.

"A gaming party," Kaminari adds. "It's a sleepover, and we're gonna play so much Smash Bros, and eat so much junk."

"And we want you to come," Kirishima looks nervous, as if he expects Bakugou to say no, which in his defense, would be his normal response in this situation. "We'll have like carrot sticks or whatever if you don't wanna eat junk."

"Fine," Bakugou sighs loudly. "I'll go to your shitty party, but only cuz there's snacks." Kaminari lets out a loud 'heeeell yeah!', and Kirishima has the most disgusting tooth-rottingly sweet smile on his face. As if communicating telepathically they both slap him on the shoulder, and then fist bump above his head.

It's in that moment that Bakugou realizes that Kirishima and Kaminari share once brain cell that bounces between each of their heads and occasionally spits into two smaller brain cells so that they can think the same, mundane thought, at the same, mundane time. Which makes them absolute dumbasses that Bakugou definitely doesn't feel any fondness for, whatsoever.

"Yeah, tch, whatever," he shrugs. "Don't think this means we're friends or whatever." They stand next to him for a moment too long and then go to their respective desks. Class starts soon after.

It seems to take both forever, and no time at all for the end of class to come, and Bakugou spends the entire time with his leg bouncing up and down.

He and Mineta both stop at Aizawa's desk after class, and he waits until the room is empty to speak.

"What happened this morning?" he wonders boredly.

"Bakugou attacked me!" Mineta complains immediately. "I was just talking to Momo when he came over and yanked me up in the air. He even said he wished I was dead!"

"Is this true, Bakugou?" Aizawa looks over.

"Well, yeah, but I only did it cuz he was gonna-" he pauses looking for the right words. "He was making her uncomfortable, and touching her," he finalizes, hoping Aizawa will get the message.

"Well while I appreciate you standing up for your classmate, there are ways to solve an issue besides violence. I suggest you start learning them immediately," Aizawa gazes at Bakugou, then turns to Mineta. "As for you, Mineta, any inappropriate contact with your classmates will lead to immediate suspension with the potential for expulsion. Do I make myself clear?" his gaze switches from boy to boy.

"Yes, sir," they both mumble in unison.

"Good," he nods. "Both of you get to your next class," he gestures for the door. "I'm not writing either of you late passes, so you had better move quickly."

The rest of the day is quiet. He's planning to head back to the warehouse after school, but Deku texts him to say that Mrs. Midoriya is expecting him for dinner. He tells himself he'll go for dinner, so he doesn't upset Inko, and his stomach grumbles hungrily in agreement.

The atmosphere is fairly relaxed, but Bakugo can feel Deku working overtime not to blurt anything out about his situation. After dinner, the two of them wash the dishes while Inko goes to take a shower.

"Come on," Katsuki demands. "I've felt you deliberating all evening. Out with it."

"O-oh," Deku is quiet, looking for the right words to say. "Are you okay?" he finally settles on, speaking softly.

"Fuckin' peachy," Katsuki spits. "You didn't tell anyone anything did you?"

"No, it's your story to tell," Deku is frowning. "But tell me honestly Kacchan, are you really okay? Do you have a safe place to be at night at least?"

"I'm fine!" he insists. "I don't need your pity, I'm not weak like y- I'm not a weakling."

"I think you should tell an adult," Izuku rubs the back of his neck nervously. "My mom would help you in an instant if she knew what was going on. Or, if you aren't comfortable telling Mom, I'm sure Mr. Aizawa would help you! I know teachers don't always help, but he seems trustworthy. Besides, he's a pro hero, it's his job to help people!"

"I told you, I'm fine, I don't need help!" He turns to Deku angrily, small sparks shooting from his hands. The smaller boy flinches, and he feels the smallest tendril of guilt worm its way through his gut. "I can take care of myself," he continues, quieter.

"I know you can," Izuku is looking at him with a look that he can only describe as pity. "But you shouldn't have to. There are people who care about you, Kacchan."

"Shut up," he growls quietly.

"No, really," Deku presses. "There are-"

"I said stop talking," he demands. "I'm done talking about this. I'm done talking with you. I'm done talking." Deku falls silent and turns back to the dishes. Bakugou can see a few tears welling up in his eyes, but chooses to ignore them.

Once the dishes are done, he makes a move to leave the house, but Deku stops him.

"Please just stay over," Izuku pleads. "I promise not to say a word to you all night, I just want you to be able to sleep in a safe place, okay?"

"I told you, I don't need your pity," he sneers.

"It's not pity," Izuku's voice comes out in a snap. "God, you're so infuriating." Shocked at his brazen display, Bakugou finds himself hesitating.

"I don't pity you, Kacchan," he continues, quieter. "But you deserve a safe place to sleep at night, and if your parents aren't going to provide that for you, then you should be able to find it somewhere else. It's not ideal here, I know you hate me, but are you really going to tell me that staying here is worse than sleeping on the street?"

"I- I can take care of myself," he insists, but his resolve is already waning. "I'm not- I'm not weak. I can handle a few nights outside."

"You don't have to," Izuku presses. "You can stay here as long as you want, and look for something better."

"I'll stay tonight, if it makes you feel better or whatever," he huffs. "But not a word. Nothing to your mom, not your friends at school, definitely not Mr. Aizawa. Got it?"

"Of course!" Izuku looks relieved at finally having convinced him to stay.

"And don't think this changes things between us. I'm not gonna take it easy on you or anything, and we're not friends," he crosses his arms determinedly. He feels a deep exhaustion settle in his bones as his body starts to relax at the prospect of having a warm place to sleep for the night. The rest of the week can sort itself out.

Inko is more than overjoyed to know that the boys are 'getting along again' and 'having a sleepover'. Deku doesn't even look like he's thinking about correcting her, which is more discretion than he really expects from him, and he mutters a begrudged 'thank you' once they are shut away in his room for the night. The kid just nods, once, and tosses him a blanket and pillow before hopping into bed.

Damn, Bakugou thinks. This whole I won't talk to you thing is nice. I should use it as a negotiation more often.

He spends the rest of the week at Deku's, and he can tell that Inko suspects that something's wrong, but thankfully, she doesn't say anything. Friday rolls around sooner than he expects, and after school Deku looks at him in confusion when he doesn't start walking to the bus that they would normally take together.

"I'm going to Kirishima's tonight," he rolls his eyes in exasperation. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna sleep on the sidewalk or something."

"That's good!" Izuku exclaims. "Kirishima is a great friend! You guys pair up really well at school too, your quirks are so complimentary. I haven't gotten a chance to ask him, but I really wanna know so many things about his quirk! It's so interesting," he pauses for a millisecond. "Would you ask him if I give you my list? And then you could just write down the answers for me and-"

"Hell no," Katsuki sneers. "If you wanna ask him all your stalker questions, do it on your own time. Now go away, I don't want people thinking we're friends, or that I like you or something." The younger boy walks away dejectedly.

"Hey man, my mom's giving us and Denks a ride to my house," Kirishima apparates next to him. "Are you ready to get out of here?"

"Well I'm not gonna spend all afternoon hanging out here," he responds dryly. "How many people are gonna be at this party-thing anyway?"

"Uh, not that many," he looks nervous. "Just a few of our classmates."

"How many is a few, Kirishima?" Bakugou glares.

"Uhhh, five, including you and me," his answer is raised at the end, almost sounding like a question. "Oh my god, is that too many people for your first hangout?" Kirishima worries. Bakugou wants to be offended at the actual audacity of that implication, but he's stopped from saying anything at the look of genuine concern radiating off of the red-haired boy's face.

"What, you think I can't handle hanging out with a bunch of dumbasses?"

"No!" he exclaims. "I mean, yes! I mean, I don't think it'll be a problem, I just realized that we kinda invited you without telling you how many people were gonna be involved, and I know you don't really like being social, so I was worried that it was gonna be too much, er not-"

"The party will be fine," Katsuki interrupts him. "But if you don't shut up, we're gonna have another issue entirely, got it? You're starting to sound like that damn nerd, Deku."

"Right, yeah, sorry," Kirishima rubs the back of his neck bashfully.

"So, we're leaving, right?"

"Yes! Yeah, sorry. Yeah," he stammers awkwardly. "Uh, my mom is this way, so. Yeah."

Kirishima's mom greets him with a cheery smile, introducing herself as Kameko, and Bakugou can already see the family resemblance. Kaminari isn't at the car yet, and Bakugou looks around to see him running towards them, arms full of papers, backpack in his hands. He finally makes it, after they have both gotten in the car, huffing. He gets in the middle seat of the minivan, next to Bakugou, buckles his seatbelt, and starts shoving his papers into his backpack haphazardly.

"You're a mess," Bakugou comments unhelpfully.

"Am not," he protests with a pout.

"Am I bringing anybody else dear?" Mrs. Kirishima asks.

"This is everybody, mom," he responds. "Mina and Sero are coming later, they both had some family things to do before the sleepover."

"Okay then!" She exclaims. "Everyone buckle up and let's get out of here!"

Kirishima's house is large, with a small garden in the front yard. Inside, is a long hallway that leads to a dividing wall between a kitchen and a living room. They go to the kitchen first.

"Hey, mama!" Kirishima calls to another woman.

"Hi Eji," she smiles warmly. "Hey, Denki! And who is this?" She looks at Bakugou.

"This is my friend Bakugou," Kirishima introduces him.

"Hi Bakugou!" Her smile brightens. "I'm Miku! Kirishima's told us so much about you, I feel like I already know you!"

"Mamaaa," Kirishima whines. "You're making it weird."

"Oh, hush, Eji," she turns to him and taps his nose with her finger. "Now, I know you all bought a bunch of snacks for tonight, but I made red bean buns, and I'm going to be very offended if there are any left at the end of the night."

"We'll be sure to finish them, mama," Kirishima promises.

"Dude," Kaminari chimes in. "Mina will eat over half of them by herself if we let her! She loves those things, especially when you make them Miku." There's lighthearted laughter, and Bakugou feels a twinge of something akin to sadness. Kirishima's parents just seem so- good, and he wonders, maybe, if his had been more like Kiri's, maybe he could have been a little more like Kirishima.

They grab the plate of buns, and Bakugou follows Kirishima and Kaminari through the house to the family room. The room isn't much different from his own family's. A television, across from a large, comfortable sectional. A table in front of the couch, ready for a tea service. Pictures on the wall- His eyes catch on the pictures hanging on the walls. There's a standard family photo that looks like it was taken at a studio, and a few of Kirishima's school photos throughout the years. These pictures are normal, and unsurprising, but as he continues perusing, he starts to notice the candid photos. Miku, with an apron on in the kitchen, a streak of flour on her forehead laughing at something. Another picture, slightly blurry, of Kameko twirling Miku in the air, both of them flushed and smiling. A picture of a young Kirishima, probably around five covered from head to toe in mud, and grinning mischievously. A picture of him that looks more recent, staring at a shattered vase with a sheepish grin on his face. Most of the pictures are unplanned, and they're full of joy.

Kirishima's smile isn't forced. It's natural, the same as the one he shares with his friends.

He thinks back to his own house. There's the family photo, that took them fifteen minutes to capture, and by the time they took it, nobody was smiling. There's a photo of each of his sets of grandparents, and there's his first school photo. After the first year of school, they didn't bother to spend money on any more school photos. There are no candids, none of the pictures are a display of joy or fun.

"Hey, man," Kirishima quietly rouses him from his observations. "I kinda forgot you haven't been to my house before. Did you uh, wanna take a quick tour before everybody else shows up? That way you'll, like, know where the bathroom is and everything?"

"Sure," he shrugs in response.

"Uh, cool, cool," Kirishima nods, running a hand through his hair, but doesn't move.

"Right," Bakugou adds, after an awkwardly long pause. "Uh, lead the way." he gestures vaguely with his hand.

"Oh, yeah," Kirishima smiles sheepishly. "Uh, this way." He leads them down the hallway, pointing out the bathroom, and at the end, opens up a door.

"This is my room," he informs Bakugou. The room is well sized, with a loft bed against one wall. Underneath of it is a desk and desk chair, although it's somewhat difficult to tell, underneath the piles of shit everywhere. The floor is covered in clothes, and his laundry basket, sitting by the door, is empty. He has a few posters on his wall, two of Red Riot, one of an old superhero movie, and several band posters. In another corner of his room he has an electric guitar and an electric bass.

"Sorry about the mess," he apologizes.

"You play bass and guitar?" Bakugou ignores his apology.

"Kinda," Kirishima shrugs, rubbing his neck in embarrasment. "You should see Jiro on the bass, she's amazing!"

"I drum," Bakugou offers.

"Really?" Kirishima looks excited. "Dude, that's awesome! D'you sing too?"

"Nah," he shrugs.

"Well, we kinda need a drummer," Kirishima looks hopeful. "So if you ever wanna, like, jam or whatever, that'd be super chill!"

"Yeah, maybe," he grunts noncommittally. He's saved from further conversation when he hears a shout from Kaminari in the living room stating that he was bored, and ready to start gaming.

As much as he hates to admit it, the night is… fun. As time goes by, he feels his mask start to slip, bit by bit, until he finds himself actually, genuinely laughing and bantering with everyone.

At eight o'clock, he sets his controller down, and mildly announces his intent to go to bed. The responses range from mild disappointment, to full on outrage.

"I have a routine," he insists. "I go to bed at eight, I'm asleep by eight fifteen, and I wake up at five AM."

"God, you're such a grandpaaaa," Kaminari whines. "C'mon, stay up with us until at least midnight!" Everyone else agrees excitedly.

"No!" he responds firmly. He gets up to start his evening routine, when Kirishima makes eye-contact with him. He doesn't say anything, but he looks like somebody just kicked his fuckin' dog, and Katsuki sighs. "I'll stay up until ten," he rolls his eyes. The expression that lights up Kiri's face almost makes up for the sleep he's losing.

At ten, he rises to get ready for bed, and the protests start up again. He reinforces his leaving, and it starts a whole new round of arguments. At this point, however much fun he was having, he's already up two hours later than normal, and he's tired, so his fuse is almost non-existent.

He sighs tiredly, about to argue his point, when he sees Kirishima shift to the side of him.

"Hey," he sits next to Bakugou. "We're all probably gonna be up for several more hours, so if you wanna sleep in my room, you're welcome to! It should be quieter in there." He turns to address everyone else next. "You guys are monsters," he whines playfully. "A guy gives you two hours of his precious sleep, and it's not enough for you? Let him go to bed!"

He should feel offended that Kirishima fought his battle for him; like the other teen doesn't think he's capable of standing his ground, or taking care of himself. Instead, he just heaves a sigh of relief, tosses a brief 'thanks' Kirishima's way, and slips off to go to bed.