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Chapter Text

Midoriya

"Izuku," Katsuki called, leaning over the back of the couch.

Izuku looked up from the book he was reading with Eri, leaning his head back so it was resting on Bakugo, "Who'd you call, Kacchan?" he questioned, looking a little upset. 

"Aizawa Sensei." Bakugo answered, placing his hand on Izuku's forehead. He had a fever, the dimwit. "I'm heading out for a little bit. I'll get icy-hot to bring you some meds, 'kay?" he said, gently brushing his hand upwards and through green locks before moving away from the couch.

Midoriya looked hurt, "You're leaving? Where to? Why?"

"Don't think too hard, nerd. You'll make your fever worse." Katsuki replied, moving towards the stairs. "Shitty hair, go get changed!" he yelled.

Kirishima looked at him, confused. "Why? It's Thursday, bro. We don't have any extra classes today."

Katsuki glared at him, "Go change out of your uniform, Kirishima." 

The red head was racing up the stairs without another question.

Izuku watched his favourite blonde walk away with a scowl. Where was he going without warning? Why was he letting Kirishima go with him without even asking his own boyfriend? What was he going to do? "Asshole," he mumbled, before turning back to Eri, who waited patiently for him to start reading with her again.

Mirio gave him a funny look, "Midoriya, did you just cuss?"

"No," Izuku internally rolled his eyes. He had forgotten Mirio thought him to be this innocent boy that could do no wrong.

"You did. Right in front of Eri."

"No, I didn't. Don't bring Eri into this." 

"Are you sure you're alright? You seem seriously off for someone with a cough." Mirio's bead eyes stared a hole into Izuku's.

Eri gave Midoriya's hand a gentle pat, "We don't have to keep reading if you're feeling too sick, Mr. Deku." she said, looking concerned.

Izuku sighed and set the book aside for a moment. "I appreciate your concern," he booped Eri's nose and nodded towards Mirio. The girl giggled and booped his nose back.  "But like I said, I'm fine." Midoriya picked the book back up, "Where were we?"

Eri flipped it open, "The duckling is looking for her mum!" she said. "That's right. And where has the duckling looked so far?" Izuku asked. The girl squinted at the page, pointing word to word as she spoke, "Behind the tree, over the... rocks, near the kennel, and down the gat... ginter?" she trailed off, uncertain. 

"Close. That one says gutter." Izuku corrected, letting Eri turn to the next page so he could turn around, wrap blackwhip around a screeching Mineta, and send flying him across the room. His head throbbed, but he tried his best not to let the girl see he was in any discomfort.

"Keep going, Eri. You're doing well." he encouraged all the while. The girl continued to read out loud. Izuku soon watched Kirishima and Bakugo walked back down the stairs together in casual clothing.

The two pause in the dining area, where Katsuki talked to Todoroki for a short moment before he made his way over to Izuku. "We're going. I'll be back in fifteen, Izuku." The blonde murmured, careful not to interrupt Eri's reading. "Make sure to take meds, okay? Let your fever break."

Izuku glanced between an unsure looking Kirishima and an unsure looking Katsuki with narrowed eyes. Then, he shooed them away, almost angrily and without a word. Eri looked up when she heard whispering and immediately realised Katsuki was leaving. She seemed to always know everything; it freaked Mirio out for the first few weeks she was under his care. 

She jumped off of Izuku's knee and ran over to Bakugo, who swung her around and threw her into the air before catching her, grinning at the obnoxiously loud giggles she let out. "I'll see you later, Trixie."

He placed her back onto Midoriya, who frowned. "Don't nickname her after a dinosaur from Toy Story, Kacchan." he lectured.

The blonde rolled his eyes and ruffled Eri's hair, "She loves it, nerd. I'm going for real now. Eat the meds scar-face gives you!"

"God, could he say it anymore times?" Izuku mumbled, not bidding his boyfriend a goodbye.

Kirishima whistled a soft tune as he walked behind a stomping Bakugo. "So," he started in a singsong voice, "You gonna tell me what's goin' on, Bakugo, or am I going to have to guess?"

Katsuki sighed and scrubbed his hand over his face, "You've noticed Izuku is moody and sick or whatever." he said, matter of fact. "The only way I can think of to cheer him the fuck up other than mother henning him is to get him All Might merch." 

Kirishima fake cooed, "Is my bro getting soft? First you start calling Mido by his given name, and now you're buying him merch? Are you gonna put on shining armour next?"

Bakugo almost punched him in the face right then and there. "You shut the fuck up, shitty hair. The only reason you're tagging along is because I'm not supposed to leave campus alone. And the only reason I'm getting him shit is because I'm the reason he's sick, so there."

The red head cackled, "You're a real sweetie when ya want to be, y'know. Also, I've got people spamming me asking where we're going. What do you want me to say?"

Katsuki shrugged, "Just make up some bullshit excuse. Don't let Izuku know I'm getting him something; he'll chase us down and stop me."

For some reason, the green boy really hated receiving gifts from anyone other than his mother. He claimed it was too embarrassing or something.

"I really don't think he would do that, but okie-dokie." Kirishima hummed, typing on his phone.

Soon enough, they made it to a small corner shop and walked in.

Kirishima immediately ran over to the food isle and salivated at the snacks while Bakugo scanned the store for anything to do with heroes. He approached the front counter and saw there were collectables being sold.

They were small packs and inside them were keychains. The available heroes were Rock Lock, Present Mic, Mount Lady, Gang Orca, Hawks, Endeavour, Prime All Might, and a limited-edition surprise.

Bakugo purchased a pack and left, Kirishima not far behind (who unfortunately, was not able to buy any snacks). He ripped open the plastic and stopped walking as he realised he had, by some luck, actually managed to get the limited-edition surprise. 

He dumped the contents into his palm, distracted and oblivious to a certain red head's camera not too far from him zooming into his face, capturing his expression.

Two keychains were inside the packet. They had a cartoon version of All Might on them, identical except for the fact the backgrounds of the image were different on each charm. One was orange, and one was green. 

Katsuki huffed in amusement when he realised he could have a matching keychain with Izuku. That quickly feel into annoyance as he caught himself being sappy over an All Might keychain.

"Move it, Shitty Hair." he barked out. Kirishima complied, easily falling behind Bakugo as they walked.

A few seconds went by before the blonde spoke again, not thinking to consider his words. "What would you say if I told you I was seeing someone?" he questioned.

Kirishima almost tripped over himself, "Seeing someone?" he repeated, dumbfounded.

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Katsuki mumbled, his face flushing.

"No, don't you do that! Answer the question! What the hell do you mean, seeing someone?!" The red head demanded, placing a hand on Bakugo's shoulder and forcing him to turn and face him.

Bakugo scowled and shrugged off his hand, "What the fuck do you think it means, Shitty Hair?!" he shouted.

"Do—am I supposed to, like, y'know, congratulate you or..." Kirishima hesitated.

"Spit it out before I leave your ass standing here with your mouth hanging open like a dumb fish."

"Are you seeing someone as in romantically, or do we need to sit down and have... the talk? And by 'the talk', I mean look up symptoms of schizophrenia and psychosis on sketchy websites that probably shouldn't be available."

He seriously just said that in one breath. Katsuki stared at him, stunned, before shoving Kirishima away and stomping off. "God, you're the stupidest fucking person I know, shit-for-brains."

Kirishima ran after him, "Wait, but who are you seeing?!" he demanded. 

"It was hypothetical, bastard! Just fucking shut up about it!"

"Are you sure, Bakugo? I can always help you out with relationship adv—"

"Go to hell!"

--

Mirio and Eri eventually had to bid their goodbyes and leave as the sun began to set. Once they were gone, Izuku laid on the couch with the blanket wrapped around himself. Some people had already gone into their rooms, but most of the class was still on the ground floor.

Todoroki had brought him some medicine earlier, but his fever was yet to break. Coughing hurt his chest, and his nose was constantly dripping. Everything about his situation frustrated Izuku to the point he was literally angry at his own body.

Katsuki and Kirishima returned to the dorms shortly, the former with a proud look on his face. When he spotted Izuku on the couch looking a whole lot more irritated than before, he glanced around for answers. No one seemed willing to answer his unasked question when he looked at them. Todoroki shrugged when they made eye contact, just as clueless as to why Midoriya was angry.

The blonde took a deep breath and walked over to Izuku, kneeling in front of the furniture. "What's wrong now?" he demanded. Izuku shrugged him off with a one worded answer, which pissed Bakugo off, "Man up and just tell me what the fuck is wrong!" he snapped.

Midoriya grit his teeth, "Don't you tell me to man up, you fucking hypocrite! You didn't even have the balls to tell me what you were out there doing!"

Katsuki was momentarily taken aback by the harsh words. "What the hell are you talking about?" 

Izuku lowered his voice, "Why don't you tell me? Go on, tell me all about your date with Kirishima." Katsuki just stares at him for a moment, not sure what to say to that.

When the freckled teen spotted the look of confusion on Bakugo's face he groaned in anger, clearly misinterpreting his boyfriend's confusion as 'how did he find out' and not 'what the fuck is he saying'. 

Izuku shoved his unlocked and open phone into Katsuki's hand, who read the texts on the screen. Katsuki's heart dropped.

Apparently, Kirishima's excuse for going out with Bakugo was a date. The fucking idiot had bragged about it in the class group chat.

Fuck.

His face must have been pretty angry looking, because when he glanced over to the red head still over near the entrance, Kirishima yelped and tried to hide behind Shoji. Katsuki stood up and shouted, "What the fuck do you mean 'date', Shitty Hair? Are you out of your goddamn idiotic mind?! We weren't on a date!"

Kirishima poked his head out from behind one of Shoji's arms, "I was just joking around, I swear!" he cried. 

Bakugo was about to storm over there and give him a few good wacks, when he heard Izuku gave an exhausted, sarcastic laugh under his breath. The blonde's heart pounded as he immediately knelt back down, sitting Izuku up so they could look at each other face-to-face. Except, Midoriya didn't want to. He kept his eyes locked on the ground. 

Or on anything other than the teen right in front of him, really.

"Ugh," Bakugo wasn't sure how to fix this. His chest tightened uncomfortably, and he grasped at where his heart was to try and stop it from doing... whatever the hell it was doing. "Izuku, listen to me, damn it." he mumbled, his voice set on a low but serious tone.

He didn't care that people were watching, he only cared about clearing up this stupid fucking miscommunication.

He had never, never, seen Izuku outright ignore him when he was upset. Usually, the nerd just ended up spilling all of his feelings when Bakugo asked him to, but today, Katsuki had a dreadful feeling that unless he expressed his own, Izuku wasn't going to look at him ever again.

"Shit-for-brains and I weren't on a date. We went to the corner shop down the road and picked something up. I wouldn't ever fucking go on a date with him when he has that fake ass ugly hairdo. And even if he changed it for whatever reason, I still wouldn't ever even think about going on a date with him. He's Shitty Hair, damn it. Who the fuck would?" Katsuki placed his hands on both of Midoriya's knees, trying to gain his attention. He needed to prove he was being serious.

Izuku wasn't having it. "Then what did you get?" he demanded.

Bakugo shook his head, "I'll tell you after dinner. You need food first, nerd." he promised, placing a hand on Izuku's forehead. The fever hadn't broken just yet, but Katsuki knew for a fact icy-hot gave him medicine based on the mostly empty glass of water and pill packet Todoroki still had in his hand.

"Cool. Great." Midoriya grumbled, folding his arms. Katsuki sighed at the pettiness laced in Izuku's words, but couldn't blame him. Kirishima warily walked over and gave Bakugo's shoulder a squeeze, encouraging him to show the keychains he had hidden in his pocket.

The greenette saw this and felt his heartrate pick up, the prickling sensation of tears forming in his eyes a momentary distraction from the ache sitting in his chest. He was so, so frustrated, but had no way to show it other than his body.

When red eyes finally met his green, Bakugo shoved Kirishima away. He spotted Izuku's unshed tears and his face instantly drooped and softened. He rewrapped the fluffy blanket around Midoriya's shoulders silently, plopping himself down on the couch beside Izuku afterwards. 

The other teen just let him, bringing his knees up and wrapping his arms around them. Todoroki took it upon himself to walk into the common room, standing behind Midoriya and gently massaged his shoulders to force Izuku to release and relax the tension in them.

Bakugo glared at Todoroki, who promptly ignored him, but didn't make a move to stop him. Clearly, Izuku needed the comfort from his friend. Something Katsuki wasn't sure how to give.

Sato spoke up, "Food will be ready in ten minutes," he announced, trying to fill the awkward silence of the ground floor. Iida immediately set off, going up the stairs to go and collect everyone who was in their rooms for dinner.

"Does anyone want tea while we wait?" Yaoyorozu asked. Almost everyone downstairs agreed and followed Yaoyorozu into the kitchen like ducklings following their mum, Kirishima being the first to run off.

Tsu used that as her chance to approach Midoriya. "Sato let me know about the daisies last night, ribbit. I just wanted to let you know I'm not mad. In fact, I think the flower crowns were cute." she said.

Izuku gave a small smile, "Thank goodness. Sorry about not asking beforehand, Tsu."

She nodded her head before continuing, "Ribbit, no problem. There is one thing I was wondering, though." Izuku hummed, encouraging her to go on. "Well, Sato also told me that you said to take extra care when ripping the daisies out, ribbit. Why did you lie about the bed dying if they weren't cautious?" she questioned, slightly tilting her head.

Midoriya's face immediately went red, and Bakugo snorted into his palm and looked away.

Todoroki stopped massaging Izuku as he saw this, his face scrunching up to form a disgusted expression.

He had had his suspicions about why Midoriya sent everyone away and why Bakugo's shirt got wet when Midoriya had apparently found a way to give him pills. But this reaction to Tsu's question confirmed that the supposedly innocent, 'has no clue about relationships', 'blushes at the smallest things' Izuku Midoriya, feed his not-so-secret secret boyfriend medicine through his mouth.

On the couch. Out in the open.

Gross.

Tsu observed the looks on the trio's faces and decided to walk away, not wanting any part in whatever the hell was going on.

Eventually, Iida managed to round up everyone from upstairs.

When the food was getting served, Bakugo stood up from the couch, walked over to the TV stand and picked up a flower crown from the pile he had made that morning and plopped it onto Izuku's green locs. "Don't be a cry baby, Izuku. I'm going to get your food and if you don't eat all of it, I'll shove it down your throat."

--

About halfway through his food, Izuku got too tired to continue eating. He had been using blackwhip to hold up the bowl and the spoon, but he quickly grew exhausted and placed them down onto the coffee table. Katsuki, who had finished his own bowl a few minutes beforehand, witnessed this with furrowed brows.

Everyone else except Bakugo and Midoriya was seated in the dining room, but that didn't stop them from whispering and sending glances over to them.

Izuku blocked them out, instead focusing on the hero show that was playing on the TV. Katsuki picked up the half empty bowl, shovelling the food into Izuku's mouth. 'I told you to eat all of it," he lectured.

The greenette spoke around the food, " 'm too tired."

Bakugo just rolled his eyes, "You're lucky you're not coughing so much and your fever is gone, otherwise I would have sent your ass to bed by now." 

Izuku raised his eyebrows and nodded in sarcastic agreement, grunting when Katsuki shoved another spoonful of food into his mouth.

Class A witnessed this with a curiosity that no one knew how to satisfy.

"What's going on between those two?" Hagakure questioned.

Koda hummed, "I think it's good they're friends now." he muttered. Todoroki rolled his eyes at that, and Jiro laughed to herself quietly.

Kaminari sighed deeply, "I wish I had someone to care about me like that." Sero rubbed his back comfortingly, "Me too, bro. Me too." he whispered. The loud blonde sniffled and covered up his laughs with fake sobs.

Aoyama just grinned, "I have every idea on what's going on between them." he announced.

Shoji nodded along, "I heard the two talking during class. I don't think they'd want you guys to find out through us, though."

Aoyama fiercely agreed, "Of course, of course! Confessions are more fun than spilling everything, anyway!"

"C'mon! At least give us a hint!" Mina pleaded.

"At this rate, they're going to tell us by tomorrow anyway." Todoroki commented.

The girl slammed her hand on her table, "I don't want to find out tomorrow. I want to know now! I'm going to die of curiosity before I find out!"

Uraraka glared at Bakugo, "Look at him. He's feeding Deku like he's incapable of feeding himself! How do we know this isn't Himiko? Not to mention Bakugo's calling Deku by his given name all of a sudden."

"Midoriya clearly doesn't mind," Sato chimed in.

Uraraka rolled her eyes, "He's watching that hero show again. He doesn't care about anything with that playing in front of him."

Sugarman smiled awkwardly, "That's true. One time, Iida asked for a volunteer to scrub the rug because Kaminari dropped milk on it and Midoriya got it spotless without looking away from his show once."

Kaminari chuckled, "I remember that! I felt bad at first, but he seemed so happy to do it that I was tempted to say, 'you're welcome' to him."

Jiro slapped his arm, "Stupid." He yelped, rubbing his bicep with a frown.

At some point during class A's discussion, Izuku had finished his dinner and was falling asleep. 

Bakugo gently tapped his cheek to wake him up, "Izuku, go shower before you sleep." he said. Midoriya yawned, groggily shuffling to his feet to make his way back to his room. Katsuki followed closely behind to make sure he didn't fall asleep while walking (something that had actually, terrifyingly, happened before).

He sat on Izuku's bed as he waited for the greenette to finish showering, not surprised in the slightest to see All Might merch spewing everywhere.

Ten minutes later, Izuku walked out of the bathroom with his towel around his neck. His eyes were closed as he walked as his eyelids were too heavy to keep open any longer, which made Katsuki grin. "You look stupid, nerd." he said, grabbing Midoriya by the wrist and sitting him on the ground between his legs. "You can't even dry your hair properly. What the hell did auntie even teach you?"

Izuku yawned again as the blonde started to aggressively towel off his hair, "Lots and lots of things, Kacchan. J'st too lazy." Katsuki didn't respond, instead choosing to sit in silence as his hands worked. Soon enough, Izuku's hair was dry and he was ready for bed.

He tucked himself in, his eyes still closed, and grabbed Katsuki's hand when the explosive teen tried to walk away. "C'mere, Kacc'n." he whispered.

"Are you even awake right now or what?" Bakugo muttered.

The greenette sighed and tugged him closer, "Mum taught me goodnight kisses." he stated simply, pressing a cheeky peck to Katsuki's forehead. The blonde fake gagged at the display, but Izuku was already asleep.

Sixteen-year-old Izuku was proud to say he was only just behind, if not at the same level, as Kacchan. In heroics, they sparred and Izuku sometimes actually won! But even when he didn't, he was happy. Because Kacchan looked ecstatic every time he beat Izuku in a match that it made Izuku just as excited for their next match.

Seven-year-old Izuku had heard a rumour that Kacchan was going to try and fight some fourth graders. Honestly, it scared the boy so bad that Izuku immediately got his mother to call Mitsuki, Kacchan's mum, and stop his friend from leaving the house at all.

The next day at school, Kacchan and his friends picked on Izuku for being such a wuss. But, Izuku didn't mind. As long as Kacchan was safe from those older kids. 

Sixteen-year-old Izuku watched as a villain rolled a blue marble around in his hands. Izuku screamed at him to give Kacchan back, but the villain just mocked him and said that Kacchan didn't belong to anyone. He didn't know what he was talking about. That fucking villain wouldn't ever know what he was talking about. Kacchan belonged to the side of the heroes, not the villains.

Not any other side. Kacchan was going to be a hero with Izuku, therefore Izuku belonged with him. To him. Wherever Kacchan went, Izuku was going to follow. 

Ten-year-old Izuku was amazed at how Kacchan fought with sixth graders without issue, blowing their faces up easily and winning the fight with nothing but a few bruises on his face. He silently cheered on his friend (because they were friends. They were definitely friends, even if Kacchan had a funny way of showing it) from around the corner he was hiding behind. Kacchan looked so proud high fiving his other friends and celebrating his victory. 

Izuku wanted to high five him, too, but he knew Kacchan wouldn't like that at all, so he stayed hidden.

Sixteen-year-old Izuku trained with Kacchan, sweat rolling down his forehead. They were both out of breath, but they were both grinning wildly and laughing. 

Four-year-old Izuku couldn't wait to get his quirk. Was he going to get a fire breathing quirk like his dad, or maybe even a telekinesis one like his mum? Gosh, he was so excited to be a hero with Kacchan! When they got their quirks, they had plans to train together and beat every villain, just like All Might!

Sixteen-year-old Izuku was finally happy with his life. With him and Kacchan's relationship. They were boyfriends! Isn't that crazy? Izuku sometimes thought so too, but if being with Kacchan was crazy, then he may as well be admitted to an asylum. He loved being so close to Kacchan.

Sixteen-year-old Izuku often had nightmares. Replays of fights, training sessions going wrong, and other things that weren't the best to think about. 

Sixteen-year-old Izuku had nightmares of the people he loved dying horribly before he was able to save them.

Sixteen-year-old Izuku had night terrors of Kacchan being taken away forever. He dreamt that his Kacchan, the strongest of them all, would never see the light of day again. 

Sixteen-year-old Izuku woke up screaming. Sweating. Crying. Scared.

Alone.

Kirishima startled awake to a loud noise. He shot up in his bed, pushing his sleeping mask off of his eyes. "The hell...?" he mumbled, still half asleep. The banging noise continued. Kirishima shuffled out of bed and cracked open his door just enough so he could see into the hallway, which was illuminated by the moonlight.

He caught the tail end of a sentence.

"—were gone for good!"

Was that Midoriya? What the heck was he doing up on the fourth floor this late? Apparently Bakugo, whose door was the one being pounded against, had the same question.

"Izuku, what are you talking about? Why are you here at two in the morning?" Katsuki mumbled. His voice was light. Lighter and softer than Kirishima had ever heard it before.

"Kacchan, you were go-gone." Midoriya said with a sob. He let out rough sounding coughs through his cries. "They took you away! You—you stopped! And, and—"

Kirishima was now completely awake, his eyes blown wide open as he continued to watch (not creepily or anything. In a friendly, concerned, non-stalker way).

"Breathe, nerd. Calm down before you hyperventilate." Bakugo placed a hand on Izuku's bicep, squeezing gently. "What do you mean I stopped? Who took me away?"

Midoriya let out a wail and went into a coughing fit before he could explain himself. 

Kirishima was so close to rushing out into the hallway, but something stopped him from doing so. "Oh," he breathed, watching as his friend helped out Izuku like everything was right in the world.

Katsuki helped Midoriya onto his knees safely, his hand on Midoriya's bicep now acting as a grounding point for the greenette to latch onto. For about ten seconds, all Kirishima could hear was Midoriya's sob-coughing echoing down the hallway. 

"Breathing," was the first thing Izuku said when he stopped coughing. His throat was raw, and his entire face ached.

"Hm?" Katsuki asked.

"You stopped breathing. They—they took you away from me, Kacchan." Freckled hands latched themselves onto the blonde's night shirt. 

Suddenly, Kirishima felt like an intruder. Like he was intruding something private. Something more intimate between his classmates that they wouldn't want anyone to watch. 

" 'm right here, Izuku. No one has taken me anywhere." Bakugo's voice was firm.

A soft sound that sounded like the snapping of fingers grabbed Kirishima's attention. He looked to his left and saw one of Shoji's hands poking out of said boy's room. It was pointing inside his room, then at Kirishima directly.

"No!" Midoriya yelled. "No, they—you don't understand!"

The red head immediately understood what Shoji was trying to tell him. He slowly shuffled backwards and closed his door up. Looking at his phone, he saw Shoji had texted him that he would let him know if Midoriya was going to be alright.

He gave a short confirmation reply, then laid back in his bed. He put his sleeping mask back over his eyes, but quickly realised that he wasn't going to get any sleep for the rest of the night.

--

Katsuki felt his panic rising, "Izuku. Look at me. I'm right in front of you; I'm talking to you right now, aren't I? How could I do that if I weren't alive?" He spat out, his free hand grabbing Midoriya's chin and titling it upwards.

Izuku's eyes scanned his, then flicked down to his chest, where his hands were buried in Katsuki's shirt. He watched as his hands rose and fell in time with Katsuki's breathing.

"No, no, no," Midoriya whispered, tears forming once again. "No, I saw it! I saw you, Kacchan!" His voice was high pitched, panicked. "He murdered you! There was blood, and fucking brains everywhere, and—"

The usually explosive teen took a deep breath as he gently pried away one of Izuku's hands from his shirt, placing it onto his neck. "Can you feel the pulse, nerd?" he questioned. The cold fingers against his neck twitched.

Izuku nodded.

"Can you feel how fast my heart is beating?"

Midoriya sniffled, "Too fast, Kacchan. Are you scared?" he mumbled, shifting closer to Katsuki.

"When am I ever scared of anything, stupid. You just had me alarmed for a sec." Katsuki defended himself. 

Izuku completely froze at his words, going pale. His entire body trembled as he whispered, horrified. "Kacchan... was worried about me? Oh no," 

Bakugo paused at the reaction, "Izuku? What—" He was confused and unsettled. He needed to—god, he desperately wanted to—understand what Midoriya was going through.

"This isn't still a dream, is it? Oh god, am I still dreaming? No, no I won't le—let you go away!" Izuku screeched, his vision completely overcome by the onslaught of tears rapidly forming and falling. "You can't cru—mble away again!" He sobbed.

Katsuki tried to get Izuku to let go, tried to reassure him that he wasn't going anywhere and that no one had murdered him. But Izuku couldn't hear him. He was too worked up and lost in his complete and utter fear of having to watch Bakugo become a pile of dust at Shigaraki's hands again.

"Izuku! I'm not—fuck! I'm right here! You have me right here, in front of you!" Katsuki grabbed Izuku's face and forced eye contact. "I'm here." His voice was heavy and raw.

Midoriya just rapidly shook his head, "No, no, no. You said that last time and—"

Bakugo's breathing came out forced and shaky. He wasn't sure how to fix this. How could he possibly calm Midoriya down when he refused to listen? 

Izuku was crying so hard he was gagging, unable to stop himself. Katsuki watched with an aching chest, silently stealing himself for whatever he needed to do to help. 'Whatever' being the only distraction Bakugo could think of other than lighting sparks.

Katsuki dipped his head down.

--

Izuku's mind went completely blank as he registered what was going on.

They were kissing.

Holy crap, they were kissing.

Katsuki's left thumb gently stroked over Izuku's freckled cheek. Midoriya could feel the thump, thump, thump of Bakugo's heart beneath his fingers. He could feel the blonde's soft sigh against his lips.

"Everything is fine, everything is real." Katsuki promised, pulling away for a short moment. "I'm not going anywhere, damn it." His mouth smashed against Izuku's once again, and he feverishly sucked and tugged on Izuku's lips with his own.

This time, the greenette closed his eyes and kissed back, his mind a jumbled mess. He had just been crying horribly over Kacchan, hadn't he? Someone had died, he was pretty sure. 

The image of Shigaraki's hand closing in on Katsuki's face intruded his mind violently and he chocked for a moment, pulling back. 

He broke the kiss and watched as Katsuki's eyes flung open in concerned confusion. The blonde took one look at Izuku's panic-stricken face and moved closer, their lips just barely brushing against each other.

He spoke before Izuku had the chance to, "No. Don't do that. I can tell you were thinking of something you don't want to think about again. You're letting it take over. Just let it go for now, nerd. Focus on me, don't get distracted."

"But—" Midoriya started, only to be cut off.

"Look at yourself. You're so utterly scared you can't bare taking your eyes off of me. This isn't good for you," Katsuki's thumb continued to stroke Izuku's cheek. "Let go of whatever the fuck you're so worried about. Let your thoughts wonder elsewhere, even for a moment." Let yourself calm down so I can help you, he internally pleaded.

Midoriya let out a half-sob and leaned forward enough that their mouths were connected but stayed still. Bakugo pressed tender pecks to Izuku's lips repeatedly as said teen struggled to keep his snivels and bitter tears at bay.

Finally, Izuku had enough of being violated with terrible images of Katsuki's death in his mind every couple of seconds, even though the blonde was still gently pecking his lips and definitely alive, and dove into a proper kiss.

Midoriya's free hand untwisted itself out of Bakugo's shirt, moving past his ears and behind his neck, burying itself in blonde spikes and tugging on them.

Izuku allowed himself to use Katsuki's lips as a distraction to his messy, unwanted thoughts. The strands of hair were firm to the touch, tickling Izuku's fingers as he thread them through repeatedly. He felt himself slowly relaxing in Bakugo's hold, his aching chest now fluttery and jittery.

The blonde removed his hand from atop of Izuku's and grabbed his waist instead. He tugged Midoriya forward into a half embrace, his worrying beginning to cease as he felt Midoriya begin to kiss less hurriedly and desperately, instead beginning to passionately lock their lips in desire and yearning.

Katsuki felt it the moment Izuku's hand stopped resting on his neck to feel his pulse and shifted to being used as an anchor to push Katsuki towards him. Goosebumps flowed over Izuku's skin as he shivered, leaning forward impossibly further in want.

He winced as Katsuki bit down on his bottom lip, then found himself frowning when the kiss was broken straight afterward.

"You don't need my lips, Izuku." Katsuki explained. He had successfully gotten Izuku to calm down, but where was he supposed to go from here? "You need to talk this out. Will you actually listen to me now, nerd?" he blurted out.

Midoriya found himself unopen his eyes again, lost in the feeling of post-kissing. Something he wasn't able to do last time due to unfortunate circumstances. He nodded anyway.

"Can you talk about what happened? What made you think I was dead?"

Izuku's eyes shot open, "You seriously stopped kissing me to ask that?" he demanded. He decided to ignore the fact his voice was completely hoarse now from his sobbing and wailing.

Bakugo huffed, shoving his hands underneath Izuku's armpits and hoisting him onto his feet in one swift movement. "Yes, damn it. Get your ass inside; we're talking about whatever the hell that was, and we're talking about it now." He took a step backwards, into his room, as if to further illustrate his point. 

"What the hell? Weren't you the one that told me not to think about it?" Midoriya protested.

"So I could calm you down and have a proper talk with you, Izuku. " Bakugo heaved, staring down the teen in front of him.

Izuku sniffled and considered running away, but decided that probably wasn't the best idea to do. Sighing, he stumbled his way into Bakugo's room, all the way to the bed, and plopped himself down onto it.

Katsuki closed his door and joined him, shuffling across the room and laying down beside Izuku on his bed. They were both laying on their backs, facing the ceiling. 

Every few seconds, Izuku hiccupped, coughed, or sniffled. It would have been annoying if not for the fact Bakugo had seen the way Izuku's face was contorted in a way it was obvious he was trying not to cry again.

The room, much like the hallway, was being illuminated by moonlight to the point Bakugo could make out Midoriya's expressions.

"Izuku," Bakugo started, uneasy. "I'm a hero. Or, at the very least, soon-to-be."

Midoriya hummed slowly, confused as to where this was heading.

"Heroes save people. And, sometimes, they get hurt in the process. But that doesn't mean they're abandoning anything. After all, they're staying true to themselves and the people around them by sacrificing themselves."

Izuku shot up, whipping his head around. "Kacchan, don't you dare say that." His voice had been hoarse before, but after crying, it was mostly gone. It cracked awkwardly like he was just hitting puberty in the middle of his words. "You think I don't know what you're implying? You asshole, don't you dare think about sacrificing yourself—"

Katsuki slowly sat up, sitting face-to-face with Midoriya. "Do you not think that it's noble for heroes to die on the battlefield? Do you think they're selfishly abandoning the people they love?" He questioned, taking a moment to really look at Midoriya.

Katsuki took in the way Izuku's hands were shaking as they fiddled with his shirt, the way he was biting his lip furiously to stop his tears. The way his eyebrows scrunched and caused wrinkles to squash and hide away the freckles on his forehead.

"That's different and you know it," The greenette protested.

The blonde shrugged, "Do I? How is it different whether it's me putting my life on the line or some other hero? Didn't you say you would avenge me if I ever died?"

Izuku scoffed, "I also said I would cry and miss you and your asshole-ness. But I would be angry at you, too."

"You would praise someone else but hold a grudge against me? Why only me?"

"Because you deserve to be selfish once and a while, Kacchan! And for you to just—what? Give yourself up like a perfectly wrapped present to Shigaraki? It's unthinkable."

Bakugo brushed a hand through Izuku's sweat covered, matted locks, sighing deeply. "That's what heroes do, Izuku. And for the record, I'm pretty much never selfless. But never mind that. You're getting too worked up again." he spoke slowly, allowing Midoriya the time to process his words as they spilled from his lips. "Heroes save others. And right now, I want to save you. I need to."

Midoriya chocked on a sob, slapping his hands against his eyes to stop his tears from coming out. He wasn't sure why he was so emotional. Kacchan wanting to save him wasn't a big deal or anything. Except it totally, definitely was. Back when Izuku had first heard Bakugo say that, he had teared up in the middle of class.

But now, without any audience to witness it? His brain had decided it was the perfect idea to start wailing again.

Katsuki didn't mind, though. He kept talking, kept reassuring Izuku. "You were so adamant on staying in class even though you were struggling. Izuku, I could see how badly you wanted to leave, but you refused. Something is wrong, and I can help. Let me in."

He placed a hand on Izuku's knee. "Don't let it eat you up inside. Let it explode; I can fucking take it. Don't underestimate me."

"I—I have to, Kacchan." Izuku finally sobbed. "I have to be a good student. I have to be a good person all of the fucking time. I can't afford to make mistakes like everyone else can."

He spoke so fast he wasn't sure if Katsuki would be able to understand. He continued anyway. It was hard to stop once he had started. "I hate it when All Might looks at me disappointed. I can't stand it when Aizawa Sensei gets mad at me. God, it eats me alive when one of my friends is upset with me.

"But what am I supposed to do about it? All I can do is push myself further and further and further until I'm breaking down. And then what? I get a lecture from Recovery Girl, Aizawa Sensei, All Might, and goddamn it, I get one from you too! Everyone has these—these expectations that I no longer have limits now I have One For All. Now that I have a quirk, everyone just assumes I should be able to endure everything they throw onto my shoulders! But I can't and I hate it."

His tone dropped. "I hate knowing I'll never be the person they want me to be." he angrily whispered. He breathed heavily, tasting his tears as they rolled down his cheek and into his mouth. 

"At the USJ, the first time we met Shigaraki, he almost murdered Tsu." Izuku's lips trembled as he spoke. "His hand touched her face. If not for Aizawa Sensei erasing Shigaraki's decay the moment their skin made contact, I would have watched her crumble away. And I guess my brain decided to make me watch the same thing, except you were the one being murdered and Aizawa Sensei was nowhere to be seen."

Midoriya felt the warm hand on his knee tighten at that. "It was a loop," he cried out. "I watched you die over and over again. And every time, I tried to warn you not to go! I tried to warn you that Shigaraki was going to kill you! But you didn't listen, you just accused me of wanting to beat the villains before you. You said I was getting you worried for nothing. That everything would be fine."

Katsuki finished his sentence for him, his voice low. "But it never was. I understand, Izuku. Everyone gets nightmares every once and a while." He used his free hand to take make Izuku stop covering his eyes with his hands so they could make eye contact.

Bakugo's face was slack. There was no kindness, but there was no anger or resentment, either.

He spoke seriously. He didn't want Midoriya to think that he was just spitting out words to make him feel better. "It's good that you came to find me. God knows what would have happened if you spent the rest of your night scared and alone." he huffed. "But I'm here. I'm not dead, I would never let that fucker use his stupid decay on me."

Izuku let out a shallow laugh, coughing into his elbow afterward. Katsuki frowned, shaking his head. "You should have gone to Recovery Girl while you had the chance. She's probably already on her way to that event thing she has for the next couple of days."

His eyes widened as he saw Midoriya look away in shame. "No, don't do that. I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at myself. I should have dragged you into her office. And if she had tried to lecture you, I would have blown her sky high."

"No, you wouldn't have."

"How the hell do you know that, huh?"

"Because Kacchan would have gotten in trouble."

"Psh, when have I ever cared about that. Anyway, that's not my point. The day you confessed to me, do you remember what I said?"

"Yes?" Izuku answered, unsure.

"I said that I was going to be better. I said that I was going to work on myself." Bakugo said.

Midoriya nodded, "That's right. And you have been, Kacchan. I'm super proud of you, you know. Even if no one else can tell the difference, I can see the way you're opening yourself up more to your friends."

The blonde let out a long sigh, "I'm supposed to be the one making your self-esteem rise, not the other way around, nerd."

"Sorry, Kacchan."

"You need to stop being so nice all the time. Don't fucking apologise for dumb shit."

"Sorry—I mean, sure. I don't think it's dumb though, Kacchan. It would be amazing if you learned how to accept my compliments once and a while." Izuku said. He slowly slid his hand over Katsuki's, lifting it off of his knee to intertwine their fingers. Usually, Katsuki hated physical touch (he got too embarrassed), but Izuku had a feeling he could get away with it just that once.

Bakugo didn't acknowledge the hand holding at all, to Midoriya's relief. "Just keep listening, alright? Enough about me. I said I was going to work on myself because I wanted to prove to you that I could be the best boyfriend out there." he said.

"Didn't you just say enough about you?"

"Shut up," he snapped. That got a laugh out of Izuku, despite how weak it was due to the teen's sore throat. Another win for Katsuki. "Like I was saying," he drawled. "I wanted to prove myself to you so that you had no reason to dump me. And before you start about 'Kacchan I would never do that' bullshit," he made his voice go up high, mimicking Izuku terribly. 

Midoriya rolled his eyes but grinned. "I don't sound like that."

"That's exactly how you—stop distracting me!" Bakugo yelled.

"I'm not doing it on purpose, asshat!" Izuku retorted.

"Fucking whatever." The explosive teen took a deep breath. "Izuku, you're the reason I have to keep going. I want to be the hero who saves everybody and kicks every villain's ass, sure. But I want to do it with you, and nobody else. I don't want to look behind me and see you trailing like some extra. No, I want you right beside me."

Katsuki squeezed Izuku's hand, "And if that means you have to take a break to catch your breath, so be it. Because even the flower with the sturdiest stem flies away eventually. But in time, a new flower will bloom with a sturdier stem and even brighter petals. Letting yourself go, allowing yourself to slow down to rest, just means you'll come back your strongest."

Izuku sniffled as he took in Katsuki's words. "I don't want to disappoint anyone." he mumbled, coughing a bit.

"If anyone gets mad or disappointed in you for being exhausted then you don't deserve them." Bakugo stated firmly.

"You get mad at me, Kacchan." Midoriya said.

"Exactly. I'm a stupid dickhead who needs to be better, I know. But that applies to everyone else who you're afraid of disappointing. I'll blow them up if I have to!" The blonde claimed, squeezing Izuku's hand tighter.

"Thank you, Kacchan. You always know what to say." The freckled teen squeezed back.

"Course I do. Now go shower, nerd. You're covered in sweat." Bakugo said, sliding off of his bed and dragging Izuku over to his cupboard. He pulled out a shirt and some trousers with his free hand, handing them to Izuku who took them with a blush.

"I'll—I'll be fast." he promised.

"Don't use all the hot water." was all Katsuki said in reply. He let go of Izuku's hand and dragged his feet back to his bed.

Katsuki woke up to the sound of his alarm. He slammed his hand onto it, slowly sitting up. "Iz'ku?" he mumbled, still mostly asleep.

The voice that replied was weak and hoarse, "I'm here, Kacchan."

Bakugo looked down beside the bed and saw Izuku sitting there, looking out at the sky through the glass doors on Bakugo's balcony. 

"I'm going to strangle you if you slept down there." Katsuki monotoned.

Midoriya's head whipped around, "I'm not stupid, Kacchan. Obviously I went to sleep next to you on the bed. I just woke up early and found it too awkward to stay up there with you."

The blonde shuffled out of bed, stretching and frowning deeply when he heard a few joints pop. "I'm going out for a run." He announced, yawning.

"Don't be too long," Izuku mumbled, looking back out into the sky. It was still pretty dark out, but the stars were beginning to fade away. Izuku loved to watch the stars appear at dusk and fade at dawn.

Katsuki ruffled the green bedhead as he walked over to his cupboard. Midoriya blushed but didn't comment on it. He waited for Bakugo to finish his morning shower patiently, his hands scrunched into the shirt Bakugo had lent him.

When said teen walked out of the bathroom in his usual work out outfit with a cloud of steam following close behind, he and Izuku walked out into the hallway together.

Just as they were about to walk into the elevator, Bakugo turned around and placed his hand on Izuku's forehead. "You're not coughing so much, but your voice is gone and you have a fever. Just stay up here and wait for me to get back." he said, removing his hand.

Midoriya shook his head, "I'll wait downstairs. I'm sure there are a few people there anyway."

Bakugo hummed, clicking the button for the elevator. "Don't come complaining to me when you have a headache, then."

Izuku rolled his eyes, "I'll just shove blackwhip onto their mouth if they talk too loudly." he retorted. 

"I know you will, loser." The blonde shoved his hands into his pockets and walked into the metal box, Izuku close behind.

As they walked onto the ground floor, the sound of their classmates erupted in their ears. Bakugo snorted, "Good luck with that. I'll be back in five, Izuku." he said, walking towards the entrance. Izuku's heart sunk a little when he saw Kirishima sling his arm around Bakugo and whisper something, but the blonde just shoved him off aggressively. 

"Deku!" Uraraka called.

Midoriya looked over and saw her and Todoroki walking side by side towards him from the kitchen. He gave his best smile, "Hey, guys." he greeted.

"You and Bakugo went to sleep early, huh." she said, pouting a little.

Izuku laughed awkwardly, "Sorry about that. I was too tired to even finish eating so Kacchan put me to bed."

"Put you to bed?" she questioned, her eyebrows furrowing.

"He walked me to my room." Midoriya further explained.

"I could have done that," Uraraka grumbled.

The greenette just sighed fondly, "You can't get jealous over Kacchan all the time, Uraraka. You're still my bestfriend."

"Uh-huh. And is that why you're wearing Bakugo's clothes?" she monotoned, unimpressed.

Crap, Izuku had completely forgotten. "I—this is just..." he trailed off, not sure how to explain what had happened. 

Shoji walked up to them and placed one of his hands on Midoriya's shoulder, "Maybe they just got their laundry mixed up." he said smoothly.

Izuku smiled at him gratefully, "That's right. All of my other clothes were dirty, and I ended up just grabbing the first clean clothes I saw."

Todoroki eyed him, "You and Bakugo walked out of the elevator together." he said.

"That was because he was already in it when I got on." Izuku defended, avoiding eye contact. 

"Midoriya? Why's your face so puffy?" Kaminari asked, walking over to the group huddled by the elevator.

Kirishima slapped the back of his head, "What the hell? You don't just ask that!" he lectured, a little pale.

Midoriya was grateful Kirishima defended him, but what was with that look? "I'm... fine. I've got a cold, is all. Are you okay, Kirishima? You look pale." he questioned, concerned but also suspicious.

The red head grinned, "Nah, don't worry about me! I'm great. Amazing. Fantastic. Anyway, let's go, Kaminari! We've got food to eat, places to be!" He ushered Kaminari away so quickly no one got to say anything else. 

Midoriya grabbed his opportunity to run away as well. "Speaking of my cold, I need to take some more medicine to break my fever. Could you help me, Shoji?" he asked. He looked up at his classmate, who saw the look on his face and immediately agreed.

Uraraka gaped, "You have a fever?!" She shrieked, activating her quirk so she could feel Izuku's forehead without going on her tippy toes.

"Oh my god, you're burning up! Deku, why didn't you tell me?" She felt terrible, like Midoriya being sick was all her fault somehow.

Midoriya pat her back gently, "That's why I'm going to take some medicine, silly." he said.

"Off you go, then." Todoroki said, trying to wheel Uraraka away from him. 

Once the two left, Izuku turned to Shoji with narrowed eyes, "How much of last night did you see?" he questioned in a low monotone.

They talked as they walked to the kitchen. Shoji explained how he had heard Midoriya yelling and opened his door to see Kirishima had also heard it. He told said red head to go back to sleep and that he would update him if anything bad happened.

"I was about to go back to bed, too. But then I saw you break down again. Bakugo looked... well, terrified. I don't think I've ever seen him look so helpless. I almost stormed out into the hallway myself." Shoji said. He gave a half empty pill packet to Izuku, who took two of them dry as he listened to his classmate with intense concentration. 

"Did you see?" he whispered. He knew that Shoji would understand exactly what he was talking about.

Dupli arms hesitated for moment, before nodding. "I went back into my room the moment I saw you and Bakugo kiss, I swear. I only wanted to make sure you weren't hurt. I didn't tell Kirishima about it, or anyone for that matter. I simply went to sleep."

Izuku took this in with a grave look on his face. There were a few people on the ground floor that wanted to talk to one of the two, but they all walked away when they saw the look on Midoriya's face. He didn't know what to do. How was he supposed to react to being found out? He wasn't exactly embarrassed... but then what was he feeling?

Anger? Resentment? No, that couldn't be it. Shoji was just making sure he was alright, after all. It was more like bittersweet, with less sweet and more bitter anticipation.

Midoriya clenched his fists. "And?" he spat.

"And what, Midoriya?" Shoji asked not unkindly.

"Are you grossed out? Disgusted?" Izuku questioned, his chest tightening to the point he felt constricted in his own skin.

A choke, "My god, no! Midoriya, I would never!" The masked teen yelled. 

Midoriya grunted in relief. "Okay, then." he said, shuffling out of the kitchen as quickly as he could to get the hell out of the situation.

"Is... is that it?" Shoji called from behind him.

"That's it." Izuku replied.

Shoji stared after him in confusion. He had expected some more backlash and fight from the freckled teen.

"You're not going to school."

"Kacchan," Izuku groaned. "C'mon! I'm barely even sick even more."

Bakugo crossed his arms. "Just because you aren't coughing doesn't mean you aren't sick. You're miserable, you have a fever, and your voice hasn't recovered."

A tsk, "My voice would be fine if not for last night and you know it."

The blonde raised an eyebrow, "You can't seriously believe that your voice sounding like a dying horse is from last night. That was five hours ago."

The two were in the kitchen as Bakugo made omelettes. Izuku was trying to convince him that he was fine and that he could go to school, but Bakugo wasn't having it. "Izuku, you're staying here today. I'm taking the day off with you, so you better be grateful I'm not just sending you to bed and forcing you to eat porridge all day."

"Well, lucky me for not being treated like Goldilocks." Midoriya mumbled. "And I know I'm beautiful and all, but you're going to burn that omelette if you don't stop staring at me."

Katsuki rolled his eyes and turned around, flipping the omelette on the pan. He wasn't sure how to help Izuku. It seemed kinda unfair that said teen had so many years of experience with help Katsuki and knew exactly what to do and who he needed help from, while Katsuki didn't know a thing about a sick Izuku Midoriya.

"Midoriya, the class is going to start heading out in about five minutes." Iida called out from the common room.

The greenette sent a thumbs up in his direction before his head whipped back towards Bakugo, "Five minutes. We can get ready in five, right?"

"Goddamn it, nerd. We aren't going. I'll call Sensei right now and tell him if I have to." Katsuki snapped, shoving a plate towards Izuku. "Eat your food slowly. If you choke on it, it'll really hurt. Your larynx is inflamed."

Izuku stared at the food in distaste, pocking it around his plate with his chopsticks.

"I'll stay behind to look after Midoriya as well," Todoroki called out.

Katsuki just rolled his eyes, "You're already in your uniform, fuckface. Just go to class, I can look after a nerd for a few hours."

"I don't need looking after!" Midoriya protested. He went ignored.

"If there's any problems, let me know." The half and half teen leaned over the counter of the kitchen next to where Izuku was sitting to mumble something to Bakugo. "Don't wear him out. He's too sick for your antics."

The blonde's face went red, his blush spreading from his face, all the way down his neck. "Shut the hell up! Get the fuck out of my face!"

Todoroki just stared at him, unamused. "You know I didn't mean anything explicit. Just don't eat each other's faces just because no one's around. Let Midoriya rest."

"Oh my god, get out of here." Izuku begged while in a similar state, hopping off of his stool to drag Todoroki away from a sputtering Bakugo. 

As the greenette shoved his friend away, Bakugo quickly pulled out his phone and called his homeroom teacher, grateful for the distraction.

Click.

"Class doesn't start for another five minutes. Unless someone is dying, I don't want to hear it." Aizawa sounded exhausted.

Bakugo huffed, "Well, good morning to you, too. I'm just calling you to tell you Izuku and I aren't coming in today."

A short pause, "Why?" was Aizawa's sceptical question.

"You know damn well why. Izuku's sick and I'm not letting him be miserable all day just because he doesn't want to skip school." Katsuki snapped. 

"Speaking of, if one more person gets a cold, I'm going to storm into that building and search every corner until I find whatever the hell is getting you kids sick." The man grumbled.

"Whatever. Don't expect us today." The blonde muttered.

Click.

That had been a lot easier than Bakugo was expecting it to. Guess bugging the man until he stopped caring worked after all.

--

Once everyone else had left, Katsuki and Izuku just sat on the couch watching a hero show for the rest of the day. Bakugo had retrieved the bucket of water and cloth that Izuku had left in his room (said teen didn't even notice it was still there when he was over the night before).

He grabbed a fresh cloth—he shoved the used one in the laundry room—and fresh cold water for Izuku. He re-dampened the fabric every ten to fifteen minutes. 

He also grabbed the keychains he had hidden in his nightstand the day before. They currently resided in his back pockets.

Midoriya was lying on his back, staring at the TV screen. He hummed in quiet approval every time Bakugo placed the refreshed material onto his forehead, as it was honestly relieving his headache. At about lunch time, Bakugo whipped up some soup and forced Izuku to finish it, who did so tortuously slow just to spite the blonde.

When it was time to take some more medicine, Izuku blushed purple when Katsuki had to sit him up, place the pills into his mouth, and give him some water because his limbs had decided it was the perfect time to just stop working.

Bakugo laughed all the while, "As I recall, when the roles were reversed, you ravaged my mouth and told me to 'shut up' so you could enjoy it better." He snorted when Midoriya somehow managed to blush deeper. Said teen shrieked and tried to hide his face out of embarrassment, but Katsuki held his wrists so he couldn't. "Don't hide, Izuku."

"Oh, buzz off! I only did that because..." Midoriya trailed off, scowling. He wasn't actually sure why he did that. Sure, he wanted to get the blonde to take his goddamn medicine, but after all the water was gone Izuku insisted they continued. God, that's embarrassing.

"Because I'm just such a good kisser you wanted to keep going. It's fine, I get it." Bakugo smirked, finishing the sentence for Izuku. The freckled boy screeched in protest, which only made Katsuki cackle.

By the time they had sobered up, Izuku had a serious face on. Bakugo looked at him in confusion, not sure where the sudden switch came from. "What's going on, nerd?" he questioned, scooting a little closer to said nerd.

Midoriya sighed, "I was just thinking about something."

"Is—" Katsuki swallowed, unsure of how thin the ice he was walking on was. "Is this about last night?" he questioned seriously.

Izuku shook his head, "No, not anything like that. It's just...I was thinking about how close you and Kirishima are."

Bakugo's eyes widened. "How do I fix this? How do I prove to you I was being serious when I said we weren't on a date?" he practically begged. "I don't fuckin' want you thinking I would ever, ever, stoop so goddamn low."

Midoriya gave him a pathetic smile, "I know, Kacchan. But I can't help but compare our relationship to you and Kirishima's. He's always got an arm around you, always joking around with you. He can claim he's on a date with you and no one would think anything of it because everyone knows how close you guys are."

Oh.

Was Izuku jealous of rocks-for-brains, not just thinking of Bakugo cheating? Or, whatever going on a date with someone else counted as. Was that what this is about?

"When I opened the group chat, you have no idea how little I felt. Like I was a spec of sand on a beach, unnoticed but not unseen. Like I was someone to you, but not something. Not like Kirishima, anyway." Midoriya clenched his jaw, biting back the stupid fucking tears threatening to spill again.

Bakugo deflated on the couch, running his hands over his face, "Fuck," he swore. "Fuck!"

"Kacchan?"

"Izuku, what the hell do you think Shitty Hair is to me?" The blonde demanded.

Izuku eyed him, "Are you serious? He's your bestfriend, obviously. I'm not stupid." he was exasperated, close to hitting Bakugo over the head with a cushion.

Said teen just look at him in complete and utter shock. "Are you serious? Izuku, you can't think something like that!" he shouted, his back snapping straight.

Midoriya's eyes widened at the reaction, "Are...you not, then?" he questioned, his breathing rate picking up.

"No!" Katsuki's ears were dusted with pink as he yelled. "You're my boyfriend, my rival, and my best friend! All of it. It's a packaged deal, damn it!"

"You're so sappy sometimes, Kacchan." Izuku looked away, feeling his face heat up.

"I'll rip your eyes out and glue them onto your forehead." Bakugo threatened, embarrassed. Midoriya just laughed, using the last of his energy to flop himself over, landing half in Katsuki's lap. His head hung over the blonde's legs; his torso aligned with Bakugo's.

"If it makes you feel better, I still hoped you two had fun."

"No, that makes it worse. I did enjoy it, but not because Shitty Hair was with me."

Midoriya paused, "Then?"

"That's none of your business."

"I should have guessed."

They stayed like that for a while, Izuku chatting out into the open about the show playing and half-assing cussing out Bakugo whenever he dared to interrupt. Katsuki, on the other hand, was contemplating how to show Izuku the keychains. 

Before they knew it, it had hit noon. The class slowly started to come back into the building. No keychains had been revealed (which Katsuki knew was ridiculous, they were just keychains) and a hero show had yet to be watched all the way.

Kaminari came into the building slumped like a zombie. Izuku snorted at the sight of him hunched over and dragging his feet.

The blonde turned his head to him, glaring. "We got lectured on staying healthy for like an hour straight because of you two!" he yelled. 

Midoriya laughed again.

Todoroki walked up to the couch, nodding in approval when he saw the damp cloth on Izuku's head. "You got enough rest, then?" he questioned.

Bakugo clenched his jaw, "I'm not a fucking animal, icy-hot." he barked out.

"I didn't ask you. How are you feeling now, Midoriya?" Todoroki shrugged the explosive teen off, who reacted...well, explosively.

Izuku had to snatch Katsuki's hands out of Todoroki's shirt and yell over him, "I'm fine now, Todoroki! I think my fever finally broke!" he shouted, grinning.

Todoroki smiled back, even as he was tempted to smack his hand over Bakugo's face to shut him up. "I can see that. You're in a much better mood today."

Bakugo huffed, "Course he is! I took care of him! He's just a dipshit with an unhealthy body." he teased, smirking.

Izuku pinched his arm, "Hush. If you didn't care so much about your stupid routines—"

"I'll have you know that I didn't get sick from running in the rain." Katsuki interrupted. Todoroki was already walking away, refusing to be involved in another argument. Uraraka snorted at his expression, hooking their arms together and walking into the kitchen. 

Midoriya raised an eyebrow sceptically.

The blonde clicked his tongue, "I got sick from that fucking training at the USJ! Thirteen had me in shorts and a thin ass shirt in the snow area. And you didn't catch my cold lookin' after me, ya got it from being in my room the day before."

Somewhere behind them, someone fake gasped. "You let Midoriya into your room and not us?!" Sero accused.

Katsuki glared at him, "Shut the fuck up before I shove your shitty tape down your throat."

Izuku just hummed in delight, "So it isn't my fault I got sick then!"

Ruby eyes rolled, "Yes it is, nerd. You were insistent on coming in."

Midoriya blew raspberries, looking away. "Not my fault I wasn't aware your room is a germ fest." 

People near them let out 'ooooh' sounds, the same one they made whenever one of their classmates got called out of the classroom to get yelled at. Katsuki spat at them to shut the fuck up while removing the fabric from Izuku's forehead just to flick it.

Midoriya yelped, shoving his hand onto Katsuki's face in reflex. Said teen bite down, causing another yelp from the other. Kirishima already had his phone out, snickering in the corner near the TV with Kaminari as they captured the cat fight. 

Izuku tried to use his other hand to push Bakugo's face away, when he heard the clink clink of something banging against itself. He saw the way Katsuki paled and immediately dove to find out what the hell was in Katsuki's back pocket.

Bakugo tried to push him away shuffling on an odd angle to get out of Izuku's grip. Midoriya had a hand on his hip, trying to stop him from moving away.

"Stop fucking groping me!" Bakugo yelled, his movements panicked.

"Not until I found out what the hell is in your pocket! Let me see!" Izuku snapped back. 

They ended up on the floor, Izuku on top trying to reach into Bakugo's back pocket, Bakugo on the bottom trying to manoeuvre his way out of Izuku's hold. Eventually, Midoriya was able to reach his hands into the pocket and pull out the two pieces of plastic. 

He completely froze and he realised what they were.

The crowd that had formed around them to spectate the fight (Mina, Jiro, Uraraka, Tsu, Yaomomo, Koda, Aoyama, Sato, Sero, Hagakure and Mineta) and the camera crew (Kirishima and Kaminari) also went silent, making everyone else who wasn't over with them stare. Even Iida, who had given up on trying to stop any fight between Bakugo and Midoriya, grew curious.

"Is... is this?" Izuku mumbled out, his eyes practically glowing.

Katsuki flushed and looked away from where he was laying, "Fucking obviously," he spat out.

Midoriya shrieked in excitement, "The limited-edition surprise collectible keychains? The ones that only like fifteen people have been able to get in the last five years it's been launched?!"

"Of course you would know something like that, nerd." Bakugo scoffed, but his face and half-smirk gave away how proud he was.

"Oh my god, this is amazing Kacchan!" Before anyone had anytime to realise what was going on, Midoriya pounced on Bakugo again. He pressed feathery pepper kisses all over the blonde's flushed face, his own in a similar state simply because of how happy he was.

Izuku pecked Katsuki forehead, cheeks, chin, nose, jaw and mouth over and over again, all the while muttering about how happy he was.

He only stopped when he heard someone scream. Izuku sucked in a harsh breath when it made his head throb a little, whipping around to see who it was. He felt Bakugo freeze from under him at the same time he did, taking in the looks of everyone else.

Mina, Jiro and the rest of the girls looked ecstatic, while everyone else looked like they had just witnessed someone snap their own arm in half.

"What the fuck." Mineta yelled. Judging by the way his hands were on his head, elbows sticking out, Midoriya could tell he was the one who had screamed bloody fucking murder.

Izuku glanced back down at Katsuki, who looked right back at them. The blonde was the first one to give in, covering his mouth with his hand as he snorted. Izuku cackled, his arms holding his stomach as his head throbbed because of how hard he was laughing.

His body struggled to stay upright and he ended up half collapsing onto a laughing Bakugo, who shot his arm out as Midoriya fell so that he wouldn't bash his head against the ground.

The lights in the dorm were off. There was little to no moonlight to shine into the ground floor and illuminate the area, leaving it mostly pitch black.

Izuku and Katsuki sat side by side in chairs at one of the dining tables. The former looked just as unimpressed as the latter, who was glaring at Mina. Said girl was shining the torch on her phone into their faces.

Kaminari was beside her, "So you two," he drawled. "We have this video right here as proof you're somewhat of an item." he says, showing Kirishima's phone to them. The video the red head had taken of the two of the wrestling played. It showed them rolling off of the couch, then Izuku pulling out the chains and kissing Bakugo's face.

Kaminari paused it there, zooming in on their faces. "As we can see here, your lips touch. And not only that, but they also go on to touch again about four times throughout this footage."

Mina slammed her free hand on the table, "What do you have to say for yourselves?!"

Midoriya glared at her pink fist, "What do you think we have to say, Mina." he said firmly. "

Are you two dating?!" she demanded.

Bakugo rolled his eyes, "Fucking obviously, racoon eyes. This is ridiculous—"

"Aht, aht, aht," Kaminari interrupted. "We aren't done. Just how long have you two been boyfriends?" he questioned, narrowing his eyes.

"Almost four months." Midoriya said, kicking his leg out and smirking when Kaminari yelped. 

"Who did you tell?" Mina asked, leaning forward. Izuku squinted as her torch was also brought forward.

Bakugo noticed and smacked the phone out of her hand, "Get that shit out of his face. He's sick, dumbass." he snapped.

Iida just sighed and went to turn on the lights, sick of the dramatics. "If they don't want to answer any of these questions, don't force them. It is, after all, a personal matter." he spoke as he walked to the light switches.

Flick.

The ground floor lit up and more than a few people groaned at the sudden brightness. 

"I knew they were dating." Todoroki chimed in from where he was standing not too far from Midoriya

. Said teen exhaled, "I had a feeling you did," he stated simply.

"Well, it isn't like you tried to hide it. I first had suspicions when I heard Bakugo call you by your given name when he hadn't realised I was in his room with you." The half and half boy went on to explain.

Kaminari fake sniffled when he heard this, "You let Todoroki into your room and not us?! I understand Midoriya, but Todoroki?" 

Bakugo glared at him, "He just fucking said I didn't even realise he was there, dunce face. Use your ears."

"Anyway," Todoroki drawled. "I saw Midoriya literally pick Bakugo up by his thighs. And Bakugo didn't even complain. That was when I realised they were dating."

The blonde snapped his head around, "That was because I was too sick to stop him!" his face was flushed, and he was obviously embarrassed.

"I thought you said you definitely weren't sick because you eat your veggies," Midoriya monotoned.

Bakugo had to resist the urge to punch him. "I said that half asleep. Fuck off about it." he said through gritted teeth.

"Whatever you say, Kacchan."

Uraraka had her hands on her hips, glaring at Bakugo as hard as he could. "Just know you can't replace me." she swore. They locked eyes, but Uraraka looked away before he could say anything back. "I realised something was off when Bakugo put on Deku's shirt without complaining."

"Bakugo? Putting on Midoriya's shirt? In what universe did you say this happened, again?" Mineta questioned.

"Well, Midoriya's currently wearing Bakugo's clothes. I don't think it's that unbelievable." Tokoyami stated.

Everyone looked back at Izuku, who shifted in his seat uncomfortably. Bakugo saw this and snarled, "You got a problem with that?"

Sato couldn't resist asking, "Why is he wearing your clothes though?"

"Because I gave them to him! Anyone with a problem can say it to my fucking face." Katsuki yelled.

"I saw Midoriya outside of Bakugo's dorm last night," Kirishima chimed in. Bakugo and Midoriya both paled and the red head was quick to explain, "I didn't see much! I swear I just poked my head out for a second!"

"How much is 'much'?" Midoriya demanded, his eyes flicking to Shoji, who tensed.

"Just... a little." Kirishima mumbled.

Izuku's lips pressed into a firm line. It didn't take a genius to figure out something had happened when Midoriya went to visit Bakugo last night.

"He didn't see." Shoji said, stepping forward. "I got him to go back into his room."

Kirishima nodded, "That's right! Like forty seconds later he texted me and said that everything was a-okay!"

"Didn't see what?" Mineta questioned, suspicious. "Did you two make out or something?" he straight up said.

Shoji coughed into his hand and Izuku looked at Bakugo for help, who shrugged. "I didn't know either of them were watching." he whispered. 

"Shoji told me he saw us kiss, but went into his room as soon as we did." Midoriya whispered back. "I didn't know Kirishima was watching as well."

Todoroki cleared his throat, "I thought I told you not to eat his face." he lectured.

"Kill me now." Izuku said, slamming his head onto the table. He'd forgotten the scarred teen was right behind them.

The room erupted in chatter as Todoroki confirmed the two had, indeed, made out last night.

Bakugo grabbed Todoroki by the collar, yelling in his face. "You said that this morning, fucker! That was last night!"

Someone squealed—probably Mina—as Bakugo said that. Yaoyorozu seemed conflicted, as if she couldn't believe Midoriya of all people agreed to kissing. She said as much, which made Izuku blush deeper from where he was hunched over.

"Please, that nerd kissed me first. He's not as innocent as you fuckers think he is." Bakugo said, snickering when he heard Izuku's embarrassed groan.

Shoji frowned behind his mask, "That's not what I saw." he said.

Everyone stopped talking. Shoji seemed embarrassed to have caused the sudden tenseness. 

"So Shoji saw Bakugo kissing Midoriya, but Bakugo just said that Midoriya kissed him first?" Hagakure thought aloud.

"So... they've kissed more than once?" Koda sat down in the common room, too confused and overwhelmed to keep going.

"That's why Midoriya sent Sato and Kirishima on that fools errand to get the flowers. He also sent Uraraka and I to go get his All Might blanket, but he lied about where it was so we would take longer." Todoroki monotoned, crossing his arms. 

"You sent me away to kiss your bratty

boyfriend?!" Uraraka screamed. Izuku screamed as well. He shot up from where he was seated and ran, Bakugo calling out to him from behind him.

Iida let out a long sigh, "I suppose I'll have to ask Aizawa Sensei if they're allowed to stay in the same room at night."

Kirishima seemed to have realised something and he turned beet red, "Will I have to wear headphones to sleep now?" he squeaked.

Katsuki heard him and paused at the bottom of the stairs. "Don't be a fucking weirdo, Shitty Hair. 'Course not." He continued up the stairs, sprinting after a blushing Izuku. 

The class president clicked his tongue, "They shouldn't be doing anything like that on school grounds."

"Christmas break is coming up. They're going to be around each other a whole lot more often soon enough." Tokoyami stated.

Sero still looked confused, "I'll believe it when I see it. I mean, c'mon. Bakugo and Midoriya?"

Jiro snorted, "We all just saw it, Sero."

"Still... I wonder if Bakugo's mouth tastes like nitro-glycerine." The tape teen wondered out loud.

"Why would you make me imagine something like that." Ojiro looked uncomfortable. 

Yaoyorozu laid a hand on Iida's shoulder. "Just let them be. I, for one, have noticed how much bubblier and happier both Midoriya and Bakugo have been these last couple of months."

Todoroki nodded, "And if I had to guess, they stopped hiding their relationship almost four months in because of their... bonding."

Mineta batted his eyelashes at Tsu, "That could be us, y'know—"

The girl interrupted him as she slapped him with her tongue as hard as she could.