Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Izuku couldn't stop grinning. His boyfriend, (yeah, he couldn't stop thinking that to himself), had surprised him by completing their project ahead of schedule. It had left them plenty of time to edit together their video recording of the process, test out their hypothesis, and then finalize their report. In between the science and all the stolen kisses when they found themselves alone Izuku had found time to figure out where he was going to take Denki on their date after the science fair. 

Denki had been trying to get him to spill the beans, but Izuku wanted it to be a surprise. He'd already gotten permission from Aizawa for the two of them to leave campus and everything. Now all he needed to do was get through the science fair. 

Izuku didn't think it would be particularly difficult, at least as far as the science part was concerned. But whenever Denki bumped into him Mina or Uraraka would shoot a questioning glance at him. He hadn't told them yet… He had talked about it with Denki, but they had both wanted to get through at least one date before they told their friends. If Denki kept up with the lingering touches though, they'd be found out before they could make it off campus.

Izuku turned to face their instruments that were covered with a white sheet. “Denks, I know you're excited, but Mina and Uraraka keep staring.” He whispered as he pretended to adjust the sheet.

Denki went still beside him. “Sorry, do you think I should take a lap? Go check out the competition?”

Izuku laughed nervously. “And leave me to those two gossip hounds? I don't think so. I have a better idea.”

Denki bumped his shoulder into Izuku's and whispered, “what genius plan does my boyfriend have now?” 

Izuku felt his face flush. “I was going to say we should start our live demonstration. If we go ahead and start playing them then more people will come by our booth and give us a distraction.”

“See, genius.” Denki poked Izuku in the forehead and grinned.

Izuku couldn't help the dopey smile that he offered the blond in return. “Help me get this sheet off then. I don't want to accidentally snap the antennas.”

Denki nodded as he moved to stand on the opposite side of the devices. “Right, lift on three?”

Izuku counted them down and lifted the sheet gently to reveal their precious instruments, and the standard store bought one that they had acquired as a control for the experiment. The natural color of the cherry wood they used for their own instruments worked well with the silver antennas. Their instruments looked so much warmer and more inviting than the fully metal standard one. The slimmer, sleeker housing design they went with was a lot different from the big boxy design of the standard too. Honestly, Izuku was glad for that decision as it meant they took up less space. Though they still needed a lot of space since they had three different sized theremins stuffed into their booth.

When he turned to tuck the sheet into his backpack he could see the two girls across from him staring curiously. He flashed them both a smile and waved them over.

“Would you like to see what they do?” He asked as he circled around the instruments.

“Yes, I've been so curious what you two were working on!” Uraraka bounced on the balls of her feet in excitement. 

“Yeah, everyone else has been pretty open about their projects, but you two have kept it pretty locked down. I'm impressed.” Mina gave them an approving thumbs up.

Izuku nodded at Denki and they took their places behind their respective instruments. Izuku’s was the smallest one, while Denki had opted for the largest. They had purposefully picked sizes on either side of the spectrum from the store bought theremin. They had agreed that the range would better help prove their hypothesis. 

Izuku checked his instrument and gave his boyfriend a grateful smile. Denki had set up everything already so all they had to do was turn the devices on. They each placed a hand on the loop antenna in order to not immediately blow out everyone's ear drums. Then just like Denki had done when he first tested the instruments they both slowly pushed one hand forward from their chests while lifting the other from the loop antenna. Slowly two otherworldly sounds stretched out in front of them. Denki’s instrument had a deeper pitch than Izuku's, but the two harmonized well. Izuku kept his hand movements slow and fluid, while Denki’s were a bit faster and more erratic. It created a wonderfully weird tune in Izuku’s opinion.

Mina clapped her hands over her mouth to stifle a squeal, while Uraraka's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. The two girls watched on, mesmerized by the strange music. It didn't take long for the sounds to draw in a crowd. The majority of which seemed to be their own classmates. Izuku caught Kacchan's face in the throng of people. To his surprise Kacchan seemed almost impressed. Kyoka and Yaomomo were whispering excitedly to each other, while Koda swayed silently beside them. Izuku knew that he had the biggest, dopiest looking grin on his face, but he couldn’t help it. He was proud. 

Slowly the two boys lowered their hands and the foreign sounds faded away. They each turned off their own instrument, and as soon as they were cut off their classmates surged forward. Izuku couldn’t seem to make out any of the questions he was being bombarded with. He could hardly distinguish which of his classmates were actually speaking. He chanced a glance at the blond next to him and could tell from the look on Denki’s face that he wasn’t fairing any better.

Izuku clapped his hands together once and then held them up to try and silence the overzealous throng before him. “If you have questions we will be happy to explain, but it’s hard to answer you when everyone is talking over each other.”

Fully admonished, the crowd quieted down. Koda raised his hand like they were in the classroom and Izuku smiled as he pointed at the boy. “What exactly are those things?”

“That, my animal loving friend, is a wonderful question.” Denki rubbed his hands together before spreading his arms wide to gesture at the instruments. “These funky little doodads are called theremins. They are instruments that allow users to harness the wonderful powers of electromagnetism for an auditory experience like no other!”

Izuku and a few of the folks in the crowd chuckled at how the explanation had sounded more like a traveling salesman trying to make a pitch.

“We built the two devices on the ends from scratch, using different measurements for the antennas in order to see how it affected the pitch. The middle one is a standard sized, pre-assembled theremin that we used as a control.” Izuku picked up the explanation. “By using the same materials for the housing and circuitry in our own instruments we were able to control a lot of the variables that could have distorted our findings. We built each instrument simultaneously, making sure to follow the same steps and use the same techniques while crafting the devices.”

“Wait, so you’re saying Sparky actually built one of those things?” Kacchan asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes, we recorded our entire process in order to document the steps we’d taken.” Izuku explained as he stepped to the side. 

He pulled a small remote from his pocket and gently pressed a button. A video began playing on the projection screen at the back of their booth. Denki had edited it to play small snippets of their progress throughout the project. They had agreed to submit a much less condensed version to their teacher to show the full extent of their work. They had both wanted to show off the work that had gone into the project during the fair though, and had compromised on a much shorter eight minute video. As the clip played it clearly showed that Denki had done his fair share of work. Izuku knew what everyone thought of his boyfriend, but now they all could see as plain as day what Izuku had always known. 

He wanted to reach over and hold Denki’s hand, kiss his smiling face, but he held back. If only so everyone could see how smart the blond really was.

The video wasn’t even half way through when a strange chuckle sounded from above them in the vents. Izuku tilted his head up curiously and through the slats in the vent he saw two small beady eyes staring back at him.

“Hello, Principal Nedzu!” He called up to the rodent.

The vent popped open and the principal grinned at him. “Hello, Midoriya.” He greeted before dropping down from the ceiling. “I am one of the judges for this year’s science fair!”

Denki let out a nervous laugh. “You’re judging us from the vents?”

“Why yes, yes I am. I find that if students aren’t aware that they’re being judged then they tend to do better with their presentations. Plus, it’s a much better vantage point for someone of my height.” Nedzu explained.

Izuku glanced back towards his classmates only to find that they had all scattered. He supposed that was fair. The principal did make a lot of students nervous.

“Exactly. So, how did you two brilliant boys come up with these ingenious devices?”

Oops. 

“Well, Sir, it was actually Izuku’s idea. He found a video online of someone playing a song. When he showed it to me it just seemed like the perfect idea.”

Nedzu rubbed his hands together. “I agree. The building of not just one, but two of these devices shows an understanding of multiple disciplines. You've also managed to incorporate the arts as well. You've both accomplished a great deal with this project.”

“Thank you, Sir.” Both teens replied.

“You're most welcome. The other judges should be along soon. Good luck!” The principal chuckled as he disappeared into the mass of people wandering around. 

Denki turned to Izuku with a nervous smile on his face. “I feel like I should be scared that he complimented us.”

Izuku checked to see if anyone was paying attention to them. When the coast was clear he slipped his hand into Denki’s and squeezed softly. “I think that’s just because you had to face him during the final exam for the first semester.”

Denki visibly shuddered. “He is a terrifying little,” he scrunched up his nose as he thought about it, “uh, what is he?”

Izuku tapped his finger to his chin. “A stoat I believe, but I’ve heard some of the teachers refer to him as a ‘chimera’ so it’s not really clear.”

Denki smiled a goofy fond smile at Izuku. “I love your brain.” The blond whispered.

Izuku blushed and coughed into his hand. “I think yours is pretty impressive too, you know.”

Denki’s lopsided grin got bigger. Izuku wanted so badly to kiss him, but with Mina and Ochako right across from them he held himself back. He turned to watch some of their presentation video so the girls couldn’t see his own overly fond grin. 

Not too long after Nedzu left, Aizawa showed up. Apparently he’d been recruited as a judge due to his ability to remain impartial. Izuku noted the way the pro tucked his chin into his capture weapon, it usually meant he was trying to hide an expression he didn’t want anyone to see. Given the context, Izuku assumed he was smiling. If he was angry about their project he wouldn’t have tried to hide it. 

A few more small waves of students came by after Aizawa moved on. They had been just as fascinated and enthralled as the first group. The only outlier being Monoma of course. He had tried to heckle them, but unfortunately for that particular blond he couldn’t come up with a good enough insult and ended up giving them an unintentional backhanded compliment instead. Luckily for them Shinsou came along and asked Monoma if he’d like to go and bother Kacchan. Izuku advised against that since Kacchan was presenting a project where he measured the force behind different types of impact, and he was apparently very open to volunteers.

During one wave Izuku spotted Thirteen, out of her hero costume, standing behind some of the students. She kept scribbling on a clip board. By the time they had finished answering student questions she had moved on and Izuku felt a bit disappointed. He’d really wanted to talk to her, but considering she was in charge of the entire fair it was no surprise that she couldn’t just stand around and chit chat with every presenter. He got over that mild disappointment when All Might stopped by their booth though. 

Denki had left to go get them both a bottle of water so Izuku had a moment alone with his mentor. He showed All Might how the theremin worked and let him try out the standard one since it had hardly been used. Izuku couldn’t stop smiling as he watched his favorite hero play the instrument with unconcealed and boisterous joy. Izuku thought about asking Denki if he could gift it to the man after the fair was over. They wouldn’t need a third one anyway. When the pro was done testing out the theremin he clapped a hand on Izuku’s shoulder.

“You and your friend did a fine job with this. It is certainly one of the most unique displays here today.” The hero complimented.

Izuku felt his chest puff up a bit with pride as his mentor's words settled around him. “I’ll be sure to pass that along to Denki. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it as much as I do. Thank you, All Might.”

All Might’s returning smile pulled at his gaunt cheek bones. “You and young Kaminari seem to have gotten much closer after working together.”

Izuku rubbed the back of his neck bashfully. “Well, yes sir, we have.” Izuku glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before leaning in close to whisper, “We are actually going on our first date after the fair is over.”

All Might’s smile turned soft as he looked down at Izuku. “Well, I hope it goes well then young man. You be careful out there, and treat him well.”

Izuku nodded fervently. “Of course, Sir.”

All Might ruffled Izuku’s hair before heading off to look at more of his classmates' projects. Izuku wished he could have talked to the man in private. He had a very pressing question concerning his relationship with Denki and the secret of One For All. Izuku knew that it was too important to tell Denki right away. It’s not that he didn’t trust his boyfriend, he wouldn’t have fallen for him if he didn’t trust him, it was more that he didn’t know if Denki would change his mind if he knew the truth. That Izuku had lied to him that day on the train… That day had changed a lot in their relationship, and if Denki knew that Izuku had lied to him he’d probably be hurt. The only other person who knew was Kacchan. Maybe after his date with Denki he could talk to Kacchan about it. He knew Kacchan wasn’t exactly thrilled by the idea of him dating one of his friends, but he wouldn’t give Izuku advice that would hurt Denki. 

His worries were put on the back burner when Denki returned. The blond handed Izuku a bottle of water. When Izuku reached out to take it Denki didn’t let go. Instead he brushed his index finger along Izuku's knuckles.

“The science fair will be over soon.” Denki murmured. 

Izuku nodded and stepped a little closer. “I know.”

“Still not gonna tell me?”

Izuku shook his head and grinned. “Nope.”

“Whatcha doin?”

They both jumped at the sound of Mina's lilting voice. Izuku turned to face her while Denki turned to place the water bottle on the table. Mina's eyes darted back and forth swiftly between the two of them.

“We were just talking.” Izuku explained.

“Yeah, but you were talking really close.” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

“We weren't that close.” Izuku denied.

She leaned way to far into Izuku's space. “If he had been any closer his tongue would have been in your throat.” She whispered before twirling around and leaving as abruptly as she showed up.

Izuku was left choking on his own spit in the wake of her comment. She grinned menacingly at him from across the aisle between their booths. Denki scrambled to hand him the bottle of water that he'd been fidgeting with the entire time Izuku had dealt with Mina. Or more accurately, while Mina had dealt with him.

As Izuku sipped his water he watched as Uraraka looked over at him curiously. She seemed to say something to the pink girl, who then leaned in close and held a hand up to Uraraka's ear. Uraraka clapped both hands over her mouth and laughed loud enough for Izuku and Denki to hear it.

“Do you think they know?” Denki whispered.

“No. I sort of told them I was going to confess after the fair. So I think they think they're helping.” Izuku whispered back.

“I can't wait for this to be over. I just want to get out of here.” Denki pouted.

Izuku knew exactly how he felt. 

~~~~~

Denki was leaning against the outside wall of the UA gate. After the fair had ended he helped Izuku clean everything up and cart their instruments back to the dorms. He quickly got dressed for his date. He didn't want to overthink it too much so he'd just thrown on a pair of his tastefully distressed skinny jeans, a white v-neck and a short sleeved yellow button up that he'd left undone. It was too warm still for a heavy jacket so he didn't bother with one. He also didn't want to wear any conductive metals on the off chance he might accidentally zap his boyfriend. He figured it was better safe than sorry.

He couldn't be too disappointed about the fair as he got ready. So they didn't win? They still came in second place. That was pretty great considering they were up against Yaomomo. She'd basically created life in a jar, or something like that. That would be hard for anyone to beat. They definitely beat Bakugou though, and Denki could admit that it felt great. The next time Bakugou tried to call him dunce face Denki planned to just shove his second place ribbon in his face. Plus he was just too excited about their date.

Denki pushed off the wall he was leaning on to pull his phone from his back pocket to check the time, he was starting to get a bit nervous. They had gotten permission to go off campus, but Aizawa sensei’s reminder about the curfew was too fresh. He didn’t want to chance not making it back in time. But they couldn’t get back on time if they didn’t leave soon. He had no idea what could be holding Izuku up. He scrolled through his contacts, debating on if he should call the freckled cutie when he heard his name called. His head whipped up and he had to do a double take because woah. His boyfriend looked amazing!

Denki's mouth went dry and his heart kicked into overdrive as Izuku walked up to him. When the other teen was close enough he scanned his eyes over him from head to toe. Forest green curls had been gently tamed, but still bounced around freely. He had a simple golden chain around his neck with a small lightning bolt charm. He wore a short sleeve black button up similar in style to the one he wore himself, a simple black undershirt peaking out from the undone top buttons. His dark wash straight leg jeans were cuffed at the ankles, and his usual clunky red high tops were gone. Instead he wore a pair of black canvas high tops that look like they had been splattered with white and yellow paint. He'd never really bothered to pay attention to Izuku’s fashion sense, but the outfit Izuku wore for their date was so different from his regular style Denki couldn't help but notice it. 

The blond had been staring too long, he knew it, but he couldn’t get his lips to move, and the only thing his tongue wanted to do was something highly inappropriate for a first date. Izuku moved his mouth, but Denki couldn’t hear the words over the sound of his own heartbeat and the extremely gay panic that was happening in his brain. Curls fell into Izuku’s eyes as he tilted his head, concern etching a crease in between the boy’s eyebrows.

“... -ou okay?” 

Sound rushed back to Denki’s ears all at once and his eyelids fluttered for a few seconds. “I’m sorry, what was that?”

Izuku laughed, a hint of nervousness peeking through. “I asked if you were ready to go, but you just kept staring at me so I asked if you were okay.”

“No, you’re really hot.” He thought before responding, yeah, I’m fine. Where are we going?

Izuku bit his bottom lip like he was trying not to laugh. “Thank you. I think you look really nice too.”

Denki blinked one, twice, three times. Ah crap! “Did I-”

“You did, but it’s okay.” Izuku didn’t fight his laughter that time.

“Can we start over? I feel like I can do this a lot better.” He pleaded, his shoulder slumping.

Izuku turned around and faced the other direction. He peeked back over his shoulder and whispered. “Tap me on the shoulder.”

Denki reached his hand out and tapped Izuku as instructed. The boy turned back around, faux surprise clear in his expression. “Oh Denks, I didn’t see you there. Are you ready to go?”

The blond cleared his throat. “I am, where are we going?” He reached over to grab Izuku’s hand and kissed the back of it. “You look fantastic, by the way.”

Izuku let out a sound close to a whine and Denki’s eyes darted up to see that he had flung his arm over his face. “I think you look really nice, I know I already said that but you asked to start over so I’m not sure if I should be redoing my compliment too, but now I’m flustered and I don’t know what to say.”

“I think you’re cute when you’re flustered.” Denki leaned in to whisper in Izuku’s ear.

Izuku seemed to be getting more flustered so Denki took a step back. He didn’t want his boyfriend to combust before they had even gone on their date. Izuku smiled at him bashfully as he reached into his pockets. He pulled something out before holding up two folded note cards, one in each hand.

“What is happening?”

“Please pick one. Just point to it though, don’t take it.” The green haired boy instructed.

“Okay.” Denki responded, dragging the word out as he pointed to one of the cards. 

Izuku unfolded the one he’d pointed at. “Oh, nice. I was hoping you’d pick this one.”

“What is it?”

Izuku took Denki’s hand and began leading him towards the closest train station. “It’s a surprise.”

Denki didn’t question it. He knew Izuku had planned everything out, and he wanted this to go well. If that meant letting his boyfriend surprise him then so be it. He liked surprises. Usually. Unless it was a surprise attack or something else nefarious. Then it wasn’t cool, but regular surprises from the people you loved? Yeah, those were cool. It did concern him just a little that when they got to the train station they seemed to be heading to Bakugou’s stop. He knew that Izuku and Bakugou had lived in the same area, and he had been to Bakugou’s a couple of times with Kiri. But why in the heck would they be going that direction? Surely Izuku wasn’t taking him to meet his mom on the first date. Right?

They held hands on the train, and Denki kept trying to guess where they were going. They weren’t real guesses though, he would just throw out any random location he could think of. It was kind of like a game to him. Each new location he threw out he would try to see how loud or long Izuku would laugh. A couple of people gave them the stink eye for disrupting the peace, but Denki didn’t care. He just liked the sound of Izuku’s laughter. When they finally reached their stop he was a little surprised when they didn’t exit in the direction he thought they were going. They walked to the end of the block before crossing the street and then immediately continuing in the same direction they had originally been going. 

Denki kept trying to piece together what he knew of the neighborhood, but he wasn’t really that familiar with the area. Eventually Izuku led them off the sidewalk towards a bright yellow building. The front of it looked kind of weird, like a set of upside down stairs had been plastered to the roof to hang down like stalactites. Near the front door a vending machine and a couple of gacha machines had been nestled up under the overhang of the roof. There were Japanese and English signs all over the large building, and Denki started vibrating when he realized where they were. It was a book store that carried English titles. Denki had been a frequent visitor to the one in his hometown. He hadn’t realized there was one this close to UA.

“How did you know this was here?” He asked, surprise and delight lacing every syllable.

“I’ve been coming here since I was a kid. It’s where I get all my books.” 
Izuku grinned at him.

“So you're bringing me to a book shop for our first date?” He raises his eyebrow curiously.

“Well, yes, but this isn't our only stop. There were two cards, remember?” Izuku nudged him playfully.

“Oh, I thought we only got to do one thing. It’s nice to know I’ll be able to find out what was on that other card. It was driving me crazy wondering what it could have been.” Denki laughed.

“You’ll find out later. For now I want you to focus on this.” He stopped walking and stepped out of the path of regular foot traffic, pulling Denki along with him. “Before we go in I am going to explain the rules.”

Denki frowned. “Rules? What rules? It’s a book sho-”

Izuku placed a careful finger over Denki’s lips to quiet him. “We are going to set timers on our phones for thirty minutes. When we go in we’re going to split up. I’m going to pick out three books. One that I think you would like to read, and two copies of another that I think would be fun for us to read together. You are going to do the same thing. If you get finished before the timer goes off that’s fine just check out like normally and wait for me at the door. I’ll do the same thing.”

“Okay, that actually sounds kind of fun.” Denki murmured around Izuku’s finger that was still pressed to his lips.

Izuku finally removed his finger and laughed. “I hope so. I really tried to think of the perfect date activity for us to do together.”

Denki shuddered as he recalled Aizawa sensei’s warning. “Please don’t call our dates ‘activities’. I really don’t want to think about our teacher while we’re on a date.”

Izuku winced slightly. “Yeah, okay, that’s fair.”

Denki looked around really quickly to make sure that no one was around. When the coast was clear he leaned in and pressed a short kiss onto Izuku’s pouting bottom lip. “I’ll see you in thirty minutes.”

Izuku nodded and reached for his phone. “Thirty minutes.”

Denki walked into the building and looked around to try and find the English novels section. He wasn’t exactly sure what he was looking for, but he knew that he’d know it when he saw it. He hated leaving Izuku, especially after what happened the last time. Though, if Izuku felt like it would be okay he would trust his boyfriend’s judgement. Besides, he hadn’t seemed as skittish as he did that day at the mall. So Denki shook that uneasiness off and began to scan the shelves in front of him. He had a mission, and he was going to get it done. 

He figured his best bet was to just go alphabetically. He picked a few things up off the shelf as he perused, but nothing was calling out to him like he hoped. He was under a time limit, which he didn’t really do well with that kind of thing, but he really wanted to find something for Izuku. If he couldn’t find something for them to read together that would be okay. Surely Izuku would be able to pick something out for both of them. 

Denki sighed. The novels were not cutting it. Maybe that was the problem. He walked to the end of the aisle and looked around. He spotted a sign for English poetry and grinned. That was what he was looking for. He made his way over to the small selection and started his process all over again. This time it didn’t take him nearly as long. The poetry selection wasn’t quite as robust as the novels section had been, and it took him no time at all to find something he considered to be a literary treasure. He picked it up gently off the shelf and flipped to the table of contents. His lazy grin turned sharp and just a little feral. He definitely made the right call. 

He checked his phone, surprisingly he still had almost fifteen minutes left. Denki figured if he still had plenty of time then he could give the novels another try. He meandered back over to the section he’d abandoned to check the other shelves. He bent down and rested his elbows on his knees to look at one of the bottom shelves. He noticed the name of one of his favorite authors. The title was one that he’d been meaning to read for some time, but the store he usually went to hadn’t ever had a copy of it, and trying to order it online was kind of a nightmare. He picked it up just as gently as he had the other book and placed them together. He was about to stand up, when he noticed a second copy. 

“Okay, that’s actually messed up.” He frowned at it before adding it to his stack. 

He would have been fine with having to share the same copy. He liked that idea better anyway. Snuggling up in one of their dorms, pressed close together and sharing a book. He put the second copy back. But that wasn’t really in the spirit of the idea that Izuku had come up with for their date…

He picked the book back up and shook his head. They could still snuggle up together in one of their dorms and read. He didn’t have to force proximity. Izuku was his boyfriend now after all.

With his selections firmly in hand Denki made his way to the register area. The cashier was a meek looking guy with pale blue skin, small horn-like protrusions dotting his eyebrows, and round glasses that looked like they were too big for his skinny face. He had his nose in a manga when Denki walked up so Denki cleared his throat.

“Hi there. I’d like to check out now.” He announced when the guy didn’t even move.

The guy put his manga down and blinked at Denki with such a deadpan expression that the blond thought he might somehow be related to Todoroki. The guy held his hand out for Denki’s purchases so he quickly handed them over. The dude didn’t say a word the entire time he rang up the stuff. He was passing the shopping bag back to Denki when Izuku called out his name.

Denki turned and grinned at him. “Hey, did you find something good?”

Izuku had both hands behind his back. “I believe so, but you’re just going to have to wait to find out.”

“You know this guy Midoriya?” The cashier asked, squinting at Denki.

“Oh yeah, we go to UA together.” Izuku explained before looking back at Denki. “Can you wait for me outside while I check out?”

Denki nodded. “Sure.”

He wasn’t bothered. It was fine. Izuku had introduced him as a classmate. Cool. It was all good!

 He walked outside and leaned against one of the gacha machines. Maybe, he just wasn’t used to the idea of them being boyfriends yet? They had only been officially calling each other that for about a week. Or maybe he just wasn’t ready to tell a lot of people. Denki understood that. 

He frowned at the pavement. The bag in his hand suddenly felt like it weighed a ton, and his stomach had started doing weird things.

“There you are.” Izuku called. “Are you ready for part two?”

Denki flicked his gaze up to meet his boyfriend’s eyes. “Yeah, but before we go I want to ask you something.”

Something in his tone must have alerted Izuku that something was up. “What’s the matter?”

“I’m not sure why, and I hope this doesn’t come off as a jerky thing to say, but it kind of bothered me when you introduced me as just a classmate. I know that this,” he gestured between the two of them, “is new. I get that you might not be out or ready to tell people. I’m not saying you have to. I guess I just wanted to let you know. That’s all.”

Izuku reached out and grabbed his hand. “I’m sorry. I wanted to tell him. I’ve been coming here for years and Ose is a really nice guy. His husband Hidaka also works here. I just wasn’t sure what you were comfortable with exactly so I went with something more neutral. I didn’t mean for it to bother you.”

Denki chuckled quietly as relief washed over him. Of course it was something that simple. “Well just so you know I am proud to be your boyfriend, and I would not care at all to be introduced that way.”

Izuku grinned at him. “Noted. Should I go back in there and clear it up or…?”

This time Denki really laughed. “No, you don’t have to do that. You mentioned something about a ‘part two’ though. Is that where we show each other the books we picked out?”

“Not exactly. There is more to it than that, and it’s pretty close.” Izuku started walking past the building, continuing in the direction they’d been going since they got off the train.

Denki, whose hand was still held firmly in Izuku’s grip, was tugged along. He didn’t mind though. If he had his way he’d never let that hand go, but that wasn’t exactly something he could pull off logistically. Either way he was happy to follow along. When they reached the other side of the massive building they had to stop at another cross walk. Denki’s stomach rumbled as they waited and Izuku laughed.

“Sorry, I was kind of nervous about the fair and our date so I didn’t eat a lot this morning.” He explained.

“No, it’s fine. You don’t need to apologize. It’s kind of oddly perfect timing anyway.” He pointed across the street to the building sitting at the corner. “That’s part two.”

Denki felt the drool pool in his mouth almost instantly. There were pictures of burgers with two, three, and four patties worth of meat on them. There were also pictures of chicken sandwiches, hot wings and fries, milkshakes, and so many American styles of fast food. Denki’s stomach let out another loud rumble as he tried to figure out what he wanted to order. He looked down at his stomach and shushed it quietly. Izuku shook his head beside him.

The crosswalk light finally signaled them that it was safe to head across. Denki had to stop himself from running.

A bell chimed when they opened the door. It set something off in Denki, and he looked around the restaurant, scanning to make sure it was safe. Soft music played from a jukebox in the corner as Izuku led him to the counter to pick up a couple of menus. He used his free hand to hold Denki’s as the green haired boy led him to an empty booth near a window. Denki sat down across from Izuku, it would be easier to stare at his incredibly attractive date that way. A server manifested from nowhere and sat down napkins on the table then reached into her apron and pulled out two sets of forks, spoons, and knives. She quickly took their drink orders and vanished just as quickly as she’d appeared.

“She has a minor teleportation quirk. She can pop up to a place she can see within a fifty foot radius.” Izuku explained.

“Oh, that’s neat. I wonder why she didn’t try to go into heroics.” He mused.

“I asked her once, because a quirk like that could be really useful in search and rescue, but apparently she just never thought about it.”

“I mean that makes sense. Not everyone wants to be a hero, or thinks about it like we do. I meant it when I told you that I think everyone who goes into heroics has to be at least a little bit crazy.” He shrugged.

Izuku laughed and looked down at his menu. “You might be right.”

By the time the server popped back up with their drinks Izuku was ready to order. Denki didn’t even bother looking at the menu really. He saw a double cheeseburger on the window, so he just ordered that and asked for wasabi and ketchup on the side. After the server vanished with their orders Izuku placed his bag from the store on the table. 

Izuku's shy smile had Denki regretting his decision to sit across from the boy. Sure the view was better, but the distance left something to be desired. He wanted to touch those perfectly rounded cheeks, play connect the dots with those fascinating freckles, maybe take just the smallest of nibbles of that adorable button nose. Denki propped his elbow up on the table and leaned his chin into his hand. A dreamy and dazed look glazed over his eyes as he sighed happily.

He hadn't really been on a date, at least not one his mom hadn't driven him to. But even with his limited experience he knew that this date was perfect.

“So we're showing each other what we got?” He asked, a lazy smile on his lips.

Izuku nodded. “Yes, is it alright if I go first? I really want to show you what I picked up.”

Denki shrugged. “That sounds good to me.”

Izuku reached into the bag and pulled two books out. “So this is the one I picked out for us to read together. Ose said that it's really good, even if it's a bit dark thematically.” He explained. “I hope it's okay, I mostly read non-fiction so I wasn't quite sure what to get.”

Denki grabbed one of the books and examined the cover. He ran his hand over the paperback novel carefully. The art definitely leaned into the dark theme Izuku had mentioned. It wasn't his usual taste, but it seemed like it would be interesting to read. Especially if he got to read it with Izuku. Honestly the pick was a little surprising. He hadn't expected Izuku to be interested in Gothic literature. He would have expected something like that from Tokayami, or maybe even Shouji. But then when he really thought about it, with someone as analytical as Izuku Gothic literature would be fascinating.

Denki looked up at Izuku and placed the book back on the table. “It looks like it will be a really good read. I can't wait to hear you talk about it.”

A slight blush bloomed across Izuku’s face. “I can't wait to hear your thoughts on it too.”

“So, is it just these two?” Denki asked with a raised eyebrow.

His boyfriend took a deep breath. “No, there's one more. But I just want to say, if you don’t like it or think it's dumb I can go back and get another one.”

Denki chuckled. “Why would I think it's dumb?”

Izuku wordlessly handed him another book. If that's what you could call it. It was about as thick as a notebook and the cover wasn't thick like the stuff they used for regular paper back books. Denki flipped the thing around in his hands so he could read the cover and gasped.

He read it a second time. 

Quirk Analysis for the Future: Special Chargebolt Edition
By Midoriya Izuku

Denki was historically not someone who cried. But shit, he couldn't help the tears that stung at the back of his eyes. What the hell?

He flipped the small booklet open to see if there was a table of contents. When he found it he quickly read through it.

The first half of it was purely analysis. There were different subsections regarding control and theory, but it was all about his quirk. The second half was dedicated to support items. Breakdowns of his current support items, suggestions for new ones, and even blueprints for the items. 

Denki couldn't believe it. He knew about Izuku’s analysis notebooks, everyone in class did. He also knew that the only heroes in those notebooks with more than a few pages were All Might and Bakugou, the latter was mostly because they'd grown up with each other. So to see how much effort Izuku had given to not only writing a full analysis, but having it professionally printed. It was mind blowing.

“How did you do this?” He whispered in pure awe as he stared at the pages.

“Oh, Hidaka helped me. I called a couple of days ago and asked if he knew where I could print something like this. He offered to do it so I just sent the document over in an email. He's the one who printed it and put it all together.” 

Denki looked up from the book and stared at Izuku. “This is probably the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever done for me.” 

Izuku’s cheeks turned that rosy color the Denki loved so much and he looked down at the table with a soft smile. “So you like it then?”

“Like it? Izuku, it’s amazing! If we weren’t on a date right now I’d already be reading it.” The blond’s laugh came out sounding almost manic.

Izuku’s gaze flicked back up and his back seemed to straighten ever so slightly at the praise. “I’m glad you like it. I know it technically wasn’t what the challenge was, but I really wanted you to have it.”

“I love it.” He whispered reverently. 

I think I love you.

The thought snuck up on him. Blindsided him really. And the impulse to just go ahead and say it followed right behind it. But he clamped his mouth shut, (he would not be betrayed again). He might have had feelings developing for months now, but a first date was not the place to profess your love. Unless the goal was to scare your date off, then sure. Denki would not be that guy, he refused.

So he reached for the bag that he’d set on the seat beside him. “I don’t know how I’m going to top this, but I think you’ll like it anyway.”

The server popped up, again, fresh plates steaming in both hands. She placed Denki’s burger and fries down on his side of the table, carefully avoiding the books in front of him. Denki smiled politely at her after she placed Izuku’s plate down in a similar fashion. “Can I get you boys anything else?”

Denki shook his head and Izuku offered up a kind, “not right now, thanks.”

Denki’s burger had steam wafting off of it, but as hungry as he was he didn’t feel like burning off his taste buds. “I think I’m going to let my food cool down for a minute. If you want I can go ahead and show you what I picked.”

Izuku nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, I’m really excited!”

“Okay, so the one I picked for the both of us to read together is one that has been on my list to read for a while. I just haven’t been able to get my hands on a copy of it. Ironically enough they had two copies.” Denki pulled both copies of the book out. “I thought you might like it because Hemingway’s characters usually have a particular code that they stand by no matter what they’re facing. I thought you might be able to relate to that.”

Izuku reached across the table to take one of the books. Denki watched as the teen scanned the cover, his eyes lighting up as he studied the simplistic cover art. “This is really thoughtful, Denks. I’m sure I’ll love it.”

Denki wanted to kiss him so bad. Just pour every ounce of admiration and adoration he held for Izuku into the other through his lips. He was buzzing with the need to touch, but he kept himself in his seat. The blond reached back into his bag and pulled out the book of poetry.

“Okay, this one is a bit different. It’s not a novel, but I know the author’s works pretty well.” He passed the collection over. “Dylan Thomas can come off kind of jaded or angry, but I think he was just really passionate about things. There are a few specific poems that I can recommend, but I don’t want to have my bias influence your opinion.”

Izuku studied the cover on the collection just as intently as he had the first. He looked up at Denki through his lashes, the book still firmly closed in his hands. 

“I labor by singing light. Not for ambition or bread, or the strut and trade of charms on the ivory stages, but for the common wages of their most secret heart.” He quoted in perfect English.

Denki’s breath caught, and he felt his heart thudding dangerously fast behind his rib cage. He could feel the all too familiar tingling of his quirk sparking at his finger tips and quickly closed his hands into fists. “Y-you can quote Dylan Thomas?”

Izuku shook his head. “Just that one. I read it in an online forum dedicated to underground heroes once. It felt really poignant so I printed it out. I reread it a lot in middle school.”

Something ached deep in Denki’s chest. Was I just stabbed? What the hell? “Why did you read it so much?”

“Well, I guess when we talked about it before I didn’t really tell you everything.” Izuku set the book down as he began to explain. “People didn’t just dislike me because I was quirkless. I wanted to be a hero. I had nothing special to offer the world of heroics, but I held onto my dreams because that was all I had. I wanted it so badly. I guess reading that poem made me feel like someone understood even if it wasn’t exactly the same.”

“So you wanted to be a hero without a quirk and people hated you for it?”

Izuku nodded.

“I still think they’re stupid. If anyone could have figured out how to take down villains without a quirk it would have been you.” Denki reached across the table to take Izuku’s hand in his. “Anyone can learn to fight, anyone can get support equipment. Not everyone can do what you do. I bet none of those people could have pulled off what you did at the USJ or the summer camp. I bet none of them would have even had the guts to try and rescue Bakugou either.”

Izuku used the back of his free hand to scrub the tears from his cheeks. Denki was worried that maybe he’d said something wrong, but then Izuku gave him one of those beaming smiles that melted his insides. “Thank you, Denki. You don’t know what it means to me to hear that.”

Maybe not, at least not fully. But he kind of understood in a way. How many times had people made Denki feel like he was nothing more than the town idiot? How many times had he been put down for something he didn’t really have any control over? How many times had Izuku reminded him that he was more than just the funny guy or that he was capable of so much more than even Denki himself thought he was? It might not be exactly the same, but Denki was pretty sure he got it at least a little bit. 

He squeezed Izuku’s hand and pushed his drink towards him. “I’m here anytime you need me.” He looked down at his burger. “We should probably eat before the food gets too cold.”

Izuku looked down at the table, his eyes widened a bit in shock. “I forgot she brought us our food.” He admitted somewhat sheepishly.

Denki laughed, because honestly, he’d forgotten too for just a minute. “It’s okay, you weren’t the only one.” He reassured his boyfriend through his laughter.

Once he’d settled down the two of them dug into their food. Denki was glad he went with the burger. It was so juicy, and the flavor of the meat was phenomenal. The wasabi ketchup went really well with whatever spices had been used in the burger. And the patties were thick, not like those flimsy frozen things that most fast food places had. It was clear that whoever made his burger had used fresh ingredients. It was honestly one of the best burgers he’d ever had. He couldn’t help the delighted moans that kept slipping out when he’d get a particularly good bite.

At one point the server appeared next to their table to ask how everything was. Denki had been mid-bite, because of course, and nearly choked in surprise at her sudden reappearance. She winced as she apologized and offered him a complimentary milkshake.  He asked if he could get it to go at the end of their meal. When she said she could make that work he picked strawberry for the flavor. He didn’t normally get strawberry, but he figured it would be a safe option since he planned to share it with Izuku on their walk back to the train station. 

Izuku ended up paying for both of their meals. Denki tried to argue that he should pay, but Izuku insisted that since he planned the date he should pay. Denki couldn’t really argue with that, but he made sure and stuck all the books in his own bag so that Izuku wouldn’t have to hold anything but Denki's hand. As they walked back to the train station sharing their milkshake they kept their pace leisurely. Denki was so full he wasn’t sure if he could have moved faster even if he wanted to. They talked about which book they would read together first, how delicious the milkshake was, how nice the date had been, and how chaotic things would be when they got back to the dorms. The idle conversation flowed even as they rode the train back. When they reached the front steps of Height’s Alliance Izuku pulled Denki to a stop.

“Is everything okay?” Denki asked, reaching out to place a gentle hand on Izuku’s cheek.

The boy leaned into his touch and smiled. “Everything is great. Almost perfect.”

Denki raised his eyebrow at that. “Almost? What would make it perfect?”

Izuku pulled Denki’s hand away from his face before tugging the blond in as close as possible. He pressed a heated kiss against Denki’s lips. The electric hero in training let out a small gasp. He had to clench his fists in Izuku’s shirt when he felt his boyfriend’s tongue brush against his parted lips. Their kisses so far had been pretty chaste, neither of them quite sure how far to push, but Denki was all for taking things just a little bit further. He brushed his own tongue against Izuku’s, trying his best to come across as teasing and playful instead of needy and desperate. Izuku seemed to be emboldened by the move and began to explore Denki’s mouth more fervently. 

Denki was beyond caring at that point. Izuku’s tongue still tasted sweet from the milkshake, and it was so warm. He was pretty sure he moaned again, which Izuku must have really liked because he groaned right into Denki’s mouth. Nothing about that sound was teasing or playful. Denki could hear the need and want tangled in the noise as it vibrated through his skull.

“Fucking he- show some damn restraint for fuck’s sake!” A voice snarled from the path they’d just been walking up.

Izuku pulled back carefully and cut a harsh glare at the speaker.

Holy shit, if looks could kill. Denki chuckled at the put out expression on his boyfriend’s face.

“Bakugou, let’s just go inside.” Jirou murmured from next to him. 

Izuku tried to reign in the irritation on his face. “We should head inside too.” He admitted as he looked back at Denki.

“Yeah, probably.”

Bakugou brushed by them, his hands in his pockets. Denki glanced over at Jirou and noticed that the two of them were both dressed in all black. “Oh, were you two doing some stealth training?” He asked the less volatile Jirou.

Bakugou stopped walking as she laughed. “Yeah, Kami. We were working on our stealth training.”

“Oh, how did it go?” Izuku wondered.

“None of your business, nerd.” 

“It was fine. Same as usual.” Jirou shrugged as she spoke over Bakugou. “Hey, just a heads up, Mina and Ochako are waiting to ambush you as soon as you guys get inside. Pretty sure they were watching your PDA through the windows”

Denki felt his face flame up, and when he looked at Izuku it was clear his boyfriend wasn’t fairing any better. Jirou laughing at them didn’t seem to help matters either. 

Denki reached for Izuku’s hand. “Guess it’s time to tell them.”

Izuku laced their fingers together and shrugged. “Yeah, but not everything. I’d like to keep as much of that perfect ending to myself as possible.”

A wide grin spread across Denki’s face as they walked hand in hand into the lion's den.