Chapter Text
Strangers
The next morning went the same as the last; Izuku had breakfast with his new friends, if he could even call them that, went to church and held back tears, then took a shower. As he sat on his bed, waiting for his hair to dry, Denki and Hanta were loudly arguing about some new video game. Eijirou rolled his eyes, lounging back on his own bunk as the duo bickered.
"What'da ya' think, Izuku?" Hanta shouted.
"Hm?" Izuku hummed, perking up.
"Who's better? All Might or Endeavor?" Denki asked, raising his eyebrows.
"All Might, all the way," he chuckled.
"See!" The blond shouted, shoving his finger in the other's face.
Hanta groaned, rolling his eyes.
"Can you two shut up?" Katsuki interrupted, tossing a towel over his shoulder. "I've had to listen to this crap all morning," he grumbled.
"Ugh, you're no fun, Kats!" Denki frowned.
The cabin leader waved his hand dismissively, before swiftly boosting himself onto the bunk above Izuku. (Honestly, it was impressive.)
"Bible study in ten, then we've having a lake day." Katsuki said, pulling out his phone.
"I can't believe you can have your phone and we can't." Eijirou sighed.
The blond clicked his tongue. "Perks of being a counselor,"
When it was time for bible study, they wandered through the campsite, looking for a nice spot to sit. Eventually, they found a picnic table that wasn't surrounded by 'extras', as Katsuki called them.
"Alright, open up to First Timothy, we'll start there." Katsuki said, flipping open his bible.
Izuku swallowed dry, realizing he was the only one who didn't bring a bible. Hell, he didn't even own one. Crimson eyes flicked up at him, trailing from his eyes to the empty table in front of him.
"Where's your bible?" Katsuki asked.
"I-I didn't bring one." Izuku replied quietly, averting his eyes.
The blond pressed his lips together, squinting his eyes.
"You didn't bring a bible to Church Camp?" Hanta asked, confused.
"He's never been to one before." Eijirou shrugged. "How's he supposed to know?"
Izuku felt his shoulders drop, feeling a little less judged.
"You can just read off mine then." Katsuki offered, sliding further down the bench to make room.
The green-haired boy mumbled a quiet 'thank you' and moved to the other side of the table. Once everyone was settled, Katsuki began leading their lesson.
It felt strange, but he tried his best to follow along. In one way or another, he felt a little less alone, even if it was just because he was sharing a book with his counselor.
After lunch, all the campers met at the lake for some much needed swimming. It was unbelievably hot this summer.
"Last one in's a rotten egg!" Denki shouted, running full speed towards the water, Hanta and Eijirou followed close behind, shouting and chuckling.
"Izuku!" A familiar voice called.
The freckled boy turned around, searching for the source of the voice. Quickly, his eyes landed on Himiko, who had her hair up in her usual space buns.
"Come swim with us, we scored some floaties!" She giggled, waving him over.
A smile pulled at his lips as he jogged over to her, happy to be included. As soon as he reached the shoreline, the blonde greeted him with a hug, practically tossing herself on him, giggling.
"Group hug!" Mina smiled, wrapping her arms around them, followed by Ochako.
Izuku's smile grew, chest warming as he felt a little less out of place. But a thought lingered in the back of his mind.
He figured any other teenage boy would be feeling… something while being hugged by three girls in bikinis. Surely, there'd be some kind of reaction, right? But for him, he didn't feel anything other than platonic joy. His thoughts wandered, imagining if three guys were hugging him like this, shirtless, only wearing their swim trunks. The thought made his stomach churn, knowing he'd be feeling the same things a straight boy would feel in this situation.
Luckily, before he could get too lost in his thoughts, his new friends pulled him towards the water, where their inner tubes were waiting.
"How was bible study?" Shoto asked, swinging his legs across the side of his tube.
"Good! We did a lesson on devotion," the brunette replied.
Izuku sat quietly, fiddling with his thumbs. He really didn't understand anything Katsuki talked about. Dread washed over him, thinking about how much of a fraud he was. The weight of his cross necklace had never felt heavier.
"What about you, Midoriya?" Shoto asked, nodding towards him.
"Oh," the freckled boy muttered, eyes darting up from his hands. "I-It was good," he shrugged.
Mina leaned in, resting her chin on her shoulder. "What'd you guys talk about today?"
Izuku's eyes widened in panic, mouth going dry. "I, uh," he stuttered.
Before he could answer, Himiko let out an ear shattering screech, slashing water around as he flailed her limbs.
"What!?" Ochako gasped, startled from the sudden noise.
"Something touched my foot!" She yelped, scrambling to get her body above water.
"We're in a lake, there's going to be fish," the two-toned boy said calmly.
Despite Himiko's frantic state, Mina was nearly cackling, holding her stomach as he tossed her head back.
"Himiko," she giggled. "That was my foot!"
The blonde instantly stopped her frantic movements, shooting a glare at the pink-haired girl.
"Well, why didn't you say something?" She whined, settling back in her inner tube, crossing her arms.
"You were too busy screaming." Mina joked, letting out the last of her giggles.
A smile crept onto Izuku's lips, washing away his guilt with the gentle current.
"You guys are great," he blurted, a smile plastered across his face.
His new friends all smiled, chuckling softly.
"So are you!" Ochako beamed.
Izuku was too distracted laughing to notice how Himiko's hand slipped into Ochako's.
As Izuku walked back to his cabin, hair still damp, with a towel around his neck, he thought about Katsuki's sudden act of kindness. Sure, it was something simple, something he'd probably do for any camper, it was his job. But there was something about the blond that felt so familiar. He couldn't place it.
Currently, the blond in question was leading his group of campers, scoffing every time Denki pestered him with ridiculous questions. Izuku's eyes wandered across the toned muscles on Katsuki's back, watching how the flexed with the subtle swing of his arms. His biceps were perfectly prominent, just enough for people to tell he was strong without him flexing. The way his usually spiky hair was now messily combed back, still dripping droplets of water off the ends.
The blond turned his neck, crimson irises meeting green eyes. Izuku's breath hitched, fearing he got caught ogling, certain Katsuki would call him out. As he braced for embarrassment, the chain around his neck felt heavier, like weights had been added. But instead of saying anything, Katsuki shot him a warm, lopsided smirk, then focused his attention back to the path ahead.
Izuku let out a relieved breath as his neck felt lighter, and butterflies replaced the sinking feeling in his gut.
Oh god.
He laid in bed that night, silently praying to whatever god was out there. He prayed for his existence to no longer be immoral, for his love to no longer be poisonous. He prayed to be heard, just this once.
Somehow, on a hot summer night, his bed felt so, so cold.
The next morning, Izuku sat quietly at their usual bench for bible study, wrapped up in a cozy blanket. He'd barely slept the night before, his mind just couldn't slow down. He yawned, squinting his eyes as he tried to follow along with the words Katsuki was reading, but his vision was much too blurry this morning. The blond glanced over at him, grumbling.
"Are you even with us?" Katsuki muttered.
"Mhm." Izuku hummed sleepily, nodding.
The blond rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "The hell were you even doing up so late? Not like any of you have your phones," the counselor asked.
"I just couldn't sleep, it was too hot," he lied.
"Agh, same!" Denki groaned, tossing his head back and covering his eyes.
Katsuki rolled his eyes dramatically, clicking his tongue. "Whatever, just make sure you're paying attention," he sighed, before continuing to read the passage.
And Izuku tried, but at some point, his eyes fluttered shut and sleep won him over. He dreamt of familiar red eyes and warm skin, belonging to a boy he couldn't remember anymore.