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Take my hand!
Katsuki holds his hand up in front of him, looking at the way the sliver of moonlight from outside reflects off his fingernails. He looks at his knuckles, dry and cracked, then turns his hand over and traces the lines on his palm with his eyes.
He doesn't look at the clock, but he knows it's midnight, or close to it. And here he is, lying in bed unable to close his eyes without seeing the rigid surface of the bubble he'd been trapped in only a few days ago. Memories pop up out of order, snapshots of the Villain Alliance’s hideout, All Might’s skeletal form...
Kirishima reaching for his hand like the entire world depended on it.
Katsuki rolls out of bed - he'd been lying on top of the blankets instead of underneath them, almost like he expected sleep to pass him by - and walks over to the window, opening the generic beige curtains for a better view of the world outside. It isn't a full moon tonight, but it's close, and the moonlight illuminates the parts of Yuuei’s campus that the lights don't.
There aren't any lights on in the main school building or any of the buildings surrounding it except for a few lights here and there in the other dorms. The tall, thick concrete fence surrounding campus casts a shadow over the fields and sidewalks inside its borders, and the buildings have the same effect. Despite the school’s sudden population increase tonight, it's still and quiet. But the familiar buzz of equipment speaks volumes about Yuuei’s security system.
Katsuki slides the door open and walks out onto the deck, feeling the cool breeze on his arms and legs not covered by the t-shirt and shorts he's wearing. Looking across the other windows on his floor, he doesn't see any lights, but once he leans over the railing, he notices two on the third floor and one on the second. The window next to his is open, as are plenty of others on the lower floors. But as far as he knows, he's the only one outside.
He sighs, resting his elbows on the railing. It's a weird feeling, having your heart refuse to stop pounding when you just want to get the fuck to sleep. He hates it.
There's a knock in his door that definitely does not make him jump, and for a second he wonders if it's Aizawa-sensei getting on his ass for breaking curfew. But technically, he's still in his room so he isn't actually breaking curfew-
He gives the outside world one last look before he drags his feet back inside and across the room to the door. He's temporarily blinded by the light from the hallway before he sees the familiar bright red of Kirishima’s hair right outside.
“The fuck do you want.” Katsuki scowls, crossing his arms as he glares Kirishima down, trying to find something in his sleepy-but-worried expression. “It's fucking midnight-”
Without a word, Kirishima hugs him tight enough to cut off his circulation. It's one of the most uncomfortable things Katsuki’s ever experienced, frozen in place with his arms stuck to his sides, and to make matters worse, it doesn't seem like Kirishima wants to fucking stop anytime soon.
“Hey, what the fuck are you doing?” Katsuki hisses, “Let go of me, moron-”
“Sorry.” Kirishima pulls away as quickly as he went in. “I just wanted to make sure you were really there.”
Without elaborating on what that could possibly mean, he jogs back down the hall to his room.
“What the hell are you talking about-” Katsuki leans out into the hallway, but Kirishima’s already retreated back into his room, the door shut behind him.