Archive of Our Own

Week Three

“Hey! … Hey? Kaminari? Kaminari. Denki!”

“Hah?” It took Denki a moment to realise that Kirishima was talking to him and looked over his shoulder, dazed. “What’s up?”

He shook his head and sat back in his chair; arms crossed, and an eyebrow raised. He looked the epitome of unimpressed – shit, had he missed something? “Dude. You were daydreaming and stroking Ojiro’s tail like some crazy guy.”

Denki snapped out of it immediately, and realised that yes, he had been staring off into space and running his fingers through the tuft of fur (hair?) on the tip of Ojiro’s tail. That wasn’t anything new – Ojiro sat in front of him and when it wasn’t hooked over his shoulder to stop him from breaking anything (and everything), his tail was draped over Denki’s desk. Ojiro didn’t seem to care anyway, he was busy being accosted by Aoyama about something or another.

“Sorry, man,” Denki chuckled, moving the tail slightly to the left so he could see his notes. It was Wednesday’s study period (also known as Aizawa’s nap period) and as expected, Denki had done no studying whatsoever. He’d tried but he just couldn’t - it was like every thought, every movement, every look looped back around to her.

Jeez… was this what love was like? Everyone he knew who was in love always told him that it was the best feeling in the world, but this? It reduced him to nothing, made him useless – even worse than when he went stupid. It was like Jirou had full control of him; had the ability to make him and break him and fix him again. And he knew that he’d let her wholeheartedly, nothing barred. Even if she didn’t feel the same. God, every time that thought plagued him his heart constricted tighter and tears burned the back of his eyes from the pain.

He hated this.

“You were thinking about her, weren’t you?”

Denki made definitely sure Jirou wasn’t sitting next to him (no, she was still over with Yaoyorozu at the back of the class) before he half-turned to look at his friend. “I can’t get her out of my head. Is this what you suffer from, ‘cause I swear I’ll be more sympathetic.”

Kirishima snorted and leaned forward so that the two of them were close enough that others wouldn’t hear, which honestly wasn’t too big of an issue since Ashido and Sero were the only ones nearby likely to cause any damage. Well, and Aoyama, but he was too busy talking to Ojiro in that sly and knowing tone of voice he had that was bordering flirting.

Straight his ass.

“Well – um. Yeah, kinda?”

If that didn’t sound unconvincing, he didn’t know what did.

Even so, Kirishima seemed distracted – the worried kind of distracted. Denki had seen that look in his eyes more often than he’d like to admit. Kirishima was a worrier at the best of times, no matter how much he said he wasn’t.

Bakugou. Had to be.

Denki glanced over at him; chin on his palm, eyes scanning a book with such criticalness it was arrogant – red eyes ablaze in the afternoon sun. What attracted Kirishima to him? He doubted it was his looks, because even though he was hot (Denki could appreciate that at the very least), Kirishima was more of a personality kind of guy. Which was utterly fucking baffling since Bakugou wasn’t exactly pretty in that department. Even at his softer times.

Unless Kirishima had seen parts of him that Denki hadn’t, which he didn’t doubt in the slightest.

“Okay, what’re you worried over Sparky Sparky Boom Man for?” He asked with a sigh, nudging him with his shoulder. “You’re not subtle.”

Kirishima’s cheeks went an interesting shade of red and he glanced over at Bakugou too, eyebrows furrowed. “… I’m worried about him.” Called it. “His hearings getting worse and he keeps scoffing when I tell him to go see someone about it. I don’t care if it’s not ‘manly’ or if it’s dumb, he really should go and get it checked out.”

“He has Tinnitus, right?” Denki knew the answer already; it was one of the few secrets he did know about him. What was it about people and stubbornness these days?! “Is it because of that?”

“I don’t… I have no clue, man. He’s being aggressive – uh, more aggressive than usual. I don’t know what’s wrong and he won’t tell me.”

Holy shit, something must seriously be up if he wasn’t telling Kirishima. Maybe he’d have to drag him to his dorm at the early hours of the morning to get something out of him – that was when people were most careless of what they said. Not only that, but it was clearly upsetting his bro, and like hell he was having that.

Maybe he could set something up between them tonight.

“Hey, Bakugou!” Nothing.

“Bakugou!” Still nothing.

“Bakubro!” A twitch and a few annoyed huffs from around the class – was he ignoring him? Or was his hearing really getting that bad?

“Kacchan!”

Of course, he’d choose that exact moment to hear him, but instead of turning his head towards Denki he whipped around to snarl at Midoriya instead, who was quietly reading a textbook behind him. It was like he had Midoriya-honing skills or something; part of the reason he’d been convinced for a few weeks that he had a crush on the class Innocent.

Whoops.

“No, no, over here!” Denki yelped frantically, waving his arms like a maniac and attracting the attention of pretty much all the class. Well, this wasn’t exactly what he had in mind when he called out for him, but at least it’d got his attention and saved poor Midoriya from an untimely death.

Shit, that glare was enough to burn a hole in the Ozone layer.

“What?” He hissed, and Denki agreed wholeheartedly that he seemed more aggressive than usual. Wound up and tense, like he was waiting for something or something had happened that he was worrying over. How did he know? Because, as much as he hated to admit it, he was a lot like Jirou in some respects.

Something told him he wasn’t in the mood to talk about his feelings right now.

“Uh – nothing! I forgot, go back to whatever you were doing. Sorry everyone!” He quickly turned the other way so that he couldn’t see his reaction, but that meant meeting Ashido’s curious stare. She arched an eyebrow and Denki waved it off, looking back to (a clearly uncomfortable) Kirishima. “Yeah, he’s definitely more… short tempered. He really won’t tell you anything?”

“Nothing,” he agreed with a sigh, looking everywhere but at Bakugou, which was weird. Kirishima wasn’t the type to actively avoid looking at someone – in most scenarios, he had the same kind of confidence Denki did, except when it came to his quirk. It was… Strange, like Bakugou’s mood was influencing his behaviour. Like he was upset when the other was upset. Happy when he was happy. Sad when he was sad.

It was then that it hit Denki.

Kirishima was as hopelessly in love with Bakugou as he was with Jirou.

“I don’t know what to do.”

“Corner him.”

“… Hah?”

“Corner him,” Denki said decisively, resting his forearm on Kirishima’s desk and meeting his eyes with as much sincerity as he could muster. If his best bro was in love with Bakugou... Then for now, just for now, screw the competition. He knew from experience how much love could hurt; how it could make your chest ache and your heart race. It was suffering in one of the worst kinds of ways, and having that person ignore you was hell.

The least he could do for now was encourage them to resolve the (obvious) tension. That’d make it fair, anyway; he and Jirou had sorted out their differences, it was time they sorted out theirs. “Y’know how delirious he gets late at night – that’s the best way! He’s upsetting you, man, and it’s not fair. Jump on your dorm floor when you’re about to do it so if – ”

“Or I could message you.”

“Or you could message me.” Denki nodded solemnly. “But that’s boring! And anyway, I’ll know the explosions won’t be him trying to jer – ”

“Dude!” Kirishima choked, his eyes widening. “That’s meant to be a secret, he’d kill me if he knew I told you!”

Another one of the few secrets he knew about Bakugou, but this was one that was entirely accidental. Something dropped into a casual conversation a few weeks back when Kirishima was cuddling him and half-asleep at 5 am. Now that Denki had the chance to think about it, it made perfect sense, and explained at least some of his grumpiness. Seemed like having explosive hands did have a few drawbacks, especially when it came to certain things.

Denki swore that he’d never laughed so hard in his life since finding that one out.

Kirishima, on the other hand, had been mortified that he’d let it slip (which begged the question of how the fuck he’d found out in the first place), but whatever. It wasn’t like Denki would go spreading it around – he felt sorry for him more than anything. That didn’t mean he was going to quietly drop jokes every now and then, as much as Kirishima kept telling him not to.

It wasn’t like Kirishima didn’t find it slightly fucking hilarious either.

“Bro,” he started again, cracking his knuckles vaguely. “Can I ask you a favour?”

“What’s that?”

“Can you learn sign language with me? His hearings gonna get worse and I wanna be there for him the day he needs it. I need someone to practise with.”

Oh no, that pretty much confirmed what he thought and sealed it. That was so disgustingly sweet that it made Denki’s heart throb from the pure sugary overload. Did Bakugou realise how lucky he was that this guy was in love with him? “Sure! We can… look it up on YouTube or something. Do they do courses – oh wait, Kouda! He knows sign language!”

They both looked behind them to where Kouda was doodling something on a notepad – a bunny by the looks of it. A pretty good bunny too. He’d have to ask him next time he came to the Nightcare if he’d help them out; it’d be the perfect opportunity to learn it for them both! Even if Kirishima hadn’t asked him, Denki would have started learning anyway. Sure, he wasn’t as close to Bakugou as he was to the other, but he was still a good friend of his, no matter how much he teased or laughed or shoved him. They’d probably get even closer too with the amount of shit being thrown at them by the League of Villains, the rival school, and the teachers.

“Thanks, man.” Kirishima looked genuinely relieved when he sat back, running a hand through his hair.

“Anyti - ”

“Kaminari, Kirishima, I hope you realise that more remedial lessons are coming into effect with the end of year exams around the corner.” Aizawa’s voice was suddenly there, shredding through the moment they were having like a damn razor from his place by his desk. Crap, had he woken him up?! “I suggest you use that time wisely, unless you want to spend your Sunday’s disrupting my sleep for them.”

Well, that was enough to shut him up, and enough of a threat to kick Denki’s ass to work.

Before he turned around, he caught Jirou’s eye across the classroom; shaking her head slightly with a small and amused smile on her lips. Denki just wrinkled his nose at her before looking at the sheet again, unable to stop his own grin as he started writing. She seemed a lot more comfortable with him now, which was a step in a very good direction – especially if that meant eventually winning her heart (and having a shot at winning this damn competition and asking Jirou out himself rather than Ashido fucking with things).

God, she was gorgeous when she smiled. Just that had his heart racing and his brain hazy with distant thoughts of the future, like it had done before Kirishima interrupted him. He wanted her to be his so badly, but he had to be patient; like hell he was either going to force her or scare her away to the point where she wouldn’t even look at him. It was like treading on eggshells, but you know what? Denki didn’t mind in the slightest.

He went back to his sheet, only to realise he’d written Jirou’s name instead of his.

Shit.

“Going on from remedial lessons.” Everyone looked up as Aizawa awkwardly stood up (still in his sleeping bag, which was pretty impressive) and looked around the class with a tiredly vacant expression. “We have special permission for an overnight trip to Shosenkyo in three weeks. Without B.”

A series of excited gasps rose up and Denki felt his entire demeanour brighten immediately. They hadn’t been on a trip since the summer for obvious reasons, but so much had changed since then. They were stronger now – they had their Hero Licenses and their Hero training had been intense, not to mention they now had their special moves! If any villains attacked them for whatever reason now, they’d bite off a hell of a lot more than they could chew. Not only that, but Shigaraki was keeping a very low profile, no doubt terrified he’d get captured now that he didn’t have that ugly guy to protect him.

What was his name again…?

Naturally, Iida’s hand (and entire body) shot up in the air. “Sir! Isn’t there worries for our safety, considering what happened during the last trip? It seems lax after the high security during the Culture Festival.”

As much as it was painful to consider, Iida was right. It… was a ginormous step up from the maximum security they’d had, and it couldn’t just be because they’d gotten stronger. After all the media and the rumours and the concerns, the Principal wouldn’t just let them go on an overnight trip. It sounded too good to be true.

Aizawa’s expression remained unmoving, aside from the slightest twinge of a smile. “I’m not allowed to tell you kids the specifics for safety reasons, but don’t worry. It’ll be completely safe.”

“I see,” Iida nodded firmly before sitting back down again. “I apologise for the interruption!”

The teacher hummed, his gaze drifting around the room leisurely. “The purpose of the trip is orienteering and navigation. Your teamwork needs improving, so you’ll be separated into groups and spread around the forest. All you have to do is get from point A to point B – it’s simple enough. We’ll be leaving Saturday night and returning Sunday morning, which will give you a day to rest and catch up on your sleep.”

Ashido’s hand rose in the air.

“No, you won’t be picking your teams. It’ll be random.”

Ashido’s hand dropped back down again.

“Try to treat it like a real-life scenario. You need to rely on your team members as much as you need to rely on yourself. Understand?”

A chorus of “yessir!” filled the room in tandem, and Denki had to quickly duck when Ojiro’s tail nearly smacked him in the jaw as it began wagging furiously. The excitement seemed to settle on everyone and buzzed through the class even as they went back to their work (or at least tried to) and Denki found himself bouncing slightly in his seat. A crackle of electricity ran through the air, enough that Kirishima yelped when he gently tapped his shoulder again.

“Sorry, dude!” Denki laughed, turning his head to look at him. “This is gonna be great! We haven’t been on a school trip in… What’s wrong?”

Kirishima’s eyebrows were furrowed, mouth set in a straight line. That caught Denki completely off-guard. The redhead was normally as enthusiastic as he was when it came to these things – was Bakugou’s mood affecting him that badly? He then realised that Kirishima’s eyes weren’t on Aizawa, but rather where they had been previously; over the other side of the classroom. Bakugou was completely tense; shoulder’s rigid, eyes narrowed into slits.

“Do you think he’ll be okay?” He asked quietly. “Last time we did that…”

… Oh.

Oh.

Despite the thrill that was running between most of the students, you could see it in some of the other’s faces; Midoriya, Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, Tokoyami, Iida, Shouji, Aoyama… They looked wary. Last time they’d been separated in a forest, they’d been attacked, Bakugou had been captured, and it was them who’d been affected the most. No doubt they were remembering what exactly had happened…

“I’m sure everything will be fine!” He forced a grin, gently elbowing Kirishima. “They’ll be more cautious than last time – that’s probably why Aizawa isn’t telling us the specifics. Besides, no ones heard anything about Shigaraki since that fight! I doubt anything they do will be seriously bad! Try to relax, man.”

But even he had to wonder… Just what was Aizawa thinking?

This was a mistake.

This was a huge mistake and now she couldn’t even take it back because they’d seen her. Maybe Kyouka should have pretended she was ill or something – told them that she was… Throwing up. Had a fever. Anything that could have gotten out of this.

But no, she’d come. Why? Because they were her friends and of course it would be nice to spend time with them like this. No guys, no worries, no responsibilities. What more could she want?

Apparently, everything but this.

“Kyouka!” Tooru chirped in a sing-song voice when she looked up from her strategic pillow laying and saw her awkwardly hovering by the staircase. “Why are you standing over there? Come join us!”

This wasn’t the first time the girls had had a sleepover, far from it. Even before the dorms were built, Ashido had invited them over for ‘bonding sessions’ and then Yaoyorozu had invited them over to spend some time together (most of that time had been spent wandering around the mansion she had, as well as pushing each other in the pool, so she couldn’t really complain). Here, however, In the middle of the common room? She had nowhere to hide when they asked her about him. They would – she knew they would – because they’d been wiggling their eyebrows at her, smiling knowingly and subtly pushing her in his direction ever since he’d pulled her into the dressing room at the rehearsal. The rumours that had floated round she’d dismissed easily – Kaminari had done the same – so wouldn’t that have at least given them the idea that absolutely nothing was between them?

Of course not.

“I asked Satou to bake some cookies for us earlier, so we have those and some other little snacks. I also have lemonade, some off-brand soda and juice!” Mina told them (complete with gestures to everything) when Kyouka came over, awkwardly giving Tooru the pillow and blanket she’d brought down from her room so she could finish off the fort they’d started. The sofas had been pulled together along with a few chairs, and a few of the blankets were stacked over the top of each other to create some pathetic attempt at a covering. One end was too low and the other was too high and it did little to block out the outside light (and any boys who came down for a drink or were up unreasonably early on a Sunday morning).

Honestly…

“Maybe… We should try stacking the pillows up on the other side higher,” Tsuyu was saying to Momo and Ochako, standing on her tiptoes at the higher end to try and lower it down. It wasn’t going well; the whole thing was on the verge of falling over and squashing Tooru and Mina inside of it.

“I really don’t think this is working,” Momo sighed, clearly thinking the same as Kyouka and pursing her lips in thought. Then, her eyes brightened like a lightbulb and she held up a finger. “Wait, I have a better – and more practical – alternative. Tsuyu, keep hold of that side. Kyouka, would you mind taking this side?”

Kyouka moved forward uncertainly, taking the assortment of blankets in her arms as Momo murmured something to Ochako. The brunette let out a soft “oh!” before reaching up and gently grabbing the blankets with the pads of her fingers; the anti-gravity activating immediately. The blankets half rose to the ceiling, only kept in place by the other girls as two wooden poles emerged from Momo’s back along with a small zip-tie from her thigh, and she quickly set to work propping the blankets up and tying them to the poles.

“There!” She said with a satisfied smile, dusting off her hands as the excess blankets fell down the sides and created a kind of cloth canopy. “Much better.”

“You could’ve done that in the first place” Kyouka snorted, her lips twitching as she let go of the blankets and then joined the rest of the girls under the fort. “That would’ve saved a lot more time. And energy.”

“There’s no fun in using our quirks for everything!” Mina laughed, completely unfazed and switching on a small battery-powered lamp as Tsuyu turned off the lights. Darkness enveloped the common room; the lamp casting long and dark shadows around the blankets and bathing the space in a soft pink light. “Makes it more satisfying.”

Kyouka shook her head.

“So, girls! I’d like to officially welcome you all to our seventh consecutive sleepover!” She clapped her hands together, pausing to let them all settle down on the many blankets and pillows strewn on the floor. “What was the motto we made up last time? No guys, no worries…”

“No responsibilities,” Ochako added helpfully, stretching her legs out and setting her teddy bear in between them. One of the (stupider) rules of the sleepover; each one of them had to have a stuffed animal. Added to the cosiness or something. Ochako had a little yellow bear, Tooru had a pink bunny, Momo also had a bear but in beige, Tsuyu had a turtle with huge round eyes, Mina had a fluffy black cat and Kyouka…

She looked at the stuffed puppy by her thigh. It was old and tatty and had a knitted scarf around it’s neck she’d put there when she was six or seven. The nose was wonky, eyes were drooping, and the thing was so old it was barely held together. Even so, she doubted she’d ever bring herself to get rid of it.

“No responsibilities!” Mina repeated with a click of her fingers. With the low light from the lamp her eyes were glittering like two black holes, and Kyouka had to admit, it was a little unsettling. “Let’s spend this time catching up and pretending that we haven’t got a care in the world! Okay?”

“Okay!” Tooru agreed, making her bunny nod in agreement. “Let’s deal out snacks and drinks first and we can start on the first topic of the evening…” A cold fear seeped into Kyouka’s chest. “… What we think about the upcoming trip!”

She breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing she wanted was for Kaminari to be brought up as the first topic (what was this, a mothers meeting?) so anything other than that would be great. Really, what was the big deal with it all? It wasn’t like they’d made out or – or done anything else for that matter. But apparently this was a huge deal, especially with the added rumours…

Christ, this was why she’d been putting off going back to his Nightcare. It caused stupid rumours and things like this and she hated it.

Kyouka realised belatedly that she’d grabbed juice – the same kind of juice that Kaminari had in his room. Blackcurrant flavour. The juice wasn’t even that good; was it an involuntary choice?

“Momo,” Tsuyu started quietly after sipping on her lemonade. “I have to ask; is the trip bothering you because of what happened to Bakugou?”

Four pairs of eyes turned in Momo’s direction, and as much as Kyouka wanted to defend her from thinking about that awful experience, a part of her wanted to know too. Something had been bugging her for the past few days and every time she’d asked, Momo had passed it off as feeling ill or some crap like that. It fooled no one, of course, and Kyouka had made the vague connection too. It wasn’t just Momo, it was all the others that had been there or had gone to rescue Bakugou too whilst the others were… Shit. They’d been too scared to go. That was what it boiled down to.

Momo frowned at the tea in her hands, eyes low and thoughtful. Kyouka doubted she’d snap – that wasn’t like her at all – so why had she kept denying it…? “I…” She cleared her throat when her voice came out a little on the rough side. “If I’m going to be honest, then yes. That’s partially the reason. I think that’s more out of instinct than anything else because of what happened, as it is for everyone else. The last thing we want is for it to happen again.” She took a sip. “But… At least for me, my other fear is that they’re not telling us because they’re concerned about something. Doesn’t that strike you as a little odd?”

“Now that you mention it, I guess it kinda is…” Ochako agreed quietly, stroking her thumbs over her bear’s ears. “It’s like they’re expecting something to go wrong.”

“Or maybe they’re planning something else?” Everyone looked up at Tooru. “We could just be overthinking things! I think we’ll have to trust what Aizawa says.”

Still, now that it had been brought up, Kyouka couldn’t help but wonder. It had sounded just a little bit fucking weird, but it wasn’t like they had solid proof on it. “Is it really worth our time worrying about it? What’s gonna happen is gonna happen.”

“We have to trust in each other,” Ochako said firmly.

“I agree.” Tsuyu took another sip of her lemonade. “I think we should share this with the others.”

Mina shook her head. “That’d cause a panic – especially with Iida and Mineta! I heard Tokoyami talking about this earlier with Shouji and Kouda, so I think everyone’s thinking along the same lines.”

“We’ll have to be vigilant and expect the unexpected,” Momo mumbled, blowing on the rim of her mug. “There’s not much else we can do apart from that.”

Silence fell over the six of them as they mulled it over. There really wasn’t a point worrying about it or if there was an ulterior motif; Kyouka really didn’t see the point in talking about it either. If everyone stayed aware they’d be fine. Besides, they weren’t as unprepared as they were at summer camp; not only were they stronger but U.A. was probably going to take no chances.

Well, whatever. She’d have to discuss this with Kaminari – no, Momo. She’d have to discuss it with Momo later. Why the hell had she first thought of that idiot?

“Guys, we broke the rule in the first five minutes…!” Mina whined, shaking her head at the five of them. “We said no hero duties! Let’s press onto different matters.” Kyouka’s heart stopped as her eyes went straight to her; an eyebrow arching. “Let’s talk about current events, hm?”

“Oh, I need advice!” Tooru suddenly exclaimed (Kyouka could’ve kissed her in that moment), raising her hand like she was in class or something. “Okay, so, remember last time when I said that I liked Ojiro but I wasn’t sure he liked me?”

“Even though it’s clear he does, Tooru,” Mina giggled, bumping her shoulder into hers. “Go on, we need the deets.”

Tooru nudged her back, hugging her bunny to her chest and rocking from side to side with a wistful sigh. Kyouka nearly rolled her eyes because this trope had been going on for weeks. It was like a game of catch – Tooru and Ojiro kept throwing the ball to one another and kept dropping it, but neither of them was willing to come closer to make sure the ball didn’t damn well drop. “Well! We were talking, and I mentioned casually about him liking anyone, and he went as red as Midoriya’s shoes and wouldn’t look at me! I need an analysis.”

“He’s totally into you!” Mina cried, grabbing Tooru by the shoulders and shaking her gently. “Wake up and smell the coffee! Right, girls?”

She laughed, pushing Mina off and turning to the others. “You really think so?”

“Mhm.”

“Completely.”

“Oh, he definitely is!”

Kyouka sighed. Wow, maybe Kaminari had been right – they really did like sharing crush stories. If they braided each other’s hair too, she was seriously going to bury her face in a pillow and cry. “Why don’t you ask him out…?”

“Ask him out?!” Tooru sounded scandalised. “I can’t do that! Kyouka, the boy is meant to ask the girl out!”

“Uh, that doesn’t sound - ”

“We should set something up between the two of you,” Mina said decisively, crossing her arms over her chest and nodding once as if to settle the idea. “What about that cliché note to meet you on the roof of the building? You two can confess as cherry blossoms drift through the air! It’d be so romantic.”

“Except there aren’t any cherry blossoms.” Tsuyu tapped a finger against her lips. “It’s too late in the year.”

“Right… Back to the drawing board!” Mina hummed, then shrugged. “Maybe you should just take him aside and asks how he feels? Confess over text or something so it’s less awkward?”

Tooru seemed to shake her head, a deflated sigh leaving her. “I’ll think things over. I’m hoping that he’ll ask me out before Christmas, but maybe – oh! A kiss under the mistletoe! That’s a great way to confess, don’t you think?”

“Christmas is over a month away,” Ochako said, tilting her head slightly. “Can you wait that long?”

“I want to.” She seemed set on her (pretty spontaneous) idea, at the very least. “I’ll wait until Christmas and then kiss him under the mistletoe. Can I count on you guys to help direct him under it?”

“There’s no harm in trying.” Momo’s smile was kind, but Kyouka could see that underneath it all, she was confused as fuck too.

“It’s settled!” Mina clapped her hands together, before a sly smile came onto her lips that everyone recognised. That smile was infamous. “Let’s go around in a circle and talk out our crushes! I’ll go next – ” Wait, what?! She was purposefully keeping her until last! “ – but I’m very upset to say that no girl or guy has caught my eye yet!” She sighed sadly, wrinkling her nose in distaste. “I mean, that Shinsou was kinda cute, and am I the only one who finds Tetsutetsu attractive?”

She paused.

“Do you think he gets dick jok –”

“Moving on!” Ochako all but squeaked, her hands curling into loose fists. “Um… I’d like to tell you all that I think I’ve finally gotten over Midoriya.” Kyouka could feel the doubt radiating off everyone, and apparently Ochako could too. “Well, I – um – I – I mean, it’s less pronounced. I… Honestly don’t think it’d go away that easily since I do have strong feelings for him, but I know nothing’s going to happen.”

“How come?”

Ochako’s eyes dropped to her lap, and she stroked her thumb over the bear’s ears again. “I think Midoriya is so strong, for everything that he’s gone through, and I understand that he wants to be a strong hero. I want to be stronger too – not as strong as him, I doubt that’d ever happen – but he needs someone to keep up with him on that level. That’s not me.” Kyouka watched as she bit down on her lower lip and swallowed. “And… He doesn’t look at me the way I look at him. I see it now. I thought that maybe I had a chance because he acted so embarrassed and flustered around me, but I’ve been watching him closer than usual. He looks at someone else the way I look at him.”

The circle was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

“… Who’s that?” Kyouka found herself quietly asking. Why was her heart pounding so hard?

Ochako just shook her head. “That’s not my place to say…! But I’ve decided to move on. I’m going to look to the future.” She looked up at them finally, a clearly fake smile on her lips. “I’m going to push to be better and I’m going to support him through whatever he does.”

Again, the quietness enveloped the six of them; each one staring at Ochako like she’d just battled through the depths of hell. And that was exactly what it sounded like; her voice was tight and firm, like she was fighting down her true emotions. She sounded in pain, and for some reason, a nasty mixture of emotions had embedded themselves in Kyouka’s chest. She felt as though she couldn’t breathe. But why?

“Ochako!” Mina and Tooru suddenly burst out at the same time, and all but tackled her onto the covers; both hugging her tightly.

“You’re so brave!” Tooru sobbed, clinging to her like a fucking monkey.

Mina, on the other hand, was squishing their cheeks together – tears glittering amongst the black of her eyes. “I have so much respect for you! You’re so strong and so brave and – ”

“Kyouka?” Momo asked quietly as the two of them continued to harass Ochako, who seemed to be both laughing and trying to hold back tears. “Are you alright?”

She looked at her, eyes wide and brain still fuzzy from emotions she couldn’t even name. “Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m – I’m okay.” Well, she was, but something at the back of her mind was telling her she wasn’t.

Momo rested a hand on her knee and Kyouka took it gratefully; letting their palms touch gently to ground herself and steel her composure once more. For some reason, her mind went back to when Kaminari had offered his hand for her to take, and the way she’d swatted it away like she’d been totally repulsed by the idea.

Honestly? She hadn’t.

“Tsuyu! Any crushes?” Mina asked when they’d straightened themselves up, Ochako dabbing at her eyes with a tissue that Tooru had produced out of seemingly nowhere.

Tsuyu let out a croak, her tongue coming out to wet her lips, before she shook her head. “Not really.”

Kyouka’s hand tightened in Momo’s.

“Momo! You?”

“Ah…” she glanced at Kyouka, and she got the distinct impression that Momo was trying to buy her time because they both knew what was coming. “I… Had a small crush on Todoroki, if that means anything? I’m in the same boat as Ochako, though.”

A look of understanding passed between the two of them, and suddenly Kyouka realised.

Todoroki and Midoriya, huh? Unsurprising, considering the Sports Festival and seeing how close the two of them had become. She wouldn’t have pegged either of them as gay, or maybe bisexual, but then again nothing was a surprise anymore. There were far too many of those at U.A. – few of them good ones.

“Interesting,” Mina purred, before her gaze turned to Kyouka and that smile was back.

Oh shit.

“So, Kyouka! Shall we address the elephant in the room – well, the fort?”

She doubted that she’d ever wished she was somewhere else as much as she did in that moment. Maybe it was because Kaminari was such a good friend of Ashido’s that she was so interested, or maybe it was because she was being super fucking nosy, but either way, this wasn’t going to end well. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Kyouka felt everyone’s gaze on her.

“These rumours – you’ve said they aren’t true, but have you got any feelings towards Kaminari? He mentioned that you finally visited the Nightcare!”

Oh, he did, did he? That bastard. “I visited because I couldn’t sleep. Everyone’s been there, I wanted to see the big deal. So what?” Her voice was coming off more defensive than she’d meant for it too. “There’s nothing between us. I don’t like him.”

“Maybe I should start playing that song from Hercules,” Mina mumbled, earning an elbow in the side from Ochako.

“You’ve been spending a lot of time together!” Tooru interjected, clapping her hands together and sounding very interested too. “Didn’t he pull you into the dressing room? And you two ran away from me during the Culture Festival!”

“That’s because he wanted to see the games and everyone else was busy,” she responded blankly, bringing her knees up to her chest and purposefully avoiding the question about the dressing room. That had been a private moment; one where she’d needed comfort after such hardships and for some reason, for some damn reason, Kaminari had decided to seek her out and ask her what was wrong. Out of everyone, he’d wanted to comfort her.

Why?

“Maybe he likes you?” Mina offered with a sharp grin, inching closer. “If he asked you out, would you say yes?”

She almost scoffed. Why the hell would he like her? Kyouka teased him relentlessly, called him an idiot, snapped at him, always treated him like he was something she didn’t want to touch. But she did – she always did, and she couldn’t understand why. Why was her chest tightening even more? Would she say yes if he asked her out? Why would she, but why wouldn’t she? All her emotions were a mess and she couldn’t –

“Kyouka?”

Think –

“Perhaps we should leave her alone, I don’t think this is the right – ”

Straight –

“It’s okay! You can trust us, we won’t tell – ”

Then, her emotions and the tension that had been building up ever since the rumours started suddenly exploded.

“There is nothing between us, okay?!” She snarled, grinding her teeth together in frustration. “I don’t like him, I won’t ever like him because he’s an idiot, will you drop it?”

The silence that followed was awful. Kyouka couldn’t look any of them in the eyes because she’d snapped at them when all they did was playfully tease. Tears were burning at the back of her eyes, and she dug her palms into them to try and stop them from spilling over because she would not cry over this like some pathetic middle schooler –

“I think… We should leave it for now,” Momo said inaudibly and Kyouka felt the gentleness of her hand rubbing her shoulder. She wanted to be thankful, but all she could think about was that time in the dressing room; how comforting it had been to have Kaminari’s arms wrapped around her and his voice a soothing sound in her ear.

Kyouka hiccupped. “No, no – I shouldn’t have lost my temper, I – ”

“No, I’m sorry.” Mina’s voice was firm and filled with an emotion that Kyouka couldn’t place. Before she knew it, her hands were being pried from her eyes and Mina’s face was suddenly there, giving her a mild and apologetic smile. She laced their fingers together and sat back on her knees. “I shouldn’t have pushed you, this is my fault. I won’t bring it up again, okay? Let’s talk about something else. What about that shopping trip next week?”

Kyouka inhaled sharply, then squeezed her hands. Well… Now, she could see why Kaminari liked her enough to befriend her; they both held the same amount of empathy with as much sympathy and understanding to keep calm even if she wasn’t feeling it herself. “… Okay. Yeah, let’s – the shopping trip.”

But even when they changed the subject, even when they were laughing and smiling and joking again, there was something that Kyouka couldn’t quite wrap her head around.

Why had saying those things left such a bitter taste in her mouth?

The night went on, and soon enough that emotional explosion had become a thing of the past.

They’d drunk juice and lemonade and tea, eaten the cookies Satou had baked, and planned out the shopping trip in more detail (under the pretence of it being ‘for overnight orienteering equipment’, which fooled no one) and Kyouka felt… lighter. Like she’d needed that, as much as it hurt to admit it.

What was even better, was that now she felt as though a bridge between herself and Mina had formed. Before, they’d been friends, but now… Somehow, somewhere, they’d developed a deeper level of understanding of one another. Mina sat closer to her, asked her questions, laughed at her quips and even went so far as to hug her too (was that a thing with Bakugou’s friends?), and Kyouka was glad.

But eventually, the girls had fallen asleep one by one, all except for her.

She was exhausted. After such a long day and then an emotional breakdown, the only thing she wanted to even remotely do was sleep. But for some reason or another, her damn brain was keeping her awake, and every time her head hit the pillow she wanted to get up again. Was this what Kaminari felt?

… Kaminari… All her thoughts were leading back to him. Her mind kept replaying what she’d said, the way Mina’s face had fallen, the rumours, the way she… Fuck, she couldn’t even deny it. She missed him.

Kyouka wanted to see him again.

She ran a hand through her hair with a sigh before twirling one of her jacks around her forefinger. What was this whole deal with Kaminari? Why had her chest felt so tight when Ochako had talked about what had happened? It didn’t make any sense. It wasn’t like she liked the guy in that kind of way – they were friends. Kaminari saw her as a friend. He wouldn’t have put up with her otherwise, so of course he didn’t like her in ‘that way’. He had all rights not to.

So why, when Kyouka thought about that, did her chest squeeze even tighter?

Earlier, when she’d snapped at Mina, all she could think of was how much she wanted Kaminari to hug her again. His hugs felt… Well, they felt good. She couldn’t even deny it. There was a certain charm to them; one that soothed her mind and set her at ease. His whole demeanour had it and it seemed to spread to everything he touched until you were just as relaxed as he was. It was like some secret quirk or something – was that even possible? It couldn’t just be empathy… Could it?

God, she had no fucking clue.

If he asked you out, would you say yes?

Mina’s words kept playing on a loop in her head. Her answer straight off the bat would be no; why would she say yes? Why would he even ask in the first place? It didn’t make sense whatsoever. He had no reason to ask, not from all her tormenting and pushing and shoving him away.

But even when she did, he always bounced back. Always met her teasing with a quip of his own, let her have her space until she came to him; held her in his arms when she needed it. No one else had ever, ever done that before, but then again, he was probably used to it. How many of the other girls did he hold in his arms when they came to the Nightcare? How many of them did he share his bed with and cuddle with them until they drifted off to sleep? There were so many things that worked against her that she couldn’t believe, even for a second, that he might like her. That was impossible.

She pretended that that wasn’t a small twinge of jealousy that panged in her chest and instead ran her fingers through the ratty fur of her stuffed puppy. How many other girls did he smile like that for, as bright as the sun? Or was it even girls? Sure, he flirted with them, but maybe he was bisexual or bicurious or something; she hadn’t expected Todoroki and Midoriya to be gay. There was nothing stopping him from liking guys either, and that definitely wasn’t her place to judge. Not that she would anyway.

But his smile, and his touches, and the soothing warmth that night where she’d fell asleep pressed against his back and woke up with her arms around him like some kind of fucking octopus. His smell, his hair, his eyes, his everything –

Fuck. She wanted to see him again.

Kyouka breathed in before slowly crawling over Mina and Tooru to get to the opening of their little fort. It was pitch black, aside from the moonlight filtering in through the glass and the faint illumination from street lamps. Nerves began clawing at her stomach and she very nearly disappeared back inside the fort again.

No. This was stupid, she needed to get over this fear. She couldn’t panic whilst they were out orienteering.

As an afterthought, she grabbed the puppy and held it close to her chest before scrambling out and speed-walking down the hall. It was light enough that she could make out the bumps of furniture and the indents on the wall, so she didn’t have to worry about breaking her nose or foot if she walked into something.

Even so, the silence was deafening, and it was that that was the scariest thing of all.

When was the last time this had happened? She’d been with Kaminari; he’d been grinning at her with that stupid smile of his and lighting up the passageway with his electricity. He’d offered her his hand to, so soothing and so thoughtful and –

Scared? … It’s okay! If it makes you feel better, I don’t like closed spaces. Water that much either since I’ve gotta watch my quirk.

Scared – hah! What the hell did she have to be scared of? It wasn’t like anything would jump out of the darkness at her. Maybe it was something that had stemmed from summer camp – where every twist and turn had a villain waiting – but that was months ago. She was stronger, they were stronger, she’d been through and would undoubtedly go through worse. She had nothing to worry about.

Not if you’re here with me.

The stairwell was even darker than the hallway, and she could feel her heart hammering in her chest. Just up the stairs – up a few floors. It wasn’t that big of a deal. Even so, she held the puppy closer to her chest as the door shut behind her, and she was left in complete darkness.

What if she had taken his hand that night?

She could feel the weight of it; against her back, on her thigh before the Culture Festival; warm and soothing like his smile. Kyouka could almost imagine it in her palm, guiding her forward as she began jogging up the steps. His smile, his eyes glowing, the electricity crackling across his palm, his laugh low and breathy and full of comfort –

There was the light from Tokoyami’s room, she could hear his voice in her ear in that reassuring tone, the sound of his footsteps alongside hers as they jogged down the stairs and now here she was jogging up them. She could imagine his presence there with her; a guardian against the darkness. The sun against the moon. The person who she could depend on, rely on, cherish and lo –

No, she wasn’t going to say it. It wasn’t true, there was no way.

No way at all.

Suddenly, the door to his floor – her floor – their floor was in front of her. Had she… Really made it all that way? All by herself? In the pitch black? Kyouka huffed triumphantly and opened it, letting her eyes adjust to the moonlight from the windows at either end of the hall. Her heart was thumping, thumping, thumping because there was the light under his door, as it always was. He was right there and Kyouka couldn’t breathe.

No, she wouldn’t say it. Not yet.

Her brain switched to autopilot as she headed over to his door, her feet silent on the carpet. In the back of her mind, she knew she probably looked ridiculous; dishevelled, unsure, eyes wide, holding a stuffed puppy for Christ’s sake, but… For the first time in a long time, she found that she really didn’t care. Not in the slightest.

And, for the first time since befriending Kaminari, she didn’t hesitate when she knocked on his door.

Her heart was trying to break through her ribcage, she was sure, and it only worsened at the sound of shuffling from the other side. It took him a few seconds, then the door swung wide open and there – there he was; standing like an angel illuminated by the light of his bedroom. He had one of his stupid juice pouches in his mouth, that stupid smile on his stupid face, and his stupid eyes lit up like a Christmas tree when he saw her.

Stupid, stupid, stupid –

“Jirou!” Kaminari exclaimed and his voice sounded like pure heaven. “Hey, wasn’t the sleepover tonight?”

“I couldn’t sleep,” she answered, voice croaky and barely above a whisper because she just couldn’t stop staring. “Can I… Can I come in?”

He laughed – he laughed – and held the door open. “D’ya even need to ask? I’m scared that you did, actually. Have a nightmare or something?”

Oh no, no, no, no, no.

No, this couldn’t be happening.

Here, watching the way he smiled and the familiar scent of his cologne – his eyes sparkling and hair glowing… She knew the answer.

If he asked you out, would you say yes?

Yes.

Yes, she would.

Sunday nights were usually Denki’s least busiest night.

It was probably because everyone was trying to use the night of their only free day to catch up on sleep, but even still, there were stragglers. Those who couldn’t sleep no matter how much they wanted to; people like Bakugou and Todoroki and, on rare cases, Midoriya. Sometimes Denki was glad of his insomnia, because sleeplessness meant that he didn’t have to deal with dreams or nightmares or being so tired to the point where you could barely stand.

When he thought about it like that, maybe his quirk and insomnia was a gift to a hero rather than a curse.

Because it was his least busiest night, he doubted that anyone would show up, not even Jirou. Her surprise visit last night had left him over the moon; she’d left her sleepover to come upstairs and hang with him. To talk about everything and nothing at all and sip juice on the balcony. Though she said she couldn’t sleep (nightmare probably, she’d looked like a deer in the headlights when he’d opened the door), a huge part of him had been hopeful that maybe – just maybe - she’d wanted to spend some time with him.

Well… Maybe not. She’d stayed for maybe an hour, had some juice, then gone back downstairs again. But hey, he wasn’t going to question it. Not if it meant having her all to himself for a little while.

Even so, the knock on his door that night had caught him by surprise, and he was even more surprised to find Yaoyorozu standing there, looking uneasy. Yaoyorozu wasn’t regular, but she wasn’t as rare as Midoriya or Ojiro; in fact, she’d been a huge advocate of the Nightcare to begin with.

So why did she look so… uncomfortable?

“Hey!” He greeted cheerfully but uneasily, still in a good mood from earlier. Mario Kart had been brought out and, being the master of all games, he’d thrashed every single one of the people who’d played against him. It’d turned into a bet at some point, and Denki was happy to know he was three cakes, one curry and a whole packet of biscuits richer. Even when Tetsutetsu and Kendou had dropped by for their weekly visit, he’d pounded them into the dust with absolutely no mercy.

Well, he’d been a little more lenient towards Kendou, since she did keep Monoma in check.

Denki held the door open and Yaoyorozu came inside, her whole body hesitant; even when she took a seat on the beanbag. She was having trouble meeting his eyes, and Denki began to feel that happiness fade. What was going on? Had something happened? Were they shutting down the Nightcare or something?

“Is everything okay? You look kinda… tense.” He reached for the juice box and held out a pouch of peach juice to try and break the ice. “Want some?”

Momo forced a smile and took it; opening the pouch and taking a few sips before placing it on her knees. “Kaminari, I’ll be honest with you.” Finally, she met his eyes – her own ones unsure. He didn’t like the tone of her voice, it was too… Steeled. Like she was trying (and failing) to cover up her emotions. “I’m here to talk about Jirou.”

… Whoa. That had… Come out of the blue. What the hell was he supposed to say to that? If she’d looked happier, that spark of hope might have ignited into a flame, but… It was her whole posture. Her body language. Her words, her tone.

Something was wrong.

“Um… Okay?” He could hear the hesitance in his tone too.

Yaoyorozu took another sip of the juice before inhaling sharply through her nose. “I… Forgive me for being so blunt, but I don’t think you should pursue anything with her.”

Denki just stared at her, speechless.

“I know you like her. I can see it in the way you look at her, even if it’s not obvious to everyone else.”

Denki had to swallow thickly to get his words out. He wasn’t even surprised that she knew, Yaoyorozu was smart as hell, but the way she said it rubbed him wrong. “Yeah, you could say that.” ‘Like’ was a little bit of an understatement, actually, but now probably wasn’t the time to say that. Especially since Yaoyorozu looked so uncomfortable and considering what she’d just said. “Why… Don’t you think I should?”

He could hear his heartbeat.

Yaoyorozu shifted in her seat, finished off her juice quickly, then set it aside. She couldn’t meet his eyes again. “At our sleepover yesterday, we were talking about crushes. Mina tried to press her for some information and she… She just exploded. Jirou… She said she’d never like you.”

…

“And – and I wanted to be the one to tell you before you thought about asking her to date you. I apologise if it seems insensitive but… She’s my best friend, and all of this… She’s confused. All these rumours are making her upset and they’ve pushed her to the point where she snapped at Mina.” She… She what? “I don’t want you to have your heart broken either, because I still care about you as a fellow student.”

Her voice fell to a whisper and her eyes were now damp with unfallen tears. “So… I’m begging you, as Jirou’s best friend and your fellow classmate… Please, let it go.”

…

Denki couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think, he couldn’t process. His entire world was crashing down around him. After all this time… After glimmers of hope that shone through the cracks… She’d said that? He’d driven her to the point where she was so upset that she’d snapped? Is that why she’d looked so fearful yesterday?

Oh God. He was so stupid, so, so stupid to think that this could work.

His mind was racing and his heart – fuck, his heart – it felt like it was being ripped out of his chest and stamped all over. It was an unbearable pain, so much that he couldn’t breathe, and all he could do was stare at Yaoyorozu hopelessly.

She seemed to sense the fact that he really needed some alone time and stood, swallowing again and breathing out through her mouth. It looked like she wanted to say something more but then decided against it, instead bowing her head slightly and going to the door. Denki followed her on autopilot, wishing her away with a voice that didn’t sound even remotely like his own; his fingers trembling when they closed the door behind her.

He was so stupid. An idiot in love with someone who didn’t and wouldn’t ever love him.

Then suddenly, his heart couldn’t contain it, and there, right in front of the door; he dropped to his knees as it ached and ripped into two pieces. And the tears – they came and wouldn’t stop coming, or the sobs or the sniffles.

He was such an idiot – a lovesick idiot. Of course this would never have worked, it had been wishful thinking and a thread of hope he’d hung onto that was now cut away.

Damn it.

Fuck.

Shit.

That night, right in front of the door with his head in his hands and his heart crying out for someone who tossed it aside, was the first time Denki Kaminari cried over Kyouka Jirou.