Work Text:
He hates seeing that glowing smile, always so bright and so welcoming and so Ochako. It irks him to see that she’s constantly smiling, she’s always cheerful and encouraging and it pisses him off to see someone like her doing that sort of job when she could be bettering herself.
But no.
Katsuki always finds her cheering on that shitty nerd and encouraging him to do better, or even telling all of the girls that she hangs out with that they’re capable of more and she doesn’t even see the capability in herself.
It pisses him off to no extent and it’s something he’s asked himself a million times, why the fuck doesn’t she see it?
Even during their sessions in their heroics class, she’s always telling everyone that they can do better and that they can work harder; Uraraka never realizes how much potential she has as a hero and as much as he wants to yell at her and tell her otherwise, he locks away unspoken words and refuses to voice his opinion.
He doesn’t care, after all. He doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself, but it pisses him off to see that much raw potential wasted away on a girl that would rather encourage others and cheer everyone on but herself.
Katsuki tells himself that he won’t pay attention to her anymore, that he’ll focus more on himself because what kind of hypocrite would he be if he sat there and judged her and refused to work harder on himself? He chuckles before going back to his own training, ignoring the Infinity Girl and whatever stupid shit she wanted to tell others.
He’s seen the true fight in her eyes and the facade she chooses to present is nothing but a lie.
She’s too soft, a delicate flower hardly peeking out from the soil.
.
.
.
They’re now in their second year at Yuuei, growing more as each day passes and when he sees Ochako again, he notices how different she looks.
She’s grown her hair out, grown a little taller in height and her cheeks aren’t as round — although still stained pink. Katsuki notices that her muscles are more defined, that her eyes have changed and they’re not as soft anymore.
While she still smiles and talks with her classmates, she holds herself with a different demeanor and actually talks about herself a little more. She’s grown somewhat confident over their break and it makes him smirk at the fact that she’s changed that much in such a short amount of time.
“Hey, Bakugou.”
She’s now standing in front of him with a gentle smile lifting at the corners of her lips and he’s taken aback by her approach. It was out of nowhere and he’s caught staring at her caramel colored eyes and he hates the way she stands by him with ease.
“The fuck do you want?” He bites out and she laughs.
“I’m just saying hello,” she retorts before jabbing her elbow into his side slightly. “Don’t be so gruff, it’s our first day back.”
He swats at her hand as his brows pull together.
Maybe she’s had a major confidence boost in the time that they’ve been apart and he’s just now noticing how casual and relaxed she is around him. As much as he wants to tell her to get lost, there’s something holding him back from doing so.
He chooses to ignore her and after a moment of silence, they’re in their seats and facing forward as their class starts.
It’s not the same as their first year in this school. Not only had Ochako grown and matured, but the rest of their classmates did as well.
Katsuki doesn’t realize it, but he’s too drawn in by Ochako to even notice that their class is over and everyone is leaving. He sums it up to an annoying pain in his side, constantly biting and pinching away at his skin, but he can’t quite rid the feeling.
He chooses to ignore her positive and happy aura, discarding it with his own thoughts on wanting to improve but he doesn’t feel quite as angry towards Ochako anymore. There’s still an annoyance towards her that lurks under his skin, but he’s grown enough to tame his anger and his feelings.
He may be outspoken, but he’s grown smarter in the sense of speaking out and intentionally trying to hurt feelings anymore; Katsuki bites his tongue and continues throughout his day without trying to catch up with anyone or trying to notice Ochako and how she walks with ease and carries her head higher.
He smirks to himself, somewhat content with the fact that she’s not bending over backwards and being the stomp pad for everyone else.
She’s no longer sprouting, but absorbing, growing, budding as she gets stronger.
.
.
.
Their training has grown more intense and Uraraka is at the top of it all by the time they’re third years.
She’s improved on her quirk, honed it to make it her own and everyone else is struggling to keep up with her. She no longer struggles with fighting back the nauseous feeling whenever she activates her quirk; she uses it to her advantage and takes people off guard.
Bakugou notices this with ease and not only is he having to revert back into playing the defensive role, but he’s having a hard enough time finding an opening to get to Uraraka.
He remembers her wanting to be a rescue hero back when they were first years, but now she’s at the top of her game and doing a damn good job. When he does make his move to attack her, she’s quick to spot him and face him head on.
When they make contact with one another, the feeling of her quirk going through his body resembles the feeling of butterflies in one’s stomach — it was a weird and unnatural feeling, almost making him light-headed.
It even topped the feeling of the sludge villain from all those years ago.
“I’m not going down without a fight, Bakugou,” she teases with a smile and it riles him up.
He’s grinning at her before throwing both of their bodies through the air with his explosions and when he thinks she’s going to release her quirk, it’s only him that she drops.
“Dirty move, Roundface!” He hollers at her before propelling himself through the air.
She’s taken the opportunity to focus on what she wants to drop and what she wants to keep in midair and it’s a talent he never thought she could master. When he notices sweat glistening against her forehead, he takes that opportunity to attack once more.
When he grabs her in midair the next time, he doesn’t let go. Uraraka wraps her arms around him as they hurdle through the air, heading towards the wall and when he thinks they’re about to collide, that’s when they drop straight to the ground, Uraraka releasing her quirk with a smirk lining her lips.
Bakugou is the one to activate his quirk first, blasting them up and away from the ground and into some makeshift safety blanket and that’s when he realizes that every one of their classmates are now watching and they’ve performed something oddly beautiful.
When he gets up from the ground, he notices that she’s already brushing off the dirt and ignoring the scrapes and cuts that adorn her skin. She glances up at him and meets his gaze before smiling that big, goofy smile he’s seen so many times except there’s something in the way that she looks at him that he finally understands.
Uraraka was always known as this soft, petite little thing; full of smiles and always cheerful, but there’s a side to her that’s rough and raw and Bakugou finally caught a glimpse of it after all those years. He doesn’t bother smiling back as he’s too lost in the way she looks at him before walking away.
She’s a rose, blooming to her fullest and although pretty, she’s filled with thorns.
Why the fuck didn’t you see it? He’s caught asking himself as they make way to change and although it took him the past three years to notice it, Uraraka has always been a rose in bloom.