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It had been on his fifth birthday, Katsuki could remember it as if it had happened yesterday - his mother waking him up early in the morning for breakfast, going down the stairs while sleepily holding her hand tight and hearing it. The barking, something so foreign to what he was used to do daily that he almost didn’t know how to react, but when he saw the little pup running towards him and jumping at him his face turned into a beaming smile.
That was the start of his longest friendship, the one he shared with the little pomeranian named Cracker (due to both his short temperament and his beige-coloured fur), and he felt as happy as he could be during those years they had together. Every birthday, every important date, he was there to support his owner and Katsuki was more than glad to have him by his side, and it was a pleasure for his parents to see the two of them growing alongside each other, how they complemented the other well and how Katsuki seemed to never feel alone if the dog was there to help. It was, all in all, as if the pup had the answer to the kid’s lack of true social interactions, but he seemed happy and that was all that mattered to Mitsuki and Masaru.
It was hard for Katsuki to leave him alone once he had to move into the Yuuei dorms, and he had even tried to sneak his pet in one time only to have that plan discovered and foiled by the ever so diligent class president. Despite this, he looked forward to visiting home and always brought Cracker a new toy (since they were always broken) or a little snack, something that could convey the way he missed his friend.
It had been a fateful day, eleven years later, when Katsuki was told that his dog was terminally ill and that the best and kindest thing they could do would be letting him go instead of keeping him there to suffer. The young man felt every bit of his body light up with rage, and he ran upstairs with the dog on his arms and locked himself in his room; he had never cried as hard and it didn’t help that Cracker was just licking away his tears, a heartfelt way of telling his owner that everything would be alright. “Stupid dog,” Katsuki whispered, his voice threatening to break between the sobbing. “Why did you even have to appear?”
All Cracker could do, unaware of his own situation, was lay down beside Katsuki and snuggle to his side; Katsuki could never truly regret having had met him.
His mind wouldn’t stop reeling after that - thinking about his pet suffering only made the days grow longer and longer until he barely paid attention to his surroundings anymore. The worst symptoms started to appear while he was away at school, and his parents called him one afternoon after training to tell him that it was already time - Cracker couldn’t stand up and he was dozing off more than normal, a sign the doctors had said would mark when things should happen to avoid the pup from suffering any more. Masaru came and picked him up personally that night after having a small talk with Nezu, explaining the situation and that his son wouldn’t be able to attend tomorrow but that he’d bring him back as soon as he could. It would all happen the next morning, he told Katsuki on the ride back home, and it had been the shortest night Katsuki had ever experienced as he hugged his dog for the last times, and he was sure Cracker could feel his sadness.
During the thirty minutes that took them to get to the vet clinic, he only held his friend close to his chest, swallowing the tears that were almost out again; he had cried all night, and the bags under his eyes seemed worse than ever. With his companion’s favourite blanket wrapped around him, they brought him into the vet’s office, where she explained the whole process to the family. Katsuki wanted to scream that they already knew, that she should just get it over with, but no words came out of him as he felt the knot in his stomach grow bigger and bigger, just like the hole in his heart.
It took fifteen minutes to get everything ready and Katsuki was the only one who wanted to stay to be the last one Cracker would see, a pain he knew would be necessary if he wanted his friend to go peacefully and not feel any fear. “It will only take a couple minutes for the medicine to kick in,” the doctor told him as she got the syringe ready. “I’m glad you stayed - some people don’t like to be around for a final goodbye, and that’s the worst part of it all.” I’m sure heartless fuckers like that exist, he thought, but his mind went blank when Cracker let out a little whine and looked at him with what he thought was a confused stare as she grabbed his leg gently, emptying the medicine into his system and then carefully covering him with the blanket so that he didn’t feel away from home.
Katsuki had promised himself he wouldn’t cry in front of anyone, and he would’ve made good use of that promise had it not been for the last lick his pet gave him, a soft gesture of the love he had harboured for his owner throughout the years and that also was a thankful gesture for everything that had been done to him. With that, the young man knew he wasn’t suffering and that he understood what was going to happen somehow, and as the dog let out his last breath and laid down to rest on his lap he broke down in silent tears, hanging his head down low and feeling an essential part of him leave his body.