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It started halfway through the school year, just after the Sports Festival where you had neatly taken third place.
You hadn’t expected much to come of it except a few offers from Hero Agencies for an internship. You didn’t want to be cocky, but you had performed well during the Festival with your Air Manipulation quirk, so someone had to be interested, right?
That line of reasoning was proven correct when you received the second-highest amount of offers in class 1-A, just beating Bakugou and earning the first piece of attention of many to come your way, despite it being given in fury. When you spoke with Todoroki in the hallway after class, you were off to the side and well out of the path of anyone’s way, but you were still pushed into the wall with the force of his shoulder as he walked by.
Todoroki had made sure you were okay but had no clue what Bakugou’s problem could be. You both concluded that maybe he was just irritated that you had garnered more interest despite coming in third.
The second bit of attention was the day before your internships were to start. Aizawa had set up a simple search and rescue exercise, with the class being split into five groups and alternating who would save which team. Simple enough, one you had done a couple of times in other scenarios. Your team – Todoroki, Jiro, and Sero – had already taken your turn to save a team and were up next to be the ones in need of saving.
Aizawa situated the four of you in your designated rescue spot and set the scenario: Four campers that had been caught by a rockslide. The lot of you were instructed to hold various levels of injury, and you had been saddled with miming a broken leg from a rock being on it. The rock was made of paper, of course, but you were to pretend otherwise.
Your rescuers arrived soon enough, and they went through the proper channels of radioing in your location to headquarters (“I know it’s just me on the other line, but at least act professional, alright?” Aizawa had been firm). Afterward, they set about taking stock of the group’s injuries and finding the best way to transport you to the nearest safe area, since this was still an active landslide zone.
While the others were gathered up and assessed, one of the group’s members approached you with a grimace. You weren’t excited either, seeing as it was Bakugou of all people. He looked from you to the boulder, then back again, “C’mon, get up.”
“Sorry, sir, this boulder is too heavy, I think my leg is bro—”
With a slap of his hand against the false rock, he blasted it into bits and waited impatiently for you to stand. Once more, you protested, “My leg’s definitely broken, sir—”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Bakugou yanked his gauntlets off his arms and attached them to two hooks on his belt, then stepped closer. Before he turned away and crouched to pull you onto his back, you distinctly saw that his cheeks were… pink?
Once everyone was accounted for, the rescuing team started their trek back to the safe area. Bakugou said nothing the entire time, but you could feel the sweatiness of his hands on the backs of your thighs as he carried you on his back. A lot of thoughts were running through your head, but one of them was the hope that his weird quirk wasn’t going to stain your gym uniform.
The third came after a conversation you were having with Yaoyorozu. It was the beginning of lunch time, and the two of you had foregone eating in the cafeteria and instead ate outside on the grass instead. It was rather nice without being too stifling, so you both wanted to enjoy the weather while it lasted.
“So, I’ve been wondering,” Yaoyorozu started, waiting until she had swallowed her bite before speaking, “Maybe you don’t notice it, because he’s not in your line of sight, but… Bakugou’s been staring at you a lot, lately.”
“Uh… What?” Was your only answer to her words. Any other girl might have been sly when they were telling their friend this, but Yaoyorozu only looked a bit worried.
“I know he’s been irritated at your success so far, but… There’s not a whole lot of his anger in those stares he gives you, y’know.”
“What reason would he have for looking at me, anyway? I don’t even talk to him, I think the last real conversation we had was before the Sports Festival—”
“He rescued you in our last practice, remember? Not that it really matters… What I’m saying is that maybe you should be careful around him. Maybe… Bakugou has a crush on you?”
“Maybe you two screeching hens should mind your own shitty business.”
That was a familiar voice. The two of you turned in your seated positions to see that Bakugou was hovering over you with a look of irritation, the red pin-pricks of his eyes focused solely on you, “Don’t get any shitty ideas in your head, third-place.”
With that, he stormed off. The two of you had been stunned into silence, but neither of you would dispute that Bakugou’s angry face had also been very red.
The fourth was when you had stayed after school one evening to work on your training in the school’s open rooms. You had learned a lot in your internship, but Aizawa was always pressuring the lot of you to continue pursuing loftier goals if you intended on becoming pro heroes.
Unfortunately, your training went on a bit longer than you anticipated, and it was dark out by the time you had cleaned up and exited the school’s front doors. There was nothing to be done of it, and it wasn’t nearly late enough for your train home to stop running, so you hurried on your way down U.A.’s large front walk.
“Hey, moron.”
You froze in your tracks at this. Only one person was rude enough to call out to you like that, and you turned on your heel to see Bakugou leaning against the first archway that you had passed, just out of your line of sight when you had been facing forward. He pushed off the wall and approached you with his usual look of irritation.
“What.”
That was your deadpan answer. Honestly, hanging out in the company of Bakugou was the last thing you wanted right now. He was a jerk and had only seconds ago just called you a moron. Still, he approached until he was only a few feet away, his arms crossed over his chest.
“What the hell are you doing here so late? Do you even have a ride home?”
“No, it’s not like it’s any of your business anyway,” You snapped back, and his face twisted into a sneer at your tone.
“Yeah, well it’s dark out and if something happened to you because you did something dumb like walk home alone after dark, it would be my fault since I knew you were still here—”
“How’d you know I was still here—”
“Mind your fucking business, that’s how. Let’s go, I don’t have all night.”
“What are you even talking about, Bakugou?” You refused to move as he walked passed you, and he stopped in his tracks to roll his eyes and turn back around.
“I’m walking you home, you complete idiot. Now let’s go.”
With a bit more care than you ever expected he possessed, Bakugou grabbed your elbow and pulled you along after him. It took you a moment to match his stride and tug your elbow out of his hand. Firmly, you crossed your arms over your chest to keep him from grabbing at you again and followed him down the front walk.
It wasn’t until the two of you reached the gate that he spoke, “Which line do you take?”
“Uh… I have to change a couple times—”
“Well, what’s the first one then, moron.”
“You don’t have to be such a jerk, Bakugou… It’s not like I asked you to walk me home,” The look you shot him showed every ounce of irritation you held for this situation. What was his major malfunction? You kind of got his reasoning for this in the first place… But only if that reasoning came from someone else that wasn’t Bakugou.
“Just tell me what damn line we’re getting on, alright!?” Bakugou’s irritation matched your own, but his was decidedly unfounded. Still, you rolled your eyes and rattled off the line you started on, and the two that you swapped to on your way home.
The station was just ahead, and getting onto your train was easy, since it rolled into the station just as you arrived. Bakugou’s hand on your lower back was warm as he nudged you into the train that was surprisingly full for this time of night. With a sigh of irritation, he tucked in behind you and held on to one of the handles dangling from the ceiling… the only one available.
That meant you had nothing to hold on to, so you were forced to bump into the people crowded around you as the train took its turns and bumps. Your irritation continued to grow into full-on anger at this point, and you were almost ready to blow up at Bakugou when the two of you got off this train, but a hand dropped onto your shoulder to steady you and stayed there, fingers curling firmly against the fabric of your uniform.
Turning your head, you followed the arm up to see it was attached to Bakugou, who was very pointedly looking out the window over your head with pink cheeks. Faintly, in the back of your mind, you realized that your anger was no longer present.
Neither of you exchanged words until you were almost to your apartment building. Your mom had texted you at that point, telling you dinner would be ready and you needed to be home ASAP. Bakugou peered over your shoulder at this, and you chastised him for snooping, but he only rolled his eyes.
You expected him to stop, but he followed you up the outside steps and to the third-floor apartment that you lived in with your family. Outside the door, you turned to him, “Thanks, Bakugou.”
“Yeah, don’t lose track of time again, stupid.”
As he turned on his heel and started on his way back to the stairs to the ground level, you called after him, “What were you even doing there, Bakugou?”
“N-None of your business that’s what I was doing.”
Never mind, you were annoyed again.
The fifth was the following afternoon. Aizawa had just finished lecture for the day and dismissed you with a reminder of your homework due at the end of this weekend. You lagged behind a bit, waiting for Yaoyorozu so the two of you could walk to your lockers and get the rest of your belongings before your trip home.
Yaoyorozu had been baffled when you explained to her what happened over the phone last night, and thankfully had made no mention of it today, but you knew she was dying to figure out exactly what was going on in Bakugou Katsuki’s head.
She was given another hint when you both shut your lockers and turned to the wide doorway, and Bakugou was standing there with his bag flung over his shoulder with one hand, “There you are, dumbass. Let’s go, I’ve got shit to do.”
Yaoyorozu was pretty well-known for having good composure, but she openly gaped as her eyes travelled from you to Bakugou and back again. You were just as surprised, since Bakugou hadn’t said a word to you all day… But after Yaoyorozu’s comment a few weeks back, you definitely noticed he stared at you in class when Aizawa wasn’t looking.
“I’m sorry, what?”
“Stop dicking around and let’s go.”
With a stammer, you looked to Yaoyorozu, and she only shrugged in response. Offering a weak wave to her, you followed Bakugou as he walked away. When you were out of earshot of any other students leaving, you grabbed his elbow and spun him around, “Bakugou, what the hell?”
“What the hell what? I’m walking you home, dweeb,” Despite looking nonchalant about the whole thing, he had a faint pink to his cheeks that you had started to notice more and more when it came to you. You weren’t taking that as his only answer and refused to relinquish your hold on his elbow when he tried to keep walking.
“Why? There’s literally no reason for it, it’s still light out so your last excuse doesn’t work here.”
“Does it really matter? Just shut up—”
“Uh, no? I’m not gonna shut up, I don’t have to do anything,” To emphasize your point, you planted your feet firmly on the ground and crossed your arms, “I don’t know what your problem is, Bakugou, but you don’t even bother to have a normal conversation with me, and now you’re trying to walk me home? I don’t get it, and I’m not sure I want to. So, I’m going to walk myself home, and you’re gonna do whatever it is you do. Steal candy from children or something, whatever.”
With that, you walked around him and stormed off down U.A.’s front walk to the gates. Behind you, closer than what a stranger would follow at, you heard footsteps. You spun on your heel at this and threw your hands in the air. Bakugou stopped a few paces behind, and his jaw worked for a moment before he spoke, “Look, girls just shouldn’t be walking alone—”
“Okay, there’s a lot of things to unpack with that. First of all, I’m in the hero course, the same as you. Second, all the other girls in class walk home, and I don’t see you falling over yourself to bug them.”
“Look, my mom might be a shitty old hag, but she taught me some things, alright!? And the other chicks in class are just extras, not even on my radar—”
“And I am!? What makes me—Oh.”
It clicked in your brain then, what made you “special”. The sweaty hands during your rescue, the staring, the adamant attitude toward walking you home, the current redness of his cheeks…
“Do you… Like me, Bakugou?”
“Shut up! Not so loud—!”
“You do!” Your gasp was a bit quieter, since it’s not like you wanted to draw attention to this, either. It’s not like there was anyone nearby, most of the students having filtered out while you argued with Bakugou, but still…
Bakugou’s cheeks were still red as he firmly looked over your head and refused to make any further comment. You opened and closed your mouth a few times to try and find words, but nothing really came out. After a long moment, you reached out to grab his elbow and pull him along with a sigh, “C’mon, walk me home.”