Work Text:
“Would you please sign here, sir?”
The delivery man definitely had better days; some days were quiet and the most he would ever do is carry a small parcel to the building across the street. And some days, his boss was unhappy with his marriage and tasked him with carrying a box as heavy as a grown man up 7 flights of stairs, on a Tuesday no less.
Izuku took the pen from the poor man and happily signed the paper before lifting the box into his apartment with ease. Being the Number 6 Hero, parcels like these aren’t all that difficult to carry. Not when buses and trucks full of citizens are the norm.
He thanked the delivery man once again and closed the door with his foot, making a small bang as he brought the box to his room. Izuku gingerly placed the large box on his bed.
It was very important after all.
Grabbing a nearby box cutter, he carefully cut through the tape generously applied onto the box. His hands were quick but steady, something he gained from valuable hero work experience. This also wasn’t his first time handling expensive merch and packaging. Izuku opened the flaps on the cardboard box and squealed.
Ground Zero Gauntlets. And perfect replicas of them as well.
Izuku marvelled as he pulled one out. It was a perfect match, from weight to dimensions to material. He scanned the object and rotated it, checking for any dents made during delivery. Looks perfectly fine but,
“Dang it, they got the sweat tanks wrong.”
Izuku frowned as his hands touched the tanks again just to make sure. It’s a common misconception that they would use phollerium, an alloy that can both hold nitroglycerin but also charge them up a bit so they could be discharged with an even larger bang. And sure while it is almost similar, it isn’t the same.
It’s not because Kacchan didn’t choose it.
Izuku wanted to make sure however. He spent good money on the gauntlets, even as one of the top 10 heroes, it still made a sizeable dent in his wallet. It was expensive, but you can’t put a price on happiness, right? Or Kacchan. There was only one way to tell the two metals apart for sure.
He brought the gauntlet near his nose and sniffed it. Deeply.
And instantly dropped $5k worth of equipment when he heard a loud voice emerge from the shadows.
“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, DEKU?!”
“K-KACCHAN?”
The blond stomped out of the shadows as Izuku scurried to hide the gauntlets behind his back. They were really big gauntlets after all. Izuku specifically requested for the largest size they had and unfortunately the bigger they are, the harder it is to hide them.
“KACCHAN, IT’S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!”
“OUT OF MY WAY, DEKU.”
Pushing the smaller boy to the side, Katsuki ripped the gauntlet out of Izuku’s arms. Izuku couldn’t even fight the blond, thinking his insurance company wouldn’t be all too happy to pay for $5k in repairs even if he says a giant blond monster broke it.
Curiosity got the best of Katsuki as he slid them on despite Izuku protests, his eyes widening at how creepily similar they are to the original.
“Kacchan, I know this looks weird but you see, I was umm, holding this for a friend who-“
“This isn’t the same.” Katsuki cut the smaller boy off, still very much creeped out by the fact that Izuku smelled his-but-not-really-his gauntlets.
There was also disappointment in Izuku at getting something as simple as Bakugou’s gauntlets wrong. He buried it deep down as fast as it arose.
Izuku however was offended by Katsuki’s statement, obviously knowing facts as rudimentary as that.
“Well duh, they got the sweat tanks wrong. They used phollerium which is a pretty rookie mistake but yet again, I’m sure they would have trouble finding a pure source of the original metal. It’s after all synthetic and really the only one who knows how to make is Kacchan so while it was a good effort, it’s not the same -“
“Cute.”
…
Izuku stopped mumbling as his brain tries to process what happened. He stared, his eyeballs turning into bowls as Katsuki tried to blow his own face with the gauntlet. The smaller boy was firing incoherent words every second with a red face of embarrassment.
Izuku couldn’t believed it. This can’t be real.
Kacchan just complimented him.
Katsuki, his childhood friend who would rather die than say anything nice, just called him cute. And while Katsuki’s attitude and feelings towards the boy had improve over the years, there is a large gap between that was a decent kick to cute that Katsuki has yet to fill out.
And so, in a fit of panic and wanting to make sure this wasn’t a dream, the smaller boy sniffed Katsuki, earning him a punch to the jaw.
✰✰✰
Izuku cringed as Recovery Girl pulled Midoriya’s clothes down harshly, knowing fully well that she can heal whatever bones she’ll break in the process with ease.
“I haven’t seen you in months- months of no phone calls and not even showing your face on my doorstep. And when you finally do, you come in with a broken face and an angsty boyfriend. Absolutely ridiculous.”
Recovery Girl held the boy’s face steady before kissing the cheek. She checked twice to make sure that the healing process was active before releasing Izuku, her quirk already reversing the effects of Katsuki’s punch of Gay Panic.
“Thank you. And he’s not my boyfriend. Plus we brought some presents too so it isn’t all that bad!”
Izuku had a cheery optimism that even the coldest of hearts warm up to and in seconds, Recovery Girl’s face turned to one of mild annoyance. This optimism is something Katsuki was used to who turned his face away from the smaller boy’s sunshine.
“A basket of oranges is not a present, Midoriya. Nonetheless-” Recovery Girl pushed her chair back, turning to face both Katsuki and Izuku. “-something tells me you didn’t come here for just a punched cheek.”
Izuku laughed nervously before turning to his partner. It was actually Katsuki’s suggestion that they go visit Recovery Girl, and while Izuku knew for sure he had an ulterior motive behind it, he obliged. The blond was biting his lip as he thought over what to say. It was a rare sight to see him like this, trying to form his sentences carefully that (usually) didn’t come laced with overused vulgarities and death threats.
‘And right now-‘ Izuku thought, ‘-the occasional compliment?’
“I should probably go out, give you two some privacy huh?” Izuku stood up from the bed and marched to the door, giving a small wave goodbye towards Katsuki. Whatever Bakugou wanted to say, he felt like he wanted to say it with Recovery Girl, and Recovery Girl alone.
Which was why Izuku squeaked when Katsuki pulled him to the couch next to him and held his hand down, wrapped around his.
“Stay. I need you.”
What was going on with Katsuki?
The smaller boy dug himself into the couch, too shocked to argue back. Katsuki inhaled deeply, his voice shook ever so slightly.
“Recovery Girl, I can’t lie.”
The Healer’s eyes widened but yet the rest of the face kept its composition. Almost as if this wasn’t new to her.
“The last villain I fought used her fucking quirk on me before I took her down. Thanks to the fucking bitch, I can’t hold my words back. Like the fucking processing unit in my brain broke and now I just say the first thing that comes to my mind, whether I like it or not. Can’t even change what I say one bit, the truth just comes out before I can even hold it back.”
Recovery Girl nodded, the surprise completely gone from her face even if it is present as ever on Izuku’s whose mouth was wide open. Recovery Girl shook her head in defeat.
“I’m afraid I can’t help you much here, boy.”
Katsuki inhaled deeply once again. He was expecting something like this to happen after all.
“Can you at least tell me what I need to do?”
Recovery Girl gave a sad smile and walked over to a small notebook on her desk. She flipped open a page, truth telling quirk and its effects and handed it to Katsuki.
At the very bottom of the page, the cure was written in red.
Recovery Girl cleared her throat as Katsuki scanned the page. “You need to say a truth that not even the quirk can make you say. As cliché as it sounds, it’s the only way we healed Eyesore.”
She looked towards Izuku and although no words were exchanged, Midoriya understood her perfectly.
I’ll help him. For us.
✰✰✰
The walk back to the apartment was uncomfortably quiet. Both boys were deep in thought, Izuku still trying to process what had happened and Katsuki was thinking of secrets he would have to spill. There were so many, which one was he to choose?
Climbing up the seven flights of stairs definitely was refreshing however. Izuku plugged his key in and pushed the door open, his eyes wide open in curiosity when they met the plate of cookies on the counter that he definitely did not leave there before they left.
Following the smell of freshly baked chocolate chip, Izuku picked up the small post-it note gently placed on the side of the plate. The boy was still tense however, uneasy at the fact that someone broke into his house.
“Hope you don’t mind me “breaking in” but I baked a bit too much today and thought you might like them! Here’s hoping you have a great day too. – Daniel”
Izuku let his guard down and grinned. He loved Daniel and his cookies. They were always amazing with each cookie always having the right amount of chocolate in each and every bite and this particular batch of cookies looked to be the fudgy ones. Izuku loved the fudgy ones best.
Popping one into his mouth, Izuku nearly cried at how perfect it was.
“The fuck got into you, Deku?”
Katsuki stood by the doorway eyes wide and eyebrows raised at Izuku’s makeout session with Daniel’s cookies. Being Midoriya’s childhood friend, Katsuki thought he had seen everything there is to see of Izuku but seeing the boy’s knees crossed, balancing himself on the counter with his arms and tears in his eyes is something he admitted he had never seen before.
The green haired boy blushed with embarrassment but still offered the plate to the blond.
“Cwokis. You whant wan? Thevyrw brearry good!”
“That’s fucking gross, Deku. Close your mouth next time, no one wants to see what’s in your mouth.”
Izuku scoffed. “I nough deep dngwon you wan two”
“Not right now, I don’t.” Katsuki winced, the quirk forcing him to say shit like this that he really didn’t need to say. What the fuck does he even mean by that anyways?
Izuku gulped the rest of his cookie down looking amused. “See told you you wanted these cookies.”
“That’s not what I meant.” Katsuki contemplated blowing himself up right then and there again at the shit his mouth is saying.
“What do you mean by that, Kacchan?”
Katsuki gave him a look that clearly told Izuku to forget it. Izuku frowned but went along with it anyways, not wanting to upset the blond.
“But you should really try them. Daniel’s cookies are the bomb.”
“They’re not bomb. I’m your fucking bomb.” Katsuki wanted to tape his mouth then and there. Or bomb it, yeah he was definitely the bomb. Not fucking Daniel. Who the fuck even is Daniel?
Izuku’s brain was breaking down trying to understand what Kacchan is saying. He placed the cookies back on the counter, shaking his head. When Recovery Girl said Kacchan would be speaking without a filter from now on, he didn’t think she meant this.
“Who the fuck is Daniel anyways?” Katsuki was beginning to question what his brain was on. After all, who was Kacchan to ask Izuku such private questions. The blond didn’t even care about what was going on in Deku’s life. He could have a boyfriend if he wanted to, he would be cool with it. Definitely.
“My landlord. You’ll love him, he’s funny and has the most adorable little kittens ever.” The hero grabbed his phone to find a photo of Daniel, all while the blond looked like he was going to pop a vein. Who the fuck is this Daniel kid?
“Deku I swear to god if you have a boyf-“
Katsuki felt his shoulders relax for once when his eyes met an 80 something man. Daniel is old, god bless. Never would the blond have loved to see Izuku hanging out with an old man more in his life.
“He looks like someone who would go to strip clubs when his wife isn’t around,” Katsuki blurted out.
“Husband.” Izuku corrected. “And no he doesn’t. He takes care of his 7 cats along with James.” Izuku swiped right to justify himself showing Katsuki a photo of Daniel and James side by side with all 7 kittens in their arms. They looked disgustingly happy together it made Katsuki want to hurl.
“Gross. They look so happy it’s like seeing Shitty Hair and Pisshead’s anniversary photos again.”
“Yeah. But these two look so adorable, don’t they? They’re super nice too! They gave me a huge discount this month after I saved one of their cats from a tree!”
Izuku swiped right to show a photo of him and some white cat in his arms, smiling widely with a small scar on his arm that the cat left on him. He had the cat close to him in his arms and the way the sun shone made his freckles stand out even more. Katsuki wondered if he could somehow download a picture on his phone with his eyes.
“Send it to me.” Or he could do that.
“W-what?” Izuku stammers.
“You heard me. Send it to me. I want it.”
“K-Ka-Kacchan wants a photo of me?” Izuku begins to mumble to himself as his brain tries to fathom the idea of Katsuki wanting his photo. It wasn’t the first time that the blond has asked Izuku for a photo of him, but they usually were photos of the two of them. Or a photo that the Pro-Hero took of Katsuki.
“Of course, dumbass. You look cute in it. I want it.”
Izuku offered the plate to Katsuki again, not wanting to deal with how strange Katsuki was that day. “Kacchan, I think you should have a cookie.”
Bakugou took it without hesitation in hopes of shutting himself up with it.
✰✰✰
The hot chocolate they drank later on was addictive. It flooded your taste buds with rich cocoa and gooey marshmallows the minute you drank it, the taste of cinnamon lingering long past a sip. Katsuki would never admit it but the nerd can actually make really good hot chocolate.
“This hot chocolate is really good, Deku.” Katsuki hates this goddamn quirk with every bone in his body.
“T-thanks K-Kacchan!”
Izuku isn’t used to all these compliments coming out from Katsuki. Sure, when they sparred, or during the occasional phone call after work, they would compliment and tell each other how great their fighting style is but that’s critiquing. But this? This isn’t critiquing. This isn’t after they fought together side-by-side after defeating some major villain. This isn’t like those three hour calls they usually have after a long day at work.
This is Kacchan speaking his mind out. And Izuku was not used to it.
Izuku sat down next to the blond, their legs touching.
“So, something even your quirk won’t make you say. Got any secrets to spill, Kacchan?”
Katsuki turned his head at Izuku, his face darker than Forgotten Hollow. He doesn’t want to do this, not at all but if he doesn’t, he risks telling Izuku something stupid like how cute his freckles are or how big his butt is.
“What I say here, stays here. Say a word to anyone else and I’m skinning you like the adorable rabbit you are.”
“A-Adorable?”
The fact that Katsuki, meanest boy on his block, can’t make the most basic of threats due to some quirk made Izuku feel sorry for the blond. This must be torture for Katsuki.
“Shut up.” Katsuki bit his lip as he pondered over secrets, searching the deepest part of his body for secrets. His face shifted slightly when he remembers one, breathing in deeply before telling Izuku.
“When we were five and sleeping over, we finished watching some scary movie and you had a nightmare that night. Kept shifting under your sheets- kept mumbling and whimpering. I didn’t know what to do. Ran out of ideas and crawled out of my futon and walked over to your bed and kissed your forehead like what the old hag does.”
Katsuki hated every moment of how awkward the situation was. It’s just a long unnecessary silence and Izuku’s face is too neutral to know what he really thinks about this. The blond was afraid he fucked up and now Izuku thinks he’s a pervert before he even hit puberty.
The smaller boy stuttered before responding. “You forgot the part where after you did that and a toy fell off the shelf. You jumped into my bed. You slept, your arms around me all night- it was adorable actually.”
Katsuki was horrified as the colour on his face drained away. “You were awake?! What in the actual goddamn fuck- how would you even remember something as shitty as that?”
Izuku smiled like the devil he is. “Well, it’s kind of hard to forget that night when you wet yourself on my bed and proceeded to tell Mum it was me that did it.”
“That’s it. Fuck it, I’m not doing this anymore.” Katsuki stood up and tried to walk out of the room to hide in shame before Izuku stopped him by his hand. The smaller boy can’t afford to let Bakugou go out of this room because of him. By hook or by crook, Katsuki is having this quirk removed soon.
“Please don’t go? I want to help you, really. I won’t say anything at all. I promise!” Izuku did his puppy eyes for added effect and Katsuki sits back down because no one has ever been able to say no to those goddamn eyes.
“Not a word. At all.”
Izuku locked his lips with an imaginary key and threw the key away.
The blond grunted before proceeding. He really does not want to do this. “When we were four, we got into a big fight and it really pissed me off. Think it was over which All Might suit was the best. You chose the red suit and me, yellow. You wouldn’t change your mind and was stubborn as balls so when you said the red suit sucked, I ran inside your bathroom and washed your ugly green toothbrush in toilet water. I cleaned it afterwards however, kinda anyways so don’t worry.”
Izuku had that look on his face. A begging look that told Kacchan he wants to talk. Desperately. The boy was jittery and his hands were making some sort of weird gestures. And with a heavy sigh, the blond lets him talk.
“Orange.”
“What?”
“My toothbrush was orange. Yours was green- you said you wanted to have me along with you in a special place wherever you go and Aunt Mitsuki teased you later saying how that special place was inside your mouth.”
Katsuki pushed himself off the couch as his brain tries to recall that tragic day better. And whatever self-esteem he had cracked when he finds out Izuku was right. The blond ran to the bathroom faster than Iida’s nationwide record.
Izuku couldn’t hear much but from the bottles being thrown around and vulgarities crawling out of Katsuki’s dirty, germy mouth every minute, the Number 6 Hero could make out that Katsuki has been brushing his teeth with toilet water for years.
“Mouthwash is on the topmost shelf!” the smaller boy shouted out, trying to help his partner.
“The orange one or the green one?!” Katsuki shouted back.
“The orange one, but you’ll probably choose the green one instead!”
And then Katsuki shouted more vulgarities, this time about Izuku’s … feet? Katsuki is definitely very creative when it comes to his swear words. It surprised Izuku at times.
The blond returns to the living room much later with two toothbrushes in hand. He shoved them under Izuku’s nose.
“Which one?”
Izuku giggled before looking down. They were both new, Izuku just replaced his a few days ago and he opened a new one up when Katsuki announced he was staying over until the quirk went away. The blond would rather die than continue living with his friends especially with a quirk like this on him.
He pointed to the orange toothbrush, and with a cheeky grin, barely muttered out the words, “The green one.”
And then he laughed. His nose crinkled softly as the freckles that dusts his cheeks rose up, a soft red hue on them. He lets out a loud boisterous laugh, something that Katsuki thought didn’t feel right with Izuku but hearing it again now, it was perfect. And the sparkles in his eyes, they never left.
After all these years.
Katsuki felt his muscles relax, the toothbrushes unimportant. Thinking back now, Katsuki doesn’t remember when was the last time he made Deku laugh like this. He doesn’t even recall the last time Deku laughed. And of course, under the effect of the quirk, he couldn’t hold himself back from asking.
“When did you last laugh like this?”
Izuku tried to silence his laughter, thinking of an answer. He fanned himself with his hands, his face still hot and red.
“High school. It- Oh god Kacchan I still can’t get over it- it was in high school. You- you swore in front of Aunt Mitsuki and she made you write a letter of apology. And- And then you called me for help, because you didn’t want to apologise to this old fucking hag”.
Katsuki grumbled but kept quiet.
“You haven’t laughed like this since high school?”
Izuku nodded.
“After that, we never really talked much and well, Uraraka and Iida and Todoroki are all amazing and nice people and yes, I do giggle here and there, some people more than others, but don’t tell Uraraka I said that! Ah wait, I never told you it was Uraraka until well, now and oh my god-.”
The poor boy was going at a 100 miles at minute, driving completely off track but eventually he realised he was lost and started backtracking. “But you know, they- they never really made me laugh as hard as you could. You- You’re the only one who could do that”.
Izuku gave his famous All-Might smile, even giving his own unique aura to it. One filled with warmth and joy. Sunshine.
“Thank you Kacchan. For that.”
The two agreed to stop sharing secrets for today as Izuku tried to stop Katsuki from scrubbing the toilet bowl with the smaller boy’s toothbrush.
✰✰✰
“We need to buy some milk.”
Katsuki lowered the TV’s volume before turning to Izuku.
“We?”
Izuku puts his shoes on before crossing his arms.
“Yes we. I don’t know what milk you like plus we might get some more stuff since you’re cooking.”
“Just get any random milk. I can still make it taste like the best thing you’ve ever had. And we have more than enough food in the fridge.”
Izuku huffed. “But I want to spend time with you.”
Katsuki switched the TV off and cocked his head so their eyes met.
Izuku blushed red again before explaining himself. “We haven’t spent much time together ever since we became Pro-Heroes. And sure it’s great and all, but you know, I really want to hang out with you… you know?”
Katsuki sighs and agrees. He pushed himself off the couch and puts his shoes on, the two moving out for the nearby FamilyMart.
The weather was cool, the clouds shading them from the Sun. Izuku took a deep breath of Spring, fresh flowers that just bloomed and bright green trees again. Feels almost perfect.
“So now you have to tell me a secret.” Katsuki muttered.
“Eh?”
Katsuki gave Izuku a smug grin (which Izuku will admit was very attractive). “I told you my secrets, now you have to tell me yours.”
Izuku was about to argue before he held himself back. Katsuki did reveal two of his own secrets, so it was only fair that Izuku did the same. The smaller boy placed a finger on his chin, thinking of what to reveal.
“Okay, but just like just now, you can’t tell anyone, alright?”
Katsuki nodded, impatient.
Izuku cleared his throat and sighed. “Back when we were in UA, you were out on one of the weekends, training to get your Hero License, so Kaminari suggested we throw a party at your room.”
Izuku grabbed Katsuki’s open hands to calm him down before the blond chased Denki down and choked him to death.
“Don’t be angry. It was a long time ago and we were all bored, okay?”
“Who’s we?”
Izuku looked at Katsuki sheepishly before pointing to the FamilyMart just across the corner.
“Perfect! We’re here!”
Before Katsuki could force Izuku to spill names for his hitlist, the Number 6 Hero pulled the Number 7 into the convenience store. He couldn’t help himself but to greet all the workers, plus it makes Katsuki forget what he was saying so it was a win-win situation.
Katsuki grabbed some milk and premade coffee as Izuku chatted to some old(er) hag about flowers and her husband. He dumped the stuff by the register and growled.
“Ah, sorry Miki. Kacchan is getting angry, we’ll talk sometime soon okay?”
Miki gave a wide smile. “Do come back soon, Izu-dear. You’re such a wonderful person to talk to.”
Izuku returned the smile with a this-is-how-I-won-most-beloved-Hero-award smile and handed some spare change to Miki who happily accepted the crumpled notes. Katsuki jabbed the smaller boy in the sides when he stopped talking about the party at his place.
“Ah, right. Okay so Kaminari bought a ton of beer and we drank some. I don’t remember how much we drank but definitely enough to get us all drunk. Did you know Mina is the depressed drunk? Weird right?”
Katsuki made an unamused face as the duo made their way back to the apartment.
“Sorry, anyways, Kirishima grabbed an empty bottle and suggested we play spin the bottle. It started out innocent at first but then Mina had other ideas-“
Katsuki felt tiny explosions forming on his hands at where this story was headed. It was bad enough that Izuku was doing all this behind Katsuki’s back, but in his room no less? He was far from ecstatic.
“-so the bottle landed in between Kaminari and I. And so, well, Mina told us to kiss each other.”
Oh, Pikachu is definitely dead after this. Bakugou could picture it already and plans were being formed at where he would hide the dead body. Three days was all he needed.
“And well we had to do it. There was no choice, they wouldn’t let us leave the room until we did so. Plus we were both drunk so we really weren’t thinking straight. And so we leaned in close together and kissed. And then he started putting his hands on my head and good lord, I was completely caught off guard.”
Izuku, sensing Katsuki’s discomfort quickly told him that he found the kiss disgusting and reeked of beer. “Plus we both never kissed anyone before so the kiss was just horrendous.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Huh?”
A drop of rain fell on Izuku’s cheek, trailing down his face to his jaw just like the tears when they were children. It was raining.
“Why the fuck are you telling me this?”
The rain grew heavier as the duo begin running to the apartment, none of them brought an umbrella with them. The wind bellowed and hit against the boys, something akin to Katsuki’s anger.
“You think it’s funny?”
Katsuki wanted to scream so much more. To shout and list out as many vulgarities as possible. To curse and bitch about. And yet even with a quirk that allows him to say all this out, he didn’t. He couldn’t.
“Kacchan, no. I’m-“
Izuku knew what Kacchan’s deepest secret is. But he knew the blond won’t say it himself. Not without some help.
“I’m telling you this because I imagined he was you.”
The duo finally reached the apartment, just in time for Katsuki to let out one loud “fuck” before leaving a huge hole on Izuku’s door.
✰✰✰
Izuku hummed as he waltz to the washing room, his back towards Bakugou with their wet clothes in hand. The smaller boy offered to wash them all under 30 minutes and in the meantime gave each of them a towel for their dignity.
The blond hated Izuku’s back. Every part of the smaller boy’s body was perfect. Beautiful and stunning, every part was, all but his back.
It was the only part of his body with a huge hand-shaped scar. It faded away over the years, especially compared to more recent ones from work, but it was still there. Still sitting there on his right side.
Katsuki followed Izuku to the washing room and watched as Izuku started dumping the clothes into the machine.
“I’m sorry.” His voice was soft, something unusual for Bakugou. But he was sorry.
Izuku raised his eyebrows, putting the wet clothes in the laundry. He bent down and scanned the detergents looking for one that Kacchan might like, his bare back facing Katsuki.
“For?”
Izuku’s eyes brightened when he found a large brown bottle of detergent, popping open the cap and giving it a sniff before spilling a generous dose in the machine. When it comes to Kacchan, Deku never wanted to be stingy. Even if it meant using the limited edition one time only, gold League All Might “I’m Here” Detergent, New York edition.
Realising that Katsuki wasn’t answering his question, Izuku turned his head back.
“Kacchan?”
Izuku followed Katsuki’s eyes reaching the scar on his right side.
“Oh, that. D- don’t worry about that. It healed perfectly fine, really. It’s nothing.”
Izuku shrieked when he felt Katsuki place his hand on the scar, causing Katsuki to panic that he hurt him. That he hurt Deku again.
“Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-“
“It’s okay. Your hand- it was just cold from the rain. It just surprised me is all.”
Izuku grabbed Katsuki’s arms and pulled him towards the living room.
“If you want to do that, you can do it here. It’s a lot warmer.”
Katsuki nodded, his eyes still locked with the scar. It still had its red hue on it, far less red than it was back in middle school and definitely less bloody. It almost blended with Izuku’s body perfectly but a burn like that isn’t something that you can hide. Not naturally anyways.
Pulling them to rest on a sofa, Izuku turned his back once again to Katsuki, presenting it to the blonde as a peacock would with its feathers. Beautiful and captivating.
“It’s gorgeous.”
Goddamit quirk.
Izuku giggled, his face growing red in embarrassment at showing his back to someone like this. He never tried to cover himself however. He trusted Kacchan.
Just like his cheeks, his back was incredibly soft. It was like feeling a pillow. The freckles on his back were captivating, as if they were placed meticulously by hand. The muscles were firm, showing years of training clearly. Katsuki’s hands couldn’t resist themselves, dancing on his back and feeling the soft skin under tough muscles. It was beautiful.
Except for the scar. Slowing his movements down, Katsuki placed his hand above the red patch carefully, scared that he will hurt Izuku again. His hand grew over the years by a margin for sure but otherwise it was a perfect fit. The burn he left on Izuku during middle school was still there, fading away but still ever present.
If Katsuki closed his eyes, he could still remember how it felt.
How Deku’s skin boiled under Kacchan’s quirk. A big grin on the blonde’s face and a twisted gleam, finding out new things about his quirk every day. The only thing he knew, at least back then, that Deku would never be able to do. Deku’s whimpers and the tears in his eyes was a mental scar now rather than a cherished memory, and the crack in his voice as he begged for Kacchan to stop was engraved on his brain.
Kacchan never did stop. And the scar on Izuku’s back proves it.
Katsuki snatched his hand back much to Izuku’s dismay. The green haired boy felt happy when Katsuki complimented him and hoped that he could maybe fish out a few more. Perhaps next time however.
“I’m sorry.”
Izuku turned around so their eyes could meet, his face still having a soft red hue on his cheeks.
“Don’t be.”
Katsuki was caught off guard when he really shouldn’t be. Izuku was always like this. Forgiving. Nice. Naïve. “You’re stupid.”
Izuku rolled his eyes, pissing Katsuki off. How could he just shrug off all this? Years and years of suffering and being kicked like a fucking pebble to Katsuki. How could he just pretend it never happened when it’s forever stuck on his body now?
“Kacchan-“
“You were screaming. And crying. And begging as I did it. 10 seconds Deku. I can still remember how long my hand was on your back. Ten long painful seconds for you. I can still remember the pain on your face. Why can’t you?”
“It was a long time ago.”
“It’s a huge fucking scar on your back Deku. How could just get over it?” Their voices went louder and louder as Katsuki stopped relying on the quirk and started spilling his thoughts by himself.
“Because I wanted to Kacchan. You’re different now. We both are. So I left it behind.”
“Fuck off with that sappy shit Deku. It looks hideous on you. No point having the most fucking beautiful body in the world when you have the ugliest scar to go along with it.”
“And there is no point in me talking if you’re just going to ignore everything I say.”
Katsuki fumed and Izuku huffed. Arguments quickly progressed to shouts which soon turned into quarrels. And then the hands came out and Izuku swung his right arm while Katsuki, his left.
The two were fighting in Izuku’s tiny apartment soon enough, furniture flying across the room as One for All and explosions crashed and fused together. It always ended like this, the two battling each other out when words failed. It was why they agreed to never become roommates. The bills for repair would be too much for starting, fresh-out-of-UA heroes.
But even as the fight started to grow in size, saying they fought out of hatred couldn’t be further from the truth.
Katsuki gasped as his body met the floor, his arms pushed onto the ground and held still by Deku who kept his body firm with his feet. With gasps in between his words, Izuku breathed out a few more words before letting Katsuki go in exhaustion, falling right beside him.
“It’s- not- hideous.”
A bead of sweat made its way down Izuku’s cheek, just like when they were kids.
Katsuki tried to catch his breath. Izuku was stunning. In every shape and form. Even when he was sweating and with some scratches that Katsuki definitely did not ever see before, he still gave an ethereal glow. Izuku was the stars that lit up the sky, and Katsuki, the moon.
He never told Izuku after they graduated from UA, but he loved him. It was the one thing he could never say, not after their turbulent past. And if he only just did, if only he had told him when Izuku’s head was on his lap at the old playground they grew up in, if only he had been more honest and told him. Izuku would have said yes.
They drifted apart from each other after that day, but his- their feelings never did.
“You really imagined it was me when you kissed him?”
Izuku snorted at the comment. Even when the blond was trapped under him on the floor, he wanted them to kiss.
“You want to find out?”
Izuku pushed his body down, their lips meeting each other. He wanted to know if Katsuki really wanted this.
“I love you Deku. Now kiss me.”
Katsuki knew that was it. He felt it, a change in his brain as he felt more in control over himself. His mouth felt less unhinged and he could think his thoughts over again. He could hold himself back. The quirk was gone.
But the butterflies in his stomach stayed. Katsuki pulled Izuku closer to him and kissed him. Sweaty and icky, their bodies moved together in synchrony as their tongues battled for dominance. Even after a long fight, they were still hungry for victory.
The kiss was long overdue but tasted so fresh. It was something they had been searching for years and now that they finally had found it, they weren’t going to let it go.
Izuku pulled the boy up, their lips still locked together. They were both equals now, no way is he going to leave him on the floor like that.
They broke the kiss soon after, panting. Bakugou could still remember the taste of Deku however. Cinnamon, daisies and nerd.
“Is it gone, Kacchan?”
Katsuki paused, testing his body and brain out before replying. “Yeah, but that isn’t going to stop me from telling you that your body is hot.”
Izuku blushed. “You’re so going to thank Kaminari after this aren’t you?”
“Don’t push your luck. Now come here, I’m ready for a round two.”
And Izuku, fully in control of his brain, held himself back from saying “in bed.”