Chapter Text
“C’mon, firecracker, time to go.” Bakugou’s voice echoed throughout the apartment, foot tapping by the front door, a purple and pink bag slung over his shoulder covered in old stickers that threatened to peel off the plastic pocket in the front.
Hatsuki skipped down the hallway humming a song only she could hear. He realized he’d made a mistake letting her pick out her own clothes when his eye twitched at the mismatched dress and stockings but he didn’t have time to make her change. “Daddy-”
“Tell me whatever it is on the way, gotta drop you off before I head in to work.” Bakugou held out his hand expectantly until Hatsuki hopped towards him and took it, his palm dwarfing hers as they headed out the door.
Her legs kicked idly on the train with Bakugou right beside her, his ears listening out for their stop. The summer sun warmed the roof of the train in the early morning haze. She’d start school soon, but until then he’d take whoever offered to babysit during his patrol shifts (except Kaminari, who was banned for the chocolate incident that did not bear mentioning).
To keep Hatsuki from getting swept up in the sea of train-goers, Bakugou picked her up easily and matched the tempo and rhythm of everyone else, stepping off the platform and carrying her up the stairs. Her short legs would slow them down even more and they still had a few blocks to walk.
“What do you say when they ask for something?”
“Mm…’please’ and ‘thank you’,” he said, swinging her father’s hand back and forth while they walked around a street corner.
“Good. And when uncle Kirishima offers you candy, what do you say?”
Hatsuki pouted and dragged behind just a bit knowing what Bakugou expected her to say. “Well?”
“No...no, but just-”
“ No . Only after dinner, and only one piece. No arguing.” He was stern but wasn’t a complete monster when it came to sweets. She whined, her hair the same color as her father’s bouncing with her steps.
“Are we here? Daddy?”
They rounded another corner and walked down a path with flowers on either side until they came to a brick building with 8000 across the top, stopping at apartment 8350 and knocking.
“I want no complaints from Kirishima and (y/n) when I get back tonight.” Bakugou slung the pink and purple backpack from his shoulder as the door handle turned and swung open.
Almost immediately Hatsuki bolted from Bakugou’s hand and ran into a pair of sturdy legs with as much force as a four-year old could muster. Kirishima didn’t budge an inch. “Woah, there, kiddo! You’ve gotten so strong, I’ll definitely get a bruise from that one.” She giggled as Kirishima picked her up with ease, giving her that shark-toothed smile of his before turning to Bakugou. “Hey, man.”
He passed the backpack with some of her toys and essentials in it over to Kirishima’s free hand. “I’ll be back around six. Text me if there’s any trouble.”
“No trouble at all, you know that.” You walked up behind Kirishima and ruffled Hatsuki’s hair. “This one can always come visit.”
Hatsuki’s nose was as high in the air as she could make it while in Kirishima’s arms. “I’m a good girl! Daddy said so.”
He just rolled his eyes while Kirishima stifled a laugh at what an absolutely pushover he became when it came to his kid. “Spoiled princess,” he mumbled too low for her to hear. “You keep being good and I’ll pick you up tonight. Love you, firecracker.” The routine of goodbye kisses is familiar at this point, Bakugou kissing his daughter on the cheek and her patting his head like the grumpy cat he was.
“Go kick ass, daddy!”
“What did I tell you about saying ‘ass’?!” You hid your face behind Kirishima because you knew looking at Bakugou would make you laugh. “I’m allowed, you’re not. And you,” he said while pointing at Kirishima. “No candy.”
Hatsuki and Kirishima both whined in unison and Bakugou tossed up his hands and rubbed his temples. “I gotta go...unbelievable…” He turned on his heel with a wave before the apartment door closes, leaving you, Kirishima, and Hatsuki to mischief without the prying eyes of her dad.
“Candy?” Kirishima asks. You looked at him and saw no signs of guilt whatsoever.
“Candy!” Hatsuki mirrored. After setting her down, Kirishima tossed the bag onto the couch and, when her back was turned as she scooted down the hallway towards the bathroom, brought you in close for a kiss.
“Good morning to you too, handsome.” Kirishima always radiated warmth that settled into your chest like a campfire on cool nights.
“Gotta start the day out right!”
You weren’t a Hero like your boyfriend or Bakugou, needing a bit more stability in your career. Absent from the patrol shift schedule today, Kirishima remained home with you while you worked in the living room on your laptop. Babysitting Hatsuki for Bakugou was just another part of the routine at this point; Kirishima had helped out ever since she was still a baby before the two of you started dating. Bakugou never pictured himself as a single dad, but sometimes life threw curve balls and all you could do was react accordingly. Hatsuki was a well-behaved albeit energetic kid, and you didn’t mind.
“Mmhm...there! Pretty uncle Kiri!” Hatsuki decorated Kirishima’s flaming red hair with bows from a pile that had collected in their apartment over time. Always accommodating, Kirishima didn’t mind playing dress-up. “See?”
You looked up to see Kirishima with a head full of bows and that goofy smile you fell in love with a couple years ago and couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes, very pretty.”
“You’re pretty too, auntie (y/n),” Hatsuki said, pointing a small finger in your direction. Your fingers paused over the laptop keyboard.
“I know! She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” The look Kirishima gave you, full of barebones honesty made you flush. Accepting compliments was always difficult at times but Kirishima was relentless. “You too, munchkin. Everyone’s pretty!”
“Even daddy?”
Kirishima paused for a second. You didn’t miss the way his eyes glossed over before they returned to Hatsuki. “Yes, all the magazines say your dad is very pretty, too. That’s who you get all your pretty from, duh!”
While Kirishima prepared lunch you sat with Hatsuki and one of her favorite story books. She couldn’t read yet but knew all the words by heart, leaning up against you with a stuffed shark Kirishima had given her for her birthday last year. By the way her hand tugged at the hem of her dress you knew something was on her mind.
“What’s wrong, sweetie?” She hummed against your side, soft blonde hair sticking to your shirt from static.
“I think daddy’s lonely,” she said before gasping dramatically. “Don’t tell him I said that! He’ll get mad…”
You closed the book and set Hatsuki in your lap, her big eyes pleading with you to keep her secret. “I won’t tell, but why do you think he’s lonely? He has lots of friends, Kirishima and Deku and-”
She shook her head vigorously, the hairband keeping her ponytail in place shifting down. “Yeah! But not...mm. Daddy wants to be like in the books.” You looked at her with confusion until she puffed out her cheeks, slid from your lap onto the floor, and grabbed one of her other books from her bag. “Like this. Like you and uncle Kiri.”
It was a fairy tale about a prince finding his one true love. “ Oooh …that kind of lonely.”
You knew from Kirishima’s long-time friendship with Bakugou that he wasn’t exactly the most emotionally-open guy around. When you met Kirishima about three years ago, it took awhile for him to warm up to you...but Hatsuki liked you, so luckily that sped things up. Now, the two of you talked and hung out with ease.
With him busy with Hero work and taking care of his daughter you assumed dating wasn’t on his immediate radar, but it made sense that he wanted romantic companionship after so long, after...well. No one talked about that.
Hatsuki nodded while hugging her shark close. “He looks sad, sometimes. I can tell. He says he isn’t but I know.” She was far more observant and smarter than most people gave a four year old credit for.
“Lunch is ready!” Kirishima called from the kitchen, giving you the opportunity to change the subject.
“You hungry-”
“YEAH!” Hatsuki basically cartwheeled off the couch in her sudden mood shift at the thought of food, nearly busting her butt on the floor as a result. “I’m OK! Mmhm...here.” She set her shark on the couch, gave it a quick kiss, and power walked into the kitchen as quickly as she could with her short legs. I’ll grill Eijirou about this later .
By the time six rolled around Hatsuki was keeping Kirishima busy playing Hero and villain. He, of course, was the terrible villain while she was the Hero that saved the day “just like daddy!” She threw wild punches and wobbly kicks in the air while Kirishima succumbed to defeat on the floor when a knock from the front door caught your attention.
“I’ll get it. Go ahead and grab her things.” You set your laptop aside and slid to the front door, opening it to reveal and tired-looking Bakugou sporting a new white bandage across his left cheek. “Get into a fight at school today?”
“Smartass. They got a lucky shot,” he sneered while rolling his eyes. “How was she?”
You smiled and he visibly eased the tension in his shoulders. “Wonderful, as always. Keeps us on our toes. Eijirou-”
“Hey, hey! Ah, man, got a new beauty mark.” Kirishima came up behind you with Hatsuki in his arms. Bakugou glared but said nothing with his daughter within earshot. “You good?”
“Daddy! Do I need to play doctor again?” She reached her short arms towards him and Bakugou easily picked her up and slung her backpack over his shoulder.
“Dad’s fine. Let’s get home. Thank Kirishima and (y/n).” She always got shy when she had to thank people and hid her head in the crook of Bakugou’s neck, mumbling something only he could hear. “We’re not leaving until you say it right.”
Hatsuki pouted but turned her head to face you and Kirishima. “Thank you for playing with me and making me snacks…”
Kirishima just smiled but Bakugou sighed in obvious exhaustion. “Good enough. C’mon.” With a silent “thank you” in his own eyes Bakugou carried Hatsuki down the steps of your apartment towards the train station a couple blocks away.
As soon as the door closed you turned to your boyfriend. “Gotta tell you something…”
You relayed what Hatsuki told you earlier about Bakugou. Kirishima didn’t seem surprised but sunk into the worn-down couch cushion. “Dammit...knew it. He thinks he hides it well but we all see it, hell, even his kid sees it. She’s about to start school, he’ll have more free time...maybe he can meet someone.”
“Eijirou, you know no one will ever be good enough. Maybe good enough for him, but for Hatsu? To introduce someone to her? No way.”
It would be difficult to find someone with the stubbornness and patience to deal with Bakugou by himself, but with his daughter in the mix things just became more complicated. Hatsuki loved you and Eijirou and Deku and Uraraka and Ashido and even Todoroki...but if her childish intuition even so much as hinted at “danger” or “bad” she refused to interact with that person at all, or loudly lashed out. She inherited a lot of personality from her father.
“Bakugou’s been through a lot, but he’s also the hardest working guy I know. He wants what’s best for him and his career but knows Hatsuki comes first. He’s turned down overseas missions that would be good for him, perfect for him, because he’s stubborn and wouldn’t want her switching to a new caretaker every other day to make that happen.” Kirishima was far smarter than a lot of people gave him credit for. He wasn’t the best at math or solving the most technical problems, but he carried his empathy on his sleeve and could relate to people on a deeper level. It was one of the things you loved most about him.
“She’s young...she needs some kind of stability, who to go to for advice and questions, who is going to be there. But Bakugou can’t be the best dad - and you and I both know he wants to be the best at everything - if he’s unhappy with some part of his own life. Hatsuki will pick up on that, and with her starting school it’ll be enough stress for both of them.”
Kirishima slid down the back of the couch until his head hit your shoulder, one strong hand kneading into the fabric of your jeans. “We playing matchmaker, then?”
You shrugged. “Maybe. He’ll never admit it but he’ll get burnt out eventually. He needs someone.”
“...Yeah, he does.”
___________________________
The room was dark and warm, sweaty clothes piled up in the hamper by the dresser, phone plugged up on the nightstand with an early alarm set. Unread messages lit up the screen briefly before fading back to black.
Cold sheets. Unused pillows. A mattress that dipped on one side but never the other. Too big for one person Bakugou’s hand groped at the emptiness he knew intimately by this point. Red eyes stared at the blank wall without interruption, no silhouette to sweep over. Empty air.
HIs fingers gripped uselessly at the sheet, wrinkling it until he sneered at how pathetic he felt until eventually Bakugou turned around to face the opposite wall with the vast expanse of mattress now at his back, staring at him mockingly. If he moved any further from the middle he’d fall to the floor.
Bakugou always ran warmer than most, but every night as he closed his eyes in an attempt to sleep the chill of loneliness ran up his spine like ice, frigid and jarring. He should’ve been used to it by now.
But he wasn’t, and probably never would be.