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Izuku was starting to adjust to living with someone else. Don’t get him wrong, there was his mother when he still lived at home, but his mom wasn’t the same as living with someone like Katsuki Bakugou. Not even close.
Compared to his life before, there was a lot more yelling and cursing, but there were also those occasional softer moments between the two of them. Katsuki had never been good at showing emotions besides anger, but ever since they moved in together, Izuku noticed he was making an honest effort to try. It warmed Izuku’s heart to see him trying, especially considering their less than smooth relationship when they were younger, before they became friends, then eventually, more than that.
With Christmas time approaching, their stress levels had only increased. It was already abnormally high because of their line of work, but during the holidays, there was a different kind of stress added to that; gifts, and just dealing with their families in general.
While Katsuki's crass demeanor towards his parents was off-putting at times, Izuku knew he cared for them. And as for himself, his mom had always been like his best friend. With no biological father around worth speaking of, and given that Inko was dating Toshinori, he could confidently say he was close to both the parental figures in his life.
That being said, he was a bit sad that his work as a pro hero kept him from going to see them more often. Katsuki might have grumbled and complained when they did, but he knew that the blonde could put up more of a fight about it if he wanted. The fact that he didn’t spoke volumes.
They were currently taking the train to the Bakugou household, where Mitsuki had requested their presence for dinner, and they would be joining both his and Katsuki's parents for a pre-Christmas dinner; since the holiday was only a day or two away. Both of them were bundled up in winter apparel, as per Katsuki’s insistence. Izuku might have heard him grumble something along the lines of I don’t want you to get sick, stupid Deku, which only made a goofy smile come to his face.
Hands still clasped together, they came up to the door, Katsuki knocking loudly. The sound of footsteps on the other side only lasted a moment before Mitsuki threw open the door. "Brat! Izuku!" She cheered, moving to pull them both in. Quickly hugging Izuku, and rapping her knuckles against her son's head with a smirk, she headed back towards the kitchen. "You can head on into the living room, Izuku! Katsuki, come help me with the food!"
The younger blonde grumbled in complaint as they both divested themselves of their winter gear, the greenette leaving a kiss on his boyfriend’s cheek before heading to the living room, while the other went to the kitchen.
Inko, Masaru, and Toshinori were all relaxing across the furniture, his parent's smiles as bright as his own.
"Izuku!" His mother immediately put down her tea cup, standing and moving to smother her son in a hug. The scene should have been almost comical, seeing as Izuku was over a good foot taller than Inko now, but the warmth of their embrace was obvious.
When they separated, Izuku followed his mother when she sat down beside Toshinori, settling in the open cushions beside Masaru, across from his parents’.
"How are you and Katsuki doing since you moved in together?" His mother started up a conversation, green eyes almost playful as she daintily sipped her tea.
"Pretty good." He began, a slight flush crawling up his neck. "It's different, but not bad. It's kinda nice to see new things about Kacchan I hadn't had the chance to before." He said happily.
If the blonde could've heard him, he would've called Izuku a damn sap, but he'd have a smile on his face, regardless.
"I'm just glad you two are happy." Inko said, her voice softer. "I was worried about you both when you were younger and started drifting apart, but I'm glad you figured it out!" She said happily.
"It certainly wasn't easy." Izuku agreed with a hum. "There were a lot of issues for us to work through, but now, I couldn't be happier that we did."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was the feeling of a soft knock on the crown of Izuku's head, and he looked up in confusion, only to see his boyfriend. Katsuki's expression was almost amused, but there was a sliver of fondness bleeding into it. "You're so damn sappy , my god." He grumbled as he leaned over the back of the couch, arms wrapping around Izuku's shoulders, and his chin atop Izuku's fluffy curls.
"Shush, you love it." Izuku responded with a smirk. Unable to deny it, the blonde only snorted, resting his cheek on Izuku's head.
"I'm going to go check on Mitsuki." Masaru said after a moment of sharing a glance with Toshinori, his gaze moving to Inko. "Inko, why don't you join me?"
She looked confused, but when Toshinori gave her an encouraging nod, she relented. "Alright." She agreed, following Masaru into the kitchen.
Toshinori cleared his throat after a moment, bringing the two younger men's attention back to him. Two pairs of eyes moved to him, one green and one red. Izuku was the first to break the silence. "Is there something wrong? You usually don't seem so awkward around my mother." He asked, voice concerned as he tilted his head at his mentor-turned-father-figure.
"Well…" The older blonde began softly, voice almost awkward. "I wanted your opinion on something."
Both Izuku and Katsuki seemed surprised, but the greenette motioned for him to continue.
"It's just…" Toshinori seemed to have trouble wording his thought for a moment before he continued. "I was just wondering...well, how you deal with, let's say, unwanted attention on your relationship." He said awkwardly, unable to really meet either of their eyes.
"You mean the fucking press?" Katsuki asked, voice giving the impression that he was trying to connect the dots in his mind. He released Izuku, hopping over the back of the couch to sit beside him instead.
"Yes." Toshinori confirmed.
As confused as Deku was by the topic, he couldn't help the concern that flashed through him. "Is mom not handling the attention well when you two are out and about?" He asked, eyebrows furrowing in thought.
"No, quite the opposite, in fact." Toshinori answered with a shake of his head. "I'm the one who doesn't know quite how to respond in that situation. Your mother is an angel and handles it so gracefully and calmly. Which shouldn't surprise me, I suppose." Toshinori said with a chuckle.
"Just show them how disgustingly happy you are, and eventually they'll get bored and move on." Katsuki said, trademark smirk pulling at his mouth.
Izuku lightly wapped his boyfriend's arm, but he couldn't help but giggle. "So that was your plan when you started kissing me in the middle of the sidewalk at noon when we went out on our last day off."
Katsuki's smirk widened, but his red eyes were fond. "Partly. Another reason is I just happen to like kissing you." To that, Izuku's only response was a roll of his eyes.
"That's certainly an idea to consider." Toshinori said with a chuckle, seemingly more relaxed now that he had gotten his worries off his chest somewhat. The conversation ended there for now, because there was a call from the kitchen about the food being ready.
The two heroes enjoyed the rest of the night with their parents before heading home, fingers twined together as they walked to the train station. Katsuki was unusually quiet, but he still responded to Izuku's chattering when prompted. Izuku had to bite down his question of what was on the blonde's mind, preferring to ask when they were inside the privacy of their home.
As soon as they were inside and free of their mittens, scarves and coats, Izuku latched onto Katsuki's side with a slight pout. The blond raised his eyebrow questioningly, but made no move to get away from the hug as he wrapped his arm around Izuku in return.
"What are you thinking? You were quieter than usual on the way home." The greenette asked.
A soft sigh escaped his boyfriend, fingers tightening for a moment on Izuku's hip as he debated his answer. "I was just thinking about what we talked about earlier. With All Might." He clarified.
"What about it?" Izuku asked, knowing that couldn't be all.
"It just got me thinking about when we started dating." He said with a chuckle, pinching Izuku's cheek fondly. "Do you remember? We tried to hide it and ended up making a bigger mess than we would've otherwise if we'd just come out and admitted it."
"Yeah, I remember." Izuku answered, his voice softer. "We were afraid of the backlash, of what people would say. Which is a legitimate concern." He shuddered just thinking of the bigoted jeers, and the questions that had been thrown in both of their faces.
"Hey." Katsuki's voice pulled him out of his slowly downward spiraling thoughts and back to reality. "We're okay now, right? We work damn well together and everyone knows it. Even if they can't get their heads out of their asses, no one can deny that we won't be the ones sitting on the top of the ladder." He said, the words having a twinge of pride. Not just for himself, but for both of them.
A smile came back to Izuku's face as he nodded. "You're right." A few more soft words and equally soft kisses were passed between them before they decided to stop standing in the middle of their living room and get ready for bed.
Katsuki seemed to thaw out a bit as they went through their nightly routine, going back to his somewhat snarky, normal self. By the time they were crawling into bed, Izuku's head tucked under the blonde's chin, and leg thrown over his, he let himself relax even further, burying his nose into Izuku's green curls.
"Kacchan?" Izuku's soft voice floated through the dark bedroom, and Katsuki could tell he was on the edge of falling asleep. He gave a soft hum in response to show that he was listening.
"Love you." Izuku said simply, nuzzling his face further into the crease of Katsuki's neck.
Now, if anyone else had the gall to assume the great and mighty Ground Zero was ever anything other than fast, strong and the best , even if he was a little harsh at times, then he might've set them on fire.
But this…
This was different. He could be weak with Deku. He was the only one allowed to see that side of him.
Katsuki's heart might've swelled a bit at that soft admission, but it was definitely with affection. The fact that he had Izuku, had this nerd's attention and love, sometimes just blew him away. He didn't deserve it, but he had it.
And goddamn if he wasn't going to enjoy every single fucking second he possibly could.
"Love you too, dork." He said into Izuku's hair, unable to stop his voice from cracking slightly. Izuku didn't say anything more, his only reaction a soft laugh that Katsuki swore he'd remember forever.
~ ☆ ~
A couple days later, it was Christmas Day.
If Bakugou could wake up like this every single day of the year, you certainly wouldn't have heard him complaining.
Now, he was naturally an early riser, but on Christmas Day, it wasn't a huge surprise to find out that Izuku had woken up before him. He was like a child still, excitement radiating off him as he bounced on the bed in an attempt to get Katsuki to wake up.
"Kacchan! Kacchan Kacchan Kacchan!"
The blonde decided to make his boyfriend work for it though, turning his face into the pillow to hide his smirk, and letting out a groan that passed as an I don't wanna get up yet groan.
A soft hmph escaped Izuku at his response, and it took all of the blonde's self control not to laugh. The bed dipped as Izuku crawled closer, and there was a brief moment of stillness from Izuku before Katsuki felt his boyfriend lean over and press his lips to his temple.
The greenette started peppering kisses across any skin he could get to with a grin, the blonde fighting it for only a minute before he gave in. A laugh escaped him as he rolled over and pulled Izuku down so he could give the nerd a proper kiss.
When they separated, a grin pulled at Katsuki's mouth. "Alright, let's get this day started, shall we?" He suggested, to which Izuku wholeheartedly, and eagerly, agreed.
The two got up and dressed quickly, excitement slightly hastening their actions, even if it was unintentional on Ground Zero's part. To be honest, he wasn't sure if it was excitement, or nervousness for what he was planning to do that twisted his stomach into knots more.
Izuku had been surprised when Katsuki said he wanted him to wait to open his present until later, but despite his curiosity, he had no real reason to argue. The blonde obviously had a plan and he was eager to see what it was.
They were going to spend a few hours at the Bakugou house again with their parents, along with others this time, in a somewhat informal and supposed-to-be-but-wasn't-going-to-be relaxed Christmas party. Mitsuki had invited most of their old classmates and teachers, along with a few others like Eri, Kouta, and the Pussycats. It was sure to be loud and rowdy, but the sentiment of spending the holidays with their friends was most definitely there.
After the party, Katsuki had assured Izuku that he'd get his present. And as curious as the greenette was, he knew he could hold out for a few hours to see what it was. His boyfriend wouldn't ramp up the suspense like this if it wasn't something good.
As soon as they entered the house, the hum of conversation and the smell of food wafted in from the other rooms. Izuku couldn't help the grin that came to his face, Katsuki waving at him to go ahead to the living room while he ran upstairs to his old bedroom to get something.
"Deku!" He immediately heard his best friend's voice when he entered, the gravity quirk user bounding over to hug him. She just barely reached Izuku's shoulder now, but the strength of her grip was nothing to scoff at. He returned the hug briefly before wheezing out something along the line of I need to breathe, Ochako .
She released him with an amused smirk, and the bigger hero sighed in relief. "Where's your Bakugou? Did he come?" She asked, seemingly just noticing the lack of angry blonde by Izuku's side.
Izuku nodded. "He ran upstairs to get something. Honestly..." A pause, the greenette hesitating a moment before speaking again. "He's been kinda evasive about my gift every time I've asked. I don't know whether I should be worried or not. Normally, he would take every chance to brag about whatever it was he got me without giving it away, but this year, he just...hasn't."
Ochako listened to him ramble, her expression suggesting that she was taking Izuku's concerns seriously, even though he felt silly for them. He really was lucky she was his best friend.
"You know what I think?" She finally asked, the corner of her mouth tipping upwards in amusement. Izuku raised his eyebrow, silently telling her to continue.
"I think he might be nervous you might not like it or something. You know how he is. A perfectionist. Always knows what he needs to. And when he doesn't know…" a soft laugh escaped her. "I think he just has more internal freak outs than external."
Izuku carefully considered her words before nodding with a smile of his own. "You're probably right." He said with a chuckle. He didn't have the chance to say anything more before a strong arm wrapped around his waist, pulling him against an equally firm chest. When he turned his head, he left a kiss on his boyfriend's cheek with a smile.
"Right about what?" Katsuki asked curiously, looking between the two of them almost analytically. It was a look Izuku saw often during Hero work. While Katsuki was loud and volatile at times, he was also very, very smart, and could think of good strategies on the fly, along with other things.
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it." Izuku assured him. The blonde squinted at him, and looked almost ready to press for an answer, but eventually decided not to and seemed to let the topic go for the moment.
Which was odd for him, and only sent Izuku's thoughts spiraling further. Until he was pulled out of his head a few moments later by the sound of Eri's voice. "Deku, Deku!"
She was wearing a cute red dress with a snow design, and her long white hair was pulled up into twin buns atop her head. He couldn't help but smile at the excited child, picking her up when she barreled into his leg. "Eri! Are you having fun?"
"So much fun!" She cheered, eyes sparkling. "There's good food, and everyone is so nice and willing to play with me! It makes me super happy!" Seemingly remembering something, the child pauses in her recollection for a moment, red eyes moving to Katsuki's equally red ones. "Oh, right, a nice, tall lady who looks a lot like you told me if I could find you she'd give me the first cookie when they're done." She explains.
A sigh escaped the blonde, and Izuku looked to him in confusion. "Is something wrong, Kacchan?"
"No." He assured Izuku, releasing his hold on his boyfriend's waist. "I just need to go take care of something. I'll see you in a few minutes." He promised, leaving a kiss on Izuku's cheek before slipping through the crowd to find his mother. Izuku watched him go with a furrowed brow, until Ochako's voice and Eri's tiny hands on his face pulled him out of his trance.
"I see what you meant now." Ochako murmured softly, eyebrows creasing.
"Is something wrong with Katchuki?" Eri asked, her pronunciation a bit off, but that was unsurprising, considering it was a hard name to say. Even Izuku had trouble saying it when they were young.
Ochako gave Eri a bright smile, trying her best to dissuade the child's worries. "He's fine! I'm sure he's just nervous about giving Deku his gift!"
"It has to be a special gift!" Eri agreed, tiny hands balling into determined fists. It was actually quite adorable. "You two love each other, after all!"
Izuku's face flushed at her words, but he didn't look unhappy. He couldn't deny it, anyways. "We do. And I'm sure it is." He said as he gently put the child back down on her feet.
"Eri-chan, why don't we go over there?" Ochako suggested with a smile, offering the child her hand and winking at Izuku over her shoulder as they walked off. Her expression very much said 'Go find your man!'
Izuku rolled his eyes, but his smile was fond before he schooled his expression into something more neutral and wandered around a bit, searching the crowd for a particular head of spiky hair. Luckily for him, he didn't have to search for long; a loud yell for silence, in Mitsuki's familiar and boisterous voice, demanded silence from everyone else rather quickly. When he looked to the front of the room, he found his boyfriend standing beside his mother, looking uncharacteristically antsy as his red eyes searched for him. As soon as their gazes met, Katsuki seemed to relax some, taking a deep breath, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.
“Before we get started with all the excitement of food and gifts,” Mitsuki began, straightening up a bit as all eyes moved to her. She has always been such a commanding presence in a room, and today was no different. “There’s something important that this brat wanted to get out of the way first.” She said, stepping aside, Katsuki taking her place.
Red eyes found him again, and a smirk tugged at the edge of his mouth, despite the nervousness in his eyes, as he beckoned Izuku over with a finger. Izuku was feeling 10 different, conflicting emotions in that moment, but his feet moved forward to join his other half without thinking. He took Katsuki’s outstretched hand when he was in reach, but instead of the blonde pulling him in like he expected, he simply ran his thumb over Izuku’s knuckles, over his scars, with an almost private smile. It was a smile Katsuki had only shown him a handful of times, and definitely never showed him in the presence of other people. His other hand was tucked into his pocket, and Izuku could see the outline of it clenching something in his fist.
Clearing his throat, Katsuki squeezed Izuku’s fingers in his own for a moment before he began to speak. His voice was loud enough for others to hear, but the softness in his tone was something nobody saw often. “This is something I’ve been meaning to do for a while, I just had to figure out how and where.” He began. “But then I realized...maybe it’d be more natural if I let it happen more spontaneously.” A soft laugh escaped him before he continued.
Green eyes widened slightly at the whole situation, brain struggling to catch up. Wait, is he…?
“Some people are good at being in love. Some people are good at love. Which are two very different things. Being in love, that’s the fun part-- sex all the time, midday naps in the sheets, the jokes, the laughs, the fun, long conversations with no pauses, overwhelming separation anxiety….just the best sides of both people, you know?” Another laugh escaped the blonde as he spoke, and Izuku could feel the whole room holding their breath like he was.
“But love begins when the excitement of being in love starts to fade: the stress of life sets in, the butterflies disappear, the sex becomes a chore, the tears, the sadness, the arguments, the cattiness….the worst parts of both people. But if you still want that person by your side through all those things...that's when you know-- that's when you know you're good at love.
And look, I guarantee there'll be tough times. I guarantee that at some point, one, or both of us, is gonna want to get out of this thing. But I also guarantee that if I don't ask you to be mine, I'll regret it for the rest of my life, because I know, in my heart, you're the only one for me.
There may be a better partner for you than me, but I'll spend the rest of my life trying to be worthy of that smile you show me everyday. I could watch you for a single minute and find a thousand things I love about you. I love you more than I have ever found a way to say to you.”
Tears were streaming down Izuku’s cheeks freely by this point, and he could hear several other people sniffling as well.
Never releasing his hold on Izuku’s hand, Katsuki slipped down onto one knee, the hand that had been stuffed in his pocket the whole time finally emerging, a small, velvet box in the palm of his hand.
He really is--!
“Izuku Midoriya, will you marry me?”
There were a few heartbeats of silence, and Katsuki had to resist the urge to squeeze his eyes shut, almost expecting the slap of rejection he feared. But when Izuku melted, a wobbly smile on his face, he allowed his heart to hope.
Izuku’s free hand closed around the box in his palm, taking it before pulling his other hand free, fingers curling around the blonde’s face.
“I want you. All of you. Your flaws. Your mistakes. Your imperfections. I want you, and only you. It’s always been you.” He said.
“Are you…?” Katsuki asked in a small voice.
Izuku’s smile brightened considerably as he nodded. “I’m saying yes.”
Katsuki was off his knee in a split second, grabbing Izuku in a hug and spinning them around, their bright, infectious, happy, laughter echoing around them for a moment before the room erupted into a mixture of cheers, squeals, and crying.
Their friends surrounded them as soon as they could, a myriad of voices congratulating them. Mina pushed her way to the front of the crowd, bouncing in excitement.
“Izuku! You didn’t even look at the ring! Let’s see it!” Mina crowed, eyes sparkling in excitement.
“Oh! Right...” Izuku said, flushing when he realized he had gotten caught up in the moment and forgot. Katsuki’s arms stayed around him as he flipped the box open, staring in wonder at the ring inside. It was a silver band, inlaid with beautiful, sparkling orange gemstones and diamonds shaped like leaves.
“Do you like it?” Katsuki asked after a moment of Izuku staring, voice almost nervous.
“It’s beautiful, Kacchan.” He said with a sniff, holding back another round of waterworks by turning into his boyfriend’s-- no, fiancé’s chest, and burying his face in his hoodie. “Thank you.” Came the muffled response.
There was a soft snort of amusement from the blonde, but Izuku could see him smiling out of the corner of his eye.
“Awww, well, let’s give the lovebirds a moment to themselves!” Mina said, herding the crowd off, flashing a wink back at them before she disappeared into the throng of people.
As soon as they were alone, Katsuki buried his face into Izuku’s curls, his voice smaller than usual. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Izuku asked, raising his head and nudging the blonde to get him to look at him.
“For saying yes.”
Izuku smiled, soft laughter like bells escaping him. “Did you really think I’d say no?”
“No, but part of me was scared you might.” The blonde admitted with a sigh.
“I always want you. For better or for worse.” Izuku promised him, bumping their noses together affectionately.
“Yeah, me too.” Katsuki said with a laugh before sealing their lips together in a kiss.