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It started off slow. Kaminari didn’t pay much attention to the buzzy feeling he would sometimes get when hanging out with the bros, high-fiving when playing video games or the casual fist bumps. All in all, it was chalked up to being overly excited at hanging out with his buds. Kaminari was pretty excitable after all, and he just hoped he wasn’t accidentally letting off static electricity.
One evening after an intense quirk workout, Kaminari stood around the kitchen trying to decide what post-workout snack to eat.
“Man, that was rough - time for a little reward! Now where did Blasty hide my gummy bears?” The blond rummages through the shared pantry, coming up short as it’s filled to the brim with protein bars, shake mixes, and other ‘healthy’ foods.
Sero happened to be grabbing a glass of milk from the fridge, and stops to peek over Kaminari’s shoulder. “This is why I keep all my junk food up in my room. I know he means well, but this is Bakugou we’re talking about.” He shook his head. “One day, he’ll learn what boundaries are.” An angry ‘Hahh?’ is heard from the other side of the room as Bakugou passes by on the way to the shower. “Nothing, nothing!” Sero called out, “we very much appreciate how you’re helping us keep to hero-worthy diets!”
Nodding, Bakugou continued to walk past. Once he was out of earshot, Sero sighed. Kaminari looked up and back at his friend, giving a shrug and defeated small smile. “Oh well, guess I’ll starve.”
“Nonsense, I happen to know where he keeps a stash. If I’m right…” Sero trailed off as he reached up and over Kaminari’s head, back behind some canned vegetables on the top shelf. As he did so, Sero’s chest brushed up against Kaminari’s shoulder and the blond, whose body was beyond exhaustion, felt a jolt rush through and his face flushed. He tried to jump away, apologizing, but Sero looked at him blankly and handed him the hidden treasure.
Kaminari took the bag of gummy bears, laughing nervously. “Sorry, I think my quirk went off or something, I didn’t hurt you did I?” Sero tilted his head to the side confused, and shook it.
“Didn’t feel a thing. Are you okay, bro? Maybe you should see the nurse, you’re looking kinda red.” The raven-haired boy put a hand over Kaminari’s forehead to feel for a temperature. Kaminari felt a strange tingling in his gut at the sensation, and his face burned warmer.
More nervous laughter, and Kaminari batted away the hand. “I’m fine, I probably just need a good nap. In my room. I’ll catch you later, k?” He backed away, still confused and nearly tripping over the bottom step before rushing upstairs to safety. Oh no, he’s going to think I’m a total weirdo, why did I do that? What was that?
Kaminari Denki was, in a word, accident-prone. Every other day he seemed to find himself with some sort of minor injury, completely outside of the usual aches and bruises from hero training.
He loved how cool and flashy his quirk was; he just couldn’t help being frustrated with what it does to his senses. Some of the others in class 1-A love to mock him for his grades, saying he’s fried his brain too many times. But if he were honest, his grades were never that good to begin with, and he didn’t let it bother him.
What did bother him was little things, like how he’d catch a cold because he honestly didn’t notice the chill outside. His skin was always dry because he used too-hot water when washing his hands or dishes. His tactile senses didn’t quite function like they should, and he knew it. So when he felt that jolt at a mere touch from none other than his closest bud Sero, it was a serious shock literally and figuratively.
Over the next few days, Kaminari decided to experiment to see what kinds of things triggered this strange new sensation. He gave out plenty of high-fives to as many people as he could, to no avail. Guess there has to be more contact than clapping hands?
Next, he tried putting his hand on people’s shoulders. This was met with many an awkward stare from various classmates, ranging from mild bemusement on Mina’s part to ‘get your hand off me if you want to live’ from Bakugou. Throughout these silly little experiments, each one felt the most natural and organic with Sero; Kaminari realized that they did tend to use a lot of physical contact in their day-to-day interactions. There may have been a slight buzzy feeling when he laid his hand on Sero’s shoulder, but it was too faint to be certain. Clearly, more tests were needed. I didn’t hallucinate the other night, did I? Why is this affecting me now?
His train of thought was interrupted as Sero came up behind him and slung his arm across Kaminari’s shoulders. A sudden current ignited down his back as the blond looked up at his friend’s bright, easygoing smile and he nearly fell back into him.
Did… did I just swoon?
“Hey, are you doing okay?” Sero asked concernedly, helping Kaminari regain his balance.
Flustered, Kaminari replied, “Yes, yeah! Doing swell! How are you my pal, my bro, my friendo?” Way to play it cool.
Sero raised an eyebrow at that, but let it slide. “Just feeling a little bored. Wanna go play some mario kart in my room later? Kirishima and Bakugou are in.”
“Sounds great my dude, see you there.”
Sero’s grin grew, and he released Kaminari from his grip but not before casually ruffling the messy blond hair. The current running down his back intensified briefly, in a not-unpleasant manner. They waved goodbye as Sero headed out to change out of his gym clothes. Kaminari leaned against a wall for a moment to process what just happened.
Okay okay okay, chill out Denki, maybe you’re just overly sensitive right now because of quirk training? Sero is your bro, best lad, crazy nice to you and oh I want those fingers back in my hair - WHAT BRAIN WHAT okay okay okay that felt so nice but let’s think about this. Mina strolled past looking inquisitively at the blond as he emotes quietly in the corner, and Kaminari hatches a plan. “Mina! Can I swing by your room right after class? I need your help with something…”
Mina pretended to think about it for a few seconds, then replied, “Sure, I’ll help you as long as you bring some snacks!”
“You’ve got a deal!”
Mina opened up for Kaminari after the first knock. “Snacks?” She asked before letting him in. Kaminari showed her the chips he was hiding in his jacket pocket, and was allowed inside.
“So what’s on your mind, Mr. Stun Gun?” Mina said while chowing down. “You’ve been acting kinda weird all day, feeling extra touchy-feely?”
Nervously, Kaminari fidgeted as he explained, “It’s kinda weird to talk about, but lately I’ve been getting some weird sensory overloads and I think I might know what it is, but I need to make sure before I jump to any conclusions.”
Mina nodded. “Sounds like you’ve given this a lot of thought. So what do you need me for?”
He chuckled anxiously. “Could you, um, come up behind me and wrap your arm around my shoulders? I need to know if this sensory thing is because of a specific person, or because of the action.” He saw Mina immediately go to ask, and cuts her off by saying, “And no, I’m not telling you who.”
Mina pouted, then shrugged. “Alright, since you brought some good junk food, I’ll help you out in this little experiment. But I’m not blind, Denki, I’m pretty sure I know who you’re talking about. Now turn around.”
“Lies and slander! From my close friend! I’m so hurt,” Kaminari feigned offence, but complied and turned to face the door, closing his eyes. Shortly after, he felt a soft arm around his back, but aside from the slight warmth on his back there wasn’t anything like what he had felt with Sero. He sighed wistfully. So it’s him.
Mina’s arm lingered for half a minute, before she removed it. “Got your answer?”
Kaminari grinned at her. “Yep! Now time to face the music, as they say.” Mina flashed him a thumbs up, and he thanked her for her help.
“I’ll be here if you need me! Let me know how it goes,” she said winking.
It was already about time for him to meet up with the guys for Mario Kart, so he climbed the stairs to Sero’s dorm room. Sero let him in after just a moment of knocking.
“Come on in! The others are running late, so make yourself comfortable.” They pair sat by the small television screen that Sero had set up for game nights.
Kaminari tried his best not to act as nervous as he felt, and after a few minutes of friendly banter he was slowly able to relax. After all, this was Sero - he’s the most chill person Kaminari knew. Some part of the blond was desperate to feel that electric current running through him again, and if he was being a little extra with the casual touches, well, who could blame him?
Kirishima and Bakugou arrived together, and the four of them played around for a few hours. By the time 8 PM rolled around, Bakugou brashly declared himself the winner and left, mumbling about needing to finish some schoolwork and get to bed. Kirishima left shortly after, claiming he wanted to grab a late night snack. Kaminari was getting exhausted by this point - it had been a long day of contemplation and personal discovery, okay? - and found his head lolling to the side towards the taller boy. A game or two later, and he could no longer hold it up any longer and sunk into Sero’s side, sighing in contentment. Sero laughed briefly, and wrapped an arm around him, causing Kaminari to let out a short moan.
They sat together in silence for a few minutes, Kaminari’s brain whirring in an attempt to figure out what to say, but too tired to come up with any good ideas. Sero seemed content to play on his phone with his free hand, and casually lifted the one around Kaminari to weave his fingers through blond locks of hair.
“Hey, Sero?”
“Yeah?”
“Can I tell you a secret?” The fingers in Kaminari’s hair scratched light circles into his scalp, and he was practically purring.
“Only if I can tell you one too,” came the reply from Sero.
Kaminari opened his eyes and looked up towards Sero. “I think I have a crush.”
“Yeah? Me too.”
“Oh yeah bro?”
“Yeah.”
They looked at each other for a long minute, before Kaminari sucked in a deep breath and braced himself. He lifted his head to get closer to Sero, and found that the other boy had the same idea and they met in the middle, foreheads bonking together. “Owww!” Even as they pulled away from each other in pain, they laughed and laughed.
Grinning ear to ear, Sero calmed down and said, “Let’s try that again.” This time, Kaminari lets Sero come to him, and the moment their lips meet his entire being felt alive as it never had before. His lips buzzed, his spine tingled, and his fingertips and toes felt a tickle of energy as they moved together, only breaking apart when he desperately needed air. It was almost too much, and he had to rest his head on Sero’s chest for a minute panting.
Once he caught his breath, Kaminari looked Sero in the eye. “Bro, will you go out with me?”
Sero sunk his fingers back into Kaminari’s hair, and the blond was certain that it was his favorite feeling ever . “Yeah, let’s do that.” He laid a kiss on Kaminari’s forehead.
They may have been late to their classes the next morning, and took their punishment for being tardy with held hands.