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Bakugou was certain his boyfriend was instigating kisses. The first few times it had happened, he’d thought nothing of it. Well, the first few times it had happened, there couldn’t have been a pattern yet anyway.
It had started when the shitty nerd said something cute - what it was, he couldn’t remember. All he recalled was the irritation that rose within him at the damn fluttering he felt in his chest. Stupid fuck. So he flicked the little shit’s forehead. Yet the way that freckled face scrunched up in reaction...it didn’t stop the stupid feeling. Dammit. So he leaned forward and kissed that forehead, right where he’d flicked it, as a way of an apology. He still needed to get better about acting out like that.
Those green eyes were wide as they stared after him when he pulled back, and his irritation spiked once again, replacing any thoughts about getting better.
“What?!” he demanded, daring that shitty Deku to comment on what he’d just done.
“Nothing!” Midoriya said, clearly trying to clamp down on the way the corners of his mouth turned up. Yet those stupid cheeks were turning pink, as his fucking boyfriend was easily flustered.
“Tch,” he scoffed, turning away from the damn nerd in order to hide his own annoying blush. Shitty nerd just had to make his heart do fucking gymnastics and shit. Like he had time for any of this.
Somehow, it started to become a trend. Whenever he felt self-conscious about flicking the nerd’s forehead, he’d kiss it, because a physical apology was easier for him than a verbal one. Deku didn’t say anything about it - thank fuck. But Bakugou always pulled away fast to avoid seeing how those eyes shined so brightly, a ridiculously cute little smile on that face. As if he could fucking handle that.
He did it a couple times, and then he did it a couple more. It wasn’t after every flick that he kissed the nerd - because some flicks were deserved. But, more often than not, those stupid, curly bangs needed to be pushed out of the way to receive a quick press from his lips.
There wasn’t really a beginning point to his suspicions; he just felt a creeping sensation that something was going on that he wasn’t aware of. And, being that his instinct was always correct, he decided to start paying attention. Was it the way Deku’s eyes started gleaming before he’d kiss his forehead? Or was it the way some of what the shitty nerd did felt planned?
“Kacchan, you were so cool out there!” Nothing wrong here; this was to be expected after a day of hero class.
“Fucking obviously, you shitty nerd,” he’d retort back, as per usual.
“Watch me when I go! I’ll be even better!” Again, normal; desired, even.
“Hah?!” Bakugou grunted out, uncrossing his arms so he could pop little, threatening explosions. “I’d like to see you fucking try!”
“I’m not going to try, I will beat you!”
There was that shitty, confident fucking grin that got his heart racing, his blood pumping. At least it was in a way he understood.
Grinding his teeth, Bakugou said, “You stupid fuck, I’ll kill you at it-”
“Don’t be mad, Kacchan,” Deku said, surprising him by interrupting. “When I win, it’ll be because you’re my inspiration!”
Fuck! How was he not supposed to flick the damn nerd’s face after that? And yet, there was that scrunched up reaction, the wince at feeling his finger hit, and once again, he struggled with his guilt. Deku didn’t look too upset as he leaned forward to kiss his damn forehead, but he still did it. Midoriya would always tell him it was okay; doesn’t matter, he still had to apologize.
Yet that interruption felt weird to him. He couldn’t explain it, but he knew he was right.
Bakugou started paying more attention to the times he flicked and kissed. Nothing felt too out of the ordinary; his boyfriend was cute, and he could barely handle it most of the time. Deku was a little eager those moments between the flick and the kiss, but of course the damn nerd would be excited, seeing as how the stupid fuck loved him back.
He started feeling his suspicions were validated when it started happening more frequently. It was difficult to tell at first, but when it went from happening twice a week to every day, he fucking took notice. The damn nerd would get flicked, and then he’d get kissed, and Bakugou would have to turn away and stew in his seat, wondering if he’d been set up. Yet despite telling himself that he’d get it under control, that shitty Deku always found a way to piss him off the next day! It felt like it was the fucker’s mission in life to irritate him. And of course he always felt wrong about it, cause the asshole was just being cute. But fuck, he was trying to be better about this shit, why couldn’t the damn nerd just support him like a good boyfriend?
The suspicion was getting to him; he started asking for backup, but apparently there was no help to be found for a struggling teen such as himself. Well, to be fair, perhaps his recruitment methods weren’t the most effective.
“Oi, Shitty Hair. Dunceface. Has Deku been more irritating than normal?” His two supposed friends simply raised their eyebrows at him as they chewed their lunch.
“Uh...no?” Kaminari said, looking at him like he was making a joke.
“Is...something going on between you two?” Kirishima asked cautiously, his eyes flicking over to the table where Midoriya sat with his friends.
“Yeah, it looks like the exact opposite,” Kaminari added on, grinning like an asshole. “You guys have been getting along swimmingly. Ah!” At the way the other blonde had wiggled his eyebrows, Bakugou pinched his arm, causing him to pout.
“Forget about it. You stupid fucks wouldn’t understand.”
So he was alone in this world, haunted every morning by the fact that somehow, that day, he would be compelled to flick his boyfriend’s forehead, and then forced to apologize with a kiss. Okay, perhaps it wasn’t the biggest thing he had to complain about. But it still pissed him off, not having any proof to aid him.
When Deku started pinning his hair up, however, that’s when he’d had enough. He let it go at first, not realizing what was happening until he leaned in to kiss and he brought his hand up instinctively, feeling a lack of hair to sweep aside. He stopped, almost forgetting to give the recipient his peck. After that, oh he was fucking pissed. Deku thought he could just get away with anything, huh?
The next day, he clamped down hard. Ha, maybe he hadn’t been trying enough to get better. Had he been going soft? Of course he could stop if he’d just put his mind to it. No matter how cute Deku was that day, he didn’t flick him in the forehead. Of course not; Deku deserved a boyfriend that respected his boundaries, whose immediate response to irritation wasn’t to flick him.
This went on for perhaps a week, and Bakugou made sure to pay attention to the shitty nerd. The longer he went without his flick, the more frustrated and pouty he seemed to be. And Bakugou started feeling smug. Aha, he’d been fucking correct. His stupid, shitty boyfriend was tricking him after all. But he was better than that damn nerd; that fuck was underestimating the strength of his willpower. When Deku stopped pinning his hair up regularly, Bakugou thought of it as a victory.
He knew, then, whenever Midoriya was trying for a forehead kiss, because his bangs would be up. Didn’t matter, Bakugou was wise to his tricks, and with a steel resolve to boot. He won every time these days.
“Kacchan!” Hair pinned up - it was the first thing he noticed now. “All Might’s back, so we’re resuming early morning practice.”
“Yeah, I fucking assumed. You calling me dumb?”
“No…” Midoriya seemed exasperated, but it was better than a year ago, when he would’ve been sad, or even nervous. That expression perked up, however, and his boyfriend gave him that cute little smile, and he was reminded not to flick. “I just wanted to know if you would join me?”
Quirking an eyebrow at that, Bakugou said, “Obviously. What do ya fucking take me for, huh? I ain’t lazy!”
Deku sighed, a common phenomenon when talking with his boyfriend. But that forced cuteness had dissipated, meaning he was already done trying for a flick. Ha, I win!
“Of course you’re not, Kacchan. I just didn’t know if you were interested or not.”
“Hah?” What the hell was that supposed to mean? “Why the fuck wouldn’t I be interested?” One for All practice was so fucking important for many reasons, but it had been their final step in getting together in the first damn place. He wouldn’t skip it for anything, not even two more hours of sleep.
“I don’t know,” Midoriya admitted shyly, scratching his neck, causing Bakugou’s eyes to narrow suspiciously. “Maybe I’m just overthinking things…Ah!”
Shit. Bakugou had flicked without even thinking about it. But he didn’t regret it this time.
“Don’t do that,” he told the other bluntly, allowing for no argument. Don’t overthink how much I care for you, idiot.
He may have lost this battle, but he wouldn’t lose the war. He was about to lean forward, when he was stopped suddenly, his eyes widening. Deku’s face had lit up, and his stupid head was leaning forward, anticipating his lips. Seeing that...the explosive teen’s heart skipped a beat. Out of this whole thing, that was maybe the cutest part of it all.
Smirking, Bakugou watched the surprise take over Midoriya’s expression when he tilted the other’s chin up and gently kissed his boyfriend on the lips. When he pulled away, he was absolutely pleased with the results. Deku had been too stunned to return the kiss, and now his face was pink enough that his freckles were vanishing. Ha! Looks like Deku couldn’t handle that. How the fuck does it feel, shitty nerd? Grinning in his newfound victory, Bakugou took his hand back from that chin, amused at how good the color red looked on his boyfriend.
“If you want something, just fucking ask for it, dumbass.” Then he gave that forehead another flick, deciding that that one was deserved, before walking off. Not before he saw that burning face disappearing behind scarred hands, however. Heh, maybe now the nerd will stop trying to trick him.
But he didn’t. In fact, Midoriya’s efforts were renewed; doubled, even. Whatever. That was okay, Bakugou guessed. Again, it wasn’t the biggest thing he had to complain about.