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Bakugou Katsuki strode into U.A. with a confidence he wasn’t quite sure he possessed, but one which he had learned to fake enough to fool the people around him.
A breeze hit against his face as he passed a cherry blossom tree. Gathering his surroundings, he saw glimpses of different people entering the facility—hope and ambition etched on their faces. A sick thrill passed through his spine at the thought of crushing their desires with his inevitable number one rank.
He couldn’t dwell on it though. A burst of joyous laughter by the stairs made him stiffen. His eyes followed the sound and his gaze fell upon a short girl smiling brightly. As corny as it may have been, it was like he was being blinded by the sun. Katsuki was mesmerized by the way her eyes crinkled as happiness seemed to radiate from her in waves.
The girl’s eyes were full of mirth, making everything else around her seem dull in comparison. He stiffened, the sudden thought making him feel both warm and uncomfortable.
A flash of green moved by her side. The way her grin widened as she looked at the nerd brought Katsuki’s whole demeanor crashing down. It was his cue to keep walking
Grumbling underneath his breath, he moved through the threshold with the same ambition he had at the time he entered the campus. It was different now. There was a foreign warmth rooted in his chest that accompanied him throughout the day.
How could he feel so warm? Summer hadn’t arrived yet.
His chest rose and fell in quick motions. The adrenaline of the chase invigorated him even through the booing that was thrown his way, attempting to shame him into cutting their fight short since there was such an abysmal difference between their abilities.
You’re gonna destroy her.
Bullshit. He was destructive by nature. But he wasn’t going to destroy her.
The girl with the sun-bright smiles—Uraraka, his mind supplied—had been putting up a good fucking fight, her fierceness and tenacity astonishing.
Then in a blink of an eye, it prematurely ended as she was carried away, undoubtedly to be put under Recovery Girl’s care. In the background, the shouts subsided and utter silence followed.
Katsuki suddenly was aware that if he were to watch the video feed of their fight, devastation and shock would be written across his face the moment she collapsed to the ground.
After she was taken away, Katsuki took advantage of all the ruckus caused by the preparation of the stage, and reached down for her jacket. He tucked it beneath his arm and exited the platform.
The way she used her jacket as a disguise still reeled in his mind. Fuck, it wasn’t just any day someone tried to crush him under a rain of debris he had created himself.
He knew, deep down, if she hadn’t thanked him for keeping his guard up, if she had brought the debris upon him without prior notice, he might have not been able to stop it from crushing him.
Moving through the corridor in autopilot, he encountered Izuku, who admitted that her plan hadn’t been his idea, and his statement didn’t fully surprise Katsuki.
Walking past him, instinct pushed Katsuki through the corridors until he arrived outside of the waiting rooms. He gave a quick knock against the mahogany door and Ochako immediately gave him permission to enter.
Once he walked into the room, his gaze immediately fell to the band-aid on her cheek.
He gulped and looked away from her cheek, and instead focused on her face. Her jacket still secured under his arm, he knew the reason behind his presence was confusing to her—if her furrowed brow was anything to go by.
“Oi,” he called, shifting slightly on his feet towards her, “Got your jacket.”
His eyes found hers and she looked back, pink mouth opening slightly.
Her hand reached out to him and he handed her the jacket, their fingertips brushing at the exchange. “Thank you, Bakugou-kun!” She draped the jacket over a chair, tracing the scorch with delicate fingers and smiled at him.
His traitorous heart beat wildly. A glint in her eye brought him back to their fight—Ochako thanking him for keeping his gaze on her before letting the debris fall.
She shifted, the movement pushing him out of his thoughts. His eyes flickered to the clock on the wall—the ticking sound reminding him that he should go face his next fight.
He made a motion to leave, but halted once he saw her fidgeting fingers in his peripheral vision.
Katsuki cleared his throat, pushing himself to say all he could offer to her. He blinked owlishly at her, and said, “It was a good fight.”
You gave it your all, was what he wanted to say, but the dangerous, suffocating words thrummed in his heart, too big to utter out loud.
Her nose crinkled, a smile taking over her features. He tried not to show how much he liked her smile.
“It was.” Ochako nodded.
Katsuki made no move to go—God, he only hoped to know why the fuck he wasn’t leaving.
“Fucking insane move too,” he added, arching his eyebrow.
Ochako tried to hide a snicker behind her hand and utterly failed, making him scowl—more so to keep up his facade rather than feeling annoyed by her amusements.
Ochako smirked, eyes glinting underneath the luminescent lights of the dorms. “You’re lucky I gave you a heads up,’’ she sang and chuckled, “I could’ve crushed you if I wanted to.”
“Yes, you could have.”
She blinked up at him, her hand stilled in the air as it moved away from her mouth. Taking a step backward, she scanned his face for any sign of deceit. Ochako hummed underneath her breath. Her gaze fell on him, and she sat down as the seconds ticked by. He didn’t say anything else.
It was late. He needed to get to the stadium. Yet, Katsuki halted. The desire to say more invaded him. Why was he so bad with words?
Instead, he turned around just as she flashed a smile, the light of the lit-up candle in the room reflecting.
On his way out, as he strode through the corridors, his eyes closed and the vision of her falling to the ground felt engraved behind his eyelids. A flash of her smile quickly changed his memory, and Ochako was no longer falling to the ground with exhaustion, instead, a clear image of the blue sky fought its way through, full of floating debris ready to fall on him any minute.
Katsuki smirked and turned around.
A good fight, indeed.
Her future loomed over her, suffocating and exhilarating at the same time.
Ochako was eighteen, unsure, and tired of waiting for things to come. At this point in life, she had learned not to expect revelations from the cosmos, which had always surprised her one way or another. For better or for worse.
But Ashido fucking Mina was not the cosmos and yet she always managed to surprise, exasperate, and push Ochako towards near insanity.
“Come on, Chakochip! Let’s go! It’ll be fun.’’ Mina bounced on her feet, trying to take a hold of Ochako’s hand to drag her towards a purple tent whose entrance had a big sign that read: ‘Mirai’s Prodigious Prophecies’.
“Girls, I don’t think that’s the best idea,’’ Momo started, frown deepening as she looked at the mysterious aura surrounding the place, “We should check the place’s reviews! To see if it’s credible.’’
Kyouka looked at her, and tried to stifle a laugh. “Yaomomo, I don’t think reviews work for these kinds of things.’’
Mina huffed. “But it’ll be so much fun!’’
“Imagine knowing more about our futures! What destiny will bring to us!’’ exclaimed Tooru, her shirt moving along her excitement. “I can’t wait. I’m so excited!’’
Cheering, Mina and Tooru grabbed each other’s hands and started bouncing around the place, the sun shining upon them. In their faces, excitement radiated at the prospect of someone telling them a bit of their futures.
Once Mina and Tooru noticed no one moving around them, they looked at their friends and saw them not sharing any of their excitement.
“I don’t know, Mina…’’ Ochako still had her reservations about entering the place. Not to mention she didn’t know how much money it would cost. She pursed her lips. “It could be a scam for all we know.’’
“See? Uraraka-san agrees with me!’’ Momo crossed her hands in front of her chest.
Mina shifted closer to Ochako, noticing she would have a better chance at convincing her than Momo, or Kyouka, whose expressions reflected their lack of trust in the idea.
“Chako, come on! You only live once, you know?’’ Seeing her friend still thinking it over, Mina’s mind came up with a brilliant idea, a smirk slowly making its way onto her face. “I’ll buy you some mochi if you come with us!’’
Tooru must have nodded eagerly, her clothes moving with her gesture.
Ochako shifted on her feet, her mouth immediately watering at the mention of her favorite food.
Clearing her throat, she moved closer to her friend. “Alright, alright,’’ she acquiesced, “I’ll come, not because of the mochi, but because I’m a good friend!’’ Her voice rose a few octaves higher, a telltale that she was lying.
Mina chuckled. “So,’’ she wondered, eyes glinting, “I can forget about getting you mochi?’’
Ochako pouted and pointed her finger towards Mina. “You promised!’’
Mina chuckled and grabbed Ochako and Tooru’s hands, moving with them to enter the tent.
“They didn't even want to hear any of our concerns!” Momo protested.
Kyouka shrugged and with a sigh, stepped forward to go after their friends. Reluctantly, Momo followed.
Kyouka’s brow arched. “So, you have a quirk that predicts the future… and you’re using it to tell people about their love life?’’
“Don’t be silly!’’ The woman, who had said her name was Mirai, chuckled. “Don’t you think if I were able to do so freely, I would be?” She shook her head, moving to the table at the center of the room. With a match, she lit up three candles and placed them on the table. “I can’t tell people their future entirely. Just prophecies that are usually difficult to realize what they fully mean until they’re in motion.”
Momo looked thoughtful.
“I offer three questions. As far as asking about your love life, it’s your choice. So I’m not exactly just telling people about their love life,’’ she remarked as her brow arched, “they’re asking me for it.’’
“Mirai-san, how does this work, exactly?’’ Still not very comfortable with the idea, Momo always preferred to take precautions.
“Oh, it’s my quirk.’’ Mirai moved around and sat down behind a table. “I can draw cards that accurately give me pieces of a person’s future.’’
Silence settled as the girls pondered about the woman’s quirk and its accuracy. Ochako thought she certainly seemed confident of her abilities, riffling some cards with nimble fingers. But weren’t all scammers confident? she mused .
Mirai put a candle on the table and looked up. “Okay, who wants to go first?”
“Me!” Mina exclaimed immediately.
“No!” Tooru shouted. “Me!”
Mirai chuckled.
Once it was Ochako’s turn, after all the girls had gotten their predictions, she entered the place with careful steps.
Mirai beckoned her to sit in front of her, and Ochako quickly slid onto the chair.
Looking around, she saw a lot of shelves containing different kinds of jars, all filled with colorful, shiny mixtures that Ochako had no idea what they were made of.
“Hey, love,” Mirai called Ochako, trying to attract her attention.
Ochako’s wide eyes fell upon her, and Mirai looked at her with something akin to amusement in her gaze. She must have noticed Ochako’s fidgeting fingers.
Ochako’s mouth fell open slightly as she observed the fortune teller. Her beauty felt like it fit right into the atmosphere. Her grey, long hair contrasted with the silver rings on her fingers. Mirai’s eyes shone brightly in the candlelight. She wore a red dress proudly, under a black, translucent cape that had embroidered moon shapes. The veil covering her mouth completed her appearance.
Ochako idly thought there wasn’t anyone else who could look more like a fortune-teller than her.
“You’ve got 3 questions, love.’’ Mirai’s tone was soft, probably accustomed to her clients’ lulled silence and astonishment.
Ochako gulped. Three questions to choose... She yearned to know so many things. Chiding herself for being so greedy, Ochako started thinking about what she would prioritize.
Even if she wasn't sure of the legitimacy of the fortune teller’s quirk, she also didn’t want to learn something of her future that could set her off and unconsciously push her to a path full of apprehension.
A silence settled as Ochako thought about what to ask, but Mirai, already accustomed to the silence that came with being curious yet wary about one’s life, started looking at her purple cards to let Ochako think it through.
“Will my parents be alright?’’
Mirai hummed, slightly surprised at the selflessness of the question, though she didn’t let it show through. It was a rule not to be judgemental of a client’s questions, even if it was a good kind of surprise.
She shuffled the cards and the atmosphere felt charged as she recited something under her breath.
After a beat, her eyes flitted from the cards to Ochako and she smiled at her. “The sun will continue to shine brightly upon them. Though you should know you’ve always been their greatest light.”
Ochako’s frown deepened, not quite sure of what that meant.
“What…?’’
“I can’t say more.’’ Mirai shook her head. “What’s your next question?’’
Ochako wanted to delve further in that but,
“Will I be a great hero?’’
Shuffling her cards, she held one in front of Ochako. A sky full of stars looked back at her and Mirai said, “You’ll soar through the stars like never before.’’
“Will I find a person that compliments me in every aspect?’’
Mirai fell uncharacteristically quiet. Ochako waited for a beat, but she quickly became impatient at seeing Mirai looking at the cards and not saying anything.
“What?” Ochako prompted, getting impatient at her sudden silence.
“I can’t reveal everything,” Mirai hummed, “After all, matters of the heart are not to be messed with...”
Ochako looked hopefully at her, sensing more words coming. “But...?”
“Well, I can give you one clue.” She gave a deliberate pause, motioning for Ochako to lean closer to her. Once Ochako was a few inches away from her face, elbows atop of the table, Mirai stated, “You’ll know who they’re when you move without a thought in order to reach them.”
Ochako cleared her throat, thinking that Mirai’s prophecies must be vague enough to fit whatever happened. She still wasn’t sure it wasn’t a scam.
“Can you,” Ochako started, “tell me at least something more about them?”
Mirai shook her head. “Sorry, love.” Her hand gripped Ochako’s shoulder, soft and reassuring. “Now, it’s time for you and your friends to go back to your place! It’s not good to spend so much time surrounded by my quirk’s energy.”
Ochako wanted to protest, to know at least some more, but Mirai’s eyes reflected her resolution, and Ochako wasn’t about to push her if she wasn’t able to tell more.
“Thank you, Mirai-san!” She stood up and bowed.
“Goodbye, love. Rest assured, even if I can’t say more, I can tell you that you won’t be disappointed.”
Ochako nodded and hastily retreated to the other room, where the girls waited for her.
Upon seeing Ochako arrive, Momo moved to the counter and insisted on paying the service before any of the girls could protest.
As they left the tent, Ochako looked at the sky as a bird flew above her, chirping on its way south.
She faltered once Mina grabbed her by the elbow, Tooru lingering behind them.
“Chakochip, what did she tell you?’’ Mina’s eyes glinted, curious to get as much information as possible from her friend. “Yaomomo and Kyouka-chan won’t tell me.” She puffed her cheeks.
“It’s our fortune,” Kyouka answered, rolling her eyes, “besides it might not even be true!”
“Okay okay. Don’t tell me!” Mina rolled her eyes and turned towards Ochako, hope filling her eyes. “But Chakolate here will!”
Ochako didn’t feel comfortable disclosing everything she had been told, so she settled on saying, “That I’ll be a great hero!” Her hand raised in a fist, showing her determination and happiness.
“But we already know you’ll be a great hero! It’s you after all. I can’t picture anyone being better at saving people,” Mina huffed. “I meant something about love! Love, Ochako!’’ she drawled.
Ochako felt warmth in her cheeks, tears almost gathering in her eyes at the trust one of her best friends had in her abilities.
However, she wouldn’t relent, especially because she wasn’t even sure what the words meant. They were all… really vague. “Nothing special,’’ she said nonchalantly.
Mina protested, expecting Ochako’s pause to be because she was about to give up and tell her.
As they walked back to the dorms, Ochako was quiet meanwhile Mina and Tooru cheered next to her, doing their best to try to pry the words from her.
Although the city seemed calmer than usual, her thoughts were anything but.
The fortune-teller hadn’t disclosed much about her love life, making curiosity bloom within her chest. But as much as she wanted to know what it meant, she wouldn’t fret about it too much, and instead decided to relish in the happiness the other two good predictions gave her.
The thought of being a good hero and making her parents proud made her look forward to the future. If the predictions turned out to be true, it would no doubt be thrilling and exhilarating.
She looked forward to it, at whatever time it would happen, if it happened.
After all, although the wish to help people had grown within her progressively, her initial reasoning for entering U.A. had been to help her parents. Still was. They had done so much for her.
Ochako could only hope to give them back an ounce of what they had sacrificed for her.
Soon enough, Ochako decided to forget about the cards. Good fortune was flimsy, and she had no proof of the lady’s ability. For all she knew, it could have been a scam; having a good quirk didn’t always align with using it for good purposes—although she believed good was a rather subjective word.
She wasn’t constantly thinking about it, but from time to time she would feel a warmth out of nowhere that she learned to associate with the thought of a prediction she very much hoped was true.
At their second year Sports Festival, Ochako and Katsuki got paired up together.
It brought his mind back to their first fight. Who better to be his partner than the only person that gave him a fight in his first festival?
Although he didn’t like working with other people, he found himself surprisingly not annoyed at this new development.
He could almost swear Aizawa had even smiled a little at his reaction upon finding out his partner was Ochako.
In the final round, they made a supernova, the colors so bright and beautiful the entire stadium roared at the kaleidoscope of colors before it exploded into their opponents’ faces.
They won the Sports Festival.
They had won, and he felt exhilarated. The elation on his face was nothing like the previous year, where the suffocating sensation of being muzzled as he received his prize or the lackluster feeling at having won fights where people didn’t give it their all, had tarnished his victory.
As he stood next to Ochako, he wondered how it was possible that, for how much he always chanted about being number one, he didn’t mind much sharing the spotlight with her.
Although they were in the same number one step and he was several inches taller than her, she looked surprisingly tall, her bright presence resonating throughout the whole stadium.
He kept the picture Mina took of them receiving the prize on his desk.
After they graduated, Ochako consistently worked hard, putting all her might into everything she did.
When Uraraka Ochako got her first solo mission, and she happened to soar through the rankings as much as she soared through the sky, she decided to call it happenstance. Nothing to do with good fortune or the cosmos. A prediction of her fortune had nothing to do with the success that she had built from scratch, through hard work and perseverance.
Ochako and her friends from U.A. opened an agency shortly afterwards. The idea was a space where women thrived to their full potential. She felt proud, having managed to do something that filled her with so much joy along with her dearest friends.
Time passed and she attended Mina’s wedding, content at seeing her friend marrying the love of her life.
Ochako had smiled through it all. Then, Mina came by her, and in the drunkenness of her state, she mumbled, “Chakochip, Mirai’s prophecy was true! She told me about Eijirou and the agency.’’
Ochako suddenly realized her friend’s predictions had been mostly fulfilled, Mina’s prediction of encountering someone as bright as the sun. Momo thriving, becoming a hero and creating a charity organization alongside her husband, Shouto.
The thought of her parents being happy, fulfilled, and always reminding her of how proud they were of the person she had become always left her feeling elated.
Just as she was thinking of them, her mom sent her a picture of her and her dad basking in the sun. They were on a vacation that Ochako had gifted them for their anniversary. Ochako was filled with happiness being able to give her parents an ounce of what they’d given her.
She felt tears coming to her eyes, prepared for whatever else the future threw at her.
Under a special request from Hawks, one of her former mentors, Ochako was partnered with her former classmate, Bakugou Katsuki.
It took her by surprise, the way they were so attuned with each other despite the last time they had worked alongside each other had been in their second year Sports Festival.
She knew he was reluctant at first. Having a partner meant having each other’s back and he was usually targeted, being so high up in the ranks. Ochako could see the frown in his face, the way he worried about the prospect of anyone—let alone her—getting hurt because of him and his ability to make enemies wherever he went.
“I know what you’re thinking.’’ She smiled softly at him. “But I’m a top-ranked hero too, you aren’t the only one making enemies from here and there.’’
Katsuki huffed, shifting on his feet.
“Unless you’re like this because you’re afraid I’ll steal your spot, Bakugou-kun?’’ Her teasing tone made him turn towards her so fast it left his neck stiff.
He found the sight of a tilted head and pursed lips. Her eyes shone brightly and a smirk adorning her red lips made him sport one in return.
“Bring it on, Cheeks. You won’t be taking my spot.’’ His grin was feral.
Ochako smirked. “I’ll do my worst.’’
Their partnership slowly developed, and their first mission was to go after an elusive villain that could momentarily cancel out people’s quirk powers and abilities with a single touch of his hands.
Their hero duties quickly turned into having each other easily sliding into each other’s lives, once Ochako suggested they have dinner together after a particularly rough patrol.
Katsuki was unable to do anything but follow her.
Ochako knew Katsuki well enough to know when he was frustrated because winter wasn’t gentle on him. For someone who took pride in his quirk, what a fuckery it was to find out such a minuscule thing as the weather diminished his abilities. Winter’s harshness made it difficult for him to sweat.
The appearance of a new villain in town hadn’t helped either. They had been chasing him for months, but he always seemed to slip between their fingers. They were exhausted and so done with it all. Katsuki had promised her once they caught him he would buy her all the mochi she wanted, and although Ochako could afford it, she would never say no to free food, especially if it was due to a celebration.
With his winter costume, he seemed sluggish; his hands were sweat-filled but he was slower than normal.
It was unfortunate that their mission came to its tilting point in the winter. Luckily, someone had called their agency and tipped them off that the villain was hiding inside an abandoned warehouse.
They ran from their respective apartments to attend the situation. Ochako’s cheeks were red as she appeared by his side, breathing heavily from the exhaustion. Her eyes didn’t show it though, instead, her eyes shined brightly as they locked into his, eager to finally catch the villain they had been chasing for so many months.
The brightness and enthusiasm clear in her gaze made him feel warm despite the coldness. He shifted slightly on his feet, his hands interlocking in front of him, otherwise, his fidgeting would be a problem.
“Why so happy, Cheeks? Feeling lucky today?’’ Katsuki taunted.
“I don’t believe in luck,’’ she said, grinning widely, “But I’m ready to put them behind bars.’’
Katsuki chuckled. “Then, let’s do it. Let’s destroy that bastard!’’ Reaching for his mask, he put it in its place at the same time Ochako finished putting her helmet on.
Their chase after the villain was hard, Katsuki’s pace was slower than usual due to the lack of heat that caused him to sweat nitroglycerin, and they had inevitably been cornered against the edge of a rooftop.
Too eager and exhilarated on their chase, they might have not thought that more villains than the one they had been chasing would be inside the place, ready to attack them.
Ochako felt drained, having used her quirk multiple times throughout the day, meanwhile, Katsuki had had trouble sweating.
Even if he was stubborn, Ochako knew they needed reinforcements, so she did her best to touch the hidden button in her sleeve, reserved for emergencies.
She twirled around, about to inform Katsuki—who was close to the edge of the rooftop—of the reinforcements when she saw the villain with the erasure quirk jumping behind him.
“Bakugou! Behind you!’’
Her warning didn’t come fast enough. Disgruntled, Ochako’s heart clenched as she could only watch as the villain’s fingers skimmed against his back. Although Katsuki was usually fast, his winter costume felt heavy on him. When he tried to throw an explosion the villain's way, horror etched his features upon noticing not even one spark ignited.
His quirk had been effectively incapacitated, Ochako realized with a heavy heart.
She was struck for a moment as she saw them fighting by the edge of the rooftop.
Once the villain delivered a blow to his stomach and he lost his balance, her senses went into overdrive as she saw him falling backwards.
Ochako slid across the ground of the roof before any rational thought came to mind, her hand reaching out just in time to catch him by his fingers, her hand settling into his with a tight grip.
It felt electrifying, to be able to move so quickly when instinct took over rational thinking, almost like muscle memory from a time that had been written long ago. In the background, she could hear the rustling of feet as their reinforcements arrived, subduing the erasureer villain.
Her first instinct was to blame her quick move on the adrenaline. She had been moving languidly all day, exhaustion looming over her each passing second. Of course, watching him fall from a ledge in almost slow-motion pushed her to do something.
Saving Bakugou Katsuki from sure death wasn’t instinct—it was raw emotion, carved into the marrow of her bones. It was muscle memory of an action she had never done before, yet had been unconsciously trained by the consolidation of their partnership, from nights turned daybreaks where they had been crammed together, from proximity beyond any physical realm.
It was the repetition of patrols gone wrong, of intense training and soaring through the skies together, of always having each other’s backs.
She didn’t think of what would have happened had she not acted fast enough—there wasn’t a part of her that ever intended to deal with that scenery. Katsuki was alright.
They looked at each other for what felt like hours due to the amalgamation of him clinging to her as her chest pushed against the earth, hanging by the ledge in a desperate attempt to save her partner. In reality, it was only a few seconds.
A few seconds that were enough to rock her world onto its axis as if within her chest had exploded a supernova like the one that existed each time their quirks met, leaving her breathless and tingling where their palms connected.
Ochako remembered a time where fortune had promised her such good things, that she had trouble believing in their veracity: her parents’ well-being, the way she would thrive in her work, the fact the realization would hit her all at once when she saved the person that was forged to be her equal.
It was fitting, for it to be the last thing she figured out from the amalgamation of good fortune she had been told years before. It wasn’t as if she had been missing out on something; her life was good, she thrived in everything she had achieved by herself. Yet, he integrated seamlessly into her life.
Her wide eyes locked into his vermillion eyes, glinting under the sunlight’s reflection. “It was always you.’’ The words spilled out of her mouth with the same easiness as one breathed, a declaration that felt both right in time and simultaneously like it had struck her way too late. She could understand her revelation with clarity, yet it hit her so suddenly and surprisingly as being struck by lighting.
It had always been him; the realization both overwhelming and relieving at the same time. The fact she hadn’t been imagining a connection between them, that they had built it together through movie nights, late-night patrol, and mutual support.
Katsuki looked at her, still too astounded to move.
It had always been him. Although Ochako didn’t believe in the grandness of destiny, she had a great faith put into the cosmos as only someone with the power of controlling such a powerful force as gravity could.
Their connection like the stars that shone upon them, hidden by the clouds and the sunlight, covert but always there.
She fought through the dizziness that overwhelmed her and quickly lifted Katsuki towards the safety of the roof, the lack of gravity making the move smooth and effortless.
They laid on the rooftop next to each other, sweaty and covered in soil and scratches.
After getting everything under control and talking to the pertinent authorities, the villains had been taken to jail.
They had finally succeeded in their mission, which had started months ago. Feeling elated, Ochako turned towards Katsuki, who had just finished cleaning the blood from his face.
Looking at him, her eyes sparkled. He looked bruised but he was alright; she had saved him.
“Do you feel like celebrating?” Ochako said, trying to sound casual. Yet, her heart thrummed, awaiting for a positive answer.
“After this shit?’’ He scoffed. “Fuck yes!”
She grinned.
Ochako held his hand all the way to a nearby bar.
They sat down and ordered some drinks. He was laughing. Fuck. Ochako was grinning widely at him and his own grin matched hers. Exhilarated felt short of a word to describe how they felt.
As Ochako’s mirth shined brightly in her eyes, she leaned much closer to him, unconsciously making him lean closer towards her.
They were close. So close, their noses graced against each other.
“I like you, Cheeks. I think I always have,’’ he confessed without thinking.
He held his breath, waiting for a response; heartbeat thumping loudly against his ears, increasing each second there was no response.
When two doe eyes found his vermillion orbs, his heartbeat faltered as a softness engulfed the atmosphere.
She beamed up at him, knowing finally all three of Mirai’s prophecies had been fulfilled.
Although it was impossible that Katsuki knew about Mirai’s prophecy, the way he tightly held her hands felt like he did.
She longed to tell him later the story of a younger Ochako entering a tent where her future had been read.
For now, she caressed him, sliding her thumb over his calloused knuckles.
Ochako invited him to her house with resolution clear in her face.
Although he wasn’t a stranger to being in her space, their partnership had given way to some movie nights he still held dearly to his chest. The way she grabbed his hands as she pulled him through the threshold of her residence and the way she beamed at him as she willingly let him into her life made his heart stutter like never before.
Ochako entered her room and beckoned him forward to follow her to sit next to her in bed.
He didn’t know if she was aware of the way her hand was wrapped around his heart, and the way she could easily pull it. His heartstrings were always being pulled taut by her gentle fingers.
Katsuki sat down, raising his hand to caress the slope of her cheek.
Ochako hummed under her breath, leaning back against the bedspread. Her legs wounded tightly against him in a vice grip as her mouth collided against his.
Outside, the stars shined brightly, the cosmos’ ways of congratulating another pair of destined souls in finding each other.