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It could almost be considered funny that despite how paranoid her class was, the sound of walking down the hallways at night didn't scare any of them. It was always one of their friends going to get themselves a snack, or some tea so they wouldn't have to go back to sleep quite yet.
The first time it had happened, all the people on the second floor had burst out of their rooms, triggering the third floor to get up as well, quirks prepared to fight off whatever intruder had entered, only to find a worried Deku in a pair of All-Might pajamas, rubbing his eyes and extremely confused. Everyone mostly settled down after that, but there were many who were still on edge.
But everyone slowly got used to it.
In the month or two following, people would hear the footsteps and check, sometimes waving to their friends before going back to sleep.
Deku was the most common, occasionally being followed by Todoroki. Iida would never admit he broke curfew by getting up at night, but his footsteps were discernible as he walked down the stairs to get himself a glass of water and calm the thoughts in his head. Momo was another common one, sometimes being joined by some of the girls. Barely there chatter usually accompanied those, but no one minded.
They all had their personal reasons for going down at night. Sometimes it was insomnia, sometimes nightmares. There were some who were simply homesick, and there were others who could barely stumble down the stairs because they were too shaky. Some never went down at all, which she found odd.
Ochako went down sometimes too, usually to accompany a friend who didn't want to go alone, but other times she was there on her own. And she didn't always mind. The quiet was peaceful, and she could be alone with her thoughts.
But not tonight.
Tonight she'd wandered downstairs after hours of being unable to fall asleep, only to come across someone she'd never known to take advantage of the class' secret rule bending.
Bakugou sat at the table, staring down at the wood silently. And she knew he'd never admit it if she asked, but he was shaking.
Eventually she walked across the kitchen, going to open the cupboard to make them tea. The rustling had gotten his attention, but he hadn't said anything yet which she found odd. But she continued making the tea, happy to let him decide when he was going to talk, even if the silence was a little unnerving at the moment. After all, the others were asleep, she didn't want to say anything that made him explode.
It would have been funny, if she hadn't been concerned for him. She'd never known her classmate to be this quiet before now. He was a variety of things, but not quiet. He was loud, easily riled up, stubborn and explosive in more ways than one. But he was also dedicated, powerful, and had a heart, even if he didn't like to show it. She felt like he was one of the few who actually took her seriously from the beginning and somewhat respected her. So she respected him just the same, and that was that.
Bakugou watched her as she set the mugs on the table, pulling the mug closer to him. "Thank you." He muttered.
"Oh- you're welcome. I figured we could both use some." She smiled slightly, gauging his reaction. Surprisingly he just nodded, trying to cool it down a bit. Eventually she spoke again, trying to get him a bit back to his normal self. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Talk about what?" His voice took on the familiar growl it usually had, and she raised her hands defensively.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to talk about why you're down here. It sometimes helps me to talk about it, you know? I'm just sleepless tonight, but I can't imagine that's what's brought you down here."
He shrugged noncommittally, sipping his drink, and she sighed.
“Bakugou, I know you’re always trying to be tough, but… it’s okay to be afraid, sometimes. We all are. Maybe you don’t feel like you can be, but it’s okay to allow yourself to be weak sometimes.”
She noticed the way his hand went to his chest over his heart, trying to make it look like he was just wiping his hand off when in reality she could see he was trying to calm down. So she paused, but stood up after a moment, thinking he wasn’t going to answer. "Okay. Well... I'll go then, if you'd prefer to be alone. I hope you feel better."
She turned, and made it about two steps towards the stairs before she heard the telltale squeak of a chair being pushed back and felt a hand grab her own.
"Don't go." It was soft, and she could barely comprehend that he'd said it at all. It was far more than she'd ever expect from him. So she nodded, noticing that he hadn't let go of her yet. And then she noticed that she didn't mind one bit.
"Come on." She tugged him after her as she started towards the stairs.
"What?" He planted his feet in place, causing her to stumble a little.
"We're going to the roof." She said, letting go of his hand (refusing to admit to herself how much she missed the warmth) and propping her hand on her hip. "Get your mug and trust me."
He rolled his eyes, trying to turn around and go back to the table. "Cheeks, I'm staying here."
"Glad to see you're slowly getting back to normal, but come on. The fresh air and the view helps me feel better after nightmares. Trust me."
"I'm not down here because of a nightmare-"
"Bakugou, come on. Please?" He stared at her before scoffing quietly and rolling his eyes.
"Fine."
"Good." She grinned, going to get his mug for him. "Shall we?"
"I don't think I have a choice."
"You don't, but I think you'll like it."
He sighed, and if it wasn't dark she could have sworn she saw a bit of a smile on his face. "Lead the way, Pink Cheeks."
She dismissed the nickname, starting up the stairs towards the rooftop. Usually she'd turn there on the infrequent nights when she'd run into people at the times that she couldn't handle being around people. It was calming to her, being up there with only the wind and the faint noises of the city.
And it seemed it calmed him a little too.
There was more light up there than there had been in the dorms, and she could see him visibly relax, only looking at her when she sat down, patting the space beside her.
"You coming?"
He scoffed again, but sat next to her, the two of them sipping their tea side by side as they looked out over the trees and buildings.
"The only thing we're missing now is stars." Ochako murmured, looking up at the sky. "You can see a couple now, but it's not the same."
"You like stars?" She made a face, looking over.
"You didn't know? I thought everyone knew at this point. Astronomy is kind of my thing."
"Isn't that the bullshit Mina likes to spew?" The question was unexpected, and she let out a laugh, shaking her head.
"No, no. That's astrology, totally different." She heard him mutter something along the lines of 'bullshit', but chose to ignore it. "Astronomy is the study of the universe, and astrology is more... fiction than fact. Some of it is based in truth, but not really."
She looked over to find him staring at her, and she immediately turned to refocus on the sky.
His gaze seemed to remain on her though when he spoke up next. "You're really into this shit, aren't you?"
"Well- yeah? Looking at the sky is free, so it became a hobby." She shrugged, shivering when a gust of wind hit them.
"You're cold."
"It happens when you're up here."
There was a beat of silence before he moved to sit closer to her, putting his arm around her shoulders. She almost protested, but he was as warm as a personal space heater, and so she accepted her fate.
"And here I thought you were starting to act normal."
"I am acting normal!" She flinched at how loud his voice was, and he clearly noticed, his voice lower when he spoke next. "It would be bad if you caught a cold and we had no explanation for Aizawa as to why."
She simply shrugged, knowing full well that she wouldn't catch a cold from this alone, but not about to complain about his sudden change of attitude towards her. Instead she sipped her now lukewarm tea, allowing herself to rest her head on his shoulder and finding the silence comfortable instead of strange as it had been earlier.
Eventually he spoke though, in a voice so quiet she could barely hear.
"You were right." She was stunned, finding it wise to keep quiet and just let him talk unprompted. "About the nightmares. They're the reason I'm up. And you were right about the roof. It helps." He glanced down before shaking his head. "I'm not talking about them. Not... not tonight, at least."
She nodded, setting her empty mug down and reaching for his free hand, her pinky carefully tucked up (reversing gravity wouldn't exactly do much to help anything). She wasn't surprised when he accepted it (no matter how hesitantly it was), although she was grateful he didn't feel the need to say anything. And she didn't complain when she felt his head rest on her own.
She never expected time with Katsuki Bakugou to be anything even close to being considered peaceful. And yet here they were, her wristwatch telling them it was nearly three in the morning, sitting hand in hand and it was just that. Peaceful.
"We have to bring a blanket next time." She heard him say, and she smiled.
Next time. She could admit that she wouldn't exactly mind being sleepless if there was a next time exactly like this one.