Chapter Text
The setting sun sunk beyond the horizon, painting the sky a gorgeous hue of golden and orange. The scene was oddly silent, save for the occasional chirping of birds and the distinct heavy breathing of one ash-blonde.
Bakugou Katsuki stood on the edge of the UA building rooftop, shifting his feet somewhat nervously despite his resolve. His hands were stuffed casually in his baggy pants and he almost looked as if he were just admiring the sunset before it faded into night.
He was barefoot, his shoes set neatly beside him on the rooftop, the laces untied.
The boy fluttered his eyelids closed and let out a tiny sigh, trying to keep his breathing calm and regulated. He was sure of himself as he'd left the dorm rooms and climbed up the many flights of stares, but now that he was actually here, he felt himself waver slightly.
He opened his eyes again and clenched his slightly weakened hands into fists as he stared out onto the city, hardening his expression into one of defiance.
"I'm going to do it." He muttered to himself, not caring that nobody could hear him.
Because like hell was he going to back down now.
The breeze whispered in respond, rustling his clothes and fluffy, blonde hair. He was so close to the edge, the soft gust of wind felt like it could push him off if it wanted to. The thought made his stomach twist slightly, but at the same time, it was what he wanted.
He'd spent his whole life making weak decisions, and this was his chance to redeem himself by doing the right thing for once. Ridding the world of one more pathetic excuse for a hero.
The blonde narrowed his eyes slightly as that familiar self-loathing started to rise up in his chest once again. Why did he have to be so goddamn weak? He had a flashy quirk, good grades, everything he needed to be successful was practically handed to him. So why did he fail so badly?
How did he get to the point where Deku, of all people, was serious competition to him?
"You're a failure!" He suddenly shouted, his voice quickly swept away by the wind. He felt hot tears start to build up behind his eyes, and the feeling only made his gut twist even more. Even now, as he hovered on the edge of the building, his true weakness revealed itself. "You're doing the world a goddamn favor."
He spat the words out bitterly, but he knew he was just stalling.
One step was all he needed.
He just needed to move his foot, to take one step off the edge, and it would all be over.
He thought of plummeting, of hitting the ground, of feeling the breath be forcibly torn from his lungs.
He thought of Deku's face at his funeral, of the little idiot sobbing as he choked out some meaningless words about how 'amazing' 'Kacchan' was.
The thought made the ash-blonde scoff.
He wouldn't actually be missed- maybe Kirishima would shed a few tears, he was his closest friend after all, but he probably wouldn't be able to call him that after he found out how weak he was underneath everything.
Bakugou would miss that idiot's smile, though.
That's what he tried to focus on as he willed himself to take that one step forward.
One.
His chest rose as he breathed in.
Two.
He unclenched his hands and let them rest loosely in his pockets.
Three.
He raised his bare foot forward as if to take a step, only there was no floor beneath him.
As if in slow motion he tipped toward, feeling his toes bend as his stomach lurched and he was falling, his heart in his throat and blood rushing in his ears, drowning out all sound, and-
For a moment, he was weightless.
And then a sharp pain shot through his arm as if it was yanked out of it's socket and his wrist was being crushed. All the air was ripped from his lungs in shock as he swung in midair, dangling by one arm.
Dammit.
"W...why?" A hoarse voice whispered shakily, barely audible over the wind. Bakugou jerked his chin upward to meet Deku's huge green eyes. The other boy was on his stomach with his arm outstretched, slightly trembling hand clutched tightly around Bakugou's wrist. He looked absolutely devastated.
Bakugou grimaced, silently cursing himself for not just getting it over with before he was found.
"Let go of me, Deku." His voice was low and dangerous.
Deku shook his head furiously, tears slowly building up in his wide doe eyes. "No! K-Kacchan,"
"Dammit, Deku!" Bakugou yelled, twisting his hand uselessly in the other boy's grip. Since when was he so strong? "If you don't drop me, I won't hesitate to bring you down with me!"
Deku didn't falter at the threat- if anything, his hand tightened shakily. "Stop it, Kacchan! This isn't- why would you-" The smaller boy seemed to be at a loss for words, tripping over his own tongue as the unshed tears filled his throat.
Bakugou was practically growling now, fury taking over his head. Why did Deku have to mess everything up? Why did he even care? After everything Bakugou had done, he STILL hadn't let go of him!
Deku's hand tightened painfully around his wrist.
"K...Kacchan-" The other boy choked out, tears streaming down his face and dripping off his chin. "I won't let go of you!"
"Stupid... Deku..." Bakugou rasped, feeling his hand twitch futilly in his grasp.
He always had to ruin everything, didn't he?
"You still want to be the number one hero, right?!" Deku yelled out desperately.
His hand, slick with sweat, slipped about an inch.
"I don't care about that now!" Bakugou yelled in return, narrowing his eyes against the wind that buffeted his ash-blonde hair. "Just give it up, Deku!"
"No!"
God, he was so stubborn.
Bakugou felt his hand slip down another inch or so as Deku desperately tried to tighten his grip, despite the fact that his fingers now only gripped around the other boy's palm.
Deku's eyes were wide and swimming with tears, but there was another emotion glowing inside those reflective pupils.
Hope.
Bakugou could've scoffed, if the situation wasn't so intense. That damn nerd still believed in him...
It would be touching if it weren't so pathetic.
"Stop trying, Deku." He snarled, his voice choked yet ringing clear through the night.
And Deku tearfully smiled- a soft, sad smile that played tentatively on his lips- but a smile nonetheless. "Kacchan- I never stop trying. That's what's gotten me to where I am now."
Bakugou narrowed his eyes even further, feeling even greater annoyance at his ex childhood friend's pitiful determination. But along with the anger... something else was brimming inside of him. Something that grabbed ahold of his chest and squeezed into he felt like he was suffocating.
"Damn Deku! I don't need to hear your stupid inspirational speeches right now!" He growled, trying to push down the tightening in his chest. He was determined to not be saved by a weakling nobody like Deku.
He KNEW this was what he needed to do, and nobody would get in his way.
"Just listen to me, Kacchan!" Deku begged, more glistening teardrops falling from his chin and disappearing into the darkness behind Katsuki. "Please!"
Bakugou opened his mouth to send back a stinging retort, which faded away in his throat as a realization hit him.
His quirk.
He did have a way out of this.
His sweat-covered hand slipped another inch out of Deku's grasp, and he heard the latter's breath hitch in fear.
In perhaps just a few moments his hand would slide out of the other's grasp and he would fall to his death-
But he could make sure of that in a less clean way.
"Please, grab my hand!" Deku tried again.
Because that was his thing. He tried and tried and tried again. He was never going to let go.
Bakugou swallowed thickly as the tightening in his chest grew more extreme. He felt like if he didn't plummet, he would suffocate anyways.
He had a plan, and with a flick of his hand, he could make it into a reality.
The soft wind whistled around his ears and tousled his spiky ash-blonde hair in an almost comforting way. He was almost tempted to close his eyes, to savor the sensation.
"Look, Deku..." He began, adopting a less harsh tone. This was truly the end, after all, and now that his anger was slowly melting away, his head felt clearer and calmer as well.
Almost strangely calm.
Deku seemed to sense it too because his shining green eyes widened even further and his mouth opened slightly in dismay. "Kacchan, don't give up now, don't you dare-"
"Shut up!" Bakugou raised his voice a little, adopting the old, familiar rasp. "Just listen to me, for once!"
Deku was still crying, but he quieted down.
"I've already decided what I'm going to do, okay? And I won't let you get in the way!" He began. "So I won't be the number one hero."
"Kacchan-!"
"I'm not finished!"
Silence.
He gave a small huff and continued. "Somebody else has to be, right?"
God, his arm really was aching now."
"... I think you have what it takes, Deku." The words tasted strange in his mouth, but they seemed to spill out so naturally. "You aren't as much of a pathetic loser as you used to be."
Deku gulped, making a gross choking noise in his throat as he seemingly drowned in his own tears. "C-come on, Kacchan! You can let me help you and we can both be heroes, like we always wanted!"
A brief memory flashed over Bakugou's vision-
Of two little boys, one with fluffy ash-blonde hair and the other with a messy green bedhead, grinning and waving small arms as they played heroes, confident that the universe would align in their favor.
He almost wanted to scoff at the memory, at how naive he was. But a small part of him felt even more guilt tighten his chest at the thought of his younger self, running around carefree, already so sure of who he would become.
No, that little boy was gone.
Bakugou felt himself snap back to reality, and he felt his hand tremble slightly in Deku's sweaty grip. He had to do it now, before Deku found a way to pull him up.
The urgency of the situation gave him the extra pump of adrenaline he needed to feel his quirk start to rise up, simmering-
His heart began to race.
Deku's eyebrows lowered in confusion as sparks started to crackle in Bakugou's palm.
He saw as Deku connected the pieces in his mind and the other boy's desperate green eyes widened and he opened his mouth to silently cry out-
"I'm sorry, Deku."
BOOM.
As soon as the words left his mouth they were swallowed by the deafening blast of the explosion. Bakugou felt Deku's fingers cling on for as long as they could before they were forcibly ripped away by the force of the blast, and a scream tore itself away from the other boy's throat-
For a moment, Bakugou was weightless.
And then the rushing wind screamed in his ears and his stomach lurched as he felt himself start to fall.