Chapter Text
“Hey, Bakugou.”
Bakugou looked up from the phone in his hand.
“What’re you doing for spring break?” Kirishima asked, continuing to braid Sero’s hair, separating the thin strands of hair from each other.
“Bakugou shrugged, not knowing what he was going to do for spring break.” Kaminari narrated Bakugou’s movement from where he was playing his Nintendo Switch. He screeched as his character probably drove off a cliff and Ashido snickered, pausing her nail painting to put a hand over her mouth.
“What’re you doing, Kiri?” Ashido asked as she resumed painting her nails hot pink.
Kirishima huffed and fiddled with the braid he was working on, making Sero wince when he pulled a little too hard. He muttered a sorry and resumed the braid. “I think I’m going home. Plans might change.”
Kaminari shrieked again and buried his face in a pillow to muffle his screams of agony.
“Well,” Ashido stopped to blow on the newly applied layer on her nail. “If you don’t go home, you can crash at my place. I’m sure my parents would be fine with it.”
Kirishima stopped braiding and looked up to grin at Ashido. “Thanks! That’d be helpful.” He went back to Sero’s hair, a small smile remained on his face.
The group continued to do their own things silently, save for the occasional comment and Kaminari’s shrieks of anger. Eventually, Bakugou got up and left, most likely going to his room where there were fewer people. Bakugou was the antisocial type so the squad had gotten used to this by now, being almost two years since they first met him.
Kirishima sighed as he finished unbraiding the last of Sero’s hair. It was now curly and still a bit damp from the shower he’d taken earlier, the braids trapping the moistness inside. “I think I’m going to go. Are we still studying tomorrow?”
There was a chorus of yeah's and grunts so Kirishima left, hands full of tiny multi-colored rubber bands.
He nearly stumbled a few times as he tried to navigate the stairs and hallways that led to his room, the dim lights ruining his vision. Once he got there he hurried over to a large cardboard box and dropped the mini rubber bands from his sweaty hands.
Kirishima stood up and put his hands on his hips, surveying the room as a home decorator would. It seemed fine in his eyes so he quickly got undressed and stepped in the shower as a wave of exhaustion rolled over him.
The shower was nice. It was steamy, warm, and he felt as all the gel in his hair washed away, releasing the extra weight on his head. It also helped wash away the dread he was feeling, the water pushing it down the drain with his hair gel.
His parents were mad and so was he. He didn’t like being rejected, thrown away by anyone, and now the people that he loves and that love him are the ones doing it. It made him feel worthless, unappreciated, just like he was.
But all those feelings were washed down the drain and the weight of his hair gel wasn’t the only weight he got rid of, for now at least.
He got out of the shower reluctantly, wrapping his bright red towels around his head and waist loosely, and walked out of the bathroom.
After quickly changing into his pajamas, Kirishima flopped down his bed, a long sigh escaping from his parted lips. His mind wandered off to one of the problems they had with rescuing people from a landslide and before long Kirishima was asleep.
The next day was uneventful, just a bunch of math and English that no one but Iida, Momo, Bakugou, and Midoriya understood. Kirishima was zoned out, in his own world half of the time as everyone else tried to figure out the word problems put up on the board.
Someone flicked his shoulder and Kirishima turned around, rubbing the spot of the impact. He was met with Koda holding up his hands in surrender, pointing towards Ashido. Kirishima looked over at Ashido and she grinned mischievously as she handed him a folded note.
Kirishima opened it slowly, as not to draw attention to himself. He was still stuck on the part as to who had flicked him when he opened it fully.
The pencil marks glinted in the artificial light of the classroom and Kirishima blinked a couple of times to rid his vision of spots. It seemed someone had turned the lights up brighter even though that wasn’t possible.
Kirishima scanned the note. The handwriting looked like both Kaminari and Bakugou had been talking to each other and were asking Kirishima’s opinion on something. This made no sense because whenever Kirishima looked over at Bakugou (which was quite a lot) he was focused, his concentration never wavering. He showed no sign of receiving the note or giving it back.
Kirishima shook his confusion and awe and started to read.
U studyin with us?
Yeah. Was I not supposed to?
Nah man. Just had to make sure. Which dorm?
You can come to mine. Maybe Kirishima will let us go to his.
This was pretty normal. It seemed they were going to ask if they could use his dorm as a study place but there was more. A lot more.
Lets do it at urs
Your writing is repulsive. Please, if you’re going to keep sending this back use apostrophes at the very least.
FIIIIIne! Sooooo… how’s the u know what going?
There was lots of writing, erasing, and then rewriting on Bakugou’s part. A fair share of it was scratched out stuff too. Kirishima wanted to know what the “u know what” was.
Fine.
Cmon man! It can’t be that bad!!
No, I haven’t… I can’t.
At that point, it seemed that Kaminari had most likely mouthed that he was going to ask Kirishima what Bakugou should do. Then he probably handed it to Ashido to inform her. She was also much better at handling notes.
Ashido had scrawled something in her script at the bottom, barely noticeable.
Should he do it?
Kirishima shrugged to himself. He didn’t even know what they were talking about so he didn’t know how much of a help he would be. He answered nonetheless.
Sure? I don’t even know what you’re talking about but I guess? Do it man!
Kirishima wrapped the note back up quickly and shoved it at Ashido’s back. Her hand came back, grabbed it, and threw it gracefully yet quickly at Kaminari. Kaminari spluttered and threw it to Bakugou who caught it with one hand, not even looking up from where he was writing something down.
Midoriya gasped as he watched Bakugou open the note quickly. He probably thought it was something that was going to upset him.
Midoriya’s obvious thoughts were right. Bakugou turned around in his chair so fast Kirishima was worried he might get whiplash. But what worried him more was the furious look in his eyes, how they made him grateful that his quirk wasn’t laser eyes or something similar.
Bakugou’s chair screeched as he stood up, causing Aizawa to stop talking and the class to fall silent. Midoriya looked like he was about to faint, Bakugou looked like he was about to murder someone and Kirishima? He was about to be murdered because of Kaminari.
Bakugou walked slowly towards Kirishima, the note in hand. Aizawa did nothing, probably thinking the situation was too amusing.
Kirishima’s heart was beating fast even though he knew he shouldn’t be worried but he feared for his life as much as anyone should when it came to Bakugou in these kinds of situations. Bakugou wouldn’t hurt him, he couldn’t. The least he would do would be exploding his face.
Bakugou leaned down slightly when he reached Kirishima, his foot paused halfway in the air. He whispered so only Kirishima could hear him. “No.”
It was so full of something that Kirishima couldn’t identify but sure as heck didn’t want to know.
Bakugou resumed his walk, faster now, towards the recycling bin (he always recycles).
Kaminari, Ashido, and Kirishima all let out a breath of relief in unison, all grateful that none of them were going to die.
Aizawa continued talking when Bakugou sat back down in his seat, trying to teach the class how to say sentences in English. Kirishima couldn’t focus though. He was getting glances from both Bakugou and Ashido and it was making him very uncomfortable. He focused his gaze on the board at the front and concentrated on what Aizawa was saying.
They were dismissed for lunch about an hour later. Kirishima, Ashido, Kaminari, and Sero all sat down at a table together and started eating.
“Hey,” Sero said, his chopsticks pausing halfway to his mouth. “Where’s Bakugou?”
Kirishima and Kaminari both choked and Ashido patted both of them on the backs because she was sitting in between them. “He’s probably off somewhere sulking because of… you know…” Ashido trailed off and Sero nodded in understanding as Kirishima choked.
After swallowing Kirishima gawked. “What… you know too!?” Sero gave him a weird look and nodded again as he shoved his sushi into his mouth. “Why did no one tell me!?”
Ashido, Kaminari, and Sero all sighed, some with more difficulty than others, and gave him a pitying look.
“He didn’t want you to know,” Kaminari said with a strained look. It seemed something was still stuck in his throat.
“If it makes you feel any better,” Ashido started, turning to him and smiling wide. “I don’t know either. I just know it’s important and he doesn’t want anyone to know about it.”
That made the boys stare at her in confusion. Why didn’t she know? Was it about her? Kirishima nearly choked again on his food as a terrible thought formed. Did- did Bakugou have a…
The thought wasn’t finished because a bowl was set down beside Sero and they all looked up to see who had arrived.
Shinsou sat down quickly and stared at the rest of them, giving Kaminari a small smile in response to the other one’s grin. Kirishima was glad to see him but he would’ve rather it be Bakugou. But again, they were talking about Bakugou and his… whatever it was so maybe it was best it was Shinsou.
The others engaged Shinsou in conversation, wanting to know what he was doing over break, who he liked, stuff like that. Kirishima quietly got up, trying not to disrupt them as he headed off towards the dorm rooms.
He quickly ran up the stairs up to where he knew Bakugou would be. And he was right.
Sitting on top of the picnic table that was placed in the center of the rooftop area was Bakugou himself. He was facing away from Kirishima so he couldn’t see his face or what he was holding but something red was poking out from in front of his puffy blonde hair.
“Bakugou,” Kirishima said softly and Bakugou startled, causing him to nearly fall off the top of the table.
“What do you want, dumb hair?” Bakugou growled, still not facing him but Kirishima could see what he was holding now. In his hands were bright red daisies. The stem was most likely getting crushed by Bakugou’s unforgiving hands.
Moving slowly, as not to startle him, Kirishima sat down on the bench facing Bakugou.
“Those are for…” Kirishima didn’t finish but Bakugou’s eyes flitted away, seemingly embarrassed. “You should do it man!” he punched Bakugou’s arm lightly, in a playful sort of way. Bakugou looked at him with his crimson eyes, what seemed to be a flicker of hope showing in them.
“You… you think so?” Bakugou asked it like he was doubting everything but Kirishima wasn’t. Whoever it was (he still thought it was Ashido) was lucky to have Bakugou like them like this. He was actually kind of jealous. Just a bit.
“Yeah!” Kirishima gave him his biggest smile. “Do it. If they hate you, well, that sucks for them. Just go for it, man.”
At that moment Ashido burst through the door. “Guys! We’ve been looking for you!”
Bakugou tensed and slid off the table in one quick movement. He then threw the flowers over the edge of the building and, hands shoved into his pockets, walked back into the dorms.
Kirishima gaped at Ashido for a second then ran to the edge, only to see the flowers crumpled on the concrete below. He gasped and ran over to Ashido, grabbed her shoulders, and shook her. “Why?!”
Ashido set her hands on top of his, a big feat since she was being shaken with great force. “Honey, calm down. What happened?” Her voice was soothing, like silk cloth rubbing against his ears.
“I told Bakugou to tell who he had a crush on that he liked them then you walked in and he threw the flowers over the building! Why?” Kirishima stopped shaking Ashido when she gave him a stern look.
Ashido sighed and placed a hand on Kirishima’s shoulder. “He’ll get to it, just give him some time,” she promised with a smile. She knew just what to say to him to make him feel better.
“Okay.” Kirishima smiled back and kindly removed her hand from his shoulder and laced his fingers through hers. She startled a bit at first but then looked up at him with a small smile and started walking towards the door, dragging Kirishima along.
When they reached the cafeteria neither of them let go of the other’s hand so they stayed that way.
Kaminari spotted them first and, because he was Kaminari, pointed them out loudly to Sero and Shinsou. The whole room heard and looked their way. Kirishima made to let go of Ashido’s hand but she squeezed it firmly and led him over to their table.
Sero took one look at their adjoined hands and wiggled his eyebrows at Kirishima. Kirishima just shook his head and sat down next to Ashido, holding her hand under the table.
***
It was finally the day that Kirishima was dreading: the first day of spring break. He still hadn’t heard anything from his parents since they told him they never wanted to see him again so he assumed they hadn’t changed their minds.
He stood next to Bakugou as the class waited for their parents to pick them up from the school. So far only Momo, Midoriya and Todoroki, and Tokoyami had left, the ladder walking since his house was so close.
Kirishima sighed when fifteen minutes later Tsuyu and Uraraka had left together as well as Kaminari. He made his way over to one of the benches and sat down, his legs aching from standing for almost an hour.
“What’s wrong with you?” Kirishima startled, not noticing that Bakugou had followed him to his current spot. The explosive boy was bundled in three extra layers as he tried to fend off the chilly breeze that was the only sign that winter had happened. It was one of the cutest things Kirishima had ever seen. In a normal way, of course.
“It’s nothing,” Kirishima replied, shoving his hands in his pockets and looked away from Bakugou, his gaze focusing on a leaf that scuttled along the ground with the brief gusts of wind.
Bakugou growled and scooted closer, nearly pushing Kirishima off the bench. “It’s not nothing. Spill.”
Kirishima sighed again and turned to Bakugou. “I might have to stay here at the dorms.” Bakugou’s face scrunched up and Kirishima tacked on quickly, “It would be better than being homeless for a week at least, right?”
Bakugou seemed to disagree with everything that Kirishima had just said, even though that wasn’t possible. In one swift movement Bakugou’s head whipped towards the street, he stood up and grabbed Kirishima’s arm.
“Hey-“ Kirishima tried to protest but Bakugou stopped abruptly and gave him the evil eye which shut him up, even if it were just because he wanted Bakugou to feel the satisfaction. He was about to say something when a warm hand slipped into his.
Ashido smiled at him, big and bright. “Our ride’s here!” Kirishima was completely confused and felt like he was being ripped apart by the two people that were grabbing onto either side of him. Both Bakugou and Ashido seemed to be lightly tugging him in the other direction.
All of a sudden Bakugou let go of his arm, making Kirishima stumble slightly. The blonde stormed off, leaving Kirishima to follow Ashido and slightly hurt.
Kirishima allowed himself to be drug by Ashido towards a brown bug that was parked on the curb. Ashido waved to the driver as they both got in.
“So, you must be Kirishima.” The person at the wheel looked at them through the mirror and smiled widely. “I’m Sakura, Mina’s older sister. It’s nice to meet you.” Sakura turned in her seat and held out a hand which Kirishima took and shook firmly.
When Sakura turned back around and started pulling out, Kirishima turned to Ashido, his look saying ‘Why am I here?’
Ashido giggled slightly and smiled. “You said you couldn’t go home so I asked my parents and they said they’d love to have you!”
Kirishima was still confused. When had he told Ashido? Oh. When they were all in the common room together. He said his plans might change and they did. She must’ve sensed it and called her parents to ask if he could stay at their house. Kirishima was about to burst from the kindness. He made a mental note to repay her somehow.
“Thank you so much. I was afraid I was going to have to stay at the dorms.” Kirishima chuckled the last part, feeling weak and fragile like so many people from his past had described him.
“No problem. You’re welcome anytime.” With that Ashido gave him her brightest smile and felt like yeah, this week was going to be special.
***
The rest of the ride was pretty much silent other than the radio playing recent pop music softly. Ashido and Kirishima both had their phones out, occasionally texting each other instead of talking, not wanting to break the silence.
Kirishima sent Bakugou a quick text.
have ur parents arrived?
Bakugou responded almost immediately.
Yeah. Where did you go?
Kirishima typed out his reply several times, not knowing how to phrase it.
im w/ Ashido rite now
It took about fifteen minutes of Kirishima playing a game on his phone for Bakugou to reply. It was short but very well thought out.
You could’ve asked.
Kirishima nodded to himself. Bakugou was right. He could’ve asked him but Ashido has already offered and it seemed they were already halfway to her house.
The farmland outside flickered past. Cows grazing, dogs running, sheep and horses stared at them as they knew them. The trees swayed in the slight breeze, arching their backs lazily.
yeah i couldve but Ashido offered to and she just kinda forced me to be here but im cool w/ it!
Kirishima added the last part to make sure Bakugou didn’t freak out. If he were to read the text and see it as Ashido kidnapping him he would’ve hunted them down and murdered all of Ashido’s family. That wasn’t something Kirishima wanted.
Bakugou was once again slow to answer but this one was shorter. It also implied the conversation was over.
Okay.
Kirishima whimpered a bit, wanting to continue talking to Bakugou but he knew it was no use. Bakugou has already ended the conversation.
Ashido poked him hard in the shoulder and he looked up. “We’re here!” she said enthusiastically.
Kirishima looked out the window and smiled. They had driven down a dirt road that traveled into the forest. At the end of the narrow driveway, there was a small cottage that was nestled cozily into the trees.
Behind the cottage there seemed to be a vast farm that stretched for acres before the fence got swallowed up by the forest.
A couple of cows and horses were roaming but the majority of them seemed to still be in the barn, enjoying the warmth. The ones that were out were grazing on the thriving grass and pink flowers that covered the large clearing. It seemed like a good place to live.
“This is nice,” Kirishima said as he got out of the car, tripping a little as he stepped on the muddy ground. It was way more slippery than it looked.
“Meh.” Ashido shrugged and headed into the house, motioning to Kirishima to come. He obediently did so, admiring the scenery all around as he walked, cautiously.
They stepped inside and took off their shoes. Kirishima followed Ashido down the short hallway and into the living room. The smell wafting in from the kitchen was intoxicating and Kirishima’s stomach rumbled with the thought of food.
Ashido stopped and did a one-eighty and held out her hands for Kirishima’s bags. He hesitantly handed them over after Ashido gave him a look. Kirishima had been carrying the small bags full of electronics and textbooks with him in the car so he would have access to them at any time.
She headed deeper into the house as Kirishima stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, not knowing what to do. If it were his house he would’ve crashed on one of the couches but here he didn’t want to be rude.
Sakura came in the door, the sound of the creaking of the door, zippers clashing, and items rustling announcing her presence. She waddled in and threw all of the bags on a couch, smiled warmly at Kirishima, told him to make himself at home, then left.
Kirishima stood there for a moment, tossing ideas around in his head. Finally, he settled on exploring the woods and farm. At least he wouldn’t be a bother.
He found the back door rather quickly, with a bit of searching. It was through the kitchen at the end, a quite good place to put it seeing as the garbage went out there and it was easier to let out smoke when it was needed.
The smell of rain and wind hit Kirishima as he stepped outside. It had started raining slightly, giving the air a sense of dampness. Kirishima could only see slivers of gray clouds forming through the dense foliage of the trees above but it was enough to know it was only going to get worse.
Kirishima started walking.
A path was cut out, bending and twisting oddly at different places. It looked as though someone had just decided to walk this way and never stopped. It was beautiful and felt like home.
Another thing that stood out were the little animals that scurried across the path, searching for cover that would be needed with the storm that was brewing. Lizards, bunnies, even a mouse quickly crossed, wanting to be warm and safe.
Then there were the plants. Oh, the plants were beautiful. Everywhere there were plants of all shapes and sizes. Some sprouted out of the ground as others burst through it with confidence, never wavering. They reminded Kirishima of himself.
It had started pouring by the time Kirishima got to the actual farm, but he didn’t mind. The rain was like a shower, washing over him, removing his hair gel and worries.
The animals were all in the barn, seeking out much-needed shelter. Kirishima jogged slightly, wanting to reach them, share the warmth with them.
When he entered the large barn a cow mooed at the end, setting off a chain reaction among the animals. Kirishima panicked and shushed them wildly. He was afraid that Ashido and her family could hear over at the house.
The cows, thankfully, shut up. Kirishima sighed in relief when the last large creature stopped making noise. He didn’t want to be a bother.
He then went around the barn, petting each horse’s mane and snout. It took him a while but when he was done he felt even more relaxed than the rain had made him. Maybe he should look into animal therapy.
Kirishima made to leave, the horses at the front whinnying with disapproval. Kirishima shook his head at them fondly, then took off.
He didn’t even feel the rain. It passed through him as he sprinted back to the house. Even though he was soaked and it was pouring he felt dry. Kirishima was thankful for that little moment.
When he got to the house he stopped running but still walked rather quickly to the door and into the house. He wanted to get as little water on the floor as possible.
He got halfway to the bags of clothes, sweets, dry clothes when he was stopped when a hand slapped down on his shoulder.
“I told you there was nothing to worry about! He was outside on the farm, that’s all! Right, buddy?” The voice was deep and gruff but welcoming and warm. Kirishima looked up to see the talker but instead had to look down right into the face of Ashido’s dad.
“Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.” Kirishima answered politely with a smile. He didn’t want Ashido’s dad to think he was disrespectful.
“Not to worry son! And none of that ‘sir’ crap! Please, call me Yuu .” Yuu said, his grin taking up his whole face. It was a wonder he could still see out of his small eyes with a smile that big.
Kirishima smiled wider. “I’m Kirishima.” He held out his hand for Yuu to take. Yuu released his shoulder from his grasp and firmly shook his hand.
“I know. Mina’s told me a lot about you.” Yuu wiggled his eyebrows suggestively as Kirishima blushed. He heard a choking sound most likely coming from Ashido herself.
“Dad!” Ashido screeched when she recovered with the help of Sakura. Yuu shrugged innocently and went back to boiling an egg, a grin trying to creep onto his face.
Kirishima walked over to the living room and grabbed his bag. He looked over at Sakura and she pointed, without looking up, to the left hallway where the bathroom most likely was.
He bowed slightly in her direction then squeaked all the way to the bathroom. His shoes were also soaked.
Once he had gotten changed into dry clothes and gotten the rest of his hair gel out Kirishima came out of the bathroom with the intent of eating dinner.
There was laughter coming from the kitchen which also doubled as a dining room. Kirishima didn’t want to intrude but he was also really hungry. He’d only had a chocolate-covered granola bar for breakfast.
Kirishima walked quickly over the slightly carpeted floor to the kitchen. When Ashido spotted him she patted the chair next to her, beckoning him to sit.
He made his way over to the chair and sat. In front of him was a plate full of food that made his mouth water.
“Let us begin!” Ashido exclaimed and they all dug in.
To say the least, it was delicious. Kirishima couldn’t get enough of the amazing cooking. The rice was making him wonder if Ashido’s parents were actually professional cooks and not accountants.
When they were all done Sakura and Yuu started cleaning up while Ashido and Kirishima talked for all four of them.
“And then,” Sakura rolled her eyes with a snort as Yuu grumbled about not being appreciated. “Dad started screaming as the ride started up. Like, full-on screaming.”
Kirishima laughed at the story. Ashido was retelling something that had happened on their trip to an amusement park and she was doing a great job so far.
“He was freaking out because he couldn’t calm down enough to buckle his seatbelt and I was spinning the ride.” Yuu scoffed at that, embarrassed that this had happened.
“It was a KID ride! And you were scared of that!” Ashido said and Sakura and Kirishima burst into laughter, not being able to hold it in anymore.
“Well, I’m sorry that I’m sensitive!” Yuu picked up Ashido’s plate with her half-eaten strawberry flan.
“Well, I’m sorry you’re such a coward! Give that back!” Ashido clawed at Yuu as Sakura and Kirishima oohed, giving each other a look then starting to giggle uncontrollably.
The rest of dinner went that way until they were all cleaned up. Yuu suggested that they do a marathon and everyone agreed, settling down with fluffy blankets and pillows in front of the TV.
Sakura turned it on, the bright screen glaring at them. She chose Yugi-Oh which made everyone groan but didn’t complain. It was a lot of fun to comment on.
About halfway through season three, Kirishima realized that someone had been missing the entire time.
He leaned over to Ashido and she leaned over too, making it easier. “Where’s your mom?” Kirishima asked, trying to focus on talking and watching which was difficult. He wasn’t a great multitasker.
“Oh. She’s on a business trip for a few days. You’ll get to meet her on Thursday though.” Ashido whispered back, having seemingly no problem with doing two things at once.
Kirishima nodded slowly but stopped when an interesting commercial came on. It was for pro heroes and he was not about to miss that.
When they had finished season five they headed to bed. It was late and the rain still hadn’t let up. Kirishima didn’t mind it, though. It reminded him of his actual home, where it had been rainy nearly ninety percent of the time.
Kirishima took a shower first. Just like all his showers, he let himself linger on things for too long. But then they would be washed away by the steaming water and slither down the drain by itself, no hair gel this time.
When he got out of the shower he started towards the living room, seeking out one of the couches but Ashido stopped him, tugging his hair slightly, getting his attention. She then led him deeper into the house to a door that she opened quickly and stepped inside.
Ashido’s room was pink.
There were no other words to describe it than just pink. It had pink walls, pink carpet, pink bedding, a pink bean bag chair, a pig dresser, a pink door, and even a pink bedazzled turtle tank with a small box turtle inside. He assumed her parents took care of it.
Kirishima stepped inside, careful not to upset the carpet beneath his feet too much. He would do that sometimes if he was surprised.
Ashido turned to him and looked at him like he was weird. “What?” she asked, turning back around to pull out yet another pink thing from the closet. It was a blowup mattress.
“Are you sure it’s fine if I sleep in here?” Kirishima fiddled with a thread from his Crimson Riot t-shirt anxiously. He already felt like he was messing up something, he didn’t want to intrude further into their home.
“Yeah,” Ashido grunted with the weight of the air mattress. Kirishima ran to help her but she fought him off with a glare that said I can do it myself. If I’m going to be a pro hero one day, I’m pretty sure I need to be able to do this. Kirishima held up his hands and stepped away.
“It’s fine. This room is too big for one anyways. Might as well share, right? No need to sleep on the couch.” Ashido pumped up the mattress and Kirishima cringed, the feeling of not helping grating on him.
When Ashido was finally done and had set it up Kirishima put his sparse bedding on and lay there. It was comfortable and warm. He couldn’t help but wonder what Bakugou’s room would be like.
Ashido turned off the light which gave off a dim pink and the room fell into darkness. Kirishima snuggled further under the covers, feeling safe and protected.
He listened as Ashido climbed into her ridiculously pink bed and laid down. The sheets rustled quietly but deafeningly in the silence of the room. Kirishima felt a wave of something wash over him as he heard her settle down. He named it relief.
After a period of silence, Ashido said, “Good night, Kiri.”
Kirishima held his breath but then released it. “Good night, Ash.”
***
The next few days went by fairly quickly. Flower picking, cow milking, hiking, cooking, marathons, and sleeping were what it mostly consisted of.
Ashido taught him a lot of stuff that he would try his best not to forget. He didn’t want to forget the special moments they had shared.
“Hey, Kiri,” Kirishima looked up to see Ashido still braiding her bracelet. They were sitting out on the farm, braiding colored threads they had brought out there.
“Yeah?” Kirishima looked back down at his bracelet then back up at Ashido’s. Her’s was red, black, and white and nearly perfect. His was pink, black, and lavender. It was very crooked and he couldn’t bend it even if he wanted to.
“My mom’s coming tonight. She’s really nice but pretty overwhelming at times. Tell me if she gets to be too much for you and I’ll take over, okay?” Ashido tied a knot in her bracelet then continued braiding.
“Oh, um, thanks? I can be overwhelming too so maybe we’ll get along?” Kirishima tried to tie a nice clean tiny knot like Ashido but just ended up making a mess of threads and having the need to start over.
Ashido looked up and smiled. She handed him three of each color he had originally had then went back to braiding. Kirishima smiled too.
***
Kirishima was allowed to help with dinner like always but now he was only doing the fried rice and chicken. He was fine with that though. He didn’t want to get in the way of their important meal.
The kitchen was busy though. Fried rice and chicken didn’t take much but he was still a terrible multitasker. The conversations going on around him were confusing him and making him lose track of what he was doing. It was disorienting and made him dizzy but he got through it.
When dinner was done and set they sat down in their newly assigned seats and waited for Ashido’s mom to come. They waited about five minutes before they heard the door open and Ashido was up and out of her chair, running towards the person.
“Mom!” She hugged her tight and her mom returned it tenfold. It was endearing, a mother-daughter reunion that Kirishima always wanted to see in real life.
Once they had all said their hellos except Kirishima they all sat down, the air buzzing with nerves and excitement.
“So,” Ashido’s mom started, “You’re Kirishima. I’m Rin.” she held out her hand and Kirishima took it with a smile.
“I’ve heard so much about you!” Kirishima blushed again, as did Ashido. “I’m surprised you aren’t dating yet!”
They both choked and patted each other on the backs in sync. It was just part of the routine by now. They were friends with Kaminari after all.
“Now, now, mom, you know it’s not nice to tease the guest!” Sakura tsked and Rin rolled her eyes, clearly uncaring.
“It’s just a bit of fun!” Rin exclaimed, winking at Yuu. Yuu sighed but smiled back at her. It reminded Kirishima of some people, but who, he didn’t know.
“It’ll be more fun if we eat!” Yuu chuckled.
“Let us begin!” Ashido always said some version of this when they were to eat. It had become part of the spring break routine none of them wanted to break.
For the fourth time that week, they ate. As always, it was amazing but this time it was like dining at a gourmet restaurant. Kirishima was almost positive he’d never tasted something so great.
Nearly until midnight they stayed up, just talking and watching some crappy horror movie that made Kirishima jump in places. He didn’t like jump scares.
When they went to bed Kirishima was grateful. He’d never thought he’d see that air mattress again yet, here we are. He collapsed almost immediately but when Ashido said good night he said good night back.
***
Kirishima woke up with the sun the next morning. It was bright and was streaming through the window of Ashido’s room, the pink curtain giving the room an alien feel.
He could already tell it was going to be a good day. There wasn’t anything that he could sense in the air that was wrong. There were plenty of things he knew that were good were going to happen. Kirishima was excited.
He went to the kitchen as quietly as he could to not wake the others up. It was hard to do but he thought he managed quite well.
Sneaking into the kitchen and opening the pantry he took out two granola bars. He knew that Yuu and Rin would be fine with him eating some of their food so this wasn’t a problem.
When he turned around he saw Ashido standing at the end of the hallway, grinning. She walked up to him and plucked two more granola bars out of the pantry and motioned for him to follow her.
They went out the back door, their bare feet calloused from training not bothered by the sticks and rocks on the path leading to the farm. Kirishima smiled to himself at the thought of a dawn snack, watching the sun rise higher into the sky.
Ashido led them to the field of pink flowers and sat down gracefully in a spot where the flowers surrounded her but were not sat on. Kirishima tried to do the same but ended up crushing a few in the process.
They sat there in silence for a while, eating their granola bars. It was a quiet morning, not even the cows were mooing and the birds weren’t singing.
Kirishima broke the silence first.
“Ash?” It was said quietly, the nickname had a hint of shyness in it.
Ashido turned to him but Kirishima’s eyes stayed focused on the horizon where the sun had just left its hiding spot and was now much higher in the sky. “Yeah?”
Kirishima closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “My parents didn’t want me to come home for break because…” The breath was let out quickly, not by choice, but was swiftly replaced by more air. “I’m gay.”
Ashido sat there for a while, making Kirishima regret anything and everything, but when she came to her senses she tackled him. It made Kirishima feel better, being able to embrace someone, to be accepted by someone.
“You’re the first person I’ve told other than my parents,” Kirishima said quietly, vulnerably.
“Well,” Ashido said, looking up at him, “I’m glad you told me.” She smiled widely at him and he returned the smile. He felt warm inside.
“Me too.” Ashido hugged him tighter and they sat there like that for a while, the sun rising higher and higher in the sky, waking everything up. Kirishima felt safe, loved, and protected. And he was glad.