Work Text:
Izuku wakes up in a cold sweat, breathing rapidly. Once again, his sleep hadn't been peaceful. Once again, his mind had been plagued with terrors.
He shakily reaches out for the glass of water he always keeps on the side table and chugs it all in one go. Glancing at the clock tells him it's 5 am.
Usually, he'd try to go back to sleep for a bit longer but today he has some other work to do.
He hops off the bed and freshens up quickly. With his morning breath now smelling like peppermint, he makes himself a small breakfast, storing leftovers for his mother.
He eats in silence and then goes back to his bedroom. He opens his small closet and pulls out a box from the inside. He remembers buying this item from the store on his birthday last week.
He wraps the box in fancy parchment and tears a piece of paper to write a note. He purposely changes his handwriting and tapes it to the gift.
Smiling sadly to himself he fits the box in his backpack and goes to take a shower.
Dressed and equipped with his school bag, he adjusts the small microphone and camera on himself. Today marks the third day he's filming his life for the show.
He reaches school early as usual and before going to his usual spot, he halts by Katsuki's desk and puts the box underneath it, making sure to angle it in such a way that anyone but the person sitting on the chair will be unable to see it.
Izuku doesn't know why he still bothers with Katsuki. Why he still saves his pocket money and why he still gets the blond a present. Why he still tries even when the only gift Katsuki gives him are hurtful words and painful punches.
He sits in his seat, and pulls out his analysis notebook. A new one that he'd had to buy after the previous one had been burned to a crisp courtesy of Katsuki.
He waits.
~~~
Katsuki wakes up to the boisterous cheers of his mother and father, one holding a home-made cake and the other hitting him to wake him up.
"Brat! You better wake up right now and eat this goddamn cake before your father's hardwork goes to waste when I end up eating it all!"
Katsuki swats his mother's arm away, grumpily cursing under his breath. Nonetheless, he drags himself to the bathroom, brushing and washing the sleep out of his eyes.
Returning to his room, he snatches the cake from his father who pats his shoulder affectionately and wishes him a happy birthday.
"Thanks old man," he mutters, "and old hag."
Mitsuki, for once, doesn't chase after the blond for calling her that.
Katsuki goes down to the dining table, still munching on the delicious desert and sits down. Pulling out his phone, he scrolls through social media, a particular advertisement catching his eye.
"Lifestory of a quirkless middle schooler will be shown to everyone next weekend. Stay tuned." - Rising Against Oppression.
He snorts, as if those weak fuckers could have anything worthwhile going on in their lives for him to watch.
He continues scrolling and rolls his eyes when her mother ruffles his hair on her way to the kitchen.
After having half the cake, he sets the dish in the refrigerator and changes into his uniform lazily.
"We're going for dinner tonight! Come back straight after school, got that you brat?"
His mother shouts before Katsuki leaves his house. He knows it already, family dinners on birthdays is a family tradition, and even though he finds them annoying, he can't back out of it.
He reaches school and many underclassmen and peers wish him before he even reaches his class. A few teachers give him affectionate pats even. He shoves them all aside, irritated with their nosy and overly sweet behaviour.
Entering his classroom, he walks straight to his desk. Only a handful of his classmates have already arrived and one of them is that deku who just can't stop mumbling now, can he?
Katsuki notices Izuku sitting at the back, head completely into another notebook and compeletely engrossed in whatever nerdy shit he's doing. For some reason, his constant mumbles annoy the fuck out of Katsuki and his mood sours immediately.
Though, as he drops his bag by the side, he notices a gift under his desk.
He isn't surprised, he receives an anonymous present each year. He doesn't know who it is that gives them these but he's not complaining. Unlike all his other admirers, this person actually fucking uses their brain and gives thoughtful shit instead of those fragrant flowers or shitty sweets or t-shirts that don't fit him at all.
He rips open the wrapping and peers inside.
There are two gloves in there, with a note. A quick read tells him that these are fire and heat resistant, and can also hold sweat.
All in all, the perfect gift for him, given his quirk.
He remembers complaining about the last set of gloves he'd blown through a few years ago.
These set of gloves look like they'd have cost a fortune.
Katsuki chuckles. Whoever this person is, they surely are loaded.
He puts the box into his bag. In a few minutes, many more of his peers come in, all wishing him enthusiastically and handing him small tokens or gifts. His teacher gives him a pass from a particularly lengthy assignment, seeing as it was his birthday and that he had been nothing but a diligent student so this was earned.
Katsuki doesn't complain and uses his free time practicing his quirks with those gloves on.
~~~
It's lunch and Katsuki eats a special meal prepared by his mother in the cafeteria. There's a little commotion near the front and he turns to see deku trying to pick up his food fallen from his tray.
For a moment, Katsuki pins the blame on deku's clumsiness before he notices three of his classmates smirking and sneering at the greenhead.
Oh, so that damn nerd must've gotten in their way again. Serves him right for always being so annoying to everyone.
Now, with a sandwich in his mouth, he watches the little show.
Deku is still struggling to put all the food back when a taller boy kicks his ankle, causing deku to wince in pain.
It couldn't have been more than a light tap and that weakling is clutching it like it's bleeding.
Katsuki snorts and sees as the other two purposely step onto deku's food.
Well, that's bad. It's food. You don't step on food. Katsuki thinks, but says nothing.
(It's so inhumane that he doesn't realise that just a moment ago another of those bullies had stepped on Izuku, a human. So if he can realise that food shouldn't be mistreated, why can't he realise the same applies to Izuku?)
Deku looks up angrily at the three and stands up, favouring one leg over the other. He says something Katsuki can't hear and the next instant, deku is being shoved to the ground by two of those boys. They're hitting him openly now, and deku struggles in their grip.
Upon realising that the whole cafeteria is watching, the boys stop and with one last comment, they move towards the queue to get there food.
Katsuki shrugs and turns away, focusing on his meal again. He doesn't notice that blood that drips from Izuku's face. He never does, afterall. Blinded to anyone's struggles that aren't his own.
~~~
That fucking nerd doesn't return for the next lecture but when he does come back, it's with bandages on the left side of his face.
Katsuki gives himself a moment to think about deku and his apparent injuries before he turns his attention to his teacher again, who is giving them a quick rundown for their entrance exam syllabus.
Deku can handle himself, if he can't, he's even weaker than Katsuki first thought.
Katsuki remains blind.
~~~
At the end of his school day, Katsuki dumps half of the gifts he's received in the trash, not having enough space to carry them all home. He snaps at the few people still wishing him as he leaves the school's premises.
As he approaches the gates, he sees a flash of green from he corner of his eye and scowls when he realises it's deku. The idiot is standing by the side, nervously shifting from one foot to the other.
He's in Katsuki's path so he can't ignore the nerd like he'd wanted to. Deku makes him sick, he's weak and pathetic but always so optimistic anyway.
The dumbass needs to understand that the fucking world doesn't need a quirkless nobody as a hero but someone like Katsuki, with an amazing quirk and insane talent to save them.
"K-Kaccha-" the fool calls out, but Katsuki glares murderously at the boy daring him to say something, to disturb him on his way back home.
Deku side-steps on reflex, afraid that an explosion would blast his way if he didn't clear Katsuki's path. And that worry isn't unfounded, Katsuki knows this and he is smug that the nerd understands it too.
Moving past him, Katsuki hears deku mutter something but isn't paying enough attention to catch it.
Whatever, he doesn't give a fuck about what deku wants to say anyway.
He continues his walk home.
After reaching his house, he lounges in the living room and gets ready to leave for dinner when his parents come home.
He enjoys a mouthwatering meal, full of spice at a new restaurant, having verbal battles with his mother while his father tries to calm the two fiesty blonds.
He enjoys himself, unaware of the revelations that would hit him hard the next weekend.
(He still remains blind.)