Archive of Our Own

“Where the hell are you?”  

Katsuki is making his way through an overcrowded bar. The low lighting of the multiple ceiling fixtures blends with the shadows casted by the bodies surrounding him, on the walls and part of his face. Sound of conversation between friends drinking away their week’s problems and an overplayed song fill his ears. The hot air of the room causes his jacket to feel weighted on his shoulders.

“Your fucking rambling isn’t helping!” Katsuki responds when all he’s given as information from the person on the other end of the call is an inconsistent string of slurred words. He stops in his tracks as his eyes begin to scan the multiple people sitting at the bar and it’s only after a few seconds that he recognizes the familiar two-tone shoulder length hair. He presses his phone between his ear and shoulder as he makes his way over to the bar, using his hands to somewhat pry his way through groups of people.

Variations of “'scuse me”, “Move.” and “Get the fuck out of the way.” leave his lips as he does. Katsuki ignores the evident looks sent his way and opts for an eye roll or a middle finger in return. As much as he’d love to give them a verbal response, he doesn’t have the time nor the energy to start barking out insults at drunk people. Besides, from the phone call and the spelling mistakes in the questionable texts he’d received earlier, it seems as though he already has a drunk person to take care of.

He’s close by when he overhears the conversation between the bartender and his friend who by the looks of it can barely sit up straight. He watches the man’s hungry eyes quite literally undress the other as he leans forward on the countertop. Something inside of him stings at the sight causing him to sharply exhale from his nose in response.

Katsuki takes his phone from where it had been pressed and ends the call before returning it his back pocket. He steps forward when he sees the bartender’s hand reaching for a loose strand of white hair.

“You this touchy with all your customers?” He questions with a scowl, a certain venomous bite to his words. His own hand is now tightly wrapped around the bartender’s wrist when he pushed it away.  Brown eyes look up to meet his and he can’t help up but harshly glare.

“Only with the pretty ones.” The man responds, a flirtatious edge to his voice and a cocky grin that can rival his own plastered onto his face. He pulls his hand back down to his side and gives Katsuki a questioning look. “Besides, who are you? The cockblock police?”

That sentence would have normally made Katsuki bark out a laugh had it not been somewhat true. Because he is in fact a massive cockblocker when it comes to none other than Shouto Todoroki. His best friend since the age of four who also happens to be his lifelong crush that he’s never confessed to. He knows he’s stupid for doing so, but he also knows that god forbid Shouto doesn’t like him back, their friendship would most likely end. 

So instead, he stays silent and keeps his apparently obvious feelings (according to Eijiro and Denki) for his best friend to himself. A forbidden secret to never see the light of day -or at least that’s what it’ll be until they both turn twenty-five. See, when they were in elementary school at the glorious age of eight, they made a pact on the sidewalk in front of Katsuki’s house.

If neither of them is in a relationship by the age of twenty-five, they’d date each other.

He isn’t sure if Shouto was joking, considering they were so young, and children tend to say dumb shit. However, Katsuki wasn’t joking, and nor has he forgotten their pact. Which is why he’s hopeful that Shouto hasn’t either. But only time will tell since Shouto doesn’t turn twenty-five for another month or so.

Which is why in the meantime, Katsuki thanks whatever god made Shouto so dense to never realize his best friend was in love with him and of course, secretly sabotages all of his dates. Now he will admit, when it’s said like that, it sounds awful, but those guys sucked anyways. Katsuki’s basically making him a favour! Getting rid of all the wrong ones until the right one arrives like some knight in shining armor -aka him.

Shouto had never been big on dating, that Katsuki knew. He only started consistently going on dates these past couple of months since he was now twenty-four and his family kept nagging him that he needed to be in a relationship. (Shoutout Rei and Enji for making Katsuki panic once a month for the past year.)

He got the idea to sabotage all of Shouto’s dates one night when he was complaining to Denki and Eijiro. The two suggested it as a joke and before he knew it, he took the idea seriously and ran with it. So, each time Katsuki was informed that Shouto had a date, he brainstormed a plan then put it into action or simply acted on the spot. They’ve surprisingly all worked until now and he hasn’t been caught once. Talk about having good odds for something so ‘wrong’.

“I’m his friend.” Katsuki replies to the bartender who looks all too confident in his flirting skills for his liking. Just as he’s about to add an insult, Shouto decides to interrupt.

“No, no, not friend.” Shouto lets out with a hiccup as he attempts to sit up straight. His body sways when he places an elbow on the countertop and Katsuki’s right hand finds itself on his shoulder to keep him from falling.

He fiddles with the sleeve of his sweater for a few seconds to roll it up until a friendship bracelet is revealed. “He’s my /best/ friend.”

Katsuki almost rolls his eyes at the statement but keeps himself from doing so. “Yeah, yeah, best friends.” He says, trying not to make eye contact with the bartender who’s now most likely sporting a teasing smirk and stifling a laugh.

But that of course fails when he’s spoken to. “Well blondie? Show me the matching bracelet.” His voice is seeping with mockery and Katsuki isn’t sure whether he wants to yell at him to shut up or actually roll up his sleeve to reveal his own friendship bracelet out of spite. For the sake of his own ego, he went with the first option.

“Shut the fuck up and get me his damn tab.”  Katsuki finally spits, having had enough of this bartender who seems to have too much time on his hands despite the amount of people looking to get drunk. Thankfully the man doesn’t argue or respond and silently makes his way to the register.

He lets out a sigh when he’s left with Shouto who’s now chosen to press his forehead against the countertop. His hair looks sprawled and disheveled almost as though he’d been anxiously running his hands through it the entire night. He reaches for a pale wrist and takes the black elastic around it.

“You look like shit Shou.” Katsuki says, his voice noticeably softer than before and no real harm behind his words. His hands run through white and red strands to pull them back into a low ponytail. He hears Shouto let out some kind of defeated laugh in response. He turns his head so that his cheek is resting against cold marble and he’s looking up to Katsuki.

“Yeah, because my date was shit.” He admits, his tone dripping with exhaustion and his voice cracking towards the end. Had he not known Shouto so well, he’d think the crack was to be amounted to one in a dam. The source of a rush of water, a rush of tears. But none came.

Even if Katsuki would like to take full credit for Shouto’s apparently failed date tonight, he can’t. He doesn’t think he has anything to do with this particular one. From what he knew, Shouto was only going out to dinner. It was the reason he’d decided to purposely tell the man he was going out with all the wrong things. He told him that Shouto liked Udon noodles, crowded places and when people spoke only about themselves or ordered for him. The opposite of everything he actually liked.

Whatever happened afterwards in this bar though, he had nothing to do with. This night just happened to be a disaster. If anything, he feels sorry for him more than anything else. From what he can tell, his friend seems to have taken this particular loss to heart.

Shouto’s usual pale skin that resembles porcelain is dusted a soft red along his cheeks, the tips of his ears and the bridge of his nose. The red almost blends in at the skin where his scar begins. If he looks close enough, he can probably see dried tear stains from earlier during the night.

His pupils are dilated and mismatched eyes as glassy as the skyscrapers that tower over the city. Except these aren’t any kind of glass, they’re shattered glass that cuts. Katsuki sees nothing but sorrow in the eyes he’s learned to love over the years and that’s when a shard of glass cuts him. Shouto’s starting to lose hope.

Katsuki feels bad, like maybe he went too far and sabotaging those dates for the sake of his feelings was selfish. That perhaps, he should stop, come clean and actually confess. But part of him is still against the idea because feelings are unpredictable, love is unpredictable and even after all these years, Shouto is unpredictable. From where he stands, confessing is taking a leap of faith into unknown darkness and Katsuki is afraid of the dark.

His chest tightens despite how bad he feels, crimson eyes locked on blue and grey. His mouth hangs open for a few seconds, words that would usually come easily to him nowhere to be found. It’s unfair how pretty one could look even in such conditions.

It isn’t until Shouto speaks once more that he’s pulled from his thoughts like a man resurfacing from a wave’s hold. He hadn’t realized he’d been lost in thought, too captured by the beauty in front of him as though he’d been captured by the sea.

“What’s wrong?” The younger boy asks, voice louder than usual to be heard over the music. He had probably realized the way Katsuki was staring at him.

Katsuki only shakes his head, bringing himself to swallow whatever emotions had gathered in his throat. “Nothin'.” He says, his face pulling itself into some kind of scowl. His eyebrows are tightly knit together causing creases to form along the arc and his forehead. His pressed lips form a small frown, almost a pout.

He watches as Shouto brings a hand forward, his thumb finding its way to Katsuki’s face. The contact causes Katsuki to inhale sharply through his nose as he focuses on mismatches eyes that don’t seem aware of their doing.

Shouto’s thumb gently presses itself against his eyebrow and begins smoothing out the creases that had formed. “You look angry when you make that face.” He bluntly lets out before adding. “You look pretty when you smile.”

“How much did you have to drink?” Katsuki changes the subject instead, trying his best to keep his face from burning at the compliment. He reaches for Shouto’s hand and slowly brings it back down to his side.

“I don’t know. Maybe…” He trails off, squinting a little as though it would help him remember. “Four or five.” Shouto had never been a big drinker seeing he wasn’t a fan of alcohol. Between his lack of experience with drinking and his size, he has no doubt that’s enough to get his best friend considerably drunk.

“No wonder you’re so fucking gone and pulling compliments out of your ass.” Katsuki mumbles, watching as Shouto turns his head once more to press his forehead against the cool countertop as strings of incoherent babbling leave his mouth. Shorter strands of white hair fall out of place and they catch his eye.

“It’s his loss ya know, not yours.” He says, taking it upon himself to carefully tuck the strands back behind Shouto’s ear. Calloused fingers maybe linger a little longer than they should, but that’s nobody’s business except for his own, if they do. “You’ll find the right one.”

A few moments later of no conversation and letting the ambiance of loud music and chatter consume them, the bartender returns. He slides them back a bill along with Shouto’s credit card that he’d presumably already charged. He opens his mouth to make another comment but before words can even be formed, Katsuki shoots him a glare and he walks to away to serve someone else.

Katsuki looks at the bill before he pockets it along with the credit card. He sighs, an idea of how this is going to play out already beginning to form in his mind. He taps Shouto’s shoulder. “Come on half n' half, let’s go. I’ll walk you home.”

Shouto slowly straightens up, looking around him as though he was looking for something. Katsuki’s about to ask him what it is he’s looking for but before he can, the other leans down. As if on instinct, a hand goes to cover the corner of the countertop.

A small gesture, but one he’d learned to do quite frequently around his best friend. After all, Shouto was more on the clumsy side, especially when he was drunk. So, it was the least he could do to avoid any kind of injuries.

“Are you gonna fucking puke or?” He questions out loud, drawing out the word ‘or’, not knowing what exactly it was that he was doing in such a position.

“No.” Shouto begins before getting back up and eventually standing to his own two feet. “I was getting my jacket.”  He says, attempting to put it on as he does. It takes him a minute, but he eventually manages to slip through both arms. He then stares down at his zipper almost as though he’d never seen one. His fingers fiddle with the two ends, clearly trying their best but no use whatsoever.

Katsuki lets out a chuckle as he shakes his head, finding this all too amusing. “You never zipped a jacket before?” He teases, the opportunity being too good to not take it. Shouto looks down and gives him an unamused look.

He only smirks at him in response, taking a step forward to get closer to him. “You see, it’s important that you put both zip sliders together before-” His clearly sarcastic explanation is cut short when Shouto lightly shoves him.

“You’re stupid.”

“Says the idiot who can’t zip his jacket.”

There’s a moment of silence as Shouto tries to harden his expressions and send him one of his signature looks of disappointed. Failed attempts, all of them, one worse than the other. He finds it oddly endearing. “You apparently can /not/ glare, even if your life depended on it, when you’re drunk.” Katsuki states, matter-of-factly, trying his best not to let out another laugh.

“Just- zip my jacket. Please.” Shouto sighs in defeat. Tonight, he doesn’t talk back or try to one-up Katsuki by challenging him with his own playful insults. Instead, his shoulders slump forward, his forehead meets his friend’s shoulder and his eyes tightly shut close.

Katsuki doesn’t push him. He only zips the jacket up for him then gently combs a hand through red and white strands of hair as a sign for the other to lift his head back up. There’s no movement, no intention to look up. He looks down instead, softly nudging his side and inclining his head so that he’s closer to his ear. “Shou, I know you’re drained but you still gotta get home.” His voice is no louder than a whisper.

With those words being said, Shouto finally manages to straighten up again. He only blinks at him as though he’d just now woken up before being led out of the bar that didn’t seem to be getting any less crowded. Katsuki has his hand carefully wrapped around his wrist as he navigates through the sea of people until he reaches the exit. He holds open the door with his free hand for Shouto to walk out first before following after him.

Outside the air is much colder and the night sky is barely illuminated compared to the inside of the bar. The only actual sources of light are artificial, either from the lampposts along the streets or the bright billboard signs near the taller buildings further away.

The streets around them are surprisingly quiet. A few pedestrians are making their way through the streets and passing cars follow their respective routes home. Muffled rhythmic thudding from the song being played at they’d left can be heard if one listens closely enough.  

Katsuki watches as Shouto squints, eyes trying to adapt to their surrounding after having been in there for so many hours. He presses the palm of his hand against his forehead for a few seconds. “I should never drink again.” He says, voice sounding particularly groggy.

“Wrong.” The blond responds, tugging Shouto’s sleeve as he does to keep him moving along. “You shouldn’t drink alone over some bastard ever again.” He corrects, hand instantly letting go of his wrist to grab the other’s shoulder instead and keep him from stumbling forward.

“You got shit balance when you’re drunk.” He bluntly points out to which he receives a very dry and sarcastic two syllable laugh.

From there, the two begin their walk to Shouto’s apartment. It’s a relatively short walk that’d normally take no longer than twenty minutes but considering Shouto’s barely able to stand straight from alcohol and fatigue, it’s a good half hour. Not even a few minutes in, Katsuki’s arms are wrapping around the other’s middle and bringing him to his other side so that he’s no longer walking by the street but rather by the buildings.

Doing that gives Katsuki some kind of peace of mind after having seen the other sway left to right so many times in such a short amount of time. At least now he wouldn’t accidentally stumble onto the street. Shouto finds himself progressively gravitating closer to Katsuki until he’s practically stuck by his side. He hooks one of his own arms around his friend’s own then rests his head once more against a broad shoulder.

Red eyes quickly glance down before looking back up ahead. Physical proximity had never been an issue and personal space was never something exclusive to either of them. So Katsuki doesn’t angrily mutter and Shouto doesn’t find himself asking for space when he’s pulled a little closer. Katsuki knows this doesn’t mean anything, knows that his friend is leaning on him because he’s tired and at the end of the night, he might as well be the only stable thing left in Shouto’s life. They don’t exchange words until they reach a red light right across from where Shouto lives and come to a halt.

“Kat.” It comes out quietly and Katsuki only hums in response, letting the other know that he has his full attention.

“What if I’m just not meant to love or be loved?”

That sentence practically causes Katsuki’s own heart to stop and shatter into a thousand pieces. He pulls himself away from Shouto, causing him to stand up straight, look him right in the eyes. Red searches for any signs that this question might be a joke in blue and grey. Surely enough, it isn’t. Calloused hands travel from shoulders to flushed cheeks a creased forehead because of raised mismatched eyebrows, in search for some kind of heat that might indicate a fever. There isn’t.

“What?” That’s the only word Katsuki can manage to utter in response with his face twisted in a worried sadness.

Just as the light turns green, Shouto turns to look away without another word, slipping from his grasp, and crosses the street, leaving him alone. Still in shock, Katsuki quickly jogs after him to get back to his side. “What the hell was that about?” He asks as they reach the building’s main entrance. Knowing the other most likely isn’t in any state to juggle with his keys, Katsuki grabs his own set where he carries Shouto’s spare.

He’s about to ask again when he’s met with silence but cuts himself off when he sees someone else is already in the elevator despite the time. He has no intentions of making their conversation public, so he waits until they’re in Shouto’s apartment. Once they are and he’s closed the door behind him, he resumes.

“Shou!” Katsuki calls out while taking off his shoes at the genkan. “You can’t just say shit like that then walk the fuck away or give me the silent treatment.” He briefly explains, sounding rather bothered by the fact that his friend is now acting as though he’d never even opened his mouth to begin with. This is without a doubt, one of his most problematic habits.

Shouto’s already taken off his shoes and jacket, heading for his bedroom when Katsuki stops him by placing a hand on the doorknob before him. “Talk to me.” He insists, having no intentions of letting this go. “And don’t tell me you’re just drunk.” Katsuki knows Shouto; alcohol or not, he wouldn’t say something that unless it was a legitimate thought of his.

It took a bit more convincing than just that, but he’d eventually gotten him to cave and agree to speak to him. Shortly after, the two were both sitting in the living on opposite sides of the couch. Katsuki is the one to bring back the topic of discussion.

“What do you mean by you don’t think you’re meant to love or be loved?”

Katsuki can’t even begin to formulate some kind of idea in his mind that could make the other ever think of such a thing. He’s perfect in so many ways he can’t even begin to enumerate and even his flaws compliment him in the most beautiful of ways. Whoever he chooses to love would be receiving a gift like no other.

Shouto leans his head back against one of the pillows. He’d been blankly staring at Katsuki. Eyes he’d studied over the years to learn what each look meant, empty. “It’s just the way I feel.” He admits, eyes blinking shut and a heavy sigh leaving his lips.

“Just think about it.” He continues, hands clasping around themselves. “Every date I’ve been on lately has either been a disaster or a complete bust.”

Pieces of a puzzle slowly start falling into place. Katsuki feels his jaw involuntarily clench and his fists ball up, nails digging into the palms of his hands. He’s not sure of what’s to follow but an idea suddenly starts to form against his will.

“It feels like some universal force is just constantly working against me to keep me from having a successful date!” Shouto huffs out, sounding discoursed more than anything else.

Katsuki swallows hard at those words. His heart feels as though it’d just dropped, and his stomach oddly twists, hollow within itself. This is worse than anything he could have ever imagined happening that first time he’d sabotaged a date and decided to go through with it more than once. To make Shouto feel as though he wasn’t worthy of love was a stab to his own chest.

Shouto unclasps his hands and finally looks back to him again. “Even the date I was on earlier during the evening. He brought me to some ridiculously loud restaurant, ordered for me, food that I don’t even like and then proceeded to only speak about himself for two hours straight!” He complained, the aggravation in his voice clearer than ever.

He winces at that. That was his fault. He’d told the guy who was taking him out to dinner all of those things.

“And that’s only one of many. I can name you every date that went wrong.”

Katsuki shakes his head, opens his mouth, “I don’t think you have to do th-”

He interrupted by Shouto who’s now sitting up to sit cross legged on the couch and stare directly at Katsuki while he speaks. “Kazuki.” He says, “You were there for that one too.”

Katsuki remembers that date, he remembers it very clearly. It was the one that started it all. The first date he’d sabotaged. It was an accident at first, that much he had to admit, but it was an accident he was willing to repeat. An ‘accident’ that he /would/ repeat.

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Katsuki was making his way to Shouto’s apartment, mindlessly scrolling away on his phone, his legs having memorized the familiar walk and no longer demanding his eyes undivided attention. He knew Shouto had finished his classes at three in the afternoon that day, so he figured he’d stop by as usual for them to study together.

He was still wearing his white lab coat and had his glasses pushed back into his spiky blond hair as he pulled open the building’s main door. His last class that day was chemistry, and he hadn’t bothered to take off the coat just yet.

Once he reached Shouto’s floor, he fished out his set of keys from his pocket. Eventually finding the spare key that he had been given, he unlocked the door and welcomed himself into the apartment. Still focused on a series of text messages by yours truly, Eijiro Kirishima and Denki Kaminari, he kicked off his shoes without paying much attention to his surroundings.

“Hey.” He let out as he dropped his bag near the genkan and headed for the kitchen. “You’ll never believe it. Dunce face asked-” His daily amount of gossip he was used to sharing was cut short when he finally looked up from his phone and was met with… an unexpected sight.

His eyebrows pinched in confusion and his eyes immediately hardened. Before he could even control his tone, he was already asking questions in a more than an unfriendly matter. It wasn’t like he cared though, what he needed were answers.

“Who the fuck is this? What the fuck is he doing? Why the fuck is he here?”

Shouto froze, hands immediately going to cover his face in embarrassment. Surely enough, he had walked in on his best friend getting pinned down on a couch by someone he’d never even seen before. He couldn’t believe this; he was practically keeping his jaw from hanging wide open and looking like an idiot.

It took every fibre in his being to not let his eyes pop out of their sockets and roll onto the ground. Scratch that, that wasn’t anatomically correct and only happened I cartoons. It took every fibre in his being to not start yelling like some madman and kick the guy out.

Just as Katsuki was about to ask again, the mystery man spoke up.

“Hey man, I’m Kazuki. Nice to meet you.” He said, one hand supporting himself to stay above Shouto and the other reaching out as though to shake hands with Katsuki.

Kazuki? Seriously Was this some kind of fucking joke? Katsuki’s expression had quickly twisted from shock and confusion to a mix of anger and disbelief as he stared at the hand. The nerve some people had. Where did Shouto find this bastard?

“Wasn’t talkin' to ya Ken.” Katsuki said, sending him a harsh glare before looking down to Shouto. “Half n' half, who the fuck is this?” He asked once more, having no intention of doing small talk with Ken.

“I’m literally right here man. And it’s Kazuki, not Ken.”

“And surprisingly I still don’t give a fuck, so shut it Barbie man.” He practically snapped, anger suddenly boiling within him. There was no way he was going to address him by his actual name. Just as he planned on taking his eyes off the man, he spoke again. Did he not have the competency to respect basic commands such as shut it?

“Wow. Einstein’s rude.” Ken pointed out with an over exaggerated eye roll that practically had Katsuki wanting to kick him. Who did this guy think he was?

“What?” If he hadn’t already looked so confused, this would have definitely pushed Katsuki to the edge. “What does Einstein have to do with any of this?”

“Einstein.” He repeated, “You know? The mad scientist? You’re wearing a lab coat.”

Unbelievable. Where did Shouto find this guy?

“What the hell?” Katsuki asked, straightening up almost as though he’d been personally offended by the statement. “Einstein was a theoretical physicist.” He said, his voice making it sound as though it was as obvious as the sky being blue. “Not a goddamn mad scientist! And neither am I. I was in chemistry class.” He paused, squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head before opening them again with a quirked eyebrow. “How fucking stupid are you?”

He received a conflicted look in return, almost as though he’d just told a child Santa Claus wasn’t real. “Why do you even know that?”

“It’s basic knowledge!” He immediately retorted, wasting no time. “Which program are you in Ken?”

“Athletic training. And it’s Kazuki not Ke-”

Katsuki snorted at that response. “Oh, that’s truly fitting! Athletic trainer, barbie man, himbo, /Ken/.” He made sure to purposely put emphasis on the last word.

“Are you always this rude?”

“Yes.” He bluntly responded before pointing down to Shouto who was still covering his face in embarrassment “Especially to the guys who have my best friend pinned to a couch beneath them.”

“It’s literally none of your business though-”

Katsuki cut the man off before he got the chance to finish that sentence. This conversation had already dragged on much longer than it should have in the first place. He slightly tilted his head to get a better look at Shouto.

“Shou, where the fuck did you even find this guy? In the clearance aisle of the toy store? Did he come with matching clothes too?” He could feel the glare that had been sent by the man but shrugged it off, clearly not minding it.

There was a moment of silence before Shouto removed his hands from his face and looked over to Katsuki. “…Kazuki and I are in a socials class together.”

“Why is he here?”

“We were…” There was hesitance as the next words came. “studying.” Was what he had settled on. Sadly, Katsuki wasn’t as stupid as a certain someone to believe that horrible excuse.

“Uh huh.” He responded, his disbelief practically rolling off his tongue.

“Who are you, his mom?” Kazuki asked, sounding like a middle schooler who thought using the word mom was an insult of some sort.

This guy would just not shut up, he practically rivaled Denki and Eijiro. Even worse, he probably rivaled Izuku, that nerd never knew when to stop talking. “No, but I’m damn more important than you.” He said, not breaking eye contact with Shouto as he did.

“Katsuki!” Mismatched eyes sent him a pleading look to stop his questioning and spare him from such embarrassment.  But Katsuki only ignored the look, too focused on whatever it was he’d walked in on.

“Which class did you stay you were studying for?” He paused before answering his own question, knowing Shouto hadn’t actually told him which class he was studying for.  “Biology, human anatomy, right?”

“Yup. That’s the one.”

“You’re a fucking law major you stupid idiot!” Katsuki practically yelled, having caught Shouto in a lie. The least the other could have done was said no and mention a class that actually was in his curriculum. That was the last straw for some reason, he suddenly no longer cared about somewhat weighing his words.

“This guy’s an imbecile. Absolutely dumber than a pile of rocks. Out of your league too if I’m being honest. He’s as average as they come. You can do so much better than this.”

“Katsuki!” Shouto repeated but this time his voice was painted in some kind of disbelief that he had actually said that.

“Ken, get the fuck off of him.”

Thankfully he didn’t have to repeat himself twice. “Yup. You totally killed the mood.” The man said, pushing himself off of Shouto and heading towards the front door of the apartment.

Crimson eyes were practically locked on him and he trailed closely behind, follow him to the door. Shouto only let out an embarrassed groan, falling back onto the couch. Well, at least he wasn’t too bothered by him leaving.

“And my boner for that matter.” He added while slipping on his shoes at the genkan.

Katsuki gave him a look of disgust, already reaching for the doorknob and pulling opened the door. “Get out before you don’t have a dick to get a boner with.” He said, shoving the unwelcome guest out the door once he stood up again.

“What?!?”

“Probably have a ‘four inches and proud’ poster in your frat house room.” He mumbled as he slammed the door on him. He made sure to actually lock the door this time.  Any kind of repeat of whatever had just happened was anything but wanted.

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Katsuki clears his throat, he schools his facial expressions to keep himself from giving away any unwanted emotions in response to Shouto’s rambling. “That was just one date Shou.” He kindly begins, “It doesn’t mean you’re not worthy of love.”

There’s only a snort that comes from the other. “One date?” Shouto asks, more sarcastic than he’d ever sounded before. “Osamu.”

The name he hadn’t heard for quite some time makes him visibly flinch. Memories from a few months back instantly come back almost like a slap to the face.

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Katsuki was lounging around in Shouto’s living room, seated on the couch with his head slightly tilted back while lazily flipping through the channels. Bored red eyes stared at the passing fragments of tv shows or movies until he settled on a channel playing reruns of old romance shows with too many seasons to count.

It wasn’t until he heard the faint jingle of a bell and the sound of soft paws against hardwood floors that he looked away from the television. Green eyes were staring up at him, practically glaring into his soul. Surely enough, Fuyumi’s cat was beside the couch and fixated on him like some strange obsession. Katsuki wouldn’t be surprised if the cat knew his deepest and secrets. God, she gave him the creeps sometimes.

“What are you looking at fur ball?” He grumbled, blond eyebrows tightly knitting together as he sent her a hard look. It almost seemed as though he was trying to one up a cat in some kind of staring competition.

With of course nothing but a meow in response, Katsuki shook his head and returned to his show. He watched as a woman discovered love at first sight was indeed real after bumping into the apparent man of her dreams. A man who she’d then think about every waking second and fall in love with all over again each time their eyes would meet.

Being somewhat of a fan himself when it came to romance mangas, animes, tv shows and movies, he knew for a fact that the trope was overused but it remained a classic one, nonetheless.

He’d watched this show one too many times to not know the next line. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there… I’m Hajime.” He repeated at the same time as the man on the screen held the woman he’d caught by the waist. Katsuki couldn’t help but roll his eyes, how cliché.

A few moments later, Shouto’s rushed footsteps could be heard from the living room, a sign that he was finally ready to leave. ‘About time.’ He thought to himself as he checked the clock on a nearby wall. He looked away from the television to follow the other as he walked out of his room.

Shouto quickly passed by Katsuki and was now standing by the mirror at the genkan. A stressed look was painted onto his face while he fixed his belt. He looked down, lips forming a small pout and hands feeling the pockets of his pants, clearly in search of something. “Ah shit, I forgot my keys.” He groaned in annoyance, realization hitting him.

His phone began ringing as he passed behind the couch in the living room to head back to his room. Taking it from his back pocket, mismatched eyes quickly scanned the screen to check the caller ID. “Oh it’s my sister! Answer, please.” Shouto practically pleaded, handing Katsuki his phone. “I gotta find my keys and change these pants. They don’t match whatsoever.”

Katsuki hadn’t gotten the chance to answer when the phone was shoved into his hands. He opened his mouth to make a comment but instead found himself staring as Shouto disappeared into his room with lips slightly parted. The next ring that followed is what had made him finally close his mouth and blink a few times to snap out of whatever mesmerized daze he’d been in.

To think, he was the one rolling his eyes just a few minutes ago at the woman on television who shared the same predicament as him. May whichever god who took their sweet time sculpting Shouto which such perfection and such beauty, be thanked and worshipped for many years to come.

He brought the phone to his ear after swiping the screen to accept the call. The sound of a sweet, perky voice rang through the device before he could even say hello.

“Shouto!”

“No.” Katsuki sighed, turning to face the television once more. “Guess again.”

“Katsuki-kun?”

After so many years of knowing Fuyumi, he had no doubt that her face was pinched in confusion just by the sound of her voice. “Bingo.”

“Ah, I should have known.” She practically giggled which caused Katsuki to raise an eyebrow. But before he could make a comment, she quickly got to what he supposed was the reason of her phone call. “Is Shouto around? I had to ask him something.”

Katsuki only hummed in response, “He’s getting ready to leave.” He explained, as a thought suddenly popped into his mind. “One second.” With that being said, he brought the phone away from his ear and covered the microphone.

“Halfie.” He called out, waiting a few seconds until he continued his sentence. “Wear the pants from my parents last spring collection. Those look good on you and they’ll match the button up.”

As much as Katsuki had no intentions of following his parents’ footsteps in the design industry, saying he had bad taste in clothes, or no sense of fashion would be a lie. It was quite the contrary, from a young age, he’d always known how to dress better than most of his peers, including Shouto. /Especially/ Shouto. Which made little to no sense in his opinion considering everyone else in his family dressed remarkably well. Even his eldest brother Touya, despite his dark aesthetic, had a better sense of fashion than him.

That of course changed once they got to high school though. Katsuki would regularly drag Shouto to the mall, helping him pick clothes that would look good on him. Considering everything looked amazing on the other, the only challenge was learning how to properly match colours with his hair and eyes.

The two would also start sharing clothes come their second year. It started as a mistake when Shouto had accidentally taken Katsuki’s hoodie instead of his own on his way out of the other’s dorm. Come the next morning when he’d come to return it, Katsuki shrugged, “You can wear it, I don’t mind.” From then on, the two would share anything from turtlenecks to button ups to casual shirts and hoodies.

It had gotten to a point where their clothes no longer had their own individual scent but rather a mix of both. Who would have known the faint smell of strawberries mixed with burnt sugar would be so pleasing and even become comforting. Katsuki wasn’t sure what it was that made the combination comforting. But he had his suspicions that it had something to do with Shouto as whole being a person who represented familiarity and stability in his life after so many years of the two being best friends.

Eventually with time, Shouto developed a decent sense of style of his own, but that didn’t stop Katsuki from still helping him. Or his parents for that matter. Once they became teenagers, it was no surprise seeing the two at Mitsuki and Masaru’s studio. The couple had a love for fashion and luckily for them, their son and his best friend happened to be quite the natural models. So it was quite common for Shouto to have pieces from their collections in his closet.

“You’re right. I’ll wear those. Thank you!” Shouto responded from his bedroom.

With the response he was given, Katsuki uncovered the microphone and brought the phone back up to his ear. “Hm, sorry Fuyumi. What’s up?” Katsuki asked, his gruff voice lacking any of its usual bite or harshness.

“What do you mean Shouto’s getting ready?”

He clicked his tongue, “Your brother’s got a date tonight.” The words tasted sour on the tip of his tongue.

“What?” Fuyumi had practically yelled, causing him to slightly wince at the sudden change in voice. “He’s supposed to be watching Misumi while I’m away in Osaka for this teacher formation! I left her with him because he /asked/ to watch her.”

“I know. Big fucking shocker, huh?” Katsuki snorted, a certain bitterness to his words. He hadn’t known about the date either until the night before when Shouto asked him to come over. He figured it would be to hang out like usual but no, it was to watch his sister’s cat for the night while someone else spent the night with Shouto. How sad for Katsuki and his lack of courage to simply confess his feelings.

“And relax, I’m the one watching the little brat.” He added, crimson red eyes looking down to where Misumi had curled up between his legs. “Misu’s going to be just fine.” He reassured, lips slightly curling upwards when the cat moved at the sound her nickname. Her tail gently swatted him, and she went to rub the side of her face against his leg before settling down once more, keeping her head in place. So maybe Katsuki did have a soft spot for animals.

“Are you sure Katsuki-kun? I would have left her at my parents’ house with my kids had I known he had plans and you’d be stuck watching her!” Fuyumi’s words were practically seeping with guilt.

Katsuki sighed, she was too nice for her own good. “We’re practically family. It’s the least I could do considering all the shit you’ve done for me over the years.” His body leaned forward, hand dropping to his side to gently caress the top of Misumi’s head and the back of her ears. What he said was no lie, Fuyumi had always done a lot for him, especially as a child. She’d played a part in pushing him towards learning how to cook and was always there when he needed some kind of advice.

“Thank you…” She trailed off, clearly grateful for the favour he’d been making her, despite Katsuki not seeing it as one. After a moment of silence between the two, she asked the question he had anticipated from the start. “Who’s Shouto going on a date with?”

“Some extra from school.” He paused, thinking back to the name he’d been told a few hours priors. “Masuda… Uhm.” The blond blinked a few times, waiting for it to come to mind. “Osamu. That’s his first name.” He nodded, finally remembering the oh so important name. He practically rolled his eyes so far back he could see his optic nerve.

“Osamu Masuda.” Fuyumi repeated, sounding almost perplexed. He couldn’t blame her; his reaction was actually quite similar to hers. “Where did you say the two know each o-” She had cut herself off before she could finish her question as a second voice, who he recognized as her husbands, called her name, and said something about a conference starting.

“I’ll be right there!” She replied, voice sounding further than before. “Ah, Katsuki-kun, I have to go but tell Shouto to call him when tomorrow! I want to hear all about his date. Thank you again for watching Misumi.”

“I will, and like I said, it’s no problem. Enjoy your evening.” Katsuki then proceeded to end the call and bring the phone down from his ear. He was about to lock Shouto’s cellphone when he found himself staring at the home screen. He couldn’t help but exhale from his nose, some mock version of a laugh, as he stared fondly. The picture his best friend had set for his home screen was none other than the one they’d taken on his birthday a few weeks prior.

Their moms had asked the two to pose together for a picture when Rei had made a comment of the two looking too serious which the caused his mother to start downright insulting the two. (Lightheartedly, of course. After all, it was her love language.)

“You two look like you’re trying to recreate the famous American Gothic painting.”

What a thing to say on your son’s birthday.

It did however serve its purpose, because shortly after he and Shouto were arguing on who looked more like the wife and who looked more like the husband from the painting.

“No no, if anyone looks like the husband, it’s you. You’ve got the same scowl and you’ve both got those dead eyes when you stare too intensely.” Shouto had said, causing Katsuki to pull him down closer from the collar of his shirt.

“And what would you know about my dead eyes when I stare too intensely, huh halfie?” He asked, scanning Shouto’s face as he decided to sit on one of Katsuki’s thighs so that the two of them could be at eye level now. “If anyone’s got dead eyes, it’s you and that fucking dead fish facial expression you have.”

“Dead fish?” Shouto repeated, sounding more offended than ever and practically gawking at the blond, slightly leaning back to fully face him. Out of instinct to make sure he wouldn’t fall, Katsuki wrapped an arm around his waist. Having seen the initiation, Shouto then took that as a sign to swing one of his arms around Katsuki’s neck to further support himself and keep himself steady.

“Dead fish. That’s the damn face you’re making right now. Wide eyes and lips slightly parted, staring at me in some kind of twisted fucking shock.”

“Kat, what the hell?” Shouto asked, laughter beginning to bubble at the absolute madness he was hearing. “I do /not/ look like a dead fi-” Before he could finish his sentence, Katsuki had taken him by the jaw with his free hand, squeezing his cheeks causing thin pink lips to pucker and slightly turning him face their mothers.

“See? Fish face.” Katsuki had said, a proud grin quite literally plastered onto his face. He was barely able to contain his own laughter when he heard Shouto’s incoherent words between laughs and oddly positioned mouth to even speak.

It was at that moment Katsuki’s eyes found themselves on Shouto rather than their mothers and Mitsuki had taken the picture. Crimson red reflected nothing but admiration and love for the man he was staring at. Any beholder of the sight in front of them would be a fool to say otherwise.

When the home screen slightly dimmed signalling that the device would soon turn off, Katsuki found himself staring at his faint reflection. He found himself softly smiling at the memory. He tapped the screen once more to keep the phone from locking itself. (Not that that was a problem, he knew Shouto’s password.)

His fingers hovered over the screen for a few seconds, hesitant as they went to press the messaging app. Even though he wasn’t quite sure if doing this was the right thing, part of him was pushing him to do it. A voice in the back of his mind was practically begging to go through with the idea as he pressed on the conversation labelled with Masuda’s name.

He paused, focusing on the opened messages. He couldn’t care less about what had previously been said. A small scowl took shape as he began typing. He thought of how Shouto normally texted; dry and perfectly punctuated. Unless he was excited about something, then it’d be all cap, dry and perfectly punctuated.

Katsuki caught his bottom lip between his teeth and lightly chewed at it- a habit he had from whenever he’d fall deep into thought. Was this really a good idea? It was just one date. It wasn’t like Shouto would actually fall for this guy…. Right? Those words were all it took for him to absolutely spiral from there.

Reality had melted into a video game like setting. There were tiny, pixelated characters that resembled Shouto, a blank figure to represent this Masuda guy and himself. ‘What if this is the first of many dates? Many dates which could eventually lead to an actual relationship!’ Masuda’s character swapped places with Katsuki, now standing closely beside Shouto as a heart popped up above them.

‘A stable relationship that could lead to marriage.’ Now there was a ring appearing above the two and their characters were leaning in to kiss each other as Katsuki stood to the side. Was his little character the best man? A love meter between Masuda and Shouto immediately filled to the top as Katsuki lost a little heart.

‘Marriage that could potentially lead to kids! Goddamn brats that would call me Uncle Kat.’ Suddenly three little faceless characters appeared, with the words UNCLE KAT written in bold above them. That was all it had taken for his pixelated self to practically faceplant and a tiny ghost to exit his body, followed by the iconic GAME OVER screen and music.

Katsuki looked like had just seen a ghost when he snapped back to reality. Maybe he’d jumped a little too far to reach that conclusion… Either way, he was not taking a chance. No was he going to end up as the sad miserable uncle because he couldn’t get his shit together and confess his feelings. (or in this case properly sabotage a date.) He shook his head, going back to the text he’d been working on.

It was simple and straightforward, nothing complex. A text that stated an address change for where the two were supposed to meet. After rereading it a couple of times in Shouto’s signature monotone, he nodded to himself in approval and pressed send. “Good enough.” He muttered, eyes darting to the other’s bedroom door to make sure he hadn’t come out yet while he was practically having a video game themed love crisis.

Not even ten seconds later, he received a reply. He let out a grunt as he read it. ‘Cool! Can’t wait to see you ;)’ Katsuki’s nose scrunched at the sight of the winking face. Who the fuck did this guy think he was? “Tch, he fuckin' sounds dumber than Pikachu.” He scoffed, pressing down on the messages to delete them from the conversation.

Just as he was about to set the phone onto the couch, Shouto came rushing out of bedroom and snatched the phone back from Katsuki’s hand. The rapid movements caused Misumi to jolt from where she had been, green eyes following red ones to watch Shouto as well. “What did Fuyumi want?” He asked, placing the phone in his back pocket, already at the genkan to slip on his jacket and shoes.

“She wanted to ask you something, told her you were getting ready for a date, freaked out over Misu being alone, told her I’d be staying with the brat, thanked me and then hung up because of some conference.” Katsuki explained, a hum leaving his lips.

Shouto looked up from his shoelaces, mouth hanging slightly opened, red and white eyebrows coming together. “Oh.” Was all he responded, leaving the two in awkward silence.

“Oh?” Katsuki still didn’t know what to make of Shouto’s odd comments at times even after so many years of them being friends.

“That’s what I forgot to do.” Shouto supplied with a shrug and stood up to fix his jacket. “I forgot to tell her I had a date, and you were watching Misumi.”

“You’re insufferable.”

“You’ve been saying that for over ten years.” He challenged in return, an obvious smirk tugging at his lips and a hand pulling the front door open. “I’ll be back in a few hours, give or take. Thanks again!”

Katsuki only waved his hand at him, already focusing on the television once more. “Yeah yeah, whatever. Get outta here pretty boy.” He huffed, hearing the door close behind Shouto.

“More like see you in an hour…” He mumbled to no one but himself when he felt something claw at his leg. “Don’t look at me like that Misu.” He said while he leaned down to pick up the small cat and place her beside him. It didn’t take long before she’d found herself sitting on Katsuki’s lap despite his many warnings of staying on her own side that were most definitely ignored. (or maybe not understood, because she was a cat after all.)

────────────────────────────

“How did that misunderstanding even happen?” Shouto is practically on the verge of shouting, “Just fucking cancel the date. Don’t make up some bullshit excuse like that.”

One of Katsuki’s hands makes its way to the back of his neck and he awkwardly begins rubbing it. He looks down, trying to focus on something other than the look of disappointment his friend has on. He’d never thought he’d be on the receiving end of such a conversation where he knew he was the reason for such problems.

He hesitates for a moment, what the hell is he supposed to say? Confessing sounds like the only reasonable thing to do right about now. His bottom lip gets caught between his teeth and he nervously bites down on it.

Just has he goes to open his mouth, Shouto names someone else. “Shindou.” Katsuki purses his lips, that definitely wasn’t one of his finest moments despite having done what he thought was right.

────────────────────────────

“Yo Shindou.” Katsuki repeated, squinting at the social media profile he was practically forced to look at by Shouto. There was nothing too special about it. There were mainly pictures of Shindou in suits or at the restaurant, a few at the gym and one or two with children. That same stupid smile he flashed the first time they’d met him practically plastered onto his face in every picture.

Sure, his profile was aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but it was nothing more than that. At least not in his opinion. He couldn’t care less about the man’s picture editing skills to make his feed look professional; he was paying attention to something else. Katsuki was more preoccupied with how the two of them still shared so many resemblances from specific angles even after all these years. It was honestly disturbing more than anything else.

He shrugged as he handed the phone back to Shouto who was hanging upside down from his bed, red and white strands of hair mixing together due to his position. “He’s whatever.” Was all he’d managed to say before returning to his textbooks and laptop with notes he’d taken during a lecture earlier that day.

“You don’t remember him, do you?” Shouto asked, placing the phone somewhere beside him on the bed in favour of picking up one of his textbooks and a highlighter. The two were studying at Katsuki’s place for finals like they’d been doing since middle school.

Katsuki leaned back in his chair, tilting his head back as well. “Was I supposed to?” He questioned when mismatched eyes looked up to meet his.

“We met him during that one testing period that was being held off school grounds. We got to meet other students from different schools…” Shouto tried giving as many details as possible in hopes that it might spark a memory with the blond. “Nothing?”

Katsuki shook his head. “I remember the test, but I don’t remember him.” He lied, straightening back up again to focus on the work that was scattered onto his desk. He’d propped his elbow up to rest his chin against the palm of his hand and fixed the glasses he was wearing with his other hand. “Why the fuck are you even asking? We haven’t seen him in years.”

There was a beat of silence where all he could hear was Shouto’s highlighter gliding across paper. “Well,” the other began, voice sounding slightly muffled and removing the cap from his mouth. “He actually reached out to me the other day. Asked if I wanted to go grab lunch or something with him.”

Katsuki slightly shifted in his seat at the sound of that. “And?”

“What?”

He rolled his eyes, knowing Shouto’s incompetence when it came to things as simple as social cues when they weren’t directly spelled out for him. “What did you answer half n' half?”

“Oh.” Shouto turned the page of his book. “I said yes.”

His jaw practically clenched at the sound of his response and he could feel his grip tighten around pencil he’d been holding. He knew more than anyone else that he had no right to react in such a way, but he couldn’t help it. It was practically a natural reaction. “Nice.” Was the response he’d settled on, eyes narrowing and choosing to focus on whatever he’d been reading prior.

“Apparently he also goes to our university. He’s majoring in business.”

Well, that explained the posts on his social media account, especially the numerous pictures in suits. He wouldn’t be surprised if Shindou spent his time in the library and pretending to study. After all, that’s what business majors at their school were known for. “Yeah, that explains it.”

“What does that mean?” He could practically hear the confusion written onto Shouto’s face.

Having now been ticked off by the subject as a whole, he ignored the question to ask his own. “Didn’t he have a girlfriend?” The words came out much harsher than he had initially intended, annoyance etched into each syllable he pronounced.

“So, you /do/ remember Yo Shindou.” Was the only thing Shouto had mumbled before going back to highlighting important passages from his textbook. He’d probably caught onto the tone in which Katsuki had used to speak to him and in hopes of not furthering his annoyance, he ended the conversation.

Of course, Katsuki had remembered Shindou. How could he not? The whole day they’d been there, their classmates kept whispering about the similarities between the two. He also noticed the way Shouto would stare at the other like a cat fixated on a red laser. It was ridiculous in his opinion.

The next morning when he arrived on campus, he noticed he had a good hour before his class started. Logically, he went to the one place he could think of: the library. As he passed by the multiple workspaces, he subconsciously kept an eye out for a familiar face. After a couple of minutes of roaming, he reached the second floor. Considering how early it was, it was relatively empty and most student were either on the first floor or still not at school yet.

Once he finally spotted the person he was looking for, he marched right over without a second thought. It was almost like his body was making decisions without running it by his brain first. He dropped his book bag onto the table he’d approached causing the other to slightly jump.

“What the he-” The man cut himself off and brown eyes widened when they’d caught a glimpse of who the owner of the bookbag was. “Bakugou.” His name hung heavy in the air between them.

“Shindou.” Katsuki practically hissed, eyes glaring down at Shindou and crossing his arms over his chest that he’d purposely puffed (not that he needed to, considering how built he already was) to seem more intimidating.

“You’ve gotten taller.” Shindou commented, flashing that venomous smile that seemed to be too good to be true and real. As cool as Shindou was trying to remain, Katsuki couldn’t help but notice his left leg that seemed to be bouncing underneath the table. For some reason, that only added fuel to the fire behind his actions.

Katsuki moved across from him all while keeping the eye contact and pulled out a chair to take a seat. Practically manspreading now, he began. “And from what I’ve heard, you’ve gotten gay.” Unlike Shindou’s words, his didn’t hang in the air but rather came crashing down between the both of them. “The hell happen to your girlfriend?”

Shindou shrugged, “Some things just aren’t meant to last.” That was the excuse he’d chosen to settle on. Very well.

“So now you play ball, huh?”

He watched him blink a few times at the question he’d been asked. Katsuki had never been anything but blunt with his words and now certainly wasn’t the time he was planning on changing that.

“Listen Bakugou,”

Before Shindou could continue whatever bullshit speech he’d most likely come up with on the spot, Katsuki placed both hands atop of the table and leaned forward to get closer. “No, no Shindou. You listen to me and you listen real good because I’m not repeating my damn self twice.”

Shindou shut his mouth, tightly pressing his lips together and sinking into his chair to listen to what the blond had to say.

“I don’t know what the fuck it is you’re trying to accomplish here by taking Shouto out to lunch but whatever it is?” Katsuki asked before answering his own question. “It better not be anything that revolves around the idea of hurting him or experimenting or anything that has to do with your quarter life, gay discovery, crisis for that matter!” He practically snapped, sharp canines on display from the way he’d been gritting his teeth.

Brown eyes looked at him as though he’d grown a second head. “Bakugou, I’d never do that.” He quickly blurted out to defend himself against the accusations that were being made against him.

“Oh please, that’s what they all say.” Katsuki scoffed, his usual scowl finding itself onto his face in no time. “What? You think you’re the only one to have said such things?” He cocked an eyebrow, “Well you’re not, that much I can guarantee you.” 

He stopped speaking when he spotted a group of people heading their way. Silence submerged the two until they passed by them and were out of earshot. Shindou opened his mouth to say something but Katsuki beat him to it.

“Shut it, I’m not done.” That was all it had taken for Shindou to dip his head down and look at the ground as he kept listening. “He doesn’t deserve to be treated like some stupid experiment or a fucking one-night stand. Sure, he seems emotionless on the outside, but it hurts him. More than most people actually realize, or care.”

Katsuki hadn’t been lying when he said that. Ever since they were children, he’d witnessed first-hand just how much these things -these people, would hurt Shouto. From the time someone had rejected the friendship bracelet he’d made at the age of seven to a few months ago when a guy blocked Shouto for no apparent reason other than a sudden lack of interest. Whether it was platonic or romantic, he’d always been more affected than he cared to admit.

But each time, Katsuki was there. There to wipe the tears, there to reassure him, there to comfort him, there to get him back up on his feet and most importantly to let him know that he it was their loss, not his. When a piece of Shouto’s heart would chip, Katsuki would be there to chip his own and give him that piece as a replacement. After so many years of doing so, Shouto’s heart was a wonderfully blended sculpture of gifted pieces.

Because when everything was said and done, if Shouto couldn’t count on Katsuki, he couldn’t count on anyone. From the moment they’d met, there had been an unspoken promise that they’d always be there for each other and to this day, twenty years later, it had yet to be broken.

“So why don’t you do us both a favour and drop it.”
Shindou hadn’t said a word for next couple of seconds that followed. He stared, facial expressions speaking for themselves before he took his phone out and quickly typed a text. Once he pressed send, he only placed his phone face down onto the table. Not a word was uttered as Katsuki slowly settled back into his seat.

He gave him a quizzical look, eyes speaking louder than words, as though he were asking if he thought this was some kind of game. He was expecting so kind of answer, anything really. To be left like this was to be dismissed in his opinion.

Just as he opened his mouth, he heard his own phone ping, informing him that he’d received a text message. He reached for his back pocket and took out his phone. The two exchanged a look.

“Open it.” Was all Shindou had said.

“Tch, don’t tell me what to do.” Katsuki mumbled, swiping on the notification and unlocking his phone. It was a text from Shouto accompanied with a screenshot. He quickly scanned the screen to see what it was about. Surely enough, the picture he had received was one of a conversation between Shouto and Shindou.

The texts were straightforward. Shindou apologized, admitted that he was moving too fast, he had acted on impulse after going through a rough patch with his girlfriend and now that he thought of it, maybe a date wasn’t a good idea after all. Shouto reassured him that it was okay, gave him his best wishes with a thumbs up.

He was expecting Shouto to be disappointed or to be complaining about how unfair it was. To his surprise, his best friend was neither sad nor upset. If anything, he seemed oddly relieved in the text message that followed.

‘I’m glad he was honest. Hopefully him and his girlfriend work it out.’

Katsuki shouldn’t have been surprised, he should have expected this. Shouto was never one to wish anything bad upon others no matter how upset or sad he’d get. Somehow, he always found it within him to wish others the best. Those were one of the many things he’d admired about the boy from a young age. He was always kind no matter how he’d be done.

Just as he was about to respond, he received a second text. ‘Want to hang out at my place tomorrow night instead? I want to watch Hajime propose.’ Now that was something he wouldn’t mind doing. After all, watching reruns of that tv show had been their thing for years now.

They’d first stumbled upon it by accident as teenagers while flipping through the various channels on television. Having nothing better to do, the two decided to watch the first episode as a joke. They eventually ended up getting hooked, as cliché as it was, it was addicting. So, in the following weeks, the two binged the entirety of all eighteen seasons. Now the two always found themselves going back to the romcom whenever they had nothing else to watch or simply because they felt like watching something that secretly brought the both of them comfort.

Katsuki decided he would respond to Shouto’s text later, obviously agreeing to the plans. He looked back up from his phone and slightly tilted his head to the side as his hardened facial expressions softened ever so slightly. “Why’d you leave your girlfriend?” He asked, catching Shindou off guard and watching brown eyes widen at the sudden question.

He watched as facial expressions shifted from shocked to pensive to eventually saddened. Now he could have thought of dozens of reasons, but the following weren’t one of them. “Felt like she never got the chance to see what else was out there because of young we were when we started dating. I thought maybe she’d want to get out there, meet other people that were better than me, give her more…” Shindou quietly trailed off, his usual smile nowhere to be seen.

“You’re goddamn stupid.”

“I know.” There was a miserable chuckle that followed.

Katsuki sighed, standing up and grabbing his bookbag as he did. “Listen, I don’t know much about you two but what I do know, is that no one stares at a person the way she stared at you unless you really love them.” He admitted, flashbacks of the two back in high school quickly flooding his mind and providing him with the moment he’d been referring to.

“Text your fucking girlfriend Shindou.” Katsuki added, tucking his chair under the table they’d been working at and turning his back to begin walking away. Before he could get any further than a few steps, the brunet called out.

“You know, it’s funny that you say that. Tatami said the same thing when she’d realized the way you and Todoroki would exchange glances.”

Katsuki didn’t stop in his tracks or respond to his words. He only gave him the middle finger from the back and made his way down the stairs as though what he’d been told wasn’t true. Deep inside his chest however, he felt the strings of his heart violently tug and threaten to snap. He knew the way he’d look at Shouto, but hearing that the other would look at him the same way... That was nothing but wishful thinking in his mind.

────────────────────────────

“On the bright side, he and his girlfriend are back together?” Katsuki offers with the most sympathetic smile he could muster, trying his best to not make it seem like any kind of pity. He was practically at a loss for words, his normally extensive vocabulary now shortened to his disadvantage.

Shouto rolls his eyes. “That’s great, but for them. Not me.” He scoffs, changing the position he was seated in to now have his knees pulled up to his chest. He frowns, “I only keep losing in these situations.”

“It’s only a couple of bad dates…” Katsuki trails off, knowing that what he’d said wasn’t completely true. It’s /every/ bad date.

“Yudai.” And just like that, he’s being corrected once again.

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Katsuki was sitting at his desk in his bedroom, pencil and foot rhythmically drumming against his notebook to a song he’d once played on the drums that now playing from his laptop. He quietly mumbled the lyrics under his breath while staring at one of the numerous mathematical problems in his study guide.

Just as he had begun writing out the steps he’d need to complete to equation, his phone began ringing. A familiar tune from his childhood quickly filled the room: Superhero All Might’s opening song. Looking up from his papers, he pushed his glasses up and swiped to answer the call.

“What do you want Deku?” He asked, pushing the speaker button to keep working.

The last time he’d properly answered his phone with Izuku on the other line was probably four years ago when Izuku called him with his new phone number, and it had shown up as ‘No Caller ID’. While he and Shouto had grown up extremely close, the two hadn’t gone to the same elementary school or middle school. So naturally, he found himself also growing close to other people. One of those people was none other than Izuku Midoriya.

Once they got to high school and the two were reunited again, he’d introduced Shouto to Izuku. Luckily the two got along more than well and ever since then, the three considered themselves to be some kind of trio. Although they didn’t see Izuku as often as the two saw each other, they kept a good relationship through text and calls.

“My fish.” Izuku began, voice wobbling. “Died.” He added as all hell practically broke loose, and he began sobbing into his microphone.

Katsuki winced at the loud cries that rang throughout his room, quickly lowering the volume. Of course, Izuku was crying. As big and as built he was, he was extremely sensitive when it came to these kind things, especially his pet fish (or fishes, considering how many had already died).

“Didn’t I tell you getting another fish was a bad idea?” Katsuki huffed out, raising an eyebrow at his phone despite not being on a video call.

He heard Izuku inhale and sniffled a few times, “Kacchan!” He practically cried out; voice hoarse from at the previous crying he’d probably done. “I called you to mourn All Might the Fourth. Not to hear you say, ‘I told you so.’” He complained before blowing his nose into a tissue.

“At least fucking mute, if you’re going to sob and wipe your snot dumbass.” Katsuki complained, face twisted in some kind of disgust from hearing the other. “When did you even get a fourth fish?” He questioned, voice holding no particular harshness to sympathize with his friend.

“Eiji gave the fish to me for our fifth anniversary last week.” Izuku sadly explained with sniffles between his words. “I tried calling him but he’s working, and he won’t be home until later tonight.” He sadly said, tearing open a new box of tissues.

Katsuki should have known Eijiro was behind getting Izuku a fourth fish. Even though everyone knew he wasn’t suited for taking care of a fish, Eijiro could never say no to his boyfriend. “Well, I can’t mourn or hold a funeral in your bathroom right now, I’m working on some damn mandatory study guide.” He admitted, knowing he’d be asked to come over ay second now. “Sorry, for your loss and for being unavailable.”

“Well, who’s supposed to come over and comfort me now?” Izuku asked, almost whining like a puppy who’d been denied attention or treats. He wouldn’t be surprised if the other was doing those dumb puppy dog eyes as well.

With those words being said, an idea popped into his mind. “Ask candy cane.” He suggested after a pause to fully process his thought.

Obviously, Shouto was indeed busy. He was actually at a coffee shop not too far off campus on one of the main streets, getting coffee with some extra he’d met in one of his history classes. But if Izuku were to show up crying, he’d without a doubt, leave his date to take his friend home and offer a shoulder to cry on. Later once Eijiro would get home, Katsuki would swing by as well because there was no doubt, he wouldn’t call him crying either.

“But I thought Shouto was busy…” Izuku trailed off, sounding unsure and confused by the other’s words.  

Katsuki hummed, knowing Shouto had told him he had some kind of outing with someone and sparing the exact details. “Nah, he’s just studying with some shitty extra over coffee or something.” So maybe he’d slightly bent the truth. It wasn’t like Izuku would find out anyway or that Shouto would mention it being a date. “I’m sure he’d comfort you.”

“I don’t kn-”

Katsuki interrupted him. “We’re all good friends, aren’t we?” He asked, left hand reaching for his calculator as he entered the equation he’d begun writing down.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He finally agreed, having decided the other would know best anyways.

“He’s at the coffee shop on the main street right off campus. I’ll text you the address.”

“Thanks, Katsuki.”

“What the fuck are friends for, right?” Katsuki asked, sounding slightly out of touch with the conversation due to the calculator showing an error signal. Deciding he would end the call now in order to figure out where he’d went wrong with his work, he continued. “I’ll pass by later once Ei gets off work. See ya Deku.”

Before he could even hear Izuku’s long and heartfelt goodbyes as though they’d never see each other again or give him the chance to question him again, he pressed the red button to hang up. A soft sigh left his lips, and he ran a hand through his hair. He’d checked the time to see that he had a good four hours to finish his study guide until he’d have to go over to Izuku and Eijiro’s place.

Knowing Shouto wouldn’t finish his spontaneous date with the mystery man he hadn’t been given any information brought him peace in the oddest way. There was no longer a risk of him getting hurt by someone or that doubt in the back of his mind that maybe, just maybe, he’d fall in love. It was pathetic, that much he knew. But until he could figure out a way to confess, keeping him away from heartbreak and potentially loving someone else was his safest bet.

‘A selfish one.’ His mind had supplied afterwards, causing him to lightly cringe at the thought of his own actions. It wasn’t long until he returned snapped out of his thoughts and returned to the task at hand.

The next few hours had passed by quickly and just as he’d completed his work, he realized he had to go. Knowing it wouldn’t be anything fancy, like all of their gatherings, he kept he hadn’t bothered to change out of his outfit that consisted of sweatpants and a hoodie. Luckily, they all lived relatively close by so getting to their shared apartment wasn’t much of a hassle.

After loudly knocking on their front door a few times, he was greeted by a sobbing Eijiro who’d gotten home not too long ago. As soon as he’d stepped foot into their genkan, he was pulled into a literal spine cracking hug. Literally. He heard his spine crack like he normally would at the chiropractor’s.

“Ei, you’re fuckin' crushin' me.” Katsuki had managed to let out between reassurances that All Might the Fourth was indeed in a better place. He lightly patted Eijiro’s back a few times while returning the hug. “At least let me take my damn shoes off!” He’d muttered, already sounding exasperated. He knew the two were emotional but crying over a pet fish? He’d never let them live this one down.

Shortly after, he’d been let go of and was given the chance to take of his shoes. He then made his way over to the kitchen where Izuku and Shouto were seated at the kitchen island side by side. Izuku was like he’d predicted, staring down at the wooden countertop with glossy eyes and a saddened expression. He had one arm folded and the other prompted to support his head. Shouto was beside him, one hand gently rubbing Izuku’s back and a soft expression of sympathy to show he was trying his best.

It would later be revealed while the two were dishes after having dinner and giving All Might the Fourth a proper send-off, that Shouto was glad Izuku had come to interrupt his date. He handed Shouto another dish he’d finished rinsing under hot water to dry.

“So, the bastard just didn’t speak to ya?” He curiously asked, hands already submerged once more in soapy dish water. They had been doing the dishes together in the kitchen and quietly exchanging words while their friends were still sitting at the dinner table. They’d offered to help clean up but Shouto had reassured them that it was no worry, they’d had quite the emotional evening.

Shouto was leaning back against the counter beside the sink while drying dishes and putting them away in their respective place. “It was horrendous.” He admitted while placing the last of the plates inside a cabinet. “I had to carry the conversation.” He miserably sighed, throwing the dish towel he’d been using over his shoulder and letting out a small sigh.

He ran a hand through his hair, pushing back the strands as white and red mixed down the middle part. “Who thought I’d ever be glad to have Izuku burst through a coffee shop and yell ‘All Might the Fourth is dead!’” He said, trying his best to imitate the other’s voice. It wasn’t the worst, but it certainly wasn’t the best.

A laugh threatened to escape Katsuki’s lips when he heard the poor imitation as he began draining the sink. “Oh, so that must have been quite the fuckin' conversation, huh Shou?” Katsuki teased, a dangerous smirk finding its way to his face. As much as he loved his best friend, there was no denying his conversation skills were not to be trusted to carry a conversation alone.

“You’re an asshole.” Shouto replied with a light chuckle, taking the towel that had been over his shoulder and using it to gently hit Katsuki’s side. He shook his head, “Greatest conversation I’ve ever had. Truly one to never be forgotten.”

Katsuki playfully rolled his eyes, tightly clasping his hands together before shaking them a few and then taking the towel from Shouto to dry them. “Whatever you say half n' half.” Was what he’d settled on before turning to face him. He placed the towel back onto Shouto’s shoulder, red eyes looking up to be greeted by comforting blue and grey.

Whatever selfishness that he’d been feeling earlier had now evaporated as the two exchanged smiles. Memories from when they were kids began filling his mind, shared laughs ringing through his ears. He was brought back to the moment that had started it all. They were no older than seven, sitting on the sidewalk in front of his house while the sun began to set. They had spent the evening playing together and Shouto was waiting for his older brother Touya to come pick him up.

Katsuki was leaning back on his elbows, head back and eyes squinting at the sky. His feet were kicking back and forth. Shouto had his knees pulled up to his chest, chin resting atop of them with his full attention on the cherry blossoms that he’d picked up after they’d fallen onto the ground from the trees they once grew from.

“Married people are gross.” Katsuki blurted out, having no knowledge of what it was to keep his thoughts to himself at such a young age. When his friend didn’t immediately respond, he looked over to find him frowning at a slightly torn petal on one of the flowers.

Shouto sighed, eyes leaving the petal to focus on Katsuki. “No, they aren’t.”

“Ha?” He gave him a confused look, “They totally suck.” He huffed, not understanding why the other wouldn’t agree with him. After all, they did agree on everything else. Including the important things! Like which powers were the coolest, which mochi flavour was the worst, which slide at the park was the best and which superhero cards were the most valuable.

“What makes you say that?” Shouto asked with a small frown, almost looking disappointed in Katsuki’s answer.

The blond boy shrugged, pausing to come up with valid reasons. “They’re boring.” That was his first argument. “They’re always together.”

“We’re always together.”

Katsuki waved one of his hands at him dismissively, as though to say their case was different. Which it obviously was, right? “They share everything.”

“We share a lot of things.”

Blond eyebrows knitted together, “And they always know what the other is thinking.” He said, straightening his position to now be sitting up. “They’re like, connected!” He almost yelled, throwing both of his hands up.

The two shared a look. Shouto blinked at him dumbfounded as though he’d just grown a second head. His best friend didn’t have to speak for him to know what he was going to say next. Although there weren’t many thoughts for seven-year old’s, the two were practically telepathically connected.

“Ew, we /are/ gross married people!” Katsuki whined in realization, a distinct pout finding its way to his face that was beginning to grow red in embarrassment.

“Not true!” Shouto immediately contradicted, bringing his knees down from his chest. “It doesn’t work like that.” He huffed out, almost sounding offended by the other’s complaining. “Plus, you make it sound bad. They do all of those things because they really like each other.”

Katsuki contemplated the other’s argument. He wasn’t necessarily wrong. Always sharing and being with someone you really liked didn’t sound too bad. “I guess so…” He trailed off, with a nod before he continued. “Well, I really like you. So maybe us being married wouldn’t be that awful.”

He watched as pale skin was instantly lit a bright red, and mismatched eyes widened. “You really like me?” Shouto repeated hesitantly to make sure he’d heard those words correctly. “And you’d marry me?” He added, sounding ridiculously embarrassed.

“I mean, only if you want to.” Katsuki corrected, now realizing what exactly it was he had said so nonchalantly. He could feel the heat spreading from his cheeks to the back of his neck.

“Yes! I would!” Shouto responded in a panic, thinking the offer he had been given would disappear if he wouldn’t.

Katsuki’s eyes widened, having not expected something so sudden and loud from the usually quiet boy. Neither of them said a word until he decided to break the silence. “Isn’t it ‘I do’?”

“Uhm, maybe.” Shouto scrunched his nose as he thought about the important detail. After not being able to answer the question, he raised his eyebrows. “Anyways, I do.”

Katsuki tilted his head to the side, a pensive look on his face. “Aren’t we too young to be married though?”

“We’ll get married later.” Shouto offered with a kind smile only causing Katsuki’s face to grow redder and a smile of his own to form.

“Okay, how much later?”

“Forty?”

“No way, we’ll be ancient by then!” Katsuki grimaced, shaking his head. The mental image of the both of them as old and wrinkly people (because that’s totally what a forty-year-old looks like) sent shivers down his spine. “Twenty-five.”

Shouto hummed at the thought. “So, if we’re not married to anyone else by twenty-five, we marry each other.” (dating is of course a concept neither of them has grasped yet at the age of seven)

That sounded like a good plan. Katsuki enjoyed Shouto’s presence, he didn’t mind sharing with him, they always knew what the other was thinking and like he said, he really liked him. Plus, Shouto was pretty to look at whenever he wasn’t looking or focused on him.

With that being said, he reached for one of the flowers Shouto had been holding. He spun it a few times to examine its petals before leaning over, invading his best friend’s personal space. From the looks of it, the other didn’t mind it because he’d also leaned in and caused their noses to bump. They both let out laughs, each pulling apart the slightest so that it wouldn’t happen again.

Katsuki placed the flower behind Shouto’s ear, a satisfied smile on his face. “That’s a promise, halfie.” His voice was softer than he had intended, the nickname he’d just come up with sounding much more affectionate than malicious.

“Halfie?!” Shouto practically gawked, mouth hanging opened and trying to sound offended despite the blush growing on his face.

“It’s a cute nickname!”

Once Katsuki was brought back to the present by the sound of Shouto pushing himself off the counter he’d been leaning against he had to look down to keep himself from smiling uncontrollably until his jaw hurt.

“What are you smiling about?” Shouto had obviously caught a glimpse of the other’s smile before turning the other way. Or maybe it was the bright red colour that had been growing at the tip of his ears.

There was no answer that followed, instead Katsuki only stared at him for a moment. “Nothin'.” He quietly let out, hand reaching out to tuck a loose strand of white hair that had fallen out of place and was hanging in front of Shouto’s eyes, behind his ear. “You gotta cut your hair.” He pointed out, deciding it was best to change the subject while bringing his hand back down to his side.

────────────────────────────

By now Katsuki is practically sinking into the couch as though it were made of regret and guilt. He’s shamefully covering his face with one of his hands with his eyes closed. Thinking before acting had been a forte of his for years but apparently that quality didn’t translate to feelings. Had he known his sabotages would lead to any of this, he would have simply confessed from the start.

Part of him is screaming to come clean as Shouto keeps rambling, the words no longer registering, while the other is begging him to keep quiet. The inner turmoil is unbearable, and he lets out a huff of discouragement. “Shouto.” He quietly mumbles, listening to his head rather than his heart that’s telling him confessing can have a huge impact on their friendship.

But he doesn’t care, what’s a friendship worth if he’s already hurt his friend this much. His intentions this entire time were protecting him, not hurting him. Knowing he was the root of such an issue was far worse. Never in a million years would he voluntarily do that. “Shouto.” He repeats, this time louder, knowing his friend probably hadn’t heard him over his own talking the first time.

When there’s no response, he removes the hand from his face and leans closer to his friend. “Shouto. Shut up!” His words cause mismatched eyes to widen and thin lips to quickly press into a line. “Just- Listen to me.” He begs, head already dropping low in shame of the words that are about to leave his mouth.

He sucks in a deep breath, his heart rapidly pounding against his ribcage. “There isn’t any universal force keeping you from having a successful date…” He trails off in silence, “It’s me. It’s my fault your dates always end up being so fucking crappy.” He finally admits, voice threatening to crack as he looks up to meet the other’s gaze.

Shouto lets out an amused laugh. “Kat.” He says between them. “It’s not your fault. Don’t say that.” He says with a soft and innocent smile tugging at his lips.

He only manages to shake his head, the look on his face indeed giving away how serious he is. He watches the smile slowly fade away from Shouto’s face and his laugh slowly boil down to silence. There’s a painful realization painted into those usually bright eyes.

“Katsuki.” He repeats, but this time with a sad edge to it. “What do you mean it’s your fault?” The silence that followed was louder than the one that’d follow after a storm. “What did you do?” His voice is no louder than a whisper, but the disappointment is louder than anything he’d ever heard.

“I’ve been sabotaging your dates.” He confesses. The weight that such a simple sentence carries comes crashing down onto him. It’s worse than he anything he’s ever felt, anything he could have ever imagine.

“You’ve been /what/?” Shouto utters in disbelief, making his heart clench.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Katsuki finds himself choking out due to the sudden tightness in his chest and throat. “It was supposed to be harmless; I promise.” He can’t help but wonder if he’d simply confessed from the start, all of this could have been avoided. The man who always spoke out loud about what he wanted had never felt so silent before.

Eyes begin searching for an explanation of their own but when they find none, they find themselves lock onto guilty red. “Why?” There’s a pause before accusing words come rushing through fallen lips like a cascade. “Why would you do that to me? Why would you ever think of doing such a thing? Didn’t you promise that you’d always want the best for me?”

Questions upon questions only add to the weight that had settled onto Katsuki’s shoulders. He tries to answer, tries to explain himself and each attempt is a failed one. He doesn’t say a word until Shouto finishes talking. Only then does he look up from where he’d been looking down. “I can explain.” Katsuki says, voice threatening to crack, feeling smaller than he’d ever felt before.

He sees Shouto hesitate before accepting to hear him out; that pains him. For the next hour, that’s what he does. He speaks and he comes clean about everything. Or at least, almost everything. He tells him what he did, how he did it and when he did it. One question, however, remains unanswered. Why he did it. He hopes deep down that maybe Shouto will simply tell him to shut up and he won’t have to get there.

But that little hope is slayed when Shouto picks up the sword and swings. “Why?” He asks, expressions now hardened. “Why did you do all of that?”

That explanation comes much slower than the others. Katsuki straightens up from where he’s seated and shifts uncomfortably. It takes him a minute to properly formulate his thoughts. There are many ways for this to go, though only one feels right. “Do you…” He trails off, trying to summon any inner strength he may have left. “Do you remember that promise we made when we were kids?”

“Katsuki, I don’t want to hear any of your jokes right now.”

“It’s not a fucking joke. I’m being serious. Do you remember the promise we made when we were kids?” He asks once more, waiting for the other’s memories to serve him justice. “The one where we said that if were both single by twenty-five, we’d just, marry each other.”

“-marry each other.” Shouto finishes at the same time as him. There’s a beat of silence that follows and fills the apartment. For just an instant, Katsuki thinks he may have chance. That if Shouto had remembered after all these years, maybe he’d feel the same.

However, that chance is shattered just as quickly as it came. “I don’t understand though. Why would that matter?”

Two words come to mind when he hears that.

Unreciprocated love.

Katsuki tries to find a way to get himself out of the situation, tries to come up with an excuse. Anything to potentially save himself from the heartache he’d predicted for himself. Before an idea can even come to mind though, he’s already speaking. “Because, fuck, I love you Shouto.” His mind had clearly won the battle against his heart.  

Shouto stares at him with wide eyes, the same eyes he’d always find himself falling in love with each day. His lips part and shape a small ‘o’ shape. There’s nothing that follows, only a deafening silence that Katsuki can longer stand.

“Say something!” He practically pleads, not knowing what to make of the face he’d been given.

“You love me?” Shouto asks almost tentatively as though he were trying the water of the ocean for the very first time.

Katsuki sighs, almost embarrassed by the question and frustrated that even had to be asked once again. “Yes! I have since we’ve been ki-”

Hands wrap around his collar and gently pull him forward until he feels lips, he’d thought forbidden, upon his own. The kiss isn’t harsh or feather-like but rather a mix that meets right at the middle. It’s sweet and melts like golden honey in the sun at the tip of his tongue. It’s the calm of the tides of the ocean in the morning. But it’s also a little messy and leaves him with the taste of rum when he pulls away to break the kiss. It’s them though and it’s perfect.

A hand reaches out to caress alongside his jaw. “You’re stupid.” Shouto says, his airy laugh ghosting over Katsuki’s lips.

What a thing to say after a first kiss.

Blond eyebrows raise in curiosity. “And why’s that?” He asks, subconsciously leaning into the other’s warm touch. His heart thumps and skips a beat, worry for whatever answer may follow seeping into his chest. At least he could say he got to kiss him once.

“I’ve loved you since we’ve been kids too Katsuki.”

That’s all it takes for Katsuki to lean right back in and kiss Shouto once more as the sun begins to rise outside. This time when he pulls away, he leans his forehead against his, “I told you I’d keep my promise, didn’t I halfie?”

He’s met with one of the most beautiful smiles in response, “Maybe next time just confess from the start.” Shouto teases, causing the both of them to laugh before he adds. “But I never had a doubt, after all, you’ve always kept your promises.”

Feelings are unpredictable, love is unpredictable and even after all these years, Shouto is unpredictable. However, from where he stands now, confessing is no longer taking a leap of faith into unknown darkness and Katsuki is no longer afraid of the dark. Now on the other side, he realizes that it was never darkness awaiting him, but rather a familiarity he never knew he’d been longing.