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Before the dorm arrangement, any attempt Bakugou made to help Kirishima study had been almost entirely for nothing. The circumstances had led to nothing getting done, Bakugou getting mad, Kirishima getting distracted and all in all, despite not being a bad time, it certainly wasn’t practical.
Libraries were absolutely no use. That had proved quickly when they couldn’t keep quiet even when actively trying to. They tried a diner after that, but a coincidental run in with people Bakugou knew from middle school and Kirishima indulging in them way too damn much for Bakugou’s liking had ended up with Bakugou getting frustrated and the commotion it caused had them kicked out.
Kirishima had suggested going to either one of their houses early in the meet but there was no way Bakugou was about to bring the closest thing he’d ever had to a friend to meet, as he put it, ‘my pain-in-the-ass hag of a mom’, without much mental preparation. Preferably never at all.
He had also said that Kirishima’s house was too far, which wasn’t a lie, but he also knew of Kirishima’s three apparently lively younger sisters, and didn’t quite want to end up blowing up at them. As a guest he would try to remain as in line as possible but kids can very easily get too much too quickly and for some annoying fucking reason he felt as if he actually wanted to make a good impression on Kirishima’s family. Dumb fucking friendship and caring about people.
Moving into the dorms had completely taken away those barriers, though. Kirishima and Bakugou were then basically living together (and 18 other people their age, technically, but it’s not like their rooms were directly attached), being the last and first face they saw of the day more often than not. The fraction of a moment to just them before and after they faced anyone else felt so strangely important. A motivator, even, to look forward to the next.
It meant that they could study in privacy with minimal distractions and unpredictable variables, so naturally, that’s what they opted to do.
One thing about living with the class as opposed to just being classmates is that it was only natural for everyone to see the parts of each other that were usually confined to their homes. People who usually wore makeup would be seen without it a lot less, walking around in pyjamas was a common occurrence, many hobbies and mannerisms that would otherwise have to be explained through words were witnessed first hand.
Though none of that applied to Bakugou personally since he kept as much to himself as possible in that regard without actively trying to, the same could not be said for Kirishima.
Bakugou knew something within him fucked itself up from the second he opened the door to his room to see Kirishima standing there, huge grin on his face and holding a textbook. That was expected, they’d planned this out after all, but there was nothing that could have prepared him for the sight of that expression being framed by loose hair covering his forehead and pooling to the tops of his shoulders.
It was still somewhat damp from the shower he’d recently taken, the colour noticeably a shade darker than usual and the strangely cut layers that allowed for the spiked up style he was used to poking out at their individual ends. In contrast to the usual spikes, Kirishima’s natural hair was so much more free, flowing and didn’t come to ends as solid or purposely placed.
The softness of how it fell around his face made his jawline look sharper and cheekbones stand out against his freckles and oh my fucking god seriously when did he get this hot. He always had been, Bakugou was much too aware of that fact for his liking, but this was seeing the man in a whole new light and he was in no way mentally or physically prepared for that.
Hell, it wasn’t even the first time he’d seen his hair down, technically. Though, at the hot springs he had actively drowned out his surroundings because like fuck did he want to listen to what a bunch of teenage boys were talking about while naked and a wall away from girls, and he had something slightly more to worry about when Kamino happened. Forgive him for not making much note of what Kirishima was wearing that night.
“Earth to Bakugouuu,” Kirishima waved a hand in front of Bakugou’s face, tilting his head to the side like a confused dog and making direct eye contact with him. His hair only flowed with it, almost putting Bakugou back into an annoying thought train before he snapped himself out of it.
“What?” He turned back into the room, Kirishima following and closing the door behind himself. “Hurry up and get your shit out, pretty hair, we don’t have all damn night.” With a pout, he folded his arms as he heavily sank to the floor at the makeshift table he had set up.
Following suite, Kirishima sat down at the opposing end, a smile he looked to be trying to conceal playing at his lips as he placed his book on the table.
“Did… you just call me ‘pretty hair’?”
Bakugou’s eyes widened. Holy shit, he did just do that, didn’t he? Damn his stupid fucking thoughts, making his tongue slip enough for him to not even notice the abhorrent miscomunicatiom between his brain and mouth. It was much too close to his bedtime for this!
“Get your ears checked! I called you ‘shitty hair’!”
That made Kirishima laugh, a smile somehow even brighter and fuller than the one before replacing it after a second.
“Of course you did.” He replied fondly.
— x —
“Good morning, Bakugou!” Kirishima chirped, making the man almost set off an explosion in surprise, causing him to chuckle as he walked alongside Bakugou with a suspicious spring in his step.
Normally, Kirishima was never out before him in the morning. Bakugou was always the one to wait for a few minutes (though he always acted like he had just left himself and that their crossing was complete coincidence) so he was a little less guarded than he would be just leaving his room.
“Not fucking funny! You’re lucky I didn’t blast your ass to space.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.
The response only caused Kirishima to laugh more and smile wider, so Bakugou scoffed and looked away from him in an attempt to make it to school without spontaneously combusting, but that meant that he completely missed when Kirishima moved to enthusiastically swing an arm over his shoulder and pull him into his side.
Bakugou tensed for a second, fight or flight not really knowing what to do. Luckily, or not so much, Kirishima didn’t give him much time to think.
“Are you feeling okay, man?” He asked, before leaning closer to Bakugou’s ear. “You’re really pretty today.”
It took Bakugo a solid three seconds, but when it processed and settled, he really did lose it. Red flooded over the centre of his face from the dams breaking at his ears and he pushed Kirishima away with a puff of smoke from his hands, clenching his fists and storming off down the hall with steps that could probably be heard from first floor.
“All I said was you’re really angry today!” Kirishima shouted to him, humour clear in his voice, before jogging to catch up.
That pre- shitty haired bastard was sure to be the end of him.