Archive of Our Own ^beta

Katsuki hiked his duffle bag strap higher on his shoulder, swinging open the dance academy door at the same time. A few people turned their gazes toward the door, and upon seeing Katsuki, promptly turned away. He wasn’t known for being the most approachable after all.

He changed quickly in the locker rooms into some tights and a fitted T-shirt, opting to put his pointe shoes on when he got into the studio.

He was ready to get to work, knowing his instructor was planning for him to participate in an upcoming competition. Ballet was all about consistent training, which he enjoyed.

His plans grind to a halt when he opened the studio door, however. In what was supposed to be his room for the day, was Izuku Midoriya.

Izuku had been a pain in Katsuki’s ass since they first met. Izuku was newer to the academy Katsuki practiced at and had managed to steal Katsuki’s duffel bag after his first day. Sure, they’d both had the same black bag, but he should’ve been paying attention. Katsuki hadn’t just had clothes in there, no, he had some important stuff, including his keys, phone, and wallet.

He’d been unable to get into his damn apartment that night and was forced to crash at Kirishima’s.

Izuku had tried to brush it off the next morning. He hadn’t even apologized! Just standing there, staring at Katsuki after he’d demanded his bag back as if it was absurd! Pissed off, he’d said something about contemporary not being real dance and thus he’d gotten onto Izuku’s bad side. That was also the day Izuku earned his nickname, Deku.

After that, Katsuki felt like he never heard the end of Izuku. It was always “Midoriya this” or “Midoriya that”. The worst was when people started comparing the two of them. They seemed to love telling Katsuki that Izuku was just as good as him, if not better. Every word grated on his nerves like nails on a chalkboard.

Thus, their rivalry of sorts had begun.

“Deku.” Katsuki snapped, voice cutting through the shitty music Izuku was currently dancing to.

Izuku froze, head snapping toward the door, and frowned when he saw Katsuki.

“Kacchan?”

Right, Katsuki had a stupid nickname now too. Izuku had decided it would be hilarious if he gave Katsuki a cutesy name.

It was not funny.

“This is my room for the day, dumbass.” Katsuki stomped in, grabbing the clipboard hanging on the wall as Izuku paused the music. It was essentially a sign-up sheet for people to reserve the dance room.

Sure enough, just as Katsuki had known, his name was there.

…but so was Izuku’s?

“What the fuck?” He furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes. He didn’t have his glasses, but normally he only needed those if he was going to read a book, not simple things like sign-up sheets. How quickly was his eyesight deteriorating?

“Huh?” Izuku was suddenly beside him, again getting way too close as he tended to do as he had no sense of personal space.

Katsuki wasted no time shoving him away and scowling.

“Is your name on this or am I going fucking blind?” He questioned, holding out the clipboard.

“Ah, yeah. I’m there too. I thought Tsunagu would’ve given you a heads up?”

“If I gave him a heads up he wouldn't have shown up.” A man’s voice sounded behind them and they both turned to see Tsunagu in the doorway.

He was Katsuki’s ballet teacher, and the only person Katsuki could stand telling him what to do.

“A heads up about what?” Katsuki felt dread pooling in the pit of his stomach.

“You two are being paired up.”

Katsuki blinked.

No, that wasn’t right. He’s going blind and deaf apparently. Yeah… yeah, deaf. That’s what's happening.

“What.” His tone was flat.

“Uh, Tsunagu, I really feel like maybe I should leave for this-“ Izuku tried to take his leave.

“You two are being paired up for the competition in a few weeks.” His teacher crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, “you said you wanted to try something new for it. This is new.”

Everything finally clicked into place in Katsuki’s brain and he saw red.

“With him?! Why the fuck would you pair us up for that shit?! And this is abso-fucking-lutely NOT what I meant when I said I wanted to do something new!”

“Bakugou-“

“Kacchan-“

“And YOU,” Katsuki spun on Izuku who looked irritated now, “why would you agree to this?!”

“Does that matter right now? Aizawa and Tsunagu made this decision and the least you could do is be respectful and act like a professional about it!”

“Are you calling me unprofessional right now, Deku?” He lowered his tone and stalked towards Izuku, ready to finally beat his ass, when his arm was grabbed.

“This is quite the first impression, Bakugou.” It was a man with black hair to his shoulders and tired eyes.

“Aizawa.” Izuku greeted with a tense smile and Katsuki directed his glare at the man now. So this was the guy who made the decision with Tsunagu? His list of people he hated was currently growing very quickly.

Katsuki jerked his arm out of Aizawa’s grip and opened his mouth to tell the guy off, but Tsunagu cut him off.

“Let us explain first, at least, before you yell.”

Katsuki begrudgingly snapped his mouth shut, teeth clicking from the force.

“You both are very talented dancers-“

Katsuki scoffed at that, glaring at Izuku from the corner of his eye.

“-but you both have things to work on. It just so happens that Aizawa and I thought you two would be able to learn from each other. Your weaknesses and strengths should balance each other out from what we’ve seen, which would lead to an incredible duet. We think you guys could win.”

“Like Deku could teach me anything.” He grumbled, and Tsunagu frowned at him.

“You’re too stiff, Bakugou. You’ve only trained ballet, so I think learning some things from a different style will benefit you. You’ve got technique nailed down, but you still dance like a programmed robot rather than a person who can feel the rhythm and movement of the song.”

Katsuki clenched his fists, biting his tongue. He knew Tsunagu was exaggerating, but he also knew there was some truth to his words. He wasn’t an idiot after all.

Why did it have to be Izuku, though?

“Midoriya, the opposite goes for you,” Aizawa spoke, “you’re enthusiastic and have natural talent, but your technique is lacking.”

Katsuki suppressed the smirk as he saw Izuku deflate a little beside him.

“Right.” Izuku nodded, hands twisting together.

“You two have to choreograph a contemporary ballet duet in time for the competition. It’s in three weeks.”

“Three weeks?!” Katsuki exclaimed, “that’s not enough time for this!”

If it was just Katsuki, it would’ve been fine, but he knew having to learn how to dance with Izuku and collaborate on choreography was going to be difficult.

“Seems like you should get to it then,” Aizawa replied nonchalantly, still looking bored.

Katsuki turned his angry expression towards Izuku, crossing his arms. Izuku huffed and frowned at him.

This was going to be a long three weeks.

—-

“We’re getting nowhere.” Izuku groaned, flopping back onto the floor.

“Yeah? And whose fucking fault is that?” Katsuki snapped, resisting the urge to chuck his phone at Izuku’s head.

They had been stuck at picking music for the past hour.

He feels like he should repeat- an hour. To pick some music.

He could’ve had that done in 10 minutes if he was by himself. They kept shutting down each other’s suggestions and quite frankly, Izuku’s music taste sucked.

“Why can't we just go with the last one I suggested?” Izuku grumbled, eyes narrowed at Katsuki.

“‘Cause it’s actual dog shit, just fucking listen to this one.”

Izuku sat up as Katsuki pressed play. He had found the song a while ago, but hadn’t been able to piece together choreography that he felt fit. It started slow and sad, before building up in the middle and ending similarly to how it started, but with a happy, hopeful feeling.

Izuku sat quietly for once, not immediately shutting it down. They listened through the whole thing, and at the end, Izuku hummed.

“Sounds good, but I do have one concern.”

Katsuki rolled his eyes, “What is it now?”

“That’s a love song.”

Katsuki stared at Izuku for a second before looking down at his phone. Right, he’d forgotten about that little detail. That was also why he felt like a solo didn’t match it. Katsuki would never be able to portray love on his own, especially since he wasn’t in love with anyone.

So doing it with Izuku was out of the question.

“Yeah, never mind.”

“Wait, wait! I didn’t say it was a bad thing.” Izuku waved his hands a little frantically, “I like the song, I just wanted to make sure you knew what kind of dance we’d have to do if we used it.”

“Course I knew! You didn’t have to make it weird.” Katsuki retorted.

“I wasn’t trying to make it weird I was just-“

“Can it, nerd. We’ll use this song.”

Izuku looked like he wanted to keep arguing, but kept his mouth shut.

Good, now if he could just keep it closed for the rest of these three weeks and maybe I won’t end up strangling him.

—-

“Get closer to me idiot, I’m not gonna bite.” Katsuki leered as Izuku hesitated in front of him.

“See that’s the thing, I really think you will.” He replied, taking another step and Katsuki rolled his eyes.

He grabbed Izuku’s arm as soon as he got close and tugged him in. Sure, he hated being close to the nerd, but the quicker they did this, the sooner it would be over. Besides, he was a professional. He wasn’t going to let his distaste for his partner get in the way of winning the competition.

Izuku squeaked a bit in surprise and glared at him.

“You didn’t have to be so rough.” He complained, getting into position.

“Fuck you, I wasn’t. You’re just a wimp.”

They’d both decided that in order to get a feel for one another to create their choreography, they’d have to dance together first. It was something they both already knew, so it shouldn’t be difficult. It was Aizawa’s suggestion that they do a ballroom dance, to “work their way up” as he put it.

Katsuki hated the idea, but Tsunagu had explained it was just because they didn’t have the best track record at being civil with each other. Starting with something big would end poorly, so Katsuki begrudgingly went along with it.

Izuku led first, taking Katsuki by the waist with one hand while the other held up Katsuki’s hand. Katsuki rested his free hand on Izuku’s shoulder, taking in just how close they were now. He swallowed as Izuku glanced up at him, making their faces way too close now. Katsuki leaned away, glaring at Izuku who narrowed his eyes back.

It turned out to be much more difficult than he thought it would be. Despite knowing the tango like the back of his hand, Izuku was an awful partner. He was always complaining about something Katsuki was doing, things like, “Kacchan, you’re squeezing my hand too tight, it hurts.” or “Quit trying to lead, just follow me.” and “you’re way too ridged for this, can you loosen up a bit?”

It went on and on. Each little critique from Izuku was like an icepick to his fragile sanity. Katsuki wished he could punt Izuku out of the studio and never hear from him ever again.

“Kacchan can you try to-?”

“Shut the fuck up!” Katsuki’s patience had finally worn thin and snapped, he pulled himself from Izuku’s grasp, “if you say one more fucking word to me I’m gonna give you an ugly ass black eye on your dumbass face.”

Izuku frowned (as it seemed he always did in response to Katsuki), and lowered his arms to his sides.

“I’m just trying to help. Don’t you want to win?”

“Of course I do! But you yapping in my ear about this shit ain’t going to help!”

“How? We were paired up to improve each other. If we don’t point out what’s wrong to fix it, then what’s the point?” Izuku looked exasperated.

“The point is,” Katsuki stepped into his space, snarling, “I don’t want your input on anything to do with me because I don’t fucking need it! In fact,” he jabbed a finger into Izuku’s chest, “I want absolutely nothing to do with you! Let’s just do this competition so I never have to speak to you ever again.”

Izuku stood frozen, leaning back and away from Katsuki, eyes wide. His mouth was opening and closing like some fish out of water.

“I’m done for today.” Katsuki huffed and stepped away to grab his bag and leave.

Izuku called out to him, but Katsuki ignored it, shutting the door aggressively behind him.

—-

The next few days didn’t go much better, and by the end of the first week, they’d barely made any progress on the dance. Every new turn and step was met with resistance and arguing. Katsuki wasn’t stupid, he knew he was the cause for it, but something about Izuku just rubbed him the wrong way.

“You’re fucking doing it wrong.” Katsuki let go of Izuku, who landed a little wobbly on the floor.

“I’m not.” Izuku shot back, looking more pissed off today than Katsuki had seen before.

“Your timing is ass, and if you don’t keep your damn knee bent I can’t lift you. Do you want to get dropped on your head?”

“My timing isn’t off! It’s you! You’re so obsessed with timing that you’re too early!”

“I’m not fucking early, you just need to learn how to count!”

Izuku looked like he was going to yell back at him, but then he just sighed, looking away, “…we need to do something different or this is just going to be one big disaster.”

“It already is a disaster.” Katsuki rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, well I’d really like for it to not be on competition day. So we’ve gotta get on the same page somehow.”

“We should just tell Tsunagu and Aizawa we aren’t going to do it.”

Izuku froze in front of him and stared.

“…what?”

“You heard me. This is fucking ridiculous anyway. I never agreed to do a duet, they just threw us together,” he threw his hands in the air, exasperated, “I don’t want to do this.”

“You-“ Izuku looked dumbstruck, about what exactly, Katsuki wasn’t sure.

But then, something changed in Izuku’s face and he suddenly looked livid.

“No.”

Katsuki balked at Izuku’s stern tone. He would’ve told him off, but the look in his eyes stopped him.

“I’m not going to accept that.”

What.

“What?” Katsuki parroted his thoughts before he could stop himself.

“I don’t accept it. I’ve heard a lot about you since I started dancing here, and no matter how much shit I hear about your bad attitude, which I’ve had plenty of personal experience with now, not one single person has ever insulted your work ethic. So how is this time any different? Why are you fine with giving this duet a half-assed effort? Why are you suddenly totally okay with quitting?! I mean- you fucking walked out the other day! After all I’ve heard about you always being the last one out every day! And you just- leave when things get tough?! You may be pissed that I was giving you pointers and calling you out for things, but I want you to do the same! If you’re so mad about it, tell me exactly how I fuck up too! All you do is tell me that I’m not doing something right, but never how I can fix it! I want to improve, Katsuki! That’s why I agreed to this thing because I know you’re talented, and I want to learn from you!”

Katsuki’s feet were frozen to the floor, and his mouth felt like it had been wired shut. Sure, Izuku had raised his voice before, but he had started to full out yell towards the end.

And what he said… Katsuki sighed, shoulders slumping. He couldn’t find it in himself to be mad that Izuku was right.

Izuku, much like himself, seemed surprised by his reaction, and his defensive stance crumpled. He looked nervous now.

“Uh- I… s-sorr-“

“Fuck off, if you apologize right now I’m gonna kill you.” Katsuki said, a lot less bite in his words than normal, “I already fucking hate you enough for being right, so if you apologize it’s gonna be real bad for you.”

“Ah- um, okay.” Izuku wrung his hands together, warily watching Katsuki.

“Jesus, where’d the balls you had two seconds ago disappear to? Quit looking like that. I-“ he groaned, running a hand down his face, “What you said was right. I wasn’t trying as hard as normal because you piss me off and it distracted me.”

“Oh.”

Katsuki scowled at his blank face.

“Well?! Isn’t this what you wanted?”

“Y-yes! Yeah, it is! Sorry I just didn’t think you would- that you were going to…” He hesitated.

“Agree?” Katsuki supplied.

“Yeah… that.” He looked sheepish.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, “Yeah, whatever. Let’s just start at the beginning of the dance again and change that lift. I fucking hate it.”

To Katsuki’s mild surprise, Izuku smiled at that.

“Okay, sounds good.”

—-

As the second week began, they’d finished over half of their dance, but they were still working on some of the ending moves.

“Well…” Izuku hummed, scratching his chin, “we started the dance with us out of sync, and doing different moves, and in the middle we’ve synced up and danced together, portraying mutual love. In this last bit maybe we don’t let go of each other? The song’s about two people coming together, right? So let’s do just that.”

Izuku grinned, clearly proud of his idea, and Katsuki considered it.

“That’s a lot of partner moves, Deku.”

“Yeah, I know… but I think we can do it. Plus I think it’ll look cool. It’ll be a complete turnaround from how the dance started. We start out dancing far apart, before coming together. Two people unaware of the other, until they see each other. Then they start realizing that maybe they’d be good for each other and do their best to fit together, and finally, they see that they can still be themselves and do their own thing, but it’s just better with someone you love! Isn’t that sweet? Cause since our moves in the middle section is just both of us doing the same thing, with a little variation here and there, the end can have us doing more of our own moves but with the support of the other person! Like you could do more classical ballet moves and I could focus on contemporary!” Izuku let out a short happy laugh.

Katsuki blinked, processing Izuku’s excited rambling. He was obviously the romantic type, the opposite of Katsuki himself, so he figured Izuku’s ideas would appease the judges and the audience rather than Katsuki’s.

“Okay… whatever, sounds good.”

“Great! Okay, let’s start working on it!” He hopped up off the floor like a rabbit and held out his hand for Katsuki.

He sighed and took the outstretched hand, letting himself be pulled to his feet.

“You’re way too excited about this.” He commented as Izuku smiled wider.

“No, I’m not, you’re just not excited enough. C’mon Kacchan, you’re always way too serious when you dance. It’s supposed to be fun!”

“I’d be enjoying myself if I wasn’t doing this with you.”

“Alright, now you’re just being rude.”

Katsuki snorted as Izuku tried to tug him into the middle of the floor, “we can’t start yet, dumbass, we need to choreograph that part first.”

“Ah-! Right!”

—-

“If you kick me in the shin again, I’m going to break your leg.”

“No! Kacchan, I need my leg! I’m sorry!”

Neither of them typically danced with a partner, so it was taking much longer than Katsuki would’ve liked to adjust.

“Seriously, Deku, why is your balance shit? You can do all these complicated ass moves, but as soon as you have to do something with me you dance like an idiot.”

“It’s not just my fault,” Izuku quickly defended, “You need to help me out here. You’re way too stiff. You’re supposed to be going with me. If you don’t you’re going to get kicked again.”

“I am going with you!” Katsuki argued, letting go of Izuku’s waist as the man turned to face him.

“You aren’t.” He pressed, “I think we need to work on you before we can run through this dance successfully.”

“Hah?!” Katsuki felt the anger bubbling up.

“Kacchan. Everyone always has things to work on, it’s nothing personal.” He tried to placate.

“Feels pretty fucking personal coming from you, asshole.” He grumbled, glaring at him a bit.

“I need to work on technique and timing, so you can help me with that after, but you’re as malleable as a rock.” He pointed out, reaching out to grab his shoulders and trying to shake him as if it would prove his point.

“Yeah, well this place is about to close, so we can’t do anything ‘till tomorrow.” He retorted, slapping Izuku’s hands away.

Izuku hummed and stepped away, rummaging through his bag and taking out his phone.

“Give me your number,” he said, looking expectantly at Katsuki.

“No way.” Katsuki immediately denied, and Izuku glared at him.

He folded embarrassingly fast.

After Izuku typed his number in, Katsuki heard an alert from his phone.

“Okay, I have a plan so we can practice a bit more today, but you’ve gotta meet me at a different studio.”

“…A different studio?”

“Yeah. I’ve got keys to one, so we can go there even after everyone’s gone home. I’ll text you the address if you want to meet me over there in about two hours? I have to go home for a little while and eat something light.”

“Hang on-“ Katsuki shook his head, eyes shut, “why do you dance here if you already have keys to another place?”

“Oh, well, Aizawa’s here so…” he shrugged, “my old instructor owns the other place, but he’s retired and has gotten pretty sick over the past couple of years. He said it’d be good for me to learn from someone else too.”

Katsuki hummed and then shrugged, “alright, whatever. I’ll meet you there I guess.”

“Awesome!” Izuku smiled, something he was beginning to do more, and grabbed his stuff, “see you later!” He dashed out the door, leaving Katsuki to trail much farther behind.

—-

“Hey, Kacchan!” Izuku greeted him at the front door of the studio. He was unlocking the door and pushing his way inside, “follow me.”

Katsuki didn’t say anything in response but followed anyway.

All the lights inside were off, so Izuku flipped a few on walking toward the back through a hallway.

“I haven’t been here in a while,” Izuku mused, looking around, “I miss this place.”

Katsuki raised an eyebrow and Izuku grinned.

“I’m so busy I haven’t even been able to visit my friends over here. That reminds me I need to figure out when they’re free so we can hang out, but- oh- they’re probably really busy right now too and-“

Izuku went off rambling again and Katsuki barely repressed an eye roll. At least he stopped when he opened a door to one of the dance rooms.

He turned on some more lights and plugged his phone into the speaker in the corner of the room, next to the huge mirror panels that took up the whole wall.

“Ok!” Izuku clapped his hands together once, “ready?”

“No.” Katsuki frowned, “what the fuck are we even doing?”

“Dancing!” He exclaimed, eyes sparkling as if he didn’t already dance every day.

“Yeah, dipshit, I know, but what exactly are we doing.”

“We’re doing fun dancing. Sure, I think all dancing is fun, but you seem really uptight about it.”

“Hah?!”

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, especially for ballet, but you just need to relax a bit when it comes to contemporary.” He explained and Katsuki tsked as he turned on some crappy pop music.

Izuku immediately began moving, smile widening as he danced. He should’ve looked stupid, as it didn’t seem like he was trying all that hard to dance well, but… he didn’t somehow.

Katsuki begrudgingly tried, but the song didn’t fit ballet, which was the whole point, so he was lost.

“C’mon, don’t think about it! Just move.” Izuku said over the music.

Katsuki made awkward eye contact with himself in the mirror. He felt out of sorts, seeing himself so out of his element. His body language screamed “uncomfortable” and he hated it. The whole reason he did ballet was that he was always sure of every step and turn he took. Every rise and fall of his arms and legs were precise, and every leap was calculated. He knew what he was doing when he was on pointe, but this… this was entirely different.

When he came back from his thoughts, he realized the music had stopped and Izuku was looking worriedly at him.

“Kacchan? Are you alright? You’ve kinda been just staring at the mirror for a while?”

“Fuckin’ fine, just start it again.”

Izuku’s face twisted into a disbelieving frown, but he turned on the music.

He turned off the lights too.

“Oi! Why’d you do that?!” Katsuki shouted, the only light now coming from the little glass panel in the door.

“So you can’t see yourself.” Izuku replied, and Katsuki watched his silhouette come closer, “you’re thinking too hard about this, it’s supposed to be fun.”

Katsuki balked, unsure of how Izuku knew what he was thinking.

He felt Izuku’s hands grasp his own and spun them in a clumsy circle.

“The fuck are you doing right now?” Katsuki questioned, though he let himself be pulled around.

“Helping you. If you're not going to loosen up on your own, dance with me.”

After that, Katsuki followed Izuku’s lead, slowly but surely beginning to let go. It was definitely easier with the lights off, unable to see how ridiculous he probably looked, but it also made his other senses heightened.

Izuku was always touching him. Warm, steady hands on his waist, arms, and back, directing him through the movements. It wasn’t anything new considering they’d been practicing a duet for the past week, but something different fluttered in the pit of Katsuki’s stomach. He didn’t hate it, but he wasn’t sure if he liked it either. More than anything, It made him feel confused.

As he got used to it, though, he began to smile. He had to reluctantly agree that he was starting to enjoy himself.

And then Izuku tried teaching him what he called ‘club moves’.

“Just roll, Kacchan!” Izuku laughed.

“I can't fuckin’ body roll, Deku, I’m not built for that!”

“What do you do when you go out? Do a pirouette?”

“I don’t go to clubs, dumbass, do I look like the type? And who actually does a damn body roll?!”

Izuku huffed, seemingly still amused, “I dunno, they’re just fun to do sometimes. Plus I think it’ll help you learn how to move better.”

He stepped closer and took Katsuki’s hands, pulling them up so his hands were on Izuku’s shoulders. A hand wrapped around to Katsuki’s back and slid down his spine. Katsuki tensed at the gentle touch, feeling his heart thump thump thump-ing too hard in his chest.

“Just go with my hand,” Izuku suggested, starting in between his shoulder blades again.

Katsuki grumbled a few curses under his breath, so Izuku knew he wasn’t doing it of his own free will.

He went along with Izuku’s hand, doing his best to arch his back with the slight press of his palm.

Izuku hummed, “You’re doing a bit too much, it’s not a very big movement unless you want to look kinda crazy.” His other hand came up and rested in the middle of his chest, “try again.”

This time, he moved in between Izuku’s hands, and he felt something buzzing under his skin. He was hyper-aware of how close they were in the dark, Izuku was crowded up into his space, much like Katsuki would’ve never let him do just the previous week. He didn’t even register the music now, as Izuku’s breath occasionally tickled his cheek, and Katsuki couldn’t find it in himself to be grossed out by it.

His hands stopped when they got to Katsuki’s lower back and stomach. Something warm rolled around in his gut.

“Good,” Izuku said quietly, “much better.”

He wasn’t sure if it was the words or the sudden realization of what exactly he was feeling that dumped the cold water on his head, but he snapped out of whatever he’d fallen into.

“Fucking- whatever, quit making me do it already. I’m not going to need this for the damn dance.”

Izuku started giggling again, his hands falling away, and the atmosphere shattered

“You’re having too much fun with this.” Katsuki huffed, roughly grabbing Izuku’s hand and continuing to dance (leaving the godforsaken body roll behind). He wanted to move on as quickly as possible to shake whatever he was feeling away.

“Seems like you are too. Feeling more carefree?” Izuku inquired, leaning into him as they moved.

“Fuck no.”

Izuku laughed.

—-

The next day they returned to Izuku’s old studio after hours again. They agreed to work on their dance during the day, and then later they’d work on their individual weaknesses.

He’d done his best to forget about last night, and it had worked for the most part. He’d always been good at compartmentalizing, plus, at any silent moment, Izuku began rambling about old All Might cartoons, something he was apparently very excited to talk about after seeing Katsuki’s new All Might pin on his bag. So it was easy to forget about yesterday, letting them run through their duet without much issue.

Tonight, it was Izuku’s turn to work on some things.

“Alright,” Katsuki crossed his arms, “I know you’re all used to contemporary now, but we’re going back to classical ballet for this.”

Izuku grumbled a bit and Katsuki narrowed his eyes.

“You made me do shit I didn't like yesterday so now it’s your turn,” he plugged his phone into the speaker, and went to his playlists, “contemporary is just a mashup of modern and ballet anyway. Your modern is fine, but some of your ballet moves-“ Katsuki grimaced thinking about them.

“Hey! They’re not that bad!” Izuku protested behind him.

“Whatever you say, Deku.” Katsuki huffed and turned to face him, “go to the barre, we’re starting there.”

“Warm-ups?” Izuku raised an eyebrow but walked over to the horizontal wooden pole on the wall.

“Yeah, we’re starting with simple shit so I know that you can at least do that,” Katsuki explained as Izuku put a hand on the barre, “First position.”

“Seriously? I know the positions, that’s what you learn in your first dance class.”

“Don’t care, we’re doing them. Now first.”

Okay, so maybe he was only making Izuku start with the beginner stuff as payback, but he didn’t have to know that.

After running through all the positions and stretching a bit, they started.

“Alright, next is adage, so stay at the barre. Once you don’t suck as much you’ll go to centre and do it there.”

Adage was a series of slow, fluid moves, so Katsuki would be able to easily catch any little fuck up Izuku made. It focused primarily on technique too, which was where Izuku was lacking.

Izuku went through a few moves such as developpe, promenade, and arabesque. He seemed alright at the barre, but he began to wobble when Katsuki had him off the barre and at centre.

“Deku, what the fuck. You should be able to do this at your level.” Katsuki snapped at him.

“I- I know.” Izuku stumbled over his words as he dropped from his developpe, “sorry.”

Katsuki frowned, “what’s wrong with you? I’ve seen you do harder shit.”

“I haven’t done strictly classical ballet in a while,” Izuku defended, “and- and you’re freaking me out!”

“I’m freaking you out?” Katsuki repeated, confused as Izuku’s face tinted pink.

“You’re pretty well known, alright? I’d heard about you before I came to learn from Aizawa… and maybe I’d seen you in some productions…” He trailed off, not meeting Katsuki’s gaze.

“… Holy shit…are you saying I’m making you nervous cause you used to be a fan?” Katsuki let a shit-eating grin form on his face.

“Shut up!”

“You’re so stupid. We’ve been dancing together for a week now, why are you acting weird all of a sudden?” He asked, still amused, “you had no problem arguing with me when we first met, so why freak out now?”

“It’s just a little different to have you critiquing my ballet. I don’t know! Plus, you started arguing with me first! I know I’m being stupid, just- stop looking at me like that!”

Katsuki, who’d been holding back his laughter, let it bubble up and out. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed so freely.

“Can we just continue?” Izuku pleaded, hands twisting together.

“I don’t know, Deku,” Katsuki snorted through his giggles, “do you need a minute? Am I too intimidating?”

“I hate you. You are my least favorite person right now.” Izuku grumbled.

“Awe, come on, it’s funny!”

“Fuck you.”

“Hey, that’s my line!”

After Izuku got over his nerves, Katsuki was able to properly critique his adage.

“Your leg is too high. It’s only supposed to be 45 degrees. You like overdoing things so keep it lower.”

“Shit, right.” Izuku corrected his leg, making a perfect 45° angle.

After he got Izuku’s adage to as close to perfect as he could, they moved on to pirouettes. It was something Katsuki figured would help him the most besides adage. They required focus, balance, and core strength. Well, everything in ballet did, but pirouettes needed a lot of it.

“Tighten your core and you won’t fall out of it.”

“I can’t tighten any muscle anymore. Jeez, no wonder you're so uptight all the time.” Izuku huffed, out of breath, and pushed his hair off his forehead. He’d probably need a break soon since they’d been going for a while.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, muttering a ‘fuck you’, and stepped up to him, poking his stomach, “flex, Deku.”

He stepped back as Izuku groaned and tried again.

“Better. Watch your posture too.” He said as he watched Izuku turn, eyes briefly meeting time and time again as Izuku used Katsuki as his spot.

Izuku dropped out of his turns again after doing a good few consecutively.

“Kacchan, are we almost done with pirouettes? If I turn anymore I feel like I’ll turn into a propeller and fly away.”

Katsuki snorted, “wimp.” Izuku gave him a half-hearted glare in return.

—-

The week continued, and the duet became easier. The late-night dance sessions seemed to be the key to their steadily growing success. He wasn’t sure why exactly it was. Maybe he was just tired enough from the day that he was a bit more willing in the evenings to go along with Izuku without argument. Yeah, that was it. It wasn’t because he was starting to enjoy his company. No way. He only just barely tolerated Izuku. So what if he found Izuku physically attractive? That’s all it was- just a physical thing. He found plenty of people aesthetically pleasing, it didn’t mean he liked them.

Katsuki held back a sigh, focusing back on what he was doing. Right, he was in the middle of a damn dance right now, with said nerd, who looked very concerned.

“Uh, Kacchan?” Izuku started, as they continued the duet, “you alright? Your face went blank there for a second and it seemed like you were on autopilot.”

“Fucking fine, just-“ he paused as Izuku turned so his back was facing Katsuki. Katsuki lifted him, hands bracing against Izuku’s waist as Izuku arched back, legs bending and one arm stretching up as if he was reaching for something.

“-thinking about some shit.” He finished when he set Izuku back down.

Izuku hummed, raising an eyebrow, clearly wanting to know what he was thinking about, but Katsuki kept quiet. Besides, they were coming up to a part of the dance they both struggled with, so they really shouldn’t be talking.

Later on in the evening, Katsuki met Izuku outside of the other studio. Izuku greeted him with a smile, as he had been doing all the time now that they were on better terms, and waved.

He raised an eyebrow at Izuku’s expression, feeling his face heat up without his permission, “You saw me like two hours ago, no need to look so happy.”

“This is how normal people greet each other, Kacchan.” Izuku laughed.

“Yeah, well everyone is fucking stupid.”

Izuku rolled his eyes at that, but rather than being annoyed, he looked almost fond.

“Okay, okay, whatever you say.” He waved his hand dismissively, “anyway, c’mon, we’re not going to be in the studio tonight.”

Izuku grabbed the sleeve of Katsuki’s hoodie and tugged him along, away from the building.

“Wh- wait, what the hell?” Katsuki stumbled over his feet a bit as Izuku practically dragged him before he got his bearings.

“We’re going to get dinner. I think you need a little break, and I do too.”

“The fuck made you think I need a break?” He barked. He didn’t need a break! He was totally fine! Plus the competition was quickly approaching and they still had things to work on.

“You seemed out of it today.” Izuku said, glancing at him from the corner of his eye, “you kept zoning out.”

…right.

What Izuku didn't know was that it was his fault, and not because he needed a break.

Not that he was going to say that.

“Fine, whatever. If you need a break we’ll take one.” He grumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Wow, thanks, Kacchan. You’re so kind.” Izuku replied, sarcasm lacing his tone.

“I know, you’re welcome,” Katsuki said in return, smirking at his dance partner.

Izuku punched his arm in response, making Katsuki curse.

The sun had already set as they walked side by side down the sidewalk. Warm light from shop windows spilled onto the concrete and street lamps buzzed overhead, illuminating their path. The streets were mostly quiet. Small groups and couples passed by, and Katsuki guessed they were also going to eat. Izuku would sometimes chatter about a store they passed, but for the most part, he kept quiet.

He led Katsuki to a ramen shop, opening the door for him and gesturing for him to go in. The waiter greeted them and they were sat at a small table by the window.

“What’re you getting?” Izuku asked even before Katsuki could glance at the menu.

Katsuki raised an eyebrow and gave him a pointed look.

“Ah, right, I’m guessing you haven’t been here before.” He smiled, “I’ve been here way too many times. It’s my favorite.”

Katsuki hummed in acknowledgment, immediately looking for the spiciest ramen. As soon as he found it, he sat back in his chair.

“Alright, I know what I’m getting.” He announced and Izuku blinked.

“Oh, that was quick. Are you sure you-“

“You’re the one who asked just a fucking minute ago!” He retorted and Izuku snorted.

“Sorry, sorry, you’re right. So, what’re you getting?”

Katsuki didn’t bother answering, just pointed at his menu.

“Oh! That’s really good. I’ve only had it a few times though. I like spice, just not that much all the time.”

“You do?” Katsuki tilted his head, assessing Izuku, “you kinda look like someone who would hate spice.”

“I didn’t take you as someone who would judge someone else based on appearance, Kacchan.” He joked, “but, yeah, I do like it.”

By the time their food arrived, Izuku was long into a story about him as a kid. He apparently liked to run around in an All Might onesie and “save” his mom from his villainous stuffed animals.

“I’m not sure how she played along with that game so many times,” he chuckled, “I mean, I think I begged to save her about a thousand times a day for a few years straight.”

Katsuki grinned, “sounds like you were annoying as hell.”

“Oh, absolutely. My mom tells me nowadays she didn’t mind, but there were some days she said it was exhausting,” he took a bite of his noodles, “what kind of kid were you?”

“A brat,” Katsuki replied instantly.

“Oh, so nothing’s changed?” Izuku questioned, clearly trying to keep his face neutral, but ultimately failing as a smirk curled at his mouth.

“Fuck off,” Katsuki kicked at his feet under the table and Izuku squawked, before kicking back, “if you think I’m a brat now, you’d think younger me is the spawn of satan.”

“I’m sure you weren’t that bad, Kacchan,” Izuku replied, stopping his kicking assault.

“No, I was a dick as a kid; super angry all the time. Dance helped me expend some of that pent-up aggression, but I was still awful.” Katsuki glanced down at his bowl, picking at the noodles with his chopsticks, “I regret a lot of the shit I did back then.”

Fuck, why was he talking about that shit now? With Izuku of all people?

“Hmm,” Izuku hummed, “well, I’m happy you’ve grown then. From what I’ve seen, you’ve only really been an ass to me at the studio.”

“…yeah…” he sighed, still not meeting his eyes, “sorry about that.”

Izuku shrugged and gave a soft smile, “it’s alright, I forgave you a while ago.”

“That’s dumb, you should hold grudges for longer.” Katsuki advised, “jerks like to take advantage of kind people.”

“Oh trust me, I’m not a pushover,” Izuku shook his head, “I just never thought you were a bad person. In need of anger management? Sure. But not bad…Besides, I know I should’ve apologized for taking your bag that first day I joined the studio, which is why you were pissed in the first place.”

“I shouldn’t have been that angry about a bag,” Katsuki countered, “but yeah, why did you just silently stand there? Knowing you know, it’s fucking weird that you’d actually keep your mouth shut.”

Izuku shot him a look that said ’really?’

“It was just a shock to meet you in person I guess,” he started, looking down at his hands, “I know I told you I’d seen some of your performances, but maybe I’ve seen more than a few and maybe I was kind of fanboying a little bit.”

Katsuki swallowed down the laughter that threatened to escape him.

“Deku, you’ve gotta be kidding.” He deadpanned, watching Izuku’s carefully blank expression turn flustered.

“I wish I was! Okay?! I hadn’t expected to meet you! I mean, I heard that you danced there, but it was way sooner than I had thought, and I kept trying to say something, but my mind went blank, and then I thought ‘wow, he’s hotter in person’ and I couldn’t just say that to you because that’d be weird, and-shit!” Izuku’s eyes went wide and he slapped his hands over his mouth.

Katsuki’s mouth dropped open and he laughed disbelievingly, “you- did you just admit that I’m so ‘hot’ that I struck you speechless?”

“No!” He denied immediately before slamming his palms back over his mouth.

Katsuki doubled over, laughing, finding it funnier each time he heard Izuku try to protest or take back what he said.

“Kacchan, please, I’m begging you to stop laughing,” he pleaded, “Why is it that whenever I embarrass myself you think it’s hilarious?”

“Because it is!” He quickly answered, catching his breath.

“Kacchan!” Izuku buried his head in his arms.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, probably grinning like the Cheshire Cat, and poked Izuku’s head.

“Deku.”

“Go away.” His words were muffled slightly by his arms.

“Deku, seriously?” Katsuki huffed, poking him again, fingers brushing against his soft curls. He idly thought it’d feel nice to run his hands through them.

When Izuku didn’t answer and didn’t lift his head, Katsuki propped an elbow on the table with his hand under his chin. His free hand tugged gently at one of Izuku’s curls.

“If it makes you feel any better, you ain’t bad looking either.” He blurted out.

Okay, Katsuki… where the fuck did that come from?

He took a breath, feeling his heart starting to race. Why? Why did he say that? Maybe he was emboldened by Izuku’s statement? Or his embarrassment somehow made Katsuki feel more confident? Fuck, he didn’t know. Sure, what he said was true, but it wasn’t like he had planned on telling Izuku that. Whenever he found someone attractive, he would acknowledge it and then move on. Flirting was never ever, the route he took. So why was he doing it now?

He wished he could talk to Kirishima about it, but he was on some trip with Kaminari and Katsuki hated talking on the phone.

What he said didn’t seem to help much, as Izuku simply buried his head deeper into his arms.

Katsuki sighed, thinking his feelings over. So, physically Izuku was his type, that much he understood, but that had never been enough for him to start flirting with someone. He didn’t like casual shit, he thought it was a waste of time, so if he was perusing Izuku it meant-

Oh.

He liked Izuku for more than his looks.

Alright, when did that happen?

Katsuki thought back, still occasionally tugging at Izuku’s hair. He couldn’t think of an exact moment, rather it seemed like everything just kind of built up.

Izuku managed to annoy the shit out of him, but was also interesting, and made Katsuki laugh more than anyone before. He loved those same childhood All Might cartoons. He’d encountered the worst side of Katsuki right when they met and hadn’t held that against him. He’d had the guts to yell at him that day he was being a total dick, and tried to quit. He was endlessly kind and unnervingly determined. He brought new energy into Katsuki’s typical routine day, like a breath of fresh air after being stuck inside all day.

Katsuki really, really liked Izuku.

He glanced down at the mop of green hair still on the table.

The anxious beating of his heart calmed and his knee stopped bouncing under the table. Instead of the all-encompassing panic he had expected, he felt… happy and warm all over. Maybe it was just the cozy atmosphere of the restaurant. The warm lights and low chatter of other customers fell around him like a weighted blanket.

It was weird, but not unwelcome. The denial he had been clinging onto just earlier that day crumbled into dust.

“Hey, Deku?” He said softly, and his tone must've been foreign enough for Izuku to snap out of it because his head popped up.

His face was tinged pink and he eyed Katsuki warily. Katsuki’s mouth twitched up into a small smile.

“Chill out, Deku, I know you didn’t mean anything by it. Just eat your damn food and tell me about that nerd notebook you’re always scribbling in.”

“…nerd notebook, really?” Izuku gave an unimpressed look, but Katsuki could see his shoulders sag in relief.

“Yeah, you’re a nerd and you’ve got a notebook, boom, nerd notebook.”

“You come up with the worst nicknames for stuff.” Izuku shook his head, but Katsuki saw a smile curling at his lips.

“Fuck you, no I don’t.” Katsuki retorted, smiling too, “Now tell me about it, what are you writing in there?”

Izuku went on to tell Katsuki all about the dance stuff he wrote in there. Turns out, Izuku didn’t get into dancing for a while because his mom couldn’t afford lessons for him. Instead, he took to watching videos online and taking extensive notes. Apparently, the habit never died, and Izuku had countless notebooks.

“Do you live far from here?” Katsuki asked, once they were done eating and had stepped back out onto the sidewalk.

“Not really. About a ten-minute walk that way.” He pointed down the road and Katsuki nodded.

“That’s kinda on my way home, I’ll walk you.”

“Huh? You- you don’t have to!” Izuku waved his hands, a little frantically in Katsuki’s opinion.

“Shut it, I want to.” Katsuki replied, pushing at his shoulder so he’d turn in the direction of home, “let’s go.”

They walked quietly for a bit before Izuku spoke.

“Do you think we’ll be ready for the competition next week?”

Katsuki glanced over at him. He looked nervous, fingers tugging at his sleeves.

“Fuckin’ of course.” He responded gruffly, “what? You doubting me?”

Izuku shook his head and a humorless laugh, “no, not you. More like myself. Aizawa usually makes sure to give me lots of time to prepare for competitions since I get anxious about them, but this time I’ve had less time so it’s extra stressful.”

“Well stop freaking out. You’ll be fine. I mean, you’re with me, so even if you’re awful I’ll be good enough for both of us.”

Izuku actually laughed then, anxiety seemingly melting off him.

“Careful there, Kacchan, or else you might trip over your ego.”

“My ego is the perfect size, thank you very much.” Katsuki shot back, knocking their shoulders together so Izuku stumbled a bit, “Just don’t worry about the competition yet. We’ve still got the rest of this week.”

Izuku nodded, shooting Katsuki a grateful look.

Once they got to Izuku’s apartment, they said their goodbyes, and Katsuki went on his way home.

He knew pursuing Izuku was a bad idea, specifically right then since they were working on a duet. If Katsuki told Izuku how he felt and Izuku ended up not feeling the same, It would be incredibly awkward to perform together. Besides, why would Izuku like him anyway? He had been a dick to him up until a few days ago, and even then Katsuki knew he wasn’t exactly pleasant company. He’d just have to wait until after the competition. Damnit, he hated waiting though. He just wanted to get it over with.

Katsuki sighed, shouldering open his door and kicking his shoes off.

He’d just have to wait…

—-

Turns out waiting sucked a lot more than he realized, especially since Izuku was his dance partner and they were doing a love song. Katsuki wished he could punch past him for picking that damn song.

It wasn’t all bad, though, because he liked being close to Izuku. He wished he could hold Izuku’s hand without having to dance though. Just taking a stroll in the city, fingers locked together…

Fuck, Katsuki, get it together.

They’d finally done a run-through without any mistakes, making Izuku cheer loudly and go run to tell Aizawa. Maybe tomorrow they’d have their instructors watch the duet to get some feedback on it, just to make sure everything was perfect.

Izuku came charging back in, smile blinding.

“This is so great! I’m so excited!” Izuku grabbed Katsuki’s arms, shaking him, “wasn’t that fun? God, I love running through a completed dance without messing up.”

“Fuck- Deku, quit shaking me.”

Izuku did the opposite and shook harder, probably just to spite him before letting go.

“We should celebrate!” He exclaimed, “do you want to come over? We could watch a movie or something.”

“You skipping out on extra practice again? Come to think of it, last time we skipped it was your night to work on your technique; same as today.” Katsuki accused and Izuku smiled innocently.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Kacchan. I’m a professional, I would never ever do such a thing.” He vehemently denied.

Katsuki gave him a look that let Izuku know he didn’t believe him for a second.

“Just- please? We’ve been working so hard! Besides, I’ve got old All Might movies.”

Katsuki considered for a moment before shrugging, “sure, I’m down.”

“Sweet, let’s go!” Izuku turned to leave, but Katsuki snagged his arm before he could go.

“Hang on, idiot, we’ve still got time, so we’re running through it again.”

“Ah, right.” Izuku nodded, stepping away to get into his starting position.

Katsuki pressed play on his phone, and the music softly began playing through the speakers.

The dance began with them on opposite sides of the dance floor. They made it a point to not even look at each other in the beginning. As the dance continues, there’s a brief moment where they get close, seeing each other for the first time. There’s a brief pause, but then they continue doing their own thing. The looks start to become more frequent, and their moves start to become more similar as they get closer.

Then Izuku reaches out and takes Katsuki’s hand, spinning him and they start to dance together. Two people basically becoming one, as Izuku had explained when they were creating the choreography.

Katsuki hadn't ever put so much thought behind the story of one of his dances before, but it was something Izuku was adamant about.

Izuku smiled wider as Katsuki took his hands, lifting one up and over his head so Izuku turned and pressed his back against Katsuki’s chest. Another lift followed, Katsuki dropping Izuku’s hands to grab his waist and hoist him up.

The dance ended with Izuku and Katsuki frozen looking at each other. Katsuki’s hands cradled Izuku’s face, their foreheads pressed together, and Izuku’s palms against Katsuki’s chest.

The song ended, and, as always, the sound of their heavy breathing filled the space between them.

Katsuki stayed still, unable to pull away first. Previously, he’d always immediately stepped away, but with his realization of his feelings, he let himself indulge in their proximity for as long as Izuku would allow.

Unsurprisingly, Izuku pulled away first, as smiley as ever. His face was flushed, probably like Katsuki’s, from exertion.

“Movie now?” He asked and Katsuki chuckled.

“Yeah, nerd, we can go.”

They showered and changed in the locker rooms before heading out. They picked up food on the way, getting katsudon and spicy curry to go from a small local restaurant.

“Make yourself at home,” Izuku said when they stepped into his apartment.

Katsuki looked around, following Izuku into the living room. It was a small place, but Katsuki’s was the same. The living room was furnished with a couch, beanbag, coffee table, and a small bookshelf. The bookshelf was stocked with All Might comics, as well as Izuku’s notebooks. From the living room, Katsuki could see into a small kitchen. There was a hall off the living room, where Katsuki assumed the bathroom and Izuku’s room was.

Katsuki set the takeout bag on the coffee table as Izuku put the DVD into the player. He settled into the corner of the couch (the most comfortable place in his opinion) and opened up his food, beginning to eat.

“Is it good?” Izuku asked, settling in beside him.

Katsuki nodded, mouth full of curry, and Izuku smiled. It was weird… He had expected his dance partner to sit on the opposite side of the couch, seeing as it wasn’t that large anyway, but he had sat right next to Katsuki.

He brushed it off; it didn’t matter to him.

As the movie played, he quickly learned that Izuku was a talker during movies. Typically, he wasn’t a fan of that, and when Izuku had piped up about some Easter egg they'd hidden in the movie for the third time, he’d turned to tell him to shut it, but hadn’t gone through with it. Izuku just looked so happy talking about that shit. His eyes were all wide and practically glowed, it would’ve been like telling a dog to stop wagging its tail.

“- and that character in the background is actually All Might’s prototype design, I’m glad his design changed to what it is now. That one just doesn’t sit right with me, though that could be just because I’m used to what he looks like now and-“ Izuku abruptly stopped, glancing over at Katsuki who looked away from the screen, “sorry, I’ll shut up now.”

“The fuck?” Katsuki furrowed his eyebrows, “what’re you apologizing for? Did I tell you to be quiet?”

“Well, no, but most people say it’s annoying and I’m interrupting the movie, so… Kacchan?”

Katsuki had paused the movie, shifting on the couch to face Izuku, legs crossed. He was suddenly very pissed off at a bunch of faceless people that told Izuku his nerd ramblings were annoying.

“If you’re worried about interrupting, go ahead and tell me about all the shit they snuck in the movie now.” Katsuki prompted, finishing up the last of his curry and setting the container on the low table.

“But-“

“Nope. Talk to your heart's content, nerd. I want to listen.” He waved a hand dismissively at the TV.

Izuku blinked a few times, mouth partially parted before a wobbly smile formed.

They talked for the rest of the evening. Izuku started with all the movie lore and eventually segued into other things that Katsuki could comment about too. It was nice being able to talk with him, and he didn’t feel the pressure to speak that he normally did with others. It felt natural and flowed easily. They had drifted together as they spoke, their knees pressed together, with one of Izuku’s legs over Katsuki’s. Izuku didn’t seem to notice it had happened, which Katsuki was glad for. He’d probably pull away and apologize or some shit when he did.

When he broke out into a yawn in the middle of one of his sentences, he checked the time on his phone. It was close to midnight, and he usually was asleep by ten.

“Ah, fuck. It’s late. I should probably head home.” He said, tucking his phone away again.

“Oh, right. Sorry for keeping you so long.” He smiled, “I had fun.”

Katsuki hummed noncommittally, waiting for Izuku to move off him, as people usually did when their guests said they were going to leave. Izuku, however, just sat there.

Katsuki glanced away awkwardly, shifting his legs a bit to see if that would prompt Izuku to move.
It didn’t.

“It’s- uh… it’s pretty late. Are you sure you’re alright walking home?” He suddenly spoke and Katsuki gave him a questioning look.

“What, you think I can’t handle myself?” He asked defensively, making Izuku wave his hands frantically.

“No! No, it’s just you seem tired and I was just going to offer to let you spend the night here.”

“Uh…” Katsuki said eloquently.

“No pressure.” He added on at Katsuki’s hesitation.

“I know there’s no pressure you dimwit,” he snorted, “Yeah, sure I’ll stay.”

Izuku smiled and hopped off the couch, grabbing the empty food containers.

“You can use the bathroom first. It’s the first door down the hall. I’ve got extra toothbrushes under the sink. Do you want different clothes or are you going to sleep in that?” He pointed at Katsuki’s outfit which was just sweatpants and a hoodie.

“I’m fine with this.” He stood, headed to the bathroom.

Once he had gotten ready for bed, he stepped back out into the living room, passing by Izuku who headed into the bathroom after him. He narrowed his eyes on the blankets and a pillow on the couch.

When Izuku came back into the room he smiled, “You can take the bed.”

“Nope, we aren’t doing this, c’mon.” Katsuki didn’t wait for a response, taking Izuku’s wrist and dragging him along.

“Wha- Kacchan?” Izuku exclaimed, feebly tugging his arm.

Katsuki didn’t pay attention to him, opening the door to his room and peering inside at the bed.

“Yep, that'll work.” He said, mainly to himself, “ready for bed?”

“Huh?!” Izuku squeaked out, freezing on the spot.

“You’re a dancer, Deku, and we’ve got a competition coming up. I don’t want the couch to fuck up your back, or mine. Your bed’s big enough, so let’s sleep. I'm fucking tired.”

Okay, so maybe Katsuki had some ulterior motives, but Izuku didn’t have to know that. Besides, he wasn’t exactly lying either. The couch could potentially fuck something up.

“But, Kacchan-!”

“Shut up, nerd. If you’re really that scared of me, then fine, go to your couch.” He shrugged nonchalantly, suppressing a grin when Izuku practically puffed up.

Izuku was like him in that aspect; when challenged, no matter how trivial, he didn’t back down.

“I'm not scared.” He frowned, stepping around Katsuki and climbing into bed without another peep.

Katsuki slipped under the covers on his side, heart jumping in his chest upon feeling the dip of the mattress next to him. To his surprise, Izuku suddenly flipped over and he was face to face with an irritated expression.

“Did you say I was scared just to goad me into getting in bed?!”

Katsuki burst out laughing, rolling onto his back.

“You asshole!” Izuku sat up, grabbing his pillow and pressing it over Katsuki’s face, “quit laughing!”

Despite the lack of oxygen now, courtesy of Izuku’s pillow, he continued to laugh. He weakly swatted at Izuku, trying to get the pillow off him. After a few more moments, he was finally allowed to breathe properly. Izuku was laughing too now, apparently suffocating Katsuki was enough to appease him.

As Katsuki quieted down, he looked over to Izuku who was lying on his side, watching him. Something soft had taken over his features and for a second Katsuki felt like he was seeing something he shouldn’t. Izuku seemed to come to, though, and in a split second, the look was gone.

“We- uh, should probably get some sleep now.” He commented, and Katsuki hummed, “goodnight, Kacchan.”

“‘Night, Deku.” He replied, chest squeezing as Izuku turned away.

—-

Katsuki breathed in deeply as he slowly roused from sleep. A gentle smile crossed his face as he realized just how comfortable he was. The blanket around him was warm and heavy, feeling more like a hug than a typical bed sheet.

Oh… wait.

Katsuki dared to open his eyes, squinting against the morning sun that was shining through the small slit in the curtains.

Izuku was lying partially on top of him.

Fuck.

Why did he think sharing a bed was a good idea again? Oh right, cause he’s fucking weak for Izuku Midoriya.

Damnit.

Izuku was laying with his head on Katsuki’s shoulder, one leg, and arm was thrown over his legs and torso. He looked so soft and sleepy. He had the urge to wrap his arms tight around him and just squeeze. Oh god, was he experiencing cute aggression right now? What the hell, Katsuki?

He continued to watch him (totally not creepily), reveling in the fuzzy feeling being in bed with Izuku had caused. He wanted to do so much, but he just couldn’t. He wanted to kiss every one of those damn freckles on his face and take the time to count them all. He wanted Izuku to wake up and smile when he saw Katsuki. He wanted to just hold his fucking hand that had an unnecessary amount of scars that Izuku had explained were from some recklessness when he was a little kid. He wanted to bury his face in that mop of curls on top of his head and just hold him for as long as Izuku would let him.

…Damnit, when did he get so sappy?

What was he going to do now? He didn’t want to move, but what if Izuku freaked out when he woke up? He was absolutely going to, the nerd got flustered by the dumbest shit, and even Katsuki had to admit he was a little red in the face from this.

His heart stopped when Izuku shifted around, and his eyes fluttered. Katsuki snapped his shut, pretending to be asleep because what else could he do?

He felt Izuku’s chest rise and fall with a large sigh, before freezing. Ah, so he’d realized the predicament. He scrambled off Katsuki, giving him a good excuse to suddenly “wake up”.

“The fuck?” He blinked his eyes open, seeing Izuku’s flustered appearance.

“Ah-! Sorry, Kacchan… I just- I forgot I wasn’t alone, I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

“It’s whatever.” He shrugged as best he could while laying down, before snuggling into the warmth of the bed.

Izuku blinked down at him before hopping out of bed.

“I’m going to make breakfast!” He shouted as he hurried out of the room.

Katsuki furrowed his brows at Izuku’s weird behavior but brushed it off in favor of falling back asleep.

It was a slow morning. Izuku made something simple for breakfast that Katsuki ate when he woke up again a bit later. They walked over to Katsuki’s apartment so he could grab some clean dance clothes before they headed to the studio. Izuku had texted Aizawa earlier that morning and told him they wanted to show him and Tsunagu their performance, and he agreed.

After warming up and running through their dance once by themselves, their instructors came in and watched.

“Not bad you two.” Aizawa nodded when they had finished, and looked over at Tsunagu.

“No critiques here that you both probably don’t already know. Just keep practicing to clean up some of those lines. Focus a bit more on the lifts too, they’re good, but make sure they look effortless. The choreography is well thought out and flows too… I think you two have a chance.”

Katsuki watched Izuku smile wide at that and bow.

“Thank you both!”

Katsuki sighed and took his eyes off his partner, “yeah, thanks or whatever.”

Tsunagu gave a teasing smile at that, “seems like spending time with Midoriya has softened some of those edges, Bakugou.”

“Hah?! Fuck you, I’m still the same as I’ve always been!”

“I don’t think you’ve ever thanked me before.” Tsunagu countered.

“Shut it.” He snapped through clenched teeth, only succeeding in making Tsunagu chuckle and turn to Izuku.

“Please don’t pick up any of Katsuki’s habits.”

“Hey-!”

“Trust me, I won’t.” Izuku joked back, earning an elbow to the ribs from Katsuki.

—-

The night of their performance had Izuku panicking, which made Katsuki feel uneasy. He hadn’t felt nervous for a performance in a long time. Sure, he had the same adrenaline rush that pretty much all performers got, but his was fueled by excitement.

“Deku, if you don’t calm the fuck down right now I’m going to knock you out.” He threatened, glaring at Izuku, who was pacing back and forth in their dressing room as Katsuki did his makeup.

“Please do, I think that would help,” Izuku replied, laughing nervously.

“Oh my god, just- c’mere.” Katsuki stood and gestured to his seat, “fucking sit down.”

Izuku, surprisingly enough, sat without a word, foot-tapping restlessly on the floor. Katsuki grabbed Izuku’s makeup bag and dug through it, finding everything he needed.

“Oh, I was about to do this myse-“

“Shut up, I saw you start, and then stop, and then pace, and then sit down, and then get back up, and I’m fucking sick of it so I’m fixing your face for you.” He snapped, blending the foundation into his face.

Katsuki’s eyes darted to Izuku’s throat as he swallowed, “thanks, Kacchan.”

“Whatever.” He grumbled, quickly contouring Izuku’s face.

“Your eyeliner looks good,” Izuku commented after a moment.

“Course it does, I’m good at everything,” Katsuki smirked and Izuku snorted, before questioning.

“Do you ever wear it outside of performances?”

Katsuki shrugged a shoulder, “sometimes. It’s a lot less dramatic than when I do it as part of my stage makeup.”

Izuku hummed, “makes sense.”

Katsuki drew back when he was done, but frowned as he took in his work. Izuku’s freckles were gone, and Katsuki suddenly really wanted to wipe all the makeup off Izuku.

“That’s… not a comforting expression,” Izuku’s eyes snapped to the mirror and then tilted his head, “this looks good, why do you look like that?”

“Your freckles.” Katsuki’s mouth blurted before he could keep himself in check.

“My…? Oh! Yeah, the foundation covers them up. The first time I did it I thought it looked super weird, but I’ve gotten used to it.” He smiled up at Katsuki.

Katsuki turned away before he could say something stupid like- “I don’t like that I can’t see them.”

“…uh, how come?”

FUCK.

Katsuki turned back around to see Izuku giving him a curious look, luckily though, one of the stage crew knocked on their door telling them that they’d have to start heading over to the wings of the stage.

Unluckily, Izuku’s nerves were back in full force.

As they came up to the door that would lead to the wings, Katsuki had had enough of Izuku’s anxiety-ridden mumblings.

“-trip and bust my ankle and everyone will laugh and Aizawa will be so disappointed and Kacchan will never talk to me again and hate me for-“

“Deku.” He tried.

“-ever and my career will be over because I can’t even perform oh my god this-“

“Deku.” He tried again, stepping up to him and waving a hand.

“-could be my last performance ever, fuck- I wish I could’ve ended on a high note or maybe retired without having to quit because I suck and-

“Izuku!” He snapped, cupping his face between his hands, “fucking get it together. This isn’t your first performance, right?”

“I- uh, yeah.” Izuku stammered, eyes wide.

“And you haven’t fucked up during one yet, right?”

“Mhm.” He nodded as best he could with Katsuki’s hands still on him.

“We’re gonna kill this, Deku.”

“R-right.”

“Of fucking course I’m right, I always am.” He grinned proudly, exaggerating it a bit for Izuku’s sake, “besides, you ain’t going out there alone, I’m gonna be up there with you, dumbass.”

Izuku smiled at that, eyes losing the dullness his anxiety had given them, “yeah, you are.”

Katsuki snorted and dropped his hands from Izuku’s face, taking his hand instead.

“Alright, nerd,” he whispered as they walked through the door and into the wings of the stage, “Let’s do this.”

—-

The light came on, the music started, and they began. Katsuki felt himself moving through the motions. Performing was second nature to him at this point, and it definitely helped that he did like showing off sometimes. The first part of the dance felt like every other performance he’d ever been in.

When the next part came, everything shifted.

Obviously, he’d danced with Izuku before. They’d spend weeks training together for this one duet, but there was something different about dancing with him in the costumes, with the makeup, and under the stage lights. Izuku was practically glowing. He looked ethereal under the lights and Katsuki wanted to stop the whole dance just to plant a kiss on his dumb perfect mouth.

Of course, he couldn’t do that, so he did the next best thing and poured his feelings into his movements.

He turned, spun, lifted, and let himself be lifted. They came together, moving as one.
Izuku smiled. Katsuki smiled back.
Push and pull, give and take.

And then it was over, Izuku and Katsuki breathing heavily, holding each other. Hours upon hours of practice for a few fleeting minutes in the spotlight.

Katsuki’s senses started to come back as deafening applause assaulted his ears. He felt Izuku take his hand and pull him off stage, out of the wings, into an empty hall. He was coming out of the weird haze he was stuck in as Izuku wrapped his arms around him.

“Dek-“

Something pressed against his mouth.

His barely functioning brain short-circuited.

Izuku was kissing him.

He didn’t have time to kiss back before Izuku was pulling away hastily, mouth moving at a million miles an hour. Katsuki didn’t need to hear to know Izuku was hurriedly apologizing. His hand went to the back of Izuku’s neck and he pulled him in again, effectively cutting off Izuku’s unnecessary apologies.

Izuku was frozen against him for a second before he kissed back, hands tugging him closer. Katsuki happily obliged, but while Izuku seemed frantic, Katsuki kissed him slowly; pulling back, just to kiss him again and again. All he could think was finally.

Chatter and footsteps from another duo who’d supposedly just finished forced them apart.

Katsuki was the one to drag Izuku this time, back into their dressing room.

“You kissed me!” Izuku blurted out as soon as the door shut behind them.

“The fuck? You kiss me first!” Katsuki shot back, not sure where this was going.

“Why?” Izuku pressed, louder than he normally spoke.

“Why the hell do you think? Use your nerd brain.”

“…do you like me?”

“Fuckin’ obviously!” Katsuki threw up his hands in exasperation, “I don’t just go around kissing people!”

“Well, I don’t know that! Besides, it could’ve been an adrenaline-fueled decision, I know a lot of people do stuff they normally wouldn’t when they’ve got an excess of adrenaline.”

“Well it fucking wasn’t on my part, so how do I know it wasn't for you? You’re the one who kissed me first, and you've never shown interest in me before.” Fuck- why were they arguing right now?

He felt vulnerable and Izuku’s questioning had put him on the defensive.

“Never shown interest?!” Izuku practically yelled. He didn’t sound mad… just disbelieving.

“Why did you think I always stood so close to you? Or wanted to dance with you after hours? Or invited you out for dinner? I had you come over for a movie, I practically sat on your damn lap, and I invited you to stay the night! Hell, I even called you hot to your face!” Izuku waved his arms around, “how did you miss all that? I thought I was being obvious!”

Katsuki stood still, face blank as he recalled everything Izuku pointed out.

“Oh.”

“Oh?” Izuku parroted back, “I can’t believe how dense you are.”

Katsuki glared, “I’m not den-“

“Yes, you are, you’re not allowed to argue with me about that.”

Katsuki assessed Izuku for a moment, “So you like me too?”

“To quote the words of some asshole I know- ‘fuckin’ obviously!’” Izuku replied, not looking away.

Katsuki wasn’t sure where the anxiety-riddled guy just a few minutes ago went, but he found the random burst of confidence kind of attractive.

He grinned, stepped forward, and tilted his head down, kissing Izuku again.

“Can’t believe you beat me to the punch. I was gonna ask you out after the competition was over.” He commented idly, huffing out a short laugh.

“You were?” Izuku questioned, a toothy smile forming.

“Yeah. I wanted to, like a week ago, but I didn’t want things to be awkward if you didn’t want to.”

Izuku actually facepalmed at that, “as if I wouldn’t want to.”

“Well,” Katsuki unwrapped the single rose he had placed at his makeup station, holding it out for Izuku, “wanna go out with me?”

Izuku’s smile somehow widened, and a pretty blush dusted over his cheeks as he gingerly took the flower, “yeah, I’d really like that.”

—-

Their duet ended up becoming something of a talking point in the dance world. Katsuki had always danced alone after all, and Izuku was newer to the scene.

They’d competed together in another competition later and they’d been deemed the “Wonder Duo” after they’d won that too.

“It sounds fucking stupid,” Katsuki grumbled as he scrolled on his phone, “Wonder Duo?! We sound like some knockoff superheroes.”

“Superheroes!” Izuku had exclaimed, way more excited than Katsuki, “that’s so cool! Just like All Might!”

He had also tried to convince Katsuki to make their next duet into a superhero dance. Needless to say, the idea was shut down immediately.

They still danced solo, of course, but Katsuki found himself enjoying being on stage with his boyfriend the most.

—-

Katsuki wearily blinked his eyes open, half his face smashed into his pillow. He felt Izuku shuffle beside him and a kiss was pressed to his forehead. Katsuki couldn’t help but smile as he shut his eyes again.

“You awake?” Izuku gently asked, carding his fingers through Katsuki’s hair.

“Hmm.” Katsuki simply hummed, not feeling like talking quite yet. He shifted closer to Izuku, eliminating any space they’d created while they’d been asleep.

Another kiss, on his cheek this time, “you’re so cute, Kacchan.”

He furrowed his eyebrows, hoping Izuku understood that he didn’t appreciate being called that. Izuku’s quiet giggles signaled that he knew, and didn’t care. Katsuki clumsily covered Izuku’s mouth with his hand in retaliation.

Izuku continued to giggle at Katsuki’s expense, though, and Katsuki felt a familiar fluttering in his chest. He liked Izuku’s laugh maybe a bit too much.

“Do you want me to make breakfast?” Izuku questioned once he calmed down. Katsuki finally opened his eyes and shook his head. He reached for Izuku’s face, squishing his cheeks a bit, before pressing a close-mouthed kiss to his lips.

“Can you make my favorite?” Izuku asked with a hopeful smile, to which Katsuki smiled back and nodded.

“Thanks.”

“Whatever.” He gruffly replied, voice rough from disuse.

“Ah! He speaks!” Izuku joked, hugging him closer, “I love your morning voice.”

“The fuck?”

“It’s hot.” Izuku supplied.

“You’re stupid.”

Izuku fake gasped as if offended, “I compliment you and all I get is ‘you’re stupid’? That’s it, we’re over, Kacchan.”

Katsuki snorted, rolling on top of Izuku.

“Get off me so I can pack my things and leave!” Izuku dramatically wailed, trying to squirm out from under Katsuki.

“You’re gonna leave your own house?”

“If you’re here, then yeah.”

“Where will you go?” Katsuki questioned, lazily smirking down on Izuku.

Izuku froze for a moment as if considering. Katsuki watched him do his best to suppress a grin.

“…your apartment?”

“What happens if I go back home?”

“I guess I’ll just have to deal with it.” Izuku sighed as if put out by the idea of Kastuki being in his own home.

“Is this your shitty way of finally moving in with me?”

“Is that your shitty way of asking?” Izuku retorted, an eyebrow raised.

“Where the fuck did all this sass come from?” Katsuki mumbled to himself, “…yeah, nerd, I want you to move in.”

“Oh, wait- really?” His eyes widened, and Katsuki could feel his heartbeat quicken against his chest.

The answer came as easy as breathing, “‘course,” Katsuki shrugged, “it’s been, what, six months now? We haven’t killed each other yet, and It’d be convenient since we go to the same studio anyway, so let’s live together.”

“Wow, what a romantic way of asking.” Izuku huffed and although Katsuki knew he was mainly joking, Izuku was also a romantic at heart.

Katsuki let his expression soften and cupped the side of Izuku’s face with one hand, his thumb brushing along his cheekbone.

“I want you to move in with me because I love you, Izuku.”

Izuku blinked rapidly, “uh- yep, that’s better.”

“So?” You want to?”

His boyfriend smiled and nodded, “yeah, I do.”

And so Katsuki cooked breakfast while Izuku rambled on about the details of moving in together. Whether they’d be in his apartment, or Katsuki’s, or if they wanted to buy a new place together so they’d have more space for two people.

Katsuki looked up from his cooking, watching Izuku scribble down things in his notebook, and smiled.

Yeah, he really loved Izuku.