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Field trips are still a bit of a sore subject for Yuuei, so class 2-A feels like they’re being tested by Nedzu when he approves a relaxing “vacation” to the beach. “You think he’s gonna send some low-level villains after us?” Kaminari asks when they’re loading their luggage onto the bus. “Or trick us by sending us somewhere else?”
A shudder runs through their entire group; Jirou leans over to punch him in the shoulder. “Shut up, moron,” she grumbles. “Let’s not jinx it, alright? I want to tan a bit and then play you in a game of Chicken. It would make my entire life to see you eat it in the ocean.”
“You’re on!” Kaminari shouts, making everyone else grin. Izuku snickers from where he’s sitting in-between Uraraka and Todoroki, leaning on his right side to get the optimal cooling temperature to make sure he doesn’t overheat. Todoroki’s mouth twists in a huff that’s definitely disguised as a laugh, and Izuku presses further into his side with a sigh of relief.
He does look over when he feels eyes glaring into the back of his head. There’s a high chance it’s Bakugou, and sure enough, he locks eyes with his oldest companion (if they’re even friends anymore) and tilts his head.
What’s up? Izuku mouths, furrowing his eyebrows. He can see Bakugou frown before he mouths back, You’re dumb. That’s it.
Thanks, I guess?
Shut up, loser.
That’s a normal conversation in their books. It’s usually followed by offers to help train, or just generally hanging out in the same room, but Izuku still doesn’t know where they stand on the friendship scale. Maybe he could ask him while they’re at the beach? It’s definitely not a bad idea, especially since fighting isn’t allowed by Present Mic. Aizawa had opted out of the trip, refusing to even deal with his kids for any longer than he needed to.
“Iida and Yaoyorozu are in charge. I’d say Mic would also be in charge, but we all know he’s going to DJ for you problem kids.” Aizawa had sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Try not to burn anything down, please. I’m dealing with enough issues as it is.”
Arriving at the beach is pretty fun though. They file off and get their bags, shuffling them into a beach house that was apparently rented out for all twenty of them. “This is the nicest thing Yuuei’s ever done for us,” Hagakure whispers, and there’s several nods of agreement as they go figure out living situations.
It takes them about an hour to get into swimsuits and down to the clear water, admiring the way the sun sparkles off the waves and gives off enough warmth to keep it from being too cold. Izuku inhales, smelling the scent of salt in the air.
“Hey, Midoriya!”
Izuku spins around to look at Yaoyorozu, who’s waving him down with a smile. “I was wondering if I could get your help!” She calls him over. “We’re gonna try and build the biggest historically accurate sandcastle of all time. I figured we could ask Shoji too, and maybe someone else? But I know you can definitely help me with figuring out foundations!”
Since this is Izuku’s first time technically at the beach, he’s definitely excited to try anything else. “I’d love to! Thanks Yaomomo. We can get a bucket and get some wet sand, I’ve looked up how to pack stuff together. We might also need a toothpick to scrape details out…”
Izuku dissolves into his usual mutterings, only snapping out of it when someone bumps his shoulder. “Deku,” Bakugou grumbles, looking vaguely annoyed as he shuffles on hot sand while wearing swim trunks. “Quit overthinking it. Get some sand and start building.”
“Would you like to join us, Bakugou?” Yaoyorozu politely asks, gesturing to the pile of sand. “We could definitely use more hands! If not, no worries!”
For a split second, Bakugou genuinely looks like he’s about to say yes. He hesitates before shoving his hands into his pockets. “The idiot squad wants me to hold Earphones so she can shove Dunce Face into the water. I’m gonna hold it over his head until we graduate, but maybe later or something, aight?”
“Sounds good!” Izuku grins. “Have fun, Kacchan! I know you and Jirou will definitely win!”
“You bet your stupid hair we will,” Bakugou snorts, turning on his heel to stalk off towards the water. “Later, losers.”
Izuku and Yaoyorozu wave in tandem, turning back to each other. “At least he was nice about it,” Yaoyorozu smiles, waving Shoji over. “And you both are on better terms. Could you call yourself friends, finally? It’s been long enough, I would assume, but you two have a very special relationship.”
“I…” Izuku looks down at the sand and frowns, trying not to think about it. “Well, I’m not sure, actually. We get along better, and I’m really happy about it! But I’m not sure if he feels the same way. He’s...he’s my oldest friend. I just wonder if he considers me the same.”
“You might want to talk to him about it,” Yaoyorozu sympathetically answers. She reaches over to pat him on the shoulder and motions Shoji in. “Don’t forget that you’re a fantastic friend, Midoriya. Don’t sell yourself short!” With that, she turns to their fellow friend and beams up at him. “Hello Shoji, we’ve recruited you to help us build a sandcastle. If you don’t have any other plans, we’d love to have you help!”
Shoji quietly laughs, sitting down on the sand as one of his mouths extends out. “Tokoyami is writing poetry under the giant beach umbrella over there with Kouda. I’m definitely not busy. How can I help?”
Izuku and Yaoyorozu grin, and just like that, they’re off to work.
It takes them an hour and a half.
They build Mont Saint-Michel, which Yaoyorozu claims is a castle located in France, and contour every window and building. Yaoyorozu provides the structure, Shoji does the painstaking little details, and Izuku keeps giving them supplies, getting more wet sand and ocean water.
All in all, it’s a huge success; most of the students of class 2-A stop by to gasp excitedly and take pictures when they’re finally done, and Izuku glows with pride for their giant castle. “What an effective use of your Quirks!” Iida gasps, dramatically chopping his arm down again. (Behind him, Todoroki mimics it with a deadpan look on his face, making Uraraka try to stifle her laughter.) “As expected of hero students!”
“It’s just a sandcastle, Iida.” Yaoyorozu laughs, covering her mouth when she laughs. “Not a ploy against villains. Although, covering in sand and creating water to harden would be an effective strategy...let me look into that later.”
Izuku’s so engrossed in thinking about the specifics that he doesn’t notice Bakugou approaching on his right. “Deku.” Bakugou grips, making Izuku jump straight into the air. “Jesus, calm down. I’m not gonna fight you today. You doing anything tonight?”
Izuku squints at him. It’s not often that Bakugou Katsuki asks him to do anything; besides, the last time he asked, they threw hands in Ground Beta. “...I don’t think so? We’re probably gonna make s’mores, but I personally couldn’t tell you if I was doing anything. Why, did you have an idea in mind?”
It’s not often that Bakugou looks awkward, but he manages it by shoving his hands into his pockets. “Tch. Something like that, I guess. Just...words are hard, alright? I just want to fucking chat this time. If I make a move, you’ve got permission to punch me in the face with your Quirk.”
Bakugou’s come a long way, but not this much. Izuku squints his eyes more. “Who bribed you, Kacchan? What do you have on the line for this? You normally don’t try this hard.”
His childhood friend lets out a sigh that makes several of their friends look over at them in surprise. “Look, idiot, I want to talk with you, but it’s difficult. I’d rather us fight our feelings out like usual since you fucking understand both for some godforsaken reason.”
Izuku opens his mouth but gets cut off by Uraraka, who’s jogging over with a waving hand. “Hey, Deku! Can you help us get the chocolate bars from the beach house? Todoroki was supposed to help but he’s running the logistics of making s’mores with Kirishima’s Quirk.”
Bakugou genuinely splutters as Izuku taps a finger to his chin, eyes lighting up. “That’s actually a great idea! If Kirishima Hardens and holds onto marshmallows, and Todoroki uses his fire to toast them, then he could make the perfect s’more! Or...if he could get Tetsutetsu...or maybe even Kacchan? Would Explosions work? Or would it just explode the marshmallow? Hey, Kacchan—”
“It would explode the marshmallow,” Bakugou interrupts. “Focus, idiot. Let’s hurry and get the shit before someone yells at us.”
He brushes some sand off his arms and scowls when Uraraka, laughter in her voice, goes, “Wait, how do you know that? Have you tried it? C’mon Bakugou, you gotta tell us if you blew up a marshmallow!”
“Fuck off,” Bakugou snarls, but it doesn’t have any bite to it. “You really think I’ll tell you shit? Let’s just get this over with.” He storms away and leaves Izuku and Uraraka running after him, both giggling like idiots.
S’mores with friends is a dream come true. Izuku tries his best to keep his marshmallows from dropping into the campfire, wincing every time it slips off the metal prong they brought. Eventually, Yaoyorozou makes him his own prong with new hooks just for him with a smile and quiet laughter as Izuku hangs his head, smiling sheepishly.
He gets through five s’mores before Bakugou clears his throat and gestures to the path that leads to the beach house. “Get your ass up nerd, I’m kidnapping you for a while.”
Izuku looks over at his friends, who shrug. “If anything goes wrong, you can just flick him.” Uraraka idly waves her hand, accidentally smacking her hand on Todoroki’s s’more. Iida tries to say something but Todoroki shakes his head, watching the floating snack go higher and higher. “Please try not to destroy anything on the way, Deku.”
“No promises,” Izuku reassures her. He stands and follows Bakugou, falling into line next to him. The glow of the campfire that they all helped make starts to fade into the distance, and Izuku looks up in time to see the sunset turn Bakugou’s hair to gold.
“Kacchan?” He prompts, tilting his head in a way that makes Bakugou frown. “I know you called me out here, but if we miss stargazing, Uraraka will hunt you down.”
“Shut it, moron. I’m trying to get my thoughts together.” Bakugou snaps. He runs a hand through his hair, messing up the spikes and making them even fluffier. “How do you do this so easily? Talking about your feelings? What...what do you even think of me?”
Wow, he’s starting this off strong. Izuku scrunches up his face and recalls their entire relationship in the span of three seconds. There’s a good amount of both good and bad memories, but one thing has been pretty consistent over the years. “You’re one of my best friends, Kacchan.”
“Bullshit.” Bakugou says instantly. “There’s no way I’m one of your best friends. You have the entire class behind you, and you chose me?”
“And I’d do it again,” Izuku nods firmly. There’s really no hesitation in his answers. “I didn’t go on a rescue mission and break the rules for nothing, y’know. But...if I had to ask, what am I to you?”
“I don’t have a word for what you are to me,” Bakugou says, and he does look genuinely upset by it, “but you’re Deku. I can’t call you my childhood friend, because I don’t deserve that title, and we’re only now becoming rivals. It’s fucking difficult, okay? You’re frustrating! This entire situation is frustrating!”
“Kacchan,” Izuku says, because he honestly doesn’t have any words for this. “Have you been thinking about this for a while? You’ve always been my friend, even throughout everything. I forgave you a long time ago.”
“You shouldn’t have,” Bakugou insists. “You really shouldn’t have. I made your life hell for years. We already had our fight at Ground Beta, but fuck man. You gotta hold your friends accountable for their actions.”
“I do,” Izuku reminds him. “I ripped into Iida for going after Stain by himself, and I’ve stood up to people who deserved it. I stood up to you, after all. I did the same for Shinsou, and I’m still friends with all of them. You aren’t any different. You may be my image of victory, but you’re also just Kacchan. I would literally kill for you, idiot.”
Bakugou curses and looks away, jaw set. Izuku distinctly notes that he’s holding back tears. “You could pick a friend better than me, Izuku.”
“I definitely didn’t.” Izuku gets a tiny bit of whiplash at his given name, but shakes it off enough to smile. “I chose you! I never regretted it and I won’t anytime soon.”
“God, you’re so fucking weird.” Bakugou shakes his head and grins, wiping at his face. “Whatever. Let’s go back before Round Face floats me to the moon, we’re supposed to be getting ready to stare at burning balls of hydrogen and helium and make up stories about them.”
Izuku snorts loudly and makes Bakugou crack up, both of them bent over like idiots. For a moment, they’re not Deku and Kacchan; they’re Izuku and Katsuki, and they’re spending the night at each other’s place again when they’re kids.
Their friends are waiting for them when they retrace their steps on the sand, smiling and waving them down. “I think this is the first time they haven’t fought each other!” Kaminari shouts to the laughter of everyone else.
“I’ve changed my mind about fighting someone today,” Bakugou decides, smoke starting to waft from his palms. “Sparky, get your ass over here; you’re the chosen one, and I’ve got my sights on you.”
“I DIDN’T THINK THIS THROUGH, HOLD ON—”
“I think I should do the s’mores experiment with Kirishima,” Todoroki says, standing up and starting to walk over to Kirishima, who’s sitting next to Sero. Kirishima gasps excitedly and stands up, Hardening himself immediately.
“Wait, no,” Yaoyorozu starts to protest, getting up with Iida at her side. “Todoroki—”
Chaos erupts as various classmates get up to try and stop their respective friends; Izuku, holding onto his phone, laughs his ass off and starts to film. He zooms in on Bakugou, who’s grasping Kaminari by the collar. Apparently sensing the camera on him, Bakugou turns and they meet each other’s gaze.
Class 2-A’s Twin Stars may be rivals in the truest sense, but they’re building up their friendship brick by brick. Izuku smiles at him, and Bakugou, after a few seconds, gives him a sharp grin in return.
It’s a start. They’re on the road to recovery, and won’t stop anytime soon.