Work Text:
Pro Hero Dynamight missing in action after his agency loses contact with his comms
All searches for Pro Hero Dynamight stopped after 6 months of searching
“I don’t want to give up. I know he’s strong but I have to be realistic.” Pro Hero Red Riot says in an interview about recently missing Pro Hero Dynamight
Pro Hero Dynamight, the Symbol of Hope, pronounced dead at 23 after being reported missing for 10 months.
Hero partner Deku refuses interviews about fellow Pro Hero Dynamight
“Deku-”
“-Feel about Dynamight being pronounced dead-”
“Is it true that you and Dynamight were in a relationship?”
“Deku, wait!”
Izuku pushed through the crowds of reporters surrounding his agency, staring at the ground to avoid the flashes of the cameras and to avoid the welling tears in his eyes. He couldn’t cry, not in front of all of the cameras. He made that mistake when Katsuki had been missing for a month with no word of where he was and it was all over the front pages of news articles. It was a struggle to go back out into the public after that.
It was easy to ignore the comments, the questions, the ‘ are you okay’ from his friends and worried glances shot his way as if he was the only one who lost Katsuki. But knowing he was about to cry as if he was 16 again in front of so many eyes, he couldn’t handle it. He cried when Katsuki went missing and when the search parties were called off and when he was pronounced dead with no body. When the nightmares got bad or when his bed felt too big for just him he could cry. But that was in the comfort of his own home or in the bathroom of his agency, silent, frantic tears he scrubbed away only for more to replace them.
“Good morning, Deku!” Izuku didn’t look up until he was past the security gates of his agency, blocking the reporters and photographers from seeing him. He was faced with his receptionist, a bright smile on her face as she saw him. He smiled back, giving her a wave as he passed. She was a kind young woman and terrifyingly smart. If he was stuck on a case pushed on him he would often sit down next to her, paying her double time for helping him with the case. She, like him, loved heroes but preferred to stay in the background, not wanting any credit and instead wanting to comfortably settle down with her wife and her nephew she was raising after her brother died whilst doing hero work. She, also, liked to talk and oftentimes Katsuki had to drag him away from their conversation because they would lose almost an hour just talking.
Izuku’s heart dropped a little as he remembered that he wouldn’t feel the hand around his wrist pulling him away as he tried to finish what he was saying.
Pressing the button on the elevator up to his office, he tried to focus on the music in the elevator instead of his thoughts.
“Good morning Midoriya!”
“Morning- hey, you alright?”
Izuku could only nod and sit behind his desk, avoiding the glances of his friends shot towards him. Uraraka had the desk in the corner to his right, Sero in front of him and Katsuki’s desk remained empty and mostly untouched, only the papers on the stack of cases he had to write reports on being removed until he was supposed to return. Izuku looked away from the desk, instead down at his own, a thick stack of report incidents ready to be filled out. It was mind numbing but something he often used as an escape. With internships being sent out a few weeks ago set for the end of the year, he had plenty of time to fill out paperwork and drown in it.
“Midoriya!”
“Hm?” He looked up at Sero sitting on top of his desk, his legs an inch away from Midoriya’s head. It took a lot of restraint to not lean on them and take a nap. Sero wasn’t even in his hero suit, instead a hoodie and comfy pants as he was recovering from an injury.
A soft hand reached for his face and wiped away tears from his cheeks. Sero’s eyes were full of worry with Uraraka looking over at him.
Both of them lost Katsuki too, but there they were comforting him as if he was the only one. He was crying when Auntie Mistuki and Uncle Masaru lost their son yet again. They lost him when he was kidnapped by the League, almost lost him a few months later when he almost died at the hands of Shigaraki and then when he tried to kill himself when the nightmares got too bad and he “ couldn’t shake the trauma”. And then they lost him again when Izuku let him run off without backup. It was his fault for letting him run off. He should’ve ran after him and made sure he was there to help him against whoever took him. The two of them should’ve been backup for each other. He should’ve-
“Were the reporters harassing you again?” Uraraka asked, twisting in her chair.
“I wouldn’t call it harassing, they just want questions and I know I need to confront reality sooner or later but.. I just can’t. Whenever I think about him and where he could be or what happened, I panic because anything could’ve happened. I want him to be alive but I know I need to move on eventually.” Izuku let Sero run his hands through his hair, messing it up more than it already was. He rested his head on the legs in front of him, feeling weak for not being able to get over the disappearance. It was almost comforting if he couldn’t still hear the reporters on the street. “I’m sorry. You guys lost him to and-”
“We didn’t love him the way you loved him. Yes, we loved him, he became some of our closest friends but you two… you two loved each other. It went beyond romantic feelings, it was unconditional.” God, did that want to make Izuku cry. What Uraraka said and the fingers in Izuku’s hair made his chest swell in agony. It hurt. A shit ton. He did love Katsuki with unconditional love, no matter what happened he would still deeply care for him and that would never change.
“Thank you guys. I really mean it.”
“Of course, Greenie.” Sero didn’t move from his place on Izuku's desk until Izuku moved his head and started on the stack of paperwork and accident reports.
The rest of the day wasn’t any better. He couldn’t go on any type of social media without photos of his face staring down at the ground aggressively with articles attached to it. During his lunch break his PR manager called him, begging him to just do one interview about Dynamight or else people would think he didn’t care and it would ruin his image. Izuku hung up as soon as they mentioned that there were articles circulating of him receiving a hug from Sero followed by rumors that they were in a relationship. He ignored the concerned look Uraraka shot him when his head slammed against his desk.
He couldn’t do interviews. Not so soon. Not when there was a possibility that Katsuki could be alive and hoping someone was still looking for him. Izuku wanted to be the person that wouldn’t give up on Katsuki. Not until a body was recovered. But… it was unreasonable to hope that Katsuki was alive. Ten, almost eleven months missing with no word, no ransom, no body, he could be anywhere. He might not even be in Japan at this point.
About to have his third breakdown that day, Izuku picked up his bag and left the office, explaining to the other two that he would be gone for a couple of hours. He didn’t explain and they didn’t ask. Since losing Katsuki, people were more lenient when it came to him leaving early on rough days. He tried not to take advantage of their kindness, knowing he’ll fall into a lapse of overthinking and not doing anything but he had been grateful to leave early after a few sleepless nights and anxiety fueled patrols around the city. He suspected they thought he was going back home and sleep off his worries but instead he caught the train, getting off and not stopping his walk until he came to a familiar building.
UA hadn’t changed a bit in the 3 years since his graduation. The security bots still roamed by the gates and the dorms still up at the side of the main building, a few students staying there if their home life wasn’t the best or if they lived too far away. According to Hitoshi, they had a few international students who managed to get in on recommendations. A few students milled around the cherry trees, sitting under it eating lunch and playing a card game, staring at Izuku as he walked up to the front entrance. Being a previous student, friends of some of the faculty and a common visitor, Izuku had his own card to scan which he took great advantage of. Still, his frequent visits didn’t stop the students freaking out about his appearance. The group playing the games whispered excitedly amongst each other when Izuku gave them a smile and a wave, slipping past the front doors before he could be surrounded.
“Izuku! I wasn’t expecting you today!” Mina was quick to see her old classmate, running over and flinging her arms around his shoulders. Izuku stumbled a little, wrapping an arm around her waist, hugging back. “It’s been so long!”
“It’s only been a month, Mina. And it’s good to see you again.” Izuku let Mina pull away from him, smiling brightly. She was in her hero suit, an upgraded version of the one she graduated with, and looked a little worn out. She must’ve done some hero training recently. “I thought I would drop in. Is Aizawa around?”
“Mhm! He’s in his office last I checked. He doesn’t have classes for the rest of the day so you better catch him before he takes a nap. Hitoshi tried waking him up a few weeks ago and he’s still cranky about it.” Mina was pulled away by her students after she said that, leaving Izuku standing in the reception on his own. He guessed Aizawa was still the same too. He didn’t bother waving goodbye to Mina, she had already been whisked away to do god knows what.
“Uh- Sensei?” Izuku poked his head around Aizawa’s office door, finding him looking absolutely done with life behind his desk. A stack of what Izuku presumed was essays in front of him, a red pen in his hand. His head raised at the sound of his voice, putting his pen down when he saw who it was.
“Even after graduating you still insist on calling me Sensei. Come in.” Aizawa beckoned him in. Izuku closed the door behind him, sitting in front of his old teacher. He started to overthink what he was about to ask him. After the war, Aizawa told them about his old friend, Oboro and how he was turned into Kurogiri and how important it was to turn to each other when they inevitably lost someone to hero work. The story left Izuku, and many others crying, Katsuki leaving the room because he just could not stop crying. They all had lost Aoyama too. A few months after the truth came out he was found dead by suicide in his cell. Despite what he did and what it led to, they still built a relationship with him and for a few months they were all he had. The only friends he ever made.
“Midoriya. Is everything okay?”
“How did you handle or at least deal with Oboro’s death?”
Aizawa stared at Izuku for a moment before realisation clicked in his eyes.
“Is this about Bakugou?”
Izuku could only nod and pray he didn’t start crying. He was tired of always crying. He wanted to just stop crying. He wanted to stop feeling the overwhelming emotions that flooded him whenever Katsuki’s name was mentioned. He wanted to stop his friends walking on eggshells whenever they were around him out of risk of upsetting him. He wanted his emotions to stop. Even for a moment.
“I didn’t deal with Oboro’s death very well. I pushed everyone away. I pushed Hizashi and Nemuri away and yelled at them whenever they tried to help. It wasn’t until I tried committing suicide did I finally let them back into my life because I realised that I needed them in my life and pushing them away wasn’t going to stop me from being hurt when I lost them.” Aizawa didn’t mention the way Izuku zoned out for a moment, staring at the wooden desk. He met his students eyes as he looked up, eyes wide at the revelation Aizawa just dropped.
“You… you never mentioned that you tried killing yourself.” Aizawa only shrugged as if it was no big deal that one of the greatest heroes almost died before he had the chance to debut.
“It was a long time ago. When Nemuri died it was easier but still hard. I guess I didn’t have time to think about it. Not during the war and I had just taken off my own leg with what could be considered a pocket knife so it didn’t hit me until later on that I only had Hizashi left. I still fell into a depression but instead of pushing people away I accepted help. I want you to do the same thing, kid. I know what you’re like, you try to hide everything behind a mask so you can keep up your public image but there are things more important than your hero status. Talk to people, talk to whoever you need to because believe me it’s a lot easier to handle grief when you’re surrounded by the people you love than to struggle through it alone. It’s not going to be easy. I’ll tell you that now and I’m not going to say you’ll ever be over it completely but you will learn to think beyond the death and the details of what happened and remember Katsuki for who he was. Happy memories are the hardest to think about but trying to find something to hate so you can swallow your emotions will not do you any good. You loved him and he loved you. There is no changing that.”
Izuku didn’t realise he had started crying until Aizawa finished speaking. He had spent the last ten months isolating when he could and drowning in hero work even when it reminded him of Katsuki. The reporters shoving microphones and cameras in his face whenever he went out in public only forced him to think about it even further.
“It’s okay to ask for help. The way the media has been treating you is awful. Don’t feel pressured to answer their questions. The earlier you realise the better it will be for you.” Aizawa moved from behind his desk, wrapping his arms around Izuku who only sobbed into his chest. God it was embarrassing. First in front of Sero and Uraraka and now Aizawa. He guessed he was no better than how he was at UA. Still, none of them seemed to mind his usual emotional outbursts as the feeling of Aizawa’s hand across his back soothing him until he stopped crying. He coached Izuku through deep breaths before letting go and handing him tissues left on the desk.
“Kid.”
“Hm?”
“You will get through this.”
“Thank you, Sensei.”
Despite Aizawa’s words, Izuku still did the interview with the press a week later. He promised only one and he could skip any questions he wanted. The interviewer seemed okay with those terms but still tried pushing in questions about Izuku’s relationship with Katsuki, which Izuku passed each time. His bed had been feeling less empty as the days went on but he didn’t want that to change and for him to go back to sleeping in a king sized bed all on his own, a pillow bunched up for comfort, no longer smelling like Katsuki.
It was difficult to get through the first questions but when he got into a rhythm he almost forgot that his words were being recorded and added to a piece of paper to be written into a news article later on, he could forget about it with no flashing lights and no overlapping voices demanding answers. But then the final questions came.
“What do you think happened to Dynamight? There are rumours floating around but what do you think happened?”
It was inevitable that it would be asked and Izuku had even prepared to answer it, rehearsing it over and over even when he didn’t fully believe it.
“I have to be honest anything could’ve happened to him. I am not aware of any rumours only what police have suspected so I cannot confirm nor deny anything but if you want my answer I believe that he was taken by someone not interested in ransom money. I don’t know if he’s alive or dead but I am still holding out hope. Even if there is a small chance that he is still alive I want him to know that I am not going to give up hope that he is still out there until we get solid proof. It may be delusional for me to think that he is still alive but when you’ve been close friends with someone for so long you don’t want to believe anything bad could ever happen to them. Something that cannot be fixed.”
“So are you denying the rumours that you were involved?”
Izuku’s world seemed to screech to a halt, his eyes wide as he looked at the reporter. In the corner of his eye he could see the flashing red light of the camera, indicating that he was still being recorded with the possibility of it being live. His manager hadn’t said anything about a live interview which he prayed wasn’t the case with how he fumbled through the first few questions, making incoherent sentences before calming down and answering them properly.
Were there rumours that he was involved? Ones that went beyond mindless conspiracy theories? Sure, there were those who took photos of him and Sero hugging after he had a panic attack but with Todoroki and Sero coming out publicly that they were engaged two weeks later and Sero absolutely throwing his easy-going reputation out of the window to tell people to get their heads out of their asses there was no other content for theories to surface from.
How serious were people taking these theories?
“What do you mean? I wasn’t involved in any of this. I don’t understand why-”
“It was no secret almost five years ago Hawks had allegedly tried to kill Best Jeanist and with Endeavor’s secrets coming out thanks to Dabi, is it any surprise that when a top Pro Hero goes missing the Commission or other heroes aren’t involved? You were the last to be seen with Dynamight before he went missing.”
“These rumours are nothing more than that. I can assure you that I had nothing to do with the disappearance of my boy- of my friend. Now if you excuse me, this interview is over.”
Without waiting for a response, Izuku got up and left, hot tears falling down his face and he passed the security and the front desk, pushing through the crowd of people waiting for him to come out. He couldn’t breathe. Tugging at the collar of his suit and pulling off the mask strapped around his neck he forced his way into a secluded alleyway, crouching down to catch his breath. When deep breaths didn’t work he slumped backwards, scrubbing at his eyes until they were red and sore and stretching at his arms where more scars lay.
There were rumours. Rumours people truly believed that he did something to Katsuki, that he was involved and what? Acting? Did they think he was acting the part of a distraught partner, crocodile tears falling as he tried to gather his thoughts and continue on with his day the best he could as if Katsuki’s bedroom hadn’t been cleaned since he last went missing? As if Izuku didn’t leave the porch light on every night as if he was 5 again waiting for his father to return home after storming out one night in the hopes that Katsuki would stumble through like he did after every night shift? As if Izuku didn’t keep his boxes of tea stocked up and ready to be used just in case Katsuki called him and asked to make sure one was ready for him when he got back?
The police questioned him as soon as it was clear Katsuki was missing and the agency lost contact. They found his earpiece two hours later, crushed beyond recognition and the tracker torn out. Izuku had nothing to say other than the fight that went down and Katsuki running after the villain who snuck away. He should’ve gone after him. He should’ve helped him out. The villain he was fighting was caught in Tenya’s grasp so there was no reason for him to stick around for as long as he did. He should’ve ran after him.
God.
How useless could he be? He couldn’t even keep a fellow hero safe. How could the public trust him again? He had lost people who should’ve been easy to save. He should’ve gone instead of Katsuki. He should be the one missing. He should be the one dead in an unknown location never to be seen again. It’s not like he mattered to anyone.
Izuku had no idea when he got back to his house but when he blinked back to consciousness he was in his living room wearing one of Katsuki’s hoodies and athletic shorts. He could feel the tightness of bandages around his arms and a sinking feeling in his stomach. The tv in front of him was on and playing a movie from the pre-quirk era. He was sure he had seen it before but couldn’t think beyond the current moment. The movie was quiet, loud enough for him to hear but quiet so it wouldn’t disturb him if he fell asleep. It didn’t matter, everything was muffled regardless.
The sound of the kettle in the kitchen a room over made his head snap towards the door, eyes wide with hope and a little bit of excitement. When he tried to stand his legs only gave up underneath him, sending him straight to the ground and onto his knees. The carpet subbed against his skin but it didn’t take away from the sound of footsteps racing towards him, someone crouching in front of him and holding his face up. The features of a face were blurred through tears but he could see blond strands of hair tied back. But it was still visible to him. He wanted to reach up and touch it to confirm it was real but with heavy limbs he could only sit and stare.
“Kat… Katsuki? Kacchan?” A sob not his own filled the room, pulling him into a tight hug. It was a comforting hug, a nice hug but not Katsuki’s hug. Katsuki was muscular, toned arms wrapping around his waist, pulling him close to his chest whilst a hand found its way into his hair. He smelt of caramel and would bury his head in Izuku’s hair. But this hug had arms around his shoulders and a chin on his head. A hand did rub his back but it was thin fingers working out knots in his shoulders.
“I’m sorry. It’s just me, Denki. I-I found you and you… you were so out of it and you were bleeding I wasn’t sure if you had been attacked but then realised you were still scratching yourself. It scared me so I brought you back to your place and stayed with you. Sero and Uraraka came by too but left half an hour ago…” Kaminari pulled away from the subdued Izuku, wiping away his tears with his fingers. Izuku could only nod. Of course it wouldn’t be Katsuki. How could he be so stupid?
“I’m… I’m sorry for making you worry. I don’t know what happened. I was doing an interview and then-” Izuku shrugged, letting Kaminari guide him back up to the couch. He latched onto a pillow when Kaminari pulled his hand away, burying his face in it.
“Don’t apologize. Just rest. You’ve had a stressful day.” Izuku didn't argue, but forced Kaminari to stay for just another few hours.
Izuku didn’t work for the next few days. Thanks to Aizawa, Present Mic and a few other heroes his interview was not released and the company was forced to shut down business as he was not the first one to be treated badly. Apparently they were the ones to start the rumour about Izuku’s involvement and used it to their advantage to portray a particular image about Izuku. Still, like everything, small clips of his interview and videos of his panic attack in that alleyway were released. Hitoshi, being the small-time hacker he was, took the posts down before any major harm could be done. Izuku thanked him profusely and promised to buy him one coffee a day for a month.
He wouldn’t say he enjoyed his time off from working with the nightmare fueled nights and paranoia creeping in when he sat in silence for too long but some of his friends would come by when they were able to, the topic of Katsuki never coming up. Aizawa stopped by a few days after the interview with comfort food and headache relievers because that man somehow still had his dad instincts for all of his students even after graduation. Izuku took them gratefully, falling asleep not long after, only waking up to a blanket pulled over him and the stuffed bear he had since he was a kid in his arms.
The last night of his time off was when he was really starting to get bored. Well not exactly bored but eager to leave the house without the fear of reporters in his face. They all got the message after the Commission spoke publicly about their treatment towards heroes. It would be the first day in months when he could return to normal and start saving people again. As much as he enjoyed it when his friends would cook for him and sit with him as he helped them through paperwork before it turned into an aggressive game of UNO with Izuku winning most of the time, he wanted to get back out again and use his severely neglected quirk.
Still, his last pre-quirk era superhero movie was yet to be watched so sitting down with a cup of hot chocolate he readied himself for a night of peace and quiet.
Until frantic pounding on the door jerked him out of his sleepy haze. His eyes snapping to the door, his mind flooded with possibilities. Could one of his friends be hurt? Was it a civilian looking for help? It took him less than two seconds to unlatch the chain on his door and open it, just enough to see outside. The porch light remained on so he could clearly see a few feet out onto the road but he didn’t have to as a body slumped against the door. The arm on the wood left a bloody smear as it fell, the rest of the body following soon after. Izuku dove to catch the body, realising in horror who the mangled body belonged to.
“Katsuki!” Izuku pulled him inside, slamming the door behind them as he kicked open the door immediately to his left, disposing of him onto the bed. He had never been more grateful for them to have the idea to have a mini hospital room in their home for when they came back injured. The white sheets of the bed immediately turned red the moment Katsuki was laid down, groaning in response.
On his back, Izuku could get a proper look at him. He wasn’t in his hero suit which was to be guessed, instead in a dirty white t-shirt and black trousers that were a few sizes too large for him and only held up by a piece of string. He had no shoes, only wrecked socks which only had the outline on the bottom. His skin was either covered in burns, cuts or blood, a gash on his upper left arm weeping yellow pus and so deep Izuku could see yellow bubbling fat. It was clear that his left shoulder was dislocated and with one rib sticking out from his chest it made Izuku wonder how the hell he got to their home. Katsuki’s face was almost unrecognizable, his jaw and nose out of place and his right eye swollen shut. His other eye darted around the room before landing on Izuku before tears started pouring. Katsuki desperately tried to speak but only made pained whimpers and gurgles of agony. He could only reach for Izuku and squeeze his hand so tight Izuku thought he might break a few bones. But it was okay. Katsuki was back.
“Hey, I’m here. I’m here. It’s okay. I’ll go get my phone and we’ll call an ambulance and you’ll be safe. I promise you.” Izuku wrenched his hand away with little ease, running to get his phone still in the living room, dialing the emergency number as he ran back to Katsuki who looked a lot paler, blood dripping from the bed to the floor and creating a puddle.
“Okay, hold on.” Putting the call on speaker Izuku relayed the information to the dispatcher as he tried wrapping Katsuki’s arm to stop the blood flow but the bandages got too bloody to be useful as soon as Izuku applied them, tightening the wrapping as much as he could. There was nothing he could do about the broken bones, only the gashes that he could see and get easy access to. Katsuki on the other hand only wanted to grasp onto Izuku, tears falling from his eyes when he tried to shake his head when Izuku tried to leave to tend to his injuries.
“Katsuki… Kacchan, you’re bleeding out I can’t let you bleed out. Please I can’t lose you.” Izuku held his hand back, pressing on his arm as the bandages turned red. “Please just hold on.”
Katsuki only lost consciousness once whilst in the ambulance but it stressed Izuku out enough to make him hold onto Katsuki even tighter. The paramedics had to relocate his shoulder and jaw in the ambulance, causing Katsuki to scream in pain each time. When he tried moving he’d aggravate his ribs and end up screaming even more. At one point when his jaw was relocated Katsuki had begged them to make the pain go away only to be told that any medication would put too much stress on his body and he would have to wait until they got to the hospital. It was the longest 15 minutes in Izuku’s life watching Katsuki writhe and scream in agony, gripping his hand the entire time.
As soon as they got to the hospital Katsuki was sent in for emergency surgery, leaving Izuku behind in the waiting room. He was thankful he lived close to a hospital which primarily treated heroes so even though the hospital waiting room was busy, no one spared him a second glance. Izuku even saw some heroes he recognised, sitting close to Rock Lock and curling up in his seat. They didn’t speak but a mutual knowledge was shared that they could lean on each other.
“Izuku Midoriya?” Izuku’s head snapped up at his name, eyes wide when he saw a nurse holding a clipboard. She motioned for him to follow her, waiting for him to stand before leading him down a corridor which was mostly empty.
“Bakugou has just come out of surgery which was very successful. We were able to fix his rib and stitch up some internal wounds as well as external wounds. We’ve given him pretty strong painkillers so when he wakes up he will be very out of it and might not remember how he got here or the events leading up to him arriving at your home. Memories will return eventually but it may cause him distress to wake up in an unfamiliar place. Unfortunately we can’t do anything about the scarring he will receive at this point in time but once he recovers we will discuss options for him going forward. As his primary emergency contact you can make decisions based on his care if Bakugou is unable to but it shouldn’t be necessary. Is there anything you’d like to ask?”
Izuku took in all of the information, not completely hearing everything she said. Katsuki was okay. He was going to be okay.
“I don’t think so… Should I call his parents or wait until he’s awake?” He bit his bottom lip. He knew Katsuki’s parents would be ecstatic to hear that Katsuki was back but he didn’t want to overwhelm Katsuki immediately once he woke up and if he was scared and in pain and with his mother in the same room, god knows what would happen. But then again they were his parents. Izuku was just a boyfriend. They deserved to see him.
“I think you should call them to let them know that Bakugou is okay and come down if they want but you can make the call on if they also stay in the room. Visiting hours close at 10pm but family and emergency contact can stay for longer if they wish.”
“Okay, I’ll give them a call once I’m with Katsuki if that’s okay.”
The nurse smiled and nodded, leading Izuku down the hall to the room where Katsuki was staying. He pushed open the door and almost broke down seeing Katsuki on the hospital bed, an oxygen mask around his face and bandages up his arms. Despite that he looked so peaceful, eyes closed and no trace of pain. He tentatively reached out to grasp his hand, his fingers sliding between Katsuki’s. The nurse pushed over a chair for him to sit before quietly leaving.
Other than the heart monitor it was silent in the room. He focused on Katsuki’s breaths. Proof that he was still alive and there. Proof that he would be okay and wake up. Izuku couldn’t stop the wave of tears, resting his head on the bed in front of him, drenching the sheets in tears. Katsuki was okay. He was going to survive.