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Katsuki started dating Izuku in the middle of their second year. Izuku was the one to confess, although Katsuki would have confessed first if he had the chance. Katsuki had woken up in the hospital after a particularly brutal villain fight. Izuku’s face was the first thing he saw, all puffy and red from crying.
“Kacchan!” Izuku shouted, earning a warning glare from the nurse checking Katsuki’s vitals. “Are you really awake?” His lower lip trembled like Katsuki might fall back and flatline at any moment.
Katsuki groaned, his head throbbing. “Yeah nerd, I’m here.”
Izuku threw himself into Katsuki’s bed, ignoring the wires and various beeping machines. He wrapped his arms around his neck and buried his face in Katsuki’s shoulder. “Thank god you’re alive. I can’t imagine living in a world without you by my side.”
That was a confession if he’s ever heard one. He hugged Izuku back, glad all these unsaid feelings were out in the open now. “Me either, Izuku.”
And the rest is history. From that day forward they were a couple. They hang out all the time, talk constantly, and they both like each other; boom, dating. It is really that simple.
He’d honestly put a ring on it after everything they'd been through, but when he called city hall to get a marriage license, they laughed in his face. Damn bureaucracy.
But dating is good. Deku is the best boyfriend and Katsuki tries his hardest to live up to him.
They never really call each other “boyfriends,” because that’s sappy and lame, and honesty, Katsuki thinks they mean way more to each other than the word ’boyfriend' encompasses. Besides, everyone already knows they’re together. A day doesn’t go by without someone in the ‘bakusquad’ teasing them about their relationship. People are always telling them they fight like an old married couple or saying to get a room.
On TV there’s a lot more kissing and touching, and if he listened to Dunce Face they’d be glued together by the crotch, but Katsuki doesn’t get all the hype.
He was never one for physical affection anyway. He’s happy just being around the nerd and occasionally cuddling under the blankets while they watch a movie.
He assumes Izuku feels the same way because he never tries to make a move. He supposes that even though he was never really interested in sex or physical affection, he’d like to try it with Izuku one day, but he’s not in a hurry. He’ll wait for Izuku to make the move.
Everything comes to a head near the end of their 3rd year when a younger student confesses to Deku. He turns her down, of course. He’s not the type of guy to fool around while in a relationship, but Katsuki is still fuming.
Honestly, it happens all the time; Izuku’s a popular guy, but today, it just rubs Katsuki the wrong way for some reason.
“Why didn’t you tell her you’re in a relationship?” Katsuki asks when they sit down for dinner that night.
Izuku looks up with his cheeks stuffed with soba noodles (it’s Icyhot’s night to cook). He looks like a big dumb chipmunk.
“Hmph? What’re ya talkin’ bout?”
Katsuki scowls at him for talking with his mouth full and Izuku swallows sheepishly.
“The girl earlier. You coulda just told her you’re seeing someone. Maybe there’d be fewer tears. On both of your parts.”
It had been a nasty, snotty affair with lots of tears, hugs, and promises to still be friends. It was hard watching two people who barely know each other sob and promise that this rejected confession wouldn’t change anything between them; that although Izuku didn’t feel that way for her, he still respected her as a rising hero and would be there every step of the way in her training, but Izuku was sensitive and Katsuki respected that.
Izuku looks guilty. He hates upsetting people. Katsuki hates to admit that’s one of the things he loves most about him. He was pretty much the opposite of him in that regard.
“I don’t want to lie, Kacchan,” Izuku replies.
“What do you mean?” Katsuki raises an eyebrow. Lie about what?
Izuku gives him a questioning look. “Well, I’m not seeing anyone, so it would be lying.”
Katsuki’s jaw falls straight to the floor, a mix of shock and annoyance coursing through him.
“That’s a shitty fucking joke, Deku,” he hisses.
Izuku tilts his head to the side causing his fluffy hair to fall over his eyes. It’s almost enough to melt Katsuki’s heart. Almost.
“I’m not joking, Kacchan? Who would I even date? I don't have time for a relationship anyway.” he laughs nervously.
Nope. Katsuki’s heart was hard as stone. He leers menacingly at Izuku. “What are you trying to say, then?”
Izuku leans back in his chair and takes another bite of his food. He chews slowly, far too slowly for Katsuki’s patience.
“I’m not trying to say anything,” he shrugs nonchalantly. “I just don’t feel comfortable lying about something like that. And honestly, I’m okay with being single.”
Katsuki feels his blood boil. What is the nerd talking about? He likes being single? Why would he say he’s not in a relationship when he obviously is?
Unless….
Katsuki chokes. His face is on fire and he can feel his eyes begin to burn. No, it can’t be. They are happy, right? He tries to speak and his voice comes out hoarse.
“Are… are you breaking up with me?” It’s barely a whisper, but he can tell Izuku heard it by the way he freezes.
Izuku opens his mouth a couple of times like he’s going to say something, but nothing comes out. He stumbles over half words and sounds. “I-wha…? H- Kacchan? We, uh, huh?” His face is bright red and Katsuki is sure he saw his soul leave his body.
That just confirms it for Katsuki. Of course, the nerd would be too nervous to say it outright. God, Katsuki feels stupid. How long had Izuku been planning to break up with him but was too anxious to actually do it? How long had Izuku been walking around on eggshells waiting to drop this bomb while Katsuki was so secure in their relationship? Shit, was that why he cried when he rejected that girl? Because he wanted to say yes but he couldn’t with Katsuki right there?
The thought makes him absolutely furious. How could Izuku do that to him? He knows how much Katsuki values honesty. If he had ever loved Katsuki, he would have given it to him straight. Obviously, this relationship was nothing but a joke to him, though.
He’d only ever cried for Izuku, but he wouldn’t spare any more tears for someone who could be so careless with his heart.
Katsuki stands from his chair harshly and slams his palms against the table. The bowls and cutlery shake. There is so much he wants to say right now, but he knows he’d explode if he tried. He grits his teeth and forces out the only thing he can without opening the floodgates.
“Fine. I guess it’s over.” With that, he turns on his heels and storms out of the room, ignoring the scorched handprints on the table and Izuku’s panicked voice calling after him.
~
Izuku isn’t dumb or narcissistic enough to think he knows everything. Actually, he is pretty sure he knows close to nothing. However, there are two things he knows with almost absolute certainty:
1) He is hopelessly in love with Bakugou Katsuki, and
2) There is not a chance in heaven, hell, or any other known dimension that Bakugou Katsuki feels the same way.
Izuku has been in love with Katsuki for… well, forever. He can’t recall a time before the sight of wild blond hair and blood-red eyes made his heart pound, and his love has been unrequited for just as long. Sure, there are times when he thinks ‘maybe,’ like when Katsuki falls asleep on his shoulder on long train rides, or when they cooked together and Katsuki wipes sauce off Izuku’s face with his thumb then licks it (his thumb, not Izuku’s face, unfortunately), but he never lets himself hope these actions mean something. Surely, if Katsuki had any feelings for him, he’d make them known.
Over the last few years, they have grown impossibly close. While Izuku rejoiced at having his oldest friend back, it also came with its own host of problems. For one, Katsuki seems to love making Izuku blush. Katsuki would tease him and pinch his red cheeks, then call Izuku some ridiculous name like his “cute little strawberry.” This inevitably causes Izuku to blush harder which seems to bring only joy to the sadistic blond. He knows none of this is done in malice; Katsuki is not the cruel boy he had once been, but nevertheless, every lingering touch, every heated look is torture because Izuku knows that he was feeling those things alone.
Izuku had long ago come to terms with the fact that if he wanted Katsuki in his life, he would have to settle with less than he wanted. And he decided that was alright; he could be happy just being friends.
He had been asked out numerous times over the years, but could never bring himself to accept. No one ever interests him. No one ever lives up to Kacchan.
Even today, when that girl confessed to him, all he could think of was who he wished she was instead. Her eyes were scarlet, but not the right shade. Her hair was golden but far too warm. Her voice didn’t carry the harsh rasp that he craves so desperately. How cruel of him to think about someone else when this girl opened her heart to him. The guilt was overwhelming.
Unfortunately, his guilt pales in comparison to what he feels now; utter and complete confusion. He isn’t sure what set Katsuki off during dinner. The whole conversation is a mystery to him and the words left unsaid tasted bitter in his mouth.
“Who would I even date” /besides you/
“I don’t have time for a relationship” /because I want to spend all my free time with you/
“I’m happy being single” /if I can’t be with you/
Half-truths had always been his go-to when discussing his feelings with Katsuki.
Part of him thinks Katsuki is just teasing him again; after all, why would he act like they were breaking up when they had never been together if not to make Izuku squirm? But when Katsuki doesn’t come down for Class A’s weekly movie night (or as Izuku likes to mentally call it, his and Kacchan’s weekly snuggle fest), Izuku knows something is really wrong.
The dimly lit stairwell feels ominous as Izuku makes his way to the fourth floor. He subconsciously decided to take the stairs instead of the elevator, maybe so he could delay the inevitable heartbreak. He knows that when he gets to Katsuki’s room, the blond will laugh in his face for ever thinking he could see Izuku in a romantic light.
His heart hammers in his chest as he marches forward. Just as he reaches the hallway, a shock of red hair emerges from the door next to Katsuki’s room.
“Hey bro, you looking to Bakugou?” Kirishima asks, his face pulled into a tight yet friendly smile.
Izuku looks down at his hands. “Uh, yeah.”
“I wouldn’t go in there if I were you. I haven’t heard a peep in hours. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so pissed off that he doesn’t even yell. And I know he’s in there because he threw a book at my head when I tried to check on him.”
Izuku grimaces. “That might be my fault.”
Kirishima’s eyes widen. “Bro, what did you do!?”
“Honestly, I’m not even 100% sure.”
Kirishima sighs. “Well, you’d better go and make it right. I really don’t want to kick your ass, but I will if my best bro wants me to.”
Izuku swallows hard. He can’t tell for sure if Kirishima is joking. “I’m gonna try…”
Kirishima smiles and gives him a friendly shoulder pat as he heads downstairs. “Alright then! If you’re not down for movie night in an hour I’m gonna assume you’re dead.”
Izuku chuckles. “That’s fair.”
As he approaches Katsuki’s door, he is struck by the utter silence. No yelling, no slamming, no swearing… there isn’t even music playing. Katsuki is the kind of person who likes to have noise in the background; maybe it was a habit from living in such a noisy house.
But silence? This was something entirely new.
He hesitates for a moment but forces himself to knock despite his nerves. He would do anything to make sure Katsuki doesn’t go back to hating him.
There is no response from the other side of the door. He knocks a second and third time. Silence. Finally, he reaches for the doorknob and is surprised to find it unlocked. He slowly inches the door open just enough to step through and shuts it behind him again.
His heart immediately sinks. Katsuki is laying on top of his covers face down on his pillow. His arms are at his sides and he doesn’t move a muscle as Izuku comes into the room. He looks more defeated than Izuku has ever seen him. No villain or injury has ever left Katsuki in such a state. Izuku clears his throat, momentarily lost for words at the sight of the man he loves and admires so much, looking completely defeated.
“Fuck off, Kirishima. I told you to leave me alone,” Katsuki says, his voice ragged and broken like he’s been crying.
Izuku can already feel the tears swelling in his eyes. “It’s me, Kacchan.”
Katsuki moves ever so slightly, tilting his head towards Izuku. His eyes are red-rimmed and his cheeks look raw.
“What do you want?” He says flatly, the words spilling from his tongue like he just opened his mouth and let them fall out.
Izuku feels like he’s been punched in the chest. Katsuki had never looked at him so indifferently. His eyes were always filled with fire, but now they barely simmered like dying embers.
“I-, well, you’re mad at me, and I’m not exactly sure why. I mean I have an idea, but it’s a crazy, stupid, impossible idea and you’d probably blast me right out the window for even suggesting it, but I want to make things right! I promise whatever I did I’ll fix it,” Izuku rambles.
Katsuki buries his face in his pillow again. “Tsk. I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.”
Ouch. Izuku is sure death by a thousand cuts would be less painful. He chokes on a sob. “I’m sorry Kacchan! Please forgive me!”
Katsuki sits up abruptly, a small glow of fire returning to him. “Oh, now you're crying!? You didn’t even look sad when you tore my heart out, but now you're crying?” He looks disgusted. “If you don’t love me anymore, that's fine, Izuku, but don’t come crying to me when I’m trying to cope.”
Izuku jumps on the bed, landing on his knees in front of Katsuki. “But I do love you, Kacchan! I always have and I always will! You are my world! Please don’t hate me again.” Izuku’s face is bright red by the time he finishes speaking, he can feel it. This isn’t how he imagined confessing to Katsuki. He had hoped there’d be fewer tears. There is less yelling than he imagined, though.
Katsuki stares at him, blinking slowly a few times. “If you love me so much, why did you break up with me?”
Izuku replies immediately. “I didn’t! I didn’t even know we were dating so how could I break up with you?”
Now Katsuki’s face is bright red. He puffs up his cheeks and opens his mouth a couple of times like he is trying to wrangle his thoughts into a coherent sentence. Finally, he says something. “How can such a nerdy dork be so stupid?”
“We never even discussed being together so how was I supposed to know!” Izuku protests.
“What about when you said you couldn’t imagine living without me? When we were in the hospital?”
“You remember that?” Izuku squawks. “You were pretty high on painkillers. Besides, you never mentioned it again!”
“What about the fact that I let you touch me and I comfort your nerdy ass whenever we watch scary movies?” Katsuki shoots back.
“Okay, for one, you’re the one who clings to me every time there’s a jump scare. And two, I don’t know what you do in your free time, maybe you do that with all your friends!”
Katsuki literally gags at the thought of snuggling up with Dunce Face or Raccoon Eyes. “If we’re not dating then why have you been sending me ads for apartments for us to live in when we graduate? That seems pretty couple-ish to me.”
“So we can be roommates!” Izuku shouts, feeling just a bit frustrated. “None of these examples are words, Kacchan! I’m not a mind reader!”
“You don’t need words when it’s right in front of your fucking face, Deku! Why are you so dumb sometimes!?” Katsuki shouts back.
Izuku definitely feels a bit annoyed now. So he had spent all this time pinning and wallowing in self-pity while Katsuki thought they were already dating??? All because Katsuki couldn’t figure out how to use his words, something a toddler could master? “No, you’re dumb, Kacchan! God, I hate you so much right now!”
“No, you love me,” Katsuki cracks the slightest smile. “You said so yourself.”
“I know! And that makes me hate you more!” Izuku can’t help but laugh, and Katsuki follows with his loud, barking guffaw that would sound sinister to anyone but Izuku.
“So you really didn’t realize we were dating?” Katsuki asks between chuckles.
Izuku wipes some of the tears from his eyes that had accumulated from the roller coaster of emotions he’d been riding. “Well, even though we hung out all the time, you never said anything or tried to take things further, so I guess I just assumed you didn’t like me like that.”
Katsuki huffs over crossed his arms. To Izuku he looks a lot like he was pouting. “Only asses assume.”
Izuku laughs. “Well, you assumed too, Kacchan.”
Katsuki throws his arms up and waves them wildly in exasperation “yeah and I’m an ass, Deku! What part of this aren’t you getting?” He pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes. “You’re supposed to be good at this…” he trails off, throwing his hand forward and rolling his wrist as he looks for the words, “this emotional bullshit or whatever.”
“Well, apparently I’m not,” Izuku shrugs, looking down to trace the stitches on Katsuki’s blanket. “So what now”
“Izuku, look at me.” Hot hands cup either side of his face and tilt his head upwards. “I don’t want any confusion this time. I love you too and I want to date you. Will you be my boyfriend?”
Izuku moves forward, wrapping his arms around Katsuki’s neck and hugging him so tightly that it crushes the air out of his lungs. “Of course, Kacchan!” Katsuki hugs him back, nuzzling his nose into Izuku’s neck.
Izuku giggles. “So what do we do now that we’re dating?”
Izuku feels Katsuki shrug and bury his face into Izuku’s shoulder. “I don’t know… on TV couples like, kiss and stuff.”
Izuku pulls back a little so he can look him in the eyes. “Is that something you want to do?”
Katsuki looks to the side, seemingly embarrassed.
Izuku interprets his silence as reluctance so he speaks up. “It’s okay if you don’t want to, Kacchan! I still want to be your boyfriend even if we don’t kiss or anything-”
“No, I do!” Katsuki interrupts him. “I want to kiss you,” his voice quiets, “I’ve just never done it before and I want to be perfect for you.”
“If it’s with you, it will be perfect,” Izuku replies, eyes sparking with admiration. He thought he’d never hear those words.
“But-”
It is Izuku’s turn to interrupt, and he does so by burying one hand in Katsuki’s soft spikes and placing the other on Katsuki’s cheek. He leans down slow enough to give Katsuki time to back away if he wants to, but when he doesn’t he presses his lips against Katsuki’s.
The kiss isn’t earth-shattering, but it is indeed perfect. It is like they’d done it hundreds of times before. It is the tip of an iceberg of buried emotions; the ending of a story that had run its course and the beginning of an even more beautiful story that had been in the making for far too long.
Utter and complete perfection. And neither Katsuki nor Izuku can wait to share thousands and thousands more perfect kisses.
—
A year later when Izuku beats Katsuki to the punch and pops the question, there is no room for uncertainty in his answer as the entire city is treated to a beautiful and just slightly erotic light show by their newly engaged heroes.