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Katsuki bites his nails thoughtlessly as his leg bounces, leaning forward in his desk as the whole class nervously waits for their teacher and particular classmate to come back.
That very student being the strongest but clumsy, the heroic but impulsive, the one and only Izuku Midoriya.
Which happens to be the one and only person Katsuki cherishes more than himself in his life.
This is also why he almost fainted when he saw his flail body getting carried to the infirmary room.
From Aizawa-sensei’s very brief explanation, Izuku found himself in the middle of a fight in a secluded alleyway with a few low-level crooks. He came out spotless (naturally, those petty villains couldn’t stand a chance against Izuku) and returned to school in perfect condition. He quickly informed Aizawa-sensei of what happened. But before he could finish reporting it back, he took a glance behind his back from Katsuki’s normal booming voice and suddenly dropped right then and there.
Katsuki had to stop scolding his friends when he heard a hard thump!, multiple high-pitched shouts, and Aizawa-sensei’s concerned “Midoriya?” before he felt his blood go cold when he saw Izuku’s limp body.
Izuku’s promptly carried away and Aizawa-sensei shoos everyone who tries to follow him and asks what happened back into the classroom.
Aizawa-sensei then informs the class what he knows because he knows he won’t make it out alive if his class doesn’t get the very slightest information of what happened and quickly leaves the classroom not without a quick note that he will be back soon.
So that’s what’s happened so far. It’s the only reason why the class is stiff and quiet on a fun, no-test Friday.
Katsuki hates it. He hates everything about the situation. He hates how fragile he is when it’s something to do with Izuku, hates how he can’t gaslight himself that he hates the fucker (he’s tried, many times), hates how he cares about that awfully strong idiot that bruises his ego deeply, hates how unmoving Izuku’s body was, and absolutely hates how pale Izuku’s face was.
Katsuki stares at his table with all of his anxiety stims on display and he can’t even think to stop them.
“Hey… He should be okay, right? I mean, he was alright not a minute ago,” Kirishima’s voice makes Katsuki lift his gaze from his desk.
Ochako hums as she looks ahead determinedly, “I know Deku, he’s the strongest person I know and I’m sure he’s gone through worse. He must be fine.” Still, the slight quiver in her voice gives away her worried nature.
Kirishima nods but his eyebrows are still furrowed. “Why did he faint so suddenly though? You think it might be because he’s tired—“
“Tired? Who’s tired?”
Kaminari is the first to yell before the whole class lights up at Izuku’s smiling and (thankfully) conscious figure at the edge of the door. He scratches his head as he repeatedly apologizes for worrying everywhere and says he’s perfectly fine.
Katsuki could only let out a breath of relief before planting back his annoyed face and leaning back in his seat to glare at the apologetic boy bowing over and over.
“If everyone could oh-so-kindly return to your seats, that would be good,” Aizawa-sensei’s bored voice puts the class back to respective silence as they wait for him to continue.
He sighs as he steps next to Izuku before continuing, “Midoriya is fine. Though apparently he was previously hit by a low-level quirk. But aside from his abrupt loss of consciousness, we didn’t detect any anomalies and allowed him to go to classes under supervision. He might faint again so don’t do anything stupid, you children.”
“Are you sure you’re okay, Deku? No pain or anything, right?” Ochako asks.
Izuku furrows and his smile is unsure (this makes Katsuki's blood go cold again, “Is he hurt? Why can’t this fucker possibly be more careful?”) before he answers, “I’m completely fine, Uraraka-san. My head only hurts a bit from hitting my head beforehand, but nothing else hurts.”
Ochako nods but before she can respond she gets cut off, “Also, uhm, why did you say ‘Deku’? That feels a bit inappropriate…”
The girl blinks as Katsuki laughs loudly, “Hah! Serves you right, damn cheeks. That’s what you get for stealing my fuckin’ nickname for him!” Katsuki smirks before freezing under Izuku’s unusual stare on him.
Izuku continues to stare at him before he pulls a polite smile, “You shouldn’t shout at my friend like that.”
The class goes quiet as Katsuki’s pulse immensely multiplies at Izuku’s odd tone.
“What the fuck are you saying, Deku—“
“Also, I’ve never seen you around here before. Are you from class B?”
Multiple pens get dropped as everyone gapes. The whole class knows how the two have known each other since early childhood, how Izuku is so strong to withstand everything of Katsuki from an early age.
(You know it’s bad when even Aizawa-sensei gapes.)
Katsuki’s eyes are so wide and he feels himself shake. He wants to blast himself out of his seat and hit Izuku for messing with him like that.
So he does.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, fucker? You think this shit’s funny? One little accident and you think you can crack that type of joke now?” Katsuki sneers as he shoves Izuku against the wall by his collar.
Izuku winces before opening one eye and tries to push the strong blonde away. “S-stop. W-who the hell are you?”
Katsuki stops breathing again. He’s frozen and feels numb all over. The relief that was in his body has now completely vanished as he drops the gasping boy.
Izuku’s panting as he rubs his throat before looking up with a look that’s so unrecognizable and stranger-like to Katsuki that he feels puke building in his throat.
With the little power Katsuki has left in his legs, he dashes off, slamming the doors open, and exits the aghast class.
Katsuki gets a two-day suspension for harming a student and dreads the walk to class.
The next time they meet in the hallway, Izuku bows politely before looking back at him.
“Ah! I’m sorry for yesterday’s fiasco. My friends told me we were childhood friends. Katsuki Bakugo, right?”
Katsuki feels sick all of a sudden and urges himself not to puke right then and there.
“Are you fucking for real, Deku?”
Izuku winces but decides not to comment on the insulting nickname, “What am I supposed to say?”
“That you’re not for real.”
“I literally have no clue who you are,” Izuku smiles apologetically.
“...How long does this last?”
“I… I guess it’s undetermined.”
“Motherfucker–”
“And you’re the only person I forgot, apparently.”
Katsuki blinks at this new information, “Only me?”
“I guess you haven’t heard,” Izuku frowns before continuing, “They told me the quirk affected my memory and made me forget, uh, one person that I know of.”
“That sounds like a pretty stupid quirk,” Katsuki breathes.
“I guess so,” Izuku chimes.
Katsuki waits for more explanation to be voiced but he’s left with nothing. Just Izuku staring at him with those green eyes of his that have no business being able to keep eye contact for this long.
“…That’s fuckin’ it?”
“Do you usually swear this much?”
Katsuki’s eye twitches but he doesn’t speak. He doesn’t know how to feel about the usually nervous, terrified, constantly looking down boy being nowhere to be found in the boy in front of him. For once, he’s standing straight, keeping eye contact, and even talking back to Katsuki with little to no fear and nervousness, but more so hesitation. Could it be because…
“Bakugo-kun, do you… wanna hang out after school?”
Katsuki feels his eyes water at the name drop as he turns on his heel and runs off.
But he’s too prideful to skip class. So he shows up right before the first period with swollen eyes and a scarf that’s too out of place to be worn in summer.
Katsuki slumps in his chair and hides his face in his arms before trying to force himself to peek at the board through his hair.
He falls in and out of sleep and he knows the teacher notices but doesn’t stop him from falling back to slumber. Probably because all the teachers know Yuuei’s top student’s condition. They’re pitying Katsuki. Katsuki hates pity.
Everything hurts when he wakes up and his body is complaining from the awful posture but he’s too tired and embarrassed to let anyone see his face right now.
“Stupid fuckin’ Deku.”
He doesn’t let himself show it, but he feels his body go cold from Izuku’s judging but curious gaze when he glances behind.
Katsuki groans as he plants his face in his pillow before glancing at the clock for the nth time.
It’s nearing 1:00 AM and Katsuki can count on one hand how many times he’s stayed up this late before.
Apparently, denying your feelings and attempting to shove them where the sun doesn’t shine takes up a lot of time and grates his mentality because Katsuki can’t sleep with the idiot still on his mind.
“Stupid fucking Deku. Stupid, absolutely braindead. Just idiocy, shitface, fucking dumbass.”
He cries himself to sleep and wakes up late with swollen eyes.
“If Bakugo wasn’t there, did you have other childhood friends, Izuku? Any crazy childhood obsessions?”
Katsuki has to fight down a flinch when he hears his name alongside Izuku’s in one whole sentence. If their names were mentioned right next to each other, he might pass out from the proximity of their names. He might die from Izuku’s response or the slight chance he’s forgotten his name already.
Izuku hums and Katsuki listens carefully. “Not that I know of. I don't really remember my childhood that well, to be fair. I was just too normal, I guess.”
Normal. Normal. Normal.
Izuku Midoriya isn’t normal. Katsuki has known this his whole life. They both aren’t normal. They didn’t have normal childhoods, normal elementary years, junior high years, let alone Yuuei years.
Ochako huffs out a laugh before talking, “Normal? Normal would be the last thing I’d describe the Izuku Midoriya I know with,” like she read Katsuki’s mind.
(Katsuki’s head pulses with ‘I knew it first’ competitively.)
“Really? I’ve had a few friends from grade school and middle school but they didn’t really snuck around. I’d say my academic and social hierarchies are pretty normal.”
None… of those are true. Katsuki knows damn well Izuku’s a loner in both grade school and middle school. Izuku’s academically smart by his standards (though never more than him, ever) and stands on the worst social grounds ever. Bonus the fact that he was probably the biggest factor why.
He feels like crying again.
“Really? Then, did have a favorite hero growing up?”
“Favorite hero? Hmm… I don’t know… I guess I was a fan of All Might?”
What the fuck?
The normal Izuku would’ve started spouting all his brain rainbow puke about All Might the moment the words ‘favorite’ and ‘hero’ were formed. Not guessing.
And all of this changed because… he simply forgot Katsuki?
Feeling sick in the stomach, he stormed out of class.
(“He doesn’t just forget. His whole identity is intact. He can recall most of his life perfectly well. He remembers his school years, his family, his quirk, and his friends just fine and can recall his whole life. There are no holes in his timeline. It’s just that… It’s a timeline without him.”)
“Bakugo-kun, wanna go to the convenience store with me?”
Katsuki jumps from where he’s folded on the community couch like it's his before flipping Izuku off without his usual sneer.
“No. Fuck off, Deku.”
Izuku makes an exasperated sigh that’s unheard of for Katsuki, “Sure, I’ll go by myself. I guess it’s wrong of me to try and hang out with my so-called childhood not-friend and get to know him. It’s not that I care that much anyway.”
Katsuki closes his eyes as his heart pounds in agony as he climbs himself up on his feet. He clutches Izuku’s arm and sucks a shuddering breath.
“Fine, fine. Fuck, let’s just go.”
They walk in silence as they cross the roads.
Katsuki gets a quick reality check from how he’s behind Izuku and pathetically following him like a lost child. He realizes how rare it is for him to see Izuku’s back this way and feels a sob building up his throat again.
He wants Izuku to follow him around and shower him with attention. He wants Izuku to look at his quirk and comment on new things about it that even he might not know. Izuku makes him feel valid and correct and he’s gone.
He never realized just how good he had it.
“Bakugo-kun?”
Katsuki blinks before grumbling, “What?”
“Do you want anything?” Izuku asks with a kind smile.
Katsuki looks around the store before shaking his head. He eyes Izuku's hands that hold painkillers and a couple of snacks.
Wary of the pills, he asks, “Deku, are you fuckin’ hurt?”
“Huh? Oh, no. It’s just– My head’s been pounding recently and it’s disturbing me, that’s all.”
Katsuki blinks, “Do you think it’s the quirk?”
“Quirk? My quirk’s fine–”
“The fucking amnesia quirk, dumbass.”
“Oh. Maybe? I’m not so sure, maybe I’ll ask Aizawa-sensei after this.”
Katsuki’s concern is tenfold as he has to clutch his fist to prevent himself from trying to gather more information about the quirk and his headache before he hears a large crash outside the store.
As if his hero instincts take over, he makes sure his license is in his pocket as he dashes out to see a villain and a hero fighting in the streets.
He watches and gets ready to leap before he realizes. He hasn’t felt the want or need to use his quirk over days and can’t feel proud of it ever since the Izuku incident. He lets his heels step back down and slumps his arms against his sides as he watches the fight go on. At least the hero looks to be winning.
Izuku jogs up to him with a plastic bag circled on his arm as he watches the commotion. His eyes widen and blinks at Katsuki.
With Izuku’s naturally selfless behavior, he’s not surprised he wants to join the fight and help the hero. It’s Katsuki’s own problem; he doesn't feel like himself enough to actually use his quirk.
“You have your hero license, right? You can go ahead, I know you want to help out.”
Izuku tilts his head at him and laughs a little, “Huh? You think I want to join that fight? This is clearly too dangerous and I’m not looking for a beat-up. I’m not that reckless.”
Okay, okay, okay. Back the fuck up.
Katsuki gapes at him and grabs him by the shoulders, “What the actual fuck? What the fuck happened to you?”
“What? Did I say something wrong?” Izuku frowns. “It’s not like I have to fight as well, right? We’re just students.”
Katsuki is freaked out and forgets how to breathe. This Izuku isn’t real, he can’t be. But he looks the exact same, sounds the same, and likes the same snacks. But he also isn’t nervous and mumbling all the time, isn’t obsessively taking notes of every quirk he sees, and isn’t the reckless hero-to-be maniac that goes head first into battle and values others’ lives more than his own.
He forgets to breathe and gasps when he feels his eyes water. He can’t cry in front of Izuku of all people. Not when he knows he’s made Izuku cry the most.
Suddenly, his quirk works again because he blasts himself to escape.
“Bakugo-kun.”
Katsuki resists the urge to blast the door open to scare Izuku off from trying to go in his room but he’s too tired to even lift his hand.
“Bakugo-kun, I need to talk to you.”
Katsuki takes a shaky breath before dragging himself out of bed and solemnly opens the door to a concerned (yet oddly endearing? What the fuck, Katsuki?) Izuku.
He sucks his nose and turns on his heel to plop himself down his bed, “Just come in…”
Izuku nods and gently closes the door behind him as he awkwardly stands by it.
“Baku—“
But before Izuku can utter his name, Katsuki’s mind stops thinking and his body moves on its own to grab Izuku by his collar again, similar to that day, and near-strangles the boy against the door.
“Eurgh—“
Stop. Stop. Stop, Katsuki tells himself.
“Stop,” Katsuki lets out unintentionally.
Izuku’s gripping his wrists and trying to wring himself off as he sucks his breath painfully. He’s strong but compared to Katsuki’s physique, it’s a lost cause.
“Ba—“ Izuku opens one eye to see not anger in the blonde’s eyes, not frustration, but desperation. Desperation and regret deeply written into those ruby irises.
“Stop!” Katsuki shouts. Izuku winces again and taps Katsuki’s shoulders this time.
Katsuki blinks and drops Izuku in an instant, the heavy fog in his mind fading slightly.
“Shit,” Katsuki runs his hand across his face in frustration. “Sorry, Deku.”
Izuku’s left catching his breath as he stares absentmindedly at the hem of Katsuki’s shirt, clearly out of it and too shocked to speak.
“Did… did I do something wrong in the past? The one you existed in?”
Katsuki blinks at him, “What—“
“Because if I did, I’m really sorry. I know this doesn’t feel sincere because I don’t remember you but I’m sure I cherish our friendship. I don’t know what I did but you probably have a reason for always being angry at the sight of me.”
Frustration finally bubbles. Katsuki isn’t angry, he’s fuckin’ annoyed. Annoyed at the fact Izuku’s different. Well put together, standing straight, not a fuckin’ mumbling and paper-noting mess. He’s too normal and talks normal and apologizes normally and—
Katsuki’s miserable.
“I’m the one that fucked you up.”
Izuku thugs his head back slightly with wide eyes, “S-sorry?”
The stutter is so recognizable and Katsuki clings on it as a sign he’s still him, even though all the signs show he’s not.
“You’re not the one who should be apologizing. It’s me. In fact, I think you wouldn’t even forgive me for what I did—“
“I’m sure that’s not true—“
“—your whole fucking life.”
Izuku quiets down before frowning.
Katsuki sighs as he walks to his bed, slumps down, and stays there.
When Izuku shows no signs of movement, he whispers, “You can sit here.”
Izuku probably didn’t hear what he said but moved nonetheless onto the bed, next to Katsuki.
They stay silent for a while before Katsuki takes a shuddering breath and looks at his palms. His quirk has yet been used since he blasted himself off during that convenience store trip with Izuku, and he swallows back the lump in his throat that was built from the memory alone.
“What were you like without me?”
Izuku looks at him before sighing, “I… I don’t know. I was fine. I wasn’t the happiest but I definitely wasn’t the saddest.”
Katsuki nods even though he’s only processing half of what Izuku said, and that half being ‘happiest’.
“Did anyone…” He hesitates before blurting out, “Bully you back then?”
Izuku seems surprised at Katsuki’s question, and Katsuki’s also surprised at what left his mouth. Unsurprisingly, the only answer he dreads is—
“Bully? No, not really. I didn’t stick out that much.”
—the answer that comes.
Fuck. Fuck.
“Fuck.”
Izuku’s eyebrow raises, “Did you want me to say I was?”
Yes, he did. He wanted to know that Izuku’s life would be the same if Katsuki wasn’t there. He didn’t want to be the factor on why Izuku lived so harshly back then. He didn’t want Izuku to be happier in a universe where he didn’t exist.
“Or… Were you my bully?”
The string snapped and Katsuki hid his face in his palms to press down on his eyes where they started to flow from. From his dark eyesight, he quietly nods.
“Oh.”
It takes Katsuki a whole minute to push his tears back in and glance at the boy next to him for the first time that night. What he saw wasn’t anger or resentment, but confusion.
Was he confused about how he bullied him his whole life or the fact they couldn’t be counted as childhood friends in the first place if Katsuki bullied him since childhood?
“Tell me more.”
Katsuki blinks against his fingers, “What?”
Izuku’s voice is stern. “Tell me more about myself. The one with you in it.”
Katsuki lifts his face and watches him with wide eyes. He gulps before croaking, “He… he was so goddamn annoying.”
Izuku breathes out a forced laugh.
Katsuki ignores it. “But, he’s so unbearably Deku that I can't help letting him keep on sticking to me.”
“…But you bullied him.”
He swallows the lump in his throat. “Yeah. I bullied him since we were kids. I bullied him even more when I found out he was quirkless. I told him to kill himself. I shoved all his friends to make sure he knew just how worthless he was. He’s obsessed with heroes in order to be one alongside me, even if he’s quirkless. He’s a selfless near-suicidal loner because of me.”
It’s silent enough you can hear the crickets right outside the dorm.
Izuku’s looking away with an unreadable expression. The other can’t decide if he’s angry or not.
“So, the reason I act distinctively different from my real self is because… of you?”
“Yes.”
“And the reason I had no friends then and might be borderline depressed was also because of you?”
“…Yes.”
“Then, do you want the real obsessive and haphazard me back?” Izuku abruptly turns to him, green eyes shining in a way that feels wrong.
Katsuki gulps.
“Yes. Yes, I do.”
Then, Izuku stands up and leaves his room with heavy steps.
Katsuki can’t stop the tear that rolls down his cheek. He needs his Izuku back. Let him be selfish. Because this fake Izuku is not at all Izuku.
The next time Katsuki steps into the classroom, the first thing he sees is a chair, right in front of his eyes. By just a millisecond, his face will probably get a concussion if he doesn’t start using his quirk.
Blasting the thrown chair as best as he can, he still gets hit by some of the metal parts and clutches where it hits on his face.
The whole class watches in shock as Izuku stands up and walks towards the hunched boy, fists clenched and jaw rigid.
Katsuki looks up in confusion and terror before voicing, “Deku—“
But he’s stopped by an incoming fist aimed straight at his face and he barely has time to himself from getting plowed right then and there.
Katsuki sneers, “Oi, nerd. What the fuck are you—“
The attacks don’t stop as Izuku sends an in-out kick that’s way too close to Katsuki’s neck.
There aren’t green sparks and Katsuki definitely wins in terms of physique, but something restrains him from fighting back so he’s stuck with blocking and blocking and blocking.
But the punch lands on his gut and he tumbles backward and pushes away the things that were on the teacher's desk. If I die here, it is what it is.
“Fight back.” Izuku sneered. His eyes are so very wrong and he has a feral aura surrounding him that he’s never seen before in his whole life.
“Fight me, Kacchan.”
Katsuki’s eyes snap open and his body’s moving by itself. Maybe it’s the familiarity of the nickname that makes him follow along or the feeling of fake hope that builds in his stomach that maybe, just maybe, his Izuku is calling him.
He misses a pathetic punch and Izuku replies with a heavy punch to his cheek.
The class is finally moving as they help Katsuki and try their best to hold the enraged Izuku back.
Izuku screams and yells at Katsuki about how pathetic his swing is and keeps on taunting him to fight back.
Katsuki can just watch in shock as the boy struggles against 3 different people and actually feels fear.
Eventually, Izuku tires himself out and pants as he stares Katsuki down the soul. Katsuki gulps again.
Without a care of the presence of his friends, he asks.
“Do you know what invalidates me the most?”
No one answers but Izuku doesn’t care because he answers his own question, not a unit later.
“When my apparent real self is a living mess, his life is jumbled, he’s socially awkward, almost suicidal, obsessive where it seems stalkerish, constantly nervous, anxious, and bruised since a child. And the person that wants me to change back to my real self, is the very person that made it that way,” he hisses at Katsuki’s form.
The left corner of Izuku’s lips thugs up, smiling degradingly, “I’ve lived my whole life too, you know. Fake Izuku lived for 17 whole years as well. I went to school, made friends, got my quirk, and dreamt of being a hero. And I lived happily.”
“You, Katsuki Bakugo, don’t deserve me. You don’t deserve the real or fake me. But you will definitely not get your Izuku back.”
Izuku’s chest is hanging and the whole class is shifting between Izuku and Katsuki like watching a tennis match.
Katsuki’s eyes start to water as he chokes, “Deku, I’m sor—“
“NO!” Izuku thrashes against the hands holding him in place. “Fight me. Let me punch your stupid face—“
“You’re right.”
Izuku stops moving when Katsuki stands up and walks up to him. He gets angrier when Katsuki simply stands there like he’s waiting for it.
“You.”
“Punch my stupid face. Until you're satisfied.”
Izuku gets even angrier and swings his hand fast and hard enough to break free from the grasp of his classmates and punches Katsuki square in the face.
Katsuki stumbles a bit before returning to his spot, eyes closed. Izuku backhands him, snapping his head to the other side.
This must’ve not been what Izuku had in mind because he’s gripping his own hair in frustration, “No. FIGHT ME!”
“I don’t deserve you.”
Izuku pants. No.
“You’re right. I really don’t deserve you. I did all those horrible things back then and I can’t take them back. I just need you to know that I’ve changed. I need you. I’ll always hear him out, help him with anything, be his friend, everything. I’m sor—“
“AAAKH!” Izuku screams before Katsuki finishes his attempt at apologizing again.
Katsuki tries again, “I’m sor—“
“SHUT UP!” Izuku clasps his ears tight.
Katsuki blinks. He won’t let me apologize...
“Why won’t you let me say sorry?”
Izuku breathes through his teeth and seethes, which is such an unrecognizable look on his face. “You don’t deserve us.”
Katsuki has lost all pride the moment Izuku’s passed out in front of him and falls down to his knees. Izuku flashes him a concerned look that he can’t see and Katsuki clutches the other’s shoes.
Everyone around him becomes quiet and Katsuki has a bite in the bark he usually sends, prompting himself to focus on kneeling.
“Please, Deku, Izuku. Give me a chance. Let me say sorry to you, and him,” he begs.
The fact that Izuku hasn’t kicked him off yet is a miracle by itself.
“No. Never,” Izuku breathes.
Katsuki chokes back a sob as he stands up.
Izuku’s first instinct is to aim his hand at the side of his head, the green sparks finally showing up for the first time since the incident.
If Katsuki doesn’t get away, he dies. But he doesn’t care as he pushes himself on Izuku and wraps around him in a hug.
Izuku instantly goes rigid but the green sparks thankfully disappear in a flutter.
Katsuki sobs against Izuku’s shoulder as he feels the shorter boy shiver, hands going slack as he surprisingly accepts the one-way hug.
Izuku’s eyes then start to water as well, burying his face into the curve of Katsuki’s neck and shoulder and clinging to the front of the fabric of his uniform with his hands.
They sob together as the class sobs as well, hugging each other.
Seconds turn into minutes, until Katsuki hears a barely audible, “Say it.”
Katsuki’s heartbeats multiply tenfold. He hugs Izuku tighter and grazes his mouth with the other’s ear.
“Thank you.” Izuku nods against his shoulder as Katsuki whispers against his ear, “I’m sorry.”
Izuku passes out exactly like the first time.
The class is silent yet again as Aizawa sighs. He scolds them for not calling a teacher during the whole ordeal and cancels the class’ free time. They can’t seem to care though.
It takes an hour to fully stop Katsuki from shaking and spawning sparks on his palm.
“Midoriya is fine.”
“That’s what you said last time,” Katsuki growls.
Aizawa eyes him with a bored look before he sighs again, “And this time, it’s certain.”
He continues before anyone can interrupt him, “Our universe consists of multiple realities. We underestimated what seemed like a low-grade quirk. The quirk Midoriya was hit by was not an amnesiac quirk.” Aizawa takes a deep breath. “It was a quirk that switches people’s realities.”
It’s deadly silent as everyone processes those words.
“Meaning, our Midoriya went into a different reality, and a different Midoriya entered ours. Even then, both of their minds will slowly disintegrate and they would both… die if they stayed in the incorrect realities for too long.”
Katsuki’s breath hitches at the word die. Maybe that’s why Izuku was buying painkillers for his ‘migraine’…
“The only way to switch back is if the victim gets what they truly want in life. In most cases, this is oftentimes impossible and leaves the victim in both realities dead. But for Midoriya, it was fulfilled.”
Burying his face in his hand, Katsuki shoves his head down and clutches his sleeves to keep himself grounded. He holds himself back from making a sound and hears Aizawa do his third, less exasperated, sigh.
He’s excused for being injured and walks the long walk back to his room. Izuku would be back. He’s going to come back to Katsuki again.
He shoves his face into his pillow and winces as he feels the bandages on his head rub against the fabric. His bruises get pressed and he can’t help but think about what happened not over an hour ago.
He feels heavy and sleepy and so tired. He lets himself relax in his dreamland.
Katsuki doesn’t know what time it is when he hears the faint knocks on his door from his ringing ears.
He grunts loudly and hopes whoever's at his door will leave him.
Right when he’s about to fall back asleep, he feels the bed deep and a set of arms encircling his neck, a familiar face getting pressed onto his back.
Katsuki snaps awake and becomes still. He could recognize the boy by the sheer scent of his hair or the calluses in his hands.
“Deku,” Katsuki breathes out.
“You weren’t there,” Izuku’s voice is muffled by his back. “I couldn’t find you anywhere. No one knew who you were.”
Katsuki’s heart thumps as he lightly taps Izuku’s arm, prompting him to release him slightly as Katsuki flips himself onto his back before hugging Izuku by the waist and nuzzling against his green hair.
“Shh… I’m here now.”
Izuku retightens his hold on Katsuki’s neck and presses his face against the curve of Katsuki’s neck.
He presses his cheek into the side of Katsuki’s neck and plants his head underneath his jaw until Katsuki hisses in pain.
Izuku’s head pops up in concern as he takes in the bandages. “I did this, didn’t I?” he whispers and ghosts his hands over them.
Katsuki scrunches up his nose and shakes quickly before burying his own face into Izuku’s chest. The latter squeaks in surprise as his hand lands on Katsuki’s hair.
“You’re back.”
Izuku smiles, “I’m back, Kacchan.”
Katsuki hugged him tighter in response, relishing the yelp he pulled out of him.
“Kacchan, that tickles,” Izuku giggles.
“Mm, we’re talking ‘bout this later. I wanna sleep first,” Katsuki says as he drags Izuku into the covers with him.
He traps Izuku from behind and wraps his arms against the smaller boy’s waist and presses his nose onto his back.
Izuku laughs (prettily, Katsuki unhelpfully adds) and whispers a tiny “good night.”
“Woah,” Ashido’s amused voice echoes, “a little forward on the first day, okay.”
Katsuki flips her off before placing his hands back to where they belonged, tucked around Izuku’s waist, afraid to let go while the other tries to make a decent omelet.
The moment they woke up, Katsuki was stuck to the hip with Izuku. Having not shaken off that fake (but technically real?) Izuku chills down his spine, he thinks Izuku might pass out again and have his soul end up in a world where he’s an orphan or a villain (or worse, a 9-5 worker).
They haven’t talked about it, but it’s pretty obvious what Katsuki wants. He isn’t sure about the other, though.
“Not that it’s a bad thing. I’m glad you're finally opening yourself up against this heteronormative society. Being gay isn’t—“ Ashido pauses when Katsuki threateningly aims his palm to her face, “—bad. In fact, I'm also part gay. So, you can lower your hand. Thank you.”
When Ashido gracefully leaves the common room intact, Katsuki buries his face onto Izuku’s shoulder. Though hyper-aware of the class’ attention to them, he doesn’t really care. He’s sure they understand after what happened yesterday.
“‘Zuku.”
He feels Izuku tense slightly before relaxing again, “Hm?”
“Can we go back?” Katsuki whispers.
Izuku hums as he sets up the eggs on a plate and fetches two spoons, “Sure. Let’s bring these with us.”
They walk past their classmates with one of Katsuki’s hands intertwined tightly with Izuku’s and his other wrapped around the wrist, walking like a child clinging to his parent. Sure, it’s slightly odd walking like this since Katsuki’s taller, but he doesn’t really care, just wanting to stick close to the real Izuku.
When they make it to Izuku’s room, he leads Katsuki in and closes the door gently.
Katsuki doesn’t go to Izuku’s room that often, but he’s not phased by the near-obsessive and stalkerish amount of merch and posters, though he instantly feels a shudder when he remembers about how normal the fake Izuku was.
“Deku,” Katsuki rasps. He hasn’t been speaking a lot lately.
Izuku sits by the bed with the plate. Usually, Katsuki would berate him for it, but he can’t bring himself to actually do it.
“Hm?” Izuku hums.
The bed creaks a little as Katsuki sits down next to him. He's slightly fidgety when Izuku offers him the egg to which he hesitantly accepts.
“Do you — Are you happier when I’m not around?” He whispers.
Izuku breathes through his nose and sighs, “Kacchan, I couldn't be happier when I’m with you. You're my best friend.”
“No — No, fuck. Deku, you looked…” Katsuki swallows the lump in his throat, “You would've been normal and happy if it weren't for me. I saw it with my own eyes. You would've had friends and lived a happier childhood if it weren't for me shoving them away.”
“Kacchan, it’s all in the past. I've forgiven you for all of that a long time ago.”
Katsuki frowns. “I haven't changed that long ago.”
“I still chose to forgive you anyways—”
“But you shouldn't do that so easily!”
It's a little quiet when Katsuki cuts Izuku off so suddenly. Katsuki’s breathing was heavy and Izuku’s closed his eyes in tiredness.
“When I was sent away, it didn't take me more than 10 minutes to realize you weren't there. The seat you had was sat by Uraraka-san, who usually sat at the back. I couldn't find you in class so I kept on asking everyone around me where you were, but they all kept giving me confused and concerned looks. So, I began panicking.”
Katsuki shakes at the thought he could've pulled Izuku out of that reality sooner, if only he'd figured out the quirk sooner. Stupid.
“Other than that, a lot of people that I didn't know started approaching me. It was all so confusing and overwhelming but they said they were my friends.”
“Sorry,” Katsuki apologizes.
Izuku stills and looks at him suspiciously, “Why are you saying that?”
“That's what you’ve been wanting, right? It's the thing that broke you out of that reality. I just want you to know that I was being genuine when I say that now. Knowing you also deserve to hear it from me.”
Izuku goes with a variety of emotions, shock, disbelief, doubt, but finally, content.
“I… I don’t want you to change yourself just because of me. You don’t need to be extra nice and gentle with me, just be you,” Izuku smiles at him, and it lights up Katsuki’s chest. “Your attitude is what makes me like you a lot.”
Katsuki blinks and turns red, “I see.”
Izuku puts the plate down by the nightstand and shifts closer to sit in front of the blonde. “I care about you, Kacchan. Do you… Do you care about me?”
Katsuki nods.
“Then that’s enough for me.”
Katsuki nods again and mumbles “‘Kay.”
He’s pulled into a hug and lets himself be dragged out of the comfort of Izuku’s room.
“C’mon, it’s almost class. And remember, just be yourself.”
Katsuki finds himself smiling fondly before letting himself fall into his usual smirk.
“Tch, don’t act like you can control me, nerd. Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Katsuki warns, not without a glint of affection.
Izuku beams, “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Hmm…” Denki thoughtfully hums as he watches the pair from afar.
It’s not long before he grins and pushes Eijiro by the shoulder. “Ei, I bet you a thousand yen they’re together.”
Eijiro gives him a startled look and follows his line of sight. “What on earth makes you think that?”
“Well, they’re awfully clingy lately. Bakugo just sorta sticks to him now. And—“
Denki abruptly cuts himself off and Eijiro whispers an “Oh shit,” because they just watch their buddy Midoriya kiss Bakugo on the lips. And survived (not without an annoyed look on Bakugo’s face as he pushed the other’s head away.)
“Oh damn,” Denki whispers. “Hey, does that mean I won the bet?”
“I haven’t agreed to anything!”