Work Text:
“I have never been this stressed with work in my life, ” Izuku whined, sprawled over a table that was completely covered in paperwork. It had been three hours since he’d taken a break. Three. Hours. Of. Paperwork. It was literally hell on earth.
“Just take a break already,” Katsuki said, walking by the kitchen. He shot Izuku a mock sympathy look and made his way to the couch, propping his feet up on the coffee table as if he had zero stressors to agonize about.
“Get your dirty feet off the table,” Izuku groaned, flipping his head to face away from Katsuki. He heard him sigh audibly and he could almost imagine the eye roll that accompanied it. But Izuku also heard the thump of his feet hitting the ground, so he appreciated the slight cooperation.
Izuku had recently acquired what Katsuki called, a “shit ton” of paperwork, and it was all supposed to be done by the following week. He’d been chipping away at it day by day, slowly making the pile smaller, but it had barely made a dent. They hadn’t been able to eat at the table for four days. They kept winding up eating on the couch, watching whatever was on TV. Not that Izuku minded the quality time and comfortable seating.
Izuku twirled the pencil around in his hand, glaring at the papers below him. If his eyes could shoot lasers, every single page would be obliterated. The entire table would be up in flames. Knowing Izuku, that could happen whether he had laser eyes or not. He couldn’t deny being clumsy. Katsuki was the only thing keeping the apartment from falling apart, which Izuku would be forever grateful for. The bills they’d have to pay if Izuku was left unsupervised would probably be unpayable.
Izuku watched as Katsuki searched for the remote, finding it squished between two of the couch cushions. Katsuki flicked the TV on and scrolled through the list of movies they’d slowly built. They probably had a hundred dollars worth of movies on there. The range was huge, from hero films to romantic comedies, along with the occasional horror movie. Whenever they would watch scary films, Izuku would spend most of the time peering through his fingers, bracing himself for every single jumpscare. Katsuki would just look at him and laugh, unfazed by the content.
“I’m gonna watch The Notebook,” Katsuki said. Izuku whipped his head around, sitting up straight in his chair.
“What? No! Without me?” he shouted, waving his hands desperately in the direction of the living room. Katsuki just grinned and started scrolling down the list of purchased movies to find it.
“Sorry, you’re just really busy with paperwork and I’m really bored,” he said. Izuku shoved the papers towards the middle of the table, disregarding the fact that some of them crumpled and the slight organization he’d managed was completely gone. He stood up from the table, quickly making his way over.
“You can’t watch The Notebook without me, Kacchan, that’s so mean!” he said, claiming his spot at the other end of the couch. Katsuki just shrugged, finally finding the movie he was searching for.
“Not my fault you fucking suck at finances,” he muttered. Izuku straightened his leg out and kicked Katsuki in the foot, causing him to yelp in surprise. He reached over and flicked Izuku in the forehead before settling back into the cushions.
“This is my favorite movie, asshole, I’m banning you from watching it when I’m not here,” Izuku claimed, crossing his arms in order to assume a more intimidating aura. Katsuki just raised an eyebrow at him, clearly unimpressed.
“I literally bought this movie.”
“Liar! We split it.”
“So? I still own half of it.”
“Then you’re only allowed to watch half the movie,” Izuku said, “and it has to be the first half.”
“Bullshit, I want the second half.”
“Too bad, so sad.”
“Did you steal that comeback from a first grader?” Katsuki asked, letting a small grin appear on his face. Izuku could feel his face heat up, and it wasn’t because he was angry. He treasured the fact that he was one of the only people who got to see Katsuki truly smile. He buried his face in his hands, trying to cover up the redness that covered his cheeks.
“Shut up,” Izuku whined. He felt a light kick on his shin and he looked up to see Katsuki holding out the remote to him.
“Wanna do the honors and press play?” he asked. “I’m gonna get up and make tea.” Izuku grabbed the remote, nodding. He took the blanket off the arm of the chair, wrapping himself up in it and finally releasing all the tension he’d been holding onto. He’d almost completely forgotten about work.
“No, wait, I can’t. I have to finish all that stuff,” Izuku said, tossing both the remote and the blanket off him and moving to stand up. In about five seconds, he felt the entirety of Katsuki’s weight barreling into him, flattening him onto the couch before he could even register what had happened.
“No,” Katsuki hissed.
“Huh?”
“I said no, dumbass, stay on the couch and watch the fucking Notebook.” Izuku could feel Katsuki’s breath against his face. He became painfully aware of their close proximity. Katsuki’s knee was digging into his thigh, cutting off the circulation to his leg, but that was honestly the least of his concerns. Izuku squirmed underneath him, trying to escape. He wished he didn’t have to escape, though.
Katsuki was ultimately stronger and kept him pinned to the cushions by his shoulders. Izuku was now desperate to get away. He tried to fight his way out, moving sporadically to try and catch him off guard. The second Katsuki’s grip wavered, Izuku was slipping out from underneath him and jumping over to Katsuki’s side of the couch.
“I yield!” he yelled. Katsuki let his hands drop, apparently no longer concerned about Izuku trying to run away. Izuku wasn’t concerned either. If Katsuki wanted him to stay, he would stay.
“You need to give yourself a damn break, it’s annoying watching you be stressed over there,” Katsuki murmured, picking up the discarded remote. “So stay put while I make the best tea you’ll ever have in your life.” Izuku didn’t doubt it.
One movie turned into two, and two movies turned into Izuku passing out on the couch from exhaustion. Katsuki was right, he was so worn out he could barely move, even when all he wanted to do was climb into bed. It didn’t help that Katsuki made chamomile tea. He felt a tap on his shoulder and he opened his eyes, seeing Katsuki’s empty hand held out to him.
“C’mon, just get in bed. You look kind of pathetic.” Izuku took his hand and let himself be hauled up into a standing position, deciding not to let go of the warm hand he was holding onto. He just let himself get dragged to his room and watched quietly as Katsuki pulled the blankets back and gestured for him to crawl in. Izuku did.
“Go the fuck to sleep and don’t think about paperwork until tomorrow morning,” Katsuki said, turning around to leave.
“Goodnight, Kacchan,” Izuku said, curling into his sleeping position and pulling the covers up under his chin.
“Yeah, goodnight, Izu.”