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The entire apartment was shrouded in darkness, faint illumination leaking in from the streetlights peeking through the windows. Shadows stretched across the smooth floor, enveloping every nook and cranny in heavy silence.
The front door eased open slowly, a column of light pouring in through the crack. Katsuki shouldered inside quietly, his hulking form blocking out most of the light until the door clicked softly shut. Before he could feel around for the light switch on the wall, a lamp flicked on in the living room.
He paused, chest clenching and mouth going dry, feet glued to the floor as silence stretched between them.
“Do you know how worried I was?” Izuku whispered just loud enough for Katsuki to hear. The blond didn’t reply, knowing his words would fall on deaf ears. There was a faint drip, drip, drip , as blood slowly ran down Katsuki’s arm and began pooling on the cold tile.
“I’m sorry.”
“I had to find out from the local news channel that my husband–”
“I’m sorry,” Katsuki echoed. His words sounded hollow even to his own ears.
“–Not only did he shatter his entire left arm–”
Katsuki took a step forward, his damp soles squeaking on the tile.
“Deku.” Izuku’s head whipped around, eyes blazing ferociously while unshed tears glistened in the corners.
“But he was held for ransom for six hours –”
“Please–”
“What am I even supposed to do, Kacchan!?” Izuku nearly shouted, jumping to his feet and coming around the couch to stand a few feet away from Katsuki.
“I’m sorry,” Katsuki breathed out, his heart weighing heavy in his chest and voice drawn tight.
“I can’t keep doing this– I can’t be there for you anymore. I don’t– I–” Izuku’s voice broke off, tears finally slipping down his cheeks. Katsuki wanted to reach out, his body ached for it, but he knew Deku needed his space for a moment.
“It’s torture,” Izuku choked out, voice drawing tight, “Not being able to back you up, not being able to help,” he choked back a sob, wiping his eyes roughly, “W-when something happens to you, I just have to sit back and watch– hoping that someone else has your back now that I–”
Katsuki stepped forward, reaching out a hand. Izuku took it, lacing their fingers together.
“Is this what my mom felt like?” Izuku asked softly, “Watching me fight… is this what I put her through?”
Katsuki looked down at his feet and saw the small trail of blood dotting the floor.
“I’m so happy you’re a hero, Kacchan,” Izuku said sincerely, his tone dragging Katsuki’s eyes back up to meet his misty green gaze. “I just wish–” he swallowed roughly and pulled Katsuki in for a hug.
“You’re going to get blood–”
“I don’t care.”
Izuku held him close, fingers digging into the back of the black spandex of Katsuki’s costume. His hands were shaking, and his shoulders were wracked with sobs. He tucked his nose into the crook of Katsuki’s neck, breathing in the comforting caramel scent.
“I’m okay,” Katsuki said softly. He snaked one arm around Izuku’s waist and the other around the back of his head, holding him gently. He carded his fingers through the short green curls, a soothing motion that helped ease some of the tension in Izuku’s body. “I’m okay, Izuku,” he whispered.
They stood there, embracing one another in the dark apartment, the only sounds coming from Izuku’s muffled sniffling and the slow dripping of blood. Katsuki refused to let go first, wanting to offer as much comfort as Izuku needed. He waited until the other man was ready.
“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Izuku said as he pulled away. He let his arm slide down until his hand brushed Katsuki’s and held on tight. He led the blond to the bathroom, forcing him to take a seat on the edge of the tub. “How many?” he asked in a serious tone.
“Just two main ones on my right arm and shoulder. The rest are all minor scrapes and bruises. The medics fixed my broken arm but didn’t have anyone with a blood-related quirk,” Katsuki replied automatically. Izuku nodded and began to help Katsuki undress. They focused on the torso first, stripping him and assessing the damage.
“You’re lucky, I don’t think you’ll need stitches this time,” Izuku remarked evenly. Katsuki snorted. “You can shower before we bandage everything.”
“Okay,” Katsuki replied, watching Izuku make no motions to move. He reached out and grabbed the edge of Izuku’s pants, pulling slightly. “Hey, I’m not going anywhere.”
“I know,” Izuku said defensively, sniffling at the end. Katsuki smiled. “I-I’ll go grab you some clothes,” Izuku added before scurrying out of the cramped bathroom. Katsuki scoffed and flicked on the shower, letting the water heat up as he finished undressing. He stepped in carefully, all of his muscles screaming at him now that the full weight of the day was sinking in.
He ducked his head and let the water roll off of his back, soaking his hair and releasing the tension he had been holding. He stayed like that for a moment, letting his heart calm down and his body adjust. He made quick work of washing his body and hair, being gently on his biggest scrapes and watching the suds mix into a frothy pink from the blood diluting in the water.
He finished up and stood in the tub for a moment trying to decide what towel to dry himself off with so that he wouldn’t risk staining it with blood. Before he could pick the door opened a little bit.
“I brought a few old towels and some comfy clothes,” Izuku called in, reaching through the crack with a towel in his hand. Katsuki stared at the offering for a moment.
“You know you can come in, right? We’ve been married for–”
“I’m just trying to be polite!”
“Get in the fucking bathroom, Deku,” Katsuki scoffed as he grabbed the towel and began drying himself off. The door opened the rest of the way as Izuku entered. He passed Katsuki the fresh boxers after he had dried himself and the blond slipped them on. “Ready to assess the damage, Doc?”
“Shove off,” Izuku said lightly. Katsuki took a seat on the edge of the tub again and allowed Izuku to stand between his legs. “I think a few butterfly bandages and you’ll be fine.”
“It’s a miracle,” Katsuki deadpanned. Izuku shook his head in exasperation and grabbed the box of bandages, situating himself properly to apply them. Katsuki held still while Izuku worked. When all of the wounds had been cared for Izuku grabbed Katsuki’s wrist and inspected it.
“There’s nothing I can do about the bruising from the ropes,” he commented, tracing his fingers over the bruises blossoming there, “You’ll just have to wait for them to fade.”
“Fucking embarrassing I have them at all,” Katsuki grumbled.
“Everyone has a slip-up every now and then, even perfectionist pro heroes like you, Kacchan,” Izuku commented with a wry smile.
“I’m not like everybody else,” Katsuki bit back.
“No, no you’re not,” Izuku agreed, leaning down and kissing the back of Katsuki’s hand. Katsuki blushed. He turned his head away, not meeting Izuku’s bright green gaze. “Now get changed, I recorded the new episode of that anime you’ve been watching,” Izuku added lightly.
“What? It came out already?” Katsuki’s head snapped around, excitement evident in his eyes.
“Yeah, dork,” Izuku said fondly. “So get a move on.” He dropped Katsuki’s hand and left the bathroom, calling as he left, “I’ll get it set up while you change.”
Katsuki smiled, reaching for the stack of clothes Izuku had brought him. He pulled the oversized All Might t-shirt over his head and put on his black sweats. Once he was fully dressed he checked himself in the mirror, finishing his face care routine and messing with his bangs.
“Stop staring at yourself and get out here!” Izuku called from the living room.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming, Deku,” Katsuki grumbled. He finished up and headed into the living room, promptly flopping on the middle of the couch. “Did you grab the–”
Izuku took a seat next to him, close enough that their thighs were pressed against each other sharing their body heat, and Izuku passed him a big bag of chips with a flaming logo.
“I love you,” Katsuki deadpanned. Izuku couldn’t help but laugh as he passed Katsuki a bottle of green tea. He pulled up his feet and curled himself around Katsuki’s side.
“Yeah, I know you do,” Izuku said fondly as he rested his head on the blond’s shoulder. And even if he wanted to, Katsuki couldn’t really argue with that.