Work Text:
“Kacchan can I ask you a question?”
“What nerd?”
“Have you ever kissed anyone?”
Bakugo sputters, nearly spits out the drink in his mouth when Izuku asks his question, “what the fuck?”
“Like on New Year’s Eve have you ever been kissed?” Izuku asks again, pushing his laptop away and resting his head back against the couch to look up at Katsuki.
“When the hell would I have time to kiss someone on New Year's weirdo?” He asks squinting down at the boy sitting cross-legged on the ground.
“I don’t know you’re pretty popular, you’re fourth after all.”
“That doesn’t mean shit,” Katsuki grumbled trying to hide the way his heart soared at Izuku’s praise. “I’m always either at your mom's place or my mom's place. Who the fuck am I gonna kiss huh?”
Izuku thinks about it for a while and nods, “Yeah I guess you’re right.” He turns his attention back to his laptop. They had agreed they would do a quiet New Year's Eve this year, their parents had decided to go on an adults-only trip leaving the two boys to figure out New Year's celebrations for themselves. Every invite and plan seemed less interesting than the last though and when Katsuki was sent a new case file from Best Jeanist on the morning of, they figured they could just stay in.
Help each other with work, watch the celebrations on the tv, maybe have a drink or two. Bring in the new year together, like they had done every year since they met whether they were on good terms or not.
“Have you?” Katsuki asks after a prolonged moment of silence.
Well, not every year.
“Uh once,” Izuku says rubbing the back of his neck.
Katsuki’s eyes widen and Izuku almost thinks he’s making fun of him.
“Who? When? Tell me right now.” The blonde says kicking Izuku repeatedly not hard enough to hurt just enough to tick him off.
“Knock it off Kacchan,” Izuku says shoving Katsuki’s leg away and closing the laptop, he wasn’t going to get any work down now.
“Tell me asshole who the fuck kissed your nerdy ass?” Katsuki asks feigning disbelief, I would kiss him , Katsuki thinks and pushes it to the back of his mind immediately.
“Ugh, but you can’t tease me about this Kacchan!”
“You want me to lie?”
“Okay, then I’m not telling you.”
“So you hate me and want me to die is what you’re saying?”
“Kachaaaaaaaan!”
Katsuki kicks Izuku again, he needs to know now. There’s no way he could let this go, he knew that Izuku had had his experimentation sexual liberation phase in his third year of college but a New Year's kiss? That was so intimate, so special. Who the hell was special enough for Izuku to give away his first ever new years kiss?
“It was Uraraka-san.”
Of course, it was fucking round face, Katsuki tries to laugh but it comes out bitter. He winces at the sound before whacking Izuku behind the head. Izuku whines and grabs Katsuki’s leg dragging him off the couch and onto the floor beside him.
“Asshole!” Katsuki yells as his ass connects with the carpet with a thud.
“You kicked me!” Izuku protests and Katsuki can’t pretend to be angry any longer. He looks so happy how could Katsuki ever be angry when he looked like that?
“Whatever,” he shoves Izuku and mimics his position, sitting with his back against the couch and legs folded up. “So round face?”
“Yeah,” Izuku says and rolls his eyes. Katsuki’s heart skips a beat. He waits, patient as ever for Izuku to continue. “It was dumb, it was that New Year's when I left your house early to go see the fireworks with Shouto and the others.”
“Right, the party you made your mom cry at.” Katsuki recounts he knows he’s being a little shit but he can’t help it. He’s annoyed, he wants to know why Izuku would kiss her if he didn’t even want to.
“Kacchan! I didn’t make her cry, she was just… emotional that I was growing up.”
“Uhuh whatever you say nerd,” Katsuki said rolling his eyes and elbowing Izuku playfully. He doesn’t mean any harm, he never does. Not anymore.
“Do you want to know the story or not Katsuki ?” Izuku asks giggling at the way Kacchan bristles and sits up straighter at the name. Katsuki shoots Izuku a look but doesn’t say anything further, he nods. “We were watching the fireworks,” Izuku says resting his head back against the couch again and closing his eyes, the memory bringing on a headache. “And I guess the ambience around us, there were so many couples and Tsuyu kept looking between us like she was expecting something and she looked pretty and it just kind of happened I guess.”
Izuku’s mouth tastes bad as the memory floods his mind, well flood would be the wrong word. He doesn’t remember enough about the night for it to flood his mind, not like his other memories. Not like memories spent counting down the minutes around Auntie Mitsuki’s kitchen table or Kacchan smashing cake into Izuku’s face. Those memories flood, these simply trickle.
“It was gross honestly,” Izuku says picking his head back up and looking at Katsuki, “Uraraka looked like she was going to throw up after.”
Katsuki laughs at that, sharp and loud in a way that reverberates through the small room. Floods, Izuku thinks. Kacchan’s laugh floods, it takes over any room they’re in the way it takes over his face. When Kacchan laughs, when he truly laughs, his mouth takes up half his face as his eyes squint into slits. Kacchans face will flush and go red and the sound, god the sound, Izuku loves the sound of Kacchan laughing. It is loud and all-encompassing and it floods Izuku’s senses till there is nothing left but Kacchans laughs.
“What asshole?” Katsuki asks wiping the tears from his eyes as he sobers up (or at least as sober as he can get three beers in).
“You look nice like this,” Izuku doesn’t know why he said it. He doesn’t know why he thought he could say it, why he thought he had the right but he says it. The words slip from between his lips and they hang heavy between them, waiting to see if Katsuki will accept them.
“Shut up,” The blonde grumbles and shoves Izuku slightly but the signs are clear as day. Kacchan is blushing, their shoulders brush when Kacchan sits up straight again. He’s accepted the compliment, something blooms in Izuku’s chest.
“You do,” Izuku says again, pushing past the voice telling him not to push Kacchan too far with the compliments. “When you’re happy like this, it’s nice. Like my friend is back.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Katsuki asks, finding suddenly that swallowing has become incredibly hard.
“Just that I like it when you’re happy,” Izuku says again leaning down to rest his head against Katsuki’s shoulder. “You look pretty when you smile.”
Katsuki’s heart is thundering so loud in his chest he’s sure Izuku can hear it. Pretty? Since when did Izuku think Katsuki was pretty? Sure Katsuki knew that he was attractive, he’d have to be stupid or insecure to not know that especially with the way new Dynamight fan pages were popping up every day despite his shitty attitude but this was… too much? Not enough?
Katsuki didn’t know, he couldn’t find a name for the mess of emotions he was feeling. “Let’s turn on the TV?” He asked instead.
“Sure,” Izuku says and reaches for the remote. When he turns the TV on to the channel counting down to twelve he smiles and settles back in against the couch, head comfortably placed on Katsuki’s shoulder again.
“Izuku,” Katsuki begins, unsure where he’s going with this but simply needing to fill the silence somehow.
“Yes Kacchan?”
“Why didn’t you like kissing her?”
“Who Kacchan?”
Why does he say my name like that? Katsuki thinks, the endearing name wrapping him up like a baby blanket or a hand-knit sweater. It was love, he knew that. Somewhere along the way, Katsuki realised that’s what the feeling was, now he just needed to figure out what to do with that feeling.
“Round face, when you guys kissed… how come you didn’t like it?”
“I don’t know,” Izuku says, letting out a little sigh. “I should right?”
Katsuki doesn’t respond.
“She’s kind and she’s beautiful and she’s a good friend and well she’s a girl,” Izuku continues, head still firmly placed against Katsuki’s shoulder, eyes locked on the screen as the announcer interviews various people all in thick scarves and new year merchandise. “I don’t know, it felt wrong. Like we didn’t fit.”
“Do you think that’s real?” Katsuki asks, his fingers itching to reach out and tangle with Izuku’s.
“Fitting?”
“Mhm.”
“I like to believe so,” Izuku is quiet for a moment before he does the unthinkable.
His fingers graze Katsuki’s and Izuku hears the way the blonde's breath catches in his throat. Izuku’s fingers move further, emboldened by Kacchan not pulling away and his pinky finds Katsuki’s.
“Izuku…”
“Yes Kacchan?” Three of his fingers have now found Katsuki’s and he can feel the heat under the soft skin.
“What are you doing nerd?” Katsuki asks trying his hardest to sound tough like he wasn’t affected by the way Izuku’s fingers were wrapping around his.
“Just want to see something,” Izuku responds, swallowing hard as his hand covers Katsuki’s fully. “Fits.” He whispers bringing their intertwined hands up into view.
“Fits?” Katsuki asks eyes locked onto their hands, terrified that if he looked away it would fade.
“It fits, we fit Kacchan.”
Fuck , Katsuki thinks he’s going to blow up. Implode starting from his hands and ending with his heart.
50
49
48
The countdown has begun on the screen and Izuku’s hands are firmly clasping Katsuki’s. Katsuki finally turns to look at Izuku, trying to understand, trying to rationalize and make sense of the situation.
“You’re drunk,” Katsuki says.
“Only had one beer,” Izuku refutes.
36
35
34
“You’re lonely?” Katsuki asks.
“Not when you’re around,” Izuku counters.
28
27
26
“You’re fucking with me.” Katsuki decides.
“Never,” Izuku promises bringing Katsuki’s hand up to his lips.
23
22
21
Katsuki’s breath catches when Izuku’s lips brush against his knuckles. Fuck what is doing? Katsuki can barely think straight, it’s all too much, it’s too much he decides. He needs to pull away, needs to put space between them, he needs to get away from Izuku.
18
17
16
He stays put, watching the way Izuku kisses each knuckle. Soft and patient, slowly taking his time as though he was worshipping. Katsuki shivers at the thought.
14
13
12
“Izuku,”
“Tell me to stop and I will Kacchan.” He promises pulling Katsuki closer, softly, gently, reverently because that’s what it is, isn’t it? Izuku worships Kacchan and he was tired of pretending like he didn’t.
9
8
7
Izuku places Katsuki’s hands on his neck, Izuku’s own finding their way to Kacchans waist.
“Happy New Year Kacchan.”
4
Katsuki cannot breathe, his waist is hot, Izuku’s touch burns and the way he looks at him hurts but oh god Katsuki craves it. He wants to be burnt alive under whatever inferno Izuku would bring, fuck he needed to burn.
3
Katsuki leaned in until their lips were a hair's breadth apart.
2
1
When their lips touch Katsuki isn’t sure he knows how to explain what happens, the hunger, the desire he’s kept locked away for so long suddenly feels overwhelming.
It’s not enough to just brush their lips together, it’s not enough to feel the heat of Izuku’s hands through his shirt.
It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough.
When Izuku bites down on Katsuki’s bottom lip he gasps and tightens his hold on the other boy's neck. When Izuku’s tongue slips inside his mouth he moans into the kiss but what really does Katsuki in is when Izuku smiles.
When Izuku smiles against Katsuki’s lips he knows immediately there will never be another. There will never be another that makes him feel this way, never be another to make him want so desperately. There will never be another love that burns as bright or as intensely.
This is it. Izuku Midoriya is it.
“Happy New Year Izuku.”