Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Izuku wanted to scrub his eyes clean. Wanted to purge his mind of the memories that now stained the back of his eyelids. The tears helped soothe his heartbreak, even if only a little bit. 

He sniffled, holding back another sob. Of course, this would happen to him. After all, his bad luck was so widely known. It had only been a matter of time until his fiancé, Katsuki, found solace in someone newer, someone better. Izuku had just held onto the childish hope that maybe it would never happen. Or, at the very least, it wouldn’t have happened with his best friend. 

Izuku had come to check in on Katsuki after the last big fire that he had put out not even an hour prior. But it seemed that the firefighter had someone else on his mind if the way he had Ochaco pressed up against a wall of the fire station was any indication.

None of Katsuki’s friends were around from what Izuku could see, so realistically he wasn’t sure if any of them knew. Granted, only one of them was also a firefighter. The others were a diverse bunch of people, so there was no telling if they knew either.

Izuku stood on the edge of the sidewalk, waiting for the crosswalk light to change. He sniffled again when his little pity party was interrupted by the soft ringtone of his phone. The brunet wanted to ignore it, not wanting to find out if Uraraka had actually seen him. He had sworn he saw her staring directly at him as if gloating that she stole his man.

He shuddered but reluctantly pulled his phone out of his pocket. ‘Mama’ was displayed on the screen and Izuku couldn’t help but let out a watery laugh. Trust his mom’s sixth sense to tell her when something was wrong.

He clicked the green answer button and brought the phone up to his ear. “Hi, Mama.”

“Izuku, I just wanted to call in and check on you. How are you?” Inko, his mother, asked softly.

“She felt a disturbance in the force!” Izuku heard his dad’s laughing voice in the background only to be cut off by a wheezing noise.

“Ignore your father, dear. You know how he is.”

The young man couldn’t help but smile. “It’s okay, Mama. His weirdo personality is why you married him.”

“I suppose that’s true.”

There was a beat of silence before Izuku sighed and cradled his phone closer to his face and spoke softly, “I’m… not doing great, Mama. I… I can’t marry Katsuki. I just can’t.”

He was reluctant to say anymore. Even if the firefighter had hurt him, Izuku didn’t want the man to face any repercussions. He was still Izuku’s first love, his childhood sweetheart, there was no way that the brunet wouldn’t feel guilty if something happened to him.

“Oh… oh sweetheart,” Inko began. “If… if you can’t marry him. Hm… come home, Izuku, and we’ll talk about this, okay?”

Izuku easily agreed, and soon his phone was back in his pocket. Realistically, it wasn’t going to be easy to suddenly call off his marriage. After all, everyone he knew thought he was head-over-heels in love with Katsuki. And he had been, before those rose-tinted glasses he wore had been so violently ripped off that it left him feeling hollow.

His green eyes darted up to the crosswalk light the moment it changed symbols for him to go. He stepped forward when an arm was wrapped around his waist. He was forcefully pulled backward right as a car hurled past them. 

Izuku was panicked, what-ifs swirling around in his cluttered head. He only seemed to snap back to himself when a deep, gruff voice spoke far too close to his ear.

“You okay, kid?”

Usually, Izuku would have been upset about being called ‘kid’. After all he might not look it, but he was already 21. But any protest died on his tongue the moment he looked up at the man who had undoubtedly saved him.

He was tall, maybe 20 centimeters taller than Izuku. He had dark hair, it was long and had a slight wave to it but it was pulled back from what the shorter man could see. His eyes were a deep grey with blue bleeding out from his pupil. He looked tired, light bags under his eyes and stubble that looked like he didn’t bother to shave. Extremely attractive to Izuku’s subconscious. Really, if Izuku had still been looking for love, maybe he would have asked the taller man for his number or something (not that Izuku wouldn’t have stuttered his way through the question). 

“You still with me?”

Izuku was aware of the heat against his back. He cleared his throat, voice hoarse as he spoke.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” Izuku began. Only then did the man step back, and it gave the younger man a chance to turn and bow to his savior. “Thank you for saving me. I don’t want to imagine the alternative.”

The stranger grunted, “Be more careful next time.” Then he stepped away, turning to continue off down the sidewalk. Izuku wanted to stop him, but he wasn’t sure what he’d even say, so he didn’t bother the man, watching as the man rounded the corner out of sight.

Izuku stood there for a moment longer before shaking his head and gently slapping his cheeks before finally crossing the street and heading back to his house.

-

Izuku got home and threw himself into his mother’s outstretched arms, his chest heaving with quiet sobs. His dad was there as well, one of his large, warm hands coming to rest on one of Izuku’s shoulders as a comforting presence.

“Are you going to tell us what happened, son?” Hisashi, his dad, asked as softly as he could.

Izuku took a long moment before he shook his head. “Not yet… I don’t think I’m ready.”

Both of his parents sighed, and it just made Izuku feel even more guilty, but he could be stubborn. He wasn’t going to give in and just tell people what had happened when Izuku himself couldn’t even wrap his head around it. 

“We could always find different arrangements. The Bakugou‘s kid isn’t your only option, Izuku,” his dad finally said, sounding more upset than Izuku did.

-

Okay, so maybe Izuku would tell one person. But only because said person was so nice and was like a grandfather to him, and also because Izuku couldn’t keep his big mouth shut when said friend seemed to know that he was hiding something. He sat across from the older man, who already seemed to have a head of white hair despite his insistence that ‘he wasn’t that old yet’.

“And my poor parents, they haven’t figured out what exactly to do about it yet… I’m so worried about my family’s reputation being shredded because of my… my inability to keep my own boyfriend in check! Well… I suppose he isn’t my boyfriend anymore, but my point still stands. What am I even supposed to do in this case?” Izuku lamented, leaning down and pressing his forehead to the cold metal of the table he was seated at.

“I see. What an unfortunate turn of events. I can only hope that the situation will eventually resolve itself in a timely manner. But from what it sounds like, you simply need someone to…fill in the empty spot as your fiancé,” Nedzu theorized, taking a long sip of tea. He was silent for a moment before he smiled widely. “Say, I’ve told you before that I have a son, right? He’s not too much older than you, and he’s single. He hasn’t been looking for a partner despite my… gentle prodding. Perhaps something can be drawn up for the both of you?”

Izuku had just sat up and started drinking his cooled-down tea, but now he was sputtering. Tea dribbled from his lips as he coughed, his fist lightly banging against his chest in a futile effort to get the tea out of his lungs.

“I’m sorry, did I hear that correctly? You want me to marry your son? But—”

Izuku was cut off by Nedzu speaking again, “Not to worry, my Shouta would never do anything bad to you. He’s a good boy, if a little stand-offish. I believe you two will get along splendidly! Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything, and I’ll even send a marriage contract to your home.”

The younger man sat there in utter shock as Nedzu hummed happily, sipping his tea like he solved some major crisis and not just decided on Izuku’s entire love life for him. And the brunet didn’t want to think about the fact that the older man implied that he knew where Izuku lived . 

“I—… okay,” Izuku murmured with resignation, staring down into his teacup, not noticing the utterly smug look on Nedzu’s face.

-

A few days later, Izuku was still hiding from Katsuki. He was avoiding all contact with the firefighter and his ex-best friend despite the number of text notifications that had been cropping up on his lock screen. That hadn’t stopped him from hanging out with his other friends but it did prevent him from bringing up anything about what had occurred. 

(And believe Izuku when he says that they definitely tried to get him to spit it out, considering if Ochaco was there, the heartbroken boy was mysteriously absent.)

Late in the afternoon, Hisashi and Inko called Izuku into the study, a stack of papers in his father’s hands. 

“A sketchy solution has found its way to us, Izuku. Someone claiming to be saved by you has offered their kid up to marry you,” the older man said, a good amount of skepticism lacing his voice as if he doubted the words on the papers. He carelessly tossed the contract onto the desk as if he couldn’t bear to touch it.

Izuku paled, his shaky hands coming up to rub at his face. “Oh… I thought he was joking! I didn’t think he’d actually—oh god, who am I kidding, of course he would, but… but…I don’t even know his son!” 

Inko tilted her head, swiftly approaching him and taking his clammy hands in her soft ones, “Izuku, you know who sent this contract, don’t you.”

The young brunet jerkily nodded, his green eyes fluttering up to meet his mother’s. “ Yeah… Mr. Nedzu sent them. He said he would after all, but that was honestly quicker than I expected.” Izuku took a breath to steady himself before continuing on. “I think I told you both this story before. About an older man who I found in the woods, bleeding out?”

A look of realization dawned on both of his parents' faces before Hisashi scoffed, “You kept in touch with a strange man who now wants you to marry his son… Izuku what the fuck?”

“Hisashi!” Inko scolded, “Izuku, darling, you can say no. If he’s forcing you into this, you don’t have to—”

“No no, Mr. Nedzu is a really good man! Okay, so maybe he’s a little manipulative, and I have a sneaking suspicion that he’s broken a couple laws… but he’s never done anything to harm me! In fact, that contract is his way of helping me out of my situation. Think of it as him paying back the favor of me saving him?”

There was a long bout of silence before Hisashi sighed and rubbed his forehead, picking up the papers again, “Fine, but just know I don’t like this idea. Not one bit. However, there is merit in marrying you off to someone else if it keeps you away from that brat… Let’s review the contract as a family and go from there.”

Chapter Text

After going over the contract (and it was a very nice contract that allowed for flexibility from both parties and a divorce after a year if need be), the Midoriya family quickly decided that it would be best to go through with it despite not necessarily knowing the other party. Izuku had faith in Nedzu, even if it was wavering at the moment.

“So, this is it… I’m marrying him. Okay, I can do this. Everything will be just fine. No need to panic,” Izuku murmured to himself. He was alone in his room, wearing a track into his floor with his pacing.

“It’s not like I still want to marry Katsuki, but what would he think…? What would my friends think if I marry someone I’ve never even spoken about?” Izuku squeaked. He groaned and ruffled his already disheveled and tangled hair. “Why is it so hard to just… not think about that cheater?”

Izuku flopped down onto his bed, staring at the ceiling. He took some slow deep breaths before he nodded to himself, mentally deciding. “I can do this. I can marry a stranger. Anything to not have to be with… with him. Anything to cut ties with the both of them. Oh god, that means I’m going to suck it up and actually explain to my family and close friends what is going on. That’s… ugh… later. I’ll just do that later.”

-

‘Later’ became a week when Izuku was on a FaceTime call with his closest friends, Shouto, Tenya, Tsu, and Hitoshi. He had been laughing about a joke that Shouto had told, and while it wasn’t necessarily funny, the deadpan delivery had Izuku rolling.

There was a soft knock on his door, and his mother stepped in, a suit draped over her forearm. “Izuku, sweetheart, it’s time for you to get ready.”

The brunet’s friend had all shouted hello to his sweet mother, but then Tsu asked the dreaded question.

“Get ready for what?”

To which Tenya piped up in a matter-of-fact tone, “Don’t you remember? Bakugou and Izuku’s wedding party is today.”

Inko’s face went dark at the mention of Katsuki, and Izuku thought the woman was about to combust. He had given in and coughed up the news to his parents earlier that week, wanting no future misunderstandings between the family.

-

“Mom, Dad? Can I talk to you both for a minute? Please?” Izuku asked, having caught them both when they were relaxing in the living room. 

It had taken no coaxing at all to get them both to start worrying over him. “What is it? Did something else happen? Oh, my poor baby,” Inko cooed.

“Nothing new. I just… wanted to tell you both what’s going on. I—” Izuku bit his lip, squeezing his fingers as he thought of how to properly articulate his thoughts. “I can’t marry Katsuki because he hurt me… not physically! Not physically!” Izuku rushed out as he saw his dad immediately start trying to stand, anger in every line of his face.

“Him and Ochaco—” 

His mother’s gasp cut him off as she looked just as angry as his dad who had just started cooling off, “He chose her over you ?”

Izuku winced and shyly nodded before immediately piping up, “But I don’t want either of them to get in trouble or anything! I don’t want it to reflect badly on them… I just want them to be happy. Even if that happiness doesn’t have me in it. Which is why I was hoping that this arranged marriage would help remove me from their situation.”

“I see,” Hisashi said gruffly with a low huff. “Bastards. You’re too nice for them, Izuku.”

“Don’t worry, Izuku, we promise we won’t do anything to them. But remember, what goes around comes around. Just because you don’t plan to do anything doesn’t mean nothing will happen to them, okay?” Inko soothed.

That did actually make Izuku feel better, surprisingly. As long as he had no part in the retribution, he could continue guilt free. And that took quite a bit of stress off his shoulders.

-

“Izuku is not getting married to some… some… self-important, narcissistic, little brat!” Inko said, and Izuku instinctively flinched.

But thankfully, his mother was smart enough not to elaborate to which Izuku ran his fingers nervously through his hair as he turned his attention back to his friends.

“Tell us what’s going on, ‘Zu,” Hitoshi’s lower voice asked. It was hard to hear, but his concern was palpable.

Faintly, the brunet heard his mom leave his room, giving him a bit of privacy, probably feeling bad about giving up the game to his friends. But Izuku knew that this had to happen. And sooner is always better than later (unfortunately).

“So… let’s start with last week, when I started acting strange. You all kept asking why I didn’t want to hang out with Ochaco. And while I don’t necessarily hate her per se…” Izuku took a deep breath. “You remember that big wildfire that was broadcast. We knew that Katsuki and Kirishima had been deployed because they were on the news. Well, I went to go check on Katsuki, y’know, like I always do when he gets done with a particularly exhausting fire. Because it’s what a good boyfriend does. But when I got there, to the fire station, I saw my boyfriend, because of course he’d be there.”

Katsuki’s name tasted like ash on his tongue and his face screwed up into hurt which prompted his friends to fuss over him like he was a newborn baby.

“You don’t have to keep going, Izuku,” Shouto said. 

“Yes, if it’s too much, you should stop for your mental health!” Tenya chimed in.

Izuku shook off the worried looks. It was best if he got this out now.

“Katsuki was there… I should stop calling him that… Bakugou was there. But so was… Uraraka. At first, I wouldn’t have thought anything of it since I know that they're also friends. I can’t keep people all to myself. That's just rude. And then I saw them. I went to go say hi, but then I realized what they were doing. Bakugou had Uraraka pinned to the wall, and they were…. They were making out… and I can’t be sure… but I’m certain that Uraraka knew I had seen them.”

There was silence in the call before he heard Tsu’s voice utter an ‘oh,’ and Izuku couldn’t help but feel bad for her. Other than Izuku and Tenya, she had been the closest to the brunette girl. In fact, when they were in high school, many of the class had believed the two would end up together. 

“So just to get this straight, Bakugou was cheating on you… with Uraraka?” Shouto asked, his head tilted to the side.

Izuku gave a solid nod, and it was silent again before Hitoshi scoffed.

“Good riddance then. Bakugou was a bastard, and I’m glad I can finally say it now. You deserve better, ‘Zu. So I say fuck ‘em.”

Izuku slowly smiled before laughing, leaning back on his bed, “You’re right, Toshi. I’ve been carrying around the stress of whether or not I should tell you guys because I wasn’t sure what you would think. Not sure why I thought I would be hated… Did I do anything wrong? I was hurt and I’m simply licking my wounds before I confront them.”

“I don’t think you did anything wrong,” Shouto stated.

“I don’t either. It was inappropriate for such a thing to happen, but it is not as if you lashed out at them. And you tried to save their faces,” Tenya slowly said.

“Agreed. Don’t worry too much about it,” Tsu piped up.

Izuku sat up, and he smiled at his small group of friends. Then his face scrunched up, and he sighed. “Thank you guys for understanding. But I didn’t tell you about something important. What I’m getting ready for. Uh… how do I put this… I’m getting married to someone I don’t know. I’ll let you guys meet him soon!”

Izuku dove for his phone as his friends’ voices rose up in disbelief. He suddenly ended the call and turned off his phone. He groaned and buried his face in the blankets of his bed.

Then there was another knock on his door, and his mom stepped in and held up the suit. Izuku groaned again but slid off his bed to get dressed. He showered quickly and put on the suit before letting his mom at his hair.

Inko helped put product in his hair to style it out of the messy frizz it was in. “Unfortunately, your father and I can’t go with you today, so I hope everything goes smoothly. But just know that you’ll always have a place here at home with us just like Tenko does.”

Izuku nodded in a daze because, of course, he forgot that he had to move into a house with this man that he didn’t know yet. But he just had to trust that Mr. Nedzu didn’t raise a child as eccentric and manipulative as him.

“Thank you, Mama,” the brunet murmured as he sat still, allowing her to do whatever she wished with his hair.

Not even a minute later, there was a knock on his bedroom door, and his father stepped in with what Izuku would have described as a grimace.

“I still don’t want you to get married to some random man’s kid, Izuku. But, as long as he treats you well… well, plausible deniability and all that,” the albino sniffed his red eyes starting to tear up. “My baby is getting married…” he murmured, voice wobbly.

Inko cooed as she stood cuddling into Hisashi’s side to comfort her husband, “I know, dear. We both knew this day would come, but I don’t think we were prepared for it.”

Izuku stood and took a few steps before collapsing into his parents’ arms. “Don’t worry, I’ll come to visit often. I love you both so much.” The young man’s voice wobbled with sadness.

“We love you too. We expect, at the very least, visits every other week, son.”

“Every other week? Tenko doesn’t even have to visit that much!”

“Tenko lives in a whole other prefecture and… well, his boyfriend is… nice… we don’t…” Inko seemed to be having trouble saying anything nice about his adopted brother’s boyfriend. But his dad never had any qualms about it.

“He’s a Todoroki. And he’s an asshole. Not like his god awful man of a father, but still. Once a month is still too often, but I still want to see my other son dammit.”

Izuku just nodded sagely, trying to remember if he had ever told his dad that he was friends with another member of the Todoroki family.

Chapter Text

Izuku stepped out of the car, nervously adjusting his suit jacket. He worried his bottom lip between his teeth, as he looked up at the government building. There was a pit forming in his gut, and the blood in his veins felt both hot and cold. He swallowed hard as he took a shaky breath to try to calm himself down.

He felt like he had been on edge ever since he had caught the scandal. And now he couldn’t back away from it. 

(A small part of him hoped that his new husband would be a more level-headed fellow to round out the nervous bundle of energy that was Izuku.)  

With another deep breath, Izuku stepped into the building. The inside was surprisingly grand. Marble walls, a delicate yet huge hanging chandelier, tiled floor that his dress shoes clicked against. There were a few signs set up and one of them made a shudder run down his spine.

This particular building offered conference rooms to rent out for events. They were booked in advance and then advertised day-of so people could easily navigate to them.

Izuku pointedly walked past the sign that advertised the wedding party for him and Bakugou. It was obviously designed by Mitsuki, Katsuki’s mom. She’s a famous fashion designer and extremely detail-oriented. It was a gorgeous sign, but he didn’t want to see it anymore.

“If he wants someone to go with, he can go with Uraraka,” the brunet grumbled as he trudged in the direction of the Marriage Registration Department.

He hadn’t even been able to take a couple steps past the sign before a chill ran down his spine. There were footsteps heading in his direction and he instantly recognized the heavy footfalls.

“Oi, Deku!”

Izuku tried not to flinch as he turned around to come face-to-face with his ex-fiancé.

“Bakugou.”

Izuku felt a slight thrill run through him as the other man flinched at the formal address.

“Deku, where the fuck have you been, huh? Our party is starting in a couple minutes,” the blonde seemed to recover and scolded him. “And what on earth are you wearing? I told you not to make this a big deal either, there is no damn reason for you to be wearing a fucking suit.”

Izuku stood there and let Katsuki yell at him. It was only when the brash man grabbed his wrist tightly and began tugging did he finally speak up.

“I’m not here for the party,” he began, but he didn’t get much farther than that.

“The fuck you mean you’re not here for our party? What the hell else would you be doing here? Don’t be stupid, come on. Everyone is already there waiting for you.”

Katsuki began to tug harder, and despite the pain that the brunet felt shooting up his arm, he held steadfast to his spot.

“I already told you, I’m not here for that,” Izuku yanked his hand out of the blond’s grasp.

Bakugou growled, getting ready to throw a tantrum like he always did when he didn’t get his way.

He opened his mouth when the sound of shoes on the tiles caught both of their attention.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything, but if you’re going to argue, don’t do it in public. You’re disturbing everyone else.”

Izuku tensed because he knew that voice. Sure he had only ever heard it once, but of course such a nice deep voice would stick with him.

Green eyes flickered up to meet the dark grey he had seen on the day of his world falling apart around him. The stranger was clean shaven today and Izuku couldn’t help but silently mourn the loss of the stubble. It had suited him more.

“Don’t tell us what to do, fuck off, extra,” Bakugou spat.

Izuku rolled his eyes at Katsuki's belligerent behavior and bowed to the newcomer, “I’ll be more considerate of those around us. Sorry for any inconvenience.”

When he stood straight, the tall man seemed to have a slightly shocked look on his face, but it was fleeting and Izuku tilted his head a bit as those grey eyes looked him up and down.

“You wouldn’t happen to be-”

“Why haven’t you fucked off yet? Deku, come on, I’m done dealing with your stubborn behavior,” Bakugou grunted and reached out to grab Izuku’s wrist again.

The smaller man was faster as he took a step back out of his reach, “I already told you that I’m not here for that. Why would I want to go when… never mind, I’m not going to fight with you.”

Izuku turned on his heel, briskly walking off, leaving Bakugou to shout after him.

“Hey, where do you think you're going? Come back here! You’ll regret this, you damn Deku! You hear me? Your family is ruined because of you!”

The brunet flinched, but kept on. His parents had already assured him that their family wouldn’t take any sort of hit from this, yet that couldn’t quite quell the fear and guilt that had taken root in his subconscious.

It was after Katsuki’s voice faded into nothing that he realized there were footsteps following him to the Marriage Registration Department. He glanced over his shoulder to see the stranger a couple steps back with an amused look on his face.

“O-Oh, you’re still here. Again, sorry for any inconvenience my ex-fiancé and I caused with our disagreement.”

The man waved his hand, “Don’t worry about it. Kid seemed to have anger issues. I highly doubt you were the one who started it seeing as you were definitely the more reasonable one out of the two of you. But I do recall beginning to ask a question before I was so rudely interrupted if you don't mind me actually asking it.”

Izuku turned fully to face him and motioned for him to continue, “Yes, I remember. Please, ask away.”

“I overheard him say that you both were here for a wedding party. And I can only take a logical leap and assume that your name was on the sign for that particular room. You wouldn’t happen to be Midoriya Izuku, would you?”

The brunet slowly blinked owlishly and nodded. His mind ran a mile a minute and he felt like he was beginning to overthink things about the man standing in front of him. There weren't that many similarities, but not just anyone would be looking for him.

“Oh… oh you must be Mr. Nedzu’s son. I… I’m sorry, I wasn’t given anything about you…? I think he might have mentioned your name but I don’t remember... Sorry,” Izuku stuttered out.

Nedzu’s son simply hummed and dipped his head in greeting, “the name’s Aizawa Shouta. Father and I don’t share a family name. It’s complicated so I wouldn’t ask.”

“Mr. Aizawa then, it’s a pleasure to meet you… well… really, to see you again. You saved my life a couple weeks back after all. And, you saved me again today.”

“You remember that?”

“How couldn’t I? It’s not every day something like that happens,” Izuku murmured before shaking his head. “Well, that doesn’t quite matter now though. I’m sorry for forcing you into this marriage. I’m aware that your father is… an interesting man, but I have a sinking feeling that he didn’t quite tell you what was going on until after the contract was finalized.”

“You’d be correct. But it’s not as if I really have a choice. He’s been like that since I was kid, so I’ve learned to roll with it. This is actually more of a mild inconvenience than what he would normally throw at me. I wouldn’t think too much of it,” Aizawa dismissed his concern and stepped past Izuku. “Come on, let's get this over with and go home.”

Izuku trailed behind, his mind swamped with thoughts. 

‘He doesn’t seem like he’s related to Mr. Nedzu, but maybe that’s because I haven’t spent any time with him? I hope he doesn’t think I’m annoying, I don’t want the year we have before we can divorce to be utterly miserable. God, what did I get myself into? Why did I think I could do this?’

If Aizawa heard Izuku’s thoughts spilling softly from his lips, he didn’t make any indication. Which… didn’t really make Izuku feel any better when he realized he had been mumbling to himself. But he didn’t have any more time to wallow in his self-deprecation and nervousness because soon enough, he was standing next to Mr. Aizawa in front of an official, updating their family registries and creating their own between the two of them. 

Izuku could feel the heat in his cheeks as he realized the looming finality of their actions. Sure they could just as easily divorce, but as the brunet stared down at the words on the papers in his hands, he shuddered. He supposed he would be an Aizawa for the next year. He wasn’t sure if he’d get used to it, but he’d figure something out. 

“What’s with the face? You look like someone stomped on your grave,” Aizawa murmured from beside him. 

The green-eyed man jolted and he looked up at his newly-minted husband. “Sorry, just… it didn't really hit me that this is actually happening until just now.”

“Ah, makes sense. You seem like the type to overthink until everything comes grinding to a halt and suddenly reality hits,” Aizawa said, amused once more.

Izuku’s face reddened again as he got indirect confirmation that the man next to him did indeed over-hear him. And it was such a mortifying realization that the younger man’s jaw locked shut and he looked away.

-

The brunet couldn’t even bring himself to look at Aizawa again after that. Not even as he climbed into the passenger seat of his husband ’s car. Not even as he marveled at the house they were staying at. Not even as they awkwardly sat on opposite sides of the couch away from each other.

“You know I won’t bite right? Well, not hard anyway.”

Izuku didn’t know whether to take that as a threat or if he had simply been making a joke. His blasé tone made him think of Shouto, but at least he could understand the heterochromatic man.

“I-I know you won’t bite. Mr. Nedzu would be highly disappointed in you if you did. At least... That’s what I’d like to think,” Izuku said just barely loud enough for the raven-haired man to hear.

“You’d think correctly. From how Father spoke of you, I’d say he would rather have you as his child than me. Probably why he came up with this entire plan,” Aizawa said idly as he stood.

Finally the brunet looked up at him, surprised. “Really? I didn’t think Mr. Nedzu liked me that much.”

Izuku watched as the taller man stepped into the kitchen, still visible from the brunet's spot on the couch. Aizawa reached into a cabinet and pulled out a bottle of wine and two clean glasses. He returned to the couch and set them down on the coffee table.

“Don’t sell yourself short, my old man doesn’t do anything he doesn’t want to. He wouldn’t set time aside every two weeks for someone he didn’t find the least bit interesting or entertaining. And from what I heard, you are quite a unique combination of both.”

The younger man blushed again and simply stuttered out an, “oh.”

They lapsed into silence as Aizawa opened up the wine bottle.

Izuku bit his lip and decided to finally get his thoughts out of his head. He spoke slowly, “You know that this is simply a contract marriage right? I’m not forcing you to act like you’re in love with me, and I surely don’t expect you to fall in love with me, that’s not my intention. As long as I can prove that I’m taken, I won’t get in your way if you decide to pursue someone else,”

He glanced up to see the way Aizawa’s movements ground to a halt, freezing right before he poured the wine. Izuku watched him blink slowly and set the bottle down. Grey eyes met green and the older man opened his mouth to say something before he was interrupted by the ringing of his phone.

The brunet tilted his head as Aizawa pulled his phone out and answered it while grumbling something about always being interrupted.

“What?”

Izuku almost wanted to laugh at how annoyed he seemed until he saw a fleeting glimpse of panic on his new husband’s face.

“What happened? No, no, I’m on my way,” he hung up and looked at Izuku. He seemed to sigh as he stood. “It’s nothing against you, I promise. But a close friend of mine is in the hospital and I need to go.”

Izuku simply nodded and stood, “go ahead. Like I said before, I won’t get in your way.”

He wasn’t about to lie and say he wasn’t the tiniest bit hurt, but Aizawa’s friend was also hurt and possibly in a more life threatening way. Besides, Izuku would hope that the grey-eyed man would give him the same courtesy if one of his friends was in the hospital.

“I don’t know when I’ll be back, you can pick any of the rooms, but I think Father already picked one out if I’m honest. I’ll make it up to you later.”

And then he was gone, the door clicking shut behind him. The brunet took a shaky breath and nodded to himself. He leaned down grabbing the bottle of wine and poured himself a glass. He had a feeling he’d need it.

Chapter Text

Izuku wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself after Aizawa left, so he roamed the nice house and gave his parents a call. It wasn’t a long call by any means, but it did allow him to finally begin to unwind. 

“Wow, this place feels huge. What do we even need four bedrooms for?” Izuku wondered aloud into his phone. He heard his parents laughing.

“It’s good that it sounds like you live in a good sized house,” Hisashi said.

“Tell us about your husband! Is he nice to you? What does he look like?” Inko butt in to ask.

Izuku could feel his face heat up, “Well, he’s… handsome. And he seems really sweet. After all, he saved me from Katsuki when Katusuki tried to drag me into the wedding party. He’s not home at the moment or I would have you both meet him now. But if I can convince him, I’ll bring him home sometime later this week.”

“What do you mean he isn’t home, Izuku?” The brunet heard his dad practically snarl.

“His friend is in the hospital! I wasn’t gonna say he couldn’t go,” Izuku defended. “Besides, contract marriage, remember.”

The call went silent and he heard his parents sigh.

“Sweetheart, you realize you deserve to fall in love, right?”

“I know… but that can wait until after everything finally blows over. And after the contract is up of course.”

The call took a lighter turn afterwards and after a few more minutes, the brunet was alone again with his thoughts.

Of course he knew that he deserved love. He wasn’t… unlovable, but his track record with relationships wasn’t great considering he only had two. His failed one with Katsuki and the marriage of convenience with Aizawa.

Izuku groaned and shook his head. He could think about it all later when his brain wasn’t fried (whenever that would be).

He stepped into what he assumed was the master bedroom based on the sheer size of the closet and the attached bathroom. He saw his suitcase sitting next to the bed and assumed that this was the room Nedzu had chosen for him. Faintly, Izuku thought it was weird that he was given the master bedroom, but he wasn’t about to complain. Aizawa had said that the old man liked him after all.

The brunet opened up his suitcase, a gaudy yellow thing and a relic of his childhood. It was themed after a superhero from a TV show he had loved dearly growing up, and he always found it funny now that he knew the actor of his favorite character happened to be an uncle of his.

Izuku dug through his clothes, pulling his pajamas out from underneath other essentials. He padded over to the bathroom and peeked in. It was sleek and monochrome and more modern than Izuku would like. He preferred the coziness of a clean yet cluttered bathroom. One that was brightly colored and showed signs of life. But he’d survive keeping the bathroom the same. He wasn’t the owner of the house and he wasn’t going to change a thing. It was temporary after all.

He took a quick shower, cleansing the troubles of the day from his body.

He hadn’t been out of the shower for more than a handful of minutes when he heard his phone ring, thankfully he had put pants on. He wandered back into the bedroom, swiping it off the bed where he had left it. The screen lit up with a picture of him and Hitoshi at a comic-con from a couple years ago.

He answered the call and turned on the camera as he brought the phone back into the bathroom with him.

“Izuku! I’m surprised you answered considering how you hung up on us earlier today. So, you’re married now?” Hitoshi asked idly. He looked like he was playing a game on a handheld console.

“Yup… married… and yet alone in this big house,” Izuku responded as he put product in his damp curls.

“Alone?”

“His friend’s in the hospital, so he left.”

“On your wedding night? Ouch. So, you never said who the guy is.”

Izuku straightened from where he had hunched over the sink. He hummed as he glanced at his phone only to see Hitoshi much closer to the camera than before and staring right at him.

The brunet let out a startled little laugh and shook his head, “I doubt you’d know him.”

His friend looked utterly unimpressed and simply raised an eyebrow as his patented “disappointed” look appeared on his face.

Izuku swallowed hard and looked away nervously, but it took less than a minute for him to crack and began to describe Aizawa.

“Are you suddenly a poet?” Hitoshi groaned, “Just tell me the man’s name!”

“Aizawa Shouta,” Izuku finally spat out after stalling for as long as he could.

He watched as his friend’s face went through a very complicated set of emotions before settling on a mix of disbelief and disgust.

“Oh my god… no fuckin’ way. You’re lying to me right now. You have to be,” Hitoshi said, sounding slightly hysterical.

“Why would I lie to you, ‘Toshi?”

“Because you just told me that you married my cousin?!”

Izuku dropped the bottle of curl cream into the sink as he made direct eye contact with his friend. They were silent for a long time, just staring.

“Please tell me you’re just pulling my leg.”

“Nope. You married my cousin.”

“Mr. Nedzu has siblings?” Izuku heard himself ask in a squeaky voice.

“Hm… I think we might be second cousins, so like, related through common great grandparents. But my point still stands, we see each other at family gatherings.”

“I’m starting to think I need sleep,” Izuku murmured as he picked up the curl cream and continued putting product in his hair.

“Yeah, you look really tired, but then again, we both always look really tired.”

“Yours are because your sleep schedule is actual trash. Mine is just because too many things have happened today. Like Bakugou trying to drag me into that damn wedding party.”

“If he wanted to go with someone, he should have taken Uraraka,” Hitoshi grumbled.

“That’s exactly what I said, not to his face obviously,” Izuku laughed.

“Obviously.”

The call went on until Izuku yawned one too many times and Hitoshi decided to let the poor newly-wed get some rest. Izuku plugged his dying phone in and turned all the lights off, settling in for the night.

-

Shouta stumbled into the house. It was late, later than he would have liked it to be, but nothing can ever go his way. He kicked his shoes off and swapped into his house slippers. As he walked through the living room, he noticed that the wine bottle and glasses had been cleaned up and put away.

He headed up the stairs and peeked into each of the rooms. He stuck his head into the master and noticed Izuku asleep. He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. Shouta was as quiet as possible as he pulled a set of clothes out of one of the dressers tucked into the walk-in closet. 

He took a quick shower before climbing into bed next to his husband. He silently looked at Izuku while the younger man slept, his grey eyes tracing down his face and neck. His husband was really cute.

-

The next morning as light filled the room, Izuku’s face scrunched up. He rolled over trying to get some more uninterrupted sleep only to feel something hard and warm next to him. Something that felt like a human body that he did not fall asleep next to.

Green eyes cracked open and he came face to face with Aizawa. The older man was still asleep as far as the brunet could tell. Izuku couldn’t help but stare, it wasn’t his fault that they were currently eye level. 

The brunet’s fingers twitched as he noticed that the older man's stubble was already growing back. The longer he stared, the more the younger man began to notice things. The faintest of scars cut under his right eye. A small mole hidden in the arch of his left eyebrow, just barely visible. 

Izuku felt his face getting hotter as it began to sink in more that they were in bed next to each other. He was careful, but quick in scrambling out of the bed and quietly bolting into the bathroom, his hand over his rapidly beating heart.

What he didn’t get to see in his panic, was a small little smirk appearing on Aizawa’s face as the black-haired man’s eyes cracked open.

-

The fact that they woke up in the same bed wasn’t mentioned at all later that morning when they both were more awake and functioning. Izuku had made a small little breakfast for the both of them. Usually, he wouldn’t eat much for breakfast if at all. He waited until lunch to eat, mostly because he was required in his father’s office rather early in the morning.

But he had been forced to request a couple days off for and following his impromptu wedding event and he wasn’t sure what he was going to do with himself for the next couple of days.

“You know you didn’t have to make breakfast, right?” Aizawa asked, glancing up from his plate.

“You’re eating it aren’t you?” Izuku murmured as he pushed his food around on his own plate.

Aizawa snorted and nodded. They lapsed into silence until more food had been eaten.

“I noticed you only brought a single suitcase of clothes. Were you planning on stopping by your parent’s house to pick up the rest?”

Izuku chewed the food in his mouth, thinking about the question. He had originally planned to do just that. But the more he thought about it now, the more he didn’t really want to. His wardrobe wasn’t exactly the biggest and at the moment it was clothes Bakugou had wanted him to wear. Because of course Izuku couldn’t dress the way he wanted to.

So instead, Izuku shook his head, “No, they weren’t exactly my style. I’ll figure something else out.”

“I’ll take you shopping today then. That is, unless you had something else planned.”

“Nothing planned. I’d be grateful, but you don’t have to come with me. I can shop on my own,” The brunet said, looking up at his husband.

Aizawa’s face seemed to scrunch up for a second before looking wholly unimpressed which just made Izuku squirm in his seat (he also didn't want to acknowledge that he'd seen the exact same expression on Hitoshi's face).

“I suppose I could stay home, but if Father finds out I didn’t accompany you, I can only imagine what he’d do. So if you don’t really mind me tagging along, I think I’ll come with. Warning, I’m not really a fashion kind of person, so I won’t be of any use to you.”

The younger man couldn’t argue with that. Just the thought of Mr. Nedzu’s retaliation made him shudder, “We could leave after breakfast then?”

“Sure.”

(Later Izuku would realize that maybe Aizawa was like Mr. Nedzu considering how he was manipulated in that moment.)

-

Izuku was beginning to wonder if his husband ever wore or even owned anything that wasn’t black or black-adjacent. It being slightly cold outside meant that Aizawa wore a turtleneck and a coat. The turtleneck was dark grey, the coat was black, the pants were black, the shoes were black, hell even his scarf was black!

Izuku walked next to the taller man, eyeing his clothes. The younger was in more colorful clothing, greens and yellows and blues. So while he looked like a normal human being, Aizawa looked like he was straight out of a black-and-white film.

“Glaring at my clothes won’t change what they look like,” The older man hummed.

“You never know, maybe it might convince you to add a pop of color. The fact that your clothes match your hair and eyes is almost concerning.”

“Your eyes are green and it matches your sweater.”

“Correction, it matches one color on my sweater.”

Izuku couldn’t help but smile at their light bickering. It didn’t feel as patronizing as it had felt with Bakugou, and something about Aizawa made him feel more at ease. 

“Oh! Tenya had said something good about this store!” The brunet pointed out a store and absently grabbed the raven-haired man’s hands and tugged him in that direction.

“Tenya? You’re friends with the Iida’s?” Aizawa asked curiously.

“Yeh, but only their youngest son. He’s one of my closest friends. You wouldn’t guess it from how he acts, but he likes to break rules sometimes,” Izuku answered with a fond smile. “In fact, most of my friend group is like that. We used to get up to some crazy stuff in high school.”

They wandered around the store, looking at clothes that Izuku liked or that Aizawa thought would fit him. Which led to them bickering again because the older man really wasn’t good with anything related to fashion.

“No wonder you dress in black! I thought it was just because you looked good in it, not that you suck at color combinations! I was forced to learn, but I doubt you can be taught.”

“Hey, some of my friends tried to teach me. But I find it useless. You think I  look good in black?”

Izuku blushed, “That’s not the point!”

“Oh? And what do we have here?”

A shudder ran down the brunet’s back. Dread filled his entire being and he knew from the sudden worried look on Aizawa’s face that it must show.

Slowly, he turned around only to be face-to-face with his worst nightmare.

Chapter Text

Shouta hadn’t even gotten to turn around yet when he saw Izuku’s face fall from the cute little smile he had been wearing mere moments before. He didn’t recognize the voice, it wasn’t one he had heard before, but when he finally turned, he recognized one of the faces.

Izuku’s ex-boyfriend and who Shouta was going to assume was said ex's shiny new girlfriend. It was no wonder his husband looked like he was on the verge of bolting away from his side.

“Oh Deku, who’s your friend? I don’t remember you knowing anyone who looks like… well, that,” the girl laughed softly like she hadn’t just insulted Shouta’s appearance to his face. 

“He’s-” Izuku had only gotten the one word out of his mouth before he was so rudely cut off.

“Don’t tell me that you’re cheating on me with this hobo-looking loser!” the blond scowled. 

Shouta’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the ex-boyfriend. He was honestly surprised still that his easily flustered spouse would have chosen someone so… abrasive to be with before. He crossed his arms and huffed softly at the loud boy.

“I’m not cheating!” Izuku shouted. He looked furious, an expression the black-haired man never would have expected to see on his face. 

“Not cheating? Don’t lie. Though with how much of a doormat you are, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was actually a sugar daddy instead,” the woman said with a sneer.

“I‘m not a sugar daddy, I’m his husband.”

Izuku startled slightly as Shouta wrapped an arm around him, hand settling on the smaller man’s arm.

“Married? The fuck are you talking about? You can’t be married, you’re still dating me,” the angry blond all but shouted at the married couple.

Shouta went to argue, but his husband seemed to beat him to the punch.

“Dating you? I’m not dating you. I haven’t been since I caught you with your tongue down Uraraka’s throat! You didn’t even have the decency to break off our relationship, Bakugou. How long were you two sleeping together before I even found out? Never mind, I doubt anything you say would be worth listening to. C’mon, let's get out of here,” Izuku said evenly as his hand wrapped around Shouta's, pulling him as he shouldered past the other couple.

“You always run away with your tail between your legs. You’re a fucking coward, Deku. Now come on, stop playing around, you know marrying me is the only way to make sure your family’s reputation isn’t tarnished by you,” the ex spat.

Shouta watched as Izuku froze midstep. It seemed like neither of them could believe what had just come out of the blond’s mouth. Shouta wasn’t going to stand for this. This Bakugou kid seemed like he had an ego as big as the sun and he needed someone to pop his hot air-filled balloon. He turned around but Izuku quickly stepped in front of him as if to stop him. 

“I’m not some object you can just toss around when you feel like it. Again, I’m already married and it’s not to you,” the brunet said. His anger was quiet and more controlled, Shouta really couldn’t see how anyone thought his husband and Bakugou fit together. 

“Stop lying, as if anyone would actually marry you except me. You’re an idiot and a doormat. You couldn’t even dress yourself properly, I had to buy you all the clothes you own. Just accept the fact that you’re nothing without me. You’re only gonna bring shame to your family by yourself,” Bakugou waved off Izuku’s statements. “So come on, stop playing around. Are you really so upset that you’re trying to make me angry by getting with another man?”

Oh, now Shouta was even more agitated. He couldn’t believe how thick the walls that were built in the blond’s head were. Especially since they seemed to keep his brain cells from pinging together to form logical thoughts.  

“Upset? Yeah I’m upset. Upset that you don’t seem to understand that I don’t want you anymore. And I’m done dealing with you. We aren’t together anymore and I don’t want to see you again.”

-

Izuku was angry and sad and just generally feeling off kilter. He couldn’t believe that he actually managed to talk back to Katsuki, but the longer he stood there facing Bakugou and Uraraka, the more out of his depth he felt.

He turned on his heel and speed walked off. He only stopped when he heard someone gently call his name.

“Izuku.”

The brunet came to a halt and took a deep breath. He hadn’t even realized he hadn’t been breathing.

“You okay now?” Aizawa asked as he stepped closer to him.

Izuku went to nod but then shook his head, “I’m sorry that you had to see that.”

“It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known they were going to be there.”

“But I should have. Of course he shops at high-end places. His parents are moguls in the fashion industry. Wherever we go we might have to deal with him,” Izuku explained with frustration . It felt like there was nowhere he could go at the moment and he wanted to cry.

“Hey, it’s okay. I promise. I’m not going to say that we won’t ever run into them again because promises like that can’t be kept. But I can try and limit contact. I know a clothing place owned by an acquaintance that we can shop at. And there is a jewelry store owned by a close friend. I’ll take you to both of them, okay?” Aizawa patiently explained.

Izuku had never had anyone but his parents and close friends be so kind and understanding to him. Never mind that composure that reminded the brunet of those detective shows he used to watch on TV growing up.

He smiled and opened his mouth to speak when his husband’s phone rang. The older man sighed and dug his phone out of his pocket and answered it.

“What?” He said gruffly, reminding Izuku of how he had answered the phone the night before.

The younger man watched as his husband’s face went through a myriad of emotions, including agitation and resignation. “Yeah, I’ll be there soon.”

He hung up and grunted, his hand coming up to rub at his eyes, “Sorry, but my friend is having some issues with the hospital. I need to go help take care of it.”

Izuku’s face fell, of course he had to go. He knew he shouldn’t be upset because this was just a contract marriage. But he didn’t really want the other man to go just yet.

Aizawa dug through his pockets again and pulled out a credit card, handing it over to Izuku, “Buy whatever you want as an apology. I’ll text you the locations of those stores and the names of the owners. I’ll also let them know to keep an eye out for you. If anyone gives you any trouble, let the owners know and they’ll help you out. I’ll head back first.”

And just like that, the brunet watched the older man walk away until he could no longer see him. He frowned as he looked down at the card in his hand. He almost just wanted to go back to the house, but he did need new clothes. He tucked the card away and pulled out his phone as he was sent the location of the two stores. They weren’t too far away from where he was so he hoped he could get there without any issues. 

“Aww, did your new man leave you for someone else? Did you really think anyone would pick you as their first choice?”

Izuku spun around quickly to see Uraraka standing a few paces behind him, a small smirk on her face.

“I don’t know why you even bothered trying to please Katsuki so much. You must have known that you were never gonna be the one he ended up with. You’re too… you I suppose,” she laughed.

The male grit his teeth and practically snarled at her, “If his type is betrayers with no sense of morality. I’m glad he didn’t end up with me, because that seems right up your alley.”

Uraraka didn’t seem at all fazed by his words, picking at her nails, “well, unlike some people, I at least still have friends. After all, you didn’t think our friend group would choose you, did you? Oh they all came to your little wedding party and were so shocked and upset the entire time that you didn’t show up! I bet they haven’t even called to ask what happened. But that’s probably because I already explained everything to them.”

Izuku’s heart dropped. Sure he had spoken to Hitoshi who was one of his closest friends (not counting that he was now related by law). But he hadn’t heard anything from the others. And they had sounded so sincere just the day before. Izuku really didn’t want to believe it. And he wouldn’t, not until he talked to them himself and heard it straight from their mouths that they no longer wanted to be his friends. 

After all, he couldn’t trust Uraraka anymore. Her betrayal had cut deep and he wasn’t going to try and let her words burrow under his skin and fester.

“You say that, but I doubt that was the actual reason they were shocked. I bet they haven’t even called to talk to you since you explained your side of things. Probably because they couldn’t believe how shameless you are,” Izuku scoffed.

He crossed his arms, trying to comfort himself. He’d have to call them and see what was going on for himself later in the day. 

Uraraka’s face shifted, looking more and more upset that Izuku didn’t seem fazed at all by her scathing words. Instead she just huffed and stomped her foot like a little kid throwing a tantrum.

“Stay away from Katsuki, he’s mine! You hear me, Deku!”

“As I already said, you can have him,” Izuku said, sounding more calm than he felt.

He walked past her, forcefully shoulder checking her on the way past. She stumbled and Izuku grinned a bit as he heard her frustrated little noises.

-

Izuku felt almost burdened with the several clothing bags in his hands. He had bought several outfits from the overbearing man in all denim. Mr Hakamada was nice enough, but he had nitpicked everything from a stray thread in Izuku’s sweater to his admittedly messy hair. As nice as the store was, the brunet thought it might be best to keep a wide berth from that particular place in the future.

Now, he looked up at the sign of the jewelry store Aizawa had sent him to. He wasn’t sure why the man had mentioned the store as Izuku wasn’t really a jewelry person. But his husband had said that one of his close friends owned the store so Izuku figured that it couldn’t hurt to meet them. 

There was a soft chime as he opened the door and stepped in. The inside felt upper-class with glass and sleek black metal. There were uncomfy looking chairs settled around the area and mirrors strategically placed near displays. 

“Welcome, how can I help you?”

The woman who had spoken was in a deep purple pantsuit with a cream blouse underneath. Her long back hair seemed to shine blue underneath the soft lights. Her face was framed with silver horn-rimmed glasses. She wore a warm smile on her face.

“Um, hello. I’m just… looking at the moment,” Izuku nervously murmured as he stepped closer to the center display cases where she stood.

The brunet glanced around before looking at the woman only to see her squinting at him with a scrutinizing look. After a long minute of which Izuku thought he was going to be accused of shop-lifting, the woman gasped loudly.

“Oh my god! You’re Shouta’s new little husband!” She squealed as she practically launched herself into the younger man’s personal space. “I’m Kayama Nemuri, but you can just call me Nemuri. I’m a friend of Shouta’s. He told me you were coming, but I’m gonna be real honest with you. I thought he was joking when he referred to you as his husband . But gosh you are just the cutest thing!”

Izuku’s face broke out into a nervous smile. She was hyper in a way that reminded him of Bakugou’s friend Mina, but with a maturity that reminded him of his friend Momo. It was an odd combination, but the brunet wasn’t uncomfortable. In fact, he had a good feeling about Nemuri.

“It’s nice to meet you, Miss Nemuri. I’m Izuku. I… thank you for the compliment…? I’m not usually a jewelry kind of person, I apologize.”

The woman simply smiled, and motioned to a chair, “It’s not a problem. I’m sure I can find something for you, even if it’s a watch. Set your bags down on that chair and I can show you a couple things that I think would absolutely suit you.”

Izuku gently set the bags down and returned to the counter, gently drumming his fingers on the metal edges of the showcases.

“Now, let’s see… your green eyes and warmer skin makes me think you’d look better in gold or maybe rose gold? But you do have a choice!” Nemuri began, but then her eyes seemed to wander and she gasped.

Within seconds, the brunet’s left hand was grabbed and pulled making him grunt as his body hit the case.

“You don’t have a wedding ring?! What was that man thinking! I’m sure you’re shopping on his dime, so let’s set you up with a set for you and Mr Grumpy,” Nemuri said as she dropped his hand and began looking over the rings within the cases.

“Oh, but I’m not sure what he likes or what his ring size is,” Izuku stuttered out, trying his best to stop her from searching.

“Don’t worry, I have all of my friends’ ring sizes memorized! And considering what Shouta looks like, he’s a silver or tungsten kind of man. Now let’s see. I don’t think he likes any stones, but I’m romantic at heart so… a green gem would be perfect. For you, if you go with gold, a regular clear would work. What do you think?” She smiled as she pulled out a tray and pulled a couple rings to show him. “Of course, any of these can be customized and picked up or delivered to you.”

His face was red, he was sure of it. How could he even bear to think of getting wedding rings for a man he just met even if they were legally married. “I… I still don’t think this is a good idea. After all, we're not even really…” the words died on his tongue. He didn’t want to admit it out loud to anyone that their marriage was one of convenience.

“I see how distressed this is making you. If you really don’t want them at the moment, I won’t press the issue,” Nemuri said softly. She leaned over the case, gently grabbing his hands this time. She looked worried about him. 

Izuku thought about it for a long moment. And then it dawned on him. He had heard gossip in the office once that one of the women in the HR Department had taken to wearing a ring on her finger to deter men from flirting with her even if she wasn’t actually married. Technically, this wasn’t the same thing, but wearing a ring might help sell their relationship to outsiders.

He took a deep breath before nodding. He gave her a small smile, “sorry, just working through my thoughts. I think rings would be perfect, if you don’t mind.”

Nemuri’s face broke out into a smile and she let go of his hands to nudge the ring tray closer to him.

Hesitantly, Izuku looked over the rings, it was a bit overwhelming, but looking them over, he thought he liked the ones without the big flashy stones. And he was sure his husband would too. In the end, he picked out two simple bands with a single line of color splitting the center of them. 

Nemuri used a ring sizer to figure out Izuku’s ring size, and within 20 minutes, Izuku was paying a highly discounted price because her ‘friends don’t pay the markup prices’. Then he was out the door and on his way home.

-

Izuku opened the front door, calling out to Aizawa who he knew was home because his car was out front.

“I’m back!”

Izuku kicked off his shoes in the genkan and slipped on his house slippers. He was a couple steps into the house, holding all of his bags when he saw his husband sitting on the couch. Next to him was a blond male who looked a bit sickly, but had a bright smile on his face. They were sitting awfully close to each other.

“Welcome back.”

Aizawa’s voice was warm as he stood. He took a couple steps as the blond also stood, “Izuku, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. This is Hizashi, he’s the one that was in the hospital.”

Izuku gave them both a wobbly little smile, the ring on his finger feeling like it was burning a brand into his skin. Absently, the brunet was already regretting getting the rings. Hizashi was good-looking and seemed to be a visual opposite of his husband. The blond’s eyes were just a shade lighter than Izuku’s and he already knew Aizawa, presumably for years at this point.

“You must be Midoriya Izuku, yes? Can I call you Izuku?” Hizashi asked.

Izuku swallowed hard and nodded. The man’s voice was smooth, completely made for a radio personality or with his looks, he could even be an actor.

“I have to make a quick call, I’d… like it if you two got along. Excuse me,” Aizawa bowed his head before making his way upstairs.

Izuku’s heart was beating out of his chest as he stared up at the man his husband kept running off for.

Chapter Text

“It’s… nice to meet you, Hizashi,” Izuku murmured.

He set all of the bags on the empty coffee table and glanced around. By the look of things, the older two men had gotten here not too long before him. The brunet looked up at the blond who was watching him curiously, no trace of malice at all on his face.

“Can I get you a water or anything to drink,” Izuku offered, not liking being stared at so intensely.

Hizashi smiled and nodded, “water would be nice, if you don’t mind. At least you asked, Sho just told me to sit down and not move.”

The pout that appeared on the blond’s face had Izuku giving another wobbly, little smile. They were close, that was obvious. As the younger man shuffled over to the kitchen, his fingers ran absently over the cold metal on his finger. He knew he told Aizawa that he didn’t care what he did relationship-wise because it didn’t involve Izuku, and so the brunet just needed to remember that there are no feelings between the two of them.

He slipped the ring off and tucked it away into his pocket. Then he grabbed the glass of water and returned to the living room, offering it up to Hizashi who gratefully took it and began sipping on it. The blond had sat down and patted the seat next to him, placing the glass on the coffee table to give his full attention to Izuku.

“Sit, please. I want to learn more about you. Sho was no help, he didn’t bother to answer any of my questions! I still can’t believe you managed to convince him to marry you. He’s dodged any and all blind dates me and our mutual friends have tried to set him up on. He’s really stubborn, so you must be special!”

Hizashi must have meant well, he didn’t seem to have a mean bone in his body. But his words only stuck the idea in hi head that Aizawa was getting something out of the contract marriage as well. A way out of the blind dates. Of course he had to be getting something out of the deal. The stoic man had only said that he didn’t really have a choice. But it stood to reason he wouldn’t have signed something so spontaneous if there wasn’t anything about the marriage that benefitted him.

“I’m really not all that special. Our marriage was orchestrated by his dad. Mr Nedzu wanted to help me out of a rough situation. Mr Aizawa is just nice enough to go along with it,” Izuku spoke softly. He kept his eyes on his lap.

He wasn’t sure why he bothered to tell Hizashi that their marriage wasn’t real when he had withheld the information from Nemuri just a couple hours before. But as he sat there, he looked up into the blond’s eyes. They were warm and understanding, and there wasn’t an ounce of pity or even disgust in them. He felt a hand softly land on his shoulder.

“Don’t sell yourself short. Even if the marriage isn’t real now, that doesn’t mean it will stay that way. Trust me, the look on Sho’s face when you walked in the door… I’m sure you could have him eating out of the palm of your hand in a few weeks,” Hizashi said before bursting into laughter. Though his giggles were cut off by heavy coughs and a wince.

Izuku immediately scooted closer and picked up the glass of water that the blond had set on the coffee table. He placed it in Hizashi’s hands and watched the older man drain what was left of it. His coughing subsided and a morose look appeared on his face.

“I’m sorry, I had forgotten for a moment that I was sick. I hate it… And, I’m sorry that I kept calling Sho away from you. He only bothered to tell me that he was married today when he brought me back here. If I had known, I would have called any of our other friends, I promise!”

Izuku stared for a long moment, before lowering his head. He was gonna cry, he could feel it. Of course he was gonna cry, he was known for doing so in any situation with intense emotions (which meant that he was surprised he didn’t burst into tears when confronting Bakugou in any capacity).

“I don’t blame you… how could I?” The brunet’s voice was soft and just as wobbly. 

With a lighter heart than before, he shoved his hand into his pocket and retrieved the ring he had placed in there a couple minutes before. Knowing that Hizashi wasn’t going to fight him for Aizawa meant that he didn’t have to worry about him. Carefully he slipped the ring on to his finger.

“Ooh! I was wondering if you two had rings, I didn’t see one on Sho’s hand. Where did you get it, it’s so pretty!” Hizashi cooed as he gently grabbed Izuku’s hand and brought it closer to his face, examining the ring.

“Oh, I met Nemuri earlier today. She helped me pick out some ready-made rings. She also said that if I ever wanted custom ones to let her know,” the younger man explained.

From there on, Izuku and Hizashi seemed to get on like a house on fire. Despite the brunet’s anxiety, Hizashi was kind and willing to answer any and all of Izuku’s questions. Questions that only piled when he realized the blond was a radio host.

-

Shouta sighed heavily as he sat on the edge of the bed in the master bedroom. He wished he wasn’t being primed to take over his dad’s “Empire” as he called it. It was draining and always had him busy and working overtime. He really just wanted to climb into bed and take a nap right then and there, but he remembered who he had left downstairs.

He had seen the tenseness lining Izuku’s shoulders. Figured that it could be from Shouta bringing a friend home without telling him or from said friend being the one he keeps deserting the brunet for.

He stood and left the bedroom, hoping with all his might that he wouldn’t walk downstairs to a distraught husband and a friend who wore a mask in his presence. But all his worries vanished as his slippers hit the laminated wood of the ground floor. 

Izuku and Hizashi were eagerly chatting on the couch. The brunet was relaxed in a way that made a seed of jealousy bloom in Shouta's chest. In the 24 hours they’d been married, the younger man had always looked uncomfortable in his presence. Sure, Shouta didn’t know Izuku before their marriage. But that didn’t mean he didn’t-

“Sho! I have to get going. Oboro is here to pick me up. He's gonna to keep an eye on me while he’s off from work,” Hizashi’s voice cut through his thoughts.

“Oh, I’ll walk you out then.”

Izuku stood and smiled warmly at the blond, “I had fun talking to you. We should definitely hang out sometime. Oh! Let’s exchange numbers.”

“I was going to ask, but you beat me to the punch!”

Shouta’s eyes twitched slightly as he watched them both stand so close to each other and exchange numbers. He fought to keep his face devoid of the pout that was trying to form. Finally, the dark-haired man was able to usher his friend out of the house.

“Shouta,” Hizashi said the moment they were outside.

Aizawa grunted and looked at the blonde. He was then startled when the sick man grabbed him by the shirt and yanked his close.

“If you hurt Izuku in any way , I will never forgive you. He is such a sweet guy that if you are ever rude to him, you’re a cruel person. He doesn’t deserve to have his heart broken, got it?”

Before Shouta could even get any words out of his mouth, Hizashi had let him go and strode down the driveway to Oboro’s car that was idling in the road.

Now Aizawa needed to know what they had talked about. He left them alone for maybe 15 minutes maximum! Granted, he was sure that if any sane person was left alone with his husband they would be the same. After all, he had read the text Nemuri had sent him after Izuku had left her shop.

Shouta stepped back inside and glanced at Izuku who was sitting on the couch folding his new clothes. He still had the relaxed look on his face, and the grey-eyed man didn’t want that look to go away. So he figured that he wouldn’t ask. As long as the two had gotten along, he could be happy.

He shuffled over to the couch and sat down, “Looks like Hakamada set you up nicely.”

Izuku, who had blessedly not flinched when he sat down, smiled up at him and nodded, “Mhm. He was… particular. But it didn’t seem like he meant any harm. I only got enough clothes for a couple days and a second pair of pajamas. I’ll have to go out shopping again another time. But I didn’t want to spend too much of your money.”

Shouta wanted to squish his cheeks. His husband was so cute.

“Spend as much as you want. We’re married after all. And I’m sure if Dad found out that I cut you off, you’d suddenly be single again. And I doubt either of us wants that at the moment.”

That seemed to pull a small little laugh out of Izuku, and any leftover anxiety seemed to drain from him.

“Oh, what do you want for dinner? I’m not much of a cook, but I can order in,” Shouta offered.

Silence before Izuku was looking at him in disbelief. “How have you ever survived by yourself?” He asked with a small squeak.

“Good question. I-... I don’t even know.”

“Well, you have me now. You better hope you have food in this house I can cook.”

Shouta could only look the other direction as Izuku’s mounting concern became more palpable.

Chapter Text

Izuku had taken one look at the meager food in the kitchen. He had only grabbed what he needed for a light breakfast that morning, so to see that there was hardly anything other than what he had used was jarring. And Aizawa didn’t even want to meet his gaze anymore! Serves him right, Izuku was disappointed. 

And that disappointment was exactly the reason why he was in the grocery store, dragging his husband along like he was a petulant child.

“Hm, what sounds good for dinner? Curry? Yakitori? Ooh, maybe katsudon…” Izuku idly wondered, glancing at Aizawa who, despite the blank face, almost looked lost. “Why do you look like you’ve never been in a market before?”

Green eyes met grey-blue and a laugh bubbled up from the brunet’s mouth.

“I usually just order everything online and have it delivered. Saves me the trip and having to deal with so many people,” Aizawa slowly explained, stepping closer to allow someone to pass behind him.

Izuku almost took a half-step back as the dark-haired man got closer. But he didn’t and swallowed down a squeak. Though he couldn’t stop his face from heating up at the sudden close proximity. He cleared his throat and shook his head a bit.

“I suppose you’re right, it does get a bit busy. Well, next time I’ll just come by myself. Now, what are you hungry for?”

-

They had been home for less than 10 minutes. Izuku hadn’t even gotten that far into food prep when there was a knock on the front door. He made eye contact with his husband who was on the couch with a laptop balanced on his legs. The older man’s eyes suddenly widened like he knew something that Izuku didn’t. He swore and set the computer on the coffee table before getting up. Izuku watched as Aizawa trudged over to the front door. He looked reluctant to do so and Izuku was curious as to who was on the other side.

The brunet snatched up a hand towel, drying off his hands before tucking it into the pocket of his apron as he rounded the counter, stepping into the living room right as the front door was opened.

In an instant, Izuku knew who had arrived. Mr Nedzu just had an aura about him. He was a bit unnerving, something the brunet had gotten used to rather easily, considering his father gave off the same kind of feeling.

His suspicion was confirmed as the little old man walked in with a wide grin. Izuku smiled upon seeing him.

“Mr Nedzu! I didn’t realize you were coming over. I would have bought more ingredients for dinner!”

His father-in-law waved his hands and strode over, not even greeting his own son who was still holding the front door open.

“Don’t worry about it! I don’t eat much anyway. I wanted to see how you’ve been settling in. Has Shouta been treating you well? You can tell me anything, don’t worry, I’m on your side,” Nedzu said as sat on the couch, grabbing the laptop his son had been using and looking over whatever the screen was on.

The brunet glanced over at Aizawa who sighed and closed the door, making his way over and sitting on the couch next to his dad.

“We can talk more over dinner. I was just about to start cooking,” Izuku said with a smile.

“Have Shouta help you, he should learn how to cook for you in the future,” Nedzu said matter-of-factly.

The married couple made eye contact again and Izuku’s eyes narrowed. Aizawa raised an eyebrow. After a couple tense minutes of a staring contest, the dark-haired man stood up from the couch and trailed after the brunet into the kitchen.

“What would you like me to do?” Aizawa asked, while rolling up his sleeves and washing his hands.

“Wash and chop these vegetables if you wouldn’t mind,” Izuku said as he set the plate with the vegetables on the edge of the sink. “You do know how to do that, right?”

He was met with an almost offended look to which Izuku laughed, “How am I supposed to know, hm? All you said was you couldn’t cook. I don’t know exactly what you can do.”

“I know how to wash vegetables, Izuku.”

“I’m glad I don’t have to teach you then!”

-

They sat at the dinner table, Izuku setting down the dishes before finally removing his apron and settling down.

“I hope everything tastes okay. My mom taught me how to cook,” the brunet idly said, looking at Aizawa and Nedzu. 

Aizawa opened his mouth as if to speak.

“I’m sure it tastes amazing,” Nedzu suddenly said, effectively cutting off his son.

Izuku laughed softly as he watched his husband glare at his father before huffing softly. The old man just looked smug, almost like he was competing for Izuku’s attention.

The first bite was eaten and at the same time, the father and son duo were humming softly. Izuku beamed happily. It was almost adorable to see exactly what traits the two shared.

“I’m glad you both seem to like it!”

“I might have to come over for dinner more often,” Nedzu said only to receive yet another glare from Aizawa. 

Dinner seemed to go peacefully after that, and the brunet had no complaints about spending time with Nedzu. Especially since one he thought about it, they would have met up the next day anyway.

About halfway through the meal, the old man turned to Izuku, a wide smile on his face. “Oh! I have some business close to here tomorrow morning, you don’t mind if I stay the night do you?”

Aizawa suddenly choked on the bite of food in his mouth, banging on his chest with what Izuku could only describe as a horrified look on his face. The dark-haired man grabbed his glass of water and drank the entire glass.

“I don’t quite mind, but I’m not the only one living in this house, Mr Nedzu,” the brunet said carefully.

Izuku looked at his husband who had finally caught his breath and was holding his face in his hands. He seemed to heave a heavy sigh before looking up.

“Fine, I suppose you can stay,” Aizawa begrudgingly said, picking back up his chopsticks only to set them back down.

“Perfect, since you both stay in the same room, I can pick whatever room I want, right?”

Izuku froze, food halfway to his mouth. He looked up at Aizawa yet again and made eye contact. Sure they had slept in the same bed the night before, but the brunet had no intention of sharing a bed again. It was an accident the first time… wasn’t it ?

“Yeah, pick whatever room you want.”

A shudder ran down Izuku’s spine as Aizawa spoke up, keeping eye contact. The brunet had no idea what this man was doing. Was he implying that they would be sleeping in the same room again? If so, he’s sleeping on the floor. Izuku would make him.

“Thank you, Shouta, I’ll make sure to pick the room furthest, just in case.”

Izuku bristled. These two were conspiring against him. He could feel it . He jolted when he felt a hand on his arm. He looked over to see Nedzu smiling at him with the same smile he had given him when he suggested the contract marriage in the first place.

“Don’t worry, I promise to give you both some space. I’m aware that my… ungrateful son left you alone last night. He won’t be leaving your side tonight.”

Green eyes slowly looked over and squinted at Aizawa. Said man immediately picked up his chopsticks and started eating as if trying to avoid responsibility. Eventually Izuku just sighed and went back to eating as well.

-

“This is all your fault,” Izuku said as he sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at Aizawa.

“My fault? You’re the one who said he could stay the night in the first place,” Aizawa countered.

The brunet groaned and flopped over on the bed burying his face in the sheets. He stayed there for a long moment before he felt the bed dip under the weight of his husband. He lifted his face a bit.

“Yeah, well you agreed with me… I suppose I can’t make you sleep on the floor?”

“Not unless you do too. And I highly doubt either of us want to wake up in pain. Besides, we’ve already slept in the same bed once, what’s the harm?”

Green eyes squinted again before letting out another heavy sigh, “Fine, I’m going to go shower.”

Izuku climbed off the bed and dug through his suitcase, before slipping into the bathroom.

-

Shouta waited until he heard the shower turn on before he grabbed the bags of clothes that Izuku had gotten earlier. He set them on top of a small table in the room so that they were off the floor. They’d need to get washed before his husband could wear them.

As he set them down, he noticed a bag from the boutique that Nemuri owned among them. Shouta hadn’t expected the younger man to actually get anything there. Against his better judgement, he peeked into the bag. There was only a simple box and that piqued Shouta’s curiosity even more.

He grabbed it and lifted it out of the bag. He shot a glance to the bathroom door before opening the box. Inside was a single ring, though it looked like the box was meant to hold two. Honestly, the ring was beautiful and something Shouta would wear easily despite not being a jewelry person. 

The dark-haired man took the band out of the box and slid it onto his ring finger without thinking. It was a perfect fit. He could feel a grin forming on his face.

Sure, he should put the ring back, he wasn’t given it yet. But it belonged to him, didn’t it? It was a wedding ring, and he was married. With a soft huff, Shouta pulled the ring off his finger and gingerly placed it back in the box before putting the box back. 

The metal had only been on his finger for less than a minute, and yet his hand suddenly felt empty.

Shouta turned on his heel and entered the closet. It was mostly empty in the first place and if he played his cards right, Izuku would be filling out more of the empty space. But just to be safe, Aizawa went about rearranging some of his clothes, keeping it all to one side of the closet. He’d have to bring up the idea of Izuku putting his clothes away soon. The younger man couldn’t keep living out of his suitcase like this was a hotel that he was only staying at for a few days.

He finished right as he heard the bathroom door open. He stepped out of the closet to see Izuku standing on his side of the bed, phone in his hand typing away.

“Your hair isn’t wet,” Shouta pointed out as he approached.

“I don’t wash my hair every day. It’s curly and doing so would take a little too much product,” the brunet said.

The younger man looked up at Shouta, “It’s not like your hair.” 

Shouta tensed for a moment as a hand reached up, gently running through his dark hair. He shuddered.

“Oh wow, your hair is really soft! I kinda took you for a guy who would use those 3-in-1 bottles of soap. You’ll have to let me braid it one day.”

If Shouta were a lesser man, his face would be red, he knew it. He leaned slightly into Izuku’s hand, letting the shorter man touch his hair all he wanted.

“I did, back in high school. But I have a bunch of annoying friends who wouldn’t stand for it,” Shouta murmured, trying to keep his tone low. “They went through the whole song and dance to find out what would be best for my hair. They check that I’m still using those products quite often actually.”

They were standing close to each other and the dark-haired man wasn’t about to point it out for fear of his cute little husband moving away.

“You could braid it tonight after I dry my hair?” Shouta offered.

The risk of the offer was worth it as he saw that freckled face light up in excitement. But it was even more worth it when Izuku’s cheeks began to pinken. Shouta wanted to bite them.

The brunet cleared his throat and pulled his hand away, stepping back from him, “you should go shower.”

Shouta smiled slightly but acquiesced, stepping back and putting more space between them. 

-

Izuku gently ran his fingers through Aizawa’s hair. He had a hair band around his wrist as he carefully worked through the thick strands. As he began to braid his husband’s hair, he could feel his face heating up. It almost felt like this moment was too intimate, but it wasn’t. It was just Izuku’s mind overthinking again. 

His hands stalled for a moment, his thumb brushing over the black hair. He stared off into space for a moment before he heard Aizawa make a small noise.

“You okay back there? Falling asleep?”

“No, no. Sorry, I was a little distracted with my thoughts,” Izuku murmured, finishing up the braid and tying it off. He backed away from Aizawa towards his side of the bed.

“There, all done.”

The brunet watched as the older man turned his head and pulled the braid over his shoulder, examining it. He made an approving noise before sliding back so he was fully on the bed and not sitting on the edge of it.

They sat there in silence, Izuku looking down at his hands. Though, he could feel Aizawa’s eyes on him.

“We should go to bed. It’s late,” Izuku spoke up as he turned off the lamp on his side of the bed and slid underneath the covers, pulling them over his shoulders. He turned, his back facing the other man.

There was no movement for a moment, then the other light clicked off and the blankets shifted. Everything seemed to settle.

Time moved sluggishly, green eyes often opening up to peer at the dim numbers on the alarm clock. An hour passed. Then two.

Izuku was having trouble sleeping. It’s not like he hadn’t shared a bed before. He had plenty of times! Trips had him sleeping with his older brother or his friends if there weren't enough beds. He’d slept in the same bed with Bakugou dozens of times before. But there was something about laying in bed with Aizawa that was different. It didn’t matter that there was nothing between them, Izuku just felt nervous. Anxious in a way he hadn’t ever felt before. 

It almost felt like sleeping next to a crush.

He listened to the soft sounds of Aizawa breathing. He had fallen asleep not too long after the lights had turned off. Izuku almost envied the ease at which he was able to slip under. 

He sighed softly and gently moved, turning over to try and get comfortable on the suddenly uncomfortable mattress. His eyes slid shut and he tried to relax, wanting to get at least a couple hours of sleep.

A handful of moments with no sleep and the bed began to shift. Izuku’s eyes cracked open and almost jumped as he saw Aizawa’s face, slack with sleep, right in view. Another spike of jealousy. But that disappeared in a puff of smoke as he felt a heavy, muscular arm slide around his waist, pulling him close.

Izuku’s face heated and he wiggled, trying to work himself away. But the grip was unnecessarily strong and he was pulled against the older man’s body. It was a warmth he was used to, yet it didn’t feel as scorching hot as it had with Bakugou.

The dark-haired man shifted again, this time practically curling around Izuku’s smaller body. Aizawa’s face was buried in the brunet’s hair, and at this point Izuku wasn’t even sure if the older man was still asleep. It sure didn’t really feel like it.

But after minutes of being held, drowsiness began to creep in, sleep overtaking him before he could even realize how comfortable he was. Within seconds, he fell asleep.

Chapter Text

Morning came, and Izuku’s embarrassment shot through the roof as he woke up alone in bed. He decided to ignore the disappointment that rooted itself deep in his chest. After all, no one wants to admit they want to wake up in bed with someone they hadn’t wanted to sleep in the same bed with the night before.

Carefully, he got up and got dressed and ready for the day. Last night he had messaged the group chat for all his friends and asked to meet up for lunch. Thankfully they all had readily agreed within minutes. It was like a breath of fresh air. Now he just had to hope that they really did side with him and not Uraraka.

He yawned as he descended the steps. Aizawa and Nedzu were in the kitchen, talking about what Izuku was gonna assume was work. It easily could have been something else, but the brunet wasn’t close enough to hear it.

They were both in suits, Aizawa’s being all black with no tie. He looked… good. The brunet shook his head.

“Good morning,” Izuku said softly, interrupting the older men.

“Good morning, Izuku! Did you sleep well?” Nedzu asked, a mug in his hands of what was probably tea.

The brunet nodded his head as he wandered over to the counter, reaching into the cabinet to grab out a very stylized mug. It was his favorite mug that he had managed to sneak out of his parents house. He only had to sneak it out because his dad constantly stole it and used it.

“I’m glad. I went to check on you both this morning and you were fast asleep, so I didn’t want to wake you.”

“That didn’t stop you from practically dragging me out of bed,” Aizawa grumbled into his cup.

Izuku poured himself some coffee and grabbed the milk from the fridge.

“Oh, so that’s why you weren’t there when I woke up. I was wondering,” he idly commented as he added and stirred a bit of sugar into his mug. He returned the milk to the fridge and scooped up his cup, taking a sip of coffee.

He turned to find both of the other men staring at him. Izuku made a small confused noise, not understanding why they looked like he had said something so outrageous.

Nedzu took a second before he burst out laughing. He reached over and slapped his son’s arm with enough force to make the dark-haired man stumble. Some coffee spilt from the edge of his mug, dripping down the side of the ceramic.

“Ow,” Aizawa said, obviously upset. “What was that for?”

He didn’t get an answer as Nedzu frowned slightly before easily switching topics, “I’ll be stealing Shouta away for the day unfortunately. He still has some things to learn about the business. You don’t mind, yes?”

“Not at all. I have a couple things to do today as well,” Izuku agreed.

“Oh?”

“Mhm, I’m meeting up with some friends. Not sure how long I’ll be out.”

A silence settled over the trio. Izuku watched in faint amusement as Nedzu looked at his son and once again hit him in the arm as if signaling him to say something.

 Aizawa coughed and looked at the brunet, “You mentioned you were friends with the youngest Iida. But I don’t believe you’ve mentioned your other friends before.”

“I haven’t. But I’ll let that stay a mystery. You’ll meet them one day. Oh! That reminds me. I’m… going to visit my parents this weekend and I know they’d love to meet you…” Izuku trailed off, absently drumming his fingers against his mug. He bit his lip. “Would you… like to come with me?”

“Yes.”

The brunet looked up to see Aizawa staring at him intensely. He had responded so quickly and confidently that it almost left Izuku breathless. Instead, he smiled and nodded, “I’ll let them know to expect us then.”

“Alright, as cute as you two are together, I’m going to go wait in the car. I expect you soon, Shouta. Have a wonderful day, Izuku. Next time I come over, we should play chess!”

Izuku, despite the blush he was sure covered his face, bid Nedzu good bye and watched the old man leave after placing his cup in the sink. The moment the front door was closed Aizawa spoke from beside him.

“So, you were disappointed you didn’t wake up next to me?”

“I did not say that!” Izuku squeaked, hitting the arm that Nedzu hadn’t hit.

“Ow, what is with both of you hitting me?”

“You deserve it,” the brunet huffed.

He leaned back against the counter and took another long sip of his coffee. They stood there in a comfortable silence.

“Do you think your parents would like me?” Aizawa softly asked, a rare note of vulnerability coloring his voice.

Green eyes looked up, searching. Izuku didn’t know why he was asking. Though, he could see how others would find Aizawa lacking in a sense. Mostly silent, independent to a point, stoic. Really, Izuku wasn’t sure why he was attracted to him in the slightest. And yet, he did. The companionable silence, the ability to just exist in the same place. A pillar of strength, a protector. 

“I’m sure they’ll love you when they get to know you,” Izuku eventually said.

He looked down into his mug, taking a deep breath. When he looked up, he was startled. He hadn’t even heard Aizawa move. But there he was, standing too close for comfort.

“Does the same apply to you? Would you love me if you got to know me?”

Izuku’s face heated up. He swallowed hard. He wanted to lie and say he didn’t understand what the older man meant, but he did. He understood it perfectly. And a small part of him wanted to say yes. Wanted to admit to Aizawa that he wanted to fall in love with him.

But he couldn’t. He didn’t want to lock the older man into a relationship that was built on a need to escape. Built on secrets and baggage.

So he simply didn’t say anything. He bit his lip and looked away. After a minute, Aizawa sighed and stepped back, walking over to the sink and placing his empty mug inside.

“I’ll be working late tonight. Don’t worry about cooking dinner, I’ll just order to the office,” Aizawa said as he turned on his heel and walked to the living room. He made it to the genkan and swapped out his shoes and reached for the doorknob. 

He stopped and Izuku glanced up. The grey-eyed man looked back at him, expression more unreadable than the brunet had seen in the last two days. He almost looked like he wanted to say something, and he opened his mouth.

“You…” he trailed off before licking his lips, “Have fun with your friends.”

And then he was gone, pulling open the door and leaving for work.

Izuku let out a shaky breath and slowly slid down to the floor, mug still in hand. His heart hurt slightly but he brushed it off. No one should fall so hard for someone they just met. It was unreasonable, and yet… Izuku wanted to. He craved the love he had once had with Bakugou. It was so jarring to have it for years and then have it ripped from his grasp.

He didn’t want Aizawa to simply be his rebound, someone to fill in the cracks. So he couldn’t give into the temptation the older man was dangling in front of his face. It would be hard, but he could do it.

The brunet gave himself some time to finish drinking his coffee on the floor before standing and washing the cups in the sink. He checked his phone and realized the time was marching without him. He didn’t bother with breakfast since he was going to apparently have a big lunch according to all of his friends who were planning the lunch for him.

A lot of time was spent scrolling through social media and begging his dad to go back to work the next day because he was getting bored and restless. It didn’t end up being as fruitful as he had hoped, his dad saying that he should indulge in his hobbies now that he’s married. Izuku swiped off that particular text chat and immediately messaged his mother who would be more helpful in the situation.

Not even 5 minutes later and Izuku had the a-okay to return to work as soon as he wished. Mission accomplished. He checked the time and stood from his spot on the couch, making sure he looked okay before heading for the door.

He stepped out of the house and sitting in the driveway was a car he recognized. He grinned and strode over, pulling open the passenger door. He easily climbed in and looked at the driver.

“Fancy seeing you here.”

“Well who else was gonna pick you up, huh?” Hitoshi said, switching the car to reverse. “Seatbelts, children.”

“You’re literally only 2 weeks older than me, shut up ‘toshi,” Izuku said with a laugh as he obediently buckled his seatbelt.

“I got you to laugh, my work here is done!” Hitoshi gave a monotone cheer as he switched to drive. He glanced over to him, grey eyes looking him over. “But for real, you kinda look like shit. What’s up with that? Is Sho not treating you well? If he isn’t, just say the word.”

“No… no… He’s actually treating me well. Too well…” Izuku murmured, twisting and pulling at his fingertips.

Hitoshi made a small confused noise, eyes trained on the road in front of them. “‘zu, what aren’t you telling me?”

The brunet groaned and rubbed at his face. He didn’t want to tell Hitoshi. He really didn’t. They were related , it didn’t matter how much his friend would take his side, it would be awkward. He leaned his head back, gently banging it against the headrest.

“I don’t want to make this awkward.”

“Fuck that. Tell me.”

The words began to bubble up in his throat. Hitoshi hadn’t always been his friend. In fact, they had hated each other at first. Misinformation and assumptions clouding their perceptions of each other until everything boiled over into a confrontation that dissolved into a friendship closer than either of them had had before.

And that of course made Izuku want to spill his guts, so he did.

“I want to fall in love with him, but I don’t want to hurt him with how messed up I am.”

The brunet yelped as the car came to a very abrupt stop at a red light. The other man in the driver’s seat turned at breakneck speed, a mixed expression on his face.

They stared at each other before Hitoshi sighed heavily.

“You’re not messed up, Izuku. I keep telling you this. You’ve never been messed up. Bakugou just got under your skin and made you doubt yourself. Hell, he’s called you useless pretty much all of your life. He still calls you useless. It’s not your fault if you want to find someone, literally anyone, who treats you better.”

The light turned green and Hitoshi turned back to the road, pressing the gas. The car was silent for a moment.

“But isn’t it too soon? I’ve known him for 2 days. And I’ve only been broken up for about 2 weeks.”

“Okay and? Yeah, it might be too soon. But as long as you think you’re mentally ready enough, what’s the harm? Here, answer me this. When was the last time you… loved… Bakugou? Like, wanted to go on a date with him, sleep with him, whatever,” Hitoshi asked.

Izuku sat there and thought about it. It had been a good long while since the last time he and Bakugou had done anything. The blond had always been busy with work or his parents. Because despite being a firefighter, he was still involved in his parent’s business. Being a model made him relatively popular and well known, something that had been lorded over the brunet’s head like an axe.

So he went through the days. Counted them individually. Then he tried to place his feelings against them. And the more he thought, the more angry he became. 

“That fucker had been cheating on me for months! ” Izuku suddenly burst out.

“Not the question I asked… but now I’m curious,” Hitoshi mused from the driver' s seat.

“I was thinking about it. Obviously. And I thought, ‘wow I haven’t really been doing anything with him for such a long time. I kinda felt abandoned actually’ and then it hit me. He started being stand-offish with me almost 6 months ago. The moment it started I began to try and compensate, y’know?” Izuku began to explain.

“But within a couple weeks I had given up. Bakugou wouldn’t do anything he didn’t want to. And I knew how he was, so I’d just ignore it when he did anything slightly out of the usual. But… didn’t Uraraka begin acting weird around that time too? In fact, she had begun saying that she had gotten a boyfriend, and started bragging about him. But we didn’t really hear any specifics and we didn’t get to meet him. She stopped talking about her supposed boyfriend about a month after it began.”

“Oh yeah, I remember that. We all just assumed it didn’t work out. Swept it under the rug since she didn’t seem beat up over it in the slightest,” Hitoshi added.

Izuku nodded and hummed. He drummed his fingers against his thighs. He looked back at his friend.

“Yeah, swept it under the rug and didn’t bring it up anymore. But… none of us knew who she had been dating which was… odd. Whenever anyone in the group started a relationship, we would meet them within a couple weeks. Because we didn’t want anyone to be wronged by their new partner. She might not have brought anyone in, but she knows how the group works. So she would have. Unless…”

“Unless it was your current fiancé. Someone she literally couldn’t bring in without backlash. I’m seeing your reasoning. And your revelation is amazing, Izuku. We’re almost there by the way.”

“Exactly. She couldn’t bring her supposed partner in if he just so happened to be engaged to someone in the group. But that meant that she didn’t just break up with him. She stopped talking entirely so as to not draw any suspicion. Wow… they’ve really been playing me for a fool for so long…”

Hitoshi pulled into a parking spot and put the car in park before reaching over and grabbing one of Izuku’s hands. He squeezed them gently.

“It’s nice you’ve figured that out… but Izuku. You never answered my question.”

The brunet took a shuddering breath. He was reeling over his discovery. It hurt even worse than before. He thought that maybe it was a spur of the moment thing that just devolved. And maybe it was, but to know that it had been going on for possibly months was a whole different can of worms.

“I… think you might be right… I had already started distancing myself long before I ever caught them. I think… I had already been preparing for the worst.”

Izuku’s vision became blurred with tears. He couldn’t help it. It hurt . And it all came flooding in at once. That it really happened. Everything recently had all felt so much like a dream. Like he was going to wake up one morning and it would be blond hair and blue eyes laying next to him. 

And now, just thinking about it made Izuku ache. Because he didn’t think he could be happy if it was all a dream. He thought about yesterday morning and last night. Sleeping in the same bed at Aizawa. Dark eyes, dark hair, a quiet maturity and yet a hidden childishness that peeked through every now and again. A vulnerability that he never quite got from Bakugou. And every part of him suddenly yearned with the need to stay in his husband’s arms.

“Oh,” was all that came out of Izuku’s mouth. He sniffled and looked up at his friend. 

“Good or bad?”

“Not sure.”

The brunet was pulled over the console into an awkward hug. Izuku still leaned into it, letting the comfort wash over him. They sat like that for a couple of minutes before Hitoshi eventually pulled away.

“As much as I love your hugs, this hurts and everyone else is probably in the room already so we should get in there before they call the cops because we didn’t show up.”

“Are you kidding? Tenya would lead a manhunt before he’d ever call the cops. He’d think we did something illegal and not want us to go to jail.”

“You’re right.”

Chapter Text

Izuku stepped into the private room reserved for them by Tenya who wanted a bit of privacy for their little gathering.

“Izuku, you made it! I’m glad to see you are in good health,” Tenya stood from the table to walk over to him. 

Before the brunet could even get a word out, he was engulfed in the dark-haired man’s arms.

“He was worried. Like usual,” Shouto piped up from his seat. The heterochromatic man wasn’t a touchy-feely kind of person, so Izuku wasn’t surprised he didn’t move.

Tsu wasn’t either, but she smiled up at him and nodded. “He was ready to go find you if you didn’t arrive in the next 10 minutes.”

“Tenya, you know better. You could have just called. Besides, I wouldn’t bail on any of you after I asked you all to clear your schedules at the last minute,” Izuku murmured, patting the bigger man’s back.

Tenya pulled away and adjusted his glasses, blue eyes practically glaring down at him. “I know. But you married a man none of us know, including yourself. So what else was I supposed to think, hm?”

The brunet ducked his head and rubbed the back of his neck. He did feel bad that he technically went radio silent on most of them for the last two days after dropping such a big bomb.

“I know… you guys deserve an explanation. But before I give you one, it turns out, Hitoshi knows him. Quite well actually.”

The one who had driven him here had already sat down at the table and was leaning back in his seat, tapping his nails against the lacquered wood.

“He married my cousin.”

Tsu snorted right before she busted out laughing. Shouto looked confused for a second then looked bewildered. Tenya’s face screwed up and he looked like he was mentally trying to recall Hitoshi’s entire family tree. Then something must have dawned on him before he gasped. Quite loudly too.

“Oh! Are you talking about Tensei’s friend? Aizawa, I believe. I completely forgot he was related to you! ”

“You know him too?” Izuku said in disbelief.

There was no way that this was happening. Two of his friends knew Aizawa before he did. Why hadn’t Izuku ever met him before? After all, he had met Tensei a couple of times back in high school when he’d gone over to the Iida’s to study. And Tensei had mentioned a couple times that some of his friends were visiting yet he had never seen any of them.

His head was spinning. He needed to sit down.

“So.. how’s married life?” Shouto asked him when he sat down. 

The brunet blushed, and shook his head. “Since it was a flash marriage there isn’t much to talk about.”

“That’s not what the ring on your finger says,” Tsu pointed out, motioning to his hand that was resting on the menu in front of him. 

Izuku’s face heated up more and he let out a pitiful noise, “ I can tell you all a little bit about what’s happened the past few days. But…. I want to get something out of the way first. Let’s order some food and I’ll talk.”

“Is it something I haven’t heard yet?” Hitoshi asked as he looked over the menu.

“Yeah actually.”

“Woah, something that hasn’t graced Hitoshi’s ears yet? We’re blessed,” Tsu said absently, picking at her nails with a faint smile.

Izuku pouted at the only girl at the table, “Hey I tell you things Hitoshi hasn’t heard yet.”

“What? Tsu gets inside information? How dare you,” Hitoshi grumbled.

“I think we all know different things about Izuku that none of the others know. It’s nothing against any of us, but we help him in different ways… I’m sure we don’t tell each other everything ,” Iida said placatingly.

“Yeah, agreed,” Shouto said, squinting at Izuku. “But some of the things he’s told me I wish he hadn’t. ”

“Hey, if I had to listen to it through thin walls, so did you,” Izuku said with a grin.

Shouto almost screeched, covering his ears like he was hearing something he didn’t want to. “No I didn’t! I did not want to ever know those things about my eldest brother!”

Everyone at the table winced in sympathy as it began to dawn on them exactly what secrets Izuku had coughed up to the strawberry blond. Almost all of them had siblings or family close enough to feel like one, and even they didn’t think they’d want to be privy to bedroom activities.

“Well suck it up, because I kept hearing it all the way until I moved out. Which is ridiculous! In my parent’s house, honestly. Touya and Tenko need gags,” Izuku grumbled with a shudder.

-

Food had been ordered and lunch was a fun affair. Laughter and stories from more recent times shared around the table. But as the laughter wound down, Izuku felt that now would be the best time to bring up what had happened with Uraraka.

He set down his chopsticks and took a deep breath. His friends had seemingly noticed his shift in demeanor and all of their attention was now on him.

“Yesterday, I went out shopping for clothes. Everything was… fine . Great even. I had a fun time learning that Aizawa is utterly blind when it comes to fashion. But then… It happened. Bakugou and Uraraka just so happened to be in the same store and they came to mock us. Uraraka called Aizawa my sugar daddy embarrassingly enough. But the problem didn’t really come from that. Afterall, I knew Bakugou was… abrasive,” Izuku stopped to take a sip of his water.

“We left the store, and I thought everything was going to be fine. But, Aizawa had to go grab his friend from the hospital, so he left me to finish up shopping. Once he left, Uraraka came back. She was… taunting me. She said that you guys didn’t want to be my friends anymore. Said she had talked to you all already.”

Hitoshi grunted from his left, “sure as hell didn’t say anything to me. Then again I wasn’t exactly close with her. Different kind of brightness from you I suppose.”

The brunet looked up at the other three in the room. They were all looking at each other and a small pit began to form in his stomach. “Guys?”

Tsu was the next one to speak up, “She talked to me, yeah. She must have singled me, Shouto, and Tenya out because I was alone. She said something about you being a pushover and a cheater. Said you were messing around behind Bakugou’s back and that was the only reason they had gotten together. To teach you a lesson.”

“That’s not what she said to me,” Shouto said, idly stabbing his chopsticks into his half-eaten bowl of rice. “She told me that you’ve gotten unstable. That you had accused her of plotting against you and that you couldn’t be trusted. She implied that you’d betray me one day. Not sure how though…”

All eyes turned to Tenya. If Uraraka had told the other two different stories, it only stood to reason that she would have had something different to say to the biggest man in the room.

Tenya sat there for a minute, silent, just thinking. Then he took a breath and began to speak. “Looks like she was trying to split us apart. She told me that you had started rumors about her behind her back. That you had tried to ruin her reputation. Seems like she tailored her stories to us.”

“Probably why she spoke to you all separately. Damn, that’s messed up. Like seriously messed up,” Hitoshi scoffed. He crossed his arms and shook his head. “Did she get hit in the head at one of her parent’s construction sites? How did she turn out like this?”

A contemplative silence took over the group. Izuku had no doubt that each of them were going over their own previous interactions regarding Uararaka. He knew he was doing just that. It was hard for him to reconcile that the woman who was actively trying to ruin him and his relationships was the same bubbly girl he had met in high school.

But maybe that’s because Izuku hadn’t been looking . And now he was . Uraraka had approached him not too long after the beginning of their first year. She was charismatic and kind and an extrovert. She was the epitome of who Izuku had wanted to be. He wanted to break out of his little shell and be able to surround himself with people he could be comfortable with.

She was his salvation at that moment. With her, he began to pull others into his orbit. Tenya, then Tsu, Shouto, and lastly Hitoshi. There were others who weren’t as close but yet Izuku cherished them still. Some of them overlapped with Bakugou’s friend group, so the brunet silently mourned the loss. And yet, Izuku had attributed it all to her.

And apparently she had an ulterior motive. From the moment high school had started, it was no secret that Izuku and Bakugou had been in a relationship. They had been a little rocky in middle school, but throughout their first year of high school, their relationship seemed on the mend. They became as inseparable as they had in their early childhood years.

If Uraraka had wanted Bakugou, she’d have to get Izuku out of the way. And if she didn’t care about how long it took, infiltration worked well enough.

Granted, this was all pure speculation, and Izuku knew he liked to overthink things. So maybe he was just trying to justify why bad things always happened to him.

“Izuku, are you okay?”

The brunet jolted out of his thoughts as he felt a warm hand on his shoulder. Tsu and Shouto were standing just behind him, Hitoshi and Tenya leaning in on either side. It was then he realized hot tears were rolling down his cheeks.

“You know we stand by you, right?” Shouto said.

“Yeah, she’s messed up big time. I don’t think it would be a good idea to stay friends with her,” Tsu murmured, voice soft.

With his friends around him, he just nodded. He would be. He now knew his friends were going to stick to him. And he had his family who would support him no matter what. And then there was Mr Nedzu and Aizawa, Izuku doubted they’d turn on him. He had more people backing him now than he had ever thought he would growing up.

He sniffled and then devolved into crying, bordering on wailing. He reached out, pulling his friends as close as he could. They let him, leaning into his hold and letting him exhaust his tears.

-

After the emotional scene, things moved back to the light, fun atmosphere that it had been before. While Izuku was still feeling a little raw, laughing and poking fun at his friends was soothing. And all too soon it felt like it came to an end. 

“You want me to drive you home? Help avoid somehow managing to run into those stalkers?” Hitoshi offered up as the others bid their farewells and left.

“I would very much like that. It does feel like they’re always a couple steps behind me. It’s frankly, very weird,” Izuku shuddered.

They left the restaurant, looking around like Bakugou and Uraraka would jump out at them. The ride home was silent, but that was often how it was between Izuku and Hitoshi. Just coexisting together, no need to fill the space with mindless chatter all the time.

By the time they pulled into the driveway of Izuku’s current residence, the brunet decided that he didn’t want to be alone at the moment. He turned to his friend.

“Are you doing anything else today?”

The dark-haired man looked at him, a grin splitting across his face, “calendar’s free. Wanna give me a house tour?”

Izuku nodded and hopped out, leading Hitoshi inside.

The older male whistled as he stepped into the genkan, “damn, this is a nice place. How much do you think my cousin shelled out to buy it?”

“No clue. Is it nicer than Mr Nedzu’s house?”

“Are you kidding? Uncle’s house is practically a mansion. And for some reason, part of it was built to function like a maze. I’ll never understand that old man’s brain,” Hitoshi snorted as he kicked off his shoes and shuffled into the living room, looking around.

Izuku swapped into his house slippers and joined him, “That’s so interesting! I’ve never actually been to his house. Usually when we did our bi-weekly meet-ups it would be at, like, a park or something. Now I want to go and see his house!”

“Gods, you’re a freak of nature, ‘zu,” Hitoshi laughed. “Now, show me around!”

-

Izuku had given a nice tour and even ended up showing Hitoshi the ring he had gotten for Aizawa since he had asked. They eventually settled down in the living room, simply chatting. Izuku, emotionally drained from the day began to nod off.

“You can lay down. I’ll stay here," Hitoshi murmured.

Izuku made a grateful noise. He moved and rested his head on his older friend’s thighs. He settled and within seconds, was blissfully asleep, the revelations of the day melting away into nothing.

And that was how Aizawa found them when he got home.

Chapter Text

“I’m home,” Shouta called out as he stepped inside.

He was still wondering whose car was in the driveway, but that question was answered when he saw his cousin sitting on the couch on his phone. He went to greet him despite being suspicious considering the younger man shouldn’t have known his new address, that was until he noticed his husband asleep on the couch next to Hitoshi, head of fluffy curls resting on his cousin’s lap. He knew that they had been friends in high school, Hitoshi had mentioned him in passing quite a few times, but Shouta hadn’t realized they had stayed friends. It would have made sense though.

Jealousy spiked through his chest at seeing how Izuku was comfortably sleeping on his cousin, no matter how illogical. (The brunet was married to Shouta not to Hitoshi after all.)

“Hitoshi, I didn't realize you’d be coming over,” Shouta said as he approached, he shed his suit jacket and draped it over the arm of the couch.

“Of course you didn’t. It was unplanned. After lunch though, I figured it would be best if he wasn’t left alone,” the younger said, one of his hands coming up to pet Izuku’s head.

The sleeping brunet curled more into him and Shouta swallowed the noise rising in his throat. The older man knew that Hitoshi was baiting him and he wasn’t going to fall for it. He was more curious as to what had transpired on their outing than trying to pick a fight with his little cousin.

“I can take him to bed,” Shouta murmured.

“I think he’s good right where he is, don’t you?”

Shouta’s eye twitched and he stared down at the boy who resembled him. Hitoshi knew how the older man felt about Izuku. He knew and he was acting like a brat. But Shouta was an adult, he could handle this calmly.

“I know he’s comfortable right now, but Hitoshi, please, stop being difficult.”

The younger man didn’t respond at first, only set his phone down and crossed his arms. They stared at each other without saying anything. 

“He’s concerned y’know…” Hitoshi mumbled softly, looking down at Izuku. “He thinks he’s not allowed to fall in love with you. Something about not being right for you. I’ve considered him family for so long, so I suppose it’s not too bad if it’s official. That means you better do your best to convince him he’s allowed to feel things for you, got it?”

Shouta swallowed hard, grey eyes dropping down to look at his husband’s sleeping face. He hadn’t realized that that was why the brunet had been so hesitant to answer his question that morning. But it made sense. Shouta might have the emotional capacity of a teaspoon according to everyone that knew him, but Izuku bled emotions like he had an overabundance of them and paired with a tendency to overthink? He must not have had it easy growing up. And if he was right about Bakugou, Izuku’s heart was a lot more shielded than Shouta had originally thought. 

He’d have to take his cousin’s advice. He didn’t want the brunet to distance himself even more when all Shouta wanted was for him to be happy and smiling and in his arms.

“Yeah, I got it,” he responded. He wasn’t going to point out that maybe he wasn’t the best choice, but he didn’t want anyone else stealing his husband away from him when he just got him.

Hitoshi motioned to the sleeping brunet and Shouta took the chance to lean down and gently coax Izuku into his arms. The younger man let out a little whine, clinging to Hitoshi for a second before letting the older man scoop him up. The moment Shouta had him settled against his chest, Izuku relaxed, slumping against him.

“He seems used to being in your arms already,” Hitoshi pointed out suspiciously.

“We sleep in the same bed. I’m making him acclimate.”

“It sounds like you’re manipulating him.”

“Is that not what I said?”

Hitoshi groaned and covered his face, “God you’re just like Uncle. No wonder Izuku seems to like you.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Shouta snorted, looking down at Izuku. Then he looked back up to his cousin, “You can stay the night if you want, I’m sure he wouldn’t want you out driving so late.”

“Thanks, but I have work in the morning so I better get back,” the younger man said as he stood, stretching like a cat.

Hitoshi stepped closer and before Shouta could protest, leaned down and kissed Izuku’s forehead. Shouta made an annoyed sound in his throat to which his cousin only laughed.

“I’ll text him so he doesn’t worry when he wakes up. Be prepared to see a lot more of me around,” the younger practically sang as he shuffled over to the front door, leaving quietly. 

The dark-haired man rolled his eyes. He shuffled to the door, managing to lock it despite the body in his arms. Then he turned on his heels, gently carrying Izuku up the stairs and to the bedroom. Carefully he set his husband on the bed. He stood back up and slipped the house slippers off Izuku’s feet, setting them on the floor next to the nightstand. He looked back down at Izuku and frowned slightly. He didn’t think it would be the best for Izuku to stay in his outdoor clothes, but he also doubted that the brunet would appreciate being undressed by the older man.

As Shouta mentally debated whether it was worth getting inevitably scolded in the morning, something tugged at his pant leg. Grey eyes looked down to see Izuku’s hand pinching the fabric around Shouta’s thigh. The brunet’s freckled face was scrunched up yet his eyes were still closed.

The older man stepped closer to the bed, fingers reaching down to run through curls. Izuku murmured something that Shouta didn’t quite catch, but then the tugging came again.

“Do you want me to lay with you?” Shouta asked softly, his other hand coming up to run his thumb along Izuku’s freckled cheekbone.

The brunet let out a small noise that sounded like an agreement. The taller man smiled.

“Alright, let me just plug in our phones,” he cooed.

Izuku’s face scrunched up again but he let go of Shouta’s pant leg. That allowed the older man to swiftly plug in their phones and click the lights off. He didn’t bother changing as he climbed into bed, easily pulling the smaller man into his arms. Izuku immediately pressed his face against Shouta’s chest which made the dark-haired man chuckle, a deep rumble in his chest.

This was how he wanted it. He wanted his cute little husband to cuddle into him, wanted him to allow Shouta to care for him, and wanted him to let Shouta love him the way he had wanted to since the older man had first seen him.

And it had been so long ago, yet Shouta remembered it with striking detail. The teary eyes and flushed cheeks. He had wanted nothing more than to hug him tight and never let go. And as fate would have it, he was given a chance to. He had gotten this far, they were married now. And Shouta wasn’t planning on letting him leave.

The older man buried his face in Izuku’s hair and let himself fall asleep.

-

Shouta woke up to his alarm and grunted. He didn’t want to get up, not when he could feel Izuku still fast asleep in his arms. And yet he moved, rolling over enough to turn his alarm off. That didn’t stop him from rolling right back over to squeeze his husband against him.

“Stop squeezing me so much,” Izuku suddenly grumbled.

The older man tensed for a moment before loosening his grip and looking down. The brunet’s green eyes were partially opened, slowly blinking as he looked up. His cheeks were already tinted pink as he pouted slightly.  

“Your alarm woke me up,” he grumbled again.

Shouta practically cooed, “sorry, didn’t mean to wake you up. I was planning to let you sleep in a little longer.”

“It’s fine… I’m going back to work today anyway.”

The dark-haired man made an inquisitive noise as Izuku reached up to rub his face. That was when the older man caught a glimpse of metal.

“Oh? What’s this? A ring?”

The younger man froze and wide eyes peered up through his fingers. He let out a nervous laugh and Shouta could hear him swallow. 

“Ah, when I met Nemuri, she insisted on… rings… um. There is one for you too… they match,” He stuttered out, blush creeping up to his ears.

“Matching wedding rings. How thoughtful,” Shouta mused.

The older man fought to keep the pout off his face as Izuku moved out of his arms, sitting up. The younger man looked down and tilted his head.

“I’m still in yesterday’s clothes,” he quietly pointed out.

“You are. You fell asleep on Hitoshi and I didn’t change your clothes when I brought you to bed. Would you rather I have?”

“No! No no, this is fine, thank you!” Izuku squeaked out, voice high pitched as he quickly slipped out of bed.

Shouta sat up and stretched, groaning as he felt some of his bones pop. He slid out of bed and picked up his phone, checking for any important messages or emails. But after a second he heard shuffling to his right and glanced over only to see Izuku standing there, a familiar ring box in his hands.

He opened it and thrust the box forward in the older man’s direction. Shouta chuckled and leaned forward a bit, raising his left hand.

“I seem to still be a bit tired, can you put it on for me?” 

Izuku looked up and his mouth opened, but no words came out. The blush that had started to fade came back full force. He stood there before huffing and pulling the ring out of the box. He tossed the box onto the bed and grabbed Shouta’s hand gently pushing the ring onto his finger.

“There… lazy…” Izuku grunted, fingers lingering.

The grey-eyed man laughed softly, “thank you. How about I treat you to dinner tonight? It won’t beat your home cooking, but will you at least let me do this for you?”

“Do you just like spending money?”

“Sure, when it’s Father’s.”

His unexpected answer startled a laugh out of the younger man who finally let go of Shouta’s hand only to gently hit the older man’s chest.

“Fine. Dinner it is.”

Chapter Text

Izuku’s cheeks were on fire. He had left the house that morning absolutely mortified at the events that had transpired. The gall of that man to make Izuku put the wedding ring on him! But he had to admit, it was kind of nice to hold Aizawa’s hand. The older man had long, slender fingers and as Izuku had slid the ring on he couldn't help but think of how his husband could have been a hand model. Or really, a model in general with his looks.

How does he always end up with a man handsome enough to be on the cover of magazines when he looked like he could blend into any crowd?

He groaned and scrubbed his face with his hands. He had to tune into work. He was shadowing his dad today and knowing his old man, there would be questions. A lot of questions. And the brunet wasn’t sure if he would be able to handle the onslaught without melting into a puddle from embarrassment.

As the private car his dad had arranged for him pulled up to their company building, Izuku cringed. Standing outside the building, surrounded by reporters and employees alike was his ridiculously tall father who had a smug look on his face like usual.

Izuku sighed and rested his forehead against the back of the passenger seat’s headrest. He was grateful he had a dad that cared for him, but did the man really have to come pick him up at the front door like a parent picking up their kid from school? It was embarrassing. No doubt Hisashi would say something that caught the attention of every journalist in the vicinity of the building, leaving Izuku to handle the fallout as “training”.

Sometimes Izuku wished that their family company didn’t rely on the entertainment business as their front. It would make it a lot easier for the brunet to avoid the limelight. 

After lamenting his fate and debating on asking the driver to take him home, Izuku opened the door and stepped out. Usually his arrival wouldn’t catch anyone’s eye as he tended to blend in, but considering the fact that his dad was moving closer, all cameras were on him.

Izuku mentally groaned as he closed the door behind him.

“Father,” Izuku greeted softly.

“Izuku,” Hisashi greeted in return.

The albino motioned for the younger of the two to lead the way into the building, and Izuku reluctantly did so. He slipped one hand into his pocket to fiddle with a small toy he kept, the other hand hanging loose in case he needed it for something.

“I’m surprised you came, thought you’d be too busy spending time with your husband to work.”

Izuku smiled placatingly to mask the way his eye twitched. And there it was. The statement that caught the eye and ear of every journalist who heard them. The brunet heard the footsteps, the voices calling out questions about his marriage. He took a deep breath, calming himself before he spoke to his father.

“Getting married does not mean the world stops turning. Work is important if you want a good life,” Izuku responded with a bit of a bite.

An employee opened the door and Izuku stepped into the lobby, the air in the building only marginally warmer than the chilly air outside. A deep breath and Izuku dipped his head at reception as they passed to the elevators.

“So, how is he? Everything you’d want from a man you’ve never met?”

The brunet took another deep breath, this time to center himself before looking over his shoulder and up at his father. He glared slightly, but it had no effect on the older man who simply set a large hand on the smaller man’s shoulder.

“Is it so wrong for me to want to know how my dear youngest son is after moving out?

“No, but you could stand to be more subtle,” Izuku grumbled as he stepped forward into the elevator. “I’m not talking about my married life today. I’m sure you’ll hear more than enough about it this weekend when I bring him over for dinner.”

The wide smile on his father’s face faded as the tall man stepped into the elevator behind him.

“ Excuse me ?”

“Oh? Did Mama not tell you?”

“No,” Hisashi said through his teeth, immediately pulling out his phone and tapping on the screen.

Izuku could never get over how tiny the phone looked in his father’s large hands. Growing up it had always made Izuku laugh, mostly because of how annoyed it made Hisashi to try and use it for anything other than phone calls. Though that never stopped the albino man from trying.

While his father was too busy clicking one letter at a time on his keyboard, Izuku felt his phone buzz. He assumed it was Hitoshi, the two of them having started up a conversation this morning about something Hitoshi had seen on social media. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and expected to see a dumb reaction image that his friend was so fond of. But it wasn't.

[Shouta <3: I didn’t have the chance to tell you before you left. But have a good day at work.]

Izuku’s eyes widened at the text. He knew that he had Aizawa’s number in his phone, but that was not what his contact name was. He swapped over to his conversation with Hitoshi.

[Me: YOU]

[Tosh: me???]

[Me: DID YOU CHANGE AIZAWA’S NAME IN MY PHONE?!]

[Tosh: oh]

[Tosh: haha yeah thought it was funny]

[Me: It about gave me a heart attack. He texted me and I couldn’t figure out who it was for half a second.]

[Tosh: u didnt remember ur own husbands name?]

[Tosh: woooow]

[Me: I don’t call him by his given name so I wasn’t looking for it.]

[Tosh: damn i suddenly feel sorry for him]

[Me:???]

[Tosh: anyway arent u at work???]

[Tosh: doubt ur dad would be happy ur on ur phone]

[Tosh: ill text u later]

Izuku let out a frustrated little noise as he swapped back to his chat with Aizawa. Sometimes Hitoshi managed to get under his skin, but the brunet knew it was all in good fun. 

[Me: Thank you! You have a good day too.]

It took less than a minute before he got a response, making Izuku think that maybe his husband had been waiting for a text. The brunet could only imagine a dog waiting at the door for its owner to come home.

[Shouta <3: I’ll try but I don’t think Father will let me]

[Shouta <3: Keeps asking about you like he doesn’t have your phone number or know where you live]

Izuku let out a soft laugh. He looked up when the elevator dinged and the doors opened. He stepped forward, tucking his phone into his pocket.

“Oh, now you’re paying attention?” Hisashi spoke up from beside him, stepping out of the elevator as well.

“Huh? You were texting Mama. I can’t text people now?”

“Who were you texting? Your fancy new husband?”

“Dad!” Izuku groaned, obviously exasperated with his dad’s constant teasing. “I was texting Hitoshi if you absolutely have to know.”

“You mean that kid who looks like he’s always on the verge of passing out? The one who’s related to my new son-in-law?”

The younger man froze mid-step. They had been walking to his father’s office, passing by rows of empty desks (his father didn’t like keeping personal assistants because they couldn’t keep secrets according to the older man).

“You knew ?”

“Of course I knew. You think I didn’t research who you were marrying beforehand? Granted, information such as age, occupation, schooling and whatnot don’t give me insight into who a person is. Thankfully credit card transactions and connections give a little bit. But he was surprisingly clean on that front,” He stopped to grumble something under his breath. An insult probably. “Which is why I didn’t want you to marry him. But, you don’t have any visible injuries, so I’ll let him slide this time,” Hisashi said nonchalantly as he strode past Izuku and into the office.

The brunet blinked owlishly before sighing heavily. He wasn’t sure what he expected. It was so typical of his dad to dig up any information on someone. The old man hated not knowing. It’s why he decided to stick his nose into every family of high society. If there was drama going on, he would know about it. 

It stood to reason that Mr Nedzu had flown under his radar until that contract had arrived at his parent’s house. No need to guess that Hisashi had done everything he could to find information on the family.

“Dad that’s… you can’t keep doing that. What happens if someone finally finds out that you’ve essentially been stalking them?” Izuku asked, rushing to keep up with the taller man.

They stepped into the office, Hisashi rounding the desk and making himself comfortable in his oversized desk chair. The young brunet stood on his left side, arms crossed looking at his father with a disappointed stare.

“They won’t. No one ever realizes how much I truly know about them. It’s how you portray information, how you carry yourself. Besides, all you have to do is throw some fuel on an already existing fire to get the heat off your back. Here, lesson one of today. How to manipulate the competition into fighting amongst themselves.”

Izuku sighed and nodded, listening to Hisashi’s words. It was moments like this where he wished that Tenko hadn’t dodged the family business and ran off to do his own thing. Not that the younger son wasn’t happy that he was being useful, but his dad hadn’t announced him as the official heir citing some nonsense about others taking advantage of his ‘baby boy’. 

The brunet inwardly cringed and shook his head.

“Spreading rumors may look easy, but nowadays, people can track the origin of much of the gossip out there. So the easiest way to make sure it doesn’t come back to you is making sure that info makes its way to someone with loose lips that have no connection to you. Also include something scandalous about yourself. Preferably something debunkable, but it will make sure that no one bats an eye in your direction because who would start rumors about themself!”

His dad kept on talking, but Izuku was already tuning out. He loved his dad, but the man had a tendency to repeat himself, so this conversation was one the brunet had heard at least twice before. Instead, he pulled his phone back out to respond to Aizawa, feeling bad that he had left his husband on read.

[Me: Sorry, Dad distracted me. Don’t give Mr Nedzu a hard time. Tell him I’ll text him later.]

There wasn’t an instant text back, so Izuku figured that he had gotten busy. He supposed he should as well. So he tucked his phone back into his pocket and tuned back into his father’s monologue about gaslighting and manipulation like it was something so normal no one would have given it a second glance.

Suddenly, his father stopped talking and spun to face Izuku.

“I nearly forgot to mention. Ever since you told me about that brat cheating on you, I decided to take a really good look into his life and that girl’s life too. I found something.”

The older man opened a drawer and pulled out a file folder, handing it over, “I suggest reading it. I’ll give you time to do it now or after lunch. Or, you don’t have to. I just thought that you shouldn’t have to be in the dark too much.”

“Thank you, Dad,” Izuku murmured, staring at the folder in his hands. He wasn’t sure if he really wanted to read this, but he would. He needed to know how deep the hurt went.

“I’ll read it after lunch.”

Chapter Text

Izuku stepped out of the private car, tired and mentally exhausted. His dad had decided that today he would amp up the amount of work given to him. And the brunet had a sneaking suspicion it was retaliation for planning to bring Aizawa to dinner without informing him first. But how was he supposed to know his mom wouldn’t tell his dad! 

That and the folder. That damn folder. His dad loved him, Izuku knew that. It was evident in everything Hisashi did. He wanted to make up for missing so many years, so he did everything he could to help Izuku after missing some of the most important parts of his life. (Excluding the fact that Hisashi had called every single day and whined about spending so much time away from home.)

He sighed and dragged himself up the pavement. Aizawa’s car was already parked in the driveway. Izuku wasn’t sure how the other man made it home before him, but he didn’t really care. He unlocked and opened the door, kicking off his shoes. He located Aizawa sitting on the couch, laptop on his lap.

“I’m home,” Izuku called out, slipping into his house slippers and shuffling over to his husband.

The dark-haired man looked up and smiled slightly, “Welcome back. You look tired, how was work? ”

The brunet practically threw himself onto the couch and without thinking too hard about it, curled into Aizawa’s side, the older man moving to accommodate him like it was normal.

(Izuku didn’t want to admit that the thought made his stomach do a flip.)

“Dad made me do mostly busy work, but a lot of it. Guess he was just being his usual vindictive self when he doesn’t get what he wants. He’s like an overgrown toddler sometimes. Don’t know how Mama deals with him 24/7. He’s good when he’s not in one of his moods.”

“At least Father is level-headed most of the time. Don’t think I could work for him otherwise.”

“I’m jealous,” Izuku sighed, slumping more into Aizawa’s side.

The older man hummed and continued to tap away on his laptop, allowing them to lapse into a comfortable silence. The brunet soaked it up, but eventually he squirmed a bit.

“My dad gave me a file on Bakugou and Uraraka today. Turns out he dug up some stuff about when they got together,” he murmured quietly.

Aizawa tensed and then slowly closed his laptop, his grey eyes dropping down to Izuku, “oh?"

“Mhm… It was… not a great read. I had theorized with Hitoshi yesterday that they had gotten together 6 months ago.”

“Were you correct?”

Izuku’s eyes watered as his mind conjured images of the file. He sniffled and wiped at his cheeks, catching some stray tears.

“No,” the brunet’s voice cracked slightly. “It was… worse than I thought…”

The older man clicked his tongue and set his laptop on the coffee table, before twisting his body to pull the younger man into his arms. His large hands smoothed over his back in a soothing manner.

“How worse is worse?”

Izuku didn’t answer right away as he leaned into the older man’s chest. Then he took a deep breath and whispered softly, “Just over a year.”

A sharp inhale before the brunet felt himself being pulled closer into Aizawa’s body. It was awkward and yet one of the most comforting hugs he’d ever had.

“Is there anything else from that file that you want to share?” His husband slowly asked, his voice low and quiet.

The younger man thought about it for a moment before adjusting his position.

“Not really. Not much to say. Every time Bakugou said he couldn’t hang out he was with Uraraka. According to Dad, Uraraka has been positing pictures of the two of them on a private social media account that’s blocked everyone in the friend group… she really had me fooled.”

Another sniffle as silent tears rolled down his cheeks. Izuku wiped more tears away before Aizawa's voice washed over him

“We still good for dinner? It could help take your mind off things.”

Izuku made an affirmative noise, “Thank god you offered to take me out, don’t know if I have it in me to cook at the moment.”

“It works out perfectly then. Do you want to change or stay in your suit? I had someone pick up your new clothes and take them to get them washed earlier today. So they’re all upstairs in the bedroom closet.”

“Thank you. I should have washed them yesterday when I was waiting for ‘toshi to pick me up for lunch. But it didn’t even really occur to me at the moment. Was worried about too much I guess,” the younger man sat up, mourning the warmth from his husband’s body. He stretched and stood. “Are you gonna change too?”

“No, I don’t like changing clothes too often. Especially if I’m not gonna wear them for more than a few hours. I feel like it’s a waste. But you don’t look particularly comfortable in that suit, so go change.”

Izuku nodded and shuffled over to the stairs, climbing them. He walked to the bedroom (he didn’t think he could convince the other man to not share a room now, not that Izuku really wanted to separate at this point) and opened the closet door.

He had only ever peeked in before, but he wasn't necessarily surprised to see the closet space split in half. Izuku’s stuff on the right with Aizawa’s stuff all on the left. And upon further inspection, his husband’s side of the closet really was mostly greyscale. Izuku would have to find a way to sneak other colors in, somehow someway.

He changed into comfier clothing and trekked back downstairs. Aizawa had put away the laptop and was leaning back on the couch, typing away on his phone, no doubt texting his extroverted friend group.

“I’m ready to go,” Izuku said as he made his way over, leaning on the back of the couch.

“Alright, let me just tell Hizashi that, no he cannot join our dinner just to talk to you more,” the older man grumbled, hunched over his phone.

The brunet could practically hear the scowl on his face, and he snickered into his hand, muffling it enough for Aizawa to not notice too much.

-

“This place seems too fancy, especially with the clothes I’m wearing,” Izuku murmured, staring up at the face of the restaurant. He had gone with an oversized sweater and khaki cargo pants with his signature red sneakers. He looked so… pedestrian next to Aizawa still dressed in his suit from work.

“I think you look perfectly fine. They don’t have a dress code, I checked. If they try to kick you out, I’ll tell Father and  we’ll go somewhere else,” Aizawa said as a wide grin that showed off too many teeth appeared on his face and the brunet shuddered. He didn’t want to imagine what Mr Nedzu would do to the restaurant. His dad would probably be just as bad or worse.

“Fair enough, let's go in, I’m starving.”

Aizawa opened the door for him and Izuku entered with a smile.

“Thank you.”

-

They surprisingly weren’t turned away at the door. And the surprise morphed into embarrassment as the hostess apparently recognized Izuku from the very limited variety shows he had been allowed to do right out of high school. The brunet had thought they had all been scrubbed from the internet after Hisashi realized that it brought too much attention to his youngest son.

They had been seated in a prime spot, and Aizawa just looked smug the entire time. The moment they had sat down, the dark-haired man spoke up absently while perusing the menu.

“So, variety shows, huh? I think I managed to catch a couple when they first aired.”

The brunet’s face dropped into pure horror as he balked at his husband’s words. “You what?” he managed to squeak out.

The corners of Aizawa’s eyes crinkled in amusement as he let out a little laugh, “I think the first one I ever saw was the one where they had you participate in a dance battle. You have skill.”

“Oh, that’s not… one of Bakugou’s friends is a really good dancer. She taught me in high school for a festival. I’m not really that good,” the younger man immediately brushed off the compliment.

“She might have taught you in high school, but I somehow doubt she was your choreographer for the show. So just, take the compliment.”

Izuku couldn’t say anything to that as maybe the older man had a point. He grumbled as he looked over the menu.

-

“Oh, this food is so good,” Izuku kicked his feet as he took another bite. 

“I’ve only ever been here once before. I came with Father for a work meeting. But that was years ago now, and I hardly remembered what the food tasted like. So I’m glad I didn't bring you somewhere with trash food after the day you had.”

The brunet beamed up at Aizawa as he took another bite.

“Shit,” the dark-haired man suddenly mumbled under his breath. “I think that’s your ex. I would ask you to confirm, but don’t turn around. Damn, is the hostess leading them over here?”

“Probably,” Izuku lamented immediately. “If she knows me from variety shows, I mentioned Bakugou a lot as he was my boyfriend at the time. I had fully intended on marrying him. But now…? God I hope she doesn’t recognize him and just coincidentally happens to be seating them in this section.”

“I’m sorry,” Aizawa murmured to Izuku across the table.

“Don’t apologize, you couldn’t have known,” Izuku responded.

The brunet thought that, perhaps, they wouldn’t be noticed. Those hopes were immediately crushed when he felt a presence appear to his left. He looked up and cringed.

“Do you mind? Your presence is ruining my meal,” Izuku huffed.

“The fuck do you mean by that, Deku?”

The brunet stood, turning to face Bakugou with a sneer, “You heard what I said. The scenery is ugly. Leave.”

The blonde scoffed and crossed his arms. Uraraka was right next to him, clinging to his arm like she couldn’t breathe without skin contact. It made Izuku want to laugh.

“Why are you suddenly so stubborn, huh? You always talked about how handsome I was before.”

“Mhm, he used to go on and on about how lucky he was. And yet he threw you away so easily, Katsuki. Makes you wonder, doesn't it?” Uraraka tacked on, trying to instigate.

Izuku turned his gaze to her and smiled, “Have you talked to the others since the last time we talked? Because I had a very nice lunch with them yesterday.”

That got her to shut up immediately, sputtering. But the brunet simply ignored her, his sharp green eyes turning back to the ex-boyfriend. 

“I’ve always been stubborn. But I didn’t ever bother to fight with you because you just talk over others like  they don't exist.”

“I don’t fucking talk over people. You do with your goddamn rambling. You never shut up. I don’t know how I ever managed to deal with you on a daily basis,” Bakugou seethed. He uncrossed his arms and brushed off Uraraka’s hand as he stepped forward, getting into Izuku’s personal space.

The smaller man swallowed hard, but didn’t back down. He couldn’t, not when he just wanted to be left alone. Giving in would be letting the bully win. He glanced over at Aizawa who was glaring at the couple. Mostly likely upset that the two had ruined their very nice dinner.

“Apparently you didn't have to since you have Uraraka wrapped around your finger. And according to my dad, you’ve been sneaking around behind my back for months! Almost a year of going on dates and trips together. Did you like betraying me? Did you have fun?”

The woman’s mouth dropped open, “You knew ?”

Bakugou scoffed yet again. “He’s bluffing. He’s guessing and I know he’s guessing because this fucker’s dad hasn’t been back to Japan since we were young. There’s no way he got any information from him.”

Izuku laughed almost hysterically. Bakugou was really marching to the beat of his own drum wasn’t he? He shook his head. When his mom and dad first adopted Tenko, Izuku was 4, and the older boy was in bad shape. He was jumpy and seemingly scared of his own shadow.

He had gotten used to their little family, acclimating well, and Izuku had been so excited for a big brother! But when Izuku was about 9, Tenko’s health took a turn for the worst. Dad had taken him out of the country to get treatment, leaving just him and his mom.

They were gone for years and everyone just forgot about it. Izuku became fatherless in the eyes of many of his classmates, and it was a reason he was bullied in his younger years. The summer during his last year of junior high, Dad and Tenko came back. Tenko was doing much better and immediately enrolled in online classes to catch up in school. Izuku hadn’t bothered to tell anyone that his dad had come back. It didn’t really matter unless they came over and he was home.

“Why the fuck are you laughing? You know something I don’t?”

“Of course I do. You like to think you’re observant, but you don’t pay attention unless you really care. My dad came back before high school started. Not that you ever came over to my house because you thought that me and my mom were so pitiful. Get over yourself.”

Bakugou’s eye twitched but that was all he saw before his head jerked to the side, cheek stinging in pain. His eyes widened, unbidden tears beginning to well up.

“You hit me,” he whispered, hand coming up to soothe the agitated skin. 

He turned his head to look back at Bakugou. Uraraka looked delighted while the blond had a mix of shock and smugness warring on his face.

The sound of a chair scraping across the tile and suddenly Aizawa was too close, fist coming into contact with Bakugou’s jaw with enough force to make the bully stumble back.

“You can talk and yell all you want. But the moment you lay a hand on him, you’ve crossed the line,” The older man said, anger lacing his voice. He stood squarely in front of Izuku, blocking him from their view.

The brunet let his tears fall, curling up so his forehead pressed against Shouta’s upper back. He had never been more glad for the taller man’s comforting presence. 

Bakugou snarled as he rubbed at his jaw, “He fucking deserved it!”

“Ugh you again? Why do you even bother sticking around with him? Is he paying you or something?” Uraraka accused as she gently reached up, playing the doting girlfriend, examining the damage to the blond’s face.

Izuku felt the muscles in Aizawa’s back tense up, and the brunet was going to guess that he was offended on his behalf. He took a deep breath before gently patting his husband’s shoulder blade. He stepped out from behind him, hand still over his cheek.

“Not everyone is able to be bought, unlike you . I remember how desperate you were for money in high school, always asking for us to pay for lunch when we went out. We spent so much money on you. It’s no wonder you clung to someone who could catapult you into a life that isn’t construction. It’s just a shame he’s a firefighter instead of a fully fledged model,” Izuku taunted.

It made her upset and she stomped her foot in frustration. But then she smirked and laughed as she wrapped herself back around Bakugou’s arm like she lived there.

“Oh? Didn’t you hear? My Katsuki is going into the entertainment field. He’s gonna be an actor with me,” She bragged with an annoying little laugh.

It made Izuku’s blood boil. Mostly because once Bakugou had decided to become a firefighter, he had tried so hard to convince the blond that the job was too dangerous and he should look into safer occupations. But he had always been brushed off, left to worry himself sick.

“Oh is he? Indulge me, what company are you planning on signing with?” Izuku’s eyes shifted between the two. 

The brunet couldn’t help but be curious. His dad ran one of the biggest entertainment groups in Japan. They had always been praised for how well they did business and how well they treated their talents. It was a point of pride from his dad who built it from the ground up. But Izuku wasn’t exactly forthcoming with his family’s finances. It wasn’t anyone’s business and he wasn’t one to go around bragging anyway.

“His parents are already in talks with the Heritage Entertainment group. Not that you really need to know because you aren’t even half as talented as he is,” Uraraka laughed.

“Heritage Entertainment? You really think you are worthy of such a well reputed group? Keep dreaming, with your attitude you wouldn’t even make it through the front door,” Aizawa said before the small brunet beside him could say anything.

Izuku turned his head into his husband’s shoulder to muffle his laughter. He couldn’t help it. Usually his dad didn’t deal too much with the talent they hired, but he would definitely make sure Hisashi was aware of everything that was happening. It was his right as the heir to the company. Even if it wasn’t official , Hisashi had promised him. And if there was one thing his old man was good at, it was keeping his promises.

“Why the fuck are you so giggly? You’ve never laughed this much before,” Bakugou huffed. He seemed almost upset. Not that Izuku cared.

“Whether my husband wants to laugh or not has nothing to do with you anymore. You’ve already caused enough of a commotion here, are you done now?” Aizawa asked blandly, arm wrapping around the smaller man next to him protectively.

“He’s not your fucking husband! Deku’s my fiancé. He has been since we were young.”

Izuku wanted to say something, but Aizawa had suddenly let go of him and stepped up to Bakugou, coming chest-to-chest with him. The dark-haired man had to look down to make eye contact, but the moment he did, he jabbed a long finger into the blond’s chest.

“ Wrong . He might have been your fiancé once upon a time, but you made your decision very clear. Izuku doesn’t want you anywhere near him. He married me . If you can’t get that through your thick-ass skull no one and I mean no one is going to want to work with you. You can cry and whine all you want, but if you want any sort of chance for you or your broad here, shut up and leave. ”

Izuku shuddered, something he definitely didn’t want to identify running down his spine. He bit his lip and dug into his pocket, pulling out his phone and opening his friend group chat, deciding to chronicle everything that just happened before it could leave his mind. Sure Bakugou and Uraraka were still there, but Izuku was sure his husband would take care of it. And besides, he was a fast typer.

“You think you’re some big hotshot just because you’re with that nerd now? Oh please, Katsuki will prove both of you wrong!” Uraraka chimed in, just as affronted as Bakugou looked.

And the blond did look upset and angry, but he seemed to know better than to continue making a big deal after getting hit and he simply just huffed. Then Bakugou pulled on the brunette’s arm and instead of staying for dinner, both of them left, not bothering to cast Izuku and Aizawa another look.

The brunet startled as he felt long, slender fingers gently graze his cheek. The sting had faded, but that didn’t stop Izuku from leaning into his husband’s cold hand.

“Are you okay? He put a lot of force into that slap.”

“Yeah, but… I mean… You also punched him really hard in the face. Are your knuckles okay?” Izuku asked softly, setting his phone on the table and giving his husband all of his attention.

“My hand is the least of my worries. I shouldn’t have let it get as bad as I did. I’m sorry, this was supposed to be a relaxing dinner. I’ll make it up to you another time. Perhaps some local place in another prefecture far away from them. How does that sound?”

The brunet felt his cheeks heat up and he smiled, “I’d like that.”

-

The rest of dinner was peaceful, and they decided to take a little walk after eating, just to get some air. It was still chilly outside but it felt nice. 

Izuku took a deep breath. “Thank you for dinner. As… eventful as it was.”

“You’re welcome. Again, I’ll make it up to you. I’m sure Hizashi has a whole list of good local places he’d willingly give us.”

They lapsed into a comfortable silence before Izuku made a fool of himself by tripping. He stumbled forward, his mind panicking as he struggled to react in time. Thankfully, muscular arms wrapped around his waist and steadied him.

“Careful now,” Aizawa murmured, voice close to Izuku’s ear.

The brunet’s face turned red. “Thank you, Aizawa,” he stuttered, feeling more embarrassed than ever before. 

“Y’know, I call you by your given name, but I haven’t heard you call me by mine yet. You know you can, right?”

Tense silence as Izuku was righted and stabilized. Of course he knew he could call Aizawa by his given name. They were married, but something about it felt too… intimate. They have been married all of 3 days after all. That wasn’t a long time! Disregarding the fact that they’ve slept in the same bed since they got married. Disregarding the fact that Izuku knew Aizawa’s closest family members and most of his friends by now. Disregarding the fact that the older man was going to meet Izuku’s parents that weekend. But he supposed the older man was right. It was inevitable that this would happen.

The brunet looked down at the ground, nervously twisting his fingers. He mouthed Aizawa’s given name to himself before taking a deep breath. He looked up at his husband.

“Shouta.”

He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but the most breathtaking smile appearing on Aizawa’s face wasn’t it. He hadn’t ever seen him like that before and the brunet’s hand itched to take a picture. In record speed, he whipped his phone out of his pocket, taking a photo before Aizawa could register what was happening.

“Hey, did you just take a picture?” He asked incredulously.

“Maybe, are you saying I can’t take pictures of my husband now?”

“I’m not saying that, but you could at least ask before doing that. I’m not photogenic in the slightest.”

Izuku raised an eyebrow as he slowly looked down at the picture on his phone. It wasn’t the best photo by far, it was a little shaky, the background lights blurring. But it was a nice candid photo, Shouta looked good.

“You lie.”

“I do not, you should see my high school yearbook.”

The brunet perked up at the thought, “Could I?”

“You should not be that excited to see my high school photos.”

Izuku hummed and tapped his chin, “I think… Hitoshi should have my high school year book. And, Tsu liked to take pictures so I think she had a whole photo album. I’m sure she’d let me borrow it. Is that a good enough exchange?”

“I’ll see if any of my friends have photos. I have no doubt Hizashi and Oboro took a lot.”

“It’s settled then! Next time I can meet up with my friends, I’ll try and get the pictures.”

 Shouta nodded in agreement and with that, they continued their walk, Izuku setting the photo of his husband smiling as the man’s contact photo and his home screen.

Chapter Text

Shouta sat across from him at the kitchen table and the older man made a noise and gently nudged Izuku’s leg with his slipper.

“What’s got you looking so upset? We’re visiting your family today, that should be a happy occasion… right?”

“Right… and it would be! If my dad wasn’t still venting his frustration on my work life,” Izuku sighed. He stabbed his chopsticks into his egg and huffed. “Yesterday still wasn’t an easy day. And I’m anticipating him doing something else to throw a wrench into today. I’m just worried for no reason.”

“Don’t say that. Everyone has worries and yours are valid. Your dad sounds like a tad more unstable version of Father. And I can’t even fathom that.”

Izuku looked up and gave his husband a small little smile as a thank you for even bothering to ask what was wrong. It wasn’t as rare now as it had been growing up, but the brunet was still thankful all the same.

“Now, eat your food, you’ll need some sort of energy to deal with him if he’s planning something for today.”

-

Shouta pulled into the driveway of the Midoriya residence and Izuku’s blood ran cold. Aside from his father’s car, there was a second one parked behind the luxury vehicle.

The brunet let out a hysterical sounding laugh and shook his head. He turned and looked at his husband.

“How about we do a rain check and leave before someone notices we’re here?” Izuku offered sounding hopeful and slightly manic. His hands had reached over the console and grabbed Aizawa’s arm with an almost bruising grip.

“Huh? Why, what’s wrong?” Shouta asked, sounding so concerned and worried.

“It seems my dad hasn’t run out of things to torture me with. He invited my brother back. And it seems said brother dragged his boyfriend along which can only mean one thing.”

“And that would be?”

“An interrogation. So just, start the car back up and let’s go home, yeah?” Izuku asked, pulling at the taller man’s arm, ignoring how close their faces were getting for the health of his own heart.

Shouta made a noise and his grey eyes flickered down to Izuku’s lips (yes he did notice, he just really didn’t want to think about it) before his eyes moved over towards the front windshield. They lingered for a moment before he spoke.

“As much as I’d love to, I think that’s your mom watching us.”

Izuku jerked back and turned his head quickly to see his mom watching them from the front steps. She smiled widely and waved as she caught her son’s eye. The young man nervously removed one of his hands from Aizawa’s arm and waved back.

“Dammit. That means we can’t leave now,” Izuku said through his teeth as he unbuckled his seat belt.

He opened the car door and dragged himself out. He closed the door and scurred up the stone steps towards his mom. Behind him he heard the driver side door open and close.

“Mama,” Izuku greeted. “It’s good to see you.”

“Izuku,” Inko said warmly as she gathered her son into her arms, squeezing him into a tight hug. “I’m glad it looks like you’re doing well! Hisashi hasn’t given me much in the way of news. Though I think that’s from his bruised ego. And this is?” She prompted as she pulled away, looking at Aizawa.

“Oh! This is my husband,” the younger man stuttered out nervously. He felt like his palms were sweating and his mother was the easiest of the family to get along with.

“Aizawa Shouta, ma’am. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve heard nothing but good things about you from Izuku,” Shouta said smoothly as he came to a stop at his husband’s side.

The brunet was almost envious of the ease at which the older man spoke. It was like he wasn’t nervous at all. Which Izuku knew he was because before they had left the house, he had once again asked if the younger man’s family would like him.

“Such a polite young man. Please come inside. Izuku, Tenko and Touya are visiting, so it’s a full house tonight.”

The young brunet smiled and bit back a groan as Inko ushered them into the two story house, built to accommodate his father’s extra large size.

“Please, make yourself comfortable, Shouta. You’re family now, after all,” the older woman said kindly. “Tenko and Touya are in the living room, your father is in his office. I recommend introducing him to your father first.”

Izuku nodded and grabbed Shouta’s hand, gently pulling him along, “Thanks, Mama.”

The moment they were halfway up the stairs, the brunet stopped and turned to look at his husband whispering softly.

“I should warn you before we go into his office. I’m sure you’ve noticed that this house is… large. And my mom and I aren’t that tall. I did not get anything from my dad except my curly hair. He’s huge and he’ll try to intimidate you with his height and presence.”

“Thank you for the warning, but I’m sure he can’t be that tall.”

“You’d think that.”

They climbed the rest of the stairs and Izuku knocked on a door waiting for the call for them to come in. The brunet took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

“Dad, heeeey. Mama told me you were in here, and I brought him for you to meet,” the young man nervously said as he stepped in and to the side, allowing Shouta to enter the office.

“It’s nice to meet you, sir. I’m Aizawa Shouta,” his husband greeted.

Hisashi lazily looked up from his computer screen, his red eyes looking the dark-haired man up and down, “I know. Izuku regrettably married you because of his bull-headed ex.”

Said brunet winced and rubbed his arms, glaring at his dad. But a glance at his husband showed no fear or even anger, just a calm indifference.

“I’m aware. I read the contract as well and have even had a few… memorable confrontations with Bakugou and his girlfriend,” Shouta stated. “But I don’t find it regrettable that we married.”

The albino man made a noise of interest, “Oh? So you don’t mind being a rebound? A cover? A fake husband? Are you planning to leave him the moment the year is up?”

“You misunderstand. I don’t regret marrying your son, I just find it a shame we hadn’t met and married under better circumstances.”

Izuku stood there, listening to them both talk. He couldn’t read his father’s facial expression, couldn’t tell if the tall man would end up accepting Shouta into the family. But Izuku hoped with every fiber of his being that he would. He wanted his family to like Aizawa.

“A shame indeed,” Hisashi said as he stood and rounded the desk, stepping closer to the couple. “You almost make it sound like you want to marry my son for real.”

The brunet glanced over again and saw the way Shouta’s eyes widened minutely as the albino had gotten up and closer. Izuku had tried to warm him. His father was over 40 cm taller than Aizawa. Hell, the dark-haired man only went up to his dad’s chest. Both of them had to crane their necks to look up at him.

Aizawa seemed to recenter himself and nodded, “And if that was really what I meant?”

They lapsed into silence and Izuku began to want to be anywhere but in the office, standing there while his husband and his dad had an intense staring contest. But then Hisashi smirked.

“Not bad. I’ll be keeping an eye on you, but until you screw up? Welcome to the family. You should head back down and introduce yourself to Tenko.”

“Oh, that reminded me. How could you?” Izuku suddenly piped up with his arms crossed. “You invited Tenko on purpose! Do you understand what you did? Sure he brought Touya along, but after Bakugou do you think he would keep it a secret from Uncle Toshinori or Uncle Yoichi? What about Grandma? What happens if they suddenly show up too huh?”

The slightly smug look on Hisashi’s face slowly began to turn into a grimace, “I doubt he would. Besides, they’re prefectures away, I only told Tenko last night so they could get here this morning.”

The brunet raised an eyebrow and sighed, “You’re severely underestimating them, but I digress. A little warning would have been nice.”

“Oh, like you warned me?”

“I did. I told you two days ago. It was only planned three days ago, how much of a notice did you want?”

“An immediate one.”

Izuku groaned and rubbed his face. “I’m going to take Shouta to meet Ten now,” he said as he grabbed Shouta’s hand and began gently pulling him out of the office and down the stairs. The moment they hit the ground floor again, Aizawa mumbled something.

“What was that?” the younger man asked, looking up at him.

“You weren’t kidding. He’s the tallest man I’ve ever seen,” the dark-haired man murmured a little louder this time.

Laughter bubbled up out of the brunet’s mouth, “My Uncle Toshinori is almost as tall.”

“Did the genes skip a generation? Why are you so short?” Shouta teased.

“Hey!” Izuku gasped as he gently hit the taller man’s chest. “You should be nice to your husband.”

Aizawa laughed, “Oh should I?”

They were cut off by some shuffling and a gagging noise. The brunet rolled his eyes and turned around coming face-to-face with his adopted brother. Tenko was hunched over and swaddled in an oversized sweater. He looked like he hadn’t seen the sun in weeks and knowing the man, he probably hadn’t. Next to him was a red head who wore the same grimace that his boyfriend did.

“Do you mind being sickeningly sweet somewhere else?” Tenko grumbled.

“Would you prefer my old bedroom instead? Y’know, the one that shares a wall with yours?” Izuku asked innocently, watching with amusement as Tenko’s face turned red.

“Shut up!”

The brunet laughed and looked up at Shouta, “Shouta, this is Tenko, my older brother. He doesn’t get out much, so you’ll have to excuse his lack of manners.”

Behind Tenko, Touya muffled a snort causing his boyfriend to elbow him in the stomach.

“Don’t take ’zu’s side, asshole.”

“Ah, and that’s Touya, his long-term on-again off-again boyfriend.”

“Oi, brat, we made it official, stop spouting nonsense!” Tenko grumbled, suddenly grabbing Izuku and ruffling his hair.

Izuku let out a squeal and squirmed in his older brother’s arms, loudly protesting his treatment, “Stop! You’re gonna mess up my hair!”

“Like it ever looks like anything other than a rat’s nest. Even Dad’s hair looks better than yours and you inherited it! And Mom’s is straight so I don’t know where they went wrong with you!”

The younger brother finally wiggled out of the older one’s arms, huffing and finger combing through his curls to try and untangle whatever Tenko had done with it.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Shouta murmured in amusement. “This is the one you said would interrogate me?” The older man asked Izuku who flushed in mortification.

“Oh? You want an interrogation? Follow me,” Tenko said loudly before the younger brother could say something. He quickly strode off into a side room, Aizawa following obediently, only giving Izuku a small reassuring smile before they disappeared behind a closed door.

“Oh god what have I done?”

Touya took a deep breath before patting the younger brunet roughly on the shoulder, “You sentenced him to death. But don’t worry, maybe Ten won’t kill him and instead he’ll come out only missing a leg.”

That did not make Izuku feel any better.

“Great. Thanks.”

-

Shouta was led into a furnished side room that he guessed was a room for entertaining guests by the lack of personalization. He sat down once his brother-in-law did and looked at the other man. The younger (and he was guessing here because he wasn’t sure about the age gap between the two brothers) seemed to squint at Shouta through his fringe.

Yet another staring contest before the other man spoke up.

“Bakugou is a bastard. ‘zu and him were practically betrothed when I was adopted into the family. It was… freaky to see the two practically attached at the hip. I don’t know how much he’s told you about me, but Dad took me overseas for medical treatment a few years after I was brought in. When I left, they were beginning to fall out. They were still in elementary school back then and we were away for years so when we returned, in about a year they were beginning to mend their relationship.

“I never liked the kid. Even back then he was a brat. Yet, Izuku kept covering for him in everything they did. From what I heard, junior high was rough for him. Bakugou was… a bully. Not that he wasn’t before and isn’t still now. He’s an awful person. My brother deserves better,” Tenko explained, his hands shoved into hoodie pocket. “They got better and Izuku wouldn’t shut up about him, talking about how great he was and a whole lotta other bullshit. There weren't any cracks until a couple weeks ago. So I need to decide if you’re going to shatter his heart more.”

Shouta simply nodded, taking it in. It was a bit nicer to hear a timeline as everything he had heard from Hitoshi and Izuku were just bits and pieces.

“I saw a glimpse of you when you first walked in. I’ll be honest, you look old. No, sorry, you look old and tired. What do you do?”

Ah, now they were getting to the interrogation portion of the conversation.

“I’m the heir to my father’s technological company which focuses on Cyber Security and Surveillance.”

“Safe. I suppose I don’t have to ask your salary then. Highest degree of education?”

The older man tilted his head, he wondered why exactly he would need to answer that question, but he didn’t get to say a word.

“Nevermind, you’re right, that’s dumb. How many past relationships have you had?”

“None. Izuku is the only one. I’ve never been interested in dating.”

“You’re what, 30? You’re telling me you’ve never been in a relationship? You don’t look like you’d be a virgin.”

Shouta had to mentally remind himself that this was his cute little husband’s older brother and not someone he could deck in the face for assuming that he would debase himself by sleeping around. He took a deep breath through his nose.

“I’m not 30 yet. And it’s not hard to abstain when you’ve been in love with the same person for years.”

That seemed to get the other man’s attention as he suddenly sat up, brown eyes staring intently at Shouta with something he couldn’t decipher.

“You realize Izuku is 21, right?”

Suddenly, Shouta thought he was going to get stabbed. Tenko’s voice was wobbly with anger and he seemed to be clutching something in his sweater.

“Did I say it was Izuku?”

“So you just lied to my face about a previous relationship?”

Shouta groaned and rubbed his face. He was starting to get why Izuku didn’t want him in an interrogation. He took another deep breath and decided to switch tactics. Being any kind of vague here wouldn’t work. He surely couldn’t tell Tenko everything. But maybe he could try to reason his way around it. He straightened up, sitting taller, and taking on his professional demeanor.

“I’ve never been in a relationship. I didn’t officially meet Izuku until we married. Don’t lump me into a category without an explanation. I’m sure you’ve met Hitoshi before?”

A nod.

“He’s my younger cousin. I’ve had to listen to him talk about Izuku since their first year of high school. At first it was nothing but scathing remarks. Then one day it was all good things. My cousin doesn’t care about just anyone. The men in our family are… picky. Then my father happens to mention one day that he’s also met Izuku and finds him a good conversational partner. You can see how this might pique my interest? Two of my closest family members are aware of him and they find him interesting, so of course, I do my research. I hear stories. Hitoshi shows me pictures and videos. Tell me, have you ever fallen in love with the mere concept of a person?”

Tenko’s face twisted up like he was thinking about it, then he opened his mouth, “I think I get what you mean? It’s like playing a gacha otome game kinda. You don’t really know the character because they’re 2D and most of the time not fully fleshed out. But you skip their entire main story route which includes all of the background information and history and then only play through the limited time events. So you only get bits and pieces of their story and nothing necessarily connects together, but you get attached anyway.”

That’s… Shouta understood none of that. But it sounded reasonable enough so he decided he’d just assume the younger man knew what he was talking about.

“Sure. So, despite never fully meeting Izuku, I felt like I knew him well enough. At Hitoshi’s graduation, I saw him in person for the first time. It was only a glimpse. I had wanted to approach and introduce myself, but Hitoshi told me to stop being a creep and leave. So I left. Hitoshi is… well aware of my feelings for Izuku, yet he tried to keep me away. I think it was because he knew if I got my hands on him, it would’ve been a disaster since he was still so devoted to Bakugou at the time.”

“So… you’re telling me… You somehow fell in love with Izuku… before even meeting him… and then took advantage of his emotional turmoil to marry him before someone else got to him.”

“Essentially, yes.”

Silence again and then Tenko laughed, it was loud and scratchy almost like he didn’t do it often. He grinned, it was wide and showed off too many teeth. Somehow it reminded him of his own grin.

“I’m not sure if that’s really a good thing. But if you’re willing to play the long game like that, I wonder what else you would do to keep Izuku by your side.”

“I’d never hold Izuku against his will. That’s why the divorce clause in the marriage contract said that divorce was available after a year. Though, in the fine print, Izuku can divorce me whenever he wants. A stipulation I asked Father to include just in case he decided he didn’t like my style of doing things.”

“Oh please, you’re Izuku’s type even if he doesn’t know it himself. Brat’s not divorcing you. In fact, we might have to pry him off you if a divorce is filed.”

The door suddenly flew open, Izuku stepping in, face red and looking ruffled.

“You would not! Don’t tell him that!”

Shouta’s head swiveled and he coached his face to stay indifferent. He really hoped that Izuku hadn’t heard his explanation, because Shouta had a completely different set of events he needed to tell Izuku about being in love with him.

“How much did you hear?”

“Not enough,” Izuku suddenly pouted as he strode over to his older brother, grabbing the hoodie of Tenko’s sweater and forcefully yanking it over the man’s head.

The older brother yelped and his hand shot out, knocking into Izuku’s gut, making him stagger backwards. The brunet kicked Tenko’s leg for good measure after rebalancing himself before stepping back across the room to Shouta’s side to get out of hitting range.

“He retroactively sicced Touya on me to keep from eavesdropping so I didn’t hear anything but the divorce stuff. You really made it to where I could divorce you in the first year?” Izuku asked quietly, ignoring Tenko's disgruntled noises of pain.

“I thought you read the contract?”

“Dad read it out to me. I don’t recall hearing that bullet point.”

Shouta went silent and then sighed heavily, “Dammit. Father probably didn’t send the one with it in because he really wanted you as a son-in-law. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I wasn’t going to divorce you in the first year.

“You mean you aren’t ever going to divorce him,” Tenko grunted, pulling his phone out of his pocket and tapping the screen.

“Shut up, Ten!”

Shouta caught a glimpse on the screen and realized that the older brother had recorded their conversation. Well fuck. He would need to confess to Izuku sooner rather than later before that recording made its way back around to bite him in the ass or explaining his peculiar situation would become infinitely harder. Especially because Nedzu had heard about Izuku from Shouta before the brunet had even met Hitoshi or saved the older man.

And if Izuku decided to dig even a little deeper from hearing it? Well, everything Shouta’s worked so hard for, will unravel at the seams.

Chapter Text

“Stop yelling at me, you’re making my ears hurt,” Tenko whined, reaching up to rub his ears.

Izuku scoffed and rolled his eyes. His older brother was overreacting as always. But then again, so was he. It was something that just happened when he was with his family.

He perked up when he faintly heard his mom’s voice calling from the kitchen.

“Ooh, I think dinner’s ready.”

The brunet looked at Aizawa with a smile, “If you like my food, you’ll love Mama’s.”

He grabbed his husband’s hand and pulled him along, ignoring the grumbling from Tenko following behind. They met up with Touya in the hall. He had been leaning against the wall, rubbing his lower back and glazing at Izuku. The smaller man just grinned and kept walking.

“What happened to you?”

“Your fucking brother threw me off of him. I landed on my back…” Touya grumbled, bumping into Tenko’s shoulder as he stepped in line with his boyfriend.

The youngest of the group laughed, “If you didn’t want to get thrown, you shouldn’t have tackled me to the ground.”

Shouta looked down at him, a hand coming up to rest on his shoulder, “He tackled you? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’m much sturdier than I look.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt it.”

“Could you two please stop flirting in front of me?” Tenko suddenly said, tugging at the strings on his hoodie.

Everyone was sitting at the table, happily eating food. There was a conversation going about what everyone has been doing recently, especially since Tenko and Touya were visiting.

“My entire e-sports team, the entire team sucks! It’s like they’ve never even touched a video game before! The only one who’s even slightly good at it is an idiot who goes by the nickname Spinner. Who calls themselves that?” Tenko ranted in between aggressive bites of his food.

“In other news that isn’t about Ten’s awful teammates. I had lunch with my siblings yesterday. It was calmer than usual since ‘yumi kept us from complaining about dear old dad the entire time,” Touya began after his boyfriend made it clear he wasn’t going to continue.

Hisashi scoffed into his bowl as he ate. His absolute hate for the Todoroki patriarch reared its head. Perhaps it’s because Todoroki Enji ran a competitive entertainment group to find talent that could rival the Midoriya’s best actor. (In Izuku’s opinion, no one would ever be better than his Uncle Toshinori).

Touya took another bite full of food before resuming, “It was all normal stuff. ‘Yumi and Natsuo’s careers and Shouto’s friend group drama. Which, surprisingly, had him reading texts straight off his phone.”

Izuku froze, chopsticks halfway to his open mouth, horror dawning on his face. Of course he had guessed that Shouto would have shared the drama, his heterochromatic friend never kept secrets from his older siblings. But who would have guessed that it would have been shared the day after.

“Izuku, this might interest you and your husband. After all, the drama is from your end and about a certain blond.”

The brunet laughed nervously as he slowly set his chopsticks down, realizing both of his parents were staring at him with narrowed eyes. He cleared his throat and sat up, looking at Shouta as if the older man would help him. But Aizawa simply raised an eyebrow and took another bite of the katsudon in front of him.

“Is there something you’d like to tell us, sweetheart?” Inko asked, her voice unnervingly sweet.

“Well, Thursday, after work, me and Shouta went out to dinner. And we ran into Bakugou and Uraraka,” Izuku began to explain slowly, folding his hands in his lap, twisting his fingers. “It wasn’t bad. He just had some choice words to say. A couple insults from both of them. Nothing unusual at this point.”

“He hit Izuku,” Shouta suddenly spoke up.

The entire table stopped moving and all eyes landed on the youngest at the table who was blinking owlishly at his husband.

Hisashi suddenly stood, slamming his hands on the table. “He what? And you just let him?” He seethed.

“I couldn’t stop it, so I punched him in the face,” Shouta explained calmly, fingers absently rubbing along the knuckles on his right hand. “Hard.”

“Did you at least break his jaw?”

“Dad!” Izuku sighed heavily.

“Hisashi, dear. It wouldn’t be good if Shouta went to jail over a physical assault charge and using excessive force. We should just be grateful he gave Katsuki worse than Izuku got,” Inko said, then frowned and looked at her youngest son. “Katsuki didn’t punch you, did he?”

“No, Mama. Just a slap. And after that he looked kinda guilty.”

“You read that as guilt? I think he was just surprised he hit you, but I don’t think he felt guilty. I think he’s wanted to hit you for a while now,” Shouta explained, raising his glass of water to his lips.

The oldest at the table took a deep breath as he slowly sat back down, clasping his hands together. He snarled, red eyes glaring down at his food. He didn’t say anything, thinking. About what, Izuku had no idea.

“On another note, Uraraka also said that she and Bakugou are going to try and become actors.”

“Oh? With which group?”

Izuku shot his father a meaningful look which had him laughing loudly.

“You’re kidding,” Hisashi said, wiping a tear away from his eye. “Well, they can surely try. Bakugou might be able to secure something based on his parents’ connections. But the girl will hardly be able to get a foot in the door, especially since she doesn’t have any sort of background in the industry.”

“Does that mean you aren’t going to block them?” Tenko piped up from across the table. “Because I don’t think it’s a good idea to let them get in.”

Inko hummed and tapped her chin, “I think it’s perfectly reasonable to let them try. If they fail, it’ll prove to them that their best is below standard. If they pass, you simply need to expose them as awful people. I’m not sure if they have any other scandals besides what happened with Izuku.”

“Precisely. You’re so smart, my love,” Hisashi cooed at his wife, causing most of the others at the table to cringe.

Izuku sighed and rubbed at his temples, “So I guess that’s settled. We won’t bother them. Yet.”

The next two weeks had gone by in a flash. Izuku had only gotten closer to Shouta and the older man seemed receptive to literally everything. He never shied away from physical contact despite what Hizashi and Hitoshi told him through text. He seemed to make sure to accommodate Izuku into his obviously busy schedule.

It made Izuku feel… wanted. It was something that Bakugou had never quite done. And if he did, it was always half-assed and like he didn’t want to be near the brunet at all.

But they were coming up on a month of being married and Izuku got it into his head that he needed to give Shouta a gift. That’s how he found himself having lunch with Hizashi. The blond was his husband’s closest friend and knew the dark-haired man the best.

“You want to give him a gift? That’s so cute!” Hizashi gushed as he wrapped his hands around his cup of tea, trying to warm them.

The blond was finally getting over whatever sickness he had, claiming that he’d be able to return to work the beginning of the next week. He confided in Izuku that Shouta had been paying for all of his medical expenses, something he wouldn’t have been able to afford on his own off of only his radio show host gig.

He had, of course, told Izuku he’d pay the money back to which the brunet had told him that he didn’t think Shouta would care if the money was returned.

“I just… he’s been so caring and kind and everything I could have wanted and more. And it’s crazy because I didn’t even know him before we got married,” Izuku admitted, sounding less hysterical than he felt.

Hizashi laughed and shook his head, “You don’t have to explain anything to me. I told you before, I knew you’d have him wrapped around your finger eventually. I didn’t think it’d be mutual though!”

He took a moment to sip some of his tea as he hummed.

“Sho isn’t someone who really likes… material things. I’m sure you’ve noticed from your house, but he doesn’t own much. He hardly likes receiving gifts as it is. But he’s been like that since I met him in high school.”

“Really? When I gave him his ring, he didn’t say anything about not wanting it. He even made me put it on him, the nerve. Either way, do you happen to have any ideas on what he might like?”

The older man made a noise and tilted his head to the side. Then he let out a little laugh, “I have no doubt that he’ll accept anything you give him whether he likes it or not, simply because it’s from you. But, let’s see… He loves cats, it’s the only animal he’s ever mentioned wanting as a pet. He’ll actually accept clothing as long as it’s black. He always rejected mine and Oboro’s attempts at getting him to wear other colors. Hm… oh! Back in high school, in our first year I’d always see him with a puzzle book! And now that he’s working at his dad’s company, he always seems to be busy paperwork, so maybe some sort of personalized office supplies?”

Izuku nodded as he jotted down the blond’s thoughts into a small notebook he always kept on himself. This was a good starting point as he already had ideas of possible gifts.

They were interrupted by Hizashi’s phone pinging. He gave Izuku an apologetic look as he pulled his phone from his pocket and answered it quietly.

The brunet didn’t mind, not bothering to listen in as he continued writing his ideas. But when he heard a sharp gasp, he looked up to see the blond on the verge of tears. He grimaced and set his notebook aside as Hizashi hung up looking utterly distraught.

“Is everything okay?”

The older man shook his head and removed his glasses to rub at his eyes, “I just… the radio station just fired me because I haven’t been able to get into the station because of my illness. I told them that I’d be in soon and they said that my attendance was unsatisfactory. How am I supposed to pay my rent now? I don’t want to rely on my friends…”

That made Izuku wince. He hadn’t realized it was that bad. He bit his lip and weighed the consequences of throwing his weight around a little bit. He bobbed his head a bit before standing.

“Give me one second, I’ll be right back. I might be able to help out.”

Hizashi opened his mouth, presumably to protest, but Izuku ignored him and stepped outside for a moment. He pulled up his dad’s number and took a deep breath, clicking the call button and placing it to his ear.

The conversation wasn’t that long. But having Hisashi pulling up information on people took up a majority of the call. By the time Izuku stepped back into the cafe, Hizashi looked sick with worry.

“Sorry, took a little bit longer than I wanted,” Izuku apologized as he lowered himself back into his chair. “I needed to wait for some documents to be passed on.”

“Izuku, you didn’t need to do anything. I can find a job on my own, it’s hardly an issue.”

The brunet raised a hand to silence the blond as a call from Shouta came in. He answered it.

“Hi Shouta. Did you need something?”

“Me? Not really. ‘Zashi texted me and said you were about to do something dumb. So I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

Izuku’s eyes narrowed and darted up to Hizashi who was now dodging eye contact.

“I wasn’t doing anything dumb. I was calling my dad. Did he also happen to tell you he was fired from his job? I was just trying to see if I could get him a job, even if temporary,” the brunet explained. He picked up his cup of now-cold coffee and took a sip, his face scrunching up a bit.

Shouta hummed on the other end. Izuku could hear the faint sound of typing.

“I see. And what did your dad say?”

The younger man laughed, “when has he ever been able to say no to me. Hizashi should be receiving a call from one of our recruiters soon. Dad passed on the order almost immediately after I practically cried over the phone.”

“Manipulative. Smart. Since it looks like you have everything handled, I’ll see you when you get home.”

“See you later then. Bye, Shouta!”

Izuku ended the call and set his phone aside, focusing back on the older blond. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, “you tattled on me?”

Hizashi nervously laughed and adjusted his glasses, “Only a little. I didn’t tell him about the gift. That counts for something, right?”

The brunet rolled his eyes and pointed at the other man’s phone, “you heard me just now. You’ll get a call within the next 10 minutes.”

“You actually got me a job? Doing what? No, wait… what do you do again?” Hizashi asked as an afterthought.

“You’ll find out eventually.”

It was Hizashi’s turn to give Izuku a bland look. He shook his head and waved it off, “never mind. Let’s go back to what we were talking about originally. Have you thought of what to get him based on what I said?”

Izuku nodded and picked up his notebook again, flipping to the page. He hummed as he read through them again, running through scenarios of what he thought his husband’s reaction to them would be. It wasn’t exact, but it would do.

“You said puzzle books, but since he’s busy, he might not have much time for that anymore. And cats are hard to take care of. I know he’s not the material sort, but my dad always says that you can’t go wrong with a nice watch. Or I can get him a nice personalized reusable pen. Something that he could use every day for work.”

They devolved into a more in-depth conversation until Hizashi’s phone rang. They both stopped and Izuku motioned to it.

“Answer it.”

The blond seemed nervous but plucked the phone up from the table and placed it to his ear.

“This is Yamada Hizashi speaking.”

Now, Izuku couldn’t hear the other recipient, but he had a good idea of what they were saying. He also knew exactly what the job offer was. He could only hope that Hizashi would actually accept the offer. The blond was a radio personality, but Izuku thought he could be so much more. He had the looks, the blond was attractive and the brunet had noticed several people looking over in the half hour they had been at the cafe.

The younger man watched as the blond’s eyes widened, darting over to look at him. He was in shock, Izuku recognized the look. He had seen it on his own face several times over the years.

“Really? Are you sure you don’t have the wrong number?”

Izuku snorted and drained the rest of his cold coffee. He shuddered and grabbed his glass of water to flush the taste out of his mouth.

“I… I’d love to. Yes, I can come in on Monday. Perfect. See you then!” Hizashi sounded almost out of breath as he hung up, hand holding the phone dropping into his lap. “What connections do you have to get me hired as a variety show host for Heritage Entertainment?”

The brunet grinned and shrugged, “You have a job now don’t you? I have to get going. But thank you so much for helping me out with gift ideas.”

Standing, Izuku gathered his things, patting himself down to make sure he had everything he had come with.

“Of course. Thank you for helping me. I know I said you didn’t have to, but I appreciate it nonetheless.”

“You’re my friend now. I’ll do anything for my friends. I’ll see you on Monday then. Bye!” Izuku called as he turned on his heel and strode out of the cafe, ignoring the blond’s confused calls for clarification.

Chapter Text

Izuku quietly entered the house, a shopping bag in his hand. Of course the gift was already wrapped, but that didn’t mean much if Shouta caught him the moment he stepped into the house. He kicked off his shoes and swapped into his slippers. A glance around the bottom floor yielded no results, his husband could be upstairs, and that sounded far more likely.

The brunet climbed the stairs and peeked into the bedroom. He made a confused noise when he didn't see the taller man inside. He glanced down the hall only to see a light peeking out from a crack in a door further down the hallway.

He tilted his head, but instead of peeking, headed back downstairs. He set the gift bag down on the coffee table and checked the clock on the stove in the kitchen. It was almost time for dinner and Izuku debated on whether or not he should order takeout or just cook food.

After wandering over to the kitchen and staring into the fridge for a long moment, he heard a thud. Izuku turned only to see Shouta frozen like a deer in headlights halfway down the stairs.

“I didn’t realize you were home, welcome back,” He murmured as he fully descended to the ground floor.

“It’s okay, I didn’t call out so I didn’t expect you to know. You weren't in the bedroom so I didn’t want to bother you,” Izuku turned fully to face his husband.

Shouta frowned for a second, “ Oh. I was… preparing something.”

It didn’t take a genius to realize the man had the same idea he did about a gift. He laughed instead and nodded.

“I was out preparing something as well,” the brunet admitted with a smile. “But at the moment, I was debating on cooking or ordering food.”

“Well, Hizashi did give me that list I asked for. We could go out for dinner. There is one that is maybe an hour away? A little place that we hopefully won’t be interrupted at.”

Izuku hummed, tilting his head. It had been a little while since they had gone to eat. The last time they had been out was tainted and it would be nice to overwrite that. Green eyes glanced at the little shopping bag on the coffee table. It would be a perfect time to give him the gift as well, and the promise of a stress free evening was alluring.

“Sounds like a plan.”

Dinner had gone exceedingly well. No disruptions and more good food. Izuku would have to remember to thank Hizashi for the recommendation. That was a thought for later thought as they were on their now usual after dinner walk.

Izuku thought about the gift that he had in his coat pocket. This was as good a time as any.

“Shouta?”

“Hm?”

The brunet looked up and caught his husband’s eyes. He stopped walking and waited for the older man to as well. It was fairly empty in the streets despite the hour, but it was perfect because Izuku was already embarrassed and having by-passers watching would only have made it infinitely worse.

“We got married about a month ago. And, I’ll be honest, I hadn’t expected much. But… it’s been… nice. Well, really I can think of so many different words better than nice to describe our marriage. It’s just different from what I had imagined. Really I thought you’d be more of a carbon copy of Mr Nedzu or even just dismissive of me. I'm thankful that you’re not. You treat me better than I thought I had deserved. It’s… a bit embarrassing, but I went out with Hizashi yesterday. I asked him about you because I wanted to get you something you’d like as a gift. But after talking, I realized something.

“You’re someone who would prefer a practical gift over anything else. I know you won’t wear colors, I’m going to get you to wear something other than black though. I know you have a favorite mug when drinking coffee. I know you’re a workaholic and don’t have time to take care of a pet. So instead, I got you something you can use every single day,” Izuku said. He felt like he was talking too much, but Shouta had that small little genuine smile on his face that made the younger man’s insides melt.

He dug into his coat pocket and pulled out a nice box. He hesitated for a moment before handing it over.

Aizawa gently took it from his hands, long fingers lingering against his skin before pulling away, leaving Izuku’s hands tingly. Shouta opened the box and made a pleased noise as he lifted out a fountain pen. It was a sleek black with silver and gold banding around the cap.

“It’s… refillable, so you can keep reusing it. It… also has your name engraved on it so no one can steal it,” Izuku explained, hands shoved into his pockets and not making eye contact.

“Thank you, I’ll use it well,” Shouta murmured, tucking the pen back into the box and slipping it into his own coat. “I wish I had thought about bringing my gift for you along as well. But, I left it at home. I’ll keep it for now. I’ll give it to you another time, if that’s alright?”

“That’s fine. I don’t mind at all. Just the knowledge that you got me anything makes me happy.”

The next morning was business as usual. The couple had settled into a routine, having created a schedule for the bathroom with Izuku going first and then starting the coffee pot once it was determined that the brunet’s coffee was superior. Then Shouta would drop Izuku off before heading to work himself. It was a system that worked well for both of them.

Izuku yawned as he clutched his travel mug tight to his chest as he pushed open the door to the lobby of the company building. Hisashi had, thankfully, stopped waiting outside for him, deciding to let his son be and head up by himself.

“Izuku?”

Said man stopped walking and turned to see Hizashi standing there, dressed into a well fitting suit. The brunet had never seen the blond in anything other than comfy clothing, so it was a bit of a shock, but the older man looked good.

“Hey! Good morning. I told you you’d see me on Monday, so why are you so surprised?” Izuku teased.

The blonde laughed nervously and nodded, “You did say that. I guess it just didn’t click that you worked here I suppose. Though in hindsight it makes more sense the more I think about it. You must be awfully high up to get me an immediate interview though.”

They walked up to the receptionists’ desks as Hizashi had quietly rambled, obviously filled with anxious energy.

“Excuse me?My name is Yamada Hizashi, I have an interview today?” Hizashi cleared his throat and asked one of the women behind the desk.

The receptionists looked up, they looked irritated that someone had interrupted their gossiping.

“Please wait until one of us is able to service you. We are busy at the moment,” one of them said snootily.

Izuku sighed and shook his head. He gave his friend an apologetic look just before leaning over the desk. He looked around before reaching over and plucking a visitors’ badge that was just laying in the open, something that was not allowed.

The receptionist closest to him turned, looking furious, but when she saw who it was, her words died on her lips. She sputtered, scrambling to apologize.

“You all are being paid to welcome guests and help them with their interviews and appointments. That is what you were hired to do. You are also meant to keep all visitors’ badges out of view and reach in case someone who means harm approaches the desk. This is your first and last warning,” Izuku sternly said.

They all nodded and turned to the monitors on the desk, working to help the guests that had been milling about the lobby waiting to be helped.

The brunet turned to Hizashi who looked gobsmacked and pinned the visitors’ badge to the taller man’s lapel.

“Make sure this is visible at all times. I’ll direct you where to go, come on,” Izuku motioned for the blond to follow as he headed to the elevators.

When they were inside and headed to the appropriate floor, Hizashi spoke.

“They looked so scared of you. Are you part of the HR staff that you have the power to write people up?”

“While I do have the power to write people up and fire people, I’m not part of the HR department. But they are some of the fairest people in the industry. They take all claims and accusations very seriously and they do extensive investigations to make sure no one is accidentally wronged in any way.”

The taller man whistled and shook his head, “This place is crazy. I can’t believe I have a chance to interview here. And for a live TV position too! I really can’t thank you enough for the opportunity.”

“I’m sure you’ll do great,” Izuku said as the elevator dinged. “You can ask anyone on the floor and they’ll direct you where you need to go. I hope to hear about your success!”

Hizashi nodded, bid him farewell, and stepped off the elevator. The brunet, now alone, tapped the button for the top floor.

“You’re later than usual,” Hisashi’s voice came out loud in the silence of the office.

Izuku had just stepped in and he rolled his eyes, “You know exactly why. Incompetent receptionists and a lost friend. It was only two minutes.”

The older man grunted as he waved him over. He had a constipated look on his face as he squinted at his computer monitor.

The younger man walked over, rounding the desk to stand next to his father like usual. A file was shoved into his hands and he cautiously opened it.

Inside was the details of a variety show catered to introducing Heritage Entertainment’s newest rookies to Japan. There was a schedule of Q&As and an impromptu cooking show. There was even a section dedicated to completing tasks given by a select audience to show how the rookies worked with “fans”. It was a basic version of their usual variety shows.

“This is the show I am going to have Bakugou and Uraraka assigned as their first hurrah into the industry. As far as Heritage Entertainment is aware, there is nothing wrong with their characters and no notable evidence of them being problematic. Therefore, I want you to supervise the show. If you can somehow encourage their bad behavior, they can gain a negative reputation so their careers can be dead in the water before they even really begin,’ Hisashi explained. He turned to face Izuku. his office chair creaking under his weight.

“That sounds doable. But, wouldn’t that impact the company negatively?” Izuku asked as he set the file on the desk, hand coming up to tap at his chin.

“Yes it would, but we can mitigate it easily. After all, they wouldn’t be fully integrated as our talent. In fact, we could spin it in a way that the public would call it divine intervention. That their bad characters were revealed before they became big and ruined one of the best entertainment companies out there. What do you think?”

“I think you have too much time on your hands, Dad. Fine, I’ll do it. I’ll go supervise a bunch of rookies. I noticed that you haven’t declared a host yet. Is this, perhaps, because said host is interviewing today?”

“You’re so smart, Izuku,” Hisashi praised. “I listened to Yamada’s previous radio shows. He had the perfect personality. Really, you’ll make a fine CEO one day.”

The brunet smiled, happy with the praise from his father. It just solidified the fact that eventually eventually, he’ll announce Izuku as the official heir.

Chapter Text

Izuku had a headache. It wasn't exactly uncommon for him to have a headache, but the thought of where he had to go the next day made the pounding infinitely worse.

“It feels like someone is driving a nail into my eye socket,” Izuku groaned from his spot on the couch. His right hand was covering his eye, trying to limit its exposure to the already dimmed lights in the house.

“Yeah, well that’s your dad’s fault,” Hitoshi snorted from the couch cushion next to him.

The dark haired man had come over to hang out while Shouta was at work dealing with what Mr Nedzu had deemed an "emergency". Izuku wasn't sure what that had meant and he didn't really think he wanted to find out. But he was grateful to his friend for coming over to keep him company. After all, it wasn't often that Izuku was alone these days.

The brunet sighed and shifted, rolling on to his side and burying his face into the couch cushion.

"I'm not going to make it through the next week. I'm actually going to die."

"Well, I'll watch it live so I can record your sad death and play it at your funeral."

"You'll do no such thing! I doubt you'd want to deal with my family glaring at you for laughing at my expense," Izuku grumbled.

Hitoshi made a noise and the brunet looked up only to see horror dawning across his face, "Oh no… I'd also have to deal with Sho's moping! Yeah, you better not die. I can't handle that man being in a mood for very long."

Izuku burst into laugher at his friend's disgruntled expression. He reached up, pat the older's man thigh, and gave him a commiserating look.

He spoke in an almost babying voice, "It's okay 'toshi. I'll stay alive just to save you from your big scary cousin."

Then he yelped when a hand came down, swatting his head lightly.

"Shut up will you? God, when did you get so annoying? Must have been when you decided that it was a good idea to commit to a flash marriage with my cousin."

Izuku snorted and settled again, turning back over to stare up at the ceiling. He let out a long sigh and closed his eyes, the headache still spiking behind his eye socket.

He spoke softly, "Is this the right way to do things…? To actually go to the shooting of the show and work to get my revenge on those two?"

Hitoshi didn't answer right away. He hummed and drummed his long fingers against his thighs.

"I don't really think there is a right way of doing things in this situation. However, you have to think about it this way. If you left them alone to their own devices, would they leave you alone? Would they move on and continue on their own path or would they keep trying to interrupt your life and put you down?"

A grunt and the smaller brunet smacked the older man's thigh.

"When did you become the sensible one?"

"Excuse me, I've always been the sensible one. But you're only just noticing now because Sho is coddling you."

"He is not!"

"Oh he so totally is and you're in denial."

A gaudy yellow suitcase was sat next to the genkan, it was the same one Izuku had used to move into the house and he still refused to get a new one no matter how much others complained.

"It's only a week, right? A week and then you'll come right back home?" Shouta asked, his voice low.

If asked, Izuku would describe the look on his husband's face like he was looking at a kicked puppy. He was pouting, though it was hard to make out as stoic as his face was. His brows were pinched and he was huffing and puffing, just short of throwing a tantrum at the thought of being alone in the house.

The older man was still in his pajamas which amounted to sweat pants and a tank top. His hair had been thrown up into a messy pony tail and it made Izuku want nothing more than to call off his trip and curl up back in bed with the older man. But duty called and he couldn't easily worm his way out of his job.

"One week, then I'm home," the brunet promised softly.

"You better come back in one piece. If you come home with any injuries…" the dark-haired man's voice trailed off into a broken grumble and a promise of violence.

A quiet snort and Izuku stepped forward, hugging Shouta around the taller man's middle. He leaned into the comfort he knew he'd miss in the coming week. Large, warm arms wrapped back around him and Izuku let out a sigh of relief.

The younger man wasn't sure how well he would fair mentally during this, but it was the beginning of the end. That's what he had to keep telling himself. He wasn't sure how long it would take, but eventually he wouldn't be plagued with paranoia, the fear of Bakugou or Uraraka popping up in front of him like they kept a GPS tracker on him.

The buzz of a phone broke them up and Izuku sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Guess that means it's time for me to go."

It was silent as Shouta shuffled of to the genkan, guiding Izuku with a large hand on the smaller man's lower back.

Izuku slipped off his slippers and stepped into his usual red shoes. He tapped the tip of each shoe against the stone a couple times before looking up at Aizawa. They stood there, staring at each other, almost expecting something anything to happen. Izuku knew what he wished to happen, but neither of them made any moves.

The brunet broke the tension, his face breaking into a lopsided, shy, little smile. He reached out, grabbing his suitcase and hoisting it to his side.

"I'll see you in a week."

"In a week then. Stay safe, Izuku."

Peering out the tinted, back windows of the company car, he could see all the rookie talents that were going to be participating in the variety show. Admittedly, it wasn't something he had really paid much attention to while mentally preparing to deal with Bakugou and Uraraka.

A green file folder sat open in his lap as his eyes scanned the profiles on the other three newbies. Izuku thought it was odd that there were an odd number of participants for the show considering they were often paired off for certain tasks to make it easier to gain footage and not have dead air.

He sighed, something niggling at the back of his mind, no doubt Hisashi had planned something without warning him. Izuku's dad was never one to pass up on an opportunity, but the brunet just couldn't figure out what the opportunity was. Well, not at first. But it was slowly dawning on him.

"Sir, are you going to be getting out anytime soon?" the driver suddenly asked, breaking through Izuku's thoughts.

One eye twitch and a repressed lecture later and Izuku was standing outside the car, suitcase sitting next to him. He clutched the file tighter in his fist, barely holding back the urge to complain to his dad about how impatient the driver had been when the burnet knew the man had no where else to be.

But he didn't want to deal with it. He'd have to deal with a lot in the coming days and he didn't need the added stress. So instead, he took a deep breath and grabbed the handle of the beat-up suitcase, wheeling it over to the group as he went.

The first person to see him wasn't who he thought it was going to be. He was expecting harsh words and snarky comments. Instead, he was looking into the bright green eyes of one of his husband's closest friends.

"Izuku, what the hell," Hizashi hissed, grabbing the brunet by the arm and dragging him unnoticed further away from the group.

"Well hello to you too, Hizashi," Izuku said snarkily.

The blonde let out a tense little laugh and ran his fingers through his shoulder length hair which already looked disheveled, most likely because of Hizashi's already mounting stress.

A steadying sigh and Hizashi spoke again, "Hi. What are you doing here? Are you here to participate or something? You must be the sixth person. Why didn't you tell me?"

The taller man's voice took on a whiny, nasally tone as his frown morphed into a pout. He crossed his arms and it made Izuku let out a little laugh.

"Not here to participate. At least, that's not what I was sent to do. But knowing who assigned me the job, I highly doubt that I'll only stand by and watch like I originally thought I was going to," Izuku grumbled.

Hizashi smiled and nodded along, "At least you'll have me then!"

Soon enough, the two men were on their way back on over to the group. Izuku wanted to duck away, to avoid seeing his tormentors, and he barely managed to sneak his way on over to the director, carrying his suitcase with him so it didn't make any noise on the sidewalk.

"Excuse me, I'm Midoriya Izuku. I was sent to oversee the production of the variety show," Izuku introduced himself to the woman with a slight bow.

The Director was a shorter than Izuku, and she sported a short black bob that was slicked back, a single lock of hair dangling in front of her face. She looked him up and down before raising an eyebrow at him.

"You're the one they sent from the company?" Her brown eyes glanced down at the clipboard in her heads, eyes roaming down the words on the papers. "I don't see your name on he-…"

She frowned and squinted at the paper. After a long moment she scratched her head and pulled her phone out of her bag. A couple taps on the screen and she turned to Izuku with a wide and overly polite looking smile.

A bad feeling wash over Izuku and it was at that moment he knew that his dad had done something.

"I was told about your arrival, Mr Midoriya. Please forgive me for not recognizing you sooner. it's a pleasure to have you on-site. It seems you've participated in variety shows before, and as you can see, we're currently down an actor. I'd hate to ask, but do you mind filling in?"

There is was. Sure, Izuku had expected it, mentally prepared for it to because of course nothing could ever be easy. Not that it was going to be easy in the first place. The brunet decided that instead of scolding his dad, he'd have his mom do it for him, it'd get the message across much quicker.

Izuku plastered a fake smile onto his face and dipped his head, "Since this show is my responsibility, it would be remiss of me to allow such an oversight. It's a… shame that production is already behind schedule so we can't find someone else to fill in. This time I'll pick up the slack, but I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that this is not something that can happen again."

The sheer panic on the director's face made the younger man feel bad, but he had to keep up appearances. This last minute swap wasn't something that was tolerated in a normal setting, so it was still important to warn the director against letting something like that happen again.

"If I recall, we'll start with a Q&A first for the day, correct?"

"T-That's correct, sir," the woman stumbled over her words as she flicked through pages on her clipboard before handing it over with the schedule on the front page. It felt like she was trying to get on his good side.

Wise.

"Mr Yamada, please come here," Izuku called over to Hizashi which got everyone's attention.

As his friend strode over, the surprised and subsequently angry expressions of Bakugou and Uraraka, who had been so up in each other's business before hand, made a pit form in Izuku's stomach.

He handed over the clipboard and turned his attention back to the host and director. He wanted to get some work done before he inevitably had to deal with the two of them insulting him with no Shouta to protect him.

"Have you been given the prompt cards yet?" Izuku asked to which Hizashi shook his head.

The Director scurried off and returned within a minute with the cards, handing them to Izuku to look over first. A glance through the cards and he passed them off to his friend.

"Let's get everyone settled in and set up to begin filming then," the woman glanced at Izuku as it to make sure she didn't say anything wrong. When she received a nod she let out a sigh of relief and walked off to instruct the crew.

A deep breath and Izuku grabbed his suitcase and motioned Hizashi to follow him, pointedly ignoring the two pairs of eyes boring into the side of his head. He'd deal with them later.

Chapter Text

"Gonna explain the two that looked like they wanted to murder you?" Hizashi suddenly asked the moment they had stepped into the house where everyone would be staying for the duration of the show.

"Does Shouta not share everything with his friends like I do?"

"Shouta? Sharing? He doesn't share anything unless affects us," the blonde lamented, whining and gently shaking the shorter brunet. "So tell me! What's going on?"

Izuku laughed softly, amused by Hizashi's antics. He reminded the brunet of one of Bakugou's friends. It was really sad that Izuku hadn't reached out, mostly because he wasn't sure if he wanted to know if they had known. It would hurt if they did and he had no want to make the wound that much worse.

"Ex-boyfriend, ex-friend. Need I say more?"

The wince he received was more than enough to let him know he had made his point. They were guided into a large sitting room with six chairs lined up in a row. Most likely for the contestants. There was another seat not too far away that was angled to face the row of chairs and a camera that was set up, one of the many that would be used to record the show. It was supposed to be a 24/7 kind of thing to let fans really get to know the new talent.

Which made Izuku shudder at the thought of being under the scrutiny of the populace. He was a bland looking guy so he wasn't sure how he would be received, especially since most mentions of his early TV appearances were wiped rather fast from the web.

"I don't believe I ever got your name," Izuku said idly to the director who had come to stand next to him.

She spooked easily, jumping before turning to look at him. She laughed nervously, tucking the lock of her hair behind her ear. "It's Masu Komako, sir."

The taller brunet wanted to insist that Masu call him by his name instead, but decided that that was unprofessional, so he swallowed his comment and firmly nodded his head.

"When do we anticipate the show to begin streaming?" Izuku asked, checking his smartwatch.

When he flipped his wrist to see the time, he was surprised by the sight of a notification popping up onto the screen. He retrieved his phone from his pocket and grumbled at the sight of his dad's contact. He bit back a groan and opened the text.

[Dad: :) Don't tell your mom please, I'll already be getting an earful when she undoubtedly sees the show. I have a surprise for you when filming is done, though. So don't be too angry with me just yet.]

Izuku scowled and just shoved his phone back in his pocket. He was sure his… displeasure with his father would be nothing in the face of whatever the surprise may be, but that didn't mean he couldn't still be upset with him.

"We plan to start before dinner so we can roll into just seeing what the evening is like for everyone after the Q&A. Then tomorrow we'll open up with pairings," Masu explained, having got the clipboard back from Hizashi.

"Sounds good. The rooms?"

Masu waved over an assistant and had them lead Izuku to the room he would be staying in for the next few days to a week depending on how much content could be milked out of the contestants.

The room was nice, but it was bare since he doubted he'd be allowed to spend too much time alone. He set his suitcase aside and sat down on his bed, fingers absently twisting at his wedding ring. He had been gone only an hour or two and he knew he'd been separated from Shouta for longer than that… but he missed the older man. Terribly.

Maybe it was the knowledge that he wasn't going home at the end of the day. Wouldn't see Shouta's small, fond smiles or just bask in his presence. He also missed his husband's cologne as cheesy as it sounded. He wasn't sure when he noticed how nice the man smelled all the time, but the moment he did, he realized he tended to sit a tad bit closer to Shouta whenever they were together.

He could feel his face heating up and he groaned, scrubbing at his cheeks to try and get rid of that line of thought. It was embarrassing to admit to even himself that he often sat close to Aizawa just to smell him. He shook his head. No, he'd never mention that to anyone… other than Hitoshi maybe. Just so he could watch the man squirm and delight at the horror on his friend's face.

The brunet's musing was cut off by heavy footsteps. At first, fear had spiked through him, thinking that he was about to be cornered by Bakugou. But that was swept away when all of the contestants appeared in the doorway of his room.

Without an invitation, they all stepped in and Izuku idly reminded himself of their files that he had read on the way in. He felt bad that his mind had been a bit preoccupied and didn't remember really anything about them. He'd have to refresh his memory before being paired up the next morning.

"Deku, the fuck are you doing here? You aren't good enough to be here, who on earth did you bribe?" Bakugou scowled, stepping even closer to the bed, arms crossed making his muscles bulge slightly.

"I didn't bribe anyone, we all work for the same company. I'm just a last minute fill in," Izuku explained. He sounded more patient than he felt.

The brunet kept his face as neutral as he could. He stood and walked past Bakugou and Uraraka, lips cracking into a wide smile as he bowed to the trio of newcomers.

"It's a pleasure to work with you three. My name is Midoriya Izuku. I've known the other two for years now," he introduced himself politely, earning a scoff from his ex-friend.

The first one to introduce herself was the shortest of the trio, her dirty blonde hair done up in two messy buns on her head. Her brown eyes peeking out from under long bangs.

She giggled and grabbed Izuku's hand tightly, "I'm Toga Himiko, but you can just call me Himiko! Ochako was telling me so much about you."

Izuku cast a glance over his shoulder at Uraraka who wore the slightest of smirks on her face. If she wanted to play ball, fine, he'll bite. She just better be prepared for the consequences.

A softened smile and sturdy fingers grasped around Toga's. Izuku tilted his head, eyes crinkling just barely at the corners.

"Himiko then. I hope she's said good things about me. She was always one of my closest friends," he murmured, stuttering over his words nervously, his other hand coming up to rub the back of his neck.

God, he hated having to manipulate people, but it was better than having his entire life brought down around his ears because of two people who couldn't stop acting like the earth revolved around them.

(And it still hurt to think about the fact that just a month ago he was friends with them. Had gone out to lunch and laughed and shared things with them. He wanted a hug and Shouta wasn't here to give him one.)

The way Toga's entire demeanor shifted was almost as clear as night and day. The sly smile she had worn turned into something a little more nervous as she bobbed her head and pulled her hands away.

The other girl stepped up, waving in his direction with a wide grin. She was chewing gum and swept some of her light brown hair out of her face.

"Oh em gee! It's, like, so totally nice to meet you! I remember seeing you on TV before. I lowkey thought that you were, like, not real. I couldn't find any of your stuff! It's, like, totes insane. Name's Utsushimi Camie. But all my friends just call me Camie."

Izuku almost blue screened as she talked. It wasn't that she wasn't understandable, but that he wasn't prepared. Especially when she said she had watched his previous variety shows. There is no way she's so chronically online that she caught all 3 of them for the 2 weeks they were aired. He almost cringed away. Almost.

Instead, he laughed nervously, face turning red as he waved his hands, "You saw those? That's so embarrassing, I'm sorry you had to witness me right out of high school."

"Don't be! Your such a snack that I totes didn't even mind."

The last of the other contestants coughed and stepped up, taking all of the attention. He was more of a yellow blond compared to Himiko and Bakugou. Blue eyes looked Izuku up and down and he scoffed.

"Monoma Neito. I'd say it's a pleasure but I don't know how to feel about you yet."

"That's… fair. I don't doubt we'll get to know each other well soon enough. We're all in this together after all!"

A large hand settled on Izuku's shoulder and he was forcefully turned around by Bakugou who hissed in his face, "Don't act all fucking buddy buddy with these extras and tell me why you're here. You don't have a single acting bone in your body, Deku."

Everyone was staring. He could feel their eyes. Bakugou was trying to get everyone on his side, but he was going about it wrong. Some people just didn't like the bullying type, and Izuku had no intention of standing up here and now. Having others underestimate him was something that was so ingrained in the brunet that he had no doubt he could successfully pull it off.

Within seconds, Izuku had winced and curled in on himself, telltale tears forming on command. Blurry, green eyes looked up at Bakugou and he stuttered nervously.

"Sorry, Kacchan. I just wanted to see how good of an actor you could be."

Shock and confusion warred on the blond's face as he let go of the brunet's shoulder. Within seconds, Uraraka was at his side, glaring at Izuku like he had done something wrong.

She snipped at him, "Don't act like you still care about him!"

Before Izuku could say anything else, Masu appeared in the doorway and clapped her hands, "I had hoped you would all have settled in by now, but it can't be helped. It's go time! Everyone back into the sitting room, it's time for the Q&A."

Izuku settled down in the chair he was guided to. He adjusted his clothes and pulled his phone out, checking his notifications. While he was thinking about it, he opened his text conversation with Shouta.

[Me: Shouta, we're about to go live! Also, a warning. I'm going to be referring to Bakugou as Kacchan again. And I'm going to act like they're still my friends.]

He made a move to put his phone away when the three dots symbolizing that Shouta was typing appeared. He waited to see what his husband was going to say instead.

[Shouta <3: Alright be safe and don't let them get to you]

[Shouta <3: Also text me before you go to sleep]

A light blush spread across Izuku's cheeks as he read through the texts. It wasn't the most romantic thing that's ever be said to him, but he could feel Shouta's worry and it was everything to Izuku.

[Me: I will. :D]

Izuku wanted to keep texting him, but he heard Masu clapping and shot off a quick "gotta go" text before slipping the phone back into his pocket.

"Okay everyone! Filming begins in one minute. Please make sure you are paying attention and don't have your phones out. Remember that everything that happens from here on out is recorded and will be broadcast to the nation. When Mr Yamada or I say something to you, I expect it to be done. This is your moment to gain fans before your planned debut. Don't mess this up," Masu said as a social media manager was on standby, softly counting down to the cameramen who all shifted on their feet.

Just to make things clear, Izuku wasn't going to have a debut. That's not why he was here. But that didn't seem to matter as he could feel his anxiety skyrocket. He was going to be on TV again and he would never get used to knowing that he was being watched by thousands of people. And it was only get to get worse if he was declared the heir of the company.

He took a deep breath as the cameras started rolling.

Chapter Text

"Hello and welcome to the show! My name is Yamada Hizashi and I'll be your host for the week!" Hizashi greeted the cameras with a wave and smile.

It was weird for him to be in front of a camera, to know he was being seen and not just heard. But it was a new experience and one he was delighted to have. Really, he couldn't thank Izuku enough.

"Let's meet our contestants!"

Hizashi angled his body more towards the row of participants. Izuku was the closest to him, and it was nice to have a friend sitting practically next to him. It was comforting. He wasn't sure of the names for everyone else, but he'd make sure to memorize them quickly.

Izuku squeaked and straightened up, casting a shy smile to the camera and a little dip of his head as he introduced himself. He was more shy than when the blonde had first met him, then again Hizashi was sick and might not have remembered their meeting properly. The contrast was curious, but Hizashi would have more time to think about it when his facial expressions wouldn't be scrutinized by thousands of people.

The next contestant introduced herself. She seemed bubbly enough and the only reason Hizashi could even understand what she was saying was his exposure with social media teens. He inwardly shuddered, at the thought.

But still, he filed her name away, green eyes sliding over to the next young man. This one he was much more interested in. After all, the blond was one of the people mean mugging Izuku to hell and back.

"Bakugou Katsuki, an interesting name for sure," Hizashi thought to himself.

It was obvious the moment the younger man opened his mouth that he had a holier-than-thou attitude and it made Hizashi's jaw tense. He had dealt with those types before, and it always grated on his nerves to even be close to them.

The next girl was another blonde, cute little space buns on top of her head. But something about her gave Hizashi a bad feeling. Whether it was her teeth, her canines just a tad too sharp or her brown eyes which, just like Bakugou's, seemed to lean just a bit too close to red.

Something about her set the host on edge. He'd keep an eye on her too.

Moving on to the next contestant, Hizashi could tell that this one had the same flair for dramatics as he did. The way the younger man was practically on the edge of his seat as he introduced himself to the camera was very reminiscent of himself.

The last girl was another to keep an eye on. Her personality seemed to flip on a dime, Hizashi didn't need anyone to tell him she was two-faced.

"Uraraka Ochaco, another name to remember," Hizashi mentally noted.

But he turned back to the camera, a live chat feed just off to the left for him to read.

"There we are! Now that you've met everyone, it seems like some of you out there recognize a couple of our contestants! But don't worry if you don't, to kick off the show this week, we'll be conducting a Q&A session for us to get to know our rookie socialites a little bit better," the host explained with a little laugh. "Now, now, let's be a bit patient and get through some of the preliminary questions first! Let's begin with an easy one, shall we?"

He hummed theatrically and shuffled the cards in his hands. He settled on one then cleared his throat.

Shouta sat on the couch. The house was eerily silent without the sound of Izuku's quiet rambling or just how loud his presence was. It was crazy just how much his husband's presence had changed his entire lifestyle.

Granted, Shouta knew his life would change the moment he decided that Izuku would be his whether the younger man knew it or not.

He let out a soft sigh as he hugged a pillow to his chest. It still smelled just like his cute little husband (who had, again, only been gone for a couple hours at most). His phone laid forgotten beside him, Izuku was busy now and Shouta was waiting for the show to start streaming. The TV was on, but nothing interesting was playing. Not that he was even paying much attention.

Suddenly the screen lit up with a logo Shouta didn't recognize. But it was okay, he wasn't here to pay attention to anyone but Izuku anyway. Not that he expected the younger man to have much screen time with his position as overseer.

Shouta was completely set up until there was a knock on his front door. He wanted to ignore whoever was on the other side, but knowing his luck, it was a family member that would make his life hell.

A.K.A Hitoshi.

And wouldn't you know, speak of the devil and he shall appear. Hitoshi stood on his front stoop. A shit-eating grin on his face.

"Hello, Cousin."

Shouta's hand twitched, itching to slam the door, Izuku's pillow and lonely nights awaited him. Something he didn't want to give up if he was to be interrupted by his nosy no-good little cousin.

"I'm not taking guests," the older man said, trying to close the door.

Hitoshi didn't seem to care that the older man didn't want him there and just bulldozed straight in, kicking his shoes off and making himself comfortable on the couch.

"Oh you already have the TV prepared, perfect! You got food in this place without 'zu cookin' for ya?"

Like a good, proper adult, Shouta did not scoff, but he did throw a spare couch pillow straight at the younger man's face. He delighted in the yelp that he received.

"Oi! I'm here to support your husband with his new endeavor. Let me at least watch the opening part with you," Hitoshi grumbled as he took the pillow from where it landed on his lap and hugged it to his chest.

Resigned, Shouta sighed and sat himself back down on the couch. He grabbed Izuku's pillow, ignoring the look on his cousin's face.

"Don't you dare say anything."

"Wasn't going to. This is infinitely better than you waxing poetic about the color of Izuku's eyes or how you could listen to him talk for hours because of how soothing his voice is. So snuggle his pillow or whatever, freak," his little cousin mumbled under his breath, earning another pillow to the face.

A noise rang out and both men's eyes darted to the TV.

As the logo spun around, the first (and very obvious) thing Shouta noticed, was the friendly face of his now ex-friend. It didn't matter that Izuku hired him, to not be told he was gonna be onsite was treason of the highest degree.

The next thing Shouta happened the notice was Izuku sitting next to Hizashi in the second act of betrayal. After all, no one told Shouta that his husband was going to be a big part of the show. Sure, he had been warned that his husband was reverting his personality to a version Shouta had only heard about from Hitoshi.

But then Izuku opened his mouth and Shouta just about flinched. The stuttering, the nervous habits, everything about him had the older man baring his teeth. He didn't think he liked this at all. He had prepared himself to see it, but it still made his flight or fight mode activate.

"Did he really used to act like that in high school?" Shouta asked Hitoshi who's mouth was trying to catch flies.

A slow nod, "Yeah… I… I didn't think he could still act like that. It makes him seem so unassuming… it's creepy."

Of course this wouldn't stop the older man from watching his husband on TV, but it was off-putting in a way that made him want to drive there to hug Izuku and punch Bakugou in the face again. Not that he would, but he really wanted to.

Neither spoke as the rest of them introduced themselves.

"Since you're all relatively new to the spotlight, we'll begin with this one. Why are you here? And to clarify, what's got you seeking out Heritage Entertainment for a job? Let begin with Midoriya," Hizashi motioned to Izuku with a bright smile.

Izuku swallowed, his hands felt sweaty. He smiled with what he hoped wasn't a grimace. He couldn't just come out and say the he wasn't supposed to be here. That he was just some fill in that had no place among those here. So he didn't.

"Ah, well, thank you for the opportunity to speak! I really wasn't expecting to invited to the show, y'know? I was completely blindsided, but I'm still happy to be included! I work with Heritage Entertainment as a… well… the secretary to the CEO and a talent recruiter. So I suppose I'm here to get a bit more hands-on experience," Izuku explained with a nervous laugh.

His voice was more wobbly than he thought it ought to be, but he thought that his words should be enough for people to gloss over him and focus on the others more.

Though a glance around the set and even to his right, revealed that everyone was staring at him with a look he couldn't quite decipher.

Well, not at first. After thinking on it, it became obvious why they were staring. He just admitted that he was close to the CEO on live TV. If he was lying, he would be fired rather quickly. If he wasn't… Izuku was sure they'd be clamoring to get in his good graces and become his best friend.

Despite the momentary silence, Hizashi made up for it by immediately jumping in with a clap.

"Wow! Even if it's not really your cup of tea, we're proud to have you on to learn the ropes. It seems some of our watchers recognize you from other variety shows. Any comments on that?"

Izuku didn't fight to keep his blush down, his face heating as he ducked his head and laughed nervously.

"When I first began working with the company, I worked on a couple shows. But when I became the CEO's secretary, he didn't want me to be bothered so he had them wiped from the internet. It's an honor that some of you recognize me. I can't thank you enough for supporting me!"

The brunet immediately bowed his head and sent a wide smile to the main camera that was filming them.

Thankfully, Hizashi moved onto Camie who was sat directly to Izuku's right. It allowed the young man to gently fan his face and calm himself down a bit. No matter how often he did it, he could never get used to be on camera. It was nerve-wracking and he heavily disliked public speaking.

He did have to get used to it though, so this was as good of practice as any.

Inko hummed softly as she busied herself with cleaning up the kitchen and prepping dinner. It was strange, having the house so empty.

Hisashi told her she had Empty-Nest Syndrome, but Inko just liked to think that she missed her kids. Izuku and Tenko were always so loud and boisterous when they got together. It was such a relief that the two had gotten along like a house on fire when her husband first brought Tenko home.

She was brought out of her thoughts when she heard her phone ping from where she left it on the dining room table. Surely Hisashi wasn't texting her random things throughout the day again. That man had a mind that could wander. It was no wonder Izuku seemed to get all caught up in his thoughts.

Swiping her phone off the table, she held it out a bit as she read the notification. Her brows pinched together as she realized it was from her eldest son. Tenko never usually texted unless it was something important.

Unlocking her phone, she opened up her messages with the dark-haired man. It had been a simple sentence.

[Tenko: Izuku's on a variety show, turn the TV to this channel: XXX]

Inko followed the directions and gasped as her youngest appeared on the screen, wobbly smile on his face. And there, not too far away was those two no-good kids who broke her baby's heart.

What really took her breath away was hearing that the show was hosted by the company her husband owned. Anger flooded her veins.

Why did Hisashi always do things that could compromise her babies' welfare and not warn her! This is why she never bothered to let him know things, because he didn't ever offer the same courtesy.

She texted Tenko back.

[Me: Thank you, Tenko. I'll handle it]

She heard the front door open and familiar heavy footsteps in the genkan. Hisashi didn't even have the chance to call out that he was home before his wife yelled his name. And not just any name, his birth name.

"Shigaraki Zen, you better have a really good reason for this!"

Chapter Text

"Let's keep it moving, Bakugou! Why don't you go next?"

Now this, Izuku was interested in hearing. He was under the assumption that his ex-fiancé was only here because of Uraraka and she need to be rich and popular. Thusly, Bakugou's family was the perfect gateway into stardom.

Oh… so that's the real reason Uraraka stole Bakugou from him. That… made sense in a way that Izuku hadn't really put together before. Sure he had thought about it a little while ago, but it never really clicked.

For some reason, the brunet couldn't help but feel bad for Bakugou. After all, Izuku didn't think the blond knew he was being used. He'd find out eventually though, Izuku was sure of it.

"My family is in the fashion industry. While I don't like the idea of being a fashion designer, I'd like to try and continue the business in another way the help the brand."

A PR answer complete with absolutely no swear words. And the blond's face was surprisingly not scrunched up like he hated the world and everyone around him.

Usually, Bakugou looked like he'd rather be anywhere but where he was, face all tense. It tended to make him look uglier than he actually was.

Regardless of his bad attitude, Izuku would need to find a way to crack the public's perspective of him if he was going to put on airs for the camera.

"How sweet! Being loyal to your loved ones is always a good cause. Toga, you're up," Hizashi commented lightly.

Izuku swallowed his laugh at the backhanded compliment. Leave it to the only friend he had on set to subtly insult someone to their face. He really wanted to laugh out loud.

The rest of the others answered, but Izuku wasn't really paying attention. He hated to admit it, but he didn't really care what their motivations were. He had their files and he'd make do with just that. It was more how they'd interact with each other when their guards were down that he was mostly interested in.

Hizashi spoke up after they all answered and he smiled brightly, "Amazing reasons, all of you. I'm impressed. Let's roll right into another question and then we can have our lovely watchers ask you all a couple. How do you hope the audience will see you in the coming days. How could they relate to you?"

That was a loaded question and Izuku couldn't help but wonder who on earth green-lit it. Inviting fans to form a para-social relationship with them based on shared experiences almost always spelled an idol's doom.

But maybe the brunet could use this to his advantage.

"Uraraka, why don't you kick us off with this one," Hizashi prompted.

Izuku's eyes darted over to the woman, curious as to how she'd respond. Oh he had a guess, having been close with her since his first year of high school had it's… perks. 6 years of friendship meant that Izuku could read her pretty well.

"Oh! Well," Uraraka began, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. She portrayed herself as bashful, a more endearing version of Izuku's nervous energy. "I come from humble beginnings. My parents work in construction like I mentioned before. I want to show everyone that no matter where they come from, they can achieve their dreams!"

Damn them both, making Izuku's life that much harder. They were good actors, he'd give them that. He'd need to cement himself among the group, which meant he needed to think about his answer a bit more.

The brunet made eye contact with the host as the blond's eyes darted across the cast. There was a seed of acknowledgment and Hizashi moved on with someone else, giving Izuku time to formulate an answer.

Dammit! What was even a good answer for him! Again, who green-lit this question?!

His anxiety mounted and he twisted his fingers, mind kicking into overdrive. He honestly didn't think Bakugou and Uraraka were conspiring against him here, at least not with this. Bakugou would have enough sense not to jeopardize their precarious positions, but… Uraraka doesn't really like to play by the rules.

Perhaps… He had his answer. Just in time too as he was jolted out of his thoughts by his friend calling his name.

"Ah, sorry. I was lost in my thoughts for a moment! What do I want the audience to take away when they see me? Well… It's…" Izuku hummed and bit his lip. "Like Ochako said—oh! Sorry, Uraraka. I want to give the feeling that anyone can do what I do. I've… never been the most social guy, so being seen is… well, nerve-wracking!"

Izuku laughed nervously and tilted his head, green eyes darting back and forth between Hizashi and the cameras broadcasting him.

"So many people out there, no matter their background, will have feelings of self-doubt. It's human nature. But I want to show, that you can do it. No matter if anyone tries to put you down, the sky's the limit!"

There was a silence that settled over everyone and once again, Izuku was left trying to figure out why everyone was looking at him. He didn't say anything particularly groundbreaking, so why were they staring?

"Wow, and I think I can speak for the general population when I say that your words were awe-inspiring! It seems that some of our lovely viewers are getting a little antsy. So let's let them guide the last few questions to kick off the start of the show," Hizashi smiled widely.

The blond's words felt genuine, like he was a parent proud of their child doing well in school. Izuku's face flamed red and he ducked his head. Aside from the squirmy feeling in his chest from being praised, he could feel eyes on the side of his head.

No doubt it was Uraraka seething that he took her words and used them to further his own reputation. But all Izuku could think was "you deserve this. I had just hoped I wouldn't have to be the one holding the knife this time."

"Woah there viewers! We can't have so many questions directed to Midoriya! Especially not about his relationship status. Instead… oh! Here we go, Bakugou, this watcher wants to know what the name of the fashion brand your parents own."

Izuku's face was probably so red, and while Bakugou answered the question, he couldn't help but cover his face in embarrassment. Getting asked if he was single was always one of the most mortifying questions he could ever have. And that was even true when he was with Bakugou. Izuku just never knew how to answer the question.

Sure, saying he was taken was easy, but some people were just so damn persistent.

"Utsushimi, one of the viewers says they have seen you active on social media. In response, others have asked if you already have a fan base. Care to answer?"

She smiled and sat up, "Okay bet, I am always active. I love my fans and so of course I want to share my life with them. But…"

Izuku tensed from where he sat next to her and immediately avoided eye contact.

"Call me mad, but I'm highkey more curious about your boo. Don't think I don't see that ring on your finger. C'mon, spill, you're totes in a relationship aren't you, Izuku? I can call you Izuku, right?" Camie said, leaning closer to the man in question.

The nervous laugh that Izuku let out wasn't acting in the slightest. He flinched, but didn't lean away. He glanced at Hizashi who solemnly nodded slightly meaning it was best if he answered the question.

He took a deep breath, "You can call me Izuku. If I can call you Camie."

"Deal! Now, gimme the tea!"

Izuku could feel his face heating up. Oh how he wanted to mumble his way through an explanation, but if no one could hear it, he would just have to say it again and that would be even more mortifying.

"Well… I am married. My husband is related to a couple of my closest friends. So it was kinda inevitable. We… well I think we clicked right away as embarrassing as it sounds," Izuku explained. He turned to the cameras and smiled shyly. "I can't tell if everyone is simply curious or if some of you wanted to try your luck, but I'm sorry." Izuku bowed apologetically.

"I love my husband so I can't return any of your feelings."

The mug Shouta had been holding shattered against the floor. In the back of his mind, he was glad the mug was empty. But the more pressing of his thoughts were that his cute little husband had practically just confessed to him over live TV.

Was this all part of his plan or did Izuku really mean it? Shouta couldn't tell, so carefully he edged over to the couch were Hitoshi was sitting, his younger cousin's jaw dropped open.

"Was he… was he being serious?" The older man asked, hands darted out to shake the younger man's shoulders.

Hitoshi yelped as he was pushed around, smacking Shouta's hands off him with a temperamental huff.

The younger man brushed himself off and glanced back at the TV, "You know I hate lying. And Izuku hates manipulating people just as much. But I do know one thing. He would never play around with feelings. Especially not after what Bakugou and Uraraka put him through. Sure he might be planning to put them through the wringer, but he wouldn't mess with your feelings. He wouldn't want to ruin a relationship he has hope for."

Silence overcame the two of them. The show kept rolling, having moved onto other questions.

Shouta straightened and ran his fingers through his hair before whispering to himself, "Oh my god… he loves me…"

"Did you really not figure that out until just now?" Hitoshi snarked.

"Oi, don't be a brat," The older cousin swatted at younger one's head. "Knowing that he does and hearing that he does are two completely different things. It's a verbal confirmation. Now… if only he had said it directly to my face…"

"Y'know, I don't even think he realized that you would decide to watch the show for him," Hitoshi mused as he kicked back and threw his feet up onto the couch. "I bet he thinks you have more important things to do with your time. That being said… how did you convince Uncle to give you the day off?"

Shouta lunged for his phone where he had left it on the couch, grunting in pain as his knee hit the arm of the couch a little too hard.

"Getting old, much?"

"Would you shut up?" Shouta grumbled as he settled on the couch, unlocking his phone. "And if you simply must know, I told Father what was happening, and threatened to move to a house off the grid with Izuku. He's watching the episode now too."

The dark-haired man laying on the other couch barked out a laugh, "You threatened him!" He managed to get out between bursts of laughter only to be hit with another pillow.

"Okay, where the actual fuck are you getting the infinite supply of pillows from?"

"That was my last one," Shouta admitted as he drafted a text to Izuku.

But where should he even start? Should he ask how the show was going, knowing that the brunet wouldn't read it until later? Just come out and say that he was watching the TV show? But then his grey eyes caught onto his last sent text.

A nighttime phone call. That worked, he'll just casually bring up that he and Nedzu had tuned in. It would give him a chance to hear the cute stuttering and rambling Izuku tended to do when embarrassed. Perfect plan, as most of his plans were when he had set his sights on Izuku.

He had just felt a grin start to stretch across his face when he was hit with a pillow, Hitoshi grimacing on the other couch.

"Stop smiling like that, it's freaky."

"You have the same smile, Hitoshi. It's genetic."

Finally the Q&A was wrapping up. Sure, Izuku managed to answer his questions without making an absolute fool of himself, but it's looking like he had his work cut out for him. Bakugou and Uraraka had made formidable opponents, but that just meant that Izuku needed to prod until their shells cracked and they barred their teeth like a cornered animal.

The moment they had a second to themselves, Hizashi was at the brunet's side, practically vibrating. Izuku had a bad feeling.

"So you love Shouta, huh? When did this happen? Last I checked you still seemed on the fence."

Izuku's stomach sank, of course, the questions never really ended. He sighed and scrubbed at his face.

"Well… how do I put this…"

"You… he's your definition of perfect. Izuku, I'm going level with you. Shouta is like a feral cat that doesn't let anyone pet him except for one person. You're that person. But you need to decide whether you're gonna adopt him or not. Otherwise he's gonna stare at you all pitiful like until you do it out of pity and then that's just no fun for anyone."

The brunet couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up from his chest. He smiled and nodded, "Your metaphor is pretty spot on. Thanks… I'm gonna really think about it. But, I think I already have my answer. It will have to wait though. I have a couple more… pressing issues at the moment."

"Oh yeah, they're staring by the way."

Izuku groaned and dropped his head into his hands.

Chapter Text

"I'll deal with them later. I need to figure out what exactly I'm going to do about them. I also need to figure out how the public already thinks of me. I can't do anything if I'm not liked. So, I need to figure out how to better endear myself," Izuku reasoned quietly.

He looked up at Hizashi and sighed. The blond simply laughed and pat his shoulder.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out. You're smart."

Izuku gave him a weak smile as he walked over to the rest of the cast and sat down on one of the couches in the common room. He pulled his phone out, fingers hovering over the darkened screen. He wasn't sure what he was waiting for. Was he waiting for a text? He didn't think anyone would be messaging him at the moment.

Then his screen lit up with a text from Shouto. Izuku unlocked the phone and let out a unbidden laugh. His heterochromatic friend had sent him a gif of people making disgusted faces with the simple caption of "me when my arch nemeses act like good people".

Izuku snorted and went to respond when a shadow fell over him. He glanced up and startled at the sight of Monoma standing in front of him. The blond seemed to hesitate for a moment before sitting down.

"You said you're the secretary for the CEO," Monoma spoke slowly like he was afraid to say it out loud for fear it would get him banned from the company.

"Yes, I am. Coincidentally, the CEO and I share the same last name. He said that since his eldest son didn't want to shadow him in his work, he needed someone to keep pace and hired me for the position," the brunet explained patiently.

Out of the corner of Izuku's eyes he could see a camera trained on him and getting ever closer. He smiled slightly and waved. It was tiring, playing up his nervousness and insecurity for the cameras. And yet, with every passing moment it felt less like he was faking it and more like he was about to spiral off the edge and out of control.

He missed Shouta.

Monoma seemed to hum and tilt his head like he was a bit confused, "Y'know, you don't seem to act like you're nervous all the time."

Izuku tensed and he turned to look at his co-star with a too-wide smile that didn't look too far out of place for the TV. "What do you mean, Monoma? I really am nervous, but I'm trying my best to hide it. Especially since…" Izuku trailed off, face twisting a bit before shaking his head. "No, never mind. It's not my place to talk about such private things on live TV."

The way the other man's eyes narrowed made Izuku's skin prickle uncomfortably. Izuku swallowed nervously and scratched at the pads of his fingers with his thumb. He glanced away and cleared his throat before looking back at Monoma.

"Did you need something else, Monoma? I'm not much good company so-"

Izuku didn't get too much farther until a body sat down on the other side of him. His head whipped around only to come face-to-face with Camie who wore a big grin.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I wanna hear more about your hubby!"

The way the brunet let out a strangled noise had her laughing and patting him on the back. Monoma, for all that he tried to look unfazed and even slightly disgusted, couldn't help but lean it as if he wanted hear what Izuku was going to say.

Now, Izuku didn't think the blonde was really one for gossip, so it was slightly surprising he'd want to hear Izuku gush about his husband. Not that he was going to sit here and talk about how great Shouta was.

Okay, so maybe he would play it up a little bit for the cameras. But moderation is the key to a lot of things, so he couldn't talk about Shouta too much or that's all Izuku will be known for and that's not good branding.

"Well… I don't want to talk about him too much. I doubt many people want to hear me gushing over him."

"Why don't you just answer a couple more questions about him then?" Monoma suggested with a slight shrug.

"Exactly! Like, what does he look like? How tall is he? How long have you two been together?" Camie suddenly bombarded Izuku, leaning closer with every question.

Izuku let out what sounded to him like a wheezing noise. He could feel his face heating up as he waved his hands , "W-Well, I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable."

Camie then turned to the person holding the camera and motioned them closer. They stepped closer and that meant that the three of them could get a better view of the view chat. A lot of them seemed curious, while quite a few wanted to find out what the other three were doing.

A heavy sigh and Izuku slumped in defeat. He wasn't going to be able to get out this easily.

"Well… without giving away his identity, which I'm sure he wouldn't mind, he's… tall. Just over 180 cm I believe? He's a bit older than me. I'll be honest, I'm not sure of the exact age difference. It's… only been a month since we've gotten married? But like I said, he's related to some of my closest friends."

Camie nodded along before raising an eyebrow, "Gate keeping his appearance, are we?"

Izuku let out another noise that sounded slightly like a tea kettle.

"Just show us a picture. You do have one, don't you?"

The brunet reluctantly sighed and picked his phone up from his lap, pulling up the picture he had taken of Shouta right after he had punched Bakugou in the face. It was far from the only picture Izuku had of his husband. But it was his favorite. It was the most honest of them all.

He hesitated before leaning forward a bit to show his co-stars.

"Well isn't he a snack. No wonder you're in love!"

"He's… nice looking I suppose," Monoma said, his words sounding like he was trying his best to force out a compliment.

"Be for real, he's hot!"

"Hey, he's married," Izuku said with a slight laugh.

"Remind me what's next on the agenda?" Izuku asked Masu quietly as everyone milled around.

He had come over because he found it odd that there was any downtime for the contestants to mingle. Sure, it wasn't uncommon for these types of shows, but that's not usually how these work.

"Ah, well we didn't really plan for anything after the Q&A for today," the director laughed nervously which only received a bland look from the other brunet.

Green eyes scanned the other contestants and hummed, "I know there's a more competitive cooking segment planned for after we're split off into pairs. But I doubt any of us have eaten recently. How about a couple volunteers to cook dinner for the night before nighttime routines?"

It wasn't really a question even if Izuku had phrased it like one. The fact that there were gaps were concerning, but he could make it up as he went along. If he wanted to, he could probably just blame his dad for the lack of planning since that was what this was. He was forcing the young man to multi-task. Fix the show on the fly and deal with pests at the same time all while keeping up a persona for the cameras.

Definitely something that man would do. It was a wonder why Izuku loved him.

"Perfect, we'll do that. I'll send some assistants out in the morning to restock food before the competition."

Masu stepped forward and waved to get Hizashi's attention, motioning the blond over to where they were standing, isolated from cameras.

As Hizashi and Masu were talking, Izuku's mind began to wander again. He really wasn't sure how to best go about breaking down Bakugou and Uraraka's personas. There had to be a crack somewhere… right?

Suddenly, there was a hand on his shoulder and he jumped. Izuku looked up at his blond friend with a startled look. Hizashi gave him an apologetic smile and motioned him back to the group where he caught everyone's attention.

"It's dinner time! But it would be no fun if you all just ordered in when we have fresh food on site. If we could get a couple of volunteers to cook for us tonight."

Immediately, Bakugou stood, volunteering himself. Izuku could see the moment Uraraka went to stand but he wasn't going to let that happen.

"If you all don't mind, I would also like to cook. But don't worry, me and Kacchan have cooked together before since we're childhood friends, so I can promise it'll be good."

The look of anger that flittered across the brunette's face was just as amusing as the shock and confusion on Bakugou's.

"Perfect, to the kitchen with all of you! Bond and get to know those who you're working with for the week."

A slight stumble as Izuku was nudged forward and he was rushing to the kitchen after everyone, shooting Hizashi a small smile and a mouthed "thank you" for the cameras.

The moment he stepped behind the counter, Bakugou was next to him, arms crossed.

"I don't know what game you're playing, but it's not fucking funny. You haven't called me Kacchan since you shacked up with that homeless looking motherfucker who punched me. But whatever your getting at, don't fucking ruin this for me and 'chaco. Got it?" the blond hissed low enough that the cameras wouldn't register his words.

Instead of fighting back, Izuku felt hot tears well up in his eyes.

"I just wanted to cook with you again, Kacchan. We haven't cooked together in just over a year since you were so busy," Izuku warbled out loud enough for the cameras to pick up.

He sniffled and rubbed at his eyes, "If you'd really rather cook with Ochako, I'd understand… I just thought… ever since you and her got together we really never did anything together again…"

As the cameras got closer, he could see Bakugou's eyes narrow as the blond fought against barring his teeth at the brunet. Izuku knew he had struck a nerve slyly throwing his ex's infidelity at his face.

"It's fine. At least you know what you're doing in the kitchen," Bakugou said, face smoothing out into a carefully neutral expression.

Izuku wiped at his eyes, "Are you sure? I don't want to get in your way anymore."

The way the blond's eyes minutely twitched made Izuku inwardly delighted. This was payback for all those dates he was stood up on.

"Hey, are you two fighting? If you're not going to cook, let someone else into the kitchen," a voice piped up from behind Izuku.

The brunet turned around to meet Monoma's blue eyes. Knowing that he wouldn't say something nice, Bakugou turned away, digging through the fridge and pantry leaving Izuku to explain.

The brunet gave his co-star a wobbly smile and wiped the last of his tears away, "Sorry, we'll start cooking right away!"

"Hey, don't get distracted, we have work to do, Deku," Bakugou grumbled from behind him.

"Ignore him, Kacchan's been like that since we were kids."

Suddenly, a hand wrapped around his wrist and he was dragged away by Monoma to just outside the kitchen, a little closer to the cameras than he would've liked. The blond looked… worried? No, that couldn't be it. A random stranger wouldn't be so worried about Izuku.

"Are you okay? You were crying," Monoma said haltingly, almost like he was forcing himself to ask.

The brunet sighed and glanced over his shoulder where Bakugou had already decided on a dish. Across the counter, Uraraka stood, cheerfully chatting Bakugou up. By the way her face kept trying to twist into anger, Izuku guessed it was about him. Behind her, Camie and Toga were talking and interacting with the fans to keep them entertained while dinner was being made.

He rubbed his arm and turned back to Monoma, "I wouldn't want to bother you. But I'm fine! Really."

The blond's face scrunched up as Izuku spoke. He went through a myriad of emotions before settling on indignation.

"He called you… Deku. That's not your name. Why does he call you that?" Monoma prodded.

"Oh! Well, that's just Kacchan's nickname for me. He's always used it, even when we were together," Izuku rushed to say.

Though this was a perfect gateway into putting that crack into Bakugou's facade. If everyone can determine that the blond even slightly bullied Izuku growing up, that could tip the scales in his favor. But what Izuku didn't mean to say, well.. imply, was that they had been dating at one point. Because that was a whole can of worms that didn't really needed to be opened on a live stream.

"When… you were together… you dated him? And he called you useless still?" Monoma said in disbelief.

Panicked, Izuku waved his hands, "I-I didn't meant to say that. It's all in the past. Really it's nothing! When I met Ochako, she kinda repurposed the nickname so…"

The blond did not look convinced in the slightest and turned his head to stare into the camera like he was on a sitcom. He took a deep breath and looked back at Izuku.

"So… Uraraka calls you Deku too?"

"Well…" Izuku trailed off, rubbing his arm. "I… I can't really tell them not to anymore. They've been calling me that for years now."

"Call me Neito. We'll have the same deal you and Utsushimi do. I'll call you Izuku then."

Before Izuku could even try to protest, Monoma had already turned and walked off. The brunet stood there by himself, confused why his co-star would even care so much. It's not like anything about this situation affected him. It was all Izuku's issues.

Still, he wasn't going to sit and ponder what he couldn't reason out at the moment and made his way back to where Bakugou was. He slid up to Bakugou's side with a slightly forced cheery smile.

"Sorry, Kacchan! What would you like me to help with?" He asked, interrupting his conversation with Uraraka. The brunette seemed disgruntled, but she couldn't say anything snarky, not now.

Izuku focused on his ex-fiance, and he was sure the blond wanted to wave him off with a "you'd only burn the food", but he couldn't. Not without harming his new reputation.

So, he motioned to a cutting a board. "Dice the vegetables," he instructed.

The brunet washed his hands well before stepping up and carefully dicing the veggies. He hummed to himself, at peace for a moment while willfully ignoring the feeling of eyes on him. He was going to, perhaps, contribute to the conversation. Y'know, act like he was actually close with the two, but then his peace was so ruthlessly ripped from him.

"You're not cutting them right."

Izuku stopped and looked over at Bakugou, "You said dice though?"

"Yeah, and you're cutting them too small."

"Well, you could have just told me to chop them up instead…"

"Don't argue with me, Deku."

Izuku flinched and set the knife down to take a moment. He took a deep breath, ignoring the way tears welled up in his eyes again. He hated that he would cry at the simplest things, but then again, Bakugou was always mean to him.

He picked up the knife again and began to cut up the vegetables into larger pieces.

"They're too big now."

The brunet's eye twitched and he suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to take the knife in his hand and— okay, maybe he's overreacting.

Instead, his tears welled up again and he turned to Bakugou. And with his most pathetic sounding voice, warbled out, "I'm sorry I can't cut the vegetables the size you want them. Maybe if you showed me how you want them cut, I could be of more help."

"I can take over for you, if you'd like, Deku," Uraraka volunteered from across the counter with a smile much too demure to be real.

The cameras had immediately picked up on the scene and while Izuku couldn't see the live chat feed, he could guess what they were saying.

"Wow, Bakugou is being so picky about the food!"

"I thought they were childhood friends? Why is there so much animosity?"

"This guy is really getting on my nerves, stop crying!"

"The veggies look fine to me."

Bakugou once again was put into a situation where he had to be nice. His eyebrows were pinched and he looked down to the cutting board.

"Never mind, cut them however you want."

"Are you sure? I don't want them to ruin your cooking. You've always been such a good cook, Kacchan and I'd hate it if it doesn't turn out okay!"

The way Izuku spoke was almost reminiscent of the way he used to speak with Bakugou. Before everything went down. But he didn't miss it. He would never miss how much he pandered to the blond's ego. How much he practically idolized the ground the older man walked on. It sickened him now, but he could still use it to his advantage.

Bakugou tensed and glanced over at the cutting board. Then pointed to the smaller size, "That's fine."

Izuku beamed at him, "Okay, I'll make sure they're all cut like that then."

"What about the pieces that you cut too big?" Uraraka spoke up, leaning across the counter. "We can't use them right? What a waste of vegetables. You should have asked what size he wanted them before cutting, Deku."

Wow, Izuku couldn't believe she just said that. Especially when she's trying to come off as relatable.

"Huh? They aren't wasted. I can cut them up smaller so Kacchan can use them. You're right though, it's bad to waste food. So I hope everyone is hungry," Izuku said with a kind smile. "If not and we have leftovers, I'm sure the cameramen could use a bit of food. They're doing so much work for us after all."

Checkmate.

Her smile faltered and she nodded, "You're right. Of course, you're right."

Izuku just beamed at her and turned his attention to the cutting board, carefully cutting the larger pieces smaller and then continuing the dice them.

The rest of dinner prep went nicely. Well, nicely for Izuku. Maybe not for Bakugou and Uraraka who kept trying to subtly, insult him or whatnot, but Izuku simply did not care. He could usually shut them down will little effort, giving him a step up against the two.

By the time everyone had settled in to eat, Bakugou and Uraraka were in a mood. Not that it was Izuku's problem. It was, but he was trying hard not to think about anything that might accidentally happen while on this show. He didn't need his own reputation in tatters if he was ever going to be announced as heir to the company. Which was added stress on top of added stress.

Monoma and Camie sat on either side of Izuku like they had before. And everything seemed to be a pretty quiet affair. Izuku picked at his food before Camie sighed loudly.

"Why is everyone so quiet? We're supposed to, like, become besties, y'know?"

"I don't really think we're supposed to become… besties, Utsushimi," Monoma grumbled from Izuku's side.

But Izuku agreed, bobbing his head, "Since I'm friends with some of you, I'd really like to be friends with all of you! After all, we're gonna be working rather closely during and after the show."

"Why would you see us after the show?" Toga asked, from where she sat between Monoma and Uraraka.

The brunet frowned and tilted his head. He couldn't understand why she had asked that. Did he not make it clear that he was an important part of the group they worked for.

Before Izuku could get anything out, Toga continued talking, "You're the CEO's secretary, why would you interact with newbies?"

Monoma scoffed, "He's working with us now, isn't he?"

Izuku let out a soft laugh and sat up. He shook his head a bit and gave a nervous little smile, "The CEO interacts closely with some of the bigger celebrities within the company. In order to keep everything working smoothly, since he doesn't have any other personal assistants, he has me looking out for the rookies to see if there are any… rising stars of sorts."

The table went silent. Then Camie leaned closer to him.

"So, you're totes saying you could get us, like, higher jobs if you deem us good enough?"

"Well, not me specifically… but I could recommend you to be put on a priority list. It's really rare for that to happen though, so you'd have to wow me and the other recruiters," Izuku explained patiently, but he really hated that he was having to explain this. Cons of the job he supposed.

Izuku was in his room, getting ready for bed. He was finally relieved to be away from the cameras for the moment, and it was the perfect time to call Shouta. But then there was a gentle little knock on the door and Izuku froze. He had no idea who could be at the door, really it could be anyone.

He shuffled reluctantly to the door and unlocked it, peering into the hallway. On the other side of the door stood Monoma, looking relatively uncomfortable.

"Can I come in for a moment?"

"No. I want to call my husband instead," Izuku thought to himself. But he wanted to be nice to his co-star. He wanted to have more friends on set. It would ease his nerves a bit.

Instead, Izuku moved, allowing the blond to step in. He closed the door and turned to look at Neito.

"Is there something you needed?" The brunet asked absently.

Monoma seemed to look around, but there was nothing really interesting to look at in the room. They were standard for everyone.

"Me and Utsushimi were talking earlier when we had gone to the bathroom before dinner. There weren't any cameras around and I learned that she's surprisingly observant. Anyway, we came to the conclusion that there is something going on between you and your so-called long term friends. Earlier you let it slip that you and Bakugou used to be together, so what more is there?"

Loaded question, that one. And all Izuku wanted to do was grit his teeth and bear it. He wanted lie straight to Monoma's face. But if it ever somehow got out that he did lie, then it would be egg on Izuku's face.

The brunet sighed and shuffled over to his bed sitting down. He didn't bother offering Neito a seat, though he had thought about it.

"I did let it slip that me and Bakugou used to date," Izuku began.

He noticed the way the blond's eyebrow twitched, most likely noting that Izuku no longer called Bakugou "Kacchan".

"That wasn't exactly the extent of it. But what I am about to tell you better not be spread around. If you have to share it with Camie, go ahead. But it's my story to share. We were fiancés. In fact, if everything had gone to plan, we would have been married last week. Nothing ever goes to plan. Not when Bakugou is involved. You see, Uraraka was one of my closest friends in high school, dare I say, my best friend. But I… caught them together a couple months ago."

Neito had found a chair and sat unprompted, looking at the ground like he was trying his best to process what he had just heard. "So… You broke up with Bakugou just two months ago…? Because he cheated on you, with your best friend? Wow, that's actually kind of fucked up. Where does your husband come in?"

Izuku sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, grimacing slightly. "I married him a month ago on a whim. It was impulsive, and I didn't realize until after that he's closely related to some of my other friends, one of them being my actual best friend. He's… the best thing that's ever happened to me. And he punched Bakugou in face."

A laugh startled Izuku, Monoma bent over in the chair, wheezing softly. It lasted almost a minute before the blond had calmed down enough to speak.

"Serves him right. I don't need to know how long you two had been dating before you found out, but I don't think it really matters. Again, you two were engaged and he still called you Deku? That's really just not right… Whoever is forcing you to work with them is really cruel. Is it the CEO? I think you should give him a piece of your mind. Actually, don't you might get blacklisted…" Monoma trailed off.

"It'll be taken care of, don't worry about me. But thank you, for even caring. It means a lot."

Neito left after a couple more minutes to go share his findings with Camie. Finally, Izuku collapsed against his bed, phone in his hand. He tapped the call button and on the first ring, Shouta picked up.

"Izuku. How has your day been so far?"

Izuku shuddered and smiled, "It's been awful. But I'm working through it."

"I'm glad to hear it. Hitoshi came over and we caught the beginning on the show. Though I couldn't watch the entire day because Father came over demanding dinner."

A bit of muffled laughter but it slowly turned into mortification as Izuku processed with Shouta had said.

He squeaked, "You watched the show? That's so embarrassing, why would you do that?" It was at that moment Izuku remembered that he had said he had loved him. "You didn't… you didn't hear…" Izuku stuttered, hardly able to get out words as his face heated up.

"Don't worry. I'll wait until you can say it to my face. I'm patient. Putting on a persona for the TV is different, I'm aware. Also, how dare you not tell me that you were going to be a featured star and that Hizashi was the host for the show."

The brunet calmed down, relieved that Shouta wasn't going to confront him over the phone. It made him resolve to prepare himself to confess. He just hoped that he wouldn't make a fool of himself enough for Shouta to reject him (which Izuku was still terrified could happen even if it seemed like the older man reciprocated his feelings).

"I really hadn't planned on being on the show. But my dad's meddling never ceases. Plus, I'm not sure what you expected when I told you that I got Hizashi a job."

"Hm. I suppose I'll let it go for now. Ah, before I forget, I have another bone to pick with your ex. I mean, how can one man be so picky about how vegetables are cut. What an asshole."

Chapter Text

Izuku jolted awake the next morning, phone laying on the pillow next to him. He stretched out his sore limbs before looking over at his phone. The screen was dark, but a light tap and the brunet discovered that he had fallen asleep during his phone call last night and neither of them had ended the call.

Maybe Shouta had gotten so used to hearing Izuku sleep that he couldn't bear to end it. Either way, it made Izuku's face heat up. He let out an embarrassed noise and picked up his phone, fully intending to tap the red button and send a text telling his husband that he had cut the call to get ready.

But just as his finger hovered over the end button, he startled.

"Are you awake now?"

The brunet shuddered at the sound of Shouta's voice. No matter how many times he woke up to it, he couldn't get used to how deep it was.

"Ah… yes. Good… good morning, Shouta," He murmured, almost whispering into the receiver.

"Good morning, Izuku. The bed was cold last night," Shouta said absently. "I don't think I like it much when you're away." He sighed, "I suppose I should let you go so you can get ready. I'll text you throughout the day. Get back to me when you can. Are we calling again tonight?"

"Yes, we are," Izuku's voice was resolute. He wasn't really sure if he could go more than 24 hours without hearing the older man's voice.

He almost found it odd how quickly he had gotten attached to the idea of being married to a man who had been a complete stranger just a month ago. But now? Now he couldn't imagine life without him. How had he ever deluded himself into thinking that what he had with Bakugou was real when everything with Shouta just felt… right.

"Good. I'll talk to you later then. Have a good day, Izuku. Don't let them get under your skin. You're made of much stronger stuff than them."

The call ended and Izuku just sat there, staring at his phone. The screen dimmed to black and yet he still stared.

Had Bakugou ever encouraged him to take the day on before? Had he ever told Izuku that he could do anything he put his mind to?

Izuku shook his head. He wasn't even sure why he was bothering to compare Bakugou to Shouta anymore. He thought he had stopped that already. No matter what the metric was, in a relationship, Aizawa was the victor. Always a step above Izuku's ex.

Maybe that was because Shouta was older, but there was this niggling feeling in the back of Izuku's mind that told him that that wasn't the case. Whatever it was, it could wait. The world out there was waiting for him and he couldn't put it off for too much longer.

He slipped out of bed and showered, blow drying his hair and moving through his hair routine. He would have done this last night, but he had been a little busy with Monoma and Shouta.

Monoma.

"Dammit," Izuku hissed as he washed his hands of the left over hair product.

He had forgotten all about the little issue with two of his co-stars know more about his relationship issues than he would have liked. But he had been the one to let the cat out of the bag, and now he had to deal with the consequences.

A heavy sigh as Izuku dressed himself. He had grabbed his phone and slipped it into his pocket, but before he could do anything else, a noise caught his attention. Heavy footsteps just like the day before. His skin prickled and his entire body tensed up as there was a banging on his door.

He didn't even get to confirm his suspicions before Bakugou forced his way into the bedroom and closed the door behind him.

Monoma was happy to be on the show. Happy he was able to break through in a way that would allow him to debut with a fan-base that would already support him despite his fumbling. Happy that he was able to join the Heritage Entertainment group.

But now that he was here, he was a little concerned more than anything. Midoriya Izuku was an enigma to him. The CEO's secretary participating in a show meant for TV and social media personalities? It was unthinkable and something highly unusual.

Though, the brunet was a kind man from what Monoma could tell. Kind and yet, there was something about him that screamed that he was acting. And that made him scary because if he was acting, he was good at it.

Now, Neito was an early riser, he had been ready for at least an hour now and he was entertaining some of the stragglers that were tapping into the live feed for the morning. He currently had them all to himself and he was going to make use of that to gain himself some fans.

While he was set up in the common area telling stories and answering questions, he noticed Bakugou walk passed the entryway from the dorms, continuing down the hall. Which was… odd. The only rooms down that way were the Director's, Host's, Midoriya's, and Nieto's.

A shudder ran down the blond's spine. He had vividly remembered the way Izuku's face had fallen into a cold detachment as he spoke of Bakugou. The brunet didn't seem to care for his ex anymore, or at the very least, was good at masking his anger. But whatever was going to happen, Neito couldn't help but be more than curious.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he inched his way to the hall and closer to Izuku's door under the guise of needing to get something out of his room. Or so he told the viewers. Instead, he stopped outside Midoriya's door, quieting his voice until they could hear Bakugou's words. Izuku's voice was softer, but still clear even though the door. He was loud, loud enough for even the cameras to pick up, prompting many of the viewers to question what was going on.

Instead of answering, Neito brought his finger up to his lips, silently shushing them as if they could be making any noise at the moment.

"Why are you really here, Deku? Cough it up. Last I checked, you weren't working anywhere so fucking important. And also… why the fuck wouldn't you help me and Ochako get into the company if you were so high up on the ladder, huh?" Bakugou said, voice simmering with anger.

"Bakugou, I can't just… get people in. That would be unfair of me. Besides, my recommendation doesn't mean you don't have to pass all of the auditions. But none of that matters, because I wouldn't have helped you anyway."

"What the fuck does that mean? Why not? Are you still accusing me of cheating? Deku, listen to me, I'm only helping Ochako. She needs the damn help! You would know better than anyone how a family with limited funds needs extra attention."

Monoma tensed, his mouth dropping open. Everything in his body was screaming at him to move, to walk away. The viewers shouldn't be hearing this, and neither should he. He let out a shaky breath, making eye contact with the cameraman who was looking at him with an equally shocked look.

Then they both scurried away as quickly as possible. Hopefully this wouldn't cause Izuku to distrust him. Neito really didn't think that that would happen.

Honestly.

The moment they were closed off from the outside world, the blond bared his teeth and let out a noise that sounded as close to a growl as a human could get.

"Why are you really here, Deku? Cough it up. Last I checked, you weren't working anywhere so fucking important. And also… why the fuck wouldn't you help me and Ochako get into the company if you were so high up on the ladder, huh?" Bakugou said, sounding both upset and tired at the same time. Like he couldn't decide whether he wanted to just walk away or lunge for Izuku's throat.

It the most awkward start to a conversation that the brunet's had in a while. No "hi, how are you", no "good morning", just an interrogation that left him feeling upset and angry.

"Bakugou, I can't just… get people in. That would be unfair of me. Besides, my recommendation doesn't mean you don't have to pass all of the auditions. But none of that matters, because I wouldn't have helped you anyway," Izuku sighed, his arms crossed.

His eyes flickered around the room, searching for something else to take the brunt of his attention because he didn't want to look at Bakugou.

"What the fuck does that mean? Why not? Are you still accusing me of cheating? Deku, listen to me, I'm only helping Ochako. She needs the damn help! You would know better than anyone how a family with limited funds needs extra attention."

Izuku's jaw dropped open and he stood there before letting out a laugh of disbelief, "Um, maybe because you did cheat? Why the hell else would I keep saying you did?" He was pointedly not touching the whole 'poor family' topic. He didn't need to explain himself to Bakugou.

Bakugou didn't respond straight away, but the way his face twitched made Izuku want to immediately back down and apologize. But he wasn't going to. He needed to stand up to his ex, he couldn't let the man continue to walk all over him. And he had done so well before (even if his traitorous mind told him that he was only showing off for Shouta).

"Why do you keep insisting I cheated? Why would I ever cheat on you?" Bakugou said softly.

Shock flooded Izuku, the blond almost sounded like he had when they first got together. If he hadn't been handed sheer proof on a platter, if he was a lesser man, he might've accepted that as gospel and immediately ran into the blond's arms.

But Izuku wasn't the same man that Bakugou had cheated on. And he really wanted to see his husband punch his ex in the face again right at that moment.

"You think I don't have proof? You spend every waking moment with Uraraka! You literally threatened me to not ruin her reputation yesterday!" Izuku decided to say instead. "If you're just helping her like you say, why on earth would you ditch me time and time agian for her? And now, you're trying to tell me that she's just a charity case to you?"

"Exactly! See, I knew you weren't that fucking dumb, Deku. Once she doesn't need help anymore, we can go back to how things were before. Of course, you'd need to call off that damn sham of a marriage, but that's what you wanted, yeah? Us together again?"

The moment Bakugou reached out to him, Izuku slapped his hand away.

"As I keep saying, I'm happy in my marriage. Why the hell would I want to get back together with someone who still calls me useless? Get a grip! You think Uraraka is ever going to not need help? If you really think that, you're the dumb one," Izuku ground out.

Before the blond could say anything else, there was a knock on the door as everyone was called out for filming that day.

"This isn't over," was the last thing Bakugou said as he left.

Izuku trailed after him, feeling raw yet again. It had been less than 24 hours and he just wanted to go home. Maybe he could stage an emergency…? Have the rest of the show cancelled? Ah, he'd probably need wait until a few days in then. Great, he couldn't wait to be accosted at every moment.

He hadn't had time to discuss the pairings with Masu and Hizashi before he was shuffled into a line, cameras rolling a little too early in the morning for him.

"Good morning! We had a little bit of movement last night, but nothing too interesting. According to some of this morning's viewer though, something… intriguing came about. Now, we don't want too much drama, so based on viewer feedback, we've organized the pairs that will be participating in today's scavenger hunt! Drum roll please!"

Izuku had a really bad feeling about this.

Okay, so maybe the feeling wasn't that bad. But there was a high chance that Izuku could get paired with Bakugou or Uraraka and that wouldn't be the best thing in the world to happen to him. He might actually take Shouta up on his offer to drive to the show (not that the older man even knew where they were currently filming).

He stared directly at Hizashi and just waited. He rubbed at his fingers, green eyes darting from the host to the sluggish viewer chat as people were starting their day or busy with something else.

It wasn't clear, but Izuku thought he could see a poll near the top of the chat. If only he was close enough to read it.

"The first pairing is…" Hizashi continued to drag it out and it made the brunet want to shake him violently. "Monoma and Uraraka!"

Oh. So that's how they're playing this. Neito would shut Uraraka's shit down pretty fast if she tried something. But… did the viewers really choose that pairing?

"Next pair, Bakugou and Toga."

Yeah, no, someone must have been pulling the strings and it was sure as hell not the people watching. It couldn't have been Dad either because that man, no matter how much he loved Izuku, would have thrown him to the wolves as a learning experience.

No, someone else had to have chosen them and Izuku had absolutely no idea who it could be. Who was in charge if not him or his dad?

Either way, he was really glad to not have been paired with Bakugou. That meant that he wasn't going to feel angry and awful all day with how their conversation had gone. Izuku still couldn't believe it. He knew that Bakugou was delusional, but that was a whole new level. Getting back together, really?

"And the last pair will be Midoriya and Utsushimi. Now, those may sound rather odd, but like I said, we don't want anything too volatile. And a lot of you wanted to see how certain people would interact with others. Today they'll be participating in a Scavenger Hunt. Different tasks or slips of paper with objectives can be obtained from the people in the small town we're in. Both objective and tasks have different point values! Our contestants have only two hours to find and complete as many objectives and tasks as they can. And this will not be easy. Some objectives will targeted towards some of our rising stars which means they'll hardly be obtainable for others."

As Hizashi explained the game they'd be playing, Izuku quietly inched closer to Camie. At least he was given someone he could have fun with.

Then it clicked. Of course the pairs were chosen how they were. After all, his mama could be extremely vindictive if she wanted. Monoma had been stand-offish from the start, though he seemed to be warming up the more time he spent around Izuku. Toga was an unknown. Her file hadn't really said anything specific and Izuku couldn't figure out where exactly she had come from. She felt familiar, but he knew he had never met her or even heard her name before, so she was a bust. Camie on the other hand, despite being needlessly nosey, was the only obvious choice for Izuku to be able to relax for a little while.

Not that he actually would be able to. Bakugou was competitive and Uraraka was no different. They would most likely already have a plan in place to steal as many objectives away from him as they could.

At least he had an extrovert on his side, Camie could do most of the socializing and Izuku could do the logical thinking. A perfect plan.

Not a perfect plan. If Izuku had known that he would be a translator, he wouldn't have even bothered to leave his room this morning.

The last three people they had talked to, while enthusiastic, were understandably confused the moment Camie opened her mouth. It's not like she was completely unintelligible, but some of the words she used had Izuku inwardly cringing like he was listening to a kid using slang he never understood.

"Alright, so we've gotten a couple things done, and it's only been about half an hour. So let's find something that isn't mind-numbingly boring, please," Izuku said.

All of their objectives were simple things and he could tell even the viewers were getting bored.

"Ooh, poggers, what are we thinking?"

Izuku raised an eyebrow, "It's not like we're actually able to choose what we want to do so…"

The pair of them stood there staring at each other for a long second before a voice spoke up off to the side.

"Excuse me?"

The brunets both looked up and Izuku let out a sharp gasp. His eyes darted to the camera recording them and he cleared his throat. Then looked back to the new person.

"What are you doing here?" Izuku asked confused.

Standing there, in the shade, was Yoichi, his dad's younger twin brother. His uncle was usually always sick and tended to stay with Tenko's biological grandma and her adopted son Toshinori. So to see him outside without either of the other two by his side was a little off-putting.

"Who's that?" Camie asked off-handedly. But she looked like she was too busy interacting with the viewers to really wait for the answer, letting Izuku handle it.

"I thought it was you! I was taking a walk this morning when I received a text from Inko. Then I was approached by a young woman who asked me to participate in a little game and I was given a slip of paper. I'm guessing I should hand that over to you though, Izuku," Yoichi spoke softly, not bothering to brush his light-colored hair out of his face.

While Yoichi had also been born with albinism, his hair was an extremely pale blond and his eyes, instead of the brown-red his twin had, were blue-green. Almost the same shade as Izuku's.

He took a couple steps before retrieving a paper from his pocket and held it out to his nephew. Izuku met him halfway and took it. As his eyes scanned the words he let out a little laugh and shook his head.

"How… ironic."

Yoichi just smiled.

"What is it?" Camie asked as she sidled up next to Izuku, peering around his shoulder. "Find someone who Midoriya loves…? How exactly are we supposed to do that?"

"Well, you're looking at him! Camie, meet my uncle," Izuku motioned to the older man who waved slightly.

"Wow, no cap? Like you're really related! Totes crazy we ran into you, almost like it was planned," Camie mused before ushering her co-star towards his relative. "Might as well take a pic while we're here! I gotchu, pose!"

Izuku laughed and gently bumped Yoichi's shoulder with his own as they stood beside each other with an almost matching shy smile. Sometimes people joked that Izuku was actually Yoichi's child because of how similar they looked, but then Hisashi would always loudly protest.

Not like it mattered since the two were identical twins, even if their size difference looked like it belonged in a circus. (Again, Izuku did not inherit his father's height.)

Pictures were taken and Yoichi lowered his voice to speak to his nephew, "Your mother is extremely upset. According to her, Zen did something stupid and almost unforgivable. I really wouldn't blame her if she divorced him."

Izuku blandly looked at his uncle, "Dad is always doing something stupid and she hasn't divorced him yet. Your hopes are noted but not taken into account."

Yoichi snorted and shook his head, "I still can't believe my brute of a brother managed to marry such a kind woman and end up with two really nice children when he's the epitome of a bad guy. I'm sorry you have to deal with him. Anyway, she didn't want to bother you, so she asked me to check in on you. Are you doing alright?"

"How is this not—you know what, no. I'm fine. Her meddling is better than Dad's so I'll take it. I'll make sure to text her later. But you can report back that I'm doing okay. Question though, how did she find out about the show?"

His uncle shrugged, "Not sure. But I have to get going. The sun is starting to bother my skin and if Nana finds out that I've been outside for more than half an hour, she'll force me to spend Toshinori's house arrest with him."

"Huh? What did Uncle Toshi do?"

"I'm… not even sure. I'll see you later," Yoichi gave him a quick hug before walking off, staying in the shade as much as he could as he made his way back to… wherever. Because now that Izuku was thinking about it, his uncle didn't live close to here. Suspicious.

Izuku brushed off the stray thought and waited until his uncle was far enough out of view before turning back to Camie and the camera with a nervous little smile.

"Sorry! My uncle wanted to know how I was doing, it's been a while since we've seen each other. But now that I'm free again, how about we get to finding another thing to do?"

"It's all gucchi, your uncle was so cute! While you were busy, we spotted a slip of paper, let's move!"

Once viral dance recreation and a couple awkward high-fives with strangers later and Camie and Izuku were laughing.

"Oh em gee, is that Monoma and Uraraka?" Camie said once their laughter finally died down.

Izuku glanced up and almost wheezed at the miserable look on Neito's face. He looked like he simultaneously wanted to pass away and strangle Uraraka. But he was doing the best he could to mask the expression.

"It is, why don't we check how they're doing?" Izuku asked with a grin.

Camie easily looped her arm in his and they walked over. The moment Neito saw them, his face it up in relief and he sped walked over with a wave.

"Guys! Save me," he said through his teeth, not disrupting the smile on his face.

Camie looked him up and down with an eyebrow raised, "You look fine to me."

Neito let out a forced laugh, "I'm glad you think so, I did try putting effort in this morning."

"Yes, you look great," Izuku nodded with a solemn tone before the three laughed. He was glad that he was making friends here since he wasn't able to spend all of his time hanging around Hizashi.

"But really, this has been… an ordeal. She won't stop talking about Bakugou and badmouthing you, Izuku. It's… not a great look. She's not paying too much attention to the viewer chat, which… if she was," Monoma trailed off and Izuku grimaced.

"Digging her own hole, she is."

"Well, we'd totes ask you to team-up with us, but I think that's kinda against the rules," Camie said with a wince. "Which is, like, really sad."

Neito nodded along with what she was saying. Really, Izuku agreed. He'd love to take Neito onto their team, but there was a reason for the pairs since they had such a small cast. Especially since there was going to be a couple more competition-like events going on in the coming days.

"Oh!" Neito made a noise and stepped a bit closer before grabbing Izuku's hands suddenly. "I want to apologize. I… don't think you're aware yet, but I was interacting with the fans and I went to grab something from my room and we could hear your and Bakugou's conversation this morning. Not all of it, but… the beginning I believe. I… it was really rude of me to eavesdrop like that. My friends keep telling me I should butt out business that isn't my own, and yet I didn't."

Izuku blinked in surprise. His conversation this morning? The one with Bakugou. He practically blue-screened and his mind reeled.

"How," he swallowed nervously. "How much did you hear?"

Monoma shuffled a it, seeming to mentally retrace his steps. "Something about cheating and… helping Uraraka since she's poor…?"

"Oh… well… I know you didn't mean it, so…" Izuku hummed and then smiled widely, "It's okay, Neito. It was an accident, so I forgive you of course."

The blond returned his smile and finally let go, but not before Izuku felt something slip into his hand.

"It's been real, but I suppose I should get back to Uraraka and continue with the hunt. I might be a little… out of it, but I'm going to beat you two."

"Ha, bet," Camie laughed as she waved.

Neito took a couple steps away before stopping, "Oh. And Toga says hi." Then he was off, back next to Uraraka looking on;y marginally less disgruntled than before.

The brunets turned to each other and Izuku held up what Neito had passed to him.

"Is that…?"

"It is," the young man confirmed as he unfolded it.

They both read it together and Camie made a noise, "A love letter?"

"Ah… an unreasonable task unless we write one," Izuku sighed. No wonder Neito had handed it off to him. He probably didn't want to try and find one let alone have Uraraka suggest writing one and having to listen to her go on and on about Bakugou some more.

"I mean," Camie trailed off. "There might be one in the dorms," She suggested.

Chapter Text

It was crazy how Izuku ended up going along with his co-star's crazy plan. Why would anyone have brought a love letter to a show set? Unless it was planted. But then why even go through the trouble of setting it up in a room instead of a common area where it was easier to find? A pity that they did check the common areas and there wasn't anything there.

"So. Other than our own rooms, how are we getting into the other… locked rooms?" Izuku asked.

Camie hummed and looked over to the chat, "They're suggesting breaking in."

Izuku choked on his own spit and ended up in a coughing fit that had his new friend gently patting his back.

"Crazy that neither of us know how to pick a lock, right?" Camie laughed.

Izuku, who had just met her gaze to thank her, immediately looked away. But this was apparently suspicious and telling because the brunette gasped.

"Oh em gee, you do know! Can you pick the locks?"

"What? No! Of course not, Camie. That's… that's an invasion of privacy."

They lapsed into silence, both looking at each other. Izuku glanced over to the chat seeing rapid-fire comments about wanting to see him pick the locks. Then Camie slowly removed a couple bobby pins from her hair and held them out to him. Izuku looked at them before groaning and snatching them out of her hand.

"Quickly," Izuku grumbled before shuffling over to the first locked door on their agenda, Toga's.

He knelt down in front of the door. "I hope you don't expect to get these back," he grumbled as he began to bend the bobby pins into shape.

Camie stepped closer and motioned the cameraman to focus on Izuku who was more focused on picking the lock than anything else.

"Usually, bedrooms doors have the easiest locks the pick, but for some reason, all the locks have been replaced and now need an actual key. Weird," the brunet murmured to himself as he inserted the pins into the lock. "But not the weirdest thing I've ever seen."

"You've done this before?" Camie asked.

Izuku stopped and glanced up at her, "My older brother and I had this game when we were younger before he went overseas for medical treatment. We would act like we were spies in a movie. Our dad thought it was funny, so he indulged us. Taught us how to pick locks and sneak around without making noise. My mom, for all that she found it adorable, did not appreciate being snuck up on so often. I… never forgot how to pick locks. After my brother came back… it wasn't the same, but we still played around like that often."

The young man turned back, messing with the door until he managed to spin one of the bobby pins and unlock it, "There. Open."

He stood and brushed his pants off, glancing over at the chat feed. His face flushed as he saw some comments cooing over his relationship with his brother. Of course he loved Tenko, but it was embarrassing to have people thinking it was sweet when it's a completely normal sibling relationship.

"Let's go in, I'm, like, so tired of waiting," Camie prompted, grabbing Izuku's hand and gently tugging him through the now open door.

Izuku didn't want to be in Toga's room anymore. Not for any particular reason other than the oddness of being in someone's private area.

Granted, all the rooms were decorated exactly the same, so it kinda felt like he was standing in his own personal room. But it still set him on edge. Something about Toga always made him feel too… out of sorts. Like she knew something.

"Camie, I'm not finding anything. Let's just… move onto another room."

The other brunette just hummed and shook her head. She meandered over to the desk stowed away in the corner of the room. She began rummaging and Izuku took the moment to look over at the cameraman and camera with an exasperated look.

"I really doubt we're going to find anyth—"

"I found it!"

Izuku's mouth snapped shut and his face scrunched up as Camie slipped up next to him holding up what looked like the most stereotypical love letter in existance. Pink envelope with heart shaped stickers and a name written in overembellished kanji. From a glance, Izuku couldn't tell who it was for. Not that he really wanted to. The brunet sighed and looked at the camera.

"Well, I stand corrected. Camie, let me see it, we should confirm that it's actually a love letter."

The moment the letter was in his hand, Izuku noted that it wasn't fully sealed. His interest was piqued a bit. He carefully tugged the pink, floral-scented paper out and handed the envelope back to Camie who took to trying to deciper the name on it.

Once unfolded, the words were a lot more legible than on the envelope, thankfully. He read over the contents and it really did seem like a regular love letter. But then his green eyes darted up to the top of the paper where the recipient's name would be written.

Dear Izuku.

He stiffened at the same time Camie gasped beside him.

"Oh em gee! Izuku!" the brunette squealed, grabbing at Izuku's upper arm and jostling him. "The letter is to you! I didn't know that you knew Toga."

Izuku felt like he was having an out of body experience. He swallowed hard, eyes going back to the body of the letter as if trying to pick out any indication that he had met her before, because he was sure he hadn't.

But there were details about him and things he had done in the letter. Stories that someone close to him would have gotten. His blood felt cold in his veins.

"I don't… I've never met her before," Izuku murmured, obviously disturbed.

Could he really have a stalker? It was hardly likely considering the lengths his dad went to to protect him. But maybe that protection had sparked an obsession in someone. He began to read over the letter again, after all, there had to be something. Something that would explain why she knew about what's been going on with Bakugou.

Bakugou didn't deserve you. He never has, not since you were young. I'm glad to hear that you aren't with him anymore.

"Are you okay? You look pale," Camie asked, her had settling on his shoulder.

Izuku jumped in his skin, looking up at her. He took a deep breath to try and calm his heart which was beating out of his chest.

"I-… I'm not sure."

He glanced back down at the words, trying his best to not let them blur as his mind began to wander.

Though, I also happened to hear about your new husband. I hope he's treating you well. Others might not be convinced, but I like to think that anyone was better than the last.

Izuku's head slowly tilted and he made a confused noise, "This… for all intents and purposes looks like a love letter. But it doesn't feel like one. It almost feels like…" He trailed off, looking up and humming. "It almost feels like someone told her about me. But who would be our mutual? I don't think anyone I know has ever said her name before. Wait… I might have an idea."

Camie made a noise and leaned against him, reading the letter over his shoulder.

"It's like, lowkey so not gucchi that you aren't telling me anything. What's goin' on in that big brain of yours? Spill it!"

"I think she might be a friend of my older brother's. I just can't prove it at the moment. But the way she's talking about things, it's like she's hearing it second-hand from someone close to the situation. Sure, she could be a friend of a friend, but I don't think so."

"Toga is a friend of your brother's? Wild! I wonder how they met," Camie mused.

"My brother plays a lot of video games online. He's actually on a league so I have no doubt he's made friends with a variety of people. It stands that she could be one of them," Izuku idly explained as he folded the letter back up, gently pulling the envelope from Camie's hands.

He slid the letter back in and handed it to Camie. "Can you put this back where you found it? I doubt she'd be too upset if she learned that we read it, but I'd prefer if she didn't."

They finally left the room, Izuku locking the door behind them. He had a guess about why Toga would be here. If his older brother had managed to hear about the show before hand, he could have guessed what might happen. Or his dad might have wanted to make sure at least one of his co-stars was someone who would be on his side if shit went down.

Or, more realistically, it was a coincidence. An odd one, but a coincidence nonetheless.

Either way, she was here and Izuku couldn't help but feel relieved that she was friend and not foe. If half of the cast was against him, it would just make things more difficult. But seeing as it was literally only Uraraka and Bakugou he had to deal with, it was another weight off his shoulders.

Izuku and Camie didn't win the scavenger hunt. Apparently Toga and Bakugou had managed to get a couple more points than them, not that either of the brunets had cared. They had gotten to have a bit of fun and hardly run into troublesome people.

But that didn't mean that Bakugou wasn't rubbing it in his face.

"See that, Deku? You could never," he snarked.

The brunet simply clapped, and congratulated him, ignoring the fact that Bakugou had beaten them by literally a hair. As grating as it was, Izuku was still trying hard to come off as the adoring childhood best friend.

"Alright everyone! We're going to take a little break for lunch before we move on with the next segment, so please go ahead and grab yourself something to eat and relax! We'll let you know when it's time to get back to work," Hizashi called out.

All the contestants seem to split their own ways, allowing Izuku to hide himself away in a corner to sort out his day so far.

As he settled on the floor, Monoma's words suddenly came to mind. Izuku had been very obviously distracted and had put it out of his thoughts. But now that he was getting a moment to settle, it all came crashing into him.

Neito had heard a bit of their conversation this morning and to make matters worse, the viewers had gotten an earful of the cheating allegations.

Izuku ran his fingers through his curls, burying his face in his knees and let out a shuddering breath. He couldn't understand why the thought filled him with anxiety despite the fact that this is what he wanted to happen. He wanted Bakugou and Uraraka to destroy their reputation and each other's. The brunet should be happy, it was just another nail in the coffin.

So why did he feel guilty?

He tugged at his hair a bit. He wished there was someone here to tell him whether he's doing this right. His dad would give it to him straight. Tell him to his face whether or not this method was effective enough.

"Izuku?"

Said brunet was tired of being startled. He looked up into the green of Hizashi's worried eyes. In the blond's hand was a plate with food, presumably his own. Though that was disproved when the older man knelt down and handed the plate to him.

"You should eat, Sho would hate it if he learned that you didn't eat anything because you were too busy thinking. So, let it out, tell me what's going on if you need to. I'm not Shouta, but I'm good at listening," Hizashi said quietly and he made himself comfortable on the floor next to him.

Izuku looked down at the plate of food in his hands. He hadn't realized he was so hungry, but now he could feel his stomach rumbling. "Thank you, Hizashi," he mumbled before taking a bite.

They sat like that while the brunet ate, Hizashi didn't demand answers, just waited. It was no wonder that Shouta liked having the blond around. Sure he was loud sometimes, but he was a really good friend.

Once the food was gone, Izuku set the plate aside and shifted to face his friend slightly. He took a deep breath before he began to speak.

"Bakugou came to my room this morning. He was spouting some… nonsense about us getting back together. Something about him only using Uraraka. I… I couldn't believe it. I thought he was delusional… but I didn't realize how bad it was. Neito apparently overheard a bit of it and so did the viewers. The walls here are thin."

Hizashi seemed to tense and then scowl. Seconds later the expression was wiped clean, green eyes glancing over to where the cameramen were stationed.

"That's… wow. What an asshole. I don't have the whole story because I've heard bits and pieces from you and Sho, but that's…" He blew out a breath before continuing. "Why haven't you just outed him? If the viewers heard, then what's stopping you?"

Izuku's face twisted up, his nose scrunching as he buried his face in his knees again. His voice was muffled when he spoke, "Sure, I could. But what's stopping people from saying I'm simply crafting a narrative? That I'm some awful person for exposing him on live TV? That I'm making it all up to ruin his reputation?"

A contemplative hum came from his friend, "Izuku, I think you're overthinking things. Sure, the public is fickle. But, really, it's practically celebrity drama. People are always going to choose sides. At that point, cut your losses. Bakugou and Uraraka really messed up. People should know that they're back-stabbing, conniving jerks before they experience it. And those that don't believe you only have to wait until the next big scandal they'll churn out if they aren't completely forgotten and abandoned by the wayside. So take it slow, you don't have to go nuclear. That's not what I was suggesting. But a lot of the viewers are curious and want to know the whole story. If you need public opinion, it's common that they'll side with the original narrative."

The brunet took a deep breath, shuddering at the anxiety racing through his veins. Hizashi was right, the worst thing that could happen was that random people on the internet, strangers he might never meet, would hate him. Really, it was always going to happen. Especially when he took over the company.

Sorry, if. Izuku was sure his dad was going to announce him as the heir, but it hadn't happened yet. He was still young, there was time. Maybe.

"You're right. Of course you're right, I overthink things and just… make it a bigger deal than it needs to be. Maybe it's because… a part of me doesn't what them to get hurt. When I married Shouta, I never wanted anything bad for them, but then they went out of their way to continue to be mean to me and… I just want them to stop."

"Then tell the public that. Explain it. No one can blame you for wanting to be left alone. And the fact that you didn't want revenge initially? That'll score you brownie points, I guarantee it. Now, turn that frown upside down. I hear tonight is karaoke night."

A sharp gasp left the younger man's lips. "I'm not good at singing! When was that agreed on?" Izuku asked incredulously.

Hizashi just laughed and stood, pulling Izuku up with him.

"Better warm up those vocal chords then!"

Izuku crashed into his bed face down. After an evening of singing, getting snidely insulted by Uraraka about his singing, and a slight mix of alcohol, Izuku was more than ready to go to bed.

He knew he should get up and go shower before bed because he smelled like booze despite not drinking any, but he didn't want to move.

Too much had happened today and he wasn't looking forward to his brain playing it on loop as he tried to go about his night. But he was looking forward to calling Shouta. It felt like it had been days since they spoke even though he had just that morning.

A groan and Izuku pushed himself off the bed and stumbled into the bathroom. It was no use putting the shower off when he would inevitably have to take one the next morning.

The sound of the water against the tile in the shower was soothing. Izuku looked over himself in mirror before the steam could fog it up. He looked… tired. Unsurprisingly, dealing with exes would do that, not that he had any prior expereinces when exes. He sighed as he rubbed his face.

"How many more days is the show? Tomorrow is day three… I think it's supposed to only last 5 days? Great, three more days of being berated. This really is my worst nightmare," Izuku murmured to himself as he turned away from his reflection to undress. He left his clothes in a pile as he stepped over to the shower and under the hot spray of water.

"Too hot," he grunted as he spun the handle a little.

The water cooled slightly and Izuku slumped forward, relaxing as the water rolled down his body. The white noise gave him time to just… think.

Izuku crashed into his bed yet again with a sigh of relief. He rolled over, stretching his arm out to grab his phone charger, plugging in the device. He laid there for a moment, staring at the screen before he unlocked it and called Shouta.

It rang only once before the call connected, something that prompted the brunet to smile.

"Hi," he murmured.

"Hello, Izuku. I hope your day went well? I haven't been able to catch the recap of the show yet. Father actually made me work today, damn old man."

Hearing the older man's voice soothed his nerves from the day as he relaxed into the bed.

"Wish I could say that those two behaved themselves. But, I'd unfortunately be lying. You should watch the recap as soon as possible. Hizashi and I were talking earlier and it might be best to bite the bullet and tell my story. Depending on the outcome, the show might get cut short. There isn't any way to tell at the moment."

Shouta was quiet before he cursed lowly into the phone, "I swear, if that bastard did something to you, the show will be getting cut short and you'll have to bail me out of jail."

The younger man let out an incredulous laugh, "Please don't. It was only words and they were… delusional for lack of a better word. I think Bakugou might have some screws loose. He really thought that I would just be willing to divorce you and get back with him."

Another bout of silence and Izuku's hair suddenly stood on end.

"You're right. He's delusional. Someone might need to knock some sense into him."

Izuku couldn't help but think that his husband was trying to volunteer to punch Bakugou yet again. It made his chest feel warm at the thought of the older man working so hard to protect him.

"Mhm. I wouldn't worry about it now though. He'll get what's coming to him. On a lighter note though, I got to see my uncle!"

Chapter Text

Izuku was tired as he sat on one of the couches in the common area, his eyes closed. Around him he could hear the the voices of his co-stars and the crew. They were carrying on regular conversations, but the brunet didn't care enough to listen.

He had stayed up a little too long talking to Aizawa, that this morning when he woke up, it felt like he hadn't slept at all.

A warm mug of coffee was in his hands and he was taking sips every couple of seconds, hoping it would wake him up more.

"Did you not sleep last night?"

Green eyes lazily opened and looked up at Toga who was standing in front of him, hands on her hips. She had her head tilted, a small smile on her lips.

"I did… just not well," he answered slowly.

He wasn't sure how to feel about her. His hypothesis about her being Tenko's friend was still unconfirmed and he didn't really know anything about he aside from the limited information he had gleaned from her work portfolio.

The blonde woman hummed before sitting on the couch next to him. She kicked her legs as she leaned back.

"So you and Camie went through my room yesterday, huh?"

Izuku grunted softly, his eyes having followed her. "We were looing for a love letter."

"And you just happened to choose my room?"

Her brown eyes were sharp as she looked at him. It felt like she was prodding for information that she already had. Probably trying to figure out if Izuku knew who she was or not.

"Camie chose it. Not sure why, I would have been content not going into any rooms," Izuku answered, gulping down the last of his coffee and setting the mug aside. "Please, just be straightforward. I'm too tired to play mind games."

"Ten-Ten told me a lot about you! It's honestly so exciting to meet you in person. You're just as cute as he said you were!"

The brunet was extremely thankful he had finished his coffee because he was sure he'd be sputtering now. "I'm sorry, what exactly did Tenko tell you about me?" he couldn't help but ask.

This wasn't exactly what he had thought she had come over to say. But it was at least, a firm confirmation that Toga was on his side. Which was good considering he had seen Uraraka begin to gravitate towards her.

"Oh! He's told me a lot. Like I said, he talks a lot about you. Like, so much that Dabi has to tell him to be quiet a lot because Tenko compares people to you," Toga explained.

Izuku could only sigh. It wasn't news to him that his older brother disliked people, but to hear that Tenko thought so highly of him as to compare him to other people was surely unexpected.

"He's also told us about all the drama that you've been going through recently. I can help out, if you want. I've been told I'm easily adaptable to peoples' expectations. If you need dirt on either of them, think of me!"

"You all seem lively this morning. Glad to see it, especially since the staff hasn't allowed up to eat breakfast. But don't worry, that will be remedied shortly. Today is a bit of an interesting day. We'll kick things off with a cooking competition before we break for the brunch you all will be making, so do well unless you want to skip a meal. Then we'll be doing individual… interviews, we'll call them. For the cooking segment, we'll actually be shuffling the groups a little bit via lottery. Once that's done, then I'll explain the rules as we move to an external facility," Hizashi said cheerfully.

Izuku was impressed with how easy the blond could command attention of the room. Charismatic and— wait WHAT?

His neck hurt as his head quickly turned at breakneck speed to stare down the host. Izuku had been under the impression that the pairs would stay permanent. And the fact that were leaving it up to chance? Ugh, his dad must have regained control somehow. Otherwise the director had a vendetta or something against him. This better not be rigged. He might cry and not in the "on command" type of way.

"We have a little box here containing slips of paper with everyone's name on it. To ease the worry of tampering, let's have… Bakugou! Why don't you come up and pick out the pairs, hm? Every two you grab will be partnered up!"

Bakugou grunted, looking more awake than Izuku felt. Then again his ex had always been a morning person. Yet another point of contention since Izuku was a night person and going to sleep at exactly 8:30 P.M. every night would grate on his nerves.

Anyway, the blonde walked up the Hizashi and stood on the other side of the box. He positioned himself so that the camera could see his face as he shoved his hand into the opening of the box and withdrew two names from the box.

The host plucked the papers from Bakugou's hands and cleared his throat as he looked at the names. His face and hand twitched like he wanted to toss the names aside. Since, Hizashi kept a smile on his face.

"The first pair is Monoma and Utsushimi."

Izuku knew that this was going to bad. He wanted to be paired with Toga if nothing else, but he was already resigned to getting paired with his enemies.

Bakugou pulled another set of names that had Hizashi look like he was on the verge of throwing a fit. The older man sniffled and reluctantly read the names out.

"Uraraka and Toga."

And just like that, the guillotine fell. Izuku slumped slightly, rubbing his temple with the palm of his hand. Suddenly there was a buzzing his pocket and he straightened, a fake smile appearing on his face. For a moment he forgot he was supposed to be the childhood friend who worshipped the group Bakugou walked on.

Oh how Izuku couldn't wait to go home.

"That means that the last pair for the cooking competition with be Bakugou and Midoriya. Lets get everyone onto the bus and we'll head to the facility," Hizashi called out.

The host made eye contact with Izuku and shot him an apologetic smile as if the former radio personality was somehow responsible for how the teams fell.

Izuku lanced to his side to see the three of his friendly co-stars looking worriedly at him. He felt a sort of warmth bloom in his chest and his smile softened into something more genuine. He nodded slightly, trying to convey that he'll be fine.

If he can get Bakugou so upset by being around him, that his collected facade cracks, that would make Izuku spilling his guts during the individual interviews all that much sweeter.

He took a deep breath. The cooking competition shouldn't be that long anyway. A couple hours at most that he needs to bear. He can do that.

On the bus ride to the facility, he was sat next to the window, Monoma sitting almost protectively in the seat next to him.

While Izuku had to chance to, he pulled his phone out to check what the buzzing had been from earlier. He stifled a laugh at the gif that Hitoshi had sent. Then swapped over chats because it seemed like he had gotten another notification at the same time, from Shouto. The strawberry blond had simply sent a cryptic one word text.

"Soon."

Izuku didn't know what he meant by that. But he figured it was just his friend guessing when Izuku was going to out Bakugou.

Either way, it was nice to know that some of his friends outside were watching the show and cheering him on.

The cooking facility was large yet it almost felt claustrophobic with how small the spaces that they would be cooking in. He could feel the headache creeping up on him. But this was good. It would allow him to continuously bump into Bakugou.

He took another deep breath to center himself as they lined up. Bakugou had to stand next to him since they were going to be cooking together and Izuku could feel the heat from the blond's body. It idly reminded him that his ex always ran a little too hot for him.

"Alright everyone! The Director has decided that's we're runing this ship like an official cooking competition to see how you all do under pressure. We're gonna put an hour on the clock and task each of you with recreating a comfort food of yours. But you have to coordinate with your partner to decide what meal you're making, otherwise points will have to be docked. Everyone set?" Hizashi asked, standing next to a table with a couple chairs.

Izuku's eyes narrowed. The existence of the table told Izuku that there were gonna be judges for the competition. He wondered who was chosen. He couldn't think of anyone off the top of his head that wasn't some super busy superstar.

"Get set… Go!"

The brunet was startled when a too-warm hand wrapped around his wrist and tugged. Izuku stumbled as Bakugou dragged him towards the closest cooking station. He couldn't see the blond's face, but he could imagine that the older man wasn't too happy with having to pair with Izuku again for another cooking segment.

Bakugou's head turned towards another station, particularly one where Uraraka and Toga were standing. It made Izuku want to scoff, there was no way in hell the man in front of him was so delusional as to think he could have his cake and eat it too.

Izuku wasn't going to sit here and try and let Bakugou covet two people because he couldn't choose.

"So, Kacchan, what are we making today?" The brunet asked cheerfully, forcing those brown-red eyes back to him.

The other man grunted as they came to a stop behind the prep counter. Bakugou stood there thinking and Izuku just let him for a minute or two before he started to throw out suggestions.

"Mapo Tofu, Jajamen, Curry Udon, Oyakodon—"

Izuku was cut off by a stern glare.

"I'm trying to think, can't you ever just shut up for a minute?"

"But Kacchan, we have to decide together or we'll have points docked. Weren't you listening to Mr Yamada?"

The look Izuku got in return was enough for him to back down, face downturn and looking more and more like a kicked puppy every second that passed.

"Fu—" Bakugou took a deep breath. "Fine. We can do the udon. Just… stop making that damn face, nerd."

With the first crack set in place, Izuku beamed more to himself than to his ex-fiancé. But it did it's purpose in making the other man scoff and turn away to go grab the ingredients they'd need.

Izuku once again just let him, humming to himself as he washed his hands and wiped down the counter in preparation. He could be lowkey annoying, he had done it all his life by simply being himself around Bakugou. It was just as tiring now as it was back then, but if everything went how he had planned it, today was all he needed before everything began to fall into place.

Cooking with Bakugou this time was just as stressful as every time before. The blond would bark out orders, he would berate Izuku for things not done to the taller man's picky expectations with was… everything.

He wasn't as aggressive as he could've have been, but the cameras still caught his raised tone and rude gestures.

Half way through their allotted time, Hizashi called out to everyone.

"So sorry to interrupt, but I'd like to introduce the judges! Now, there was a bit of a last minute adjustment based upon some outside factors. So please, let me introduce to you our guest judges!"

He sounded… nervous. Which didn't bode well for Izuku in the slightest.

"Please welcome the youngest current heir in the entertainment industry, hailing from Endeavor Production, Todoroki Shouto."

The way Izuku almost ducked out of sheer terror would have been highly comedic if he hadn't looked like someone walked on his grave. Though, this should not have been a surprise for him, his friend had warned him even if it wasn't detailed in the slightest.

"The fuck is he doing here? What the hell did you do, Deku?" Bakugou hissed under his breath.

Izuku shook his head and waved his hands as he frantically spoke, "Shouto might be my friend, but I didn't ask him to be here. I didn't even know this was going to be a judged event!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Izuku watched as Shouto walked in, hair styled for the event. He was wearing a button-up under an oversized sweater and baggy pants. But his looks and how he managed to wear clothes effortlessly are what drew people into his heterochromatic friend's orbit.

(Izuku knew how awkward he was from being extremely sheltered. And his friend didn't care what clothes he wore, so he always looked comfortable, unlike Izuku.)

Green eyes caught dual tone and the small smile Shouto sent him had his co-stars at others stations whispering.

Shouto walked up to the table and made himself comfortable at one of the tables. Hizashi quickly welcomed the heir, then straightened back up to introduced the other judge.

Mistakenly, Izuku thought that Shouto was the reason why he felt nervous.

"Our next judge is one that many of you will know. A well recognized acter that we here are so excited to host for this competition. Please welcome Yagi Toshinori."

Izuku wished the floor would disappear from underneath his feet. He watched with detached horror as the doors his friend had just come through opened up again. And there, in all his glory, was his Uncle Toshi, trademark grin on his face and even more recognizable by his yellow suit (without Izuku liked but has been told it would be a fashion mishap if anyone else wore it).

Toshinori had certainly lost weight in his retirement, but he was no less the man he had been when he had starred in one of the biggest hero movie franchises to date.

The tall man casually walked down the aisle between the stations, all the confidence of an accomplished man. Then his blue eyes caught a peek of Izuku and a loud laugh burst out of the older man. He made a detour, heading straight for the younger man's station.

Beside the brunet, Bakugou tensed up and made a soft noise that sounded almost like awe.

"Young Izuku! I had no idea that you were here participating in the contest! How have you been?" Toshinori asked as he easily leaned over the counter to pat his shoulder.

"I've… I'm going well, Mr Yagi," Izuku stammered out nervously.

The smile the tall blond had been holding onto disappeared into a frown, "Mr Yagi? You haven't called me that… well… in a very long time. Is something wrong?"

"No! Nothing wrong, it's just… we're in a professional setting and…"

Just like that, the smile came back. "Of course! How could I be so silly as to forget already. Of course, professional. Ahem, I have high expectations for your meal!"

Toshinori turned on his heel and walked over to the table and sat down next to Shouto with a polite greeting and nod.

"Alright, everyone can go back to cooking now but please make sure you are making enough for two plates. I won't interrupt you again until it's time!" Hizashi laughed.

The moment everyone was clear to go back, Bakugou grabbed Izuku's shoulders hand and shook him, his voice low and resolute, "I don't know or care how you're on close terms with him, but we're winning the fucking competition. You hear me, Deku? You better not make me look like a damn moron in front of Mr Yagi."

Izuku's face paled and he nodded rapidly. His shoulders were released as Bakugou immediately turned back to nurse the pot on the stove. Izuku shuddered and shook his head slightly as he turned back to the cutting board.

The last thirty minutes went by rather fast for Toshinori has sat in the uncomfortably small chair. The host was a very charismatic man and even offered to find a bigger chair, but he had politely declined. He had sat in worse chairs and the company made this a little bit easier to stand.

"So, Young Todoroki, how as Izuku been? I haven't seen him in months! Nana has kept me on house arrest because I got myself a little bit injured practicing a stunt that I maybe shouldn't have been."

The young man angled his head to look up at the famous actor. It wasn't the first time they has crossed paths and it wouldn't be the last. Enji had tried so desperately to sway Toshinori to join his entertainment company when he started it, but he wouldn't leave the company his family has built even if he heavy disliked its current CEO (not that he would be for too much longer, Izuku was a wonder to work with).

"'zu's been… better. After everything that happened with Bakugou I thought he'd retreat into how he had been before. But his husband's been good for him."

Toshinori couldn't help but cough, "Husband? Why wasn't I aware he had gotten married?" The older man was in disbelief. Sure, if Izuku was happy it didn't matter, but he had to admit that he was the tiniest bit hurt.

"It was a small affair I believe. I don't even think his parents were there when he got married. I found out because he told me day of. Bakugou and Uraraka have been putting him through it every since though so it would make sense that's he's been a bit tied up and has forgotten things."

The actor simply hummed. He had heard a little bit about what had happened through Nana who had heard about it from Tenko who had gotten his information from Inko and Zen. So he wasn't quite sure how reliable it was, but he had gotten the jist of it.

Bakugou and Uraraka were enemies of the family.

It only sucked that the young man was currently paired with his little nephew so he can't tank his scores. And by the looks of it, the young heir next to him had the same idea.

"I'm so sorry that I'm eavesdropping, but while the cameras are focused on the contestants, I'd like to reintroduce myself," the host spoke up, stepping closer to the judges' table. "My name is Yamada Hizashi and I'm a close friend of Izuku's husband. I've gotten a bit of a closer look at what's been happening recently."

Now, Toshinori has never been one to hold grudges and hatred for those who have never wronged him personally. But he was about to make an exception for this damn kid. Because despite not being blood-related to Izuku, the young man was like the son he had never gotten to have because of his career choices.

He was a sweet man and didn't have a single bad bone in his body. Faced with adversity, he was more likely to accept a truce or apology than to (rightfully) demand retribution or punishment. It was a wonder how when his family was full of people fully willing to get their revenge.

Perhaps another way that he was more like his uncle Yoichi.

"Alright everyone, times' up! Hands off the plates. Well, just stop cooking. One at a time we'll call up a pair and have our judges taste them and score them based on taste and presentation."

Toshinori shifted in his chair, his smile still on his face. Nana was going to be so upset with him when she realizes what he ate today.

Ah, it didn't matter now, he wasn't leaving now. Especially if he could corner his nephew and talk to him about what's going on after the results.

Izuku was on edge. In the end, he had hardly gotten to do much cooking because Bakugou wanted to look good for his "idol". But the way Izuku saw Toshinori's face twist up into something approximate to anger as Shouto and Hizashi talked to him, didn't exactly bode well for Bakugou.

Now, it was a different story when they had finally got to the tasting part of the competition. Because of course his ex-fiancé was a good cook. It was undeniable and the blond was often proud of it, flaunting his skills in front of others as if saying "Look at me, I'm better than you".

Which made it practically impossible for anyone else to stack up to his skills, resulting in a win for their team. Izuku was starting to get really tired of Bakugou of winning, mostly because it's not like they actually got a prize. It was mostly to show off different facets of a potential star's personality.

Despite the rude blond's preening and mental victory lap, he still wasn't going to gain the attention of the retired actor.

"Young Midoriya, if I could have a word?" Toshinori came up to him, large smile still in place even if a little strained.

"Of course, Mr Yagi. We can talk over here out of the way of everyone else," Izuku murmured respectfully as he motioned to a backstage-like area of the facility.

This seemed to catch Bakugou's attention and when he realized that Toshinori was more interested in talking to Izuku than him, his face twisted up.

As Uncle Toshi walked in the direction of where Izuku had motioned, the brunet didn't get to follow. A hand clamped on his shoulder, squeezing just a little too tight, stopped him before he could move.

"Oi, what the hell. Why is he only talking to you."

"Perhaps because I'm the CEO's secretary? I've worked with him before. He might have a question about stepping out of retirement for something. I don't know, we haven't talked yet, Kacchan."

The blond grunted, squeezing hard enough for Izuku to wince and flinch away from him.

"Doesn't matter what the hell you are, he should be talking to me. Congratulating me. You're nothing, so why do you keep taking shit from me, huh?"

Izuku slowly blinked and made a confused noise, "Kacchan… I don't understand. I'm not taking anything from you? I'm just doing my job."

This time when Bakugou's grip tightened, Izuku thought he could feel his bones creaking.

"Ow! Kacchan, please let go, you're hurting me!"

The moment his words echoed throughout the facility and everyone's eyes turned to them, Bakugou let his shoulder go like he had been burned. Izuku took the moment to scamper off towards Toshinori who looked… well… angry.

"Izuku what just happened?" The older man asked the moment he was in range.

The brunet fidgeted, rubbing at his shoulder. "Bakugou thinks that you should be trying to talk to him instead. Which… makes no sense because there wasn't an agreement for you to talk to the winners. I tried to explain to him that it's because we've worked together before, but he accused me of taking away things he deserves and now my shoulder just hurts."

The lapsed into silence before Toshinori huffed out a laugh, "It seems you haven't changed a bit since I last saw you. That's good. Now, your friends filled me in a little bit on what's been going on, but I'd like to hear it from you."

"Only if you tell me why Uncle Yoichi said you were on house arrest."

The laughter that came from the older man's mouth this time was just straight nervous.

"I-I… well.. you see…"

Shouta was going to drive there. There was no way he wasn't now. Seeing that bastard touch Izuku to the point of hurting him crossed the line.

And now he just felt bad. He was there to help his cute little husband the last time Bakugou had injured him, but this time there was no one to look after him. To apply medicine and it was starting to affect his work.

Something Nedzu has already commented on twice. Today.

"Shouta if you don't get back to work and stop gluing your eyes to that damn screen," his father said next to him.

It was crazy that the older man was supposed to be stepping down and handing Shouta the company this year and yet he was nagging about every little thing his son was doing.

The dark-haired man sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"I know you're worried about Izuku, but now is not the time. He can fight his own battles without you needed to hold his hand. You remember what your friend said this morning, they're doing individual interviews later today. If you work until then, I'll let you watch it."

He couldn't believe his own father was trying to manipulate him into working. He also couldn't believe that it was working.

"Fine."

The moment Izuku's individual interview had started, Shouta was joined by his father and his cousin. He was sitting in one of the conference rooms, the show casted onto the projector screen there.

"This feels weird. Why are we here instead of in your office?" Hitoshi asked, leaning back in his chair, feet kicked up on the conference table.

"Because my dear son must see his beloved face on a big screen. I fear his is going through withdrawal symptoms. No good to exacerbate them," Nedzu answered helpfully.

"Both of you be quiet, it's starting," Shouta grunted.

The broadcast showed an empty room, but then a door opened up and there he was. Izuku looked nervous as he gingerly sat himself down on the provided couch. He waved, lips curling upwards as he settled down.

"Thank you for allowing us to reinterview you on a more personal level. With everything that has happened these past few days, some of our viewers are a little… concerned about the actions of some of your co-stars in relation to you. You don't have to answer all these questions if you don't want to. But if you're good to go, let's begin," Hizashi's voice rang from off screen.

Izuku slowly nodded, "I'm ready. What's everyone's first question?"

Chapter Text

Shouta felt like his heart was in his throat. He wasn't sure why he was so nervous. They had talked about this the night before and so he was sure that this interview would be focused around what Bakugou and Uraraka did to Izuku.

One of his letters burned in his pocket, reminding him once again that he was keeping secrets. But once everything was resolved, he would tell Izuku everything.

"Are you alright, Sho? You look like someone is holding a gun to your head," Hitoshi said, having turned to look at him.

"I'm fine," Shouta waved it off, turning his attention back to the projector screen.

"So, Midoriya. I don't mean to start off with one of the most loaded questions, but everyone has been so curious as to what has happened between you and Bakugou. Would you like to answer that now, or would you like to answer a different question first?"

Izuku shifted in his chair, rubbing his fingers nervously together. He was grateful for the fact that it was only Hizashi and him in the room alone with the camera. Hizashi was looking at a tablet with the live viewer chat and a clipboard with a list of questions. But his attention wasn't on either of them. No, he was looking directly at Izuku.

"I… what other questions are there that aren't related to my… relationship with Kacchan…?" He asked quietly.

Hizashi hummed and looked at the clipboard, "There is one regarding your family. One about the specifics of your job. And then a couple about your husband actually."

The brunet perked up at the thought to talk about literally anything other than Bakugou at the moment, He knew for sure that he would end up answering them, but he would prefer something light before he gets into it.

"Could you ask the one about my family first? Or perhaps my husband? I'd like to start there instead."

The blond laughed and nodded, "I had a feeling. You seem like a more emotional person. Let's start with your husband then. A couple of the viewers were disappointed that you showed your co-stars pictures of him, but didn't show anything to the cameras. Are there any pictures you'd like to show to the viewers?"

Izuku could feel his face heating up. He cleared his throat a bit and slowly pulled his phone out. He scooted closer to the edge of the chair.

"I didn't show him off and I tried not to speak too much about him because I wasn't sure if he would appreciate having his face on the show. But if you all really want to see him, I can ask him if that would be okay."

The host turned on the tablet and handed it over to Izuku who carefully took it.

"Oh wow, you all are so eager," Izuku laughed.

His phone buzzed in his hand and he looked over to see a notification pop up on the screen. He opened it and read over the text. Then he smiled and looked back up into the camera.

"Hi Shouta, I didn't realize you were watching. Thank you for your permission. Do you have a picture you'd prefer for me to show? If not, I can just show my favorite."

A couple more seconds and he received a negative response. Izuku immediately pulled up a picture of his husband and scooted closer to the camera before lifting his phone, allowing the viewers to see the image.

Izuku watched as the comments came. A mix of everything, not surprising considering the state of the internet. None too bad, the worst just being that they thought Shouta was ugly, which… was incorrect, but Izuku was fine with people thinking that. He thought his husband was handsome so he didn't care much what others thought. He pulled his phone back and tucked it away.

"There you all are, any other questions about him?" he asked as he passed the tablet back to Hizashi.

"Hmm. There is a question about his occupation, but I think we can just skip over that, it's a bit too personal. Let's move onto your family. Some viewers have expressed their… curiosity in what your father taught you and your brother growing up after watching you lockpick. Was there anything else notable that he taught you?"

The brunet hummed and tilted his head in thought. He had been taught a lot by his dad, but not all of it was something he was willing to admit to the public. It's not like he could smile and say that he learned how to run a shell company for the criminal underground without having the police sicced on him.

"Well, my dad taught us self defense. Which was a little awkward given the fact that my dad is a lot taller than me and my brother. Which makes me question why he knows self defense. He's intimidating, I surely wouldn't ever try to fight him if I saw him in the street. Oh… but I guess he could have learned when he was younger to protect my uncle."

"Your uncle? The one you met during the scavenger hunt?" Hizashi prodded.

Izuku beamed at him, "Oh yes! My uncle is fairly frail and relied on my dad a lot as they grew up. They were unfortunately on their own, so they leaned on each other a lot. It's funny because as much as my dad adores his brother, Uncle doesn't really like dad all that much. Thinks he's too… controlling I guess."

The host hummed, "Let's move on before we get trapped in the rabbit hole that is your family drama, yeah? Let's pivot. Are you ready to talk about Bakugou now?"

The question was met with tense silence as the brunet slumped a bit, twisting at his fingers.

"Okay. We can talk about it. I just… want to preface this conversation by saying that I don't want anything bad to happen to Kacchan and Ochako. So I'd prefer no hate to go their way. Some of you might not like me or my choices after this and that's okay too. But… this is my story and I'd like to share it with all of you."

Hizashi smiled encouragingly, swapping to the tablet to monitor the comments. "If you wouldn't mind starting from the beginning. Some viewers are curious as to how you first met."

Izuku took a deep breath and readjusted his position on his seat.

"That's easy. I've known Kacchan since we were in diapers. Our mothers are best friends so it was inevitable that we would be too. Growing up we were inseparable, if you found one of us, the other wouldn't be too far behind," He began with a small smile on his face, his hands clasped together.

The host nodded, "That would definitely qualify for a childhood friend. I see a question about the origin of the name that Bakugou calls you?"

"Ah… well… let me give a bit of context first. When I was young my older brother was in really bad shape. He was adopted into the family, and we loved him immediately. I remember how excited I was to have an older sibling. A few years into him joining us, my dad took him overseas for treatment. They stayed away for years trying to heal him. During this time it was only me and my mom. And we did our best to handle everything while we were here. Dad sent money and we talked every day, but most people just saw a single mother and her son. About a year after they first left, Kacchan began acting… different. He suddenly thought that my dad left us because I was… useless. This spawned the name I'm sure you've all heard him call me. 'Deku'. It's a play on my name and something he has used since its inception. He excuses it now because 'It's a just a childhood nickname'. It's one of the reasons I continue to call him 'Kacchan'."

Hizashi's face scrunched and he scowled. The expressions sticking for longer than usual since he wasn't in front of the camera.

The blond cleared his throat, "And why do you let him continue to call you that?"

Izuku hummed and leaned back in his chair. "I befriended Ochako our first year of high school. Me and Kacchan still weren't on the best of terms, but we were getting better. The first time she had heard him call me Deku, she thought it sounded more like 'dekiru' instead, so she calls me Deku as well. At the time, I thought it was a nice sentiment and decided that I didn't mind being called that if it stood more for 'you can do it' rather than 'useless'."

Every word out of his mouth seems to deepen the wrinkles in his friend's face. Hizashi honestly looked like he had swallowed a lemon. Izuku wondered what Shouta's face would look like as he heard the specifics of the younger man's past.

Shouta was utterly upset. His face was cautiously blank, not betraying the hurt he felt in his chest. He knew this already, but hearing it again cut deeper this time. The first time he had been told this story, he didn't have any sort of emotional attachment. Not like he did now.

"Thank you, Midoriya. Since the beginning of this interview, many of the viewers and crew included, have been curious about the snippet of conversation caught yesterday morning. This goes hand-in-hand with the question about your occupation as some are recalling Bakugou accusing you of not actually working for Heritage Entertainment. Do you have a comment about this?"

Izuku sat up, teeth pulling at the skin of his bottom lip. He took a deep breath, his tone taking on a more professional one.

"My employment with Heritage Entertainment is easily proven. If there is any doubt about my status as the secretary to the CEO, I implore you to research and locate previous press conferences from the past two years as I will be clearly visible in the background. If that is not enough evidence, within the next six hours, the PR Team will be issuing a statment about my position within the company. Thank you."

The brunet immediately relaxed, an easy smile appearing on his face afterwards.

"Wow, you came prepared. Now, as for the other allegation that came to light during the conversation. You accused Bakugou of… cheating on you. In our opening Q&A you mentioned that you were married, but this allegation implies that you and Bakugou were once in a romantic relationship."

Izuku's face twisted up. This was it. No more light-hearted stories or answers that didn't carry much weight. From now on, everything he said would be scruntinized and picked apart until his feelings were lain bare for the whole of Japan to see.

He bowed his head and wrapped his arms around himself before sitting back up and looking at the camera.

"Yes. In fact… at one point Kacchan and I were engaged. In high school we finally ended up reconciling from our fallout as children. And I… I couldn't help but feel so happy that I had my best friend back that I didn't see the signs… He ended up asking me out during our first year of high school and I said yes. My friends at the time tried to get me to see reason, but I had foolishly believed that he had changed for the better. That he was no longer the child that had hurt me so carelessly."

Hot tears began to well up in his eyes and he let out a watery laugh. "I think about it every day… the fact that I should have listened to my friends that had wanted me to stay away from any sort of relationship where Kacchan could have any kind of grip on me. But there was one friend who didn't. Ochako was who I considered my best friend during high school aside from Kacchan. She encouraged me to continue to date him. To allow him into every aspect of my life. I sunk almost five and half years into a relationship with him. And you want to know how he proposed?"

The laugh this time was more harsh, "He tossed the ring at me and told me to put it on. And I did. I did everything he wanted of me. Any of my worries and concerns were brushed to the wayside with him calling me annoying and over protective… like my mom. And yet, I stayed with him because I was… I thought I was in love with him. I don't honestly think I had been for a while… too settled into the only relationship I had ever known… and it all culminated in me catching him cheating."

Hizashi had been watching Izuku moreso than the tablet, looking so concerned and yet upset at the same time. The conflicting emotions made the older man look constipated, but it still warmed the brunet's heart.

"Kacchan was a firefighter for most of our relationship. And no matter how many times I expressed worry in his occupation because he'd come home later and later after his shifts, he'd tell me I was overreacting and he wouldn't quit just because I was worried over nothing. Well… one day a couple months ago there was a big fire when he was on shift. I was practically glued to the TV, trying to make sure nothing happened to him or any of his friends on the job.

"Once the fire had been put out and the firefighters were no longer on scene, I took the time to head to the station he was based out of. I had always done so even if Kacchan kept telling me that he didn't want me there. When I got there, Ochako was too! She had always been a very bubbly person and had made friends with Kacchan and some of his friends, so I wasn't surprised that she was there. What I was surprised by though… was when I caught Ochako and Kacchan making out against the back wall of the fire station nearest to the parking lot."

A sharp gasp had Izuku looking over to his friend who had a hand slapped over his mouth.

"Are you okay, Mr Yamada?" the brunet asked softly with a tilted head.

Hizashi was quiet for a minute to compose himself before nodding slowly. "My apologies, I just… I'm sure I speak for a lot of people watching when I say that I commiserate with you. That sort of thing is never easy for anyone to go through. But if you caught them cheating only a couple months ago, how did you marry your current husband?"

"Well… this is the part that you are all going to judge me for," Izuku explained. He hummed and leaned back in the chair, looking up at the ceiling.

He took a deep breath, just taking a moment to collect his thoughts and decide the best way to frame what had happened in a way that didn't sound like he was crazy.

Which would be an accurate assessment really, and he wouldn't blame anyone for thinking so.

"I met my husband… minutes after I caught them… It was a chance thing and we parted ways without even giving each other our names. Hmm," Izuku covered his face and let out a little laugh. He looked back up at the camera. "I am friends with his father and his younger cousin… I just didn't know him. In fact, I met up with his dad for the bi-weekly chess match that we had and still have. Except… I wasn't up for playing chess this time. Instead, I told him about what had happened. I explained that I didn't want to get married to Kacchan anymore and he said he might know of a solution. Said solution was for me to marry his son in order to keep me from… accidentally ruining my family name. Thinking back, I could have probably not gone down this route, but… I don't regret it."

Hizashi's facial expression would be hilarious if not for the fact that it immediately dropped as his eyes glanced over the comments. Instead, a confused look appeared. He hummed and held up a hand to stop Izuku from continuing with his story.

"Sorry to stop you, but there are some comments wondering how you never met your husband before if you knew his close family."

"Simple," Izuku began, "I never went to his house. I always brought his cousin to my place. And I always met his dad at the same park every time. I heard about him, heard a name a couple times… but his cousin always referred to him as… 'cousin'. And his dad, 'my son'."

"That is strange. Don't you think?"

The brunet huffed out a laugh, "Yeah. Very strange thinking on it. But again, when it was happening, it really didn't have any bearing on me. I guess I was a little… preoccupied. Kacchan… took up a lot of my time. I hardly got to hang out with friends to go on dates with him… dates that he'd always back out of last minute… I spent more time thinking about what I could do better to be better for him than thinking about my friends' families as awful as it sounds."

There was a morose silence that fell over them as Izuku hung his head. He rubbed at his arms shifting in the chair as he crossed his ankles.

Hizashi cleared his throat and scooted towards the edge of his chair, "We're almost done. I promise. What do you expect to get out of the information you've provided in this interview, if anything?"

"I… don't bear any ill will towards the two of them… I wish them well in fact. I just… wish that they felt the same. I'm sure many of you have noticed that Kacchan still berates me. He rubs his victories in, specifically, my face. He believes… misguidedly, that I am somehow looking down on him. That my sincere feelings are simply mockery. Ochako… well… it may not look like it, but she's rubbing the fact that she stole Kacchan from me in my face. Hanging on him, constantly trying to compliment him, talking about how good they are together. She's trying to make me feel like dirt underneath her feet. But… again… I don't want anything to happen to them. They're both so promising in this field that… I'd hate to ruin their lives over an affair… even if it hurts. I'll heal eventually."

Hitoshi was seconds away from lunging at Shouta to keep him in his chair. The older man was sitting forward, his palms placed flat on the table like he was getting ready to push himself up and shake the address right out of Nedzu who was also watching with a bit of concern plastered on his face.

He and Nedzu had known how everything had gone down. Had been there to see it in action, but this was the first time Shouta would have heard how much of a toll dating Bakugou had been on Izuku. And honestly, hearing it again was hard for Hitoshi.

A sudden movement startled the young man out of his thoughts and he caught Shouta relaxing and sliding back into his chair. His face was calm and oddly off-putting considering how up in arms he had been the whole time Izuku had been on the show.

(Hitoshi had to remind himself that his friend had been gone for a combined total of three days.)

"You good, Sho?" The younger cousin asked cautiously, rolling his chair a bit closer.

Shouta side-eyed him and huffed out a laugh, "Yeah. I'm fine."

Dark brown eyes narrowed and Hitoshi scoffed, "You said that last time before you looked like you were about to run off, so forgive me for not believing you. You seem weirdly calm for someone who just heard about Izuku's past. What, did he tell you already?"

"Not exactly," the older man said haltingly.

The younger man made eye contact with Nedzu. His uncle raised an eyebrow and Hitoshi just shrugged. Neither of them knew what that meant. Sure, Izuku telling his husband about his past wasn't that far out of left field, but he was sure he would've heard about it in a conversation or something.

"Shouta, what does that mean?" Nedzu slowly asked, placing his mug full of tea down on the table. "Did Izuku tell you or not?"

"No… He didn't tell me."

"Then why aren't you about ready to go psycho killer on Bakugou and Uraraka?" Hitoshi asked, standing up. "And don't tell me that it's because you don't care about what those two did. You and I both know that's bullshit."

Izuku's nerves were frazzled. He shook out his hands as he stepped out of the room. He tapped Monoma on the shoulder and motioned him into the room he had just vacated.

"Are you okay? You look kind of pale?" the blond asked kindly, his eyebrows pinched.

"Fine… or... I will be. Just need to relax a little."

Neito nodded and left Izuku to rest for a little bit. But that didn't mean the brunet was free to do whatever he wanted, because there in the corner, Shouto stand looking as cold as he usually does.

They made eye contact and the strawberry blond perked up, immediately striding over to him with a tiny little smile on his face. He gently poked Izuku's arm.

"I stayed behind so we can talk a little bit. I haven't seen you in a couple weeks. How is your husband? Your parents?"

Izuku smiled. "Shouta is doing well. At least… I think he is? I'm fairly certain he misses me if 'toshi's texts are anything to go by. Mom and Dad are okay too. Well… according to Uncle Yoichi, Dad's in trouble with Mom so I can't say he's doing well."

Shouto nodded along, "Dad is… his usual self. Mom is doing a lot better as of late. From our monthly meet-up, Touya, 'yumi, and Natsuo are doing okay too. I think 'yumi met someone? She said something about going on dates but it was kind of eclipsed by To' and Nat's teasing."

Both of them absently walked over to the kitchen where there was a selection of food to snack on during the interviews.

"Ooh, do you remember anything about the guy?"

"Maybe? Honestly it kinda sounded like she was describing Tenya's older brother, and I don't think our friend group should be that close together if I'm honest. Being related to you is enough."

The brunet doubled over with a laugh.

Shouto had left a couple of minutes ago, finally being shooed away by Masu who was warning everyone that the cameras were about to switch as they concluded Bakugou's interview which was last. None of them had been able to watch each other's interviews as there would be a sort of… tell-all like thing?

Izuku wasn't sure because it felt much too early in the week for this, but he wasn't going to complain. Not if it allowed him to go home early. Maybe the public had gotten a good enough feel for them? That was the entire purpose of the show after all.

(Again, he had a feeling his mom had something to do with it. He and Tenko both swore she could just tell things. She was omniscient and they swore by that.)

He and his co-stars were corralled back into the chairs they had sat on when the show started.

"Fancy seeing you here," Izuku murmured to Camie who sat to his right.

The brunette grinned and bumped their shoulders together. "I totes didn't want to bother you and your cutie of a friend or else I would have butt into your convo. But it highkey sucked we weren't partnered up earlier. So not gucchi that they, like, separated us like that."

Izuku nodded solemnly like it was such an important topic. He went to respond, but Masu clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

Just then Bakugou came out of the interview room and took his seat, prompting Masu to start her speech.

"All right everyone, please keep these conversations civil and no fighting. Each of you were asked questions pertaining to your fellow co-stars and we'll be rehashing them a bit with everyone in the room. Some of you might not be happy with what comes out, but please don't hurt anyone in light of this information as it could reflect bad on yourselves and or the company."

Hizashi came out of the room and gracefully walked over to his chair and settled down. The cameramen that were behind the stationed cameras quietly counted down.

The moment they reached one, Hizashi smiled and waved.

"I know it's been less than a minute since we spoke, but we have the whole cast with us now! We just heard some rather… interesting information that someone of you want to hear the other side of that you didn't get to ask in the interviews. So let's begins shall we! For those just joining, a poll was set up just a little bit ago and it will end in a couple minutes, so make sure you chime in! In the meantime, Midoriya! It came to our attention during some of the other interviews that you seem relatively close with the heir of the Endeavor Productions. What can you tell us about that? How did you two meet?"

Izuku startled at being asked the first question. He laughed nervously and leaned forward.

"Ah, Shouto actually went to high school with Me, Kacchan, and Ochako. He's a part of my friend group. Our older brothers are dating so we're practically family at this point. But don't worry! Shouto is absolutely unbiased when it comes to all things so the cooking competition wasn't rigged."

"The results of the poll are in! For our contestants that are a little confused, we asked our viewers what the hottest topic from the individual interviews were that they'd like to hash out a bit more. Two have been decided on. One from Midoriya's interview and one from Uraraka's interview. Midoriya's won out by a bit of a margin," Hizashi said after getting an answer from Camie about some of her social media friends.

The host took a deep breath as his demeanor changed a bit. "These are heavier topics and are not something we'd usually cover in a show like this. But it is highly debated at the moment and it would be something to clear up before our rookies' careers are launched. Bakugou, in Midoriya's interview it came to light that there was an affair that pushed him out of an engagement with you. That your partner was Uraraka, one of his close friends. Would you like to comment and try to clear this up?"

Izuku's blood went cold. He wrapped his arms around himself, rubbing up and down his upper arms. He glanced to the right only for his green eyes to meet the brown-red of his ex.

Bakugou looked… angry.

"Damn Deku. I already told you! I'm doing this for her sake. You didn't have to go and tell half of Japan that you thought I cheated on you."

"You did cheat on me! Why do you keep trying to minimize it? At first you told me you didn't. Then when I confronted you, you told me I was lying. Then you told me you were just in it to help her. Which is it? Because from where I'm standing, I saw you and her making out when you worked back at the fire station. I don't see how that is just helping, Kacchan!" Izuku responded quickly. He was sitting on the edge of his seat, obviously upset.

"What do you mean you're just… helping me, Katsuki? We're dating. We've been dating ever since Deku decided to run off and marry that stranger. Don't tell me you still want to marry him?" Uraraka suddenly asked.

Bakugou scoffed, "What? No, I don't want to marry the damn nerd."

Izuku was incensed. He knew that Bakugou could be indecisive, but to flop around like this was just pathetic. It was the brunet's turn to scoff, "That was not what you said to me when you cornered me in my room yesterday morning."

"He what? Deku, don't lie, it's unbecoming of you. I thought you were better than this," Uraraka said, her arms crossed over her chest.

Monoma spoke up from where he sat in between Toga and Uraraka, "Actually, he's not lying. I heard a bit of the conversation that morning, and so did some of the viewers. I was trying to grab something from my room when we heard it."

The way Uraraka's face went frigid at the jab being rebuffed was almost as satisfying as the begrudging, slight horror that was plastered on Bakugou's.

"Okay, okay. Let's calm down a little bit. We can move over to the other information but I'm afraid it's not much easier to talk about. Midoriya, in Uraraka's interview, she actually alleged that you cheated on Bakugou with your now current husband before the two of you had gotten married. Now, you told us that you hadn't met the man before despite being friends with his family. When exactly did you officially meet him?"

Izuku shot a half-hearted glare to Uraraka and he adjusted himself in his seat and turned back to the camera. "I met him officially the day we got married. That day was supposed to be the wedding party for me and Kacchan, but I couldn't go through with it. The marriage contract with my husband had already been signed by all parties at that point, so it was just the formalities of getting the license. Kacchan had tried to forcefully drag me into the venue when my husband came and helped me out. Even then I had no idea he was to be my husband until we got to the Marriage Registration Department."

"I doubt that," Uraraka scoffed. "You're too close to that guy for you two to have just met. And don't lie and say that you two just clicked. That's not how that works!"

The brunet blinked owlishly, "How would you know? Have you ever actually been in love with someone before?"

Camie gasped sharply, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of them.

"Let's calm down, please!" Hizashi tried again. "I know that these are heated topics, but let's try not to accuse people of lying."

"You're only saying that because you've probably slept with him too! Don't think I didn't notice how close the two of you are!" Uraraka suddenly stood, pointing a finger at the blond host.

Hizashi's jaw dropped, "Excuse me?"

Chapter Text

"You heard me, or do you need your ears checked?"

"I wouldn't! Why on earth would I—" Hizashi cut himself off. Then he cleared his throat and took a deep breath to calm himself. "I would never."

Izuku felt his phone buzz in his pocket and he caught Hizashi's eye. Slowly the brunet retrieved his phone and stared at Shouta's name. He clicked answer and pressed the device to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Hello Izuku. Please put me on speaker."

The younger man bit his lip and pulled his phone away, pressing the speaker button. He shot an apologetic look towards his friend.

"Hizashi."

The way the blond's face paled as he ran his fingers through his hair. He clasped his eyes together and looked at directly at the camera as if it was Shouta. "S-Sho! I promise, I've never done anything to him! You're my best friend, why would I do something as morally corrupt as to sleep with your husband behind your back! You believe me don't you? I've known him for less time than you have!"

The silence that followed had him squirming. But Izuku found it amusing that despite his obvious discomfort, Hizashi had the time to subtly insult Uraraka again. He was really good at that.

"Are you punishing me for something? You knew I had an interview with Heritage Entertainment, you can't be mad about the fact we're on the same show together! I didn't even know, honest!"

More silence and Hizashi looked like he was five seconds away from throwing himself to the floor and begging for forgiveness. "Please say something, I can feel your stare of disappointment through the phone."

"I believe you. I've known you for over a decade at this point. Besides, I know who you'd rather sleep with."

Izuku made a noise in his throat, "He has a crush? On who?"

"Let's not talk about that!" Hizashi said loudly, face and neck turning more and more red as the seconds passed.

"Yes, let's not talk about that because we're still live," Masu suddenly piped up through her teeth from her postion from next to the camera.

She looked nervous as her eyes flittered back and forth from Izuku to the phone in her hand. She was tapping away at the screen and suddenly she paled and sucked in a breath.

She closed her eyes before opening them and speaking, "The CEO has decided that this show has been derailed and he wishes to speak directly with you all about what has happened considering Midoriya's involvement. He will be here in ten minutes. Behave yourselves. Mr Yamada, he also wishes to speak with you."

Izuku suddenly felt awful that all this put Hizashi's job at risk. But then again, it's not like he was the one to hurl the baseless accusations. Uraraka should pay for throwing around words like everything that came out of her mouth was fact.

Everyone finally settled down, taking their seats. Hizashi's head was in his hands.

The brunet took his phone off speaker and placed it back to his ear, he stood and walked a couple paces away. Only then did Shouta's voice come through the receiver.

"I can't believe she'd say something like that. If anything happens to 'zashi's job and reputation, her career won’t survive the night. Do you mind if I put out a statement? I think your company just confirmed your position, so it would be good to clear everything up. Maybe I'll call 'boro and have him come back from his trip a little early to comfort him."

Izuku nodded absently. He hadn't met Oboro yet, but from what he'd gathered the man was a good guy. Shouta seemed to be the kind of person that attracted good people in general. Izuku liked to think that at one point, so was he.

"Yeah, go ahead. I've only met up with Hizashi by myself once and that was in public. I can send you the address of the cafe if you need to pull surveilance. We were talking about gift ideas for you actually, and we never made physical contact."

His husband hummed from the other side of the call. Faintly, Izuku could hear the sound of pen scratching across paper. His heart warmed as he realized that Shouta was using the pen he had gotten him.

"That would be perfect. I'll draft something and post it to my public account. I'll tag you and him. No doubt you're a hot topic at the moment. I'll talk to you later okay? I have to get back to work and I might miss the rest of the show today."

"That's okay. I'll talk to you later, Shouta."

The call was disconnected and Izuku made his way back to his seat. The set was awfully quiet as he sat down, everyone tense at the idea of the CEO showing up. Izuku was just looking forward to how his mom punished him honestly. He leaned back in his chair, twisting at his fingers.

The silence lasted a couple moments longer before it was broken.

"This is a mess," Neito murmured.

Toga nodded along, "Yeah. Ochako, you really shouldn't say bad things about people if you don't know that they're true. I know for a fact that Izuku wouldn't sleep with anyone but his husband. Especially not since he was cheated on before."

"And how would you now that?" Uraraka asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

At the same time, Bakugou, who had been calm yet looked utterly disgrusted, opened his mouth. "Again, I didn't cheat on Deku. I don't know why he keeps saying that."

"Do I need to show you proof?"

That wasn't Izuku who spoke. Everyone's eyes darted to the entry way.

Hisashi stood there… or… well he was hunched over really, but still. He walked further into the house until the ceilings opened up and he straightened to his full height. He was imposing, his brown eyes shining red in the lights as he quite literally looked down at everyone.

"You all have turned what was supposed to be a fun event into a three-ring circus. Izuku, with me," the older man said sternly. "Where is the best place we can talk?"

Izuku swallowed and stood, ignoring the smug looks that appeared on Bakugou and Uraraka's faces. "Right this way, sir," Izuku said respectifuly as he led him out back to where there was a closed in porched and an unused firepit with large chairs.

The moment they were out of earshot and sight, Hisashi cooed.

"You brought me to a place with chairs to fit me, how thoughtful. Izuku, how are you? You look tired, have you been sleeping enough?" He asked as he lowered himself into a seat.

The younger man sat down and crossed his arms, "I haven't been. I'm in the same house as Bakugou and Uraraka. Where'd Mom get you?"

Hisashi froze, eyes widening minutely before narrowing. "How did you know that?"

"Uncle Yoichi."

"Yoichi was here?" his dad asked, perking up at the mention of his younger brother.

Izuku rolled his eyes. "So did you drag me out here just to make it seem like you're scolding me?"

"Maybe."

"Okay then, let me update you about a couple things while we're here."

Hizashi's heart was beating out of control. He had no idea that the CEO was that tall. He was screwed. He'd have to find another job and he might never be able to now since this was live. He kept his head in his hands. His only hope was that Izuku could somehow convince that behemoth of a man to keep him on payroll.

Everything would have been just fine if Uraraka hadn't opened her mouth. Hizashi wasn't one to get physical, but he was seriously contemplating strangling her if he was fired.

"Yamada."

A shudder went down the blond's spine and slowly he lifted his head. He hadn't even heard the two of them return. But now it felt like he was staring down the barrel of a gun.

The CEO let out a little laugh and shook his head, "Information has been released in your favor. With Izuku's testimony, I find that you had no intimate involvement with any of your co-workers. Considering this was an accusation made by another member of the company, it will be more thoroughly investigated. But I see no reason why you can't keep your job. As I mentioned to my… secretary, I've listened to your previous work and found myself impressed. I am also satisfied with how you've carried yourself the past few days. Keep up the good work."

"Thank you, sir." Hizashi had stood and bowed to his boss, relief flooding his veins. He lived to see another day. "If… you don't mind, may I ask a question?"

"You just did, but go ahead."

"What information are you talking about?"

"The current standing CEO of a cybersecurity company has spoken out on your behalf that worked to exonerate you. I believe you should send him a gift basket."

If he was in any other setting, Hizashi would have laughed. Instead, he nodded and took his seat again. He would definitely be sending Shouta a gift basket. Hell, he'd do anything for his best friend for the rest of his life.

Izuku was sure his dad was enjoying this. The man always delighted in watching people squirm and sweat in his presence. Honestly, it wasn't surprising given his… second occupation.

Still, he was reasonable. Which made convincing him to let Hizashi keep his job easy. Paired with Shouta's just released statement and Izuku's "no, Dad. I didn't cheat on a two month old marriage with a guy that I really like, what do you take me for?" his dad folded like a wet napkin.

The brunet took his seat and Camie leaned in close to him and whispered, "Oh em gee… I didn't know the CEO was snack."

Horror slowly dawned on his face before Izuku's face scrnched up. "Please never say that to me again."

She just snickered in response.

Hisashi cleared his throat before he spoke, commanding everyone's attention. "Now, I was watching the live feed of this show to check in on the talent my recruiters have curated. And suffice to say I am… disappointed. The selection of tasks was… fine I suppose. The drama was managable until it became clear to me that there are some here who only wish to hurt. That may not have been your original intention, but deliberately accusing your fellows of something as… crude as infidelity without evidence is… unforgivable to say the least."

Uraraka turned her head and made eye contact with Izuku like he was the culprit. He couldn't believe that she was sitting here acting like she wasn't at fault for half of what his dad was complaining about.

"Yeah, Deku. Accusing Katsuki of cheating without evidence is a low blow."

Izuku actually rolled his eyes. He really wanted her to shut up now. If there was a world where he could make her with his mind, she wouldn't have a mouth. Or vocal cords.

"I was not finished," Zen suddenly said, eyes narrowed at the brunette who flinched but didn't back down. "Izuku was not at fault here. In fact, I have evidence to prove his claims. Uraraka, if you do not retract your nonsense statements, the company will separate from you two and post its findings to clear the air."

The air in the room felt like it dropped several degrees. Izuku glanced around to see everybody practically frozen in fear at the threat of being fired. He wasn't sure why they were all holding their breath, they weren't being threatened.

But as the silence stretched on, Hisashi's patience seemed to run thin. Izuku saw the signs before the man opened his mouth, so he coughed and turned towards his two problems.

"Are you not going to retract? Are you really willing to sabatoge your own career simply because you hate me?"

Uraraka seemed to hesitate. She bit her lip, her eyes darting over to Bakugou who was glaring at her.

'That's new,' Izuku thought to himself. Perhaps Bakugou is starting to realize how much his girlfriend likes to dig herself into holes.

"Fine. I'm sorry, Deku. I shouldn't have accused you of sleeping around," she finally spat out, looking pained.

Izuku didn't care much but instead smiled, "I appreciate the apology. But, I don't need it. Mr Yamada does. Your accusation could have cost him his reputation simply because you wanted to hurt me."

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Hizashi straighten, turning his head in Uraraka's direction. He was obviously waiting for his own apology. Izuku thought that he probably felt that it was justified considering that fact that Zen had to tell him to his face that he wasn't fired on the spot.

The brunette huffed and crossed her arms before looking at the host. "I'm sorry I dragged you into it. I just thought you were too close to him for you to have just met."

"Can I not have friends? You've never accused me of sleeping with Hitoshi or Shouto or even Tenya before," Izuku pointed out, irritated. But the moment the words left his mouth, he saw Bakugou flinch.

Well, it wasn't exactly a flinch. But he did make a movement which caused the brunet to take a sharp breath.

He let out a laugh, "Oh my god. You did, but not to my face. You purposefully made him doubt me!"

"It's not like you really wanted him! You moved on so quick. Just admit that you didn't care about him!"

"Didn't care about him? I've known Kacchan my entire life. To say that I don't care about the man who I believed was my absolute best friend for the better half of 21 years is so utterly dumb!" Izuku spat out.

He was standing now, fists clenched. His chest heaved as he tried to calm himself down. He was getting heated… upset. And for what? People who didn't deserve his attention?

Hisashi cleared his throat. "That's enough. As of this moment, the show is wrapping up, but before then I have an announcement." The tall man stepped further into the room, standing in front of the cameras which were now pointed up to capture his face.

"In light of some more… recent developments, it has been confirmed with my board of Directors that it is time to announce my heir, the one who will take over the company after I retire. The announcement ceremony will be held in a month. To keep all of you informed, a press conference with more information will be held within a week and the event itself will be livestreamed as we explain the process and criteria behind the choice." Hisashi smiled and he held out his arms. "Thank you to everyone who watched and participated in the show. Heritage Entertainment wouldn't exist without each and every one of you."

Izuku nodded along, mentally taking notes. That was, until his brain came to a screeching halt, all thought processes falling apart. 'Huh? Heir? Announcment?' He bit his tongue to keep from immediately blurting out what he was thinking at that exact moment.

"Izuku, a statment for the viewers." Zen suddenly demanded.

The brunet startled and quickly stood, standing next to his dad. He gave a slight bow towards the cameras which were now focused on him. "Thank you all for watching. I apologize for the thoughts and actions of some of the participants including myself and I hope that this will not color your perception of those within the company who work hard to bring you all things you'll love. I will do my utmost best in the future to mitigate and prevent such inappropriate things from occuring."

He glanced up at Zen as if looking for validation. The older man gave the barest of nods.

"Please excuse the both of us. We shall leave the rest of you to wrap up. Izuku, go fetch your things."

The second the words left his dad's mouth, Izuku was already halfway to his room, trying hard not to just run to grab his bag. He threw open his door and immediately began to pack. He was so excited to finally get out of here. He was feeling more raw now after practically facing off against Uraraka and Bakugou.

Granted, Bakugou seemed a little bit more subdued now. Most likely because he was starting to realize what Uraraka did to get what she wanted from him. Not that Izuku cared too much, at the moment he really just wanted to go home and hug his husband.

Minutes later and Izuku left his room, suitcase in hand. His dad was waiting by the front door and motioned for him to follow. The brunet waved to his new friends and Hizashi, before he was off.

The moment he was outside, he let out the heaviest sigh. Then he pulled out his phone, opening up his messages with Shouta. Izuku didn't get much further before his phone was plucked from his hand. His protests died on his tongue as his dad looked down at him with a stern expression.

"Izuku, what the hell was that?"

Izuku jerked back and blinked owlishly. "What… what was what?"

Hisashi's expression changed on a dime as he scooped his son into his arms. "You did so well! I saw some of the public reception and they are in favor of you. Aww, my little boy is so good at manipulating the masses."

The brunet squeaked and squirmed. "Dad! I thought I did something wrong! And don't call it manipulating, I simply told the truth!"

Referring to the house he shared with his husband as "home" was an odd concept to Izuku. He had been living with his parents up until a few months ago and he still felt like he couldn't settle into the upscale house he moved into. In fact, he hadn't really brought much of his stuff, he never planned to stay long term.

Izuku had a feeling that would eventually change. After all, what was that saying again? Oh, "Home is where the heart is."

"I'm home," He called out as he stepped in. The house was empty, Shouta still at work for the time being. So he wasn't sure why he called out, but it didn't matter.

The first thing he did was climb the stairs and throw himself into the shower, relaxing under the spray of the hot water. It felt nice to be in a place where he could simply relax and not be on guard. He stayed in the shower longer than he probably should have before he finally turning off the water.

He dried himself and got dressed, blow drying his hair. By the time he finally walked down stairs, Shouta was home.

"I'm home," the older man said on instinct. He was standing in the doorway, taking off his shoes.

"Welcome home," Izuku said, a smile slowly stretching across his face.

Shouta's head snapped up so quick, his mouth dropping open for a moment before a small smile appeared on his face. He slipped on his house slippers and shuffled over to Izuku.

"You're back," he murmured, voice so low it could have been a whisper.

The older man seemed to hesitate for a moment before he reached out, pulling Izuku into a tight hug. Izuku almost instantly wrapped his arms around his husband, relaxing into his arms, basking in the scent of Shouta's cologne.

"I missed you," the brunet said quietly as he buried his face into the dark-haired man's chest.

Shouta let out a rumbling chuckle deep in his chest. He rested his chin on Izuku's head.

"I missed you too."

They stood there hugging for, perhaps, a little too long. But neither of them seemed to care in the slightest. It took a couple minutes before either of them were ready to pull away. When they finally did, Izuku mourned the warmth that had come with the hug.

"So, are we going out for dinner?" Shouta asked as he finally shrugged off his coat, draping in on the back of the couch.

"I was hoping we could order in. I haven't gotten a look at public opinion yet and even then I don't want to get mobbed if anything."

The older man nodded as he rolled up the sleeves up his button up, "How about I order us something while you relax and then we can go over the comments together over dinner?"

Izuku found himseslf nodding before even thinking about it. "I'd like that."

Both of them were stretched out on the couch, containers of food littering their laps and the coffee table. Izuku was casting his phone screen onto the large TV that hardly got used. They were both laughing at the highlights of some of the comments and recaps of the show. Much to Izuku's (and Shouta's) relief, the brunet hadn't really gotten any criticism that was sticking. Most people were sympathetic while a small minority had doubts about Izuku's authenticity.

As the night began to wind down, the married couple found themself in bed. It had only be two nights and Izuku felt a little awkward. He curled up on his side, back facing Shouta. He fidgeted slightly, fingers gently pulling at a loose thread he found on the pillow case he was resting on.

He layed there, eyes trained on the wear wall of the room. There was a shifting noise behind him before his entire body tensed up at a hand slowly, hesitantly creeping around his waist.

Izuku knew it was Shouta, but he still found himself reluctant to relax. That was until he felt the warmth at his back, the older man's body coming to rest against his. It took minutes upon minutes for the brunet to finally begin to relax into the hold, only then did Shouta's grip become a more sure thing.

It was warm, too warm. Part of it stemming from the brunet's face getting increasingly more red as he was spooned from behind.

He could feel the moment Shouta buried his face into his curls, a quietly murmured apology as his gripped tightened around the smaller man.

Eventually, the heat began to make Izuku drowsy, his eyelids drooping as he fought to keep them open.

"Good night, Shouta," he managed to slur out as he blissfully went under into the most peaceful sleep he'd had in what felt like weeks

The announcement ceremony was a big time event. It was also one of the biggest nights for Izuku who felt like he was drowning. He wasn't even doing anything! Thankfully he was sequestered away into one of the side rooms of the venue, surrounding by his friends who… let's be honest, weren't helping.

"I can't believe you're a Nepo baby and you didn't even tell me!" Hitoshi cried out.

Izuku rolled his eyes. He loved Hitoshi, but the man made use of this best friend status to get away with saying the dumbest things.

"I thought you knew…?" Shouto asked, a little confused from the couch in the room.

Shouto, Tenya, and Tsu were posted up in the seating area across from where the vanity where Izuku was sitting.

"He does, he's just being sarcastic," Tsu answered easily.

"Oh."

Hitoshi snorted and leaned back against the vanity. "Still, I can't believe it's happening. I thought for sure your dad was gonna pull a fast one on you and force your older brother into the position."

"Nah, Dad's a bit softie for Ten, if Tenko didn't want the position, Dad would never make him. He would be upset if neither of his kids wanted the company, but he'd figure it out," Izuku explained absently, adjusting his hair in the mirror.

"'zu, your hair looks fine, it has for past ten minutes," Tsu said exasperatedly. "You didn't put much work into your appearance on the show, so why bother now?"

"She's right, why do you care so much?" Hitoshi crossed his arms,

Tenya stood and shook his head, walking over to Izuku to straighten the shorter man's lapels. "It's obvious! Izuku wants to look presentable when named heir. I know I would want to as well. By the way, where did you get this suit? It fits you so well!"

"Oh, I'm not exactly sure. Dad seemed upset when he forked it over. He told me to wear it as a show of good faith. But if I'm honest…? I think it was made by the Bakugou's. After the show I'm sure they feel awful about what Katsuki did to me. They probably have him under house arrest considering I haven't accidentally run into him in the past couple weeks."

"Good, fucker needs a muzzle though," Hitoshi grumbled, earning an immediate half-hearted lecture from Tenya on language.

There was a knock on the door that had all conversations stopped. Shouto, who was closest, opened the door. Shouta was on the other side. Izuku good and smiled at him, but the brunet couldn't help but notice how… nervous his husband seemed. A pit formed in his stomach because he recognized that look. It wasn't just nerves.

It was guilt.

"Izuku, would you mind if I spoke to you privately for a moment?"

Izuku slowly blinked before nodding, "If you guys wouldn't mind?"

His friends all shuffled out of the room, Hitoshi grumbling the whole way. The moment they were alone, the older man stepped in and closed the door behind him. He stood right inside the doorway, his hands clenched lightly at his sides.

The brunet could only feel sorry build up as they stood in silence.

Finally, finally, Shouta spoke, "I want to give you something. I've been working on it for… awhile. I know that you're still dealing with things, but today is meant to be a happy day. And I don't want to ruin it… but I need to give these to you now or I don't think I ever will."

The worry compounded, raising alarms in Izuku's head. Those words weren't good words. At least… not in that order.

He swallowed hard and nodded, taking a half step closer. "What did you want to give me?"

The older man pulled out a small bundle of letters. They were wrapped in twine, some of the envelopes looking a little worse for wear. He held them out.

Izuku slowly reached out to take it, hands trembling minutely. He knew he shouldn't be nervous. Shouta had never done anything to hurt him, or even hinted at a malicious intent. But what if he was just good at hiding it? What would happen if the last of Izuku's trust and care was shattered the moment he read these letters?

Instead of dwelling on it too much longer and spinning into a spiral on paranoid thoughts, he pulled at the note keeping the twine in place, letting it fall into his hand. He tossed it on to the table that his friends had been lounging at just moments prior.

"Which," Izuku swallowed. "Which should I start with?"

"Each of them are dated on the envelope, start with the newest one first," Shouta reached out, picking up the first pristine letter, the date written in neat letters was from there one month anniversary.

So this was the anniversary gift that he had asked to give later. But that part that was sticking in his head was the fact that if Shouta hadn't given him the letters just this moment, Izuku would never have been privy to the contents. It made him more curious, and yet his stomach squirmed with nerves.

Carefully, the brunet opened the sealed envelope. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed his husband nervously shifting from foot to foot. Disregarding that little tidbit, Izuku pulled the letter out. It was only one page, Izuku noted as he set the rest of the letters aside to keep his attention on the current one.

Izuku,

When I give you these letters, I hope you will forgive me for the contents. This was never something I wanted to keep from you. But even from the beginning I knew you wouldn't have been the same as me. You wouldn't know like I did. And so I resolved myself to wait for you, waiting for the day that I could bare the news to you without fearing the outcome. A day where your heart would no longer be in pain from those who don't deserve your love and attention.

I dont think I'm worthy of it either, if I'm honest. But I want to be. So these letters, they will tell you the secret I've kept to myself from everyone around me. They will tell you what I've done in the hopes that a part of you remembers how you feel about me and that that small part will forgive me.

I don't deserve it. I will take whatever outcome you have for me even if it means you don't want me by your side. I'm not sure how I would live without you, but I could learn. My fate is in your hands.

Shouta.

Confusion. That was the first thing that flooding Izuku's mind. He couldn't understand what his husband meant by this letter, and he had a feeling that he would only come to understand once he read the others.

"I would suggest… reading them in whatever order you want to. It's completely up to you," Shouta whisperer, his voice hoarse.

Green eyes lifted and made contact with grey. The older man looked resigned and like a kicked puppy. Izuku wanted to know why he looked like that. He wanted to know everything.

So he grabbed the second letter on the stack, the date was the day after Izuku had brought Shouta to his family's house to meet them. He wondered what was in it, so he carefully broke the seal, sliding the letter out of the envelope.

Before Izuku could even get past his name on the page, there was a knock on the door. It opened, Tenko peeking in.

"Oh! I hope I'm not… interrupting something," he said, stepping into the room. He didn't look very sorry. Instead, his eyes were narrowed in Shouta's direction. "'zu, Dad says he wants you in the event hall to help welcome guests in."

Izuku frowned, glancing at the letter in his hands. He folded it and slipped it back into the envelope, but he slid it into his pocket, wanting to read it the next time he got the chance. But then he thought about it and swiped the rest of the letters too. He’d make time to read them throughout the night.

The brunet nodded his head, "Okay… um… I'll read them, Shouta. I promise. I just…"

"I know. You have other obligations, don't let me keep you. And… congrats again, Izuku."

The younger man smiled and murmured a thanks before stepping out, leaving Shouta and Tenko alone together in the room.

Tenko smiled at his little brother as he left. But the moment that door closed, his face fell and he looked back at his brother-in-law.

"Whatever is in those damn letters better not break his heart, or I'm breaking your face."

Chapter Text

Shouta stood there, hands shoved in his pockets to keep from rubbing the back of his neck. He knew that was his nervous habit and he was trying his best not to give anything away to Tenko. It was weird to see the other man in a suit, not that he had seen the man often enough to formally form an opinion on what he usually wore. Though Shouta was sure Tenko was just as bad at dressing himself as Shouta was.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't, but I can't promise that. I'm not sure what his reaction will be to those letters. I'm hoping that it's a good one though."

And Shouta really meant that. Every part of him was a livewire, anxiety being pushed down with a mental broom so he didn't do something stupid. He wanted Izuku to stay in his life and there was a chance—a large chance—that the brunet wouldn't. Not after reading what Shouta had written.

"You better hope it is," Tenko said sternly, jabbing a finger in the older man's direction.

Then he left, leaving Shouta standing there alone with his thoughts. A frightening amalgamation of his insecurities when paired with his feelings for his cute little husband. For now, all he could do was wait and hope for the best.

Izuku was stationed by the front entrance to the large hall. Tables had been scattered around, framing the large stage which was displaying the reason for such a upscale event. As the secretary, it wasn't weird for Izuku to be welcoming guests in, but it wasn't usual.

Another fake smile and bow and the brunet wanted nothing more to sequester himself away in a corner to read the letters that were burning in his pocket. And maybe he'd sneak a peek every once in a while when he could. He didn't think the letters would be too long anyway.

Izuku,

Yesterday, I had the luxury of meeting your family for the first time. After having heard so much about them, I was still so surprised by them. Your father was tall and intimidating, you had warned me about that. Why didn't I listen? It wasn't the first time you had told me about how tall he was. He's also such a stark contrast to your mother. She's sweet and obviously cares for her family more than anything else. It definitely made me feel welcome, though I have a feeling that I'd hate to make her mad.

Then there is your brother. He cares a lot for you, that's obvious. It almost makes me jealous but I know I have those kinds of people too. Hell, Hitoshi despite being fairly antagonistic, would definitely come to my defense. Though if he had to chose between me and you, I'm sure he'd choose you. And I'd want him to.

Your family is so different compared to mine, and it's an honor to be a part of it. I just hope that by the time you get this letter Tenko hasn't let you listen to the recording he has of my interrogation. I wouldn't mind you listening to it, don't get me wrong, but I would like to explain my side of things before you hear the watered-down vague explanation I gave to your brother. I hope you'll forgive me.

Shouta

"Thank you for coming," Izuku said, already bowing.

"Aww, you're on door duty, how sad."

The voice had Izuku tensing, not even wanting to straighten up. He hadn't even realized that Uraraka and Bakugou had been allowed to come to the venue. Slowly, the brunet stood up and looked at the source of the voice.

Uraraka was standing in front of him. Alone. How curious. Perhaps Bakugou left her? But she was still so smug, so that couldn't be it. That and somehow, Izuku highly doubted Bakugou would have left her side willingly.

"Please, make yourself comfortable. The announcements will begin an about half an hour," he said instead of trying to argue with her.

He turned his attention to the next group of people coming in. Not that the first person he saw was much better. Katsuki and his family were standing in the doorway. Mitsuki and Masaru looked upset for a lack of a better word. Not that their son looked any happier to be here.

"Auntie, Uncle, welcome! I haven't seen you both in some time," Izuku murmured loud enough for them to hear. He knew they would mean well, they had never been unkind to him, even when everyone else had bullied him.

"Izuku," Mitsuki breathed out. She left her husband's side to pull the young brunet into a hug. "I'm so glad to see you. The suit looks good, I was sure that your measurements hadn't changed, but I was so fucking nervous about it!" She leaned back, holding him by the shoulders to look him up and down.

Finally she let her hands drop, grabbing Izuku's carefully. She lowered her voice so just the two of them could hear. "Inko explained to me and Masaru about what really happened after the show aired. I promise, neither of us knew what our damn brat was doing. If we had, I would have beat his ass the moment I found out. I know I can't ask you to forgive him, that would be tone deaf of me. But, I have to thank you for trying to give him some leeway. It's a bit late, but if you want an apology, I'll make him kneel in front of all of theses people and beg for forgiveness."

Izuku couldn't help but tear up. He'd love to see that, but he wasn't going to ask for that. Not when everything he was working for could shatter in an instant if everyone thought he was insincere.

"Thank you, but no need. I'm not looking for an apology. I simply want him to leave me and my family alone."

Mitsuki nodded with a small smile and stepped back to Masaru's side. The older man smiled and nodded in Izuku's direction. The younger brunet nodded in return. Those two weren't the cause of his headache, he could be civil. And he would be.

A scoff made his smile strain.

"You're so fake. You say you hate Katsuki, but you're fine with his parents? Are you sure you're not hiding anything?" Uraraka asked.

"Oi, shut the fuck up. Izuku doesn't have to be kind to us. Just because he chooses to be doesn't mean he's a two-face bitch like you," Mitsuki hissed.

It looked like her nails dug into her son's arm as she dragged him away, her husband trailing behind sighing heavily. Uraraka seemed torn on whether or not she wanted to follow them. But it seemed like her need for status won over and she hurried after the family.

Izuku rolled his eyes and went back to greeting guests.

Izuku,

I can't believe we're officially married now. I find myself smiling every time I think about it. I wish I had the foresight to have Nemuri make the ring again, but I couldn't bring myself to. Too worried to have it thrown back in my face if you ever found out. And yet, I write theses letters to you still.

When Father told me about his proposition and handed me a ready-made marriage contract, I'm a little embarrassed to say that I almost signed it right away. But I didn't. Instead I had him add a clause that allowed you to divorce me at anytime so if you hated me after reading these, you wouldn't be stuck in my orbit any longer than you needed to be. Though I'm hoping it goes unused.

I also wish Hizashi hadn't taken me from your side that night, but he's my best friend and I lost him once before, I couldn't bear to go through it a second time. I figured you'd understand. Please know that I wanted to stay the night with you. The know this version of you I didn't get to know before.

Shouta

P.S. You're adorable when you sleep. It's nice to see that hasn't changed from what I remember.

"Heeey! Izuku!"

A voice beckoned him further into the vent hall, his eyes catching sight of his friends mixed with his co-stars from the show. He smiled widely and hurried over.

"Camie, Neito, Himiko, I didn't see you three come in and I've been manning the door for an hour now. How did you manage to slip past?" Izuku asked as Himiko hugged him a little too tight.

Neito huffed out a laugh. "We snuck in through the back door, how else?"

Camie stepped up to hug Izuku next right after Himiko finally let go. "We were like, spies. But no, seriously your friends are like, totes so sweet! They let us in."

Hitoshi had a grin on his face and he gently hit Izuku's shoulder. Of course his friend had somehow managed to bribe the hotel staff to use the employee tunnels. That was so much like him that the brunet let out a laugh.

"No matter how you all managed to get it, it's good to see you guys. I left so abruptly that I didn't even get to say goodbye. Then I was swamped with work. My boss wouldn't let me rest! Do you understand how many calls it took to set this entire thing up? Then he had me sending invites. I swear, an entire team for this kind of stuff and he makes me do it all. It's a punishment, it has to be!" Izuku ranted.

His friends all laughed and commiserated, but the camaraderie didn't last long. If there was one person who was an expert at grating on his nerves, it was Uraraka. Surprisingly, this time, she was accompanied by Bakugou who seemed like he kept looking over his shoulder. Probably scoping to make sure his parents didn't pop out of nowhere.

"You know, you shouldn't even be here. You're a secretary, you don't fit in with the crowd. I'm honestly surprised you've even been able to keep your job with how you are," Uraraka said, picking at her nails.

Izuku slowly turned around. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"What do you think it means? Just face the facts. You only got to where you are, because I helped you make friends when you were nothing but a loner who couldn't even get a couple words out without embarrassing yourself."

It hurt to hear how she really felt. It hurt in a way that Izuku was sure he'd never be able to entirely get rid of. It felt like she was carving chunks of his heart out and stomping on them right there in front of everyone.

His fists balled at his sides, because what hurt the most was that she was right. He had been nothing more than an introverted, stuttering ball of anxiety. He was honestly shocked that anyone had wanted to be friends with him and he knew that Uraraka was the reason he managed to slowly break out of his shell and become more comfortable in front of strangers.

But that didn't mean he owed her anything. She had done that willingly, or he thought she did. He couldn't even trust the fond memories he had of her, everything tainted with suspicions of ulterior motives.

"Sure, let's say you're right. What exactly would you have me do, huh?"

The smile that spread across Uraraka's face sent shivers down his spine. That wasn't a good sign.

"We all know you didn't get here of your own merit. Even in high school you tended to attract the wrong kind of crowd. But that's not what I want you to do. No, ever since your little stunt on the variety show, me and Katsuki have been made to look like awful people. Retract your statement and issue a public apology to us."

"Like hell he will," Hitoshi suddenly spoke up, stepping in front of Izuku and jabbing a finger into Uraraka's sternum. "You think you can boss him around? You're nothing compared to him, get that through your head."

Bakugou stepped forward, pushing at Hitoshi's shoulder, causing him to stumble back into Izuku, who's arms immediately shot up to steady his friend.

The blond grunted and crossed his arms. "Don't touch her, you fucking emo bastard."

A scoff and the taller man straightened. He looked back at Izuku who shook his head to keep his best friend from trying to fist fight his ex. Hitoshi looked put out, but stepped back anyway, his teeth barred at the duo.

"You should really stop trying to make us mad. We know the heir that's getting announced y'know."

Izuku bit his lip to keep from laughing. Because, sure, they weren't exactly wrong. They did know the heir. But they didn't know that they knew them really.

"Oh? And how do you know them?" Neito piped up, an eyebrow raised.

"My parents know them. They even made a suit for them, so of course we know them," Bakugou said haughtily as if it was something to be proud of. In any other circumstance, it might have been. But in this situation, it was just making the two of them look dumb.

"Bakugou, do you… happen to recognize my suit?" Izuku asked, his head tilted with curiosity.

By now, they had drawn the attention of some of the guests closest to them. Which probably wasn't good since Izuku could see them whispering. And if they thought that Uraraka and Bakugou knew the heir, they wouldn't want to get on their bad side.

Just more of a headache for him to deal with.

"No, should I?" Bakugou said before squinting. "Wait a minute. That suit… That's the one my parents made for the heir. How the hell did you get your grubby hands on it?"

"Izuku, did you steal that suit! How could you! Even if you're the secretary to the CEO, he won't let that kind of thing slide. Change, now," Uraraka demanded, trying her best to look like the good guy in this scenario.

The onlookers all gasped and started shouting and yelling, tell him to take the suit off and leave. The people he had all so painstakingly greeted turned on him in the blink of an eye because of the word of stranger. Oh how fickle human beings can be.

Izuku,

I got to see you again today. You were crying like the first time I met you. I saved you from oncoming traffic and I wanted to scold you for putting your life at risk like that. But then I saw your face. I couldn't be mad at you when it was obvious something happened. I'm assuming it's your brute of an ex-husband who hurt you. I don't think there was any visible damage. If there was, I wouldn't have been able to stop myself from hurting him. Even through you kept me telling that it was fine. It wasn't. He should never have put you through such a thing.

I wanted to hug you, and I got to a little bit, but it wasn't enough. I called you kid by accident, before I realized it was you. I feel bad about it, though it didn't seem like you were very bothered. In fact, it almost seemed like you were speechless at the sight of me. Now, I'm not vain, but it was extremely flattering.

I'm getting off topic. I miss you already.

Shouta

In the end, Izuku didn't have to say or do anything. He simply stood there, taking the vitriol, doing his best not to burst into tears. Mostly because he knew that only some people would feel guilty about making him cry. No, instead, someone else came to his aid. Someone with much more sway than any of them had.

"Please, everyone, quiet down. Let's talk about this."

Izuku looked up into the eyes of his Uncle Toshinori who looked more than upset. He was incensed. To think that random strangers would dogpile his nephew. It didn't matter that they didn't know Izuku was currently one of the most powerful people in the room. They should all know better, they were all adults after all.

At the older man's words, they all quieted to a hush, rapt with attention at the retired actor. Yet, Toshinori's expression did not change. He turned to Uraraka and Bakugou, frown deepening.

"You two again. You have not seemed to change in the month since I last saw you. The variety show was not one of your best moments. But, you did that all to yourself. Why bother blaming Young Izuku for your own shortcomings?"

Bakugou, once again starstruck at the sight of his idol, seemed at a loss for words. Uraraka, once again not being able to read the room properly, put her hands on her hips fully ready to argue herself into an early grave.

"Why are you defending him? He stole the suit he's wearing from the true heir of Heritage Entertainment. Don't turn this around on us, we're just the ones who pointed it out."

"You didn't point anything out, I brought up the issue with the suit myself. If I stole it, why would I willingly out myself if no one had noticed beforehand?" Izuku asked, crossing his arms.

It was ridiculous, everyone on Izuku's side knew it. If he was wearing the suit supposedly made for the most important person in this event, usually people would assume that they are the most important person in the event. But common sense was apparently not all that common in the event hall.

Izuku made a mental note to rectify that later if he could. Certain people here didn't need to continue working with his company.

Uraraka huffed, "Okay, and? So you pointed it out yourself, so what. Ever since I befriended you, you've always did your best to be in the spotlight. Isn't that why Hitoshi hated you at first? Maybe you just wanted all eyes on you. I don't what's going on in that head of yours."

Green eyes shifted, catching dark brown. Hitoshi was surprised, probably because his past was coming back to bite Izuku in the ass. He looked slightly apologetic as he backed down a bit. There was nothing he could do now, she would just twist his words.

Toshinori made a noise in his throat and shook his head like a disappointed father. "I find that is usually the one throwing accusations that is the one fitting them. Young Izuku mentioned you often when he was in high school. He spoke fondly of you, though he speaks kind of everyone. Though one detail stuck out to me." The tall man slowly walked behind Izuku, his hands landing on the smaller man's shoulders. "My nephew is not the one who seeks attention. That was solely you."

The event hall was so quiet, that the faint music that was playing over the speakers sounded deafening.

"Nephew…?" Someone in the crowd questioned loudly. Others followed.

Bakugou looked like someone pissed in his cereal as he glared at Izuku like he had somehow coerced Toshinori it saying what he did. He hissed out the sentiment, but the taller man answered the accusation with an unimpressed look.

"Young Izuku didn't make me say anything. I have considered him as my nephew for almost a decade now. I am close friends with some of his biological family. Not that I need to explain myself to any of you."

The way that Bakugou strode over to Izuku made the brunet tense and stumble back before the hit even landed. It happened so quickly that no one even had the chance to stop it. The sound of Bakugou's fist colliding with Izuku's cheekbone echoed throughout the hall.

Izuku,

Hitoshi started talking about you today. I knew it was going to happen again eventually, but I wasn't sure after everything that happened with Father. I'm glad to see it hasn't changed as Hitoshi really needed a friend like you. And from what you told me, you needed a friend like Hitoshi.

Also, to think I forgot how much Hitoshi HATED you in high school. It felt so surreal. Even more when I remember how close he was with you before.

It was odd to listen to him rant about you whenever he came over after school. You were all he could talk about. The only issue with him talking about you so much was that I wanted to see you too. But, well, I'm hoping I'll get to one day. I wonder if Hitoshi would be receptive if I asked him to bring you over when you two inevitably become friends.

Food for thought I guess. Though the answer will probably be a no.

Shouta

Toshinori, who had been standing behind him, easily caught Izuku. The younger man's head was spinning, thoughts a blur as he tried to reconcile what had just happened. Everything sounded muted and yet too loud. Everything felt fuzzy, like his body wasn't registering anything. He blinked a couple times, trying to will his eyes to see again.

He felt a hand patting his cheek, trying to get his attention. Feeling came back to limbs, the opposite side of his face aching, throbbing. Slowly his surroundings sharpened and he could see again. Toshinori was still holding him up, blue eyes looking down at him with obvious worry. His hearing was next to come back despite the almost underwater quality to it.

The first thing he heard was Shouta's voice. But it wasn't the calm, soothing tone he might have expected in this situation. Instead, it was scathing, harsh and very obviously directed at Bakugou. Izuku still couldn't hear anything properly, but it was slowly getting better as the seconds ticked by.

"…learn your lesson last time you decided it would be a good idea to hit him? You think you can go around assaulting people when it suits your fancy? One day you'll hit the wrong person and you won't be able to walk around to freely, so watch your damn step."

Shouta turned on his heel, moving to check on Izuku, which gave the brunet a chance to see the way Bakugou was once again cradling his jaw. Shouta probably punched him again. Good.

"Izuku? Izuku are you okay?"

There was the low and comforting sounding tone of his husband, something Izuku was sure he could listen to for hours if anyone would let him.

"'ve been better," Izuku slowly said, voice slightly slurred.

The older man shot a glare back over his shoulder at Bakugou, "I swear to god, if he has a concussion, even a minor one, there is no place on this Earth that you could hide from me."

So intimidating, Izuku couldn't help but be glad that it wasn't aimed towards him. Toshinori shifted the younger man slowly, helping him sit up from where he was brought to the ground in his half-unconscious state. The movement made his brain feel like static making him wince for a moment. But it wasn't unbearable.

Shouta's warm hand landed on Izuku's arm. "Tenko and your father are on their way. They heard what had happened and neither of them are exactly…happy at the moment. Mr Yagi, I'd suggest leaving if you don't want to catch blame for not stopping Izuku getting hurt."

Izuku didn't need to look at his uncle's face to know it was twisted with a mix of resignation and disgust. Hisashi always blamed him for everything if they were around. It was a wonder how the two ever got along in Yoichi's presence.

"Alright, I'll leave Izuku to you then."

The next thing the young man knew was that he was enveloped by his husband's arms, the warmth of uncle at his back disappearing.

The brunet sluggishly blinked and shook his head to try and clear his mind again. "My face hurts," he mumbled with a slight pout."

"I'm not surprised, Bakugou didn't take you keeping secrets from him very well. Hypocrite."

Izuku,

It's weird not being able to talk to you every day. I got so used to it over the months that we had that the sudden silence is deafening. I also think about you sometimes, and by sometimes I mean all the time. It's gotten to the point that even Father is noticing that my mind seems to be elsewhere. But, then again, I'm sure he's also noticed that I'm not exactly that same son he had before. He mentioned it a couple of days ago. How it seemed like I was doing better and yet worse. I get what he means. My grades were always average, and they haven't changed too much, but he had already begun teaching me how the company works. I know how the company works like the back of my hand and he's realized that.

I'm getting off track again. He asked me what I was thinking about and I mentioned you. It was a passing little thing, but it seems like he took an interest in you. I'm sorry for what's going to happen. How that changes you life I'm not sure. I hope it's not bad and I hope it doesn't prevent you from befriending Hitoshi.

It hurts that I can't go find you. But I know that it'd be a bad idea. So I'll wait. However long it takes.

Shouta

P.S. Father mentioned he made a new friend. Was that you?

Hisashi stepped out on stage, a stern glare on his face as he approached to podium. He cleared his throat, capturing everyone's attention from the flurry of activity between Izuku and Bakugou.

"Hello all. Thank you for finally settling down. I am… disappointed."

Izuku rolled his eyes, feeling better now and standing on his own, Shouta hovering next to him in case he needed any sort of help. Disappointed was his dad's permanent state of being when he was dealing with anyone outside of the family (other than Toshinori and Nana who he had beef with for some reason. Maybe some grudge in their past lives?).

The CEO took a deep breath and gripped the sides of the podium. "My secretary has done nothing to warrant such a reaction based upon the words of others. You should all be ashamed of yourselves. I expect that after my announcement, you will give him a sincere, heartfelt apology. Now, let's move onto what everyone is here for. Before I invite our honored guest onto the stage, I would like to go over the qualities that make them perfect to succeed me in the company."

The brunet didn't want to listen to his dad prattle on about him, just wanting to sit down. And perhaps get an ice pack if possible.

"Mr Midoriya," a security guard said lowly as they approached. "If you'd please come with me."

The way Shouta's arm wrapped protectively around him had his cheeks turning red.

Off to the side, he could see Uraraka snickering, probably under the assumption that he was getting escorted out and banned. Looks like she was obviously not paying any sort of attention to Hisashi's opening sentences of his speech.

"I'll be okay, Shouta," Izuku murmured. It took a couple seconds before Shouta finally dropped his arm.

"Be careful."

Izuku nodded and walked out with the security guard. He was lead to a room that was right of the stage, only separated by a door. Inside, Tenko was passing nervously, fingernails nervously scratching at his neck and arms.

The brunet was ushered in before the door was closed behind him. Izuku took a moment to examine his older brother. Gone was the old, ratty hoodie, instead the older man was dressed in a well fitting suit. Izuku was starting to think that maybe Mitsuki and Masaru felt bad enough about Katsuki that perhaps they made his entire family outfits. That was a thought for later though.

"Ten," Izuku murmured.

That was all that was needed for Tenko to practically throw himself into his younger brother's personal space. Cold hands came up, cupping Izuku's jaw as his cheek was examined.

"Damn, I think it's bruising. Mom is on the way with an ice pack, painkillers, and makeup to cover up the bruise."

Izuku's opened his mouth to protest, but he couldn't get a word out before the door opened and Inko hustled in, a first aid kit and makeup bag in hand. She set everything down on the nearest table before shooing Tenko out of the way to take her turn looking at Izuku.

"Oh, my poor baby. How much does your face hurt? At least it doesn't look like a black eye situation, those are much harder to cover up."

He went to speak again, but was once again effectively cut off.

"Here, sweetheart. Hold the ice to your cheek. I'm going to try and color match you. You're more tanned than the rest of us, so I had to stop by the store and get a few new things." Inko began to ramble. It was obvious where Izuku got it from.

He obediently pressed it again his cheek, wincing. This had the unfortunate consequence of causing his brother and mom fussing over him yet again.

"I had no intention of ever choosing an heir when I first started Heritage Entertainment. It was the furthest thing on my mind and it wasn't until recently that I managed to cultivate the perfect heir. Now, don't get me wrong, they had good base qualities, but everything can improved upon. Everything.

"The one I chose has worked their way up from the bottom of the food-chain. For the last five years they have been interning with the company, working various jobs from being working the front desk to the R&D Department to the HR Department, even working as a janitor before eventually working up to one of the highest positions one can be within the company.

"Now, I don't choose many personal assistants. In fact, the position in the company doesn't even exist, it was rebranded to my personal secretary because on paper it looks innocuous, innocent. It was a way for me to train my heir without the fear of public scrutiny. Now, please put your together welcome the future of Heritage Entertainment, Midoriya Izuku."

The way that people clapped went from confident to unsure in a matter of seconds as Izuku stepped out onto the stage. He wore a smile as he took his place next to his father.

"Izuku here has been such a help around the company, and I couldn't be prouder of him. For full transparency, I should mention that Izuku happens to be my youngest son. Now, before you all get upset and huffy with me, keep in mind that Heritage Entertainment is not the only company where their CEO has passed the position onto their family. If you have other critiques that are not about familial bonds, we will gladly field them for your ease of mind. I would also like to note that Izuku here will not be taking over the company immediately. He is still in training, but you all now know who will spearhead any further changes within the scope of Heritage Entertainment's operations."

Izuku's eyes roamed over the crowd, delighting in the outrage and disbelief on Bakugou and Uraraka's faces. It was vindicating to have them under his boot heel. No one would believe anything they say now, especially since the entire event was being broadcast even before Hisashi had stepped up onto the stage. It was only a matter of time before one of their outbursts caused them to be blacklisted from the entirety of the industry. Though Izuku would make sure that they would never step foot back onto his company property ever again.

"You're telling me that you're related to the CEO? And you didn't tell us?" Bakugou yelled, shoving his way through the crowd, Uraraka on his tail.

The brunet sighed and rubbed at his cheek where the bruise was buried under makeup. "I tried to tell you, but you ignored me. You said that I was lying. I even tried to tell you that my dad and older brother came back into the country and you told me they left because of me, so why would they come back?"

The blond was upset, but it was his own damn fault because he was always in his own head thinking he was right.

"Well what about me, huh? I was your best friend for years! Why didn't you tell me?" The brunette next to him piped up.

"Again, I tried. But every time I brought up the company, you told me not to be so jealous of Shouto. He even tried to explain that the two of us were on equal footing but you thought that he was just trying to make me feel better. Back in high school, I was going to try and recruit you two after we graduated. But it was like you didn't even want my help! So I stopped trying to help."

The way Uraraka's face twisted into something torn between upset and self-loathing was interesting. Was she just realizing that she wouldn't have had to go through this entire song and dance if she hadn't pitied and underestimated him.

"No… no you have to be lying… that means that I… that I…" She stumbled back a bit before falling to her knees.

Bakugou unfortunately didn't have the same kind of reaction, instead getting violent once again. He began to shove the last of the people in front of the stage out of the way, trying to get to Izuku again.

The brunet panicked, quickly backing up. Hisashi stepped in front of his son, moving to block the rabid blond. Mitsuki and Masara suddenly appeared, pulling their son away from the stage with the help of security. Masaru was apologizing while Mitsuki was berating her kid, furious at his behavior. A couple stray security guards grabbed Uraraka on the way out, taking her out with the Bakugous.

This left the event hall once again quiet and much more peaceful. It took a moment for Izuku's heart beat to calm down, a bit of adrenaline still coursing through him.

After he settled back down, his green eyes shifted and caught the sight of Shouta who looked concerned. But after their eyes met, a relieved smile appeared on his face, yet there was still an underlying tenseness keeping him on edge. Izuku supposed that after the event, they would need to talk. Because he had questions.

Izuku,

I don't know what happened. I don't know where to start. I don't know why I'm writing this. Maybe so I don't forget you. Don't forget how you made me feel. This'll never make it to you anyway, at least, not for a long time. Not if everything goes the way it did before.

I'd prefer if it didn't. Seeing you standing there in my office, tears still clinging to your eyelashes, your face flushed… What happened to you was awful and I never want you to have to go through the pain of some bastard bringing your life down around you while you're helpless to do anything but let it happen.

But what happens if I change something? Will I never get to meet you? Will you never befriend Hitoshi? I can't risk that. I want so badly to just go and find you, but… no… that can't happen. Not right now.

Instead, I have to figure out what brought me back here. What gave me a second chance. My mind is in shambles. This letter is really disorganized. So, if you ever see this, just know… I'm sorry. I wanted to give you the world and I wasn't able to. Whatever happened to me… I must have left you alone. Even if you don't remember it, I'm sorry.

Shouta

"We need to talk."

It was the first thing that Izuku said as they stepped into their shared home. He was confused and concerned and just didn't know how to feel about what he had read. It didn't make sense to him and yet… it did. It was the way Aizawa had looked at him, the way he spoke to him and cared for him. It all seemed so natural to the older man in a way that would belie a long history of caring for someone like him.

Aizawa didn't say anything, he just nodded and sat down on the couch, waiting for Izuku to join him. The moment the younger man sat down on the opposite couch did he say something.

"Ask me whatever you want. I'll answer, I promise."

Izuku had a lot of questions, but he knew which one to ask first. "What did you mean? In the first letter you wrote to me. About second chances?"

The older man took a deep breath and leaned back into the couch. His hand came up to rub at the back of his neck. "When I wrote it, it had been maybe a couple hours at most since I had woken up. I was disoriented still and confused. I had been in my office when I feel asleep and suddenly waking up in my childhood bedroom wasn't exactly what I was planning to see when I woke up. I don't know how… or even why… but my consciousness was sent back in time I suppose. I had gotten to know you for a couple months before it all happened, and at the time… you were the closest person to me that wasn't family."

His statement only gave Izuku more questions. Stuff like that doesn't just… happen. It was fantastical sounding and more so like a pitiful excuse to explain away stalking of some sort. And yet…

"The dates on the envelopes… are they accurate?"

He received a raised eyebrow and a nod.

So, Mr Nedzu heard about Izuku through Aizawa. Which meant that their meeting wasn't natural in the slightest. Well, it could still be, but knowing the older man, it was possible that Nedzu had done his best to look into Izuku's life before they crossed paths. Still, it stung knowing that it was all orchestrated. Though it didn't seem like Aizawa mentioning it to his dad had been malicious in the slightest.

At least it didn't seem like him meeting Hitoshi had been meddled with. It was also kind of nice to hear that they had been friends in Aizawa's other life.

"It's…. hard to believe that you just… came back like that. That kind of stuff only happens in books."

The dark-haired man nodded along, looking resigned like he knew this would happen. Of course it would happen, it was crazy to even think such a thing was a possibility.

"I'm not under the illusion that anything I say would make you believe my story. I can only tell you what I know is truth and leave the rest up to you."

"You mentioned Hizashi in your letter. But just a minute ago you told me that I was the closest non-family person to you at the time. Where was he?" Izuku softly asked. He regretted it the moment the other man's face twisted up with sadness.

Before the brunet could retract his words, Aizawa spoke. "He had passed away. His death caused a rift in our friend group. It fell apart. You remember how… when we got married, he was sick? Well… he didn't make it. I had chose to keep working instead of going to the hospital. I didn't even get to say goodbye."

Izuku knew what crying on command looked like. Knew what crocodile tears looked like. But the tears rolling down Aizawa's face as he spoke were all real. The older man was quick to wipe them away and stop anymore from coming.

"So that's why you made sure you went. You didn't want him to pass away like last time. I can see why, he's a really good friend and it would have been awful to go through that again," Izuku murmured. Just like in the letter, he understood. He would have done the same.

His heart ached, it almost felt like he knew that kind of information already. But Izuku shouldn't, he wasn't the one reborn. He ran his fingers through his hair, leg beginning to bounce. The brunet didn't like the squirmy feeling in his stomach. Like his body knew something his brain didn't.

"If I… choose to believe that you were actually reborn. That you came back… why me? What about me made you…" Izuku trailed off, unsure of how to finish his question. Luckily, Aizawa seemed to get what he was saying.

"It was… a lot of things. You're kind, and it's a little bit of different brand of kind than I'm used to. You listened and empathized. I'm not gonna say that your looks… aren't a factor. You're cute. I was never really attracted to anyone until Hitoshi brought you into my office, demanding I help you. You had been crying and yet you told Hitoshi to be quiet before asking me nicely to help. I ended up helping you for a couple months. I got to know you really well. At least… I got to know that version of you. I couldn't believe anyone would want to hurt you. Even now I still think that."

Izuku needed air. He could feel his face heating up and need to take a break. If Aizawa was a stalker, he was doing really well playing it off. But Izuku felt awful branding him as such. He stood, shaking out his hands. "I'll be right back."

He was quick to rush over to the front door, pulling it open and stepping out. He gasped for air, a hand pressed to his chest. It had felt overwhelming listening to Aizawa speak about another version of him. About someone who he'd never become now. Yet some part of him was practically preening. Happy to hear how much the older man cared for him.

He needed to get his thoughts under control, figure out how he was feeling.

How was he feeling? Upset? Flattered? Concerned?

It was a mix of things, but the majority of his thoughts were focused on one thing. "Would he stay with me if I'm not like the version of me he remembers?" The answer was undoubtedly a yes. Sure, Aizawa's past was what led him to seeking out Izuku, but there was nothing that had required him to stay. The older man had only shown how much he cared in the past couple months while he relearned everything he could about Izuku.

Which meant that if he was allowed, Aizawa would probably stay with him. But did Izuku feel the same? His head was hurting now. Setting aside the awkwardness of the other man's reborn status, Izuku had come to love the man. It was odd how quickly he had fallen, but he had embraced it after confirming it himself. He had even hoped for his feelings to be reciprocated.

So why was he hesitating?

Izuku stepped back in only to see Shouta pacing the length of the living room, his hair disheveled from how often he had run his fingers through it. The moment he heard the door, he spun around to look. Long strides and Shouta was standing on the edge of the genkan.

"Are you okay?" the dark-haired man asked.

The brunet nodded and stepped further in. "I've thought about it. Realistically, your… you being reborn doesn't change… too much about… everything. It's been years since you had last talked to me. Sure you might remember some stuff, but you know more about me now… than me from before. If it's…. okay. I'd like it if we could stay together."

The relief written on Shouta's face was palpable. He nodded. "Yeah. It's more than okay."

The taller man stepped forward, reaching out and pulling Izuku into a hug, his arms wrapping tightly around the younger man. Izuku wasted no time in hugged back, leaning into the comfort the other provided.

He was sure there was a weight that had been lifted from Shouta's chest, no longer carrying such a large secret. Izuku was content being his confidant if it meant keeping him by his side.

Suddenly, he sucked in a breath as the older man's hands gently ran down the length of the shorter man's arms. Eventually, Shouta took Izuku hands into his, entwining their fingers together as he pulled back to looked down at Izuku.

A confused noise escaped the younger man's lips and panic flooded his chest as Shouta's long fingers gently tugged the wedding ring off Izuku's finger.

"Wait, what are you doing? Why are you… did I… do something wrong?" Izuku rushed out, tears bubbling in the corner of his eyes. They had just agreed to stay together, was Shouta suddenly deciding against it?

His hand jerked up, trying to stop him when something cold was pressed into the palm of his other hand, startling him.

"You did nothing wrong," was all Shouta murmured.

The older man's larger hand flipped Izuku's over, revealing a different ring. At first, Izuku thought it was Shouta's ring and squeezed his eyes shut. But after a moment, he realized that it wasn't a simple band. A couple stones pressed against his skin, a stark contrast to the single stone in their current rings.

With a hard swallow, Izuku blinked his eyes open, green eyes darting down.

In his hand was a silver ring. The band was slimmer than his original one, but there was patterns engraved around the outside. It formed a circle but the ends of the band didn't touch, splitting out and sandwiching the stones that were tilted in a diagonal formation. The stones in the band were inset a bit, but there were five of them in total. Blues and greens, gems that Izuku didn't know the name of.

Shouta gently lifted the ring from Izuku's palm and brought it closer to the shorter man's face.

That's when he saw that there was engraving on the inside at well. It looked like a future date, but that just left him confused.

"This… I had Nemuri create this ring for me, no questions asked. It's," Shouta paused, sucking in a deep breath. "It's an exact replica of the one I was going to give you before I was reborn. Down to every detail."

"What… what's the date mean?" Izuku asked, voice cracking slightly. He couldn't believe that Shouta had wanted to marry Izuku in his past life. That surely wasn't mentioned in the letters.

"The day I first met you."

The younger man swallowed hard. Staring down at the date again, he couldn't help but feel like he remembered it somehow. He was sure he hadn't been reborn, but… wait. He stifled a laugh of disbelief. "This is… the date and month. They're our…"

"Current wedding anniversary, yes. I didn't plan that, I promise. It just happened to work out that way. Maybe it was fate."

The younger man snorted, "Fate huh?"

Shouta dipped his head and after a moment of deliberation, lowered himself to one knee forcing another gasp from Izuku who made a motion to stop him. Yet, the older man simply batted his hands away.

A deep breath and Izuku's husband began to speak, "As I said before, I originally had no intention to meet you. You were simply Hitoshi's friend for most of my life. But then he brought you into my office that day. Your husband, Bakugou, had just gotten caught with another woman about a decade after your very public marriage. You wanted everything wiped from the internet and comments moderated to mitigate any backlash. Drama wasn't my thing and I had no interest in shoving my nose where it didn't belong, unlike Father.

"I was read to deny your request. What I wasn't ready for was you. You are stubborn, and I doubt that will ever change. In the end, I figured it was better in the long run if I helped you with your problem and sent you on your way. But the request wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. Bakugou was making your life hell. He was constantly in the public eye, doing things that would purposefully damage your reputation. And you were wilting before my very eyes. I couldn't stand it, and did everything I could to fix the issue. We spent many sleepless night holed up in my office, but every remedy was more hopeless than the last.

"You were ready to give up, and I didn't want you to. By then months had past and I… I realized at the time how enamored I was. Hitoshi still found ways to rub it in my face when you weren't around, but I wanted to make you happy. I never got that chance. Before I knew it, I was waking up, still in high school and as awkward as I remembered being during puberty. It didn't take me long to realize I was reborn. I started writing the letters to remember my past and eventually to give to you. I had wanted to find you, but I didn't want to screw up your life. I also didn't want to watch you wither into nothing again.

"It was a coincidence everything happened how it did. And now you're free. No more Bakugou and Uraraka. Their reputations should be in enough tatters that they won't think about coming after you. And now I find myself… listless. We have a good nine or ten months left in the contract. Such a long time, and I want it to be longer. I wish I had planned this a bit better, but… Izuku. Would you… marry me for real this time? No time limits, just… us. Together."

Izuku stood there, shell shocked. He hadn't expected to hear specifics about what had happened in Shouta's past life, to him it simply wasn't important at the moment. But he definitely hadn't expected to be proposed to. A real proposal. Not even Bakugou had given him that.

His tears were back, but he let them fall, only wiping them away when panic flooded his husband's face.

Instead of talking, because he could feel a lump in his throat, he nodded. A lot. The sound of relieved laughter from Shouta was healing, in a way. After the frenzy of drama that had happened mere hours ago, this seemed almost normal.

Well, as normal as it could get with whatever otherworldly magic had sent Shouta back to him.

Cold metal slipped onto his finger where his previous wedding ring had been and Izuku couldn't help but admire it. It was special in a way that nobody but them would be able to understand.

Then, long fingers came up, cradling Izuku's face pulling the younger man's attention away from the piece of metal.

"Izuku. I have waited such a long… long time. I'm going to kiss you now."

He hadn't even asked for permission, but Izuku found himself not minding in the slightest. In fact, he nodded.

Shouta let out a low laugh, the sound rumbling in his chest as he leaned down. He hesitated for a moment, almost as if he was second guessing his decision. But Izuku wasn't about to let him go now. Not after everything. Besides, they were married. For real this time.

The younger man's hands slid up, cupping Shouta's cheeks and pulling him down the last couple centimeters.

The moment their lips met, all the tension drained out of both of them. It felt like something deep inside Izuku had been soothed and he let out a shaky breath as they separated.

"We're going to be doing that more often," Shouta all but demanded.

The brunet let out a little laugh, his heart beating rapidly in his chest. He couldn't help but think, not for the first time, that his husband was the best thing that ever happened to him. He knew he didn't remember whatever life he had apparently shared with Shouta before, but he was glad that the older man came back for him.

"Yeah. A lot more often," Izuku softly agreed, earning himself another kiss.