Chapter Text
Four months.
That was it. Just four months.
A handful of weeks spent overseas punching villains, testing a high-tech armored suit that he was leading, and that their former class would eventually hand over to the nerd once it was ready.
The mission was critical.
He was needed there to calibrate the suit, fine-tune it to mimic the lost One For All powers, and make sure it would actually work when handed over.
Of course, no one else could do it but him. He knew Izuku better than Izuku knew himself. Naturally.
Bakugo Katsuki came back to Japan expecting exactly what he’d left behind; the same city, the same idiots, the same nerd who refused to change no matter how many years passed.
Midoriya Izuku was predictable. That was the problem.
Eight years after graduation, he was still gentle. Still brilliant. Still annoyingly earnest.
He stayed at U.A., became the youngest full-time Heroics teacher in its history, and somehow made it look effortless.
Students adored him.
Teachers trusted him.
Even Katsuki, against his will, acknowledged that Izuku knew what the hell he was talking about.
Didn’t mean he wasn’t boring.
Katsuki had been calling his lessons boring for eight years straight. Consistency mattered.
Which was why what he was hearing made no sense when he landed back in Japan.
Absolute bullshit.
Everywhere he went, people kept whispering the same things.
“He’s so handsome!”
“Deku-sensei?! Have you seen his latest photos?!”
“So hot and cute!”
Katsuki whipped his head around more times than he cared to admit, scowling at every stranger who dared murmur the nerd’s name like it was the second coming.
What the hell had he been missing while calibrating that stupid suit overseas?
He snorted.
“What the hell do they mean ‘he’s so hot’?” he muttered under his breath. “What the hell does hot even mean?”
The jet lag hadn’t even worn off yet. Katsuki still felt like his brain was lagging half a second behind his body when his phone started ringing across the counter.
He let it ring.
Then it rang again.
And again.
“…Whoever this is,” Katsuki muttered, rubbing his eyes “you’re brave as hell.”
He checked the screen.
Dunce Face.
Of course. That idiot.
Katsuki answered, because ignoring Denki Kaminari only made him louder later.
“YO! Bakugo! You’re back, right?” His voice practically vibrated through the phone.
“Yeah,” Katsuki grunted. “So?”
“So we’re having a Class A reunion tonight!”
“No way in hell.”
“Wow, that was immediate,” Kaminari said, obviously delighted with himself.
“I ain’t goin’.”
“C’mon, man—”
“Shut up,” Katsuki snapped and scowled. “Every damn hangout is a class reunion for you dumbasses. You people meet up more than actual families.”
“That’s because we’re emotionally bonded through trauma,” Kaminari said, grinning like a fool.
“Then get therapy, idiot.” Katsuki muttered, as if four years of therapy hadn’t been suggested to them repeatedly.
Sero’s voice cut in. “Well, we’re gonna be complete now since you came back!”
Kirishima chimed in like a traitor with way too much enthusiasm. “Yeah, bro! Everyone’s coming!”
Katsuki narrowed his eyes. “Define everyone.”
“…Midoriya,” Kaminari said, and Katsuki could practically hear the smugness dripping from every syllable.
That, by itself, was not new information. Izuku was always there.
U.A. was his whole personality now.
Katsuki rolled his eyes and scoffed. “So what? He lives there.”
Mina gasped dramatically into the phone. “WOW. He hasn’t even seen him yet and he’s already defensive.”
“The fuck are you talkin’ about?” Katsuki barked.
“Nothing,” Mina said, lying so smoothly. “Just… interesting.”
“Stop being weird,” he snapped.
“We’re not being weird,” Kaminari replied, obviously grinning that made Katsuki want to punch a wall.
“Midoriya asked if you were coming.”
Katsuki froze. “He asked what?”
Another dramatic gasp erupted from the line. “HE ASKED.”
“SHUT THE HELL UP,” Katsuki barked. “I JUST GOT BACK.”
“Great!” Kaminari said, cheerfully ignoring his rage. “Then you won’t be tired by tonight. See you in an hour, Kacchan~!”
The call ended.
Katsuki stared at his phone.
“Bastards,” he muttered, but started showering and getting dressed anyway, like a man preparing for war.
He absolutely did not care that the nerd had apparently asked about him.
He absolutely did not clench his fists, grit his teeth, and mutter under his breath about how annoyingly persistent everyone was.
And absolutely not because he gave a shit about what civilians had been whispering, calling the nerd “hot” everywhere.
No. Not because of anything stupid like that.
Just because.
Katsuki arrived late on principle.
He blew the door open with a sharp bang—just enough to announce his presence like a warning shot.
“Oi,” Sero yelled. “He’s here!”
“About damn time,” Kaminari added, grinning like an idiot.
Katsuki ignored all of them.
He scanned the room with the practiced efficiency of a battlefield sweep—faces, exits, idiots clustered around tables, Kirishima laughing too loud, Mina already watching him like she’d found her evening entertainment.
Before he knew it, he was being physically dragged—by his annoying friends toward a table already cluttered with drinks and bad decisions.
“GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME,” Katsuki snapped, palms already sparking.
Kirishima laughed, gripping harder. “Relax, bakubro! You survived worse.”
“This is worse!”
They shoved him into a chair. He crossed his arms immediately, posture sharp and defensive, like he’d been summoned to a hostile interrogation.
Izuku wasn’t there yet.
Good.
That was good. He didn’t care. He just didn’t feel like dealing with the nerd immediately.
Kaminari plopped down across from him like a man with a death wish, chair scraping loudly as he leaned back and grinned in that exact way that meant he was about to ruin Katsuki’s evening on purpose.
“Heyyy, Kacchan~”
Katsuki’s eye twitched immediately.
That tone alone should’ve been illegal.
“What did you do.” Katsuki said flatly, sparks already snapping at his palms.
“Nothing!” Kaminari said way too fast. Too cheerful. “I just thought you should know something important.”
“If this is about your love life,” Katsuki warned, “I swear to god I will end you.”
“Nope,” Kaminari said, already pulling out his phone. “It’s about deku-sensei.”
Katsuki leaned back in his chair, unimpressed. “Spit it out before I make this reunion violent.”
“Midoriya’s been trending for a while now.”
Katsuki barked out a sharp, incredulous laugh. “For what? Homework?”
Mina leaned over the table, eyes sparkling with malicious delight. “Thirst.”
The air went dead.
Katsuki stared at her. “What.” he said slowly.
The fuck?
Kirishima nodded eagerly, like this was the most normal thing in the world. “Thirst tweets, man! Like—a lot, a lot.”
Katsuki scoffed. “Who the hell is thirsty for that stupid nerd?”
“Apparently everyone~!” Mina sang.
“They’re WRONG.”
“Bro,” Sero said, leaning in, elbows on the table, “you’ve been gone for four months.”
“And?” Katsuki snapped. “The nerd didn’t mutate!”
Kaminari turned the phone toward him anyway. On purpose. Smug. Treacherous.
“Okay,” he said, clearing his throat dramatically, “this one says—‘Deku-sensei could explain quirk theory to me for twelve hours and I’d still be listening.’”
Katsuki’s eye twitched violently.
Mina burst out laughing. “Oh, that one’s tame.”
“The hell do you mean tame,” Katsuki snarled.
“Scroll again,” Sero urged, already grinning.
“No.” Katsuki said immediately.
Kaminari did it anyway. Slowly. Deliberately. Like he wanted to die.
“‘Midoriya Izuku looks like he’d apologize before ruining my life.’”
Katsuki’s eyebrow jerked.
“‘Why does Deku-sensei look like that when he’s just standing there. Sir, please stop.’”
Katsuki slammed his palm on the table.
BANG.
“WHY ARE THEY LIKE THIS.”
Mina wheezed. “Wait—wait—this one’s worse!”
Kaminari scrolled.
“‘Deku-sensei looks like he’d call you by your full name and suddenly you’d behave.’”
Katsuki’s jaw tightened. “THAT’S NOT A COMPLIMENT.”
“Oh babe, it absolutely is!” Mina said, cackling.
Kaminari kept going, fully committing to his own demise.
“Damn, this one says—‘Midoriya Izuku looks like he’d treat you right and that’s somehow the hottest part.’”
Katsuki stared at the screen like it had personally insulted him.
Then Kaminari added, cheerfully, “‘Someone take Midoriya Izuku’s teaching license away before I start acting up.’”
Katsuki’s eye twitched so hard it almost hurt.
“They’re all blind,” he said tightly. “Every single one of them.”
“Or,” Kaminari said, way too pleased, “they’re extremely aware.”
“They’re STUPID,” Katsuki snapped. “Blind. Delusional. Probably concussed.”
His jaw clenched. “They need professional help.”
“Oh wait, it gets worse,” Kaminari said, laughing so hard. “This one says—‘Midoriya Izuku looks like he’d ask for consent and still destroy you.”
He wiped tears from his eyes. “In bed.”
Katsuki shot to his feet. “I’M GOING TO END THE INTERNET.”
“The internet fears no one, bro,” Kirishima said solemnly.
“One more!” Kaminari blurted, already cackling. “It says—‘He definitely—’”
He squinted, then dissolved into laughter. “Ohmygod—whimpers, grunts, breaths heavily with tears—“
Katsuki choked.
“OH THAT’S NOT—“
Kaminari ignored him completely and gasped. “OH—wow this one has over a hundred thousand likes!”
Katsuki leaned forward before he could stop himself.
He froze.
“What the hell is that photo,” he demanded.
Mina peeked. “Ohhh. Rescue seminar. That’s when he caught that kid mid-air.”
On the screen—Izuku, sleeves rolled up, tie loose, muscles flexed just enough to be unfair, scar visible, expression soft and focused like—
Absolutely not.
Katsuki slapped the phone away so hard it nearly skidded off the table.
“TURN THAT SHIT OFF.”
Kaminari howled with laughter. “YOU LOOKED.”
“I WAS CHECKING FOR PHOTOSHOP.”
“That’s a raw upload, man.” Sero said. “Straight from the U.A. account.”
Katsuki jabbed a finger at them. “HE IS THE SAME DAMN NERD HE’S ALWAYS BEEN.”
Kirishima tilted his head. “So… you don’t think he’s hot?”
Katsuki spun on him, eyes blazing. “The fuck?! THAT’S THE DAY SOCIETY COLLAPSES.”
Right on cue, the door slid open.
“Hey, guys! Sorry I’m late—”
Katsuki didn’t turn around.
Didn’t look. Didn’t need to.
Because the eye twitch was back.