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Christmas had a way of sharpening old wounds. Even these joyful occasions had their own way to turn things melancholy.
And Izuku Midoriya felt all those different emotions like every single one of them like snow dusted the rooftops of Musutafu. A pretty sight but too cold to touch.
His cousin Yo Shindo was getting married on Christmas Eve to... Ochako Uraraka.
Ochako, who just happened to be Izuku’s ex-girlfriend. The Ex that Izuku considered his sunshine.
Izuku adjusted his scarf and stared at the wedding invitation like it might burst into flames out of sheer audacity. Gold embossing. Very Festive. Join us as we celebrate love.
The audacity! So bold of them to invite the very person they hurt and betrayed. But Izuku is such a kind hearted person and he does have a special place in his heart for them. Even though it hurts and breaks his heart to pieces.
Izuku sighs as he confirms his attendance to their wedding.
Izuku, as an aspiring hero support analyst, who prided himself on planning for every possible outcome. Villain attacks. Quirk malfunctions. Equipment failures.
What he had not prepared for was showing up alone to a Christmas wedding where half of the guests would absolutely whisper, Wasn’t that Midoriya supposed to be the one marrying Uraraka?
Well, there is one person... Izuku’s last option, the very walking disaster (just chaotic) pro hero and childhood friend, Katsuki Bakugou.
“You look like you’re about to pass out,” Bakugou said flatly when they met outside the venue, already dressed in an unreasonably sharp suit that had fitted him that well.
“I’m-I’m not,” Izuku lied, clutching his tie like it can be straightenedeven further. “I just—thank you. For… coming with me.” Izuku added.
“Tch. Don’t get weird about it. You needed a date. I needed free food.” Katsuki scoffed then he paused. “And watching Shindo sweat buckets.”
The ceremony itself was… fine. Painful, but fine. Ochako looked radiant. Yo looked smug. Izuku smiled until his cheeks hurt.
Katsuki sat beside him like a scowling guard dog, intercepting nosy relatives and pro hero colleagues with death glares and the occasional, “Yeah, he’s taken. Problem?”
Then came the reception. Katsuki discovered champagne and he... he doesn't really drink because it changes the consistency with his sweat which also meant it messes with his quirk.
Oh how Katsuki discovered multiple glasses of champagne and by the time the microphone made its way into his hands, Izuku was already halfway out of his chair. But he was still too late.
“I just wanna say,” Bakugou slurred slightly, arm slung around Izuku’s shoulders, “that weddings are dumb. But—” he raised his glass “—sometimes they remind you that you gotta stop hesitating.”
Izuku’s soul left his body. He tried to pry the microphone from Katsuki’s hands and scolds him. But Katsuki swish away from Izuku’s grasp.
"Kacchaaaan" Izuku whispers with gritted teeth. Katsuki smirks and whispers back at Izuku. "Just play along, nerd."
“So,” Bakugou continued loudly, “me and Deku are engaged.”
Silence like crickets singing silence...
Then gasps. Applause. Someone cried running out of the hall. Izuku laughed weakly, eyes wide with horror. “Haha!! yes! Engaged! Very engaged! Surprise?”
After that, there was no escaping it. The ring Bakugou hastily revealed from his pocket and placed it on Izuku’s finger. The photos. The congratulations. The questions.
They kinda stole the show from the newlyweds but who cares, it was payback. Somehow, between fake smiles and whispered concerns, something strange happened.
Bakugou stayed close. Always checking if Izuku was okay. Always refilling his drink. Always standing just a little in front of him when conversations got uncomfortable.
And somehow even with all the champagne Katsuki drank, he sobered quickly when Izuku was feeling cornered.
Later, under twinkling fairy lights and falling snow, they slipped outside to breathe.
“This is a mess,” Izuku muttered.
Bakugou huffed. “Yeah. My bad.”
A beat.
“…I didn’t hate it, though,” Izuku admitted softly. Katsuki looked at him then, not teasing, not loud. Just real. “Me neither.”
Snow settled in Izuku’s curls. Christmas music hummed faintly inside. And for the first time all evening, his chest felt warm for the right reasons.
They let the newlywed couple have all the attention once again. As they move farther away from the reception hall. It also became too loud, too bright, and too much.
Katsuki didn’t say a word when he grabbed Izuku’s wrist and steered him out, just kept walking until they reach Katsuki’s car.
"Let’s get out of here, neh Deku." Katsuki said which Izuku nod in agreement.
Katsuki drove away and the venue lights faded behind them and the road climbed upward. They past sleepy houses, past strings of Christmas lights, all the way to a quiet hilltop parking lot overlooking the city.
Below them, Musutafu glowed. Soft. Gold. Peaceful. Like a snow globe someone had finally stopped shaking. They step out of the car the cold bit through Izuku’s coat, sharp and clean, clearing his head.
He hugged his arms around himself.
Katsuki leaned against the car, hands jammed into his pockets. For once, he didn’t look angry. He looked… nervous.
“Deku,” he said, voice low. “I gotta tell you something. Before this whole fake-engagement bullshit goes any further.”
Izuku’s stomach twisted. “Okay.”
Katsuki exhaled hard, breath fogging the air. “I’m the reason you and Uraraka didn’t last.”
Izuku blinked as if he was hearing Katsuki say somethinggibberish. “What?”
“I introduced her to Shindo,” Katsuki said bluntly. “Years back. Before things went to hell. I saw how you were pulling away, second-guessing yourself, doing that stupid thing where you convince yourself you don’t deserve good stuff.”
Izuku flinched. That one landed... Yeah, Izuku was having a self-worth journey after loosing OFA, being a teacher was one good thing, but he wasn't sure if that was just what he wanted to do.
And Ochako had that persuasive attitude that could sweetly dictate what they both want as a couple. Even if Izuku wasn’t really into whatever she wanted, he eventually just follow her decisions because he loved her.
“I knew you had feelings for her,” Bakugou continued. “Real ones. But I also knew Shindo was into her. And I thought...” His jaw clenched.
“...maybe if you let go, you’d stop getting hurt.” Katsuki said nervously while rubbing his hands together. Silence stretched between them, filled only by the hum of the city.
“So I nudged things,” Bakugou admitted. “Introduced them. Thought it’d be cleaner. Thought I was helping.”
Izuku swallowed. “You… helped them fall in love. While... while she was with me?"
“Yeah,” Katsuki said bitterly. “And I... I was the catalyst that broke your heart.”
Izuku looked out over the city, chest tight. It hurt, still did, but the pain felt old now, like a scar you forgot was there until the weather changed.
Katsuki’s voice dropped. “I didn’t do it just for them.” Izuku turned back slowly, turned to look at Katsuki straight in the eyes.
“I’m selfish sometimes, you already know that." Katsuki said. “and I let my selfishness and greed take over me. I wanted you, Deku. I always did. And I couldn’t stand watching you give everything to someone else and still think it wasn’t enough.”
Snow drifted between them, soft and quiet. And Izuku looked hurt, slightly puzzled, but piecing things together as Katsuki explained further.
“I’m sorry,” Katsuki said, rough and honest. “For the mess. For the heartbreak. For pretending I was just looking out for you when really… I wanted you to look at me.”
Izuku’s breath caught.
“I know this fake engagement thing started as bullshit,” Katsuki went on quickly, desperation leaking through the cracks.
"But I meant what I said. I don’t wanna pretend anymore. I want you. Fake or not, I want us.”
He laughed weakly. “Pathetic, huh? Proposing in a parking lot, freezing our asses off.”
Izuku stared at him for a long moment. Then looked at the ring Katsuki placed on his finger. Then back at Katsuki before stepping closer.
“Kacchan,” he said softly. “I was hurt. I won’t lie about that. I loved her. But you, you’re always it for me. No matter what."
Katsuki froze.
“You’ve always seen me. Even when I didn’t see myself.”
Katsuki’s eyes widened. “So…?”
Izuku raise his left hand with the ring Katsuki placed on him. "This... this is real, isn't it? Kacchan." And Katsuki confirmed with one sharp nod.
Izuku reached for Katsuki’s hands, fingers cold but steady. “If this is a proposal, fake or not, I’m saying yes.”
Katsuki’s breath left him in a shaky laugh, relief crashing over his face like a wave. He squeezed Izuku’s hand like he was afraid he’d disappear.
“Tch,” he muttered but he was smiling genuinely. “Best damn Christmas gift I’ve ever gotten.”
Izuku softly laugh as he reaches up and wrap his arms around Katsuki. They kissed, sealing the deal. A proposal made final.
The city sparkled below them. Snow fell gently and in a quiet hilltop parking lot, with cold air in their lungs and warmth blooming between them, Katsuki Bakugou finally got what he’d always wanted all along, Izuku Midoriya.
Now his fiancée, his partner, finally. At last.