Work Text:
Then
The crinkled, frosty plastic gleamed and glittered in the reflection of the evening glow. That was the first thing he noticed.
In the shadow of a wooden shelf, in the run-down corner store, tucked behind rows and rows of manga and doujinshi and opened gacha prizes Izuku crouched, knees scraping uncomfortably against the hardwood floor. He'd passed the store every day on his way from and to school until, one fateful day, his eyes caught on something in the showcase. He'd wiped the thin coat of ice from the window, a small palm sized circle—and there he was.
A real, authentic All Might figure.
One of the nice ones too, where his smile wasn't crooked or the coloring on his suit just slightly off or his hair in an odd shape—no. This one looked just like him. He turned his gaze to the price tag… 11.400¥. Eleven Thousand Four Hundred yen.
He grit his teeth, sighing as his head connected softly with the showcase window—a small thump. In any case it wasn't looking like he'd be able to get the figure any time soon.
Ah.
It was okay, really.
He would save up.
★
Today, he was at the corner store again. Winter had long since passed as the plum blossoms went into full bloom, painting Musutafu white—almost as if the colder months had never really left, carving their songs into the old asphalt and the hearts of the people. He'd saved up for months, cutting costs and school lunches wherever he could—a bad habit. But it had payed off in the end, quite literally.
The corner store still greeted all its customers with that distinct smell that hung in the air like confetti ceilings. And although not much ever changed here, All Might had since been moved to the back of the store. Anti-sun bleach precautions, supposedly.
He dug his hands into his trouser pockets, gathering the flimsy yen notes in his small hands as he kept looking up to the figure like it might've dissipated if he left it out of sight for too long. Just like that. Poof.
Just as he was about to reach up to get it from the shelf—propped up on a short stool—someone pulled at his hair, hard. Consequently making him loose balance and ungracefully tumble down until he lay in a heap at the culprit’s feet.
"Ouch, that hurt-" he mumbled, rubbing his head. Sneaker soles shuffled and squeaked next to him and stepped over his zip-up leaving an ugly shoe sole dust print on the blue fabric.
He looked up and in front of him on the very stool where he had crouched mere moments ago stood none other than Kacchan. Ah, this really wasn't going the way he'd planed it to.
"What do you think you're trying to do here, huh?" Kacchan snarled, reaching up for the figure until it tumbled down, catching it effortlessly in one of his hands. "What does a normie like you even want with this?" he tossed the figure, making the plastic box do somersaults and turning it around in his palm.
"Don't play dumb…" Izuku mumbled, "You know I like All Might too." He sighed, pushing himself up and turning on his heel to leave the shop. Perhaps he'd find a similar figure somewhere else eventually, although, if he was being honest, the gloom was already weighing down on him. His eyes got all wet and sensitive and ugly. He’d wanted that figure so badly but it seemed like fate had already had other plans in store for him.
His scuffed soles dragged across the floor as he made his way towards the exit, already mentally calculating how many snacks he’d be able to get with his savings at the nearby convenience store. He was reaching for the door handle when a low growl suddenly echoed through the little shop.
"Fuck," a frustrated huff and the creaking of the wood traveling through the floorboards and then Kacchan was standing behind him, twisting his shoulder to forcefully turn him around. Izuku stumbled and lost his footing for a second, almost crashing into the other boy but he caught himself just in time.
"Give me your money, will you-" he bit out. It undoubtedly wasn't a question. Bringing him up by the cuffs and collar of his zip-up, Kacchan’s and his face were only mere centimeters apart, making his breath hitch. "You know I don't have enough so just hand it over, Deku." he whisper-jelled through grit teeth.
Izuku was already hands deep in his pockets, scrabbling to retrieve his savings when he was suddenly overcome by an epiphany.
"I'll give you the money…" he began, hand clutching the coin purse in his pocket, a silent prayer. "But we split the bill and in turn I get to have him too, sometimes…" he lost a bit of his momentum at the end and his words got messy and quiet but they were out there and that's what counted. He awaited Kacchan's reaction with bated breath, flinching as he felt Kacchan's grip loosen up on his collar.
A huff.
"Fine, I'll do it."
Just like that. Izuku hadn't even realized he'd closed his eyes in fear and was slowly peeling them open now, peering up at Kacchan. Still dumbfounded, he found Kacchan threw a couple yen notes at him and grabbed his hand to drag him towards the cash register.
★
That’s how The Meetups started. Two thirds distance from Kacchan’s family’s house and one third from Izuku’s. His heart pitter-pattered each time he ducked down to find the slim desire path leading down to the river bank—not quite drizzle, not quite storm. Somewhere, in the back of his mind he knew that he had nothing to fear.
Kacchan wasn’t gonna punch him black and bloody—he wasn’t stupid after all. The police would come to get him and without a clean record he’d have zero to no chances of attending U.A., the same high school that All Might once attended.
Kacchan was waiting under the bridge, at their usual spot, kicking rocks down into the water. They’d been doing this for a couple weeks now.
Every Sunday, they would meet up under the old bridge. That bridge specifically because it felt official, almost adult.
Either one of them, depending on the week, would carefully peel the medium sized plastic figure from his belongings like the pulp from the peel and hand over All Might without saying a word. Sometimes Izuku was too scared to even look at Kacchan—an old habit—although he’d seemed to warm up to him a little over the past two months. Or maybe it was just the summer heat.
In any case was it Izuku’s turn to hand over the figure today. Their hands brushed as the cold plastic and attached weight left his palm. He almost mourned it but quickly turned on his heel, avoiding eye contact to leave the scene before Kacchan decided that he didn’t actually find him okay or bearable, and gripped him by his hair and threw him into the river, and All Might too because he didn’t like him anymore either.
A cold shiver ran up his spine at the thought.
But before he made it out of reach someone clutched his wrist in an iron grip. That someone being none other than Katsuki Bakugou, of course.
Well, now he’d practically wished this upon himself.
Izuku mentally prepared himself for the cold water and hard rocks, unconsciously shrinking into himself.
“Um, wait.” came a bit delayed and without much conviction, but against his will, Izuku felt himself soften. Kacchan looked at him then for a moment, eyes widening before he hastily reached into one of the big pockets of his cargo pants. His hand retrieved something shiny and glittery. Pretty.
Three small, sparkling magnets. All Might magnets. The ones you get in mystery packs at the convenience store and that would usually sell out within a day. He’d never been able to get his hands on one.
Izuku immediately perked up. It took Kacchan looking at him for an uncomfortable amount of time and squirming in the silence to realize that he’d meant for him to take the magnets.
Oh.
“They’re…” he hesitated for a moment. “For me…?” his voice broke a bit at the end.
“Who else?” Kacchan huffed.
Oh.
He reached out with trembling fingers to take the magnets from Kacchan, flinching when their skin brushed again. He might’ve imagined it but when he did, Kacchan almost looked… concerned?
“Thank you…” he mumbled, still awestruck as he turned the small magnets around in his palm. He already knew a place for them above his desk.
“It’s really nothing,” Kacchan deflected, expression unreadable. He cleared his throat. “You should get going before your mom tears you a new one.”
“Oh- um. Yeah, I will-“ he stumbled a bit over his words and almost himself as his feet slipped on the wet cobblestone. He took a couple steps back. Kacchan raised a brow at him, something amused swirling in his expression, but didn’t comment on his clumsiness like he usually did.
Izuku ducked a bit—a polite, little bow—before racing off to the muddy slope and climbing as fast as his stubby legs allowed.
★
Now
The smell of bacon and eggs and sweet, milk bread wafted through the air and swirled above the stove like magic. Izuku pulled two plates from the kitchen cabinets, setting them down on the counter. Creamy china with little, hopping bunnies and lions painted all over it.
It was cute. His husband had gotten it for him for their first anniversary. He carefully plated the bacon and eggs and got the bread from the toaster. He was pouring orange juice, careful not to spill anything when strong arms wound around his waist.
A laugh bubbled up his throat as Kacchan buried his nose in his neck—fluffy, blond strands tickling him until he turned Izuku around in his arms, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.
“Good morning,” he mumbled in between kisses, still sleepy. The early morning sun hit him and his bright hair almost looked like a halo.
Funny how, even after all these years, all it took was as little as a single look from his husband to make him feel all soft and squishy inside.
He beckoned him over to the small kitchen table, soaking up the warmth the floor to ceiling windows provided and let his thoughts drift. They ate their meal and they were happy—and would be for many more years to come.
And as much as he loved the china and all gifts he’d gotten since—right above the halo of Kacchan’s head on their fridge still hung their very first
I love you.