Chapter Text
This is what someone might call "the perfect day." That "someone," of course, would be Izuku Midoriya. The sky is clear, and the breeze is just soft enough that he can feel the wind pecking his skin as he flies from building to building. It's been nearly two months since Izuku got his mecha suit, and he couldn't be happier.
"Yo Izuku, you payin' attention?"
Ah, the other development. Izuku paused momentarily, his gaze drifting to the horizon as a subtle tension hung in the air between him and Katsuki.
Okay, so yes, Izuku was very grateful for his new suit. But it's not just being a hero that he missed, it's the memories and friends that came with it. Especially-
"Huh? Oh yeah, Kacchan," Izuku responds, not entirely sure what he’s responding to.
"You totally zoned out," Katsuki says with a deadpanned voice. Right, Katsuki was giving directions for their next move, and Izuku was too busy reminiscing on how grateful he was.
"Only on the last part!" Izuku throws his hands up defensively, but Katsuki rolls his eyes. "Whatever, Nerd, just follow my lead."
These past two months, Izuku and Katsuki have grown a lot closer. Not that they weren't close before, but with Izuku working at U.A. and Katsuki and others doing hero work, they hadn't had much time to connect.
"Wait! Kacchan, aren't we on defense?"
And maybe it's true that Izuku could have reached out more, or at all for that matter, but it's not like they reached out either. Well, they did, but still... Izuku knows his friends are busy people; he didn't want to drag them anywhere just because he felt lonely.
Okay, maybe lonely is a strong word… because he felt… withdrawn. Or something like that.
"Defense my ass! I do what I want!"
"Kacchan, slow down!"
Izuku grabbed Kacchan's arm, holding him back.
"Let go of me, Nerd!"
Kacchan cursed, but didn't put up much of a fight. Kacchan may be more agile than Izuku, but in basic strength, Izuku has him overpowered.
"Ugh, fine." Katsuki sighs, retreating.
A masked villain walks from around the corner and heads towards a nearby building. Katsuki and Izuku go undetected from their current position. Izuku gives Katsuki a small smirk, knowing he caught him just in time.
"Okay, now let's go in.” Izuku finally lets go of Katsuki's arm, forgetting he was still holding it to begin with.
"Tch, whatever." Katsuki rolls his eyes again, but Izuku can see a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. It's times like this when he's most in his element. Izuku watches as Katsuki blocks out the world around him, completely focused and even more feral. It's mesmerizing in a way.
After 5-10 minutes, Izuku and Katsuki track down the villain and take them into custody. It was a somewhat anti-climactic showdown, with the villain giving in only a few minutes in.
"That was way lamer than expected," Katsuki says with a pout, arms crossed as he watches the villain being wheeled off in a police car.
The villain in question was just a scrawny teenager who was running away from home. Not much of a threat, but definitely stealthy.
"She really should be putting those skills into something other than robbery. Her quirk is amazing, but she lacks formal training." Izuku thinks aloud. It’s always a shame to see such young people get pulled into a darker path. He really does hope she gets the help she needs to turn a new leaf.
Once the villain was in custody, Izuku and Katsuki began walking back to Best Jeanist’s agency. They could easily fly there in less than 5 minutes, but they prefer to walk after their patrols. Izuku often gets distracted, helping an elderly woman cross the street, or browsing hero merchandise he doesn’t need. Katsuki follows along, no matter the distractions, so here they are side by side again.
"Haven't seen a villain so young in a while, kind of bull shit if you ask me," Katsuki says out of the blue, breaking their current silence. Izuku, who's been staring into space for the past 5 minutes, looks over at his patrol partner.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
For some reason, Katsuki’s statement makes Izuku excited. Katsuki isn't much of a talker, not in the same way Izuku is at least. It's kind of hard to get inside his brain at times.
"I mean, like- why was she running away in the first place? And what's the point of throwing her in jail when she's obviously just a kid? I don't know- just kinda bugs me, I guess."
Izuku feels a small ping in his stomach. Even though a lot of time has passed since the war, situations like this never feel quite right. He thinks back to the league of villains, all younger then than he is now, but instead of dwelling on it for too long, he smiles at Katsuki and says all that comes to mind.
"Yeah, I get that."
Suddenly, they're back at the agency, and the sun is beginning to set.
"You're both late. 5 minutes and 23 seconds to be exact." Best Jeanist was waiting for them at the door, arms crossed.
"Sorry, Jeanist! Won't happen again, promise." Izuku rubbed his neck sheepishly. He made that same promise 2 patrols ago. Izuku looks over and sees Katsuki on his phone, either distracted or purposely trying to appear nonchalant. He nudges him with his elbow.
"Ouch! What the hell, Izuku?" Katsuki looks up from his phone and sees a death glare coming from his mentor. "I mean- right, right what he said."
Izuku giggles. Katsuki’s poor attitude is more amusing than it is threatening.
"Something funny?" Jeanist looks at Izuku.
"Uh, no, sir." Izuku stiffens.
"Bakugo is a bad influence on you, Izuku. Don't let him drag you down the rankings." Jeanist clicks his tongue.
For some reason, this comment annoyed Izuku. Yes, Katsuki could be better with his words, but in all honesty, his current ranking is undeserved.
"With all due respect-" Izuku begins, unsure of what he’s even about to say.
"Oh fuck off, the nerds got free will. Besides, he's the one who holds us back after patrols,” Katsuki spits out, but with not much aggression, saving Izuku from whatever impulsive rebuttal he was about to make. “I just stick around to make sure he doesn't bump his head,” Katsuki smirks over at Izuku, ruffling his hair.
Izuku always imagined that once he graduated and became a hero, he would have a full range to do whatever he wanted. But apparently, there are still rules working under an agency, sometimes more. Still, this dream wouldn't be possible if it weren't for his classmates and everyone who put in work to make this dream a reality. He knows he doesn't deserve this, not really, at least.
"Hey, Kacchan," Izuku starts, removing his suit and looking at the briefcase that holds half of his life.
"Yeah?" Katuski looks over at him, eyebrow arched in a way that says, “I know you're about to say something sappy.”
"I know this is kind of out of the blue, but I want to thank you again for this suit- seriously... my life has been so amazing with it.” Izuku feels his throat getting caught up. He hates how easy he cries sometimes, but he’s filled with so much gratitude he can’t help but tear up.
"Is that why you've been so damn quiet all day? Caught up in your thoughts or something?"
"Um, yeah, I guess," Izuku responds.
"Well, as I said before, it was a class effort. We all wanted this for you, Izuku. You deserve it.” Katsuki has indeed said this before, at least three times now. Izuku finds this hard to believe, however. For starters, Izuku doesn’t deserve this suit; he wasn’t even born with a quirk.
Secondly, Izuku knows Katsuki did most of the work on this suit himself, despite him not taking proper credit for it. Izuku wishes he could show how grateful he was, not just for the suit but for Katsuki.
"I know, but I know you funded the majority of it and also spearheaded the project. So thank you." Izuku says again, more firmly. Katsuki doesn’t respond, but instead averts his eyes. Izuku tries again, "I just, I wish I could pay you back somehow…" he trails off.
"Izuku. You don't owe me shit, alright?” Katsuki finally looks back at Izuku, “Besides, there's a reason we kept it a secret from you. I knew you would have stopped us," Katsuki sighs, his mancho man persona faltering. Izuku pauses and thinks. He doesn't know how much this suit costs because they refuse to say it, but he knows what Katsuki is saying is probably true.
“Yeah, I probably would have,” Izuku chuckles to himself.
"I would have done it anyway, Nerd, to be quite frank," Katsuki says, matter-of-factly.
Izuku is slightly stunned, “Are you serious?”
"Um, yeah? I don’t know why you’re so fucking surprised by that, Izuku. I do what I want; we’ve been over this." Katsuki barks, but the tone isn’t harsh. Instead, a small ounce of laughter slips through.
"Yeah, I guess so.” Now, Izuku is laughing. He knows Kacchan well enough to know that no stamp of disapproval is going to stop him. Izuku would have done the same thing. “Still, I wish there was something I could do to make up for even half of the time you spent… it doesn’t seem fair that you- “
“And the whole class,” Katsuki interjects
“...and the whole class,” Izuku continues, “spent so much time making this suit for me, and I just reap the benefits."
Katsuki pauses, thinking, and Izuku waits for his response.
Finally, Katsuki responds, “Are you busy tomorrow night?”
“No, why?” Izuku asks, slightly confused.
"Do you wanna try out that new ramen place down the street?”
Izuku nearly jumps out of his seat at the offer. This is the first time in over a year that Katsuki has asked Izuku to hang out. "Um? Absolutely!”
“Great, that way you can pay me back," Katsuki responds, and Izuku is back to his state of confusion.
"By buying you ramen?"
"No, Nerd, by coming with me to eat ramen."
Izuku racks his brain for a second and frowns, "I don't really know if that counts..."
"Do you not want to come?" Katsuki says, voice wavering slightly.
"No! No, I mean- Yes! I totally do. I just wasn't really expecting that to be my repayment is all,” Izuku says with a bit of nervous laughter.
"It's a start,” Katsuki says, shrugging his shoulders. Izuku tries to keep calm, but his heart is beginning to beat hard enough that he’s sure you could hear it if you got close enough.
"Um- uh... okay, yeah, ramen it is then!" Izuku says with a smile, face growing warm.
"Cool. I'll pick you up tomorrow. See you later, Nerd," Katsuki says while blasting off quickly, leaving Izuku behind.
"Bye, Kacchan!" Izuku calls after him, dazed as he watches Kacchan jump from building to building. Eventually, Izuku comes back down to earth.
Okay.
What the hell is going on?
Izuku has taught himself not to read into things too heavily. He likes to think he has a pretty strong intuition, but Kacchan can be pretty unpredictable. Asking him to get ramen together is one thing, a totally normal request. Even if Izuku is overly excited about such a simple offer, that doesn’t mean Kacchan meant anything by it.
What is weird, however, is this being Izuku's way to pay back Katsuki for the suit. Izuku knows Katsuki has a weird way with words, but he really can’t tell if Katsuki was being serious about this or not. Either he’s just joking about this being a repayment, he was deflecting what Izuku was saying by changing the subject, or he really sees this as a way for Izuku to pay him back. Izuku isn’t sure which one he would rather, but regardless, he finds the whole situation a little out of the ordinary, even for Katsuki.
Despite this, Izuku is beyond excited about their hangout. The only safe assumption is that Katsuki wants to hang out more, which is enough to make Izuku's stomach churn. Izukus missed being around Katsuki so much. In highschool they were inseparable, especially after the war, and even though that was almost ten years ago, he still misses it.
Does Katsuki miss him?
Izuku finally arrives home after a long, draining school day that makes him thank God it’s almost Friday. Now, Izuku is back home and digging through his closet, unsure of what to wear to his outing with Katsuki. Tired of stressing, he picks up his phone and facetimes Ochako. He holds his breath as it rings for almost a full minute before hearing a click as Ochako picks up.
“Hey! What’s u-”
"Ochako!! Are you busy?”
Izuku props up his phone and then walks back to his closet, going from hanger to hanger for the second time that evening.
"Um, no… Deku, what are you doing?" Ochako asks, clearly confused by his urgency.
"I need help picking an outfit," Izuku says, finally looking at the camera, only to look back in his closet.
"Wait. Really? You never ask for my help with clothes. Which is a shame considering your... style choice.... but that's besides the point- what's up?" Izuku decides to ignore the jab at his clothing style for now in favor of getting an outfit picked out before Katsuki knocks on the door in ten minutes.
“Oh! I never told you, did I?” Izuku has a bad habit of forgetting things.
“Apparently not,” Ochako says with a light tease.
“Kacchan and I…” Izuku trails off, trying to phrase this without it sounding too suspicious. Unlike Izuku, Ochako loves to jump to conclusions, “...are getting ramen together!"
"Bakugo asked you out!?” Ochako nearly screams through the phone. There goes trying to Izuku's effort to make things sound normal.
"No! It's just as friends." Izuku says matter-of-factly
"Then why are you so concerned about what to wear?" Ochako raises an eyebrow
"Because! I don't know, maybe I just want to look decent for once!" Izuku says defensively, ignoring the red covering his face.
"Whatever you say, Izuku…” Ochako responds in a sing-song voice, “What ramen place?" she asks.
"The new one downtown," Izuku says, looking at an old sweater he’s definitely outgrown by now. He makes a mental note to declutter his closet later this week.
"Oooh, okay, nice! I've been wanting to visit there. I heard their rolls are really good. Also, their-"
"Ochako focus!!" Izuku interrupts. Ochako is a foodie, something both she and Katsuki have in common, except Katsuki is a picky eater, and Ochako will eat pretty much anything. Unfortunately, Izuku doesn't have time to listen to her fantasies about having a lifetime ramen supply.
"Right! Right, sorry... Um, the place is kind of casual, so you could really wear whatever. But like- not actually whatever because Bakugo's parents are fashion designers and he will definitely judge you if you show up in something stupid.” Ochako rambles off, and Izuku, again, decides to ignore the repeated jabs at his styling choices. Does he really dress that badly?
“Ochako, can you please just get to the part where you tell me what to wear?” He groans.
“I say a nice collared shirt with jorts or something, then some nice sneakers,” Ochako responds, obviously proud of her assessment.
“Thank you! Seriously, you're a lifesaver.”
Izuku pulls out a few outfits, showing them to the camera, and Ochako responds with a thumbs up or thumbs down. Eventually, they land on a brown collared shirt with jean shorts. By the time they finish, clothes are splattered across his entire room. Izuku decides he’ll clean it up later. “Perfect! Casual and classy, neutral tones are always a win.” Ochako says, nodding her head.
“When did you become an expert in fashion?”
“I’m not an expert, I'm just a girl, Deku. You, on the other hand, are on the below-average side of the bell curve when it comes to fashion.” Ochako rolls her eyes. Izuku has really had enough of the insults, but he accepted a long time ago that this was his life.
"Okay, now you just need a pair of shoes,” Ochako says while Izuku leans down to look at the piles of shoes at the bottom of his closet. “And not those decrepit red Jordans."
Izuku retracts his hand…“They’re not decrepit…” He says with a pout, but all Ochako does is shake her head.
"What about the Green sneakers you got for Christmas a few years back?”
"Oh yeah!" He pulls out the green sneakers his mom bought him a few years ago, only worn a few times.
Suddenly, he hears a ring at the doorbell. "Shit, he's here!" Izuku curses.
"He's here?”
"Yes! I gotta go, thanks, Ohacko, you’re a lifesaver!" Izuku picks up the phone
"Any time, babes! Good luck on your not-date!" Ochako says with a slight chuckle.
Izuku rolls his eyes and hangs up, "Bye, Ochako!"
Izuku hurriedly throws his clothes on, pulls on one of his shoes, and hears the doorbell ring a second time.
"Just a second!" He calls out from his room.
Izuku pulls his other shoe on and runs to the door. He takes a deep breath before opening, then opens the door to see Katsuki standing there, wearing a pair of dark wash baggy jeans and a fitted grey top.
“Hey!”
“Hey, Nerd.”
Katsuki’s hand scratches the back of his neck, then he eyes Izuku up and down.
"Your shoes untied," Katsuki says with an unreadable expression.
"Crap,” Izuku suddenly feels very unshielded. He kneels down and quickly ties his shoes, then stands back up. “Alright, I’m ready!” He rubs his neck sheepishly
“Alright then, let's get a move on,” Katsuki says, ruffling Izuku's hair. Instantly, the tense feeling Izuku has melts away, and he’s not even sure why he was so nervous to begin with.