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Izuku couldn't quite pinpoint exactly when he woke up. One second he was laying down to go to bed, the next he was wide-eyed and staring up at his ceiling, despite it still being pitch-black outside.
Everything was quiet. Everything was dark. According to science, this was the perfect environment for the human body to slip into a blissful rest, yet here he was. Maybe it was so peaceful that it actually became un-peaceful... Either way, he was tired and wanted nothing more than to go to bed, but it seemed almost as if his body wouldn't let him.
He tried everything. He twiddled his thumbs, counted sheep, heck, he even tried doing some homework at his desk. Three completed assignments later, he was still wide awake, and his brain was somehow even louder. Something felt wrong, in a way he couldn't describe. Every time he closed his eyes, his mind told him he needed to open them again. There were no threats in his room, he knew that for a fact since if there were, danger sense would've been going haywire. Plus, he was in the dorms of the most prestigious hero school in Japan. Truly, there was no safer place he could possibly be. If he knew that, why the heck did he still feel like there was something amiss?
Maybe it was the All Might posters? The dark kind of made them look creepy, but it was nothing he hadn't seen before on previous nights. After a few minutes of debating with himself, he got up and turned all of his action figures around on their shelves. He felt better for a split second, but as soon as he got back in his bed everything was wrong again.
He was too hot. He pushed his sheets away.
He was too cold. He pulled his sheets back.
He was too hot again. He turned up the intensity of the overhead fan.
Now it was too loud. Izuku buried his face into his pillow and screamed.
He didn't actually scream because that probably would have been too loud and probably would have woken up Aoyama or Mineta. Although, when he thought about it for more than a second, Aoyama was probably already awake and, pardon his language, he didn't give a single frick about Mineta.
Izuku turned his pillow around to the colder side, and nestled back into his mattress. He scrunched up his blankets and pillows in certain places in order to maximize comfort, and finally laid down on his side.
His arm was sore. He turned over onto his other side.
This position of him facing the wall and his back facing the door lasted all of five seconds, after which he turned right back around again. He had read in a book once, back in grade three or four, that humans were psychologically programmed to dislike turning their backs on open spaces. That's why early peoples, even though they were nomadic, settled in caves. It gave them a vantage point, as well as the simple peace of mind that nothing could creep up behind them. Izuku cursed his brain for supplying him with that useless, although on topic, piece of information, instead of just going to sleep.
After about ten minutes of prolonged discomfort and suffering, Izuku had finally decided he had had enough. He propped himself up groggily and reached over to check the time on his phone. He groaned as the brightness of the screen blinded him. After lowering the light as far as it could go, he read the time. Eleven o' clock, almost midnight. Along with the time, he glanced down at his notifications. It wasn't a lot, just some youtubers he was subscribed to, spam emails he had never bothered to block, and some guy texting who was under the impression that Izuku's name was actually Steve, and that he had offered to pay for his car insurance. As Izuku's name was, in fact, not Steve, he blocked the number.
While he was in his messages, he got a notification from a person he actually recognized. It was Ochako, asking him to... come to her room? What was Ochako doing up at this time of night? Usually, the girl went to bed around ten. He texted back.
'Why? Is everything ok?'
He watched the like bubble as she typed a reply.
'Just had a nightmare,' it read. 'want someone to talk to.'
Maybe that was what had been keeping him awake. Had his body somehow known that someone would be needing his help tonight? Izuku sent her a text to tell her that he would go downstairs for a glass of water and snacks, before heading to her room.
He sat up fully, and unplugged his phone. As he pulled on his sleep shirt, he thought to himself. Nightmares were completely normal, in fact, after what his class experienced, they were to be expected! Izuku had had several of his own in the two years since the war, and knew they were hard to deal with. He was immensely proud that Ochako could trust him with something so personal, and made a mental note to tell her so. He was glad she felt safe with him.
He approached the door, making sure to turn the knob fully before opening it, just to reduce as much noise as possible. He made his way out into the hallway and towards the stairs, being careful to avoid the patches of carpet that made the floorboards underneath squeak.
He had just started making his way down the stairs when he felt a presence behind him. He turned, shining the flashlight of his phone, but saw nothing but an empty hallway. He raised his eyebrow, but continued to the first floor.
Down at the landing, Izuku saw that all the lights were off, and that all of the blackout window blinds had been pulled shut. Maybe 'see' was not the appropriate word in this context since he could not in fact make out anything in the room. Everything was completely dark. It kind of freaked Izuku out, actually. It was like the stairs had just opened up into a bottomless void, and one more step forward would send him falling to his death.
Before he had the chance to move his flashlight up from the floor, where it had been so he wouldn't trip down the stairs and crack his skull in two, everything blew up.
The lights turning on was the equivalent of a flash bang, and a loud 'CRACK!' echoed through the room, assaulting his ears. Izuku was immediately sent into a state of panic, and shot out tendrils of black-whip everywhere.
The people who had jumped out from behind the couch, set off party poppers, and yelled 'SURPRISE' at the top of their lungs, were instantly ensnared and trapped. Only a second later did Izuku realize that these people were his friends.
His vision was tunneling, but he could make out the pink silhouette of Mina dangling upside-down, hanging by one ankle. After that realization, the logical conclusion was that the rest of the people were his classmates. If he knew that, why was he still freaking out?
Izuku clutched the fabric of his t-shirt over his heart as he stumbled backwards. He was hyperventilating, but it felt like he wasn't even breathing at all, like there was something stuck in his throat stopping him from inhaling.
Someone— some sort of undefined, fuzzy figure— was coming towards him, which only caused Izuku to back away faster.
His ankle met the base of the first stair, and he completely lost his balance. Before he could hit the ground, he felt arms around him, catching him.
"... ... ...—uku? Izuku, can you hear me?"
The loud ringing in his ears gradually faded into an annoying buzz that sat in the back of his mind. It let him hear, but gave him a horrible headache.
The voice calling his name belonged to... Kacchan?
"Shit. Ei, get him a glass of water."
Izuku squinted, trying to get a good look at the blond's face, but his vision was blurry, not from disorientation, he realized, but from tears. He was crying in front of his entire class. Oh god, this was so embarrassing. Izuku stifled a sob and tried to calm his trembling hands by pulling on his hair. 'Get it together, Izuku!' he heard his mind shouting at him. 'You're supposed to be the symbol of peace, not a crybaby!' This of course, only made him cry harder.
Kacchan took Izuku's hands out of his hair and held them firmly in his. He was saying something, but it sounded muffled. Izuku did his best to focus on Kacchan's voice and Kacchan's voice alone, manually filtering everything else out.
"Hey, I need you to breathe, Izuku. In and out."
Katsuki made a show of his chest rising and falling, which looked kind of stupid, but ended up being helpful. Izuku did his best to breathe with him, but occasionally he would wheeze or choke. Kacchan was nodding though, so he must have been doing okay. He felt black-whip retreat.
Kirishima suddenly appeared with a glass of water and handed it to Katsuki, who held it out to Izuku to take.
"I need you to drink," Kacchan said.
Izuku knew he was right, water would help, but he just couldn't find it in himself to move his arm. It wasn't like he physically couldn't do it, he still had his motor controls, it was like his mind had forgotten how to properly execute the command. Somewhere there was a disconnect between his brain and body that prevented him from moving. Izuku blinked at the glass.
Think of it like a control panel. The panel is huge, with millions of buttons and dials, all flashing bright colors. None of them are labeled, and it's the operator's job to press the correct one in order to receive the desired outcome. Izuku was the operator, and had completely forgotten which button was 'lift arm to grab glass and drink.'
After a few more seconds of silent struggling, something finally clicked, and he reached forward. He took the glass and downed it all in one go. He hadn't realized how dry his throat was.
He set the glass down, and scrunched his eyes shut as he took a deep breath. His heart was still beating pretty fast, but at least he couldn’t feel it racking through his entire body anymore.
He felt Katsuki squeeze his hands, before letting them go. Izuku mourned the loss of the steadying warmth.
He blinked his eyes open so that the light wouldn’t blind him, and was met with a very concerned Kacchan. It was obvious he was trying to appear nonchalant, but Izuku knew better. HIs unsteady breathing and clamped hands gave away just how shaken he really was.
Ochako walked up behind him looking incredibly guilty.
“We’re so sorry, Deku, none of this went how we planned.” She crossed her arms, holding herself. “We didn’t mean to scare you.”
Izuku saw Mina nodding in his peripheral vision.
“We should have known that a surprise party wasn’t the best idea, especially after the… you know.”
The entire class looked incredibly ashamed of themselves. Izuku smiled weakly.
“It’s okay, you guys. I know you meant well.” He moved to stand up, but his legs shook. Katsuki immediately reached out, but Izuku stabilized himself on the stair railing. He managed a smile.
“If it’s alright with you guys, I’m going to go back to bed. Could we—“ he swallowed thickly, “continue this tomorrow?” He felt sweat collecting on his forehead.
Everyone nodded immediately.
“Yeah man, totally,” Eijirou smiled reassuringly. “Tomorrow’s a weekend anyway, so we can just chill and hang out. Whatever you want, bro!”
Izuku nodded. That sounded nice. He turned to head back up the stairs, but someone stopped him.
“Nope.” Kacchan said sternly. “You can barely walk, we’re taking the elevator.”
“We?” Izuku asked as he felt an arm slip around his waist. He settled his own arm instinctively on Katsuki's shoulder. Izuku learned into him as they made their way over to the lift. 'Who's the cane now?' he thought, smiling to himself. He watched Katsuki jam the ‘Up’ button impatiently with his pointer finger.
“Yes, we. Someone has to make sure your ass doesn’t pass out on the way to his room.”
The shaft dinged as it arrived at their floor, and the metal doors slowly slid open. They hobbled inside, with Katsuki holding a majority of his weight. He pressed the button for the second floor, and the doors closed.
“It was just one flight, Kacchan.” Izuku knew he could lean against the wall, or maybe even the railing, but he was too tired. At least, that's what he told himself as he rested his head on Katsuki's shoulder, and closed his eyes. “I would’ve been fine.”
"Fine my ass." He laughed. "You're exhausted."
Another quick ding and the small shudder of the elevator stopping told Izuku they'd arrived at his floor. It had probably taken the exact same amount of time as taking the stairs, if not more, but he couldn't bring himself to care. As long as he got to spend more time with Kacchan.
They walked out onto the carpet and made their way down the hallway to Izuku’s room. His door was still cracked slightly from when he had left earlier, so Katsuki just pushed it open and stepped inside.
Izuku was lowered down into his bed, and had the covers pulled over him ‘Kacchan doesn’t need to baby me,’ Izuku thought tiredly.
As Katsuki started walking back to the door, Izuku realized he didn’t want him to leave. Sure, he was exhausted but he just… He just wanted to be with Kacchan.
Izuku turned his head on his pillow. “Can—… Can you stay?”
Katsuki paused with his hand resting on the door frame. The dim light from the hallway created a rather cinematic silhouette. Izuku was struck with a strange feeling of deja vu, like he had seen this exact moment before.
Only a small portion of the blonde's face was visible, but Izuku could tell he was torn. What should he say to convince him?
“…Please?”
Katsuki shifted on his feet, and that was all Izuku needed to see to know he had been successful in his ploy. He smiled to himself as he watched Katsuki close the door and make his way back to the bed.
He sat down on the edge, and looked at him.
"What? Wha'dya lookin' at, nerd?"
Izuku laughed quietly, closing his eyes as he leaned back onto his pillow.
"Nothing, Kacchan. Just... I don't know. Happy."
With his gaze fixed on the ceiling, Izuku saw the soft smile Katsuki was wearing in his peripheral. Either he didn't think Izuku could see it, or simply didn't know it was there, but Izuku was glad he was smiling regardless.
Kacchan was even prettier when he smiled.
"You shouldn't be." He grunted as he slouched, and rested his hands in his lap. "That was the worst 'surprise party' I think I've ever witnessed. And— and that's saying something considering what happened on your fifth birthday."
Izuku looked at him, pretending his smile was from him thinking back fondly of memory.
“Yeah, mind explaining exactly what happened? I got the impression that something went wrong.”
Katsuki turned to him, and sighed.
“You got that text from Round Face asking you to come over to her dorm, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, she was going to get you in her dorm, and then bring you downstairs. But, since you went downstairs first, you didn’t know people would be down there, and got spooked. We assumed you were with Chubby Cheeks.”
Izuku nodded the best he could laying down.
“Uh-huh, and who’s idea was it to throw me a surprise party? …At midnight.”
Katsuki grimaced.
“I threw around the general idea of a party. Just something simple, cake, maybe a few presents, don’t get it fucking twisted. The surprise and middle of the damn night part was added in later by Raccoon Eyes and fuckin’— John Cena.”
“—John Cena?” Izuku laughed.
The tips of Katsuki’s ears went red as he got angry. “Invisi-bitch, you know who I’m talking about!”
“Yeah, I just never thought I’d hear one of the sweetest people in our class compared to— John Cena! I can’t— I’m— I’m gonna tell her you called her that.”
“Don’t you fucking dare!”
Izuku laughed hard, to the point of his sides aching.
It slowly faded into silence once more, but it wasn’t awkward. It was never awkward with Kacchan. Izuku exhaled, and finally opened his eyes once more. Katsuki was already looking at him.
He smiled softly. “Happy birthday, Izuku”
Izuku stared up at him as he felt his eyes begin to water, his nose begin to burn, and hip bottom lip begin to tremble. Katsuki immediately tensed up at the sight of the waterworks, and moved to rectify the situation.
“No— Shit— Don’t cry!—“
Izuku sat up and captured his body in a bone crushing hug. Only Midoriya Izuku could cry like a baby and crush like a python at the same damn time.
"Oh, Kacchan!" He sobbed. The words after that were indiscernible.
"Iz— uku— You're— Killing me—!"
Izuku flopped back down onto the bed, dragging Katsuki along with him. When he finally released the blonde, he didn't go far.
Izuku smiled, moving one of his arms from where it rested on Katsuki’s shoulder to his face to wipe his tears.
"God, Kacchan— I—" he sniffed, and tried to collect himself. "I can't believe I actually made it to eighteen." His voice cracked at the end of the sentence, and he started to sob again.
"Oh, Izuku." Katsuki pulled him close and hugged him tight. Izuku hugged him back, burying his face underneath Katsuki's chin, just above his chest.
Katsuki rubbed Izuku's back comfortingly as he waited for him to calm down enough to speak.
"It's just— since— since junior high, and— the war— I— never knew if I— if you— If any of us were going to make it— but— oh, I'm so glad we did."
Izuku pulled back to look Kacchan in the eyes. Even he was starting to cry a bit.
"Yeah. I'm glad we did too."
They were both smiling. They were both smiling and crying like idiots. Two men jammed in a twin bed that was barley big enough for one, in a room absolutely covered head to toe with posters and action figures of their teacher.
But they were together. They were both here. They were both alive. And that, that was more than plenty of a reason to smile.
They snuggled up together so no one would fall onto the floor, and closed their eyes. There was no noise except for the quiet whir of the overhead fan, and the occasional audible breath.
"So, you're first day of being an adult. Ya feel different?" Katsuki asked after a while, his eyes still shut.
Izuku thought about it for a second. He was eighteen. He was legally no longer a child.
"I'm not sure," he started. "I'm still me. It's—... It's weird. It's weird because I feel the exact same as I did when I was seventeen. But, I guess people don't change in a day. Age is a gradual thing. I'm in no rush."
Katsuki groaned. "Quit bein' all deep when I'm tryna go to sleep."
"You're the one who asked," Izuku laughed softly.
"Yeah, whatever."
Izuku shimmied a little bit so he could press his ear to Katsuki's chest and listen to his heartbeat. He felt him inhale.
"Happy birthday, Izu."
Izuku's smile grew wider.
"Thanks, Kacchan."