Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Katsuki’s first encounter with his own hanahaki came right at the end of their 2nd year at UA. Class 2-A had been celebrating the end of finals with a small living-room party when he felt a strange, uncomfortable sensation in his chest. The tickle has been there for weeks now, never amounting to more than a slight cough, but tonight, he had been sitting there in a conversation with the classmates that he now reluctantly calls his friends, when his chest suddenly felt like it was going to cave in. And that’s how he discovered his first petal. 

Fuck , Katsuki had thought as he stood over the white ceramic sink, hands clutching both sides, watching the trail of saliva from his mouth to the hydrangea petal taunting him. 

The petal was green, because of course it fucking would be. And it’ll be the only color that will ever leave his lips, alongside the red of his own blood. Green, like his eyes. Green, like his hair. That shitty ner-

“Kacchan?” The devil in question peeked his head through the bathroom door, and Katsuki was quick to wash the single petal down the drain. 

Then, the usually explosive, fire-eyed boy turned to look at the source of the voice, with a much quieter, almost unsettling, demeanor than what anyone who knew anything about Katsuki would be used to. Katsuki then took a look at those green eyes again, which were staring at him now with a wide, worrying gaze that he used to hate so badly. He looked at the messy green mop the shitty nerd called hair, sticking out in multiple directions from lack of care. He took note of the tenderness in Deku’s voice that he convinced himself was never going to be reserved for just him. Deku was just like that. With everybody.

Katsuki didn’t have to look around to see who it was that had given him this shitty disease. He didn’t want to think that he was in love, or that he even liked anyone, but the moment the flower petal fell from his lips, he would have been stupid to deny what was going on. 

And he would have been stupid not to have known who it was that bestoyed this curse upon him either. Of course it had been Deku. Katsuki thinks that maybe, this is some twisted karma that the universe handed to him. Of course it was the kid who he had bullied, verbally abused, and who had no reason to reciprocate his feelings that ends up being the one he falls in love with. It was like the story wrote itself, and all that was needed now was for it to play out.

After their fight at Ground Beta, fuck , something just clicked. The progress in their relationship was by no means overnight, but just Katsuki finally realizing that what Deku had felt was not pity made a landslide of a difference. There were days, plenty of them, when the boy would lose his goddamn mind if Deku so much as offers to pick up a pencil for him. But there were others when Katsuki wouldn’t mind that Deku had gotten him a birthday and a Christmas gift, or that Deku had offered to help him cook, which he always rejects, but no longer because he is afraid that Deku was doubting his abilities, but because the nerd is just a really fucking useless cook. 

Katsuki continues to help him train OFA in his own free time and they spar together more nights than not. At first, it’d be a one and done deal. Show up, spar, and then part ways, all without saying any unnecessary words. 

And then, one of those nights, Deku had timidly asked him to go out to this new udon shop down a couple blocks off the school grounds with him, and damn , thinking back, Katsuki should have said no. He should have fucking said no. But he was too damn hungry, and going with Izuku that one time opened up the door for what the nerd thought could slide in their new and volatile relationship. 

And to be fair, Katsuki had let him. At some point, he had stopped resisting as much. Of course, it wouldn’t have been Deku & Kacchan, the iconic duo,  if they no longer fought, argued, and resisted, but he would have been a damn liar if he said he couldn’t have tried harder to make the nerd go away. Because he didn’t. He didn’t try harder. 

And so, as their 2nd year at UA ticked by, Deku nudged his way back into Katsuki’s life, albeit with much push-back and many angry and difficult nights, and Katsuki barely did anything about it but grumble and pretend he was more upset than he was. 

And that was how Katsuki found himself being dragged to this restaurant or that ice cream parlour on random weeks, where Deku would talk his ears off for a good two hours or so about things he reluctantly admits were interesting. And how he found himself studying together with the nerd until it was 1 AM, way past his own bedtime, but Deku was absolutely useless at history and Katsuki would never beat him unless he was at his absolute best. And by the time they were done, the green haired bastard was usually passed out on his floor, and so a sleeping mat, a pillow, and an extra blanket became a permanent addition to Katusuki’s closet space just for this. 

And so now, fast forward to the end of their second year, in this too bright, too static bathroom, as Bakugou Katsuki stands in front of the object of his reluctant but insistant affection, with flowers growing in his body, he couldn’t even find it in him to be angry at the nerd for doing this to him. He had let it happen, somehow. 

“Kacchan...are you okay?” Deku asks again, after the boy in question did not reply the first time. His voice came out soft and worried, his body itched to get closer to Katsuki, who had been looking at him oddly for the past minute or two.

Katsuki was not fine. He wanted to scream No, I’m not fucking fine, you idiot. Look what’s happened to me. Go away, and take all of these feelings with you.  

But he uncharacteristically mutes that part of himself and settles with a “Go back to the party, nerd. I’m fine.” He takes in a deep breath, feels phantom petals tickling the back of his throat, “Don’t get all worked up for nothing.”

It was not nothing. The doctor he ended up contacting, someone he’s opting to call Dr. Baldie because of the balding spot in the back of the man’s head, confirmed that much. 

“Mr. Bakugo, ehrm,” He scratches the back of his ear, “As you know, Hanahaki is exceedingly rare, as only a certain population is able to contract it in the first place. You just happened to be one of the few people with the right set of genes that the disease can latch onto. Of course, there’s been plenty of research th-“ 

“Yeah yeah, I’ve already read up on all this shit. Get on with it. What are my options,” Katsuki grumbled, tapping his foot impatiently against the hardwood flooring of the too bright, too quiet doctor’s office. 

Dr. Baldie sat back and sighed, palms rubbing his temple, “Well, there’s three. The first is to, obviously, confess to the object of your love and have it be reciprocated.” 

“That’s not happening,” Katsuki rejected it immediately.

“Why not? Is there no chance of reciprocation? The worst-case scenario is the person says no, and you still have the other two options.” 

“Listen, doctor baldie,” Katsuki growled and the doctor cringed at the nickname, “This kid...I’ve done enough to him already. I’ve bullied him. I’ve taunted him for years. I’ve shitted on his dreams. Sure, we’ve been getting along way better, but that doesn’t erase the history. An-”

“It does not have to dictate the future either, Mr. Bak-”

“I ain’t finished,” He snapped, “The last thing I need right now is to make someone feel guilty. I know for a fact, that if the shitty nerd finds out, he’ll never forgive himself. Get this, he doesn’t feel the same way. If he knows what’s good for him, then he’ll never feel the same way. But if he finds out, then he’ll try to convince himself to, and I don’t need his fucking pity. I’d rather die. I can’t...” Bakugo clenched his jaw at how flowers wanted to rise up his chest at the next words, “I can’t force that kind of love if it’s not there.” 

Besides, Katsuki thought, someone like Deku shouldn’t be with someone like him. Don’t get him wrong. He is pretty fucking amazing, and a damn catch if he had anything to say about it, but he’s just... not for Deku . 

Deku was this shining beacon of joy and love, someone who loves unconditionally, just not in the way Katsuki needed him to love. He’s someone who smiles when everyone else feels upset. Meanwhile, Katsuki is almost the exact opposite: brash, rude, frowns more than he smiles. Someone as bright as Deku doesn’t need to be darkened. Katsuki would say that he’s worked hard and improved much on his internalized self-hatred and insecurity, but he knows an incompatibility when he sees one. The thought of Deku having to convince himself to love Katsuki back, which he knows that the nerd will try to do, sickens him. 

The doctor pursed his lips, “Your second option would be, of course, the surgery. It’s a 7-hour intensive thoracic surgery to remove the root of the disease, but as most people know, it erases all of your memories surrounding the person you love, and common side effects like feelings of emptiness can persist for year-”

“Fuck no,” Katsuki rejected as well, “It makes me wanna throw up admitting this, but I wouldn’t be as far as I am right now without the little bastard. Besides, what do you think will happen if one day, I just show up and forget everything about him but no one else, hah? You don’t think it would be fucking obvious what happened? And that would lead me back to the first problem, with Dek- the shitstain feeling guilty for the rest of his life.” 

“Well, the option is always there if you change your mind.”

“I won’t. What’s the third option?” Katsuki demanded. 

The doctor closed his notebook, “Fall out of love. If you don’t love someone anymore, then it can’t be unrequited, can it? Tell me, is this option viable to you?” 

Bakugou took a pause. Fall out of love? He looks at baldie, “Depends. How much time do I have?”

“It’s different for everyone. On average, individuals with hanahaki last for about 6 years without treatment, but we’ve seen a few cases where the subject can live for up to 15 years after their initial diagnosis.” 

“15 years?” He sneered, “That’s plenty of time to get rid of this shit. I don’t even need to worry about it then.”

The doctor put his hand up to pause Katsuki, “I strongly suggest you do not wait even a day, if the third option is what you’re going for. 15 years is the extreme case, not the average.”

“And I strongly suggest you don’t tell me what to fucking do,” Katsuki responded calmly standing up, “Listen, my first and most important goal above anything else is becoming the best hero. I can’t do that if I’m too busy dealing with shitty feelings. So I’m going to train, harder than anyone, better than anyone, and I’m going to be the best damn hero you’ve ever seen. And then after that, I’ll worry about this shitty disease.”

The doctor looked at him for a while, before sighing, giving in.

 In the end, Katsuki was prescribed a myriad of medicine to keep the coughing and the floral attacks at bay so that he can go through his day-to-day life pretty normally. He was given a packet of pills that needed to be refilled every three months, to be taken twice a day in the morning and then later at night. And then an EpiPen type needle to use during sudden fits of hanahaki coughing.

As he leaves the doctor’s office, he couldn’t help but think: in this day and age filled with quirks and quirk-related accidents, death by mundane things like disease seems like remnants of the past. It’s ironic that as a hero, Katsuki will be expected to die in some huge quirk battle sometime down the line, and yet, here is he, told that he’ll just end up dying from feelings . Not that he has given up, god no, who would he be. He’ll focus on his primary goal first, and after that, he’ll worry about falling out of love. 

It doesn’t take Midoriya Izuku long to notice a change in habits and attitude from his childhood friend once their 3rd years started at UA. If it’s one thing that’s never changed about Izuku, it was that he has never taken his eyes off of Kacchan. How could he? Even if he wanted to, and there were indeed many times when he wanted to, he just couldn’t. Everything about Kacchan drew his attention: the deep timbre of his voice, every maneuver he could do with his quirk, the way he seems like a meathead but has the second-highest grades in the class behind Momo, his strong hands and build, the list goes on. 

Katsuki made it impossible for Izuku to look away, and so, when the details of Kacchan’s life began changing even by a little bit, Midoriya noticed. He  noticed everything about Kacchan, and even more so when they started getting close during their 2nd year. 

Summer break came and went, but now, as they started their 3rd and final year at UA, something was...different with Kacchan. They weren’t even major. Not that Izuku ever counted on average how many times Kacchan left to go to the bathroom normally, but it seems like these days, the spiked-hair boy was leaving the classroom with that excuse at least once a day. That wouldn’t sound too out of the ordinary if it wasn’t for the fact that Aizawa and almost all of their faculty almost never let the students leave for bathroom breaks, as unreasonable as that was. Just go during the break. We have important material to cover . They’d always say. 

And yet, whenever Kacchan would ask these days, there would be no resistance from any teacher. Aizawa would let him leave without making any comment whatsoever. Of course, this doesn’t have to mean anything at all, but it was just something that Izuku had noticed. 

Another thing he noticed was that: when he would come over to Kacchan’s room to study or maybe to force the boy to watch a movie with him, which he has been doing even more than when they were in their 2nd year, there was always a giant bottle of pills on the nightstand. If Izuku was there in the morning, then he’d see Kacchan take one. If Izuku managed to stay later at night, then he’d also see Kacchan take one. Twice a day, the same jar. The pills were in a large labelless jar that you’d get at a regular superstore. It was like Katsuki had taken the pills from the original packaging and dumped them into an empty glass container. For what reason was beyond Izuku. 

“What are those pills for, Kacchan?” He asked one of those nights they were staying up late in Kacchan’s room studying for a Quirk History test. At this point, he’d seen this new routine at least 30 times.

At the mention of the pills, Kacchan looked up immediately from his textbook and right at the nightstand, as if caught off guard by the question. However, the blonde regained his composure quick,  leaning back on his forearms, looking over at Izuku who held a curious expression, “I went to the doctor a couple of months ago. The fucker said if I keep using my quirk at high intensity, my hearing will be damaged later on. So he gave me the pills to help protect my ear canals. Tastes like shit, but it’s whatever.” Katsuki lied nonchalantly. 

Katsuki had practiced this story a couple of times. It was specific enough that no one would think he was making something up, and completely believable considering the quirk Katsuki was born with. The truth was that his hearing has never been affected by his explosions, for his ears had developed with his quirk to be able to withstand the constant intrusions on his eardrums, but no one knew that besides his family, the staff at UA who had done physicals on him, and his doctors. 

“Oh, I see!” Deku responded with a bright smile, too bright and too fucking pretty, “I thought something was wrong with Kacchan.” 

“Nothing wrong, you little shit,” Katsuki reached over to ruffle up Deku’s hair. Small actions like that were becoming more acceptable by the day, “I told you not to worry about me.” 

Once upon a time, that line would have been laced with menace and fear of Deku underestimating his abilities to care for himself, but now, it was more reassurance for Deku than anything else, and Izuku knew it. 

That only made the green-eyed boy smile wider, “But I can’t help it. I’m always going to wor-”

“You finish that cheesy ass sentence, and I’ll never allow your ass in here again,” Katsuki lightly slapped Deku on the side of the head. 

“Kacchannnn,” Deku complained while dramatically rubbing the spot where Katsuki had slapped.

The pills Deku had accepted without another thought. The weird acceptance among the UA faculty for Kacchan’s random 10-minute classroom leaves were odd, but his childhood friend could have chronic diarrhea for all he knew and he wasn’t about to ask. But something unexplainable was something so incredibly specific that it baffled Izuku every time. 

When he was in Katsuki’s room, Kacchan would never let him throw anything away. If there was something to be thrown away--a candy wrapper, a balled-up piece of paper, a tissue--Kacchan would take it from his hands and throw it away himself. When Deku would make a move towards the trash, Kacchan would always beat him to it. 

“Why won’t you let me throw it away myself? I can do it, you know,” Deku furrowed his brows. They were watching the new episode of the dumbest show together and Izuku had finished a bag of popcorn, making a move to throw it away when it was snatched from his hands. 

Katsuki paused. He’s prepared explanations for many things. His pills. His bathroom breaks, although he’s glad no one had asked because he would have had to lie to them saying he had bowel issues. Hell, he even had an excuse for a random cough if he couldn’t help it: the smoke from his quirk sometimes tickles his throat. But it was especially hard to have prepared an excuse as to why he won’t let anyone throw any of their shit away themselves. He couldn’t risk anyone seeing the petals. There weren’t many excuses that were actually believable, except for one…

Heat rose to Katsuki’s neck, but he relaxed himself and gave Deku a sly shrug, “I like to control what people see and don’t see when it comes to my personal things.”

Deku fidgetted with his fingers a little bit before looking up at Katsuki for clarification, “W-what do you mean?” 

Katsuki took a confident step forward, hands in his pockets, gaze staring down at Izuku who wanted very badly to look away, before casually listing off things, “Don’t play dumb with me, Deku,” His voice a deep timbre as he forced Deku to listen, “You know...porn mags, cum rags, you know what the fuck I’m talking about.” 

Seeing Deku’s face flush a deep red and the stammering that came afterwards was almost pleasurable to Katsuki, who let out a small chuckle as the shorter male went up to rub the back of his neck. 

“Ah, th-that’s what you meant,” Deku stammered, averting his gaze, “B-but you don’t have to be so embarrassed about it, Kacchan. Everyone does it. Erm, uh, unless you’re asexual, then you don’t feel the need to,” And then he started waving his arm around frantically, “But I’m not! Asexual, I mean. So I do it too!” Deku said too excitedly before realizing how odd it came out, “So you don’t have to be shy abo-”

“Stop muttering, you freak,” Katsuki flicked his friend on the forehead. The image of Deku touching himself with those soft hands and beautiful arched back needs to leave his mind now , “I don’t give a rat’s ass how many fingers you can shove up your ass,” That was a lie . He definitely wouldn’t have mind knowing, “But how would you feel if I saw the shit you were jerking it to?” 

At that, Deku’s eyes widened to the size of saucers, as the green-eyed boy thought back to all of the fantasies he’s had before while in the moment and how he’d feel if someone knew about them. 

That was enough of an answer to Katsuki, “Exactly. So stay out of my trash can. I care more about it than the average person, so if you got shit to throw it away, give it to me.” 

Deku gulped but nodded in understanding. 

His hanahaki becomes more of a routine than any major impediment throughout his third year at UA. It was becoming almost mundane that sometimes he forgot. A pill in the morning, and a pill in the afternoon. The EpiPen is there when he needs it, and then a check up once in a while. He misses as many check-ups as he can, but then Dr. Baldie threatens to write up a doctor’s note to the school saying that he needed to take off training if he doesn’t come to at least two checkups a year. 

He sometimes forgets that he has hanahaki, until the inevitable flower that makes his way up his chest cavity and into the trashcan or down the sink. Always a green petal, as if its reminding Katsuki of feelings that he can’t seem to kick. 

He trains harder than he ever had. Most people will have decades to perfect and strengthen their quirk, for they don’t have a ticking time bomb on their hands. But Bakugo Katsuki has never been most people. He needs to get strong and accomplish his primary goal quick , so that he’ll have some time left over to deal with his hanahaki. Katsuki swears it: until he becomes the greatest hero, he’s not going to give the hanahaki a second thought. 

Katsuki can tell that Deku’s been noticing the intensity at which he’s been training lately, and it’s good for both of them. They’ve always bounced off of each other’s competitiveness. If Katsuki trains harder, so will Deku. And if Deku trains harder, so will Katsuki. It’s ironic that the person that Katsuki should stay away from the most is also the person who he is the most goal-wise compatible with. 

Katsuki knows that Deku makes the dumbest excuses for them to hang out, and yet he still goes along with it. Ever since they’ve become friends again, and yes, Katsuki was now confident enough to call them that, the nerd still hasn’t kicked the habit of thinking he needed a reason to talk to Katsuki. And at first, the reasons were passable. Kacchan, I need help with my history homework. Kacchan, come with me to this restaurant. It’s getting dark, and we both haven’t eaten yet. Kacchan, can we watch this movie? I bet you’ll get more scared than me.  

But now, they seemed like jokes. Kacchan, can you go on a walk with me? It’s so dark outside, and I need your explosions to make light . And yet, knowing damn well the nerd has a phone flashlight and fucking One for All in case something decides to jump out of the bushes, Katsuki still agrees, pretending it bothers him more than it does. And then there was Kacchan, can I come over to your room? Mineta’s music is loud . And yet, having walked past that floor just minutes ago and not having heard any music, Katsuki still says yes. 

It was times like these that Katsuki wonders if there is any chance after all that his feelings may be reciprocated. And then, he decides that it’s better safe than sorry. And they’ve worked too damn hard on their relationship for him to ever ask for more. Not to mention, just the fact that he has been given another chance to be the nerd’s friend after everything was honestly more than he had deserved. Besides, Deku was like this to everyone. And the things Deku was willing to give to his other friends: hugs, friendly kisses on the cheek, were things that didn’t exist in their friendship. 

“Kacchan,” Deku approached him after class one day, out of breath with his hands on his knees as he reached out to tug on the corner of Katsuki’s uniform jacket, “Can we go to downtown? I accidentally bought two tickets to a Quirk museum, and it’s nonrefundable.” 

Deku looked up at the blond with waiting eyes, and Katsuki couldn’t help but wonder why the boy couldn’t just ask him straight up. Was he still afraid of Katsuki’s new friendship? 

“No,” Katsuki responded, and saw the immediate look of disappointment on Deku’s face. 

“Oh,” Deku shyly said, “That’s ok-”

“Not until you ask me again, but this time ask me with the truth,” Katsuki demanded leaning down to meet the boy’s wide green eyes, “Did you really ‘accidentally’ buy two tickets, or did you purposely buy two to go with me?” 

A blush crept up onto Deku’s cheeks and he took a moment before muttering, “...I bought two to go with you.” 

“Tch,” Katsuki stood back up and cracked his neck before looking off to the side, “If you wanted to hang out, just fucking ask next time. Your excuses are always shitty. I don’t know how you’re not embarrassed with yourself.”

Deku looks up at him in awe, “Really?” He asked too excitedly, “It’s just that...I’m so happy being friends with you again that I didn’t want to look like I was asking for too much, but it’s so fun hanging out with you and I want to hang out more, but I don’t ever want to bother you. So I make up excuses just in case I sound too annoyi-”

“You are annoying, brat,” Katsuki corrected, “But if you’re going to do something, don’t be a fucking wuss about it. So ask me again, nerd.”

Deku beamed this time, “Kacchan! Can you go with me to the Quirk Museum, please?” 

“No.”

“...” Deku’s face just blanked in confusion.

“Let’s get food first, and then we’ll go. I’m fucking starving,” Katsuki expanded then reached out to mess up Deku’s hair, just in time to see the boy break out in a relieved and excited smile. 

I’m so happy to be friends with you again . 

Friends, Katsuki repeated with a painful sensation in his throat. It’s all that they were.

It takes Deku a couple more times to break out of the habit of making up excuses, but he eventually does. Katsuki doesn’t know whether or not to be happy or fucking terrified that this meant that Deku was showing up at his door twice, sometimes three times, a week, shamelessly asking with those stupid doe eyes to do this or do that. 

The green haired boy was borderline abusing his hang-out-with-Kacchan priveledges. It didn’t even have to be anything exciting and important. Sometimes, Izuku would just ask to sit there and watch Katsuki as he did whatever it is that he did. At first, it was a little strange to just have eyes watching him from the bed, but after a couple times, Katsuki couldn’t help but grow irritatingly fond of the presence. 

It’s fine , Katsuki thinks to himself , I can let myself enjoy this. After all, in a couple months after they graduate, everything will become easier: for him and the hanahaki. No longer does he have to spend every day looking at that face, hearing that voice, being near Deku but never being able to have him. The thought leaves a guttural feeling, and yet he tells himself it’s better this way. 

These days, the flowers in his chest are coming out three or four at a time, not much of a nuisance yet, but the blonde knows its from prolonged contact. But it’ll be alright once they graduate: once they go their separate ways. 

It was all perfectly planned out in Katsuki’s head. He’ll enjoy his time now, not worrying about the hanahaki or distancing himself from Deku. And then they’ll graduate in late July. After that, they’ll head off to whatever agency they’re choosing, and over time, hopefully the flowers will go away. He had a plan.

And of course, every plan that Katsuki has ever had has been thwarted by none other than Midoriya Izuku himself. 

Fuck Midoriya Izuku. Fuck Midoriya Izuku and his doe eyes. And his pretty words, and his pretty fucking offer. 

Fuck Midoriya Izuku for showing up to his door at 2 in the morning a month before they finally graduate from UA with tears brimming his eyes. The moment Katsuki opened the door, they fell from his waterline and fat water droplets slid down the crybaby’s freckled cheeks. 

“ Shit ,” Katsuki cursed and made a move to usher the boy inside his room, but Deku refused to move. Rather, the boy stood there with his head down looking at his hands trying hard not to cry. 

Katsuki without thinking reached out to take a hold of Deku’s face and tilted it so that the boy was forced to look at him, “Deku, what’s going on.” 

Deku sniffled for a few moments then bit his tongue as if he wanted to back out, but then stammered, “I u-used to dream about it all the time when I was little. And then, a-as time went by, that dream fizzled out into a once in a while thing, but I never...But I never forgot it. But then, this past year, it’s all I’ve been able to think about, Kacchan. Especially these last couple of months. I can’t stop thinking about it.” 

Katsuki furrowed his brows, “The fuck are you talking about.”

“Kacchan…” Deku closed his eyes and leaned into Katsuki’s touch with a small smile, “Everything’s been so...perfect. We hang out again like old tim- No, even better than old times. I’m...I’m a better hero when I’m with you, and,” He took a breath, “I don’t want it to stop. I’ve-I’ve been so happy. I don’t want any of this to stop. Kacchan, be hero partners with me.” 

Katsuki’s eyes widened fractionally as his body comes to a halt. Deku opens his eyes and stares at the blonde, searching desperately for answers, and after a couple moments of silence, Katsuki could see the panic beginning to form in the nerd’s demeanor. 

And just like that, all of the plans Katsuki had to naturally become distant with Deku after graduation is thrown out the window. Because how is he supposed to deny the offer. Not just because it’s Deku who’s asking, but because it is logically the best route for him to take. It wasn’t as if he hasn’t thought of it before, but he never considered it a viable option considering his illness. But now, here the boy was in his flesh and blood, telling Katsuki that this was all he has been thinking about, and Katsuki was supposed to tell him no? Even though they’d make the best team of heroes the world has ever seen? Even though they are great on their own, but better together objectively speaking? Even though every single aspects of their lives up until this very second entangled them in this web together? Even though everyone around him, All Might included, have been hinting at this his entire time at UA? 

Deku opened his mouth, and Katsuki already knew that the nerd was going to go on full panic mode and talk a mile a minute, and so the blonde made quick work of the situation. 

“Yes,” He simply replied, stopping Deku in his tracks. 

The boy’s green eyes widened significantly and mouth parted, “Yes?” 

“You got hearing problems now, shitnerd?” Katsuki asked while wiping a tear away with his thumb, “I said yes. Now tell me, why the fuck did that involve crying a river for?”

Izuku began airily laughing through his tears, partly because of happiness and partly because of relief, “I psyched myself out thinking you were going to say no.”

“And if I was, you would’ve cried like this all week or something?” 

Izuku shrugged, “Maybe. But I’d probably would have pestered you up until the day we graduate.” 

“Tch,” Katsuki tried to hide a grin, “Of course you would.”

“Kacchan, do you mean it though?” Deku looked up at him for affirmation, “We can be hero partners?”

“If you really think about it, we already are,” Katsuki replied. 

His doctor would probably say that choosing to become hero partners with the person who gave him hanahaki was the biggest mistake Katsuki could have made. Not that Dr. Baldie even knows who gave it to him, much less that it’s Japan’s up and coming sweetheart. And not that Katsuki would’ve told the man. 

They were plastered upon any magazine or journal that featured fast growing heroes on track to be top ten. Even if this was a mistake, it was one Katsuki was willing to make over and over again. 

It was almost two and a half years into their hero partnership under Endeavor’s agency, courtesy of Shouto and also the fact that almost all of Class 3-A graduated UA already known by most of the public, and Izuku, Katsuki, and Shouto were practically living legends. 

It was ridiculous how fast the two climbed the charts. There was even an investigation going on to see if any tampering was involved in the polls, because how in the fuck did fresh graduates, granted they were from the most impressive class UA has yet to produce, get to spots #17 and #18 within a year, and now they’re at #9 and #10. One was always one spot ahead or behind the other, but they came as a packaged deal: the Wonder Duo. 

Every time the two were on the scene of an accident, it was wrapped up in the most efficient way possible. It was even rumored they had an extra telepathic quirk, but the truth was that Katsuki just understood Izuku, and Izuku felt the same way. When Katsuki is on site and the two are in sync with their movements without saying a damn word, all he could think is nothing can ever feel quite like this . 

Their growing popularity dubbed them nicknames: Japan’s Sweetheart and Japan’s Bad Boy, which made Katsuki want to barf a little. Hero Deku’s kind and warm personality charmed the masses, while Hero Ground Zero’s brash but cunning way of speaking and acting had its own wooing effect. They were character foils that just fit . 

The higher ups of the agency knew of Bakugo’s condition, as it was required for every hero under the agency to take a full in-depth physical and health examination. At first, they had been hesitant to take in someone with such a disease, even with the credentials that Katsuki applied with, but the blonde had promised them: Take me, and I’ll promise you the best 15 goddamn years you’ve ever seen at the least, and at the most, I’ll get over this stupid disease and I’ll give you the best 30 you’ve ever seen. He leaves out the part where he plans on leaving the agency when he’s built up enough repertoire and money to open up his own. He also leaves out the part where he mentions 15 years is a rare case for hanahaki victims. 

But it doesn’t matter, because they take him anyways. 

Being hero partners with Deku has been both one of the most rewarding and terrifying decision he’s made. Terrifying because his doctor, who has now gotten sick of his straight up disobedience, comes back with a chest scan and everytime says “It’s getting worse,” To which Katsuki will only ever say “Prescribe me stronger pills,” And that’d be that. 

And when he wakes up dead in the night because 8 or 9 petals were climbing up his throat, he just clears it after getting it all out and goes back to sleep. And when in the midst of an intense fight he feels something threaten to come up, he pushes a button built into the side of his suit that injects the EpiPen needle into his thigh. He had it installed immediately upon entering the agency. 

But on the rewarding side, he and Deku have never been closer than they were now. 

Their lunches were more likely than not spent together, and most of their assignments left them having to come over to one of their places. Their apartments were about twenty minutes away from the agency by car, except in opposite directions. While Katsuki’s was East of the agency, Izuku’s was West. And so, if they were over at each other’s apartments for whatever reason, it was oftentimes just easier to crash there than to drive an hour back. Shouto had suggested multiple times at this point that one of them should just move closer to the other if they’re just going to spend their nights at one place or another. 

This happened at least once or twice a week, to the point where Deku’s shit was strung all over Katsuki’s apartment, and vice versa with Izuku’s. There was an extra toothbrush at each place, and some clothes were mixed in with the owner’s. Katsuki’s guest room was barely a guest room, with the little remnants of Deku everywhere even though Katsuki told the fucker to clean up after himself. 

This constant surrounding of Deku sure does not help his case, but fuck, he’s only human. 

And it’s not like he hasn’t started trying to ease his hanahaki. He was getting closer and closer to his goal every single day, so it wouldn’t hurt to maybe find some way to deal with the shitty disease. 

He’s tried going on dates. And they’ve always ended one of two ways. One is a complete failure, never going to contact them again, walk-out-of-the-restaurant type of failure. The other way is in his bed, also never going to contact them again, but at least he got some of his sexual frustration out. Either way, nothing has actually helped stop him from imagining if it was Deku instead. Fuck, even when he’s in bed with someone else, it’s hard not to imagine green hair and wide eyes there instead. He was essentially screwed. 

“Deku-kun, you have so much healthy food in your fridge!” Ochaco exclaimed, eyeing the rows of vegetables and fresh protein, “Your diet has changed a lot in two years!”

Izuku looked up from his kitchen counter and shyly rubbed the back of his head, “Ah, I actually haven’t changed at all. That’s all of Kacchan’s foods. He says that he refuses to come over if I don’t have decent food in the fridge,” And then in a quieter voice, he mumbles, “Although I don’t see what’s not decent about frozen pizza.” 

Izuku at this point has the brand names and all of the grocery stores that Katsuki likes memorized, and could honestly go shopping for the blonde, just by how often Katsuki has dragged him to the store to show him what “real food” is like. 

“And here I thought you’ve become a better man,” Ochaco teased before pulling out some greek yogurt. 

Deku stuck out his tongue at his friend, “Eat shit and die.” 

In response, Ochaco threw a plastic spoon at his head, “Deku, you’re spending too much time with Bakugo. His bad habits are rubbing off on you.” She complained with a laugh, “But to be fair, your good habits are rubbing off on him too. I think he almost remembered what my name was today.” 

“Kacchan knows your name,” Deku laughs, “He just likes to pretend he doesn’t. Although, I do wonder if he remembers mine. We spend almost all of our time together, and I still don’t think he’s ever called me Izuku.” 

“Do you ever call him Katsuki?” Ochaco ponders.

At this, Deku’s cheeks go red at how intimate that sounded, “No!”

“I wonder what would happen if you did,” She pursed her lips in thought. 

Deku messes with one of his locks, “He’d probably set an explosion off in my face.” 

Ochaco merely agrees, “Probably. But real talk, Bakugo-kun’s really mellowed out over the years. Seriously, he’s still rude and rugged, but it’s almost endearing now.”

Deku just smiled and placed his head on his palm, “Yeah, the other day I drew a mustache on his face with highlighter while he slept, and when he had to give a presentation in front of the higher-ups, it glowed in the blacklight, and when he found out, he didn’t even kill me. I feel blessed,” Izuku sarcastically teased. 

“The bare minimum, how sweet of him,” Ochaco laughed before thinking, “Speaking of sweet, looks like Bakugo finally managed to like one of his one-night stands.”

At the mention, Izuku feels a horrible, twisting pull in his gut, but his sadistic curiosity gets the best of him, “What do you mean,” He asks a little too quickly. 

Ochako pulls out her phone and opens an article, swiveling her device so that Izuku could see, “This is the third time he’s gone out with this girl. That’s two more times than any other girl or guy.” 

Izuku stares at the picture of Kacchan and a girl walking out of a restaurant together. Kacchan was dressed in a tightly fitted crochet shirt with ripped blue jeans. The shirt stretched over the blonde’s ridiculously broad shoulders and muscled up arms, and Izuku would have probably stared longer if it wasn’t for the girl attached to his hip. 

This fucking girl , why does she-

“Uraraka, why does this girl-” He began, brows furrowing cutely.

“-look like you?” She finished, hovering over his shoulder, “I thought that was curious too.” 

Deku’s mouth dropped as he observed her features more. The girl, whose name was allegedly Yuki, had a head full of long green hair and gigantic green eyes. She even had freckles , and a similar eye smile to Deku. The difference was that she had a full bosom, small waist, and was overall gorgeous while Izuku would say that he is compact, thick legs, and was just kind of plain looking, not that he usually minded. He was not going to deny that she was beautiful, but she looked so similar to him that it made his gut churn. 

Izuku felt like screaming. If you’re going to sleep with someone who looks just like me, why don’t you just sleep with me!  He mentally screamed at Katsuki. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair. 

It’s not like Deku didn’t read the news, especially Ground Zero-related news. Hell, he probably read every news article that goes out about all his favorite heroes, Kacchan being one of them. And so, he knows that Kacchan occasionally has “guests” over. Once in a while, Izuku would show up at the other’s place, only to see another pair of shoes at the front door or so. The feelings that brew in his chest would fester and want to shriver up and die, but one thing that kept Izuku sane was knowing that these one-night stands  are never to be seen again. It’s not like Kacchan just sleeps around a lot, just once in a while, but the only thing that gives Izuku peace of mind was the fact that there’s never a second time. So why has he gone out with this Yuki girl three times already. Katsuki wasn’t his, and he had no right to feel this sad over it, but he can’t help his feelings even if he tried. 

He and Katsuki talk about a lot of things. But his sex life was not one of them, so it’s not like Izuku could just come over and over a beer just ask the blonde, “Hey, who is this Yuki girl you’re going out with, why does she look like me, and why are you allowing her to grace your presence more than once?”

Ochaco laughed nervously as she tried to pry her phone out of Deku’s grip as the man continues glaring daggers at the photo, “Deku-kun, I’m sure she’s just a three-night stand.” 

Deku lets go of the phone and leans back into his seat, groaning, “Ochaco, I’m hopeless, aren’t I.” 

“Maybe just a little bit.” 

The next time Izuku sees Katsuki, the question is on the back of his tongue. He wants to ask about the girl so bad, but he knows there’s no way to approach the subject without crossing into some dangerous territory that he and Kacchan never really dived into before. Their sex lives was generally an understood no-go zone, and it would’ve just made things awkward, but Izuku would be lying if he said he wasn’t dying to know if this Yuki girl was more than a fling. Katsuki could do whatever he wanted and whoever he wanted. After all, Izuku will never be one to shame someone for what they do in their private lives, even if he wished that Kacchan wouldn’t and that it was him instead. But that was a part of Izuku that he buried deep down inside of him and convinced was never going to happen a long time ago. 

They were in the locker room at the agency, and Izuku lingered a bit as he always does to wait on his partner. He generally tries not to oggle, but in light of what’s been occupying his mind since Saturday when Ochaco came over, he squinted his eyes at a couple marks that were clearly hickeys that trailed near Katsuki’s collarbone. That familiar stomach churn rose from his gut again, but he’s just going to blame it on some bad eggs rather than admit that he was hopeless.

“What are those?” Izuku asked, pretending to be casual, even though he knew damn well what they were. 

Katsuki looked over at him while buckling his pants in, then looking down to what Izuku was referring to, “Come on, Deku, don’t tell me you’re that innocent.” 

Well , that confirmed it, even though Izuku wasn’t sure why he was expecting literally anything else. He bit his tongue. 

“No, I was just...wondering,” Deku leaned off the door frame and looked away, playing with the fabric of his hero costume.

“They’re hickeys, you shitne-” Katsuki began.

From the other side of the locker room, Todoroki cut in, “Deku knows what hickeys are, Bakugo. I saw him a couple of weeks ago with some.” 

Sometimes, Deku wanted to curse Shoto’s honesty. He felt himself internally shrivel up as he whined, “Shoto, as much as I love you, no one asked for your input!”

“Who.” Katsuki took a step forward towards Deku, something ablaze in his eyes as his voice dropped an octave, and Deku felt shivers run up his spine. There was a pretty large height difference between them, and Izuku suddenly felt encompassed by Katsuki’s looming presence. 

The thought of someone touching Deku, putting their mouth on his skin and leaving marks, making him let out sinful sounds is boiling Katsuki’s blood, even though he knew he had no right to feel this way. Deku wasn’t his, but at times like this, it suddenly felt really hard to control himself. Not when he couldn’t have what he wanted, and now, had to come to the reality that someone else gets to.

Izuku suddenly felt a spike of anger. Wow, hanging out with Katsuki all the time really has been affecting him. Kacchan had no right to question him on who and get details on his private life, when he gets no details on Katsuki’s. When Katsuki gets to do whoever he wanted, and Izuku’s just had to look away. 

“You first, Kacchan.” Deku found the courage to stare back at his friend and ask. 

“That’s none of your business, Deku ,” Katsuki said with a slight sneer.

Deku narrowed his eyes, and the tension in the room was palpable. In the corner of his eye, he can see Shoto stiffening, “Same to you then. Why do you care anyways.”

At this, Katsuki seemed to grab a hold of himself. That coupled with the sudden fit of coughing he felt like he was going to have soon. He stepped backwards again and continued suiting up, “I don’t.”

Deku looked down at the ground, wondering why he wished that Katsuki did care, but he just let out a soft smile, “Right.”

After a moment or two, Deku left to run a quirk errand for someone, and as soon as he did, Shoto piped up. 

“So are you two going to dance around each other forever, or what?” The man asked. 

“Shut up, half-and-half,” Katsuki growled.

They’re okay by the time patrol starts. These days, their arguments never last longer than a couple hours. A huge improvement from how they used to be. And by the late afternoon, Izuku gets his answer about Yuki without even having to ask. 

At the end of their patrol, Katsuki pulls out his phone after having it ring consistently and end the incoming call with an irritated huff. 

“Is that Aunt Mitsuki? Is she calling again about the vase you broke?” Deku asked with a light laugh.

“First of all, I only broke the vase because your clumsy ass bumped into me. What did I tell you before we went in, nerd? I told you that we’re going to go in quietly while the hag is asleep, steal my humidifier back, and leave quietly before she can wake up and make us stay for fucking hours. And what do you do? The exact opposite,” He scolded and Deku opened his mouth to protest, “But no. I honestly would’ve preferred the old hag over this.”

Curious, Deku asked, “Who is it, then?”

“This bitch named Yuki,” Katsuki ran a frustrated hand down his face, “She won’t stop calling me, and I’m pretty sure I told her fuck off and die, and she still is screwing up my phone.” 

“Oh!” Deku has no idea why he couldn’t control his slight excitement. He shouldn’t be excited, “You should just block her.”

“I will later,” Then Katsuki chuckled, “Funny thing is, she kinda looks like you, nerd. Big fucking green eyes and the hair mop. Freckles, too. But her personality? Exact opposite. She’s all spoiled and rude. Like damn, I’m rude enough for two people, Christ. But you? You’re…” Katsuki stopped to catch himself from acting like a fucking sap. You’re what? You’re fucking sweet, and doesn’t take a damn thing for granted, and just fucking incredib-

“I’m what?” Deku stopped too, and looked up at Katsuki. Izuku hated to admit it, but he was getting a dopamine high from Katsuki contrasting the two of them. He doesn’t want to sound needy, but he occasionally needs affirmation that he’s important to Katsuki, even if he already knows it. 

“Sweet,” Katsuki settled with that, and walked ahead before Deku could see the heat rising to his face. Now that he thinks about it, he’s not sure he’s ever given Deku a genuine compliment that wasn’t about his physical skills. 

Some night during the following week, he wakes up with a start from the immediate urge to cough up petals. Fuck , Deku was over in the guest room sleeping, so he quietly stepped over to the bathroom as quickly as he could. The petals have been insistent lately. The pills were supposedly stronger than the previous batches he’s been prescribed, and yet they don’t do much to stop the 13 to 15 petals, now mixed in with a few stems, that come out. He locks the door and flips on the switch, bright light suddenly flooding his eyes and the hum of electricity is loud as he leans over the sink and sputters. 

There’s always been a little bit of blood that comes out with the petals, but never enough to be concerning. However, this time, it felt like the petals were coated in blood. They were bunched up in the back of his throat and he tries to breathe, but it felt like he was grasping at an icy ledge. It comes out as a wheeze and he hits his chest, rumbling his throat to force the flowers to come up.  

They unlodge from the back of his throat, and now, he’s coughing up a storm as it slowly trickles out of his mouth and into the sink: bloody green petals with a bit of stem here and there. 

Katsuki hears shuffling outside and he curses to himself. It didn’t take long for him to hear a knocking on the bathroom door and a soft voice call out to him.
“Kacchan?” That sweet voice said his name, “Is everything okay?” 

No , Katsuki thought but didn’t say aloud. Instead, he just brushed it off, “Ts’ nothing, Deku. Go back to sleep.” 

He looks down at the petals for a second before gathering them up for disposal.

 That was the worst one yet. 

His doctor is angry. To be fair, Dr. Baldie is always angry at Katsuki. If the doctor had been timid about upsetting the hero before, then he doesn’t hold back now. After all, they’ve been doctor and patient for over two years now. Any sense of sugar-coating has dissipated. 

“It’s getting worse,” He stated as a matter of fact.

“Just prescribe me stronger stuf-”

“Mr. Bakugo, there is no stronger stuff. I’ve been telling you this for months. At some point, you can’t just brush it off and keep on getting on stronger pills. Look, you’re an amazing hero now, Ground Zero,” And the doctor pulls out his phone to show Katsuki a photo, “Most people your age are still called rookies, but my son calls you his favorite hero. Has your merch, all Ground Zero toys, and everything. See? Speaking of, I’m going to need you to autograph this shirt for him later. But back to the point, you’ve did it. You’re a great hero. Everybody knows you. Now , can you start worrying about the hanahaki?” 

Katsuki threw his hands up, “What do you expect me to do, Baldie? I’ve gone on dates. I’ve done most of your suggestions.”

“Except for staying away from the person who you have hanahaki for in the first place,” The doctor deadpanned.

“Listen,” Katsuki closed his eyes and took a deep breath before divulging, “I can’t stay away from him. This isn’t me being all sappy and saying that I can’t live without him or some shit. We are better together. The lives we can save together are greater than the lives we save apart. And that is fucking important, and I’m not giving that up. I can’t just stay away from hi-”

“It’s Hero Deku, isn’t it,” The doctor asked, “Your hero partner?”

Katsuki sneers, “Took you long enough.”

“I’ve always had my speculation, but you just confirmed it. It’s not really my business who gives the patient Hanahaki, but with you in particular, I feel a bit more invested. Excuse me, but my son would never forgive me if I let his idol die,” Dr. Baldie explained, “If it’s Deku, then this is just my advice as a person and not as a doctor, but I’d suggest confessing.”

Katsuki opened his mouth to protest, but the doctor held up a hand. 

“I know you shut down the option when this first started, but I’ve been around for more than 40 years. And I don’t see many people look at each other the way that I see Deku look at you,” The doctor stated his observations, “If you’ve ever seen any interview with the hero, then you’ll know that he thinks of you very highly. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed if you confess.”

“The nerd is like that with everyone,” Katsuki objected, “And he’s always thought of me highly, even when I didn’t deserve it. It doesn’t mean shit about his romantic feelings. Yeah, I’m sure he loves me, but not in the way that you think he does. He loves everyone. Little fucker has a heart of gold. Get your eyes checked, doctor. You’re seeing shit that ain’t there.”

The doctor rubs his temples, “Fine. But Katsuki,” It’s the first time he calls him this, “When I said that there was a 6 year average for Hanahaki patients, it’s because they actually listened to my advice. And they kept minimal contact with the person they loved. In your case, you’re seeing this person every day. For several hours each day. And that’s not even counting when you two meet up outside of work. I’m going to be honest with you. I’m not sure how much time you have left,” He sighed, “We can’t keep doing these check-ups twice a year, not at the rate at which your hanahaki is progressing. You’re going to come to me every month now. Or else, I’ll write up to the agency that you need to be benched.”

Katsuki had his elbows on his knees and was looking off to side, but surprisingly enough, said nothing. 

“I’m surprised you’re not arguing more,” Doctor Baldie tried to lighten the mood. 

Katsuki stood up from his chair and stretched, before shoving his hands in his pocket, “You’re the doctor.” 

Katsuki comes home later that evening to find a pair of red sneakers near his door. Sometime last year, Katsuki had given Deku a spare key to his apartment because the nerd either always crashes there or has to run back there multiple times throughout the week because he forgot something at Katsuki’s place. However, leave it up to Izuku to abuse his key privileges, because now, the man comes over even when Katsuki wasn’t home to just chill out and mooch off of his food. 

Katsuki learned really quickly, after this began happening, to buy a trash can reserved for guests since obviously he’s not always going to be around to throw people’s shit away. There’s even a label on them. Guest Trash Can and Bakugo’s Trash Can. 

Upon entering his apartment, he sees a tuff of messy green hair on his couch watching a docuseries on Gang Orca. Upon hearing the door click open, Izuku snapped his head around and waved enthusiastically, “Kacchan! Where’d you go today?”

“I went over to Shitty Hair’s for a drink. I haven’t seen the goons in a couple of weeks,” Katsuki lied. 

Deku went silent at that and pursed his lips in consideration. The initial smile that was on his face disappeared and Izuku looked down at his hands. 

And then he spoke up again, voice less enthusiastic this time, “Is there a reason why you’re lying?” 

Oh shit . Katsuki’s eyes widened.

Deku then continued, voice a bit quiet, “I was with Kirishima just an hour ago, giving him my margarita mixer. He was telling me about his day, which he spent with Mina.” 

Fuck , Katsuki should have known better than to use something as volatile as a person in his excuses. 

Deku is looking at him now for answers, eyes searching him, curious and just slightly hurt that Katsuki had to lie about his location. It’s not like he would have cared where Katsuki was, even if it wasn’t where Deku wanted him to be. He understood he can’t make that kind of decision for him. But to lie to him. 

Katsuki sighed. He thought quickly. Deku’s birthday was coming up soon. The truth was he already had his gift, but one more lie couldn’t hurt, “I was working on your birthday gift. It was supposed to be a surprise.”

“Oh,” Deku’s face softened and he broke out into a smile, “Kacchan, you didn’t have to. You usually never give me one, and I’m still happ-”

“I know, you dip shit. That’s why it’s supposed to be a surprise,” That part wasn’t a lie, but he grimaced at Deku calling him out like that. 

“Kacchan…” Deku softly called out, getting up off the couch to come tackle Katsuki with a hug.

“No, no, don’t you dare get cheesy on me now, you fucking sap. I haven’t even given it to you yet,” Katsuki barked as he backed away from the slowly approaching Deku, “Get away from me.”

But Izuku merely laughed as he ran after the blonde. 

When Izuku’s birthday comes around, he feels guilty that his mind had been on Katsuki all day. The moment 12 A.M.  struck on July 14th, he was bombarded with texts and calls from everyone wishing him a Happy 20th Birthday.  He was ecstatic that he had so many friends and acquaintances that cared about him and remembered. He honestly couldn’t be more grateful.

 And yet, he still found himself constantly checking his phone for a text from Kacchan, feeling slightly disappointed when it was just someone else wishing him a happy birthday and then guilty right afterwards. 

It was thankfully their day off today, so he didn’t have to call into work. However, the day still felt busy because there had to have been at least 20 people who dropped by to give him their wishes and gifts in person. It was all very sweet, and Ochaco had even mentioned that there was going to be a small get-together at the bar later today to celebrate. Since he’s turning 20, he can finally legally drink. 

It ended up being a fun night, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t keep an eye out for Katsuki the entire time. At some point, Mina had noticed and patted him on the back, “If you’re looking for Bakugo, he can’t make it tonight. I think he said something about running some errands.” 

Izuku didn’t even try to hide his frown. It’s not like his birthday is the most important thing in the world or anything, but he was a little disappointed. But he decided he wasn’t going to let it ruin his night. It’s just one friend out of many. Except that one friend wasn’t just any friend. It was Kacchan . Instead of sulking about it any further, Izuku just smiles and goes back into the conversation. 

It was about 11 PM when he got back to his apartment, body tired and throat sore from talking so much throughout the day. Although he had a few drinks, his tolerance was high and he barely even felt buzzed. He pulled out his phone just as he reached his door to check if he had any new notifications. 

Nothing. I’m so pathetic , Izuku teased himself as he unlocked his door. He made quick work of undressing, showering, and changing into more comfortable clothes before collapsing into the bed. He checked the time. 11:38 PM. The day has been so fun, yet so long and his eyelids were drooping. 

He didn’t even think he removed the towel off his shoulder yet, just laid back on the bed, chest heavy.

“Oi, Deku,” Katsuki shook him. 

For a second, Izuku thought he had been craving Katsuki’s company so badly all day that he had manifested the blonde in his dream, but then the large hands on his shoulder felt a little too realistic. 

“Kacchan?” Deku asked with half-lidded eyes as he brings himself up to his elbows.

“The one and only,” Katsuki said as he flicked Izuku on the side of the head, “Get up.” 

Izuku was awake now, rubbing his eyes. Katsuki was sitting on the edge of his bed, dressed in a casual black tank and some sweatpants. For some reason, the usually explosive blonde looked nervous. Izuku wanted to reach out, but he held back. He’s always wanted to reach out and close the distance between them, in a way they’ve never done before, but convinced himself so long ago it wasn’t going to happen. He and Katsuki have never been physical friends: barely any hugs, comforting touches, or any of that, even though they spent so much time together. Really, Kacchan only ever ruffles his hair, and that was more than Deku ever even expected. And so, he sits back. 

“I got something for you, nerd,” Katsuki gruffly spoke.

At this, Izuku laughed, “Kacchan, there’s only 20 or so minutes left until my birthday is over.”

“It’s over when I say it’s over,” Katsuki ruffled Deku’s hair, “I’ve been busy all day, but trust me, I wanted to come earlier.” 

Deku just smiled, “I’m just happy you’re here.”

Katsuki just let out a scoffing noise at that and reached behind him where there was just a small black drawstring bag. Reaching inside, he pulled out two items. Izuku watched him the entire time, curious.

And then, the blonde began talking, softly but firm. 

“Deku, when we were in middle school, I was a little bitch,” Katsuki began, “I bullied you, told you that you were useless, told you all kinds of shit that I didn’t mean, just because I was insecure about myself. I’m not even going to go into that, because I know that you know. You came home and had to lie to your mom about why there were burn marks on your uniform. I shit on your hobbies and stepped on your self confidence. I fu-”

“Kacchan…” Deku said softly, “You don’t have t-”

“No, I do have to. Because you deserve it, Deku,” Katsuki affirmed, “You deserve an apology. You deserve an apology for all the shit I put you through and all the shit I said to you. I didn’t mean them, okay? You’re...fucking incredible, alright? I won’t say it again, but I fucking mean it. So, I’m sorry.”

Katsuki looked over at the boy, and was not shocked to find tears brimming Deku’s eyes as they took a moment to be silent. But he wasn’t done. 

“First,” Katsuki began, forcing Deku to pay attention, “When I was 14, I told you to go take a swan dive off of the roof, took your notebook, and then I set an explosion off of it before throwing it into the fountain.”

 He handed Deku a notebook, a white and blue compos notebook just like the ones he had when he was young, and on the cover, it said “Hero Analysis No.13,” the volume that Katsuki had burned that day. Except this notebook was completely clean, and new. Deku looked up at his friend in confusion. This wasn’t the No.13 that he had. The one he had was burnt, water-damaged, and lying on his shelf somewhere in his home office.

“You’re not very observant with your belongings so I took the original one that I destroyed and rewrote everything, and added on things that weren’t in there before. A lot of that notebook was about me. You were missing some details, so I filled it in. I also filled in more information about heroes that we know more about today. It’s not much, but I just wanted to show you that just because we’re friends or whatever now doesn’t mean I don’t have to make up for all the shit I did.” 

Deku was speechless. His fingers flipped through the pages of the updated and upgraded notebook, all in Katsuki’s nice handwriting, and tears streamed out of his eyes. This was Katsuki’s way of apologizing. He was always one that was more focused on actions, rather than words. All of this: the notebook, was telling Izuku that he didn’t forget, and that was important. This was Katsuki’s way of saying that they weren’t just going to be friends, and disregard everything that happened beforehand. Katsuki has come a long way from where he was, and in the past two years alone, the sheer amount of times the blonde has saved him and has been there for him outshined anything he had ever done badly in the past. 

Deku opened his mouth to speak, but Katsuki stopped him. 

“I’m not done,” And then he pulled out another notebook, this time it was a black leather notebook with a gold trim that was more of Katsuki’s style. On it said “Katsuki’s Hero Analysis #1”.

He handed it over to the green-eyed boy, but didn’t let go even as Deku took a hold of it, and instead looked him in the eye, “You’ve been watching me all of these years, Deku. I was a shithead, and now I’m a slightly more toned-down shithead, but you’ve been there all throughout. This notebook isn’t really useful to you at all, but I just wanted you to know that you weren’t the only one watching.” 

And with that, Katsuki let go, allowing Deku to open the notebook he just received, and the nerd almost immediately cried. Big tears rolling down his cheeks as he positions the notebook away so that the ink doesn’t run. Katsuki had written his own hero analysis, except the entire thing was about Deku. And it had included everything from the major details to minor seemingly useless ones. It had all of his fighting styles on there, his costume changes throughout the years, his battle highlights, his ultimate moves. 

But it also had his favorite food, his favorite color, a list of top #5 stupid sayings, a tally chart of how many times Deku stuttered during the speech he gave at the Japan Hero Convention last year, and a rankings chart of all of Deku’s friends, with Katsuki of course at the top. 

“Is this...a top-five list of my worst outfits ever?” Deku laughed while hiccuping in between sobs. #1 on that list was when Izuku had worn neon yellow athletic shorts and a brown button-up dress shirt to a class gathering. He looked like a rotting banana. 

“Yeah, I honestly thought of doing a top twenty list, but figured I’d be merciful,” Katsuki replied. 

Deku smiled and wiped the snot from his nose. This was Katsuki’s way of showing he cared and that he noticed, that it wasn’t just Izuku who paid attention. God, he couldn’t have been happier in this moment. 

Without thinking, Izuku threw himself forward and wrapped his arms around Katsuki’s neck, burying his face and wet tears into the blonde’s shoulder. He didn’t care if they didn’t usually do this. He didn’t care at all. He was going to take whatever he can from the blonde right now and relish in it. 

Katsuki took in a deep breath, smelling eucalyptus and honey, before slowly snaking his arms around Izuku’s waist and pulling him in closer. Their bodies fit like puzzle pieces, and Katsuki cursed the fact that he couldn’t go to sleep and wake up like this. 

“Thank you, Kacchan,” Deku whispered quietly after he stopped crying a bit, but refused to let go. That was alright. Katsuki didn’t want him to. 

Katsuki wished Izuku hadn’t let go. Because if he hadn’t, then he would be in the hospital, a couple of weeks later, from the most serious injury he’s sustained yet in a villain battle. After Izuku’s birthday, everything was going fucking perfect aside from the worsening hanahaki. 

Deku seemed to gain a newfound sense of confidence and security when it came to their friendship, and fuck, the nerd’s smile still knocks the air right out of his lungs. He was much more touchy too, hugging Katsuki anytime he could, even playing with his hair. 

Just the weekend before, he and Deku had taken a short day trip on their day off to hike a seaside mountain, and ate a nice sunset dinner at the top. In moments like those, he doesn’t even care about the hanahaki. 

When Katsuki got the call, he was in fucking Indonesia. Although the two of them were usually put on the same case, when it came to cases where one of their quirks are much better suited than the other for a certain job, usually high-profile, then they’ll be put in separately with a new temporary team. These missions usually went well, and if it was international, then they were both back in Musutafu within two weeks or so. This time, it was Katsuki who got called onto an overseas mission in Indonesia to deal with a criminal case involving a drug ring situated below a ring of active volcanoes. 

It had been a little over a week, and he had just apprehended the main ringleaders when he got a call from Inko. 

“Auntie?” Katsuki huffed, “Everything go-”

He stopped when he heard frantic crying through his speakers, and turned serious, “Auntie, what’s going on?”

“Katsuki,” Inko sobbed, “It’s Izuku. He was doing fine, and had gotten the main villain. But a-at the last moment, one of the accomplices who had a really terrible quirk got him. He’s in Intensive Care right now, but the doctors say he’s in critical condition. They’re flying out the best surgeon, but we don’t-we don’t know if…”

The rest was just white noise as Katsuki felt his fucking stomach sink and his head spin. Deku. Deku. Deku. That was all he could think about, and before he knew it, he was rushing through the crowd of reporters and people on the scene of the crime helping with rescue, apprehension, and what not. 

“Ground Zero, we want to ask you a couple of ques-” a reporter got in his way.

“Fucking move it right now, or there’s about to be another crime scene. I’m going home,” Katsuki growled as he pushed past the reporter and ran for it. 

Apparently, it had been a villain whose quirk gave him the ability to move through flesh, just flesh. What a fucking useless quirk unless you’re a damn villain. The villain had managed to sneak up on Izuku by moving through the flesh of people’s bodies who had been passed out in the scene of the crime until he was close enough to the pro-hero. Melding into Izuku’s body, the villain had managed to tear out and puncture several of Izuku’s internals before another hero had come in to help. It was only due to healing quirks and advanced medicine that the hero didn’t die on the spot. 

Katsuki received the rundown outside of Deku’s room not long after he arrived at the National Hospital. His blood boiled, and if he had his way, he would break the villain who had done this out of Tartarus just so that he can kill the bastard himself. He sits there tapping his feet, waiting for news. Any news. Inko has been sobbing on his shoulder the moment he arrived, clutching his hand so tightly that it feels like he’s losing his blood flow, but he makes no move to get away. If he’s feeling this shitty, then he can’t even begin to imagine what Deku’s own mother is going through. 

It’s another excruciating two hours before someone comes out of Deku’s room, and Katsuki waits for any sliver of information. 

“The good news is that he’s stable. I don’t know what’s in him, but he’s a tough one,” The doctor began. 

“And the bad news?”

“He’s going to have a long recovery process. He’s sustained an abnormal amount of internal injuries, which will take a long time to heal. He’ll have to be benched for about two weeks, and it’s going to be painful the entire time. He’s barely going to be able to move, make food, shower, any of that. After his two weeks are up, he can go back to work, but he can’t do anything intensive for about a month.” 

“Fuck,” Katsuki cursed under his breath. It’s so so much better than what the doctor could’ve said, but the two week recovery is going to be hell, he already knows it, “When can she see him,” He asks pointing towards Inko, “At the rate she’s panicking, she’s going to faint and end up in one of these rooms.” 

“Give it an hour after he wakes up. And that might be a day from now,” The doctor responded, “I know it’s difficult, but your patience is appreciated.”

When Deku woke up, half a day later, at the exact hour mark, he was immediately attacked by his own mother, who smothered him right away. That hurts, but okay , Izuku thought to himself as his mother pulled him into a tight hug. The nurse who was there checking his vitals had to tell her to get off. 

When Katsuki went in an hour or two later, Izuku’s eyes lit up. 

“Kacchan! You’re usually the last person who comes by,” He teased, “You were that worried this time?”

Katsuki growled, “Stop smiling you little shit. You just got your insides rearranged.”

Deku was hooked up to all sorts of tubes and needles. The external damage wasn’t too bad. After all, it had been the internals that were destroyed, so from the outside, it didn’t look devastating. But Katsuki knew better. Internal damage on this scale must have hurt like an absolute bitch. 

“Yeah, but I got the villain, didn’t I?” Deku slyly tried to brush it off. 

“The villain probably felt like he won, after what he did to you,” Katsuki scoffed, “How are you feeling?”

“Absolutely horrible, but it’s nice to be alive!” Deku desperately tried to look on the bright side. 

Katsuki sat down on the edge of the hospital bed and ran a tired and frustrated hand down his own face before rubbing his temples. Seeing Deku okay took off a brick house’s worth of stress off his shoulders, but the residual panic was still there. Fuck , to think that he almost lost the nerd. 

“Kacchan…?” Deku asked, fingers tugging on the corner of Katsuki’s shirt gently. 

The blonde looked at him from the side, and Izuku could see the dark circles underneath the man’s eyes and the spikey hair that was a bit of a mess. Katsuki timidly reached out and after a moment of hesitation, rested his palm on the side of Izuku’s face, making sure that the boy was there. The warm cheeks and soft tuffs of hair greeted him well, and Izuku, desperate for any physical touch from Katsuki, was quick to lean into it, not breaking eye contact with his partner. It was an intimate moment between them, filled with worry, care, and adoration. 

“You’re going to be the death of me, Deku,” Katsuki says in a quiet but sure voice. 

It’s a double entendre. To Izuku, it was meant as a playful hyperbole, telling him that Katsuki was worried and that Katsuki cared. And yet to Katsuki, the words had an entirely different meaning. Nearly losing Izuku just reaffirmed to him just how deep in shit he was. How the fuck was he just supposed to fall out of love with the nerd, when he was in this deep. Deku almost died the other night, but Katsuki has had his sentence set for him four years ago. And now, he was paying the consequences of not letting go. 

Izuku gently smiled at him and brought a hand up to cup over Katsuki’s, “Not if I have a say in any of it.”

The irony is enough to make Katsuki chuckle to himself. The irony that Deku did in fact has a say in it. 

“What’s so funny,” Deku asked him. 

“Nothing.” 

During the two weeks of recovery after Deku was discharged from the hospital, Inko stayed over during the day to help Izuku with daily tasks, and Katsuki came by as soon as he got off of work or on days he had off. On the days he had off, he would tell Inko to stay home altogether and he’ll keep the man company all day. Deku kept on insisting that he didn’t have to, but Katsuki knew that he needed and appreciated the help. 

The first-night Katsuki came by was just a tad bit awkward . It’s definitely not the first time that Katsuki had stayed the night, by far. However, it was the first time that he touched Izuku this much. Sure, Deku gave him hugs, occasional shoulder massages, and they’ve carried each other when one is down during a fight. 

But to feel Deku’s waist constantly as he is carrying the nerd from place to place. To take his clothes off and then put them on, minus the underwear, allowing him to see the beautiful yet firm body scattered with equally beautiful battle scars. To want to run his hands all over that body. God, Katsuki feels scummy getting this much pleasure from Deku’s pain. 

But it wasn’t as if the nerd wasn’t complicit. They had a perfectly working wheelchair to get him from place to place that Katsuki could push him in, but instead, Deku just raises both arms and calls out, “Kacchan. Take me to the kitchen.” 

“You have a wheelchair. A damn nice one too,” Katsuki pointed out. 

“I don’t like it,” He frowns, “It’s not comfortable.”

“It sure looked comfortable when you were rolling around in it when your mom’s here,” Katsuki called him out.

Deku wasn’t fazed, but instead shamelessly proclaimed, “That’s because I wouldn’t make my poor old mom carry me. Now, carry me to the kitchen.”

“You fucking spoiled brat,” Katsuki barked, but still came over to lift the irrational hero off of the couch and set him on the kitchen counter. 

“Can you make me some pasta? Any pasta,” Deku pleaded. 

Katsuki looked at him for a good minute, before grumbling under his breath. 

The blonde at the beginning of the week had packed a bunch of clothes, toiletries, and his medicines to bring over to Izuku’s place, setting them in the guest room where he’ll be spending his nights for the next two weeks. He brought his own trash bags to store the petals when he’d cough them up. 

Usually, when one of them would spend the night at each other’s place, it was easier to get away with the sudden coughing fits. If they only happened once in a while, then Izuku wouldn’t question it. Most of the time, the greenette was asleep. However, being with Izuku every night for two weeks makes it inevitable, especially with his worsening illness, for the freckled hero to notice something’s up. 

Randomly throughout the evening or night, a massive coughing fit could be heard from the guest bathroom. Izuku has grown accustomed to Katsuki’s occasional coughing when he’s hanging out and the man needed to leave for the bathroom; however, it feels like they’ve gotten longer and more frequent. 

It wasn’t as if he hasn’t asked before, but the blonde always replied to him that the smoke from his quirk sometimes has an effect on his lungs. It makes enough sense, but at the same time, Izuku felt as if he was missing something, or that Kacchan’s explanation didn’t quite reach his eyes. 

“Kacchan, your coughing’s gotten a lot worse lately. Or has it always been like that, and now that you’re practically living with me, I only notice?” Deku asked the man one evening as they were lounging on his couch. 

Deku had his head on the man’s lap as he forced Kacchan to give him a head massage. It has been so domestic the past couple of days that Izuku almost didn’t want to get better. This way, he could have Katsuki to himself--albeit from a distance--every night and all evening. Kacchan cooking for him. Kacchan carrying him everywhere. Kacchan being gentle with him. Kacchan watching movies and playing board games with him. Deku felt like a fat and happy housewife, minus the fat. If he wasn’t so keen on saving the world and being the Symbol of Hope and whatnot, he thinks he could get used to this. 

He waits for Kacchan’s answer and looks up at the blonde, who doesn’t make eye contact.

“Ts’ nothing serious.”

Frowning, all Deku could say was, “Alright then.”

A couple days before Deku’s two weeks were up, Katsuki was cooking dinner for the two of them when he heard a loud crashing coming from the bathroom. Dropping the ladle, Katsuki rushed over to the bathroom and banged his first up against the door. 

“Deku? The fuck is going on in there,” He yelled through the door.

“Uh,” The smaller hesitated, “Since I’m able to wobble around, I thought I’d be able to take a shower myself, but it’s a little difficult. I just fell. It’s no biggie.” 

“The fuck? Didn’t Inko help you shower earlier?” Katsuki asked through the door. Usually, before Katsuki would get to the apartment, Inko had already helped Deku with the things that Katsuki probably didn’t want to deal with. Sure, the blonde would carry Deku to the bathroom whenever he needed it and then left, but when it came to showering and bathing, Auntie usually took care of that. 

“We both forgot, but I told you, it’s okay!” Deku yelled through the door. 

“So you don’t want me to come in?” Katsuki asked, palm on the handle. 

A bit of silence from Izuku’s side. 

“I’m masturbating,” Izuku finally squeaked, “So no.”

“Haah?!”

“What??” Deku defended himself, “I haven’t been able to do anything for almost two weeks. If I do it in the bed, then I can’t clean up. And my mom’s been helping me shower, so this is my only chance. Fuck off and die!”

“Oi, you little shit. Stop using my phrases. It feels like I’m corrupting you,” Katsuki yelled back.

“You are!” Deku affirmed to him, “Now leave me alone!”

Katsuki left, feeling a heat in his groin as he thinks of what Deku was doing in there right now. The nerd had the audacity to touch himself like that while Katsuki is just two rooms away. The thought dried his throat, but he pushed it out of his head. 

Right. Oyakodon for dinner . 

The day before Deku was officially unbenched, although still advised to take it easy, Katsuki was scheduled for his appointment with Dr. Baldie again. Each time he visits, it just feels more and more somber than the last. 

This time, he sits at his desk in front of Katsuki, holding up his CAT scans and contemplating them quietly. Katsuki knows it’s bad news when the doctor goes quiet like this. At this point, he’s just waiting. 

“It’s progressing to a dangerous level. I say this every time, but I mean it especially now,” The doctor spoke with true seriousness in his tone, enough to make Katsuki not speak up until he finished, “If you can’t be away from Hero Deku, but you still refuse to get the surgery, then you need to seriously put most of your effort into falling out of love. This isn’t something you can brush off anymore.” 

“I told you a million fucking times. I’m tryin-”

“Try harder,” The doctor scolded for the first time, “You’re not convinced enough at how serious this is.”

“I have time,” Katsuki argued, foot tapping impatiently.

“You have less than a year,” The doctor gave it to him straight, and Katsuki went silent real quick, snapping his ruby eyes up to meet the doctor’s. 

“What?”

“The CAT scans. Your roots and flowers are growing at an unprecedented rate. Without stronger efforts from you, you’re going to be coughing up full roots and stems soon enough, and trust me , your trachea is not going to enjoy that. You’ll suffocate to death from this disease before you can even taste the number one hero spot, Mr. Bakugo, so I’m going to have to tell you now: set your priorities straight.” 

This was the most stern the doctor has ever been with him, and Katsuki could hear it in his tone and see it in his eyes just how serious he was. He wanted to hurl. 

It was quiet for a while, as Katsuki let the new information sink in and what it meant for him and what he needed to do. 

Finally, the blonde nodded, the first time he’s been completely serious with the doctor, “I’ll…” He took a breath, “I’ll put more effort into this.” 

“Good,” The doctor nodded, “Ground Zero, you’re an incredible hero. Don’t cut it short if you don’t have to.”

He felt numb driving back to Deku’s apartment that night. His feelings all mismatched as he locked his car and rode up the elevator. Everything was white noise, every touch was static, every sensation was muted, all the way up until he unlocked the door of his friend ’s apartment and stepped inside. 

Deku, who was able to walk decently okay now, was sitting in one of the countertop stools and upon hearing Katsuki open the door, turned and waved enthusiastically, “Hey! I managed to make some curry udon for us. How was your da-”

He was stopped by a sudden intrusion of his space, as Katsuki had come over and swept him into his arms all of a sudden. The blonde, with his arms around the green-eyed boy’s waist and his head bent down to bury itself in his neck, stood there gripping firmly as Izuku still sat on the stool, surprised by the sudden contact, and both concerned yet elated. 

After the shock wears down a little bit, Izuku leans into the tight embrace and wraps his arms around Katsuki’s shoulder, humming in delight. Katsuki almost never initiated their physical contact. 

“My day was shit,” Katsuki replied to the question he had cut off earlier, “I checked in to the agency, and I barely fucking put on my suit, and there was a call. The villain had a gravity increasing quirk.”

“Like Ochaco?” Deku asked.

“No, Round Face can manipulate gravity. This asshole can only increase it, so if he puts his hand on an object, if he wanted to, he could make the gravity so strong that it will crumble and flatten to the ground. Like a giant potato chip. Thank fucking God that the fucker wasn’t trained, so he can really only increase the gravity by about five times. That’s still equivalent to being hit by a car driving 70 mph.”

“Hm, I see.”

“Right, and he wasn’t too skilled in combat. But there was a moment where he tried to crush some civilian bystanders by increasing the gravity of bridge they were under, so I stood underneath it, trying to fucking hold the bridge up like I’m Atlas for a solid ten minutes as he’s trying to crush me. Jettyman came in after taking his damn time after a bit to knock him out, but now, I’m so fucking sore I can barely move my arms.” Katsuki doesn’t mention the doctor’s appointment.

“Does this hurt right now? H-hugging me?” Deku asked.

Katsuki hummed, “Doesn’t feel great, but I’d move if I didn’t want to.” 

“You need to do this more often,” Deku nervously laughed, “What did I do to deserve this?” 

Katsuki held on for just a couple more seconds, savoring every sensation from the soft fabric of Deku’s sweater to the smell of the man’s shampoo, knowing that this cannot keep happening, and then he let go. 

Bringing a hand up to mess up the green tufts of hair, he uncharacteristically is gentle with Izuku, saying, “Nothing you don’t already do”

Deku didn’t have to do much. He just fucking existed, and it was like Katsuki’s world turned upside down. The blonde was never the doting type. Even if he liked or loved somebody, he’ll never idolize them, or be obsessed, but it’d be a crime not to admit that Deku never had to do much. 

Izuku’s eyes widened at the kind response, but before he could reply, Katsuki left to go heat up the food that Izuku supposedly made.

“This better not be shit, Deku,” He growled, “I told you if you dump a whole can of onion powder into your food again, I’m never letting you back into your own damn kitchen.”

“It was an accident,” Deku frowned, “Don’t worry, I followed youtube directions on this one, so it should have turned out okay!”

It did. Katsuki didn’t say it, but the fact that he was eating it said enough.

After dinner, Izuku finished up some paperwork that he’s had while he was out, while Katsuki stood out on the balcony. Upon finishing, Deku came out to join him, and in a moment of confidence, shuffled up right next to the taller blonde and leaned his head against the man’s shoulder. Much to Deku’s surprise, Kacchan didn’t make an effort to move. 

It was quiet, but comfortable as they looked at all of the tiny passersby on the street below them. Musatafu, unless you’re on the outskirts, never really slept, and so cars constantly whizzed by. Some surely on their way home from work. Some swerving a little on their way to and from a party or a bar. People were living their lives. Carefree, and doing whatever they wanted, falling in love, falling out of love, enjoying the simple pleasures. 

Fuck, Katsuki wanted that too. He wanted it without the burden of growing flowers in his chest, and he wanted it without the pressure of time ticking down. He made a silent promise that he wasn’t sure how well he was going to be able to keep right then: tonight will be the last night he’ll allow this to fester. 

He needs to be hero partners with Deku, that was undeniable. But no more of the lingering touches, no more of the excuses to crash at each other’s places, no more of the outings that felt more like dates than anything else. He needed to be there for Deku, but not bush the boundaries. 

He needed to fall out of love, and he needed to do it quickly. 

But until tomorrow, he looks down at the head resting against his arms. Until tomorrow, he only has tonight. And he so doesn’t push the man away, not tonight. 

At some point, they head back inside yet Izuku help onto the fabric of his shirt as Katsuki tried to leave to go back to his room. 

Turning his neck, Katsuki raised a brow in question. 

“Can you...stay with me, tonight?” Izuku asked in a quiet voice, “In case I have a nightmare, I want you to wake me up.”

“I’ll probably hear them from my ro-”

“You can’t,” Izuku bit his lip, “Or else you would have probably heard them some nights these past two weeks.”

It was a half-truth. Izuku really did have frequently occuring nightmares, little tidbits from some of his worst events. Lately, it’s been the recurring feelings of someone invading his flesh, tearing it from the inside, poking holes into it, wringing at his organs, and he couldn’t do anything to stop it. 

But partly the reason why he asked was just because he wanted to be near Katsuki. These past two weeks have been absolutely blissful, and he didn’t want it to end. If he could curate this fantasy that they lived together as more than friends just a little bit longer before reality hits him in the morning, then he would. 

Katsuki looked hesitant. Say no. Say no, you fucking idiot, “Fine.” 

Izuku felt like jumping in joy, but he felt a hand on his arm and he looked up at Kacchan.

“But if I’m going to be on babysitting duty, you’re going to undress me. My arms can barely fucking lift over my head,” Katsuki demanded, stepping closer to the wide-eyed boy.

Izuku felt his throat go dry, but he wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to be this close. God, he felt like a freak, but the past two weeks has been torture for his libido. Katsuki was a walking god. Sometimes Izuku eyes would trail to Katsuki as he left the shower, towel tied around his waist, to reveal the most sculpted upper body with so, so many defined muscles and a sharp V-line on his hip. His shoulders were incredibly wide, and arms and abdomen looked as if they were carved from stone. So this was why Katsuki always had the underwear ad offers. 

Izuku stepped closer, more close than what was necessary, until he was barely five inches from Katsuki’s chest. He could practically feel the man’s breath on the top of his head. He put his fingers on the bottom hem of Katsuki’s shirt and pulled up and over, lifting it over his head as Katsuki ducked and threw the shirt off. Deku’s eyes couldn’t help but shamelessly roam, over the rippling muscles that was so close to him, so easy to touch. His big green eyes glanced up and met Katsuki, whose head was tilted slightly up yet he was looking down on Deku with his ridiculously handsome face . And no, I have a job to do , Izuku told himself. 

His hands fell to the blonde’s belt buckle, and this suddenly felt so much more erotic. He fumbled around with the belt, trying not to stare at the V-line and where that led, before unbuttoning the pants, albeit slower than he could’ve done it, and letting them slide down the man’s legs. Katsuki stepped out and bent his knees forward so that he can force Deku to look him in the eye. 

“You look a little flustered, Deku,” Katsuki teased with a low voice, “Got something to tell me?”  

Deku let out a breathy answer, “Nothing.”

“Good boy,” Katsuki remarked before walking past and collapsing on the bed.

Good boy , Izuku mentally screamed and began thinking of the most horrible images to get rid of the half chub he has going on. Thank god , he was wearing baggy pants to sleep, or else he would have been mortified. After another moment or two of standing there, Izuku turned and climbed into the opposite side of the bed. 

This was enough. Sure, Izuku would have preferred that they were flushed together and he’d get to feel that body pressed up against his backside, but this was enough. This was safe. This was normal. This was somewhat friendly. Izuku felt like a bit of a scheming pervert. 

Katsuki’s back was turned to him, and he could just reach out. Across the distance, and touch. His fingers snake across the bed, wanting so badly to be held and to feel that warm skin. But right as he reaches the threshold, Izuku stops and pulls back. 

And he reminds himself: to separate his dreams and his reality into where they belong. 

Chapter Text

The next month or so was somewhat back to normal. Katsuki practically moved out of Izuku’s apartment, after having slept and spent his evening there for two whole weeks. During those two weeks, the blonde had only gone back to his apartment three or four times. 

Coming back to his nice and clean apartment now, it feels a little too quiet. Living with Deku, albeit because of the man’s injuries, was such a nice experience that allowed him to let himself go for a bit, and now, coming back to his place made him feel as if the silence was too loud. 

And Deku was back at work again.  In the meantime, Hero Deku was only assigned to less heavy cases, while Katsuki was kept on his usual high-intensity missions. At first, Deku had complained, but ultimately understood, as his organs were still in recovery, even with the fast-acting treatments, but one wrong move and he might be right back in the hospital. Not to mention, if he gets hurt on site, then he becomes a liability to everyone else and he’ll slow down the rescue process. 

That didn’t mean it wasn’t annoying though. He was temporarily assigned to a new patrol partner, who was nice, but they didn’t just connect effortlessly like he and Kacchan did. It was fine. Besides, Katsuki was doing great too. 

A sense of pride swelled in his chest when seeing that Katsuki, unless it was a team project, refused to take up another partner before Deku fully recovered. So he was fine with working with a full team, but not with a single partner.  Deku couldn’t help but feel smug about knowing he was the only person Kacchan would be willing to partner with, even though realistically, he should be scolding the man for not being more willing.

However, the opportunity to scold Katsuki hasn’t really been able to present itself. Ever since Deku has been let off of medical house arrest, it’s just been a little different . Maybe Izuku was being paranoid, but it felt as if Katsuki was just always busy. He convinced himself that he was being paranoid. It’s only been about two weeks since he has been allowed back to work, after all. It makes sense that they are both really busy. But still. It was odd. 

Their patrol schedules didn’t align anymore as long as Izuku was put on lighter missions, but even then, they usually still would have time to grab a late dinner or even breakfast if they wanted. Or even just hang out. And yet, when Izuku would ask, something would always come up. 

Deku tried to stop the feeling of disappointment, but it would bubble up to his chest every time Katsuki would let him down, even if it was nicely. And it would sadden him even more when the tabloids the next day would show the hero Ground Zero going out on a date with some man or woman. So that’s what he was doing. 

Katsuki still talked to him normally, but it just felt...like there was a small divide. One that Izuku was desperately trying to claw his way out of, without seeming like he needed Kacchan’s company so badly. He can barely remember the last time one of them crashed at the other’s places. His favorite All-Might sweatshirt is still sitting somewhere in Katsuki’s guest room closet. 

And every time Izuku’s paranoid ass would ask the other if everything was okay, Katsuki would ruffle up his hair and tell him nothing is up. And it’s just so nonchalant, that Deku was afraid he was telling the truth. If Katsuki was mad at him, then the greenette would know it immediately. Kacchan would tell him straight to his face, and slip into a hostile personality. But this? This was baffling, because Katsuki didn’t treat him any differently when he did see Izuku. But they virtually spent no time together outside of what’s necessary for work, and that weighed heavily on Deku’s heart. 

It’s to the point where Izuku hops on any opportunity to spend a little extra time with the blonde, and he was honestly annoyed with himself for looking so desperate. It was his off day, and yet, when he overhead that Katsuki was headed into a photoshoot for an underwear ad for a company that the blonde has a contract with, Izuku was off his couch immediately and nonchalantly headed towards the area where he was being shot. 

“I just happened to be in the area and saw you guys were doing a shoot! I brought everyone a coffee!” Izuku had come in, all charms and smiles into the studio, with two arms holding a total of 8 coffees in the cardboard holders. The staff, excited and extremely happy for Deku’s presence and his gift, was immediately accepting of him being there. 

Katsuki didn’t look like he minded and shouted from a distance, “Oi, nerd. Stop poisoning everyone with that unhealthy shit.”

Deku let out a nice breath at how refreshing it was to talk to Katsuki outside of his work time, “Kacchan, not everyone can be fueled by anger and bloodlust. Some of us need caffeine, you know.” 

“Cheeky little bastard,” Katsuki grumbled with a grin, one that he hasn’t had much these past few weeks of brushing Izuku off when it came to outside-of-work plans.

“I was taught by the best,” Deku smiled with his eyes, sarcastically referencing to Katsuki. 

“Damn right you were,” Katsuki barked out a laugh, “Can’t believe I was roped into this fucking contract. Could be doing better shit right now.”

Deku wanted to narrow his eyes. Like ignoring my plans. But he didn’t say that. Instead, Izuku shrugged shyly, “They wanted you for a reason, Kacchan.” Because your body is built like Adonis.

The director suddenly came up to the two of them and shouted off orders, “Hey! Ground Zero, now would be a good time to start stripping. It’s go time!” He clapped demandingly. And then he tossed a bottle of body oil to Deku, “And Deku, if you’re going to be here, make yourself useful. Don’t just stand around distracting my model. Rub this oil on Ground Zero, please? Full coverage.”

“Oi,” Katsuki got up in the director’s face, suddenly not very happy, “Don’t order him around like that. Who the fuc-”

“Kacchan, it’s okay! I don’t mind doing it” Izuku intervened, placing an arm in between the two before Katsuki does anything volatile. He was also upset at the director’s attitude, but he didn’t want a scene right now. 

At Deku’s touch, Katsuki seemed to reel himself in, but still gave the director a warning, “You better be lucky the nerd has a heart of gold. Next time you talk to Deku like that, you can kiss your job, this contract, and your tongue goodbye.” Katsuki threatened. And the director nodded profusely before turning to bow his head in apology towards Izuku. 

When the man left, Deku turned towards Katsuki, trying to decipher why he was slightly turned on at the blonde handling the situation but that’s a mystery for another day. Then he teasingly commented with a laugh, “Kacchan, you looked like you would have killed him for me.” 

Katsuki sneered as he threw off his shirt, “I would.”

Izuku gulped as he looked at the sight in front of him. He probably saw Katsuki’s naked torso every single day that the man was over during his rehabilitation period, and yet, his throat goes dry every time. Why was the blonde built like that. It just wasn’t fair. Every movement had Katsuki’s muscles shifting and flexing, and what he wouldn’t do to run his hands down those abs. The blonde then untied the drawstrings on his sweatpants and left them on the floor, until Katsuki was in nothing else but the boxers that he was advertising. 

Izuku unscrewed the cap of the body oil and squeezed some out on his hand, bringing it toward’s the man’s chest. 

Before he could, Katsuki gave him a strange look, “The fuck are you doing?”

Deku frowned, “Putting the oil on you.”

“You don’t actually have to do that. The fucking director should have given it to the hair and makeup staff,” Katsuki huffed out. 

Deku’s cheeks are red, but he says it anyways while looking up at Katsuki’s handsome face, “But I want to.”

Katsuki paused, staring down at the freckled man with an unreadable expression, lips parted and an eyebrow raised. Deku, on the other hand, didn’t break eye contact, but the slight bite of the lip was driving Katsuki crazy. He told himself to calm down before telling the shorter, “Go for it, then.”

Izuku timidly brings his oiled palm to Katsuki’s firm chest and began to rub. The skin immediately has a nice sheen on it from the body oil, and Izuku closed his mouth to keep him from salivating. He continued to apply the oil to various parts of Katsuki’s body, feeling like a total pervert every time he does so. They don’t make conversation while he does this. Katsuki because he needed to reign himself in before Deku’s hands on his body excited him a little too much. And Izuku because he was trying to focus on this as much as possible to prevent the same thing from happening. 

Izuku put his hands on everything: Katsuki’s shoulders, his delicious and buff arms, his firm chest, his prominent abs, and god , that v-line. Izuku traced it with his fingers, and he could have moaned from the contact alone. This was probably the closest he’s ever touched, and he wanted more. Katsuki’s forearm veins were on display and he rubbed his hands over those. Coming up from behind the taller man, Deku rubbed it over the muscles of Katsuki’s back as well, feeling the tough firm skin beneath his fingers. Deku, in a moment of weakness, contemplates quitting being a Pro Hero and becoming Katsuki’s body oiler instead, but then shook himself out of it. 

Going back around to the front, Deku bends his back to apply the oil to the blonde’s thighs, but then he feels a hand applying pressure to his shoulder, pushing him down. 

Izuku fell down to his knees, and he looked up at Katsuki with big eyes from the floor, “Kacchan?”
“Go easy on your back, nerd. Get on your knees,” Katsuki gruffed out, voice baritone and laced with something Deku couldn’t discern. 

Izuku bit his lip, trying not to linger on the seductive command as much, and went back to his job, running his hands over Katsuki’s legs. Think ugly thoughts. Think ugly thoughts. Think ugly thoughts. Izuku told himself to calm his body down. He makes sure not to look up towards Katsuki’s crotch or else it would be the end of it, and if he didn’t have a boner now, then he would then. 

Once he was finished, Deku felt his heart rate go back to normal and he let his tense body relax as he smiles at Katsuki, “All done!”

“Took your damn time, didn’t you,” Katsuki sneered, “Did you enjoy yourself?” 

Yes! Izuku’s head screamed, but he flushed a bright pink and glared at his friend, “I was just being thorough.” 

Before Katsuki further teased him, the blonde reminded himself that this was exactly what he wasn’t supposed to do. It was just so easy, once he started talking to Deku, to slip into his habits of playing around and getting into dangerous territory with the other. After years of always being near each other, it was hard to break the habit. 

As Izuku watches Katsuki go through his shoot, he couldn’t help but think that the blonde was a natural. Every expression, every movement, the gaze at the camera, the exposure of neck: Kacchan was walking seduction. Just watching is enough to make his breath catch. His eyes subconsciously run down the oiled body, emphasizing each muscle, and then he accidentally looks at the underwear that he was intending to advertise and Oh. Heat pooled to Deku’s face as his eyes bug out of his head. Kacchan is...very...well endowed, Deku admits, grabbing at the hem of his shirt to fidget with. Even through the underwear, it was obvious that Kacchan was blessed down there . The green-eyed boy prays that Katsuki is a shower and not a grower, because then that’d just be unbelievable. 

Izuku turns away, and stammering, says his goodbye to the staff standing nearby, “I’ve stayed here long enough! D-Don’t want to intrude on your work, haha! I’ll be heading home now. Have a good day, everybody!” Before rushing out. 

Katsuki finishes up the shoot, which he’s still dubbing a waste of time, about an hour later, and goes to take a shower in the building to wash the oil off. And during that time, he tries not to think about the hands that were all over him earlier as he lathers himself with soap. 

Speaking of the nerd, Deku had left the photoshoot halfway in, but Katsuki had needed to tell Deku to bring his favorite pot that he had forgotten at his apartment to work, so that the blonde could pick it up. He wanted the other to bring it to work, so that he could avoid the possibility of one of them going to the other’s apartment to pick it up and he knew that he would give in and end up spending a couple of hours with Izuku. 

However, he needed the pot soon for a dish he was cooking tomorrow night for a date he has planned. Katsuki has been trying harder with his dates, just praying one of them works out. God, he feels like a fool, but he had to do what was necessary. Of course, nothing was working so far, but he needed to try. 

After saying goodbye to all of the staff, Katsuki bites the bullet and drives over to Izuku’s apartment to pick it up. He’ll be in and out. It’ll take barely five minutes, as long as he doesn’t get roped into a conversation with the boy. 

Pushing his keys into Deku’s lock and opening the door, he makes his way in and looked around for his friend when he heard it . And it was obvious what it was. 

Deku was...moaning. His voice was always a little higher pitch than most men’s voices, and it was letting out the prettiest sounds, and boy, was Deku making sounds. Katsuki stood rooted in his spot, before glancing at the shoe rack to see if anyone else’s were there. No one, just Deku’s shoes and some house slippers. Which meant that just two doors down, in Deku’s bedroom, the hero was pleasuring himself. He salivated.

If Katsuki was a worse person, he could stand there listening for another five minutes as his friend lets out breathy moans. But because he was just an asshole and not a complete asshole, he only listens for another minute. The sound of something wet repeated itself over and over. Katsuki wondered what it could be: was Deku ramming a slicked-up dildo in his hole over and over again, or was it just his fingers doing all of the work, was his back arched up against the bed, or was his hands on his dick instead? The blonde slapped himself and took deep breaths, stabilizing his body and forcing it not to react before putting his hands on the doorknob and pretending that he was putting the key in from the outside. 

Immediately, Katsuki held back a snicker as he hears a small scream of fear and a thump as something, presumably Deku, falls off of the bed. 

“Wait!” The man yells from his room, and Katsuki stands there, waiting patiently near the door, not coming any closer. 

When Izuku steps out into the living room, his hair was a complete mess. All tangled and ruffled up, pupils were still dilated, and his breathing was clearly heavy. Katsuki’s eyes sneaked down to the halfway zipped up pants, but doesn’t say anything. God, Deku was so pretty. Katsuki wanted to wreck him. 

“Kacchan! I wasn’t expecting you here,” Deku smiled with his eyes, enough that it’ll hide the slight panic that he had just now. 

“Clearly,” Katsuki commented smirking, and Izuku feels his soul leaving his body as he turns beet red for the fiftieth time, “Anyways, I’m dropping by to pick up my pot. The white nonstick one. You know where it is?”

“Oh!” Izuku said, hiding his slight disappointment, “Yeah, I’ll get it for yo-”

Izuku’s phone then started ringing and the green-eyed boy brings it up to his ear. The conversation was short, but Izuku looked like he was giving someone the heads up to come up to his apartment. 

Katsuki asked out of curiosity, “You got a guest? Round Face coming over or something?” Katsuki didn’t reveal that he had been curious and dying to know what the man has been up to the past two weeks or so. No matter his efforts, Katsuki still missed the fuck out of Deku, not that he was going to say it. Deku has a lot of friends, so it would bring him comfort to see that good people are spending time with the greenette after he’s been a little absent. 

“Ah no, not her,” Izuku chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck as his eyes dart to the side and he begins walking to his kitchen. The reaction was odd, so Katsuki pressed the question once more, suddenly very curious.

“Who is it?” He asked casually, wondering who it was that was making Deku kind of jittery. 

“It’s, um, Shindo-kun.” Deku spoke quickly, “You remember Yo Shindo? I think you guys met once back at UA. He’-”

“Isn’t that the prick who tries to get in your pants any chance he gets?” Katsuki’s voice deepened and he raised a brow. 

Izuku decides to keep quiet right then about his and Shindo’s actual connection to each other, saving it for another time. Instead, the greenette just shrugs, “Not any chance, he gets.”

“What a saint,” Katsuki sarcastically comments, “Anyways, the fuck you inviting him over for?”

Deku plays with his sleeves, “Dinner?”

“Dinner,” Katsuki repeats, “Then you don’t mind if I join, do you?”

What the fuck am I doing. What the fuck am I doing , Katsuki thinks to himself as he lets his mouth run ahead of him. He needed to grab his pot and go home right this instance. He knows full well that he has no control on who Deku has dinner with. He doesn’t ever care really, and thinks it’s great that Deku has good friends around him. They were there for Deku before Katsuki was. Ochaco. Tsuyu. Shoto. All of them were people Katsuki deeply appreciated, although he acted otherwise. But Shindo… There was something about Shindo that Katsuki could never get with. Even then, the blonde tells himself: it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter, go home right now. 

“Sure!” Izuku replied. 

Welp, Katsuki thought, How horrible, guess he has to stay for dinner now. 

It was the most awkward experience that any of them could have ever possibly imagined. Izuku had known that Katsuki never really liked Shindo, and the same applied to Shindo’s feelings about Katsuki, but he still expected everyone to at least try to make everything nice and smooth. But it was so awkward that Izuku wanted to escape his own home and hide somewhere to escape. When Shindo had walked in and saw Katsuki, both of their moods visibly soured and it took a whole two minutes for Izuku to initiated them to greet one another. And embarrassingly enough, Izuku had to tell the both of them right away to keep this dinner nice and civil. 

The process of cooking dinner was also incredibly painful. Shindo sat on the counter, scrolling through his phone. Katsuki helped him with the cooking, but none of them really said anything besides the basic requests. Cut the onions. Salt the water. Put in the noodles. A couple times Izuku tried to spark conversation, but it fizzles out into a small grunt here and there. 

What was worse is the actual dinner itself. The three of them, sitting around the table, with the sound of spoons and eating utensils hitting the porcelain bowls, or the occasional sip of water. At this point, Izuku wanted to get knocked out by a villain so that when he wakes up, this dinner would be over. 

“So, Mr. Big Shot,” Shindo looked up from his food at Katsuki, who was quick to make intense eye contact, “I saw that fight the other day with the sand villain. Pretty nasty punches you took, huh. I’m surprised your perfect teeth didn’t fall out.”

“Shindo-kun!” Deku kicked the other under the table and met him with a glare. 

“Don’t worry about it, Deku,” Katsuki sneered, “I’m just so honored that Shindo over here is so worried about my teeth. How fucking kind of you.”

“Always a pleasure, Bakugo,” Shindo grinned back, “Deku here is just so lucky to have you as his hero partner, isn’t he?”

“He ain’t lucky. None of this is luck. It’s all hard fucking work,” Katsuki corrected.

Deku looked back and forth between the two of them, trying to figure out how to dissolve the tension without just kicking the two of them out. 

“Ah, but of course! You’re completely right. My bad,” Shindo laughed, “Deku here’s pretty amazing too, isn’t he. God , those moves. That body. So firm, you know? And at the same time, so nice and soft.”

Izuku wanted to shrivel up and die. 

“What the fuck do you know,” Katsuki growled, hands gripping his fork so tightly that it was bending slightly at the pressure. 

“Much more than you,” Shindo almost menacingly hinted. 

“And what the fuck does that even supposed to mean,” Katsuki asked. 

“Guys! Stop it,” Deku then slammed his fist in between the two of them, glaring at both, “This is my apartment, and if I tell you to calm down, if I tell you to be civil, then you are going to fucking calm down and be civil.”

Both of them went silent for a second, at the sudden outburst from the usually bubbly man. 

Before Shindo piped up, “Ah, look at what Bakugo has done to you, negatively influencing you, making you curse and all feisty an-”

“I’m not going to ask again,” Deku warned, shoving food in his mouth as he glared at the rice. Shindo shut up at this. 

There is another moment of awkward silence, before Katsuki cleared his throat, “Yeah no, I’m making one more fucking comment.”

“Kacc-” Deku was ready to start a fight, but Katsuki gave him a look to show Izuku that he was calm. And reluctantly, Izuku sat back and stared at his rice again. 

“Listen up dipshit.” Katsuki looked up at Shindo, all seriousness, “The nerd was not negatively influenced just because he curses and is assertive with what he fucking wants, especially within his own right as the owner of this apartment. Everyone expects him to always be all fluffy and nice all the damn time, and to take their shit. But the shitnerd is allowed to be angry and frustrated too, you hear me? He’s allowed to be assertive and he doesn’t owe you or me kindness or jack shit. He’s not a different or worse person for getting angry or standing his fucking ground. He’s a better and a stronger one, for not letting shitheads like us step on him.” 

After a minute to contemplate and understand Katsuki’s words, Shindo looked down at his food and actually genuinely replies with a simple, “You’re right. Sorry.”

Izuku, on the other hand, was feeling so many emotions. On one hand, he was still reeling from how awkward the entire situation itself was. On the other hand, he was feeling upset at how the two of them were at each other’s neck the whole evening and disregarded him. 

And then on a third hand, Izuku felt incredibly touched and happy at the comment Kacchan had made about his emotions. It was, once again, another instance of Katsuki showing that he noticed the little things about Izuku. 

Of all the people in this world, Katsuki is probably the only one who could see through him like that. Izuku was always used to people idealizing him and expecting him to be this certain type of person: always happy, always energetic, always soft-approached when it came to problems, strong but timid. 

And he was, generally, that person; however, it was like people always wanted him to be that person. And the moment he’d show any sign of anger, or bossiness, or anything that deviated from what people’s curated image of him was, Izuku would get bombarded with people asking him “Did something happen?” “Did Bakugo influence you too much?” “Deku isn’t himself today.” As if they knew him so well. Although anger is normal. Frustration is normal. 

Kacchan has been the only person to have ever seen through that, and was the only person to tell him that it was okay to feel negative emotions. And he shouldn’t have to apologize for feeling them. And Kacchan has been the only person to tell him that he isn’t a different person just because he gets angry here and there: he’s just human. Izuku’s heart swelled with adoration and just, pure…

Love. Izuku was in love with his best friend. Always has been. But in this moment, he reminded himself just how much. 

After another ten minutes of awkward eating and silence, Shindo excused himself to go to the bathroom.

Once he was gone, Izuku takes the time to thank Katsuki, “Kacchan...earlier. I just wanted to say thank you. I-it means a lot to hear.”

Katsuki for once didn’t have a sarcastic comment to make about Izuku’s cheesiness and instead nods, “Don’t thank me. It just ain’t fair that no one ever gives anyone else shit for feeling sad or angry sometimes, but when it comes to you--their perfect hero Deku--you can’t catch a damn break.”

“Yeah,” Deku smiles gently, “But you’ve always seen through me, haven’t you. Oh, and listen, I’m sorry for tonight. Shindo did start it, surprisingly.”

“Nah, it’s good,” Katsuki sat back, “I perpetuated it. Anyways, you got that pot?”

“Oh! Yeah,” Izuku remembers and gets up from his seat to go rummage through his cabinets until he finds it, “Why do you need the pot so suddenly anyways?”

Katsuki just lets out a huff for an answer, “Got a date tomorrow. I’m gonna cook.” He doesn’t want to go into details. 

Izuku’s grip on the pot’s handle automatically tightens as he hands it over to Katsuki, and Deku feels like he’s going to pop a blood vessel. Since when did Katsuki have at-home dates where he cooks for the person? Kacchan only ever had his dates at restaurants or cafes, but as far as Izuku knows from reading the tabloids, Kacchan has never had someone come over and cook for them. 

That was so domestic that it made Izuku more upset than he had the right to be. Coupled with the fact that Katsuki and him haven’t had a dinner together with just them two, at each other’s apartments because that was their thing, only added to his irrational spike of emotions. He wasn’t going to gatekeep Katsuki. That wasn’t his job, and Katsuki wasn’t his. But he definitely felt a little left out. 

“Oh,” Izuku nods as he lets go of his tight grip, “What are you making?” He pretends to be interested.

“No fucking clue,” Katsuki replied, and then craned his neck towards the bathroom, “The fuck is he doing in there? Jerking off?”

And then, Izuku being impulsive when it came to Katsuki and vengeful for no reason, goes, “No idea, but he needs to get out soon so I can ask him to stay over.”

Katsuki met his eye immediately, and Izuku can’t say it doesn’t give him a bit of hope that the other boy cares, “Haah?? The fuck do you mean stay over?”

Deku looked down at the ground, “As in...stay over?” 

“What, the asshole don’t have a car or something?” Katsuki questioned, raising his brow, “I’ll fucking take him home if that’s the case.”

“No, it’s not that…” Deku bit his lip, “I ask him to stay over sometimes.”

Katsuki wanted to ask why so badly. The question was on the tip of his tongue. But Deku didn’t owe him answers, and he was going to risk making himself look like a jealous asshole if he pursues the question. He needed to stop being so damn possessive. Besides, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. 

Still, clenching his jaw, Katsuki tells him, “I’ll clear my stuff out of your guest room then. I’m pretty sure I still have a ton of shit in ther-”

“He’s not staying in the guest room,” Izuku offers, hintingly, and Katsuki is this close to blowing a fuse.

In a second, Katsuki with his tall and looming self gets all close and personal with Izuku, setting the pot down on the side and sounds very upset, “Don’t tell me he’s staying in your room, Deku. The fuck are you doing with him? God, I hate that motherfucker so mu-”

“Why does it bother you so much!” Izuku furrowed his brows.

Katsuki remembers the tips that he needs to take in order to calm down and not go on a shouting rampage. He steps back and takes deep breaths, counting to ten. After a moment, his shoulders visibly relax although that scowl is still on his face. 

“Listen, I don’t…” He pauses, “I don’t care what you do. It’s not my business,” He’s lying. True, it’s not his business, but he does care, “But I don’t like him. Shindo. He’s fucking obnoxious, cocky, two-faced, and he’s like me but without all of our history, amazingness, handsomeness, and all my great qualities. And I fucking know that me not liking him doesn’t mean that you can’t be friends with him, but I still lose my shit from time to time.” Katsuki ran a frustrated hand down his face. 

Izuku looked upon Katsuki with a soft expression. The blonde was allowed to not like people, just as Izuku was allowed to not like people. While everyone always wanted Deku to stay the same, the opposite could be said of Katsuki. Everyone always wanted him to change. His attitude at least. But it’s fine to not like people, to hate them even. 

Izuku bit his lip, “I’ll make him go home, if…” He looked up at Katsuki, “...if you stay with me, instead.”

Katsuki’s eyes widened slightly, but he didn’t even know what staying with Izuku even meant. Before he can asks, Izuku explains himself. 

“It’s just to hold me. I get nightmares here and there. And sometimes, it...gets a little lonely to sleep by myself,” Izuku confesses. He sometimes did call Shindo over to cuddle with him because he knew that Katsuki never world. Of course, it was a little weird, but in a way, it was kind of a surrogate way of pretending he had Katsuki when his eyes were closed and all he felt were arms around him. 

“And so you just invite the fucker over to cuddle with you?” Katsuki asks. His internals were brewing with hot and fiery jealousy. He pushes the feeling away, despite its insistency. He can understand the loneliness. It’s probably one of the reasons why he has people in his bed from time to time. But he couldn’t help but feel jealous anyways. 

“...Yeah. I mean, who else…” Izuku murmured.

“Send him home,” Katsuki told Izuku. 

Izuku’s eyes widened at what that implied, and his heart raced at the thought of Katsuki cuddling him. His hands on his body. His back to the taller man’s chest. 

Deku laughed lightly, “You must hate Shindo-kun a lot.”

Katsuki just snickered. I just hate him near you.  

Izuku’s heart was beating so fast in his chest and he was fidgety. Here they were, an hour and a half later, and Katsuki was practically naked besides his boxers pressed up gently against Izuku’s back as they laid in the darkness of his bedroom. He had watched the man strip down to his sleeping attire, and Deku told himself not to get too excited that the incredibly built and sexy body was going to be pressed up against him in a moment. It was impossible to relax when Katsuki’s large build was encompassing him like this. 

Suddenly, Katsuki’s arm snaked around his strong waist and pulled him closer, until Izuku was tight and flushed up against Katsuki’s chest and the blonde’s chin rested on top of his head.

Katsuki brings his nose down to sniff the eucalyptus shampoo in Izuku’s hair, his toned arm around the greenette’s torso, “Your hair smells good,” Katsuki’s low voice rumbled, “Calm down. Why the fuck are you so nervous for?”

“I-I don’t know,” Izuku lied. He definitely knew why. 

“Just fucking relax. Don’t think too much about it,” Katsuki says as he thinks too much about it. It was so nice to feel Izuku like this, even though he definitely should not be doing this. It’s only for tonight. Because he got roped in. He couldn’t help it, he told himself, although he definitely could have. 

Izuku calms down after a moment and melts into the hold, before biting his lip. Katsuki was good at this, so he asked, “You do this often?”

It takes the blonde a moment to answer, and Izuku thought that he wasn’t going to answer at all until Kacchan finally replied, “I’ve never done this at all.” 

He’s never cuddled with anyone before. His one-night stands were usually a pretty formal deal. They’d fuck, and then they’d leave. If they ended up sleeping over instead of leaving immediately, Katsuki would shoo them to the couch. Being a bit of an asshole, he doesn’t even let them take the guest room. Too many of Deku’s things in there. 

At that revelation, Izuku felt a sense of hope and it flutters in his chest. And the thought of it eases him some more before he makes an effort to fall asleep. He felt so warm, tight in Kacchan’s embrace like this. And it feels like nothing in the world could take him away from this moment. 

Izuku wakes up twice in the night. The first was at around 12 in the morning, and it sure was a conundrum . 

The reason why Izuku had woken up was because he felt himself get pulled tighter into Katsuki, when he already was pressed up pretty tight to the blonde in the first place. The increased pressure wakes him up and Izuku turns his neck around to hiss at the man. 

“Kacchan. Kacchan,” Izuku calls for at least five times, before realizing that the man was still dead asleep, despite mumbling in his dreams. 

Katsuki’s arms move again, holding Izuku tighter and shifting them closer until Izuku felt it. He felt it alright, pressing up against his ass. Whatever dream Katsuki is having was giving him a hard on that was now pressed very tightly up against Izuku’s ass. Knowing the blonde was only wearing a pair of boxers didn’t help. Although he couldn’t gauge the size from behind, Izuku could tell it was huge from just how much of the length was pressed up against him. The hard cock was resting against his ass and up his lower back, Izuku was internally panicking. 

Craning his neck back around, he called for Katsuki once more, “Uh...ah, Kacchan?”

Instead of a response, the arm that was holding him suddenly slips under Izuku’s shirt, and the man immediately feels a large rough hand on his bare skin and he gasped. It explored his torso, not letting him go, and Izuku’s subconscious didn’t want him to let go. 

Katsuki pressed himself further, almost like grinding against the greenette and the bulge was almost close to sliding in between Izuku’s cheeks, even with the fabrics in the way. He couldn’t see it, but he bet it was thick, sliding and rubbing up against his ass and his lower back. Izuku bites back a small moan from the thought of it, but ends up letting out one anyways as Katsuki’s exploring hands travel up to his pert nipples. The thick fingers rub over them and pull a bit on the buds. 

Izuku is gasping for breath now, biting back a moan, as he’s being touched and rutted up against by Katsuki, who was still somehow asleep. He could feel just how hard and needy Katsuki was by how tightly his ass was being grinded against. His nipples were still being played with and he was whimpering. 

 Izuku felt guilty for enjoying this as much as he did, and needed to wake Katsuki up now before he gets too into it. Katsuki didn’t know what he was doing. 

But just as Izuku was going to punch Katsuki awake, all of the action stopped and the blonde was completely still and dead asleep again. Izuku got up onto his elbows and turned around, mouth gaping at how one moment, the man could be so deep in his dream that he was grinding up against his best friend unknowingly back to sleeping quietly and still like a baby. He was just flabbergasted. But on another note, promised himself that next morning, he was definitely not going to mention any of this to the other. 

The second time Izuku woke up was about 5 hours later. It was early morning, and this time, Izuku woke up because of a lack of warmth on his back. His eyes blinked open and when his ears came back to focus, he heard the coughing. The damn familiar coughing that always concerned him a bit and recently, more than a bit. 

There is a bit of light from the bathroom shining in, but he waits a couple of minutes for the coughing to stop. And a moment later, Katsuki climbed back into bed with him, arms snaking back around his waste, and Izuku decides that he will save his questioning for another day. 

Katsuki, on the other hand, at 5 in the morning, came to the realization really quick that if he was going to straight up disobey his body, then he was going to suffer the consequences. It wasn’t as if his flowers had been getting better at all in the two weeks that he’s tried distancing himself from Deku. They’ve been the same, if not a little worse. But tonight, breaking the streak by blatantly cuddling with the object of his affection, gave him instant payback, as he hauled himself over to the bathroom to cough up a storm of flowers.

 It was reminding him, cruelly, don’t slip up again. 

Izuku was frustrated out of his mind. Even after their little cuddle session, it seemed as if nothing has changed when it came to Katsuki never having time. Izuku understood. They were both busy. And they were on two different working modes because of Izuku’s injury. The Wonder Duo has been on pause, and that was still as annoying as ever. Katsuki still treated him the same when they saw each other, but that was literally only ever at work. 

Work comes first, and Izuku didn’t let him get distracted by it. But anytime that he was not at work, he’d wonder. Why the other was de facto avoiding him. 

“Kacchan, you’re coming to lunch with me,” Deku demanded on a Wednesday morning about 15 days later. 

Katsuki had just checked in to the agency when Izuku confronted him with a determined look.

The blonde replied, “I told shitty hair I’d grab lunch wit-”

“If you can, cancel. You already grabbed lunch with him twice this week,” Deku simply responded. Katsuki was surprised. Deku usually wouldn’t ever intervene with his plans with someone else. 

“Is there something wrong?” Katsuki asked, while walking to his office. Unlocking the door, he put his stuff down on the chair and turned to look over at Deku who seemed to lost all of that prior assertiveness and now just looked a little meek. 

“Does something have to be wrong for me to have lunch with you,” Deku furrowed his brows, speaking a little angrily, “Why can’t missing you be enough of a reason?” 

At this, Katsuki’s eyes widened and he let out a small breath. It has been fucking hard trying to distance himself from the nerd, but Izuku was not making it any easier. The past few weeks felt like torture, as he had to come up with excuse after excuse to not do something with him. Every time, it was fucking annoying to see the nerd visibly disappointed, and he would groan to himself about making him feel that way for hours later. Katsuki knew that it was necessary, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t torturing. He’s gone out with people, and then went home alone and annoyed after the date turned to shit. God, if anything, going out with other people just made him miss the greenette more. He compared everything: the quality of conversation, how much fun he actually had, their physical appearance. And now, Deku was straight up telling him that he missed him, and Katsuki was just supposed to say fuck off ?

“I…” Izuku gave him a sad smile, “hate that you make me feel so needy. I don’t want to feel like this, but I miss you.”

Katsuki felt pain from making Izuku even say those words, so he decided to be honest with Izuku too, “I’ve missed you too, shitnerd. It’s just been-”

“Busy, I know,” Deku nodded in understanding before saying with a slightly sad tone, “Except when you aren’t. Even then, you don’t want to see me.”

“Deku,” Katsuki began. Fuck, all he’s wanted to do was see Deku. 

“And that’s alright if you don’t!” No it’s not, but what could Izuku do, “But I’d rather you just...tell me.”

“It’s not that,” Katsuki was quick to shut down. He hated the rejected look in Deku’s eyes.

“Then have lunch with me,” Deku requested once more. 

Katsuki paused to wonder if he’ll ever be able to say no to Deku, before sighing, “I’ll see you at 1.” 

Deku smiled and then left the room. He felt bad about swerving Kirishima like that, but it felt a bit unfair. Katsuki had time for everyone else, but him. The other night, he had asked the blonde to come over to watch a movie, to which Kacchan had replied that he was currently catching up with Iida-kun. IIDA TENYA. 

Since when did Katsuki ever hang out with Iida? Hell, Izuku barely ever hung out with Iida unless it was in a group setting, and Izuku was way more social than Katsuki. And then when he saw an Instagram post later from Iida, Izuku felt very guilty about wanting to subconsciously fight Iida at that moment. 

Izuku wanted to be upset that Katsuki ended up texting him at around 12:00 to cancel their plans, but upon seeing the reasoning, he relaxed a little bit and let out a sigh. 

Kacchan had been suddenly sent out. 

He’s been working on this pretty high-profile case for a couple weeks now, and it looked like there’s been a time-sensitive breakthrough on it today. The case involved a criminal duo: one who could bend titanium and another who produced smoke by exhaling it in large quantities. The reason why it was so high-profile across several countries was because the villain duo was a renowned weapons dealer for government-grade super-weapons, essentially. 

The villain duo had a system that worked, and had quirks really suited for a quick and easy job. The smoke guy would go into a facility, smoke everyone out until they either suffocate or pass out, and then the titanium villain, who was much bigger and stronger, would take the weapons and damage the facilities usually made of, unluckily enough, titanium so that when authorities came, it’d be a mess to try to block their escape. It was simple that it worked, and now, over ten countries are missing government-grade weapons. Deku would have been put on the case too, if it wasn’t for the injury. 

Deku asked around, and apparently, the logistics team had tracked down the location of the Villain Duo. They were going to go for a manufacturing facility an hour and a half away from Sendai that made explosive weapons . Of course they called Katsuki. The location and everything was most suitable for his quirk. 

Deku texted Ochaco to see if she wanted to meet up somewhere to grab lunch instead. 

I’m actually making something at my house! I have the day off. Got a nasty accident the other day. But feel free to come over! She replied, to which he texted back a simple OK!

“He’s being sent out by himself?” Somebody asked. 

Deku was out in the common space in the agency where some of the logistical workers had their cubicles, even though he had his own private office, when he overheard the small detail coming from a guy whose name he remembered to be Teruki. 

“He’s being what?” Deku interrupted, walking over to join the conversation.

“Yeah. He’s the only offensive-quirk hero being sent out, at least. There are a couple others, but their quirks are mainly rescue, for all of the smoke victims while Ground Zero takes care of the villains,” Viren, the head of communications responded casually while chewing on a Turkish delight, “It’ll be fin-”

“How is it going to be fine? This is one of the most high-profile cases in the country right now. There are at least 10 people working on it in this agency alone,” Deku asked with worry evident, “Why is he going into offensive alone?”

“Relax, Deku,” Viren was always a little too relaxed for her own good, even if she always got the job done, “I meant he’s going out onsite alone for right now. He has a team in his ear, and an air raid if need be. It was only coincidentally. We got the information drop literally an hour ago, but barely anyone is at the agency today. It was like the villains purposely chose today, when most people in our agency will be gone for the annual Summit meeting to strike. We’re lucky that you and Ground Zero were even available.”

“Why didn’t call me on too, then?” Deku asked, eyes wide in fear. 

“I don’t want to say it, but Deku, your lungs were punctured during your previous major fight. A bit of smoke in your lungs before they’re completely healed is a bad idea. It’ll be fine. Ground Zero’s quirk is perfect for this. He’s used to explosions. He’s used to large amounts of smoke. And he’s excellent in combat. We have backup coming for him, relax. He’s just going in first ,” Viren tried to calm the hero down.

Deku nodded, deciding to trust in his fellow coworkers. They were hired because of their skill and judgement, and if Viren, who has been in the agency for four times as long as he had, say it’s okay, then it’ll be okay. 

Izuku relaxed his stance and smiled “I’m sorry. I just get a little…”

“Nervous, anxious, excited, mesmerized, when it comes to Ground Zero? We know,” Teruki laughed, “Everyone does.”

Everyone does . Deku thinks a little sadly, Except Kacchan. 

Katsuki felt a little bad. He had agreed to lunch with Izuku after practically avoiding any hanging out outside of work for weeks, and now he has to ditch. But when duty calls, what could he do. Being a hero comes first. Although lunch with Deku is a close second today. 

Sendai was almost 7 hours by car, but only 3 hours by plane. Which was why he was taking a plane. Looking out of the window, he stared down at the landscape. The manufacturing plant was outside of Sendai about thirty miles or so, giving him ample room to do whatever the fuck he wanted without fearing that there were many civilians around. He had a rescue team of about 3 people who were going to go in and retrieve all of the smoke victims before he and he alone can start going on offense.

 Of course, the goal would be to keep damage to a minimum; however, if Titanium villain is already going to be destroying the facility upon arrival, then it’s fair game either way. He could do what he wanted. 

Upon arriving, there were already helicopter news channels covering the event. Tch , bastards, Katsuki thought as he stood back and assisted the rescue team in jumping out, always in the damn way . Japan would have called on one of Sendai’s hero agencies, but there were no top 10 agency located in Sendai, and this mission needed the top. 

After 15 minutes, he gets the signal in his earpeace, ‘ Site is clear. No civilians left onsite. Ground Zero, you’re free to engage.’

That was all he needed. Taking a look out of the helicopter onto the manufacturing plant below, twisted with destroyed titanium, he grins from the adrenaline high before jumping. 

“Ground Zero is entering the scene alone as the only offensive hero! He has immediately spotted the villain duo in the Southeast corner of the plant, heading towards what is likely their escape plan, and is making fast work towards the villains. The villains, whose quirk involve smoke-release and titanium bending, has realized their current predicament and are seemingly preparing to take a defensive stance,” the News Channel 14 anchor announced. And much of Japan listened. And some change. 

Katsuki spotted them almost immediately, and blasted his way through the destruction, eyes completely on the targets. He would have preferred another offense-heavy hero or two with him, but this was fine. He’s won 5 v 1 before, he’s more than enough. When he was 15, he managed to fend off 6 League of Villain members up until he was rescued. 

The villains have now stopped, turning to face towards them. The titanium villain was huge, skin silver, and lugging the weapons around in a giant titanium sack. The smoke villain was scrawnier, with neck-length black hair that was messed up and all over his face. They probably realized by now that they will not make it to any sort of escape route in time, so taking the defense or going offensive first will be their best option. The titanium villain used his quirk to transport the weapons further ahead where they’ll be out of the fighting area. 

  Fine by me , Katsuki grinned sadistically. 

As he approached a 10 meter radius, his vision was suddenly clouded as heavy smoke emitted from the Smoke-user’s mouth and blanketed everything in the vicinity with a churning grey smoke. Before the smoke could enter him, he held his breath.

He reached over his belt and pulled out a smoke mask. They weren’t about to fucking send anyone down here, knowing what the villain’s quirk was, and not provide a gas mask. Strapping it on, he looked around. Although the lack of sight did not help him in the slightest. Whatever. He’s worked with worse. 

Cracking his neck, he gave a loud warning, “Oi, bastards. Run and hide, fuckheads. Run and hide . Because when I find you, I will tear off your own cock and make you choke on it.” 

Behind him, he heard a raspy voice, “You sound more like a villain than we do.” 

Katsuki knew a kick was incoming so he jumped back, turning his body at the same time, before sending off an explosion in that general area. The explosion blew away some of the smoke, just enough for him to see the general outline of his surroundings. 

He cackled, “I get that a lot.” He can work with this. 

The fight was long, and admittedly, tough . Not that Katsuki would have, admitted it. It wasn’t the worst battle that he’s ever been in, but it was definitely one of endurance. Sendai was still a pretty far distance away from the facility, and so any backup he would have will take about an hour and a half to get there. And when constantly fighting and not getting a break for even a second , even twenty minutes feels like a long time. 

Katsuki could tell, the titanium villain had been well trained in combat. The titanium heavy facility was like a playground for him, and he had no trouble bending the metal to his will. Katsuki was more than suited to defend, after all he was a pretty fucking great hero; however, he could only take so many towers thrown in his direction before he begins to get worn out a little bit. What mattered though, is that for every ounce of energy the villains took from Katsuki, he takes at least three ounces away from them. 

And he can tell too. Both villain’s movements were slower, less coordinated. The smoke villain lacked physical strength, so he preferred to stay in the shadows, surprising Katsuki with smoke to cloud his vision every chance he could. The titanium villain would then use that interval of time where Ground Zero was taken by surprised to land an attack. Katsuki managed to evade them and counter most instances so far; however, he was now about forty long, excruciating minutes into the fight, and his streak ran out. 

In a second, his vision was blocked by the sudden release of dark black smoke. This one was more concentrated than before. The smoke villain must have been saving this ultimate move. And right then, before Katsuki had a chance to react, he felt a strong impact to the side of his head and then 

A crack!

His gas mask, upon impact of the titanium villain’s kick to the head, broke and landed on the ground. Katsuki reacted quickly, immediately holding his breath as he blasted his way up out of the radius of the smoke. He was fucking angry. 

It takes about ten seconds to dissipate, but the moment it did, Katsuki dove down at a ridiculously fast speed, and anyone else would be afraid that they won’t be able to control themselves in time and slam into the ground, but Katsuki knew himself better. He dove towards the villain and using his explosions to create a drilling tornado figure, he didn’t even give the titanium bastard a chance to react. 

“Howitzer…” He roared and in the midst of his rotation, saw the man’s eyes widen as he attempts to jump out of the line of trajectory, “Impact!”

And then nothing. 

Literally nothing, because the Hero Ground Zero had cleared everything within a twenty meter radius with the massive explosion that looked almost like a nuclear mushroom cloud. And when the air cleared, the titanium villain was unconscious beneath him. Possibly dead, but Katsuki only aimed for the stomach. If he had aimed for the head, he would have been dead for sure. Even the stomach impact will likely leave the villain unable to move for a couple of months. 

The explosive weapons that the villains had stolen had been far enough that it wouldn’t have detonated from Katsuki’s blast, he made sure of that. At this point, the rescue team he had with him probably took hold of the weapons. 

He looked around. The smoke villain was close by to the site of impact just now, which means that he is either under some rumble, which would save Katsuki some trouble, or he had been thrown somewhere. If he was lucky, the guy was also unconscious. And even if the other villain was still conscious, then Ground Zero knew for a fact that he doesn’t have much fight left in him. 

Katsuki left the titanium villain there. The guy wouldn’t wake up for a while, and began walking in a random direction. If the smoke villain is still conscious, then he’ll make his appearance soon. Judging from all of the profiling Katsuki has done on the two villains, they had a close enough relationship that it doesn’t seem likely that one of them would leave the other behind if a plan goes awry. He doesn’t stray too far from the knocked-out villain. 

After about five minutes of walking through the area, Katsuki checks into his earpiece, “Oi, logistics. Do a thermal scan of the grounds and find out where the Smoke fucker is. I’m running out of patience.”

“On it, Grou-” 

He didn’t get to finish, because his vision was immediately clouded with smoke. This time, he didn’t have the time lag of his gas mask falling off to prepare him to hold his breathe, and his lungs got a full hit of the smoke. It wasn’t as if he wasn’t used to his own smoke, but this one was much, much more concentrated. But that was a problem for another time. 

Katsuki knew that the other villain had probably just used the last of his strength, and when the smoke cleared slightly, he saw the outline of the smoke villain dragging the body of his unconscious friend away. He knew it . 

Katsuki blasted towards them, having much greater agility than the villain, and in less than a minute, pinned the Smoke villain to the ground and for good measure, knocked him out. 

Right away, above him, he could hear the megaphone of the News helicopter exclaiming, Ground Zero has done it! All by himself. Backup is just merely five minutes away, but he managed to take down the vil-

People then flooded all around him. Cops on the scene, apprehending the villains and yellow taping the site. In the corner of his vision, medics were tending to the evacuated victims. Reporters were already coming towards him with questions and microphones, even though the evacuation and clean-up team were trying to push them back. 

Except Katsuki could barely focus on any of it. There was ringing in his ear, and all the sensations felt so heightened as he tries to push away the rumbling in his chest. The smoke. The fucking smoke . 

He had tried his hardest not to inhale any during the entire fight, because he knew what that would mean for him. At the end, when his mask had been broken, he knew he had to end it quickly before the Smoke villain could get near him, and yet the fucker managed to get one in at the last moment. His built in epipen, where the fuck was it. He fumbled around, just to see that some of his clothes had ripped off and equipment fell out during the fight, and isn’t life just fucking wonderful. 

It didn’t just tickle. It burned, and Katsuki immediately began heaving. 

His hands were placed on his knees, as he hunched forward, heaving out of his trachea, which felt blocked. The smoke was forcibly making him cough, and fuck, I guess the cat’s about to the out of the bag. He doubled over, and suddenly, shouts from the crowd of reports and TV channels called out to him . Ground Zero, Ground Zero! Is everything okay? How is your personal dam-

He wanted to tell them all to shut up, but he couldn’t get a word out. He was still standing on his feet, leaned forward as the flower petals begged to climb up his throat. He clapped his chest several times, trying to get them out so he could fucking breathe again. 

And then there it was. A trail of blood and saliva left his lips, and along with it, the first green petal. 

And then another, and then a clump, a stem, more petals, more blood, fuck , so much blood. It just wouldn’t stop coming out, and the world seemingly went still.

The green was beautiful, the color of Deku’s eyes. And the blood? Ruby, like Katsuki’s. 

It went silent around him, as he knew that people were sinking it in. It wasn’t hard to figure out. There was, after all, one illness in the world with these side effects. They call it the Beautiful Death, in America, he’s heard. Here, they call it Hanahaki, Flower Illness. The fucking world now knows, and all Katsuki could do in the moment was stare at the bloody petals on the rubble. Three, four, eight, ten, fifteen, twenty-four… He counts. 31. That’s the most he’s ever had. 

Finally, once it sunk in, he knew it would begin: the questions, the camera flashes. 

“Mr. Ground Zero, is that hana-” A reporter piped up first. 

Katsuki didn’t even let him finish the sentence, “Shut up,” He growled and raised his hand, forming a circle with two fingers and aiming it at the live camera, “AP shot.” And with a quick blast, he fucked up the camera, but that didn’t help the other twenty that were on him now. He couldn’t just stand there and shoot them all down if he tried.

He pushed through the crowd, shoving people out of the way, before making it to the authorized emergency personnel area. Katsuki headed up the rung of the helicopter and climbed in.

Before anyone could say anything to him, he let out a warning, “I’m not going to talk about it, so don’t ask about it. Take us back.” 

If anyone had something to say, they didn’t any longer. 

Izuku in five minutes felt everything around him collapse, and it was just him staring at a TV. The fight had been difficult, and he felt so bad for Kacchan, but it was nothing he was too worried about. Viren had been right earlier. Katsuki could hold his own. He didn’t need to be worried for someone who’s got this. But this ? 

When the fight had ended, Deku let out a whoop from Ochaco’s living room floor and raised his glass of soda to Ochaco’s to celebrate the success. Finally, it was over. Deku was watching its livestream ever since he came over for lunch. And then, he heard the coughing.

“It must have been the smoke,” Ochaco had commented, not really paying much mind to it. And Izuku had agreed. The villain’s quirk was tough on anyone’s lungs. He would have hated to fight that last segment of the fight without a gas mask. 

But then, it didn’t stop. No, it didn’t stop for minutes, and even the camera crew of the channel they were watching it off of was starting to get worried. He could hear their muttering, wondering if Ground Zero was alright. 

And then, Katsuki opened his lip, and a trail of red came out. That would have been enough to worry people, but then, along with the trail of red, something flat and green. It was hard to see at first, but after at least five to ten of them came out of Katsuki’s mouth, it was obvious what those were. It was obvious to everyone what those were. 

Flower petals. 

Izuku’s heart rate sped up, he had tunnel vision, and his hair stood on edge. His throat went dry. He kept watching. He kept watching, as Katsuki coughed up petal after petal, stems, and a bit of root. 

This wasn’t a new development. He knew that for sure. Just how long, is the question. 

Deku was silent, eyes wide, glued to the screen with his lips parted. 

“...Deku-kun?” Ochaco said with a nervous wavering in her voice. She was looking over at him with concern, but Izuku couldn’t find it in him to pay attention to anything else, “Deku, please talk to m-”

But before she could finish, Izuku was off of the floor and headed towards the door, everything ringing and going numb. He slightly hears Ochaco calling out for him, but he can barely register it. He’s running, to his car, and he was fumbling with his keys like a stupid high schooler who just got their licenses. But he couldn’t help it. His hands were shaking. 

Once the keys were in, he booked it to Katsuki’s apartment. The traffic lights and stop signs on the way even made him anxious, but once he arrived, he wasn’t even sure if he parked correctly. 

All he cared about was getting inside. Searching around in his bag for the apartment keys, he shoved it in the lock and left the door open as he barged inside and headed straight to the oddest, strangest thing in the house. 

Katsuki’s trash can. The blonde had two in most rooms in his home. One for him, and one for guests. Ever since Kacchan had told him not to look in his shit that one night so long ago back in UA, Izuku respected that, but he wasn’t going to respect jack shit tonight. 

Opening, the lid, he peered inside and everything that he was scared of coming up here to the apartment was confirmed. There were bloody petals upon bloody petals. Deku let out a sad laugh mixed in with a cry. How long have Katsuki’s sudden fear of people going into his trash persisted? Deku counts. Years. Katsuki’s had hanahaki for years . While Izuku was fucking pining over this man, someone else who didn’t love Katsuki back was killing him. Life was just full of ironies. 

Deku turned, body numb, and headed towards the bedroom straight for the nightstand. He grabbed the jar of unlabelled pills and stared at it. Another cover-up. 

More people must have known. Izuku thought back to their time at UA. Katsuki would sometimes ask to leave, and the teachers had no problem with it. Aizawa...All Might...Principal Nedzu. All of them must have known. And now, at the agency, the higher-ups must have known. Izuku’s hands shook and he dropped the jar on the bed. 

Katsuki knew it was going to be hell. The moment he stepped off of the helicopter and gone back inside of the building, it was going to be hell. 

The helicopter pad was on the roof of the agency, but as he stepped inside,  he remembered that only 7 people in the agency knew out of professional obligation about Katsuki’s condition. The others, including his own friends and colleagues? They knew nothing . Until mere hours ago. He pushed through everybody, worrying eyes and questions of concern. He shared a look with Shoto and half-and-half said nothing, just giving him a look of understanding that he probably wanted his space.

“Everyone, leave Ground Zero be. It’s none of your business, even if you are his friend, so if you want to keep your job, back to work,” Shoto demanded. Katsuki gave him a grateful nod, as he heads for his office.

No one else but the maintenance workers and the higher-ups had keys to his office, so he knew he would be alone there, until he was able to secure a ride back to his apartment without getting bombarded with reporters. He had seen them below as the helicopter had pulled into the landing pad earlier. Dozens upon dozens of them huddled outside of the agency, waiting to see Ground Zero, to ask him about the condition that everyone knew of by now. 

Taking out his keys, Katsuki unlocked the door and rushed inside, locking it behind him.

 Just to be immediately slammed up against his own door. 

“Who the fuck ,” Katsuki barked, before seeing who it was. Fuck, fuck, fuck, not now. Not now . 

Deku was standing there, head down with both arms caging Katsuki in against the door, and Katsuki could see his friend’s shoulder shaking and droplets of tears hit the gray carpeted floor. 

Katsuki looked around, and ah , so that’s how he got in. His office had floor-to-ceiling windows on one side of the wall, and one entire panel was broken and smashed across the ground. Deku fucking broke in from the outside, even though his office was on the 18th floor. 

“Texas…” Deku hiccuped between crying and pulled his arm back. 

Katsuki’s eyes widened and he put a hand up, “Deku, what the fuc-”

“..Smash,” The hero finished, but there was nothing to it. His punch landed on Katsuki’s shoulder, but he had deactivated One For All before anything could happen. Even then, Izuku continued to cry, hitting Katsuki’s chest repeatedly. It did hurt a bit, but nothing he couldn’t handle. And so Katsuki just stands there taking it for as long as it goes on. 

“How long,” Izuku finally asks when he calms down by the smallest fraction. His voice is small but firm. 

“I don’t kno-”

“Bullshit. How much longer are you going to lie to me, Kacchan?” Deku asked, anger growing, “You’ve been secretive about your trash for years, and you think I don’t know what it was all about now?” 

Katsuki let out a sigh and leaned his head back against the door, closing his eyes, “A little over three years.” 

Izuku’s face morphed into one of betrayal and fear and he lets it sink in, “Three years…” He repeats under his breath.

It was quiet for another couple minutes. Katsuki didn’t know what to say. He knew there was a possibility, but he wasn’t actually prepared for the day that Izuku found out. And it happened in the worst possible way, on live fucking television . God, he has never hated Freedom of the Press more than he did now. 

“You didn’t tell me anything,” Deku whispered with shiny, tear-brimmed eyes that refused to look at Katsuki, “Why didn’t you tell me anything.”

Katsuki let out a small huff and leaned off the door, heading over to his desk chair where he plopped down, “It wasn’t anything worth worrying about. You worried too much anyways, I didn’t want your annoying ass try-”

“Can you stop treating everything like it doesn’t matter for once!” Izuku yelled and put his face in his hands, rubbing at his eyes before taking a deep breath, “Why can’t I worry about you, Kacchan? You’re my best friend. All I’ve ever done is worry about you, so stop treating me like I’m dramatic or- or whiny for it. And stop acting like everything is okay. You always do that!” 

Katsuki sat there listening. Deku deserved to yell, to let it out. 

“You always do that thing where you take something that matters and pretend it doesn’t. It’s not anything worth worrying about? Kacchan, you coughed up more than 30 petals today. I’m no doctor, but I know for a fact that is bad,” And then his voice broke again, “Why has it been 3 years, Kacchan? Why have you suffered for this long?”

And then, panic rose to Izuku’s face, “The surgery! Kacchan, the surgery. Why haven’t you gotten it? It’ll sa-”

“I’m not getting the surgery,” Katsuki denied right away. 

Izuku practically yelled, “Why the fuck not. It’ll save you. There’s no way you have that much time left, not with thirty petals. When I was recovering, you would get up sometime in the night every night to get them out, and you think that it’ll be okay ? It’s not worth it. You can make new memories, just please, get the sur-”

“Izuku.” Katsuki said firmly, for the first time since they were kids. The name was powerful on his tongue, and he knew that using it would get the frantic boy to listen, and it worked. 

Deku’s eyes widened significantly and his lips parted as he immediately went silent. 

“Izuku...listen,” Katsuki repeated, the name feeling foreign on his tongue, “I’m not getting the surgery.”

And that was fucking that. Deku didn’t yell or go into a frenzy again. Instead, it was like his body collapsed into itself, and a look of absolute despair fell upon his face.  And then Izuku began laughing lightly, although nothing was funny. 

“You must really love this person…” Deku bittersweetly states. If Kacchan was willing to call him by his real name, to pull his attention in such a serious manner, it must have meant that Katsuki was willing to die by his words. 

To this, Katsuki doesn’t say anything. It’s funny, that Deku was talking about himself and didn’t even know it. 

Izuku felt like a fool, to have his hopes raised all of this time. Just to get it shoved back in his face with how impossible it was. His heart ached, and Deku just wanted to collapse onto the ground and cry until the next day. Izuku felt so dumb. But more importantly, he felt worried. Beyond worried, because Katsuki was dying. Fuck, he can’t . 

“Th-then, we have to...get this person to to love you bac-” Deku painfully suggested, but was willing to do whatever it took so that he can just have Katsuki alive, and by his side. He doesn’t care if he never gets to have Katsuki. He doesn’t care if he has to be the best man at a future wedding, watching the person he loved marry someone else. Hell, he doesn’t care what happens, as long as Katsuki was alive. As long as he was alive, and happy, then Izuku would be happy too. 

“He won’t.” Katsuki interrupted. Not in the way that I want. He won’t. He wouldn’t.  

For some reason, Izuku looks off to the side with a soft, but sad-seeming smile, “So it’s a ‘ he’ .”

Katsuki didn’t reply.

And Deku’s bottom lip quivered, “...Why wouldn’t he? You’re…” He let out a small, hopeless breath, “...perfect.”

“It’s not his responsibility to love me back,” Katsuki emphasized, “And I know he’ll feel so fucking guilty if he can’t.”

“How considerate of you,” Izuku spoke with bitterness, “Since when were you so chivalrous? Since when did you give up so easily.”

“God,” Kacchan rubbed a hand over his face in tired frustration, “I’m not giving up, Deku. Why the fuck do you think I go on all of those dates? You think I actually like people?” 

“You can hardly call those dates,” Izuku mumbled with furrowed brows under his breath.

“Hah?” 

“Nothing,” He brushed off, then looked up at Katsuki determined, “Kacchan, you’re not dying. I won’t let you. We’re going to get through this.”

“We?” Katsuki laughed. If he was going to get through this, the last thing he needed was Izuku’s involvement . 

“Yes,” Deku frowned, “We. I’m going to do all I can to help you, even if you don’t want it. You’re going to...you’re going to get over this person. And it’s going to be okay. And you’re going to stop coughing up these stupid flowers, and stop taking those stupid pills. And you’re going to stay here…” His voice cracked as it got quieter, “...by my side.”

“I never planned on leaving,” Katsuki took a step forward and tucked a stray lock that was longer than the rest behind Izuku’s ear, before pulling the shorter man flush to his chest. Katsuki smelled like sweat, blood, and burnt sugar, which would be a strange combination to anyone that didn’t love it as much as Izuku did. The embrace was so soft, so gentle. Izuku wanted to cry. How could Katsuki do something like this so casually, while in love with someone else. Maybe things like this didn’t mean much to Katsuki, but it meant the world to Izuku. 

“Good,” He whispered in response, looking down at the ground before asking, “How did you do it? How did you hide it from me, from everyone, for so long.”

Katsuki chuckled, the vibrations of it could be felt through the embrace, “A lot of lies. A lot of excusing myself from places. A fuck ton of medicine.”

“Oh.” 

Katsuki lifted a hand to rub Izuku’s soft hair for a second, “I’m surprised you haven’t asked who it is, yet.” Not that he would’ve told him.

At this, Izuku gently pushed himself out of Katsuki’s hug, missing the warmth immediately, and looked off to the side in frustration, “I’m curious, but I don’t want to know. If I knew...I don’t think I’d be able to stop myself from hating them. They’re so lucky, and they don’t even know it. I already hate them, without knowing, Kacchan.”

The irony makes Katsuki laugh, “You wouldn’t hate them. You can’t hate anyone.” 

Usually, Izuku would agree. It wasn’t in his nature to hate.

 But now, he wasn’t so sure. 

Chapter Text

“As I’m sure you fuc-...people...know by now, I have been dealing with Hanahaki for a little while,” Katsuki spoke to the press, a hint of irritation in his ruby eyes as he stares out at the masses. 

He was currently standing up on the podium, delivering a much needed statement after the country found out that one of their best and fastest growing heroes had hanahaki. Katsuki had been told by his media coordinator over and over again not to check the news, which would overwhelm him. He checked anyways, curious to see what people think. Not that he cared, but it was slightly amusing to see the internet panic. If the world was going to fuck him over, he might as well watch it burn. 

There were so many articles.

 ‘Ground Zero, number #7 hero after his recent takedown of the international villain duo, suffers from Hanahaki’ ‘Ground Zero, rumored to have hanahaki because of his long time friend and hero partner Deku’. Katsuki snorts. That one hit the nail on the head. ‘Ground Zero and veteran Best Jeanist: possible unrequited lovers?’ Katsuki wanted to barf. Who the fuck made that connection? ‘Ground Zero to die within the week?’. He glared at that one, and wonders where people come up with this shit. There were so many conspiracies. 

In the forums, people were either crying, or claiming it was so romantic, especially for a hero who’s dubbed Japan’s Bad Boy. Again, the nickname made his body shiver in cringe. It was the story of the decade. People with the right gene set to contract Hanahaki were rare, and to see a popular Pro Hero with the disease? Everyone and their mom went crazy. 

His fanbase was in flames. Some were sobbing their eyes out, saddened by the whole situation and offering that Katsuki love them instead and have it not be unrequited. Some were angry and delusional that the Pro Hero had his heart set on someone else. Some were playing detective, scouring every interaction Katsuki ever had with anybody to see who it could be. But one thing everyone had in common is that no one knew what to do. 

No one. Not even him. He only took a select few phone calls. All of his friends went straight to voicemail, except for Deku who would show up at his apartment if he didn’t pick up. Inko had called him at one point, sobbing and acting like the sweet, worrying mother she was. He spent an hour consoling her that he was going to be okay. 

“Katsuki, you’re like a son to me,” Inko cried into his phone.

“I’ll be okay, Auntie,” He ushered her with false confidence.

“Th...there’s people who would have no problem loving you back, Katsuki,” Inko sounded like she was trying to make a point through her sobs, “Izuku...You’re his world.” 

“And he’s mine,” Katsuki assured her. He’d never say anything as sappy in front of the nerd, but he knew that Inko needed to hear things like that. 

The woman stayed silent on the other line, wondering why Katsuki missed the point she was trying to make when it was so obvious what she was trying to imply. After another half hour, she had calmed down enough to let him go. 

His parents, who of course already knew, had called too, with his Dad offering support as always and the old hag telling him to not skip any pills. Other than the people who knew before the Live TV incident and Deku, Katsuki made sure to have limited contact with anyone else. 

The unwanted reveal on Live TV during the villain incident was about 8 days ago, and talk of the whole hanahaki disease has not died down yet. It was practically impossible to get put on patrol at this rate, since he’d get mobbed instantly by the press, reporters, journalists, fans, and whoever else. And so, while they wait for the media to calm down, Katsuki was practically put on house arrest. 

It was ridiculous. The last thing Katsuki wanted to happen was for this shitty disease to hinder his job, but in the end, that’s exactly what was happening. 

And now, after 8 days, Katsuki stands in front of the press to finally deliver a statement. Beforehand, he was told don’t curse. Don’t curse. There are kids obsessed with you tuning in for updates on their hero. Do. Not. Curse. But that was like telling him not to eat. Still, he tried to hold his tongue as best as he can. 

The press conference was about three hours right before a big cross-agency gala, one of the biggest of the year, and they had purposely decided to put it on this day because the attention will not solely be on Katsuki. Of course, the news with Ground Zero was huge, but along with one of the biggest galas of the year, at least Katsuki would not be overwhelmed with the attention. It was a strategic move by his public relations coordinator.

A million camera flashes at the press conference shone in his face, and he rolled his eyes. He was already in this stuffy three piece suit, which to be fair, was tailored to his form, but still was a bit annoying. He rolled his watch over his wrist and stared out at the masses of hungry journalists. And continued.

“Who my hanahaki is for? Is none of your business. How long? Is none of your business. I’ve got it under control. I have a very good, but bald and annoying doctor who’s taking care of me, and I will overcome this shi- , this bad disease. So don’t none of you worry about me. I’m the fuc- I’m the best, and I will be back in perfect condition in no time. In case you doubt my abilities to perform my duties as a hero with the disease, I’ll take this time to remind you lot that I’ve completed over dozens upon dozens of missions even with the hanahaki, without anyone knowing, and I will continue to do so.” Katsuki spoke with authority. He half read from the cards and half made up his own shit. 

The cameras flash again, and a reporter who raised her hand first got to ask the question many people were thinking about, “Mr. Ground Zero. Many people who love and look up to you are worried and was wondering, why won’t you get the surgery?”

Katsuki paused for a moment, before looking up at the reporter with a devious grin, “ If I’m going to get over this, it’s going to be clean. I’m going to have an indisputable victory. It’s not taking anything with it, no memories. Nothing. I want to be the best damn” Fuck, he forgot not to curse, “hero that I can be, and I wouldn’t be the hero I am now not having felt what I felt for this person,” and then he adds, “Besides, if this person is worth loving, then they are worth remembering.” 

Some people in the audience cood and awed at the uncharacteristically sweet statement, but from just behind the stage, where Izuku and some other pro heroes were there for moral support, Izuku felt a twisting, gutteral feeling inside of him at such sweet sentiments directed towards some person he doesn’t even know the name of. God, he felt so pathetic. He hangs onto every word Katsuki says, using it as a reminder that he’s a fool who’s in love with someone who doesn’t feel the same. 

“He really can’t get any more obvious who he’s talking about,” Shoto observed.

Deku furrowed his brows, “You know who it is? Did he tell you?”

“No? It’s just...always been obvious,” Shoto gave him a weird look, “I’m surprised you can’t pick up the clues. But that’s not my conversation to have.”

Deku pursed his lips and looked back on the crowd from the side of the stage. 

“Mr. Ground Zero, out of curiosity, what flowers do you bear? They say the flower you cough up says something about the person you fell for,” A more amateur reporter asked. 

Katsuki hesitated, “Green hydrangeas.” 

“Again, obvious,” Shoto muttered, but Izuku didn’t catch what was obvious. 

“Mr. Ground Zero, after the fight at the manufacturing plant, you coughed up about 30 petals. Considering that, how much time do you think you have left?” A reporter questioned.

“A good 70 years. Because I’m getting over this shi- disease, and I’m never gonna die,” Katsuki looked bored.

“Mr. Ground Zero, it’s popular belief that your unrequited love is your hero partn-” One man began. 

“That’s enough,” Katsuki’s public relations manager stood up, “We’re not here to discuss rumors. We are here to tell you the facts about Mr. Ground Zero’s condition, and you have recieved them. Unless there are technical questions that Mr. Bakugo is willing to answer, we will not divulge into any speculations.”

Izuku’s heart pounded. It was obvious what the reporter was going to ask. And he read the tabloids. Along with a handful of others, Deku was one of the most frequently rumored people to be the subject of Katsuki’s unrequited love. He almost wished Katsuki’s manager didn’t stop the reporter from finishing the question. A sadistic part of him wanted to hear what Kacchan had to say. 

After a couple more questions, Katsuki, deciding he’s had enough, wraps up the brief conference and heads to the back where some of his fellow moral supporters were. Deku spots him right away and gives him a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Izuku didn’t look like he’s had sleep in days.

“Kacchan, you only had one slip up with the cursing today. I’m proud of you,” Izuku teased. It was a bit difficult to joke around considering how fresh everything still was. He’d think that after a week, he’d get accustomed to the fact, but he really hasn’t.

“Fuck off. I’m a dying man, I should be able to say what I want,” Katsuki complained.

“Kacchannn, that’s not funny,” Deku frowned to which the blonde laughed. 

“After three years of hiding this shit, I think I’m allowed a little liberty to fuck around a little bit with it,” Katsuki made a fair point before coughing a little bit. When he removed his palm, about two petals fell out and he was quick to throw it away. It felt weird to not hide from people anymore, after so long of having to be so secretive about it. 

And Izuku? Yeah, Izuku was never going to get used to seeing Katsuki doing that: coughing and having bloody petals come up. 

He had come over every day to Katsuki’s apartment since the revelation, despite Katsuki telling him not to, but the blonde no longer hides the coughing anymore or gets pissy at throwing the trash away. Izuku even finds himself holding a bag out for his friend, heart aching the entire time. Nothing has been worse than walking past the trash and seeing bloody petals. He grimaces every time. 

Izuku’s been a little quiet ever since their conversation. He tries to hide it, but Katsuki could tell something is going on in this man’s head. He doesn’t question the greenette on it, because he knows that when Izuku was ready to tell him what’s on his mind, he will. 

It wasn’t necessarily an angry nor was it a particularly sad silence either.

 It was more of a contemplative silence, as if Izuku was deciding whether or not to do or say something. Sometimes, if they were in the middle of a conversation, he’d see Izuku’s thought drift off somewhere for about a minute before circling back. It felt like Izuku was trying to make up his mind on whether or not he wanted to do or say something. 

They were back to their old selves for the most part, where Izuku would come over all the damn time and bother him until it was time to sleep. It wasn’t actually bothersome, and Katsuki missed the other’s presence more than he felt was possible. But it wasn’t good for him. And yet, when Izuku shows up at his door, he lets the damn boy in. 

Now, at the backstage of the press conference, Katsuki still finds himself gravtiated towards Izuku in a room full of people. He stays with his hero partner for a little bit, before going around to everyone, who patted him on the back as if he was some brave victim. The truth was that it was just reality. 

“Bakugo,” Shoto patted the blonde on the back firmly, before joking, “If it’s me you’re in love with, which I don’t blame you, then you’re out of luck.”

“I’m so devastated, IcyHot,” Katsuki laughed gruffly and sarcastically, “What am I to do now.” 

“Wow, these must be some dark times if even Shoto is making a decent joke,” one of their coworkers teased. 

That caused a bit of a laugh to shuffle through the crowd. 

“Stop with all this depressing shit,” Bakugo shooed everyone away, “Go get ready for the gala, you bastards, and then we can all go have some fun.”

“Alright, alright, we’re leaving,” They said as the crowd dispersed, except for the one person who never leaves when Katsuki tells him to.

“The fuck you want, Deku?” Katsuki asked, turning to face the freckled hero. 

“U-um,” Deku stammered, “I was wondering if you got a date to the gala, tonight?”

“I was thinking about going by myself. Being near anyone right now will give the press a field day. Why?,” Then Katsuki smirked, “You wanted to be my date?” 

“Actually yes,” Deku almost shouted before he could back out.

Seeing Katsuki’s weirded out and shocked expression made his own face pale. 

“As friends! I think we should go as friend-dates,” Izuku was quick to cover up. God, he was such a coward when it came to Katsuki, “You know, since we’re already hero partners. It wouldn’t be too weird if we went together. Plus, I don’t really want to drive there, since I kind of wanted to have a drink or two and driving back would be very dangerous. And I know you’d be okay, because it takes you so much to get drunk, which you won’t because you never get drunk at public events because of reputation. Not that I plan on getting drunk! I just need a teensy bit to get me going, you know? But you can never be too safe. A-and we don’t have to stick together while we’re there or anything like th-”

“Relax. We’ll go together,” Katsuki interrupted before brushing past Izuku, not sparing the other a glance, grabbing his water bottle and heading towards the door, “Don’t burst a fucking blood vessel over it.”

Izuku frowned. Katsuki’s been so...off and on. Lately, the blonde has been giving him such confusing interactions, like the one they just had. It was both nice and mean. Like Christ, Kacchan had just agreed to go with him to the gala even though he could have easily said no, and then right after push past him and leave while making Izuku feel like a fool for worrying so much. 

And then, lately, when Izuku asks to come over or hang out, Katsuki would adamantly say no. But when he shows up anyways, the blonde looks like he genuinely enjoys the company. And then, there was the touching. Randomly, Katsuki might reach a hand over to run his fingers through Izuku’s green hair, and then redact it as if he’s been burned. He was just so sick of having Katsuki’s half-assed attention and treatment. Deku likes to think that he was a humble person, with humble roots. But he needs to give himself credit once in a while where it’s due. He was Pro Hero Deku, super strong and pretty smart and he tries his best to be a good person. And he deserved Katsuki’s full attention, Deku finalized his thoughts with a humph. 

He’s been quiet the past 8 days out of contemplation: spacing out here and there, thinking to himself intensely when he was alone. 

Ever since the conversation they had in Katsuki’s office, Izuku has had this horrible, terrible idea in his mind. And at first, he shoved it out of his consiousness with a hard kick. But as the 8 days of Katsuki’s house arrest progressed and he’s just been spacing out over and over again thinking about it, and now, as he’s getting absolutely fed up with Kacchan’s half ass treatment, he decided that he’s going to work up the courage to go through with his shitty idea. 

Pulling out his phone, Deku called up Mina and Ochaco, merging the calls.

“Hey guys?” Izuku spoke determined into the phone, “Do I look fuckable?”

He was met with silence at the end of the other lines. A beat. Two beats. Before Mina laughed her ass off, “Dekuuu, what did you just say?”
And there went all of Izuku’s determination and confidence, “I sa-said do I look…” He gulped, not ready to repeat the word, “...fuckable?”

“Why? Is there someone you want to fuck?” She asked knowingly. Deku could practically see her eyebrows wagging through the phone. All of the determination he had mere moments before shrivelled up and died.

“Mina,” Ochaco groaned, “Who do you think he wants to be bent over by?” 

Deku’s face flushed at the thought. Why’d she have to say it like that? 

“Ohhhh,” Mina came to a realization that Izuku wasn’t aware was so obvious, “Hah! You and me, both, budd-”

“Just please answer the question!” Izuku almost yelled into the phone embarrassed, and then squeaked out an apology, “Sorry!”

“Oh, um…” Ochaco began with honesty, “Izuku...you’re more cute than anything, in a geeky way. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! Your face and body is perfect, but um...the way you dress…”

Mina finished for her, “The way you dress is similar to that of a middle school kid who’s deep in his comic book phase. But we all love it, still!” 

That’s what Izuku had been afraid of, and he closed his eyes before asking, “So...the gala tonight. Could you two make me look…”

Both girls gasped at the same time, “Irresistable? Sexy? Totally fuckable? Yes, yes, yes. Come over, right now. We barely have three hours now, plus we have to show you how to flirt!” 

Okay , Izuku thought to himself. He’s trusting them. They’re bad bitches. They know what they’re doing. He takes a deep breath.

Katsuki is outside of Izuku’s apartment complex, leaning against his car. It was a nice apartment complex, similar to his own, courtesy of the numerous benefits working under the top hero agency and being damn good at their job. Every floor had an outdoor terrace-balcony thing that connected all of the apartments, a very typical achitectural style for Japanese apartment complexes. Except this one had high security, marble floors, and an overall sleek look, even though the general layout of the building is very average.

Katsuki had changed out of the three-piece suit and into a sleek charcoal Tom Ford suit without the tie. Fuck the tie. Instead, he had the top two buttons of the black dress shirt he had underneath undone, and a black shark’s tooth necklace around his neck over his exposed chest. His suit was tailored to his figure, and rested over his large shoulders easily while still hugging at his firm parts. He looked damn good, and he knew it. On his left ear, he had a red cuff with a silver chain. He tapped his black dress shoes against the concrete as he waited for Izuku to come down. 

The gala was an annual tradition in Japan that was more like a glorified party that lasts until whatever time in the morning. Everyone tried to dress their absolute best, because similar to celebrities, there was a carpet walkway leading up to whatever venue the committee chose for the year where reporters and photographers can take snapshots of heroes decked out in something other than their Hero costumes or their casual wear. 

Katsuki glanced down at his watch, brows pulled together as he waited. 

And then, he felt arms coming towards him, and out of reflex, Katsuki went on the offensive. 

As fast as lightning, the blonde grabbed ahold of one of the arms in a death grip and used his other arm to push the assailant against the side of his car, hand wrapped around the person’s neck. It was a very domineering position where Katsuki had the upper hand in any counteroffensive movement. And then, he realized.

“Kacchan!” Deku scolded.

Katsuki’s eyes went wide.

Just mere moments before, Izuku had come down from the side exit of his apartment, since it was easier, and in his head, he replayed all of the flirting tips Ochaco and Mina had given him. Only to short circuit when he saw Katsuki looking down at his watch waiting for him, who looked like a walking God. 

His partner was just beautiful, with the sleek dark suit tailored to every part of his sinful body. Kacchan was just so big . So tall. And fuck . On the blonde’s face, he sported the same handsome scowl that he usually did. Katsuki as of this moment looked like a walking heartbreak. His brain stopped. 

It was good that Katsuki hasn’t noticed him yet. Remember the flirting tips. Come up to him and give him a hug, and if you’re feeling risky, whisper hi in his ear. But Izuku didn’t even get past the first step before he had a large, rough hand on his neck and another pinning his wrist. It was quick and efficient, very typical of his partner. 

If the context was something else, Izuku would have been pretty happy; however, he had to croak out Kacchan’s name to get him to loosen up his hold. The hand on his neck was tight. 

Katsuki, however, only loosened his grab on Deku’s neck just enough to let the man breath, but still kept a tight hold there just so that he can look . And god, was he looking. Izuku just let him, not as concerned anymore with the position since at least he can breath.

Izuku was pinned against his car, Katsuki’s large hand contrasted with the greenette’s neck and man, was that a sight. Izuku’s eyes were blown wide, all green and delicious, but lips that were painted a very light pink. There was some light makeup on his face, but thank god, the freckles weren’t covered up. The dark circles were though. That’s kind of funny, Katsuki thought to himself. 

Izuku’s choice of clothing was very different . Katsuki had a feeling this was one of the girl’s doing. He’s going to have to thank whoever it was for this sight. As an outer layer, Izuku had a mid-thigh length suit jacket that was tailored to his arms, waist, and shoulders. It was black, material hard wool, with two gold buttons left undone. 

Underneath the thigh-length blazer, Deku wore a fucking beautiful cowl-neck silver slip dress that came down to his thigh. His strong and sturdy legs, completely smooth, were on full display. The slip was luxurious, silky, and hugged his lips and waist while appearing flowy every else. And it was a perfect combination of both masculine and feminine, and Katsuki couldn’t look away. The cowl neck left a lot of open space that Izuku filled with a silver necklace. 

To top it off, the necklace had the letter K on it. What the fuck . It definitely didn’t mean what Katsuki wanted it to, but damn, if he didn’t want to claim it was his name. 

“What does the K stand for,” Katsuki finally blurted out when he was able to speak again, and let go of Izuku’s neck and wrist. 

“Oh,” Izuku rubbed at his neck and wrist, then reached up to fiddle with the necklace, “It’s the Keranina signature piece from her new jewelry collection.” 

Katsuki had no idea who that was, but teased, “And here I thought it stood for ‘Kacchan’.” 

Remember the flirting tips. Remember the flirting tips . Izuku drew out his inner confidence, then gives Katsuki a coy and sweet smile, reaching over to straighten Katsuki’s suit jacket even though it didn’t need straightening, “It can if you want it to,” He says before hopping into the passenger seat. 

Katsuki took a deep breath and shook his head before walking over to the driver’s side. What the fuck was that. Was Deku being...No. He couldn’t be.

The both of them got plenty of compliments the moment they left their car for the valet, whistles and shouts of how incredible they both looked. They might not be the number 1 heroes yet, but they sure are considered the most attractive alongside Shoto. Everything from head to toe looked curated from a museum.

Photographers were fenced off to the side; however, the two of them could hear the yells of praise and also the questions of their involvement with each other. People were still dying to get more comments from Ground Zero about his condition, after all. And although it wasn’t too odd that he came with his hero partner, there were still shouts of questions about whether Deku was the one.

They both heard loud and clear and chose to ignore it. Once inside, both Katsuki and Izuku was bombarded with a lot of talking from their peers, admirers, or just anyone. It was a very major event, after all. Almost all major heroes in the country were invited, so the turnout was quite large. The event hall was large and had a dance space, two large bars, tables for groups to sit in at, an extensive buffet, and several private rooms for people to take a break. 

Katsuki was glad that most people were considerate enough to not ask him about the hanahaki, and for a moment, he’s convinced he’ll be able to have an actual normal night. Most heroes understood how irritating it sometimes was to have people constantly peeking into their personal lives, since after all, Pro Heroes were treated like celebrities. And so, in the event building, he determined that it’ll go relatively normal.

However, the night was literally anything but normal. 

First of all, Deku was acting weird as fuck. And that is saying something because the nerd was always weird. He only began to count the incidents after the second time something happened, but something was definitely fishy. And Katsuki couldn’t quite believe what was going on.

In the first hour or so, Katsuki being the absolute handsome motherfucker he was, was confronted by four different heroes. And they weren’t subtle about their intentions either. A hand on his bicep, a finger running down his exposed chest. And every time, no matter where Deku was, he would magically appear and insert himself into the conversation until the other person is sick of talking about their own quirk and having Izuku obsess over their quirk. 

The first time, it just felt like something Deku would do, insert himself into the conversation and start fanboying in front of the other person. The second time, it felt a little excessive. The third time, it definitely looked intentional. How was it that Deku was in a huge space full of countless heroes and the one he decides to fanboy in front of is the one who flirts with Katsuki. Was the nerd...jealous? The thought of it made Katsuki raise a brow, although he doesn’t know what exactly Deku might want from him. Maybe his attention or something, he assumed. 

And so, Katsuki went to test the theory out. He walked over to the opposite side from where Izuku was, and struck up a conversation with Cami, a person he had been acquainted with during the make-up provisional licenses exam back at UA. She was undoubtedly pretty and even admitted to having a crush on Katsuki at some point, and they hadn’t had a conversation in a while. He wasn’t interested in her, but thought it’d be an easy way to test out his hypothesis.

It only took about three minutes, for Izuku to make his way over, and right then, Katsuki stopped the greenette, looking down at Izuku with a hand stopping the shorter man’s chest. 

“Deku, I want to have a private conversation with Cami for a little bit,” He said, not actually caring to but he’s trying to gauge the other’s reaction.

Deku paused, pursed his lips, and then turned around, “Got it! No problem.” 

Hm, weird reaction. 

Well, Katsuki didn’t have much time to dwell on feelings of curiosity, before he was forced to dwell on feelings of fury . 

Because just a couple minutes after he had finished up his conversation with Cami, his eyes scanned the crowd for Izuku to find the green-eyed boy dancing flushed to that purple-haired freak Shinzo. Deku had taken his suit jacket off, to reveal nice arms and the open backless side of the slip. Katsuki was greeted to the sight of a smooth, toned back, and he wondered what it would look like arched up for him. And then he shook the thought out of his head. The two were not dancing scandalously, just swaying to the music, but he definitely did not like that proximity. 

Before he could slap himself into rationality, Katsuki made a beeline towards the two and tapped on Shinzo’s shoulder, pissed that he had to touch the slimy motherfucker in the first place. 

“May I?” Katsuki asked with an annoyed tone. 

Shinzo rolled his eyes, “I could sniff you from a mile away,” Before stepping back. 

Katsuki replaced him quickly, bringing one hand to Izuku’s waist and pulling him forward until they were chest to chest, confronted in each other’s warmth, and the other hand on the shorter man’s hip. The fabric was so soft in his hands that it would be so easy to crumble under his rough fingers. He ignored the urge to touch, as they began swaying.

“Any particular reason why you’re acting fucking weird tonight, Deku?” Katsuki growled in his ears. 

Be physical and bat your big eyes, Deku! Izuku remembered Mina saying. He was horrible at flirting, and this definitely was not his strong suit, but Izuku was going to trust the master at it. 

Izuku had both arms around Katsuki’s shoulder, but moved one of his arms back down the left side of Kacchan’s suit jacket and over to the stretch of skin exposed by the partly unbuttoned dress shirt that the blonde had on. Katsuki’s skin was warm and so nice , and Izuku ran a finger from the base of the blonde’s neck slowly down his chest, fingers caressing the black necklace. The blonde didn’t stop him. 

He glances up at Kacchan, eyes big and pretty, “How am I acting weird?” Yeah, this is definitely not me, Izuku thought to himself, but he had to admit the confidence he had to channel was fun. 

Katsuki could barely reply. Deku was doing something . And he found himself at a loss for words, “Going to play innocent, are you now?” He leaned down to ask in a low, vibrato right next to Deku’s ear. The receiving man suppressed the shiver that threatened to travel down his spine. 

“Actually,” Deku leaned up to whisper gently, so fucking sweetly, into Katsuki’s ear, “I’d prefer to play a little...dirty.”

Izuku had gotten so internally desperate that he had thrown his shyness out the window and kicked it in the face when it tried to crawl back in. Or maybe it was the one martini he’s had. He wouldn’t get drunk, not even tipsy, off of it, but he definitely feels a lot more confident. Katsuki smelled like expensive cologne and his signature burnt sugar that he adored. It wasn’t even fair. How does the man’s sweat even smell delicious. 

He pulls back to see Katsuki’s reaction. The blonde looked at him with a raised eyebrow, almost out of surprise, and he looked out of breath even though their dancing was far from labor intensive. Kacchan twirled him once before turning him around and pulling him backwards so that his back is directly against Katsuki’s front. Their arms are crossed over, still swaying, and Izuku cranes his neck gently as his dance partner speaks close to his ear again. 

“Jesus, Deku,” Katsuki half grumbled, “Who else do you talk like this to?” 

This time, Izuku actually did feign innocence, “Talk like what?” The truth was, he’s never had this much confidence before. 

Katsuki just threw his head back and groaned in frustration, and Izuku turned back around laughing. 

“I’m a little cold now,” Deku laughed, back to his normal tone of voice, “Can you grab me my jacket, Kacchan? It’s over there.”

“Yeah, yeah. You spoiled brat,” Katsuki shook his head. 

The third incident that led to Katsuki deciding to count how many strange out-of-character shit that Deku has done tonight happened later on in the evening, a few hours into the event.  The event space has several private lounge rooms in the corners where guests can go in and out if they need a quiet break or if a small group wants to hang out separately. The doors and walls were 70% soundproof, so it was a nice place to chill out and hear each other without the blaring music.

At some point, a handful of their friends from UA from all different agencies end up in one of those private rooms together lounging on the circular sofa chairs, and a pretty intense game of truth or dare was going on. It was nice to catch up and see everyone again at first even though they usually have get togethers here and there, but now, former class 3-A were getting back to their stupid shenanigans. 

By intense, it wasn’t anything absolutely wild. No explicitly sexual activities that involve any form of inserting. No crazy violence either. So far, Denki has used Tsuyu’s tongue as a makeshift stripper pole, not sure how that worked but it did. Tokoyami had confessed to have been the one who broke Mineta’s Mount Lady figurine back in their second year, and he wasn’t even sorry about it. Toru shoved her face in a cake she stole from the buffet so that they could see the general outline of what she looked like. And Koda, still a quiet person, was dared to shake his ass on top of the table.

And finally, Mina, being the lovely and blessed instigator and catalyst she is, called on Katsuki, “Bakugoooo! Truth or dare?”

“Dare, you bitch. How dare you assume I’d take the loser option?” Katsuki cracked his knuckles with a menacing grin. 

“Alright! I dare you to give Deku-kun a hickey on his inner thigh, if he’s okay with it of course,” Mina sounded like she had prepared for this. No, she definitely prepared for this, Izuku thought to himself. He wasn’t sure if he was grateful or mortified.

“ Haah ?? What kind of dare is that?” Bakugo shouted, throwing an empty water bottle at the pink girl’s face.

“A good one!” Ochaco chimed in, “Deku-kun. Are you okay with it?” She asked with a wink.

Izuku had not been in on this, so he is also equally taken by surprise, but he stammers out, “S-sure” while avoiding Katsuki’s eyes. This is fine. This is fine. 

“The nerd can’t even look me in the eye. Stop fucking pressuring him,” Katsuki growled.

“I’m not pressured,” Deku narrowed his eyes, looking at Katsuki with a frown, “Are you gonna do it or not, Kacchan? If not, I’ll just have Mina dare someone else to give m-”

“Finish that sentence, I fucking dare you,” Katsuki warned as he gets up, big and tall body looming over him,  and placed himself in front of the couch where Izuku was sitting, and reached out, using both hands to pull Deku’s hips towards him in one quick motion. Katsuki looked up at him with those sinister ruby eyes, and then smirked. 

Deku squeaked as Katsuki’s arms are now wrapped under his thigh, which rested on top of the blonde’s strong shoulders, definitely in a blowjob position, and his silver slip is pulled upwards some. Just a little bit more, and everything is open for the world to see. 

As Katsuki dips his head towards Izuku’s plush thighs, Deku bites the knuckle part of his index finger as he watches. He didn’t even care that everyone else in the room was also watching. The blonde brings his lips and teeth down to those beautiful milky and thick thighs before biting down and sucking. 

His face was flushed into Deku’s gorgeous thighs, and Katsuki’s grip on his legs got tighter and so did Izuku’s underwear but he was so glad he was wearing a somewhat loose dress and nothing too tight around his crotch. Katsuki kept on sucking and biting, leaving large and angry hickeys on the sweet and supple skin. So fucking soft, he didn’t want to stop. Katsuki was going insane. Mina dared him to give Deku a hickey on the nerd’s thighs, not a whole myriad of them.

Above him, he heard a breathless Kacchan and Katsuki let go, wiping his mouth like he was drunk off of wine. He turned to look at Deku, whose eyes were dilated and laying back on his elbows, looking up at Katsuki. Fuck , he could get actually drunk off of this.

Tearing his gaze away and moving as quickly as he could to get in a better position that hides his tight pants, Katsuki looks over at Mina, thankful that his suit was darkly colored, “Happy?”

“Very,” She squeaked. 

Yeah that was fucking weird . It was so fucking hot, but so fucking strange . Why had Izuku let him do that, he tried to wrap his head around it, but figured it was just a dare albeit a strange one.

Katsuki collapsed back onto one of the lounge couches and takes in what just happened. The truth or dare continues, and that takes his mind off of it for a bit as he watches his friends act like dumbasses. 

All of their lives were full of hecticness and stress, every single day. From the moment their class got into UA that first year until now, there have been incidents after incidents that they had to deal with. In a way, it forced the class, as funny and energetic as they were, to grow up quicker than others, since they were forced to endure so much more than even the average hero class. And even now, as they work as Pro Heroes, sure they have off days, but rarely do they let to get their childish side roam free. Nights like this one are precious. 

“And then!” Ochaco said, holding a glass of red wine, as she stands up and walks to the other side of the room to grab her jacket, “The villain started flirting with me! It took me off guard, even though he was already in handcuffs. He asked me for my number, and promised to take me out on a nice date after he gets released from prison.”

They were just going around like this, telling shitty but amusing stories, from work, or just reminiscing about things they all went through together. 

Momo laughed, “What did you tell him?”

Ochaco stumbled a bit on her walk, “I didn’t really know what to sa-” And then spilled her glass of wine all over Izuku’s nice slip.

And then started screaming out an apology, “I’m so sorry, Deku-kun! I lost my balance there for a second. God, this wine is getting to me. I’m so, so sorry. I’ll -” To which Deku was reassuring her that everything was completely fine and it was an accident, and she didn’t have to apologize so much. Although in the back of izuku’s mind, he was pretty sure that out of everyone in the room, Ochaco had the best sense of balance because of her gravity quirk. Even then, it doesn’t matter, because Deku would never be upset over this. It was just a simple mistake!

“It’s okay! Don’t worry about it. It’s just a dress,” Deku smiled while standing up, “Although, I’m sorry Mina. This is yours, and I didn’t want to get it ru-”

“It’s no biggie! In fact,” Mina jumped up from the couch and dug into her tote bag, “Spills happen all the time, so I’m always prepared. I have an extra slip just like that, but in green, here!” She pulls out a green slip that was similar to the one Izuku was wearing, except it had thigh slits and a deep v-neck rather than a cowl neck. 

Mina throws the slip to Katsuki, who on reflex catches it in the air. 

Mina smiled at her blonde friend, “Bakugo! You go help Deku clean up.”

“The fuck?” Katsuki gave her a baffled look, “Why do I have to do it?”

“Because we’re all lazy and slightly tipsy,” Mina melted back into the couch and made a shooing motion towards Katsuki, who grumbled but still got up from his spot. And Ochaco grabbed her jacket and walked perfectly fine back to her seat. 

“That’s...really…” Izuku slowly came to a realization, “...convenient.” This was definitely planned. And yet, he goes along with it anyways.

And now here they were, stuffed in a private single bathroom near the lounge. Katsuki locked the door behind them. And Izuku was leaned up with his back against the sink. The two of them were grabbing paper to soak up the remaining wine off of the white slip. 

“Fucking Round Face,” Katsuki grumbled as he wipes up, “Isn’t she supposed to have the best balance out of all of us?”

Deku felt like face palming, “...it was probably the alcohol she had.”

Izuku reached his arm around to the back and pulled at the zipper. The dress. Although it was a slip, was meant to cinch in at his waist and hug his hips, so he couldn’t just pull it over his head without the dainty satin ripping. And now, as he’s pulling on the zipper, he’s finding it hard to pull it down. Izuku internally groaned. Why was it called a slip if he couldn’t just slip in.

 He now remembered that when Ochaco was zipping up the dress, she was awfully aggressive with it and he heard a small crunch from the zipper, even though he didn’t really question it at the time. But now, he connected the dots and figured that the girl had broken the zipper. On purpose. 

“Kacchan, the zipper is broken,” Deku complained, making note to cry to his friends. 

“Haah? Let me see,” Katsuki said before putting his arms around Izuku and trying to get at the zipper himself. The shorter man’s face was flushed pink, but he stood there as Katsuki struggles with it, and curses a storm under his breath as two minutes passed and there’s no progress.

“Can you slip it off?” Katsuki asked.

“No, it’s tight around my waist and hips,” Deku replied honestly.

“Looks like you’re going to have to tear it off,” The blonde commented, looking down at Izuku, whose eyes widened. 

Deku sputtered, “B-But this is Mina’s dress. And it’s so pretty. I don’t want to-”

“She’ll fucking get over it,” Katsuki declared before his hands were on the soft fabric that touched Deku’s body, “If you won’t, I will.”

“Kacchan!” Deku squeaked. 

But Katsuki’s hands were already roaming. He feels perverted for having thought about it all night, what it would be like to tear this slip on him. It was so tempting because of how soft and thin it felt in his hands. As if it would disintegrate off of the other’s body with the slightest touch. The blonde lifted his right hand to grab a handful of the cowl neck and the fabric on top of Izuku’s chest, and his left hand bunched up the fabric that was behind the small of Izuku’s back, his fingertips at the zipper line, ready to forcefully tear it apart. 

And in one rough move, Katsuki grabbed the fabrics taut and tore the slip off of his partner’s body. And he had been right. It was so easy . The slip dress practically crumbled in his hands and fell in pieces off of Deku’s body. Izuku told himself that he cannot afford to get a boner right now, because he was just in his underwear, but even then, his body felt like shivering from Katsuki straight up ripping the dress off of his body. 

He was now bare, besides undergarments, but that was something Kacchan saw every day in the locker room, so he wasn’t particularly shy. But Katsuki’s halting gaze on his body made him look up with wide eyes, waiting. Katsuki felt so much energy surge through his body, and he wanted to lift Izuku up, slam him on the sink, and fuck the nerd right then and there. Shove his dick through this parted lips. Turn him over and split him open. But he took a deep breath and held back. 

“Here. Change,” Katsuki handed over the forest green slip to Izuku, who took it into his hands and began climbing into it. Once he was fully situated in the new dress, Deku admired the new look in the mirror behind him. The green matches his eyes and his hair, and really suited him. 

Katsuki, in his all black suit, standing behind him, made a comment, “Green’s your color.”

Deku turned his neck to look up at his friend, “You think so?”

All Katsuki could do, looking into those god-given doe eyes, was hum in affirmation. 

The rest of the gala goes by without any major incidents. They danced twice more. Once playfully with just each other to a song that they often scream on the radio of Katsuki’s car, and another time with the rest of their old Pro-Hero classmates. Some of their UA teachers were there at the gala, and they had talked to some, but he’s pretty sure Aizawa wanted to avoid everyone regardless of who they were. But it was regardless nice to see everyone. 

The gala lasted until about 2 AM, but Izuku and Katsuki left a couple hours early, at around 11 or 12. They had work tomorrow after all, and although the agency would probably be lenient considering the huge event the night beforehand, what won’t be lenient are the villains who could have a window of opportunity to strike if they aren’t there for patrol on time. 

Speaking of, Izuku as of sometime last week, was officially back on cases and partnership with Katsuki, thank god. He doesn’t know how longer he would’ve lasted without being back as the Wonder Duo. Although they haven’t actually been able to work together, since Katsuki had been on house arrest. 

At first, Katsuki had offered to drive the nerd back to Izuku’s own apartment, but Deku just simply asked, “Can I crash at yours tonight? It’s closer, and my apartment neighbors are having a party tonight. It’ll probably be loud.”

“Fine. But I’ve been cleaning up the guest room, so all of the shit you left is in the washer,” Katsuki informed.

“It’s okay,” Deku was delighted, “I can just wear your clothes.” 

Katsuki ended up handing Izuku one of his T-shirts to sleep in, a pair of low-rise underwear briefs that he’s never worn but was given by a sponsored company, and some sweatpants. 

And what does Deku wear when he steps out of the shower? Everything, but the sweatpants. 

And so, the green eyed man is just prancing around Katsuki’s apartment in his T-shirt and a cheeky pair of underwear and nothing else. Fuck, it was a sight to behold. Katsuki himself had changed into a fitted black tank and a pair of loose shorts. 

“Deku, did the pants not fit?” Katsuki asked, prepared to find something else. Anything else to rid the temptation in front of him.

“Oh, it did,” Izuku responded, “But these just feel so good, I don’t want to wear anything underneath.” He responded before lifting up the shirt a little bit and showing off the underwear which hugged so snugly to his tight looking ass that spilled out of the fabric, “If these don’t fit you, give them to me. I think they look nice.”

Katsuki just took a deep fucking breath, trying to reel himself back to Earth, “Whatever. Take them.”

“Thank you, Kacchan!” Izuku exclaimed, “Do you want to chill for a little bit before going to sleep? I still have some energy from tonight.”

“Yeah, same here,” Katsuki scratched his head and agreed, “I’m gonna grab a water and we can watch something, you want one?”

“Yes, please and thank you,” Deku nodded before plopping himself on the couch. 

They put on some rerun of a classic American hero movie, but Katsuki could barely even fucking pay attention. 

Not when the green-eyed boy is pressed up right next to him, a hand placed so fucking casually on Katsuki’s thigh, and occasionally rubbed up on it subconsciously. Katsuki was this close to losing his mind. When the foreign hand would get closer up his thigh, Katsuki couldn’t stop his dick from twitching a little bit. The blonde is convinced that Deku lost his damn mind, because they were all pressed up against each other, and the greenette was fucking rubbing up his thigh during the movie as if it was the most normal thing to do. 

It didn’t take long for him to actually lose his mind, when Deku got into a position that was way too fucking suggestive. The nerd claimed that he was going to grab one of the snacks off of the coffee table in front of them, but instead of being a normal human being and getting up on his feet, learning forward a little bit, and grabbing the snack, Midoriya Izuku gave him a full show . 

He stayed on his knees on the couch and then got on all fours, bending forward and stretching his back as he reached out and grabbed at the snacks on the coffee table. Izuku’s shirt rode down his body as Deku bent low and forward and his ass in the cheeky low-rise briefs was just there in Katsuki’s face. All round, plush, and fucking sexy and there for Katsuki to fondle, grab, squeeze. And- 

Yeah, that’s it. There’s something going on. 

Katsuki turned off the TV and then used a foot to kick Izuku off the couch. The boy landed with a small thud, and as soon as his head is up to look at Katsuki, the blonde reaches out and grabs Deku by the shirt and pulls him forward so that their faces are barely six inches apart, and Deku is kneeling in between Katsuki’s knees.

“Alright, Deku. What the fuck do you think you’re doing, and if you try to play innocent with me again, I’ll show you just how not- innocent I can be.” Katsuki growled. 

The offer sounded kind of tempting to Izuku’s ear, but he sighed in slow defeat. 

“Why is it so easy for other people, but so hard for me,” Izuku grumbles under his breath and looks away with a frown.

“The hell does that mean? Easy to do what?” Katsuki demanded. One beat of silence. Then two.

“Kacchan, I want you to fuck me,” Izuku said then, as straightfoward as he possibly could. And immediately, he wanted to shrivel into a ball straight away and never have to see Katsuki again. He has never said anything so out there before to anyone, and it is making him turn five shades redder. 

And seeing Kacchan’s expression, one of absolute shock just judging from the slack jaw, wide eyes, and sudden freeze, was enough to make Izuku want to shrink. It was alright if he left the country, right? Buy a ticket to the Maldives to live out the rest of his days? He can sip margaritas on the beach and take up a fake name. Even start a family of cats. He’ll name one of them Vic-

“Haah?!” Katsuki raised his tone. Did he just go deaf and make that shit up? There was no way he just heard that correctly, except... except that he did. He heard it loud and clear. Izuku had annunciated the word fuck , and it couldn’t have been anything else. His grip on Izuku’s shirt got tighter as he growled, “You have a minute to explain yourself right now, so start fucking speaking.”

Deku panicked, then seemingly out of nowhere, exclaimed, “Kacchan, I don’t want you to die. I don’t know what I would do, I wo-” 

Katsuki sputtered, “What the fuck does that have to do with anything. And no shit, you genius. I don’t exactly want to die either. I told you already. I’ve been going out on da-”

“Going out on dates and stuff, I know. I fucking know. And is it working?” Deku asked, eyes wide and searching, “Is it working, Kacchan? Tell me honestly, I need to know.”

Katsuki looked in his eyes, trying to see if he could search for any clue as to what the hell Deku was trying to get at, because he didn’t understand how this had anything to do with how the man had been acting, but ultimately spitted out the truth, “No.”

“I didn’t think it did either. You’re going to die at this rate, so why are you still trying to see other people?” Izuku said with furrowed brows. 

“Shit, Deku, I don’t kn-”

“Your doctor said to fall out of love. He didn’t say anything about falling in love with someone else. So you just need to forget about this person and move on, you don’t necessarily need to fall in love with someone else. You can do that just by having fun and distracting yourself with other things. What you’re doing right now is really volatile, Kacchan. You shouldn’t go around forcing yourself to go on dates with so many people, n-not that you can’t do it if you want. But you shouldn’t force yourself to, you know? So you can just do what you normally do, and I can help you forget since I’m closer to you anyways. And we can go do fun stuff and-”

“You think I’m fucking dumb? I know that the only requirement is to fall out of love. But it’s hard as fuck to do when I’m by myself and only have them to think about,” Katsuki spoke and Izuku’s heart dropped, “But either way, how the hell does sleeping with you help in any way or have to do with anything. What the fuck are you on about.”

“Well,” Izuku immediately replied as if he’s been rehearsing, “you don’t have to get...um...relief from random people, so it’s safer against you know diseases. I’m sure it’s not good for your hanahaki, and these days, you can’t trust people when they say they’re clean. And even if you use condoms, those could always break. But I’m clean ! I’m very clean. You wouldn’t ever have to worry about that, um. But mostly, it could help you distract yourself from whoever it is that you love. We can just mess around and have fun, and it’ll slowly take your mind off of them, you kn-”

“I don’t need your damn pity,” Katsuki glared coldly at his partner, incredulous that they are even having this conversation. 

“No! No, it’s not pity because er- it wouldn’t be just for you.” Deku shyly looked off to the side with a pink flush on his face.

Oh? 

Huh.

Interesting, Katsuki thought to himself.

“Explain,” Katsuki demanded, suddenly very curious. 

“I mean...Kacchan is...“ Deku couldn’t look him in the eye as his face got redder, “very attractive, and smart, a-and…”

Katsuki used one hand to roughly grab Deku’s chin, forcing the green-eyed man to look at him, “Look me in the eye when you’re begging me to fuck you, Deku.” 

Izuku wanted to disappear from the intense gaze, but he continued sputtering, “...and Kacchan is so...strong. With big hands and...body. Even though we’re friends , I think you are the most handsome person I’ve ever met. And I think it would be nice to… help you because it would help me too. Being a hero is hard, you know? It’s nice to relieve myself. Plus,” Deku furrows his brows and looks a bit angry, “you’ve been occupied so much lately that I barely ever get to see you anymore. You have time for literally about anyone else, but me. At least, before these past 8 days or so when you were on horse arrest, but that’s irrelavant. Er, anyways, this way, I can help you...forget. And you can help me...um, you know. And I also get to spend time with you.” 

“Assuming, I’d also want to fuck you,” Katsuki grinned. He was going insane. Here he was, trying so fucking hard to get away from Deku and stave off his hanahaki, just for the little bitch to come here and plead for his cock. It was like any effort that he had made thus far was futile. His brain was crumbling to pieces along with his rationality.

 It wasn’t as if avoiding Izuku worked. If anything, it almost made Katsuki love and crave him more. He internally cursed at the shitty hand he’s been dealt. How the hell was he going to deny the only person he’s ever truly wanted, when it was right there in front of him and asking so sweetly. Maybe it was Katsuki’s brain being controlled by lust, or maybe it was Katsuki realizing that he can’t fucking get over this man unless he quits his job and moves across the country, but the blonde decides that if he’s going to go out, he’s going to get a taste of heaven first.

 He ignored the fact that for Deku, there were no feelings besides lust involve in this. Tonight, he’s not going to fucking care. 

At that comment, Izuku bit his lip and looked down, “I don’t think I’m that ugly…”

“You’re fucking beautiful,” Katsuki shut down that train of thought immediately then leaned forward, forcing Izuku to look him in the eye again, “Tell me now that you’re sure you want this, or else you’re crashing the night and we can forget this ever happened.”

Deku didn’t hesitate for a second, “Please,” And then, Katsuki’s hands were all over him. 

In less than three seconds, Deku was lifted up from his position on the floor between Katsuki’s knees and then turned around up on Katsuki’s lap, so that Izuku’s back was pressed up against Katsuki’s chest. 

Kacchan’s height and larger upper body practically surrounded Izuku, and one strong, buff arm wrapped tightly around Deku’s waist while another one came down in between his thighs. 

Kacchan’s lips were near his ear as he spewed filth, “You’ve been thinking about this all fucking day, haven’t you Deku . So this was what all of your little stunts today were all about, huh,” Katsuki nipped on Deku’s ear, making the sensitive boy lose his breath, and then his hand grabbed and pulled at Izuku’s plush thighs and rubbed over his crotch, “You know how much I wanted to tear that fucking dress off of you? Bend you over, and fuck you right on my car hood? How much I wanted to shove my cock down your throat through those pretty pink lips?”

Izuku moaned at the thought and leaned back into Katsuki’s overwhelming hold on him, “K-Kacchan, I wore it f-for you. I wanted you to want me.”

“For me?” Katsuki chuckled darkly, “Well, aren’t I just fucking flattered. Tell me, Deku. What else would you do for me?”

“Anything,” Deku breathed out, unable to move from katsuki’s tight hold as the bigger man rubbed over his hardened cock, “I’ll do anything.”

“Don’t lie to me,” Katsuki teased in his deep vibrato, nipping at Izuku’s neck.

“I’m not!” Izuku exclaimed through his panting, “I’d do anything. Anything for Kacchan.”

If Katsuki wasn’t rock hard before, then he was now. His thick bulging cock was rubbing against Izuku’s firm ass, but that was for later. 

“Oh yeah?” Katsuki asked sweetly, sucking gently on Deku’s neck, “Will you let me see your pretty cock, then? Let me play with it, Deku.”

Deku whimpered, and nodded profusely. Katsuki’s tongue speaking his nickname, in that voice, in this context, was like kryptonite. 

Katsuki, still with Deku flushed in his lap, grabbed the briefs on his partner and tore them apart, leaving Izuku completely naked waist down. The blonde reached one arm underneath the t-shirt and felt around for Izuku’s budding nipples. When he found them, rough fingers circled and pulled at the perky buds, grabbing everything that he can like they were tits. Izuku, being so sensitive, was on a pleasure high. And to add onto it, Katsuki then put a hand on the base of Izuku’s cock and stroked it gently, forcing both of them to look. Deku’s wanton whimpers were going to wake up the damn neighbors. 

“Ts’ so fucking cute,” Katsuki slurred, “Look at your pretty little cock, already leaking for me. Tell me, Deku, how many others have touched you like this.” 

Izuku was still a virgin, if he’s counting anal sex; however, the green-eyed boy has done other stuff before in moderation a couple of times. His experience was probably not much compared to the blonde, but a part of Deku was even more turned on at the thought of Katsuki knowing that another has touched him before he had. Maybe the inkling of jealousy the blonde would feel might make up for the countless nights that Izuku drowned in his own jealousy. 

“One,” Izuku breathed out, and immediately, he felt Katsuki’s grip on him get tighter. 

“Who. Tell me their name,” Katsuki borderline threatened, and Izuku wanted to laugh from how satisfied he was to have gotten this reaction. 

“Why, Kacchan?” Deku teased.

“So I can be the fucking best,” Katsuki then stood up, swooping Izuku up with him, and headed towards the bedroom. A raging jealousy that he had no right to feel coursed through his blood. 

He threw Izuku on the bed, and then lifted his own shirt off from the bottom and threw it aside. Izuku gawked at the broad, huge shoulder and thick abs. He was never going to get used to the sight. Katsuki was ridiculously toned. 

Deku innocently looked up at Kacchan and licked his lips, “Take a guess.”

Oh? So they were playing this game now? To see who could piss the other off more? Katsuki growled, “Those cuddle sessions with the Shindo fucker wasn’t just cuddling was it?” 

His blood was on fire, and yet, Katsuki was fucking hard at the thought of making Deku forget everyone else, even his own damn name. 

“Mm,” Izuku decides to play with him for payback, “Sometimes when we were cuddling, his hands would just slip inside of my pants. Or his dick would just slip inside of my mouth,” And watched katsuki’s eyes darken, “Or somehow, he’d end up fingering me, Kacchan.” 

“Did he, now.” Katsuki snarled. 

“Yes, and it felt so good , Kacchan,” Deku pushed even further, almost moaning the words to get a reaction. He was not disappointed, for Katsuki reached out to grab the base of his hair from the back and brought Izuku’s head forward. God, he loved being handled like this by Katsuki. With his other hand, the blonde pulled down his bottoms and boxers. And Deku’s eyes widened and he panicked a little bit. He had not prepared for that, in any of his holes. He knew Katsuki was big, just from all previous incidents, but he’s never seen it before, fully erect and bare of cloth. It was so thick, and had veins decorating it. The mushroom head was dying to be licked, with precum pooling at the tip. 

“Kacchan, you’re so...big,” He breathed, “That won’t fit. Anywhere.”

“Well, that’s why you’ll be real good and stretch for me, right Deku?” Katsuki sneered. 

Izuku gulped, but his mouth salivated, “Yes.” 

“Good boy,” And Katsuki brought the hard thick and veiny cock to Izuku’s lips, smearing the leaking pre-cum everywhere, “Now open your mouth and take me in, Deku,” Katsuki slapped his heavy dick against Izuku’s mouth, “And I’ll fuck your mouth better than the Shindo fucker ever could.” 

Izuku licked the tip, lapping up all of the precum that was still on, before stretching his mouth as best as he could over the cock. It was just so big. Katsuki shuddered at the warm contact, and held onto one of the bed posts as Deku swallowed more of his length. It was practically impossible unless you were a pelican to take in Katsuki’s entire dick, but Izuku got a good seven inches in before it was too much, and then began to bob his head. He felt the tongue run up the back of his dick, and the extra sensation caused Katsuki to let out a groan. Deku was struggling for breath, but he loved the taste of Katsuki’s cock so much that he didn’t dare pull away.

“So good,” Katsuki praised and Deku was delighted, “But you’re not choking on it yet. And we just can’t have that now, can we?”

And with that, Katsuki began moving his hip to push forward into Izuku’s throat, who let out a whine as he gagged. His eyes welled up with tears, and seeing them caused Katsuki’s dick to get even harder if that was possible. Because he had been the one to make Izuku like this, a fucking crying wreck. 

Deku hummed, causing vibrations around the member, and Katsuki kept his hand on the back of Izuku’s head before picking up his pace. At this point, he was abusing the back of Deku’s throat, shoving his thick cock as far down as he could before pulling back and ramming in again. And watching Izuku take it, wanting so badly to please him, could honestly make him cum if he didn’t make himself pull out. A trail of saliva connected Deku’s lips to his tip.

Deku inhaled, chest heaving, and drool was running down his chin. So pretty. Katsuki wanted to ruin him.

“Should I ask who you fucked too?” Deku licked his lips and asked innocently, “Or would that take all night?”

Katsuki pushed him down on the bed immediately for that comment, so that Izuku’s head was pinned into the mattress sideways and the other hand brought the man’s hip up so that Izuku’s back was arched with his ass towards Katsuki.

Leaning down and over the greenette, Katsuki hissed, “So you want to be cheeky, huh.” 

He said as he slotted his cock in between the plump cheeks and rubbed against Izuku’s hole. Deku bit his tongue to suppress a cry. He wanted it so bad.

“Let’s see how well you can talk after I’m done wrecking you,” Katsuki laughed before leaning back and grabbing a handful of ass, groping and grabbing at the full cheeks before spreading them apart, revealing a smooth and puckered, pink hole. It looks so fucking delicious. So tight, and pink just for him. 

Katsuki spit directly onto the hole, before diving the tip of his tongue in. Deku cried out loud, gripping the sheets, and Kacchan’s nickname never sounded so fucking sexy. Deku’s hole was so warm and sweet. How the hell was it sweet, unless the nerd used some fruity ass body wash. He didn’t care. All he knew was that he could fucking be down here forever, lapping up everything Izuku had to offer. He swirled his tongue around, sucking at the rim, and enjoying the sounds Deku was making above. His hands were roughing grabbing at Izuku’s plump ass as he did this, wanting to feel everything that he could. He spit some more in the wet, swollen entrance and started to fuck him with his tongue, pushing through the muscle trying to get a taste of everything that he could. The way Deku’s delicious hole would clench around his tongue was satisfying to the max.

“So fucking sweet,” Katsuki commented as he pulled away, begrudgingly.

Deku turned his head around, begging with a cry, “Please, no. Ke-keep g…” He was breathless which meant Katsuki did his job correctly.

“Keep what, Deku? I can’t do anything if you don’t speak properly,” Katsuki grinned like a cocky asshole.

Deku glared at him, “Fuck you.”

“Not tonight. Not ever,” Katsuki gruffly laughed before reaching over into his drawer and pulling out some lube,  squirting some out on his fingers and without giving Izuku a warning, plunged one inside of his wet heat. Izuku bit his lip to keep from letting out a cry of pleasure. Katsuki’s fingers were thick and hard at work, treading in and out of Izuku’s hole like a drill. Once two fingers went in, Katsuki managed to find the sweet spot and watched with pleasure as Deku moaned into the sheets and arched his back even more for him. Deku looked so slutty, it was making his hard cock ache with desire. The green-eyed boy fucked back on his fingers, making the ass bounce and jiggle and Katsuki, if he were a weaker man, could have came dry on the spot just watching. Deku’s body was perfect. Toned waist, great arms. Thick thighs, and a nice pillowy ass for him to fuck into. 

Katsuki had to insert four fingers, if he wanted Deku to be anywhere near prepared for his dick. Five would be safe; however, before he could, Deku looked back, pupils blown out and hair a complete ruse, and grabbed his wrist as his fingers were still inside of the man, “Kacchan, stop or I’ll cum.”

Katsuki wanted to listen to Izuku and replace his fingers with something else instantly, but the rational part of him warned the other, “You’re not ready.”

“Goddamnit!” Izuku yelled out a curse, “Fuck me already. I’ve waited enough!” I’ve waited years, Deku wanted to scream. His first wet dream in middle school was of Katsuki. Back then, he had mixed feelings for the blonde, but something that wasn’t deniable was his attraction. And then, when he got to high school and they started to become friends? God, Deku had Katsuki on his mind during those horny nights all the damn time. 

At the lack of patience, Katsuki smirked and lifted his head, “Suit yourself.”

The blonde reached back over to his drawer to rummage for a condom, but Izuku reached out to grab his wrist, stopping his arms from searching and Katsuki turned to look Deku in those lust-filled green eyes. 

“Are you clean?” Izuku asked, biting his lip.

Katsuki’s brow furrowed, “ Haah ?  Of course, I’m clean.”

“Then fuck me raw,” Izuku asked.

Katsuki was speechless, except a “ Fuck.” But he stayed still. 

Deku continued, “I want you to fill me with your cum. Kacchan, please cum inside me.”

With that, all hesitations and reservations flew out of the window. Katsuki has never heard a sexier beg in his life . He hasn’t even stuck it in the nerd, and this was already the best foreplay he’s ever had. The fact that it was with the love of his damn life, even if Deku didn’t know it, only added to the experience. 

Still having his back arched and ass up in the air, Katsuki moved right behind Izuku, pressing his tip against the puckered and stretched hole. Just the thought of being inside of Deku drove him crazy. His engorged leaking tip rimmed around Izuku’s entrance before Katsuki stuffed it past the first ring of muscle. Yeah, Izuku had definitely not been stretched out by his fingers well enough, because it was just so damn tight. To Katsuki it was heaven, but he knew it must have hurt Izuku even though his cock was barely in. 

“Are you okay?” Kacchan asked his first serious question. If they wanted to take it slower and stretch Izuku out some more, he’d be fi-

“Yes, yes! I’m more than okay,” Izuku begged, with tears in his eyes as he glanced over his shoulder. It hurt and was definitely a stretch, but he never wanted it to stop, “Please, keep going. I-I need to feel full.”

Well shit. Katsuki held onto Deku’s wide hips and pushed his large cock inside slowly, inch by inch. He could see the pinkness of Deku’s hole juicing and stretching around his meat, and it gave him great pleasure: to see the contrast of his huge cock buried inside of Deku’s tiny hole. 

“You’re taking me in so well, Deku,” Katsuki had praised as Deku sunk lower and lower onto his shaft. It could be considered a war crime to try to stuff something so large into something so tight and small. It was practically animalistic. It took a little bit more to bury himself all the way inside of Deku, with the hero moaning and begging for it deeper up until he bottomed out and had no more cock left to give. Izuku felt so full, he could feel it in his stomach. 

Being inside of Izuku was better than his imagination could have ever guessed at. Katsuki needed to reign himself in, but it was hard to when he was balls deep inside of the person he wanted the most. 

“So fucking tight,” Katsuki groaned in pleasure, wanting to ram into Deku immediately but knew that the other needed to adjust. After a good two minutes of regulating his breathing, Deku looked back and told Katsuki to start moving. 

At first, his movements were slow but deliberate so that he doesn’t hurt Izuku too badly. But fuck it, he had no patience and Deku wasn’t telling him to slow down, and so, losing control of himself, Katsuki began ramming into the smaller man. His cock pounded through Deku’s plump ass, and the squelch and slapping sounds filled his ears. Izuku gripped the sheets harder, burying his cries into the pillow, but Katsuki pulled his head back as he fucked into him, making sure that everyone clearly hears the man moaning. Both of them were making sounds that no one else should be allowed to hear, but it was just so fucking good. Although Izuku might regret this later, right now, he honestly couldn’t care as pleasure seeps into every crevice of his mind and prevented him from thinking clearly. 

Deku’s elbows collapsed as he is overwhelmed by all of the sensations. No matter what he tries to do to hold on, nothing could have saved him from the delicious pleasure he was experiencing. He was being fucked like a whore by Kacchan, and he loved every single second of it. 

Katsuki then pulled out, and Izuku almost wanted to scream for him to go back in, but then the blonde says, “Turn around  and lay on your back. I want to see you.” 

Izuku complied with the request, and Katsuki positioned his tip in again. This time, it felt as if Deku’s hole sucked his cock in, not used to the gaping space left inside after Katsuki thoroughly fucked him into the mattress. Katsuki lifted up one of Izuku’s flexible legs and began ramming back into the boy. Deku had his teeth biting his palm to suppressed his moans, but it was useless. He moaned like a bitch in heat as Kacchan continues to fuck him wildly. Beads of sweat travel down the blonde’s chest and his grip on Izuku’s thighs were bruising. He couldn’t get enough. It was like he had been starving, and now that he gets a taste of the finest nectar, Katsuki couldn’t control himself. 

He was pounding into Izuku mercilessly, making the bed shake with every thrust. Seeing Izuku give out underneath him, yet beg for more, was nothing short but cocaine to his addicted ears. Katsuki let go of Izuku’s legs, still fucking him as he does so, and leans down to suck on the man’s beautiful pink nipples, swirling the bud in his mouth and flicking it with his tongue. 

“Kacchan…” Izuku breathed out through hooded eyes. 

Seeing his Katsuki go crazy like this turned Izuku on even more, and he was going to cum very soon. 

“I’m about to…” Izuku said, out of breath, eyelids closed now and cheeks flushed.

Katsuki loomed over him and started sucking on his neck, “Me too. I want to spill out of you when you walk. Have my cum running down your legs.” And then he added, “Hm...But I also want it on that pretty face. Wanna see ribbons of my cum on your stupid fucking freckles and dripping down the side of your mouth, and then I’d want you to lick it up. Fuck, what do you think I should do,  Deku?” The blonde laughed before biting into Izuku’s shoulder.

At the filthy words, Izuku found himself coming first, shouting for Kacchan as he does so, and ribbons of his own semen landed on his stomach and his body felt the orgasm ripple through its entire being and the shudder he had was the most intense one he’s ever had. His back arched up, and his body could barely keep itself together under the sheer amount of pleasure he was feeling, coming in waves. Katsuki was still ramming into him.

“I’ll cum on your face another time, how does that sound,” Katsuki growled, about to get there himself, “Tonight, I want to fucking see you try to walk and have it dripping out of you,” He chuckled lightly, “If you can walk.” 

And with that, he felt himself losing to the lust, and soon enough, he was pumping cum into Izuku’s hole. He’s never came this much before, and it felts like buckets of it, all dumped inside of Izuku’s ass. The spurts of cum all deposited itself into the still tight hole, until wet sounds of squelching from all of the liquid inside could be heard. Once all of it was out and inside of Deku, Katsuki stayed in for a second and watched as some of it that overflowed trickle down and out of the green-haired boy’s ass with Katsuki’s cock still buried in it. 

Izuku laid there on the bed, too happy and too exhausted to move a muscle. His stomach and the sheets were stained, and between his legs, it was an ocean of wetness. Plus, he was sure that even if he tried, his bodily repercussions from the incredible sex was still there. Katsuki’s dick was big enough to ensure that he’s going to be limping. If need be, he might drop into the clinic tomorrow morning before work and have them give him a quick recovery treatment. 

Finally, Katsuki pulls out, dripping, and makes his way over to his bathroom. 

Izuku looked over at Katsuki who was rummaging around the cabinets and sink with adoring eyes, “Was I okay?” 

Okay was an understatement, Katsuki thought as he came out of the bathroom with a wet rag and began to clean everything up. He could still see semen sliding down Izuku’s thigh, even as he wipes it off. He talked mad shit earlier, but he knew that Izuku wasn’t going to be able to walk. 

“Okay? Don’t ask dumbass questions, Deku. Look at how much cum is coming out of you and go figure,” Katsuki laughed with a huff, “How about you? Did I just make everyone before me look like a bunch of losers?” 

Izuku’s cheeks flushed and he said quietly, “There was no one before you…”

Katsuki stopped in his tracks and his ruby eyes caught Deku’s widening as his jaw went slack.

Deku panicked. Did Katsuki not like being with a first-timer? Should he have told him before, after all? Deku pre-emptively defended himself, “I didn’t exactly not tell you. You asked who else. But I never said that the er-, other person,” He refrained from saying Shindo’s name, “had sex with me. You were probably too in the moment to notice. Haha.”

Katsuki’s eyes were still wide, “You fucking...I just took your virginity, and you didn’t care to tell me that straight up before I fucked you to death? It was your first fucking time, and I didn’t even prep you correctly.”
“That’s why I didn’t tell you,” Izuku chuckled nervously, “I...I liked that you didn’t hold back.”

Shit , if Deku kept on looking at him with those eyes, he might have to go for another round sooner than he had planned to. The thought that Izuku was a virgin up until tonight, when he had given his cherry to Katsuki, made his dick twitch in his pants again. But shaking his head to clear it, Katsuki flicked the boy gently on the side of the head, “What made me so worthy, nerd.”

“I...I don’t think you’d appreciate the answer to that question, Kacchan…” Deku replied meekly. Because it’s not fair to tell you I love you when you’re in love with someone else, Izuku thought to himself.

Katsuki took it completely differently. Right. It was because their encounter just now was a shallow one, made for sex and so that Izuku could supposedly help him distract himself. The nerd thought he was attractive, and that was that. And the nerd, being the sweetheart he was, didn’t want to tell Katsuki that straight up that it was just that. Fine, he’ll take what he can get for now. 

He’s fucked either way. He just had sex with the one person on this Earth that he’s not supposed to have sex with, and his doctor was going to kill him. His doctor was absolutely going to kill him. Hell, he was going to kill him. And yet, he couldn’t find himself regretting it. Love was making him lose his mind.

“Then don’t answer,” Katsuki said gruffly before replacing the comforter with another one from his bedroom closet. He wasn’t going to let it ruin the absolute insane pleasure he just got tonight.

Deku blinked and felt his eyes getting heavy, and muttered out a “Do I have to go to the guest room?” 

Katsuki had his back turned him, shoving some of the dirty materials into the hamper to wash the next day, “Just stay there. But if you hog all of the blankets, I’ll kill you.”

Izuku did end up hogging all of the blankets. However, before he had the opportunity to feel bad about it, he realized that he had woken up before Kacchan did. That was odd, because the blonde usually woke up extra early to start his routine. 

Izuku decides that it was probably the unfamiliar location that caused him to wake up so suddenly. All of the memories from the previous night flooded into his brain, all of the pleasure and the intense happiness he had felt, and Kacchan. Kacchan’s words in his ear, dick in his ass, and hands on his waist. It was like the first hit of a drug. He still couldn't believe that it happened. They were best friends, after all. 

He turned to look at the blonde’s sleeping figure now. Katsuki looked so peaceful, and handsome even in his sleep. Soft lashes, and the scowl was gone. 

 Izuku wondered what the man was dreaming about, and that was when his high wore off and reality came crashing down on him. This wasn’t his. It wasn’t his life. Kacchan wasn’t his. He was just a willing distraction, foolishly willing. The blonde might have slept with him, but that has never meant a whole significant amount to Katsuki. Izuku had known that going in, and it was his own fault now that he felt disappointed in the fact that they had fucked but it didn’t mean anything more to Katsuki. 

And yet, he didn’t want it to stop. Even if those hands weren’t meant for his hips, his thighs, his cheek. Even if those words weren’t meant for his ears, last night. Even if those lips…

Oh.

Those lips, Deku just realized with a sadness in his stomach, never even touched his own last night. 

Kacchan never kissed him. 

Chapter Text

They go to work and patrol as if it was a normal day, and maybe it had been for the blonde, but for Izuku, it most definitely wasn’t. On the surface, Izuku most certainly looked fine. Besides the limp that he had walking into work, which he got fixed in the agency’s infirmary as soon as he set his things down, he looked like normal Izuku. 

He was not going to let personal issues affect his work, especially when people’s wellbeings depended on Katsuki and Izuku performing their best every day. Even on days where the patrol was quiet and seamless, it was important to not get distracted. That being said, any five minute break that he had was spent overthinking what this meant for Katsuki and Izuku’s relationship. 

Did Kacchan even want to repeat what happened, or was it just Izuku? This morning, when they got up, their conversation was just so normal that it felt like nothing happened at all. He woke up to the smell of breakfast cooking and they ate like normal, then drove to work together like normal. Of course, Deku hadn’t wanted it to be awkward, but he was expecting some sort of change. Maybe he should be happy that nothing has changed, but it was making him more nervous than anything else. Kacchan didn’t say anything at all. Was it always this casual with everyone he sleeps with? 

Their morning patrol ended, and at lunch, Izuku worked up the nerve to corner Katsuki as he was walking down to the cafeteria. 

“Kacchan!” Deku marched up to the other, fist clenched in determination. 

The blonde turned, taking one of his headphones out and grunted in acknowledgement. 

“I-um,” Deku stammered, his tongue not wanting to catch up with his brain. Because the moment he saw Katsuki, flashes of the previous night flew through his head and his thought process came to a halt as he looked at the god in front of him and remembers all of the sin he had committed just the night before.
After a good few minutes of Izuku muttering and panicking indiscernibly, Katsuki snaps and tells the hero to get to the point. 

“About last night,” Izuku started, “I just wanted to know...it-it’s been bothering me all day...do you even want to do it again? O-or was it too weird?”

Katsuki was silent for a bit, face looking as if he had already guessed Deku would say something like this, before replying, “It wasn’t too weird. But I still don’t think we should do it again,” The blonde decides, “We’re hero partners, first and foremost, and great ones at that. No need to make it messy.”

The way Katsuki had said it was so regulated and clean, so easy. It almost made Izuku mad. Just how sure Kacchan sounded implied that the blonde had already formulated his answer probably for hours now, and was just waiting for Deku to be naive and hopeful enough to ask about it. 

“Ah, right. Of course,” Izuku nodded and smiled, “I-I was just asking.”

Katsuki hummed in acknowledgment, putting his earbud back in, “Just don’t let it get in the way of our work, shitnerd.”

Right . Izuku bit his tongue and gave a small nod. It was almost patronizing. 

It didn’t take long for all of that bullshit about making it messy and whatnot to go down the drain, as literally later that day, Deku is picked up by the thighs and shoved roughly on top of Katsuki’s desk, knocking over a bunch of paperwork and desk supplies onto the ground, and a hand is fumbling at the buckle of his pants. 

Deku was panting, sensitive from Kacchan’s teeth biting and sucking at his neck and down his exposed collar. This was literally just hours later. All the words they exchanged earlier turned to moot. 

“What happened to…” Deku panted, but nevertheless used the opportunity to annoy Katsuki, “...’don’t let it get in the way of our work.. ’ Kacchan?” He asked as he gripped the blonde’s broad shoulders, “Ah, oh fuck . Right there,” He moaned before adding, “Oh, and what happened to I don’t think we should do it again , Kacchan?”
“Shut up,” The blonde growled as he lifted Izuku’s shirt to suck on the man’s pert nipples, other hand in the greenette’s pants palming the cute cock, “Where the fuck did this attitude come from, huh?”

“Years of being around you,” Deku giggled, but it turned into a sharp gasp soon when two fingers suddenly entered him, lubed up by spit which wasn’t nearly enough. That was fast . Katsuki’s hands on him were impatient, cutting to the chase and grabbing all that he could. 

His hole was still raw and sore from the previous night. Izuku asked panicked, “K-Kacchan. We’re actually going to go all the way? H-Here?” And his head gestured to the fact that one entire wall of Katsuki’s office was made up of floor to ceiling windows, much like his own. Although they were pretty high up, if anyone looked closely, they could probably see everything. Izuku could see the newly repaired window that he had broken just the other week when he first found out about Kacchan’s hanahaki. 

Just twenty minutes ago, Izuku had finished up a report for a case that the Wonder Duo just completed that morning and had left his office, on his way over to Katsuki’s office that was situated on the same floor but on the opposite side of the building. It was the last task that he had to do for the day before he can clock out of work. 

He was tired, after having done the morning, afternoon, and early evening patrols for the day, and was ready to switch out with a night shift hero. 

He had showered and changed into a pair of nice tight jeans that showed off his thick ass and a silky champagned color blouse that hung loosely off of his shoulders. It obviously wasn’t Izuku’s own clothes, but the ever-gracious Ochaco had dropped by his agency during her lunch break to lend him some of her clothes for a meeting that he had later. He really needed to invest in his own wardrobe. At around 7, he was meeting up with a representative from a cologne company to see about an ad campaign. As someone who was generally camera-shy, Izuku tries to avoid as many advertising deals as he can, but the agency lets him slide by only so many times before he gets an angry email from his publicity manager about needing to book a deal. 

He hopes the meet up is over quickly, as he is not only physically exhausted, but emotionally drained. The events of yesterday leading all the way up till today was still weighing on his mind. 

Izuku didn’t bother knocking, deciding as he always does to just open the unlocked door and interrupt Katsuki in whatever it was that he was doing. The blonde then had been leaning against his desk, reading some letter that had been dropped off in his work box. When he heard the door open, Katsuki knew who it was since only one person really had the audacity to not knock. For fuck’s sake, even the higher ups knock. But never Izuku. 

Izuku walked in, report in hand and strode up to Kacchan, extending the papers, “Kacchan, I just finished up my part of the report on the Katsumoto case. Can you check over it, and then fill out the rest?” 

Katsuki, still leaning against his desk, takes the papers out of Izuku’s hands before giving the green-eyed boy a look up and down, noticing the change in attire into something pretty alluring, before bringing his intense gaze back to Deku.

“And where the fuck are you headed off to now, nerd?” Katsuki asked, head gesturing to the outfit. He raised a brow, staring down the other man dressed up in his pretty champagne shirt and nice tight pants.

Izuku, still a little petty from earlier, shrugged and decided to purposely be vague, “I’m meeting someone at 7.”

“Are you now?” Katsuki got up from his leaned position and looked down at Deku, taking a step closer, “What. You got bored of me already?”

“No, Kacchan,” Deku said with a sweet smile, feeling bold, “Like you said, don’t want things to get messy .” He echoed Katsuki’s words right back to him. 

The tension in the air was thick, and they stared each other down. There was barely 10 inches between them, and Izuku looked up at Katsuki with a challenging look. Izuku wasn’t sure which one of them first translated the tension into one of lust, but not another five seconds passed before their hands were all over each other, Katsuki nipping at his jaw, Izuku sliding his hands underneath the blonde’s shirt to feel those abs. And that was how they ended up in the situation they were in now. 

With Deku having his jeans thrown on the floor somewhere, two fingers pumping in and out of his still raw and pink hole, all on top of Katsuki’s work desk with open glass right behind the blonde. Before he added in a third finger, Katsuki moved his hand away and rummaged around his desk before pulling out a completely new bottle of lube and squeezing some out onto his finger. 

“Why do you have lube in your drawer,” Deku asked accusingly. 

“When I first got the office, Shit For Brains thought it’d be funny to give me condoms and lube so I can have desk sex just like this. Never thought I’d actually fucking use it though,” Katsuki muttered, “Anyways, if your ass still hurts too much, fucking tell me, okay?”

Deku had asked, “We’re actually going to go all the way? H-Here?” He thought he was just going to get fingered, not straight up fucked on this desk. 

To which Katsuki just grinned devilishly, “What’s the matter, Deku .” 

“It’s s-so open,” Izuku flushed, “Somebody can see.”

Barking out a laugh, Katsuki threw off his own pants before bending slightly to pick Izuku up by his thighs and switch their positions so that now, it was Katsuki who sat on top of his desk and Deku was sitting backwards on his lap so that the smaller’s back was against Katsuki’s chest.

 It was similar to the first position they were in just the previous night, except now, Deku was facing the open glass and the entire wide expanse of Musatafu. Katsuki right behind him, showcasing Izuku on his lap with his legs spread open to the world. 

“Maybe someone should see,” Katsuki said slowly with a deep vibrato in his ear, as he inserted his fingers back in, this time adding a third and slowly a fourth, “Deku, Japan’s Sweetheart with those fucking innocent eyes, freckles, and that god-awful sweet personality, split open on my cock. I should corrupt you in front of them,” Katsuki chuckled, “Show them how much of a slut you actually are.”

Izuku opened his mouth to moan from the pleasure, but he covered it in time, afraid someone was going to hear. It’s like Katsuki could never say anything wrong. Every word sent a wave of lust down his body, adding to the sensation of Katsuki’s fingers pumping out of him. 

“I wonder what they’ll think if they see that their precious family-friendly hero begs to be filled with cum and have his nipples played with,” Katsuki teased, growing hard himself as he hears Izuku whimper, “I think I’ll fuck you in this position too. Have you bounce on my cock for everyone to fucking see, would you like that, Deku?”

Katsuki held the tip of his dick and lifting Izuku up by his torso with one strong arm, teased and smeared the tip of his cock against Izuku’s pulsating hole, waiting for an answer.

Izuku had tears well up from the overload of amazing sensations, and he could barely speak.

“I asked,” Katsuki repeated himself, “Would you like that, Deku.”

Izuku quickly nodded, unable to handle himself as he panted, “Yes. Please, Kacchan. Please, I want you inside me.” He begged.

And Katsuki, being the merciful person he was, gave in to his partner’s needs. Pushing his tip in then using Izuku’s hips to slowly sink the man down on his dick, Katsuki could not get over the fact that it felt just as good as the first time. The entire way down to the base of Katsuki’s large cock, Izuku bit his lip to stop from moaning. The stretch was excruciating, yet it was all he wanted. 

Kacchan brought a hand up from behind him to cover Deku’s mouth to prevent him from screaming, another to lift one of Izuku’s thighs, and began to fuck up into the nerd. And Izuku began bouncing, his juicy and swollen hole stretched out around Katsuki’s dick, missing it already after just having it last night. 

Izuku fucking loved it, and every thrust brought him to heaven. He was being held and used for Katsuki’s pleasure all the while receiving his own, and the thrill of someone possibly seeing through the window, even as unlikely as it was, turned him on even more. They were too high up for it to realistically matter, but it was the thought that counted. 

To think that he lost his virginity literally just the day before, and he was already addicted to the feeling of Katsuki inside of him. The tip of Kacchan’s dick knew just where to hit, rubbing against the special spot repeatedly. 

And then, Katsuki stopped thrusting up into Izuku, who whined at the loss of pace. Instead, he pulled out and switched their positions again. 

This time, so that Deku was bent over the desk like a whore and Katsuki, right behind him, pushes his aching cock inside once more and Deku didn’t stop himself from moaning, even though the office door was unlocked. If he was in his right mind, he would care. Anyone could walk in and enjoy the show, and he honestly wouldn’t know if he’d be able to stop. It was almost a satisfying thought. If only that intern who kept on eyeing Kacchan every time he was in the room or brushed her breast against his shoulder every chance she got walked in right now, Izuku thought, he wouldn’t be too mortified. 

He was getting fucked to death on the desk, and his mind was turning to mush from how good it felt. Izuku fucked back on the dick, wanting to feel every single inch to its fullest and he could hear Katsuki’s heavy balls slap up against his ass as Katsuki continued to fuck him like a slut. The blonde had one large hand on either hip, holding Izuku in place like a fleshlight, while he thrusted in and out of the pink puckered hole. Fuck, he was going to cum soon. And from the looks of Deku trying desperately to cover his mouth so that he doesn’t let out any sound, the nerd was about to as well. 

“K-kacchan, I’m about to cum,” Deku cried out.

“Shit, me too,” Katsuki revelled in delight as he picked up his speed and intensity. Even if the door was locked, anyone would know what was going on from the non-verbal sounds they were making.

“W-wait! Not inside of me, please,” Deku panted while asking, “I still have to go at 7.”

“Even more reason to cum inside you,” Katsuki pinned Izuku’s head down to the desk and lifted the boy’s hip up even more as he fucked at a deeper angle.

“Kacchan!” Deku protested, but he was turned on at the notion that Katsuki wanted to cum inside of him before he left for a meeting. There was just something so risque about that, and Izuku felt his orgasm right around the corner. 

Katsuki’s grip on Izuku’s hip tightened, and completely ignoring the green-eyed beauty, Katsuki came deep inside of Izuku’s ass, releasing ribbons of cum, pumping it into the other. Feeling his seed fill up Deku brought a sweet joy to Katsuki’s mind. And Izuku collapsed, chasing his own orgasm as his seed spilled underneath him and onto the desk. His body shook, as he tries to reign himself in while the orgasm coursed through his being. Izuku had to bite his shirt so that he doesn’t scream in pleasure. They stopped for a moment to catch their breath, Deku still collapsed on top of the desk, before Katsuki pulled out and stretched his back.

“Cancel the shit you got at 7,” Katsuki demanded, grabbing a tissue box that had fell onto the floor and used it to clean the both of them up, “We can go get dinner then go back to your place to watch a movie.”

The idea was so nice, and Izuku wanted to say yes and give in to their not-date. Kacchan recently almost never initiates; however, he knew that he’d be killed the next day if he didn’t come to the meeting. 

“I can’t,” Izuku pouted, wiggling as Katsuki soaked up cum the leaving his ass. The blonde paused his movements and looked at Deku with a raised brow and a slight frown. 

Izuku decides to explain himself, “I’m meeting a representative in like twenty minutes to discuss an ad deal. Hikori is going to kill me if I try to get out of this one.”

“You little shit, why’d you make it sound like you were going out on a fucking date or something,” Katsuki asked with one hand running through his hair. He continued to clean the both of them.

“Ah, that’s my bad!” Deku pretended it wasn’t intentional, “Besides, why do you care…”

Katsuki just chose to ignore the question, and instead cracked his neck and began to pick up some of the things on the ground, “Tch. When does the meeting end?” 

“Hm, I’m not sure! It’d probably take an hour at most,” Deku contemplated before looking over at Katsuki, “Why?”

The blonde didn’t answer for a while, thinking whether or not this was about to be a good idea. But in his fucked up masochistic brain, he justified that it was too fucking late anyhow. What was worse than sleeping with the only person you shouldn’t, “If you want, I can wait at your place and make dinner. We can watch that movie you’ve been fucking talking nonstop about then.” 

Deku had to bite his lip to keep himself from pathetically tearing up at the idea of Kacchan waiting for him at home so that they can just hang out together--that was something only he usually did--but he nodded profusely, giving himself away, “Yes! I’ll try to make the meeting quick, but yes!”

“Whatever, you shitty nerd,” Katsuki shooed the greenette, “Now get off my desk and put your clothes back on.”

Izuku begrudgingly hopped off of the desk, and his face heated up looking at what was underneath him. Some papers that hadn’t flown off during their intense session was stained with his cum from being fucked over the desk and he began to apologize profusely. 

“I-I’m sorry, Kacchan! I’ll go print off another one!” He panicked, using two timid fingers to pick up the nasty papers that were now threatening to fall apart. 

But Katsuki just laughed, “It’s fucking fine, you idiot. Look at this, you made the ink bleed.”
“Kacchan, stop talking about it!” Deku whined, but still smiled nevertheless at the sound of Katsuki’s laugh. He was one of the few people who was able to make Katsuki laughed, and his heart swelled with self-pride over that fact. Izuku then wonders, can the person Katsuki loves make him laugh?   

Their evening goes great. Luck, which usually hated him, was on Izuku’s side tonight, for the meeting was short, sweet, and successful so he rushed back to his apartment, more excited than he would ever admit to see Kacchan. The stops on the elevator ride up, as people filed in and out, felt like hours. Izuku wishes that he could close his eyes and pretend for a second, that this was his life. Coming home and seeing Katsuki there after they both got off of work, eating together every night and then sleeping together. If he doesn’t remind himself that Kacchan was coughing up beautiful flowers for someone else, it was easy to pretend. 

Ever since their second year at UA, the blonde had always favored Izuku over other people. They were the strongest, and therefore, Katsuki grew comfortable picking him to be his partner in projects, and ultimately, became the person that Katsuki was closest too. Izuku felt selfish thinking it, but he hated the thought of someone else taking his place, even if they were just...friends. 

They both ended up finishing two bowls of yakisoba each, and watched the new hero movie Deku had been raving about. It was fun to watch these type of movies after becoming pro heroes, because the entire time, they throw popcorn at the TV at unrealistic scenes or horrible rescue tactics. Usually, Katsuki would complain after the movie ends about all the popcorn thrown at the TV as he cleans up, blaming it all on Deku, but Izuku knows for a fact that he wasn’t the only one.  It was so domestic, it could make Izuku cry. Of course he wouldn’t, but he could . 

And it was entirely wholesome up until the moment where at some point through the evening, Izuku’s hand bravely travelled over Katsuki’s strong stomach, resting there. They were still watching their movie, but throughout, the green-haired boy travelled lower and lower, playing with the elastic waistband of Katsuki’s sweatpants. 

And it didn’t take long after that for the movie to be paused, and Deku voluntarily on his knees between Katsuki’s legs, with a dick stuffed in his mouth and head bobbing on it. Izuku jerked himself as he sucked Katsuki’s dick, getting closer and closer the more he sees the blonde throw his head back and make the most sinful noises. 

When he came, Izuku tried to swallow everything, but some ended up dribbling down the side of his mouth. Katsuki, looking down at the doe-eyed boy with his cum falling down his chin, probably had enough ammo to get hard again just from the sight of it.

Other than that, of course, it was an entirely wholesome experience.

After about 6 weeks or so pass since the first time they’ve slept together, many changes have been cemented. The most harking one being that Katsuki’s been feeling the consequences of his disobedience from his doctor’s orders and his own promises to the world that he’ll get over this. If it was one thing he hated doing, it was breaking promises, because that meant that you were half-assing your words; however, when it came to Izuku, all logic seems to be thrown out of the window. Dr. Baldie didn’t know if his new friends-with-benefits situation that he had going on with Izuku, but Katsuki told himself that he’ll tell the man next time he has an appointment. 

His coughing has only been getting worse, with bloodier and larger quantities of petals coming up. The pills might as well have been placebo, because this was just miserable. One thing he is grateful for now is that he doesn’t have to hide it. And Izuku helps him choke it up when he needs to. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, Izuku would be behind him, patting his back trying to get Katsuki to cough up whatever petals were stuck. 

In those moments, Deku was always uncharacteristically quiet, his eyes distant and lips not pulled up in the usual smile it always has. At this rate, both his and Izuku’s trash in their own respective apartments are going to be littered with these bloody petals. 

But despite that, it’s been quite the beautiful few weeks.  Deku’s self proclaimed “Operation Distract Kacchan” commenced, even with Katsuki sneering at the whole notion. It was a cheesy effort at the best. Izuku invites himself, without notice, to Katsuki’s apartment any chance he gets. 

Before this whole thing, Deku was at Katsuki’s place pretty often or vice versa, but now, they might as well have been living at one of each other’s apartments. It got to the point where after they clock out of work, Izuku doesn’t think twice about walking to Katsuki’s car instead of his own. Sometimes, the nerd would be a few steps ahead and make himself home in the passenger seat. The audacity . 

Ochaco, if she needed to see Izuku, stopped checking at Izuku’s own apartment first, and instead headed straight over to Katsuki’s. Just to sometimes realize that they decided to stay at Izuku’s place for the night. The girl didn’t have to ask what was going on. It was very obvious what was happening, just from standing outside of the door at a bad time. Ochaco honestly felt bad for their neighbors, but hey, at least Izuku was getting it. 

 It was so fucking domestic, and Katsuki hated to admit that the hanahaki was what allowed this to happen. Coming back from the grocery store, or literally anywhere else, and seeing Izuku passed out on his couch with some rerun playing felt like a reality that wasn’t his own. 

Since they were together all the damn time, the amount of inside jokes they were stockpiling was beginning to annoy the shit out of their friends. Katsuki was finding green hair everywhere. Goddamn, Deku shedded like a damn dog. Green hair was in his shower, on his clothes, in his bed. And Katsuki, much to his own dismay, had to end up getting Deku his own snack drawer to keep all the junk that Katsuki would never buy himself. He was tired of running down to the convenience store everytime Deku wanted a damn bag of kitkats. 

And yet, none of it got old. The freckled man should be used to his company by now, and yet, every time they see each other, it seemed like Deku was just as excited and happy as he did the first time. 

On top of that, they had a shit ton of sex. Katsuki was on a pleasure high, and he couldn’t come down, not after years of wanting and convincing himself he was never going to have this. This , sex with the person he loved, was more than anything he could have ever imagined for himself. 

The kind of sex they had wasn’t slow and romantic. Katsuki, despite his lack of reservations these days, thought he’d give himself away instantly if he did that. He still hasn’t even kissed Izuku. The level of intimacy that involved reached beyond the unspoken rules for being friends with benefits. Their sex was rough, dirty, and fucking incredible. 

The greenette, for having been a virgin before Katsuki came along, was always up for it when Katsuki was, which was more than the average person. He couldn’t help it. He was a dying man, and the primary object of his desires was so willing. One little look from Deku, and Katsuki’s shirt is off in seconds. It didn’t matter if they were in a damn restaurant powder room or in the comforts of a bedroom. 

They fucked on the kitchen counter, in the middle of baking bread that turned out horribly anyways since it was Deku who tried making it. There was flour on Izuku’s ass, and Katsuki’s hand print was displayed on Izuku’s hip. He could barely remember how they got in this situation to begin with. Katsuki was never going to get over the way that Izuku fucks back onto his fingers or his dick. It was dirty, it was messy, there was flour fucking everywhere, and both Izuku and Katsuki loved every second of it. It was then quite difficult to explain to Izuku’s mother, who came by just five minutes after they finished, why her son had flour all in his hair and on his elbows, knees, and thighs, while Katsuki had it all over his forearms. 

They fucked in the shower. After they received the clear that their mission had been successfully completed, the two of them crashed back in their hotel. The case they had been working on was in Hokkaido, dealing with an exuberant money launderer with a water-type quirk that Izuku had to seduce as part of the job. Let’s say that Katsuki fucked him a little harder than usual that night. He could barely fucking wait until they have washed off the sweat and grime from fighting off of their bodies, before he joined Izuku in the shower. And it didn’t take long for their hands to wander, skin to lather skin, or for Katsuki to slam the shorter male against the cold tile, juxtaposed with the stream of steaming hot water coming out of the rainhead shower. His thighs were lifted, and wrapped up around Katsuki’s waist, as the blonde ruts up against him. Izuku wanted to kiss him so bad. It’d be so easy, to lean down in the space between them, to close the distance that always hovers but never meets; but Izuku doesn’t. Fucking in the shower was a  little bit more difficult than the rest, mostly because water washed away any lubricant. Even with that, it was so fucking hot that even if Izuku dies from the slight pain of the friction, he dies happily. And Katsuki, seeing trickles of hot water run through Izuku’s green hair, down his chest, and toned abdomen, and then fucking the nerd against the cold stone walls with the hot spray against his back was by far one of the greatest moments he’ll ever experience. 

They even fucked in a car, in front of the agency.

“Calm down. Don’t get freaked out about someone hearing, then go moan like a bitch,” Katsuki said gruffly as his hands were lifting Deku’s hips, which were straddled on top of his, and thrusting up into the tight, sweet hole that he was addicted to. The greenette had his back to the steering wheel of Katsuki’s car, and his face buried in the blonde’s shoulder as he gets thoroughly fucked, trying to suppress his moans, which were getting louder and louder by the second. He sounded like a whore, being filled up and moaning loudly in a car like this. It would be obvious to anyone passing by what was happening, since it was in fact broad daylight and the car was shaking. They had driven up to the agency and into the parking lot a little earlier than usual, and the wide-eyed man had been giving him suggestive looks all morning, so the second he shifted into park, Katsuki’s hands were on Deku immediately. It’s gotten to the point where Katsuki carries around packets of lube in his back pocket everywhere he goes. 

“I c-can’t help it, Kacchan,” Izuku whimpered into his shoulder. His hands were gripping the hard muscle, trying to steady his breathing, as Katsuki continued to hit the spot so well. Izuku, no matter how many times they fuck, will probably never get used to the size. To the hands on his body. To the mere fact that he was having sex with his best friend and love of his life. 

Katsuki chuckled darkly, “I’m just that fucking good, huh.”

“ Yes ,” Izuku breathily moaned into the blonde’s ear as he begins riding the other. Katsuki groaned, as he laid back and watched Izuku take over the work. There was not ample space in the car, especially since they were doing it in the driver’s seat, but there was just enough so that Izuku could lift his lips and slam back down repeatedly, making use of those plush and thick thighs as he bounces on Katsuki’s cock. 

All of his movements stop and Izuku lets out a scream as there is a tap against Katsuki’s tinted window. The blond looks heavily annoyed, as he flips their position so that Izuku was now on the bottom and mostly shielded from view aside from his upper half, and Katsuki was looming over him. 

The windows of his car were legally tinted, so from the outside, no one can really see through the side windows. But from the inside, Katsuki could see Denki quite well and he was actually going to kill him. 

The blonde rolled down the window halfway, his position making it clear what was going on, and barked out a, “Oi, Shit For Brains. What the fuck do you want?”

“Bakugo! You never come this early, but I pulled up right beside you,” The fucking bastard couldn’t pick up the hint, “Your car was shaking. Is everything okay in there?” 

“You fucking dimwit,” Katsuki said incredulously, “I’m fucking the nerd, right now. So eat shit and die. And don’t go blabbering shit, or I’ll kill you. Bye.” Izuku’s eyes widened at Katsuki’s frank response and was this close to screaming once more. He had only really told Ochaco, Mina, and barely two other people that he was having this kind of sexual arrangement with Kacchan, but he’d never thought there’d be a day where Katsuki would also tell someone. Katsuki has come a long way from not being able to stand even being at the same table as Izuku. 

“The nerd…” Denki pondered for a moment, but his eyes widened and he practically shouted, “Midoriya!?”

But Katsuki was already rolling his windows up.

“You’re having sex with Midoriya!?” Denki practically screamed for the parking lot to hear, “I knew something fishy was going on! Is it just casual? It must be right? Oi, Bakugo! Open the door! Midoriya, Bakugo, let’s talk! WHen did this happen?” 

Katsuki groaned and dove his nose in Izuku’s freshly shampooed hair, “That just ruined the damn mood.”
Izuku laughed, “I know. This is really awkward. I’m half-naked, and Kaminari-kun is standing outside of the door trying to talk. I’m completely soft now.”

“Shit, me too,” Katsuki was about to curse Denki and his entire family for five generations,  as he pulled his pants back up and Izuku climbed back into his seat. 

The next time they had a class get together, which was literally two days later, no one asks but Izuku and Katsuki both sense it. The knowing looks people were sending each other the moment they walked in, the weird giggling. By the end of the night, Katsuki was positive that he was going to have Denki’s head for this. But that grudge is soon forgotten the moment they left the bar, and back in the car, the two continued what they left off two days before. And this time, they were actually able to come.

Izuku can’t get enough. And he knew it wasn’t just anyone. It had to be Kacchan. It never got boring with the blonde, for Katsuki was always so good at what he does and he never could complain about anything.

Although they hang out most nights of the week, if not every night, a selfish and jealous part of him that he dislikes is so scared every day that he’ll come to Katsuki and find a hickey that he didn’t personally give the taller, or smell perfume/cologne that wasn’t one of theirs, or finds a pair of shoes in the doorway when he wants it to always be his. 

Because that meant that Izuku wasn’t enough. And the greenette usually would refuse to live by someone else’s standards for being enough; however, Katsuki was different. Katsuki was always his exception to everything. 

A sick part of him gets turned on when Katsuki goes on a possessive streak, for it gives him hope that the blonde feels the same way about wanting to be the only one that touches the other. 

The other day, they were in the middle of very intense sex, when suddenly, Izuku’s phone rang. His head was so filled with lust that he was dazed and barely even registered his phone ringing over the sound of his cheeks clapping together on Katsuki’s large cock. The sound of it was probably enough to make him cum. Katsuki’s cock slamming into his wet hole was just so juicy, and the clapping could probably be heard through the walls.

 It was only after a second call that he reached over and brought his phone to his face to see who was calling. 

Yo Shindo ? What in the world did that man want right now? Usually, when he called, it was because he wanted to mess around with Izuku a little bit. They had never done anything further than blowjobs and some fingering, but either way, Izuku was having quite enough pleasure right now as it is, so picking up the call wasn’t going to be necessary. 

His thumb hovered over the decline call button, but before he could, Katsuki growled, “That bastard.” 

“Hm?” Deku turned his neck and asked. The blonde had paused his thrusts for the time being. 

Instead, he looked at the phone and tells Izuku, “Pick up. I wanna see what the fuck he wants. Hopefully, it’s what I think he wants, cuz I got a fucking gift for the bastard.”
“W-Wha-” Izuku began, but was cut off by a gruff “Answer the damn phone.”

Izuku frowns, “Why?”

“Just do it,” Katsuki rolled his eyes, “I promise I’ll be civil.” 

Hesitantly, Deku presses the answer call button and puts it on speaker, “Shindo-kun?”

And with that, Katsuki picks up his pace again and continues to fuck into the boy. Izuku’s eyes widen to the size of saucers and one hand goes up to cover his mouth as his hole gets pounded into again. 

“Deku!” Shindo says into the phone, on speaker, “How’ve you been?” 

Izuku feels Katsuki’s hands travel up his body as he fucks him, fingers playing with his nipples, “G-good! I’ve been g-great!” He was straight up panting. 

“That’s nice to hear,” Shindo replied, “You’ve been busy these past couple weeks?”

Izuku could barely respond, not when Kacchan was stuffing him full of cock, “Y-yes! Lots of c-cases. How about you?” He managed to spit out, with a gasp in between.

“Deku?” Shindo from the other end of the line asks, “You sound a little out of breath. Is everything okay?”

“Y-Yeah! I’m just a li-little...,” Deku throws a look back, more of a glare, at Katsuki who just fucks him faster with a grin on his face, “...occupied, mmhh! r-right now!” He curses at himself for not being able to hold in a moan in the middle of a phone call.

“Oh are you? Doing what?” Shindo asks, “I was actually going to ask if you wanted to come over. It’s been a while since we’ve...you know, did anything with each other.”

Oh no. Oh no. This was not good. Katsuki, still shoving his cock deep into Izuku’s ass, reaches over and snatches his phone out of his hands. Deku made a grab for it, panicking, to no avail as Katsuki pushed him down to the mattress.

Shindo continued, suggestively, “I kind of missed having you moan for me, you know. It was so sexy t-”

“Like this, you fucking tool ? You like hearing him moan like this?” Katsuki grinned manically, almost threateningly, into the phone before putting it near Deku. 

He then used one arm to hold on tight to Izuku’s hip as he rammed inside of the man, and demanded Izuku, “Moan for me, Deku. Show him just how much of a slut you are for my cock. Remind this asshole what it sounds like, because it’ll be the last time he’ll fucking get to.”

“K-Kacc-” And then Izuku paused, not wanting to give the name away although it was obvious who was fucking him, “That’s mean. Sh-shindo-kun! Please h-hang up. I’m s-sorry!”

Katsuki laughed and spoke quite clearly, “He’s not sorry. Listen to this,” Katsuki then held the phone speaker near Izuku’s wet hole where the sound of Katsuki pounded into it made the sweetest noises, “He’s not fucking sorry for shit.” 

“Sh-Shindo! Please, hang up,” Izuku begged, knowing he won’t be able to hold himself in any longer.

Katsuki repeatedly hits a certain spot, and then the freckled man couldn’t hold it in anymore. Izuku moaned like a whore, and started to beg repeatedly for more. His cries were full of lust, and he prayed to god that Shindo had hung up. All thought flew out of his head as he pleaded that Katsuki fuck him more right there. He sounded like such a cockslut, and although it was embarrassing to be on the phone and allowing someone to hear all of this, he was also so turned on at Katsuki’s possessive behavior and the fact that he was doing it while he was on the phone with someone else. Katsuki complied with every demand, until Izuku was a crying, begging wreck underneath him, coming and making a damn mess. 

At some point, Katsuki asks again to the phone, “You heard all that, Shindo? How clear was it to understand, hah?”

A moment of silence, and then the voice comes through, “Crystal.”

Izuku felt so bad the day after and ended up apologizing to Shindo a million times, who took it easier than he thought, almost as if he expected a day like this to happen. To make up for the mortifying phone call, Izuku treated him out for coffee, embarrassed the entire time. 

That being said, he almost wished it would happen again. He wished everything would happen again. Every touch, every whisper, every sensation, until it was engraved in Izuku’s skin and echoed through his bones: that he and Katsuki belonged together like this and more. 

Time goes by so fast that he can barely hold on to the memories as they pass him by. He craved to remember every detail, from the tree shaped scar on Katsuki’s shoulder to the way Katsuki, no matter how rough their sex is, always acts a bit more delicate on his arms, which needed no extra pressure on top of One For All. 

Although he was on a pleasure high and an emotional happy streak, Deku too suffers from the occasional realizations that this wasn’t his. That Kacchan wasn’t his . And that sobering fact would cause izuku to curl up into a ball for a little bit. Dragging him from whatever high place he was at, down to the sobering reality that he’s been trying his best but nothing is seeming to improve. 

Seeing Katsuki’s hanahaki was a daily reminder. But oddly enough, nothing reminded him more of their controversial and unconventional arrangement than the fact that to this day, Kacchan still has not kissed him. 

He told himself that it was fine. That he shouldn’t get himself too winded by the fact, and it was just how it was. But the heart wants what it wants, doesn’t it, no matter how many lies we want to convince ourselves of.

Their hangouts did not always end up at some raunchy scene. Sometimes, Izuku wanted to distract him by forcing them to go on a day trip on their off days to this beach or that lake, or just going around acting like teenagers again on the outskirts of Musutafu. Just climbing up onto rooftops to watch the stars or playing in a splash park even though they were both full grown adults: it was almost disgusting how couple-y they looked. It only added fuel to the media’s growing conspiracy that it was, in fact, the pro hero Deku that Ground Zero developed Hanahaki over. But it did pose a mental block in everyone’s mind: if it was, in fact, Pro Hero Deku, then why did Ground Zero still have hanahaki? It was clear that the green-eyed sweetheart loved the man, to everyone’s eyes but their own. 

“Kacchan, out of curiosity, are you doing this with anyone else?” Deku tried to casually ask one day as they took a break from swimming. He had managed to get Katsuki to accompany him on a waterfall hike right after a mission in Hawaii ended. Even though the blonde had taken the brunt of the damage in the villain fight and was ridiculously sore, he still said yes after those puppy eyes blinked at him. After jumping the waterfall and swimming around the basin for half the day, they not sat on a ledge near the falls, mist and sprayage hitting them, and ate the food that they packaged for the day. Wet hands and food didn’t mix well, but they made do. Finding the courage to ask, Deku pretended that he was more casual than he was actually feeling. 

“What. Doing an eight mile waterfall hike the day after finishing a mission I haven’t completely recovered from?” Katsuki asked while opening up a bottle of hibiscus ginger beer, “No.”

Deku glared at his friend while lifting one foot to lightly kick him, “Kacchan! You know what I meant.”

The loud roar of the water intensified as Deku waits for the blonde to finish chewing, and when he did, Katsuki paused for a second before confessing, “Deku, we practically live with each other. If I was fucking someone else, you’d know.” 

“Yeah, but sometimes we aren’t with each other,” Deku frowned, before covering himself up, “Not that i-it matters or a-anything, I’m just wonde-”

“I’m not,” Katsuki stated, taking a sip of his drink. Deku took a moment to breathe, a weighted feeling in his chest dissipating. And then, the blonde asked after a bit of silence, “Are you?”

“No!” Izuku responded a little too quickly with a panic, before settling back, finishing his food.

Katsuki let out a laugh at the reaction, unable to resist himself at how cute Deku was. At times like this, a spark of hope lights up in his chest, when Deku says or does something that makes it feel like he wanted more. 

This was fucking nice, and sometimes, it feels like he can forget about the hanahaki. Deku may or may not love him in the way that he wanted, but Katsuki didn’t feel any less appreciated. However, reality always comes rushing in at one point or another, as flowers climb its way up his chest more frequently than it ever did. He can tell, when Deku was helping him or watching him heave, that the green eyed boy was trying his hardest not to let panic show on his face, but Katsuki knew better. The nerd cared too much for his own good, and it was ironically making Katsuki worse. 

Katsuki would say that he has tougher emotional resistance than most people; however, he still finds himself at a loss of what to do when some of his fans, as young as 5 years old, comes up to him sobbing and begging him not to die. He didn’t want to die.  And there were times these days, when Deku looks at him with these eyes and smiles at him a certain way, when Katsuki actually thinks that he might not. And then other times when he reverts back to believing it was impossible. After all this time, Izuku still refers to what they’re doing as “Operation Distract Kacchan,” after all. 

They were closer than ever, and their new dynamic even improved their work, as they were getting more and more powerful in the hero world each day. The two of them could open up an agency right now if they wanted, and probably should. In fact, most people around them including the general public wondered why they haven’t already. And then, once people think about it, they come to a sobering reality. Ground Zero has hanahaki. Which an ambiguous amount of time left. What’s the use of opening up a hero agency when he wouldn’t even be there to see it thrive? But then again, Pro Hero Ground Zero promised he was going to get over the disease with indisputable victory, right ? …. Right? 

“You did what ?” Dr. Baldie blanked the next time Katsuki came in for an appointment. After the world practically outed the fact that Pro Hero Ground Zero had hanahaki, they had an emergency appointment about the whole situation. 

“I slept with Deku,” Katsuki repeated to his doctor. He was sitting on the sterile leather couch that the man had in his office, watching in amusement while simultaneously waiting for a lecture as the doctor looked like he wanted to tear his hair out. 

“I heard you the first time. I just hoped that you had misspoken,” The doctor admits, “I was wondering why everything looks to be getting worse after you promised the world during that press conference that you’ll get better.”

Katsuki was silent at that. It was true. He had promised. 

“Bakugo. You might as well confess to Hero Deku at this point,” The doctor tried reasoning, “He’s obviously smitten with you. You two are physically intimate. And he seems to care deeply about you. I do not think that love is out of the question.”

Another uncharacteristic silence from Katsuki. Sometimes, he thought that too. A sliver of hope that flourished inside of him wonders if Deku could love him too. After all, Izuku had always admired him in a way no one else had, and now, the nerd was sleeping with him, practically living with him or the other way around, and spending every single free time they had near each other. It was like they were fucking married, but way more ambiguous. At times when he has this realization, Katsuki wonders if it’d be so hard to consider that Deku might love him too. 

And then he buries that into a hole. He wasn’t going to be foolish and hope for things that were too good to be true. Sure, Izuku had always admired him more than anybody, but admiration at the end of the day could just be that. He couldn’t bank on maybe.

“Maybe it’s not,” Katsuki admits out loud, “Out of the picture, I mean.”

“That is the most progress we’ve made with your thinking since you came here years ag-” The doctor applauded.

“But-” The blonde stopped him, “That’s a fat fucking maybe. And I’m not going to risk the shitnerd feeling guilty for the rest of his life if I gamble on his feelings, and it turns out he doesn’t feel the same. If he does...love me, then I’m going to let him take that up with me first.”

“Letting someone make the first move in dealing with a problem? That doesn’t sound very much like you, Ground Zero,” The doctor muttered.

“If you haven’t noticed, not much of what I do these days sound like me,” Katsuki dryly states. 

“You’re not taking this seriously enough.”
“Contrary to what you might believe, all I’ve been doing these past few months is taking it seriously,” Katsuki barked, losing his patience as this doctor continues to undermine him, “Taking this shit seriously and actually making progress are two different fucking things. Listen. Put yourself in my shoes. You got a wife?”

“Erhm, yes. Bu-”

“Your wife is in every part of your damn life, right? You love her to death, and considering how fucking old you are, you’ve been with her for a while. Now imagine trying to distance yourself from the bitch. Haah? You think if another doctor told you to get the fuck away from your own wife, you’d just drop everything and say “Whoop-dee-fucking-do, guess I gotta follow doctor’s orders”? If you think you would, then you’re a shitty liar and a lunatic. You don’t understand what it’s like, so stop acting like I’m happy to throw my life away. It’s real damn hard to get away from Deku. Don’t sit there in your little doctor high-and-mighty chair, and presume to judge me on my actions when you don’t know shit .” 

The doctor is quiet, taking in every word Ground Zero says. Although Katsuki was usually feisty, this was a different type of tone: it was a dead serious one.

Katsuki continued, more calm this time, “Deku’s not mine, in the way you and your wife are. But trying to cut him out of my life is like stripping away almost all of my identity. Ever since I can remember, ever since we were little brats, almost every major memory I’ve had involved Deku in some way. He’s my hero partner. He’s my best fucking friend. He practically lives with me these days, or I live with him, like a damn husband would. We eat lunch and dinner together every day. When he’s sick, I’m there. When I’m injured, he’s next to my hospital bed the moment he gets off work until someone drags him away. I’ve tried, and tried and tried, to distance myself, but it either makes me more in love with the nerd or it makes me miserable. I’ve accepted my damn fate. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t serious before.” Katsuki’s chest heaved as he finished up his little rant, but it was nice to get it off of his chest. He likes Dr. Baldie well enough or else he would have requested a different doctor a long time ago; however, sometimes, the fuckwad could really get on his nerves. 

How could the doctor say that he wasn’t taking it seriously enough. It is hypocritical from an outsider’s perspective to assume he can just let go of the only person he’s ever loved and move on, when Katsuki knew it’d be just as hard for anyone else. He could have made better decisions, yes. He could have said no to many things, yes. But at that point, he was already sure that nothing was working, so he might as well. To some degree, he’s somewhat accepted his fate for a while now.

Once again, the doctor is quiet before genuinely expressing, “I...wasn’t aware that it was like that. I’m sorry for assuming.”

“Ts’ whatever,” The blonde scoffed.

“But I must say, Bakugo,” The doctor looks on somberly, “You probably understand this by now, but you don’t have much time left. At some point, there will be so many petals that no matter how much you cough up, more will be blocking your airway. Bakugo, I’m afraid we probably only have one or two, if we’re lucky, appointments left.”

One. Or two. If he’s lucky . The nearness of it shocks Katsuki. That’s a month. Two months. Internally, he knew he didn’t have too much time, but he still thought it’d be more than that. Sure, his coughs have been getting worse and worse, everyone around him knew it too, but maybe he was being naive to think that he could get away with another five or six months. He sits there shocked, staring at the doctor’s somber expression. 

And then, he feels a sharp pain in his chest. Suddenly, he’s coughing up a storm, yet everything is just blurred out as the doctor brings over a trashcan and helps him with the epipen as Katsuki is hurling blood and petals. He feels the searing pain in his chest, but that wasn’t compared to the numb he felt in his head as everything hits him with a shock. How little time he has. How fucked he was. How he was complicit in this situation. And yet he knew, that even if he hadn’t slept with Deku, even if he hadn’t given in, this would have been the outcome regardless. Maybe it would have been a couple months later, but it would have been the same outcome in the end. 

He doesn’t need to ask himself when had he let it get this bad, because he knew. It was all the smiles Deku directed towards him these days, the intimate touches, the naive but enjoyable outings, the conversations about random things that don’t matter to anyone else. Deku was a little leech that he never shook off, and at some point, he didn’t want to shake the man off. 

Katsuki drives home, and everything was muted. Even the colors of the sky looked a little darker and greyer than usual. As the rainy season sets in, he could sense a thunderstorm coming quite soon, for the clouds were dark, matching his mood greatly. The sounds of traffic and of his own radio music in the car was all but white noise, as he considers the conversation he just had with the doctor. Even the grip he has on the steering wheel doesn’t even feel real, and Katsuki didn’t realize just how tightly his fist was around the wheel until he noticed his knuckles had turned white. Even the smell of asphalt and light rain didn’t hit his nose. 

The sensations in his body left, but he knew who he had to go to in order to feel something. The only person who’s ever been able to make him feel everything. The only person who’s ever been able to make him forget about the rest of the world. 

When Katsuki knocks on Deku’s door, the blonde’s hair and clothes were damp from the trickling rain that had started to fall as he pulled up and his expression was practically lifeless. He knew what he wanted, even if it wasn’t necessarily what he needed. But he was a dead man at this point, so who even gave a shit anymore about needs and wants.

Deku opens the door a moment later, dressed up in his usual lame graphic tee and a pair of shorts, and stares at Katsuki with happy eyes, “Kacchan! Oh my god, you’re so damp! It’s always weird to see your hair unspikey. Come in and I’ll get you some of your clothes.” And took a couple steps back so Katsuki could come in.

When Katsuki said nothing, but opened his mouth with conflicted eyes as if he wanted to say something, Izuku’s look of happiness turns into one of concern. That was when he noticed just how out of it his friend looked. Katsuki stared at the love of his damn life, feeling all sensation go back into his body. Deku’s always been able to make the world seem to stop.

All sensations began to rush back in. From silence to a full blast of all the sound around him: the rain, the radio playing in the background, the laughter of Deku’s neighbor through the walls. It surrounded him, with the comfort of a warm blanket. It was home. 

“...Kacchan? Is everything o-”

Izuku was cut off when Katsuki began moving. Out of the doorway and inside of the apartment, pushing the door closed behind him. Without even taking off his shoes, Katsuki immediately made his way over to Izuku, whose eyes were wide as the blonde cups his face with two large and warm hands, and then. 

Katsuki leans his head down and kisses him. 

It was sweet, like the lychee candy the greenette was eating just moments earlier, and as wonderful as Katsuki had always imagined Deku’s lips to be. The pair of lips were still, probably in shock, but the blonde didn’t care. If he was going to die within the month, he was going to at least kiss the love of his life like this at least once. 

Izuku’s brain short-circuits. He’s still for a moment. What ? His head couldn’t process. Why now. Why had Katsuki, after all of this time, is kissing him now?  Kacchan! Kacchan is kissing me. Why is Kacchan kissing me now?   Did he finally do it? Izuku thought to himself. Had Izuku done it? 

And then, he noticed just how soft the blonde’s lips were. And gentle. How beautifully surprising. It wasn’t a rough and aggressive kiss, but a slow and gentle one. Katsuki’s hands cupped around his cheeks were full of care and tenderness, like it meant something. Deku’s knees felt like they were collapsing under all of the emotions that he was feeling. 

It didn’t take long before Deku wrapped his arms around Katsuki’s neck and began to kiss back, savoring every single taste and sensation. They were perfect together, melting into one another like they were always destined to be like this. They were starting to hear thunder outside, but Katsuki paid it no mind. All he could feel, taste, smell, experience was the sweet nectar of Izuku’s lips. He wanted to get closer. 

“Izuku,” Katsuki spoke, pulling away just enough so that their foreheads were still touching.

 This. This was the first time Katsuki had said Izuku’s name in a context that was intimate like this. The only other time had been when Izuku had first found out about the surgery, and it had been Katsuki’s harsh way of getting him to shut up about the surgery.  

This was different.. This time, Katsuki said it with all intentions to shower Deku with affection. This time, Katsuki poured his soul and adoration into those words, embedding it with meaning and intention. 

Izuku’s eyes widened and his lips parted, barely centimeters away from Katsuki. The blonde began to lay kisses all over his face, on his nose, on his cheeks, over the many freckles, and each time, whispering again and again “ Izuku. Izuku. ” A kiss here, “ Izuku .” A kiss there, “ Izuku .” 

Izuku was overwhelmed, yet didn’t want a second of it to stop. He pulled Katsuki’s head back down to kiss him on the lips, not having nearly enough after being starved of it for weeks. They picked up the pace and intensity, and soon, Katsuki’s tongue was asking for entrance. Even after Izuku let him in, it wasn’t aggressive or domineering. Instead, it was beyond intimate. A slow battle, one in which he was willing to lose over and over. Kacchan’s hands held his waist, beckoning him closer into his embrace, and Izuku had no qualms about falling into it. 

Katsuki was so gentle that night. So gentle that on one hand, Izuku didn’t know what to make of it. On the other hand, he didn’t want it to stop. This was different than any other time they’ve been intimate. This was the touch that lovers gave each other, not whatever they were. If previous to this, their sex has been all rough and wild, then this was the exact opposite. And despite that, Izuku wanted this more than anything else. He needed this.

The way Katsuki had picked up him by his thighs, making out all the way into the bedroom, and set the man on the bed was gentle. The way the blonde undressed him slowly, leaving trails of kisses all over his skin as he pulled articles of clothing off was gentle. Katsuki savored him like a delicacy, slow and tender as his lips trailed up Izuku’s legs after sliding his shorts off. The way Katsuki held him, ran his rough and large hands softly all over his bare skin, the way he breathed into his ear, in his mouth, nipped at his neck, was all too gentle. Katsuki pulled Izuku into his arms like he was the finest fabric, soft and precious as silk.

Sweet praises that felt like they weren’t just meant for sex was spoken to him as they touched each other. “You’re so beautiful, Izuku ,” was said through his mouth as they kissed, and Katsuki’s hands were touching all over him.

“Look at me,” Katsuki had said tenderly, as he stretched out the smaller man. His thick fingers scissored Deku at a good pace, taking his time to stretch the tight hole. And Izuku did. There was a different kind of fire in those ruby eyes, which then closed to kiss him deeply. Izuku moaned into the kiss, feeling everything and more. 

And when the blonde entered and bottomed out inside of Izuku, he recaptured the man’s lips in his own and ran his hands up and down the soft sides, before tracing each scar on the man’s body as they wait for Izuku to get used to the feeling. They were gorgeous, each and every one of them, signs of Izuku’s strength and perseverance. And Katsuki made sure that Izuku knew that. 

And when Katsuki began to pick up the pace, their bodies flushed together panting at the pleasure, and Izuku biting back moans, that was when Izuku let the blonde’s name slip out of his mouth. 

“Katsuki,” Izuku breathily called out, eyes closed and head tilted back in lust and love. He loved him. Fuck, Izuku loved him so much. The emotion laced in the name was heavy. He’s never called the blonde by this name before. The reaction he got from it did not disappoint. 

Katsuki held him tighter and nuzzled his face up in Izuku’s neck, leaving small hickeys. Izuku’s hands were above his head, gripping the sheets above him, and Katsuki reached his hands up to interlock their fingers and pin the boy there. 

“Say that again,” Katsuki asked, voice needy and gruff. Hearing Izuku say his name was an ecstasy that he didn’t know was going to make him feel this turned on, this good. He needed to hear it again, from that breathy and addictive voice. 

Izuku complied, enjoying the name on his tongue, “K-Katsuki. Ri-right there.”

Katsuki repeatedly hits the spot, making the beautiful man beneath him arch his back and moan. He brought his mouth down to the budding pink nipples and began sucking on them, as he continued to move inside of the smaller male. The tightness wrapped around him felt as incredible as it always did, and he savored this sensation as if it was his last. 

The pleasure was on overdrive for Izuku and Katsuki alike. Neither of them were going to last much longer. 

“Tell me you want me,” Katsuki asked. If he could play out this fantasy some more, he will. 

Deku couldn’t just say that. That would only be a half truth. He breathed out, holding onto the blonde’s shoulders as he’s being fucked into heaven, “Katsuki, I need you. I need you. P-please, Katsuki.” 

Izuku didn’t just say that he wanted him, but that he needed him. Fuck , if he had less self-control, Katsuki would have told the other that he loved him on the spot. The blonde gave him what he wanted, continuing to push deeper and harder into the other, until Izuku was a mess underneath him, calling his name over and over. 

After that, it didn’t take long for the both of them to come, one not long after the other. The orgasm was so intense, and yet, Izuku felt like he was wrapped into a nice warm blanket. This wasn’t what they did. This was different. This was indescribable. 

Katsuki collapsed on top of him and didn’t aim to move anytime soon. Deku put his arms on the man’s back and closed his eyes, enjoying the bliss. They didn’t talk much, even if something simmered in the silence between them: some unspoken words and questions. 

The night had been so tender, so sweet, that Deku found himself hopelessly falling over and over again. He didn’t know why tonight had been so different, but he was afraid that he’d break the spell if he asked. 

And if this was a dream, then he asks to be asleep for a little while longer. 

“Katsuki…” Deku says in a daze as he lays next to the blonde, tracing his fingers on the strong jawline and then over his brow ridge, anywhere he could touch. Saying Kacchan’s name like this made him feel like he’s unlocked a new side of Katsuki. One that was only meant for him and his mother, and only a handful of people. He mapped the blonde’s handsome face with his scarred hands. 

Katsuki hummed in reply, laying on one arm and watching Izuku as he traces Katsuki’s face. 

“Say my name again,” Deku whispers. 

Katsuki scooted his body closer, until they were almost nose to nose, before a deep and gentle, “Izuku. Midoriya Izuku.” 

Before Deku’s eyes could well up with emotional tears, he leaned forward and kissed Katsuki. He had been afraid of being intimate with Katsuki after their sex ends, afraid of what it would reveal to Katsuki about his real intentions. But just now, he couldn’t help himself. 

He pulled away, eyes wide and searching for some form of acceptance in Katsuki’s gaze. Instead of pushing away, the blonde reached an arm over and pulled the greenette closer by the waist, until they were flushed and brought his head down once more to capture the other in a deep kiss. No promises of sex. None of that. Just a kiss. 

Deku’s lips were like nicotine, the last of his fruitless resistance. And for another hour, they just laid there, lips on lips, and there was nothing else that happened. The thunderstorm outside was still raging, but it brought a serene atmosphere for the both of them.  If this crossed some sort of unspoken line, then they both kept quiet about it. The only reason why they pulled off was to eat the neglected food that had been ready by the time Katsuki had gotten to the apartment in the first place. Not many words were exchanged throughout the entire night, but rather, there was a comfortable quiet as the both of them hovered around the words they wanted to say but didn’t. 

And as they lay in bed that night, in the dark with only slivers of street light through the rain-streaked window to illuminate each other’s outline, Izuku’s fingers crawl towards Katsuki’s and lingers there for a while. The blonde didn’t pull away, and interlocked them closer as the two let sleep drift over them. Izuku didn’t want to go to sleep, even as his eyes began to feel heavy. 

Izuku wakes up at 3 in the morning to the sound of hacking in the bathroom across the hall from Katsuki’s bedroom. The pale yellow light from the bathroom flooded into the doorway of the bedroom, and Izuku pushed the blankets off of him before slipping out of the bed and with light footsteps. He headed towards the bathroom. The door was only slightly open, but it was enough to see. 

Katsuki, shirtless, was hunched over the toilet, coughing up a storm. Green petals fell out of his mouth, mixed with the striking ruby color of blood. It fell down the sides of his chin and dripped into the bowl. It was everywhere. On the floor, on the toilet seat, on his chest. It was like a horror scene, but much more tragic. Much more heartbreaking. 

Katsuki coughed up one more time and a ball of bunched up petals came out, and the blonde took a deep breath of unrestricted air. And after a moment or two, Katsuki put his head against his arm on the toilet seat in defeat. It looked like total defeat. 

Standing outside watching the scene, Izuku wonders who was worth this pain. And the thought stripped away any feeling of happiness he had received last night, and replaced it with even more sorrow than if last night hadn’t happened at all. Because now, he was staring reality in the face. 

The man who he wanted more than anything else in the world, the man who called his name last night and touched him so gently as if he would break, who whispered sweet things into his ear and treated his body like a temple, was in love with someone else. And had the flowers to show for it. Izuku felt his heart drop and his eyes begin to cloud over, but he tries to swallow it down. Now was not the time for that. Katsuki was in a bad condition. 

Shoving his emotions to the side, Izuku walked inside of the bathroom and over to where Katsuki was, and knelt down to rub a soothing hand up and down the blonde’s back, chin resting on the other’s shoulder. 

At this, Katsuki lifted his head and looked over at Izuku, “Shit, did I wake you up?”

“Yes, so hurry up and get better so you don’t wake me up again,” Izuku tried to make the situation more lighthearted. 

Katsuki didn’t laugh, which seemed like it would be pretty normal for the blonde; however it wasn’t. Usually, the man would let out a snort, or maybe some form of sarcastic acknowledgement, but this time, there was nothing. Izuku might have been looking into it too much though.

 Katsuki then stood up off of the cold bathroom tile, flushed the toilet,  and moved to the sink where he proceeded to look for a washcloth. 

“Here, let me.” Izuku cut in, before he went to his closet and pulled out a small washcloth. Coming back to the bathroom, he soaked it in some water and turned to bring it up to Katsuki’s chin. He wiped gently around the edges, trying to avoid the intense gaze from Katsuki that he knew was directed at him. And then, he brought the towel down to the hard and toned chest, wiping it clean and trying his best not to let the situation bother him so much. 

“Izuku,” Katsuki called to him in a serious tone, and Deku, still not used to his name being called, looked up immediately where he caught the intense stare of beautiful ruby red eyes.

“Yes?” Deku breathed out, hand clutching the towel that was still held up against the blonde’s chest. 

Katsuki looked hesitant, as he opened his mouth and immediately closed it. It was strange, because Katsuki was never one to mull over or be contemplative about his words, but here he was doing that exact thing. Deku thought to himself, whatever it is must be really importa-

“I don’t think I’m going to get better,” Katsuki finally let out, tone completely serious. That was definitely not what Izuku had been expecting to hear, and the sound of it made him panic and suddenly, his hands were trembling. 

“W-what? Why?” Deku asked, brows furrowing and his heart rate quickened in both fear and frustration. 

“Deku,” Katsuki laughed dryly, “You just saw for yourself how many flowers I’m coughing up.”

Izuku shook his head no adamantly and desperately suggested, “We’ll get stronger medication. It’ll be okay. There must be st-”

“There is no stronger medication. That and the epipen is all I’ve got,” Katsuki said very clearly. 

“O-Okay, but maybe it gets worse before it gets better! Maybe this was just a particularly bad ni-” Izuku was spouting out things that he knew weren't true and made no sense, but it was better than facing the truth and facing the fact that Katsuki was practically admitting defeat. His hands were still shaking, and he dropped the towel onto the ground as tears welled up in his eyes. 

“It’s not,” Katsuki looked away, “It’s been getting worse for weeks, and you know it.”

“B-but hanahaki usually kills at around 60 petals for adults, and you probably only in your-” He’s grasping at straws at this point. He knew Katsuki was probably in his 50s. 

“Dek-”

“I know!” Izuku cried this time, dropping his head and burying it into his palms as he tries to reign in his emotions. However, these past few weeks ever since he found out about the hanahaki, he was just shoving and shoving everything away and convincing himself that he could do it. He could help distract Katsuki, and the blonde will magically forget about the person he loved. But he was a goddamn fool.

 For one, he was a fool to think that he could get someone to forget the person they loved . Izuku knew for a fact that even if he spent all the time in the world with someone else, and was even physically intimate with them, that wouldn’t make him fall out of love with Katsuki. So why did he ever think that it would work. 

Secondly, he was a fool to neglect his own inability to handle this situation. He thought it was going to be okay. Everything was going to work out nice and cleanly. However, he wasn’t prepared to feel the full force of jealousy and complete and utter sadness everytime he realizes that what he was doing with Katsuki wasn’t real for the other. 

He wasn’t prepared to lose this battle, or lose Katsuki to not only this disease but also the other person that he knows nothing about. 

Deku’s always worked and acted under the presumption that he was going to ultimately win, that this was one of the first times that he was experiencing what it means to lose. And he couldn’t handle it. This was different from a villain. This felt worse. 

“I-I know,” Deku cried, dropping his hands and refusing to look Katsuki in the eye because it would tell him everything, “I just t-thought that,” He hiccuped and cursed his stuttering, “I don’t know, okay! I was trying so hard. To make you forget. To help make it all okay. I just thought that after all of this time, a-after we spent all of this time together, after…” He paused but decided to just say it, “...after last night, maybe it’d get better. But nothing is working. You’re right. It’s getting worse, but I don’t want to accept it. I can’t. I can’t lose you, Kacchan. I...I…” love you , he wanted to say. But that would be the absolute worst thing to say at this moment. Although, his meter of caring is getting smaller and smaller by the moment.

“Deku, it’s going to be okay,” Katsuki reached a hand out, trying to calm his friend down. Katsuki understood the sentiment. Deku had always felt so damn guilty when he couldn’t save someone, much less his friend, and he knew that no matter what, the boy was going to react this way. 

Katsuki tried to be lighthearted about it, “I’ve contacted a lawyer a couple of days ago to write my will. If it makes you feel any better, I’m leaving my recipe book to yo-”

“Stop it,” Deku cried, this time a bit more angrily, “Stop trying to make it sound okay. It’s not, so stop it. Why are you giving up?” Izuku slapped Katsuki’s hand out of the way. It was the first time he’s ever rejected the man’s touch, but Izuku was so damn hurt and frustrated, “Y-you’ve already got a will? Tell me you’re joking. Why? Why are they worth it? Why are they worth all of this, Kacchan?” 

Izuku wanted an answer. He couldn’t understand. He couldn’t understand one bit. He knew internally that he would do the same thing, refuse the surgery, if it was Kacchan, but this wasn’t the same. Or at least, he refused to believe it was the same. 

Katsuki grinded his teeth, “They’re worth it because I’m fucking in love with them, Deku. And I love them enough to not let them feel guilty over this. This is not their damn responsibility. And I’m not losing my memories. I’m not getting the damn surgery, I’ve told you this a million times.”

“Then I’ll try to convince you a million and one times,” Deku frustratingly hit against his chest. His heart shattered with every single time Katsuki said the word love , “Get the surgery.”

“Deku,” This time, Katsuki said it with a scarily serious tone, “I’m not going to tell you again. So drop it .”

The green-eyed man laughs at this but there’s no humor to his tone, “Gee, I’d feel lucky if I were this person. To have you act like this for them. God, I hate them. And I mean it too,” Izuku chuckles, “You say I can’t ever hate anyone, but trust me, I do.” 

Katsuki was silent. What would he even fucking say. Shut up. You don’t hate them. It’s you, you fucking idiot . He would have an entirely different problem on his hands at that point. He’s trying to stay calm for Izuku. He tries to picture himself in Izuku’s shoes. If he saw his friend dying from unrequited love, he’d probably hunt and search the edges of the Earth for the person and probably blast their face into the ground. 

When Izuku speaks again, his voice is pained and quiet, “What is he like, anyways.”

Katsuki contemplates whether or not he should answer this question. Answering it without being careful would make him obvious. Not answering would probably put Izuku in more of a manic mode than he is now. 

And so the blonde sighs, “He’s...fucking stupid. And yet somehow one of the smartest people I know,” Katsuki spoke. 

Deku smiled weakly, pretending this conversation wasn’t bothering him as much as it did. 

“He’s clumsy. Cares too much about everything,” Katsuki chuckles, hoping he wasn’t giving too much away. 

Izuku, as much as he hates this mystery person, has to admit, “Hey, there’s nothing wrong with caring too much.”

“I know,” Katsuki asserts, “He matches me well. He cares too much about the little things. I sometimes don’t care enough. We make good partners.” 

At this, Izuku felt hurt and anger spike through his body, and this was one of the few times where he has felt a completely visceral reaction to something, and he tried to stop himself from being petty but he couldn’t, “But I’m your partner.”

Katsuki’s eyes widened slightly, “That’s not what I mean-”

“I’m your partner. Your real one. Not your hypothetical one,” Deku weakly cried, “I’ve always been there for you. And you know what? I’m also clumsy. An-and I care a lot about things too. And I-”

“What the fuck are you even on about? What thei-” Katsuki demanded. Suddenly, Izuku was comparing himself to...well, himself, and Katsuki did not understand the motive behind it. He had no idea what Izuku was trying to gain from saying all of this. 

Izuku cuts him off with panicked breathing and steps out of the bathroom, which was too small to contain all of the feelings he was experiencing, “I’m going out.” 

He needed to get away from Katsuki. It was his own fault for asking, but he can’t stand there and listen to the description of this person anymore. It wasn’t fair. Love was never fair, and Izuku needed somewhere he could cry and scream. It didn’t matter where, but he needed to leave. 

Katsuki sputtered, following after the man aggressively, “The fuck? The hell you are. It’s almost 4 in the morning, and it’s fucking thundering outside. You need some goddamn sleep. Get in th-”

“In the bed? With you?” Deku practically shouted, voice breaking, “And have you hold me? Have you call me by my name as you have slow sex with me? Have you kiss me slowly too? Have you look at me and tell me I’m beautiful?” 

“Well shit, Deku! If you hated it so much, next time, just fucking tell me.” Katsuki shouted as they stood on opposite ends of the bedroom. They were probably going to get a noise complaint soon enough. 

“I didn’t! I-I loved it. And that’s the probl- You know what? I need to leave,” Izuku decides, wiping away at his face as he scrambles for his car keys, ultimately giving up because he needed to get out now before he says something that could completely destroy them. 

“And fucking go where? This is your damn apartment, Deku,” Katsuki growled, throwing on a white tank and following the man, “If anyone’s going to leave, make me leave if you’re so sick of seeing me, dammit.”

“No!” Izuku shouted, turning back to point at Katsuki, “You stay here. You’re not getting sick and making that stupid disease worse. I just need to get away from you, okay? Before I say things you don’t need to hear.”

“Fuck the disease,” Katsuki blocked the apartment door from opening, “And I’m a fucking dying man. If you got something to say, when the fuck is a better time than now.” Katsuki just used the word fuck three times in the sentence, but he doesn’t even care. 

Izuku, looking upset, suddenly activated full cowl to push the blonde back, before leaving the apartment. The apartment Katsuki had contained completely indoor entrances except for the bedroom and living room balconies. However, Izuku’s apartment complex had a bedroom balcony, but on the opposite side, there was a shared outdoor terrace between all of the people on the floor where the entrances to their homes were. 

Therefore, the moment Izuku opened the door, the wind swept much of the rain towards him and he was almost immediately soaked, but he didn’t care. He could see lightning flash up the pitch black sky every couple seconds, but that didn’t matter either. Behind him, Izuku could hear the door slam shut and Katsuki yelling out his name. 

Deciding to take the stairs instead of the elevator, since the elevator would leave enough time for Katsuki to get in with him, Izuku rushed down the steps, practically tumbling at times. Once he was on the sixth floor, Izuku basically activated his quirk to jump off and land on the asphalt ground. 

The rain hid his tears and blended it with his environment, but he could feel it in his chest. The aching burn of sobbing. He hated how easily he cried. He hated that it was Katsuki who could bring him to tears the easiest. He needed to get away. His car was up in the parking garage, so he just has his feet for now.

Right before Izuku was about to activate full cowling in order to blast off, he heard the sound of explosions from right behind him, and in under ten seconds, a warm hand connected with his back while a leg went around to swipe his feet from underneath him and then, Izuku’s face was pressed up roughly into the asphalt, tasting the rain and gravel immediately and Katsuki had a lock on him. 

He could fight. They could start a brawl right then and there. They could continue this stupid game of cat and mouse, forever. 

But Izuku lost the energy in him. He realized then that this was pretty much his life: no matter where he went, no matter what he did, he has never been able to escape Katsuki. He never wanted to enough. God, he was so weak when it came to this. 

“Get off of me,” Deku cried, using his arms to push up from off the ground, only to be pushed roughly back down. 

“Are you going to run away and avoid me again? Since when do you give up?” Katsuki barked. 

At this, Izuku got angry and used his quirk once more to shove himself off of the ground. He stood and turned, looking up at Katsuki whose entire body was soaked. A white tank top that he had slipped on earlier was matted to his hard body, and the man’s usually spikey hair was wet and messy, probably much like his own. The only light illuminating them were the apartment building lights, but other than that, it was dark in the empty parking lot. 

“ I’m not the one who’s giving up, Kacchan!” Deku shouted. 

“You’re literally running away right now,” Katsuki roared back, “You never run from shit. You never ran from me, even after everything I did. So why now? Is that not giving up, you shithead?”

“No! Shut up!” Deku said uncharacteristically, “You gave up. You gave up trying. You have this stupid disease, and you rather die? You’re not just giving up on yourself, but you’re giving up on me!” 

“Deku, your dreams will continue, and you’re going to be a fucking incredible hero,” Katsuki laid out the facts.

“Don’t say things like that, as if you’re already gone,” Izuku said through clenched teeth, “My dreams have always had you in it, next to me.”

“Izuku, I don’t know what you fucking expect me to do! This doesn’t work like magic,” Katsuki irritatedly shouted over the thunder, throwing his hands up in the air, “I can’t just wake up and get over it. There’s no way in hell I’m getting the surgery, and nothing else is working. I’m stuck here too, if you can’t tell. You think I want to die? You think I want to leave you? When you’re the best thing that’s happened to me?”

“Stop saying things you don’t mean,” Izuku angrily said as he pushed Katsuki backwards. He brushed water out of his hair by sweeping a frustrated hand through them. 

“Stop assuming shit. I don’t say things I don’t mean,” Katsuki pushed back aggressively, “You think I don’t think about you every single time I remember that I’m dying? And ask what the fuck is going to happen to the Wonder Duo? How Izuku’s going to feel? You think I want someone else to take my place? For someone else to go out with you to those god awful dog cafes that smell like shit? To stay over at your place all the damn time and watch shitty movies and eat your shitty food together? To touch you like I do? To wake up next to you like I do?” Katsuki felt as if he might as well have told the boy that he loved him with how obvious he was being, but this conversation was driving him insane. His mouth spoke before his brain could catch up. 

“You can’t just say things like that, Katsuki,” Deku bit his lip, “It’s not fair. You can’t just tell me those things, and then be in love with someone else. It’s not fair.”

And then Izuku’s voice broke for the millionth time, and his voice goes a bit quieter, “If I was the best thing that happened to you, then why couldn’t it be me?” 

The rain never felt louder to Izuku’s ear as he said those words. 

Especially as Katsuki stands there in the rain, unmoving and looking at Izuku with wide eyes, as if he had misheard something crazy. Katsuki was motionless and shocked. What the fuck did Izuku just say? What the fuck did it mean? Wait a second. 

Izuku was screwed. Those words held so much underlying meaning to them, and there was no way that he could take it back now. He had spoken without even thinking, and it was too late so he might as well let it out. He felt all of the anguish, the jealousy, the sadness bubble up to his chest. He felt all of the years of hiding and all of the years of pining claw its way up his throat and onto his tongue. The jealousy that he felt, the anger that he’s tried to tame, the heartache, all of it was begging to be spoken. 

And at the end of his rope, Izuku’s had nothing left to give Katsuki than what he has already given except for this. 

“D-Does he know you like I do, K-Kacchan?” Izuku’s words trembled in his nervousness and neverending waterworks, but it was now or never so he mustered up his confidence, “Does he know that you hate beets, because your mom grew beets when you were little and fed you too many?” He paused, before continuing, hands shaking, “Does he know that you only sleep on the right side of the bed for no reason? That your favorite movie is actually Mean Girls even though you tell others it’s The Terminator? Does he know how passionate you are about grocery stores and which ones you hate and which ones you like? Because I do. I do, Kacchan.” Deku bit his lip, “Does he take care of you when you’re sick? Does he stay awake for days when you are in the hospital? Does he make you laugh?” Izuku’s voice was shaking, “Does he defeat horrible villains with you? Because I do.”

Katsuki was speechless, “Dek-”

“I’m not done! Please let me finish. I’ve been holding this in for a while,” Izuku looks at the ground and lightly chuckles, “I...I’d like to think that I’m pretty cool too. I’m strong...I work hard...and I’m smart too. We’re together all the time, and I’ve always been here, so w-why couldn’t it be me? I’ve asked myself this a million times. It hurts so badly to always be with you, and wonder if it was someone else you wished you were with instead. And I’d asked myself why couldn’t it be me? Last night was one of the best I’ve ever had, but when the high wore off, it hurt so badly, because I wondered if those soft touches, if those gentle kisses, if the words you whispered to me were meant for someone else. And I asked myself again, why couldn’t it be me? Why couldn’t it be me that you loved? Because if it was, then…”

Katsuki held his breath. Izuku did too, as he braces himself to say the next few words that he had pent up inside of him.

“Because if it was me, then you’d never have to wonder again if I loved you back. You’d never have to cough up flowers again. Y-you’d never feel unwanted. You’d wake up every morning knowing that…” He had to say it, “...knowing that I love you.”

And with that, Katsuki could barely even hear the rain nor the thunder. Only the sound of his heart beating rapidly as he listened. 

Deku then smiled weakly, “If I was able to get Hanahaki, Kacchan...I would have had it since I was 15, maybe even before that. They would have been red flowers, like your eyes. Or maybe they’d be orange, like your favorite color. O-or maybe...they’d be green too, like the park that we first met in.” 

And then Deku goes silent, looking over at Katsuki with the barrier of rain between them. He couldn’t tell if he felt closer after his confession, or never further apart from Kacchan. 

Katsuki felt as if time stopped. If a villain attacked right then and there, then he’d be done for. Because as of current, Katsuki had no perception of anything else except the man that was before him and what he just said. The cold heavy rain on his skin feels like nothing but a feathered touch. The humming of the street lamp and the distant thunder was nothing but static against the backdrop of his heart racing. All he could feel, all he could see, all he could hear was Izuku. 

He repeats every word that the man just said over and over in his brain, as if he’ll forget it when he wakes up from whatever dream this was. 

I love you. Izuku had said it. Had stood there, drench in rain water, eyes red from crying, voice broken from speaking, baring his soul to Katsuki and then told him that he loved him. It couldn’t be real. The words he only ever dreamed of coming out of Izuku, and it was given to him just now. He can barely take it in. Deku loves me. He fucking loves me. Katsuki wanted to deny it. There was no fucking way. 

But then he feels it. A sensation in his chest. It wasn’t necessarily painful, but it was different. It wasn’t the same feeling as a rising cough full of flowers. Instead, it felt like something was moving, branches and stems getting weaker. He’s read about it before, when he was first diagnosed and tried to find out everything he could about the disease. 

Apparently, when the disease goes away by means of requited love, then the person will know instantly. The roots and stems will collapse, and then over the course of a week or two, shrivel up small and will be coughed up easily as everything purges itself. 

He couldn’t deny it now, not when it felt like he was able to breathe without fear for the first time in years. Izuku fucking loved him. Bad fucking mistake, since Katsuki was an asshole, but he did. If the words didn’t convince Katsuki, then the feelings of his chest feeling lighter already did. 

More than that, Izuku has felt the same for years . Years. I would’ve had it since I was 15. Maybe even before that. Katsuki was 16 when he was first diagnosed. Although at the time, Katsuki wouldn’t have deserved Izuku anyways, it was fucking insane to think that all this time, if he had just said something. Was he...was he stupid? Fuck, he was stupid. Beyond stupid. Izuku was also stupid. God, they were both stupid.

With the rain still pouring all around them, Katsuki tilted his head back and began laughing into the chaotic atmosphere. It was fucking gold , and wait until his doctor hears about this. He already knows that the bald fucker will get an ego trip and tell him something like “I told you so.” 

Katsuki laughed, and Izuku just went into a confused shock.

“I’m a fucking idiot. You’re a fucking idiot.” Katsuki laughed, “We’re all just fucking idiots.” 

Izuku had just stood there, pouring out his heart and confessing his one deepest secret to the person he loved, told Katsuki that he loved him, and the blonde had gone quiet for a moment before...laughing? Deku wasn’t sure whether or not to be angry, hurt, confused, or just flabbergasted. 

“Kaccha-” Deku begins, intending to either sob some more, punch Katsuki in the face, or run away. He wasn’t sure which one to decide yet.

But before he could get a word out, Katsuki raised a hand to stop him, still laughing, “No. My turn to speak. Your turn to listen, and don’t you dare run away.” 

“But you’re laughing at me after I just-” Deku was this close to losing his mind, even closer to buying a tub of ice cream and crying his heart out for the next few days. It was one thing for Katsuki to reject him. It was another thing to laugh at him. 

“He does.” Katsuki said then, laughing stopped and now he just stood a few feet from Deku looking at him with an amused but still serious expression. 

Izuku paused. He really wanted to run away, but Katsuki was right. It was his turn to listen, especially after Deku practically shoved his feelings down the other’s throat. He’ll listen, even if it’ll shatter his heart. 

Deku asked in a feeble voice, “...He does what?”

“I was answering your questions. And the answer is that he does. The person I love...” Katsuki smiles gently and it was different than what he usually wore on his face, “...knows all of that about me and more. That I hate beets. That I sleep on the right side of the bed. That my favorite movie is Mean Girls. He could probably go grocery shopping for me and do it perfectly.”

Oh , Izuku thought to himself, as a horrible, guttural feeling takes over him. Yep, Izuku was definitely going to be sobbing for the next couple of days. His knees wanted to collapse. 

“He takes care of me when I’m sick. When I’m being a dick, he’s still around. He stays up and refuses to eat when I’m in the hospital. I’m surprised you haven’t ran into him,” Katsuki chuckled, “Deku, did you know that he also has the tightest ass? I’ve fucked him quite a few times.”

Izuku closed his eyes, forcing himself not to cry some more, and pushed out a, “Kacchan, are you trying to make fun of me?” 

“Deku, answer me this,” Katsuki said as he took a step closer to the man, tone more serious now, “Have you ever stopped and wondered why my flowers are dark green?” 

“Huh? What do you…” Izuku asked with a confused and dejected voice, not looking at Katsuki. 

But the blonde stepped across their distance and used a hand to tilt Deku’s chin towards him to look him in the eye, “Izuku, look at me. I need you to look at me.”

And of course, being the masochist he was, Izuku does. His green eyes meet ruby ones, coupled with a gaze that completely captivated him in all the wrong context. Once Izuku looked at him, Katsuki dropped his arm down to grab a hold of the boy’s wrist so that he doesn’t run away. 

“Tell me,” Katsuki repeats, “Have you wondered why my flowers are green? It’s common knowledge that the flower’s color says something fundamental about the person they’ve fallen for, right? So, be honest. You ever come up with any theories?”

The truth is, he hasn’t. It didn’t make sense to, because the color of hanahaki petals, although they represent something about the person the afflicted is in love with, could honest be anything, not just a physical feature. With Hanahaki, Izuku knew that the color didn’t necessarily have to represent a physical feature that the person who the afflicted fell in love with has. It can be an emotional feature or an aspect of a strong memory. A pink flower could represent pink hair, or it could also represent innocence, or maybe even the color of the sunset the night the afflicted person realized they loved whoever it was. A blue flower doesn’t have to represent a blue physical feature. It could have been the blue of their favorite outfit on their lover, or the blue of the beach that is their favorite place to visit together. 

Izuku never let himself think about who Kacchan could have hanahaki for, but the green could have represented a million things aside from physical features. And he wasn’t going to spend hours saddening himself further on the topic. 

Deku’s eyes welled up again. Even with the rain, it was obvious by the glassiness of those big round eyes, and Deku let out an adamant, “No, Kacchan. I told you a million times. I don’t want to think about them. I don’t want to know.”

“Then I’ll describe him more to you, and leave the guessing up to you. How about that,” Katsuki suggested, tone way too casual for the conversation that they were having and it was frustrating Izuku. 

“Kacchan, how many times do I have to te-”

“So, there’s this boy that I’m so fucking in love with, yeah?” Katsuki ignored him and continues, rain beating on the both of them. 

“Kacchan, stop,” Deku was crying now, eyes clenched shut as his heart ached. He didn’t know why Kacchan was doing this, but the man didn’t let go of his hold on Izuku’s wrist. 

“No, you listen to every single word I say,” Katsuki ordered, adding on afterwards a soft, “Please.”

Izuku’s eyes widened but he shut up. Katsuki wouldn’t just do this to make fun of him, the blonde was far from the person he used to be. Katsuki probably wanted to describe the person so that Izuku would understand more. He knew that no matter what Kacchan said, izuku wouldn’t understand. But to get this over with, he’ll listen, he thought bitterly. 

“As I was saying, there’s this person, right? And I’m so fucking in love with him. I love him so much that I’d die for him, you get that? Hell, I’ve been coughing up these damn flowers for almost 4 years because of him,” Katsuki said assertively to make sure Izuku heard every word, “I knew from the very moment that the first flower petal came out exactly why it was dark green. You know why it was, Deku?”

Izuku tried to avert his gaze again, but Katsuki hand comes up to bring it back to the blonde. 

“I asked if you knew why,” Katsuki asked, gentler this time. 

Izuku bit his lip, and then let out a weak, “...why?”

“Because,” Katsuki said, tone serious yet sincere and full of affection, “The boy I love. His eyes are green. Dark green, like a damn pine forest or something, and I used to hate the way it stared at me, but now, I don’t want them looking anywhere else but me. His hair. It’s dark green too. I always tell him it’s a fucking mess and he needs to invest in a brush, but the truth is, it’s so fucking soft and I could spend hours running my hands through the mop. His personality can get a little green, a little envious, when he sees me with someone else. Once, at a party, he stopped about 4 people from flirting with me because of how green he was.”

Izuku felt himself losing his breath. Even his tears have stopped, as his brain was trying to process what was happening. On one hand, the coincidences were glaring. On the other hand, Izuku’s denying side was telling him that it could be anyone with green eyes and green hair, but he honestly has never met another male with his features. But that last part, it sounded awfully familiar. But he wasn’t going to hope. No, no, no. It’s not possible. But even then, he felt like he couldn’t breathe. 

“His stupid ass hero costume is green too, you know. With the dumb ass looking bunny ears, because the person I’m in love with is a goddamn nerd with no sense of style,” Katsuki smirked as he sees Deku’s eyes widen significantly, jaw dropping, “The park we first met at when we were brats was green, during summer. He was wearing a green shirt when I first realized I loved him, in the bathroom of a party back in high school when he came in and asked me if anything was wrong. All of those shitty things are why my flowers are green, Deku.”

Deku’s eyes couldn’t get wider, as his body was completely rigid listening. 

“How about I describe him some more?” Katsuki stepped forward, “He’s my best friend. We do everything together: work, drink, eat, watch dumb shit, and recently, we’ve been sleeping together. He has my back, and I have his. He’s just the fucking best, Deku. There’s no one like him.”

Izuku must have died and gone to another universe because this was a turn of events that everyone except Izuku had been expecting. His brain was jelly.

“He’s beautiful. Got all these scars on his body, but I love every single one of ‘em. Shit looks badass. Got these cute ass freckles too. He’s strong, I hate to admit this but stronger than me if he goes all out. And got the biggest fucking heart ever. How was I not supposed to fall in love with him,” Katsuki chuckled and brought his forehead down to lean against Deku’s whose tears were running down the freckled cheeks, but the boy looked up at him with hopeful eyes. He allows a moment of silence for everything to sink in.

Katsuki then asked, “Any guesses?”

Deku choked on a sob, head filled with disbelief and joy, “K-Kacchan.”

The blonde hums in response, “Yes?”

And then, with a trembling voice, Izuku asked, “D-Does he also always wear these really cool red shoes?” 

Katsuki laughed, so high on happiness that he felt like he was about to cry too, and hummed, “Cool ain’t the fucking word for it, but he sure does.” 

“Then I might have s-someone in mind,” Izuku said between hiccups and then looked up at Katsuki, “Kacchan, if you’re messing with me…”

“I love you,” Katsuki finally said it, voice full of sincerity and longing and the phrase feels so strange on his tongue as something he always wanted to say but felt as if he couldn’t, “Deku, I’m so fucking in love with you. I’ve loved you since I was 16, and I’ll love you after I’m 80, goddamnit so believe me.”

At this, the crybaby sniffles some more, “You’re so stupid.”

“That’s what I’m saying,” Katsuki grumbled, still in shock.

“How are you so stupid,” Izuku begged to know, still crying, “I’ve loved you for forever. How could you not see? How could you be so stu-” 

And Katsuki sweeps up the shorter man in his arms and holds him tightly, kissing the hero through his hair and breathing in the wet eucalyptus scent. Izuku holds on tightly, afraid that if he lets go, this wouldn’t be real. He can barely believe it. Izuku has been looking and longing from a distance for so long, that now that Katsuki was in his grasp, it almost felt like a mirage. Like it was going to disappear in a moment. 

He was calling Katsuki an idiot, but was he any different? How could he have been so blind. Izuku had convinced himself a long time ago that Katsuki would never feel the same way, that he made up excuses for all of the signs that he did. And when the hanahaki came, Izuku didn’t stop to think for a moment who it could be. He just knew it couldn’t be him. Izuku guessed that the ten bad years they had being enemies engrained in him that he, at least to Katsuki, was never meant to become more than friends at most. All of this time,  Katsuki had loved him too. All of this time, and he only just needed to say something. 

Fuck, the hanahaki. 

Izuku tilted his head back, “The hanahaki! Kacchan. A-are you okay? It’s not too late, is it?” His eyes began welling up some more, but the blonde hushed him. 

He brought his lips to Izuku’s forehead, “I’m fine. I’m going to be fine.” 

They stand there for a moment or too. Katsuki rubbing Izuku’s shoulder as the boy is embraced in his arms, and they ignore the lightning and thunder. 

After a second, Katsuki glanced around. Suddenly, his body became rigid. The action caused Izuku to look up, and upon seeing Kacchan look around, was prompted to do the same, and both of their expressions paled. Oh fuck .

A handful of people, who had woken up because of the shouting, were standing on the terrace of their apartment complex, and instead of saying something this entire time, was either recording, onlooking, or gossiping with one another. Over the rain and thunder, the recordings probably only was able to catch the yelling and none of the other words exchanged, but regardless, people could put two and two together and figure out what was going on. 

 They had been too deep in their shouting match to have paid attention, but now that it was pretty much resolved, they both knew that the recorded videos was going to blow up the next day. They were fucked. Their personal lives for the next however long was absolutely done for. Katsuki just stared with his mouth open, ensure of what to do. 

And then, some stranger from what looks like the 4th floor breaks the barrier between the two of them and the rest of the world, yelling down to where they were standing on the wet asphalt, “About fucking time.”

Chapter Text

It takes about a week and a half for Katsuki to cough up all of the dead and shriveled up flowers in his chest. It didn’t hurt anymore, but the purging process was a little nasty. After years of having flowers grow in his chest, the absence of them feels odd. The day after his and Izuku’s revelation, Katsuki had somehow escaped the crowd of reporters stationed at Izuku’s apartment and headed up to the doctor’s office to give him the updates before Dr. Baldie charges him another couple hundred dollars for more sessions. 

Ever since the media caught wind of the countless recordings and videos from their dramatic thunderstorm confession, hell has been set loose. It felt as if the entirety of Japan was put on pause in favor for exploding over the news. Many people won their bets. Most were exasperated at how long it took for their favorite pairing to actually get together. The media was dying for a statement, surrounding both of their apartment and the entrance to the agency. It got to the point where armed security had to be stationed in front of the building so that other heroes and employees were able to get through the masses. 

For a week, Izuku and Katsuki’s duties were put on hold while their PR team aimed to find a solution on how to stop them from getting mobbed every time they stepped out the door, much less go on their usual patrols. In the meantime, they could investigate case files from home, while the hecticness plays out. 

Going out was unavoidable, but when they did, they used their quirk to go airborne. Grocery store trips were: in and out in ten minutes. Taking out the trash was a feat worse than some villain battles. 

And the worst part were their phones. The ringer has been off for a while now, because if not, then a “ding” would sound through Izuku’s apartment, where they were making base, every single second. It was their friends. It was their parents. It was the media that somehow got a hold of their numbers. It was nauseating. 

And yet, Katsuki couldn’t be happier. Even with the shitty aftermath of their public confession, even with how long everything took, even with the fact that he could hear reporters on the ground floor from the apartment, he couldn’t get off of his high. Izuku was his . After several long conversations about their feelings, Katsuki has truly let it sink in that Izuku loved him too. 

And so now, after a long hour of getting his car past the crowds and finally on the main road, Katsuki was already anticipating his doctor’s reaction. It’s been years, and this will be his final visit. After the news erupted, Dr. Baldie had texted him to schedule an appointment as soon as he could, and in the meantime, he will ship some medication to Izuku’s address so that the hanahaki purging process will be a lot faster. 

The blonde stepped into the office, and was immediately waved to the chair and asked to tell everything. 

The moment he gave the doctor the rundown, the man started bursting out laughing. As expected. The baldie probably laughed for a good three minutes, which was a relatively long time for Katsuki to just sit there really patiently, trying not to blow up the man’s face. Dr. Baldie deserved the laugh and smugness, after being patient with him for all of these years despite Katsuki being extremely stubborn. 

And besides, after all these months of sadness, they deserve a little laughter. 

Once Dr. Baldie was done with his fit, he wiped a comical tear away, “Since I’m not your doctor anymore, I’ll say this now Bakugo. You just paid me thousands over the course of years for something that could have been fixed from the beginning for free.”

“I know right,” Katsuki gruffed, finding it sadly humorous as well, “Shit’s ridiculous.”

“That being said, I’m going to take this time to revel in the fact that I told you so. If you weren’t able to see how smitten that hero is with you, then you are a different type of blind, Bakugo,” The doctor humored.

“That’s what everyone’s been telling me. The fucking media too. They’re having a field day with this shit,” Katsuki threw this head back and complained. 

“I’m sure they are. It was very romantic, by the way. The whole thunderstorm at 4 in the morning confession.”

“Of course you saw that,” Katsuki placed his face in his hands.

“The whole country practically did,” His doctor laughed, “It’s not every day that a soap opera scene plays out in real life.” 

“Fuck,” Katsuki cursed under his breath.

The doctor laughed, “There’s one more thing we have to do, and you’re done. Just go down the hallway and to the left. They’re going to do an MRI scan on your chest to confirm your recovery.”

“Got it,” Katsuki nodded, “And then I don’t have to see your bald ass again, right?”

“That’s exactly right,” Dr. Baldie confirmed with a cheeky smile. 

“On a serious note, Bakugo, I’m very happy for you. Although your personality is a little brash, I’ve come to care about you a lot over the past couple of years. And so, continue to take care of yourself, alright? And come get a drink with me sometime,” The doctor laughed.

“Yeah yeah yeah, enough with the sappy shit. You got my contact info in case you ever need saving or something,” Katsuki stood up and stretched. His chest feeling lighter than it ever had before. 

“Of course.”

Katsuki headed to the door, but before he left, he turned his head around, “One more thing, Dr. Tadashi.”

“Hm?” The doctor looked up at the hero in surprise. This was the very first time that the blonde had ever called him by his actual title, instead of the slightly offensive nickname. It almost sounded wrong to hear. 

Katsuki gave him one of his rare smiles, “Thanks. For all the shit I made you deal with.”

He wasn’t ever going to get used to it: falling asleep and waking up next to Deku, going out with the nerd and being able to call it a date, telling the little shithead that he loves him. Katsuki could live like this for a million years, and never get sick of it. 

It’s only been about two weeks since his lungs were declared clear of the hanahaki roots, courtesy of the MRI scan, and so that was about four weeks since the actual confession. 

It’s been so long since he’s not had something so heavy growing in his chest that he only realized now much much his habits were engrained in him. He still finds himself subconsciously searching for the pills in the morning and in the evening, only to realize that he no longer needs them. The empty glass jaw in his cabinets serve as a reminder however. 

He still finds himself reeling over the fact that when he goes to throw something away, there aren’t bloody petals all in the trash. It takes him a bit to like the sight of flowers again, after being sick of them for so long. And often times, Katsuki would wake up in the middle of the night, a phantom coughing fit ready on his throat, just to realize that nothing was there. His hand would claw at his throat, ready to force himself to cough, just to calm down and remember that there was nothing there anymore.

During those times, Izuku would wake up next to him and bring him back to bed, nuzzling up against his chest and placing light kisses on him. And he would have to remind himself that this was real: Izuku loved him. This wasn’t some far fetched dream, and he was actually waking up and going to sleep next to this person every day. Those wide green eyes were for him to stare into shamelessly. Those calloused hands were his to hold indefinitely. Those soft lips were his to kiss till he’s tired and chapped. 

In terms of lifestyle, it was an easy transition. From being whatever they were before to what they are now. There didn’t need to be a whole lot of changes: before, they were already spending every day together, going out, staying in, and sleeping with each other. The difference is that now, everything has a clear meaning behind it and there’s none of that guessing game. 

When they go out together, Katsuki doesn’t have to hide his heart and wish that it meant more. Because it did. When they stay in and cooked a meal together, Katsuki doesn’t have to wish that this domestic kind of action meant something. Because it did. And when they fuck, be it rough or slow, Katsuki doesn’t have to wonder if it meant the same to Izuku. Because it did. 

He was so fucking whipped, and it made all of his friends double over in laughter. Bakugo’s gone soft! They’d say. He hadn’t, but he also was much more affectionate with Deku in public. No, he didn’t coddle the nerd. None of that weird pet name shit, or the middle school hand-holding in the hallways. Katsuki was never one to be into those things. But his voice always got softer when it came to Izuku, his actions more playful, and when he thinks no one is looking, he pulls the shorter man in for a kiss. And he appreciated every second he had Izuku’s affection as if it would slip from him any second. 

He felt more confident and determined, about all of his plans. They’ve probably been able to open up an agency of their own for quite a while now, but the only reason that they didn’t was because of Katsuki’s hanahaki. How could they, when one of them was on track to die. However now, he was determined. He was going to do it, with Izuku right next to him. It was about damn time to, anyhow. Most heroes, once they reach top 10, were opening up their own agency. It took them much longer, but they weren’t going to fall behind. Not now, when they had the rest of their lives left ahead of them. Time, they had it. 

There was time to fall in love all over again every time Izuku smiles at him. There was time to take slow walks and talk until midnight. There was time to do whatever they wanted. 

On one particular night, as they laid in bed together, Izuku asked an odd question. 

“Kacchan, what if I didn’t love you back.”

It was dark outside, and the only light that gave way was a distant street lamp that peeked through where the blinds couldn’t cover. The summer heat outside was sweltering, so the sound of the air con filled the room. Some nights, it was hard to sleep. Katsuki was afraid that if he slept, then he might wake up from whatever beautiful dream this was. And so, he might stay up until 2 in the morning running his fingers lightly through Izuku’s hair, making sure that the man was still there. 

Sometimes, Izuku would stay awake with him. Other times, he would doze off in his arms. Tonight was one of the nights that Izuku stayed awake, as evident by the faint humming of some tune the greenette picked up on the radio earlier that day. 

The question Izuku asked was odd, because up until recently, that very scenario was exactly what Katsuki believed was the case. And he had been prepared to say goodbye. And so, the answer was quite simple. 

“Why are you asking questions you already know the answer to,” Katsuki responded, rubbing circles into the man’s soft shoulders. It wasn’t as if Izuku wouldn’t have done the same. Since the confession, they’ve had this conversation several times already.

“I just sometimes think about it, and it makes me sad,” Izuku commented quietly, “I almost want you to tell me that you wouldn’t have just accepted your fate.”

Katsuki hummed in response, then hesitated before asking himself, “It would’ve been okay.”

Izuku sighed, “Why?” 

That question had an even simpler reply.

Katsuki brought his face down to take in a deep whiff of Izuku’s soft hair, and said as a matter of fact, “It’s okay because it’s you.”