Chapter Text
Denki Kaminari was a family guy. He loved game nights, movie nights, even simple walks — as long as it involved his family, he'd always be down to join no matter what it was that they'd be doing. He adored his family, especially his younger cousins who favoured him for his funny jokes and often childish behaviour, and Denki knew how children had zero filter when it came to what they thought of you; after all, he has a sister ten years younger than he was, so he always felt special when they told him how cool he was.
Even though Denki thought highly of his family, there were some people who just got underneath his skin. Some people who never knew when to stop. Denki could usually look past this because he knew everyone had bad days — he himself had them, so who was he to judge? However, everyone has that one person who knows exactly which buttons to press to ignite an anger inside of them that they never knew existed. That one person who would do absolutely anything in their power to make sure any spotlight you had shone on them instead. Denki absolutely despised his older cousin, Naoya Yoshida; one of the people he wouldn’t necessarily miss if he woke up one day and found out they were hit by a double decker bus.
Naoya was just a year and a week older than Denki was. At first, Denki admired Naoya for countless reasons — he had control over his quirk from a young age, he was insanely smart, incredibly athletic and seemingly just good at everything he did. Yes, Denki may have been a naïve child, everyone has told him so, but it didn't take him long at all to realise the hatred Naoya seemed to have for him. Denki was four when he got his quirk, it was also the age his cousin began to act on his antipathy. Denki soon learned that Naoya truly believed that he was beneath him. To this day, Denki doesn't understand what he did to upset Naoya so much when all he wanted was for his cool older cousin to like him.
So, as Denki grew older, he distanced himself from Naoya. Though, that was kind of hard to do because, considering the fact that up until the age of eleven, they always had joint birthday parties because their birthdays were only a week apart. Thankfully, after Denki turned fourteen, his father and aunt lost touch for a while which meant he no longer had to see Naoya. Since then, Denki flourished. Joining UA helped him become more confident, it even helped him gain more control over his quirk; and the friends he earned always made sure he was never feeling down for an extended amount of time. Granted, his first year was.. rough, to say the least. Denki didn't like to talk about it. Be that as it may, Denki was extremely thankful for the years he's had at UA — and thankfully, his second year was going smoother than he could've ever imagined. He was finally happy and confident within his own skin.
Denki truly thought he'd never see Naoya again. That was until today, that is.
Denki was supposed to spend the weekend relaxing, sleeping in and playing games with his friends as he completely disregards the multiple sets of homework he has due the following week. He was planning on having the most laid back weekend you could imagine until his father called him and requested his appearance at his grandmother's house that same Saturday he was planning on not waking up until at least one in the afternoon. Denki knew his grandmother didn't have long left in her life because of the health problems she was already experiencing at the age of seventy-two, he couldn't pass up on possibly one of the last chances he got to see her.
What his father failed to remember to tell him, was that his entire family would be there. Not that Denki would have minded that, if Naoya didn't decide to show his annoyingly perfect face too.
Denki's mood instantly deflated once he heard the door open exactly ten minutes after he arrived, followed by Naoya's voice. Denki could never forget it; his pitch was ear achingly loud, it was even too much for him despite being a loud person himself. Not to mention, he could smell that ego from miles away.
Thankfully, Naoya didn't approach Denki; not until after dinner time, that is. Denki offered to do the dishes for his grandmother, he didn't want her to have to clean up all of the mess when she didn't even make half of it. Besides, he wanted some time to himself — a quiet place where he could actually think.
Unfortunately, this peace was short-lived. Out of all of the people Denki would have liked to follow him into the kitchen, Naoya was at the bottom of that list.
And of course, it had to be him to do so.
"Hello, Denki." Hummed a voice he wished he could forget. "- It's been awhile, hm?" asked Naoya as he made his way closer. Denki exhaled a deep sigh, thankful for the running water that managed to slightly block out the noise beside him. Naoya, being slightly taller than his cousin, didn't waste an opportunity to perch his elbow on Denki's shoulder to use him as a personal stand. Denki shrugged him off.
"Woah now, what's with all the hostility?" Naoya pestered Denki further, his words followed by a chuckle. The words he spoke were laced in sickeningly sweet honey, a pretence of friendliness. It made Denki feel ill. "Leave me alone." He replied, yet another sigh escaping past his lips. With his hands still covered in soap, he slid one of the plates onto the draining board. "Oh come on, stop being such an asshole for once will ya?" Naoya requested, but Denki knew it wasn't because he wanted to be friendly. "You can't still be mad at the fact my team beat yours. Grow up man, that was years ago." Denki couldn't help but roll his eyes as he listened to his cousin ramble on. He continued to wash the dishes, the sponge sliding over a knife as he stared at Naoya through the corner of his eye — and for a split second, Denki would've loved to place the knife to his lips and make him shut up.
"I brought my girlfriend, the least you could fucking do is fix up your attitude and act like a decent person, Denki." Naoya spat, his facade of kindness suddenly flew out of the window; it was gone so fast it was almost as if it was never there to begin with.
"So that's why you followed me in here like some sort of stalker. You just wanted to piss me off again and act like I'm the bad guy." Denki mumbled, his words ghosting against his lips, so silent that they were practically inaudible. Naoya smirked in amusement. "Wait. Are you annoyed that I have a girlfriend?" He inquired, an eyebrow perked upwards in curiosity. Before Denki could even spew out a reply, Naoya toppled over in a laugh. "Oh, oh that is hilarious!" Naoya held his stomach, his voice taunting. Denki elbowed him shamelessly, a huff escaping his lips. "As if I'd ever be. What's there to be annoyed about?" He finally replied, reaching over with his soapy hands to stop the running water.
"The fact that I'm ahead of you once again." Naoya declared as he stood back up to his full height, even in height he beat Denki. That smirk irked Denki immensely the more he stared at it. His expression hardened into a glare. "Who says I don't have a partner?" Denki raised an eyebrow. After a few beats of silence, the question he spoke dawned on him. Fuck. What the fuck was he supposed to say now? Denki's love life was as dry as the fucking Sahara Desert for fuck sake; but now that the words left his mouth, he couldn't take them back, especially not in front of Naoya. He would never give it up once he found out Denki just lied to him; that would only fuel his idea of Denki being jealous of him even more, and to hell with that scenario.
The smirk was wiped away from Naoya's face, now replaced with a look of confusion. The taller boy crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles flexing in the tight fitted shirt he wore. "Is that so?" He hummed, his smirk soon returning; Naoya didn't like how Denki caught him off guard. It left a distaste in his mouth. "Well, considering nobody's ever heard of this mysterious someone, I think it's safe to assume that you're lying to me, Denki." Naoya teased, a glint of sick amusement flashing in his eyes as he leaned in closer to Denki's personal bubble. "That's rather pathetic."
Denki tsked, a roll of his eyes following. "You're so full of yourself that you just don't notice what goes on in other people's lives. Maybe if you really opened your eyes for once, you'd be able to notice the small details." Denki conversed, surprising himself with his quick responses — even if they were utter bullshit — and with the way he was managing to keep his cool. He wasn't going to allow Naoya to ruin his night, especially not at their grandmother's house. "If anything, Naoya, the fact that you've followed me in here with the intention to piss me off, that's pathetic. Not me." Naoya's eyes flashed with anger with each word Denki spat out in response.
"Oh yeah?" Naoya leaned back, "mind informing me on who this mysterious person is, then?" He asked, acting as if he'd ever be curious about that.
Before Denki could respond, his father came strolling into the kitchen with a beaming smile on his face, an empty glass in his hand.
"Oh, Denki!" He exclaimed, his laughter slowly dying out as he left the dining room. "- Refill my glass, will you?" His father asked as he neared his son, holding out his glass to him. Denki took it without response, turning on the tap to fill the glass back up to the brim with water. His father has had too much to drink; only God knew how they would be getting home, because Denki refused to stay here if Naoya was too.
"Uncle Kenzo," Naoya greeted, his voice once again laced in the same sickeningly sweet honey he spoke to Denki with just mere minutes ago. Denki internally groaned as Naoya opened his mouth and ruined his peace for a third time that night. "Did you know that Denki has a lover?" Naoya asked, his question rhetorical. Denki's back straightened, his golden eyes widening to the point where they threatened to shoot out of their sockets. His head snapped over to his cousin as he shot a glare his way. Kenzo, Denki's father, stared at his son with a look of confusion plastered across his face. "Huh?" he uttered, a brow raising. "This is news to me," Kenzo added. Denki's head snapped over to his father.
"No it's not! Jeez, how much have you had to drink?" Denki chuckled nervously as he quickly placed down his fathers glass, some water splashing over the rim and falling to the counter top. Denki reached up and placed the back of his hand to his fathers forehead, a pleading look in his eyes. Kenzo didn't pick up on this and he leaned back, "What's wrong with ya, kid?" He asked his son, the puzzled look on his face intensifying. Denki let out a huff. "Me? You’re the one acting weird. You know I'm in a relationship." Denki gaslit further, his brows furrowing down and meeting at the tip of his nose.
"Doesn't seem that way to me," Naoya piped in, his words fading in with one another as a type of melody. "Come on, Denki. Stop the lying, it makes you look pathetic." Naoya mocked, a rumbly laugh meeting Denki's ears. Kenzo looked over at his nephew, about to say how he doesn't appreciate the way he is talking to his son, but Denki spoke before he could.
"I'm not fucking lying, you asshole. I have a boyfriend, and not that it's any of your fucking business, but his name is Katsuki Bakugo." Denki announced, his mouth moving faster than he could think about what to say, his mind now completely void of rational thinking.
Fuck. What did he do?
There's no fucking way he just said that, not in front of Naoya and his dad.
Kenzo's eyes slightly widened, his face breaking out into a smile once again. "Bakugo? Oh Denki, I thought you'd never tell that boy how you felt." His father took a step closer to him before he wrapped his arms around his son's body, pulling him into his chest and embracing him into a tight hug; his grip so tight that Denki struggled to breath.
Despite his shortage of air, he replayed those words over and over in his head. Once it made sense to him, he pushed himself out of his fathers grip. "I- What the hell does that mean?!" He gaped, his mouth hanging open. Kenzo chuckled. "It was obvious from the first time you brought him over that you had a crush on him, son." Kenzo explained, shamelessly spewing his son's secrets right in front of his nemesis. ".. I'm confused," Denki confessed.
Once again, his ears were met with the sound of footsteps nearing the kitchen. Though this time, his older brother Kenji came into view. "God, what type of sad party is going on here?" The older male teased in a playful manner, a sheepish smile plastered across his lips. "Kenji, when were you going to tell me little ol' Denki finally grew some balls and confessed to that Bakugo boy?" Kenzo queried his oldest child, whose expression now matched Denki's own perplexed one. ".. Whenever I found out. Which is now." Kenji nervously laughed while he shook his head. "I didn't know." Kenji explained further.
Naoya stared into bullet holes into the back of Denki's head, a knowing smirk sprayed across his face. He knew exactly what his younger cousin was doing, Denki wasn't stupid enough to not know that. He knew that Naoya knew he was lying, but if he confessed to lying now, he'd not only lose his dignity, he'd also be filled with enough embarrassment to last him a lifetime. He might as well have 'liar' promised on his gravestone.
Denki shuddered as he felt two eyes pouring into the back of his skull. He looked over his shoulder at Naoya as his brother and father pestered him with questions he simply did not have the answer for, Bakugo wasn't his boyfriend; how the fuck was he supposed to answer when he could bring him over? He and Bakugo weren't even that close! He's still known as 'Dunce Face' for crying out loud.
Naoya forced a cough, wanting the attention back on him. "Well isn't that perfect news," he forced his way into the conversation shamelessly. "I must say, I never would have expected you to date somebody so.. different to yourself." Naoya expressed, Denki frowned. He wanted to curl up into a ball and never come out. He knew that Naoya knew he was lying and this wasn't a lie he could just take back — Naoya would make his life a living hell a second time the second Denki admitted to lying to his face because, in all honesty, Denki was jealous of Naoya. He always has been. He believed that's where his admiration sprouted from in the first place; he wanted to be exactly like Naoya, and Denki wonders if that's where Naoya's disliking for him was born.
"- I actually have some volunteer work in UA to attend to in a few days. I'm staying in one of the guest dorms on campus, I'd love to meet this boy properly." Naoya suggested, though it wasn't exactly a suggestion — more of a demand. Denki's face scrunched up into something that was supposed to mimic a smile, but in reality, Denki just looked constipated. ".. How wonderful." Denki huffed out, "I'm sure Bak— Katsuki would just love to meet you." Denki was quick to correct himself even though he knew it was morally wrong. He shouldn't be calling Bakugo by his first name, but it would also be weird if he went around calling his significant other by his last name, wouldn't it? Denki's words weren't sincere, they were just another set of lies in the web he already created.
How the fuck was he going to convince Katsuki Bakugo, of all people, to pretend to be his boyfriend.
· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
Denki didn't return to the dorms that weekend. He couldn't. His mind was racing with possibilities and what the fuck he's going to do the fix this mess he's created. Each scenario he's come up with have all ended with Bakugo exploding him to some unknown planet, where Denki is forced to socialise with some blue aliens who speak in a language his simple human brain cannot comprehend. For the rest of the weekend, a time which is supposed to be peaceful, Denki cannot sleep. He even found himself completing almost all of his assignments just to distract himself from his trainwreck of thoughts.
Monday came faster than Denki anticipated. He barely spoke a word to anybody all day, concerning his classmates within the first five minutes of their school day — but considering that it was a Monday, they just thought Denki was having a bad morning. His friends allowed him the space they assumed he needed, but as lunch time neared and with the way Denki still hadn't spoken more than around ten words that morning, their concern only intensified. Kirishima, Ashido and Sero shamelessly whispered amongst themselves while Denki had his head laid down on his desk, impatiently waiting for the clock to strike 12:15 so he could race out of there. He felt like he was going to either pass out or vomit, or vomit and then pass out. Neither sounded too pleasing to him. As the clock finally struck their designated lunch time, Denki wasted no time in climbing out from his chair and swinging his bag over his shoulder — he had already packed away all of his items five minutes prior, he didn’t want to have to spend any more time necessary in that classroom than needed. Denki, who usually stayed back to calmly walk with his friends considering he’s usually too tired to run on a Monday, was surprisingly the first one out of their classroom. Kirishima frowned as he watched his friend race out of the classroom. “.. What the hell is wrong with him?” The false red headed teenager asked his friends. Bakugo, who was still packing away his stuff, let out a huff. “He’s always fucking weird. No need to ask questions about it.” He shrugged his shoulders, seemingly uninterested. Sero crossed his arms over his chest, “Yeah but he’s not being Kaminari-kind-of-weird. He’s being a concerning type of weird.” Bakugo rolled his eyes. “What’s the fucking difference?” The almost-platinum blonde haired asked, though it wasn’t exactly a question. Ashido whacked her friend on his arm. “Hey! Kaminari could be seriously upset over something and you’re acting like a complete jerk, Bakugo.” She glared up at him but Bakugo wasn’t the least bit intimated. “Like I’m going to care. Fuck knows, maybe Dunce Face didn’t have a good weekend. Ever thought that he might like some damn space?” Bakugo inquired, an eyebrow cocking upwards. The group were making their way out of the classroom and down the hallway in the same direction Denki had run off to. Suddenly, they all bit their tongues. Bakugo was right, maybe Denki would like some space — he always comes to them when he needs them, maybe he’s just not ready to talk about whatever was bothering him yet. “You’re right.” Kirishima was the first to break the silence. “- I’m sure Kaminari will come to us when he’s ready too. We shouldn’t push him or bombard him with questions man!” He swung an arm around Sero’s shoulders, the other looping around Ashido’s. “Let’s just try and involve him in our conversation, I’m sure he’ll still appreciate that!” Kirishima cheered, a bright toothy smile now splashed across his once perplexed expression. However, as the group entered the lunch hall and lined up for their food, Denki was nowhere in sight. “… Maybe he already got his food and he’s waiting for us at our table!” Ashido suggested, a weak smile present on her face. Sero nodded in agreement but he didn’t voice a response. Denki wasn’t at their table. In fact, Denki wasn’t even on the school campus anymore — not technically. Denki was back in the dorms. He couldn’t take another second of being in the same vicinity as Bakugo knowing that he told his family that they were dating and he had no clue about it. The guilt was already eating him alive. At the moment, Denki didn’t care about how much trouble he’d be in, he just needed some more time to himself; some time to actually sleep. · · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·
At dinner time, Denki poked around at his food. He couldn't bring himself to eat any of it, his stomach was still doing constant flips as his mind replaced each moment he shared with Naoya in their grandmother's kitchen — his lie playing on loop, his own mind torturing him with his fuck up. What's worse, Denki absolutely loved Bakugo's cooking; and ironically, his classmate made a side dish of nigiri sushi, Denki's absolute favourite.
He excused himself from the common room early. He needed some time to think. Alone in his dorm room, he came to the conclusion that he couldn't let Naoya know that he lied — Naoya already makes it his priority to taunt Denki. He couldn't add any more fuel to the fire. He just needed to figure out a way to calmly bring up the idea to Bakugo, and.. that shouldn't be too hard, should it? As long as he eases him into it, Bakugo shouldn't freak out.. or so he hopes.
Denki shook his body from head to toe to free his muscles from their nerves as he inhaled deep breaths. He needed to be calm for this. A singular freak out would send his mind racing and cause him to fall off of the, admittedly poorly thought out, plan he had. After he was sure he was ready as he'd ever be, he left his dorm room and traveled up to the fourth floor where he knew Bakugo resided. After what felt like an agonisingly long walk up the stairs and down the long hallway, he found himself standing in front of Bakugo's door. Denki doesn't know how long he stood there with his hand balled into a fist hovering just a few inches away from the door. Just as he finally built up the courage to bang his knuckles against the wood door, a shadow covers his left side.
"Are you going to knock or just keep standing there like a fucking creep, Sparky?" Bakugo spat. Denki let out a yelp as he visibly jumped, stumbling backwards before he caught himself right before he was about to fall. He pressed a hand to his chest directly above where his heart was located.
"Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" The electric blonde gasped, his gaze glued down to the suddenly extremely interesting red carpet his socks were disappearing into.
"Move outta my way," Bakugo huffed out, an unreadable expression plastered across his face. Denki took a step back and Bakugo stepped in front, opening his door and stepping inside — though, he left it open. Denki didn't move. After a few seconds, Bakugo's head wiped around to face Denki. "Are you going to fucking come in or just stand there?" His classmate spat, though his words didn't hold any true anger. Before Denki could overthink it, he rushed inside after Bakugo, slamming the door shut behind him.