Chapter Text
The next morning, Izuku woke up and he was almost happy to be awake.
Then he felt the annoying churn of his tummy, and his eyes snapped open. The blinding light of the morning sun shone right into his eyes, and he remembered how he had been so tired last night that he had just collapsed into his bed. He hadn’t even shut his curtains, apparently.
With a hand over his mouth, he stumbled out of his bed and to his bathroom.
He made it just in time, and all of the contents of his stomach came right out of his mouth and into the pearly white basin of the toilet.
He cringed and gagged when he had nothing else left to expel, and leaned his sweaty face on the edge of the seat. He really hated this symptom the most, out of all of them. They were all very uncomfortable, but this one was by far the most uncomfortable.
He just laid there for a few moments, eyes closed and breathing through his nausea. He had slept well, even if he was rudely awoken and ripped from his warm bed by the roiling of his stomach.
Izuku then remembered the fact that Katsuki probably hadn’t left last night. He inhaled deeply, and exhaled with his eyebrows creased. He could already feel a headache tugging at the back of his skull, and he knew that his trip to the doctor today was going to be very unpleasant.
He was startled out of his semi-relaxed moment of peace by a knock to the bathroom door connecting to the hallway.
He groaned in response and turned his head to rest on his arms, face down. He heard the door open, and an anxious looking Katsuki walked in.
“You alright, Deku? I heard you retching, what’s the deal?” Izuku clenched his eyes tightly, and took this last moment to dread the day to come just a little bit more.
“Puking in the morning is my worst symptom.” Izuku’s voice was scratchy, and talking made his head hurt more, just from the loud noise. Katsuki shifted from foot to foot in response, and though Izuku couldn’t really see him, he knew he was nodding and looking up in ponderment.
Katsuki left then, not shutting the door behind him. Izuku was alone once more.
Izuku was a little thrown off by the way Katsuki was seemingly nervous when he came in. Maybe vomit made him squeamish? No, that couldn't be right. Nothing made the Bakugou Katsuki squeamish.
Izuku tried lifting his head from the comfortable pillow of his arms, and he was only rewarded by the continuous throb of his pounding headache. His eyes being open made it worse, so he shut them and sat back on his haunches. The nausea was mostly gone, and what remained of it was manageable.
Steps sounded down the hallway, and Izuku would have raised an eyebrow if his head didn’t hurt so bad.
He felt Katsuki come into the bathroom then. He opened his eyes only as much as he needed to take in the form of him.
Katsuki had a glass of water and two pills in his hand. His ears looked pretty red, and his mouth was set into a hard line. The emotion swirling in his eyes seemed just too misleading to be true. He was looking at Izuku like…he had some semblance of affection for Izuku hidden deep inside himself. He gently set the glass of water next to Izuku, and looked down to grab Izuku’s hand, placing the pills gently in his open palm.
“Take these. They’ll help your headache.” Izuku was too pouty and in pain to be able to process how beautiful Katsuki looked. When he had this wonderful air of care around him, the way he looked soft and almost happy; It was so out of character, but so refreshing.
Izuku tipped his head back and swallowed the two pills dry. He was a little scared that drinking anything – even water – would make him start gagging again.
Katsuki turned around to flick the lights off, and what he did after that was very surprising.
Izuku felt him grab both of his scarred and gnarled hands, and begin tracing senseless patterns onto the backs of them. Izuku didn’t react outwardly, but he was panicking on the inside. He felt the drugs start to take effect, so he was able to form thoughts other than just pain, pain, pain. Kacchan was holding his hands.
Willingly. Unprovoked.
Izuku made a conscious effort to control his breathing, because he thought if he breathed wrong then Katsuki would stop. The truth was, the contact was amazing. Izuku felt like he hadn’t been touched in years, even though he has physical contact with his mom, and his friends all the time.
Eventually, Izuku heard a phone ringing from the living room. He assumed it was Kacchans, so it made sense when Kacchan stopped tracing patterns into Izuku’s hands in favor of rising to leave. However, he wished that the phone call could wait. It probably couldn’t though, as it was most likely from Kacchans work. It would have been nice to stay like that for maybe just a little longer.
Izuku eventually got up from his spot next to the toilet, as the nausea was almost completely gone. He walked out of the bathroom, down the hallway, and to his kitchen. A place he hardly ever was, because he really could not cook for shit. Izuku kind of wanted a PB and J with pickles though. He didn’t have pickles, but he did have other pickled veggies.
He wondered if the physical touch between him and Kacchan was only special to him, or if Kacchan thought it was special too. Maybe he could fix whatever happened between them. Maybe he had a chance.
As Izuku was making his sandwich, he heard Kacchan angrily talking in hushed tones. He wondered what that was about, but he didn’t try to listen. Kacchan is a pretty private person, after all. Izuku thought he would maybe ask about it if Kacchan came into the kitchen to check on him.
Would he check on him? Or would he leave? Izuku tries not to care.
Eventually he hears the angry, hushed tones come to a halt. He calls for Katsuki, and he hears the heavy, tell-tale footfalls as they trace their way to the kitchen doorway.
“What is it? Everything okay?” Katsuki asks, his voice gravely and his eyebrows drawn together. “No no, everythings fine with me! I wanted to ask you if everything was alright with you, you seemed pretty angry on the phone.” Izuku glances over to Katsuki, and sees the worry leave his eyes. Replacing it, there is something else that he’s still too scared to explore. Izuku looks away and finishes putting his sandwich together.
“Oh. I was just talking to a…” Katsuki clears his throat and averts his eyes. “A friend.” Izuku turns questioning eyes towards him once more, and is startled to find Katsuki…blushing? The tips of his ears are red, and his neck is a pretty shade of pink.
Izuku feels his stomach drop.
Did Kacchan mean he was just talking to a friend, or was he talking to a…special friend?
A small “Oh.” is the only thing he’s able to choke out around the jealousy clogging his throat. He is ashamed to admit that the jealousy almost makes him angry too. He clenches his fists on the counter, and grinds his teeth together. He doesn’t shed a single tear. He really doesn’t. The way his vision gets a little cloudy is just because of dust.
(He doesn’t think of how clean his kitchen is. Or the fact that it hasn’t been this clean in months.)
“Kacchan, I think you should go.” He says this through clenched teeth, and sniffs a little bit. Not enough to make it seem like he was crying though.
“Fine. Go to the doctor today, alright? I don’t wanna end up here again anytime soon.” Izuku’s stomach drops once more. His earlier hope of maybe fixing things between them evaporated right in front of his face. Izuku thinks that maybe he should stop hoping that their relationship is salvageable. He reminds himself once more that Kacchan sees him as a liability, and nothing more.
He will only serve to drag Kacchan down. Katuski is his weakness, and he thinks that Katsuki knows that. Maybe that’s why he’s distancing himself.
He hears Katsuki’s footsteps retreating to the front door, and the thump of him sitting down to put on his shoes. He can imagine how he looks right now. He has always sat down to take off and put on his shoes. When he was younger, his balance wasn’t always the greatest. It got better as time went on, but the motion stuck with him. Kacchan hasn’t changed the way he puts on his shoes since they were kids.
Katsuki leaves. He doesn’t say goodbye, but Izuku hears the lock click into place, so he knows that Kacchan still has an apartment key. Why would he keep that, if he didn’t want to be coming back? What kind of logic is that?
Izuku shakes the thoughts from his head, and goes to rummage for some kimchi to eat with his sandwich. When he finds some, he realizes that Katsuki must have ordered some groceries to the house. Otherwise, how would he make dinner? Izuku rakes a hand down his face and lets out a long groan.
This is just too confusing.
He takes the jar of kimchi and his sandwich to his room, and sets them on his desk. He boots up his laptop and starts investigating a doctor's appointment.
Kacchan says he doesn’t want to be around Izuku, and then he goes and buys him groceries, and makes him dinner. Izuku knows that if he hated someone and found them to be useless, he wouldn’t want to do those things for them. Not to mention the fact that Kacchan brought him headache medication after he was sick this morning, and…the physical contact…
It was just too good to be true.
Izuku knows that his Kacchan would never do things without a reason, whether the reason made sense or not. The trouble was, usually Kacchan’s reasonings for things were clear as day. Izuku has never struggled more than this to understand Katsuki Bakugou.
Izuku keeps arriving to the same confusing conclusion:
If Kacchan thought of him as useless, he wouldn’t be taking care of him like this.
So what on earth was going on in Kacchans head?
Izuku finishes his food, and sighs happily, leaning back and rubbing his stomach. He thinks he might be getting fat, and presses down a little on his abdomen. He’s not even flexing, and it’s more firm than usual. Maybe he’s bloated. From what, he’s not entirely sure, but maybe he should start going to the gym more. After all, he still wants to get back into hero work.
Speaking of, he can just get a physical done when he’s reassessed for going back into the field! He smiles to himself, and wonders why he didn’t think of this before. A nice, convenient loophole. Maybe he should talk to Aizawa when he goes back to work about training his quirk back to what it used to be. He misses training under Aizawa.
So Izuku sets to work on the forms to get reassessed. Forms that he picked up from Nezu about a week ago, that he’s been procrastinating on. But maybe if he fills out the forms, starts training again, and then gets back into hero work…maybe he can compete with Kacchan again!
The thought makes a blush rise high on his cheeks.
Maybe Kacchan will see him as someone worthy enough to compete against.
+
Izuku has the worst time falling asleep that night. He had called in sick to work again the next day, so he didn’t have to worry about getting sick at work. He was just much too excited about being re-evaluated as a hero. The reason why he had left hero work in the first place was because he didn’t want to be the number one hero without Katsuki. Now, even if Kacchan and him couldn’t be hero partners, Izuku could still work to surpass him.
He tossed and turned, and he fantasized.
Silly, almost teenager fantasies.
He thought of fighting a villain with Katsuki, about how they used to work like a well oiled machine. He wonders if they could still work like that. Izuku is reminded of his old favorite of their moves; X Catapult. Kacchan would grab his hand, and propel himself into a spinning motion to launch Izuku upwards. It was a really awesome move, but also kind of…intimate. Izuku’s eyes snap open and he slaps the palms of his hands to his face, and curls up into a ball.
Obviously, during battle, Izuku wouldn’t have time to realize the significance of it. Afterward, he would usually forget because he was swept away by reporters or medics. But now, there isn’t any room left to think about anything other than Kacchan. He can just imagine the phantom grasp of Kacchans gloved hand, heated by his quirk. He can almost hear the baritone battlecry that he always lets out before he executes a move.
Really, it’s a silly thing to be flustered over. A loud, obnoxious battlecry? A borderline feral, sweaty, stinky Katsuki Bakugou, mid battle? Alas, it was all so Kacchan by nature that Izuku couldn’t help being a little stuck on it. He was fundamentally, utterly smitten by anything that reminded him of Kacchan.
Even the sweet-spicy smell of nitroglycerin.
Izuku thinks through all of the moves they could do while touching. He thinks that if they ever trained together again, he would try to incorporate as much touching as possible.
Pathetic, but if that's all he gets, then that’s all he gets. Izuku is determined to make the most of it.
Izuku falls asleep that night, thinking about the prospect of competing with Katsuki again. It’s quite a comforting thought.
+
The next day, as Izuku is preparing his morning tea, he gets a call from UA.
He hurriedly answers, and when asked about a good time for a physical, he exclaims that it has to be as soon as possible. He’s delighted to hear that Recovery Girl can check him over today!
After he gets off the phone, he worries that he was too eager…but quickly extinguishes said worry because who really cares? He misses working with Kacchan, yes, but he misses saving people even more.
He excitedly gets ready to head out for the physical, and almost gets by without feeling the ever present nausea that constantly plagues him. Unfortunately, his sensitive nose gets a whiff of whatever his neighbors are cooking, – wafting in from the hallway of his apartment complex – and he runs straight to his kitchen to gag in the sink. The bathroom was much too far to make it there.
He leans on the edge of his sink for a little while, his eyes shut tightly. He continues to breathe in through his nose, and out through his mouth, in hopes that the nausea will finally disappear.
Eventually, Izuku feels well enough to step away from the sink to grab some nausea medication from his cupboard. He spares a glance at the time, and his eyes widen. He quickly rushes to swallow the pill, and with his coat in hand, he bolts out of the apartment complex.
+
He doesn’t run all the way there, because he knows it will only serve to make him dizzy. He shivers as the cold winter air bites at his ears, and wishes he thought to grab his hat. He speedwalks all the way there, and thank god for the frequent gym visits he does or he probably wouldn't have made it on time.
As soon as Izuku arrives at the UA clinic, he gets called back by the nice woman working the front desk. She smiles big and bright at him, and he smiles back, because it’s only polite. He rubs his hands together and blows hot air on them, cupping them over his face and ears. He tries to ignore the fact that he’s a little bit sickened by the cleaning-bleach hanging in the air.
It’s nice to see Recovery Girl again, and she gives him a big hug and smooch when she sees him. He laughs a little and hugs her back tightly, before she immediately gets started on checking him over. She takes his height, his weight, his blood pressure, his heart rate, all the things.
Once she starts interviewing him though, he gets a bit nervous.
The topic of his recent illness comes up, and it seems to give Recovery Girl pause.
“So you’ve been having headaches, some dizziness, and nausea lately?” She asks skeptically. Izuku nods in response, and she hurriedly types something into her computer.
“Are you…sexually active?” Izuku blanches at this. He goes bright red, and quickly tells her that he only had sex once. Izuku wonders, what on earth does that have to do with anything? It’s not like he contracted any diseases or anything, he would know by now.
“When did you have sex?” Recovery Girl doesn’t even flinch when he says three months ago, even though he’s basically admitting to being a virgin up until then. To be fair, it would be kind of unprofessional to tease him about it, but still. He’s grateful.
Izuku honestly has no clue why she would be asking him a question like that at a hero work physical. There is no way that that night could have lasting effects…right? The other Kacchan had to have used protection…
Recovery Girl calmly informs him that she’s going to draw some blood to send into the lab, and then says he’s free to go. As soon as the lab gives them the okay, he’ll be all set to start training with the other hero’s again! Izuku can’t seem to stop smiling his whole way home.
All Izuku hopes is that whatever sickness he has won’t get in the way of his dream.
+
The week following his physical is long, and it feels like it will last forever. The students in his class haven’t been particularly troublesome, but he just gets so bored with the lessons sometimes. If Kacchan were still coming in, maybe it wouldn’t be so boring.
It’s Thursday today, and Izuku was able to get Katsuki’s schedule from Nezu. He knows it’s a little strange, but he likes the thought of knowing where Kacchan is at all times. Even if he can’t be there to watch him and protect him.
Yeah, Izuku is a bit weird. He knows he is.
He’s tried not to think too much about Recovery Girl's strange question since he last saw her. There’s just no way that…that could even be a possibility. He’s been on hormones for so long now, and the doctors from his world told him that his womb would be basically unsuitable for any life.
Which was fine. Really, Izuku had dealt with grieving over that a while ago.
Still…if there really was still a chance…if Izuku could really still…
It’s then that Izuku immediately squashes any hope that might have been forming. There was no use in getting his hopes up for something like this, when the chances were just far too slim. Izuku knows the effects hormones had on his body. He knows his body, period. There's just no way that it could be possible.
Plus, it’s not like his symptoms have been getting worse. They’ve been at kind of a stand still, and the dizziness that sometimes plagued him was gradually fading. Izuku thinks that that’s a great sign, considering how he’s going to be a hero again soon. The thought makes him smile, and he almost laughs giddily. He ducks down a little so that his students wouldn’t pay him any mind, and he just takes a moment to feel so glad for himself.
He can finally have all that he’s ever wished for.
Following Kacchan has been his life's journey. That being ripped away from him when Kacchan disappeared was devastating, but now…everything he’s ever wanted is finally within his reach. He could hardly believe it when he first got transported here, but now that he’s had a few months for it to sit, it truly feels like he’s hit his peak.
So even if he cant have Kacchan for himself, he can still have Kacchan as competition. He can still try to keep up with Kacchan. He can still follow Kacchans footsteps.
It can’t get better from here, Izuku thinks.
As the day moves on, Izuku’s students seem to notice his chipper mood. Kota even asks him “What the hell has you all smiley?” To which Izuku responds by smiling more. He just shakes his head, and tells Kota that he just got some good news.
Finally, the bell rings signalling the end of the day. Izuku’s students hurriedly pack their things, while Izuku himself leisurely gathers his bag and coat, because there's no reason for him to rush. Everything is good.
So he slowly makes his way through the halls of the school, until he gets to the long hallway with all of the windows. He stops, and he just stares at the pretty snow falling outside. Izuku thinks that winters in Musutafu rival most other places in Japan. Truly, a beautiful sight to behold. The mountains standing tall and proud in the distance, and the sun shining its soft rays onto the tree tops. Izuku wishes he could go back in time and tell himself to spend more time in the snow.
He didn’t do enough of that in his early teens, after everything changed. He spent all of his time training, and then after Kacchan disappeared, he didn’t do much of anything anymore.
He places an open hand on the glass, and sighs wistfully. In the empty halls, he hears footsteps echoing and coming towards him, but doesnt think much of it. It’s more than likely that it’s just another teacher going home for the day. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he sees orange tipped combat boots that look a tad bit too familiar. He jerks his head to the side, and sees none other than Katsuki Bakugou standing right next to him.
Too close.
“Kacchan?” Izuku questions, and cocks his head slightly to the side. He sees that unreadable emotion in Katsuki’s eyes, and it worries him. He hopes that his question is understood as a check in, to make sure he’s okay.
Katsuki doesn’t answer for a moment, but eventually he lets out a puff of air that almost resembles a laugh.
“You remember that Christmas party we had, back when we were still in school? Before we got wrapped up fighting in the war?” He doesn’t look at Izuku once when he says this, but Kacchan has a soft smile on his face that can really only be described as fond. Izuku nods in response, and traces Katsuki’s gaze.
He’s staring at the dorms, not too far from the school. Izuku thinks he sounds a bit nostalgic. Why he would be nostalgic for those days, Izuku isn’t quite sure. Izuku himself liked his days in U.A; but he regrets only spending time training, and not living through his teenage years.
“Half n’ Half was thinking about inviting all of our class up to his cabin to recreate a mock version of it. Minus you know, the Grape Freak.” Kacchan grumbles the last bit, and Izuku hums in response. He’s secretly delighted that he’s getting this news from Kacchan, of all people. He would’ve expected Yaomomo or Shoto to text him. Maybe even Iida. Were Kacchan and Shoto talking more?
“Do you and Shoto talk often?” Kacchan looks at him with a raised eyebrow, but then realizes that Izuku is being totally serious. “Ah…well I suppose you wouldn’t know this. Cruella and I kind of uh…” The way he stumbles over his words makes Izuku purse his lips. He wonders what the issue is.
“We’re…friends. Or something. We talk sometimes.” Kacchan bites each syllable out through clenched teeth, and Izuku laughs a bit under his breath.
“What’s so funny Deku?” Izuku looks at him and smiles. “When you were younger, someone would have had to hold you at gunpoint before you would admit you were friends with them. I don’t think that would have even worked…” He looks back out the window, for one more lasting glance, before he turns to continue his way outside. He thinks he should probably call a taxi, since it’s snowing so hard.
To his surprise, Kacchan follows him out of the hallway. Izuku does spare him a glance of incredulous wonder, because why would he want to follow him outside? There have got to be plenty of other routes he could have taken out of the school.
He hurries on forward, steps faster paced now. Maybe Kacchan isn’t leaving? Maybe he’s just going to a different area of the school, perhaps to meet Kirishima? Then Izuku slaps himself, because why is Kacchan even here in the first place? You’d think he would avoid the school like the plague, considering Izuku works here. But he’s here, walking with Izuku. Against all odds, it seems.
“So Kacchan, what are you doing at the school? Meeting someone?” Izuku asks, because what's the point in dancing around the topic? Might as well just be blunt, right? It’s more than likely Kacchan wont sock him in the mouth just for asking a simple question, but Izuku thinks he can be a bit unpredictable.
“You could say that, I guess.” Kacchan elaborates no further on the topic, and Izuku kind of wants to strangle him. Who is he even meeting? Who’s so important, that he had to come to the school first before going home after his patrol?
Then Izuku kind of gets the urge to slam his face into a locker, because he thinks what he’s feeling right now is probably jealousy. Jealous of Shoto, of Kirishima, of anyone else that Kacchan might admit to being friends with.
“Oh okay. Cool. Why are you still here then?” Izuku doesn’t really mean for it to come off as bitchy. He really doesn’t. But Kacchan huffs and Izuku looks over to him, to find him pouting.
Katsuki Bakugou. Pouting. Never a word Izuku thought he would be using to describe Kacchan, but he’s just living up to his own unpredictability. It kind of makes him want to laugh, with how crazy it is. Kacchan pouting because of something he said. Something that came out of his mouth. The more he mulls over it in his head, the crazier it sounds. It’s things like this that really have him wondering if this is actual reality.
“Whatever nerd. Maybe I’m going to the same place as you, huh? Ever thought of that, dumb fuck?” Izuku rolls his eyes, because really, did Kacchan have to say it like that?
“Well I’m sorry, Mr. I’m Too Awesome To Answer Dumb Deku’s Questions.” Izuku huffs, and turns his nose up. Maybe he’s being a little petty, and way more sarcastic than is needed, but who cares? He thinks that Kacchan deserves the same energy he’s putting off.
“That’s not what I fucking meant, loser! Also, I do not think of myself as too awesome to answer your questions. The questions you’re asking are just…stupid!” Kacchan aggressively runs a hand through his tight coils, and back to twist one of his rat tails.
Izuku stops walking and turns to look at him with wide eyes and crossed arms.
“Kacchan, the audacity! Why is it so weird to you that I’m confused about why you’re walking with me? You act like you hate me every time I talk to you. Don’t you think I deserve – at the very least – answers to my questions?” At the end of his rant, Izuku throws up his hand and huffs loudly. Where does Kacchan get off acting like such a brat?
Izuku is certain that he only acts like this around him. Circling back to his original question, he silently fumes about why Kacchan is even here in the first place. If he finds Izuku to be so annoying and such a drag, why is he going out of his way to pick fights?
Kacchan stops when Izuku does, and turns to look at him with fiery intensity. He listens, and he keeps fucking pouting, and in the back of his head, Izuku wonders why Kacchan is making him so angry right now. Usually, he would be delighted at the prospect of even getting to spend a few minutes with him, but all he wants to do is choke Kacchan out!
Very out of character for him, but he doesn’t really care, because maybe Kacchan is looking for a fight. Izuku is kind of enjoying the familiar feel of bickering with Kacchan anyways. He doesn’t even want to de-escalate.
“I don’t act like I hate you, are you stupid? And you know, maybe you don’t deserve answers, if you’re gonna talk to me like tha-” Katsuki doesn’t even get the chance to finish his sentence before Izuku dropped his stuff and put him in a headlock.
Kacchan growls and he pauses for a second in shock. Usually, Izuku is not the type of person to start fights, but Izuku knows that Kacchan would never turn one down. It’s seconds before Izuku feels gravity shift, and he’s swiftly flipped forward onto his back. It knocks the air out of him, but he doesn’t falter. He gets right back up, and hunkers down to take whatever Kacchan throws at him next.
Kacchan rushes him and they grapple for a minute, Kacchan pushing him back towards the lockers. Izuku lets go of his hold on Katuski’s arms, and dives to the side, catching Katsuki’s leg in the junction between his calf and ankle. He falls forward, but catches himself before his nose slams into the floor.
Izuku stands at the same time Kacchan does, but Kacchan is too slow to turn around, giving Izuku an opening to grab both his arms in a locked position. He totally forgets about the possibility of Kacchan using his other assets.
In return, Katsuki knocks his head back against Izuku’s forehead, and Izuku lets go with a yelp of pain. His ears ring and he stumbles, leaving himself open. He feels Kacchan kick his legs out from under him, and he incapacitates Izuku by kneeling on his back with one leg, and using the other to press into Izuku’s elbow, while he presses Izuku’s head into the floor with his right hand, and his left hand holding Izuku’s other arm down.
“Enough! Why the fuck are you so mad today?” Katsuki demands, trying to catch his breath. Izuku is also trying to get his breathing under control, because he can feel the dizziness creeping into the edges of his eyesite.
“Lemme up, Kacchan. I can’t breathe.” Kacchan lets up, and surprises Izuku once more by lending him a hand to get back on his feet. Izuku leans on the lockers and pants, waiting for the dizziness to go away.
“I just…you kept saying things that made me more angry, and I didn’t want to just listen anymore.” Izuku sighs and sags a little against the lockers. As he’s coming back into himself, he realizes how immature it was for him to continue escalating things with Kacchan.
“I think bantering with you just eliminates all of my rational thoughts, Kacchan.” Izuku stands up straight, and turns to look at Kacchan as he says the moniker. Kacchan is looking at him with his eyebrows pulled together, his mouth slightly open. Izuku glances to the side, and sighs.
“I’m sorry Kacchan. You must have had a tough day at work. Can I…get you dinner, or something? As an apology?” Katsuki keeps staring at him, a kind of shifty look in his eyes. He huffs for breath, and crosses his arms, looking off to the side.
“I don’t wanna go out tonight, so how about we just go to your place and order something in?” Izuku brightens, because he got Kacchan to agree to dinner. He’s a little confused by the suggestion, given that he assumed Kacchan probably doesn’t like his house. He supposes that Kacchan is probably just too tired to protest though.
He nods so quickly that he almost gets dizzy again, but rushes to grab his stuff as Kacchan motions for him to go with him. Izuku assumes that Kacchan is probably offering to drive him home, considering they’ll be going to the same place.
The walk there isn’t awkward, per say; it's just kind of…tight? Izuku doesn’t feel like he’s allowed to speak, like Kacchan is so sucked into his own thoughts that it would be rude of Izuku to break the spell. However, it gives Izuku a chance to just look at him. Something he hasn’t been able to do for a while now.
He looks the same. Coily blonde hair, deep brown skin, two little rat tails coming from the back of his head. Fiery red eyes, the color able to strike fear into his enemies when he’s in battle. Beautiful as ever. He walks like he’s got a mission; quick steps that slap hard on the floor, hands clasped behind his back, and head held high.
So handsome that Izuku can’t help but admire him, and he’s so consumed by his own thoughtfulness that he doesn’t suspect a thing.
When they reach Kacchans car, the spell is broken. He still moves to open the door for Izuku, which is surprising. He didn’t initially know why Kacchan was being so gentlemanly when he first got switched, and he still doesn’t know why. Izuku supposes he’s just along for the ride of Katsuki’s unpredictability.
+
Again, Kacchan opens all the doors for him on the way in. Even his apartment door. Izuku gives him a look, raising an eyebrow as he takes off his shoes.
“Why do you keep doing that, Kacchan?” Izuku walks to the living room, and flops down on the couch. Kacchan follows after him, and makes himself at home by grabbing the remote, and manspreading on the other end of the couch.
“I dunno what y’ur talkin’ about, Deku.” Kacchan flips through the channels, speaking at a monotone level. Izuku turns to him and frowns, a crease appearing between his eyebrows.
“You know, you keep holding the door for me. What’s that about?” Kacchans eyes widen, and his knuckles whiten around the remote. He didn’t think Izuku had the balls to say anything, but it seems like that’s changing. Izuku honestly doesn’t have a single inkling as to what Kacchan will say.
“Um.” Kacchan mutters, and it kind of floors Izuku. Kacchan? Stumbling over his words? So weird…
Katsuki honestly has no fucking clue how to answer. He doesn’t even know why he held the doors for Izuku on the way here, it’s almost like it was muscle memory. It’s not like he can say that though, that’s just weird.
“It doesn’t matter, Izuku.” The use of Izuku’s first name is jarring enough for him to drop it. Kacchan obviously doesn’t want to talk about it if he used Izuku’s first name. He never calls him Izuku.
“Ah…okay.” Izuku replies awkwardly, and sits up straighter in his spot. Now everything is a lot more awkward, and he can barely focus on the movie Kacchan puts on. It’s an old rerun of one of All Might’s movies, and it is quite nostalgic, but it’s so hard to focus when his question still hangs in the air, unanswered.
Izuku orders some food for the night, and makes sure to order Kacchans with extra spice. The air doesn’t really get any less awkward, and it has Izuku wondering if he should have invited Kacchan to dinner in the first place. Then again, it’s still Kacchan’s presence. That’s enough for him, he supposes.
+
He still can’t focus on the movie after the food arrives, and it gives him a chance to think of the absurdity of it. He was grappling with Kacchan not even two hours ago, and now they’re sat having dinner with each other. Kacchan doesn’t say a word while he eats, but Izuku can tell he’s enjoying it because his food is gone in minutes. The spiciness of it thankfully didn’t make Izuku nauseous, so he’s grateful for that. He hadn’t thought of that factor when he was buying their food, all he was really thinking about was what Kacchan would enjoy.
The movie ends all too soon, and Izuku turns the TV off. It’s later now, and Kacchan doesn’t make any move to leave. Really, Izuku doesn’t even want him to leave anyways. The awkwardness of their night had slowly dissipated, but they still weren’t really talking. Izuku thinks that part of that has to do with his own temper. Maybe Kacchan doesn’t want to set him off?
A valid concern, he thinks. Izuku has been told more than once that it’s very unsettling when he’s angry.
He decides that there's no harm in asking Kacchan to spend the night with him. Really, he could just take the couch! The worst thing he can say is no, right?
“So Kacchan. It’s late, and…” Izuku pauses, and thinks for a moment before deciding it’s better to just be blunt. “I’m not going to kick you out.” Kacchan looks at him incredulously. He doesn’t speak for a moment, and Izuku kind of just sits there awkwardly.
“Well. I’m gonna go…get ready for bed. I’ll get you a spare toothbrush?” Kacchan still doesn’t say anything. He just stares at Izuku. Izuku sighs and gets up, walking his way to his bathroom.
+
Izuku is acting fucking weird.
He’s being nice, which isn’t unusual, but he’s also like a ticking time bomb. Katsuki think’s that if he says one wrong thing, Izuku might start yelling at him. Yelling Izuku is a scary sight to behold, so he just tried to speak as little as possible. He knows it’s not like him, but he’s tired. He had a long day today, and he patrolled with Shoto today.
Whenever they patrol, Shoto manages to coerce him into talking about his feelings. It sucks, and he was not looking forward to it when he looked over his schedule. However much he hates admitting it out loud, it’s nice to spend time with the other hero.
Shoto talked to him about how he was getting a week off around Christmas, and he had asked if Katsuki wanted to go to his cabin. Usually Katsuki doesn’t hang out with his family over Christmas, because they never really celebrated it when he was being brought up. Of course Shoto wouldn’t want to spend time with his own family either, so it had been a thing to spend Christmas together every year, with a few of their friends.
Katsuki told Izuku it was a class get together, which wasn’t necessarily a lie, but it wasn’t the full truth. It would more than likely be Katsuki, Shoto, Yaomomo, Iida, Uraraka, and maybe Denki and Kirishima. It was always an open invitation to most of the class, but usually only a handful of them show up. Denki usually had family things going on, and Kiri and Mina always do couple shit around that time of year. Mina always used to say that it was one of the more romantic holidays of the year.
Katsuki would always be there though. Shoto told him that he could bring a plus one, if he ever found one. He never wanted to find a plus one. The plus one he wanted to invite, never wanted to come.
The other Izuku was always busy, around this time of year. He never wanted to show up to any of their class dinners or drinking parties, which was whatever. Katsuki could get over it.
Katsuki saw this time as finally getting an opportunity to bring Izuku along. He didn’t tell Shoto about who his plus one was going to be, he just said he was bringing someone. Shoto hadn’t given him a look or anything, but Katsuki could tell he was pretty surprised.
Once when Katsuki let himself get a little too drunk with Shoto, Shoto had managed to tug the reason why he was single out into the open. Katsuki remembers lamenting about how he wishes Izuku would still talk to him, at the very least. They didn’t have to be friends, but he missed their banter.
Since then, Shoto hadn’t pressed him about a plus one.
Earlier, Izuku had seemed receptive to his invitation, but Katsuki hadn’t gotten a straight answer. When Izuku asked him about why he had been holding doors open for him, Katsuki physically couldn’t give him a straight answer. The silence of their meal gave him a minute to think about it.
He thinks that he will tell Izuku why, and in return, get an answer about if he accepted the invitation to the U.A. Christmas party.
Once Izuku goes to get him a toothbrush, Katsuki decides to clean up all of their mess from dinner. It would be nice for Izuku to come back to a clean coffee table, right?
He hears Izuku talking, in the bathroom, and goes to see who he might be talking to. Katsuki doesn’t think there is anyone else here, but he thinks that it’s better to be safe than sorry. Katsuki walks down the hallway, and makes sure that his steps are lighter so he isn’t noticed. He stands behind the wall of the bathroom, and thankfully the door is cracked open a little.
Izuku seems to be on the phone, so Katsuki turns to leave, but stops when he hears the panic in Izuku’s voice.
“Are you serious? That…can’t be true, I mean-” He’s cut off by the person on the phone talking more, and Izuku begins to breathe kind of sporadically.
“So what you’re saying is, I…can’t be a hero because of…of…” He doesn’t finish his sentence, but Katsuki is shaken by that statement. He had no clue Izuku was trying to get back into hero work. What could be stopping him from getting into it? He wonders if what was making Izuku pass out could be the cause.
Is it really that serious?
The person on the phone says something else, and then Izuku sighs.
“I…need to think. I’m not really sure about what I want, but I think I just need time. Thank you for calling me, Chiyo.” The use of Recovery Girl’s civilian name scares Katsuki even more. That must mean that this is pretty serious. Is Izuku’s life in danger?
Izuku hangs up the phone, and Katsuki bolts down the hallway. Izuku probably didn’t want him to listen into his conversation, and he didn't want to piss him off. Besides, he will probably tell Katsuki if it really is serious.
Katsuki sits down on the couch, and moments later, he hears Izuku’s light steps padding down the hallway. Katsuki immediately examines every inch of his face, and he notices the sadness, and the apprehension in his eyes. There's also maybe…a little bit of happiness? He’s not sure.
Izuku hands him a toothbrush, and tells him the bathroom is open to him. As Katsuki turns towards the bathroom, Izuku catches his arm. He doesn’t move his head up to look at Katsuki’s face, but there’s a grim tone to his voice.
“Kacchan I…will wait for you here. We need to talk about something.” Katsuki hums in response, because he has a feeling he knows what they will talk about. He hopes it will be about the phone call Izuku received in the bathroom.
He brushes his teeth quickly, and takes a lot less care brushing his gums in comparison to how he usually focuses there. He rinses his mouth out well, and takes a moment to himself to think about how their next conversation might turn out. Will Izuku be talking about his ailment? How will he approach the subject?
Is he going to die? Will he get treatment? Is there even treatment available?
Katsuki splashes water on his face, and steady’s his expression. He needs to appear cool, calm, and collected, in the case that it is a serious condition.
He makes his way back to where Izuku is sitting hunched over on the couch, his face in his hands. He sits facing Izuku, criss crossing his legs. He makes sure his body is open towards Izuku, so that Izuku knows that Katsuki will be listening to whatever he says.
“Kacchan, I got my physical done about a week ago. Recovery Girl had to get some blood testing done, to figure out why I was sick.” He takes a deep breath, and his chin starts to tremble. Katsuki tries to seem calm, but he feels almost shaky with nerves.
“She said that…I can’t do hero work because…my chorionic gonadotropin levels are elevated.” Katsuki blanches, because he has no fucking clue what that means. Does Izuku just…expect him to know fucking, Latin or whatever?
“I don’t have a fucking clue what you just said, idiot.” Katsuki states gruffly. Izuku sighs in response, and his chest stutters around it.
“She-” Izuku chokes and restarts his sentence. “She said that I-I’m…” He brings his legs up onto the couch and curls his head in between them.
The way that Izuku is struggling to even say what’s going on with his health, makes Katsuki even more nervous. So nervous that he feels like he needs to comfort the shaking man. So he places an open palm on Izuku’s calf, and shuffles a little closer. It seems to make the nerd tighten up even further, so Katsuki pulls him towards himself.
Izuku unfurls to reveal his eyes full of tears.
“Kacchan I’m so scared. Please don’t leave, please…” He covers his mouth, and his voice raises an octave in fear.
“I’m not gonna just up and leave. Just tell me what’s going on.”
Izuku closes his eyes and sucks in a heavy breath, releasing it quickly.
“Me and the other Kacchan didn’t use any…protection. And at the time I thought nothing of it, because I was…I was drunk but…” Katsuki’s eyes widen and his hand squeezes Izuku’s leg.
“Recovery Girl said I’m…she said I’m carrying. He got me pregnant, Kacchan. You…I think you got me pregnant.”