Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Guys, I can’t stand it anymore,” Kaminari has his head in his hands. Class A is all gathered in the common room. Well, two people are missing. Kirishima and Bakugou are out right now. Kaminari is sitting on one of the couches next to Sero with Shinso on his other side. The girls take up one couch. Jirou is in Momo’s lap. Mina is sprawled across the laps of Uraraka and Hagakure. Some of the boys are sitting in front of the TV playing Mario Party Jamboree. Deku, Iida, Todoroki, and Tsuyu are sitting at one of the dining tables working on some homework. 

“What’s wrong, dude,” Sero asks as he’s scrolling on his phone not even looking up from it, but he does reach out to rub Kaminari on his back.

“What can’t you stand this week?” Shinso teases, referencing the fact that Kaminari always has something to complain about.

“I need them to get together already. I can’t keep being the third wheel,” Kaminari groans in his hands. It’s loud enough to catch the girls on the other couch. 

“Are you talking about Bakugou and Kirishima?” Uraraka asks while she’s massaging Mina's claves. She has her eyes squinting in disgust. All of the girls look exasperated and exhausted. Mina is rolling her eyes. Momo is shaking her head. Jirou is sneering as if she’s not in her girlfriend’s lap in the common room. Hagakure is giggling, but that’s because she’s always down for relationship gossip.

“Yes! Oh my god,” Kaminari exclaims. He throws his arms up in exasperation. “They keep fucking flirting and having this weird ass tension. And like I love them, they’re my bros, but I don’t wanna be in the middle of whatever mating dance they have going on whenever I go along.”

Sero finally puts down his phone and laughs out loud. This draws the attention of the group studying, but they just listen for now. He’s not wrong. Whatever is going on between Bakugou and Kirishima could only resemble bird mating behavior.

“Next, Kirishima ‘s gonna bring rocks for Bakugou to build a nest like the gay penguins,” Sero wipes away a tear while making the joke. Shinso, and some of the girls laugh, but Mina has a grim look on her face.

“No way. Has he?” Sero notices Mina silent prayer for death. He has disbelief on his face.

“He has,” Mina groans. Launching herself out of the laps of the girls she was lounging on. “It was on the train back from Chiba to UA after our spring break.”

Mina had asked Kirishima to go back with her to the campus. She wanted a scary dog to ward off the creeps. They both pass enough for a straight couple. 

Well, ignoring the fact that Kirishima is a raging homosexual, and Mina gags at the thought of men in any way other than platonic. 

But if she had known what would happen during this trip, she would just risk getting harassed. 

They were walking to the train. And the path they were going on had a lot of loose rocks and a rather large one just right off to the side. Kirishima gasps at the sight. He leaves Mina’s side to go grab the rock. It takes both of his hands to pick the rock. The rock is about the size of a bowling ball. Hefty, but Kirishima lifts it with ease. 

Mina pauses in places watching Kirishima pick up the large rock. Watch him walk back to her side with the rock in hand and then start walking towards the station. She startles out of her confusion. 

Should she ask about that? Why did he just pick up a large rock? Is it a scare tactic to keep the creeps away?

“So what’s the rock for?” Mina questioned after a bit, walking in step with him.

“It’s for Bakugou,” Kirishima explained as if he’s saying the sky is blue. He said it like it's the most obvious thing.

“Kiri. Babe. It’s a two hour train ride,” Mina looked over in surprise. They have to walk for another ten minutes till they reach the station; then, they have two hours on the train ride from Chiba to Shizuoka. Then from the station to campus, it's another 15 minutes walk. They have a lot of ground to cover.

“Yeah, but look how big it is! Bakugou would love it for his collection, y'know?” Kirishima replied. 

No, Mina didn’t know. Did Bakugou have a rock collection? What collection was he talking about? Was the collection so important that he had to carry what was essentially a bowling ball on a two and a half hour commute?

Mina was so close to just ditching him and walking ahead so that the weight of the rock didn’t slow them down. But Kirishima looked like he was unbothered by the rock. Like it wasn’t awkward to hold. Like it wasn’t heavy to carry in addition to the duffle bag on his shoulder and the backpack on his back. Like the dirt of the rock didn't get his clothes dirty. Like his Crimson Riot shirt wasn’t getting mud on it. Mina could only feel disbelief crawling under her skin.

Kirishima was casually cleaning the rock free of dirt, brushing it off and wiping his hands off on his pants . Shifting his hold on the rock ever so carefully to grab his wallet and scanned his train pass. He cautiously took care to have a secure grip on the rock. 

What was actually happening right now? 

Mina spent the train ride watching Kirishima pet the rock. The rock sat on his lap. There was a word for people like him. Mina is queer, a lesbian, a gay, a homosexual even. Yet, watching the way that Kirishima was caring for this rock to give to Bakugou, it made her want to use a slur. 

There’s no way it could get worse. No fucking way.

If only she wasn’t proven wrong the moment they reach the campus.

Bakugou stood just outside the gates of UA and was on his phone with his headphones in, but somehow he looked up the moment Mina and Kirishima approached. Kirishima runs up to him, and Bakugou has his eyes locked onto him. It’s like Mina isn’t even here.

“The fuck is this,” Bakugou asked, but its spoken like a statement. He looked at the bowling ball size rock.

“It’s Patrick! I saw it and thought it would be good for your collection,” Kirishima beams with a bright smile on his face. Mina felt sorry for Kirishima with the inevitable rejection from Bakugou. But she was so fucking wrong.

“Oh. Thanks,” Bakugou replied.

Thanks? That’s it? What the fuck? Bakugou thanked someone?

Ok, she shouldn’t be that surprised. It’s Kirishima. But it was a rock. Bakugou thanked Kirishima for a rock. A rock the size of a bowling ball. 

Mina walked past the boys at the gate to get to the dorms hopefully before she had to witness anymore of that bullshit. She doesn’t even think they noticed her. 

“And I made it to the dorms before them. Thankfully,” Mina finishes up her story. She plops herself onto the floor leaning back onto Hagakure’s legs. She still has a grim look on her face. Her voice has disgust in it the whole time she speaks. Horror filled the expressions of those present to hear. 

Even the boys playing games on the TV stop to listen to the story. The entire class is fully present in the gossip now although those on the couches are the ones actively participating. 

“God, that sounds awful.”

“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“That is a nightmare.”

“I wouldn’t even wish my enemies to go through that. Not even Monoma. Maybe Mineta.”

Everyone on both couches give their thoughts and prayers to Mina as she wishes bleach worked on her so she could’ve used it for her eyes that day. 

Murmuring can be heard as they move onto the next topic. The source of it is Midoriya. Of course. It’s not loud enough at all to be discerned by even those sitting next to him. 

“Midoriya? You surely have horror stories about Bakugou,” Uraraka asks. Midoriya looks up at the mention of his name. He flushes at the realization of everyone's attention on him. “Especially since you two have been trying to make up for lost time as friends.”

They have been trying to get closer. Learning more and beyond Midoriya’s quirk analysis and observation. Bakugou bonding beyond his past bullying and the guilt of it all. All with Kirishima there as a buffer most of the time. 

Midoriya has seen things. The little gestures of affection and service between the two of them. Who knew that an arm around someone’s shoulders could be so intimate?

He had asked Kirishima why he would do that despite the uncomfortable position. The answer was said so easily like it was as simple as blinking.

“Oh! The weight helps the ache that Katsuki gets there sometimes. You know from the recoil of his explosions. It also makes sure that his neck and back is never fully exposed. Helps with his anxiety!”

Midoriya is almost jealous. Fourteen years they have known each other, yet he never knew all of that about Bakugou. Didn’t even think it was possible that Bakugou could develop anxiety as a result of trauma from the slime villain attack never entertained it for the pedestal he had placed his fictive brother on. A flaw that they are now reversing and fixing.

But Kirishima figured out how to read Bakugou better that Midoriya could ever in 3 months. In a year, they were closer in a way that Midoriya knew he could never achieve with Bakugou.

“Midoriya!”

The teen blinks at the yell of his name. It was Kaminari that yelled his name. Oh, he started murmuring again. The rest of the class is staring at him in anticipation now wanting to gossip more about their two missing classmates. Even Iida put down his pencil.

“Oh, right. A story. There are a lot. Kirishima has been acting as mediator between me and Kacchan,” Midoriya makes his first voluntary statement to his peers. 

Both couches turn towards him sitting at the table. Tsuyu has moved from their group to sit next to Mina in front of the girls’ couch. The others who were previously playing games on the TV have fully turned to join the conversation. Todoroki and Iida both make eye contact with Midoriya and then they all move to sit in the pseudo circle formed with the couches. 

“So, it was also during the break. I was keeping Kacchan company while his parents were out in Milan for the Fall/Winter Fashion Week…”

Izuku let himself into the Bakugou house with the spare key hidden in the plant pot on the front porch. The first thing he noticed was the scent in the air. A rich meaty barbeque scent. Saliva pooled in his tongue. 

“Kacchan? What are you making?”

Rounding the entrance into the kitchen, he saw Katsuki hunched over the counter. He was covered in flour and his arm veiny from exertion. The apron that he was wearing didn’t save his black tank top and sweatpants from the flour. 

“Izuku! Why the fuck are you here?” Katsuki glared over his shoulder to address Izuku. His hair looked messier than normal. The bags under his eyes appeared darker than normal. Almost as soon as Katsuki looked at Izuku, he turned back to continue working on something with his hands. It looked like he was kneading dough for something. “Working on a shitty recipe. Cha Siu. It’s been three fucking days. I got it down though. Just in time.”

That last part was whispered. Clearly, Izuku wasn’t meant to hear that part but he does. 

“Now I just gotta get the bao dough ready to be steamed,” Katsuki continued. Izuku was obviously ignored for cooking cha siu and bao buns. The other teen was moving around him without addressing him anymore. Fully focused on dividing up the bao dough into equal pieces. Frequently running to wash and neutralize the nitroglycerin on his hands. 

“Uh, I heard from Auntie that you were gonna be home by yourself all week. You know because Auntie and Uncle are going to be in Milan for fashion week. So I was just wondering if you were gonna get bored. In case that you were, I thought that I could keep you company and we could marathon All Might and hero movies. And-”

“Oh my fucking God. Shut the fuck up, Deku,” Katsuki turned around fully to address him this time. There was flour all over his front. He looked messy. One of the Bakugous looked messy. Unintentionally messy. His eyes were wide with exhaustion. “I need you to leave right fucking now. Eijirou is coming over in three hours and I still need to get dressed. So out right fucking now.”

The door slammed behind Izuku. He had white handprints on his shirt from the flour on Katsuki’s hands. His eyes were wide with shock and confusion.

Three days?

Auntie and Uncle had only been gone since yesterday. Izuku only knew because he had asked if he could come over a couple of days ago to help out in the garden. All Auntie said was that it was “just Katsuki home, so the company was probably appreciated” and no mention of Kirishima. So, they probably didn’t know then. 

But if Katsuki had been working and cooking for three days that means they knew? But why didn’t they tell Izuku. 

More importantly, why was Kirishima coming over the Bakugou household over spring break?

Katsuki and Kirishima were close, but were they close enough for Katsuki to invite over? As far as Izuku was aware, he was the only person that Katsuki had ever invited over but even then they were four, and their moms were friends already. It was also one time and a last minute event for Katsuki to show off his All Might collection.

Inviting Kirishima over was planned. Planned for at least three days. Probably longer. Chiba was a long commute to Shizuoka. Kirishima was willing to come for a day trip? Was it only a day trip? Was Kirishima going to stay longer? 

“Deku!”

Midoriya looks up from where he had begun mumbling to himself. Uraraka is the one who yelled at him. Everyone is now fully turned into the circle and is completely engaged in the gossip of their two missing classmates. Off probably sparring or some other weird mating ritual. 

“Dude, is it that weird for Kacchan to have friends over?” Kaminari asks as he’s sandwiched between Shinso and Sero. Shinso is at the bottom of their cuddle pile, and Sero is on top of the both of them working as a weighted blanket. “Wait. Have we ever been over to Bakugou’s house?”

“No,” several voices reply, all of them coming from various members of the Bakusquad, Bakugou’s intimate friend group. 

“I think only Kirishima has,” Jirou fiddles with Momo’s hands around her waist.

“Anytime we hang out with Bakuboo, we meet somewhere else,” Mina leans into Uraraka’s hands playing with her hair. 

“I’ve visited once,” Shinso sleepily added, attracting everyone’s attention. Mina jumps up to her feet once again.

“WHAT!?” everyone exclaims after a beat or two. Chaos ensues as it normally does for Class A. Even in their second year, post-war, and they all have PTSD, that hasn’t changed and Aizawa suffers every day for it. 

“What do you mean you’ve been over to Bakugou’s house?”

“You just got here!”

“Has my best friend position been snatched from me…”

The girls and gays–because lets be real no one here is straight save for Ojirou–are all demanding answers from Shinso even his boyfriend gotten up to join the fray. However, that last statement distracts them and they all devolve into a debate on who Bakugou's best friend is. Iida is desperately trying to reign in the chaos into a somewhat conversation again. 

“Alright everyone!” Momo claps her hands together, quieting everyone. “Let Shinso explain the story.”

Order returns to their group as everyone scrambles back to their seats. Shinso’s boyfriends lay back on top of him. The warm weight makes him sleepy again.

“There isn’t a story to tell. Before a date, I went to drop off Eri for Bakugou to watch ‘cause everyone else was busy,” Shinso drawls. His eyes look blankly to the ceiling. “Aizawa was going to an appointment for his prosthetics with Mic taking him. Eri asked if she could be watched by Bakugou. It was during spring break, so it was at his place.”

“Bakugou is good with kids?” Todoroki asks. It’s his first time speaking during this whole conversation.

“He’s great with Eri at least,” Shinso answers. “Kirishima was there too, so there was that too.”

Quiet blankets the room as they sit there thinking with this new information. Shinso starts drifting asleep with the warm weight of Sero and Kaminari on top of him. The class split off into several small conversations again. His boyfriends talk about a video game they want to buy while on top of him further lulling him to take a cat nap. Probably because they are talking about it, a story about Kirishima and Bakugou pops into his head again.

“Oh, I do have a story,” Shinso blinks awake. Like magic, everyone shuts themselves up to listen to the story. “Not about the time that I visited Bakugou’s house, but it is about Kirishima and Bakugou.”

Hitoshi had a terrible sleep schedule. This was no secret. One look at him and you see it. Night terrors and all that jazz making it impossible for him to fall asleep. So after another restless night, he went down to the common room to try and switch up the routine rather than shuffle around in bed and possibly wake up Hanta, the lighter sleeper of his boyfriends. 

The relationship is new. He has been flirting with Denki since their first year and backed off when he found out about Denki and Hanta’s relationship, but then Hanta started flirting with him while Denki was still flirting with him. The way they got together also confused him too. 

“This is so good, 'Tsuki.”

Who was awake at 5 in the morning on a saturday? Who the hell is Tsuki?

Hitoshi poked his head around the corner to look into the kitchen. Sat at the island is Kirishima drinking a smoothie. Bakugou sat next to him criss-cross on the counter with a hairbrush . They were both still in their sleep clothes. Bedheads messed up their hair.

“It’s just a smoothie, dumbass,” Bakugou grumbled. “Pull the chair fucking closer so i can do your hair and we can get out of the shitty dorms faster.”

Kirishima followed the instructions given to him promptly and with a bright grin that Hitoshi hadn't seen before. 

How could someone be that happy? Hitoshi was in love with two puppies as boyfriends and he had never had that expression before. Unless Kirishima was-

Oh.

His theory was only solidified when Hitoshi saw Bakugou first comb through the dyed hair. He then grabbed a bit of hair gel and started styling with practiced ease. Like it wasn’t his first time styling the red into his signature spikes. 

Bakugou whispered something that Hitoshi didn't catch. Kirishima's eyes and smile softened into something fonder. The joy was still ever present, clear even to someone new to the class like Hitoshi. 

He had also never seen the expression on Bakugou’s face before. It was soft. It looked like contentment to Hitoshi. He wasn’t too sure. It was unfamiliar. Something that he doesn’t think anyone was meant to see.

Oh. It’s reciprocated.

He wasn’t sure how two pining but single people could make him feel lonely. He had two warm bodies in his bed. But the scene in front of him made him miss his sleeping boyfriends.

Kirishima sat on the stool in front of Bakugou slowly sipping away the pink smoothie. Their expressions were soft and loving. Each of Bakugou’s movements was filled with adoration. The two teens whispered to each other as if the space between was delicate enough to be broken by noise. As if their secrets were being kept from the cabinets and walls of the kitchen. 

It was then that he realized how personal the scene was and that this wasn’t something he could just eavesdrop. Carefully silent he walked back to the stairwell and made his way up to his room. Crawling back into the warmth of his boyfriends.

As the last words of his retelling flee Shinso, the class is rendered speechless. Kirishima let someone else style his hair. Kirishima. The boy who once bit a teacher’s hand for trying to ruffle his hair. That Kirishima. Letting Bakugou do his hair. The boy with explosive weapons as hands. 

“I don’t know. It just seemed intimate for someone styling another person’s hair,” Shinso makes his final comment. Slightly uncomfortable with the silence he created.

The entire class is still in shock. Several people have their mouth open from their jaw dropping lower and lower as the story went on and on. 

“Babe, we’re not quiet because you were wrong in your assessment. You are so right about it. Just you’re new, so you don’t know the full reason why that is significant,” Sero reassures his partner. He pushes through the confusion as currently he’s recategorized everything he’s ever known about Kirishima. “Just- Ok- Well-”

“Kirishima let Bakuboo style his hair before me?!” Mina yells and jumps up to her feet effectively cutting off Sero from his stammering. And that had also broken everyone else from their trance as well.

“Didn’t Kirishima threaten bloody murder with his eyes the last time someone tried to touch his hair?”

“Bakugou knows how to do the Kirishima spike?!”

“Kirishima gave me scars the last time I touched his hair.”

“Doesn’t Bakugou regularly call Kirishima’s hair shitty?”

“Soft and Bakugou should not be in the same sentence.”

“Bakugou is always soft for Kirishima.”

All heads turn to Shouji with that last statement. They look at him as if he had spoken the forbidden, admitting to the taboo. Some people, a minority, nod in agreement.

“Shouji, you’re on the same floor right?” Tsuyu questions tilting her head in a manner so distinctly her. “Do you have any stories about SolidGrenade?”

“When did we decide on solid grenade as ship name,” Kaminari interjects as he plays with Sero’s thick hair. “I personally like PopRocks!”

“I think CherryBomb fits the two of them better,” Momo quietly adds. It's a bit muffled from where she rests her head on Jirou’s shoulder. “Think about it, Kirishima is cherry because he’s such a sweet person and red is such a signature. Bakugou felt like a ticking time bomb before he warmed up to us.”

“Huh, I never really thought of it like that, but then I agree with Tsu-chan like I think SolidGrenade works for them too!” Hagakure says as she ponders ship name dynamics. “Kirishima is so sollid like you can count on him to watch and protect your back. And Bakugou literally has a grenade motif. It does fit him though. Like a grenade only explodes once you pull the pin but you don’t know how long it will take to explode. Bakugou is predictable but unpredictable at the same time, y’know.”

“Are we really shipping our classmates right now?” Ojirou sighs.

“Is it really shipping if they're this obvious with how badly they’re pinning for each other?” Uraraka answers. Nods make their way around the room as they agree.

“Do you still want to hear my eyewitness account of Bakugou being soft with Kirishima?” Shouji deadpans trying to get back on topic. To be frank, he also wanted to vent about how obvious they were. Living on the same floor as two pining, loud teen boys is tiring. 

Mezou didn’t know why he was placed in the dorm he was in. Normally sharing a floor with Kirishima and Bakugou was fine. 

Bakugou kept to himself and surprisingly lived quietly even with his enhanced hearing from his quirk. His footsteps were quiet and if you didn’t see him then it was because he didn’t want you to. Honestly, it was probably easy to be housemates with Bakugou. Well, you might go insane because living with Bakugou was like living with a ghost. 

Kirishima was a different story. He was enthusiastic about everything he’s ever done. Thuds from various workout equipment made its way past the wall regularly. Whether it was from the punching bag or the dumbbells being placed on the floor, Mezou heard it regularly. Thankfully the talking didn’t get picked up by his quirk or through the wall, otherwise he would have requested to be put on another floor and left Kirishima and Bakugou to each other. 

He still might.

The cement walls built by their literature teacher, Cementoss, could block out most noises save for the heavy thud on occasion from when Kirishima works out. They can’t block his eyes from the blatant flirting in front of him. 

He just wanted to return a grip strength trainer back to Kirishima. The door was ajar already, so he figured he would just drop it off on his desk and then shoot a text to Kirishima. He was probably downstairs grabbing a snack or something. 

But it was much more difficult than he thought. Pushing the door open he saw Bakugou sitting in Kirishima’s bed. A couple balls of red yarn sitting next to him while he crocheted?

When did this become a thing?

Mezou stood frozen at the door and a hand still on the wood. Bakugou was also frozen as they made eye contact. He may not be able to read Bakugou as well as his inner circle of friends, but he can practically see the list of excuses flying through his eyes.

“The door was open. Just need to return this,” Mezou explained as he raised his hand holding the grip trainer. He took a few steps and placed it on Kirishima’s desk. He felt Bakugou’s eyes follow him for a bit, but then, there was the sound of fabric rusting indicating that Bakugou had started crocheting again. He glanced towards Bakugou again catching a glimpse of the pattern he was referencing this time as well. 

A shark plushie. That had to be a gift right? No way was Bakugou making a shark plushie for himself, right? Ok, let's not judge him too harshly. Bakugou clearly put up a front despite everything that Mezou has learned living with Bakugou. 

He completed his task at hand. Mezou turned around and tried to escape this awkwardness as quickly as possible. But then he remembered. 

“Could you tell Kirishima that I stopped by to return that?” Mezou turned back to request it from Bakugou. The other boy paused his stitch to process his request. Clearly not really paying attention to him anymore.

“Sure,” Bakugou nodded before proceeding to ignore him again.

Mezou made sure to fully close the door behind him. That was such a strange interaction. It didn’t hit him until he was in his room, who Bakugou was crocheting a plushie for. Red yarn and a shark pattern. It has to be for Kirishima. He was also in Kirishima’s room too.

“Bakugou crochets?!” 

“Oh so that’s where that plush came from.” 

“Wait! That plushie was so cute! I kept asking Kiri where he bought it from ‘cause I wanted one too.” 

“It’s gotta be rehab for his arm right?”

In stark contrast to the previous story, there are comments throughout and following Shouji's story. Everyone quickly shut up for him to continue talking though. But it’s a lot more relaxed than the horror of shock when Shinso actively turned their worldview. 

What do you mean Kirishima let someone touch his hair?  

“Okay crocheting a plush is so cute though! And it’s a red shark like that's so cute!” Uraraka gushes and swoons into Hagakure’s side as the girl giggles. 

“Well, it probably wasn’t a surprise gift if he was making it in Kirishima’s room, probably with him around,” Momo points out lazily.

The jovial mood relaxes even the most straight-laced of their class. It is a class bonding activity to complain about their most obnoxiously in love peers at this point.

“Ok, but seriously can we get over the pining period already like I don’t know how long I can take longing stares across the room,” Kaminari repeats his original complaint that started all of this discussion.

“Oh my God! Those are bad, but do you see those sparring matches out of class,” Uraraka interjects. “I feel like they should be arrested for public indecency with how perverted they feel at times.”

“Yes!” yell several voices from the Bakusquad. All of them are exasperated either in their tone, expression, action or all of the above.

“They always invite us to their workouts or training and it’s just them doing their weird mating dance,” Kaminari continues again. He stops fidgeting with Sero’s hair and instead waves his hands in the air. Gesturing wildly as he speaks. “Like this one time…”

It had to be divine punishment. That’s the only explanation why Denki was being forced to see this right now.

Denki was in their class’s shared sparring gym. He was currently waiting for Hitoshi so they could spar together. He needed to train his hand to hand combat. And who else but his boyfriend to be the one to manhandle him and also to hopefully pull some punches so it doesn’t hurt as much.

Two of his best bros were currently on the mat wrestling and making bedroom eyes to each other. Grunts and groans made it sound more inappropriate than just beating each other up. Why are they both so masculine? Why can’t they squeal every once and a while to break up the sex-like sounds?

No. They would make it sound like sex still.

Kirishima had the other teen in a grapple. His large hands were pulling Bakugou's hands behind him. Bakugou was under him and with his arms pulled taught behind him, it caused his chest to lift up slightly. Kirishima sat on his thighs to keep them down.

That’s definitely a sex position.

Denki felt like he’s the camera man to a porno except the porn isn’t sexy, but whatever this mating dance is. He needed to ask Mina to assassinate him the moment that he became this disgusting with Hitoshi or Hanta. 

There was an explosion coming from Bakugou. It’s loud and ringing. 

Another thing to add to his shopping list. He needed to replace the ear plugs because he can hear everything. The grunts might be his thirteenth reason at this point.

The smoke cleared to Kirishima still in the same position but instead of the smoothness of skin it’s been quirked to unbreakable. Bakugou let out a grunt from the increased weight.

“Fuck,” Bakugou groaned. “Get the hell off of me.”

“That would be too easy wouldn’t it,” Kirishima leaned in to speak directly in his ear. They weren’t even whispering though, so Denki has no idea why he did that. “You don’t like it easy, Bro.”

Denki really should leave. He’s gonna vomit at this point. This was like watching his brother flirt. He’s being forced to voyeur and without his consent.

Bakugou dug his knees into the ground using it as leverage to rise and push the weight over. He rolled over, and now Kirishima is under Bakugou. Kirishima’s eyes were wide when Bakugou started lifting him with his core alone. In his shock, he had apparently loosened his grip enough for Bakugou to break free. 

Then, Bakugou flipped over and straddled Kirishima’s hips. Explosive hands gripped rock hardened wrists. He also crossed his ankles over Kirishima’s legs in order to keep them down. Kirishima groaned in response to the shift in weight.

That is definitely another sex position. 

And that's now two more sex positions that he didn’t want to see his friends in. Alright.

Denki pulls out his phone to text his boyfriend rescheduling their training session. There was no way he was going to endure this torture just so he can get sweaty with his boyfriend. They would get upstage by the mating ritual going on right next to them. 

“I think they were still fighting in sex positions when I left too,” Kaminari wraps up his story. He retold his story will a lot more drama than what was probably allowed for talking about his two good bros just metaphorically fucking each other while they sparred. “Non consensual voyeurism.”

“That’s fucking called public indecency,” Bakugou’s voice rings out from the foyer. He is slipping on his slippers while Kirishima forgoes them and walks over to their group. 

“Hey guys!” Kirishima greets them while leaning over the couch housing the boyfriends. “What are we gossiping about? I can’t believe you had a circle without Bakugou.”

Bakugou chooses this time to also come over and stand next to Kirishima as well. He’s not scowling for once. There is a glow to him as well, something unusual but definitely noticeable. Kirishima is glowing as well. 

“I don’t fucking want to be apart of any of that shit,” Bakugou lies. He loves hearing gossip especially if he’s not involved. It’s the reason why he has an open invite to the girl’s sleepover parties. “Well, he asked a question.”

“Nothing!”

“Relationships.”

“The teachers!”

“You and Bakugou,” Todoroki answers truthfully to them. Bakugou raises an eyebrow at that. The rest of the class turns to him scandalized. 

“Todoroki!”

“Shouto!”

“Shou-chan!”

Everyone yells at once. All of them are shocked at the immediate snitch from one of their quiet classmates. 

“Was I not supposed to tell them?” 

Everyone collectively shake their heads. 

“Oh. We weren’t talking about you and Bakugou.”

“Okay. That makes sense why you would talk about that when me and Bakugou were out,” Kirishima says awkwardly. He stands up straighter, no longer leaning on his hands on the couch. His grin dims almost to a grimace. “Well, uh we’ll just leave, so you can get back to that…”

“Fucking assholes. Let’s go, Cherrypie,” Bakugou clicks his tongue and before throwing an arm over Kirishima’s shoulder in a one-arm side hug. “Some shitty fucking friends you are.”

“Cherrypie?!” 

“Are you two finally together?”

“When was this a thing?”

“Did you just come from a date?”

“Oh my God.”

“My dads just got together!”

“Finally!”

“What the fuck,” Bakugou yells. His hands are popping with sparks while genuine anger is displayed on his face. It sends genuine fear into the rest of class A. Kirishima immediately grabs Bakugou’s arms to hold him back. His eyes are wide with panic, but his lips are downturned into a sad press. Guilt fills everyone. 

“Wait! We don’t mean it like that,” Midoriya quickly attempts to placate Bakugou. Guilt fills him when he makes eye contact with Bakugou. They’re glassy from tears. “Okay, we did mean it, but we’re just happy you two finally got together. We were talking about you two and it just seemed like you two are really in love and how obvious it was that you two needed to be together. And like we really did mean well. Like I get how it seems like we were gossiping, and I guess we were. But we just wanted you two to be happy together. Like it was so  And-”

“Okay! I got it,” Bakugou interrupts brows furrowed in confusion now. He’s pretty sure Midoriya wasn’t breathing that entire time. “It’s just that we've been dating for sixth months.” 

Collective silence fills the air as the newly revealed couple stare back at the rest of their classmates. It takes four heartbeats before chaos returns. 

“Why didn’t you tell us?!” Everyone yells at once. Mina stands up. Sero and Kaminari trip over each other trying to stand up as well. Shouji stares in space with a blank stare. Hagakure squeals while kicking her feet.

“How did you two get together?” Tsuyu asks, placing a finger on her chin and tilting her head. Starting a chain of questions from the girls specifically.

“Oh! Who confessed?”

“Did you kiss when you got together?”

“Where did you confess? Was it under the cherry tree?”

“Was it during the day? At night?”

“Were you guys sparring?”

“Shut the fuck up!” Bakugou yells his face a crimson red rivaling the shark plush sitting on Kirishima’s bedsheets. He is blushing from his cheekbones to his collarbones. 

Kirishima on the other hand beams once more.

“I don’t mind telling!” he answers. Eyes curving into crescents at the memory. Fond affection clear in his eyes accompanied with a soft, bright grin. It's an expression uncommon to the rest of the class, but the squad sees it infrequently. “So it was a little bit before the final battle.”

They were sitting in their temporary dorms off-campus. After comforting Todoroki, they left for Katsuki’s room. The mood was somber, and there was dread in the air. No matter what happens in the war, it would put an end to everything they know now. 

This finale. It couldn’t be theirs.

It was quiet for a while. They sat next to each on the bed. Back against the wall. Both in their own thoughts. Holding each other’s hand. Eijirou leans his head on his best friend’s shoulder. Katsuki reciprocates. He leans his head back, cheek against his forehead. 

Aizawa had hammered it into them that being a hero will always have a risk of dying. It was always prevalent throughout their experience as heroes. Near death experiences happened on a weekly basis. Hell, maybe even multiple times a week. On their first week of school, they encountered villains who wanted to kill All Might with no regard if they had to kill students to do that. 

But.

There was something about this battlefield they were about to walk onto. Something about it made Eijirou dread its ending. It all seemed so final. The final battle. It was now or never. The threat of anarchy in Japan was their enemy. 

At sixteen, Eijirou was fighting in this battle for their country. He was expected to be a soldier. Things would be ending tomorrow, and it was up to them.

At sixteen, Eijirou couldn’t even clearly define what he and Katsuki were. How was he supposed to fight a battle he was meant to be reading in a history book? 

All he knew was that Katsuki was his finale. The one that was supposed to be next to him in the end credits. It was the only thing he was sure of. Eijirou was Katsuki’s, and Katsuki was Eijioru’s. 

Winning would be having Katsuki next to him. 

If victory was seen when they win to save and save to win, then Katsuki saved him everyday with every touch. Then, Eijirou saved Katsuki with every word. 

“I’m yours,” Katsuki stated. It was a statement. Said with the same confidence as stating a fact like the sky is blue. That’s because it was. Eijirou knew that intimately. “You’re mine.”

“Yeah,” Eijirou responded. It was a filler response. He agreed of course, but Katsuki knew that. He knew that intimately.

“What’s fucking stopping us from a label?” Katsuki asked. There was nothing stopping them from a label. The truth was that no label was good enough for them. None of them were worthy enough to be used for their relationship. 

“None of them are good enough for us,” Eijirou explained. He sat up and grabbed Katsuki to move him into his lap. Katsuki went willingly, straddling Eijirou’s thighs. He draped his arms around Eijirou’s neck like it was one of his rights. Like it was his instinct. “Even husbands feel weak for the way that we need each other.”

“Hmm,” Katsuki leaned in to press their foreheads together. One of his hands moved to cradle the back of Eijioru’s neck, and the other hand held his cheek. Eijirou returned with a squeeze of his hands around Katsuki’s waist. “If none of them fit, then we’ll use them all until something does.”

Katsuki closed his eyes to think. Suddenly, all Eijirou wanted was for those garnets to reveal themselves to him again. He knew he was greedy. He had his world in his lap, and yet he wanted more. He had more, and still he wanted to be reminded that he owned it. 

All wealthy men were greedy for what they already had. Eijirou was simply the richest man he knew.

“If they’re all shitty for us, then we’re worthy of all of them,” Katsuki opened his eyes again. They stared into each other’s souls. The fit was better than a lock and its key. A new key could always be recut for a lock. A lock could be reprogramed for a new key. They were each other’s and that was it. They could only ever be each other’s. It was simply fact written into the makeup of their atoms. “So let’s start with one.”

“Okay,” Eijirou agreed as he leaned closer. Their lips were not even a breath away from each other. Lips brushed together as they spoke. “Then, should we start as boyfriends?”

“Boyfriends are normally the first step.”

“It's too trivial for us.”

“That’s a fucking complex word who taught you that?”

“Oh shut up.”

“...”

“No, I’m sorry. Please let me hear your voice.”

“What the hell, Ei?” Katsuki's eyes crinkled as he laughed. Eijirou could feel the puffs of air as the ugly sound registered as bell chimes in his ears. “You didn’t even last three seconds.”

He couldn’t restrain himself anymore.

Eijirou fully sealed their lips together. Katsuki’s lips were in a smile as he moved at the pace Eijirou set. It wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough to just kiss him. And deep down he knew that Eijirou would always crave Katsuki. Schrodinger couldn’t explain to him why he was both satisfied and hungry at the same time. But it was a fact.

Eijirou knew he was greedy simply because he was the richest man he knew.

His hands moved from the trim waist to the other’s back. They worked together to press Katsuki closer to him. As if they weren’t already intertwined so deeply and tight that their souls have melded together. 

“Ei,” Katsuki gasped as he attempted to pull away for a breath. And Eijirou will never admit to being jealous of the oxygen that freely gets to be breathed by his Katsuki. A spit trail still connected them. “I love you.”

It was said desperately. Like he needed to say it out loud. Like he didn’t care if it was simply fact. Because both of them know facts were only acknowledged if they are spoken aloud.

“I love you,” Eijirou kissed Katsuki deeply. Desperately. It was a mess of drool and tongue dancing along with each other. Words weren’t enough, but his words saved his Katsuki. Touch wasn’t enough, but Katsuki’s touch saved Eijirou. 

This mortal plane didn’t have anything worthy for Eijirou to express to Katsuki how much he was in love with the other. None of them were worthy. But they were worthy of them all.

“So, yeah. We’re together now,” Kirishima finishes the story with a soft smile and eyes fondly staring at Bakugou who was staring back with equally fond eyes and pink cheeks and ears. Though as he says his next statement, a pout forms on Eijirou’s face, and Bakugou rolls his eyes. “Boyfriends or whatever, even though it's not a good enough label for us.”

Class A is quiet. Each person had a different thought. Each person wears a different expression. Various expressions of nausea, excitement, and exasperation are displayed on each of their faces. 

“Wait,” Kaminari breaks the silence. He is a little green in the face. Eyes are wide and fearful. He’s afraid for the answer to the question he’s going to ask. “You’ve been dating for six months, right?”

“Yeah! We actually were coming back from our anniversary date,” Kirishima answers as he drags Bakugou to one of the unoccupied armchairs. He sits first before he pulls Bakugou into his lap. Chin on his shoulder. Bakugou leans into him a bored look already present.  “What’s up?”

“Six months means that you two were dating before spring break, right?” 

“Yeah!”

“So the rock gifting, gay penguin shit was when you two were together,” Mina realises the direction of thought Kaminari was on.

“Yes, what the fuck are you on?” Bakugou yells when asked again. If they were together before spring break, it means that things during and after spring break were done once they put a label on them.

“So, all that pining was you two together?” Sero finishes everyone’s thoughts. They all stare at Kirishima and Bakugou once they realize that it will not end. The pining will not end. The two of them have been together the entire time. So, getting together will not save them from the horror of being forced to witness the flirting, the pining, the disgusting sweetness that is the love of Kirishima and Bakugou.

“Oh, that wasn’t obvious?”