✨Lance McMeme✨

After settling into his seat, Midoriya sighed. Despite him being almost late to class nearly every other day, he was happy to arrive. The room was organized to perfection and the desks were always shiny and untouched. The desk chairs were beyond comfortable; Midoriya would ask what brand it was, but he was scared to hear the price.

Even with how neat the room was, the crowd of his classmates always brought a wonderful swarm of chaos. The countless different hair colors that decorated the heads of people with very specific personalities. It was rather relaxing to Midoriya, but he noticed it seemed to give Aizawa a headache. 

Looking back, the noise at Aldera Junior High wasn’t welcomed. His desk was the victim of markers and spitballs. The chairs hurt his back, especially once he started his training. Most importantly there was only one distinct personality in that room, Bakugo. And in comparison to how he behaved at UA, Bakugo had been a bad person. He didn’t care who he needed to put down to assert his success.

It seemed that everyone wanted to feel the same confidence as Bakugo so they reflected him. Sure, they could try and convince themselves and those around them that they hated Bakugo’s ego, but they envied and copied his every action.

Midoriya found them rather pathetic considering they never made a decision on their own. It was always made under the careful lense of what would make them appear the most useful and powerful. Everyone was organized into artificial cliques.

Despite everything feeling different after two wars and the impending doom of his quirk fading away, it was still a million times better than being at Aldera.

Twirling his pencil in between his thumb and index finger, Midoriya stared up at the chalkboard. It was Saturday and he was glad that Sunday was almost there. One more period and he was free. Still, it seemed that since the war life was far more peaceful. His classmates hit a level of maturity that two wars were bound to bring. Not to mention the impending doom of a villain attack was significantly lowered with the death of All for One and Shigaraki.

Aizawa slowly lowered his pile of papers. Usually, during the final period of the day, he’d decide what they did for their extra hero department period. For once, he didn’t plan on sending them to the field which wasn’t uncommon, but still, he’d be putting them to work.

“Okay, today we are going to be doing something different,” informed Aizawa tiredly, not thrilled about the upcoming week.

Kaminari opened his mouth to make a comment, but was quickly interrupted by Aizawa’s sixth sense. “No, we are not having a free period, Kaminari.”

Deflating in his seat while Jiro snickered, Kaminari crossed his arms. Allowing curiosity to take the lead, Midoriya quickly sat down his pencil. Aizawa cleared his throat before continuing. “We are going to have a visitor today. Since you all constantly run into trouble I’ve brought someone here today to teach you how to handle children.”

Midoriya returned to twirling his pencil as he pulled out his notebook. This would be an important lesson if he wasn’t already good at handling children. The visitor must be someone special and probably has some tips to offer. It wouldn’t hurt to improve.

The door swung open to reveal a younger male, he was in a white button up and some plain black slacks. Bowing as he stepped in, Midoriya immediately recognized the pale blue hair with a slightly purple hue. Unable to contain his excitement, Midoriya wore a wide smile as he watched none other than a “friend’s” family member walk in.

“Hello everyone. My name is Fujima Shinkichi and I work as a quirk scientist with a specialty for children,” revealed the visitor proudly before announcing, “feel free to ask any questions if you are confused about my job. I’m more than happy to explain.”

Aizawa nodded before sitting in the corner of the room in his sleeping bag. It seemed that no one had any initial questions much to Midoriya’s relief. He knew Fujima-san had an older son, but he was too busy taking care of her younger children; he never got a chance to get to know the spoken of son. What a funny coincidence.

Nonetheless, the period flew by. It was incredible to hear about the work Shinkichi did. Not only did Shinkichi understand quirks more than anyone else in the world, but he also was able to keep parents and their children safe from potential quirk accidents. Considering Shinkichi also helped children learn how to control their quirk or send referrals for children to receive support gear to accommodate their quirk, he was a hero in a round-about way.

The day had been rather uneventful, so Midoriya really enjoyed watching the spark of recognition flash across Shinkichi’s face. Of course, he refused to make a scene so he effortlessly continued looking around the room as if he hadn’t been thrilled to see someone he knew.

When the bell rang, Shinkichi smiled and nodded at each 2-A student as they left. They were war heroes after all. He could barely believe it when he was contacted by UA High to teach the notorious class 2-A about handling children with unpredictable or dangerous quirks.

With the pressure of school and his job, Shinkichi was never home and barely spoke to his mother. He was aware his mother was struggling to manage her two kids by herself following the accident that left her legs paralyzed and also a widow. Much to his relief, she had found a young person to help around the house and to help with the kids for an affordable price.

When the war brought Shinkichi home, he was surprised to hear that Midoriya wasn’t around anymore because of school. By the time Midoriya left, Fujima-san had been able to carry out most tasks she could before the accident and her children were old enough where most of her concerns were no longer a problem. Still, Shinkichi was provided a picture of Midoriya playing with the kids, it wasn’t much, but it was enough for Shinkichi to recognize Midoriya. He felt like an idiot for not realizing the World's Greatest Hero: Deku was none other than Izuku Midoriya, his mothers savior. It was a wonderful surprise.

Most of the class had left at that point. Mina and Kirishima were chatting at the desk, not in a big rush to get back to the dorms. Iida and Momo approached Aizawa to have their usual weekly discussion about any concerns they had over the past week. Bakugo was trapped at the doorway by Todoroki. Uraraka was hovering by Todoroki and Bakugo, amused by Bakugo’s attempts to not freak out and Todoroki’s indifference.

“Fujima, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” greeted Midoriya softly, the weight of war resting heavy on his childlike excitement.

Nodding happily, Shinkichi took Midoriya’s hand between his own and bowed his head. “Thank you for taking care of my mother and siblings while I was away.”

Perking up, surprised that was what he was being thanked for, Midoriya chuckled, “Please! Your siblings were wonderful. If UA didn’t become a mandatory boarding school and the villain attacks never happened, I would have never left.”

“They are only as awesome as they are because you helped raise them,” noted Shinkichi with an amused smirk.

Waving his hand, feeling his cheeks heat up at the praise, Midoriya squeaked, “You’re too kind! Rai had a lot on her plate and I truly didn’t want her to worry at all.”

Shinkichi frowned, crossing his arms. “Yeah, I’m really glad she had you around. I didn’t want to drop out of college because I needed this job to earn a lot of money.”

“Would you like to talk elsewhere? Somewhere more private?” offered Midoriya softly, aware that the topic of losing his father and nearly losing his mother would still be far from easy recall.

Nodding, Shinkichi let his shoulders sag with a weak grin. “Yeah, that would be nice. I can even tell you how Mako and Anri have been.”

Adjusting his worn book bag straps, Midoriya grinned. “Let’s go, there is a really nice park on UA’s campus. Unless you want to go somewhere else?”

“That’s good, I’m going to stop by a vending machine to grab a quick drink and snack,” agreed Shinkichi, scooping up his bag.

Bakugo, Todoroki, and Uraraka now stood before the door like security guards. Upon missing the majority of the conversation and mainly hearing how they were going somewhere alone to talk, alarm bells were ringing. As Midoriya and Shinkichi approached the door, they seemed unbothered by the three students and their very different expressions.

Bakugo’s arms were crossed, his eyes narrowed and focused on Shinkichi. “Izuku? Where are you going?”

Midoriya motioned to Shinkichi with a reassuring smile. “I used to work for Fujima-san’s mother. We were planning on catching up.”

“You had a job?” questioned Todoroki curiously, impressed he hadn’t heard about this before.

Quick to pitch in, Uraraka tilted her head. “What did you do?”

Happy to answer for Midoriya, Shinkichi listed, “Midoriya did a lot for my mother. He was a housekeeper, a caregiver, and a jumble of a bunch of other things. He pretty much kept our house running while me and my mother were figuring things out.”

“Yeah, you could say my job title was… flexible,” murmured Midoriya, shrugging as he looked between his friends.

Much like what he figured would happen, Midoriya was immediately swarmed when he returned to the dorms after having a really long and refreshing talk. After having to come to terms with the fact he will earn his hero license and technically be a pro hero, he won’t ever work as one. After hearing Shinkichi compliment his kids skills, it kinda clicked that there are a lot of jobs that he can put those skills to use.

It felt like he could feel how fast the world was moving when he got excited by the idea of becoming a teacher. Not once in his life had he ever been interested in being anything other than a hero. Yet, the thought of combining his obsession with the hero world, its history, and his ability to work well with the youth, it seemed like a plausible career. Nonetheless, the disappointment he immediately felt after destroyed any excitement of the future.

“How was your talk with the visitor?” questioned Uraraka happily, her hands linked behind her back.

“It was nice. Honestly, it really made me miss the two kids I used to watch,” admitted Midoriya, stepping toward the vacant couches.

Slipping into the seat next to Midoriya, Todoroki paused momentarily at the thought of Midoriya working prior to UA High. “So, how did that happen?”

“Well, it’s definitely not my story to tell, but I found the job because of my Mom,” started Midoriya, leaning back into the soft cushions as he messed with his nails. “Basically Fujima really needed help taking care of her kids because of extremely personal problems. She needed help to take care of her kids until she was able to push through… her issues. I offered help and Fujima offered me a job.”

Feeling curiosity rear its ugly head, Bakugo recalled Midoriya coming to school looking like a zombie, but he figured that was because of his training to get into UA. This new information created a blank space in the Midoriya timeline he needed to fill. “So you were taking care of some brats?”

Turning to look at Bakugo, Midoriya nodded with a smile he hadn’t worn in a long time. “Yeah, when I first started,  Mako was one and Anri was five. Not only did their mother need help to take care of them for a bit, work kept her extremely busy even with her working from home. So I cleaned the house, cooked meals, took the kids to and from daycare, and looked after them when I returned from school. I did that all the way up until UA became a boarding school. By then, Fujima-san was doing much better, Mako was 4, and the kids were mostly self-sufficient outside of making food and cleaning.”

Uraraka blinked slowly, kicking her legs out across the couch she claimed for herself. “Wow, you really did keep their house running.”

“Looking back, there is no reason why I was taking care of a one year old full-time at the age of twelve, but I don’t necessarily regret it,” admitted Midoriya, scratching his missing freckles.

“That explains why you are good with kids,” remarked Todoroki, tilting his head to the side.

Bakugo scowled, he could tell that whatever conversation Midoriya had with that extra, a lot more than some fond memories were thrown around. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if the mysterious problem that the Fujima family was going through was the main factor, but something was said that affected Midoriya. The worst part is, Bakugo couldn’t even tell if it was a good or bad thing.

As Uraraka and Todoroki called it quits to go and get into their comfy clothes before dinner, Bakugo remained planted at Midoriya’s side. “What did that shithead say that has your head in the clouds?”

Tilting his head back over the top of the couch, Midoriya sighed, “After we caught up, he started asking about how I enjoyed my time at UA and such. I’m not going to lie… there wasn’t much I could say I enjoyed outside of you and the others, seeing pro heroes, saving people, and learning about heroes.”

Remaining eerily quiet, Bakugo lifted a foot onto the couch, leaving his other leg draped off. “I get it. Those things seem pretty weak in comparison to the constant pressure of performing good, facing villains, nearly dying, and having two fucking wars haunting you every night.”

“Yeah… I don’t know. I opened up about my great sacrifice and how I had no idea what I was going to do with my life once I graduate,” confessed Midoriya, rolling his head to the side to focus on Bakugo, the exhaustion taking over.

“You don’t have to figure everything out immediately. Hell, most of Japan is still figuring out what their next step is,” reassured Bakugo swiftly, scoffing as he even debated his own future. He was juggling many things in the aftermath of his death and resurrection, the rehabilitation of his arm, and how he was going to assure Midoriya could keep his dream of becoming a hero.

Midoriya watched Bakugo speak and felt the weight in his chest grow heavy. What could he possibly want out of life that he didn’t already have? He was living with all of his friends, he was fighting alongside Bakugo, and he had an incredibly powerful quirk. He wanted to keep using that quirk to keep everyone safe. He wanted to stay right beside Bakugo. He wanted to stay on this couch surrounded by loud conversations.

He couldn’t understand his inability to open his mouth and say the truth. A part of him wondered if it was because it was Bakugo. Would it make the reality feel all the more real? Did he want to acknowledge that he was thinking of another career that wasn’t being a hero? Was he even ready to move on? By saying this to Bakugo, what was the end result? What would the response be? The news of being quirkless brought Bakugo to tears. Now that becoming a pro hero was slipping away too, would he be equally upset? What if Bakugo isn’t surprised? Would he be okay with that response?

“Yeah,” agreed Midoriya numbly, feeling the rest of what he wanted to say die in his throat. When has he ever hesitated saying what he wanted? Was the hesitation because he didn’t want to face reality or because this wasn’t what he wanted? Midoriya figured it was a mixture of both. Still, no one knew him better than Bakugo did. They’ve never known life apart so truly, there was no reason to hide the idea.

Uraraka frowned at the loud silence that followed Midoriya’s short half-hearted response. “If you want to go back to being a babysitter, no one is going to hold that against you. It’s clear you really enjoyed the kids even if you were really young to have all the responsibility on your shoulders.”

Todoroki and Bakugo were quick to look at Midoriya’s response. They knew deep down they didn’t have a right to force Midoriya to still work full-time as a pro hero, but the thrill of working with him in the future wasn’t something they were ready to let go of. Much to their dread and curiosity, Midoriya was smiling as his eyes remained focused on the ceiling.

“Thanks, that means a lot. But, nothing is set in stone and I have plenty of time to decide what I want to do… after all we are barely into our second year here. I still have the embers of One for All. I have time,” murmured Midoriya’s, seeming to try and convince himself more than remind the three around him.

As if on cue, Midoriya’s phone started ringing. Internally cursing at the fact he forgot to silence his phone, he raised it onto to find a wonderful surprise. Raising from his seat, Midoriya bowed his head. “Sorry I must take this.”

As Midoriya got up to speak to the woman that he dedicated three and a half years to helping, the trio on the couch let his absence wash over them. Bakugo remained eerily quiet, staring at the space Midoriya had just been filling. Todoroki on the other hand watched Midoriya off.

“I haven’t wanted to ask him, but do you think he’s really going to step away from doing hero work?” inquired Todoroki, finally turning to look at Uraraka.

Letting out a long shaky breath, Uraraka wrapped her arms around herself as he wished for the couch to consume her whole. “Well, at this point… I don’t care if he does or not. I just want him to be okay. After how we all tried to brush off the war… I think we pushed Deku away out of fear he’d try to talk to us about our problems. I failed to realize he may need comfort. If he wants to step away, I’m planning on being as supportive as I can be.”

Bakugo crunched his hands into fists. “Fuck that shit. I have no plans of letting him slip away. All he’s ever wanted since we were kids was to be a hero. There is no one more worthy of becoming the number one hero… I won’t allow him to give up.”

Todoroki and Uraraka shared a knowing glance before nodding at Bakugo. “Call us when you have a plan,” reassured Uraraka fondly, meeting Bakugo’s burning eyes.

“I’ll do anything as long as Midoriya’s happy,” joined Todoroki, watching as Midoriya chatted to an unknown person outside through the oversized windows.

He never minded chasing after others. There was this insatiable hunger deep down to see the best of those around him. Convincing himself that the past could be forgotten and forgiveness didn’t need to be vocally expressed through an exchange, Midoriya remained in a constant state of happiness. That’s what Class A only ever saw from him.

There were times he’d be frustrated, sad, or have some muted form of an attitude, but most of the time it wasn’t directed at anyone in particular unless it was a villain.

Midoriya had a cloud of energy around him. Depending on how someone needed to be recharged, the cloud would shift into a comfortable calmness or bloom from excited ramblings about the hero world or something interesting that happened.

After the back to back tidal waves known as the Paranormal Liberation War and the Final War, the stillness of life was heavy.

As Midoriya laid in the hospital bed, Toshinori’s heart monitor steadily beeped. It was the only sound in the entire room that brought him some comfort. Thanks to Eri’s quirk, many of the initial injuries Midoriya acquired in the war were gone. Still, everything that happened after his arms were blasted off were still painful and showed no signs of healing soon.

Visitors were scarce. It makes sense considering many of his classmates and fellow heroes were also recovering in the hospital, placed on bed rest. Still, the sudden absence of seven loud voices he’d grown used to hurt more than it should have. There was a small flicker of what was left of One for All and the clock was ticking of what he had left vanishing.

When All Might arose, Midoriya wore a sad smile, feeling the weight of heroism still on his shoulders even in the aftermath of a victory. They shared long conversations about the future and what their plans were. When they healed enough to move around, Midoriya spoke with Spinner. Despite Spinner having his entire body held between two large hands, Midoriya made sure his message was clear.

Tenko Shimura didn’t die in vain and Tomura Shigaraki died with a smile.

Upon classes resuming, Midoriya did his best to smile and maintain the same bubbly personality he had before… but he couldn’t fool himself. It seemed it didn’t take his classmates much convincing he was fine. If anything, they seemed to dodge him a bit. For what reason he didn’t know, but he did have a heart to heart with Uraraka eventually. It seemed to reunite the class’ bond a bit, but Midoriya could feel that hollowness continue to grow as the days passed.

A lot was left unsaid and Midoriya went to the one person he felt most comfortable with for his dilemma. The dorm was average sized and homey. A couple of cats rushed around to sniff his shoes and he slipped them off in the genkan.

“What seems to be the matter, Midoriya,” asked Aizawa gruffly, guiding Midoriya to the open living area.

“I don’t know what I want to do with my life,” admitted Midoriya quietly, eyes watching the way Aizawa’s pink sweatpants got caught under the fronts of his black slippers.

The feet he was intentionally watching came to a stop before slowly turning until they pointed back at him. Too scared to trail his glance back up to the man that was most definitely looking at him, Midoriya blinked harshly.

A hand reached its way over to rest on Midoriya’s shoulder. “Okay kid. How about I get you something to drink and we talk about this on the couch?”

Stiffly nodding, Midoriya tore his eyes away from where they’d been burning a hole into black fabric and up to the face that wore an expression Midoriya hadn’t seen in a long time. Aizawa’s hair was in its original part, allowing his scarred right eye to greet Midoriya. The eye patch covering the empty socket was a bit crooked from his eyebrows twisting in fondness. Aizawa stared at Midoriya with a tender stare and a warm smile. The exhaustion in his dark circles seemed to evaporate in the face of his patient observation.

The random meeting soon became weekly talk sessions in the cozy apartment. When Aizawa had away missions or business meeting with the hero public safety commission Hawks was busy rebuilding, Midoriya was the one who looked after Aizawa’s cat and watered the plants Eri had grabbed for him.

By the time graduation came around, Midoriya had some form of a game plan. With the recent loss of One for All and his full return to being quirkless, he worked with Toshinori to pursue the life he wanted. Deciding to work with David and Melissa Shield, Midoriya planned to move to America. Toshinori would travel with Midoriya, finding it to be a soul searching idea considering their extremely recent quirkless status. 

Just like that, Midoriya packed up his life into two suitcases and hopped on a flight to a different country. Inko chose to stay back, not too comfortable with a giant change such as moving. She also didn’t want to become completely dependent on her son, which would most likely occur.

So life moved on. Izuku was accepted into an online Japanese college for Biology. While he pursued his Bachelors, he also developed hero gear and suits with Melissa Shield in his free time. Eventually when his English got good enough, he started doing public appearances, interviews, and even did some modeling gigs.

Through it all, Toshinori was right by his side, asking how Midoriya’s day was and dragging him out all over the city. They accepted and embraced their life free of All for One and the sudden endless paths they could take. David and Toshinori rekindled their friendship, not having talked too much after the incident with Wolfram and the quirk amplification device.

Yet, as much as Midoriya cherished his time experiencing life in America, he knew he’d return to Japan. He missed his mother, Aizawa, and the kids. While he occasionally talked with Bakugo, Todoroki, Uraraka, and Iida, it wasn’t as often as he would’ve thought back when he was sixteen.

Getting a driver's license in America before Japan, getting a tongue piercing at eighteen, celebrating his twenty-first birthday in an American bar with Melissa and her group of friends, and finding out he had an “I am here!” tramp stamp right above his ass after a crazy night out were just some of things he experienced.

Midoriya discovered he loved cooking, speed skating, and eating wedding cake off of the floor with a random guy he got black out drunk with the week prior.

Returning to Japan for medical school was rather strange and rather empty. Still, the taste of his mother’s cooking and being surrounded by familiar faces after four years brought him a relief he was grateful to feel.

After visiting Aizawa upon his return, it was only then he got information about his classmates. Shortly after he moved to the USA, Kirishima and Kaminari proposed having an annual class reunion where everyone scheduled the same weekend off to meet. Mina eagerly latched onto the idea and immediately sent out specially made save the date cards.

When it came down to addresses, she asked a few people, wanting to keep the idea itself a surprise. When she got to Midoriya, she quickly turned her attention to her boyfriend. Kirishima admitted he wasn’t sure and noted he could ask Bakugo. When they ran into the blond after a patrol, Bakugo shrugged, mentioning the last he knew, Midoriya was still living with his mother.

It should have been alarming that it had been months since graduation and Bakugo didn’t visit in between shifts. Although, whose to say they didn’t see each other in public rather than in the privacy of their homes.

When an RSVP never came, Bakugo reached out to Midoriya on Mina’s behalf. Imagine his shock when Midoriya revealed he’d been living in America for over two months and had already told Bakugo this. Yet, Bakugo couldn’t remember ever being told Midoriya planned on moving nineteen hours by plane away.

The reunion felt empty with Midoriya’s absence, but they never sent him a text. The belief he’d fly back for a single dinner wasn’t strong enough.

Upon hearing that Class A had been having an annual class reunion and he wasn’t even graced with an invite stung. It didn’t matter what the reason for his lack of an invite was. A strong message was sent and he had no plans on telling anyone he was back. Call him petty. The occasional text was clearly more than enough for the five people that bothered keeping in touch.

Midoriya channeled all his energy into medical school. It was rather strange, but becoming a hero doctor was incredibly difficult. If Midoriya could compare it to anything else it was a mixture of training to become a surgeon, nurse, doctor, and an EMT all at the same time. It was stressful and caused many nights where he slept on a tear stained pillow, but he felt fulfilled.

With villains attacks being less frequent but no less dangerous, having a strong and young professional would be beneficial with Recovery Girl soon retiring. Nonetheless, Midoriya accepted he’d never compare to a hero with a healing quirk. But Midoriya was still thankful, Nezu confirmed he’d welcome Midoriya with open arms.

By now, Izuku was 23, in his third year of medical school. It was a nice experience being in the background while also being deeply respected. Teachers and classmates respected his space and were always fun to be around and talk with. There was no history of knowing him personally while he had One for All or the weight of the world on his hands. They talked about silly things like crushes, parties, annoying assignments, and anything else young adults would discuss.

Deciding to celebrate the new school year, Midoriya agreed to go out with a couple classmates. With the first week of clinical clerkships done and dusted, Midoriya was at an all time high. There was one bar that always gave discounts to first responders and medical care providers. The owners didn’t care that they were students so they often frequented.

Throwing on his jacket over his dark blue scrubs, Midoriya stepped out of his car. Many of his friends leapt out as well, excited to drink and relax after a stressful but fulfilling week. The bouncer grinned, winking at the group of medical students. Midoriya locked his car before approaching the woman. “Nice to see you doing well!”

“Likewise. I know you all are past twenty, but let me see those beautiful pictures,” chuckled the woman, hand extended.

Upon stepping inside, the energy was unmatched. It was a mixing pool of work uniforms, fancy outfits, and casual clothes. Quick to grab a table near the bar, everyone got their drinks of choice before throwing themselves down.

A loud burst of laughter came from a nearby table and Midoriya’s curiosity was piqued. Carefully turning around, he peeked at the group only to catch an eyeful of faces he hadn't seen in years. Aizawa’s words came rushing back for him in waves: the annual reunions he’d never been invited to. Quickly snapping his head forward, Midoriya squeezed his eyes closed before throwing back his entire beer in large rushed gulps.

Worriedly looking at their usually composed friend, one of his friends grabbed his hand. “What’s wrong?”

“Those people behind me. They are my classmates from UA. I found out when I returned to Japan that they’d been having annual reunions and never once had I been invited. Even after returning, appearing on billboards, and seeing almost everyone I knew, I still haven’t seen them until now. Seeing it for myself really is the final nail in the coffin,” rambled Midoriya, letting his fingers run through his messy green locks he desperately needed to trim.

“Go confront them. It’s better than letting all this resentment build. We will be right here and happily cover your bill. They may not value your presence, but we do. Fight this battle so we can celebrate our accomplishments!” cheered the young adult, her eye crinkling in a similar manner to his mothers.

Nodding, Midoriya rose from where he was sitting, hanging his jacket over the edge of the chair. Stalking over to the large table, his presence was immediately noticed. Eyes quickly widened, expressions brightened, and mouths dropped wide open. When there was no trace of a smile on Midoriya's face, a little pit formed in the group's gut.

“What a surprise to see everyone here,” greeted Midoriya smoothly, his tone unreadable.

“You’re back in Japan! When did that happen?” squealed Uraraka, fully turned around in her chair.

“Two years ago,” deadpanned Midoriya, no trace of a smile on his lips.

Blinking slowly, Todoroki tilted his head to the side, “Why didn’t you tell us? I’ve missed you so much.”

Raising an eyebrow, Midoriya crossed his arms in one heavy movement. “I didn’t think I had to tell you? In our texts I’ve quite literally said I was visiting Eri, eating at restaurants that only exist in Japan, and you know the name of the school I go to.”

The silence was heavy, Todoroki staring at his phone as if it had personally wounded him. “I’m sorry, Midoriya. I didn’t even realize.”

“I can see that,” answered Midoriya shortly, glancing around the table. “So what’s the occasion? Is this the annual class reunion Aizawa told me about?”

Faces paled as mouths wordlessly moved. As if six years wasn’t enough time to think about what they were doing, the realization was instant. Mina bowed her head. “I’m so sorry! I was responsible for handing out invites! I just assumed you were still in America. I didn’t send you an invite because I figured you wouldn’t want to fly over for a single dinner.”

Turning all his attention onto Mina, Midoriya smiled. The bitterness swirled in his gut and the lack of distance from the people he once cherished was far too overwhelming. “Oh, okay.”

Mina’s lip wobbled, eyes wet and puppy-like. Kirishima glanced over at Bakugo, something in his chest twisted and brought him sharp pain. “Midoriya, could we talk outside, please?”

Perking up, Midoriya slowly nodded his head. “Okay.”

Kirishima was quick to slide back his seat, approach Midoriya and guided him away. Midoriya looked at his group of friends and held up his hand in acknowledgment.

The moment the crisp night air greeted the duo, Kirishima was bowing before Midoriya, hands pressed against the ground. Blinking rapidly at the sudden display of shame, the dark cloud over his head suddenly vanished.

“I’m so sorry Midoriya,” Kirishima started.

Midoriya held up a hand, closing his eyes. “Wait a second. I’m going to grab my jacket and I’ll be right back.”

Stepping back inside, Midoriya scooped up his jacket, reassured his friends, and walked back outside. Kirishima stared off at the cars speeding down the road off in the distance. Midoriya wrapped his arms around his body. “Now, what are you apologizing for?”

“How shitty we’ve been to you. In all the chaos that our lives became, you’ve slipped through the cracks. You’re the last person we should have neglected. Even back in our final years at UA, I know I held this mentality that you had everything under control and nothing affected you. Yet, I’m an idiot for thinking that. Then when I came up with the idea of doing a reunion, Mina wanted to send out invites. We reached out to Bakugo for your address and he assumed you were still living with your mom. No one knew you moved to the states or what you were doing there? Then Mina chose not to send you an invitation and I didn’t interject. I didn’t bother reaching out or attempting to keep in touch. Only to find out you’ve been back in Japan for two years already. I’ve really failed you not only as a friend, but as a person,” expressed Kirishima, not once stuttering or taking his eyes away from Midoriya’s.

Unable to do anything else, Midoriya felt the pretty globs of water spill from his eyes. Biting his lip to hold back a sob, Midoriya let his head fall forwards.

“I’m so sorry. I know just how horrible of a place I was in after the war… I regret just assuming you were handling it with ease,” whispered Kirishima into Midoriya’s ear, quick to take Midoriya into a secure hug. He couldn’t stop the tears from spilling out as well. Guilt was one hell of an emotion, and Kirishima was drowning in it.

“Do you go to school nearby?” croaked Kirishima, pulling back from the hug to get an eyeful of a runny mess Midoriya’s face now was.

“Yeah, about fifteen minutes away from here. Although now I’m jumping from hospital to hospital every couple of weeks so… I don’t know,” sighed Midoriya, wiping his face with his fleece jacket sleeve.

Smiling, Kirishima pointed ahead of him. “Awesome! Me and Mina’s agency is ten minutes that way. If you’re not too busy, I’d love to make up for all the lost time. I’m such an asshole.”

Chuckling, Midoriya pulled out a single clean tissue from his pocket and extended it out. “Here. I’d like that. And… while you’ve definitely hurt my feelings to some degree I’m not too sure of myself, you’re not an asshole.”

Looking up at the night sky and wiping his face, Kirishima took in a long breath. “Are you a doctor, nurse, or…,” trailed off Kirishima.

Looking down at his scrubs, Midoriya grinned. “Hero doctor. I do pretty much everything. Right now, I’m still in medical school. I already graduated from college.”

“Nice! I must say, this is one of the best career paths you could’ve taken. Saving people and being your own kind of hero. I’m excited to see what you accomplish,” admitted Kirishima, flashing his shorter companion and a fond side glance.

“Thank you… how’s things with you and Mina?” questioned Midoriya, his shoulders falling as a genuine smile bloomed on his face.

Finally returning his full attention to Midoriya, Kirishima’s face bloomed pink. “Really good. I feel so lucky. We’ve been living together for four years now. Between you and me, I’m planning on proposing soon. I haven’t told anyone yet… honestly I don’t trust anyone to not tell.”

Zipping his lips, locking, and throwing away the fake key, Midoriya clasped his hands behind his back. “Well, your secret’s safe with me.”

Before Kirishima could respond, a low voice cut through the peace of the night.

“Ejiro, Mina is a mess right now,” stated Bakugo, walking to stand on the other side of Midoriya.

“Alright. Talk to you in a bit Midoriya,” voiced Kirishima, waving before returning inside.

Bakugo settled into a place beside Midoriya, appreciating just how beautiful Midoriya has become. It had been six years. Sure he saw the occasional post of public appearances right after he went to America, but he let his curiosity die in exchange for daily texts and the half-awake phone calls.

Yet here Midoriya was. His hair was messy and overgrown in the most beautiful display. His scars had faded, leaving slight discoloration and a lack of bottom lashes on his right eyelid. His face was more sculpted and his wide doe eyes appeared sharper. He was taller, and his muscles remained as lean as ever, bringing a pinch of relief to Bakugo.

“What was America like?” asked Bakugo quietly, staring at his feet after ripping his eyes away from freckled cheeks.

“It was wonderful. I enjoyed the people, food, and working with Melissa,” answered Midoriya thoughtfully.

Allowing his eyes to roam again, his hands tightened into fists. The vagueness accompanied by the briefness of Midoriya's response was slowly chipping away at all composure he could muster. He didn’t want to panic, but it was hard not to when his fuck up as so blatantly shoved into his face to acknowledge.

“How has medical school been? I’m assuming you just started a new semester,” started Bakugo, turning his body to face Midoriya’s.

“It’s been good. It keeps me busy. I just finished my first week,” answered Midoriya, turning to match Bakugo, meeting those burning red eyes with his own.

Sneering, Bakugo narrowed his eyes at the detached attitude he was receiving. “Why are you acting like this? Giving attitude to Uraraka, Todoroki, and Mina… now you're being weird to me.”

Not bothering to hide his surprise, Midoriya’s eyes widened as his mouth opened into a disbelieving smile. He tauntingly scoffed, “Really? You want to play that game? I told you I was moving to America back during your third year and now I’m finding out from Kirishima that you didn’t remember even when he asked you for my address for invites to a reunion I was never invited to for the past six years? No calls, no texts, no promise to hang out despite me asking you over the phone if you wanted to. No invites to hang out even though I tell you my plans. Why would I be excited to see you—especially when it’s during a class reunion I wasn’t invited to!”

“I’m busy and overworked Izuku! Why am I the bad guy?” shouted Bakugo. Deep down everything inside him was screaming to shut the fuck up, but old habits died hard.

Shaking his head slowly, Midoriya tilted his head up and laughed. “You know what? You’re right. You’re not the bad guy… you’re never the bad guy. Because god forbid I’ve been struggling and would appreciate the presence of someone I trust most in the entire world. But sure, you’re the one whose busy and overworked and it’s my fault for being upset you don’t care we haven’t seen each other in six years,” spat Midoriya, raising a hand to slowly wipe his right eye, his eyes burning from all the energy put into not crying

Biting his lip, Bakugo crashed to the ground, sitting on the street curb. Letting his arms balance on his knees, hands pathetically hanging. “I’m sorry. It’s just… I can’t tell you what’s been going on.”

“Why not?” fired Midoriya, sitting beside Bakugo, his nametag jingling from the harsh movements.

“It’s supposed to be a surprise,” sighed Bakugo, covering his face in his hands before aggressively rubbing.

Looking down at his scared and crooked hands, Midoriya balled them into fists. “That’s not good enough. If I’m honest, that nothing-burger of an explanation makes me want to punch you.”

Bakugo looked at his clasped hands and frowned. “And I don’t want to ruin it after all these years.”

“Who cares about a surprise? If you can’t tell, I’m mad at you. If you expected me to have a positive reaction to whatever surprise has taken you six years, then you’ll be sorely mistaken. You can take that surprise and shove it,” chastised Midoriya brutally, wanting another drink and a long nap rather than ever this horrible conversation was turning into.

“What do you want from me?” complained Bakugo, too inexperienced to understand healthy communication. No longer being able to understand or read Midoriya was a blaring on-the-nose problem that was beating Bakugo on the back of the head.

Slowly rising from where he was sitting, Midoriya shook his head, “I waited for you. To explain it... or— apologize! Or tell me that you loved me. I waited for you... for years! I wish I stayed home.”

Heart pounding in his chest, Bakugo grabbed Midoriya's ankle tightly in his hand. “I’m building you a hero suit! One that looks like yours, but can mechanically emulate your quirks. Since I overheard you were quirkless again… I spent every second of free time trying to get you back at my side, achieving that dream to become heroes.”

“I don’t need a hero suit, I need you! I needed you to come into my hospital room and cry with me! I needed you to see me off at the airport or to beg me to stay! I needed you to visit me or tell me when would be a good time to visit you! I needed you to listen during those phone calls. I needed you to pay attention to what was going on in my life. I wanted you to celebrate and be the first one to see me the moment I got off that plane. When I walked into this place, I needed you to jump onto the table and blast your way to me. But you did none of that… and you still haven’t shown me you actually care,” cried Midoriya.

His eyes were squeezed shut so tight it made no sense how there was a fountain of tears pouring down his face. His face was cheery red and his snot shined in the street lamp light. His hands shook at his sides and the emotions poured out of him in thick unrelenting waves.

Bakugo was quick to rush forward and envelop Midoriya, digging his face deep into soft, fluffy hair that still smelt like the lemon All Might shampoo and conditioner set he used since childhood. Midoriya sank into the familiar black shirt, breathing the fabric that held to cologne he remembered complimenting Bakugo in mid-second year.

“It’s been six years, but I’m a selfish idiot. I spent so much of my day thinking about you. It feels like we just graduated, walking through the halls with our diplomas. I’m sorry I neglected you. And I’m sorry I’m such a dumbass. It doesn’t erase my words, my absence, or my lack of engagement during our calls and texts. If I’m honest, by the time we called, your voice was putting me to sleep,” confessed Bakugo, his voice muffled from where it was buried.

“Why didn’t you just say that?” huffed Midoriya, slapping Bakugo’s back. Still, Midoriya made no effort to get away, surrendering into the strong arms.

“I don’t know. I guess I panicked and got defensive because why the hell would I act normally when it comes to you,” grumbled Bakugo, appreciating the empty streets.

Sighing, Midoriya pulled back. “You’re an asshole.”

Grabbing Midoriya’s hands and squeezing them tightly within his own, Bakugo sucked in a breath. “Are you free this weekend?”

“That depends,” hesitated Midoriya, his gaze focused on their interlocked hands. Despite the majority of him still fuming and wanting to beat the ever-loving-shit out of Bakugo, he couldn’t stop his heart from pounding and his stomach flipping in anticipation with all the butterflies making sure to reignite his long suppressed longing.

“You and me. Saturday morning, we go hiking and see the cherry blossoms. Grab some lunch after. And I give you a tour of my hero agency,” listed Bakugo smoothly, rubbing his thumb over Midoriya’s bumpy knuckles.

Flicking his eyes up to Bakugo, Midoriya received a punch to the gut, feeling all air escape him. There was an unseen vulnerability and desire written in Bakugo’s eyes and his lips just barely curving into a smile, fear written in his twitching hands.

“How about… we go hiking, see cherry blossoms, eat lunch, and I take you back to my dorm?” suggested Midoriya, offering his own nervous smile.

“Sounds like a plan. Do you have a DVD player?” questioned Bakugo, raising an eyebrow.

Nodding slowly, Midoriya grinned. “Yeah, my dorm is like an apartment so I got a mini living room. I have a DVD player and some consoles.”

“I’ll bring some movies,” revealed Bakugo, feeling a rush of confidence return to him.

“See, that wasn’t so hard now was it?” teased Midoriya, feeling a bit more like himself. Seeing a group approach in his peripherals, Midoriya looked toward the doorway. “Well, I think I’ve thoroughly freaked out my friends. I should get back to them.”

“Yeah, likewise… although I feel like I’m about to return to the shitshow of questions and cries of me to mend the wound on their behalf,” whinged Bakugo, letting his shoulder’s hunch over before letting go of Midoriya’s hand.

Shrugging, Midoriya fixed his face before approaching the door. “Let them figure it out themselves. You and Kirishima approached me directly and immediately announced you’d be making plans with me. They are more than capable of figuring that out themselves."

“I’m liking this attitude,” complimented Bakugo, walking beside Midoriya as they gave a curt nod to the bouncer.

Grinning, Midoriya rolled his eyes. Sucking in a deep breath, Bakugo grabbed Midoriya’s wrist once more. “Talk to you later?”

“Of course, who else will lull you to sleep,” breathed Midoriya, his gaze hungry despite his words being provoking.

“Ha. Ha. Very funny Freckles,” grumbled Bakugo, doing his best to fight the blush he knew was creeping up to his ears.

“I’ll talk to you later, Kacchan,” repeated Midoriya, turning away and walking to his table.

Bakugo was quick to return and much to his surprise, the group was far more focused on watching Midoriya than questioning Bakugo. Bakugo couldn’t help but join them.

The five adults all excitedly greeted Midoriya. One woman slid over a beer while the man next to Midoriya rubbed his back. Midoriya picked up the menu and immediately put all his focus back onto the other people wearing matching scrubs.

Bakugo paused, turning his attention away from Midoriya and back to the group. “How did I survive these past six years without him?”

TW: suggested and mentions of SA and Rape

“Please, welcome the new student Rui Nagao,” announced the homeroom teacher, his thinning blond hair always being the first thing to catch Midoriya’s attention.

As the door slid open, a girl entered the room. Her hair was thick and fluffy, styled into a mid-neck bob. Midoriya noted that her hair was dark blue but with the help of his keen eye he spotted glittery light blue streaks throughout. Her eyes were also dark blue, but her pupils were a strange shape. If Midoriya could compare it to anything, it was a cartoon heart with an arrow through it.

“Hello everyone! I hope we can become great friends,” cheered Nagao, bowing before the group of nineteen students.

The adult cluckled, before turning to her. “If you are feeling up to it, would you like to introduce yourself or answer questions?”

Pausing, Nagao looked at the adult before turning back to the group of star-struck students. “I was born in Canada. Both my parents missed their family and wanted to return to Japan so here I am!”

“What is your quirk?” eagerly asked the girl seated beside Bakugo. Her stylish and messy brown hair bounced as her hand shot up to the ceiling.

“Oh! My quirk is cupid! I can’t get into the specifics because it caused me trouble at my old school, but it revolves around love!” revealed Nagao, making sure to remain vague enough to drive home the message he had no intentions of telling anyone what she was capable of.

Midoriya perked up at the concept of a love based quirk. From what he could observe, it may have something to do with the glittery strands of hair she has or she can emit the quirk from her eyes. Either way, he knew he had no chance of gaining any more information about her considering it was only a matter of time his classmates brought up his quirkless status.

When lunch finally rolled around, Midoriya remained planted in his seat, he had no desire to enter the cafeteria to eat. Anytime something interesting was going on, the others in the class acted more obnoxious, increasing Bakugo’s already high level of irritation, and therefore increasing the likelihood and harshness of an attack.

While the room had nearly cleared out, Midoriya was already busy pulling out his phone to finish writing about the villain attack that occurred the night prior. There was a bit of commotion coming from behind him, but he kept his attention solely on his notebook and phone. There was no reason to be curious or get an eyeful of what was going on. Distance equaled safety.

“Hi, I don’t think I’ve had a chance to personally greet you!” chirped Nagao, bowing her head slightly to Midoriya.

“Oh, nice to meet you,” murmured Midoriya, barely dipping his head to avoid provoking whoever else was in the room.

Nagao grinned, tilting her head to the side in response. “What are you doing?”

“Oh, uhm… hero analysis,” shuttered Midoriya, his eyes flicking between his phone, notebook, and the girl towering over him.

“That’s cool! So you’re a big hero fanatic?” questioned Nagao, pointing at the detailed drawing and analysis of Crust the number six hero.

“Yeah, I also love doing quirk analysis and coming up with potential uses for them,” noted Midoriya, rubbing the back of his neck, feeling a bit of his nerves vanish with the lack of a scowl or sneer. It wasn’t often people found his hobbies anything other than creepy and stalkerish.

Before she could say another word, the girl with long blue hair and a water quirk grabbed her wrist. “You shouldn’t talk to him.”

“What why?” squeaked Nagao, not fighting too hard against the guidance away.

Midoriya was quick to return to his notes, tuning out the world around him. He was rather impressed that it took more than two seconds for someone to drag the new student away. Yet the moment he stepped out of the front doors. A gentle hand tucked itself under his arm and grabbed him by the inside of his elbow.

“Nagao? What?” gasped Midoriya, head snapping over to Nagao.

“Shh! Common!” whispered Nagao, tugging him around the side of the building before catching attention.

Releasing her hold on Midoriya, she smiled and crossed her arms. “Wanna know about my quirk? I know you take your quirk analysis pretty seriously.”

Nodding vigorously, Midoriya’s notebook practically spawned into his hand and a pencil in the other, clicking it to life. “Yes! Although I thought you said you didn’t tell people because it caused you trouble.”

“Well, it seems like you not having a quirk brings you similar trouble mine brought me. You’re trustworthy,” declared Nagao, winking as she pointed at Midoriya.

“Oh, I suppose that makes sense,” hummed Midoriya, nodding slowly. “So, I know you said your quirk is Cupid, do you emit it from your eyes?”

Chuckling, Nagao nodded her head. “How about I just show you?”

In an instant blue eyes glowed as the heart flashed red and the arrow gold. A fuzziness fell over Midoriya as he held up his notebook, trying to process what he was feeling. Nagao simply smiled, already beginning to walk away. “You’ll know soon.”

The next day, Midoriya mindlessly walked back into his classroom after using the bathroom in between classes, patiently waiting for the bell to chime and silence the idiots that surrounded him. The door eventually slid open and the younger male teacher walked in. He liked and taught history and was a no nonsense kind of person. Yet the moment he stepped inside, he faltered, grabbing his chest.

Feeling his shoulders hunch forward, Midoriya couldn’t stop the pounding in his chest. The hairs on the back of his neck stood tall and his gut swirled uncomfortably. His gaze remained fully focused on the adult, feeling as if he was a fish caught on a hook being lured in. The adult’s gaze flicked over to Midoriya for an instant, but was quickly returned to the book and folder of papers in his hands.

Feeling his eyes shoot wide open, it took everything in his power to not look at Nagao. If he had, he’d be met with a malicious grin. As if something inside him died, Midoriya busied himself with his notebook. He couldn’t focus, the burning in his chest and gut only growing worse the longer class went on.

By the end of the class, Midoriya could feel a bead of sweat trail down his cheek. The adult stared at Midoriya before speaking loudly. It was strange, maybe the man's voice was enhanced because of the quirk, or simply this was the first time Midoriya has been able to focus. “Midoriya, meet me at the teacher’s room once school has concluded.”

Nodding, Midoriya sucked in a sharp breath, something inside his brain shifted, satisfied with the direct address. Truthfully, by the time Midoriya approached the teacher’s room, he was met with busy faces. His teacher rose from his seat and waved his hand dismissively at Midoriya. Much to his relief, there was no ache and no tug at his heart strings.

“You can head home. I don’t recall why I needed to speak with you,” admitted the adult.

His tone was so different from earlier that Midoriya could easily place emotions to it: shame, disgust, and confusion.

The rest of the school year was nothing but a fuzzy jumble of faces, conversations, and actions against his will. One day he’d have a strong and very mutual attraction to a teacher, and the next, a random peer who he passed in the hallway.

It didn’t take long to realize targeting him was extremely beneficial for a quirk like Nagao’s. It wasn’t visible or flashy. No one on the other end of her quirk would tell anyone they were attracted to Midoriya even if they managed to connect it back to Nagao. Their pride was too valuable to get Nagao punished. If Midoriya was to speak up he wouldn’t be believed or he’d be punished for accusing the new girl of a crime.

It was only after he’d been nearly assaulted in the locker room after PE did Midoriya truly experience fear of Nagao’s quirk. There was no room for shame or fear of consequences, he needed to do something. The quirk kept him just foggy enough to know something was wrong, but he physically went against what the back of his mind was telling him.

When school ended, Bakugo stalked over to Midoriya’s desk, hand raised to send off threatening explosions. Before he got a chance to use his quirk, Midoriya felt the tears already forming in his eyes as he forced the words out his mouth.

“I need help!”

The hand hovered in the air momentarily before dropping. His two lackeys, Hifumi and Tejio paused, their frowns disappearing as they exchanged a wary glance.

“What the hell? What are you saying Deku?” barked Bakugo, slamming a hand on Midoriya’s desk.

“Nagao,” the name was hard to say. His mouth was dry, his tongue feeling like sandpaper across the roof of his mouth. He could feel the twist in his gut still, signaling the unlucky guy he was paired with was still nearby. It was probably out of the guy's control, his body under the influence of a quirk.

Hifumi crossed his arms, raising a brow as he spoke up first. “Why would you need help? And why does it involve Nagao?”

“The past six months… she’s been using her quirk on me,” breathed Midoriya, the tug still beyond strong, begging him to get out of his seat and move towards the random person he’s never once spoken to.

Whatever weird hatred they reserved for Midoriya was quickly forgotten. Six months of this Nagao girl being a secret villain was a crazy concept that was more concerning than interesting.

Bakugo turned towards the door, before looking at Tejio. “Go make sure that shit is locked.”

Tejio was quick to move, completely closing the slider and locking the small latch into place. Meanwhile, Bakugo crossed his arms and sat down on top of the neighboring desk. “What do you mean that blue freak has been using her quirk on you for the past six months? Has the extra even been here that long?”

“Yeah,” started Midoriya, swallowing hard. “I can’t even describe it well. It messes with your head and body. It makes you behave against your control.”

“Is that why you look like you’re going to pass out all the time?” teased Hifumi, sitting down in a chair.

Shaking his head, Midoriya pointed a finger in the direction of the tug. “Her quirk is cupid. She emits her quirk onto two individuals, forcing a deep attraction between them. The day she showed up, she took me to the back of the school to tell me about her quirk. The last thing I remember was walking away feeling out of body.”

“Woah, woah, woah,” shouted Tejio, waving his hands dramatically. “She’s actually like cupid? But, you’re aware you don’t actually like the other person.”

“Yeah, because she’s used the quirk on me and teachers,” revealed Midoriya, letting his head rest against the cool surface of his desk. “I very much do not find those idiots attractive.”

Bakugo scowled, looking at Midoriya. “So, the extra has been making you and another person attracted to each other everyday for the past six months? You lose control of your brain and body which leaves you delirious. But why are you now asking for help?”

“Shigeru Muto tried to rape me in the locker room today. I only got away because the physical contact weakened the quirk enough I could kick him in the balls,” cried Midoriya, hiding his face away with his hands.

“Dude, what? Muto has a girlfriend,” responded Hifumi worriedly.

Midoriya heaved, covering his face. “I don’t know if the quirk works differently depending on the person. I’m typically fine if the other person is far apart. The closer we get and the longer we are close, my body is on a full force adrenaline rush. There’s a part of my brain screaming to get closer, touch, and speak to the other person. When the desire is fulfilled, the power of the quirk fades. It didn’t matter if I spoke to Muto. It also didn’t matter when he touched me. So his desire may have been completely different or maybe Nagao can choose what a person needs for emotional or mental relief,” mumbled Midoriya, finally exposing his face as he could sense Muto moving.

“Holy shit. Nagao is crazy,” replied Tejio, crossing his arms and leaning back.

“Wait. You believe me?” puzzled Midoriya, his eyes widening hopefully.

Bakugo nodded, mouth opening to respond when Midoriya curled in on himself, grabbing his chest when the door slightly wiggled.

“Midoriya? Are you in there?”

His eyes flicked over to Midoriya, noting the sudden silence, lack of visible panic despite what went down earlier in the day, and the clutching of his chest. Hifumi shook his head, bottom lip wobbling. “Dude, that’s Muto… what the hell do we do?”

Tejio scowled, looking toward Bakugo for guidance. Meanwhile, Bakugo was now on high alert, turning his attention toward the door. “It’s just me extra. I’m on cleaning duty so fuck off!”

“You’re lying. I know he’s in there,” confronted Muto, aggressively sliding open the door against the hook's dire attempt to do its job.

Moving on instinct, Hifumi and Tejio slowly moved Midoriya out of his seat and toward the back of the room. Bakugo stormed over to the door and unhooked it. “You better back off or I’ll blast you to hell.”

Immediately shoving Bakugo aside, Muto charged forward to where they had Midoriya sitting on the floor. Before he could get close, Bakugo grabbed Muto’s collar and dragged him backward as harshly as he could. The sound of desks toppling over caught the attention of the student council members and a teacher on their way to the teachers lounge.

“What is going on here?” shouted a student, rushing into the room.

Bakugo had Muto pressed to the ground, the boy still struggling against his grip. “Nagao used her quirk on De—Midoriya and Muto and now Muto is trying to assault him.”

As the teacher replaced Bakugo’s role in restraining Muto, the blond quickly made his way over to where Midoriya was sitting nearly unresponsive despite his eyes fully trained on where Muto was thrashing. With what information Midoriya had been able to provide, the two were immediately separated with Midoriya being laid down in the nurses office and Muto in the Principle’s office.

While Bakugo refused to let Midoriya walk, he watched as the effects of Nagao’s quirk faded the further away they got from the classroom. Letting out a shaky breath, Midoriya moved his head off from where it had been resting on Bakugo. “What happened Kacchan?”

“Muto went crazy trying to reach you. He’s with the student council and the Principal. The police have been notified about the situation and they are busy tracking down Nagao.

“Is he okay?” asked Midoriya softly, his eyes slowly switching to each room sign they passed.

“He should be fine. Once we get Nagao to deactivate her quirk he’ll be good to go. I made sure to tell them Muto was under the control of her quirk,” answered Bakugo, his voice steady despite his entire body burning at the strangely romantic moment.

Nodding in response, Midoriya closed his eyes. “Thank you. I didn’t know who else to go to.”

“I’m the best so of course you had to come to me,” boasted Bakugo loudly, his cocky smile spreading across his face.

As the trio sat in the nurses office, the clock quietly ticked by. Hifumi finally asked the question he’d been wondering. “So… does she have the ability to see who people like?”

Midoriya paused, looking at Hifumi in deep confusion. “I don’t think so, why?”

“Well, if she named her quirk cupid… wouldn’t it make sense if she matched people who liked each other?” wondered Hifumi, crossing his arms before leaning back in her seat.

“I guess that makes sense, but clearly she didn’t want to use it the correct way,” remarked Tejio frowning at the memory of Muto’s eyes staring down Midoriya as if he were the most desirable thing in the world.

Bakugo let out a laugh that sounded more like a scoff, his eyes narrowed and looking at Midoriya. “You make it sound like she purposefully chose people that Deku doesn’t like. Wait—do you have a crush, Deku?”

Rolling his eyes, Midoriya tiredly rested his head against the pillow on the bed he’d been laid on. “I would rather stick my head into a fucking beehive than to catch feelings again.”

Silence lingered after that strong declaration of hatred for love. Bakugo’s eyes widened as a pleased smile bloomed on his face. “Damn Deku.”

The End! 

“You ain’t ever need another lover. You’re a milf and I’m a mother fucker.”

Midoriya blinked slowly before pinching the bridge of his nose. “What the fuck?”

Izuku Midoriya couldn’t have asked for a better life. Being able to work as a pro hero and raise the next generations of heroes at UA was a dream come true. Every student that walked into his classroom was a person who had the potential to become the best hero. Sure, all he taught was history, did some occasional quirk analysis assistance during PE, and sporadically lectured in heroics studies, but he knew what he taught would have a major impact on their journey as a hero in superhuman society.

When Midoriya returned to the hero scene, it didn’t take long for him to make his mark as the number four hero. Much to his excitement, Bakugo was quick to chase after him and catch up as number five. Despite Midoriya’s rejection to Bakugo’s hero agency, the fiery blond made an effort to match his hero patrols to Midoriya’s. If there was a major issue going on, the hero commission would often pair Midoriya and Bakugo together much to their fellow pro heros’ amusement.

Life was incredible and with each year that passed, Midoriya grew more and more excited to see what his students would achieve outside of UA and past the restraints that came with being a hero in training. Initially, the second and third year homeroom teachers didn’t put Midoriya’s specialty into the students' schedule. Much to Midoriya’s surprise, both Vlad King and Aizawa immediately added Midoriya to their schedule. With the passing of Midnight and still no replacement, they just added extra hero studies courses in replacement so when Midoriya came along, he took the slots Midnight originally filled.

After Midoriya’s first year passed and the two groups of students he had taught left with a greater understanding of the hero world than he did at their age, the first year homeroom teachers of other departments put Midoriya on their roster. Midoriya’s course would be highly beneficial for the business department, besides the entire department was usually composed of 3-10 students total so it was nothing for Midoriya to teach them.

There wasn’t a real reason why the support department and the general education department weren’t being taught hero history. After many students expressed enjoying Midoriya as a teacher and the information he chose to teach, all homeroom teachers decided to switch around the scheduling.

Once the first years left the nest and made it to their second and third year, the teachers found that Midoriya’s class did have a positive impact on their studies in world history and hero lessons. It took some time, but eventually Midoriya was added to the remaining homeroom teachers schedules. While many students were thrilled to have Midoriya again, Midoriya needed to figure out how he was going to spread out his content over three years and how to manage teaching over one hundred students.

Soon enough, Midoriya was looking worse than Aizawa ever did. Nonetheless, he couldn’t be happier.

With the increase of students and the time that passed, many students debuted as pro heroes, support gear inventors, and other hero based jobs. Much to Midoriya’s appreciation, the business students wanted to work for Midoriya. Considering Midoriya’s schedule was rather ridiculous, he appreciated the offer. While many of them could get a job at any big organization with ease, Midoriya allowed them to work for him until they got onto their feet and felt confident moving up to harder positions with more “volatile” pro heroes.

It was really nice to watch students become confident professionals that wanted to work for him. Some students became his PR workers, their assistance with promoting, branding, and marketing surprisingly took the weight off his shoulders that he wasn’t doing enough. Midoriya figured both him and the students were having many of their firsts together, especially with him just returning to the hero scene around three years ago.

The support department was obsessed with his hero suit and desperately wanted to get their hands in on the project. Unfortunately Midoriya had to turn them down due to tight funding and how he wasn’t even in complete control of his hero costume. All he was was a test subject that occasionally gave critiques.

Lastly, the hero graduates were eager to battle him for his spot in the top four. They were strong heroes, but he couldn’t see Mirio, Todoroki, himself, or Bakugo budging anytime soon. Mount Lady shifted around, but her hero ranking pretty much always remained in the top five.

It was always fun to fight alongside them as strange of a feeling it was.

Despite the long hours and grueling schedule, Midoriya felt at peace most days. Moving in with Bakugo was the best decision he could have made. Bakugo’s work day started after Midoriya’s so he’d still be peacefully sleeping by the time Midoriya was getting up.

Meal prep was a lifesaver so Midoriya would throw some rice in their cooker, heat up homemade miso soup, and quickly reheat a premade rolled omelet. As the food was slowly being heated, Midoriya drank water, grabbed the lunch Bakugo prepared for him the night before, and did last minute touchups. Before scarfing down his meal, grabbing his bookbag filled to the brim, and rushing out the door, Midoriya fixed Bakugo his breakfast and started a pot of coffee.

Midoriya would teach all day on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. During the gaps he had in his schedule he’d work on his hero paperwork, lesson plans, and grading in the teachers’ room. Since the hero students have an extra period, Aizawa worked with Nezu to make sure no one scheduled Midoriya during the extra period. Leaving at 15:10 and rushing off to his second job, Midoriya was quick to gear up.

Contrary to his original concerns, Midoriya grew more and more confident that he was becoming his own hero outside of the expectations of those around him. Even when he had a quirk and was at UA, he became his own hero by making One for All a power of his own, but his actions were always directed by peers and teachers.

As Midoriya rushed out to his designated patrol route, he was almost immediately found by Bakugo. Eventually Bakugo would throw in the towel for the day, ask Midoriya what he wanted for dinner or tell him what he was making before heading back to his agency.

Midoriya would finish his patrol around 20:00 and head back to the apartment where a warm dinner would be waiting. Bakugo would yell at him to shower despite Midoriya’s whining that he wanted to help set the table. By the time Midoriya would return, Bakugo would be setting down the last dish and sitting down.

They’d eat, talk about their days, and finish eating. Midoriya would finally be allowed to help with cleanup and then they’d head to their small living room. For Midoriya’s 20th birthday, Toshinori gifted him with a giant massage sofa chair. It was soft, sleek, grey, and most importantly, had All Might theme accents all over. Midoriya would be curled up on the chair with a giant blanket and a large stack of papers on his lap. He’d have another pile on the small coffee table Bakugo bought for him.

Midoriya would have on his reading glasses, his bangs held back by a fluffy All Might Headband Eri (Aizawa) bought him, and one of his notorious graphic tee shirts.

Bakugo would be lying on the large couch next to him, watching whatever caught his eye. He’d pull out his laptop while sporting a pair of blue light reading glasses. Midoriya had noticed after some time, Bakugo could be doing nearly anything on the laptop with the number of secret talents he had. Lately Bakugo has been practicing his English reading and writing a lot more by writing fanfiction. Midoriya would never confront him about it though.

It was a peaceful day and Midoriya was grading some assignments. Bakugo had already finished his paperwork so he switched to catching up on social media. Midoriya was listening to the All Might movie rerun when Bakugo’s voice met his ears.

“What the actual fuck?” grumbled Bakugo, clearly watching a video.

“Find another hater?” questioned Midoriya mindlessly, writing down a beautiful 100 on a student's paper.

Shifting could be heard and Midoriya quickly looked up to find Bakugo marching his way over. “Watch.”

Fixing his hold on Bakugo’s phone, Midoriya raised his glasses to rest on the top of his head. Pressing play he was met with one of his past students, specifically Koki Terumoto. This was one of Kota’s friends during his second year. Midoriya remembers vividly how much the kid reminded him of Shigaraki. Especially when they had a long talk after class when Midoriya spoke about the war and his efforts to save Shigaraki. It was nice to see he was doing well for himself.

Terumoto was sitting in an uncomfortable looking chair. Midoriya was familiar with the seat considering every interview he attended, the seats were cheap and stiff. It seemed that this clip was from the middle of the interview and was extremely popular judging by the amount of likes and comments.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that pro hero Deku is an amazing teacher! What would you like to say to him, if he is watching?” started the interviewer.

“You ain’t ever need another lover. You’re a milf and I’m a mother fucker,” announced Terumoto before winking at the camera.

The interviewer started cracking up, slapping her leg. “So you have a crush on your teacher?”

“I think everyone did in our class, well–except for AquaGun, he considered Midoriya as an older brother,” admitted Terumoto calmly.

Midoriya handed the phone back to Bakugo wordlessly, sinking back into the seat. Watching Midoriya move with no expression, he pocketed his phone nervously. “Izuku?”

Midoriya blinked slowly before pinching the bridge of his nose. “What the fuck?”

Unable to hold back his laughter, Bakugo flopped back onto the couch, his tank top tight against his chest and his sweatpants loose around his waist. “You can’t blame the brats for having eyes.”

“Well pardon me for not being thrilled I was called a milf and that one of my old students wants to have sex with me,” huffed Midoriya, fixing his glasses back onto his face. Discomfort seeping into his bones at the implications of what Terumoto said.

“I mean you’re sexy as hell,” remarked Bakugo, shrugging from where he was lying.

Slowly turning his body to Bakugo, Midoriya took off his glasses, folded them, sat them on the arm of the couch, and pushed off some of the blanket burying him. “You think I’m sexy?” questioned Midoriya with a slight hint of hope in his voice.

Eyes shooting wide open and cast aside, lips thinned, and cheeks bright red, Bakugo wished he was wearing his hero costume and could hide his face. “Shit. You know what I mean shitty nerd!”

Shaking his head, Midoriya was quick to free himself from his pile of papers. “No, I don’t.”

Bakugo was scanning Midoriya’s expression for any trace of a mischievous grin or teasing stare only to be met with a flushed face, calculating eyes, and focused frown. His first instinct was to set off an explosion and tell Midoriya to fuck off, but his heart pounding in his chest was filling him with a strange verison of confidence.

Sighing, Bakugo sat up. How was he to say he was obsessed with Midoriya? After all, when they were in UA, his every waking thought drove him back to fluffy green hair and a face of freckles. He worried over Midoriya handling losing his quirk, spent years desperately collecting every spare penny and putting it towards Midoriya’s hero suit. Then, he worked his ass off to create his own hero agency just so Midoriya could stay by his side. Even after the rejection, he just wanted Midoriya to be near him and was quick to suggest Midoriya could live with him. Rent was significantly cheaper living together so it worked out well. Despite this, Bakugo couldn’t deny his attraction to Midoriya or how he enjoyed the way Midoriya filled the space.

“I can’t believe how oblivious you are… I like you,” emphasized Bakugo, meeting Midoriya’s stare with his own.

“Really?” peeped Midoriya, the frown rising into a pleased smile.

“Idiot, I thought that was obvious. I meant it when I said I wanted to be on your heels for the rest of our lives,” grumbled Bakugo, crossing his arms as the burning sensation of embarrassment rushed over him.

Swallowing hard, Midoriya rose from his massage sofa chair, fully shed from his blanket, and began stalking over. “Kacchan… you better not be joking. Please tell me you're not joking.”

Rising from the couch, Bakugo let out a long silent breath. Already seeing the tears forming and watching Midoriya’s lip tremble, Bakugo let his shoulders sink before grabbing Midoriya’s chin, twisting his head to the side, and biting his freckled cheek. Pleasure warmed his chest as he got a yelp out of Midoriya.

“Why the hell would I joke about loving you?” argued Bakugo, looking between Midoriya’s eyes, feeling a bit uneasy about Midoriya’s lack of response.

“I don’t know, it just seems too good to be true! I love you too!” shouted Midoriya, quick to hide his face on Bakugo’s shoulder, after letting the words spill out of his mouth.

Seconds slowly ticked by with the duo standing awkwardly in the middle of the living room, All Might reruns playing on the TV, and the humming of the AC in the hallway. With everything out in the open, it quickly dawned on them that they’d grown comfortable in their domestic lifestyle. Neither felt the need to actually express their lurking feelings.

“You’re mine now,” declared Bakugo flatly. Feeling no need to be shy when Midoriya made it clear he was interested too.

While those three words would make any normal person run away as fast as possible, Midoriya practically melted. “Yes, I’m yours.”

Unable to fight off the burning desire to have Midoriya’s beautiful lips on his own, Bakugo leaned in. Midoriya happily met the blond halfway, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side.

After eating each other's faces for a minutes, Midoriya quickly pulled away, a scowl on his face. “I’m so sorry. I’d love to… keep, you know—but that video kinda killed the mood.”

Cringing at the reminder of the video, Bakugo nodded. “Fuck. Yeah, let’s not do that shit. Well, we are both off tomorrow so whatever.”

“Yeah… Well, can we sleep together tonight? As a couple?” asked Midoriya softly, his hand resting on Bakugo’s muscular forearm.

“That’s not even an option. You’re sleeping with me everynight,” agreed Bakugo, his eyes flicking from Midoriya’s eyes, to his lips, to where large rough hands were still touching him.

Letting go, Midoriya nodded to himself. “Good, good.” Slowly looking back at the stacks of paper surrounding his chair, his shoulders sagged.

Bakugo watched Midoriya stare at the pages helplessly, but he bit his tongue. He had initially taken Midoriya’s rejection about the hero agency to heart, but once he realized it had less to do about him and more about Midoriya wanting to do things on his own, he felt better. He didn’t want to tell Midoriya what to do, but if he had any say, he’d beg Midoriya to drop a couple classes the following year for his health.

Yet of course, he was never one to remain quiet when it came to his opinions of Midoriya. “Maybe if you didn’t teach so many classes, you’d have less of a chance of getting weird perverted students.”

“I mean… you’re not wrong about that. I just really enjoy making sure each person that walks out of UA's doors is well educated on what went wrong in the past, the sacrifices that were made, and the things they need to be careful of in the future… I can’t see myself slowing down now,” chuckled Midoriya, sitting back in his seat with a new found drive.

Aware Midoriya still resented the hero commission for what they did during the war, Bakugo stiffly nodded. The way the commission sent students out to war and tried covering it up until it was caught on camera was deplorable. The way they took in innocent children and turned them into killing machines was immoral. Midoriya’s desire to tell the students everything was strong and no normal person would blame him for it if he did.

“Those kids love you. I’m sure if you needed to clear your plate a bit no one would hate you. Besides, you’re a damn good teacher. It doesn’t mean you’re slowing down,” argued Bakugo calmly from where he now laid on the couch.

Nodding, Midoriya settled into his own seat, still unable to fight his hopeless romantic heart from exploding. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Bakugo didn’t last an hour before he was closing his laptop and dragging Midoriya to bed. Neither of them had anywhere to be tomorrow so Midoriya didn’t put up much of a fight with the promise of Bakugo’s bodywarmth and no deadlines.

Replaying majora's mask and I forgot how fucked up the story is. The mask boy stole my ocarina, stole my horse, killed my horse, turned me into wood, and now his little fairy minion called me a Deku… TF??

Being a college student with no hero career came with its perks. When holidays came around, there were breaks from school. Even better, you were old enough to party without fear of getting into some sort of trouble. Midoriya was an education and hero history major with a minor in quirk study and general history. While it seemed like a handful, the majority of what he learned was stuff he’d already been taught during his time at UA.

So when New Years came around, nearly everyone in all of his classes were planning on going to the same party. Midoriya would have rejected the offer if it wasn’t for the fact everyone at UA was working or had plans of their own. It wouldn’t have hurt his feelings if it weren’t for the fact they posted about it being a celebration of the class A heroes available.

Still, they hadn’t been in close contact since graduation so he didn’t cry over the lack of an invitation. He recalled Katsuki texting him, cursing up a storm about how he was scheduled last minute for night patrol on New Year’s eve because he was “strong” and “no bullshit” with civilians.

“Midoriya, are you ready to go?” shouted out his dorm-mate.

“As ready as I’ll ever be!” yelled Midoriya from the back corner of his room, swiftly grabbing his phone and stuffing it into his pocket. Rushing out of his room into the mini living space. “Just need to grab the bag of liquor.”

A tall man with light blue hair who was fluffy and reaching down to his chin raised the tote bag slowly. “Way ahead of you. But holy shit dude, we match!”

Looking down at his tight-fit blue tank top and typical baggy jeans, Midoriya looked up to find Tsukamoto in a green tank top and baggy jeans. Grinning Midoriya nearly skipped to Tsukamoto before nodding. “You’re perfect. Let’s go!”

The rented out agricultural center across campus right outside campus lines was already full. Disco lights were peeking out of the windows and the smell of alcohol and cigarette smoke was hard to miss. People were out on the field smoking and socializing with others bringing a coziness to the chaos of it all.

Tsukamoto pressed a hand to Midoriya’s back. “Wanna take a quick smoke before going in?”

“No, I’ll wait. That way if I need a breather I’ll just smoke,” rejected Midoriya softly, twisting to the side to catch Tsukamoto’s face with his gaze.

“Smart, that will definitely be needed,” chuckled the could-be-idol with a heart-stopping smirk. 

The party was loud and buzzing. Familiar faces were everywhere and no frowns in sight. As Midoriya deepened into the crowd, he was quick to find close friends at the main drink-making-station which pretty much contained sealed bottled water and cups of all sizes

Quick to pop open his bag and look at Tsukamoto. “Whiskey or Shochu?”

“Shochu first!” cheered Tsukamoto, quick to snatch two plastic shot cups and held them still as Midoriya cracked open the lid and effortlessly poured out the liquor.

Cups were lifted, tapped, and flipped. As Midoriya sat down in his empty mini-cup, he let out a deep sigh. The sound vibrating in the back of his throat, almost sounding like a spray bottle. Tsukamoto let out a dramatic, “Ahhh!” before stacking his drink inside Midoriya’s.

The routine would be to dance for two songs, take a shot, dance again, shot, smoke break, dance, shot, and repeat until both felt euphorically intoxicated but not enough to not remember the night.

As Midoriya moved to the dance floor, he and Tsukamoto slowly drifted apart. As Tsukamoto found a girl with long dark red hair and was wearing a leather skirt, Midoriya found a hunk of a man. He was at least half a foot taller than Midoriya, sharp canines, dark indigo eyes, and lighter purple skin. Behind him was a skinny tail, reminding Midoriya of a demon tail.

As they danced with each other on the floor, both tried to recall seeing one another before in classes, but came up with nothing. Names were exchanged along with majors. Suga was quick to compliment Izuku’s scars decorating his arms and face, stealing the rough hand for a tender kiss. Midoriya threw his head back and laughed, his hand finding its way back to his hips to secure Suga’s hands in place. “Watch it bud, Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight will burst down the doors.”

Suga winked before returning to dancing. “Well, congratulate your beast for me.”

“More of a beauty than a beast in my opinion… Anyways, wanna take a shot with me and my friend?” offered Midoriya, cautiously guiding Suga off the dance floor.

“Can’t say no to an offer like that,” agreed Suga, raising his hands to the sky before crossing his arms and resting them against the back of his neck. “Lead the way, hero.”

The process repeated and Suga even invited one of his friends to join the trio in a smoke break. By the time they came back in, a cake was being brought to the center of the room with its candles lit. The girl holding the cake cheered, “Who wants to do the fire honors?”

The group grew larger as phones came out, but no one volunteered. Feeling the beginning of a new stage of his life arriving with the start of the new year, he’d be more than happy to end the current year with a reckless bang.

“I’ll do it,” volunteered Midoriya playfully, slowly making his way through the parting crowd. Tsukamoto and Suga followed close behind.

The girl perked up, handing the cake to a friend to hand out the container of corn starch. Tsukamoto took the corn starch container and opened it up. Suga scooped up a heap of corn starch as Midoriya turned to the crowd and was nearly blinded by the flash. “Everyone back up a bit, it’ll travel far.”

With the crowd eagerly following command, Tsukamoto pulled out the phone and had it prepared. Suga tenderly placed the spoon in Midoriya’s mouth. Midoriya clamped down and Suga drew the spoon out.

Feeling the cake be placed in his hands, Midoriya nodded to the girl before holding it to the height of his mouth. The entire crowd began the cheer, “Three! Two! One!”

With one large push, he blew out the corn starch. It flew, catching fire from the candles and creating a large blast of fire in the air. It was quick and hot, but it was the coolest thing anyone in the room had seen.

Cheering flooded the room, alcohol and god knows what kind of substances flooded everyone’s veins. Midoriya wiped off the remaining powder that got stuck around his lips and flashed a bright smile. “Cake anyone?”

After Midoriya made sure the woman had a good hold on the cake he rejoined his friends. Suga looked at Tsukamoto before wrapping an arm around Midoriya’s shoulders. “Let's get another round and dance until we have to piss?”

Midoriya and Tsukamoto exchanged a knowing glance before returning their gaze to Suga. “You’ve learned the method… you’re one of us now,” chuckled Tsukamoto, wrapping his arm around Suga.

Midoriya blinked slowly, turning his attention to Tsukamoto’s phone. “Okay, but you gotta show me the video. I had my eyes closed.”

By the time it was four in the morning, Midoriya finally called it quits. Suga set up Tsukamoto with one of his friends so that duo went back to Suga’s dorm. Midoriya ended up spending the night with Suga. Midoriya woke up the next morning with drool on his face and in a tee shirt that wasn’t his and no plants. Suga was next to him also only in a shirt and boxers.

The sun was peaking through the window and Suga’s long tail was wrapped around Midoriya’s ankle. Midoriya smacked his lips and swallowed to try and soothe dry throat. Turning onto his side, Midoriya decided he needed a blanket and at least two more hours of sleep.

As Midoriya blissfully slept next to a handsome stranger, his silenced phone was full of texts. Everyone had seen the video. More than one person had gotten a recording of Midoriya’s magic trick, but Tsukamoto’s was the one that started the avalanche. Considering Midoriya was friends with Tsukamoto, it was no surprise that when Midoriya’s personal account was tagged, it showed up on everyone's feed. If one person hadn’t seen it, they saw it once it circled one of their dozens of group chats.

Mina had been with Kirishima, Kaminari, Sero, and Jiro for New Years. After the fireworks blasted and kisses were exchanged, game boards were brought out. Unfortunately Mina had one too many drinks and lost the game immediately. So as she got comfortable laying on the couch scrolling through her social media, the recent post of Midoriya at a party sobered her up immediately.

Imagine her surprise when she finds Midoriya surrounded by a group of cheering people, passed a cake, and some sexy guy puts a spoonful of mystery powder into his mouth. The deafening sounds of young adults screaming a countdown being immediately followed by Midoriya creating a giant ass flame made her jump despite the wide smile that bloomed across her face.

“Guys! Stop what you’re doing right now and look at this shit!” screeched Mina, restarting the video and turning it to the rest of the group.

Kirishima and Kaminari’s jaws dropped and their expressions didn't budge even after the second time the video finished. Never in their lives had they imagined Midoriya would be the partying type. All throughout his time at UA he made reckless decisions, but those were to be a noble hero. Watching him being surrounded by a drunken crowd in a tank-top and shorts, standing next to walking sex one and two as he drags his mouth against the spoon nearly sends them to the floor. Once the shock passed, they needed to know how he did that.

Sero threw his head back and laughed, “Holy shit dude.”

Jiro smirked, her gaze flicking from Sero to Mina. “What the? If I’d known Midoriya got down like that we could’ve joined him!”

Kirishima shook his head, pulling out his own phone. “This has got to be a college party. Do you think there are any other posts with Midoriya in it?”

“Oh! Look at this person's other posts from tonight! There’s gotta be more!” urged Kaminari, throwing himself over Kirishima to get a better look at Mina’s phone.

“Send that to Blasty,” chuckled Jiro, sinking deeper into the couch.

Mina grinned, checking all the above. She was quick to share the post to Bakugo before sending it again to their old group chat they used during and immediately after Midoriya’s vigilante phase. They couldn’t risk Midoriya running off again, but the group chat proved to be useful all these years later.

Slowly text after text rolled through. Then countless videos made their way into the chat of Midoriya seen in other videos. Much to their disappointment there were no other videos Tsukamoto posted of Midoriya from the party, but Midoriya did appear in countless others. They seemed to be close friends. Midoriya would be cooking, the victim of a “prank”, or just wandering around their dorm.

Fortunately there were countless people being linked leading to more videos and posts from the party being compiled. Uraraka was on her break, happily sitting down next to Tsuyu when a phone was turned to her.

Midoriya joins a gorgeous purple man onto the dancefloor. The man was staring back at Midoriya with a weak smile, his back hunched forward a bit because of how tall he is in comparison to Midoriya. The scene was fuzzy considering Midoriya was in the background of two girls taking shots at the edge of the dancefloor.

“Oh. I didn’t know Deku swung that way,” murmured Uraraka, her chest pounding at the sight.

“The hell with that. I can’t believe this is Midoriya’s period. The outfit, the party, the dancing, being without Bakugo on New Years Eve,” listed Tsuyu, completely unaware of what was in the other videos.

As Tsuyu went to the next video that was sent by Mina, the two watched in eerie silence. Then the next video and the next and the next. It hadn’t occurred to Uraraka once since their graduation that she knew nothing about his life. The occasional check ups happened, but the sting remained. Surprise was the one emotion she shouldn’t have felt when he witnessed Midoriya living like a college student or showing clear interest in a man. The drinking, smoking, dancing, and shenanigans in the videos should have made her head shake as she’d smile and say, “Stupid Deku.”

“Huh… I still can’t believe that’s Midoriya,” revealed Tsuyu, finally setting the phone down.

When Todoroki opened the videos all he could do was watch with a smile. In those tiny moments their conversations had drastically derailed, it was some of the highlights in their friendship. Midoriya dancing reminded him of the school festival. While everyone else was seeing this newer and wilder version of Midoriya, Todoroki was watching his friend come back out of the shell UA had slowly encased him in.

When Bakugo woke up the following morning and finally decided to see what everyone had been bugging him for, he nearly felt his heart explode a second time. There was no way in hell some nobody extra was going to steal Midoriya away from him.

The countless shifts and overtime Bakugo put into raising funds for Midoriya’s hero suit stop if that meant that purple fucker would be out of the picture. With each video he watched, the more relief returned to him.

Midoriya was a painfully clingy drunk. The more clips there were of Midoriya standing in a different pose or holding a different colored liquid as he took a shot, the more his dancing and attachment to the two guys made sense.

Quick to pull up his chat with Midoriya, Bakugo was quick to text him.

GreatExplosionMurderGodDynamiteKacchan - Izuku I’m free this morning, we are getting breakfast. Tell me where I can pick you up.

DekuMight - Please I’m starving. You can pull up at the main entrance of campus. I’ll be there in five minutes.

As Midoriya rose from where he and Suga had been watching hero news, he flashed a smile. “Kacchan—I mean Bakugo is going to be picking me up. Thank you for saving me from Tsukamoto’s ungodly moaning.”

“Alright. Just know my door is always open,” reminded Suga, watching Midoriya practically skip to the door.

“I’m so happy he wants to spend New Years Day with me! I thought he’d sleep all day after his night patrol!” rambled Midoriya, as he grabbed his phone, wallet, and slipped on his shoes. “I’ll see you again sometime soon. I had a great time last night!”

As Midoriya stepped out into the cold morning, he wanted nothing more than to be in a comfy crewneck and jacket. Instead he was in jeans and a tank top. Knowing Bakugo deserved better, Midoriya sprinted to his dorm. He threw on new clothes that consisted of a royal blue crewneck, dark wash jeans, and his heavy duty jacket coat. His finishing touch was the All Might scarf he refused to part with.

Rushing to a small box, Midoriya pulled out his package of All Might Nengajo. Grabbing one and then snatching his wallet, Midoriya quickly washed his face, sprayed on his cologne, and ran out with a minute to spare.

Bakugo’s expensive car was already waiting for Midoriya, a couple of desperate students had already gathered around, hoping they’d have a chance to meet the mystery person inside. Yet Midoriya ran up to the car, swung open the passenger door, and swiftly slid into the seat. “Kacchan! Sorry to keep you waiting! Happy New Year!”

“Buckle up quickly. After breakfast we are going to visit some shrines,” informed Bakuo, putting the car in drive before effortlessly peeling out onto the main road. Taking a quick chance to check Bakugo out, Midoriya smiled at the orange sweater, black pants, red coat, and familiar brown scarf he’d worn at UA.

Midoriya looked at his hands folded in his lap, his heart feeling mushy, and his lip wobbling. “I’m happy Kacchan woke up to spend New Years with me.”

Flicking his gaze over to Midoriya, Bakugo rolled his eyes. “Couldn’t let you have all the fun with the purple extra. You’re mine.”

Feeling his eyes shoot wide open, Midoriya couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m yours.”

“Never dance like that with anyone but me. You’re too clingy with others when you drink,” demanded Bakugo, his hand slipping off the steering wheel to Midoriya’s thigh.

“If I’m honest… I don’t remember much after my second shot,” admitted Midoriya sheepishly, failing at his goal of pacing himself.

“Well me and the others remember what happened before and after your second shot,” teased Bakugo, enjoying the way he watched Midoriya’s head fall into his hands. “Hey, at least it’ll keep the others off our backs about us being suspicious.”

“Oh god.”

Sorta a Version 2 of Ready to Quit I Scraped But Decided to Finish

It was supposed to be a surprise visit. Midoriya’s classmates were concerned about him after their reunion. He seemed distracted and he wasn’t behaving like himself. No one could believe it when he rejected Bakugo’s offer.

Bakugo wouldn’t lie and say that it didn’t hurt, but he completely understood why Midoriya rejected it. Teaching was no easy task. Considering Midoriya was not only a homeroom and taught another class while also working as a hero outside of his job at UA, signing to a hero agency would only make his schedule more hectic.

Still, Bakugo wished Midoriya fought a little harder to keep the promise they had made back when they were still students at UA.

Nonetheless, he and the rest of the class agreed to go. Uraraka was a bit curious about Midoriya considering their interaction never led to anything. She figured work was keeping him away, she understood. Some things will never change.

“As long as you do not disturb other classes, feel free to enjoy your stay at UA,” announced Nezu through the gate speaker before it opened. Bakugo had been the only one to bring his old ID which he’d gotten reactivated due to frequent visits. Still, he couldn’t account for the eighteen other people with him.

Uraraka looked up at the large building in confusion. “Wait, he didn’t tell us where to go. Does anyone know where to go?”

Iida and Todoroki turned towards each other, eyes expectantly meeting. When shrugs were exchanged, guilt slowly crept in.

Kirishima looked at Kaminari and Mina before flashing a quick frown and squinted eyes. He received a similar expression plus shaking heads. He looked at Bakugo only to find the blond failing to get out his phone.

Finally breaking the awkward silence and the implications it brought, Kirishima rested a hand on Bakugo’s shoulder. “Katsuki, do you know where to find Midoriya?”

“Yeah. He’s in 1-B right now.” The stalker that he was, Bakugo took the role of tour guide. If they’d been forced to guess where Midoriya was, they wouldn’t have been able to narrow it down to a department.

By the time they reached the floor and approached the room, it was the middle of the period. No matter what they did, having nineteen pro heroes enter the room would be insane and probably mess up his class.

Todoroki, Uraraka, and Iida didn’t care enough. They missed their friend and wanted to make it up to him even though they were adults with a time-consuming job.

The sound of students loudly talking greeted their ears as they positioned themselves outside of Midoriya’s classroom door. As Todoroki tugged the door open, the voices continued.

Kirishima, Mina, and Uraraka shared a glance. If the door opening wasn’t enough to catch the attention of what was happening inside, they were probably doing something important.

By the time the door was fully open and all nineteen adults could see what was going on, Midoriya was sitting in a comfy desk chair in the front of his class with his legs propped up on a desk.

Four students stood at the front of his desk, one of which was Kota who they all recognized. The remaining twelve students were in their seats losing it. Hands were slapping against desks, tears were being wiped, and bellies were being clutched.

Midoriya’s dramatically sassy voice greeted their ears. “Why am I getting yelled at by a bunch of emo people— what?”

Bakugo’s jaw dropped and the rest of the adults followed suit. Their concern for Midoriya quickly disappeared upon seeing how happy the students were and how relaxed Midoriya appeared to be in that moment, waving his hand around before pressing it against his chest to fein shock.

The girl with light blue hair looked highly offended, “Who’s emo? My outfit is emo?”

It clicked for Uraraka, Kaminari, Sero, and a large chunk of the class that this was all some dramatic bit. It may have sounded ridiculous, but this could all be some assignment. After all why would the school uniform everyone was wearing be emo?

Despite the dramatics, Bakugo crossed his arms and smiled. It was nice to watch Midoriya in his element with younger individuals and a teacher-guidance figure.

“Like why are yall trying to clock my tea?” sassed Midoriya, raising a brow as he pressed his hands against the seat cushion to push himself up. “Time for me to roll up outta here.”

Midoriya turned to face his back towards the doorway before striking a pose with one leg before the other, pushing out his hip, having one hand open and out to his side, and his other hand bent upward before clapping to top of his hand into his palm. “Bye bye!”

Quickly he switched his hand into a pointer finger and wiggled it between the four with a sly smirk. “You’re not gonna clock mine,” teased Midoriya insanely quick in a high-pitched tone.

Pretend walking off he let out a disgustingly fake laugh that was purposefully obnoxious. While the rest of the class was dying of laughter, the four students that were called emo stood at the front of the desk baffled, and the nineteen adults were recovering from the entire situation plus Midoriya’s majestic bubble butt.

As if a switch was flicked Midoriya’s body flew back to the students, raised his hands and flicked his wrist. Closing his eyes he shook his head while making a buzzer noise, “Failed! You just let the villain get away cause they called you emo.”

Kota was left stammering before frowning. “How am I supposed to take you down when you’re our teacher pretending to be a twenty year old female.”

“Really? I’m only twenty four,” corrected Midoriya, unimpressed.

“You’re super young! How’d you become a teacher so fast?” gasped another emo person.

Smirking, Midoriya crossed his arms as he sat back in his desk chair. “Distracting me doesn’t change the fact that you failed. But, since you asked so nicely, I got my bachelor’s to be a teacher, worked as a student teacher for a year, and Aizawa gave me a recommendation.”

The entire room shouted in unison. “Aizawa sensei?”

Midoriya couldn’t hold back his laughter, perking up in his seat. “Yes, yes. I melted his ice heart. Now, you four sit. Phantom Archer, Karma, Frost, and Gamma you’re up next!”

The four students went to get up and the other four went to sit down when they all simultaneously noticed the nineteen heroes in the doorway. Each student screeched out a different name, but no names mattered when Midoriya spotted Bakugo front and center wearing a smile that he’d never seen before.

As soon as Bakugo noticed Midoriya noticed, the smile that was foreign morphed into a smirk that was something from Midoriya’s worst nightmare.

Midoriya’s expression fell momentarily upon being caught, but quickly recovered. “Hi guys! What brings you here in the middle of my class?”

Bakugo walked in first, faces fell as the rest of the class instantly recognized him. Midoriya may be blind as a bat, but Bakugo was always around stalking their teacher. The students could barely hold back their laughter.

“The losers wanted to surprise you, but I’m sure we all were more surprised by your whole performance,” remarked Bakugo, standing a mere three feet away.

The rest of the adults walked in, all getting their respective cheers from the teens. After all, these were all somewhat new, but incredibly powerful heroes. Sure their time at UA High wasn’t necessarily the best, but they did have a really impressive track record.

Midoriya leaned back on his desk, dusting off his hands. “Okay, you guys can go back to your seats. We will finish this tomorrow. Since they chose to visit me during class so nicely. I’ll put them to work. Now who wants to talk to some pro heroes?”

Hands were flying up immediately. Midoriya let out a soft laugh before looking at his watch. “We have around thirty minutes left, nineteen heroes, sixteen students.” Closing his eyes momentarily, Midoriya clapped his hands together with a bright smile. “Okay, pro heroes partner up. Class, go to the heroes as you wish and talk to them. Only three of you at one hero duo at a time. No inappropriate questions or else you’ll end up like your four fallen brethren.”

The class shivered at the threat of expulsion. Midoriya's old classmates stared at him in shock. If Midoriya only expelling four students was seen as being too soft, then they’d have a hard time surviving in UA now. Nonetheless, they quickly paired up and positioned themselves around the classroom. Uraraka and Bakugo waited around, hoping they’d get the opportunity to talk to Midoriya by being the odd one out.

Tsuyu approached Uraraka and Bakugo knew he won. Making his way over to Midoriya, Bakugo joined him in leaning against the desk. With all the pairs being ready, Midoriya dismissed his students with a simple nod.

“Care to explain what the hell I just saw?” inquired Bakugo, looking rather smug.

“We were doing mock practice for handling an obnoxious villain. Many times heroes have to jump into fighting because they let a villain's voice overpower them. I’m basically being annoying and interruptive so they have to fight for their voice to be heard,” rambled Midoriya with a fond smile, enjoying the way his classmates and his students were happily talking to one another,

Bakugo rolled his eyes, ignoring the way his chest felt while being near Midoriya. “We would have never had an issue with that.”

Midoriya nodded, pushing himself away from the desk to stand before Bakugo. “Yeah, I base my lessons heavily around what the students lack and how strong we were at certain points. I do my best not to traumatize them though.”

“I can’t blame you. It’s not like we had a good track record of staying out of harm's way,” grumbled Bakugo, admiring the way Midoriya’s hair seemed a bit more tamed and how his clothes hugged his body in all the right places.

“Mhm,” hummed Midoriya gently, clasping his hands behind his back. “So, what brought you here?”

“Everyone was super concerned about you after the reunion we had. I didn’t walk away with a smile on my face, but I knew like always you’d do what’s best for you,” confessed Bakugo, refusing to meet Midoriya’s eyes.

Bowing his head a bit, unable to look at Bakugo or be looked at by Bakugo, Midoriya frowned. “I wasn’t fair to you. I didn’t give you the time you deserved with an offer like that. I shut you down with no consideration.”

“I get why you did. You love these little shits and probably wanted to punch me for basically telling you to leave them… but I hope you know I’d never ask you to do that,” murmured Bakugo.

Looking up at Bakugo, Midoriya felt his stomach do loops and his chest was pounding. “Oh, then what did you mean that day? To join your agency.”

Shrugging a bit, as he let his gaze lock onto Midoriya’s hopeful eyes, the world seemed to stop. This was a crossroad and Bakugo only had one shot to make it all go in the direction he wanted.

“I mean… you just stepped back into the hero ring and you are unaffiliated. Even if your patrols would be significantly less than what I’m doing, it would benefit you to have an agency that will handle all the thinking for you,” answered Bakugo truthfully. He wasn’t stupid compared to what many people would assume. He knew Midoriya has a special place in his heart for children. He’d never ask Midoriya to drop the thing he figured out he wanted to do after having everything ripped away from him. Most importantly, he knew Midoriya wanted to pave his own path and remain independent, but life was busy.

Undoing his intertwined hands, Midoriya started cracking his fingers. Slowing his breathing as the weight of Bakugo’s words sank in was the only thing keeping his room running out the classroom and screaming. He had nothing to hold him back anymore.

Bakugo proved time and time again that he never expected Midoriya to sacrifice anything for him as he proceeded to sacrifice anything for Midoriya in a heartbeat. Feeling all too shy, but aware he was going to fight for what he truly wanted, Midoriya asked, “After my shift, would you want to come back to my apartment? I think it’s time we talk about everything.”

Bakugo grinned, pressing himself off the desk to get close and personal with Midoriya. “Of course I will.”

The bubble Midoriya and Bakugo convinced themselves they were in suddenly popped when a student nearby shouted, “Dynamight is hitting on Midoriya-sensei again!”

Midoriya held back Bakugo as the blond practically lunged for the student. While Midoriya’s students didn’t seem surprised, the numerous adults looked baffled.

Kirishima’s hand rested on his chest as his wide-eyed stare accompanied furrowed brows and a dropped jaw. Uraraka was in second place for most blind-sided, rather surprised that Midoriya and Bakugo had a romantic relationship after the conversation she had with Midoriya not too long ago. Todoroki was grinning as he held a thumbs up to the two.

“Congratulations. I was wondering when you’d come out,” announced Todoroki.

Kaminari, Sero, Jiro, and Mina got a good laugh out of that.

“Die!” screamed Bakugo, getting laughter from the students.

“Stop provoking Ka—Dynamight or else detention… that includes you guys two,” threatened Midoriya as he pointed at his friends.

Kaminari and Sero looked the most destroyed, Mina was pouting, and Jiro found herself amused. Todoroki remained confused on what he did wrong, but Midoriya wouldn’t punish him. Still, when he no longer felt the jerking of his arms from Bakugo’s tugging, Midoriya let go slowly. He watched as Bakugo’s shoulders steadily towered up and heaved down. The large muscular back that seemed to hold the weight of the world was next to catch Midoriya’s attention.

Sucking in a deep breath, Midoriya leaned back on the desk, watching as slowly his classmates captured the attention of his students. Uraraka was still stealing glances, her eyes trying to read the room. All Midoriya could do is offer a sheepish smile, doing his best to hide his embarrassment.

At times he may seem like the most complicated person in the world, but the truth is he liked working at UA, Kacchan, his students, friends, and being a hero. Everything he could ask for was in the room with him.

Life after the war was strange. Nothing felt the same. The number of people dead felt way too high for anyone's hearts to bear. The civilians' trust in heroes was on a constant seesaw which the hero commission was doing a shitty job of fixing.

Class 2-A was expected to go back to class with a majority of the PE dedicated to community work to repair the aftermath of the war. The group was doing their best to move on, but many important conversations were rushed or completely avoided.

Midoriya was especially neglected. His grief of Shigaraki’s death, the loss of his quirk, and his planned future was something he didn’t talk to anyone about. Still, life moved forward and Midoriya was expected to be fine because he was the world's greatest hero.

The UA staff wasn’t stupid or blind, but they didn’t want to treat Midoriya any differently out of fear of what he’d do. Giving him responsibilities or taking responsibilities away could push him to leave and figure things out on his own.

Inko Midoriya wasn’t stupid either, she knew her boy was struggling, but she knew love wasn’t enough to repair what was broken. Despite all the red flags that kept popping up she either ignored them or folded. This was a common thread from childhood to now. If she suddenly put her foot down it wouldn’t change anything, her son made it clear he’d take fate into his own hands time after time despite her pleas.

Katsuki Bakugo didn’t give a shit about privacy or being careful. Life wasn’t fair and there was no guarantee he’d be alive tomorrow. Sure, he’d bicker with Midoriya and yell at every little thing as if nothing changed, but he was working to be the best version of himself.

If Midoriya showed a hint of being insecure about his hair, Bakugo would say the most disgustingly cheesy compliment with a straight face. Midoriya got too quiet after rambling about heroes, Bakugo would urge him to continue from where he was comfortably laying. If Midoriya stared at his hands for too long, Bakugo would fumble on the words to say and that alone brought a smile to Midoriya’s face. This was all done behind his tough guy persona.

It was no surprise upon moving into the new dorms, Aizawa placed Bakugo and Midoriya next to each other. It was convenient because they’d end up struggling to sleep together. Bakugo’s heartbeat and the sensation of a hand to hold was all they needed to be content with a lack of sleep.

With the constant sleepovers, their dorms were still distinct in the decorations, but clothing, school supplies, pillows, blankets, and random little trinkets were equally distributed between both rooms. Mornings were a wonderfully chaotic back and forth of rooms and conversations.

It was a quiet Saturday. With the early end of the day and the end of an exhausting school week, all Midoriya wanted to do was watch All Might movie reruns and pretend like life was perfect.

Sluggishly peeling off his uniform and slipping on a baggy shirt plus some sweatpants, Midoriya sealed his fate to a night of bedrotting. Propping his laptop on a pillow, Midoriya was quick to press the button along the side of the device and place a dvd into the holder. As his eyes remained fixated on the screen, his brain did everything but focus on the movie.

Without warning the door the door crept open to Bakugo already in his skull long sleeve and black sweatpants. He was rubbing a towel against his wet hair as he stepped in. “What did I say about not showering idiot?”

“I already did. I took one after class before Recovery Girl’s checkup,” revealed Midoriya, raising his head to watch as Bakugo opened his bathroom door and threw his towel on the edge of the door.

Giving a nod of approval, Bakugo made his way over to the bed where Midoriya already shuffled over with his blanket raised. Crashing down, Bakugo settled his head on his pillow before tossing his portion of the blanket over him. Midoriya quickly increased the volume of the movie before placing the laptop in between them.

Silence was comfortable and provided all the information both needed to gauge their mental batteries. Despite spending years in each other's company there was the initial shock of how well they knew each other although that feeling didn’t last long.

Bakugo often slept on his back and Midoriya slept on his side or stomach. So as Midoriya’s back touched the wall, he’d eventually rest against Bakugo once he got settled.

At some point, Midoriya’s hand would make its way to rest against Bakugo’s chest and moments later he was asleep. He woke up only thirty minutes later to find Bakugo switching movies lazily with his bad arm with his left hand absentmindedly messing with green curls. Enjoying the moment, Midoriya closed his eyes again, breathing in the faint smell of caramel and cologne.

In moments like this, Midoriya understood why he couldn’t imagine a world without Bakugo. There was no one like him and there would never be another. The history they had was something he valued despite the vivid memories of cruelty. Still, he’s never felt more comfortable, understood, and safe in the touch of Bakugo.

Midoriya didn’t want this to change. He didn’t want Bakugo to have moments like these with anyone else. If Midoriya had the chance to live in this moment forever, he’d actually consider it.

Slowly opening his eyes again, Bakugo was watching the movie, his lips forming a slight pout. His eyes lacked their usual edge. Quick to squeeze his eyes shut, Midoriya couldn’t stop his heart from racing.

It didn’t take long for sleep to cling to him. Grasping for consciousness, Midoriya let out a deep breath. “I’m in love with you.”

The hand in his hair quickly stopped moving and the shifting of the body he was resting on was quick to not only keep Midoriya from falling asleep, but send his head into overdrive.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Midoriya knew he was doomed. Giving away his sleeping status, Bakugo was swift to pause the movie. His heartbeat was pounding against Midoriya’s fingertips. If Midoriya had opened his eyes, he would have been greeted by a desperate stare.

“Izuku,” uttered Bakugo, his heart yearning for some relief. He needed confirmation that those words were true and that they were meant for him.

Opening one of his squinted eyes, the worry nearly killed him on the spot. Bakugo eyes were flicking all over Midoriya’s face before focusing on his finally visible eye. His face was flushed with not a smile or frown. He looked beautifully hopeful.

Opening his mouth, Midoriya couldn’t get the words out a second time. His face somehow burned brighter than Bakugo’s and all he could do was let both of his eyes meet the red ones already locked on him. “Yes?”

“Say it again,” demanded Bakugo, now practically sitting up, his neck craned down.

The words barely made their way through Midoriya’s ears, the beating of his heart filled his chest, throat, and head. Still, he wanted to curl up under the sheets and say those five words over and over again as he was able to process he was in love. He felt so giddy and terrified at the thought of being in a relationship.

“I’m in love with you… Kacchan,” breathed Midoriya, staring up at Bakugo. In that moment he felt thrillingly exposed. This was the most vulnerable he’d ever felt in front of Bakugo despite being on the brink of death multiple times.

The scared hand that had been hovering over Midoriya finally dusted his freckled cheek and tucked a green tuft of hair behind his ear. “I love you too, Izuku.”

The sensation of Bakugo’s fingers against his cheek felt electric. Still, Midoriya’s large hand resting against Bakugo’s chest was burning. There was a desire for affection that ran so deep, Bakugo wasn’t sure how long he could stand the space between them.

With mutual feelings buzzing around in the space between them, the blurring of the world was quick. Midoriya’s hand ever so slightly tightened to grip Bakugo’s shirt, the cue was sent. Letting his fingers straighten against soft skin, Bakugo’s thumb rested against Midoriya’s ear and fingers secured Midoriya’s jaw.

Midoriya sank back into the pillow as Bakugo captured his lips. Neither knew how to describe the feeling or sensation of their first kiss, but the softness was addicting.

Neither knew how much time had passed, but they didn’t care. Midoriya gripped Bakugo’s shirt and hair tight, needing to feel somehow anchored to bed out of fear he’d float away. Meanwhile Bakugo’s free hand roamed free, memorizing every curve of Midoriya’s face, neck, waist, and all the other areas he could reach before running out of arm length.

Needing a moment to truly catch his breath, Bakugo happily laced his teeth around Midoriya’s bottom lip and nibbled with a dangerous grin. Midoriya's eyes opened as he let out a deep belly laugh. Raising himself, Bakugo admired the sight.

Midoiya was sprawled on his back, hair in a state of disarray, drool trickling from his lip, tears in the corners of his eyes, and his cheeks flushed.

Watching Bakugo observe him with such tenderness sent off a new flurry of butterflies in his stomach. It felt like he was a little kid, introducing himself to the firey blond for the first time. Experiencing deja vu, Bakugo’s red eyes were analyzing him with approval which brought him to grow overwhelmed with shyness.

“Be my boyfriend,” demanded Bakugo quietly, hand snaking its way around Midoriya’s waist.

“I’m yours,” accepted Midoriya smoothly, letting his hand against the back of Bakugo’s neck run down to graze his hand. Pressing a soft peck to Midoriya’s lips, he was quick to flop onto his back before pulling Midoriya close.

Hand on chest. Hand in hair. All Might movie back on.

The following morning, Bakugo woke up at the ungodly time of 5. Brushing his teeth and washing his face was how long it took for Midoriya to sense Bakugo’s disappearance.

“I’m gonna make breakfast, get ready and meet me,” grumbled Bakugo, pressing a minty kiss to an exposed forehead before marching out of the room.

Speeding through his morning routine, Midoriya rushed into the elevator. The thought of seeing Bakugo would never fail to give him a rush. But when he catched a glimpse of broad shoulders, pale skin, and blond hair, it feels like every part of his brain is simultaneously activated in the most intense form of awareness.

The soft sizzling of an egg omelet being cooked greeted his ears. Bakugo stood at the stove, square pan in hand. Resting a hand on Bakugo’s forearm, Midoriya happily greeted him with a short, “Hi!”

Bakugo’s eyes flicked from the cooking egg to Midoriya. Without surprise, Bakugo felt as the morning fog grew a little lighter as the emptiness was filled. Midoriya leaned in before pressing a kiss to Bakugo’s cheek, and then another, and another.

Midoriya released his hold on Bakugo’s arm and leaned over the stove. “Need anything?”

“You can grab some side vegetables,” provided Bakugo, quick to roll the egg again and let out more yolk.

Moving to the fridge he pulled out some fresh lettuce and tomato. Both were easy to prepare. As Midoriya washed and sliced, Bakugo finished the eggs and rice. Functioning in unison they plated the food, took the seats in between the elevator and couches before enjoying their first breakfast as a couple.

Neither could ask for anything more.

Settling into the new life he paved for himself, Midoriya followed around Uraraka as she brewed up a new potion. They met after Uraraka stumbled along his grave for soil containing human remains. The moment her magic touched the grave, Midoriya’s spirit shot up, sending her flying backwards. They were inseparable ever since.

The typical rhythm of their day was that Uraraka sold her creations and worked relentlessly to keep up with demand. With a minute on her orb, she’d present a handful of locations and a list of what they possessed. Midoriya would be sent out to observe the scene and get exact locations of the items and the safety of obtaining them.

If Midoriya reported danger, Iida would travel with her. While Midoriya has no recollection of Iida, they had been buried together. Turns out some crazy human dug him up to run some experiments. Despite their insanity, they were incredibly smart and Iida came back from the dead. They got along great considering they’ve both experienced death and their souls were trapped in the mortal realm against all odds.

Uraraka and Iida were only two people out of a large community hidden deep in the forest of an abandoned city. It was titled Creepvill, the land of monsters. It was divided into territories, but most of the monsters didn’t mind being around one another. Shoto Todoroki, the son of the notorious vampire king Enji Todoroki was one of those people. While most vampires kept to themselves in the remote territory, Todoroki often went around and joined him and Iida on their night adventures.

Then there was Kirishima, a human who felt at home in Creepville. The people of his homeland had mocked him for wearing a dress and doing “girly” things. When he accidentally stumbled upon creepvill when trying to deliver baked goods, no one flashed an eye. Feeling accepted by people similar to him, he’d shout about how manly he was all the time while dramatically fixing his red cape.

Kirishima had managed to befriend a temperamental wolf who made it clear he hated everyone equally. Midoriya found himself gravitating towards someone who preferred to be alone. After spending years stuck staring at his long rotted corpse, he couldn’t imagine willingly being alone.

It seemed that Bakugo was hotheaded for a good reason, there were no other wolves like him. It only made Midoriya wonder if something bad had happened to his pack. Still, Midoriya utilized his ability to be invisible cautiously.

With Midoriya being visible, he could count how many times he and Bakugo have seen each other on his fingers. His presence seemed to irritate Bakugo and Midoriya took that as his sign to remain invisible for as long as possible. Still, there was a troublesome tug that Bakugo had on his mind.

Whenever nightfall came, he’d snoop on Bakugo for a bit before returning to his grave. Even though he couldn’t sleep, breath, or eat, he didn’t mind the hours of isolation. His mind always felt a bit more clear knowing he could relax or whatever that meant for a ghost. His mind often wandered to his life before a ghost. He had no recollection of who he was and nobody from Creepville knew him as a human.

Midoriya often hoped someone would recognize him or he’d see someone and recognize them. Some days knowing nothing about his life bugged him more than others. In the end, it didn’t matter because he had friends that cared about him. It was uncommon but he did come across other ghosts and even shared stories about how they came to be.

One of the ghosts was an angry poltergeist named Rody. Midoriya was desperate to get him to stop terrorizing the monsters he cared about, and ended up finding the lost spirit of a bird. Upon bringing the bird to Rody, it seemed like the bird was the other half of Rody’s soul and all the anger vanished. Rody was also the ghost to reveal an interesting piece of information. Every ghost had a secret ability, his secret ability was the bird being a reflection of his soul.

As Midoriya sank down six feet to check up on his skeleton, his mind wandered back to Bakugo. The werewolf had been talking about needing to hunt. Despite his curiosity, Midoriya knew some things he needed to let Bakugo enjoy alone. That was his wish afterall.

As the sun rose, Midoriya remained cozy in his grave. Much to his surprise, loud voices caught his attention.

“Midoriya!”

“Oh this is bad, really really bad!”

“Please be here! Midoriya!”

“This can’t be happening.”

“Oh god, what do we do?”

“Midoriya!”

Blinking slowly, Midoriya pretended to fill his ghostly lungs before rising to the surface. In times like these, he wanted to be able to feel the warm sun against his skin. Shaking his head, Midoriya’s attention focused on Kirishima, Uraraka, Kaminari, and Mina.

“Oh thank god. Midoriya, Bakugo’s missing! Do you have any ideas on where he could be?” asked Kirishima urgently, reaching to grab Midoriya’s wrist only to stumble forward through the ghost.

“No, shouldn’t he be in his territory?” wondered Midoriya slowly, wanting to not reveal his creepy stalking to the people closest to Bakugo.

Lowering his head, Kirishima nodded, crossing his muscular arms. Mina rested a hand on his shoulder solemnly. “Hey, we will find him. Don’t worry.”

Uraraka shook her head before taking a step closer to Midoriya. “Apparently Bakugo went on his monthly hunt and didn’t come back. He always comes back. I used my magic to try and track him… but nothing worked. All it did was lead me to you.”

Staring back, mind racing with all the possible reasons Uraraka’s spells led her to him, Midoriya fumbled. None of this was making sense and fear consumed his faint senses. “I’ll look for him. If what you guys are indicating is true, I’ll go invisible to avoid causing further harm.”

The four nodded quickly, shoulders dropping as their faces melted. Kaminari’s tail flicked quickly. “Beware, pure evil is written all over this.”

Turning to the devil, Midoriya’s face contorted into a ghoulish grin. “Don’t worry, I can’t be hurt. Stay safe and keep your eyes peeled.”

Quickly fading into the environment, Midoriya rose to the sky. Since it was still early, the sun hadn’t fully risen. If he was lucky, he’d see some lanterns or any strange building he wasn’t familiar with.

An hour stretched by with no luck, Midoriya had searched the entirety of Bakugo’s land and had checked Creepville to see if he was there for some odd reason. After spotting an unfamiliar shack in the woods, he returned to the ground and approached the door. Right as his feet slowly reappeared, a loud voice shouted from the inside.

“The hell? I specifically told you to find where he was storing bones and steal them! Not fucking kidnap him!” shouted the man.

“It’s not our fault he’s scary as shit! He was covered in blood and looked like a fucking beast! Knocking him out was the only way to find and steal the bones,” hissed a girl, slamming something as she argued.

A long groan was the only thing Midoriya heard for a while before slowly phasing into the hut to find two humans. They were clearly young adults with a ridiculous amount of layers on. “Well, next time just come back to me. Now I had to sacrifice four of my men to carry him off and kill him just so we don’t rile up the city of freaks.”

As if his body was electric, Midoriya vibrated in rage. The knowledge Katsuki was hurt and on the way to his deathbed was the only thing keeping him steady. Approaching the man, Midoriya’s fist was quick to swing forward. It was always helpful to release his anger despite it making him look like a fool.

The soft flesh of the man reached his knuckles and pushed forward. The chair clattered to the ground along with the bastard. Time froze. As his eyes slowly trailed downward, the scars littering his hand were gone. All he saw was soft smooth skin and the fabric of an expensive coat.

As the man looked up, Midoriya nearly collapsed. The pounding of a heartbeat, the ringing in his ears. The sensation of blood pumping and lungs expanding and shrinking was suddenly too much. The feeling of cold air and the trail of goosebumps were painfully foreign. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” shouted the man, struggling to get up much to Midoriya’s amusement.

“Sorry, I don’t know what got into me! I need to sit for a moment,” stammered Midoriya, enjoying that his ability is possession.

Huffing, a large and rough hand gripped his arm and guided him to a dusty sofa chair. “There. Don’t get up until your heads screw on straight. We are close to the monsters. There's no telling what could happen,” spat the man.

Allowing his eyes to flicker around the room, Midoriya softly sank deeper into the chair. He could enjoy having a body and save Bakugo at the same time. “So, where are they taking him?”

“They aren’t too far yet. I sent them West. That way it’s far off from the beast's territory and far enough away that the other monsters would find his body,” grumbled the leader, sitting down in his chair.

Grunting as he stood up, Midoriya nodded. “Okay. I’m going to go on a walk to clear my head. I’m just a bit shaken up with the werewolf’s strength.”

Offering a short nod, the man watched as Midoriya awkwardly shuffled toward the door. “Take a weapon, wouldn’t want you to go missing.”

Midoriya looked over the large array of weapons before his eyes focused on a bow and arrow. If he needed to save Kacchan, his best bet was remaining hidden and fighting long distance. Besides, there was something eerily familiar about the weapon. In one swift motion Midoriya grabbed the bow along with a prepped quiver. 

He grabbed the door handle, twisted, and stumbled out into the woods. After getting to a clearing where he could see enough of the sky, Midoriya took one look at the sun before running in the other direction. He needed to find Kacchan and fast.

It was strange to run out of breath, to have to jump over tree roots and dodge rocks. Wind rushing through hair, aching muscles, and the smell of the woods were sensations he wasn’t sure he’d be able to handle losing for a second time. Much to his luck, the strong odor of men greeted his nostrils. Unsure of how to properly execute his half-planned out attack, Midoriya stopped in his tracks, and looked up at a tree.

Climbing was difficult, but in the end he knew the consequences of pushing a body past its limit wasn’t going to affect him in the long term.

“Of course that bastard sent us out to fix their shitty mistakes,” huffed one of the hunters.

“Why do we even still work with them? We are the ones doing all the work,” murmured another.

The loud shuffling of leaves grew closer. “Well, he knows how to read maps, and he comes up with all the plans. Unless you want to go back to town and settle down, suck it up,” argued the tallest, seemingly the leader of this smaller group.

Spotting a familiar green jacket and blond fur, Midoriya’s heart raced once more. “Shit.”

“What if we just took him back and dropped him off? It’s not like he has anyone to tell and we already got all of his shit,” groaned the one who had yet to speak up.

Much to Midoriya’s relief and fear, Bakugo’s eyes flew open and he thrashed in their hold. Of course Bakugo wouldn’t pretend to sleep and seek out some information, his wolf instincts were too strong to do anything other than fight.

Drawing back the bow, Midoriya sucked in a deep breath as he silently slipped out an arrow, hoisted it, and aimed. The four were scrambling to adjust their hold and set Bakugo on the ground, but their feet remained planted in place.

Twang!

The tear of flesh, the gurgling sounds of blood, and the larynx squeaking was what greeted the five ears of people who believed they were alone. The body of the leader dropped loudly, the arrow only being sent deeper upon impact.

Bakugo was quickly forgotten and dropped on the ground as they screamed for their friend.

Twang!

The one who had knelt down to tend to the dying man was struck next. Bakugo on the other hand had rolled himself over and was sitting up. The remaining two could not have been more different. One was smart enough to try and hide behind a tree while the other pressed a foot on Bakugo’s chest to knock him back onto the ground. “Where do you think you’re going?”

Tucking two arrows into the back of the shirt, Midoriya patted his pockets and the hidden chambers in his jacket to find money and knives.

Pulling one out Midoriya raced over. “Is everything okay? I heard screaming!”

“Shit Sugihara! Get down, something’s killed Yoshii and Ueno!” shout-whispered the one hiding behind a tree.

Running over to hide with him, Midoriya quickly asked, “Where’s the keys to the beast’s restraints?”

“Ueno had them, he was the first to be killed. I think whoever is attacking knows us personally,” admitted the fool.

“Strange,” answered Midoriya softly, pulling out one of the arrows and driving it straight through his chest. Quick to let out a loud scream, Midoriya fell backwards. The remaining human cursed, rushing to where Midoriya was standing and grabbed his wrist. “To hell with his demands. Run!”

With one glance sent to where Bakugo was lying, Midoriya swiftly raised his blade and struck the man's neck. As the man's eyes widened, all life within them faded. Midoriya watched as he collapsed to the ground and the world regained its balance.

Bakugo was sitting upright, but unable to rise to his feet because of the shackles. As Midoriya’s gaze trailed up to meet red eyes, he was taken aback by furrowed brows, thin vertical slits of black in large red eyes. Large white teeth and saliva were the only warning Midoriya needed.

“Kacchan! It’s me, Midoriya, the ghost!” he revealed with a wide smile and puffed out cheeks. The blade still tightly held in his hand and fists on both hips.

“What the fuck?” coughed out Bakugo, a bit of blood speckled on his chin. “You think I’m going to fall for that shit?”

Deflating a bit, Midoriya threw the knife aside. “Look, this is new to me too. At least don’t kill me while I grab the key to free you.”

The tension was heavy and the silence was thick. Midoriya steadily made his way to the corpse of the guy he now knew as Ueno and started digging through pockets. “Where are they?”

His hand wrapped around something cold and smooth and Midoriya pulled out a handful of keys. Letting his head fall forward, Midoriya approached Bakugo. “Let’s get busy.”

As the failure of each key grew old fast, Midoriya’s gaze flicked up to Bakugo’s only to find those haunting eyes getting an eyeful of the carnage around them. “Enjoy the free meal. Also, when I leave her body, feel free to kill her. I’m aware she’s the main reason you were taken in the first place. Then we have to make a quick stop to where the main leader is so you can also kill him.”

The click of the locks greeted their ears and Bakugo was quick to chuck those things as hard as he could. Midoriya just moved to the next set of restraints. Once Bakugo was free, he rose to his feet and rubbed his wrists.

“Okay, I’m leaving her body now,” warned Midoriya before pushing his way out. The immediate nothingness that followed was reliving despite his previous worries. Too much excitement in the morning.

In a second fangs latched onto flesh and tore. Midoriya watched happily, no one had ever seen Bakugo “hunt” before. He was glad to be the first even though this would be the last time. Turning back to the other corpses. Midoriya analyzed the arrows. The tips of the arrows were oddly shaped and reminiscent of a lightning bolt. As he trailed down to the shaft, he noticed a barely present inscription.

It was the same name on his gravestone. Shifting to the bow, Midoriya looked at the limbs to find nine signatures. Five on the upper and four on the lower. There was an inscription written ‘One for All’. He also found a familiar name, Toshinori Yagi. He was a skeleton who lived in Creepville and had fuzzy memories about his life. He had been alive while Midoriya was, so he often listened to those far and few memories Toshinori had.

Toshinori had been a warrior of some kind, a reigning champion who fought evil. He noted he was pretty lonely while alive, he only remembered a woman he believed to be his mother and a younger boy who was to take his place as a warrior.

Feeling his eyes widen, Midoriya didn’t know what to do with himself. When a large clawed hand flew through his head, Midoriya’s trance was stopped.

“Take me to that bastard.”

“Right,” voiced Midoriya, quickly floating toward the building.

"How were you able to do that?” asked Bakugo casually, arms crossed as he sped up to walk next to Midoriya.

“I don’t know… everyone was worried because you were gone. I went out looking for you and stumbled upon this house… they were talking about what they planned to do to you and next thing I know I was-,” rambled Midoriya, trying to get a grip of reality.

Shaking his head, Bakugo interrupted, “Not that shit. That old ass bow. You killed three people effortlessly with it.”

“Well I shot two… one I stabbed,” began Midoriya, only to find the glare he received a good reminder of who he was talking to. “It was muscle memory I suppose. I saw the weapon lying in that shack and chose it. My mind was already planning an attack and my body was acting out without me needing to think too hard… I don’t understand any of it myself.”

“You’re not as weak as you pretend to be… smart too,” listed Bakugo quickly, his tail beginning to sway slightly. He was a lone wolf who only respected the strong. Up until this point Midoriya was useless. He couldn’t do anything but run his mouth and Bakugo wanted no more annoying pests surrounding him.

Still, the scars that littered Midoriya’s skin and the freckles on his face were something that haunted Bakugo. Green hair, green eyes, and that eyesore outfit always captured his gaze. It was more annoying than the constant rambling and piercing gaze.

Seems like none of those things were too bothersome anymore with the recent developments. Possession and an unnatural ability to fight and strategize were all that mattered.

“Thank you… Kacchan.”

“Shut it Deku.”

As the duo reached the building and Midoriya phased through the walls to catch the boss of guard, Bakugo slammed through the main door and pounced. It was a quick and easy defeat. While Bakugo roamed to find his bones, Midoriya looked around at scrolls, papers, and weapons. It seemed that this had been a commonly used base for humans. Nothing brought him more answers, but he knew this was a start.

As they traveled back to the main area of the land of monsters, Midoriya remained dazed and quiet. As Uraraka, Iida, Kaminari, Kirishima, Mina, Sero, Jiro, Tokoyami, Todoroki, and Momo all gathered to welcome Bakugo back and drag him off to be healed. Midoriya remained unfocused.

Uraraka, who was still tightly gripping Bakugo’s arm to drag him to her home, paused and looked at Midoriya. “Thank you for everything Midoriya. Are you okay?”

“Do you know where Toshinori is?” asked Midoriya quickly, turning his gaze back to her.

“I believe he is with Aizawa,” answered Uraraka with an edge in her tone. His dismissal of her thanks and worry didn’t escape her attention.

“Thanks.” Vanishing and flying away to where the mummy is usually, sleeping in his tomb, Midoriya made a quick exit.

Uraraka turned to Bakugo, fear on her face as she gripped him tighter. “Take me to where you were.”

Of course, everyone needed to tag alone. Upon reaching the carnage. Todoroki bent down to the arrow. It took fifteen minutes of pestering to find out Midoriya was capable of possession and he was the one who shot the bow and arrow.

“Guys? These arrows have his name written on them.”

Uraraka and Iida shared a glance before lowering their gaze to the bow.

Izuku Midoriya was a lot more than a lost ghost.

Izuku Midoriya was a dynamic celebrity. His resume contained acting, dancing, singing, modeling, and even dabbled a bit with business. What most people didn't know was Midoriya had grown up dreaming of becoming a famous ice skater. He was considered a professional athlete, but eventually put his dreams to rest when he signed a contract to act in a tv show adaptation of a book series.

Nonetheless, whenever Midoriya could escape from the pages of lines and the countless other responsibilities following him, his feet always carried him back to the ice rink. Uraraka, who once was a student alongside him when he was beginning to learn figure skating, now owned the rink and gave him keys to skate whenever he desired.

Nonetheless, it wasn't something he was known for with all the jobs he's done over the years. No matter what someone's interests were, they probably have seen or heard of him before. Yet, Midoriya remained as humble as ever.

Whenever someone famous reached out to him, Midoriya would run around his room screaming at the top of his lungs. When Inko inevitably came rushing in from the house next door out of fear, she quickly joined him after hearing the news. Each job offer was accepted with grateful tears. Every time he arrived on set he was shy and excited. He often would bring his personal workers snacks, meals, and sweet treats. Overall Midoriya was known for all the right reasons.

There was one thing Midoriya could never shake. No matter how big or small the event or interview was, Midoriya could barely move or speak from the anxiety pounding in his chest and bubbling in his gut. Most times the day before he was stuck in bouts where he was on the floor, feeling as if the air traveling through his lungs wasn't there. He'd experience chest pain that only worsened the fear he initially had because he now believed he was having a heart attack.

Overall, Midoriya had no problems when he was working. Walking down a catwalk, posing for pictures, standing in front of a camera, standing before a microphone with a countdown playing in his earpiece, and the chill of the ice beneath his feet never brought him an ounce of anxiety, rather an uncontainable energy that often made him itchy.

So when it came to doing the unrelated jobs that came with being a famous person, Midoriya developed the painful habit of drinking. At the beginning of his career, a shot of vodka or a beer worked, but slowly it wasn't enough to take the edge off.

All it took was rumor stating that he always pregamed award ceremonies, interviews, and other events for it to be customary to offer him a drink. It allowed Midoriya to be far more blunt, open, and become a part-time comedian.

Many clips of Midoriya were popular and constantly cycling on social media. Still, he didn't regret doing it because he would probably vomit and barely speak the entire time. Not that doing those two things were a problem, but he personally didn't find that appealing.

The only thing he'd regret doing is making a fool of himself in front of his celebrity crush, Katsuki Bakugo. Drummer and occasional backup singer of the popular band Ground Zero. Much to his relief and disappointment, Midoriya has yet to meet walking sex in person.

The second movie adaptation came out, and with Midoriya being the lead role, his schedule was packed. If anyone asked, Midoriya hasn't gone an entire day sober for the past two weeks. It was horrible, but duty calls.

The love interest, another popular celebrity, Shoto Todoroki, was close to his side for majority of the movie premiere. It was unusual, but they were constantly around one another considering they did much more than just act. Oftentimes they'd randomly meet at the same modeling gig and even both participated in a popular TV show where random celebrities had dance competitions.

It was safe to say the world wanted the duo to get together. If anyone actually asked Midoriya and Todoroki how they felt about each other, the word love would appear, but it wasn't a romantic one. They often spoke about their childhood and how being famous since childhood stripped them of their autonomy and ability to live a normal life. They truly loved and appreciated their relationship, but there wasn't an ounce of sexual tension brewing between each other, even when they were naked for a rare sex scene.

As Midoriya and Todoroki slowly made their way through the crowd together, an interviewer waved excitedly at an already tipsy Midoriya. "Midoriya! May I please quickly interview you?"

Turning to Todoroki, Midoriya excused himself swiftly. Midoriya was wearing a dark blue suit, his undershirt was a pale blue, and his tie was white. On his wrist, Midoriya sported gold jewelry his manager claimed was from a sponsorship. His ears were decorated with stunning earrings and jewels. Around his neck was his family's pearl necklace, passed down five generations.

As Midoriya settled down into his seat, a beautiful glass of scotch was offered to him. Gasping, Midoriya accepted the glass before slightly turning his head to the side while maintaining eye contact with the woman holding the question cards. "I see you've watched my interviews."

"Why of course, I must say you have a great taste in cocktails," complimented the lady, raising her own scotch on the rocks to the sky.

Unable to stop the wide smile from spreading across his lips, he admitted, "You are not the first to offer me a drink tonight. I've already accepted a banana shot, and drank a box of chardonnay before coming here."

Without missing a beat he downed the glass before returning the glass to the interviewer. "Alright, lay it on me!"

As Midoriya happily answered questions about time management, filming, and what it's like working with Todoroki on the second movie, more celebrities arrived. As Midoriya's back was turned to the main entrance, the band behind the majority of the movie's soundtrack walked in. In the lead was Jiro and Kaminari. Right behind the duo was Bakugo and Kirishima. Trailing behind was Tokoyami and Momo. Slowly the band approached where Midoriya was being interviewed.

"I'm telling you, if you put me up against Mina Ashido no one would be able to tell the difference," rambled Midoriya, raising his hands in defense.

The woman and the three other workers with her threw their heads back and laughed. Jiro and Kaminari smiled in amusement. They had never met Midoriya before, but they could tell he would be a fun person to work with.

Bakugo, unable to keep his mouth shut, approached the green haired beauty that always seems to fill his social media feed. "Hey, no drinking on the job."

Midoriya effortlessly threw on a charmed smile as he twisted his back to meet his teaser with bedroom eyes. "A psychic told me to drink for some good luck.”

Only to be met with the most gorgeous man in the entire world, Midoriya admired the stunning face up close and instantly focused on those ruby red eyes.

Bakugo gave Midoriya a smooth look up and down and he kept walking, flashing a wicked smirk. “You look like an old boyfriend I had.”

Turning his head to the other side to follow Bakugo’s figure, Midoriya let his voice drop with burning desire lacing every word that came out of his mouth. “Do I look like a new boyfriend?”

Without pausing, Bakugo matched Midoriya’s shameless flirting with a genuine grin. “I’ve thought about it.”

Midoriya laughed as he turned back around, figuring he and his bandmates were going to get settled into their seats. Yet, as soon as Bakugo was no longer in his sight, the imaginary bucket of water was dumped on him and all the alcohol was sucked out of his body. The realization he met his crush in person and flirted with him like he was easy hit fast and hard. Looking at the interviewer before him, a pinch of his anxiety peaked out as he mouthed, “Oh my god,” before covering his face in his hands with mortification.

No one could hold back their laughter. Never before has Midoriya flirted with anyone, but he fell hook, line, and sinker for the drummer of a rock band. All of it was caught on camera and was for sure going to make the final cut. Bakugo stared at Midoriya for a moment longer before walking away with a pep in his step.

Kirishima elbowed him, flashing a toothy smile. “Dude, I think Midoriya likes you.”

“Huh?” gawked Bakugo, looked between Kirishima and where Midoriya was only to see he had his head bent down. “What are you talking about?”

“The untouchable Izuku Midoriya just flirted with you man! There have been zero reports of him ever dating, let alone flirting with anyone. What the hell?” cried Kaminari, looking at Bakugo in disbelief.

Raising a brow as he looked to see Jiro’s reaction only to find her equally upset. “How the hell are you acting indifferent right now?”

A surge of pride rushed through him. Midoriya, only ever flirting with him? There was no way someone like Midoriya would finally fall head over heels for a random drummer in a band. Not one to worry about PR or messing up, Bakugo marched back over.

It seemed that the interviewer pointed him out because Midoriya’s back immediately straightened and murmured something.

“I’ll be waiting,” announced Bakugo boldly, right beside Midoriya’s ear.

Turning to the side only to catch a whiff of caramel, Midoriya barely got out a yelp before covering his mouth. Bakugo slipped away as Midoriya sat there with an extremely wide smile checking over his shoulder to watch Bakugo walk away.

When it was finally time for the movie to start, Midoriya entered a nearly full movie theater. As he walked down the aisle he desperately wanted to look through each row to find Bakugo, but used all the self-control he possessed to keep his eyes peeled for Todoroki. As he slowly made his way to his seat, countless celebrities he’s met and not met approached him to share some words. Each time he was thrilled, letting the alcohol save him even when he was fully staring at them to try and hear what they were saying. Each time he got away from one person he was stopped by the next.

Ground Zero watched in silence the entire time. Honestly they were baffled they made it this far in the first place. Never in their lives had they imagined their private room sessions and tiny crappy bar gigs would result in being the main artist for a best selling movie series. They never would have expected to be in the same room as Izuku Midoriya.

No one could believe how beautiful he was in person. Despite the confirmed rumors he showed up to events with alcohol coursing through his veins, he was still an extremely charismatic person.

As Midoriya was wrapping up a conversation with famous actor Aizawa, Todoroki made his way next to Midoriya before snaking a hand on his waist to guide him to his seat. Midoriya instantly relaxed, turning his attention to Todoroki and rapidly speaking.

“Wow, it’s nice to see how Todoroki is always taking care of him,” hummed Momo, watching the duo take their seats near the front of the room.

“Yeah, I have no idea who Midoriya does it,” sighed Tokoyami, aware of how shitty social anxiety is.

Kirishima looked at Kaminari, extremely confused. “What are they talking about? His drinking problem?”

Butting in, Jiro answered before Kaminari made some tasteless comment. “Midoriya constantly talks about his stage fright when he isn’t performing. Going to interviews, award ceremonies, and shit like this makes him super anxious.”

“Oh yeah, I remember his one funny moment where he said I’m gonna say something, I get nervous, I’m like whoop—better drink. That doesn’t help,” laughed Kaminari, familiar with watching compilations of funny Izuku Midoriya moments.

Without needing to finish the movie, Ground Zero completely understood the hype of Midoriya. His acting was scarily good. The chemistry between Todoroki and him was so good, they all understood why everyone wanted them to date. When it came time for the… sexual parts of the film, Bakugo’s jaw was nearly on the ground.

Midoriya was ripped. Every inch of his body was covered in drool inducing muscles. When everyone was probably getting an eyeful of rather private body parts, Bakugo’s eyes were captured by thick thighs.

It took less than three hours for Bakugo to find Midoriya’s social media and reach out. It took less than an hour for Midoriya to respond. It took less than a day for the two to be on their first date. With the paparazzi catching Bakugo and Midoriya alone together along with the release of the entertaining interview, the Todoroki and Midoriya rumors quickly switched to Midoriya and Bakugo.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Midoriya grew up well aware of his incredibly fast metabolism.

Even as a child when he did everything to gain a quirk and train his face to look like All Might’s, he knew his body didn’t match that of a pro hero. All Might was incredibly tall and muscular while Midoriya was short and had noodles for arms.

When Midoriya started to try and bulk up, he soon realized that gaining weight was going far harder than he anticipated. No matter what he did, he never gained a pound other than those few growth spurts he got as a young child.

When Midoriya began training under All Might, he’d often go on additional runs and work on his speed as a way to train outside of his intense weightlifting on the beach. To be fair, his original training was mostly escaping his bullies because he wanted to be a hero.

When it came to meals, Midoriya would eat the suggested serving size or whatever his mom plated him to be kind. Midoriya loved to eat and enjoyed pretty much all foods and flavours. He would occasionally skip school and write an absence note himself just to go out and eat. Of course, it wasn’t only to eat, but it was better than admitting it was all to avoid bullying.

There were three places Midoriya went to often and was a respected usual.

First up was a local convenience store that was hidden inside a building, but its only entrance was in an alleyway on the side of the main establishment. Midoriya would have two shopping baskets full of countless packages all of which he’d consume in one sitting despite the fact it would make the average person throw up. While the majority of the food he ate was considered unhealthy, this was an occasional trip.

The second place was all-you-can-eat sushi. Midoriya would sit in and shamelessly eat ten servings while talking to the workers since it usually was never busy during weekdays. Some people would consider it strange, but everyone loved watching Midoriya eat. There was something magical about a small boy being able to consume insane quantities of food and not gain a pound.

The final place was a small cat cafe on the quiet side of town. Midoriya would pay full price even when he would finish a punch card for a free drink. The small business appreciated the money coming in from Midoriya eating there. Besides, Hisashi could spare the money if he couldn’t spare a second of his time to be a part of Izuku’s life.

Midoriya was well respected and close with every worker at each of the places.

None of Midoriya’s friends, classmates, or seniors were aware of this. After Midoriya met All Might and started working out, he tended to become more secretive about his ability to binge eat. For a while, Midoriya had even developed an eating disorder due to his obsession with the diet All Might put him on. Midoriya knew the vitamins, calories, and nutritional value of most, if not all, of the foods he consumed. Despite needing tons of food to continue the development of his muscles, he cut back on his intake, switching to pills he could purchase at a local store.

All it took was for All Might to suggest that Midoriya may not be ready in time to receive the quirk for him to realize he wasn’t doing himself any favors. The path he was going down was a dangerous one that could ruin his chances of having a good life. He quickly expressed his dietary concerns to the adult who set up his diet in the first place.

Taking the information with grace, Toshinori pretty much doubled everything on Midoriya’s list. There wasn’t much tweaking that needed to be done, he just needed to compensate for Midoriya’s metabolism. Fortunately, Inko understood the change in his diet list as she assumed the “allowance” she gave her son wasn’t going all to hero merchandise.

Soon, the pressure of the diet no longer felt like a weight on Midoriya’s back as he properly fed his body and consumed as much food as he pleased. He reminded himself it wouldn’t matter since he wouldn’t gain weight anyway.

Midoriya’s daily calorie intake only increased in his first year at UA. By the time UA had switched to a boarding school, none of his classmates knew about Midoriya’s insane eating habits. Toshinori, Nezu, and Recovery Girl were aware because Midoriya was unique in that he was All Might's successor. Recovery Girl mainly found out because when Midoriya had to stay overnight in recovery, the little tray wasn’t nowhere near enough to satisfy Midoriya, let alone be enough to restore his stamina. Nezu was a professional eavesdropper and found out through his usually snooping.

Midoriya would often leave campus after getting permission from Aizawa. He’d claim he was going out on a long run or he was going to go out and do some analysis only to take a bus to his hometown to find a place to eat.

Aizawa hadn’t been told initially, but Lunch Rush came to him, concerned for Midoriya’s well-being. After Aizawa discussed the matter with Midoriya, he was more impressed than anything else. Curiosity led to him accompanying Midoriya to his favorite cat cafe. Aizawa couldn’t believe what he was seeing as the bowls and skewers accumulated within their short hour spent there.

Midoriya easily hid it from his classmates by eating the bulk of his cravings after curfew when he knew the kitchen would be empty. Aizawa allowed him because he was aware nothing would stop Midoriya from demolishing a week's worth of food in a day.

Of course, nothing would stop the class from eventually finding out.

Class 1-A went on a school trip to a hero museum for educational purposes. The large museum had an equally large food court. One of the places to eat was unique. There were countless stalls where you could order food and they had a buffet option. Along with that, there was the option to dine in or takeout. Midoriya wanted to eat with his friends in the food court, so he got takeout.

The best part about the place is if you chose to eat at the buffet, you paid per takeout container. It didn’t matter what you put in the container or how much, Midoriya was determined to bargain.

Midoriya made it clear the entire time they were in the museum that he was arguably just as excited to eat as he was to see the museum dedicated to hero history. Uraraka, Tokoyami, Jiro, Kirishima, and Kaminari took note of this and knew the food must be good for Midoriya to have it ranked equal to his hero obsession.

They had taken a look at the options and saw it was very affordable for the quality of the food. When they stepped in they quickly spotted Midoriya, but before Uraraka called out to him she noticed his concentration.

Kaminari seemed to be holding back laughter as he pulled out his phone. Kirishima was nudging him in complete shock. “No way bro.”

Jiro seemed just as amused, looking at where Midoriya was. “He’s crazy.”

“It seems that Midoriya is exceptionally hungry today,” commented Tokoyami, finding himself frozen in awe at the sight before him.

Midoriya’s take-out container was overfilled. To be fair, overfilled was an understatement from what the five could see. Midoriya had one-quarter filled with white rice with a perfect egg yolk buried in a hole Midoriya made. Another quarter was filled with deep fried eggplant and potato. The remaining half was filled to the brim with stir-fried noodles. It looked full, but Midoriya wasn’t done. Midoriya was currently stacking katsudon on top of everything. Midoriya was using the tongs to balance the meat and pile it up.

Whenever a piece was about to slip, Midoriya would snatch it, put it back on top, and add another katsudon. Uraraka and Tokoyami were impressed. Jiro and Kaminari were doing their best not to laugh at how focused Midoriya was on piling his food up. Kirishima on the other hand was determined to do the same.

“Hey, man! You’ve got quite the appetite,” marveled Kirishima, placing himself by Midoriya to get rice.

Midoriya looked over with a bright smile. “Sure do! It’s been so long since I’ve been to a place that offers such a good deal.”

Kirishima started stacking his own food items into his container. “No kidding. It’s crazy what they’re offering for all this food.”

Uraraka’s eyes flashed a dangerous glint as she was suddenly on the other side, grabbing her own food. “I’m about to scam these fools.”

Midoriya suddenly picked up the container from the bottom, arched it up, and used his other hand to push the top tabs down into the slots. The group watched and processed the fact he did the action as if it were muscle memory. Without shame, Midoriya scooped the entire thing up and held it like it was his prized possession. “Me too. I love a bargain.”

Midoriya stood by the two, happy to wait for them to finish. Meanwhile, the other three went peacefully through the buffet and grabbed what they wanted without having to fight the container closed. Uraraka and Kirishima were quick to group up with Midoriya.

Midoriya guided the two to the register only to gasp at who he saw. “Shimizu? What are you doing here?”

“Midoriya?” gawked Shimizu, her eyes widening as a smile spread across her face. “What am I doing here? What are you doing here?”

Uraraka raised a brow, curious who this mystery girl was. “Deku? You know her?”

Urgently nodding his head, Midoriya spun around to look at Uraraka. “Yes, Uraraka and Kirishima, meet Shimizu. Shimizu meet Uraraka and Kirishima. I met Shimizu when I was in middle school. She worked at this cat cafe near my apartment!”

“Awesome meeting you Shimizu! I’m one of Midoriya’s classmates at UA!” greeted Kirishima with a bright smile.

Shimizu flashed a charming smile, offering a quick bow. “Any friend of Midoriya is a friend of mine!”

Uraraka quickly bowed a well, suddenly feeling under a lot of pressure to make a good impression for one of Midoriya’s old friends. “Yes, it’s lovely meeting you! I can see how you two would be friends, your smiles match!”

Perking up at the genuine compliment, Shimizu fanned her face dramatically. “You’re too sweet. Anyways, let me ring you guys up!”

As she checked out Kirishima and Uraraka first, she happily chatted with Midoriya. “So, I’m assuming you are here on a school trip?”

“Yeah, honestly when my teacher announced the trip, I was more excited for the buffet,” chuckled Midoriya, holding up the container.

“Only one container? I mean you were single handedly funding the cat cafe, it’s because of you that Asano was able to expand and open a second location,” noted Shimizu with disappointment.

Midoriya tilted his head to the side and he scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah, I may or may not have already eaten before coming here. I usually would take the food to a second place to eat. I don’t need pictures being taken and headlines of me eating eight containers of buffet food and being a mukbanger.”

“True, true. Still, it’s been way too long since we’ve last caught up! You totally got to give me updates on that asshole who always gave you trouble,” huffed Shimizu, finally taking Midoriya’s container and checking him out.

Digging through his wallet to pull out the cash, Midoriya smiled fondly at Shimizu as he passed over the money. “Yeah, it’s been way too long… want to know something crazy?”

Shimizu perked up at the oncoming gossip and bent over the counter to offer her ear. Midoriya cupped his hand around before whispering. “I have him hooked around my finger. We are doing really good.”

“No, fucking, way,” gasped Shimizu, her hand trembling as she handed Midoriya his change. “After all of that, you still gave him a chance?”

Shrugging, Midoriya retrieved his container of food with a small smile. “Honestly, most of the changes happened recently.”

Kirishima and Uraraka quickly waved to Shimizu, dismissing themselves once they realized that Midoriya and Shimizu were remaining somewhat secretive because of their presence. There wasn’t anyone waiting in line so Midoriya remained there to talk to Shimizu.

Around ten minutes later, Midoriya finally returned to the group with a bright smile on his face. It seemed that the entire class was eating together because Iida and Todoroki saved him a seat. Happy to see they were waiting for him, Midoriya rushed over to take his seat.

“Thanks you two!” chirped Midoriya as he sank into the oddly comfortable seats.

Todoroki nodded with a soft smile. Meanwhile Iida gave his usual stoic response before turning back to his meal. Uraraka was across from Midoriya and was quick to catch his attention. “So how’d you enjoy catching up with Shimizu?”

Midoriya looked up, his smile growing a bit. “It was really nice. I sometimes forget how much time we spent together when I was a regular at the cafe.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot that’s how you two met. I’m assuming she quit,” noted Kirishima, revealing that he was aware of this Shimizu person.

“Yeah, apparently after her boss decided to open a second shop, money grew tight and Shimizu’s pay was being reduced. She quit and came here since the pay is really good,” rambled Midoriya, waving his hand.

Bakugo was not amused, shooting Midoriya a pointed stare. “Stop talking about some nobody extra.”

Shaking his head with a grin, Midoriya gaze met Bakugo’s. “Shimizu is a friend I made in middle school.”

Deciding to end that conversation, Midoriya opened his container to reveal the monstrosity inside. While Uraraka, Tokoyami, Jiro, Kirishima, and Kaminari were not shocked by the sight, everyone else was.

“Are you sure you can finish all of that?” questioned Todoroki, pointing to all of the katsudon’s Midoriya had stacked up. 

Not bothering to offer the comment a response, Midoriya nodded his head, quickly cutting up the katsudon on top before snatching a pair of chopsticks to take his first bite. While the rest of the group talked, Midoriya was happily chowing down delicious food.

Bakugo didn’t speak up unless provoked, but he was constantly stealing glances at Midoriya’s progress. From his memory, Midoriya was a modest eater so the sight before him was beyond confusing. It only took Midoriya twenty minutes to finish five katusdon, his stir fried noodles, rice, and deep fried vegetables.

As Midoriya closed the container, Shimizu appeared behind him with another container absolutely full of deserts. “I was stalking you and noticed you were about finished. Consider this me repaying you for writing my quirk history essay.”

Gasping dramatically at the container, Midoriya accepted it graciously. “Thank you, but you already repaid me when you got me the double shot espresso latte the next day.”

Shrugging Shimizu raised her hands before running away. Midoriya watched frozen in place with wide eyes. Todoroki seemed a bit confused, poking Midoriya as he asked, “Is that girl on drugs?”

“No, she is running on no sleep and way too much caffeine,” answered Midoriya, blinking rapidly as he turned to face Todoroki.

“That’s the loser you were talking about Deku?” questioned Bakugo with an expression that made it clear he wasn’t impressed.

Midoriya nodded happily, opening the container to see many of the items he’d usually buy at the cat cafe. Aizawa passed by, stopped behind Midoriya. “Was that Shimizu? What is she doing here?”

The group all gawked at Aizawa and Midoriya. Midoriya turned around in his seat. “She needed a good paycheck and came here. I had no idea until I went to pay for my food.”

Letting out a grunt of acknowledgement, Aizawa continued on his way to the table where the other teachers were.

Not bothering to look up where he was sitting, Midoriya began devouring his deserts. They watched Midoriya eat as if their entire lives were a lie. Whenever they would eat lunch, Midoriya only ever grabbed one katsudon bowl. Now Midoriya was able to eat five along with other side dishes plus six desserts.

Midoriya extended a mochi to Uraraka, “Want one?”

Uraraka happily accepted the treat, quick to enjoy her favorite food. Meanwhile, the rest of the class was still staring.

Now that Midoriya’s concentration was broken, he could feel the eighteen pairs of eyes on him. Looking up to see the group staring. Kaminari bravely broke the silence. “What the hell dude? You ate all of that and you don’t even look bloated!”

“I have an incredibly high metabolism. I honestly could eat more if I wanted to,” revealed Midoriya, taking a long drink of water.

“You should consider entering an eating competition. Since you don’t get full easily and you eat pretty fast,” noted Iida, a wide grin on his face.

The entire group pitched in, extremely curious about this new side of their classmates. Bakugo had a more important question as was glad to cut through the curious chatter.

“How the fuck does Aizawa know you knew that chick from the cat cafe?”

Directing all his attention to Bakugo, Midoriya innocently smiled as he confessed, “Me and Aizawa go there sometimes.”

The group had to be told to quiet down from the shouting that resulted. Still Midoriya smiled at the fact everyone was quick to move on from his ability to eat and was more focused on his dynamic with Aizawa.

Midoriya never considered himself to be a resentful person. He lived his life how he wanted and focused on his studies. Yet as he is sitting in his torturous middle school surrounded by pubescent boys that reeked of toxic masculinity and the strong desire to prove themselves, Midoriya would say he’s in hell.

Not that he’s ever done anything wrong, but his presence was unwanted. Whether or not that be because he was seen as a quirkless nerd which by getting close may magically turn them into a quirkless nerd too. Despite this, he tried to mind his own business.

Funny enough, the people who didn’t like him would invade his space.

Bakugo was someone who was always forced into Midoriya’s personal bubble. It was usually social pressure or his own demons, but Bakugo refused to stay away. He’d praise the blond for his quirk and power, but anything past that didn’t deserve a happy cheer.

Imagine his surprise, when the adult version of Bakugo appeared in the middle of the classroom. It was a normal school day and it was quite literally in the middle of their Japanese class.

As soon as the grown up processed where he was and that he was no longer in his own timeline, his gaze snapped over.

Truth be told, Midoriya couldn’t have cared less. Still, he was a hero fanatic and the sight of a gorgeous hero suit and a nice muscular build had all of his attention. Still, he’d look away because he had no desire to be the target of two Bakugo’s wrath.

As his eyes went back to his notebook, the burning sensation of resentment reared its ugly head. Well, the truth has been laid out right before him and there was no denying it. Bakugo got what he wanted. He’s a powerful hero.

Yet, there wasn’t much commotion in the room despite how everyone initially was squealing and shouting out questions for the older version of his childhood friend.

Seeing feet make their way right before his desk, Midoriya wanted to be stubborn and obnoxiously twist his head to the other direction, but he was weak. Slowly tilting his head up to meet the gaze of a future hero, Izuku sucked in a deep breath.

The stare he was met with forced the air out his lungs. The piercing gaze of red eyes with an unreadable emotion was horrifying and confusing. And if things couldn’t be any more strange, he spoke.

“Izuku.”

It was an odd delivery and an odd word to say. For as long as Midoriya could remember, he was only ever addressed as Deku when it came to Bakugo.

Whatever staring match that had begun was being observed by 30 people. Midoriya’s jaws hung slightly open, wide eyes staring up at the hero in apprehension. Meanwhile Katsuki was staring down at Midoriya with nothing to read on his face. He wasn’t scowling or barking up a storm.

As Bakugo was turned around in his own desk, glancing between the two in enraged confusion, he didn’t want to break whatever strange ordeal was unfolding before him. If anything he was scared. In his mind either Midoriya was dead in the future or in the future he grew weak.

“What?” asked Midoriya, unable to tear his gaze away, but his brain was moving good fast he feared he’d puke.

“I’m sorry for everything,” declared Katsuki abruptly, causing many to jump.

Midoriya stared up at Katsuki before letting his face morph into an unimpressed scowl. If Katsuki’s apology hadn’t already been shocking, Midoriya’s physical reaction was.

The stoic expression was long gone and now Katsuki was regretting taking this approach. After all, he’d just gone through hell right beside Izuku. Together they saved the war and were now dealing with the costs winning brought. They were barely adults and while Katsuki was a hero, Izuku was getting settled into his life as a teacher.

Katsuki wanted to be angry; he was hit with a quirk that brought him back here, but he couldn’t. After everything that went down, he wanted to apologize again and again until Izuku was sick of hearing it. Now more than ever, he wanted to apologize.

So why did he feel relief when he saw this puny version of Midoriya scrunch his face up in distaste at this apology?

“Really,” confronted Midoriya, not a hint of a question in his deadpanned tone.

Letting his dread wash away, Katsuki smiled. “Yeah. This stupid prick behind me is a dumbass.”

Meanwhile Midoriya was boiling. For once he couldn’t read Kacchan. Despite the lack of malice in Katsuki’s smile, it stung. “Hmm.”

“Huh?” voiced Katsuki alongside many others in the room. No one had any clue why Midoriya was acting so different compared than usual. Not that they expected him to be excited to have an older version of Bakugo before him, but they’d at least expect to see a happy response from the apology.

“What do you want to hear?” remarked Midoriya, staring at Katsuki, letting the classroom fade away as the ache in his chest kept him grounded.

Bowing his head, Katsuki could feel sweat build on his forehead. After all, he didn’t expect such pressure to overcome him in a moment like this. A bunch of loser extras that used to gobble up every word he said now stared at him as he ruined their perception. Not only that, but Midoriya wasn’t nearly as forgiving in the prime of the bullying as he had believed.

It seemed that he forgot his roots and that they didn’t start UA High on the right foot. It took nearly half the school year for them to have a proper conversation.

“Anything… nothing—everything. It doesn’t matter because you deserve to hear it,” reassured Katsuki, trying to make it clear he wasn’t trying to fool Midoriya.

“Do you really expect me to believe this?” provoked Midoriya, letting his hands ball into fists on the surface of his desk. His heart was pounding in anticipation, but if he turned his gaze a foot to the left he’d be met with the version of Bakugo he was stuck with.

He had no desire to accept an apology from his Bakugo.

“Honestly, no. I know how poorly I treated you for most of our lives. Still, if I can even plant a seed in your mind that I truly do change… that will be worth it,” professed Katsuki, resting a hand over Midoriya’s balled fist.

The large, now ungloved hand decorated in countless scars gently squeezed Midoriya’s trembling fist. “Let’s take a walk. I have a lot to tell you.”

Sucking in a deep breath, Midoriya nodded slowly. “Okay.”

In one swift motion, Midoriya rose from his seat, swung his backpack off the side hook of his desk, and snatched the materials off his desk. Katsuki moved to the side to let Midoriya out first.

Midoriya looked at the door and only the door as he walked to the front of the room and made his speedy exit. Katsuki followed after slower, turning his body towards the group of students as well as the teacher. “He’ll be back… eventually.”

The adult stiffly nodded, unsure of how to approach the situation. It was clear this wasn’t something she was paid enough to deal with. Meanwhile, the remaining 29 students were frozen in place with their necks creaking to follow the hunk of a hero Bakugo became.

“When did I become such a weakling?” scoffed Bakugo from his desk, crossing his arms as he leaned back. His heart was pounding and the amount of sweat he discreetly wiped on his sleeves arguably made him a ticking time bomb.

Katsuki turned around in the doorway, his stare hard and resentful. It wasn’t that he hated his past self per say. He understood the mistakes he’d made and how he allowed the world to aid in forming the arguable monster he’d been, but he was a stupid kid. He didn’t understand his emotions or how to deal with them. He would do everything he could to erase what he did to Izuku, but that’s impossible. He finds his past self rather pitiful: being held back by fear and rage.

“When I chose Izuku over everything else.”

Midoriya froze where he was in the hallways, nearly falling to his knees at the wave that crashed onto him. It was a giddy warmth and sucker-punch. One second he’s sitting diagonally from someone who called him a worthless nobody every chance he got, and in the next he’s being sickeningly worshiped by the same person.

Still, feeling like a blooming flower in the prime of spring, Midoriya spun around to look at the man who proclaimed his feelings whether or not his words were sincere.

Katsuki wasn’t looking at him, rather his gaze was calm and earnest as his eyes flicked across the small crowd before him. His shoulders were raised and broad. His chest was puffed out with pride. With the small amount of skin exposed, scars of battles and sacrifices were on full display for the 29 naive students to behold.

From where he stood, Midoriya sucked in a deep breath before softly calling out, “Kacchan.”

Without hesitation, Katsuki redirected his attention to Midoriya and was on the move, slamming the door behind him. If it hadn’t been for the fact that his classmates were naturally irritating, the aggression would’ve scared him.

“Izuku,” answered Katsuki as he approached.

“Let’s head to the roof? That way we can avoid people if they try to find us. I would offer to leave school grounds but I don’t want to risk messing up my record. But if you have a better idea of where we can talk about things I wouldn’t mind changing plans. Of course that’s up to you and,-” rambled Midoriya, growing increasingly more anxious at the fact he was telling the adult version of Bakugo what to do.

Katsuki nodded, turning to find the stairwell. “Yeah, let’s head to the roof.”

It was painful and awkward, but as they settled down into a hidden corner of the rooftop near the HVAC system, the conversation was unavoidable.

“So… what do you mean you chose me over everything?” questioned Midoriya curiously, twirling his thumbs with too much concentration.

“I always put my comfort, pride, and goals on this pedestal. When I finally grew a brain and chose a relationship with you over those things… life wasn’t any easier, but it got a lot less shitty,” confessed Katsuki effortlessly, keeping it short and sweet.

Barely able to process what he was hearing, Midoriya let his mouth open and close wordlessly. Why he’d ever be in the way of Katsuki’s goals was beyond him. He felt similarly to the implication that he made Katsuki uncomfortable. “Huh?”

“You always seemed two steps ahead of me and I hated it. I saw you as a threat. Turns out it was my own weakness blinding me,” commented Katsuki, looking over the edge at the peaceful town.

“So… did you apologize to me in the future?” asked Midoriya cautiously. The constant usage of past tense was starting to freak him out.

“Of course. It was the least I could do. Although I wish the circumstances had been better… I don’t think I could’ve done it at a better time,” admitted Katsuki sheepishly, recalling the rain and the way it slowly collected dirt and blood on Midoriya’s exhausted body and carried it away.

Not provided any relief that he was alive in the future, Midoriya sighed, “What was my response then?”

Crossing his arms and leaning back against the unit, Katsuki grinned, “You fell into my arms. I can’t say much else because it could ruin the future.”

“Hm,” voiced Midoriya, rather disappointed with the lack of information. He didn’t see the point of Katsuki wanting to discuss things when he wasn’t going to provide any information for the sake of the future.

“Well, what’s the future like?” inquired Midoriya hopelessly, resting his head against the wall. Instantly regretting the action, Midoriya fought off a yawn and the urge to close his eyes.

Scratching his head, Katsuki focused his gaze on Midoriya. “Honestly, life’s pretty boring right now. We both graduated recently and are off doing our own things. We still see each other a lot and talk all the time.”

Frowning, Midoriya looked at his hands. From the sounds of it, he wasn’t a hero. If they were doing their own things, Midoriya probably wasn’t doing the same thing as Katsuki. There was no possible way Katsuki wasn’t a hero. Yet, somehow in the future he didn’t hate Katsuki nor did it sound like he resented him considering their communication.

Well aware that he was missing critical information, that didn't stop the anger swirling in his stomach. "Well, from the sounds of it, you got everything you wanted."

Quick to feel the sharpness of Midoriya's words, Katsuki turned to look at the younger version of the boy he loved with worry. "What's wrong?'"

"You've won. You become an incredible hero. You've convinced my future self that your past actions were because of an inferiority complex and that I should be okay with whatever shitty job I'm doing in the future because you apologized," remarked Midoriya harshly, the words spilling out faster than his brain could process them.

Nodding slowly, Katsuki looked at the sky. "Well, I never said you weren't a hero. But a lot happened in the future and you were the one who made a lot of sacrifices. Trust me, if I could change the past, I would. But you would insist for me not to change anything. And honestly, I didn't have to do any convincing. I'd hope you wouldn't lie to me about being happy with what you are doing. "

Pausing, Midoriya let the clouds steal his gaze again. He understood where Katsuki was coming from. The future was apparently good enough that he didn't want to risk anything going wrong from this point over. He didn't want to confirm anything out of the fear that it will doom that possibility from ever even happening. Still, anything Katsuki said that wasn't about himself was especially cryptic.

"You do realize you suck at this, right?" criticized Midoriya bluntly, not bothering to focus his gaze back on Katsuki.

"Yeah, you've always done the talking for me," admitted Katsuki resting his back against the weird HVAC unit behind him.

"How am I?" asked Midoriya, finally turning back to Katsuki only to find him leaning back with his eyes closed. Smiling at the display of ease, Midoriya figured Katsuki was truthful about their relationship being better.

Smiling at the mere thought of Midoriya, Katsuki grinned, "What do you want to know?"

"Anything."

"Well, you're still an annoying nerd who loves heroes and filling out notebooks like it's nothing. You're All Might collection has its own room. You refuse to drive despite having your license so I drive you everywhere. You have a lot of friends and people who admire you. Not that everyday is perfect, but I'd say you are much happier," listed Katsuki effortlessly, his crossed arms comfortably resting against his chest.

Unable to fight a wide toothy smile from spreading across his lips upon hearing how much better life gets, Midoriya let some of the bubbly feeling rise back to the surface.

Not once had Katsuki hinted that he still hated him in the future. If anything Katsuki was somewhat overcompensating for his past actions, which Midoriya always believed to be impossible. Yet there the blond littered in scars rested, effortlessly disproving every assumption Midoriya had.

It was nice to be proven wrong. 

“So, I still do hero analysis?” inquired Midoriya, picking at his cuticles.

Nodding in response, Katsuki sat up straight. “Sure do, Nerd. Most days you don’t even need a notebook to jot down observation notes, you just know. Scary as hell.”

Unable to prevent himself from chuckling, Midoriya dug through his book bag to pull out his 13th notebook. Looking at the cover ruined from soaking in water and charred from his pasts’ hands, Katsuki nearly winced.

“So the sludge villain incident already happened?” questioned Katsuki, motioning to the notebook.

Absentmindedly rubbing the front of his throat, Midoriya nodded, “Yeah, a month ago.”

Katsuki leaned back. “No wonder you’ve been so moody. All Might’s training you right now.”

Mortified with Katsuki’s volume mixed with the fact he knew, Midoriya raised his hands fearfully. “Kacchan! Don’t-!”

Raising his hands, Katsuki nodded his head. “Shit, sorry. I forgot how secretive this whole thing was. But, still, you never told me much about your past training.”

“Well, there’s not much to tell. It’s straightforward. I have a new strict diet and workout regimen. I’m still nowhere near ready, but I will be,” rambled Midoriya before quickly pausing. “Wait… how do you know that anyways?”

“Can’t say,” dismissed Katsuki.

As Midoriya rose to his feet, dusting off his uniform, Katsuki followed suit. “Where to?”

“I need to stretch my legs. We can go for a walk?” suggested Midoriya, shrugging as he started moving out from the back area.

Much to his relief the roof was still vacant. As he made his way down the stairwell it remained silent. Katsuki followed quickly next to him, looking all around the building with a grimace. Catching sight of the displeasure written all over Katsuki’s face, Midoriya smiled. Any worries of Katsuki being performative went out the window.

As they reached the third year hallway the door to the classroom flew open. Rushing out was Izuku, tall and gorgeous in a nice suit. His skin was glowing, countless scars decorated his body, and his curly hair was well groomed.

Katsuki and Izuku locked eyes and both their bodies immediately relaxed. Izuku slowly made his way over, slipping on his glasses. “Kacchan.”

“Izuku, how’d you get here?” questioned Bakugo worriedly, rushing over to grab Izuku’s hand.

Smiling softly at Bakugo, Izuku sighed, “I was responding to the scene, but before I even had a chance to activate my hero suit, the villain hit me with their quirk. Todoroki was a minute behind me so it should be fine.”

Nodding Bakugo pulled out his phone. “I have no service here.”

Izuku turned to the small version of himself and completely redirected his attention. “Oh my god! I’m you from the future! I was so adorable in the past!”

Burning red at the positive attention, Midoriya covered his face. “And I look so handsome in the future!”

“Thank you! This is the product of dealing with idiots all day and getting no sleep,” commented Midoriya, dramatically tucking an invisible strand of hair behind his ear. “But may I please use your phone? I’m going to need to make some calls.”

Pulling out his phone, Midoriya quickly pulled up the contact he knew his future self would call. When Izuku received the phone, his eyes lit up and quickly dialed. Walking down the hallway with the phone pressed up to his ear he turned around to Katsuki and lipped ‘this is so weird’.

All Katsuki could do was stand and nod. He felt irritatingly itchy being in this building. Now that his Izuku was here with him, he wanted to be relieved, but the anxiety bubbling in his gut was worsening.

By the time Izuku returned, he was softly smiling as he extended the phone back out to Midoriya. “Thank you, fortunately he’s very willing to help us out and will get us into UA High to talk with some pros.”

Katsuki nodded, pulling his hands out of his pocket. “Are we heading there now?”

“Might as well. We can’t risk ruining the future,” noted Izuku, shooting his past self an apologetic frown.

“No, I understand. Just being able to see myself grown up is really exciting,” reassured Midoriya, waving his hands.

“Well, I’m twenty four, so I’m not that grown up,” chuckled Izuku, scratching his facial scar where his freckles once were.

Their chitchat was swiftly ended shortly after and the hero duo returned Midoriya to class before rushing out the building. The entire class rushed to the windows to see them walk off. It was hard to believe that Bakugo never managed to get rid of Midoriya.

While none of the students had been able to eavesdrop when Midoriya had gone off with Bakugo, when Izuku appeared they got some vital information. They had connections to UA, it sounded like Midoriya also managed to become a hero, and they are a long ten years from the future.

As Izuku and Katsuki made their way out the front doors Izuku clutched Katsuki’s hand. “When they said you vanished… I was so scared.”

“Well, I’m fine Nerd and I’m safe,” announced Katsuki, pulling Izuku close.

“You complain all the time about me being reckless, but here you go getting sent through time,” criticized Izuku, not fighting against Katsuki’s embrace.

Katsuki frowned, wiping Izuku’s tears. Figuring a part of that fear stemmed from his death, he eliminated any teasing. “I’m sorry. I should have been more careful. At least we are here together. I’ll have you with me for the rest of our lives.”

Pressing a quick kiss to Katsuki’s lips, Izuku smiled. “Okay smooth talker. We should get going. I don’t want to be late for class.”

“Those brats can wait a minute. Maybe your disappearance will scare them into being obedient,” teased Katsuki.

A strong punch in the side was enough to send a message that Izuku wasn’t to be messed with. Meanwhile, a group of students pressed up against the glass were all screaming in horror.

Hifumi, the grey haired bully, pointed with his eyes closed. “Bakugo and Midoriya! Bakugo and Midoriya!”

Tejio, the black haired bully, was shaking Hifumi in disbelief. “Oh my god! Oh my god! They’re— they—and they!”

Bakugo was busy staring at Midoriya who was now bright red on the ground. He had no idea what the hell would happen in the future, but he sure as hell wasn’t ready for it. Clearly Midoriya wasn’t either.

There was never a dull moment at UA High. When Midoriya was a student there, nights were unpredictable. Sometimes he’d heard sad songs blasting from somewhere else in the building. Maybe he’d hear feet running rampant as his fellow night-owls scurried to the kitchen for their midnight snack.

With each group that arrived at UA High, it seemed that each round of students were exactly the same.

After the War, the dorms were optional. Midoriya and his classmates weren’t in any position to think about returning home after everything that happened. Sure, a lot had been left unsaid between everyone and the road to recovery required a lot of support which none of the twenty students were mentally capable of providing, but there was no place they’d rather be. So it was debatable what future UA students would do when it was an option and bonds hadn’t been formed.

At the beginning of the year there would be about half of the class living in the UA dorms simply because people tried to get into UA from all across Japan along with the occasional foreigner. Offering a safe space for students to live made the most sense. Then as the weeks began to pass and those in the dorms grew close, the fear of missing out triggered the rest of the students to join in.

Not too fond of the idea of living full-time at UA, Midoriya hesitated to take on the job when a fellow teacher announced his planned retirement. As soon as Nezu revealed the dramatic pay raise Midoriya was sold. Midoriya had lived on campus at the prestigious college he attended so he managed to have his own place to himself. The transition was easy enough.

The students were well behaved and surprisingly there was no one quite like Katsuki Bakugo. Sure, there were some temperamental students, but it never reached the extreme of the explosive blond. There were also no rivalries that concerned Midoriya. He didn’t have to worry about any Mineta’s because any sight of perverted habits resulted in immediate expulsion.

Life at UA was anything but peaceful and he loved teaching his students about heroics and history. He adored each and everyone of his students and the bond only grew stronger with the move. Aizawa constantly nagged him about being more strict on his student, but if Aizawa actually supervised he’d see there was no need for it.

Midoriya had a ticking timer when it came to students being disruptive and his tolerance for disrespect. It was always about the third week when his patience was at its thinnest and the outburst would happen. He was never one to raise his voice or curse, but sometimes it was the only way to get people to listen.

Once the students' carefree attitude was nowhere to be seen, Midoriya would message Hizashi that English would be delayed because his students would have extended training.

The group of teens would be worked to the bone for the rest of the class period and half of the following. None of the teens dared to piss off their teacher after that.

Whenever he and his friends would have their annual reunion with the occasional hangouts in between, Midoriya never spoke up. Everyone had been extremely curious about what it was like for Midoriya in college, but he had nothing interesting to say. Midoriya knew there was a part of him that was embarrassed to ramble on about hero studies, quirk history, and quirk biology.

The friends he made in college were extremely different considering they had no intentions on becoming heroes. It would be awkward for him to talk about the people he met in college because he didn’t want to bring up conversations only he was a part of. He didn’t want to point out the great distance between them when they were supposed to be “catching up”.

When he became a teacher at UA, the problem persisted. He didn’t want to really talk about the students for the exact reason. He was happy to be a teacher and was extremely proud of his work, but it wasn’t like any of his classmates knew the students and little stories wouldn’t be funny or interesting without the months of background.

Not only did he not want to talk about his class to avoid awkwardness, but he didn’t want to turn it into a work/career discussion. He already was busy dealing with students coming to him for advice about internships. Many of his students were interested in working with many pro heroes that he was surrounded by.

Often Midoriya would take a detour and talk about Aizawa and how the rest of their old teachers are doing. It was a safe topic and Midoriya enjoyed seeing their expressions when Midoriya refers to their old teacher as his coworker. Kaminari’s dramatic wince brings Midoriya a disturbing amount of satisfaction every time.

Midoriya stayed in contact with Bakugo and Uraraka the most. Todoroki was a common name on his notifications, but with his ranking as the number two hero, work often kept him busy. Bakugo was a constant presence and had his own seat in Midoriya’s classroom because of how many times he’d crash class just to be an attention seeking asshole.

Uraraka kept Midoriya updated on her life and how things are going. Their communication was scarce right after graduation. College was kicking Midoriya’s ass and trying to establish herself as a pro-hero was kicking Uraraka’s ass. When things settled into place, their communication picked up as if they never fell out of touch.

The rest of the class fizzled out, but Midoriya would occasionally hear from Iida, Kirishima, Momo, Tsuyu, Aoyama, and at the rarest Kaminari. He appreciated the checkups and quick conversations that were never hard to start, continue, or end.

Still, he was a teacher at UA and they were curious so they were all watching the Sports Festival every chance they had to see how Midoriya’s students were competing. As expected, his students were killing it.

Midoriya was an incredible planner and even better at analyzing quirks. The students were definitely getting the best critique, positive feedback, and guidance they can ask for early in their journey to become a hero. They also would bug Bakugo for pictures of Midoriya teaching.

Bakugo always got caught when he tried taking candid pictures, but it didn’t matter to the group chat receiving the pictures.

Imagine their surprise when they find out that the students are constantly posting on social media. They do all the major trends and Midoriya is a recurring character on the accounts. Students will be laying on the floor of his living room making skits. Sometimes they’ll be in his office bugging him or failing to prank him. There are many times Midoriya is visiting the dorms for unknown reasons, but he’ll be in the background surrounded by a group of smiling students.

Soon all of the class was watching the list of students’ videos, saving each one with Midoriya in it. To no one's surprise, the ones where Midoriya was visible, the views and interactions were highest.

Kota’s account was the highest even though his content was lowkey compared to his other classmates. His most viral video was pinned. Mina was the first to watch it and she immediately sent it to the group chat that Midoriya wasn’t in. Sue them for having a whole group chat dedicated to Midoriya. They all had feared he was going to run away again after the war so a group chat to provide constant updates was a must.

Nonetheless the video started and it started with Kota practically giggling in the middle of nowhere as it was pitch black outside. Countless other giggles could be heard as well. Kota flips the camera to reveal nineteen other students were walking with him all with a bookbag on their back and a sleeping bag in their arm.

The video cuts to everyone gathering in a room that was barely visible as Kota’s flash was the only thing illuminating the room. It appeared that everyone was trying to set up camp as quietly as possible.

The video cuts again to the room, but now it was morning, the small condo illuminated by the morning sun. The boy lying next to Kota, Kouki Terumoto, looked mortified as his phone was glowing with 06:00.

Kota added captions to the video, writing, “We had to invade at 02:00 because that’s when Aizawa sensei told us he went to sleep. Why did his alarm go off at 06:00? There’s no way he only gets four hours of sleep.”

The entire group of students appeared to be groggy as they were waking up. Then the next clip is focused on a door. It opens to reveal none other than Midoriya in a plain graphic tee, baggy sweatpants, and fluffy dynamite socks. He was rubbing his eyes from underneath his glasses.

As soon as Midoriya noticed his entire class was in his living room he slowly backed away into his bedroom and closed the door. A symphony of twenty teenagers laughing filled the room. After ten long seconds Midoriya opened the door with a fond smile, looking over the sea of students. “Good morning my little heroes.”

Stepping out and looking past the cabinet next to him, he wondered. “How many of you agreed to this? Oh all of you.”

The group laughed again, all sitting up to greet their teacher. Midoriya looked at his All Might clock across the room before humming. “I’m assuming you all got no sleep last night?”

One of the ladies in the back shouted. “How do you have so much energy? You slept for four hours last night!”

“I wish I knew. Now, how about you all get ready and I make breakfast,” proposed Midoriya happily, clapping his hands together as he looked at each student.

Kota was fully distracted, the phone facing the sleeping bag he was in. Still, that didn’t stop the fondness of students excitedly agreeing to breakfast. The video ended with that.

The comments were filled with praises to Midoriya and his reaction. After all, his nickname for the group was adorable and the way he reacted to their presence with utmost love and fondness was admirable.

Suddenly the lack of information from Midoriya made a lot of sense. His bond with his students was similar to how Aizawa was with them. Days full of memories, good and bad, built their familial relationship. There was no simple story to tell without it being a confusing mess. He loved his students and they loved him.

Bakugo relaxed into the seat in his hero agency as he watched the video on repeat. He had been so concerned about Midoriya being dissatisfied with his life even though he insisted he was content. While it did make him nervous for the day Hatsume told him she finally finished a version of the suit that worked as well as when he’ll ask Midoriya to join his agency, at least he knew Midoriya was happy working as a teacher at UA.

Meanwhile Uraraka was sitting eating a container of mochi on her lunch break crying each time the video replayed. The way the students were sneaking in while being a giggling mess and Midoriya’s slow retreat into his bedroom made her stomach pinch from how hard she laughed.

As an exhausted Todoroki watched the video, he smiled at the sight of Midoriya being the adult figure all those students desperately needed. He knew how Midoriya saved him back in their first year. There was no doubt in his mind that these kids couldn't be happier.

The rest of the groupchat were talking about anything and everything about the video. Whether they talked about how old Kota was and how foreign it was to see him laughing, or how handsome Midoriya looked first thing in the morning it was clear this video would be ingrained into their memory.

Everyone's hearts dropped when they received the notification on their phone. Midoriya: Wrong group chat guys.

I love the idea of Midoriya becoming a homeroom teacher and since UA is an optional boarding school all of his students end up choosing to live at the dorms.