babe

"Have you ever liked a guy Kacchan?"

If only he knew.

A beat passed before Katsuki's laughter ensued, because if only Izuku knew about the guy he liked, he wouldn't want to sit in the same bar as him perhaps ever again.

But Midoriya was unshaken by his reaction, still peering at him with his forest-green eyes, curiosity clearly reflected in them.

"Yeah," Katsuki's laugh faded as he stared at his glass. "In highschool once. He was someone I couldn't help caring for even before I'd realised it."

"Wow, I'm envious of that person," Izuku mused, "To be loved by the hard-to-please Kacchan of the Bakugos."

"I may be drunk but I can sweat it just fine Izuku"

It was now Izuku's turn to laugh.

"Do you still like him? The guy I mean..."

"Nah, I got over him a long time ago."

It was almost insulting for Katsuki to assume that his closest childhood friend couldn't tell when he was lying. Izuku thought it was quite funny how the signs of truth evasion in this grown adult man was similar to how his students acted when they forgot their homework. Dodging eye contact, fidgeting hands and the tell-tale nervousness that laced one's voice. It was almost cute.

Almost because despite everything, Kacchan was clearly in love with this boy that he said he was over.

"Jeez, what's with this depressing mood, this is why I don't go out for drinks with you" Katsuki grumbled.

"Aah I'm sorry Kacchan, I was just thinking."

"Don't tell me you're already thinking about some other man the day after you got dumped."

Izuku chuckled, "No, I'm just wondering what to do with the ring now."

"Ring?! What ring- Oi were you going to propose to round-face?"

"Ochako. Yes, I though after three years of dating it would be the right thing to do."

"You idiot. Who goes and proposes to someone with such an unromantic sentiment."

"Me apparently. Now I'm unsure of what to do with the ring."

"Are you stupid? You can sell it."

"I suppose, but some part of me doesn't want to let go just yet,"

Izuku sighed, placing a titanium band on the counter between them. It was simple and elegant, with an inscription on the inside that couldn't quite be deciphered. For some reason, the sight of it made Katsuki feel nauseous.

"Do you want me to hold on to it?"

The words left Katsuki's lips before he could think.

"That would be nice. Only if it isn't burdensome for you."

"I wouldn't have offered if it was."

Izuku laughed, "This is true. Maybe if I don't find a use for it in the next five years, we can even make it official."

Katsuki's breath stilled - only for a moment. I've been waiting for you a lot longer than five years. "DO YOU WANT TO DIE?"

"I'm sorry! I just meant if you and I are both single we could enter a lavender marriage or something when we're old!!"

"ITS NOT A LAVENDER MARRIAGE IF WE"RE BOTH GAY YOU IDIOT"

The bar seemed to have quieted just in time for Katsuki to yell - capturing the attention of the patrons who were now beginning to recognize the pro heros.

Warmth crept up their collars as Katsuki immediately grabbed Izuku's hand and the ring and made for the door - throwing enough bills on the counter to buy the drinks and silence of the bartender.

They ran out further into the city, gasping for breath only when they reached emptier streets where the only lights were from the 24/7 convenience stores.

Izuku burst out laughing hysterically, while Katsuki raised his eyebrows.

"What's so funny Izuku?"

"I thought I'd made news enough today by being dumped bu Ochako, but it seems I'll be on headlines tomorrow as well for our alleged upcoming nuptials," Izuku grinned.

Katsuki ran a hand down his face as he groaned, "You and me both..."

His face reflected resignation as he sat on the edge of the sidewalk.

"You know, I was serious," Izuku crouched to level with him, "There's nobody else I'd rather be married to anyway."

Katsuki

It is a quiet evening in Tokyo, the slanted rays of the sun filter through the brown glass of an empty beer bottle as they caress Katsuki's slanted lashes. He blinks as he suddenly gained awareness of his own sloth. It was nearly sunset, he hadn't even made it to the pub yet and he had already gotten through his hidden stash of alcohol.

The world would not recognize Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight if they saw him now.

Usually, Katsuki wouldn't drink. In fact, he was a clean eater and preferred to maintain a healthy and regular diet. However, he allowed himself these indulgences once in a while – no not even then, but today was an annual exception as it marked the three year anniversary of one Round-faced gravity hero and Izuku Midoriya. He groans as he picks up his phone, knowing the news would be all over his feed whether he liked it or not when he sees a notification.

Izuku: Can we talk?

Great. That's exactly what he needed. The source of all his problems that he was diligently trying to forget about wanted to talk to him on the anniversary of his relationship rather than his own girlfriend. He swiped away at the ominous message, wondering what could've prompted it when his phone started ringing. 'All Might! All Might !All Might! With a Heart Full of Justice-' It was Kirishima again. Katsuki swore he never took his phone off silent but here he was. Bracing himself, he answered the call.

"HEY BAKUGO! How're you doing man? Hey! Denki wait-

Yoooo I heard about Midoriya are you okay?

Stop crowding him!! He might not even have seen-

Guys stop I think you're-

How could he not see it? It's virtually everywhere dude-

Guys!! Can you give me some spa-

Even still! What if he deinstalled social media again?

Guys stop you'll over-"

"OI!!! SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU LOSERS"

Silence on the phone. What happened? And only one of you explain this to me - what's wrong with Midoriya and why am I concerned? Well you see, we all know you have feelings f- NO what Mina meant was that we know how close you are to Midoriya, and we wondered if you had heard the news about his breakup with Uraraka-san. Yeah its literally all over Twitter right now breh. Yo? Bakugo? Are you there? ...Remind me again why the fuck would I care? Hey, Katsuki. We're here for you man. Mina-san, please take Denki with you, I'd like to speak to Katsuki alone. I understand. What? That's not fair-

"You know you can talk to us. You can talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Katsuki. I know how you feel about him-"

"You don't know shit about me"

"I know you're saying things you don't mean right now, but I know you, and I know you're going to give yourself hope again and-"

"Kirishima. I gave up on him a long time ago. In fact, there was nothing there to begin with."

"Then why?"

"..."

"Then why can't you move on? There's more than Izuku in your life do you know that? You have your friends that love you and care about you. I... care about you."

"I'm hanging up now."

"Goodbye Ka-"

Katsuki stared at the phone screen. Against his better judgement, he opened the messages Izuku had sent him. There was a new one now.

"8pm The Broken Glass"

It was the pub they went to before Izuku had told him he was going to ask Ochako out. Maybe he was still buzzed because despite this harrowing reminder, despite what he had told Kirishima on the phone, he felt the traitorous flutter of hope in his heart.

He cleared away the bottles and showered, time seeming to pass by twice as fast now that he had somewhere to be. He shrugged on a jacket over his skull adorned graphic tee and allowed himself a spray of cologne. The All Might figurine on his dresser seemed to follow his movements rather judgementally today.

"What? I always put this on."

The figurine continued to stare with a frozen grin.

"Tch. Talking to a toy, I must be going crazy."

But he did feel like he was going crazy. Why else did he leave the jacket behind for a nicer hoodie and change his pants thrice after? What else could explain the second time his body betrayed him as he felt his heart race while getting in his car. There was no reason for him to glance at himself in the rearview mirror this much while parking. But here he was, ever the fool, dawdling outside the entrance to a half-empty bar frequented by salarymen and loners fifteen minutes before he was meant to be there.

"Kacchan! You're early"

A bright familiar voice called from behind him. As if on clockwork the traitorous hope in his heart leapt at this presence. No matter how many times Katsuki had seen Izuku, he could never get used to his smile. It seemed to light up his entire body, and infect the very air that touched him. He got out of his haze and pulled out the messages that he had sent him.

"You're one to talk. We still have fifteen minutes, nerd."

Izuku smiled gently. "Right, lets talk inside."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Izuku

Izuku Midoriya knew three things with complete certainty in his life - the entirety of recorded history about All Might's hero career, the number of smile lines on his mother's face and the fact that Katsuki Bakugo is his best friend. And he was also the first person he wanted to talk to about the events of today.

The pair headed for the barstools, where Katsuki ordered an old fashioned for Izuku and cider for himself. He didn't remember telling him what to order, but it made sense that he knew. As they faced each other again, Katsuki broke the silence.

"So are you going to explain to me why the fuck you sound like you're confessing to a damn crime?"

We need to talk.

Izuku downed his glass.

"Ah, yes. Ochako broke up with me."

Silence followed for a beat.

"Bartender, can we get two more drinks here?"

A hearty chuckle burst from Izuku as the drink seemed to hit him all at once. Kacchan scrunched his eyebrows deeper and he resisted the urge to smooth them out for him.

"Don't worry Kacchan, I'm not really heartbroken - in fact I think I'm more confused than anything."

"You're confused? I've never seen anyone act this way after losing the supposed love of his fucking life."

"Did you think she was? The love of my life?"

"Tch. I wouldn't know this, would I?" He slammed a now empty bottle of cider on the counter.

"You know, she didn't think so. In fact, according to Ochako, the love of my life is the furthest thing from her possible."

Katsuki raised his eyebrows.

Izuku suppressed another laugh, "She said I'm gay Kacchan."

This time, an expression passed over Kacchan's face that Izuku couldn't read. He would've almost though he imagined it, but before he could think further, Katsuki scowled as usual and interrupted him.

"And are you?"

"I don't know. Maybe?"

"Well you either are into men or you aren't - do you even like guys?"

"I've never thought about it before..."

Katsuki sighed.

"But," Izuku drank the last of his second drink and slumped on the counter. He peered up at him from under his lashes and grinned, "If I really was into guys, I think it would be you."

He didn't know why he said that. Even as he did, his face heated up and he almost instantly regretted it. The atmosphere seemed to have taken an unfamiliar shift that neither of them knew what to do with. With this set-up Izuku decided he would dig his grave even further.

"Have you ever liked a guy Kacchan?"

/to be contd.

Usually, Katsuki wouldn't drink. In fact, he was a clean eater and preferred to maintain a healthy and regular diet. However, he allowed himself these indulgences once in a while – no not even then, but today was an annual exception as it marked the anniversary of one Round-faced gravity hero and Izuku Midoriya.

"Stop."

Shinsou turned around at the sound of the bored voice. His body stiffened up with the familiar emptiness that came with the use of Eraserhead's quirk, a fun medley to join with the searing pain shooting up his left hand.

"Shinso. You need to head to the nurse's office now. You did well, but you need to know when to retreat." Aizawa finally released his quirk, bandages collapsing abruptly around his shoulders. He turns to walk away as he adds, "Kaminari - go with your classmate."

"Tch." Shinsou stares at his useless arm in disappointment. He had once again lost to Izuku Midoriya and had no mind to listen to his nauseatingly encouraging words after the match. As he stepped out of the arena boundaries he made a beeline towards the stands where the rest of their classmates waited, before his green haired opponent could get to him.

"Shinsou-kun! Taking after the infamous Midoriya today, we see," Dennis Kaminari exclaimed, jogging over to Shinsou halfway. His grin drops slightly as his eyes rove over the unnatural angle at which Shinsou's arm sits, "oh shit that does not look good bro."

"Whatever," Shinsou winces as he tries to move it. "Let's just get this over with."

"You were pretty good out there you know," Kaminari slows his pace as he walks beside Shinsou, "I mean it! You have the coolest quirk ever!"

"Right. This coming from the one that actually made it into the hero course."

"If anything I really admire how you've caught up to everyone in our class even though you didn't get the same training as us - you've done more than enough to prove yourself!"

Hitoshi Shinsou finally glanced at his excitable classmate, eyes catching on the black lightning bolt highlights on his blond mop of hair. His bright hair struck him just as intensely as his undefeated spirit. Too bad it would be ineffective on someone as hopeless as himself. Sigh.

There was some hope left in this world yet however, for he could almost feel the pain leave his arms when they neared Recovery Girl's office. Shinsou welcomed the sterile smell of disinfectant and chemicals, the sight of clean white tiles and crisp linens surrounded by pale blue curtains, out of which emerged the much welcome presence of- Monoma Neito?

"Monoma?! What are you doing here? Are you injured too?"

Denki asked the question that popped up in his head before he could.

Monoma grinned with all the physiogamy of the Cheshire Cat.

"Ah! If it isn't 1A's chart floppers still losing to your lesser classmates! Are you here to cry for mercy and heal the reminders of your inevitable defeat? Well too bad you losers don't have the ability to heal, maybe you should just let evolution cut you out. Although, I did expect better from someone like Shinsou, how could you lose to one of these damned savages!"

"Man, now's really not the time! Where is Recovery Girl? " Kaminari sighed.

Monoma cocked his head, "Ha! Of course you don't know - Even our teachers know how untrustworthy you 1A brats are! Just getting yourselves tangled up in Villain business at the drop of a hat - imagine the information that could get out and destroy our prestigious school. She's using all her ability on other students too you know! I've been training the time limit on my abilities by volunteering part time at the infirmary - I will soon be able to surpass all of you 1A small fry, and you can't do anything about it!"

"..."

"Wait- are you ignoring me? Say something you newbie hero-wannabe!" Monoma huffed. His eyes then darted to Hitoshi's arm, which was being cradled in his other arm. "Are you-"

"Wait..." Denki interrupted as he suddenly turned to Shinsou, pointing uncertainly between him and Monoma. "Does this mean you have to kiss Shinsou to heal him like her?"

With this, Hitoshi Shinsou was convinced his day couldn't ever recover from the rock bottom he had reached. Maybe he should just let his arm heal regularly. That's how life is for non UA students on the regular, in fact people heal the natural way most of the time anyway. If he was lucky, he could come back later when Recovery Girl was less busy. As much as kisses irked him in the first place, he would rather face a respectable granny than an annoying hero course student who couldn't shut up while being watched by another such contemporary.

Just as he raised his hand to excuse himself another bout of shooting pain hit his arm. Hitoshi doubled over, clutching his stomach with his other hand while he heaved. Nausea rolled over his body in waves as he broke out in a cold sweat. Strangely enough, the floor seemed to be wavering and quivering in tandem with his throbbing head, the tiles growing larger and closer until his vision went black.

Muffled voices seemed to shout over him in the background, and as he slowly blinked, he seemed to spot bright yellow through the corner of his eye before the darkness swallowed him again.

"Do you see what you did? You've killed Shinsou-kun!"

"Shut up you dunce face! If it were up to me, I wouldn't be kissing any of your loser faces! Its bad enough that I have to pick up after your mistakes in battle, but to debase myself like this... especially for my first..."

"Monoma-kun don't tell me," Denki paused. "Is this your first kiss?"

"Argh, get out of here you useless shock head and let me do my job!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Neito Monoma stared at the boy in front of him. Shonsou's hair lay softly around him, the deep violet lightening in the rays of the sun. He had never given much thought to the beauty of others, but in the quiet solitude of the nurse wing, he found his gaze lingering on his face, the shape of his eyebrows, the curve of his lips. Even his damned dark circles seemed softer and less pronounced when he was asleep like this. Neito steeled himself as his leaned over his face.

While Recovery Girl had better control of her Quirk, and could use it anywhere on someone's body, Neito had much lesser practice with it, and wasn't sure if he could pull it off as well without a mouth-to-mouth contact. But he would try. There was no way he was losing his first kiss to an arrogant 1A student - even one he shared less animosity towards. His first experiment started by swiftly landing a dry peck on Hitoshi's forehead. There was a hopeful twitch in his eyebrow, but nothing seemed to improve. Maybe he needed to try again.

This time, the kiss was lingering. He put all his focus into his lips, thinking healing thoughts as he pressed them against Hitoshi's creased brow. No reaction - even worse than before.

Slightly frustrated now, Neito kissed his left cheek, and then his right. He even licked his lips in case that would make a difference. Once again, aside from a slightly less pronounced crease, there was no difference. If it weren't for the conviction that his eyes were playing tricks on his, he could've sworn he saw his eyebrows twitch. But surely he would've received a response by now if he was awake. Undeterred by the results, or lack thereof, he wrapped his hands gently around Shinsou's jaw and neck, and peppered his face with kisses, with an enthusiasm that almost rivaled his passion for taunting the other hero class.

"Will you leave me no choice?" He sighed, "Is this revenge for calling you a loser? Wake up dammit!" His voice grew agitated towards the end while his hands contrastingly stayed gentle.

Shinsou Hitoshi, the unconscious man on the bed was in a dilemma. The truth of the matter was, the boy was fully awake at this time, having jerked awake to the feeling of soft hands cradling his face, and a pair of lips caressing every inch of his face. There was no normal way to react to this situation, however, maybe now that the assault was over, he could pretend to open his eyes, like he's just woken up, and hopefully with no memory of anything that happened during his previously comatose state. Surely there was still a way for everyone to preserve their dignity in this situation.

But Neito Monoma clearly had other plans as he sat closer to Shinsou on his hospital bed, fully leaning over him now. "You better not ignore me anymore you asshole," he whispered, and finally brushed his lips against Hitoshi's own surprisingly soft ones, eyes fluttering shut -- only stopped as they catch on the wide-eyed pair of purple irises belonging to one Shinsou Hitoshi.

His eyes had snapped open out of surprise at the first touch of his lips, which was initially shocking but also soft, pleading and oh so gentle. His eyes met Neito's shining blue depths, framed by perfect light lashes reflecting sunshine, and as they moved away from his, he suddenly felt his arms move as if of their own volition.

Monoma immediately attempted to pull away only to find an encouraging hand tousling his hair and pulling him back in, once again onto those soft lips that now devour his with a newfound passion. A soft groan escapes Hitoshi as he pulls Neito closer to him, sliding his other arm around his waist. For a moment, everything feels like a dream.

For two people that had never before spent time thinking of romance, kissing each other felt weirdly natural. Monoma had always been aware of Shinsou, the only boy in UA who could truly understand what it felt like to have a non-heroic quirk like him. He had known of his passion and strength, having seen it firsthand at the sports festival and at the training arena. But he'd never known that his feelings towards him would amount to this.

The moment only lasts briefly as its immediately interrupted by the loud voice of Kaminari entering the wing.

"Yo Monoma you better not have- Huh?"

Kaminari stopped in his tracks, facing an awkward and rather disheveled Monoma, standing stiffly beside Shinsou, who is sat diligently on the bed.

"Did I interupt something?" Denki asks cautiously.

"No! Uh, I was just- We- oh my goodness Shinsou-kun your arm is completely healed!!" Monoma announced.

"What! Oh my goodness Shinsou-kun this is great news!!" Denki grinned, "you should take it easy now, I don't know how much I trust Monoma's healing powers."

"I think I'll be fine on my own now. You should head back now, thank you Kaminari."

Strange. Denki Kaminari had never heard Monoma stay silent this long, especially in front of his self-procclaimed opps from 1A. He noted the untucked shirt and heated cheeks that the 1B student was currently sporting. Furthermore, he had also never heard Shinsou be this nice. Or seem that mellow. This information may prove to be useful in a future scenario, but reading into it this early may affect the flow of things now.

"You got it boss!" Denki flashed Shinsou a grin and a double thumbs up, winking at an increasingly irritated Monoma on his way out. Oh how this must be killing him.

Neito and Hitoshi stared at the floor as the sun's rays slanted over them. The quiet in the now empty nurse wing was comforting.

"Has your Quirk worn off now?" Shinsou inquired, breaking the silence first.

"I think so." Monoma replied, uncharecteristically calm.

"I can help you find out, if you'd like?"

fin.