“Are you sure?” he said loudly, casting a look around for other Yuuei students. “If you want someone to stay behind, I'm sure we won't have a problem getting volunteers. Ah! How about that frog-girl over there doing tricks? She seems popular among the kids, too.”

But the Director and the teachers were too busy watching Bakugou.

It sure did look like the children were enjoying playing around with him. Would it really be a good idea to leave him unsupervised with these kids, though? All Might watched in alarm as Bakugou was brought down to all-fours and had a little girl sit atop him to give orders to the “horsie.” Bakugou on his part wore a scary expression but did as told. He crawled and bucked in violent speed as the kid hung on for dear life, half-laughing and half-shouting “Slowly, slowly!” while patting Bakugou's head. The children clapped with glee, each shouting for their own turn. The ride ended when Bakugou went still and refused to move, and then the girl hopped off only to be replaced by another kid. Bakugou let out a howl of frustration, to the children's great amusement, but continued playing nevertheless.

As All Might watched the routine, he noticed the gradual change in Bakugou's mannerisms; he was letting each ride last longer and was even adding sound effects under his breath. Incredible. It's like witnessing the taming of a wild animal, All Might smiled at the thought. Sure, Bakugou was an awkward student and difficult to get along with his peers, but as All Might watched the laughing children flocking to the boy in question, he decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Well,” he said to Mr. Morita, “it's no wonder that the kids took a liking to him. That boy is Bakugou Katsuki, one of the top students in his class. Let us ask for his agreement.”

As soon as Bakugou saw the two men approaching him, he immediately got to his feet. When All Might leaned close and told him about the Director's wish of having him stay behind a little longer, Bakugou's eyes went wide and lips went thin. It was clear that he didn't want to stay.

“I'm counting on you,” said All Might before looking over his shoulder at the expectant Director. Bakugou's lower lip jutted out, making the scowl lose some of its intensity. He folded his arms and looked away, not arguing.

“You won't be alone, of course.” All Might came up with the idea of having another student stay with him in an attempt to placate him, but Bakugou didn't seem to care.

“Fine.” Bakugou assented at last and All Might patted his shoulder in thanks.

~ * ~

Once the hour was over, it was time to wrap up. Izuku changed out of the Santa suit and packed it away. Most of his classmates were waiting in the hallway outside the classroom or by the bus. He closed the drawstring bag and cast a final look around to make sure he wasn't leaving anything behind.

This had been the third and last kindergarten school trip of the day. All Might had made a list of kindergarten schools to visit with Class 1A in order to deliver Christmas donations. These trips could also be used for displaying quirks and instilling those young minds with heroic inspirations, All Might had said. Izuku had enjoyed spreading the cheer so much that he vowed to carry on the tradition when he became a pro hero like All Might.

Speaking of, he saw All Might approaching him with an expectant look on his face.

“Young Midoriya,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “I, um, I have a rather challenging favor to ask of you.”

“Yes?” asked Izuku eagerly. Nothing could have prepared him for All Might's following request.

~ * ~

The Director and staff members had retreated to their own offices. The teacher and an assistant were working near the cubicle shelves on the other side of the room. Bakugou sat crossed-legged in the middle of the floor surrounded by kids. He had changed back into his normal clothes and was now reading from a large picture book. He'd refused to acknowledge Izuku or allow him to help him engage the kids. Bakugou felt that he didn't require help and that the task given to him by All Might was solely his, or so he'd said to him earlier.

Izuku sighed, seated between a boy with stretchable limbs and a girl with gills below her temples. The clock on the wall facing him told him that the time was 11:58am. There was still an hour to go before they could go home. All Might had assured him that the bus would come back and wait for the two of them outside the school. It had been a tiring day and Izuku was ready to go home.

Bakugou was reading a passage slowly from the book, while pointing at appropriate pictures.

“There are so many different cars Slow cars, fast cars Blue car, red car Green car, yellow car and they can all go very far”

“They can even go to the moon!” An excited boy piped in with his hand raised up.

“No, they can't!” Another boy corrected. “Those are rockets, dummy.”

Bakugou frowned. “Don't interrupt--”

“Cars can go on bridges, though,” added the girl with the gills. There was a chorus of agreement among the group and comments about the different kinds of bridges.

“Wait a freakin' minute!”

(“Saito, you can't say 'freaking'!”)

The boy with stretchable limbs, whose name was Saito apparently, frowned at Bakugou. “How come the bridges don't break when heavy cars are on them?”

Bakugou blinked at him. Saito's frown deepened. Izuku looked between them, wondering if he should provide an answer. As if sensing Izuku's intentions, Bakugou tsked and decided to answer the query.

“Because there are things supporting them.”

“What things?”

“Support things.” Bakugou glared at the kid.

“Oh, yeah? What kind of support things?”

It was as though the kid was challenging Bakugou's intelligence. Izuku watched transfixed.

“Haven't you ever seen a bridge? There are cylinder-like beams under bridges, that's what holds them up,” explained Bakugou. Sounds of understanding rippled through the group.

“What about the water bridges, then?” pressed Saito.

“There are cables holding those up.”

“Just cables? Then how come the cables don't break?”

“Because they're obviously strong--”

“How strong?”

“Strong enough to hold up the bridge!”

“Can they hold up dinosaurs?”

“What?” barked Bakugou.

“Can they hold up a mountain?”

“Enough--”

“You don't know, do you? Because you're just freakin' dumb!” Saito folded his arms.

“Shut your damn mouth!” snapped Bakugou.

The group gasped in unison at Bakugou's outburst. A few kids gave him unimpressed looks. Others looked concerned. Izuku stared aghast, quickly thinking of ways to repair the damage.

“You can't say that!” yelled Saito. “You should say 'close' your damn mouth.”

“N-No, you're not supposed to say 'damn' either,” corrected Izuku, causing Bakugou's head to snap in his direction. “You're supposed to say 'close your mouth!'”

Bakugou scowled at Izuku and then at Saito.

“Fine,” he ground out. “Close your mouth, then.”

Saito proceeded to pull ugly faces at Bakugou, who tried his best to ignore him. Some kids were shaking their heads at the pair.

“Let's, um,” said Izuku, nervously looking around the circle. “Let's continue with the book, shall we?”

Bakugou tsked and opened the book again. But there was a chorus of protests.

“No more!”

“That book is boring!”

“You're boring!”

“I wanna play kagome kagome!”

Izuku looked at Bakugou and detected a hint of dejection on his face but it was gone the next second.

12:10pm

They stood in a circle and noticed that everyone was keeping their distance from Bakugou; he had somehow earned their disfavor. There was no way Bakugou was unaware of it yet he didn't step outside the circle. He stood stubbornly in place, hands hanging by his sides.

A young girl tugged Izuku's sleeve. “Come on, gimme your hand,” she said, before grasping Izuku's left hand. He watched the other kids slowly join hands and form a circle. And then before he could rethink his decision, he boldly stepped towards Bakugou.

“Come on, Kacchan,” he said, offering up his right hand. “Your hand.”

He was aware of the heat around his neck as Bakugou gave him a mutinous look. His hand was probably sweaty and his heart was doing somersaults but he didn't back down. Bakugou looked around the circle to see the kids staring at them. Izuku could tell Bakugou wanted to do a good job at the task his idol, All Might, had given them, and he was sure Bakugou also wanted to impress those little kids who saw them as future heroes. He stepped closer to Bakugou and cleared his throat. “Here,” he said with a forced smile, jerking his hand impatiently in the air. Bakugou didn't take his hand. But he did move his own hand a few inches in Izuku's direction. And that was all the response he needed before he grabbed Bakugou's hand, the forced smile turning stupid.

“Shut up,” hissed Bakugou and dug his nail between Izuku's knuckles.

Izuku bit his lips, not from pain but to keep himself from grinning any wider. He felt giddy at the fact that Bakugou was pinching him surreptitiously instead of outright hitting him – he didn't want to make a bad impression on the kids.

The circle was finally completely linked, and a boy with scaly arms stood in the middle, acting as the ogre, and placed his hands over the eyes. He peeked through his hands at Bakugou once, as if he was afraid of him, and then closed his eyes and fingers.

They played a few rounds, with Saito blowing raspberries at Bakugou any chance he got.

“We used to play this game as kids, you know,” Izuku suddenly told the children, “and Kacchan was really good at it.”

“Kacchan?” asked Mira, the girl holding Izuku's hand. Bakugou turned to look at him and squeezed his hand hard. Izuku raised their joined hands.

“This is Kacchan,” he told the kids. “That's not his real name but just what I call him. We've known each other since we were your age.”

“Is that his nickname?” Saitou's nose scrunched up in distaste.

“Yes,” said Izuku quickly. “It's really cool, right?” Bakugou scoffed and the kids agreed.

“What's your nickname then?” Mira's eyes were wide like her classmates' and brimming with intrigue.

“Deku,” said Izuku.

“Dekku?”

“It sounds so cool!”

“I like it.”

“It's different!”

“What's it mean?” asked Saito.

“It means,” spoke Bakugou, “never giving up.”

Izuku froze.

“Wow!”

“Neat!”

He was speechless and there was an annoying lump in his throat. He chanced a look at Bakugou and found him staring back.

“What?” Bakugou said. Izuku shrugged and looked away. Of course, Bakugou had only repeated the meaning Uraraka-san had come up with, but hearing him utter the connotation instead of the insult himself made Izuku inexplicably happy.

Suddenly, there was excited chatter around them.

“Hey, Rei-chan, when we grow up into heroes, let's call each other with nicknames, too! I'll be Sacchan and you can be Reku!”

Bakugou coughed behind a hand and Izuku beamed.

12:24pm

The class had scattered into little groups and engaged in different activities with help from the classroom teacher. Some kids were watching cartoons while others played with blocks. Izuku watched as the assistant teacher placed the wooden Christmas ornaments that All Might had brought on a paper-covered table and helped some kids paint them. And then there was a tug on his sleeve. It was Mira, the girl who seemed to have taken a great liking to him.

“Let's play house, come,” she said, pulling his hand with both hands.

“O-Okay.” Izuku let himself be pulled to a corner of the room with bean bags strewn around and sat down. “So, how do you play 'house'?” he asked.

“Well,” explained Mira. “I'm gonna be the mama and you be the papa.”

“I see.” Izuku nodded. “And then?”

“And then...”

Mira looked around. “Kacchan!” she shouted. Bakugou, who was engaged in an intense discussion with Saito about brushing teeth, looked at her.

“Come here!” she yelled, beckoning him. It seemed for a moment as though Bakugou would refuse, but then he pushed away from the shelf he'd been leaning on and walked to them.

“We're playing house,” went on Mira, “I'm the mama and Deku's papa, and you're gonna be our son.”

Bakugou arched an eyebrow at Izuku, who bit his lips and patted the bag next to his.

“Have a seat, son,” he said, not bothering to restrain the huge grin on his face.

Mira giggled and Bakugou rolled his eyes but joined them anyway, sprawling lazily on the bag.

“What do you want to eat for lunch, Kacchan?” asked Mira. Bakugou sighed, throwing his head back.

“I don't care, make whatever.”

This situation was too weird. Izuku was torn between laughing and pinching himself. He couldn't believe he was playing around with Bakugou of all people. And the most shocking part was that Bakugou was complying.

“No, you have to tell me what to make.”

Bakugou closed his eyes.

“I'm not hungry,” he said. Mira pouted deeply.

“Papa, look, Kacchan is being mean again!” she complained to Izuku. “What're we gonna do with him?”

Izuku watched Bakugou yawn.

“Kacchan,” he said, getting said boy's attention at once. “You have to stop being mean.”

Bakugou stared steadily at him and Izuku held the gaze. The silence between them was heavy but not uncomfortable.

“You have to let people care for you,” Izuku went on, never breaking eye contact with Bakugou. “Your parents, your friends, and others. And then when they need it, you should care for them, too. Right, mama?”

He turned to Mira who nodded vigorously, and repeated the earlier question. “Right, so just tell me what you want to eat.”

Bakugou still had his eyes on Izuku.

“Cutlet over rice,” he said pointedly. Izuku smiled to himself.

Mira swirled her hands in the air. “Okay, just pretend I cooked it for you. Now eat it.” She thrusted her hands at Bakugou, who was forced to hold the invisible bowl.

“Um,” he said.

“Let me help you,” said Izuku, leaning close.

“There's no need!” snapped Bakugou. Izuku raised his eyebrows when Mira gasped in shock.

“I can eat it myself,” said Bakugou in a more amicable tone. “Father.”

“Papa,” said Izuku, wondering how far he could get away with this. “Call me 'Papa.'”

Bakugou grimaced and grabbed the side of Izuku's head and pulled him in to whisper furiously in his ear. “You're testing my goddamn nerve, Deku.”

“No whispering!” said Mira. “All right, let's switch roles - I wanna be the daughter now. Kacchan, you be the mama.”

Bakugou turned away, moving to a nearby bench to distance himself. “Never.”

“Oh come on, dear,” said Izuku, following Bakugou down the bench with a shit-eating grin. “Don't be so stubborn.”

“Deku, I swear to fudging god.”

12:45pm

The bell finally rang to signal the end of the day. The kids rushed to the cubicle shelves to get their schoolbags. The teachers thanked Izuku profusely for staying behind at their request. While the teachers spoke to Bakugou, Izuku waited by the classroom door. He was reading the Good Manners poster on the wall when his eyes caught Saito shoving Mira back, making her trip on the floor.

“Stay back, weirdo.” Saito looked displeased. “You should go last because you're quirkless.”

Two kids standing close to Saito laughed, and few others hesitantly voiced their disapproval. Mira frowned and rubbed her knees.

Izuku felt nauseated. His chest felt tight and cold. He had an insane desire to break something. He watched Mira grip her schoolbag, not bothering to get up.  

“Oi, what the hell do you think you're doing?”

It was Bakugou. He looked furious and disgusted, and there was something else in his eyes that Izuku couldn't place. He helped Mira to her feet and helped her put on her schoolbag. “You okay?”

She nodded once and slipped her hand into Bakugou's, stepping behind his legs. The assistant started towards them but the classroom teacher stopped her. Izuku watched them in silence, rooted to his spot.

“You think you're better than her?” Bakugou asked in a crisp tone.

“Of course,” said Saito, wiggling a long arm. “I can do many amazing things with my quirk and she can't!”

“So, just because she doesn't have a quirk, you think it's all right to hurt her?”

“I don't have a quirk now but the school nurse said I can still get one,” said Mira in a small unconvincing voice, stepping further behind Bakugou. Izuku supposed the nurse had only said that to her to console her without realizing that giving false hope was the cruelest thing to do.  

Bakugou exhaled breath and closed his eyes, visibly composing himself. As the mixture of emotions melted away from Bakugou's face, Izuku realized what he'd seen fleetingly in Bakugou's eyes was fear. It was like being presented with a window to their ugly past, their mistakes and regrets, and how they handle this situation now would determine their own growth.

“Not everyone's quirks manifest at the same time.”

Mira and Saito both looked up curiously at Bakugou. Izuku finally found strength to step away from the doorway and come stand next to Bakugou.

Bakugou squatted down in front of Saito and placed an arm around Mira.

“What if Mira were to acquire a quirk tomorrow?”

Saito looked at Mira and then back at Bakugou, face pinched in concern.

“Sure, you're laughing and feeling more important than her now, but if she gets her quirk and becomes stronger than you while you're busy being a mean kid, you're going to look like an absolute fool. Having a quirk doesn't automatically make you a better person. You have to be nice, and brave, and smart.”

Saito hung his head and pouted angrily.

“Isn't it better to help others instead of being mean?” Bakugou spoke carefully, as if reciting words from an invisible source. He looked up at Izuku and held his gaze before continuing. “That way, when you need it, others will help you, too.”

Izuku found himself nodding at Bakugou, a wave of relief washing over him. Bakugou observed him for a few more seconds before turning back to Saito.

“Does that make sense?”

“Yeah,” said Saito begrudgingly, staring at the carpet. “But how do you know all this?”

Bakugou frowned, lost for words. Izuku managed to dislodge the lump in his throat and decided to help him out.”Because Kacchan once knew a kid like Mira--”

Bakugou’s head whipped in Izuku’s direction, and Izuku offered a confident smile. “So he understands.”

They were treading unfamiliar water, but Izuku felt more sure and bold than he’d ever felt in Bakugou’s company, and most of it was due to Bakugou’s own words. He hoped that he was instilling the same emotion in the other boy.

“That kid you mentioned,” spoke Mira, looking up at the pair of them, “the one without a quirk? Where is he now?” Bakugou chewed his lower lip and stood up.

“He's right here,” he said, pointing a thumb in Izuku's direction.

Mira gasped excitedly. Saito's mouth fell open. Even the teachers looked pleasantly surprised.

“Oh!” said another boy. “So he's your friend now!”

Bakugou rubbed the bridge of his nose and Izuku's heart fluttered when he didn't deny the statement. Bakugou turned back to Saito, who was staring dumbfounded at Izuku.

“Be friends with Mira, okay? She's sharp and smart, I bet she can teach you a thing or two about your own quirk.”

“I bet she can show you fun ways to play using your quirk,” quipped in Izuku. “Maybe, how to tie your arms and hang down from high places?”

Saito's eyes went wide in interest.

Bakugou threw him an annoying look. “Are you Mira?” he asked under his breath.

Izuku wanted to say 'in some ways, yes,' but decided against it. Instead, he just offered him a watery smile. Damnit, his tear glands were overacting again. Bakugou considered Izuku for a moment before they both turned back to Saito. 

“Make sure you make amends before it's too late,” said Bakugou. The words sent a pleasant shock through Izuku. Kacchan.

“You're young now,” spoke Izuku, elaborating Bakugou's statement, “and things are simpler, so don't let the chance slip by.”

Bakugou pushed Mira forward so that she was standing face to face with Saito, who huffed once and stuck out a hand which Mira shook at once.

The intercom came on and a few names were called out. The teachers busied themselves with preparing the children to go home.

Bakugou and Izuku decided to head out, too. They called out their farewell to the class.

“Bye, Deku!”

“Bye-bye, Kacchan!”

“We're going to become even stronger than both of you!” shouted Saito, still holding Mira's hand. “Just you watch!”

Bakugou lit up his palm. “Try your best.”

Izuku laughed weakly and prompted Bakugou towards the exit. As they walked together to their own bus, Izuku broke the silence.

“It isn't too late for- for us, you know,” said Izuku, casting a quick side-look at Bakugou. “It's never too late.”

Neither spoke for a while and Izuku gave up on receiving a reply.

But then Bakugou's lips curled and he said, “Good.”