𝔄𝔫 ℑ𝔫𝔣𝔦𝔫𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔄𝔴𝔞𝔶 | Katsuki Bakugo x OC

Chapter 19 - The Golden Key

The humid summer night air hugged Hina's frigid skin, the red blanket now folded and draped over her arms as she looked out the open window. Like the first time she'd sat on the leather tufted seats, she absorbed in all the little details it had, including the small personalization of Bakugo's hero name etched on the steering wheel.

Speaking of Bakugo, since she'd calmed down from her night terrors, he was in this strange limbo between distance and close familiarity. The distance in how he spoke, short, simple, straight to the point commands, and the closeness from the subtle touches of his palm on her lower back and his thumb coursing back and forth on her shoulder.

And his lingering scent blanketing around her protectively, an invisible barrier against all things atrocious in her life, made her feel so safe and secure she hadn't thought it was even humanly possible to feel this much comfort unless she was a newborn baby without a care in the world.

But the sensation was short-lived, as the anxiety of his prolonged silence overpowered and left her more nervous as to where they were going.

After her weeps had quelled to occasional sniffles, he told her to pack all her things in the lavender duffle she'd brought, told her that she had only thirty minutes before they had to leave. So in a scurry, she packed her things, dumping the folded clothes in an organized mess in the luggage, all her amenities tossed and secured in a Ziploc bag. She'd grabbed a few of her favorite hoodies, smooshing them on top of everything and finally zipping the duffle shut.

Somehow, she managed to do it all with the blanket draped over her shoulders, which made the alpha frown from the poignancy the single piece of cloth carried for the omega. He shuffled in the room, picking up her duffle and throwing it over his shoulder with his burnt orange one, the shared black straps having a continuous pattern of 'U.A.' embossed on it in a matte black finished paint. His eyes faltered back at the blanket, making Hina more conscious, hence the blanket now, neatly, laying in her lap.

After that, she'd quickly grabbed the small bag in the closet and hung it over head and on her shoulder, letting it cross over her torso. And then they both headed to his car, driving off too somewhere in the neighborhood. Which was strange... the gate was to the left and he'd turned right.

Was he heading to a different exit?
Were they going to stay at his friend's place to wait out whatever let the NVA know about her schedule?
Just what was he thinking about doing?

As Hina flitted through all her theories as to why the alpha was being this disharmonized, he jerked the car to a halt in a driveway of a house that was only slightly bigger than his. Except it had more browns and reds complementing the light pink flowers in the front yard. He quickly grabbed their things from the trunk, silently nodding at her to follow him. So quietly, she tailed behind him, her fingers finding purchase of the hem of his black tank top, the scent of molten caramel in a campfire and the delicate rays of moonlight reflecting against his ruby eyes, keeping her afloat from the darkness they were surrounded in.

Without delay, he pounded the dull red door harshly with a clenched fist.

"Coming!" A cheery man's voice called from the other side, before the door swung open.

The red-head had his hair down, his white shirt dappled with red stains that looked like he just committed murder, the gray shorts torn at the edges just like the neck of his shirt. The carmine eyes were similar to Bakugo's, but a few shades lighter, the scar on his right eyelid casting a menacing shadow, his sharp teeth glinting in the dark like spikes on a mace.

The scent the man let loose was an alpha's, the pheromones of slate piled in a quarry, the earthen scent of a plant-less mountain clashing with the campfire scent. To an extent it seemed to paint a scene of wilderness. A cliffside campsite, sandalwood trees creating a canopy at the top with piles of large boulders and dirt dusting the floor and caramel being toasted on a considerably large campfire.