Atonement [Bakugo Katsuki]

🤍 Chapter 84 🤍

Quiet footsteps pulled Kimitsuki out of her lonesome burden and she stopped her assault upon herself as she turned her head around to see that the person coming upstairs to the deck was none other than Katsuki.

"... Ka-Chan," Kimitsuki spoke and she watched as Katsuki's red eyes turned to look at her. She gave him a small smile. "Did you have your dinner yet? You're usually asleep by now,"

"I already had dinner," Katsuki muttered. Kimitsuki nodded. "And why did I have to be in a room with two idiots? I wanted a room by myself!"

"Not sure, I think it was dependent on who offered to share with whom," Kimitsuki replied. "You must be popular, Ka-Chan, for Kirishima-Kun and Kaminari-Kun wanting to share a room with you,"

"Who are you with?" Katsuki inquired and Kimitsuki looked at him awkwardly.

"Um, I have a room by myself," Kimitsuki answered. Katsuki raised his eyebrows at her. "If you'd like, you have it – I can rest in the hospital wing for the night,"

"Do you have no friends?" Katsuki asked, his eyes suddenly narrowed at the white-haired girl.

It was the most unexpected question and Kimitsuki was slightly offended – offended because she was sure he was going to be disgruntled over her having a room by herself, not that she was supposedly lonely. Even more so, the tough Katsuki of the past would've told her that she was weird to not have friends share room with her. She stared at him in silence before sighing.

"What a weird question," Kimitsuki mumbled. "Of course, I have friends but there are only seven girls. Uraraka-Chan and Asui-Chan are close friends, and so are Jiro-Chan and Yaoyorozu-Chan... as for Ashido-Chan and Hagakure-Chan, their interests and energy match,"

Yet Katsuki remained silent as he continued to look at her in the silver light of the moon above their heads. Kimitsuki met his eyes with surprising amount of vigour in response.

"I can be a bit reserved and I have more duties, too," Kimitsuki told him toughly. "But on the mention of friends seeking each other as friends, do you consider Kirishima-Kun and Kaminari-Kun as friends, then?"

Kimitsuki had flipped the issue onto Katsuki, and for a moment, he could only splutter in response, looking at her with wide eyes. Then, she let out a gentle chuckle and looked away, back toward the direction of the distant black sea that stretched endlessly. Katsuki leaned over the railing as well.

Silence fell between the two of them but it was not the sort that was heavy or strange. Kimitsuki felt like she had forgotten about her worries when someone talked to her. When Katsuki talked to her.

"... I felt so worried," Kimitsuki spoke up. "No, rather, I feel worried all the time when it comes to Izu-Chan and Ka-Chan... yet whenever I see you and fight next to you, I feel a strange relief as well,"

"You're talking strange things again," Katsuki grunted as he looked away, rubbing the back of his head. "I keep telling you – I'm going to be the Number One Hero!"

"I know," Kimitsuki replied, biting back a smile as she looked toward him. "I suppose that is where the relief comes from... it was amazing, seeing how you protected Mahoro-Chan..."

Katsuki remained quiet; a bit disgruntled that Kimitsuki had only pointed that out how he had protected Mahoro and not her. For a moment, he wanted to pick an issue about it with her but the thought vanished immediately. Instead, he remained silent, looking at the crashing waves.

"... thank you, too, Ka-Chan," Kimitsuki said as she looked down at her hands. "For protecting me there as well... and helping me go on to fight next to you and Izu-Chan,"