IN THE WATER // katsuki bakugo x reader

WHO ARE YOU?

"please let there be something other than canned beans."

you stood watch in front while he was looking around the back aisles. you two were in search of food, but everything else has been wiped out already. you weren't excited about moving onto the next town.

it was cold out, you bury your face in the scarf around your neck when a shiver runs down your spine. occasionally you would see a few undead stumble towards you, empty eyes and its jaw hanging loose. you always took care of them quickly, you just have to aim for the head. "katsuki."

it's been years since everything turned to shit. when the bitten were who you feared and everyone you knew was gone. sacrifice or idiocy, it didn't matter. but sometimes, you'll catch a glimpse of the survivors —they always traveled in groups and you wanted to avoid them at all costs.

you had to remind yourself what kind of people would be left over, what morals they have.

the screams met deaf ears when katsuki saved you from this other man, grabbing his neck and throwing his body on the ground, the eyes of horror before getting a shot to the head. you shift slowly, shards of glass dig into your hands as he comes closer.

"you killed them." you hated the way your voice trembles. blood leaks out of the holes in their heads, your throat tightens and aches like you're about to cry.

it was like static noise on television, the buzz of city life only a memory in the back of your mind. now all you hear was the groaning of the undead, and the screams of those who weren't resourceful enough.

your small moment of peace doesn't last long, broken by the slide of the glass door behind you and a pair of footsteps. you don't need to look over your shoulder to know who it is. "there's nothing but dog food. some fucks must have found our stash."

you can't hide the disappointment on your face and it makes katsuki roll his eyes, pushing up the safety lever on the beretta 92 before sliding it back into the band around his waist. "i see more revenants coming this way, let's go."

katsuki holds out a hand and you take it.

the man took a glance at your arms and legs and you knew what you'd see from the excruciating agony. "yeah, should i have left you for dead?" he kicks your leg with his shoe, "maybe i'll shoot you anyway, just in case."

in case you were bitten? you were bleeding too much for it to be a bite.

"no— of course not!"

you hold your breath, bruised cheeks burning and you felt dizzy when he raised the pistol again, unblinking and focused. "stop yelling, jackass." you can't even look at him directly.

you're shaking and everything hurts, and the blood everywhere makes you so scared, the gun pointed at you makes you so scared. it was the ease with which he saved your life, the complete lack of hesitation.

"keep zoning out and you'll get lost again."

"that was one time." you take a deep breath, the smell of wet grass doing little to calm your nerves about being in the open like this. "how much further?"

"just a few miles." katsuki says quietly, not a hint of hostility in his voice for the first time, and you nod, fighting to get your breathing under control. you wished, more than anything, that you had your anxiety medication.

"oi, relax. before you make yourself pass out."

it took a long time to gain his trust, having to pack up the bedding while he took care of the rest before you two made it to the city, in case you made a run for it with days worth of food. the hours and hours on your feet and the whining while this man told you to shut up, struggling through a harsh winter.