💥𝔸 𝔾𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕎𝕒𝕤 𝕆𝕟𝕔𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕖 𝕍.𝟚💥𝔹𝕒𝕜𝕦𝔻𝕖𝕜𝕦

Chapter 13

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

A Ghost In A Shell

Bored and impatient, Katsuki sat through the seemingly endless budget meeting, his mind wandered anxiously, his fingers tapping restlessly on the table as he absentmindedly twirled a pen between them, his scowl deepening. All he could think about was a single burning question: when the hell would they let him see Izuku?

As if the universe had tuned into his thoughts, his phone buzzed at that exact moment. With a quick glance, he caught sight of the notification: Izuku was finally stable enough for visitors. Without a second thought, he bolted from his seat, drawing puzzled glances from the others in the meeting room. Snatching up his things, a nosy sidekick piped up, "Hey, Dynamight, everything okay?"

Ignoring the question, he shot back, "None of your damn business," shutting down any further probing before striding purposefully towards the exit. His mind was a laser beam, focused solely on reaching Izuku as fast as humanly possible.

Bursting into his assistant's office, he cut straight to the point. "Out for the day. Dump my calls on those idiot head heroes, Red Riot and Charge Bolt," he barked, not bothering to stick around for confirmation.

The day after his explosive outburst, Katsuki had reluctantly tossed a half-hearted apology to both Eijiro and Hanta for his more-than-savage behavior, but they waved it off, saying they deserved it.

"Man, if I'd known it was 'cause Midoriya woke up, I'd have stepped aside myself, I WOULDN'T have tried to stop him, you're crazy Kirishima," Hanta chuckled, his laughter filling the room. Ejiro shrugged; his usual easygoing smile plastered on his face.

"Sorry for getting in your way, bro," Eijiro offered a sincere apology to Katsuki.

"Don't sweat it, bro. We all make mistakes," Hanta chimed in with Eijiro, slapping Eijiro on the back in a reassuring manner. "Let's just focus on our patrol routes and kick some villain ass!"

As Katsuki neared the hospital, his nerves danced on a razor's edge. What the hell was he supposed to say to Izuku? How do you apologize for nearly abandoning someone in their darkest moment, for calling them a burden and a useless piece of shit? It had been so fucking long since they'd spoken, and he still couldn't shake the guilt of the acid he'd spat at Izuku. How could he have been so damn cruel? If he had been there any later, Izuku would have died there in the dark, alone with no one to comfort him. Fuck. That thought still haunted him after all these years.

Katsuki tried to push aside the suffocating guilt as he pulled up to the entrance of the hospital. He cursed himself for not being able to act sooner, for almost losing the person who had been his constant, his rival, his friend. As he rushed inside, he swore he'd never let it happen again. He'd protect Izuku, even if it cost him his own life.

In the elevator, his heart hammered against his ribcage, his grip on the metal railing tight. The anticipation of seeing Izuku again warred with the doubt and fear that fluttered on the edges of his mind. The door dinged as the elevator opened on the second floor, and before long he stood in front of Izuku's room, his hand hovering above the handle. His mind buzzed, and his heart felt like it was about to explode out of his chest. The glint of his ring caught his attention... this oddly felt like Déjà Vu. Just get on with it, dammit! He faced shit head-on, and he'd been waiting too damn long for this day. But before he could open the door, Aizawa's voice halted him in his tracks.

"Bakugo, come here for a second. I need to talk to you before you go in," Aizawa's tone brooked no argument.

Katsuki cursed soundly under his breath, irritation sparking as he turned to face Aizawa. "Yeah, what is it now? I thought he had the all-clear already," he replied, impatient.