Goodbye Solitude

Chapter 6

Bakugo refused to acknowledge the question and kept looking out the window.

When they got to the Home Office both of them filled out their daily required paperwork, detailing what had happened that day or anything unusual they noticed. Their cat rescue had to go on the paperwork, though they wouldn't get much extra pay for it. Bakugo scribbled everything down quickly, beating Kirishima, who wrote much more neatly, and then he raced back downstairs to the locker room to get changed out of his hero costume. Once he left the building in his street clothes, he was officially off the clock for the day.

In his haste, he dropped his gauntlets on the tiled floor, cursing under his breath. He fumbled with them, he had a pretty large locker, but it was still a pain to hang them up. They had to be slid in side-by-side, snug against each other, so he could close the locker door. Every extra second that ticked by made him more and more nervous.

If he could make it to his car without Kirishima catching up to him then he was a free man. At least for now. Of course, they'd see each other tomorrow but if Kirishima was going to stick what he said about not talking about it while on the clock then all Bakugo had to do was not see Kirishima outside of work until... this thing blew over. Whenever the hell that was. Piece of fucking cake.

A near-hysterical laughed bubbled up in his throat at that thought. Right.

Finally, he slammed his locker shut and headed for the exit. He snuck out of the locker room, out of the building, and hurried to the parking lot. From across the parking lot he could see a figure leaning against his car. Walking closer, his heart started to race as he recognized the person. Briefly, he contemplated ditching his car and making a run for it. He couldn't abandon it though, what if it was towed for sitting in the lot overnight? No way in hell. That wasn't a legitimate option.

Hearing his footsteps, Kirishima straightened and turned around to smile at Bakugo over the hood of his car. "Hey."

"Uh, hey. I was about to go home."

"Yeah, I know. Let's talk first." Determination made Kirishima's voice a bit louder than normal.

Bakugo looked around him at the parking lot. "Here?"

He shrugged. "Where do you want to go?"

"I don't fucking know." He sighed and unlocked his car with his remote. "Get in, I guess."

They both climbed into the car, Bakugo in the driver's seat and Kirishima in the passenger side. The sun was setting, the sky awash in pink and orange hues, while the inside of his car was slightly darker, aided slightly by the tinted windows. In the dim light Kirishima's hair was a rich burgundy, instead of its usual bright red.

"All right. Spit it out," Bakugo ordered.

Kirishima turned to look him directly in the face. "Do you like me?"

"Jesus Christ, how old are you?" Bakguo mocked.

"I know, I know, but you know what I'm asking." He rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"You're my best friend."

"So?" Kirishima challenged. "Are you trying to say that best friends can't ever become...well, more than best friends?"

"Of course not, but..."

"Okay then, why did you kiss me?"

"Hell if I know, I've been asking myself the same fucking question!" Bakugo replied.

"So, you told me to forget about anything I might've felt from that bite but then you kiss me. I'm really confused right now!" He pursed his lips in irritation, the expression looking foreign on him.

Bakugo sighed. "I don't blame you."

"So, in summation: You don't understand and I don't understand it."

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

He looked down at Bakugo thoughtfully. "Fine then," he said after a moment. "Let's try to understand this together." He leaned over the car's center console, reaching a hand out to curl behind Bakugo's neck and pull him closer.

Bakugo's eyes widened. "Whoa there! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Um, helping?" Kirishima grinned down at him. His white teeth the most visible part of his face right now.

"You want to help me," Bakugo stated slowly.

"Yes."

"How? By kissing me?"

"Sure, and anything else you need me to do."

The encroaching darkness must've made him feel bold because the word, "Anything?" slipped out of his mouth.

Kirishima's fingers moved restlessly on his neck, his thumb running gently up and down the smooth, warm skin just under Bakugo's ear. "Yes. What do you want me to do? I want what you want." His voice was a husky murmur.

His heart drummed loudly in his ears and his breath quickened. Some part of his brain could feel his lips moving, but he couldn't quite process what he said. Kirishima's barely visible eyes clearly widened in the shadows and he inhaled sharply. He moved quickly, leaning even more over the center console, all but climbing into Bakugo's bucket seat.

Instead of kissing him, though, his lips whispered down his neck, following the trail that his fingers had traveled just a second before. Soft, open-mouthed, wet kisses sprinkled over his skin. The first gentle nip of teeth on his neck wrenched a strangled gasp from Bakugo. His hand fisted the front of Kirishima's shirt. Flashbacks of his dreams flickered through his brain like flickering images from an old movie reel. Dream and reality merged for a long, suspended moment. Teeth bit and released, only to bite again. Hair tickled along his jawline and hot breath panted against his neck.

"Kiri," Bakugo moaned.

"Mmhm," he hummed back. "You like this?" Teeth nipped playfully over his Adam's apple.

"Yes," he hissed, dizzy. His dick throbbed in his pants. "More."

Kirishima's hand released his neck to drop to his back, pushing Bakugo closer to him. The seats were too low and the center console was too high for them to move any closer, though. Giving up, Kirishima snarled and finally let go of Bakugo entirely. "This stupid, cool-looking car is too damn small. Why couldn't you drive a minivan?" he joked but his voice sounded strained.

"Hah," Bakugo laughed breathlessly.

A few minutes passed while the men collected and calmed themselves. Finally, Kirishima spoke again, "Do you want to come over to my place?"

"Huh, what for?" Bakugo said, still dazed.

He paused, the silence feeling heavy. "To continue. I want to see you, to touch you."

Bakugo wanted that. Badly. But an insidious whisper spoke up in his head. Beware! "I don't think so."

"Yeah, I kinda thought you might say that," Kirishima said wryly. "Did I at least help you understand anything?"

"I... I understand that I like your teeth way more than I want to admit."

Kirishima snorted. "Is that so?" His voice sounded pleased in the nearly dark car. The car clicked dully as he pulled the door's handle and the overhead light blinded Bakugo for a second. He squinted up at Kirishima who smiled at Bakugo as he climbed out of the car. "Well, my teeth and I will see you tomorrow. I'm not forgetting anything and if you forget what happened tonight, I'll be happy to remind you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he muttered as Kirishima shut the door and walked away, heading to catch his train home. He flipped his driver's side visor down and looked at his neck. Small pink marks were speckled all over his skin, looking more like a rash than teeth imprints. They'd probably be completely gone by morning, he thought in dissatisfaction. He realized that he wanted something more. Maybe not ones that bled like his first mark, but he wanted teeth marks that left angry imprints for days.

An idea dawned on him, and with that idea came the faintest, oddest feeling of acceptance. Yeah, part of him was still very much afraid of getting in too deep and hurting their friendship but maybe he and Kirishima could come to some sort of arrangement....