Halfway to the Moon

A Star That Flickers

Izuku stood in front of the mirror, eyes roaming over the yellows and purples that decorated his skin. His arms were bare- Izuku having not gotten around to rewrapping them in bandages yet- revealing slowly healing lines of split flesh from his wrists to his forearms. He frowned at himself; he wasn't a pretty picture and he knew it.

It'll get better. He told himself. You'll get into UA, and people won't beat you up anymore, and you won't have to cut because you'll have friends!

The thoughts were almost enough to bring a smile to his face, but as much as he tried to stay optimistic, the devil on his shoulder told him he had to be realistic.

He shrugged it off, deciding those were thoughts for Future Izuku to deal with. He quickly wrapped his arms and shrugged on his school uniform. He pointedly ignored the emptiness forming in the pit of his stomach.

-

The sky was a brilliant mix of pink, orange, and blue when Izuku stepped outside. The trees swayed in the gentle breeze and ruffled Izuku's hair.

He breathed it in greedily, the cool air filling his lungs and doing wonders to soothe his mounting anxieties.

He walked to school slowly, wanting to enjoy the peace while he had it. Today was going to be extra hard seeing as Izuku hadn't got the best sleep the night before. He'd made dinner for two and ate alone, sitting in front of the TV so it'd feel a little less lonely. He'd washed the dishes, dried them, put them away. Finally, he'd taken a cold shower and collapsed into bed. But despite how his tummy was full, despite how his hair was clean and dry, despite how his muscles cried for it, sleep wouldn't come.

He'd eventually awoken groggy and restless. Now, as he stared at the daunting silhouette of his middle school building, the heaviness in his limbs felt like a death sentence.

The feeling was further cemented when Kacchan tripped him at the school gate. He fell to the ground with a grunt as Kacchan's goons laughed and pointed. Kacchan didn't say anything, just smirked and scoffed as he walked away. Izuku watched him go, a sigh falling from his lips. Well, he could already tell how this day was going to go.

•○•

Katsuki walked into the school, adjusting the weight of his backpack strap on his shoulder. He was still irritated, but he felt better after making that nerd eat dirt. He knew, deep down, that Deku hadn't really done anything to warrant it, but he couldn't help himself. Couldn't admit those truths to himself.

Every time he looked at Deku, he saw someone with a strong, kind, heroic spirit, and it made Katsuki so damn mad. Katsuki had all the skill, all the bravery, the quirk, and yet that bastard was always acting like the hero.

In the same way Katsuki had everything Deku didn't, Deku had the things Katsuki couldn't. He knew that. He knew that, and the jealousy was unbearable, as was the strange tingle in his belly and clenching in his chest when the other was around, so he covered it up with anger and imaginary condescension.

He deserved it. Katsuki told himself. He has no right acting like he can do something when he's powerless. It's insulting.

Katsuki could feel his temper rising again. His blood simmered dangerously close to it's boiling point, but the blonde pushed it back down, willing himself to calm down.