Dedicated to @WatermelonTitan
Izuku yawned as his eyes opened, slightly stinging and scratchy. He didn't like it.
He took a silent minute to survey the room, realising he was in fact in his Unkie's room. It always struck him as strange - it used to be split directly down the middle. One half bare besides a few cat knickknacks and the one or two photos of a few kids from UA. But now that his Uncle had left, it was almost all bare. Izuku couldn't decide whether he liked it or not.
Squirming slightly in the blanket, he huffed as he found his left arm pinned down by a body.
He poked his Unkie's cheek.
"U-Unkie, you're squishing me!" He whispered with another huff, and the man blearily blinked awake. Onyx eyes met green for a minute before Shouta rolled more onto Izuku, careful to hold most his weight.
"Go back to sleep Problem Child."
Izuku squirmed more, frowning.
"Unkie! You-re he-heavy!"
Shouta added slightly more weight, yawning behind a grin. "Too noisy. You're rude. So mean to your good ol' Unkie."
Izuku giggled, pulling his arm free and poking Shouta's cheek aggressively. "U-Unkie! You'll s-squish me!"
Groaning slightly Shouta was quick to sit up and yank the blanket away from Izuku, grinning evilly. He pinned him down gently with his knees, fingers poking his ribs.
"A-Ah! U-Unkie!"
Izuku giggled as the fingers travelled along his stomach, the light touches tickling his skin and making his writhe under his Unkie.
"Say the magic word Izuku."
Spluttering, Izuku tried to take a deep breathe, giggles becoming hysterical. "Pl-Please!"
Falling off him, Shouta stretched and yawned. It was nearly four in the afternoon, both sleeping not long after Hisashi left until that moment.
At the sudden nervous atmosphere, Shouta glanced at Izuku, who was fiddling with his thumbs."What is it Izuku?" He yelped slightly, flushing red. He took a minute before speaking.
"C-Can Kisan s-still come over?" Looking at the clock, Shouta shrugged. "I haven't told him no. You better get ready, he'll be here soon."
Izuku nodded, smiling slightly as he toppled off the bed. Shouta winced at the thump as he hit the floor, but a second his head was poking over the bed. Green eyes wide. "I'm o-okay!" He ran to the door, stumbling to a stop before he left.
"T-Thank you!"
"What for?"
Izuku turned anxiously again, looking at the floor and fiddling with the hoodie sleeves. "F-For letting m-me stay!" Shouta smiled sadly, but only nodded. "Forever, Lettuce."
_______________________
"Zukun!"
There was a blur of yellow and green the second the door opened, Denki ramming into the unsuspecting Izuku. The boy proudly stood his ground, only stumbling back slightly as he returned the hug.
"I thought you died Zukun!"
There was a small cough. "Denki, we spoke about this. Be careful of the language you use around people."
The boy only nodded slightly, and Shouta turned to stare at Mr Kaminari. He'd gotten to know the man a little, and he didn't mind him. He wasn't particularly noisy or energetic like Denki, but they had held decent conversations.
"Aizawa, how you been?"
Nodding, he suppressed a yawn. "Fine, I guess. You?" The man nodded, face telling him he felt the same. "Denki hasn't sat still since you messaged us. He's been excited. You sure you don't mind? I can always come and get him later."
Shouta shook his head, holding his hand out for Denki's over-night bag. "No, Izuku needs some company other than me and the cats. I'll drop him off in the morning." Exchanging a few other greetings, Mr Kaminari left and Shouta turned around. Two sets of wide eyes were staring at him.
"Hot chocolate with fifteen mini-marshmallows. Warm milk with fifteen mini-marshmallows."
The boys nodded frantically. Surprisingly, Izuku hadn't told Denki about the one big Marshmallow, and had pulled Shouta aside a few weeks ago informing he wanted it to be their secret. The memory made Shouta smile.
"Go and wait in the fort."
So they ran off, and Shouta winced when he heard Izuku yelp, Denki's immediate apologies and the reassurances that 'it was fine' and 'you'll get better at controlling it'.
It didn't take long to make the drinks, and put them on the plate besides a few cookies, carrying it carefully into the fort. The two boys were huddled under a blanket, squeezed onto one bean bag, Paws stretched over their laps.
"U-Unkie! Can you t-tell us how you g-got the Kitties?!" Putting the things down on the coffee table, and handing them a cookie each, he sat crossed legged on the floor. Skit and Patch climbed on him instantly.
"I don't see why not. Who first?"
Denki grinned. "Stray!"
"Okay, he was our first one. I found him on my first night of ... work. On my way home ...."
Shouta fell into his story, telling the boys about how he found each one.
In a less exaggerated way; each one was found behind a dumpster in an alley at different stages, all kittens and looking at Shouta with the same eyes that made him unable to take them to a shelter.
By the end of the story, the boys were sipping their drinks with wide eyes. Izuku blinked slowly.
"S-So their li-like me?"
Denki cut in before Shouta could, slapping him gently on the arm. "Don't be so mean to yourself Zukun! You're not a stray!" Izuku went to frown, but Denki jammed his fingers in the corner of his mouth and pulled it to a smile.
"Nuh-uh! Underdog smiles!"
Grinning by himself, Izuku giggled. "Y-You're right!"