Bakugou hadn't been able to see Shoto in two days due to his royal duties in the palace. He was forced to spend an entire morning with the other Princes and Princesses in the castle's gardens where they adjourned in the large glass greenhouse for lunch. Thankfully it was open and bright, airy enough that Bakugou didn't explode from his frustrations whilst he tried to pour his own goddamn cup of tea! The only upside was knowing that the flowers in this garden weren't as beautiful as Shoto's; they lacked the care and nurture of his gentle hands and kind heart.
That evening he spent at a nearby restaurant with the Yaoyorozu family, dining on luscious meats and vegetables whilst his and Momo's mothers talked about their latest fashions for the upcoming ball season in the summer. At least whilst there he got to talk with his father, who was interested in asking his son about what he had seen around the city with his friends.
Then the next day was spent having a new suit being made and tailored since that evening's ball had a tropical theme. He refused to wear the gaudy green colour the haberdasher had suggested, so he relented with a black and red suit with the faintest leaf pattern on the blazer. Kirishima said it made him look handsome, and he never lied, but it didn't mean his eyes were saved from overwhelming oranges and greens in the ballroom, alongside gigantic palm leaves and rows and rows of rainbow fruits.
He had been busy, indeed, but not busy enough to erase Shoto from his thoughts. Every spare moment he had he spent trying to figure out what the exploding stars were that the male mentioned. He had never heard of exploding stars, only of supernovas in his physics class; he was sure Shoto wasn't talking about those. He wracked his brain for the entirety of the first day, and it was only at the evening ball the next night did he finally understand.
The guests were all gathered onto the large balcony beyond the ballroom, where they saw a brilliant display of fireworks of different shapes and sizes. When he saw a blue one that shot up and split in many different directions, he was reminded of blooming flower petals, and the answer clicked in his mind.
Shoto wanted to see fireworks.
He applauded especially loud once the display was over, and had a smile on his face for the rest of the night. Brushing off the questions from his mother and his attendants, he went to his room extra early in hopes of making preparations for his outing with Shoto tomorrow. The only problem? He didn't know if Shoto would say yes...
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Shoto tried his hardest to forget about his meeting with Bakugou. He made an extra large breakfast due to how early he awoke in the morning, and stress baked three cakes which his siblings enjoyed thoroughly after school. Whenever his family left the house for the day he caught himself trying to glimpse at the decorations outside before realising and scolding himself, returning to his cleaning.
He was so distracted that he didn't see his friends coming into the garden, too focused on creating a new flowerbed for the spring plants. Primroses, Tulips, Snowdrops, all such beautiful flowers that brought life and colour to the garden.
"Shoto!"
He looked over to the gate when his name was called, seeing three heads pop around the corner of the wall before he waved and they rushed inside.
"Hello." he greeted them, dusting off his hands on his trousers; he smiled warmly, having not seen them for almost two weeks.
"I'm sorry we haven't visited Shoto!" Midoriya exclaimed, eyes wide and watery.
"We haven't had much time to ourselves either." Uraraka supplied with a small smile and a shrug.
"How have you been?" asked Tsu, looking down at the basket of seeds and roots next to her friend.
"The same as always." Shoto replied, rather quickly to his surprise.
"Mhm." Uraraka raised a brow curiously. "How did you get that bandage?"
Shoto faltered, looking around before pointing to the clippers hanging on a hook on the side of the house. This gave him another unconvinced look, for Shoto was never anything but careful with his gardening instruments.
"You should be more careful, Shoto! Were you distracted?" asked Midoriya.
"Oh, yes... There was a cat atop the wall."
"A stray?" asked Tsu.
"I think so." Shoto tried to change the topic, gesturing them to follow him into the house for some fresh lemonade. "How is the festival?" he asked, wanting to know absolutely everything so he could imagine it in his head later on.
"It's amazing! There is a buffet of food every night in the town hall, some of it even from the capital! There is a band in the town square who play the best songs and everyone gets up and dances together and nobody goes home until far after midnight and-" Midoriya realised he was rambling, red rising to his cheeks as he trailed off sheepishly.
"It's okay." Shoto assured, handing them a glass each. "I'm glad you're having a good time."
"I still wish you could come with us Shoto." Uraraka huffed, downing her glass in one long gulp. "It's truly wonderful."
"We could try and sneak you out?" Tsu offered, but Shoto shook his head.
"No, my family would quite possibly see me, with my hair and all. Besides, I-"
His eyes widened as he caught himself, turning around to pour Uraraka another glass. He was just about to talk about his meeting with Bakugou, about how the man offered to take him, but he didn't know if that would be okay. If they spoke about it in public and somehow his father caught word of it... well, he didn't want to think about the consequences.
"Besides what?" Midoriya asked, eyes wide with intruige.
"I- um... I'm far too busy here to have time to go." he repeated what he told Bakugou, the same hint of sadness seeping in under his words, burrowing at the emptiness deep in his heart.
"Shoto..." Uraraka sighed as she patted his hand.
"Make a wish in the fountain for me." he asked, and they nodded their heads with smiles.
They didn't have much time left so they talked about other things to lighten the mood. They talked about what they had learned in school, saying Shoto's baking was far better than what any of them could do in their cookery class. They talked about the crazy fortune teller, who lived right at the edge of the village, and how she had been shouting prophecies all over the place during the evening celebrations. This made Shoto laugh, wondering if he would get to see the crazy old lady for himself one day.
They eventually had to leave before his family came home, and promised to try and sneak some food from the town hall to bring him next time. He thanked them before slowly shutting the gate behind them, returning to his flowers and forgetting about empty promises. He didn't want to, tried to refuse to, but deep down he hoped Bakugou wasn't one of them.
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A small mountain of clothes was beginning to emerge on Bakugou's bed as he ransacked his wardrobe in search of something to wear. Out of the countless outfits the old hag insisted he bring along, he couldn't find a single one that would be good for his evening with Shoto. He turned and looked in the large mirror next to him, looking down at the deep blue shirt and black trousers he was wearing before groaning and shrugging the shirt off.
Nothing seemed to fit right, or looked too expensive in a way that wouldn't allow him to blend in. He knew if he went to the festival with Shoto then he needed to look like a local so Shoto wouldn't be seen by his family. The thought made him frown: why did his family want to hide him away? Why wasn't he treated like his other siblings? These were questions Bakugou couldn't answer, but what he could do was choose a damn good outfit for his quite possible date with Shoto.
After an entire afternoon of selecting his clothes, with a break for tea in the middle, he realised that Shoto probably wouldn't care for clothes and facepalmed at how noble he was acting. He selected the plainest white shirt he had and kept the black trousers on, pairing it with some brown leather boots; all of it would be hidden under his cloak. The moon was rising high in the sky by the time he was set to go, and he checked he had his money and dagger hidden away before sneaking out of the castle.
He had Sero and Kirishima tell his parents that he was feeling sick after the ball last night. Surprisingly, his parents believed them, saying it was unusual for him to be smiling so brightly. He grumbled at how annoying his parents were before focusing his thoughts entirely on Shoto. He had planned the whole evening, and even went out himself earlier that morning to make some personal arrangements for them. He just hoped Shoto would like it.
He recalled the look of longing hidden under a well-practised neutral expression. He recalled seeing the wonder in the man's eyes as he looked up at the illuminated sky, wondering what was beyond those four walls. He recalled the traces of fear at the thought of leaving without permission. Tonight, Bakugou hoped, he would see nothing but joy and excitement in those heterochromatic eyes. That the blue would be bright with wonder, and the grey calm with peacefulness.
He kept to the outer streets of Musutafu as he headed towards Usaki, allowing his hood to drop as it was unlikely there were nobles in the village who would recognise him. The stalls were opening, the same mouthwatering smells came from the town hall, and Shoto was just a short walk away. Following the weathered stone path to the garden gate, he paused as he raised his hand to knock. Suddenly, nerves rushed through him, the likes he had never dealt with before.
Bakugou Katsuki was afraid of nothing. He was a Prince, skilled in fighting and craftsmanship and he conquered any obstacle in his way. He dealt with his overbearing mother on a daily basis and bested his own tutor in a sword fight by the time he was 15. He was Bakugou Katsuki, he could do anything.
Taking a deep breath he knocked thrice before stepping back and waiting for the gate to open. His eyes widened slightly as he heard the handle click and the gate swing open, leaving Shoto right in front of him. His breath was knocked out of him as his mind tried to savour every part of the sight before him, remember every minute detail and the encompassing beauty of the man.
"Bakugou Katsuki?" Shoto asked, tone revealing his disbelief.
"Shoto Otsuka." Bakugou greeted in return before holding out his hand. "I would like to accompany you to the festival this evening. May I?"
Shoto's eyes were wide as he looked down to the hand in front of him; Bakugou saw him pinch his arm as if to ensure this was all real.
"You came?" the male asked finally, looking up at him.
"Yes."
"You really..." Shoto trailed off, hands twitching at his sides.
"Will you accompany me tonight, Shoto?" Bakugou asked again, expression hopeful as he watched the flickering emotions in the man's eyes.
There was a long silence between them, so long Bakugou debated retreating his hand, but his patience was rewarded when a soft and cool hand rested over his, contrasting the warmth of his own.
"I would love to."
And when Shoto smiled at him, eyes shy but hopeful, Bakugou entwined their hands and smiled back...