I saw Ren.
I didn't say much, I mean, we didn't exactly talk but, she looks mostly fine. Main thing is; she's alive.
*
Kirishima's dorm room door was open when Bakugo sauntered passed carrying his duffel bag and backpack. He dropped his things at his own door before he poked his head into his friends room. They didn't speak much over the summer, only the occasional update in their group chat or invite to something he always turned down.
The redhead was unpacking his stuff from the summer break, nodding his head to music as he moved around the room.
"Hey." Bakugo said with a little nod.
"Hey, me?" Kirishima stopped, pointing to himself before he checked behind him.
"No, I was offering to feed a horse." Bakugo rolled his eyes as he leant on the doorframe.
Kirishima snorted. "Hey."
"Good summer?"
"Yeah, it was alright." Kirishima nodded as he pulled a few shirts from his bag. "Mostly worked, got started on some assignments. My mom wanted me to take a break so we stayed in a coastal town for a couple of days. Can't complain, really. What about you?"
"Yeah, yeah." Bakugo nodded. "The same. I had some mandatory bed rest so I stayed with Granny B for a few days."
"Oh man," Kirishima tucked a few things into his dresser. "I would gain pounds if I stayed with your Gran."
"Looks like you don't need to."
"Hey!" Kirishima slapped his stomach and pointed a pair of pants at Bakugo. "I'll have you know this is pure, cleanly bulked muscle."
Bakugo smirked. "Clean bulked?"
"My dad took up baking this summer; he's shockingly good." Kirishima reached into his bag. "Sent me back with some cookies if you wanna try later."
"Sign me up." Bakugo said with a nod and his friend smiled. He tapped the doorframe awkwardly as he pushed himself off of it. "Anyway, I better go and unpack."
"Yeah." Kirishima cleared his throat. "I'm going to Sero's room in like, an hour. Apparently Kaminari has some crazy new game we just have to try. You down?"
Bakugo nodded once.
"Cool."
*
Classes restarted the next day. Bakugo began the morning a little more tired than he'd intended but at least he'd managed to get mostly uninterrupted sleep. The four of them had holed up in Sero's room well past dinner and bedtime, glued to the screen while they took turns playing Kaminari's new game.
He rubbed his eyes at the breakfast table while he poked at his meal. He was slowly regaining the muscle mass and strength he'd lost over the summer from eating a lot less and being more sedentary than usual, but he was struggling through the last added egg.
"You up for a run on Wednesday morning?" Kirishima asked as he dropped his plate next to Bakugo's. "I know it's been a while but maybe it'd be good for you to get into an old routine."
"Only if you can keep up with me." Bakugo said with an unenthusiastic shrug, to which Kirishima simply smirked.
They were joined by Sero and Kaminari as they walked to class. The two spending the entire journey word-vomiting at Bakugo about everything they had been up to that summer. He'd switched off by the time they arrived at the classroom, thankful he could sit down in air conditioning. The dwindling last hot days made it too tempting for him to use force to quieten his friends.
"Ei said you had forced bed rest though, right?" When Sero asked Bakugo a question, it brought his attention back and he blinked a few times slowly as it processed.
"Uh, yeah." He cleared his throat as he dropped his bag next to his desk.
"What happened?" Kaminari asked as he leant on his shoulder.
Bakugo rolled him off of leaning on him as he pulled his phone from his pocket.
"Nothing, just hit my back." He lied, fairly convincingly.
"Injury you gotta take seriously, huh?" Kaminari asked with a nod. "Like head injuries."
"You probably wouldn't need to take a head injury too seriously." Bakugo chimed as he tapped a message out on his phone.
Kirishima snorted.
"Huh, why not?" Kaminari tilted his head to the side.
Sero burst into a fit of laughter.
"That's exactly my point." Bakugo tutted.
The morning lessons were filled with information about upcoming assignments and exams as well as timetables for future planning guidance meetings and university tours. 3-A's heads collectively hurt by the time lunch rolled around but the afternoon only brought a cram of their regular morning and afternoon lessons.
Bakugo packed his things away slowly, really slowly, waving his friends off when they hung around his desk and waited for him to get a move on. He glanced around the room as it emptied, checking the back corner to see Uraraka also taking her time as she packed her supplies.
He swung his bag over his shoulder and headed for the door when only Uraraka and Tsu remained in the room.
"Ochaco, are you coming?" Tsu asked as she swung from the doorframe.
"You go ahead, I think I gotta stop by the library anyway." Uraraka said with a little chuckle.
Tsu gave Bakugo a quick nod as she left the room, he stopped as he reached the door, glancing at the back corner of the classroom again. Bakugo waited until Tsu was out of sight at the end of the hall before he rolled the classroom door closed, clutching his bag strap as he turned to Uraraka.
"I got your message this morning." She said shakily. "What is it?"
"Look," He rubbed the back of his head. "I- I can't go into much detail. Frankly, I just don't want to, but I'm telling you this because apart from me you're probably the person who cares the most."
"Okay... You're worrying m-"
"I saw Ren."
Uraraka's hands shot to her mouth.
"I didn't say much, I mean, we didn't exactly talk but, she looks," Bakugo took a shaky breath. "Mostly fine. Main thing is; she's alive."
"W-What did-" She cleared her throat as little tears appeared in her round eyes. "What did you say? What did she say? What exactly happened, what does this mean?!"
"Chaco." Bakugo's mouth formed a flat line. "I can't." He rubbed the back of his neck and squeezed his eyes together. "I can't keep being sad about her."
"So, you don't want to... Get her-"
"Get her back?" Bakugo finished her question and she nodded. "How?"
"I- I don't know, but isn't it worth trying?"
"I'm tired." Bakugo said softly. "I'm just, done."
Uraraka nodded slowly.
"I don't know if I understand but," She said quietly. "Thanks for telling me, I guess."
"Yeah." He grimaced. "Thanks for listening."
*
The next few weeks of classes and work study shifts went by quickly, each day flowing into the next like a repetitive and never ending blur. Afternoons and weekends were occupied by the seemingly infinite pile of assessments and exam preparation, and the ever-looming future planning sessions. Bakugo spent the little time off he had training and building his strength back up to what he considered an acceptable standard.
When classes ended on Friday afternoon, Kirishima stretched his arms high above his head and let out an exaggerated yawn.
"What's the plan for the weekend?" The redhead asked his group of friends who surrounded him, each looking more tired and overworked than the next.
"We have a date tomorrow." Ashido said as she joined their group, looping her arm around Kirishima's. "Or had you forgotten?"
"Never, babe." He faked a knowing smirk as he planted a kiss on girlfriend's pink cheek, before glancing behind him and mouthing 'I had no idea' to his friends.
Sero and Kaminari hid their laughs behind their hands while Bakugo rolled eyes, a small smirk gracing his lips.
A soft 'ahem' behind them drew their attention and the group stopped to look behind them. A girl in their year but not in their course, Akane Minamoto, stood with her hands behind her back. Her dark, straight hair was not a strand out of place as it fell behind her back, her uniform immaculate, eyes round and expectant. Kaminari's knees almost buckled at her presence.
"Yes?" Bakugo huffed when her eyes wouldn't leave him.
"May I speak to you? Privately." She pursed her pouty pink lips expectantly as the group glanced between her and Bakugo.
"Whatever, can you guys give us a sec?" Bakugo rolled his head back to his friends. Kirishima pulled Sero and Kaminari's collars to get them away from the pair, both of them swearing and objecting as the redhead pulled them across the linoleum.
"Thank you." Akane tucked a strand of hair that had not fallen from its place behind her ear, clearly out of nervous habit than necessity. "I'm sure you've heard that the Department of Management third years have to-"
Bakugo held a hand up to stop her. "Who are you?"
She was taken aback, her perfectly groomed eyebrow arching at his blank expression.
"Minamoto." She said with a sigh and when his expression remained blank she sighed again. "Akane Minamoto. We've been at the same school for three years."
Bakugo shrugged.
"Anyway," She pursed her lips. "Third year management students have to create a professional development plan in collaboration with one of the hero course students as one of our last assessments of the year."
"I know."
"I'm sure you've been asked by a few of my classmates already."
"Good guess." He rolled his eyes. "You're asking?"
"I am." She tucked her hands behind her back and swung her shoulders back and forth.
"You know I've said no to every one of your peers?" Bakugo quirked a brow. "What makes you think I'll say yes to you?"
"You're the best in the hero course, top of your class in every field. So am I." The corners of Akane's mouth twitched into a slight smirk. "I won't accept anything less."
Bakugo sighed, an elongated, exaggerated and sarcastic sigh.
"Fine." He huffed. "You get two hours on Sunday."
"That'll be perfect!" Akane clapped her hands together, showing off perfectly manicured glossy pink nails.
"Cool." Bakugo turned on his heel before she cleared her throat to get his attention again. "What?"
"Can I give you my number?" She held her hand out to him and he sighed again before pulling his phone from his pocket and dropping it against her palm.
Akane's nails clicked against his screen as she typed her name and number into his contacts.
"I've texted myself so I'll send you my address tonight." She said with a happy little shrug as she handed his phone back to him. "Thanks, Bakugo."
"Uhuh." He tucked his phone back into his pocket before he turned away from Akane.
"What was that about?" Sero asked as Bakugo rejoined their waiting group.
"We're doing some assignment on Sunday." Bakugo said with a shrug. Kaminari's hand appeared on Bakugo's shoulder, pulling it sharply as he brought his friend to his eye level.
"You. And. Akane. Are. What?!"
"Let go of me, freak!" Bakugo slapped his friend off his shoulder. "What's the big deal?"
"Kaminari's tried to get her number once or twice. Or 12 times." Kirishima explained.
"That's just embarrassing, Denki." Ashido tutted. "Imagine what Jiro would think."
"No!" Kaminari launched at Ashido but Kirishima was quick to grab the back of his collar again and hold him back. "There's no reason she needs to know!"
"Would you relax? I'm helping her with an assignment." Bakugo sighed.
"You don't help anyone with assignments." Sero commented. "I swear I only passed English last year because of Re-"
Bakugo flashed him a filthy look that made him refrain from finishing the sentence.
"Really hard work..." Sero cleared his throat. "Is what I was going to say."
Ashido and Kirishima exchanged a glance.
*
Akane did send Bakugo her address that evening and so on the Sunday, he found himself journeying out of UA's dormitories and into the city. Her family home was situated in the heart of the city, in a tall building covered by windows. He headed to the 24th floor, scanning the doors for apartment number 247. He tapped on the front door, bouncing back and forth on his feet a few times while he waited.
"You made it." Akane opened the door with a smile. "Come on in." She held the door open wide enough for Bakugo to pass through.
"Was I meant to dress up a bit more than this?" He glanced down at his oversized t-shirt and shorts as he tugged his shoes off. She wore a snug fitted white t-shirt with a pair of neatly tailored pink shorts.
"Stop, you look great. As always. This is honestly just dressed down for me."
"Oh." He swallowed. "Well, you look nice."
"Aww, Katsuki!" Akane shrugged her shoulders and wrinkled her nose before tucked a phantom strand of hair behind her ear. "You're so sweet."
Bakugo cleared his throat. "Anyway, should we...?"
"Yes! Thanks for coming," She clapped her hands together. "I thought we'd have more privacy here."
"Yeah, good thinking." He mumbled, surprising himself that he thought it at all.
Akane led him down the hall to the living room. It boasted a floor to ceiling window with a startling view of the city around them. The living room flowed into the dining area and kitchen where Akane hoped off in to. The home was extremely tidy and catalogue-level designed, decorated with expensive furniture he recognised from a few of his parents' design magazines.
"Is anyone else home?" Bakugo asked as he dropped his things on the dining table next to a set of her workbooks.
"My parents are out for the day." She said as she opened a kitchen cabinet. Bakugo glanced at Akane, his eyes trailing to her legs as she reached for a few glasses. The snug t-shirt she was wearing rode up the small of her back, making him tilt his head slightly as he checked her out.
"What would you like? We have no shortage of options." She asked and he snapped his eyes back to the dining table. Akane smirked.
"Um," Bakugo cleared his throat. "Water is fine."
"That's not as simple as you may think." She pulled the fridge open. "There's, still, sparkling, lightly sparkling, lightly flavoured, lightly sparkling and flavoured, spring-"
"Water, water." Bakugo cut her off. "Like, from a tap is fine."
"Spring water it is." Akane said with a little shrug as she pulled a sleek glass bottle from the fridge. She poured them a glass each before stepping over to the dining table, placing Bakugo's glass in front of him before taking a seat in front of her workbooks. "Shall we get started?"
"What do you need from me?" Bakugo asked as he took the seat next to her.
Akane flipped her book open.
"I've been outlining the steps of your development plan this week, I just need you to approve what I've got." She explained as she flicked through the pages quickly. "If you don't like it or feel like it doesn't align to what you want as a hero, you can suggest new ideas and then I'll need to discuss how we collaborated."
Bakugo's eyes glazed over as the neat and heavily packed notes in her book blurred into a smudge of paragraphs. He scanned the page she finally landed on, brow furrowing at the subheadings and dot points.
"What's this?" He tapped the page.
"We'll start with your goals; I think aside from your end goal, you should have a series of goals that will lead you to it."
"That's not really my style." He grumbled as he slumped back in his chair. "My goal is to be number one, nothing less."
"I understand that's what you want, but how are you going to get there?"
"By being the best." He shrugged.
Akane sighed as she jotted down a few notes.
"What?" Bakugo said with a raised eyebrow.
"Nothing." Akane pursed her lips and glanced at him. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised."
"You wanted to work with me because I'm the best, right?"
"Yes. I only have myself to blame." Akane smirked as she flipped the page over to the next section. "We'll move on to skills gaps."
Bakugo's head rolled to the side and he quirked a brow at her.
"Okay, I get it." She shook her head and chuckled. "No gap in your skills."
"Now you're getting me." He reached for his water. "This is the easiest assessment I've ever done."
"You haven't really done anything."
"I guess you could say the work was done for you." He gestured to himself and Akane chuckled.
"Well, when you put it that way; you've done a great job preparing." She glanced him up and down, making Bakugo smirk as he placed his glass back on the table. "We'll have to include modelling opportunities into the PR segment."
"You're too kind. It's true, but too kind."
They worked through a few more sections of the assessment over the next hour, occasionally taking a break to make small talk. Akane was pretty happy with the information Bakugo had given and the discussion points she'd noted down gave enough evidence of collaboration.
"Why'd you want to get into management, anyway?" Bakugo stretched his arm out to rest on the back of her chair while he pushed his hair back with his other hand.
"It's a two part answer; one is family business." Akane pursed her lips again. "My older brother works with Mount Lady, he got the job straight out of UA. My plan is to top that."
"And two?" He asked. Akane dropped her pen onto her book before she turned to Bakugo.
"I know what I look like." She quirked a brow. "People assume I'm materialistic, a self-centred bimbo. That my ambition is just to marry a rich and famous hero or businessman and be a trophy wife but I'm more than that."
"You want to prove them wrong?"
"Of course." She smirked. "Look, I'm not ashamed of who I am. I am materialistic, I enjoy being beautiful and I won't say no to marrying rich and famous. Having said that, I think it'd be cool to have my own wealth and success too."
"You got it all worked out, huh?"
"Mhm."
"Let's see how this turns out," He flicked his hand over the book. "Maybe you can manage me."
"That could be fun." She shrugged her shoulders, leaning a little closer to Bakugo in her seat.
"I'm a lot to handle."
"I know. I'd like to try..." She glanced him up and down. "Handling you."
Bakugo glanced between her dark eyes and soft lips, making Akane bit into her bottom lip. She shuffled a little closer in her seat, leaning closer to Bakugo. He gulped, feeling himself drawing closer to Akane, his fingers tightening on the back of her chair.
Her eyes fluttered shut as the gap between them closed. Her breath tickled his lips and he drew in a shaky breath. Bakugo paused, turning his head as her lips were about to reach his.
"S-sorry." He swallowed uncomfortably, cringing as he pulled back into his seat.
"What was that?" Akane huffed as she flopped back into her seat. "I thought I made it fairly obvious why I wanted you here and not at the school."
"You did, and I wasn't discouraging you." He rubbed his temples. "I'm sorry I just- I thought I was ready but I'm not."
"Ready?" Akane scoffed. "Is this seriously because of Ren?"
Bakugo swallowed again, and again he felt himself cringe. He glanced at Akane briefly, wincing at the way she was glowering at him before he rested his elbows on the table and leant his head into his hands.
She scoffed, again.
"I kept my distance." She snapped as she pushed herself up from her chair and away from the table. "I've been interested for a while but I tried to be respectful so I kept my distance."
Akane glanced up and down at his hunched figure before she sighed.
"That was months ago, dude. Get over it."
Bakugo lifted his head from his hands, eyeing Akane from beneath his brow as she pursed her lips at him. She folded her arms across her chest and tapped her foot impatiently as she awaited his response.
He slumped back into his chair, keeping his eyes on her before he slapped his hand onto her workbook. Bakugo held the book up in front of him, activating his quirk and causing the book to incinerate with a loud puff.
Akane's eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped. She fell to the shiny wooden floor, hands scooping through the ash that was her book as Bakugo collected his things.
"What the fuck, Bakugo?!" She screamed up at him as he pushed the chair lazily. "This is like my whole year of work!"
He shrugged.
"Get over it."
He headed back into the entrance hall, quickly pulling his shoes back on and clambering out the front door as Akane came hurtling after him.
"Fuck you!" She screamed into the hallway of the apartment building as Bakugo bolted for the elevator.
"You wish, sweetheart!" He called out as the doors slid shut.
Bakugo collapsed against the wall of the elevator, cringing at himself again as he groaned out loud. He slammed his fist into the metal wall so hard the elevator box shook slightly.
"Fuck you, Ren." Bakugo muttered. "Get out of my fucking head, dammit."
He threw his headphones in and blasted music as the elevator arrived at the bottom floor. Turning away from Akane and burning her workbook replayed in his head constantly and he found himself occasionally swearing under his breath while he took the train back to UA.
As he was about to reach his train stop, a message blipped onto his phone that made his brow furrow deeply. He opened to a group chat with Uraraka, Midoriya, Kirishima, Ashido and Yaoyorozu formed by Todoroki.
Shoto Todoroki
Front lawn. 12am.
Bakugo stared at the message intently, almost missing that the train had pulled into the station as he read and reread the short text. No one replied, no one asked any questions or for more information. He locked his phone and slid it into his pocket, the words ringing through his head but thankfully replacing the cringey scenes that had been playing over and over.
Those who were in the chat said nothing of it that night. Bakugo remained in the living area after dinner, watching as unsuspecting others progressed up to their rooms to get some sleep. He caught Kirishima's eye as the clock ticked over to midnight when he came downstairs. The two of them said nothing as they stepped outside together, the surprisingly chilly early autumn night nipping at their cheeks.
Uraraka, Midoriya and Todoroki were already waiting on the front lawn outside of their dorm building. He hadn't noticed any of them exit to the outside while he was downstairs.
"What's going on?" Kirishima asked as he and Bakugo joined the three of them, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets. Todoroki simply held out a hand as he checked the front door. Yaoyorozu and Ashido appeared a few seconds later and hurried over to the group in silence. Once the pair had joined them, they huddled in a misshapen circle, their attention turned to Todoroki expectantly.
"Now that we're all here," Midoriya said quietly before he swallowed a heavy lump in his throat. "Todoroki?"
Todoroki's mouth formed a flat line. He glanced between each of them, his eyes resting longest on Bakugo, who returned his worried expression with a half snarl.
"I overheard something at my father's agency today that I don't think I was meant to overhear." He glanced between them again as he wrung his hands together tightly.
"Get on with it." Bakugo snapped.
Todoroki gulped.
"It's Ren. She's in trouble."
*