if he'd done something, he didn't know what. all of the sudden, his favorite person in the world had began fading away from him. it started with canceling hangouts, and then fewer syllable texts, and then never answering or returning his calls. and he was hurt, and he was confused, and he was upset—you had dropped out of his life without warning.
bakugou katsuki didn't have many friends. none that he would claim, anyway. of course, there was shitty hair and sometimes he'd admit that discount pikachu was an acquaintance.
but the one constant, the one he never denied was his friend, the one annoying piece of shit he could never live without was you. you hanging off his shoulder as he tried to study. you shoving him in the middle of an intense video game so you could win the upper hand. you sneaking into his room late at night when the world seemed too much.
and then you just up and disappeared.
the phone started ringing, and the blond anxiously held it up to his ear. he felt fidgety, out of place in his own room, and he paced from wall to wall.
he was in love with you, the icing on the cake. kami, bakugou didn't know when it started. you were still an annoying pest like the rest of them, just a bit of a step up, but at some point, you stopped being so annoying. he began to crave those late night moments with just the two of you, when you'd weaseled your way into his room to bug him when he should have been sleeping. and he could hear your laugh and see your smile, a private show just for him.
it continued to ring. he plopped down on his bed and drummed his fingers along his thigh. still ringing. he let out an annoyed sigh and stood.
he didn't even get to talk to you during class. you'd make it there just before the bell rang for class to start, and you booked it out just as the bell rang for class to end. you'd disappear during break and lunch, the blond unable to find you in the lunchroom, in the hallways, even on that damn roof you liked to hideout on. you hid from him during hero practices, and if he tried to talk to you, you blew him off and–
"hey!"
bakugou jumped. "(name), i–"
"sorry i missed your call. leave a message, and–"
bakugou hung up and threw his phone on the bed, but it missed and hit the wall, cracked as it fell down the space between his bed and the wall he shared with kirishima. he ran his hand through his unkempt hair in frustration, and he growled a loud goddammit!
there was a knock at the door, the shadow of someone standing in front of it showing through the crack under the door. for half a second, he had the mind to tell whoever it was to fuck off, but against his judgement he begrudgingly opened the door.
shitty hair stood at the door with his usual carefree smile. "hey, bakugou! some of us are going down to the arcade, did you wanna come with? i know it's not your scene, but figured i ask anyway!"
bakugou grunted, mulling it over. yeah, he'd rather stay in than deal with the rest of the fuckasses, but what else did he have to do? the one person he cared for the most had gone missing in action. so, he shrugged, "sure, not like i'm busy."
kirishima's grin widened, and the two headed downstairs, meeting up with the rest of the so-called bakusquad and walking out to the arcade.
at some point, kaminari and sero were started playing some stupid first-person shooting game, kirishima cheering them on and ashido calling out every single target for them to hit. bakugou had stood off to the side; he was leaning on the wall, arms crossed over his chest, face pulled into a scowl.
it didn't matter if he just got there. he wanted to go back to the dorms the moment he stepped into the arcade. it didn't feel right to be at the arcade with the other fuckasses without your stupid ass.
without you calling "versus against the winner," without your pout when you lost against sero, without your cute ass grin when you won against kaminari, without you constantly begging for bakugou to win you a stuffed animal from the crane game because he's the best crane game player in the whole world.
"–ey, bakugou?"
he blinked. sero was waving a hand in front of his face. "the fuck do you want, plain face?"
"we were gonna go get some food, asked if you wanted to come, but you were, like, spaced out and shit," sero replied.
bakugou pushed himself off the wall. "i'm going back to the dorms."
ashido pouted, "awh, why?"
he glared. "because i'm fucking tired."
"yeah, say what you want, it's probably because you're depressed that (name) got a boyfriend," kaminari said casually, checking his phone.
if looks could kill, that damn discount pikachu would have perished in his spot. bakugou had started to stomp towards the stupid fuck, but shitty hair was quick to step in between the two.
"hey, hey, let's handle this like men," he said quickly.
bakugou's glare turned towards the redhead. "fuck off, shitty hair, and fuck you, sparky. i don't give a fuck if (name) got some stupid boyfriend. it's her own damn life to live, and i don't give a damn about it. now, i'm fucking going home."
he stomped off out of the arcade.
what the fuck did he fucking care if you fucking had a damn, shitty, fucking, stupid ass boyfriend? big fucking deal! it wasn't like he even had a damn fucking chance with you anyway. you were too fucking beautiful, too fucking smart, too fucking kind, too fucking soft. you were the fucking sun and the goddamn moon and the stupid ass stars. and him? bakugou was the fucking, goddamn, stupid ass dirt compared to you.
~
it was just before school, when bakugou was switching his shoes in the locker room and grabbing the right textbooks he needed for class. it had been a late night, he'd been studying into the wee hours of the morning just to keep his mind off of you.
you stared at the blond from the safety of your own locker, heart caught in your throat.
you'd wanted nothing more than to walk over and act like nothing had happened between you two. act like you weren't dating someone you didn't even like. act like you weren't being forced to stay away from your best friend because you decided it best so you wouldn't get hurt.
maybe you'd been staring for too long, but suddenly, the blond had glanced over at you, his crimson eyes locking with your (eye color) ones. it startled you, and you quickly looked away, a blush on your cheeks and heart skipping a beat.
all you wanted was your best friend, the one you annoyed to no end, the one you talked all night with, the one you were in love with.
an arm snaked around your waist, and you jumped, turning to see your boyfriend.
akiyama kiyoshi—sweet and thoughtful and everything anyone in your school could ever want in a significant other. he was someone you'd met during a school clean up, from the general studies course and one of shinsou's friends. he had a decent quirk, and while he didn't aspire to be a number one hero, he expressed his desires to help people when he graduated yuuei.
"morning!" he smiled, placing a chaste kiss to your cheek.
you mustered up a carefree smile. "good morning!"
a locker slammed behind you, and bakugou stormed by.
the smile faded ever so slightly on your face as you watched him disappear up the stairs.
"everything okay?" akiyama asked.
you blinked, looking back at him.
how much longer could you hold up the façade that you weren't dying on the inside? the boy in front of you meant absolutely nothing compared to the hothead asshole that you loved, that you pushed away.
the boy in front of you sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "you know, (name), you don't have to date me if you don't want to."
"wh-what?" you stammered. "what makes you think i–"
"i can see the way you look at him," he replied. "bakugou, from your class."
"i don't... i...," but the words jammed in your mouth.
you couldn't say you didn't like bakugou, as much as you wanted to. because you did like bakugou. sometimes, it felt like you even loved him.
akiyama smiled, soft and with a hint of sadness. "it's okay, (name). i... i had a feeling you liked him, even when i asked you out. i risked that chance, and while i would love to continue this, i can see it pains you."
you looked to the floor. "sorry, akiyama-kun."
"don't worry about it. i'll see you around, okay?"
the boy turned away from you and headed up the same stairs bakugou had gone up just a few minutes prior.
your vision grew blurry with tears.
it felt like a weight had been lifted from your chest, but despite that, an overwhelming sense of urgency to leave filled you. you didn't want to have to see bakugou after akiyama broke up with you. you couldn't deal with that. hell, he probably didn't want anything to do with you anymore, not after the way you just blocked him out of your life like that.
"good morning, (name)-chan!" uraraka greeted as she saw you standing alone at your locker.
you turned to her. "tell aizawa-sensei i'm not feeling well, please." and you brushed past her, heading back towards the dorms.
the girl watched you leave with her brows knitted in confusion. she had half a mind to go after you and ask what was wrong, but aizawa-sensei would kill her if she was late to class again. so uraraka switched out her shoes and jogged to class, texting you an i hope you're okay, let me know if you need to talk message before going inside.
tsuyu waved at her upon seeing the brunette make it to class on time, and the girl headed towards the frog girl with a worried expression on her face.
"did you talk to (name) this morning?" uraraka asked.
but the green-haired girl shook her head. "nuh-uh. is everything okay with her, kero?"
uraraka pursed her lips. "i'm not sure. she didn't say much, she–"
"you're not in class for chitchat. uraraka, get to your seat," aizawa said from the front of the room. he scanned the room, eyes locking on your empty seat. "anyone know where (last name) is?"
the brunette raised her hand. "she said she wasn't feeling well, sensei."
the man simply shrugged. "make sure she gets the notes from today's class then."
bakugou looked over at uraraka when aizawa turned his back to the class, his brow furrowed. he'd just seen you in the locker room with that stupid dumb boyfriend of yours. you didn't look sick, so what the fuck happened after he left?
...
the day passed by in a blur for you. holed up in your dorm room with the lights off and music softly playing through your headphones. you were laid underneath a pile of blankets, curled up on your bed and thoughts swirling together of what had happened and of a certain blond-haired individual.
how were you supposed to face bakugou tomorrow? he probably already suspected something happened with you and akiyama. he saw you at the shoe lockers; you two made eye contact from kami's sake! he'd know something was up the moment uraraka said you were suddenly sick. and–wait.
you paused.
bakugou wouldn't care. bakugou didn't give a damn about why he saw you at the shoe lockers and then didn't see you in class. he probably didn't even notice you were missing. and why should he notice? why should he care after the way you'd treated him? after blocking him out of your life for no reason that he would ever know about.
the realization, while it made you relieved, it also depressed you to think about.
you sat up and sighed, the sound wavering and shaky. the sun had long since set in the sky, and the moon had taken over. it was most likely late at night, too late for anyone else to be awake. you'd passed the entire day in the safety of your blankets, and you could have stayed in there a until the end of time had it not been for your grumbling stomach.
the hallways were cold as you made your way to the elevator. it was deadly silent, not even a peep from ashido's room where she usually had music playing while she studied. it took a minute, but the elevator finally reached your floor, and you took it all the way down to the common area.
it was dark, and you held your hands out blindly in front of you, feeling your way to the kitchen. finally finding it, you flicked the light on and headed for the pantry. there wasn't much, but you grabbed a small snack and a box of peppermint tea; somehow, the tea always made you feel better and refreshed. you turned and walked into the kitchen to turn on the kettle.
"if you're sick, you shouldn't be up so late, (name)-kun," a voice said.
you jumped and spun around, stifling a scared gasp. "ki-kiri-kun."
"unless you're not sick."
you gulped. "i-i, uh...."
the redhead gave you a gentle smile. "relax. i'm not here to confront you or anything. it's your business as to why you skipped class."
you opened your mouth to speak, but he beat you to it.
"you should really talk to bakugou, though," he said. "some shit went down today, and things happened."
your eyes widened. "what happened?"
but kirishima shrugged. "that's something to ask bakugou. i'm gonna get some water, but i think you know where his room is."
"i do," a lump appeared in your throat. "but, i have to ask. is... is he mad at me at all?"
kirishima laughed. "bakugou? he could never be mad at you. good luck, i hope everything works out."
your brows furrowed. "what do you mean by that?"
"nothing. you'll see."
he watched as you made your way towards the boys' elevator, and he waved at you as the doors shut and you began your ascent to the third floor.
it had taken you a few minutes to gather the courage in the elevator. you stood in front of bakugou's door, heart hammering in your chest. something had happened today, something while you weren't at school, something that had to do with bakugou. you were worried. what if he got hurt in a mock battle or he overdid it with his quirk again?
the anxiety became too much, and you knocked softly at his door.
no answer.
you knocked again, this time louder, in case he was asleep but just quietly enough not to wake anyone else up.
again, no answer.
you took a deep breath and placed your ear at the door to listen if he was even awake at this hour. there was the distant hum of music, but it was a bit late and bakugou went to bedroom pretty early.
"bakugou?" you whispered. "bakugou-kun, it's me."
but still there was no answer.
you had half a mind to try jiggling the handle to see if he'd locked the door, but you knew that it would be. he always slept with the door locked. kaminari was too infamous for pulling pranks, and he was the only one stupid enough to try one on bakugou much to midoriya's anxiety. so, you turned away from the door.
kirishima passed you on your way back to the elevator, noticing your dejected expression.
"he's asleep," you said and hit the button for the common room.
kirishima knew better though, and he entered his own room, knocking on the wall he shared with bakugou. when he didn't get a knock back, he knocked again, harder, but unlike you, he knew that the other guys were too heavy of sleepers to hear knocking on the walls. he'd found that out when bakugou had blasted an explosion at him at three am for waking him up, and no one else had heard the following morning.
"hey, bakugou!" he called into the wall. he leaned against it, listening for a sound. "oi, bro, wake up!"
there was the distant sound of shuffling, and then a half-assed knock. "what the fuck do you want, shitty hair?!" it was muffled through the wall, but kirishima heard it clear as day.
"(name) wanted to talk to you," he called back. "she might have gone back to–"
a door slammed shut, and kirishima leaned back into his bed. his work was done.
bakugou stormed down the hall and impatiently continued to press the down button for the elevator, tapping his foot. it took its damn sweet time, but the moment the doors open, he switched to impatiently continuing to hit the button for the common room until the doors shut.
while it felt like years, the elevator finally fucking got to the bottom floor, and bakugou hurried out and into the common room. but, his step faltered as he noticed you curled up with a blanket on the couch, head propped up on your arm, resting on the armrest.
you noticed the movement out of the corner of your eye, and you turned to see bakugou. your heart jumped to your throat. "ba-bakugou-kun, are you okay?" you sat up, looking him over in the dim lighting. he didn't look hurt, but recovery girl did work miracles sometimes.
he stomped over with his eyes narrowed. "where were you? why the fuck weren't you in class today? and don't say you were sick because i know you fucking weren't."
immediately, you could feel the panic coming on, the fear of confessing everything to him, as you suddenly couldn't seem to stop shaking and your heartbeat sped up and the air become thinner as your breaths became shorter from being put on the spot.
now or never.
"i-i-i, well, i...." it unraveled. "akiyama broke up with me today because i don't like him and never really liked him, and he knew that when he asked me out, but he still wanted to try anyway, and then, like, he saw me staring at you today when you left for class, and he was like, i know that you're in love with bakugou, so you should go be with him rather than stay unhappy with me.
"so he broke up with," you hiccuped, "with me because i'm in love with you, but i can't because you're my best friend, but i can't be your best friend because i'm in love with you, and i know that you don't return the feelings, which is why i distanced myself because–"
you were interrupted by a pair of soft lips crashing into yours, and your mind went blank. was bakugou fucking katsuki fucking kissing you?! but, before you could even think to kiss back, he pulled away with a smirk.
"you know, you can be such a fucking idiot," he laughed, soft and quiet, like no one else was supposed to hear. "this all could have been fucking avoided if you'd just talked to me, dumbass. if you'd just fucking talked to me, you wouldn't have had to avoid me, nor would you have had to gone out with that stupid punk, nor would you have had to skip school," he said. "if you'd just fucking talked to me we would have already been fucking dating."
you blinked with wide eyes. "i... you... we... we kissed."
"we did."
"we should do it again, i wasn't ready."
"we can," he said. "but only if you promise not to fucking pull that shit again."
a blush spread across your cheeks. "i promise, so please just fucking kiss me already."
and without another word he did. the sweet scent of burnt sugar filled your senses again, and you wrapped your arms around his neck to pull him closer, his lips soft and inviting. you kissed back with fervor, and his arms wound themselves around your waist.
you pulled back, catching your breath and resting your forehead against his. "so, we're... dating, right?"
"of course we're fucking dating, dumbass."
"good."
"good."
"okay," you smiled. but, then the smile faded as you suddenly remembered what kirishima had said earlier. "hey, baku-kun?"
"hmm?" he'd rested his head on your shoulder.
"kirishima said something happened today," you said. "so... what happened?"
bakugou went rigid. "nothing of importance."
"are you sure?"
"yes, i'm damn sure."
"just checking." a moment of silence passed. "hey, baku-kun?"
"...what?" he grunted. "m'trying to sleep."
you laughed quietly. "nothing, never mind. goodnight."
"night...."
after everyone had found you two in the common room and woken you up, you'd found out what had happened.
bakugou thought akiyama had done something and went off in a rage, pinning him against a wall and demanding to know what was wrong with you. scared the poor boy shitless into admitting that you didn't like akiyama anyway and liked somebody else. that somebody else being the blond.