Two updates in one day??? Can y'all tell I'm sorry???
Bakugo's POV
The walk through town was relatively... normal, which was strange for them. Usually, Dunce Face short circuited a small building on accident or Raccoon Eyes melted the sidewalk, or Bakugo got pissed and set something on fire. With Mis-Match, Soy Sauce, and Ear Buds keeping Mina busy, Dunce Face buried in his phone, and nobody bothering Bakugo, it seemed any mishap was deemed improbable. And, with his hands shoved in his pockets and his feet all but dragging across the pavement, probably scuffing his new shoes, he was semi-grateful for it.
But, he also hated it.
It gave him time to think, for his mind to wander. For his eyes to catch on things he didn't want them to, and it gave him less of an excuse to stop them. By the time he realized just how much he let himself wander, Kirishima had asked him something twice.
Shaking away the stupor, he muttered a vague 'huh?' in Shitty Hairs direction. Kirishima, being who he is, smiled in a way that didn't betray much emotion, unless you looked him in the eyes, and he was an open book.
"I asked if you were okay, man. You've been staring off at me for a bit now and you didn't respond when I said your name." He jostled his shoulder with his elbow, since in the summer before this year he had sprung up to be just under eighteen centimeters (seven inches) taller than Bakugo, who now stood at about half a centimeter taller than he had been in first year, which pissed him off to no end. (Same. I'm five-three ish (one-hundred and fifty eight centimeters, exactly))
Kirishimas face was earnest, genuinely worried, the same expression he had shone Bakugo before in class. He was his friend after all, Bakugo had come to terms with that after a lot of turmoil, but it wasn't something he could deny forever. And friends care about each other, tell each other things... right?
So why has that always been so hard for Bakugo?
He rolled his shoulders, steeling himself for... for what? Another lie, another stall, another bullshit answer that'll lead to nothing but another concerned question down the line? Bakugo sucked his teeth not looking at Kirishima any longer, turning away before he might break.
"I'm fine, Shitty Hair." Guess that counted as all three. A lie, stall, and a bit bullshit in one sentence, Nice, going Katsuki. (Funny story, that was me wondering where the fuck I was going with this, and it turned into a bit of inner turmoil, so yay 😂)
Bakugo felt Kirishimas smile falter and fall more than he saw it, and it hurt somewhere deep down, in a place Bakugo was loosing control of for the first time in his life. He opened his mouth to say something, something to fix it, or, fuck it, just about do anything. All that came out was; "We'll talk later." Even more bullshit. But, for now, Bakugo believed that maybe, just maybe, Kirishima could believe him, if only for a second.
Kirishimas POV
Kirishima didn't believe him for one fucking second. When Kirishima, the emotionally oblivious, blind-to-everything-not-painfully-obvious guy knew it was bullshit, it was some serious bullshit. But he wasn't the guy to push, it wasn't in his nature. Even if he really wanted too, which he really, really, did. But he couldn't. He didn't know the full story because somebody wouldn't tell him, he didn't know how he would even start. So Kirishima backed off, stepping away, but not far enough that he was out of reach, and gave Bakugo space. His smile fell, the one that was usually reflex, unconscious, and Kirishima had a feeling it wasn't just about what was on the surface, which wasn't his forte, as much as he hated that fact.
He found himself nudging Kaminari next, the guy had practically locked himself onto his screen almost immediately before they had headed off campus, and alternated between chewing his lip and his nails. He hadn't even lifted gaze when he almost rammed into a street lamp, just side-stepped right before impact. Which was amazing, considering it was Kaminari. It took two prods for Kaminari to acknowledge him, and even then he still didn't look up, just hummed in recognition and continued his screen-staring.
Kirishima quirked an eyebrow, Kaminari had never been so focused on anything in his life. Not once in the two years he had known him.
It was bewildering and Kirishima felt somewhat proud he managed it so well.
"You good? You've been stuck to your phone since we left, is there something wrong?" Kirishima started, hands melding to his pockets. He had never been good with confrontation in terms of the 'are you okay' area. He was a bit too awkward sometimes, too head-strong others. But he tried.
Kaminari glanced up for a second, and call him crazy, but Kirishima counted it as a small victory. "Yeah. M' good." And just like that Kirishima deflated. Another bullshit answer. "It's just..." Kirishima had a bit of hope. Maybe he wasn't too bad after all. The way Kaminaris brow furrowed had him worrying that it was deeper than he thought. "I gave Shinso my number, right? We live across the hall from each other, same class, ya' know. It made sense..." Kaminari was stammering out his words and rambling on.
"It makes sense, Kaminari. You don't have to make excuses for everything." Kirishima reassured. He pat Kaminaris shoulder and he saw the teen slump. "Is that all?" Kirishima urged, he figured it wasn't, but he wanted to hear it from Kami.
Kaminari shook his head and bit the inside of his cheek. They were almost to the restaurant, Kirishima noted. He really didn't want to cap this off for later, for Kaminaris sake.
"Well, we texted a bit, and by a 'bit,' I mean like two texts each, which isn't much at all but-" Kaminari seemed to catch himself, his jaw snapped shut and he swallowed. "Anyway, I invited him to come out with us, again, but I never got a response..." Back to gnawing his lip, Kaminari let Kirishima take a look at the screen. It was a text chat. At the top there was the contact name, 'Shinsooo' and an ungodly amount of sleep-related emojis next to it. Like Kaminari said, there were about four texts, two each, before a fateful invitation, that was left unanswered, but marked as 'seen.' It made his throat catch.
"Did I spell 'restaurant' wrong again? Did I say something wrong? What happened?!" Distressed, Kaminari huffed. Shoving his phone into his hoodie pocket. A hoodie Kirishima recognized to not be Kaminaris, but his. But that was just Kaminari.
"I don't think your dyslexia was it. And you spelled 'restaurant' right, by the way." Kaminari nodded, looking a little less crestfallen, but his brow still scrunched. "Maybes he's busy training with Aizawa Sensei. He has a bit to catch up on, you know?" Kirishima was reasoning with himself, not just Kaminari. He was a great guy, a little loud sometimes, a flirt, sure. But he was great! Why wouldn't Shinso at least let him know he couldn't come? Or didn't want too? He could've sent something, right?! Kaminari, unlike Kirishimas own thoughts, seemed to accept that explanation, at least a little bit.
"Yeah... yeah that's probably it." Kaminari nodded, just in time to walk into the shop.
It was mostly a cafe, but they sold some of the best dumplings Kirishima had ever tasted, and they were family owned.
The warm lights and comfortable atmosphere of the Jasmine Dragon beckoned the group to a large booth in the back. The old man who ran the shop waved them in, recognizing Kirishima, before returning to a customer.
The red head returned the greeting, before being squished into the booth by Kaminari, accidentally shoving an already-cranky and probably-even more tired Bakugo into the wall. After a quick apology and a semi-seething glare from Bakugo, Kirishima turned to everyone else just in time to see Shoji single-handedly lift another table a little ways away from their booth to add to their section, making sure everyone could fit at least partially-comfortably. Kirishima didn't miss the dumb state that had entranced Tokoyamis face at the sight of his boyfriend in a deadlift. It made him snicker, nudging Bakugo next to him to point it out, eliciting a condescending chuckle out of him, much to Kirishimas delight.
The night had been going quite smoothly, the waiter, who reminded Kirishima strikingly of Todoroki, took their orders and delivered them promptly, conversation never stifled and everyone was involved in some way or another. Almost everyone, at least.
Bakugo had made it quite clear that if any "extra" tried to talk to him, he would make them look like Todoroki. The statement had Sozoryoku, who sat across from Kirishima next to Mina and Sero, coughing to contain laughter.
After that, Mina made it her mission to steal a bit of food from everyone she could reach, which meant most of the time, she was stealing from him, not that he minded. He had ordered more than he could eat (which surprised him, to be honest), and was glad to share. His friends, on the other hand, were usually reluctant. Sozo, going as far as to hiss at her the second time she tried. Denki threatened to light her up like a Christmas tree and Tokoyami vowed to invoke "dark vengeance" upon her if she dared. Shoji switched seats with Tokoyami after that and offered her free-reign over his plate. She didn't try Bakugo, knowing it to be either fire-food or he would kill her if she looked in his direction. Jirou hadn't gotten anything, and Mina apparently didn't like whatever Sero had ordered.
So far, so good.
Until Denki brought back Would You Rather.
"Oh come on, we didn't get to play earlier! Pleaseeee!" Kaminari begged, puppy-dog-eyes game strong as usual. Kirishima readily agreed, deciding it was that or what Mina would suggest. Anything was usually better than what Mina would suggest. Most of the table agreed, even if a little begrudging about it (Bakugo, Jiro, and Tokoyami).
"Alright, we go around the table, counter-clockwise, and ask everyone else a 'would you rather' question!" Kaminari quickly explained. "Me first, bitches! Would you rather spend the day in Kodas room or get caught fucking in the bathroom by Present Mic?" Everyone cringed at that, Starting off strong, I guess.
"Raise your hand for fucking in the bathroom." Sero breathed, sounding mildly exasperated. Sero, Jiro, Shoji, Tokoyami, Kaminari, and Kirishima all raised their hands.
Kaminari pointed at Jiro, "Why fucking?"
"He keeps a red ant farm in his room." Jiro deadpanned.
"I thought he was afraid of bugs?!" Kaminari exclaimed.
Jiro shrugged. "He got over it."
Kaminari moved on to Sero, "Why?"
"I saw him sneaking an adult, male deer into his dorm room once."
"What the fuck. Alright. Next! Shoji!" Kaminari clapped his hands at the poor boy. "Why."
"Everytime I go in there for notes or anything, I walk out with at least three bite marks. Never from the same thing."
"Creepy as shit! Tokoyami! Why!"
"He has birds."
"Understandable! Kirishima! Why?"
Kirishima jumped a bit, Kaminari tended to get a bit out of hand with these things. "He has a snapping turtle. One thats too close to the ground for my taste."
Kaminari nodded gravely, "All fair. My reason is that he keeps rabbits in there. Enough said, now-"
"You're afraid of fucking rabbits?!" Mina sputtered, looking nothing short of incredulous.
Kaminari didn't halt, didn't stutter in his energy. "It was a traumatic experience from when I was five. A rabbit went up my skirt and I've never been the same since!" Kaminari declared, making Sero face palm quite audibly. "Sozoryoku you didn't raise your hand! Why?"
"Who is Koda?!" Sozo looked to be struggling, hands flung in the air and eyes wide with a haphazard grin plastered on their face.
Kaminari sat down hard. "Ohhhhhh. Yeah that makes sense."
Mina intervened, "He's the real quiet guy that sat behind Kirishima in class before we got free seating. I think he was the only one who didn't get up to say hi to you." She shrugged, elbow planted on the desk and hand squishing her cheek. "Really shy. His quirk is that he can speak to animals. He keeps 'pets' in his dorm and they're more than a little feral. Koda is pretty sweet when you get to know him, though!"
Sozoryoku nodded. "The way you guys described him and his animals though, I think fucking might seem the best option. Even though I'm sex repulsed, for the most part." They relaxed, huffing out a breath and making a "this is getting weirder and weirder" kind of face.
"Mina! You raised your hand! My good hoe! Why!" Kaminari was back on his shit like he never left.
Mina grinned and Kirishima idly wondered if he was going to have to smack her for what she might say. "Because then I'd be fuckin'!" She fake-humped the table while biting her lip and made the cursed face that was haunting social media as of late. Kirishima hit his head against the table and prayed for the world to strike him dead immediately.
Kaminari, covering his face and laughing through his every word, "Moving on! Bakugo! You said you would rather be in Kodas room! You crazy son of a bitch, why?!"
This was the first time Kirishima had seen Bakugo included in a while. So far, he had been watching from the side, though he did agree to Would You Rather. Kirishima had zoned out for the most part before and after his turn, watching, but everything was in one ear and out the other. He faced Bakugo, watching him roll his eyes from wear he rest his head on his folded arms on the table. "Because I'm not a pussy like you bitches." He scoffed. "If he has a deer, than it's venison for dinner, I guess. I don't mind rabbit either." Bakugo sneered, a dark chuckle punctuated his words.
"You're a fucked up bastard, ain't ya'?" Sozoryoku spat. They chewed their lip and narrowed their eyed at Bakugo, who bristled at the comment but didn't reply. Kirishima grinned, they seemed to get along fine.
Kirishima turned to Bakugo, "Be serious! You're scared of Kodas room just like the rest of us! There has to be something in there that would fuck with you!" Jostling his shoulder, Kirishima didn't mean it to be a legit question, but Bakugo apparently took it as such.
"Fuck you, I'm not scared of shit!" Bakugo defended. Kirishima vaguely heard Kaminari whistle to the other side of him and knew he was right when he saw Bakugos glare light with an even brighter fire. "Dunce Face..." Bakugo warned, grinding his teeth and small pops were steadily growing in numbers as he spoke.
"Ohhh Bakubro, whatever do you mean?" Kaminaris voice was mockery but laced with a silky innocence that was no-doubt fake as hell. Everyone was watching Kaminri, waiting for him to spill his guts, like he inevitably would. "You know," keeping with the charade, Kaminari turned away from Bakugo. "I hear Koda has a new tarantula..." Kirishima felt Bakugo stiffen and the pops grow louder. "It would... really be a shame if... it were to get out... don't you think?"
"You little shit!" With that, it all cascaded into hell. Bakugo made a lunge for Kaminari from across Kirishima and was firing off small explosions in the aforementioned teens direction. Kaminri squealed and backed off into Tokoyami who sat like an unmovable statue, finishing the rest of his meal. Shoji did his best to help out, stretching two arms in between Bakugo (Well, most Kirishima since Bakugo was basically on top of his lap and still trying to get all the way across) and Kaminari, while Kirishima tried to verbally diffuse the situation.
"Bakugo! Chill out! Denki was just kidding! Nothing serious! Everyone is freaked out by something! You're causing a scene!" And after a bit, Kirishima was becoming a broken record.
He got tired of it. Eventually. He quickly shoved his arms through his hoodie and hardened them, sending Bakugo back against the wall without so much as a scratch. Kirishima then turned around so his back faced Bakugo, properly blocking him from Kaminari. "Yep. No more."
Shaking his shoulders frantically, Kaminari thanked him like there was no tomorrow. "You saved my life! How can I ever repay you?!"
"Dude..." Kirishima was tired. It was official. And, when he checked his watch, it was about fifteen minutes until the café closed. Perfect timing.
"Hey, hey, look at the time. We gotta go." He punctuated his sentence with a yawn, before kicking Kaminari lightly. "Move along, children."
The walk back wasn't as calm as the walk there.
Kirishima had thanked the old man, who apparently had some kind of fire breathing quirk that Kirishima witnessed first-hand as he used it to heat up some tea. He waved kindly after his group, promising to pass on Kirishimas apologies to his nephew, who was the only one really bothered by the scene and the noise caused by the groups table.
After that, they were on their way. Mina and Sero had apparently been giving Sozoryoku a tour of one side of the street on the way there, and were now doing the same thing now that they were on the other side. It was entertaining to listen too, to say the least. It had gotten chilly as the night progressed, just like Kirishima knew it would. He was wearing his hoodie now. He watched Kaminari shivering, in a hoodie not his own, trying to convince Sozoryoku to give up their flannel, but the pierced teen wasn't budging. Kaminari turned to Tokoyami, who looked at him like "are you genuinely going to even ask?" and then tried Shoji, who gently explained that his hoodie was custom made to fit his arms and his height, so for Kaminari most of it would drag on the sidewalk and let most of the cool air in anyway, so it wouldn't be affective. Kaminari was getting whiny, and he bothered Sero, ("I'm literally just wearing a compression shirt underneath this, so, uh, no.") Mina, ("Unless you want to see titties, I wouldn't suggest it." (Que Sozoryoku choking on air)), Jiro, ("My leather jacket is about two sizes too small for you. Take a guess.") and, finally Kirishima.
"No."
"Kirishima you're my only hope! Please!" Kaminari about sobbed. It was pathetic, to put it plainly.
"Kaminari, I am literally wearing a tank top underneath this and my jeans are more hole than anything else. No." Kirishima almost felt bad, then he felt the wind bite at this face and his hands when he removed them from his pockets and he suddenly didn't feel any remorse.
Kaminari whined, turning to Bakugo, who was kicking a rock a bit behind the group. Trudging up to Bakugo like he wasn't just trying to kill him, Kaminari tried the puppy eyes, "I'll consider it an apology..." he pouted. Bakugo glared, sucking his teeth and leveling Kaminari with an almost hateful glare. "Pleaseeeeeee!"
Bakugo clicked his tongue, before a hoodie landed harshly on Kaminaris face. "Fucker." Was the only thing Bakugo said before shoving his hands into the pockets of his black jeans. He had a long sleeve shirt under the band shirt from last years sports festival. He'd be fine.
Not quite a cliffhanger but I need to recover and figure out where to go from here. Also, this thing ended at about three-thousand three-hundred words, so I'm proud of myself 😌
Hope you enjoyed! I will update again soon, I mean it! (Knock on wood)