Chapter Text
Shaking, the test results made his gut curl with a sickening fire. There was no way- no, it just wasn't possible, right? It couldn't be. He couldn't accept what was in front of him, swallowing past the lump in his throat. His vision swam for a moment, almost to the point of detaching from reality all together. Of course, he was a smart kid, so even he knew that there was an incredibly low chance for the test to be wrong, but still. He couldn't accept it.
In plain writing, it read: "Secondary Gender: Beta."
Uninspiring. Plain. Not special.
That wasn't him, right? He was more than that- he was inspiring, dazzling, he was special- right? Years of hard work, being top of his class, his amazing quirk, his desperation and training- they didn't mean nothing, right? Right? Put aside for nothing, spit on after all that. He could vomit.
Bakugou Katsuki was a Beta.
It could have been worse, he supposed; he could have been an Omega, but, at least, then he would just have to crush all expectations. Ninety percent of the population was Betas, six percent Omegas, and four percent Alphas. He had been so sure that he was going to be a part of the top percentage, one of the few people who harbored Alpha hormones- a natural born leader. He fit the bill in every other way, so why? Why was he not good enough?
"Bakugou-san, you can head back to class," the voice of the school nurse broke him out of his train of thought, but the mindset lingered; the back of his head swirled with inadequacies and annoyances. Next time, next time he would get the right answer. He had to.
All students, regardless of the rarity of Secondary Genders, underwent tests at the start of each middle school year. They were meant to detect Alpha or Omega hormones in the system- a rare phenomenon that affected ten percent of the population. Alphas and Omegas developed special teeth along with their other anatomy; they were feats of nature. Their hormones had the ability to create pheromones that they could manage or control- although not without side effects.
More animalistic in nature, Alphas and Omegas could subtly communicate with each other using said pheromones. The main side effect was that Omegas went through 'heat' periods at least once or twice a year; similarly, Alphas went through 'rut' periods. The two could bite each other's main scent gland in what was called a 'claiming bite', and, thus, had to wear special collars in order to block their biology from having an effect on their daily life.
To make things that much worse, glazed over garnet eyes looked up to see a pair of hands awkwardly fumbling with the very same collar he had spared so many glances to on the table.
Of all the people... of all the people to have that, it just had to be him.
Narrowing his eyes, a secondary wave of pure rage ignited through Bakugou's veins as he looked over to see Midoriya Izuku tearfully fumbling with the black leather collar, awkwardly standing in front of the school nurse who had to fasten it for him.
In short, Midoriya and Bakugou were childhood friends- on paper, at least- but to describe their bond was something that could take hours. Midoriya was always wrapped up by his own inferiority, Bakugou by his superiority, but, at each other's sides, they both ignited. Midoriya's desperate need to feel superior rose up in his chest without him realizing, and Bakugou choked on his own inferiority.
Some would describe them as 'oil and water', but that was never quite right; they were like yin and yang. They were like fire and ice- both weakening each other in their own ways. Fire melting the ice, the melted water weakening the fire, but neither of them were ever put out. They fought like they were dancing, danced like they were fighting. Like two magnets, pushing and pulling all at the same time.
Someone like Midoriya, well, there was no possible way that he was an Alpha. He was scrawny, pathetic, average in most categories. It wasn't as if he couldn't succeed if he tried, but he was clumsy. Somewhere along the line, he eventually convinced himself that he couldn't do anything: a self-fulfilling prophecy.
If he wasn't an Alpha, then he had to be an Omega.
How fitting- Bakugou almost laughed out loud. He slunk through the halls, ignoring everyone who was sharing their test results like a bunch of kids bragging about what they did over the weekend. He dodged a few, "Of course, Bakugou's gotta be an Alpha, right?" Again, everyone around him faded away; no one but Midoriya existed to the blond, biting the inside of his lip.
Mockingly, the clock ticked on; tauntingly, Midoriya's shuffly footsteps echoed in Bakugou's ears; annoyingly, the class whispered and laughed.
Laughter was the easiest to block out- the class sneering, saying that of course Midoriya, of all people, had the 'misfortune of being an Omega'. He ignored the other Omegas in the room, few as they were, smacking their friends or sending glares at the loudest in the class. Emerald eyes watered as Midoriya visibly bit his lip, fumbling with his collar in the same way that he would mess with the hem of his shirt. Bakugou's lips quirked up in a smirk.
By lunch, Midoriya already looked exhausted. He had practically worn through the leather on his collar already just picking at and moving it- it was pathetic!
Yet Bakugou couldn't keep his eyes off of it... obviously it was because Midoriya was an Omega, right? His fixation wasn't doing anything but making the blond's mind swirl more and more- he couldn't even hear what the teacher was saying, didn't even move his pencil to take the notes he always kept so perfectly documented. The only thing that existed to him was Midoriya Izuku: something that would have normally made him seethe with rage, but, after the day's events, he couldn't stop smiling.
The bell ringing was his saviour.
Midoriya didn't even have a second to move before Bakugou was at his desk, demanding attention, "Oi, Deku. We're getting lunch together."
If his voice was louder than normal, if anyone noticed how off he was being, if Bakugou Katsuki's mask had cracked at all- the explosive blond didn't notice, nor did he care. The extras could flinch, they could whisper, they could pick him apart all they wanted- they always did- but the only thing that mattered to him was that little light in Midoriya's eyes as he stood up.
Following behind him, Midoriya was like a dog- no, he was like an Omega, dutifully following his Alpha... It only fueled the little, delusive part in Bakugou who thrived off of the attention- the only Alpha for Midoriya was him, Bakugou Katsuki, of course. From the way that Midoriya looked at him, of course the nerd knew it, too.
Neither of them spoke until they made it to the rooftop when Midoriya hesitantly spoke forward, "What did you want to see me for, Kacchan...?"
Again, his hands fluttered up to his collar, fumbling with the leather once again. Emerald eyes darted to Bakugou's neck and he grinned- almost completely forgetting that his tests didn't yield the result he had hoped for... after all, they were wrong, right? The way his veins thrummed, it had to be his instinct, right? Because Midoriya was an Omega, and the only one who could be his Alpha was Bakugou.
"You got your tests back," he stated and Midoriya practically jumped to meet his eyes, "And you're an Omega, right?"
Even through the thick collar, scarlet eyes watched Midoriya visibly gulp. He bit his lip, averted his eyes, and tilted his head downwards. If Bakugou had actually been an Alpha, it was a genuine show of submission- the explosive blond certainly took it that way, moving his hand forward to stroke the leather.
Midoriya shivered, leaning into the touch- even though he knew that he shouldn't, even if he wasn't sure why Bakugou was acting that way... he felt the pull, too. A part of him had always hoped that Bakugou was an Alpha so that they could be a pair- together forever, just like they planned. Truthfully, he had been scared of his diagnosis as an Omega, but, in that moment, it brought a rush through him.
"Y-yeah. Mid-Level, they said... but it's hard to tell exactly where I'll fall and what rate I'll produce the hormones-" he answered honestly, leaning his neck over more and more.
"Mhm," Bakugou let his hands extend down past the collar, his fingers tracing Midoriya's shoulder. The Omega shivered, but still made no move to push him off. The skin was warm, inviting, even, as its freckled expanse rose and fell with Midoriya's breaths- for a minute, they stayed just like that. Bakugou unable to move, and Midoriya... not quite wanting him, too.
For a moment, he felt bad, using his childhood friend like that-
Oddly enough, it was a statement that they both felt.
Bakugou, who was so mad at his test results that he wanted to prove himself; Betas couldn't have pairs. At least not in the same way that Alphas or Omegas could, since they had special teeth that allowed them to pierce their scent glands, and, only once those scent glands were punctured, would the pheromones be pulled that way. The blond knew in his head that he couldn't do that. He knew that he had a low chance of having a secondary gender, but... he still couldn't accept it.
That wasn't even pulling into account the way that Midoriya made him feel- he wanted so badly to just blame it on his biology. Of course, they would be drawn to each other; they were an Alpha and an Omega after all, right? There was no way he was just a Beta and that his feelings towards Midoriya were anything more than animalistic. That's why he couldn't leave the nerd alone, right?
Midoriya, on the other hand, had always been overcome with affection for Bakugou, all through their childhood years. He never stopped looking at him, following him, being dazzled by him. Even when the blond fell more on the side of being a 'bully', Midoriya didn't hold it against him, because he always bounced back. No matter what, Bakugou was always 'Kacchan': his Kacchan.
Once emerald gems peeked hesitantly at the test results, he had hoped that he was just a Beta. Once his hopes were crushed at the symbol staring back at him, his thoughts were flooded with Bakugou- it was embarrassing! He wondered what it would be like to be Bakugou's Omega- Kacchan's mate- it made him almost giddy... until he went outside and saw the blond walking around without a collar. Suddenly another wave of anxiety had washed over him. If he couldn't be Bakugou's mate, would he have to find someone else? Live forever as an unclaimed Omega? He almost panicked, fiddling with his collar so much to keep from mumbling his thoughts out loud.
His heart was in his throat when Bakugou asked him to lunch. The blond wasn't the only one convinced that Bakugou Katsuki had to be an Alpha.
Especially feeling the way that Bakugou stroked his collar, warm fingers gently brushing his shoulder- they made Midoriya's skin ignite, he felt like he could go into heat right then and there. If Bakugou had actually been an Alpha, Midoriya probably would have. He gasped audibly when the blond spoke up, leaning forward to the point where all emerald eyes could see was his cheek, where Midoriya could smell Bakugou who had no pheromones.
"Take off your collar."
It was a whisper, a command that left Midoriya breathless as he collapsed towards Bakugou, breathing heavily. The Beta instinctively grabbed Midoriya's waist, holding him up with strong arms and nearing panic. In that moment, reality crashed down on the Beta- what the fuck was he doing?
Lying to himself, trying to lead Midoriya on, and attempting to steal such a precious thing; how could he? Silently clicking his tongue, Bakugou was ready to push Midoriya away, to claim it was just a joke, to come clean about how he was a Beta. He would have left the roof, he would have kept his distance, he probably wouldn't have apologized knowing his stupid, headstrong ass, but... maybe Midoriya would finally hate him for good, instead of looking back with those eyes.
Envy, admiration, determination, inferiority- those eyes drove him mad, and yet all Bakugou could think of was the almost hopeful way that they looked at Bakugou all day.
Not moving from Bakugou's arms, Midoriya did as he was asked, pulling the key out of his pocket and undoing the lock.
"Be gentle," he mumbled, as if there was any way to 'be gentle' with a real claiming bite, but Bakugou swallowed, feeling that need rise up in him again as he kept supporting Midoriya. One of his hands raised up to the Omega's neck, tracing the place where the collar once was. He could feel the lump from the scent gland: it was noticeably different from that of Betas. If he hadn't been holding Midoriya up, the blond would have traced his own neck at the thought.
Instead, he just pressed down harder, making Midoriya's whole body shiver as he panted.
Bakugou couldn't back out... not when he had already gotten that far. Besides, if they weren't partners in crime, then Midoriya would have fought back. He was obedient, but only to a point; not even 'Shitty Deku' would let himself be claimed by an Alpha that he wasn't prepared to spend his life with. He wouldn't willingly give up such a precious thing without a second thought.
No, Bakugou was special.
Just like that, the delusion washed over him once again. What he was smelling was Midoriya's shampoo, but it didn't matter as his tongue traced the gland, treating Midoriya's neck like a meal to be savoured. Bakugou shut off his own mind, breathing almost as shakily as the Omega who was clutching his gakuran with a fury as if the blond was going to disappear into thin air if he wasn't held down by Midoriya's unsteady hands.
Sharp as his teeth were, though, they weren't enough.
Bakugou bit down. Hard. He took in a large breath of air and clamped his jaws down as hard as he could muster, and yet all he felt was skin. Midoriya winced beneath his teeth as the Beta tried to grind his jaws together.
Leaving unsuccessfully, garnet eyes glared at the deep indent that he left on Midoriya's scent gland. He couldn't pierce it. He was a failure. He was a Beta.
Not that Midoriya seemed to notice, still breathing heavily as he leaned his nose up to Bakugou's collarbone. Emerald eyes wearily blinked open, his mouth salivating as he looked at the blond's unmarked and uncovered neck. Unlike Bakugou, though, the Omega never got a chance to move. He found himself gently being pried off, and, embarrassingly, he found the urge to whine.
"We need to eat before lunch is over," Bakugou's voice was gruff and distant, but Midoriya didn't hear it with the fluff in his ears.
If the Omega sat closer to Bakugou than usual, the Beta didn't notice.
Disappointment weighed immeasurably on Bakugou's shoulders as he kept trudging on, acting like he wasn't bothered by the horrible failure he had faced right in front of the one person that he hated failing in front of more than anything. Bile stirred in his gut, rage stuck in his throat. He really was a Beta- especially with the way that he couldn't pick up on the thick pheromones wafting through the air.
He didn't even catch the way that hands shook as they clasped the collar, not even the clinking of the buckle.
Blind to it all, Bakugou slunk into himself, putting on his persona again, and pushing everyone away for the rest of the day. Midoriya didn't seem to mind, though, of course. The nerd was just mocking him all along- he only let any of that happen because he knew that Bakugou was a Beta. That had to be it, right?
All of his emotions bubbled up until the Beta just cut them off. They left the rooftop, once again as unaware as always that they were stepping with the wrong feet.