Chapter Text
There’s a boat on the lake.
Katsuki hears the sound of splashing at first, and he is quick to assume it’s thanks to a particularly large fish that has had the misfortune of spawning in the body of water, unlucky enough to become his dinner.
He licks his lips and grips the fishing rod a little bit tighter. A big fish would last him a week at the very least, he’d definitely be fortunate to catch one during this season.
Soon enough, however, he sees a canoe emerge from the thick fog, slowly but surely approaching the shore where his muddy boots are firmly planted. He has to squint a little bit to ensure he isn’t hallucinating.
All he could think of when first spotting the damn thing was something along the lines of ‘What the actual fuck’. The fact that it’s rapidly getting closer to his home makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
A million questions assault his brain all at once. How were strangers even able to get here? It’s practically impossible to find his area of the woods for someone who doesn’t know what they’re searching for. Then again, there’s the fucking possibility that Katsuki’s about to get ambushed. Even if he hasn’t interacted with enough people to piss someone off, he’s seen too many movies and read too many books about psychopaths looking to kill whoever.
He simply can’t risk it.
Katsuki takes a second to assess; the boat is a tiny thing, so it must only be able to transport a few people at the very most. Nothing he can’t handle.
He runs inside his home, putting the fishing rod back where he got it from, then heads back outside.
He looks at the boat once more, and it’s still there, only now slightly closer. He doesn’t have a lot of time, the current is strong today. From the way it’s advanced, he can already tell it’ll only be on the lake for a few more minutes. No time to waste.
Katsuki runs inside the shed, and grabs the rifle.
Explode whines to his left, making the blond nearly jump, having not noticed him. He leans down to pet the animal, scratching his chin with the other hand. Its tail wags happily, unsuspecting of what’s about to happen.
“It’s fucking fine, Explode. I’ll make it quick,” he tells the dog, knowing full well he has no clue what Katsuki’s talking about.
Even after all this time, it still hasn’t gotten used to the occasional gunshots. It still flinches, barks, and whines loudly whenever the blond uses the weapon. Katsuki can’t say he blames it.
He only hesitates for a second.
He grabs the weapon by the neck, heading back outside. The canoe has gotten closer, so much so that he can now make out a man’s silhouette.
He’s alone. Piece of cake.
The cold wind whips around as he waits, making the coloured leaves rustle and the branches crack. The smell of rain lingers in the air; the threat of a storm brewing.
Perfect timing. He would give the universe a kiss if he could.
The man in the boat looks around Katsuki’s age, only slightly shorter, but with a similar build. His green eyes look down, and his curly green hair bobs as he carefully hops off the boat once it reaches shore.
Freckles stand out against pale cheeks, and the blond can’t help but stare.
A bright smile appears on the stranger’s face when he looks up at him.
“Hello! God, I’m so happy I finally found someone,” he says, walking up to Katsuki.
The blond squints. The man doesn’t seem to be afraid of him. Seems dumb as hell, as he’s literally holding him at gun point.
“I was just trying to get to Minokiyo by crossing the river, but the current took me completely off course,” he says, before briefly looking at Katsuki’s home, “Unless this is Minokiyo?”
It isn’t. He’s heard of Minokiyo, merely two hours away on boat. The stranger is definitely either lost, or a terrible liar.
The blond aims his gun at him. “What’s your name?” He demands.
“Oh—how rude of me! I’m Izuku Midoriya. What’s your name? Woah, is that a real gun? I’ve never actually seen one up close. How long have you had it? Have you ever shot anything with it? How many bullets fit in the chamber? Wait, is this even legal? How do you even get a permit in the middle of nowhere? How—”
“What the fuck is your problem?” Katsuki interrupts the man—Izuku Midoriya. He talked so damn fast, the blond barely had time to register the words before he moved on to the next sentence.
“Huh?” He replies, startled by the cut off.
“Do you always ramble when you’re being threatened?”
The man in question blinks, slowly. “Threatened?” He asks, head tilting slightly.
Katsuki narrows his eyes. He must be fucking joking. There is literally no way in hell he’s serious. It pisses Katsuki off.
“Are you slow? Yes, threatened. The hell do you think the gun is for, decoration? Hands up,” he replies, standing up a bit straighter and flailing the gun ever so slightly to emphasise his statement.
Hands go up quickly as the man seems to finally register the dangerous situation he’s found himself in.
“I swear I’m not a threat,” he says, eyes wide.
Katsuki snorts. “Yeah, I can tell,” he states, mildly amused. He refuses to let his guard down, despite the inoffensive look this man wears. “How the hell did you get here?”
The other—Izuku Midoriya—shivers. The wind isn’t kind on a cold day like this one, especially not before rain, and the thin jacket clinging to his body does very little to protect him from it. Katsuki almost feels pitiful.
“I told you, I just got lost,” he responds, “I was looking on this map, but then the current became really strong all of a sudden and it started manoeuvring my boat every which way, and I was trying to call for help but there was no signal because I was quite literally in the middle of nowhere, and then I lost all my battery and have since been stuck on the same damn river for like an hour, until I got here,” he adds.
It’s not completely impossible, but Katsuki finds it very hard to trust him. He doesn’t look dangerous, but the blond is smarter than to let that fool him. Psychopaths don’t have a certain look, anyone could be batshit insane. He’d be stupid to just go along with whatever this guy says.
Seemingly being able to sense Katsuki’s scepticism, he continues on, “Here, I can—” he says, reaching into his jacket’s pocket.
Katsuki’s hand caresses the trigger, careful pressure ready at the smallest sudden movement. “Careful,” he says, the word rolling off his tongue.
He’s handed an ID, the picture of the stranger in front of him smiling widely. The name on the document matches.
“See? I’m just a person. Seriously, I didn’t even see this place on the map,” he says, voice cracking around the syllables.
Katsuki’s eyes scan the document carefully, taking a mental note of the fact that he’s only a few months younger than himself. He looks at Izuku, when he senses him start fidgeting with his hands. The man starts slowly rocking back and forth, and his bottom lip looks abused as he chews on it.
The blond is trying to think of his next move, when a flash of fur runs by. His eyes widen as Explode runs past him and towards the other.
“Fuck, wait—” he yells out, a moment too late. The dog jumps, and Katsuki’s eyes screw up on instinct, not willing to witness the violent scene.
Except he hears a giggle, and the unmistakeable sound of slobbering. He opens his eyes and feels his jaw drop.
“S-stop—” the stranger lets out in between hearty laughter. The dog’s tail wags as he enthusiastically licks Izuku’s face, while the man in question is half heartedly pushing him away, clearly enjoying the attention.
Holy shit.
It takes Katsuki a good moment to compose himself. He lowers the gun slowly.
A beat of silence.
“Explode, you traitor, get over here,” he barks with no venom. The dog looks at him, and has the audacity to whine before walking over.
Izuku keeps laughing as he gets up from the ground. “Your dog is really sweet,” he says, wiping his face with the back of his sleeve.
Huh.
Interesting.
“Not usually, he fucking isn’t,” he replies, fixing the dog with a stare. The animal looks unbothered as he joyfully stares up at him.
Izuku’s grin finds his face again. “That must mean he likes me! I’m honoured,” he says with an exaggerated bow.
Katsuki raises an eyebrow, looking him up and down. “Has it ever crossed your mind how weird you are?”
The man’s smile widens more than Katsuki thought was possible. “I take that as a compliment, uh…Wait, did you ever tell me your name? I don’t think I asked, did I?”
Katsuki scoffs. “You don’t need to know my name, Deku,” he says, handing him back his ID.
“Deku?”
“That’s what I fucking said, isn’t it?”
“Um—Actually, my name is Izuku,” he replies, scratching the back of his head. “I think you read it wrong,” he adds with an awkward laugh.
“I don’t give a fuck, Deku,” says Katsuki, rolling his eyes. He aims the rifle at the man once again. “Take off your clothes.”
Izuku goes bright red. “P-pardon?”
“Did I stutter? I need to check you for weapons, make sure you’re not some psycho freak out to try and kill me.”
Izuku looks incredulous. “Right. Uh—with all due respect, sir, I’m not the one holding a weapon. A-and, it’s beyond freezing out here. I haven’t been able to feel my fingers since I gave you my ID,” he says.
Katsuki realises that he does have a point, not that he’d admit it out loud.
“Drop the fucking ‘sir’. We’re the same age.”
Izuku shamelessly looks him up and down, looking surprised by the new information. “Really?”
“What the hell is—yes, really. What is wrong with you?”
“How many times are you going to ask me that?”
“How many times are you going to be fucking weird?”
Izuku laughs. “You got me there,” he says, before seemingly considering something for a moment. “U-um, seeing as I don’t seem to have any other option here, is there anyway we can go inside the cabin? I’ll—god I can’t believe I’m actually about to say this—I’ll take my clothes off inside, if you still want me to, t-that is.”
Katsuki can’t tell what causes his stuttering anymore. He realises how he might’ve sounded, and winces internally. No wonder Izuku was shocked. There were way better ways to word that. But Katsuki can’t turn back time, fucking sue him.
“Look, you don’t have to get fully naked. I’m not crazy.”
“Right—”
“Cut the sarcasm, dickhead,” he replies, giving Izuku a disapproving look. “If you’d prefer a fucking patdown, that’s fine too. But no matter how weak you might look—”
“Wha—hey!”
“I still have to fucking check.”
An understanding look appears on the other’s face. “Okay. I’m okay with getting undressed. I don’t know why, but I feel like I can trust you.”
Katsuki raises an eyebrow. “You must be a bigger idiot than I thought.”
Izuku doesn’t reply. Instead, he simply looks at him, patiently waiting for his next move.
He’s done nothing to seem dangerous. Maybe…
Katsuki nods towards his house, and Izuku takes the hint. He starts walking towards it. The blond follows behind him—the dog by his side— maintaining what he deems is a safe distance. He can never be too sure.
The door of the cabin creaks as it’s opened for the first time since sunrise, and the stranger steps inside, letting out a pleased (or relieved?) sigh at the warmth assaulting his face. They both take their shoes off, followed by their jackets.
The blond gets a pretty good look at the other’s physique. Now that he thinks about it, Katsuki could definitely take him in a physical fight, if it ever came down to it. Maybe he doesn’t need the rifle after all.
As promised, Izuku peels off every thin layer of clothing down to his underwear off his body, and Katsuki quickly analyses him for any gun stripped to a thigh or any knife stuck on a wrist. He’s clean. No weapons, just pale, freckled skin and muscles. He looks like he’s about to piss himself the longer Katsuki looks, so he decides to end his suffering as an act of mercy.
“You can put your clothes back on,” he tells him.
Izuku nods and does so. Katsuki turns around to give him as much privacy as he can, given the circumstances. The other hums once he’s done, and the blond takes that as his cue that he can turn back around.
“Hey, uh—do you…um…do you think I could charge my phone here for a little bit?”
Katsuki looks at him like he’s just grown a second head. “You brought a phone with you?”
“Uh…yeah? Why wouldn’t I?” He answers, cocking his head.
This day might just go down as one of the strangest days the blond has ever lived through in all his years. The longer he talks to this guy, the more alien he feels. Once again, the words ‘what the actual fuck’ seem fitting for the situation.
He decides to let it go for his own sanity. His head might just explode if he tries figuring out whatever is going on.
“Fine. Do whatever the hell you need to so you can stop being a pain in my ass.”
Izuku grins. “Thank you!” He exclaims cheerfully, ignoring the insult entirely.
Katsuki feels the vein on his forehead throb. Ugh. He really fucking hopes the storm won’t last too long, so they can part ways forever. He actually can’t stand people.
Katsuki watches the other man rummage through his backpack for a second, before averting his gaze to the crackling fire in the fire place. He squats down to add more wood, making sure the fire keeps going.
When Katsuki looks at Izuku again, he has what looks like a thin black brick in his hand.
Alarm bells go off in his head immediately.
Without thinking twice, he charges at the stranger. Katsuki pins the arm holding the thing to the wall behind Izuku, and uses his other arm to grab him by the neck.
“The fuck are you doing?” He demands, getting all up in his face.
Izuku’s eyes widen. “W-what?” He says, hand grabbing Katsuki’s and trying to move it away. The blond tightens his grip on the other’s neck.
“The fuck is that? Some sorta weapon?”
The stranger looks confused for a second, before looking down. “M-my phone?” He asks, before letting out a hiss. “Ow!”
“Don’t bullshit me! I know what a phone looks like and that isn’t fucking it, you lying bastard!” He yells, gripping his neck even tighter.
Izuku looks at him with wide eyes, now starting to panic.
“Please—I…I promise it’s not a weapon. I’ll show you,” he pleads, voice cracking. A pained sound escapes him.
Explode whines, and then whines some more. Katsuki looks at the dog, whose eyes are stuck on Izuku, the man desperately clawing at his hand.
Fuck his life.
He lets go, and Izuku immediately falls down, coughing and holding his own neck and chest. They stay that way for a little bit as he slowly recovers.
The man then gets back up, and he wears a look of worry and confusion on his face.
Izuku’s eyebrows furrow, looking more confused than he does scared. “Do you…not have a cellphone?”
He can’t even begin to think about what he’s saying right now. Maybe he hit his head when he went out today, and this is all just his personal hell.
“A what.”
The other sighs. “Look, I—I’m still not quite sure what’s going on…or why you reacted the way you did. But here, I’ll—let me charge it and then I can show you, yeah?”
“And why the fuck would I trust you, huh?” Katsuki asks, guard back up as he watches the other like a hawk.
Izuku bites the inside of his cheek, clearly trying to come up with the right answer. He sighs, then looks Katsuki straight in the eye.
His heartbeat picks up a little bit as he waits for Izuku to build up the courage to speak.
“Because I trusted you, too.”
***
The storm comes late in the afternoon, wind whistling loudly as it hits the walls of the house, and dodges the trees surrounding it. Heavy rain pours from the sky like a reminder of the weight of the clouds above them.
By the way it only gets worse with the hours, Katsuki can tell it’ll be a long one.
Izuku is talking to him, but he isn’t paying much attention. It was only interesting in the first half, when the new invention nearly made his jaw drop in amazement. Now he’s only partially there as the other swipes on the cracked screen of his cellphone, showing him whatever other useless features the device presents.
Who the hell needs a measuring app?
At first, he kept complaining about how much the other talked. His train of thought seemed to start in a timezone and end in a different one. Katsuki hasn’t met a lot of people, but the ones he has never spoke this much. Now, two hours later, it just kind of serves as background noise as he mulls over some things.
Izuku seems to sense his lack of interest, so he clears his throat and stops the rambling. “So uh…how come you didn’t know what a cellphone was?”
Katsuki debates telling him the truth for a moment. “I did, I was just on fucking edge so I didn’t realise at first.”
A lie and they both know it. Katsuki can tell Izuku doesn’t buy it for a second, but he doesn’t push, which is good. He’s a motormouth, but the blond can give credit where it’s due: he’s also really analytical, knows when it’s time to shut up. Might just be his only redeeming quality.
“And the gun?” He asks, looking at the weapon leaning against the opposite wall. He fidgets with his fingers. Definitely a nervous habit. Katsuki has had a shit load of time to read up on those.
“Tch. Hunting rifle.”
Izuku’s head snaps towards him, eyes wide. “You hunt?”
“I live in the woods. Take a wild fucking guess.”
The other hums. “What about your parents?”
“They live in the city,” he responds, averting his eyes. Memories of blond hair flood his mind, but he’s quick to push them away.
Not the time.
Izuku can tell the questions are making him uncomfortable, so he doesn’t ask anymore. He looks down at his own hands.
“Uh—right, so…my phone is almost fully charged. I’m probably going to go soon,” he says, eyes glazed over.
Katsuki scowls. “That’s not happening.”
Izuku looks surprised. “It’s not? Are you holding me hostage?” He asks, looking about as scared as a lion would be by a cricket.
Katsuki rolls his eyes, smirking despite himself. “It’s a tropical cyclone, damn nerd. Could last anywhere from one day to a fucking month. If you wanna go, be my damn guest, but you’re not going to get far in that flimsy ass jacket.”
“Hey—”
“Looks like we’re stuck together. Fucking great.”
Izuku frowns. “You know—I don’t particularly want to be stuck here either.”
“Yeah well, get in line. At least I’m good company,” he says.
The man bursts out laughing. He clutches his stomach and nearly hits his head on the table as he curls into himself. Katsuki stares at him as he laughs like a straight up maniac. Even the villains in movies don’t laugh like this guy, Jesus Christ.
“The fuck is so funny?”
Izuku wipes the tears from the corners of his eyes, trying to calm down from his own outburst. “Oh my god, you can’t be serious,” he says in between giggles.
Katsuki just looks at him. Long and hard.
Izuku suddenly stops laughing, looking straight at him. “Oh my god, you’re serious.”
An unimpressed eyebrow is raised. “You are so fucking weird, Deku.”
“So I’ve been told, uh…?”
He thinks he’s slick, huh?
Katsuki scoffs. “Not happening,” he says, getting up from the table and heading towards the fire place.
“Wh—come on! That’s not fair, you know mine!” He says, whining like a child not getting the sweets he wants in a grocery store. He gets up and approaches Katsuki’s back.
The blond in question squats, grabbing a log and tossing it into the fire with practiced ease. He doesn’t respond. Izuku doesn’t need to know his name. He won’t be staying too long, anyway. Or at least that’s what Katsuki hopes.
“I’m gonna make dinner. Any goddamn requests?”
Izuku’s face lights up at the question. “Katsudon?”
The corner of Katsuki’s lips is pulled up into a smirk. “Aji fry it is.”
Izuku pouts. “Why ask, then?” He questions, and Katsuki has to hold back a snort.
He grabs all the ingredients he needs and quickly gets to work, going through the familiar motions of making the dish that he probably eats every three days or so. Katsuki knows his kitchen like the back of his hand, could find you any knife with his eyes closed and hands tied behind his back. He has always found cooking oddly relaxing. Except, there’s a stupid stranger glued to his back this time and it gets on his every nerve.
“What’s that?” He asks, too close for comfort.
Katsuki moves. “Seasoning,” he replies, and the ‘duh’ goes unsaid.
“On fish?”
Katsuki turns around, glaring daggers at the man. “What the fuck did you just say to me? Yes, Deku, on fish. The hell do you season?”
Izuku thinks about it for a second, gripping his chin and mumbling under his breath. “I guess it makes sense, since it is meat. I can’t believe I never thought of that. I tend to just season any other meat—like chicken…uh, beef or pork, you know?”
“God, you are so annoying,” Katsuki groans.
Izuku gasps, offended. “Excuse me? You literally asked—”
“You literally asked,” the blond repeats in a very high pitched voice.
If looks could kill.
Or like, lightly graze. Katsuki can’t take him seriously.
Not even the dog perceived him as a threat.
“I do not talk like that,” he says, puffing his chest out. It just makes the whole situation funnier, so Katsuki snickers, which only seems to irritate Izuku even further.
“Sure you do, Deku. Now, if you’re gonna be fucking stuck to me like a leech the whole time, you better start being useful and hand me the salt, yeah?”
Izuku huffs, displeased. “Only ‘cause you’re cooking for us both, asshole” he says, before tossing the container at Katsuki, who catches it with one hand.
“Watch it! Don’t toss shit in my kitchen. And you kiss your mother with that mouth, Deku?” He asks, enjoying making fun of the other.
His face gets very red, very fast. “Stop,” he says. “I’m an adult, I can swear” he adds with a slight pout.
Katsuki can tell that the irony isn’t lost on him.
“Also, what was that about me cooking for us both? You’re on your own, Deku,” he says, smirking devilishly.
“Haha.”
***
They eat together at the table, and it doesn’t feel too crowded, even thought the blond is used to eating alone. Izuku compliments his cooking, and Katsuki gets tired of saying he knows after every sentence once he does it four times.
There is something nostalgic and weirdly peaceful about eating with somebody, Katsuki never realised how much he missed it until now.
“This’ll probably be the most interesting page in my travel journal,” Izuku says after a few more bites, which is kinda gross. Who taught him to speak with his mouth open?
Of course he keeps a travel journal. Katsuki has known the guy for all of only a few hours, and still he can tell how in character that is for him. It’s really damn strange. He talks a lot, but writes too. Where do all of his thoughts fit?
Clearly they’re overflowing, seeing as he can’t seem to shut the fuck up.
“Of course it will be, Deku. I’m fucking amazing.”
Izuku giggles. “Yeah. I mean—not to boost your already very obviously massive ego, but yeah. And fascinating, too, I have a ton of questions.”
“You don’t say.”
That only increases the volume of Izuku’s laugh. “You don’t have to answer them if you don’t want to. I’m just a naturally curious person,” he says, continuing to poke at the vegetables on his plate with his fork.
Explode comes over, resting his head on Izuku’s thigh, and looking at him with big eyes.
Fucking backstabber.
Izuku seems delighted by the action, however, petting the dog’s head lovingly. “And so is your doggy, awwww. Aren’t you?” He asks in a weird voice.
The dog barks. Katsuki rolls his eyes. Damn ass kisser.
“Good boy,” Deku says in that same voice, getting all up in Explode’s face. The dog bumps their noses together, enjoying the affection.
Ugh. Gross.
“If I have to keep watching this, I’m gonna throw up,” Katsuki voices his disgust. “Get over here, damn dog,” he says, bribing Explode with some fish. He happily eats the food, and then licks the seasoning off of Katsuki’s fingers.
Izuku watches the scene with a big grin on his face.
“Why’d you name him Explode?”
The blond rolls his eyes. “‘Cause it’s badass.”
Izuku laughs. “But he’s so cute, and so sweet.”
“I told you, no he fucking isn’t. He’s a beast,” he says, petting the dog’s head and watching his tail wag rapidly. He smiles to himself, not being able to help the urge to make fun of Izuku some more, “He probably tackled you out there because he could sense you wouldn’t be able to hurt me,” he says.
“I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“Fucking whatever. Eat your damn vegetables.”
“Okay, mom,” Izuku responds with a small smile.
They finish the rest of their meal in silence, the sound of metal against ceramic, the loud thunder reverberating outside and the muffled noise of pouring rain enveloping them. The other man looks lost in thought as he finishes his meal. He chews slowly, like he’s not giving eating his all, and instead using his energy elsewhere.
Katsuki is the first to finish his meal, but he has freaking manners, so he waits before getting up. But Izuku has been chewing the same piece of fish for five fucking minutes and his patience does have its limits. He starts repeatedly tapping his foot against the floor, and fights the urge to groan out loud.
Katsuki averts his eyes, opting to watch the flames spring to life in the fire place, and there’s a familiarity that feels grounding in a situation that is anything but.
They’ve fallen into a silence that doesn’t feel particularly comfortable but doesn’t feel thick with tension either.
It’s just…silent. Too fucking silent for someone who wouldn’t stop rambling since he stepped foot on shore. Katsuki sighs, deeply annoyed.
Someone put him out of his misery.
“Spit it the fuck out,” he barks, and he sees the other jump in his peripheral view.
“What?” Izuku asks, confusion colouring his voice.
“I know your stupid brain is thinking of something, damn Deku. Just do us both a favour and out with it already.”
Izuku is silent for a second. One too long, so it makes Katsuki wonder if he actually read him wrong. Maybe he should’ve just shut his own trap.
“Why’d you let me stay?”
Katsuki stops moving, stops breathing entirely. Red meets green and it makes him sick. Why are his eyes so expressive?
“What.”
Izuku sighs. “You—I mean…you could’ve just let me go back out in that storm, told me to fuck off—or left me. But, you didn’t. For someone so crude—”
“Fuck you, you son of a—”
Izuku continues on, unfazed. “—you showed me, and continue to show me so much hospitality. I just…I’m trying to make sense of it, but I can’t. I mean you’ll insult me, but then tell me I can stay in the same breath.” He says, running his hands through his hair nervously.
“I’m not a fucking monster, Deku,” he says, scoffing.
Izuku smiles, seemingly reassured (how the hell did that even work?), “Just an asshole?” He asks, holding back a smile and failing miserably.
“You think you’re so fucking funny, do ya?”
Izuku bursts out laughing. “Yep.”
“Fuck you,” he says, getting up.
He hears Izuku laugh even harder behind him, which is really irritating. Katsuki places the dirty dishes in the sink, and rolls his sleeves up.
He quickly washes them, sensing Deku hesitating to approach from behind him.
Katsuki tilts his head back and sighs loud enough so the other can hear over the sound of the faucet.
“I’m not doing your dishes too, dipshit. You’re on your own for that.”
Izuku squeaks, probably not having expected to be addressed. “I wasn’t expecting you to. Sorry, I just got lost in thought,” he says the last part more quietly, but the blond hears it nevertheless.
“Fucking shocker,” Katsuki says, picking up a towel to dry the silverware.
Once he’s done drying and putting back the dishes, he throws himself on the couch with a loud thud and an accompanying groan, scrunching his eyes closed. He still hopes he’ll wake up and realise this has all been a stupid fever dream.
Unfortunately for him, Izuku is still there once he opens his eyes, back turned as he carefully washes his own dirty dishes.
No such fucking luck.
Katsuki doesn’t take his eyes off him. He watches Izuku move very slowly, as if afraid to break something (he should be, the blond would kill him).
Hm.
Once the other is done, he makes himself comfortable on the couch, leaving some space between him and Katsuki, which is good. He would’ve been punched to hell if he had decided to get all cozy and sit right next to him.
Izuku doesn’t look nervous, just…unsure about something.
The blond sighs. Fuck him and his stupid life.
He looks at Izuku, the fireplace casting hues of orange on his face. It makes him look sculpted, sharper, in a weird way.
“Katsuki.”
Izuku’s head turns so quickly, it might’ve snapped. His eyes are wide. “What?”
Katsuki can’t bear to look at him. It’s his turn to stare at the fire place. He swallows around the lump that has formed inside his throat.
“It’s Katsuki Bakugou. My fucking name,” he says.
And something in his world changes permanently.