Chapter 1
“Kacchan, Kacchan look at this! It’s my mark! It’s so cool. It’s shaped like an ink splat, that's what my mom said. She told me her mark and dad's mark were on their backs but mine is on my hip! Look at it!!!”
He looked over and sure enough, it did look like an ink splat. Just like his own mark on his hip. Before he could say anything the other boy continued talking.
“Oh my gosh! Kacchan look! There's a Hasu flower. I read that they call them a lotus flower in America. Do you think All Might saw them when he was in America? There’s a frog too!”
He watched as the other boy laughed and pointed out different things he knew about. Occasionally he added to the conversation but he mostly just listened and led the way as they explored.
Later that night when his mom was washing his hair in the bath he remembered the mark.
“Mom, I have a question.”
“You’re asking because I’m smarter than your dad right?.”
“I asked because you’re old.” He said with a glare. Dad was definitely smarter.
“Shut up you brat! What’s the stupid question!” Despite her yelling his mom seemed happy so he continued.
“It’s about marks” he was trying to figure out how to word his question. He wasn’t sure if he should ask about his own mark, Izuku’s mark, or what.
“Ah. You’re a bit young but fuck it! I’ll tell you. Everybody is born with a mark and only one other person in the world has the same mark as you in the same place. That person is your soulmate!”
“Your soulmate?”
“Yup! Basically somebody who’s perfect for you. Not every soulmate works out. It’s like… when you’re born there’s this person who’s perfect for you but everybody is different and life happens so sometimes… you aren’t meant to be together. Like if a soulmate dies then your mark fades a little and you can find somebody else to be with. Or let’s say your soulmate has a really hard life and turns out to be a bad person-“
“Like a villain”
“Don’t interrupt me! But yes! Just like a villain. If your soulmate turns out to be a villain then you don’t have to be together. It’s just somebody who could be perfect for you. Lots of people don’t end up with their soulmate but most people do.”
He thought about what she had told him. He didn’t know if his parents were soulmates or had the same mark but…
“Izuku said his mom and dad have the same mark but his dad isn’t around…”
His mom looked sad for a second and with a lot less enthusiasm said “yeah, like I said kid sometimes soulmates don’t work out. They loved each other a lot but he worked so much and didn’t want a family. They still love each other but just… decided not to be together.”
Oh. He guessed that made sense. It sucked that he didn’t want to be around but at least he loved them though.
“Do you and dad have the same mark?”
“Hell yeah, we do! Wanna see it?” She turned, showing him her shoulder. The mark looked like a blob with a line. He thought his looked better but he wasn’t going to say that. “It kinda looks like a guitar doesn’t it? It does! Your dad doesn’t think so but what does he know?”
“Hey, mom?”
“What now kid?”
“What do you do when you find a person with the same mark as you?” He knew Izuku had the same mark as him. Did that mean they were soulmates? What now?
“Well whenever you find your Soulmark, you should see if you like them and then pursue them. I stayed around your dad constantly, I was a bit aggressive but that’s because he was so clumsy! I didn’t want him to get hurt. Yeah, be a hero and protect them. You shouldn’t have a problem though! I bet your person will be just as fierce as you are!”
“Yeah! We are gonna be heroes just like All Might!”
Because he already knew his soulmate. It was Izuku. He already knew he liked him and they were already together constantly. Once their quirks came in they could protect each other! He felt excited.
“Sure, you can be heroes just like All Might!”
He was so excited about it. They would be the best hero soulmates ever. Everything seemed great after that. They hung out all the time and went on adventures. Izuku was a little clumsy which always made him worried but they would get stronger together.
This idea faded when he found out Izuku didn’t have a quirk. He started to get worried all the time but it didn’t matter. He would just become a hero and protect them both. At least that’s what he thought at first until Izuku insisted on being a hero even though he was quirkless. It made Bakugo so angry when he was younger. He kept telling him he couldn’t be a hero without a quirk and that he would just be number one for both of them but Izuku didn’t understand.
He kept trying to be a hero and kept getting hurt. Other kids made fun of him for saying he could be like All Might when he didn’t have a quirk. So he got mad. He started to bully Izuku because he figured, if he could make Izuku give up on becoming a hero then it would be okay. He could keep him safe. He wouldn’t die and he would be able to protect him.
It took him too long to realize how wrong this ideal was. Once he finally learned not to be like this it was too late and Deku just kept doing things to piss him off. The idiot insisted on applying to U.A. High. He ran at a sludge villain even though he was quirkless. Bakugo had powers and couldn’t get away so why would he run at the villain with nothing? He was so scared that Izuku would die at that moment that he lashed out. He couldn’t stop lashing out.
Then the nerd got a quirk somehow. Even that was horrible. He kept hurting himself, breaking his body over and over again just to be a hero. It’s like he didn’t want to live. Bakugo wanted to beg him not to be a hero but he knew it was futile. Instead, he focused his efforts on helping him be the strongest hero he could be. Sure he beat him up many times and didn’t hold back against him. He did it to make him stronger. Showing him his weaknesses now would help him later. Better for Bakugo to beat him now than for a villain that wants to kill him to do it. It was fucked up but it was to help him.
That’s how he rationalized it to himself. Despite being jealous and upset when he found out about One For All he was more scared than anything. Deku had the quirk of the number one hero. He had the tools to reach number one. If he could reach All Might’s level then maybe he would be untouchable. Maybe he wouldn’t get hurt in fights and lose to villains. As the number one heroes villains would be scared to go up against them just like they were scared of All Might.
His mind shifted to their conversation where he tried to make him understand…
“Dammit…that’s not what I wanted to hear. You…you had the strongest guy in the world lay the groundwork for you. Don’t you dare lose again.”
He needed him to not lose again. He has the strongest quirk, he just needed to learn how to use it. If Deku could learn to use it properly then nobody could touch him and he would be safe. But… not if people found out All Might had passed his quirk on to him.
“Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me. I won’t tell anyone what’s going on. Unlike Deku, I can keep my mouth shut. This will stay between us.” He told All Might seriously. He would take the secret to his grave.
“Thanks, Kacchan.”
The nickname hurt his ears. He didn’t want to hear it. He didn’t want to be having this stupid conversation. He wanted Deku to train and get stronger so that he would be safe. They could still protect each other like he always wanted even if it couldn’t be more.
“I don’t deserve this; I should be down on my hands and knees begging for you to keep this secret for me. Yet here you are being considerate and helping me out. Thank you.” All Might, his hero, everyone’s hero, told him of all people.
“I’m not doing this for you. It would just be a real pain if this got out and messed stuff up. If this got out people’d be confused and they’d start wondering where the power is. You idiot, what were you thinking when you first told me about it?”
He told the truth. He wasn’t doing this for All Might but he also didn’t tell the truth. He was doing this for Deku. He couldn’t believe he had even told him about the power but deep down he was glad. Despite everything he had done Deku still trusted him more than anybody.
“It was my own choice to use up the last of my abilities. I said this earlier, but…that was in no way your fault.” All Might kept talking but he had other things to worry about and he planned to address them right now.
“Yeah, sure. It doesn’t change what I have to do. Things aren’t gonna be the same though, Deku, you got that? You’ve been watching me and everyone around you, absorbing what you see to get stronger. Well, I can do the exact same thing and keep getting better myself! I’ll go higher than even you, chosen one.”
He just had to motivate him. He had to get Deku to train as hard as possible. They would both push their limits as far as possible so they would be untouchable. Neither of them would die. Neither of them would lose. If they could reach the top then they would be okay.
“Right…then I guess I’ll just have to be better than that!”
“You what?” He snapped at Deku
“I have to go higher than you!”
“Dammit, nerd! I just said I was gonna be the one to surpass you!”
Despite his words, he was pleased. This was the best course of action. They would push each other to get stronger. It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t love. It wasn’t what he wanted but it was better than watching him die. It was better than watching Deku hurt himself over and over again for the sake of being a hero. He would make sure he kept up with the other man so he could always watch his back. Sure, he was aiming for number one but that’s because he had to stay high enough. Even if he was number two he would still be strong enough to watch Deku’s back. As a team, they’d make it.
He focused every effort on training. He wanted them to be the best. He wouldn’t settle and he wouldn’t let Deku settle. He might have to say mean things, he might have to not hold back, but at least Deku would be alive. He would learn to master One For All and get stronger.
He was lying in bed thinking everything over. After Deku had gotten stronger and most of class 1A started their own hero agency he had let up. He was no longer driven by the extreme desire to keep him safe. He knew the other man could hold his own. Now he was plagued by his actions to get them here.
Sure, his bullying was effective. But was it necessary? He wished he could go back and tell his younger self that it wasn’t the right way to go about it. He could’ve done the same thing as a friend instead of a bully but he was so blinded by anger he didn’t consider it.
His frustration almost caused him to burn his sheets, again. To distract himself he got up and decided to take a shower to cool down. Staring in the mirror he removed the patch on his hip to reveal the ink splat of a soulmark.
Growing up he had hid it with bandaids. He tried blasting the thing off even but it didn’t work. Nothing worked to keep it hidden enough and with their hero work he got injured often. His costume messed up. Changing rooms, swimming, etc. there were so many opportunities for his make to be revealed so he finally asked Ponytail to make him something.
Yaoyorozu had been more than happy to help him. Since he never asked for anything she was so shocked she agreed without question. Much to everyone’s surprise, she started referring to him as her friend but she never told anyone why and neither did he.
She had used her creation quirk to make him some water-resistant, adhesive patches that mimicked skin. They had a gelatinous texture that was really similar to skin, and they were so thin they worked perfectly. Luckily the spot he had to cover wasn’t that big and she was able to make him a ton of them. He used them every day to cover it up but on days like today, he wanted to uncover it and see the mark. The only indicator that Izuku Midoriya was his soulmate.
\ \ \ \
“Shut up, Nerd” he chastised Deku but it didn’t have the same bite it used to. It was evident by the smile the other man let out as he continued to ramble on despite what Bakugo had just said.
He wasn’t even remotely listening. Instead, he was gazing at the freckles on his cheeks and the way those green eyes were wide with happiness and enthusiasm. He was glaring at Deku but it was more out of frustration than anything else.
They were meant to be together. They had the same mark, they had been together all their lives yet… there was always a distance. Distance Bakugo himself had created through years of bullying. Looking at Deku now there were no traces that he still blamed the other man for it. He claimed it was in the past but Bakugo felt like it just happened yesterday. He had a reason for it but it was a shitty one.
Now because of his youthful stupidity, they were stuck like this. Publicly they were known as The Trinity. A ridiculous title given to Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugo, and Shoto Todoroki by the media. He hated it but Deku loved it, of course, he did, he was corny as fuck. Yet that corniness was one of the many things Bakugo loved about him. Their friendship outside of their hero work was rocky at best. They hung out occasionally, mostly with their former classmates turned coworkers at the agency.
Any one-on-one interaction was great for Bakugo but left Deku riddled with nervousness. He said he wasn't bothered by what happened in their past but Bakugo never missed how Deku tried to avoid making him angry. As if he would just lash out and beat him to a pulp like he used to. Not that he could, fights between them were evenly matched these days.
“Kacchan, you aren’t listening to me! This could be important for the next time we deal with someone who has an aquatic-type quirk! Overall the way we handled it was satisfactory but if I-”
“Frog or one of the other extras can handle it then,” he said, effectively cutting him off.
“I told you to call me Tsu!”
Of course, she just had to be nearby. He tuned out again as Deku apologized for Bakugo’s behavior and assured her that he knew her name. Him calling her Frog was just a term of endearment. He wasn’t wrong but he wasn’t fully right either. Bakugo knew her name was Tsuyu Asui. They went to U.A. together for years and now worked at the same agency. It was impossible to not know her name but she said multiple times my friends call me Tsu. And Bakugo was definitely not her friend, so he refused to call her that. They were, however, classmates, and coworkers, and hung out with the same people so, he called her a nickname instead. No point in calling her Asui or by her hero name like some kind of extra.
“Bakugo, are you coming to the party tomorrow?” Asui asked him, forcing him to participate in the conversation again.
“No, why would I go to that lame-ass party.”
“Typical Bakugo. I bet you’ll end up going anyway.”
“Shut the hell up. No, I won’t”
Despite what he said, he could see Deku in his peripheral. He was messing with his armbands and chewing on his bottom lip. He only did that when he had something to say. Turning more toward him Bakugo stared at his lip between his teeth. He wanted to…
No, get it together.
“Spit it out Deku” he grumbled instead of doing what he actually wanted to do.
“I-I wasn’t going to say anything,” after noticing the glare he continued “everybody is going to be there! Y-you should come with us.”
“Just say you want me to come, idiot.” He turned his back knowing Deku wouldn’t say it.
He never just asked Bakugo to do things because he wanted them to happen. He always beat around the bush in an attempt to get him to go, it always worked. Secretly he really appreciated the way the green-haired man always put effort into their friendship. Even when Bakugo treated him like dog shit Deku always kept running after him and insisting they were friends. It’s part of what helped him get his head out of his ass but mostly it was the fact that Deku now had a quirk..
“I want you to come.”
He turned around masking his shock with a glare. No stuttering, no hesitation, he genuinely said he wanted Bakugo to come. He felt the hope building up in his chest. Deku wanted him to come to the party and actually said as much. Under his glare he watched the man’s cheeks heat up, it wasn’t unusual. Deku blushed all the time over the slightest things but it felt different this time.
“What?” He just wanted to make sure he heard him right. Maybe his traitorous heart or the soulmate bond was making him hear things.
“I want you to come to the p-party” he was stuttering again, making zero eye contact, and even flinching at the end. He seemed scared as if Bakugo would blast him away for saying that. Even after all this time, Deku was tiptoeing around him.
The hope died. Even if Deku magically had feelings for him as well he didn’t deserve it. Not after what he had done. Around everybody else, Deku had grown into a confident man and hero but around Bakugo he was the same Deku he’d always been.
“Fine” he huffed on his way out
He couldn’t stand to look at the other hero anymore. Although it wasn’t possible he felt like his Soulmark was on fire. Burning a hole through his costume for everyone to see. He knew it wasn’t actually and he had gone through great lengths to hide it this entire time.
____
The party was in full swing and just as annoying as he expected.
He was currently sandwiched between Kirishima and Kaminari, the latter of which was extremely drunk. Across from them, he had to watch as Uraraka made eyes at Deku. It wasn’t unusual and tended to happen at each party which is why he never wanted to go. Unfortunately, Deku or Kirishima always talked him into coming.
“Come on Jiro, date me until we find our soulmates! Pleaseee!” Kaminari begged like he always did when he got drunk.
He rolled his eyes and tuned out her rejection. They had been going through this same cycle this entire time. She was holding out for her soulmate and he was holding out for her. Speaking of soulmates…
He eyed the two idiots opposite them discussing their soulmates. Uraraka yet again told Deku “if you ever want to give up the soulmate search, I would be open to dating you until I find mine.”
“Thanks, Ochako but… I want to wait” Deku said it with a nervous laugh before sipping from the drink he’d been holding this whole time.
Urakaka seemed like she’d press the issue so he decided to chime in.
“Let it go Round Face,”
She glared at him “Shut up, I feel bad for whoever ends up being your soulmate”
Deku quickly told her not to be mean and chastised Bakugo as well but he wasn’t listening. He was busy glaring at Kirishima.
“Cut it out Bakugo, I’m not going to say it.”
“If you’d tell her, the rest of us wouldn’t have to hear her going after Deku.”
“You know why I won’t man.”
Yeah, he did know. Back at U.A. all the extras were showing off their soulmarks. They wanted to know if their match was in their class. Normal teenage shit. Kirishima found out Uraraka was his soulmate. Unfortunately, he did something dumb.
Instead of just saying we got the same damn mark he asked who she wished her soulmate was. Of course, she fucking said Deku so Kirishima kept the knowledge to himself. He liked her since the beginning but knew she liked the nerd. After he got confirmation he gave up on them being together. The idiot was still pining after her though. Hoping once she gave up on Deku she’d give him a chance then he’d tell her.
“I don’t want her to be with me just cause we got Soulmarks. I want her to like me.”
That’s what he said at the time. Bakugo understood where he was coming from but couldn’t relate. He already liked Deku. That wasn’t the point though, Deku didn’t like him and even if he did at one point when they were kids the shit Bakugo put him through ruined any chance he had.
“I’m sure Kacchan’s soulmate is out there waiting for him!”
The statement caused him to focus on the conversation again. He scowled. The nerd didn’t have to sound so happy about him potentially being with someone else.
“Yeah, have you looked for your soulmate?” Kirishima chimed in.
More faces turned to him, sparking his anger. No, he hadn’t fucking looked he already knew who it was, he was sitting right across from him with a curious smile on his face.
“Ooh maybe it’s somebody that we were in class with. You didn’t show your soulmark when everybody else showed theirs. You were in the gym with Kirishima. I wrote everybody else’s down. Kacchan, Kirishima, can I see your soulmark? I’ve been trying to see if anybody’s mark repeats but is in a different spot. If everybody has one then that means there are roughly…”
He ignored the rest. They hadn’t been at the gym, they had been in the kitchen. At the time he was purposely avoiding sharing his and Kirishima had been pestering him to participate. Afterward, Kirishima was flipping through Deku’s stupid notebook since he missed out on seeing everybody else’s. Lucky for the two of them but not so lucky for their unsuspecting soulmates who were sitting right across from them right now.
“Shut it, Nerd. I already know who my match is.”
Everybody turned to him in shock. Deku’s face looked pale as he stuttered to ask who it was. He didn’t have to look so terrified about it.
“Not important. I don’t believe in that Soulmark bullshit.” A lie. He was lying through his teeth but he couldn’t tell the truth either.
He glared at Deku who looked extremely upset. He was muttering to himself like usual. Probably trying to decide if he should press the issue, talk about the importance of the marks, explain why he should believe them, or let it go because of course he was concerned about Bakugo getting mad. Granted he was just guessing but he knew Izuku Midoriya better than anyone, that’s almost exactly what he had to be muttering about.
“It is important.” Uraraka protested.
“Yeah, so important you want Deku to ignore his and get with you?” He fired back anger rising.
Kirishima was behind him stiff as a rock, ironically. He hadn’t said a word since Deku asked about his mark. Smart man, if he wanted to keep his secret he had to keep it hidden. Unlike Bakugo he had the luxury of having his mark on his foot. So it was easily concealable at all times.
“That’s… different.”
“Is it? Are you going to tell your soulmate you would’ve preferred Deku over them?”
She denied it instantly. Saying she didn’t prefer him which is exactly what he wanted. Hopefully, now she would stop half-ass pursuing Deku and Kirishima got to hear her say she didn’t prefer the nerd over him. Or the idea of him at least.
Those green eyes were still staring at him. He couldn’t handle the indecipherable look in his eyes, getting up he walked into the kitchen and grabbed water. He didn’t drink, didn’t like the chance to not be in control. Plus he heard an interview once where All Might said he never drank, he had subconsciously taken that to heart and swore to never drink.
The only thing even mildly lame about him was how much he idolized All Might but the rest of them would never call him out on it only Deku would but he was the biggest nerd by far compared to everyone else in their class.
“Running away again Bakugo?” Todoroki said walking into the kitchen.
“I’ll kill you IcyHot!”
It was an empty threat and they both knew it but he didn’t want to discuss this, especially with him. Besides Kaminari and Kirishima who he was somewhat close with, Todoroki was a close third. They weren’t extremely close but they talked sometimes. However, now wasn’t the time. Plus he wasn’t running, he just didn’t have any more to add to that conversation.
“Yeah, yeah” Todoroki added with that knowing look of his.
He held himself back from blasting the look off his face. Not because he didn’t want to fight but because he didn’t want to pay for any damages to the apartment they were in. Instead, he walked off trying to find a place not full of people.
He passed by more of their “friends” on his way to the balcony. It seemed to be the only place without people. Looking out at the stars he wondered what he should do next. He was never one to regret his actions but for Deku? He was. When they were younger it was fine. As adults? They were at that age where people started to really find their soulmates or move on.
He wanted Deku to move on…
No, no he didn’t.
He didn’t want to see him with anyone but himself. They also couldn’t be together. Deku didn’t like him, and he deserved better. So much better.
He wanted to leave this stupid fucking party. All this talk of soulmates was annoying anyway. To leave he’d have to walk past everybody though, it was almost a guarantee somebody would stop him on his way out.
“Kacchan”
Fuck. He cursed to himself, he hadn’t even been gone that long. He was just thinking about leaving he hadn’t actually tried to leave yet.
“Kacchan, where are y-…OH the balcony. Hi! Can I join you, or not. It’s okay if you say no. I’ll just go back inside if-“
“Deku, just come out here.”
He didn’t spare the other man a glance. That was part of the cycle. Stare at him from a distance, avoid eye contact up close.
Once they were side by side he spoke first knowing the conversation was leading here anyway.
“What do you want to ask me?”
“I-… WHAT? How’d you know I wanted to ask something? Was I that obvious?”
He side-eyed him but didn’t reply. Even if it wasn’t obvious to everyone else, it would always be obvious to him. And if IcyHot thought he ran away earlier there was a good chance Deku thought the same.
“Right right. Of course, you’d know. Well… we’re friends now, sort of. I mean after everything we got cool, started an agency, we’re the wonder duo so I’m pretty sure we’re friends. Correct me if I’m wrong. Anyway uh, why after all this time haven’t you shown me your soulmate mark? Especially if you found your match already. What happened with the person? Why aren’t you together? Unless you are together and you don’t want to tell me.”
He had a headache already. That was far too many questions for him to answer and each one was too close to Deku finding out the truth. If he was quiet too long then that would be suspicious too.
“We are friends.” Really, it hurt that he wasn’t sure in the first place. They never stopped being friends although… with his actions it was obvious why the other man was confused.
“I’m not showing you my mark. I don’t want to be with my soulmate just cause we got the same mark. If I’m going to be with someone it’ll be cause we want to.”
Yeah sure he was stealing Kirishima’s words but he needed them right now. They were true too, he wanted Deku to like him. If he found out about the mark he’d try to make it work and be together. Without the mark he wouldn’t try or want to be with Bakugo.
“Is there someone you want to be with?”
Yes, you…
“You first,” he snapped. It was all he could think of to keep from answering.
“Y-yeah there is but… they aren’t my soulmate so…”
Ah, of course, he liked someone. It was Deku after all, he could be with anyone he wanted to. He felt kind of relieved that Deku wouldn’t try to be with the person he wanted since whoever he desired wasn’t his soulmate.
“So, you gonna hold out for your soulmate forever?”
He was stiff and annoyed at himself for asking but he wanted to know. Would he search for his soulmate or confess to the person? He wanted to ask who the person was but he knew he’d just want to kill whoever it was. Best not to ask if he wanted to keep his pro-hero license.
“Maybe. I don't know. I know the person I want isn’t my soulmate. Maybe I’ll meet my soulmate and finally be able to give up on the person I want.” He glanced at Bakugo then and it took everything he had to keep his face blank.
He wanted to rage and say give up on them already because I’m right here but he couldn’t. He had plenty of opportunities to reveal that he was his soulmate and had chosen not to every time. He chose bullying over actually communicating granted he was young and didn’t know but that didn’t excuse his behavior. No, it was best he didn’t say the truth. Him compared with whoever Deku liked? He would pick the person he liked easily.
“It’s - uh… your turn, you know since I went first?”
It was a statement but for some reason it sounded like a question.
“Yeah, there’s someone. It wouldn’t work though.” He broke eye contact and gazed back out at the stars, not wanting to know the expression on Deku’s face.
“Why not?”
He didn’t know how to explain it without telling the truth, so he tried to think of something plausible to say. Deku must have interpreted his silence as he wasn’t going to reply because he asked a different question.
“What about your soulmate?”
“They deserve more than what I can give.” The painful truth.
“Because we’re heroes? I could see that. What if my soulmate is quirkless like I was? I don’t know what I would do. N-not like I mean they have to have one. I didn’t have one! I just don’t know how they would handle me being a hero. Plus our kids likely won’t have a quirk since I didn’t and-…”
“Oi, shut up I get it. Go back inside yeah? I’m all talked out.”
“Oh! S-sorry Kacchan! I forgot you came out here to be alone. I’ll go inside. Come back in when you’re ready. Sorry!”
His words came out harsher than he intended and resulted in him chasing the other man away. It wasn’t Deku’s fault but that statement messed him up.
Our kids . Inherited quirks. He was assuming his soulmate had to be a woman. He already knew Deku didn’t like him romantically and probably never would because of what happened but he hadn’t considered his sexuality. All evidence pointed toward him being straight. Even if he wanted to tell him he’d probably be against the idea anyway. That felt bad. It was a relief though, at least he could rationalize not telling him this way. He wanted a female for a partner so he was helping out by not revealing their matching soulmark.
Despite trying to have a positive attitude about the realization he felt upset. He had never had the urge to get drunk more than he did right now. Maybe he could drink and forget all of this…
He wouldn’t compromise his convictions though. Instead, he let off a few small blasts to blow off some steam before wandering back inside. These idiots only partied like once every few months, he just had to stick it out a little longer then they’d be back to their regular routine and all this soulmark talk would stop.
__
Being responsible for intoxicated individuals was always his least favorite yet most favorite part of the night. Only him and Iida ever remained sober the entire night, minus the rare times the other hero decided to drink. Tonight wasn’t one of those, it was just the two of them plus IcyHot. Luckily that bastard decided to only have one drink. Being sober enough to make it home himself he left the others to them.
Iida did most of the work but left Deku to Bakugo because of course he was a teary, clingy drunk. This would be his favorite part. It was like an unspoken rule that he would be responsible for the other when he got drunk. It happened enough that he had a spare key.
Walking into Deku’s small one-bedroom was always a struggle. He had way too much stuff for such a small apartment. Muttering complaints and curses he managed to get the other man into bed and stripped down to a tank top and boxers. He didn’t even consider looking at him inappropriately, it just wasn’t very hero-like. And he didn’t think he had the right to.
“I have to-“ hiccup “go over my notes from yesterday. Always have to get better because the guy… Kacchan you know the one! The guy! With the… the… the thing!”
“The weather quirk” he supplied as he swapped out the full trash bag for an empty one, moving the can next to where Deku’s head currently rested.
“YES! The weather quirk! That was so cool. He got away again though. He’d made a great hero but he’s a villain. His partner we nabbed though! The one with the um, the, what was it? It was white, like weather but not weather,” hiccup “what was it? Don’t help me! I know it. It was the uh, white, weather, ummm,”
The other man had continued talking even when Bakugo walked away to grab medicine out of the bathroom. Placing it on the bedside table he gave him the answer he was searching for yet again “Mist Quirk”
“MIST QUIRK! Thank you Kacchan! Wait no. I said don’t help me. Don’t. It’s D-O-N-apostrophe-T” he spelled it out like Bakugo didn’t already know what he meant.
“You know what? It’s almost spelled like Donut. If you replace the apostrophe with a U it makes donut.” Hiccup “Not you literally I meant the letter you. I want donuts, Kacchan! I haven’t had them in forever. Can I get donuts?”
“Please shut the hell up.” He begged although he always found the other man’s drunken ramblings a bit amusing although still annoying.
“Deku shut up. Deku shut up. It’s always shut up, never Deku keep talking. You hate it when I talk, don't you Kaachan. Admit it! You wish I was super quiet like Koda don’t you! Wait, no offense to Koda. He does talk to animals often so I guess he isn’t actually quiet. I like his quirk it has a lot of applications like-“
“Izuku!” He snapped on accident.
He hadn’t meant to yell at him or use his name but damn he wouldn’t stop talking!
“Kacchan… you said…”
“I like hearing you talk but right now could you talk a little less?” He changed tactics trying to avoid addressing how he used the other man’s name.
Deku nodded and started mumbling about how Bakugo said he liked hearing him talk. Shaking his head he went to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t use Deku’s name but it just felt too personal. He wanted to keep the distance of using his old insult-turned-hero name. If he kept himself from using his given name then it kept the green-haired man at arm's length. He needed them to have that distance, he didn’t want to accidentally reveal how he felt.
Walking back into the room with the water he noticed Deku was falling asleep. He placed it on the desk and switched off the light before heading to the couch in the living room. It was his routine at this point, after making sure everything was set up he’d watch a movie with no sound on. He kept on the subtitles but he played it with no sound in case Deku managed to roll onto his back or start to throw up. It happened one time but once was enough. He always stayed until daybreak but snuck out of the apartment before he could wake up like usual.
____
He was napping at his desk when a sharp excited gasp woke him up. Usually, he was angry when woken up but not this time. He smiled but quickly replaced it with a blank look as he eyed the man across from him.
When he left the apartment that morning he had just enough time to go home and shower before needing to go into work. While waiting in line for coffee he eyed the donut shop next door. On a whim, he’d decided to stop and get Deku some donuts after the drunken ramblings from the night before.
He didn’t write a cheesy note of any of that crap but he just set them on his desk. It seemed a note wasn’t needed because happy green eyes met his red ones. He watched the other man’s face take on a reddish tint as he said “Thank you, Kacchan.”
“Mhm.” Breaking eye contact he turned on his computer to see what was on his schedule for today.
The happy look and blush on Deku’s face was too much for him. If he didn’t distract himself he might do or say something stupid.
The schedule didn’t look too bad for the day. He had patrol with Iida which wasn’t his favorite but they were efficient. They always got patrol done quickly and effectively as the speedster would say. He had some paperwork to do, training with Deku and Todoroki later that day, but that was about it.
“Midoriya, you stopped for donuts this morning?”
Nosy Half n’ Half bastard
“Nope. Kacchan got them for me.” Deku said happily as he ate.
“Hmm… he’s never gotten me donuts. I’m hurt, I thought we were close.”
The idiot had to be joking but he said it with such a monotone voice who knows. He glared at Todoroki just to find him giving him a strange look.
“I’m sure if you ask, Kacchan will get you donuts too.”
“Did you ask?”
“Um, kind of. I was drunk and talking a lot. Well, I always talk kind of a lot but anyway yeah I kinda asked for them.”
Deku was purposely not glancing at Bakugo and his face was even redder than before. His eyes narrowed as Todoroki smiled, anytime he smiled it wasn’t good.
“Oh, I see. So Bakugo just gets anything you ask for. I wonder if you asked him to-“
“Shut up IcyHot before I make you.” He snapped to stop him from whatever he was about to say next. It was almost definitely going to be inappropriate.
Despite interrupting him, Todoroki still looked extremely satisfied for some reason. He wanted to blast his face. For a while now he had been making subtle comments, Bakugo just chalked it up to it being his personality. He was almost certain now that Todoroki suspected he had feelings for Deku.
Before they could start going back and forth Iida showed up for patrol. They went their separate ways all needing to patrol anyway. Today Todoroki was paired with Kaminari and Deku was paired with Mina. Glancing at the schedule he also noted that Kirishima was paired with Uraraka today. He silently hoped his friend would be able to get through to the gravity user.
It sucked that he had been pining after he’d since their U.A. days but truly Bakugo wasn't one to say too much. He had been pining for twice as long.
“Bakugo, pay attention. We have to finish patrolling this area by noon.”
“I am paying attention four eyes.”
“I have two eyes, they just happen to be bad so I need glasses.”
Instead of replying to that idiot, he took off in the opposite direction. They were both fast enough that they didn’t need to be near each other for patrol. They covered more area separately and would radio in if they needed assistance. Luckily they rarely did.
Their patrol went by easily but when they returned to the office they found out that patrol squad four, Jiro and Shoji, had been attacked.
“They should’ve been more careful,” Bakugo grumbled while gritting his teeth.
They were both sensory-type heroes. Apparently, their attackers were able to use this to their advantage. The weather quirk user had paired with someone who had a corrosive quirk. They blinded them first with heavy rain overwhelming both of their senses then using the corrosive quirk on Jiro’s earphone jacks and Shoji's arms. Luckily the damage wasn’t too bad since Todoroki happened to be nearby at the time. He froze the rain and managed to catch the weather user. Both villains were ultimately apprehended.
They got attacked by villains all the time, it wasn’t anything new. The former 1A class just used this as motivation to train harder. Even as pros they didn’t want to grow complacent or too cocky.
Bakugo enjoyed training but he had to be extra careful especially when he trained with Todoroki. The patches Yaoyorozu made him were fire-resistant , not fire proof. If he managed to get hit there he’d reveal this mark. In general, he wasn’t afraid of people seeing it but if anyone who used to be in class 1A saw it they would know.
“Hey, you coming or what? Kacchan?” The sound interrupted his thoughts.
“Yeah my bad”
He slammed the locker room door closed before heading into the training room. He’d make sure nobody found out about the mark. If they did… he’d be fucked.