Chapter 57 - Falling In Love... With The Wrong Guy!

Morning sunlight streamed through the tall windows of the dormitory common room, warm and bright, making everything feel soft and calm. A sweet smell of toast and fruit drifted through the air. The room buzzed with soft chatter—students lazily eating, waking up, laughing at whatever happened last night. It felt peaceful, normal... at least until Yuuki heard the sudden slam of elbows hitting a table.

She jolted slightly and turned with Mina and Uraraka toward the source of the commotion.

Bakugo and Kirishima were at one of the breakfast tables, elbows locked, hands clasped, already grinning like two idiots who lived for competition. Their classmates were gathering around them, some cheering, some groaning because it was too early for this much testosterone. Kirishima was digging his heels into the floor, teeth bared in excitement, while Bakugo leaned forward with a cocky grin that promised someone was going to suffer defeat.

Yuuki blinked sleepily at them, rubbing her eyes with the sleeve of her pastel sweater. "They're going to break the table again," she murmured, sounding both concerned and fond. Mina giggled behind her hand, and Uraraka sighed like a weary mother watching toddlers wrestle.

Bakugo caught sight of Yuuki looking his way—soft gaze, cheeks a little pink—and something in him immediately shifted. His expression sharpened, confidence flaring. He straightened up just enough to glance back at her.

Yuuki cupped her hands near her face and called out softly, "Don't hurt yourself, Bakugo... okay?" Her voice was gentle, shy, barely above conversational volume—and yet Bakugo heard every word as if she'd shouted it in his ear.

Kirishima barked a laugh. "Bro, your girlfriend is worried about you!"

Bakugo gave him a vicious smirk. "Yeah? Then I can't lose, can I?"

He shot Yuuki a quick wink—barely noticeable to anyone but her—and then slammed Kirishima's hand down with a force that rattled every cup nearby. Kirishima immediately burst into loud, proud laughter.

"THAT'S MY DUDE! THAT WAS MANLY AS HELL!"

Bakugo crossed his arms, chin tilted up proudly... but his eyes darted to Yuuki again, just to see her reaction. She smiled shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. The sight softened Bakugo immediately. His scowl curled into the smallest hint of a smirk meant only for her.

Mina leaned forward, whispering to Yuuki, "Girl, he so did that because you were watching."

Uraraka nodded enthusiastically. "He really, really did."

Yuuki covered her burning face with both hands. "I—I didn't do anything...!"

"Oh, you so did," Mina teased. "He hears your voice and suddenly he's All Might."

Across the room, Bakugo rolled his shoulders, muttering something like, "Tch. Too easy," but there was no hiding the faint blush dusting his cheeks. He glanced at Yuuki once more, and she smiled back, soft and sweet.

•••

Mineta and Kaminari sat several tables away, pretending to be casually eating breakfast, but neither of them had touched their food in minutes. Their eyes kept darting toward Yuuki and Bakugo—specifically toward Yuuki, who was happily sipping at her apple juice between quiet giggles with Mina and Uraraka. Bakugo was still basking in the afterglow of his victory against Kirishima, but the second Yuuki smiled at him, he pretended like he wasn't affected, though everyone could see he definitely was.

Kaminari leaned closer to Mineta, whispering through clenched teeth, "Dude, this is it. This is literally the perfect moment. She's distracted, everyone's distracted, even Bakugo's busy bragging. If we're doing it, we're doing it now."

Mineta tightened his grip on the small vial in his hand—the love potion Mei had brewed for them the night before. His palms were sweating, his purple balls trembling on his head. "I know, I know!" he hissed. "Just... stay cool! Act natural!"

Kaminari shot him a flat stare. "You're shaking like a washing machine."

"I AM COOL!" Mineta squeaked, absolutely not cool.

They waited for a perfect window. Mina threw her head back laughing at something Yuuki said, Uraraka leaned in to tease her, and Yuuki herself set her apple juice down for a moment to tuck her hair behind her ear. Bakugo and Kirishima were arguing loudly across the room about who should arm-wrestle next, causing everyone to glance their way.

That was the moment.

Mineta practically dove out of his chair—quick, small, silent—and with the stealth of someone who had probably practiced sneaking into places he shouldn't, he reached the table, tilted the vial, and let the shimmering liquid slip into Yuuki's apple juice. It mixed instantly, leaving no trace. Then Mineta shoved the empty vial deep into his pocket, ran back to his seat, and sat down so fast his chair screeched loudly.

Kaminari slapped a hand over his own face. "Dude, subtle! SUBTLE!"

Mineta coughed loudly, trying to pretend nothing happened. "Ahem! Just adjusting my... uh... body posture."

Kaminari pinched the bridge of his nose. "Whatever. It's done. Now we just gotta make sure she looks at one of us when she drinks it."

Mineta nodded fiercely, eyes narrowed with dramatic seriousness. "Right. If she looks at you, she'll fall in love with you. If she looks at me, she'll fall in love with me."

They peeked over the edge of their table like spies in a cartoon.

Yuuki reached for her apple juice.

Mineta and Kaminari sucked in the same breath.

Then Kaminari whispered urgently, "Okay, okay—who's she most likely to look at? We need to be ready!"

Mineta wiped sweat from his forehead. "We stand here. We look adorable. We look romantic. We make EYE CONTACT."

They straightened at the same exact time, puffing up like peacocks, trying to arrange their faces into what they thought looked charming. Kaminari looked like he was posing for a magazine he wasn't invited to. Mineta looked like he was trying not to explode from excitement.

Kaminari whispered through a forced smile, "This better work. Bakugo's literally twenty feet away. If he catches us—"

Mineta whispered back, "Don't say it. Don't even THINK it."

Yuuki's fingers curled around her cup.

The potion waited.

•••

Yuuki lifted her apple juice and took a long drink, the liquid sweet and familiar on her tongue. She didn't notice a thing—didn't taste anything strange, didn't see the way Kaminari and Mineta were staring at her like they were waiting for a miracle. She simply set her cup down and continued listening to Mina and Uraraka talk about weekend plans.

But then it hit her.

At first it was subtle—a strange airy feeling blooming in her chest, like her whole body had suddenly turned weightless. She blinked rapidly, confusion crossing her features as the room seemed to take on a soft, almost dreamy glow. Everything felt warm. Too warm. She squirmed slightly, grabbing her sweater with gentle fingers.

"Uraraka... Mina..." she murmured, her voice faint and breathy. "I... I feel funny..."

Both girls turned toward her instantly, concern painting their faces. "Funny how?" Mina asked, scooting closer. "Like sick again? Or dizzy? Or—"

But Yuuki didn't answer.

Because Kaminari and Mineta appeared right in front of her, sliding into her line of sight like two hopeful puppies. Kaminari leaned down with a forced sweet smile, Mineta trying to do the exact same thing but looking more like he was about to burst with excitement.

Yuuki blinked at them... once... twice...

And then her pupils softened.

A bright, pink-faced blush lit up her cheeks like a sunrise. Her breath hitched. Her hand flew up to her chest, clutching her sweater right over her heart as it started pounding wildly.

Her lips parted in a trembling, dreamy whisper.

"K... Kaminari..."

The entire room froze.

Kirishima stopped mid-bite of his omelet. Sero dropped his spoon. Ochako's jaw fell open. Mina slapped a hand over her mouth. Todoroki blinked very slowly, unsure whether he was hallucinating.

Kaminari's smile stretched so wide it nearly split his face. "Wait—WAIT—did it WORK?!"

Before he could celebrate, Yuuki launched herself forward with shocking enthusiasm, nearly knocking him off his feet as she jumped into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squealed—a high, delighted sound no one had ever heard from her.

"Kaminari!!"

Kaminari fell backward into a chair with Yuuki clinging to him like he was the love of her life. Mineta threw his fists in the air and shouted, "YES!! SHE LOOKED AT YOU! IT WORKED—IT ACTUALLY WORKED!"

Around them, the reactions were chaos. Sero whispered, "What the heck is happening?" Uraraka sputtered, "Yu-Yuuki, what are you doing?!" Mina held her cheeks, horrified but also entertained. Jirou groaned, "Oh no. Oh, this is so, so bad." Tsu blinked and simply whispered, "Ribbit...?"

But the biggest reaction came from Bakugo.

He had been turning toward Yuuki at the exact moment she dove into Kaminari's arms. His expression froze—mouth slightly open, brows drawn together, eyes wide with sheer confusion. For the first time in his life, Katsuki had absolutely no idea what he was looking at.

"What... the... hell..." he muttered under his breath, staring as Yuuki snuggled happily into Kaminari's chest like she had never been shy a day in her life. "Why is... WHY IS SHE—WHAT IS GOING ON?!"

Yuuki pulled back just enough to gaze dreamily up at Kaminari, her eyes sparkling unnaturally. She cupped his cheeks with both hands and whispered, "You're so handsome..."

Kaminari let out a triumphant scream.

Bakugo's eye twitched so hard it looked painful.

The common room vibrated with chaos, confusion, and panic—because somehow, impossibly, Yuuki was no longer in love with Bakugo.

She was in love with Kaminari.