Chapter 11 - The Same Way

Your daily schedule had shifted since your happy routine of the first month at UA. You moved your runs to the evening since first thing in the morning you now sparred with Bakugou. He no longer needed to bang on your door at 5 a.m.. Rather, you'd be waiting on the back lawn for him to come out of the dorm before the sun rose.

You liked seeing him in the morning, before the stresses of the day make him crabby. He always looked like a little boy as he rubbed his tired eyes and tried to flatten the extra messy spikes of his hair. The early morning glow would catch his form and you could see the shadows his deep muscles threw onto his clear, pale skin. That was, until your sparring started, where he turned from a sleepy kid into a fiery demon hellbent on pinning you to the lawn.

During lunch, you still sat with all the boys. The explosive blond seemed more keen to participate in your conversations without constantly screaming at any suggestion that was made. You occasionally got odd looks from the squad when you'd make inside jokes with Bakugou and he'd genuinely laugh. He'd developed a bad habit of referring to you as a picklock but refused to divulge the context. Whenever you tried to explain his hands would start popping and an "I'll kill you" was thrown your way.

You were just glad you still got to spend time with everyone, especially Kirishima. It had been hard to find as much time to hang out now that you weren't partners.

"You guys almost done?" Kirishima started to clear his tray. "I booked practice room D for today. Figured we can go there rather than the weight room."

"Coming!" You scraped up your things, staring at Kirishima's back as he walked over toward Shoji. You felt a hand wrap around your wrist.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"You heard him. The practice rooms." You pulled your arm away from Bakugou. "I need to fight with someone other than you for once. It's just getting too easy," you teased.

"YOU HAVEN'T BEATEN ME ONCE!" he yelled to your back as you skipped toward Kirishima.

***

The boys were already on the practice mats when you emerged from the locker room a few minutes later. Bakugou was stretching out his hamstrings on the floor while the others stood around chatting.

Guess he decided to come after all.

"This room is not approved for quirks, so it'll just be hand-to-hand. I suggest not going against your own partner. You'll get plenty more practice against them as it is. Might as well learn how others fight," Kirishima commanded the room.

"Then I guess that means I'm going against you." You smiled at the redhead, moving slowly toward the center of the mat. You gave a little hip-check to the boy as you passed.

"Sure!" he beamed. An annoyed 'tsk' could be heard from behind you. You looked over your shoulder toward Bakugou, still on the ground, and rolled your eyes.

"I fucking saw that Ashtray!"

"Oh good. You're not blind!" you snapped back before grabbing Kirishima's arm and maneuvering off toward one corner.

Even without his hardening, Kirishima was tough, but he was also far less fluid than Bakugou. You used his momentum to your advantage, dodging and tripping him as he came barreling toward you. As he stumbled forward, you pivoted on the ball of your foot, allowing your front to face his back. You wrapped both arms around his biceps and torso in an 'X', making it so he couldn't punch or elbow. The next moment you arched your knee up, landing between his rib and hip. He roared. Before you could get another knee in, he bent himself backwards and then swiftly forward, sending you flying over his shoulder and onto the mat, the wind knocked out of you. He leaned down, preparing to pin you, but you grabbed his ankle with both hands and yanked. Releasing the ankle as the redhead fell to his tailbone, you turned over, gaining the dominant position, before grabbing Kirishima's throat and shoving his head to the ground.

Bakugou watched from the next mat over, having already bested Sero. "Atta girl," he smiled.

His gaze fluttered over your strong but lithe frame. Your braid fell over your shoulder, blocking your triumphant face. A conflicting rush of jealousy washed over him as he saw you and his best friend together. He couldn't help but picture himself in the same position as Kirishima, below your hips.

"Give?" you exhaled hard.

"Give," Kirishima wheezed and tapped your hand to release his throat. You pulled away as Kirishima propped himself up with one elbow, his other hand finding the small of his back for a massage. "What on earth is Bakugou teaching you?"

"Oh please. I was a badass way before I got paired up with that guy." You smirked as you helped Kirishima to his feet. He looked at you with his sharky grin before laughing.

"Yeah, you definitely were." You stepped closer and impulsively reached up to delicately stroke the red patch of skin on Kirishima's throat where you'd grabbed. It would likely bruise.

"Sorry about that," you cooed softly, still staring at his neck. You were so close. He thought about the quick kiss you'd placed on his cheek a few days before and reddened. Neither of you had mentioned anything about it, but Kirishima knew he had felt a shock go through his whole body at that touch.

"It's nothing! Really." He pulled away, putting a nervous hand through his hair.

"ARE WE SWITCHING FOR ROUND 2? I'M NOT GETTING ANY BETTER FIGHTING THIS LOSER!" Bakugou stared daggers at your group. Sero was looking dejected behind him, curled in the fetal position on the mat.

"Might as well. We only have fifteen minutes left," Shoji answered next to Kaminari. Even without releasing all his electricity, the boy looked a little out of sorts.

"Then I'll take Shitty Hair!" Bakugou pushed his way between you and Kirishima, wearing a look of selfish contempt. Kirishima surprisingly met his glare, his red eyes also catching fire.

"Oh, okay." You backed away, feeling the testosterone rising at an alarming rate. "I guess I'll go beat up Denki then?" You could hear them speaking quietly in quick, harsh bursts as you moved over toward your next match.

"I must warn you [y/n], I won't go easy on you just 'cause you're a girl. But seems you like competitions just like Blasty McSplode over there," Kaminari nodded his head toward Bakugou, "so how about if I win, we have a breakfast date and you make those pancakes again? If you win, I'll make you some excellent cereal." He winked at you.

"And why are we going on a date?" you deadpanned.

"Because you're secretly in love with me." Kaminari ran his thumb over his lips and blew a kiss. You couldn't hold back a laugh.

"How about if I win you never do that again."

You beat Kaminari in less than two minutes. The sparky blond now sported a bloody nose and a black eye. You handed him an ice-pack from the cooler by the locker rooms. He really needed to work on his hand-to-hand.

Kirishima and Bakugou were still fighting. Kirishima had at least taken some lesson from his fight with you and guarded his bruised side from any of Bakugou's jabs and hooks. Where you had known your punches wouldn't have done much damage to a boy of Kirishima's size, Bakugou had gone in guns blazing. He might as well have been using his quirk. His strikes were relentless and powerful, keeping Kirishima on the defense.

After twenty more seconds of nonstop blows, Bakugou pulled back before sending an aggressive push kick to the redhead's stomach. It was the same kick that had sent you flying back in your heroes vs villains training. You could almost feel the impact in your own stomach. Kirishima coughed out and hunched over, holding his tender middle. Taking no prisoners, Bakugou jumped into the air, cracking an elbow down onto the injured boy's back. Kirishima fell to the ground and didn't rise.

Bakugou swiped the sweat from his forehead as he walked past his other classmates and into the locker room without another word. You watched him walk, stunned. His normally ferocious smile was gone, replaced only with a grave frown.

You quickly shifted your gaze back to Kirishima, still on the mat. You rose from your spot and hurried to his side.

"Kiri, can you move?" You gently brushed the back of his damp shirt, not wanting to add any pressure to his injuries.

"I'm okay [y/n]," his breathing was ragged and his volume low. "Just give me a second. Those last two hits really took a lot out of me. Didn't realize how much I relied on my quirk to defend against that kind of stuff." He finally raised his head, looking into your concerned eyes.

You didn't know what to say. He was hurt. He had lost. Well, truthfully, Bakugou had destroyed him. So, you just sat next to him, quietly stroking his hair until he finally moved to lift himself from the ground.

At this point the other boys started crowding around, mumbling if they should get the nurse or if he needed ice.

"Just give him some air," you said to their questions in a soft but firm tone. Kirishima used your shoulder to prop himself up as he raised to his feet. "Both of you-" you pointed to Sero and Kaminari- "make sure he gets in and out of the locker room okay. Take him to Recovery Girl. I'm a little worried about that kick." They nodded and took the boy's weight from your shoulder. You gave Kirishima your best reassuring smile as the boys pulled him toward the lockers.

Once he turned away from you, your face fell. It's too hard to see him hurt.

***

"You're finally not holed up in Bakugou's room." Todoroki looked up from his textbook as your backpack dropped onto the table. It was a statement, not a question.

"He's talking to Power Loader sensei in the support lab about his costume. He'll be gone for a while. Besides, we haven't studied in what seems like ages!" You smiled brightly.

"Right. Because you're always holed up in his room." He seemed annoyed.

"Are you okay? Did I do something?" You sat down, grabbing a pen and your yellow binder. He quickly shoved his study materials into his own bag. Your smiled dropped, seeing he clearly didn't want to study with you.

"Would you come with me?"

"Where?" He pushed your binder back into your bag.

"Just come."

***

"The library? Why didn't you say so?" The knot in your chest loosened as you realized where you were headed.

"I just didn't want any distractions." He ushered you inside and into a private study room where you could talk if needed. Your mood much brighter, you once again emptied your bag and sat down.

The room was small. Only five or six students could have fit in it at a time. A whiteboard filled the right wall with a large window facing out into the communal library space on the left. The chairs were comfortable and wide, the lighting dimmer than in the main part of the building, creating a cozy atmosphere for reading.

"Anything you want to start with? That essay Midnight sensei assigned seems pretty complicat-"

"[Y/n]," you looked up from your paper. Todoroki was sitting in the seat beside you, having turned it perpendicular to the table, so his knees brushed the side of your chair. You were a little taken aback by his proximity. "Is he hurting you?"

Your eyes went wide and you pulled back slightly. "What? Who?" you stammered, the question seemingly coming out of nowhere.

"You're covered in bruises. He's always yelling at you. He forces you to hang out in his room all day," his tone was measured, like he didn't want to give himself the chance to get riled up.

"Bakugou?" you almost laughed at his worry. "God, no. We just spar a lot, and well, he wants to be the best, so we train really hard." Todoroki didn't look convinced. "And the room thing... If you haven't noticed, he's not exactly a people person. He prefers to do homework away from the common room."

"If he's not a people person, why do you have to be there?" A twinge of annoyance tainted his usually calm voice. He looked down at his shoes, making fists on his lap.

"I don't know!" you said, getting exasperated. "Because we're partners and I'm better at math and English, and he doesn't want to broadcast that he might need some help? I promise Todoroki, he's not hurting me."

"I saw the way Kirishima came back from lunch today." You blinked back to the memory of seeing Kirishima on the ground.

"It was practice..." you said, your voice much less convincing than before.

"If he ever hurt you like that..." His heterochromic eyes met yours, seemingly pleading for you to understand his concern.

You gave a soft smile and placed your hands over his clenched fists, twisting your chair so you would face him. "Todoroki, you really don't have to worry about me. I know he can be kind of... well, brutal at times, but we're partners. It's all fine. Really." You tried to sound reassuring.

"Why do you keep grabbing my hands? You did it at the mall too." His question surprised you and you pulled your hands away awkwardly, a faint blush creeping up your neck.

"Sorry. I didn't realize it made you uncomfortable. Sometimes it's just soothing..."

"I don't mind," he said quietly as he reached out and returned your hands gently into his, tracing a circle on the back with his thumb. You gave a soft smile.

"Even if Bakugou's not hurting you, can I ask," he paused, searching for the right words, "during the Sports Festival, if there's a time to form teams, join mine, not his." You furrowed your brow, not understanding the connection between Bakugou and the Sports Festival.

"We... we don't even know what the tasks are. I could slow you down or..." you tried to protest.

"You won't," he declared forcefully, looking down at your hands in his. He took a deep breath.

Where is this coming from? But it couldn't hurt to have a powerful ally...

"Okay Todoroki," you finally answered. A faint smile dared to cross his lips.

"Shouto." What? He reconnected with your eyes. Realization dawned and you smiled.

"Shouto."

***

"Ashtray, clear your schedule. We have somewhere to go tonight." You perked up as Bakugou threw you a box of chocolate pretzels. You had been working on English in his room, which had become the norm of the last few days. You sat at the desk, as your tailbone was too sore from all your morning sparing sessions to sit on the hard floor. Bakugou took the bed.

Regardless of Todoroki's worries, working with Bakugou was much more pleasant than you'd expected. He was smart and efficient, honest and determined. You'd catch yourself watching him as he worked on assignments or took breaks to play a few levels of a video game and wondered how he had gotten to be so angry. When he wasn't yelling, he was a genuinely likable person to be around.

"Did we get a patrol?" you asked, eager to get to perform more hero work.

"No, nothing like that."

"Then what are we doing?"

"CAN YOU NOT BE A PAIN IN THE ASS AND JUST FUCKING COME WITH ME?" he snapped. You decided not to push it and just hummed.

Five minutes passed. You could hear Bakugou mumbling under his breath. "Need help?"

"Just fucking come over here." You floated over to his bed before plopping down next to him, tucking your feet to the side to get in close to the notes Bakugou was holding. He smelled like caramel and you found yourself instinctively leaning in. "You speak this stupid language? It doesn't make any sense," he hissed at the reading in front of him.

"It is stupid. The spelling and grammar are nonsense, but what are you going to do?" You ran your fingers down the page. "Now what part don't you understand?"

You sat close on the bed, pointing at specific words, giving example sentences using verbs in various tenses, and helping Bakugou with compound phrases. It made you glad you didn't actually have to learn any of it. It was complicated.

"Go get dressed Ashtray. We have to leave in twenty minutes," Bakugou said, stuffing the work in his backpack.

"What do I have to wear?" You were in sweats and a snug t-shirt, your normal dorm comfy clothes.

"Try to look like a fucking girl," he said, his attempt to sound snide failing.

"I always look like a fucking girl!" you shot back, sticking your tongue at the explosive blond.

"Right now you look like a homeless person."

"Fuck you Bakugou Katsuki! I'm a goddamn lady!" you laughed as you pushed his door open and left the room.

***

You walked down the stairs fifteen minutes later. Bakugou was already waiting in the lounge. His eyes went wide as he scanned your frame. Your normally braided hair was loosely pulled back in a white, rectangular clip, the delicate waves falling down your back. You had painted your lips with a sheer pink gloss and added mascara to your lashes. A white sleeveless top hung to your curves, showing off your lean arms, before tucking into a knee-length navy A-line skirt. A long gold chain hung around your neck with an intricate circular pendant hanging from its end.

He had grown accustomed to seeing you in tees and sweats on the floor of his room, day in and day out as his classmate in uniform, as his sparring partner in leggings and tanks, hair slicked back with sweat, so sometimes he missed it. But dammit, you were beautiful.

"Do I look enough like a fucking girl!?" you broke the spell.

"Enough," he answered, turning around and walking toward the door quickly so you wouldn't see the pink that tinted his ears. "C'mon we're gonna be late." He opened the door and you skipped past him. He looked at your backside before following, closing the door behind him.

"Was Bakugou wearing a button down? And [y/n] looked...? Are they going on...a date?" Jirou looked stunned at the other students sitting in the common area with her. Kaminari had been playing on his phone, Kirishima and Sero were having an arm-wrestling match, and Mina had been painting her nails when they had all stopped to watch your interaction.

"What? No," Kaminari chuckled. "I'm sure hell hasn't frozen over yet. Besides, she's gonna marry me."

"Didn't she turn you down and beat you up yesterday?" Mina teased as she capped her navy nail polish and began blowing on her fingertips.

"She's just playing hard to get," Kaminari waved away the statement.

Jirou didn't drop it. "Aren't you basically best friends with both of them Kirishima? Do you know what's going on?" Kirishima had been squeezing Sero's hand so tightly the dark-haired boy was practically in tears. The redhead smashed Sero's hand down onto the table, still looking at the now closed door.

"They're just partners. It must be an assignment thing," he said as if it had been a totally ordinary occurrence. But he had seen the way Bakugou watched as you floated down the stairs, and it pained him. Because it was the same way he looked at you.