Chapter 9 - Bad As I Thought

Zipper was not back from paternity leave, so Fat Gum asked Team Dragon to patrol for a few more weeks in his absence. To pass the time on slow, routine patrol days you and Kirishima each entertained the other with small competitions or games.

Who could hold their breath while walking the most blocks? You.

Who could piggyback the other around the park faster? Kiri.

Try to make it an entire day without stepping on the cracks on the sidewalks. You both failed.

You would catch yourself grabbing his hand to lead him down hallways after class when you were famished for lunch or laying your head on his shoulder when everyone watched television, occasionally falling asleep in the process. He would frequently be forced to pick you up and toss you over his shoulder if you were taking too long looking at a dress or a pair of shoes in a shop window. You'd watch videos together in his room on his laptop. You always had to remind him to floss after meals and constantly begged him to wear his hair down. Every now and then he'd oblige, which only led to you ruffling his red locks throughout the day.

Kirishima had seemingly overnight become your best friend. Between all the patrolling, classes, weight room sessions, and forcing him to do homework with you – he'd never do it left to his own devices - the two of you were inseparable. 

***

The week after Bakugou's party, Fat Gum invited you and Kirishima to his offices after your normal patrol to discuss the assault you'd cut short.

"The injured man, Tanaka Kobe, has been released from the hospital." You breathed a sigh of relief at Fat Gum's words. "He had a few broken ribs, a lot of bruising, and that gash on his arm but nothing life threatening."

"Do we know why he was in the alley?" you questioned.

"Tanaka-san was a delivery man for a company that supplies the Hero Association with its tech, communication devices, headsets, watches, that kind of stuff. He was attacked on a delivery." You and Kirishima looked between each other puzzled.

"Those three men you took down are in custody. Apparently that alleyway is a common drug drop-off location," Fat Gum continued. "The criminals thought Tanaka-san's package contained drugs and jumped him for the stash. When they opened it and discovered it was full of headsets, they started the beating. That's where you stepped in."

"Headsets?"

"The police lab confiscated the package, standard operating procedure when a crime is involved. All they can tell us is that the headsets are produced by a company called Gorgon." Fat Gum handed Kirishima a photograph. The earpiece was a small slate-grey circle with a hook to wrap around the ear. There was nothing remarkable about it.

"Well, we're glad we could help out." Kirishima handed the photograph to you for further inspection.

"Fat Gum, there's been another paralysis victim," one of Fat Gum's sidekicks, Suneater said, poking his head around a computer monitor.

"A what?" You dropped the photograph onto the closest desk.

Fat Gum hesitated before answering. "It seems there's been a few instances of emergency personnel winding up paralyzed. They'll be still for two or three days and then snap back to normal. We're not sure if it's quirk-related or if there's a drug or toxin on the streets that these people are encountering."

"Can we help?" Kirishima perked up.

"Nothing for you to concern yourselves with. You've been a big help on patrols. Let's just be extra vigilant about that alleyway from now on."

"Right!"

***

The next two weeks flew by. You and Kirishima had helped in an evacuation procedure for an apartment fire; your quirk aided in clearing the staircases for all the tenants to escape unharmed. But other than that, your time as Team Dragon had remained relatively uneventful. Still, you couldn't stop thinking about poor Tanaka-san.

You sat down behind Midoriya and pulled a red notebook from your backpack. The rest of the class were talking about their partnerships over the last month. Tsuyu and Yaoyorozu had helped evacuate pedestrians after a bridge collapse. Aoyama wouldn't stop talking about how his navel laser was vital in helping a crew of mine workers see during a cave in, while Iida rushed in and out of the tunnel to pull the men out. The rest of the duos that walked patrols in the neighboring towns and cities had had minimal chance to perform any heroics.

"Sit." You heard the familiar monotone voice say as a dark mess of hair entered the room. A shuffle of feet and a flurry of skirts echoed around the space before becoming as quiet as a church.

"As I'm sure you've all realized, today marks the end of your first partnerships," Aizawa began. Kirishima glanced over his shoulder to you, looking suddenly crestfallen. "Take what you've learned about communication and cooperation and put it into action with your next partner."

Kaminari stood up from his desk and dramatically waved a hand toward Bakugou, as if leaving on a long ship journey to an unknown land.

"Farewell my dear Bakugou. I will miss the time we had together. But do not fear. I will never forget you." He pretended to wipe away a tear. Jirou looked petrified to be sitting between the blond idiot and Bakugou's new rage.

"Sit down Kaminari," Aizawa interrupted his monologue before Bakugou blew a gasket. Kaminari slipped back into his seat as the vein in Bakugou's neck continued to throb. "As I was saying," Aizawa went on, raising an unimpressed eyebrow at the sparky boy, "these next partnerships will be extra significant as we are now approaching the annual Sports Festival."

The class burst into excited and anxious chatter. You hadn't realized that the Sports Festival would be so soon. You had been training, sure, but not Sports Festival peak condition, battle-to-be-number-one training. You started to chew on your lower lip when Aizawa's voice broke through the babbling students once again.

"After I share the names of the partnerships, you're dismissed for the day." Aizawa rolled up a projector screen. From behind, ten duos were listed in neat handwriting on the blackboard.

"... Midoriya... Iida... Koda... [l/n]!" you muttered before finding your name. "And I'm paired with..." Your head snapped up. His red eyes were already fixed on you, an unreadable expression on his face. Bakugou stomped the few steps to stand in front of your desk, refusing to bend down in an attempt to make himself more intimidating.

"You better not hold me back Ashtray," he barked and swiftly left the room. You stayed planted in your seat, taking a moment to gather your thoughts on your new partner. You took a deep breath, shaking your head.

It's just Bakugou. I can handle him. It's fine.

You looked over at Kirishima who was deep in conversation with his new partner, Shouji, who was speaking through one of his tentacle mouths, the lower part of his face permanently covered by a blue mask. He brushed his pale grey hair out of his eyes with one of his actual arms instead of one of the additional three duplicates.

SHOUJI MEZOU, HERO NAME: TENTACOLE—QUIRK: DUPLI-ARMS. DUPLI-ARMS GRANTS SHOUJI ARM-ATTACHED TENTACLES THAT CAN REPLICATE PARTS OF HIS BODY. HE IS ABLE TO REPRODUCE ANY OF HIS BODY PARTS, INCLUDING EARS, EYES, MOUTHS, HANDS AND SO ON, WITH SAID PARTS TAKING FORM THROUGH PODS LOCATED AT THE TIP OF EACH OF HIS TENTACLES. THE DUPLICATED PARTS ARE ACTUALLY ENHANCED VERSIONS OF THE ORIGINAL ONES, WHICH IMPROVES SHOJI'S STRENGTH AND SENSES.

You already missed Kirishima. How could you go from someone who would give you piggyback rides to someone who threatened to kill you on a daily basis? Your heart dropped when you heard the phrase "Team Roctopus" leave his mouth.

Guess he's done with me anyway...

Your chest tightened as confounding tears pricked your eyes. Holding them back, you grabbed your bag and tossed it sharply over your shoulder. You had to get rid of this sudden flood of frustration and doubt.

Jogging to the locker room you threw on your gym clothes and wrapped your hands then walked to the large red punching bag in the back corner of the weight room and you hit it. Hard. You hit it again and again and again until you broke down, your face salty from sweat and tears. Hugging the bag, you took several deep breaths to regain your composure.

It's not the end of the world. I just have to dive into this new assignment. I just have to get stronger. I just have to not feel this hurt.

Wiping your face, you left the gym.

***

The dorm had a new atmosphere. The mood was different. Partnerships had been broken. New trust had to form. Maybe it didn't feel as wrong to everyone else, having been together for a year, but for you the air felt more stagnant. The steady hum of laughter you'd grown used to hearing wasn't there. Kirishima wasn't beside you. You sighed.

"ASHTRAY!" You jumped at hearing Bakugou's voice as he trotted down the stairs. "Do you suck at math?"

"What?" You were completely taken off guard.

"You're my fucking partner now, so come to my room and let's do our damn math homework." He didn't wait for you to answer, just turned around and marched back up the stairs.

What the fuck just happened?

Bakugou was already sitting cross-legged on his bed when you tentatively entered his room. The bed was made with dark grey sheets peeking out from underneath a pure black comforter. It was surprisingly tidy. No clothes were on the floor, as you had grown accustomed to from seeing some other boys' rooms. (And to be fair, there was always a small pile in your room as well.) There was a silver age All Might poster above the desk and a 'Plus Ultra' decal behind the door, but no other art adorned the walls. His drum set was in the corner. Out of the corner of your eye you saw a small black and green ashtray in the center of the dresser, his keys and wallet tossed lazily into the basin. You smiled to yourself.

"Well, sit down." He didn't lift his eyes from the blue notebook in his hand. A mechanical pencil was clutched in the other as he wrote out a heading at the top of the page. You sat down on the floor, placing your bag beside you, and took out your own notebook slowly.

"Why aren't we working downstairs at the tables?" you asked suspiciously, finding your own pencil and calculator.

"Distractions," he muttered, pulling the assignment from a folder. "How do you wanna do this?" You looked up at him, hoping he would elaborate. "The assignment, dumbass. Do everything alone and then compare answers? Each do half?" You almost couldn't believe he was asking your opinion, and on something so normal as math homework.

"Well, math is my best subject, so I think I'd like to try everything solo first and then we can compare?" you responded, a bit nervous that you could have answered 'incorrectly'. He simply nodded and began working. You watched him for a few moments. Apparently he was done talking to you, so you began scribbling down your own answers in silence.

After about twenty minutes, he spoke. "Did you get number 12?"

"Of course I did." He glowered at your sarcastic tone. "Come down here and I'll show you."

"Don't tell me what the fuck to do Ashtray," he barked, but got up and sat down on the ground next to you anyway, both your backs pressed up against the side of the bed.

"So, I get that we need to find 'x', but when there's a square root, how did you isolate it?" You took the pencil from his hand, surprised that he didn't snap at you again, and flowed through the logic of the problem. He hummed in understanding. You assumed he would go back to sitting on his bed, but he stayed next to you on the floor, filling out his paper.

***

"You close to being done?" you asked after another twenty minutes had passed.

"I have three more. You're done already?" You smiled shyly, pulling a loose stand of hair behind your ear.

"What can I say? I'm a genius," you answered sardonically before countering with, "Really, I just like math. It makes sense to me." He looked at you, a puzzled expression on his face, like he was trying to figure out what made you tick. The silence between you suddenly felt awkward. "I'm thirsty. While you're finishing up, I could run downstairs and grab us drinks?"

"Just water."

"Coming right up." You uncrossed your legs and stood up from the floor. He grabbed your wrist. You tensed.

Fuck. I knew this was a trick. He was being way too normal.

"And bring up some snacks too," he said, casually dropping your arm and returning to his paper.

"Right." You heard the words 'something spicy' before the door closed behind you with a low click. You scurried down the stairs to the lounge and kitchen. With blinders on, you barely noticed the redhead on the couch.

"[y/n]!" You nearly dropped the two glasses of water you were carrying. "Thirsty?" Kirishima asked, noticing the beverages. It felt oddly difficult to look at him.

"I'm doing homework with my new partner. Team... Smoke Bomb (pulled that one out of your ass, didn't you [y/n]?) needed a drink," you said a little too snarky.

"Oh. So, you and Bakugou are cool then? I was a little worried." He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.

"We're fine. Super fine. I'm sure Team Roctopus is fine too, right?" Still too snarky. You saw Kirishima's face fall. That's not what you wanted.

"[y/n], are we okay?" He looked genuinely concerned and a bit hurt.

You hung your head and were quiet for a long moment. Might as well be honest.

"I just... when I heard you in the classroom talking to Shouji you seemed so excited, so ready to move on... from me." You felt the familiar prick of salt sting your eyes again, but you refused to let any tears fall. "You're my best friend here and it feels like I'm losing you."

The glasses left your hands. Warm, strong arms enveloped your wilting frame. Your cheek pressed against Kirishima's chest and you could hear his heartbeat. You hugged him back and held it for a long time.

"You'll never lose me [y/n]." His breath was in your hair. He pulled away slightly from the embrace, not enough to break it, but so he could look in your swimming eyes. He delicately pushed fallen strands of hair from your face with his fingertips. "Our partnership might be over, but us..." he paused, seemingly trying to find the right words, "we're definitely not over." He gave you a soft smile before touching his forehead to yours, pressing just a bit too hard that it hurt. It made you release a breathy chuckle.

You pulled out of the hug and grabbed the two glasses of water off the table where Kirishima must have placed them.

"Thanks Kiri." With unshed tears still glistening in your eyes, you stood on your tiptoes and planted a quick peck on his cheek before walking back up the stairs.

***

"Took you long enough," Bakugou grumbled as you walked back into his room, balancing the two glasses in one hand. You placed a glass on the floor next to him before sitting down as well. "And you didn't even get snacks?"

You had been so distracted with Kirishima you had forgotten. "Sorry, I'll go back down-" You were cut off by Bakugou placing a surprisingly gentle palm on your cheek, turning your face to look into your red lined eyes.

"Who do I have to kill?" Your eyes grew wide and you shook his hand from your face.

"No one. It's nothing. I'm fine. It was an overreaction. Let's look at those math problems." You tried to redirect the conversation.

"They're all the same. I compared while you were gone. Now why were you crying?" He wasn't going to drop it.

"These new partnerships..." you began.

"THIS IS MY FAULT!?" he shouted, confused at how asking for snacks made you cry.

"No, you idiot. Of course not. I was admittedly a little nervous about working with you since you're not always the most-" he raised an eyebrow- "warm and snugly. I had had a really good thing going with Kiri, but he seemed to be perfectly fine to get paired with Shouji, so I felt sad and angry that I was losing a friend..." You knew you were rambling, but you weren't sure how to vocalize the myriad of neurotic feelings you had experienced in the last few hours, least of all to Bakugou.

"One person can't possibly feel all those things at the same time," he deadpanned.

"I'M FUCKING COMPLEX YOU HEDGEHOG!" All the feelings bubbling to the surface again. 

And then, he laughed. Not the teasing, arrogant chuckle you expected, but a real, open, bright smile laugh. "Why is that so funny?!" you yelled again.

"Ashtray," He twisted his body to yours and placed his hands on your shoulders looking you dead in the eye. "This month, you're my partner. That means no one fucks with you but me. If you need me to go punch Shitty Hair in the junk, I'm gonna go do that. If you need to cry or scream or lash out, fucking do it. I won't stop you, I won't judge you and I'll never lie to you. I need you to be 100%. So, get all your crap out, 'cause I plan on making this work."

You were stunned at his words. While you had seen moments of his humanity in the previous month, nothing had prepared you for this. It was so honest and open. He was really going to be there for you? You felt a sense of pride well up in your chest for your new partner.

You smiled down toward your lap. His grip had trailed down to your wrists during his speech. You pulled your hands away and placed them on his shoulders, feeling the same power of making someone truly listen.

"I want us both to become better and stronger. While I might have to stop you from lashing out for legal reasons," he cracked a small smile, his sharp canine peeking through his lips, "I won't judge you or lie to you either. I am in this 100%."

You stared into each other's eyes for a heartbeat. Now that your oddly specific and weirdly emotional partnership pledge had been put out into the universe, it almost felt too intimate for you to be this close to Bakugou. You pulled your hands from his shoulders, turning to face the scattered workbooks around you.

Bakugou broke the silence after what seemed like an eternity. "The Sports Festival..." You looked up.

Gear change.

"What about it?"

"I'm gonna win it again this year."

"You know, I thought we really had a moment there, but now we're back to that ego of yours," you laughed while pulling your papers together.

"This is still about the moment," he added emphasis to your phrasing, crossing his arms irritably. "You said you want to get stronger. Well, we're gonna train together. And then I'm still going to beat you in the Festival."

A dangerously confident smirk marked your lips. You looked up at the blond boy, all the anxiety and hurt from a moment before replaced with a hunger to prove him wrong.

"You really want to fight me again? Did you forget what happened last time?"

"I'm gonna destroy you Ashtray!" His shout, while loud didn't have the same ire it usually contained. He looked like a cat getting ready to play with a mouse, hungry and mischievous.

"I'm glad you're back to normal. That nice guy routine was creeping me out." He was taken aback at the cavalier way you dismissed his threat. You stood from the ground with your books in your arms. "Oh, and by the way," you turned back over your shoulder, "I might have told Kiri our team name was Smoke Bomb. Hope that's cool!"

"YOU WHAT?!"

"Bye!" You ran out of the room before he could grab you.

Bakugou Katsuki, you might not be as bad as I thought.