#i can't relax around people and it's even worse since moving back from the dorms cause now not even home feels like a place where i can

[sxcret-garden-archive]

,

[1a-imagines]

No excuses

》 Bakugo x reader

》 Word count: 5k

》 Overview: You were childhood enemies who always ended up stuck together, you were neighbours, got put in all the same classes, ended up living together in the UA dorms. Overtime you grew to accept each others company, maybe even enjoy it. So what happens when your new work lives separate you for the first time?

Every day was lacklustre.

You weren't sure what; but something was missing. Ever since you went pro and moved into your own apartment you felt as though your life lacked something. There was an empty hole but you just weren't sure what used to be there.

Perhaps you just missed those simple UA days? Being surrounded with your friends day and night and not having to worry about all the things pro heroes had to worry about? There was no doubt it was a much less stressful time.

Or maybe it was the fact you no longer had your family breathing down your neck every second of the day? You were an adult now and that came with a whole new sense of freedom. Maybe what you were missing was being surrounded by your loved ones all the time? You lived alone in your new apartment and it was a big difference in contrast to the UA dorms you lived in for three years.

You thought you'd enjoy the quiet but it turns out you found the silence painful. It was more peircing to your ears than any yelling or screaming you had in the dorms.

No matter how much you wondered what was missing you just couldn't seem to place your finger on it. It's not like you weren't  keeping in touch with your friends and family. They called everyday, you certainly weren't lonely. So why was your heart still yearned for something... maybe even for someone?

With a sigh, you dried the last plate of the bunch and put it away. Finally done with your chores for the day. You dried your hands and went over to check your phone that had been thrown onto the couch. You saw a text notification pop up.

Blastard: (1 new message)

Oi! Idiot! Are you dead yet? I haven't heard from you in weeks!

You couldn't help but chuckle at his unique way of showing worry, though it would be a lie to say you weren't used to it by now. It was such a typical Bakugo move. You shook your head before typing out a reply.

Bad news for you, I live!

You hit send before throwing your phone back down. You felt awfully giddy about him texting you, which was a strange feeling, usually you annoyed the hell out of each other. As weird as it was; it had been awhile since you'd last spoken to him.

Maybe you were just happy he hadn't completely forgotten you exsisted, you figured once you went your seperate ways that you'd probably never talk again; unless it was work related.

You had grown up together, always forced to be around each other no matter how much you despised it. You were neighbours, you didn't go to the same schools, but you'd always hear him yelling through the walls whenever he was home, you'd always pass each other when leaving your houses on the morning, and to your 10 year old self? There was no worse way to start off your day than his stupid face being the first thing you see when leaving your home.

It was like you couldn't get through a day without running into him at least once.

Then you both ended up in the same highschool, UA, which meant you walked the same route everyday as well as being in all the same classes. Then you lived in dorms together for three years, which meant you were around your childhood enemy almost every minute of everyday.

It was like the universe was trying to torture you both.

You hated each other as kids, always getting into scrapes and arguments, but as you got older the hate died down into more of a friendly rivalry. You bickered non stop but you also grew to enjoy all those comebacks and quick retorts, it was like a never ending game of 'who can make the best comeback/insult'. It even made you laugh at times.

Eventually, somewhere during your UA days, you both got to a point where you could actually admit you were friends.

But after being stuck together for so long? You'd think you would be happy to have some peace and quiet around here. You no longer had to deal with explosions going off or yelling every 5 seconds. No yelling from downstairs or next door, no insults or smartmouthed comments.

Though, even you had to admit he had matured a lot since you were kids, he still kept true to his grouchy self, but he was no where near as violent or bad tempered. He'd calmed down a lot as you grew into adults and you were proud of him for coming so far.

You were about to go take a bath to relax after cleaning all day, but when you saw your phone light up again you couldn't stop yourself from diving for it.

Blastard: (1 new message)

The fuck do you mean? That's not bad news for me dumbass.

It was a little weird for him not to give a snarky reply but it's possible hero work was tiring him out as much as it had been tiring you out. You were about to tell him it was just a joke but then another message came through,

Blastard: (1 new message)

Have you been eating alright? I know you can't cook for shit and you're living alone now.

Your eyes softened at the message, a goofy smile spreading across your lips. Not only had he made an effort to message you first, something he rarely did, but he also was showing care for you? Your cheeks heated up and you took a second to press your face into a pillow, a way to collect yourself before you replied.

Aw, you care about me?~

I've been eating fine! Instant ramen exists for a reason! It's for people like me who "can't cook for shit" :P

His next reply was almost instant, it scared you how quick your phone was to sound with another notification.

Blastard: (1 new message)

Don't fucking tell me you've been living off of instant ramen this whole time-

You felt too shy to admit to the truth. It was true you hadn't been eating great since you had been living alone. Your job was so demanding you didn't have time to cook. Choosing fast options over home cooked meals had been your way of living for the past few weeks and admitting to it felt like a punch to your pride.

Blastard: (1 new message)

That's it, I'm coming over to make you an actual meal tonight. See you at 6.

You did a double take at the response.  There was clearly no room to argue.

"He's coming over!?" You jumped up in a panic at your sudden self invited guest. Lucky for him you had a rare night off work, and lucky for you, you had spent the day cleaning up. Maybe it'll look like you have this whole "adulting" thing down.

After glancing at the time and seeing it was only 4pm you threw your phone down. You needed to freshen up before he came over.

For some reason you felt this pressure to look good in front of him? But you had known him since you were little kids! He wouldn't care, he's seen you look much worse, so why did you care about looking good this time around? You shook your head, sick of all this over thinking and went to take a quick bath. Once you were done you dried your hair and threw on a fresh pair of clothes.

You felt excited to see him again and almost-... Nervous? It was a strange sensation, you shouldn't be feeling nervous to see him, you used to see him everyday. Maybe it was because this would be the first time you'd be spending time alone in your new home? Yeah, that must be it!

Glancing up at the time you still had half an hour until he arrived. You decided to take your mind off of all your swirling thoughts by mindlessly scrolling through your phone until your door bell finally rang.

You pushed yourself up with a small groan. You walked to your front door, your heart raced in your chest knowing who was on the otherside of the door. You took a deep breath through your nose before opening the door to see your familiar, scowling, friend. He stood there, a bag in his right hand and foot tapping on the floor as if he had been waiting ages for you to open the door for him.

"Kat! Long time no see!" You beamed up at him only for him to roll his eyes and brush past you. "Shut up and show me where your kitchen is, you need a proper meal."

You couldn't help but smile as you noticed the bag he carried was filled with fresh groceries. He was alway so bad with words but it was actions like this that made you see how much he really cared about you.

"Through there." You nodded your head toward an opening and followed him through after shutting the door. He put all the ingredients down and you leaned back against the counter watching him prepare the food. "What? No 'Hi Y/n, how have you been?' You cut right to the chase as always." You chuckled softly to yourself earning a glare from the blond as you attempted to imitate his voice.

"First of all! I don't sound like that! Second of all, I'm only here because you can't take care of yourself." He scoffed before adding. "Still annoying as always."

'Why was I missing him again?' You huffed, blowing some hair from your face in the process. "So! Chef! What are we having?"

"Curry." Was his quick reply as he began to lay out and cut up the ingredients. You hummed in delight at the thought of homemade curry. It had been a while since you had a good home cooked meal. Your family sometimes brought you leftover foods knowing how busy you were with work, but they couldn't come feed you everyday. You were an adult now and you needed to learn to cope on your own! Even with a busy career life.

"You remember what I like?" You asked, your eyes glimmering with an emotion he couldn't quite tell, in order to avoid looking at your face he kept himself busy with making dinner.

"I've known you for over 10 years, just because I haven't seen you for a few months doesn't mean I'm going to forget everything about you, idiot." He tutted, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. You leaned back against the counter beside him, your lips twisted into a soft frown.

"A few months huh? It feels like longer..."

You did not intend for him to hear that but he did, and honestly? He agreed.

Without you around to annoy him every hour of the day, things just seemed to go by painstakingly slow. Without you his days were boring, and as much as he hated to admit it, your stubbornness, your quick remarks and sarcastic comebacks, as much as they annoyed him, they added a certain spice to his life.

They kept him on his toes, he liked the challenges you gave him, whether it was getting the last word, winning against you in training or just coming up with the best insulting nickname. He couldn't believe he actually missed it all, but he did, and honestly? This whole dinner thing had just been an excuse to see you again.

He missed you.

"Tch, feels like not long enough." He grumbled as he moved over to the stove to turn it on. You sent him a cocky grin, shifting your weight onto your other foot. "Oh yeah? Then why were you so quick to come over here?" You hummed, tilting your head. He knew you were teasing him, he could tell by the way the words melted from your lips like butter, you were practically purring as you grinned at him. It reminded him of a cat.

He decided not to dignify you with a repsonce and you took that as a sign of victory. You giggled before turning to grab a drink from the fridge. You cracked open a can of soda and upon hearing the unmistakable fizzing noise Bakugo's head shot around to you, his eyebrows creased together in distaste. "You shouldn't be drinking that shit!" He barked at you.

"Oh come on! I've cut right back on the junk food. Look!" You threw the fridge door open to display the variety of fruits and vegetables in front of him. "I've been really healthy! I've even been doing a lot more weight training! Soon I'll be as strong as you! Maybe even more so!" You smirked, he wanted nothing more than to wipe the smug look from your face. You shut the fridge door with your foot before taking another swig of your soda.

Bakugo scoffed, "You wish! You'll have to work a lot harder before you can even dream of matching up to my strength!" He sent you a toothy grin as he watched your shoulders deflate, eyes narrowing up at him.

Bakugo continued to put the chopped up ingredients into the pan, "Why have you been eating instant ramen this whole time if you have all that shit anyway?"

You turned your head away, cheeks flushing red with embarrassment. It took a lot to swallow down your pride enough to mutter the next words. "You know I can't cook very well." It was painful to admit you were an adult with the cooking capabilities of a child. Between school and work placements you just never found the time to practise new recipes. Not to mention the fact your family usually cooked a lot of meals for you.

You had contemplated practising some recipes in the past but something always manages to come up! You knew working as a pro was going to be hard, that you'd be busy every day, but you didn't know it would consume your life to this extent.

Without another word you walked towards the living room. "Let me know when dinner is ready!" You sent him a cheeky grin as you left. Bakugo turned back to the food, grumbling something about how he wasn't a damn slave, despite being the one who offered his services in the first place.

Looking around, he finally had time to take in the room, he hadn't seen it since you first moved in and bugged him and kirishima to help move boxes. The room was well decorated, not a thing out of place. Despite the apartment being pretty small you had done well to make it homely.

As he made the curry, he added in some spices and when he picked up the shaker labelled "Extremely hot", He smirked. He recalled the good ol' days in the UA dorms. He sometimes went out of his way to spike your food with hot spices. Your face was always priceless! The thought crossed his mind to do it again. After all, it wouldn't affect him, he loved spices and, unlike you, they didn't turn his face red.

He sighed before shaking his head. You were both grown up now, and you needed to eat a proper meal. He hated to even think about it but he did care for you. More than he would like to admit. He always thought once he went pro and finally got away from you, this "curse" you two shared of always being stuck together wherever you went would disappear, and he would be happy.

But he wasn't, somewhere down the damn line he has gotten used to your annoying presence, he had grown to like your quick remarks, how you never backed down from him, you weren't afraid to speak you mind or put him in his place, and as much as all those qualities used to bug the shit out of him as a kid, he had grown to respect them, even-... love them?

He clenched his teeth when he felt his cheeks heating up. God, he hated this. He wasn't cut out for this lifestyle! Why was he even here!? He could be out training! Not pining over his childhood enemy! The curry sauce started to bubble over in the pan and he cursed to himself, once again he was so distracted with thoughts of you that he couldn't concentrate on the task at hand!

He finished making the food, doing everything he could not to let his mind wander back to thoughts of you. He grabbed a few plates before putting the rice and curry onto them. He yelled through to you that the food was done, "I'm only in the next room! You don't have to yell so loud!" He huffed in amusement, your words were ironic considering your volume matched his. He smiled at your never ending bite, you always had something to say.

Such a smartass. He shouldn't enjoy it as much as he did.

You came through, throwing the empty soda can into the trash as you passed and sat down in the seat beside him. You hummed in delight, "Smells so good!!"

"Of course it does! I made it!" He grinned, taking a bite. While the lack of extreme spice was underwhelming for him, he knew you would like it. Your face twisted into distaste at his smugness, "I forgot to never stroke your fat ego."

He growled, ready to yell at you for the remark but when he saw you take the first bite of food his anger was forgotten.

Your eyes lit up like fireworks on a cold winter night. "I also forgot how crazy good of a cook you are!" You beamed, happily digging into the curry. His features softened, something about seeing you enjoy his food so much felt really good. He almost forgot to eat himself as he watched you stuff your face. You had gotten some rice stuck to your cheek as you shoveled the dish into your mouth. It was so stupidly cute, a soft smile graced his lips.

You caught him staring, it was rare to see him smile, no cocky grin or smirk, it was a real smile. Soft, relaxed, happy. You thought your heart was going to jump out of mouth. You did not expect that sight when you looked up from your food.

You gulped, not because there was food in your mouth, but because the atmosphere had suddenly changed. There was an invisible weight ontop of you both, crushing you.

"What…?" You asked quietly, hiding your face behind your hair. He snapped out of it, realising he'd been caught he froze, his heart skipped a beat. However, there was no time for him to get embarrassed because next thing he knew he was throwing a towel at you "You got rice all over your face, idiot! Wipe it off! You look stupid!"

You grumbled as the fabric hit your face, yet complied and wiped your lips clean. You went back to eating, this time more carefully so you didn't make a mess. You noted the mild spices but didn't comment on them. It was unusual for Bakugo to not fire up his dishes with spice. The decision to make the curry mild definately wasnt for his own benifit. He'd done it for you.

It made you smile, and as much as you wanted to thank him for it you figured he wouldn't want you bringing up his strangely nice gesture since he had been so silent about it.

During the dinner you talked about your new work lives, how you'd been coping living alone, anything that came to mind. Of course, that came with a variety of witty comments and snarky comebacks, but it was just how you liked it. It was how it had always been, how you always wanted it to be.

Once the plates were clean you stood up, reaching over to grab his plate so you could clean up but his hand shot out and grabbed your wrist. You paused, looking up to meet his eyes. "I'll help clean." He said, picking up his plate and taking it to the sink. You smiled, following him with your own plate.

"Wow, cooking and cleaning? Has anyone ever told you that you'd be a perfect house wife?" You smirked at him as he filled up the sink with soap and water.

"At least I can cook." He shot back without missing a beat. You laughed st the remark, nudging his side as you pushed your wasy in front of the sink. You continued to chat as you cleaned up, you washed as he dried.

As you finished up scrubbing the last dish Bakugo made a comment about you eating like a pig at dinner which, in return, made you splashed his face using soapy dish water.

He growled when he felt the droplets soaking his face and hair, but hearing your laughter made it hard to stay his usual, grumpy self. Instead he settled for dipping his fingers into the water and flicking you back.

Your face scrunched up, eyes closing to avoid any soap suds getting in your eyes.

You took his reciprocation as a declaration of war and it soon turned into a mini, kitchen water fight. Laughter filled the once quiet apartment as you fought each other.

For a moment it didn't feel like you lived alone, for the first time in months you felt like that empty space in your life had been filled again.

You had to stop the water fight before you soaked the kitchen as well as each other. As fun as it was you didn't want to have to clean up for the third time today.

Once all the dishes were put away and you dried yoursleved using a spare towel; Bakugo narrowed his eyes at the front door.

He wasn't sure if he should go, a part of him didn't want to. He only came over to make you dinner, now that was over he had no reason to stay. Should he make up some bullshit excuse to stay? He didn't want you teasing him again.

Despite taking a few minutes to think up an excuse to stay, he came up with nothing. Grumbling to himself he kicked his foot against the ground and turned around to you, ready to say goodbye.

His eyes widened upon landing on you, you held up two gaming controllers, a grin on your lips as you pushed one towards him. "Wanna try finally beating me at mario kart?"

"What are you talking about! I win all the time!" He rolled his eyes and snatched a controller from your hands, taking on your challenge. He felt the weight lift from his shoulders, you were giving him a reason to stay longer and he wasn't about to turn that down.

"You beat me at super smash bros! But never mario kart!" You backfired, plopping down onto the couch as the console fired up.

"Then let's play super smash bros!"

"We do not play that in this household!" You stomped your foot at the thought of the game you could never beat him at. Bakugo scoffed and sat next to you. "You're such a fucking sore loser!"

You forced a laugh before sending him a glare, leaning closer to him. You reaction must have amused him as he smirked at you. "I do not want to hear that from you!"

"Shut up and let's play!" The first round started up, the familiar countdown sound ringing in your ears. You'd like to say things started pretty civil, but It didn't take long for you to start shoving each other as you battled for first place. There was a lot of yelling, combined with a lot of laughter and cheering. It was the most lively your apartment had ever felt, in just one night Bakugo was able to change all of that.

A few rounds turned into hours. You didn't even notice how high up the moon was in the sky. You were too busy enjoying each other's company, having more fun than either of you had experienced in months.

You shot out of your seat pumping your fist into the air as you passed the finish line in first place once again.

"HAH! You still can't beat me!” You boasted.

The blond threw the controller down, his teeth clenched tight as he grumbled. “Next time I’m bringing super smash bros!” You sat back down, giggling as you poked his side. “Who's the sore loser now huh? Big baby.” You teased, poking a finger into his side, much like poking a bear with a stick, it was a recipe for disaster.

He growled and jumped to you grabbing your hands to keep them away from prodding him. You started laughing again, squirming and battling with him, determined to keep attacking but your giggle fit made it hard to fight back.

As you were laughing you missed yet another rare smile on his face. He didn't know what was going on with him, maybe he was just in a good mood today? He had taken down a group of robbers earlier when he was on patrol, and taking down villains always felt good.

All he knew was that he never wanted the moment to end, it was nice to hear your stupid laughter again, to see you smiling as you tried to match his strength and fight back. He hadn't even realised that some point during your play fight he had knocked you down onto your back and was hovering over you.

He had always been the stronger of the pair so you lost fairly quickly. His hands pinned yours beside your head. "That was a good fight you put up, but it's still not good enough to match up to me." He smirked down at you

You stuck out her tongue at him, panting as you tried to kick your legs at him. Turns out he had thought ahead and pinned those down too. You huffed through your nose, tasting defeat was bitter.

You stared at each other, as the laughter died down so did the playfulness. The atmosphere became serious. He wasn't sure what it was, but there was some sort of unspoken feeling between you both. He gulped, noting the way your hair was sprawled out on the couch beneath you, creating a halo of hair around your head. Your eyes shone as they stared into his, he had never noticed what a nice colour they were, and your lips- they looked so soft..

There was a pull, an invisible red string tugging you closer to each other and connecting your hearts.

But, you both ignored it. He got off of you and sat back. He ran a hand through his hair, you both avoided eye contact.

Looking out the window Bakugo finally noticed that the moon had long ascended into the night sky. Had he been here that long? God, it must be passed midnight but he felt like he had only been here for an hour. He shook his head and stood up, You watched him with parted lips, your heart racing at the tension.

What was that feeling between you two? It was so strong. Did he feel it too? It was sending your head into a spin.

"I should go." He muttered, he didn't want to go, he really didn't but the words were leaving his mouth before he had time to process them.

He had felt it too, and he didn't know how to react. He hadn't felt anything like it before, it made his heart race, he felt weak and he didn't like it. He knew he felt- something for you? But was it enough to call it love?

You looked up at him, giving him a nod, not like he could see since his back was already turned. You stood up, arms wrapping around yourself as you walked him to the door.

There were so many unspoken words between you. So many feelings left unexpressed. You bit your lip, voice caught in your throat as you watched him silently slip on his shoes. He opened the front door, pausing for a second, hesitating... "See ya."

"Bye." You replied as he closed the door behind him.

The appartment suddenly ran cold, silent, a chill running across your skin. The silence cut through your ears like a sharp blade.

You pulled your arms tighter around yourself. How could you deny it? Having him around again had been amazing, even if just for one afternoon. You despised him as a child, but over time, throughout highschool, through building a silent trust, a friendship had formed, and then-… and then somewhere down the line it turned into more.

No matter how much you tried to convince yourself otherwise, you loved being around him, you had a strong bond, you had watched him grow and become a better person, you had seen each other at your best and at your worst. You had fought each other but also fought with each other. You cared for each other, you annoyed the hell out of each other, you had been through so much together.

He had always been there, even if you didn't want him to be. You had hated him and you had loved him...

You… loved him…

Your eyes widened, "I.. love him." You muttered, saying it out loud made it all the more real. A feeling of wanting to slap yourself silly for being so blind overcame you.

You loved him! Of course you loved him!!You had always been so focused on school and work that you hadn't even noticed you were growing feelings for your childhood rival?

You couldn't let him go again! How many more months until you got to see each other again? You had always somehow ended up stuck together, it felt like he would always be there but now you had witnessed what life was like without him around… you hated it! For the first time in your life, you wanted him around.

You couldn't sit around in your lonely apartment each day now you knew you were in love with that jerk!

"God damnit! Why did it have to be him." You ran to the door and flung it open, not even thinking of shoes as you ran out into the cold night air. "Maybe he didn't get far-"

You rounded the corner before colliding with what you could only assume was a brick wall. You winced, pulling back and rubbing your nose. You looked up, coming face to face with none other than the man himself.

You stared at each other in shock, he came back for you too? This whole scene, these feelings, neither of you could have ever imagined this is where you would've end up.

"I need to tell you something!" You spoke in unison, making you both cringe.

"You first." He crossed his arms stubbornly, wanting to know you were on the same wave as he was and hadn't just ran after him because he left something.

You sighed, rubbing your arm, glancing away for a second to collect yourself. You hadn't thought this far ahead so you had no idea what to say. You sighed, looking up to meet his eyes, the best way would be to face your feelings head on. No going back! Even if he rejects you, at least he would respect you being blunt with it, he hated when people beat around the bush.

"I love you." You said, your head lifted high. His eyes widened at your bold declaration, his tense demeanour dropping. "I wanted to tell you before you disappear for months again. So there you have it, I'm in love with you. Believe me or not I don't care. I just- mmph!" Hands yanked you forward by your hips, smooth lips molded against your own when he head dipped down.

It took a few seconds to reciprocate, but when you did he pulled you closer. Your hands went to his shoulders to steady yourself, your legs felt weak, but that didn't stop you from kissing back.

You smiled into the kiss, you couldn't help it. Not only did the kiss feel great but the way he had pulled you in for it without wasting time with words was just such a Bakugo thing to do.

"I love you too, dumbass." He muttered when he pulled away, You let out a breathy laugh and shook your head. "You have such a way with words~"

"Shut up." You giggled at him before you went back in for another kiss, longer, holding more passion as your years of pent up feelings finally reached the surface. Your heads tilted and turned, hands roaming each other's bodies, his arms wrapped around you, his body heat protecting your bare skin from the chill of the night.

He backed you up agaisnt the wall. His tongue ran across your bottom lip, you weren't sure how long you had been standing there but it felt like you were the only two people in the world.

It was so late not another soul was to be see. It was just you, him and the city lights.

His hand ran down towards your thigh, only for you both to jump back when the distance sound of a car honking ripped through your serentity.

Panting as you stared at each other, almost not believing you had just msde out with each other. You pressed your fingers to your tingling lips. A smile on your face, "So- uh, wanna come inside for a bit?” the mischief in your eyes did not match the innocent smile on your face. He knew exactly what you were planning, "Fuck yes."

And there was no way he was going to turn it down.

[wc-ff]

VI.

De'Angelo gathered his things from around the room as Chantell stood right in front of her room door with her arms folded across her chest. She was fuming. Sage had managed to get ahold of a phone and call him to tell him that something very bad had happened but she didn't want to talk about it over the phone. So, there he was. Dropping everything he was doing to go and rush to her again. Chantell was hoping things would be different after the wonderful day they had spent together but of course, she was there coming second to his best friend. Someone she didn't even like in the slightest. "So you're really gonna just get up and go like that? You don't think that she could—I don't know—wait?!" Chantell finally broke the silence but only deepened the tension in the room. She didn't understand. De'Angelo knew it had to be an emergency just based off of how frantic she sounded alone. Then she didn't even want to talk about it until they were face to face. He wouldn't be just up and leaving unless it was absolutely important and it was. "No, baby, look. I know it has to be something real important. Plus, it's weird that she called me off her mom's phone, I gotta go see what's going on." He spoke just as he picked up the last of his things and slid his feet into his Nike slides. Chantell scoffed in amusement as her long mink lashes emphasized her excessive blinking. "So, you telling me you leaving me to tend to a bitch that lives with her parents? You've gotta be kidding me." Her hands fell down to her sides and smacked her thighs dramatically. "Aye." The bass in De'Angelo's voice nearly shook the entire room as he glared at his girlfriend. "Watch out with that bitch word. You don't even know what the fuck is going on." "Bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch!" Chantell taunted, rolling her neck with each and every word that she spat out of her mouth. De'Angelo seemed to appear in front of her in the blink of an eye causing her to stumble back a bit but once she caught her balance, she maintained her hard expression. If looks could kill, they'd both be needing caskets at that very moment. "What is there to know? Shorty called you off her mom's phone. What grown woman you know calling people off her mom's phone?" Chantell added with the same amount of teasing amusement as before. The smirk on her face was making the man that was towering over her want to smack it off, but he wouldn't dare put his hands on a female. De'Angelo responded to her taunting by brushing passed her and heading towards the front door. He didn't have time for her childish antics. She was trying to get a rise out of him and he knew it. He also knew it would fuck her up if he didn't allow her to though. "D!? I know you not really gonna just leave like that! You can't—" Her talking was cut off by the front door slamming shut as De'Angelo began making his way to his car. He could still faintly hear her screaming from inside the house, but he just continued on like he couldn't. There were many times where he just needed a shoulder to cry on or someone to talk to and Sage was always there regardless of what she had going on. She never really asked for much from him in return so, he'd repay her a thousand times over if he could. De'Angelo made the quick fifteen minute drive to Sage's house, bobbing his head to music and smoking the rest of a blunt he had rolled earlier. His mind couldn't stop racing with all of the possibilities that his best friend could have to tell him. Whatever it was, it sounded bad and he wasn't sure if he was ready to hear it or not. Once he arrived at the home, he got out of the car and went to knock on the door since he assumed Sage didn't have her phone at the moment to be able to call her. After a few seconds the door swung open as Mrs. Medina's bright and wide smile graced her face. De'Angelo immediately pulled her into a tight embrace. "Hey ma, Sage called me not too long ago and asked me to come over. Is she okay?" "Oh, she's fine." Sanai playfully waved him off before stepping back a couple feet to allow him inside. "Come on in honey! Sage is upstairs in her room."

De'Angelo thanked her as he closed the door and began to make his way up the narrow flight of stairs that resided a few yards from the front door. As he moved through the house, he tried to listen for any sound that Sage might have had coming from her room since she was usually playing music or watching YouTube videos, but instead he was met with an eerie silence. There was no light coming from beneath her door, signaling that she had probably had her curtains closed and was in the dark.

He allowed a light sigh to escape his lips before he reached for the doorknob and swung the door open. Just as he suspected, it was pitch black in her room so he flipped the light switch on which instantly caused Sage to roll over and cover her eyes as she laid on her bed.

Her brown orbs were already red and puffy so they were a bit sensitive to the harshness of the light. Not to mention it went from pitch black to bright so abruptly.

Sage groaned at him, her voice muffled from being buried in the covers causing him to let out a low chuckle and flip the light switch back off.

De'Angelo closed the door and made his way over to the bed once his eyes began to adjust to the darkness that overtook the small bedroom. Kicking off his slides, he climbed underneath the covers since she had been out of them so there would be a slight barrier between them as he laid behind her and threw his arm over her shaken body in attempts to comfort her. "Hey... you ok?"

He was answered by a light sniffle as her body vibrated a bit more from her silent crying. He quietly began to rub her arm as he gave her a moment to contain herself enough to speak. "I'm... I—" Her painful sobs started up again before she turned around in his hold and buried her head in his chest, her arms tucked into her own chest as he hugged her a bit tighter now, knowing she needed the comfort.

De'Angelo rubbed gentle circles onto her back and the warmth from his hand relaxed her. After a few minutes of peaceful silence, she sniffled and pulled her head away from his body enough for her to be understandable when she spoke. "Last night, I started walking home from the restaurant."

"So you saying that lame ass nigga ain't give you a ride home?" Her best friend quickly interrupted her, his eyebrows furrowing in distaste.

Sage only rolled her eyes, though it was dark so he couldn't see her. "Man, that lame ass nigga ain't even pay for my food. But that's not the point! The point is... while I was walking home, I heard a scream. And then another scream for help so, I walked over to go check it out and saw the most terrifying thing." She halted her words as the violent images resurfaced in her mind. "There was someone just hitting two women to death."

"Are you serious?" De'Angelo asked as he looked down at her silhouette. She began to sniffle again as she nodded causing her friend to pull her into his chest and embrace her once more. "I'm so sorry, baby girl." His low voice lightly rumbled both of their bodies.

He couldn't imagine being in her shoes and seeing something like that. He had walked in on his mom's lifeless body and that was the worst thing he thought he could ever possibly see, but if he would have actually witnessed her death took place... He wasn't sure if he would have been able to live with himself after that memory was etched into his brain. Hell, it was hard fighting himself to stay alive now.

Sage continued to pour her emotions out to her best friend as he comforted her in any way that he could. She hadn't even got this worked up when she had first told Sergio about the incident. "And now, what's worse is that I dropped my phone before I ran away and the police have it."

"Wait, what? You don't think they'll think you have something to do with it, right? Did you call it in when it happened?" De'Angelo fired off rapidly, a million thoughts now racing through his mind.

"I didn't have my phone!" Sage shot back in a hushed tone so her parents wouldn't hear the conversation between the two. "And when I got to Sergio's house, I didn't even think to use his. I was just so caught up in what happened—"

She paused abruptly which prompted her friend to look down at her in the darkness, his eyebrows perched up in confusion as if she could see him. A knock sounded off on her bedroom door causing them both to furrow their brows since Sanai rarely ever came to Sage's room for anything.

"Come in." Sage called out which prompted the door to be swung open only seconds afterward.

Her mother's silhouette came into view as the only things illuminating her frame were the lights from the hallway. "Your brother said to turn on the news." Sanai shrugged before closing the door, not bothering to wait around and find out what for.

Sage's relationship with her mother was strained and often they said very few words to each other unless it involved Shamar. Sage felt like she had sacrificed a lot, dropping out of school to come home and help take care of her father and pitch in on the bills on such short notice and her mother didn't give her enough credit for that.

Sage entered her dorm room, sweat beads dripping from her forehead and her chest heaving exhaustingly from her morning run. She had ran for about an hour and a half every other day before she showered and got ready for class. She was more of a morning person; when the sun was up, she was up.

She immediately began gathering her daily hygiene things to start up her shower. Grabbing her phone to turn on some music while she did so, her eyebrows knit together in confusion once she noticed the multiple calls from her mother. They hadn't spoke since she started the semester because both of them had their own responsibilities to tend to and understood that. So, it was weird to see so many missed calls from her.

Just when she was about to call her mother back, her screen flashed with that very name printed across the top causing her to pick up instantly. "Hey mom, everything ok? I see you—"

"It's your father, sweetheart." Sanai cut her daughter off, a somber tone displayed in her voice. "He got in an accident a couple months ago with your brother in the car. He's—They say he won't be able to feel anything from the shoulders down for the rest of his life."

The line got silent as Sage attempted to process the information she was receiving. A couple of months? And she was only just finding out about it then.

"What? Why wouldn't somebody call me and tell me that daddy and Gio got into an accident? Y'all don't think that's something I should know too?!" Sage yelled into the phone, frustrated with her family for not informing her any sooner. More so with her mother because her father physically couldn't and as far as she knew, Sergio might have been injured too.

She heard her mother sigh on the other end of the line. It wasn't one of sadness, but more so annoyance. "Sage, your father and I didn't wanna bother you while you were away at school. It isn't like you pick up the phone anyway. How many times did I have to call before you finally answered?"

"That doesn't matter!" Sage's hand flew to her face as she closed her eyes and began to rub small circles into her temples, now pacing the floor. "So what? You call me to finally tell me that he's crippled now and that's it?"

"No. Your brother and I need your help down here caring for your father. Sergio's still going to school during the day and I have to work to take care of the bills. Somebody's gotta be there to help him." Sanai pleaded through the phone's speaker. "You can continue your classes online and just do that while you're at home with your dad."

Sage's hand flew back down to her side as her eyes bulged open at the favor her mother was suddenly trying to ask of her after not even bothering to call for months. She loved the freedom of being at her college with nothing to worry about but passing her classes and keeping food in her fridge. "Why me? You haven't tried hiring someone for that or something?"

It wasn't that she didn't want to help her family because she did, but that would ultimately mean she would have to choose between furthering her education and taking care of her parent. She was already halfway through with her credits and had been anticipating her graduation date since she was a mere freshman.

"Yes, Sage." Her mother answered sternly. She could tell Sanai was growing more annoyed as the conversation went on. She couldn't understand why her daughter wouldn't want to come back home and help the man who raised her. It was the least she could do. "But the first caretaker was a slacker and only checked on your father every couple of hours while I was away and the second was stealing from the house. I'm not hiring another stranger to stay in my home while I'm not there. Shamar needs someone who will show him the love and care that he needs and he can't get that from someone he doesn't even know." The line grew silent once again before Sanai sighed lightly after a minute or so.

"He needs his daughter, Sage."

She sighed as she sat up in her bed and began rummaging around for her remote by running her hand along the sheets of her bed since it was too dark for her to see anything on her own.

Once she found the small rectangular object, she pressed the 'on' button causing her TV to spring to life. She found the news channel in a matter of seconds and what she saw immediately made her blood turn cold.

"Last night, my two daughters were taken from me. And as I mourn the loss of them, let me reiterate that the person who did this will be found and persecuted swiftly." The city's mayor stood in front of a podium dressed in a cream suit as lights quickly and consistently flashed across his face, his pictures being taken as he spoke. His eyes were red and anyone who looked at him could tell he had been crying nonstop since he heard the news. "I will not stop until my daughters receive their proper justice." With that, he stepped away from the podium causing array of questions to be fired at him by the numerous reporters who wanted an inside story on the incident.

The short video of him stopped before a well put together middle aged woman appeared on the screen immediately after. "Mayor Holt has just spoken out about the double homicide of his twenty-two year old twin daughters, Malaysia and Kaniya Holt, that took place around seventeen hours ago. Autopsy report reveals the cause of death to be blunt force trauma to the head and massive swelling to the brain. The two young women were apparently beaten to death."

Sage drowned out the rest of the reporter's words going on about the suspects as De'Angelo laid beside her, speechless and astonished just as she was. Neither of them could find the right words to say about what they had just watched.

She had witnessed the mayor's daughters get murdered right before her eyes and according to the news, her cracked phone was the only piece of evidence left at the crime scene. She hadn't called to report what happened and went back to the crime scene the day after. It was only a matter of time before the police came knocking on her door and she'd have to find an answer for every question they threw at her, but she couldn't even find answers to the questions that she had.

She couldn't help but to shut off the TV, leaving her and De'Angelo in the pitch darkness once again. "Sorry, I just couldn't watch that anymore." She uttered out after a minute of silence. She felt like she wanted to spew up all the contents in her stomach right then and there.

Her best friend didn't blame her. He wasn't sure what he would do if he was in her position. So, he just held onto her. Sage sighed as she rubbed his back, thanking him without having to say a word. Small gestures like him showing up when she called would always resonate with her and remind her to never stop appreciating their friendship.

"Thanks for this by the way. I just didn't wanna be alone and my brother's cool and all, but he's not the best at comforting women." She added as she thought back to the night before and how silent Sergio had been the entire time.

De'Angelo playfully smacked his lips. "Chill, that make me sound like a whore." He spoke, emphasizing the last word in his Blac Youngsta voice causing the both of them to let out a short laugh as she gave him a knowing look. "Nah, but for real. You know I always got you and I know in my heart you wouldn't be able to do some shit like this. So if they come to you on some rah rah, I'll be fighting with you every step of the way. I promise."

Her heart grew warm as he spoke, grateful that she had at least one person in her corner at a time like this and that person was one of the most important to her. "I know you will. Thanks Angel, I love you."

"I love you too, Sage."

The two embraced each other once again as De'Angelo stared ahead at nothing in particular since he couldn't see anything in the first place. He was worried about her; physically and mentally.

The last time she had broke down like this was when she found out her father was never going to be able to walk her down the aisle or even hug her anymore. She had gone into a deep depression after that, starving herself and enduring sleepless nights, and he didn't want this situation to be a rerun of that.

So he meant what he said, he'd be there with her through everything the entire time and make sure she was doing well emotionally. No matter how long that took.