tsukikento - Tumblr blog

tsukikento · 3 years ago

Text

Empathetic Chapter 24

Pairing: Bakugou Katsuki x Reader

Summary: After your mom, the number 1 hero in America, gets offered a teaching position at U.A., you two pack up your things and head to Musutafu, Japan to start a new life. Pressure for you in America was at an all-time high, and now you’re in Japan, where almost no one knows you, or your family’s past.

This tale starts on your first day of class where your new teacher decides the best way for you to fit in is to fight against the strongest person in your class: Bakugou Katsuki.

Warnings/Genre: This piece will feature some angst and reference to an abusive parent, if you are ever worried about other tw’s feel free to send me an ask and I will let you know. There will also be fluff, pining, and slowburn.

A/N: Soooo, it's been a while? Hopefully, this chapter is good enough to make up for it? Lmk what you think!

If you want to be added to the taglist, pls send me and ask so I can keep track :)

(series masterlist)

When you entered the school office on Tuesday morning, it was emptier. A few desks were barren here and there, but the woman who helped you before greeted you as you entered. You gave her a kind smile and waved before motioning to Dr. Gaja’s office. The receptionist nodded her head in return and you ducked in a slight bow as thanks before heading on in.

You knocked on the door and heard a soft “Come in,” in response.

The office looked the same as it did yesterday. It was tiny and neat but clearly loved with books and trinkets. Across from the door was a wide, bay window with glorious sunlight coming from the south. To the left was her desk. It was L-shaped and allowed Dr. Gaja to turn and face patients while still having some room to write notes.

To the right was a simple couch with matching pillows and a couple of stuffed animals. One was of Hawks, a hero you heard a lot about even overseas. You couldn’t remember if it had been there yesterday and you realized you were way too closed off then. Finally, there were two chairs against the window.

The walls were decorated with art, some thank-you notes, and a pair of ornate Japanese lanterns. Dr. Gaja looked to the door in greeting. Her hands were shoved into a filing cabinet next to her wall. Before she closed it, you could see letters that indicated that she kept her patient files in there.

“Y/L/N-san!” The doctor greeted, “Welcome in.” She swiveled in her chair and opened a locked drawer before reaching in and pulling out an orange bottle.

As she did, you sat on your couch, gripping your bag’s strap because you were so nervous. “Do you have time to talk?” You asked and she turned to meet your face.

Her eyes widened in surprise, before softening. “Always,” She replied, welcoming you with her ever-kind aura.

“Good, good,” You fumbled out, not quite sure what to do with your hands.

Dr. Gaja lightly chuckled, leaning forward to place a gentle hand on your arm. It was freezing, but you supposed most hands ran cold. For a brief moment, your brain flashed back to the feeling of Bakugou’s hands on your own.

His hands would never be cold.

“Just relax,” A voice said, bringing you back to the present. “I’ll be here whenever you’re ready.”

With that, you forced yourself to take a breath. “Of course.”

A moment later, you let it all out.

“Well, my emotions were all messed up. Honestly, it’s embarrassing,” You laughed at yourself, feeling some heat on your cheeks and a pit in your stomach. “It was because my relationship was rocky with this one guy.”

“Another student?” Dr. Gaja inquired.

You hesitated for a moment before deciding to be truthful. It’s not like you could go into all this detail about hearing his thoughts without actually giving her a name. You were sure it would slip eventually. “Um, yeah. Bakugou Katsuki.”

She nodded seriously before flashing a smile and writing down some notes on a pad of paper she kept nearby.

“Anyways, on Sunday things got better. We started talking again and he kind of,” You weren’t sure what to say. “Confessed? But also subtly asked for us to go slowly so I wouldn’t say we are dating or anything.” You found yourself smiling before deciding to continue, lost in the ramblings and memory of such a special moment. “So, at our appointment, I didn’t really think anything of meeting with you. I figured my emotions would balance out.”

“Except?” Dr. Gaja guided you, clearly aware of where you were heading.

“Except now I can hear his thoughts!” You exclaimed.

“Aren’t you supposed to?”

“Not with these in,” You took out your earbud for a moment to show her the well-hidden quirk-suppressors. “I’ve had them for years and they have always worked. It helps keep people comfortable around me, but it also prevents me from becoming overwhelmed.”

You shifted in your chair, ready to share everything. “But not since yesterday.”

You then went into full detail about when you first heard Bakugou’s thoughts all the way to feeling his nerves without even touching him.

“Wow,” Dr. Gaja said when you finally finished. She had been leaning forward intently, clearly hanging on to every word you said. Finally, she pulled back, rolling a few feet back to her desk. She took in a deep breath and furiously jotted down notes.

“Yeah,” You replied, messing with your hair in frustration.

When Gaja was done writing, she looked back up at you with wide eyes.

“You’re so strong.”

You flushed at the compliment. Usually, people said that in fear, but Dr. Gaja was more impressed and amazed. “I guess,” You bashfully replied, scratching the back of your neck.

“Don’t sell yourself short, Y/L/N-san.” She smiled brightly at you. “But let’s get into it. Clearly, you don’t want to abuse your power, even if it means using it to its full potential.”

“Well, of course,” You said, “Especially with my father’s history.”

Dr. Gaja nodded in understanding,” Yes, I was updated on that before our meeting. Not to say I wouldn’t love to hear your side of things. But to the point, clearly, you don’t want to explore these new quirk findings along with your emotions. I’m so glad you came here to open up. Hopefully, we can explore this more through counseling to solve the problem. But these emotion suppressors should help a bit.”

She held up the orange bottle.

“We can monitor your progress each week. Instructions are on the bottle.”

She handed you the medicine which you tucked into your bag gratefully. You stood up and bowed in thanks.

“It was so great to talk with you,” Dr. Gaja said as she ushered you out. “You are going through a lot of changes, it’s normal to expect them to reflect in your quirk.”

The door clicked closed and you left the office, thanking the receptionist one more time.

You were glad to have your medication again and hoped these weekly meetings would help you get back to your old self.

I definitely can’t have this ruining my life like it has before.

The dorm was mostly empty when you got back. Even when you got up at seven, students were already filing out, going somewhere on campus to practice. According to Ashido, a large portion of the second-year class would be working in the first cityscape. The information was offered to you in case you wanted to train as well, but you were feeling up to it at the moment.

Either the training would remind you that you wouldn’t be participating on Thursday or your presence would remind other people and bring them down.

Instead, you took time in the empty building to clean your room. You didn’t have to wait for a washer to open up because no one else had time to fold their laundry. Your room wasn’t too messy. It was easy to keep clean considering you just moved in and spent most of your time elsewhere.

Afterward, you made yourself a deluxe breakfast with all your favorite foods. Not only were you craving them and happy to see that all the ingredients were in the cupboards and fridge, but you also knew your other classmates needed the prepared food even more than you.

The decadent and delicious meal helped to distract you from the difficult reality of your life. However, around lunch, a few classmates came back just to eat. You greeted them with a quick hello before cleaning up and getting out of their way. It wasn’t anyone you hung out with anyways. Maybe you would stay if it was.

Back in your room, you attempted to distract yourself as much as you could. You had about five hours to kill before you would go train with Aizawa and Shinsou. Sighing, you lay down in bed covering your eyes with your right arm to try and relax. However, it was impossible.

You debated not going at all. You could simply send Aizawa and Shinsou a text saying:

I think I’ll opt out of training today, Shinsou needs the training more anyways so please focus on him. Good luck, Shinsou!

The more your thought it over, the better of an idea it seemed.

You didn’t even want to train today! And Shinsou really did need the training! Depending on how he performed in the sports festival, Shinsou would either be placed in class 2-A or 2-B. You would surely love for him to join the class with you and he would need this extra training to make it.

All that was the reasoning you needed to actually send out the text.

A wave of relief washed over you after you pressed the button. There was nothing quite like canceling plans and enjoying a day in. Getting up from your bed, you grabbed a book off your shelf that you had yet to read. You perched yourself on the soft mattress and opened it up. Hours went by as you made an impressive dent in the story. It was an easy read and you didn’t have to use too much brain power to understand it.

You had lost track of time, but a loud knocking on your door brought you back.

You looked at your phone to see it was fifteen minutes before five.

“Open up!” A muffled voice called out from behind your door.

Is that? You questioned, getting up from your bed as the person on the other side continued to knock incessantly. If you heard correctly, then the voice calling out to you belonged to none other than–

You turned the doorknob and swung open the door. The knocking stopped as the door was pulled too far away to be reached.

Shinsou Hitoshi.

Stubborn as ever.

You should have known he would take time out of his training to make sure you did something.

“Come on, get dressed.”

You stared at the boy with your eyes wide, not moving from your spot on the floor.

“I don’t have all day here!”

Shinsou pushed past you and immediately began going through your things.

“Hey” You protested, “What are you doing?”

“Well, I am not going to let you wallow away in your room all day,” Shinsou replied. He pulled out a pair of spandex shorts from your dresser before opening up your underwear drawer. Recklessly, he pulled out various undergarments.

“That’s not what I’m doing,” You shot back as you jumped to grab everything he was tossing. You begrudgingly laced them into a pile in the corner. How dare he ruin what took you forever to organize.

“Really?” Shinsou questioned, turning to look at you with a skeptical face. He put a hand on his hip and leaned against your dresser.

“Yes, really!” You pouted and grabbed the book from your nightstand. “I’ve actually been reading.”

“Oh you poor thing,” He replied, giving you a look of pity.

Before you could retort, Shinsou pushed past you to the pants stored under your bed.

“Whatever,” You sighed. “Go through all my clothes, I don’t care. I’m not going so you shouldn’t waste valuable time that could be used for training.”

“Neither should you.”

You moved around and sat in your chair by the bed. “Haven’t you heard? I can’t participate in the sports festival this year.”

Shinsou got up from the floor and leaned over you before giving your forehead a swift flick.

“Ow!” You exclaimed, getting up and rushing to the mirror on your wall. Your forehead was getting rapidly red and you were sure it would bruise. He really put all his strength into that. You frowned at the forming bump and contemplated if you were allowed to wear beanies to class.

“Of course, I know, you dummy,” Shinsou explained as he grabbed a top out of your closet. “Doesn’t mean you aren’t training to be a hero!” He tossed you all the clothes he had. “You should still be putting your all into it because, in only a couple of years, you’ll be out on the street! You’ll have to protect everyone you can.”

You bit your lip, struggling to decide whether he was right or not. Shinsou Hitoshi, whether it was because of his quirk or not, had a way with words. You felt bad for not putting your all into doing the bare minimum when you clearly benefited from nepotism and he did not.

Shinsou flashed you a smile and his scarves came to life. “And if you don’t come, then I will drag you to practice.” The fierce smirk frightened you slightly. However, you knew deep down that this was all for your own good.

“Fine,” You conceded, “Just wait out there so I can change.”

You began pushing Shinsou out of your room and he chuckled loudly at your embarrassment.

When the door was closed, you made quick work of getting ready, not wanting Aizawa and Shinsou to wait on you any longer. Surprisingly, Shinsou picked out a combination of clothes you wore frequently. A lightweight top, matching shorts, and sweatpants to wear over them in case it was cold outside. After dressing, you rushed around to grab your bag and water.

When you came back out, Shinsou was leaning against the opposite wall and scrolling through his phone. He looked up at you and wordlessly grabbed your backpack to help carry your things. He shrugged it over his shoulder and glanced at you from his phone.

“Let’s fill up your water and get going, yeah?”

When you nodded, Shinsou turned his phone screen off and dropped the device into his pocket. He flashed you a small smile and you returned it before leading him to the elevator “Hopefully this will be your dorm soon,” You teased, nudging Shinsou in the ribs.

In response, the purple-haired boy rolled his eyes and shrugged.

“Don’t be so bashful,” You added. “You’ve beaten me plenty of times and I’m in Class 1-A.” After a moment you spoke again, “If you don’t get in I’ll riot.”

A laugh erupted from Shinsou as you pressed the button for the elevator. You followed soon after, imagining the scene as you created a rampage for such a small thing. You pictured fighting Principle Nezu while Aizawa wrapped Shinsou up in his own scarves.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. By the time they closed, you were both inside and your laughs had died down. You were left with a smile on your face as you observed Shinsou.

You could tell he was nervous, most likely because of how much weight this sports festival held for him. You still remembered watching the televised stream last year where he put everything on the line to prove his worth. You wished you could have been there, although it’s unlikely you would have even known him. You would probably be interning with some big hot shot and only know Shinsou as ‘that one purple-haired kid with a mind control quirk’.

Shinsou was subconsciously scratching the skin around his nails and picking at the beds. You were sure it was a frequent habit based on the dried, half-peeled skin on his fingers.

Maybe I should buy him bandaids, you thought, or a fidget toy. He seems like the type to fidget.

A comfortable silence surrounded you and Shinsou as you filled your water and walked next to each other to the practice room. There was a brisk wind outside despite summer approaching. Aizawa was already there when you arrived, an occurrence that was quite uncommon.

You apologized, bowing deeply as your teacher waved you away and instructed you to stretch and warm up.

He had you work on some more obscure skills that related to each of your quirks. Surprisingly, the man divided his time evenly. You were sure he would focus on Shinsou more. Not only was the purple-haired boy participating in a life-changing event, but he was also Aizawa’s prodigy.

It was clear how much admiration Aizawa held for the boy. One simple look was enough to show the care he put into teaching Shinsou. No touching or mind-reading was required to understand the nuances of their relationship and how Aizawa was passionately passing on his legacy to someone just as excited to receive it.

Before ending the night, Aizawa asked you to spar in anticipation of the sports festival. According to him, it always ended with a bracket-style tournament and he knew that would be a difficult spot for Shinsou.

“Don’t rely on your quirk,” Aizawa explained to him. “Everyone knows so it’s unlikely they will reply unless you irk them in some way.” Aizawa held up the scarf draped around his own body. “It’s unlikely you’ll be able to use this for mobility in the arena. Think quickly about what you can manage in such a specific situation.”

Aizawa walked you both outside to the sparring circle you used on your first day of class. He said it was the closest example of the arenas Shinsou might see at the sports festival. Surprisingly, you hadn’t made use of this area since your first day. No class ever brought you back here and Bakugou always chose to spar with you in a bustling location rather than head-on.

By now it was much colder outside and your body was gracious for the cool air against your hot skin. Looking at Shinsou, you could see he was deep in thought. He was picking at his nails again while staring straight forward into the distance.

“I’m not going to let you win, you know,” You said, breaking the silence and his concentration.

As if he wasn’t lost in thought, Shinsou shot back a rebuttal immediately. “I don’t need you to let me win.” Peering over at you, Shinsou flashed a weary smile. He was trying to hide his nerves and utterly failing.

Playing along, you rolled your eyes and replied with a simple and sarcastic, “Sure.”

From your peripherals, you could see the man huff slightly and increase his walking pace. If you were with Bakugou, the reaction would have been much bigger. And louder. A smile formed on your face and you were unsure if it was caused by the thought of Bakugou or the childish reaction of your peer.

You caught up to Shinsou and nudged him slightly. Afterward, you tore away and placed your belongings down to the side of the circle. You watched Shinsou do the same as you sip on your water. Carefully, you took out your earbuds and secured them in their case. Aizawa, who was father behind, trudged along, wrapped up in multiple layers.

When he finally arrived, you and Shinsou were poised in the ring, each waiting for the call to start. Aizawa sat down on the bench and you could tell he went from practically falling asleep standing up to becoming an attentive teacher.

“Go.”

Instantly, Shinshou’s scarves shot out towards you, hoping to grab you before your mind had a chance to tell your body to move. Unfortunately, Shinsou did a horrible job hiding this plan from you as you both waited for your teacher. Although, you do have to give him some credit because you were unsure what direction these scarves would come from.

Instinctively, you jumped upwards as the scarves swooped on your left and right sides. They followed you quickly and one tugged on your left foot before you could angle away. When you landed, the scarves were already on the move. Shinsou was barely thinking, he was simply concentrating on where you were and where you were going.

You found yourself rushing around the circle, narrowly avoiding the scarves and taking a few hits to the ground in the process. Shinsou wasn’t even trying to upset you and get you to talk to him. You groaned as you darted away once more, watching on as Shinsou stayed in one place, eyes focused on your figure.

If you kept this up, you would assuredly lose. You were fatigued and sore. Those scarves would inevitably catch up and you had no way of stopping them. If you had your knives, you could maybe get a couple of knicks in, but this felt impossible.

Until you clocked it.

Shinsou was so focused on his scarves and how they needed to follow you, that he wasn’t thinking about where you were. Thinking quickly, you decided to test this theory. Initially, you wanted to stay far away from him, hopefully out of range of the scarves or at least far enough away that you have time to counter. However, as you inched closer to him, the man never stuttered.

In fact, you jumped past him, getting only a few feet away, and he didn’t even move. He didn’t even think about how close you were, he only thought about following after you.

Once you realized that, you jumped back. Shinsou had a high mental fortitude and it was unlikely you could put him to sleep before his scarves would catch up and rip you away. Instead, you needed to go physical.

Rushing back to him, you faked like you were still running away.

When you were close enough, you pulled your arm back. By that time, Shinsou had realized his mistake. However, it was too late. Your fist hit his stomach and Shinsou groaned in pain as he was pushed back. Instead of attempting to avoid the blow, he ensured that he would stay in the circle instead.

His scarves had fallen limp onto the ground, his mind too preoccupied with the punch to use them. You could tell he was in pain, but trying to work past it quickly. If you let him, you were sure he would quickly wrap you up in the white cloth. However, you were also sure you could push him out of the perimeter with ease.

Instead, you brought Shinsou closer. You didn’t want the match to end quickly so you grabbed Shinsou’s hair and pulled him forward and down. His nose made contact with your knee and you let go as you dropped your leg. You were sure not to break it with the force you used, but you expected some bleeding.

“Are you kidding me?” He finally spoke furiously as he wiped at his nose.

Why didn’t I wear my fucking voice modifier? He questioned when looking at the blood on his hand. That definitely would have stopped this from hurting so much.

You smiled, making sure not to reply, and jumped back as Shinsou collected himself. You could have ended the match there. He was so blinded with pain and anger that you could have easily put him to sleep.

You heard Aizawa’s voice in your head, recognizing these allowances you were giving Shinsou. End it if you can, idiot.

Sighing, you moved to rush forward. However, before you could close the distance, Shinsou’s scarves moved again. If anything, they were even faster than before. Fueled by fury, Shinsou came for you. His scarves and he moved together, rushing you at every angle except up. You jumped forward, using Shinsou’s knee to push yourself. If he was thinking quickly enough, he would have been able to grab you by the ankle.

You pulled yourself up and pushed off of his head, landing behind him. You were tempted to grab onto his hair and pull him with you, but his scarves were once again on the move. Due to your kind heart, you were back in the same position you were in before.

Running across the circle, avoiding everything thrown at you by mere millimeters. Except now Shinsou was focused, not leaving you a single opening. He kept his distance from you and attempted to close off his mind. Even though you could still hear his thoughts, you knew it would be difficult to put him to sleep.

Minutes passed as you pushed yourself to run. Your breath was ragged and you had been tripped up multiple times by the scarves, narrowly avoiding capture. Finally, one caught you. It was on your right ankle as you lunged away. Quickly, you felt it tangle up your leg and flip you upside down. Blood rushed to your head as Shinsou chuckled and tentatively approached you.

He made sure to stay out of arm's reach but was soaking up his success with an annoying cheshire grin. He could have easily tossed you aside, but he didn’t. You could tell he wanted to gloat, the words echoing in your own head before he said them aloud.

What you did next was not your proudest moment. In order to distract Shinsou, you spit into his face. You aimed for his eye and didn’t quite hit it, but he still gasped in shock, brought a hand to his face, and let you go.

Ungracefully, you hit the ground and scrambled to your feet. You rushed to Shinsou, wanting to push him onto his back. Although disgusted, he still managed to keep his scarves afloat. However, they were dead in the air and you knew you needed to move quickly Despite Shinsou taking a couple of hits, you were much more fatigued than him and you were having trouble keeping focusing on Shinsou’s thoughts.

I need to take longer morning runs, you thought, to build up my stamina.

You pounced on Shinsou and he began to fall back. You were already attempting to put him to sleep when you felt cloth wrap around your arms and torso. Once taught, they tugged you away easily. You tried grasping onto Shinsou’s shirt, but it was too late. He fell to the ground with a thud and groaned before rolling to the side. Even though he was in pain, you could hear Shinsou keep his head clear and focused.

You would honestly be rather impressed if he wasn’t actively throwing you out of the ring.

In a last-ditch effort, you wrapped your arms around his scarves as they retracted to him, hoping it would pull you far enough back into the stadium. You let go of the scarves and fell to the ground on your front. You groaned in pain and a piercing headache formed in your head. The worse it felt, the harder it was to discern thoughts. You imagined jumping up quickly and recovering in time to fight back. Regardless, your movements were drastically slowed as you sighed in agony. Before you could get up, a clear voice rang out.

“Stop.”

You looked up to see Aizawa holding his right hand up. “It’s over,” He said, looking at you.

Your lips pouted and your eyebrows furrowed together. How?

Your mind was still too stunted to untangle the various thoughts coming in. “I can still fight,” You retorted, once again moving to get up.

“Your leg is out,” Aizawa replied, pointing to your back foot.

You rotated your neck to look despite just how much it hurt to do so. Sure enough, your left foot was just out of the circle by a few inches.

If only I held on longer, you thought as you turned back.

“In that case, carry me back, Shinsou.”

“What? Why?”

“Because I’m wiped out,” You explained.

“I won,” He responded, voice dripping in venom. “If anything, you should carry me back.”

“As if.”

Despite the argument, there was a smile plastered on both of your faces. Maybe it was the exhaustion, but it seemed like this good fight was all Shinsou needed to reassure him of his abilities. You stared at each other, sharing a silent sentiment until Aizawa spoke up once again.

“There will be no carrying of one another unless something is broken,” He stood up from his spot on the bend. “Sleep if off and go to recovery girl tomorrow if it gets worse.” With that, your teacher walked off, wordlessly ending the argument and your training session.

A pregnant pause filled the air until you and Shinsou looked back at each other. He was still on his back but had propped himself up with his elbows. You, on the other hand, stay on your front, much too lazy to move. Upon seeing Shinsou, you erupted into laughter and he quickly followed suit.

You rolled to your side, clutching your abdomen. If it hurt you to laugh, you were sure Shinsou felt worse. When your chuckling died down, you finally got up. You were surely going to be sore tomorrow, but it was worth it to help a friend. You moved to him and offered a hand. His laughter faltered every few seconds, likely from the discomfort of your punch.

He accepted your hand and allowed you to pull him up. He finally stopped laughing and left your side to grab his things. You each worked silently, small groans filling the quiet night as you grabbed your belongings and sipped on water.

You put the bottle to your face, allowing the cool metal to balance out the heat on your cheeks. Putting it down, you put your earbuds back in, grateful for the silence.

“Thanks for making me come.”

“Thanks for coming.”

Shinsou flashed you a kind smile before gesturing for you to lead the way.

“You’re going to do great by the way,” You added. “If you can beat me without even using your quirk then you can beat anything.”

Shinsou scoffed and you immediately nudged him in the ribs, albeit softer than usual.

“Hey!”

Shinsou began laughing at you, covering his mouth as he snickered. You were about to kick him until he peeled over, groaning and holding his ribs.

“Ha! Ha!” You said, “That’s what you get for being a meanie!”

You began walking away from him, although you didn’t plan to go too far. However, a swift tug to your ankle pulled you down and back onto your face.

“Ugh!” You exclaimed, sitting on your butt immediately. You began touching your face to see if anything was bleeding. “I’m gonna need plastic surgery by the end of this year if you keep this up, Shinsou.”

The purple-haired man laughed once more before getting up and offering you his hand.

“I have half a mind to pull you down, you know,” You complained before allowing him to pull you up.

“Truce?” He asked, raising his eyebrow at you.

With a grimace on your face, you agreed and let go of his hand. You began the walk back to your dorms before Shinsou spoke up.

“So,” He began, moving ahead of you and turning to meet your eyes. “How are things with,” He paused, “That angry rat of a man?”

Your mouth was agape and your cheeks were hotter than they had been minutes ago.

“Fine, I guess?” You replied, turning your head to not meet his eyes.

Shinsou scoffed at you before adding, “I’ll beat him up at the sports festival if you want me to.”

“Don’t do that,” You frowned. Shinsou stared at you, silently asking for more information. “Things are good.”

“And?”

“And we are taking things slowly but he basically confessed,” You offered.

“He did?”

“I don’t know!”

“Well, what did he say? Exactly!”

“He said,” You furrowed your eyebrows and deepened your voice, “‘I can’t lose you so please be patient.’”

Shinsou stopped his tracks, he had a wide smirk on his face and his eyebrows were raised. “What in the middle school romance was that?” He exclaimed. “I feel like I need to run a mile to wipe that cringe off of me.”

“Oh my god, Shinsou!” You complained, moving to push him.

Your friend easily dodged your attack.

“It was sweet at the moment, okay?” You pleaded.

“No, no,” Shinsou began, “I’m sure it was! In all honesty, I would expect Mr. Explode-y Man to combust on the spot if he ever said something that sappy.”

“Well, he didn’t.”

“Obviously,” Shinsou replied, rolling his eyes at you. “He must really like you, idiot.”

“I guess so.”

“I gUeSs sO.”

“Can you not?”

“I can do whatever I want,” Shinsou taunted. “Also, as your, self-appointed, best friend, making fun of the guy you like is part of my job. I can’t push you into this and then feel like an asshole if something goes wrong.”

“Whatever,” You held out your hand and began breaking apart to go to your own dorm.

“Hey, hey! Wait up!”

You stopped and looked back, allowing Shinsou to catch up.

“Listen, I am very happy for you,” A smile broke out on his face once more, “I just wasn’t expecting him to go from ignoring you to basically confessing his undying love.”

“He did not confess his un–”

“I know, I know, but I barely know the guy, and am sure that was a lot coming from him,” Shinsou explained.

You shrugged your shoulders and looked away biting your lip. Finally, you explained, “He kinda only started talking to me again because you made him jealous.”

“Me?” Shinsou pointed at himself, “Oh god I am going to get my ass beat in the sports festival.” Shinsou began pacing from side to side, pulling at his hair in worry. “He will literally rip me limb from limb and then tear me in half staring at my asshole.”

“Oh my god, Shinsou! He is not that bad! ”

Shinsou paused before walking back up to you. He grasped your shoulder with one hand and pointed at himself with the other. “I was never here, okay?” He began walking away before calling out, “Make sure he knows we are JUST FRIENDS!”

“Shut up, Shinsou!”

“You shut up!”

“Oh my god,” You mumbled to yourself before turning away and walking into the dorm. Your friend could be such an idiot sometimes.

taglist: @nova-xy @spinspin20 @sqno @buzzyboi79 @nottherealslimshady @yangsbff @whiskey-19 @angerymunchkin @asmaechan @toxic-swan @dorkwithapun

Sorry if your tag doesn't work :(

80 notes · View notes

tsukikento · 3 years ago

Text

Empathetic Chapter 23

Pairing: Bakugou Katsuki x Reader

This tale starts on your first day of class where your new teacher decides the best way for you to fit in is to fight against the strongest person in your class: Bakugou Katsuki.

A/N: I’m so curious what you guys think of this chapter!! Pls lmk :) also send an ask if you want to be added to the taglist; ppl crossed out couldn't be tagged

(series masterlist)

Your heart thumped at the statement. Only Bakugou could manage to be so open and yet entirely closed off. Not saying what he wants to, but saying just enough to get by.

What was it that he wanted you to be patient about?

You were fairly certain you knew. With the warmth of his hands, pink on his cheeks, and just overall tone, you were sure he was speaking romantically.

It’s not like he would ask Kirishima or Kaminari to be patient with him. He would just do his own thing and insist they adjust to him. You took a deep breath as you stared back at him.

“O-okay,” You choked out, not entirely sure what to say.

“Good,” Bakugou replied. The heat of the moment was fading away. He looked down at your intertwined hands and squeezed yours. There were a few beats of silence where you simply watched him until he finally spoke again, “Alright, let’s head out.”

Despite the abrupt and rather romance-ending statement, Bakugou didn’t let go of your hand until you got back to the dorm.

It felt natural to have him guide you. You could see a hint of a smile etched onto his face as you two walked. You felt butterflies erupt in your stomach and a shiver rush through your body every time he squeezed your hand. It was as if he was making sure you were still there.

Can he tell how nervous I am? You thought as he looked at you for a moment before turning suddenly when you made eye contact. He’s probably just as nervous, you realized, trying to calm yourself down and stop focusing on your entwined hands.

It was also then that you realized you wanted to get to know Bakugou better. You wanted to ease into things with him. You didn’t want to assume. You wanted to be sure. And you hoped Bakugou felt the same. You hoped his declaration would be followed by actions.

If there was anything to be sure about though, it was that Bakugou mainly spoke through actions and you had no reason to fear the opposite.

You woke up Monday morning feeling much better. Balanced, would be the ideal word. You spent the rest of your Sunday relaxing before dinner which was much needed after the ups and downs of this past week.

“It’s a new week!” You declared while admiring your outfit in the mirror.

A new week meant new opportunities. And new relationships in your case. At least, I think it’s new. More than friends, but not quite defined. You smiled assuredly in the mirror. You were okay with that. You were okay with going slow and being patient.

As you went on your morning run, you went through all the tasks for today.

First, you needed to get ready for class. Then, instead of going to homeroom, you had an appointment with the school nurse. You thought over this appointment, wondering how necessary it still was. You felt like you were on cloud nine, and you were sure this improvement in your mood will reflect well in your quirk abilities.

It’ll just be a quick check-in, you decided. It won’t hurt to go, but you weren’t in dire need like you were days before.

Afterward, you actually had class. Then, you would cook dinner with Bakugou and Sero. You were honestly excited to cook. In reality, you just wanted to excuse to spend time with Bakugou, but you were feeling more confident about him wanting to as well.

You looked down at your watch when you noticed your playlist ended. You had ended up running for an additional ten minutes and you still had to make your way back to the dorm! You turned on your heels and rushed home, letting your mind slip away once again.

Maybe I should ask him on a date, you inquired as you came back from your run and began your journey to grab your toiletries from your bedroom. Well, not a date, but another one-on-one thing so we can get to know each other.

You felt your face flame with heat as you thought about what you would do. You didn’t want to get ahead of yourself, but it was difficult not to when your heart beat so fast and your head felt so sure about Bakugou’s interest.

As the elevator opened on your floor, lo and behold: Bakugou.

You practically squealed in surprise when you saw him.

He looked you up and down and you were sure he could tell how nervous you are.

“You look like shit,” Bakugou choked out in between laughs that we caused by your reaction and your appearance.

You found yourself pouting and easily protesting with, “I’ll have you know I just went on a very vigorous run.”

Bakugou scoffed once again, a habit he formed when he wanted to laugh but was trying to hold it back. “Sure.” Bakugou patted your head as he passed you to enter the elevator.

At that moment you heard something unexpected.

Vigorous? Why did they have to use that word? Ugh, fuck. It’s okay, just move on like they aren’t saying something kind of sexual while looking like that.

You couldn’t speak. You turned to him just as the elevator doors finally closed.

Even with your earbuds in, you could hear his thoughts. Was it the touch that allowed for this? You wondered. Granted, you were giddy that he wasn’t shying away from touching you. It was one thing for Bakugou to initiate contact. It was a whole other thing when it was with you because it would give you a glimpse into his feelings.

Did he do that on purpose? I could tell he was happy, but I definitely couldn’t discern that he was trying to hold back his horniness. You flushed and rushed back to your room at the thought as if someone would see you and know what you were thinking.

There were a few weird things about this situation. For one, you should NOT have been able to hear his thoughts. Secondly, you couldn’t make out his emotions as clearly as you should have been, especially since you were in a good mood. And third, has he been having these thoughts about you before??

Maybe I do need that appointment with the nurse.

Chiyu Shuzenji, otherwise known as Recovery Girl, was the official nurse of UA. She was beloved among the hero community and was known for her healing kiss. Although she is incredibly knowledgeable about injuries within the body, she does have some blind spots in the medical field that UA filled with other nurses. Some are training students who work on bandaging regular injuries that don’t need rapid healing.

Especially with her age, UA wants to reserve Recovery Girl for dire situations.

In addition, they have more seasoned doctors who specialize in a variety of fields.

When you entered the room, you were greeted with a large desk. The person behind it was young, possibly a student.

“Hello,” You greeted, giving her a small bow and she welcomed you in. “I’m Y/L/N Y/F/N. I should have an appointment?”

“Ah, yes! With Dr. Gaja, I’ll let her know you’re here.” She gestured to some seating, “Please sit it should only be a moment.”

True to her word, you sat for about a minute for Dr. Gaja to call you in.

“Hi, Y/L/N-san,” She greeted you before ushering you to her office. Once inside, she had you take a seat on a couch and she sat in her chair. “I’m Dr. Gaja Sunako, otherwise known as Preserve. Have you ever heard of me?”

You shook your head. You didn’t expect the doctors to be heroes.

“That’s okay,” She replied with a kind smile. She turned to a photo and showed it to you. She was about twenty in the photo and you presumed it was about ten years ago. She was standing next to a few different heroes, one of which you recognized to be Recovery Girl.

“My quirk isn’t all that amazing,” Gaja began explaining, “I just have a high intelligence with a specialty in understanding the mind. I can kind of create a map of someone’s brain,” The woman gestured as if she was seeing something in front of her. “I’ve tried explaining it before, but no one seems to visualize it as I do.”

You nodded, following along as best you could.

“Anyways,” She said, clapping her hands together, “That’s why I’ll make a good person to help you with your quirk.” She turned to her computer and began clicking around. “From my understanding, you can hear people’s thoughts and feel or adjust people’s emotions when you touch them. Is that correct?”

“As far as I know,” You replied, reminding yourself of what happened earlier that morning. “Usually, I wear these special earbuds though. The mind-reading can be overwhelming and people aren’t too fond of knowing I can hear their thoughts.”

“Wonderful,” She began, “And according to Aizawa, you’re having trouble controlling it?”

“Somewhat,” You answered, “It’s heavily linked to my emotions. I’ve used emotion stabilizers in the past.”

“Of course, I’m sure it’s only worsened with all the stress around your family right now,” Dr. Gaja added.

You simply nodded your head, deciding that you didn’t really want to stray into family issues. “Yeah, anyways. I know my mom filled something out with all my previous medications so I’d love to get it refilled and then maybe we can adjust from there. I’m feeling much better so let’s start low.”

“Now, now, hold on,” The doctor said. She smiled kindly at you and reminded you of the therapists you met with before who analyzed your quirk. It was hard to understand. Your quirk was so powerful and seemingly endless, but there was no one to ask about it besides your father. “I am happy to start you with something if I find it necessary, but I want you to know you’re in good hands. Let’s just get to know each other right now.”

You felt unsure. You weren’t one to open up easily, something that could easily be blamed on your father and how that has affected your relationships. Despite that, you nodded and listened along to Dr. Gaja Sunako as she asked your questions. You steered away from certain topics, for the time being, hoping it was enough.

In the end, Dr. Gaja agreed to put you on a light prescription. She asked to meet up with you every Monday during homeroom, something that may change depending on the necessary frequency.

“I should be able to get them to you tomorrow,” She explained. “See me tomorrow at 9:00 am so I can hand them over.” She looked deeply into your eyes for a moment. “It was lovely meeting with you, I can’t wait to talk more.”

You felt yourself swell with emotions. Something felt so safe and secure with Dr. Gaja. You were naturally tentative around someone new, but maybe you didn’t have to be? Maybe she was the outlet you needed.

As you left for class, you couldn’t help but think about her.

When you slid open the door to class, everyone silenced and looked at you. They were all waiting for the next teacher to come in and assumed the door sliding was an indicator. However, most eyes didn’t tear away when they saw you.

“Y/F/N-kun!” Ashido exclaimed and she bounded up to you with a smile. She grabbed your hand and led you to your desk where she had been sitting, chatting with Kirishima and Hagakure. “Where were you?” She asked, loud enough so everyone in the class could hear.

“I was meeting with a quirk specialist,” You truthfully answered.

Luckily, no one bothered you for further explanation.

When lunchtime rolled around, Bakugou eased back in his chair and called out to you.

“Yo, eat with me,” He simply said before getting up.

You nodded, collecting your things with a smile and following him out.

You didn’t expect anything special from the interaction, you thought the blond just wanted to make sure you sat with his group instead of anyone else. However, when you sat down, you realized no one else was around. Kirishima and Ashido were most likely in the courtyard. Sero and Kaminari sat at a table with Mineta which made you sick to your stomach. Despite that, you kept your attention on Bakugou, realizing he must have told them to make other plans.

You smiled graciously at the idea.

However, for most of the lunch, you two sat silently. You scraped your brain for talking points and couldn’t think of anything of value. Eventually, you resided to enjoy the silent company and you ate today’s lunch of curry, rice, fruit, and a protein shake.

When there were only a few minutes left in lunch, Bakugou finally spoke. “Um, so,” He began, pausing when you looked up to him.

So cute, you heard his voice in your head.

“We should go somewhere on Sunday. I think we could take a break from sparring since we’ve been working so hard for the sports festival.”

Even though you can’t participate…

“I’m down,” You agreed, ignoring his thoughts for the time being.

“Cool, I’ll text you the details.” He paused for a while and looked at his empty plate. “Is your quirk okay?”

Oh no, does he know I can hear his thoughts? Am I giving it away?

“Yeah,” You replied, faking a bashful laugh, Why do you ask?”

Bakugou scratched his chin, “You said you went to a quirk specialist.” He bit his lip and shrugged, “Not like I care, I just wanna make sure you don’t like totally implode on me or some shit.”

Since you could hear his thoughts, you were certain that’s not how he actually felt. “Sure,” You replied in the same tone he did this morning. You rolled your eyes and the bell rang, signaling you to grab your belongings.

Bakugou followed after you, shouting to grab your attention. You turned around to look at him briefly. Your cheeks hurt from how wide you were smiling and you let out a laugh as you saw Bakugou’s annoyed face.

Turning back and fading into the crowd you hurt a thought.

Wow…

For the rest of the class, you did your best to follow along with your lessons. However, most were last-minute comments for the sports festival. Positive comments about how we should all be proud regardless of what we can anticipate.

Since you were in the second year, your class would be going on Thursday. Technically today was the last day of class because you were given Tuesday to prepare, Wednesday to either prepare or watch the first years and Friday to watch the third years.

However, most of your attention was on the occasional voice you could hear. It seemed that anytime Bakugou had a thought about you, it would push through your earbuds. Some were about a sparring technique he wanted to try on Wednesday.

I guess he isn’t watching the first years, you realized.

Other thoughts came when he was not paying attention. You could feel his eyes on you.

Maybe I’ll take them to an arcade. Or will I get too competitive?

You couldn’t help but let a wide smile crack onto your face. You dipped your head into your arms to hide your smile as you tried to focus on class rather than Bakugou’s thoughts. You reminded yourself to try and figure out this weird side effect soon.

Although, you didn’t know how you would even do that.

After class, Bakugou immediately pulled you and Sero aside.

Since most students would be busy for the rest of this week, Momo decided to cancel all cooking starting Tuesday till Saturday. However, she also asked Bakugou to prep more food than usual so people could eat those leftovers.

Some other students offered to help from what you heard, but he denied them, saying they would only get in the way.

Clearly, he wanted to get started right away.

The three of you silently walked back together. Some students followed along, while others went to practice.

“We can all go change and whatever, but I want you guys back and ready in 15 minutes,” Bakugou explained as you approached the dorm.

You nodded in acknowledgment and went up in an elevator ride with the two.

After changing into more comfortable clothing, you made your way back downstairs where Bakugou was already grabbing out everything you would be cooking with.

From what you could tell, the supply of simple proteins, carbs, and vegetables indicated that Bakugou was going for classics that would be delicious, nutritious, and easy to grab.

The second he saw you, Bakugou delegated. “Soak and wash the vegetables, starting with the napa cabbage.”

You knew that this wouldn’t be an opportunity to chat with Bakugou so you simply nodded and grabbed a few bins. You filled each bin up with water and put various vegetables in each. One bin was specifically for napa cabbage, a leafier cabbage that was easy to digest. You opened up the leaves to allow water in and flicked off pieces of dirt. After, you moved on to other vegetables, rubbing off the dirt that was left over from the shipment process.

The act was quite relaxing You were perched on a stool and simply focused on a small task. However, it was so satisfying to pull away and see the dirt swimming in the water. You drained everything and put them onto the clean counter so they were easy to grab when needed.

“Good,” You heard, finally noticing Bakugou. He had been washing an immense amount of rice, but now he was standing right behind you, his breath delicately touching your ear as he said, “Now, soak these fruits in cold water, ice, and a little bit of vinegar.

Although you were flushed from his proximity, you were also facing away from him. Hiding your cheeks as you turned, you nodded in acknowledgment and poured ice-cold water into the bins once more.

You left the fruit to soak longer and worked on cutting vegetables while you waited.

Sero, who arrived a few minutes after you did, was cutting up proteins and marinading them.

The entire cooking process was rather nice. Bakugou delegated simple tasks, too busy to critique. You each worked rather silently and the rhythmic chopping of knives hidden wood cutting boards was nice.

Bakugou sauteed different veggies, the sound of sizzling and splashing oil dancing on your eardrums. Sero fried some protein.

By the end, you all had made various side dishes, mass amounts of rice, and some entrees like braised pork, curry katsudon, and cold tofu.

The three of you began putting away servings of the food that would be easy to grab. Mos bowls consisted of rice or noodles, some variety of seasoned and sauteed vegetables, and then a protein source.

The curry katsudon was mainly for tonight since it wouldn’t keep as well as the other dishes. When everything was rather tidy, students began coming into the living area, sniffing the fragrant air.

Gratefully, each person bowed to thank you as you gave them equal servings of food.

“There’s no seconds tonight!’ Bakugou announced. “If you want more, you have to get food from the fridge. We made enough for each person to have five Tupperware meals.”

“Oh my god, that’s so much!” Jirou exclaimed. Other students joined in with the commotion, whispering among each other about how much work it must have been.

“Wow,” Momo spoke up, grabbing everyone’s attention. “That’s so kind of you. Thank you for the hard work!” Momo bowed, starting a trend among the other students before they all finally sat down.

Bakugou handed you and Sero your own bowls and ushered you all to the usual dinner spot where Ashido, Kaminari, and Kirishima were already waiting.

Ashido was already gushing about how delicious the food was before you even sat down.

“Now, I love chicken as much as the next person,” She began, “But the silken tofu fried like katsu is so delicious.” She took a big bite and hummed in appreciation.

“Sero fried it,” You added, giving him a thumbs-up as he ate his own chicken.

Before you could react, you watched a pair of chopsticks expertly reach out and grab a piece of your tofu.

“Hey!” You pouted as you turned to Bakugou as he dipped the tofu into his sauce and ate it.

“What?” He replied, totally aloof. “I wanted to try the tofu since Ashido sang its praises.” He perked up and smirked, “I need more protein anyway since I’ll be beating all of you this week.

“Just because I’m not participating in the sports festival doesn’t mean I don’t need to protein to kick your butt,” You snapped back with a smile, grabbing a piece of chicken from his plate just to show him that you could.

The group erupted in laughter, even Bakugou smiled slightly before turning back to his food. The conversation slid into talking about the possible events for Thursday and everyone’s plan for their final days of training.

After dinner, you, Bakugou, and Sero finished cleaning the dishes. Once you were finally done cleaning, you sipped on the water while you waited for the other two to dry off the last couple of bowls. You finally felt the fatigue hit you at this moment. Today was hectic and you were still trying to process it all.

Bakugou, who was yawning throughout the cleaning process, trudged up to you and waved his hands, directing you to the elevator.

“Don’t push me,” You teased as he came closer and closer. A wide smile adorned your face and how sweet he seemed at this moment.

“Come on, let’s go up! I’m tired,” He moaned as you finally began moving.

Sero went to the living room to watch a movie with Kaminari while you and Bakugou made your way upstairs. You waved goodbye to the two boys before catching yourself while Bakugou attempted to trample you to get to the elevator.

Despite being so close to you before, when you entered the elevator, you and Bakugou abruptly separated. Each other you went to one side of the small machine and bashfully smiled at the floors. Each suddenly realized just how different the sinister Bakugou Katsuki was acting.

It was in the silence of this closed-off elevator that you remembered you had been hearing Bakugou’s thoughts. However, it must not be a permanent change because you couldn’t hear any throughout cooking, eating, and cleaning.

You decided to push away the thought for now and you instead focused on Bakugou, who was yawning.

“Tired?” You asked.

Bakugou rolled his eyes, “Obviously.”

A smile formed on your face, “Can’t be too tired, you got lots of training tomorrow.”

“So do you,” Bakugou replied while looking you up and down.

“Not really.” You waved him off and rolled your eyes, all the while a smile was still plastered onto your face.

The elevator doors opened and Bakugou motioned for you to exit. “Yeah, I’m sorry you can’t participate.” Bakugou scratched his arm and pursed his lips. You could feel how frustrated he was. If he was in your position, he would be fighting tooth and nail for the opportunity to participate. And the fact that you weren’t? Well, to him that was a sign that it was really something bad.

“It’s okay,” You said, your voice strained. You wished everything could be normal, but you were dealt this hand and had to work with it.

Bakugou gave you a sympathetic look. It only lasted a moment, but you could tell it was special. It felt like a cool, refreshing breeze on a hot day. Essential and something you wanted to experience over and over.

“Well, how about we watch the third years together?” Bakugou proposed. He looked down for a moment, “We could get food too.” He looked back into your eyes.

Like a date, you heard echo in your head.

Your smile faltered briefly. “I can’t actually go to the sports festival,” You explained, “They’re having me stay in the dorms to keep me safe.”

You could feel nerves erupting from Bakugou, filling the room with a cloudy unease.

You could feel-

Wait, I can feel?

No, no I should not be able to feel his emotions without touching him!

Panic surged through you and you had to stop yourself from physically running away in shock. You attempted to put every sense away and focus on the here and now, but it felt impossible.

“Then let’s just watch here,” Bakugou suggested.

You already knew what he would say, but you let him continue.

“We could get takeout and either watch on the TV or my laptop,” He suggested before adding, “I wouldn’t want to go out anyways. Everyone will probably bother me after my win.”

A familiar wide smirk adorned his face and you found yourself smiling back. It was a combination of seeing his smile, admiring his confidence, and knowing that he only said that to make you feel better about staying in.

“Sure,” You answered, “I would love that.”

You never realized how nervous he was around you. He looked so cool, calm, and collected, but his brain and emotions were running a mile a minute.

You could feel him relax slightly. “Cool.”

You two had made it to your door by now. Slow, lingering movements were made before you each paused, not sure where to end the conversation.

Not sure if you even wanted it to end.

“Well,” Bakugou began, “If I don’t see you before then, make sure to watch on Thursday.” You could feel that he truly meant it. “So you can watch me beat everyone.”

He didn’t mean that.

Well, he did, a little

But he mainly wanted to know that you were watching him. If you couldn’t be there. If you couldn’t be alongside him, putting your all into your passion, then he wanted to make sure he knew you were just on the other side of the camera.

The idea of you watching him succeed made him swell with pride you rarely sensed. You felt your face heat up furiously. “O-of course,” You stuttered out.

Not only were his thoughts and feelings lighting you up with nerves, but the way he just looked at you was making your head spin. It was like his eyes were boring into you, wanting to tell you every little thought on his mind.

And yet, you knew every little thought. It was a lot to process, and some ideas were jumbled and barely identifiable, but you knew.

“Bye,” You finally said abruptly before turning open your door and shutting it right away. The distance did little to stop these thoughts.

He was confused and a little hurt, but rubbed it off and went into his room.

Finally, the distance between your rooms was enough to stop it all.

You were shocked, utterly perplexed about how this was happening. Worst of all, you had no one to call. No one to help you through it.

A nagging voice in the back f your mind spoke up.

You do have someone.

That’s right, Dr. Gaja was your only hope to figure out what was wrong with you.

taglist: @nova-xy @spinspin20 @sqno @buzzyboi79 @nottherealslimshady @yangsbff @whiskey-19 @angerymunchkin

76 notes · View notes