Chapter 21

Bakugo paced across the front yard until he was back on the public sidewalk again. His teeth started to chatter as the cold became a lot more intense after being inside eating the hot food. Quickly, he checked his surroundings. Assuming that he went back the way he came, he was sure to find his way to the most direct route to the train station. A part of him felt a little bad ditching her like that, but the rest of him practically screamed for him to get away, and so he did. Without a second thought, he shoved his hands in his pockets and swiftly walked back the path of which he came.

"Bakugo!" She shouted distantly behind him, which only fueled him to move faster. "Hey! Wait!"

He continued to ignore her but could tell by the sound of her footsteps that she was getting closer. Damn it! His feet adjusted into a jog, and then a run. He maneuvered around the various people walking by with ease, but before long, the street crossing came into view with a fairly large crowd standing by to wait for the light. Shit. If only he could use his quirk in this weather, then he would've been able to fly over those fuckers. Even if he could, if someone recognized him and reported him back at U.A. for using it unsupervised, there would be no saving him from expulsion. This light was taking too damn long.

He looked to his left and then his right, hoping to find a gap between the cars that he could move through. Who cares if the light didn't turn yet? At least it would hold her off and then maybe she would get the picture that he wanted to be left alone. The light started to change to yellow, and the cars slowed down. Now was his chance!

Right when he was about to move, Katsuki was instantly jerked back by a tug on his jacket.

"Damn it…"

Turning around, he locked with her leafy green eyes. Her complexion read concerned and upset, which triggered that weird, pained feeling back in his stomach. He didn't know why it kept coming back. Maybe he should've drank some more water before he left. Spicy food never really affected him this badly, but then again, he's never gone as high as a Scorpion Pepper before. Maybe that was it…

"What the hell, Pop Rocks? Why'd you leave like that? And then run from me?"

He could hear the hurt in her words but forced himself to ignore it and smacked her arm to release him.

"I thought I told you to stop calling me that!… It's like I said, I wanted to leave."

Her brow creased, not buying his answer.

"Tell me the real reason."

He groaned and clenched his hands harder. "Look, I don't feel right! I just want to go home!"

"Was the food too spicy for you? I can get you something for your stomach." She suggested. He knew she was trying to show she cared, but it only bothered him more.

"No! Damn it, why are you trying to be so nice to me all the damn time?!"

She blinked, even more confused than before.

"Huh? I'm doing this because I want to be friends."

"Well maybe I don't want that!"

Her body tensed up a bit. He had been completely honest with what he said, but quickly felt the stomach pain worse when her shoulders slumped. For some odd reason, he stupidly wondered if he should take it back.

"… Did I do something?" she muttered.

Shit… He fidgeted the edge of his sleeve, making sure he wasn't going to say anything. She knew something wasn't right. Whatever was going on, he didn't look okay, and the lack of response only made it that apparent. To keep him from trying to leave again, she kept a hand on his jacket sleeve.

"You weren't like this before. Tell me what's wrong. Maybe I can help."

He shoved her hand away again.

"There's nothing you can do."

Her complexion drooped along with the rest of her body. She wasn't entirely sure if it was her that was the problem or if it was something else that he didn't feel comfortable talking about. Either way, she felt saddened that he didn't want her around. She had assumed things were going good up until this point. Something changed that, but what was it?

"I'm sorry. I promised I would treat you to whatever you wanted to do today… but if you really want to go home, at least let me walk you to the train station." Akane shifted her hopeful eyes up to him.

"No way! I'm fine walking by myself." He defended. Why wouldn't she just fuck off already? She continued to stand there looking at him.

"I don't want us to part like this. Please…"

That look again… He hated it. He really fucking hated it. God dammit…

"Fine."

The aura around her lightened as she curled a half smile. At least it wasn't a definite no. To him though, he kept pondering how things could get any worse. Today, he made sure to jot it down as one of the most fucked up hang out days he's ever been forced to come on. All those stupid times he spent with Kirishima were starting to seem actually fun compared to this. It was all so frustrating. At this point, he needed to get away, and he didn't care if it meant dealing with his mom all weekend. He should've just stuck to his weekly routine in the first place and come home from the start, but he didn't. He chose to go with her of his own free will, and he still hadn't even discussed what he planned to do about the training yet. Deep down, he cursed himself for not doing so. If he hadn't gotten caught up in her bullshit, he wouldn't be feeling this shitty. At least, he could put it all behind him and go home now.

He turned to push the cross button again and the light immediately turned to yellow.

"C'mon, Dumbass…"

"!"

"What?"

Her head jerked to the side at the sight of tiny white snowflakes lightly starting to fall all around them. What?! The news said that there would be ice on the roads, but they didn't say anything about fucking snow! Bakugo's teeth continued to chatter as shivers ran across his skin, practically in disbelief. Just when things couldn't get worse, he spoke too soon. Great. Just fucking great… They needed to get moving. The sooner he was on that train, the sooner he would be out of this God-awful cold.

Once the light to cross blinked on, he looked back to the red head. Her bandaged hands were held out in front of her, trying to catch the snowflakes on her skin before they melted away. Her smile deepened watching them fall as her cheeks turned rosy from the sting of the frosty air. Looks like he was right about one thing, she liked this shitty weather. That wasn't going to stop him though.

"If you're coming, let's go!" he growled to draw back her focus.

With a slight jolt, she put her hands back down to pay attention. Normally, others would've badgered him for yelling and lectured him on fixing his bad temper, but she said nothing, only nodded and followed him. She wasn't like them, that's for sure.

They began to walk back in the direction of the mall. Akane remained quiet and continued to draw her mind around catching the snow. It didn't matter how numb her ungloved fingers got, she hadn't walked through a flurry like this since she was a child. When she was little, someone had told her a fun fact about snowflakes, that no two were ever the same, much like fingerprints. That fascinated her to the point where she made several efforts to try and find two that were alike to confirm if it was true or not. She never did find two identical flakes, however, that wasn't really all that important to her. It was fun just to do it. It wasn't much, but the mere nostalgia was one of the few comforts she had missed then.

Bakugo appreciated the silence, not wanting to hear anything else that brought that weird gut feeling back. It had faded sometime along the way, but it was still quite strange. Probably something to do with what he ate, or maybe he was getting sick, or (and he was pretty deadest on this) maybe he was getting sick of her. Of those three possibilities, that one seemed most correct. After a while, he assumed it wasn't anything worth looking into right now. He had other things to worry about.

The white flurries began to pile up into small mounds on the sidewalk as they continued to walk. The highway back at the mall led to the main direction to the train station. As soon as they arrived, they noticed an unusual amount of people gathering around the waiting area. On closer look, the ticket line as well as the service line was just as crowded. It wouldn't normally be like this, except on the holidays, which meant something was wrong, and Bakugo needed to know what. He stepped up to a few pedestrians standing offside the waiting area with Akane following closely behind him. She could've left, like he wanted, but her curiosity at the situation compelled her to stay a little longer.

"Hey, what's going on? Why're there so many people?" he asked a tall businessman with a nice suit and a briefcase.

"The trains are delayed on account of the sudden weather change. We've been told they won't be able to move for two hours. If this snow doesn't let up soon, I fear it'll be longer." He explained.

"God dammit!"

That wasn't what he wanted to hear. Now that he was really pissed off, Bakugo turned on his heels and stomped away from them. It got worse. He jinxed himself and then this shit happened! When he got to an area with some space, he stopped to take a quick breath and rethink what he should do.

"Sorry…" her voice once again catching his attention.

"What're you apologizing for? It's not like you could've done something."

"Well, if you want to, we can wait the two hours." She suggested.

"I don't wanna just sit and do nothing for that long. I get restless."

If that's the case, there must be something they could do around here. Akane turned in a circle to glance around the area. There were a couple cafés and small food shops trying to lure people in, mostly the individuals that would have a long ride back. They could probably find a nice spot to sit down and read their new manga, but taking Bakugo into account, that probably wasn't the best idea. Unfortunately, even if they did, there was practically no place to sit other than the open floor in the waiting area, and that wasn't appealing at all.

Just then, her eyes looked over his shoulder, locked onto a bright neon sign sticking out down the street. It read - Open Arcade. She wasn't much of a gamer, but maybe he was.

"We can go there."

He followed the direction she was pointing and hummed. Honestly, it didn't sound like a bad idea. One thing did bug him though.

"Shouldn't you be heading back to U.A.? You did what you said and walked me here, you don't have to stay with me." He asked curiously.

"I don't feel right leaving you alone."

"Tch. I can take care of myself." What, did she think he was too soft to go about on his own? Hell no!

"I'll pay, unless you really want me to leave..."

That face again. And that sickening feeling down in his stomach came crawling back. Why was it only whenever she made that face? What the hell is going on with him? He strongly desired to say yes just so she would go away, but then he remembered that he didn't have much cash. Two hours was a long time to wait, and he knew that they charged per game. If she were still willing to treat him, he couldn't argue against it. But why was she still being nice to him? He said he didn't want to be friends with her… Whatever! As long as he could get out of this damn cold.

He let out a quiet sigh through his nose. "Fine, you can stay."

She produced another faint smile and led the way to the neon sign. Past the double doors, the warmth of the heated air never felt so welcoming. Inside near the front there were single player joystick games, the racer pods took the middle back wall, and the interactive multiplayer units were to the very back. The sound of laughter, action, finishing moves, and winning bell music filled the air. The younger children were running all over having a blast, collecting their tickets, and begging their parents for more money to play. Meanwhile, the older kids took their spots comfortably sparring each other with the joystick games. Overall, it was quite lively with all the commotion, exactly the same as it was when they were kids themselves.

Together, they approached the main counter where the staff transferred the money onto a game card as a replacement for tokens. Akane dropped a nice chunk of change for both of them, enough to last the two hours, and handed one off to Bakugo. As soon as he took the card, he immediately walked to the zombie apocalypse game and swiped it.

The lights to the machine went off as the screen played a short animation of a group of rugged individuals trying to escape from their zombie infested fortress. The group had been living in an abandoned hospital for a long time, but the zombies had grown in numbers around the area and found a way in, which made it impossible to continue to live.

When the origin story ended, the main menu popped up waiting for him to start. Bakugo reached for the light blue, plastic gun, but paused when he noticed her staring at him from the side. She's still here?

"You don't have to stay with me, Y'know. There's other shit for you to do." He pointed out as he went back to what he was doing.

"I wanna see how good you are." She gave a small smirk. Sounded a bit cocky there too.

"So that's how it is." Katsuki chuckled and smashed the start button.

If that's the case then he wouldn't mind showing off a few of his skills, even with something as simple as a video game. Just wait until she sees his high score. Maybe then, she'll praise him with a nickname that's better than Pop Rocks.

His avatar was set to start in the small-barricaded room with the rest of the other survivors. The team supplied their weapons and burst through the door where several hideous gray zombies were skulking. Katsuki aimed his plastic gun to their heads and one by one he pulled the trigger. The objective was clear that he was to protect his comrades without dying for as long as he could until they escaped.

Each zombie that came his way, he instantly obliterated with a nice blood-splattering finish. From what she could make out, the torso points were worth only so many points and the headshots were much higher. No matter how many monsters appeared, Bakugo handled them like they were nothing and it definitely showed when the points started to rack up quickly. With him near the front of the line, the group was able to gather their supplies and make it out alive.

The screen then blinked dark and in bright green letters, it called him a winner. The victory music played as he set down the toy gun and turned to face her.

"How's that?" He asked rhetorically, pleased with his own results. Time for the praise.

"Nice score, but that's only one game though."

"Oh yea? Just wait. I'm gonna beat every damn game in here and you'll see just how great a player I am!"

He really needed to get off his high horse. It was just a game, not a contest. However, Akane never got to see this version of Bakugo before. He looked like he was finally starting to relax, and that was saying something. Maybe she could test that cockiness and see if he lived up to it, just as he did at training.

"Talk is cheap, Pop Rocks."

An annoyed growl rolled down the back of his throat hearing that name again.

"What's with this streak? You doubt my game skills?"

"I highly doubt you can beat every single one here. You know some of these are rigged, right?"

"I'll still win!"

"Oh yea?"

"Yea!"

She paused for a moment when an idea instantly came to her.

"Wanna make a bet on it?"

His resentment then subsided and was replaced with interest again. This, he didn't expect out of her.

"Fine. When I win, you better stop calling me Pop Rocks. I fucking hate that shit."

"And what do I get when you lose?" she smirked.

Man, she was really starting to test his patience today. As if it would really happen, but he had to know what he was getting into.

"What do you want?..."

"If you lose, I get the stuffed panda bear with your tickets."

He glanced back to the main counter. There was clear glass separating the kids from the small prizes that didn't cost very much, like some old off-brand candy, temporary tattoos, and tiny, useless plastic toys. Above that were several shelves that laid out the hefty prizes, such as large stuffed animals, a few neon plug-in lights, a console and games, and a giant TV. Among the big stuff, he spotted the stuffed panda bear nestled in between several other animals. They weren't worth dick with real money, but that's how the arcade system worked, overcharging everything from the exchange of actual dollars to tickets. Even if the real value wasn't much, he didn't think it was a fair trade with the cost they wanted for it.

Just a few inches away from that dumb bear was a super cool stack of All Might Gameboy Cartridges. The sign underneath them said they were a limited-edition vintage version, back when All Might first became recognized as the number one hero. After seeing that, there was no way he wanted to risk his chance to get one of those, no matter how confident he was winning the bet.

"Not happening, idiot."

"Afraid you'll lose?" she mocked him.

"No! A bear and a stupid nickname isn't exactly an equal bet!"

"How about this? If you win, I'll stop calling you Pop Rocks, but if I win, you stop calling me Idiot."

He scoffed at how boring that sounded. Sure the nickname annoyed him, but he wanted a chance to rub it in her face.

"When I win, you stop calling me Pop Rocks, and you'll have to start calling me Sensei from now on."

She let out a snort. "Seriously?"

"Hell yea! I practically am one already, since I'm training you."

"If that's the case then you'll have to start calling me Gorgeous."

"Hahh?!" He felt his pulse quicken at such a crazy idea. "N-no way in Hell!"

"Come on, that's fair." She replied, trying to hold in a chuckle.

"Why would you pick something so stupid like that?"

"Cuz it's funny how much it bothers you."

"Tch. You idiot. Just for that, you're gonna get payback first thing on Monday." His face still felt warm. Kirishima never picked on him like this. He'll definitely make her pay for making a fool out of him.

"Well think of this as my payback for you saying I had a fucked-up face." She said rather seriously.

Shit, he forgot about that. It was in the heat of the moment when he said that, so it shouldn't really count, right? He didn't mean it, but no, it didn't matter if he did or not. Since that was true, it only made sense. He watched Hattori's hand reach out in front of him.

"We got a deal?"

Reluctantly, he gave in and shook her hand. It was only fair.

"Fine… Hope you like losing."

"Less talk, more movement, Pop Rocks."

"Ugh! Shut up!"

Where did this fire come from all of a sudden? And why the hell did she find his misery amusing? What kind of freak was she? He shut down his questions before they could spiral. Right now none of it mattered. What really mattered was beating her!

Together they bounced from game to game with Bakugo taking over and Akane idly standing by to watch. He only had to win the first round of each one in order for it to count in the bet, and she wasn't allowed to sabotage. When it came to the joystick plays, he certainly showed quite a bit of practice. Of course, Bakugo had been coming to places like this ever since he was a little kid with his friends.

After he came to U.A. and had a falling out with his old group, he kind of lost the desire to come back. Even Kirishima made an effort to persuade him once or twice, but he always said no. That was almost three years ago. Now that he finally made an effort, he could admit he actually missed it. For some reason, it was different having her around. His old friends never challenged him or made stupid little bets like this; they just did whatever he wanted without question. Maybe that's why they didn't like him. He didn't bother taking them into consideration. For a while, he just assumed they liked doing the same things, but that clearly wasn't the case.

The winning music went off as Bakugo clenched his fists righteously. He stood up from his seat to Akane, practically side-step dancing to rub it in.

"That's it. That's all the games, and I won. I told ya I would!"

"Not so fast. There's still the claw game left." She pointed over to the far-right corner of the room where it was tucked away by the restroom area.

Bakugo scoffed confidently. Seriously? After all the complex shit he just did, this one was going to be a piece of cake.

"Too easy."

They motioned their way to it and peered behind the glass. There were several stuffed animals that probably had been sitting there for months, maybe even years now, a couple of cards with large quantities of 'free' tickets on them, and some fake jewelry. Among all of them, there was a miniature panda doll nestled near the left side that caught his eye.

Bakugo reached down to swipe his game card, but the machine let out a negative grunt. Damn, all out of tokens.

"Here. Use mine."

Before he could think, her card was shoved right in his face. He swiped it before handing it back, and the game beeped happily, ready for him to play. It was so strange. After all this time, it just now occurred to him that she hadn't played anything since they got here. All she did was watch him for the bet. He reached for the joystick and maneuvered it towards the doll.

"Hey, how come you haven't played anything?"

"Hmm? I'm not much of a gamer. I only came to a place like this once when I was little, but I couldn't figure out how the systems worked and left. Never bothered coming back." She explained.

The claw dropped down onto the bear's face and he pushed the button to grip it. From the pile, the panda was lifted up and brought immediately to the drop box. Kneeling down, he reached in and pulled it out. Then without a second thought, he handed it over to her. Hattori raised her brow in disbelief, but it eventually melted into a soft smile when she took it. That was nice of him.

"Looks like I won the bet." He said calmly.

"Thank you… Sensei." She said in almost a whisper.

"So you're telling me you've seriously never played a video game before?"

"I have a console at home, and I've played with Yuto a few times, but I'm not a big gamer. Some of the controls get too complicated and I rage quit right off the bat."

"Yuto? Who the fuck is that?"

"Hatsumodo? The other roommate from my class." She questioned to make sure he understood.

"Oh yea… That idiot really gets under my skin. If I wasn't still recovering that day, I would've kicked his dumbass six feet under." He muttered, his words causing her to look at him confused.

"What do you mean?"

"The fucktard tried to take me on! If it wasn't for Dumb Hair and Control Chick, we'd both would've gotten expelled… or sent to prison for murder."

She averted her eyes to the ground, still completely taken aback that he could do something like that. There was a painful knot forming within her chest from trying to suppress her growing anger. This was going too far. The next time she sees him, she'll have to put an end to it for good.

"I'm sorry he did that to you…"

"Why? It's not like you made him come at me."

He had a point, but still she felt somewhat responsible.

"But I can acknowledge one thing, the idiot does care about you…"

"Even so, there's a fine line for everything… He chose to cross it."

Katsuki watched as her complexion darkened. She was definitely pissed, but he didn't see her turning red, so that was a good sign. He needed to keep it that way.

"So you've never played the claw?"

"Huh? Oh – no, I have, just never won anything."

"Let's see how you do and maybe, if you're lucky, your Sensei will teach you the secret move to get one for every try."

She relaxed her tensed shoulders. "Really? You'll only be wasting tickets."

"Just shut up and do it. You're a quick learner, you'll figure it out." He said with a raised voice.

With a shrug of her shoulders, she leaned down and swiped the card. The game beeped as she placed her hand over the joystick. Since he was nice enough to get her the little panda, she wanted to return the favor. Her eyes scanned across the prizes. Sadly, none of them really suited him, except maybe the extra ticket cards. She decided to move the claw over to the big card, and when it was in her desired position she pushed the release button. Akane then pushed the grab button, and the claw gripped around the card, but the prize dropped back down in the pile. Of course, she knew this would happen, yet it left her disappointed all the same.

"See? I suck at this." She told him.

"That's only cuz you don't know the trick to it."

"So are you gonna tell me it?"

"Call me Sensei and I will." He smirked deviantly. She was starting to regret making that bet.

"… Please, Sensei?"

"Alright, alright. If you insist." He began, rubbing it in like the jerk he was. "When you move the claw right over the thing you want, yank the stick so the claw jerks back and forth just before you push the drop button. This'll open it wider, and it'll grip better when it lifts back up."

"That's it?"

"Don't doubt your fucking Sensei!" he yelled before nodding off for her to try again. "Go on."

Again, she swiped the card and gripped her hand onto the joystick. She controlled it right above the ticket card, then shook the stick. The claw jerked side to side in a violent rotating motion. Akane readily held her free hand over the drop button.

"Drop it now." He ordered.

She smacked the button and the claw fell right on top. Now it was the moment of truth. Holding in a small breath, she pushed the retract button. The hooks squeezed all around the card as it lifted it right off the pile. She continued to hold her breath, crossing her fingers that it would make it the whole way. The moment it was about to reach the box, it adjusted its direction, which forced the claw to shake, and the card slipped right out. It disappeared beneath a crevice of stuffed animals, never to be seen again. She was so close.

"Fuck…"

His head almost snapped to her. "Did you just curse?"

"You saw it. I almost had it." She avoided the question, too upset to really care.

"Yea… but you didn't." he chuckled.

She sent him a slight glare. At this point, he's just rubbing salt in the wounds. He nodded off to the machine.

"Do it again, but this time go for something easy."

"Like what? You see anything you like?" she asked.

"I don't care about this stupid shit, but –" he pointed to the right. "That All Might keychain looks easy."

"That's what you want?"

"I said I don't care, Idiot."

Guess there's no point in arguing if it didn't matter. Before she went to swipe her card again, she took a moment to check the time on her phone. It was almost time to get back to the train.

"We don't have time. It's been almost two hours."

Bakugo paused for a moment to think. They still had a good bit of tokens left on her card. She almost won the claw game, which meant that if she put in as much an effort into the other games, she could learn and start to enjoy it. This was just like training for the tournament. If she couldn't learn something as simple as a fucking game, how could she in real life? It didn't matter to him that they were two completely different concepts. He knew handling a controller was different than handling your quirk, but still…

"It's probably not even working yet. If so, I'll take the next one."

"Don't you need to go home?" she asked.

"Ehh… No. If I went home, I'd just be arguing with the Old Hag all night."

"But I thought you wanted to go home... You call your mom an Old Hag?"

"Yea."

"That's not nice."

"Since when did I have to impress you? Don't you start nagging me too. You don't know what she's like." He couldn't help but get defensive about it.

"It might come off as annoying, but maybe she's just looking out for you…"

Bakugo could only scoff at that remark. No way in Hell could he ever see that woman as anything other than a crazy old broad.

"Whatever! Look, you wanna keep playing or not?!"

"If you're sure?"

"I'm always sure, idiot." He snapped.

"Okay."

Time went by as Bakugo taught Akane how to play a few easy games. The first few rounds she did were sloppy and uncoordinated, but eventually she got the hang of it. Before long, she actually started to enjoy it. Calling him Sensei was a small price to pay for a new fun experience. Of all the things she could've done today, it would seem that allowing the day to decide for her was the smart way to go. Even if this time spent together didn't mean much for Bakugo to consider her a friend, she still had a good time and that was enough. Soon the tokens ran out and they were free to cash them in for prizes. Since Bakugo had the most, Akane figured that she would probably end up giving it to him or some kid.

"What'll it be?" asked the young adult employee behind the counter.

"The All Might Gameboy cartridge." Bakugo handed him his card, which he swiped to check the balance.

"You still need another fifty tickets."

"C'mon! Seriously?!" he yelled, which signaled Akane to approach the counter.

She handed out her card for him to take. "Here, take mine."

Bakugo didn't expect her to do that. After all, she didn't get very many tickets from playing all those games for the first time. She didn't have to, but he didn't want to question it. The employee took her card to check the balance and went over to grab the small cartridge box. Bakugo snatched it out of his hand, now thoroughly pleased that he got something that Deku definitely didn't. He only kept up with all the modern All Might shit, not much of the vintage crap. It was so great knowing he one-upped him in another thing yet again.

"You still have thirty-four tickets left." Advised the counter guy.

"Give it to the next kid in your line." Said Akane.

"You're just gonna give up your tickets?" asked Bakugo. Not that he cared or anything, but she could've picked something.

"You already won me a panda." She said while holding up the small stuffed animal. "I'm good. We should be heading back anyway."

If that's what she wanted, then he didn't bother arguing about it. Together, they exited the arcade back out into the snow-covered streets. They had been inside for so long that they didn't realize how much snow accumulated on the ground. It was well past their ankles now. Taking that into account, there's no way that the train would be moving tonight.

"You wanna head back to the train?" she asked him.

"Nah. Even if it moved, I doubt I'd make it home by midnight. Might as well cut our losses and head back to U.A.. And we need to get back before it gets dark or Aizawa will be up our asses."

She agreed and they started walking back in the direction of campus. The snow crunched under their feet with each step as their warm breath formed clouds in front of their noses. It didn't take long before the sting of the cold started to make her fingers numb from carrying the doll. She nestled it under her arm and brought her hands close to her lips. Her teeth chattered aggressively, but she managed a few huffs to provide some temporary warmth. Bakugo noticed this and grunted in annoyance.

"Wait, idiot." He called, forcing her to stop and look at him.

He stepped closer and rubbed his hands together. When he paused, a few small explosions went off in his palms, like a firecracker. He then snatched her hands and cupped his on top of hers. The instant warmth of his touch brought a tingling sensation under her chest. For a moment, they just stood there. He focused his quirk to keep it warm, almost completely unaware of how close he really was.

After a moment or two, he let go.

"Better?"

"Kind of…" she replied.

"Put them in your pockets and wait here until I get back."

With that order, he began to walk into an open convenience store right next to them.

"Wait! Where're you-?" She was cut off the moment the door shut behind him. Why did he leave so suddenly? At a loss, she did as told and waited.

He came out minutes later with two white cups in his hands. He offered one to her, the soothing heat of the cup enveloping around her hands. That was unexpected. She wasn't much of a coffee drinker, but the gesture was still nice.

"Thank you." She said and went to take a sip. The hot creamy liquid cascaded down her throat, instantly warming her insides. "Hot chocolate?"

"I don't drink coffee unless I need it."

"You could've asked me to get it. It's still my treat today." She pointed out.

"Yea, but as crazy as it seems, my time with you today wasn't completely terrible." He had to take another drink to wash out the mushy words coming out of his mouth.

Even when he tried to hide it, she could see his cheeks turn a little red. He probably didn't compliment people often, so it must've taken a lot out of him, restraining this embarrassment. Even still, she couldn't help but smile. Maybe he really wasn't such a bad guy.

They continued to walk and sip their hot chocolate.

"You still haven't told me about your plans for training, Sensei." She said out of the blue.

"Oh yea… I have a plan, but to do it, you gotta tell me your triggers."

There was a long pause, waiting for her answer. She didn't think it would come back to that, but after today, she felt a little more trusting of him.

"I don't like to talk about that, but if it'll keep me from hurting another person, I'll do it… You already know about when I'm attacked from behind. Sometimes when I'm cornered I get that way, or if someone makes me mad enough. I once went off because of a bad dream I had. And sometimes it's something the person says that makes me remember…"

"Remember what?"

"Let's just say I was betrayed by someone who was supposed to protect me… Because of that betrayal, I lost someone I deeply cared for and nearly lost my life. Those scars on my back are the only physical reminder I have that I survived, but emotionally, they cut deeper… Now, whenever I'm struck, my mind goes back to that night. It replays over and over and…"

She trailed off but couldn't find the right words to finish that sentence. Bakugo didn't need it.

"Shit… Y'know, you are capable of overcoming that. When that little brat needed your protection from those thug-wannabes, you didn't lose your shit. She even grabbed your arm from behind you and still, you didn't turn red once. Knowing that will be the key." He explained. "I'll go into it more when we're back in class, but next time, we're doing it fucking inside! I can't stand this cold!"

Hattori let out a chuckle. "Yes, Sensei."

Man, that nickname was really starting to look good on him.

"I didn't think I'd have this much fun with you." She said aloud.

"Heh… You're not what I expected either, idiot."

"Maybe you shouldn't judge a book from the cover. You gotta read the story."

"Yea-yea. You sound just like Shitty Hair." He said and went to take another sip of chocolate. The gates of U.A. finally came into view.

"Does this mean you forgive me now?"

Bakugo sighed. "I guess you don't owe me anymore…"

Her eyes gleamed with delight. "Let me know if I ever owe you again."

Katsuki felt his own pulse taking over his body seeing her lips curl into a grin. He shifted his eyes anywhere else to keep from looking at it. This hot chocolate wasn't even hot anymore, but his face felt like it was on fire.

"Sure…"

In silence, they made it back to their dorm. They went around to the emergency exit and went in one at a time. It was just now getting dark outside. They had made it back in time for dinner. The faint aroma was in the air, wafting over their noses. Bakugo gave her one last look before he parted to the elevator. Akane decided to go into the kitchen for the first aid kit to change the bandages on her hands. She waved to Kaminari and Sato before passing them in the kitchen. She opened the cabinet and pulled out the supplies. Once she threw away the used tape, she washed her hands in the sink.

"Where were you?"

Akane turned her head, immediately recognizing the voice and lowered her brow. Yuto was leaning up against the wall beside her with his arms folded to his chest. His complexion read didn't come off as welcoming or friendly, like it usually was. Whatever was going on, he didn't look so happy, but she knew deep under her skin that he had no right to be in the first place.

"That's my business, Yuto."

He stepped forward. "I thought I told you, you should stay away from him."

A split nerve pinched inside her skull. She was already reaching her limit of patience. One more comment like that, and she was sure to go red.

"You don't get to dictate what I can and can't do. I made that very clear to you, I don't know how many times."

She started to walk out of the kitchen, but he only followed her. They stomped past all the students in the common area to the hallway.

"He's a sadistic, arrogant fuck who's only going to make your life miserable. I'm only doing this for your own good."

Hattori stopped short and turned to him. "So you went behind my back and tried to convince the teachers that he was abusing me?"

"He is hurting you, Akane! Why don't you see that? How many times are you gonna let him beat you up at training?"

"It's just training, Yuto! That's it! Kirishima was right, he isn't like what you think he is… But that shouldn't even matter because that doesn't concern you."

"I did what I had to do to protect you. I knew you would end up hating me for it, but I just couldn't stand by watching you suffer like this. For fucks sake, he got you to go rogue!" he yelled, which forced her to shush him in case someone heard.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm here to control it and what Bakugo does in training is all part of his plan to help me with that. Whether you like it or not, he's a good person and he's going to keep being my trainer." She explained, hopefully for the last time.

"I wish you would've finished him off when you had the chance…" he muttered. Her ears perked alert.

"What did you say?"

"If Aizawa didn't come when he did, you would've finished him."

"Wait. You were there?"

He buttoned his lip as his eyes grew wide, the realization now hitting of what he just confessed. Akane became enraged.

"You were there the whole time and you just watched me hurt him? You didn't even try to stop me. I could've killed him!"

"One less problem to worry about…" he whispered.

There was no remorse for him. She couldn't stand this anymore. She willed everything in her power to keep from turning red, but her hair and face was betraying her. With a clenched fist, she stomped until she was in his face.

"You're dead to me…"

She turned on her heels towards the elevator. A pain slashed through Yuto's chest watching her leave.

"Akane!" he called, but she only ignored him.