Chapter 28

Bakugo's ears ringed from the screeching of the brakes. The train was at long last coming to a stop, which meant the next thing would be for them to meet with Endeavor. Icyhot said that he'd be waiting with his chauffeur near some small cafe. Even with all the shit Shoto spoke about his old man, Katsuki didn't care. The man was now the current number one. Sure, he only got it because All Might retired, but still, he was definite he could learn more from him than he did when he was with Best Jeanist. There's got to be more to being number one than just looking nice and beating villains, and that was the part he wanted to focus on. Now that he was free to use his quirk, he could finally catch up and beat Deku. No matter how far he thinks he's gotten, he was still just a stupid nerd. He couldn't wait to drive him into the dust! And... he hated to admit that he kind of needed the distraction right now since that one night.

Once the doors slid open, they grabbed their suitcases and followed the crowd outside. He took a deep breath of fresh air now that he could finally enjoy it. He didn't like feeling suffocated in a packed train, especially for 3 hours straight. He arched his back with a stretch just before he started following next to them.

"He said to meet at Hozu Cafe. It's not that far from here." said Todoroki.

"Then let's head over there." added Deku, his very voice only annoying Bakugo. The idiot just wouldn't shut up the entire ride here! Always muttering about the stupid shit that might happen and what they might see, just geeking out, like he always did. And now he thinks he can order him around?!

"Who made you in charge, huh?!"

He held his hands out in front of Deku's dumb face and set off a few intimidating explosions.

"Sorry, Kacchan."

"Move outa my way!"

"But I'm not in front of you."

"You two, stay behind me, so I don't havta look at you!"

"Bakugo, do you even know where we're going?" asked Icyhot.

Bakugo stopped mid-track and growled at him for being a smartass. Who did he think he was, calling him out like that? To think he even agreed to do this stupid internship with these morons. Working with them, winter break was going to be hella long. It better be worth all this bullshit.

When he finally calmed down, they followed Shoto's GPS until they made it outside the cafe, where his dad was currently waiting for him. Endeavor was dressed in his normal civilian attire, which looked pretty sharp and clean, as to be expected, although he'd only ever seen him in his hero costume. It was a little weird seeing the real face behind the mask. The car on the other hand also looked sleek, but on first glance, it probably wasn't going to be big enough to hold all of them.

"Shoto! I'm glad you've decided to work with me, Son." He waved to him with a pleased smile.

Icyhot stared at him blankly.

"We're only here for the experience as heroes. I won't see it as anything other than that."

They watched as Endeavor's smile became overshadowed with disappointment. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but he held his tongue and nodded. There was clearly still some underlying tension between the two.

After a moment of awkward silence, his dad averted his eyes to Deku, and then to Bakugo with a grimace.

"Just so you know, I was only interested in interning with Shoto. The only reason you two are here is because of his persistence."

Bakugo vaguely stared at him for a bit, then he said "I've been thinking about it and I gotta say... the dude's an ass."

"Are you seriously friends with him, Shoto?!" His father shouted.

"Yes, we are. They're staying with me. If you don't like it, we can find another agency."

"Quit sayin' we're friends!" Bakugo barked. He was only here to learn, that was it!

His dad's brow dropped with a slight pout in defeat. If he wanted his son to get on his level of power and work, he needed to be the one to train him. And it wouldn't hurt to spend some time with his promising son. Frustrated, he turned to his chauffeur and gestured for him to go ahead. On cue, he got in and started the car.

"Very well... Put your luggage in the trunk and let's go. We'll take you to the agency."

Without a moment of hesitation, Shoto popped the trunk and they threw in their briefcases and their small bags of clothes. Once the trunk was shut, they slid on in with Icyhot taking the middle seat. No way was Bakugo going to be cramped up next to Deku again for the whole ride. Unfortunately, the second they were inside, it was painfully apparent how compact it really was. For God's sake, it was tighter than the damn train! Geez, you'd think the number one hero would have more than enough money to buy a bigger car, but on the other hand, he probably didn't carpool much. It wasn't even a badass car, it was just a basic sports car.

Katsuki let out an annoyed groan as he struggled to put on his seatbelt. No matter which way he turned, he was unwantingly touching Icyhot's body, making him even more uncomfortable than he already was. After what felt like forever, he was finally buckled in. That was an ordeal!

"Shouldn't the Number One hero get a bigger car?!"

"What, a free ride not enough for ya, Mr. High-school-kid?!" snapped back the driver.

Shit. He didn't expect him of all people to say something back... With a scowl, he decided to just suck it up for the time being. Hopefully he wouldn't have to suffer for too long and then they could get some real shit done at the agency. Before long, the car started to move and his mind went back to thinking what it would be like once they got there. The view from the window was an endless movement of shops and people strolling the sidewalks.

When out of nowhere he heard a loud - Ba-bing! His phone vibrated in his pants pocket.

He fidgeted aggressively in his seat to fish it out, wondering who the hell would be texting him now. He already told Dumb Hair not to bother him until he messaged him first and he didn't plan on doing that until later, once he got settled at the hotel. Whatever the case, he was too bored to care right now. With a swipe, he unlocked his phone and tapped on the messages and as soon as he read the name, he felt his palms get sweaty.

Hattori: I did my reps twice today, like you said. Have you made it to Endeavor's agency yet?

Bakugo flicked his eyes to Todoroki and Midoriya before he pulled his phone closer to his chest. They were too caught up in their own conversation to even pay attention.

Bakugo: Not yet. We're heading there now in this small ass car.

Ba-bing!

Hattori: See, even the richest people don't need big cars.

He scoffed and turned off his ringer.

Bakugo: I fucking hate that I feel like I can't breathe.

Hattori: It's only for the ride. I'm sure you've been through worse, so you can deal with it. You're tough, right? Lol

He smirked and let his thumb do all the talking.

Bakugo: You're such an idiot... Just for that, I'm ordering you to do three more reps.

Hattori: Oh, come on! I was joking!

Bakugo: Now who's the tough one?! Ya got three days worth of workouts to catch up on!

Don't be so weak! Get to it, idiot!

Hattori: Ugh! Fine! Can you at least send me a pic when you get there? I wanna see inside a real agency.

Bakugo: Do your reps and maybe I will.

Hattori: You said you would.

Bakugo: Nope! I never agreed to anything like that. I said 'we'll see'.

Hattori: Please?

Bakugo: Don't make me say it again! Just do it already!

Look, you wanna get strong or not?! You gotta push yourself past the point of no return!

You're lucky I'm even texting you right now!

Hattori: I guess I could ask Shoto for a pic then... or maybe Midoriya. He's on your trip too, right?

The mere mentioning of her going to those fuckers made him want to shatter the screen of his phone. Damn it, it was just a stupid picture! Why did it matter that much to her anyways?!... He internally shouted every curse word in the dictionary.

Bakugo: Fine, I'll send you the damn pic! Just do your workouts, so I'll feel like you've earned it.

Hattori: Are our conversations really that dull for you?

Bakugo: I could be doing something else instead of wasting my time.

Hattori: But you're just riding in a cramped car. You LITERALLY have nothing to do but waste time right now.

Bakugo: It's not like I have anything better to do. You're just the best of a shitty situation.

Hattori: Why can't you just admit that you like talking to me?

Bakugo: Cuz I don't!

Hattori: If that were true, then you wouldn't be texting me right now.

Fuck... she was right. He couldn't let her know that. The last thing he wanted was an 'I told you so'.

Bakugo: Then I'll stop! Bye!

Hattori: No, don't go! I'm just kidding!

Man, you can be so sensitive sometimes.

Bakugo: I am NOT sensitive!

Hattori: Whatever you say...

Even if you don't like talking to me, I do.

He lowered his phone, feeling slightly overwhelmed by the growing pulse behind his ribcage and the two sides of his subconscious arguing over what to say. At the moment, Katsuki wasn't sure how to respond to that. Half of him contemplated that he should come up with an excuse to end the conversation altogether, like that his battery was about to die or some shit. The other half of him wanted to come up with something else to talk about to deter the conversation in a different direction, but when he tried to think of something, he drew a blank. He typed several responses, second-guessed himself, and deleted, deleted, deleted. He did this several times, feeling the pressure dawning on him the longer he didn't send.

'Damn, how hard is it to reply to a damn message?! Fuckin' say something!'

Then his phone vibrated with another text.

Hattori: I'm sorry I'm such a bother to you... I'll stop.

I have to go out with my mom for a bit. I still would like a pic of the agency, so I'll text you after I do my reps. After that, I'll leave you alone.

TTYL

Shit...

His thumb stopped typing to re-read the message a couple more times. Was that what she really thought? Now he felt like an asshole for not saying anything back. Sure, she's annoying as hell, bothering him when he's doing stuff, making him feel so weird all the time, but he didn't exactly say that word for word, did he?

He scrolled back through and re-read their entire conversation to be sure. That tightening in his chest then dropped down in the pit of his stomach and it only worsened the longer he read them. Maybe he could've worded what he said a little better. In truth, he didn't mind talking to her, his pride just didn't want to admit it. Now she probably thinks she hurt his feelings or something. As if that would ever happen, but still... Maybe she was mad at him...

For the time being, he forced himself not to look too much into it and went to distract himself in his social media, although it was a bit hard to do this time. The day went on as his thumb scrolled through miles of posts and videos, and soon they rolled up to the star parking spot right in front of Endeavor's agency.

The building was located in the middle of the Westside district of Hosu city. At first glance, the tower was massive and the security surrounding it was nothing to joke about. Cameras, gates, guards, security locks and codes; the list went on. Once the car doors were unlocked, Bakugo wasted no time getting out to stretch his arms and legs again. The three of them then gathered their briefcases before trailing right behind Endeavor through the front door.

The inside was bustling with people, phones ringing off the hooks, and paper flying all over the place. There was an arrangement of computer stations with surveillance footage all around the public streets of the city and even some dark, sketchy alleys. Standing amongst his sidekicks were several Police Officers and members of SWAT. It made sense that they would work together, since if public security couldn't do the job, they would reach out to pro-heroes for assistance. The rest of the people he assumed to be regular employees. Needless to say, it was definitely more alive and busy compared to Best Jeanist's agency.

They walked to the center of the room where Endeavor signaled one of his employees to come forward and one individual stepped out. With her head held high, she approached them with a smile. Her bright green hair appeared to be flames, waving and crackling behind her shoulders and her dark mask covered up most of her face, but he knew immediately that she had to be one of his pro-hero sidekicks.

"Whoa! You're Burnin'!" said Midoriya.

"Yep, Endeavor's former sidekick! Welcome to the agency! Are you ready to learn what it means to be number one?!"

No longer able to contain his excitement, his lips curled a grin to her.

"Hell yea."

"Then come on. I'll give you a tour."

Without a moment to spare, she turned on her heels and the three of them followed her to another door located in the back corner of the room. Just before he was about to pass through, Bakugo paused to take one more look around. His hand felt around in his pocket for his phone. He turned on his camera and snapped a quick photo before he turned back to rejoin the others.

Burnin' first took them to the company gym, then the small cafeteria, and then just about every floor that had their own set of operations. She thoroughly explained how they used cameras placed in specific locations throughout the district that are constantly monitored for any sign of a villain attack. They also worked with the local police and SWAT when handling distress calls in case the jurisdiction changed to the need of a pro-hero. All the hero sidekicks would patrol the other areas to keep the streets safe, and they would only reach out to Endeavor if it was a big emergency. Each room he passed, Katsuki took a photo. It would suck if she ended up holding it against him for not following through.

The tour ended up taking up most of the day, partly because Deku wouldn't stop asking so many goddamn questions, and the other was because Icyhot's Dad all of a sudden decided he was only going to work personally with Shoto, instead of all three of them at once. That definitely wasn't what they agreed on when they signed up for this internship and Todoroki had to go settle it. Despite that stupid drama, the agency itself was pretty damn impressive. It didn't take long for Icyhot to get everything squared away with his Dad. When all was said and done, the man promised that they would start first thing early in the morning. He didn't know why Endeavor had a sudden change of mind, and frankly, he didn't give a shit. All that mattered was that he was here and he was ready to go.

Shortly after the tour, they all piled up back inside the car again and went off to settle in the hotel. He checked his phone to see if she messaged him, but didn't get anything yet. It had been several hours since they talked. He sighed again, stupidly thinking of how they could've ended things differently. He basically ordered her to do a week's worth of full blown workouts in one day, no wonder she was taking a long time. It'll probably be midnight before she finishes, if she actually does it. She'd definitely deserve some brownie points if she did. On the other hand, she was probably still upset with him.

He clicked on the photo icon and selected all the images he took on the tour. He held in a breath and clicked the send button before he set his phone aside to go look back out the window. Let it be known that Katsuki Bakugo was a man of his word.

Eventually, they arrived outside the hotel. Lucky for Icyhot and his stupid-rich family, they were each set up in a five-star suite on the top floor with full room service. When they got to their rooms, Endeavor offered to take them out for dinner, although he could tell the offer was mostly gestured to his son and not all three of them. Todoroki declined right away, saying that he already ordered food to be brought to their room prior to arrival. Saddened, the man said nothing, only touched his shoulder before he shuffled back down the hallway. Though he was gone the air was still heavy with awkward tension.

"Ummm... do you guys wanna hang out in one of the rooms? We could watch TV or something while we eat." Deku suggested, trying to lighten the situation.

"That would be okay." replied Todoroki.

Bakugo clicked his tongue at the idea. "I don't wanna be around you losers anymore than I have to. I'm hittin' the sack."

"Oh, well... goodnight, Kacchan."

"Nite," said Shoto.

He ignored them and continued on. A few steps down, he found his room number and slid his card key in the lock slot to open it. The room looked fairly big, considering it was only one bedroom and the furniture was just as nice and clean, as he expected. Right next to his bed was a little trolley with a white tablecloth and a covered plate of food waiting for him. The smell of the fresh mackerel wafted across his nose, deepening his hunger. Without a moment to waste, he tossed his briefcase and bag of clothes on the bed, quickly changed into his comfy gray sweatpants, and hung up his uniform. He then took off the heat cover for his dinner and began to dig in. As he ate, he went to check his phone messages. Might as well let Kirishima and his Mom know he got there alright. The two of them were always such worry-warts, so much so that if he failed to keep them updated, he'd get bitched at nonstop for days.

Bakugo: Hey, dumbhair. I made it to the hotel we're gonna be staying.

Kirishima: That's awesome dude! Did you get to see the agency yet?

Bakugo: Yea. It's alright I guess...

Kirishima: Do you care if we video chat? I'm kinda in the middle of something.

Bakugo: Sure. Whatever.

A few seconds went by until Kirishima's name and picture appeared on his screen. He accepted the call and was welcomed to Kirishima's smiling face drenched in sweat. Working out again, as usual. He moved the phone until he propped it up to where Bakugo could clearly see him sitting on his workout bench back in his room. His bright red shirt had dark patches from his neck sweat as well as his white headband that he always insisted on wearing whenever he exercised. This wasn't the first time they chatted like this.

"Hey, man. So what did the agency look like?"

"Pretty much like any other agency, except they got more people around and get shit done. His staff's got a better hold on all that goes on here, I'll give 'em that."

"Well, that's good. I don't think I'm going to go back to work with Fourth Kind this time. I kinda wanna go back to work with Fatgum again. Or maybe Gunhead. Uraraka says she learned a great deal of combat from that guy, so I figured, why not?" Said the Red-head as he took a long sip from his bottle of water.

"When'll that be?"

"Ummm... it's not definite yet, but probably a week or two after we get back from break. I'm just trying to bulk up some more before then."

"If you workout too much and don't give your body enough time to rest, you're not gonna bulk up, Dipwad. Once you tear your muscles, they need to recover so they can grow back stronger. You do too much and it'll just deteriorate and you'll be useless." Bakugo explained while chewing his food.

"Oh, I didn't know that. I just wanted to get a little buff cuz' I'm on a time crunch, y'know."

"Just don't overdo it, Dumbass. I know how you are and I know how you get. You do too much and you end up limp and bitchin' that you're in pain for a week n' it's annoying as hell."

"Sorry, man. I'll remember to take breaks." he smiled before he reached down to grab his arm weights. "So where's Midoriya and Todoroki? They're with you too, right?

"They're a couple doors down. I've been around them for hours and I'm too tired to deal with anymore of their shit..."

"Then why don't you go rest, man?"

"What d'ya think I'm doing?" he asked sarcastically.

"So any idea what you're gonna be doing with Endeavor while you're there?"

"Dunno yet. He said we'd get into the real training in the morning, so I'll probably go to bed early. Can't wait to finally use my quirk on some villains."

"Oh yea. It'll be cool, just... don't go so quick into a fight. Y'know, we shouldn't really use our quirks unless we have to." Kirishima advised his friend. Bakugo only scoffed.

"Don't tell me what to do, Dumb Hair."

"Look, I'm just sayin'... as someone who really cares about what happens to you, just be careful. Actually, going out there and facing villains head on isn't like how the teacher's made it seem in class. They'll really hurt you and the people you're with..."

There was a long pause as he was clearly thinking about it. Kirishima got his license before Bakugo, so he did have the experience to back up his claim, but for some reason, Katsuki only saw it as him doubting his ability. He couldn't help it. Anyone who thought they could give him orders and tell him what to do, he always assumed they thought he was beneath them. Still, this was Kirishima, so he knew he was only trying to be a good friend.

"I can take care of myself, alright? You don't need to worry. I'll be fine."

"I'm not saying you won't be. It's just - working with the number one hero, they probably rely on him for the most dangerous things. Stuff that even the number two or three heroes probably couldn't do, so I can't help it if I'm worried about you gettin' into that kind of stuff. You're my friend, after all."

"Tch. Quit being so mushy. I said I'll be fine. There's no way I'd let a villain get the best of me... not again."

Kirishima paused and set down his weights. "Right... right."

Bakugo finished the last of his food and pushed the cart away. He looked around for the TV remote and clicked on the screen, still listening to Kirishima. As he flipped through the channels, he felt his phone vibrate once again. The top of the screen showed that Hattori finally messaged back. Unfortunately, he couldn't check it without ending the video chat. He cursed when the message disappeared before he could read it.

"Hey, Kirishima. I'm gonna get off. I gotta shower and shit before bed."

"Alright, man. Hey, let me know how things go tomorrow, if you can. I know sometimes on a mission, you're not allowed to talk about it, but if you can, I wanna know."

"Got it."

"Well, g'night man. Talk to you later."

"Bye."

As soon as the call ended, he switched to his text messages.

Hattori: I've lost all feeling in my arms and legs now... but I did the reps.

Thanks for sending me the pics.

Bakugo: If you lost all feeling in your arms, you wouldn't be able to text me, Idiot.

Hattori: It's an expression.

I'm just letting you know that I did the workouts. So now I earned it.

I'll leave you alone now.

Bakugo: Hey... about what I said, I didn't mean it like that.

You can ask me whatever. I don't care.

Hattori: I thought I was the best of a bad situation...

'Shit...' he cursed at himself.

Bakugo: I meant I'd rather talk to you than sit in that tight-ass car.

Hattori: You said you didn't wanna talk to me.

If it's because of what I said, I'm sorry. I really was just making a joke.

Bakugo: It's not that.

Hattori: Did I do something?

Bakugo: ... No

You can be a real pain in the ass sometimes when you're fucking around.

But...

I really don't mind talking to you.

I'm just dealing with some shit and it's making me on edge. I didn't mean what I said.

Hattori: I really don't get you sometimes.

Bakugo: What do you mean?

Hattori: You're so two-faced. I don't know if you're being serious or not.

Bakugo: I thought you always knew when I lied.

Hattori: Well I'm not looking at you, am I?

Are you sure you're ok talking to me?

Bakugo: Yea.

Hattori: Ok. Please don't say shit like that... it really gets to me.

The agency looked busy. Did you get to do some hero stuff today?

Bakugo: Nah. We just got a tour and a run-down of how they work. We don't do anything until tomorrow.

It was Endeavor's day off and he planned on spending the day with Icyhot, but that didn't work out.

Hattori: Yea, he's told me he's not on good terms with his Dad.

Bakugo: You don't know the half of it. It's like a typhoon of emotional drama.

I wish it was already tomorrow. It's been a day and I'm already sick of their crap. It better not be like this for the rest of the week.

Hattori: You shouldn't wish your life away. Thing's will probably change tomorrow.

You might actually get into something really dangerous tomorrow, and then you'll wish it was yesterday.

Bakugo: That's what I'm counting on. I'm ready for it to be as brutal as possible.

Hattori: Then maybe YOU should spend an entire day working out until you can't move.

I can barely lift my arm to drink my protein shake.

Bakugo: Remember freshman, I'm way farther up the food chain than you. I had to do shit just as hard for practically a full WEEK! Not a day, a WEEK! So you can deal with it.

And you seriously drink protein shakes? You trying to bulk up?

Hattori: If I don't consume 3X the amount of protein, especially after using the max of my quirk for a while, I get really bad muscle fatigue and won't be able to move or use it.

It's kind of like Sato when he needs to eat sugar to use his quirk, but I need this for the aftermath.

Bakugo: You could've mentioned that when we first started training.

Hattori: Why would you overwork yourself for a week straight?

Bakugo: I didn't want to. It was all part of the summer training camp we went on.

Hattori: Why would they make you do that?

Bakugo: To build up endurance so that we'll last longer in battle using our full strength, to make us more powerful, and so we'll remember to take care of ourselves along the way, so we can go again the next day.

Hattori: I guess that makes sense...

They took that off the curriculum because of the incident that happened last year.

Bakugo: I know...

After that, there was a long pause waiting for her to reply, which he found incredibly strange. She was pretty consistent with the time it took to answer his texts. He decided to give it a few minutes, thinking that she was probably doing something and would eventually come back. After a while, he started to grow weary.

Five minutes...

Ten minutes...

Twenty minutes!

Bakugo: Freshman?

Oi, freshman!

Another five minutes...

Bakugo: HATTORI!

GEEZ! Do you just reply and throw your fucking phone in the damn ocean?! What the hell?!

Suddenly, his phone began to vibrate with her name on the screen asking to video chat. That was weird. She could've just texted back, but maybe something was wrong. He hesitated before he clicked 'accept'. The screen changed from black to showing her bare face. Her scarlet hair was wet and her pale skin was bright with moisture. He felt his cheeks burn when he noticed that her large chest was barely covered by a blue towel. Then it hit him. Holy fuck! Bakugo's heart started pounding aggressively, so much that he wanted to chuck his phone across the room, but he didn't.

"What the fuck are you doing?! You seriously call me while you're in the shower?!" he blurted loudly.

She carried the phone into her room, completely unfazed at how uncomfortable he was getting.

"Yea, my phone was going off like crazy. I got worried and thought something was wrong."

"Did you even check them before you called?!"

"No. Is everything okay?"

"NO! It's not okay! Put some clothes on, for fuck's sake!"

"Alright, alright."

She set the phone right on top of some table in what appeared to be her bedroom. As soon as her body was out of camera shot, Katsuki seized the moment to bury his face in his free hand to collect himself. He took a few deep breaths to relax his throbbing pulse. He half contemplated pushing the button to end the call, but then he remembered how shitty their last conversation was. He didn't want to do anything else that would put that kind of guilt on his conscience, so he sucked it up and forced himself to calm down.

As soon as he heard a door shut, she appeared back on the screen wearing a pair of black yoga pants and a tank top with a loose zip hoody dangling over her shoulders. She ran the towel through her hair one last time before she tossed it in the corner hamper and grabbed the phone.

"Sorry. I needed a hot shower to ease my muscles. And when I heard you texting so much, I got worried."

"Tch. It's fine. It's not like I care or anything." he muttered, trying to avert his gaze to keep him from thinking about the crevice of her bare neck.

"No, you just miss me."

"I didn't say that I missed you!" he snapped, blown away that she would even say such a thing.

"You didn't have to. It's okay, Katsuki, I'm just fucking with you."

She smirked as she walked to another table. He let a growl roll down the back of his throat as he watched her set the phone down. She pulled out her desk chair and angled the camera before she grabbed her sketchbook and some pencils.

"What're you doing?"

"I'm re-drawing the picture I made you. I'm gonna finish it while we talk. When I'm done, I'll show it to you."

"If you're too busy-"

"I'm not." She cut him off and looked at him. "I really wanna talk, so can you tell me about the agency?"

"Honestly, there's not much to talk about. All we did was get some stupid tour and you got all the pictures I took of that. After that, we headed back to the hotel."

"So where're the other guys? Aren't you sharing a room?"

"No. Icyhot got us our own rooms."

"Hmm that was nice of him... Then why aren't you hanging out with them?" she asked.

"Why would I wanna do that?" he asked sarcastically. "I'm here to learn how to be a hero, not make friends or some stupid crap like that."

She let out a small snort as she continued to scribble across the paper.

"What?"

"Are you ever NOT serious?"

"Hahh?"

"All I see is you working and trying to get stronger, but don't you ever take time to do something fun or relax?"

"Hey, internships aren't supposed to be fun. I have fun, but I do that shit on my own time and I do it the way I want to."

"Yea? Like what?" she asked curiously.

"Well... I brought those damn books you gave me, and there's tv and my phone."

"That's it?"

"Mostly."

"But wouldn't you rather do those things with one of your friends?"

"Kirishima's not into manga that much and we've only ever hung out a few times outside of school."

"What about your other friends?"

"I don't have any."

She paused her drawing. "Oh..."

He spoke honestly, but it still bothered him to say it out loud. It didn't take long for the silence to become awkward. Hattori quickly noticed this and thought to change the subject back.

"So then what's the most fun thing you've ever done?"

"I guess destroying all those robots in the entrance exam to get into U.A.. That was the first time I got to use the full extent of my quirk and I could do it as much as I wanted. I wrecked the hell outa 'em on the battlefield!"

"That sounds like you."

"What about you?" he asked.

"Hm?"

"Same question, Idiot."

"Will you ever stop calling me that?"

"In your dreams."

Her brow dropped as she rolled her eyes.

"Let's see... The most fun thing I've ever done... Oh! It was definitely me going to my first metal concert and getting lost in the mosh pit."

"The what?"

"The mosh pit. It's where you shove each other around to the hard music, to get you pumped up. It's almost like fighting, except you know, you're not... fighting." God, she was really starting to hate how stupid she sounded right now.

"How in the fuck can you listen to songs about death and shit and get shoved around without triggering your quirk?"

"I think because the music in itself gets all my rage out, so I don't feel like I'm being cornered and have to lash out to protect myself. I just let it all go, scream, and headbang."

He quietly continued to stare at her with a blank expression, and she couldn't tell if he thought she was weird for saying so or if he was actually interested. Either way, it was weird of him to stare for so long. She cleared her throat and continued.

"It's an experience... It's kinda hard to describe. I could take you to a concert one day, so you can see for yourself."

"Dunno. I'm not much of a metal head, but I listen to a few songs while I work out, and sometimes if I'm pissed off enough, I'll listen to it, but it never made me let go of that rage."

"Well, listening to the album is different than seeing them play live."

When she finished that sentence, she put her pencil down and wiped off the excess eraser bits. She leaned back to give it one last look, pleased at her work, and then picked it up to show Bakugo.

"I made the modifications, like you asked. Sorry, I had to draw a completely different picture. I promise I'll put the dragon in, but I just wanted to be sure your character looked good this time."

He squinted his eyes to try and make out the details through her camera, but the movement of her hands made it a bit blurry.

"Pull it back some."

She did as told and the picture became clearer. She did exactly what he asked for, she included the dragon teeth and talon necklace, a shoulder tattoo and some small scars, there was a massive sword and two daggers on his belt, and his abs were on point this time. He looked badass.

"Did I do it right or do I need to change it again?"

"No. It looks alright."

She set the paper back on the table with a smile.

"Good. I think I got the base done for the storyline I'm gonna do too. I think I'm gonna tell it from my character's point of view first and then with each character I introduce, if they build a connection, they'll tell their own origin story. And those will be the ones who tie into the plot, where they have to come together to fight off the darkness that is infecting their realm. I'm thinking of adding demons to rise from the darkness and prey on the living, and they're being summoned by a traitor who wants nothing but power from one of my allies. It's just an idea... Maybe I'll tie in some romantic scenes that could later turn into that betrayal..."

Bakugo remained silent as he listened. It wasn't often that he heard her speak so passionately about this stuff and it was actually kind of interesting.

"Hey, maybe I could make your character the traitor."

"What?! No!" He snapped, which caused her to jolt in her seat.

"Huh? Why? Bad idea?"

"YES, it's a bad idea! It's my character and I should decide what part I play in this story! The dragon tamer is in NO WAY a traitor, but it's pretty damn obvious why everyone would think that, with his bad temper, incredible, dangerous power, and his intimidating physique. But when it comes right down to it, he's not a traitor. He would die before he'd ever turn his back on being the one to save others, especially from some evil demon bastards."

Akane blinked, processing what he just said. The realization then hit Bakugo like a ton of bricks and he could feel the embarrassment begin to wash over him. Perhaps he said a bit too much than he should've. Her lack of words only made it worse. He averted his gaze away from her face and cleared his throat.

"... That's what you should do instead."

"Okay, I'll do that." she paused again "Hey, did... did you mean that about yourself?"

"!"

"I mean, you do have a great quirk. From what I've seen, even your smallest explosions can be pretty devastating. That kind of power would really benefit a villain, and a villain would use their quirk to get the same things that you want. Money, power, recognition... Being a hero or not, there's really not much of a difference between the two, except one choice." she muttered quietly, her eyes drawn back to the picture on her desk.

Bakugo had to bite his tongue before he blurted out something he'd regret, and instead took in a deep breath through his nose.

"I had the opportunity to choose that... when I was captured by them."

Akane jerked her head and dropped her jaw. How could she have forgotten that already? Now she instantly regretted every word that came out of her stupid mouth.

"That was you?"

He nodded.

"I had heard rumors about why it was taken off the curriculum and I remember how big it was on the news, but I didn't remember who had been taken. That really happened to you?"

"Yea..."

"How did it happen? I mean- if it's okay to ask?"

"They ambushed us in the middle of the night, after we were all exhausted from spending hours trying to improve our quirks. I don't know how they knew where we were, but they did. We were all spread out in the forest playing some stupid game called The Test of Courage, and then they came and started attacking us. Somehow Deku found out that they were planning on taking some of the students and we all had to fight in order to survive and get back to base... I was too careless and they came right out from under me. I was the only one they managed to take..."

"... That must've been terrifying."

"Tch. I wasn't scared." He rubbed his nose and looked away, which instantly tugged at her heartstrings. So he really was afraid...

"What did they do to you?"

"They portaled me to some underground bar somewhere outside Kamino. When I didn't cooperate and do what they said, they threatened to go back and kill off the rest of the students. I knew damn well they were bluffing since I knew for sure that Aizawa had to have called for backup once we left, so I tried to fight them, but there were too many. When I wasn't looking, they knocked me out... The next thing I know, I'm strapped to a chair with these giant metal cuffs on to keep me from setting off explosions. Then I met their leader. He kept going on and on, monologuing about his stupid life story of how he ended up becoming a villain, how he wanted to discredit the hero name altogether by convincing me to join their team. He said in doing so, he could create a world where everyone could use their quirk without the need for heroes to come in and take over, or be oppressed by the laws that were sworn to protect them. I swear I didn't get a single moment's peace without him ranting! It was so goddamn annoying!... Turns out, he wasn't the real boss behind the villain attacks, he was the underling for an even bigger villain. That's when I knew they were just a bunch of pawns getting used. No way in hell was I going to be a part of that... I guess the guy wanted to be friendly and he stupidly decided to remove my cuffs. I knew they needed me, so they couldn't kill me, so I let him have it and told him to go fuck himself!"

Her brow raised in astonishment that he would be so bold and do such a thing.

"How did you get out?"

"It took him a long time, but All Might finally showed up. It wasn't easy getting out of that."

He remembered to keep his mouth shut about his classmates showing up to help save him. When they made it safely to the streets and went to the police, their Chief and the school made a big deal to cover it up to protect U.A. 's reputation. He also remembered his promise he made to protect All Might and Deku's secret.

"I don't think I could imagine some of the awful things they could've done to you. My mom deals with cases linked to villains all the time, and most of those they've been kidnapping have been young adults and kids with strong quirks... but not all of them make it or come back the same. You're very lucky... I'm sorry for bringing up that bad memory."

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Nah, I don't care. That stupid shit isn't gonna stop me from being top hero. Bet I'll forget all about it tomorrow morning."

"... Do you still think about it?"

"Sometimes, but I doubt they'd come after me again. They'd be dumb as hell if they decided to do that shit again. I'm not the same as I used to be. I'm hella stronger and I'm way damn smarter than I was then. I won't let them use the same trick on me twice."

Akane gave him a half smile. He seemed to be handling it okay. Maybe in time, she would too.

"You're really brave, y'know. I wish I had that kind of courage."

Katsuki could feel the heat rising, especially in his hands. He quickly switched the phone in each hand to wipe the nitroglycerin off to keep it from detonating. It felt as if his stomach flipped when he watched her lips curl that same stupid smile. Fuck, this was getting worse!

"I gotta go."

Akane became confused. "What?"

"I uh- gotta get up early, so..."

"Oh, right. Got it. Well, I guess I'll talk to you later."

"Yea... Bye."

He clicked the end call button and let his back fall on top of the bed covers. He took a few deep breaths and eventually that sickening feeling in his gut and his throbbing pulse started to fade back to normal. Frustrated, he let out a sigh and looked at the black screen of his phone still sitting in his hand. He could see his own reflection in the glass.

"What am I doing?..." he shook his head. "It's just a crush. You've had 'em before, and it always goes away... She's no different from the other girls then... You don't like her... You don't like her."