Work Text:
His fists were still dripping with blood, skin cracked open and raw as the blood spilled between his fingertips and onto his desk. It wasn't much, barely a drop, but he'd be fucking killed if he didn't clean it up. Katsuki sighed, taking a break from his paperwork to go grab a paper towel. The damage to his hand was his own doing, because he was a stupid fucking failure who had punched his mirror this morning after the news, the fact that he had only placed 3rd in the rankings had been broadcasted on live television. 3rd, not even 2nd, fucking 3rd. He did not spend every day of his god damn life training and shutting people out to fall into fucking bronze. That's why he was currently 5 hours into overtime, the sun had long set but he wasn't going to end his day any time soon. He was going to run himself ragged again if it meant winning, because everything else was failing. Of course, in order to climb the ranks, he had to spend all this time doing useless paperwork. Who even invented paperwork anyway? He should fucking kill their asses.
He dumped the bloodied paper towels into the bin under his desk, sighing heavily as he picked up his pen again. An echoing crash rumbled through the halls, and Katsuki jumped, pen flying out of his hand and across his office. He leapt from his chair, hand curled and ready to strike as he listened. A villain? What would they be doing at an agency this late? There was nothing worth stealing here. Another crash radiated from the hall, and he made his way out of his office and into the corridor. His shoulders were tense, fists ready to blow at any given notice. He followed the sounds of- metal? - thundering and booming down the stairwell. Every flight of stairs he descended made his heart beat harder. His ears were trained on the noise, upper body tucked forward in a ready position as his feet silently hit the ground. Years of training allowed him to walk without a sound, of course not that anybody would hear it over the god forsaken tornado that seemed to be happening in the Analysis Wing.
The bottom-most floor of the agency was the Analysis Wing; the entire floor was filled with nerds and fucking losers who decided to dedicate their lives to inventing weird gadgets and reading about people's quirks. Stalkerish, if you asked him. Why the fuck did they need to know the exact temperature his sweat exploded at? Stupid fucking dorks and their probes always trying to test on him. Still, it was three in the fucking morning, he doubted any of those dweebs would still be in the building. Carefully, he pulled the handle of the door and allowed it to naturally drift open as to create the least amount of sound. Across the room he could see the silhouette of someone on the wall, it looked like they were fiddling with something on the floor. Another crash, and several curses followed. Katsuki couldn't help but snort at the colorful language.
He glided across the room, keeping low to the ground as he approached. Peeking between the shelves he could see some kind of contraption on the floor. It sparked and jolted before hitting the ground again, which seemed to be what the noise was. He rounded the corner and was met with the back of someone's head. Green curls rested on said head and on a short but built body. Their muscle tank was covered in oil and soot, their big yellow gloves singed at the ends as they once again grabbed the sparking wires of the contraption and tried to? Tape them together? He stared for a moment, before straightening up. The person turned slightly, just enough for him to see their side profile, and-
"Deku?"
"Holy FUCKING shit," A fist collided with Katsuki's nose hard, sending him stumbling back. He's pretty damn sure it was broken if the cracking noise and surplus of blood dripping down his chin was anything to go by. He cursed, gripping it with his hand as he stared at his assailant. Izuku Midoriya, in all his startled glory, stared back at him.
"What the fuck are you doing here?"
"Me? What the fuck are YOU doing here? You scared the ever-loving shit out of me you asshole," Deku bit back, crossing his arms defiantly. Damn, the little bitch didn't even try to look apologetic for breaking his damn nose.
"I work here? What's your excuse?" His voice came out nasally and raw, muffled by his blood-soaked hand on his face. Shit that man packed a punch.
"I work here too jackass, who the hell do you think built your new gauntlets?" In Katsuki's defense, he had never actually read the paperwork that came with the gauntlets. He'd had gauntlets for years, it's not like they were any different than his old ones. Regardless, why was Deku of all people working at the same agency as him? Deku stared at him with an unimpressed look on his face, eyes trailing down and back up. Stupid nerd was still analyzing him, just like back in high school.
"Still can't get enough of me?" He snarked, and those green eyes become colder than steel instantly. Deku gagged- he fucking gagged at him! - and rolled his eyes.
"Actually no, your fly is down." Katsuki flushed red and he rushed to fix it, glaring as Deku wheezed at his embarrassment. Since when was this fucker so mean? This was supposed to be the pathetic loser from high school. The one Katsuki shoved into walls, burned, and other things he wasn't very proud of anymore. Whatever Deku had been working on jolted again, causing them both to jump. Deku swore under his breath as he turned and knelt down to fiddle with it.
"What is that thing?" Deku glared at him for a second before looking back at whatever the thing was. His now bloodied gloves gripped the wires and held them together as he reached for a roll of electrical tape beside him.
"It's a suit. It's supposed to help paralyzed heroes walk again by basically being their legs," He muttered softly. It seemed like taping those wires together was all the suit really needed, because it finally stopped flopping around like a damn fish. Katsuki hummed, the taste of metal suddenly reminding him of his very broken and bleeding nose. "You should go do something about that. I don't need your blood contaminating my entire workshop," Deku glanced at him, looking all too eager to get rid of him. Asshole.
Katsuki huffed, deciding to hold his tongue about how it was his own fault there was blood in his workshop. He stalked off without bothering a goodbye, because fuck his and his very strong punches. When had the nerd gotten so damn strong anyway? The last time Katsuki had seen him he'd been nothing more than a noodle, barely able to hold himself up on the ground while sobbing his eyes out. He'd been pathetic. What the fuck ever, it's not like he cared. The loser could stay down in his workshop until he died for all he cared. He needed to focus on climbing the hero ranks. He needed to be number one, no matter the cost. Although, he was pretty curious. What had happened in the years they'd been apart? He paused halfway up the stairs, turning back to the door to the Analysis Wing thoughtfully.
After a moment he made his way back up the stairs again, heading back to his office to grab his stuff. A quick trip to the Emergency Room and he'd be right back here to finish the paperwork on his desk. He groaned, mentally preparing for the long days ahead of him. There was going to be a lot of paperwork. God fucking damn it.
It's a week later, and Katsuki's nose is still throbbing with phantom pain. Holy fuck, was the man's fists made of steel or some shit? When Deku had spotted him with the bandage on his nose a few days later, the fucker hadn't stopped laughing for almost an hour. Little bitch. Honestly, he wasn't even sure why he had gone back down there; he's been doing it almost every day since the first time. Deku was never too keen on him being there, always trying to shoo him away. Slowly though he eventually got the hint that Katsuki doesn't take orders from anyone and gave up, instead deciding to give him the cold shoulder while he worked on his paralysis suit. That's where he was now, fiddling with the back of the suit. it sat on some pedestal while he worked away at it. Katsuki wasn't any fucking loser, but from what he could tell there was something wrong with it and Deku couldn't figure it out. So much for being a genius. Fucking loser couldn't even fix a robot.
Deku groaned in annoyance as whatever he had just tried didn't work. He swore colorfully, making Katsuki grin. Who knew such a soft loser could swear like a sailor? It was fucking hilarious if you asked him. Deku glared at his evil little smile and flipped him off before ducking underneath the pelvis of the robot and opening some form of panel. The loser had deep bags under his eyes and Katsuki could practically hear his bones creaking from here.
Katsuki snagged another gingerbread cookie off the plate beside him, munching on it as he was entertained by the constant failures of the man in front of him. It was time for the holidays, and the agency had held an office party or some dumb shit. Katsuki had snagged the cookies and made his way downstairs to get away from the ear grating noise of Christmas carols and his coworkers' existences. He bit the head off the poor gingerbread man, watching as the suit suddenly sparked to life in front of him. The limp legs were now stiff, standing underneath the pelvis in a docile position. A soft whirring noise filled the room as the robot managed to stand on its own. Deku whooped and hollered, leaping into the air like a fucking jackrabbit. His pliers clattered to the floor and bounced away as Deku cheered. Katsuki watched in confusion as the green man suddenly bounded towards him and grabbed him by the arms, shaking him.
"Did you fucking see that? It worked, it fucking worked, can you believe it?" Katsuki stared blankly before nodding. He had no clue what was happening but nodded along while he chewed on his cookie. Deku cheered again, right in his fucking ear, before grabbing a cookie and biting the gingerbread man in half with way too much excitement to be sane. Deku started rambling around his cookie, hands waving wildly as he talked about fucking hydraulics and electricity and other nerd shit Katsuki didn't know. A hand excitedly grabbed his bicep as Deku points to the robot and rants about how all the worked finally paid off and he can finally test it. His hand was warm, sending shivers up Katsuki's spine in contrast to the chill air of the workshop. Deku swallowed the rest of the cookie and suddenly started pushing him towards the robot.
"Get in! I need to see if it'll automate or if I need to recalibrate now that its working," Fucking what? Get in? Who the hell did Deku thing he was? His hesitance was not appreciated as he was all but shoved into the suit, Deku locking it in place around him. It felt weird, the cold steel heavy and tight against his legs. "Just stay still, you don't have to do anything for it to work," Deku advised as he went to stand behind a blast barrier. A blast barrier? Was Katsuki going to fucking explode in this set of metal legs? His heart leapt in his throat as his legs suddenly moved underneath him. They were a little wobbly, the machine not quite balanced as it stepped forward, but it stepped forward all the same. Slowly it made its way towards the blast barrier and then back, Katsuki being forced to crouch and stretch his legs to test the range of motion. Deku looked ready to explode himself if the glow in his eyes was anything to go by. Katsuki was freed from his confinement and was immediately wrapped in a pair of muscular arms. Deku squeezed him hard, lifting him up for a second before setting him down and scurrying off to go do something. Katsuki stared blankly. What the fuck just happened?
Deku came back with two stools, sliding them to face each other and taking a seat in one. Katsuki took the other, staring as Deku gave a sigh of relief. It was like all the energy had been drained from his body at once, leaving nothing but a satisfied smile on his face. He stared at his creation with pride, akin to a parent looking at their child. He leaned back against the table behind him, looking at Katsuki with joy. His confusion must've been evident because Deku snorted and rolled his eyes playfully.
"Now that it's working, I can finally get ready to donate it. Once I fix the balance and smooth out the kinks, it's going to the Heroes with Disabilities Association. Someone will get a tool to follow their dreams, and I can make more of these to help more people. Who knows, maybe I can even start making ones for arms and pseudo-quirks," He explained softly, and Katsuki felt his shoulders drop. That was really an amazing thing, wasn't it? To think he had made fun of this when he was younger. He'd been so blinded by pride and perfectionism that he'd never been able to see the potential of the people around him. How stupid. Who was he, to judge anyone? He was barely scraping his way to 2nd on the rankings.
"That's amazing, Deku. I, uh, I think it's a good thing to do," He paused, anxiety clawing at him before he opened his mouth again. He needed to say this, it was long overdue. "I'm uh. I'm sorry, by the way, for all the shit in high school. I was a fucking loser and took it out on other people. I shouldn't have, and, uh. I'm fucking sorry, or whatever," He turned to Deku, but was met with snoring. Are you fucking kidding. The jackass has fallen asleep right next to him. What the fuck. His eye twitched in annoyance before he stood, sighing. Oh well, no reason for him to stay down here any longer then. He glanced back at Deku for a moment before turning and making his way out of the workshop. He'd have to tell the agency to invest in a couch or something for the workshop, those stools could not be that comfortable to sleep on.
It seems like Katsuki had his own little perch in the workshop now. Deku had never moved the second stool back where he found it and had yet to complain about him sitting there. He nodded along as Deku yapped about the finer details of what he was doing. Today he was trying to fix the shakiness the legs had when they walked, since he had worked out the balance already. Katsuki had become quite the guinea pig down here, constantly being stuffed into the pseudo legs to make sure everything was working. He'd come to find he didn't really mind it anymore. Something about the pure joy that radiated in the room every time a new problem was solved made it worth the embarrassment. He couldn't help but get a little excited too every time it happened. Maybe he was hanging out down here too often if he was getting attached to a damn machine. Deku was now talking about some new move he'd been planning on seeing. It was apparently in theatres tonight and he was planning to leave early to go see it. Katsuki's heart fell slightly, for some fucking reason. Why would he care if Deku was leaving early?
"The only problem is I really don't want to go alone, but I don't know anyone else who wants to go see it," Katsuki hummed, staring contemplatively before blurting out a response.
"I don't have anything to do tonight. Uh, fuck, well, not to invite myself or some dumb shit," Deku whirled to him, eyes gleaming.
"You'll come with me? Fuck yes, thank you! This is going to be so great, I'm so excited I've been waiting for ages to see this movie oh my god," Deku cheered, ruffling Katsuki's hair. He snarled because what the fuck he just fixed his hair before coming down here. Deku cackled, swatting his back before walking to his table to take his equipment off. The muscles of his back shifted under his shirt as he took his gloves off, a small amount of sweat darkening the grey top around his collar. Damn, he really was built. Katsuki swore at himself before turning away, he didn't need to be a fucking weirdo about it. Deku's curls bounced over his shoulders as he took the tie out of his hair, they fell around his face and framed his freckles nicely. He turned back to Katsuki and grinned, pulling two movie tickets out of his pocket. Did that fucker plan this? The mischievous glint in his eye gave away the trap Katsuki had just fallen for. God fucking damn it.
The winter air nipped at his ears as they walked towards the theater, the sounds of the city echoing through the snow. Apparently, this was a new horror movie that had just come out, and Deku was really only watching because the torture devices used in the movie were 'really interesting from an engineering standpoint'. In normal words, Deku was being a fucking weirdo and Katsuki was joining him. Heaven forbid Katsuki made any normal friends; he was already stuck with the fucking 'Bakusquad' as they called it. The smell of popcorn hit his nose as they entered the theater and made their way to the desk. Katsuki bought them both a large popcorn and large sodas and was also forced to hold them as they made their way to the screen. He grumbled because why the fuck was he holding all their shit? This wasn't a date. Was this a date?
His crisis was interrupted by Deku dragging him into a seat beside him, finally taking his popcorn and soda from him as they settled in. The theater was completely empty, which made sense considering the late hour and fucking awful weather. He propped his legs up on the seat above him, crossing them over each other. Deku swatted him, giving him a scandalized look and Katsuki stuck his tongue out at him. Fuck Deku, he can do what he wants. He's not a child. Deku stuck his tongue out in retaliation, and Katsuki pinched it between his nails. Deku screeched and he cackled, nearly spilling his popcorn as he dodged flying fists. His lungs burned with how hard he was laughing, swatting back at him as Deku attacked relentlessly. The lights died and the screen came to life in front of them, which saved Katsuki from the beating of a lifetime. Tears burned in his eyes as he tried to catch his breath, stifling his laughter as Deku told him to shut the fuck up because the movie was starting.
The movie wasn't bad, a little corny and cliche but not a complete waste of Katsuki's time. Deku spent most of the time muttering about how realistic the torture devices were and whether or not they could actually be built. Katsuki had given him a weird look and Deku defended himself with the engineering standpoint bullshit again. Fucking dork.
The wind had calmed by the time they made it outside and all that was left was a light sprinkle of snow. Katsuki groaned, he hated winter. It was also so cold for no god damn reason. Deku laughed at his annoyance and picked at him for being a baby. Katsuki snarled at him and was gifted an elbow to the ribs as a response. He screeched in rage and lunged at Deku, who screamed and bolted down the sidewalk.
Katsuki snorted as he saw Deku's foot come out from under him, the ice causing the green dumbass to slip. Deku's arms swung wildly as he attempted the balance himself, his feet sliding back and forth down the hill they were standing on. He wheezed, slapping his knee and pointing at his struggling friend. Deku flipped him off as his arms flapped, making him look more like an angry bird than anything.
Much to Katsuki's dismay, the other man managed to balance himself after a minute. His entertainment ruined, Katsuki huffed at him about now stupid he was. He quickly dodged another elbow to the ribs, who the fuck did he think he was?
Much later than it probably should've taken them, they finally arrived at Katsuki's apartment. Deku bitched about his interior design choices- what did that loser know about home design anyway? -as he hung his coat by the door. Katsuki yawned, plopping his ass on the couch with a groan. Fuck movie theaters, they always made him so god damn tired afterwards.
Deku sat down next to him with a glass of water that Katsuki had absolutely not told him he could have and said something about wanting to watch TV. They had just gone to the movies and this fucker wanted to watch TV? Whatever. Katsuki vaguely gestured to the remote with a groan. His eyes were heavy, each blink becoming harder and harder to complete. He heard the TV click on and Deku take a sip of water beside him. He hummed, allowing himself to rest his eyes for a minute.
A minute turned into four hours because fuck Katsuki and his regulated sleep schedule apparently, life decided to ruin it again. He blinked awake, the back of his hand rubbing the fog out of his eyes. He turned his head and startled to the feeling of hair on his chin. He squinted into the darkness to find that Deku, the asshole, was asleep. The fucker had his head on his shoulder and was snoring away. The audacity of this motherfucker, to sleep in someone else's apartment uninvited?
Katsuki glared at the sleeping form, hoping his glare would penetrate Deku's dreams and give him nightmares. He sighed, leaning his head back and shutting his eyes again. At least the jerk was warm. Really warm, actually. What the fuck, was this guy a furnace? Katsuki typically ran hot due to his quirk, what fucking sorcery made this guy feel like lava? He huffed into the empty air again before allowing himself to doze off, accepting the neck cramp he'd definitely have later.
Apparently Izuku liked sleeping in other peoples houses, or at least in Katsuki's. It had started out with the occasional falling asleep at his house, and had quickly become whatever the fuck this was. He'd come home to Izuku snoring away on his couch, or he'd wake up to the man in his pajamas in his kitchen. Maybe he shouldn't have given the fucker a key.
The asshole was clingy too, more often then not Katsuki would wake up to large, muscular arms wrapped around him. They were warm, and comfortable, and it was making it hard for Katsuki to get up in the morning god damn it. He can't be productive with what was basically a human teddy bear in his bed.
That's where he was now actually. It was about 10 a.m., he should've been up hours ago, but those large arms were wrapped around his waist and he didn't feel like moving them. Not because he liked it, but because it would take more energy than he felt like giving. He'd been dozing off and on ever since he woke up, the gentle lull of Izuku's breathing against his back. He hadn't slept this much in, well, ever really. The increase of paperwork didn't help either, all those late nights were catching up to him.
It wasn't all bad, he supposed. His performance on patrol had shot up astronomically, even if he wasn't ahead on the paperwork like before. He felt shifting behind him and quickly shut his eyes. He would not get caught fucking snuggling his coworker. No fucking way. The arms around him moved and then left, the sound of footsteps leaving the room following. He grieved the warmth before sitting up, the warmth of his bed abandoning him and leaving him out in the cold. The world was so cruel.
He made his way put to the kitchen and was greeted once again by a buff man in All Might pajama pants. He also had fucking All Might slippers on, because he decided to leave a pair here for his little nap visits. He kept them by the door because even though they should be in the bedroom, having his mentor stare at him through the darkness was too unsettling. He shuddered, looking away from the damned things before he had nightmares. Again.
"Pancakes? I also bought you more orange juice since I drank it all yesterday," Izuku hummed, gesturing to the brand new carton. Katsuki snatched it and poured himself a glass, ignoring how Izuku laughed at him. A plate of pancakes was set in front of him. They weren't as good as his, because nobody could make pancakes like he could, but they were decent he supposed. Izuku sat across from him and started rambling about the legs and how they were finally ready to be shipped out. His eyes glowed as he spoke, forest green with flecks of emerald. His joy danced across his eyes as his hands waved. He liked to move his hands when he spoke, vague gestures that didn't make sense unless you saw them as often as Katsuki did.
His heart skipped as he looked back down at his pancakes. He had put a little maple syrup smile on the top pancake before serving, and gave it butter eyebrows. The blonde held back a snort before cutting into the innocent pancake man. At least he wouldn't remember being mauled by Katsuki's fork, since there wouldn't be anything left. Katsuki nodded along as the topic changed from his invention to the hero rankings. They were due to be announced later that day, they were actually planning on watching it together.
"I know damn well that snake quirk bitch isn't gonna rank as high this year after what she posted a few months ago," He quipped, and Izuku laughed and agreed.
"What do you think you ranked this year?" He asked softly, sipping his juice. He looked at Katsuki over the rim of the glass, warm and welcoming. His eyes were so genuine, Katsuki had learned. You could learn anything you needed to by looking in them. The dork had nothing to hide there.
"1st, of course I'm going to be number one. Have you seen me?" He snarked and Izuku grinned, teasing him about his placing last year. Katsuki snarled about how that didn't count and Izuku wheezed. What an asshole, why was Katsuki sharing his orange juice with him again? He kicked him under the table and Izuku yelped before kicking him back. They fought for a little before eventually settling back down, taking their dishes to the kitchen to be washed. Izuku threw himself onto the couch, taking up as much room as possible. Katsuki sat on his legs because fuck him it was Katsuki's couch, he'd sit where he liked.
As Izuku browsed the channels, searching for the news, Katsuki glanced at him. The sun danced across his skin and highlighted his freckles. His sharp jawline contrasted his soft curls and big doe eyes, somehow making his soft face look handsome. His cheeks warmed as he looked away, he'd be lying if he said he didn't like him. Katsuki wasn't a coward, he knew how he felt. He just didn't want to say it because feeling were dumb and he wanted them to burn. That was definitely why, and not because the way Izuku was gentle in everything he did despite his muscular form made his lungs short of air. It wasn't because the way he held him when they slept made him feel like the world might just be okay, like maybe he didn't have to be a tough shell covered in spines. Maybe he could just be Katsuki.
The voice of the news reporter cut through the silence. It was time for the rankings. Katsuki leaned forward, listening intently as names were called from bottom to top. His heart beat louder and louder in his ears as it went from 50th to 30th, to 20th and then to 10th.
He felt a hand on his shoulder- 9th- and glanced over to see Izuku smiling at him reassuredly. His friend mumbled something about how Katsuki had this, there was no one better fit- 8th- and it made his heart stutter again. Damn this man and his charm, why was he so good at being nice? Why did he have to come into Katsuki's life and wrap him around his finger so- 7th- easily?
"De- I mean, Izuku," The other hummed in response, looking at him quizzically. Katsuki chewed on his lip- 6th- as he met his gaze. Forest green with flecks of emerald met his own, warm and welcoming. Genuine and sweet,- 5th- glowing like the sun on a summer's day. He felt his mouth dry, throat hoarse as he thought of what to say. What could he say? There were so many things that Katsuki felt and none of the languages in the world had enough words to convey them. Nothing- 4th- he could ever speak could properly give life to the way his heart screamed when he was around. Nothing he could do could mimic the way his body ached- 3rd- for him when he wasn't around. His life and been molded into a new shape, a shape that needed another half. A shape that needed warm arms around him at night, a shape that had a- 2nd- perfect match.
"And in the number one spot this year, taking the crown as Japan's #1 hero, Dynamight!" The crowd on the TV roared, Izuku leaped up and wrapped his arms around him. Katsuki stared. His own face stared back at him, a big '#1' lighting up in orange and yellow beside it. Izuku cheered, he knew he could do it. There was no one better. There was no one as deserving.
Katsuki turned to him, crimson red to forest green. There was no thinking, no thought that crossed his mind before he leaned in. His lips pressed against Izuku's in an explosion of excitement. He felt himself being kissed back almost immediately, a hand cupping his face gently despite the thrill in the room. His heart hammered in his chest to the beat of the music playing on the television, their lips moving together sweetly. They broke apart, Izuku smiling at him sweetly. What a dork. Katsuki found himself smiling back, not as big, not as sweet, just a quirk of the lips but a smile all the same.
"Be my boyfriend," He said. It wasn't a question, and yet he was nervous. They had just kissed and he was afraid of being rejected. What the hell had this man done to him? When had he become so soft?
"Only if you admit you love me," Izuku teased. Katsuki huffed and started to pull away, the green haired man screaming and clinging, laughing about how Katsuki was 'such a pussy' and telling him to 'be a man!' Katsuki shoved him off, biting back a laugh. Tomorrow he'd head down to the agency for the party theyre inevitably going to throw him. Today? Today he'll stay right here, with his Izuku. That was all he really needed.