Archive of Our Own ^beta

Shouto’s mixing his cocoa as he heats up his mug and wonders why he’s even bothered to come down to the party.

“Hurry, Sho! We’re starting the next game!” calls Ochako from the common space, coming off as demanding as expected.

“Right, that’s why I’m down here.” mutters Shouto with an eye roll as he finishes stirring his cocoa together.

After Izuku and Eijirou walked into the classroom hand-in-hand with flushed cheeks, puffy lips, and shirts untucked today, Ochako decided that Shouto needed to move on.

Like he hadn’t projected his crush onto Izuku in the first place. He did like the other boy, but after Izuku told him about his feelings for Eijirou, he wasn’t upset. He was hurt, and he cried, but it was nothing like Hanta telling him that Eijirou asked Katsuki on a date, that Katsuki said yes.

That hurt more than Izuku saying he thinks they’re better off as friends.

Shouto spent two weeks crying at night, avoiding Katsuki and Eijirou as much as he could, and forcing blankness like he’d done their first year until Ochako and Hanta confronted him after Katsuki forced him to spar, and Shouto lost. Katsuki was mildly unhappy with his win, ranting continuously about it, and that prompted Hanta and Ochako to approach him about what’s going on.

“Sho, it’s your turn!” calls Hanta in a strained tone.

Shouto sighs in annoyance before putting his spoon in the sink as he calls, “I’m coming, just skip me this time.”

“We’re not skipping you; I’m spinning for you!” yells Ochako impatiently from the other room.

Shouto rolls his eyes as he heads out of the kitchen, and as he walks over towards the couches, he asks, “What game are we playing that requires something to be spun?”

“Seven minutes in heaven, but don’t worry, you don’t have to do anything. We know you’re not big on that… the touching.” says Eijirou brightly, a little pointed as he wraps an arm around Izuku who leans into him with a blissful smile.

“Wonderful, this is the one where you make-out in the closet, yes? I came out a long time ago, but this’ll be fun.” replies Shouto evenly before lifting his mug to his lips and chugging a scalding gulp of cocoa.

He hides his smirk in his cup as Ochako spins the bottle to decide who his partner will be because Eijirou shrinks back into the loveseat and Izuku pouts. When the bottle stops, it stops on one Katsuki Bakugou, and Shouto chokes on his next gulp of cocoa. He twists around, coughing as his quirk accidentally freezes the mug in his hand while he tries to calm down from his choking fit. Ochako and Hanta are the ones who come close to him, Ochako patting his back while Hanta gets him some water and tells him to breathe and then take a few small sips.

This was a surprising turn of events, all things considered, and he’s not entirely sure he’s ready to go into a closet for seven minutes with his first crush. Once he can breathe again, he quickly separates his mug from his hand.

“You okay over there, Icyhot?” asks Katsuki in a low voice, almost raspy.

“I’m fine, Bakugou, just went down the wrong pipe, I guess.” replies Shouto hoarsely from the coughing as he twists around to look at him, only to see him right in front of the couch where Ochako and Hanta had been sitting. “I don’t know the rules of the game, but I’m certain that there’s a rule about choosing someone else to take your turn if you’re uncomfortable. Otherwise, which closet are we using for this?”

“You’re using the closet between the kitchen and the stairwell.” says Momo as she pipes up with a supportive smile on her lips while leaning into Kyoka who is giving him a thumbs-up as per usual when he’s involved in the party games.

“I’m not uncomfortable, Icyhot, so fuck off with that shit. Let’s go do this.” huffs Katsuki as he crosses his arms over his chest, and Shouto has to fight hard to avoid looking down at the way his muscles bulge and move.

Shouto forces his mouth to stay shut, spinning on his heel to head for the hallway, not bothering to check if Katsuki’s behind him because he knows he is, grumbling about him always having to walk in front. Shouto rounds the corner and suddenly he’s staring at Katsuki’s back as he walks ahead of him because of course he does. Shouto shakes his head as he speeds up a little bit to meet his pace, still keeping just behind him as they’re getting closer to the closet that has been chosen for the game, and then he stops a few steps behind as Katsuki stops in front of the door and tugs it open. Shouto waits, head tilting as he watches, expecting Katsuki to go in first, but Katsuki just arches a brow and nods his head at the door.

“Let’s go Icyhot, we got seven minutes in this damn closet, get in already.” huffs Katsuki when Shouto’s brows furrow at his silent demands.

“Alright, alright, no need to be testy Bakugou.” murmurs Shouto as he steps into the closet, settling with his back to the wall just to the right of the doorway.

“Hurry the hell up and lock us in for the stupid seven minutes and set the damn timer Shitty one and Shitty two.” grumbles Katsuki as he steps into the closet, tugging the door closed without waiting for a response as expected. “Dumbasses always trying to make people do shit for the fuckin’ fun of it.”

“I do believe that’s what parties and party games are for, Bakugou, but I could be wrong.” sighs Shouto as he leans his head back against the wall, stepping over some when Katsuki slinks his way into place next to him.

“Well, it’s fuckin’ stupid. I’m only even here because racoon eyes and soy sauce forced my ass to come. I was gonna pack up for the break and do some studying.” grumbles Katsuki as he wraps an arm around Shouto’s shoulders, urging him to give in to the want to lay his head against the shoulder pressing into him.

Shouto simply hums, letting the silence fall on them comfortably as he closes his eyes and snuggles into the embrace given to him. They end up slipping to the floor not long after, and Shouto slumps more to curl into Katsuki’s hold, enjoying the firm warmth that comes with his touch.

It’s silent and comfortable, and Shouto melts into it with an ease that’s completely unlike him.

“You have two minutes left!” yells Denki from somewhere outside the closet.

“Alright, do you wanna make it seem like we were doing something, so they leave us the fuck alone, or do you wanna just sit here and wait for them open the door?” asks Katsuki softly, looking down at him with glimmering ruby eyes.

“I don’t really care what they think, but I’ll help you if you want them to leave you alone.” replies Shouto quietly as he lifts his head and turns to look at him, breath catching in his throat because they’re far closer than he’d realized.

Katsuki sighs, a soft half-smile curving his lips as he says, “Stupid Icy-hot, your words can get you taken advantage of, you pretty fucker. Just mess up your hair a bit and heat up your cheeks enough to force a blush.”

Shouto scrunches his nose up a bit, and Katsuki snorts as he reaches his hand up, the same one that had been rubbing softly up and down Shouto’s arm as he’d held him close, to mix the red and white strands until Shouto looked a little messy as his cheeks lit up with a pink hue.

Shouto tilts his head curiously as Katsuki nods, clearly satisfied with how Shouto looks now, and he asks, “What are you going to do then, Bakugou?”

Katsuki sighs, sounding annoyed as he tilts his head back against the wall and says, “I’ll unbutton like two buttons and screw my hair up a little more. It’s not like these fuckers would give a shit if I was blushing since I know floaty did this for you. We all know she did this for you for whatever reason.”

Shouto snorts as Katsuki stands, taking his hand when it’s offered, but then the last sentence processes.

Shouto’s head falls forward as he groans, “Ochako’s just trying to be a good friend, but she’s definitely doing too much right now.”

“What’s that all about anyway? I thought you weren’t coming because you were going to see your mom in the fuckin’ morning. I was surprised when she said you’d be here and participate in two of the stupid ass games.” says Katsuki with an eye roll, but the curiosity in his tone has Shouto snorting as he looks up at him. “The fuck you laughin’ at IcyHot bastard?”

“The fact that you still call me a bastard when you know I was conceived after my parents were married is hilarious, truly, but I wasn’t laughing at anything. I just snorted because it’s odd seeing you be so curious about anything to do with me.” replies Shouto amusedly as he shakes his head, chuckling when Katsuki’s lips pull back in a snarl. He puts his hands up placatingly, smiling softly at the other man. “Okay, okay, I was just teasing, relax. She’s just being difficult because she wants me to move past Izuku and focus on other people. It seems that she’s gotten it in her head that I’m moping and hiding from romance now that he’s moved on with Kirishima. The problem is that I’m not moping, I’m over that. Sure, it still hurts, but I was using my admiration for Izuku to get over the person I actually liked. She’s being difficult about that too because she knows who it is.”

“So, you admired the nerd but actually had a crush on someone else? You definitely liked the nerd though, there’s no way that you didn’t. So, what the fuck are you saying exactly?” asks Katsuki with an arched brow as he quickly unbuttons the top two buttons of his shirt.

“I did like Izuku, there’s no denying that, but it wasn’t as much as I liked- well, it was a crush, but more puppy love than actual crush. Her problem is that I liked you, really liked you, but obviously, I thought you and Kirishima were together. But now that it’s clear you’re not, she’s pushing for me to do something about those feelings or find someone else and move on because she’s worried about me, I guess? I don’t really get it because I’m not acting any different, and I’m not ignoring her either. She’s just- I dunno, trying to be a good friend.” rambles Shouto as Katsuki messes his hair up, making it look mussed and definitely like someone’s been running their hands through it. His fingers twitch with the urge to do just that as Katsuki looks at him, eyes going wide, and his own widen as he realizes what he just said.

He’d admitted to feelings that only Ochako and Hanta had known about, and Hanta only found out after he told Shouto about Kirishima and Katsuki because of Ochako.

“You had feelings for me?” asks Katsuki as he looks at him in surprise, clearly shocked by the confession.

Shouto goes to respond, but his words fail him.

“Hey, time’s up guys!” exclaims Hanta as the door is tugged open and light shines into the small room.

Shouto doesn’t know what causes it, all he knows is that he’s quickly running out of the closet and moving into the stairwell. He bursts up the stairs, panic surging through his veins as he runs, taking them two at a time, and then he’s rushing through the door on his floor and sprinting down the hallway to his room. Shouto hears his name being called, hears explosions, but he doesn’t pay them any mind, slipping into his room and locking the door behind him as it shuts.

He screwed up.

Now he’s going to have to deal with the consequences, and he’s all alone this time. Shouto moves to his bed, wondering if he could manage to sneak off campus without anyone finding out, but then his door is splintering and he’s ducking at the explosive sound.

“Damn Icyhot, Princess! Stop fuckin’ running from me instead of letting me fuckin’ respond to your confession!” snaps Katsuki loudly, hands popping as he steps into the room like he didn’t just blast Shouto’s door to smithereens.

“Did you have to explode my door though, Bakugou?” asks Shouto as he stands upright again and pouts at Katsuki with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Did you have to fuckin’ run though, Princess?” asks Katsuki while arching a brow and crossing his arms over his chest in response. “Wouldn’t have exploded the fuckin’ door if you hadn’t ran the fuck off like a damn coward.”

“If I could’ve kept my mouth shut on my feelings, I wouldn’t have taken off. Didn’t feel like dealing with the situation, but that doesn’t mean you get to explode my door. I’m the one that has to explain this to Aizawa and deal with the punishment, Bakugou.” huffs Shouto with an eye roll before he moves backwards to sit on his bed with a pout.

“I’ll take the fucking punishment, and I’ll tell hobo-sensei. But if I do that, then you have to fuckin’ hear me out instead of assuming feelings that you don’t know shit about because I never told you a damn thing.” replies Katsuki with a scowl as he looks at Shouto, stepping further into the room.

“Don’t act like you want to talk to me about feelings. You don’t even like to talk about feelings, so why would you even bother talking about mine? I threw them on you, but it doesn’t mean that we have to talk about them. I don’t want to deal with the rejection, so just drop it, Bakugou.” says Shouto coldly, blanking himself out as much as he can while tilting his head down to stare at his lap instead of looking into those ruby eyes.

“Why do you always have to assume shit?” asks Katsuki with a put-upon sigh before there’s silence again. But then feet appear in Shouto’s view and his face is being lifted by fingers lightly pinching at his chin. “Let’s start this off with this, you’re not being rejected. You’re not the only one who has been dealing with the aftermath of Shitty hair and the Shitty nerd deciding to get together out of nowhere. You’re also not the only one who’s been healing from the situation. So, that’s the start of the conversation we need to have now.”

“I understand all of that and know it very well, thank you very much Bakugou, but that doesn’t explain why you want to talk about something that clearly isn’t comfortable. And is it really wrong to assume this when everyone knows how you feel about “feelings talks”? Also, why are you- why are you tilting my face upwards?” Shouto’s breath keeps hitching as Katsuki’s hand moves from fingers pinching his chin to cupping his cheek as a whole, and he steps forward between Shouto’s legs.

He’s so close.

“I want to talk about this, Princess, because I want you to understand that your assumptions are fucking stupidly out of proportion. They also have no basis outside of me not liking to talk about feelings, which isn’t completely correct by the fucking way. Sure, I don’t do the damn heart-to-heart bullshit, but it’s not because I don’t want to. I don’t do it because I don’t want to talk to someone, not because I don’t want to do it but because of who it’s with.” explains Katsuki softly, gentle as his thumb brushes back and forth over his cheek. Those eyes are locked on Shouto’s, leaving him feeling far more breathless than is typical, but Katsuki’s lips curve into a half-smile. “It’s not wrong to assume I don’t want to talk about feelings, I guess, but it’s wrong to assume that I wouldn’t want to talk about feelings with you. You’re the only one I want to have those stupid “feelings” talks with, Princess, and that’s important. And I’m tilting your face up because I want to look at you, and I want you to know that I’m not fucking lying.”

“I- Wha- Why- why do you want to…? Why would you want to have the feelings talk with me?” asks Shouto softly, breathless as he stares into red eyes that are showing care and fondness that he never thought he’d see pointed towards him.

“Because I liked you before I liked Shitty Hair, that’s why. Look, Princess, I liked you back at the beginning of fuckin’ second year. It took me a few months to realize what I was feeling, and even more to be okay with it, but you were dealing with the case against your brother. I put it off, but then I spent time with Shitty Hair over the summer. When he asked me out, I said yes because I started to like him too. What I feel for you is so much more than like, but it’s not quite the other one yet.” explains Katsuki softly, understanding in his voice as he tries to give all the information that Shouto needs, being as honest as he can despite the way it makes him uneasy. Then he leans down and their noses brush together. “I want to have the feelings talk with you because I like you so fucking much that I couldn’t stop thinking about you even when I was supposed to be “with” that Shitty Hair asshole.”

Shouto’s eyelids fall closed as the tips of their noses brush together a few times, taking in all of the information he was given, then he opens his eyes and heterochromatic eyes lock on ruby eyes that have a softness to them that sends butterflies fluttering through his tummy.

He sighs as he tilts his head back some, needing a little bit of space, though his hands lift to grip Katsuki’s shirt to keep him from going far when he starts to move backwards.

“Don’t go too far now, Bakugou, or should I call you Katsuki? Anyway, if you’re saying- You say that you like me, liked me first, liked me even when you were supposed to like him… What- I- Where do we go from here because this… this was a lot, and I- I know what I want, but I also know that processing all of this and coming to terms with this outcome is- it’s going to be- well… it’s going to be hard to believe, for me at least, for a while.” murmurs Shouto, mostly speaking to himself despite the words being pointed at Katsuki because he just doesn’t have a clue how he’s going to believe this after everything with Izuku and trying to move on from Katsuki.

He feels jumbled.

He knows, without a doubt, that he cares deeply for Katsuki, and sees him in that romantic light more than he ever saw Izuku. He knows that, but he doesn’t know if this is the right time for all of this. Is there a right time for all of this?

He wishes he could just know the answer, but he’s never been good when it comes to emotions.

The only answer he knows is that he wants to try, but he doesn’t know if they should.

“You wanna call me Katsuki? Go ahead, you have my full fuckin’ permission. You wanna take things slow and just start by spending time together, not dates, at least not yet, then let’s do that, we can plan days where it’s just us. You wanna try going on a date? Let’s do it, I can convince hobo-sensei to let us off campus for it. We’ve spent the last chunk of time getting over and moving on from those dumbasses, and I don’t know about you, but I’m kinda fuckin’ over waiting for this to happen. Our pacing is our own, but we both want each other, Shouto, so can we just try?” Katsuki’s almost ranting, but his voice is soft and reassuring instead of irritated and harsh, and Shouto can’t help the way he unconsciously leans forward, hands tightening their grip on his tee.

“Is everything okay up here- Woah… I didn’t think you two could even stand each other, but you’re basically kissing. Is this why you were fine with me moving on with Zu, Bakugou?”

Kirishima’s voice startles them, and Shouto lets go of Katsuki’s shirt as they both move back, heads whipping around to stare at the door with wide eyes of surprise. Kirishima sounds angry, looks angry with the way his arms are crossed over his chest, eyes narrowed at the two of them.

“The fuck does it matter to you, Shitty Hair? You’re the one that fuckin’ ghosted me instead of talking to me about why you wanted nothing to do with me anymore. Also, don’t fuckin’ act surprised when you knew I had feelings for Shouto in the first fucking place. You’re the one that called my ass out on them.” sneers Katsuki as he turns to face Kirishima completely, hands clenched at his sides with mini sparks escaping through his fists.

“I can’t believe you honestly think he-”

“Nobody invited you into my room, Kirishima, and if I’m being completely honest, I don’t want you in here. Go back to your boyfriend and our friends, or I’m going to call Aizawa to escort you out. This is none of your business, so please leave.” Shouto cuts him off, not wanting to hear him try to tell Katsuki how unaffectionate he is like Izuku had told him as a way to explain why they weren’t good enough as a couple.

He’d heard it from Hanta when Eijirou told him, and Hanta came rushing to tell Shouto because he knew that wasn’t the case. Shouto likes affection, he really does, but he’s not as certain about when affection is okay or not. Izuku didn’t like that he would ask so often if it was okay to do this or that, if he wanted him to do something like hold his hand, and that’s when some cracks started to show. Izuku preferred it when Shouto just did it, and Shouto preferred to get permission to know he wasn’t reading things wrong. It was a misstep, but it wasn’t a surprising one.

“If you were about to tell me how Shouto isn’t affectionate, fuckin’ save it. He’s affectionate as all hell, and everybody fuckin’ knows it. That dumbass Nerd just didn’t appreciate him asking if touch was okay, and that’s why he thinks it’s okay to say something as stupid as “Shouto’s just not affectionate enough.” The dumb fucker wants touch constantly, not reassurances and check-ins, something he can’t fuckin’ appreciate because he’s so goddamn tactile himself. Shouto was never the goddamn problem, and that dumbass knows it just as well as I do. Now, do as he says and get the fuck outta his room.” snaps Katsuki angrily, hands unclenching, sparks flowing freely into the air with loud pops as those contained explosions are freed from their confines.

“Whatever. I’m just trying to save you from inevitable heartbreak.” huffs Kirishima as he shakes his head at Katsuki.

“Don’t need or want your fuckin’ savin’. I’m good with Shouto, and that’s what fuckin’ matters. Get the fuck out.” sneers Katsuki as he steps forward, almost like he’s tempted to blast Kirishima out of Shouto’s room just to make him leave.

“Don’t go exploding him too. He’ll end up leaving a crater in the wall, and that’s going to be even more punishment for you when Aizawa finds out.” murmurs Shouto as he stands and steps close to Katsuki, putting his back to Kirishima as he looks at Katsuki, not touching him, but close enough that he could if Katsuki wanted him to.

Kirishima scoffs as Katsuki’s quirk ceases, as Katsuki takes the hand closest to his right side, but Shouto focuses on the way a soft thumb starts rubbing across his finger.

“Why did I get a message from Momo about an explosion?” The tiredness in their teacher’s voice has Shouto and Katsuki snorting at the same time as Shouto turns around to see him standing behind a frozen and fear-filled Kirishima.

“I exploded Shouto’s door because he took the fuck off running instead of hearing me out, but Ponytail was probably messaging because I was about to explode Shitty Hair because he wouldn’t leave after Shouto asked him to.” replies Katsuki amusedly, half-smirk curving his lips as he looks at Aizawa head on.

“Detention for a week with Mic for exploding a door, and you’ll be training with me and Hitoshi this week as well. Kirishima, you are going to be seeing Midnight about consent and boundaries for three sessions this week. I’ll have her email the schedule to you and FatGum. Get out of Todoroki’s room, or it’ll be worse.” Aizawa’s focus switches from Katsuki to glaring at Kirishima so quickly that Shouto’s not even sure he ever actually looked at Katsuki. But then Kirishima’s shoulders sag in defeat and he leaves the room, so Shouto feels more at ease now that his room isn’t being invaded by a jerk. “I’ll have someone come and get you a new door in an hour, but no more exploding doors.”

“Yes, Sensei.” Shouto and Katsuki speak in unison, though Katsuki’s grumbling rather than speaking clearly, which makes Shouto chuckle as Aizawa leaves.

“What’re you chucklin’ for, Halfie?” huffs Katsuki as he arches a brow at him, but Shouto sees red on the tips of his ears.

“You and your grumbling. It’s actually really adorable, did you know that?” asks Shouto softly as he tugs Katsuki towards his bed, wanting to get comfortable and sit back down. 

“I wasn’t fuckin’ aware of that, though I’m not fuckin’ adorable, Halfie. Everyone knows you’re adorable ‘cause you’re a goddamn pretty boy.” huffs Katsuki as he sits next to Shouto on the bed, lifting a leg up to rest on the bed while the other stays firmly planted on the ground as he twists to face Shouto. “What do you say to giving this a try?”

Shouto looks down at their intertwined hands, and the decision seems like the easiest one he’ll ever have to make.

“Yeah, I- I’d really like to give this a try, us. I- I’d really like to be with you, Katsuki, as long as you’re sure that I’m the one you want to deal with.” replies Shouto shyly because after all of this, he still isn’t sure how to say yes without feeling like hiding his face as his cheeks burn.

 “Good- uh- yeah, fuckin’ good. We- I- We can talk about a date or a one-on-one hang out time for our next free day or what the fuck ever.” Katsuki stumbles over his words momentarily, but it sends an ease through Shouto because he’s not the only one dealing with all of these emotions and the surprise that this entire night has been. “Shit, I- I definitely didn’t think you’d- I wasn’t prepared for that.”

“I wanted to say that the first time you brought it up, I just- I don’t- It’s hard to say stuff like that and not immediately hide my face, but I didn’t want to hide my face from you.” Shouto stutters over his own words, feeling his face heat up at the admission of embarrassment and the urge to hide in his own confessions, but then he’s trying to be reassuring while also being curious himself. “We can take things slow, at least for the first few times, but I’m absolutely interested in a date rather than a “not-date” one-on-one hang out because I feel like that’ll let me overthink more than a date will. What do you wanna do? Is this too much?”

“It’s not too much, just kind of unexpected considering you ran from me. I’d rather it be a date too, but I fuckin’- I didn’t wanna push you because you were hesitant. If you wanna have it be a date while still being mostly casual, we can fuckin’ ask Tape Arms and Round Cheeks to go with us. Tape Arms already fuckin’ offered to do casual double dates, so like- we could do that shit, if you’d feel more comfortable.” replies Katsuki quietly as he answers the questions while also offering up a solution that Hanta had offered him.

“Sounds like a plan that I’m really excited to see executed, Katsuki.” says Shouto softly, lightly squeezing their intertwined hands as he looks into pretty, ruby eyes. “What- uh- what do you wanna do now?”

“Fuckin’ perfect. I’ll plan the best fuckin’ date, double date, you’ll ever fuckin’ experience! But uh- as for now… do you wanna hang out a bit longer, or would you rather have some space?” asks Katsuki softly, excitement brimming in his ruby eyes before his voice aches with uncertainty.

“We could hang out, maybe watch a movie or a documentary or something? I don’t really wanna be away from you right now… Is that- is that okay?” Shouto’s hesitant, but he’s gripping Katsuki’s hand tightly because he really doesn’t want Katsuki to leave his room.

“Why don’t we watch a quirk documentary then because I don’t wanna be away from your ass right now either. We can check out the stupid element quirk documentary that you fuckin’ bought the other day on YouTube with your sperm donor’s credit card.” replies Katsuki as he grips Shouto’s hand just as tightly while he looks away.

Shouto smiles softly at the sight of Katsuki turning away because the tips of his ears are burning a deep red, and it’s adorable. Instead of calling that out though, Shouto reaches for his laptop at the end of his bed, and he tugs it over to them. It takes him longer than he’d like to get logged in and pull up YouTube with one hand, but he refuses to let go of Katsuki’s hand.

“Do you want blankets, or are you okay? We could lean against the wall, or lay down, if you want.” offers Shouto softly as he gets the documentary pulled up, excitement burning through him because he’s been wanting to watch this since he found out it was going to be released.

“Let’s just lay down, I’m fuckin’ tired and you look exhausted and excited at the same time. Plus, it’s uncomfortable as hell to lounge against the wall when you’re watching a video on a computer. Just set the computer up on your small ass side-table and let’s actually get comfortable… Only if you’re okay with that though- oh.” Katsuki’s grumbling his response, but Shouto’s already moving around and tugging him towards the head of the bed before he can finish answering the questions posed for him.

Shouto gets the laptop set-up on the side-table, lying down on his side and adjusting the screen as Katsuki lies down behind him.

“You ready?” asks Shouto as he gets ahold of Katsuki’s other hand, tugging it around until it’s pressed against his chest and wrapped in his own.

Katsuki presses forward, curling around Shouto as he relaxes into his own bed, and he whispers, “Click play, Princess. I’m fuckin’ ready.”

Shouto clicks play and melts into Katsuki’s hold as the opening credits to the documentary starts to play. He scoots back slightly to get closer to Katsuki, shifting down so that Katsuki can bury his nose in his red and white strands of hair, and his focus on the documentary is skewed by the comfort that has his breathing evening out.

That’s how they’re found by Aizawa and Cementoss as they come to set up Shouto’s new door, but worse is that they’re found by Hanta and Ochako moments before when they came to check on them.

A photo of their cuddling, sleep session is sent in the class group-chat, and they’ll wake up to hundreds of messages about this. But for now, they sleep peacefully through it all, curled together as the documentary plays and ends, all the way to the laptop turning itself off and through the night.