Chapter 2:
6 months later
“Bakubro, how was your date last night?”
Katsuki groaned quietly to himself as he heard the annoying redhead yelling at him from down the hall. He reluctantly turned to answer, wanting to tell the other to fuck off, but bit his tongue as he saw the hero running down the hall as quick as he could. Even if the idiot annoyed him majority of the time, it was hard for him to be outright mean toward his happy go lucky energy the other always had.
Kirishima looked like an absolute dork as he sprinted past other heroes, throwing apologies over his shoulder as he nearly collided with them. He was still wearing his hero costume even though his shift ended an hour ago, the material waifting off a bit of dirt. The hero’s long red hair was barely tied back into its high ponytail, strands flying everywhere. He had his sharp teeth on full display, grinning like a maniac in the excitement of finally being able to talk to his highschool friend.
“Like all the other ones.” The blonde grumbled once the man had gotten close enough to hear. He didn’t wait before turning away and picking up the brisk pace he had set before to get back to his office.
He had been successful at avoiding Eijirou all day, but it seemed his luck had run out before he could clock out. Katsuki really didn’t want to go through the same interrogation for the thousandth time. It was not his favorite way of talking to his friend since it usually lasted half an hour answering questions, some of them off the wall and others just bazaar.
Katsuki didn’t need the other to be so concerned with his love life, but really there was nothing he could do when Eijirou had already set his mind on something. His best friend was going to keep his foothold in the blonde’s life as his best friend no matter what, and that meant squeezing his way into every personal aspect of Katsuki’s life.
Katsuki opened the door to his office, letting it swing wide to allow Eijirou to walk in after him.
“Really? I thought this guy would have been the one.” Ejirou responded, a hint of disappointment in his voice. “He had everything that you liked, and just as big of a gym rat too.”
Katsuki didn’t want to look at the other, knowing his friend would be frowning in a way that would make the blonde wish he had put in a bit more effort on the date. So he just rolled his eyes, trying to portray the anger he had originally felt three minutes ago.
It wasn’t his fault that his idiot friend proclaimed himself as Katsuki’s witch doctor or Cupid, the man was determined to find someone for him- even though he failed horribly each time.
He had tried telling Eijirou time and time again that he wasn’t the kind of guy to commit to a relationship, he didn’t want or need one. His job was his spouse, the thing he wanted to dedicate all his time to; not some stranger he was forced to meet and pretend to be interested in for everyone’s sake but his own.
Really there was no reason for all of this stress. It wasn’t like he was lacking in the sexual department. He had plenty of one night stands to ebb his needs. It was easy to have little flings with other heroes or agency workers since many were interested in the same thing as him; no commitment, just sex. It was easy.
Though Eijirou never understood it. He was a man of feelings, someone that didn’t like to skip and hop from person to person. He was definitely the longer term relationship type of person.
So to get the man off his case, Katsuki had entertained his friend for the past year, knowing that the guy was just looking out for him in the ways he knew how. It was only natural for the red head to try and share what he had found; that being a loving relationship with Mina.
But Katsuki had reached his limit. He couldn’t keep doing these dates for the sake of his friend. They were tiring him out, leaving him in a worse mood than he usually had. He didn’t want those feelings of frustration to be reflected onto his friendship with the other.
So Katsuki sighed after a moment, and spoke. “No more blind dates, Eijirou.” He fell into his desk chair with a huff, rubbing his face in irritation. “I don’t care if it is a guy or a girl, or one of your relatives. I can’t keep doing this, I’m not going on any more dates.”
Katsuki finally looked up at his friend, his glare set despite how hard it was to do so toward the other. His friend had always been a teddy bear, someone Katsuki had a hard time disappointing ever since high school.
That didn’t change in any way now that the other looked nothing like his younger self. Eijirou had grown so much taller since UA. His height was now closer to 6’7” with a build closer to a boulder than human. He was beefy, his arms the size of Katsuki’s head, and thighs so strong they could break someone’s spine. His torso was thick, nothing flashy like most would assume from someone so strong, but instead a core of steel under a layer of fat.
Eijirou was a monster compared to his own 6’ build and thin waist. The red head’s silhouette was far more intimidating next to Katsuki’s. It was incredible how someone who looked like that could have the softest personality. Katsuki wouldn’t say it out loud, but there were days where he was jealous of others.
Eijirou frowned at his friend, concern showing in his eyes as he looked at the other. Katsuki thought he was going to argue, but was thankful when the man just forced a pout but nodded in agreement. “Ya, I guess that makes sense.” He said, voice soft as he walked to stand by the desk. “Dating is hard, especially since Midoriya-“
“Don’t!” Katsuki interrupted. “I don’t want to hear it!”
”Kat, I’m just trying to help.” He whispered, leaning his weight onto the desk. “It’s been almost five years.”
Katsuki stood, his face angry as he leaned over and bared his teeth. “And two since Inko! What do you want from me! Huh!”
Eijirou’s face fell into an apologetic wince at what the other had said. “I just want you to be happy. I can see how much it hurts when people announce their relationships, or when Mina announced our engagement.”
Katsuki sucked in a breath, face draining and leaving a chill at the other’s spot on observation of him. It did hurt, like his body didn’t know how to function when he saw other’s advancing in life. It pissed him off how everyone around him had moved on, could do the things that he never had a chance to even think about doing.
“I get that you are mourning. It’s been a difficult few years. But don’t you think it’s time to move on and not keep yourself trapped in the past?” Eijirou continued.
Katsuki could feel his blood begin to boil at what his friend just said, his emotions swirling around him as he tried to suppress them, but it was no good. How could anyone, especially his best friend, say something like that?
“The Fuck!” he growled, eyes stinging as he felt tears. “Move on? Why?! Izuku doesn’t get to move on, no he didn’t even get to come home. He is stuck somewhere in America. He died out there away from everyone, and his mother didn’t even get to be buried by him. No, she was put next to an empty plot! Moving on is not an option for us!”
Eijirou’s eyes widened as he backed away from the seething blonde. He lifted his hands up in an apology as he made his way to the door. “I’m sorry bro, I didn’t mean to-“
“Shut the fuck up and leave me alone!” Katsuki yelled, his fists clenched as he looked down at his desk. A tear splattering onto the wood as he heard the door click closed.
He knew Ejirou didn’t mean anything by it, but that didn’t stop the pain that was spreading through his chest. The ache deep in his gut as he thought about his childhood friend.
He walked over to the windows that encased his office, the glass stretching from the ceiling to floor. He blinked away the tears, trying to distract himself from the lump in his throat and tightness in his chest. Trying hard to focus on the cars down below, the occasional hero that would keep from rooftop to rooftop, or the birds fluttering with the wind.
He remembered how this view took his breath away the first time he toured this office space two years after graduation, how it brought hope and excitement for the future of his own agency. Even though it was going to be a small start; just him with 3 other heros and a few office staff. The prospects were bright and he couldn’t wait to expand it.
Yet, as he looked out over the horizon now, it barely phased him. Nothing really brought that same excitement anymore. Not the intense battles with villians, long hours at the gym with his friends or even the satisfaction of rising through the ranks could make him feel anything beyond the dumbness that had grown over him.
Since Deku's disappearance, those desires and dreams that had once been enough to fuel him through adolescence and into adulthood had disappeared just as quickly as his rival.
It had been easy to alter his motivation and to use the anger it spawned to his advantage for a while. It was therapeutic for him, to put everything into his herowork and use it to distract him from the reality of what had happened.
Once that had started to wear off, he used the promises he made with Inko just before she died to sustain him for a bit longer. The responsibility to carry on her son’s legacy and achieve the dream he never got to see.
But now, 3 years later, he couldn’t get himself to care anymore. He couldn’t find the energy to get mad that Icy-Hot had ranked out at number 1 this past year. Or how that brought Hawks down to number 2 and how Iida jumped five spots to number 3; it still hadn’t changed anything for him.
To be honest he felt like he didn’t deserve the spot that he had. Number four, one that he has held for the second year in a row, and only because Endeavour had finally retired, and left the number two spot open for the taking. It felt like a pity placement after the Hero Galla had ended. It was obvious he had barely held on, and it was the luck of retirement that allowed him to stay.
It had now been six years since he last saw Izuku, and four and a half since he died. Nothing in comparison could out weight the pain that brought. At times it felt like he had forgotten what Izuku had looked like, while other times his face was burned in his brain. It was exhausting, Katsuki was exhausted.
With a deep breath, Katsuki walked back over to his desk, scanning the stack of papers in hopes that they could get his mind back on track. Each page was information on a case he was trying to figure out, but the words didn’t make sense as he reread the same paragraph three times. The stinking of tears were back.
Katsuki quickly clamped his eyes shut to try and hold them back. But it didn’t work, nothing ever worked when he started this cycle. The memories always flooded back without anything able to stop them. So Katsuki sat in his chair, breaths now becoming more stuttered as he let himself cry quietly.
“Flight to Hawaii, USA now boarding.” A voice announced over the intercom. The feminine voice pissed the blonde off.
“Well, that’s me.” Deku said, getting up from the chair next to Katsuki. He put on his yellow backpack and the two started toward the gate.
Katsuki had only come to the airport because his group of friends forced him. He didn’t want to be there for the send off, he was fine with the goodbyes they had on their last patrol together. It had been hard not to yell at Izuku when he expressed his excitement for the mission he had in California, and Katsuki didn’t know if he could bite his tongue long enough before he exploded on the nerd.
But Katsuki knew how important this was for Izuku. It was a huge break for his hero career, and Katsuki knew he should support him, even if he didn’t want to.
“Are you going to miss me Kacchan?” Izuku questioned, stopping a few feet from the ticket checkpoint and turning to look up at the blonde. His green eyes showed worry as he waited for an answer.
“No, why would I miss you, damn nerd?” Katsuki said, but his voice didn’t have any bite to it, it was rough and quiet as he looked at the other.
Izuku smiled, a giggle falling past his lips. They both knew the blonde would miss him. They had been inseparable since the war, the two now close friends and hopeful hero partners.
Their group of friends stood off to the side, already expressing their mushy goodbyes before they back off for Katsuki to have his moment too. But as the two stood there, it seemed that neither knew how to say it. Izuku’s cheeks were beginning to grow rosy as he began to wring his hands, a mumble started to form under his breath.
“Just say it, Deku.” Katsuki interrupted with a roll of his eyes.
Those green eyes widened for a moment before looking back up then skirting away to stare at something behind the blonde. “I ummm. I-I just wanted to say.” Izuku licked his lips in hesitation before taking a deep breath. “I really l-Iike you, Kacchan. I-I have liked you for a while now, and I just couldn’t leave without telling you. Ochako said that I should have said it before my last patrol, but I got scared. So I’m saying it now, so you know, and before I leave.” He rambled out with no room for much breathing. “I’ll miss you a lot.”
Katsuki sat frozen as he tried to process what the other had said. His mind was suddenly sluggish as he looked at the other in shock. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard, it was confusing. It was a known thing that pink cheeks and Deku had been dating since second year. So why was Izuku implying that he hadn’t been in a relationship - with a girl?
“Last call for flight to Hawaii, USA.” The voice came on the intercom again, just as polite at the first time.
Katsuki groaned as flashes of memories continued. The image of Izuku smiling over his shoulder at him before he crossed the gate and out of sight for the last time was a continuous loop in his head.
The blonde had been so confused about the whole ordeal, but he never reached out to Izuku for clarification. He didn’t know what to say. He knew that he would explode if he heard the other’s voice. Demand him to explain his relationship with Uraraka and then lay into him for how stupid it was for Izuku to drop that bomb on him then skip away to a foreign land. The stupid bastard!
On top of all of that, there were too many things that Katsuki himself wanted to tell the other, so many things he wanted to admit to. He couldn’t imagine saying them over the phone. Confessing his own feelings toward the idiot wasn’t something he wanted to do when the nerd was half a world away and dating Uraraka.
Eventually Katsuki decided to wait for when Izuku returned. He would make sure he was at the airport to pick up the idiot, and then he would figure out what the hell was going on and potentially confess if it went smooth enough. It was a solid plan, one that was putting off his confession for too long, but still allowed the blonde enough time to figure out what he was going to say.
But that never happened. Life froze when Katsuki heard what happened. His heart had stopped when he flipped on the news and saw those green eyes and bright smile on the screen. The voice of a male reporter explaining the situation that had just happened across the ocean. He reported about a catastrophic terrorist attack that had taken out a huge part of uptown LA. Sending condolences for the Japanese hero that was now listed as a missing person among the growing list of civilians.
Katsuki had dropped everything- leaving his agency in the hands of Red Riot, and flew out to California to help with the recovery efforts, but he never found his friend. There was no trace of Deku in the rubble or in any of the hospitals. None of the LA agencies knew his whereabouts. Izuku was gone, along with many individuals who were never recovered from the devastation.
The explosive hero had returned home weeks after the event, though it seemed his heart didn’t. It stayed in California, desperate to find the Hero that had changed his life.
For months it was like that, Katsuki being frozen with nothing to do. Deku’s previous agency wanted to have a dedication ceremony for the lost hero; so Katsuki volunteered to plan the whole thing. It took three months for it all to come together.
Katsuki had held onto Izuku’s mother through the whole thing, a large group of friends, classmates, teachers, and coworkers gathered around a headstone. Katsuki had tried his best to comfort Inko and Izuku’s girlfriend, but nothing could help the pain they all felt.
That was the only day that he allowed anyone to see him cry. To allow himself to fall apart and hope that the hole in his chest would someday close. That he would someday forgive himself for not calling Izuku, for not confessing, and beg his heart to forgive the idiot for confessing and leaving him behind.
Knock knock
Red eyes swiped up to the door as it flew open before he could even answer, large scarred hands wiping away the remnants of any tears as quickly as possible.
”Boss, we got another tip.” Eijirou says, keeping the door more closed behind his back than normal. Katsuki let out a breath, thankful for his friend wanting to give him as much privacy as possible.
Katsuki nodded as he stood up quickly from his desk. The two made their way down the hall to the conference room. The table was already lined with the majority of his team, some of them chatting to one another while the others focused on their work tablets.
Katsuki focused his attention on the dirty envelope that sat closest to his seat. The thing looked exactly like the others Dynamite Agency had been receiving for the past 5 months. All of them had come in under the same condition; appearing at the receptionist desk, filled with pictures and a coded message signed with the letter M.
Katsuki sat at his seat, eyes trained on the envelope with Dynamite written in sloppy writing. This was the seventh one; the previous six had led his team to catching villains that hadn’t been on their radar, but each of them far larger than petty crimes. 2 back alley-deals involving military weapons, a targeted attack on armored vans transporting hero memorabilia, an attempt at frying the grid during the cold of winter, a coordinated attempt at large scale prison break, and an exposing of a dirty cop trafficking children.
All of the tips had arrived the same day of the warned events, but M was never there when they would arrive on scene. It was confusing for Katsuki to understand how this person could move around like a ghost. The hypothesis that his team was leaning toward was their quirk being an invisibility type.
The entire room fell silent when Katsuki grabbed the envelope, fingers sliding through the seal and dumping out a piece of paper and 4 pictures. Eijirou quickly looks through the pictures as he puts them on the tablet table top, the pictures scanned and shared to every hero in the room within seconds.
Katsuki focuses on the paper in the meantime, his eyes narrowing in concentration before handing it to his partner to scan next.
urev yvhrwv gsv nzrm
fhv lu hbirmtvh gl vmszmxv jfrip
zggzxp glwzb, ulfi kn
Qzkzm, Nfhfgzuf, Vhfsz xrgb.
Zylmwlmvw hslk urev hgivvgh vzhg.
-M
Mina was quick to start decoding the letter once it was done uploading to the database. Her face contorting into confusion as she stares down at her tablet before standing up and walking to the far corner of the room. No one said anything at her indirect dismissal.
Everyone knew at this point that she was the fastest among them all when it came to decoding. She was quick at reading the notes, all of them so far following the same decipher that they had learned in high school during their third year.
The rest of the group focused on the pictures, flipping through them and making notes as they examined them. The tablet tabletop begins to update live with quick notes from each hero in the room, their experiences and keen eye coming in handy as Katsuki swipes through each one.
Each photo showed a group of men talking to one another in a dingy room that had wallpaper falling off the walls. Most of their faces were in view for the first two. The other two focused on a case between them that had syringes filled with red liquid.
“Was the receptionist able to get any new details on M?” Katsuki asks his team.
They had gathered a few things on this mysterious M. It seemed to be the same person dropping off the envelopes rather than a group effort. The person was of a male build and average height; 5’7 to 5’8. They always wore a black cloak that concealed any identifying features. Their receptionist was never able to see under the large hood or get the person to speak to them. They would just toss the envelope onto the desk and walk out without a word before security could even have a chance to get to the lobby.
Eijirou’s voice answered the blonde. “Yes, today they were wearing red high top shoes and blue jeans.” The redhead said.
Red eyes widen in shock as he looks up at the man standing over the table tablet.
”That is fucking new. What the hell happened for them to be this sloppy today?” He barked out with a laugh. That was a huge addition to their profile on M.
Mina spoke up from her corner of the room, though her eyes stayed trained on her screen. “His handwriting is just as sloppy. I can barely read some of these letters.” Her face pulled down in a pout. “This is going to take me a minute.”
“What if they were in a hurry this time?” Denki asks from his seat. His eyes were trained on his device as his hand rubbed his chin. “Could something have happened and they were forced to rush giving us this info?” He finally looked up to his boss, those yellow eyes pointed as he looked at Katsuki for his opinion.
Katsuki hummed in thought, brows pulling together. “If they were in a hurry, then we may not have as much time as we thought.” He mutters out. Whatever these villains were planning had to be big for M to risk their own identity to get their help.
“Mina!” He yelled toward the woman. Golden eyes look up to him, shocked by his sudden call. “Decipher that message quickly.” He directed, already moving a few of his other team members to help the alien queen.
A pit was beginning to grow as the situation began to take shape. Katsuki needed to form a plan, and his team needed to figure out what the hell was about to happen before it was too late.
Word count: 4131
Another chapter down. How does everyone feel so far? Let me know in the comments down below :)
