The school day had finished and the students started to walk back to their dorms. Shoto happily chatted with Izuku while keeping a lookout for any sign of Katsuki. Izuku felt bad as half of him was only present in the conversation. The other half was worried about leaving Katsuki earlier that day when he did.

"Izuku." Shoto called out, fully bringing him to his senses. "Did you hear me?"

"No. I'm going to go ahead. I feel really tired." lied Izuku before hurrying ahead.

It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to Shoto, he just felt bad for not being fully present. He took the stairs up to his floor then hurriedly opened the door to his room then closed and locked it. It was this time of day he favored most. He was all alone, not having to worry about crazy Kacchan nor overprotective Shoto. Just him and his All Might merchandise.

Izuku was quietly doing homework when he heard a knock on his door. He went back to work then heard them knock again. Should he answer it? It wasn't like he had to let them in. He left his seat then opened the door slightly.

"Kacchan?" he said in confusion. This was the first time he's stopped by his room. "What do you want me to do? Buy something? Give you my notes? Use-"

"I want to talk. That icyhot guy can't bother us in here." Katsuki said.

Izuku was reluctant to let him in, but did so anyway. He locked the door and made sure no one could enter. He sat on his chair while Katsuki lied on his bed. Katsuki wanting to just talk with him was weird in of itself.

"Are you and Todoroki a thing?" he asked suddenly, causing Izuku to make a long mark on his homework.

"What? No. We're friends. I could never be into him. Plus his dad is scary." replied Izuku weakly.

Endeavor wasn't the friendly type to begin with. To learn his son was dating a guy and not a girl, he didn't want to imagine what would happen.

"Damn nerd... I don't get why everyone is so nice to you. What did you do to deserve it huh?" Katsuki half asked, half demanded.

"I don't know either. But I'm grateful for it though. Their support and kindness have gotten me this far." Izuku said softly as he thought back. "Even you helped in a weird way."

Katsuki felt a bit of heat in his cheeks. He rubbed his cheeks in hopes of getting rid of the feeling. They sat in silence as Izuku continued to work. After years of constantly bickering and being bullied, he never thought they'd one day sit in the same space in complete silence. Harsh knocking broke them out of their trance.

"Don't answer it." Katsuki whispered as he closed the curtains to the balcony before checking to make sure it was locked.

"What if it's a teacher?" Izuku asked worriedly.

"Why would a teacher visit at this time?" Katsuki fussed.

Izuku sighed then kept working. The knocking came again.

"I know you're in there Izuku, open up!" a familiar voice said.

"It's Tenya... can I open it?" Izuku whispered.

Katsuki rolled his eyes then wrapped himself in Izuku's sheets. He couldn't see anything, but he couldn't deny that his sheets smelled like him. He rubbed his cheek against the sheet as they continued to talk by the door. It then hit him like a truck. He was being weird again. Katsuki internally groaned as he hoped to erase the moment from his mind permanently. The door closed and the sound of the lock rang in his ears.

"You can come out now. They're looking for you. They wanna blow up some stuff but Shoto doesn't want to." Izuku reported as he sat down.

Katsuki sat up as the sheet draped over him in all angles.

"What makes them think I'd want to do it either?" fussed Katsuki despite making his way towards the door.

"Have fun." said Izuku as Katsuki left.

It was weird. He never thought he'd ever have a decent conversation with him. Things were starting to look up for him.

˗ˏˋ❀ˋˏ ˏˋ❀ˋˏ˗

Izuku was watching old All Might videos when someone knocked. He shouted it was open and continued to watch.

"Watching the top hero again huh?" Shoto said as he placed his hands on his shoulders.

"Mmm. He's just so amazing! One or two punches and the villains are subdued. Rescuing numerous people within the span of minutes. Naturally charismatic. I always say I'm striving to be like him, but the more I watch him, the more I realize how distant that goal/dream is." Izuku said as he looked down at his hero notes.

"Izuku, you're amazing just the way you are. You can become a top hero like All Might in your own way. I can promise you that." said Shoto as he gave him a brief hug. "Just for the record, Bakugo didn't stop in here did he?"

"No, why?" Izuku lied.

"He doesn't know the meaning of stop. He doesn't stop calling you names, he doesn't stop accusing you of belittling him, he doesn't stop and think before rushing out. So many things, Izuku. And he doesn't stop hanging around you. Why?" Shoto asked, genuinely curious about Bakugo's state of mind.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask him yourself? Or his parents? The teachers? I know just as much as you do." Izuku responsed with a tired sigh.

"Right... sorry. It's getting late so I'll take my leave. Stay away from no good Katsuki." Shoto said then left.

"Kacchan really is good at making enemies..." muttered Izuku. Katsuki's words came back to his mind relating to Shoto. "Does Shoto feel something for me..."

˗ˏˋ❀ˋˏ ˏˋ❀ˋˏ˗

He couldn't sleep. He rose from his bed and quietly left his room. Izuku walked down the hall and took the stairs in order to create less noise. He arrived in the lobby then pushed the front door open. Someone was sitting on the steps.

"Kacchan..." Izuku blurted out, regretting it soon after.

"What do you want, damn nerd? Shouldn't you be asleep?" Katsuki spat as he stood up.

"What about you? Shouldn't you be asleep? We have classes tomorrow." Izuku retorted.

Katsuki remained silent as he walked down the steps. Izuku followed, not wanting to head back upstairs yet. Neither said a word as they slowly walked around the building. He was surprised to see that Katsuki could go this long without spouting rude remarks at him.

"Can't sleep?" Katsuki finally asked as he stopped.

Izuku bumped into him and quickly apologized. He blinked rapidly as Katsuki didn't insult him, but instead said "watch your step".

"Yeah, can't sleep... Why can't you sleep?" Izuku asked as he walked around to stand in front of him.

"As if I'd tell you, nerd." Katsuki said while avoiding eye contact.

"Well, I couldn't sleep because I was thinking about a lot of things. Shoto suddenly becoming overprotective... Ochako avoiding hanging out with me one on one... you suddenly being not you around me, being slightly nicer... my future as a U.A student and eventually as a pro hero... All of it kept me awake. I'm scared." Izuku confessed as he kept his head low. "Compared to you, I have a lot to worry about while you have it easy."

Katsuki grabbed Izuku by his hair and made him look up at him.

"I have it easy? From what kind of perspective are you looking from? I have the same worries as anyone else. It may not seem like it because I'm always looking up and aiming to be the best. I'm human too, Deku." Katsuki seethed then let his hair go. "Talking to you is a waste of time."

Izuku quietly watched as Katsuki walked back towards the building. His eyes said more than his mouth did. He felt bad, assuming Katsuki didn't have worries or concerns. He hurried to catch up with him then grabbed his hand.

"I'm sorry if what I said offended you. I didn't mean to make it seem like you had an easy life. I would know best since we're childhood..." Izuku said then trailed off. What were they? "...acquaintances."

Izuku let go of his hand then hurried back inside. He desperately wanted to call him his childhood friend at that moment, but no matter how much his desire wanted to, he had to face reality. They weren't friends, Katsuki treated him like crap for years, and even now in high school Katsuki looked down on him. Reality was harsh.