愛 *·˚ ༘ ➳ 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 ❞

"are you still mad at me?"

she was no longer looking at her computer, eyes focused on him. katsuki didn't say anything. he feigned interest in his fan mail. y/n had given him a box of some that were sent in- she told him appreciating his fans was apart of the job. "katsuki."

"i'm not mad," katsuki told her, raising a brow at a drawing. the coloring was poorly done, and the base and anatomy in general was just bad. he resisted the urge to tear it into shreds and placed it to the side, instead.

"actually, yes i fucking am. but i don't get a say in your stupid life decisions anyway so it doesn't matter."

"yes it does," y/n frowned. "i don't want you being mad at me all the time? it does matter-"

"i don't wanna fucking talk about this anymore if you're not gonna stop what you're doing." katsuki mumbled.

y/n shifted, "i- i can't hear you."

katsuki clenched his pencil and glared at the girl, raising his volume, "i said: none of it matters. do what you want."

y/n looked like she was going to counter, and katsuki shot her a look that told her not to. they were done discussing it, and that was that. maybe he was just being selfish. he didn't want y/n to be in so much pain- was that considered selfish?

he didn't want his friend taking on the burdens of extra who couldn't deal with shit themselves? katsuki would've been fine with or without his hearing; he'd find a way to work through it because it was his problem, not hers. was it so wrong to be angry at her for that?

y/n shifted in her spot, pressing her fingers to her temples. she was in pain, clearly.

well, she chose to be in that kind of pain, after all, katsuki decided, looking at another drawing of him; this one was much better, but still wasn't the best. he stared at it for a while longer, then tossed it aside. y/n let a sigh fall from her lips and it wasn't one of relief. it made katsuki frown.

if she was in so much pain, just get rid of it. give it back, they weren't her problems, she wasn't responsible for any of them, and yet- she winced, pressing a palm to the side of her head.

finally having enough, katsuki pulled the computer from y/n, "hey-" she clicked her tongue, reaching for her device. "katsuki what's your-" he placed it on his desk, then took her binders and notebooks and papers, sweeping everything up with his things and tossing them on the surface together.

"we're taking a break," he grumbled before turning off his light. it was dark, but y/n's expression of pure confusion was clear and it made katsuki roll his eyes. "your head is fucking killing you. i can tell, alright?"

y/n nodded silently, dropping her posture and bringing her fingers back to her temples. katsuki watched her carefully before he scooted closer to her, pulling her fingers away and holding her hands uncharacteristically soft. he couldn't stop himself firm saying, "half."

y/n gave him a look, "what?"

"give me half of it this time. we'll fucking power through it." because despite himself, he wanted to. he really fucking wanted to help her, even just a little bit. it was so god damn annoying, why did he even feel the need when she could stop the pain anytime she wanted?

y/n was still hesitant. her teeth grazed her bottom lip, and katsuki found himself watching the action as he entwined their fingers, squeezing them as if to convince her.

she took in a breath and gave a small nod, "okay."

like before, it was immediate. "so... is this how you plan on spending the rest of your life," katsuki took that familiar breath, fighting his way through the pain. though, it wasn't nearly as bad as the last time, it was still extremely painful. "just... hurting. taking pain from others,"

y/n's eyes closed, "yes. that's what a lot of heroes do, no? i kind of want to be known as a healer, though... not many people know of my quirk, so i just want to reassure people i can take their pain away and not have them worry about me. like you do, constantly."

"maybe people should worry about you."

"why? i'm fine. i've been handling this on my own for years, i can hang on for longer. but you doing this for me... is really nice... i want to be someone who helps people like all might. i may not be all flashy and cool, and i can't really fight, but... when it comes down to it, i just wanna save people. like my favorite hero. like you." she opened her eyes and smiled at him. he froze, looking at her expression. genuine. katsuki rolled his eyes and turned his head, face heating up.

"your drive and dedication is what makes you my favorite. you can save people in your own way, for your own reasons. so let me save people in my way, for my reasons, too."

katsuki nodded, not saying anything. he didn't really know what to say, actually.

he kind of felt like crying.

she would spend a lifetime- literally, her life in pain. suffering. katsuki's grip on her hand tightened and he pulled her close, leaning forward just a bit. "your sincerity makes you my favorite." y/n's brow twitched and he rolled his eyes. "my favorite fucking- hero, my favorite hero." y/n laughed and katsuki realized she didn't do that much. it was kind of nice, that he made her laugh.

"thank you, katsuki."

instead of saying anything in response, he kissed her.

it wasn't anything special, he noticed. it felt right, more than anything. a feeling of warmth that engulfed him while his lips were against hers, the tension leaving from his shoulders and the urge to melt against her, strong. he sighed against her lips and felt like that was a feeling he'd been missing for a while. felt together. felt nice. like everything was going to be okay.

"don't say thanks. you're saving a lot of people in ways i can't." he said against her lips, pulling back slightly to look into her eyes as he spoke. "saving people who don't even know they need saving sometimes. saving me 'cause i can't save myself for some dumb reason. you're a fucking amazing hero, y/n. and i won't fight you for doing something a hero would do. so this is me saying thanks."

he was pretty sure y/n was trying not to cry. she laughed quietly and hung her arms around katsuki's neck, loosely.

"fine. then, you're welcome, katsuki."