The sudden question startles Monoma into straight-backed and tense posture, his eyes wide and mouth agape; the inference disgusts him. He vehemently disagrees, spatting, "No!" His voice came out high and squeaky, so Monoma clears his throat before continuing, settling back into his seat. "No. I honestly don't even care if he forgives me or not. It would be great, yes, but I recognize that I did something unforgivable. It would be extremely presumptuous of me to assume that I can be forgiven for the unforgivable, wouldn't it? No, I just want him to know that I am really sorry. I didn't mean for this all to happen, and I never..." His voice gets choked up, and Monoma clears his throat again, ignoring the water moistening his eyes. "I never should have said something like that, no matter the circumstance. It doesn't matter what happened to me or who I was saying it to; I should never have allowed something like that to leave my mouth. So, yeah, it was already despicable, but then it was about someone who actually went through something like that. I feel like trash for it, and I can't let him think that I would ever intentionally do something like this to him.

"I've seen the looks he gets, and I know that he despises it. He may never forgive me, and that's fine, but I really just need him to know that I'm really so sorry." Staring into the teacher's eyes with all of his conviction, Monoma sincerely hopes that he has gotten his message across well. He has never been the easiest guy to understand, and he can't fault anyone else for that—he does not exactly make it easy—but he put his all into this explanation in the hopes that he will come across as clearly as he ever has or ever will.

Monoma quickly swipes at his watery eyes before a tear can fall, averting his gaze from Aizawa's piercing dark eyes. It is silent in the room for a while until Aizawa shifts, leaning back in his seat and taking a large gulp of his coffee. He speaks up with a scratchy monotone, "Well, I think you already know what you have to say, at least." At Monoma's confused expression, he elaborates, "Everything you just said is what you need to tell Bakugou. The same conviction, the same intent, the same acceptance. I believe you when you say you don't expect forgiveness, so I can pretty much ascertain that you are telling the truth since not many can fool me. Keep in mind everything you have said to me, but I will tell you something about Bakugou, and don't you dare let it give you some false hope that all is well. You messed up, and you need to accept that. Understood?" Monoma nods vehemently, and Aizawa nods lightly in response after taking another sip of coffee. "Once again, I think you already got that, but I need to be certain. Now, as for Bakugou, that kid may seem brash and angry all the time, but he is a really good kid. His behavior makes some people think that he is villainous, but he is always there for the people he cares about, will always do his best to protect any people he can, has a painfully strong heart of gold, and, luckily for you, forgives people as long as they really mean what they say. I can't be certain that he will do the same here, considering the circumstances, but I want you to at least be aware of your situation. Bakugou does not need to forgive you, but he might. That does not mean that everything is perfect just because he forgives you. It just means that he is kind and a genuinely good person."

Monoma continues to nod, and he feels like he will transform into a bobble head by the time this meeting is over. "Yes, I understand, and I promise that my apology will not have changed. I mean everything I have said, and it has not changed, so what I say will not, either. But how do I get Bakugou to listen long enough for me to apologize? I cannot get him to listen to me for longer than it takes to look at me and away again."

Aizawa seems to contemplate this with his drowsy eyes creeping slowly toward the entrance to his little home. "Well, I'll just call him in, then," he grumbles tiredly as he stands up, heading for the door.

Monoma blinks dumbly at the teacher. "What?"

Looking over his shoulder, Aizawa says, "I am going to get Bakugou so that you two can talk here in private. It is still just a bit after seven, so he should be awake." With that, Aizawa steps out of the room and closes the door behind him, leaving Monoma in silence.

If he was nervous before, there may not even be a word to describe the sheer mass of nerves Monoma feels as he waits. It feels like years slowly creep by as he sits, taking minuscule sips of his fragrant tea. He would be lying if he said he had not thought about making a run for it, but this is Monoma's best opportunity to speak with Bakugou.

The wish to flee, however, floods back again as soon as the door opens and Aizawa enters followed by Bakugou himself, the student's hands stuffed into sweatpants' pockets and a disgruntled expression on his face.

"Alright, problem kids, I'll be outside. Try not to kill each other," Aizawa dictates blandly before walking out again, and Monoma stares in horror at the closed door.

Bakugou's irritated voice speaks up, and Monoma's eyes snap over to him. "Well, I'm here. You got what you fucking want, so say what you want to say." He stalks over and plops down into the chair Aizawa had recently vacated, confidently pulling his legs up and resting his feet on the edge of the coffee table, hands still firmly stuffed into his pockets.

Monoma gulps nervously. When his eyes scan over Bakugou, though, he feels his brows furrow in concern. He had not had the greatest view of him at any time over the past few days, but Bakugou looks terrible. He has massive bags under his eyes that almost rival Aizawa's, his face is pale to a sickly degree, and his hair appears to be a tangled mess.

"Well?" comes another annoyed prod, and Monoma can hear the impatience in Bakugou's voice.

Monoma sits up straighter and looks Bakugou in his eyes before beginning. He will not be sidetracked. This meeting is for his apology, and he will not be delving further into Bakugou's personal life. "Bakugou, I know you and I are both well aware that we do not have a good relationship by any means," Bakugou scoffs at that, "and the reason we are in this room is because I came to Mr. Aizawa for help. I, quite frankly, had no idea how to get you to listen to me, and I was making very poor attempts over the past few days, as I am sure you are aware."

"No shit."

"Yeah.... Uh, well, what I wanted to tell you is that I am so so so sorry for what I did in the cafeteria." Monoma looks into Bakugou's guarded eyes pleadingly, wishing for him to understand. "It was an unforgivable thing for me to do, and I needed to make sure that you know that I feel so terribly about it. I wish I could make it disappear from history, but I can't, and I am so sorry that I made the mistake at all. It was a terrible thing for me to say in general, no matter who it was to or about. Normally, jokes like that are ones that I would never make, but the fact of the matter is that I did it. Making the joke itself was already unforgivable, but I find it infinitely worse that I said it about you and that I was revealing a protected secret that was not mine to reveal. I am guilty for all of the glances you get. I know you hate them, so I apologize sincerely for them. I feel like the scourge of the earth for what I did." Monoma shakes his head at himself. "Again, I do not expect for you to forgive me. I definitely do not deserve any forgiveness; I just want to make sure that you know. I don't know what I would do if you continued on thinking that I would ever want to put you through something like this. So, please, even if you hold a grudge against me and curse me for the rest of my life, please acknowledge that I am so, so sorry."

The silence is suffocating. Monoma's gaze drops to the ground, and he curses away the tears that try to gather in his eyes again.

"Haaaaah...." Bakugou sighs pronouncedly. "You're a fucking asshole for what you did—that we can agree on—but yeah...it's fucking fine or whatever."

The gruff statement has Monoma's eyes blowing wide. "What?" he asks in surprise, staring into Bakugou's eyes. Did he just say what Monoma thinks he said?

Bakugou rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue in irritation. "I'm still annoyed as shit about how the fucking extras are treating me, but I get that you didn't want this to happen. What else do you want me to say, you shit-faced copy cat? Apology accepted? It is. You're free to get out of my face, now."

Monoma's tears trickle down his face as he slams his head downward, practically between his knees which he rests his hands on, in a deep bow. "Thank you! Thank you so much, and I am really still so sorry!" he says in a too-loud voice, feelings of gratitude mixing with the guilt in his gut.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Now, I'm going the fuck to bed, you asshat." Bakugou gracefully rolls out of his seat onto his feet and heads over to the door, walking out of the room.

Monoma hears a few words being exchanged outside before Bakugou's silhouette is replaced with Aizawa's, who now stands just inside the room.

The teacher has a smirk on his tired face. "I told you. Now go get some sleep. You look like you need it."

Monoma has half a mind to call out the man for needing far more sleep than he does, but he keeps his mouth closed and nods politely. As he reaches the doorway, the door held open by the teacher, he turns to the man and straightens his back before bowing low. "Thank you for your assistance, Mr. Aizawa. It is greatly appreciated," he says firmly.

Aizawa rolls his eyes, but Monoma can see the corner of his lip twitch upward. "Go to sleep, kid," he says rather than an acknowledgement. Monoma nods and makes his way back to his dorm.

The guilt still rests heavily in his chest, but Monoma's body feels many times lighter knowing that Bakugou is aware of his intentions. This feeling is multiplied by the forgiveness he was given. It does not get rid of his sadness at what he caused, but he is grateful nonetheless.

—————————————————————

Thoughts...?

Again, shoutout to @Explosive_Gay_Boi for inspo!!! I enjoyed making this, and I hope you all like it too :)

I found a fantastic manga panel btw

Just look at what Kaminari said in the bottom left...

-Angry
Word Count: 1899