The next morning, Ochako was in the dining hall, eating breakfast at a table with all the girls from her classroom. She felt well-rested, considering everything that occurred last night. During the gala, classmates distracted her enough when a few soul mate pairings were confirmed.

Eijiro and Mina had been the most vocal. It wasn't much of a surprise since they were already dating, but it was still wholesome.

Shoto and Momo were more subtle when it came to them. The girls of the classroom knew Momo had a small crush on Shoto. There was no doubt the two would make it work with their dynamic.

Denki had accidentally shocked himself when he saw his red string led to Kyoka. For the first time, Kyoka didn't deny that she might have feelings for Denki. Pink dusted her cheeks when she admitted that.

As those events popped up, Katsuki would pop up in Ochako's head as well as other random moments. She even fell asleep thinking about him. About them.

To her disappointment, she had yet to see a single trace of him today. She missed him in the common room. She didn't catch him in a hallway. She currently didn't see him in this room. Where could he possibly be? He still existed, right?

Ochako pushed back her plate and stood to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Mina called from the table.

Ochako didn't look back at her friends. "I'm full."

Head down, she watched her feet as she walked through the dining hall. The stone floor was gray, and tables spread throughout. Torches lined the walls, and chandeliers hung from the high ceiling. It always had a pleasant atmosphere here.

Ochako's thoughts tuned out what was going on around her. Was Katsuki avoiding her at this rate? It would contrast his words from last night. He said they'd talk today. However, it seemed out of character for him. From what she did know about him, he had never gone back on his word.

"Oi, Round Face!" Katsuki said from in front of her.

Ochako's head jerked up, and brown eyes met crimson. She stopped in place.

He was already dressed in the school uniform. His white button-up didn't have the first button done and was missing a tie. The gray jacket had gold buttons. Green pants were on the baggy side, draping over his dark shoes a touch.

"You were gonna bump into me if you kept shit that up," he said.

"Bakugo." Saying his name was even more confirmation that he was before her.

"What?"

"You're here."

"Where else would I fucking be?"

"I haven't seen you all morning. It's like you went missing."

He smirked. "Worried about me, Cheeks?" he teased.

"No," she denied all too quickly.

"I have shit to do in the morning. I've been awake for hours."

She blinked. It wasn't that long ago she woke up herself. "What?"

"How else am I supposed to be the best if I don't get a jump start on my day?"

He had a point she supposed, but there was another thing she wanted to discuss. "About last night, I—"

"Not here." His voice had dropped low.

"Where then?" she whispered.

He jerked his head and turned around, leading the way out of the dining hall. Neither looked back to see if anyone was watching them. Who cared?

Ochako caught up to walk along Katsuki's right side. She didn't say a word as she watched him scan the hallway.

"Just keep your voice down," he instructed.

"All right."

His shoulders sagged. "Kayama knows I know my soul mate, but she doesn't know who."

She hadn't expected him to say that. "Why does Professor Kayama know?"

"She stopped me when I was heading for bed."

"Why didn't you tell her it was me?"

"Nosy wench doesn't need to fucking know," he grumbled before glancing at her. "I haven't told anybody else if you can count that as telling."

"I haven't said anything to anyone."

He curtly nodded. "Good. Keep it that way."

Her stomach twisted into a knot. "Why keep it a secret?"

"What's it matter if those damn extras know?"

Was he ashamed of them? Everyone else had been open when they saw their red strings. "Did you know six of our classmates are soul mate pairs?"

"Yeah, I heard about it from Shitty Hair."

"They told everyone. They didn't keep it a secret."

He didn't get why she was so persistent. Nobody else needed to be involved in the matter. "Are you looking for fucking approval or something? This doesn't concern anybody else except us."

"I still think we could—"

Katsuki came to a sudden stop, and so did Ochako. "Fuck it. Do what you want, Round Face. Go on and blab to everybody. Don't expect me to do a damn thing about it."

She didn't appreciate his cold words but didn't show they bothered her. "Well, maybe I will."

"Fine," he seethed.

Her cheeks puffed out. "Fine."

Huffing, he pivoted in place and stuffed his hands into pockets. "Tch, whatever, Round Face." He walked away.

She didn't look away from his broad back, and she watched him round the corner. He didn't steal a peek at her as he did. Huffing, she folded her arms under her chest. "Rude."

"Oi, move it, extras!" he bellowed from out of view.

Two girls Ochako didn't know skittered around the corner. They were a giggling, blushing mess.

"He's so hot," the redhead gushed. "He's the entire package from his face to his muscles."

The blonde fanned herself. "His bad boy type is my type."

"Unlike the typical bad boy, he's like top of his class."

"Another perk." She let out a dreamy sigh. "Another thing to like about him."

Jealousy was an ugly shade of green that didn't suit Ochako. She refused to wear the color. Katsuki might be her soul mate, but she still saw him as a classmate.

The redhead noticed Ochako and gasped. "Aren't you in Bakugo's class?"

The attention caught her off guard. "Y–yes, I am."

The two girls rushed up to her. "What's he like in the classroom?" the blonde asked.

For the most part, he was quiet enough, but he did get attention when he spoke. Most of the time, Izuku would get on his nerves. He always aimed to be on top, to be the absolute best at everything.

Ochako finally responded. "He's...just Bakugo."

The blonde made a face. "That really doesn't answer the question."

"I'm not sure what else I can say. Bakugo is Bakugo."

Soul mate. He was her soul mate.

The redhead nudged her friend. "Maybe we can talk to another girl in the class about him."

The blonde's face lit up. "Oo, good idea!"

Before Ochako could tell them it wasn't a good idea, they were off. She was left standing alone in the hallway.

Wait, did she care what they thought about Katsuki? So what if he was good looking? Looks couldn't even compare to personality traits. He was rude in speaking his mind with no filter. He was incredibly curt. He disregarded others at the drop of a hat. He did have a bad boy type personality that girls seemed to like.

Ochako harrumphed. She was too good for him, anyway!

xXx

Homeroom was about to start, and Katsuki's guard was up. He had yet to be bombarded with questions about Ochako being his soul mate. He thought she would have gone to her friends to gossip after they parted ways.

When Ochako entered the classroom with some girls, Katsuki stole a glance. He looked away before she could catch him. He missed her peek at him.

"Everyone, to their seats!" Tenya said from the front of the classroom. "Homeroom is about to begin!"

"You need to sit down too," Eijiro laughed.

Tenya gasped and rushed for his desk.

Mere seconds before the bell chimed to signal the start of homeroom, Professor Shota Aizawa entered the room. In his early thirties, he was a tall, slender, pale-skinned man. Messy black hair fell to his shoulders, bangs covering a good bit of his face. His incredibly dark eyes seemed rather dull. Unkempt facial hair matched his demeanor. He wore all-black from head to toe, pants tucked into his boots. A dark gray scarf wound around his neck.

He stood before the podium. "I hope you all enjoyed the gala last night," he said in a monotone voice. "Before we begin with our normal schedule, Professor Kayama wants to say a few words."

As he stepped away from the podium, Professor Kayama entered the classroom. Today she wore a fitted white blouse and a black necklace with rubies dangled from around her neck. Fitted black pants tucked inside tall black boots. She seemed chipper than usual.

Katsuki despised it. He slouched in his seat.

Professor Kayama stood at the podium and looked over the students. "Well, well," she crooned. "Three sets of soul mates in this very classroom! What a record!"

Katsuki thought her gaze rested on him longer than anybody else when her eyes swept the room as she spoke. At least he hadn't been called out. He knew that she wasn't counting him and Ochako as a set. There's no way she could know who his soul mate was unless Ochako said something.

From her seat in the back row, Ochako gulped. Professor Kayama couldn't know about her, right? Katsuki never told her, and Ochako had yet to tell anyone.

"I just wanted to remind you while it's all good to spend time with your soul mate," Professor Kayama said, "you do need to focus on tasks at hand, such as classes and homework. No slacking!"

Certain members of the class answered back in affirmation.

"So find the right balance and grow together!" She blew kisses to the students as she left the room. She deliberately winked at Katsuki before leaving.

He flexed his jaw in vexation.

"Master Bakugo," Professor Aizawa said when he returned to the podium.

Katsuki looked at him without saying a word.

"As the grand winner from the last sparring tournament"—some students groaned, knowing where this was going—"To be clear, we aren't having another sparring tournament. These are only matches, and you'll stick with your partner."

The classroom quieted.

Professor Aizawa redirected his attention to Katsuki. "As I was saying, Master Bakugo, who do you chose as your partner?"

Katsuki stood up, hands in pockets. He uttered two words. "Ochako Uraraka."

The sorceress herself wasn't the only one who was shocked. He usually picked his good friend, Eijiro. Sometimes Izuku. More shocking than one of Denki's spells, her name had been said. Finally, her frazzled state of being caught up with her. "Eh? Eh?"

Katsuki didn't look back at her before sitting down. He continued to face the front.

Eijiro frowned. "Aww, I was hoping we could go at it, dude."

"Another time," Katsuki grunted.

Ochako gulped. She didn't want to face Katsuki. Why did he pick her? Is it because she sassed him earlier? Well, she only sassed him a little bit.

One by one, Professor Aizawa went through his students until everybody had a partner.

Ochako could only dread facing Katsuki.

xXx

A/N: I'm sure some of y'all can guess where the next chapter is gonna go!