"How?" You finished pulling your shirt back down and glanced over at his question.

"How what?"

"How did you get it?" He added. You just sat in silence for a moment, allowing troubled memories to creep back into your mind. Shouto could tell it was painful. "Sorry, you don't have to tell m-"

"You first." You interrupted him. "I want to know how you got yours." Shouto's eyes widened. It took him a moment of thought, but he decided to comply.

He told you about his parent's quirk marriage. How he was born to be a tool of his father's desires and surpass All Might. How his father abused his mother and thus, she poured boiling water over his left side. It was hard to listen to. Your heart ached for him.

"Shouto..." You whispered. He shifted uncomfortably and glanced up at you, meeting your eyes.

"Alright, I've told my tale... But I don't want you to feel like you're required to tell me yours." His tone was gentle and genuine.

"No, it's fine." You took a deep breath and crawled back around to face him. There was a feeling of intimacy you felt with Shouto at that moment. He cared about you, and he would listen to what you had to say without judgment. "I'll never get over it if I don't acknowledge what happened."

And so you told him everything. All about your family and their prosperity, as well as their downfall. You spoke of the fateful night when your father signed your back and you reduced the mansion to a crater, unintentionally murdering everyone within it. How Takashi wasn't your real brother, but rather a family servant and close friend to you. And you told him about the aftermath. Once you finished, he sat there quietly with his eyes cast downwards.

"Sorry Shouto, I know I kinda dumped this on you all at once." He furrowed his brow and grabbed his face.

"Don't apologize. I just... I can't believe you've been keeping that in all this time... My problems must seem so small compa-"

"Don't do that." He paused at your words. "Just because my problems are big doesn't mean yours are any smaller. And besides, I didn't tell you these things because I want your pity. I just want you to understand that I know what it's like to feel weighed down by your scars, mental and physical."

He felt something snap within him. Leaning forward, Shouto wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into him. He rested his chin on your shoulder. You couldn't really tell if it was for him, for you, or both. But it was comforting.  You responded by wrapping your arms around his back.

"It's our life Shouto. From here on out, we get to decide how we live." Your mind trailed off to thoughts of Katsuki. How he was always honest with himself and others and just how much you admired that about him. He really did live for himself and his dreams. 

I want to see him.

You pulled away and smiled gently at Shouto.

"I have to go."

He tilted his head a bit confused.

"I have to go to Katsuki. I need to fix the mess I made this morning. I need to talk to him." You stood quickly and grabbed your shoes before making your way to your door. "Stay as long as you need to. I'll see you at school tomorrow Shou-"

You felt his hand wrap around your wrist just as you were about open the door. Glancing back, you searched his face for answers.

"What's wrong Shouto?" His hair covered his eyes, as he stood there silently for a moment.

"(Y/n)... I..." You heard him swallow and felt his grip further tighten around your wrist. "It's nothing... Go."

"Are you su-"

"Go." He was firm in his words. Not angry, just determined. You nodded and pulled away, taking off down the stairs.

He just stood there for a bit until he heard you slam the front door, the vibrations knocking him to his knees. He sank down and sat on his heels, gripping the front of his shirt as if he could reach his heart.

It ached. It ached to let you walk out the door when he wanted nothing more than to keep you there with him. But most of all, it ached knowing that he couldn't have you.

- - -

"Oh (y/n)? What are you doing here at this hour?" Mitsuki had answered the door. You basically sprinted over to Katsuki's house, so you struggled to speak through your ragged breathing.

"Sorry Mitsuki, I know it's late. I have something urgent to discuss with Katsuki." She smiled and opened the door fully for you.

"It's no problem! Come on in. I must warn you though, that damn brat has been in a shitty mood ever since he got home. He hasn't even come out of his room." 

Oh boy.

"I understand. I uhh... Was kinda the one who caused it." You rubbed the back of your head. "Sorry you had to deal with the aftermath. I'm here to fix it."

"Oh please (y/n). You talk like I've never dealt with his bullshit before." You chuckled a bit and made your way down the hall to Katsuki's door. Taking a deep breath, you gulped. Mitsuki gave you a thumbs up from behind the hall corner, instilling enough confidence in you to knock.

"WHAT THE FUCK I SAID I WANTED TO BE LEFT ALONE YOU OLD HAG." Katsuki yelled from behind the door. 

Holy shit. He is REALLY upset.

"Uhh... Actually, it's me Katsuki." There was silence, and then the yelling resumed.

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE. GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE. I DON'T WANNA SEE YOUR DAMN FACE AT THE MOMENT." You expected that he would be upset with you. But this... This made your heart sink. There was a knot in your throat as you tried to speak up once again.

"Katsu-"

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT?"

"I... I'm here to apologize..." More silence.

"No, I don't want to talk to you right now. Get out." Your heart sunk even further. You fell to your knees in front of his door and put your hand against it.

"Please... Just hear me out and then I promise I'll leave you alone." Your voice was shaking. This time he didn't answer, so you took it as the signal to start. "I'm sorry Katsuki... I know I was being unreasonable this morning. When I got upset with you I didn't stop to think about how I've been making you feel lately... I've been making you feel lonely. And dispute you being honest and telling me about it, I decided to ignore you. I'm sorry. And then I went and chose Shouto as my partner just so I could spite you, and once again I made you feel alone..." Your voice broke and tears began to cascade down your cheeks. "It's so stupid. I'm such an idiot. Dammit Katsuki, I'm so sorry..."

No answer. You just sat there and cried for a minute, hoping for some kind of response. But you had said your piece and it was no longer up to you. You wiped your nose and sniffled.

"Alright... I've said what I had to say. I'll leave now." You were about to stand, but at that moment the door swung open. Katsuki looked down at you. You couldn't read his face. On one hand, he had his usual scowl, but his eyes were much softer and also puffy. He must have been crying...

Then, he just held his arms out.

There was a pause where you just looked at him puzzled before you narrowed your eyes.

"Are you gonna strangle me?" Katsuki clicked his tongue at your question.

"NO YOU IDIOT, I FORGIVE YOU. GET UP HERE AND HUG ME."