When Izuku was sure he had got all the steps down and Bakugou was satisfied with the level of difficulty, both boys were tired and called it a night. The blond didn't give Izuku any trouble after they finished rehearsing. Bakugou seemed irritable all the time, so Izuku didn't mind too much. But when they were dancing, the blond showed a softer side of himself, and after every dance, he seemed to have a more docile attitude. 

The truth was that Izuku had been fascinated with Bakugou. He was strong, graceful, and had a passion for dance that made even Izuku confident that he would become the best professional dancer of their time. The greenette found himself wanting to spend more time with him and become his friend. It seemed that Bakugou didn't have many friends. It wasn't a secret that the boy preferred to be on his own.

The next morning, Izuku had woken up jumpier than normal. He had never performed in front of others -- not since he was a little kid, and dancing for his parents hardly could count as a public performance. On the walk to class, he bumped into Bakugou, knocking himself straight into the lockers.

"Hey watch it!" Bakugou swung around, ready to knock some sense into the extra that bumped into him, and came face to face with Izuku who was staring with a shocked expression.

"S-Sorry!" Izuku backed up to give the other some room. Bakugou only huffed and straightening out his shirt.

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" The blond grumbled and the other felt a wave of nausea wash over him as they stood outside their classroom. Izuku wanted to fall into a hole somewhere -- or be eaten by a bear. He couldn't answer his question and watched as Bakugou rolled his eyes while turning to go into the classroom. Izuku stood frozen by the door. 

Bakugou could tell something was going on with his dance partner. The kid looked half scared to death and was standing as if he had been glued to the floor. The blond turned around and walked back to him.

"What's your problem?" He hissed quietly as other students brushed past them both.

"I -- I have never performed in front of people before," Izuku admitted. He didn't know why he admitted that to the class jerk, but his hands had become sweaty and cold. Izuku was ready to turn tail and run.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me? How did you manage this far? You want to come in here and get accepted into U.A. Dance Academy but you have never performed in front of people!?" Bakugou scolded and Izuku braced himself on the wall while taking a shallow breath. He felt his head become foggy at the realization of how stupid of an idea this must have been. Bakugou was right -- of course, he was right. Izuku didn't stand a chance.

"Bakugou, I really didn't need to hear that," He all but whimpered while he rubbed his eyes before any tears could form or dare escape. The blond furrowed his brows and paused, his forehead wrinkling as he watched the distressed expression on the other boy. Before he could think any better, he grabbed Izuku and pulled him around the corner.

"Listen, kid --  I have been doing this since I was 7 years old. I'm not used to being the one giving pep-talks," Bakugou paused while rubbing his hand down his face. "Ugh, you're gonna be fine -- You're pretty good -- or whatever. Just pull yourself together, for the love of God," Bakugou ran his fingers through his hair with an exasperated sigh. 

He didn't know why he was comforting the new kid but when he was near Izuku, Bakugou felt the need to look after him. It was true that the boy needed some help catching up. But why did it suddenly become his job to help the poor kid? When they danced together, it was like Bakugou had met someone who understood him. 

After listening to his words, Izuku seemed to calm down a bit. He was now taking a few big breaths and had his eyes closed.

"Come on, the class is about to start," Bakugou grunted and walked into the classroom tugging Izuku by the sleeve to follow him.

As the class was beginning to fill up and people were stretching and warming up, Izuku and Bakugou fell into a natural warm-up. The two were helping each other stretch. Bakugou had one hand placed on Izuku's back, helping him stretch his torso. The blond quickly realized how his dance partner had no common knowledge of proper stretching. The kid was going to hurt himself before he even got a shot at becoming a dancer.

 As the instructor came into the room, everyone fell quiet but kept doing their warm-ups.

"Alright, first up. Todoroki and Kirishima. Places everyone!" He clapped his hands once and people cleared the floor. Most of them were taking places along the walls to observe and Izuku just followed Bakugou's lead. The lights were dimmed around the edges so only the middle parts of the floor were lit -- demanding focus on the dancers who gracefully fell into position.

Todoroki had a smaller frame than Kirishima. However, both boys were strong and fit. But Kirishima definitely had more muscles, Izuku noted. It was obvious who would lead the dance just from the sheer size difference. One thing the greenette noticed immediately was that Todoroki didn't show many emotions on his face --unlike the other boy. Kirishima was all smiles and light personality.

"Todoroki and Kirishima's partner dance is themed 'memories', choreographed to the song Oblivion by Bastille," The professor explained while the two boys adjusted and whispered a few words to each other.

Kirishima and Todoroki looked confident and comfortable together. When they took their positions, back to back, Todoroki's arms were behind him and holding onto Kirishima's waist. When the song started, Izuku's focus was captivated by the way their bodies moved like the smoothest waters. They danced and it captivated his attention. 

The song pulled at his heart and with every passing glance shared between Todoroki and Kirishima pulled him that much closer to them -- into them. Izuku had never witnessed dance like this, not in person at least, and he felt his nerves rise even more.

Izuku wondered how long the two had known each other to be so confident in each others arms. He glanced quickly at Bakugou who looked equally as fixated on their movements. Izuku's eyes focused on Todoroki who was currently being lowered to the ground as the song progressed.

The song drew to a close and so did the dance. Todoroki was wrapped around Kirishima. Both his arms were anchored to Kirishima while his legs remained limp -- the only thing holding him from falling to the hardwood flooring was Kirishima's arms that were protectively wrapped around his back. 

The two slowly sunk to the floor and onto their knees as the final notes of the song faded out. Izuku let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and Bakugou shot him a smirk. The dance was beautiful and made him suddenly become anxious about their partner dance. 

Todoroki and Kirishima seemed to be close friends and after the dance, they hugged and smacked each other's backs while giving a short laugh as the class erupted in applause. The class cheered for them and the instructor gave his praises and criticisms before announcing the next pair to begin. After all the pairs went, it left Izuku and Bakugou to go last.

"Last but definitely not least, Bakugou and our prospective student, Izuku. Their theme is 'unrequited love' choreographed to the song Dancing on my Own by Calum Scott." The instructor announced and the class cheered while a few whooped and whistled. They must like to see Bakugou perform, Izuku thought.

Bakugou shifted on his feet and looked at the greenette standing in front of him. He took a deep breath and studied him for a brief second. His curls were framing his face and highlighting his features, emphasizing just how breathtaking he looked. Bakugou was shocked at those thoughts but didn't bother brushing them off. He wasn't afraid to admit that it was a bit mesmerizing how Izuku's expressions seemed to heighten when dancing. It would pull Bakugou in and although they had only danced a few times together, Izuku's body seemed to mold to his perfectly and in a way that no other dance partner had been able to achieve so easily. 

Izuku was expressive in every definition of the word and his body told a story through every move. It made Bakugou a bit jealous and angry that someone so inexperienced could be doing so well -- especially at something that he himself struggled with.

When the song began, Bakugou was lost in his own thoughts but snapped out of it rather quickly as he fell into position. Izuku noticed the hesitation from Bakugou and took a step forward, connecting their torsos. He watched as the blond's eyes widened only a fraction before Izuku smiled softly and went into the dip. Bakugou's one hand shot out in surprise and cupped the back of Izuku's head before he leaned down with him -- keeping their chests together as they dipped down then slowly pulled back up. 

That had not been practiced that way in rehearsal -- but it worked.

There were some loud whistles and cheers from the class, but Izuku was too focused on something else. As their bodies pulled together once more and Izuku's arms wound around the blond's torso, Bakugou inhaled sharply as the familiar feeling of getting lost in dance took him over once more. 

Their bodies began telling the story of two people. One was in love with the other, but the other did not feel the same. The dance was like it had been each time they rehearsed it. Their bodies moved effortlessly together and had captivated the attention of everyone in the room -- not that either one of them would notice. They both were lost in each other. Bakugou would notice that when his hands gripped the small of the greenette's back and pulled him closer, Izuku would blush this delicate shade of pink -- but it only added to how beautiful their bodies meshed together.

Towards the ending of the dance, Izuku found himself blushed as Bakugou ran his hand down his sides before turning their bodies so that they stood back to back. 

This was the part of the dance that told where the person's lover was walking away. Bakugou took a step away and Izuku turned around before he pulled the blond back around. As they were facing. they waltzed and spun together until Bakugou pulled away once more -- trying to leave again. Only to have Izuku pull him back in a desperate attempt to keep his imaginary lover with him. 

Bakugou held the other's sharp hips in his hands as he lowered Izuku back slowly -- dipping him and keeping their hips pressed together. Izuku's arms lifted and hung back over his head as Bakugou dipped him. Like with Todoroki and Kirishima, the only thing keeping him from bashing his head on the ground was Bakugou's hands that help his lower back and hip. He dipped, tracing his fingertips on the floor while Bakugou held him and there were a few cheers mixed with awes from the students.

As the song ended, Bakugou was walking away once more and Izuku's arm was stretched out towards the bond that was leaving him -- just like they had rehearsed. 

Izuku was panting and his face was flushed, a thin sheen of sweat covered his face while a few curls stuck to his forehead. He watched Bakugou's figure walk away and he could feel the emotions from the song lingering between the two. Izuku could swear during their dance, he both fell in love with Bakugou and had his heart broken at the same time. In the span of a few minutes, he had lost himself in a way that had never happened before. 

The air was thick with emotion, only to be broken by loud thunderous clapping and shouts from the other students.

"Well done! Bakugou! I have never seen you dance like that before, and Izuku, you have serious talent. So expressive!" The instructor gushed but Izuku's eyes were fixed on Bakugou. They had ended up ranking first in the petty classroom performance. But Izuku was flushed with emotion and pride at winning something -- anything. This was only the prep for solo dances that would end up as everyone's final grade at the end of the semester.

After lunch, Izuku walked over to where Bakugou was lazily throwing away his trash from his lunch.

"Hi." Izuku smiled softly as he approached the blond. The air was different between them both now and Izuku knew something had changed.

"Hey," Bakugou nodded but started to walk off.

"Hey wait! I had a question!" Izuku said and walked beside Bakugou as he kept walking.

"Ask then." Bakugou rolled his eyes but couldn't bring himself to be too snappy with him. Something still lingering between them from the dance they had shared.

"I could use your help," Izuku hated saying that out loud. The idea of asking for any kind of handout made him cringe. Sure, he was homeless before now and was very-much-so at risk for becoming homeless again if he failed the audition. "You know, for my audition -- " 

"Isn't that cheating?" Bakugou said with a straight face and Izuku frowned.

"No! I just need help. I am totally lacking when it comes to this theme. I am not s-sexual or flirty. I can't be sensual when I dance! I am much better at the soft things -- like you said," Izuku muttered the last part, "But, I have to do it! I have to surprise them and let them see that I can do more than just mushy ballads and romantic dancing!" Izuku wasn't above begging.

"Calm down, kid. Shit. Listen, I don't know if I can help you that much. I can't make you sexy suddenly," Bakugou shrugged but felt a bit bad for brushing the other guy off. As he walked off, he could feel Izuku's eyes boring holes in the back of his head. But he didn't care. He just wanted to get away from the kid that was making him feel so fucking soft.