Chapter Text
𓆉°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
Izuku frantically types away on his laptop, scrambling to finish his report for his Philosophy class that’s due. He doesn’t know why he does this to himself, but he can’t resist going out last night for free drinks and karaoke. It was just a small gathering with his closest friends that was only supposed to last a couple of hours.
Well, a couple hours turned into an all night party that ended with him sleeping over at Ochako’s house. Thank God he left some spare clothes over there to change into or he would have been super late to his first class.
He loves his best friend, but he really needs to learn how to tell her ‘no’ when he has projects due.
Izuku is lucky he has a break in between classes to complete his report which is due at three pm that day. He had a couple of hours to get it done, but with the way the school’s portal works it can take hours for it to officially upload and he isn’t about to risk his scholarship because of a night of free booze and singing.
Finishing up the final paragraphs he hears students enter their Journalism class, glancing down at the time at the bottom of his laptop he relaxes, having about ten minutes to finish up.
Izuku hears the seat next to him thump, knowing his table partner and friend Mina has arrived.
“Hey, Zu~.” Mina sings, her reflection showing on his laptop screen.
He nods, showing that he knows she’s there but he is too in the zone to respond with words, not wanting to type out what he speaks because that’s happened before.
With a final period added, he copies the document, runs it through a spell check engine to correct any typos he might have before attaching it in an email and sending it to his professor.
Izuku lets out the breath he was holding and shuts the laptop with a click. Taking off his eye glasses he rubs his eyes of the strain they endured for the last two hours, setting his glasses down on the table and sighs, “Thank God I’m done.”
“Wow, Izuku, I didn't take you as one to do last-minute papers,” Mina said, a giggle bubbling out her lips.
”You have no idea, Mina. Ochako dragged me out last night and the night before I was on the phone with Mom for hours. She’s in Italy right now and I couldn’t just hang up on her, you know?”
Mina nods her head, “Yeah, Aunty does love to talk on the phone, but I mean she misses you. When was the last time she was home?”
Izuku sighs, scratching the back of his head, “About three weeks ago, she’s been taking up any flights she can to earn the extra cash. Mom wants to buy a new car so she can give me her old one so I can stop asking you and the girls for a ride.”
“I mean, I don’t mind taking you to school and home, it’s not out of my way.”
He nods his head, “I know, I told her that and she went on about my having my license and not using it. But, it’s whatever.” Izuku feels his stomach grumble and groans, “I need to grab food after class, the only thing keeping me going is caffeine and honey buns.”
”Wait, stop. I gotchu!” Mina opens her bag, shuffling through its contents until she pulls out a spam musubi. “Here, you can eat this. I bought too much and Eiji was in class when I went to the hall earlier.”
Izuku smiles, reaching over and accepting the treat from her. His mouth starts to water at the sight making his stomach growl louder, “Mina, I swear, I love you so so much, thank you.”
She smiles back at him. “Nah, no worries. Besides you're always feeding me in class, the least I could do is help you out when I can. But I love you too Zu.”
He quickly removes the Saran Wrap from the musubi, the smell of fried spam and rice filling his senses. Izuku takes a bite, the sweet soy glaze bursts on his tongue making him groan in approval, “S’ good,” he mumbles, mouth full of food as he starts dancing in his seat.
Mina laughs, “Don’t bust a nut dude, it’s just a musubi.”
“S’not my fault, it’s the best thing I’ve eaten in the last couple of days!” he says, before taking another greedy bite of spam and rice.
Rolling her eyes, she leans her face on her fist and smiles at him, “Y’know you're always welcome to eat at our place, we literally live on the same street.”
Izuku sighs, “I know, but I don't wanna impose on you and Kirishima.”
She waves her hand, “Nah, you're not imposing. Eiji likes you and you’ve been my friend since elementary, so it's kinda my responsibility to make sure you're fed and taken care of.”
He remembers the first time he met her in the 1st grade, she was assigned to sit next to him in class.
Izuku was nervous at first, not wanting to make a bad impression to his new table mate, but that went out the window when she introduced herself. That bubbly personality and friendliness she gave off made him relax, causing them to chat up a storm.
They became close very fast, spending time together at school, in class and at recess. When the end of the day would come around, he noticed they both walked in the same direction home. Both of them realizing they lived on the same street only fueled the fire of their friendship.
Mina met his mom, who immediately loved her like her own and took it upon herself to take care of the girl when she came over, which was almost everyday. They would do their homework on the dining room table and his mom would make them snacks and drive Mina home after dinner. Her parents didn’t mind it one bit, to which Izuku was happy to spend time with someone like Mina. It was consistent up until he moved away with his dad.
Izuku finishes the treat with one last big bite, savoring the taste of spam and rice on his tongue, “Mmm kay, one day I’ll come over for dinner... promise,” he sticks his pinky out.
Mina smiles at him, lacing her pinky in his and shaking it, “Promise,” she whispers, before taking her hand back.
A woman with long black hair and red glasses gets up from her desk, flips the projector on, and turns to the class, “Okay students, now that we're about a month into the semester, I want us to go over your final project for Journalism 201.”
Professor Midnight is one of his favorite teachers in the whole university, he’s had her since his freshman year and she’s been nothing but supportive and enthusiastic when it came to him snapping pictures. She would always ask to submit his work for exhibitions, which he always took first place for. The way he could capture a moment perfectly with his camera is something Izuku took a lot of pride in.
She presses a button and a slide pops up on the board, “Now all of you know this class is a year-long course so it’ll take us to March.” Professor Midnight picks up a stack of papers and starts making her way around the class passing them out, “I’m passing out your project packet, this will provide as much detail about the project as needed but if you have any questions you can always ask.”
Izuku sees his professor place the packet down in front of him before continuing to make her way around the room. He looks down at it and sighs, just what he needs, more homework. Thumbing through the pages he whispers to Mina, “This could have been an email.” Shaking the stack as she snorts behind her hand.
Mina places her finger against her lips and shushes him, “Shh, you’re gonna get us in trouble, you know she has excellent hearing,” she giggles, before turning back to her own packet.
Professor Midnight clears her throat, “Normally, we have you pick a topic and have you write and maintain a blog page that gets updated weekly. But, this year we decided to do something…different. Something that will test your abilities when it comes to Journalism and Photography,” she says looking over to Izuku with a smile on her face.
“Our fourth year students usually handle the sport’s page on the university’s website, updating it almost weekly and gathering not only information on the athletes themselves but also attending competitions and reporting scores on how each student athlete performs.” she sighs, pressing the button on her remote showing the next slide, “As you know, our school does provide international internships for our fourth year students and majority of them decided to take the opportunity to broaden their horizons, leaving me short on bodies to cover some of the teams and the website in general.”
What his professor is saying is somewhat true, a good portion of their class weren’t here due to those internships. He couldn't blame them though, the opportunity to travel to a different country on the school's dime? He would take the same offer in an instant.
Professor Midnight pressed the remote again showing a list of sports, some of them crossed out and some with numbers next to them. “This is the last class I have where I need to assign everyone a sports team for your project. The number next to the sport shows how many bodies I need to cover that specific sport so we have as much coverage body count-wise. As you know, some of our teams have well over twenty-thirty students and some have as low as five, so don’t be surprised if you end up in a group with your peers.”
Izuku’s eyes scan over the list. It isn't anything too bad. Basketball, Football, Baseball, Paddling, and the Surf Team. The first three teams would be the most challenging, they’re looking for three bodies for each, which made up 75% of the class alone. The smaller sports teams like Hockey and Gymnastics got taken quickly due to the smaller number of athletes. Well, there goes those thoughts of relaxing in the AC with summer approaching fast.
Ah summer, Izuku is looking forward to it this year. A break from assignments for him to lounge around all day and rest is his top priority this break. He felt like most of his professors have it out for him this semester with the non-stop projects he’s had to do.
“Now, I know some of you are on sports teams, so if any of these choices interfere with that, please come see me, and we can work something out. But we’re gonna do this the traditional way and draw them from a hat so everything’s fair.” She picks up a hat from her desk and starts to make her way around the room.
Why a hat? Why couldn’t we get with the 21st century and do some sort of Spin the Wheel of Fate website or something? Why is his fate being decided on tiny slips of paper?
Izuku is nervous, not that he did any after-school activities that would interfere with his project, but because there is one team in particular he isn’t fond of getting…
Mina draws first, opening the small slip of paper she sighs with relief, “Paddling, thank God, their practice and events are on separate days from Beach Volleyball or I would have been super cooked!”
Izuku understands her relief, Mina is the co-captain of the beach volleyball team and is attending on a partial sports scholarship. Not that she has any interest in going pro for Beach Volleyball when her eyes are set on being a Forensic Chemist. Mina has always had a passion for crime shows and how they analyze evidence collected at a crime scene. She is always the one to solve those murder mystery games in a box without needing help from anyone else.
“Hey, at least you got something good.” He places his hand on her shoulder and smiles, “Hopefully I get something good, too.”
The professor holds the hat out to him, giving it a small shake making the papers toss around in it. Izuku feels a sense of dread shoot up his spine as he slowly reaches over and sticks his hand in.
Please, God, if you’re up there, please don’t do this to me. I’ll take any other team, please just not THAT one.
Izuku grips the lot between his fingers and slowly pulls it out, opening it up he feels his heart drop straight to his ass as he reads the tiny black lettering on the white slip of paper.
‘Surf Team’
Oh no, Hell no. God no, Fuck no, no no no no no.
This cannot be happening to him right now, anything but this. Oh god. Professor Midnight needs to make an exception, there’s no way on Earth he could be a journalist for the surf team, not in this life.
“Uh. Professor Midnight, I- uh,” he stutters out of embarrassment and nerves.
She looks over at him, “Yes, Midoriya? Is there a problem?”
Oh no, she’s giving him that look, the look of ‘I know you’re about to complain and I couldn’t care less.’ He’s screwed, but he has to ask. Izuku is one of her favorite students, her words not his, she has to make some sort of exception.
“Oh, well- uh, am I able to draw another lot? I don't think I would be a good pick for the Surf Team,” he mumbles out, not wanting his peers to hear him and judge him. He knows out of all the teams in that hat, the surf team is the top pick for the project. With the small number of members it would be a child’s play, especially when competitions came around.
Professor Midnight chuckles to herself, “I’m sorry but I can’t change it, that wouldn’t be fair to the ones before you who got choices they didn’t want. From what I also understand you're also not taking any sports and a majority of my students are in after-school academics.” She walks back over and pats the top of his head, “You’ll be fine. Besides the Surf Team fits your skill set, with the small amount of athletes, you have plenty of opportunities to take some excellent pictures for your portfolio,” She assured him, making her way to the next round of students that needed to draw.
His teacher is right about his skill set, if it’s one thing Izuku is passionate about and good at, it’s photography. He only signed up for journalism because the school's photography program dissolved and he is already partially into his second major and didn’t want to lose the credits he acquired so far.
At least, in this class other than writing he is able to take pictures and submit them with his works.
Mina chuckles next to him, making his skin crawl, “Mmm, what’s wrong Izuku? You're scared of having some alone time with the Surf Team, huh?” she teases, leaning over into his space.
Mina…this girl is something else. She’s a great friend and when he came back to the west side of the island during the 10th grade he was ecstatic to rekindle their friendship. But, like most people, Mina has a flaw; she loves gossip almost as much as she loves her boyfriend. Izuku has caught her many times sticking her nose in everyone's business. If there’s one thing he’s learned, it’s if you have a secret you better pray Mina doesn’t find out…because she will.
Izuku can feel his calm facade breaking, “I don't know what you're talking about. I'm f-fine. You know I just gotta go to the practice once a week, snap a few pictures, and interview a team member. Then go to their competitions which there aren’t a bunch of till winter thankfully, heh. Things are fi-“
“Oh, students, I forgot to mention we need you to attend all practices and competitions, if you don’t have your own camera for the photography portion of this project please come see me. Your packet will answer most questions you have about it and if you have one that's not addressed please email me. On the last page is a letter from the Dean permitting you to attend practices and events. Are there any questions?” Professor Midnight asks before taking a seat at her desk.
Izuku has one, why did the universe hate him? What omnipotent being did he anger to cause such grief in his life? He looks up at the ceiling waiting for some sort of answer that never comes. Damn you. He sighs in anger, deciding it would be a good idea to start writing out his will now.
“It looks like they want us to write out a player profile for each member of the team and attach a photo,” Mina mentions writing down notes in her pink journal. “That’s not too bad honestly, I mean, professional sports have those, so I wouldn’t expect less.”
Izuku nods, of course…how could things get worse? He will need to personally interview each member of the team and make them a profile. Emphasis on each member. Did that include the captains? Can they just make an exception and not do that? He figures the captains should be the best at the sport and they don’t need a baseball card-like stat sheet made to show their strengths, weaknesses, what they liked to eat for breakfast, etc. So why?
His eyes scan over the pages seeing something written in bold that made his blood run cold. “Oh, shit.”
Mina looks up and leans in looking at Izuku’s paper.
Please stay in contact with the team captain and if applicable any coaches to ensure no issues with scheduling and/or competitions.
Izuku groans. He is fucked, more than fucked…how is he supposed to form words around this person? He hasn’t even had one conversation with that person without it turning into a shit show. This means he’s gonna be spending a lot of time with a person that hates his guts.
Mina…the devil herself smirks at him, “So you excited to see Katsuki later today?”
If there is a God out there, now was the time to smite him, now is the time for the Earth to swallow him whole and never spit him back out. Please, anything but that, he would do anything but that.
“I don't know what you're talking about Mina, Kacch- Bakugo and I are fine. There’s no tension or anything, we’re cool.” He mentally slaps himself, almost calling that guy by a nickname that hadn’t been uttered in years.
Years…
Oh god, it’s been years since he’s even had a conversation with him. How was he even supposed to do this?
Mina nods her head yes, but her face has doubt painted all over it, “Mmhm and I lick feet in my free time. What other lies are you gonna tell me today huh? That you like women all of a sudden? You know he doesn't bite… hard.” She pushes his shoulder playfully, “You’ll be fine, trust me. Besides Eiji will be there and I know if anything happens he got you.” She winks at him.
Izuku prays that’s the case.
𓆉°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
After class, he meets up with Ochako, Tsu, and Todoroki to eat a late lunch in the Cafe. Izuku explained to them his journalism project and what team he got assigned to.
“I mean I don't see the problem. Most of the team is pretty chill,” Tsu shrugs her shoulders, taking another bite of fried chicken.
Ochako chuckles, “I don't think it’s the team he’s worried about, it might have to do with Bakugo.”
“Bakugo? The captain? Midoriya, what kind of issues do you have with him?” Todoroki asks, taking a sip of his Icee.
Izuku sighs, this is the very thing he wants to avoid. He doesn’t wanna take a trip down memory lane and explain why to this day how he went from being best friends with Bakugo to becoming a persona non grata.
“It’s a long story, but the short version is he doesn't like me and I don't know why.” Izuku sighs and massages his temples. It’s not like he hates the guy, Izuku just doesn’t want to be at the forefront of his wrath.
“I mean after you transferred out when your parents got divorced Bakugo did change quite a bit. I remember once in 6th grade he almost beat Todoroki up because he took too long in the lunch line,” Tsu explains.
Todoroki’s stoic face doesn’t falter, “I told you I couldn’t decide between pizza or pasta. It’s not my fault some people are impatient.”
Tsu and Ochako look toward each other before breaking out into laughter, clutching their stomachs and gasping for air. The students passing by just stare at them like they lost their minds and go on their way. Izuku’s cheeks flush in embarrassment, how in the world did he end up with these three clowns as friends?
“Who has problems picking between pizza or pasta? The obvious choice is pizza! No wonder he got mad at you, I would, too,” Ochako says, wiping the tears from her eyes.
“The point is, Midoriya, we were kids then and it’s silly to keep a fight going after so long. I think you should try to talk to him,” Todoroki assures, placing his hand on Izuku’s shoulder, “Just try to talk to him.”
Izuku sighs looking up at the glass ceiling for answers on what to do. Does he just act like nothing happened? Or does he try to keep a distance to protect himself? He doesn’t know. But his friends are right, whether he liked it or not, he is stuck with this until the end of the school year.
Izuku sighs in defeat, “Yeah, you’re right I’m losing my mind for no reason. It’ll be okay, I just gotta think of the positives, like when I get home I can edit some nice pictures to submit for Sunday’s check in.”
Ochako stands up from her seat, “That’s the spirit, Izuku! You got this! Besides Tsu is on the team and she can watch out for you, Himiko and I are on the beach volleyball team with Mina, so you have us too cause we practice right next to them. So you’re not alone, we're here for you.”
“I’m not but you can do this Midoriya!” Todoroki bluntly states.
Todoroki didn’t hang around after school, opting to use his free time to unwind and relax while his father was away at work.
Izuku knows the history of his friend's dad and how he runs a tight ship, wanting Shoto to take over as the Chief of the firestation one day. It’s one of the reasons why he doesn’t really go to parties or hang out often, with a man like Enji breathing down your neck 24/7 he couldn't blame Todoroki for using his time wisely.
𓆉°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
After eating, they say their goodbyes and Izuku follows the girls down the path to the locker rooms by the beach. It’s smart of the school to keep a separate locker room for the sports that used the beach for practice so they didn’t track sand or water into the school. It’s also only a ten minute walk from the Cafe so a lot of athletes could grab a bite before or after practice without having to walk across campus.
The girls talk amongst each other but Izuku couldn’t focus. His nerves are on edge and he can feel the food churning in his stomach from the anxiety that’s creeping up on him.
What if the first thing Bakugo did when he sees Izuku is yell at him for being there? Telling him to get lost and that he couldn’t give a damn if this project was worth his life he could kick rocks.
He sees Bakugo around every once in a while, usually only at parties and tries his best to keep a distance from him. Kirishima is Bakugo’s best friend and because Mina is dating him and is friends with Izuku he got dragged to many parties against his will. The two of them never spoke and Izuku is okay with that, not wanting to drive the wrench further down into whatever their relationship is.
It’s not like he doesn’t keep tabs on him though, Izuku knows Bakugo is taking Sports Health Science, which is a plus because they have no corresponding classes together. He knows Bakugo is an amazing surfer, he’s watched many of his competitions during his free time and his friends came over to watch him compete in the biggest competition of their time and win.
Izuku is still puzzled about why the one guy he admired as a child gave him the cold shoulder one day. It just didn’t make sense, did he offend him? Or did he say something mean to him? No, he couldn’t have, he would never be mean to him. It’s actually quite the opposite, Izuku looks up to him– wanting to be as successful as Bakugo is one day wherever life takes him, though if he’s leaving things up to fate…well it’s not working out for him in the best ways.
He is so lost in his thoughts he doesn’t notice his friends leaving to go get changed in the locker room. Izuku’s feet carry him down the stone path until he feels the crunch of sand under his shoes which brings him back to reality. He takes his shoes and socks off and puts them into his back before slinging it back over his shoulder.
Izuku can’t remember the last time he went to the beach to go swimming or to just lay on the sand and bask in the warmth of the sun. He did attend parties at the beach but never went to swim or lay on the sand, if he had to be honest Izuku has always wanted to go night swimming but never took the opportunity to do so.
Right now, it feels like a dream, the sea breeze on his face, the warmth of the sun on his back, and the crash of the waves breaking on the shore is like music to his ears.
Living on an island is a blessing…a blessing and a curse-
“Deku, what are you doing here?” A familiar voice asks.
Izuku turns around, eyes making contact with the one person he really didn’t want to run into while he was in dreamland.
Those crimson red eyes staring down at him and his lips pull into a thin line, Bakugo is like a hot wet dream. He couldn’t help but drink in the sight, sweat coming down from his blond brows probably from working out in the gym they had on campus, it moves over his cheek down his sculpted chin and drips slowly down onto Bakugo’s glistening body.
Izuku’s eyes can't help themselves from roaming over Bakugo’s neck that had a shark tooth necklace, the tip of it ending right above his chest which had a tattoo on his left pec down his toned arm. His eyes explored taking him in more, wandering down his chest to the abs that lay on his trimmed waist. Looking closely he could see a small happy trail dipping down into his red swim trunks.
The sweat made Izuku realize how thirsty he is, licking his lips what he wouldn’t give to just have a drink of-
“Oi, my eyes are up here,” Bakugo says, making a gesture with his fingers from his body to his eyes.
Izuku’s mind snaps back from his dirty thoughts. Oh God, did he just do that in front of Bakugo? He can feel heat spreading on his cheeks and looks down at the sand embarrassed he got caught checking him out point blank. Why is he like this? I mean nobody could blame him, the guy is hot he could melt a popsicle just staring at it with those burning eyes.
Taking a deep breath, he calms himself down so he can explain the situation, “So- my journalism class is going to be handling the website for sports and… I- got assigned to the Surf Team.” Izuku shuts his eyes, preparing to get yelled at knowing it is a thing the blond does on the norm to anyone and everyone who pisses him off.
After a few seconds he notices Bakugo is quiet, too quiet for comfort. Is Izuku deaf? Or is he hallucinating? Is he not yelling at him to get off the beach and run on home? Or maybe he’s dead and this is heaven? God? If that’s you can you please watch over his mom and friends? He had a good life, a short one but a good one.
Izuku is confused, taking a deep breath, he knows he is still alive and breathing– thank God because he can’t miss that All Might movie coming out this summer. Looking up into those crimson eyes, he can make out some of the emotions going on in them– disinterest, annoyance, but also curiosity? Is he reading that right? No, it’s Bakugo– he would never be interested in anything he does or says, not anymore…
With no response, Izuku is prepared to tuck his tail in between his legs and go back to his Professor to explain that this project isn’t going to work out. The first F in his whole life, all because he got assigned a dumb project on-
“Interesting,” Bakugo mumbles, a smirk on his lips as he crosses arms, “And why should I let you stay and take pictures and interview my team?” He asks, narrowing his eyes.
Izuku, thankful he didn’t get yelled at, put his hand to his chest exhaling the breath he was holding. Pulling the project packet out of his bag, he hands it over to Bakugo, “Well, if you don’t believe me here’s my assignment and the last page is a letter from the Dean giving me permission to attend all practices and competitions until the end of the school year.”
Bakugo snatches the paper, reading the first page and looking toward the back to confirm what he is saying is the truth. Izuku is ready for him to start yelling at him, rip the paper to shreds and laugh in his face.
It’s not like he wants to cause problems and make Bakugo’s life harder, Izuku just wanted to do his project and not make his relationship worse with Bakugo than it already is.
“Tch, fine. I’ll let you do your dumb project so you don't fail, just don't distract the team with your mumbling, understand?” Bakugo says, extending his arm out for Izuku to take the packet back.
What?
Izuku shoves his finger in his ear to clear it from any wax that could be making him hear this wrong. “What?”
Bakugo sighs, annoyed. ”I said, you can do your dumb ass project. Just don't distract the team, and don't make me fucking repeat myself…hate that shit.”
Izuku searches his face for any sign of deception but falls short as he accepts the paper back, a smile forming on his lips, “Thanks, Kacch- I mean, Bakugo.” Shaking his head in embarrassment, he almost called Bakugo by the childhood name he used to. Stupid Dummy.
Bakugo rolls his eyes walking down the beach, “Come Nerd.”
They both walk toward a shack that was a little further down than where the end of the stone path is. The shack is made of wood and is painted yellow and blue. The paint is slowly coming off from the corrosion of the sea which was normal for buildings that were built near the ocean.
He watches Bakugo take out a small key and unlock the door, inside there are a bunch of different surfboards, other water sports gear, and the beach volleyball equipment, amongst other things.
Bakugo flips up a wooden counter and walks in, grabbing a beach chair and scoffs, before handing it over to Izuku, “Here, you’re gonna be here for a while. We practice from four to six PM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Rain or shine so don't think practice is fucking canceled because there’s a storm, got it?”
Izuku nods his head making a mental note to write down later, he doesn’t want to do anything to upset Bakugo more and missing practice seems like the thing that would send him over the edge. Looking down at his watch he notices the time and his eyes widen, “A-are you always this early to practice?”
Bakugo grabs an orange surfboard and a bar of wax and makes his way out of the shack,“Yeah, gotta be or these fuckers won't see me and try to go home early.”
Izuku follows behind Bakugo, leading the way down the beach closer to the shore line. Bakugo stops and drops his board in the sand before getting down on his hands and knees, unwrapping the wax from its plastic prison he looks back to Izuku, “I like to get as much practice time in as often as possible.”
Bakugo starts rubbing the wax on his board, starting with large big circles and then smaller ones to fill in the gaps. Something as innocent as putting wax on a surfboard shouldn’t have been as attractive as he made it. The muscles on his back glisten with sweat as they move and flex while he rubs it into the board.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Izuku shakes his head of his thoughts and sets the beach chair up before taking a seat.
Izuku should probably make better use of his time than ogle at the man in front of him; taking out a blue notebook and a pencil, he jots down what Bakugo has said so he doesn't forget. Also creating a separate page so he can start asking some questions about the surfer so he can get ahead in his interview.
“So when you say you practice as often as possible, what do you mean by that?”
The blond scoffs, not stopping his ministrations on the board, “It means I practice as much as I can, you damn Nerd. Do you use that big brain or is it filled with hot air?”
Bakugo takes a deep breath in and exhales putting the wax down on his board. “I usually try to practice at least once a day, when we don’t have fucking practice I catch the swells twice a day.”
Picking the wax back up he starts to rub it into the spots he missed making sure the board was covered top to bottom, “Because today’s a practice day I go to the gym to make up for the lost time I would have had in the water,” Bakugo explains.
“Wow, Bakugo, you're amazing.” Izuku cheers, happily writing down all the information in his notebook.
Bakugo smirks at the comment, “Course I am.” He straps the leash onto his right ankle and picks the board up. “The team should be arriving soon. I’m gonna go in and enjoy the water before those bozos show up.”
Izuku watches him jog down to the water and jumps in.
He remembers when they were kids Izuku would sit on the shore like this and watch him try to catch waves…
Izuku sat down next to Aunt Mitsuki on the sand, she had her camera out and was snapping pictures of Bakugo and Uncle Masaru in the water. He couldn’t help but look over at each picture she took, it’s pretty cool that a device like that could capture memories so clearly.
He can see the frustration on Bakugo’s face when he would wipe out, his dad in the water assuring him to keep at it…which he did. He was resilient, it’s one of the things Izuku admired about him. Getting back on his board and doing it over and over again till he caught one wave where he didn’t get a mouth full of water.
Eventually, Izuku could see how concentrated he was, bending his knees and trying to balance the board on the water. It was like everything happened in slow motion, the wave cleared and Bakugo was left standing. The biggest smile on his face. A flash went off as Aunty Mitsuki took a picture of the moment proud of her son as she looked down at the screen.
Bakugo ran back to the shore, dropping the board in the sand, “Did you see that Izuku? It’s gotta be a new record for being the youngest on the island to catch a wave!”
Izuku smiles back, “Yeah! Kacchan’s amazing! You looked so cool!”
Bakugo swipes his nose, “Course’ I am!”
Aunty Mitsuki leaned over, showing both the boys the picture she took, Izuku was in awe. The way the sunset in the background with Katsuki in the middle of it, that same big smile on his face, it's like he was reliving the memory over again which happened only moments ago…
Izuku remembers that day clearly, it’s what made him get into photography in the first place. Always snapping pictures of his friends and family, cherishing each memory with a flash of his camera. Aunt Mitsuki is the one that bought him his first camera, it didn’t work as well because of years of wear and tear but Izuku still kept it.
His eyes focus on the water watching Bakugo catch another wave, his smile was not as big as when he was a kid, but Izuku can see how relaxed and calm he is in the tube.
Izuku takes his camera out of his bag and turns it on, adjusting the settings before bringing it up to his eye-
“Izuku~ Are you ogling at my brother?”
God please, I beg. Please let it be Ochako mimicking that voice… The last thing he needs is her seeing him stare at her brother in awe.
He turns around and is face to face with Satan herself, a wide smile painting her lips, her yellow eyes burning a hole in his head as she chuckles to herself.
“Hi, Himi, heh… fancy meeting you here,” he chuckles nervously.
Himiko is Bakugo’s younger sister, just a year younger and a very old friend of Izuku’s. They practically grew up together, their mom’s being childhood friends meant the kids all hung out while the adults did whatever they did. When Izuku transferred back in high school Himiko acted as if he never left, spending time with him and sleeping over every once in a while. She’s one of his closest friends, next to Mina and Ochako. The four of them are a force of nature when together.
Himiko chuckles, “Ochako told me about your project, how's that working out huh?” Her smirk deepens.
Of course, she did, damn you, Ochako! Why do you always gotta blab to Himiko about everything? It’s not like Izuku is going to keep it a secret but he wanted to be the one to tell her, over the phone or text.
If Mina is the Queen of gossip, then Himiko is the Princess of it. Both of them love to butt into everyone’s business, especially Izuku’s…
He chuckles, “Well, I uh- didn’t get yelled at so far so I think it’s going okay for the most part.”
Himiko looks down at the notebook and back at Izuku, her eyes glancing off toward the water before looking back at him, “Well, don’t have too much fun, we’re setting up the volleyball net right now. If anything happens just call for us ‘kay?”
Izuku watches her skip away back to the same shed where Mina is. He waves over at her and flashes a big smile as she returns it before grabbing the net again.
He sighs, crisis averted. The last thing he needs is for her to find out Izuku is indeed enjoying the view, for however long the view allows his eyes to watch him.
His sexuality wasn't a question, he’s known since he was young that he never had any interest in girls. There’s only really one person that piqued his interest…
“Just what the hell do you think you’re doing talking to fucking extras?”
Izuku feels a hand pinch the bottom of his chin moving his head to the left, making eye contact with Bakugo’s narrowing red eyes again. “Tch. You’re supposed to be watching me, Nerd. Don’t waste my time.”
His freckled cheeks flushed red and his chin felt hot from where Bakugo was holding in place.
What is happening?
This is the same man when Izuku came back in the 10th grade and told him to die multiple times before pushing him on his butt in the middle of the hallway.
The same man told him to stop calling him Kacchan because it was childish and never spoke to him again after that.
Izuku can’t help but just stare into the fire that’s Bakugo’s eyes, feeling his whole body engulfed in flames.
Bakugo lets go of Izuku’s chin, his eyes looking down to Izuku’s lips and back up to his eyes and scoffs before walking back down to the water.
Izuku sits there in shock just watching him retreat back, he can’t form any words on his tongue as he tries to process what just happened. What is Bakugo thinking? Is he interested in Izuku? No that can’t be right, he had to be toying with him…right? But he just totally checked him out…right?
Bakugo has to know that he has some sort of effect on Izuku right? It’s not like Izuku announces he’s out of the closet and screams it to the world, did he know? Oh God, does he think Izuku likes him? Admire, sure. Think he’s hot? Yeah. But, like? Izuku doesn’t even know if that’s the feeling he has in his chest right now… maybe he’s just nervous because it’s the first time in forever he’s able to have small conversations with Bakugo, and he’s not as afraid of getting his face blown in like how he was in high school.
Izuku pats his cheeks trying to calm his racing heart from running out of his body. He looks toward Bakugo who stopped in the sand where the water laps at his ankles, his head turning to the side giving him a smug smirk before paddling off on his board again.
Oh yeah, he’s definitely messing with Izuku, he huffs shoulders slumping in defeat, it’s not like Bakugo would be interested in someone like him. Izuku knows from the gossip the girls have gathered that they believe he’s possibly straight. The guy has dated a couple girls and most of those relationships only lasted a month or two before Bakugo himself broke it off.
Izuku remembers because the week he came back Bakugo broke up with the poor girl right before homecoming of all things. It was the talk amongst many, but Himiko was the one who filled him in that her brother got offered a sponsorship for surfing, and told her he’s not wasting his time on something dumb like dating when he could be surfing. He didn’t date anyone else or show interest in the people that would profess their undying love for him. So why would he even look in Izuku’s direction or feel that type of way towards him? It was a losing battle from the start.
But, this makes Izuku think about what could be going through the blond's head right now. He seems peeved that Izuku took a few minutes to speak to Himiko instead of watching him. It just didn’t make sense, he thought Bakugo hated him but it seems that he might be wrong about that.
Or, maybe he wants Izuku to focus so he can write good articles about him and snap some good pictures to post about later.
Who knows?… Izuku pulls his camera up to his eye, adjusting the focus and settings before snapping a few pictures of Bakugo catching a wave, moving the camera about so he could have some landscape and portrait shots.
“Midoribro whatcha doin' out here?”
Izuku turns around with a smile on his face, “Oh, Hey Kirishima! I got picked as the editor for the Surf Team, so I’m here to just take notes to write articles about everyone.” Explaining the situation is a lot easier around someone like Kirishima around.
“That’s pretty cool, you gonna take pictures of us, too?” another voice chimes in.
Izuku looks to the side, spotting Denki, Sero, and Tsu walking up behind Kirishima, boards in hand as they gather in front of him.
He smiles, “Yeah! I’ve taken a couple but… I'm waiting for the sun to set a bit more so I can capture a more breathtaking shot.” Izuku explains, clutching his camera to his chest.
“Well, it's nice that the person who’s in charge of our team's articles is someone we can trust. Last year, the student that was assigned barely came to practices, we didn’t get that much publicity.” Sero shrugs looking toward Tsu who shrugs as well.
“Or maybe you didn’t get that much publicity because all you three do is yap all day!!”
Izuku pales slowly, turning around and seeing steam come out of Bakugo’s ears, “And you!” He points to Izuku, “I told you to not take your damn eyes off me!”
Before Izuku can respond, Kirishima steps in, “Hey, that was my fault, I wanted to know why he was out here. Usually, he watches Mina and her team practice. Sorry, Bakubro.”
Oh, Kirishima, it was nice knowing you…he’ll make sure to tell Mina you died defending his honor.
“Tch. Whatever, let’s go you’re fucking late again!” Bakugo barks back at the team, all of them wincing except Tsu who was used to his barking.
“See yah later, Midoriya!” The boys wave him off jogging down to the water to stretch and warm up for practice.
Tsu comes and puts her hand on his shoulder, offering him a smile before heading after the other members of her team.
Izuku is avoiding eye contact with Bakugo, not wanting to endure his wrath again for not listening after the first time he came up the beach to yell at him.
“What? Can’t even look at me anymore? What happened? You shit your pants?” Bakugo says bluntly, his red eyes burning into Izuku’s face.
Izuku looks over to him with a questioning tone in his voice, “Nooo?”
“Are you questioning if you shit your pants? Jesus, Deku, you’re fucking hopeless…” Bakugo pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’m gonna start the practice now. Afterwards, we can go over your packet and the things that are required so we can schedule a day for you to get everything you need.”
Izuku nods, making eye contact with him and offering a small smile, “Thanks Bakugo.”
He sits there in the chair, watching his friends catch some waves, while he tries to catch some candid shots of the practice. The whole beach can hear Captain Bakugo yelling at his team about adjustments that need to be made, or how, if Denki didn't stop splashing water at him he was gonna give him a one-way ticket to Davy Jones locker.
Izuku tries to take as many pictures as he can till the sun dips into the horizon, his notebook already packed away in his backpack so he doesn’t forget it. When he sees Mina he should ask her for some help when it comes to interview questions. Because she did volleyball, Mina would have better knowledge on what to ask so Izuku could get the info he needed to write his posts.
His shoulders relax as he feels fully in his element, the beach chair long forgotten as he is on his knee trying to get as many good angles as he possibly can.
Izuku makes a mental note to bring his other lens tomorrow so he can get more close-up shots, and maybe a change of clothes so he can get closer to the water. The denim pants he wears are his best jeans, they’re nice but he’s sweating in them under the hot sun that’s baking him alive.
He hears Bakugo call the team into a huddle and makes his way back over to the beach chair. Plopping down onto it, Izuku starts going through the pictures he took, favoriting the ones he wants to edit and submit for class.
Taking a peek at the time, it’s around six (just as Bakugo told him practice would be over) he looks toward the orange horizon as it slowly sinks into the sea. A sense of calm comes over him and he feels at peace, knowing he survived the day with Captain Bakugo.
The shuffling of sand makes him turn his head as he spots the team, boards in hand heading over to the shack to put their equipment away.
Tsu walks up to him pulling the rubber band holding her long green hair back, “Hey Midoriya, I’m gonna go shower and I’ll meet up with you and Ochako to get di-“
“HEY NERD! Come here, I don’t have all day!” Bakugo’s gruff voice interrupts his friend who rolls her eyes and starts making her way toward the locker room.
Izuku grabs his bag, folding up the beach chair and starts making his way over to the shack to put it away. He feels a bit nervous, the beach is pretty much empty. The volleyball team already went back to the locker room to change, so no one is there to rescue him in case Bakugo has a change of heart and decides to murder him on the beach.
The other surf athletes are already walking toward the locker room by the time Izuku gets there. Bakugo’s already inside, putting his board away and moving things around. Izuku can’t help but look up at him and watch the water dripping from that spiky blond hair down his back. Something about it made his stomach flutter, wanting to run his hand to feel those toned muscles under the pads of his fingers.
Izuku swallows his thoughts, not wanting to think about Bakugo’s hot, wet back any longer, “Uh, yes, Kac-Bakugo?”
Bakugo turns his head toward Izuku, his eyes contemplating something but Izuku doesn’t catch it as Bakugo reaches up and pulls out a binder, opening it to the first page and points. “We have practices on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays same as the volleyball team but you should know that already.”
Izuku nods, remembering he said it earlier but he didn't want to speak over him and stays quiet. Bakugo flips a few pages and points toward a spot in the calendar, “As of right now we don’t have any school competitions scheduled until after the summer break, most of them take place on Saturdays so you don't have to worry about skipping class.”
Izuku looks over trying to read any info he can before the binder snaps shut, “But we don’t fucking slack off here, we still have practice over the break. Our practice times are different for break so I’ll give that to you after I discuss that with the coach.”
“Oh. Okay, that’s no problem.” Izuku assures, not wanting to upset the surf captain any more than he already is.
Bakugo puts the binder up back on the shelf out of Izuku’s reach and turns back to him, making a shoo gesture. Izuku steps out of the shack and Bakugo leaves as well, locking it up and putting the key away in his pocket.
“Now, I think your fuckin’ packet said something about profiles, we need to figure out a day that works best to get that shit done.” Katsuki crosses his arms over his muscular chest causing Izuku to take a subtle glance down before looking back up into red.
“Oh, yeah I need to do interviews and headshots. Any day works for me, I mean I don't have any after-school activities,” Izuku assures, scratching the back of his head.
Bakugo is silent, Izuku can see the gears turning in his head as his expression didn’t change, “We’ll do it Friday, gives my team enough warning to bring their comp gear, and the coach comes back from vacation Thursday. I know she would flip shit if she wasn’t there for that.”
Izuku nods, “Okay, that’s no problem. Thank you for uh…letting me do my project, Bakugo.”
Bakugo scoffs, “I’m not doing this for you, I’m doing this for the team.”
He sighs, so he is only putting up with Izuku because of the project to make the surf team look good. Why did he think that Bakugo would want to be friends again with someone like him?
Izuku watches him walk away and trails behind, they both have to walk the same path to the locker rooms where his friends are waiting for him. Even though he knows friendship isn’t on the forefront of Bakugo’s mind, he can’t help but feel a bit happy that he went the whole day without receiving the blond’s wrath. It’s a small win on his part, if things kept up like this then the project would go smoothly with no issues.
Both of them walk in silence for a bit, the sound of the crashing waves in the distance is the only thing that can be heard other than the crunching of the sand under his feet.
If he has to be honest he really doesn’t want to go back home after dinner with the girls. Izuku enjoys his peace, but coming home to an empty house everyday while his mom is off in another country makes him feel a bit lonely. It shouldn’t be that bad though, there are pictures to edit and he wants to get a head start on researching more information about surfing so he can get a better idea when he writes his first article.
Bakugo grumbles, “You know, you can fucking call me that dumb childhood name you use to call me. Don’t have’ta force yourself to say my last name Nerd.”
Izuku freezes in place, his ears can't believe what they’re hearing right now. Did he really just say that? He’s okay with Izuku calling him that after all these years? But…Bakugo is the one that told him it’s childish, why the change of heart? “W-what?”
Bakugo stops walking and turns around, “I said, if you wanna call me that dumbass nickname you gave to me when we were fucking three years old be my fucking guest!”
His eyes lock onto those crimson eyes and Izuku feels butterflies in his stomach, slowly fluttering up his chest and his face making it feel warm.
Small tears well in the corners of Izuku’s eyes, not being able to contain the amount of happiness he feels at that moment. He smiles, eyes crinkling shut as he chuckles, “Okay, Kacchan.”
Izuku doesn’t notice the face Katsuki makes when he hears it, but when his eyes open it's back to the same poker face that he's grown accustomed to as of recent.
Kacchan takes a step forward, “Listen Deku I-“
“Izuku! Hurry up, we're waiting for you!” Ochako calls out to him as his gaze looks past the blonde to his brown-eyed friend.
Izuku smiles at her and shouts back, “Oh hold o-“
“Never fucking mind…” Kacchan turns back, heading off to the locker rooms at a much faster pace than he was walking before.
Izuku’s puzzled…what did Kacchan want to tell him? He can’t think straight as he chases after him but stops, seeing Kacchan enter the boys locker room. He doesn’t follow him in and swallows his resolve.
“Izu, are you okay?” Ochako asks.
No, he isn’t okay. Kacchan was about to tell him something, he doesn’t know but the look in his eyes makes Izuku think it’s important. Izuku sighs and gives her a small smile, “Yeah, I’m fine, where are we eating tonight?”
She smiles at him, “I got the perfect place, you’re gonna love it!”
They walk side by side and don’t notice the person leaning against the wall of the boys locker room listening in on them.