Chapter 20

Izuku stared intently at the bouquet of white lilies he held. Katsuki was next to him, watching him stare at the flowers. They were standing in front of Inko's tombstone—a place they haven't been to since the burial. Their emotions were all over the place, and even Katsuki was having a hard time keeping himself together. Taking a deep breath, Izuku put the flowers down ever so gently, treating them with care.

Things were kind of awkward between them after the bathroom accident. Izuku wouldn't look Katsuki in the eyes, but Katsuki already expected that to happen. To distract the greenette, he had grabbed his wallet and told his parents they would be back later. Izuku was confused as to why the blond was dragging him, but there they were, in the cemetery, and he didn't know what to say. Sensing his inner turmoil, Katsuki decided to speak up first.

"I thought you might have wanted to visit Auntie after the news," the blond explained quietly. Izuku slowly nodded, staring at his mother's grave. Should he say something? Give his prayers? He didn't know.

"I don't know what to do," Izuku admitted with a bitter chuckle. He slowly sat down on the ground, not caring if it was dirty. Katsuki slowly sat next to him, deciding to keep quiet. He figured that it was best if they spent that time in silence, as a form of respect to the deceased. Izuku didn't need a conversation, he simply needed some company while he wrapped his head around things. And Katsuki would be there to support him throughout all the process.

Minutes passed, and they simply sat there next to each other. A single tear escaped Izuku's eyes, but he didn't even care enough to wipe it off. Katsuki noticed, but he let him be, knowing that he needed to grieve. He himself was grieving silently, but he wouldn't show. Inko was a very special person to him, after all.

The sky started turning gray, as if sensing the mood, and thunder clapped above them. Katsuki glanced up at the darkening sky, and let out a sigh. "We've gotta get going."

"Yeah," Izuku whispered, the two of them standing up. They gave a quick, silent prayer before turning on their feet and walking away from the grave. Light drizzle started hitting the pavement they walked on as they made their way out the cemetery gates. Katsuki stuffed his hands inside his pockets as he walked ahead, not minding the raindrops hitting his skin.

Izuku followed behind him, tilting his head in curiosity when he noticed that the blond was heading the wrong way. "Isn't your house the other way?"

"Mhm," Katsuki hummed, still walking the wrong way. Deciding not to question him, Izuku continued behind him. The light drizzle started getting heavier by the minute, and Izuku shielded his eyes while he looked up.

"Where are we going? We should find shelter," Izuku said as the chilly wind blew, making him shiver slightly.

"Almost there," was Katsuki's vague answer. Izuku furrowed his brows at the back of the blond's head, wondering just what was going on in his head. Katsuki didn't show sign of speeding up anytime soon, even with the rain dampening their clothes. He continued at a steady pace until he reached his destination, stopping in front of an ice cream parlor.

"Ice cream?" Izuku questioned, raising an eyebrow. "You do know that it's raining, right?"

"And that matters because?" Katsuki said as he entered the parlor. The cold air from the air conditioning hit their wet skin, making Izuku shiver.

"If I end up getting sick, I'm blaming you," the greenette mumbled, walking in after him. Katsuki rolled his eyes and walked to a table and gestured for Izuku to sit down. Izuku complied wearily, not knowing what the blond was up to. He was acting weird. He hadn't snapped at him or called him any of his nicknames yet. What was his plan?

"Calm down, will ya," Katsuki grumbled, noticing Izuku's tense posture. He placed a hand on each of his shoulders and activated his quirk in the slightest, creating a nice steam to leave the palm of his hands. "I'm just going to dry you up a little, I ain't going to hurt your dumb ass."

Izuku blushed at the contact and silently enjoyed the warmth the blond was providing him. It was relaxing, and it made him feel all giddy inside. He most certainly liked it, and that wasn't good.

Katsuki stood there awkwardly, avoiding any potential eye contact in fear of blushing. He felt stupidly shy. Fuck Izuku for making him feel that way. He was Katsuki fucking Bakugo. And there he was, all mushy on the inside because of a living broccoli head.

"That should do," he mumbled, retracting his hands. Izuku thanked him with a small smile, and he gave him a nod and turned around. Without another word, the blond made his way to the ice cream counter and ordered for the two of them. He still remembered Izuku's favorite flavor. It had been the same since they were little. He could never forget.

After he paid for the two bowls of ice cream, he grabbed them and headed back to the table where Izuku sat staring out the window. The rain outside had turned into a heavy downpour, the sky covered with dark gray clouds. They would be stuck in there for a while, it seemed.

Approaching the greenette, Katsuki placed the two ice cream bowls down on the table, catching his attention. "Here."

Izuku's green orbs lit up in excitement when he saw his favorite ice cream flavor in front of him. "Rocky road!"

Katsuki smiled slightly at his joy, feeling accomplished. He was hoping that bringing him here would cheer him up even if it was in the slightest. Shaking his head in amusement, Katsuki sat down accross from Izuku and snorted. "Such a childish flavor."

"You're just too boring," Izuku retorted with an eye roll. "You always pick vanilla. That's such a plain flavor!"

"Oi, I'm not fucking boring," Katsuki huffed. "There's nothing wrong with enjoying vanilla ice cream."

"Bori~ng," Izuku chuckled, taking a big spoonful of ice cream and shoving it in his mouth, making Katsuki scrunch his nose up.

"Shut up, you fucking nerd," Katsuki rolled his eyes in annoyance. Just because he liked a common ice cream flavor didn't make him boring. Right?

"Here, try mine," Izuku offered, taking a spoonful of his ice cream and offering it to him. Katsuki stared at the spoon, then looked back at Izuku.

"That looks disgusting," Katsuki said, pushing the spoon away from his face gently.

"You always say that!" Izuku rolled his eyes and moved the spoon back in front of Katsuki's face. "Come on, give it a chance. I promise it's worth it!"

Katsuki contemplated his options, scrunching his nose up slightly as he stared at the ice cream again. He had always been satisfied with vanilla, and the thought of eating nuts mixed with chocolate ice cream and marshmallows made him uneasy. Looking back at Izuku, the greenette had a hopeful look in his eyes with a smile, edging him on. With a sigh, he gave in.

"Fine," Katsuki huffed, opening his mouth and accepting the spoon. Izuku happily fed him the ice cream, and watched intently for the blond's reaction.

The chocolate-y smoothness invaded Katsuki's tastebuds, and he processed the flavors in his mind. Blushing, he looked away from a beaming Izuku. It was actually a pretty good ice cream, and he didn't want to admit it.

"You like it, don't you?" Izuku teased, noticing the embarrassed expression the blond had. When Katsuki glared at him, he threw his head back in laughter. He knew that Katsuki would like it, he just needed to edge him on for him to actually try it.

"Shut up!" Katsuki growled, making Izuku laugh even more. Although embarrassed, he managed to smile. His chest welled up with pride, knowing that he was making the greenette laugh. It had been a crappy day at first, with his mother and fucking Hisashi and whatnot. But now, even though it was raining buckets outside, the two of them spending that time together somehow made it all better.

"Here, have the rest of my ice cream," Izuku said, pushing his half eaten bowl of ice cream towards Katsuki. The blond would be lying if he said he didn't want it, but he shook his head in denial.

"It's for you." He said, leaning back in his chair.

"I'm good," Izuku smiled. "I can tell that you want it. Am I sensing a new favorite?"

"No," Katsuki mumbled, looking down at the melting ice cream. Izuku chuckled, resting his elbows on the table and placing his hands on his cheeks, supporting his face.

"It's ok if it is. It's a nice change," the greenette said. Katsuki looked at him and had to fight back a blush threatening to take over his cheeks. Izuku was giving him a closed-eye grin, making him look childish. Katsuki found it irritatingly adorable.

God, was he falling hard for the nerd.

"Yeah," Katsuki mumbled under his breath, finally taking the ice cream. He knew he needed to stop before he made something he'd regret. A heartbreak was imminent—he knew it. Not only did he believe that the greenette didn't share his feelings, he didn't even know if he liked boys! Hell, Katsuki himself hasn't even admitted out loud that he was gay.

Izuku furrowed his brows a little as he stared at Katsuki. "You alright, Kacchan?"

Blinking back to reality, Katsuki looked at Izuku and gave a nod. Glancing outside the window, he noticed that the rain was staring to let up, so he stood up. "We should get going before the rain gets heavy again."

"Yeah. Auntie Mitsuki might be worried," Izuku said, also standing up. They threw the two bowls away and headed outside, breathing in the earthy smell of fresh rain. Oddly enough, it was one of Izuku's favorite scents, which made him smile slightly.

"Race you to the house?" Katsuki suggested with a smirk. Smirking back at him, Izuku stretched a little then pushed his shoulder playfully.

"Tag, you're it!" He exclaimed then took off running. Dumbfounded, Katsuki huffed and began running after him.

"What are you? Fucking ten?!" Katsuki yelled after him, making him laugh and turn around, running backwards.

"Plus five!" Izuku yelled back at him, turning back around and speeding up. Katsuki rolled his eyes at his response, but smiled nonetheless and kept running, starting to catch up. Sensing that Katsuki was nearing him, Izuku activated 1% of his quirk to speed up, going farther ahead.

"I saw the sparks, you fucking cheater!" Katsuki shouted, making the greenette laugh again. The rain began pouring harder on them, completely soaking them from head to toe. They didn't care, though. They were having fun.

Katsuki eventually caught up to the greenette and tackled him down. Izuku shrieked, falling straight into a puddle with Katsuki falling on top of him. Their hair was sticking to their faces awkwardly as Katsuki held himself up with his hands, hovering over Izuku. They were breathing heavily due to all the running, and Katsuki gently poked Izuku's freckled nose. "You're it."

He stared into Izuku's luring green eyes, not wanting to look away. His heart sped up, eyes flicking down to his lips then back into his eyes. Man, was he tempted to lean in.

Izuku grinned up at him, blushing as he stared up at him and raised his hands slightly in surrender. "Haah, you caught me."

Giving him a small smile in return, Katsuki shook his head slightly and stood up, offering him a hand.

"Always, nerd."