Chapter 37

"Holy mother of cheese and rice and everything so not nice!" Izuku hissed as he felt the skin around his healing stitches stretch and pain shot up his legs. A deadpan-looking Katsuki turned his head to look at him ever so slowly, blinking twice at the greenette's sudden outburst.

Unable to hold himself back, Katsuki threw his head back in a throaty laugh, one hand going down to clutch his stomach. Baffled, Izuku stared at him with a flushed face, starting to feel embarrassed.

"What?" He mumbled, taking in the rare sight of Katsuki full-on laughing.

"Is that what babies think when they take their first steps?" Katsuki asked through his laughter, tears now brimming his eyes. "What was that?!"

"Hey! These are not my first steps! What the hell? And it hurts, a lot," Izuku huffed, trying to cross his arms but failing because of the cast.

It was the day that Izuku was finally being discharged from the hospital. He would now be under Recovery Girl's care back in the academy. The painful electrifying feeling he would get wasn't as frequent as it had been for the past week, so that was kind of a good sign.

Unfortunately, he still couldn't go back to his lessons and training due to the unstable quirk, but All Might, Aizawa, and Midnight will help him through it until it's back to normal.

Katsuki was currently helping him get off the bed. Since Izuku spent so much time on bed rest, the most he had walked was to the bathroom, and even then, he would be unsteady on his feet.

Today was no different.

"Izuku. If something hurts, you say fuck, not...whatever the fuck that was," Katsuki chuckled.

"But I don't like cursing," Izuku said with a pout, ruffling his green curls as he took another step forward. He used Katsukis shoulders as support to try and not stumble to the ground. It was impressive what three weeks without barely walking could do to your legs.

"Then how come you've cursed before?" Katsuki teased with a smirk, remembering very clearly the many beautiful words that spewed out of his boyfriend's mouth. His smirk faltered a little when he remembered the reason why Izuku had gotten so mad that time.

Izuku, of course, noticed the change in mood and reached up with his good arm to gently ruffle Katsuki's hair. "It was in the heat of the moment, but what happened back then is already past us."

Katsuki's heart throbbed as he looked into Izuku's eyes which shone with forgiveness and admiration. He still found it incredibly shocking just how the greenette could look at him in such a way.

"You forgive people way too easily, you know that?" The blond spoke with a small smile. Izuku let out a chuckle and scratched his cheek, a small flush covering it.

"I don't really like to hold grudges. I feel like they weigh me down..." he trailed off, feeling a little shy under Katsuki's stare. Was he mad and disappointed about the blond's reasoning for his actions back in middle school? Most definitely. He won't be able to forget it even if he wanted to. But that didn't mean that he would use it against him, especially when Katsuki had changed so drastically.

Katsuki stared at Izuku for a moment, his mind registering his words. A thought occurred to him, and without averting his gaze, he spoke softly, "Then how come you still hold a grudge against yourself?"

The question caught Izuku off guard, making his eyes widen in surprise. Katsuki didn't need to explain what he meant since it was painfully obvious. They had been able to avoid the topic of his anxiety and depression for a while. Due to the blond being by his side almost all the time and with his three weeks at the hospital, he hasn't seen or touched a blade. He did have some depressive episodes at times, but Katsuki was always there to help without having to say anything.

Izuku was at a loss for words.

Katsuki, noticing his struggle, continued, "If you can forgive me for being such an asshole and move on from it, you can also forgive yourself for whatever you're blaming yourself for."

Izuku averted his gaze, not wanting Katsuki to see just how much those words affected him. He could feel a lump starting to form, and he cleared his throat to try and get rid of it. He was so not expecting the topic to turn so drastically from lighthearted to emotional.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to look back at Katsuki, whose eyes never left his face. "It's not so easy," he admitted softly, offering a sad smile.

Katsuki put his right arm around Izuku's neck, being mindful of his injured shoulder. "It's annoying how you still won't fully open up to me, but I understand that you still need time. But you will have to tell me eventually."

"I still have to get used to this side of you," Izuku chuckled, smoothly changing topics. Katsuki snorted, ruffling up Izuku's already disheveled hair.

"Fuck, nerd. Even I have to get used to this side of me. Feels fucking weird," Katsuki said with a grimace. He never thought he'd be such a softie, especially with the freckled boy. But honestly? He didn't regret any bit of it.

"You are officially a tsundere," Izuku joked with a snicker.

"What the fuck did you say, motherfucker!" Katsuki exclaimed, glaring holes into the greenette's skull, making him laugh loudly.

"But it's true!" Izuku defended, still laughing. The bullet wound throbbed in protest, but he couldn't help it with the face Katsuki was making.

The blond was about to scream at him in denial, but noticing the way Izuku's eyes squinted and his smile broadened, he stopped himself. The greenette held his stomach as he laughed, throwing his head back, dimples appearing on his cheeks.

Huffing, Katsuki crossed his arms and looked away, muttering, "You're lucky I love you, you fucking asshole."

It was low, but somehow, Izuku managed to hear it. It made him freeze and snap his head in Katsuki's direction with wide eyes. The blond, aware of Izuku's sudden silence, turned to look at him with furrowed brows. The moment his eyes landed on Izuku's shocked gaze, he tensed. An unavoidable flush covered his neck up to his ears in utter embarrassment, heart beating wildly inside his chest.

"You...what?" Izuku asked, blinking twice.

"I—shit! N-Nothing!" Katsuki stuttered, immediately covering his face with one of his hands. He cursed himself for stuttering and feeling so goddamn nervous. He didn't mean for Izuku to hear that!

"You love me?" Izuku whispered, a smile forming on his lips. His breath quickened in excitement, heart pounding rapidly. He couldn't have imagined those words, could he?

When Katsuki bit his bottom lip and refused to look at him, he knew the answer.

"You do!! Holy crap! You love me!!" Izuku exclaimed excitedly, pointing a finger at him in disbelief.

"I DIDN'T SAY THAT!" Katsuki yelled, hating how hot his cheeks felt.

"You didn't deny it either!" Izuku shot back, pushing the pain to the back of his mind. He couldn't hold back from jumping in place lightly, like a child on a sugar rush. His smile was so bright that if anyone stared at it they would most likely get blinded.

Katsuki was grumbling under his breath, not knowing what to say. He had only confessed his love for the greenette when he was unconscious, but now he had said it when he was completely aware. Hell, he hasn't even told Izuku how he was actually the first one to say those three fucking words.

His thoughts were interrupted when Izuku launched himself at him, making him instinctively put his arms on either side of the boy to properly catch him. "Oi! Be fucking care—!"

He was cut off by the greenette's lips crashing onto his, making him suck in a breath in temporary shock. He breathed out slowly through his nose as he kissed back, hands holding Izuku's sides steadily and carefully.

The door to the hospital room was suddenly kicked open, and a familiar loud voice spoke up, "Alright, brats—WHAT THE FUCK?!"

Izuku jumped away from Katsuki faster than lightning, face flushing brightly at the astonished Mitsuki. She stood by the door with her mouth wide open, switching her gaze between the two mortified teenagers.

"ABOUT FUCKING TIME!" Mitsuki laughed, reaching toward the two boys and pulling them in both for a tight hug.

"Oi, don't touch me old hag!" Katsuki hissed, swatting his mother's arm away and rolling his eyes. Great, now his mother knew about them. They would never hear the end of it. Ever.

"A-Auntie, you're kinda hurting me," izuku chuckled with a wince, making Mitsuki gasp and let go of him.

"Shit! Sorry Izu, I just got excited that this idiot finally grew some fucking balls!" Mitsuki laughed as she smacked Katsuki upside the head. "Congratulations on finally getting your shit together, brat!"

"WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!"

"THAT YOU'RE A FUCKING IDIOT YOU FUCKING FUCK!"

"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU CALLING A FUCKING FUCK, YOU OLD HAG?!"

"THE ONLY FUCKING FUCK THERE IS IN THIS ROOM! YOU'D PROBABLY FIND HIM IF YOU LOOKED IN A MIRROR!"

"Oh God, you two, people are trying to rest," Izuku mumbled, trying not to laugh at their banter. He was afraid that a nurse would come in and kick them out for being so loud. But their last name was Bakugo, it was in their nature.

"STOP SCREAMING!" Mitsuki scolded Katsuki, smacking him upside the head for a second time.

"OUCH, DAMMIT! WHY DO YOU YELL AT ME TO STOP SCREAMING?! YOU DO IT TOO!"

"YOU STARTED SCREAMING FIRST!"

"Guys, seriously, you're gonna get us kicked out," Izuku snickered, loving how Mitsuki resembled a stubborn five-year-old, although she was practically his second mother. It was no doubt that Katsuki was the exact same replica of her, he always wondered just what he had of Masaru's other than his unnoticeable DNA.

As if on cue, the door opened and a tired-looking Masaru stepped inside with an even more tired-looking Aizawa trailing behind him.

"Is everything alright? You were all supposed to be down about five minutes ago," Masaru asked, casting a worried look toward Izuku.

"Everything's great!" Mistuki beamed at her husband. "Our brats have finally grown up!"

"Shut up!" Katsuki hissed, knowing for a fact that she was definitely going to spill the news to just about everyone.

"What do you mean?" Masaru asked, perplexed. Izuku stayed by Katsuki's side, rubbing his tense back soothingly and letting the inevitable happen. It was about time they knew, anyway.

"They were kissing!" Mitsuki squealed, making the teenagers flush awkwardly, and Masaru's eyes widened.

"Really?!" The brunette asked in shock.

Aizawa, noticing their excitement at the news, rolled his eyes. "Yeah well, they have been dating for a little bit over a month."

"WHAT?!"

"Time to go!" Katsuki rushed out, taking Izuku's good arm and tugging him over to the door. Izuku laughed as the blond pulled him out of the room, enjoying his flustered state. Who would've thought that it was that same time bomb that had kissed him in the middle of the school's cafeteria without a care in the world?

Behind them, Masaru had a hand on Mitsuki's shoulder, telling her to cool down and talk about it later. He was as surprised as she was, but they both knew that it would happen eventually. They had been together since they were in diapers, and the affection they had for each other had always been noticeable.

After Mitsuki signed some papers, everyone made their way out of the hospital doors. Izuku sucked in a breath of fresh air, feeling content.
He had been stuck in that hospital room for three weeks, and it sure felt great to finally be out. Walking was still a little difficult, but he managed with Katsuki's help. He was ready to go home.

A sudden throb from his side reminded him that he still hadn't fully recover, and he let out a faint chuckle, turning to Katsuki. "I never thought I'd say this, but I really wish I could get a kiss from the old lady."

Whack!

"Ouch!"

"Well, it sucks that this old lady can't help you," Recovery Girl said from behind him, lowering her cane. Izuku rubbed the back of his head with a pout, looking down at her. "Come on, you two. We've got to get back to the school grounds so that I can continue with Midoriya's treatment. We still have to test the antidote."

The two teens nodded slowly, sharing concerned looks. They had been informed that the antidote had arrived about three days ago, but Recovery Girl kept it in her infirmary for further investigation. She wanted to make sure that the side effects weren't dangerous or deadly.

It was finally time to test it out. And Izuku would be lying if he said he didn't feel terrified. He was hoping that it would work and he could finally have control over his quirk. He still felt bad about that one day when blackwhip lashed out without his consent and almost threw a nurse across the room. He apologized a million times over after another nurse injected a quirk tranquilizer into his IV.

Ever since then he's had to either take some pills to calm his quirk down or have Aizawa babysit him. The raven-haired male was certainly not fond of that idea.

With a firm hand on his shoulder, Katsuki gave him a small encouraging nod. He knew that the greenette was anxious, Katsuki himself felt uneasy as well. But if it was for Izuku's own good, so be it.

He just hoped that everything would turn out fine.