It all happened so fast.

Katsuki appeared out of nowhere. (Y/n) hadn't seen him come out of the bushes until he was suddenly in front of her, detonating a deadly explosion directly to the predator's face and blowing it to bits.

Gasping, she stopped herself from slicing his head off in the nick of time and took a few clumsy steps backward. She accidentally tripped on her feet and lost her balance, causing her to fall on her behind. Due to her disorientation and loss of focus, the scythe in her hand transformed back into a hairpin and fell on the grass somewhere.

The animal's headless corpse dropped on the ground with a loud thud, right in front of Katsuki's boots. (Y/n)'s eyes widened at the corpse and she pulled her legs a bit closer to her heaving chest.

Katsuki stared down at the body with a scowl as thin tendrils of smoke wafted from his palms.

The corpse began glitching in and out before it disappeared like the praying mantis.

Beep

Katsuki briefly checked his timekeeper.

51

Dammit. The boy wiped off the sweat from his upper lip with the back of his hand, irritation vivid on his face. Just 50 points for this fucker?!

He turned around to check on (Y/n)'s condition and his wine-red eyes scanned her from head to toe. She seemed fine, unhurt. Though she continuously stared ahead into nothing, looking quite spooked while probably trying to decipher what just happened. The frown lines on his forehead relaxed a bit and his hand got a sudden itch to offer itself to her to help her stand up.

"The thought of your hands on her makes her want to retch her guts out."

Mentally cursing, he shoved his hands into his pockets and turned his head away from (Y/n). He drove his a death glare at a nearby tree, his trademark scowl taking back its rightful place.

Just what the fuck was he thinking? It wasn't like she'd accept it anyway. And if she did, she'd probably scrub her hand until the skin was raw afterward. Those four shitheads were fucking wrong. He never had a chance with her, to begin with. He had lost it the minute he decided to be selfish and have her to himself, even if it was for a damn fucking minute.

Katsuki scoffed to himself.

Apologize when he had the chance to be alone with her? Fucking stupid. What was the point of it now...it's not like she'd ever change how she saw him. So why not just roll with the punches and treat her exactly how she treats him. Like he doesn't give a damn about her.

He turned back to look down at her, all emotion sans anger completely wiped off from his face.

Maybe if he continued that way, the burn in his chest won't be so fucking annoying and painful.

"Get up, dumbass," he said, his voice strained and tired as he lightly kicked her foot. "We need to move."

The girl snapped her head up to glare at him.

"What was that?!"

Fan-fucking-tastic. Katsuki frowned. "What was what?"

(Y/n) quickly rose to her feet and pointed to the spot where the jaguar lost its life. "That! That thing! And-and-and-" she gestured to his whole form with a flailing hand. "You! Hiding! And then appearing out of nowhere!! What was that?!"

"So?" the male skimmed his wary gaze over the rows of trees instead of her. "What of it?"

(Y/n)'s hackles rose, her eyes narrowing. His rare act of calmness was starting to both creep her out and irritate her more than when he's shouting back at her.

"Was I some kind of bait?!"

Katsuki's eyes flicked back to her. Actually, he had excused himself to take a piss a bit farther away from the tree she was on so it had taken him a while to come back. When he did, he just happened to see the jaguar heading straight for her. And despite her quick reflexes, she still reacted a second too late and if he hadn't been there, she would've missed its head and left herself wide open...

But hey, since she decided to jump into conclusions, why not offer her a fucking trampoline?

"You had to be," he flatly said as he massaged the back of his neck. "I can't use my full range attack here because of all these damn trees so I had to lay low and get close to it. You were the perfect distraction."

(Y/n)'s eyes went wide.

"I nearly got separated from my skin, you damn jerk!!" she nearly screamed, arms wildly flying in all directions. "And I almost took your head off!! Can't you see-"

"But you didn't, did you?"

(Y/n) opened her mouth to counter him but no words came out.

"Did you?" he repeated carefully, his stare burning into her like two rods.

Her mind stuttering, the girl snapped her mouth shut as her rage and temper tantrum wavered. Averting her sheepish gaze from his, she sniffed and bit the inside the cheek.

"...no," she replied tightly, her voice pinched.

"Then shut up and stop complaining," he said with a click of his tongue. His eyes darted from one point of the jungle to the other before he looked back at her. "How big is this place?"

(Y/n) crossed her arms across her chest with a stubborn set to her jaw.

"I'm not telling you."

"Eh?" another frown line occupied his already crowded forehead. "Why the fuck not?"

She pointed at herself. "You used me as bait!"

Katsuki fixed her a strangled look. She was really starting to get on his last nerve. "That's your fucking problem?!"

"Duh!" she tossed a hand into the air. "What else?! You know what?!" she held up her hands, palms facing up. "I propose we avoid all animals until the end. How about it?"

With a raspy growl emitting from his throat, the boy shot her a hot, scalding glare as his lip turned up in a snarl.

"Are you on fucking bath salts?! Then we won't get many points! I'm not letting any of the other extras in our school or the Isamishits get more points than me and no one's gonna stop me!! Not some fucking wannabe lion, not some fucking jungle and most especially," he roughly jammed a finger on (Y/n)'s shoulder, slightly pushing her back, "not my dumbass excuse of a partner!"

"That hurts!" (Y/n) slapped his hand away, wincing at the now painful spot on her shoulder. "And it was just a suggestion! Stop calling me names!!"

Katsuki leaned his face closer to hers and he tilted his head to the side.

"Do you wanna know how it feels to have a broken jaw?" he held up a warning fist, his gruff voice dropping. "I can show you if you keep talking."

The female thinned her lips and stared back at him defiantly, her breath quickening. Her eyes involuntary flicked down to his lips and back to his eyes. Swallowing down the flood of unwelcome emotions that came crashing down on her while having him that close, she scowled.

"Wow, you're a real piece of work," she said between clenched teeth.

"Yeah," Katsuki spat, "and a fucking priceless one so back the fuck up and out of my space."

(Y/n)'s fingers curled into fists at her sides. Lord, grant me the patience because if you grant me the strength, I will smash this boy's head against a tree.

"Fine," she said, her jaw twitching and she reluctantly took three steps back.

A beat of silence passed.

"...It's big, okay?" she finally admitted while sizing him up with disdain. She then swiped the piece of paper that was in her collar with more force than necessary and unrolled it. Before she was finished, the boy snatched it from her hands and she glowered at him.

Silence prevailed as she eyed him resentfully while he checked the map out.

"Alright," he said once he was done and rolled up the paper. "We're heading to the mountain," he whirled around before carelessly tossing the map back to her over his shoulder. "And you suck ass at drawing."

(Y/n) caught the paper with a frown. Pretending not to have heard the jab at her artistic talent, she asked. "Why can't we go to the clearing first?"

"Why the fuck would we go there?" he countered plainly while he stalked over to the spot he had hastily dropped his backpack while rushing to get to her.

Lifting her shoulder in a half-shrug, (Y/n)'s fingers tightened around the map. "I mean, doesn't basic jungle survival tactics dictate that we should always head towards a clearing since that means there's a large body of water or a human settlement?"

"Hah?" Halting dead in his tracks, the ash-blonde slowly looked over his shoulder. "You wanna discuss survival tactics with me?"

She frowned. "It's just a guess."

"Oh yeah?!" he turned on his heel, a toothy sneer at the ready. "Then riddle me this, if we find this so-called body of water, what are you gonna do?! Swim?! Take a leisurely boat ride?! And a settlement?!" he spread his arms wide. "Take a good fucking look at where we are! We're the only ones here!"

"But still-"

"But nothing!!" he fired back, a finger pointed at her. "We're not going to the clearing and that's final! So shut up and get over it!"

(Y/n) went to add that the clearing was closer but immediately shut her mouth when she decided it wasn't worth the effort. She exhaled through her nose and her shoulders slumped. All that arguing was taking a great toll on her and they hadn't even started the journey to the finish line.

In all honesty, all she just wanted to do was sit down.

"Fine," she shrugged, her voice magnifying her defeat. "We'll go to the mountain."

"About time you decided to use your non-existent brain."

With a scoff, he turned his back to her and resumed his interrupted task.

The girl's face contorted into a scowl and she gave his back her middle fingers. Biting down on her lower lip to resist the urge to scream, she wildly waved them back and forth to emphasize her point. She then withdrew them with a harsh intake of her breath and sharply turned on her heel to stomp over to where she had left her bag.

Grabbing her backpack, she angrily stuffed the map inside before brushing off the grass and dirt that clung at the bottom. When she was done, she wore it and trudged back to where Katsuki was waiting for her.

"Okay," she breathed out, ensuring she kept her eyes averted from him. "Lead the way, your highness."

The boy peered at her with an inscrutable expression and the corners of his lips pulled down in a frown.

In spite of how she felt about him and how he didn't want to feel about her, he couldn't find it in himself to allow her to make any more fatal mistakes like she did with the jaguar, unaware or not. That wasn't a chance he was willing to take out there. He had to protect her in any way he could, even if (Y/n) -the stubborn fuck- hated his method of doing so.

"Listen," he said as he hiked the strap of his backpack higher up his shoulder to keep it from slipping down his arm. "If we're gonna do this then I'm gonna have to establish some ground rules."

She met his eyes. His breath caught in his throat. Damn. Nearly two years down the line and he still hasn't gotten used to having her beautiful eyes on him. 

He really was deep down that rabbit hole, huh...getting out will be a real shitshow.

"Rules?" the girl arched a questioning brow. "What rules?"

Katsuki held up a finger. "One, you do everything I say," he lifted a second finger. "Two, you're the bait."

(Y/n)'s eyebrows scrunched tightly together. "Excuse me?"

"You're excused."

"No, I-" she cut herself off with a frustrated groan. She threw a hand in the air, her face set in disbelief and confusion. "Why do I have to be the bait?!"

The boy daggered her with a scornful glare. "Because you're fucking useless and now I'm giving you a job. Be grateful."

Her mouth fell wide open, her brows knitting in offense.

"Now come on," he tilted his head towards their destined direction. "We're burning daylight just by standing around so you better keep up."

(Y/n) was left gawking at his back when he turned and began walking away from her. Her fingers started to tremble as fury vibrated through her very being, raw and untamed. She ground down her jaw and let out a throaty scream, her hands shooting out towards him in a strangling gesture as she imagined herself throttling the life out of him.

No, (Y/n). Calm down. She pulled her hands back and dug her fingers into her hair and scalp. She began to pace back and forth. Her heart jackhammered against her ribcage as she sucked in harsh breaths to calm her violent thoughts.

Calm down. Calm down. Murder is a crime. Murder is a crime.

She stopped pacing and put her hands together against her lips. She drew in a long, deep inhale before loudly exhaling. Screwing her eyes shut, she performed a couple more breathing exercises to steady her murderous thoughts.

When she deemed herself calm enough to deal with him again, she opened her eyes and dropped her arms to her sides. Huffing one last time, she hooked her fingers around the straps of her bag and followed Katsuki, all the while fixing a glare at the back of his head.

***

Meanwhile at the monitor room***

"Oh dear," Mr. Oshima said as he hugged his clipboard to his chest. A pained expression was etched on his face while he watched a scowling (Y/n) trail after Katsuki on the split-screen monitor. "These two seem to be getting worse by the minute."

Katsuki and (Y/n) were one of the students Mr. Oshima had been assigned to oversee and watching their performance, in his opinion, has been both an entertaining and worrisome experience.

And his worries further increased when Katsuki said something to (Y/n) from over his shoulder, which was reciprocated by the girl sticking out her tongue at him when he wasn't looking.

"I-It seems that these two had underlying issues before the test," he noted as he adjusted his glasses up his nose. He then rolled his chair around a bit to the side to face the man sitting next to him. "If you don't mind me asking, Mr. Aizawa, sir, were you aware of the strained relationship these two had?"

With a low hum, the man tore his lidded eyes away from a footage showcasing an Isami pair in an escape room simulation and directed them to the footage displaying the said teenagers.

"Can't say I didn't," he said as he placed his pen on the clipboard that was on his lap. "There is only one other person that Bakugou doesn't agree with on this level and recently, the two haven't been on each other's necks like they used to before. I could say that they finally learned to establish a healthy rivalry between them. These two..." he trailed off when he saw Katsuki let go of a branch, which whipped back to smack (Y/n)'s face.

Mr. Oshima let out an uncomfortable chuckle as he let go of his clipboard to place it on his lap. He then rested his clasped hands on it before clearing his throat, a strained smile on his lips.

"You were...saying?" he asked the disappointed man.

Aizawa made a sound that was a mix of a sigh and groan before meeting Mr. Oshima's amused gaze and continued. "These two sit at the front, with Bakugou behind (L/n). I only noticed a few disturbances here and there, but not enough to cause concern since they rarely interacted with each other outside of class. You see, Bakugou here has some sort of liking for (L/n)," he looked back at the screen where Katsuki had turned back to watch (Y/n) angrily shove the branch away from her while spewing probably insults at him. "And it's obvious since he's not exactly...subtle when it comes to staring at her during class time."

Mr. Oshima's eyes went round with surprise. "Oh!" he looked from Mr. Aizawa to the monitor and back. A small sly smile appeared on his lips. "Oh~. Did you perhaps, pair them up to help him out?"

Mr. Aizawa's face remained deadpan.

"No."

Mr. Oshima's smile faded.

"I only did it because over time, I could sense some tension between them and I decided to test that theory out myself. I was proven right after a verbal fight broke out between them yesterday."

"Ah," nodding, the bespectacled man regarded Katsuki with a look of pity. "I'm guessing (L/n) doesn't reciprocate his feelings?"

"She doesn't," the dark-haired man replied instantly.

"Oh."

Poor boy. Grimacing, Mr. Oshima sent an awkward look to the side. High school crushes can be so brutal.

Shaking off some of the unpleasant memories that he experienced while he was in high school, the man resumed watching the two teenagers. They seemed to have resolved their current issue and were proceeding with their trek through the jungle. He rubbed his chin in thought.

"Say," he spoke up, his eyes never leaving the screen. "If you knew about this tension between them all along and also witnessed their squabble," he finally looked at Mr. Aizawa. "Then why didn't you make it a point to break them up and choose other partners for them?" Mr. Oshima turned back to the screen and frowned in concern. "Because at this rate, they'll never complete this room. For all we know, this is one of the rooms that require teamwork most of all. Without it, it's a definite recipe for failure."

The dark-haired male sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Originally, I wanted to separate these two and pair up (L/n) with Todoroki. But then that would mean Bakugou would be with Kirishima and since they are basically on the same wavelength when it comes to a lot of things, it would've resulted in me having to reshuffle the pairs," a frown formed on his face. "Which would've been a hassle."

"So you let them stay together so that they could try and get along?"

"'Get along' is a vague term. They don't have to get along. What they need to do, is to figure out how to work together without letting their differences cloud their judgment. That's something they'll have to figure out for themselves if they want to complete this room."

Mr. Oshima let out a hum and nodded to himself. He rolled his chair back around to fully face the monitor.

"Well, from the surface, they seem to be doing just that. Though anyone can clearly see that they're ignoring whatever issues they have instead of embracing them. Both of them right now, are ticking time bombs waiting to go off," propping his elbow on his chair's arm, he rested his temple against his fingers. The multiple flashing images on the split screens reflected from his glasses as he fixed a narrowed stare on the two teenagers. 

"The main question on my mind remains, how much time is left until one of them finally explodes on the other. And who's it going it be? Bakugou...or (L/n)?"

***