Summary: Four times Shinsou makes Izuku blush, and the one time Izuku returns the favor.

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1.

Look.

Izuku's already awkward as it is, okay?

So, the fact that there's something unfairly attractive about the way Shinsou smirks all sharp and slow, like he knows exactly what makes Izuku tick, well...

It's not fair, okay?

It's not fair.

Because when the new semester starts and Shinsou joins their class, Izuku goes from seeing Shinsou every other week or so to seeing him everyday. And he could handle it before, wasn't his first time around a guy too pretty for his own good, but-

But-

It takes Shinsou exactly five days to catch on. And with how preoccupied Shinsou had been before with trying to claw his way into the hero course, Izuku never really got the full brunt of his mischievous side.

But Shinsou's not working day and night trying to reach his goal anymore. He's here, in the hero course, and for once, he can take it just little easier.

Which means he notices.

Notices the stutter, the blush, the clumsiness. And Izuku's had time to get used to the rest of his classmates (you should have seen him that one time when Iida had pulled him forward by his tie to fix it for him. He'd nearly passed out from how much blood had rushed to his cheeks all at once) but with Shinsou?

Shinsou notices before he can get used to it, and Shinsou takes ruthless advantage.

"Hey there Green. Watcha lookin' at?"

Izuku freezes when Shinsou braces a hand on the back of his chair to lean forward, until his face is level with Izuku's own. Izuku knows that to anyone else it looks like Shinsou is just trying to get a closer look at the screen of Izuku's phone and the video he's watching, but Izuku knows better. He knows that Shinsou's purposefully keeping a strong arm pressed against his back, that the boy with lilac hair knows what he's doing with how close his face is. But is there anything Izuku can do about it?

No.

(Not like he has enough brain-cells left to try anything anyways.)

"You're looking a little red there Midoriya. You okay?"

And Izuku knows that Shinsou knows very well what he's doing, because he's spent enough time with Shinsou to know how sly sounds different from genuinely concerned. Still, they aren't alone in the kitchen, so Izuku has to respond.

"I-I'm fine. Fine. Absolutely peachy."

And nooooo, the fact that Izuku's face is probably doing a very convincing strawberry impression isn't enough for Shinsou, because he smirks like the cat that caught the canary and oh God is there any angel left in heaven or are all the demons in hell?

"You sure?"

And no, Izuku's voice does not squeak when he says, "Yupp. Positive."

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2.      

This is fine.

This is fine.

Izuku makes sure he's very careful when he shifts around, desperately trying to keep a handle on his notebook so it doesn't go sliding off his lap because he will not be able to get up and retrieve it.

Why?

Because Shinsou decided that Izuku's shoulder was as great a place as any to fall asleep on. And Izuku doesn't even know if he can blame him or not, because twenty minutes ago, when Shinsou had trudged into the common room post training session with Aizawa, he'd looked absolutely dead on his feet. Izuku had given him a sympathetic smile from where he was curled up against the arm of the common room couch, legs pulled up with Analysis notebook number fifteen on his lap. He'd been writing down the details of a villain fight he'd had the pleasure of seeing on the rare occasion that they were let off campus, when Shinsou came back down from his room after a shower, hair still damp and hanging in his face. He'd taken a seat beside Izuku and just- layed there, head resting against the back of the couch, until Izuku was pretty sure he'd fallen asleep just like that. He probably would have stayed in his room, Izuku thinks, except dinner's about to be ready in forty minutes and Shinsou's probably famished.

And then when Izuku was considering nudging Shinsou awake and getting him to help with his analysis just to occupy them both until dinner, Shinsou's head twitched to the side, and Izuku was scared that he'd end up jerking himself awake and that's always unpleasant, so he'd carefully made sure his shoulder was right there when Shinsou's head gently rolled off the back of the couch.

And then Izuku just didn't have the heart to wake him up.

Or maybe he was too scared of the teasing, or the half-asleep look he'd get along with a sleepy smile that he would not be able to deal with right now and yeah-

He's- he's stuck.

And it's like Shinsou knows even when he's asleep that he sort of nuzzled into Izuku's shoulder and oh god-

He cannot do this.

Somewhere into the thirty most flustered minutes of Izuku's life, Uraraka sits down on the opposing couch, preoccupied with chatting to Tsuyu. Iida joins them, and it's obvious that they've noticed that Shinsou is asleep because everyone makes an active effort to keep their voices low. Izuku's determinedly trying to keep his flush under control by glaring at his notebook, but then he looks up and catches Uraraka's eye, and its game over. She gives him a sympathetic smile but then seems to notice how he's looking a little red despite his best efforts, and her smile turns just a little mischievous. 

She winks at him, and Izuku flushes an even deeper red.

When it's finally time for dinner, Izuku shakes Shinsou awake as gently as possible and then proceeds to book it out of there as fast as he can, because under no circumstances should Shinsou be allowed to see his red face and tease him about it.

(But oh, Izuku doesn't miss how soft Shinsou looked when he blinked awake, and that's all he can think about when he tries to go to sleep that night.)

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3.      

Everyone mills about the common room, chatting and complimenting each other's formal wear while Izuku sits there and waits for Iida to notice his crooked tie. He knows it's inevitable, but that doesn't mean he's brave enough to go ask for help on his own, not when he gets lectured every time Iida has to fix it anyways.

But then, Iida's busy trying to force Kachan into wearing a tie, and Shinsou walks up to him instead.

"You should really learn how to tie that properly."

Before Izuku can even think to get a word out, he's already being pulled forward as Shinsou undoes the sorry looking knot around his neck with deft fingers. There's something soft and amused in his eyes when he looks down at Izuku's stunned expression, but he doesn't say anything. Only showers Izuku with these small moments that Shinsou doesn't share with anyone else, even though Izuku's pretty sure that Kaminari has it just as bad for Shinsou as he does.

And Izuku doesn't know what to do about it.

Shinsou finishes fixing his tie with a light tug. They stand there for just a moment, before Shinsou gives him a small smirk that has Izuku's heart belly-flopping onto the ground, before the cause of Izuku's red face walks away.

Oh boy.

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4.      

They're messing around, as Izuku tries to pester Shinsou into showing him this really cool move he just did five minutes ago, when Shinsou puts a hand on his head to shove him back. He goes to complete the motion by letting his fingers slide through Izuku's curls, which would also have had the added bonus of getting Izuku flustered, except that halfway through Shinsou's fingers meet resistance.

He pauses, frowning at the hand still in Izuku's hair.

"Shinsou-kun-"

Izuku cuts himself off when Shinsou steps forward, right into his space, and hold him still with a hand on his cheek. 

"Do you even comb this mess?" He says while still trying to run his hand through Izuku's hair and failing because it keeps getting stuck. Izuku's not really listening though, eyes wide and face red as he stares up dazed at Shinsou's frowning face.

He seems awfully slighted by this. Maybe because he puts so much effort into his own hair?

Whatever it is, Izuku's last two brain-cells are barely here for it.

Shinsou keeps on trying through, combing Izuku's hair with his own fingers until he's satisfied. He looks down at Izuku, who's still sort of frozen and trying not to breath too hard because what is even going on, and Shinsou gives him a small smile.

"You good?" 

Izuku can only manage a stilted nod.

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5.      

His clock reads 2:09am in blaring red letters.

Izuku decides to take a break from catching up on missed work and get himself some tea to clear his head.

But when he goes downstairs, he notices the light from someone's phone screen in the otherwise dark living room, and after squinting at it for a good 30 seconds, he realizes that it's Shinsou.

"Shinsou-kun?"

Shinsou startles even at Izuku's soft whisper, before he looks over his shoulder to see who has come downstairs to give him company at 2 in goddamn the morning.

"Midoriya? What are you doing awake?"

Izuku shrugs as he crosses over to where Shinsou is sitting on the couch, "I was catching up on a bit of homework. Insomnia again?"

Shinsou rubs the nape of his neck, "Yeah... it's being a little bitch tonight."

"I was going to get myself some tea. Do you want some?"

He seems to think about it for a second. "Yeah, okay."

Izuku nods before heading off to the kitchen. While the water boils, he heads upstairs and fetches the homework he's almost done with, so when he reemerged into the common room it's with two cups of tea and his books wedged under his armpit.

He settles besides Shinsou on the couch, and they've done this song and dance enough times that the silence isn't uncomfortable. It's just that- an hour or so later when Izuku glances at Shinsou from the corner of his eye, he notices that Shinsou keeps on fidgeting, like he wants to do something but can't make his mind up on the matter.

"You okay Shinsou-kun?"

Shinsou startles from where he'd lost his place in the book he's reading, and bites his lip as he considers his next words. "Do you think... would it be okay with you if I- if I touched you?"

And Izuku must be really tired right now, because this doesn't really register as one of Shinsou's tactics to get him blushing when it usually would, "What?"

Shinsou huffs, frustrated, and Izuku doesn't think he's ever seen him blush before, "Can I- like- rest? against you? It's just- I don't- physical affection doesn't come easy for me, not really. But sometimes- sometimes it does, and it's usually with you- and- would you? mind? I mean-"

Izuku raises a hand to stop him. "It's okay. Why don't you just- show me what you mean?"

"Um-" Shinsou shuffles closer, and very carefully curls up against Izuku's side. He nudges Izuku's legs until Izuku pulls them up, much like that time Shinsou had fallen asleep on him, so that Izuku can keep his homework on his lap. Shinsou slides down, until the top of his head is pressed against Izuku's side, and for once, he has to look up at Izuku instead of down. He settles in by pulling Izuku's arm over his shoulders, like a familiar weight to keep him grounded.

"Oh. Okay."

Surprisingly, Shinsou still looks a little embarrassed, "Is this okay?"

And it doesn't make sense, because- "Why are you asking this time? You usually just- go ahead and do this sort of stuff."

And there's nowhere for Shinsou to hide his increasingly flushed face when he mumbles, "It seemed a lot more... intimate, this time around."

"Huh."

"I-" Shinsou looks just a little unsure, "I don't- I don't make you uncomfortable, right? When I flirt with you?"

Izuku raises an eyebrow at him, "Flirt with me?"

Shinsou waves his hand dismissively, "All the- the getting close stuff. You- you don't have to put up with it, if you don't want to. I can back off; all you have to do is say the word."

Izuku thinks about it a little bit and decides- "No, it doesn't bother me. Not in the bad way, anyways. It's just makes me... flustered."

Shinsou looks at him carefully, "You don't look flustered right now."

Izuku huffs indignantly, "That's because it's 3:00am right now."

And Izuku feels so proud of himself when Shinsou laughs quietly, "Guess so."

The silence comes back, and somewhere around 3:30am Shinsou ends up falling asleep for real and it's not just him lying there with his eyes closed. Izuku can tell, because his breathing is had gone even a few minutes ago. He looks peaceful enough that Izuku doesn't have the heart to bother him, so he carefully sets his books down on the coffee table, and shifts around so he can lay on the couch with Shinsou half on top of him, his legs tangled with Izuku's. Shinsou's arm curl around Izuku's waist as he buries his head into Izuku's chest, and Izuku smiles softly as he hugs him back.

Hopefully they won't end up falling off the couch.

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Just a little something I wrote cause I was feelin' it. I like to keep my works as non-cliche and varied as possible, but sometimes you're just craving generic fluff, you know?

Hope you guys enjoyed that though!

Your Captain, Lynda