Bakugou could almost pretend Kirishima wasn't just there for a job. As he sat opposite him in the booth of a little out of the way place he often ate at he realised how easily he could get used to it.

Fuck he'd missed him. Missed this.

Kirishima had been catching him up on the lives of all their old friends and any exciting take downs they'd had while Bakugou listened and occasionally interjected.

"Shizuoka," Bakugou corrected.

"Huh?" Kirishima paused with his spoon halfway to his mouth and an adorably confused crease between his brows.

"That fight with Raccoon Eyes. It was in Shizuoka."

Kirishima's face changed quickly as understanding dawned. His smile was blinding and Bakugou didn't understand until, "You keep up with us! Oh man, I knew you cared."

"It's not hard to watch the news, dumbass," Bakugou grumbled but Kirishima's expression didn't waver and he scoffed before taking another mouthful of his food.

The truth was that he did keep up with his old friends, if not obviously. He always knew when they'd done something note worthy, knew which charities to donate to. And if he had a couple words set up for news alerts, well no one needed to know about that.

"I don't want to know about those idiots. How are you doing?" Bakugou hoped he understood the question for what it was. He saw what everyone else saw but he still wanted to know the person underneath Red Riot in a way no one else did. The way he always thought he would.

"I'm good, I think."

Bakugou quirked an eyebrow at that and Kirishima continued. "No, I'm good. I love what I do. I love where I live. I love the people I work with they're just..."

They're just not you Bakugou finished for him because he felt that all too well.

Kirishima sat back against the booth and took a minute before he spoke again. "It's hard, you know."

Bakugou nodded because he did know.

"Sometimes I wish you were there to talk to like how we used to after a long day at school," Kirishima said.

Bakugou remembered the way they would lie on one of their beds staring at the ceiling but not really seeing it. They'd talk through what had gone wrong in training and where they could improve. Not seeing each other's mistakes as a weakness but as something to keep pushing them forward.

Then on the days when everything had gone right, Kirishima retelling it would make Bakugou feel invincible and they'd talk into the night about all sorts of things. Those had been Bakugou's favourite days.

Kirishima must have been thinking the same when he continued. "Or even when I've just had a really good day, you're the first person I want to tell." His gaze flashed between his food and Bakugou's face and back again. "Sometimes I have to stop myself from picking up the phone to call you at midnight because I can't sleep."

"I'd answer, you know."

Kirishima looked across at him with a smile so soft that it made Bakugou's chest heavy. "I know."

"I do too." Bakugou couldn't meet his eyes as he said it and he stabbed at his food. "Wish you were here sometimes."

Kirishima chewed on his lip and the silence stretched as they both looked back down to the table.

They were edging toward a conversation that needed to be had but neither of them were ready for it.

Bakugou opened his mouth to let the words come out but Kirishima beat him to it. When he heard the question, Bakugou wished he'd spoken first. "You dating anyone?"

The same old excuses leapt onto his tongue but he swallowed them down and decided on a simple, "No."

Kirishima nodded. "Of course not."

Bakugou's brow furrowed. He couldn't tell if that was relief or irritation.

"Still no time for that shit, huh?" Kirishima asked and Bakugou was sure there was bitterness there that time. Before he could say anything else though, Kirishima beat him to it again, tone light once more. "Why not? Surely Hero Weekly's Most Eligible Bachelor could have anyone he wanted."

Bakugou glared at him and felt his face heating. "You saw that list?"

Kirishima tipped his head back to laugh and it did things to Bakugou's stomach. "Kats, half the country saw it."

Bakugou grumbled and shoved more food into his mouth.

Kirishima's grin turned surprisingly bashful. "I came in at number eight."

"I know."

Their eyes met and something unspoken passed between them until Kirishima cleared his throat. "I'm not dating anyone right now either."

Bakugou stabbed at his food again with a shrug. When the hell did this get so hard? He needed a sip of water. "I'm opening my own agency."

"Bro, that's awesome!" His full toothy grin was back in place and it was somehow easier to look at than his soft smile. "Where abouts?"

"Haven't decided yet."

Kirishima nodded thoughtfully. "Remember how we used to talk about opening up one together? What were we gonna call it?"

"Red Explosion," Bakugou said with a grimace and Kirishima howled with laughter.

"Oh shit, that's right!" He snorted another laugh. "There's a reason they don't let 16 year olds name agencies. I'm so glad you're actually doing it, man."

Bakugou nodded. It wouldn't be the same without Kirishima though. The words were ready to spill over when Kirishima looked at his phone to check the time.

"Shit I better get going. Got a long day tomorrow."

Bakugou nodded. Though he probably had a long sleepless night ahead of him too.

He made the walk back to his place lost in thought. Seeing Kirishima again had dredged up so many feelings.

He'd been a coward the last time he'd seen him, shutting down a conversation before they could have it. He could remember all too vividly the hurt in Kirishima's eyes when he'd said how excited he was to leave everyone behind. That he had no time for any of that shit now that they'd graduated.

He knew what Kirishima had been about to say and he hadn't even let him start. He'd been kicking his own ass ever since.

It seemed, though, that maybe Bakugou wasn't the only one who wished things were different. And well, if Bakugou needed his ass kicked, Kirishima had certainly never had a problem doing it before.