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Katsuki had always been a quiet child. Even as a baby, he rarely cried, he didn’t babble, he didn’t say his first word until he was three. It’s not like he was developmentally challenged or anything, he just didn’t feel the need to talk. It was funny seeing him sit next to Izuku, a child who couldn’t seem to stop talking. He was always babbling about heroes, and the animals he saw, the foods his mom would cook him, All Might, and so on. While the blond was silent and reserved, Izuku was open and had a lot of big emotions for such a small body.
Katsuki liked Izuku. He didn’t ask questions about why Katsuki didn’t talk, and didn’t try to force him. No, Izuku was content to just talk enough for the both of them. And he didn’t just talk at Katsuki like other kids did, he’d frequently stop in the middle of a sentence and ask “are you listening, Kacchan?” Katsuki would nod his head, and Izuku would go back to babbling.
Izuku was the reason Katsuki spoke his first word. The curly haired boy was rambling on and on about Quirks, when he turned to Katsuki with a beam.
“Kacchan, when we get our Quirks, lets be heroes together!” he giggled with a big smile. Katsukis eyes widened as his little heart jumped in his chest.
“T-together?” he asked, making Izuku nod rapidly.
“Yeah! We’ll be the best!” he exclaimed. Katsuki hid his smile in his knees as he closed his eyes, squeezing himself tightly as his body filled with warmth. He and Izuku were gonna be heroes.
“Hey! Kacchan! Do you promise we’ll be heroes together? Say you will, okay!?”
“K-Kay, D-eku,” he said, his words slow and unfamiliar. Izuku didn’t even bother to correct him, he just grinned and grabbed a piece of paper and a crayon.
“C’mon Kacchan! We gotta design our hero costumes now! They’re gonna be so cool!” And so the two boys spent the rest of day care making drawings of themselves and each other as heroes. Izuku hopped and called out excitedly to show his mom his artworks while Katsuki merely presented his drawings to his parents with a rare smile.
Masaru and Inko cried, Mitsuki tried not to laugh at them.
Izuku was devastated when he learned he was Quirkless. He sobbed to Katsuki, feeling like he disappointed him by not getting a Quirk.
“N-now,” he sniffled in the corner of their daycare room, the blond sitting beside him. “Now w-we can’t be heroes together! I-I’m so s-sorry, Kacchan,” he sobbed quietly. Katsuki silently held his hand, not saying anything as he scooted closer so their shoulders were pressed together. Izuku turned his head and cried into the blond’s shoulder, his big fat tears wetting his shirt.
Katsuki pet the top of his head with his other hand, letting his best friend cry it out, staying by his side the entire time.
To Izuku’s relief, Kacchan never left his side. Even when they got into middle school, they still stuck together. Despite his powerful Quirk, due to his silence and antisocial nature, he wasn’t very popular. Izuku wasn’t popular because of his Quirklessness, and the other students adopted Kacchan’s nickname for him, Deku.
When they were younger, due to his lack of speaking, Katsuki would pronounce Izuku as Deku.
Of course, his intentions were innocent, but the other students weren’t so pure. Izuku tried not to let it bother him, and as long as he had Kacchan, he’d be okay.
When All Might approached him about OfA, Katsuki was his usual silent, supportive self. Izuku laughed at how silent he was when he brought him to meet All Might; not even their idol could convince him to talk. But Izuku didn’t mind, he loved Kacchan the way he was.
For their entrance exam, Izuku cringed at how disappointed Kacchan looked at the amount of injuries he’d gotten.
“Kacchan, I’m sorry,” he apologized to his best friend, who’s glare merely intensified. “I know, I’m sorry! I didn’t, I didn’t think.” Kacchan let out a huff that meant ‘you idiot!’
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Everyone in their new class thought Kacchan was weird, Izuku could tell. The blond refused to talk to anyone, didn’t answer when he was called on, and seldom interacted with their new peers unless absolutely necessary. Izuku found himself getting along with all of their classmates, but he felt guilty that Kacchan still hadn’t made any new friends.
“C’mon, Kacchan, at least try,” Izuku said one day while they walked home. “They’re all really nice, I think you’d really like them!”
“Khh,” Kacchan scoffed in the back of his throat, his grip on his school bag tight.
“Won’t you at least try a little?” Izuku encouraged, to which Kacchan shook his head, a heavy frown on his face. “Why not?” he asked, puffing up his cheeks a little.
“Mm,” Kacchan whined, his brows deeply furrowed as he glared at the ground.
“Is there a reason?” Izuku asked, not wanting Kacchan to miss out on anything. He was a little startled when the blond suddenly grabbed his hand, but just smiled and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. Kacchan glanced at him, his bottom lip pushed out a little bit, making Izuku smile. “You don’t have to be nervous, Kacchan. I’ll always be right here with you, okay?”
“Hmm,” Kacchan huffed, as if to say ‘I’m not nervous!’ But with the way he squeezed his hand, Izuku knew he was reassured.
“We’re gonna be great heroes together, right, Kacchan? You and me, we’re gonna be the best. Together.” Kacchan let out a grunt as he nodded.
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“Kacchan!” Izuku cried out as they rocketed through the air, holding out his hand. Everything happened so fast, yet it felt as if the seconds were dragging by, but Kacchan was grabbing his hand, and Izuku immediately felt calmed.
Once they landed, Kacchan pulled him into a hug, digging his fingers into Izuku’s shirt as he hid his face in his shoulder. Izuku hugged back just as tight, scared to let him go, to lose him again.
“D-Deku,” he choked out, his voice garbled from tears and general disuse.
“Hey, you do talk,” Kiri said with a tentative laugh. Izuku couldn’t help but laugh at his remark, all of the stress and tension leaking out of him as he squeezed Kacchan. The others let out their own laughs, all a mix of amusement, stress, and relief. Kacchan didn’t laugh, but Izuku could feel his small smile against his neck.
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When everyone started living in the dorms, Izuku was really happy! It meant he and Kacchan could be even closer! Not to mention, he could be closer to all their other classmates too! It would be good for Kacchan too, and would hopefully encourage him to form a bond with the others.
What ended up happening was that Kacchan began to sneak into his room at night. Not that he was bothered, he and Kacchan hadn’t slept in the same bed since they were kids, so he was just confused. Sometimes he’d just wake up to Kacchan holding him tightly. At first, he didn’t question it, because if the blond wanted to hold him, Izuku wasn’t about to say no.
But then he learned of the nightmares.
He woke up one night to Kacchan holding him tight and shaking, hot tears soaking into his shirt.
“K-Kacchan! What’s wrong?” he asked, immediately alarmed by what was happening. The blond shook his head against him, refusing to let go, so Izuku sat up and pulled him up into a hug. The other male wrapped his arms around his neck and hid his face away, tears still streaming from his eyes. “Hey, it’s okay, I’ve got you.”
“Mm,” Kacchan whined, shaking his head as his grip tightened. Izuku didn’t know what to do, he’d never seen Kacchan like this, and he didn’t know what to do to help.
“I’m right here,” he repeated, gently rocking him back and forth and rubbing his hand up and down his back. “It’s all gonna be okay. Let it all out, it’s alright.”
Kacchan’s soft, stuttering cries were heartbreaking. Izuku couldn’t recall ever seeing the other cry, so it threw him through a loop. But, he was determined to be there for his most important friend, so he simply held him and gently rocked him back and forth. He watched curiously as Kacchan brought a hand up to his clavicle, gently inching the pads of his fingers to the tendon in Izuku’s neck, rubbing it slightly. Izuku smiled at the familiar signal.
“You want me to talk?” he asked, remembering what the signal spoke for. The ash blond nodded with a small grunt, sniffling slightly as he did so. So, Izuku began to talk, about anything that came to mind, mumbling and rambling about all sorts of things. Eventually, his sobbing ceased, and Kacchan was taking even breaths, signaling to Izuku that he’d finally fallen asleep. Being as careful as he could, Izuku turned and laid them both down in his bed and pulled the covers up around them.
“Good night, Kacchan,” Izuku whispered as he brushed some hair from his face, a smile on his face as he closed his eyes. He didn’t know why his best friend was so upset, but he knew that he’d be there for him, no matter what.
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Izuku muttered to himself as he wrote in his notebook, Kacchan slumped against him, silently scribbling away at his own notepad. A few of their other classmates were also sitting on the couches in the common room, chatting amongst themselves as the pair kept to themselves. Occasionally, Izuku would chime in about something or other, sometimes earning a few laughs in the process, while Kacchan seemed content on continuously ignoring the lot of them. But, at least he was looking up when his name was called by someone other than Izuku. In fact—
*tug tug*
Izuku looked over at Kacchan to see that he had tugged on his sleeve, and he also saw that Koda was seated on the blond’s other side. The other silent student had a nervous look on his face, and made a few gestures with his hand that Izuku recognized as JSL. Izuku didn’t know a lot, as Kacchan didn’t use it much either, but he knew some. He hadn’t caught all of what Koda was signing, but Kacchan was giving him a wide eyed, ‘help me’ look.
“Sorry, Koda-kun, could you repeat that?” Izuku asked kindly, making the mutant male blush.
“Mm,” he grunted quietly as he began to sign again. ‘Notes please?’ he asked Kacchan, who glanced back at Izuku nervously. Izuku gave him a nod and an encouraging smile before he turned back.
‘Sure,’ Kacchan signed back, handing the other student his notebook. Koda signed a vigorous ‘thank you’ and began flipping through it. Kacchan, meanwhile, pressed even further into Izuku’s side, not looking at anyone as he waited for his notes to be returned. Once he received his notebook, he seemed to relax a bit.
‘Thanks,’ Koda signed before going back to his own notes. Kacchan nodded jerkily as he quickly scanned through the notes, probably checking for any marks, before relaxing some more. It was cute, Izuku thought, how protective Kacchan was over his notes. He tapped on Kacchan’s notebook with his pencil before writing a quick message in the margins.
‘That was great Kacchan, I’m proud of you <3’
The blond read the message before looking up at Izuku with a roll of his eyes and a pout on his lips.
‘Idiot’ he wrote in response, making Izuku smile.
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Izuku was sick, and it sucked. His head felt all stuffed up, he couldn’t breathe out of his nose, and breathing through his mouth only worsened the dryness of his throat. His head was pounding too, and to top it all off, he was bored out of his mind. He was isolated in order to prevent the others from catching it, but it wasn’t like he could talk to anyone with how dry his throat was. He’d done his best to manage the dryness, but it seemed to not be very effective. To make matters worse, he had no idea when this would be over; it was a Quirk caused sickness, from a villain that he’d run into while on patrol the other day.
And the worst of all, he hadn’t talked to Kacchan in almost 48 hours. Given they couldn’t be in the same room, he’d tried texting the blond whenever he could, but it eventually came to the point where looking at his phone screen, even on the lowest brightness, made his head throb. So now, aside from Recovery Girl coming to deliver him food and treatment, he’d been all alone, exhausted but unable to sleep, lonely but unable to speak, and overall just bored.
He hoped Kacchan was doing alright.
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Katsuki was going crazy. Deku got hit with some stupid shitty Quirk, and it made him sick. As a result, Deku had to be quarantined, meaning the two of them had to be separated, meaning Katsuki was alone. This was fucking awful, going without Deku. Why did that nerd have to go and get sick?! Everything was horrible.
Not being able to hear his constant, soothing muttering throughout the day was jarring, and he hated it. Fuck, this was shitty. He was going to actually go insane. He was even sitting in front of Deku’s door he was so lonely, he felt like a fucking dog. But, what else was he supposed to do? Be by himself? Once that nerd got better, he wasn’t letting him out of his sight.
“Hey, Bakubro!” a voice called out.
Oh great, now extras were here. Fuck.
“You doing alright?” another asked. He didn’t even look up, too busy staring at Deku’s door, hoping it would open. No, if Deku was feeling better, Katsuki would have gotten a text from the nerd. Dammit.
“Hellooooo? Earth to Kacchan!” the dunce faced one said, bending down and waving his hand in front of Katsuki’s face. Katsuki sneered and kicked at him with his foot, hoping the guy would piss off. He didn’t want them bothering him, he just wanted to be alone. Well, alone with Deku, obviously.
“We thought you might be lonely without Midoriya,” the pink one said as she sat beside him. “So we came to keep you company!”
“We know you don’t like to talk, so here!” Soy Sauce Face said, holding out a notebook and pen in his view. He rolled his eyes but refused to move, because this was closest to Deku.
“You hungry?” Shitty Hair asked, shoving a bag of chips into his lap. Katsuki picked it up, giving the red head a glare, and blew it up, making the others jump. There was a moment of silence before everyone broke out into laughter, making Katsuki grimace.
“Geez, you really are grumpy!” Dunce Face laughed.
“I knew you were kinda shy, but without Midoriya, you’re really like a fish out of water, huh?” Pinky cackled. Katsuki scowled and pulled his knees up to his chin, tightly wrapping his arms around his legs. He wanted Deku.
His phone pinged in his pocket. He scrambled to pull it out, frantically checking the screen, his chest fluttering as the name flashed across the screen.
Deku.
Deku: i can hear u guys outside.
Deku: r u having fun?
Me: no, I fucking hate them.
Me: why the fuck are you still sick? Damn nerd.
Dk: im sorry kacchan
Dk: im tryin 2 get bettee as soon as i can
Dk: try 2 make friends?
Katsuki scowled.
Me: No fucking way, these extras are so damn annoying, they don't understand me.
Me: I just want you back. So get better dammit
Deku: ok kacchan <3
Deku: when recovery girl says im no longer contagious ill lyk
Deku: i cang waif 2 c u again
Deku: i misss u
Katsuki felt his face heat up in embarrassment at the phrase. Stupid nerd, making him feel like this.
Me: miss you too
“Ooooh, you’re all red, Kacchan,” Dunce Face teased, making Katsuki startle as he whirled towards him, a small *hic* leaving his throat.
“Oh! So is it true?” Pinky asked, looking far too pleased with herself. “Are you and Midoriya dating?!”
“Mnh?!” Katsuki gasped, shaking his head furiously as he felt his face heating up even more.
“How long have you two been dating?” Soy Sauce Face asked with a smirk. “Midoriya mentioned you’re childhood friends. Is childhood lovers more appropriate?” he asked with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
“Sero, don’t sound so perverted,” Shitty Hair said, giving him a shove.
“I didn’t say anything perverted!” Soy Sauce Face defended.
“I assume Mido asked you out, huh? I bet he did something really cute,” Pinky giggled.
“M-mmn,” he shook his head, searching frantically for the notebook shitty hair showed him earlier. He snatched it up and began to quickly write down his words while the others crowded around him. Once he finished, he flipped it around, pointing to it insistently.
“We’re not dating,” Shitty Hair read aloud.
“Awe,” Pinky sighed with a pout.
“But, you do like him in that way, right?” Dunce Face asked, making Katsuki’s eyes widen.
Fucking hell. With a huff, he got to his feet and began storming off back to his own room. Stupid extras, always sticking their noses where they don’t belong, not knowing shit. Fuckers… they didn’t know anything about him and Deku, or their relationship! God, his throat hurt, when was the last time he had a drink? Fucking, goddamn it. Assholes.
He opened up his door and slipped inside, flopping onto his bed and hugging his pillow to his chest as his mind began to wander. His face soon grew red as he remembered things from when he and Deku were younger.
/“Kacchan,” Deku smiles as they ate lunch together. “You know, Momma says she makes all my lunches with love! That’s why they taste so good!”
Katsuki nodded his head in sound agreement, because his parents said everything tasted better when made with love.
“You know, Kacchan you know,” Deku said, grabbing Katsuki’s sleeve and tugging it insistently. “W-when we get big, I wanna make you lunches filled with love, too!”
Katsuki’s eyes went wide as he stared at Deku.
“Mm,” he warbled, looking for a pencil. He found his trusty All Might pencil, along with his matching All Might notebook, and began scribbling his question. Normally, he only used his notebook for the rare occasion when he needed to talk with others, usually with the teachers, since the other kids couldn’t read or write that well, but he rarely had to use it with Deku. But, this time, he had more complicated words to convey, so Deku waited patiently for him to finish his thought.
‘Don’t you have to be my mom to make my lunch? Or my wife?’ he wrote before adding. ‘My mom makes my lunch, and she makes one for dad too.’
“Ah! Yeah!” Deku nodded eagerly, his pretty green eyes sparkling. “Kacchan, when we get bigger, let’s get married!”
“Mm?” he hummed, blinking curiously at him. “Mmm?”
“Yeah! I-if I can’t be a pro hero l-like you, th-then we’ll get married, a-and I’ll make you lunch every day! I’ll make them with love, so y-you can do your best! Doesn’t that sound great, Kacchan?”
That did sound great!
“Mm! Mm!” he nodded, a smile spreading across his face as he placed a hand over Deku’s. “L-le’s d-do’t.”
“Pinky promise?” Deku asked, holding up his hand with his pinky extended.
“Mn! Mn!” Katsuki nodded, quickly interlocking his pinky with Deku’s.
“Great!” Deku giggled before blushing and pressing a kiss to Katsuki’s cheek, making the two boys dissolve into a mess of giggles./
Fuck. Deku hadn’t kissed him again since that year. But, they’d talked about, or rather, Deku talked about, getting married in the future. But, now that he had a Quirk, would Deku still want to marry him? Well, the nerd was a shit cook anyways, so if they got married, Katsuki would have to make all the lunches. But, he still wanted that, he really wanted that. He wanted to make lunches for him and Deku to take to work, would Deku still want that? He groaned and grabbed one of his pillows to bury his face in, shaking his head as he tried to rid his mind of such embarrassing thoughts. Fuck. Stupid Deku.
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The next day, while Katsuki was walking back to the dorms, his phone went off. He pulled it out, briefly confused, when his eyes went wide at the name he read.
Deku.
He hurriedly opened the message, his heart thumping wildly in his chest.
Deku: hey kacchan :>
Deku: recogery girl visited me earlier
Deku: and apparently I’m not contagious anymore!
Deku: come over?
Katsuki took off running. Everything went by him in a blur as he ran to the dorms, then ran around back to launch himself onto Deku’s balcony. Once he landed, he frantically knocked at the glass door, wanting to be let in now. He saw a hand, Deku’s hand, brush the curtain aside as he groped around blindly for the door handle, undid the latch, and pushed it open slightly. Katsuki shoves it open then slammed it shut behind him, dropping his bag to the floor and tackling the nerd before he could get a word out.
“He-oof! K-Kacchan,” Deku laughed, his voice still sounding hoarse and weak as he wrapped his arms around Katsuki’s back. “I’m happy to see you, too,” he sighed, relaxing into the blond’s embrace. Katsuki also felt himself decompress; after going so long without hearing Deku’s voice, seeing his face, he hadn’t realized how crazy he had been going. He missed him, so much.
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“I missed you, Kacchan,” Izuku croaked out as Kacchan pulled back, turning on his side with a hum. Izuku turned his head to look at him, a smile spreading across his face at seeing those familiar, beautiful red eyes.
“Hmph,” the blond huffed out, rolling his eyes, as if to say ‘you’re being dramatic.’
“I know, it seems a little silly,” Izuku said with a laugh. “But, we’ve never been apart that long, have we?” he asked, making Kacchan shake his head ever so slightly.
“I couldn’t help but miss you, every minute we were apart,” he admitted with a small blush. Kacchan blushed as well, grumbling before pushing Deku’s face away, making him laugh. “Sorry, I know it’s embarrassing,” he apologized as Kacchan took his hand away. “But I—“
“Shh,” Kacchan shushed as he sat up, surprising Izuku. The blond turned and grabbed the tea at his bedside, holding it out for the greenette to take, along with some medicine.
“Oh, Kacchan, I’m—” he tried to speak, but was cut off by a sudden coughing fit. Dammit. He took the thermos from Kacchan’s hand, already opened, and guzzled the drink down. He paused for breath, coughed a few more times, then downed the pills before chugging some more tea. By the end of it all, he flopped back onto his bed, exhausted.
“This sucks,” he rasped out, shutting his eyes as he let out a sigh. He felt a tapping on his stomach, and didn’t even bother opening his eyes as he answered, “no, I’m not hungry, thanks.”
“Hmm,” Kacchan harrumphed before digging around for something. When Izuku felt something press against his lips, he obediently opened them and let Kacchan begin to feed him. He still couldn’t taste much, but it felt good to get something in his stomach, even if it was just a few bites.
“You always take such good care of me, Kacchan,” he praised as he felt the blond lay back down next to him, pressed up against his side. “Y’know, it reminds me of when we were kids,” he recalled, making Kacchan stiffen just a bit, “you always took care of me, heh, even though I said I was gonna be the housewife. We promised to get married,” he added with a chuckle, feeling a thing of something in his chest. It was probably just because he was sick.
He heard Kacchan’s breath catch beside him, and suddenly the blond was grabbing his hand. Izuku opened his eyes in surprise as he watched Kacchan gently cup his hand between his own, using his fingers to trace across his scars and knuckles. Izuku swallowed thickly as he watched his friend, who’s eyes were trained on his hand, unsure of what to say. Kacchan carefully and languidly played with his fingers, paying special attention to the ring finger, playing with it for a few minutes.
Then he looked up, his crimson eyes boring into Izuku‘s very soul.
“K-Kacchan,” he stammered, his eyes going wide as his heart skipped a beat in his chest. Then, he saw Kacchan reach his hand out, his pinky finger extended.
“L-less,” he began, his own voice as hoarse as Izuku’s, “d’it.”
Izuku’s eyes stung as he looked at his best friend, tears falling down his face as a smile began to spread.
“Y-yeah,” Izuku hiccuped, interlacing his own pinky with Kacchan’s.
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After Izuku got better, things went back to normal, mostly. They went back to holding hands, like when they were kids. Well, not holding hands, but they walked with their pinkies interlocked. Kacchan still kept to himself, and he’d either hide their hands or let go when others were around, but that was okay. A few of their classmates tried to befriend Kacchan, only when Izuku was around, of course, and began to interact with Izuku himself as well. It was fun being able to get to know everyone, and Kacchan seemed to be getting more comfortable as well, which made him really happy.
“Are you suuuure you’re not dating?” Ashido asked him one day while a large group of them were hanging out in the common room.
“Hmm?” Izuku asked, his eyes going wide as his cheeks went pink. “Oh, haha, no, Kacchan and I aren’t dating,” he explained with a laugh.
“Soooo, you’re single then?” Hagakure asked from her own spot on the couch.
“Hah, I didn’t say that,” he said with a shake of his head as Kacchan scooted closer to him, laying his head on his shoulder as he hooked their pinky fingers together.
“Wh-but, you said you two weren’t dating!” Kirishima exclaimed as the other’s eyes widened.
“We aren’t,” Izuku said with a smile. “We’re—“
“‘ngaged,” Kacchan finished with a low grumble, making everyone’s eyes widen even more.
“WHAT!?” everyone screamed as the common room devolved into chaos. Izuku looked down at him in surprise as the blond shrugged and closed his eyes, leaning all his weight into him. He looked so cute and peaceful, even amongst all the chaos. Even though everyone was going crazy, Izuku felt like everything was perfect.
Kacchan was still standoffish when it came to their other classmates, but he seemed to be warming up to them, just a little bit. He even sometimes ate lunch in the actual lunchroom as opposed to on the roof with just himself and Izuku. The ash blond still preferred when it was just the two of them, however, and honestly, Izuku liked that the most, too.
“So, Kacchan,” Izuku began one day as they leaned against one another while on the roof. “Since we’re getting married, we should start planning for it. I mean, the sooner the better, right?”
“Mm,” Kacchan grunted as he held up some fish to Izuku’s mouth, to which he happily ate it.
“Oooh, we should have fish at our wedding!” Izuku said as he finished his bite, his eyes going wide. “Maybeeeeee, oh! A wedding at an aquarium would be so cool! What do you—“
“Nm,” Kacchan huffed, effectively vetoing the idea.
“Awe,” Izuku pouted as the other male pressed another bite of food to his lips. “Mmm! Kacchan’s food’s so good!” Kacchan huffed proudly and made a little heart with his fingers, making Izuku giggle. “Because it’s made with love, right?”
“Mm,” he nodded, a smile still on his face, before leaning in to press a kiss to his cheek. Izuku felt his eyes go wide as his face heated up, and he stared at his fiancé as he pulled back. Kacchan’s own cheeks were pink as he looked away with a scowl, huffing to himself as he grabbed Izuku’s hand and slumped into his side, resolutely not looking at him as he pressed himself as close as possible. Izuku grinned to himself as he went back to talking.
“So, when would you want a wedding? I’m not particular about the time of year, but I’d prefer for it to not be when it’s cold, I don’t want to have to deal with that, what do you think?” he asked, turning to the blond.
“Mm,” he agreed, letting his head fall against his shoulder, his spiky hair tickling his cheeks, and let his own head rest atop his.
“Well, we have plenty of time to worry about that.”
“Mm.”