Chapter Text
Bakugou simply has no idea how this started. Well, he does, what he can’t wrap his head around is how it happened.
He’s sprawled out on his bed, staring at the ceiling for who knows how long, trying to connect the dots. First, he tries to remember when he started thinking about her more than he should’ve.
It was when her name was basically everywhere: in the news, on TV, all over the internet, and even inside his own damn home. Back then, he thought it was normal to think about Uraraka all the time because, fuck, what she did was badass as hell.
The memory comes back so clearly it’s like it happened yesterday. He was in the dorm kitchen; the place was pretty empty because his day off was on Thursdays, and most of the others were at their internships — including her.
On that gray afternoon, Uraraka showed Japan what a rescue hero was supposed to look like. That’s what the reporter kept calling her during the live coverage.
“Rescue Hero Uravity is trying to neutralize the villain while protecting the civilians. We still haven’t identified who this villain is!”
By the time it hit the air, she had already been fighting for a while. Bakugou remembers very clearly dropping the vegetables he was slicing for his spicy kare and heading to the living room the second he heard her hero name.
Invisible Girl was there, along with Four-Eyes, who turned up the volume.
The camera angle was terrible for understanding what was actually happening, but Bakugou recognized the sight of debris floating several meters above the ground instantly.
The reporter stood at a safe distance and pressed her fingers to her earpiece, trying to understand the updates coming from the studio. Her eyes widened before she started speaking urgently.
“We’ve just been informed that Uravity is protecting the Prime Minister’s spouse and their child. They’ve just been identified. This could possibly be an attack targeting the Prime Minister, who’s currently running for re-election.”
Iida handed the remote to Bakugou and walked out the front door without saying a word. He was definitely going to talk to Aizawa-sensei.
A feeling Bakugou couldn’t name twisted in his gut, but the events on TV were unfolding so fast he didn’t even have time to process them.
The camera zoomed in as much as it could, and he clearly saw Uraraka’s silhouette. She was slightly crouched, reaching down to touch the ground with one hand. A pink glow burst from her fingers when...
Basically everything within a one-kilometer radius began floating.
Cars, people, debris, signs — everything that wasn’t her or the damn ground joined what was already suspended.
Bakugou could barely believe what he was seeing. It looked like a weird glass dome, except made of Zero Gravity. You could see the dust inside the perimeter contrasting with the untouched area outside the field.
This was new. He had no idea she could pull off something like that.
Uraraka, dead center in all of it, suddenly shot forward like a pinball, slamming into the villain with no effort at all. She repeated the movement several times: first, landing a perfectly aimed kick; second, grabbing the side of the villain’s moss-green cloak and punching him square in the nose; third, using the air itself for momentum and hurling him mercilessly into a massive chunk of concrete. He hit hard and tried to cling to something, but the only person who could move flawlessly in Zero Gravity was her, and she was already launching herself at him again.
Two more strikes and the villain was out cold.
Tying him up quickly, Uraraka looked upward to make sure there were no falling debris above them. Her eyes scanned around, searching the perimeter until she found the Prime Minister’s spouse and their son. Like a rocket again, she reached them easily where they were hiding behind a worn rectangular stone. Uraraka started gesturing, clearly instructing them on something, and the kid wrapped his arms around her waist a moment later.
That’s when it turned into a fucking show.
Uraraka clapped her hands together and everything inside her Zero Gravity dome began to descend slowly.
The reporter’s voice came back so loud it startled Bakugou. He reflexively lowered the volume a little and, before he could say anything to Invisible Girl, he tossed the remote onto the couch and returned to the kitchen — but not before hearing her say:
“That was incredible!”
It really was, he silently agreed.
Later that night, in his room, catching up on everything that had happened, it didn’t take long to find more online. Everyone was talking about it.
“How Rescue Hero Uravity saved the Prime Minister’s family…”
Right after deactivating the Zero Gravity field, Uraraka needed medical attention. She’d pushed herself past her limit and was taken straight to the hospital, leaving the press starving for details.
In all the reports he found, the only testimony available was from the Prime Minister’s spouse, who explained what had happened and how grateful she was that Uravity had been there — otherwise, things could have ended terribly.
And yes, that was the beginning of everything, because for months she was the center of attention. After the rescue, every network covered it endlessly, so of course he thought about her a lot.
He could make a whole list of everything that happened…
Her first interview after the rescue.
Her meeting with the Prime Minister’s spouse and their son — and the damn Prime Minister himself.
The segment about the Prime Minister visiting UA.
Her first commercial for a mochi brand because she said on national television it was her favorite sweet.
Her deal with a famous clothing and footwear brand.
Uraraka was everywhere.
So now, lying in his bed, Bakugou realizes there’s no way around it. He’s not stupid, he knows this turned into way more than keeping up with current events. He frowns, trying to shove those sappy thoughts away. No fucking way he’d develop a crush at the very end of his last school year.
No fucking way he’d give in to something like that.