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It's late when Izuku finally leaves UA. His car a lonesome sight on the pavement. Slowly, he makes his way towards it, opens the door and drops into the seat letting out a soft sigh.
His head falls to the steering wheel and he sighs again. If Katsuki could hear him now, he would joke and call Izuku an old man. But Katsuki isn't here right now. And maybe Izuku is getting older.
Izuku straightens, having only allowed himself a brief interlude. He reaches out and slams the card door before starting the engine and pulling onto the road.
He drives with a scowl.
-
Izuku tosses his keys in the basket without care and shuts the door behind him. He quickly pushes his uncomfortable flats off and walks further into the house.
"I'm home!" He calls out, to no answer. Some part of his mind acknowledges that Katsuki must still be out, but the rest of him is focused on dinner.
Over the years, Katsuki had taught him various easy recipes that he could make when the other wasn't available. He silently thanks whatever God gave his partner such a knack for cooking as he makes himself a simple dinner of eggs and rice.
(That God is Mitsuki, and Izuku is seriously considering sending her flowers.)
Izuku flops lifelessly onto the couch after placing his "dinner" on the small coffee table. He gingerly turns on the TV before grabbing his bowl and eating like a starved hyena.
In the background plays a shitty local show, about the best heroes of the newer generation. Izuku is only half paying attention until a name stands out from the rest.
"...Dynamite, an upcoming hero seemingly unrivalled by only his classmates. In fact, all of class A appears to be some of the best heroes of this generation, and maybe even several generations."
A small huff leaves Izukus lips. His friends were finally getting the recognition they deserved. And yet he couldn't seem to help the ugly seed of jealousy and resentment settling in his gut.
Because Izuku knows he won't be on that list with the rest of them. Shit, if he were even featured on a class list he would be surprised.
A scowl slowly takes over his face. He turns off the TV, this time handling the remote roughly.
Slowly, he lies back on the couch and stares at the ceiling. And he let's himself feel.
Izuku Midoriya allows his emotions to run rampant through his skull. They muddle up his brain and sends electric currents down his spine.
He feels rage. At the loss of his dream, the dream he had been so close to reaching. At the loss of his quirk, one he worked so hard to gain, and to make his own. At the fact he had saved the world, and doesn't even make an appearance on his class list.
He feels guilt. For the resentment against his incredible friends, who have done nothing wrong. For being ungrateful, after all, he had a quirk even if it wasn't permanent, something he thought would never happen at all. For yearning so hard for recognition that, at its core, has nothing to do with being a hero.
But most of all, he feels tired. Because he knows that no matter how he feels, nothing will change. And tomorrow, he will return to teaching at UA, still quirkless, and still decidedly not a hero. And there is absolutely nothing he can do about it.
Somewhere behind him, the door clicks open and shut again. A gruff voice calling out a greeting that Izuku doesn't return.
Katsuki Bakugou rounds the corner to find his boyfriend crying on the couch. Izuku simply turns his head towards the other and offers a weak smile, tears still trickling down his cheeks.
Without saying a word, Katsuki moves towards him and holds him. This man who has lost so much. Izuku clutches his dirtied work shirt and sobs.
-
Later that night, long after Izuku had finished crying, they lie in bed together. The weight of all that they had lived through seeping away as they hold each other tighter.