Chapter Text
Whether he knew it or not, Denki Kaminari could be very annoying. That was a fact that Class 3-A came to accept a long time ago. The primary reason for that being, he had a habit of using ridiculous nicknames for his classmates.
Now, don’t get them wrong! Sometimes it was endearing! It wasn’t the names themselves that bothered the class. In fact, many people felt a pang of happiness if Kaminari deemed them close enough to have a nickname. Unfortunately, the cute name was usually turned into a weapon. More often than not, he only used the nicknames when teasing or asking for something.
This little quirk of his led him into- let’s just say- less than ideal situations (read as: explosions to the face, courtesy of a certain angry pomeranian). Due to his incredible “bravery” and familiarity with Bakugou’s explosions, he was the one to go to if you needed a favor from the explosive blonde but were too afraid to ask.
And so, that’s how he ended up in the dorm kitchen, begging Bakugou to join the Bakusquad later. Kirishima brought up that they haven’t had a squad night in ages and, since her inclusion, Jirou had yet to see an official Bakusquad event. They quickly agreed that this was unacceptable and got to planning right away.
Of course, they were still hoping for word from their leader.
“Shut up, I already said no, Pikachu! You damn extras go by yourselves!” Bakugou refused to lift his eyes from his task. Kaminari worried at his bottom lip, seeing the other begin to scrub the dishes more aggressively than before. He sighed. Guess it’s time to break out the big guns...
“C’mon Kacchan, we’ve barely seen you all week! Please?” Kaminari whined (safely) from his spot on the other side of the counter.
Bakugou’s left eye developed a twitch. The sink water bubbled from the sudden heat of his quirk. The boy glanced at the dining area, where the rest of the squad was supposed to be standing by for back up. When he looked over though, he caught the tail end of Sero being pulled away, offering a helpless shrug.
Well, shit.
Kaminari raised his hands in surrender. He choked out, “H-hey, man. Now- now, hold on a minute. We can talk this out, right? Bakubro?” Unaware he was digging himself a deeper grave, Kaminari offered him a sheepish smile. He was not expecting the smile to be mirrored back at him, though it was more sadistic in nature. The familiar crackling of sparks filled the air as Bakugou crept closer, his manic gaze never once leaving Kaminari’s.
Stumbling backwards, 3-A’s first homicide victim looked around the commons for anyone who could save him. Not a single soul was in sight, most having left after Kaminari used the dreaded nickname. No one wanted to be a witness to that mess. In his scramble to get away, he tripped, falling at Bakugou’s feet. This is it. This is true fear. This is how I die, Kaminari thought as he looked up at the murderous grin above him.
He said a quick prayer and closed his eyes. If there was a god out there, a single merciful being, they wouldn’t let him die just yet. Not like this. He was too young. He hadn’t even had his first kiss yet! Unless you count…
He raised his arms to protect his face. With all the strength of a would-be hero, he waited for the finishing blow that would put him out of his misery. It never came.
When he opened his eyes, he could’ve cried. God is real and his name is Izuku Midoriya. A scarred hand settled on Bakugou’s wrist, followed by a disappointed, “Kacchan…” Kaminari swears, if he gets out of this alive, he owes Midoriya a week’s worth of katsudon.
Green locked onto red as the two engaged in a silent argument. Questioning looks and frantic hand gestures were traded. Bakugou’s budding frustration became more obvious through the tense set of his shoulders and the aggressive hand motions pointed towards Kaminari. After a tense staring contest, Midoriya raised an eyebrow, unamused. Bakugou’s eyes widened in shock before a defeated sigh escaped him.
His shoulders slumped down, devoid of the anger from just a second ago. “I swear, he calls me that one more time and I’m fucking blasting him to the moon,” he mumbled. His eyes still held a twinge of murder as he sideyed the other, who began to smirk. Until he realized he was still in danger, that is. Kaminari raised his hands once again, his face morphing into the picture of innocence.
A light laugh drew the angry blonde’s attention away from him. Midoriya brought his arms up to wrap around his boyfriend’s neck. “C’mon, Kacchan,” he teased, “you have to admit, it’s kinda cute.”
In turn, Bakugou wrapped his arms around the other’s waist. He grumbled, “I’m not cute.” He bumped his forehead against Midoriya’s, disproving his point. The two continued their little back and forth, but as grateful as he was, Kaminari’s patience was wearing thin. He couldn’t help this- this- heavy feeling. Stupid couples and their stupid foreheading touching and their dumb kisses-
A certain purple-haired transfer student came to mind and his heart dropped. In a moment of panic, he shouted the first thing that came to mind.
“Eww cooties! Get a room, you two! You’re making all us singles feel bad!” Obviously, not one of his finer moments, if the death glare was any indication, but the pair finally stopped...whatever the hell it is they were doing. He sighed in relief as his saviour began to pull the angry pomeranian away.
He pulled on Bakugou's arm a little more forcefully when the other refused to move, “Let’s go, Kacchan. I’m tired. I wanna take a nap.”
He still looked like he wanted to launch Kaminari across campus, though. With another tug, his shoulders sagged and he stalked after the other.
In a moment of either pure idiocy or pure genius, Kaminari called out, “Yo, Bakugou!” He turned around only to be met by various obscene gestures. Bakugou flipped him off before disappearing down the hallway.
Kaminari chuckled at the red he saw building on his friend’s face. Suddenly, that weird feeling returned, stronger. What is this? He looked down at his hands as if they held the answers.
This. This almost feels like-
Is this-?
“Wow, never took you for the jealous type,” a tired voice called out.
Kaminari swore he lept higher than Tsu at the unexpected voice. “Goddamnit Shinso! What are you, Aizawa’s kid or something? Geez, dude…” Kaminari blamed his rising blush on the embarrassment and not anything else. Nope. Definitely not.
Nearby, a pencil snapped. The two looked over to the dining area where people now sat, studying. Todoroki was looking at them, practically vibrating in excitement. A hand settled on his wrist, snapping him back to reality. Tokoyami shook his head. Betrayed, he picked up the broken half of his pencil and resumed his work.
Well, that was weird.
“Anywho,” Shinso continued, leaping over the couch to lean against the back, “I didn’t hear a no. So, who is it? Who has our little sparkplug fizzing out?”
Kaminari was this close to short circuiting. He could feel the tension in the air that warned him he would lose control over his quirk if he didn’t get ahold of himself. A new feeling filled him but this one was happier, almost like ‘whooo!’ but not quite ‘wooo!’ You know?
“Uh- it’s no one! I mean, they’re not no one. I mean! They wouldn’t be if they existed in the first place. Soo, nope,” he popped the p in a show of nonchalance, “There’s no one. Why?”
Those purple eyes fixated on him, though he couldn’t make sense of the look. After a minute, his eyes widened in surprise before his face settled into its usual blank mask. Shinso chuckled.
The hell?
Did he know…?
Shinso flipped back over the couch, presumably curling back into his blanket. Not Aizawa’s secret love child, my ass. Todoroki might finally be onto something with these theories.
Footsteps drew his attention back to the dining area. Peeking around the corner were the traitors, known as the Bakusquad. He scowled.
Noticing the lack of blood and scorch marks painting the walls, they emerged, sprinting over to their spokesman.
“Sooo? What did he say? Are we on?” Kirishima asked hopefully. His puppy eyes could rival even Midoriya’s. Kaminari felt the tension drain instantly.
He sighed. “You know how he is. The only reason I’m still alive is because Midoriya got to him first. Looks like it’s just gonna be us, guys.” The group’s atmosphere fell.
Mina pouted. Kirishima handed Sero 1000 yen. The boy gratefully pocketed the money, a smug smile on his face. Jirou shook her head though she was still smiling. Kaminari’s jaw dropped in shock (pun not intended).
“You guys bet on me?” he shrieked. This was it. He was surrounded by traitors. He had to get out of here. He crossed his arms over his chest, jutting out his bottom lip.
Sero wrapped an arm around his shoulder, leading him out of the dorms. “Nah man, not on you,” he explained, “Kirishima didn’t believe Bakugou was absolutely whipped for Midoriya, so we had a little wager.”
Mina jumped in, “And of course, he lost because Eiji is blind.” A well-aimed glare was pointed in the redhead’s direction. He muttered something about betrayal and ‘not being manly’. Welcome to the club, buddy.
“As much as I would love to join you guys-” Jirou remained where she was, not following the rest of the squad out the door. Cries of “What?!” and “Not cool, man!” echoed around the group- “Yaomomo and I have a project to finish. Catch ya nerds later!” And with that, she was gone, followed by a chorus of jeers.
Kiri nudged Kaminari’s shoulder as the four stepped out into the sunlight. “Hey man, at least more snacks for us, right? Besides, who needs gross couples intruding on our squad night anyways?” He stuck out his tongue to emphasize his point.
On his other side, Mina slapped his shoulder, triggering an infectious laugh that had the other two cracking a smile. She crossed her arms, pointedly looking away. Her nose turned up in disdain. He used her lack of attention to slip an arm around her waist. He talked low in her ear, “C’mon babe. I didn’t mean all couples are gross. Just Midobro and Bakubro.” She continued ignoring him. “Babyyyy…” Mina huffed but eventually leaned into his hold.
Sero and Kaminari rolled their eyes, sharing twin looks of ‘Can you believe this shit?’
The two sped ahead of the couple, who were still making doe eyes at each other. Bleh. “C’mon Kami, let’s lose these nerds. First one to the station pays for snacks?”
The blonde rose to the challenge, “You’re on, Tape boy!”
A dangerous smirk grew on the other’s face. “Ready…” The pair prepped for a running start. “Set…” Kaminari glanced at the other, knowing he had a good chance of beating him. “Go!” Sero used his quirk to give him a boost. Tape wrapped around the lampposts, launching him forward several meters.
Kaminari whined, “What the hell man? Not cool!” He sprinted as fast as his legs could manage. There was no way he was letting Sero win. He was still recovering from the last time he had to pay for snacks. “H-hey, wait up! SERO, YOU JERK!!” He ignored the laughs of the pair behind him.
~~~
Shinso didn’t even realize he was smiling until Todoroki came over, giving him a questioning look. His face fell into his usual scowl. Damnit…
He picked up his phone and brought it close to his face, hoping to hide the soft blush tinting his cheeks. He scrolled through his contacts to the only person he could talk to about this.
Mindfuck: Stupid, cute dumbass…
Literal Sunshine: Fuck off, we’re busy.
The hell?
Another notification lit up his inbox. Ah, that makes sense now. He chuckled.
Literal Sunshine: I’m sorry Shin-kun T-T
Literal Sunshine: That was Kacchan
Literal Sunshine: But as much as I love your hopeless pining maybe you should tell Kaminari-kun how you feel :D
Literal Sunshine: Stop being a damn nerd and tell his dumb ass. He’s getting pathetic.
Literal Sunshine: I’m sorry that was Kacchan again
Literal Sunshine: Keeps stealing phone
Literal Sunshine: He does have a point though
Literal Sunshine: Good luck! Kacchan threatened to blow up my phone if I don’t give him attention
The ‘Still typing’ dots stopped at the exact moment a small ‘Bang!’ shook the dorms. Well, looks like Bakugou held true to his threat. Guess he owes Midoriya some katsudon…