Chapter Text
It's pretty fucking ironic that getting dumped leads to him waking up in a dumpster with the worst hangover Katsuki has ever experienced.
That fucking dick.
That fucking useless piece of shit of a partner.
Katsuki groans, pushes aside a bag of trash and moves to get up. He's not exactly sure how he got here, but knows the endless drinking last night didn't exactly help much in his favour. At least he's far away from his boyfriend's – well, his fucking ex's – place.
He wobbles a bit as he balances on bags upon bags of trash, grabbing onto the slimy edge of the dumpster to stabilise himself. He lifts one leg, in an attempt to drag himself out of there, but a wave of vertigo hits him, and pieces of trash shift underneath him and has him falling right back down with a loud, echoing thud.
Fuck…
He contemplates just staying there – it's probably what he deserves, anyway, letting a prick like that get to him the way he did… But no, he's Bakugou fucking Katsuki, and despite what his inner demons may say, and what his current hangover is trying to drill through his head, he's worth more than ending up as a pretty dumpster-corpse.
He tries again; he lifts himself up, flicking away a fruit peel (because of course people don't just bag up all their trash, why would they, those dirty fuckers) and grabs onto the edge once more, holding on tight as he pulls one leg to hang over the side.
With a victorious grin, he's just about to follow along with the other when a voice stops him dead in his tracks.
"What are you doing?" someone asks, and Katsuki closes his eyes tightly and stays completely frozen. Maybe whoever it is didn't see him, maybe he's talking to someone else, or to himself, and will just pass right along in no time if he holds his breath still enough.
No such luck, of course.
"Wait… Bakugou?" the voice asks, and Katsuki grimaces. Oh of course, why the fuck not ? This is exactly what he needs, someone who knows him to start spreading stupid little stories of pathetic, stinky Bakugou Katsuki, because he's not having a bad enough week already.
Katsuki grits his teeth and slowly turns his head around to the voice, and is immediately confused. Who the fuck is he ?
He doesn't recognize the guy at first glance, but the scar covering most of the left side of his face rings a bell. "Yeah, it's fucking me. What, never seen anyone waking up with a hangover before? Just because your life is boring as shit doesn't mean mine should be, too!" It's a pathetic excuse at best, and it sure won't work, but Katsuki clings to a tiny hope.
The guy's expression doesn't change as he assesses the situation, and that rings another bell in Katsuki's mind. As well as the obnoxious, dual-coloured red and white hair. Todoroki something, if he's not mistaken. They were in the same class in high school, not that Katsuki fancies thinking back on that too much.
"So playing around in a dumpster is… fun," Todoroki attempts to confirm, and Katsuki simply grits his teeth. "What about the smell, is that part of the fun?"
It most definitely is not , and now that it's been pointed out, the smell only seems to grow stronger. "Yeah well, you win some, you lose some," Katsuki replies vaguely, and tries to kick off to jump the rest of the way out of the dumpster. The trash underneath his foot slips away again, and he stumbles, only staying upright because of the leg still dangling over the edge.
Footsteps get closer, and Katsuki whips his head up to find Todoroki right in front of him, his face infuriatingly blank. "Need any help?"
Katsuki scoffs and grips the edge of the dumpster as tightly as he can and uses all of his sore muscles to pull himself out of it, finally slipping over the side and landing on steady ground with wobbly legs. "I'm fucking fine, I don't need shit ." He tries to take a step towards the end of the small alleyway he finds himself in, but his legs give out from underneath him. God he just wants to go back to sleep right about now.
An arm catches him around the waist, another holding him steady by the shoulder. Todoroki's breath hits Katsuki's ear and sends a jolt through him, and he jumps away, crashing right into the side of the dumpster. He just can't get away, can he?
"Let me drive you home," Todoroki says, keeping the distance that Katsuki has created between them.
Katsuki thinks about home , and how that's the last place he wants to be right now because that would mean going back to – "Where that bastard is?" Realising he's said that out loud, he bites his lip and looks off to the side. "Hard pass," he mumbles.
It's silent for a while, with Katsuki avoiding looking at Todoroki, and Todoroki saying nothing. Katsuki can almost believe the guy has left, if not because he hasn't heard any footsteps.
Finally, Todoroki speaks up, the suddenness and stern-ness of his voice startling Katsuki into a jolt. "So come back to my place."
Katsuki is pretty sure he said “No fucking way” . He's pretty sure he started to walk away, without even falling over like a fucking toddler this time.
So why is he suddenly standing in the middle of Todoroki's living room as the guy leaves for his bedroom to gather some clothes and a towel?
He blames the hangover. And the agonising clenching in his stomach as he thinks of what awaits him should he go back home. Or the shame of telling his friends that they were right, of course, and are they happy now that he's realised just that?
His shoulders are aching by the time Todoroki returns, and he tilts his head at Katsuki with a question in his eyes. Katsuki just sneers at him and snatches the towel and extra clothes out of his hands, setting off to find the bathroom on his own.
Getting rid of the smell is great, and the heat of the water eases some of the tension in his shoulders. He stays there longer than he should, contemplating; should he head back home after all? What is he doing, really? He's just postponing the inevitable, and it's fucking cowardly of him. What is he doing here at Todoroki's place, for fucks sake.
After giving it some thought, Katsuki remembers Todoroki from high school, of course; the popular pretty boy, despite his apparent lack of personality. Always quiet and emotionless, voice completely monotone and sounding utterly bored with life all the time. He'd always pissed Katsuki off, if he's being honest – as much as someone he never talked to could piss him off, at least. It doesn't help that he seemed to be friends with fucking Deku of all people.
Still, being here is better than going home, he supposes after a long contemplation.
He's not being a coward, he convinces himself, he's simply angry and determined to get some well deserved time for himself.
Cold envelops his skin as soon as he steps out of the shower; he hadn't noticed it before, but apparently the guy runs his place pretty cold, and he shivers as he dries off and puts on the black joggers and a dark blue hoodie. He needs to ask for some socks, the floor is freezing.
Todoroki is sitting on the couch and watching TV when Katsuki returns from the shower.
Reluctantly, Katsuki sits down on the couch as well, drawing his knees up to his chest and hugging his legs tight. Being here is awkward enough, but pretending to just belong is even weirder.
He doesn't remember talking to Todoroki a single time during school. He doesn't remember even wanting to.
He doesn't know how much time passes – scenes flash by on the screen as thoughts bounce around in his head – but at some point, Todoroki's voice cuts through the haze and drags him out of it. "So, 'that bastard' is..?"
Katsuki groans, placing his chin on top of his knees and giving Todoroki a sidelong glare. The guy is still watching the TV intently.
He doesn't have to tell him shit. But then again, Todoroki didn't have to bring Katsuki here, and he did it anyway. Maybe he'll even the score, if only a little.
"My goddamn ex," he explains with a mumble, and Todoroki turns minutely towards him with those dead eyes. "He dumped me, so I decided to take it out on my liver. There's not really anything else to say."
Nothing else that fucking Todoroki needs to know, at least.
"Oh," Todoroki breathes, turning to look up at the ceiling.
The ticking of the clock is barely audible, but he can hear it through the silence, and it takes a while for Katsuki to realise that Todoroki has muted the show still running on the screen.
A car passes outside, probably a bit too quick for the city, and Todoroki hums to himself. "Stay for as long as you need. I don't mind."
Katsuki scoffs, drawing his legs a little closer. "I don't need your pity. And I don't intend to stay for longer than I have to. I'll figure something else out soon."
“All I’m saying is that you don’t have to rush,” Todoroki clarifies, so calm that Katsuki nearly growls.
Silence falls over them once more, and Katsuki hates the fact that the TV is still muted, but he tries to follow along with the pictures flashing across it either way.
“I didn’t know you had a boyfriend.”
Katsuki nearly jumps at that unexpected and quiet statement, and he whips his head around to glare straight at the other. “Not really a surprise, seeing as you don’t know shit about me,” he growls. “I haven’t seen you since graduation, why would you know that?”
Todoroki nods slowly, as if what Katsuki is saying clears up some thoughts in his head. “Well, we do have mutual friends.”
“We… What?”
“Ochako and Ashido talk, as well as Kirishima and Izuku,” Todoroki explains, apparently unaware of Katsuki’s fuming. “I see them from time to time, but they never mentioned anything about a boyfriend.” He turns to Katsuki with questioning eyes. “Have you been dating for a while?”
Katsuki squeezes his legs tighter against his chest, furrowing his brows. “Look, you can’t tell them anything about… this,” he tries, revolted by how fragile he sounds all of a sudden. “I’m not asking you to deny your friends coming over while I stay here, but just, don’t tell them why? My friends, they… they can’t know. Not yet, at least.”
Todoroki nods once, a resolute answer to his request, and Katsuki feels himself relaxing slightly against his knees. “Do you want to call them and tell them you’re here? In case they look for you at home?”
Katsuki frowns as he thinks it over, then shakes his head. “Nah. They wouldn’t come to that place.” He releases his grip on his knees and stretches out his legs with a yawn. “Look, I’m beat, and absolutely done with this day, so where can I sleep?”
Todoroki blinks, as if surprised by the question – he probably hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Oh. Right. Well, I probably don’t have anywhere but the couch.”
“Fine,” Katsuki says, standing up from said couch and looking around. He grabs the blanket that’s lying over one of the armrests, leaves one pillow and throws the rest to the floor. Then, he stares expectantly at Todoroki, who is silently watching him from the couch, until he finally turns off the TV and gets up.
“Need anything else?”
Katsuki is already laying himself down on the couch, but he looks up over the backrest to meet the eyes of the other. “Only if you have an extra toothbrush.”
Todoroki’s mouth opens, then closes, and without a word he turns and walks towards the bathroom. He returns a few minutes later empty-handed. “I’m afraid I don’t.”
Katsuki shrugs and pulls the blanket tight over his shoulders. “I’ll get one tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Todoroki says. By the sound of it, he stays where he is, unmoving, and Katsuki is almost creeped out before the other says, “Good night,” and finally starts to walk away.
Katsuki doubts it will be.