Work Text
Katsuki Bakugou was not a relationship person.He had a few in the past, sure, but they always ended up with him cussing them out and then getting upset and leaving like a pussy.No one could tolerate himHe was even more insufferable without his daily coffee.Katsuki was a 25 year old business owner of fashion. The job was stressful enough, not only he had to work with absolute idiots but also he spent his money on expensive coffee every damn morning. To the point he almost remembers all the baristas names and who makes his coffee the right damn way. Its just a damn large black coffee with one cream and one caramel, how the hell could you mess it up? On the days it was too sweet for him, he had a shitty rest of the day. Kendou, Sero, and Mina usually were the ones making his coffee right. They even knew his regular and his name at this point. But every time he saw a newbie or somebody different make his drink, he cringed. He never bothered to go back and correct them though. He was an asshole, yes, but he wasn’t that much of a fucking asshole. Expect for that one time they messed up so bad, he could taste no caramel and he could taste the gritty sugar in it. It was like they put 10 in there. That’s the only time he’s gone back to fix it. Other than that, it was never that bad.You might wonder, why the hell did Katsuki own a fashion business? Well, first of all, fuck you, he was great at fashion and had impeccable taste. Second of all, his mother originally owned the business and taught him all about it. He also had went to college in business. As soon as the old hag retired, he instantly jumped in for the opportunity to take over for her. He was a little nervous at first, sure, but he got the hang of it quickly because fuck it he was Katsuki Bakugou and he was fucking great at everything. Not everyone thought the way he did, but he wasn’t going to change.
Never.
He was parallel parked on the side of the street in his same exact spot he was as always, seeing the baristas in the window gleefully wave at him with excitement and familiarity. Idiots. He almost smiled at the gesture. Almost. He gave a smirk instead. He fixed his tie and walked in with his head high, them all greeting him with pure joy. He nodded, stepping towards the counter. The sight he was greeted with was bright. A flash of annoying red, obviously dyed and spiked up in such a stupid hairstyle he couldn’t even to muster the words to insult. He stared for a moment, taking it all in. A trainee. Awesome. Not only he was gonna struggle with the damn computer, he was gonna mess up his coffee. Already knew how his day was going to be. He scanned him, eyes picking up on the name tag.Eijirou Kirishima. With an irritating smiley face planted next to it. GreatHis eyes met his matching crimson, a frown planted on his face. ”I’ll make it easy for you, newbie.” He grunted, leaving the other stumbling for words.Poor thing hadn’t even blabbered out a Hi! Welcome in! How are you? Ha.He loved torturing people.”Oh- Okay!” The redhead known as Kirishima sputtered out, giving him a gleam that was almost blinding. “How are you doing to-“He cut him off. “Large hot black with one cream one caramel.”Kirishima had a flash of disappointment color his face, but it was quickly replaced with a determined nod. He started typing furiously at the screen, his eyebrows furrowing. He clearly didn’t know what the hell he was doing. Katsuki sighed heavily.“Sorry, sorry I’m new here, and-“”Yeah, yeah.” The blonde cut in, pursing his lips. “I know. Just hurry up. I have to go to work.”Kirishima nodded again, but then after a few heartbeats he had to call over help with defeat in his eyes. Oh god. This was going to take forever and he was going to be fucking late.Mina happily bounced over, flashing a smile at Katsuki. “Hey, Blasty!””Told you not to fucking call me that.” He barked, but only a laugh came as a response. “Hurry up and help him. I need my coffee.”Mina giggled and tapped a few buttons on the screen, other hand patting Kirishima on the back. “Buddy, you were on the latte section.” The other looked down, seeming disappointed in himself. “Don’t get yourself so down. You’re still new.”He heard the ticket print out finally, handing a few bucks over then shuffling to the other section of the shop. If he had any extra time, sometimes he’d order a pastry and sit down. But today was not one of those days. He waited as he watched the redhead scramble to make his coffee, obviously being nervous with such intense eyes on him. He didn’t care though. He was damn sure he was gonna get his coffee right.Three.Three fucking pumps of caramel. What the fuck. Did this idiot not know how to count? He coughed, slightly leaning over the counter. “One. One fucking caramel, shit for brains.” Kirishima seemed to be caught off guard, his face catching in a red flare. “Oh my God— I’m so sorry sir! I’ll fix that for you.”Yeah he was going to be late for work.The redhead whipped him up his right coffee, sliding it over the counter. Expect.. It didn’t quite make the landing. It slid too harshly and it splattered all over the floor. Fucking. Everywhere. Thank God Katsuki had the reflexes of a ninja, otherwise he’d be wearing his hot coffee for the day.He slowly turned his head back up from the spill, giving a look of Are you actually fucking serious, right now?!”l’m gonna fucking kill you.” He stated, ready to reach over the counter and fucking strangle him.He was sputtering out apologies left and right, and he swore he could see him tearing up. Jesus christ. It was going to be a long day. Kendou, thank God the savior, quickly scurried over and sent Kirishima to the bathroom to probably cry his embarrassment out. “Don’t worry, I got you.”She made his coffee swiftly and handed it over, calmly this time, and Bakugou let out a huff of thank you. He swiftly turned his heel and practically ran out the door, checking his watch.7:50 AMJesus, he only had 10 minutes to arrive. Luckily he was close by, stepping foot on the gas heavily and practically speeding out of there. —————————————Katsuki was pretty much done work for the day, typing out the last parts he needed to before saving his progress and closing his laptop. He sighed tiredly and rubbed his face, before one of his employees annoying barged into the door.Kaminari. He stared at the wall ahead of him, not even acknowledging the other blonde. “What could you possibly want. It’s 6 pm. You should be home by now.” He grumbled “Aww, so harsh?” Kaminari cooed, poking him in the shoulder to cause a flinch. Oh he was gonna be punched.”You should be lucky that we’re at my workplace right now Sparky.””And you should be lucky i’m in here right now. And it’s our workplace, asswipe.” He retorted.”Remind me why I hired you.””Um, because I’m a super awesome worker, duh. That’s why.” He let himself sit down across from him like it was home, and Katsuki only continued to scowl.”Are you in here for work related business or are you just here to annoy me?””Both, actually. But mainly work.” He slid over a stack of paperwork and designs, a sly smile on his face. “Here. There’s all my work done, as well as some extra designs I even pumped out for ya. You’re welcome.”Bakugou scanned the papers with boredom, finally looking up to his eyes. “Didn’t ask for them. But thanks anyway. They better not be half assed like they usually are.”Kaminari scoffed in fake offensiveness, putting a hand over his heart like he was clutching his pearls or some dumb shit. “Excuse you, my work is never half assed.””Yeah yeah. Whatever. I’m going home. Feel free to stay and entertain yourself or even better work some more.” He stood to his feet, brushing past the blonde with no acknowledgment.Then, he found himself back in his black-expensive-car with his stale coffee lingering in the cup holder. Huh. He forgot he practically chugged it on the way there. He grabbed it and walked inside his apartment, jingling the keys until it finally unlocked.God he was exhausted.He took a brisk shower and changed into comfier clothes, black sweatpants with a matching black tee shirt with a skull on it. The shirt was tight and it was struggling to hold on, the skull faded and the black also worn out. But it was his favorite since high school. Fuck off. He slipped into bed, grabbing his phone to scroll through instagram.He was suddenly stopped abruptly when he saw a suggest for you profile, breath catching in his throat at the username
Red_Riot
And a picture of a dumb, sunny smile with his golden retriever practically drooling all over him. His fingers lingered over the profile, hesitating. He eventually clicked on it after a heartbeat, wondering why he even did in the first place
100 posts, 310 followers, 51 following
Hmm.He doomingly skimmed his posts, not reaching the end. Fucker posted too much. His most recent was a picture of him in his new uniform, looking so proud of himself he was going to combust. Weirdo.He stared at it until he was going to click out, finger then hovering over the follow button. Why the hell did he even consider it? He barely knew him and he came off with a horrible expression. But.No. Buts. He was about to close his phone before his finger slipped and swiped on his story. Fuck. He quickly closed his phone with a blush, knowing it was too late. He didn't even get to see what it was, cursing himself to the world. God he could be an idiot. He better not bring that up in conversation. He’d probably kill himself.He stared at the bland ceiling before finally drifting off, and no, he didn’t struggle falling asleep with the redhead on his mind.He didn’t.Fuck off.
—————————
“Think about the place where you first met me.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Eijirou Kirishima was a relationship person!He loved having friends. He loved having people around him. He loved his squad, and he loved his moms! He was generally such a social guy. and he was friendly to anyone who walked the path of life along with him. Even if they were a stranger.But he did get cranky whenever a stranger was rude to him at his new job. Kirishima was in his kinda janky car, checking himself out in the mirror. He tied his uniform behind his back, tapping on his visor. He was so excited! He was a few minutes before clocking in to his new barista job that he just happened to pick up. Even better, some of his close friends worked there as well. He got this!He walked in, instantly greeting with beaming smiles and joy. He instantly felt welcome. He was nervous, but he knew he had this. He could do anything! He greeted them all, making sure to fix his visor so it was perfect. He knew he’d fit right in.Nervousness racked him as he walked through the entrance, Mina bouncing over to him. “Welcome, Kiri! You’re gonna love it here.” She grinned.He sure hoped so.Kirishima was being walked through all the coffees one by one and flavor by flavor, already feeling a bit overwhelmed. He hadn’t even been to the espressos and lattes just yet, as they had some extra steps. God, he wished he brought a notepad and a pen, or something.He experimented with some hot and iced coffees, finally getting the hang of most of them. Easy! He totally had this. Although he wasn’t trusted near the ovens yet, as this was his first day of training. He was okay with that. He understood. He heard the door chime and his head perked up, seeing a well suited customer walk in at the corner of his eye. Mina turned to smile at him, then back to the redhead.”Perfect! He can be your first customer. Just.. be careful. He’s- He has kinda an explosive personality. Just be yourself.”Oh, great. Well, it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. Or so he thought.He waltzed over to the counter, and offered him a smile that wasn’t return. Oh my God. Mina didn’t mention that.. this customer was steaming hot!He had blonde hair so soft he could bet he could run his hands through it, his well suited business jacket coating his shoulders. He looked very clean and well put together, and even with the scowl on his face he was undoubtedly handsome. Wow. His breath was taken away. He nodded as their red crimson matching eyes met, a pink rising to his face. “I’ll make this easy for you newbie.” He heard him grunt.Okay, that’s good enough.“Hi, welcome in! How are you to-“ He was cut off.”Large hot black with one cream one caramel.”Oh, okay. This guy really was rude. He was damn near stunning but, again, rude. He didn’t even know that black coffee had no cream in it, either. Amateur.”Oh!- okay. One sec.”He fumbled with the machine as confusing words stared back at him, embarrassment growing upon him as he didn’t understand, Where the hell was the hot coffee button? He sheepishly called Mina over for help, seeing the other roll his eyes. “Don’t worry Bakugou. I’ll get this up for ya.”Okay. This rude but hot customer was shamed Bakugou. Hmm. He must’ve been a regular if they knew his name by now. He saw him roll his eyes and he fought the urge to roll them back.”Yeah yeah. Just hurry up. I gotta go to work soon.” He huffed as he impatiently tapped his foot.Rude. He did know that he were on his own time, not theirs?Cool.He heard the ticket print and he rushed to make it, determination fueling him. He fumbled with the cup as he.. forgot the simple order. Even though the sticker was literally on the cup, he couldn’t muster to think about that in the moment.He could just, guess. Yeah. He felt eyes on him, like he was being trained by him and not his actual coworkers. He pumped out three pumps of caramel-“Hey. it’s one fuckin’ pump of caramel. Not three. One cream one caramel, shit for brains.” Okay. He didn’t like being called stupid. “Okay, yeah! So sorry about that, I’ll fix it for you!”He made the correct order. Okay. Now just.. to give it to him. Then he could get out of here and forget this all even happened. No biggie, everyone had their bad customer encounters and make mistakes.Easy enough, right?Wrong.He fumbled and slid the coffee across the counter, but he made too much of a move. It slid off and splattered, everywhere. He was lucky that Bakugou moved, so he wouldn’t have hot coffee burns. He’d probably lose his job into the first hour of being there.His face flared with embarrassment, his eyes creepily moving back to the blondes. He had murder in them. He was frozen, hands shaking and a few stray tears pricking the corner of his eyes. Oh god. It was so over.”I’m gonna fucking kill you.”His coworker that he presumed was Kendou, walked over to see what the commotion was about. She examined the scene, eyeing the two of them and deescalated Bakugou from damn near jumping across the counter. “Don’t worry, Bakugou. I’ll fix this for you. And Kirishima, go to the bathroom. You’re trembling.”Oh, right. He existed.He ran to the bathroom and didn’t bother looking back, feeling a few tears run down his cheeks. God he was so embarrassed. How did he fuck up so tremendously bad and he wasn’t even a full hour into his shift?He roughly rubbed the back of the eyes and splashed cold water onto his face, trying to pull himself together. He had a job to do, after all.”Pull yourself together, Eijirou.”He couldn’t even look at himself in the mirror after that. He walked out, deathly hoping that the blonde was gone by now. Thankfully, he was. Jesus was the universe out to get him or something?He walked back in with his head down with shame, Mina popping over and slinging an arm around his drooped shoulders.”Don’t worry about it. It’s still your first day. That happens.. all the time.”He could hear the lying coating her voice. Ugh. He totally did not happen a lot. He was probably the first to do some stupid shit like that. It was going to be a long, long day. —————————Kirishima finally made it out, clocking out for the day. The rest of the day was pretty mellow, so much information racking his brain he was overloaded. Who knew being a barista would be so difficult? Definitely not him.He sighed as he jangled the keys to his apartment. It was small, and he lived alone. It got pretty lonely sometimes, but luckily he had his siamese cat, Riot, to accompany him.He didn’t even want to shower, his bones jello and his exhaustion wafting over him. But he knew he had to, feeling sticky and sweaty,He took a quick shower and crashed into his bed that he missed dearly after he changed into his usual pajamas. He let Riot as she purred and curled into his lap. He could tell that she missed him.He grabbed his phone to scroll through instagram before he went to sleep, bored as usual and no one really to talk to. He clicked on his story to see the interaction he got, scrolling through to see his usual friends liking and viewing. Until..lordexplosionmurder viewed your story.What?He clicked on the profile, eyebrows furrowing as he saw the familiar face on the profile picture. Why the hell was he looking at his handle? He already embarrassed him enough now he was stalking him? The hell? He looked through the photos. Well, five total. All about his business. Damn, he was a whole business owner? No wonder he thought he was better than everybody. He didn’t exactly pin him down to be a fashion business owner, though. Hey, we all had our quirks.His finger lingered over the follow button, debating in his head. Did he really want to get to know him, though? He as kind of an asshole.But he was so attractive. And something about those walls built up, he just wanted to know more. He was entrapped, like he was a mystery case to solve.It wasn’t his problem, but he was going to make it.He clicked the follow button. He quickly shut his phone off and closed his eyes, struggling to fall asleep that night.Little did he know, in his sleep a notification went off. lordexplosionmurder followed you back. —————————
”I wish I was that girl from the Gucci store, she never wore any makeup and she owns couture.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Bakugou walked into the coffee shop the next day and just acted like all was normal. Not like he was totally stalking one of their baristas and accidentally viewing their story.Or accidentally following them.Yeah, it was an accident. He sighed as the door bell chimed, locking eye contact with the redhead who was quick to flush. He scurried off the back to avoid him, and he tilted his head. He didn’t care.TotallyKatsuki Bakugou didn’t care about anybody.The blonde shuffled his way to the counter, wondering when somebody was going to take his damn order. He heard quick whispers of people in the back, as if he wasn’t standing literally right there.
Cmon, Kiri. It can’t be that bad!
I can’t face him!
You need to be trained. Let’s go
Ugh.Two bodies appeared from the back, one of them being Mina and the other being the annoying redhead he knew as Kirishima. Well this was going to be a long day already.He hesitantly greeted him, being able to read his mind. Practically begging for Bakugou to bring up the instagram thing.Well, he wasn’t. It wasn’t that important. At least not to him.He sighed and stared at him, again like always cutting his friendly greeting off. But this time it was less friendly, more awkward and filled with embarrassment.”Large hot black with one cream one caramel.”Kirishima nodded quickly and actually got it right this time, tapping on the machine.”Anything else?””Is there ever?” He grunted. Technically he had no right to say this, because Kirishima didn’t see him every day just yet and also sometimes he got a bagel or a pastry. But he just felt like being mean. Not today though. He didn’t have the time.He exchanged his money and walked over to the pick up section, tapping his foot as he eyed down the redhead making his drink.
Wow. He actually got it right the first time.He watched him as he walked over and out a lid on, quirking an eyebrow at him. “Don’t do what you did last time, idiot.”Kirishima seemed to stammer at this, his cheeks getting more rosy than they already were. Stupid. He grabbed his drink with no thank you, stomping off as the other familiar baristas waved a gleeful goodbye.Annoying.And no, Katsuki Bakugou didn’t get into his car with small butterflies in his stomach that day.He didn’t. Fuck off. —————————-It had been a pretty uneventful day in the office, Bakugou propping his feet on the desk. He had already ate his lunch that he packed himself and now he was just sorting through leftover paperwork he had to fill out.His job could get really fucking boring sometimes. You know, being a business owner and all. But it had its perks. Especially the pay being fucking amazing. So he couldn’t exactly complain. It was about 7:15 when he finished everything that he had to do, knowing he had to stay later. But he always did. There was even times where Kaminari would find him in his office passed out and wake him up telling him it was morning. Then he’d have to start his day already being in his office.He yawned and whipped out his phone, scrolling through instagram. His face flushed once Kirishima’s photos popped up on his feed, but honestly he’s already seen them. Damn he was a stalker. He needed to cool it.He turned his phone off and leaned back. And of course once he was finally dozing off, his phone vibrated in his hand with a message.Who the hell was messaging him? He rarely got messages except from his mother. But she never messaged around this time.
Red_Riot
sent you a message.
Oh hell no.Why?He opened it up, scowling down at his phone as he almost dropped it.Red_Riot: You do know like, a black coffee doesn’t have cream in it, right? :)This absolute scumbag. But no.. he did not know thatlordexplosionmurder: What.Red_Riot: Yeah dude! That’s kinda the whole point. Like, the coffee is black so there’s no cream to make it any shade :3He was appalled. lordexplosionmurder: why are you texting me.Red_Riot: Idk. Bored at home. You followed me first anyway.lordexplosionmurder: Leave me alone. We aren’t friends.Red_Riot: Never said we were. But trust me. We’re gonna be :)lordexplosionmurder: Fuck offRed_Riot: Nooooo. I have a feeling you’re pretty lonely inside. It’s not bad to have a few friends! :PBefore he could get a chance to reply, a blonde figure barged into his office. Oh my God this couldn’t get any worse. “Do you have any idea how to fucking knock? I’m this close to firing you.” He growled.Kaminari let out a fake shocked gasp, covering his mouth. “You would never!””Would.””Anyway, did I just catch you smiling at your phone Blasty? Who ya texting?” He cooed, a mock coating his tone.Fuck. He was kinda smiling at his phone. Fuuuuck.”No one. Fuck off. Get the hell out of my office.””Aww. Alright, well here’s my work. I’m leaving now. Let me meet the boyfriend sometime ya?”Before he could yell at him he quickly scurried off, shutting the door behind him. He huffed with heat rushing to his face, his phone vibrating once again.Red_Riot: Sorry about yknow, making you almost wear your coffee yesterday. Was my first day. I was pretty nervous.Bakugou was typing out an angry reply before he almost completely dropped his phone out of his hands.Red_Riot: And your face had me pretty distracted too. ;)He was so, so gone. ————————————Later that day Bakugou finally made it home. He lost a good chunk of time by texting Kirishima. He didn’t even know why he was texting him back, especially since after his half assed flirt.Katsuki Bakugou didn’t get close to people.But could he really control it when he felt a magnetic pull even when he first met the doofus behind the counter?He was lost.He’s never felt this way before. And he just barely met him and just barely started texting him. He felt actual butterflies, and an actual blush on his face and fuck the redhead even got a half smile out of him!He was already getting soft, and he fucking hated it with every fiber in his being. Why the hell hasn’t he blocked him already.He just.. couldn’t.He hopped in the shower—a cold one at that— and changed into his comfortable pajamas then flopped on his bed on his stomach. He opened back up the chat, seeing strings of messages wondering where he went and that he missed him.Fucking fuck. He should’ve just left him on read or blocked him.But he didn’t. Couldn’t.He hasn’t felt this way since he was in high school. Lying on his stomach, kicking his feet, texting a damn boy— it was sickening. lordexplosionmurder: Right damn here. Had to take a shower. You take those?Red_Riot: Um yes of course I do meanie! Working as a barista I kinda have to. I practically smell like coffee and milk.lordexplosionmurder: Gross.Red_Riot: Yeah, so what? Anyways, I saw that you’re a business owner?lordexplosionmurder: Stalker much?He really had no room to be talking. And of course Kirishima called him out on it.Red_Riot: Yeah ok. Says the one stalking my story before even following me..!lordexplosionmurder: Shut up. That didn’t happen. LiesThey ended up texting for almost half of the night. Bakugou was wasting his precious damn sleep for him.Ugh.Then, his fingers lingered over the keyboard as he read the final message the redhead had sent to him.Red_Riot: Wanna call? ——————————
”I think there’s been a glitch. Five seconds later i’m fastening myself to you with a stitch.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Red eyes watched as a tuft of blonde hair walked into their little cafe, and his face flushed when he locked matching eyes with hisNo. He couldn’t do this today. He already had a rough morning.He scrambled off to the back, but of course Mina forced him to go greet him.Stupid training. Bleh.“Cmon, you gotta go out there.” Mina urged him.”No! I can’t face him!” The redhead’s voice was filled with true, shivering fear. It was way too embarrassing.”Kiri, you’re in training. As one of your supervisors I’m not your best friend right now. And I’m ordering you to go out there. Besides, you’re gonna see him like everyday. He’s a regular.” Her voice was demanding. “Fine, but I won’t forgive you for this..!”He waltzed out there with a small shove from his pink haired friend, looking almost miserable as much as ashamed.He heard Bakugou’s deep sigh, and it only made it ever so worse.”H-Hey! How are you t-“interrupted. Again. He’s gotta get used to this.”Large hot black with one caramel one cream.””Got it! Anything else?” He forced a smile, just wishing he could disappear from the world for a couple of minutes.Maybe forever.”Is there ever?” Okayyyy. Rude.And from he heard, sometimes there was! Like a bagel or a pastry. So this dude was just being an asshole.He punched it in and took his cash, this time without struggle.He rushed over and grabbed a large cup, just counting down the moments and trying to be swift so the angry blonde could leave. He actually got it right this time, thank the Lord. He could feel pressuring red eyes face into his back. He hated it. Was he going to do this everytime he came inside? It was irritating and distracting.He put a lid on the coffee and before he gave it to Bakugou, he could hear his mocking tone.”Don’t do what you did last time.” He teased with a small smirk.Asshole. At least he got a little smile out of him, although. Even if it was a joking smirk.It was pretty cute on him, seeing the fluorescent lights highlight his features. He could even see a small stubble dragged on his jaw. He must’ve been a bit older than the other.He shook his head and very carefully placed the filled coffee cup down, barely any noise between the counter and the drink.Bakugou grabbed it and gave him a small nod, but it wasn’t a thank you.Well, he was getting somewhere at least.His eyes lingered as he watched him leave, ignoring the feeling of flutters in his stomach.He was so gone. ———————The day had gone by pretty quickly. His shift had ended and now he was stumbling back into his small apartment on sore legs. Jeez he wished he could sit down more at his job.But with all the business owners, the school kids, the rushes. It was nearly impossible. Barely anybody had time for a fricking break half the time! Let alone a lunch break, which he hadn’t received yet despite being a full eight hour shift. He flopped on his bed after his shower, going back to instagram to peer on the blondes instagram profile. He had recently discovered his full name was Katsuki Bakugou. He’d take note to that.He tapped on the message button and debated his choices.He really wanted to get to know him. He sighed as his thumbs fiddled over the keyboard, wondering how to spark up the conversation. Well, the blond was always teasing him and being mean. So he was gonna do it back.He typed away.Red_Riot: You do know that, a black coffee doesn’t have cream in it, right?Send.He pursed his lips as his message was instantly read. That was quick. He was lucky to even get an answer at all. Little old Eijirou couldn’t take the time away from a high class business owner, after all.Except he could.lordexplosionmurder: What?Kirishima smiled at his phone and sat up in his bed, typing away an explanation.They continued to text for a couple of hours that night. He checked the time, reading 10:30 pm. They had been texting since seven, and he was having more than enough fun.But.They were texting constantly and consistently for a while now. Why not just… call eachother. So he took the shot.Red_Riot: wanna call?His heart hammered in his chest as he hit send, of course Bakugou reading it right away.He was gonna say no, to his luck. Some excuse that he was still at work even though it was late.A minute had past, and Kirishima was losing hope.Until he saw the bubbles indicating the other was texting. They stopped. They picked back up again.Until..His heart stopped beating and he let out a squeak as the Instagram ring tone echoed in his room, almost dropping his phone on his face. He shot up and fixed his hair, probably looking like shit. He took a deep breath and set his phone in between his legs, nibbling on his bottom lip as he pressed the green button.He smiled as he joined the call, his heart still pounding, surprised you couldn’t see it beating out of his chest. “Uh- Hi!” He smiled.There was a couple seconds of silence. Before a gruff, “Hello.” came.So formal. Manly!”How are you doing?””Fine.”It was pretty awkward to start, until he realized that Bakugou’s camera was off and he was just staring at the logo of his brand.He wanted to see him! That was kinda the whole point.. “Turn your camera on, bro!””No.” The other huffed.”Aw, why not?” He frowned.”Cuz I said so.””Cmon man. I wanna see that handsome face!”There Kirishima goes again. Not thinking before he spoke. He mentally face palmed himself. He wouldn’t blame him if Bakugou just hung up without a word.He didn’t, though?”I- what?!” He could practically hear his fluster over the phone.”Ah- nothing, nothing! Don’t worry about it bro. You don’t gotta show your face if you don’t want to. I just like talking to you in general.” This time he meant that. He was having a great time tonight.There was more heartbeats of silence.”Shut up.”He was about to reply before his phone lit up, seeing the blondes face with a pink blush dancing across his cheeks. He actually made him flustered.Wow.He was so.. Beautiful. He was handsome beyond belief in the low light, but he couldn’t miss the pink flush dusted on his face. He was in casual clothes with a scowl, but it didn’t hold its usual heat. It was like everything he ever imagined in a guy, He was so fucking perfect.He was speechless.”What are you gawking at, Shitty Hair?”Ah, he forgot to speak. He had wide eyes, and a matching red face.”Ah, nothing. You’re just..” He trailed off, biting down on bottom lip.”Say it.” He demanded.”You’re beautiful, bro.” He saw Bakugou’s expression twist from a scowl to a shocked one, seeing his jaw drop in a shape of an ‘o’. “Shut the fuck up or i’m turning my camera off. I don’t even know why I’m talking to you right now. I should be sleeping.””Okay, okay fine. Past your bedtime little boy?”The scowl returned, “Die. I’ll hang up right now.”“No, no! I’m sorry i’m sorry!” He laughed, and he swore he could see a small smile on Bakugou’s face.They talked and talked for a long time that night, until about one am. Kirishima was still wide awake with a racing heart and a flushed face. He swore he was in love. But it was too soon to tell. He just knew that he really, really liked Katsuki Bakugou.But he was so out of his league.”Bakugou?” He hummed, but no response.He only heard soft snores, his camera being set up to talk easier that night, He saw his eyes closed, a peaceful expression written across his face.He was so fucking gorgeous and it hurt immensely. To yearn for something he probably could never have. God. His chest hurt.But the pain erased when he saw him sleeping so prettily, seeing no trace of anger across his face. He was so cute like this, it was such a rare occurrence to see him not looking frustrated or murderous.He treasured it.He couldn’t believe that his voice had lured the blonde to sleep. It was endearing.It meant he was really boring or his voice soothed him enough to have him drift off. He did mention he had night terrors sometimes very briefly.He guessed the latter. And no, he didn’t take a screenshot of his sleeping beauty before he drifted off himself.No he didn’t. Not at all. ————————
“Dying prayer to make you love me
I'm dying hair and dressing lovely
I'm in between so angry and hopeful
Ooo it’s the sound of a crying heart
End of a dying start.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Bakugou sighed as he walked in, seeing the familiar face beaming at him behind the counter. He felt softer at the sight than usual, and he didn't know how to feel about that whatsoever.Maybe because they had spent the entire night calling and flirting with each other. He could feel the tiredness as a result.Butterflies felt like cardiac rest to the blonde.He trudged along to the counter, noticing he had a bit of more time today. Maybe he'd order a bagel or a pastry. Maybe not. He didn't want to stare at the dude's stupid hair for too long. Although, the rumble in his stomach said otherwise.Fuck. He was at the office for a while last night, he must've forgotten about dinner. Damn, he had to get something even if he didn't wanna be here.It's been hell since the annoyingly attractive idiot started working there. Now, he had to brace himself before walking in and focus on not fucking up on his words.He wished he got fired. But he also didn't, since he knew the absolute pain of that. He seemed pretty sensitive enough, anyway. That would probably break the poor thing.He didn't care.He cleared his throat as Kirishima began blabbing questions like how his day was going, and for quite the time in the row now he interrupted him. Did he never learn?"Large hot black-"He clamped his mouth shut, remembering their conversation from last night.He flushed, adverting his gaze. "Large hot one cream one caramel."Kirishima seemed shocked, before his expression turned into the brightest smile he'd ever fucking seen in his life.The redhead shined brighter than the sun.It made his chest hurt. His eyes hurt, too. "A plain bagel with butter too, don't burn it." With that, he handed over his money."Ah," The boy behind the counter rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm not actually trained for bakery yet-""I didn't ask." He just wanted to leave before he felt like exploding."Well you certainly didn't have that attitude last night." Kirishima winked.Fucking winked. At him.He was gonna kill him, he swore to God."Just shut the hell up and take my money.""Dude, you're so much better when you're sleeping."That day, he walked out of the local coffee shop feeling lighter than usual. ---------------The day at the office was excruciatingly long, and he was feeling the exhaustion tug at his eyes the entire time. He had been texting Kirishima on and off all day, with even Kaminari introducing himself and giving him his social handles. Great, now he had more than one idiot on his hands now. The two seemed to get along pretty damn well. But because of this, he was behind on his work. By a lot.Ugh. He should learn how to stay off his phone, usually he'd be scolding the other blonde in the workplace for that kind of thing. Good thing he wasn't in class. Because he wasn't learning whatsoever.He typed ferociously as Kirishima rambled about whatever to him over the phone, trying his best to not have to stay too late in his cramped office. But he was so terribly behind. He's never been this behind on work.But he couldn't deal with the deafening silence of his own breathing and typing so he decided to allow the redheads soothing voice fill up the void. It actually helped him focus.Until, he was paused to watch a work related video. His head was slumped against his palm as the boring instructor dragged on design, shit he already knew before watching this pointless video. He could feel the exhaustion leak through his eyelids, barely staying awake before he allowed them to finally close. It was so peaceful.Peaceful enough for him to literally pass out.The last thing he heard was a "Bakugou..?" He didn't even hear the phone hanging up, either.It wouldn't have bene the first time he fell asleep in his office, usually waking up to someone knocking on his door in the morning. Then, he would just start the day all over again after running to go grab his daily coffee with a huge soreness in his lower back.But tonight, that wasn't the case.He was startled awake when he felt a calloused hand run through his hair, snapping his eyes open thinking there was an intruder.But he was met with red.Red everything.
Kirishima?!
"What the fuck?- How- how did you get here?" He demanded.Kirishima smiled, a hint of embarrassment written on his face. "Oh, you know, just pulled some strings."Kaminari.He should've never let them meet on the phone."Why are you here.""Bro, I couldn't let you fall asleep in your office. That'd be like, so unmanly of me!" He exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air to prove his own point. Bakugou rolled his eyes, unsure what to say."So you just show up to my work, my office, unannounced?" He grumbled."Yep." The other said proudly, popping the 'p'. "Also, I noticed that your car wasn't here. 'Cuz there isn t like, any cars here.""Hmph. Mom must've took my car so I don't get a fee.""Then how the hell are you supposed to you know, get home?!" Worry filled Kirishima's face.Bakugou rolled his eyes again. Dork. "I don't I usually just sleep here.""Man, that's sad. You'll hurt yourself doing that."Kirishima, the sun himself, was now frowning. He kind of hated how it looked on his features. It didn't suit him very well."Don't worry about me. I'm fuckin' fine, loser. It's what owning a business is."Kirishima shook off the insult, offering his hand out. "Come on. I'll bring you home."Bakugou took his hand, grabbing his coat with his free hand. Or so he thought.A blush dusted the redheads face. "Or.. you can come over to my place. It's not much, though.""I'd rather die. Also, It's like midnight." He actually wouldn't have minded going over to his apartment, but it was way too late and he'd rather sleep in his bed rather than couch."Okay, that's fine."They were almost to the elevator when Bakugou realized..They were still holding hands. He snatched his hand away. "Freak."Kirishima pouted. "You could've pulled away anytime, bro."There was silence after that.The reached the parking lot, and of course Kirishima had an eye sore of a massive red Jeep. It was old and beat up, but it was absolutely out there. It suited him. He climbed in and Kirishima started it up, and it was fucking freezing. He must've left his jacket inside. He was sure he grabbed it, but he was imaging things."Sorry man, it's cold. Here, hold on."Kirishima rummaged in the backseat and found an old Crimson Riot hoodie, tossing it on the blonde's lap.He couldn't insult him this time. He was an All Might fan, himself.Bakugou scowled. "I don't want this."Kirishima looked down, almost disappointed. "Sorry. I can take it back."He reached for it, but he slapped his hand away. "No." He growled. "It's fine.”Kirishima beamed at him, and Bakugou pushed away the thought of how he missed the obnoxiously bright smile. “Hope you like it, bro.”"Whatever." He huffed as he slipped it on his head.The car wasn't moving. He turned to Kirishima, who seemed to be gawking at him with a rose tint dancing across his features. "Fuck are you staring at? Let's go. I wanna go home."Kirishima seemed to snap back into reality at that, nodding quickly as he started the Jeep. "Yup. Yeah. Let's- let's ride."There was small talk in the short ride, Bakugou giving directions as they went.They finally arrived to his apartment, Kirishima seeming amazed at the quality."It's not much." He grimaced."To you, it isn't." Kirishima patted his shoulder.Bakugou shrugged him off, opening the door. He was stopped when he realized he should probably use his manners. As if he ever did.But Kirishima was... different. He didn't know how to feel about that."Um.. Thanks." He muttered, avoiding eye contact.Kirishima grinned. "No problem, dude! Let me know if you ever need anything, 'kay? And.. um.." He trailed off.Bakugou looked back at him, quirking an eyebrow in question. The other seemed.. flustered."If you ever wanna like- hang out or do something, just ask. I'm always down. I know you're like, super busy and what not, but if important enough then we can always-"Bakugou had heard enough. "Shut up. You are."The redhead went as red as his hair at that.Bakugou stalled. "Are you free tomorrow..?" His voice was barely above a whisper."Uh- Yes! Yes, I have the day off." Kirishima stuttered."Good. I'll pick you up at five.""Oh!! Okay! Sounds awesome, man!" He beamed.Bakugou sighed as he stepped out, feeling the hoodie tug at his waist. "You- you can have that, by the way. It's cold out."Bakugou only nodded. They both ignored how he was two seconds away from the door."Goodnight, Kirishima." Bakugou didn't fall asleep in the hoodie that night.He didn't.Mind your business. ------------------
"We love to read the cold, hard facts
And swear they're incorrect
We love to mistake butterflies for cardiac arrest"