"'Zu. I should've never dragged you into that situation," Ochako apologized for the millionth time. "I just wanted you to explore life a little more. I..I should've listened to you."

After Izuku left the dorm complex, he had promptly puked on the pavement outside. It was a scarring experience, honestly. The one time he decided to be open about his sexuality, he was shamed and called a slur. It was his worst nightmare come to life, and that moment mixed with his anxiety building up had made him physically sick.

They were now on their way to their individual dorms, Uraraka's being the farthest.

Izuku smiled. "It's fine. Really! I know you didn't mean for it to go south. I was starting to feel comfortable too, you know. I bet if he wasn't there, things would've gone smoother."

"That damn homophobic jerk. I can't believe he asked you that just so he could do that," Uraraka scowled, her thick brown brows furrowing. Izuku looked away.

"Well, he's my poetry partner for class, so I have to find a way to get along with him somehow."

"Your lecturer is being unreasonable. There's no way you should put up with him!" Uraraka seemed more upset than Izuku himself.

"There's nothing I can do about it; he already said to deal with it," Midoriya sighed, his forest green eyes burning holes in the pavement below him. "So I'll try to."

The two arrived at Midoriya's dorm room. "Well, go get some rest, okay?" Ochako said, hugging her friend.

"I'll try. Be careful, and text me when you're in your room," Izuku replied, and went inside.

He sat on his bed and kicked his shoes off. After slipping everything but his boxers off, he almost lied down but decided against it.

"I should brush my teeth first," Izuku muttered to himself, cringing.

_______________

Not much occurred for the two days that followed. Izuku did what he'd done best: reviewing assignments and catching up on his favourite series.

He tried to start on his poem but expressing exactly what he felt proved to be difficult. He'd written a few stanzas, but became stuck.

Since he hated to force creativity, he decided to set that aside for now. Besides, who was going to analyze his poem? He probably had to contact Katsuki somehow, and the thought alone made his head hurt.

The answer, however, came gracefully to him.

On Monday night, he got a text.

[ Oi, asparagus. - Kat ]

Izuku paled. Katsuki?

[ How'd you get this number?- Izukuwu ]

[ Kirishima. - Kat ]

Izuku was properly confused for a second, before remembering that he did indeed give Kirishima his number. This was while they were on their way to get alcohol the other night.

But why would Kirishima pass on his number like that, especially after seeing how much Katsuki hated him? Kirishima didn't seem like the kind of guy to stir trouble. Izuku concluded that Katsuki came up with a believable alibi in order to get his number.

That brought Izuku to another question. Why would he try to contact him now, after the stunt he pulled the other night? Was he trying to apologize? Did his friends put him up to it? No, Katsuki didn't seem like the type to ever go back on what he said.

Izuku decided to push all his questions aside and answer the text. Before he did, however, Katsuki sent another text.

[ Don't leave me on read. That's pretty rude of you, you little shit- Kat ]

Izuku's nostrils flared in annoyance.

[ If you're gonna insult me, then don't text me, jackass. I'm already this close to blocking you. -Izukuwu ]

[ Okay, broccoli, calm down. I'm just asking about when we should meet for the shitty assignment. - Kat ]

Izuku relaxed just a little. If it was about the homework, he could put up with texting him.

[ Fine. When are you free?- Izukuwu ]

[ Wednesday at five.- Kat ]

[ Isn't that too close to the due date? Will you be able to analyze my poem in time?- Izukuwu ]

[ Are you sure you can analyze mine in time? -Kat ]

[ Anyway, that's the only time I'm available this week, so deal with it. -Kat ]

Izuku rolled his eyes. He quickly texted a 'fine' and dropped his phone on the bed. He hoped that this meet up would go as smoothly as possible. But then again, maybe that was asking for much.

Wednesday rolled around much faster than Izuku would have liked. He and Katsuki had arranged to meet at an open eating place on campus.

Izuku miserably got ready and left. As he walked, he silently wished he had a car. It was an unrealistic thought, though. After all, he was only able to attend this prestigious school and live on campus because of his amazing grades in high school that scored him a scholarship.

Finally, he arrived at the meeting spot. There was something peaceful about the setting sun and the muffled chatter of students around him.

That peace was temporary though.

The smell of smoke, caramel, and coffee invaded the air.

"Asparagus."

Izuku looked up. Katsuki was standing before him, sporting a black hoodie and matching jeans. His soft blond hair was brushed back with a thin black headband holding it in place, which brought more attention to the pieces of metal in his nose and upper ear. He looked irritatingly fuckable.

He sure does love black, huh, Izuku thought.

"Let's make this quick," Izuku said, standing up. He reached into his bag and pulled out a paper with his poem printed on it.

"Damn, slow down, will ya?" The blond's voice was scratchy and even raspier than usual, almost like he just woke up. Izuku pretended to hate the sound.

"Why? I have stuff to do, and I'd rather not pretend to like you," The greenette retorted, surprising himself.

"Well, shit. Who knew you were so sassy?" Bakugou laughed.

Izuku himself wondered that. When did he get the balls to throw retorts like that? Katsuki really did bring out the worst in him.

"I'm a fag, remember? We're all sassy little shits," Izuku spat.

Katsuki's smile dropped, and he eyed the floor, his lips curling downwards. Izuku frowned. What was up with that? Was he pretending to be sorry?

"Whatever," Izuku muttered, pushing his hand with the poem out further. "Take this, and give me yours."

"Mmkay," Bakugou muttered. He took the paper, which made Izuku realize that he'd been holding a cigarette between his fingers the entire time. No wonder he could smell smoke mixed in with his cologne.

Bakugou folded the paper neatly and stuffed it in his pocket before pulling out another paper from his hoodie pocket. He handed it to Izuku.

Izuku scrunched up his nose before heading off. "I'll be going now. Enjoy your cancer stick."

Katsuki's eye twitched. This little guy was getting feistier by the second. "Whatever, you damn nerd."

______________