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Bakugou took pride in the fact that he got into UA, that he was going to become one of the best heroes the world had ever seen. His admiration of the number one hero, All Might, spurred along his determination and he had vowed that he would become a hero like All Might. One that would save everyone, no matter what.
So why was he seeing a ghost of his past on the TV with the headlines talking about new villains emerging. Why was he seeing the one person who had always admired and loved heroes, possibly even more than Bakugou himself, become a famous villain.
Why was Izuku there.
Bakugou just stared at the TV, silent as he thought about the past. He didn’t have to think hard to guess that the reason Izuku ended up like this was his own fault. Had he known it would lead the innocent and naive Izuku to go down a dark path, he would have never acted horribly with him. He knew he was just as naive and ignorant back then too and that there was no way to go back and fix the past now.
He had no way to fix his past mistakes, and it was difficult for him to change his personality. Bakugou’s classmates always said he was a bit too rough and joked about him becoming a hero. Really, Bakugou knew that his personality didn’t match with his ambitions- but he couldn’t help it.
And that personality and ignorant attitude is what led to the present. To Bakugou knowing he would have to face Izuku once again, in a way he would never have thought of or wanted.
Midoriya Izuku was a quiet boy Bakugou had known since he was small. He looked up to All Might just as much as Bakugou, but Izuku was born quirkless. Izuku’s dream of becoming a hero could never really come true, and it used to irk Bakugou that he could stay smiling despite anything bad happening.
The older they grew, the more people would start bullying him because he was a quirkless human who wanted to be a hero. And Bakugou stupidly joined in.
It was possibly the worst decision he had ever made.
If there was one person Izuku admired and loved just as much as All Might, it was Bakugou. Despite Bakugou’s constant attitude with Izuku, he still cheered him on, saying he believed he would become a great hero. The one person he didn’t want to be hated by was one of the people who made his life miserable. Bakugou would never understand how much every single passing day would break Izuku until he had nothing else to break.
He was a stupid teenager trying his hardest to fit in and be liked back then- still is one, but he knows better now how horrible he was before.
Bakugou thought of how he had vowed to save everyone, just like his hero All Might.
How stupid that vow was when he couldn’t possibly save the one person who believed in him the most.
The second time Bakugou faced Izuku was not through a TV screen, but eye to eye. It was during a surprise attack on the school, the students scattered trying to their best to deal with what they could. Izuku’s face was covered by a mask but somehow, Bakugou could tell that it was him. They didn’t speak for a while, just stood there waiting for the other to make a move while they were surrounded by chaos.
Izuku finally broke the silence between them as he took off the mask that covered his face. Bakugou almost let his calm facade fade when he saw Izuku’s eyes. It was as if there was no life in them, no light like there used to be. Despite the smile he wore, it felt fake.
“It’s been a while, Kacchan.” Bakugou let his calmness transform into anger now, unable to comprehend everything he was feeling and unable to put everything into words.
The only word that could escape from his lips in an angry voice was “Deku”. There was no movement from either one of them, unwilling to take a single step. Bakugou was seething with anger because standing here in front of him was a villain. Someone he’s supposed to fight, to defeat. And yet he couldn’t. Not yet.
Bakugou finally brought himself to ask the one question he needed to ask.
“Why?”
Izuku simply watched him, a smile always on his face that irritated Bakugou even more. Another villain suddenly appeared from behind Izuku, and Bakugou understood that they were leaving now, it was a signal that their work here was done. Before Bakugou could ask Izuku the same question, Izuku answered it for him.
“Kacchan, you want to know why I chose this life, so I’ll tell you before I leave.” He slowly started to turn and walk away before he continued. “The reason is that life isn’t fair, is it Kacchan? I wanted to run from the life I had. I accepted the fact that I would never become anything, that I was a walking failure. I accepted that and they took me in saying I could be useful to them.”
Izuku turned around and quickly walked over to Bakugou. Bakugou surprised took on an offensive stance and was even more surprised when Izuku just handed him a piece of old paper.
He looked up confused and still angry. “And I guess that’s all I ever really wanted.” Izuku just smiled and turned back around. Just as fast as he had arrived, he had vanished, leaving Bakugou alone with a piece of paper and a frustrated, confused mind.
Bakugo didn’t look at the contents of the little piece of paper until he was sure he was completely alone. His meeting with Izuku plagued his mind, his feelings going everywhere. Anger, disbelief, hatred, despair, regret. All of his thoughts were a jumbled mess. The contents of the piece of paper that Izuku had handed him made his head spin.
Written in that small little paper in Izuku’s handwriting were the words “I love you”.
The world around him started to spin, his vision blurring. Bakugo had never felt such intense feelings of anger and sorrow before. Why had Izuku given this to him. Why does he still feel love for him who pushed him to be who he is today. He was confused and outraged at the same time. Why did he approach him, knowing full well that Bakugo despised villains. Despite knowing this, despite everything, why?
He just couldn’t wrap his head around it no matter how hard he tried. The longer he thought about it, the more irritated he became. Bakugo put all his thoughts aside in the end and decided that it didn’t matter.
There was nothing he could do to fix this, Izuku had chosen his path and he had chosen his. No matter how much he regrets it now, nothing would change. He steeled himself to his decision to continue being the hero he aspired to be, who he knew the old Izuku would be happy to see.
A hero has to inevitably fights villains, and so he knew that he would eventually fight Izuku again. And when that time came he would fulfill his duties.
The next time Bakugo and Izuku met, Bakugo would push away all of the feelings from his past and face the present.
The next time they meet, they would fight against each other.
The next time they meet could be the last.