My Father's Son - Chapter 10

[Previous]

For the first time in what felt like months, Katsuki got to sleep in. He'd taken the morning off so he could make sure Yuuto got to his interview on time and prepared, and Inko had already volunteered to make everyone breakfast, so when he woke up at sunrise he remained snuggled in with his warm blankets and his pile of soft pillows.

Not much later, he heard the click of a door handle, and cracked his eyes open to investigate the soft footsteps.

“Morning Daddy,” Hiroki whispered, crawling in under the blankets with him. “Cuddles time.”

“Fine,” Katsuki smiled faintly, wrapping an arm around the tiny frame and pulling him close. “Just this once.”

“You say that every time, Daddy,” Hiroki giggled, nestling in with his head on Katsuki's shoulder. “I know I have to sleep in my own bed, it's okay.”

“You're a good boy,” Katsuki yawned, resting his cheek on messy curls. “Snooze with me?”

“Yes please.”

He could hear faint kitchen noises downstairs as Inko began to cook, and soon he heard little footsteps heading down too, as Yuuto got up to investigate. For once, though, hearing a kid walking around didn't make Katsuki jump out of bed to check on him or spend time with him. For once, he could just cuddle happily with his kid and let someone else handle it.

“When do you go to work?” Hiroki murmured. “Soon?”

“Not soon,” Katsuki mumbled back, sighing contentedly. “I'll walk you to kindy first.”

“Yay!”

When plates began to rattle below them, being set out for food, and the smell of bacon wafted up the stairs to greet them, Katsuki cracked his eyes back open. He ran a hand through Hiroki's hair, smiling faintly, and watched the brilliant green eyes shine up at him.

“Morning Daddy.”

“Morning buddy.”

Reluctantly they both climbed to their feet, abandoning the warmth of the cozy bed, and trudged down the stairs to investigate. For once, Katsuki was the last to arrive, finding Yuuto and Izuku already at the table, Inko setting down the last of the serving plates.

“Good morning!” she greeted them brightly, gesturing toward the place settings waiting for them. “Come get some food!”

“Thank you,” Katsuki nodded, rubbing sleep from his eyes. “It smells amazing.”

“You're very welcome!”

He slid into his seat, Hiroki right by his side, trying and failing to manage a scowl when he caught Izuku smiling at him.

“What, nerd?” he growled instead, hoping to come across as intimidating but suspecting it was just sleepy. “Out with it.”

“I've never seen you first thing in the morning before,” he grinned, reaching for a piece of bacon. “It's kind of cute, seeing you all half-asleep.”

“Shut up,” Katsuki grimaced. “Haven't had my coffee yet.”

“Coming right up!” Inko laughed, pouring a mug and bringing it around to the table. “Sorry, the machine took longer than I expected.”

“Don't apologise,” he shook his head, accepting the mug. “Thank you.”

He took a long sip, practically moaning his delight, then finally reached for some food to satisfy his grumbling stomach.

“You all sorted for today?” he asked, when he caught Yuuto's eye. “Any concerns? Questions?”

Yuuto shook his head, swallowing his bite of toast quickly.

“I'm okay, Papa will be with me.”

“Yeah. Take good care of him and make sure he doesn't say anything silly, okay?”

“I will!”

“And be extra polite, use your manners lots, and give long answers to their questions.”

“Okay!”

With all five of them gathered around the table like a happy little family, they stuffed themselves full of food, and Katsuki groaned when he sat back with a full stomach.

“How am I gonna chase villains now?” he chuckled, patting the tiny bulge of his stomach. “I'm too heavy.”

“You'll be great,” Hiroki assured him, beaming. “You'll catch all the villains, even with a full tummy!”

“Give it to me straight, kiddo. Are my abs gone?”

He pulled his shirt up a little and Hiroki giggled, shaking his head.

“Never, Daddy! But even if they were, you'd still be the best! And more importantly, I would still love you!”

“You really know how to cheer a guy up,” Katsuki smiled fondly, reaching over to pat his head. “Thanks. Alright, how about you go get dressed for kindy while I do the dishes, and then you can come help me get the boys ready for their interview?”

“Okay!” he agreed with a grin, pushing his chair back to stand up. “Thank you for the food, Mrs. Midoriya! I'll be back soon!”

“You're very welcome!”

He darted off up the stairs to put his uniform on, and Katsuki pointed at Izuku's room stubbornly.

“Go get dressed so I can see before I leave.”

“I can dress myself, Katsuki.”

“We'll see about that. You too, Yuuto. Go put your new suit on.”

“Okayyy,” he sighed, pouting a little as he stood up. “Thank you for the food, Nana.”

“You're welcome, Yuuchan!”

Despite his protests, Inko insisted on helping to carry the dishes back to the kitchen, rinsing them off and handing them to Katsuki to load into the dishwasher. She smiled and hummed the whole time, as if she were having the time of her life, and Katsuki couldn't help but feel a fondness for her.

“Thank you for all the help you've been giving me around here,” Katsuki said quietly, as he poured detergent into the little slot. “Please don't overwork yourself, though.”

“Don't worry about me, Katsuki, I'm quite alright!” she assured him. “I've been doing much better lately! Having a warm home has helped a lot.”

“I'm glad. Just keep using your heater whenever you get chilly, okay? I know you're used to worrying about bills and shit, but I've got it covered, I promise.” He paused, glancing up at her and cracking a little smile. “And just between you and me, I despise the cold, so it's a great excuse for me to keep the house nice and warm.”

“That seems logical, with your quirk,” Inko grinned. “I imagine with a sweat-based power, you'd be inclined toward being extra warm when you can.”

“Yeah, I always assumed my body was wired that way so I could get more use out of my quirk,” he agreed. “Does Yuuto have to sweat for his, too?”

“I don't think so, at least not that I've noticed,” she hummed, thinking back. “He just pushes those little particles out at will, but maybe the sweat is causing them internally? Who knows.”

“Does he practice with it often? I guess he probably doesn't get much of a chance.”

“No, we let him play with it at home as long as he wasn't too noisy, but we didn't want to risk him getting in trouble if he accidentally damaged something at school or the park or anything.”

“Would it be alright if I offered to help him out?” Katsuki asked, straightening up now that the dishwasher was running. “Me and Hiroki train with his a bit, mostly just in the garage where everything is concrete, but sometimes I take him to one of the quirk gyms where me and my friends train. Usually during his school vacations. He seems to enjoy it, and it gives me peace of mind that he can defend himself a little if anything happens to him.”

“Of course! I think Izuku would like to go along too, if you don't mind taking him. He's always been fascinated by quirks. He had this collection of notebooks, growing up. He called them his 'hero analysis' books, for when he became a hero in the future. He got up to maybe twenty-something of them before he stopped.”

“What made him stop?”

“He applied to a hero high school and was turned away because of his quirk. Or, lack of one, I suppose. For a couple more years he worked on them a little, on and off, but once he started university he seemed to accept that it wasn't going to happen. I still have all the notebooks downstairs, in the things we brought from the apartment. He doesn't like to look at them anymore, but I think they were very sweet and show some wonderful intelligence. One day he's going to look back and remember how much fun he had working on them, so I want to have them there for him when that day comes!”

“That's really sweet. Um, do you think I could see them? I can ask his permission, I guess, or I can just... Not tell him you showed me.”

Inko giggled, but when Katsuki smirked at her she nodded.

“Of course you can. I'll haul them out over the weekend.”

“Brilliant. Alright, I'd better go see how these idiots are doing with their suits.”

“Don't let them leave without showing me!”

“I wouldn't dream of it.”

He headed to Izuku's room first, back near the stairwell, and leaned against the wall beside his door. He could hear fussing from inside, little mutters and shuffles, but he gave it another minute before he spoke up.

“Doing okay in there?” he called. “You're taking a while.”

“Y-Yeah! Almost d-done! I just- ugh!”

“Do you have your pants on?”

“What? Yes! Of course! I'm just-”

Katsuki pushed the door open, amused when Izuku whined at him for it. Sure enough, his pants were on, but his previously neat shirt was now wrinkling around him as he struggled to tuck it in.

“Idiot,” Katsuki snorted, crossing the room in two steps and grabbing his shoulders, turning him away. “Hold still.”

He gave it a sharp tug in the back, straightening it out, then repeated the motion on both sides. Finally he turned the nerd around again, carefully tucking in the front end but letting Izuku handle his own fly.

“Th-Thanks, I guess,” Izuku blushed, gaze darting away. “I guess I'm out of practice.”

“It's fine. Shitty-hair tucks his shirt into his underwear because he's so bad at tucking it in to his pants neatly, so I'm used to incompetent idiots.”

“Hey!”

Katsuki smirked, and Izuku's indignance faded immediately. When Katsuki picked up the nice new jacket, holding it up, Izuku slipped into it obediently, fastening the buttons down the front and giving Katsuki a sheepish smile.

“Okay, lay it on me, how bad is it?”

“I should have sent you out for a haircut first,” Katsuki grumbled, raking his fingers through Izuku's curls as he attempted to neaten them up. “How do you deal with this shit? It's so thick and dry, do you even use conditioner?”

“I do!”

“You need a better one,” Katsuki informed him, picking up a little bottle of hair gel from Izuku's dresser that appeared untouched. "Hold still.”

Izuku's face burned bright red as Katsuki fiddled with his hair, trying to comb it into some sense of order, and after a silence that spread just a little too long, Katsuki found himself opening his mouth.

“My first internship was with Best Jeanist,” he spoke up. “He spent the entire first day forcing me into a pair of tight jeans and trying to do that weird prissy hair shit like him and his sidekicks.”

“Oh my gosh,” Izuku giggled. “Did it work?”

“Eventually. It took like four cans of hairspray, and if I got angry and moved too quick it popped right back up again.”

“I bet you looked very pretty,” Izuku laughed again, ignoring Katsuki's eye roll. “Hold on, let me see.”

He reached up, flattening Katsuki's hair out with his hands, laughing again when he saw it.

“You must have looked so silly!” Izuku snorted, hiccuping through his laughter. “Oh you poor thing!”

“Shut the hell up,” Katsuki growled, slapping his hands away. “It's not that funny, nerd!”

“Kacchan is such a pretty boy,” Izuku sang. “You should try it more often!”

“Fuck you!”

He was ready to continue arguing, but the footsteps on the stairs stopped him immediately, and he stepped away. He was about as satisfied as he was gonna get with Izuku's uncooperative hair, but when Yuuto shyly stopped in the doorway his frustration melted away.

“You're so handsome,” Katsuki praised, bending down to help him with the tie hanging crooked and loose around his neck. “I'll help you with this today, you've just gotta learn for when school starts, okay? We'll practice.”

Super slow, he tied a neat little knot in the stripy tie, sliding it up to sit snugly around his collar. The end tucked into his jacket a bit, hopefully enough to stay put, and Katsuki nudged his little chin up so their eyes would meet.

“You look perfect,” Katsuki told him sincerely. “Keep your head up, okay? Stand tall and be confident, you're gonna be amazing.”

“Thanks,” he mumbled, pulling at his sleeve lightly. “Um, and for buying it for me, too.”

“You're very welcome,” Katsuki assured him. “It was my pleasure. I have something else for you, too.”

“You do?”

“Uh-huh.”

He pulled out a little toy he'd pocketed before breakfast, smiling as he tucked it into Yuuto's hand.

“It's the first one, they haven't been put up for sale yet,” he explained. “But I complained at them for not asking me about the plushies, so they sent me one to make sure I was okay with it.”

In his clutches, Yuuto found a squishy little orb, face lighting up when he saw Katsuki's familiar mask and smirk printed on it.

“If you get nervous, you can give it a squeeze,” Katsuki explained. “And it'll be like I'm there with you to help you be brave, yeah?”

Yuuto flung his arms around Katsuki's waist, hugging him tighter than ever before, and Katsuki laughed as he squeezed him back.

“You're gonna be amazing, I know you are,” he whispered. “You've just gotta be a little more confident in yourself. We both know your Papa is gonna get nervous, so you've gotta be tough for him. You've gotta answer all your questions confidently in a nice big voice so that they won't have to talk to Papa much.”

“I will, I promise.”

“You're such a good boy. I'm gonna be so proud when you come home and tell me all about it.”

“I'll tell you everything,” he promised. “Every single word.”

“I know you will. My big brave boy.”

They finally parted, and Yuuto slipped his new toy into a pocket with a smile.

“I got you this, too,” Katsuki continued, handing him a little green card. “I put Hiroki's school allowance straight onto his, I'll do the same for you. So whenever you need to take a train or a bus, you can use this, and if you need a drink or a snack or anything you can use it for that too.”

“Really? Just for me?”

“Uh-huh. Just don't buy too many cakes with it, you'll get sick.”

“I promise!”

“Good boy. I think there's a little pocket on the inside of your jacket, why don't you tuck it into that one just in case you need it today for some reason?”

“Okay! Thank you!”

He hunted down the little slot in his jacket lining, slipping it inside and pulling the tiny zip across the top to keep it secure. With one last hug, Yuuto stepped back, smiling up at Izuku when he emerged with a stupidly crooked tie.

“What am I gonna do with you?” Katsuki sighed, reaching out to fix it stubbornly. “Even Hiroki can do this, you've had like ten times as many years to learn it.”

“I'm not fifty, Katsuki!”

“He didn't start learning when he was an infant,” Katsuki snorted. “He started about two years ago.”

“Fine,” Izuku pouted. “I wore one every day in high school, it's not like I've never done it before!”

“Was it short, fat, and lopsided every time you wore it for school?”

Izuku hesitated, looking away stubbornly.

“Maybe,” he admitted, pouting. “Shut up! I bet you never even wore yours!”

“Correct,” Katsuki smirked. “Ties are for interviews and weddings, not every day at school. You think heroes run around wearing ties while they fight? Like hell. There was no reason for us to wear them to school.”

“But everyone else did, I bet.”

“Well yeah, they were all lame nerds.”

“Didn't you graduate at the top of your class?”

“Yeah, but I wasn't lame,” he emphasised. “How the hell did you know that, anyway?”

“You think I never looked into your background?” Izuku grinned. “I was watching you even in high school, let alone when we'd both graduated.”

“Nerd.”

“That's me.”

With the tie fixed, Katsuki gave him a little flick in the forehead, nodding toward the living room.

“Come on, Inko wants to see you before you go.”

“Fine,” Izuku huffed, dislodging a little strand of hair that he quickly fixed before Katsuki could whine about it. “Come on Yuuto, let's show Nana how handsome you look.”

Hiroki joined them as they headed into the living room, bouncing up and down when he saw the matching suits.

“You're both so pretty!” he praised, clapping his hands. “We picked well, Daddy!”

“Yeah, we did,” Katsuki grinned. “You ready for school, bud?”

“Uh-huh! Just gotta pack my things and say goodbye!”

“Alright, I'm gonna go get changed, meet you downstairs in three minutes.”

“I'll be there!”

He left Hiroki to dish out his hugs, heading back upstairs to change into his hero costume for patrols. Yuuto stared at him in awe, eyes shining, when he returned to say goodbye, and with a little smirk he hoisted him up into his arms.

“Inko, you mind?” he asked, pointing at the fancy little camera she'd been snapping photos with already. “I've been promising him a picture for a while and we never got around to it.”

Yuuto beamed at the lens, when she picked it up with a smile of her own, and Katsuki held him close. As the camera flashed, he had another thought, digging his mask out of his bag and tying it around Yuuto's face.

“There, now we match,” Katsuki laughed, leaning in for Inko to take another snapshot. “It looks good on you. We're gonna have to get you a cool mask too, when you get your first costume.”

“Yeah!”

When Katsuki set him down, he pulled the mask off carefully, handing it back with the biggest smile Katsuki had ever seen.

“This is what I want the teachers to see, okay?” Katsuki smiled, poking at his chubby little cheeks. “I want them to see this big sweet smile.”

“I'll try!”

“Should I try bribery?”

“What does that mean?”

“It means if you do a good job, I'll take you to work and you can see my agency and meet all the other heroes I work with.”

“Really?!”

“Only if you do a super good job.”

“I will! Promise!”

“Good boy. Alright, I'd better go to work. Tell me all about it when I get home, okay?”

“Okay! Go catch lots of villains!”

“Will do.”

Izuku watched fondly as Katsuki left, the gorgeous smile still left on Yuuto's face. He'd been a huge Downfall fan since the moment he was old enough to watch the news – even before he could talk, he was grabbing at the screen and cooing every time Katsuki was on. In hindsight, Izuku wondered if it was somehow genetic, if Yuuto had recognised Katsuki as his own kind, but maybe he was just a big nerd for the number one hero like Izuku had been for All Might.

“You ready to go, sweetie?”

“Yeah!”

“Alright,” he nodded, picking up Katsuki's keys from the kitchen counter. “Let's go have some fun in this fancy car.”

With last kisses goodbye for Inko, they headed down to the garage, and Izuku pulled up directions to the fancy school. 

Everything about the situation made Izuku feel out of place. He didn't wear suits, he didn't drive fancy cars – or cars at all, for that matter – and he certainly didn't belong in front of the big old buildings with their spires and intricate architecture. He held Yuuto's hand a little tighter than usual as they walked up to the front office, and he couldn't help but notice Yuuto's other hand slipping into his pocket, playing with whatever Katsuki had given him in the hall.

“You ready, bubs?” Izuku asked fondly. “Gonna go show them how awesome you are?”

“Uh-huh. I'm ready Papa, don't worry, I'll take care of you!”

“Thanks, hun.”

Taking a deep breath, he pushed open the heavy oak door, ushering Yuuto into the warm little foyer.

“Hi there! How can I help you?”

“My name is Yuuto!” he spoke up, before Izuku could open his mouth. “We have an appointment for an interview.”

“It's nice to meet you, Yuuto! Why don't you take a seat and I'll go see if they're ready for you?”

“Thank you!”

Izuku shook his head in disbelief as Yuuto dragged him over to the sofas, sitting down and grinning when Izuku joined him. The cushions were soft and squishy, and Izuku knew in normal circumstances Yuuto would have been bouncing up and down on them, but for today he sat still, his knees together, hands clasped neatly in his lap.

“You're doing great,” Izuku told him with a smile. “They're all gonna love you.”

“I know!”

Soon enough, a young man was joining them in the lobby, and Yuuto stood up quickly when he looked their way.

“You must be Yuuto,” he smiled. “And Mr. Midoriya.”

“It's nice to meet you, Sir!” Yuuto piped up, bowing quickly. “Thank you for taking the time to see us today!”

“It's my pleasure, Yuuto. Come on through.”

They followed him down a long hallway with high ceilings, and Izuku's eyes wandered over the portraits and paintings, the certificates, the trophies, all of which seemed to pointedly line their walkway. At the end of what felt like the school's version of a walk of fame, the man knocked on a door, showing them into an office where two more men waited for them.

“Come have a seat,” the older of the men waved them in. “Welcome to our school.”

“Thank you, Sir!” Yuuto spoke up again, voice nice and clear just like Katsuki had reminded him multiple times. “My name is Yuuto, and this is my Papa, Midoriya Izuku. Thank you for having us today!”

“Thank you,” Izuku echoed, bowing as he stepped inside. “We appreciate your accommodation.”

“It's a pleasure to have you,” the man who showed them in replied, as he took his seat behind the heavy wooden desk, polished until it shone. “This is Principal Yamanaka, Mr. Suzuki, and my name is Kamakura.”

“Please, have a seat,” the Principal added, gesturing toward two chairs opposite them. “Why don't you tell us a little about yourself, Yuuto?”

“Of course! My name is Midoriya Yuuto, and I'm five years old, but I turn six next month so I will be starting school next year! When I grow up I want to be the number one hero, and I want to be a good role model for kids, so I want to be a smart and kind person as well as being strong.”

“That's very nice to hear. And can you tell us about your family?”

“Yes, Sir! I have a funny family, some of us only came together recently, but I think they're the best family in the world. This is my Papa, he works as a journalist and gets to write cool articles for newspapers. I have another father too, though, named Bakugou Katsuki. He's an amazing hero, with the coolest quirk. My Nana lives with us too, Papa's mother, because we're the only family she has and it would be sad for her to live on her own. She takes care of me if Papa and Dad have to work, and she makes very nice food for everybody. My brother is also my best friend, his name is Hiroki and he's five like me. We have the same birthday! He's Papa's son, and I'm Dad's son, but we got switched by accident when we were babies so now I get to have two fathers and a big family!”

The three men seemed a little surprised by the words, and when Principal Yamanaka looked over to see Izuku's reaction, he smiled.

“My partner passed away in childbirth,” he explained. “and Yuuto's birth mother isn't in the picture. The hospital made a mix up and we raised each other's son for five years.”

“And you've solved that situation by coming together as one?”

“Yes,” Izuku agreed. “The hospital recommended switching them back, but that was unthinkable to us both. Katsuki is a very generous man and he asked us to move in with him so we could raise both the boys together.”

“That's certainly not a traditional family, is it?” he chuckled. “I'm impressed by your problem-solving skills.”

“Thank you, Sir,” Izuku laughed. “It seems to be working well so far.”

“So tell us, Mr. Midoriya, who do you think your son takes after? Yourself? Mr. Bakugou? His mother?”

“I think he's a combination of myself and Katsuki,” Izuku answered honestly. “Katsuki and I have a lot of similar personality traits, so it's hard to pick out whether they might come from nature or nurture. Yuuto is a lot braver than I am, which I suspect comes from Katsuki, but he's a lot more compassionate and social than Katsuki is, which I'd like to think is my influence. As you can see, though, he looks just like Katsuki, so genetically he certainly takes from him rather than his mother.”

“And Yuuto, which of your parents is your favourite?”

To Izuku's disbelief, Yuuto giggled.

“I can't choose, Sir! I love them both! Dad is amazing and my favourite hero ever, but Papa has looked after me since I was just a baby! He gives me cuddles when I'm sad or sick, and he works extra hard to make sure Nana and I have everything I need!”

“That's a good answer,” Principal Yamanaka smiled. “We all have our strengths, don't we? As parents or otherwise.”

“Yes, Sir!”

“What would you say your strengths are in school?”

“I love English class! I spend lots of time studying heroes from other countries so I think that has helped me with reading and listening to English, which is good because it means when I'm older I can travel all over the world to help more people. I think I'm getting good at math, too, but I need to keep working hard.”

They asked a few more questions, and all Izuku could do was watch and stare as he answered everything with perfect eloquence and no hesitation. He felt like he was watching an entirely new kid, full of his usual intelligence but with a newfound confidence to match. He kept his head up high, his smile wide, and soon they were exchanging a last round of thanks, Izuku dismissed to the foyer and brought a cup of nice tea while Yuuto sat his written exam.

“He's a lovely boy,” Mr. Kamakura praised, sitting down beside him with his own mug. “We heard about your circumstances from Mr. Bakugou, but I was surprised to hear him explain it so easily.”

“The boys are both amazing,” Izuku agreed. “They became best friends the moment they met, so it turned out to be a pretty easy transition.”

“Has it been difficult at all? Living together?”

“Honestly, no,” Izuku chuckled. “I'm still a little apprehensive about letting Katsuki pay for things, but he's never made me feel bad about it or uncomfortable that I can't buy them everything they need, he just wants to share what he has with the rest of us.”

“You might be interested to know, then, that we do offer financial aid to families who need it,” Mr. Kamakura informed him. “If for any reason it doesn't work out, he doesn't need to lose his place in the school because of money. Please don't hesitate to come see us if you ever need it.”

“Thank you, that's really good to know.”

“All the same, I hope it works out,” he offered with a smile. “You and Yuuto seem to have a very good relationship with Hiroki and Katsuki, I would hate to see that go away.”

“Are you, um...”

“My wife went to school with him,” he nodded. “He's been picking my brain about the school for a year now, making sure it was good enough for his baby.”

“He's certainly a perfectionist,” Izuku laughed weakly.

“That's a kind way of putting it. He hasn't been yelling at you too much, has he?”

“What? No, never!”

“Oh, really? Wow. I mean, that's good,” he grinned sheepishly. “It's just, um, surprising.”

“Does he yell at you?”

“Not me, but my wife? All the time,” he laughed. “That's just the way he is, she doesn't take offense from it.”

“He probably doesn't want to yell at me in front of the kids,” Izuku smiled wryly. “I'd better make sure I'm never alone with him.”

When Yuuto returned with his test, his smile still stretched across his face, and Izuku took that as a very good sign.

“All finished?” Mr. Kamakura asked, standing up and accepting the papers. “You were super fast, well done!”

“Thank you!”

They said their last farewells, a final 'thank you for having us', and then they were back in the parking lot, breathing matching sighs of relief.

“You did so good,” Izuku praised, scooping him up into a tight hug. “Where did you learn all that stuff?!”

“Cram school!” Yuuto grinned back, winding his arms around Izuku's neck. “The teachers helped me!”

“Yeah? Maybe that school was a good move after all.”

“Hirokun taught me too,” Yuuto giggled. “He's super smart.”

“I'm glad you two get along so well,” Izuku smiled, nuzzling at Yuuto's soft hair. “I was super worried when this all started, but you and Hiroki made it all so easy for us.”

“I'm happy, Papa! I like having more family!”

“I'm glad. Alright, Nana wants us to pick up groceries on the way home, can you send her a text for me while I drive?”

“Uh-huh!”

“I need to get this jacket off, too. I feel like an idiot.”

“You look handsome Papa.”

“Thanks sweetie, you do too.”

He stripped off his tie and jacket, tossing them in the backseat beside Yuuto, and Yuuto took his phone, happily tapping out a message to Inko. As Izuku climbed into the driver's seat to pull out, he was relieved that the interview was over, that it seemed to go well, but all the possible consequences and further steps weighed heavy on his mind. Potential rejection was never a fun idea, but even the concept of being accepted was daunting: New uniforms to buy, train routes to teach to the kids, textbooks and notebooks to collect, and frankly just the idea of the kids being gone every day, from early morning to early evening. He'd gotten so used to being at home with his little boy, it was hard to think of letting go.

“Got the list!” Yuuto grinned, waving the phone at him in the rear view mirror. “There's lots of yummies on it!”

“Awesome, let's go buy some good food, then.”

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