The Two Types of Wingmen [Bakawks] - Part 6

[Click for Ch5] 

Off in a corner of the school grounds, Katsuki traded blows with Deku, smirking when Deku failed to avoid his blast and went skidding through the dirt. A grin still on his face, Deku jumped back up, green lightning bursting from him as he attempted to catch Katsuki off-guard.

“I missed this,” Deku laughed, when Katsuki easily avoided the attack. “It’s been weeks!”

“Yeah,” Katsuki shrugged, ducking beneath a stream of air that tried to knock him off balance. “Been busy.”

“Me too, not having the gym on-site adds a lot of travel time to my day.”

“Same.”

“You found somewhere to go, then? I asked Todoroki if he’d invited you to Endeavor’s with us and he didn’t really answer. I thought maybe you’d had a fight with him again.”

“I have somewhere else,” Katsuki assured him. “Halfie probably knew that.”

“Speak of the devil,” Deku grinned, raising one hand in a wave. “Hey, Todoroki! You wanna join us?”

“Sorry to interrupt, I was looking for Bakugou.”

“Shit, is it six already?”

“Yeah, you not coming tonight?”

“Just lost track of time.”

“Are you not visiting your mother tonight, Midoriya?”

“Nah, she’s caught the flu. I wanted to go take care of her but she insisted I stay here so I don’t catch it from her. Kacchan’s Mom is looking after her for me.”

“Oh, would you like to come over for dinner, then?” he offered, gesturing toward Katsuki. “We have dinner with my sister on Saturdays, but you’re not usually around. I’m sure she’d love to see you.”

“Really? Yeah! Sure! I wouldn’t be in the way?”

“No, not at all. I’ll send her a text and let her know you’re coming, she’ll be happy. Do you two want to go shower?”

“Yeah, gimme ten minutes,” Katsuki sighed, grabbing his phone and water bottle from under the trees. “I’ll be quick.”

“No rush, we can catch the next train, it’s about fifteen minutes later. I’ll tell her we’ll be slightly late, we always get there first anyway.”

“Alright. Grab the cakes for me while you’re waiting, they’re in the fridge.”

“Say please.”

“Fuck you.”

“No thank you.”

“If you damage them I’ll kill you.”

“That’s not very heroic of you.”

“Don’t care.”

He cleaned off in the communal bathrooms and hurried up to his room to grab a change of clothes, dithering at his closet door as he considered everything he owned – sure, Hawks had already seen him sweaty and bloody and gross, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t occasionally look nice, too, right? It’s not like anyone would know he’d made an effort.

He picked out his nicest jeans, cursing them for how form-fitting they felt over his thighs, but zipping them up anyway, then reached for one of the few button-up shirts he owned. The moment he caught sight of himself in the mirror he changed his mind, switching it for a  scarlet t-shirt that he knew matched his eyes, leaving the button-up open over the top.

There, a perfect mix of casual and classy – Katsuki was an attractive guy, he knew that, even if some people thought it made him conceited to say it. And what kind of idiot would he be to not take advantage of it?  

Deku eyed him curiously when they met up back downstairs, as if he wasn’t sure if he wanted to mention it or not, but Shouto just cracked a little smirk and handed him the box of carefully-crafted cakes. He’d spent all day on them, layering sponge with cream and covering it in chocolate ganache and berries, he’d even drawn out some lacy patterns in melted chocolate and set them in the fridge as decoration. And if one in particular happened to have a pair of chocolate wings on the top rather than the aimless swirls, well, no one ever had to know it was different.

He’d carefully laid them out in a container so they wouldn’t get damaged, then tucked the container into a box with an ice pack underneath to keep them cool. He wasn’t going to take any chances, after the amount of work he’d put in to make them perfect.

It was a tense trip, full of Shouto and Deku chatting without a care in the world while Katsuki kept his box tight to his chest, watching for anything or anyone that might trip him or bump him. He felt like he held his breath the entire way to the front door, only letting it out when he’d safely set it down on the kitchen counter.

“I brought dessert,” he mumbled, when Fuyumi beamed at him.  

“Wow, thank you! Can I sneak a peek?”

“If you want.”

He opened the lid for her to look, and her jaw dropped when she saw the neat little cakes, eyes wide when she looked up at him again.

“Wow, Bakugou! I didn’t know you were a baker, too! You really are a talented boy, aren’t you?”

His cheeks flooded with warmth, but Fuyumi only smiled at him; she gave out praise so easily and naturally, Katsuki was never quite sure how to handle it.

“There they are!” Hawks grinned, when the trio made it through to the dining room. “Was starting to think you’d run away or something.”

“Good to see you, Hawks,” Shouto nodded, rounding the table to sit opposite him, Deku at his side. “How was work?”

“It was good, nice and chill for once. Long time no see, Midoriya. How’ve you been?”

“Good, thank you!” Deku squeaked, eyes shining. “I saw your fight the other day on the news, it was incredible! How do you make those feathers do different things at once? You saved that one civilian behind you without even looking at her, it was incredible!”

Katsuki huffed quietly, hating himself for how weird it made him feel to see Deku gush like that. He was used to it, obviously – he’d known the guy for almost eighteen years, it wasn’t his first time seeing the nerd freak out over heroes – but for some reason it just rubbed him the wrong way, in that moment.

“Have a seat,” Fuyumi smiled, waving toward the empty seat beside Hawks, straight across the table from Deku. “I’ve got everything under control!”

“You sure you don’t need a hand?”

“I’ve got it, thank you though! Take a load off, I’m sure you’ve been working hard today.”

He nodded faintly, sliding into the seat, face burning bright red when Hawks reached out to mess up his hair.

“There’s the little porcupine,” he grinned, sparing a moment to glance over at the blush that arose. “Thought maybe you’d chickened out.”

“You’re the only chicken here, birdbrain.”

“Very creative, your best one yet.”

“Shut the hell up.”

He glared as the hand left him, even though he knew the impact was ruined by the stupid pink in his cheeks, and across the table, Deku’s eyes flicked back and forth between them.  Thankfully he’d learned to repress his mumbling in the last few years, but still his lips moved silently, calculating. When Shouto gave him that infuriating smile, though, so knowing and smug, Katsuki knew he’d lost any chance of it not being a big deal. He was going to be hearing all about it for years.  

Then again, if he managed to secure that date Hawks had teased about, it would be worth it in the end.

Hawks and Deku continued to talk enthusiastically about the last week of villains, and Katsuki just sat quietly, savouring the food Fuyumi had brought out to them. She really was a damn good cook, he rarely took the time to cook any decent meals for himself, more focussed on covering his nutritional needs in a hurry rather than care about the taste. Other than the occasional Sunday he deigned to visit his parents, it was all quick, balanced, easy meals, so Fuyumi’s elegant and expansive cooking was a welcome reprieve.  

As he ate, though, Katsuki couldn’t help but notice the subtle little movements Hawks made. Whether it was a brush of his wing against Katsuki’s back, or a little nudge with his elbow or thigh to get his attention and try to draw him into conversation, Hawks never seemed to go long without touching him or at least looking at him, like he was making sure he was still there.

When dessert time came, Katsuki felt his stomach churning, leaping up to help clear the plates and start on the dishes. He could hear the others talking and laughing behind him, his hair standing on end as he wondered what they could be joking about, but Fuyumi’s smile was surprisingly reassuring.

“Hawks is a very reserved person, despite the way he acts. It’s nice to see him finally open up with someone.”

Katsuki stayed quiet, rinsing plates in the sink, trying to pretend his cheeks weren’t burning up all over again.

“Just make sure you take care of yourself, won’t you? I love the man and I’m sure he would never try to take advantage of you, but with such an age gap between you, you can never be too cautious.”

“Is it weird for me to try?” he asked quietly, sneaking a glance her way. “You’re the same age as him, right? Do you think it’s weird to date an eighteen year old?”

“You’re an adult, and in a few years no one would even look twice at the age difference. I think you should be careful and not try to move too quickly, and I think you should talk to your parents about it to make sure they’re okay with it too and keeping an eye on you and everything, but I don’t think you should rule it out just because you’re younger than him. I would consider it, if I liked the person a lot.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she smiled, patting his shoulder lightly. “Since you two have been spending time together, you both seem very happy.”

“I am,” he admitted, more of a grumble than actual words, though he knew she understood all the same. “I hope he is.”

“You want to prove you’re an adult, right? So approach it like an adult. Sit down with him and talk about it, about any feelings and concerns you might have, and see what comes out of it. It’s better than never knowing, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll try.”

With the dishes neatly stacked in the dishwasher, Fuyumi opened the box of desserts, pausing a moment to marvel again at the impeccable decorations. Katsuki looked away awkwardly when she spotted the wings, and with a little chuckle she reached for a stack of clean plates to divide them up.

“Why don’t you take these two out first?” she suggested, handing him the wing cake and one of the generic kind. “Heroes first, right?”

“Yeah.” He cracked a tiny smile. “I’ll be right back.”

With a plate in each hand, he returned to the dining room, setting one in front of Endeavor’s exhausted face and the other in front of Hawks. He didn’t stick around to see their reactions, just slipped away to get the next set, hearing a quiet “holy shit” behind him.

He balanced three in his hands this time, to cover Natsuo, Shouto and Deku, and by the time he was done setting them down, Fuyumi was at his side with two more, the pair settling back into their seats.

“You made these?” Natsuo asked, turning his plate from side to side to look closer. “Wow, Bakugou, you’re so talented.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“Says the guy who spent four hours in the kitchen today,” Shouto snorted, picking up his spoon. “At least we can finally eat them now.”

Katsuki shot him a glare, debating how accurately he could find Shouto’s shins beneath the table to kick him, but thankfully Deku beat him to the punch, thumping him with a knee and giving him a pointed look.

“Sorry, I mean, they look great, thanks for making them.”

As everyone else began to dig in, humming their approval and praising Katsuki’s baking skills, Hawks still stared at his perfectly decorated little cake. He nudged the chocolate wings with his fingertip, turned it around to look at every angle, and only when Katsuki narrowed his eyes at him did he deign to take a spoonful.

“Oh my god,” he mumbled, before he’d even swallowed. “It’s so soft.”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Katsuki chided him, blushing all the same. “Just eat the damn cake.”

For once in his life, Hawks obeyed, and Katsuki breathed a sigh of relief. The conversation moved on, letting him relax a little, but when he stood up to clear the dishes, it was Endeavor who joined him – something Katsuki wasn’t sure he’d ever seen, throughout his entire history of meals in the Todoroki household over the years.

“The cake was delicious,” he said awkwardly, as he stacked plates beside the sink.

“Thank you.”

They rinsed and loaded dishes in a peaceful, if slightly awkward, silence, and it wasn’t until they were finished that Endeavor looked right at him.

“He doesn’t shut up about you, he’s always prattling on about you coming to use his gym.”

“And you want me to tell him to cut it out?”

“No, I just thought you should know.”

He took a few steps toward the doorway, pausing on the threshold for a moment.

“Talk to your father,” he said sternly, without looking back. “I would want to know, if it was Shouto.”

“I will.”

“Good.”

He slipped the leftover cakes into the fridge for the Todorokis to eat later, and finally he returned to the dining room, finding everyone gathering their things to part for the night. Hawks eyed him briefly, but didn’t open his mouth, and Katsuki cringed when Deku shot him a big smile.

“Let’s walk to the station together, Kacchan!”

“Sure,” he grunted, refusing to move his gaze for fear of giving himself away. “Whatever.”

Despite his best efforts, when Hawks stepped out the door with them, Deku caught on instantly. His mouth moved silently as he searched for words or excuses, but Katsuki shook his head when the green eyes darted his way.

“It was good to see you again, Midoriya,” Hawks said brightly, patting him on the back. “It’s been a long time since we caught up. Are you and Shouto still close?”

“Yeah! He’s one of my best friends!” Deku grinned. “I just normally visit my Mom on the weekends. Kacchan tries to avoid visiting his.”

“Kacchan?” Hawks asked, the corner of his lips twitching toward a smirk.

“Don’t even think about it,” Katsuki scowled. “The nerd only gets a stupid pass on it because he was a toddler when he started.”

“Laaaame. I’ll stick with hedgehog, then.”

“Ugh, you’re the worst, you damn pelican.”

Hawks only laughed at him, didn’t seem to care at all about the weak attempt at an insult, and Katsuki rolled his eyes – the asshole was never affected by anything, it seemed.

“The cakes were impressive, did you really spend four hours on them?”

Katsuki didn’t answer, but with a conspiring little smile, Deku nodded.

“He made three different batches because he wasn’t happy with the first two. His friends were happy though, they got to eat the leftovers.”

“You’re such a perfectionist,” Hawks chuckled. “Well it worked, they were perfect.”

“He wouldn’t let anyone else in the kitchen all day. The moment we finished classes he was in there cooking, we all had to go buy our lunch because we couldn’t get to the pantry. He didn’t stop until everything was in the fridge setting, then I managed to drag him out to beat him up.”

“I won, nerd,” Katsuki objected. “Don’t gimme that bullshit.”

“It was a tie, Kacchan.”

“It was not.”

They said their goodbyes at the station doors, watching Hawks swoop off into the distance, and the moment he was out of sight, Deku whirled around.

“I’m so sorry, Kacchan! I didn’t think! I didn’t mean to interrupt! You should have-”

“Shut up,” Katsuki cut him off, glaring. “If it was a big deal I would have told you to piss off, you know that.”

“But that’s your weekly alone-time with Hawks! I can’t get in the way of that!”

“If you really think that’s my only alone-time with him in a week, you’re sorely mistaken.”

“Wait, what? Really?”

“I told you I found another gym to use,” Katsuki smirked, digging out his ic card and heading for the gates. “Where did you think I went?”

“Holy shit, Kacchan, that’s so cool!” Deku gushed, hurrying to catch up. “Tell me all about it! The gym must be amazing, is it amazing? Is it huge? How many people are there? Does he give you any tips?”

“You gonna let me answer or just keep babbling?”

“Answer!” Deku laughed, miming zipping his lips. “Tell me everything!”

“Yeah, alright.”

[Click for Ch7]