Oceans Apart [Minor Hurt/Comfort?]

Izuku lay unmoving in the bed, shrouded by thin white sheets that only emphasised how pale his complexion had become. He was unnaturally still, his chest only rising and falling with the aid of the tube in his nose, the machine beside him setting a steady rhythm of beeps in time with his heartbeat.

“We’ve gotten word about the villain’s quirk,” Aizawa sighed, rubbing at his temple. “I thought after graduation you might all stop getting into ridiculous shenanigans.”

“What did you find out?” Tenya prompted, sitting down beside the hospital bed and adjusting Izuku’s sheets. “Will he wake up soon?”

“The quirk is best summarised as Sleeping Beauty. Like the fairytale.”

“So he needs a kiss to wake him?” Ochako squeaked. “We can’t kiss him while he’s unconscious!”

“Worse, it needs to be a certain person, not just anyone.”

“His true love, I assume?” Tenya hummed thoughtfully. “He’s never expressed interest in anyone.”

“He’s always been very single-minded about being a hero,” Aizawa agreed. “I hoped maybe one of you would have some information I don’t have.”

“I don’t, I’m sorry,” Ochako said softly. “I’ll call Shouto and ask him, but I don’t think those two really... Talk about feelings. It wouldn’t be All Might would it? Or like, his mother? Familial love?”

“They seemed fairly certain that it was always romantic love, I certainly hope it’s not All Might.”

“I don’t think he’s ever had a crush in his life.”

“What would happen if he didn’t like anyone?” Tenya asked, grimacing. “Or if this ‘true love’ is someone he’s never met?”

“I’m afraid I don’t have the answer to that.”

The room fell into a heavy silence other than the steady beeping and whirring of machines, and Ochako took a deep breath, bracing herself.

“Well, all his friends are gonna have to kiss him,” she said firmly, face carefully neutral. “Even if we don’t like him, it’s possible that he likes us, right?”

“I would assume the feeling had to be mutual to be ‘true love’,” Aizawa pointed out. “And without wanting to pry into his personal life, I’m sure you two probably know whether it’s a male or a female friend.”

“Nope,” she said cheerfully, though her voice became a little quieter. “Of all people... With Deku, it could be either.”

“Wonderful,” Aizawa sighed. “Well, I suppose we need to start calling some people.”

“Maybe we can make a scheduling system,” Tenya suggested. “If people don’t want to admit they have feelings for him, they can anonymously pick a time to come in while no one else is here.”

“With all due respect, Iida, time is of the essence. We may only have a matter of days, and many of his friends live across the country right now.”

“I’ll just send it to the group chats,” Ochako offered, digging out her phone. “So many of our classmates had crushes on him by graduation, there could still be dozens who need to come try.”

“Group chats?” Aizawa asked, raising an eyebrow.

“We have one for our former class, one for our graduating year, and a few for our various hero agencies. You’re not a part of them?”

“I barely even own a phone, Uraraka.”

“You’re missing out, some of the older heroes are wild. Present Mic is always hanging out in the U.A. one!”

“I wish I could say I was surprised.”

She sent out a few messages, explaining as succinctly as possible without leaving anything important out, then with a grimace she stood up.

“I’m sorry Deku, I’m gonna hate myself for this, but I’ll hate myself if I don’t, too.”

She leaned in, pressing her lips to his, cringing a little at how cold and dry he felt against her. Tenya and Aizawa pointedly averted their eyes, giving her a moment, the entire room holding their breath. Whenshe pulled away she found herself equal parts relieved and disappointed to see no change in Izuku’s pallor, her cheeks much pinker than usual when she sat back down.

“It was worth a try,” Tenya said knowingly. “I should... Probably try too.”

Ochako closed her eyes, and Tenya awkwardly moved closer, whispering an apology before he pressed a quick, awkward kiss to Izuku’s lips.

“Nothing,” he said quietly, when Izuku didn’t wake. “Sorry, Izuku.”

“I’m sure he won’t mind,” Aizawa assured them. “He’ll understand that it was for his sake. But for now I suggest you both get some rest.”

“You saw it happen, right?” Ochako asked quietly. “You were fighting beside him?”

“I was. Unfortunately I was erasing someone else’s quirk at that moment, I was a little too late to stop it.”

“But he wasn’t... Hurt, right? He’s not in pain.”

“He just seemed to go to sleep in an instant, I have no reason to believe he’s in pain.”

“Okay. Good. I’m glad.”

“Go home, get some sleep. I’m sure I’ll see you again soon.”

“Goodnight, Aizawa-sensei. You get some rest too.”

“I’ll do my best.”

As they left the hospital, Ochako slotted her hand into Tenya’s lightly, relieved to get a comforting little squeeze from him in return. He was nowhere near as affectionate as most of their friend group, but he always came through when one of them really needed it.

“I suspect Shouto has liked him for a long time,” Tenya pointed out. “Though I suspect even he doesn’t know it. Maybe it’s mutual, maybe Izuku has just been waiting for the right time.”

“Maybe,” Ochako agreed, voice barely a whisper. “Or Momo, or Tsuyu, or Eijirou... He’s so affectionate with all his friends, it’s kind of hard to tell what he could be thinking.”

“Well, starting with people who might return the feelings in some form is probably a good start. Us and Shouto and Tsuyu are his best friends, so it’s better to at least try, and for everyone else we can start with people who might have or have had feelings for him, and we’ll just spread our net wider as time goes on. We just have to have faith in Izuku to hold on until we figure it out.”

“If anyone can manage it, Deku can.”

“I agree. He’ll keep fighting until the very end.”

“Do you want to come back to my place for the night? It’s a lot closer than yours, if you want to come see him again in the morning. And I have wine. A lot of wine.”

“That sounds perfect.”

─────

Shouto had never kissed anyone before. He suspected that was painfully obvious to the nurse who was trying to avoid looking at him, taking all Izuku’s vitals as if he wasn’t even there. He wasn’t quite sure how to do it, but he’d seen movies, and that had to count for something, right?

He leaned over the bed, cupping Izuku’s cheek in his hand, and slowly, gently, pressed his lips against Izuku’s. A small part of him expected sparks to fly or romantic music to start playing, maybe fireworks to start going off in the distance, but instead he just stood there, cold lips against his, everything about it surprisingly dry.

“I guess it’s not me,” he mused, straightening up. “I assumed as much.”

He sat down in one of the bedside seats, leaning his head on his hand as he contemplated, watching the shallow movements of Izuku’s chest as the machine helped him to breathe.

One by one his former classmates began to file in, greeting each other and taking their turn to lean over and, with a whispered apology, press a kiss to Izuku’s lips. It became surprisingly routine by the seventh or eighth person to arrive – still awkward for them, of course, but for the spectators it was oddly uneventful. There were no jealous fits, no complaints, no one got upset over not being the one, they just stood around, waiting, hoping, that the right person would walk through the doors.

The atmosphere changed entirely when Inko arrived, her sobs heard before she got close to the doors, and everyone in the room stepped aside quickly to let her through. She dove at the bed, hugging her son as tightly as possible given his position and the machines, and a few steps behind, All Might stopped to watch.

“Have they filled you in?” Aizawa asked, from his spot in the corner that Shouto wasn’t sure he’d left for longer than it took to use the bathroom. “We didn’t have the details yet when they first called you, did they call again?”

“No, all we were told was that he was here and not conscious.”

“We were fighting a group of villains and one of them used a work that sent him to sleep. They likened it to the Sleeping Beauty story. For lack of a better phrase, he needs true love’s kiss to wake him.”

“So he’s on his way?” Inko sniffed. “Can Izuku wait long enough? He looks so pale.”

No one spoke, and Inko just stared at them, eyes flicking between people.

“What? You at least spoke to him, right? He’ll drop everything to come fix it, you know that! He’s not hurt too, is he?”

“Who?”

“Katsuki-kun, of course. Who else?”

“What?!”

The room erupted with yelps and squawks of confusion, but Inko just calmly reached for her cellphone, pulling up a familiar contact and hitting the call button.

It connected almost immediately, and the room fell dead silent, listening to a slightly groggy voice come through the speaker.

“Inko? What’s going on?”

“Izuku is in hospital, we need you here. As soon as possible.”

“I’m on my way,” Katsuki answered, without a moment of hesitation. “I should be able to get to the airport in half an hour, if i can get a taxi right away. Shit, what time is it?”

Inko glanced at her watch, pulling a face when she read it.

“Almost one, I’m sorry, I didn’t know they hadn’t called you.”

“No, don’t be. I think the flights go until about three, hopefully I can get on one tonight.”

“A bunch of his friends are here, I can get someone to look?”

“Fuck, yeah, that’d work. Um, who’ve you got?”

Shouto held out a hand, gesturing for the phone, and Inko handed it over without question.

“Bakugou,” he said flatly. “Long time no talk.”

“We don’t need to do this shit, Halfie.”

“I will call the airport and book you a ticket. You just get there as fast as you can.”

“Alright. Um, thanks.”

“Call a taxi, they’ll need time to get to you.”

“Will do.”

Katsuki hung up, and Shouto handed back the silent phone, getting a faint smile from Inko in return. There was barely a beat before the room burst into chaos again, every face bewildered at the concept, so Shouto stepped outside with his own phone, hunting down a foreign phone number.

“Hello,” he said, in the best English he could manage. “Is this New York airport?”

“It is!”

“I am Pro Hero Shouto, from Japan. My friend, Pro Hero Dynamite, needs a flight to Japan immediately.”

He heard typing on the other end as the lady looked it up, humming quietly as she searched.

“We have an airline with a departure at two fifteen, Sir. A little over an hour from now. It is a direct flight, a fourteen hour trip, but we only have Business Class or First Class seats left.”

“First Class is perfect,” Shouto assured her. “Would you mind giving the airline staff a short note for me?”

“Not at all, Sir. What would you like it to say?”

“Please provide Mister Dynamite with an extra blanket if possible, a dairy-free meal, and let him know that he owes Shouto a large favour.”

“O-Of course, Sir,” the woman agreed, almost losing composure in favour of a laugh. “I will make sure they get the message.”

He pulled his credit card from his wallet, reading her the number and confirming all Katsuki’s details, and by the time he stepped back into the room, everything was organised. Not only was there a ticket being sent to his phone, but he was already checked in online, and had the fastest shinkansen ticket available waiting for him on arrival, and had a private car booked to pick him up from the station and drive him the rest of the way to the hospital. He was sure Katsuki would try to pay him back for it all later, stubborn person that he was, but Shouto couldn’t have cared less.

All that mattered was that Katsuki arrived in time.

─────

Katsuki wasn’t sure how he managed to get a moment of sleep on the flight. He’d been wide awake and antsy the whole way there, sitting in the back of a taxi that thankfully didn’t seem opposed to speeding in the quiet streets of after-midnight, but Shouto had sorted everything for him. He was bombarded by a series of notifications, starting with his first class seat on a plane that was probably going to depart the moment he got on board, followed by an equally fancy ticket for one of the nicest seats on the fastest shinkansen leaving the airport, and finished with a private car from the station that honestly he wouldn’t be surprised to find out was a limousine if the rest was anything to go by.

As it turned out, though, the first class seat had been a worthwhile investment. All eight of the first class seats were huge and soft, confined to their own little walled-off cubes with doors and everything. He had a pile of amenities waiting for him, including a pair of pyjamas and two thick duvets, and a toothbrush that quickly reminded him he’d grabbed nothing but his phone, wallet,and passport as he ran out the door. The seat tipped right back to lie flat, giving him a comfortable bed to get some rest, and there was a hand-written note sitting on top of all his things.

Please provide Mister Dynamite with an extra blanket, a dairy-free meal, and tell him he owes Shouto a favour.

Honestly, he didn’t mind owing Shouto a favour for all he’d done in those ten minutes it took to book everything and pay for it out of his own pocket. Katsuki would pay him back, of course, but it was good of him to pay while Katsuki was busy.

As soon as they finished take off, Katsuki headed to the bathroom to change into his airline pyjamas. When he returned he found a flight attendant setting up his little bed for him, complete with soft pillows and two blankets, even offering him a phone charger that he knew hadn’t been in the amenity kit.

“Thank you,” he grunted, rubbing a hand at his tired eyes. “I appreciate it.”

“Our pleasure, Mister Dynamite. Thank you for all your hard work.”

He crawled into the little bed, the overhead lights dimming right down low for the trip, and with a little sigh he closed his eyes.

Wait for me, Deku.

He wasn’t sure how he managed to get a moment of sleep, but he did. And he suspected a lot of it was due to the comfort of the first class seat Shouto had bought him. In fact, by the time he woke up, the lights were high again and people were moving about the cabin. There was only one other person in first class, across the other side of the plane, but flight attendants walked through the aisles fairly frequently, and when one of them spotted Katsuki rising from his bed with a yawn, she stopped to smile at him warmly.

“Good morning, Mister Dynamite! We have about two hours left before we land, would you like some breakfast?”

“That would be great,” he agreed, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

“No dairy, is that correct?”

“Yeah, thanks.”

“And what would you like to drink?”

“Coffee. A lot of it.”

“Coming right up!”

He grabbed the clothes he’d worn to the airport and headed for the bathroom again, this time carrying his little airline toiletry bag along with him. There were two toilets in the cabnin to match the two passengers, so he took his time washing his face and brushing his teeth, making himself relatively presentable for when they reached the airport. He even took the time to shave with the disposable razor they’d included – he was pretty sure the Japanese press wouldn’t be impressed by his American stubble.

Katsuki had been a little reluctant to go, when the offer was presented, but he knew it was for the best. Izuku had refused, when All Might wanted him to travel – needed to be home with his mother and friends, after all. Katsuki had been second choice, that was no secret, but he had also been the braver, more stubborn of the two. So he’d packed a suitcase, conceded some teary hugs with his parents, and he’d flown to America for what turned into almost ten years of his life.

He shared occasional social media comments with his old friends, liked each other’s photos and all that, but Izuku was the only one he really talked to still, over those years. They’d gotten closer by the week, had really started to understand the depths of everything between them, and finally... Katsuki had admitted it. To himself and Izuku both.

He had a big, fat, fucking crush on the nerd.

And things had only continued to grow from there. His parents knew, and Izuku’s mother too – he suspected All Might as well, considering how close he’d gotten to Inko and Izuku – but it had never really come up with their friends.

Well, aside from Katsuki’s American friends, who had heard a lot about how cute and sexy and strong his long-distance boyfriend was and how the dumb American chicks hitting on him in bars were nothing on him.

When Katsuki got back to his seat, the fight attendants had once again set everything up for him, folding his bed back into a chair and setting out a table for him, ready for food. There was coffee in front of him the moment he sat down, hot and black and delicious, and soon a wide spread of breakfast food to match. He gobbled it down like his life depended on it, only realising how starving he was once he took a few bites, and when it was gone he finally let himself think.

Inko had sent him a few details of what was going on, while Shouto sorted out the logistics. He had a carefully typed text on his phone from her, painstakingly typed out in the way old people always did it, pecking at the keys one at a time with their index finger as they squinted as the too-small screen.

If the information was to be believed, Izuku was going to waste away into nothing if Katsuki didn’t show up to kiss him. It was kind of insane to think about, considering it would be their first. Izuku had been to visit him once, when he’d had a short break from work, but the most they’d done was hold hands like the stupid, nervous idiots that they both were. He’d thought their first kiss would be something sweet and romantic on their next visit, not dying in a hospital bed.

Then again, it was Deku. He did everything from a hospital bed.

He was the first one off the plane when it landed, calling his thanks to the flight attendants as he hurried out into the bustling airport – of course he’d had to land in the middle of the afternoon, when everything was crowded and busy.

Still, with a Japanese passport in hand, a Hero license to aid it, and zero baggage to have inspected, it wasn’t hard to get through security in a hurry. He made it to the train station with time to spare, getting comfortable in another expensive seat, and at the other end he found a man in a dark suit waiting just beyond the station gates, bowing as he approached.

“Mister Dynamite, please allow me.”

Yeah, he owed Shouto a damn big favour after all.

“I’m on my way,” he spoke into his phone, as the dark, unobtrusive car took him toward the hospital. “I’ll just be a few minutes, is he okay?”

“He’s holding on,” Inko assured him, her voice wobbly. “I’m glad you’re here, he might not...”

“I’m here,” Katsuki echoed. “It’s gonna be okay.”

She met him in the lobby, leading the way down a long, white corridor, and as they stood in the elevator she finally looked up at him properly, with her tired eyes and much frailer smile than the last time they’d met.

“You look well,” she said softly. “Strong, and tall. You’ve grown into a fine young man, Katsuki.”

He squeezed her shoulder lightly in acknowledgement, his words failing him, but she didn’t seem to be bothered by his silence.

“There are a lot of people here,” she added quietly, as the elevator dinged and the doors began to slide open. “They all want to see him wake up.”

“I’ll cope.”

“I know you will.”

The crowd filled with a buzzing energy when Katsuki yanked the door open, leaping to their feet and calling excited greetings, but Katsuki didn’t hear a word of it. He shoved his way through, vaguely registering that Aizawa and All Might were also there, watching, but he froze in his tracks when he saw the thin, frail face on the pillow. He hardly even looked like Izuku, without the big smile and the blush.

Katsuki bent down, pressing his lips to Izuku’s and feeling his warmth spread quickly. It filled Izuku’s face, starting where their lips met and spreading outward, until his bedside machine began to beep a little quicker, his heart racing as he jolted awake.

“It’s okay,” Katsuki whispered immediately, catching him in a hug as he filled with a rigid panic. “I’m here, Deku. I’ve got you. You’re safe now.”

He pulled Izuku into a hug, pressing the freckled face to his chest, and despite his heaving lungs, Izuku relaxed into his touch.

“K-Kacchan,” he choked out. “Y-You’re h-here?”

“I’m here,” Katsuki repeated, as soft as he could muster. “I’ve got you.”

Izuku was freezing against him, so he peeled off his warm hoodie, tucking it around Izuku’s frame. It dwarfed him, somehow, even though Izuku had never been small, and Katsuki couldn’t resist the bout of protectiveness that flooded through him.

“C’mere,” he insisted, twisting around to sit on the edge of the bed. “Inko, are there blankets somewhere?”

Izuku finally looked up, at the sound of her name, and a tiny smile stretched across his lips when he saw the tears streaming down her face. He held out a trembling hand, and she accepted it immediately, squeezing him as though she wasn’t quite sure he was real.

“Hi Mom,” he whispered. “Sorry I worried you.”

“You worried a lot of people,” Katsuki snorted, accepting a blanket from an unfamiliar hand. “Look around, you dork.”

Izuku turned his head, eyes darting open when he saw the crowd of emotional friends watching over them, his lips trembling again as he tried to form words.

“We’ll fill you in on everything later,” Ochako assured him. “Just rest, okay? We’re glad you’re awake.”

Izuku nodded, leaning into Katsuki’s side when he wrapped the blanket around them both, and when Aizawa reached to tuck another over their laps, he couldn’t resist a weak laugh.

“I guess I still wasn’t fast enough, huh?” he asked quietly. “I’ll have to keep working, to keep up with you next time.”

“You did an amazing job, Midoriya. It was my fault for not erasing that quirk fast enough.”

“Don’t start arguing about this,” Katsuki huffed. “Wait until you’re better.”

“I’m perfect, now. I have you here.”

“I love you, nerd.”

“Love you too, Kacchan!”

The chorus of awwws made even Katsuki blush, hiding it quickly by tucking his face into Izuku’s hair.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Izuku said softly.

“I’m glad you’re here. You had me worried, asshole.”

“Sorry, Kacchan. Never again, I promise.”

“Damn right.”

As Izuku snuggled in, he felt a warmth grow in his chest. The last time he’d felt it was when Izuku first went to visit him in America, and that paled in comparison to the heat it came with this time around, so full of happiness and love like he’d never known.

“I think it’s time I come back to Japan,” he mumbled. “Seems like you guys need me more than they do.”

“You really mean it?”

“Yeah. I’ll have to go back and get my stuff, end my apartment rental and everything, but give me... a couple of months. Then I’ll be back here, with you. For real, this time.”

“That sounds great, Kacchan.”

“Besides,” he continued, a little louder as a smirk worked its way onto his lips. “I hear all you losers have made top twenty? Clearly you’re all hurting for a decent hero over here. I’ll have to show you all how it’s done.”

“And repay the favour you owe me,” Shouto added solemnly.

“Ugh. Yeah, I guess I do owe you. Fine, what do you want?”

“I’m moving house next week.”

“And what, you want me to help you move furniture?”

“No, I have movers, just come to my house warming party, maybe with a nice potted plant.”

Katsuki let out a laugh that made the whole room stare, so much brighter and more genuine than any of them had heard in their time as friends, but Izuku just grinned and snuggled in a little closer – that was his favourite laugh, after all.

“Fine,” Katsuki agreed. “I’ll pick you out a damn plant.”

“Wonderful.”