Bubble [Twitter Thread]

Hello, it is me again! About a month ago I promised a 2k word fic for reaching 2k followers on my Twitter! Thank you all again!

I ran a survey for people to suggest prompts for what to write about, and chose one of my favourites from the suggestions:

Prompt: BakuDeku casual intimacy moments? Like them sitting close together on the couch, hands roughing up hair, play fighting, collapsing on top of the other after a hard hero exercise, etc. Just them learning to be softer and tactile after years of hurt and distance.

As usual, you guys get it first ^^ Enjoy!

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“Skin to skin.”

Katsuki narrowed his eyes, half-expecting Izuku to crack a smile and call it off as some kind of a joke, but instead the freckled face was… Almost determined looking. His lips were lacking that bright smile he wore around everyone else, a more comfortable, even serious look that… Honestly didn’t suit him. Katsuki liked it better when he was laughing.

“I’m not getting naked with you, nerd.”

“That’s not what I meant!” Izuku huffed, cheeks puffing out like the chipmunk he had clearly been in a past life. “I know you don’t hug, I’m not going to force you to hug me, but I want to be close to you. Physically close. I don’t want you to squirm away when I breach your little bubble.”

Katsuki grimaced, folding his arms across his chest, but finally conceded a nod.

“None of the shitty stuff that’ll make people think we’re dating. No… Hand holding, or hugging, or… I don’t know, all that gross shit.”

“Of course not!”

“And then you’ll forgive me?”

Izuku smiled wryly, and this time it was Katsuki’s turn to pout.

“I know, I know, you already do or whatever. But seriously, this will… You know. Make it better?”

“Yeah.”

“Then fine. I’ll… Try.”

Katsuki didn’t think he’d ever seen Izuku smile brighter than he did in that moment, and he couldn’t help but crack a tiny one of his own. It really was so much better when Izuku was smiling.

He followed the nerd down to the common area, all their classmates gathering for a big group dinner that Sato and Koda had decided to cook up for them. Izuku beamed at his friends as they handed him a plate, and Katsuki nodded faintly as he accepted one of his own – the pair were alright, in all honesty. Quiet, sensible, didn’t get into stupid antics like the self-proclaimed “Bakusquad” that he usually had to put up with.

And then there was Izuku. Being around him was like second nature, at this point. They’d spent their entire lives together, it felt kind of natural to be near him, felt weird when he was gone. Not that he’d ever say those words out loud. But so many times during his first internship and his remedial license course, he’d turned to crack some snarky joke or point out something that was kind of cool, only to stop in his tracks because… He wasn’t there. Sure, there were other assholes he could have talked to, but… It wasn’t the same.

With the sofas occupied, Izuku found himself a spot to sit against the wall, pulling up a cushion and settling in beside Ochako to get comfortable. Even though he knew it wasn’t expected, not in front of so many people, Katsuki found himself pulling up a cushion right next to him, so close that their thighs almost touched. Izuku shot him that same beaming smile, Ochako’s look a little more confused but welcoming all the same, and with another small nod, he began to eat.

The nerd blabbered on beside him, but somehow the voice didn’t bother him much. When it was Shitty-Hair or Dunce-Face he couldn’t stand all the nonsense, but Izuku’s voice wasn’t nearly as infuriating as those idiots. Maybe his brain had just gotten used to it, since he’d failed to avoid it or shut it up for years.

When Izuku’s food started to go cold, though, barely touched in his excitement, Katsuki moved again. He put his knife down, reaching out, and slowly, slowly, bumped Izuku’s forearm with his own. It was carefully gentle, if he did say so himself, and Izuku’s voice halted immediately.

“Eat your food, nerd,” he grumbled, when Izuku turned his head. “Shut your yapping and fill your damn mouth.”

“Oh! Sorry! Thanks, Kacchan!”

“Whatever, nerd-ass.”

Katsuki picked up his knife again, Izuku reaching for his own, but still he let his arm hang a little looser, more relaxed. Izuku still continued to talk, though he found spaces to chew while he was listening to his friends reply, this time, and Katsuki felt himself start to relax a little, to let his guard down. The bubble that constantly surrounded him seemed to stretch, to expand a little wider, enveloping the smallest bits of Izuku it could find to test the waters – an elbow that was allowed to come close to nudging him, a thigh that was allowed to brush against his as they shuffled a little, a shoulder that was allowed to bump him lightly when Izuku teased. It wasn’t much, Katsuki knew, but they’d finally had the talk they’d had to wait so long for, finally talked about everything that was going unsaid between the pair, and this… This was the result. The beginning of the result, at least. Izuku wanted to be closer, wanted to be allowed in, and Katsuki… He was starting to think maybe he didn’t mind it.

If he was going to start sharing his bubble, he thought maybe Izuku was the best choice.

─────

As it turned out, Izuku had bigger plans. Katsuki had expected it to go slowly, had figured Izuku would leave it to him to decide how much was enough, and how much was too much. Instead, though, Izuku seemed to take it upon himself to constantly test Katsuki’s boundaries. Whether it was a round of sparring in Heroics class that resulted in them rolling around in the dirt, limbs locked together, faces so close that it made Katsuki’s eyes cross to look at him, or a tired, teasing Izuku who crept up behind Katsuki in the common room to ruffle his hair with both hands, laughing when Katsuki yelled at him for it.

He didn’t mind it that much, in all honesty; he just hated the way the nerd somehow managed to sneak up on him every damn time.

“Cut it out,” he demanded, pinching Izuku’s cheek. “The hell are you doing?”

“Comfy!”

Izuku beamed up at him, head cradled comfortably in Katsuki’s lap as he lay across the sofa, taking up any room that could have potentially gone to other classmates. Not that Katsuki minded that part.

“You’re seriously gonna do this shit?”

“Yeah!”

“Ugh.”

Despite his complaints, he didn’t shove Izuku off. He went back to his book, and Izuku pulled out his phone, scrolling contentedly in Katsuki’s lap. No one said a word about it as they passed by the pair, just left them to it in their companionable silence, and Katsuki… Wasn’t entirely sure what he thought of that. Had these little moments of touching become so frequent that no one even cared anymore? Were they just trying their best not to piss Katsuki off or embarrass Izuku and make them stop? Things had been more peaceful between them in class, Katsuki was self-aware enough to notice that, but that was because of the talk, not the physical stuff.

Wasn’t it?

Not that their classmates would know that, he supposed. Ugh. It was all so stupid and Katsuki hated that he’d even gotten himself into it in the first place – not the physical intimacy, he actually… Kind of liked that, even if he’d never say it aloud. Before that, the way-back stuff. He’d gotten himself into a deep pit of tormenting the nerd and driving them apart, had kept digging himself deeper and deeper for years, and now… He just regretted it all. Wished he could just go back and not start digging in the first place.

The best he could hope for now was to fill it back up. One teaspoon of dirt at a time, with every shared training after class and every study session in Katsuki’s dorm room. With every discussion about Izuku’s insane quirks, and every round of catch-a-Kacchan.

Maybe one day he could switch from dirt to cement, could fill it in once and for all. More likely though it would remain a pit of dirt that slowly filled up, and maybe one day, grew over again with grass and flowers to hide it from view. Their old friends and family would still see it occasionally, since they knew where to look, but maybe one day their fans and followers, their co-workers and new friends, would walk by without a clue. Maybe one day, people wouldn’t even know they’d had trouble in the first place.

So Katsuki let him lie there, chatting with people on the dumb apps and scrolling through hundreds of selfies while Katsuki read his book, and if a hand occasionally fell to run through wild green locks, thinking again of the plants that would one day cover over his mistakes, well, no one ever had to know.

─────

The day Izuku walked into his room unannounced and flopped unceremoniously onto his bed, Katsuki couldn’t hold back any longer.

“You’re just gonna keep getting into my business and shit until I get used to it, aren’t you?”

Izuku just grinned at him, looking up from his comfortable spot sprawled on Katsuki’s duvet, and Katsuki sighed fondly. A hint of a smile tugged at his lips, and he picked up a tiny All Might plushie from his desk, tossing it at the nerd’s face.

“A gift?” Izuku teased, hugging it close.

“Don’t you dare, nerd.”

“It’s okay, I wouldn’t steal your study buddy,” Izuku assured him, patting the little plushie’s head. “Are you busy?”

“Not really,” Katsuki shrugged, closing his textbook. “What’s up?”

“Just been kind of a long day, wanted to… Be in your company. Silently is fine, I’ll zip it.”

“Move over then, nerd.”

He shuffled further toward the wall, and Katsuki sat down beside him, letting their arms and thighs press together as they tried their best to fit two growing teenagers on the much-too-small mattress. Katsuki reached out awkwardly once they were positioned somewhat safely, ruffling Izuku’s curls, and that, of all things, was what set off the floods of tears.

“That bad, huh?” Katsuki huffed, shifting his arm to rest around Izuku’s shoulders lightly. “You can hang out here with me.”

“Thank you, Kacchan,” Izuku sniffled. “I’m sorry, it really wasn’t that bad, I’m just tired and… And you’re being so sweet and I’m so glad I have you.”

“Uh-huh, okay, we don’t need the sappy shit,” Katsuki grumbled, blushing. “Hold still, need to grab some shit.”

He leaned over, pulling a collection of spare blankets and pillows from under the bed, and Izuku managed a choked-up little chuckle as Katsuki loaded the bed with warm, soft, squishy things to cuddle up in. He threw a couple of blankets around Izuku’s back and head, wrapping him up like a burrito, and even built a little wall of pillows around them like the forts they used to build together as kids. All Izuku could do was give him a watery smile that trembled regularly and sniffle in an attempt to stifle his tears as he watched, letting Katsuki make everything just right. When he finally seemed satisfied with his handiwork, he sat back up, and Izuku swallowed hard.

“Thank you,” he choked out. “I didn’t expect all this effort.”

“It’s no big deal.”

“Kacchan is amazing.”

Katsuki huffed quietly, eyebrows still knitted together, and Izuku just waited patiently for him to figure it all out in his head, to get all his thoughts in line.

The hand that had ruffled his hair and hugged him so awkwardly reached out once again, but this time it gently pulled Izuku in, dragged a mop of green curls down to Katsuki’s shoulder. It paused for a moment, then lightly stroked down along Izuku’s ribs, holding him in a little half-hug.

“This isn’t gonna make people think we’re dating?” Izuku asked, lips still wobbly despite how hard he tried to be playful.

“Screw that,” Katsuki grumbled, squeezing him a little tighter. “We are, now.”

Izuku couldn’t help but laugh, relaxing into Katsuki’s side, his worries all but fading away.

“Wow, Kacchan,” he smiled, closing his eyes. “How romantic.”

“Damn right.”

Fin