The Tinker

Chapter 53 - Couch Crashing

"Do you think it's related to the phone call?" Todoroki asked. He was crouched on the floor of Y/N's room, searching through the mess for something to indicate who had done it. The class had come to investigate the scene after hearing Y/N shouting. 

"I sure fucking hope not," Y/N huffed. "That wouldn't really make any sense, would it? What would my room have to do with it?"

"Is anything expensive missing?"

Y/N opened up a small drawer in her nightstand and peeked inside momentarily before shutting it again. "Nope. My priciest item is still here, and it's not exactly hidden. It wasn't money they were after."

"Check your underwear drawer," Sero grumbled. "We've had problems with Mineta doing panty raids."

Unprompted, Mina opened Y/N's underwear drawer and whistled before pulling out a red, lacy thong and bra-- if you could even call it a bra. It was more like a string, honestly. "I guess it wasn't Mineta, cause he sure as hell wouldn't have left this behind," She cackled. "Damn, Y/N!"

Y/N snatched it back from her friend and stuffed it back into her drawer. "It was a gift, I didn't choose that," She stammered. Her face was turning almost as red as the garments. 

Bakugou prayed no one noticed that his was too.

"From Hawks?" Mina teased. "I guess he knows how to treat his--"

"Don't finish that sentence," Y/N interrupted. "I'll give you details later if you promise to shut up."

Bakugou scowled and turned away. He kind of wanted the details too.

"Well are you missing anything?" Todoroki asked, seemingly unaffected by the conversation about lingerie. 

Y/N bit her lip. "Well, I guess they might've taken... hang on." She opened up her closet and squatted down to peruse through a filing cabinet. "Fuck."

Todoroki crouched next to her and put a hand on her back, which Bakugou did not like. "You missing something?"

"Yeah, my damn hero license. Why the hell would someone want my hero license?"

Todoroki stood up and frowned, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Strange. Your American or Japanese one?"

"My Japanese one. I put it in here before my trip-- I didn't think I'd need it in America," she grumbled. 

"Sounds like someone doesn't want you in the field," Bakugou grunted. "You got any rivals, Tinkerbell?"

Y/N sighed. "Too fucking many. If you haven't noticed I tend to piss people off-- Especially men."

Bakugou smirked at that.

"I'll let Aizawa know about this shitshow. You guys can go to bed," Y/N said. "Thanks for helping. I'll crash on the couch until this gets sorted out." She gestured to the mess of stuff on her bed before grabbing her pillows.

~~~

Bakugou was having an argument with himself in his bed that night-- and losing.

He didn't like the idea of Y/N being alone out there, not after what happened to her dorm room. What if they came back and wanted to hurt her? She was an easy target, innocently sleeping on that couch. His stomach churned.

The clock read 11:00 PM. Bakugou groaned and pressed his palms into his eyes in frustration. Just go to bed, he said to himself. She's fine. She always is. 

But... the couch was probably uncomfortable, right?

He sighed, realizing that this fight with himself wasn't going to end until he did something about it. He stood up in a huff and grabbed his pillow before storming out into the common room. 

Y/N was snoring on the couch, curled up into a fetal position with her arm hanging over the side. He could feel the cramp in his neck just from looking at her. 

Bakugou took a deep breath before approaching her and crouching down, giving her shoulder a firm shake. "Hey. Wake up, dumbass."

Y/N shot up with sleep still clouding her eyes. "Huh? What the hell?" She rubbed her cheek, her voice raspy. "What's wrong, did I get fucking robbed again?"

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "No. Go sleep in my bed. I'm takin' the couch."

Y/N didn't seem to process what he said. She gave him an empty look before squinting at him in confusion. "Why?"

"You're not fucking safe out here. Just do it," he snapped. 

"Aww, you worried about me Kat?" Y/N teased. She slumped back down onto the cushion. "No need to stress. I'll cut a bitch if they try and hurt me," she joked, punching an invisible villain in front of her. "Go back to bed."

"I'm not dealing with this right now. Go to my room before I drag you there."

She called his bluff, rolling over and cuddling up to go to bed again. "No thanks. You wouldn't survive a night on the couch. It's a rough world out here, kid."

Bakugou had had it. He scooped her up into his arms as she yelped and thrashed, storming into his room and dropping the protesting girl onto his mattress.

He started leaving to sleep on the couch, but she sat up and grabbed his fingers and his brain short circuited. "Kat, no. I don't wanna take your bed from you. I'll feel guilty all night," she begged. She had impeccable puppy dog eyes when she wanted to and he hated how well it worked on him.

Bakugou sighed in frustration, shutting his door and throwing his pillow on the floor to lay down. He lowered himself onto the ground, facing away from her. "Fucking go to bed, Tinkerbell."

Y/N huffed, unsatisfied. "That doesn't change anything. I'm still technically stealing your bed from you."

He was about to wring her neck at this point. Why was she so difficult?

In a last ditch effort, Bakugou climbed up onto the bed and slumped down next to her. "Happy?"

A blush painted Y/N's cheeks. "I mean... I didn't--"

"This is what you wanted, right? Stop complaining. I'm fucking tired," he grumbled, shutting his eyes and sinking deeper into the blankets to go to sleep. 

Y/N was still a flustered mess. She certainly wasn't against sleeping with him in his bed-- She'd done it before-- but this somehow felt more intimate, more vulnerable. His sheets had that familiar caramel-like nitroglycerin scent and his body made it so warm. It was too pleasant and she didn't trust herself to not do something stupid.

For someone so abrasive, he felt so comfortable to her. So safe. And he looked oh so gentle when he was resting... before she knew it, she was quietly raising her hand up from the blankets to touch his chest, wanting to bask in more of that warmth.

She hesitated before letting her fingers reach him. She'd already disturbed him enough for one night. She didn't need to indulge any further--

But before she could pull away, Bakugou grabbed her hovering wrist and pulled her into his grasp, wrapping his arms around her in a warm embrace. His arms were protecting her, guarding her from any feeling of unease or worry of the outside world. She buried her face in his chest, his familiar smell lulling her into a sense of safety-- but her heart still raced at the idea of being held by him. He was a surprisingly wonderful hugger.

"I said go to bed, Y/N," he said softly, holding her tighter.

From her place on his chest, she could feel his heart racing too.