Trust Falls

In the Past is where we'll leave it

Izuku wondered, sometimes, what he'd done in a past life to deserve the awful luck he had. Of course, today of all days, Dabi decided to show himself. Today, of all days, the universe decided to send him a big middle finger in the form of the man he least wanted to see right now.

In the middle of a mall where Izuku couldn't scream every obscenity he knew at the man and then quietly beat the shit out of him.

He could see the look on Katsuki's face, the rage starting to light up in those red eyes, and desperately wished he had a quirk to turn back time and avoid this interaction ever happening. Izuku knew deep in the bottom of his heart that this was going to dig up old trauma for the blonde and he hated that this was his fault.

If he'd had it his way, no one outside of Shouta and possibly Shouto would know about his connection to Dabi. Hell, after they'd left things he hadn't thought the man would be willing to approach him again.

The taller man's arm shifted so he was pulling Izuku back against him, pulling him out of his thoughts as well. With a hiss, he elbowed the fire quirked man in the stomach as hard as he could and slipped out of his grip. Dabi let out a grunt of pain and tried to reach out for him again, fingertips missing his hoodie by mere centimeters.

"What the actual fuck is wrong with you?!" Izuku hissed again, turning to face him as he purposely put himself between Katsuki and the league member. Finally facing the other, he could see the anger brewing in the man's eyes.

As if he had anything to be angry about! The last time Izuku had seen him was right before he abandoned him for Shigaraki.

The worst part of facing him, though, was watching the cogs turn in his brain. He could see his former friend and mentor putting pieces together as his gaze darted between Katsuki and Izuku. There was almost a grim satisfaction in Izuku's gut at the way Dabi's lips downturned for a brief moment.

He hadn't even thought about Dabi when he'd agreed to this date, not even once. But now a little bit of satisfaction curled in his gut that he could inflict pain on the man even just a little. To show him a little of what he'd felt when the man walked out of his life to join the very person he hated most.

Izuku hadn't done the exact same, of course, but he could enjoy his own petty version of that feeling.

Behind him, he could hear Katsuki shifting anxiously as the silent staredown between him and Dabi stretched on. This was going to be...awful to explain to him later. If he even got a chance to explain.

Katsuki had his own issues with Dabi, Izuku knew, and him having the kind of connection he did to the man was not going to go over well. He could already see the fight that was going to come after this. If Katsuki didn't just straight up refuse to speak to him. He wouldn't blame him if that was the road he decided to take.

"You know, I never really took you as the type to sink this low, Izu." Dabi finally broke the silence, stance relaxing a little as he shoved his hands into his pockets and flashed Izuku a smile that made a shiver run up his spine. It was petty and way too relaxed for his liking. "I mean, playing the sweet innocent victim card is a bit degrading, isn't it? I thought I taught you to have some self-respect."

Behind him, Katsuki made a noise of confusion and stepped forward enough that Izuku could see him out of the corner of his eye. One of his hands reached out to wrap around Izuku's wrist, trying to get his attention.

" 'Izu'?" The blonde repeated, tone unreadable as he stared hard at him. Izuku did his best not to meet his eye, instead focusing on the villain in front of them.

"I'm assuming that's what you're doing, right? When things got scary after Kamino you ran to your precious Kacchan and weaseled your way into his good graces? You've always been a bit conniving but this takes the cake."

The hand on his wrist quickly turned into Katsuki holding Izuku back, the green haired teen's lips curled back in a snarl as he reached out to attempt to wipe the man's smirk off of his face with his fist.

"How dare you!" He snarled, fighting against Katsuki's hold on him for a moment longer before deciding he wasn't going to be allowed to assault the man in front of him for the moment. "You know damn well that I can protect myself. As if you even care since you've made so many new friends."

Dabi didn't even flinch as the words were spat at him, though. His smile widened into a smirk and he tilted his head a little, gaze flickering over to Katsuki again.

"Izu, come on. I offered for you to come with me. Shigaraki even said he'd behave. It's not my fault you decided splitting would be better than joining with me." The words were said with a shrug but Izuku knew better. Knew what game the man was playing.

He could feel Katsuki's eyes boring into the side of his face before his gaze flickered away to Dabi once more. Izuku grit his teeth against the scream of frustration that built up in his chest.