Conflagration

Chapter 2

Izuku didn't know how long it had been since his last encounter with the hot-headed blonde. He still worked the closing shift at the Brisk every weekday, even a couple of Saturday mornings, but never came across Bakugo again.

He found himself trying not to think about how rude the male had been, or about how intimidating the permanent sneer on his face was. Honestly, he was scared to meet him again. The way the stranger was talking, he may have been in with the wrong crowd and trying to get away from them. That specific thought had Izuku staying awake at night, his heart thudding at the thought of Bakugo showing up at his house to tell him that he knew way too much to stay alive.

That, in turn, had Izuku reverting to old habits that he'd previously grown out of. His anxiety levels were off the charts, which kept him in his room when he was home and working in the back of the cafe to avoid human contact if the lobby was busy.

To his friends, that was very worrying. They'd seen what could happen if he went full-on paranoia mode, and it wasn't a very healthy situation, to say the least. So, they came up with a solution.

Clubbing.

Izuku wasn't very happy about this, but it wasn't like Todoroki would let him back out. Iida was hesitant to the youngest male's suggestion at first but soon agreed with his reasoning. When Izuku tried to protest, he'd said; "You're just sitting here, in your room, moping about like a depressed Portuguese Water Dog. That isn't any better than moping around beside a bar with a drink in your hand."

Eventually, after a few days of the whole house arguing about the matter, Izuku caved. They all sat down to discuss the time and date, to make sure that they were all free, and decided on the night of Izuku's only morning-shift Friday. The green-haired boy had expressed his distaste in 'wasting his free night on getting drunk', but the others hadn't minded that sentiment. Izuku knew that they had taken advantage of the fact that he wasn't one to be pier pressured and teased him about his hidden, although small, desire to hang out with them in a loud and crowded setting.

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Now Izuku was sitting on the front porch steps of their three-bedroom home, his normally unkempt curls blowing only slightly in the warm, late June air. His legs were covered with black ripped skinny jeans (only because Todoroki told him that regular jeans were unfashionable), and he wore a black t-shirt with the word 't-shirt' on it in bold, white kanji. On his arm, he held a folded button-up red and black flannel with a grey hood.

He was soon joined by Iida, in casual jeans and a long-sleeve shirt, now leaning on the wall beside the door and sighing. Judging by the look on his face, Izuku could tell that the navy-haired male was annoyed. "Hey, what's taking Todoroki so long?" Izuku asked, earning a pointed stare.

"He's applying makeup," Iida stated simply with a frown, earning an immediate laugh from Izuku.

"No!"

"Yes! I walked past the bathroom and he had a whole skinny box with a multitude of eyeshadows in even smaller boxes within that one large box! On top of that, there were a bunch of containers filled with-"

Todoroki stepped onto the porch looking like a perfect doll, though he'd made sure to leave his scar untouched and exposed for all to see. He walked past the angry officer and amused barista without a second thought, the only acknowledgment he gave the two being, "Who's driving?" 

Izuku pointed to himself as he stood, still reeling at how clueless Iida was to the world of anything other than books and law enforcement. They all got into Izuku's car, Todoroki beside him in the passenger seat and Ida in the back, still trying to make sense of what he saw. Todoroki ignored the blabbering man in the backseat and reached a hand out to the radio, flicking through the stations until he found a song that he enjoyed. Izuku had never heard it before, but as long as his friends were alright with it, he supposed he could deal with the confusion until they arrived at their destination.