𝔄𝔫 ℑ𝔫𝔣𝔦𝔫𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔄𝔴𝔞𝔶 | Katsuki Bakugo x OC

Chapter 43 - Hiding Paranoia

Paranoia is a parasite. It lives where fears fester and thrives when a person overthinks.

Overthinking. That was the bane Katsuki never could vanquish.

And with the overthinking, his paranoia grew, like vines in a forest, it tangled within his lungs and up his spine. It tangled and squeezed until all he could cogitate was his worst fears.

What were his worst fears? What was it that made his head fog irrationally with panic, with terror?

Hina punched the air again, her form as impeccable as ever. With the punch, his breath halted in his throat. Not from awe of her always exceeding his expectations.

No, it halted from the worry if she doesn't make that punch when she's in danger. It halted from the despair, the speculation and the assumption that she'd be in danger even with the already rigorous regimen he'd planned.

His worst fear was losing Hina. And with a target painted on her back, the chances of it coming to fruition were much higher than he'd ever want it to be.

With the paranoia growing more and more everyday, he'd made her training harder and harder. Even though he knew he shouldn't push her so much, he shouldn't let this parasite thrive anymore, he did it anyway. Does it anyway.

And Hina never complained. Never.

A big factor was the empathy link they shared, her understanding was another. The main point, which Katsuki thought, was her equal determination to be strong enough to fight the villains if- when they come for her.

He exhaled deeply, rotating his jaw and tensing his arms as she released a cluster of fireworks to three different targets. Like every challenge he threw at her, she completed it with flying colors, all three of the targets fashioned with holes in their dead centers.

"Again," he commanded, his voice echoing in the concrete arena of the gym.

He felt agitation and annoyance bleed through his shoulders. Then a rigid, and somehow calm anger pumping his heart.

"I've done the drill perfectly five times," Hina gritted out the words in a similar fashion like Katsuki does. Difference was that she whispered so lowly, if it weren't for the echo, he wouldn't have heard her.

"So," he didn't face her when he said it, his chin dipped down to hide his expression as he stretched his arms, "do it five more times so you master it."

A firework popped from her palm, shooting at his face and exploding before he could react. His skin tinged pink as he flinched back with his head jerking to her. He's livid and his expression showed it clearly with his pinched brows and snarl.

"What the hell are ya doin'!" He yelled.

Surprisingly, Hina didn't flinch as she used to. Instead she held her chin higher, her shoulders straighter as she glared back at him.

"I hit my target," She hissed, "isn't that what we're practicing?"

If he weren't so angry at the moment, he might've chuckled from the snarky reply. Might've.

"Don't be a smartass with me. I'm tellin' you to do it for your own good."

"Oh really? How is repeating something I've mastered two weeks ago going to be for my own good? Please enlighten me with your wisdom."

Katsuki clicked his tongue, his eyes falling to the concrete floor with the pebble in his throat that fell in his stomach from dread.

Hina clearly felt it, because now he could feel her sudden worry in his breath, and then he felt her hand holding his.