PUPPET // KATSUKI BAKUGO [1]

Chapter 35 // Debate

You watched the hospital door impatiently, tapping your foot on the cement ground as you, Kirishima, Todoroki, and Midoriya waited for Momo, who you had spoken to and hoped would show up liked you asked of her.

"[L/N]," Midoriya spoke amidst the silence of the night, "why won't you admit that you have feelings for Kacchan?"

The questioned shocked you, made you think, but you remained silent at first as you stared at the ground.

At first, you pursued Bakugo because you wanted something to look forward to. You weren't confident you would get into the hero course, so you thought having a friendly rivalry with one of the best hero kids would be something rather than nothing, but, someone along the lines, you supposed your platonic feelings turned romantic.

You weren't sure when the switch happened. Maybe it was during the first night the two of you slept together. Maybe it was the first time he listened to you during training. Maybe it was when the two of you held hands. Maybe it was all of the those moments, and your feelings for him simply grew stronger each time.

No matter how much you wanted to force yourself to hate him, you wouldn't. It was physically and emotionally impossible for you to hate him or any aspect of him in any way. Even if he was stubborn, rude, and an asshole the majority of the time, you thought he was perfect because that's what made him him. Bakugo was right; the world needs balance, and the two of you balanced each other you perfectly.

"I have to admit it to him first," you eventually said while looking at Midoriya. "I could say, "I like Katsuki Bakugo," to every single person on planet earth, but the statement means nothing if I don't say it to him."

"Hey, guys," a new voice spoke, and everyone turned toward the hospital to find Momo approaching them, a bag in her hand.

"So whaddya say Yaoyorozu?" Kirishima asked, referring to the question of whether or not Momo would aid in finding Bakugo.

"I..." the girl began. However, she couldn't utter out her response to the redhead's question before someone yelled.

"Wait!"

You, along with the others, turned around to find Iida standing behind you looking as upset as ever.

"Iida?" Kirishima questioned.

"You of all people should know better than this!" the boy exclaimed. "Especially you two," he looked at Todoroki and Midoriya, "who had criticized me for my rash actions! You're about to commit the same blunder I did! This is foolish!"

"Same blunder?" you repeated the words as you looked as Todoroki and Midoriya. "What the hell is he talking about?"

Todoroki and Midoriya shared a glance before the dual haired boy looked at you, saying, "Iida tried to go after the Hero Killer, Stain, after figuring out he put his brother Tensei in the hospital. We had to help him." Your eyes widened as you whipped your head around to look at Iida.

"Oh you've gotta be shitting me," you growled as you stomped toward Iida, who stared you down as you approached.

"[L/N]!"

You unleashed your anger as you slammed your fist into Iida's jaw before shoving the already stumbling boy to the ground.

"Listen here, Iida," you spat as you grabbed the boy by his collar, hovering over him. "This is not the same as your little rage fest. You went after Stain for revenge. We're going after the villains to save Bakugo. You think we're putting the lives on the line because we're throwing a tantrum? You think we're going after them to get revenge? You think were disobeying the rules for ourselves? No, we're going because Bakugo needs us, because we feel as though we're to blame, and I'll be dammed if I let a wannabe rich kid who's grown up with everything he could possibly desire stop me from saving the boy I love, so you're either with us or against us. Make your damn choice."

Iida stared up at you, both fear and anger evident in his expression upon hearing your speech.

"[L/N]..." you heard Midoriya begin to speak from behind you. "Did you just say you love Kacchan?" Your ears perked up at the boy's question.

You hadn't even realized you had admitted it, but that wasn't what you were focused on. You were going to save Bakugo whether it was alone or with your classmates.

"Iida, it's not like we're breaking the law," Midoriya continued as he shook off the fact that you had just confessed your love for his childhood best friend. "We may be trying to save Bakugo, but the only law we could possibly break in the process is using our quirks against the villains without licenses, and we're not gonna do that."

"I'm..." Iida began, glancing between all of you. He gently grabbed your hand and removed it from his shirt. "You think I'm not worried? As your class president, as your friend, I worry about the safety of all of you, even Bakugo, but, seeing you all injured, especially you, Midoriya, it reminded me of my injured brother. What happens if your little vigilante act takes a turn for the worst?"

"Iida," Todoroki started, "do you think we're just gonna smash their doors down, guns blazing?"

"We're gonna get him back without fighting," Kirishima stated, "like we should. That's how we can fight, on the right side of the law."

"I trust you guys," Momo spoke, gaining everyone's attention. "If worst comes to worst, you're gonna need back up, which is why I'm coming."

"If there's no swaying you," Iida said with a defeated sigh, "then take me with you."

You managed a small side smirk as you extended your hand down for Iida to take. The boy stared at you for a moment before grabbing your hand and allowing you to help him stand.

"Sorry for getting rough," you said, "but if there's a side for Bakugo, I'm on it."

"Well, at least we can always trust you to be loyal," Iida said. He tried to smile, but his lips eventually fell into a straight line. "Do we have a plan?" he asked everyone at once.

"We can go where the receiver takes us," you explained. "Once we're in the area of the villains, we should get disguises. They know what we all look like."

"How far is their hideout?" Todoroki asked.

Momo opened the bag in her hand and pulled out the receiver she had created for the tracker using her quirk.

"It's in..." she began, narrowing her eyes at the tracker. "Yokohama City."

"Looks like we're taking the train," Kirishima said as he looked around. "Everyone ready?"

"Ready as hell," you replied while rolling your shoulders. "Let's go get Bakugo."

[EDITED]