Your Love Leaves Marks

my dear, i will always be this tender for you.

Ever since Katsuki was a kid, he's heard adults talk about The Wish. They'd sat their class down in a circle in pre-school to explain to all the kids at once why they had a thick, black line across their wrists, and why some of the adults had lines, but some of the others didn't.

He remembers the wave of excitement that rippled through him and the other extras, as well as the quick impatience at finding out they could only actually use The Wish when they turned seventeen.

He remembers how everyone would only talk about what they'd use their Wish for when they got older.

"I'm gonna use my Wish to become the number one hero for sure!" Katsuki had declared then, prideful and filled with confidence. He certainly didn't need his Wish to become the number one hero, but having The Wish on his side certainly would help.

And of course, when it came to little Katsuki, Deku was always close behind, stars in his eyes.

"Awesome! Kacchan's so cool!" Deku had said, his toothy grin and wide eyes following Katsuki in awe.

Katsuki lets out a groan, hand dragging down along his face.

If he could go back in time, Katsuki would deck his past self in the fucking face, probably shake him by the shoulders and yell at him, "Deku never looked down on us, you fucking idiot! Get your head out of your ass!"

It's too late for that now, though. The damage is done—it's been done for the past decade. Sure, he stopped with the constantly beating the shit out of Deku stuff from when they were brats, but it didn't mean he wasn't a fucking angel, either. Ignoring Deku and acting like he didn't fucking exist except as scum beneath his feet wasn't any better.

Katsuki lets out a groan, rubbing his eyes restlessly. He went to bed at eight, and now it's almost midnight. It's like his mind suddenly decided to turn against him and force him to watch with rising dread as his clock ticked closer and closer to midnight.

For a long time—his whole damn life, basically—he'd been planning to use his Wish to ensure that he gets the number one spot. It was his lifelong dream, he'd be stupid to waste The Wish on something insignificant like good grades or some shit.

All of that changed with UA, though.

From the moment he waltzed into class on that first day, he's been faced with one challenge after another—the realization that he isn't the only talented person, the Sports Festival shit of being chained up like a goddamn dog, being kidnapped and saved by All Might, finding out about the truth behind All Might's Quirk—

Oh, and having his entire fucking worldview shifted after fighting with Deku, who apparently never looked down on him all this time.

That was also kind of a gigantically big deal for Katsuki. To be honest, he still forgets that fact, sometimes.

All this time, Deku looked up to him. Even when he was a complete dick to him, he...

Katsuki swallows at the sudden lump swelling in the back of his throat, threatening to burst and leak out from his eyes.

He never fucking left.

Katsuki glances at his clock.

11:49.

Katsuki's breath catches in his throat, a sudden wave of ice washing over him, heart slamming against his ribs.

Eleven minutes left.

Eleven minutes, and then—

Katsuki holds his left hand up, twisting it so that his wrist is facing him.