𝔸 𝔾𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕎𝕒𝕤 𝕆𝕟𝕔𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕖 𝕍.𝟚 💥𝔹𝕜𝔻𝕜💥

Chapter 27

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

UNWAVERING DEVOTION

After dinner, they both settled into bed. Izuku, like a light switch, passed out before he could even pull the covers over himself, drained from the chaos of the day's events. Katsuki just lay there, watching, as Izuku's breathing evened out, some kind of weird calm seeping into the room. Damn it, Izuku had this annoying knack for either making him feel all serene or riling him up like nobody's business, and it got on his every nerve. Hell, if someone had told the old Katsuki that he had gone soft for Izuku, he would have probably blasted them in the face for even suggesting such a thing.

Yet, even from way back when they were snot-nosed kids, he had always been protective of the nerd, in his own weird fucked up way. But lately these last few weeks with him, things had felt so different, and he without a doubt understood why now.

Thinking back on the day's events, Katsuki was done with these near-misses. Now that he was coming back to the hero scene, he'd be damned if he didn't double down at his agency, taking down Odd Eye and any other threats that dared to rear their ugly faces. He was dead set on keeping Izuku safe, no matter the fucking cost, the nerd had dealt with enough pain and misery for one lifetime. Leaning over, he planted a soft kiss on Izuku's forehead, feeling this mushy warmth bubble up inside him. Katsuki wasn't gonna let anything happen to him, they'd have to go through him, over his dead fucking body.

It was embarrassing as hell, how much he gave a fuck about him, but he couldn't just turn it off. Izuku had somehow wormed his way into every nook and cranny of his life since he'd come back, and now? Now, he couldn't imagine it any other way, was actually more than happy to have it that way.

Easing back, Katsuki's eyes trailed over Izuku's face, his fingers trailing over stray locks of hair. His attention then drifted to the white scar slicing across his brow, forever a mark of the battles he'd fought, the sacrifices he made.

Katsuki's fingers traced gently over Izuku's face, taking in every detail, following its path from his temple down to his upper lip. Then, they wandered to the scars littering Izuku's arm, feeling the roughness under his fingertips. Izuku shivered, crinkling his nose slightly at the sensation but didn't wake.

He knew every scar on Izuku's body, each mark telling a story of pain and resilience, remnants of the battles Izuku had fought and survived. He remembered how terrified he was back then, refusing to leave Izuku's side after the vestigial plane, not willing to even entertain the thought of losing him. He would protect him, He would keep him safe.

Sinking into the bed, Katsuki pulled the blanket up, covering Izuku's bare chest. He leaned in again, pressing another gentle kiss to the scar on Izuku's eyebrow. Warmth bubbled in his chest, and he knew, without a doubt, that he truly did want to spend the rest of his life with Izuku. And he'd be damned if he didn't make it happen.

Izuku stirred lightly, lazily cracking an eye to watch Katsuki shift into a more comfortable position. Moonlight danced off the metal glinting on Katsuki's finger, drawing Izuku's attention to the silver ring with that fleck of dark green emerald. It was the only piece of jewelry Katsuki ever wore and he'd always been a little more than curious, and now, half-draped in sleep, he couldn't resist asking, "Kacchan, why do you always wear that ring?"

Katsuki's gaze softened as he glanced at the ring, his thumb stroking its patterned surface almost absentmindedly. "Uh, this?" he shrugged, trying to play it cool as a blush crept onto his cheeks. Damn, he forgot he was wearing it. "It's just a ring, I guess. But it's special to me because... it reminds me of you."