painless.

CHAPTER 011.

""need to talk about something important, zukie." inko says as she sits on their couch in the living room.

izuku cautiously sits down next to her, having no clue what she wants to talk about.

"dr. archambault and i were talking about something before he moved; he told mitsuki about it."

"what is it?" izuku demands.

"patience, it's a lot to comprehend." inko sighs. "so, there's this treatment for your, uh, disorder." inko cringes; she hates that word.

"what? really?"

"yeah, um, they can use this drug called naloxone to counteract all the extra endorphins in your brain."

"that's great! when can i start?"

"izuku, it doesn't always work. don't get your hopes up, okay?" inko replies.

"but there's a possibility that it will work, and that's something to get excited about!" izuku's eyes get big and dreamy with hope.

"it's the treatment is experimental, really, but it can't cause you harm if it doesn't work. mitsuki says she wants to start you on it in a week or so." inko pauses. "but, if you don't-"

"of course i want to!" izuku interrupts.

"mitsuki also says that it takes two weeks to go into action, and if it doesn't work by three then it doesn't work on you." inko bites her lip.

"okay. i'm more than willing to try it," izuku says. "more than willing." he repeats.

"alright, i'll let mitsuki know."

with that, izuku returns to the sanctuary that is his room.

+

meanwhile, katsuki is at school. he's in english, which he isn't really good at, but he's not really bad at it, either. and, next to him sits eijiro kirishima, the guy who obviously has a crush on katsuki and the guy that katsuki doesn't return the feelings for. oh, and a few desks in front of katsuki sits hanta, whom katsuki has now learned just moved to musutafu this past weekend for his father's job. ( katsuki forgot what hanta's dad even does, and he didn't bother to ask anyone. )

"how's everyone getting through hamlet?" the teacher asks, and katsuki begins to drift off into his own little world. that is, until eijiro taps on his shoulder.

"isn't this class so boring?" eijiro groans. "it's like-like, boring as a five hour speech about a carpet."

"was that a metaphor?" katsuki asks absentmindedly.

"no, it was a simile. did you like it? i know more. this class is as boring as-"

"stop trying so hard." katsuki yawns, stealing a glance in hanta's general direction.

eijiro slits his eyes at hanta. "you and him?" he sneers.

"used to be." katsuki bites his lip and looks down at his desk.

"oh. i saw you hangin' around with that midoriya guy the other day. you walked past my house and i waved through the window, but you didn't see me."

"what a shame." katsuki replies, deadbeat. his mind wanders to izuku. he definitely likes izuku, and he's pretty sure that izuku likes him, too.

katsuki's abruptly shaken from his thoughts when he feels eijiro's hand playing with a few pieces of katsuki's hair. katsuki freezes, clenching his jaw. eijiro doesn't notice the sudden tense-ness, and continues to play with the ash blonde hair.

"eijiro," katsuki hisses. "stop."

"i saw izuku doing this to you while you were walking." eijiro replies, not stopping.

katsuki's definitely getting creeped out, now. how often did eijiro watch them?

"can you stop?" katsuki replies through gritted teeth.

"yeah, but i don't think you want me to."

"yes, i do. we are in the middle of class, and you are making me very uncomfortable!" katsuki blurts much louder than he had intended to.

"would you like to share your conversation with the rest of the class, boys?" the teacher asks as the whole class turns their heads and stares at the two-including hanta. katsuki and hanta make eye-contact, but katsuki panickingly looks away.

"no, we're fine." eijiro answers, raising his eyebrows at the teacher, signifying she should move on. she rolls her eyes and begins talking about hamlet again. this time, katsuki tries to pay attention to the teacher and not the annoying boy sitting next to him.

"katsuki, are you busy after school?" eijiro whispers.

"yes." katsuki lies, looking down at the measly notes he took prior to this conversation.

"doing what?"

"would you leave him alone, kirishima?" neito pipes up from the seat behind katsuki. "he doesn't want to talk to you."

"who invited you?" eijiro retorts, looking back to katsuki. "as i was asking, what are you doing tonight?"

"i'm going out with izuku." katsuki lies again.

"where?"

"oh my god, screw off, kirishima!" neito demands, running his hand through his hair.

"oh my god, screw off, neito!" eijiro responds in a highly exaggerated voice.

"i'm leaving." katsuki mumbles, scooping his books into his arms and walking out the door, feeling all the eyes in the class follow him as he does it. of course, eijiro thinks it's a good idea to follow him out.

"neito was being such a prick. really, i can talk to who i want to! you think he was being a dick, ri-"

"would you shut the hell up?" katsuki groans, leaning up against the row of lockers they two were just walking past.

"sure." eijiro replies, leaning a little too close to katsuki. katsuki scoots away.

the silence lasts for almost thirty seconds until, "so, about you and izu-"

"bye, kirishima." katsuki says immediately, speed walking away from eijiro and out the doors of the school. he doesn't actually go off-campus, he just stays outside long enough for eijiro to think he did. when he hears the bell ring for the end of the class, he walks back inside and goes into his chemistry class.