painless.

CHAPTER 013.

"stop for a second, you're going out with katsuki tonight?" mitsuki asks suddenly, as izuku is getting up to leave his the room, as he's just gotten done with his appointment.

"hmm?" izuku asks, not quite sure if he's heard mitsuki correctly.

"katsuki, you're going out with him tonight?" she repeats, scribbling something on her clipboard. the sound of the pen on the hard surface feels like it's drilling into izuku's brain.

"uh," izuku says. "yeah."

"that's what he told me. just a tip-"

"sorry, but i'd rather not talk about this." izuku interrupts with a shy smile. to be honest, he doesn't want to get insider information on katsuki from katsuki's own mom.

"oh, okay. just trying to help." mitsuki sighs.

izuku hates making people feel like they aren't appreciated, especially because that's what he feels like most of the time.

"dr. bakugou?"

"yes?"

"thanks for all you do."

"you're welcome, izuku."

+

izuku is suddenly having second thoughts as time ticks closer to his date with katsuki. is he not dressed up enough? should he shave? does he look good enough? should he call and cancel it with katsuki?

he only knows the answer to one of those questions; the last one, and it's a definite no. he would never cancel with katsuki.

but, even though izuku is sure katsuki will at least like whatever izuku's wearing, izuku is still pacing nervously around his room, wondering if he should change.

at five minutes to five, izuku hears a horn outside of the house. his eyes widen, and finally, there's no going back. he says a quick bye to his mom before heading out the front door and sliding into the passenger seat of katsuki's car.

"uh, hi." izuku squeaks, his hands fidgeting on his lap.

"don't make this awkward, now," katsuki smiles. "it's just me, katsuki."

"i know that, just, i barely ever go on dates. i don't-" izuku stops himself.

"you don't what?"

"nothing, just go." izuku replies, as the car was still sitting in izuku's driveway.

and so, katsuki does. he doesn't want to push izuku by asking anymore, so he doesn't.

they drive for a few minutes in a comfortable silence, until they arrive at a golf course. izuku scrunches his eyebrows together as they pull down the long road, but katsuki keeps going until they get to a place where they can rent golf carts.

katsuki gets out of his car and pops the trunk, handing izuku an extra jacket that he had brought.

"i forgot to tell you we would be outside, so i brought an extra coat, in case it gets chilly." katsuki explains. izuku smiles and nods, taking the coat while thanking katsuki. he's so thoughtful, really.

then, the boys advance to the front desk where they can rent a golf cart. katsuki pays, then leads izuku out to the garage where they keep the carts. katsuki uses his newly-rented key to get into the garage and start the cart.

"we don't have golf clubs." izuku states, like they need to turn back and get some.

"i know." katsuki replies, slowly pulling the golf cart out of the garage, careful so that they don't hit anything.

"what are we going to do here, then?" izuku wonders aloud.

"there's some pretty neat-o scenery."

"you did not just say neat-o."

"i did. i'd say it's neat-o burrito." katsuki laughs at his own joke while izuku just raises an eyebrow at him.

katsuki laughs for a few more seconds before focusing back on the trail that he's driving on with the golf cart. katsuki has a certain spot he's heading to, because he's been to this course before. ( katsuki loves golfing. )

katsuki almost slams on the breaks, however, when he spots a certain boy whom he used to golf with a lot.

"what is it?" izuku says, his voice laden with worry as katsuki becomes extremely tense.

"hanta," katsuki mumbles. "is right over there."

izuku looks over to the left, which is where katsuki had nodded just before, and actually locks eyes with hanta. izuku has a sudden burning urge to punch this guy in the face, because, katsuki had told izuku what hanta did to him, and now hanta was looking at izuku like he was fucking jealous that izuku was in the golf cart with katsuki, not hanta. and, in izuku's opinion, hanta had no right to be jealous of what he, so carelessly, threw away.

so, of course, izuku does the first thing that comes to mind and flips hanta off. and then, get this, hanta and his friend, whom izuku doesn't care to know the name of, jump into their golf cart, and start following izuku and katsuki.

"stop the cart." izuku demands, and katsuki looks at him like he's crazy. "stop the cart." izuku insists after katsuki doesn't stop.

hesitantly, katsuki slows the cart and lets hanta catch up.

"better now than later." izuku whispers into katsuki's ear as hanta stops his cart and walks over to katsuki. izuku gets out to confront hanta before he can get to his intended target.

"i insist that you stay away from katsuki," izuku begins. "because he is trying so hard to stay away from you. after what you did to him, i'm surprised you haven't been punched in the face yet." izuku says calmly.

hanta's black eyes turned dark as he looks over izuku's shoulder and at katsuki. "he was mine first, remember that. i kissed him first; i touched him first; i loved him first."

"you didn't love him if you cheated on him." izuku retorts, though his skin is boiling just thinking about hanta touching katsuki.

"i loved him; i still do." hanta says, locking eyes with katsuki.

katsuki looks like a deer in the headlights.

"you don't love him." izuku seethes.

"how would you know that?"

"i do, i know you don't love him."

"i love him more than you love him." hanta says, and the way he's being so calm about this is driving izuku up the wall. ( so far up the wall that izuku could jump off the wall and land on hanta and crush all his bones. ) ( but, izuku totally wasn't thinking that. )

"not true." izuku replies, in a kind of childish manner.

"have you ever ki-" hanta is cut off by a sharp blow to the jaw, from no other than his ex-boyfriend.

"would you shut the hell up and get the hell away, hanta?" katsuki asks, but it sounds more like a demand.

suddenly, hanta turns on his heel and joins his friend back in the golf cart.

when izuku looks over at katsuki, he looks as if he's got a new sense of relief, now that he's stood up to hanta.

"how about this date, then?"