pocky stick | todobaku

03 | revenge best served as laxatives

Shoto reels from his victory for the rest of the night. The thrill of kissing Katsuki was not something he expected, but he relished it, nonetheless.

And for the rest of the night, Katsuki stays away from his soba, as he already knew he would. He isn't one to break deals, though the glare on his face shows just how unhappy he is.

Shoto makes a mental note not to engage with him for a few weeks.

Katsuki Bakugo holds grudges, and the more grudges he has against you, the longer he holds them. It's a list that grows and grows with him, and Shoto does not want to get on the bad side of that list. He knows Katsuki has a grudge with him ever since the sports festival, one from i-island, one from remedial courses. He keeps collecting grudges, and soon, he might have more than Izuku.

Still, when it comes to sparring, Shoto is always the one he'll choose because "everyone else has a partner and I won't find weaklings". Or so he says. They'll fight effortlessly, more of exchanging blows than trying to one-up the other.

They tried it once.

They broke the USJ.

They were suspended for a week.

Fighting Katsuki to the best of his abilities feels freeing. Katsuki doesn't hold back. Katsuki never sees him as a friend, an ally. Only an obstacle, so he does the same. He imagines Katsuki is a villain sent after him by the LOV, to take him and get rid of him.

The explosions, the surprise attacks, the blinding. All of it he'll have to deal with when he's a Pro-Hero. Why not get used to it now?

"I didn't think you'd actually kiss Kacchan," Izuku tells him, his face still pale. "You should've back away!"

"I wasn't going to lose."

"Do you see the way he's glaring at you?" Izuku squeals. "Todoroki, you're going to die!"

"He's can't kill me. I'm a bad bitch." He slurps happily in his noodles, sending a glance over to the blond. "And he lost."

"That's a philosophical debate on what he would do," Izuku sighs. "Hold up his deal or enact revenge."

"He'd better hold up his deal or I'll strangle him with soba noodles." Shoto finishes his fifth bowl, exhaling happily. Maybe he shouldn't eat anymore.

Eh, one last bowl won't hurt.

☆彡

One last bowl definitely hurt.

With a pout on his lips, Shoto clutches his stomach. He gorged on the soba, and now he's in pain. Maybe he should've let Katsuki win. Katsuki wouldn't have killed him; he wants to be a hero. He probably would have eaten more soba. And then, Shoto wouldn't be in pain.

"What're you moaning about in there?" comes the angry and loud voice of Katsuki. "I can hear from my room!"

"My tummy hurts!" Shoto whines back. Katsuki opens the door, peeking in at the pathetic sight of Shoto curled in a ball, his arms wrapped around his belly.

"You idiot," Katsuki chastises him, closing the door. Shoto assumes he's left him, until he returns back with boxes of medication. He sits in front of Shoto, demanding he sit up at well.

Shoto rises wobbly, his brows punched together in pain. Katsuki holds a spoon of liquid out for him to eat. "It's grape flavored," he says dully, forcing the spoon into his mouth.

Shoto cringes at the taste, but swallows nonetheless. Katsuki then takes a water bottle with a pill, handing it to Shoto. "This will help, too," he says just as dully as before, watching intently as Shoto swallows it and half the bottle. "There was a laxative in the water, so you might want to head to the bathroom."

"Why would you get me a laxative?" Shoto gasps in horror, already rising from his futon.

"That's what you get for cheating," Katsuki says simply, collecting his things. "Have a nice night." He walks out the door, sending an evil smile over this shoulder on the way out. Shoto takes a few deep breathes, before starting on his way down to the first floor.

It's going to be a long night.

☆彡

In the end, Shoto realizes Katsuki was lying about the laxative. Not once did he have to make a trip to the bathroom, but the fear of not making it in time was enough to keep him in the common room.

Which is where everyone found him in the morning, passed out on the couch, covered in the glitter from the party. He had to take a longer shower that morning to make sure all of the sparkles were out of his hair and off of his skin.

Glitter is a very messy thing.

He made it to class by the skin of his hide, taking his seat before Mr. Aizawa could scold him. He turns his steely glance to Katsuki, glaring holes through the back of his blond head.

Me. Aizawa drones on with his lesson, pointing to what he writes on the board. After, it's Present Mic's lesson on English.

"Todoroki, could you read the first paragraph for us?" He asks in his loud, bravado voice.

Shoto stands, holding his book for him to read. "The best part of love is the feeling you get from a kiss." He grimaces silently and carefully, just long enough for it to look like a natural pause. "When he kissed me, I didn't have enough time to react. He was gone before I had a chance to kiss him back, but I knew the feeling in the pit of my stomach was love."

"Wonderfully done, son!" Present Mic cheers. "Bakugo, the next paragraph is all yours."

Shoto takes his seat, listening to Bakugo read the next paragraph. "And still, I wanted to wring his neck for what he had done to me." Shoto hears the blond huff- likely in agreement. "He betrayed me, though I knew he loved me. The betrayal, better yet, the pain from the betrayal was enough to smother the love I felt."

Katsuki sits, and Present Mic picks up from there. Shoto's stomach twists, though he doesn't know from what. Is it nerves? Is it anxiety? But no, he knows exactly what is really is. The paragraph told his true feelings.

He has a crush.