My Fantasy (Katsuki Bakugou x OC)

Time

Bakugou's POV

"I...I think I like you!"

It took me a moment to register what Ainu just said. When it finally hit me, shock flooded me like an ice cold bath. My whole body tensed and I sat up to see if I just hallucinated what she said.

"...What?" Is all I could say. It felt like my mind was racing but also completely blank. I stare at her, her fidgeting hands, her nervous glances, her flushed face.

She's joking, right? Disbelief races in. She means it differently. 

"U-Um.." She starts fidgeting more.

She doesn't mean it. It continues. She's confused.

"I-I said... I think I...l-like you.. Like, you know-" She drawls that last word. Her confidence fading away by the second.

The shock fades to the background as many strong emotions come to the forefront. A feeling of happiness. Anger. Acceptation. Rejection. Confusion. Fear. I didn't know how to feel. How to react.

What do I do?

I can't stop staring at her, trying to find some hint of a lie or joke. All I can find is that it's true. I search harder. A girl putting her feelings out on a table. Deeper. Uneasiness for my response. Deeper. Anticipation. Deeper. It's real.

It's real?

"You're.. being serious?" Barely escapes my throat as a last ditch effort to find any sense of dishonesty.

"Um...yeah?" She starts to close in on herself. Bracing. Embarrassment. Inferiority. No deception.

It's real.

Time moves slow. Seconds turn to moments. Minutes feel like memories. I feel trapped. I hold power. I want to move. My body is frozen.

What do I do?

What can I do? I could say anything. I could run. I could yell. I could accept. Anything.

How do I feel about this?

What don't I feel? I see her as a worthy classmate. She's capable. She's kind. Do I like her?

Do I like her?

My body twists with contradiction.

"Bakugou..?" Caution drifts. Concern. Hesitation.

So much noise. So much emotions. So many thoughts.

"I don't know."

Confusion, yet understanding. She looks at me.

"Okay.."

I look at her for answers, but all I see is what she feels. No deception. No trickery.

She takes a step back. And another. Slowly. Memories.

How do I feel?

"I'll um-"

"Give me time."

"Yeah! Sure!"

She takes moments to get to the door. She makes memories by watching me as she leaves. The lights are off. Contradiction.

I don't know what I feel for her. Even though my gut throws one emotion after the other. The problem is identifying them. I lay back down slowly.

There's so much to think about.

There's too much I need to think about. Too much I'm feeling. Sleep comes even as the marathon continues.