Amethyst. (Katsuki Bakugo x Reader)

PART 22 - Lessons in Control

Y/N's POV

The sound of his voice, even as quiet as it was, lingered in the silence that followed. My heart skipped a beat, and for a brief moment, I wasn't sure if I'd actually heard him right or if my mind was just playing tricks on me.

I didn't dare move. My body was frozen in place, curled up against him, with the warmth of his arms wrapped around me. The world outside felt distant, irrelevant even. For the first time in a long time, I felt something I couldn't quite put into words. Safe? Calm? I didn't know. It was confusing—everything with him was confusing. But there was no denying the feeling of comfort in that moment, and the weight of my exhaustion finally pulled me under.

I drifted off to sleep, with Bakugo's heartbeat in my ear, steady and strong.

___________

Morning sunlight filtered through the window, casting a soft glow over the room. I blinked, my body still heavy with sleep, and for a moment, I didn't remember where I was.

Then, I felt the warmth next to me, and everything from last night came flooding back.

I was still lying in Bakugo's arms, his grip relaxed but firm around me. My heart skipped again, my brain still trying to process the fact that I had come here in the middle of the night, crawled into bed with him, and he had let me. No questions, no mocking comments—just silence and the comfort of his presence.

What the hell was going on between us?

Carefully, I shifted a little, wincing at the stiffness in my muscles. The events of the week—intense training, restless nights, and yesterday's grueling exercises—had left me sore and exhausted. But the moment I tried to move, his arm tightened briefly around me, pulling me back against him as if on instinct. My breath caught. Was he awake?

His eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, he just stared at me, his expression unreadable. Then, his usual scowl settled back into place, but there was something softer behind it, something almost hesitant.

"Mornin'," he muttered, his voice gruff with sleep.

"Morning," I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.

The silence stretched between us again, thick and heavy, neither of us really knowing what to say. I could feel my heart racing in my chest, the weight of unspoken words hanging in the air.

"You good?" he asked after a moment, his gaze still locked on mine.

I swallowed, nodding slowly. "Yeah. I'm... I'm good."

He didn't say anything more, just nodded slightly before pulling his arm back and sitting up. The sudden loss of contact made me feel strangely cold, and I immediately missed the warmth of his body next to mine.

I sat up as well, awkwardly brushing my hair out of my face. My laptop was still on the bed, long forgotten, the episode of Gossip Girl paused at some random point in the night.

"You better get goin'," Bakugo said, breaking the silence. "Jeanist'll probably be lookin' for you soon."

"Right," I muttered, feeling a twinge of disappointment that I quickly pushed down. "Thanks... for letting me stay."

Bakugo just grunted in response, but there was something about the way he looked at me, something that made my heart do that weird thing again.

As I grabbed my laptop and headed for the door, I hesitated, turning back to look at him. He was still sitting on the bed, his messy hair catching the morning light. "Bakugo..." I started, but the words caught in my throat. Instead, I just nodded and stepped out, quietly shutting the door behind me.