Red in Different Shades

43. An Early Christmas

"Ready and..."

"Merry Christmas!"

Bakugou leaned against the lounge wall, arms crossed and scowl firmly in place.

It wasn't even Christmas yet. The extras in Class 1-A had decided to throw their Christmas party early now that classes were done for the year. Something about wanting to celebrate together before heading off to spend Christmas Eve with their families and getting ready for their internships. Bakugou didn't care about the reason. He just knew he'd been roped into it whether he liked it or not. Again.

The faint buzz of Christmas music filtered through the room, nearly drowned out by the racket his classmates were making. They'd gone all out, as usual. Tangled strings of blinking lights, generic red or green costumes, and enough food to collapse half the tables. Fried chicken, tempura, cakes. All dumped together in some chaotic buffet that was already being picked at even though they were still waiting on one more.

He clicked his tongue, his eyes narrowing as Kaminari almost fell off of the couch. Idiots, every last one of them.

Yet, beneath the noise and clutter, something tugged at him. A warmth threading through the air, carried in bursts of laughter and easy chatter. It wasn't much, just enough to take the the heat of annoyance out of his blood, but it was enough.

Not that he'd ever admit that.

Instead, he stayed where he was, on the outskirts, watching.

"Oi, Bakugou!" Kirishima's voice cut through the noise, sharp and clear like a firecracker. "Quit sulking and get over here!"

"Shut it," Bakugou snapped without looking. His idiot friend was lounging on the couch, grinning like the damn holiday spirit had possessed him. Tape-face and Discoball were beside him, relaxing and sipping at a flute of sparkling grape juice.

"They're telling us to do work studies," Kirishima went on, his excitement almost unbearable. "We must be the busiest first-years in U.A. history!"

Bakugou rolled his eyes.

Across the room, Ears-Jiro nudged Froppy and Round Face Floaty, her tone casual. "You two are going back to Ryukyu, right??"

"Yeah," Floaty chirped, the brightness in her voice grating against his ears. "What about you, Jiro?"

Completely disinterested in their conversation, his gaze flicked to the corner of the couch, where Deku lingered. Kirishima was already inching toward him, but of course, Four Eyes beat him to it.
"Midoriya, what will you do?" Iida's voice boomed, all sharp edges and unnecessary formality. "Since Nighteye agency..."

"Centipeder took over there, right.?" Kirishima jumped in, his grin widening. "Then you can see him again!"

Deku scratched at his cheek, awkwardness radiating off him in waves. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too. But... they're really busy with the transition. I did my internship with Gran Torino, but he can't either, so right now, I'm still in limbo..."

Bakugou's lip curled. Same damn Deku.

"I see," Kirishima said, nodding as if he actually got it.

"But unlike last time, when it was optional," Deku added, his voice gathering that stupid, stubborn determination that never seemed to quit, "it's an assignment this time. So the school will introduce me to someone."

Tch. Typical.

Bakugou's gaze lingered on three for a moment longer before snapping back to the room.
The noise grated on his nerves, the flashing lights were obnoxious, but he knew that hanging around now was better than the whining he'd get later if he left the stupid party early.