Careless (Kiribaku/Bakushima)

➃ Kinda Weird, but Better ➃

◇KIRISHIMA EIJIROU◇

❂∾Flashback: Age 16∾❂

"Two people from The Squad getting together?" Sero laughed. "Unheard of!"

"Hey!" Kaminari exclaimed, a pout on his lips. He spat the plastic straw he had been chewing on out of his mouth. "No, It's not!"

 Sero rolled his eyes, shuffling himself on his seat and set down the yellow-paper wrapped hamburger he had been munching on. He pointed an accusing finger at the yellow-haired boy. "You're only saying that because you're so head over heels for Kyouka. Dude, you need to get over it, she's not into you."

 He crossed his arms and replied with a huff. "Yeah? Well...You're just jealous." 

 Kirishima raised an eyebrow, watching the exchange between his friends in silence. They'd been at it for five minutes now, talking about couples and dating. Kirishima had been trying his best to stay out of the conversation, eating his fries in peace, serving as nothing more than an audience to the verbal scuffle...but it was hard for a specific blond not to pop into mind.

 Sero laughed. "What? Saying 'You're just jealous' doesn't just make you win an argument! That doesn't even make sense! What am I jealous of? Your one-sided love?"

 Kaminari opened and closed his mouth, eyebrow scrunched as he tried to come up with some kind of rebuttal. "Just shut up...Mooncalf."

Kirishima's ears perked up at the use of a familiar insult.

"You've been spending too much time with Bakugou." Sero said, waving a hand at Kaminari, who's had recently been taking to using the blonde's default insults. "He's all about those weird insults."

"Yeah..." Kaminari agreed, seemingly forgetful of the argument he was just having. "He calls me an egg a lot. Apparently, it's 20s slang for a rich person...Wait a sec, don't change the subject!"

 Sero leaned forward, placing an elbow on the food court table. He made a couple wavy hand motions as he spoke. "Listen, there's no way anyone in The Squad could become a couple. We all know each other too well. Do you really think Kyouka would want to be with someone she already knows is a crybaby?"

Kaminari made a few frustrated hand motions to counter Sero's. "Anybody would find out I'm a crybaby soon enough!"

 Sero laughed. Kirishima stuck another french-fry in his mouth, sucking the salt off it before slowly chewing the on the soggy sliced potato. Luckily, both of his friends were too caught up in their quarrel to notice how sulky Kirishima was, silently brooding as he munched on his fries and sipped on his lemonade.

 There's no way anyone in the squad could become a couple. Maybe that was true, but it didn't stop Kirishima for feeling sour over Sero blatantly stating it in such a positive, confident manner.

 He'd been stuck on a certain blond since his was fifteen. And now, Sero...so casually dropping reasons why two members of The Squad, the name Kaminari had given the group of friends a few months ago, could never be involved romantically...it was prodding little invisible needles into Kirishima and Sero didn't even know it.

 He bit the inside of his cheek, appetite gone. He told himself that rather than being bitter over his friend's words, he should take them as advice and start working in the direction of getting over Bakugou.

 He peered around the mall, trying to entertain his drawling eyes. Bakugou didn't want to come with the three, said "Who the hell would want to go to the mall without money? Fucking spoony tulips, that's who." or something like that (Kirishima had no idea what those old-fashioned slang insults meant, but he took it as a no)...maybe it was a good thing Bakugou hadn't tagged along, his friend's conversation would probably have only been more prickling and stomach-upsetting for Kirishima with the blond present.