Emote: Bakugo x OC Reader

Chapter 48

The next couple days were consumed with the written portion of our final exams. Although the first day was a bit more difficult due to using my quirk the previous day, it got better as the day progressed. I found that despite Bakugo's harsh tutoring style, I had retained a lot of the information we went over and found myself walking away from the exams feeling confident that I passed. The only thing left to accomplish was the practical exam, which is where our hero training was factored in.

I'd heard that we would be up against robots, similar to what we had experienced during our entrance exams, but when we got to the practical exam area, most of our teachers stood lined up outside the entrance.

"Why is everyone here?" I whispered to Kirishima, who shrugged his shoulders casually, but I began to feel uneasy.

As Mr. Aizawa began talking I noticed that his scarf seemed bulkier than usual and startled when Principal Nezu popped out of it.

"For various reasons the exam will be different than what you may be expecting," Principal Nezu said, casually using Aizawa's scarf to belay himself down to the ground as he spoke. "The tests have a new focus. There will be hero work, of course, but also teamwork and combat between actual people. So what does that mean for you? You students will be working together in pairs and your opponents will be one of our esteemed UA teachers, isn't that fabulous?"

My stomach dropped. Did he say we'll be facing our teachers...in pairs?! I thought, as memories of the day our group of four had to face Ectoplasm began flashing through my mind and I remembered how completely useless I had been. But wait, does that mean we get to pick our partners? 

On instinct, I looked to Bakugo, but it was just as Mr. Aizawa was saying that the pairs had already been decided by him. He continued to talk, but my anxiety took over as I waited to hear who my partner would be and I missed most of what he was saying.

"Nakano," I heard my name called and my head snapped up. "You and Todoroki are on a team and you'll be facing me."

Mr. Aizawa's face split into a smile as he said it and I suddenly felt nauseous. Gripping my stomach, my thoughts began to race.

His quirk literally erases other people's quirks. So even if I was able to contribute to defeating him in this exam, I would have to rely solely on my combat ability. And I've heard the others talk about how Mr. Aizawa uses his scarf during combat. I wouldn't even be able to get near him. I'm going to fail. I'm not going to be able to do this. All of the work I've put into strengthening my quirk and it's all for nothing? And if I fail the exam I won't be able to go to the summer training camp, putting me even farther behind. Oh God, I'm going to flunk out. They're going to kick me out of the hero course. 

"Oi," I felt something smack my arm and it brought me back to reality. "You're spiraling already, aren't you?" Bakugo said, his crimson eyes assessing me carefully.

"W-what?" I asked nervously.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well, stop it. You've got that stupid faraway look on your face like you're thinking of all the possible ways you could fail. Did you even hear anything he said about the exam or were you spacing out?"

I realized then that everybody was starting to move towards entering the exam area.

"Nakano," I heard a voice say and I turned to see Todoroki walking towards us. "Let's work on coming up with a plan."

"Who invited you to this conversation, Icy Hot bastard?" Bakugo growled.

"Bakugo, you should probably start planning with your partner," Todoroki said calmly.

Who had he been paired with? He's right, I wasn't paying attention...

"Fuck you, half n half! I'm not planning shit with that damn nerd!" Bakugo shouted, before stalking off.

It was then that I noticed Midoriya hovering nearby and his gaze fell to the floor in defeat as Bakugo stormed off. I didn't understand why Bakugo had so much pent up anger towards Midoriya in particular. He certainly didn't talk about it but he was always so hostile towards him when all I'd ever seen was Midoriya being kind and considerate towards Bakugo. I suspected that part of the reason Aizawa paired them together is to test their ability to work together as a team.

Looking back at Todoroki, I wondered why I had been paired with him. Could it be because he is one of the strongest people in our class and I am one of the weakest? I shook my head, trying to rid my thoughts of the self-doubt that kept creeping in.

"Let's find someplace to meet inside," Todoroki suggested and started walking towards the entrance.

He didn't seem to realize that I was struggling to keep my negative thoughts under control and it was then that I realized that Bakugo was beginning to know me a lot better than I realized.

Author's note: This chapter is utter shit. I am not a fan when authors tear their own work apart and talk down to themselves but this is really just a filler chapter to move the story along in the direction I need it to go. And I'm acknowledging that it's not that good. I've been in a funk with my writing after the last chapter I wrote which I really liked and hopefully we get back on track soon here. Thanks for reading if you've made it this far in the story - I hope you're enjoying and I love reading your comments!