Emote: Bakugo x OC Reader

Chapter 79

Seeing Katsuki for the first time since summer camp was somehow like drowning while also getting my first breath of fresh air in a week. While Mr. Aizawa made an announcement to the class I could barely focus but when I heard him mention Todoroki and Kirishima I snapped back to attention.

"Midoryia, Iida and Yaoyorozu." Aizawa was saying in his usual flat tone, although there was an edge to it. "You five are the ones who broke the rules and went to rescue Bakugo that night."

I immediately looked to Katsuki and it was the first time we had made eye contact since I'd arrived. The deep red of his eyes seemed to look through me before he turned away after a few seconds, his expression unreadable, and I felt an immediate ache in my heart.

Wait, what? I thought. The news articles I'd read didn't say anything about UA students being a part of the rescue. I had just assumed that the pro-heroes had gotten there first. Is that another reason he hasn't been responding to me, because he's upset that I didn't make an effort to save him? But I seriously can't imagine him wanting me to have any part of saving him, he probably would have just yelled at me about how he didn't need my help.

I was so distracted by my thoughts that I didn't realize Mr. Aizawa had finished talking and Katsuki had already disappeared while the rest of the class slowly began to filter into the building.

"Shit," I muttered, but before I could follow after him, I felt a hand wrap around my arm.

"Y/n, I heard that we're on the same floor! Come on, let's go check out our rooms!" Mina squealed, her infectious smile temporarily breaking through my stress.

The building truly was spectacular, separated into two side with girls rooms located on the right side of the building and boys on the left. There were a total of four floors with the first floor being a common area, including a living room type area, along with the kitchen, baths and laundry rooms.

As Mina and I marveled at what would come to be our new home, I couldn't help but keep an eye out for Katsuki but he was no where to be seen. As we rode the elevators up to the third floor, Mina gave me a questioning look.

"You okay?" She asked and I realized that I had been chewing my lip as I tried to figure out how to approach Katsuki.

"Oh, it's just..." I trailed off, scrapping my sandal against the elevator floor as I considered how whiny I would sound if I was honest with how upset I was about the whole Katsuki situation. "I never had a chance to hash things out with Katsuki after the summer camp."

"Really? I had assumed that you guys had already talked! Whatever you said couldn't have been that bad and honestly, he's probably said worse. I'm sure he'll forgive you!"

She sounded so painfully optimistic but of course I hadn't told her the fine details of the last thing I'd said to him during our fight that day. I couldn't imagine that he would just get over it that easily, especially when he had been blatantly ignoring me ever since.

The elevator pinged and the doors smoothly slid open. As we stepped out, I heard Kirishima's excited voice ring down the hallway. "You're on this floor too, man?!"

"Can it, shitty hair. If you're this loud all the time, I swear to God I'll kill you."

His voice was surprisingly calm despite his words, almost as though the usual boisterous, hot-tempered Katsuki had somehow been deflated to a less ominous version. My chest seemed to constrict as I stood frozen, but suddenly I felt Mina's hand envelop mine as she turned to the left and started bolting down the hallway.

"You guys are on this floor too?!" She practically screamed as I stumbled in her wake.

As we rounded the corner we were met with a corridor that appeared to have four rooms lining one side. Kirishima and Katsuki stood in the middle of the hallway and both turned in our direction as we came into sight. I could have sworn I saw Katsuki flinch when our eyes met, but he was already turning to walk away, causing my stomach to do a flip. Kirishima seemed to sense the change of mood and helplessly shrugged his shoulders as Mina turned to look at me, her sweet golden eyes full of steely determination.

Oh God. I thought, an uncomfortable feeling settling in as I realized what she was about to do. Just leave it alone, Mina. Let's just go check out our dorms like we had originally planned. I silently pleaded in my head and tried to convey this with the expression I gave her, but it was no use.

She spun around, rushing to Kirishima and taking him by the arm as she started dragging him back towards the elevators. "Kirishima, there's something I need to show you! Trust me, I'm sure you missed seeing it on your way up here but it's so cool!"

Kirishima looked bewildered but put up little fight as they disappeared around the corner, leaving Katsuki and I alone in the spacious hallway. He'd been thrown off by Mina's sudden outburst but he quickly recovered and started walking away, towards the door at the farthest end of the hallway.

"Wait!" I called and when he didn't slow his pace I found myself jogging to catch up.

As I closed the distance between us, he spun around as he snapped, "What?"

"I'm sorry." I blurted. We were close enough that I wouldn't be surprised if he could hear my heart racing, rapidly beating against my chest as though it wanted to escape. "What I said that day, I didn't mean it. I said it because I was upset and I wanted to hurt you the way you'd hurt me. I regretted it the moment I said it and I've been sitting with that for the past week and when you were captured by the villains -"

He narrowed his crimson eyes at me as he cut me off. "I don't give a shit what you said. It doesn't even matter. We're not together, we never were. Why don't you get that through your head?"

His words sliced through me and I staggered back at the force of them. "You don't mean that. You can't tell me that what we had didn't mean something to you. Are you upset because I didn't come with the others to rescue -"

"I didn't ask for a goddamn rescue crew to come save me like I'm some helpless moron that can't save himself!" He yelled, his voice booming. "And I'm sorry to break it to you but I don't give a shit about you or this 'us' you're referring to or whatever! So just give up already and leave me the fuck alone!"

I don't know why I reached my hand out to someone who so clearly didn't want me. And yet, I couldn't shake the feeling that despite his usual aggressive manner, there was something off about him, as though something within him had shifted or been stolen or busted up before being put back together. It terrified me.

"Don't fucking touch me!" He screeched and pulled away as though my fingers were hot embers.

I recoiled immediately, holding my hands up in surrender as he turned and stomped away, shooting me one last glare before opening his door and slamming it behind him.