You're A Hero, Too [HIATUS]

Chapter Two

CHAPTER TWO
The Hardest Part

How can you ever treat someone you like as just friends? Eijirou learned it the hard way, of staying friends with someone you learned to like as more than friends.

Today, he learned the hardest part of it.

After his failure of a confession back in their second year, Bakugou jokingly smacked his head and told him with a fake smile that "Shitty Hair is Shitty Hair. And Shitty Hair is my friend."

They locked eyes for a moment, trying to read each other's mind. Eijirou tried to smile again. "Let's get inside!" He said, as cheerful as he could.

Bakugou stared at him for three more seconds before making a familiar face. Bakugou scoffed at him, walking in front of him. Eijirou knew something had changed between them that night.

They went back inside the dorms together that night, fooling themselves, keeping whatever happened outside a secret, and continued being friends.

Bakugou is the most genuine person Eijirou had met. And for Eijirou, that is manly as hell. But because Eijirou courageously tried to confess, Bakugou started holding back for him. Unconsciously, Bakugou started putting a distance between him and Eijirou- too worried to be too close, too afraid to hurt Eijirou.

Eijirou hates it, it's his fault why Bakugou became aware of his feelings, but he understands where the blonde is coming from. He's got someone he likes, someone who isn't Eijirou and because Eijirou is a friend, he doesn't want to hurt the latter.

It built a wall in the middle of them. They shouldn't be too close or too easy to reach; Know your place as a friend. No more sparring with just the two of them. No more late night studying in Bakugou's room. No more unnecessary touches.

The things they did before with just the two of them, they did it with everyone now.

Of course, someone would pick up the distance between them. The idiots, as Bakugou calls their group of friends. So, after two months of being like that, Mina decided to tackle the issue with Eijirou.

"Eiji." Mina started the moment she entered the redhead's room, "did you and Blasty got into a fight?" she asked, worried.

Eijirou didn't know how it happened, he just found himself spilling everything to his best friend. But, there were no tears coming from him, it was from Mina, surprisingly. She cried for him that night, she cried the tears he couldn't shed.

"Why are you crying?" Eijirou tried to chuckle, wiping Mina's tears.

"Eiji..." Mina called for him, his old nickname felt like a gentle caress to his heart. "You're hurting, aren't you?"

Eijirou paused, then slimed. Mina cried harder.

And today, two years have passed. They have graduated from UA already, they have started their careers as pros. And Eijirou is still Bakugou's friend and as cliche as it may sound, Eijirou still likes Bakugou.

Probably more.

Truth be told, Eijirou won't be content with just waiting. There are days where he just wanted to confess to Bakugou again, since the latter never had a partner after that night. A year into being pro, with scandals about him left and right, Bakugou remained single.

But Eijirou knows better.

The alpha is still waiting for that person he told Eijirou about that night.

It's... sad, to put his feelings into words. Eijirou didn't know how sad he was, but he was. Waiting for someone who is waiting for someone else is a sad thing. It's actually one of the hardest parts of being friends with someone you like.