Deku x Shaggy: Confused Love

The Plan

Shaggy couldn't get the kiss off of his mind.

He barely could recollect the events afterwards. Midoriya had looked at him so hopefully despite apologizing for the sudden nature of the kiss, and all Shaggy could tell him was that he needed time to think, leaving the boy in a nervous confusion.

Shaggy had plenty of time to think and not much to show for it. Did he like the boy? Or was it something else that was muddling his thoughts? Perhaps it was just the first time he'd ever felt a genuine connection with someone since his gang, or maybe he actually harbored feelings for him.

This of course would only bring up more problems than it would solve; mainly due to the man in the other room of the very apartment he resided in. Woody would obviously not appreciate any betrayals, and it could launch him into a much worse plan of action. Even then, what if he was wrong about how he felt? What if he didn't love the kid? Was he just looking for a way out to an easier life?

"Shaggy."

The man's eyes snapped up to the figure leaning on the doorframe. Woody let out a sigh, "You want to quit."

"I..." Shaggy looked away from him, frustration clouding his already stormy mind.

"You don't have a real connection with him Shaggy; it's all built on a lie. He doesn't know who you are." the cowboy asserted.

Could that be right? Was he really acting the whole time?

"You started this with the intent to kill him, Shaggy; how could you possibly come to love him?"

"Things, like, change." Shaggy attempted.

"Do they?" Woody scowled disbelievingly, "Has the hero world changed? Has anything changed for you?"

Had anything changed? Shaggy didn't know what to believe anymore.

"Remember what you're fighting for. This kid has just suckered you in just like AllMight did to the public. If you let him go, you will be saying that nothing needs to change." Woody walked into the room.

"But, man, it doesn't feel-"

The man slammed his hands on the table, "What? Right? Is hero society right? Has anything been 'right' for you since your best friend died?"

Shaggy stood up, knocking his chair back with the force of his movement, "You have no right to talk about that!"

"Don't I?" Woody huffed, "This is our plan Shaggy! This is what your life has been working toward for years!"

"Well, so was my group! So was, like, your hero career!" Shaggy retorted, "I don't have to throw my life away for this. This doesn't have to be my life."

"And you are so willing to abandon your group again?" Woody posed.

Shaggy was stunned silent; what the hell did that mean?

"Your group died once, but this plan is a chance for your group's retribution, Shaggy." Woody stated adamantly, "Your group can live on through this message."

Shaggy glared at the ground. He could make their sacrifice worth it.

"If not for your group, maybe for Freddy?" Woody stressed.

Shaggy snapped his eyes to the other man's, "I'm sorry?"

"You don't know how you feel about Midoriya, but you know how you felt about Fred, right?" Woody explained, "Why throw a plan dedicated to the man you loved to the wind for a boy you've only known for a few months?"

Shaggy leaned against the table heavily; how was he supposed to make this choice? He supposed that to a normal, good person the choice would be obvious, but Woody was right, his life, his pain, his friends' pain was all building to this. He couldn't allow society to continue the way it was... could he?

The sound of something being set on the table drew his attention upwards to a six pack and a pill bottle.

"I trust you to make the choice." Woody said simply, turning and walking out of the room.

The case felt like lead in his hand as he walked to their meetup point, which he had requested to be a park near the school. With one last look at the pill bottle, his last opportunity to choose, he approached Midoriya who was sitting on a bench, posture laden with anxiety. He perked up noticeably as Shaggy approached, which only served to make the man feel worse, "Uh, hey, man."

"Hey." the boy chuckled nervously, and Shaggy sat next to him.

"Don't feel bad, Midoriya. I'm not, like, mad or anything." Shaggy soothed, although he most likely felt more uncomfortable than the kid.

"Really?" Midoriya's posture relaxed ever so slightly, "I... that wasn't fair to you."

"Seriously, man, don't sweat it." Shaggy asserted, "I just needed some time to process." He glanced at the case by his side, "Speaking of which..."

Midoriya attempted to peek around Shaggy out of curiosity, brows lowering in disappointment when he saw Shaggy bring out a couple of cans.

"What?" the man frowned in preemptive defense, "We're both men, let's relax a bit and try and talk."

The teen held out a reluctant hand to accept the opened can, staring down at it blankly before giving it a brief smell, "So... what were you processing?"

What an oddly phrased question, "Well... you kissed me, man, and it took me until that moment to realize that you had feelings for me... even though, like, it was kinda obvious... I'm really stupid."

Midoriya laughed in surprise at the sudden self-deprecation, "Hey! No! I wasn't very direct with my feeling at all."

Shaggy took a long drink of his beer, the boy watching him for a moment before doing the same. He adorably scrunched his nose at the taste, but, to be fair, the stuff didn't taste all that good. Apparently Woody didn't know how to choose his beers.

"Honestly... I was surprised, man." Shaggy said after the silence.

"Really?" Midoriya hummed.

"I dunno. I guess I, like, never really considered myself attractive." Shaggy shrugged, "I didn't think most would go for the stoner look."

The teen blushed, eyes gazing at the ground without much focus, "I, well, I liked your personality a lot... but you also have a surprisingly good build, and... I guess I kinda like the more laid back appearance you have, less intimidating."

"Maybe that's why I like you." Shaggy mused without thinking. The men looked at each other in surprise at that statement, and Shaggy scrambled to find an explanation, "I-I mean... well, like, you're just super genuine, man. You are, like, the opposite of intimidating."

"What!?" the boy huffed, "I can be intimidating!"

"With the fluffy hair, round face, small stature, and gigantic eyes?" Shaggy hummed.

The boy pouted, glaring at the can in his hand before downing the contents, "Whatever, man."

"Look who's embarrassed now." Shaggy chuckled before falling silent. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "But... seriously, man, I... I'm not sure how I feel anymore, and I don't know if there's time to fix it."

"Wh-what do... you mean?" the boy's words became slightly slurred.

"Not just how I feel about you... but how I feel about the world." Shaggy sighed.

"Hey... Shaggy?" Midoriya's head tilted to the side, him swaying in place, "Is alcohol supposed to make you this sleepy?"

"Yeah..." Shaggy took a deep breath, patting his shoulder, "Just relax man..."

Midoriya leaned his head against Shaggy's shoulder, his eyes drifting shut as he succumbed to his fatigue. Shaggy leaned his head on the back of the bench, staring up into the starry sky and questioning his choices. He did it; he actually fucking did it, and he didn't feel any better for doing it.

But he knew that no matter how he felt about it he couldn't turn back now.