Deku adjusted his green raincoat, glancing around as he waited outside the community center. The city cleanup event was about to begin, and he was paired with someone he hadn't expected—Bakugo. His mind was a whirl of excitement and nerves, thoughts bouncing between their shared past and what the evening might bring.
Deku approached with a tentative smile, trying to break the ice. "Ready for some community service, Bakugo?"
"Yeah, yeah, let's get this over with," came the gruff reply, though there was a hint of something softer beneath the usual bravado.
Bakugo tossed a bag of collected trash with more force than necessary. "You missed a spot, nerd," he teased, unable to resist poking fun.
Deku shot him a playful glare, his competitive spirit ignited. "Just because you have a powerful quirk doesn't mean you're the king of cleaning," he retorted, albeit with a hint of laughter in his voice.
Deku paused, leaning on his broom, his heart pounding with an unspoken confession. "Hey, Bakugo... do you ever think about how different things could have been between us?" Bakugo's eyes met his, the usual fire in them replaced by something more vulnerable. "Yeah, maybe more than you know," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. Bakugo leaned in to kiss Deku
Deku took a step closer, his voice steady. "I think... I think there's more to us than just rivalry," he ventured, his words hanging in the air between them.
Bakugo, for once, didn't argue. Instead, he nodded, a small smile breaking through. "Took you long enough to figure that out," he said, his tone teasing yet sincere.
Deku and Bakugo walked side by side, the earlier tension replaced by a comfortable silence. Their steps were in sync, a silent promise of a new chapter in their lives, one where rivalry and friendship intertwined with the possibility of something more.
