And it's finally happening!

#MIRITAMA INTERACTIVE THREAD
Jock/Goth AU

Thank you for the 100 (113!!) followers! I'm so excited about this!

Hope you enjoy!

cw: none

Original jock/goth thread (for context): https://twitter.com/Iracebeth3/status/1229957631009329152?s=19

Eijirou used to think he was one of those people that have everything: freshman year of high school and he has lots of friends and what looks like a great high school life ahead! He has Ashido for parties and Sero to help him study- he even got a wingman! He didn't+

quite believe him at first, but somehow Kaminari managed to get him Bakugo's number! Eijirou hasn't used it, really, but-

But his friends are amazing! He thought that, with them and his new spray hair dye for his roots, everything would be fine!

He even managed to get accepted in the football team! Even though he is just a freshman, they gave him a regular position! And his team is nothing like those they show in movies: everyone is nice and kind! Especially their captain.

Captain Togata is such an inspiration to him! Such a cool guy: kind-hearted and really cheerful! Really manly! And not (what did Mina call it again) /toxic/ manly: real manly! Caring manly!

Whenever Eijirou has made mistakes on the field, he hasn't held it against him. He tells them to use their mistakes to learn and grow from them. He has advised Eijirou on how to fix his form and how to be faster and everything! He seemed- so nice.

Eijirou would have been less affected if Togata was generally mean, like one of those jock guys at the movies. But Togata was the most cheerful and nice person Eijirou knew; the captain and senpai everyone had probably dreamed off their whole lives.

And yet, he is a bully!

He wishes he hadn't found out some times. It's painful, and it makes him feel bad, but everything has been so hard since he did- he can't see Togata the same way! He can't look at the other team members either, wondering if they all know.

What scares him the most is meeting Togata's victim, knowing he saw him being attacked and couldn't move to help him- so unmanly!

He is supposed to be better than this! The days in which he couldn't win against bullies were supposed to be long over!

He should have been able to do something!

But he didn't. He /hid/ behind a locker as Togata intimidated another student.

It had looked so terrifying! Togata was much taller than the other guy, so he towered over him really scarily!

Eijirou hadn't seen the other guy around much, but the pointy ears were hard to forget. Whenever he had seen him, he was alone. All dressed in black; sometimes with his pointy ears full of piercings or black chokers around his neck.

It didn't take a genius to know he wasn't doing great at school. And Eijirou feels- maybe he can /relate/. He also used to be afraid of coming to school sometimes; he also left his bangs grow long so people wouldn't see his face...

And he also had people taller and stronger than him intimidating him with their bodies.

The goth guy had his eyes glued to his feet, like he was too scared to look at Togata's face... Togata's /smiling/ face! He was /smiling/.

Like he thought his fear was funny!

And yeah, Eijirou has also been on the worse end of those kind of smiles, but seeing it happen right in front of him-

But his body wouldn't move!

Eijirou was too far to know what kind of horrible slur was Togata using. He couldn't hear them well, but the other guy had gotten

very red — angry looking red that finally seemed to make him snap. He pushed Togata away from him (probably as much as he could, but Togata is /huge/) and walked away, burying his hood to his nose.

Eijirou heard Togata /laugh/ as the guy walked away. /Laugh/. That+

was so cruel, man! Just mean! The poor guy could barely push you, he gathered the strength to plant face to you and you laugh!

And Eijirou /wanted/ to say something. He wanted to go there and tell Togata to fuck off.

And what did he do?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. So unmanly!

It doesn't help to have Togata find him later, hugging his knees in the very place from which he saw everything.

"Hey, Kiri, buddy?"

Kirishima looks up, and finds Togata's weird eyes looking at him. He is crouched on the floor in front of him, so they+

are somewhat eye-levelled.

"Everything okay?"

Togata looks so /concerned/. There is a smile on his face, but he is frowning. Still, his expression is so /open/, like Kirishima could just- tell him anything and he would listen and try to help.

How can this guy be a bully?

(Seems like a good time for the first poll! Now you choose:

(UPDATE!!)

But- he is.

Eijirou stands up so fast he gets dizzy. He wipes the tears off his eyes (man, he was crying at school! So unmanly!) and faces Togata... He has to confront him, right? He has to! He saw him!

"T-Togata-senpai," ah, his voice is shaking! So unmanly, man up Eijirou! "I-I saw you- just now- with that guy-"

Togata-senpai is still crouched on the floor. He is looking straight at him, and Eijirou can see the moment he starts blushing.

At least- at least he is embarrassed! Good!

"Is that so?" Togata smiles, then, /sheepishly/, "well- does that bother you?"

Eijirou takes a few seconds to process that, he repeats the information in his mind — over and over.

Is he- is he really asking that!?

"Of course it bothers me!"

How could he think Eijirou wouldn't mind? That he would- what? Cheer him on? No way!

Eijirou sees Togata take an audible deep breath. He stands up, putting his hands in his pockets.

"I'm very sorry that it bothers you, Kirishima."

Is that- disappointment in his voice? Disappointment!? Did he really think Eijirou would be okay with that?

"It changes nothing, though. Whatever I do- it's hardly your business."

Togata's voice takes such a harsh tone. Eijirou is surprised. He never heard- he+

didn't even imagine Togata could sound this mad!

He clenches his teeth, and feels his fists clenching too. He thinks of that- poor guy. He must have been so scared...

"O-of course it's my business," damn, there's his voice shaking again! Come on, Eijirou! "you+

can't be doing that! It's wrong!"

Togata takes another deep sigh. He is so tense!

Will he have to fight? He can definitely fight for what's right!

Even if- maybe he can't /win/, but he has to /try/, right?

But Togata doesn't hit him.

"As I said, it's none of your business," he says, shaking his head, still looking /disappointed/ of all things, disappointed! "I would appreciate if you didn't spread this out. It's not exactly a secret, but-"

It's not- not a secret? Not a secret!? Does that mean others know?

That's- that's so twisted! Does the rest of their team know, then? He thought they were all good guys!

Is it- is it common among them?

"Do- do the other guys- are they- are they also-?"

Togata chuckles. He chuckles! Is it- is this funny for him?

"It's only me, as far as I know, but you don't have to worry about that, Kirishima, I think if anyone was after you, you would know already."

After him?

The meaning behind his words click a few seconds later. Does he- does he bully their teammates too?

"Do you- do you do that with- others?"

What if it's not only teammates? Is it possible that Togata might be- bullying half the school and Kirishima didn't know!?

Togata laughs then: a deep belly laugh that would have made him happy to hear... But right now, it gives him chills.

Togata is laughing! Who would have thought he was this crazy!?

"Sounds- funny, at least... But I don't. I don't do that with anyone else. Tamaki is- special."

Kirishima processes the information in his head, heart racing.

So- it's not that he bullies /people/.

He just- hates that guy for some reason?

"Why?" He hardly does anything! Kirishima doesn't really know him, but- but he doesn't look like the kind of guy that would /deserve/ something like that.

"Like I said, that's none of your business."

Why did he never see it before? Togata is- so cruel! That's just- mean!

"So- you- won't tell me anything but you still want me to keep your secret?"

Togata lets out a chuckle. It's like- like one of those evil villains in Disney movies! So mean!

"It's not a secret, Kirishima! Well, not /exactly/ a secret anyways. But it would be... /Inconvenient/ if it spreads. I would appreciate it if you could, you know, keep it quiet."

Does he-? Is he really asking him to keep that quiet!?

Kirishima feels /rage/ boil inside of him.

Disney villains are kind compared to Togata! He clenches his fists tighter.

"Or what?"

"Or nothing," Togata shrugs, "you would probably just make Tamaki uncomfortable, but if that doesn't matter to you, there's nothing I can do to stop you."

Kirishima clenches his teeth, feeling a frown on his face.

So, if he says something, he will make it worse for his victim? Really?

Eijirou feels sick to his stomach. Does he really not care at all?

"I never thought you, of all people, would be like this."

Togata shrugs again, that same sheepish smile on his face. He looks- /proud/. Almost retaliating. As if Kirishima had offended him! He smiled at him as he answered.

"I guess you shouldn't judge a book by its cover."
__

Ever since that day, Kirishima feels his school life is+

over.

Sure, he is still doing fine for the most part. He is still popular, he still has friends, but-

But all of that sits over someone else's pain! If he had told someone, Togata would have turned against him. But he didn't, so he still has his perfect life...

But he can't enjoy it. Not while thinking of that other guy! And what he must be enduring just because Eijirou didn't help him! He looked so scared...

Argh, he is the worst! He didn't tell anyone: not a teacher, not even their coach! He hasn't even had the balls to face+

Togata's victim!

So unmanly! Eijirou is part of the scheme now! For all that matters, he might as well be bullying that guy too!

He shakes his head furiously, trying to think of what to do. He has never been this conflicted in his life!

His guilt doesn't improve as the days go by. If anything, it only seems to get worse. If he says something, he will just make everything worse!

He sighs as he walks to room 207 — the room for therapy group. He really didn't think his anxiety was this bad, but+

Aizawa-sensei sent him there anyway. He tried to tell him he was fine! (He wouldn't be able to talk to the counselor anyways!) But Aizawa-sensei had ordered him, and he wouldn't take no for an answer.

So here he is, entering Taishiro-sensei's group therapy room.

It's a regular classroom, but some chairs were arranged in a circle in the middle, the rest pushed to the wall. There's more than Eijirou expected, but then again, this is a big school: anxiety is very common. And people are are probably just the ones that have+

it bad enough for a teacher to order them there.

He looks around, trying to decide where to seat. He sees Koda, from his Biology class, and he waves a hand at him, smiling. Koda waves back almost timidly, pulling at the hem of his sweater, and Eijirou feels+

his smile growing wider. The two seats by Koda's side are taken, so he sits in front of him, side by side with a girl with a ponytail.

There's so many people im school he didn't know! Who would have thought?

And these are- these people are like /him/. He can recognize the signs: low gazes, and fidgeting with phones, or tapping the floor with your feet almost frantically... He had done that too, sometimes all at once.

Maybe it's his imagination but- isn't everyone kind of looking at him too much?

Suddenly, he realizes why: they probably have known each other for a while now. Having him there — a new face, someone that most of them don't really know... It must be so triggering! He+

might be making them even more anxious!

He dries his palms in his jeans, wondering what to do. Maybe he can leave now? But what are they going to think? Will they think Eijirou doesn't want to be with them? That's not it!

Maybe he can come up with an emergency?

He grabs his phone and texts Ashido: if she calls him, he can fake an emergency and get away... Or maybe he should just pretend he is going to the bathroom? That would work too.

He stands up, ready to go for the door, but there's someone else coming in.

Someone dressed in black from head to toe, a choker with a silver sun hanging from his neck and black piercings on the pointy ears.

Eijirou freezes on the spot. That's- that's Togata's victim!

Before he can figure out what to do, Taishiro-sensei enters the+

classroom, booming voice greeting everyone.

Togata's victim is here! Who would have thought he would have it this bad...?

Then again, he had looked /very/ scared back then. And the fact that Togata enjoyed tormenting him...

After introducing himself (trying to look as non-threatening as possible) Eijirou sits down. Taishiro-sensei says a lot of great stuff! And normally he would have been thrilled to hear him! But his palms are sweating too much, heart beating hard in his chest.

Who would have thought he would run into Togata's victim?

He can't even look at his face! What if Togata told him? What if he knows Eijirou knows but was too coward to do anything? Even if he doesn't, how can he look at his face? He ran away!

Before he notices, Taishiro-sensei is closing the hour: everyone is standing up and leaving.

Togata's victim is still there, looking at something on his phone.

(made it to the second poll!

What does Kiri do?)

Before Eijirou knows fully well what he is doing, Eijirou is crossing the classroom to stand in front of the guy.

Maybe he can just go and say hi? Taishiro-sensei did say they would welcome him, but- but what if-?

As he stands in front of the guy, Eijirou weights down his options. Just hi. Just hi is fine, right?

As if he had heard Eijirou's internal bantering, the guy looked up from his phone. He /jumped/ when he saw Eijirou standing so close, phone flying+

away from his hand.

Luckily, the guy moved fast enough to catch his phone mid-air, hands reaching to it easily.

"Wow, lucky!" That was such a cool move! Quick reflexes! Eijirou was jealous!

Or at least his phone almost certainly was. His poor phone had it+

rough this year. He had dropped it so many times... It would be cool to pull off saves like that!

The guy is pale as a ghost now, dark eyes stubbornly fixed on the floor by Eijirou's feet. He has that freaked out look on his face, too — like he wanted to run away.

He had it while speaking to the group, explaining something about breathing techniques so quickly it was a bit hard to follow him. But he was trying, at least! After everything he has been through he is still trying.

Eijirou tries to think of what to say as+

silence stretches. What can he say now, really? "I know about you and Togata?" "Sorry for leaving you alone with your bully?" That sounds- terrible.

Damn, he should have thought this better!

"Do you need something?"

The guy's voice comes out even enough; no trace of that+

underlying anxiety he had shown while talking to the group.

"Ah, sorry" what did he want to say again? Sorry for leaving you alone with your- no, no, that's not it! Stop! Start with something else, Eijirou! "I am Kirishima."

Eijirou extends his hand. Shaking hands would be fine right? Super manly! And super not "I-can't-face-you-right-now-because-I-ran-away-when-you-needed-help."

Togata's victim looks at Eijirou's extended hand for so long he wonders if he forgot to wash them.

Eventually, however, he extends his hand forward too. Eijirou sees he has perfectly applied black nail polish on his nails and almost sighs with envy. He could never get it to look like that! And his fishnet gloves look so cool, too!

"Amajiki."Eijirou blinks when+

he hears the name, slightly surprised.

Didn't Togata call him something else? He was almost sure his name was... What was it again? Tanuki? No, that's an animal. Tafuki?

Now Amajiki is looking at him /expectantly/... Of course: Eijirou+

came here to introduce himself to him and now he is just standing there and not saying anything. It's- it's probably weird, right? Damn, at least he should have thought of a question or something!

He wants to facepalm. Damn. Is this what Sero meant when he+

said he needed to start thinking before he acted? He was right. He was /so/ right.

"Tamaki!"

They both turn around, startled by the sound of Taishiro-sensei's voice. He is coming to them now, beaming as if he was seeing something very funny.

"What are you doing, Tamaki? Scaring the new kid off?"

"I- wasn't-."

Taishiro-sensei laughs, then: that same booming laugh echoing against the walls. Eijirou is slightly surprised by both the sound and Amajiki's reaction: he lets out a long-suffering sigh, as+

if he was used to this? He doesn't react when Taishiro-sensei pats he a back, either. Even though, fornthe sound of it, Eijirou is almost worried about his lungs.

"Don't let this one scare you, Kirishima! He is a cool guy. Shy, that's all, but I promise you he+

doesn't bite."

Eijirou chuckles a little, unable to stop himself, and Taishiro-sensei's ultra manly laugh joins him a second later. He places a hand on Eijirou's shoulder.

"Seriously, though, don't be afraid to ask for help, Kirishima-kun. Everyone here is trying+

to do better. And this guy here" really, are Amajiki's lungs okay? That sounded tough! "might look intimidating, but no one knows about dealing with anxiety as he does."

Eijirou chuckles awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

If Amajiki is an expert dealing with anxiety, Eijirou is an expert dealing with bullies. Next time, he will definitely help him!
_____

The thing about wanting to help someone with a problem is that, most times, you need to get them to talk about their problem+

first.

Amajiki-senpai is a great listener. He heard Eijirou talk about his impossible-looking but maybe-not-completely-hopeless crush on Bakugo and his doubts for nearly twenty minutes. And he gave him good advice, too! That thing about building friendship+

before romance was great! He was right: Eijirou didn't have to rush things out. Getting to know Bakugo better first sounded great! Sero had also said something like that, but he hadn't believe it quite as much as he had from Amajiki-senpai. It really sounded+

like he knew what he was talking about!

The problem with that was that, whenever they were in the same space, Eijirou was the one doing the talking. Which meant he couldn't get him to talk about /his/ issues. And it just feels /wrong/ to admit to him that he saw+

him with Togata. Eijirou can't imagine how would that make Amajiki's anxiety spike... No, he needs to get him to talk /first/. But he doesn't know /how/.

Eijirou is also worried about Togata. He /had/ to tell him he was going to Taishiro-sensei's group; Tuesday+

and Thursday happened at the same time as team practice. Togata didn't really oppose it (he made a joke of sorts or Eijirou having to work twice as hard to catch up with everyone) but he can't be sure, because Togata rarely shows his true face in front of many people.

And he has this- /feeling/. It /could/ maybe be his imagination, but ever since he started going to the support group he can feel his eyes on him. Togata is looking at him like a hawk, waiting... For what? Eijirou doesn't know, but he knows he doesn't like it.

"Hey, Kirishima, can I talk to you for a second?"

And there he is: the moment of the confrontation. After practice: Togata looking at him with a smile that manages to hide all his true intentions.

He feels a pinch of anxiety when he sees the rest of the team+

leave, but what kind of man would he be if he chickens out now? How would he help Amajiki-senpai face Togata if he can't face him himself? Come on Eijirou, you can do it!

And so he waits for everyone to leave, until it's just him and Togata, back leaned against the lockers.

"So..."

Eijirou makes fists with his hands. He is not afraid. He can do this. He can totally do this!

"What's going on between you and Tamaki?"

POLL TIME!

What does Kiri say?

Eijirou swallows hard, but he will be damned if he lets Togata handle him as he pleases. Man up!

"What do you mean?"

He sees Togata bring his hand to his chin, as if thinking hard, but he doesn't believe it even for a second! Togata already knows what he's talking about. This+

isn't Eijirou's first time dealing with a bully! He wants him to panic, but to hell with that! He is doing nothing wrong! And if Togata wants to know something, he'll have to ask directly!

Togata smiles again. It's smaller than his normal smile. Not /happy/, merely - polite.

It makes him shiver.

"Well, it just seems to me you are becoming closer and closer... You can't blame me for wondering what you want from him."

That cheerful tone is so evil! How can he hide his true intentions like that? It's evil! Togata is pure evil!

"I don't /want/ anything from him" Eijirou's voice comes out strong and sharp; super manly! And it feels /great/! "we are friends. That's all."

Togata raises his eyebrows, villainous arms uncrossing in his chest. He looks at Eijirou straight into the eye, and

it brings goosebumps all over his arms: that villainous gaze is so /intense/ he feels like he is looking through him.

But Eijirou keeps his head high. He has to! He can't show fear! If he can't face Togata by himself, he can't possibly hope to help Amajiki-senpai!

It feels like he is at a staring contest! Eijirou doesn't even blink, too compromised with his cause to let himself lose! Even when it's something small like this, he wants to prove himself! He can't let the bullies win!

Eventually, Togata looks away.

Victory!

"It's fine, then," Togata-senpai has that wide unnerving smile "it does seem you want to be friends with him... He's great, isn't he?"

Eijirou takes a few seconds to process this, trying to guess the meaning behind that smile. Suddenly, it clicks.

Togata is being /sarcastic/.

What has Amajiki senpai even done to him? He's such a cool guy! His anxiety is /bad/, but he still comes to school and does his best. And he barely talks to anyone! And he is such a good friend-

Eijirou had vowed to stay calm, but he can't let this slide. He can't let /anyone/ talk that way about his friend!

"Yeah, he is- /great/... I really don't get why you-"

Really, did Amajiki-senpai steal his girlfriend or something? It makes no sense. Why /him/?

Togata laughs then: that deep belly laugh that sounds like he is having fun. That laugh that makes everyone else laugh with him- the laugh that hides all his true intentions!

"Well, you don't /have to/ get it Kirishima... But it's /because/ he is great. That's all."

A bunch of ideas fight each other in Eijirou's head. The strongest is the only one that makes a tiny bit of sense.

Is Togata- jealous?

Eijirou clenches his teeth as Togata speaks again, smile still on his face.

"I guess it's hard to get if you haven't been through that."

"Well, i will never get it. That's for sure."

There is that look on Togata's face, something like disappointment on his eyes again. Eijirou is so angry! Does he really think he can turn him into a bully too? As if!

Specially with Amajiki-senpai. He's his friend!

"I think if you stay longer Tetsu will think I ate you" Togata laughs again, that evil laugh, so evil that it hides all the evilness! "You should go now."

Eijirou blinks at the change of topic, but who knows what will happen if he stays here longer. So he+

turns around and takes a few steps towards the door.

"Togata-senpai."

He turns just his head at him, ready to deliver a hero line; back straight, firm shoulders, super manly voice.

"I promise I'll save Amajiki-senpai from you."

Togata-senpai laughs again: a laugh so high and long it reverberates against every locker. Eijirou doesn't really know if he should be angry or embarrassed.

"Good luck with that."
_______

Argh! That was so upsetting!

Eijirou fumes as he walks. Tetsu wasn't waiting+

for him, which is /great/, because at least he doesn't have to pretend to be /fine/ with this.

How dare he say that? Eijirou wanted to hit him!

But if he had done that- well, maybe that wouldn't have ended so well.

Eijirou is not an idiot. Togata is much taller,

and probably stronger than him, too
... If they were to fight, he would beat him up, and that would help nobody.

Eijirou hasn't even been in a fight before! Or- maybe it's best to say he hasn't /won/ one in his life.

If he were to fight Togata, that would end up /bad/.

But he'll have to do something, won't he? If he really wants to help Amajiki-senpai... It's not impossible that it would go that way...

What can he do?

Maybe- finding someone to teach him?

Suddenly, an answer comes to his mind: Bakugo.

He- trained martial+

arts, didn't he? He was saying something about going to the dojo...

Maybe he could ask for help?

(POLL TIME:

Should he...

When Kirishima planned talking to Bakugo, he imagined a lot of stuff he could say to him: 'I like you,' 'You are super manly,' and 'Can I kiss you, bro?' were by /far/ at the top of the list.

/Please teach me how to fight/ most definitely wasn't.

Still, Eijirou said it. And Bakugo looked at him with surprise.

It must have seem stupid for him. As far as he knew, Bakugo did martial arts /seriously/. He wasn't just a guy that knew how to throw a lucky punch. But Eijirou has seen the way Togata moves; he+

has seen him breaking fights between two people bigger than him. If he expects to win over him, he is going to need more than good luck.

When Bakugo asked why he wanted to learn, Eijirou hesitated.

"There's- well, it's kind of hard to explain, but someone+

close to me is in trouble- and I want to help them."

Bakugo scowled at him, mumbling something that sounded like another slur against his hair.

"Pleeeeeaase-"

"Ugh, fine!" Bakugo growled at him, his scowl growing, "but don't think I'll go easy on you, Shitty+

Hair! If you wanna learn, you'll learn the hard way!"

Back then, Eijirou did his best to ignore the butterflies in his stomach at Bakugo's manliness and focused on the task at hand.

Unfortunately, learning how to fight turned out to be way harder than Eijirou anticipated.

Sure, he didn't expect to become a manga character or something... But he expected to be able to do something! After the first few days, it feels like everything he has been good for so far is to be Bakugo's punching bag. A very hard, but not really skilled punching bag.

To his+

credit, Bakugo is /trying/ to teach him. He takes time before they fight to teach Eijirou and fix his movements, but he has absolutely no idea of how to go easy on someone, and he is too damn /good/ for Eijirou to beat him on his own after just a couple of weeks.

His stupidly+

big crush doesn't help either. The very few times, he has managed to get an opening, Eijirou's stupid brain just- short-circuits with how hot Bakugo is. And then the opening is gone and Eijirou is having his ass kicked.

However, it will all be worth it! Eijirou knows+

he is getting better. Little by little. And it will all be worth it if it means he can help Tamaki-senpai!

And he definitely needs help!

The fact that someone knows about his evil deeds hasn't stopped Togata-senpai from bullying Amajiki-senpai... If anything, it+

seems to have made it worse.

Amajiki-senpai doesn't seem significantly worse- but Togata-senpai seems more over him than before... Or maybe it's because he knows now? It just feels like he is finding them together way more than he used to.

Last Tuesday he saw them before school, while he was heading to practice with Bakugo, and he saw them behind the school gym.

They parted before he could know get to them. But he saw enough to get what was going on: Amajiki-senpai shoved papers on Togata's chest+

and walked away, burying his hood to his nose. Eijirou couldn't see his expression, but considering he was hiding his face... It couldn't be good, right?

And Togata was /smiling/ as he saw him walk away! That had to be the most unnerving part of all of this: how Togata+

seems so /happy/ with what he is doing.

As he was making his way back to the school building, he caught sight of Eijirou. He seemed surprised at first, and then he smiled, but Eijirou didn't miss how his face went sour in the middle.

Eijirou felt a spang of fear,+

but he planted himself firm anyways. He had to prove he wasn't afraid of him!

And even if he was, he had to pretend he wasn't! Or else he wouldn't help anyone!

"Morning, Kirishima~ so early in school already?"

"I'm meeting a friend," great! His voice came out super+

manly, "what are /you/ doing here?"

Togata laughed, seemingly amused by Eijirou dropping honorifics. He showed him the sheets of paper he was holding.

"Got an essay to turn in before class! I better get going."

Togata walked away from him, then, straight into the+

school building.

Eijirou doesn't need to be smart to put two and two together.

Was Amajiki-senpai doing his homework too? Wasn't it enough that he tormented him?

No, of course it wasn't. For people like Togata, there are no limits.

But that's why Eijirou is working+

hard!

Amajiki-senpai doesn't seem to /love/ his time with Bakugo. He looks at Eijirou's bruises with /worry/, a deep frown on his face.

"Yeah- a friend and I were playing and I think it got out of hand!"

Eijirou scratches the back of his head sheepishly, internally+

cursing himself for wearing those short sleeves- but his t-shirt looks so cool! It shows off his arms real nice... And /maybe/ he wanted Bakugo to see them.

Ok, he /definitely/ wanted Bakugo to see them.

From their practice this morning, he either liked them a lot (and+

he wanted to touch them as much as possible) or hated them with all his might (and therefore wanted to beat them to a pulp).

Amajiki-senpai doesn't say much, but Eijirou can see in his face he isn't convinced... But it's not like he can tell him the truth! If he did, he+

would have to admit he saw him being bullied and didn't do anything.

Amajiki-senpai would probably tell him not to bother... Like he could do that!

No, he can't abandon when he has come this far!

He never expected Bakugo to be the one to abandon him.

From one day to another, he just- didn't show up to their scheduled practice. He wouldn't answer Eijirou's messages, nor would he answer his phone when he called.

Ejirou was super worried! But when Bakugo showed up to their History class, completely fine, he just felt+

confused.

Why didn't he come? Why didn't he say anything? He could have texted Eijirou- he had been worried.

Bakugo doesn't seem willing to give any explanation, though. He leaves History class as soon as the bell rings, looking even angrier than he normally does.

Which is- weird.

But Eijirou won't let him get away that easy!
_____

Now, a POLL.

Choose wisely

Kirishima chases Bakugo down, for once frustrated with his speed. He is so damn fast! He is walking, and Eijirou is running after him and somehow he doesn't catch up!

He turns around in a corner, wondering if Bakugo got to the cafeteria, when he feels a hand slamming his chest.

Eijirou crashes against the wall behind him, air leaving his lungs on the impact.

Then Bakugo is there: all angry scowl and ruby red eyes staring down at Eijirou.

"What? You want something, Shitty Hair?"

Bakugo shouldn't be capable of looking /down/ at Eijirou. He is+

taller than him! But he is doing it: staring /down/ at Eijirou with a scowl so deep that makes him feel about an inch tall.

(And a little bit turned on.)

"What? Cat got your tongue now?"

Now /that/ definitely turns Eijirou on, but it also makes him snap+

back to reality.

"Dude! Why didn't you come today? I waited for you, you know? Texted you like a thousand times-"

"That's none of my fucking business."

"Bro, what's wrong with you? I was /worried/!"

/Something/ breaks in Bakugo's expression at that, but his+

scowl seems to get deeper rand harder immediately after.

"I don't need you to fucking worry about me, Shitty Hair."

With that, Bakugo walks away, steps loud on the floor... Or at least he /tries/, because Eijirou is having none of that.

Eijirou follows after+

him. In seconds, he is grabbing his t-shirt and slamming him against a wall himself.

"Well, too bad! You already have it!" Eijirou's voice is one level below screaming; he is /fuming/, "I was /worried/! If you're going to leave me waiting the least you can do is+

telling me /why/!"

A distant part of Eijirou knows that they are in the hallway, and that people are starting to crowd around them. But he can't listen to it: not when he was worried!l Bakugo had been stabbed in an alley or something equally horrible and it turns+

out he just wanted to be an /ass/.

"You should learn to mind your own fucking business," Bakugo's scowl becomes a vicious giant smirk, his hand closes on Eijirou's wrist, "let go."

"No way. Not until you tell me what's wrong."

"Let go or I'm breaking your fucking arm."

Eijirou's frown goes even deeper. He is /mad/, but he is also hurt. What's wrong with Bakugo? He thought they were /friends/ already: they hung out a lot together! He thought Bakugo liked him. He thought maybe-

"What's going on here?"

Eijirou looks up to find Vlad-sensei+

looking at them.

Fuck.

Eijirou lets go of Bakugo's t-shirt, almost gasping in surprise when Bakugo actually /falls/ a little.

Was he- holding him up?

/Fuck./

"It's, well-" Eijirou is so bad at lying! What can he say now? "Practicing for the school play?"

Vlad-sensei+

curls an eyebrow at them, and Eijirou just /knows/ he fucked up.

"Neither of you are in the drama club," Vlad-sensei's tone makes /very/ clear that he's mad Eijirou tried to lie, /fuck/, "Bakugo?"

" t's nothing," Bakugo is almost mumbling, "none of your fucking business."

"/Bakugo/, you-" Vlad-sensei's tone is even harder now, Eijirou is sure he is about to lash at them... But he breathes in at the last second, glaring daggers at both of them, "detention, you two. A week. And no more fighting."

Eijirou's mouth falls open. Vlad-sensei+

starts going back at his classroom, but Eijirou can't let him go.

"Sensei! Bakugo didn't do anything!" He trails after him, quick steps,"I was the one picking up a fight with him!"

"You?"

Vlad-sensei eyes him skeptically. Not that Eijirou doesn't get /why/: Bakugo+

has a horrible reputation when it comes to picking up fights. But he didn't do anything this time! Yeah, he was being an ass, but-

"Well, then. Kirishima, you get two weeks," Eijirou flinches, two weeks!? "Bakugo, you get a day for language. Now go to class. All of you!"

Both the small crowd around them and Bakugo himself move to go to their classes. Eijirou goes too, trying to figure out how in the world is he going to tell Togata-senpai that he got two weeks of detention-

The team is going to kill him.
___

Detention at school is+

both better and worse than it was at Eijirou's middle school. It's better because he doesn't have to sit down and look at a wall for hours, but it's worse because they have to do chores around the school.

Cleaning duty goes for everyone, but students in detention have to+

clean the least used spaces; those that do not get cleaned often. Bakugo and him are assigned to clean the school theater. At least, the first day: they'll clean the first round of seats the first day and then Eijirou will have to come here alone the day after, and the+

day after that, and the day after that...

Maybe he should have just let Bakugo go. That would have been easier.

It's not like they are talking now: being alone together is not making Bakugo tell him why he thought it was okay to be an ass. And Eijirou is trying really hard+

not to be hurt by that fact. Sero, Tetsu, /and/ Mina think Bakugo is being an ass and he should forget about him. But Eijirou /can't/ do that, can he? He has to pick up a fight with him in the middle of the hallway and get himself detention. Just his luck.

Only Kaminari doesn't think he is an idiot, and he doesn't even support him completely. He think there might be more to it than Bakugo just being an asshole, but even he doesn't think Eijirou shouldn't try to contact him again for the time being. Not until he is less+

mad and they can talk.

Which sounds fair and rational and all that, but it's too damn hard to pull up when he is just /meters/ away from him.

They all think Eijirou is just blind because of his crush, but it's not that! Bakugo wouldn't get that mad without a reason.

"You shouldn't have done it."

Eijirou looks up at Bakugo, but he is still sweeping bellow the seats without looking at him.

"What-"

"You're stuck cleaning shit for two weeks," Bakugo's tone is even harder, expression unreadable, "it could have been /one/, but you had to+

play hero, didn't you?"

"I wasn't playing hero," Eijirou feels his mouth pouting and shakes his head to send it away, "it was the right thing to do, man. You were an ass, but I should have left you alone."

"Like hell you should have," Bakugo is still scowling, "I bet+

your boyfriend is going to get mad that you're here alone with me."

Eijirou lets out a good laugh, almost rolling his eyes at the idea.

"Yeah, right," he shakes his head, "if I had one, I bet he'd get super mad."

He laughs again, but Bakugo is not laughing; he is looking at him with a frown.

"You- aren't you dating that third year?"

What!?

Eijirou laughs again, but a look at Bakugo's face convinces him that one, this is not a joke, and two, Bakugo doesn't like the fact that he is laughing.

"Dude- no? I don't even /know/ that many third years? If it's someone from the team-"

"It's not someone+

from your fucking team," Bakugo's scowl is resentful, "I'm not a fucking /idiot/."

"I'm not saying that! But I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not dating anyone."

Bakugo stops sweeping to look at Eijirou in the eye, face serious.

"What's your relationship with+

Amajiki, then?"
____

Half an hour later, Eijirou feels his head is spinning: that's too much information for just one guy to handle.

Apparently, Amajiki-senpai is a martial artist. Not just /any/ martial artist, a regional champion martial artist;

a win-competitions-and-go-to-the-nationals martial artist. A can-and-will-beat-your-ass martial artist.

Apparently, there was an exhibition last weekend and he somehow met Bakugo there. According to Bakugo, he asked him to stay away from him. Then they had to fight for the+

exhibition and "fucker was lucky," which must mean he somehow managed to beat Bakugo.

It's too- surreal. Eijirou just can't believe this isn't all a very twisted joke. Amajiki-senpai is a calm guy! He is /quiet/. He is not violent. He is Togata's victim! He wouldn't shake with+

fear near him if he could kick ass like that!

Seeing he was so reluctant to believe it, Bakugo looked for a video of one of last year's competition on YouTube. Eijirou had to swallow his words, then. There he was: Amajiki-senpai breaking wooden planks with a series of kicks and+

kicks and jumps Eijirou didn't know were /possible/ outside of an action flick.

His brain just can't put the two things together: Amajiki-senpai helplessly shaking in front of Togata and breaking wooden planks with his bare feet, or beating Bakugo in a fight. The two things+

just don't go together. It's impossible.

Of course, he can't tell Bakugo that. He /can/, however, tell him Amajiki-senpai is /not/ his boyfriend. He doesn't even like him that way! He is just totally not his type.

Bakugo admits he never said Eijirou and him were dating. He+

assumed/ they were, because how else would Amajiki know about the bruises on his chest and body?

Eijirou felt very silly trying to explain that he had manage to throw an entire table of water on himself at a support group meeting and he removed his t-shirt to squeeze it.

Amajiki-senpai had been worried about him. He saw bruises that never faded; Eijirou did notice he seemed more thoughtful than usual around him, but he never thought he would come to that conclusion! Thinking that Bakugo was abusing him. And never in his wildest dreams would+

he imagine he would try to do something about it.

It's- kind of flattering, to be honest! Like having an older brother to defend him. Eijirou never had someone defending him before!

But it's also super inconvenient. This is like- the /worst/ possible situation for someone to+

defend him. He doesn't want anyone getting Bakugo /away/ from him.

"Did you really think I was dating him?"

Bakugo's scowl gets even deeper. He looks away, and maybe it's the low lights but is he blushing?

"What was I supposed to fucking think?"

"I don't know, man!+

Maybe that we're friends?"

"You're too fucking smitten with your fucking friends."

Eijirou laughs. He can't help it: not with Bakugo scowling and /pouting/.

"Nah, I'm not," he shakes his head, still laughing, "only with you."

The words get suspended between them,+

floating in the air. Eijirou feels his cheek get red, almost as red as his hair. He chuckles, uncomfortable.

"I'm about to fucking kiss you, Shitty Hair," Bakugo came closer to his face, "you better stop me."

"Don't want to."

Their lips meet in the middle.
_____

Now, Eijirou is super happy that things are settled between Bakugo and him. He really is! The thing is, that's far from the only thing he needs to settle.

After thinking things through, he decided he isn't mad at Amajiki-senpai: he just wanted to help, after all. He+

should have explained him better what was going on between Bakugo and him... If he had seen Amajiki-senpai covered in bruises, he would have gotten worried as well.

But there's still that thing between Amajiki-senpai and Togata that he needs to understand.

Amajiki-senpai is good at kicking butts. Probably better than Eijirou can ever hope to be in just a few weeks of practicing. That means he should be able to get Togata-senpai off his back, but he hasn't done it.

Why?

Eijirou has to talk to him: he has to convince him+

to stand up for himself somehow-

Or- maybe he could take that video Bakugo showed him and see what Togata thinks of that.

(Now, poll decided who would Kirishima confront about this! Here: https://twitter.com/Iracebeth3/status/1243623103076294661

The thing about trying to tell someone you found out they are a sort of secret ninja is that- /before/ you can tell them that, you have to admit some hard truths, like the fact that you knew they had a bully and never did anything about it.

Or- /maybe/ confess you spent the best part of an hour watching videos of him kicking asses with your new boyfriend.

Is that weird? Eijirou doesn't really think it's /weird/, but Katsuki ("why in the world would my /boyfriend/ call me by my last name, dumbass?") said+

it would be creepy- and he's kinda right, isn't it? It would make it sound like he is stalking Amajiki-senpai- which he isn't! He totally isn't. He was just so surprised he couldn't stop watching.

Amajiki-senpai looks different when he is fighting: calm and collected, nothing like the upperclassman he has seen all dressed in black trying to blend with every shadow in school.

For the longest time, Eijirou considers showing Togata the videos, just to see his+

eyes full of fear at what could come to him but-

But it would be useless, wouldn't it?

If the date of the earliest video is anything to go by, Amajiki-senpai has been practicing martial arts for years now. If he wanted to, he could have fought Togata off his back ages ago.

So, why hasn't he done it?

There must be a reason, right?

Maybe he knows something about Amajiki-senpai? Some kind of dark awful secret that doesn't let him face him?

But the more he thinks about it, the more he realizes the truth might be- complicated.

If he really wants this plan to work, he needs to talk to Amajiki-senpai and find out the truth once and for all. Then, no matter what, he needs to convince him of standing up for himself somehow.

No matter what, Eijirou won't give up until he has helped him.
_

Eijirou still doesn't know how Taishiro-sensei managed to convince Vlad King of forgiving some days of his detention just so he could come to the support group. He thinks he heard something about "mental health being vital," or something like that. Whatever it was, it+

gave him the chance to meet Amajiki-senpai that very same week.

Amajiki-senpai looks like he has had trouble sleeping. He is not wearing eyeliner, and he seems to have even more trouble to speak out loud than before.

He always stays behind to help Fat fix the classroom after+

their group meetings, but today he goes out as soon as he can, all but running through the door.

Waving Taishiro-sensei goodbye, Eijirou runs after him.
_____

Just as expected from a secret ninja, Amajiki-senpai is fast. Eijirou barely manages to catch up with him on time.

Amajiki-senpai looks like he saw a ghost. He is so pale, like he is about to pass out.

"Senpai, are you okay? Want me to take you to the nurse's office?"

Amajiki-senpai shakes his head, eyes fixed on the ground.

Maybe it would be better to leave their conversation for another day? He looks so pale... Maybe he should just help him get home?

But just as he is thinking that, he sees Togata-senpai out of the corner of+

his eye.

That's probably what he would want him to do, right? Give him more time to bully him.

Eijirou can't have that happening.

"Amajiki-senpai, I need to talk to you."

Amajiki-senpai swallows hard, eyes fixed on the hand Eijirou just grabbed his elbow with, but he follows him down the hallways.

Being honest, Eijirou doesn't have a plan for where would they are going. He just wants them to be alone so they fan have a real talk, since this+

might get personal.

An empty classroom maybe? But a teacher could interrupt them at any second... Maybe the empty school theater? No, too far away-

Stairs to the school rooftop? Perfect!

The door to the rooftop turns out to be closed, so they don't manage to get in (out?) to the rooftop... maybe they won't have the epic manly heart to heart with the sunset shining on them that Eijirou had imagined when he saw the stairs.

Maybe just a less epic but still manly heart to heart.

Eijirou lets go of Amajiki-senpai's arm, realizing he never really had time to think of what he would say. Maybe he should start with a 'I know about you and Togata...' or maybe a 'I know you're a ninja' would+

be better? 'Congrats on kicking my boyfriend's ass'?

"I'm sorry."

That's- not quite what he expected to hear.

"Senpai, what-?"

"I know I shouldn't have meddled like that- it was none of my business to begin with, I shouldn't have gotten myself involv-"

"Wait, senpai, what are you talking about?"

Amajiki-senpai flinches, then he sighs.

"About- well, /Bakugo/," Amajiki-senpai sighs, hands tugging at the hem of his t-shirt, "I didn't- I shouldn't have gotten into that fight with him- it was /dumb/, and,+

in the end, I got you in trouble-"

What?

No- wait, what?

"Ah, don't worry about that! Katsuki and I talked it out."

"Katsuki?"

Eijirou feels a blush in his cheeks. He chuckles sheepishly.

"Well, we are kinda dating now?"

Amajiki-senpai looks- surprised. But+

not the nice surprise type. He looks as if Eijirou had told him he wanted to smash his fingers in doors for fun.

"Why?" His voice sounds a bit like that, too. Like Eijirou is doing something very dangerous or very stupid. Maybe both.

Kirishima tries to laugh+

again, scratching the back of his head.

"I know, what he /looks/ like, but he's not a bad guy- he's nice, actually. He's helped me a lot-"

"He /hit/ you," frustration is starting to get into his voice, "for /fun/, Kirishima."

"I- he wasn't doing it for fun" how+

the hell did their heart to heart manly talk come to /this/ "I asked him to teach me how to fight."

Now, /that/ makes Amajiki-senpai raise his eyebrows, mouth gaping open.

"Why would you-?" Amajiki-senpai shakes his head, puzzled, "What for?"

/So much for an epic manly talk, Eijirou./

"It was for you, senpai; I know about you and Togata."

Amajiki-senpai blinks twice, looking even more puzzled.

"What does that-" Amajiki-senpai frowned, "what does that have to do with anything?"

"I wanted to help you," Eijirou starts, frowning, "I still- I still want to help you, senpai-"

"What are you talking about?"

"I know- I know about what he's doing to you-" Eijirou hates how his voice becomes a mumble, "I'm sorry. I- I wasn't able to do anything, but- but you can do something! I've seen you fighting and you're great! You could-"

"What- what are you talking about?"

Eijirou looks up to find Amajiki-senpai's very confused face. He swallows, because this isn't exactly easy to tell, but-

"I- I saw him with you a few weeks ago," Eijirou looks down at his feet, embarrassment filling him whole, "I know he's been bullying you."

He finally manages to look up from his feet to find Amajiki-senpai's face.

Amajiki-senpai's very puzzled face.

"What?"

And now it's Eijirou's turn to be puzzled.

"I- I saw him with you- a few times. I know you're scared of him, but you don't have to! I don't know what he's been threatening you with, but-"

"Kirishima, wait, just, stop-" Amajiki-senpai raises his hands, "you,+

I /really/ don't know what you're talking about."

Eijirou takes a deep breath. It's very hard to talk about this- out of everything he expected from Amajiki-senpai, he didn't expect /denial/.

"Senpai- I saw Togata with you. You were- really scared and-"

Amajiki-senpai's face changes at the mention of Togata. His face full of sudden understanding before he goes slightly red.

"Kirishima, Mir- /Togata/ is my-" he cuts himself off, covering his face with one hand,"1 we are /dating/."

Now it's Eijirou's mouth that hangs open.

What?

What!?

"B-but- what? Since /when/?"

"It's- it's been a while."

"But- but he was- he was intimidating you."

"I- well," Amajiki-senpai's face goes even redder at that; Eijirou didn't even /know/ he could get this red, "that was- I don't know /when/ you saw that, but- from the looks if it, it was- probably flirting."

Flirting!?

"Senpai- when you say- /flirting/, you mean?"

"I mean /flirting/" Amajiki-senpai looks downright mortified, "Mirio- likes to do that sometimes- and I always get nervous when he does it at school- it probably looked bad from the outside-"

/Flirting?/

Eijirou thinks back at the first day of all of this: the day that messed up his school life-

It had looked like he was intimidating him. It /did/. Amajiki-senpai had looked so nervous, and then he had left. He was scared!

Or- maybe he was just flustered? Could it be that- Amajiki-senpai was just embarrassed and that's why he left?

"What about his homework?" Eijirou's head is spinning, "did you- did he ask you to-?"

"Homework?"

"Just- a couple weeks ago, he had an essay to deliver and you- you gave it to him-"

"I just printed it; his printer broke, and I printed it for him... I know he doesn't look like it, but- Mirio takes schoolwork seriously."

Something clicks inside Eijirou's head. /Mirio/. Amajiki-senpai calls Togata by his first name.

If he remembers that day (the day his life got all messed up) correctly, whatever Togata was calling Amajiki-senpai now sounds awfully close to his first name.

/Tamaki./

Oh fuck.

Eijirou feels his own cheeks getting even redder than his hair, dark with embarrassment.

Eijirou knows one thing and one thing only.

He /is/ an idiot.

(~end-ish)

(Now, that's the thread! I'm planning to add a sort of epilogue. Now vote! Who's PoV you want the epilogue to be?)