Mom Leaving

Rubbing my shoulders I take in a deep breath hoping I'm truly done with everything. "Hey punkin, all done with your thank you notes?" I smile at her sadly, not ready for her to go yet, stupid work. "Just finished the last one." She nods looking at the stack of cards. "What did you say to Bakugo?" I shoot her a look, she's got that look moms get, the one that says she wants things to happen that you know damn well need not happen. "I don't recall." She looks at me skeptically before lifting the stack taking the bottom note turning it over to see the addressee. "How did I know you would write his first?" She looks at me half asking permission, but I haven't gotten any sealing wax yet so I know she'll read it the second I leave the room anyway so I just give her a nod. She opens it with careful excitement and begins to read aloud "Dear Mr. Bakugo, I was touched by your thoughtfulness in selecting a tea set as a house warming gift. It's both beautiful and functional. I've been trying the several teas you included at the suggested times of day and am delighted to say I have not missed coffee these last two days. 'Moms favorite' is actually my favorite so far as well, though I still have about eight more flavors to sample to be certain. Thank you for taking the time to consider me and what I may enjoy as a new resident to your hometown. I will cherish this gift always. Y/N" She reads the note over again to herself before she looks at me. "Well that was disappointingly professional." She frowns at me and I resist the urge to laugh. "Of course it is mother, we work together, besides no matter how much of a looker he is that doesn't change the fact that no one overexaggerated about him being an asshole." She sighs and puts the note back.

I have a late lunch with mom, both of us sampling a tea labeled as 'damn' and I think I may have found a new favorite, mom says she's not a fan because it's a little too sweet for her taste, but then again I've always liked flavored creamers and sugar while she drank her coffee black. Even the tea she is taking as Bakugo suggested with just a little agave syrup while I opted to add twice that and a twist of lemon after the first taste. Most of the daytime teas I find I like a little sweeter than he suggested, but the night ones are usually fruit flavored and need nothing to little at all to make it amazing. Once we're done eating I help mom carry her bag to the taxi and ride with her to the airport. Her flight isn't for two more hours but we didn't know what else to do with ourselves while we waited. When my phone goes off I'm a little alarmed and hope I don't have to abandon her, it's Bakugo,

"Hey, I'm still at my parents' house, I can give you a ride to work in the morning if you'd like. If you say yes you have to get up early." I try to calm my breathing thinking about being alone with him in the car for that long.

"What time would you be picking me up?"

"6:15, I prefer to get there early the ride by car is an hour and 10 minutes."

"That would be appreciated, thank you."

"I'll be out front at 6:15. See you then."

I don't know what mom is hoping will happen there with Mr. straight to the point, he's just as professional with everything as I am if not more so. Well maybe not with the way he gets about me talking to Red. I wonder what he would say if he knew he gave me his number again. "Everything ok punkin?" Her voice snaps me away from my thought process. "Yeah just Bakugo." Her face is a mix of excitement and nervousness. "Is everything ok? They don't need you do they?" I shake my head smiling "He's still in Musutafu, he wanted to know if I'd like a ride to work tomorrow instead of taking the train." She smiles wide elbowing me a bit "And, you going to let Mr. sexy asshole give you a ride to work in the morning?" Her voice is teasing and I really wish she would just give up on this whole me and Bakugo thing, for the first time since I was 13 I lie to my mom. "I don't want to get up that early, I declined." She lets out a sad huff poking out her bottom lip, I almost feel bad. "You never told me what happened with the guy from the party mom." Her face blushes "You don't want to hear that sort of thing from your mom punkin." My face lights up "Ok mom, go on with your bad self then, I mean I don't want details, but I do want to know you had a um nice time" I wink at her to get my point across. "Yes I had a very nice time, I have his contact info too. He was a very nice man." I nod "Cute too." She smacks me playfully letting out an awkward chuckle. When we get to the airport she insist I go home and get some rest, since I'm getting up earlier than normal I don't argue and give her a teary hug goodbye before returning home alone.

NEXT MORNING

The morning air is brisk and cold as I come out to the car opening the door and sliding in. I hand Bakugo one of my travel mugs and he looks at me oddly for a moment before taking a sniff at it. "Is this best morning?" He ask looking at me with interest. "Yeah, wanted to wait to try it until I actually needed the caffeine to get through the work day, I made yours exactly as you suggested, mine is a little sweeter though." He blinks at me blankly before handing me a cup and taking the one I brought for myself. "Try this one." I raise the cup to my lips and just as I take a sip he tries the tea in my intended cup. "Oh, I um, I drank out of that already." He just hands me the cup back "Ok so? Did you like the one I brought you or not?" I shake my head "It's a little bitter for my taste." He tosses a packet of sugar at me and I add it to the cup taking another taste. "Wow, that's um. What do you call this one?" He sucks his teeth and doesn't answer. I click my seatbelt and continue sipping the unnamed beverage, Bakugo places both the tea I brought myself and the one he brought himself in a cupholder in the back seat, takes a sip of the one I gave him, places it next to him, then drives off. After sitting in silence for some time I'm startled when I hear him speak to me "The way you flavored best morning, it was good. For the record I like my tea a little sweeter most the time to, the suggestions were based off my mother telling me I over sweeten." I look at the tea I brought him, he's been drinking it without a word even though it isn't to his liking. "I'm sorry. You don't have to drink the one I brought you." He gives no reply.

"So I'm still trying to figure out what it means when you give no response to normal everyday topics, are you annoyed or just don't feel like talking?" He tightens his grip on the steering wheel. "What difference does it make? Just when I thought you might actually not be so bad you have to ask dumbass questions. Just let it go." Great we're in a car nearly an hour away from our destination and I've pissed him off, too bad he's about to be more angry. "I can't 'let it go' I've been trying to do what I can to not piss you off too much, but maybe you're becoming complacent because of it. If it's neither of the things I suggested then just tell me why you do it and the conversation can be over already." He spares a quick glance in my direction. "Fucking Christ, why can't people just accept not everyone is the same, my bad princess for not fitting in your stupid little mold you have of what I should be. If I don't answer then I don't fucking answer, it's not that big a deal, you won't die from not knowing. If it were so important someone's life were on the line I would obviously give a damn answer." I hold my hand over my face, he's worse than a child "None of this has anything to do with if I can or cannot accept the little things about you that make you different, this is about me doing my job, I'm not going to let you get in my way of doing the best I can." He lets out an annoyed laugh "It's your job now to know why I don't answer you when you ask about some fucking tea? Use a better excuse little miss because it seems to me like you've got your panties in a twist because you can't know every little detail about me." I give him a wow you went there look before he continues. "Don't think I haven't seen you staring at me from the corner of your eye, you damn horny Americans can't think straight, maybe if you got laid you could pull your head out of your ass." I get so pissed I spend the rest of the ride in silence trying to meditate so I don't say anything to get myself fired.