Chapter 2| Dorms

Y/n threw another punch, energy flaring around her arm in a pulse of heat. Her breath hitched, uneven, and heavy. She wound up again, muscles tense, and froze- she felt it. That familiar presence. The weight of someone watching. Slowly, she turned her head.

There he was.

Leaning against the wall, half in shadow, half in moonlight-Bakugou. Watching her. No smug grin, no fire in his eyes. Just stillness. Y/n straightened, chest rising and falling with labored breaths. Her fists remained clenched at her sides, glowing faintly.

"How long have you been standing there?" she asked, her voice hoarse. He didn't answer right away. "Long enough," he muttered. She scoffed and looked away, wiping her forearm across her brow. "You here to call me weak again? Or just hoping I'll punch myself into unconsciousness?" 

" I didn't mean what I said earlier." That stopped her. Her shoulders stiffened, and for a moment she didn't move. Didn't breathe. "...Could've fooled me," she said quietly. Bakugou pushed off the wall, taking a few slow steps forward, but keeping his distance. "I was pissed. That's all." 

Y/n let out a soft, bitter laughter. "Yeah? Well, congrats. It worked." She finally turned to face him fully wild, eyes rimmed in red, energy crackling faintly over her arms. 

For a moment, they just stood there. Two storm fronts are frozen in the tension between strikes. "I wasn't trying to..." he said, voice low, rougher than usual. "I just dammit, I don't know." 

"That made two of us," she murmured. And for a second, just one, something cracked open. Not loud. Not dramatic. Just the fragile, terrifying feeling of being seen. Y/n's lip trembled, and she quickly looked down, blinking hard.

Bakugou saw it. The shimmer of water at the corner of her eyes. The way she curled her fingers in like she was trying to hold herself together. And it hit him in the gut. Harder than any villain ever had. He looked away first. "you're such a pain in the ass."

She barked a dry laugh. "Gosh, you're the worst. You can't even apologize like a normal person." 

"I just did!" 

"No, you vaguely implied you might regret being a dick." 

"That is an apology for me!" 

"Then your standards are in hell." They stared at each other this time, closer. Sparks are flying again, but in a different way. Thinner. More delicate. Charged with something they both refused to name. "...You're really bad at this," Y/n said, finally away. "Yeah. I know." 

She exhaled, stepping past him to grab her discarded jacket from the ground. "You know, one day I might stop yelling if you'd stop making it so easy." 

"Wouldn't be as fun if you didn't yell," he muttered under his breath. She rolled her eyes, tugging on her jacket. "See? There it is. You just have to provoke me." He smirked-barley. "Takes one to know one." 

Y/n paused at that, glancing back at him. Her eyes lingered a little longer than they should have. But she said nothing. Just shook her head, turned, and started walking back toward the dorms- this time not running. Not storming off. Just...walking. Bakugou watched her go, heat stirring beneath his skin.

This time, he didn't call her a name. Didn't yell. He just followed quietly. And for once...that felt like a win.

Y/n's boots crunched lightly against the gravel path as she made her way toward the back entrance of the dorm. Bakugou trailed behind her, quieter than usual. Neither of them had said anything since their bickering ended-but the silence didn't feel heavy anymore. Just...uncertain. 

She reached for the back door handle, glancing over her shoulder at him. "You coming or are you planning to brood out here all night?" 

"Tch. I'm not who needs a dramatic moonlit training montage to deal with my emotions," he muttered. But he followed anyway. She opened the door slowly, careful not to make it creak. The dorm was quiet now-most of their classmates still upstairs in the common room, probably winding down for the night. They slipped inside, shoes soft against the tile floor. 

One step. Two steps. Almost there-

"Out past curfew, again." The voice was like a knife in the dark. Y/n froze. Bakugou's eye twitched. "You've gotta be kidding me." Aizawa stood at the end of the hallway, arms crossed, looking like he'd been waiting there the entire time- hair down. Slippers on, but that signature dead-eyed judgmental glare is still fully operational.

Y/n's heart sank. "We weren't-"

"Don't lie," he said, cutting her off. "You were out training. And Bakugou was watching instead of stopping you." 

"I wasn't-!" Bakugou started to snap, but Aizawa raised one hand."I don't want excuses. I want both of you up tomorrow morning at five a.m. sharp." Y/n blinked."Five?"

"What the heck for? Bakugou snapped. "For punishment," Aizawa said evenly. "You're both going to be on early morning duty for the next month, Grounds cleanup. Cafeteria prep. Trash collection. I expect spotless. Floors and no explosions before sunrise." Y/n's mouth dropped. "A month?! That's excessive-" 

"Maybe next time you'll think twice before sneaking out and nearly torching the back of the building. " 

Bakugou opened his mouth again, but even he seemed to know arguing would only make it worse. He muttered something unintelligible under his breath and crossed his arms in defeat. Upstairs, a thump sounded from one of the common room windows. 

Y/n looked up just in time to see Kaminari and Mina duck out of sight, falling spectacularly at being subtle. Sero peeked over their heads a second later with a wide-eyed grin. "Oh my gosh," she whispered. They're watching up." Bakugou hissed under his breath, "I'm gonna kiss them." 

Aizawa didn't even turn around. "And for the record, if I catch either of you fighting, yelling, or causing another scene while on duty, I'll extend it another month." /n goraned. "This is cruel and unusual." 

"It's called consequences," Aizawa said flatly. "Now get upstairs. Quietly. You'll need your sleep."

Bakugou muttered something that sounded like "stupid sleep, stupid chores," but he turned and marched toward the stairs at the corner where her so-called friends were still peeking from. 

As soon as they reached the tip of the stairs, Mina popped out like a meerkat. "Sooo.. was it romantic moonlight spar or more of an emotionally repressed emimes-to-lovers moment?" Y/n walked past her with a forced smile. "Go to sleep before I redirect energy into your spine." 

"Whoa," Kaminari said with a grin. "Didn't even deny the 'lovers' part." Bakugou turned on them with a death glare. "Say one more word and I'll turn into a crater." 

"Alright, alright! Bedtime! Nothing to see here!" Kirishima said, dragging Kaninari back by the hoodie as Mina giggled and fell. Y/n sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Fivea.ma.m," she muttered, glancing at Bakugou out of the corner of her eye. "This is your fault." 

He scoffed. "You're the one who can't train like a normal person without looking like a fore hazard. She gave him a tired look. "You stayed." He didn't answer. But he didn't deny it, either. 

They parted at the top of the stairs-her to the left wing, him to the right. As Y/n stepped into her room and closed the door, she leaned against it for a long moment, eyes drifting shut. ExhausteddEmbarrasseded. Frustereated.

But somewhere beneath it all, something new. Something I couldn't quite name yet. And maybe...neither could he.

The Next Morning- 5:03 A.M.

The training grounds were bathed in cold gray light. The sky hadn't even decided if I wanted to be morning yet, and the dew on the grass clung to everything like regret. Bakugou stood by the supply shed, glaring at a broom like it had personally pffened him. His hoodie was thrown over his uniform jacket, his hair even wilder than usual. He looked half-feral.

Y/n trudged up behind him, still yawning, her jacket zipped to her chin and eyes barely open. She looked like she was reconsidering every life choice that brought her here. "Morning sunshine," she deadpanned. He didn't even turn. "You're late." 

"It's literally three minutes. What are you, the Punishment Police?" 

"I've been here since 4:55. Early is on time." 

"Congratulations," She said, grabbing a mop from the shed. "Go start a cult." Bakugou shot her a sideways glare. "Try not to fall asleep on your feet. I'm not dragging your unconscious body back inside."

"Didn't realize my coma would be such an inconvenience to you." 

"It would be," he muttered, "because your snoring would probably echo." Y/n gasped in mock offense. "Excuse me, I do not snore." 

"You breathe like you're choking on your ego." 

"I'm going to mop your face." 

"Try it and I'll shove it in the dumpster with the other trash we're cleaning." They stood there, locked in half-awake death glares over a stack of cleaning supplies, until between them cracked with Y/n's barely contained snort. 

Bakugou blinked. "What?"

"You," she saidpointing at him, "look like a fremlin that crawled out of bed, fought your sheets, and lost." 

"I look like this because I was up before dawn cleaning dirt for a punishment I didn't deserve."

"You deserved it." 

"You were the one trying to melt the training post with your bare hands!" 

"I was venting!" 

"Yeah? Vent quieter."

They bickered their way through sweeping the paths, wiping benches, and dragging heavy trash bags across the gravel. At some point, the rising sun painted the sky a soft gold, but neither of them seemed to notice.

Y/n balanced a full garbage bag on one hip and squinted at him. " I hope you know this means we're stuck with each other every morning for the next month., Bakygou grunted, tossing another bag onto the pile. "Could be worse." 

She blinked. "Was that...a compliment?" He rolled his eyes. "Don't get used to it," Y/n smirked, brushing a streak of dirt off her sleeve. "Guess it could be worse. Could've been Kaminari." Bakugou barked a laugh-short, sharp, surprised. And for a second, the edge between them dulled.

They didn't say anything else for a while. Just kept working. Together. No yelling, no fighting-just exhaustion and quiet cooperation layered under snark. It was strange. Strangely easy. And neither of them wanted to admit how much that scared them.