"We're here, huh? Guess I'll finally get to see where Bakugou gets his attitude from."

"Can it, shitty-hair. You trying to get kicked out before you even step foot inside?"

"Sorry, sorry. I'll be cool."

Kirishima flashed his friend a lopsided grin, to which Katsuki merely snorted in response. You'd finished your little trip and were currently trotting your way up the front steps. In spite of Katsuki's efforts to reassure you that you had nothing to worry about, you still couldn't help but nibble nervously on your bottom lip. Given your soulmate's, for lack of a better word...interesting mannerisms, you couldn't really imagine how his parents might be. He'd told you that they were excited to meet you and all, but what if they were let down once they actually met you? Or decided that you weren't good enough for Katsuki?

I honestly don't know what to expect, and this whole situation that's going on isn't going to make it any easier.

You let out a lofty sigh, watching as Katsuki pulled out his key and jammed it forcefully into the hole, cursing under his breath a few times when it didn't click immediately. He propped the door open not long after, and you once again found yourself stepping into the Bakugou abode.

Kirishima grinned and playfully slapped Katsuki on the back, praising him for how "manly" his home looked—not that you were really paying attention. From the back of the house, you could hear movement, and then a feminine voice with a tenacious undertone.

"Katsuki?" she called out, "You home?"

The blonde rolled his eyes, barely even missing a beat before lifting his head to yell back in the voice's direction. "'Course I'm home, you shitty old hag! Who the hell else would it be?!"

Kirishima mumbled something about how it wasn't good to speak to your parents that way, but a storm was already brewing in your chest. No matter how many times you'd played out the scenario in your head, you just weren't ready to meet Katsuki's family.

But you didn't really have a choice in the matter.

"Oh! What's this?"

Mind still reeling, a lady emerged from around the corner. She had the same ash-blonde hair as Katsuki, same spiky arrangement, same crimson eyes—she pretty much looked like a female version of him. Except that instead of a permanent frown plastered across her brow, she held a smile on her lips.

"Katsuki brought friends home??" She blinked twice, as if the mere thought was so preposterous she could hardly believe it was happening. You heard Katsuki let out a scoff of annoyance from beside you.

"Piss off," he snapped. "What's it to you, old lady?"

His mother's brow twitched, and she didn't waste a second before swatting her son across the back of the head. Katsuki hissed in pain, gripping down on his hair with narrowed eyes.

"The fuck are you—?!"

"Shut it, you little shit! I won't have you acting so rude in front of our guests!"

Yeah...this is pretty much what I expected.

Kirishima had begun to chuckle good-naturedly, and was already in the process of shaking the mother's hand—you overheard that her name was Mitsuki—but you had yet to swallow the pit that had formed in your throat. Katsuki had said that he'd already told his parents about you, which meant that the second you mentioned your name, they would probably know exactly who you were. Yes, you'd expected to be nervous, but only now, facing his mother for the first time, did you truly feel the extent of your restlessness.

"And who's this young lady?" she suddenly asked; you noticed that she'd finished her introductions with Kirishima. You swallowed hard, hoping that your voice wouldn't squeak the first time you spoke to her.

"Hello," you began, "I'm—"

"She's my soulmate," Katsuki cut in, making both your eyes and his mother's widen in unison. The blonde was standing with one hand shoved in his pocket, his expression utterly unfazed as he spoke the words that had been making you ill with nerves.

Mitsuki was on you before you could even blink.

"You're [Name]?!" she exclaimed, practically squealing from excitement. "You—a-are you sure it's her? Katsuki —" she glanced feverishly towards her son "—You're not lying to your mom, are you? A girl this pretty, as your soulmate??! Please don't be lying to me, or I swear I'll—"

"SHUT UP, ALREADY!! I'M TELLING YOU IT'S HER, SO IT'S HER!!"

Mitsuki's eyes were as wide as saucers, scanning you down as if she couldn't believe you were real. You'd done your best to maintain your smile, though it had begun to waver a bit. Still, you could tell that she was excited, and nothing more. If not for the fact that her son was glaring daggers into her back, you were convinced that she'd poke you to ascertain that you were really there.

"It's very nice to finally meet you. I'm [Name]," you smiled, extending your hand out, "Although I'm sure you already know of me a little bit, from what Katsuki-kun's told you."

Mitsuki grinned up to her ears, grabbing ahold of your hand and giving it a vigorous shake. "Oh, yes! He's told us so much about you! The first time he mentioned it, we were both through the moon! Ah, speaking of—Masaru!" she called out, craning her neck towards the back of the house. "Come here! Katsuki's finally brought his soulmate home!!"

"What?!"

You caught Katsuki rolling his eyes, and Kirishima merely letting out another chuckle while he took in the scene. Although you were still very much on edge, seeing how welcoming and excited Mitsuki was helped put you at ease. And when you saw Katsuki's father striding through the halls, with his squared-glasses and gentle smile, you couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Welcome to our home," he greeted warmly, adjusting the rim of his glasses. "I'm Masaru, and I believe you've already met Mitsuki. It's very nice to meet you, especially after everything Katsuki's told us. Honestly, we're both shocked that someone like him even had a soulmate..."

"The hell was that, shitty dad?!"

"—But either way," he smiled, "I think I speak for both of us when I say that we're very grateful for you. You seem like a very nice girl, and we're happy that Katsuki has someone there for him."

You felt your cheeks flush; the two were looking at you with a twinkle in their eyes, as if you were some kind of idol. Katsuki muttered something about how annoying they were both being, but didn't bother to chide them. He might've actually been a bit happy to see how they were ooing and aweing over you—maybe this was his way of showing you off.

The tightness in your chest slowly dissolved.

I think was worrying for nothing. Everything's gonna be just fi—

"Could we see your tattoo?"

You froze. Mitsuki was batting her long lashes at you, crimson eyes practically sparkling. From beside her, Masaru nodded his head in agreement.

"Ah, yes," he agreed. "We'd love to see your marking, if that's alright. We're a bit curious as to what Katsuki's first words to you were."

"Yours were absolutely beautiful!" Mitsuki gushed. She glanced over towards her son, frowning for a moment. "Knowing our boy, I doubt it was anything pleasant, but still. We're just a bit curious, that's all."

It felt like someone had shoved their hand all the way down your throat and gripped you by your heart. The roof of your mouth had almost completely dried out, and no matter how desperately you tried to swallow, your lips barely managed to tremble. The faded writing on your hip; all at once, it had begun to burn.

How could you refuse? What possible excuse could you construct that would convince them—while ensuring that Katsuki himself would not be suspicious? Was there even a way to make it out of this situation unscathed?

You asked yourself this, but in the back of your mind, you already knew. At some point, you were bound to slip up, and he was going to find out. Even if you were trying to put it off until you found the answers, it had been unrealistic of you to expect things to pan out smoothly. You should've expected the worst, like you always did; the way things always were.

Swallowing thickly, you began dragging your hand down to the edge of your shirt. Your eyes flickered over towards Katsuki's for half a second, and then they glazed over, fingers gripping the fabric by your hip.

You inhaled—

"Leave her the fuck alone, you perverts."

Katsuki's voice filled the air, and you'd never been quite so relieved to hear that gravelly tone. You dropped your hand on instinct; his parents were looking back at him in bewilderment.

"What?" he snapped. "Just coz you wanna see it doesn't mean she has to undress in front of everyone here. Did you ever even stop to think that she wouldn't be comfortable showing it?"

"Oh. But we were just—"

"Being annoying, I know." Katsuki rolled his eyes, latching his hand across your wrist. He grunted back in Kirishima's direction. "Let's go, shitty-hair. And leave us alone, shitty parents. We've gotta study for our exams."

He'd already begun tugging you along before you even had a chance to protest, with Kirishima following dutifully behind. Mitsuki and Masaru looked you over with apologetic eyes, as if only just realizing that their request may have been inappropriate. You averted your gaze as quickly as you could, the blood pounding in your ears.

One way or another, you'd made it out alive.

—

Kirishima let out a huff, drumming his pencil over his notebook. He knit his brows together, staring down the papers, and began scratching at the back of his head. And then...

"Uh, Bakubro? Can you help me with this one too, please...?"

Katsuki scowled. "Are you fucking serious? I literally just explained how to tackle those kinds of problems. If you can't do easy shit like this, you'll never be able to pass this exam."

"Ugh..."

The redhead shamefully lowered his head, hoping to rack his brain as best he could. You actually felt a bit sorry for him. He wasn't the strongest academic student, and although Katsuki was definitely smart, he had a demon-like style of teaching that left a lot to be desired.

Katsuki cocked his brow at you. "So? What about you, [Name]? I hope to god you understand this crap—I don't need two dumbasses to teach."

"Dude," Kirishima whined. "You're so mean."

"Shut up and get back to work."

You smiled apologetically in Kirishima's direction, but shook your head. "No, I'm alright. I'll let you know if I need help with anything, okay?"

Katsuki nodded, drawing his attention back to his own papers. When you first met him, you would've never taken him for the studious type—more so a delinquent, really—but you now knew how far off the mark you'd been. He was at the top of the class in terms of grades; better than yours, even. Even his absurdly early bedtime was part of his strong sense of discipline and just went to show how serious he was about becoming a hero.

Your eyes flickered up from your page, and you found yourself smiling.

He has a foul mouth, but he's very driven, and I can respect that.

For a while, the scribbling of pencils across paper was the only sound filling the room—then, Kirishima stood up from the desk and let out a weary sigh. "I'm going to the bathroom," he mumbled drowsily. "Maybe I'll go for a walk or something around the house to clear my head, too."

Katsuki half-snickered, mouthing "loser" in the redhead's direction. Kirishima brushed him off easily enough, closing the door behind you and leaving the two of you alone.

"Finally, the third wheel's gone."

You blinked in surprise, flushing when you noticed the smirk on Katsuki's lips. You realized he was teasing you, but the suggestive tone made your hearbeat quicken.

"That's not a nice thing to say about your boyfriend," you joked, hoping to alleviate the tension. Katsuki frowned for a moment, but surprisingly, decided not to rise to the bait. You were shocked. You'd expected him to bite your head off for that comment.

"I need to tell you something," Katsuki said, shifting closer beside you. "But if you laugh," he warned, "I swear I'll kick your ass."

You eyed him warily. "Um, okay...? What is it?"

Katsuki heaved a sigh. He was outright fiddling with his fingers, as if he was some kind of maiden in love. You wondered if this was some kind of practical joke, and he was going to pull a jump-scare on you and make you crap your pants.

He still wasn't saying anything, and you tilted your head to get a closer look. He looked up at you from underneath long lashes, with those deep, crimson eyes. His cheeks were flushed.

"...Thanks for coming today," he mumbled. "My parents...they might be annoying as fuck, but they've been wanting to see you for a long time. I know you were nervous about meeting them and all that shit, and to be fair they were being clingy as hell, but thanks anyways. Hope it wasn't too weird for you, being introduced as my 'soulmate' and all that."

You blinked. He was...thanking you? Just for being here and meeting his parents?

"W-what?" he gruffed out, eyeing your dazed expression. "The fuck did I say wrong? Stop looking at me like you're constipated."

"No, you didn't say anything wrong at all. I'm just...surprised. I didn't know this was such a big deal to you."

Katsuki scowled, and hurried to look away. The apples of his cheeks were burning now; it was clear he'd reached the threshold of how much embarrassment he was able to tolerate. Not that it mattered. You realized that he was so much kinder than he let on. He was considerate of you, wanted you to be happy—he'd even stopped his parents earlier when he'd noticed you were uncomfortable. So then what was missing?

Why was your mark still fading?

You pressed your lips together, tightening your knuckles.

Nothing will change if I just keep silent. I need to tell him. He'll probably be angry; he might even be scared, but I NEED to tell him.

It felt as though your lungs were on the verge of deflating, but you weren't about to turn back down. Kirishima was gone, and you had the room all to yourself. You could do it. With the kindness you'd seen in his eyes earlier, you could do this now.

"Katsuki-kun. I need to—"

"Shut up for a second."

Your eyes widened, feeling a strong hand grip you by the back of your head. You saw Katsuki's face, cheeks redder than ever before, his eyes squeezed shut as he crashed his lips against your own. The heat began to bubble up in your chest, like a firework bursting between your ribcage.

Of course, you were fully aware of what was happening, but your mind could barely keep up. From up close, you could smell how thick his musk was; a scent like fresh pine, laden with spices and too intoxicating for words. Had he always smelled this good before? Or was your mind just playing tricks on you?

"K-Katsuki-kun," you mumbled out, your entire body feeling feverish. He broke away from the kiss just long enough to give you time to speak, but then he'd plunged back in again, growling from the back of his throat. You hadn't even realized that your hand had begun to tremor by your side; Katsuki placed his palm over-top and gave it a tight squeeze.

The heat of his breath was caressing your skin, and made shivers dance down your spine. The kiss was gentle, and soft, but you could tell that he wasn't very experienced—every now and then, Katsuki's nose would bump against your own, and he let out a grunt of frustration as he tried to re-position himself.

It was clumsy, admittedly, but it still made your heart squeeze just the same. With a wispy breath, he tore his lips away, revealing that his entire face was splotched with crimson. It might've been funny on any other occasion, but you knew that you were just as red—if not more.

"T-there," Katsuki breathed out, mustering every ounce of willpower that he had to not avert his gaze. "You kissed me back during the Sports Festival, so now we're even, alright?"

"...Alright."

You debated on whether or not you should correct him, since your kiss had only been on the cheek, but you decided against it. After all, you weren't complaining.