Work Text:
“I HATE doing Secret Santa!”
Bakugou's aggravated voice is carrying through the hallway and up the staircase where Shouto is just closing the door to his room behind him. The hint of a smirk lies on his lips as Bakugou keeps complaining resoundingly. Midoriya does his very best to calm down his friend and talk him into just accepting the little slip of paper that holds the name of the person Bakugou is supposed to surprise with a gift. Bakugou’s voice must still be audible two floors down but there’s probably no one in the dorms who is surprised by that reaction. Least of all Shouto.
They’ve known each other for over two years now and ever since their internship at Endeavor’s hero agency Shouto is confident in calling Bakugou his friend. Which took quite some persistence but somewhere between second and third year the blonde eventually came around to accept that truth. And these days he’s even friendly with Midoriya most of the time, the continuous teamwork just having made them grow closer together.
That actually goes for all of 1A, which is exactly the reason for the Secret Santa that Kirishima and Midoriya are currently organizing. It’s part of the Christmas Party that (most of) the class decided on having on the weekend before everyone would leave to be with their family for Christmas.
Shouto hadn’t resisted that morning, when both Midoriya and Kirishima jumped him during breakfast, presenting him with a jar full of small rolled up slips of paper and Kirishima's overly enthusiastic slogan: “I dare you to become the Number One Secret Santa!”
With raised eyebrows and a spoon full of cereal in his mouth Shouto had reached forward and simply picked the paper lying on the very top, which got him the brightest double grin he’s received in a long time. If he hadn’t known better Shouto could’ve sworn those two were up to something. But a moment later the duo was already moving on to their next victim, leaving Shouto behind with his little paper.
For a long second Shouto was just squinting at the paper in his hand, before he finally remembered to chew the cereal that was still in his mouth and then put down his spoon so his hands were free. After a little bit of fiddling he could finally unveil the name that was written down in Midoriya's neat handwriting. Thank god that he swallowed first because as soon as his brain processed the name in front of him his jaw dropped and his heart speed up considerably. “Bakugou Katsuki” is all the slip said. But Shouto’s mind was already racing with possibilities of how this could go wrong.
It’s something Shouto wouldn’t ever dare to tell anyone but ever since the beginning of their third school year he had to live with the realization that Bakugou is more than just another friend to him. The only people that really know about it are his siblings, Fuyumi and Natsuo, who kept pestering him over the break between second and third year with questions like: “Who are you texting so much, Shouto?” “What are you smiling at on your phone all the time, Shouto?” “Why is your face turning bright red, Shouto?”.
That interrogation went on until he eventually realized that the answer to all of those question was ‘Bakugou’. And that the blonde was seemingly constantly on his mind, whether he was waking up and checking his phone in the hopes for a message, scrolling through social media and sending funny memes to him just to get an angry emoji in turn or even when he was out with his siblings and saw something that he thought the other would find cool or funny so he insisted on stopping and taking a picture to send to Bakugou.
Once Shouto laid all of that out in the open to his siblings, Fuyumi told him it was the most normal teenage behaviour she had ever seen in him and proceeded to pull him into a tight hug. Without hesitation Natuso joined in from the other side and together they squeezed the last bit of will to live out of their little brother.
After that things got a little awkward for Shouto. Because once you become aware of your own feelings it’s suddenly painfully obvious whenever you get overly excited or nervous. And that made him worry that he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from being terribly awkward in front of Bakugou, which could very easily result in the other just getting fed up with Shouto. Or worse, figuring out what exactly is going on behind Shouto's deadpan expression.
Eventually that fear died down though, after he tried avoiding Bakugou for the first two weeks of the new school year which ended in a lot of yelling, some explosions and a wall of ice across the gym that nearly froze Mineta. Bakugou had been so pissed at him for acting weird without any reason. And even though the blonde claimed that it was only because of how negatively it impacted their training, Shouto could read between the lines and decided that their friendship was more important than any stupid teenage crush he might ever have. Those feelings would surely die down after a while.
Of course they didn’t.
Which by extend lead to the following interaction. Shouto has by now made his way down the first flight of stairs, the voices of his friends growing louder with every step until he comes to a halt on the fourth floor and draws both their attention on himself. There’s something pleading in Midoriya’s eyes, and he’s clearly hoping for some support here, while Bakugou’s face just shows his rage as he’s holding up the slip of paper to his face, mouth wide open as if he was just about to eat it and only got stopped by Shouto’s unexpected appearance. Which is probably exactly what is happening right now.
“Wow. I had no idea the Grinch is a real person.”
There’s a heavy silence after Shouto says that. And when several seconds pass without anyone moving Shouto quickly adds, “I’m going shopping for my Secret Santa present. Would you join me, Bakugou?”
He isn’t sure why he says that. Panic probably. After all it’s really stupid to ask Bakugou to come along, considering that he’s supposed to surprise him with said present. Midoriya's face definitely reflects Shouto’s thought. But Bakugou doesn’t seem to notice. Instead he somewhat deflates with a loud huff and slowly lowers his hand, scrunching up the paper in his fist as he steps away from Midoriya.
“Anything to get out of here, Icy Hot,” he barks and then just stomps over towards him.
Slightly confused at what just happened, Shouto can only blink and exchange a long look with Midoriya before Bakugou grabs his arm and pulls him along down the stairs. If it wasn’t for all his hero training Shouto would’ve probably stumbled and fallen down the staircase like an idiot, but somehow he catches himself and then keeps up with Bakugou’s quick steps.
In under five minutes they get down to the first floor, put on their shoes and winter coats and then finally leave the dorms behind them to head to the train station. Through all of that Shouto keeps his mouth shut, knowing that it’s best to just leave Bakugou alone for a while until the other has calmed down enough to initiate a conversation himself.
The train takes them almost all the way into the city before Bakugou finally shifts next to him, pulling his hands out of the pockets of his coat and a quick look tells Shouto that he’s still holding that slip of paper in his hand. Bakugou squints at him angrily as he notices Shouto staring and so he quickly turns his face back to the window.
He holds back the curiosity that bubbles up as he listens to Bakugou fumbling with the rolled and by now heavily scrunched up paper and then just ripping it up until he can unroll it and read the name that is written on it. But when he feels the other stiffen next to him Shouto’s head snaps around by instinct, wanting to check if everything is okay. Bakugou however just quickly shoves the paper back into his pocket before aggressively getting up and announcing that they should get off the train at the next station. It’s still way too early for him to have to get up, but Shouto doesn’t question him and instead gets out of his seat as well to follow him towards the door.
“So we aren’t telling each other who we got?” Shouto asks cautiously.
“That would fucking spoil the whole surprise, wouldn’t it?! You can’t lie for shit so if the person got the idea to ask you, you’d just rat me out, candy cane! I’m not here for that crap!”
Shouto takes a deep breath and then nods since it suits him just right that Bakugou isn’t asking about the name he drew from the jar. He really isn’t that great at lying after all.
“I was thinking we could look at hero merchandise? There are some holiday editions,” Shouto tries again as their station is announced.
Bakugou is still frowning but he nods this time. “Worth a try. But I don’t wanna spent too much fucking money on it. We don’t all have daddy’s credit card at our disposal.”
Shouto looks at him with his usual flat expression after that dig at him. He considers offering to pay for Bakugou’s present for a second but then thinks better of it. He would not appreciate that at all and probably just explode at Shouto about not being a charity case and not needing Endeavors ‘blood money’ as he so eloquently put it one time. Instead Shouto replies with the appropriate amount of sarcasm in his voice. “So you want to make a thoughtful present that comes from the heart, huh?”
Surprisingly Bakugou doesn’t yell at him even though his frown deepens further in reaction to his words. But before Shouto can figure out what exactly that look on his face and the eerie silence means their train comes to a halt and the doors open up, so they have to move. And by the time they made it off the crowded platform and away from a group of teenage girls that spotted them and was obviously plotting to ask for some selfies, the moment has already passed and Shouto feels too awkward to bring it up again.
What if his friend really did end up having to gift a person that he cares very much about? Shouto knows for a fact that there has been a kiss between Kirishima and Bakugou during second grade and it’s also no secret that he’s spending more time one on one with Midoriya, now that they get along and can actually effectively train and study together. And the other day Shouto also noticed Bakugou sitting on the couch and talking to Ochako when he came down for breakfast. In his opinion - which is obviously completely unbiased! - Bakugou could date any of those people. And also whoever else he decided to take an interest in. Because despite his natural temper he has considerably calmed down in the last year and the fact that he has a lot of very persistent and loyal friends probably just helped his social skills even further.
Not to mention that the last two years also gave him a bit of a growth spurt, broadening his shoulders and turning those round cheeks into more of a squared, defined jawline and sharp cheekbones. On top of that he’s now cutting his hair shorter on the sides and the back, making him appear more mature and masculine. Not that Shouto has ever fantasized about running his hand through that blonde hair, while his lips follow his jawline up to the point where his jaw and neck meet and he can gently bite into the soft skin - Shouto quickly shakes his head to get rid of those thoughts and then just speeds up his step when Bakugou throws him a puzzled look.
“Let’s hurry up. I don’t want you to get home past your bedtime.”
“WHAT THE FUCK, HALF’N’HALF!”
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
Shopping with Bakugou turns out to be less aggravating than Shouto initially expected. And despite the fact that he can’t actually pick and buy a present today without spoiling the surprise, it is quite helpful to just get the other’s opinion on things. Because to be honest, Shouto didn’t have the faintest clue about what he was going to get for him when he decided to head out. From the get go his intention was to just browse some shops and then probably overthinking everything until he’d go home frustrated and empty handed. By now however Shouto learned that Bakugou is not a fan of Christmas themed things even if they have All Might on them - so he really is the Grinch - he also thinks gift cards are a terrible excuse for a present and clothes, chocolates and pre-made gift sets are even worse. So at least he knows what to stay away from. It’s a start.
After four hours and countless shops, department stores and even a detour through the christmas market both heroes-to-be are pretty fed up with their hunt for a gift. They at least found a thing or two for other people, like Bakugou’s mom and Shouto’s brother, as well as Bakugou’s favorite mochi flavour black sesame, so the mood isn’t all that terrible when they pass an empty bench somewhere on the edge of a park and Bakugou decides to slump down on it.
“I’m done with shopping!” he declares firmly. “Already took more time than I ever wanted to spend on this bullshit. As if Christmas is about presents and not, you know like...” He pulls a face and halts for a moment before finally saying, “appreciating the people you can stand being around on a daily basis.” The way Bakugou avoids saying that he likes his friends makes Shouto actually chuckle, as he sits down next to him. He’s careful to get just the right amount of distance between them, not too far and not too close to get awkward. But when he turns to look at Bakugou the other still looks at him a little constipated for some reason. Shouto doesn’t ask why.
Instead he leans back with a sigh, stretching out his sore legs and reaching for his backpack to grab a drink. Once he’s done drinking he holds out the bottle to Bakugou who takes it right away and downs almost half of it in one go before handing it back. For a long moment Shouto looks at the bottle opening that Bakugou just held to his lips, then firmly screws the lid back on and puts it away. This is not the time to think about indirect kisses.
“So this was a waste of time,” Bakugou starts again and stuffs one of the mochi he just bought into his mouth as Shouto lets his gaze drift over the people that pass by their bench. Some of them seem to have been much more successful than them in their shopping, others are carrying food from the Christmas market and few are just heading there with their kids or their friends. Shouto’s eyes get caught by a little girl that’s happily carrying her ice skates and excitedly talking to her dad about the new trick she wants to show him. And that gives Shouto an idea.
“The day isn’t over yet,” Shouto finally replies and turns around to Bakugou. “Let’s make the best of being in the city. They have an ice rink close to the Christmas market. I want to check it out.”
“Ice skating? Really?” The frown is back on Bakugou’s face but Shouto doesn’t let it irritate him.
“Yes. Or are you scared you’ll fall on your ass?”
“I’m not scared of some stupid ice! Get up, Canada Flag!”
With an amused grin on his lips Shouto follows Bakugou’s example and gets off the bench to follow him towards their new destination. The blonde is just too predictable when it comes to defending his pride in the face of a challenge. Any other reaction would have honestly worried Shouto. And so they make their way over to the ice rink as the sun sets and the city is lighting up all around them with lanterns, big neon signs and tons of fairy lights. Shouto can’t help but grin when he looks over at Bakugou, the Christmas atmosphere somehow just making him feel all warm inside. Perhaps it’s also the prospect of getting to see Bakugou ice skating and the potential excuse to reach out for his hand or or to just slide into him and steal a hug that gets him excited. Of course he knows it’s childish, but hey, you take what you get, right?
“I’ll treat you,” Shouto declares as they pick up the skates from the booth that rents them out, “to thank you for coming along and saving me from buying a terrible present.” And before Bakugou can protest Shouto already puts down the money and then grabs his friend by the arm to pull him along. Again Bakugou just throws him a strange look but Shouto is too excited to really care about his grumpiness right now. Ice skating is something he’s good at thanks to his quirk but it’s still very different to do it on actual skates and without any intention to fight. And of course with your stupidly handsome crush - no classmates in sight who might butt in.
Shouto changes his shoes for the skates so quickly that he ends up having to wait for Bakugou, who is considerably less enthusiastic. “Ready?” Shouto asks as the other finally straightens himself up with a long-suffering sigh on his lips. Bakugou glares at him but nods. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
And as soon as Bakugou gets off the bench Shouto knows why he’s so unmotivated. His legs wobble dangerously and he takes about four unsteady steps before his hands fly out. Shouto instinctively catches one of them to help him find his balance again. Surprisingly Bakugou doesn’t even complain, he just grits his teeth and squares his shoulders before slowly continuing his way to the entrance of the actual ice rink. This is perfect, Shouto thinks, only vaguely feeling guilty for taking such pleasure in his friends suffering.
Shouto is the first one to actually step on the ice and he’s still holding one of Bakugou’s hands as the other sets one blade on the ice and then the other. So far so good. With his other hand Bakugou is still firmly holding on to the wall, so Shouto decides to start moving parallel to it as he gently pulls the blonde along. Thankfully there aren’t too many people standing by the wall, so Bakugou gets enough time to adjust to the feeling of the skates and the surface of the ice underneath them. And when a little girl suddenly zooms towards them Bakugou just let’s go of the wall as Shouto pulls him forward to let the kid crash right into the wall - as she seemingly intended to, judging by her giggle and how fast she turns and runs off again.
Bakugou is staring after her with big eyes while he’s still holding on to Shouto, their hands gripping each other tightly and the other hand holding on to Shouto’s shoulder. It gives him a couple of seconds to just admire Bakugou’s facial features from up close, to appreciate the way the lights are reflecting in his dark red eyes and how the cold is making his cheeks flush a soft pink. And when Bakugou finally looks back at him, eyebrows drawing together with determination, Shouto knows that he wants to go all in. Katsuki Bakugou cannot be bested by a small child, is probably what he thinks.
“You need to bend your knees a little more. And keep your feet straight. The rest is balance, but you should be good at that,” Shouto explains and Bakugou quickly applies his pointers. As soon as he nods Shouto starts moving backwards, while also pulling Bakugou’s hand from his shoulder and holding it in his own instead. They start out slowly but Bakugou is a quick learner and impatient on top of it so despite some struggles and almost face planting multiple times he soon tells Shouto to let go.
When the other doesn’t react immediately Bakugou gets louder: “I said, let go, stop sign! I got this! Give me five minutes and I’ll wipe the floor with you.”
Of course Shouto listens then and lets go of Bakugou's hands, holding his own up defensively before he lifts one skate to make a quick turn and face the same direction as Bakugou. It takes about three more seconds before Bakugou loses his balance and then just face plants onto the ice with a very undignified grunt. Shouto can’t hold back the snort that escapes him at the sight of a crashed Bakugou but he quickly catches himself and helps him back up on his feet instead.
“Wiping the floor alright,” he teases with a grin still on his lips.
God this is perfect.
Especially since Bakugou doesn’t let go of his hand right away this time and even though he ignores the encouraging smile that Shouto gives him, he can still see just how flustered Bakugou is about this. He really isn’t used to not being good at something and he’s also way too stubborn to just give up. So they keep going, hand in hand this time and with Shouto slowly but surely pulling him away from the wall and increasing their speed as he simply shows Bakugou how to move on the ice. The other is smart enough to observe, analyze and learn after all. And it frustrates him much less than being told what and how to do things.
To Shouto’s surprise Bakugou still keeps holding on to his hand, even when his steps are getting more secure and he hasn’t stumbled in a while now. They just keep making circles around the rink together and ever so often Shouto catches a glimpse of the grin on Bakugou’s face when he looks over at him. Which he perhaps does one too many times, because Bakugou eventually turns his head as well to frown at him and that’s exactly the moment when two kids skate past them so closely that even Shouto loses his balance for a second.
Bakugou on the other hand completely lets go of Shouto and suddenly just steers right towards the wall. With a burst of his ice quirk Shouto speeds up, paving the way in front of him by creating a perfectly smooth surface on the ice to have a chance at catching his friend before he smashes into the wall face first. Shouto reaches him just in time, his hand closing around Bakugou’s to pull him back just as he turns one foot sideways in front of the other to slow down harshly.
Too harshly perhaps, but the thought crosses his mind too late. Shouto already loses his balance and the only thing breaking his fall is the very hard and flat wall he slides into. Naturally that impact is followed by Bakugou smashing right into him and knocking the last bit of air out of his lungs. If it wasn’t for the strong body that’s pinning him against the wall Shouto would’ve just sunken down. But like this all he can do is let his head fall forward and lean it against Bakugou’s shoulder as he tries to catch his breath.
“That was pretty stupid,” he hears Bakugou say and also feels the vibration of his voice where his cheek is pressed against the other. “You could’ve just let me slam into the wall, you know?”
Shouto huffs and then nods. “Instincts. Can’t let a helpless victim get hurt on my watch.”
“I’ll show you helpless,” Bakugou scoffs in return but there isn’t much heat behind it.
And for some reason he just doesn’t move away from Shouto either. Maybe he’s worried about hitting the ground again if he moves. Shouto lifts up his head to be able to look at him once more, a question already on his lips. But it gets stuck the moment he realizes just how close their faces are. Bakugou is still a little smaller than him but since Shouto isn’t standing upright, their noses are almost touching and his warm breath is ghosting over Shouto’s lips. The sensation is making him shiver and for a second he even forgets how to breathe. Bakugou’s lashes are so long and there’s something soft in his gaze that makes Shouto’s chest ache.
Very abruptly Bakugou pushes himself off after all and as Shouto nearly slips and has to catch himself again, Bakugou somehow manages to hold on to the wall and slide a meter or two away from him before coming to a halt.
“Maybe you should do a couple of rounds on your own. Actually enjoy this shit without babysitting me. Go all ‘Todoroki on Ice’ or some shit.”
He has turned his head the other direction so Shouto can’t really see the expression on his face once he’s standing upright again. And before he can say or do anything stupid Shouto just nods and then pushes himself forward. Only when he’s already a couple of meters away he realizes that Bakugou couldn’t even have seen his nod. Fantastic, Todoroki. You’re a real genius.
The feeling of the cold air that’s burning on his cheeks and the ice that’s gliding away beneath him is liberating. Shouto easily navigates his way through the other people while also using his quirk to renew the layer of ice below their skates. Of course he isn’t a professional skater and wouldn’t land even the simplest of jumps if he tried to but he still feels so much in his element here and it reminds him of a time when things were still easier. When his mom would take his siblings and him out to go ice skating on a nearby lake. That’s where Shouto used his quirk for the very first time, his little fingers pressed against the cold ice as he focused in on the crack that was forming underneath his siblings, threatening to turn their family outing into a tragedy. He did end up turning the surface of that lake into a very bumpy formation that wasn’t any good for skating anymore, but he also made sure no one fell through the ice that day.
Shouto eventually finds Bakugou again in the crowd, his steps still a little shaky but it seems like he’s made it a fair way without any help or holding on to the wall, so Shouto slows down until he’s just steadily gliding right next to him. There’s a grin on his lips that he can’t quite get rid of just yet and Bakugou actually returns it, even if it’s still with a little frown. “You would’ve made a nice ice ballerina as well, I guess.” “You know that’s called a figure skater, right?” “Yeah whatever, rich boy.” Shouto snorts and then pushes ahead to make a close circle around Bakugou and end up on his other side, enjoying the puzzled look on his face.
“Are you cold?” Shouto asks after a while, noticing the way his shoulders are tensed up and his hands keep balling into fists.
At first all he gets is a huff, surely because Bakugou doesn’t want to admit it. But then a very obvious shiver runs through his body and he realizes he has lost that fight already.
“Well, not everyone is a walking-talking AC unit,” Bakugou admits grumpily and promptly loses his balance once more, sending him on all fours and having Shout burst into laughter while the other starts swearing so loudly that it makes people turn their heads and cover their children’s ears.
“Ground Zero, be a role model already!” Shouto tells him, the laugh still obvious in his voice, as he holds out his hand to pull him back up on his feet. This time he doesn’t let go of Bakugou right away, even as he tries to pull back his hand.
“This should help to warm you up,” Shouto explains as he concentrates for a moment and lets the warmth of his quirk flow into his left hand and over to Bakugou’s. The cold fingers he’s holding onto are soon warming up and when Bakugou shudders again it’s obviously a much more pleasant sensation, his body welcoming the warmth. That’s when Shouto decides to pull back again, not wanting to make this thing awkward. But now it’s Bakugou who’s holding onto his hand, a strange expression on his face as he says, “My toes are still frozen.” And who’s Shouto to refuse?
They end up doing a few more laps around the rink, still holding hands so Shouto can keep Bakugou warm, before the older one declares that they should get going to catch the next train. And while Shouto could’ve kept skating for much longer still he doesn’t argue with him and instead just pulls him towards one of the exits with a nod and a smile on his lips.
“This was fun,” Shouto speaks into the silence between them as they are making their way back to the train station twenty minutes later. He’s actually feeling really happy and content right now. It’s been so long since he’s just had a fun day out with a friend, no training and no villain incidents interrupting them. Shouto really should try to do that more often. Especially if Bakugou goes along, who is generally just much nicer and calmer when it’s only the two of them. And as long as they are still going to school and thus seeing each other regularly Shouto wants to take advantage of that. They’ll be working in different hero agencies soon enough.
“Yeah.. fun,” Bakugou sounds sarcastic as he says that. His hands are shoved deep into his pockets and he’s wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck. Shouto still feels pretty comfortable thanks to his quirk but his breath still comes out in little clouds, just like Bakugou’s. Of course he feels the urge to reach out for him once more, to shove his hand into Bakugou’s pocket and hold onto his hand again. But he holds back, not wanting to test his luck any more today. There’s no way Bakugou would return his feelings and Shouto doesn’t want to risk their friendship over that.
Something wet and cold lands on Shouto’s cheek and distracts him from those thoughts, making him tear his eyes away from Bakugou. It takes a second of staring at the swirling white particles in front of them before Shouto starts smiling even wider.
“Oh, it’s snowing.”
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
And it keeps snowing throughout the following week, turning the UA campus and its surroundings into a crisp white winter wonderland. Shouto loves the way it seems to slow everything down, muting the sounds and making people pause for a moment to admire the beauty of it. Sadly the slowing down only happens outside the dorm.
Inside the opposite actually happens. It seems to plunge everyone there into a Christmas frenzy, having them decorate every last inch of the communal living room in red, green and gold decorations. The kitchen seems constantly occupied by someone who’s baking cookies - Sato generously helping out whenever he can - while there’s a constant stream of Shristmas music playing in the background. A couple of people also go out to find the biggest and best Christmas tree, which then gets decorated from top to bottom until you can see more lights, ornaments and lametta than the actual tree. Momo even gets the idea to create ornaments of each one of them, like a little limited edition hero merchandise they can hang on the branches of their tree. And once that’s all set up some people already start placing their presents for the Secret Santa underneath it.
It’s a stark reminder to Shouto that he still needs to figure out what to give to Bakugou. Because despite their shopping spree last weekend he really didn’t get much further with that whole mission. All he figured out there is what Bakugou despises, but how do you turn that into an actual present that won’t just end up in the trash? Shouto thoughtfully slurps on his hot chocolate, watching the hustle and bustle around him from where he’s cozied up on the couch.
Christmas isn’t exactly his thing. He likes the way it brings people together but he can’t really remember his family ever celebrating the holiday and so he’s just lacking the nostalgia and tradition that seems to fuel a lot of the Christmas fanatics around him. Shouto is content to just sit by and watch.
The joyful preparations get interrupted quite suddenly when Bakugou comes down the stairs, a grim frown set on his face as he stomps over to the CD player that’s currently blasting ‘Last Christmas’. Shouto honestly expects him to blow the thing up. Or maybe throw it out of a window. But instead he just very firmly pushes the pause button. So firmly that Shouto thinks he can hear the thing creak dangerously under his touch. A couple of heads turn around to see what caused the sudden lack of background music but Bakugou just ignores them all as he walks over to where Shouto is sitting on the couch.
Very stupidly he can feel his heartbeat rising and so he quickly hides behind his mug to have something else to look at besides Bakugou who’s wearing a way too tight, cream colored turtleneck sweater. Why the hell does he look so good in that? Like you could just wrap your arms around him and smush your face against his chest before taking a cozy nap together.
“It looks like a bunch of Santa’s elves got wasted in here,” Bakugou says as he slumps down next to Shouto, despite the fact that all the other couches are very much free. So Shouto plays it save and just shrugs. For a while they just sit like that, Shouto slurping on the hot chocolate that’s quickly emptying while they both observe their classmates unbroken efforts to surpass Santa’s Workshop itself. But the moment Shouto puts down his empty mug on the couch table Bakugou suddenly turns towards him, an unreadable expression on his face.
“Wanna go outside for a bit?”
Shouto blinks in surprise, then finds himself nodding without even thinking about it.
“Sure.”
And so they put on their shoes and coats, Bakugou also opting for a hat, scarf and gloves, so Shouto stands by the door a little awkwardly as he waits for him. Just as he thinks the other is ready and wants to turn towards the door Bakugou suddenly steps right in front of him a second scarf in his hands. Shouto wants to protest, since he won’t get cold anyways but Bakugou is quicker and simply wraps the damn thing around his neck and then half his face before firmly grabbing the scarf and pulling Shouto along by it, leading him outside. Somehow being dragged along by Bakugou must have turned into a habit without Shouto noticing it. This time he protests though and pulls himself free eventually.
“Geez, don’t worry. I won’t abandon you. They were starting to get a little much for me as well, to be quite honest,” he says as he walks next to him, deciding to simply follow Bakugou wherever he wants to go. It’s not like Shouto has planned much for today anyways.
“I don’t even mind the decorations and all that shit. But that music? Who’s supposed to concentrate with that noise! And it’s always the same ten songs!”
Shouto nods in agreement as he kicks a small mound of snow at the side of the pathway, promptly getting snow into his sneakers, making him shake his foot like a cat that stepped into a puddle. Next to him Bakugou chuckles and Shouto throws him a disapproving look, but falters quickly when he sees the amused sparkle in Bakugou’s eyes.
“Guess I found your weakness, dreamy boy.”
Shouto nearly stops dead in his track at that nickname, not sure if it’s really intended as an insult or ... something else. But he keeps his feet moving and pulls up his shoulders to hide his rising blush behind the scarf as he uses his quirk to heat up his skin enough so that the water evaporates. He thinks Bakugou rolls his eyes good-naturedly at that but isn’t quite sure since he keeps his eyes firmly glued to the path in front of them. You’re not supposed to react like a flustered school girl when one of your best friends is just teasing you like any friend would. And Shouto worries Bakugou is way too smart not to catch up to him eventually if he keeps being this obvious.
Thankfully Bakugou shifts his attention though and before Shouto knows it the other suddenly joggs off right onto a snow covered lawn bending down to form some snow in his hands. Shouto huffs, already expecting him to turn and throw the snowball at him. But once more he’s surprised when Bakugou just starts making the ball bigger until he drops it on the floor and starts rolling it through the snow, quickly picking up more and more snow while uncovering some of the gras that’s beneath it.
Doesn’t he know how to do a snowball fight, Shouto wonders, his expression sceptical. Or does he just want to dump that whole thing on his head? Bakugou is surely strong enough to still throw it at him.
“Damn, don’t just stand around like that,” Bakugou suddenly yells, “come help me with this snowman already!”
For a second Shouto’s jaw just drops. A snowman. Bakugou Katsuki wants to build a snowman. With him.
Fuck yeah.
This is basically a Christmas miracle and so Shouto doesn’t need to be asked twice before he finally follows him, crouching down far enough from Bakugou to start his own snowball without getting into each other's way. As Bakugou’s ball is getting bigger and bigger Shouto settles on contributing the middle part of the snowman. And once the other seems to be satisfied with the size of the base Shouto rolls his part over to him, touching both with his hand for a moment to give it just the right temperature to stick together and also last longer. It’s of course harder to precisely influence the temperature especially when it’s snow and not ice. But Shouto has trained his quirk enough these past years and it’s a good practice as well.
Once the integrity of their creation has been assured, Shouto moves to lift his part on top of Bakugou’s, who in the meantime already started with the head. So as soon as he’s done with balancing the smaller ball on top of the large one and patting it down a little, he moves on to creating everything they need for a face with his quirk. By using his left and right side at once it is actually easy enough to form a set of round eyes with a dent for a pupil and then an icicle with a molten down tip for a nose. Not that anyone runs into it and stabs themselves. Shouto can already see the headline in front of his inner eye. ‘Hero Shouto deviously murdering classmate with a snowman’ or something along the lines.
“Move aside, extra!” Bakugou warns him just before brushing past him and dumping the last snowball on top. it’s almost as big as the second part, making their snowman look quite unproportioned and also like it might fall over at any moment. But Shouto just leans in to touch it and freeze the core of the whole thing solid. With a little luck it might survive until spring that way. He gets up then and starts pushing the eyes and the nose into the still soft surface of the snowman’s head, while Bakugou is standing right next to him, arms crossed and a very thoughtful look on his face.
“What’s missing?” Shouto asks him while positioning the nose.
“Mhh ... You’re not cold anyway, are you?“
Shouto squints at him but shakes his head truthfully. As long as he can use his left side he doesn’t get cold. But he isn’t sure what Bakugou is getting at. And so when the other steps closer and raises his hands towards Shouto’s face his eyes widen a little and he holds his breath. All Shouto can do is hope that his face doesn’t turn bright read while his heart is beating so fast in his chest that he’s almost glad Bakugou’s hearing has gotten worse over the years. Otherwise he might just catch up to him.
“What are yo-” Shouto starts, but he cuts himself off when Bakugou grabs his scarf and starts unwrapping it from his neck. Oh. That’s all that was about. The snowman needs a scarf. And here he was thinking ... well what exactly was he even thinking? That Bakugou would kiss him? Yeah, right.
Shouto quickly ducks his head when Bakugou has gotten all he wanted from him and he also takes a step back to make sure Bakugou won’t notice the heat that’s rolling off of him as the wave of embarrassment makes it hard to keep his left side evenly tempered for a moment. What the hell is wrong with him, getting all nervous and excited just because Bakugou is close to him? He really needs to cut this crush business out. And so he crosses his arms and watches as Bakugou wraps the scarf around their creation. It’s at least a little bit hiding the fact, that the head is way too big.
But Shouto has one more idea how to improve it - and also distract himself from his fluttering heart. Once Bakugou is done Shouto places his hand on top of the snowman, squints a little and then makes a set of horns sprout from the head. They grow and grow, while Bakugou complains that this isn’t supposed to be a demon from hell. But eventually Shouto earns himself a soft ‘Oooh’ and when he steps back, it’s clear that the ‘horns’ are actually reminiscent of All Mights hair. Or bunny ears. Or whatever you want to call those.
Shouto peaks over towards Bakugou then and asks, “You happy with it?”
There’s a strange expression on his friend's face, a really soft smile that Shouto isn’t used to seeing. “Very.”
Shouto wonders if it’s still the guilt about All Mights retirement that makes him turn so quiet and all unlike he usually is. It’s an emotion Shouto thinks he can understand. But that doesn’t mean he like it. Or that he won’t do anything against it. And so with one swift motion Shouto bends over, grabs a handful of snow and forms a ball out of it.
“If you throw that snowball at me ...” Bakugou warns him with a growl.
Of course that’s exactly when he throws it.
But Shouto didn't consider the fact that they are standing way too close together for the other to even react. And so it hits him smack in the head and then the snow trickles down, getting into his scarf and down his neck. The reaction is almost hilarious, how he pulls a face and draws up his shoulders, his whole body shuddering as the snow melts against his skin. Shouto can’t help but snort and then quickly slaps a hand over his mouth, taking a step back. And then another as Bakugou’s head snaps around to glare at him.
“Oh, you better run, Todoroki,” he hisses and Shouto really laughs this time, but his whole body is already leaning sideways, prepared to sprint. And as soon as Bakugou moves so does he, turning around and running towards one of the big trees that stand around the campus. His idea is to take cover and buy time to make some ammunition. But before he reaches it a snowball already hits him right in the back and Bakugou yells, “Stand and fight me like a man!”
Now Shouto swirls around and crouches down a second later to collect enough snow for a proper snowball. “You should really decide what you want! I can’t run and stand at the same time.” Just in time Shouto raises his arm to deflect a second snowball and then pulls the other back to throw his own. It misses only barely and so Shouto gets on to make the next one.
It goes without saying that neither of them uses their quirk in this friendly battle - but those really wouldn’t have been needed anyway, since both of them keep forming and throwing snowballs at a rate that honestly lives up to their names. And each of them lands a few nasty hits, which only serves to get the other person to retaliate with even more enthusiasm.
The only thing that’s really off limits is their Snow Might, and so when one of his stray snowballs hits him in the middle section they both freeze and stare at it, worried that the whole thing might just collapse from that impact. It’s only then that Shouto realizes just how out of breath he is and that his clothes feel way too damp and cold to still be comfortable. But when he turns towards Bakugou to ask for a cease-fire the other is suddenly standing right in front of him with the biggest shit eating grin on his face. And before Shouto reacts he gets a whole hand of snow pushed down his neck, making him yelp and squirm away from the hand that holds on to his shoulder. But Bakugou pulls him back and then Shouto leans over to reach for some snow that he can smush in his face, just to feel the ground under his feet slip. In a last effort to not lose his balance his hand goes out and grabs on to Bakugou’s coat. Which only ends in them both going down with a shout and a muffled grunt.
Bakugou lands heavily on top of him, his weight forcing the air out of Shouto’s lungs and pushing him deeply into the eight inch high snow. Now it’s not only his neck but his whole back that feels cold and wet. It’s honestly so uncomfortable but all Shouto can do is squirm underneath his friend, who’s somehow moving way too slow. Instead of just getting off him, he pushes himself up, both of his hands right next to Shouto’s head and his face, flushed from the cold and the exercise, hovering above him. They are both breathing hard and Shouto thinks the shiver that goes through his body is not entirely caused by the cold anymore.
There’s a long moment where they just stare at each other. There’s something in those deep red eyes that makes Shouto wonder what he sees. More importantly, what he thinks of what he’s seeing. Of him. For a long time Shouto had to think that their friendship was only one sided. That maybe he was an idiot for even trying to be Bakugou’s friend. But at some point that changed and he was glad that he persisted. Giving up is not something Shouto likes to do. But then again, not trying isn’t either, and yet here he is unable to say or do anything. Even though he wants to.
It would be so easy to reach up, cup Bakugou’s soft cheeks in his hands and pull him down. Their lips would meet in a temptative kiss, both of them unsure if this is right, if this is what they want. But he’s sure Bakugou would be a good kisser. His lips soft and his - Stop. He needs to stop daydreaming about kissing his best friend.
Shouto takes a deep breath and steels himself to raise his arms and push the other off, when suddenly a snowball hits Bakugou and makes Shouto duck his head and close his eyes.
“WHAT THE FUCK, PIKACHU!” Bakugou’s voice rings in his ears and it’s followed by Denki and Kirishima’s laughter.
“Well, we gotta save the pretty boy or all the girls are gonna be sad on Christmas Eve!”, Denki argues back with a snicker.
When Shouto turns his head and peaks at them from behind Bakugou’s arm he can see them prepare even more snowballs. He isn’t sure if he should be pissed at them for interrupting or thankful. Both are valid options. But when he looks back at Bakugou once more it becomes clear that it doesn’t matter. He got hit. So the fight is on.
They both scramble back to their feet and Bakugou quickly tells him to stock up on ammunition, while he’s going to have his back and deflect any snowballs that come their way. That way they actually manage to catch up to their headstart and land a couple of solid hits themselves - one right in Denkis face, the other on Kiris exposed backside, as he’s bending over to grab some more snow. The whole fight probably goes on for half an hour or so, before the back and forth of snowballs slows down and they all are just facing each other, all of them panting and grinning like idiots. The once so beautiful cover of snow is completely wrecked by now and their hair and clothes are covered in snow. And everyone but Todoroki also seems to be freezing cold, rubbing their hands together and jumping from one hand to the other.
“Well guys, I can keep going,” he says with a smug grin, tossing a snowball into the air and catching it again with ease, “but you all seem a little … cool.”
“Maaaaaan Todoroki! That’s no fair!!” Denki complains right away, teeth chattering and body shivering all over.
“I hate that he’s right!” Kirishima chimes in as well but doesn’t stop grinning as he throws an arm around his friend and then pulls him over to where Bakugou and Shouto are standing. “It was a fair match though,” the redhead goes on, holding out one fist towards Bakugou, who veeeery slowly raises his own and let’s Kirishima fistbump him. “Who’s up for some hot chocolate now?!”
“HELL YEAH!”, Denki yells as Bakugou rolls his eyes.
“Oh I wonder who’s supposed to make those ...” Bakugou huffs as his friends already put on their best puppy eyes. Shouto just grins and then leans forward to touch each of his friends hand, giving them at least a little burst of warmth through his quirk before they make their way back towards their dorm.
Shouto didn’t get any further with his Secret Santa problem that day. But he still feels happy and content as he’s once again sitting on the couch in their shared living room, clothes changed for some dry and warm ones and surrounded by his friends, as Bakugou is making them hot chocolate. The deluxe version of it. And since it would be rude to have him make it and also carry four mugs over on his own, Shouto gets up to join him in the kitchen as he’s about to finish off the last one.
“You want marshmallows on that?” Bakugou asks him without looking up from what he’s doing.
“Yes, please. And thanks for making them,” Shouto replies while watching his hands move. Bakugou is really great in the kitchen, that’s maybe the first thing Shouto really noticed about Bakugou after they all moved in here. But there’s one thing Shouto can actually help him with.
As Bakugou sets down the last mug next to the others Shouto reaches out with one finger and produces a flame that he holds up to each floating marshmallow, giving it just the right golden brown roasting they need.
“Not bad, blow torch,” Bakugou says with a grin that makes Shouto feel all fuzzy inside. So he just ducks his head and quickly grabs two of the mugs before fleeing back towards the couch. There he makes sure to sit down between the other two, despite how it interrupts their their conversation. He thinks Bakugou gives him a weird look for that but chooses to ignore it.
His poor heart has suffered enough for one day.
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
The days before Christmas just seem to fly by faster and faster. Shouto is busy with studying, training, hero work and with all kinds of Christmas activities, like baking cookies, cutting out paper snowflakes and getting dragged along to buy a ridiculous Christmas party outfit. Kirishima and Midoriya keep insisting that it’s a must and since Shouto doesn’t have many points of reference he just let’s it all happen.
Which is exactly how he ends up with a blue shirt that has little Santa’s wearing the ‘Deal with it’ glasses printed on it, a glittering golden bow tie and a pair of felt antlers with bells on top of his head. Shouto stares at himself in the mirror, his expression as blank as it always is. And inside he feels blank as well. He honestly doesn’t know how to feel about this outfit. Well, he knows that every time he moves his head the bells on his head are ringing and that’s really annoying.
So with a little sigh he reaches up to get them off only to be stopped by Kirishima who holds onto his hands from behind and looks at him through the mirror as he says, “No no! The antlers are essential , Todoroki-kun. Trust me.”
Shouto squints, unsure if he really should trust Kirishima's judgement. After all he’s currently wearing a sweater with a big Christmas tree on the front. One that lights up and blinks in all colours. Any kind of protest he could come up with gets stifled by Midoriya re-emerging from the changing room though. Behind him Shouto hears a small gasp and then a whispered, “I shouldn’t be this attracted to an elf ...”
Shouto’s mismatched eyebrows rise up behind his bangs quickly and his eyes keep going back and forth between Midoriya and Kirishima’s reflection. When on earth did that happen? A little pang of guilt hits him as he realizes that he was so wrapped up in his own stuff and his own romantic feelings that he didn’t even notice something was happening between two of his closest friends. Neither of them seem to notice his distress though
“You’re wearing that to the Christmas party?” Midoriya asks in disbelief, apparently not having heard Kirishima’s quiet admiration. At least the red head let’s go of Shouto’s hands now and steps next to him instead to properly eye himself up in the mirror. Shouto seizes the chance to get rid of his noisy headgear.
“Yeah? What’s wrong with how I look?” Kirishima honestly sounds a little upset about Midoriya’s reaction, making Midoriya quickly rush over and apologize profusely for being so direct.
“It’s just ... you know it’s pretty ... flashy. Some people might get bothered by that pretty quickly.”
Kirishima squints for a moment and then he gets that Midoriya is talking about one person in particular.
“Oooh, Bakugou is gonna be so annoyed by that. You’re right, man! And since the lights are the real feature about this outfit I should probably find something that works without them. Gotcha!” With a big toothy grin on his face Kirishima is off to hunt for some new Christmas themed pieces, leaving Midoriya and Shouto behind.
There’s a soft smile on Midoriya’s face now and he’s eyeing Shouto as if he knows exactly what’s going on in his head. Which is impossible, Shouto knows that. And yet he feels strangely exposed.
“So, I meant to ask you something, Todoroki-kun,” he starts. When Shouto nods to give him the go he grins almost bashfully.
“Are you doing alright with the Secret Santa gift? I know it can be tricky finding something for a person you don’t know too well, especially if you’ve never done this before!”
Shouto huffs heavily and then nods. “Yeah ... I’m probably the last one to get anything.” He feels bad about that, too. After all it shouldn’t be so hard to find a gift for a close friend. Especially if you’re crushing on him like you’re the protagonist of a shoujo manga. But here he is, only one day away from the Christmas party and still utterly clueless.
“Maybe I should just be honest and ask them what they would like to get,” Shouto proposes.
“No way, Todoroki! You don’t back down from a little challenge, do you?” Midoriya replies enthusiastically. And Shouto has to nod in agreement. Usually he doesn’t. But this seems much harder than fighting a villain. Because if he disappoints Bakugou there might be no second chance. And there’s no team to back him up in this mission.
“Okay, so do you have any ideas at least?”
Now Shouto shakes his head. “No. I only know what he doesn’t like. Christmas merchandise. Gift cards. Premade gift sets.”
“Mhhh,” Midoriya mulls that list over for a moment, “so it’s a guy. And he doesn’t like thoughtless store bought gifts.” Shouto halts for a moment and then nods again. He hadn’t thought about it like that. “You’ll want to find something personal then. That isn’t necessarily expensive but shows that you know him a little and put thought into what you would get.”
Sounds easy in theory. “But I just can’t come up with anything,” Shouto sighs. He’d even wear the antlers all night long if only he could figure out this Secret Santa problem.
“Oh, I got an idea!” Kirishima interjects and makes Shouto jump a little. He hadn’t even noticed him coming back. Now the redhead is sporting a sweater that depicts Crimson Riot wearing a big santa hat over his horn. And Kirishima has put a set of smaller hats on his own little spikes. It looks absolutely ridiculous but he seems to love it, so Shouto doesn’t say anything.
Kirishima seems to take that as his cue to go on with his idea. “Sooo, you know mistletoe, right?”
Shouto nods slowly.
“Well, it is something you give to a person that you really care about. It’s a traditional thing, you know?” Midoriya seems to want to add something to that but Kirishima quickly goes on before he can get out a word. “So if that someone isn’t into all the capitalist Christmas stuff it seems like a good idea to go back to the roots! You can just pick out a little branch of mistletoe, put a bow on it and let him know that you value his friendship. How does that sound?”
Unsure of what to say Shouto looks at Midoriya. But his elf-ear sporting friend suddenly busies himself with a display of Christmas accessories and so Shouto decides it’s definitely better than no gift at all. And if Bakugou turns out to be disappointed after all he at least won’t know who it’s from.
“Alright,” he finally agrees and immediately receives a grin that’s almost suspiciously wide. But Shouto has no reason to mistrust Kirishima. And so the topic moves back to the issue of finding a fitting Christmas outfit for all of them, while Shouto quietly wonders where one might even get a mistletoe from. Do you have to pluck it from a tree yourself ...?
Thankfully, on their way back from their shopping trip they actually pass a small flower shop and before Shouto knows what's happening he’s already being dragged inside and Kirishima starts chatting up the middle aged lady that’s working in there. She’s absolutely charmed by him and when Kirishima explains that Shouto needs a gift for a special friend she just gives him a knowing look and a wide smile. Shouto shifts uncomfortably under her look but thanks her as she gives him the prettiest twig of mistletoe she could find. Well, that’s at least what she said. Shouto honestly can’t tell a difference from all the others. It’s just a twig.
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
A twig.
That’s the best thing he managed to come up with for Bakugou. At least he also decided to buy some black sesame mochi for him, his favorite as Shouto had learned during their shopping trip.
It’s two days later, the day of their 1A Christmas party, and Shouto is absolutely mortified by himself. And the fact that he’s wearing reindeer antlers with little bells on it and the much too warm reindeer hoodie really isn’t helping either. But he bought it all and he promised Kirishima and Midoriya to wear it to the party. For the Christmas spirit, they sad.
Shouto isn’t feeling it though.
But still he makes his way down to the communal living room well in time, not wanting to be the last person to arrive and to very obviously put his present under the tree in front of everyone’s watchful eyes. Instead he has stuffed it deep into his hoodies pocket as he enters and walks straight towards the kitchen at first, to offer his help with any preparations that still need to be made. Mina happily pushes a big platter in his arms and tells him to get some cookies out of the box that she had hidden on one of the highest shelves.
Shouto actually needs to get a chair to reach it, but it’s already suspiciously light as he picks it up and once the lid comes off all that’s left are a couple of crumbs and sprinkles. “Uh ... Mina?” Shouto asks quietly and somehow she even hears him over all the noise and the loud Christmas music. Her usually so bright smile falters when she looks at the empty box. Then a frown appears on her pink face.
And before Shouto can do anything she stomps over to her phone and pauses the music.
“Okay! Who ate all the cookies?” Mina demands loud enough to make everyone else pause and look at her. She looks actually quite intimidating, the way she’s holding the whisk in her hand and pointing it at everyone, trying to stare someone into confessing.
“What?!” Denki exclaims with a dramatic shout from the couch, “No! Those are for Santa!”
The blonde seems honestly upset about that, even as Kiri and Sero are trying to calm him down and offer some alternative. In between them Bakugou is just sitting quietly, his arms crossed and eyes closed. There’s a frown on his face, but as far as Shouto can judge is just his standard expression. Yet he still takes a tiny step back when Bakugou very suddenly gets up, drawing all the attention on himself now.
“I’ll make some new cookies, if you shut up already,” he barks at his friends and then stomps off right towards the kitchen under his friends joyful cheers. Sometimes Shouto really wonders if any of them are ready to graduate and become heroes soon. But then Shouto gets distracted by the fact that Bakugou is walking right towards him. And the fact that his ugly Christmas sweater is looking considerably less ugly on him - very nicely hugging all the right places and accentuating his narrow waist - while Shouto himself just looks like an overgrown kindergartener, holding on to his empty cookie box.
But Bakugou doesn’t seem to even notice, he just walks past him and in the last second raises his hand to flick his finger against Shouto’s antlers so hard that they don’t just jingle loudly but actually slip off his head. “Hey,” Shouto complains instinctively as he barely catches the damn thing. With a huff he puts it down on the kitchen counter then, ignoring Kirishima’s look.
“Care to be helpful, Rudolph?” Bakugou suddenly asks while he’s taking out all the ingredients he needs. Shouto needs embarrassingly long to realize that the other meant him with that nickname. Damn costume. But with only a small huff he puts down the box and then moves to get out some appliances like bowls, the scale and the hand mixer. Bakugou goes to work right away, taking the things out of Shouto’s hands before he can even put them down, then starting to weigh some flour, sugar and butter.
“Get me some eggs,” Bakugou demands. And Mina, who is already standing by the fridge just grins widely at him, pulling open the door but not moving to actually get those eggs out. So Shouto moves over to her and grabs four eggs, giving her a puzzled look but not sure what to say about it. Mina just keeps grinning and then leaves the kitchen to the both of them. But not without turning the music back on once more and getting everyone else to continue what they’ve been doing before
“I’ll preheat the oven …” Shouto says after just watching him crack those eggs into the bowl for a while. Bakugou is really practiced when it comes to doing anything in the kitchen. His movements seem precise and skilled and Shouto is only left wondering what else these hands are good at. Before his mind can get any further into the gutter Shouto quickly moves to the oven and turns it on, checking in with Bakugou for the right temperature. Bakugou has now moved on to chop up some chocolate, his knife quickly moving up and down with an oddly satisfying sound every time it hits the wooden cutting board. Bakugou could definitely be a chef. And he’d beat Sōma in any Shokugeki.
“Here, take this,” Bakugou interrupts his thoughts and puts the bowl with chopped up chocolate in his hand. “Needs to be melted gently.”
“Melted?” Shouto asks dumbly.
“Yeah, traffic cone,” Bakugou doesn’t even look up, “melted. To mix it into the batter.”
“How do I melt it …?”
Now Bakugou does look at him. He even turns his body and just stares at him so intensely that Shouto thinks for a second he got a stroke or something. “Seriously?” Bakugou asks.
“Oh. Oh! Yeah, I got it,” and the embarrassment alone is enough for Shouto’s quirk to act up a little and warm the bowl in his hand enough for the chocolate to begin melting. Of course that’s what he meant. And Shouto is absolutely mad at himself for being so dense.
“You’re really not just aloof, you’re dense, aren’t you, Todoroki?” The comment is mean but there’s an amused undertone to it that lets Shouto know that he’s just teasing him. That’s something Bakugou really likes doing with his friends.
“At least I’m not rude, Gordon Ramsay,” Shouto replies with the hint of a smile and then nudges Bakugou as he hands him the now completely melted chocolate back. Instead of taking it Bakugou just looks at him. And then he starts laughing. Shouto is so taken aback by that view, that he nearly drops the bowl. But Bakugou is quick to react and catches the bowl with both hands. Which incidentally means he’s also catching Shouto’s hand and squeezing it tightly against the warmed up metal bowl.
There’s a strange tingle on his hand where they touch and Shouto nearly wants to ask if he’s feeling the same. But before he can Bakugou pulls back and moves to add the chocolate to one half of the batter he made. So Shouto is just left standing there, one hand still held in mid air and his heart strangely fluttering in his chest. That’s when he decides he’s had enough of baking cookies.
“I think you got this,” Shouto excuses himself and then just ducks away, not waiting for another comment or order from Bakugou. And once he’s sure that the other’s focus is back on the baking he sees his change to walk by the Christmas tree and - hopefully very smoothly - drop off the small box that has Bakugou’s name on it. Shouto even sticked the original paper slip on it, to make sure he wouldn’t be able to recognize his handwriting. And before it gets suspicious that he’s standing around by the tree Shouto quickly moves on to join Midoriya and Iida on the couch, where they are watching Frozen. Of all movies.
They definitely talk him into letting some ice crystals dance through the air at one point. Shouto just can’t say no to his friends. Especially when the smell of baking cookies fills the air and everyone just seems to be happy. It’s honestly infectious. So much that Shouto even leaves on the antlers when Kirishima sneaks up behind him and puts them back on his head.
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
Time passes quickly that way and before they know it’s dark outside and the whole room twinkles with fairy lights and flickering candles. There’s enough freshly baked cookies for everyone (including Santa) and the music has been turned down to a comfortable background noise as Momo and Iida announce that it’s time to move on to the official part of the party.
For that they gather everything on and around the couch, which does get pretty ... let’s call it cozy. Shouto is squished in between Midoriya and Uraraka who are both trying to guess which present might be for whom as their class reps start handing them out. They actually keep a tally of who guesses right and in the end Uraraka wins a couple of yen for beating Midoriya eight to five. All Shouto really cares about is one specific, small gift. Every time he thinks one of them is going to pick it up his heart rate rises just to be disappointed when they grab a different one instead.
He knows it’s ridiculous to get so nervous about this, after all it’s all anonymous anyway. But he’s just so curious about Bakugou’s reaction. From where he’s sitting he can perfectly observe the blonde, who’s only leaning against one of the armrests of the other sofa, refusing to get stuck between his friends - or even worse on someone's lap. Shouto thinks it’s for the best because he already feels incredibly sweaty and if that happened to Bakugou things might not end so merrily after all.
Also, it gives him a really nice view, which in itself would’ve been enough of a Secret Santa gift for him. Shouto just can’t help appreciating how the black turtleneck he wears under his sweater elongates his neck. Or the way the red and green specks of colour in his otherwise mostly black sweater just somehow accentuate the colour of his eyes. It also seems like that sweater could be a size or two bigger on him - but hey, Shouto won’t complain about being able to admire those wide shoulders and the thick arms he has crossed in front of his chest. He’s actually so engrossed by the view that Momo has to wave her hand in front of his face before he registers that it’s his turn to receive his gift.
With a slight blush on his cheeks Shouto quickly reaches out for the oddly shaped thing she’s holding out to him and he’s pretty sure that the snickering he hears from the side is about him. He ignores it though and focuses on his Secret Santa present instead. From outside it’s absolutely impossible to tell what it is. All he knows is that his Secret Santa is shit at wrapping gifts. But he doesn’t want to be ungrateful, it’s the contents that count after all, and so he quickly starts to peel of the generous amounts of tape and gift ribbon that seem to hold the whole thing together.
Once the gift wrap comes off Shouto is face to face with his father.
Well to be precise, it’s a mug with his father’s face printed on it. Who on earth would even be ballsy enough to give him that? For a long moment Shouto just frowns at it. Midoriya next to him seems to be getting uncomfortable and Uraraka gently puts a hand on his shoulder. But then Shouto starts grinning and shakes his head. The longer he looks at that ugly thing the funnier he finds it. Someone really just went and bought Endeavor merchandise, knowing full well that it was for Shouto. There’s only a handful of people who could’ve done this but Shouto decides he doesn’t even want to know.
Instead he leans back, holding the mug in his lap, and watches the rest of the people receive their presents. And almost as if he had felt it his eyes suddenly fall on Bakugou who is about to unwrap his gift. Which is something that definitely takes his thoughts off his Endeavor mug. He does try to be casual about it but his eyes are definitely glued to Bakugou’s fingers which are way too carefully unwrapping the small box.
Shouto had expected him to just rip it off. But Bakugou keeps up the suspense until Shouto almost wants to tell him to just get on with it. He just needs to see his reaction. See if he completely fucked this one up or if he’s maybe not as bad of a friend as he thought.
And then Bakugou finally opens the box and looks at its content, freezing as he recognized the two things that are in there. Shouto doesn’t know if it’s a good or a bad sign. His usually grim expression is kept so carefully neutral that he’s honestly rivaling Shouto’s. Slowly Bakugou reaches inside and takes the mistletoe out, eyeing it suspiciously before his eyes seem to dart around the room. And then they zero in on Shouto all of a sudden. As if he knows.
Midoriya jerks away his arm that had been leaning against Shouto’s left side, which just raised its temperature about ten degrees.
“You alright, Todoroki?” his friend asks almost guilty but Shouto just nods and then gets up, clutching his mug tightly to his chest.
“I need some ... tea …” Shouto replies before quickly fleeing the scene, decidedly ignoring that Bakugou is still looking at him. There’s no way he knows. Anyone could’ve given him that. Shouto just needs to calm down and stop being so paranoid. Tea should help with that.
So he puts his mug down and reaches for the still hot water kettle, ignoring the irony of pouring hot water into a mug that has his father’s face on it. But just before he fills the cup something catches his eye. There’s a small note inside the mug that he hadn’t noticed yet. It gets a little wet when a drop of water drips from the kettle into the mug, so Shouto quickly fishes it out with his free hand and then fills it up with water so he can set down the kettle.
Before Shouto gets around to unfolding the note though his eyes are drawn towards the mug once more. And there, right in front of his eyes, the picture of his father starts changing, his face slowly fading and turning into something else. No someone else.
Instead of his father’s face it’s All Might who’s looking back at him now. A surprised laugh escapes him as he lifts up the mug and turns it back and forth to marvel at the newly revealed design. This one he definitely likes a lot better and the fact that pouring hot water into it reveals the hero he’s always aspired to become like is brilliant on a whole new level. Shouto doesn’t really believe that this was intentional. Whoever bought it probably just had a good laugh and wanted to pay it forward, that’s all.
Shouto doesn’t want to make a final judgement on that before he’s read the note though and so he puts down the mug once more and then quickly unfolds the paper he’s still holding.
‘Meet me on the roof at 19.30.’
That’s all it says. Shouto blinks at it, then he turns the thing around but there’s nothing else written on it. It’s really strange, especially in combination with the mug and the fact that this is supposed to be a Secret Santa. Emphasis on ‘Secret’
Shouto is way too curious to pass up the chance though. And when a quick look on his watch tells him that he’s only got five more minutes left to get up to the roof. The decision is really easy. The last thing he does before rushing up the stairs is leaving his antlers on the kitchen counter once more. He’s not gonna run up there jingling like Santa’s Sleigh itself.
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺
When Shouto pushes the door to the rooftop open he’s slightly out of breath from taking two stairs at a time and the cold wind that blows into his face makes him squint and duck his head. But he steps outside anyway, one hand shielding his eyes from the snowflakes that are swirling around him. At first it’s hard to see anything, his eyes not used to the darkness and so he steps forward, letting the door fall shut behind him.
“Hello?” Shouto asks, tentatively taking a couple more steps forward and then turning to scan the whole area of the roof. He’s still holding on tightly to the note in his hand but he already has a sinking feeling in his chest. Not that he even really had any expectations but - the noise of the door opening behind him makes Shouto twirl around. But against the light that’s streaming outside he can only see the dark contours of a person.
“I can’t believe you took me shopping for a present when you knew you needed to get one for me.”
Shouto’s breath catches as he realizes that it’s Bakugou. And then his mind starts racing. Bakugou just told him that he knows his present is from Shouto. But how? And why did he follow him upstairs just to talk about this? Is that the reason his Secret Santa didn’t show up yet? Or does he know Shouto’s present is from one of his friends and he wanted to save him the fate of suffering through some more elaborate joke than just the mug?
While Shouto is thinking all that, Bakugou steps towards him, the door falling shoot behind him heavily. The noise startles Shouto a little but he stays right where he is. At least the snow eases up a little and his eyes are getting used to the dark, so that he can see the expression on his friends face.
There’s a smile on his lips.
And it makes Shouto want to just freeze himself into a block of ice and wait this out for like a thousand years or so. Bakugou is probably just laughing at his insane amount of stupidity. Instead Shouto goes for a more sane reaction though and sheepishly scratches the back of his head.
“Well, I just didn’t know what to get you ... You’re not exactly forthcoming with info about the things you like,” he tries to deflect and also excuse the sad little present his friend received. “At least you like the mochi though, right? You can just get rid of the ... weeds ...” By the end Shouto just runs his hand from the back of his head all the way to the front and finally covers his face so he doesn’t have to look at him anymore. At least he doesn’t feel cold. The embarrassment is taking care of that.
“Weeds?” Bakugou asks and his voice is suddenly so close that Shouto jumps a little and peeks at him from between his fingers after all. The smile is still there, warm and gentle, while some snowflakes are getting stuck in his hair and his long dark lashes. A quiet sigh escapes Shouto as he lets his hand fall back to his side. He might as well face this and be over with it. “You mean this?”
Only then Shouto notices that Bakugou is holding something above their heads and a quick glimpse tells him that it’s exactly those weeds that are now hanging between them.
“Yeah, that ...” Shouto says quietly, his voice breaking at the end. “I uhm ... Kirishima told me it’s something you get for a special friend.”
For a second something like disappointment flashes across Bakugou’s eyes but then it’s gone again and Shouto is left wondering what exactly is happening right now. Why are they standing here like this?
“Kirishima did, huh?”
Shouto just nods shortly.
“You know, Deku told me I should follow you up here, ‘cause you were probably hurt by my gift. Which Kirishima had told me to get.”
“By your …?” Shouto squints at him for a second. “You gave me that hideous mug?! And you wrapped that? It looked like squirrels nested in there!” Shouto blurts out before he can think better of it. Bakugou’s expression falls a bit in reaction to that but Shouto can tell that he’s not truly hurt by it. Instead he starts twirling the mistletoe above their heads, making Shouto glance up once more and then look back at Bakugou who for some reason just steps even closer.
“You have no idea what this really means, do you, Santa Hat?” Bakugou actually sounds highly amused now and Shouto hates that he has to nod and admit to it. He really should’ve just googled that.
“Alright. I’ll show you then, okay?”
Bakugou actually waits until Shouto nods a second time before he moves. And then his free hand is suddenly on Shouto’s chin, gently catching it between two fingers just to pull him forward while also taking that last step towards him.
Their lips meet in a soft kiss as they close the distance between them.
Shouto’s hands find their way to his waist only a moment later and he holds on to his sweater tightly as the innocent peck turns into a proper kiss, his lips tingling with the sensation. He’s waited so long for this to happen. Had fantasized and even dreamt about kissing him, about pulling him close and feeling his arms wrap around him. But the actual feeling is so much better than he could’ve ever imagined.
Their kiss soon turns desperate and little sloppy, which is the moment when Shouto decides to take a step back. Well not literally, because Bakugou has wrapped his arms around his neck and their bodies are so close that he can smell his scent, sweet like caramel but with a hint of smoke. Shouto doesn’t want to give that up just yet. But he pulls his face back enough to break the kiss and catch Bakugou’s attention.
There’s a short moment of hesitation, of wondering if he’s just ruining this moment now. But Shouto just has to know.
“Did you write that note that I found in the mug? To come up here at half past seven?” he asks him and the way his eyebrows twitch is already answer enough.
“No, I didn’t. And about the mug, I really just -”
“It’s alright. I think it’s hilarious,” Shouto interrupts him with a grin on his lips. He actually feels a little light headed and very much ecstatic at the moment. No mug in the world could ruin this for him.
“But that means … ” he continues just to be interrupted himself.
“... that Kiri and fucking Deku set us up for this.”
“And this was planned from the very beginning. We drew each other. Kirishima both of us to get those presents. One of them put that note in yours. And then Midoriya sent you up here.”
Bakugou sighs and just lets his head fall forward against Shouto’s shoulder. The sensation makes him shiver a little and he pulls Bakugou even closer. Seems like he’s not the only one getting embarrassed today at least. But honestly, by now it starts to seem like it’s very much worth it. After all he just got to kiss Bakugou.
“How about, you show me some more of that mistletoe business. And then we deal with them?” Shouto suggests in a rush of sudden confidence. Sometimes you just need to take a risk in life.
And when Bakugou straightens up again so their eyes can meet once more, Shouto knows it paid off already. A happy grin spreads on his lips, which he sees reflected on the other’s face, his red eyes softly gleaming in the dim light of the night.
This time it’s Shouto who leans in and initiates the kiss. And he has no plans of stopping any time soon.
⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙‧⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺