Chapter Text
“I would just like to reiterate that this dance should be taken just as, if not more seriously, than the other events you’ve experienced in your hero course.” Mr. Aizawa reminds class 2A, regarding the excited group with a tired indifference. “This is a networking event. A chance to present yourself to pro heroes in a setting where you can’t rely on your quirks to make a good impression. Any questions?”
At his question it’s as if all of class 2A has transformed into Iida, as every hand in the room shoots straight into the air.
Well. Nearly every hand.
The second the word dance slipped out of Mr. Aizawa’s mouth, Ochako had been in her own little world. He dropped the bomb with about five minutes of class left on Monday morning, thinking he could just inform them there was going to be a dance this weekend. She’s mad at herself for it, but her thoughts thus far have been consumed with Deku’s stupid cute freckled face. She’s been skating around her feelings for him for nearly a year and a half now. If it wasn’t obvious enough already, she’s been staring across the room at him, the blush written all over her face. If she wasn’t careful, she’d start floating and then it’d be really obvious that she was thinking about the two of them in fancy clothes all pressed up against each other.
Oh stop it! Ochako wills herself to shake those thoughts out of her brain. After all, Mr. Aizawa said this was a networking event. She’s supposed to think about her hero career first. Cute boys second. As much as Ochako loved working with Ryuko in her first year, she knows there’s a whole host of other heroes who she could learn from; those who haven’t yet seen her in her prime. With a third place spot under her belt at this year’s Sports Festival, second only to Bakugou and Deku, Ochako finds herself revitalized about the dance as an opportunity to reintroduce the new and improved powerhouse: Uravity!
“The question was more rhetorical than anything else.”
“But Mr. Aizawa!” Mina says, waving her hand violently. Ochako thinks she might stand up and start jumping soon, if he doesn’t let her talk. “When you say dance, is it like a normal school one? With fancy outfits and dates and everything?”
Mr. Aizawa seems to contemplate ignoring Mina as he simply blinks at her, before tugging his sleeping bag up over his shoulders. Once his face is the only visible part of his body, he deigns her with a response.
“Your particular year of UA students have had a rough go of things over the past two years. Principal Nezu thinks it’s important for you to have… fun. That being said. This is a yes with a warning. Who you choose to attend with, and what you choose to wear will affect your image, understood?”
“Yes Mr. Aizawa.” the class responds in unison.
“Good. I’m tired of talking about this.”
Ochako quickly learns that Mr. Aizawa is the only one tired of the topic. The whole class, herself included, is buzzing about the dance. As Ochako makes it out of the room, she spies Tenya and Deku walking together a little ways ahead. She makes a beeline towards them, wanting to talk before she heads off to train, but her plans are interrupted by Mina and Hagakure flanking her on both sides, wrapping their arms around hers.
“I am so so SO excited!” Hagakure gushes. “I can’t believe we’re getting to do something actual high schoolers do!”
“I know, right? Aren’t you excited, Ochako?”
Ochacko flushes. “It’ll definitely be a nice break after all the stuff we’ve been through.”
“And it’ll be nice to go on a date with someone you like.” Mina says, elbowing Ochako in the ribs, bringing about another round of blushing.
“W-what?”
“Ugh, right! You’re so lucky Ochako. You basically have a date made for you. How are the rest of us supposed to find cute people to go with before this weekend?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ochako says, waving her hands. As if her massive blush and the tangible waver in her voice don’t give away that she knows exactly what the girls are hinting to.
“You want me to spell it out for you? M-I-D-O-R-”
“Shh! Okay I give!” Ochako says, tugging on Hagakure’s arm. “I know it’s obvious but we don’t have to tell the whole world.”
“Oh come on Chacko, lighten up.” Mina says. “You’d have to be an idiot to not see he likes you too. Even though he’s awkward and probably too nervous to pluck up the courage to ask you, I still have hope.”
“And you can always ask him!” Hagakure reminds Ochako. “You know! Feminism!”
Actually, in the midst of her Deku fantasy and deciding-to-focus-on-hero-stuff inner turmoil, that one kind of slipped her mind.
“I’ll think about it.”
“Good! You headed back to the dorms?”
“Nah. Training this afternoon.”
“Suit yourself.” Mina says, finally unhooking herself from Ochako’s arm. “Be back for girl talk tonight though, kay? It’s gonna be a big one.”
“I’ll be there.”
Ochako loves talking with the girls, but even she has to admit it can get a bit vocally, and emotionally overwhelming. Talking with them is a lot different than her usual crowd. The loudest Tsu ever gets is like the quietest Hagakure ever gets, so it’s a nice breather for Ochako when she turns onto the Gym Gamma path on her own. She strolls along, taking in the nice gust of wind blowing her hair back from her face. As the girl's voices fade, the only sounds she’s left with are the rumble of footsteps behind her, no doubt classmates also heading for an afternoon training session, and her ever present train of thought. In the absence of others to keep her mind occupied, Ochako pulls out her phone and scrolls to find Deku’s name, opening a new message.
Uraraka
So… that class was crazy, right? I can’t believe we’re having a dance!
Her thumb hovers over the send button, and before she has too much time to overthink, she shuts her eyes and taps her screen.
Message sent.
The footsteps of her classmates that were once gentle and comforting, pull her up from her phone as they begin pounding louder and rougher against the path behind her. She half expects Kirishima to run by her as he has a tendency to stomp a little heavier than the rest of the class, but before she can even turn her head to look, a gruff voice calls out to her.
“Pink Cheeks.”
Oh great.
“I need to talk to you.”
Ochako turns on her heels to see Bakugou stomping towards her.
“Why?” she asks plainly. Bakugou ignores her, and Ochako scoffs as he stomps right past her, forcing her to catch up to him. She’s huffing and puffing to catch up, as he’s got a good six inches on her. And he only decides to speak once their shoulder to shoulder.
“You busy Saturday?”
Ochako almost stops in her tracks, but her desire to not catch up to Bakugou again keeps her going.
“What?”
“Did I fucking stutter?”
“No!” she squeaks. “I mean yes! No you didn’t. Yes I am.”
“Good.” he grunts. “You’re going to that stupid dance with me.”
...what?
Ochako reaches up and tugs at her ear because there’s absolutely no way Bakugou just said what she thinks he said. She must’ve been quiet and slack jawed for longer than she realized as Bakugou spares a glance and rolls his eyes.
“Don’t just stand there catching flies, idiot.”
Ochako clamps her mouth shut and narrows her eyes at the blonde. Evidently she wasn’t hearing things, and evidently Bakugou is still intent on acting like a jerk. She thought he would’ve gotten better in second year. He’d even taken to calling her by her name sometimes, which is more than most of her classmates have got out of him, but he’s still his old mean self.
“And why would I want to do that?”
His face contorts for a second before calming down again to his usual scowl.
“First off, don’t be an asshole. And don’t pretend you don’t know the benefits of going with me.” He tells her. “Long story short. Pros see me as a ticking time bomb. So if I go with someone soft and kiss-assy, I look better.”
“So?”
“So you’re my date. End of story.”
Ochako frowns. Despite the strategic and staggeringly beneficial nature to Bakugou’s offer, she is wholly put off by his approach. Every conversation Ochako has with the guy seems to leave a bad taste in her mouth, and excuse her for thinking that she maybe deserves a little more from a guy asking her to her very first dance. She wants to dance and dress up and have fun at that dance, and the bottom line is she can’t imagine doing a single thing on that list with Katsuki Bakugou.
“And what if I say no?”
Bakugou scoffs. “Why would you?”
Ochako’s surge in confidence this year has also led to a whole lot more of her refusing to bite her tongue when she’s upset. So, she does just that, stopping in her tracks and speaking her mind.
“Maybe I don’t appreciate being told who I’m going to a dance with. Especially someone who won’t even stop to look at me when we’re talking.”
Bakugou stops ahead of her and turns around, stalking back towards her with a murderous look in his eyes.
“You want me down on one fucking knee or something?”
“I’m not saying that!” Ochako says indignantly. “I’m just saying if you were a little nicer I would’ve considered saying yes. But you weren’t. So my answer is no.”
“Bakugou! Uraraka!”
The pair breaks from their heated conversation to see Kirishima hustling towards them. “You two headed to the gym?”
“He is. I’m not.” Uraraka says, making an executive decision.
“Oh! Okay.”
“Pink Cheeks, we’re not done talking about this.”
“Bye Kirishima, see you later!”
Bakugou is pissed off. Fucking fuming. And yeah, pissed off is his natural state, but after that humiliating encounter with stupid Uraraka, he’s ready to go on a murderous rampage. And unfortunately the unassuming red haired idiot is about to get the worst of it. Bakugou is fully prepared to explode his ass the second they get into the gym.
“You look like you just got told off.” Kirishima comments.
“What the hell do you know?”
Kirishima chuckles. “Ah, so I’m right.”
Kirishima tosses an arm around Bakugou who growls and promptly pulls the arm off.
“What did you pester her about?”
“Is that any of your fucking business?”
“Okay, still fresh. Noted. I’ll ask again after you get a few hits on me.”
Bakugou huffs. He hates how the redhead has wormed his way into his brain. Bakugou sure as hell didn’t let him in, but the fucker must’ve found the key under the mat, and now he has this incredibly annoying ability where he can read Bakugou like a fuckin’ kids book. And just as Kirishima predicted, once Bakugou has him pinned on the floor, singe marks on his workout clothes, Bakugou rolls off him and dips his head to stare at the ground.
“I asked her to the dance and she said no.”
Kirishima’s quiet, which almost annoys Bakugou more than when he never stops talking.
“You were a dick, weren’t you?”
“Tch.”
“Jesus, Bakugou! You managed to scare off, like the nicest girl in class!” Kirishima tuts his tongue and leans up to smack Bakugou on the side of the head.
If anyone else did it they would’ve been murdered on site, but all Shitty Hair gets is a red eyed glare and a slap back.
“It’s crazy to me that you can be such an idiot with girls. It’s like the one thing I have on you.”
“Shut up.” Bakugou murmurs, cursing the fact that his face is getting all hot.
He hates talking about this shit. It’s like he can be the smartest kid in class, he can win the sports festival two years in a row, he can do everything and more when it comes to hero shit, but the second he’s supposed to do something soft and kissy or whatever, he feels like Bambi trying to walk on his wobbly fuckin legs. Not that he’d ever ever ever admit that.
“Unlike you, I have my mind set on being on the top. I don’t give a fuck about asking out girls.”
“Well clearly you do.” Kirishima says, elbowing the blonde. “I didn’t know you liked Uraraka!”
“I DON’T. It’s an appearance thing. Her soft fairy princess thing will make me look better to the pros.”
“And I bet you told her that.”
“Of course I did.”
“God you’re hopeless.”
That earned him a punch to the shoulder.
“You want my advice?”
Yes. “No.”
“Well, I’ll give it to you anyways. Don’t say a damn thing about your hero strategy. She already knows that now because you’re a dumbass.” he says. “Just ask her. No bullshit. Just say do you want to go to the dance with me?”
“Whatever.”
“Knew you’d say that. Now come on. Help me up and let’s go again.”
That night, Ochako made sure to have an early dinner so she could head back to the gym before her obligatory girls meeting. Sure, she was uncomfortable and a little angry earlier, but she wasn’t going to let one unsettling interaction with Bakugou ruin her training schedule. Recently she’d been able to float and control three Tenya sized rocks at a time which had been the product of many hours of hard work. And her growth over the course of the past year hasn’t slipped anyone’s mind. Uraraka has truly put herself on the path to become Big 3 next year and yet…
“Update us on the Midoriya sitch immediately.”
She can’t control her cheeks enough to stop them from flushing cherry red at the mention of Deku.
“There is no situation! I haven’t even seen him since class.” Ochako says adamantly. “I was busy training, thank you very much.”
“Me too, ribbit.” Tsu adds. “I don’t see why everyone is getting so worked up over this dance. What’s the big deal?”
“Well in the midst of all we’ve endured the past few years, it is a nice concept that we’ll be able to have a normal night of fun.” Momo says. “And personally, my closet of formal wear has been collecting dust, and I cannot wait to break into it.”
Wow. Momo is so lucky. Ochako was just anticipating wearing the old blue dress her parents bought her in middle school. Sure it was a little tight, but still wearable.
“Actually, you know what. I have hundreds of dresses.”
“I have like two, max.” Jirou says.
“Exactly! I have too many! And of course our tailor is on call, so if you all wanted we could go to my house this week and see if there’s any dresses that peak your interest.”
“Really Yaomomo? You would do that for us?”
“Of course I would. I’d do anything for you girls.”
A chorus of awws follow, and Hagakure’s squeal of joy pierces over the rest of the girls’ thank yous.
“Cute dresses to go with our cute dates!” she declares. “Now who’s asking who? Jirou?”
“Pass.” she says, flushing red.
“Are you just embarrassed to say you want Kaminari to ask you?”
“NO. I’m uh, thinking of asking someone else.”
“Well I just want any cute boy to ask me!” Hagakure informs the group.
“Where do you think would be the most romantic spot to get asked? The dorms? Ooh or maybe in the heat of a sparring match when you’re all heavy breathing and eye contact and-” Mina cuts herself off, and glances just beyond the girls. Her eyes narrow. “Uh this is girls only time, so what do you want?”
A throat clears. “I need to talk to Uraraka.”
Ochako ignores the Oohs from the other girls and turns around in her seat to stare at Bakugou leaning against the doorframe.
He stares back at her with an intensity, but it isn’t one of anger. His face is calm and he’s in pajamas, but neither one of those facts keeps the nerves from rising in Ochako’s stomach as she did not leave their last conversation on a good note.
“Whatever you have to say to her you can say in front of her girls!”
Bakugou’s gaze turns ravenous for a second at Mina, who shrinks behind her words.
“No.” he says, firmly.
And then the look is gone and he’s calm again, directing his gaze back to Uraraka. Hastily, she wipes her hands on her sweats and walks over to him, feeling like she's walking towards an untimely demise. Bakugou turns his back once she reaches him and walks away. She's about to go off on him again for being a jerk, but then he stops right outside the room. He clearly doesn't want an audience when he explodes her. Nevermind her worries, Ochako follows him out and waits quietly as he avoids her gaze. After about a minute, she opens her mouth to ask him if he could just get the exploding over with, but he cuts her off with a single sentence. Squaring his shoulders, he takes a deep breath and looks in her eyes- vibrant red meeting soft brown and he asks:
“Will you go to the dance with me?”
Ochako’s heart thrums in her ears. This is not how she expected this conversation to go. She didn't think Bakugou was capable of basically admitting he messed up and coming back to fix it. She didn't think his voice could get so soft and level. It's so completely out of character that Ochako almost wants to blush, but she keeps it at bay, knowing Bakugou is the one standing in front of her.
Ochako, once again gets lost in her own thoughts. Bakugou draws his eyes away from her again.
“You’re bad at answering questions.”
“Sorry. Sorry Bakugou.” she says, dipping her head apologetically. “I just- didn’t expect you to ask again.”
“Yeah. Well.” he shoves his hands into his pockets. “Don’t get used to it.”
A beat passes. Ochako makes a choice.
“Okay. I’ll go with you.”
He doesn’t say anything. He simply gives her a nod and heads back to his room.
Feeling a little at odds with her decision and what she really wants, Ochako heads back to the girls with a weird turn in her stomach.
“What did Bakugou want?”
“Oh. He asked me to the dance.”
“WHAT?”