Chapter Text
It was 9 p.m. on a Wednesday night when Katsuki’s life was flipped upside down… again.
It began just like every other day. He woke up bright and early at 6 a.m.; went to the gym to do his usual morning workout routine; went back home to get ready for work; and was clocked in at the Precinct by 9 a.m. He spent the next 9 hours working on a case he was given a few weeks ago by his superior, and he was back home by 7 p.m. He took a second shower to rinse the day off and crawled into bed next to his perfect, gorgeous, loving girlfriend.
Katsuki and Camie had been in a serious relationship for 5 years, and lived together for 3 of them. It started out as he’d expected: the honeymoon phase of endless fucking on any and every possible surface in the apartment; laughing fits whenever the other made a stupid joke; going out on dates to expensive restaurants; attending their wealthy friends’ boring parties where everyone stood around praising themselves for their “ingenuity” and “savvy” business deals.
Katsuki was attempting to fall asleep when Camie flipped over to face him in their queen-sized bed. She had initiated sex, and so he obliged, as he usually did.
So now it was 9 p.m. The room was dark and the blinds were drawn shut. The only sounds that could be heard were the lewd noises coming from Katsuki’s repeated thrusting as he fucked Camie with as much enthusiasm as he could muster; which, unfortunately, wasn’t much.
The silence between the two was awkward. Their sex had become stale and felt more like a chore that they were expected to complete occasionally in order to feel like a “real couple.”
After about 15 minutes of monotonous thrusting and cold silence, Camie finally spoke up.
“Are you close?” she asked, looking over her shoulder.
Katsuki stopped his ministrations and caught his breath before he answered. “No, are you?”
“No.”
With that, Katsuki pulled out his already softening dick and Camie flipped onto her back. She looked up at him with eyes already wet with tears. Her voice was weak and shaky when she spoke again.
“Are you not attracted to me anymore?”
Katsuki was dumbfounded. “What kind of stupid question is that? Of course I’m attracted to you. You’re perfect.”
Camie sat up on the bed, looking down at her hands as she spoke her next words. “It definitely doesn’t feel like it! Whenever we have sex now you act like I’m torturing you. Like you’d rather be doing anything else.” Camie sniffed, her tears still running down her cheeks.
“It’s not like that Camie, I just have a lot on my mind at work right now.”
“You always have work on your mind! When will you be able to leave work at work and focus on us for once?”
Katsuki looked at her bewildered. “Leave work at work”? How could he when his job takes up all of his time and mental faculties? How could he focus on their relationship when Tokyo was in shambles? People were dying every day from drug overdoses and gang violence, and his department was responsible for putting an end to it all. It was a heavy burden to carry, and Camie clearly couldn’t understand that his kind of work couldn’t be separated from daily life. It was his life now.
“You don’t get it Camie. I have a lot of pressure on me right now to solve this Sugardust case, I just don’t have the energy to deal with you now, too!”
Camie cried even harder. She wiped the tears off of her face, secretly hoping that Katsuki would do it for her; would comfort her when she was clearly hurt. But he didn’t. He never did.
Katsuki got up from the bed and sighed. “I’m going to sleep on the couch tonight.” And with that, he walked towards the bedroom door.
“You know,” Camie said, “sometimes I wish you were just gay. Then it would be easier to understand why you don’t love me like I love you.”
Katsuki frowned but said nothing. What was he supposed to say to that? He’s definitely not gay, he just… didn’t have the emotional capacity for a relationship right now. Surely that was it. Katsuki dropped his gaze and left the room, turning his back to the sound of Camie’s crying.
——
“KATTTTSUUUUKIIII!”
Katsuki held the phone away from his ear to avoid any further hearing damage from Mina’s excessively loud screeching.
“The squad is going out tonight, wanna come? Drinks are on Inasa this time!”
Katsuki contemplated his answer for a second, but he didn’t feel like socializing right now. He needed to stay home and help divide his and Camie’s belongings before she moved out. Apparently, he had said the wrong thing that night they fought, and she was leaving him for good. It wasn’t the first time he’s been left by a woman he was dating and probably wouldn’t be the last. He just couldn’t find it in himself to fight for their relationship.
“Sorry Mina, I can’t. I have to help Camie pack her things.”
Mina’s tone got serious. “Katsuki, please, you need to take a break. Relax with us for a bit. You’ve been going and going nonstop and frankly, it's ruining your relationships. Take a break. Come with us to Plus Ultra and we’ll help you unwind! It’ll be fun, I promise!”
Plus Ultra was the most popular strip club in Tokyo. Everybody went there for drinks and to socialize, or even to conduct business deals. There was a rumor that Plus Ultra’s owner, Enji Todoroki, had Yakuza ties, but there had never been any concrete evidence, so the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (TMPD) never bothered looking into it. Frankly, most large establishments in Tokyo had gang ties. It was nothing new. As long as they weren’t hurting anybody, it was acceptable for the TMPD to turn a blind eye.
Katsuki considered Mina’s proposition. On the one hand, Camie needed help packing her belongings so she could move back in with her parents for the time being. On the other hand, getting drunk with friends from work and watching sexy ladies dance seemed a lot more appealing.
“Fine, I’ll go. But if you and Momo start getting annoying then I’m leaving.”
“Such a buzzkill!” Mina replied. “Be there at 8:30 tonight. See ya later Dynamight!”
Katsuki cringed at the stupid nickname his squad-mates (Mina in particular) had given him: “Dynamight,” because he was strong-willed but ready to explode on someone at any moment. He was known for having quite the bad temper. Despite his emotional outbursts and general grouchiness, his squad-mates adored him and would risk their lives for him if necessary, as would Katsuki for them.
Katsuki smiled to himself. He was so lucky to have friends that cared about him and kept him grounded. If it weren’t for them, would he even be where he was now? Probably not.
After telling Camie that he was going out (and subsequently arguing with her about it), Katsuki changed his clothes into something more fitting for a club: a red button-up long-sleeve shirt, black pants, and a gold chain necklace. He did his hair, grabbed his keys and his phone, and was on his way to meet the squad.
——
Katsuki pulled up right at 8:30pm in his orange Nissan Skyline and parked in the lot out front. It was a busy night at Plus Ultra; people were constantly streaming in and out of the gigantic club. The bouncer let Katsuki inside and he immediately saw his friends at a booth in the corner. It looked like they had already started drinking, and Mina was already tipsy. “Lightweight”, Katsuki thought to himself with a smirk. He really did love that girl.
“OH MY GOD KATSUKIIII!! OVER HERE!”
Mina waved Katsuki over to their table. She was joined by Momo, Inasa, and Ochako. There were two people from their squad missing: Keigo, which was understandable; he never really joined them for casual outings outside of work. “Too busy,” he always said. Yeah, right.
But Iida was missing also. “Where’s Glasses?” Katsuki asked the group.
“He doesn’t like coming here!” Ochako shouted above the music. “He says it’s too loud!”
“He’s right, it is,” Katsuki replied. He was more of an introvert and didn’t care for all the noise at the club either. But he could put up with it occasionally if it meant getting out of the house and away from the office.
The sound of Cardi B’s “Money” rang through the building from the speakers. Katsuki looked around; the dancers were each doing their routines at their designated poles, getting bills thrown at them by thirsty patrons. Katsuki continued scanning the room, but saw nothing of interest to him. Scouting out the area was just a habit of his that he couldn’t seem to break even when he was off duty.
“Holy shit Momo— is that your ex-girlfriend?!” Mina screamed, pointing at a woman with short purple hair in a neon purple bikini walking by the table.
Momo pushed her hand down. “Please stop pointing, you’re going to draw her attention!” she said through gritted teeth. “But yes, that is my ex-girlfriend Jirou. She works here.”
“As a dancer or a server?” Mina asked.
“She’s a dancer now, but she used to be a server,” Ochako interjected. “She started dancing after her and Momo broke up, at least from what I saw on her social media feed. Apparently her dancer name is ‘Violet.’”
Katsuki turned to Inasa, who appeared to be listening intently to the girls gossiping about Jirou with a slight smile on his face. He was so easily amused, it was almost endearing. He could just sit and listen to the others talk without saying a word and would still have a good time.
“Inasa, you’re paying for drinks tonight right?”
“Yes, sir! It’s on me, so go grab yourself a drink! And grab us some more too, we need to catch up to Mina here,” said Inasa with a chuckle.
Inasa told Katsuki what drinks to get the group and sent him to the bar. Katsuki walked up to the counter and asked the bartender, a tall silver-haired man named Shoji, for another round of drinks. He was very skilled with his hands and always made a show of pouring drinks for the patrons at the bar.
“How you doin’, Bakugou?” Shoji asked as he poured a drink for another guest.
“I’m hanging in there I guess.”
“How’s Camie? Where is she tonight? I never see you here without her!”
“We broke up.” Katsuki sat down on a bar stool. He watched as Shoji began mixing together some fruity-looking concoction.
“Shit, I’m sorry man. Here, your drink is on the house tonight. What can I get you? Something strong?”
“Sure, thanks Shoji.”
Katsuki ordered the group’s drinks and waited for them to be made. He looked around the club again; nothing of interest, as usual. He started to turn back to the bar when his eye caught a glimpse of someone in the VIP section. Sitting on the couch across the club was a man with curly, green hair, and a smile that lit up the room. He was wearing a green silk button-up shirt with golden ornate patterns, slacks, and loafers. What is he so dressed up for? Katsuki wondered. But his eyes wouldn’t leave the man on the couch. He was surrounded by what looked like his entourage, a group of seven also very well-dressed (and intimidating) men.
Katsuki was still staring when suddenly the green-haired man turned his head and made eye contact. Katsuki froze for a moment before snapping back around to face the bar. He watched Shoji finish up their drinks. When he was finished, he grabbed the drinks and walked back to the booth; but not without glancing back over at the VIP couch. He saw the man conversing with one of his friends, a boisterous blonde man with a blinding smile. Something about the man with the green hair felt mesmerizing; Katsuki just didn’t want to look away.
“Thanks Katsuki!” Inasa yelled over the music.
“No problem guys.” He handed his friends their drinks and took a swig of his own: plain whiskey on the rocks, just what he needed to forget about Camie for the night. He looked over to the couch again just in time to see the head dancer, Tiger Bunny, escorting the mysterious man to a door in the back of the club. Weird, he thought. Is he going to speak to the owner?
“Katsuki! Come here and look at cute girls with me!” Mina yelled over to him. Katsuki sighed and sat down next to Mina. They people-watched and drank together as a group for the rest of the night, but Katsuki’s eyes always returned to the VIP area or at the door in the back. He couldn’t understand why he felt so disappointed every time he didn’t see curly green hair.
At the end of the night, Katsuki stumbled home; he was inebriated and couldn’t drive his car back. He unlocked the front door of his apartment, but not without scratching up the door with his key first. When he got inside, he found that he was alone; Camie was nowhere to be found. This didn’t bother Katsuki all that much, honestly. He was used to being left by every woman he’s ever dated. He just couldn’t figure out why his relationships never worked out.
Camie’s words rang in his head once more. “Sometimes, I wish you were just gay,” she had said. He didn’t know why that comment bothered him so much. He crawled into bed still fully clothed and turned the lights off before immediately falling asleep.