Chapter Text
Ochako knew from the the very moment she first presented that life was gonna be an uphill battle. Sexism based on primary gender was already a difficulty, but it got significantly worse when it came to secondary gender. There wasn't an alpha or beta in her life that didn't immediately fawn over her when they heard her tell them that she intended to be a hero. Like they could only ooh and aah at the poor omega who didn't know that she was meant for other things.
It made Ochako want to bite like a feral animal.
To say that getting into UA was a huge accomplishment was an overwhelming understatement. She was one of only two students in the entire hero course who was an omega and the admissions office had made extra sure that she was well aware of that fact. She was pretty sure that everyone was expecting her to give up.
Which may have just been the reason she made it all the way to third year.
By this point, most of her classmates had come to terms and even befriended her, status set aside. It had been a rough couple of years, but she would be hard pressed to find anything bad to say about any of them, even the alphas.
So, it was in the dorms on a Saturday night that started to really change the course of Ochako's life.
She sat on one of the couches, trying to knock out some of her physics homework while Mina squealed with delight at Kaminari's antics. Sero, Kirishima, and Bakugo were all nearby, at varying levels of amusement at Kaminari's antics. He was the one other omega in the course, and Ochako had found him to be a nice rock in a constantly swaying sea. He got it in the way that the others couldn't and Ochako loved him for it.
Mina was another excellent support, as well as her own group of friends. But Ochako always found herself close by Kaminari.
"Chako! C'mon, that was so funny! Why aren't you laughing?" Kaminari whined, and Ochako snorted.
"I gotta finish this up first. You can retell your bad jokes later," she fired back, causing Mina and Sero to nearly keel over.
Kaminari crawled over to drape himself on Ochako's shoulders, pouting. It was a level of closeness that omegas especially needed, something about the gender making the need to do social touching and grooming so much higher. Kaminari did it with everyone, but Ochako only ever let herself be like this with other omegas. The thought of even incidentally making anyone else think it was flirtation was something Ochako absolutely refused to risk.
"What are you even working on?" he asked, staring at Ochako's ancient laptop. The fans were running at full blast, her physics homework sitting nearly finished on the screen. He scoffed.
"Chako, you're made of physics. Why do you even do this?" he asked, and Ochako flicked his nose.
"That's why I do it. I need to understand physics and math so I can use my quirk more effectively. Plus, if I do it now, I won't be begging for help from my favorite alpha on Monday because I forgot," Ochako responded, getting some whistles from Sero and Kirishima.
Kaminari pushed off her playfully, a grin on his face. "Shut up! You're just jealous I have a cute alpha who helps me get all my homework done," Kaminari quipped, sticking his tongue out at her.
Ochako fake gagged. "As if. Do I look like I have time for Alpha nonsense? I barely have enough time to get all my school work done and listen to you talk about yours," Ochako shot back, but a tiny part of her twisted at the thought that she may never find a mate.
Kaminari was one of the lucky ones. It only took skin to skin contact to know if someone was your mate, but Kaminari's mate was more than supportive of him becoming a hero. A difficult prospect when you're an omega. You certainly didn't need your mates permission to do whatever you wanted to do, but Ochako had heard time and time again once the bond set, it was like pinching a nerve to do something your mate didn't want you to do.
So Ochako was careful not to let any alphas touch her. Didn't have to fight anyone on being who you knew you were meant to be if you never found the bond in the first place.
Kirishima gasped suddenly, clutching his chest as though in mortification. "But Ochako, I thought we had something special!" he cried, burying his face in Sero's shoulder to fake sob.
Mina laughed loudly. "Whatever, Kiri. We all know Chako-Chip has had a crush on Deku since forever."
Ochako rolled her eyes, not even really responding to that. Deku was one of the only Alphas she had touched willingly, but they had found out early on that there was nothing there. It was a relief that Ochako hadn't fully appreciated until it happened, a weight that she had genuinely not noticed until it was off her shoulders.
Deciding that she was about done for the night, especially since she and Deku had agreed to spar in the morning, Ochako saved her work and closed up her laptop.
"Oh, Chako, I'm so sorry!" Mina immediately jumped in, her features coloring with worry. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."
Ochako smiled, forcing it to go all the way up to her eyes. She released some soothing pheromones for good measure. "It's fine! I just have an early wake-up tomorrow. Sparring, and all that. I'll see you guys tomorrow for movie night!"
Mina relaxed immediately, but Ochako caught in the corner of her eye how Bakugo seemed to tense up at the pheromones she released. It interested her for about half a second before she decided that Bakugo never seemed physically relaxed. She couldn't tell if it was an alpha thing or a Bakugo thing, but either way it wasn't her problem.
She waved her goodbyes, wishing everyone a goodnight before heading off to her dorm room.
As soon as she got in, she let out a long sigh. It was exceptionally hard sometimes around Kaminari's friends, all of them so friendly. Ochako envied how comfortable Kaminari was with getting all the touch he needed, which reminded her all the more how much she was lacking in that department. Her bed/nest was covered in oversized stuffed animals, mostly kangaroos so Ochako could shove hand warmers in their pouch when she hugged them. It wasn't the real thing, but it was enough to tide her over in between visits home.
Ochako sunk into bed, trying her best not to pout. It was especially hard not to feel bad about herself when her omega was constantly growling at her due to lack of touch, and today even Kerry the Kangaroo wasn't really doing it for her. After a bit, she decided to finish up her homework and wait until everyone had at least gone to their own dorms to get a heating pad and a hot cup of tea. Heat would at least help, if nothing else.
Ochako let herself get distracted with the work, the overheating of her laptop a welcome balm. It barely felt like any time had passed at all when Ochako looked at the clock and saw it was already midnight. Wrapping herself in a blanket, Ochako walked down the dimly lit staircase to the kitchen. There was a single overhead light there, just enough to make your way around without needing to blink against the light this late at night.
Ochako turned on the electric kettle, getting out a mug and a bag of her favorite sleepytime tea. The scent was soothing, and she let out a long exhale.
"Oi, what are you doing up?"
Ochako jumped a little, hands coming up to fight before realizing it was just Bakugo standing in the archway, looking as tired as Ochako felt.
"Your senses are shit," he said, walking around Ochako to pour himself a glass of water.
"Oh, my apologies. Didn't know there was gonna be a quiz," Ochako fired back, not bothering with niceties. The only time she had tried onlookers may have thought that Ochako was trying to provoke him instead.
"Can't be the best if you're not ready for anything," Bakugo fired back, leaning against the counter like he intended to hang out. "So why are you up?"
Ochako bristled. "I'm making some tea before I go to sleep," she said, and despite knowing better, couldn't stop the venom that leaked into her voice.
Bakugo just snorted at that. "Sounds like bullshit. Pikachu always says he's too damn hot in his nest to have warm drinks at night. You not got enough blankets or somethin'?"
Somehow, this line of questioning throws Ochako completely off track from what she was gonna say.
"What?" she asks instead, genuinely confused.
Bakugo looks annoyed at having to repeat himself, but does it anyway. "Do you not have enough blankets in your room?"
"No, I just..." Ochako starts, wondering how they even got to this line of questioning. "I don't get as much touch as he does," she answers honestly, feeling a little embarrassed about it. "Omegas need a lot more touch than alphas or betas do. It helps us regulate a lot of things, like body temp and some other brain chemicals."
Bakugo just stares at her like hes never seen her before. He doesn't say anything in response, and Ochako is embarrassed enough by her own honesty that she just focuses on pouring herself her cup of tea and sipping at it carefully.
"...I didn't know it was a need for you guys. Just thought it was Pikachu being annoying," he eventually said, seeming to be really thinking on it.
Ochako shrugged, wondering when this somehow became a sex ed class. Did they not cover this in his school? It seemed unlikely. Maybe he just hadn't been paying attention? That seemed about right.
"Do you..." he started, looking almost uncomfortable. "Do you need a hug?"
Ochako's brain stuttered like her computer on a hot day. "What?" she asked again, completely baffled by what she had just heard.
Bakugo's jaw clicked. "'S not a big deal. I do it for my cousins all the time," he said, and even in the low lighting Ochako could see a flush crawling up his neck.
Ochako tried to imagine Bakugo giving anyone a hug, and found it easier to imagine than she thought. He had nice wide shoulders. Ochako would even bet money that he probably gave great hugs if he didn't try to break your ribs.
"I..." Ochako started, and the longer she thought about it, the harder it was to find an argument against it. It's not like anyone would see, and she did really need a human person's touch right now. "Would like that."
Bakugo let out a breath, like he was the one worried. He opened his arms, but let Ochako walk up to him.
She set her cup down, approaching slowly before wrapping her arms around his torso. She was wearing an oversized sweater and pj pants, so she wasn't too worried about touching him directly. His arms circled her shoulders, holding her securely to his chest.
Ochako could admit that hugging Bakugo was probably one of the best hugs she had ever received. He was firm in his hold, unafraid of hurting her like most of the alphas in her life. He smelled like caramel, and when Ochako inhaled, the pressure made her feel like she was being crushed back into her body in the best possible way.
It wasn't until Bakugo's fingers brushed the back of her neck that she felt it like a strike of lightning in her body. The instant rightness, the almost need to close any remaining distance.
Ochako jerked back like she had been burned, and noticed a split second later that Bakugo had done the exact same thing, his face surely a mirror of her own horror.
"Was that..." he started, but Ochako wasn't about to let him finish. She grabbed her cup of tea and sprinted off to her room, leaving him to figure it out on his own. It was only when she got safely behind her own door that she let herself realize what had just happened.
Ochako had found her mate. And it was Bakugo Katsuki.