Chapter Text
Shouto remembered when he received the text message.
He and Izuku were having a cup of coffee, finally, on a rare day off they were able to share together to catch up on recent events. It only felt like yesterday when they had graduated and landed their first job as Pro Heroes. The next thing Shouto knew was that he turned 26 years old, still single, whereas his bouncy, soft companion of the same age was happily married to his childhood sweetheart with a baby on the way. He couldn’t remember the last time he caught up with Izuku and wasn’t talking about work.
For the most part, he honestly didn’t care about his lack of love life. Not because he saw love as a distraction, rather he just doesn’t understand it. It wasn’t like his parents had served a great example of what a happy marriage looked like. Nor were his siblings very open about their own romantic relationships, even after marriage. Shouto has accepted that love was a part of life and when it happens, it happens.
Most of his run-ins with romance didn’t seem to differ all that much from what he’s seen in movies and dramas. But Shouto wasn’t completely emotionless. He, of course, had eventually acquired the ability to empathize with characters to the point where he has felt these heart pangs as some writers describe it.
People always say that when you meet the one , you know. Though, Shouto wasn’t sure how true that actually was.
“Shouto? Are you alright?”
He looked up at Izuku who was staring back at him with concern.
“You were frowning at your phone. Did something happen at the agency?” Izuku asked, one hand rubbing his swollen belly and the other holding his decaf coffee.
Shouto shook his head. “No, I got a text from my sister...” Still trying to wrap his head around the text message, he re-read the message again. Why this of all things?
“Oh, what did she say? And since you were frowning pretty hard I assume it’s something serious,” Izuku said, taking a sip of his coffee. Shouto raised a brow at him. Was he frowning that hard?
“She has set me up on a blind date.” As soon as the words left his mouth, their table jerked due to the banging of Izuku’s knee. “Izuku! Are you okay?” Shouto asked, immediately concerned for his pregnant friend. Who, for some reason, was completely okay and waved him off.
“She set you up on a blind date?” Izuku asked in burning curiosity. Shouto could see him trying to refrain from asking him a million questions.
“Yes. Apparently, she thinks I need to get out there ,” he replied. “I’m not sure why all of a sudden she decided to do this.” He would be lying if he said he wasn’t even the slightest bit curious.
Izuku hummed in amusement. “It’s probably because she wants you to have somebody too right?”
“What do you mean?” Shouto asked. Why would it matter if he had a partner or not? He had a successful career as a hero, great friends, some hobbies that occupy his time on his days off, he didn’t need to fall into conventions.
“She’s probably worried about you Shouto. Say what you want but...you’re kind of a loner,” Izuku chuckled. When he frowned at the comment, Izuku chuckled even harder. “She knows that almost all of your friends and peers at our age have all settled down or are at least in a serious relationship. Maybe she didn’t want you to feel left out.”
“Is it really a necessity to be in a relationship at the age of 26?” he asked. Izuku rolled his eyes at him playfully, which he didn’t understand why considering it was a valid question.
“ No . She probably doesn’t want you to end up alone. I don’t think she means anything other than genuine concern,” Izuku explained. “I mean, have you ever thought of going out meeting someone yourself?”
That was an easy question. “Of course, I’m out with you now aren’t I?”
Izuku let out a big sigh. Shouto didn’t see anything wrong with his answer. “No, Shouto. I meant going out to meet someone with the intention of...I don’t know...pursuing them romantically .”
“What would that entail?”
From what all the films and dramas have shown him, love was something that just happens. It’s supposed to be like electricity when you’ve touched hands for the first time. Like when he accidentally brushed hands with Kaminari once, though it didn’t feel any different to the usual static electricity. How one can go out with romantic intention and choose to pursue someone without an electric connection or feeling their heart pang , was something he didn’t understand. Maybe there’s a movie on that...
“Well if you think about it in the same way as making friends, you start with getting to know them. Like asking general stuff about them and what they like,” Izuku offered with a grin.
“Did you do all of those things with Katsuki?” Shouto asked. Izuku shook his head and giggled.
“When we were kids, yeah. I don’t think Kacchan and I would be a great example for your blind date situation.” Shouto noticed the fond look on Izuku’s face at the mention of his husband. He also didn’t miss the way Izuku’s eyes twinkled as he stroked his belly. One would have to be bat-shit stupid to not notice how strong and beautiful the love those childhood sweethearts shared.
Unfortunately, Shouto was just stupid enough to not understand love or romance or anything remotely related when it involved him.
“I guess we did have to get to know each other again in our own way. I think when you find someone you want to be with for the rest of your life, you never stop learning about them,” mentioned Izuku. “But anyway , that’s too far in the future. Let’s get back to the subject at hand, are you going to go?”
“Should I go?” Shouto wasn’t sure if he wanted to. He didn’t know what to expect or what to do.
“It’s not about whether you should or not, do you want to go?” Izuku asked, raising a brow. “If you’re really uncomfortable with the thought of it, you don’t have to go.”
That’s true. Seemed simple enough.
“If you were me, what would you do Izuku?” Shouto asked, honestly stumped if it was worth his time.
Izuku hummed in thought. “I guess if I didn’t have anyone I like already, I would go to at least meet the person.”
And that is exactly what Shouto did.
From: Fuyumi 16:43
I reserved a table for two people under your name for 19:00! Are you alright for work?
Shouto glanced at his watch, he only had his report to finish before he was able to go home. He wasn’t particularly pleased that the blind date had to be after work. But since his sister had been trying to find a night where both he and his date were free for two weeks. Seemed like his date was also super busy at work. Shouto wondered what field his date was in. Izuku did say asking about the other person’s career is also a good way to get to know them.
From: You
To: Fuyumi 16:44
Should be fine. Can you text me the place?
He didn’t check his sister’s reply until he arrived home and started getting ready. Shouto hummed in amusement when he saw the name of the restaurant. It was unusual that she would choose a nice restaurant for a blind date of all things. Although, considering he was a successful Pro Hero, a casual eatery or ramen shop down the road probably wouldn’t bode well for his image. Not that Shouto usually cared about those trivial things, it’s why he hired his PR manager.
Settling on a nice pair of cropped slacks and a button-down shirt, he put his long hair into a low bun and made his way to the restaurant. Only a short drive away, he arrived within minutes. Once he got to the front of the restaurant, he found out that his date seemed to have arrived early and was already waiting for him at the table.
Shouto didn’t know what to expect. Somewhere deep down he hoped for a little more. The woman Fuyumi has set him up with was very nice.
That was pretty much it.
She was nice, polite and well-spoken. She’s a nurse at a major hospital downtown in Hosu. Very smart and attractive as well.
And Shouto felt…
“Nothing,” Shouto confessed. “Maybe I didn’t do it right. You think I should try again?”
“Okay half n’ half, I know I’ve come a long way and all but why the fuck did you have to talk to me about your non-existent love life?” Katsuki scowled. They were both at the cafeteria at work on their lunch break. “Can’t you talk to the fuckin’ nerd about this bullshit?”
“But Katsuki, you’re my friend too,” Shouto replied. With all they have been through, he was confident that they were at least friends no matter how much Katsuki denied it. The latter probably didn’t notice that even though he was annoyed when being consulted, he actually gave great advice in the midst of his insults. Shouto really appreciated that.
“Doesn’t mean I’m your fucking love therapist!” Katsuki raged. “Why the fuck am I supposed to listen to your yappin’? So what, you didn’t like her, find someone else!” He shoved a spoonful of his curry into his mouth, chewing grumpily.
Shouto hummed in thought. Perhaps his feeling nothing for his blind date last night was indicative that he was not romantically interested. But how did one even know if he was romantically interested in someone?
“I guess you’re right.”
“Damn straight I’m fucking right. Don’t waste your time with extras if they’re not worth it,” Katsuki grunted. “Why did you even go? Since when did you care about being in a relationship?”
Shouto found it amusing how Katsuki acted like he didn’t care when he actually did. Despite his drawbacks, Katsuki was a caring man deep down.
He shrugged. “I went to humour myself. I don’t know what I was expecting to be honest.”
Katsuki looked at him dead in the eye. “So you went solely for the purpose of wasting not only your time but that extra’s as well. Talk about rude,” he commented, clearly unimpressed with Shouto’s behaviour.
“Stop calling her an extra,” he chided.
Katsuki smirked knowingly. “Bet you can’t even remember her name, can you?”
Shouto flinched. He got him there.
“I knew it,” sneered Katsuki. “Did you even fuck after?”
Shouto froze at the question. “Why would we even do that?” he asked.
Again, he’s seen movies. Sex with absolutely no attachments is normal, though what did that have to do with blind dates? Surely, real normal people with no baggage whatsoever don’t actually do that, do they?
Katsuki looked like he was losing his patience. Not that he had much, to begin with. “Were you not even paying attention to your own damn story? Your sister clearly is worried about your non-existent libido and set you up with someone to shack up with,” Katsuki said in his never-changing pissed off tone.
“I didn’t say any of that,” Shouto retaliated. The thought of his sister even trying to set him up with someone so he could have...sexual release was disturbing. “Why would my sister want to worry about my sex life?”
Katsuki threw his hands in exasperation. “Fuck I don’t know, you candy cane. Probably because you’re still a virgin and act like a damn robot.”
Shouto was very much aware of his sexual inexperience, despite all of the compliments he’s received about his sex appeal. How ironic. Magazines described him as a sex god, a man exuding sexual prowess like second nature, and yet he has no idea what it actually feels like to be intimate with someone.
“I don’t see how that’s a bad thing,” Shouto pouted, feeling slightly defensive. Sex wasn’t everything.
Of course, that’s what virgins would say.
“I couldn’t give two shits if you fucked someone in the next 24 hours but your sister obviously cares,” scoffed Katsuki.
As though it were clockwork, Shouto received a text from his sister.
“Oh well would you fucking look at that, I guess you did end up getting a second chance,” Katsuki laughed as he read the text. Another message came. “Hah! It’s with a different extra this time too. Have fun with that half n’ half.” With a slightly too hard slap on the back, Katsuki left the cafeteria.
Shouto looked at his watch. There were only five minutes left of his lunch break before his patrol started.
And only a couple more hours until his second blind date.
For the past month, Shouto didn’t even think that he would end going on a series of blind dates all set up by his sister. A thought that passed his mind each time a text came through his phone was that she probably secretly loved to play matchmaker. Despite her beautiful, sweet and soft appearance, she always liked teasing him. Especially during the rare times, they were allowed to spend time together when they were younger. She even got him in a dress once.
The whole situation practically became routine. Shouto would go on a blind date and then told his friends about what happened. Spoilers, nothing really happened. Also, it was mainly Katsuki since they work together. He could feel the impatience radiating off the explosive hero every time he talked to him about the subject whilst still attentively listening to him anyway. Until one day…
“Oi, peppermint head. Ever thought that maybe you just don’t like pussy?” Katsuki said bluntly.
Shouto blinked at him. “Are you implying that I may prefer men?”
“I’m not fucking implying, I’m stating the goddamn truth,” Katsuki grunted. “When you rub one out, what’re you thinking about?”
Shouto tried to think about the other’s words. Of course, every now and then he did feel the need for sexual release, though a lot of the times he focused on the deed and not much on anything else.
“Fuckin’ hell, you don’t think about anything do you?” Shouto flinched when the other hit the nail on the head. Katsuki ran a hand down his face, groaning in frustration. As though he had enough, he banged his hands on the cafeteria table and glared at him. “Okay, tell your sister that you can’t be fucked going on dates with these female extras anymore. Get her to set you up with a man.”
Katsuki’s conviction was astounding as always. Shouto felt touched that he did care deep down. “What if nothing happens with a man either?” he asked out of curiosity.
“Then you’re a damn robot, I don’t know! The point is that you’re already down this rabbit hole, fucking deal with it,” said Katsuki. “Stop going along with this shit if you really don’t care. Why the hell is meeting someone so goddamn important?”
Shouto didn’t know. He wasn’t exactly sure why he kept going. Maybe he wanted to find out what it felt like when he met someone he was genuinely interested in more than being friends. The thing is, he already has a great group of friends. He also has his family, even though he and his father still had a long way to go. Either way, meeting a stranger probably wouldn't generate a connection since it took a lot of courage on Todoroki’s part to reach out.
“I guess it’s not…” he settled. For some reason, it felt wrong. But it didn’t matter, right? He had a great job, great friends, a roof over his head, he didn’t need anything else.
“Wait, what the fuck. Are you...are you lonely ?”
Shouto’s eyes widened.
Lonely .
“I...I don’t think so?”
“Holy shit, you are, aren’t you?” Katsuki was looking at him as though he discovered his big secret. Then an arrogant smile bloomed on his face. “Alright, new plan. You either need a goddamn pet, or you need to get fucked.”
“Those are two very different things,” Shouto said, scrunching his nose. “Also, the second option, are you telling me to leave or are you–”
“I fucking meant what I said. You need to get bitched or get a pet to occupy your empty-ass apartment. At least either of those options will fucking tell you what kind of loneliness you’re feeling,” Katsuki scowled, getting up from the table.
Shouto considered himself lucky that nothing happened during the patrol.
He couldn’t stop thinking about what Katsuki said.
Loneliness was an emotion he hadn’t felt in a long time. When he had taken the leap to start caring about other people again, he felt like a huge hole in his heart had been patched. The loneliness he felt when he was isolated from his siblings were long gone in the past. His previous determination to push people away completely collapsed all thanks to the amazing peers around him.
If he had all of these great people in his life already, who else would he need?
Apparently another date. Though this time, sitting in front of him was a man. Shouto had let it slip to Fuyumi about how all of the women she had set him up with did nothing for him.
“Oh Shouto, why didn’t you say so? I’ll find you a nice guy!”
And that was all she had needed to think he swung the other way. Which he still wasn’t sure about. Shouto couldn't recall any of the times he had thought about someone as sexually attractive. He probably never had.
At least, until now.
The man in front of him was sculpted like a Greek god. Shouto was also no stranger to beautiful, toned bodies since the hero world was filled with them but damn the biceps of this man rivalled Gale Force. His hands were the size of Shouto’s head and he bet they were strong too. Strong enough to grab his waist and leave bruises that would last for weeks.
“Todoroki-san?” The man called out gently. “Are you alright? You’re looking a little flushed.”
Shouto perked up at the sound of his name. “Ah–sorry, I was spacing out for a moment. That was very rude of me,” he apologized.
Wow, he really zoned out there.
The man across from him chuckled. Goddamn, even his laugh was charming and sweet. “That’s alright. You must be tired from work,” he said in an apologetic tone. “Thank you for keeping the city safe.”
Shouto felt his warmth pooling in his lower abdomen at his date’s smile. Warmth on both sides by the way, not just his left side. He felt his palms getting slightly sweaty the more he looked at the handsome man’s face. “I can’t take all the credit. You firefighters, do just as much saving,” he replied, slightly bashful.
When another smile bloomed on the man’s face, Shouto couldn’t help wondering if this was what people identified as sexual attraction. The warmth in his lower abdomen, sweaty palms and flushed cheeks...they were all common symptoms of a regular fever. Though somehow, Shouto knew that his body was telling him something is different.
If only he had known that this would’ve been the trigger.
“Okay, I think I understand now.”
Katsuki looked at him dead on. “You’re gonna have to elaborate more on that candy cane.”
Izuku smacked him lightly on the arm. “Kacchan, stop calling Shouto weird names,” he scolded lightly.
“Oi, you’re not the one who has to deal with this crap every day at work,” Katsuki grumbled at his husband. Izuku smirked at him.
“I think you secretly like hearing this sort of stuff Kacchan. You’re always about the tea , as the young interns say it,” Izuku pointed out cheekily.
Shouto knew that if they had still been in high school, Izuku would’ve been chewed out by Katsuki within seconds for a comment like that. Seeing him more mellowed out as a husband and father to be was a sight in itself. Despite his rough and tough exterior, there was no doubt that Katsuki was really an aggressively caring man.
“What can I say, nerd, I’m a fucking hero 24/7,” Katsuki smirked in confidence. Izuku rolled his eyes at him, albeit fondly. “Alright, back to you half n’ half. What have you come to understand and when did you start developing human emotions?” Katsuki swerved the conversation back to him.
Shouto frowned slightly at the comment but answered nonetheless. “Well for starters, I took your advice.”
“Oh my god Shouto you got a pet?” Izuku asked in excitement. Eyes sparkling and everything. Izuku physically deflated when he noticed his and his husband’s weird looks. “Sorry, I force Kacchan to tell me everything,” he admitted with shame.
Shouto knew that telling Katsuki anything was pretty much telling Izuku and vice versa. Those two were a packaged deal. “Uhm, no I didn’t get a pet. Though if I did, you would be the first one I’d tell Izuku,” he said to console the latter.
“So you spread your legs?” Katsuki assumed bluntly.
Shouto was glad that it was their day off and they were in the safety of the Bakugou household. After his recent development, he really, really didn’t want to talk about this in public. Now that he can understand the feeling of shame.
And not the kind of shame where he and Natsuo felt when they failed to cook soba.
No.
It was the shame that came with being distracted at work due to thoughts of big, tall, beefy males with large hands.
Shouto sighed. “No. We had a very pleasant dinner. We got onto talking about our jobs and revealing general facts about ourselves.” It was nice. Very nice. His date had been a really nice man.
Nice.
“Oh, that’s great to hear Shouto! So are you guys going to go on another date?” Izuku asked, looking happy for him.
Katsuki raised a brow clearly unimpressed. “He was fucking boring wasn’t he?”
Shouto was definitely confident that he and Katsuki had a connection now.
Hitting the nail on the head, he nodded in answer.
“Yup,” Shouto said, before sipping his forgotten cup of coffee that he had been holding for the past few minutes. Izuku, on the other hand, looked scandalized, his head whipping between looking at him and Katsuki.
“Wait what? He was boring?” Izuku sputtered.
“Damn candy cane. Who knew you had it in you to just ogle a man’s assets shamelessly,” Katsuki snickered in amusement.
Shouto let out another sigh. “I guess this is what it feels like when you finally acquire sexual attraction,” he hummed.
“Don’t fucking talk about a biological urge like it’s a skill you get in a game,” Katsuki growled, eyes narrowed. “So what, you thought he was fuckable. Was that your damn epiphany?”
Oh, he discovered a lot more than that. Shouto felt warmth rush to his cheeks. He was usually a blunt person himself, but as soon as the topic changed to his sexual preference, suddenly he felt like a shoujo manga protagonist.
“ Well ...maybe it wasn’t so much that I found him particularly attractive but rather–uh…” Shouto didn’t understand why he was so uncharacteristically bashful. Damn, he really was a virgin. “Rather I found his type...very attractive,” he managed to squeeze out.
Shouto didn’t realize he was looking down at his cup of coffee until he faced Bakugous and saw Izuku leaning towards him in interest. “Shouto, are you saying that–that you discovered your type ?”
Katsuki was smirking knowingly. “Oh, this is gold . Now it makes sense why you were eye-fucking all those mammoths at work.” Izuku immediately whipped his head to look at his husband and then back at him.
“ What? ” Izuku gasped loudly. Katsuki wrapped one arm around Izuku’s shoulders, the other placed on his pregnant belly caressing it softly.
“Deku, you’re getting worked up, calm down,” Katsuki murmured. Izuku relaxed a little bit, the caressing obviously helping. “But yeah peppermint here got distracted having filthy thoughts of the hunks at work.”
Shouto curled into himself. He was ashamed. He really was.
He’s supposed to be a professional and he got distracted thinking about men. Not to mention, some of them were his coworkers . “Oi, half n’ half, it’s nothing to be fucking ashamed about. If it makes you feel any better, most of the twink interns froth at the mouth every time they see you take your shirt off in the change room,” Katsuki stated.
His eyes widened at the information. “They do?”
“Aww, I wish I was back at work already. Personal drama always makes the workplace so much more interesting,” Izuku pouted. Shouto looked at him appalled. “I have to hear everything from Kacchan instead of getting to actually be there.”
Excuse you, what the fuck?
“C’mon candy cane, this nerd is a fucking nosy little shit. Don’t tell me it took you this long to figure it out,” Katsuki said, rolling his eyes.
“ Anyway , so Shouto now that you know you have a type, are you going to keep getting your sister to set you up on blind dates?” Izuku asked in curiosity.
Shouto hummed at the idea of it. He wasn’t sure if there was even any point in doing so. A part of him felt like he was wasting a lot of time but then there was a sick part of him that secretly liked going to them. Though that was mainly for his pursuit of finding romantic attraction.
Which ended up being a sexual attraction. Beggars can’t be choosers, Shouto guessed.
“Don’t fucking waste your time. Your sister is the shit and all but let’s be real, she’s not cut out for this matchmaking business,” Katsuki commented. “All she’s done is shack you up with a bunch of shitty extras who were boring as fuck.”
Izuku looked at him lovingly. “Aww, Kacchan you actually care about Shouto’s love life,” he teased.
“He fucking dragged me down this rabbit hole, I ain’t gonna get out of it half-assed alright short stack,” Katsuki grouched. Shouto placed a hand to his heart, touched at the latter’s aggressive caring. “Let’s get down to the roots of this shipwreck. What makes all these dates uncompelling side characters to you?”
He knew that Katsuki meant business when he brought out the interrogation voice. “I guess even though we make the effort to get to know each other, it doesn’t feel like I’ve shared anything with them,” Shouto confessed.
It all felt like polite chat. Like a series of questions that had to be asked for conversation to happen. Shouto could feel that both he and his date always ended up in the same rut when they ran out of questions to ask. All of their conversations never diverged out of curiosity or interest. They were pleasant but stale.
“I wonder if maybe it’s because I’m a Pro Hero and most of the dates were also people who work in public service. I felt like our conversations were fueled purely on making a good impression with one another,” he pondered aloud.
“Are you saying that you can’t be yourself around them?” Izuku asked softly.
Katsuki shook his head. “No, he means he can’t be vulnerable around them. Peppermint has a whole goddamn air cargo full of family drama baggage that he can’t trust with any random mob.”
“Kacchan!” Izuku scolded, probably offended at the wording.
Katsuki was, of course, unapologetic with his words. “Fuckin’ what?”
“You couldn’t have worded it more eloquently?” Izuku scolded. Katsuki clicked his tongue ready to retaliate.
“That’s pretty much it,” Shouto admitted, reminding the two of his presence. “Think of it this way, Izuku, you know how you go off on tangents about heroes with anybody and everybody?”
“Yeah,” Izuku said with a slightly ashamed tone. Katsuki snickered, then kissed his temple.
Shouto shrugged, “Well, I felt like I couldn’t be that free with anybody about myself...I don’t know, it’s hard to explain. Maybe I would just be more comfortable with someone I already know to a certain degree,” he murmured in thought.
Someone who at least knew his background even a little bit would make him more comfortable. The only people that come to mind were his UA ex-classmates or coworkers. He also couldn’t imagine dating any of his coworkers, especially after his shameful, dirty, newfound sexual thoughts. Unfortunately, that also meant the hunks .
“Did you want a relationship, Shouto? I mean, I know Fuyumi-san originally started setting you up because she thought you needed a special someone in your life–”
“Or she thinks you need to get laid,” Katsuki interrupted with a grumble, causing Izuku to elbow him.
After a quick glare to his husband, “But is that what you truly want?” Izuku asked.
“I don’t know.”
He honestly didn’t. At least, at the time.
All the way home, Shouto thought about it. He thought about Katsuki and Izuku. His ex-classmates, Kirishima and Mina. His own sister and her husband. He thought about all of the people around him that were involved in serious relationships.
He remembered noticing the soft touches. The look in their eyes when they gazed at each other as though they were the only ones that mattered. Or the way they embrace each other like they never want to let go.
Like a tidal wave, the feeling of loneliness crashed onto Shouto. Then it slowly turned into longing.
He wanted that.
He wanted love.
To be loved.
Not being able to get a wink of sleep for the last two weeks since his revelation, Shouto forced himself to buckle up for work. When he arrived at the agency, he began his usual routine with minimal issues, letting his body and mind operate on auto-pilot.
Patrol went by in a blink of an eye and all there was left to do was write his report for the minor arrest he made with the police earlier. Midway through writing, he received a text message. It was probably Fuyumi with another blind date. He should let her know that he didn’t want to go on any more dates.
Shouto furrowed his eyebrows when he saw Katsuki’s name instead of Fuyumi’s. What was more concerning was the text message itself.
From: Bakugou Katsuki 17:38
Blind date tonight at 20:00 PM. Japanese restaurant down the road from the agency. You better fucking show up half n’ half.
He blinked several times. He read the text another ten more times. He then messaged Izuku to ask whether his husband was playing a joke on him.
From: You
To: Bakugou Izuku 17:40
Did your husband really set me up on a blind date? Did hell freeze over or something?
From: Bakugou Izuku 17:41
It probably did lol
He was very adamant that you go on this blind date.
From: You
To: Bakugou Izuku 17:43
So it’s legit?
From: Bakugou Izuku 17:43
Very legit.
As Shouto took a minute to properly process Katsuki’s plot twist worthy, uncharacteristic behaviour, he got another text message.
From: Bakugou Izuku 17:45
I actually think you’d be a very good match!
P.S. It’s someone you know if that makes you feel any better.
P.S.S. Anyway, I better shut up or else Kacchan is gonna get angry at me ｡ﾟ･ (>﹏<) ･ﾟ｡
From: Bakugou Izuku 17:46
Have fun tonight! 〜(･ω<)☆
If Izuku thought it was legitimate, then just this one last time he will go. Katsuki was also familiar with his problems, so Shouto could only hope that it wouldn’t turn out to be a total disaster.
Right?
Shouto wasn’t surprised when the waitress at the restaurant recognised him, but he did think it was a little weird when she said she would lead him to his table without pause. With no choice aside from following her, she led him to one of the private rooms at the back of the restaurant. Shouto assumed Katsuki probably had booked the room since the restaurant was very close to the agency, putting him at risk for their coworkers to recognise him.
The waitress slid the door open while Shouto was taking his shoes off. “Here is your room Todoroki-sama. Your companion is already seated,” she said, gesturing towards the door. Shouto thanked her and headed inside the room without any hesitation.
Before he was able to get a good look at his companion for the night, which he spent every minute thinking about since Izuku’s text, he heard the waitress close the door quietly with a polite pardon. And then…
“Todoroki-kun! How nice it is to see you again.”
He properly looked at the man in front of him. Or rather the date Katsuki had set him up with.
The hot, beefy, large hunk in front of him.
“Iida.”
Iida grinned at him. “Long time no see.”
For the first time in Shouto’s life, he felt his heart pang.
And it panged hard .