The 9 Millimeter Kiss - Chapter 74: Chapter 74

Midoriya laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. He thought about how to report Yuki to Aizawa and how it might affect the case. He thought of Yuki, and wondered what he similarities he could see between Eri's case and his own.
Throughout his brief fascination with mystery cases, Midoriya had stumbled upon it on the internet. Discussion boards filled with who and how this serial killer was able to get away for so long. Was it a group of people working together? Was it only one person? How were they able to kidnap people in broad daylight without leaving witnesses? How were they choosing who was next? Had it really been as random as the police had stated? Or was it something particular the victims had which attracted the killer.
There was one particular discussion thread claiming to have been part of the investigation, secretly leaking information to the public. They claimed to have worked on analyzing the victim's body and how they had only been able to connect various cases together because there was a pattern in their injuries. Some had wounds that were healed in a time limit that didn't fit the time gone missing and others showed signs of both an amateur and a skilled stitching technique. They also stated other than the numerous injuries, blood samples showed numerous traces of drugs. None showed signs of starvation nor any type of sexual abuse.
A popular theory at the time was that someone was kidnapping people and using them as experiments. At every new body found, less injuries were visible and the only sign, if any at all, were faint scaring which the families all consecutively never had injuries in such places. Not long after the theory, news of a victim escaping and surviving happened and the thread was quickly deleted.
To now know his friend was the sole survivor, was–
A chill ran through Midoriya. He wondered how he hadn't noticed anything before. Or maybe he did but didn't pay too much attention to them. He thought back to all the strange habits he noted Yuki having.
Yuki chewed awfully slowly and spent the majority of their lunches with a mouth full of food if there wasn't enough time. His constant need to push his quirk's limits in situations such as the week of Bakugo's rescue, healing not only class 1-A and 1-B but also the rest of the patients he could fit into each waking moment. The small flinches he had when Midnight snapped her whip.
The scars he couldn't help but notice when he nearly drowned– Did Kacchan know about it?
Certainly with the amount of time and suspicious amount of care he was giving Yuki during their house arrest was a clue that he knew, right? There was also the fact that his family lawyer had suddenly appeared when Yuki was sick. Did that have anything to do about the case? Certainly it must have since it couldn't have waited after Yuki was better.
Midoriya pulled his blanket up to his nose and frowned. How was he going to face him now?
Bakugo went to sleep early, everyone knew that. Why? No one really knew. They'd all just accepted he had the attitude of an old man so why not the habits, after all he was already wearing loafers one would call 'old people shoes.'
Yuki had managed to find two reasons for his early attempts to sleep. (Heavy emphasis on 'attempts.') Turns out, the boy was a light sleeper with nightmares.
"Where did you go?" Bakugo asked, sitting up half asleep.
So Yuki wasn't surprised he was awoken when he got back from the shower room downstairs.
"Juice." Yuki softly replied, stripping and quickly changing out of his wet clothes.
"Uh huh." Bakugo mumbled, easing himself back under the covers, too tired to pick a fight.
Yuki's eyes hurt by how much he held back from crying. It felt like all he did when he was overwhelmed was now cry. Which was unusual. Before he'd simply ignored everything around him. Or had he always cried? He couldn't remember.
Before he climbed up to his bed, Yuki glanced over to Bakugo. He was cocooned up against the bookcase, soft and steady breathing. Yuki looked up to his bed and then back down at Bakugo. Now that he had the answers he wanted, Yuki was hesitant about what he would do with his feelings. Bakugo's feelings. He wanted to wait until everything settled down but the many times he waited, more things appeared and then he had to wait again.
Climbing into his bed, a couple things came into Yuki's mind. What did he think about Bakugo?
He was– no, he seemed to be one of the most insufferable and condescending people he'd probably ever met. Fighting others during battle even when he knew they couldn't anymore and waiting until they dropped to the floor. Deliberately taunting them and pushing them as much as he could just so he could fight.
Or so it seemed.
Spending time and talking about seemingly insignificant things with Bakugo opened a new perspective for Yuki. He wasn't always loud. He didn't taunt others because he thought it was fun, he saw it as constructive criticism. He was helping others try to see just how much potential they had. He only 'taunted' others when it looked as though they'd given up. That, Yuki knew, Bakugo didn't like.
Bakugo compared to Yuki exuded confidence at all times around others. He was direct and honest even if it seemed rude. But when they began talking, he was unsure of himself. He blamed himself for many things. Even if he was the first to see all the scars on his skin, he told no one. He didn't mention it or question it at the time.
Then another question popped into Yuki's head. What was it he liked about Bakugo?
Was it the way he'd unknowingly let his knee touch his own when they worked on homework? Or was it the way he ranted about something as he played his video games? Maybe it was the way he'd let a book fall onto his face, take a deep breath and continue reading– only to later find out a character had done something too embarrassing for him to handle and had to take a minute to recollect himself.
Yuki has seen how meticulous Bakugo was when it came to homework. His writing, neat. Answers are mostly correct. Reading a few things out loud for their English assignments when he didn't understand. A few comments to himself, thinking out loud. Even when it came to folding clothes and his futon. It was all neat and he always knew exactly where things went.
Everything about Bakugo was bold and reliable and it made Yuki feel safe and cared for. He recalled how his red eyes brightened up when explaining something and how careful and attentive he was around him when he was sick. He hadn't looked at him in pity or treated him any differently after seeing his scars. He liked how relaxed they'd gotten around each other. Not having to fill the silence was nice. Their light chatter was nice, too. He liked to listen to whatever Bakugo wanted to get off his chest even if it was trivial.
Was this what he should feel? Warm, safe, comfortable... light even?
Snatching one of his pillows, he brought it up to his chest and hugged it. Smothering his face in the temporary coolness on the material. He didn't hate this feeling...
A small tug within slowly grew, craving more of it.
In the following day's Bakugo began to notice changes in Yuki's behavior. It wasn't anything too drastic, but it was noticeable. One being Yuki outright avoiding his little friend group whenever he could.
"You're sitting with us again?" Kirishima asked, placing his lunch tray down across from the healer.
Mid-bite Yuki calmly replied, "I can leave if you'd like."
"No! Don't leave!" Kaminari quickly sat beside Yuki, "You're good at science right? Could you help me with homework real quick?"
Yuki lightly shrugged, chewing away at his food.
"Great! I still need to finish page–"
"Go somewhere else if you're going to do homework, dunce face!" Bakugo loudly interrupted, pulling Kaminari out of his seat.
Bakugo took his seat and sat beside Yuki, earning a small nod. Bakugo knew Yuki was a fucking slow eater and if he helped Kaminari there would be no way he would finish his meal on time. Or at least most of it.
Over on the other table a little ways away from where Yuki now sat, everyone was also aware of the sudden shift and absence.
"This is the third time." Uraraka worryingly picked at her fish.
"He's avoiding us." Todoroki piped in, stirring his soba.
"Did something happen while we were away?" Tsuyu asked Iida. He too looked concerned and was very much staring at Yuki.
"Well, he was acting a bit strangely last time he came back from work study. But that was quite a while ago– Could it be he's avoiding us for not noticing he hasn't gone to his work study?!" Iida concluded, placing his blow of rice down.
"When was the last time he went?" Uraraka asked.
Iida thought for a bit, frowning. "If I recall correctly, it must have be over a little over a month now."
"A Month?" Midoriya exclaimed.
Unknowingly Iida nodded, "Yes, I'm sure of it. He came back without his scooter and the following day showed up to class late."
"He showed up late?"
"He might have overslept." Tsuyu suggested.
Iida shook his head, "No. He didn't take notes during class and during lunch he had this heavy feeling around him. He didn't eat much and I told him to go to the nurses office. I think something must have happened at his work study."
They continued to talk amonst themselves trying to figure out what it was that happened.
"... a month." Midoriya looked down at his food.
Yuki was sprawled on the floor, his face covered with one of the pillows Bakugo uses.
"Don't we have homework?"
Yuki felt the pillow being pulled off his face, he didn't open his eyes. "You're not doing it either." he replied, "Plus, it's not due until next week."
"Doesn't mean we shouldn't get a head start." Bakugo sighed, plopping the pillow back over Yuki's face.
Yuki heard a bit of shuffling around. Pulling the pillow away from his face he turned to look for Bakugo. Bakugo was sitting on the bean bag chair with a book in hand but not open.
"Are you going to read?" Yuki asked, sitting up. "If you want to do homework you can go ahead and do it without me."
"I'll do homework when I want." Bakugo replied, staring at the book in his hands.
Yuki raised a brow, "Is something wro–"
"Why are you avoiding Deku?"
Yuki bit the inside of cheek.
"You're avoiding him and the others." Bakugo pointed out, "Why?"
Bringing the pillow onto his lap, Yuki fiddled with the corners of it.
"Midoriya's part of the case I've been trying to get more information about." he admitted, looking away from Bakugo.
"I sort of cornered him and–"
"Got the information you wanted." Bakugo finished. Yuki nodded.
They sat in silence, unsure of what to say next.
"You have questions." Yuki took a deep breath. "About what happened to me, right?"
Bakugo looked at him and nodded once.
"I think... I think it's good for me to talk about it with someone. Someone other than the people who were part of the case." Yuki awkwardly laughed.
"You don't have to–"
"I need to talk about it." Yuki firmly stated. "I don't want to– it's been... almost 4 years. I think I should talk about it."
Bakugo frowned.
"I'll probably talk to Hound Dog tomorrow, but I know you have questions. So I'll try to answer those at least." Yuki smiled slightly.
Bakugo's frown deepened, "You don't have to answer." he told Yuki. Yuki nodded. Bakugo got up from the bean bag and went to sit somewhat beside him. They weren't really looking at each other but they weren't out of their field of vision.
Bakugo thought about what to ask first as he felt Yuki cross his legs and hug his pillow, awaiting the questions.
"When you were sick," Bakugo began, "You mentioned your pops and uncle died in a car crash."
Yuki reached back to his hair tie and pulled it off, his hair falling over. "Yeah."
"How old were you?"
Yuki fiddled with the hair tie, "I think I was 4. Or about to turn 4."
Bakugo stared down at the rug, "Was it before or after you got your quirk?"
Small warmth filled Yuki for a moment, "I didn't realize I had a quirk until I tried making my friend feel better. Sang her the pain, pain go away song when I found her in the playground."
"Scraped knee?" Bakugo asked.
Yuki didn't reply quickly, "No. Her mom's boyfriend..."
Bakugo didn't need to be told to understand.
"Any other friends?" He'd been curious of Yuki for a long time, with many questions he needed to be careful of which he chose to ask.
"No. Mai was the only friend I had. At the time we were both the only quirkless kids at school." Yuki mumbled, "We were picked on but the others were the ones who would come out crying. You remind me a lot of her in some ways."
Bakugo awkwardly shifted, "In what ways?"
"Well whenever we were picked on she made sure to fight until the other person was down or until someone pulled her apart. Quite the scene for a 5 year old to stick someone's face into the fertilizer at school." Yuki chuckled.
"I only stayed for maybe a year and a half before my foster family sent me away. Left on a school day without notice and she ran away from school. We promised to meet at U.A. but..." Yuki's grip on the pillow tightened. "...she died when I was still missing. Don't know if it was because of me or if he picked her. Either way... it was probably still my fault."
Bakugo didn't want to ask how it would be his fault so he asked something else. "Where did you go after?"
Yuki shrugged, "Probably around Miyagi. Didn't keep track of where I was going. Those foster parents were the worst. No food, no blankets, no clothes. I ended up getting bullied again, only this time I took a page out of Mai's book and fought back."
"You started fights?" Bakugo amusingly asked.
"I only retaliated. Never threw the first punch. If they didn't hit me I wouldn't do anything." Yuki clarified.
"Never seen you throw a solid punch." Bakugo hummed.
"I have more restraint now than I did compared to before– even just last year." Yuki reassured him.
Bakugo leaned back on his hands, "So what happened after?"
"I got sent to the counselor..." Yuki fiddled with the pillow again. "He was one of the first to actually care about me."
"Must have been nice." Bakugo mumbled.
"Yeah." Yuki sighed, "He was almost like another father to me. He brought me home cooked meals for school, took me out of class to teach me other things– according to him I was way ahead of the rest of the school– he gave me books and let me stay after school for as long as possible. I only went to school to see and be around him. My grades were better and he would get me pudding for special occasions."
Bakugo matched Yuki's smile but as he went on it went away.
"We celebrated my 6th and 7th birthday at school during the break. I got a new set of clothes and shoes and a jacket for winter..." Yuki's voice strained, "He was always there to make me feel better... reassuring me everything would be alright."
Bakugo carefully scooted closer, their knees pressed against each other.
"Matsuda. Matsuda-sensei!" Yuki frowned, a sad smile following. "He... he was always there."
Yuki took a shaky breath, his hands growing clammy. "Until he wasn't. That man I knew and trusted and looked up too... that wasn't the same man who took me."
A cold chill ran through Bakugo. He noticed tears began to fall onto the pillow, Yuki letting out an airy laugh.
"Fucking bastard..." Yuki cursed, "You know," he turned to look at Bakugo, eyes glossy. "I only know how to use my quirk the way I use it now because of him."
Bakugo's eye softened. The look Yuki gave him was one painful to even look at.
"I told him my quirk." Yuki mumbled, "I need practice to heal anything. Cuts, bruises, broken bones, reattaching limbs, organs-- Everything."
A gentle hand was placed on Yuki's knee.
"I can only help people as quickly as I can because of him. I only know things about the body because of him and I fucking hate it!" Yuki cursed, tightly gripping onto the pillow.
"People died because I didn't know enough. Mom's, Dad's, son's and daughter's. All of them died because I couldn't do everything he asked for."
Bakugo slowly got to his knees, and wrapped his arms around Yuki. He didn't know what to say. Yuki pushed the pillow away and clutched onto him.
"He was my dad!" Yuki stressed, still trying to understand. "He was my home!" Bakugo held onto him tightly.
"I hate him!" Yuki screamed onto Bakugo's embrace, "I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!"
"It hurt– when he made them do that to me! I hate looking at myself! I hate seeing them-- how desperate they were! How I couldn't help." Yuki told gritted.
"I don't know what–" Bakugo was pushed off onto the floor. "Hey!"
Yuki took his shirt off and began to point at his scars.
"Emiko," he pointed to one just above his belly button, "She was 8." He pointed to one to his side, "Kaito was 5. FIVE!"
Bakugo stared up at Yuki in awe and sadness. He watched tears stream down his face and clench onto his head as though it would stop everything that happened. Bakugo didn't know what to do. He wanted to run away and get someone else to comfort him but that wouldn't be the right thing to do. Yuki trusted him enough to tell him what he could.
So he gently reached up and hugged him again, he would be there as long as possible.
"I shouldn't have told him about my quirk! At least he should have let me die!" Yuki quietly sobbed onto Bakugo's shirt. Hot tears seeping though, his body shivering at attempts to contain it all.
"He taught me how to do everything and they all suffered!" Bakugo continued to hold him, pressing himself against Yuki hoping to somehow absorb, even a little, of Yuki's pain.
What managed to give Yuki the courage to open up to him, he didn't know.
How Yuki was able to contain all of it before, he also didn't know.
But what he knew then and what he knew now, he couldn't help but think, how beautiful Yuki was after all.