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“So, let me get this straight,” Mina blinks rapidly, a dumbfounded expression on her face. “I sent you on your first date. And you got engaged.”
Katsuki smirks, leaning back on the couch with a shrug. “Sounds about right.”
Mina looks like her brain is melting. Eijirou isn’t much better—he’s sitting next to her with his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking slightly like he’s laughing or crying. Or maybe both.
“What in the world am I gonna do with you two?” Mina finally says, looking to the ceiling as if she wants it to come down on her.
“Well, we’re not engaged yet,” Izuku unhelpfully adds. “I won’t let our proposal be at a dingy street carnival with no ring.”
“Dingy?” Katsuki pouts. “It was spontaneous.”
“And very sweet, Kacchan,” Izuku squeezes his hand and gives him a quick peck on the cheek. “But I can do better.”
“You know what, actually,” Ei finally speaks, a resigned smile now tugging on his lips. “I don’t know why I’m surprised. This is very on brand for you two.”
“You’re fucking insane, Kats, but I support it.” Mina snorts, leaning back on the couch. “If anything, you’re helping me out.” She puts her hand up and examines it, wiggling her fingers. “Two years together, and still no ring.”
Eijirou blanches, giving Katsuki a blank stare. “You see what you did?”
Katsuki shrugs, his grin widening. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Don’t worry, Ei,” Izuku says, his tone genuinely reassuring as he pats Eijirou’s arm. “I’m sure when you do propose, it’ll be perfect.”
“You mean unlike yours?” Mina quips, waggling her eyebrows at Izuku.
Katsuki rolls his eyes, but Izuku just laughs, clearly unbothered by their unconventionalism. “I guess it wasn’t perfect,” Izuku admits, glancing at Katsuki with a small smile. “But it was ours.”
The room falls quiet for a moment, and Mina and Eijirou exchange a look before both of them soften.
“Well, congrats, you two,” Mina says sincerely, her grin turning fond. “It’s about damn time.”
“Yeah,” Eijirou adds, his voice warm. “You guys deserve it.”
Katsuki doesn’t know how to handle the surge of affection in the room, so he just mutters, “Thanks,” and looks away, pretending to adjust his hoodie.
Izuku, on the other hand, beams. “Thanks, you guys.” He squeezes Katsuki’s hand again, and Katsuki squeezes back harder.
Mina and Eijirou leave soon after that, relieved of their babysitting duties for the night. Katsuki and Izuku spend the rest of the night cuddled up in Izuku’s room, watching movies, and fall asleep in each other's arms.
So it’s safe to say that by the next morning, Katsuki’s on cloud nine.
He strides into the agency with a spring in his step that has everyone doing double-takes. He’s not whistling or anything—he’s not that out of character—but there’s a noticeable lightness to his movements, a sharp contrast to the usual heavy-footed stomp that announces his arrival.
“Good morning,” he mutters to a group of interns as he passes by, lost in thought about what he’s going to make for dinner that night. Katsudon, maybe? He’s feeling like a treat.
The interns freeze in place, staring after him like they’ve just seen a ghost. “Did... did he just say good morning?” one of them whispers, their voice trembling.
“Dynamight?” another stammers, looking like they might faint.
“Maybe he’s possessed,” the bravest among them offers, earning a round of terrified nods.
Katsuki doesn’t notice—or maybe he does and just doesn’t care. Either way, he makes his way to his office, where Mirko is waiting for him, leaning casually against his desk with her arms crossed.
“What’s up, rabbit?” Katsuki asks absentmindedly, responding to Izuku’s text about their plans for the day with a thumbs up. They were going to take Alani to the mall to get snow boots, since she was already complaining that hers were too tight.
“Morning, Sunshine,” she greets, her smirk growing as she takes in his unusually chipper demeanor. “The receptionist told me to come check on you. You were smiling and she was concerned. You had a good night or something?”
Katsuki doesn’t bother hiding his smirk as he grabs his gear from the rack. “A great one.”
Mirko’s eyebrows shoot up, and she lets out a low whistle. “Well, shit. Who knew you had it in you, lover boy?”
“Mind your business, rabbit,” Katsuki shoots back, but there’s no bite in his voice.
Mirko laughs, clearly enjoying herself, but she doesn’t push further. “Alright, Romeo. Try not to scare anyone with your good mood out there.”
Katsuki rolls his eyes, but his smirk doesn’t waver as he heads out for his patrol.
The day starts off uneventfully. Katsuki moves through the city with his usual efficiency, handling minor disturbances and a few fan encounters with more patience than he normally has. Things are good—almost too good.
He’s sure this will be the thing that ruins it when his phone buzzes in his pocket. He pulls it out, glancing at the screen, sighing when he sees Melissa’s name. This can only be very good or very bad.
“Yo,” he greets, holding the phone to his ear.
“Hey, Katsuki!” Melissa’s voice is bright and teasing, the crackle of the line not dimming her energy. “Guess what?”
“If it’s more adjustments, I swear to—”
“Relax, grumpy,” she interrupts, her laughter bubbling through. “The suit is done.”
Katsuki’s steps falter. “What?”
“Izuku’s suit,” she repeats, drawing out the words like he’s slow. “It’s finished. And thanks to that modeling gig you so graciously took, we fast-tracked everything. It’ll ship out and should be at your agency within the week.”
A slow grin stretches across his face. Everything he’s been working toward for over half a decade. Finally complete. “You’re a goddamn genius, Melissa.”
“I know,” she says smugly, and he can hear the grin in her voice. “Now, when do I get my thank-you? Or, better yet, when does Izuku get his? Remember when I told you that giving him this suit was basically a confession?”
Katsuki rolls his eyes, even though his face heats. “Yeah, well, I already confessed, so shut it.”
There’s a pause, and then Melissa practically screeches into the phone. “Wait—WHAT? You already confessed? Since when? Why didn’t you tell me?!”
He winces, pulling the phone away from his ear. “Calm the hell down. It was a little after New Year’s.”
“Oh my God,” she says, her voice giddy. “Katsuki Bakugou confessed his feelings. This is the best day of my life. Congrats, you sap!” Well, technically Izuku did first but. Doesn’t matter.
“Yeah, yeah,” Katsuki mutters, though the warmth in his chest betrays how much her words mean. “Thanks.”
“So, how’d he take it? Obviously, he said yes, right? Or are you moping because he said no?”
“He said yes,” Katsuki grumbles. “And I kinda don’t think boyfriend is enough. We need to get married.”
There’s a stunned silence on the other end before Melissa bursts out laughing. “Wait, what? Katsuki, don’t you think that’s a little fast?”
“Fast?” Katsuki repeats, his tone sharp but not unkind. “I gave my life to him years ago.”
For the rest of our lives wasn’t just a promise. It was an oath, pledging Katsuki’s soul to Izuku even if he didn’t know it. He wanted to be partners in every possible sense of the word.
Melissa’s laughter quiets, replaced by something softer, something heavy with understanding. “You’ve been carrying this for a long time, haven’t you?”
He doesn’t respond right away, his grip tightening on the phone. “It’s always been him,” he admits quietly. “Even when I didn’t want it to be. Even when I was too much of a coward to admit it.”
“You’re not a coward,” Melissa says firmly, her voice warm and reassuring. “You’ve grown so much, Katsuki. Izuku’s lucky to have you. And I’m so happy for you—for both of you.”
His chest tightens, but it’s not unpleasant. He feels seen, in a way that’s both comforting and a little unsettling. “Yeah, well. Don’t get too mushy on me, Four Eyes.”
“Who’s getting mushy? I’m just stating facts,” she teases. “Now, if you need help picking out a suit, I’m your girl. People say I have a knack for design.”
Katsuki smirks, his mood lifting even higher. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Alright, lover boy. Talk soon.”
“Yeah,” he mutters, hanging up. Katsuki slides his phone back into his pocket, his steps lighter, his chest full. The future still feels a little terrifying, but for the first time, it feels like it’s entirely his. And he can’t wait to share it with Izuku.
The euphoria doesn’t last long, though.
Just as he’s heading back to the agency, his comm buzzes with an alert. A villain attack downtown. Katsuki’s smile vanishes. He was having such a good day.
“Dynamight here,” he says, already sprinting toward the scene. “I’m on my way.”
Katsuki arrives to chaos. The air is thick with the acrid stench of smoke and the sharp tang of ozone, and the street is an orchestra of screaming civilians and shattering glass. In the center of the devastation stands the villain—a tall, wiry figure whose veins glow an ominous red, pulsating like a heartbeat gone rogue. Each pulse sends rippling waves of energy outward, ripping through cars, shattering windows, and leaving jagged scars in the pavement.
Katsuki’s boots skid slightly on the cracked asphalt as he lands, his sharp eyes taking in the scene in a split second. No time to waste.
“Oi, jackass!” His voice booms, cutting through the cacophony like a detonator. “Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?”
The villain’s head snaps toward him, their grin spreading inhumanly wide, revealing jagged teeth. Their eyes gleam with a red glow that sends a flicker of unease down Katsuki’s spine, but he doesn’t let it show. “Dynamight,” the villain drawls, their voice reverberating unnaturally, like a chorus of whispers layered over a growl. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Katsuki’s palms crackle as he ignites his quirk, the heat rolling off him in waves. “Get in line.”
The villain doesn’t waste time, launching a wave of energy so forceful it sends parked cars flying like toys. Katsuki leaps, narrowly avoiding the blast as it rips through the spot where he’d been standing. He twists mid-air, firing a blast toward the villain’s chest. The explosion blooms like a firework, throwing smoke and debris into the air.
When the dust clears, the villain is still standing, their grin even wider.
Katsuki comes to find out he’s no amateur. Their quirk, whatever the hell it is, seems designed to sap Katsuki’s energy with each passing second. The closer he gets, the heavier his limbs feel, like he’s dragging weights attached to his wrists and ankles.
He lands a direct hit to the villain’s side, the explosion ripping through the air with a deafening roar. For a moment, the villain staggers, their glowing veins dimming slightly.
“Not so tough now, are you?” Katsuki snarls, lunging forward to capitalize on the opening.
But the villain recovers too quickly, their quirk flaring to life as they slam their fists into the ground. A shockwave ripples out, catching Katsuki mid-dash and sending him skidding backward. His back slams into a streetlamp with enough force to make his vision swim.
He forces himself up, his breaths coming in shallow gasps. The comm in his ear crackles to life, but the words are garbled, useless.
“Where the hell is my backup?!” Katsuki growls, his voice a raw rasp.
No response.
He pushes forward anyway. He doesn’t have a choice. Civilians are still trapped, and the villain shows no signs of slowing down. Katsuki grits his teeth, digging deep into reserves of strength he isn’t sure he has. He’s Dynamight, damn it. He doesn’t stop until the job’s done.
He thinks of Alani, her gap-toothed grin and sparkling eyes as she opened her Christmas presents. He thinks of Izuku, who had been by his side through everything, who had told him just days ago how proud he was.
He has a family to go home to now.
He won’t go down here.
He can’t.
“You’re getting sloppy,” the villain sneers, their voice dripping with smug satisfaction as they dodge his next blast. “Getting tired, Dynamight?”
“Not tired enough to kick your ass,” Katsuki growls, surging forward with a burst of speed. He lands a punch square on the villain’s jaw, the impact reverberating through his arm. But the villain retaliates with a wave of energy that sends Katsuki sprawling.
The pavement scrapes against his palms as he pushes himself up, his breaths coming in harsh, ragged gasps. He plants his feet, steadying himself, even as his legs threaten to give out.
Keep going. Don’t stop.
He charges again, his palms igniting with a roar as he pours everything he has into one last attack. The explosion erupts with a deafening boom, the street lighting up like the sun has just landed in the middle of the city. For a moment, he thinks it might be enough.
But when the smoke clears, the villain is still standing, their grin stretching impossibly wide.
Katsuki can feel himself slowing down. His vision blurs at the edges, his breaths coming in shallow gasps. His limbs feel heavier with each passing second.
Keep going, he tells himself, his teeth gritted. Don’t stop.
But his body doesn’t listen. He fires one last blast, putting everything he has into it, hoping, praying it's enough.
Everything goes black.
The world filters back slowly.
Sounds first, muffled and distant. The rhythmic beeping of a monitor. A soft murmur of voices. Katsuki can’t quite make out who they are or what they’re saying, but the comforting lull brings him in and out of consciousness.
Then, his body, though it feels like it’s made of lead. Every inch of him is heavy and unresponsive. Katsuki imagines that he probably should be moving, and yet he can’t find it in himself to do so. When he finally manages to crack his eyes open, the light is blinding, his surroundings blurry.
“Kacchan!” The voice is clear, sharp, cutting through the thick haze. It’s Izuku, of course, leaning forward in his chair, his green eyes wide and brimming with emotion. He grips Katsuki’s hand tightly, his thumb brushing over his knuckles. “You’re awake.”
Katsuki blinks sluggishly, his throat dry and aching when he tries to speak. “What…?”
“Hold on,” Izuku says quickly, standing to grab a cup of water from the tray table. He guides the straw to Katsuki’s lips, patient as Katsuki takes a few sips, and the dry feeling slowly dissipates. “Better?”
“Yeah,” Katsuki croaks, his voice barely above a whisper. He feels like shit. He takes mental stock of himself and finds that he isn’t really in pain, besides a dull ache in his head. With some effort, he’s able to wiggle his fingers. So he’s not paralyzed then. Just fucking numb.
Katsuki glances around what he’s come to realize is his least favorite place, taking in the stark white walls of the hospital room, the faint antiseptic smell in the air. His gaze lands on a smaller figure curled up in a chair near the window.
Alani.
She’s asleep, her head resting on Peter’s soft, worn body. Her face is scrunched, even in sleep, like she’s been crying.
“What…happened?” Katsuki forces out, his voice raspy and weak and lacking all its usual sharpness. He hasn’t felt like this since…
Izuku’s expression falters, his grip on Katsuki’s hand tightening. “You scared the hell out of us, that’s what happened.” He takes a shaky breath, clearly trying to compose himself. Katsuki thinks that the effort is completely futile. He knows Izuku like the back of his hand, like he knows himself, like he knows how to breathe. Izuku can put on whatever strong front he wants and fool everybody but Katsuki, who will always see right through him. “The villain’s quirk… It sapped energy from everything around him. Including people.”
Katsuki stares at him, the weight of Izuku’s words settling like a stone in his chest. He tries to think back to what he remembers of the fight. The collapsing buildings and screaming civilians. Backup that wasn’t coming, which makes sense now, since he probably fucked with Katsuki’s comms in battle. The overwhelming urge to keep going. For Alani. For Izuku. And then fighting until he couldn’t fight anymore. That bastard drained his life force and used it against him.
“You’ve been in a coma for six days,” Izuku continues when Katsuki doesn’t speak, his voice unsteady. Katsuki takes in his red rimmed eyes and the dark circles under them. His messy hair, and the stains on his hoodie, which looks to be one of Katsuki’s. He looks worried sick and like he hasn’t slept in weeks, and Katsuki’s heart aches . “Your body… it was shutting down. Organs failing. The doctors didn’t think you’d make it.”
“But I did,” Katsuki scoffs, voice rough with disuse, but he can still pretend it's his usual bravado in an attempt to make Izuku feel better.
“Barely,” Izuku mutters, his tone sharp with residual fear. “Do you have any idea how close you came to—” His voice cracks, and his gaze falls away from Katsuki’s eyes, and toward the side of his face with the scar, and then the center of his chest. He doesn’t have to say anything. Katsuki can see exactly where his mind went right on his face.
“Hey,” Katsuki calls slowly, flexing his fingers again to try to grab Izuku’s attention. “I’m right here. I didn’t die last time and I wasn’t gonna let some D list bastard finish the job.”
Katsuki…doesn’t like thinking about that day. He has no regrets, of course, because everything he’s ever done is something he’s sure about, and something he’ll be proud of. Hell, his efforts all those years ago bought Izuku time and were part of the reason that they fucking won. But…Katsuki can also acknowledge that without a doubt that was the most terrifying moment of his life. He was incredibly blessed to cheat death in the way he did, he’s not naive enough to not see that. He’s not going to sit here and dwell on it. He’s going to take his second chance and fucking live as all the fallen fought for him to do.
“But…but I–” Izuku chokes on sob, eyes suddenly shining with tears, and he uses his free hand to hurriedly scrub at his eyes. “You don’t get it. That was the worst day of my life…seeing you…on the ground…like that… I can’t lose you again.”
Izuku has told him, to some extent, how everything looked when he arrived. What happened while Katsuki was…dead. But he never really described how he felt about it all, although Katsuki could guess. Devastated. Angry. Lost. They were each other’s most important people.
But guessing is different than seeing the utter despair written across Izuku’s expression.
“You never lost me,” Katsuki insists, even though he can feel his eyes start to water as well. “And you never will, idiot. So stop fucking worrying.”
Katsuki squeezes his hand, and Izuku just breaks.
He falls forward onto Katsuki's chest, letting go of his hand to wrap him an awkward hug, and sob into his hospital gown. Katsuki lets him, finally gaining enough feeling in his arms to wrap them tentatively around Izuku’s back, and uses the other one to pet his hair. Having Izuku in his arms, even despite the ugly circumstances, is still the best feeling in the world.
A soft sound pulls his attention back to the window. Alani stirs, blinking groggily as she wakes up. When her eyes land on Katsuki, with Izuku half on top of him, she freezes, her expression shifting rapidly from confusion to relief to something heartbreakingly raw.
Katsuki feels…so many things seeing her. Happiness. So much love it’s a little overwhelming.
“Kacchan!” She scrambles out of the chair, Peter clutched tightly to her chest as she rushes to his bedside.
“Hey, brat,” Katsuki rasps, managing a weak smirk. Izuku completely abandons his awkward position halfway on the bed and just climbs off the chair and all the way on. He nestles close beside Katsuki, and tucks his head into his neck, clearly shielding his crying face from Alani. Katsuki doesn’t call him out on it, just lets him get himself together.
Alani doesn’t say anything at first, just stares at Katsuki with wide, tear-filled eyes. Then, all at once, she throws herself against him, her little arms wrapping around his torso as much as they can.
“I was so scared!” she sobs, her voice muffled against his hospital gown. Now the second person to cry on him in the last five minutes, but Katsuki can’t really find it in himself to mind. “I thought you were gonna leave us!”
Katsuki freezes, his chest tightening in a way that has nothing to do with his injuries. Slowly, he lifts a trembling hand, resting it on her back. Crap, this is exactly what he’s been trying to avoid. He doesn’t ever want her to feel abandoned again, not ever. “Hey, I’m here,” he murmurs, his voice scratchy with emotion. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“You almost did,” she sniffles, leaning back just enough to look up at him. Her face is streaked with tears, her lip trembling. “You’re my dad. You can’t leave me.”
Katsuki’s breath catches. The word hits him harder than any villain ever has. He feels like he’s been sucker punched in the throat. “I…what?”
“I’ve never had a dad… until now,” Alani continues, her voice wobbling but certain. “And I got two!” She glances at Izuku, who’s now watching with an expression that’s equal parts tender and heartbroken. “So you can’t l-leave me…not ever!”
Katsuki’s vision blurs, but he blinks rapidly, swallowing the lump in his throat. God, this one wonderful, amazing kid, his kid, who almost lost him. Katsuki’s so overwhelmed, happy and a million other things all at once. “You’re gonna make me cry, brat,” he mutters, ruffling her hair gently.
“Good,” Alani says, her little arms wrapping around him again. “Now you know how I feel.”
“We’ll never leave you sweetheart,” Izuku says softly, a small, private little smile on his face as he glances between them. “We’re family.”
Family. Boy if that word doesn’t do funny things to Katsuki’s insides.
“Pinky promise,” Alani says stubbornly, putting her pinky in between them.
“Promise.” Izuku’s smile grows as he hooks it on hers.
Katsuki lifts his hand, and latches his on top, sealing them all together. “I promise, kid.”
He has this weird feeling in his chest. Like he would quit hero work today if it meant he was promised a future with the two of them. It doesn’t scare him as much as it should, considering being a hero used to be his everything.
But now, he has a family. And for them, he’ll do whatever it takes to stay.
His recovery is fast.
Thanks to the help of the healers in the hospital, he did a majority of his healing while in the coma. His body, strong fucker it was, pieced itself back together while Katsuki slept. After he woke up, he spent a week in the hospital, and then another on bedrest at home before he was cleared to get back to work.
Izuku fussed over him incessantly during this time.
Katsuki found it…cute, even though it was a tad bit annoying.
“Izuku,” Katsuki sighed for the umpteenth time as the other man anxiously fluffed his pillows again. “It’s fine. Quit it.”
Izuku huffs, placing his hands on his hips as he surveys the bed like it’s a tactical operation. “I just wanna make sure you’re comfortable.”
Katsuki rolls his eyes, but the corners of his mouth tug upward despite himself. Izuku was so cute when he was bossy, like his own personal nurse. You know, if the nurse was green and a (temporarily) retired superhero. “I’ve been back for a week, nerd. My organs aren’t gonna fall out if my pillows are lumpy.”
Izuku gasps, his hands flying to his mouth in mock horror. “Don’t say stuff like that! You’ll jinx it!”
“You’re insufferable,” Katsuki grumbles, but the warmth in his tone betrays him. He leans back against the freshly fluffed pillows with a dramatic sigh, shooting Izuku a pointed look. “Satisfied?”
“For now,” Izuku says, still eyeing him like he’s about to keel over any second. “But let me know if you need anything—water, snacks, more blankets—”
“More blankets?” Katsuki interrupts, arching an eyebrow. “What am I, eighty?”
Izuku shrugs, his face scrunching in thought. “You do complain like an old man.”
Katsuki snorts. “Careful, Deku. Just ‘cause I’m recovering doesn’t mean I can’t still kick your ass.”
Izuku raises an eyebrow. “And just cause I’m retired doesn’t mean I can’t still kick yours.”
Not for long, Katsuki resists the urge to mutter, mind once again drifting to the suit that’s now sitting in his office, completed. It’s one of the main reasons he’s so anxious to get off bedrest. Izuku hasn’t allowed him to even glance at paperwork, let alone go into the office, and excuses would just make him look suspicious. He doesn’t want to give away the surprise just yet.
Nevermind the fact that he plans on attaching the proposal to the suit as well. What’s another declaration of love to go along with the project he’s spent seven years completing?
“I’d like to see you try,” Katsuki scoffs, putting away thoughts of Izuku’s gift for now. He can worry about it when he’s better.
“Don’t tempt me,” Izuku grins in that particularly feral way of his. Katsuki has not very PG thoughts. Just another reason why he can’t wait to get off bedrest.
“Seriously, though,” Izuku drags Katsuki’s mind out of the gutter when he steps closer, his expression softening. “If you need anything, just tell me, okay? I don’t mind.”
Katsuki stares at him for a moment, something warm and now familiar stirring in his chest. Slowly but surely he’s getting used to Izuku’s open and honest form of love and care. He was once too afraid to show it, or maybe just too afraid to show it obviously, because if Katsuki thinks back it was apparent in all of their interactions up until this point.
Izuku has… eons of backlogged love to give it seems. Katsuki is helpless on the receiving end of it. “You’re too much, you know that?”
“I’ve been told,” Izuku says with a sheepish grin. He leans forward and presses a soft kiss to Katsuki’s forehead. “But you love me anyway.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Katsuki mutters, looking away to hide the way his ears are turning red. Too much sometimes, he thinks, swallowing the lump in his chest. It’s suffocating.
They hold each other’s gaze for a long moment before Izuku clears his throat, breaking the tension. “Okay, well, I’m gonna make dinner. Do you want anything special?”
“Something edible,” Katsuki says with a smirk.
Izuku rolls his eyes but grins as he heads toward the kitchen. “Careful what you wish for, Kacchan. You’re at my mercy now.”
Katsuki leans back against his mountain of pillows, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he watches Izuku disappear around the corner. Strangely, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Izuku isn’t the only one though, Alani as well, has taken to her form of coddling care.
Whether that means dragging her dollhouse to his room to ‘supervise’ his recovery or dragging Princess into the bed with him as well to watch movies. While Izuku makes sure Katsuki is fed and well rested, Alani tries to keep him entertained, in her own adorable ways.
She also…takes to calling Katsuki ‘Dad’ sometimes, slipping between that and Kacchan so casually in conversation that it makes Katsuki choke on his tea. He thought it would take her a lot longer to form such a strong connection with him, but when he thinks more on it, it makes sense. Alani’s shitbag of a father died before she was even born, so she’s never had anyone to give the title to. Giving it to Katsuki, the first person to ever be a father figure in her life, was probably easy. He’s not mad at it.
Katsuki never thought he had the capacity, emotionally or otherwise, to be a parent. But now he is one and as surprising as it is to even himself he loves it. He loves picking Alani up from school, talking to her about her day, playing with her, being with her. He loves introducing her to people in his life as his. He’s… proud to be her parent . And pride is not a new feeling for him.
But with Alani, it’s special.
“Kacchan,” Alani whispers one night, way past her bedtime. Alani has taken the new developments in his and Izuku’s relationship in stride. She has also started copying his and Izuku’s behaviors. One, for example, being following Izuku into Katsuki’s bed every night.
Katsuki likes cuddles, not that he would ever admit it outloud. He’s certainly not going to be the one to stop them.
“You should be asleep, kid,” Katsuki murmurs, looking down at her sheepish grin. He should be asleep too, but he was having trouble, so he turned on the TV to pass the time. On Alani’s other side, Izuku was passed out, softly snoring and drooling into the pillow.
“I know,” Alani whispers, sitting up as well and leaning onto Katsuki’s arm. “I gotta question though.”
“If I answer it will you go back to bed?” Katsuki raises an eyebrow. She nods eagerly. “Okay, shoot.”
“You and Izuku always say ‘I love you’,” she starts strongly, “like, when you leave, or when you say hello.”
Katsuki raises an eyebrow, but nods his agreement. Always so observant. He didn’t realize just how much attention she pays to their behaviors. “That’s not a question, kid.”
“Don’t interrupt me, Kacchan,” Alani huffs, and Katsuki has to hold back a snort at her red face. He doesn’t say anything else, just waits for her to find the words to articulate what she wants to say.
Then, in a small voice, “Is it okay…if I do that too?”
“Say ‘I love you’?”
Alani nods. Katsuki tries to catch her eye, but she’s stubbornly looking away. As if she expects him to say no, as if he could ever say no to her.
“‘Course you can,” Katsuki huffs, grabbing her and pulling her onto his lap before wrapping his arms around her in a hug. He’s not good with emotional things like this, but he has to try. “You don’t have to be scared to do stuff like that. Not with me. Okay?”
“Okay,” Alani grins, fears assuaged when she hugs back. She settles back down to go to sleep, and Katsuki lies down with her. But just as he closes his eyes she leans forward and gives Katsuki a smacking kiss on the cheek. “I love you, Daddy.”
And if Katsuki’s heart squeezes as he pulls her closer, that’s no one’s business but his own.
“I love you too, Alani.”