Rock-Solid Heart (My Hero Academia Fanfic, Part Four)

"Alright, queens," Mina announces. "We're here. And it looks Like Jiro and Katsuki already arrived."

"Cat..." I struggle with the name on my tongue. Kiri just positions my head, smiling.

"Katz," he begins. "Key. Katsuki. Yeah... took me a little while too."

"Do you think he'll hate me?" I ask, pushing the diner's door open. I have to admit; Mina's got taste. The smell of nearly burnt tater tots and hot sauce wafts in from the red leather seats. It's like we've walked into the mid-1950s. Only a few teenagers occupy the other seats, and a smattering of chefs take up the kitchen. It's comforting.

"Nah," Kiri assures. "I mean, you're both pretty similar, I think. You're just softer and in your head a little more."

"And by softer you mean..."

"Bakugou looks like he could kill someone," Kirishima points to the back of the spiky blonde's head. "And he absolutely could."

I swallow. "Noted." Mina greets the two first, smiling as she slides into the massive booth seat. I notice that everyone's split up into pairs, from Kyoka and Katsuki to Kiri and I. Mina and Denki sit in the middle, fidgeting with straws.

I'm sitting opposite Jiro, sort of watching her from the other side of the crescent-shaped seat. "Hey," she waves, looking a little awkward. 

"Mina told me you play bass," I smile, watching as a light envelops in her eye. 

"Of course," she smiles proudly. "I mean, I'm well versed in all sorts of instruments; I've got perfect pitch."

"Woah," I smile back politely, trying to break down the barrier between us. Bakugou just stares angrily, looking almost possessive of her. Or maybe he's just being protective? "My music teacher told me that once. But... I don't think I have it."

Kyoka whips out her phone, playing with her headphones before ripping them out. It's only just now that I notice her jet black hair, cut choppily so that it lays askew across her forehead. Tiny paperclip earrings accompany her soft, pale ears. She catches me staring, holding her hand up to her ear. 

"I got her those," Bakugou proclaims proudly. "Guess some people wear the gifts I get them."

And just like that, all conversation dies down. Kaminari, Mina, and Kirishima all look toward each other; I guess they're the group's obvious extroverts. I can tell they must be using their secret extrovert powers, trying to find out how we can get back on track.

Jiro taps her phone, causing a dissonant chord to strike out from the tinny speaker. 

"F Minor-Major chord," I spew out immediately. "7th."

"I like him," Jiro shrugs. "So don't you fucking say anything, Katsuki."

"I wasn't gonna!" Bakugou crosses his arms, biting his lip. "So don't say anything."

"You have anger issues, dude," Kaminari waves a waitress over. "And that's your ex's new boyfriend."

"I said shut the hell up!" the blonde boy explodes. A group of freshmen a few booths over shiver from the outburst, only to break out into laughter. Katsuki just fumes quietly as the waitress runs over.

"What can I get ya'll?" she adjusts her big, curly hair, working through a pad of paper.

"Big tray of tater tots," Mina exclaims. "For the table."

"That should be $12.59. We'll get it up soon."

"Shit," Kaminari mumbles. "Forgot my wallet."

"Oh," I pull out a few bills. "I could pay for it all."

"No," Kirishima blushes. "You don't have to do that."

"Think of it as a thank you," I shrug. "Without you guys, I'd probably be dead right now."

"Wait," Jiro yanks out her headphones again. "What?"

"Nothing," I shrink into the seat. "I just..."

"The damn fool was gonna kill himself," Bakugou explains. "But I caught his notebook."

"So," Kyoka pokes his nose. "You're saying you helped someone?"

"He's not always the devil," Mina laughs. "I think, deep down, Bakugou can be nice."

"Just shut the hell up!" Bakugou roars. "Where is our order?"

"It's only been like half a minute," Kiri says, looking at his phone's time. 

Katsuki smirks. "Longer than you could last when we-"

"Woah!" Denki puts his hand on Kiri's chest before he can stand up. I can't tell if it's anger or tears in Kiri's eyes, but Bakugou looks proud of himself. Kyoka just shares my confusion. 

Mina claps her hands together, pronouncing each word. "Not. At. The. Fucking. Table!"

"Whatever," Bakugou blows hair out his eyes. "It's still true. And Nico ought to know, right?"

"I don't really care if um..." I stare back at Kiri, trying to comfort him before his anger rises again. "If you can't last long or something."

"Yeah," Denki teases. "Because you'd rather him bit-"

"Okay," Jiro slaps him. "Let's fucking stop, okay? We're not gonna talk about what we did last night, and no one's gonna talk about sex for the next hour, okay?"

Katsuki just keeps his smug smirk. I guess he wanted to date someone who could exert as much power as he could. In truth, when I look at Jiro, I don't see someone able to control a room. Yet, there's something deep in her eyes, filled with control.

"Oh my god," Mina cranes her ear up to the speakers. "Guys, they're playing something actually good."

I stare back at where they're all looking; an ancient-looking jukebox lays in the corner, cherry red and somehow beautiful. A modern screen lies over it, evident of a free Spotify account. "Little Talks," Kyoka identifies the horns almost immediately. "By Monsters and Men. Released... 2011? When we were all kids."

The six of us all pour out of the seat, cramming around the machine. "We all get one song," Mina compromises. "Everyone pays for their own song."

"But I ran out of money!" Kaminari whines. Mina just pulls out another quarter.

"Then you get Dancing Queen," she says. "I'm sure you'd pick something worse anyway."

"I'm fine with that," Kaminari smiles. "Just gay enough, but also straight. Perfect."

"I think that describes him well," Kiri looks down at me. "What do you think I should pick?"

"Something that feels... red. Maybe orange," I respond, trying to think of what I'm going to choose. Mina plugs in Doja Cat's Freak before I can get ahead. "I'll go last."

"Saving the best?" Jiro wonders aloud as Bakugou punches in some classic Green Day. "I still can't decide."

"That's it," Kiri pushes the keyboard, looking for a specific song. 

"She Looks So Perfect," I read. "5sos?"

"Yeah," Kiri beams. "Because you are."

"I mean," I point out. "I'm also not a girl."

"Don't take it personally," Kyoka adds, typing in "All I Wanted". Oh, how I yearn to once more hear Hayley Williams in her old band. "It's just a joke, I think."

"Sure," I say. "Well, I guess I'm last. Maybe... Conan Gray?"

"Whatever you want, Babe."

I punch the artist's name in, tapping on "Heather". 

"Remind me a little bit of you," I explain to Kiri. "Because..."

"Oh," Jiro nods. "Yeah...maybe not the best choice. Still a great song though."

"Why?" Kiri hugs me from behind, leaning closely in. The freshman girls watch us, smiling. Are we so heartwarming?

"Uh," I say, suddenly realizing exactly what the lyrics are saying. How could I choose a song clearly about a guy liking another guy who likes a girl? It's gonna make him think of Bakugou and Kyoka. "Nevermind. You'll see."

Kiri shrugs, swooping me back into the seat. "You know," Mina pokes Eijirou with her straw. "You don't need to act like Nico's a Disney princess."

"I don't mind," I say, staring up into his warm brown eyes. Bakugou turns red, facing Jiro. 

"Y'all are crazy," the waitress returns to our table. "I haven't seen anyone use the damn jukebox in forever. It's nice to hear something that's not corporate pop. Anyway, I got ya some other stuff. Mostly candy; no one ever buys it. On the house. I think they match you."

She places down everything, smiling softly. "Poprocks?" Jiro looks up from her black licorice twists. "That's Bakugou, I think."

"Sure," Katsuki brightens up a little, pouring an inhuman amount into his mouth. I can almost hear the mini-explosions; that boy is like a living firework. "At least I'm not like Denki and Mina; they're practically the same."

"Uh," Kaminari points out. "Skittles and Starbust are different, I'll have you know."

"Well," Kiri points out. "We almost got the same too."

I stare down at the candy laid before me; dark, thin Reese's, as opposed to Kiri's large, milk chocolate ones. "I guess it's a metaphor?"

"Oh no," Denki shakes his head. "We are not going through some deep philosophical shit this early."

"Says the person who claimed the earth was flat yesterday morning," Mina says in between bites of homefries. "You're just a walking contradiction."

I freeze up, only releasing the pressure when Kiri rubs my shoulders. "It's okay," he whispers. "You're fine."

"You two are just so cute," Jiro smiles, twisting her earbuds around her finger, bopping her head to American Idiot. "It's great."

"Yeah!" Kirishima pumps his fist. "I mean, we just have chemistry."

"Now that we all have dates," Mina says, eyeing Denki. "I mean, almost all of us... it's like the group is back together again."

"Oh," Katsuki throws his hands up into the air. "Like we weren't alright before?"

"That's not what she said," I mumble, defending Mina. Is this the first time I've stood up to Bakugou? His eyes have a murderous glint at their edges, but I try to swallow, ignoring the hate. "She just means that here's more harmony now, I think."

"Damn nerd," Katsuki flips me off, pushing against the table. Kirishima's song comes on next, interrupting his anger for a moment. Did Kirishima play that for him too? I can't see Bakugou taking that well, but what if it was an inside joke? Does Kiri not care if he causes discord so much? Or is he looking to poke fun at Katuski? "I was fine before you were here."

"I thought you said he would be fine with me," I nudge Kirishima. Mina and Kaminari just freeze up; clearly, they're pretty inept when situations take a turn for the worse. I guess someone can always try to direct attention away from violence, but when it comes to it, they're useless. 

"Well," Kiri blocks Bakugou from me. "I guess I was wrong."

"He's a fucking loser," Katsuki complains. "Like you, shitty hair."

Kiri puts his hands up to his hair. And while I never thought it was all that impressive, I can tell he's hurt; I know he puts a lot of time into making sure it looks wild, nearly standing straight up. "Take it back."

"I don't have to," Katsuki spreads his arms. "Kyoka, let's go."

"I haven't heard my song yet," she says, still adamant and stuck in her place. "I'm not leaving just because you want me to."

"I'm pissed off!"

She sighs, positioning her body around him. Kyoka holds his chin in her palm, staring into his beastly eyes. "You're always pissed off. And you know I usually love that... but it's not fucking funny right now."

"Whatever," Katuski shrugs her off a little. I notice that he's doing it gently, carefully placing her back down, as if she's frail. Almost like how Kiri holds me. "He doesn't belong; he needs a therapist, not a boyfriend."

"He's helping me," I refute. "Just like how you helped him."

"What?" Katsuki laughs. "No. We're not going through that. Kyoka, your song's playing; let's go!"

"You're not angry enough," Jiro eggs him on. "You're just showing it a little bit more than usual."

I can see the conflict in his eyes; he's used to having things go his way, for him to have the final say. But he's not willing to hurt her. Maybe Mina was right; somewhere deep, he has some good qualities.

Maybe he could show those qualities when he talks to me?

"I'm glad you seem so over us," Kiri shrugs. "But we still have a ton of home fries to eat. Maybe calm down a little?"

"Fuck off," Bakugou pushes him away. "F*ggot."

"What?" Mina screams. "Oh no... we are not going there!"

"Katsuki!" Jiro screams. "No, you did not just say that."

Bakugou turns red, darting eyes. he stares down, smile gone. "Shit. I didn't me-"

"What the hell is with you?" Kiri pleads with him. "You can't just... you can't say that."

"Wait," Kaminari points out. "But didn't Bakugou date Eijirou? Isn't that gay or-"

"Denki," Jiro holds Kaminari's hand, oozing with sarcasm and fake sincerity. "It's with a full heart that I'd like to ask you to please shut the fuck up."

He falls back down to his seat, looking dejected. 

"Sorry," Bakugou hangs his head. "I didn't mean to... fuck!"

Tears start rolling down his cheeks as he turns away from us, covering his face with his black hoodie. "Enjoy your food, I guess."

"Katsuki," Kiri holds out his hands, clearly not looking for retribution. "You don't have to go..."

"Jiro," Katsuki commands. "You can stay if you want. I need to be alone."

"I'll text you when we're done," Kyoka promises. "Take as long as you need."

He nods, exiting the diner. Everyone just looks at each other, suddenly quiet. 

"He's lost his impulse control," Kirishima confirms. "I shouldn't have-"

"No," I interrupt him, surprising everyone. I'm probably the most surprised. "You shouldn't have done anything. Why were you trying to egg him on?"

"I wasn't trying to-" he shakes his head, watching as red hair spills down. "I just wanted to get rid of all those things we had. And I wanted to heal with you."

"I'm sorry for lashing out," I cradle myself into his arms. "Shit... I just don't know why I did that."

"You're sorry for having emotions?"

Before he can continue, Heather's string line shuts him up. "Is this..."

"Yeah," I whisper. "Now shut up."

Everyone stays silent, listening closely to the lyrics. You know when you hear a song, and then you hear it a few more times, and the meaning completely changes? It's all I can hear. I catch Kiri taking glimpses at Kyoka during the song, nearly tearing up.

"Thanks," he sighs as the second chorus opens up. I nestle into his embrace. "You know... maybe we'll be alright."

And, at that moment, maybe we will.