Chapter Text
It was done. It took Izuku most of the night, but the paperwork on his desk now sat in a complete, neat pile of finished signatures and approved partnerships.
The crime statistics went down to the sidekicks, the partnerships went to Katsuki's desk, and Izuku's ass went out the door. Closing his office door behind himself, Izuku yawned, trudging down the hallway. Some of the sidekicks gave him sympathetic looks, but were mostly unmoved by his exhaustion. He did it to himself, after all.
While the couch in his office was convenient, Izuku hated sleeping on it. It smelled weird and he didn't have any of his blankets. It always seemed a little silly to bring any in, so he never did.
On his way out the front door, Katsuki walked up grinning. Izuku wanted to Detroit smash that smirk right off of his face, but there were too many eyes on him now.
Later. He would have a chance later. Maybe a good challenge in the sparring ring would let out some of this aggression.
"Looking feral as always, Kacchan," Izuku deadpanned, another yawn escaping.
"You get all that shit done, Deku?" he asked, hands shoved into the front pockets of his black hoodie.
Izuku glared at him as well as he could with bags under his eyes. "You're a monster and I hate you."
Katsuki waved him off with one hand, passing him by to head into their agency. "Whatever, Deku. Go get some sleep." And then the asshole just disappeared into the building like nothing was wrong.
While standing there throwing up the finger at Katsuki's office window sounded tempting, Izuku instead trudged down the street towards his apartment. He could have used his quirk, but he was tired enough that the odds of him slamming into a wall were high.
So walking it would have to be.
By the time Izuku made it back to his apartment, he felt miserable. For once, he wished he lived with someone, anyone, just so he had a warm body to snuggle against. He'd had offers to be roommates with a few of his friends, but he turned them down. He really thought he would be fine living by himself.
But as it turned out, being alone all the time took its toll on Izuku. As the number two hero, Izuku didn't have much time to be social. His life was a constant revolving door of paperwork and rescues. When he wasn't doing either of those, he had sponsors, promotions, photo shoots.
The life of a hero left very little time for Izuku to cultivate relationships and so Izuku came home to a lonely, empty apartment. Not ideal circumstances for omegas in general, let alone ones like Izuku who figured out he thrived on touch.
And sure, All Might popped in to say hi occasionally. But he was constantly tip-toeing around about Izuku's single status. He said he had someone he wanted to introduce Izuku to many times, but the man already gave him a quirk. Giving him a mate felt like far too much.
When Izuku was ready, he would figure it out. But he just didn't have the time right now.
As Izuku got to his door, he noticed a package on the floor. He should have been wary, but it looked unassuming enough that Izuku just brought it inside with him. The security in this building was pretty good, so the concerns were less. He didn't remember ordering anything, but that meant nothing. Izuku went on more than one midnight bender to order brand new merchandise of his friends.
Dropping his bags and the package onto the floor in the entryway, Izuku tugged at the zipper on his costume. Eager to be free of the currently offending piece of fabric, he stripped right in the entryway with a happy sigh. Izuku padded deeper into the apartment, feeling peckish after his long night. He still had some cup ramen somewhere in his cupboards, so that would be dinner.
But after he showered. Izuku wanted to be clean, to scrub off the overnight work before he climbed into his nest. Flipping on a documentary about the previous generation of heroes, Izuku trailed off into the bathroom, flipping knobs and getting the temperature just right.
Normally, he loved taking baths, loved to soak and get everything loose and relaxed. He didn't care at the moment. Izuku just wanted to be clean so he could get some rest. Stripping off his underwear and socks, Izuku tossed them into the hamper before stepping under the warm spray of water.
Not wanting to spend too much time getting clean, Izuku scrubbed himself with ruthless efficiency. His skin was red, rubbed a little raw by the time he exited the shower. He wrapped one towel around his waist and the other he tried the plopping method with his curls as best he could. Katsuki got irritated with him when he forgot to take care of his hair in any way and since his friend was already ready to kill him over paperwork, Izuku figured this had to give him some points.
With his hair still damp, Izuku hung up both towels and flipped the light off in his bathroom to head back out into the living room. He sat down, wrapping a blanket around his still naked body and fell over. He would need eat, but eating now sounded like too much work. He'd wake up from his nap and eat then.
Usually, watching hero based content helped him go to sleep, quieted his mind enough to pass out. This time, though, Izuku found himself still wound up. His mind wouldn't stop running and with a noise of aggravation, Izuku turned off the TV. Taking the blanket with him Izuku trekked to his bedroom, crawling into the soft mound of blankets and pillows he called a nest.
Maybe he just needed some peace and quiet this time around. So he curled up in his nest, covered in blankets, and closed his eyes. He tossed, turned, and let out increasingly frustrated grumbles. Angry that he couldn't just go to sleep, Izuku kicked at his blankets furiously and repeatedly until he was breathless. He starfished in his nest, staring up at the ceiling. What the hell was wrong with him? He just wanted to sleep.
Izuku didn't go for long stretches without sleeping anymore. He'd finally figured out a good circadian rhythm for himself and damn if some paperwork was going to be the reason he lost that.
He pulled his phone from where he'd dropped it on the nightstand, staring at the black screen as if it held the secrets of his sleep.
Then he realized it probably did. Izuku tried everything except a uStream at this point. Maybe he could find some more streamers doing Sundrop Canyon. Or maybe decaythat would be streaming. Izuku didn't know what it was, but there was something soothing about the players raspy voice that eased his nerves
He didn't have his camera on, choosing to focus solely on gameplay, but maybe that's what Izuku needed.
So he pulled up the uStream app, typing in decaythat into the search bar. The user wasn't streaming at the moment, but he had gameplay loaded onto the channel for people to watch even if he wasn't live. He hit the follow button so he would know when decaythat went live.
Finding one with Sundrop Canyon, Izuku put the volume at a reasonable point before getting resettled into his nest. The gameplay started up, and Izuku snuggled into his fluffy blankets.
" - I'll need to get wheat and pork for the katsudon recipe," came the low voice of decaythat. "I think I have some reserves of soy sauce in the shed. Lemme go check. Hell yes! Got some. This is gonna be the best damn katsudon Deku's ever had."
It made Izuku smile, eyes slipping shut. Everyone and their mother knew how much he loved katsudon and so it wasn't a surprise this mod had added that as a recipe in game.
decaythat explained in further detail his plan to woo and date the in game Deku, explaining how the guides he'd been reading up on pinpointed the exact place his cut scenes would take place. One would be coming up after this gift of katsudon.
The entire thing gave Izuku a warm puddle of emotion in his chest. He loved knowing people appreciated him and this was just so cute to listen to. Knowing people liked him enough to create characters for games, to romance them, made him so happy.
Katsuki wouldn't understand, but Izuku would have loved to play with his favorite heroes growing up, even if it was on a screen. This was just the type of fanboy behavior Izuku would have been drowning in. It was nice not being the only one.
Within minutes, Izuku fell asleep, lulled to unconsciousness by decaythat.
( * * * * )
Tomura was addicted.
He'd only played Sundrop Canyon a few times before this, but having the Deku mod made all the difference. His FPS games sat abandoned off to the side, the building and collect games collecting dust. He didn't even miss his Swap 2 at this point.
Shuichi made sure to tell him how delusional he was.
"Doesn't your grandma like, have hero connections since she used to be one?" he asked, lounging on Tomura's bed with his phone while the man in question cooked katsudon in game. "I heard he's a real fanboy of quirks, right? I bet he'd love to talk about yours."
Tomura shrugged, collecting a little bit of ore and searching through his chests for some clamshells. He wanted to create an engagement bracelet in the game in preparation for proposing to Deku, but he wasn't sure he had all the materials.
"It feels weird," Tomura admitted. "It's way easier to look from far away instead of getting trampled on because you're a fuckin' weirdo and your favorite hero clocks it."
Shuichi laughed. "Yeah, you're an odd duck, but it seems like Deku is too?"
Tomura sighed, shaking his head. It was hard to explain. He learned when Deku first hit the scene as an intern with Endeavors agency that Yagi knew him somehow. Tomura hadn't cared much at first. But the more Deku came across his social media feed, the more invested Tomura become.
Before he knew it, he started following Deku's movements, his charities, his missions. He'd learned all about his quirk, had learned his history facts. He became a certified Deku fanboy, down to his very core.
It was unclear when the crush developed It had to be somewhere around the time Deku saved a school from the receiving end of a quirk explosion. There's been several villains trying to make a statement, had targeted a local middle school, allgedly the same one Deku had gone to. They'd managed to get the school on lockdown, no one allowed in or or.
But Deku hadn't let anything happen. He'd managed to subdue the villains by catching them off guard, allowing ample time for evacuations just in case something went awry. The idiots hadn't even managed to plant anything, thank god, but it remained one of Tomura's favorite rescues to this day.
Mostly because he could still see the way Deku comforted the little kids, had signed autographs, and given them a positive memory to overwrite the terror of the day.
It also reminded him that there were good heroes in the world, that truly wanted to help. It put Deku in the same ranks as Yagi and his grandmother, heroes who helped because the world needed them. Not just because of the fame.
"It's just different," he grumbled instead of explaining his train of thought. He would die if he met Deku, but it'd just be embarrassing to use connections to meet him. If Tomura was to meet Deku, he wanted it to be because of luck, because he'd managed to wrangle tickets to a meet and greet tickets of his own accord.
It sounded silly, but it was just how Tomura felt.
"Your loss, I guess," Shuichi said skeptically, rolling off the bed and coming up behind Tomura to watch him playing the game. "Just keep dating him in games. Cause that's not unhinged as hell."
Tomura simply flipped off Shuichi, not looking away from his game. He should really be streaming this content instead of playing by himself, but he hadn't gotten around to setting everything up and he didn't feel like breaking the momentum he picked up.
A knock at his bedroom door had Tomura sighing, pausing his game.
His grandma was home already, likely checking to see if Tomura was awake.
Tomura left his comfortable gaming chair, padding over to the door.
"There you are," she said with that same large grin. She peeked around him and waved to Shuichi. "I've got the makings for hotpot. Do you boys mind helping me set everything up?"
Shuichi fist pumped, already leaving Tomura's room. "I'll be out in a second, grandma," he assured her. "I just need to hit save on my game."
His grandma made the universal sign for take your time before scuttling off to the kitchen, giving Shuichi instructions as she went. Tomura pushed his chair out of the way before grabbing his mouse, starting it up again. He hadn't strayed too far from his farmhouse, so he ran inside to go to bed and save the day.
Closing out the game, he was kind of thankful he didn't start streaming. Tomura didn't like telling his grandma no or brushing her off. She had been so good to him since he came into her life. There was no way for him to repay that kindness except with a little of his own.
"Nana, do you want me to pull out the kotatsu?" Shuichi asked and that was a fair question. While not winter yet, the days were getting a little chillier and his grandma started wearing more layers around the house.
"Not a bad idea, Shuichi," Tomura said in response. "Let me help and then we can set out the hot pot on top of the table."
It didn't take them long to get things set up, placing the and soon the three of them were huddled up under the kotatsu.
"Which game are you playing now, Tomura?" she asked, using a long pair of chopsticks to pull out some pork and vegetables to set on her plate. "It's looked like the same one for a bit now."
Tomura finished chewing his vegetables before replying, "It's called Sundrop Canyon. You have a farm and grow crops while befriend and romancing the townsfolk."
Shuichi grinned at this, chiming in, "He modified the game, too."
"Shuichi," Tomura warned, doing his best to glare daggers at his best friend.
"Oh? How so?" his grandma looked so interested and Tomura internally groaned.
"He added Deku in as a romance option."
His grandma turned to Tomura, one judgmental eyebrow raised. "You know you could just meet him? You could have him as a romance option in real life."
Tomura really groaned now, pitching forward to bump his forehead on the table. "Grandma, don't," he whined like a petulant teenager. "I seriously can't do that."
They'd had this discussion many times. Apparently, Yagi knew Deku personally, not just as a fellow hero. But there was a six year difference between Deku and Tomura, which meant very little crossover for play dates when they were both younger.
Not to mention when Deku started high school, Tomura would have already been an adult. So there were factors that prevented them meeting any sooner. Besides, Tomura was a little bit of a shut in as a teenager, hence the video game obsession.
It was okay, though. The pretty omega hero Tomura obsessed over didn't need to know about him. It was easier to play video games and woo Deku than to have a real conversation with Izuku Midoriya.
Aside from that, why would the number two pro be remotely interested in him? Tomura dusted his entire family, got taken in by a villain, and put into his grandmothers care all under the age of seven. He reeked of trauma and unresolved issues that he kept neatly tucked away unless he was at the therapists office. Not to mention the frankly unhinged amount of gaming Tomura managed to turn into some semblance of a career. Traumatized nerd didn't seem like the kind of thing Deku would be into.
Besides, there were a multitude of rumors he was in a relationship with Eraserheads prodigy Psyren. They would make a good couple, even if it made Tomura's molars grind a little every time he saw the click bait. Tomura remembered watching the Sports Festival when Deku and Psyren went against each other and was just as surprised when Deku beat him. That sort of strength and rivalry would be enough to make them come together, Tomura imagined.
"I'm sure you two would get alone wonderfully," she said with a big smile. "I've met him a few times. Very sweet boy, but goodness he works himself down to the bone from what Yagi tells me."
It didn't surprise him that Deku worked hard. "You don't become the number two hero without some hard work," is what Tomura replied with.
His grandma nodded, pulling a few more vegetables from the hotpot and scooping up a bit more rice. "True. But Yagi tells me he could do with a more personal life. He has very little outside of his hero work and Yagi worries about him."
Shuichi glanced at Tomura. "You know enough about him without being a certified stalker," he said unhelpfully. "You could probably make an educated guess and meet him somewhere."
Tomura gave him a horrified look. "You realize that would set me straight into that certified stalker territory, right? I'm not going to be a creep about this."
"No,you'd rather just woo a 32-bit imitation of the real thing."
Glaring at his best friend, Tomura considered the merits of dusting his favorite pair of sneakers for that comment. It was just easier to pretend there were no overlapping lines between him and Deku. It's why he never used the hero's personal name when talking about him.
Deku was a figure he could never have, could never dream of having. Deku was out of reach and only available on a computer screen.
Izuku Midoriya was much more achievable. Izuku Midoriya probably visited the same ramen stands Tomura liked in between work days. Izuku Midoriya relaxed at home in his nest, cozy and content and maybe he had a cat?
It was dangerous to think about. Tomura shifted uncomfortably, hating when he let the wall between Deku's two personas fall.
Because the reality was Tomura could never have either one.
And for some reason he didn't like examining too closely, it bothered him to no end.