Work Text:
Aizawa sits down behind his desk after a lesson. “I hope you all remembered that we will be taking a field trip tomorrow. Lunches will be provided for you. Everyone's trip fees have all been paid in full, so there's no need to worry about that. I only bring this up as a reminder because you will need to arrive at school an extra two hours early. That is all, you're dismissed. I'll see you all bright and early tomorrow morning. Make sure to dress for the weather. You don't have to wear your school uniforms.” He waves them off, starting to grade the tests he just collected.
Izuku stands up, trying to remember what exactly the details of the field trip were. He knows that it's meant to be more fun than educational, since they've been getting an insane amount of tests and homework recently and the teachers are trying to give them a small reprieve, but with everything going on and studying for his finals, the actual details must have slipped his mind. He sighs and walks over to Shoto, knowing he probably paid more attention.
“Hey Shoto! How are you?” he asks, smiling. He hates to just try to get information from people without greeting them first. It feels really rude.
Shoto looks at him and smiles in return. “I'm good, Izu, how are you?” he responds, finishing packing up his stuff. His pauses, then walks out beside Izuku.
Izuku follows him, humming softly. “I'm good. I just completely blanked where we're going tomorrow, do you remember? I want to dress right for it.”
Shoto nods. “Yeah, we're going to that big garden. The one with all those different plant species from all over the world. I hear they boast several species of bugs too. It should be pretty fantastic, especially this kind of year. Their website recommends shorts and short sleeve shirts and a jacket. The different areas of the park can be different temperatures.” He reaches down and grabs Izuku's hand softly, sliding their fingers together on the walk to the dorms. “I rarely get to see you in shorts.”
“Awesome, thanks,” Izuku says, sighing softly. At the mention of bugs, though, he gets stiff. “Bugs, right,” he mumbles, giving Shoto's hand a soft squeeze. “Yeah? It's because I haven't had much time to just chill out. It feels like I change between pajamas and the school uniform and that's it.” He smiles at him, giving his hand another squeeze. The dorms quickly come into view. “Do you want to study together for a bit? Kacchan was gonna join us, I think. That'd be nice. Maybe he'll bring Ei too. It's been a long time since the four of us got to spend proper time together.”
Shoto nods. “Yeah, sounds good. I'm gonna run to my room first and change into something comfortable. Meet at yours in a few,” he says, leaning over to give him a proper kiss before letting go completely and heading upstairs.
Izuku blushes softly and smiles, then heads to his room. As soon as he's alone, he lets out a soft sigh and drops his smile. Bugs, huh? That's kind of terrible. He's managed to avoid letting anyone know that he is afraid of that specifically so far, only minorly flinching or trembling when they fly past him in front of others, but he doesn't know how he's going to handle an area famous for it. The person he wants to know the least is Katsuki. Sure, Katsuki loves him and often doesn't tease him any more, but this a pretty dumb fear. Anyone might say that, but Katsuki loves to joke and poke fun at him about stuff like that.
He doesn't think he could avoid crying if that happened. Certain bugs aren't as bad, but beetles and bees and wasps definitely. He might even have a panic attack. He loosens his tie, resolving to figure it out once the other three leave. The last thing he wants to do is lose his cool in front of his boyfriends, that's for sure.
Izuku feels like he's throwing a slumber party. All three of them showed up in pajamas, and they all look absolutely adorable. He doesn't think he's ever felt so in love before in his life. They sprawl out on his floor, papers and notes between the four of them. Corrections are made here and there, and clarifications are asked for, mostly from Eijiro. They are patient with correcting his mistakes, though, not wanting him to feel bad for not knowing something.
Finally, Eijiro groans and rolls away from them, sitting up. “This sucks. It feels like all we do is study, I don't even have time to eat properly,” he whines. He leans back against Izuku's bed, watching the other three with a pout.
Katsuki rolls his eyes. “Shut up, you knew this was going to be hard work and you applied any ways. But I think we could probably use a fucking break, we've been at it for hours now. I'm gonna go get us dinner or some shit. What do you guys want?” he asks. He stands up and stretches his arms over his head. “I'm gonna do something close. Fast food.”
Eijiro and Shoto ask for what they want, Shoto handing over some money to help pay for everything. Izuku shrugs and waves them off, not really hungry at the moment. He focuses on his notes again, as if that's an excuse.
Katsuki scoffs then leaves, closing the door maybe a little too hard on his way out. He isn't really angry at Izuku, but he's kind of annoyed. Izuku doesn't eat as much as he should, and it's worrying. He always buries himself in his stupid school work or hero analysing and uses that as an excuse to not have dinner.
Izuku flinches slightly when the door closes like that. He didn't mean to upset him, and now his chest is tight. It sends a slight pain into his left arm. He flexes his hand slightly, then looks down at his notes again, tears welling into his eyes. He feels really on edge right now, and he knows the other two are taking notice. He just hopes they don't say anything. Anytime Eijiro says his name in that soft, worried voice he can never hold it together.
After a moment he realizes that they're waiting for, or hoping maybe, that he'll just look up at them himself. Well, that's not going to happen. He doesn't want to start crying, not when he held it together so well earlier. Sometimes he thinks that they get annoyed with how much he cries. He knows he's sensitive sometimes, but he really does try his best not to cry, even though it might as well be his quirk sometimes. He scribbles a few more notes down, adding a scrunched up note beside a paragraph in his textbook.
“Izu, can you look at me, please?” Shoto asks gently, reaching out to set his hand on Izuku's to stop him from writing. “Are you okay? You looked kind of freaked out earlier, but I didn't want to bother you because I thought maybe I was seeing things. I'm not that great at reading people. Are you worried about the field trip tomorrow? We can study on the way if you're afraid to lose the time or something like that. It's not gonna be that bad,” he assures. He has no idea what the problem is, admittedly in the past he's been blind to Izuku's upset until Eijiro or Katsuki pointed it out to him, but this time he saw the flinch. Tempers are running high with the kind of stress their under, and he can't say he himself isn't annoyed with Izuku's lack of eating recently either. In fact, the only one who seems to hold any understanding of it is Eijiro, though he doesn't understand that either.
Izuku shakes his head, sniffling softly. That did it, it really did. Shoto is rarely the one to voice his concern and he was caught off guard. He looks up finally, tears staring to fall as he does. “I don't want to talk about it,” he whispers. “I'm just stressed out about the exams and by all this homework. I'll be okay,” he says, wiping the tears away as Shoto lets out a sigh. He leans into Eijiro's chest as he's hugged. “I'm okay. Honest. You're gonna make me cry more giving me that look,” he tells Shoto, laughing softly.
They're all back to work studying when Katsuki finally returns. He hands Eijiro and Shoto their food, then shoves a box in front of Izuku. “I don't care if you didn't want it. You need to fucking eat, you're losing muscle mass. I can see it.” His voice is gruff and annoyed. “You have to take care of yourself, even if you're upset or some shit, okay?”
Izuku takes it after a moment, smiling at him. “Thanks, babe. You're the best.” He pops it open and starts to eat, realizing as the food hits his taste buds just how hungry he really is. “Damn, you were right, Kacchan. I'm sorry, it was dumb of me to say no in the first place. You know me better than I know myself.” He leans up and places a soft, sticky kiss on his lips before going back for more food. Dinner is spent in relative silence, which is nice. The last few have ended in Katsuki shrieking at an outwardly calm but still very annoyed Shoto.
He almost can forget about the field trip. Almost.
As it turns out, he is hosting a slumber party in his dorm room. He's squished between Katsuki and Shoto on the bed as Eijiro desperately tries to make room for himself in the tiny bed as well. Izuku whines, shifting to be more on top of Shoto instead.
“We don't fit in here,” he declares, looking down at Shoto. He wonders how comfortable it would be to sleep on top of his admittedly incredibly muscular boyfriend. Sure it looks nice and feels nice under his hands, but that doesn't make him a good pillow by under any circumstances. He rests his head on his chest and watches Eijiro finally get comfortable.
Katsuki looks over at them, then tsks. “We need to drag another fucking bed in here or something.”
“Or sleep in my room. I have the space for us,” Shoto responds.
“I don't want to move now,” Eijiro pitches in. “It's fine. We can handle a night like this. We're not even supposed to all be in here overnight, you know Aizawa would be really annoyed if he caught us. Might ban us from the field trip. I hope not, I'm really looking forward to it!”
Izuku sighs. That would be the most relieving thing that's happened in a long time, but he hopes it doesn't happen. Everyone all looked so excited when Aizawa reminded them of it. He triple checks his alarms for the next morning then wedges himself back between Katsuki and Shoto, resting his head on the little bit of pillow his head can come into contact with.
To say he barely sleeps that night would be an understatement. He's still freaking out a little about the whole field trip thing, since he didn't get any time by himself to work through his feelings on it, and he's more than a little uncomfortable. Izuku ends up studying Shoto's face, absolutely jealous of his ability to sleep any where, no matter the accommodations. He lets out a sigh of relief when Katsuki accidentally kicks Eijiro out of the bed and he gets a little more space to his name. He rolls over to face the blond, closing his eyes to get at least a little sleep when his alarm goes off.
“Fuck off,” Izuku groans, much to the amusement of the other three. It's 5 in the morning and he'd rather be dead than going on this trip. He pushes Katsuki out the bed and sprawls face down in the new space, groaning loudly. A second alarm starts ringing, then a third. He groans louder then slides himself out of bed, right onto Katsuki who groans in pain and glares at him, a few curse words falling from his lips.
“Shit, Deku, get off. I have to run to my room. Your clothes are too fucking small for me.” Katsuki wiggles out from underneath him, swooping down to give him a quick kiss before dashing from the room with Kirishima.
Izuku lays on the floor, arms sprawled out. “I don't want to go, Shoto,” he whines, looking up at the only remaining boy.
“I know. But we have to now. Why don't we get you up. It's a two hour drive, I'll let you sleep on my shoulder, if you want.”
Izuku nods and gets up, finally getting dressed in cargo shorts and a t shirt. He grabs his favourite All Might hoodie and pulls it on with a yawn. Contacts today? No too tired, glasses will have to do. He slips them on then digs around for his little backpack and his wallet. Keys, phone, journal, pencils. He double checks, then glances at Shoto. “Are you going in your pajamas?” he asks, seemingly snapping Shoto out of some kind of daze.
“Oh. No. Sorry, I'll meet you out front?” Shoto stands and leaves, finally leaving Izuku alone for the first time since the day before.
He sighs in relief, taking a little time to clean his face and relax, then heads down. When he reaches the bottom steps, he hears Katsuki and Eijiro arguing about the merits of certain types of hair gel. The longer he listens, the more lost he feels. Why would Katsuki even know, his hair stays spiked naturally? He sighs, resting his head on the blond's shoulder. He practically falls asleep on his feet there, yelping when Katsuki suddenly starts walking. He almost falls over, only managing to catch himself by a margin.
Getting onto the bus is chaotic, though he expected nothing less. He ends up next to Katsuki instead of Shoto, though he doesn't complain much. Either way, he's taking a short nap on the ride up. He's head is barely on Katsuki's shoulder before he's sleeping again.
He wakes up to Aizawa's voice saying his name. He yawns and raises his hand, showing himself as present. Izuku stands up when it's his turn, catching Katsuki's hand as they step off the bus. They're lined up and assigned partners to keep track of each other. Shoto is sent off with Momo, and Izuku is kept with Katsuki. Looking at the pairs, Izuku realizes that these are the people they did their finals against their teachers with. Must have realized they work well together. Each set is handed a map and their tickets before being set loose on the gardens.
Some groups gravitate towards each other, and Izuku is on his way to do that with Eijiro, Shoto has long left the parking lot, but Katsuki grabs his hand and yanks him towards the entrance.
“I don't fucking like his partner. He's an idiot and his quirk is dumb as shit,” Katsuki explains. He slides their fingers, together and hands his ticket over to the woman at the entrance.
Izuku fumbles trying to do it with one hand, but gets it eventually. He smiles nervously at her, not seeing when she tries to hand him a map and pamphlet. He apologizes quietly when Katsuki lets out an annoyed noise and grabs it from her instead, pulling him into the park.
“I'm sorry, Kacchan. I'm so tired, I just didn't see it. I promise. I'm sorry I made you so upset, I don't know what I did. I know you've been stressed out too,” Izuku says, words coming out too quickly. He can feel the tears rising in his eyes and he begs his body not to let them spill. The large bee flying by his ear sent him over his limit. He starts bawl, letting out a quiet scream as he ducks and tries to run from it, narrowly getting caught around the waist by his boyfriend, who lifts him and spins him in a circle to dispel the momentum. He can vaguely hear talking but it's not until he lets out a few more panicked breaths that he can understand it.
“It's okay, it's gone, it's okay. I've got you, it's gone,” Katsuki soothes by his ear as he holds him close. “It's okay. It was a carpenter bee.” He looks at Izuku, utter confusion clear on his face. “Are you afraid of bugs? Like, phobia afraid?” he asks, holding him closer. He gently reaches up to wipe away his tears. “I wasn't mad at you, either. I'm mad at myself, because I can't fucking articulate my feelings. I'm sorry that it came off that way.”
Izuku leans into the hand on his cheek, sniffling. His whole body is jittery as he comes off of a panic attack. “U-uh, yeah. I am. Ever since we were kids,” he whispers. “I try to hide it, cause it's really dumb, but the more stressed I am the more likely I am to like, not be able to stay calm.” He sniffles again, looking up at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Katsuki hugs him closer, looking around. He brings him over to the bathroom and gently cleans Izuku's face. “I mean, I could tell something was off and I was really annoyed with myself for not being able to ask. I was worried and stuff. You scared me. You always get really closed off when you're upset and I know it's because I used to treat you like crap, but I'm here for you now, so if you need me, you have to tell me. I can't read your mind. I thought you were mad at me ,” he admits.
Izuku looks up at him, cooperating as he cleans his face. He grabs Katsuki's hand afterwards and brings it to his lips. “No, I'm not upset with you,” he whispers, pressing a soft kiss to his knuckles. “I was scared, honestly. I thought you were going to tease me for it, cause being afraid of bugs is girly and dumb. I'm even...terrified of butterflies. I can't walk through this park, Kacchan. There's going to be so many. I'd rather sleep on the bus for the duration of this stupid trip.” His lower lip trembles, betraying him. The tears start to slowly drip down his cheeks once more.
Katsuki looks down at him, then hugs him close. “Hey, it'll be okay. I'll be here with you the whole time. I want to check some things out, but I swear to god I'll protect you from any stupid fucking beetles that decide to get anywhere near you, okay? And then we'll just chill afterwards, some where safe from bugs. There's like an indoor area that is probably pretty clear of them. It'll be okay, Izu, no fucking bugs get to scare you while I'm on boyfriend duty.”
Izuku blushes, then laughs softly. “You'll fight the bugs for me?” he asks, voice filled with amusement.
“I'll fight them all for you, if it means I get to see that beautiful smile on your face. I promise.” Katsuki ruffles his hair and plants a soft kiss on his lips. “Now let's go show those fucking beetles who the boss is around here,” he says. He tucks their papers into his bag and grabs Izuku's hand, leading him outside. He tries to keep good on his promise, steering Izuku away from big bugs while still trying to find the things he wanted to see as well. He stares at a map, irritation welling up under his skin. “Where is this fucking thing? Izu do you see it? Izu?” he asks, turning to look for his boyfriend.
He frowns slightly when he notices him staring at the Butterfly Pavilion. Katsuki moves closer, noting from the look on his face that he wants to go in, but he has no idea why. Wouldn't that be borderline torturous for someone who is terrified of bugs?
“Hey babe, what's up?” Katsuki finally asks, getting over his own pride to initiate a 'feelings talk'. He frowns deeper when he notices the tears in Izuku's eyes. Jeez, how many things is he going to have to beat up so Izu doesn't have to cry any more? He hates how sad he looks like that, lip trembling.
“Everyone looks so peaceful in there, I just wish I could go in too. I feel stupid being afraid of butterflies,” Izuku admits, looking at the ground and digging his toe into the dirt. “But it looks so nice and peaceful and I really want to try going in. I'd really hate for people to see me panicking about butterflies of all things.”
Katsuki takes a deep breath. This is a difficult one. “Okay, well, if we go in and it upsets you we can just leave. I'll be there the whole time, and I swear to god, Izu, if someone says something to you they'll fucking regret it, okay? I'll kick their ass so hard they'll be bawling for weeks.”
Izuku laughs, then rolls his eyes. “Okay. I don't think that the violence is necessary, though,” he jokes, though it feels kind of forced.
Katsuki can see the nervousness in his eyes and the way his lip trembles. He can feel it in the way Izuku is holding his hand too. He gives his fingers a squeeze, taking the lead down to the entrance. He waits patiently before both doors inside, not wanting to upset Izuku in the slightest.
Once inside, they're immediately surrounded by butterflies on the ground, on the nearby flowers, in the air. It's amazing, and Katsuki thinks they're absolutely beautiful. He holds Izuku close when he buries his face against him, though, gently pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “Hey, sh, it's okay. They're not going to hurt you,” he whispers, hoping it's helping. He pets his hair slowly, watching a butterfly land on Izuku's shoe. “Don't look now, but that one wants to be friends,” he says, pointing down at the bright orange insect.
Izuku looks down and lets out a loud whimper, hiding his head against his shoulder again. He hears Katsuki continue to try to comfort him. Why am I doing this? he asks himself, squeezing his boyfriend tighter. He feels like a baby, but it's nice to know that Katsuki isn't treating his fear like he thinks that. A few more minutes pass before he looks down and sees the butterfly is still there. It slowly flaps it's wings, warming itself up on the little patch of sunlight shining down on them.
An employee notices it and gently pushes it off into the greenery, causing Izuku to relax immensely and let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding. He stays calm now, just watching a few flutter by while Katsuki gently rubs his back. By the time they leave, he's not shaking as badly any more, and he feels kind of proud of himself for facing his fear. That only lasts for a few moments, though, until another very large carpenter bee flies directly into his face.
He screams and runs away, ducking a few feet away with his arms covering his head in a protective position. Izuku sobs his way through a panic attack, jumping when he feels hands on him that aren't Katsuki's. He looks up and sees Shoto's face, lunging at him to hug him.
“Look at what Katsuki's doing,” Shoto whispers, voice obviously amused.
Izuku takes a breath to calm down then looks over at where he ditched the blond. He's screaming at something on the ground, and it takes a moment to catch what he's saying but when he does, he laughs.
“How dare you attack my boyfriend! You just leave him the fuck alone, he never did anything wrong to you, you stupid fucking bee! Back the fuck off, huh? Some of us just want to enjoy the outdoors without your ugly mugs chasing us everywhere!” He shouts, popping off little explosions in a threatening matter. “That's what I thought. Piece of shit,” he snaps, walking away finally.
Izuku gets up and hugs him tightly. “My hero,” he whispers, kissing him softly.
Katsuki kisses back, then pulls away and rolls his eyes. “It was nothing. Piece of shit got what it deserved. C'mon. Let's go get some fucking ice cream.”