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Ever since he was young, Izuku Midoriya has been enamored with the concept of soulmates. Every person in the world had a unique connection to their soulmate(s), the only person or people in the world who were cosmically destined for you. Obviously society had grown past the point of believing that cosmic destiny guaranteed compatibility, as proven by Izuku’s mother, whose soulmate mark is long gone just like Izuku’s father. And so people married and remarried and dated around and kept things casual, and whether or not you wanted to be with your soulmate was up to your discretion. And whether or not your soulmate wanted to be with you was up to theirs. Which can lead to heartbreak and despair, but can also lead to some of the happiest relationships Izuku has ever seen. Take his friends Uraraka and Iida, for example. They found each other a few years ago by chance, and have been together ever since.
Izuku has always wanted that.
Since he learned about soulmate connections Izuku had been ecstatic for his thirteenth birthday, because that was when everyone got their connection. Izuku’s worst nightmare was meeting his soulmate and not being compatible with them, or worse, meeting them and finding out that they didn’t want to be with their soulmate. But Izuku is unflinchingly optimistic, which is why he never gave up hope that he would be with his soulmate forever.
As soon as he found the guy, that is.
When Izuku turned thirteen, he found himself hearing thoughts that were most certainly not his. And that was how he figured out his soulmate connection; he could hear his soulmate’s thoughts. They couldn't communicate, unfortunately, but Izuku was treated to a 24/7 livestream of everything his soulmate was thinking. Which was both a blessing and a curse, because it meant Izuku got to learn about his soulmate and fall halfway in love with him just from hearing his thoughts. But it meant he also heard the bad thoughts, the late-night insecurities and the bitter resentment, the self-loathing Izuku hates so much.
And, of course, there’s the most striking thing about Izuku’s soulmate:
He is in constant rage mode.
I swear to fuck, if these motherfucking cars don’t fucking move I’m gonna blow some shit up. How hard is it to fucking go? The goddamn light is green, you fucking idiot!
Izuku sighs and huffs a fond laugh as he walks down the sidewalk, going back to his apartment complex after work. He’s a journalist, a writer for this paper about celebrity gossip or something. Izuku isn’t really paying attention, he’s just doing what he has to do to make money during college so that he can pursue a better career after he graduates. But all of that is for overthinking later, right now Izuku has a soulmate to deal with.
“What now, Kacchan?” Izuku mumbles quietly to himself, a small smile on his face. Over the years he’s taken to calling his soulmate Kacchan, since the guy is so freaking angry all the time that calling him by a cutesy nickname is just absolutely hilarious to Izuku.
Fucking finally! comes more of Kacchan’s thoughts, asshole dickhead-did that fucker just flip me off? He deserved that honk, I’ll fucking kill him! Suck on this, asshole!
Izuku can only assume Kacchan flipped him the bird back.
He’s never worried for his soulmate, he heard all of his thoughts during Kacchan’s teenage bully years and the late teenage years of therapy and anger management. Izuku would always send Kacchan his faith and good thoughts during those times, hoping that on the other side of their connection, Kacchan could hear those thoughts. But because of that Izuku knows Kacchan isn’t actually, like, murderous or anything, he’s just like that. But he’s all bark and no bite. Izuku’s heard the thoughts he has about his friends. He’s such a softie.
Fuck, I’m so fucking starving, Izuku hears Kacchan think. He tunes into his soulmate’s thoughts once more, curious to see what angry tirade is coming next.
Where the hell are all the places to eat around here? Fucking hell, why aren’t there any goddamn good places to eat? Oh, shut the fuck up, google maps! No, I mean it. Shut your whore mouth, I fucking know there’s fucking traffic. Moron. Oh, fuck there’s a place!
Izuku giggles loudly at his soulmate’s thoughts, and then coughs awkwardly when multiple people on the sidewalk look at him. Izuku flushes red in awkwardness, and then ducks under the awning of the nearest building. Now that his soulmate mentions it, he’s actually kinda hungry too. Izuku looks at the door he’s in front of him, and realizes with a start that he’s right in front of his apartment complex, right in front of the ground floor cafe-
-Plus Ultra Cafe. What kinda nerdy ass fucking name is that?
Izuku whips around, eyes wide in disbelief. “Kacchan?”
Ever since he was young, Katsuki Bakugou has been enraged with the concept of soulmates. He doesn’t even really have a reason to be; his parents are the perfect example of a perfect soulmate couple. Their soulmate connection was a simple one, the first words they would ever speak to each other written on the inside of their arm. They met when they worked at the same fashion company, and have been together ever since. They’re sickeningly in love, and Katsuki has dealt with it since he was a kid. Maybe that’s why he hated soulmates so much, because he was surrounded with the perfection of it. And Katsuki has never believed in perfect. Only better and better until you reach the best. But goddamn if it isn’t always possible to get better. Perfect is like infinity, you can only approach it. You get closer and closer, but you can never reach it. And usually that’s a concept that Katsuki likes, he uses it as motivation to keep becoming the best version of himself.
But when it comes to soulmates, all it makes him think is that there is no best person for him. There’s nobody who could possibly be perfect for him. When he was a kid that was because nobody could be good enough for him, since he was the best. Since he was a teenager, it’s been because he isn’t good enough for anybody else, because he’s unlovable. He’s unlovable, and yet there is someone out there who loves Katsuki. And not because destiny told him to, but because he agreed with destiny’s choice.
Or at least, that’s what Deku thought the first time Katsuki thought he was unlovable.
They can’t communicate with each other, through hearing the other’s thoughts, but Deku can hear what Katsuki thinks and can respond in kind by thinking something else. It was their loophole for communicating with each other. The first time Deku did it was when Katsuki was at the peak of his bullying years, and Deku thought Kacchan’s being so mean to that kid right now. He shouldn’t be a bully. Katsuki had thought soulmates were stupid back then, and shoved it off. But once he got his head out of his ass, Deku’s thoughts became something that kept him together. Deku was the voice of reason to Katsuki’s self-loathing, and Katsuki was the reality check to Deku’s overthinking. Now, as young adults, they’ve learned to help each other. Now, Katsuki is warming up to the idea of Deku as his soulmate.
His real name isn’t Deku, of course. Izuku Midoriya is just so goddamn useless sometimes that thirteen-year-old Katsuki took to calling him Deku. All he does is mumble, muttering twenty-four seven in Katsuki’s brain and giving him a headache. He just thinks and thinks and never does anything. The opposite of Katsuki, who yells first and worries later. Maybe that’s why they're soulmates. They balance each other out. Deku listens to Katsuki’s constant rage and Katsuki endures Izuku’s endless muttering. A match made in heaven.
Unlike fucking google maps and this fucking stupid town Katsuki’s in for work. He’s staying in this small town for a modeling gig his parents lined him up for, since he models for their fashion company. He enjoys the work, although he’d prefer to be a designer than a model. But he knows he’s attractive, so this is what’s gonna make him money while he tries to keep himself afloat in college. His parents refuse to be financially responsible for him. And Katsuki wouldn’t want to be, either. He’s perfectly content with making money for himself by dressing in whatever makes him look pretty and posing for some cameras. It’s not a bad job, honestly. Except for when it leads him to towns with bad drivers and nowhere to fucking eat. Google maps is being stupid and telling him about traffic that he already fucking knows about. He’s literally in the middle of the goddamn traffic. Katsuki has eyes, thank you very much.
And then Katsuki sees his out. As soon as the light turns green he makes a right onto a much emptier road, where there’s some shops and a large apartment complex closer to the end. Katuski keeps driving down the road, hoping there’s a place to stop and eat. Turns out sitting pretty can make you really fucking hungry. And listening to Deku’s muttering through his mind somehow makes Katsuki burn calories. And speak of the devil, here Deku is now.
Oh no, I just laughed out loud at Kacchan’s thoughts! I hope Kacchan doesn’t get mad at me-oh, who am I kidding. I wonder when I’ll get to meet Kacchan. Maybe it’ll be soon? Oh NO! Did I really laugh that loud? Why is everyone staring at me? Oh God, why does Kacchan have to be so cute and funny when he’s mad? Oh, how did I get home already? That was so fast, I must’ve been distracted listening to Kacchan! I wonder if he’s found a place to eat yet-
Katsuki rolls his eyes and ignores the flutter in his heart at Deku’s genuine, innocent concern for him. He tunes out the rest of Deku’s mutters, letting it fade into familiar background noise as he finally finds a place to eat. He pulls into the curb and parks, staring out the window to look at the cafe sitting right below the large apartment complex.
Plus Ultra Cafe. What kinda nerdy ass fucking name is that?
“Kacchan?”
Katsuki almost jumps right out of his seat and activates his goddamn airbags. Because that Kacchan was not in his head. No, he definitely just heard that out loud. Loud enough to be heard through his car windows. Frowning, heart beating loudly in his chest, Katsuki opens his car door and steps out onto the sidewalk. Hesitantly, He speaks up.
“Deku?”
“Kacchan!” comes the voice again, and this time Katsuki sees where it’s coming from. Standing just a few feet away is a man with sparkling green eyes and bouncy dark curls, freckles splattered across his baby face as he waves excitedly in Katsuki’s direction.
“Holy shit,” Katsuki says, “you’re Deku.”
“You’re Kacchan,” the man-Deku, his soulmate-says back, “Katsuki Bakugou.”
“Izuku Midoriya,” Katsuki replies, “Izuku fucking Midoriya.”
“It’s you,” Izuku shakes his head, disbelieving, and then he’s letting out a delighted laugh and stumbling forward in Katsuki’s direction, arms already open. And Katsuki’s arms are open to catch Izuku against his chest, holding him tightly as Izuku buries his face into his shoulder.
“It’s really you,” Izuku sniffles, and then he starts crying, “it’s really Kacchan.”
Still shell-shocked, Katsuki just rests his hand on Izuku’s shaking back. “I can’t hear your shitty mumbling anymore, Deku. Can you hear all my fucking screaming?”
“No, I can’t!” Izuku giggles wetly, “because now I have you yelling right here!”
“And I have all your annoying ass muttering right here.”
“Yeah!” Izuku finally pulls away, but only far enough to look at Katsuki. Their arms stay wrapped around each other, both of them still incredulous. “Kacchan,” Izuku whispers again.
“Deku,” Katsuki whispers back, “my fucking soulmate, huh?”
“My soulmate,” Izuku repeats, reverent, “you’re my soulmate.”
“And you’re mine,” Katsuki responds, and then notes with slight surprise that he isn’t enraged right now “this isn’t filling me with as much rage as I thought it would.”
“Aww,” Izuku laughs, “I’m the off switch to your constant rage mode!”
“And you’ve been mostly coherent,” Katsuki snorts, “I’m your damn mute button.”
“Hey!” Izuku protests, swatting at Katsuki’s chest. But then he sniffles again, and melts back into Katsuki’s arms. Katsuki himself feels like fucking putty, pliable and soft in Izuku Midoriya’s hands. “We balance each other out, Kacchan. And not ‘cause we’re soulmates, but because we chose each other, Kacchan. You know what I mean? We learned we were soulmates and then chose to keep loving each other every day. I think that’s amazing.”
“Yeah,” Katsuki has to admit, eyes prickling with tears, “it’s pretty damn cool.”
Izuku beams at him, smile bright and cheeks wonderfully squishable. Katsuki smiles back, a real smile. He has a feeling he won’t be in constant rage mode very much anymore.