Chapter Text
10 years later.
“I’m home.”
Eijirou muttered the words quietly into the dark hallway as he closed the door as softly as he could behind him. He then proceeded to lean against it with a heavy sigh. Everything ached, from his neck and shoulders down to the soles of his feet. There was a nasty bruise on his left side too, but it would probably be healed by next week. Eijirou was thankful that all he brought home with him were a few bruises and scrapes.
Tiredly, Eijirou began to push off his shoes while unzipping his jacket with one hand. Maybe he should run a hot bath and soak for a while, allowing his body the chance to finally relax. But it was already so late in the evening, and he didn’t want to make too much noise. Maybe he should head to bed and worry about everything else in the morning. The room and blankets were probably warm, and Eijirou knew there would be an empty space waiting for him.
Climbing into bed was definitely the right option.
As Eijiro wiggled out of his second shoe, there was a soft click, and the hallway was illuminated. Squinting a little at the unexpected light, Eijiro looked up to see someone stepping into the hall. They were wearing baggy, black sweatpants and a well-worn red sweater littered with holes— especially on the cuffs because of never-still fingers— that had somehow survived the last five years despite Eijirou consistently saying he could get a nicer one. The answer was always a resounding no because they claimed it was special; it was the first official Red Riot merchandise, though the words “Red Riot” had long since been rubbed off the back of the sweater.
They smiled and, god, did Eijirou miss that smile.
Eijirou ceremoniously dropped the bag he had been holding onto the floor and his arms were soon filled with Izuku. He stumbled a little from the impact, but Izuku steadied them both, holding Eijirou close against his chest. Eijirou felt Izuku’s body meld perfectly with his own like a missing puzzle piece, completing him. Izuku breathed out with obvious relief and happiness, “Welcome home.”
Eijirou pressed his face into his shoulder and breathed in, smelling the detergent they use, the shampoo that sat in their shower, and the faint traces of sweetness that probably came from one of the candles Izuku liked to burn as he did paperwork. Completely normal, mundane smells, and yet so reassuring because it meant Eijirou made it back home. It meant that Izuku was here waiting for him like he always was.
Eijirou would have stood there and clung to Izuku forever, but the other tightened their hold in just the wrong way making Eijirou hiss through his teeth with a flinch as their bruise was pressed against. He was in favor of ignoring the pain and continue hugging, but Izuku’s arms disappeared from around him in an instant. He grabbed Eijirou’s shoulders and began to frantically look him up and down, his worried hero mode activated. “What happened? Are you hurt? I didn’t hear anything on the news about any Pros getting severe injuries. Tell me where.”
“I’m okay.” Izuku gave him a skeptical look and Eijirou couldn’t help but laugh. “Really!” He reached up and grabbed one of Izuku’s hands, pulling it off his shoulder. He moved it down and slipped it underneath his opened jacket, placing it against his left side. “Just a bruise, see?” Izuku’s fingers lightly pressed against him, feeling for any bandages underneath his shirt where there were none. “Nothin’ more.” Eijirou gave him a lopsided grin. “You were just squeezing me too hard. Did you miss me?”
Izuku huffed out a laugh, taking his eyes away from where they had been looking at the hidden bruise. With his other hand, he tucked some stray hairs behind Eijirou’s ear that had fallen out of his bun, which had been messily thrown up during the flight back. Izuku then cupped his cheek. Eijirou leaned into it.
“Not at all.”
A deep pout settled on Eijirou’s lips. “Hey!”
Izuku laughed and leaned in to kiss it away. Eijirou gladly let him. It was a simple, sweet kiss, and even after so many years, Eijirou’s heart still fluttered at the touch. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.” Izuku smiled as he pulled away. “You don’t know how much I’ve missed you.”
Eijirou hummed. “I think I have a good idea because you did leave me here all alone for almost four months while you partied overseas.”
Izuku at least had the decency to look remorseful. “That was years ago! And I went to only one party!”
This time, Eijirou was the one to kiss away the pout, laughing against Izuku’s lips. “Yeah, sure. I totally believe that.” He couldn’t see it, but he knew Izuku was rolling his eyes. It didn’t really matter though, because Izuku was kissing him back and wrapping his arm around him in another hug, albeit more gently this time.
It felt so good to be home.
With a final peck, Eijirou dropped his forehead onto Izuku’s shoulder, heaving out a sigh. He wrapped both of his arms around Izuku’s middle, fisting his hands into the old sweater and clinging to him. Izuku chuckled close to his ear and pressed a lingering kiss to his temple, fingers playing with the stray hairs falling from his messy bun at the nape of his neck. “Tired?”
Eijiro nodded. “I was trying not to wake you.”
“You didn’t.” Another kiss was pressed against his temple. “I was staying up to wait for you.”
“Babe, it’s nearly two AM.”
“I felt bad.” As one of Izuku’s hands rubbed Eijirou’s back, he pressed against the sore knots in just the right way. Eijirou was so lucky to be dating the Number One Hero because the way he practically relinquished all his weight to Izuku was sad and he doubted anyone else could easily support him. Izuku didn’t even seem to notice. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to pick you up at the airport.”
“It’s okay.” Eijirou tightened his hold around Izuku for a moment to reassure him. “It’s not your fault the flight was delayed.”
“I know, but still. I—”
Eijirou squeezed Izuku again to make him stop talking because it really was okay. “No buts. I’m a big, strong man; I can take the train alone.” Eijirou could feel the chuckle rumble in Izuku’s chest. “Though, there was this one creepy guy, so don’t be surprised if you see a picture of me clinging to my bag being spread across the internet in the morning.”
“I’ll make sure to repost it to my official account with the tagline, ‘the world’s manliest hero.’”
“Damn right.”
Izuku laughed which made Eijirou smile and cling a little bit tighter to his partner. Only hearing it through their sparse phone calls during his mission wasn’t enough. Eijirou felt like an addict, never able to get enough, even if it was right there in his arms.
“Well,” Izuku leaned back which forced Eijirou to lift his head, catching a glint of something in Izuku’s eyes. Mischief? “I’m glad you were manly enough to travel alone because it did give me time to finish putting something together for you.”
“For me?” Izuku nodded and that glint turned into a gleam. Eijirou squinted at him in suspicion. “What are you planning?”
“It’s a surprise.” Izuku began to detangle himself from Eijirou, ignoring the crestfallen expression on his face at the loss of warmth. An excited smile pulled at Izuku’s lips. “Take off your jacket.”
“Listen, even though I would thoroughly enjoy taking my clothes off for you, I am too tired to please you properly tonight.”
Izuku rolled his eyes, but Eijirou couldn’t help his small grin at the sight of a rising blush. “I didn’t mean it like that. Now, come on,” he gestured impatiently to Eijirou’s jacket, and with an alright, alright, Eijirou did begin to take it off, revealing his black t-shirt. He barely got it off his arms before Izuku took it and dropped it on top of his duffle bag, not even wasting time on hanging it up. He then grabbed Eijirou’s hands and began pulling him deeper into their apartment.
Eijirou chuckled as he let Izuku lead him toward the kitchen. “You seem more excited about this surprise than you are about seeing me.”
“I’m excited about you seeing the surprise.” Izuku stopped short right as they were about to enter the kitchen and turned back to face Eijirou. His grin almost made Eijirou forget it was two AM because it radiated like the sun. Happy and so very alive. “Close your eyes.”
“Should I be worried?” Despite his words, Eijirou did close his eyes. He felt Izuku’s hand leave his and his footsteps went around the corner and into the kitchen.
“Not at all!” Izuku called back as there proceeded to be sounds of drawers opening and closing. A lot of shuffling around was happening.
Eijirou gave a suspicious hum. “I don’t know if I trust you.”
“Shut up and keep your eyes closed!”
Eijirou chuckled with a growing smile, perking up a little as his own excitement began to build. What was Izuku doing? What was the surprise? He peeked open an eye, leaning over a bit to try and see around the corner. Curiosity was getting the best of him.
As if psychic, Izuku shouted, “You better not be looking!”
Eijirou snapped his eyes shut. “I’m not!” He could hear the sarcastic mm-hm from where he stood.
After a few more seconds, there was a click and Eijirou could tell that Izuku turned off the lights. Footsteps got closer and Izuku’s hands found his own again. They squeezed his. “Okay, keep your eyes closed until I say.”
Eijirou nodded and blindly followed Izuku around the corner. Izuku spent some time properly positioning Eijirou, shifting him back and forth and turning him this way and that way. Eijirou began to hold his ground to keep Izuku from moving him anymore. “Shortstack, if you don’t show me now, I’m going to bed.” He laughed as Izuku huffed at the nickname. Eijirou gave it to him in high school and absolutely loved saying it in the present. Due to a growth spurt in the summer before their senior year, Izuku was only a handful of centimeters shorter than Eijirou; he was even a little taller than Katsuki. Seeing Katsuki sulk whenever he called Izuku Shortstack was reason enough to keep the nickname around.
“Okay, okay.” Izuku did manage to move him a fraction more before stepping away. His presence was still close to Eijirou’s side. “You can open your eyes now.”
“Finally.” He opened his eyes but was so taken off guard his smile disappeared in his pure shock. The room had been plunged into the dark, but the flames flickering on the kitchen island washed the walls in a warm, orange glow. Several small candles were sticking out of a cake that obviously had been meticulously decorated, the chocolate icing garnished with small white and pink flowers in two diagonal corners. A single balloon floated beside the cake in the shape of a shark, and on the other side was a bottle of that fancy wine Eijirou liked but refused to drink unless there was a special occasion. Along with the bottle, there was the pair of beautiful glasses Izuku’s mother had gifted them, engraved with the date they moved in together. There also sat two small and neatly wrapped presents undeath the balloon, decorated with bows that Eijirou knew Izuku redid probably a hundred times.
“Happy Birthday,” Izuku said, echoing the words written across the cake.
The scene blurred as tears filled Eijirou’s eyes, and he had to keep rapidly blinking to try and prevent them from falling. Eijirou had completely forgotten what day it was, too caught up in his mission and the long trip back home. But Izuku remembered and had spent the whole evening putting this together. All for Eijirou.
Love made Eijirou turn towards Izuku and grab his face, smushing his cheeks together as he pulled him forward and into a kiss. It was such a terrible kiss because Eijirou couldn’t purse his lips enough due to the widest smile taking up his face. “I,” another kiss, “fucking,” a more proper kiss, “love you.”
Izuku laughed into the kisses, rubbing their noses together. His skin was warm with a blush and Eijirou caught a glimpse of his hands fidgeting with the hem of his sweater. Izuku was nervous. Was he worried Eijirou wouldn’t like this? “A good surprise?”
“The bestest of surprises.” Eijirou pulled away to turn back to the small birthday set-up, having to wipe at his cheeks because maybe a couple of happy tears slipped out. “This is why you couldn’t pick me up?”
“Yeah,” Izuku hummed in affirmation. Eijirou could hear him shift on his feet for a moment before finally stepping up behind Eijirou and wrapping his arms around his waist. It was only part of the natural order of things that Eijirou leaned back into Izuku. “The original plan was to pick you up, bring you home, and then set up everything after you went to bed so that I could surprise you in the morning when you woke up, but then you called to tell me about the delay, and I started thinking that maybe I should go ahead and put it together now because it would technically be your birthday by the time you made it home.”
Izuku seemed to realize he was beginning to ramble because he stopped and took a breath before continuing. “So, I could’ve been there to pick you up.” Izuku rested his chin on Eijirou’s shoulder and gave him a gentle squeeze, avoiding the bruise on Eijirou’s ribs. A little hesitantly, he added, “But I thought you would like this more.”
“I definitely like this more.” He grinned and turned to press a sloppy kiss on Izuku’s cheek. “Are you going to sing me happy birthday?”
The blush on Izuku’s cheeks deepened; Eijirou could even feel the heat against his lips. “Well, you see, I don’t want to wake the neighbors…”
“Then over breakfast.” Izuku gave him a side-eye glare and Eijirou laughed. “I’m just teasing. Although,” he sighed and further into Izuku’s chest, forcing the man to hold up his weight, “it won’t truly be a good birthday without hearing your lovely voice.”
Eijirou yelped as Izuku pinched his side. He quickly removed himself from the hold to protect himself from any further abuse. He rounded the island and gaped at his partner. “You dare hurt an injured Hero? On his birthday?”
“It’s a sign of love,” Izuku smirked, and the flash of electric green in his eyes didn’t go unnoticed by Eijirou.
“You,” Eijirou pointed an accusing finger, “have been hanging around Katsuki too much.”
Izuku placed his hands on his hips. “What else was I supposed to do for three weeks?”
“I dunno, your job?”
Izuku gave him a deadpan stare. “Hanging out with Kacchan is my job.”
Eijirou opened his mouth and then closed it. “You got me there,” he conceded.
The corner of Izuku’s mouth quirked up in triumph for a second before growing back into an excited grin. “Okay, no more talking.” He bounced on the balls of his feet as he gestured to the cake now in front of Eijirou. “Blow out your candles! That will make everything official!”
Eijirou looked down at the cake. Now being up close, Eijirou could see some flaws. The icing job was a bit messy, the candles were a collection of different lengths and widths, probably from their junk drawer with years’ worth of hoarding, and it looked like Izuku may have drawn the wrong character at one point from how the white mixed a bit with the chocolate in certain places.
It was absolutely perfect.
With pleasant warmth filling Eijirou’s chest, he closed his eyes and leaned forward. His wish was the same as it was every year. No matter what happened, Eijirou always wanted to come home to Izuku, and he always wanted Izuku to come home to him. He blew out all the candles in one fell swoop.
Izuku clapped with a soft cheer before flicking the lights back on. “Did you make a wish?”
Eijiro straightened up and looked back at Izuku. “Mm-hm, and like every year you ask, I can’t tell you.”
Izuku walked around the island and cupped Eijirou’s face, pressing a quick kiss to his lips as if to persuade him to tell. “Please?”
Eijirou pulled his partner closer by placing his hands on his waist. “Nope! It won’t come true if I do.” He nuzzled Izuku’s cheek with his nose. “And want to make sure this one comes true.”
Izuku pretended to mull seriously over Eijirou’s words before sighing, “Alright, I guess I can accept that.” He draped his arms over Eijirou’s shoulders and gestured with his head down to the cake. “Do you want a slice? I promise it’s good. I was video calling Kacchan the whole time I was making it and it’s his recipe.”
The mental image of Katsuki aggressively yelling directions and an uncoordinated Izuku frantically trying to follow along made Eijirou chuckle. “Maybe tomorrow.”
Realization passed across Izuku’s face. “Oh, right. Sorry.” He brought a hand back and rubbed his thumb underneath Eijirou’s eye, brushing across the dark circles Eijirou knew were there. “You’re exhausted. You didn’t get much sleep, did you.” It was said as a statement instead of a question.
Eijirou released a heavy breath as he leaned into Izuku’s touch. “I got enough.”
“Kacchan is going to yell at you.” That made Eijirou grimace a little, already imagining it. Izuku chuckled at his expression. “Sleep in. We planned a birthday party for you tomorrow evening, and you can’t fall asleep at your own party.”
Eijirou quirked an eyebrow. “Did you spend the entire time I was gone planning all this?”
Izuku glanced away, but Eijirou saw the corner of his mouth twitch up as he tried to suppress a smile. “Maybe.”
“And here I thought you would be laying around, depressed in my absence.” Eijirou gave a dramatic sigh, lifting a hand to his forehand as he said woefully, over-exaggerating an impression of Izuku. “‘Oh, where art thou, my handsome lover? I cannot bear being apart for so long!’”
Eijirou couldn’t hold his woeful façade when Izuku pulled away and playfully shoved him, but even Izuku couldn’t hide his sunshine smile. Eijirou wasn’t sure if he even tried to. “Oh, yeah? I bet you were like, ‘my dear Izuku,’” Izuku grabbed at his heart, “‘every step that takes me away from you pushes a knife further and further into my heart.’”
“‘I cry myself to sleep as your pillow remains empty,’” Eijirou said, continuing the theatrics, laughter bubbling in his chest. “‘Please, come home soon!’” Izuku broke out into giggles as Eijirou grabbed his hands and pulled him back into his space. He placed a messy kiss on Izuku’s cheek, feeling the vibrations of their laughter against his lips.
“‘I am cold without your hand in mine,’” Izuku laced his fingers with Eijirou’s. He turned his head to connect their lips, but the both of them were giggling so much that the touch hardly counted as a kiss. “‘My love, I will finish my quest and come home with hast!’”
Eijirou laughed louder, dizzy with adoration. Or maybe exhaustion. It was most likely the combination of both that was making his head spin. He lifted up Izuku’s right hand, pressing a kiss to his scarred knuckles before bringing his eyes up and just looking at Izuku. His smile was so beautiful. Even though it was always plastered over every magazine and every news channel, this one was for Eijirou and Eijirou alone. Shinning like the sun after a day of rain with freckles dusting his cheeks like flowers, a dimple that still made Eijirou’s heart stutter with every appearance, and the crinkle of skin around his eyes due to a laugh that filled Eijirou’s body with overwhelming affection. The love was so evident in his gaze that Eijirou could practically feel it. The breath left his body as he remembered for the thousandth time that he was the luckiest man in the world.
“Marry me.”
Eijirou only realized he had spoken when Izuku’s laughter disappeared. Suddenly, Izuku went stiff in Eijirou’s arms, eyes growing impossibly wide. Eijirou could see his brain shut down as he breathed out, “What?”
Eijirou doubled down as the haze cleared from his mind. He said it unconsciously, only pure love filling his body and exhaustion erasing his thought-to-mouth filter, but he hardly had to think about it to know he meant it. And now, with the words out there, he couldn’t believe he hadn’t asked years ago. “Marry me.”
Izuku stared at him, trying to comprehend. It took a moment for him to catch up with what Eijirou was saying. “Are you serious?”
Eijirou’s heartbeat picked up. “Yeah, I am.”
Izuku’s lower lip began to wobble. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” Eijirou brought Izuku’s hand back to his lips for another kiss, the left one this time. He locked eyes with his beautiful, strong, amazing partner. “Izuku, will you marry me?”
Izuku lifted his free hand to cover his mouth as he gave a choked sound, tears forming in his eyes and spilling over and down his cheeks. Fear seized Eijirou for a second at the sight, but then Izuku was nodding his head, and all Eijirou felt was electricity. “Y-yes.” The word was hiccupped, caught on a half-sob, half-laugh. Izuku nodded his head again, and Eijirou could see that glorious smile peeking out from behind his hand. “Yes, of course, I will.”
His heart was going to burst from how much it was being filled with affection and happiness and love. Eijirou moved Izuku’s hand away, only getting a quick glimpse at the absolutely stunning smile splitting Izuku’s face before he was kissing him. Izuku immediately responded as he jumped between laughing and crying and then back to laughing as if he couldn’t decide which emotion to feel. He finally settled on a mixture of both as his shaking hands grabbed at Eijirou’s face to pull him closer.
“God, I love you.” Eijirou moved his lips to Izuku’s cheek, pressing a kiss to his freckles. He tasted salt. “I love you so much.” With every hiccupped sound Izuku gave, Eijirou adorned his cheeks with more kisses, touching every freckle he could. He was unable to stop. “I love you so goddamn much.”
“I— You—” Izuku pulled his face back in order to lock their lips together again, speaking breathlessly into it. “This is crazy. You’re crazy.” He kissed Eijirou for a long moment, both of them unable to stop smiling, airy laughter filling the space around them. Slowly, Izuku broke away with a shake of his head. Eijirou chased after him, but Izuku’s hands on his cheeks kept him at bay. Now, they were staring at each other. Izuku’s eyes were shining with tears, face flushed, with an expression tittering between astonishment and euphoria. His thumbs were rubbing Eijirou’s face. “Please tell me this isn’t just your exhaustion talking and that you won’t come to your senses in the morning and take it all back.”
“If I woke up and took this all back, that isn’t me and you should use lethal force.” Izuku laughed at that, fresh tears threatening to fall from his eyes.
“You’re such an idiot.”
Eijirou grinned. “But I’m your idiot. And now you’re going to be stuck with this idiot forever because the warranty expired as soon as you said yes.”
“Good, because I was never planning on returning you in the first place.” Izuku cradled Eijirou’s face with tattered and worn hands, calloused from holding up the weight of the world. Eijirou placed a hand on top of theirs, and the responding smile made his heart melt. “I love you.”
“I know,” Eijirou hummed as his thumb traced along the scars littering his partner’s— fiance’s hand while Izuku felt the raised skin on Eijirou’s cheek against his palm, each and every story memorized. “And I love you.”
Eijirou closed his eyes as Izuku pulled him back in for another slow kiss, sighing against his lips with a smile so sweet Eijirou could taste it. “I know.” The touch and the words themselves were saturated in love. Eijirou let himself drown in them, pulling Izuku down into the depths with him, with no plan of ever surfacing.
When they parted, Izuku pressed his forehead against Eijirou’s, and they both relished the contact in silence. Eijirou felt as though he was floating, mind filled with nothing but the happy thought of he said yes. It was two AM in their kitchen, the both of them wrapped around each other with the smell of frosting and silly birthday decorations surrounding them. Eijirou couldn’t stop himself from chuckling out, “I guess my birthday party has turned into an engagement party.”
Izuku gave a contemplative hum. “No, let’s wait.” He leaned back and used a couple of fingers to brush some of Eijirou’s hair from his forehead. Eijirou could feel how loose his bun was. He should honestly just let it down at this point. “At least until we can get some rings.”
The gasp Eijirou let out visibly startled Izuku. “Oh my god! Rings!” Eijirou wanted to smack himself. “I am so sorry. I totally messed this whole thing up, I should’ve—”
“No, no! Nothing is messed up!” Izuku wrapped his arms back around Eijirou, preventing him from escaping. “Eijirou, I absolutely loved this. It was perfect.”
Eijirou couldn’t meet Izuku’s eyes, completely downtrodden. “But I didn’t get you a ring.”
“We can go out and get them.” One of Izuku’s hands cupped his cheek, gently coaxing Eijirou to look at him. “We can start looking tomorrow to find ones we both like. Together.”
The loving smile on Izuku’s lips made the dread ease away. Eijirou relaxed and leaned into Izuku’s touch. “I would like that.”
“Me too.” Izuku’s smile widened. “And once we have those, I want to take you somewhere special.”
“It’s not too far away, is it? Because I’m done with long-distance traveling for a while.”
Izuku shook his head. “No, it’s a place in my hometown. A beach, actually. I want to place the ring on your finger there.”
Butterflies flooded Eijirou’s system as he imagined blue, sparkling water backdropping the scene with the most beautiful sunset shining over Izuku’s shoulders as he slid the ring they picked out together onto its forever home. It was so romantically cliché that it could have Eijirou twirling his hair around his finger and kicking his feet in the air as if he was once again a love-sick teenager who got home from their very first date.
Honestly, when Eijirou retells the story to anyone and everyone, he would probably look exactly like that.
Unsure how successful he was at suppressing his stupid smile, Eijirou agreed immediately. “I love the beach. Beaches are awesome.”
Izuku chuckled quietly, so Eijirou probably failed at not looking stupidly happy. “It’s a place really special to me too.”
Eijirou blinked, trying to remember if Izuku ever mentioned a beach to him before. “Why is it special?”
“It’s the place where I started my journey to UA.” Izuku’s fingers brushed lovingly across Eijirou’s cheek, nostalgia softening his features. “It’s the place that started my journey to you.”
As Eijirou leaned in to capture Izuku’s soft lips once more, wanting to swallow those sweet words in order to keep them within him forever, he thought that he was going to have to once again thank Katsuki for shoving him into Izuku’s dorm room all those years ago.