Catch Me

The Night of the Party

Kaminari didn't even bother taking off his shoes when he walked in the door, he just flopped onto the couch next to Shinsou and rested his temple on Shinsou's shoulder.

"You alright?"

Shinsou's voice sounded mostly amused, but an undercurrent of concern rolled through his question as well.

"Yeah," Denki sighed, "I just don't know how well my lab went today. It seemed alright while I was working on it, but afterwards, I asked some of my classmates how it went for them. A few of them did it differently. Honestly, I'm a bit worried."

"Fair enough. Don't stress yourself out too much. I'm sure you did great; you forget just how smart you are sometimes."

Kaminari brightened at that. Compliments from Shinsou were a gift given sparingly, and only when deserved.

"Thanks, Toshi. It means the world, really."

Instead of responding, Shinsou just leaned his cheek onto the top of Kaminari's head where it was resting on his shoulder.

"Kirishima invited us to a party tonight, by the way. I was gonna go. Wanna come? You finished that paper, right? You deserve a break."

"Drinking at some rich kid's parent's house isn't exactly my idea of a break Kami," Shinsou responded drily.

"Yeah, I know, but I thought I'd ask anyway."

"Thanks. I have a shift tonight, unfortunately, so I can't."

"Oh shit! I Sorry, I completely forgot. Alright," Kaminari groaned as he pulled himself to his feet, "Well, I have to finish this chemistry assignment before I go to the party which means I need to start working on it now. Give me a ten-minute warning before you go, please! I want outfit advice."

"Alright sure. I made some stir fry if you want dinner. It's in the fridge."

"Oh yum! Thanks!"

-------

Kaminari looked hot.

There were no two ways about it; he looked absolutely stunning.

Shinsou was about to leave for work wearing the hideous green uniform required for his job, and he felt like a sewer rat compared to Denki.

He was wearing a neon yellow shirt, cropped to just reach the edge of his ripped up black jeans. He was wearing FUCKING FISHNETS under his jeans.

"So whatcha think? Think this projects enough bisexual energy? I don't want anyone to think I'm straight by the end of the night."

Shinsou choked on a laugh, "No, God forbid. Just cuff the jeans and I think you'll send the message loud and clear."

"Thanks! I'm super excited, although I wish you could come! I promise to let you know if anything exciting happens!"

"Good, I'll see you tomorrow then? I'll probably be asleep by the time you get back."

"Yeah of course! Have a great shift!"

"I'll try, thanks. Bye."

With that, Shinsou left to catch the bus.

-------

Shinsou's alarm clock read 3:42 AM when he woke to a combination of vibrations and loud buzzing next to his head.

He'd gotten home from his shift just after midnight, texted Denki to let him know he had made it home safely, and passed out.

Who the hell is calling me at this hour?

"Hello?"

His voice sounded rough and groggy from sleep.

A cheerful girl's voice came through the speaker, "Hey is this Toshi, by chance?"

"You mean Hitoshi, Shinsou Hitoshi. Yeah, that's me, who is this?"

"Oh, sorry about that! He's been calling you Toshi, so I just assumed. My name's Uraraka Ochako. I'm at the party that Kaminari-san's been at and he's very, very drunk. When I asked who I should call to come and pick him up, he kept repeating Toshi, so I got him to open his phone and your contact was the first in his messages. Can you come get him and take him home safely? The party is pretty much over and I don't think he can get home by himself. I'd put him in a cab, but frankly, he's not coherent enough for that."

Shinsou had been on his feet, getting dressed to leave as soon as she'd said he was very drunk.

"I can absolutely come get him. We live together so it's no problem for me to get him home. Thank you so much for calling me. What's the address?"

The address she gave, it wasn't far, certainly close enough to walk.

"Alright, I can be there in about 15 minutes, is that okay?"

"Yeah, no worries! I can stay with him until then! He's alright by the way, I hope I didn't freak you out too much. He's been throwing up a bit and he's super out of it, but he hasn't lost consciousness at all," Her voice dropped to a whisper to continue, "I cut him off about half an hour ago and I've been giving him water "shots" since then."

Shinsou grabbed his keys from the kitchen table and slipped on his shoes.

"Thank you," Shinsou replied, "I'm leaving my place right now. We both owe you one."

"Nah, don't worry. Everyone gets way too fucked up at a party at least once in university. I did it once and someone took care of me. I'm just paying it forward. If you really want to thank me, just make sure he does the same."

"I will. I'm so kicking his ass for this tomorrow by the way."

Uraraka giggled a little, "Naturally. See you soon."

Shinsou hung up and broke into a jog. Despite Uraraka's assurances, he couldn't help but feel panicked.

I shouldn't have gone to bed until I knew he was home safe! No, wait he's an adult, you can't blame yourself for his decisions and you aren't responsible for him. Take a breath, he's fine.

Shinsou's mind was moving a million miles an hour as the chilly spring wind nipped at his bare arms.

Dumbass, why didn't I bring a sweater?

It was a beautiful night, the moon full and the stars bright, but Shinsou couldn't take the time to enjoy it. The cold air stung in his lungs as he jogged, but he didn't slow down. The streetlamps blurred out in his peripheral vision as his heart rate picked up.

I need to calm down. He's perfectly fine!

He turned the corner onto the street where he knew he'd find Denki and he could feel the blood rushing in his ears.

He spotted the place, a large house with a modern design. Sitting on the front steps was a girl with shoulder-length brown hair and a round face. Next to her, sat Denki, keeled over on his side to lean on the stairs.

Seeing Denki felt like the first gasping breath taken after being underwater for too long.

He met Denki's eyes from across the street. Denki stood and the stars painted onto the night sky seemed merely a background to his beauty. Shinsou's mind flashed to another night, years ago, when Kaminari had stood beneath the stars and changed his life.