Endeavor's Bastard Son [Bakugo x Male!OC] TodoBaku

33) The Little Things

And in the end, I couldn't even help Ren. He jumped through that warp gate when he was barely conscious and attacked the League, just to try and save me. How can All Might say it wasn't my fault? If I'd been stronger, if I'd been able to get free sooner, he'd have never been there in the first place. He wouldn't have had to fight All For One, wouldn't have had to use up the rest of his power.

I get that he would have lost it anyway, but not because of me. Not cause I was too weak to save myself. No matter what he said, I'm the reason it happened when it did. I still destroyed All Might. It's my fault. Ren moving his head breaks me my thoughts. I open my eyes and find him staring at me.

I cup his cheek and stroke his fur, feeling so shitty. "Nothing good comes from being around me. Maybe you should stay away from me from now on." He leans his head into my palm and makes that gruff purring noise. I shake my head and laugh dryly. "Yeah, you can't understand a word I'm saying, can you?"

I sigh and just take a moment to watch him. "Alright, I'm starving." I take my hand away and gently push him off my chest. "Let's go." I get up and make my way toward the door with him following at my heels. I've already cleaned the dorms for the day, and I finished that stupid apology letter days ago.

I take the elevator to the first floor and get off, making my way to the kitchen. I'm not in the mood to do anything that requires a lot of work, so I just grab a bag of chicken tenders, put a bunch on the tray and slip it into the oven to cook. I set a timer on my phone and just lean back against the island.

I feel Ren winding around my legs and it almost brings a smile to my face. I glance down and watch him do figure eights around my ankles. "What is wrong with you?" I ask through mild laughter. His only reaction is taking a seat right between my feet, acting as if he's right where he belongs.

I lower myself down and sit on the floor, pulling him into my lap. Animals can sense emotion, right? Maybe that's why Ren's been so... well Ren. He can probably sense all the negative emotions I've been dealing with the past few days. "Part of me kind of hopes you can understand me."

No one's around, so what's the point of keeping my guard up. "Another part hopes you really fucking can't. And I have no clue if you'll remember a single damn thing when this stupid Quirk finally wears off." Ren starts grooming himself, I chuckle and shake my head again. "I have no fucking clue what to make of any of this. I'm pissed that it's my fault All Might had to retire. I hate myself and I hate feeling so horrible all the time even more so."

Ren circles my lap before laying down, resting his head on my thigh. "I hate that you went running off, like an idiot, and got yourself into this mess!" I glare down at him, but he seems calm overall. "You should've known none of those idiots would have held that against you. No matter what I do, they still talk to me."

I sigh and lean back against the kitchen island. "I'm fucking basically talking to myself at this point." I take a moment to collect myself and pull my shit together. I turn back to Ren and meet his gaze. "I have no fucking idea what I'm gonna say to you once you're yourself again."

He whines gruffly and paws at his snout. "Guess the right thing to do would be to tell you to stay the hell away from me. That I'm no good for anyone and will most likely fuck everything up." I reach out and stroke his side, listening to that strange sound he admits. "But I already know how you'd respond to that, and you probably wouldn't listen."

When you know you're not good for someone, but don't want to be away from them. What should I fucking do? I stare down at the fox in my lap as he begins to doze. If I told you how I felt, what would you say? For the first time in my life, I'm terrified of an answer. But I also really want to know.

I mean, he's not putting up with me just for kicks. And his mother said that if he did hate me, then he'd already have written me off. He wouldn't want anything to do with me. "This is all so fucking complicated and screwed up." I could barely tell the girls how I felt about him. How the hell am I gonna tell Ren?

I'm briefly startled when my timer starts going off. "How time flies..." I have Ren get off me, much to his annoyance I'm sure, then stand up. I dismiss the alarm and turn off the oven, pulling the tray out with one of those pot holder cloths. I set it down on the stove and hang the cloth back up. Ren starts making one of the more annoying sounds, like a cat being murdered.

"Hey, enough! It needs to cool off, dipshit." He nips at my leg and I glare down at him. I hoist myself onto the island and bring my legs up, crossing them in a pretzel. "Ha! You lose, I win." I grab my phone, ignore his whining, and scroll through it. I've learned that if I ignore him long enough, he'll tire himself out and give up. Eventually.

He starts caterwauling again, making me clench my jaw. It's like Ren and Kaminari combined. One's persistent and the other whines a lot. Three minutes later and he finally goes silent. I lower my phone and lean forward to see him.

He's sitting where I left him with his ears back, looking like a kid that just got scolded. He's very needy as an animal. "You done having your little tantrum?" He lowers himself down onto his stomach, dropping his snout onto his paws. "I'll take that as a yes." I slip off the island and get a plate out, transferring the food onto it.

I fight back a smile when I feel him brush his body against my legs. I'll admit, I am going to miss these moments. I grab a bowl from the dish drainer and put his share into it. Once I'm done, I set the bowl on the floor and he trots over to it, chowing down happily. It reminds me of when I did this for him when he woke up after the Kamino Ward incident.

I know he's gonna do it, but I just can't help myself. I pretend to make a move toward the table only to get stopped by Ren's yapping. He does it everytime. I turn and pretend to look annoyed. "You know, ever since becoming a fox," I pause as I lower myself onto the floor beside him. "You've become quite a bossy little bitch."

He returns to his food, tail swishing happily as he chomps away. "But you're a cute bastard, I'll give you that." I tousle his head before eating my food. I think about what Kirishima and the others told me the night Ren was hit with this Quirk. "Heh, the shit I've gone through is nothing compared to yours, huh?"

He continues to eat. I think back to the first day of school. When I first laid eyes on him, an actual chill ran down my back. He somehow managed to look placid and like he could kill you in ten seconds flat. The atmosphere around him was just really dark and intimidating. He always put me on edge and that's why he was able to push my buttons so easily.

I'm mean, I'm ruthless sometimes, I know that. But when I first met Ren, there was no doubt in my mind, he could kill me if he wanted to. When he encased me in his sand during the fitness test, and I felt that pressure, he actually scared me. I think, for just a moment, he actually thought about it. That's the real reason why I despised him so much, cause I was afraid of him.

I think that's why, despite his expression, I slapped his hand away when he offered it. Cause I didn't trust him, and a part of me was still afraid of him. I lower the plate slightly as my brain finally catches up with my train of thought. "This is so fucked up," I say to myself.

I shake my head and adjust my hold on the chopsticks. He's changed a lot since then and so have I. He's no longer the cold hearted boy he was when we first met. He's different now. Hell, he risked his life to protect me. I finish my food and wash off my plate, doing the same with Ren's bowl once he's done.

"Alright, c'mon, fox boy." We get back on the elevator and get off on our floor. He dashes ahead and I chuckle, following behind him. Once I reach the door, I open it, slip inside, then close it behind me. The others should be back in a couple hours. I scoop Ren up and set him down on my bed.

I rub at my eyes and get in bed, flopping back against the pillows. Almost immediately, Ren climbs onto my torso and lays down, engulfing me in his body heat. "You really do act like a cat sometimes," I murmur. I close my eyes and decide to try and catch some sleep.