New Beginnings

A Mix of Emotions

MIDORIYA'S POV

"Is there anything special you want from the grocery store for this weekend? Anything your parents like specifically?" I asked. Since he has a meeting today at three, I'm going to pick the kids up from school and then head to the grocery store. Shopping with all four kids isn't something I like to do often, but if he has a meeting, he doesn't want the kids here, which I totally understand.

"Grab two bottles of wine," he told me while shuffling through the fridge to see what else we needed. He was now on his knees, sorting through the fruits and vegetables in the bottom right drawer. "Two cases of beer." We were only buying what we needed until we left for the summer. Since the kids will be leaving on Sunday, it will only be us two for two weeks after that.

I haven't decided if I'm excited or nervous about that. Something shifted between us after the last night we spent together, and we hadn't spent another one together since. I talked about it briefly in therapy, but I didn't focus on the topic too much. Dr. Wyatt tried to get more information out of me about how I felt about Bakugo, but I didn't have any information to give her.

I could have told her that he's hot as hell and I'm definitely weak for those tattoos, or I could have told her that he smiles the brightest smiles when he's talking to his kids. I could have told her how he's actually an amazing person who has had his heart broken too badly. It was like his ex stuck a nail in his heart and hammered it in. Every new nail cracked his heart until it couldn't be held together anymore. The last nail was hammered in the night he left, shattering his heart with nothing to repair it with. He and his ex had few friends who haven't talked to Bakugo since they split. If I remember, one of their friends was screwing around with his husband behind his back for almost a year.

But I didn't tell her any of that. I told her I was starting to see the man, and I thought he could have been this entire time if he hadn't been in a toxic relationship. I told her I don't know how I feel about him specifically, which wasn't necessarily a lie. I know that I like when his mouth is against mine and his hands are on my skin, but that's about all I know.

"Midoriya? Did you hear a word I just said?" He looked at the clock, probably checking how much time he had left on his lunch break. "I have to get back soon."

"I can do this," I said, motioning at the fridge. "Just add anything specific you want to the list." I know how much I need to buy for the kids this week and what I'll need to buy to feed me and him for the next two weeks.

"You good?" His eyes studied me carefully. Was I good? No, I wasn't. Before I could tell him I was fine, he said, "Don't you dare lie to me."

I closed my mouth and took a deep breath through my nose. Will he fire me if I am honest right now? Probably not. God, I hope not. "I'm struggling with seeing you like this right now," I told him honestly.

"Like what?" He looked up at me, completely oblivious to what I was seeing.

I swallowed, regretting the decision to tell him the truth. I should have just lied. "Nothing," I murmured, grabbing my phone off the counter and opening our shared app for the shopping list. I typed in the alcohol he told me I needed to grab, but that was all I heard him say. When the door to the fridge shut lightly, I sighed in relief and went to shove my phone into my pocket.

I froze when I saw Bakugo had moved closer to me. "Like this?" His right hand gripped my calf and squeezed tightly while his left grabbed my phone and set it next to him on the floor. "On my knees and in front of you?"

"You weren't in front of me when I said that a few minutes ago," I pointed out.

"I can go back," he started to move back, but my right hand quickly reached out and grabbed a fistful of his hair, keeping him in place. Almost immediately, I released his blond locks and pulled my hand away, scolding myself for doing that.