Can We Just Be Us? | KiriBaku

A UA romance; a story like no other- 84

Written by Hato Okuro,

Not only have the two had to deal with hero training and villain attacks, but also overcoming all the obstacles in their way of their relationship.

I'm interviewing two 15 year old UA students; Katsuki Bakugou, a powerful hero with an incredible quirk, the winner of the Sports Festival, and the title of the highest scorer in the entrance exams. Eijirou Kirishima, another promising, great hero who placed second in the entrance exams. These two are not only the future of heroes, but also, potentially, the future of diversity and acceptance. Despite Bakugou being a hothead, and Kirishima being most of the time, opposite to that, the two are actually in a romantic relationship. They've been openly dating for quite a few months now, which has been known knowledge to their family and friends.

They two of them realised they're attraction for each other early on, but only acted on it during an upset in school. Supposedly rumours were spread, and whilst talking and arguing with others about it, Kirishima kissed Bakugou. After a few days of not speaking, they finally met and told one another how they felt. 'We met at the mall after not speaking, we told each other our feelings and then I kissed him', Katsuki Bakugou. After this, the two began secretly dating before finally coming out, receiving different reactions; 'basically our whole class was good with it, and teachers. His (Bakugou) parents were amazing, mine, not so much.' Kirishima. They faced homophobia and discrimination from a large group of kids at a fancy dress party, as well as some adults there. And during a school trip, they had many complications with old bully's and such. But worst of all, Eijirou Kirishima's mother wasn't happy, or accepting. She didn't try to understand and rejected it, whilst his father tried to be supportive. Since coming out, he hasn't spoken to his mother; 'I think she's just stuck in her old ways, religious and stuff'. I didn't want to press to heavily into the sensitive matter however it was clear that Bakugou had a deep resentment for his boyfriend's mother. Despite all these complications, the two still prospered, becoming an even stronger couple than before. They even appeared in the famous Fuyaroa Pride Festival, with them two an attraction on a float.

Regarding the lgbt community, Kirishima had quite a few things to say on the matter. 'I think it's completely unfair how the lgbt have to face so many unnecessary obstacles.' 'I'd love to give a voice for them (lgbt youth)'. When asked with the question 'was there pressure to push away feelings due to the lack of representation in heroes' Bakugou responded by stating that no, he never felt that he had to try to mirror other heroes, he was an individual; 'I'm my own hero and I'm not trying to be anyone else'. However, he did say that coming to terms with being gay was difficult, since before Kirishima, he didn't even think he was, whilst Kirishima had suspected himself for quite some time. He explained how he was bullied in middle school through homophobic name calling and occasionally physical abuse.

But through is all, the two boys are still in love and are still training to become the very best heroes they can be. The whole reason for this article is to help and inspire other youth to realise that they are perfectly fine for being who they are, just look at Kirishima and Bakugou. They want lgbt youth to feel confident with themselves and not have to go through the same frustration of being gay that they did. This article is also for people who may bully and may hate on lgbt, for them to realise that what they're doing is wrong. And lastly, this article is for the parents of lgbt youth, to understand that you shouldn't push away your children when they finally have the confidence to be who they are.
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So today I reached 50,000 reads and honestly, I'm over the moon. I'm so incredibly happy and just so grateful to all of you. Thanks to all your reads and votes and comments, you just inspire me more and more everyday.