The Universe Listened | Kiribaku

Well I've lost it all

•Chapter Twenty•

〄

"I think I'm in love with Katsuki," Kirishima blurted out in the quietest tone he could manage.

Kaminari and Mina had swung by his classroom during a passing period and took him on a short walk down the hallway so he didn't have to be stuck in that stuffy room all day. They were talking and while they were talking, Kirishima started thinking. He started thinking about all the strange thoughts he was starting to have about Katsuki. The kissing thoughts. What it would be like to feel Katsuki's lips against his. What it would feel like to be that close to Katsuki on a more intimate level instead of professionalーif it could even be called professional.

The more he thought, the more his brain started to run away with itself. It ran through sceneries where Katsuki is one-day Kirisihima's and all the things they'd do together, all the places they'd dance, all the places they'd explore. The thought alone was enough to lift him off his feet and carry him to cloud nine. It filled his heart with so much love, so much he was certain it was going to spill over the edges and drown him. What a way to go that would be.

Kirishima hadn't meant to confess to his friends there in the middle of the busy hallway, and in doing so he's caused chaos in his mind. A fire alarm went off his mind as the realization of what he said and in the back somewhere, a wire short-circuited and the flying sparks lit the walls on fire. The little people in his brain that normally kept things in order were now running wild trying to save all the important paperworkーmemories and thoughts and ideasーas well as themselves from the blazing fire.

God, they were staring at him with these looks of surprise and wonder and what the fuck was he supposed to do about it? He could feel the questions behind their eyes burning into the side of his skull as he walked down the hallway, doing his best to act like he didn't just confess his love for a boy who was fucking terrifying. But Katsuki did terrifying so damn well...

Kirishima shook his head. He couldn't let his mind run away with him again. Not there, in the middle of the crowded hallway where it felt like not only his friends were staring at him but the other students who passed by too. Hell, even Riot was staring at Kirishima. They could all see the rosy blush covering his cheeks and neck, and the way he bit his lip in anticipationーby that point, Mina and Kaminari had been doing so staring and not enough talkingーbecause he wanted to know their thoughts. He wanted their advice, or Mina's advice, and Kaminari's encouragement. He needed someone to tell him that the way he was feeling wasn't wrong or horrible.

"Alright Kami, cough it up," Mina said and stuck her hand out, curling her fingers in a "give it here" motion.

Kirishima heard Kaminari let out a groan of dissatisfaction and then he heard paper crinkle. Money?

"What...?" Kirishima asked, confused and even a little dazed by his own thoughts.

Mina smiled sheepishly. "Sorry Kiri, but we sorta placed a bet... on if you were gonna ever tell us about your crush on Katsuki."

"You guys knew?!" His eyes were wide.

"Dude, Mina has got like a strange intuition for that shit. She knew I was in love with Jiro before I even knew," Kaminari said.

"I'm blind and I could see that you were head over heels for her," Kirishima spat. "It doesn't say much."

"Just trust me... it's like a sixth sense for her."

Kirishima rolled his eyes. The fire in his brain had been put out and all the paperwork was safe, thankfully, but his entire face was still flushed red.