Safe Space

He's Just A Little Different Pt. 1

A/N: Katsuki falls into Little Space in front of the ENTIRE class. For some, it's a bit of a rough adjustment. (Broken into two parts for the sake of decent length.)

Katsuki can't breathe.

His legs are moving as fast as they can; his lungs are burning in protest and his knees feel like they're about to give out on him as a cold feeling settles itself in the bottom of his gut. It minutely crosses his mind that he's crying too, vision blurred by a hot onset of fresh tears every time he blinks but he can't be bothered to care much about that image and facade of impassiveness when there's so much more at stake than his reputation as UA's resident mad boy.

It happened so fast.

He can hardly find a grip in his memories that tells him what had even happened. He remembers being on patrol with Eijirou. He remembers that a villain had robbed a bank near by. He remembers that he had went after them in hot pursuit, even though Aizawa-sensei and Deku had warned him not to.

He remembers that Shouto went after him.

He didn't know that the warehouse he'd chased the guy into had such a weak foundation. They were all as good as dead as soon as he set off that first round of explosions. Or at least they would have been if it hadn't been for Shouto and his quirk. The ice was quick enough to shield both Katsuki and the villain from the heavy debris of the warehouse caving in on them.

But not fast enough to cover himself.

By the time they had dug the two of them out of the wreckage, they had already wheeled Shouto to the nearest emergency room. When he demanded that one of those fumbling idiots tell him what happened, Ponytail burst into tears.

It was all his fault.

"Sir, please stop running! This is a place of recovery!"

He nearly crashes into the nursing station, stumbling over his words.

"T-Todo---Todoroki!"

She eyes his frantic state for a moment as if assessing what her next move should be and it pisses him off, making him slam his sweaty palms against the desk. "SHOUTO TODOROKI!"

She flinches, nearly jumps out of her seat. "He's---He's still in surgery, you'll have to wait in the waiting room!" And his heart plummets just like that, limbs wobbly as he staggers his way into the waiting room. He's still in his hero costume, save for his bracers. All he can think to do is stand there and watch the door. To wait for someone to come out and tell him that his Shouto is okay. Everyone is staring at him as he sinks down into a dark place, watching him plummet down into the deepest depths of his insecurity.

How can I be a hero if all I every do is destroy everything I touch?

I almost killed us all...

Shouto could be dead because of me...

I killed Shouto...

I'm not a hero.

I'll never be a hero...

Never...

...never...

"---acchan! Kacchan, it's okay. Breathe!"

Why can't he breathe?

And when did Izuku get here?

Katsuki feels his legs finally give out and Izuku catches him, trying to calm his shaking with soft words and arms wrapped around him. He must have been standing there, staring for hours because he'd been crowded without ever noticing, his classmates seeming both frightened and worried at the same time. He lays eyes on Aizawa-sensei, who's got way too much blood staining his hands to not be alarming and it snaps something deep within Katsuki's core.