Hi guys! So I recently became a big fan of the series. And I always thought it'd be curious to see Kacchan and Deku in a normal world. So there you have it.

Rated M for Kacchan's foul mouth and delicate subject of drug abuse. No lemons.

'It's strange.' Thought Izuku Midorya, as he stood in the middle of the crowd, staring at the stage with everyone. 'It's like this entire place is moved by his voice.'

This place called HELLGATE was in the basement of a rundown building in which unofficial (and clearly illegal) concerts took place. Mostly hard rock and metal. The stuff that made students forget about their worries and the stress of there studies. There was alcohol and food, and of course, it wasn't uncommon to find troublemaking underaged teenagers that sneaked in. At first, you'd think it was just that : a place where people could party hard and get wasted. But it was so much more than that. The guys who ran the place knew that very well. But right now that wasn't important. The important thing was the show. The drummer, the bassist, the guitarist and the keyboardist were all on fire, and their music was making the whole building shake. The crowd was wild, and Izuku had trouble keeping himself from being pushed around by the wave of people that were desperately trying to get closer to the stage. But Izuku wasn't in the same mood as the people here. Just as them though, his eyes were mostly on the lead singer of the group : Katsuki Bakugo. That guy was a legend in the world of underground music. He was an exceptional musician and could play any instrument he was given. No one could rearrange a song like him, his covers were making old songs come back to life in a new light. He was so explosive on stage that it earned him the nickname Nitro. In short, Katsuki was talented. Izuku had always used the word amazing to describe him. Always? Indeed. Because these two young man had grown up together in the same crappy neighborhood. They'd been together through elementary, middle and high school. Childhood friends, one could say. Although, Izuku always wondered if Katsuki didn't consider him more of a lapdog and a punching bag rather than a companion. But Izuku's good nature always stopped him from trying to get back at him. On the contrary, he always sticked close to him. That guy's amazingness was like a brilliant light to the weak butterfly that he was. After graduating from high school, they both went their separate ways. And now four years later, Izuku was proud of who he had become. He had gotten his life together by working harder than anyone else. He became a councilor and therapist in a rehab center, he had a beautiful girlfriend who worked as a nurse in the medical branch of the same center... His job wasn't paying much better than a teacher's salary, but that didn't matter to him. He was doing what he'd always wanted to do : help kids that came from his kind of harsh neighborhood to get their life back together. So what in the world was he doing back here? A big part of his job was to observe and pay attention to details which was actually is strongest skill. And for someone who'd been called a talentless looser all his life (mostly by Katsuki actually), he was glad he had his eyes and his brain.

Katsuki was singing a cover of Starset's point of no return, probably his own. The original song wasn't that impressive, but he was making it sound like the new era of music was about to be born. There was so much passion in his voice and in all his movements. Izuku was this close to letting the entrancing music get to him. But the memory of the phone call he got earlier in the day kept him from loosing himself in the spirit of the evening.

"Izuku? Hello, it's been a long time. I don't know if you remember. I'm Katsuki's mother..."

"Of course I remember Mrs. Bakugo. How can I help you?"

"I'm sorry to call out of the blue like this after so many years. But..." She started sobbing on the other side of the line. "I don't know who else to turn to..."

"Calm down, Mrs Bakugo." He told her. "What's the matter?"

"It's about Katsuki... I think he's in trouble."

A mother's instinct is rarely wrong when it comes to her children's well-being. And if someone with an explosive temper like Mitsuki Bakugo was crying while asking him for help, it meant that there really was trouble. Truth be told, Izuku had never set foot in this part of town, but the people who came from here to the center were the hardest to get to. This place was rotten. The true question however was how the hell had Katsuki ended up here. When they were in the last year of high school, he was the boasting about how he was going to make it big out there with his music. And truth be told, he definitely had the skills and the stubbornness to become a pro and have a real career in the music industry. So what the hell was he doing here in this rundown place? Why was he remaining a legend of the underground instead of making it big out there like he'd always wanted?

At the end of the song, people shouted and whistled at the band. Katsuki wiped the sweat off his face and emptied a water bottle before exiting the stage followed by the rest of the group. Izuku turned around and did his best to make his way to the exit. Once outside, under the pitch black sky he looked for the alley that led to the back entrance. When found, he entered. It smelled awful, a mixture of vomit, piss, smoke and trash. Izuku was about to reach the end when he heard footsteps behind him and turned around.

"You're dressed a little too pretty for this part of town." Said one of two guys that were following him.

Izuku was indeed still wearing his clothes from work, which was basically a suit without a vest. 'Crap!' He internally cursed. 'Trouble already.'

"Hey, I'm not looking for trouble..." He begun raising his arms.

"Neither are we." Interrupted the guy. "Just give us your cash and you can leave without a scratch."

"Sorry but I really don't have any money on me..." He said with an apologetic grin, and he turned over his empty pockets. "See?"

The two stalkers seemed disappointed. "Then get the fuck out of here. We don't want you on our turf."

"Sorry, I can't leave. There's someone I have to see... humpf!"

That answer earned him a punch to the gut. His breath cut off, the green haired fell on all four and coughed loudly as he trued to regain it. But another kick to the ribs made him cry in pain.

"Who the fuck d'you think you are, nerd face?" Said the one stepping on his head. "When we say get the hell out, you get out!"

"I...I can't ..." Stubbornly replied Izuku, trying to fight the pain. It'd been years since he'd gotten mugged like this. He thought he grown used to it, but it still hurt like hell. Again, another kick in the ribs made him almost puke.

"You stupid idiot!" Said one of them raising his fist this time. But when he was about to punch his victim, a strong grip seized his arm and stopped him in his movement.

"What the hell?" Exclaimed the guy, but he froze when he saw the shape of the person behind him. "Shit! It's you..."

A solid left hook to the face and a broken nose made the assailant, grunt in pain, and fall to the ground. Izuku only heard the sound of the two guys grunting painfully as he was trying to catch his breath while holding himself up with his elbows.

"I told you two assholes what would happened if you showed your faces here again!" Growled a familiar voice. "Fuck off!"

Izuku looked up just in time to see his two assailants running (more like dragging themselves) out of the alley. He turned his head and ended up face to face with a pair of black rangers.

"Hey, you still alive down there?" Asked the young man, who's face was still in the dark. But no way in hell could that messy hair belong to anyone other than him. The alley was dark and so they couldn't discern each other's faces. When was the last time they'd been face to face like that? "I've never seen someone as scrawny as you in my life. Walking alone around this part of town is like asking to get a beating. Are you an idiot or what?"

That comment made Izuku chuckle. "Wow. I have to say, I never would've expected you to say something like that, Kacchan."

"Huh? What the … "

Izuku pulled himself up to his feet and smiled at his former classmate. Katsuki's eyes widened in surprise. "Deku? Is that you?"

"Hi Kacchan. Long time no see."

"Well, I'll be damned..." Said the singer eying him from head to toes. "Never thought I'd see your nerdy face again."

'Somehow I doubt that made you sad.' Thought Izuku sweat-dropping. "Yeah, well I never thought I'd find you in a place like that."

"What's that suppose to mean, you damn nerd?" Growled the red-eyed young man.

Izuku flinched when he saw the nasty glare Katsuki was throwing him. Man, did this remind him of high school. Anytime he'd say something the hot-head considered out of line, he ended up getting a beating or verbal abuse. Of course, Izuku had grown since then, but it seemed that his old cowering reflexes were still present in his system. But he somehow smiled at the nostalgia. Instead of waiting for his former classmate to answer, Katsuki sat on top of a metal trashcan and took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. He put one in his mouth and looked up at Izuku.

"D'you smoke?"

"No, thanks." Replied the green-haired lad politely. 'That's new.'

Katsuki had taken off his jacket and was only wearing a dusty orange colored tank top. He had a chain with army tags dangling from it around the neck. There were bags under his eyes, he clearly didn't sleep well. He lit his cigarette and looked at the sky before blowing the smoke out of his lungs. The shorter boy was relieved when he smelled the scent of regular tobacco.

"So, you gonna tell me what you're doing here?" Asked the smoker.

"Well …" Izuku stayed quiet and thought for a minute. Katsuki was unlikely to tolerate the fact that his mother had called an old childhood friend who also happened to be a therapist to help him. It was better to keep it hidden for now. Besides, he didn't even know what was wrong with the singer yet. Maybe there was nothing to worry about. "Well, I heard about this place and I wanted to check it out. But I gotta say, I didn't expect to see you here Kacchan. Who would've thought? Actually, now that I think about it, it's not that hard to imagine. You were amazing back there. You're even better than back in high school."

Katsuki didn't reply and just eyed his former companion for a long time before answering. "Looks like you didn't do too bad. Got a job?"

"Yeah, actually. I work in a rehab center."

"You're a therapist?" Asked Katsuki, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah."

Izuku expected him to laugh at him and make some kind of crushing remark with that foul-mouth and sharp tongue of his, but he did nothing of the sort. Instead, he only brought his cigarette to his mouth again.

"Suits a nerd like you, I guess." He commented. A small laughter still escaped his lips.

"What's so funny?" Asked Izuku, curious.

"Just remembering the wimpy little nerd from grade school that wanted to be a hero." The blondie said grinning at his shorter friend. "You haven't changed much."

Izuku smiled. "Well, believe it or not, I'm not as defenseless as I used to be."

"Says the guy who just got his ass handed to him by a couple of dumb pickpockets. HA! I'd like to see that."

"I said believe it or not." Replied the green-haired lad, still smiling.

This time Katsuki grinned genuinely, just like back in high school when he's start a fight with other people. Which was pretty much every day. "Yeah, wanna take me on to see?"

"No thanks." He replied taking a careful step back. "I'm good. I've had enough for one evening."

The singer's smile disappeared and he appeared disappointed. "Wow. Even in school you had more bite than that."

"Well, nothing stops you from giving me a beating if that's what you want."

"Careful Deku. I just might if you keep pissing me off." Threatened the smoker. "That's another thing that hasn't changed about you : you're still annoying as hell."

"I guess bad habits die hard, don't they Kacchan?"

"Why you damn nerd..." Started the taller boy, the anger finally showing.

"Anyways, I didn't come here to fight with you Kacchan." Said Izuku, suddenly serious. "The real question is what the hell are you doing here?"

"Huh? What do you mean? I work here."

"I heard you earlier. Your music, your songs... they're amazing. I thought nothing could beat what you did in high school but the concert tonight was so much better than anything I heard you do before. Four years ago, you were headed for college and to take your music out there. To become this generations next big star. So why are you here? Playing in this rundown place, instead of becoming a legend in the real world?"

"Mind your own business, Deku." Snapped Katsuki.

His red eyes lacked that explosive fire they always had whenever the slightest thing would contradict him. Izuku was sure of it now. There was something wrong with him. But getting to him would take time. It was not a problem that could be fixed in a day.

"I see. Well, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He looked at his watch. "It's getting late. I should get going. Bye Kacchan."

Katsuki didn't answer, instead just looked at him walk away. When Izuku finally disappeared from his sight, the red-eyed boy finished his cigarette while looking at the sky. As always, the same shitty weather was covering it. Seeing the moon or the stars was rare around here. It's not like he cared either way. For the first time in a while, he felt a little lonely. The sound of the door opening pulled him out of his thoughts.

"There you are Nitro." Said the newcomer. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Why?" Replied the singer harshly.

He didn't like this guy. Sure. He gave him a job and payed him pretty good so he was technically his boss. But there was something about him that creeped him out. His voice for starters. He sounded like he smoked five packs an hour. But Katsuki had never seen him light a single cigarette, not even once. And the way he talked made him sound a bad guy in a horror movie.

"I just wanted to see if you wanted to join us for a little after-party."

"No." Immediately shot down Katsuki. "I'm beat. I'm gonna go hit the pillows."

"Oh well, too bad." Replied the man who didn't seem disappointed in the least. "But you might want to consider getting to know the guys here. You do work with us."

"I play my music and you pay me, that's the only thing I give a crap about." He snapped, before stomping on his cigarette.

A cold hand grabbed his shoulder, making him perk up a little. "I'm just worried about you, with you being alone all the time... I'm just looking out for you."

With a violent shoulder movement, Katsuki shoved his hand away. "I don't need anything from you other than your cash. I'm going home." He said as he started walking away.

"Oh well. If you ever change your mind, let me know."

The singer quickly exited the alley and headed for his apartment. He really hated that guy's guts. Tomura Shigaraki was nothing but a scheming piece of crap and it was impossible to know what he was thinking in that messed up head of his.

A couple of days later, after another show, Katsuki went out the back alley again to smoke a couple of cigarettes. His routine was pretty simple : he sang at HELLGATE Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and the rest of the time when he wasn't at his day job, getting into fights or writing his covers, he hung out around town with his earplugs in search of inspiration. Today was no different. Did he see anyone? No, why would he? The people he worked with were assholes and he hated their guts. Tomura was the worst of all. All this crap about caring about him was just to make sure he stayed and earned this guy money. What a joke. How'd he end up being some fucker's tool like that? It didn't matter. Not anymore. He was still sweating from the concert so he took off his jacket. As he lit his cigarette, he failed to notice the scrawny figure getting closer.

"Hi Kacchan." Exclaimed a joyous voice, making the singer look up.

"You again?"

"Well, I found an old schoolmate and I thought we'd catch up." Said Izuku, before looking through the plastic bag he was carrying. "Want one?" He asked taking out a can of beer.

Without waiting for an answer, the green-haired lad tossed the can at the blond who caught it. Izuku then took place on a trashcan. The smell was going to need some getting used to. He opened his own and started drinking. Katsuki stared at him for a while before looking at the can.

"Drink up." Said Izuku. "Don't be scared. I didn't spit in it if that's what your wondering."

"I know that you damn nerd! I'm not scared." He growled back.

Katsuki opened his can and took a sip. It was a pretty good beer. Not the kind you found around this part of town. He'd probably brought it with him from wherever he was living now. Katsuki observed him for a moment. He was nicely dressed, like an office worker, with a tie and clean shirt. And he looked as happy-go-lucky as when he used to talk about being a hero when they were kids.

"Guess you did something with your life, didn't you Deku?" He muttered.

"Hm? Did you say something Kacchan?"

"No." He simply replied.

"So tell me, what happened after high school."

"You're still going on about that?"

"Come on. I'm just trying to catch up." Replied Izuku. "But if you don't want to, we can talk about something else. Like your music. That Nickleback cover was pretty cool. You're really gifted. How long did it take you to make it?"

Katsuki sighed. It looked like the nerd wasn't going to stop talking anytime soon. "Dunno. A week, maybe."

"Just a week? You're fast."

"It's not that hard."

Izuku's eyebrows came a little closer together. Indeed, Katsuki had changed a lot. His boasting self was gone. "For a genius like you maybe."

A nasty grin appeared on the blondie's face. "Guess it's gotta look pretty hard for a tone deaf reject like you. You used to lock yourself up hours in the music room to try and learn the guitar by yourself. Even after a year, you couldn't even play three notes without messing it up!" He laughed out loud.

"That was uncalled for." Retorted Izuku, slightly vexed. "Your personality is as rotten as ever. I'll have you know I discovered something interesting."

"Yeah, like what?" Said Katsuki.

"Are you sure you want to know?" Replied Izuku, giving him a cocky grin. "You might get jealous..."

"ME? JEALOUS OF A GOOD FOR NOTHING LIKE YOU? HA!"

"Did you know that there are actually two types of acoustic memory?" Asked the freckled face. "There's the auditory one. It's the memory that remembers the notes and can differentiate different pitches of music. It's usually the one most active in song writers and singers. And the second one is the rhythmic memory. That one recalls the beat and rhythm. It's most powerful for drummers."

"And?"

"And turns out my rhythmic memory is pretty good." Said Izuku, proudly. "And I'm probably a better drummer than you'll ever be, Kacchan."

"I'd like to see that, you looser!" Growled the blond.

"But you've got nothing to envy me for. Both of your acoustic memories are strong." Explained Izuku. "That's what makes you an amazing musician. You've got everything."

That last comment earned him the surprised yet slightly sad stare of his former classmate. "You're an idiot if you think that." Said Katsuki before bringing his cigarette back to his lips.

"But that was your dream Kacchan." Asked his friend. "You were set to become a great singer. What happened to you?"

"Drop it, Deku."

"I'm just trying to understand..."

"Lay off!" He snapped, clenching his teeth to contain the anger.

"Are you satisfy with how things are now?"

"DOES THIS LOOK LIKE THE FACE OF SOMEONE WHO'S LIVING THE HIGHLIFE TO YOU?!" Shouted the red-eyed lad, almost snarling like an angry dog. But he immediately regretted saying that. Katsuki wasn't only talented in the department of music. He was an extremely clever person, and despite his bad boy/bully attitude, he always had top grades. Always a step ahead of everyone. He could have applied to any university and get any scholarship he wanted. He could have become anything. And he still could! The real question was, what was holding him back?

"Forget what I said." Said Katsuki, before finishing the last drops of his beer. He stood up and tossed his can in a nearby trash before heading towards the door.

"I'm sorry." Apologized Izuku. "I didn't mean to upset you. I'll head home now."

The green-haired lad started to walk away, and Katsuki turned around. "Hey Deku." He called out stopping him in his tracks. "Next time, wear something that doesn't scream I have a job and cash, unless you want to get your ass kicked again."

Izuku smiled in response. "Alright, I will. See you Kacchan."

What did you think?