i like you a latte

Todoroki is bad at feelings, but at least he's good at making coffee.

A few weeks after moving into the UA dorms, Todoroki had his Class 1-A's coffee habits memorized.

He was sitting at his usual spot, that chair at the tall end of the kitchen counter, right next to the coffee machine and espresso maker. Todoroki wasn't usually the first one awake, but it was a Saturday, and most of Class 1-A was still in bed. He didn't mind the quiet or the solitude; he loved the early morning silence found just before the cacophony of the class.

Todoroki took another sip from his coffee mug as people started to trickle into the kitchen. It started with Iida, who drank at least three shots of espresso every morning.

"Good morning, Todoroki!"

"Three shots of espresso?" Todoroki was already moving to turn the espresso machine on.

Iida nodded stiffly, firmly pushing his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose.

After a minute passed in awkward silence, Todoroki handed him the finished drink. "Much appreciated, Todoroki!" Iida took a quick sip and whizzed by with his espresso, gone before Todoroki could open his mouth to respond.

He looked at the clock. It was 9:48 AM.

Kirishima and Bakugou showed up next. Todoroki was sure that he did a poor job of hiding his surprise at the sight of Kirishima wearing Bakugou's signature black tank top because Bakugou was glaring at him, his hands already curled into fists.

Kirishima waved lazily as he grabbed an apple from the basket of fruits on the counter. "Hey, man! Up pretty early today, huh? Good thing Aizawa-sensei didn't assign us too much homework, right?"

Bakugou's scowl deepened as Todoroki swallowed his coffee and nodded in agreement. "And our exam period is finally over, too. It's a peaceful weekend."

The duo was gone for their morning training session after a protein shake, a handful of fruit, and another casual exchange of pleasantries. Todoroki knew that Kirishima liked americanos because he considered them to be the "manliest" drink, but he only drank coffee when he needed to study. Bakugou secretly liked the milk foam in cappuccinos, but he'd never admit it.

Todoroki took another sip as the clock ticked. He waited. 9:52 AM.

The rest of his classmates passed through slowly, each giving him a smile or a nod or a greeting as they made their breakfasts. Tokoyami always drank steaming, black coffee (as dark as my soul, he claimed). Yaoyorozu wrinkled her nose at coffee and preferred to brew her own tea, an expensive loose leaf concoction. Satou liked something that the class has deemed "sugar with a side of coffee." Jirou liked to make her own cold brew, and she only drank "normal" coffee if Todoroki iced it beforehand. Aoyama used a French press exclusively with freshly ground coffee beans.

It was around ten o'clock in the morning (10:14 AM, not that Todoroki was keeping track) when Izuku entered the kitchen. Todoroki straightened up and set down his coffee mug so quickly that some liquid splashed over the side.

Izuku was yawning as he approached the counter, eyes squeezed shut. His hair seemed fluffier than usual, a result of bedhead from a good night's sleep, and Todoroki resisted the urge to reach over and run his hands through the green locks. He's just a friend.

After rubbing his eyes with hands wrapped in sweater paws, Izuku smiled sleepily. "Hi, Todoroki-kun." His voice was huskier in the mornings.

Todoroki ignored the fluttering in his stomach. "Good morning, Izuku," he responded in what he hoped was a perfectly level voice.

"It really is, isn't it?" Izuku peered out the window. "It's so nice to wake up to birds chirping instead of my alarm clock for once. I like Saturdays."

Todoroki liked Saturdays, too. For a different reason.

Izuku's eyes flicked to Todoroki's face, his coffee mug, back to his face. He blinked. "So it's a coffee day today."

"A coffee day?" Todoroki repeated dumbly, knowing that he was staring too hard at Izuku's hair, his hands, his freckles, his everything. He cleared his throat and looked away, flustered.

"Yeah, a coffee day! Sometimes you drink tea, right? You use a different cup for coffee. White for coffee, blue for tea." Izuku turned to the cabinet and leaned up, his sweater hiking up to reveal an inch of tan skin. "You use that cup a lot, so I've noticed."

Todoroki's chest felt warm. It must be the coffee, he told himself. He cleared his throat. "What about you? What are you having today?"

He wasn't looking at Izuku, but he could have sworn he heard the smile in Izuku's voice. "Hm, I think I'll have a latte today, Todoroki. One second - I'll grind some more coffee beans, it looks like we might be out after this."

Todoroki set down the coffee and got up. His hands moved automatically, turning the dial on the espresso machine and preparing to pull the espresso shot, and he tried to ignore just how much he enjoyed Izuku's company.

It felt unusually domestic, something unfamiliar to Todoroki before they'd moved into the dorms. He could imagine them doing this ten years in the future, both working as pro heroes by then, he and Izuku doing their daily morning routine before work. He would make lattes just the way he knew Izuku liked them, and Izuku would talk about whatever was on his mind. With Izuku scrambling some eggs next to him, the two of them alone in the dorm's small kitchen, Todoroki felt a strange swell of something in his heart. Appreciation, he told himself. I appreciate Izuku. As a friend. Or a roommate. We'd get along well if we lived together.

Todoroki opened the dishwasher to grab one of the All Might mugs that he knew was Izuku's favorite, the one that showed two different images of the hero depending on the temperature of the mug. "Everything in the dishwasher is clean, right?"

"Right, I think Uraraka ran the dishwasher last night. It should be clean." Izuku paused. "How'd you know I like that cup?"

Todoroki almost smiled. "You use this cup a lot, you know. I've noticed."

Izuku sputtered something, shook his head, and laughed. "Whatever you say, Todoroki-kun."

Todoroki steamed the milk to perfection and carefully streamed it into the All Might mug. He'd recently been trying his best to replicate latte art he'd seen online, something like a tulip or some other flower, secretly hoping that Izuku would like it.

He handed the mug to Izuku and felt his heartbeat pick up when their fingers brushed. It's the caffeine kicking in.

Izuku leaned forward to inhale the aroma of coffee, eyes closed. Todoroki felt himself staring intently and looked away as Izuku took a small sip at the rim of the mug.

"It's perfect as usual, Todoroki-kun. God, I love y-y-your lattes! I love your lattes, yeah! They're… very warm."

Todoroki took in the sight of Izuku with a small milk mustache and a warm smile and an embarrassed half-smile, and his heart melted. He wasn't sure he could blame it on caffeine any longer.

Their schedules had gotten busier as the semester continued on, and Todoroki noticed that he was only ever alone with Izuku in those precious few minutes around ten in the morning on Saturdays. He spent his week waiting for those times spent in the kitchen talking about everything and nothing at all. And while he appreciated the company of his classmates, he wished he had more time just with the green-eyed boy of his dreams.

It was the next Saturday morning when Izuku stumbled into the kitchen (10:09 AM, Todoroki noted). "Good morning, Todoroki."

"Good morning, Izuku." Todoroki replied as evenly as he could. He made an effort not to spill his drink, warm oolong tea from a blue cup. He wondered absentmindedly if Izuku would notice that he was drinking tea instead of coffee, but his thoughts were cut off when Uraraka burst into the kitchen.

"Izuku, you won't believe the dream I had last night. No, don't give me that worried look, it wasn't a nightmare at all. Actually, I won the lottery and then - Oh, hey, Todoroki! Almost didn't see you there." She wiggled her fingers at him in a greeting, and her pink finger pads caught the light. "Can Mr. Barista make me some coffee? Please?"

"Of course." Uraraka's coffee was simple. Two sugars, no creamer, he recited to himself. Two sugars, no creamer. Don't think about Izuku's voice or his hair or his face or his anything. Two sugars, no creamer.

"Tell me more about the dream you had." Izuku said, and Todoroki made the mistake of looking up into his smiling face. How many sugars did Uraraka like?

"Okay, so what happened was I won the lottery, and suddenly my parents are there, and somehow I give them all the money they need, but I'm still left with a ton of money, right? So I buy a meal for everyone in our class and we're all at this weird diner and all the waiters are pro-heroes."

The coffee that Todoroki was pouring into Uraraka's cup almost overflowed when he heard Izuku giggle at her story. "What, so you had Kamui Woods serving you food? Did he use his Quirk for it?"

"No, he was the guy who showed us to our table. Hey - quit laughing, I'm trying to talk!"

Izuku's laughter grew, and the coffee began boiling in Todoroki's hand. He cursed under his breath, set the boiling mug on the counter, tried his best to cool it down without attracting any attention, all while praying that Izuku hadn't seen his mistake.

"Where was I? Oh, right, so the Wild, Wild Pussycats were the chefs, and Aizawa-sensei was our waiter. It was so weird, he was definitely judging our orders when he took the menus from us. He was in a suit and everything - wow, thanks, Todoroki!" Uraraka drank, then sighed happily. "Yep, this coffee is what happiness tastes like."

Izuku locked eyes with Todoroki, mouthing the word "Latte?" as Uraraka continued to chatter. Todoroki nodded and turned on the espresso machine.

"So I was in your dream, too?" Izuku grabbed a clean cup from the cupboard and handed it to Todoroki. It was another All Might mug, this one showing a fanart printed onto a standard mug. Todoroki was worried that he found Izuku's preference for All Might mugs cute, because that was definitely not standard friend behavior.

"Yeah, you and the rest of Class 1-A. I don't remember what we ate or talked about, though. I think I was just thinking about the lottery." She paused thoughtfully, sipping her coffee. "Maybe pure happiness is winning the lottery and drinking Todoroki's coffee."

"What's so good about my coffee?" Todoroki asked. The machine hummed as espresso trickled into the cup.

"What's so good about your coffee?" Uraraka sounded incredulous. Her coffee cup began to levitate, and she hastily grabbed it out of the air. "What's so good about your coffee? It'd be better to ask what's not good about your coffee because the answer to that question would be absolutely nothing is wrong with your coffee. Your coffee is fantastic. Your coffee is more than fantastic, actually, it's life-changing. Your coffee is the reason why some of us get out of bed in the mornings, me included. If you weren't set on being a pro hero, you could save lives with your coffee."

Todoroki opened his mouth, then closed it. He didn't know where exactly this conversation was going, and he wasn't sure if he totally agreed with her sentiments.

She huffed and took another swig from her cup. "Izuku, please tell him how freaking amazing his coffee is."

Izuku brought his hand to his chin and started to do that muttering thing Todoroki found too endearing for his own good. "Well, you know how to use an espresso machine. I don't think anyone but you, Kacchan, and maybe Ojiro knows how to properly use it, and Kaminari doesn't count because his Quirk messes with the taste of the coffee. You also have a broad knowledge of a wide variety of espresso-based drinks, and you have the skill and dexterity to create the drinks while maintaining the aesthetic of each one. Your observant nature allows you to easily judge the optimal drink and flavor profile for everyone, so people prefer your coffee because it aligns with their tastes. And your Quirk allows you to get the ideal temperature for every cup of coffee, an underrated but significant aspect of the coffee-drinking experience."

Uraraka was nodding furiously. Todoroki finished off the latte art on the All Might mug and wordlessly passed it to Izuku.

Uraraka downed the last of the coffee and licked her lips. ""That's why your coffee is so good, Todoroki! It's personalized, and it's always the perfect temperature." She glanced at Izuku's full mug and raised an eyebrow. "And you can even make latte art! You're born to be a barista."

"It's just something I saw online, it's not art." Todoroki wiped the steam wand of the espresso machine with a dishcloth.

"No, it really is art! Hey, Izuku, look at your cup. Isn't that latte art?"

Todoroki sighed and tossed the dishcloth towards the counter. "It's supposed to be a tulip or a fern, but it always turns out odd. I need some more practice."

"Nah, that's not a tulip." Uraraka was grinning as she and Izuku exchanged a glance, and Todoroki wasn't quite sure why. "At least, Izuku here might not think so."

"Hey, Todoroki! Izuku asked me if you could make him a latte."

It was 9:50 in the morning on Saturday, and Kirishima was chatting with him as he fried an egg. Today was a coffee day for Todoroki, who sat in his usual spot.

Kirishima expertly flipped the fried egg with the spatula, and it sizzled on the pan. "He and Katsu - uh, Bakugou are in the gym right now. I think they're sparring. Anyway, he asked me if I could bring one for him because I'm headed to the gym after this."

Todoroki ignored the sinking feeling of disappointment as he went through the familiar motions of making a latte. So Izuku wasn't going to show up today. "I see," he said, trying to force his expression to be neutral.

"Y'know, I don't even think I know what a latte really is. Ka - I mean, Bakugou likes those drinks with the foam on top. I can't remember the name, but the last time we went to a cafe - uh, to study, yeah - he got one of those things with foam. Are those anything like lattes? Maybe?"

"They're very similar." Todoroki said, pouring the steamed milk into the coffee cup. He wondered absently when he had become such an expert at making lattes. Because Izuku likes them. "Here's the latte, Kirishima."

"Awesome, thanks." Kirishima said, turning the stove off. "Damn, there's even that design on top! I've been seeing it online so much, but it looks better in real life."

Todoroki gently pushed the latte to Kirishima, wondering how he could make up an excuse to go to the gym that morning without looking suspicious or awkward. "Uraraka calls it latte art," he said.

"Nice. I like the hearts - very manly."

"The what?"

"I said I liked the hearts, I like how manly they look."

"I - you... like what?"

Kirishima was frowning a little as he held the mug. "Well, you might disagree, and I know a lot of people think that they aren't, you know, the typical shape associated with masculinity and manliness but I think they're great and -"

"Wait, no, not that part." Todoroki wondered if a human brain could short circuit. He noticed his hand was beginning to smoke, and he hid it hastily behind his back. "What were you saying about hearts?"

Kirishima shifted. "The latte art looks like hearts, right? Isn't that supposed to be the point of latte art?"

The latte art looks like hearts. "Uh." Todoroki looked at the mug, then back to Kirishima's expectant face. "I'm not sure."

"Even if they're not supposed to be hearts, they should be hearts, because they look spot on, bro. You could make them on Valentine's Day or something, all your fangirls would go crazy." Kirishima glanced at the clock and made a face. "I gotta go. Thanks again, Todoroki."

Todoroki nodded absently. "You're welcome." And then, "Please say hello to Izuku for me."

"I will! See you later, bro!"

Hearts.

Subsequent Saturdays continued as usual - sometimes Izuku slept in and showed up around 10 o'clock, with his messy hair and bleary eyes and gravelly voice, and sometimes Izuku went to the library to study or the gym to train or visited his mother back at home.

And yes, maybe Todoroki had tried to predict his schedule from time to time, just so he could spend a little more time in the kitchen with Izuku. That was standard friend behavior, right?

He hadn't brought up the hearts in the latte art since he'd heard about it from Kirishima, and neither had Izuku. He'd looked online for other latte art patterns and shapes, but Izuku has complimented his current latte art so much that Todoroki wasn't sure he wanted to change the hearts.

So they stayed, those steamed milk wisps taunting Todoroki every time he handed the cup to Izuku.

"Hey, Izuku, isn't it cute how Todoroki makes you a latte every morning?"

"It's only on Saturday mornings, Ochako. Not every morning."

"Okay, but still. It's cute. Especially the hearts."

"He said they're tulips."

"No, they're definitely hearts. Tenya, back me up here. Aren't they hearts?"

"I agree with Uraraka. I believe that they are indeed hearts, Izuku."

"They might look like hearts, but they're intended to be tulips. Todoroki-kun said that they were tulips, Tenya. Ochako, stop giving me that look!"

"You know, you seem to care an awful lot about these tulips."

"Of course I care. Why on earth would Todoroki-kun be giving me hearts?"

Todoroki hit the unexpected milestone of making everyone in Class 1-A coffee a few months later, when they happened to be lounging around in the dorms on a Saturday morning.

"Hey," Kaminari said, looking at Todoroki. "I wanna know what a latte tastes like."

There were some murmurs of affirmation among the classmates.

"Midoriya never lets anyone share his lattes, which is super weird because Midoriya usually shares everything," Ashido complained.

"Todoroki, make us some lattes! One for everyone!" Kaminari started chanting, "Lattes! Lattes! Lattes!"

The conversation devolved as more and more of his classmates asked for Todoroki to make them coffee. So, unable to refuse, he found himself in the kitchen holding nineteen mugs, an empty bag of coffee beans, and two empty cartons of 2% milk.

"Drinks are ready," he called into the living room.

Chaos ensued.

"Damn, this is delicious."

"The color is so pretty!"

"Hey, hand me one."

"I've been missing out, holy shit."

"Normal coffee tastes like ass compared to this."

"Thanks for making this one iced, Todoroki."

"Man, Todoroki is some real husband material."

"This coffee isn't all that fuckin' great. I could do better."

"When did Todoroki become a barista?"

"So Midoriya gets to drink this every single week? I think I'm jealous."

"Can I have another one?"

"I'm in heaven."

"I told you - Todoroki's coffee tastes like happiness."

"Hey, Todoroki, where's the latte art?" Kirishima gestured to his mug, his tone curious. "I thought you knew how to make hearts or something."

Todoroki's eyes met Izuku's. He turned back to Kirishima. "Yes, I know how to make hearts."

"Aw, no hearts for us? I guess it's probably too much to ask you to make nineteen cups of latte art, huh."

"Fuckin' Deku got hearts," Bakugou growled.

Silence.

"Ah, they're, uh, tulips." Izuku explained hastily, rubbing the back of his head and laughing awkwardly. "Not hearts. I told him I like the tulips, so I guess he made them for mine."

"They're hearts," Todoroki said quietly, not looking at Izuku. "Yours has hearts. I only make those for you."

Izuku was blushing, and Todoroki hadn't seen anything cuter than the combination of his freckles and pink cheeks. "I - uh - what do you mean by that, Todoroki-kun?

Eighteen pairs of eyes were staring at Todoroki and Izuku. A wicked grin was forming on Uraraka's face, and Kirishima was smiling. Todoroki could feel the counter on which he was leaning turn warmer.

Izuku was still blushing, but now he was looking at Todoroki with a gleam in his eyes that looked almost like happiness, and Todoroki knew that he'd go through the embarrassment of Class 1-A gawking at him just to see that expression again.

"I just like seeing your expression when you look at the hearts. Which is why I only make them for you. And hearts are special, just for you, because you're special to me. That's all." he said, feeling disconnected from his voice and body and weirdly numb and fuck, he was definitely icing over the floow now, and his other hand was going to leave a charred handprint on the counter, but he couuldn't think straight and Izuku was looking at him and his classmates were murmuring and he wanted to disappear but also proclaim everything he loved about Izuku right there in front of everyone.

Instead, he made a beeline for the door with a quiet "Good night, everyone."

In the safety of his room, Todoroki lied face down in his futon for a few minutes, cursing himself but mostly replaying the surprised look on Izuku's face,fervently wishing that he hadn't mistaken that gleam in Izuku's green eyes as something as other than hope.

"What the fuck just happened?"

"I think Todoroki just confessed. That was a confession, right?"

"Oh dear, Izuku-chan, do you need to sit down?"

"Todoroki likes Midoriya, oh my god."

"Of course Todoroki likes Midoriya. Everyone likes Midoriya."

"No, no, it's like like. It's different."

"Wait, I thought they were already dating."

"Well, they might be now."

"Another class couple! Bakugou and Kirishima won't be the only ones anymore."

"Shut the fuck up, nerd! You don't know anything!"

"Guys, this is about Midoriya. Katsuki, babe, calm down."

"Please, Kirishima, never call Bakugou 'babe' in front of anyone ever again."

"You're just fuckin' jealous because you can't-"

"Oh my god, Midoriya looks like he isn't breathing."

"Izuku?" Uraraka tapped his shoulder. "You okay there?"

Izuku nodded over and over again, setting down his All Might mug and avoiding the gaze of the other eighteen teenagers. "I'm okay. I am so okay. I'm the most okay I have ever been, ever. And I'm just gonna, um, go see Todoroki and make sure that he is also very okay. Because that's what friends do! They check up on each other to make sure they're okay."

"Uh-huh," Uraraka said knowingly. "Friends."

"Friends," echoed Izuku.

There was a knock on the door, so soft that Todoroki thought he had been hearing things. He sat up and saw the shadow of shoes in the crack beneath his door.

Another rap of knuckles followed, slightly more insistent the second time, and a voice: "H-hi, Todoroki-kun. Can I - can I please come in?"

It was Izuku. Izuku, the boy for whom Todoroki had practically confessed his love in front of their entire class was standing outside his room. Oh, God.

Todorok's heart was already quickening as he glanced at the mess he'd made in his room. He had childishly lost control of his Quirk because he childishly didn't know how to Deal With Emotions. He took off his shirt, rummaging through his closet for something that wasn't simultaneously wet and burned.

"Todoroki-kun? Are you in there?"

"I'm here," he said, struggling to tug a shirt over his head.

Todoroki heard the whine of rusty hinges as the door opened, a quick intake of breath, and a high-pitched squeak. The door slammed shut.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't realize you weren't wearing - I mean, I didn't realize you were changing and I'm sorry and I didn't do that on purpose. I'm sorry."

Todoroki opened the door and looked at Izuku, who was trying to shield his reddening face. "Nothing to worry about," he said, hoping that he didn't look as awkward as he felt. "Come on in, Midoriya."

Neither of them mentioned the icy water or burn marks on the floor.

Todoroki sat down on the futon and tried to ignore the wetness of his socks. "You can sit there," he said, preparing to gesture to his desk just as Izuku sat down by him.

They were sitting so close that Todoroki could feel the heat radiating from Izuku, and he could smell the scent of his fabric softener. Inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth. Control yourself. He's just a friend.

"So, um, I was wondering about what you said earlier?" Izuku wasn't looking at him. "Ah, I mean, I just wanted to know what you meant when you said, um, that I'm special to you."

Todoroki blanked. "A special friend."

"Oh." He could see Izuku wringing his scarred fingers together. "I - okay. Yeah. A friend."

Todoroki resisted the urge to hold Izuku's hand. "No, wait, that's not what I meant."

Izuku was still wringing his hands together, staring down at the puddle of ice on the futon.

Todoroki steeled himself for the inevitable rejection, the awkward letdown, and the loss of the comfortable banter he'd shared with Izuku. He took a deep breath. "I meant that you're special to me because - yes, we're friends, you're the first real friend I ever had. But it's more than that."

He was leaning towards Izuku, and Izuku was leaning towards him and looking at him with those green eyes, and he could almost feel the warmth of Izuku's shallow breaths on his face. Todoroki could feel the hope in his heart swelling until he felt like he was bursting with love for this boy who had completely changed his life.

"Todoroki-kun," Izuku whispered. "can I call you Shouto?"

Todoroki shivered. "Of course," he said, "Izuku."

And Izuku was biting his lips with that gleam of hope in his eyes, and Todoroki was trying not to stare and scare away the one real friend he had, the first real friend he'd made at UA.

"Shouto," Izuku leaned in until their foreheads were touching, and Todoroki tried his best to regulate his temperature to be normal. "I think I like you too much to just be friends with you."

Todoroki's jaw dropped a little. He blinked, looked at Izuku's eyes, and his freckles, and lower, to his lips, which were shiny and pink from biting them earlier, and he really wanted to kiss him.

Izuku slowly reached for Todoroki's hand and closed his eyes just as the door broke down and Class 1-A tumbled into Todoroki's room.

"Two class couples!"

"I knew this was a bad idea, look at their faces."

"Were they about to kiss?!"

"Leave them alone! Let them have their privacy!"

"Boyfriend! He said boyfriend!"

"Bro, they just confessed to each other. It took me and Katsuki, like three months to get to boyfriend stage."

"No offense, Kirishima, but literally no one cares."

"Oh my, they're holding hands."

"Hey, I guess you could say that Todoroki likes Midoriya a latte. Get it? It's a pun!"

"Kaminari, make one more pun and I'm never speaking to you again."

"Boyfriends!"

"Todoroki's fangirls are going to be so upset when they find out he's gay and taken, holy shit."

"I feel like a proud mom. I think I'm gonna cry. Someone give me a tissue."

"Todoroki, I think your ice might be causing water damage to the floor…"

Todoroki's jaw was still hanging open when Izuku stood up and waved them out of the room, his ears the color of Todoroki's hair.

"You're my boyfriend," Todoroki whispered.

Izuku flushed. "Is that okay with you?"

"More than okay."

It was 10:24 on a Saturday morning, and Todoroki was still holding Midoriya's hand. He didn't plan on letting go.