The girl next door….again
The final bell rings, and honestly… I’m exhausted. First day back at U.A. after two years away? Yeah, it took everything in me not to pass out during history.
Takumi stretches beside me as we pack our stuff. “Yo, ready to walk home?”
Before I can answer, Bakugou appears in the doorway, hands shoved in his pockets like always.
“Come on, extras. Let’s go before the streets get crowded.”
He says it like he’s annoyed, but he’s the one who waited for us.
We step out into the afternoon sun, and Mina bounces toward me immediately, her pink curls glowing.
“Y/N! Are you walking home now? Let me walk with you!” she beams, already looping her arm with mine.
Bakugou snorts. “Oi, Ashido, quit stealing her. She’s goin’ with us.”
Mina sticks her tongue out at him. “Well maybe she wants to walk with me, Ground Explosion Boy.”
I laugh quietly, and Takumi gives me a nudge. “She’s your friend, right? Go with her.”
So we split into two groups — Bakugou and my brother walking slightly ahead, arguing about some new combat game, while Mina and I trail behind.
She talks nonstop, but in a good way — laughing, telling me about the school drama I missed, about Kirishima’s failed attempt at cooking breakfast for everyone, about Denki almost shocking the vending machine again.
Then she glances at me, nudging my shoulder.
“Hey… how do you know Bakugou anyway? You two seem… familiar.”
I blink, not expecting the question so soon.
“Oh. Uh… childhood friends,” I mumble. “We lived in the same neighborhood before moving. Our parents know each other, so we kinda grew up together.”
Mina’s eyes widen. “WHAAAT? So you saw baby Bakugou?!”
“Unfortunately,” I deadpan, and she bursts out laughing.
By the time we reach my house, she’s already talking about hanging out more. We end up dragging her inside — my parents are surprised but happy — and the two of us head straight to my room.
For hours, we sit on my floor eating snacks, talking about everything from quirks to boys to random nonsense. Mina pulls out some nail polish at one point and ends up painting little stars on my hand
It feels… nice. Like slipping back into something normal.
Eventually she packs up to leave.
“I’ll pick you up in the morning!” she grins, throwing her backpack on. “We can walk together again!”
“Yeah,” I smile. “I’d like that.”
After Mina leaves, the house feels quieter… but in a good way. I clean up the leftover snacks in my room, then flop onto my bed for a moment just to breathe. It’s early evening, the sun already dipping orange behind the houses outside my window.
I remember the forms in my bag.
I hop off the bed and walk down the hallway to my parents’ room. They’re sitting on the bed together — my mom reading something on her phone, my dad folding laundry.
“Hey,” I say, holding out both mine and Takumi’s papers. “Um… these are dorm permission forms for this year. We don’t have to go, but… they asked us to bring these home. Only sign if you want to.”
My parents glance at each other, like they already knew this was coming. My dad takes the papers first.
“We’re okay with dorms,” he says. “You two are older now. If it helps your school life, then we’re fine with it.”
My mom signs her name under his.
“There. And if you need anything, you’ll call us. Promise.”
“I will,” I say, tucking the papers against my chest. “Thanks.”
I leave their room and close the door gently behind me.
A couple hours pass. I finish some unpacking, shower, and scroll through my phone until the house gets darker — that late-night stillness when you can hear the fridge humming and nothing else. My parents have already gone to bed, and the hallway lights are off except for the soft glow from the kitchen.
I wander downstairs for water, rubbing my eyes.
When I turn the corner into the kitchen, I freeze.
Bakugou is already there, sitting at the counter with a glass of water like he owns the place. He looks up when he hears me, eyebrows slightly raised.
“…the hell you doin’ up?” he mutters, not harsh — more like he’s trying not to wake anyone.
I blink. “You’re still here?”
“Tch. Your brother wouldn’t let me leave,” he says, rolling his eyes. “We were playing games and he crashed. Idiot fell asleep mid-match.”
I cover my mouth to stop a laugh and walk over.
“Yeah. He snores, by the way.”
We both end up sitting in the quiet kitchen, talking in low voices so we don’t wake the house. It starts with small stuff — school starting tomorrow, unpacking, America — but it slowly shifts into memories from when we were kids, moments I didn’t think he remembered.
At some point, the half hour mark passes without either of us noticing.
Then footsteps thump on the stairs.
Takumi appears, hair a mess, hoodie half-zipped. He squints at us.
“Dude,” he mumbles at Bakugou. “Why’re you still awake? C’mon, man, I set up another round. Let’s go before I pass out again.”
Bakugou scoffs but stands up, finishing the last sip of his water.
“Your brother’s hopeless,” he mutters to me before heading out of the kitchen.
I just shake my head and follow them out, the quiet house feeling warmer than before.
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