Katsuki Bakugo's POV

I don't know how but I was talked into going to a bar.

Not that I'm against going to a bar, but unless it is for work I typically avoid them, drinking was never my thing, I hate not feeling in control.

The window felt cool against my face as I let myself slouch against it, watching the city lights fade in and out of view.

"Oy, Katsuki, you even listen'n?"

Sitting next to me, energy spilling out of every pore like he had just woke up from a great nap, Kirishima was telling me about his day extensively. Every detail of who and what and why. I typically would ignore him, just giving him a nod or some sort of grunt at the right time, but I guess I missed my queue.

I still kept my eyes out of the window, noticing us getting further and further away from familiar territory. The thought of not being in a place I knew made me even more uncomfortable.

Even though I was late, I let out some sort of disapproving grunt, hoping this was the response the rowdy city cop wanted.

Eijiro Kirishima and I had been friends since high school.

To be honest I don't really remember how be became friends but it just sort of happened. It probably went along the lines of him bothering me all the time and I finally gave in.

Not much had changed since then.

After you know someone for so long you get to learn about all their little ticks and tricks, and I just happen to know that Kirishima LOVED to talk about his day after being on the field.

Several years ago he graduated the police academy and quickly found a job at our local police department. You can't help but admire his passion for the job, though. It was a manly career.

Ironically I worked alongside the same department he did, so I got to experience his high energy most of the day.

"I can't believe the chief even assigned me to that job!" Eijiro continued his story from before. I guess my response was good enough.

"Anyway, you've been more moody than normal. What's going on, man?"

Ugh. I hated when he asked about my day.

Finally I straightened my back and allowed my face to turn to my friend, I could barely make out his features in the dark taxi but the lights of the city were enough for me to see his curious expression.

"I finally got a interesting case." I sighed out, looking back out the window to show him I was not interested in continuing this topic.

I worked as a private investigator. It isn't as cool as it sounds, trust me.

Most of the cases I work on are for divorce court, which gets old and ugly quick. There is a lot of money in divorce court, though, so it would be dumb not to accept what I could get.

Occasionally I would get a stalker case, or maybe a business having issue with co workers harassing one another but that was as extreme as things go.

Today I finally got a case that just screamed this is IT.

At first glance it was just a robbery, which the police already had their hands on, but there was more to it then that.

This robbery linked to another one, and looking even further it linked to another.

No suspects found, no one caught, no clues.

"That's great, dude! You've been really bored lately, haven't you?" Kirishima smiled, his focus was going between me and our surroundings, trying to figure out if we were close to our destination.

"Sure." I shrugged, shifting my body so I was turned away more.

I didn't want to talk about the case any further.

"We are here." The taxi driver spoke up, saving me from further questioning, his eyes glancing back at us through the rearview mirror.

As we made our way into the bar I tried to take note of the street names and landmarks around us. You never know when shit hits the fan.

Kirishima swore that I'd like this place, not giving me any reasons why.

Looking back over his shoulder, Kirishima jerked his head in the direction of a dim lit building, the smell of booze and smoke seeping out.

There was a sign reading simply reading "Bar" on top of a rather detailed wood door. Ah, very descriptive. This place got worse and worse the closer we walked toward it.

Opening the door caused the smells to wash over us like a tidal wave, the sound of people talking in different volumes over the noise of a piano playing shook our eardrums.

"Damn! Let's get a drink!" Kirishima shouted at me, walking into the building and making his way to where the drinks were being served.

Upon stepping into the abrasive atmosphere I was able to completely address the state of the bar.

The floors were an old dark wood, with every step we took a tapping sound was to follow. The walls were a dark green with elegant white trim, some sort of gold detailing could hardly be made out along the walls. There were chairs and tables littering the floor in a disorganized manner, all made out of similar wood to the floor, most of them occupied by small groups of patrons who kept to themselves.

Further down was a large, beautiful, black grand piano that sat upon a small stage. The person responsible for the cheerful song was a dark haired man, much older then Kirishima and I.

"You got to admit it is nicer than the ones close to home." Kirishima was referring to our local bars, which were much smaller and not in the best shape due to years of abuse and hardly any upkeep.

"Well, it is definitely more roomy." I muttered, hands stuck into my pockets as fists, refusing to acknowledge that the aesthetic was pleasing. It reminded me much of what you'd see in movies that took place in old timey American films.

My gaze landed on the furthest parts of the bar, several pool tables with low lights caught my attention.

Okay, that was kinda cool.

Kirishima must have noticed where my attention was directed because he laughed and said, "Want to play a round?"

Again, I shrugged nonchalantly, "If you want to get your ass beat."

This seemed to tickle him because he laughed even louder, motioning his hand toward the bartender, "Let's get a drink first."

Kirishima bought us both a shot of whisky.

I told him before we got here that I wouldn't drink too much, he knew my standing on getting intoxicated, but heI insisted we at least take on shot together to celebrate my newest case.

After shooting back the burning liquid, we slammed down our shot glasses in unison and turned our attention to the only pool table that wasn't occupied.

I honestly don't remember the last time I played pool, but I'm sure I could still beat Kirishima without breaking a sweat, especially if he planned on drinking more.

The young cop rushed past me, excited, grabbing two sticks that seemed to match our height and tossing one to me.

It took him a couple seconds to figure it out but after googling it on his smart phone Kirishima gathered all of the balls and placed them into a triangle shape, one hand still awkwardly holding onto his cue stick.

"Let's just play eight-ball. I want stripes!" Announcing the game we were going to play and claiming his suite I quickly made my way over to him to knock him in the head with my own cue but Kirishima expertly dodged it. I hated when he just decided to do whatever he wanted on the spot.

"Fine fine, you can go first." Kirishima chuckled, moving to the side as he handed me a off-white cue ball.

"Tsk" I shot out, snatching the offering from him with as mean of a look on my face as I could muster, walking to the end of the table.

Leaning forward I placed the cue ball on the soft tabletop, lining it up with the tip of the triangle of balls. Just as I was about to make my first move I heard the voice of Kirishima addressing someone.

I stood up straight, my eyes resting on two people who were positioned right in front of Kirishima. Annoyed that our competition was brought to a pause, I walked over to the small group, wanting to show my displeasure and pull Kirishima's attention back to getting his ass kicked.

"Oh! We haven't started yet so if you want. . . "

Wait, was that fucker about to offer up our table? I felt my grip tighten on the cue stick, still holding onto it as I had made my way over.

Once I had made my way over I could make out the other two strangers.

One of them was a short brunette wearing a short yellow dress that fit her like a glove, hugging her curvy figure, two big brown eyes curved up with her smile. She was definitely a cute girl . . . Kirishima was a sucker for cuties like her. I couldn't help myself from rolling my eyes at this thought. Our game was going to be ruined because Kirishima couldn't stop being a dog for two seconds.

Next to the round face girl was a male.

For some reason the grip on my cue stick got so tight my knuckles began to turn white.

The first thing I noticed were his large green eyes.

Underneath those saucers were cheeks peppered in freckles.

It was hard to tell in the lighting but his hair looked almost dark green, a messy mop of hair on his head.

His body was constricted under a button-up white shirt and dress pants, showing off a very svelte but seemingly muscular figure.

They must have been a young couple on a date. Pool wasn't the most romantic thing to do on a date but I guess I could give credit for wanting to do something other than going out to movies or sitting awkwardly at a dinner table.

"If you want you two can go against the two of us?" Kirishima's voice brought me out of my thoughtful haze, attention now on the situation. I made a noise of disapproval that only Kirishima could hear.

I didn't come to some random bar to play pool with fucking strangers. I deal with enough annoying couples as it is. Give it two years and these two love birds would be throwing chairs and tables at each other.

"That sounds like fun, actually!" The voice obviously belonged to the female, obnoxiously high and disturbingly optimistic. The girl turned her gaze off of Kirishima and towards her partner, "A game won't take too long, that should put us right on time."

My eyes narrowed, at least it sounded like they wouldn't stay too long. My friend had obligated us to play a game with two strangers but at least they would be out the door after one round.

"I don't see why not." The male smiled in response to her, cocking his head to the side. He looked like a fucking baby. A baby I wanted to punch.

I let Kirishima help the couple get situated, standing off to the side and watching the other groups playing pool, leaning against my cue stick.

I can't believe this guy. Everywhere we went he always had to be a nice guy. Why did he have to invite them? I didn't want to watch some couple make goo-goo eyes at one another while I tried to actually play a decent game of pool.

I felt eyes on me, at first I thought it was Kirishima but when I turned to make a unhappy face my gaze was met by the green eyed stranger. We looked at one another in silence, I felt myself shift my weight, from one foot to another. What the fuck was this guy's problem?

I was about to make some smart ass comment before I heard "Come on, Katsuki."

Whatever.

The sooner we get this game over the sooner this baby faced mother fucker can leave.

I walked over to my now pool partner, who I was still visibly pissed at. I knew Kirishima wasn't going to take this game seriously now so why should I?

"Um, my name is Kirishima, by the way." Eijiro motioned the hand not holding a pool cue to himself before waving it to me saying, "This charmer Bakugo."

I easily could have snapped the pool cue in half and stabbed Eijiro in the throat. Smart ass. I didn't want these people to know my name. I don't give a fuck about them.

"Nice to meet you two!" The girl bowed her head holding a hand to her chest, "My name is Uraraka and this is my coworker Midoriya."

Wait. Coworker? Damnit. Now Kirishima would open the flood gates of flirt attempts.

Well, I guess my assumption was wrong. These two were definitely close for coworkers though. Just the way they walked closely to one another and matched movements. Maybe they just hadn't figured out they liked one another yet. Not that I cared.

Uraraka made the first move, the move to set everything in motion.

She didn't hit very hard because the balls hardly shifted from their spots on the table.

I rolled my eyes.

I shoved Eijiro toward the table first, I hope he embersses himself in front of her like he always does with women.

It must have been established we were strips (big shocker) because he made a move that would put us in a better advantage. The longer I looked at the table though the more I noticed there was a million other moves that would have got us points but I knew the fucker was batting his eyelashes to Uraraka.

"Just because they are co workers doesn't mean she isn't taken." I whispered to him, as much as I enjoyed watching this disaster I didn't want to ruin our chances of winning.

"Well she hasn't dropped any hints she isn't interested." I wish I could pour cold water on this fool.

Midoriya stepped forward, swiftly placing his cue stick in line with the cue ball and in the blink of an eye landing two solid balls into one of the six pockets.

This mother fucker.

My mood was getting worse by the minute.

Even if Kirishima and little miss cutie pie weren't going to take this game seriously I WAS.

I looked over the table before making my move, I wanted to get as many points as I could get.

Once I finally managed to execute my action two strip balls fell into pockets of their own.

Hah, take that.

"So, what do you two do for work?"

Ugh, here comes Kirishima with the small talk. I don't want to play nice with these guys, I just want to win this game and get this whole things over with.

"Oh, um." It seemed like Uraraka lost her words, she made a uncomfortable glance to Midoriya before walking over to the table and making her move.

"We work in IT, boring desk jobs." Midoriya smiled, it seemed he was making a point to make eye contact with me again. The sound of the Uraraka's move brought our eyes back to the game.

"What do you do, Kirishima?" After her move Uraraka gave my partner a cute smile, it almost seemed like she was ignoring me.

"Well, I'm a police officer!" Yeah yeah, Kirishima, we get it, you love your job.

"Wow, how cool! Your job must be so exciting. How manly!"

If I wasn't sure Kirishima wanted to bone Uraraka by now then this is what topped the cake.

With this statement though, I felt myself grow more and more suspicious. Something wasn't right about these two.

"What do you do, Bakugo?" Uraraka turned her cute little smile toward me, trying to turn her charm in my direction.

Kirishima opened his mouth to answer for me but I held up a finger to silence him.

"That is none of your business." Was my only response.

Eijiro's mouth hung open at how brash my response must have been.

It seemed my response amused Midoriya though, because he chuckled.

Uraraka looked between her partner and me, confused and unsure of how to respond.

To break the silence Kirishima laughed awkwardly and made his move, "Hey Uraraka. Wanna come with me to buy shots for everyone?"

I didn't want another shot. My mood was sour to begin with, drinking wasn't going to improve the situation.

To my surprise Uraraka nodded and walked to Kirishima's side, glancing over at Midoriya before they both walked off.

As they walked away Midoriya nodded his head and made his move, placing another solid ball in a pocket.

Returning the silence I made my move, which ended up placing two of our striped balls. I couldn't help the smirk from coming to my face. As long as we kept winning maybe my mood would improve.

Of course, now that the two of us had made our moves we had to wait.

God damnit Kirishima.

I turned my back toward the table and Midoriya, trying to show my lack of interest in engaging in any sort of conversation.

But wait. Maybe I should try and small talk this guy. It was obvious they were up to something. Even if it had nothing to do with my current case I couldn't help but feel like maybe if I was nosey I may get some juicy information.

On my heels I turned back around to face Midoriya, who was watching the gentleman on the piano was a small smile on his face.

"So what do you do in IT, Midoriya?" I spoke up, walking toward the other end of the pool table where Midoriya was leaning.

The other male turned his attention back to me, a look of shock crossed his face before covering it back up with a smile, "Oh, just costumer service." Was his only response.

Midoriya was a head shorter then me, so I had to adjust my neck so I could look at him square in the face. I guess if I wanted to get information I would need to give some, huh?

"You seem like you know how to play better than your partner." I changed the subject, not wanting anything directed to me.

Midoriya hadn't taken his eyes off me, "She isn't very competitive." Was his only response.

I wasn't getting anywhere with this guy.

Reluctantly I spoke up again, "I am a investigator."

Midoriya seemed to perk up at this, and immediately I regretted saying it.

"Now that is a pretty cool job." He was holding the pool cue with both hands now, his rear leaning up against the pool table, looking at me with those big eyes, "So , what is the case?" Was this little fucker playing with me? I felt one of my eyes twitch.

Midoriya placed a hand to cover his mouth from bursting into laughter, I could see the edges of his mouth in a smile. That may have been the first time this fucker actually had a genuine smile all night.

((I told myself to finish one fan fiction before starting another but I was too excited to wait! Thank you so much for all of your support and I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I did writing it!))