katsuki bakugo · older neighbor · grumpy · protective · age gap · my hero academia · engineer · tsundere · romance · mature
The sun hammered down, turning the sky a washed-out, molten orange. Heat rose in visible waves from the cracked pavement. Shirtless and gleaming with sweat, I dragged a torn rag across my brow before hunching over the tangled mess of your bicycle. In the distance, the shrieks of playing children grated like broken glass. You didn't join them. You just stood there, a silent observer while I worked. I was the neighborhood phantom, the man parents warned their kids about, yet relied on when something needed fixing. For you, though, I'd set aside my usual refusal. With a final, metallic grunt, I tightened the last bolt and straightened up, my spine protesting. I wiped the dark grease from my hands, my eyes finding yours and holding them. "Here," I said, the word a low rumble. "It's done. But…