Izuku Midoriya thought he knew what pain was. He'd shattered his arms and legs more times than he could count, but nothing could have prepared him for the kind of pain he was experiencing that moment. He doubted anything could have prepared him for the jolting shock he'd experienced. He lay on his bed in the dark room, eyes red from crying. His eyes were dry now, but only because he didn't have the energy to cry anymore. He hadn't left since he had dashed in and collapsed on the bed several hours before, his clothes damp from rain and his face wet with tears.

A knock came at his door. "It's open," he managed to croak. The door swung open, and a familiar shock of red hair poked in.

"Yo, Midoriya? You okay?" Kirishima asked. "You haven't been out of your room all day and the others wanna know if you're all right."

Izuku shook his head. Kirishima frowned. "Oh yeah? What's wrong, then?"

Izuku raised his arm weakly, pointing to the window. Kirishima peered out into the sheets of rain hammering the school grounds, his eyes squinting as he struggled to see anything through the deluge. "What do you just hate rain or something? Because I don't see anythi- Oh… oh." He started. Just barely visible through the downpour was a familiar brown bob cut sheltered under the awning of the next building over. It was Uraraka. And her fingers were interlaced with Bakugo's.

Kirishima frowned. "What the hell? That doesn't even make any sense. Are you sure they're actually-"

"Yeah," Izuku groaned. "I asked."

Kirishima winced. "Ouch, buddy. At least you managed to keep it together until you got back here, right?" Izuku nodded. "Well, I can't say know how you're feeling," Kirishima said, "but I'm sorry, dude. Any idea who asked who?"

Izuku shook his head.

Kirishima sat down on the bed beside Izuku. "Damn, I'm really sorry. Although, I gotta say, those two are the last two people I expected to, y'know, get together."

Izuku nodded. "Me too," he muttered. "Me too."

XXX

Izuku thought the pain would go away after the initial shock, like it did with his injuries from One for All.

He was wrong. He felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his chest every time the two of them walked past. Bakugo's personality had mellowed out the slightest bit over the past few days, but Izuku would give anything to get the old Bakugo back, for what it entailed. Kirishima had been a blessing, giving him someone to open up to. He had even agreed to keep what was troubling him from the other students.

He flopped down on his bed, his hero notebook in his hands. Flipping through it helped him relax. He thumbed through the pages until he came across a page he hadn't gone over in a while. The battered, slightly burned notebook felt comfortable and familiar in his hands. He finished the page and flipped through to another, but froze after the pages fell open on a certain page. It was Bakugo's page, slam full of information all about the young hero. His name, his quirk, his abilities, everything.

But there was one blank category. There was a line that read, "Relations: None". He never knew why he included that tab, as there were so few heroes where he could actually fill the line out with any info other than "None". His insistence on detail was a small, but painful jab. He pulled a pencil out of his pocket, erasing the line and rewriting it.

Relations: Uraraka Ochaco.

He closed the notebook and placed it on the bed beside him. Another source of joy that was now a stinging reminder. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, remembering what Kirishima had said earlier.

"I don't get it, man. Those two are like, totally incompatible," Kirishima said, scratching the back of his neck.

"That's what I thought," Izuku said, sighing.

"Yeah," Kirishima said, "and you two were basically perfect for each other. It really is super strange. I guess perfect is a myth, man."

"I guess so," Izuku muttered.

"But, hey!" Kirishima exclaimed. "Bakugo's bound to screw this up, right? You still got a chance, champ!"

Izuku laughed weakly at the redhead's attempt to cheer him up. It wasn't much, but he knew Kirishima was doing his best to help. He appreciated that.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, Kirishima," Izuku muttered. "Perfect is a myth."

Izuku's thoughts snapped back to the present as his door creaked open and Kirishima stepped in, holding a large white box. He set the box on Izuku's desk and leaned back against the door, closing it.

"How's it going, Midoriya?"

Izuku sighed. "It's going."

Kirishima chuckled. "Good to see you aren't crying at least. And the rain finally stopped after a few days, too. Cupcake?" He asked, gesturing to the box he'd brought in. "Sato made them. He and Todoroki kinda guessed what was up."

Izuku smiled weakly, taking the white frosted cupcake that Kirishima held out. "I figured Todoroki would figure it out. Can't keep much from him." He took a bite of the cupcake. It was delicious, as all of Sato's treats were.

"Hey, listen, man," Kirishima said, swallowing his own mouthful of cupcake, "I know it sucks and all, but you've got a ton of friends here. It isn't the end of the world. The sun's still shining, after all," he finished, waving his hand towards the open window. "Now, why don't you come down and we can share those cupcakes with everyone in the lobby before they claim we're hoarding all of Sato's desserts?"

Izuku sat up and nodded. Kirishima was right. It still hurt, but not as much. He may have lost one battle, but he'd won so many others. He thought of all his friends; All Might, Iida, Todoroki, and so many more. And it wasn't like Uraraka would stop being his friend out of the blue. He looked out at the puddles of rain from the drying in the sunshine, grabbed the box of cupcakes, and followed Kirishima out the door.

XXX

Ochaco was worried. She was worried about Izuku in particular. He and Kirishima had brought down a batch of Sato's cupcakes, and the whole class had been able to relax for an afternoon. It had been fun, but the entire time she could see something wasn't quite right with Izuku. His smile seemed to be genuine, but there was a certain look in his eyes. Uneasiness? Discomfort? Pain? She couldn't quite put her finger on it.

As most everyone had excused themselves and the sun was slipping below the horizon, the only ones remaining in the dorm lobby were Todoroki, Sato, and her. Sato was busy cleaning up his baking supplies in the dorm's spacious kitchen, and Todoroki was relaxing with a large book in his hand. Ochaco took a breath and stood up, taking a step towards the stairs. She had decided that she would go to Izuku's room and wouldn't go away until he told her what was bothering him. She liked him too much to see him so troubled. Of course, she liked Bakugo, too. Ever since the sports festival he'd started to grow on her. Boys were hard, but by some strange twist of fate, Bakugo had approached her. She couldn't say she liked Bakugo more than Izuku, but Bakugo had approached her first.

However, she was barely halfway to the stairs when Todoroki said, "I wouldn't."

"Huh?" Ochaco asked.

"I said I wouldn't if I were you. You were going to go talk to Midoriya, weren't you?" Todoroki asked, looking up from his book.

Ochaco nodded. "I noticed something was bothering him. I figured I'd ask him about it."

Todoroki was silent for a moment. "I don't think you'll be much help with this problem. This is one Midoriya will have to come to terms with himself," he said, returning to his book. "I suggest you drop it."

Ochaco frowned. "I don't think-"

"He's right, Uraraka," Sato said, having emerged from the kitchen. "Midoriya is a tough kid. He'll be fine. Trust us on this one."

Ochaco's frown deepened. "What are you guys talking about…"

Todoroki shut his book. "Trust us."

Ochaco sighed and sat back down. "Fine. You guys win. But if he's not fine by tomorrow night, I'm asking him about it."

Sato shrugged. "Go ahead. I'm sure he'll be fine by then."

Ochaco pulled out her phone and started scrolling through her messages until she found the conversation labeled "Deku". She'd hardly seen him the past few days. She hoped he was okay,

XXX

Izuku Midoriya thought he knew what love was. He had his heart shattered time and time again in the past few days, but nothing could have prepared him for the swell of emotions he felt when his friends backed him up and assured him things would turn out great. He looked out his window at the setting sun, and smiled. It was the first time he'd smiled for real in days. He fished his phone out of his pocket, and hit dial next to the contact that read "Mom". She picked up almost instantly.

"Hey Mom… Yeah, I'm doing fine. You know that girl that came over one time? The one I told you I liked? Yeah, it didn't exactly work out… Yes, mom, I'm sure I'm fine. It's not that big of a deal. I still have a ton of friends here, I wish you could meet them…"

Yes, Izuku Midoriya thought he knew what a lot of things were, but his life at Yuuei never failed to show him he had a lot to learn.

Hot Damn, that hurt to write, but I loved the idea so much I just had to. I'm definitely writing some more IzuOcha later on so look forward to that.