For some reason, Shouto couldn't understand the changes Momo made towards herself. Last week, her face was neutral, allowing her natural beauty to dominate the straight lines of her face as she commanded the class next to Tenya. Yet this week, eyeliner tipped with mascara and subtle lipstick were found on her face, contouring it to have a completely different look that took a few look backs to make sure it was her. Plus, golden gems hung from her ears with a matching necklace that truly brought out the raven color swirling in her eyes.
Shouto couldn't also understand why the girls were suddenly acting strange around him, more specifically Momo. In general, the eye contact and small banter he had with her as his seat mate desolated this week. Every time he would focus in on her face to see if there was any emotions, she'd notice quickly, give out a small gasp and turn her head away, swishing her now trimmed ponytail away from him. But it wasn't just Momo, in general, the girls had a weird aura attached to them that wasn't there the week prior. In every moment he would walk into a room, instead of giving the small waves of before, they would snicker, giggling amongst themselves as sometimes their curious eyes befell on his outlook of the day. He confronted them several times about it, asking in his natural, deadpan voice what was wrong but they would just brush him off with their polished fingers, explaining that it was nothing in a laughing tone. Though, if Momo happened to be there in the mix when it happened, which was seldom, she would meet his eyes with an intriguing blush scattered on her face and bowed her apologies to him before telling the girls to knock themselves down and swivel her head away from him once more.
Everything about this change within the Class 1-A girls left Shouto in a state of confusion and he didn't know how to get to the bottom of it. Fortunately for him, he had trusted friends that could help him through the struggle and give him soundly advice: Izuku Midoriya and Tenya Iida. Surely, they could ease the apprehension that was growing within Shouto's heart. Thus, he brought the topic up during their lunch break, isolating themselves from the rest to keep this debate between themselves. There was no need to hear unnecessary comments from others, especially with Katsuki who liked to shove himself into places that didn't belong. Shouto wanted true and real advice and he knew he could receive that without the extras from his classmates.
"Could it be that they all have gotten colds and are just feeling unwell? My mother told me sometimes girls can do strange things when they are sick, WHICH MEANS THEY NEED PROPER TREATMENT!" Tenya already began when hearing of the tale, pressing his glasses up into the ridge of his nose even further.
"Iida, I'm sure your mother meant another sickness when she said that." Izuku contributed, a sweat drop dripping from his face as he insinuated something else that didn't cross Tenya's mind. Before he could allow an extra comment to place in there, he turned to Shouto and gave him a thoughtful face, trying to think of a solution for his socially confused friend. "Hmmm, I think possibly something is happening with Momo since her outlook is changing but it doesn't really explain why they're avoiding you like that. Unless…" he drifted off, looking through Shouto in depth. "They see something different with you and don't know how to tell you?" He contributed, confused by the situation himself. Romance was never a topic that crossed his mind so he wasn't sure what kind of advice could be given to his friend.
"Something…different with me?" Shouto asked quizzically, pulling on his uniform as he tried to figure out what could be different. He even smelled certain areas of his body and the smell still was the same from last week. Shouto cleansed himself every day and had extra jackets of his uniform to make sure he could always have a clean set available. Even the same products were being used so what about him made the girls think so differently of him? "Midoriya, do you see something different with me?" He asked with a puzzled face, tilting his face in ponderous to their answers.
Both Midoriya and Iida took a good luck at him, even inspecting his cleansed pockets but couldn't find anything that stuck out from previous weeks. Both shook their head in denial, their scanning eyes not being able to find a trace of what could be wrong with Shouto. "No Todoroki, I mean, I'm not sure what they're seeing but I don't see anything different about you." Midoriya calmly said, his green eyes trying to send him a small smile to encourage him that it wasn't about him, but maybe something else was wrong with the girls to have those preconceived notions of him.
"Yes, you look completely fine to me Todoroki!" Tenya added, wanting to comfort his friend as much as possible. "Once again, my mother said girls do quite strange things when they are sick so that could be the reason!" He insisted once more, waving his arm around in 90 degree angles to emphasis his point.
With only giving Tenya a small smile, Izuku found a way to use his words to combine the phrasing to make it not so obvious on what Tenya was insinuating. "Yea, maybe something is going on and they're doing this thing where they are bothering boys or something. I know they gave Kaminari some issues last month over something small so it might be something between them, not you." Izuku reassured again once more, trying to relax his perplexed view on the situation.
However it seemed as if their words seemed imaginary to Shouto as he stood up from the seat he resided in and left his cold soba on the table, straightening his jacket as he walked over to where the girls huddled together. A goal was set in his mind and it became apparent that he needed assistance from the original source than his trusted friends. Plus, they gave him some starters to begin his conversation off with so he felt a sense of security latched onto his belt as he ignored the protests of Izuku and Tenya and pushed to see the cause from the girls themselves.
Ochako was the first to notice him and a devious grin appeared on her face as her eyes shifted to a scrunched Momo before settling back to Shouto. "Hi Todoroki! What's going on?" Soon, at her words, everyone except Momo settled their eyes on him, stumped on why he decided to stop by their table this time around. However, snickers began to arise from their throats as their attention returned back to Momo, who had a flushed face and her reddened lips tightening closer together. Her eyes still adverted from Shouto as her nose breaths grew slightly heavier under the pressure of the situation.
Bluntly and without allowing their odd reactions, he began to unbutton his coat and trying to find a way to expose himself in front of the cafeteria. Even though small challenges came from the girls to make him stop, he managed to get to a point where even his manly blouse was removed and his naked chest was revealed to the eating classes. Forks dropped at that sight and even some whistles from joking students appeared in the background as he continued to give them an intense state. "For the past few days, you snicker at me when you see me and you never answer my questions. By chance, do you see something wrong with me? Did I somehow change within these past days that you may have noticed but I haven't?" He asked them with a deadpan expression, completely serious in his questions. If there was something he could change, he would change it, he just needed to hear from their mouths what about him was just so appalling about him that would cause such indecent reactions from them.
Turmoil surrounded the girls as they continued to avoid his question and more focused on having him put his clothes back on. Blushes formed on their faces as they continuously chanted phrases of "There's nothing wrong with you, Todoroki!" "I don't know why you ask that!" "We just have a small inside joke between all the guys in the class, it's not just you!" Lies swished out of their mouths to alleviate the situation, hopefully to get Shouto away from them so they could enjoy the lunches that were presented in front of them.
However, as Momo continued to hear what they were saying, her face continuously pinched itself in hurtful pride. She knew all of this was all her fault, that it was her doing that Shouto even felt desperate enough to gain acknowledge from her fellow female mates. It was absolutely wrong and the realization that she had even gone this far with him without giving him a proper explanation killed her and it had to stop today. Digging through her backpack that was placed on the ground next to her, she pulled out an envelope with Todoroki swiveled in cursive writing on the top. Rising from her seat, the girls ceased their lies and gave her questioning looks, making sure that this was the proper choice. Silent conversations ran through their heads as they debated within their internal minds until Momo arched her back further to show her readiness and submissiveness surrounded the table as they allowed her to take the initiative.
Shooting up her face to look directly into his eyes, the flustered face that was once creased her features soon turned into elegance and poise, ready to face Shouto in a diplomatic matter. "Todoroki, if it isn't too much to ask, once you return your clothes back on your body, can you come meet me outside?" she said in a stern voice, juicing out the last bit of confidence she had before placing her bag on her shoulder and taking the exit that lead to the outside.
Shouto looked after her, mesmerized by her motions and could only find himself moving again as he heard a slight cough of attention coming from Kyoka that had her tilting head to go follow Momo's tracks. Giving a slight nod, Shouto re-pieced himself before heading out the same door, curious as to what Momo had to tell him. Perhaps she was the one that had noticed something off that had gotten the girls to also pay close attention or maybe she was hiding a hidden secret that affected him. Only time and Momo's voice could tell what all of that could possibly be.
As soon as he reached the outside and smelled the fresh air from the spring season, he twisted his head around until he locked eyes with Momo. She brought herself by the cherry blossom trees, her hair shifting in the wind with the same tempo as the petals on the flowers that were attached onto the flimsy branches on the gorgeous trees. The scene set itself up to be peaceful and serene with a calming aura that made Momo look like she had an angelic glow attached to her. Everything was beautiful and pulled on Shouto's legs to make him move closer to depiction of heaven that was calling towards him.
Getting close to Momo, it took a bit for Shouto to speak, his words stuck in his throat as he continued to look at her, finally noticing those details that she displayed on her face. "What….what can I help you with? Is there something I did?" Shouto began to question, curiosity and repair reflected on his face as he continued to grow closer to Momo. "Please, I…I still have some difficulty the emotions of others so if I did something to make you upset with me, please tell me so I can give you the proper apologies that you deserve Yaoyorozu."
The same moments it took Shouto answer was the same for Momo as she looked down on the ground, her hands that were wrapped around her back tensing with emotion. Sighing, she looked back Shouto, this time a small blush splotching on her face. "I…I want to first start off of by saying it is not your fault. You did nothing to apologize for. In fact, it is I the one that should apologize. I told the girls something that involved you without going to you first and they took that and behaved childishly with it. I should have stopped them more from harassing you but it doesn't change the fact I did not so I apologize for that." She spoke up, her voice containing strength with a slight bit of resistance attached to it. She knew what was next, it was coming up and she wished she could cancel the topic of conversation but she needed to keep her confidence up. Momo didn't want it to be the enemy this time around so broke through her spell as she tore her hands away from her backside and gave Shouto the letter that she had earlier. "I will admit, I am…too afraid to speak my feelings out loud to you in this current moment. After all, I am only getting used to these emotions since I never really had them before but this letter should convey very drop of it."
Taking the letter from Momo's pristine fingertips, he scanned his name once more, eyeing the beautiful calligraphy placed in it. Giving her one last look, he returned back to the letter and delicately opened it, trying not to ruin the grace that was in it. Even the stationary was gorgeous as he pulled it out, opening the tri fold it was placed in. Holding the letter in his hands, he read the cursive writing that he knew belonged to Momo, charmed by every word she wrote. Everything that came from the letter was eloquent and beautiful, something that even diplomatic leaders should learn from since each word choice was designed carefully and her sentences entranced him in as he continued on. He could even hear her voice whispering the language in his ears as his eyes scanned each line, making sure he didn't miss a drop of what she wrote.
Once he completed it and allowed his eyes to follow the traces of Momo's signature, he looked back up to her to see her bowed, her torso bent downwards as she gave him a trace of royalty. With a clearing of Shouto's throat, she returned her posture back upwards and stared straight at him, not scaring herself from her transparency even though her face wanted to ruin the stance she was giving. "Todoroki, I know it must be sudden but I have come to realize that I harbor feelings for you. You have been an inspiration in my life and if it wasn't for your words back during our exam with Mr. Aizawa, I don't think I could have gained the confidence to do what I planned. However you take this confession is up to you but I believe it was time for you to know and for me to stop hiding behind my feelings." She admitted upfront to Shouto, not leaving a trace of detail behind. This time she needed to make sure he knew exactly how she felt without any left traces and even though she wanted to run away and hide behind the gates of the building, this was a moment that tested her stamina and she needed to keep her back strong as her father always instructed her.
Hearing this for the first time, all the confusion that Shouto had slightly disappeared as the puzzle pieces began to form and all their behaviors were explained in deep thought. In a way, Tenya was right, Momo was sick, but sick with love, an infectious disease that made her act abnormal from her usual poised self. Shouto wasn't made aware of any remedies to patch up Momo's feelings but there was something telling his heart to act the way he needed to. Without speaking, he casually moved towards Momo and planted a small kiss on her cheek, reserving her mouth for a special moment. He could feel her tensing under his lips, her cheeks slightly growing larger as her mouth opened wide in shock. Pulling away, Momo tried to speak back but everything came out in babbles and weird tones that just made Shouto smile and hold onto her hand, showing her the motions of his answer.
"What…what is this Todoroki? I'm very confused…!" Momo breathed out ,swirls ringing in her eyes as she looked at him with gaping features.
"This is me accepting your feelings Yaoyorozu and saying I feel the same way." He calmly said, this time really pressing himself against her and using this chance to kiss her softly under the beautiful scenery of cherry blossoms.