ficlet; 001: beside her
pairing: aizawa kosaku/shiraishi megumi
word count: 812 words
note: So I've decided to start a ficlet collection for Aizawa/Shiraishi – partly inspired by choikimmy and partly adopting the same idea I had for my other fandom (based off fan community prompts).

Idea for this ficlet comes from Yuri Hannah, via a review left on one of my fics – what happens post Aizawa running after Shiraishi in the rain in Season 1. I did write something like this in context for one of my one-shots, but I thought I'll extend it a little. More notes at the end.

Aizawa didn't know how long they had been soaking in the rain, him crouching beside her, while Shiraishi sobbed as if her heart was breaking. Or perhaps it had already broken; she had already broken into pieces. His hand was still on her shoulder, it had stayed there, since the moment he had placed it there. He didn't feel the discomfort of the rain in his eyes, the wetness of his clothes, or the cramp he was developing on his legs, from crouching down beside her.

He stayed there, right beside her, hand gripping her shoulder, although he was probably giving her minimal or no comfort. But he had to be there. He couldn't get up and walk away. He couldn't leave her alone. He didn't exactly understand why, but all he knew was that he couldn't.

So he crouched there, wordlessly, while she cried, in huge heaving sobs, choking on the rainwater, but she couldn't stop crying and he didn't know how to stop her. Eventually, the rain ceased, and her sobs slowed, and he placed his other hand on her shoulder, preparing to help her out.

"Come," he said, his voice low. "You have to go inside."

"Leave me alone," she answered, shrugging his hand off, but he replaced it, clamping down on her shoulder tightly.

"Shiraishi."

She turned to look at him, her face wet with rain and tears, and she looked so vulnerable, so helpless, so lost, that he felt his heart tightening, just a little. "Stand up," he told her, and she did, struggling, and he helped her up. Steadying her, he quickly picked up all her scattered belongings, stuffing them into his pockets, as she watched him wordlessly. Once he was done, Aizawa turned back to her.

She took one step forward, and then she stumbled. Instantly, he gripped her arm, catching her, and then he kept his arm around her shoulders, holding her firmly as they walked back into the hospital. Hiyama and Fujikawa were standing there, and the former draped a towel around her while the latter held a can of hot tea, looking uncomfortable.

Shiraishi didn't acknowledge them, Aizawa told them nothing; he merely pushed Shiraishi towards the locker room, and she disappeared into the showers without a word. He stood outside the showers, back against the wall, arms crossed, forming a small puddle on the floor as he waited. He didn't realise that he was in the women's locker room; if he had realised it, he probably wouldn't care. Because he needed to be there for her.

She came out mere minutes later, in dry scrubs, her eyes downcast, her face wet. He sat her down, on the bench, and gave her the tea that Fujikawa bought. She took it, but she just stared at it blankly. So he took it from her, pulled the tab back, and made her drink it. She finished it, and he took the empty can from her.

"You should go and take a rest at the on-call room," he said evenly, standing up. "Go."

She shook her head, staring at her hands. "I'm fine here," she says, and he heard her voice hitching, and he knew that she was not.

So he sat back down beside her, on the other end of the bench, as her tears started falling again. He didn't say a word, not a single word, as she started crying again, because there really was nothing that he could say.

But he stayed beside her, until she stopped crying, until she was finally willing to move to the on-call room, until she finally fell asleep, exhausted from crying. He didn't leave her.

Their paths crossed the next day, as she was heading towards the office, and him towards the emergency room. They stopped as they saw each other. Shiraishi's face was drawn, but her eyes were dry.

"Shiraishi," he said, and then he stopped. He still had nothing to say to her. Are you okay just sounded trite and irrelevant. So that was all he said, her name, as he looked at her.

"Aizawa-sensei," she said, meeting his eyes. "Thank you."

He nodded, and then his eyes fell onto the white envelope she was holding in her hands. He raised his eyes to hers, and she met his gaze, her eyes clear. Then she averted her eyes, and side-stepped him, and on a whim, he reached out, and grabbed the sleeve of her scrubs.

"Don't do it," he said.

She paused, and then she told him the truth. "This is the only thing I can do right now."

There were a hundred thoughts running in his head, but nothing that he could actually verbalise, because he couldn't tell her it was all right, because it was not. His hand released its hold on her sleeve, and he could only watch her go.

A/N: Each ficlet will not be more than 1000 words (in which if it happens, it gets turned into a one-shot). Basically, this is for me to bang out any random thoughts and Aizawa/Shiraishi fancies that I may have in my head, but am too lazy to give them a proper plot.

I welcome all prompts, scenarios and single word prompts, what have you. Just want to keep up my mojo in writing for as long as possible because the movie is yonks away, sobs. Also, lol at me at starting it at 001, I am really ambitious enough to think I'll write beyond 100.

Reviews/comments/suggestions/criticisms are food for the writer's soul 😊 Thank you for reading!

P.S. I…uhh…actually wrote smut for Aizawa/Shiraishi, so if that piques your interest, set your filters to M and look for massage therapy – be forewarned that it's porn without plot!