I originally had a whole storyline planned out for this, that was a lot darker and more in depth, but ran out of time to write it up for Angst week. Perhaps someday, once I'm done with Cost of Freedom and Waking the Fallen, I'll come back and expand on this, but, for now, here is just a piece of what I had in mind.

Big shout out to EmeraldWaves for beta-ing on such short notice and making this story readable!

A couple of side notes before jumping in, I'm using Yukimitsu as Rei's last name before she married Enji. Shouto will be referred to as Yukimitsu Shouto because he wants to distance himself from his father. Also, he will most likely appear a little OOC because he has a different backstory.

Standard disclaimer applies, storyline is mine but the Boku no Hero cast is Horikoshi-sensei's.

Xxxxx

Momo leaned against the metal railing of a scenic viewpoint and watched the crowds of people scurry home for the evening. Her onyx eyes reflected the heaven's shift to brilliant orange as the sun sank lower behind Tokyo's tall skyscrapers.

A cold gust blew across the lookout. The wind sneaking in between the seams of her gray pea-coat made the hair on her arms stand on end. But Momo paid it no mind, her fists tightening around the metal railing that circled the small enclosure.

Who would have thought her life would have ended up like this? She mused with a soft sigh.

Quirk marriages were supposed to be illegal. However, as with anything, the wealthy didn't always abide by the rules of the common.

Momo inhaled and squeezed her eyes shut. She had known that first hand growing up, watching her wealthy peers skate the law with little to no repercussions. That's why she shouldn't have been surprised when three years ago, after she had graduated Yuuei, her parents had pulled her aside to inform her of a secret engagement to Yamamoto Akito. The marriage contract was already signed, even though they had never discussed it with her.

Momo let her eyes slowly slide back open as her onyx eyes gazed unseeing at the crowds below her. At least, she had her one small promise to hang onto. The one small promise scribbled in messy handwriting at the bottom of the lengthy legal pages, agreeing that she could continue her hero duties until their first child.

That had been three years ago.

Three years since their farce of a marriage began.

Three years that she hadn't been able to get pregnant.

Three years before the somber truth bubbling under the surface of their marriage had emerged.

Yamamoto Akito was infertile.

Which shouldn't have been an issue.

In that day and age there were plenty of options for infertile couples. But in a culture that was built on masculine principles and in an arranged marriage designed for the sole purpose of producing offspring, the fact had been a direct strike at her husband's manhood. It had agitated Akito and strained their already rocky union.

The creation hero's eyes darkened. Now their house was cloaked in a repressive coldness; that with each passing day became more and more of a cage than a place to call home.

On top of that, the contract she had signed was supposed to be a secret. Silencing her from telling even her best friend, Jirou Kyouka, or risk her friend being drawn into the dark world of money and power.

Momo bit her bottom lip, chewing angrily on the soft flesh.

And to make matters worse, as her life had spiraled out of the control, she had done the unthinkable, she had been un -

A sudden darkness obscured her vision and Momo yelped in surprise as hands covered her eyes, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"I thought heroes were supposed to mask their identities?" A familiar voice teased next to her ear before pulling away.

Momo's chest tightened at that familiar voice, her stomach doing a funny little flip. She would have known that husky baritone anywhere. It was the sound that consumed her dreams at night and rang in her ears when she woke up in the morning.

"Yukimitsu-san!" she exclaimed, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice. Turning around and tilting her head up to look into the vibrant turquoise and stone eyes of her part time lover.

"How did you - ? Never mind," she trailed off with a shake of her head, unable to contain a small, shy smile from gracing her lips. Knowing full well the twenty-two year old would never tell her how he always seemed to find her. It seemed some days he just had a sixth sense for tracking her down. "To be expected of Yukimtsu-san," she said, her voice curling with admiration as her eyes flicked back up to meet his.

The heterochromatic eyed man chuckled softly, stepping closer until their bodies were almost touching. His arms circled her waist, his heterochromatic eyes crinkling slightly at the sides as he looked down at her with heat that could scald her.

Momo's heartbeat quickened and she could feel her cheeks redden under the intensity of his stare he reserved for these private moments when they were completely alone. Even after a year of late night encounters and inappropriate feelings, Yukimitsu Shouto could still make her heart beat like a young school girl.

And to add to her inappropriate crush, Yukimitsu Shouto was perhaps one of the most handsome men she had ever laid eyes on. Even with an angry, red burn scarring his left eye he could easily be mistaken for a model with his tall, muscular frame and soft feminine features.

Not to mention the toe curling way he could kiss her.

A sudden flash raced through her mind, wiping the smile from her face, as the reoccurring nightmare she had surrounding the heterochromatic man clawed at her heart.

XXXXX

Shouto's eyebrows furrowed as he watched Momo's smile fade and shadows bleed across her expressive eyes. A red string wrapped tightly around his pinky, that only he had ever been able to see, grew icy as it swirled around the pair and connected to the creation hero's little finger. "What's wrong?"

The question hung in the cold winter air and Momo opened her mouth and closed it; her words dancing on the tip of her tongue. It would be so easy to tell him. He was her confidant. Her support. Her secret lover after all.

She still remembered in vivid details their first meeting, a year ago, when after a night of crime fighting she had run into the host club member under a flickering street lamp. Momo had known instantly what he was and had ordered him to surrender, but he had ignored her words and had instead offered to buy her a drink.

Looking back, Momo still didn't quite understand why she had given in. Maybe it was because she was unwilling to go back to the place she called home or because deep inside she was slightly curious about the red and white haired man, but either way, she had followed Yukimitsu Shouto into a small bar. Then as they sat in the back of a dark booth, side by side, her carefully built walls began to crack. And in a moment of confusion, she had kissed him.

It had been entirely inappropriate. She was a married woman after all and he was who he was but as his hand had laced their fingers together under the table, she had known she lost all willpower to resist.

It had escalated quickly after that. He had taken her hand and brought her to a love hotel, where he proceeded to make her feel things she had never imagined were possible. Playing her body as easily as a skilled pianist, he brought her to the edge over and over. She had fallen for Yukimitsu Shouto that night. Hard.

Even the self-loathing she had felt the next day, when the sin of her infidelity had blazed like a scarlet letter across her forehead, she had willingly returned.

And returned.

And returned.

Momo licked her bottom lip. She knew she was just hurting herself by allowing their illicit relationship to continue. It wasn't like the soft touches and gentle kindness he offered her were real. He was just playing her. Sneaking under her defenses to gather information.

She knew that, even though her heart ached painfully to admit it.

Besides, she reasoned, even if his words were real, who had ever heard of a hero and villain falling in love?

Momo let her gaze fall to the floor. "Nothing is bothering me," she mumbled, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear.

She wasn't looking at him, but she could sense one delicate brow raise in question. "Nothing?" he asked incredulously.

"Nothing," she said firmly, curling her hands into fists and raising her head.

"Bullshit," he replied. The crass word stung, but his voice wasn't unkind. "You wouldn't be out here with such a serious expression if something wasn't bothering you."

Momo bit her bottom lip as she took a half step back out of his arms. "It's just…" she began hesitantly, her heart tightening uncomfortably. The memory of cold heterochromia eyes gazing out at her from behind a villain's smirking face thrummed fresh in her mind. "It's nothing. I should be going," she mumbled, squaring her shoulders, she attempted to brush past him.

A large hand stopped her, wrapping around her upper arm. "Tell me," he ordered. His voice hardening. Demanding her attention as the hand enclosed around her upper arm pulled her back into his chest. His other arm coming up to wrap securely around her waist, keeping her from escaping.

He smelled faintly of honeysuckle.

"Tell me," he repeated, pressing his nose into her hair as they stood in silence.

Momo could feel a wetness start to gather at the edge of her vision. She was weak. All it took was one man showing her a little bit of kindness and she lost all will to resist.

Sometimes she hated herself.

"There's a big operation tomorrow," she whispered into his chest. Clenching her fists into his jacket, she paused before the next words slipped off her tongue before she could stop them. "And I'm...I'm scared that you -."

Momo blanched. Immediately knowing she had said the wrong thing as her gaze flicked up to see Shouto's eyes darken and his lips thin. "I see."

Momo felt her stomach drop as she attempted to explain herself. "I mean, the operation may not work out and…and...I may not even see you."

In a way, it made no sense that she felt like she needed to pretend everything was alright; to act like they both didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow. But to talk about it out loud would be to break the magic surrounding them, and she didn't know if she was ready for that either.

"Momo," the deep timbre of his voice reverberated through her as he cut her off. The creation hero felt herself blush at the casual use of her first name. "You think too much," he whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "You are the smartest, strongest person I know. You'll be okay," he said, tightening his embrace.

His words were warm and were meant to reassure. They were the support she had longed to hear for so long. Still, her heart constricted painfully at the meaning behind those simple phrases. This was goodbye, their play was entering its closing act.

She nodded into his chest. "Thank you," she whispered. Hoping he understood she was talking about more than just for tonight. He had saved her at the darkest time in her life. When she had felt she couldn't go on, he had reached out and provided her sanctuary.

Shouto kissed her head.

"Hey, smile for me," he whispered, his breath puffing out to brush the crown of Momo's head. Giving her a quick squeeze, he pulled away. "Look I brought you something," he continued, his voice almost deadpan, as he swung his shoulder bag around and unzipped the top.

Momo couldn't help from tilting her head as she watched him pull out a neatly wrapped package and hand it to her. "What's this?" she asked, genuinely curious. The object was heavier than expected and the creation hero wondered why he even bothered.

"Open it," he said, sliding his hands into the slighted pockets of his jeans as he watched her inspect the package.

Momo glanced up at him questioningly from beneath long lashes, before her curiosity won over and she gingerly unwrapped the gift. Eyes widening in shock.

It was a book.

"It's on string theory," he explained, the corner of his lips pulling up into a barely there smile. "You had wanted it, right?" he asked with a slight tilt of his head.

"You had been talking about it last time we were together," he continued. "And I couldn't get you jewelry or anything that would be to conspicuous, but, I thought this would do…"

Momo couldn't contain her smile as she wrapped her arms securely around the gift and held it close to her chest. "I love it!" she smiled. "Thank you Yukimitsu-san!" she said, unconsciously stepping closer to the man, her head tilting up, as her eyes sparkled in happiness.

"Good," he muttered, pulling his hands free from his pockets as a warmth spread through him at seeing her delight. The red string wrapped snugly around his pinky, began to glow softly as it twisted around them, but Shouto ignored the thread with practiced ease as he scanned her upturned face.

She really was a beautiful creature. With soft, feminine features and porcelain skin she seemed to glow in the setting sun.

Slowly he lifted a hand up to cup her check as he leaned down, angling his head as their breaths intermingled. His dual colored eyes trailed down her features, memorizing her cat shaped eyes and dainty nose. Tracing lower, intending to land on her plump lips, a dark splotch on her neck caught his attention and his eyes narrowed. A cold anger raced through his veins.

"What's this?" he asked, his voice dropping in the familiar tone he had learned to use after years living on the streets. The tone that could send his enemies scattering and that left no room for argument.

The string wrapped around his pinky tightened.

XXXXX

Shouto reached out to lightly touch her neck and Momo flinched back, pulling up the collar of her gray pea-coat. "It's nothing," she mumbled stepping back out of his hold. "I got it while chasing a criminal yesterday," she whispered her eyes darting to the ground.

"No, it's not," he bit out softly. "Don't lie to me, Momo. I've lived on the streets as long as I can remember. I know the difference between a bruise from battle and one from the man who calls himself your husband," he snarled, his voice barely above a whisper.

Momo bit her lip. She didn't want to talk about it. "It's nothing…"

"Fuck that!" he growled. "I'm concerned Momo!"

The word shot through her heart, burning her like acid.

"Concerned?" she whispered, unable to keep her voice from breaking. She allowed her mask of nobility to slip back in place with practiced ease. "Thank you, Yukimitsu-san. But I'm fine," she said, straightening to her full height and taking a half a step back. "I should be going."

"That's not what I meant!" Shouto rumbled, the red string wrapped taught around his pinky dug into his flesh.

Momo's lips thinned, "Yukimitsu-san, thank you for your concern, but this is a personal matter. And I don't want to burden you when I know you just think of this as a -"

Warm lips silenced her. Sucking out all the air in her lungs as he pulled her closer and pressed her flush against him. A large hand cupped her chin to tilt her head up as he pushed his tongue past her lips, twining the muscle with hers.

It was intoxicating. Her whole body was suddenly on fire with just one kiss. And she couldn't hold back a small moan from escaping her lips as he gently pulled away until his mouth hovered over hers.

"Is that what you truly think this is?" he demanded against her lips. "That this is just a fling?"

Momo bit back a soft whimper as guilt and self-loathing welled up within her. Desperately she tried to turn her gaze away so he couldn't see how much his words had affected her. "We can't…I can't…" she fumbled. "It would ruin my family's reputation and look bad in the media…"

"Fuck that!"

The grip on her chin tightened. Not painfully, but forcing her to maintain eye contact. "What do you want?" he questioned. "Not what your family wants. Not what Creati wants. What does Momo want?" he demanded.

The onyx eyed woman's breath stuttered as her eyes began to blur. She tried to take a deep breathe but a growing lump in her throat was making it impossible to get the oxygen her body suddenly needed. "I…I," her voice cracked. "Just tonight," she finally whispered, as his two large calloused hands cupped her face wiping away the moisture threatening to spill from the sides of her eyes. "I want to be with you. One last time. Please, just for tonight, hold me…"

Warm lips gently locked with hers in a chaste kiss. "Just for tonight." he promised.

XXXXX

End of chapter 1 of 2! Please let me know if you liked it! I was kind of nervous about posting this piece. It's my first time writing angst and I feel like I went overboard and just threw all my ideas together, so I really hope it makes sense.

As a heads up, next chapter is pretty much all smut. I'm going to scale it back for this site but if you want to read the full story it will be posted un-edited on Archive of Our Own.