Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia.


Move, Prepare, Adapt, Work

SevenRenny

Move

"Umm… Where do you need me to put this?" Izuku asked, peeking from the other room, his hand grabbed the floating box so it didn't float away.

"Oh, bring it here!" Ochaco got up from where she had been sitting on the floor. Floating the boxes had made moving them around much easier than anticipated. The new apartment wasn't big, but they didn't need that much space to begin with. The price – although slightly higher than what she'd been used to – was decent, and Izuku's mother had informed them she'd be sending them money regularly. So, thanks to the extra help from Izuku's mother, her boyfriend had managed to help her move into a better neighborhood.

Plus, it was closer to the Hero Assignment Center, and their chosen Hero Agencies weren't too far. After graduation, they still needed experience in the work field. Taking assigned jobs directly from the Center or looking through the Hero Assistance Request List almost always provided duties that matched their skill level. As newly graduates, they needed to put in the effort to earn the respect of the public. Their job also required them to do regular patrols around selected neighborhoods at particular times. For now, Izuku and Ochaco focused on their roles as sidekicks.

While Izuku got the box-cutter and started sliding the blade over the secure tape, she made sure to get the right boxes in the room. The stickers labeled which box was meant to store what, so they knew which box went where. It made unboxing easier. It was an odd but exciting feeling, knowing they'd be sharing a home now.

She missed living with her parents, and he missed his mother, but they didn't need to feel lonely. They had each other now. Settling down in their new home turned out to be easier than they'd expected. They'd both do the chores and get things done. One day, he would be doing the dishes and she would do the laundry, then the next day, they'd switch. Sometimes, they'd do a chore together, because if one finished earlier than usual, they'd insist on helping the other.

She moved the folding wardrobe doors aside and started hanging their clothes; both hers and his. They had to share everything – the bed, the bathroom, the little space on the sofa – and they didn't mind. The apartment was small, but it only meant they'd be closer to each other. It was their safe nest, where, after a long day, they'd come home and relax and eat and sleep and love and live.

They were heroes, but that didn't mean they couldn't live for themselves, and each other.

Prepare

Their first time buying condoms had left them both red in the face and stuttering like idiots. They had to be prepared for anything; whether it was having their hero uniforms ready on the side, or keeping condoms nearby, or… this…

"T-This one, right…?" He couldn't believe he was reaching out to grab it off the shelf. Was he even allowed to touch that? He looked down at the picture of an empty package, then at the package in his hand. He was blushing hard, and he understood why Ochaco seemed so nervous when asking him to buy her something over the phone.

When going to buy a list of things they needed, he never thought he'd end up at the section full of menstrual pads. But, here he was, reading labels and trying not to feel like he was out of place. He was a stuttering mess when asking for help finding the type his girlfriend was used to using. Thankfully, the employee helped him out, because he had no flipping clue what he was doing.

Well, he had to get used to buying those.

"Thanks, Deku…" Ochaco settled back in bed after he'd offered her painkillers. She had one hand on her lower belly. "Sorry for making you do this," she said embarrassingly, hiding her face in the blanket.

"Ah, it's okay – it can't be helped." He fretted over her, tucking her in and watching her curl in on herself. He didn't know much about this, but he did figure out she felt awful.

"Do you need anything?" He asked her sympathetically, stroking her side, stopping at the curve of her hip.

She gave him a tired giggle. "I'm fine, Deku." He acted like she was about to die soon. It was cute, how much he cared. But he tended to worry over simple things.

"Just rest. I'll make you some tea." He gave her a reassuring smile before leaving.

Sometimes, she felt like he was too good for her. He was just so loving and affectionate and brave and awkward and cute and just so Deku – she couldn't possibly find someone like him.

As for Izuku, he couldn't believe someone would love him like she did. Romance had never been on his achievement list, mostly because he never thought any one would love him romantically. Finding the perfect person was hard. Getting that person to love you back seemed almost impossible. And yet, here he was, living with his girlfriend, and he couldn't be happier.

Adapt

They noticed those little things, like how Ochaco would sleep with mittens on, or how Izuku tended to mumble while watching shows on television. While others might find these things strange or mildly annoying, Ochaco found herself amazed by Izuku's intellect and critical thinking, and Izuku couldn't help but blush and admit he found the image of her sleeping with oversized mittens adorable.

At some point, he had bought her lighter mittens with a hole at the back so that her hands wouldn't sweat in them during the night. They covered her fingers, so they did their job.

"Your hair tickles," Ochaco giggled.

"Sorry." He chuckled and moved a little, the blanket shifting with him. Spooning her, he held her covered hand, feeling her fingers curl inside the mitten. He wished he could hold her hand normally, but she fell asleep without them, there was a possibility she'd accidentally float the covers or the bed or even him. It rarely happened, and he had fallen asleep with her without the mittens a few times – late at night on the sofa, or after a tiring night of love making, they'd forget about these things.

So far, she'd managed to float a few pillows, but nothing else. They weren't going to try and see if she'd be able to unconsciously float her boyfriend to the ceiling while asleep, so on with the mittens.

He hugged her closer and exhaled in her neck. She giggled and flipped around, cuddling into him and rubbing her rounded cheek against his.

"Your face is cold!" She nuzzled against him.

He huffed out a laugh. "Your feet are cold." He used his strong legs to wrap around hers, trapping her in warmth. She squealed and giggled, her breath tickling his face. He pulled the blanket just high enough to cover their necks, their body heat warming up the space around them.

The blanket symbolized many things: safety, security, love, home, peace, happiness. They could feel the others heartbeat and their every breath.

Even through the mitten, she felt the gentle thrumming in his chest. He peeked up at him. After a long day of running through streets and buildings and holding down villains and rescuing hostages and delivering the injured to awaiting ambulances, it was nice to finally see and hear and feel loving human contact.

"Something wrong?" he asked her quietly, noticing how she stared up at with half-opened eyes.

"Hmm." She shook her head no, and then placed a mitten-covered hand over his cheek before giving him a tiny playful kiss right on the edge of his lips. He responded with a playful nudge of his head.

No matter how old they got, they were children at heart. Their sweet, pure love was irreplaceable.

Work

She'd used her Zero Gravity touch to lift the piece of fallen rubble and unblock the exit. Other Heroes and Sidekicks ran in and out of the burning building, some even helped direct water from nearby fire hydrants to keep the fire from spreading. The smoke blackened the already dark sky. The burning building was like a torch in the night. Soot smudged over the brightness of her pink Hero Uniform. She was sure she'd seen Red Riot run in, along with a few other Sidekicks, including Deku.

The whole building shook as part of the seventh floor exploded. Pro Heroes focused on battling the Villain with the fire Quirk, while the Sidekicks were told to help manage the fire and evacuate the people from inside the building. The flames were going down, thanks to the help of a few Sidekicks with water Quirks. Shoving the now floating rubble out of the way, Ochaco went back to carry the unconscious woman. Using her Quirk on her, she grabbed her and moved to the now accessible window.

She Zero-Gravitated herself and jumped. With the weight of the woman's shoulder bag, it weighed them down and they floated gently to the ground. Her Quirk was useful when it came to rescuing. She could reach difficult areas and lift any rubble as long as she didn't pass her limit.

As soon as the medics took the woman from her arms, she turned back to the building and saw Deku hunched over with three people slumped on his back and another in his arms. He was closely followed out of the building by Red Riot and another Sidekick. A line of four people ran behind them, being led out of the building by Red Riot's shouts. He had a person's arm around his neck, helping the man walk straight.

"C'mon!" Kirishima – now known as Red Riot – called out.

Thanks to Backdraft and other Water Quirk Heroes, the fire shrunk into more manageable flames. Everyone else's job was to help civilians and evacuate everyone from inside the building. Red Riot was very helpful, considering that his Quirk allowed him to be temporarily fireproof. However, he, too, had to hurry, because his Hardening could only withstand so much.

"Good work, bro," Kirishima patted Deku on the back. They were both sweating and panting and covered in soot. Izuku had his mouth guard on, and after he pulled it down, Ochaco realized he had stuffed a handkerchief in there as a disparate attempt to ventilate the air he breathed in. He sighed tiredly and plopped down, rubbing his nose and smudging his face with black lines by accident.

She sat down next to him. From where they were, they could see the building. It was blackened, but still standing. There were a few injuries, but nothing major, and the only series burn had been dealt with by the Recovery Unit.

Izuku heard Ochaco giggle next to him. He titled his head at her curiously.

"You look like you have a mustache." She pointed at his face.

"Ah..." He touched over his lip but couldn't feel anything.

Ochaco couldn't help it. "Pffft – not a real one, silly!"

It then occurred to him she was talking about ash stains. "Oh." He chuckled.

She removed her helmet and placed it next to her. Police cars lined up the streets. The Villain was wrapped in a white Quirk-proof jacket to keep him from setting himself on fire again. He was led into the back of one of the awaiting vehicles by four police officers.

New reporters swarmed the area like vultures to a fresh corpse. Deku and Uravity tended to step away from the scene as soon as the job was done, mostly to avoid interviewers. They weren't obliged to speak to the public, unless they received a personal invitation to a face-to-face interview.

The reporters out here tended to be pushy, and whatever Deku and Uravity didn't feel too comfortable about having multiple microphones shoved in their faces. After their first few rescue missions, it was evident that reporters didn't understand the meaning of 'one at a time, please!' because the way they pushed and shoved and yelled wasn't too welcoming.

Bystanders would mostly watch, but they also helped sometimes. It warmed their hearts whenever citizens volunteered to carry the injured, or when they offered to help rebuild. Or, like now, how some came over to give Izuku and Ochaco bottles of water.

"Thank you," Izuku, still sitting on the ground, said.

Ochaco leaned in next to him and reached to pull out the handkerchief from inside Izuku's mouth guard. He blinked at her in confusion, and before he could speak, she grabbed his face and started wiping at the black smudges with the now wet cloth.

"Hold still!" She insisted playfully.

Even after their mission, they never changed. Heroes and officers surrounded the perimeter, red and blue lights flashed atop vehicles, smoke and dust contaminated the air, and yet, they were used to it by now. All of this was just part of their job.

She squealed when he surprised her with a playful peck on the cheek.

Yup. All in a day's work.


Note: Written on my phone. These four short stories were, well, too short to be on their own, so I decided to just combine them into one short story. It worked, I guess? Don't know. Might as well post it instead of leaving it ignored in my computer.

I do have ideas and other short stories I'm working on on the side, but I'm trying to think of a longer IzuOcha one-shot.