The glorious image — the beautiful visage of Uraraka etched with a furious intensity as she punched out a villain — would not leave Izuku's mind.

Every time he thought about the afternoon's run-in, his heart skipped and his mind filled with a fuzzy kind of fog. It was distracting and Izuku hardly had the time for it. He had far too much work to do.

It hadn't even been particularly eventful, as far as run-ins with villains went. A would-be ATM thief trying to escape from the scene in an area Izuku was patrolling. But before he could catch up, Uraraka — notably off-duty and out of school uniform — decked the disruptive villain in the face. One solid punch and the villain was out cold.

Uraraka acted quickly, grabbing the villain's arms and locking him in place. In three seconds, the villain was completely subdued, his best friend beating him to the punch.

In his eyes, it was a remarkable little moment. But he couldn't fathom why it made him so flustered. What about the image had gotten him so worked up?

Ochako Uraraka. His best friend. One of his closest confidantes. The girl who could always lift his spirits, a gesture he did his best to return. Whose selflessness knew few bounds and often inspired him to push himself harder. The cutest girl in class, who once could send him into a sputtering, blushing mess with a single smile. Who could knock out a villain in a single blow and then casually ask him about his day in the next moment.

Wait, why did he just think of her as the cutest girl in class? Well, she is but…

Wait, why was he thinking of her at all? He still had work to do!

"Gahhhh!" Izuku groaned, slamming the side of his head into the scattered notebooks in front of him at his desk.

He tried his best to keep level-headed, even as he felt like his head might burst into flame. Her face and her punch kept swimming in his mind as his heartbeat started to ring in his ears.

Izuku closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could figure this out.

He liked Uraraka. A lot. He always knew that. She was a good friend. A great friend. A girl he would like to...stay friends with.

He respected her. Admired her determination and tenacity. Loved her...her kind tenderness, impressed upon him from the moment they met. He valued her friendship more than just about anything.

He sighed and opened his eyes. He wasn't so dense that he couldn't feel the inklings of a crush starting to take form within him. It wasn't exactly a new feeling either, though not one he had felt with this kind of ferocity in quite some time. But that was okay. That was a normal, teenage thing. Hormones and what not. He had read plenty about it online.

But it wasn't something he had that much time to worry about. His hectic life at UA would undoubtedly occupy the forefront of his mind once again. He could recognize these feelings, push them aside and get some work done.

It's not like Uraraka would ever have these same feelings about him, anyway.

Izuku Midoriya was a creature of schedule. Ever since he started working towards heroics, he kept himself focused on being very specific in how he allocated his time.

Thus, it was a regular ritual that he would spend Monday mornings before class preparing a schedule for the upcoming week. He scribbled on his planer furiously as his thoughts tumbled openly out of his mouth while he sat at his homeroom desk.

"If I hit the gym right after class today…I should have time before my meeting with Nighteye…" he murmured as he jotted times down.

His classmates had mostly grown respectful of his ritual, even if they found it a little peculiar. Most didn't bother him as they came into class one or two at a time, taking their own seats and paying him no mind.

But on this morning, Ochako Uraraka was not going to be one of those people.

"Good morning, Deku!" she said in greeting, taking a seat at the empty desk next to him. "Working on your schedule?"

"Morning, Uraraka," he replied brightly, snapping himself out of his focus to turn his eyes toward her. She looked as wonderful and bright as she always did, although her eyes looked a little unsure.

In the back of the mind, he kept running through his schedule...only to find he was utterly unable to remember what part of it he was just considering.

"So...I was just wondering if you could maybe fit in an extra training session for us this week," she asked, eyes fluttering as she leaned closer. In that moment, his train of thought crashed into nothingness. Her warm, brown eyes were mesmerising.

At the thought, Izuku stamped down on that hormonal part of his mind and snapped himself to attention. He had grown out of being a blubbering mess in front of her and hardly wanted to get back into that habit.

"I have a few less shifts at Ryukyu's office this week," Uraraka went on. "And I really want to get work done perfecting some new moves before our hero midterms."

Those tests were well on his mind, too, He had been considering how he might sneak in more prep time between all of his other commitments. He supposed this gave him a good excuse.

"Sure, I...think I can manage that," Izuku replied while scanning his half-made schedule. It wasn't too unusual a request from her; the two had long since become close-range training partners, usually working out together about once a week. Their sessions were often the highlight of his day,, as a matter of fact.

But he hardly wanted to dwell on the prospect of spending more time on her.

"I could probably fit on something Thursday afternoon, just after class," Izuku muttered as he pencilled it into his planner.

"That works for me. Thanks, Deku!" The boy turned his head to be met with the brilliant smile of his best friend. The classroom light shined around her head, framing her face in an almost heavenly glow. His heart ka-thumped and his cheeks flushed. Reflexively, Izuku hit his chest with the side of his fist to tell his crushing heart to stop being stupid. He was starting to hallucinate romantic cliches, for crying out loud.

"Don't mention it. Look...looking forward to it," he stuttered slightly. Mercifully, Uraraka departed to go chat with Ashido and Tsu. He breathed a steadying sigh of relief, letting the cool air calm his nerves.

Izuku busied himself again with working out his schedule for a week. The extra training with Uraraka threw a small wrench into things, but he could work around it. Maybe if he cut back with some weight training, or asked to get some time off at his internship….

"No, no, I don't want to do that.." Izuku murmured to himself. Of course, this would all be even more difficult if I tried to budget a date with Uraraka after our training. I don't think I can find a single free evening and I don't want to cut into our training time right after I made it. No, a date definitely won't happen this week…

Izuku stayed his pencil on the page as he realized where his thoughts had roamed. He felt his cheeks heat up and he groaned, slamming his head on his desk repeatedly.

Stupid stupid stupid!

"Are you alright, Midoriya?" Iida asked, putting a friendly hand on Izuku's shoulder. The troubled boy shot up out of his seat and went as rigid as a tree.

"Just fine, thank you!" Izuku blurted a little too loudly.

He could practically feel the stares and quirked eyebrows drilling into the back of his skull after his outburst. He dared not turn around to confirm it.

"You...sure?" Iida asked, looking far from convinced.

Izuku didn't think he was ever more thankful to have Aizawa walk into class, sparing him a further inquiry. He gave a curt nod to Iida — who ran to his desk in a flash.

Izuku shook his head and tried to addle his mind back into its proper place. Its lovesick meandering was getting more than a little annoying He had rather minimal experience from which to draw from to handle these feelings, but knew he would have to find a way.

But the distraction haunted him throughout class all day. It was enough to drive him batty as he tried to focus on note-taking, only for his hand to wander into writing out her name. It was ridiculous.

However, he staked his hopes on the most important part of the day. Solo training with All Might after class, out in a secluded part of the campus, in secret. Working at stretching the limits of his quirk under the careful gaze of his mentor. This was what he lived for. This would keep his mind cutting edge and narrow.

"Alright Midoriya," All Might said as Izuku stepped forward into the small, forested clearing they usually met at. The sun started to drop in the sky but there was plenty of daylight left to burn. His mentor kept stood proudly, his arms crossed and his mouth curling upward in a smirk. His gaze challenged the boy — just like it always did.

"Show me what you got."

"Right!" Izuku shouted, trying his best to sound more confident than he felt. Without further prompting, Izuku threw his backpack aside and started revving himself up. Today, he hoped to firmly crack the 30 per cent mark of his quirk. He would focus his mind intensely on that goal, banishing all outside influence, to stretch the limits of his body.

If only it could be that easy.

The surging power of generations that coursed within his veins could not yet remove the gnat that continued to gnaw at the back of his brain.

Still, Izuku did his utmost to compartmentalize and the gnat out of focus as he trained his quirk to its fullest extent. He tried to concentrate egg, bursting with energy as it struggled to hold against the unrelenting heat of the microwave. As he twisted, punched and kicked in the air, he focused on pushing more power into the egg while holding it all together. His muscles, growing ever larger and tougher as he trained, were on fire against the strain of the additional power. But he gulped down the pain; he had to keep pushing at the limits of his quirk, whatever the cost. To be a hero and help the people around him. The people he cared about.

Then her face flashed through his mind. He gasped as the egg exploded and his leg crumpled in pain, causing him to immediately halt One For All lest he risk another broken limb. Off-balance mid-air, Izuku tumbled haphazardly onto the ground, the dull taste of dirt muddying his taste buds.

"Well, it was a good try at least," the gruff voice of All Might commented from behind him. "You looked pretty close. What happened?"

Izuku groaned into the dirt, getting up and spitting it out of his now aching mouth. He tried to dust himself off as he sprang back up, finding the strength back in his legs. He turned to face his mentor, who was looked at him expectantly with his gaunt eyes.

"Sorry, I just...lost focus there for a second," Izuku stated truthfully, choosing not to meet the gaze of his master and instead survey the forest clearing around them. It was supposed to be quiet, isolated place on the U.A. campus where they could work out One for All without disturbance. Zero distractions. But the wonderful opportunity for focused training with his idol had apparently done little to solve the growing, biting feeling at the back of his mind.

"That's...unlike you. Maybe we've pushed things enough for the moment," All Might said, before turning his eyes in the direction of the main campus.

"N-no, wait!" Izuku called out, his panic causing his voice to break slightly. "I'm still good, I just need a moment!" The thought of cutting any training time with All Might aggravated him, especially with how rare these opportunities seem to be.

"I wasn't going to suggest we call it quits...per say."All Might said slowly as he turned back toward his protege. Izuku notice his face softened and his eyes looked a little...unsure? It was a strange sight to see on his All Might and he didn't know what to make of it.

"But I can tell something is bothering you. You won't be able to push farther today if you're distracted," All Might's pupils, small in the pulling darkness of his eyes, seemed to pierce right through Izuku. The boy gulped. "So, what's the issue?"

"I..uh...well…" Izuku stammered as his cheeks turned a rosy red. He grit his teeth and worked to regain control of himself, despite how off-guard he was off of his master's proposal. "I just have had some...social issues lately. But I'm working it out." Izuku desperately hoped the excuse would work. He was not comfortable talking about this stuff, let alone with his hero, who had never seemed to date anyone!

"It's about a girl, isn't it?" All Might stated, seeing right through Izuku based on his reaction.

Izuku immediately sputtered as he tried to think of a denial, but upon gazing into the face of All Might, sighed and resigned himself that he could not pull this over his idol. Izuku nodded miserably head hanging low.

He wasn't sure how he could possibly respond, trapped under the heady gaze of his mentor. He hardly wanted to deal with these feelings now, but All Might didn't seem to leave him with much of a choice if he wanted to continue training today.

The boy sighed and tried to collect himself. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe All Might could offer some good advice on how he could most past these emotions. Maybe he could use this as an opportunity to learn something that he needed to.

"I...am managing it," Izuku asked, finding a little bit of confidence. "But...could I ask you something personal, sir?"

"Ask away."

With more than a little trepidation, Izuku squeaked out one of those questions he could never find the answer to in all of his years of fanboying over All Might.

"Did you...did you ever fall in love with someone?"

All Might's tiny pupils widened slightly at the question but the thin frame surrounding them did not betray his inner mind. Izuku figured it must be a question he had anticipated, at this point.

The famed hero did not answer right away, instead walking over into the forest and stretching out an arm to touch a tree. All Might fell down to the ground, turning to lean into a comfortable looking sitting position. The teacher then patted the space next to him, inviting Izuku to talk despite his continued steely expression.

"Let's take a break then," All Might muttered neutrally, revealing nothing in the tone of his voice.

Izuku swallowed his nerves and nodded, stepping forward and sliding against the hard bark of the tree to sit next to All Might. He looked up through the forest leaves to see the pieces of the sky, alight with the fire of the sunset.

They sat in silence for a few moments, nought but the sounds of scurrying animals and the wind between them. It was refreshingly peaceful; a moment that stood in stark contrast to his turmoil. Izuku wished he had done more to earn the peace.

"I did fall in love. More than once, actually," All Might began, snapping Izuku to attention. The boy turned his head to look at his master. All Might's profile was softened at is stared up into the darkening skies, face softened with a strange...wistfulness if Izuku was reading it right.

"What happened?" Izuku blurted out before he could stop himself. The romantic life of All Might was never substantiated, trapped firmly within the pages of cheap tabloids. Some people inevitably tried to read into whenever All Might worked alongside a female hero, but the man always denied or avoided any questions when it came to his love life.

This was his chance to learn a side of his hero that nobody ever really had. Much as he tried to reign it in, his inner fanboy was bursting in the corner of his mind to seek answers.

"It never really worked out with anyone," All Might sighed, turning his gaze back to the horizon full of dense foliage. "I had my eyes set on one thing alone; being the symbol of peace. I didn't really want to put anyone else through the kind of personal sacrifice that takes."

Izuku considered the surprisingly predictable answer. It was as anyone might expect; All Might never had the time for something like romance. Like he always said in his interviews, his duties kept him busy enough. That was the reality of being the number one hero.

That would have to be Izuku's reality like he already suspected. He was fine with that. Happy, even.

So why did his heart seem to clench at the thought of the lonely road he was about to be walking?

"How did...did you deal with that, exactly? Giving up on a love life, I mean," Izuku prodded further, keeping his eyes trained on All Might. The man kept staring forward, although his posture seemed to sink a little bit further as the conversation wore on. This did not seem to be comfortable for either of them.

"It was hard, at first," All Might sighed, hands tensing at his sides. "I certainly had to deal with some...persistence. And it wasn't what I wanted to do. I wanted almost nothing more than to be with her."

Izuku listened as All Might's voice grew softer, taking on a sadness in his voice that Izuku had never heard before, not even when the man talked about his own gruesome injuries. It was bizarre and more than a little distressing.

"But being the world number one hero is a journey of self-sacrifice. You have to give your entire being, 100 per cent, and then even more than that. That was the path I chose," All Might spoke with the fiery conviction that had won the imagination of the entire world. Deku leaned in, eyes shining with the reflected embers of his master's words.

"But...sometimes, I question the choice I made back then," All Might said, slumping hard against the tree and hiding his face in the bangs of his hair."

Izuku could not believe what he just heard. "What?"

"I never really tried to balance a professional life with much of a personal one. I wasn't really motivated to. But perhaps I could have if I tried hard enough," All Might explained. "There was...were users of One for All who did have romantic lives. I don't know all the specifics, but it can be done."

"Huh, that's...interesting," Izuku responded, stroking his chin in consideration. "I don't mean to be rude or anything but...did any of them ever make it as far as you did though?"

To Izuku's surprise, All Might laughed at the question. Izuku noticed his mentor looked a little flushed as the man scratched the back of his head.

"Well, since One For All accumulates power over time, none of them necessarily had the opportunity to be quite as strong as me. As they say, we stand on the shoulders of giants," All Might explained. "But no, I suppose none quite achieved the top in the way I did."

"But if I want to get to that same summit," Izuku mumbled into his hand, still loud enough to hear. "Shouldn't I try to stay focused on that alone? I don't know how I could work in a relationship."

All Might sighed, shaking his head. "It's good to see you so dedicated. But regardless of whether or not mine is the only way to the top, you should keep something important in mind."

"Oh, what's that?"

All Might actually managed a small smile. "You're sixteen."

Izuku was again caught off guard. Was he...was he telling him to ease up? Evidently, talking romance was bringing a lot of surprises out of his mentor.

"What do you mean by that?" Izuku asked, enthralled in the conversation but still lost as to what he should do.

"You're incredibly hard-working, young Midoriya. It's admirable. But it's a long way you have to go," All Might said turning his head to face his pupil. "You don't have to completely give up your youth to follow in my footsteps. It's not something I ever wanted to rob you of."

Izuku stared into the grim-looking face of his mentor, trying to find an understanding there. This kind of conversation threw him for a loop. It didn't make much sense to him.

Sure, he kept himself busy and training was draining. But it's not like he didn't get to do semi-normal teenager things with his classmates once in a while. They goofed off and played around plenty. Dorm life had given him even more of those opportunities, when it wasn't complete chaos anyway.

And yet...

With his internship under Nighteye in full swing, his time was strained more and more. Between that and extra training, he would often get back to the dorms late and without energy to do much of anything. He hardly saw Uraraka out of class, a sad change of pace from walking home together nearly every day. And he knew as years went by, his workload probably wasn't going to get any lighter.

Maybe All Might had a point. A point that temporarily stayed his tongue. He needed to put more thought into this.

"But I...I don't even really know…if I want to...if I even could...date her."

"It's fine if you don't. Ultimately, it's your decision and I'll try to support you no matter what it is. You've earned it," All Might spoke with sincerity, smiling at Izuku in earnest. "But try not to let your training schedule be the sole difference in what you do. I won't mind if you ease up because I know you'll follow through somehow. And it might not be as hard as you think."

Izuku wracked his mind considering that. His teacher had basically given him the go-ahead to pursue his crush if he so wanted. A big if, all told, for a myriad of reasons. He had no idea if she felt the same way. He didn't know the first thing about dating. And he was clueless as to how he would even approach trying to ask Uraraka out on a date.

He was still lost when it came to love, in a lot of ways. But, if he didn't worry about training so much, the horizon might be a little bit clearer. He could appreciate that much.

"Thank you, sir," Izuku eventually managed to get it out. "I think that helped me quite a bit."

"You're welcome," All Might said, nodding. "I can see why this is giving you so much trouble. Miss Uraraka is a lovely girl."

"WHO SAID ANYTHING ABOUT THAT?!" Izuku sputtered, face on fire as he waved his arms in denial. "This - it's just - hypothetical because I…!"

"Oh, sorry, It's just I see the two of you together I sometimes and it seemed kind of obvious knowing the way you two interact. Is it some other girl?"

Izuku halted his rambling before trying to think up an excuse on the fly. His mind went blank as part of it filled with the mist that was Ochako Uraraka. There was no girl he could think of that made him feel the same way in that moment.

"No, it isn't," Izuku groaned in defeat, his head rolling downward. "Is it really that obvious?"

All Might laughed. "Well, let's just say most of the teachers have noticed, at least."

Izuku grumbled at the thought, letting the back of his head bang against the hard tree. He did not like the idea of his teachers eyeing his relationship with Uraraka in that way - especially not before even he himself did.

But it was a minor concern before the more immediate one of what to do about Uraraka herself. He needed to think it through more, but the encouragement of his mentor made him more than a little warm to the idea. He managed a smile as he let himself think about what it might be like to be with her that way. It was scary but the thought of it made his heart flutter pleasantly.

Uraraka was a wonderful person. A part of him would love nothing more than to try to go out with her. But there was a lot of things to consider; most of all, her own feelings toward him.

Izuku took a deep breath. He could save his internal dialogue for later and hopefully focus on his training, content with the knowledge that maybe he could actually give this relationship consideration.

But for now, he had some work to do.

"So can we-"

"Wait, Midoriya," All Might held up a hand as Izuku turned toward him. Suddenly, the man was shaking, sweating and looking distinctly like he wanted to run away.

Izuu look at him, perplexed. What had happened?

"Uh...yes?"

"You...you said your father wasn't really around much, right?" All Might spoke slowly, eyes darting around and unable to look at Midoriya directly.

The boy frowned at the uncomfortable topic but had long since grown out of getting too upset by the fact. "Yeah, I haven't seen him in a long time. Why do you ask?"

"Well…" All Might grunted as he tugged at his collar slightly. "Has anybody given you...the talk yet?"

"...What one are you talking about, exactly?" Izuku was put on edge by his mentor's unease and sat up a little straighter.

"Well...you know….you see, there comes a time in a man's life where he has...feelings...that might seem a little weird at first and…"

"YES I DO NOT NEED TO HEAR THAT!" Izuku shouted and his face went completely red. He covered his ears as a precaution because he did not want to hear his hero talk to him about sex. "I...kind of picked that sort of stuff up online already. My mom kind of filled in the rest there not long ago."

"Oh...oh good, that's good!" All Might spoke cheerily with a false smile, before breathing out a sigh of relief. "Just make sure you take proper precautions if you-"

"I WILL IF IT EVER COMES TO THAT WHICH IT WON'T!" Izuku sprung up and started stretching to distract himself. And prevent himself from running away, screaming in horror. "Can we get back to training now?"

"Yes, that might be a good idea."

Stumbling past the awkwardness of the moment, Izuku followed behind his master. The protege got himself into a ready position and charged up his quirk.

It came surprisingly easy to Izuku. As he pushed the limits of his quirk, he looked back up at All Might, who watched him with a smile of surety.

The little gnawing at the back of his mind was gone, his heart resting assured that its opportunity would come. Izuku knew the future was dangerous and uncertain. But he felt just a little bit better knowing he had All Might looking after him.

Smirking, Izuku leapt high into the air with his One-For-All powered legs. He twisted, kicking his legs rapidly in his own signature style.

It just reminded him further. On his road to the top, he could blaze a new trail for himself.

And just maybe, find love along the way.

AN: Written for IzuOcha Day 5: Growing Feelings/Admiration.

I enjoy writing Dad Might way too much.

Thank you to RumpCrunch for help editing.

Please leave a review if you enjoyed it. They mean the world to me. =)