"You're probably the type of guy who plans events far in advance, but overlook one small detail which ruins everything for you," Nemuri smirked.
Hizashi's indignant pout only reinforced her statement.
"That means that you have to create the perfect environment where you're the only one who can mess things up," she continued, tapping Hizashi on his forehead in emphasis.
"What's that even suppose to mean, Nemuri?" Hizashi whined, swatting away the finger that insisted on jabbing him in the head.
"That means you plan a night with Shouta where it's just the two of you. No outside interruptions, no distractions; just the two of you together in a quiet place," Nemuri chided.
"Th-that sounds suspicious," Hizashi sputtered, blushing as he hugged his knees to his chest.
"Look, I'm not telling you to sleep with him. I'm telling you to find an opportunity to tell him how you feel," Nemuri sighed. "Please don't make things complicated. It'll just be an honest night where you get it all off your chest. The only thing stopping you is if you chicken out, which I absolutely forbid you from doing!"
"But Nemuri, I don't even know if he likes me back. It'll be the worst night ever if he doesn't take my confession well. I'd probably have to sleep on the front porch if he doesn't return my feelings!" The thought of an impending rejection made the blond huddle under a blanket.
His hiding spot was roughly torn away, the blanket being thrown to the far corner of the room. Nemuri was clearly done being patient with him, evident from her blown pupils and exasperated snarl.
"Hizashi, heroes are the ones who take action even if they're afraid of what will happen. So get your shit together and start acting like the hero you're suppose to be!" Nemuri felt her eyebrow twitch in agitation.
"Y-yes m'am," Hizashi squeaked, holding back on telling her that he didn't really have his hero license yet.
"You never told me that you liked scary movies," Shouta said, scanning the description on the DVD box. "Which is strange because you never stop talking about the things you get really into."
"Well, it's not like I talk about you all the time, now do I?" Hizashi muttered under his breath before he could stop himself as he fiddled with the DVD player.
"What did you say?" Shouta asked, cocking his head to the side. He was clearly caught off guard by the quiet whisper from the aspiring voice hero.
"I asked if you wanted any snacks for the movie!" Hizashi loudly coughed, finally getting the movie to play. He took a sharp intake of breath when the face of an eerie woman dressed in white appeared on screen. Hizashi bit down on his tongue to hold back a deafening scream.
"You know what, of course you want snacks. Everyone wants snacks when they watch movies. It's no fun if there aren't any snacks. One time I had a movie marathon with my parents and it felt so unnatural not having anything to munch on. I really like the cheese puffs my mom bought that one time when we went to the supermarket two summers ago," Hizashi drawled as he tried to avert his gaze from the snippets of horror scenes that played in the background of the start menu.
"Y-you know what, I'll go grab some! D-don't start the movie without me, okay?" Hizashi stuttered, hurriedly scampering to the kitchen when Shouta squinted in confusion at his babbling.
Hizashi's parents had taken a weekend trip, entrusting him to watch the house while they were gone. It was the perfect opportunity to invite Shouta over and confess his feelings to his best friend with no foreseeable interruptions. Hizashi had been building up his courage for this ever since his parents had told him that he could have Shouta sleep over for the entire weekend.
He had planned to order take-out, watch a movie and spend the night playing video games with Shouta. It was supposed to be a casual hang out, just like any other time he had slept over and once they were settled in for the night, he'd tell Shouta how he felt about him. But Hizashi figured that it had to at least be slightly different or else he'd forget that this whole weekend was suppose to be for him to tell Shouta about his "blatantly obvious crush" (as Nemuri would put it).
Maybe he had gotten inspiration from a shoujo manga he had been reading, but Hizashi had somehow decided that watching a horror movie would be a good excuse to cuddle up with Shouta before his big confession. The idea of feeling his best friend pressed up against him shaking from anticipation made Hizashi completely forget that he couldn't stand horror movies.
The last time he had seen one was when he was six and in all honesty, he hadn't even watched it. Six-year-old Hizashi had walked into the living room one night and he had promptly screamed when he was met with pitch black eyes on the television screen. He spent a month sleeping with an absurdly bright nightlight that had the potential to light up the entire neighborhood.
But here he was now, trying his best not to faint while carrying a large bag of chips and two cans of soda. Hizashi dropped the snacks on the table and took a seat next to Shouta, barely leaving any room between them. He felt Shouta's gaze linger on his rigid body, hearing him give a huff before he gently bumped shoulders with him.
If Hizashi hadn't been so focused on holding back tears from merely staring at the start menu, he would have been bouncing up and down when Shouta threw a blanket around the two of them. He felt Shouta lean a bit more heavily onto him, their fingers brushing passed each other for a split second when he reached for the remote.
For an hour and thirty minutes, Hizashi either took sanctuary hiding behind Shouta or sinking so deeply into their shared blanket that only the tip of his blond hair peeked out. Overall, he was proud of himself for making it through the entirety of the movie without crying. He was also happy to report that he hadn't shattered any eardrums when he shrieked or broken Shouta's arm when he clung onto it for moral support.
Hizashi also noted that this was the most time he had ever spent invading Shouta's personal space without getting shrugged (or punched) off. As the credits rolled onto the screen, Hizashi felt his chest grow tight as he realized how accommodating his best friend had been for him, especially since he knew that Shouta wasn't very good with body contact.
Counting to five in an attempt to calm his beating heart, Hizashi peeked at Shouta to steal a short glance at his crush. He found his green eyes staring right into his best friend's black ones, gasping as Hizashi quickly turned his gaze elsewhere in a poor attempt to hide his stare. He desperately tried to focus his attention onto the empty soda can, hoping that the slight redness in his cheeks would fade away.
"The movie's over," Shouta stated, not showing any intention of moving from his spot next to Hizashi. Pouting his lower lip, Hizashi once again tried to catch a glimpse of his friend's expression, but Shouta's head was now turned away from him, staring at the curtains framing the living room window.
"Yeah," Hizashi muttered, leaning his head a bit more heavily onto his friend's shoulder. As much as he wanted to stay cuddled next to Shouta, Hizashi also didn't want to watch the start menu scenes. This one movie would haunt him for at least a year, he thought.
Huffing quietly, he gave Shouta's arm one last squeeze before moving to turn off the DVD player. Hizashi immediately missed having the warm body pressed up against him.
"You didn't seem to like the movie," Shouta said. His arm came up to rub on the shoulder Hizashi had been leaning on.
"You noticed that, huh?" Hizashi sheepishly laughed as he nervously pulled on the collar of his sweatshirt. "What can I say, I wanted to try something new with you I guess."
"And you had to choose something that would make you scream next to my ear for over an hour?" Shouta tauntingly inquired, fully wrapping himself in the blanket, claiming it as his own now that Hizashi had stepped out of it.
"Hey, I didn't miss how you were staring at the ceiling during the climax of the movie!" Hizashi sputtered, feeling his cheeks heat up from being reminded of his embarrassing shrieks. "And you were squeezing my thigh so hard during the chase scene that I thought you were going to rip a hole in my sweatpants!"
"You were practically holding my hand ever since the movie started," Shouta countered, huddling deeper into the blanket until only his eyes peeked out from under it, hiding his small pout. The tufts of his black hair framed the soft blush on his cheeks.
"You didn't try to make me stop though," Hizashi smirked, his chest growing tight again when he was met with silence and a pair of narrowed black eyes. He stuffed his hand into the pocket of his sweatshirt as he remembered the warmth of Shouta's palm against his own.
Hizashi bit his lower lip, intending to follow up on his comment by telling Shouta that he wouldn't mind holding his hand more often. Instead, he squeaked when he felt something brush up against his feet. Shouta's eyes immediately flared red from the blond's abrupt outburst.
They were both greeted with a soft meow as Hizashi's house cat rubbed its cheek against Hizashi's leg.
"Damn it, you stupid cat," Hizashi hissed in English, still trembling from the sudden rush of adrenaline.
"Hey, don't talk to Oreo like that," Shouta berated, holding his arms out for the cat to brush against his chest, walking into the welcoming hug.
Hizashi held back a jealous "tsk", biting the inside of his cheek at the display of affection that wasn't directed towards him.
"Whatever, let's go to my room and finish up some homework. I need some help with some of the discussion questions for history class and I bet you need me to proof read your English essay," Hizashi huffed as he grabbed the half empty bag of chips from the coffee table.
Shouta trailed behind him, the blanket still hanging from his shoulders. Oreo was cradled to his chest, bumping its head against Shouta's chin.
The two of them spent about an hour working on schoolwork, trading their papers back and forth to exchange feedback. Hizashi refused to admit that he spent a good amount of time giving his cat the stink eye as it laid contently on Shouta's lap. He swore Oreo even stuck out its tongue at him at one point.
After trying to explain how to properly use adverbs in sentences for the fifth time, Hizashi didn't miss how his friend tried to stifle a soft yawn behind his hand. Shouta's eyes darted to Hizashi's, seemingly gauging if he had seen it.
Hizashi snorted.
"Pfft… Your yawns are so cute. It makes me think of a rabbit for some reason," Hizashi warmly laughed, grinning as he watched his friend grunt in response, pulling the blanket tighter around his shoulders in what appeared to be embarrassment.
"It's not that special," Shouta pouted, narrowing his eyes as he chose to stare at the cat in his lap rather than at the bright smile his friend was giving him.
"Come on, let's get ready for bed. We can finish the rest of the essay questions tomorrow. My parents will be back in the afternoon so they're probably going to want you to stay over for dinner anyway," Hizashi grinned, closing his textbook.
Shouta hummed in response, gently stroking Oreo's stomach as he nodded in agreement.
The two of them began packing their books away, clearing the floor around Hizashi's bed for them to prepare a futon next to it. As Shouta flipped the light switch off and rustled into his sleeping spot, Hizashi felt himself shiver, remembering that this was the night he had planned to confess his feelings.
And he better confess them fast because one of Shouta's talents was to fall asleep in under a minute at any given time, Hizashi thought. He'll never forget how his best friend had once somehow fallen asleep standing up while trying to find a book in the school library.
"Hey, Shouta," Hizashi started, feeling heat rush to the tip of his ears. The outline of Shouta's silhouette shifted, turning to face him in the dark.
"Yeah?" he grunted.
Hizashi wondered if his friend could hear how loud his heart was beating. His fists gripped his blanket so tightly that Hizashi absently wondered if he would leave tear marks on it.
Hizashi opened his mouth, but before he could get anything out, he heard clattering noises coming from his kitchen. He shot up from his bed, staring at his closed bedroom door.
"What was that?!" Hizashi harshly whispered, his green eyes wide open in full alert mode.
"What was what?" Shouta lethargically sighed, pushing himself up as well. Hizashi didn't miss how his friend twitched when the clattering sound resounded again.
The two of them sat in the dark in silence. Hizashi suddenly felt like his heart was about to beat right out of his chest for a whole different reason now.
"Please tell me that it's just Oreo down there," Hizashi whispered through gritted teeth. As if in response, his house cat let out a soft meow, walking up to stare at the closed bedroom door.
"Oh dear god," Hizashi dramatically breathed. "Do you think watching that movie opened up a portal for that ghost to get out of our television? Do you think that's her down there?! Oh my god, Shouta, what if she's down there?! What am I going to tell my parents?!"
"Shut up, Hizashi," Shouta muttered under his breath as he stood up to open the bedroom light. "Let's just check downstairs. You probably put the soda cans at the edge of the counter and they just tipped over or something."
"Soda cans don't tip over by themselves!" Hizashi squeaked, jumping out of his bed when he saw Shouta heading for the door. "M-maybe we should call someone!"
"Calm down, Hizashi," Shouta murmured, cautiously exiting the bedroom. "When it comes to stuff like this, nine out of ten times you're overreacting."
"But what if this is the one in ten times I'm right?!" Hizashi hastily grabbed his cellphone before clinging onto Shouta's arm in an attempt to steady himself.
"It never is," Shouta grunted, his shoulders tensing with his friend pressed up against his side.
What was suppose to only be a ten second walk to the kitchen felt like an hour training session. Hizashi's legs felt like jelly as the two of them made their way through the dark hallways. As they approached the kitchen, clacking sounds were heard on the tile floors.
"Shoutaaaa~," Hizashi whined as they entered the kitchen. He was starting to wonder if he was actually suited to be a hero at this point in his life.
When he spotted the outline of a dark figure on his kitchen floor, Hizashi screamed (luckily without his quirk activated). There was a minute of panicked fumbling, loud curses and clattering before Shouta managed to flip the light switch on.
Hizashi had gracefully landed on his butt during the shuffling, his glasses skewed to one side of his face. Sitting a foot away from his legs was a pudgy raccoon, an empty juice box in its paws. The trash can had been flipped onto its side, plastic take-out containers and used napkins littered the kitchen floor.
Hizashi gaped at the animal, its nose twitching in curiosity at his bewildered expression. It placed the empty juice box on the floor, holding out its paws expectantly at him. It let out a soft squeak, blinking its dark pupils innocently.
The sound of a soft snort broke Hizashi out of his trance. He whipped his head towards Shouta, fully intending to give him an indignant glare for laughing at his near-death experience.
He found his friend desperately trying to hold back laughter, his head turned to the side with one hand covering his mouth. It looked like Shouta was trying to keep himself from falling over by gripping the kitchen counter, shaking from the sheer effort of holding back any giggles that threatened to escape from his mouth.
"Sh-shouta! Don't laugh at me! I swear, I saw my life flash before my eyes, okay!" Hizashi screeched, shooting up to shove his friend. If he could see his own reflection, Hizashi swore that his face would be as red as a tomato right now.
Shouta switched from gripping the counter to holding his stomach, refusing to face his friend as he trembled from silent laughter.
Hizashi groaned loudly, running his hand through his hair in embarrassment. Instead of waiting for Shouta to compose himself, Hizashi grabbed a bag of bread on the kitchen table, waving it in front of the stray animal. The raccoon perked up at the sight of food. It trailed behind Hizashi quietly as they made their way to the front door, switching between walking on all fours to just its hindlegs as it followed the blond.
After getting the animal out the door, Hizashi threw a slice of bread passed the gate, closing the door when the raccoon dashed after it. He then walked back into the kitchen, finding an open window the raccoon had undoubtedly climbed through.
As he closed it, he pouted at Shouta who was now staring at him. His mouth was in a thin line, resisting the temptation of twitching up into a smile.
Hizashi gave an embarrassed "hmph", stalking back to his bedroom with hunched shoulders.
He threw the covers over his head, hearing Shouta flick the light switch off. He heard his bedroom door click shut followed by rustling undoubtedly coming from Shouta settling under his futon once again.
The two laid in silence. Hizashi felt his face grow hotter with each passing minute.
"So, about that ghost that came out of the portal…"
"Shut up, Shouta."
The soft laugh that echoed in the quiet room made Hizashi's heart flutter.