Chapter 6: Alone

Ochako woke to the feeling of warm pressure against her side. "Mmm..what?" Her eyes protested as she forced them open. It was dark outside, and she was laying on one of the common room couches, a blanket placed on top of her. I fell asleep. Shit. As she noticed the pressure again, she raised her head, and saw Eri leaning against her. "Eri? What are you doing here? Where's Deku?" The little girl looked up at her with tired eyes.

"Daddy's...upstairs. We got back a few hours ago and you were already asleep, so daddy put the blanket on you." Ochako blushed, feeling slightly ashamed. She had been waiting for comfort him, and of course she had fallen asleep, him caring for her instead.

"So why are you down here?" Ochako asked, confusion clear on her face. Seeing the girl look down, expression falling, she unconsciously wrapped an arm around her.

"I couldn't sleep..." she said, shifting uncomfortably. "I've been staying in Daddy's room but..." Eri trailed off, looking away.

"But?" Ochako felt the knots appearing in her stomach. They were joined by tears when the girl looked up, crying.

"Daddy's crying. In his sleep." Her tears fell harder, and a sob escaped her mouth. "All afternoon, he wouldn't tell me what happened. He said he didn't want to bother me. We just took a long walk, and he even bought us ice cream." Ochako clutched Eri to her chest as the girl cried harder and harder, soon struggling to get the words out. "H-He seemed...so..fine. I thought whatever it was, it was minor. B-But.. as soon as he fell asleep.." Eri couldn't keep her eyes open anymore, but her voice cleared slightly. "He looks so hurt. He's in so much pain. And he doesn't want me to see it." The girls cried together for a while, holding each other as tightly as possible. Without thinking, Ochako leaned over and kissed Eri's horn. She looked up, surprised, and Ochako cupped her cheek with one hand.

"Eri." Ochako fought through her tears and flashed the girl a small smile. "Tomorrow, we will help him. I promise. I wont let him hurt alone." The white-haired girl snuggled into Ochako's side, managing a weak smile, and they held the position. After a while, Eri's tears slowed, then disappeared. In a few minutes, they were both fast asleep, beneath the blanket Izuku had draped on her earlier.

Ochako woke early, as the first streams of sunlight danced across her face. Stretching, she slowly pivoted her torso, depositing the still sleeping Eri softly onto the couch. Tiptoeing away so as to not wake her, she entered the kitchen. As she made a cup of tea, she checked her watch. 6:15. Feeling strangely awake even at what was unusually early for her, she decided to take advantage of the morning.

Stepping outside, Ochako took in a deep breath of the morning air. A wave of calm washed over her. I love nature in the morning. Walking down the steps of the dorm, she quickly settled on to the grass to enjoy the world surrounding her. As she let her mind wander, it found it's way to Izuku. Naturally. It seemed that recently she couldn't keep him from her thoughts. Not that she minded much. Resuming the prior day's brainstorming, she planned on how she would get him to open up. As if magically summoned by her thoughts, the boy in question quickly strode from the dorm's door. Hearing the noise, she looked up, and opened her mouth to speak. But halfway through the first word, she stopped.

Ochako watched as the boy she loved walked away from her. He didn't even see me. How could he? He's staring at the ground. It had taken her a moment to realize how stiffly he was walking. Almost out of earshot, she heard him choke out a sob. Her heart caught in her chest. He's crying. With her mood quickly dropping to match his, Ochako returned to her planning with renewed vigor. She had to help him. She had to. Standing quickly, she made her way back into the dorms. Bundling Eri's sleeping form in her arms, she went up to her room to start the day.

Ochako stepped into the classroom alone, as Eri had decided to stay at the dorms for the day. As she entered, her eyes fixed on his chair. He's already here. Izuku was a statue, head turned as he stared out the window. Wanting nothing more than to run over and wrap her arms around him until everything was alright again, she quickly fought the feeling down and took her seat. As classmates slowly trickled in, All Might himself entered, greeting them all. Ochako sat up quickly. All Might being here was sure to cheer Izuku up, if only a little. Her head quickly turned to his desk, and an even quicker frown found its way to her face. If Izuku was aware that All Might had appeared, he didn't show it.

"Good morning class!" Even in his skeletal form, All Might's voice boomed, and several students jumped in surprise. "We have a special surprise today. All regular classes are being postponed, and we have a special heroics class for you!" Several students cheered, and Ochako whipped her head back to Izuku. Nothing. With her hope freshly killed, her face fell once more. Barely aware of her surroundings, she followed the sight of Mina's feet to the locker room to change.

The class gathered in the mock city as All Might began to explain the day. "Alright! Today, we are going to focus on being able to move around a battlefield." Several noises of excitement rose from the crowd. "In big fights, one of the most Important abilities a hero can possess is mobility! Can anyone tell me why?"

"Avoiding attacks." Todoroki didn't seem to be excited in the slightest.

Momo quickly raised her hand. "Making your way to wounded civilians!"

"GETTING TO THE ENEMY!" Bakugo snarled out, as a smug smile formed on his face.

All Might laughed. "All good points! As you all seem to grasp the idea, let's begin!" He pointed down the street. "Whether you are imaging me as an ally, civilian, or enemy, your task will be to reach me at the end of the street!" With another booming laugh, he continued. "I would've liked to participate myself but.." He shrugged casually as he pressed a button he was carrying. In a flash, the street was littered with robots, some from the entrance exam, some new. "Everyone get ready!" He jogged down the street.

"Let's do our best everyone!" Iida yelled to the class. Taking his lead, Ochako turned to Izuku.

"Let's do it Deku!" She pumped her arm into the air.

"Ah.. yeah." He wore "The Mask". Undeterred, she smiled at him, determined to improve his mood. Before she could continue the conversation, All Might's voice rang out.

"BEGIN!"

The class scattered instantly. Ochako prepared herself, studying the robots. Some had begun advancing on the students, but it was the others that worried her. She saw several identical robots, of a model she hadn't seen before. With large mole like claws, they quickly started destroying the pavement and buildings around the. They're... creating debris? She understood in an instant. They weren't going to give them a flat street to walk down.

Rushing forward after her classmates, Ochako quickly ducked under the large swing of a robot, and sprinted forward. As her breath quickened, she activated her quirk on herself, jumping over a newly created ravine in the street. Landing farther down the street, she took her bearings. Most of her classmates were either on line or ahead of her. She grimaced and rushed forward, not wanting to be left behind.

"OCHAKO!" Mina's voice cut through the din of battle, and she pivoted quickly. Looking around, she saw a large slab of pavement flying towards her. Thinking quickly, she met the mass with her hand, removing its gravity. Releasing it a second later, she looked over and made eye contact with Mina. "THEY CAN THROW?" The pink girl called out as she cut an incoming rock in half with a line of acid. Closing the distance between them, the girls joined together, and neared the end of the street. For the first time, she caught sight of Izuku.

Green sparks crackling around him, she watched as her love weaved through the chaos as easily as breathing. Reaching the end just before her, he took a breath, and the sparks fell away. She heard All Might's voice boom again. "Are you sure it's over?" Turning her head as she continued to run forward, Ochako caught sight of a particularly large robot lifting a bus, its red eyes locked on Izuku. As she realized what was happening, she tried to call out.

"Deku! Behind you!" The boy turned, his eyes widening, and jumped as fresh lightning erupted around him. He wasn't fast enough. The bus caught the lower half of his body, sending him rocketing towards the ground.

He landed. Hard. As the rest of the class arrived, the robots stopped moving, and silence overtook the group as people stared at the heap that was Izuku on the ground. No sound was heard, except one. Bakugo's laughter. The boy approached Izuku, almost crying as he laughed.

"Jesus Deku, what was that?" Tears formed at the edges of his eyes as the laughter continued. "You couldn't dodge a bus?!" Ochako felt anger growing in her chest. Izuku did not need this right now. Before she could say anything, Izuku himself did.

"Shut up Kacchan." He slowly stood, but his eyes stayed on the ground.

"WHAT?" The blond's laughter continued, but seemed to take an angry tone. "What did you say?"

"Shut. Up." Ochako couldn't see his eyes through his hair, but she saw his hands close into fists.

"What, did I hurt you feelings?" The laughter had left Bakugo's voice, replaced solely by anger. "Do you really think you can be a hero if you can't take tha-"

Quicker than anyone's eyes could see, a flash of green flew across the street, and a gush of wind hit the class. It wasn't as strong as she remembered from the alley, but Ochako still had to brace herself to avoid falling over. Looking up, she saw Izuku standing where Bakugo had been standing a moment prior, still looking at the ground as green static swirled around him. As the class turned in unison, they saw Bakugo on top of a car. 50 feet away. The windshield had caved in around him, and he appeared to be unconscious. The class spun back to Izuku, completely bewildered, as All Might's voice rang out.

"Young Midoriya!" He sounded surprised, and angry. In another flash of green, Izuku was gone. Ochako watched as All Might quickly sent a text to someone, probably Mr. Aizawa, and turned back to the class. "Um.. alright class. Head back to the classroom. I'll take care of young Bakugo."

The class was silent as they made their way back to school. Nobody could believe what had happened. Izuku just wasn't like that. They had all heard and seen how Bakugo treated him, but he had never so much as talked back to the boy, let alone fight. As they entered the class, they were presented with several worksheets to work on for the rest of the day. Almost no one spoke. By the end of class, they had probably said 10 words between them all. The silence continued until they were almost ready to eat dinner.

Ochako sat on the couch, trying to distract herself by watching TV, Eri curled into her side. Her eyes rose as the dorm's door opened. Bakugo had returned. As every eye on the room fixed onto him, he made a beeline for her.

"Uraraka." Ochako couldn't believe what was happening. Bakugo sounded...calm. For some reason, she felt more comfortable when he was screaming. He continued. "Can I talk to you, outside?" Still shocked, she followed him out front to the lawn.

"What.. What do you want?" She managed to choke out.

"Well..you see..I...Deku.." Her surprise at a calm Bakugo was quickly overtaken by this new Bakugo. He seems...nervous? Ashamed? Finally gathering his thoughts, he met her eyes. "Uraraka. I once told Deku to kill himself." Ochako didn't realize she had slapped him until her hand started stinging. With his head tilted to the side, she saw a red mark quickly grow on his cheek. He continued as though it hadn't happened. "And you know what he did? Nothing." He took a deep breath. "Whatever's going on with him, it's serious. Please, help him." Not giving her a chance to respond, he shoved his hands in his pockets and quickly walked away into the dark. Please? Ochako was shocked. I guess he's trying to care the only way he knows how.

Making her way back inside, Ochako spent dinner lost in her thoughts. No one addressed her incident with Bakugo, but she was sure they had watched it all. Finishing her food as fast as she could, she retreated to her room after settling Eri on the couch with Kirishima. Laying on her bed, she spent the better part of two hours staring at the ceiling, trying to process the events of the last few days. Suddenly, her body snapped into movement, and she was leaving her room. Almost unconsciously, she made her way towards Izuku's room.

As Ochako made her way towards the boy's side of the dorm, her mind wandered back to Izuku. She realized exactly how nervous she was. She was going to him, and she was going to help him. She wouldn't take no for an answer. He needed help, or at least someone to talk to, for both his sake and Eri's. She walked up the stairs to his room, and she noticed her body began trembling, parallel with her nerves. Why am I so nervous to talk to him? He's my best friend. I've talked to him hundreds of times. What's different now? Ochako knew what had changed. She had already admitted her feelings for him months ago, but now she had given up on suppressing them altogether. After seeing how he acted with Eri, she wasn't sure if she could even view him as just a friend she had feelings for. As embarrassed as it made her feel, she couldn't help it. When she thought about Izuku, she didn't just think of talking to him, holding him, dates, dinner, movies, all of the typical teenage couple things. After seeing him with Eri, taking care of her, just how good fatherhood looked on him, it had awakened something she hadn't known was inside her. Now, when she thought of Izuku, she thought of the future. Their future. A part of her knew it was too fast, and she knew it was weird to think of those things. But she couldn't help it. Izuku and I, living together, raising Eri... Maybe getting Married... Maybe even having kids of our own..

Ochako snapped back to reality. Her faced flushed deeply, even at her private thoughts, but she couldn't deny how warm and happy those thoughts made her feel. As she climbed the last flights of stairs to Izuku's floor, she took a deep breath, steadying herself. Approaching his door, she quickly gave it two soft knocks. After a brief pause, she heard movement inside, then the door opened slightly. Her eyes met the two emeralds peering at her from the dark of the room, and the door opened further, revealing Izuku, in a white tank top and green shorts.

"Hey, Uraraka." He smiled, but Ochako instantly recognized "The Mask". She frowned slightly, studying him further. Despite his efforts to appear fine, even his frozen smile couldn't hide the red in his eyes, or the bags beneath them. Noticing her expression, a flicker of concern danced across his face. "Are you alright?"

"Are you?" Ochako couldn't hide the annoyance creeping into her voice. She liked, even loved, his ability to care for others. But she hated it when Izuku couldn't manage to care about himself. "Do you know where Eri is?"

"Ah-What?" His eyes widened in panic. "I just woke up, I figured she was with you. Is she okay?" He had retreated into his room, and was already in the process of putting on his shoes. Trying to ignore the movements in his back muscles, delightfully visible against the tight tank top he wore, Ochako stepped softly into the room and closed the door behind her.

"De-Izuku. She's fine." Ochako placed a hand on his shoulder. "She's with Kirishima on the couch downstairs. But she misses you. She hasn't seen you all day." Without looking at her, Izuku froze, slowly lowering himself onto his bed. He seemed to deflate as he slipped his shoes off.

"Oh." Izuku managed to croak out, as his sense of urgency was replaced with weariness. Ochako lowered herself to the bed, her heartrate increasing as she placed one arm around his shoulders. Stop. Stop. Stop. This is not romantic, you are helping a friend. Guilt swelled in her chest as she tried to fight the elation she felt at being so close. With her arms bare from the black tee shirt she wore, she could feel the skin to skin contact across his back and shoulders. Focusing for a moment on the feeling of his skin, she wondered how one person could feel so warm and comforting. Immediately, she realized she could feel another sensation. With her skin pressed to his, she could feel the almost imperceptible trembling across his body. Refocusing on her task, she took a measured breath.

"Izuku. Look at me." His head turned slightly, just enough to allow for eye contact. As their eyes met, Ochako could see the tension building inside him. "She told me that last night..." her voice caught in her throat. This was it. Time to lay things bare. "She said you were crying in your sleep." Izuku's eyes widened, and after a second that felt like an hour, the dam broke. All energy seemed to leave his body as his mask shattered, and he collapsed into her, pressing his face into her neck. Noticing her shirt a quickly getting wet, she wrapped her other arm around him, holding him tightly as his body shook with sobs. Ochako couldn't help by tear up herself as she saw the pain he was in. She realized she had started running her hand through his hair. She gripped him as hard as she could, resting her head against his, wishing that she could take some of his pain away. After a few minutes, his sobs began to die down. He shifted slightly, moving even closer, so that their heads were level. Ochako felt a blush rise to her face as Izuku wrapped her in a proper hug. She could see that he was still silently weeping, but he appeared slightly calmer. "Izuku...I..." Wait. What am I doing? Ochako caught herself. She struggled to focus on why she was here. This was not the time for romantic confessions. Head muddled, she was surprised when he pulled back, holding her shoulders as he met her eyes.

"Ochako..." She could see the pain in his eyes. His beautiful eyes. "I don't know what to do..." What are you fucking doing? Calm down, just listen to him! Ochako mentally slapped herself, regaining control. Izuku continued speaking. "How am I supposed to take care of her when I'm like this?" His voice cracked as his agonized gaze tore into her eyes. "Why did I think I could do this?" Ochako's eyes widened as she began to understand.

"You mean, about saying you'd be Eri's...dad?" Izuku didn't seem surprised she knew. He began trembling slightly again as he retold the story.

"When she told me she had nobody who loved her unconditionally... she said it so matter of factly. Like it was a simple truth. Like someone had told her she didn't deserve love, and that she agreed. Ochako, we pulled her out of that dark hole, out of that life, but we still hadn't pulled her out of his grasp." Even now, she could see the anger in his eyes when he thought of Overhaul's treatment of Eri. Determination flashed in his eyes. Just like him. "We couldn't just save her, we had to..I had to save her heart. She idolizes me, and I...I think... I know. I know I can love her like a daughter. For once in her life, she needs to be loved like a daughter." Ochako felt like she was overflowing. She could barely contain her love for this boy. This man. "But.." his face fell again, the previous moment's determination evaporating. "But with what's been happening...it's so hard to protect her from what I'm going through..." His tears flowed faster, and he choked back another sob. After a moments pause, his voice came out softly, barely whispering. "I don't know how I'm supposed to do this alone.."

Ochako didn't know when she had started cupping his cheek. His eyes rose to meet hers, emerald green mixing in with soft brown, and she was done. She couldn't take it. Running her other hand through his messy hair, she pulled him close, and their lips met. After the smallest moment hesitation, he tenderly returned the kiss. His lips felt soft against hers, and their foreheads touched as they both leaned further in. She pulled him into her as hard as she could, and felt his hand glide to the back of her head. They sighed against each other, sharing a silent moment. Ochako pulled away, hand still on his cheek, and met his surprised eyes with determination.

"You are not alone."

End of Chapter