Chapter 10
I know, it's been too long since I've updated, please please don't kill me, please.
(y/n) = your name
(l/n)= last name
(y/n) sighed, the stereo was playing, but she wasn't really listening. Too many thoughts were swimming through her brain. Mori had taken a job at U.A., which meant he was probably living in the faculty apartments. He could be her neighbor, and the thought of having him so close put her in an odd state of mind.
What was his angle? Was he just doing this to get to her? Or did he really mean to win her back? She had all the intentions of refusing him if that were the case, but still, it tied her stomach in knots.
She still wasn't sure if that was from excitement or dread.
She began to chop carrots and drift through her thoughts, so immersed that she didn't realize someone else was in the apartment until she felt strong arms wrap around her.
Trapped, no where to run, it's about to happen. Short black hair, angry blue eyes.
Dread. This knot was dread.
"Do I scare you, (y/n)?" You terrify me.
She waits for the shouting, for the hitting. She waits for the knife to be ripped from her hand, to have cuts littering her skin. She's suffocating under the pressure. She can't breathe.
"(y/n)?"
That voice is so warm and familiar. It's not the one she's expecting. She's turned around in this person's grip. This person. They seem familiar, but no. She hasn't met them yet. She's still in Sapporo, about to marry a man that despite everything, she still thinks she loves.
"(y/n), breathe with me, you're having a panic attack."
Who was this handsome man? She knew him, she just couldn't place it. He shouldn't be holding her this way, Mori will be back any second, and he wouldn't like this man touching her.
"I think I'll have to punish you a bit for your behavior." She's choking. No air can enter her lungs, this long-lost fear has been brought back so abruptly she's forgotten how to breathe.
"(y/n), It's me. It's Shouta." The man is softly rubbing her arms, "I'm right here everything is fine. I didn't mean to scare you."
Shou…ta?
"Just breathe. In and out, ok? Can you do that for me?"
She does as the man asks, and as she calms down her head clears. She's in her new home. In Musutafu. And she just had an episode because her boyfriend hugged her. What a mess.
"You back with me?" he asks, petting her head.
With a deep breath, she confirms that she's fine now.
"Do you want to tell me what that was all about?"
Yes.
"…No."
Dumbass.
"This is ridiculous, (y/n). Something has been bothering you since that damn reunion. Are you going to tell me why you're jumping at shadows suddenly? What happened to the woman who bashed a villain over the head with a computer monitor?"
(y/n) sighed, and turned, continuing to cop carrots.
"I wasn't afraid then because I knew I'd been through worse." She continued to chop.
"So…what? What's changed? If there's something you're afraid of, just tell me."
"…I can't."
The man groaned, leaning back against the kitchen island. "you 'can't'? or you 'won't'?"
All he got in return was a non-committal shrug.
"At least tell me why."
In a frustrated huff, (y/n) stabbed the knife into the cutting board and whipped around to look at him.
"Because you won't believe me. No one ever does. I've gone the last nine years telling people what was wrong with me," (y/n) started to pace, getting increasingly distraught, her voice booming through the kitchen, "and what do I get for my troubles? 'oh, you're making things up' 'you're exaggerating' 'don't spread lies' 'something like that could ruin his reputation'"
That caught his attention "Who's reputation?"
"And do you know what else I got? Hurt! Physically, emotionally… It's not worth it. No one's ever cared. I've told approximately twenty people throughout my life, and only two have ever, ever believed me, so what's so different now?"
Shouta abruptly approached her, attempting to cup her face, "I'll believe you, that's what's different."
(y/n) involuntarily flinched back, terror overtaking her expression for a few seconds. Noticing this, Shouta took a hesitant step back before he repeated "Who's reputation, (y/n)?"
She shook her head with a sigh. "I'm sorry, I can't."
She stormed passed him, grabbing her jacket and keys as she attempted to walk out the door.
"where are you going?" Shouta called.
"Out. I need to clear my head a bit."
"Really? Because it looks like you're running away again."
"…Yeah? Well maybe that's because running is the only thing I know how to do."
Like that, she was gone from the apartment.
…
"You're so self-sufficient," Mori commented as he watched (y/n) fix the flat tire, "Kinda makes me feel like you don't really need me."
She beamed up at him "'course I do, who's going to patch me up when all this dirty work gives me bumps and bruises?"
They'd been dating for seven or so years. He'd hit her every now and again, but when he did it was always because she'd been asking for it, and besides; He'd always patch her up. If he didn't really care, he'd just leave her with a busted lip, so she was perfectly fine the way things were. Besides, it was very rare. Most of the time, he treated her like a princess.
"(y/n) I want to patch you up for the rest of our lives." He stated, pulling something out of his pocket
"Woa, careful. That almost sounded like a proposal." She joked, tightening the spare tire in place, and dusting off her jeans.
"What if it is?"
Turning around, she was startled to see Mori on one knee, ring in hand.
"Oh my…" She ran into his embrace, laughing like an idiot
"Is this a yes or…?" Mori wrapped his arms around her securely, making sure she couldn't wriggle from his grasp, though she hardly minded.
"Of course, it's a yes!"
…
All sorts of memories swam through her mind as she drove around the city, no real destination in mind. Some of them good,
"I'll always pick you up when you fall, (y/n)."
Others not so good.
"Why are you telling people I abuse you, do I not take care of you? Tell me how else I'm supposed to treat you when you misbehave."
She'd long since removed the rose-colored glasses. That relationship had been toxic since the beginning. She felt like such an idiot for how she'd acted back then. She should have left when he stopped letting her say 'no', or when he dictated her work wardrobe, or you know, when he started to hit her.
(y/n)'s stomach growled, and she was reminded that she'd stormed out of the house before she could finish making dinner. It was almost midnight at this point, the only restaurant open was a 24-hour diner. Pulling into the lot, she figured diner pancakes and a hot tea was exactly what she needed right now.
…
(y/n) stormed out of the restaurant, feeling an incredible sense in indignation. Mori followed her, close on her heels. "Those people are such assholes! Did you see the way they looked at me? Like I had chocolate smeared all over my face."
Mori grabbed her hand. "Come back inside, they just need to get to know you. They're fun people, I promise."
(y/n) grumbled "you'd think Pro Heroes would be a little nicer. They're all too busy showing off their quirks to care about helping people. That one girl with the nature quirk? Ugh! She's been making digs at me all night. I'm sorry if I wasn't born with freaky powers, does she know how to jumpstart a car? Fix a leaky sink? No? well I do. I'm also an excellent card player. Those are all talents that I have that I had to work to be good at. Those people haven't had to work at all to have talent and somehow they think they're better than me."
Mori shushed her, as people walking along the street stared at them as they passed. "You're making a scene, Hon. Calm down and come back to the table."
(y/n) grabbed her hand from her boyfriend's grasp "I think I deserve to make a bit of a scene after the way they treated me. I don't want to eat with people who are just going to be assholes the whole nig-"
(y/n) barley registered when the slap came across her face.
"…you hit me."
Mori grabbed her by the shoulders "You weren't listening to me. Can you stop screaming and just put up with it for the evening? I can't have my love life ruining my work life."
(y/n) put her hand against her cheek. "Mori, you just slapped me."
The man sighed, leaning down to kiss her cheek. The contact left a warm feeling on her face. It no longer stung, but (y/n) remembered how hot her cheek had felt mere seconds ago.
"I'm sorry, it was the only thing I could think of to get your attention. Can we go back inside now?"
Not trusting herself to speak, (y/n) nodded, but when he offered to hug her, she didn't accept.
He pulled her in for one anyway. "I won't slap you again, I promise."
…
(y/n) stared silently into her tea as the waitress brought over her hot cakes and scrambled eggs. She quietly thanked the woman and dug in mindlessly.
"Mind if I sit down?"
"Dude, it's a completely empty diner. Find an empty table will..." (y/n) looked up, completely caught off guard. "…you?"
Mori towered above her, as she sat hunched over, eating eggs like a goblin.
Mori sat down across from her, a beaming smile on his face. "This takes me back. Remember that diner we always used to go to back home?"
That sick feeling was back. (y/n) continued to eat, not indulging him in conversation
Stay calm. She thought. The waitress is right over there, and this building is well lit. he isn't going to hurt you while you're in here.
"Why'd you take a teaching job at U.A.?" (y/n) asked shakily
He answered with a question of his own "Why'd you lie about who's reunion date you were?"
She shrugged, looking every bit like a reprimanded child. He really knew how to make her feel small, even when he didn't mean to.
"You and Aizawa, huh? You know, when we were going to school, he always used to tell me my quirk wasn't cut out for hero work, and that I should consider a different career. He did that with a lot of our classmates. Belittled them all. I'm surprised you would end up with him, considering your stance on pompous Pro Heroes."
(y/n)'s took a deep breath. He wasn't so big. He couldn't touch her here.
"Yes, well, you can't gather someone's entire character based on their outward demeanor. You taught me that." (y/n) sipped her tea as Mori chuckled
"Still have an attitude, huh?"
"Yes. It must be hard on you to realize that. You tried so hard to beat it out of me."
Mori licked his lips, about to retaliate when the waitress came back around, asking Mori if she could get him anything.
"Ah. Yeah. A coffee for me and get a slice of [your favorite baked dessert] for the lady. You can put her meal on my tab as well." He winked at the woman who smiled and walked away.
With a shuddering sigh, (y/n) got up from the table, thumbing a few bills. "Well, If I don't have a bill to settle, I suppose I should get back. Shouta is waiting for me."
She hurriedly hopped up from her seat, gathering her belongings before making a mad dash for the door.
"Wait, Hon, don't you want your dessert?" The waitress held out a lovely slice in a plastic container. After a second of hesitation, (y/n) took it, thanking the woman and handing her the bills in her hand as a tip before she hurried out to her car.
She felt rather than saw the frustration radiating off Mori. He slammed a substantial amount of cash down on the table and chased off after his ex.
When (y/n) got into her car, she hurriedly locked the vehicle, just in time for Mori to pull hard on her passenger door.
"Why are you being difficult like this? (y/n)! Open the door!" he yanked again, knocking harshly on the window. "(y/n)! Get out of the car and talk to me! What happened to us? Why do you keep leaving me?"
(y/n) quickly fired up the ignition and backed out of the parking lot. From the rearview, she could see Mori storming off to another car, and getting inside.
The drive back was nerve wracking, as Mori tailed her the entire way home. In the final stretch, the traffic light in front of her turned yellow. She sped up, barley making it before the light turned red. In the rearview, she could see Mori slam on his breaks, and smack his hand angrily on the steering wheel.
When she finally arrived back on campus, she hurriedly dashed down the hallways towards the faculty apartments, taking a shortcut through the kitchens, she ran right into a purple haired boy.
"Oh dear, I'm sorry, kiddo. You alright?" She asked as she got a better look. Hey, wait... she knew this kid. He fought against Izuku during the sports festival. She shared this information with the boy.
"You know Midoriya?" he asked curiously.
He haddn't been all that interested in the woman, but hearing her mention the name of his 'rival' of sorts definitely caught his attention.
"Yeah, he's my nephew." She supplied. As much as she wanted to learn more about this boy who may or may bot have been a friend of Izuku's, she couldn't help feeling antsy as she looked over her shoulder, hoping not to catch a glimpse of her pursuer.
"That'd make you…(l/n), then. (l/n) (y/n)?" the boy continued.
The woman nodded mindlessly, still looking over her shoulder.
"Mr. Aizawa has been mentoring me, and sometimes he'll talk about you. He really seems to care about you."
(y/n) snapped back to the boy in front of her, giving him a once over before she gave a small smile.
"I really care for him, too." She really did. It made her heart pang with all the guilt she suddenly felt. She shouldn't have walked out on him the way she did.
A frustrated growl was heard from behind her
"There you are." Mori huffed, grabbing her arm, and yanking her to his side. "Why are you being like this? I have done nothing but be nice, and chivalrous, and you have been nothing but distant and difficult. What happened to the girl I was supposed to marry, huh?"
(y/n) struggled in his grip "Let me go!" In a panic, she looked behind her at the student, pleading with him to get out of there, to get help, or to just save himself, but the boy held his ground, looking marginally unimpressed.
"Excuse me, but I don't think It's a wise idea to be grabbing a pro-hero's girlfriend like that." He said in a monotone voice, that reminded (y/n) a lot of Shouta.
"Mind your damn business, Kid." Mori growled.
The kid smirked back at him "I think you've given her enough trouble for the evening. Why don't you leave her alone now?"
Like a switch flipped, Mori stiffened. His grip on her was removed, and suddenly, Mori was moving passed them, making his way out into the hall with a rather blank expression on his face.
(y/n) was shocked at first, she'd almost forgotten this kid's quirk was supposed to be mind control.
"Huh. Neat. Any way you could teach me that trick?" (y/n) joked.
"Does Aizawa know about that guy?" The lavender haired boy asked.
In response, (y/n) simply shrugged. "Knowing Shouta he's probably figured it out, but if Nemuri kept her word, I doubt he knows the specifics."
The boy began to pour himself a glass of water before making his way out of the kitchen and towards the student dorms "You should tell him."
And like that, she was making her way back to her own apartment, in her body, but not really controlling it.