Chapter 14 : At Long Last...

"Izuku…?

The burning building filled Todoroki's vision. Before he knew it, his legs had propelled him towards it. He could hear more footsteps closing in. Someone was trying to hold him back but he couldn't make out what they were saying.

Izuku…Izuku…all that mattered was Izuku. He could see a bit of his clothes under the rubble. He needed to help. He needed to get Izuku out of there. He…

"Stand back boy!" An unfamiliar voice shouted in his ear. He felt a hand on his shoulder. No…no he needed to get to Izuku! He tried to shove the hand away but the grip was too strong.

"I told you to stand back! You'll get injured. This is not the place for kids. Let the heroes handle it."

Todoroki finally looked towards the source of the voice. It was a man, dressed in a yellowish orange hero costume with green and blue shades. He had scraps all over his body and he seemed worn out but the strength in his grip was nothing to scoff at.

"Izuku…I need to help Izuku…he…" Todoroki couldn't even form coherent sentences. His mind was racing at a million miles per hour. Was Izuku alright? Was he alive?

"Your friend huh…don't worry kid. You're lucky I was passing by this area. The fight's over here so there are not many heroes around in the vicinity but I contacted some of the rescue specialists immediately. They should be here soon. Oh…speak of the devils…"

Todoroki heard footsteps rushing forward.

"What's the situation Catalact?" asked a woman leading the group.

"That building collapsed due to the fire. There might be two kids trapped underneath,' answered the guy named Catalct. "Would love to help but…you know…my quirk…"

"Don't worry. We're on it now," answered the woman as she and her team immediately set on to lift the burning rubble.

Todoroki looked on helplessly as the heroes went on with the operation. Every passing second felt like an eternity to him. Why weren't they hurrying? How long would Izuku be stuck under the wreckage?

"…end?"

Catalact was saying something to him. But Todoroki couldn't even register the words. Izuku…Izuku…

"Hey kid, I asked, is that your friend? The one stuck under the building?"

"…yes."

"Hmm gotta say the boy is pretty brave. He reacted even faster than me to save that little kid. Hope he's alright." Catalact looked over at Todoroki when he didn't receive a response. The boy looked like he had just lost his whole world. The hero sighed. Being a hero was never an easy job. His own quirk was more like a catalyst to natural elements like fire, earth, wind and water. He could have helped if there had been any sign of water nearby but everything was in flames and he didn't want his quirk to make the situation worse.

In his line of work, he had seen his fair share of heroes lose their lives trying to save civilians. It was never easy. He prayed that the boy would make it out alive. A kid losing his life trying to save someone while he couldn't do anything would probably be something that would haunt him for life.

"I see him! Slowly lift this piece of concrete Strenor. Yoline, could you pull him out slowly? He probably has some broken bones and I don't want to jostle him more than necessary."

Todoroki could see the heroes finally pull out Izuku from the wreckage. Ignoring Catalact's shout he rushed forward. Izuku had wrapped his whole body around a little girl. She was conscious but the shock had rendered her speechless. The heroes slowly took her from Izuku's arms. She looked unharmed for the most part. The same couldn't be said for Izuku.

Todoroki has seen his fair share of Izuku, broken and bloodied. But it was never something he could get used to. His stomach churned as he saw Izuku's unconscious face. Blood was flowing steadily from his head. His back had borne the brunt of the crash. There was no way he didn't have at least a few broken ribs.

"Izuku…"

How could he even look Midoriya in the eye anymore? It was because of him…everything was because of him. He really didn't deserve to be around Midoriya. Could he have prevented this if he had reacted a little quicker? The rational part of him knew that there was no point in blaming himself. He should first make sure that Midoriya was alright. But rationality was not working anymore – not when Midoriya lay battered and bruised in front of him.

"Is…he going to be alright?" Todoroki heard the little girl asking one of the heroes who was providing her first aid. The hero muttered something to her which Todoroki couldn't catch. Probably something to reassure her. The girl was shaking from head to toe. She seemed to relax a little after hearing the reassurance.

Todoroki only wished that those words would come true.

Midoriya could hear muffled voices in the distance. It felt like someone had turned the volume down. Where was he? It hurt…his whole body hurt. He couldn't even open his eyes. He was so sleepy…

"…..you th….concussi…on…"

"His…..brok….sleep…."

What day was it? His sense of time was gone. He was surrounded by a very familiar scent. The scent of the inside of a hospital. Should he feel ashamed at how familiar and slightly comfortable that scent was? Wait…what was he even thinking? He lost his train of thoughts…

"Please Mrs Midoriya…..we ar…Izuku…."

"Doctor I nee…my boy….."

Mom? Wasn't his mother at a retreat? What was she doing here? Oh…right…he was in a hospital…figures that they would call her...Midoriya felt that familiar tinge of guilt he got every time his mother had to come visit him in the hospital. She really didn't deserve to have to keep on worrying about him so many times. He needed to tell her that he was fine…but he couldn't even move a muscle.

"You should go home for a while Shouto. You look like a mess."

Midoriya heard another familiar voice. It seemed like it was coming from beside his bed.

"I'm not leaving until he wakes up," came the reply.

Midoriya didn't like that tone. It was filled with anger and self-resentment. Shouto…that's right! He was with Shouto when…

He couldn't make out what else was being said. His consciousness slipped by him even as he tried desperately to hold on to it. No…I need to talk…..to Shouto….!

The next time he regained consciousness, he couldn't even feel the pain in his body. Or…at least it was at a very tolerable level. He tried moving is fingers. They were stiff but they moved nonetheless. Next, he slowly opened his eyes. It was dark. It took some time for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. It didn't look like he had any needles he was strapped to. He tried getting up but his back protested vehemently. Giving up he laid back down and looked around him.

He couldn't make out much. His eyes were still having a hard time focusing. Just then, outside, the clouds parted to reveal the bright moon in the sky. The blinds to his window were open and the pale moonlight which enveloped his room illuminated the most beautiful scene he had ever seen in his life. There, sitting near the foot of his bed, was Todoroki, asleep. His face looked absolutely heavenly bathed in the moonlight. Midoriya had to pinch himself to make sure he hadn't really died and gone to heaven.

He tried not to make much noise as he watched Todoroki's sleeping face. The whole scene seemed so unreal. Was it the darkness? The silence surrounding them? The moonlight? It seemed like a scene straight out of one of those Disney movies they were watching together. He could go on watching Todoroki forever.

His posture was starting to hurt him after a while. As he tried to shift his weight around without making too much noise, his hand accidentally bumped into something on the table beside him and a loud crash followed. Todoroki immediately jolted up from his sleep. His whole body went rigid as if he was preparing to face a swarm of enemies. It actually made Midoriya giggle out loud.

Todoroki looked in his direction, shock written all over his face. "Izuku…"

"Hey Shouto…" The words came out more like a croak. Midoriya's throat felt like it was on fire. He was about to ask Todoroki for some water but the words never came out of his mouth when he finally noticed Todoroki's face. Was he…crying?!

Todoroki stood near the end of the bed, tears streaming down his face. Midoriya was beginning to panic. He had never seen Todoroki cry before. What should he do? "Shouto what's wron-"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Todoroki rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Midoriya. "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry…"

Todoroki was trembling. Never had Midoriya seen him so vulnerable. Words were not what he needed right now. He gently returned Todoroki's hug and waited for him to calm down. After a while, Todoroki's trembling stopped. The tension in his body left him and he almost sagged on Midoriya. Slowly, he extracted his arms from around him.

"Shouto…have you been taking care of yourself? You look like an absolute mess!" Midoriya frowned when he looked at Todoroki. His had huge eyebags under his eyes and his face looked deathly pale. Todoroki raised an eyebrow. "Me? Have you taken a look at yourself in the mirror?"

Midoriya smirked. "Fair point." But the smile dropped from his face immediately. "Why were you crying?" he whispered.

Silence. Midoriya didn't want to push Todoroki so he waited. Finally…"I guess it was from relief? You were unconscious for three days. The doctor said you hit your head pretty bad. I was…afraid."
Todoroki sat down on the bed beside him and took his hands in his. "Oh Izuku I was so afraid. I was scared of losing you forever. And it would have been all my fault. I…I just…I was terrified," confessed Todoroki, his voice trembling with all the pent-up emotion in him.

Midoriya's memories were a bit fuzzy but he was slowly putting the pieces together. They had gone to town…there was a villain attack…Fuyumi…and then he had noticed the…!

"Shouto! What about Fuyumi-san? And there was a kid in front of that bui…"

"Fuyumi's fine. She was in one of the shelters. She lost her phone during the evacuation. You saved the little girl. She wasn't injured much," informed Todoroki.

Midoriya sighed in relief. "Thank goodness…" But then his voice immediately grew stern. "And exactly what did you mean when you said that it would have been your fault?"

"I just…feel responsible. I know you're probably gonna say it wasn't my fault or anything but it still doesn't change the fact that I regret ever insisting on going out that night."

"Shouto…"

"And I don't even know how I can face Uraraka after this. She called me a few times after she couldn't reach your cell but I was afraid of facing her…even on the phone. Fuyumi let her know about the accident. I'm…I'm such a coward…"

Midoriya was confused. Why would Todoroki have to be afraid of Ochako? Sure she was protective of him but surely even Ochako wouldn't blame Todoroki for what happened.

"Ummm Shouto…why are you even worried about facing Ochako?" he decided to ask.

"Uh…well…because she's your girlfriend right? She has the right to be pissed off at me. Ah I guess you didn't want anyone to know about your relationship. I'm sorry. I accidentally overheard your conversation with her and…"

Okay…now Midoriya was even more confused! "What the hell are you talking about?" he asked incredulously. Midoriya rarely sweared but he'd allow himself a little exception for this case. "Ochako isn't my girlfriend."

"Huh? You don't have to keep hiding it from me Izuku. I thought you trusted me more than that. I heard you say…" Todoroki blushed. Dropping his voice, he continued, "Umm I heard you say I love you to her."

"I never said I….oh…." Just then Midoriya remembered…

"Ohhhh Izuku….you were so close. It's just three simple words. You can do it."

"Do I have to Uraraka? This is so embarrassing!"

"Come on Izuku. Just three words. Say it out in one breath."

"Easy for you to say." …

"I love you."

"See?! That wasn't so hard now was it? Now you just have to say those words out loud and clear without stammering."

"I know…thanks Uraraka."

Realization finally dawned on Midoriya. That was the only possible explanation. Oh god how could he have been so stupid?! He should have paid closer attention to his surroundings! Wait…no…more importantly…why hadn't Todoroki brought this up after all the time they…oh…ohhhhh was that why Todoroki started acting all weird? The jumbled pieces in Midoriya's mind were finally falling into places. But…if that really was the reason for Todoroki's sudden change of behaviour then does that mean he…

Well…it was worth a shot, thought Midoriya.

"Ya I love her…" he said, making sure not to look at Todoroki in the eyes.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Todoroki flinch slightly. "I'm…I'm happy for y…"

"Just as much as I love Iida, Kirishima, Kacchan, the rest of our classmates, All might, and even my mom…" continued Midoriya. "So…if you want to know whether I love Ochako, then the answer would be yes. I do. But Shouto, you totally misunderstood that phone call."

Todoroki looked at Midoriya, confusion written all over his face, "Misunderstood…?"

"That's right." Midoriya shifted closer to Todoroki. There was hardly any space between them. Midoriya could hear the sharp intake of Todoroki's breath. He smiled inwardly. "You misunderstood. Those words weren't meant for her. They were for someone else."

Midoriya's words were barely a whisper by this point. Both of them were too close to each other, their breaths mingling. Neither made a move to shift away.

"For…someone else…?" Todoroki asked in a whisper. What was with this atmosphere? He couldn't take his eyes off the boy's face. Before he knew it, his face was right in front of Midoriya's. He was trapped under the intensity of those sparkling green eyes. He eyes kept on focusing on the lips in front of him.

"Yes…those words…were meant for you Shouto…"

Todoroki stopped breathing. Did he hear him correctly? Eyes wide, he kept on staring at Midoriya. There was no way he heard that right…right?

And then...

"I love you, Shouto."

A/N: New chapter yooooooooo! I was so excited about this one hehehe ^_^
The next chapter will be the final one for this story. I'm going to take extra special care of that chapter so it might be a little late. But I'll make sure it'll be worth the wait. As usual, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who took time out of their lives to read this little story of mine. You comments make my day even better. Thank you so much for either following / favouriting the story ^_^

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