"𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚜, 𝚍𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚛𝚑𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚖 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚜 𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚜."

- 𝙺𝚒𝚛𝚔 𝙳𝚒𝚎𝚍𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚑

19


"Its okay. Its okay..." I said, knowing she could barely hear me.

I sat her down slowly.

"I can't—I can't be..." She sobbed "I'm sorry... I must look like such a fucking weakling."

No... never.

"This is... a lot." She continued "Too much is happening and I need to find out where my brothers are—and my dad just..."

If I could take all of your fucking pain away, I would, angel...

She looked up, the agony in her eyes tormented me.

"I'm... I'm so sorry Kacchan." She whimpered

"Sorry? For what? Why are you apologizing to me?"

She squinted as she tried to read my lips.

"I-I don't think I can ever be what you need."

"You're already everything that I need..."

WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST SAY...?

"Please don't lie to me." She sniffed

"What the hell are you talking about? Its...Its not a lie!"

"OPEN YOUR EYES, KATSUKI!" She cried "I'm a... a villain. Thats how they all see me. Last night in all of those fucking hero meetings, what did they do?"

"They were just—"

"THEY ALL ACTED LIKE I WAS THE PROBLEM! The looks of disgust on their faces, the questions they asked me... it made me feel so worthless."

"SHUT UP! What is this? Why are you talking about yourself like this? S-Stop it! What did we say last night, huh? That you and I were gonna get through this."

I could feel a rage bubbling up inside me from deep in the pit of my stomach. Why is she acting like this? Why can't I fix it?

"They interrogated me like I was some sort of fucking criminal. Its the truth. You know it. You and I... we're just too diff—"

"Don't say it. Don't you dare fucking say it." I spat "IF YOU AND I ARE SO GODDAMN DIFFERENT, WHY DO WE WANT THE SAME THINGS?! I can't even fucking believe the bullshit coming out of your mouth right now." I sneered "Things get tough and you just want to give up? People who talk like that make me fucking sick. How do you expect to become a hero if you're gonna run away every time theres a problem? You're acting like a goddamn child."

A look of disbelief washed over her. She shook her head slowly.

"You're seriously not even going to try to understand where I'm coming from right now? At all? My estranged father just died—inside of some fucked up human hybrid flesh suit supposedly created by my brother. Not to mention, my other brother is missing... DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT AT ALL? Do you understand...?"

Her voice broke as a few more tears rolled down her cheeks.

"You know what? Forget it. Fucking forget it. Okay, Bakugou? I need some air. I'm out."

She stood up and leaped down from the hunk of metal she left behind.

"REI! REI! HEY!" I shouted

Fuck. Fuck. You idiot. Why did you blow up at her?

Her back was to me. There was no way she could hear me, or read my lips. It was like I was really, completely shut out from her... and that made me feel like I could collapse.


Rei didn't come back that night, not to my place, not to the agency. I didn't get any sleep and by the time morning came—I'd worried myself fucking sick. I had no clue where she was, where she slept. She'd ignored every text and phonecall from me.

Being without her is... weird. I don't like it.

What if she's off doing something stupid or dangerous? What if something happens to her? I wouldn't be able to live with myself. It would be all my fucking fault. I'd gotten so used to her being by my side in such a short amount of time.

As much as I hate admitting it—I want her here... I want her with me.

"Bakugou? Bakugou! Where are you at, man?" I heard Kirishima's voice call out

I asked him to come over that morning before I lost my mind.

"Back here."

"Woah... you look terrible." He remarked as he waltzed into the living room.

"SHUTUP, IDIOT. I didn't get any sleep. Have you heard from Rei?"

Kirishima plopped down onto a nearby sofa.

"I texted her last night after you told me she bailed. I asked what she was up to, and she said needed time to chill out. She didn't say anything after that."

"Dammit..."

"What the hell happened anyways?" He asked

"I think I really messed up, Kiri. I blew up at her when she was at her weakest and... I said some really stupid shit."

"Okay, okay. Just calm down."

"But I don't where the fuck she is. I don't want her out there by herself...AND YOU'D BETTER NOT TELL ANYBODY ABOUT ME TALKING LIKE THIS—"

"Yeah, yeah... I won't. You know she can protect herself. She probably just needed to take a breather, gather her thoughts and stuff."

"I don't know..." I said "What if she's done? What if that was it for her?"

"You know thats not true. This is Rei-chan we're talking about. You guys just need to talk, she didn't go away forever... Man, I've never seen you like this before."

"WELL, NOTHING HAS EVER BEEN THIS IMPORTANT BEFORE!"

"You need to tell her that... be honest with her about how you feel."

"But thats... I'm not good at that stuff like you are. I don't talk about my feelings and shit."

"Well, you're gonna have to get over that." He shrugged "At least for today. Tell her what you just told me."

I sighed. I know he's right and I fucking hate it.

"I should go find her."

"Well, lets go then. Get dressed." He beamed "Lets get your girl."

He grinned and twirled his car keys around his finger

Shitty hair, you really are my best friend... dumbass.


Reiko's Point of View

I spent most of the night wandering, riding the train, sitting in the park, and praying for some sort of sign that I was gonna make it out of this swirling darkness in my mind. All I want to do is give up.

You know what sucks the most about this? As pissed off as I am at Bakugou, I still miss him.

Isn't that annoying?

His stupid ass had become such a big part of my life... because of him, I had something to look forward to everyday. I hadn't had that in a long time.

A lot of thoughts have entered and left my head since yesterday.

- Was trying to become a hero even worth it?

- Maybe I should go back to being a villain.

- I could try to find my little brother on my own.

- Should I try to become a hero anyways, but without Bakugou's help?

-Is that even possible?

I did come to one conclusion though. I needed a clear, well thought out plan if I was going to try to find my little brother or defeat my older brother. Running in blindly is stupid and will likely never get you anywhere.

Bakugou taught me that.

I somehow made my way to Kanda shrine in the morning. Its about 2 subway stops away from the agency. It was pretty quiet this early in the day. I was just gazing up at it at first. It's carvings and colorful paintings were mesmerizing, so beautiful against the day's pale gray sky.

I decided to go up to the main building to pay my respects and make a wish. I pulled the thick rope, making the bell ring out with a loud clang. I clapped my hands twice and closed my eyes.

Gods, if you're there, or if you can hear me...

I know I've done a lot of bad things, and maybe I don't have any more chances. I'm trying really hard to change. If I have any hope left, please, please help me figure out what I'm supposed to do...

I bowed and turned to leave, but at the bottom of the stairs... there he was. Katsuki Bakugou.

Damn. That was fast.