Natsumi had been dreading her birthday, it was a reminder of what she didn't have in her life—a family who loved and cared for her. Ordinarily, she was able to push such thoughts aside and focus on more important thoughts and tasks, but it was hard to do so on the one day of the year where she actually felt the suffocating loneliness that came with spending a birthday all by herself.
She did her best to distract her mind from such intrusive thoughts by allowing herself to spend a little extra time and money on herself—it was her birthday after all and if no one was going to celebrate with her then she might as well treat herself, right?
This would be the third year where she'd be spending her birthday alone, but she had developed her own little tradition in that time. Natsumi slept in until around 10am, mulled around her apartment in her pajamas for half an hour, and then ventured out into the city where she would treat herself to a nice lunch at one of her favorite cafes. Lunch usually consisted of something a little more extravagant than what she was willing to order on an ordinary day, and the meal always ended with a giant slice of cake.
After lunch she found herself browsing the isles at a local pet store that specialized in aquatics. She was barely able to contain her excitement when she realized that the shop had recently acquired Black Storm and Orange Storm Clownfish, while a little pricey, Natsumi decided that today was the one day of the year where she could condone spending the extra money on fish.
I've been good, I'm not failing any classes, I'm working on strengthening my Quirk and my body, I'm helping a friend train to get into the Hero course, I deserve this. She reasoned with herself, eyes flickering to the price of the fish painted brightly on the outside of the fish tank. It had been a while since she had introduced a new fish to her tank, mainly because she couldn't justify spending exorbitant amounts of money on marine life when her funds were as limited as they were.
Biting her lip, Natsumi realized that she just needed to bite the bullet. With her mind made up, she flagged down a store associate and had him bag up the two fish that she had been eyeing. Maybe she was spending a little too much money on frivolous things, maybe she would end up regretting it weeks later when she went over her monthly budget and realized that she wouldn't be able to buy groceries for a week or two. But in the moment, she was happy to be doing something for herself, the consequences really didn't matter all that much to her as long as she could keep her mind occupied and stave away the wandering thoughts of her lonely home life.
Ugh. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. You're better off, dumbass. She scolded herself when she realized that her mind had begun to wander once more into dangerous territory when her gaze landed on a mother and father holding the tiny hands of their little girl, swinging her back and forth between them and smiling down at her as she giggled uncontrollably. Seeing families out and about, happily enjoying their time together, sometimes left a sour taste on her tongue and left her heart clenching in her chest. The jealousy she felt wasn't unreasonable, she knew that, but it was irrational considering who her parents were.
They weren't even good people; I don't have a single happy memory with them. She frowned, tearing her eyes away from the family laughing and chatting away merrily several paces in front of her. Instead, she chose to focus her attention on the brown paper bag in her arms that housed the plastic bag with her two new fish inside. Her lips pulled back into an excited smile as she stared down at the two uniquely colored Clown Fish. She was eager to get home and get them acclimated to her tank. Not very many things brought actual joy to her life, but her fish tank was definitely one of the things that did.
It didn't take long for her to reach her apartment and begin the process of slowly getting her new fish acclimated to the temperature of her tank water by allowing the bag to float atop the surface of the water for thirty minutes. During that time she busied herself with cleaning the apartment, picking up the clothes that she had carelessly thrown on her living room floor the night before, dusting various surfaces around the room, and putting away the piles of dvds that lay scattered across her floor in front of the television.
Finally, it came time for her to release the two new additions to her tank. She made sure to bring the bag over to her kitchen sink, carefully pouring it out into the fish net in her other hand until the two fish plopped out, flopping against the mesh material. She was quick to cup her other hand around the bottom of the net where she could feel the bodies of the two creatures wiggling around against her delicate grasp before rushing across the room and gently lowering them into the water.
She spent the next hour and a half simply sitting, cross-legged, in front of her fish tank, just watching the new fish explore and check out their tankmates. Observing the brightly colored fish swim around had always been a stress reliever for her and her favorite way to pass time.
It wasn't until later in the afternoon when a loud banging at her door pulled her out of her relaxed daydreaming. Slowly, she pulled herself to her feet, casting a fleeting glance back at her fish tank before shuffling towards her front door, eyes narrowed and wary, confused as to who would be on the other side.
"Oi, hurry and open the fucking door." Bakugou's husky voice carried through the door and she immediately relaxed, no longer on guard for an unknown assailant. Though, still curious as to why he would be stopping by in the first place, she tilted her head, fingers wrapping around the knob on the door before unlocking it and pulling it open.
Bakugou stood on the other side, a scowl painted his lips and he was doing his absolute best to look at anything but her. In his hands was an ornate glass tray with a two-tiered cake perched atop it, coated in a white frosting and decorated with light blue hand-piped snowflakes. She took a step closer to him and took in the detail of the piping, her eyes landed on the top of the cake and she nearly choked, laughter spilling past her lips as she read the words 'Happy Birthday' written with red frosting, underneath that in blue were the words 'Ice Bitch'.
"You gonna stand there like an idiot, or are you gonna let me in?" He growled, shoving the cake platter into her hands before stalking past her.
Natsumi stood stunned for moment, staring down at the cake in her hands with barely concealed adoration. No one had ever gotten her a birthday cake before. She turned around, peeling her eyes away from the dessert in her hands long enough to rest on the blonde who stood in the middle of her living room with his arms crossed.
He rose an eyebrow at her expression, "Would you stop looking at me like that?"
She let out a laugh, shaking her head as she stepped back and closed the front door, bringing the cake to her kitchen where she set it on the counter, "Sorry, I've just…never had someone bring me a cake or anything for my birthday. It's just…really nice, thank you so much, Bakugou."
Carmine eyes widened just a fraction, almost imperceptibly before returning to his usual narrowed and annoyed glare, though the pale dusting of pink on his cheeks remained. He clicked his tongue against his teeth, "Yeah, whatever."
His own grumpy way of saying 'you're welcome'.
Natsumi chuckled, "Though, I am curious to know how you convinced a bakery to write that message on top. I feel like that's something they'd deem too inappropriate."
Bakugou scoffed, taking full offense in her words, "As if I'd ever go to some shitty bakery."
"…then, you convinced your mom to make me a cake with your favorite vulgar nickname for me on top?" She tilted her head, somehow not entirely sold that Bakugou Mitsuki would do such a thing considering how much she adored Natsumi.
He rolled his eyes, leaning forward and invading her personal space with a smirk, "Try again."
Her eyes widened as it clicked in her head. She peered up at him through her thick lashes, her lips down turning in to a skeptic frown, "You made it? You, Bakugou Katsuki, baked and decorated a birthday cake for me? Oh shit, maybe Mina-chan and Kaminari-kun were right, you are in love with me, aren't you?" She shot him a cheeky grin.
He scowled, uncrossing his arms and bringing one forward to push her, sending her stumbling back laughing, "Don't start that shit again."
"Fine, fine. Whatever, hothead." Natsumi grinned, "You wanna play?" She gestured towards her game system laying on the floor in front of her television set, her assorted video games piled neatly beside it.
"You sure are eager to lose, and on your birthday no less." He rose an eyebrow, a competitive smirk curling his lips upwards.
"You sure are confident for someone who hasn't won a single game of Mario Kart against me." Her lips tugged into a wide, teasing grin as she took a step towards him, bringing them chest to chest as they squared off. Ruby red stared up into intense carmine, a challenge being issued between the two teens.
"Fuck off, princess." He growled, shoving her gently away from him, rolling his eyes as her laughter rang out.
They dispersed, Bakugou heading into her living room to set up her game system and load Mario Kart while she ventured into the kitchen to make them some tea and grab a bag of chips to share. It was their typical routine whenever he'd stop by to play games with her.
The blonde had just finished getting the game started up to the home screen where they would select their characters when she shuffled out of the kitchen, a bag of chips clamped between her teeth while she held a piping hot mug of tea in each hand. He snorted at how ridiculous she looked, reaching out to take one of the mugs from her and setting it down on the coffee table behind him.
She tossed the bag of jalapeno chips down on the floor between them before gently lowering herself into a cross-legged sitting position beside him, her fingers still wrapped delicately around her steaming mug of green tea. Natsumi reached forward to grab her controller, balancing it on her knee and using one hand to scroll through the character selection while lifting her mug to her lips with her other hand.
Bakugou's character choice was as predictable as the sky being blue, or water being wet; it was always Bowser. Natsumi liked to think that she was more fluid in her character decisions, but truth of the matter was, that ninety-percent of the time she chose Waluigi ("His moustache is just so impressive!").
The two played against each other for an hour, Bakugou becoming more and more frustrated by his losses as time dragged on before he finally turned the game off and put in a two player fighting game instead. Natsumi had laughed at his tantrum but otherwise didn't tease him too much, they both knew that she was the Queen of Mario Kart. They continued playing their fighting game for another hour, throwing taunts and insults at each other each time a hit was landed.
"You plan on staying for a while?" She asked after they finished a fight, the television flashing back to the home screen for them to select whether they wanted to continue playing or not. Natsumi dropped the controller onto her lap, leaning back on her arms as she glanced over at the boy beside her.
He smirked, "What? You trying to get rid of me now that you're no longer winning?"
A scoff breezed past her lips at the comment, "No, idiot. I'm wondering if I should make us something for dinner, or do you want to order takeout?"
Bakugou narrowed his eyes, pursing his lips in contemplation before, not so subtly, tapping on the screen of his cellphone laying on the floor beside him to check the time. He turned back to her with a nonchalant shrug, "Let's give it another hour before thinking about food."
She rose a curious brow at his answer and behavior, but decided not to question it. It was still early after all and maybe he had eaten before he came over, that coupled with the fact that they had polished off a whole family-sized bag of chips together probably helped to satiate any hunger he had. She nodded her head, leaning forward and picking her controller back up to continue their game. Bakugou picked up his phone and sent a quick text message before snatching his controller from the floor and pressing the 'start' button.
Twenty minutes later there came a knock at her door.
She pursed her lips, brows knit in confusion. Bakugou is already here, who else would that be? Rarely did she ever have visitors, other than Bakugou that is. Natsumi cast a quick glance to the blonde beside her who was making a point to look away from her, his carmine stare trained on the glow of the fish tank on the other side of the room.
Weird. She thought, before hastily pulling herself to her feet and shuffling towards the front door. Hesitantly, she reached out, her hand barely resting over the knob of the door, before Bakugou barked out a, "Hurry the fuck up and answer it so I can keep kicking your ass." With a roll of her eyes she yanked the door open, almost stumbling back from the shock of seeing half her class standing on the other side.
"Happy Birthday, Natsu-chan!" They chorused cheerfully, it was then that she noticed that almost everyone was carrying some type of snack or beverage in their arms.
"I—what?" Natsumi breathed out after the initial shock washed away and bled into confusion, "How'd you know it was my birthday?"
Midoriya offered an awkward smile, peering over her shoulder at the blonde refusing to acknowledge the presence of their classmates, "Ah, well," The boy scratched at his cheek sheepishly, "a little birdy told us."
"A little explosive birdy." Kirishima grinned toothily, wiggling his eyebrows.
Natsumi paused, examining each and every one of their faces, crimson eyes taking in their bright, beaming smiles before she angled her chin over her shoulder to cast a quick glance at the blonde who had, apparently, staged this whole setup. There was no stopping the warm, appreciative smile that pulled her lips upwards, she blinked back the tears that threatened to blur her vision as she turned back to her friends patiently waiting in the doorway.
"Ahh, Natsu-chan, did we do something wrong? Why're you crying?!" Ashido rushed forward, Ochako hot on her heels, as the two girls shoved the bags of snacks they had been carrying into Midoriya's and Kaminari's arms so they could envelop the ivory haired teen in a tight embrace.
Echoes of concern rattled around them from the rest of the class, but all Natsumi could hear was the th-thump of her heartbeat in her ears. Her two best friends held her tightly, Ashido nuzzling into her shoulder, while Ochako was busy frowning and staring worriedly into her bleary crimson eyes.
Natsumi rolled her bottom lip between her teeth, "N-no, nothing's wrong, I'm sorry for worrying you guys it's just—I'm not used to…having friends and I've never had anyone fuss over my birthday and it's—"
"Wait." Ashido pulled back, golden eyes staring at the smaller girl in shock, "You're never had a birthday party before?!"
The rest of the class was suddenly inside her apartment, crowding around her, speaking softly, uttering affectionate words to help ease her out of the miserable thoughts they could tell were plaguing her mind.
Natsumi shook her head, "Never. In fact, the cake Bakugou brought over today is the first time I've ever had a birthday cake."
Kaminari scratched his cheek, frowning, "Really? I mean, I know your parents were villains and all but they were still your parents. They never did anything special for you on your birthday? No dinner? No cake? No presents?"
She pulled away from Ashido and Ochako, her cheeks tinted pink from embarrassment over what she was about to reveal, "Well, we did have a…" she paused, choosing her next word carefully, "tradition."
Her friends all seemed to lean closer, unable to contain their curiosity. She never spoke about her past or her upbringing, they were eager to learn more about her and the events and experiences that had shaped her into the person that she was today.
"Oh? What was it?" Sero tilted his head.
"Yeah, don't just leave us hangin' like that! What was the tradition?" Kirishima grinned excitedly.
She bit her lip, tearing her eyes away from their expectant stares, finding that she was unable to meet their gazes, "Ah, well, I could have anything that I wanted for my birthday but…the stipulation was that I would…" Natsumi swallowed hard, worried that they would think less of her if she continued.
As if he had read her mind, Todoroki stepped forward from the back of the crowd of students, a tentative frown playing upon his lips as he urged her to continue, "I promise that whatever you're about to say will not affect the way anyone here thinks about you."
Nodding her head, she turned back to see her friends all smiling encouragingly back at her, "If I wanted something, I would have to steal it myself…without getting caught. If I was caught then that equated to failure and my parents didn't take very kindly to failure."
"How old were you when they first took you out to steal stuff?" Kaminari was curious and he knew that a majority of their classmates wouldn't have the nerve to ask her personal questions about her past like that out of fear that they'd strike a wrong chord with her. So, the task fell upon his shoulders.
Natsumi angled her chin towards the ceiling, tapping an index finger against it while humming thoughtfully, "I think the first time they brought me out to test my skills I was…maybe…hmm…I think I was six actually. They took me out onto the streets to practice pick-pocketing."
"Six?!"
"You were so young!"
"Just a little baby!"
She laughed, "Well, yeah, but remember that my upbringing was much different than all of yours. I've been undergoing survival training since my Quirk first manifested. Anyway, you guys can go set all of that stuff down in my kitchen so you don't have to stand around awkwardly holding it all night." She gestured towards the snacks and beverages still in everyone's arms before nodding towards the tiny kitchenette to the right of the entryway.
Her friends, taking the hint to end the conversation, all wandered towards the kitchen to set down the goodies they had brought. Sero grinned, walking towards the dining room table instead and setting down the pizza boxes that he had stacked on top of each other in his arms.
"You guys seriously didn't have to bring all of this…" Natsumi felt a pang of guilt strike through her at the sight of everything that her friends had brought with them.
"Of course we did! It's not a party without pizza, or snacks for that matter!" Ashido beamed, slinging an arm around the ivory haired teen's shoulders.
"Yo, Bakubro, how long have you been here?" Kirishima laughed as he plopped down next to the irritable blonde.
"That's none of your fucking concern, Shitty Hair." Bakugou growled.
"He's been here for the last three hours." Natsumi piped up, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
"Hey, not that I'm condoning theft in any way but I just gotta ask; what was the biggest thing you were able to swipe as a kid?" Kaminari popped his head out of the kitchen, a plastic cup filled with soda in his hand as he sauntered back out into the living room where the rest of their friends had begun to gather with their own cups and plates of snacks in their hands.
"Kaminari-kun!" Midoriya scolded, frowning at the blonde who put up his hands defensively.
"It's okay, Midoriya-kun." Natsumi assured him, her voice soft as she addressed the boy with unruly mossy green hair, "As a kid the biggest thing I was able to swipe without getting caught was a bicycle. As I got older and started using my intangibility more and more, I was able to take bigger and more expensive things like televisions and game systems—though that was all done without my parents' knowledge, since they actually never found out about that ability of mine."
The small group of teens made themselves comfortable, some squeezing themselves together on her tiny couch, while the majority of them sat themselves in various spots on the floor. After hearing what she had to say in response to Kaminari's question, they began to glance around the tiny apartment with curious gazes, all wondering the same thing; how much of the décor had come into her possession as stolen goods?
As if sensing what her classmates were thinking she tilted her head, offering a small, teasing smile, "Don't worry, most of the things here were obtained legally."
The keyword there was most.
But they knew that that life was behind her now and none of them could fault her for doing what she needed to survive before being accepted into Yūei and starting a new life as a Hero in training.
"Okay, okay, so who's ass am I about to kick in Mario Kart?" Sero grinned excitedly when he noticed the open game case laying on the floor. He crawled on his knees over to the game system, removing the current game and putting it back where it belonged before plucking Mario Kart from its case and inserting it into the game system.
Natsumi and Bakugou both exchanged a knowing look, their lips twitching into identical mischievous smirks for the briefest of moments before they were able to school their expressions—her's a nonchalant smile and his his typical annoyed scowl.
"I'll play but…I'm not that great so go easy on me, yeah?" Natsumi bit her lip, staring up at Sero through her thick, fluttering eyelashes. Bakugou choked in his attempt to stop himself from cackling at her display.
Sero winked at her before settling in between her and Bakugou, "Well, you are the birthday girl after all."
Natsumi played against Sero, Kaminari, and Kirishima that round and made a spectacle of herself by purposefully driving into walls and hitting almost every trap laid out on the racetrack. Bakugou, who had been leaning back against his arms was having a hard time keeping himself together as he watched her opponents do their best to be gentlemen and allow her to push ahead of them in the race.
After losing horribly, Natsumi decided to play two more games before sitting out and watching the rest of her classmates take their turns. Ochako was surprisingly good at it, Ashido was getting a little too competitive and kept calling Kaminari a "little bitch ass", Todoroki kept driving his character continuously into the wall because he was staring at the wrong screen, and Midoriya kept apologizing every time he hit someone with one of his specialty items.
In between matches, the teens would wander over to the pizza boxes or the plethora of snacks lining her kitchen counters and fill up their paper plates to bring back with them. Natsumi had already stuffed her face with three slices of cheese pizza and was leaning up against the front of her couch, Ochako sat behind her on the cushions, her fingers absentmindedly carding through Natsumi's ivory locks.
"That feels so good, Ochako-chan." Natsumi practically purred, leaning her head back against the brunette's knees to stare up at the girl.
Ochako beamed, "Sorry, I didn't even realize I was doing that! Your hair is so soft, Natsu-chan!"
Todoroki sat on the edge of the couch to the left of both of the girls, his fingers clasped together in his lap. He had decided that maybe video games weren't for him and resigned himself to just watching everyone play instead. He wasn't one who typically enjoyed parties or any sort of social gathering and even though these were his classmates he still felt disconnected from them. He was trying, he had decided after the Sports Festival that he wouldn't keep them at an arm's length anymore, but he also wasn't going to go out of his way to interact with them either.
But, when a new group chat had been formed, minus Natsumi, to plan surprising her for her birthday he found that he couldn't say 'no'. Ordinarily, he ignored the group chats, they were incessant and annoying, some of their classmates just didn't know when to stop talking. But when the subject of the group chat happened to be the birthday girl he just couldn't ignore his own need to help ensure that she had a good birthday.
His heterochromatic gaze shifted, landing on the ivory haired teen leaning her head back onto Ochako's lap, a satisfied smile pulling her lips back. His chest blossomed with a sudden warmth at the image laid out beside him and he was unable to fight back the smile that tugged at his own lips. She seemed to be having such a good time, which in turn made his chest feel light.
Todoroki was glad that he had put aside his own discomfort for social gatherings and had come out to support Natsumi, even if he was spending the majority of the evening sitting awkwardly on her couch.
"Eat shit you fucking extras!" Bakugou cackled as his character crossed the finish line, winning him the match.
"Aw c'mon, don't be such a sore winner, Bakubro." Kirishima frowned, tilting his head to the side to give the explosive blonde beside him a pointed look.
"Hah? Sorry, didn't hear you over the sound of me beating your ass." The blonde barked back, a feral grin curling his lips back.
Natsumi's head shot up and she narrowed her eyes at the blonde, "Hey, don't be picking any fights in my apartment—you know my rules."
"Fuck off, princess."
"C'mon Bakugou, that kind of language is so unmanly." Kirishima huffed.
"Yeah, dude, it's her birthday, can't you play nice for one day?" Kaminari sighed, his fingers still gripping the controller in his lap.
Natsumi laughed, "I appreciate you guys coming to my defense, but it's totally fine. Besides, I think I'm ready to play again. Though, this time I think I'd like to make things a little more interesting."
That piqued the boys' interest.
"How about, the winner of this match gets one favor from the losers. Doesn't have to be immediate, it can be something that's requested at any time with no expiration date." She grinned as Bakugou thrust his controller in her hands, not wanting to take part in the wager—he didn't want to owe her shit. He already owed her a day at the arcade, which he was still pissed about.
"Natsu-chan sure likes to gamble, doesn't she?" Ochako leaned towards Todoroki and whispered conspiratorially. He quirked a brow at the brunette before nodding slowly, turning his attention back to the ivory haired girl as she waited for the boys to give her an answer.
"Sounds fun, any guidelines for what these 'favors' can and can't entail?" Kaminari grinned.
She rolled her eyes, "No inappropriate shit."
The electrifying blonde chuckled, "Fine, fine."
"I'm in!" Sero selected his character and clicked the 'ready' button, leaning back to wait for the other three.
"Alright," Kirishima laughed, "let's do this."
"Just know that we won't go easy on you this time just because it's your birthday." Kaminari glanced over at her with a wink before turning to choose his character.
Natsumi smirked, "Good, I hoped you wouldn't."
Todoroki didn't miss the way Bakugou and Natsumi exchanged glances before the game started, he furrowed his brows at the subtle interaction that went unnoticed by the rest of their classmates. It was no secret that the two resident hotheads of class 1-A were always at each other's throats, throwing insults and picking fights with one another, but he had had an inkling that maybe their relationship wasn't as heated and volatile as they lead everyone to believe. Maybe there was more to it than that.
That thought alone made his chest ache.
Bakugou was the one who mentioned that it was her birthday to begin with. How was he the only one who knew? Todoroki frowned as another thought entered his mind, If he hadn't let us know, would she have kept her birthday a secret and spent the entire day by herself?
His attention quietly wandered to the girl in question once more, watching as she scrunched up her nose in concentration and pursed her lips together, fingers mashing expertly against the controller in her hands. She was in last place.
The boys didn't seem to be taking her seriously as competition, she was remaining uncharacteristically quiet while taunts and teases spilled past their lips towards each other. It wasn't until the final lap when her demeanor changed into a more ruthless one and she began firing turtle shells at each of them, quickly taking the lead and outmaneuvering each of their attempts at retaliation. It wasn't long before she was crossing the finish line in first place and the boys were left hanging their heads and pouting.
Bakugou cackled like a gremlin at their crestfallen faces, "That's her signature move, you idiots. She always purposefully falls behind in the first lap before sneaking her way up the ranks to first place."
"Wait, what?" Sero scratched the side of his head.
"First of all, how often do you play with her to know what her 'signature move' is?" Kaminari rose a curious brow.
"Second of all," Kirishima furrowed his brows, whipping his head around to stare at the girl in question, "you were pretending to be bad at playing this entire time?!"
"Bingo." Natsumi smirked, sticking her tongue out at the boys, "In the words of Aizawa-sensei, that was a rational deception to lure you into a false sense of security to make you believe that your own victory was inevitable all the while taking all attention away from me so that you'd never see me sneaking my way ahead of you."
"Damn, you're vicious." Sero laughed, shaking his head, "Alright, you won. Do you want to cash in any of your favors from us?"
She hummed, tapping her index finger against her chin before shaking her head with a grin, "Nope, gonna save those bad boys for a rainy day." She clapped her hands together and rose from the floor, garnering the attention from her friends, "Anyway, who's ready for some cake?"
Hands shot up immediately as if they were still in class, followed by the sounds of scuffling feet as everyone rose from their sitting positions and shuffled towards the dining area and tiny kitchenette. Natsumi laughed, grabbing onto Todoroki's sleeve and yanking him to his feet when she realized that he was still planted firmly against the couch cushions, "C'mon, you too. Bakugou made the cake so if it's poisoned then I'm taking you down with me."
"You're taking a pretty big risk by trusting anything that he made." Todoroki's eyebrows shot up into his feathery crimson and ivory hairline.
She hummed, pulling him along with her over the short distance from the living room to the dining area where the rest of their classmates had situated themselves, "Well, he did bring me lunch for two weeks that one time and I'm still here so I think I can trust him this time too? Unless…he was just waiting for the opportune moment to take me and half the class out in one fell swoop."
"Fuck off, if I was going to kill you extras I wouldn't do it with a fucking cake." Bakugou rolled his eyes, digging through her kitchen drawers for a knife large enough to cut the cake.
"That's exactly what someone who was plotting to kill us all with a cake would want us to believe." Kaminari stroked his chin, mumbling conspiratorially to the rest of the group.
Bakugou growled, "I'll take the fucking cake and leave."
Natsumi laughed, releasing Todoroki's sleeve and bounding over to the angry blonde, "Okay, okay. I'm sorry, I really am appreciative, thank you for going through all the trouble of making me a cake and inviting everyone over."
"Well it's not like you were going to tell them it was your birthday." Bakugou grumbled, finally finding what he was looking for in her miscellaneous utensils drawer, pulling out the large knife and bringing it over to where the cake was.
"I still think it's adorable that you made and decorated a whole ass cake for our little Natsu-chan." Ashido giggled, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively, "Perhaps love truly is in the air."
"I swear to fucking God if you start that shit again, I will shove this entire cake down your throat." Carmine eyes narrowed threateningly at the pink teen who in turn giggled and waved off the comment.
Midoriya laughed nervously at the display, doing his best to stay closer to Ochako and Kaminari so as not to invoke the wrath of Bakugou. With a curious tilt of the head, he glanced over at the birthday girl, "I've been wondering, why didn't you let us know that it was your birthday?"
All eyes were on her suddenly and she swallowed the nervous lump in her throat at the attention before straightening up and smiling sadly, "I didn't want to make it seem like you guys had to acknowledge that it was my birthday or feel like you needed to do something for me. I'm used to spending today alone and I just didn't want to be a bother."
"And that bullshit is exactly why I did it." Bakugou rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest, the knife still in hand as he stared pointedly at the girl.
"It's not a bother at all, we're all happy to be able to celebrate with you. We invited the whole class, minus Mineta because we figured you wouldn't want him to know where you lived. But, since it was so last minute most of our classmates already had prior engagements but they did want to be here." Midoriya smiled softly at her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't ever think that you're a bother to us." Todoroki spoke up from her left, angling his chin so he could stare down at her, the fringe of his bangs partially obstructing the view of his mismatched eyes from her, "You're our friend, Kurosawa, and we want you to be happy."
The rest of the group sang affectionate words of praise, making Natsumi tear up at the sentiment. She furiously wiped away the moisture in her eyes with the back of her sleeve before beaming brightly at the teens amassed in her dining room, "Thank you so much, this means so much to me I don't think I could ever voice properly how much I appreciate each and every one of you."
"Alright, enough of this sappy shit. Let's eat the fucking cake." Bakugou groaned, he wasn't the type of person to get sentimental like the rest of those extras he had class with.
"Oh! I brought some candles, Todoroki-kun, mind helping out a little?" Ochako smiled sheepishly after arranging sixteen candles around the top of the cake. The fire and ice wielder nodded, stepping forward and igniting his left hand with a bright flame before passing his hand gently over the top of the candles, lighting each and every one of them. He extinguished his flame and took a step back, gently pushing Natsumi forward so that she was positioned right in front of the cake.
Someone dimmed the lights in the room and then all at once her classmates, minus Bakugou and Todoroki, began to sing 'Happy Birthday' to her. Ashido held up her phone while she sang, recording the entire moment to send to the group chat later for everyone who missed out on being there in person.
Natsumi stared wide eyed at her friends gathered around her, all grinning while singing to her, and she felt her throat tighten and her chest constrict. The amount of love she felt radiating from them was overwhelming, she wasn't used to this much affection being shown to her and quite honestly didn't know how to react.
This was the first birthday she had ever truly celebrated, she knew that she would never forget these moments with her classmates for as long as she lived. Ever since coming to Yūei these people had made her chest blossom with such warmth on more than one occasion, it was a feeling that she found that she didn't mind. It replaced the empty cold that had otherwise been such a constant reminder of how lonely she truly felt.
I don't have to feel that way anymore though, she realized, her eyes crinkling at the corners from the wide grin that pulled her lips back to reveal her pearly whites as she took in the faces of everyone huddled around her, I finally found somewhere I belong. These dorks are my new family.
As the singing came to an end with Kaminari wiggling his body and doing jazz hands, Natsumi peeled her eyes away from the group of teens, now watching as the candles' lit flames flickered and danced against the darkness of the room.
I don't know what to wish for, I feel like…I already have everything that I need. Her attention left the cake for a moment, flicking up and meeting the striking stare of turquoise and grey, but…I do wish that we can all be like this forever. She leaned closer to the cake and blew out every single candle in one breath, her friends cheered afterwards.
"So, what'd you wish for? A date with me, perhaps?" Kaminari teased, slinging an arm over her shoulder.
"And waste a perfectly good wish? I don't think so." She mock-scoffed at the mere suggestion of a date with the boy, her lips twitching at the corners to show that she was joking so as not to accidentally offend him.
"You can't ask her what she wished for, or else it won't come true, idiot." Ashido leaned forward, hands on her hips and shooting Kaminari a teasing glare.
He removed his arm from the birthday girl's shoulder and held up his hands in defense, an amused chuckle spilling past his lips, "Alright, alright. I won't ask again."
The cake was cut and pieces were passed around to everyone, compliments were given to Bakugou over how, surprisingly, tasty and moist the cake was. The cake itself had been homemade strawberry with a strawberry compote slathered in the middle of it, a homemade cream cheese frosting coating the outside of it.
"So, since Jirou-chan couldn't make it she asked me to give this to you." Ashido held out a white cardboard pastry box to Natsumi after everyone had finished eating their cake and had helped clean up some of the mess they had made with the snacks. The pink teen tilted her head with a grin, "She said that these were all of your favorites from that café that you two go to before school."
The ivory haired teen delicately plucked the box from Ashido's hands and tipped the lid open, her eyes sparkling with excitement over the assorted French pastries neatly tucked away inside, "Ah, I'll have to send her my thanks! And thank you Mina-chan for being the delivery girl. We go to this café at least every other day for coffee and a quick breakfast before class, seriously their pastries are to die for."
Ashido bounced on the balls of her feet, clasping her hands behind her back as she swayed back and forth, "Well, guess I'll just have to tag along one of these days and try them for myself~!"
"Sounds like a plan!" Natsumi laughed, moving around her friend to place the confectionary box on the kitchen counter.
Ochako stepped forward, her fingers fidgeting with the handle of a sparkly blue giftbag as she held it out to her friend, "This is kind of from all of us girls, we know how your Quirk keeps your body pretty cold and how when you're not in your school uniform you like to wear warm cozy things so here~"
Natsumi almost stumbled back as the bag was thrust into her hands, curiously, she peeked inside, moving aside the colorful tissue paper and pulling out several items. The first of which was a grey knit sweater, it was thick and chunky and long enough to fall a little past her thighs, this would be perfect with my thermal leggings! A pair of thick, crimson thigh high socks fell out when she opened up the sweater all the way, having been rolled up inside when the garments were shoved into the giftbag. The final item she pulled out was a crimson knit scarf, she unraveled it and reveled in how soft it felt, even going so far as to lift it up to her face and rub the material against her cheek.
"Yaoyorozu-san made that. I mean, not with her Quirk, can you believe that she knows how to knit? I had no idea, that girl is full of surprises! But she said that the color reminded her of your eyes and she's sorry that she couldn't be here today, she had to attend some sort of fancy banquet with her parents." Ashido giggled as she watched her friend rub the soft material of the scarf against her face, humming in delight.
"Seriously, none of you had to get me anything. You guys just being here with me was enough to make this the best day ever." Natsumi's cheeks felt sore from all the smiling she had been doing for the last several hours, she couldn't even remember the last time she felt this warm and light and happy.
Several more gifts were passed out, a black backpack in the shape of a cat's head ("Because it looks like your cat!" Mina had grinned and flashed a peace sign), a crimson plaid Sherpa blanket, and lots of different types of candies.
Her friends had stayed to help her clean up the mess they had made before one by one bidding her one last chorus of 'happy birthday' and leaving for the evening after realizing how late it was. Todoroki was the last one left after everyone had already gone home, Natsumi tilted her head and smiled warmly, "Thank you for stopping by today."
He shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his pants, fidgeting with the small parcel that he had kept tucked away there all evening. Todoroki shifted his weight, staring over her shoulder, captivated by the glow of her fish tank before meeting her curious stare, "Did you have a good birthday?"
She nodded, tucking a stray curl behind her ear, "It was the best, I seriously can't thank you guys enough."
A small smile graced his features as he stared down at her, noting how bright and happy she truly appeared to be. His fingers slowly wrapped around the object in his pocket before pulling it out all the way and awkwardly holding it out to Natsumi. Her eyes lit up at the small rectangular gift box, reaching forward to take it, her fingers briefly brushed against his, sending a static shock tingling through their fingers. They both jerked their hands back in surprise.
Natsumi fiddled with the tiny box in her hand to distract herself from the piercing stare of Todoroki, she lifted the lid of the box. Inside was a thin chain of silver laying upon a bed of red velvet, attached to the chain was a tiny white-gold snowflake. She brought her free hand up, the tips of her fingers delicately ghosting across the snowflake charm.
"I wasn't sure what to get you, I'm not very good at these sorts of things, so I asked my sister for ideas and she said that girls like jewelry." Todoroki started, words tumbling out in uncertainty, "I saw that and it reminded me of you, but if you don't like it, I can take it back and get you something else."
She tore her eyes away from the pendant, snapping her gaze up to meet his, "Don't be dumb, of course I like it. I've never been given anything this nice before, thank you, Todoroki." She handed the box back to him, much to his confusion, and turned around so that her back was facing him, running her fingers through her hair and lifted it away from her neck, "Mind helping me put it on?"
The boy bit the inside of his cheek at the request, his fingers lifting the necklace from the case it was in before lifting it over her head so that the pendant rested against her clavicle. His fingers brushed against her collarbone as he wound the chain around until the clasp rested on the back of her neck where he secured it. He paused for a moment, the tips of his fingers brushing against the smooth, pale skin of her neck before he came back to his senses and realized what he was doing, pulling his hand away.
Natsumi let her hair fall back into place and whirled back around to face him, her cheeks tinged a light pink. She glanced down at the pendant resting against her collarbone before allowing her crimson gaze to meet his, "How does it look?"
"Perfect." Todoroki found that the word spilled from his lips before he had the time to really think about a response.
"Also, I didn't know you had a sister."
He blinked, nodding his head slowly, "I have a sister, Fuyumi, and then a brother, Natsuo," He paused, as if he were about to list another sibling, but caught himself and inside said, "we only recently have started to reconnect."
She found herself frowning at the vagueness of his response, "Reconnect?"
"I was kept away from them when I was younger, my old man didn't want there to be any distractions from my training so I wasn't allowed to interact with my siblings."
Natsumi couldn't really say that she was surprised to learn that Endeavor had kept his youngest child separated from the rest of his family in order to focus on his training. Her lips pulled back into a scowl at the thought, further cementing the fact that she absolutely loathed the man. What sort of man isolated his youngest child for the sake of working him to the bone? A heartless man, that's who.
"I'm sorry, Todoroki." She said quietly, "I'm glad that you're able to make up for lost time now though."
His lips tugged into a small smile, "Me too." He drew in a breath, "We should train together some time, Fuyumi really wants to meet you."
She was not expecting to hear that, not only was he inviting her over to his house but he had also inadvertently admitted to talking about her to his sister. Though, she supposed that there was a logical reason for that considering he did previously mention that he had asked his sister for gift ideas. Regardless, the thought of him talking about her to his siblings still sent a warmth blossoming in her chest.
"I'd like that but…" Natsumi's smile faltered, "…what about Endeavor?"
"He won't be there, more often than not he is off on missions; he doesn't come home all that often." Todoroki supplied, his words reassuring, "We have a dojo that is resistant to all manners of damage that can be caused by Quirks, so if you're interested we should spar some time."
She nodded her head, lips pulled back into an eager grin now that she knew that she wouldn't have to deal with Endeavor's attitude if she stopped by, "We've never actually fought against each other, you know. So we're long overdue."
"That's not true, we fought at USJ."
Natsumi vehemently shook her head, "No, that doesn't count."
A frown painted his lip and he let out a quiet sigh, "No, I suppose it shouldn't."
They stood facing each other, barely a foot apart, for another excruciatingly long moment, turquoise and grey staring down into curious crimson, before the automatic timer on her fish tank had the day lights turn off, bathing the living room in a comfortable darkness. That sudden change in lighting snapped them out of their own thoughts and Todoroki cleared his throat awkwardly, averting his gaze from her, "I should get going, have a good night, Kurosawa."
"You too, Todoroki."
She watched as he slipped his shoes back on and grasped the doorknob in his hand, glancing over his shoulder at her for one more fleeting moment before twisting the knob and disappearing outside. Natsumi let out a breath she hadn't even realized she had been holding, snapping the bolt lock in place and turning back to face the living room.
A light breeze filtered in through the large opened window against the far wall of her living room and she closed her eyes for a brief moment to enjoy the cool air caressing her flushed cheeks.
I never opened the window. Her eyes snapped open and narrowed suspiciously, she crept forward, staying alert to her surroundings and peering out into the darkness outside. She reached forward and pulled the window closed, as she did so her crimson gaze landed on her reflection in the glass, two figures stood behind her.
She whirled around quickly, a dagger of ice forming in both of her palms, ready to throw with expert precision at the intruders.
"Easy there, Mi-chan." Came the smooth voice of Hibiki, arms raised in defense, a lopsided grin adorning his handsome face. He wore a pair of dark washed jeans with holes in the knee, a sleeveless black hoodie, and a pair of teal and white Chuck Taylors. Beside him stood his brother, wearing an opened red plaid button up over a black short-sleeved tshirt, a pair of black skinny jeans, and a pair of black Vans with red laces. It was as if they had stepped right out of some sort of skater-boy styled photoshoot.
Panic surged through her veins at the sight of the twins and she found herself casting a weary glance around the room to see if any other members of the League of Villains were hiding, waiting to ambush her.
Hibiki's grin slipped into a frown as he watched her eyes dart around the darkened room, "No need for that, it's just us."
"No one else knows we're here, or even where here is." Ryou spoke from beside his brother for the first time, bringing a hand up to rub at the back of his neck.
Still on guard, Natsumi narrowed her eyes at the two, her fingers curling tightly around her frozen weapons, "How did you find me? Why're you here?"
The two seventeen-year olds exchanged glances before returning their attention to their childhood best friend. Ryou shrugged his shoulders, "You weren't that hard to find. As to why we're here—"
"—We wanted to wish you a happy birthday, obviously!" Hibiki interjected, bouncing on the balls of his feet and lurching forward, arms spread wide open as if to envelope her in a tight embrace. Natsumi took a step back, dodging the affectionate gesture, in turn causing the boy to falter and let out a dejected sigh.
"We waited so patiently for all of your friends to leave; we didn't realize how popular you were with those Hero wannabes." The elder twin's silver eyes twitched, his lips pulling back into a sneer at the thought of those filthy Yūei students hanging all over his Natsumi.
Crimson eyes narrowed at the accusatory tone that Ryou had adopted, she leaned back on her heel and allowed the ice in her palms to deconstruct, deciding that even though the situation was tense she didn't think it called for violence, not yet at least. She quirked a brow at the boys, "You do know that I am also a 'Hero wannabe' as you so eloquently put it. What would your boss say if he saw you seeking out someone like me? We're on opposite sides of the spectrum."
"Aw, don't be like that Mi-chan. Tonight…can't we just be us? Not Hero or Villains, just Mi-chan, Ryou-nii, and your Hibi-chan; best friends, family, no matter what." Hibiki offered with a hopeful smile, brows dipped over imploring silver eyes.
It felt as if her heart stuttered in her chest at the desperation dripping from the younger twin, practically rolling off him in waves. She had always had a soft spot for both boys, but for Hibiki especially, even though he was older than her by two years he still held a child-like quality that she was absolutely weak for.
"What about last week when I was at my internship with Hawks and one of your bioengineered monsters attacked me?" Her voice came out as a quiet growl, fingers clenched into trembling fists by her side as the all too fresh memory invaded the forefront of her mind once more. She had been plagued by the memory of her fight against the Nomu in Fukuoka ever since she had gotten back from her internship, adding further fuel to the nightmares that already tormented her subconscious.
Hibiki adopted a look of unease, averting his silver gaze and staring at the laces on his shoes instead, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Ryou, on the other hand looked positively affronted by the accusation in her tone that implicated that they were behind the attack in the first place.
"You think that Hibiki and I would do something so reckless to put your life in danger on purpose?" Ryou seethed quietly.
The younger twin glanced up, following his brother's lead and swallowing the guilt he felt about the attack, "The League's target was Hawks, we didn't even know that you were there in Fukuoka, let alone interning with him."
"That's no excuse. I just…I can't believe you guys have gotten yourselves mixed up with this group. You're going to end up making a reputation for yourselves that you won't be able to come back from, once the Heroes find out who you are, you're never going to have the option of living a normal life ever again." She let out a shaky breath, biting her lip and attempting to will away the urge to cry, "Not to mention, if someone dies because of you, whether directly from your actions or indirectly…I don't know if I could ever forgive you."
"Aw, c'mon Mi-chan." Hibiki took a step forward, tilting his head and speaking in a soft, soothing voice, "You know us, we aren't monsters."
She wanted to hate them, she really did. They had disappeared with their parents right before the demise of her own family, leaving her without a friend in the world, no one to talk to, no one to run to when life got rough. The absence of her safety net of the twins drove her nearly mad with depression and hysteria in the beginning but over time she became more accustomed to the loneliness that followed her.
But now she had a chance to have them back. Was she really willing to put aside their differences and push past the negative thoughts and feelings associated with them and work towards a future where they could be close once again?
This is probably a bad idea…
Natsumi took a tentative step forward, her nose scrunched up and brows dipped in uncertainty of her own thoughts and actions. She closed the distance between them and walked right into Hibiki's open arms, wrapping her own around his thin waist and burying her face in his chest. His scent was sweet, like vanilla with a hint of spice, it was comforting to know that after all this time he still smelled the same.
Ryou came up from behind and enclosed his arms around her, trapping her between the two of them in a tight embrace while leaning down just enough to bury his nose in her curly, ivory locks. Her hair was so soft and gave off the faint scent of lilacs, he drew in a deep breath and committed this moment to his memory.
"I missed you." She mumbled, her voice muffled by the fabric of Hibiki's hoodie.
"We missed you too." The two boys answered in unison, nuzzling themselves closer to her.
After years spent apart, they were finally reunited and it felt like a weight had been lifted from her chest, her legs wobbled beneath her weight and she collapsed from the overwhelming onslaught of emotions that suddenly bombarded her. The twins were quick to tighten their hold on her, lowering themselves along with her so that the three of them were kneeling against the floor in a more comfortable position. Natsumi could feel herself losing the inner battle she was having with herself and all at once the dam broke and the tears began to fall freely.
The two boys held her against them, both of them alternating between whispering affectionate words of reassurance and rubbing soothing circles into her back while she sobbed. Natsumi didn't cry often, they had known her long enough to know this, not even when her parents had beat her into submission did she shed a tear. She was strong and stubborn and had years of practice at keeping her emotions in check. But everyone had their breaking point and she had happened to hit hers from the mental overstimulation of being reunited again with the twins.
She cried until her eyes were red, raw, and sore, unable to produce anymore tears. Hibiki's hoodie was drenched in her tears and snot from her ugly crying but he didn't say anything about it when she finally pulled away and stared up into his soft, silver gaze, her own crimson eyes glassy and swollen from crying.
Natsumi sniffled, choking back a half-laugh-half sob, "I'm sorry I'm such a fucking mess."
Hibiki and Ryou both laughed and shook their heads, the younger of the twins reached out and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear while smiling fondly at her. Ryou still had his arms wrapped around her torso from behind, leaning forward and resting his chin against her shoulder, he slid his silver gaze over to take in her appearance. Her face was red and blotchy, half-dried tears tracked down her cheeks, and even though she definitely did look like a mess, she still looked perfect to him.
"After everything you've been through, I'm surprised you kept yourself held together this long on your own." The older twin chuckled quietly, a sad faraway look in his eyes, "You're so strong, but you don't have to be all the time. It's okay to let your walls down every once in a while."
"You're safe here with us." Hibiki caressed her face gently with his hand, using his thumb to wipe away a stray tear that rolled down her cheek.
She drew in a deep, calming breath, blinking away the bleariness before nodding her head slowly, "Thank you, Hibi-chan, Ryou-nii." She brought her hand up, using the back of her sleeve to wipe the moisture from her cheeks, "I'm gonna make some hot chocolate, you want some?"
Natsumi pulled herself to her feet, tilting her head down at the two boys who nodded eagerly at the offer. She turned on her heel and shuffled into the kitchen, pulling out the milk to start heating it in the saucepan before adding in cocoa powder and sugar. Once that was thoroughly mixed in, turning the milk a creamy, chocolatey-brown, she stirred in chocolate chips for extra sweetness, watching as they quickly melted while she slowly stirred the liquid in lazy circles.
It had been a while since she had made homemade hot chocolate, as a kid it had been something that she would make to comfort herself and soothe the ache in her heart after a long day of training and being left to her own devices. She had made it for the boys many times in the past before they'd sneak up to the rooftop to stargaze and escape the confining walls of the warehouse they grew up in.
Once the beverage was ready, she carefully poured the piping hot liquid into three mugs, topping them all with a generous portion of whipped cream and mini-chocolate chips before squeezing one between her arm and her side to keep it in place while she wrapped her fingers around the handles of the other two.
She slowly made her way out of the kitchen and into the living room, nearly dropping all three mugs when she realized what had kept the boys so quiet the whole time she had been fixing their drinks.
Her living room had been completely transformed. Her coffee table had been pushed back against a far wall, and blankets and pillows were arranged like a cozy little nest on the living room floor. Once she stepped farther into the living room was when it happened, when the transformation really took place.
A ring of electric blue encircled Ryou's pupils as he activated his Quirk and all at once they were standing atop a grassy hilltop with a wide expanse of stars and blinking constellations surrounding them. Hibiki's eyes glowed in the same fashion and the quiet hum of her fishtank suddenly faded away, being replaced by the chirping of crickets.
She stood at the edge of their blanket nest, eyes wide in awe as she stared up at where her ceiling had previously been. The boys turned their attention to her, each wearing an identical, boyish grin.
"Well, what do you think?" Ryou asked, voice as smooth as velvet as he reached out to take the mug that sat snuggly in the crook of her arm to lighten her load.
Hibiki took a sip out of his mug when she handed it to him, humming in appreciation as the sweet, creamy liquid cascaded down his throat, "This is just like when we were kids, yeah? Drinking hot chocolate and staying up late to stare up at the stars, competing to see how many constellations we could name."
Natsumi laughed, lowering herself onto the blanket, clutching the warm mug of cocoa in her hands, her eyes never once leaving the twinkling stars above her, "Your Quirks really are amazing, I almost forgot that I wasn't actually outside for a moment."
"That's the point." Hibiki replied with a cheeky grin, placing his mug of cocoa beside him and out of the way so that he wouldn't accidentally knock it over. He laid back on the blanket and gestured for her to do the same.
She rolled her eyes in amusement, but obliged nonetheless, laying back and nestling herself in between the two as they stared up at the dark sky above them. They spent the next hour pointing out various constellations, quizzing each other to see if they still remembered the names for each cluster of stars. After a while the three of them simply laid there in silence, enjoying each other's company and watching the stars twinkle.
"Remember when we used to joke about running away together?" Hibiki spoke, disrupting the comfortable silence that had befallen them,
Natsumi let out a quiet laugh at the memory, lips pulled back into a toothy grin as she turned her head to stare at the boy who had spoken, "Yeah, we were going to run away and become carnies. I was going to run the snow-cone stand while you two would be in charge of the Fun House."
"You know what's funny?" Ryou chuckled, "We were one-hundred-percent serious about that plan. We were just waiting for you to say the word and we'd take you and run in a heartbeat."
She scrunched up her nose, eyebrows furrowed in contemplation before turning her head to her left to take in the older boy's expression, "I mean…I'm not going to lie, I thought about it more often than I'd really like to admit. Sometimes I like to imagine how different things would be if the three of us had just left and never looked back."
"We could still do it." Hibiki breathed out, eyes trained on the sky as a shooting star zoomed across the blanket of darkness above them.
"It's a little late for that." She smiled wryly, "It's a nice thought but…I'm serious about wanting to be a Hero. I'm not going to run away from my past anymore."
"Well, the offer will remain on the table." Ryou tilted his head, fingers twitching at his sides, "I won't pretend to understand why you're choosing to put everything you know behind you to pursue becoming a Hero but…I hope you know that even if we're on opposite sides, Hibiki and I will always be on your side."
"I know." She said quietly.
"Never forget, you're the brightest star in our darkest skies." Hibiki recited the line they had always said in the past to convey their love for one another.
Her heartrate picked up, feeling as if it were going to burst right out of her chest "And you're mine."
The younger twin beamed at her response, running a hand through his shaggy, raven locks before bolting up into a sitting position abruptly, startling the two laying beside him.
"Oh! That reminds me!" He leaned over her body, curling and uncurling his fingers rapidly in a 'gimme' motion towards his brother.
Ryou rolled his eyes and let out a loud sigh, digging his hands into the pocket of his jeans and pulling out a small silver bracelet, handing it over to his overexcited brother. The younger twin grinned, motioning for Natsumi to sit up, which she did, while staring up at him with a half-cocked eyebrow and an amused smirk curling the corners of her lips upwards.
"We got you a present, it's nothing too fancy or flashy but I hope you like it." He held out the bracelet in his hand, it was a silver bangle with a crescent moon with a star on either side of it stamped into the metal. On the inside of the bangle were the letters 'H+N+R' etched into the silver. It was a simple gift but she was a simple girl with simple tastes.
"I love it, thank you." She smiled a soft, genuine smile, as she delicately plucked the bracelet from his palm and fastened it around her left wrist. It fit snuggly against tiny wrist, which was perfect, meaning that there was less of a chance of it snagging on anything during training exercises.
The twins stayed a little while longer, the three of them curling up against each other, laughing and talking as if they hadn't gone almost three years without seeing or speaking to each other. In the back of Natsumi's mind there was a nagging feeling that she was making a mistake by letting them back in, but the part of her that felt nostalgic for the relationship she shared with them in the past was louder and easily smothered any and all red flags that had popped up.
It was well past midnight when the boys bid her farewell, deactivating their Quirks and leaving the three of them back in her little living room once more. They exchanged phone numbers and she filed theirs under 'Thing 1' and 'Thing 2' to play it safe.
With the promise to seeing each other again real soon lingering in the air, Natsumi locked the door behind them and shuffled her way towards her bedroom, immediately collapsing onto her bed. She was exhausted after having such a long day filled with celebrating with friends new and old and her social battery needed recharging. The last thought on her mind before she succumbed to her exhaustion was, I hope this wasn't a mistake.
So I've actually been dying to write this chapter in particular for literal months. I love her relationship with Bakugou so much and even if he doesn't want to admit it he's a big softy, especially when it comes to her. I think deep down he wants to be a Hero for her so he will do things like make a cake for her and let it slip to the other guys in class that her birthday is coming up because he secretly wants her to be happy. He thinks about that moment in the beginning of the year when he stopped by and found her tipsy and honestly, he just never wants to see her get that bad again.
And we have the twins making their appearance again! I love them so much, I really really do, and I've been dying to have an actual reunion between her and them happen. Did she make a dumb choice in letting them in and trusting that they won't fuck her over? Probably. Did they blatantly lie to her face about not being involved in the Fukuoka attack? Absolutely. But they both really do love her and wouldn't intentionally harm her, and she knows that so its easy for her to let down her guard and allow herself to trust them to easily.
HiddenCamelia – Oh don't you worry, he's definitely working his way into her heart (even if he doesn't realize he's doing it lol).
Emocean – Thank you! I'm so happy you think so :3
Tamedbanshee – Omg thank you so much, I'm so glad that you're enjoying the story so far! I hope her birthday surprise lived up to your expectations! I've been waiting to write her birthday chapter for over a year now tbh and I'm so happy that I've finalllly gotten to this part in the story lmao.
TheVulcanNara – Do you mean have I ever thought about writing an AU for the story? Because I definitely have (if that's what you meant! lol) I have different AUs where she's paired with different boys but idk if I'll ever write those out, even if they're just little oneshots. And yes! That's exactly how I view their relationship, like they're just basically best friends who many people mistake as being romantically involved because—well, not only do they taunt and tease each other every chance they get, but they also get themselves into awkward situations like in last chapter where he was trying to take her phone away.
Ahhh, thank you so much for your review seriously it means so much. It's really late here, I just wanted to finish this chapter before bed but I will leave you with another little AU thought. So, when I was first planning the story out, in the veryyy beginning, I had actually planned on her not being suspended from school. She continued to attend class, but her classmates ostracized her and essentially ignored her existence because they couldn't separate what they had seen at USJ from the actual truth that it was all an illusion cooked up by the LoV to make them believe that she was intentionally trying to hurt Todoroki. So, things went on like this for weeks, no one talked to her, with the exception of Bakugou who realized early on (mainly because he was right there and saw with his own eyes that the twins were using their Quirks) that it wasn't her fault, everyone was basically like "Damn, she's hanging out with Bakugou? That's wild." lol. That was when I was leaning towards him being endgame for her, but then I switched things around and decided to go down the Todoroki route lol.
Thank you so much to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed! I hope you enjoyed this cute little chapter, please let me know what you think!