Mom eyed my clothes up and down as I silently opened the fridge. Grabbing the bento I prepared last night in my right hand, I shut the fridge with my elbow. I stuffed my lunch into my backpack. I walked out of the kitchen and toward the front door. I began to put on the squeaky clean sneakers Mrs. Wren bought for me. While tying the laces, Mom spoke.

"Rin, you don't have to go to school, you know that? You can stay home for another day."

"I've been absent for three days... I don't want to miss out on too much schoolwork."

"I know that what happened was unexpected, and everything that's going on is stressful," she gently said. "School's important, but what's more important right now is your health."

"I'm fine," I insisted, with a tinge of vexation in my voice.

I saw Mom give me a hurt expression from the corner of my eye. She didn't say anything back. Looking away, I finished tying my shoelaces and stood up. I told her that she didn't need to worry about me. Then I shut the door and made my way to the train station.

A couple of days have passed since they told me the news. Dad said that once Akira got interrogated by the police, she spilled the beans about Hiro. While posing as a hero at his agency, she was able to extract information on him. Doing so enabled her to contact the Crimson Eclipse and kidnap him. She tried to convince him to join but... She didn't say the details, but it was enough to understand what happened. He was...

"Rin-chan!" a short girl wearing preschooler outfit exclaimed. Himawari ran over and gave me a big hug. "I missed you!"

I awkwardly patted her bright yellow hat which was equally as bright as the sun. "U-uh, yeah, me too..."

Himawari let go of my waist. She peered up at me with her round, dark, pupils. "Mommy's takin' me to school. I love school!" she happily chirped. "Hey, hey! Did Hiro-chan come back home yet? When's he comin' back? I miss him!"

I stiffened, and my throat tightened. I struggled to find a reply as Himawari stared at me with that innocent gleam in her eyes.

"Himawari! Didn't I tell you not to run off?" her mom said, her heels clicking on the sidewalk. She grabbed her daughter's hands. She looked at me for a moment. I'd expect her to say something about not coming near her daughter, but she said something instead that made me wish she retained her usual cold demeanor.

"I heard about Hiro... He was a very good man. My condolences."

My eyes fell to the ground. I thanked her. After that, she dragged her daughter away as she waved goodbye. Once getting out of my sight, I let out a small sigh and continued on my way. Soon enough, I arrived in the city. There were fewer people out today. It must be because of the Crimson Eclipse. The attack at the ice cream shop was the last straw for civilians, and many began to minimize their time in public places in fear of getting targeted. Some people began to turn against the police and heroes, blaming them for letting the Crimson Eclipse cause so much damage in the city.

My eyes fell toward the graffiti that was plastered onto building walls. Many of them were criticizing the authorities and how they keep failing at their jobs. But then, a picture of a red crescent moon caught my eye as I walked passed. There was writing underneath. Halting to a stop, I crept closer.

The weak will die. The strong will prevail.

I quickly looked away and sped away toward the stoplight. For some reason, I thought back to Kiyoshi's words from that night.

"I've been keeping an eye on you for a while along with your brother."

I can't believe I forgot something so important. Maybe the hostage situation and trying to call for help distracted me. It didn't help that I fell unconscious too. Why is it that I remember this when he's already...

I felt someone tap me on the shoulder stopping me from walking into the bustling street. I realized that the light was red. Turning around, I saw Mrs. Wren. She was strolling Junichi in a very elaborate baby stroller. It was gold and black, with the hood and seat being black and the trimmings being gold. Junichi was sitting inside with the seatbelts looking ready to burst. He was knawing on bright yellow giraffe teething toy. He looked even chubbier from the last time I saw him.

"I saved your life, you know? I don't even get a drop of gratitude?" Mrs. Wren remarked with a small frown.

"Oh... Uh, thanks?"

She huffed. "Onishi-san, you ought to be better at communicating. Your manner of speech is so awkward. You also tend to use unnecessary filler words in your sentences."

"Um... Okay..."

"Didn't I tell you not to use unnecessary filler words?!"

I scratched my cheek. "Sorry. But I really did mean it. Thanks for saving me."

She stuck her nose up in the air. With a tint of pink appearing on her cheeks, she said, "Hmph! You are such a naive girl! Anyway, I have a gift for you."

She bent down behind the stroller. Rummaging around in the basket, she pulled out a white envelope that was covered in lace. She held it out to me beckoning me to take it. Upon doing so, I asked her what it was for. However, she told me to just open it so I did.

"W-woah... A $2000 gift card? Um, this is too much," I said.

"Worry not. A simple gift like this was easy for me to obtain. Use this to buy whatever you desire," she replied with a hint of haughtiness. But then, her rigid features softened and her voice turned quiet. "I...I know that no amount of money won't be able to allay your sorrow. However... I hope that this gift can temporarily get your mind off of it. My deepest condolences."

The light turned green. Since Mrs. Wren was going the other way, she bid me farewell. Walking down the street, I gripped the white envelope at my fingertips trying to clear my mind. It was hard to when everyone kept bringing him up.

Peering up at the sky, I noticed that it got a bit cloudier than before. It was nothing too concerning though; it was nice to have a break from the blinding sun.

I felt my phone begin to ring. I pulled it out and glanced at the screen.

Incoming call from:

Iida-sensei ?

"Hello, Onishi!" Iida's voice rang. He cleared his throat and spoke again but in a quieter voice. "I mean, hello Onishi."

"You called early. What's up?" I asked, stepping to the side of the street to let people pass.

"Yes, well, I'd expect you'd be wondering why I'm calling you so early in the morning," he said. "I'm calling to inform you that the study session for this weekend is canceled."

"Um, alright. You could've just texted me, y'know."

"That's right! Ahem. That's right. The passing of a loved one can make a person's mood dampen. I wanted to check up on you to assure that you are okay. So Onishi, how are you doing?"

I bit my lip and I told him that I was fine. Hearing that, he said he was going to check up on me again after school. Then, he told me that he was going to hang up now since he was already at school, and he wasn't supposed to be on his phone right now. He rambled on a bit about how nervous he was breaking the rules. Hearing how he was willing to give me a call even if it meant going against school policy made me feel a bit lighter inside. As I prepared to end the call, he spoke.

"Onishi... I am truly sorry for what happened. It's important for you to depend on family and friends during times of hardship. If you're in need of any assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to me!"

"...Yeah," I replied, softly. "Thanks, Iida."

He ended the call. Stuffing my phone into my sweater, I continued my way to the station. Upon arriving and entering the train, my eyes snapped onto the white-and-red haired boy who was sitting down by the door. He was scrolling on his phone, as usual. I felt the jealous gazes of lovesick schoolgirls pierce into me as I strolled over to the empty seat beside him. When I sat down, he glanced at me in acknowledgment. With a shrill rattle, the train departed.

Ten minutes passed, and we didn't say a word to each other. This was common, though. Sometimes we don't talk at all during the ride. Although sitting together in silence was a bit uncomfortable at first, I quickly grew used to it.

I was lost in my thoughts. I tried my best not to think about Hiro but my mind kept on wandering back to him. Because of that, most of my time on the train consisted of me remembering things about him. The furthest memory I had of him was when I was two. I think I was playing catch with him in the house. We were bouncing my blue, Cinderella bouncy ball that I begged for at the supermarket. I kept missing the catch and throwing the ball bad at him, but he didn't mind. When I did manage to catch it, I remembered feeling really proud. Partly because I finally did it, but mostly because I made Hiro happy.

There was also this time when I fell down in the park. It was a really hot summer day. I was playing tag with some random kids at the playground when I tripped on my flimsy, bright pink, flip-flops. I scraped my knee and it started bleeding. I couldn't play anymore after that. Since it was just Hiro and me, he piggybacked me back home. I remember trying to hold in my tears and Hiro's gentle voice trying to soothe me. When we got home, Mom washed my knee and gave me a bandaid. To make me feel better, Hiro gave me a popsicle.

Once I entered elementary, that's when the bullying began. The older I grew, the more I got bullied. The kids teased me, but never when Hiro was around. They were scared of him. Because of me, Hiro got into trouble a lot, and he got hurt. So, I decided to try my best to stop the bullying. I tried to ignore them every time they would comment about my lack of a quirk and when they tripped me in the hallways. When Hiro would ask me if anyone bothered me on our walk home, I would always say that nobody did. I didn't want him to worry, but that was nearly impossible to achieve.

"I'll be your quirk. So if anyone of those bullies come back to tease you, just call me over and I'll take care of them!"

But now that he's gone, I have nothing. I am nothing. I'm...

"Onishi," Todoroki suddenly spoke.

I broke out of my thoughts. I didn't realize, but my hands were trembling slightly. He must've noticed it too or else he wouldn't have called my name.

"Are...you okay?"

I hid my hands into my hoodie pocket and nodded. He stared at me with his brown and turquoise eyes for a moment. It looked like he was trying to think of what to say next. He ended up not saying anything and broke his gaze. Instead, he reached into his schoolbag and pulled out a pair of white earbuds. Plugging it into his phone, he opened Youtube and scooted closer to me. He held out the right side of the earbud to me.

"You want to watch videos with me?"

That was typical of him. He was always sending me Youtube links. Although someone else would've found his question totally random, I knew what he was trying to do. Understanding that made my chest feel less heavy. Taking the earbud and putting it into my ear, Todoroki and I watched ridiculous but adorable cat videos for the rest of the train ride.

When I got to school, I could tell my classmates were uncomfortable. When I entered the classroom for the first time, the whole room got quiet. It was strange that everyone's attention was focused on me. During lunch, some of my classmates asked me how I was doing. They gave me their sympathies, including Midoriya. He was shaken up over the entire thing.

"Onishi, I'm so sorry for what happened. I know this isn't much, but please accept this!"

I think he was unsure of what to do because Midoriya bought me a handful of curry bread from the school store. It was a bit silly, but it did make me feel a bit better knowing he had good intentions. But now, I don't know what to do with all this bread.

I let out a small sigh as I wiped the chalkboard.

I could always give some to Blackbird. They're always helping me out. They'll like free food, especially Static since she claims that she's always eating instant ramen for dinner. I should give some to Hiro too. I'm sure he'll-

...Oh yeah. That's right. I already forgot, didn't I?

The door to the class slid open. Glancing right, I saw an explosive blonde boy walk inside with a bucket of water. He grumpily set it down. His red eyes flickered at me. He sauntered over and stopped in front of me.

"What are you doin' here?" he demanded.

I told him I was scheduled to clean the classroom today. Hearing that, his eyes lowered to the eraser in my hand. It lingered there for a second before coming back to me.

"Scram."

I gave him a puzzled look. He snatched the eraser from my fingertips and pushed me aside. He began to forcefully wipe the chalkboard.

"Uh, I'm supposed to be cleaning," I informed.

"I don't care."

"But-"

He slammed the eraser on the board making white chalk dust fly everywhere. "I told you to get outta here," he growled.

I could sense he was irritated. Since I didn't feel like arguing with him, I obeyed. Walking back to the back of the classroom, I put on my backpack and left.

The way home was a lot peaceful than expected. I chatted with Iida on the entire way. He asked me Get To Know Eachother questions since he claims we can't maximize our friendship if we don't know anything about the other person. It turns out, he tried to join the track-and-field team at his school during 7th grade but they refused to let him in. It wasn't until he beat one of the 3rd years on the team that granted him permission to join. Along with the track team, he's currently a part of the Student Council and the Debate Club. Being in one club already sounds hard enough. I'm glad that my school doesn't require that I be in one.

Todoroki and I watched more Youtube on the train. Since Youtube was on autoplay, we went from watching fluffy cat videos to watching internet conspiracies. I'm not really sure how it happened. It was kind of bizarre but Todoroki was pretty into it. I didn't take him for the type to like that kind of stuff. I made sure to give him some of my curry bread when I left.

Stepping foot into the city, I noticed that it had grown darker from before. The sun was nowhere in sight since the sky was covered with thick clouds. The wind had picked up too, and I shivered to myself as a cold breeze blew. I didn't bring an umbrella today and there's no way I'm taking the bus or taxi, so I'll just hope I don't get caught in a downpour on the way home.

Walking at a faster pace than usual, I scurried home. But as I traveled on my usual route, I was met with an unexpected detour.

"Rin-chan! I haven't seen you in a week!" a certain strawberry hero exclaimed. Jumping down from the roof of the building, he gave me a big hug. "H-how are you doing? Everyone's so worried about you!"

I reassured him that I was fine. However, he didn't seem too convinced. "Rin-chan! It's natural to feel very sad over something like this. It's okay to be upset."

"I told you, I'm fine," I insisted.

"Sorry! But that is a lie! No one would be fine after hearing news about the unexpected passing of an elder brother. You can say that you're fine all you want, but you're not."

I shook my head. I tried to protest but he started talking again.

"In fact, I've been feeling under the weather lately as well. Although I've met Hiro a couple of times, he was a very wonderful person! I cannot imagine what you are feeling right-"

"I said, I'm fine!" I snapped.

Strawberry Shades was taken aback from my sudden outburst. Clenching my jaw, I turned my back against him. "...You...don't have to worry about me. I'm fine."

He watched me walk away without saying another word, as the sky rumbled.

»»—- —-««

"So, how was school?" Mom asked me.

I glanced at the empty seat beside her. And then, back to the one next to me.

"...Where's Dad?"

"H-he's doing...some work right now on the phone. He'll come to eat when he's finished."

I stared at the plate of curry in front of me. Today was a perfect day to eat warm curry. The steam from the meal was warming my cold face that was out in the autumn air. Although it looked appetizing, I didn't want to eat. I didn't feel hungry. I didn't feel anything.

My eyes landed on the extra plates of curry. One was sitting at the spot where Dad sits and the other...

"Er... Why is there an extra plate?" I asked.

Mom abruptly from her chair. She scurried over to the seat beside me. Picking up the plate, she said, "A-ah! My mistake! I wanted to have one last meal with Hiro as a parting gift... He loved curry, you know that."

"It doesn't matter. He's not here. It's not like he can eat it," I mumbled.

Pain flashed in her eyes. Lowering them down to the floor, she silently walked into the kitchen to clean the plate.

I... I'm not hungry right now. I can't eat.

Standing up from the dinner table, I drifted out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Passing by my parents' room, I overheard Dad speaking on the phone to someone.

"You said you were going to tell me everything! ...I know already. No, I don't care. You better...! Just... Damn it... I need to know. Not just for my sake, but for Rin... I see... Alright. I... That bastard! When I get my hands on him, I'll... I-I apologize... But all that just to please the old man? He needs to let it go... I see. Th-thank you, Asuka..."

I assumed he hung up because he went quiet. There was no way that was a business chat, but I didn't care to question it. Going inside my room, I carefully shut the door. Tossing my phone on my bed, I flopped onto my bed, belly first. For a moment, I lied there in the darkness hugging my pillow.

"I've been keeping an eye on you for a while along with your brother."

Why am I thinking of that again? Even if I did tell him, it's not like it could've changed anything. He still would've died. Something like that...

A huge pit formed inside my stomach knowing that I was completely wrong.

Suddenly, there was a gentle knock at my door. Following after, I heard Tsuyu speak, "Rin-chan. How are you feeling?"

I didn't reply. I couldn't even if I wanted to. Hearing my silence, she spoke again. "You're not alone in this, Rin-chan. You're important to me. If you need anyone to talk to, I'm here. Please reach out to me if you need anything."

I heard the shuffling of her feet leave my door. Silence filled the room again. It was just me again, alone.

"School's important, but what's more important right now is your health."

School's the only thing that can distract me from thinking about him.

"Hey, hey! Did Hiro-chan come back home yet? When's he comin' back?"

He's never coming back.

"I know that no amount of money won't be able to allay your sorrow."

I don't think anything can make me feel better.

"It's important for you to depend on family and friends during times of hardship."

I know that, but I'm always depending on everyone. I'm deadweight.

"Are...you okay?"

No, I'm not. I'm not okay. Nothing's okay.

"Onishi, I'm so sorry for what happened."

Everyone is. Even myself.

"It's natural to feel very sad over something like this. It's okay to be upset."

Why do I feel so guilty when I am?

"You're not alone in this, Rin-chan."

But I pushed you away, didn't I?

"If anything bad happens, call me. Your big brother will come to save-"

The last time I spoke to him, I hung up on him. If I knew that was the last time I was gonna hear his voice, I would've spoken to him longer. If only I could hear him again...

I reached for my phone that was lying a few inches away. I turned it on and went into my contacts. I scrolled down to Hiro's number. My thumb hovered over his picture. As if my impulses took over, my thumb pressed on his picture. My phone began to dial his number.

What am I doing? It's not like he's going to answer. He's gone. But even so...

"Hello, you reached Onishi Hiro's phone. I'm sorry I wasn't able to answer your call. I'll try my best to get back to you! Feel free to leave a voicemail!"

The sound of the beep was heard shortly after. Without thinking, I began to speak.

"Hey. It's me, uh, Rin. I...I don't even know why I'm doing this. You're not going to hear this message anyway, but..." I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. "I-I... I'm sorry...for always needing your help. Since we were kids, you were always helping me. You stood up for me when no one else did... And... I still remember that promise you made. Y-you said you were going to p-protect me, r...right? And become my quirk? B..but now that you're gone, wh-what now? What am I supposed to do?"

I began to tremble as tears pricked my eyes. Each word that rolled off my tongue made it harder for me to continue.

"I'm weak, y'know? I can hardly keep myself alive. Without you, I'm... I'm powerless. I-I...I can't do anything. Why did you have to leave? Why become a hero? I'm selfish too, y'know that? If you haven't become a hero, you would..."

"I've been keeping an eye on you for a while along with your brother."

No. If I remembered these vital words, he would still be alive. It's not his fault that he died.

It's mine.

"You're...You're my hero. S-so, I want to say thank you for everything that you've done," I started. "Th...thank you for taking care of me and playing with me, a-and getting angry for me wh-when the older kids would bully me. And...and thank you for worrying about me all the time and saving me from trouble. When...when you came during the Hero Festival, I was so relieved. Everything's alright when you're here but... I don't know what to do since you left. I..."

"You've reached your limit time for your voicemail."

I slowly lowered my phone down, and I shut it off. I sat in silence listening to the sound of rain patter against my window in a rhythm.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The large drops of water traveled down in a stream. It was cold and felt lonely. Although physically impossible, it made me want to give it a warm hug. At first, it came in droplets, but soon it started rushing down like a raging waterfall. It was almost mesmerizing and somewhat shocking. It felt foreign to me. No matter how much I tried to wipe my tears, they kept leaking out.

"It's fine now! Why? Because I am here! Your big brother is here to protect you!"