Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia/Boku No Hero Academia, or any other property in this work that I did not make myself.
A couple that will go down in legend
Chapter forty-six: Feeling the burn
Izuku Midoriya was getting back from having a wonderful time out with his girlfriend Mitsuki. Sure, the fact that Mitsuki is not only more than double Izuku's age, as well as the fact that she's the mother of Izuku's classmate Bakugo (who is slightly older than Izuku, btw) had caused a bit of awkwardness here and there, even to this day. But some way, somehow, the two of them had been able to make the relationship work.
Mitsuki said that she was actually planning on swinging by the Midoriya apartment, as she was friends with Izuku's mother Inko. At that point, Izuku would take his leave as he would return to the grounds of U.A. High School, the top hero academy in Japan and the school that Izuku, as well as the aforementioned Bakugo, goes to. Speaking of the ashy-haired boy, he bumped into Izuku and his mother as they were making their way to see Inko.
Bakugo, when he was grilled by Mitsuki on what he was up to, held up a few grocery bags. "Yeah, Mrs. Midoriya asked me to handle some shopping for her, as she said that she wasn't feeling all that well to go herself," the explosive teen explained.
"Inko's under the weather?" Mitsuki said, a hint of worry in her tone, "Well hot damn, we need to pick up the pace and go see what's up with her!" Mitsuki then immediately took off running, forcing both her son and her boyfriend to have to dash in order to catch up with her. By the time that Izuku and Bakugo had arrived at the apartment building where the Midoriya apartment was located, they could already see Mitsuki go up the stairs in leaps and bounds, as if she were a pro hero arriving on the scene of a crime.
Izuku was impressed, as well as a bit touched, by the fire within Mitsuki that spurred her on to see to his mother's well-being. Bakugo, for his part, was annoyed with how erratic his hag of a mother was acting. The two teen boys then began to go up the stairs to the floor where Izuku and his mother's apartment was located, just in time to see Mitsuki rush into the apartment as she was shouting, "Ima coming, Inko!"
The boys had to run a bit more, but they stopped short right when they appeared in the open doorway that led into the Midoriya apartment. The reason that both of them stopped was due to hearing Mitsuki cry out in a surprised and mildly fearful tone, "Holy shit! Inko, what the hell happened to you?!" The two boys, Izuku in particular, rushed in, and what both of them saw had set a great degree of fear for the green-haired woman into their respective hearts; Inko, with a pained and exhausted look on her face, was breathing hard, while clearly knocked out of it, as Mitsuki struggled to pick her up and lay her out on the sofa.
"What the hell's wrong with Mrs. Midoriya?!" Bakugo exclaimed, clearly alarmed by what he was seeing happening to the person who was the closest thing that the explosive teen has ever had as a grandparent, as he and Izuku rushed over.
"Boys, call the hospital!" Mitsuki ordered, "We're going to need to rush Inko here right over so she can receive proper treatment! This is out of our hands at this point!" Both boys nodded in the affirmative as they went about contacting the help that Inko needed.
They prayed like they were Ibara in class 1-B that they wouldn't be too late.
Sometime later the following morning, Izuku and Bakugo were both sitting in a hospital room, looking at a now awake and stable Inko as she rested in the one hospital bed that was in the room. The green-haired woman had a sympathetic look that showed she not only understood that she had caused worry to both boys, but that she was also a bit embarrassed to have been such a bother to them, among other people. "Heh, I guess I should have been keeping better track of my insulin shots, huh?" Inko asked.
"Mom, how could you forget to keep track of that?" Izuku asked, tears streaming down the sides of his face, "This isn't the first time your diabetes has landed you here in similar circumstances."
Inko, looking an even mix of understanding and guilty, nodded once in response. "…I guess that so much has happened that I sort of lost track of all of that. Sorry about all of this, sweetie."
Izuku looked like he was about to ask something else, but he was cut off when Bakugo raised a hand, getting both green-haired persons in the room to look at him. Seeing as he now had the focus of everyone else in the room on him, Bakugo straightened up a bit in his chair. "How long has this been a thing, Mrs. Midoriya?" the explosive teen asked, "This whole…" Bakugo stopped short, gestured to the green-haired woman with both hands. "…Whole diabetes thing that landed you here in the hospital late yesterday evening."
Inko gave a resigned, mildly troubled sigh. "…For a while now, Katsuki," Inko replied, her voice sounding guilty with a hint of sounding resigned in it. The green-haired woman looked guilty as she stared at her notable belly for a bit. She closed her eyes, gently shook her head. When she was ready to continue, she turned to look at the boys again. "…It happened sometime around the point that my weight got to a little over the two-hundred pound mark."
"That…does make sense," Izuku remarked, a look of consideration on his face, "After all, there have been many cases where people develop diabetes due to gaining weight. And here I thought that diabetes was something genetic that runs in the family."
Inko briskly shook her head, or at least shook her head as briskly as she could, all things considered. "Oh no, sweetie, there's no genetic disposition towards any sort of health problem in our family. Otherwise I would be fearful every day that you might end up developing diabetes, same as I have. Luckily, you have a clean bill of health, outside of physical injuries that you have sustained due to your path of becoming a pro hero."
"Yeah, Deku breaking a bone is far and away a different thing than you having diabetes," Bakugo remarked as he nodded a few times, his arms crossed over his chest. He then lowered his arms, pounded a fist into his hand, before he continued. "Case in point is that trying to work out how to resolve both issues as best as possible varies wildly from one another. When Deku breaks a bone, he needs to either put a cast on it or let Recovery Girl work her magic." Bakugo then gave Inko a troubled, concerned look. "As for you Mrs. Midoriya, I'm not entirely sure if there's anything that can be done to get rid of what's making you sick."
Once more, Inko looked guilty, understanding that her lapse in keeping her diabetes in mind has caused those who care about her to feel worry and fear for her well-being. Inko was brought back to reality when she heard someone smack the back of their hand into the open palm of their other hand. Looking over, she saw that Bakugo was the one who had done so. "All that I can think of is helping you to lose as much excess weight as possible," the explosive teen went on, "If you having that excess weight is what led to you getting diabetes, then I think that losing as much of it as possible may help you in at least helping you keeping as much of a lid on it as possible."
Izuku nodded in agreement with Bakugo. "Yeah, that may be a good idea, Kacchan." Turning to look at Inko, Izuku said, "And Kacchan's point does bring up what I've been saying for quite some time. Mom, it would really help your health out a lot if you were to lose some weight. It'd make things a lot easier for you in the long run if you took steps to improve your health."
This time, Inko had a hint of a mildly annoyed look in her eyes. Sighing in a mildly exasperated tone, Inko remarked, "I know that a lot of people have been telling me that I ought to-"
"Mom, it landed you in the hospital again!" Inko looked a bit surprised as she turned to regard Izuku, who had cut her off mid-sentence. The green-haired woman stopped short when she saw the look of pleading worry on her son's face. Inko was about to give what would be a usual spiel for her, but seeing that look on her only child's face, plus acknowledging where she was at the moment and why she was at that place, made her back down.
Inko gave a troubled, mildly resigned sigh, a sign that she knew that she had a hand that was best to simply fold on. "…I assume that you've tried to take steps to improve your health before," Bakugo said, making Inko turn to face him, "Only for all measures to ultimately fail, resulting in you falling right back to square one." Standing up, Bakugo said as he pointed to Inko, "That will be where I come in. I'll see to it that you not only work to lose your excess weight and improve your health, but that it stays that way."
The green-haired woman looked a bit surprised, before she cracked a bit of a gentle smile. "It's really nice of you to offer to do that, Katsuki."
"I haven't just offered it, I've already started doing it."
"What."
Nodding a few times in the affirmative, Bakugo explained, "Deku already clued me in on how your diabetes is connected to you having some excess weight right after the paramedics rushed you out of your apartment as me, Deku and my mom watched. Knowing that, I immediately took measures to improve your health as much as possible."
Izuku, with a mildly embarrassed look on his face, said with a bit of hesitance in his tone, "Umm, Kacchan isn't kidding, mom. The first thing he did was call up all his friends over at U.A. and got them to pitch in on the plan. One of the things that Kacchan had his friends do was have Mina search the apartment for every last 'unhealthy' snack, including searching for any and all of your 'hiding spots' that I informed her about."
"Pinky is currently burning all of them in a metal drum as we speak," Bakugo stated, drawing a nod in the affirmative from Izuku. Pointing to Inko, Bakugo said, "Additionally, my squad and I will be working with you to make sure you stick with a diet and exercise regimen. Furthermore, it won't just be me, the boys and Pinky who will be watching like a hawk to make sure you stick to the plan we're working on to make sure you regain as much of your health as you can."
Once again, Izuku nodded in confirmation. "Kacchan, Kaminari and Kirishima were also able to get Pony, Kyoka and Kinoko to agree to help out. There's this really great women's only work out facility in town, and the girls plan to take you there regularly as part of helping you to lose the excess weight as part of the plan we threw together for you."
"My mom will also be pitching in, too," Bakugo went on, "Covering for us when our work over at U.A. takes us away." It was at that moment that both Bakugo and Izuku saw the look on Inko's face, one where her eyes were growing wider and wider out of a mix of surprise and a bit of shock. "…When I go about helping someone with something, Mrs. Midoriya," Bakugo said, "I don't do things half-assed. I hit everything hard and fast, giving it no time to regroup."
"I…see…" Inko replied, still a bit unsure of what all laid ahead of her. She was not going to begrudge the boys, though; she knew full well that they were acting purely out of concern for her health and well-being. And the green-haired woman did have to admit to herself that keeping her well-fed body around did have some detriment to her health, as well as some aspects of her daily life. The boys said that as soon as Inko was cleared, they would get to work on helping her get her health back.
Inko was wondering just what all laid ahead of her.
The morning after she had been cleared by the hospital and was able to return home, Inko was escorted to her apartment by Izuku and Bakugo. Inko was hoping for a bit of down time before what she was expecting to be the time where her son and Katsuki would begin to work her to the bone. Instead, the first thing that Inko saw when she and the boys walked into the living room in the apartment were some of the boys' classmates/schoolmates over at U.A.
In all, there four girls and three boys; Inko recognized the pink-skinned girl and all three of the boys as Bakugo's friends Mina, Sero, Kirishima and Kaminari. Inko also recognized the girl with headphone jack cords growing out of her earlobes as Izuku and Bakugo's classmate Kyoka, and the blonde girl with hooves for feet and a pair of lyre-shaped horns growing out of her head as Bakugo's girlfriend Pony. The girl with brown hair in a bob-cut, a similar hairstyle as Uraraka's save for the fact that this mystery girl had bangs covering her eyes, remained unknown to Inko, although she had to guess it might have been that Kinoko girl that Bakugo said was dating his friend Kirishima.
Getting up from the one armchair in the living room, Mina pointed in a declaring manner right at the green-haired woman. "The crew and I are here to help you get your health back on track! And before you ask, no, there is no getting out of this."
"I…see…" Inko remarked, a bit taken aback, seeing that the teens were not even going to let her rest for one day.
"Here's the deal, Mrs. M," Bakguo began, "Pony, Pinky, Earplugs and Shrooms will go with you to that women's only workout gym and work with you there for a few hours. In the meanwhile, I'm taking Deku and the boys to go pick up some necessary food to work out the diet that you will be put on. Luckily for us, Kirishima knows a bit about healthy eating since he's constantly working out to improve his strength as much as possible."
The crimson-haired boy flexed his arms, an amused look on his face. "Focusing on building my strength and keeping myself healthy is part of what I do to make myself as effective as possible at one day becoming a pro hero."
"Umm, about going to the gym," Inko said, sounding a bit hesitant, "I, umm, don't necessarily an outfit for working out in my si-"
"Mitsuki already got one for you, mom," Izuku interrupted, "It's waiting for you on your bed."
Pointing in the direction that Inko's bedroom was located in, Bakugo said to the green-haired woman, "Go grab the workout outfit that my mom got for you, plus a swimsuit in case the girls decide to have you do a few laps in the pool at the gym, throw all that into a duffle bag, and go with the girls to the gym. In the meanwhile, the boys and I will go look for the necessary stuff on the grocery list to begin your diet."
To say that Inko was surprised with how serious the teens were being, how much they were playing hardball with helping her get her health back on track, would be understating things a bit. Still, Inko acknowledged that they were only going so far because they were trying to keep an eye out for her health and well-being. As such, Inko nodded in agreement, and went back to her bedroom to get the workout outfit that Mitsuki had gotten for her.
Inko not only saw the outfit that Mitsuki had prepared, but also saw that there was included a pair of shoes to wear while working out, and Mitsuki had also pulled Inko's swimsuit out and laid it on the bed as well. Everything that Inko would need for working out at the gym was right there on her bed; there was even a duffle bag, currently empty, sitting on her bed for her to put all of her workout stuff in.
There was also a small envelope on the bed, laying on top of the pair of workout shoes. The green-haired woman picked the envelope out, opened it and removed the letter within. The note was clearly written by Mitsuki, and it gave Inko an idea on how much Mitsuki had done so far to help with the effort of getting her to get as much of her health back;
Yo Inko,
Katsuki, as well as that sweetness you call your son, and all of their friends over at school, are going to whip that fat ass of yours into shape. I hope you're ready to feel the burn, because not only will they make you feel that burn, but as they're all students at Japan's top hero academy, they are bound to be tougher on you than whatever jackass sleaze you can encounter at the average workout gym.
Yours, Mitsuki
P.S.: When the boys and their friends won't be around to keep an eye on you, I will be. You are not going to get out of this, mark my words.
Inko paled a bit at the thought of being put through a workout from hell, and from her own loved ones and their friends. Still, since it was loved ones and their friends who were going to be doing the job, the green-haired woman felt relieved. They know her, and they all clearly know what the heck they're doing. Inko was confident that not only are the boys, their friends and Mitsuki going to have her best interests in mind, but that they'll also actually get results.
Inko's time at the gym was going well so far. Granted, she did feel a bit self-conscious going into the gym, as she did have a notably well-fed form. Luckily for Inko, she went in accompanied by Mina, Kyoka, Pony and Kinoko. "We will get in very good exercise," Pony said, "You will lose weight no time flat!"
"Yeah, this place is pretty good as far as women's only gyms in Japan go," Kyoka remarked, "You don't have to worry about jerk guys giving you judgmental looks here." Nodding in compliance with the teen girls, Inko followed them over to some light exercise machines to begin the first part of her working out. After Inko got in a sufficient amount of time according to what Mina said on the matter, the girls had her stop and take a break.
After the machines, the girls then had Inko head on over to the large indoor pool that was at the gym, so she could get some swimming in. When Inko and the girls all finished changing, they all came out of the locker room and entered the pool area. As they all stood by the pool, Mina took notice of the fact that Kinoko was wearing what looked like a school swimsuit. The pink-skinned girl gave class 1-B's resident mushroom expert a sly, self-amused look. "I guess the swimsuit that you got at your old middle school is still a good fit, Kinoko?"
Looking embarrassed, Kinoko remarked, "Well, I, umm, I haven't really been able to find the time to go out and buy a new one, and this one I got from my middle school still fits me, so I saw no reason to discard it."
Giving Kinoko a gentle slap on the back, Mina remarked as she laughed, "Relax, girl. I'll go out with you after we're done helping Mrs. M for the day and help you find a new swimsuit." A hint of slyness entered the pink-skinned girl's expression as she added, "I can help pick out one that will get as much of Kirishima's attention as possible." Seeing Kinoko's face go very red at that moment made Mina burst out laughing a bit, drawing complaints from Kyoka and Pony for her to ease up on Kinoko a little bit.
Inko, for her part, was glad to see that the girls who were going to help her get her health back on track were as friendly as they were, seeing Mina's actions as her simply teasing a friend a bit in a well-meaning manner.
"Starting today, we will rule your diet as if it were a defenseless Baltic nation," Bakugo said as he, Izuku, Sero, Kirishima and Kaminari all stood around Inko as she sat at the dining table in her apartment. There was a selection of various healthy foodstuffs on the table; Inko could tell that all of this was what the boys had in mind when they were writing up the list of what all she would be allowed to eat as she was on her diet and exercise regimen.
At that moment, the doorbell rang, so Izuku went over to answer it. Opening the door, he was greeted by the sight of his classmate Sato, holding a (fairly large) iced cupcake that he had not only made but individually wrapped in plastic wrapping. "I heard that your mother just got out of the hospital, Izuku," Sato said, "So I made this for her as a gift to show that I'm happy to hear that she made a full rec-"
Sato was cut off when Kaminari, who had seen what was going on, came running over, snatched the iced cupcake out of Sato's hands, and chucked it with all of his might as he yelled, "YEET!" The baked good was sent flying well over the house on the other side of the street from where the apartment building was located. The cupcake ended up exploding all over Mineta's face, as he was walking by in that area at the time.
Seeing the look of shock and surprise on Sato's face, Izuku proceeded to explain things to him, saying that while he knew that Sato meant well with the gesture, its timing wasn't all that good as his mom was on a diet to lose weight; by Bakugo's orders, not even cheat days would be allowed. Sato then proceeded to apologize for his bad timing, and further went on to say that he had a healthy eating cookbook that he can make recipes from if it would help.
Izuku, with an appreciative smile on his face, nodded in agreement, glad that his other classmates were starting to understand just what all was going on.
A week after Izuku, Bakugo and their classmates/schoolmates started her on the diet and exercise regimen from hell, Inko woke up one morning and went to her bathroom. Right away, her eyes were drawn to her most dreaded of enemies, the bathroom scale. The green-haired woman gave a nervous gulp as she contemplated seeing if the efforts her son and the others has had any amount of progress thus far.
Ignoring the nervous feeling that was welling up in the pit of her stomach, Inko went on ahead and walked over to the scale. She took off her sleep outfit, putting her in only her undergarments, before she walked up to the scale. Exhaling as much as possible, Inko then stepped onto the scale, looked down and watched nervously as the digital number started to flash quickly as the scale began to measure her current weight.
Inko hoped that there would be at least some amount of progress. Ever since the teens and Mitsuki had been watching her like a hawk, Inko had eaten only foods on the list that had been approved, and she did all of her exercises when told, making sure all of her goals for the week had been reached. Even so, Inko could not help but dread that she might not have made any progress thus far, or worse yet actually gain a few-
*BLEEP*
Inko's mind stopped as she heard her scale make a noise that indicated it was done weighing her. As she slowly looked down at the scale, Inko was dreading what number that she would end up seeing. Eventually, Inko slowly opened her eyes, dreading the worst case scenario.
Inko had lost five pounds since she started the program everyone had put her on.
Huh. Not a bad start.
END, CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
Author's notes;
I had read at least one other story that showed Inko having diabetes. I wanted to take the concept of Inko's slight extra weight having some manner of not-so-nice impact on her health and work it into a chapter here to help show that Inko's loved one have only her best interests in mind. I am by no means bashing the aesthetic of Inko's appearance; chubby Inko looks just as fine as slim Inko in my opinion. However, there is the fact that a person who has a notable degree of excess weight can see notable improvements in their life if they take steps to lose the weight.
My goal with this chapter was to show that the people in Inko's life care about her, and will help her do what it takes to get her health back on track as much as can be done. Sure, the main focus of this chapter isn't a romantic relationship, even though this arc is focusing on those, but I still felt it was necessary to show that everyone here cares for one another. Also, I was able to work in a bit of focus on some of the romantic pairings that I've been working on in this story, so I hope it all evens out in the end. But that's not here or there. Anyway, the next chapter will see a new pair get its moment in the spotlight.
The pairing in question will happen whether Aizawa wants it to or not.