Apparently he'd really needed sleep as it was dark by time he found himself returning to consciousness. His fathers were exactly where he'd left them camped out on either side of the bed, their concerned gaze's turning to him.

Hitoshi groaned as he pushed himself to sit upright against the pillows stacked behind him.

"Okay I've slept, now will you fill me in?"

Shouta shook his head with a smirk.

"You're relentless."

He smiled.

"Well your Dad got some stitches." Hizashi began.

"It's nothing to be concerned about." Shouta reassured.

"How are the others?"

"Kirishima's covered in bruises and lacerations from head to toe but he'll live; Amajiki cracked a bone in his face and he has some other minor injuries but none of them should leave a scar. Fat Gum has a few broken bones too but he seems mostly fine otherwise."

"What about Eri?"

"She's developed a fever and sleeping fitfully, she's being quarantined for now."

Hitoshi furrowed an eyebrow.

"Quarantined?"

"After Zuku's account of what happened back at the raid they made the call to keep her separated for now. She's got a dangerous quirk and no control over it, if something provokes her enough to activate it again; you and I are the only ones who can stop her."

He scowled.

"She's not dangerous; her quirk probably saved my life."

"The haemorrhaging?"

Hitoshi nodded.

"Eri's quirk is strong and we have no ideas what her limits are; teaching her control will be especially hard since her quirk only seems to work on people, when you're training on live subjects the danger is exponentially greater. Her emotional state will be affected too, with so many unknowns it makes sense to keep her quarantined, for her sake as well as ours. In other words, we can't depend on Eri or her quirk right now, all we can do is accept it."

"The last thing she needs is to be stuck in a hospital."

"She's sleeping off the fever for now, you'll be able to visit her once she wakes up, the doctor's don't think it'll be for a couple of days yet though so you have plenty of time to rest and recover first."

"And Mirio-senpai?"

"Well you saw him, fractured wrist, fractured ankle, numerous lacerations on his torso and legs… and his quirk was destroyed."

"So that's what you meant by not being able to depend on Eri's quirk right now, you think she might be able to rewind Mirio-senpai's quirk back?"

"We honestly don't know anything for certain at this point and it's not fair on Mirio to even discuss the idea just in case it doesn't come to pass."

Hitoshi nodded.


The rest of the night saw him overcome with an emotion he'd never experienced before. Shouta said it was called grief and he knew from the looks on his father's faces that they were all too familiar. He knew why of course, he'd visited their friend's grave and he'd heard at least a little about how he'd passed away during an accident while they were out on an internship.

He just felt empty and he couldn't stop crying.

Hitoshi had only managed to finally calm down enough to fall back asleep after Papa had joined him on the bed.


He awoke once again to sun rays trickling in through gaps in the blinds and Shouta lightly snoring in the chair beside the bed.

There was no Hizashi.

It was strange how cold he felt, how much he wanted to have that contact back; that comfort. He couldn't exactly just ask though, could he? I mean the voice hero had already gave in and spent some of the night with him, how greedy was he for expecting any more than that?

But he really wanted…

No, he couldn't.

Shouta groaned with a yawn as he stretched.

"You awake, Tosh?" He asked quietly, clearly not to awaken him if by chance he had still been asleep.

Hitoshi nodded before realising what he had done.

"Yeah." He corrected as he began to pick at the sheets, gaze downcast.

Shouta felt out towards the bed finding his son's hand and offering it a squeeze.

"Something on your mind, kiddo?"

"No."

"You sure?"

Hitoshi paused.

"Could-."

Shouta sat upright in the chair and leant closer towards the bed.

"Could you what, Toshi?" He finished softly.

"Could I have a hug?" The words seemed to fall out before he could reel them back in. He knew it was stupid, and childish, and that the erasure hero had no reason to comply, but he still somehow managed to say it meaning he'd have to deal with whatever fall-out followed.

Through eyes squeezed closed he cracked one open ever so slightly to look at Shouta. He noticed Dad had a small smile on his face but it soon became saddened.

"Why were you so scared to ask that?"

That was a question Hitoshi hadn't been expecting.

"I… I don't know." He fumbled. "Sorry. I shouldn't have asked in the first place, it's stupid."

"Hitoshi…"

A sigh followed.

He didn't know how to feel or whether he was in trouble and he really didn't like not knowing.

The hand which had been holding his rose to land on his shoulder before he was gently pulled into a hug.

"You can always have a hug, whenever you want one. You should never be scared to ask, but I'm so proud that you did."

Dad smiled.

Hitoshi leaned into the embrace.

"Little things like this seem big to you, and that's fine, you take everything at your own pace, just don't be scared to ask, okay?"

He nodded.

"We're so proud of you, Tosh."

"Why?" Hitoshi asked genuinely, not sure what exactly he'd been doing that would warrant them feeling proud, he just felt like he was doing normal stuff that everyone did; just obviously worse than they would do it and with a lot more anxiety and fear of punishment.

Shouta held him a little tighter.

"You've come so far since we first met."

Truthfully it felt like a lifetime ago but the time they'd spent together, he wouldn't trade it for anything.

"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself for being unsure of things you don't have experience with, that's all part of learning. But the rate in which you've come to adapt is what you should be proud of. You made friends, you've connected with our family and reconnected with your parents, you're on the hero course, and you're finding your feet in a world that must seem infinite."

He remembered what it had been like those first few weeks at UA.

Those first few months.

Everything was alien, the lights were blinding, the language was too fast, the technology was everywhere, the food was overpowering, the room was drowning, and the lack of punishment was paranoia inducing. He knew he was under surveillance and that they could strike at any time so being so constantly on high alert left him throwing up in the bathroom stalls, and barely able to even think straight. Not to mention the constant worry of delivering results to make sure Touya was fed.

So for his only concern now to be whether he would be rejected from a hug… he truly had come a long way.

"Thank you."

Shouta stroked a hand through his hair.

"You don't need to-."

"I do, and I want to." He insisted. "Thank you."

"You're the one who put in all the work, kiddo."

"Still, I wouldn't even be free if you and Zashi hadn't fought for me back at that police station." Hitoshi paused. "My lips would probably still be stitched shut if you hadn't've insisted on interviewing me."

He couldn't help but notice the hint of anger in Dad's expression at the mention of his treatment after the USJ attack.

"You deserve the world, Tosh."

Hitoshi smiled.

"I'm already spoilt with the family I have."