Tears streamed down Midoriya's face and it felt as though his heart was being crushed slowly, and agonizingly, as he realized that everything was his fault. The finger that his hero pointed at him was just another reminder of how everything could have been avoided if he had made better choices- No. This wouldn't have happened if he hadn't been born. He never hated himself as much as he did in that moment.

If only he had given up on being a hero when he was told he was quirkless. If only he had given up when Kacchan ever so graciously tried beating it into him as a child, that he had no chance of ever being a hero. That he would only be a burden on the battlefield if he tried, as he was a burden now. If only he had never accepted AllMight's offer...if only he didn't exist at all, then he wouldn't have to watch, almost in slow motion, as his hero lost everything. And it was all his fault.

The cries of the civilians was almost too much to bare, but he needed to listen. Listen to their pain and anger for how this battle unfolded, and how they very well lost the most important hero in modern history. They may have lost their chance of winning this ongoing war with the League Of Villains.

'And it's my fault..' He buried is face in his hands allowed himself to sob quietly.

"...no.." Came a near inaudible plea.

Midoriya side eyed Bakugo, only just then remembering that the blonde was even there. He saw the pain and disbelief in those crimson eyes, and felt his stomach flip. Those normally defiant, explosive eyes clouded over in grief, for he knew that this was AllMight's last battle. He knew the cost that AllMight was willing to pay at his own expense, in order to save everyone.

And as if on cue, an audible pop echoed in the now overbearing silence before the roars and cries of the people started again. AllMight had deflated, his true, weak and frail form, revealed. He no longer held his fist in the air as a show of protection and comfort, and now it laid by his side. He had won this fight. He had done his job. So why did it hurt so much?

His tired eyes sought out Midoriya amongst the crowd, having lost track of him after his transformation. His dull eyes met glazed jade and he silently mouthed the words, "I'm sorry" to the green haired kid.

'Forgive me, Young Midoriya..This battle is no longer mine, but your's..' He felt terrible guilt for pushing generations of pain onto a 16 year old child, but Midoriya was the last ray of hope in taking down AFO. They had no other choice.

After the battle the long kept secret of Midoriya's quirk became known and there were mixed reactions among the people. Some felt betrayed that OFA wasn't originally AllMight's quirk. Some were angry that this secret wasn't public information. Some were sad. And other's held contempt for the new vessel of OFA and saw Midoriya as the cause of AllMight's downfall.

"Look, it's that kid.."

"He shouldn't be allowed back to school.."

"Piece of shit.."

"Just a quirkless nobody who stole AllMight's quirk.."

"I don't see how he lives with himself.."

"It shouldn't have been AllMight who 'died'(*) in that battle. It should've been him.."

Midoriya walked the halls in silence, absorbing the words of his peers. They were right after all, it should have been him-

A male student bumped his shoulder into Midoriya's arm far harder than necessary, making the green haired boy lose his grip on his textbooks. The books hit the floor with a dull thud while his worksheets fluttered about and he knelt down to retrieve them. With his homework within arms reach he went to grab a particular worksheet that he needed to turn in today from yesterday's lecture, where Aizawa went over the standard protocol for search and rescue missions. However, one of the two girls directly to the right side of him poured her coffee on top of him, which also trickled down to his important papers.

"Oops, I mistook you for a trashcan!" She tossed the empty, plastic cup at his head and it ricocheted off of his temple and found it's place on the floor. "My bad." She sneered and walked away in the opposite direction. Midoriya could hear his peers snickering at him while he picked up his belongings, even the cup that was thrown at him, and walked two halls down and into the bathroom to his right. People rarely used this particular bathroom due to it only having a few urinals. It was obviously a makeshift bathroom due to the size not being much larger than the janitors' closet.

He threw the cup in the bathroom trashcan and held his wet belongings under the hand dryer, taking note that the clock above the sink mirror told him that he only had twenty minutes to dry his homework as best as he could. He focused on drying the homework that was due today, first. He made a passing glance at the mirror and noticed how horrible he looked in that moment.

His hair unruly and soaked in overly sweet smelling coffee. His eyes a bit sunken in with small dark circles that were not noticeable unless looked upon up close. His uniform stained in coffee. He couldn't go to class like this. Sighing in defeat he gave up on drying his homework and made way to the gym where he showered and changed into his gym clothes before heading to class exactly five minutes before the bell was due to ring.

Once he entered the 1-A classroom he saw Uraraka scrubbing away at his desk. He assumed that students had written on his desk again.

"Ah! Deku-kun!" The brunette yelps and turned to face him, trying to hide the rag she had kept at school for the past two months for this exact purpose. "I was just-"

"It's fine." He held up a hand, cutting her off and sat down, eyes brushing over the insults and slurs on his desk that he had become familiar with since AllMight's retirement.

"Are you...okay?" She started, hesitantly. "We don't see you as much anymore..We only ever see you in class." And for good reason. If his bullies caught wind of other people hanging out with him, let alone being nice to him, they would be targeted too. And he wouldn't let that happen. It was better this way. AllMight's retirement wasn't their fault so why should they have to suffer for it?

"I'm fine Uraraka-san. Really." It hurt the brunette that Midoriya hadn't been referring to her by the -chan honorific that she had become accustomed to. It felt as though she was being pushed away.

"Okay..I'm here if you need me, alright?" She turned to go take her own seat when she noticed something, "Why are you wearing your gym clothes, Deku-kun?"

Todoroki observed Midoriya, curious as well. He had noticed the moment that the small boy walked in that he wasn't in his usual attire.

"..I bumped into someone and spilled my drink on myself, so I changed clothes." Midoriya gave a tight lipped reply, avoiding the eyes of his spectators. The aura around him shifted and those within close proximity of him could feel it. The conversation was over.

"Okay..Be more careful." Uraraka gave a small smile and returned to her desk as the bell's shrill ring cut through the air and Aizawa waltzed in right in the knick of time. He wasn't one to be early but he refused to be late either.

The students all rose from their seats in greeting and the musty man nodded his reply, telling them to sit down. He began to write the names of the students in an odd order on the chalkboard and flung the stick of chalk at Mineta, who had been on his phone, and landed the hit right between his eyes. The grape goblin yelped in surprise and pain.

"Pay attention, Mineta. This is your only warning." Aizawa wasn't playing games today. He had been on high alert for the past few weeks, having to pick up and share responsibilities with his fellow faculty members to pick up the slack of one less, crucial hero. Aizawa's eyes flashed as he activated his quirk for a split second, indicating that he meant business. Mineta gulped and nodded and put his phone face down on his desk.

"I will be pairing you all in groups of two. With the League Of Villians on the rise lately and the city in crisis, the principal wants everyone to have an 'accountabilibuddy', as he put it, to avoid potential issues in our future." The students stared at their names on the board warily, waiting for their sensei to continue.

"These pairings are not concrete and if you have issues after being paired we will see what we can do to accommodate you, but we will not break up pairs unless necessary. We have other things to worry about." And with that he draws a chalk line connecting two names.

"Ashido and Jiro." Another line. "Asui and Uraraka." And another. "Hagakure and Yaoyorozu.

"Sero and Mineta."

"Shoji and Koda."

"Sato and Ojiro."

"Ida and Aoyama."

"Tokoyami and Kaminari."

"Kirishima and Todoroki."

And with the last bit of chalk scraping against the chalkboard..."Bakugo and Midoriya."

"HAHHH??" Bakugo immediately objected but is cut off by Aizawa.

"From this day onward, until further notice, those paired will have to share the same room together. You can not be alone at any time. If you leave to get food, your partner has to go with you. Even to the bathroom." He glares at his students, not taking no for and answer, with more emphasis on Bakugo, "Am I understood?"

The teacher and the ashen blonde's eyes battle for a moment before Bakugo rips his gaze away and huffs about "damn teachers" and "damn nerds" under his breath.

"Glad I've made myself clear. Now on with the lesson. Pass up last night's homework to the front of the class." Aizawa flips through the teacher's book that he had been provided, looking for the proper page to continue yesterday's lecture.

Midoriya passed up his paper like everyone else, trying to hide the panic attack that be was currently facing.

'Why Kacchan? OF COURSE IT'S KACCHAN! Why would it be anyone else other than Kacchan?!' The universe just wouldn't cut him a break. Midoriya was too absorbed in his internal meltdown to notice the odd stares he got for the dirty state of his homework. Not that he would have cared.

The perks of being a UA student was that classes didn't last late into the day. Their school days only lasted from 8am until noon, unless students chose to take electives to participate in.

The bell ringing signaled that their day was over, but before the students could shuffle out of the class, Aizawa reiterated that they were not to travel alone under any circumstances after they left this room.

Midoriya slowly put his notes into his binder, trying not to unravel at the seams at his current predicament.

"C'mon nerd." Bakugo demanded, "We'll be staying in my room. We'll go to your room first so you can pack your shit." He walked to the classroom door and waited for the nerd to hurry the fuck up. He wasn't looking forward to this one bit. He already struggled holding in his anger towards the quiet boy, but now he'll have to try not to murder the fucker now that they were forced to be around each other.

'Fuuuuck. I can't believe I have to deal with this shithead every fucking day.' It was already irritating to him to have to see Deku in class but now his personal life? Ridiculous. He bit his lip, trying not to let his rude comments slip.

Midoriya, without saying a word, followed Bakugo through the halls to their lockers to retrieve their stuff and to switch out their shoes. Bakugo noted how eerily quiet the nerd was being but said nothing of it. Just made it easier to ignore the shitface.

From there they exited the school building and crossed the courtyard to the dormitory. Upon entering they are greeted by Kirishima and Todoroki, who were getting lunch while trying to decide who's room to use. "Sup Bakugo!" The redhead waved to the two, "Hey Midoriya."

"Weird hair." The blonde acknowledged and Midoriya bowed lightly, still trying to remain quiet without coming off as rude. He really wasn't having a good day and just wanted to go lie down. But he couldn't deny Kaachan of seeing his friend..

"Want a sandwich?" Todoroki offered the freckled boy, as he was making one for himself. This time Midoriya had to speak.

"No thank you Todoroki-san, thank you though."

"We gotta clean out the nerd's room. Message me later." Bakugo walked away knowing that he and Kirishima would we texting far more often now that they were forbidden from leaving their assigned partners. He hated using his phone more than he had to but be hated being bored more. He tch'ed in annoyance.

He pressed the call button of the elevator and shuffled through the students who were exiting it upon opening. Midoriya waited until everyone was out before hopping on, and Bakugo had to hold his arm out to prevent the doors from closing too early. "Hurry the fuck up nerd!"

"Sorry.." Midoriya kept his eyes to the floor and waited, and felt the seconds go on like minutes in his head for the short trip to the next floor. The doors opened and they made their way to Midoriya's room.

He opened the door and trudged in, going over a mental checklist of what he thought he would need to bring. 'Shampoo..Bodywash..Deodorant..Toothbrush..'

"Oi nerd, why don't you lock your damn door?" Red eyes scanned the almost empty room, noticing the lack of AllMight merch but said nothing of it. When he didn't get a reply he grabbed the smaller boy by the collar, "Didn't ya hear me?! I asked ya a fucking question." And then he let go, trying to keep his temper in check.

"..Because the lock is broken.."

"Hahhh? Why don't ya get it fixed?"

'I have.' Midoriya thought dejectedly. He gave up after the third attempt because the dorm repairman said he'd make the boy pay for future fixes, even though the man was being paid by the school to fix them. The repairman was annoyed having to provide new locks three times in the matter of two weeks. Midoriya shrugged hoping the blond would leave it at that.

He grabbed what essentials he thought he'd need and stuffed them into his gym dufflebag and turned to Bakugo. "I'm ready.." Upon exiting the room the blonde shoved his hands into his pockets as they made their way to the next hallway, to his room. He pulled out his keycard and scanned it and the door latch unlocked allowing them entry.

"I got three rules." Bakugo held three fingers up to further make his point. "Don't mess with my shit. Clean up after yourself." He looks Midoriya in the eyes for the last one, "And unless it's important," he puts his last finger down, making the knuckle crack in a form of intimidation, "Leave me the fuck alone".

This was going to be a difficult time for them both and they knew it.

Author's Note:

"died (*)" - The student is referring to AllMight's career "dying" or ending, and is implying that Midoriya should have died so that AllMight could still be a hero in full(-ish) capacity.