CHAPTER 6.

A GOOD ATTITUDE

When I returned to my dorm in the evening, I tried to be optimistic. But with such a heavy load of revealing information, it would take me some time to process it.

Apparently, my Quirk was not responsible for swaying Bakugo during the challenge. That meant he actively chose to respect my instructions. The thing was, it felt like he couldn't have even heard my voice during all the commotion. So then... how did it work out so well?

As impossible as it seemed, I still suspected that Professor Aizawa had failed to deactivate my Quirk. Maybe he lied, and just told me that to try and trick me. Because during the challenge, I was so sure my Quirk had worked on Bakugo.

It could be that my mind was deceiving me, but I was more confident now in my ability. This was what my honest thoughts were: I had definitely used my Quirk on Tsuyu, and she was immune to it. I had definitely used my Quirk on Bakugo, and it worked perfectly on him in preventing him from 'killing' us during the training challenge.

I couldn't prove any of these things, but I believed them anyway.

Tsuyu motioned toward me at one point, urging me to join her at the pond again tonight. I gave her a subtle nod in agreement. Perhaps she could help me figure out this dilemma.

"Hey, Tsu," Denki Kaminari addressed her. "Where do you always go off to with Eko? We've been dying to know!" His voice was full of jest.

"Yeah, tell us!" added Hanta Sero, "We wanna know!"

Tsuyu tried to hide her blushing. "Nowhere. We're just talking..."

Ochaco came over to Tsuyu's aid, but that only got the jokesters to turn their attention over to me. "What's going on, Shigeru? You two going steady?"

Despite the positive mood in the dorm, I felt agitated by their assumptions. At the same time, I couldn't help but feel that Tsuyu was in need of protection from the torment. And since she was my friend, I was obligated to speak up for her. "I've... been asking her for help. With my Quirk. So, she's been sort of hearing me out in the evenings. It's mostly just me ranting."

"Ranting?" Denki frowned. "That's not scandalous at all! We wanted some romantic gossip to feed on!"

I looked away in awkward fashion. "Um... sorry, I guess?"

And with that, the room quieted down.

After that fiasco, I felt like Tsuyu would want to avoid leaving the dorm with me, seeing as how her her secret meditating spot by the pond was probably no longer a secret now. That also made me realize that I was responsible for ruining it for her.

Eventually, everyone was headed to bed, leaving me alone on the couch. I wasn't sure if Tsuyu would be there tonight, but I still decided to honor our meeting, so I headed outside to the pond. Once I arrived, I waited in silence.

Several minutes later, I heard Tsuyu approaching. She crept through the brush and entered the clearing, grinning in relief when she noticed me. "I wasn't sure if you'd be here tonight," she commented.

"Same with you," I replied.

She nodded and took a seat next to me. "About earlier... I'm sorry. I didn't realize the others were spying on us."

"I don't really care what they think," I explained, as simply as possible. "If you're uncomfortable, I could stop coming to your secret spot. It was wrong of me to intrude in the first place."

"No," she cut that off fast. "I want to share this spot with you. You're right, I shouldn't care what the others say, anyway. That's a good attitude."

Although I nodded, I couldn't help but want to clear the air. "Just blame it all on me. I don't mind."

"That's not fair, though," she argued. "After all, I'm the one with feelings for you."

"Yes, but you've been meeting with me to help counsel me. It's not just to... mess around, I guess is what I'm saying."

We both reached this unconscious conclusion that it wasn't worth stressing over, and so we moved forward. I told Tsuyu about my encounter with Aizawa, and how it changed my previous assumptions on my Quirk.

"So Aizawa had shut your Quirk off? But you believe you still used it on Bakugo?"

I nodded assertively. "I'm sure of it. I felt it flowing, and he responded to my instructions, even though he was out of range from hearing me."

"Maybe Aizawa accidentally blinked, so it turns your Quirk on again if he does."

To that, I wasn't going to accept the potential. "He's a professional hero. That's not a mistake he would make with his students."

Tsuyu didn't oppose that, but she came up with more ideas. "What if he's lying to you? Just to get you to rely on your character and reputation, instead of your Quirk?"

"That sounds possible," I admitted. More likely than an accident at least.

"There's still the theory that your Quirk is affecting you on a daily basis," Tsuyu brought up again. "But the thing is, I don't believe that's happening. You are not even close to infatuated with yourself."

I couldn't resist absorbing the compliment. This time, it wasn't something simple like my physical appearance. Tsuyu just told me something positive about my character. And since her opinions of me were valid, I believed her words.

"That's the nicest thing anyone ever said to me," I explained, almost embarrassed to say it out loud.

She giggled and scooted a bit closer to me. "I'm glad you're making progress. That's what our school is all about anyway. We should all be improving."

Perhaps I was making progress. But that still didn't assure I was on the right path. However, right now... "I'm enjoying myself," I confessed to her. "I still don't know if I'm cut out to be a hero... but right now, I'm content."

That brought on a pleasant wave of tenderness to the night. Tsuyu was suddenly very close to me, inches from my face. The desire was in her eyes. Her normal facial expressions were not what I saw. Instead, I saw a person I had desire for.

"Eko-Chan," she said in the softest voice. Even then, she remained. It was already in place that it was up to me, for she had already made her feelings clear.

I took a few moments to weigh it over. Somehow, this girl managed to stand out to me, in ways that no one else did. The two of us spent considerable time, getting to know each other. We were both here, and it had been a mutual understanding from the start.

Really, I had no reason to resist. So, I leaned forward and kissed her lips.

Her eyes widened, as if she were startled, but then she closed them and embraced the moment. That reminded me to close my own eyes, and we stayed there, enjoying a moment that didn't end quickly. Several long moments. But I was happy.

Afterwards, the silence returned, leaving me to ponder on my thoughts. There was something there, inside me, drawing me toward the warmth. But then, it felt unnatural to me, after I further evaluated it. My feelings were so faint, that they seemed meaningful considering before I'd felt nothing. It was as if my desires had risen 1,000 percent, but they were still minuscule.

For the time being, I simply couldn't go any deeper tonight. "Sorry," I told her simply, hoping an explanation wouldn't be necessary.

"Sorry for what?" She expected one anyway.

As I had expected. "I'm totally oblivious on how to manage something like this. I think it's best if you just find someone else. I'm probably slightly insane."

Tsuyu just leaned her head to the side, observing and listening with mysterious intent. Surely, she had to see that I was reluctant. How much longer would she tolerate my instability? Not much, I was sure. "I'm not looking for somebody else," she said earnestly.

I'd been afraid of hearing that. "What if I never figure myself out? I can't give you a definite declaration. Therefore, it would be best for you to pass me on."

"I'm not going to pass you on." She made a gentle reassuring reach for my hand. "I'm going to help you back up."

It was that moment that stood out to me. By now, I'd made her deal with so much of my insecurities. All I ever did was complain about the stress of my Quirk, as well as my lack of mental stability.

But she still wanted to be with me. It was that night where I became aware of just how tall her tree had grown, with branches extending to the sky. Her reach was constantly growing, although it was a slow process. When we first met, I didn't see anything like this taking place. But this was how it all began. And down the line, it would continue to grow.