The Yaoyorozu's where known for throwing extravagant and lavish parties, with classical music drifting through the entire banquet part of the house, with the accompaniment of ice clinking together in alcoholic drinks as adults mingled and gossiped. Even parties like this one at their summer home was grand.
The theme was supposed to be "Relaxing Summer" (Momo was sure the idea came from one of the magazines her mother reads) though she went a little off theme on multiple occasions. Yaomomo noticed all the changes that her mother had made from the original plan as she chatted to an associate of her fathers at one of the refreshment tables.
The tile had been redone to sandstone, and the pillars holding up the high vaulted ceiling were covered to look like palm trees, that was about as far as the "summer" part came, the rest of the decorations was filled with things her mother found relaxing. A fountain had been set up in the middle of the hall, with the refreshment tables lined around its four edges, soft classical music played live through speakers mounted by a professional who spaced them in just the right places so no corner of the room didn't hear the music. The chandelier had its usual diamonds replaced with special soothing stones that made the room dimmer yet glisten with the dim glares off the stones.
In the end the sandstone wasn't really needed, as her mother ended up covering most of it with a rug designed to hypnotize people into relaxing with its strange patterns. The palm trees were also switched to oak, and the theme changed from "relaxing summer" to just "relaxing".
Nodding and bidding farewell to the man she'd been talking to, Momo walked through the hundreds of people, trying to maybe see her parents or someone she knew.
Momo didn't mind the parties, in fact she liked them quite a bit! But the endless gossiping and small talk was getting redundant the older she got, and maybe her time living at U.A had made her expect more exciting events out of everything. 1-A did spoil their students when it came to keeping out the bore.
She wished she could study in the library and spend the entire party doing her own favorite form of relaxing: preparing for school.
Or rather, reading to prepare for school or anything.
Reading relaxed her much more than almost everything her mother had included into the party, except the classical music, Momo quite liked the classical music chosen. She'd have to find the band her mother hired after the party and ask for their music information.
Humming along to the waltz like rhythm, Yaomomo fancied herself a nice drink of- well, whatever her mother decided was relaxing.
As she arrived at one of the refreshment tables, a pleasant mist from the fountain occasionally falling onto her bare shoulder, and picked up a glass of what looked like lemonade (she was sure now her mother had gotten a lot of these ideas from an American magazine), a tall gentleman with a pleasant smile and antennas struck up a conversation.
"Hello, miss Yaoyorozu I presume?" Yaomomo turned and smiled politely at the man, lifting her drink up to her mouth as she nodded.
"Yes, that would be me. And you are?"
He smiled, and his antennae wiggled. He gave a short bow, and Yaomomo studied him closer. He didn't look much older than Yaomomo herself, so either he had rich parents or a quick riser in whatever business he was in, he's accent was also distinctly an American.
"My name is Magnus, and I'm sure you've heard what it means." His teeth were blindingly bright, and Yaomomo's hope that this conversation would be interesting immediately plummeted faster than Kirishima cannonballing into a pool.
"I vaguely remember its meaning, yes." Yaomomo's voice was the epitome of tight lipped politeness.
Magnus laughed, grabbing a glass of beer off the table and downing some with a huge swig.
"I'm glad, it would make me look un-humble if I had to explain it to you. And not to brag, but people have told me I live up to my name. In more ways than one." He winked, and Yaomomo barely acknowledged him, instead turning to start gazing around the room again for an excuse to leave this conversation. This wasn't the first time a man has come up to Yaomomo and tried to impress her or shamelessly flirt. When it first started happening she had been a little flattered, but she soon realized they were often only flirting because of her wealth, already known Hero name, or, if they were drunk or shameless enough, purely because of her looks and figure. It was tiring and annoying now.
"Anyway, Miss Yaoyorozu, I hear you go to that fancy academy Yuuei, is that right?" Magnus stepped forward a little so he was still in Yaomomo's view, she frowned but didn't see as she could still see around him.
"I do."
Her eyes were scanning desperately, she had no need to remain in this conversation, but her parent's etiquette lessons had drove into her that you always find an excuse to leave a conversation so as not to be rude.
"Well, I'm mighty interested in that school myself." Magnus paused, clearly expecting Yaomomo to respond with interest. She half-heartedly spoke, trying to spot her parents in the crowd.
"Really."
He moved himself again, this time directly in front of Yaomomo. His body language was relaxed, but Yaomomo's had tensed the moment he moved.
"Really. You see in America, where I'm from, we have our own schools, but Yuuei was attended to by All Might himself and that interests me greatly. And if All Might and yourself find the academy suitable, then I would greatly like to know more about it."
His standing in front of her made Yaomomo's vision shift more towards the outskirts of the hall, where the lights were much dimmer and it was harder for Yaomomo to decipher faces in the dark. But she didn't give up her search, and as Magnus continued drawling on and on in attempts to flatter her up, she caught a glimpse from the corner of her eye of something even more distinct then any face.
She shifted herself sideways slightly, as to lean past Magnus to get a better look, holding her breathe, hoping it was who she thought it was.
She didn't immediately see who she thought she saw, and disappointment sprouted within her. She almost moved back, but then, a large pro Hero guest moved, and her eyes focused on hair half white and red.
Shouto Todoroki stood alone in the dim edges of the party, hands in his pockets and eyes scanning the crowd. Yaomomo couldn't stop a smile from surfacing the moment she saw him, nor did her heart not cease its usual increased pumping at his looks. He looked nice in the tailored black suit he was wearing.
"Pardon my rudeness Mr. Magnus, but I'm expecting an important email, may I check my phone? I don't mean to interrupt, but it's a very important that I get it." Yaomomo turned her head back to Magnus and interrupted him mid-sentence, which clearly bothered him but he forced a smile and nodded.
"Of course, check right ahead. I was only saying that I would love to see the grounds of UA sometime…" Yaomomo nodded, not paying attention to what he was saying. her hand reaching into her small purse and producing her smart phone. She went to messages and found Todoroki's name, she typed quickly as to seem like she was searching for something and NOT texting in the middle of a conversation. Cause that, is just rude. Hitting send, Yaomomo read over her text.
"Hello Todoroki, I didn't know you were going to be at this party! I'm by the refreshment table, would you like anything?"
There, that was a safe text, wasn't it? Hopefully he didn't think it was strange of her to text him so suddenly, they might be friends, but Yaomomo hadn't done the best this summer at keeping up with everyone. Her parents insisted she travel with them this summer around the world, and she hadn't been able to say no. And it was hard keeping up with everyone when time zones were different.
She watched anxiously as Todoroki reach inside his pocket and pulled out his phone, red bangs falling in front of his eyes as he looked down. A couple seconds later, he raised his head and looked over towards the refreshments tables, and Yaomomo was glad she'd worn her hair in a loose bun, it was close enough to her usual ponytail that he was able to notice her after only a moment of looking. Their eyes met, and Yaomomo leaned farther sideways past Magnus to smile at him.
Magnus stepped in front of her. His voice sugar coated over extreme irritation that Yaomomo wasn't giving him her full attention.
"Preferably, I would like to tour Yuuei in the company of a beautiful young woman, such as yourself."
Yaomomo blinked at him, her lips forming a line. He wasn't insinuating what she thought he was, was he? If so, it was highly inappropriate, and Yaomomo was not going to stand for it.
"I'm not sure I follow what you mean."
Magnus grinned in what Yaomomo assumed was meant to be seductive, and leaned closer to her. Yaomomo stepped back, her back straight and chin high.
"Well, I'll be glad to explain to you what I mean in private. Would you care to go for a walk in the garden?"
A loud ding emitted from the phone still clutched in Yaomomo's hand, and looking down, she saw Todoroki's reply.
"A drink would be nice."
Yaomomo immediately shoved her phone back into her purse, freeing her hand to grab a glass of water.
"I can't, a friend just messaged informing me that they've arrived, and I promised I'd spend the evening with them once they came. So, I'll have to bid you farewell I'm afraid." Yaomomo's smile was forced, and Magnus' face grew furious at her denying his company. He forced himself to remain calm, and she could see the effort he was putting into keeping his face into a forced smile. His eye twitching.
"It's all right, maybe I could accompany you?" His "swagger" returned. "I am great company after all, I'll charm you and your friend quickly." Magnus had barely finished speaking when Yaomomo's face delicately twisted into disgust, and she started walking away, the clicking of her heels on the floor accompanied her straightforward answer.
"You may not, no."
Navigating through the crowd, Yaomomo didn't look over her shoulder once.
She felt relief as a large crowd of partygoers surged around the refreshment table, blocking where she and Todoroki where from view of where Magnus had been standing.
Her mood brightened when she saw he was still standing where she saw him, and he nodded at her as she approached. She outstretched her hand with his water in it in offering as she spoke.
"I hope you don't mind just normal water, but during school I remember Recovery Girl scolding you for not drinking enough water so it was the first thing I thought of grabbing."
Todoroki took the drink, and a spark ran through her hand as their fingers touched briefly. He gave her the barest of a smile, but it was more usual for him to give then a full smile, so Yaomomo didn't think much of it.
"Waters fine, thank you." He took a drink, and when he lowered the glass he had a curious look in his eyes. "I am horrible at staying hydrated… maybe it's a drawback of my quirks I've never thought of before. It would be my luck that it's a side effect of at least one of them, and no one's caught on."
Yaomomo nodded, thoughtful.
"It would make sense if it was, your ice side especially would be probable to have drawing water from your body as a side effect." Yaomomo noticed it instantly, the moment she mentioned his ice side, he tensed and the cup in his left hand tightened from the strain he suddenly was applying to it.
Her eyebrows fell in worry, and she stepped closer with concern on every inch of her face.
"Are you ok? Did I say something?"
She raised her hand tentatively, but at the last minute decided against putting her hand on his shoulder and instead put her glass of lemonade balancing in both hands. She wasn't in a position in his life to just go touching his arm, that was intimate. She held the cup anxiously with both hands, worry that she said something wrong pushing to the forefront of her mind.
Todoroki shook his head, right hand coming up to rub at his eyes, which Yaomomo could now tell were overflowing with tiredness.
"No, it's not you…. sorry for causing you worry. It's nothing really, just…" He trailed off, and Yaomomo moved to stand more beside him, the worry she had said something wrong was now replaced with a worry about what had Todoroki so tense. She waited a minute, battling with herself in whether she should say anything or not. Truthfully, it was obvious whatever was bothering him was a private matter, and she shouldn't push him to tell her. But on the other hand… she desperately wanted to help. The chance she could help with the actual problem was slim, but maybe if he told her, she could do something to help him feel better. And even if he felt better for only a moment, Yaomomo would hope it made whatever easier for him.
Goodness knows Shouto needed any moment of relief if it was a family issue.
"I… don't want to pry if you don't want to tell me, but if you do I'm all ears." Yaomomo said gently, a soft smile on her face.
Todoroki lowered his hand and looked at her, his mismatched eyes held worry in them, which only caused her to have more herself.
A deep sigh escaped his lips, and he brushed his bangs out of his eyes, which were now turned away from Yaomomo to look out at the partygoers on his left, he's eyebrows scrunched together in what Yaomomo assumed was frustration.
"No, it's alright. It's… just my mother. She's sick." Yaomomo gasped, one of her hands flying to cover her mouth. That was horrible news! Momo may have never met his mother, but she knew just how important she was to Todoroki. Lowering her hand, Yaomomo spoke in a low, concern filled voice.
"Is she alright?"
Shouto shifted, his eyes now staring at the ice cubs clinking in his glass.
"I'm told she is, I haven't been allowed to visit her because of it. But I was informed it wasn't serious, just a stomach flu or something." His voice was strained. "I'm troubling myself to much over it, I know. People get sick all the time and recover, I think it's mostly not seeing her that's got me all tense. Not seeing with my own eyes that she's alright is hard." Todoroki's voice was quiet and deep, and Yaomomo nodded her head solemnly.
"I can't imagine how troubling it must be to not be able to see her." Yaomomo's said sympathetically, her head inclining up to look at his face better. She was tall for a girl, but Todoroki had always been taller than her, and that hadn't changed in the almost three years they've know each other. Except, Todoroki has gotten taller, Momo hasn't. He hadn't grown to taller than her, but enough that when it happened, Momo had noticed the difference immediately.
Todoroki nodded, swirling his water idly.
"It is troubling, but I've been told so many times not to worry I'm frustrated at myself for continuing to do so."
Yaomomo frowned.
"I don't think you should be frustrated at yourself for continuing to worry, it's just a sign of how much your mother means to you is all. There's nothing to be frustrated in that, is there?" She paused, before shifting her drink to one hand and placing her now free one gently on his left arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Don't be mad at yourself Todoroki for letting worry stay with you, but also don't let it consume you either. Since you know she'll be fine, let your mind take a step back from the worry and focus on something else think about, to allow your mind and body have a break from the worry."
Todoroki stared at her, and Yaomomo's started worrying she'd overstepped her bounds, when he smiled at her. It wasn't a huge, beaming with happiness smile, but it didn't need to be. This small, yet filled with thankfulness, smile Todoroki was giving her was enough to make her heart beat fast and fill with happiness that she could help.
"Thank you, Yaomomo. I think people have been trying to tell me what you just did, but you finally got it to break through." Yaomomo beamed at him.
"I'm glad."
He turned to look around at the crowd, and Yaomomo followed suit, letting her hand fall from his arm and back to holding her cup. She thought she saw his eyes flick down when she did so, but she wasn't sure.
They scanned the crowd for a moment, then Todoroki spoke, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"You know, I think coming to this party was supposed to be a break you were talking of. My sister said something about distracting my mind when she convinced me to come, so it wouldn't surprise me if that had been their goal."
Yaomomo took a sip of her lemonade, her onyx eyes flickering over to his face.
He was standing with only his right side facing her, yet she could see the tips of his red hair just beneath his chin. His hair was combed neatly to the left, and when he was facing her she could see strands of pure white and rose red hair mingling together. His usual middle bangs were pushed to the left because of this, and even as she watched him stand still they fell into his left eye and he had to raise a hand and brush it back.
She drifts her eyes down towards his perfectly fitted suit, and now she was up close she could tell that his suit wasn't black as she had first presumed, but a dark blue. The dark blue suited his skin tone and hair well.
Yaomomo noticed with amusement that, he hadn't buttoned the top button of his crisp white shift, and his dark blue tie was also looser than the typical fashion for these sorts of parties. The loose tie combined with an open collar meant that if Yaomomo so chose, she'd have a nice view of his collarbone to look at…
She forced her eyes away. It would be improper to stare at someone so.
"And may I ask if it's working?"
Todoroki sighed.
"Truthfully, not really." He drank before continuing. "There's to many people and noise for me. I prefer more quiet places, makes it easier to be aware of surroundings and to think." Yaomomo nodded, she could understand that. Silence enveloped them, not an awkward one thankfully, but a silence where they were both lost in thought.
Yaomomo's thinking came in use and an idea sprung into her mind.
"Todoroki, I think I know a place that fits that description quite well!"
"Hello mother, how are you feeling so far?" Yaomomo asked politely as she walked toward her mother, who turned and beamed at her.
"Oh, I'm feeling amazing Momo dear! This party is the most relaxed I've been in years!" Mrs. Yaoyorozu grabbed Momo's hand affectionately and breathed in deeply, letting it out with a relieved sigh. "The atmosphere in here is doing well for my nerves! How about you dear, are you enjoying the party?"
Yaomomo delicately bit her lip. This was the tricky part and she couldn't mess this up.
"Truthfully mother, I'm not feeling to well. I've been talking to so many people that I feel bombarded."
Mrs. Yaoyorozu gasped, one of her bejeweled hands flew to check Momo's forehead for a fever.
"Dear that's dreadful! Do you need anything? Would you like to go rest somewhere?" Mrs. Yaoyorozu's hand brushed Momo's bangs from her face and she cradled her cheek, motherly worry written all over her face.
Momo's eyes lit up. This was going better than expected.
"Actually, now that you mention it mother, may I rest a while in the library?"
Lips pursed, Mrs. Yaoyorozu looked unsure, so Momo pressed further.
"Please mother, just being in the library relaxes me!" Behind her mother's head, Momo saw Todoroki slip through one of the doors leading out of the party hall, just as she had asked of him.
"Well… alright! But don't tell your father I let you go! You know how against you leaving parties he is!" Mrs. Yaoyorozu started digging through her purse as she talked, and produced the key for the library. Momo reached eagerly to grab it, but her mother retracted her hand, a serious look on her face. "Now, I trust you, but I was also a teenage girl once. And this would be an opportune moment to go and meet a fine young man in private. And I don't doubt you are going to the library, but promise me no scandals will come from this, ok? I saw some of the men you were talking to earlier and it would be a huge deal if you were caught with any of them privately, so promise me dear."
Momo's cheeks heated up, and she gasped loudly. "Mother!" The implications were bad enough, but the fact that Momo was in fact going to meet Shouto Todoroki -a very handsome young man- just made her feel overwhelmingly embarrassed. They weren't going to do anything of course, they were only going to the library to read and relax, but it was still embarrassing!
Her mother raised her hands defensively.
"I'm just being precautions Momo dear! I doubt you're actually going to do anything, but I just want to be safe!"
Cheeks still burning a nice crimson, Momo placed her hand out, palm up, and sighed.
"I promise I won't do anything scandalous."
Mrs. Yaoyorozu nodded, satisfied and placed the key in Momo's outstretched hand.
"Thank you, now go relax dear, and come down if you feel like it." Momo nodded, and watched as her mother sashayed away, joining a conversation with one of Mr. Yaoyorozu's usual business partners.
Yaomomo sighed again, looking down at the key in her palm, she wondered briefly if she should continue with the plan, her resolve now unsure after her mother's… well intentioned comments.
It made being alone in a room with Todoroki, with no one knowing he's with her, seem "scandalous" as her mother would say.
Her mother was terrified of scandals, it was why Momo hadn't just told her the truth and instead white lied her way into getting the key. If her mother knew Momo was going to be alone with any boy, she wouldn't let it for fear of someone finding out and it becoming a huge picture on a magazine.
If it had been any other classmate, Momo would have thought nothing of her mother's words. Her classmates were her friends after all, and she wouldn't even think of anything happening with any of them. But… she was going to be with Todoroki.
And he was a different story.
Momo had admired him the moment she saw him in action. The way he froze the entire building and nullified the "villains" from fighting back had impressed her greatly. He was also the only other student who got in on recommendation, which, alongside other events such as the sports festival, singled him out in fifteen-year-old Momo's mind as someone special. But… her admiration had evolved into something else, and it wasn't until a sleep over at the dorms in second year where Ochako had all the signs that she liked Midoriya pointed out, that Momo realized just what her admiration had turned into.
Momo liked Shouto Todoroki.
The feelings had started after their first final exams, where she and Todoroki had to team up against Aizawa-Sensei and work together to beat him. Todoroki's encouragement and confidence in her had overwhelmed her so much that she had cried (something she still found embarrassing to think about) and that was the closest event Momo could pin to her feelings forming. Deep down, Momo knew she had always liked him to some extent- she was human after all and he was incredibly attractive- but it wasn't until she had found a connection with him on a more intellectual and understanding level that she was able to come to terms with what she felt.
And even now, with their last semester approaching of senior year, Momo liked him.
It was silly really, that she would hold onto these feelings for so long, but she couldn't help but be reminded of them whenever they talked and her heart raced and her hormone addled mind would point out little things like how he always nodded to her when he sat down in class and try and convince her it was him returning affection. Thankfully, Momo was logical enough to overcome her hormone induced thoughts and knew he didn't like her back, and she was fine with that. He had no reason to like her in particular anyway, their entire class was filled with people deserving of his affection, not to mention people outside of class, and Momo hadn't done anything outstanding to stand out among them.
But even so, her mother now had her all nervous about being alone with him… she was standing awkwardly where her mother had left her, the library key turning anxiously in her palm. She was going over pros and cons in her mind, trying to convince herself of what to do.
Todoroki's worried filled eyes flashed in her mind, and Momo closed her hand around the key. Todoroki needed the break, she could handle an embarrassing conversation with her mother for him.
Her resolve renewed, she turned and started maneuvering towards the exit.
She had a fine young man waiting for her after all.
"Are you sure this is fine?" Todoroki asked, watching as Momo slide the key into the library double doors and clicking them open. Momo motioned for him to go in, smiling confidently at him.
"Yes, it'll fine! Don't worry, as long as no one sees you it'll be fine."
He walked in slowly, and after checking to make sure no one saw them, Momo followed, closing the heavyset doors with a thunk.
The room was momentarily shrouded in darkness, but Momo quickly turned on a lamp and the library was lit dimly allowing them to see the walls covered ceiling to floor in bookshelves.
"We'll have to keep the lights low, so people won't notice and be distracted from the party, I hope that's alright." Momo said worriedly, gesturing to the one lamp that she had turned on. Todoroki only said a simple "it's fine" and started browsing the books on the shelves, his fingers running over the spines as he read the titles. Momo herself grabbed a couple books, and settled into a beanbag near the lamp. Todoroki soon lounged near her in his own, a small pile of books next to him on the carpeted floor.
A comfortable silence enveloped them, and Momo felt content as she read her book, Todoroki across from her with no worry anywhere on his face.
"Oh wow…." Momo whispered. She was now laying on her stomach, book held in front of her and her habit of talking while reading quietly marching out of her mouth. She temporarily forgot someone else was in the room, her mind being used to being the only one in the library. She was reminded of her company however, when his voice broke her intense involvement in the book.
"What's wow?"
Momo let out a small gasp, and turned and look over at Todoroki to her right. He was laying on his back, and he was looking over at Momo curiously. Color tinted her cheeks a little, she found that habit of hers a little embarrassing.
"O-oh! I'm just reading this history book for school-" Momo held up the cover to him, and he nodded when he recognized the book, "and reading about how ancient civilizations built and discovered things always amazes me!"
A light sparked in Momo's eyes, and her voice become brimming with enthusiasm as she started talking Todoroki's ear off about history.
"For example, did you know the ancient Chinese people invented a lot of concepts that are still in use to this day? They were the first civilization to invent paper and were the only ones with access to silk until they built the Silk Road and were able to trade with other countries!"
Flipping through the pages to a specific one, Momo exuberantly started again.
"And the Greeks were incredibly resourceful as well! Just look at this picture!" Momo said breathlessly, scooting her beanbag over to his bean bag so they were shoulder to shoulder now. Todoroki, who had a hint of a smile on his face, leaned to look over her shoulder, rolling over to his side to be more comfortable. She held up the book, pointing at the picture she wanted him to focus on. "This is the first concept of an alarm clock! It held water that it periodically dripped onto a gong that was supposed to make a sound that would wake a person up. Of course, the noise was not loud enough to wake anyone up so it didn't catch on, but it did set the ground for what will turn into the alarm clock we use nowadays! Oh! And this paragraph-" Momo pointed at a paragraph that caught her eye, moving even closer to Todoroki until their shoulders were brushing against each other so he could read it to. She rambled on for about five minutes about the effects ancient inventions had on them today her eyes sparkling with exuberance.
"And-" Yaomomo started, but stopped, her breathe catching in her throat and constricting her ability to talk. She had turned her head to look at Todoroki, and the realization of just how close they were become apparent.
What she had assumed was their shoulders touching, turned out to be her shoulder touching his chest, as he was still reading on his side. His face was so near hers that she could see his individual lashes as he blinked at her in confusion, his face hovering maybe a few inches above her shoulder. Their entire bodies were closer then Yaomomo had been to anybody she hadn't been dating, and her cheeks were overheating with color.
"Yaomomo? Are you alright?"
Todoroki asked quietly, his breath fanning out across her shoulder as he talked. His eyes were filled with curiosity and Yaomomo found she couldn't look away from them.
"Ye-es I'm- I'm fine." Yaomomo said stockily, she swallowed hard, trying to convince her throat to work again. Todoroki didn't look convinced, and he leaned even closer until their noses were almost touching.
"Are you sure?" He breathed, his left hand coming up to touch her forehead gently with his knuckles. Yaomomo just nodded, not trusting her words to work. As he talked, she couldn't help but glance down at his moving lips, and her hormone addled brain started pushing out images of kissing him.
"Yes, I'm sure." Momo whispered, her eyes roaming his face to mesmerize what it looked like so close. In return, he was looking intensely at her just as intensely as she was looking at him. His mouth opening a crack as his eyes swept over the lower half of Momo's face. His left hand brushed aside her bangs and then he traced the back of his index and middle finger down her face till it stopped at her jaw, his eyes following till the end, where he looked up and met her pink gaze with a soft yet intrigued one of his own.
Momo's heart pounded against her ribcage as Shouto Todoroki whispered four words that she had only ever dreamed of hearing from him.
"May I kiss you?"
"Yes." Was Momo's desperate reply, and she leaned forward and met his lips in the sweetest kiss. It was short, some might have considered it more of a slightly long peck then a kiss, but Momo felt a lot of emotion in that short kiss.
And as they pulled back, opening their eyes to meet each other's, Momo felt as if time had stopped. Though it wasn't long till time started again and Momo grabbed his tie and pulled him over for a much longer, more passionate kiss that he readily supplied to.
Who knows how many minutes later, a knock echoed on the library door, making Momo squeak into Todoroki's mouth and she pulled away, breaking the kiss they had been smothering themselves in.
"Y-yes?" She called out, pulling her hands from Todoroki's hair and placing them on his shoulders instead. Her cheeks flushed as one of the family butlers called from behind the door, realizing just what position she was in and how obvious it'd be to tell what they were doing if the butler opened the door.
"Miss. Momo, your mother sent me to fetch you. Guests are starting to leave and your presence is required."
"Tell mother I'll be right down please." Was Momo's response, and she heard the butler's acknowledgement and then his footsteps walking away. Relief flooded through her at the sound, and she hugged around Todoroki's neck, burying her face in his neck and her arms as she let out a shaky sigh.
"Ahh that was to close!"
Todoroki hummed in agreement, holding both of them up with one hand as he wrapped the other around her in a supportive way.
They stayed like that for a moment, Momo savoring the feeling of being so close and comforted by him, and then she pulled back as what the butler said fully comprehended in her mind.
"We should hurry! Mother might suspect something and come looking for herself if I'm not down there quickly!"
They moved fast, with Todoroki moving from on top Momo so she could spring up and start fluttering with her dress, smoothing out the wrinkles after pulling it back down from where it had ridden up. From the corner of her eye she saw Todoroki straightening his suit jacket, and the urge to help him straighten up overtook her.
Going over, she smoothed his collar and tie, and reaching up she created a comb and combed his hair to the way it had been before. Embarrassingly, she had quite ruined it from the neatness it had been before her fingers had run messily through his locks and mussed them up.
"I completely ruined your hair, I'm sorry." Momo apologized as she combed, a sheepish smile on her lips. He's eyes glinted and he smiled at her.
"Don't be, I quite enjoyed your method."
Unsure of how to respond to that besides her reddening cheeks and embarrassed giggle, Momo just opted to finish combing his hair.
Once done, she took a step back and scrutinized him, making sure there was no evidence of what they had been doing on him.
"I think you're all done…" she trailed off, her eyes widening as she noticed a quite big, blaring detail, right around his lips and jaw.
Red lipstick residue from her lips, was all around his mouth and scattered on his jawline.
"Oh!" Was all she could say, her mind running through how to make wipes and a mirror so he could clean off his face. He tilted his head to the side, and she saw with a thrill of embarrassment that he had two marks on his neck as well.
"I take it from the "oh!" That I'm not done yet?" Todoroki inquired, and Momo nodded, producing the wipes and mirrors from her arm, she handed them to him.
"Yes, you've got some, uh, some evidence on your face… and neck."
Looking into the mirror, Todoroki's eyes widened slightly. As he started wiping off the lipstick, Momo produced another mirror and looked at her own face and hair to start fixing.
She almost gasped aloud, her hair was a mess! The neat bun she had put it in before was barely together, and strands had fallen out of it in sections. Her makeup was in better condition, except for lipstick, which was smeared a little on her own face and the rest of it was on Todoroki.
As she wiped off the remaining stain from her lips, Todoroki spoke up casually.
"You know, the color doesn't look as good on me as it does on you."
Momo laughed, looking at Todoroki in the mirror. He had wiped it all off from his face, and was just getting the lip marks off his neck. He looked as if what he had just said was the most normal thing in the world.
Grabbing her purse from a side table where it had been placed, Momo pulled out the offending lipstick and re-applied it, teasing as she did so.
"I don't know, I think the color looked quite well on you. With your blue suit and red lips, you were quite on brand for your hero attire."
Todoroki's lips gave a small smile, and he turned his attention on the currently concentrating Momo.
"Well, maybe I should start wearing it then."
Momo laughed again at his words, turning to look at him to respond, but was stopped by his lips on her own.
They stayed like that for a moment, Momo resting her hand on his chest and him putting an arm around her, but they had to break for air. He whispered to her, his lips brushing against hers,
"I should be going."
"Yes, you should." Momo quietly agreed. They moved apart from each other almost at one, and Momo's hands reached up to fix her hair, her eyes followed him to the door. Just as he opened it and put one foot out, Momo called out for him to stop.
Running over to the door, Momo propped it open with her body and pulled another wipe out.
"Your lips are red again." She informed him, reaching up to rub it off. His hand caught her wrist, and his voice was mirth with amusement.
"Isn't that the point? I'm on brand now." The small amused smile on his lips pecked against hers one last time, and then he slipped out the door. Taking the wipe and Momo's heart with him.
When Momo made it back down to the main floor, her parents were standing at the front doors saying good-bye to a long line of guests.
She quickly slipped through the line to join them, and gave a simple excuse of 'she had to put all the books she had been reading back' for why she was late.
They fell for it, and Momo was content with standing behind them as she usually did and just looking out at the line like she's done since she was a child. Except, this time she was looking for someone.
It was almost an hour later of saying goodbye to half of the party guests that she finally spotted Todo's hair in the crowd.
He was standing next to his uncle, the Steam Hero Billow, and Billow's wife. Billow was Endeavor's younger brother, and was much more suited for the social and medial aspect of heroism, meaning that Momo saw him a lot at her parent's parties. Endeavor probably forced Todoroki to attend these parties with his aunt and uncle.
As he got closer and closer to the front of the line, Momo grew more and more uncertain of how to act when he made it to the front. Should she talk to him? Or would that be to suspicious to her parents since Momo only ever talked to the guests if they addressed her first?
Should she be all coy and flirty? No, immediately throw that idea away, that would be the absolute worst way for her to act. Toss it aside before her mind settles on it as the final solution!
No, she would just act normal. Stay silent unless she's talked to, but that didn't mean she couldn't- oh shoot he's next.
Coming back out of her mind, Yaomomo nodded her head and smiled at the now leaving guests, and then Billow Todoroki and his wife stepped forward, with Todo behind them. His hands were in his pockets, nothing looked out of place and his hair was neat.
And thank goodness, he did wipe the lipstick off!
As her parents talked idly with Billow, Momo made eye contact with Todo and smiled at him. He gave the tiniest one back, before they both broke eye contact to keep suspicion from rising from onlookers. Momo focused on the conversation her parents where having with the Billow's. Only for her mother to turn to Todoroki and start talking to him.
"I heard from your aunt earlier dear about your mother. I do hope she gets well soon."
Todoroki looked surprised that he was being addressed, but he recovered quickly and nodded.
"Thank you. I hope she gets better soon to."
He said it casually, but Momo noticed that he had tensed again at the mention of his mother. Mrs. Yaoyorozu didn't notice however, and continued talking.
"I was also told that you have been worrying yourself to much, and that this party was supposed to be a nice break for you. Well, I think they picked the right party to bring you along to! The theme was relaxing- and I do hope you got the relaxation you needed!"
Todoroki's eyes flitted toward Momo for half a second, and his answer only half registered with Momo, but the implication of what he said made her use all her self control to not start blushing and give it all away with her flushing face.
Yaomomo didn't remember the rest of the conversation, she was concentrating too hard on not exploding into a blushing blob.
But she did remember, Todoroki turning to her as they started walking away, and throwing her a smile.
"See you around Yaomomo."
It was a simple phrase, but the look in his eyes as he said it gave Momo a rush of joy. He wanted to see her again. And not in a classmate way! At all the occasional times they've seen each other at parties, they always say good bye by telling the other they'll see them at school, cause that's when they next expected to see each other. But- Todoroki's "see you around" implied that he wanted to see her sooner.
She beamed at him.
"See you, Todo-Kun!"
And then he turned and walked away, both of their hearts fluttering in excitement.
The next morning, Momo woke up to her phone vibrating off her bedside table with how much it was buzzing with messages.
Picking it up, she saw that most of them were from Kyouka Jirou and Mina Ashido.
The reason for their excessive messaging was that last night before she had gone to bed, Yaomomo had been bursting with feelings at having kissed Shouto Todoroki, and had to tell someone.
So, she had texted both Jirou and Mina telling them, though she left out just who she'd kissed.
Which was what was making her phone blow up with ringtones. Both of them were demanding details, on both the kiss and on the kisser. And they were going to get little detail on either, just little snippets of the kiss.
As she went to the message app to reply, Momo's heart skipped as she saw that someone else had texted but had been lost beneath all of Mina's thousand reaction emoji messages-
Shouto Todoroki: "Do you want to meet up for lunch?"
A date. He was asking her on a date. A lunch date sure, but a date nonetheless!
He had said the night before that he would see her later, and Momo guessed that he decided noon the next day was later enough.
And as she typed back that she'd love to, she couldn't agree more.
Noon, was later enough.
