"Your face is gushing blood, Akari! It's a shallow cut; it's not a big deal!"
"I said…" Akari moved swiftly, pressing her knife against the man's neck and narrowing her eyes. "How do you know my name?" She had no desire to hurt this man. After all, he had just saved her from potentially having to kill a criminal and he had helped her in the past. It was just a little unnerving to not know who he was.
The masked man was still holding her face, his fingers warm against her cheeks. The eye parts of his mask seemed to indicate that he might be raising an eyebrow and he leaned in closer instead of reacting to the knife. His thumb traced over her cheekbone as his head tilted. "Your skin's really soft. No, it's super dry."
"How do you know my name?!" she repeated, raising her voice and starting to get frustrated with his refusal to answer.
Now he appeared to realize how serious the situation was. Or at least, it seemed that way. He released her face and waved his arms frantically as he stepped back. "Because I love you! I just know your name because you're a hero; you're not that special!" The man brought his hands in front of his chest, shaping them into a heart.
Love? In Akari's life, only two other men had ever said that they loved her and one of them was her father. The other one was Yamada. She and Aizawa had yet to even use that word so the notion that this stranger loved her was both peculiar and doubtful. However, it still caused a biological reaction. A faint giddiness made her pulse flutter and warmth rose to her face.
Sheathing her knife, she carefully moved around the masked man and kept her eyes on him. "You…you're the one that left flowers in front of my door…right?" She was hesitant to bring this up. It was still unnerving to not see his face.
The man nodded enthusiastically. "Did you like them? I picked those myself! I just got them out of the trash."
Her lips twitched into a half-grin. "I like them. Thank you. And thank you for helping me so much. But…listen. You're a civilian, aren't you? You're not a hero or a vigilante."
"Nope! Hey, what're you trying to say?!"
Akari walked toward the spiked criminal as the man started to try to crawl away. Her capture weapon darted forward to wrap around his ankle to keep him in place. The blush on her cheeks went from pink to red. It always excited her to use her capture weapon. She never knew why, but something about seeing the red ribbon wrapped around a person made her heart race.
A look over her shoulder showed the masked man facing her. "You need to stop. I don't want you to get hurt. So…please don't interfere again."
She continued forward, coiling the capture weapon as she neared the criminal still sprawled on the ground. The fluttering of her heart was escalating as she stared down at the man struggling to escape from the ribbon. At least I didn't have to use my quirk this time. That man-! Akari's thought was derailed as she felt arms wrap around her from behind and a mask-covered cheek rub against the side of her neck.
Tensing in her admirer's hold, she felt an instant blend of panic and exhilaration. Akari half-worried that he had turned on her, but soon realized that she was wrong. This was not an attack; this was a hug. "H-hey, I'm still working-!"
"I'm not a hero, but I can be your hero, Akari! Don't let me get hurt again, got it?!" He squeezed her a bit tighter and then released her.
She turned to speak, but he was already running away. What…what just happened?! Akari heard the approach of sirens and knew that the authorities would be there soon. Leaving the crime scene to pursue the man was out of the question.
Shift P.O.V
He stopped running just around the corner and pulled off his mask. Why did I do that? I was going to avoid her! It's not my fault we were in the same place at the same time! Jin ran his fingers through his hair, keeping his eyes lowered. His heart was pounding in his chest, his stomach twisted in knots.
Lowering his hands, he stared at them. He could remember how soft her face felt when he held it and warmth rushed through his body as he realized how close he had been to her. Holding her face, stroking her cheek, and he had even held her in his arms. The way that Akari fit against him was almost too perfect. Like two puzzle pieces. Like fate.
Sliding down the cold, hard wall, he sat on the ground and tried to calm himself down. Jin had gone out with the intention of getting cigarettes and some food. This was an area out of the way of her apartment and she had told him before that she was suspended from her job so she could try to get her sleep schedule under control. It made no sense for her to be where she was that night.
"…Akari…" Guilt settled in the pit of his stomach and he wrapped his arms around himself. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I did the right thing! I helped her! I got in the way. I was a hero for her! His fingers dug at his arms through his sleeves and he frowned. A hero, huh? A hero for Akari!
Pushing himself to stand up, Jin reached a trembling hand into his pocket and he brought out his cigarettes. He put one between his lips and he lit it, taking a deep inhale. I can't do much, but I can be her hero. The thought brought the faintest of smiles to his face and he bowed his head. As Jin began to walk away, he heard the sirens and had to pause. He had to know for certain that she would be alright if he left.
Shift P.O.V
Love? A stranger loves me? Akari bit her lip as she absently sketched in the margin of the lesson plan she was working on for Yagi. Pausing with the pencil poised over the paper, she frowned and realized that she had been sketching her admirer's mask. Oops. Yeah, I doubt that Yagi-san will want to see that.
As she started to erase the picture a hand planted against the desk's surface on her left and a body leaned down over her. "Oooh! What're you drawing, Akari, baby? Is that a panda?"
She snickered and shook her head. "Don't worry about it." The woman finished her task and sat back, forcing Yamada to step to the side. "What's up? Did you need something?"
The blond leaned in close to her face, lowering his sunglasses as his eyes met hers. The grin on his mouth died and was replaced with a concerned frown. "Babe, did you sleep at all last night?"
I've been hallucinating spiders all morning. Everywhere. Akari put on a smile. "I'm fine. Just a little bit sleepy." Seeing Aizawa enter the room and walk to his desk, she decided to tease him just a little. "I've been thinking about getting a body pillow so I can have something to hug while I sleep," she said in a louder than needed voice.
Across from her, Yagi looked a little bothered that he had been forced to hear her announcement. Kayama half-grinned and walked over to her desk, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Body pillows are great. Want me to recommend a good brand?"
She leaned back in her seat, stretching her arms over her head and arching her back. "Yeah, Kayama, that would be great~" she agreed. Unfortunately, she received no reaction from Aizawa. He failed to even look over at the other three teachers. Feeling a little disappointed, she decided to just return to her work.
It was after classes and Akari was sitting at home on her new couch. The soft, black fabric brought her unbelievable comfort and she even considered sleeping there instead of in her bed. Sipping from her cup of sleepy time tea, she thought back to the masked stranger and let her eyes wander to the vase of flowers on the coffee table.
Love? Setting down the cup, she leaned forward and gently touched a flower petal. Is he someone that I know? How could you love a stranger? Or maybe he's just a fan? A thought crossed her mind and she began to feel sick to her stomach. This was, of course, the worst-case scenario. What if they're one of those fanatics…like from the Endeavor incident?
Shaking her head, she tried to push the thought away, but now it was making her feel panicky. Her pulse was racing and adrenaline began to pump when she heard footsteps outside. A knock at her door nearly made her jump and she sat completely still, staring at the door.
When keys jingled and the lock clicked, she started to calm down. It could only be Yamada or Aizawa. The door soon swung open to reveal her boyfriend. He saw the fearful look on her face and raised an eyebrow. "Were you expecting someone else?"
"I wasn't really expecting anyone." She saw his eyes shift to the couch and grinned. "You like it? I saw it in the furniture store and it was love at first sight."
"Love?" He locked the door behind him and approached the piece of furniture. As she got up to make a cup of tea for him, Aizawa seated himself and his eyes widened. It was far more comfortable than her red couch had been. He made himself cozy; spreading out over the cushions and letting the couch fully support his tired body.
When Akari returned to the couch, she found him lying there and her grin grew. "Well? It's nice, right? Don't you love it?" His response was a grunt and she raised an eyebrow. "Anyway, can you move over?"
Aizawa's eyes lifted to her blue ones and narrowed. "No."
"Heh. What? Come on; let me sit down." She put his cup of tea on the coffee table beside hers and was about to demand yet again that he move. The female hero found herself being pulled down by her wrist and settled on top of him on the couch. Her knees were bent to either side of his hips, her face inches from his. She blinked in surprise as a blush spread across her cheeks to her ears. "Shouta?"
A hand pressed against her back, pushing her chest down against his, and he slid his arm around her. His free hand threaded into her thick, crimson hair. "What do you think about love?" The man's voice was quiet, his tone almost grumpy. As if he had been thinking about this for a while and could not reach a conclusion himself. "Are you upset that we haven't used that word yet?"
Biting the inside of her cheek, she frowned. Akari's arms wrapped around his neck, pulling herself closer to him. Am I? I'm not a teenager; I'm not in any kind of hurry to hear that. But…it did feel kind of nice when that stranger used that word. She buried her face in the side of his neck, letting his warm skin rub against her cheek. "I mean…we don't have to say it until we're sure, right?"
He closed his eyes and released a sigh. "Yeah." Aizawa moved a little, settling himself more comfortably. "And if you get a body pillow, I'll throw it away."