"Akaaarrrriiii! Wow! You look pretty beat!"
She blinked groggily at Yamada, fighting back the urge to slap her friend. "You're…super loud, Hizashi."
"What?! I'm just talking at my normal volume!"
"Well it's super loud." Akari crossed her arms in front of her on the desk and rested her head on them. She had hardly slept. Though this was not due to her being plagued by worries. This was due to her sleeping alone, fully healed. Her body and mind refused to let her rest.
"Not sleeping?" His volume dropped as he sat at his desk, his chair turned so he could still face her. "Babe, if you're having trouble sleeping-"
"I'm not getting a body pillow. Grumpy boy Shouta said he'd throw it away," she mumbled.
Yamada grinned and leaned in close. "Why don't you just move in with me?"
"What?" Akari lifted her head, eyes narrowed in puzzlement.
"I have an extra room that's going to waste! You don't even have that much stuff so it's no problem!"
Staring at him, she began to raise an eyebrow. "You know, you remind me of a witch in a fairy tale trying to lure a kid into her oven to cook them."
"Awww! You know you want to live with me! Remember how fun it was last time?" Yamada persisted.
"Nn. I remember working the opposite shift that you worked and hardly seeing you," she answered.
"But it'll be different this time! We're both teachers now!"
She ran her fingers through her hair and caught sight of Aizawa entering the room. Being only partially awake, she had no sense of self-awareness and found her eyes locked on him as he walked to his desk. Her gaze skimmed along his form, starting at the man's face and moving downward. Warmth bloomed in her cheeks and she smirked.
Yamada tried to follow her gaze and tilted his head. "What're you staring at, Akari, baby?"
"Heh. Just…admiring."
He pretended to pout and leaned back in his seat. "Akari, if you want to shamelessly check someone out, I'm right here!"
She snorted and shook her head. "Hizashi…"
"So we're still on for drinks tonight, right?"
Akari nodded and finally pushed herself to sit upright at her desk. "Maybe I can drink enough to help me sleep."
"You're not sleeping?" Aizawa turned to look in her direction and saw her face turning pink in response.
"She won't move in with me, either! I'm just offering some suggestions!" Yamada chimed in.
The red-haired hero grimaced. "I'm an adult. I should be able to-"
"You should move." Their normally grouchy friend gave her a stern look that sent an excited shiver down her spine.
"Nn? You want me to move in with Hizashi? Seriously?" Her heart beat a little faster when he stood and each step he took toward her sent up a burst of butterflies in her stomach.
Aizawa leaned down, meeting her stare and allowing the corner of his mouth to lift into a smirk. A hand threaded into her crimson locks and tugged gently, earning a soft sound of pleasure from her. "If you're not sleeping, you should do something about it. Or do I need to help you?"
Her face went red, eyes clenching shut from embarrassment. Why did he do that in front of Hizashi?! Gritting her teeth, Akari pressed her legs tighter together beneath the desk and tried to lean away from him. "C-come on! Are you sleep deprived too or something?!"
He released her hair and went back to his desk as if nothing happened. Meanwhile, Yamada was frowning once more. "You shouldn't drink to try to get yourself to sleep. I'll come over after work."
"We're going out for a drink so you'll have to wait your turn with her," the blond hero protested. He planted a hand on her shoulder and forced a grin. "We've still got a date tonight, right, Akari?"
Before she could answer, she caught sight of the expression on Aizawa's face. She had never seen him direct such a fierce glare in her direction, but there it was. The narrowed, bloodshot eyes. The irritated scowl that twisted his lips. Akari was both terrified and excited at the same time. She squirmed in her seat and turned her head to the side.
"Ah…could we maybe do it some other time? I mean, like Friday. That would probably work better anyway, right? I don't want to come in with a hangover tomorrow," she tried to joke with Yamada.
Shift P.O.V
It felt like she was drifting away from him. Not just because she was spending so much time talking to Yamada, either. Aizawa had noticed that she was distracted by something when he ran into her on the street the day before. She only gave him her full attention when he suggested going somewhere private.
He was watching her from his sleeping bag cocoon, eyes just open enough to see her working with Kayama to help the students choose their hero names. She looked exhausted and the harder he stared, the more obvious it became that her insomnia was wearing on her. Each blink was slow and her enthusiasm for her task was quickly fading.
The female hero ruffled her hair, a yawn escaping her that made his pulse quicken. When her cherry red lips parted for her to yawn, he could see her tongue curl slightly. It reminded him of when a cat yawns and he had to suppress a yawn of his own.
Of course, he knew that Akari had been lying when she said that her building was being treated for a pest infestation. It was glaringly obvious. Aizawa had been preoccupied with other thoughts the previous day so he decided to not interrogate her about it.
I'll ask her tonight, he determined as he nestled into his sleeping bag. His eyes skimmed along her figure as she went to offer advice to one of the students. Her tight red and black uniform covered a lot of her skin, but hugged her shape in a way that still gave him a good view. He smirked and let his mind wander.
Shift P.O.V
Akari glared at the inside of her fridge, silently cursing herself as well as Jin's oddly sweet nature. All I have left are energy drinks. She ran a hand through her hair and closed the fridge, looking toward the cupboards. She knew that they were full of cup ramen and other quick to cook meals, but none of those options were good enough to offer to Aizawa.
Turning her attention to the couch, she frowned. Before she left for work that morning, Akari had confronted Jin about the murders. She told him how much she hated senseless killing and that she worried for his safety. That was all it took to make him promise to stop. He left when she told him to and was a perfect gentleman about it.
Staring at the empty couch, Akari felt a tinge of guilt at making him leave. She had no idea where Jin lived, but he had been so alright with staying in her apartment that she could only guess it was an improvement on wherever he called home. He had been so kind to her throughout his stay and had taken care of her when she needed help. The best she could hope for was that he would be safe wherever he went.
She made her way to her room and looked at the disorder that she had left her bed in. The blankets and sheets were wrinkled, the pillows positioned at odd angles. I should tidy up. Damn it. Why am I assuming that Shouta will want to do something like "that"? He probably just wants to eat and take a nap, right?
Akari released an exasperated sigh as she began the task of making her bed. Eating and napping. Like a big, grouchy cat. Her lips twitched into a half-smile. Grumpy boy Shouta. Shaking her head, she tried to focus on what she was doing.
The female hero was a little too focused and failed to hear her apartment door unlock and then lock again. Footsteps approached her bedroom doorway, but paused. She was attempting to make the pillows look presentable when she felt arms slide around her waist. Akari jolted and turned to shout at the intruder, but a mouth covered hers.
She frowned into the kiss, but eagerly slid her arms around his neck. Her lips parted when she felt his tongue skim along her lower lip and felt warmth settle in her lower half. Akari's hands traveled upwards, fingers threading into his dark hair and giving a playful tug.
A growl escaped him and he took a step forward, making the back of her knees hit the side of the bed. With one quick push, he had her on her back with him on top. He felt her teeth close gently on his lower lip and pushed his hips tight against hers.
The female hero could feel his right hand skim along her side and slide beneath the hem of her tank top. Fingertips lightly trailed up her ribcage and Akari subconsciously bucked her hips in response. A smirk curled his lips seconds before the man's hand cupped her chest. She arched her back, feeling his fingers close on the peak of her breast and tease it.
Akari's legs locked around his waist and pulled him closer. A groan escaped him as he felt her rub against him. She finally released his lower lip and let him lean back a little, meeting his impious smirk with a blushing frown. "I…thought you were a criminal or something," she mumbled, still embarrassed about being surprised by him.
"You'd let a criminal pin you down like this?" he taunted.
"No! I knew it was you when I turned around, but-" Her normally pale cheeks were a warm reddish hue as she stared up at Aizawa. "Next time just say something."
"So you wouldn't let a criminal touch you here." His free hand trailed along her thigh, his fingertips warm through the thin fabric of her sweatpants.
She bit her lower lip as his hand moved higher and towards the inner part of her leg. "Shouta~"
He was about to say something, but was interrupted by the loud growling of her stomach. Aizawa leaned back, frowning and pushing his hair away from his face with one hand. "Maybe we should eat something first."
Akari sighed in frustration, but nodded. "Don't look in the fridge."