-x- Four Years Later -x-
"Oh, hun, come to the back with me," Mikaela said, his boss at the coffee shop he worked in. he'd just gotten a whiff of a lot of blood through the drive through. He had jolted away and out of sight before she saw him. His muzzle was there, and he was breathing heavily in the back room where the storage was.
His kind, understanding and completely accepting boss rubbed his back, putting the strongest bag of coffee under his nose, which cleared his head with how pungent it was. Working at a coffee shop had been one of the smartest decisions of his life. His foster mother always drunk black coffee, and they noticed a while after he had joined his siblings, and they took advantage of that.
So working there, surrounded by coffee beans, things usually worked out. His instincts died down, and the muzzle automatically contracted back into his handy choker. It was more of a choker than a collar, really. "You okay?"
"Yeah. it wasn't that bad this time, it only looked that way," he said with a heavy sigh. "I wasn't going to attack them, I just was muzzled cause I panicked about being seen looking crazy." And it was true. He may get that physical reaction, his appearance and behavior giving something away that was odd, but he didn't attack anymore.
He hadn't in over a year. Coffee really helped, but his dream and time limit of him needing to be sane was ticking.
He trusted Mikaela to be kind and sincere with him, finding it was only teachers he didn't trust after he continued to have bad ones. Passive aggressive, disliking him even when he behaved just fine at school. He was always put in a class with no O negative students. It shouldn't be a big deal, but it was to all his teachers. It was annoying and hurtful.
It just made him more suspicious of people who were supposed to be good influences in his life. They just weren't. So he trusted his foster mother and his boss, along with All Might and Tsukauchi. He hadn't spoken to All Might in a while, who'd said he was busy with something important and had to focus on himself.
Shoto had been "friends" with him for years, so being cut off hurt a lot. He didn't need his advice anymore, so he assumed the help was over and he was forgotten. Or at least out of sight, out of mind. He felt it would be hard to forget him, but easy to move on, maybe.
After drinking some coffee with a blood powder packet inside, he went back to working, Mikaela trusting him to behave just fine. When he went out, though, he had the strongest, most delicious scent he'd ever smelt. He took deep breaths, hating that he was the waiter today. Glancing around, he easily found the source.
Shoto was fourteen right now, nearly fifteen, and got paid less than minimum wage, and worked only three hours a day because of school, which he was fine with. He didn't put in enough time to get much money. He didn't need it, as Misa was not poor. They were well off enough to afford one blood powder packet a week, which was fantastic and very useful for work.
He had no choice but to go to the table. He was breathing through his mouth, somehow not reacting to it. Maybe he would feel bad for it since it seemed to be somebody his own age, with his mother. "Welcome. How can I help you?" he asked in a strained voice. Even if he was comfortable, he didn't have good people skills. Always worried they'd turn on him, or realize what he was and try to hurt him.
It had happened before, so he was extra careful around strangers everywhere he went. No matter the age. The teen with green hair and freckles asked for a mocha. A boring drink but easy. The mom, he assumed, as they had the same color hair, asked for a vanilla bean Frappuccino. Shoto agreed and hurried back to the kitchen.
He made the drinks quickly, wanting him gone so he could go breathe outside like a weirdo. He finished quickly, but didn't slack on taste or quality. His break was almost there, thank god. He had a fifteen minute planned break. Not his freak outs. He brought both mugs to the table, and then headed out the back door.
Gasping for fresh air, he sat on the curb, head between his knees. God, that was awful. Why would he smell that way? He didn't look too remarkable. Well, he had to go back in once his break was over, and discretely asked his coworker to serve the table alone. His answer was that the teen looked like a family member who just died, and it hurt to be near him.
It was agreed, and he felt no guilt of lying. Only his boss knew when he found him crying in the closet on the first day for forgetting his blood. She'd driven him home, he'd drank some blood, and she took him back. Such a compassionate woman.
When he went back in, the two were gone. Thank god.
Nothing else happened at work, so that was fine.
When he got home, he looked at the packet of paper that he'd gotten from his teacher that morning. It was evening by now. Opening it, it wasn't too securely closed, and some of the sheets of paper slipped out. Collecting them and spreading them out neatly on his desk, he saw they were papers about his quirk.
Even without official training or anything for years, Shoto hadn't gotten rusty. He practiced in the large backyard of he house. They even made the garage into an exercise room for him. Sometimes he thought the price of his abuse was his paid foster family and boss. Hopefully said luck would last.
And right now, it did. Three of his teachers and the principal had all made a recommendation for UA. He looked at the paper again, shocked by this, as he was sure all of his teachers hated him. He crumpled the paper a bit, not meaning to, but it happening anyways. Was he wrong… to not trust them?
He was bothered by this, worried his judgement was wrong. Shit. But looking at it, he couldn't help but smile. It made him feel worth something more than making good coffee and Frappuccinos. His stress of that day disappeared. He left his room to go tell Natsuo. He was playing games in his room, and Shoto knocked on the open door. He looked up and took his headphones off, pausing his game. "What's up?"
Over the last few years, their relationship had not soured. Thankfully. "I was recommended to UA by three teachers and the principal," he said. Natsuo grinned, happy for him.
"You'll be a great hero, man," he said sincerely. Shoto smiled, looking at the papers again. His phone pinged, and he saw he was emailed as well. He hurried to his room, the last thing he seeing was Natsuo's proud expression. When he went in is room, he hurried to turn on the laptop, and immediately opened his email.
It was from the admission department of UA, asking if he'd like to attend. Shoto had said he wanted to go to UA, but it had been mostly in passing. He was surprised the teachers paid enough attention for anyone to take him seriously. At least, good attention. None of his classmates knew though. That was good.
He went to ask his kind foster mother, and wasn't one bit surprised when she was happy for him and approved of him attending the major hero school. It wasn't too far, though it wasn't in walking distance either. He could always take the bus or train, too.
On a high the rest of the day, he forgot all about work only an hour ago. He didn't need to see that guy again, he had a good excuse. If his boss saw right through it, he was still sure she'd understand and not be angry.
-x-
Shoto was cleaning tables, having a late shift since it wasn't a school night. He would keep working even when school starts. Or at least try, in the beginning. Mikaela promised she'd hire him again for any seasonal shifts. If he did stop working there, he'd miss her. Though there would be nothing to stop him from visiting.
He was about to leave before there was a knock on the window. The sign said closed. It was raining hard, so he wasn't entirely sure if it was a person or the wind. Bu the knocking started again, and he peeked around the corner. It was that guy again. The one that smelled good. He didn't want to do bad service, and instead walked to the door. It kept the scent away, and the rain helped wash it away. There was no awning, so his scent was drowned out with him being wet.
"We're closed," Shoto said, pointing to the closed sign. The guy held up his totaled phone. Shoto had to guess it was run over, or how the hell was it that destroyed? So, he wanted to use a phone. Shoto really didn't want to seem like an asshole, and also didn't want to get them a bad review when their record was one bad one out of 200.
He sighed, took a deep breath, stopped breathing through his nose, and unlocked the door with his key. The guy hurried inside, and Shoto tasted his scent in the air, but not enough to cause him to need the muzzle. "Is-is there a phone to use here?"
"No… you can use mine," he sighed. He turned away to unlock the screen so he wouldn't see his password, and handed it to him. He dialed a number after wiping his hand on the fabric of one of the plush chairs so he didn't get it wet. Shoto relocked the main door and put the shudders down. There had been a break in once, and the owner had more than enough money to get some extra protection.
"Mom, I need you to come pick me up. I'm at the coffee shop from before. No, my phone got smashed. I'm sorry." Shoto tuned out his conversation on his phone, even if he would be able to hear it easily. He didn't want to listen in to a private call. "Thanks. I'm sorry, again." He sounded so guilty.
After hanging up, he gave Shoto his phone back. "Thank you," he said with a bow. Shoto nodded.
"There's an awning out the back door. I have to close up. Don't touch anything." His voice was bland, but not disrespectful. He just sounded bored and tired. It had been a long day, so he was. After the teen left in a hurry, Shoto froze the pudles he left and brought them to the sink to melt into water.
He jiggled the lock on the front doors to make sure they were locked one more time, and then left, taking his free bag of coffee with him, putting it in his backpack which was fine against rain since he rode a bike there. It hadn't been raining in the morning, and the forecast said it wouldn't come.
But now he had to ride his bike home. It wasn't dark out, only wet. The sun was setting, but he'd be home before that. He put the lanyard with the key in it into his backpack, clipping it in to the little loop on the inside of the largest pocket.
The teen waited and Shoto left. He'd helped him enough, he didn't want to stand out in the rain for him. Then he rode home, no helmet since he was better at healing by now. Seven years changed his body a lot. He was used to it by now. And he managed it just fine. His sunscreen was waterproof, so it didn't come down with the rain.
When he got home, he took a long nap, tired after a hectic day, and the stress of dealing with a clearly O negative person. It was extremely painful to be around him. But he'd held back, and didn't really like being the only one in the building with him. It was bothersome, and he realized he could kill him and nobody would be around to stop him.
The disturbing thoughts permeated his mind until dinner was ready. The nap wasn't very restful at all.
-x-
"I'm proud of you son. You'll become the hero I always wanted!"
Shoto jerked awake, in a cold sweat. He hadn't sweat in a while. He was breathing heavily. That was a recurring nightmare he had. That he'd become a hero like Endeavor. That he'd fulfill his dream. That he would be proud, reading the newspaper in jail, grinning as he heard that Shoto was a good hero in the news.
He didn't want to be, which was why he classified that dream as a nightmare. Also because that was the fourth time it had happened in the last two weeks. As the start of school was coming so fast, he was nervous. It was nice he was already accepted and didn't need to risk failing and not getting in, but he was still nervous.
While he was used to being around humans, even those with O negative, much to his misfortune, it was only easy because he'd been around his classmates almost daily for a year. He was completely used to their smells and who to avoid if possible. New classes were always scary because he wasn't used to them.
He sat up, rubbing his hands down his face, over his smooth skin and the rough, red scarred bit. Putting on some pants and a shirt, he went downstairs and made himself a blood coffee, with mostly blood in it, and some cereal with normal milk.
He finished quickly, as he had an early morning shift. Usually, his caring boss scheduled him for later, but apparently everyone had bailed, all sick for the same day. He agreed to come in when she begged. Plus, it was overcast, so he didn't need to worry too much. He put the sunscreen on his exposed areas, which were his face, neck and hands. So not too much to prepare.
Riding his bike took about ten minutes if he went quickly. And despite getting up fairly early, he had enough energy to make it through the day. When he got there, he locked his bike up in the rack that was inside the building. Bikes had been stolen a lot there, so there was a pad lock until the manager could open it for them.
The day was awful. He had to work on the drive thru window, serving and getting orders, and making the drinks. Halfway through the work day, he took a ten minute nap in the storage room before getting back to work. He had told Mikaela about helping that guy, and she wasn't upset about it.
Nothing bad had come from it. He was serving a huge tray of hot chocolate to the biggest table when the guy came in. Shoto didn't know his name, so he was just "the guy" in his mind. And beside him was a malnourished looking skinny man with resting skeleton face and messy hair. Shoto wondered if he was ill.
When he saw him, he looked kind of bothered. Well, whatever. He had a job to do, so he asked for their orders. The man wrote down his order, which was kind of odd, and the guy explained his, which was different each time, and each drink he tried but for one, he'd hated. But was in to trying new things.
That was kind of brave, wasting money on something you had no idea if you'd like. Shoto hurried back to make their drinks. The guy's scent was masked today, but Shoto didn't know what it was. When he brought the orders back, he was drooling a bit, and wiped his face on his upper sleeve before anyone noticed.
Not that anyone seemed to see. He got to the drive thru window, and continued his job. He wished he could have a stupid nose plug like professional swimmers, but it would look bad and stupid. Unprofessional and not appropriate for work. He had to work through it, and was always thankful the delicious smelling guy left after drinking whatever nasty thing he'd ordered that day.
Near the end of his shift, he downed a large glass of straight black coffee, wanting to be awake. And he made it! By the end, when the boss was closing up, Shoto was laying ont he couch, bone tired. "Sorry about that," she apologized, sounding guilty. He was given multiple bags of his favorite coffee beans in payment.
"It's okay. Sorry I might not be able to work after school anymore. I know I'm helpful when I don't screw up with the whole… y'know." He didn't like saying it out loud in public.
"You've done great the last year. Hero school will no doubt have more work. I wouldn't have a good conscious if I gulted you for leaving. And I'll welcome you back if you ever want to again." Shoto smiled, and thanked her.
The next day was his last, and he was sad to leave. But he'd definitely go and visit, ordering his own favorite drink and roasting his former coworkers for their bad job, even if they'd know he was joking. He was the youngest by far, but got along with everyone else just fine. He'd miss them, but was sure he'd return to work there someday.
-x-
How are you doing, Young Shoto?
It was two days before school started, and All Might finally texted him. It was to early for this, and he went back to sleep. Taking advantage of the last days of being able to sleep in. When he did get up, there was a missed call. All Might had called. Was something wrong? He got worried, the feeling overwhelming the anger and hurt that he'd just been dropped. So, he ate breakfast, and then grudgingly called the pro hero. The one who abandoned him.
"What?" Shoto asked in a flat voice.
"I wanted to tell you ahead of time, that I'll be working at UA. I'll be glad to see you again."
"I don't care. What do you want?"
"I also want to apologize for seeming to abandon you. I've been very… busy. I didn't want to let you down, and I see it was a mistake now. You don't need to forgive me, as I did something hurtful to you, but I didn't want you to be shocked to see me."
"Fine. I'll be fine, I'll pretend we were never friends or anything." He was hurt under his bland voice. He was too busy to send any stupid messages. Though Shoto had always been a burden anyways. No wonder All Might ditched him for something else. Maybe he found someone else to make friends with a then dump without a word.
"Congratulations on making it in Young Shoto. I'm impressed that you got in by recommendation, but also not surprised at all. You can be the hero you want to be-" Shoto hung up. He didn't need to hear more bullshit. It hurt that he was thrown aside. He was done so much. So often, it felt.
Maybe he shouldn't bitch and moan since he had a nice home. He wanted to be adopted by her, but knew it probably wouldn't happen, and he'd be catapulted into another home, or shoved out at 18 with no assistance from anybody. He wouldn't get his hopes up anyways. Whatever.
He returned to his bed, and slept some more.
