It had been a busy next few days and Katsuki hadn't seen much of Rui. He barely saw her at lunch and even then it was a short greeting in passing as she grabbed her lunch and headed straight back to the infirmary. And having the entire student body to worry about, he couldn't blame her for being so preoccupied. He was surprised, however, to how much he looked forward to walking home with her after school let out.

"Has anyone talked to Rui lately?" he heard Eijiro ask as they sat in the cafeteria.

"No, she's been swamped lately." Denki noted. "I heard she had a dozen patients to look after yesterday from two different classes."

Katsuki barely listened into their conversation, being lost in his own thoughts. When students from other classes chimed in on the conversation, he excused himself and went to find a quiet place to think.

As he walked towards the large tree in the courtyard- having grown rather fond of the spot- he noticed someone else was already there. Someone with blue hair.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked as he reached the tree, but no answer came. He looked down and saw that Rui was passed out as she leaned back against the tree.

'She must be exhausted.'

He sat down next to her and leaned back against the tree, looking at the clouds as they drifted by.

'Looks like it'll rain later.'

He felt a sudden weight at his shoulder and glanced down to see Rui's head resting against him. He watched her a moment, wondering if he should wake her or not, and noticed how peaceful she looked sleeping. He checked the time and saw they still had about half an hour before end of lunch period, so he let her rest there.

As they sat there, Katsuki found himself reminiscing again about their childhood and the good times they had shared. He had always admired her courage and her strength, her willingness to stand up for those around her. He had always thought she was a kind and caring person. He may have acted like a brat towards her when she put him in his place, but it was more for show than anything. He was the cool kid, so to speak, so he was keen on keeping up appearances.

After a while, Rui stirred and found Katsuki sitting next to her. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes before yawning.

"Katsuki? How long have you been here?"

"Not long. You were asleep when I came over."

"Everything OK?"

"I should be asking you that. You looked pretty worn out when I found you."

Rui sighed. "It's been really busy the last few days. I honestly can't wait for the weekend."

"It is the last day of classes for the week."

"I know and believe me, it's a relief after the influx of patients lately. Your training sessions must be intense for so many of you students to be coming into the infirmary. Recovery Girl says it's not normally this busy but that it's good practice if I want to become a doctor."

"Is that what you want?"

"I don't know, maybe?" Rui looked up at the sky. "Dad was a hero, but he was more front lines like the other big shots. With a quirk like mine, I could easily follow in his footsteps."

"But?"

"You know I've never been much of a fighter." Rui blushed and fiddled with her hair, nervously. "I was always the one to rush in and patch everyone up. It's what I've always been good at."

"Isn't that why you're doing your work study with Recovery Girl?"

"Yeah. I wanted to learn more about the healing applications of my quirk. I mean, I can fight if it comes down to it and I still train for combat just in case, but I would much rather provide support and be a healer than a fighter." Rui laughed nervously. "I guess that sounds pretty silly to you, though, huh? You're always right there, in the middle of the action."

Katsuki felt a slight pang of guilt at her comment. "No, it's not silly. It sounds like the perfect goal for you."

Rui looked up at him, eyes wide with mild shock. "Really?"

Katsuki smirked and nodded. "Really."

Behind them, the bell tolled to signal the end of lunch period. Katsuki stood and offered Rui a hand up. "We should get going."

Rui took his hand, but tripped over herself a bit and fell forward- Katsuki catching her.

"You alright?" Katsuki asked as he steadied her.

"I'm f-fine." Rui stepped back and offered him a quick smile. "Thanks."

Katsuki watched her quickly gather up her things before hurrying off, a rushed goodbye as she left. 'What was that all about?' Shrugging it off, he made his way back to class and wondered if he'd see her again after school.

As she made her way back to the infirmary, Rui tried desperately to calm her nerves and get the burning in her cheeks to stop. She slipped into the infirmary and shut the door, groaning slightly in embarrassment.

"Oh my, what's this?"

Rui squeaked with surprise as Chiyo stepped out from behind one of the partitions with a coy smile. "W-What are you talking about?"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a rather high fever." Chiyo chuckled. "What's his name?"

"I-I don't know what you mean!" Rui tried to busy herself with getting ready for the next period, knowing there would be more students potentially coming in.

"Sure, and I'm the Empress of Japan."

Chiyo's teasing made Rui's blushing worse and she sighed. "It's someone I used to know very well."

"Tell me more about him."

"He has always been a rather crude, arrogant, short-tempered, and aggressive kind of person. He's ambitious, hot-headed, and stubborn, too. But beneath all of that, he's got a good heart and does what he can to prove his strength- not just for everyone else, but also for himself. He strives to do better and always pushes himself to reach that next level. Sometimes he can go overboard, but he always knows when it's time to back off. Well, most of the time at least."

"He sounds like a real handful."

"I can only imagine what his parents have to deal with." Rui smiled, knowing Mitsuki would kick Katsuki's ass if he ever stepped out of line around her.

"And have you told him how you feel?"

"N-No... honestly, I'm just happy that we're starting to act like friends again. I don't want to lose that by telling him how I feel if he doesn't feel the same way."

"I see."

"But, it's alright. As long as we can stay friends, even after my work study is over, I'd be thrilled."

"Well, the training sessions are done for the day, so the rest of the day will be pretty quiet. You may even get to go home early."

"That'll be a relief after this morning."

"Don't forget that it's good practice for you, though."

"I know."

Chiyo watched Rui for a moment, then added, "I think you should still tell this boy how you feel. Even if he doesn't feel the same way, I'm sure he isn't the kind of person who would end your friendship so willy nilly."

Rui's blush returned. "M-Maybe." Her blush deepened as Chiyo chuckled and teased her a moment longer before going over to her desk to take a look at paperwork. 'I wonder if he feels the same way.'