Hitoshi hung back after homeroom to talk to Aizawa who had climbed out of his sleeping bag and desperately looked like he needed a cup of coffee.
"I really got an offer?"
Aizawa nodded.
"From a pro who's never previously taken on a single student."
"Really, who?"
"Me."
Hitoshi's eyes widened before he smiled.
"You didn't have to do that." He rubbed the back of his neck.
"I wanted to; I wasn't lying when I said you had potential." Aizawa stated. "Yamada wants in too so you'll have him as well, and possibly Midnight."
"So basically the UA staff that actually like me." Hitoshi smirked.
"We never got to go out for that pizza to celebrate your victory in the sports festival either; we'll do that tonight if you're up for it?"
"Sounds good to me, and like I said, it wasn't a victory I was the first out."
"Third round counts." Aizawa quipped a smile.
"I'm sure it doesn't."
"You're going out for pizza, no fair; you never take us for pizza." Zuku moaned from the doorway.
"Yeah, where's our pizza?" Kacchan teased.
"Hitoshi it seems two gremlins want to encroach on our trip for pizza."
"I suppose they could come." Hitoshi smirked.
"Suppose, I won the damn thing he's taking you out for! Not that you were there to see it." Kacchan mumbled.
Hitoshi recoiled a little, hurt by the words.
"I wanted to."
"Sure you did…"
"Kacchan, something came up that was entirely not Hitoshi's fault, you know that." Aizawa stated.
"Yeah, a something that no one will tell us shit about…"
"Because it's none of your business, it's Hitoshi's."
"It's fine." Hitoshi shook his head. "Can I just tell them?"
"If you want."
"During the sports festival the police got a call. When they showed me on the TV during our match my birth parents recognised me, I had to go and meet them, that's why I had to leave just before your fight. I would've stayed if I could."
Zuku and Kacchan's eyes were both wide, the two teens rendered speechless.
"Your parents?"
He nodded.
"Woah…"
"Now will you quit bothering him and let him work everything out for himself?" Aizawa spoke up.
They both nodded.
"Meet at the staff room if you wanna' come and remember to actually text Inko and Mitsuki this time, I don't want to get it in the ear again."
"Yes!"
The sound of them high fiving each other in success could be heard from the corridor.
"Let me just read that back; so you want a large seafood special pizza, a regular spicy pizza, a regular margherita pizza, a regular classic pepperoni pizza, a side of popcorn shrimp, a side of buffalo wings, two tiramisu, three matcha mousse, three shakes two strawberry one honey-lemon, one bottle of green tea, and a black coffee."
Hizashi had to try very hard not to smirk at the size of their order. In their defence they were feeding two adults and three endless pit teenagers.
"Yeah that's everything."
"Have you really never had pizza?" Katsuki asked.
Hitoshi shrugged.
"I can't remember."
"That's wild. You can try some of mine as well as your pepperoni." He offered.
"Mine too." Zuku smiled.
"Yeah, feel free to steal some of mine and Zashi's too, there's plenty to go around." Shouta added.
"Why'd you have to get spicy, that's gonna' be gross." Zuku pulled a face.
"Because I like spicy food!"
"What's so fun about burning your tongue off?"
Shouta shook his head with a smirk.
Luckily his husband returned, sliding into the booth next to him.
"You've been nine years, how long does it take?" Kacchan teased.
"You try reading off an order a mile long." Hizashi replied. "I know, next time you can do it."
"Ughhhh."
The waitress walked over with their drinks and placed them down on the table.
"Thanks."
Hizashi reached over.
"Strawberry for Hitoshi, same for Kacchan, honey-lemon for Zuku, green tea for me, and one black coffee for the prince of darkness." He teased as he deposited the drinks to the corresponding teen.
Hitoshi took a sip with the straw and smiled.
"Good?" Hizashi asked.
He nodded eagerly.
"Here." Zuku held out his.
He tried that too but pulled a face.
"That is so sweet!"
"I know, that's why I like it." Zuku smiled as he picked up his buzzing phone.
"Is that Inko?" Shouta asked.
"Yep, she says thanks for taking us out she'll bake you something to say thank you."
"Score." Yamada smirked.
"Say thank you from us."
Zuku flicked through his phone to the camera.
"Here, smile!"
Hitoshi looked around to see how the rest of the table responded before Kacchan and Zuku wrapped their arms around each side of him as they both smiled. Yamada guided Aizawa into the frame before huddling into his husband as they smiled too, the voice hero holding up a peace sign with his fingers.
For a moment Hitoshi couldn't help but consider how natural this all felt, being here with them, part of their family. It brought a smile to his face as he looked up at the camera.
Zuku took the photo with a 'click'.
"Aww awesome!"
"Send me it." Yamada asked.
"Okay."
"Can I see?" Hitoshi asked.
"Sure." Zuku clicked up the photo.
He'd been thinking long and hard since that day in the police station. Yamada and Aizawa clearly believed he hadn't been considering the numerous attempts to talk about it, but he had, and he was no closer to figuring it out then he was back then.
Those people across the desk were strangers, but if he was being fair he'd barely known the two pros for that long either. What's a couple of months, right?
Right?
He had a home now, a room all to himself with clothes and a bookcase and a wardrobe and a window! He could go downstairs and make himself food without anyone getting mad, he could hang out with Kacchan and Zuku downtown or at their houses; he could communicate without having to talk with them all knowing sign language...
And CATS!
Jelly and Cream were precious and pure and he loved how they always came over when he was feeling all anxious and panicky and sat on his lap or let him stroke them.
They were good boys.
He'd dreamed of having a cat of his own and even though they weren't his he'd still heard Aizawa and Yamada talking about him like he was a parent to them too.
Everything that had once seemed alien was now the everyday.
A shower, clean clothes, the fact that they made him food at all.
Food was now just food; and it was in abundance at the pros house. He'd never realised how casual eating three meals a day was, not that he ever would've had the chance, he was lucky if they fed him a few times in the same week. Yamada and Aizawa were concerned about his lack of weight and so he'd been trying to follow the little schedule they'd made which was accompanied by the voice hero's little encouragement doodles.
Was that what love is? He knew that caring about someone was considered love, so did they feel that way about him? They certainly seemed to be putting a lot of effort into him, but he knew that attention didn't always have positive outcomes. But they'd never been like that. Aizawa and Yamada had never even hit him, or Kacchan, or Zuku.
So did he want to go with those people? Maybe?
No, he didn't.
Did they want him to go? Maybe they want rid of him now that the people behind the desk have come out of the woodwork. For all he knew this could be the biggest stroke of luck for them, an opportunity to get him out of their hair without all the fuss.
What if he just never gave them an answer about the whole thing, would that work? Would they keep him then?
Yes, he'd do that.
If they brought it up he'd just dodge the question.
"Hitoshi?"
Aizawa's concerned voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "Are you okay?"
"Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, just thinking."
He turned to Zuku.
"The photo looks really good."
Kacchan looked less than convinced but didn't get a chance to question it any further as the food arrived.
Hitoshi's eyes widened at the size of the pizza slid in front of him.
"Woah."
"That's nothing, Deku and I finished the Double Deluxe once."
"Yeah and the two of you destroyed our bathroom a few hours later." Aizawa added.
"Worth it."
Hitoshi looked around to see how you were supposed to eat it. Did you use the knife and fork?
Kacchan and Zuku answered his question a few seconds later as they tore a slice from their respective pizzas and took a bite.
His first thought as he copied their actions was that pizza seemed greasy, or was that just him being so unused to fast food? The crust was hot to the touch as he took a small bite.
Despite the temperature the taste of the cheese and what Aizawa had explained to be pepperoni along with the tomato sauce was SO GOOD.
"And the verdict is?" Hizashi asked enthusiastically.
"I love it."