Chapter 18: Respite
Although the real crisis had been dealt with, now Class 1-A had to deal with entirely different matter and even though it wasn't life threatening, it was still maddening. The concert that they had to do for Ms. Kiyomi was coming up and they had so much to prepare. Yaoyorozu was working tirelessly to get everyone's suits and dresses made and ready and make sure they were perfect, everyone who was going to participate with the concert had endless days and hours of practice while Tera and Jirou had to make sure the music arrangements and changes were both relayed between them and the actual orchestra Ms. Kiyomi provided and Ashido was busy teaching everyone how to ballroom dance whenever they had the time. On top of all that, they still had classes to attend and Hero work still continued so it was just endless busy days with hardly any breaks or time to hang out for any of them.
By the time the day of the ball was a couple days away, they were all tired out. It was the end of the school day and the plan was to go on with practice as usual but Aizawa forbid them from doing so.
"But Mr. Aizawa, there's still so much to do." Yaoyorozu said. "We could still use the practice in the orchestra and the dancing and-"
"You guys have done more than enough at this point." Aizawa interrupted. "Unless you guys intend to show up to the ball half asleep, tripping over yourselves during the dance and making a fool out of this school with those actions, then you will not do anything today except make dinner and go to bed."
"Wow. Never expected you to order us to take days off, Mr. Aizawa." Kaminari said.
"I'm not blind, you know." Aizawa replied. "You all have been through a lot the past couple of months and I've seen that you guys have been putting your all in this concert, even keeping up with your Hero work, which is pretty impressive honestly." Aizawa gave them all a sincere look. "I'd say you guys earned the rest. Take the next two days off. I'm sure you guys will do great at the concert." With that, Aizawa dismissed the class as he got himself into his sleeping bag. With that, the class all headed down towards their dorm building, with Yaoyorozu asking everyone what they would like for dinner and they all started giving suggestions. When they got closer to their building, they suddenly started hearing a soft, maniacal laugh.
"You guys really are that desperate for attention, aren't you?" They heard an all-too-familiar voice say. On the steps of their building, they saw Monoma leaning there, waiting for them. "First you get involved in another kidnapping of one your own classmates and now your whole class is putting on a concert for some lady." Monoma started laughing even more, looking a bit unhinged. "I bet you all are doing this just to make yourselves feel better and again trying to make this school look better after all the trouble you caused! Well, that's not gonna happen! Nothing that you losers do will ever wipe away all the crap you've done that has tarnished the good name of UA!" Monoma started laughing hysterically and loudly for a minute before Kendo raced over and hit him on the head, knocking him out, with Tetsutetsu trekking behind her.
"Cannot apologize enough for him, you guys." She said to them. "Please don't listen to him."
"Don't worry about it, Kendo. At this point, we expect it." Kaminari said.
"Maybe you guys do, but what about you Tera?" Kendo said. Tera shook her head and shrugged it off.
"Don't worry. I'm not bothered by it." She replied.
"Anyway, you guys ready for that concert? It sounds like a big deal." Tetsutetsu asked as he bent down to pick up Monoma. "It's definetly bigger than the band performance you guys did. Not that it wasn't awesome."
"Hell yeah, man. We're pumped up for it." Kirishima said.
"I wish we could go see it. Any chance you guys could film it so we can?" Kendo asked.
"Of course we will. We'd be happy to show it to you all." Yaoyorozu said to her sweetly. "Though doesn't really look like Monoma will be willing to watch it." They all laughed in response.
"Anyway, we should get going. Good luck to you guys and I hope you all have fun." Kendo said, waving them all goodbye and they went on, carrying Monoma to their dorm building. Class 1-A then continued and entered their dorm building. As Midoriya and Uraraka headed to the kitchen to make dinner, the rest of the class spread out, some remaining in the common room, others heading to their dorm rooms. Sero was admittedly a bit tired at the moment as every day he's been dealing with either Hero work, classwork, or dance practice and now that he had the opportunity to relax, he wanted to without hesitation. So Sero headed up to his dorm and collapsed on his bed, letting out the loudest and longest sigh he's ever let out.
"Geez, what a freaking day." He groaned. He had no idea how tired he really was but just laying there made him realize that it was more than he could've expected so he simply laid there, staring up at his ceiling for a few minutes, letting his mind wander and get lost. He put his hands underneath his pillow to change position but then he felt something there. He was confused as to what it was at first until he took out from there and saw that it was the necklace box.
"Geez, I gotta stop leaving this under here." He said as he simply looked at the box. He would sometimes simply admire the necklace at night when he was alone. With the concert and ball coming up, he knew this could be the perfect opportunity for him to finally give this to Tera and tell her how he feels. The thought honestly though still scared him even though they were pretty close but he never knew what could happen. A sudden knock at his door interrupted his thoughts.
"Who is it and what is it?" He asked.
"Well, gee, didn't want to be rude." He heard Kaminari say. "We just wanted to come in and hang out."
"But we get if you're tired, man. Just wanted to give you some company." Kirishima added. Sero smiled but he still didn't feel like getting up. He quickly hid the box underneath his pillow again before he said anything.
"Yeah, come in." He said. The whole group all then gathered in his room and sat down around the tea table while Sero stayed on his bed. He was a bit disappointed that Tera wasn't there. It had been a while since they had talked or hung out together but he understood that she was busy so it didn't bother him that much.
"Sero, you mind if I make tea?" Ashido asked. "I thought it might help us relax and stuff." Sero nodded and Ashido started making tea with Sero's tea set.
"Aw man, you should've told me to bring up some snacks." Kaminari groaned.
"We're about to have dinner." Jirou pointed out.
"Yeah, I know, but tea goes good with snacks." Kaminari retorted.
"Relax, I got some cookies with the tea." Sero replied.
"Enough for all of us?" Ashido asked. Before Sero answered, Bakugou got up and exited the room without saying anything else. They all stared in confusion before they all collectively shook their heads, thinking he must've just left so they wouldn't have to worry about him.
"Anyway, Jirou, why isn't Tera here?" Sero asked.
"She's just tired." Jirou replied. "We've been busy with the music and practice that she just needed a break."
"And you're not tired?" Kaminari said with a smirk. "Is someone slacking?" Jirou gave him a glare.
"Hell no, jerk wad." She growled. "It's just that Tera knows more about orchestra and stuff than me. She handles the changes and lessons while I've been helping with writing the sheet music and conducting. I've also been helping out with her vocal lessons."
"Oh, how have they been going?" Kirishima asked.
"She's been great." Jirou replied. "There's not much for me to teach her. I mostly just help her with her confidence."
"She really needs help with that? I think she sings great." Ashido commented as she brought over the teapot, teacups and cookies.
"Wait, you've heard her, Mina?" Kaminari asked. "Shouldn't this all be a surprise? I mean, nobody else has heard her sing. Well, except for Jirou and now you."
"And me." Sero mumbled, making everyone look at him. Sero sheepishly glanced at them before he shrugged.
"Eh, well, I guess she would've shown him first anyway." Jirou said with a giggle. Ashido started giggling too. Sero felt his cheeks flush and he looked away.
"Ah, c'mon man, don't feel embarrassed." Kirishima said. "Actually, this could finally be the time." This caught Sero's attention, seeing as he was just thinking about this.
"Yeah! You could totally ask her out now." Ashido jumped in. "The whole Nomura dilemma is done, now we've got a ball and dance we're going to. You, her, all dressed up, dancing on the dance floor, it couldn't be more perfect."
"Yeah! Dude, you should totally go for it now." Kaminari added. "There's nothing holding you back. Just go out there and ask her out!"
"Well, not now." Sero said. "I don't want to bother her."
"Well, obviously not now." Ashido said. "Just be sure you do it soon. No more excuses." Sero chuckled as he sat up and grabbed himself a cup of tea.
"Geez, since when did you guys want to be so involved in my love life?" He asked. They then heard the door open and were surprised to see Bakugou with a bag of cookies in his hands. He dropped them on the table and sat down next to Kirishima.
"Don't you ever say I don't ever do anything for you idiots." He grumbled.
"Aw, thanks Bakubro." Kirishima said, wrapping his arm around his neck. Bakugou struggled in his grasp, trying to get away.
"He really does care." Ashido teased even more.
"JUST SHUT UP!" Bakugou yelled, shoving Kirishima off of him. They ended up bumping the drawer, which made Sero jump a little out of reflex.
"Watch it, Bakugou. Don't want you breaking any of my stuff." He said.
"IT WASN'T MY FAULT, DAMN IT!" He yelled at him. The group ended up laughing in response as Bakugou growled.
"Anyway, back to the subject at hand," Ashido spoke up as she grabbed some cookies for herself. "Sero, you're gonna ask Tera out if it's the last thing you do in your life. We'll make sure of it."
"How-" Sero was interrupted by Kaminari sliding into his side on the bed.
"Don't you worry about that." He said, winking. "We'll handle it. Just turn on the charm and make sure she says yes."
"We'll be sure to cheer you on, man!" Kirishima added, grabbing Bakugou again.
"LEAVE ME OUT OF THIS!" He yelled again. "AND LET ME GO!" They fought and struggled again, bumping the drawer extra hard this time that it shook.
"Guys, watch it!" Sero said to them. "If you don't stop, I'm gonna kick you out."
"Sorry, man." Kirishima quickly apologized while Bakugou scoffed. Sero sighed dismissively as he shook his head.
"Anyway, I hear you guys." He said to them. "I was honestly already thinking about this." Ashido let out a squeal.
"Yay! He's gonna confess!" She said happily. "Oh, I can already imagine it. The music plays, you ask her to dance and you guys just dance the night away as you confess to her, then she says yes and you guys live happily ever after!"
"Geez, Mina." Jirou chuckled. "You're such a shipper."
"Yeah, chill out." Sero added. He sighed as he took a sip from his tea. "As much as I want this, I still don't know what will happen. I keep thinking about if this will all work out in the end or not and it honestly has me a little worried."
"Why are you worrying so much?" Kirishima spoke up. "C'mon, are you that oblivious? It's clear to use you guys love hanging out with each other and she always wants to be with you anyway."
"I'd honestly say you have a shot. She seems totally into you." Jirou agreed.
"But-" Sero started.
"Just shut up already." Bakugou interrupted him. "All you're doing is just making some lame-ass excuses. Anybody with eyes can see that she likes you, it's that obvious." That comment made Sero blush. "So quit being such a pussy and get it over with. Then I don't have to deal with any of this crap anymore with you guys." Sero felt his face was so hot with blush that he looked down to avoid everyone's faces. He stayed quiet for a minute, feeling as if the blush was overtaking his body. He couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't even think.
"Crap, we freaked him out." Kirishima said. Sero felt someone come up and sit next to him.
"Seriously Sero, don't worry so much about it." Kaminari spoke as he wrapped his arm around Sero, making him look up at him. "She's into you. You just gotta make the move. It'll all work out." Ashido then sat down on the other side of Sero.
"Yeah. Just chill out. We'll help you to make sure you're ready for the big night and when it comes, everything will fall into place." She said. She patted him on the shoulder.
"It's gonna be ok, man," Kirishima said, scooting closer and sharing a reassuring smile. "You've totally got this." Sero smiled at them, though the blush on his face made him feel sheepish, making him hide his face in his hands.
"Oh geez." He mumbled, chuckling nervously. The others chuckled along with him while Kaminari and Ashido rubbed his back and shoulders, reassuring him. Sero started to calm down slowly, taking in a deep breath.
"Wait, am I sitting on something?" Ashido suddenly said, looking around where she was sitting. Sero's eyes widened, quickly turning to her. He wasn't sure what to do without making a scene but he felt his blush start to come back as Ashido pulled out the box. "Ooh, what's this?" Sero quickly snapped back to his senses and snatched the box from her hands.
"N-Nothing!" He stuttered. He suddenly felt the box get snatched out of his hands, making him freak out even more. He turned to Kaminari, who was holding the box up, admiring it with a devious look on his face.
"Huh, a gift box. This for Tera, Sero?" He asked in a teasing tone. Sero tried to reach for it.
"Give it back." He demanded. Kaminari then threw it over to Jirou, who caught it and started inspecting it herself.
"Whoa. Is this what you got back when we went to the mall?" She asked.
"You still have it? After all this time?" Ashido exclaimed.
"If you guys forgot, there wasn't really a good time for me to give it to her." Sero replied. "Now give it back!" He got up to try and snatch it away from Jirou but she then threw it over to Kirishima.
"Whoa. If I remember, this place's stuff was super expensive." He remarked. "Did you spend all of your money on this, man?" Sero groaned in annoyance.
"So what? It was months ago so it doesn't matter." He said. "Now give it back already or I'm kicking you all out of here!" Sero again tried to reach for it but he couldn't get over to Kirishima's side without getting over Bakugou. Kirishima knew this, teasingly holding the box out of Sero's reach. It wasn't until Bakugou suddenly grabbed Kirishima's arm tightly and brought him closer.
"Hey, man! Let go!" Kirishima said as he struggled.
"Do you shits get a kick out of this?" Bakugou said, making everyone stop and stare in surprise. "Let the stupid Soy Sauce have his stupid little fling with Earth Bitch without your damn interference. He's had it hard enough already so why the hell are you shits making it harder for him?" Sero was genuinely surprised at Bakugou. He was never one to be sentimental and caring, even to his friends or Kirishima for that matter so he wasn't expecting him to be the one to defend him.
"When did you get so noble, Bakugou?" Kaminari asked, as if voicing Sero's thoughts. "You never cared about what went on between these two. In fact, you always found this annoying."
"Oh, don't kid yourself, Sparky. I find this annoying as hell." Bakugou said, letting go of Kirishima's hand. "And I still couldn't care less if things work out with them or not. But I'm not stupid enough to forget that he also went through hell in the past few months that he's still probably recovering from and you shits teasing him about something as small and stupid as this isn't making it any better." Silence lingered after he said, with the gang all slowly coming to a realization that they might've been hurting Sero and didn't even think about it. Sero saw their faces and it honestly pained him that they were feeling guilty.
"Come on, Bakugou. No harm done, honestly." He said, trying to diffuse the situation. "I know you all were just teasing me."
"He does have a point though." Jirou said. "We did kinda take this a lot farther than it should've. I mean, one minute we're hyping you up about this and then we just tease you about a gift you got for Tera that probably cost you a lot." Sero then felt a nudge on his other side, turning to see Kirishima handing back the box.
"Sorry, man. Bakugou's right. It was uncalled for." He apologized. Sero was still stunned that at he could do was accept the box in his hand.
"Sorry, Sero." Kaminari followed. "Having a bit too much fun here, I guess."
"Yeah, sorry." Ashido then said.
"Guys, it's fine, really. You don't have to worry about me." Sero quickly said to them, trying to ease them. He looked around, seeing all of their disappointed faces, making him feel a little bad. He sighed and sat down on the bed again, the room remaining silent for the time being, making him feel even more awkward. He looked down at the box in his hand glancing over at everyone again.
"You guys really care about this a lot, huh?" He asked.
"Of course, Sero." Ashido immediately replied. "I mean, when Tera came here way back when, you guys were always together and it honestly seems like you two really care about each other a lot."
"Yeah, man." Kirishima jumped in. "I mean, we already know you like her and she does seem like she likes you back. She always wants to be with you." Sero chuckled, looking down at the box again.
"You guys really think I got a shot?" He asked. He then felt Kaminari wrap his arm around him again.
"Hell yeah, dude." He agreed happily. "I've got no doubt in my mind you're gonna score with her." Sero made a face at him. "What?" Not a second later, Jirou's earphone jack went into his ear and he groaned in pain.
"Gosh, you're so cringe." She sighed before looking up at Sero. "But in all seriousness, I think you've totally got this." Sero then felt Ashido wrap her arm around him and pull him closer to her.
"Yeah, go for it, Sero." She said with sweet smile. "After everything you've been through, you deserve this." Sero smiled as he looked over at each of his friends, all giving him a confident smile, save for Bakugou.
"Thanks guys." He said. It felt nice to know that his friends all had his back, even though this was something trivial and small. After a bit more chatting, they got a knock at the door from Midoriya, letting them know that dinner was ready. They helped clean up a bit before they all headed out the door. Bakugou was the last one, standing by the door in silence, confusing Sero.
"Everything ok, Bakugou?" He asked. Bakugou didn't say anything, making Sero a bit worried.
"For what it's worth, Soy Sauce," Bakugou finally spoke, looking up at Sero. He looked a bit uncomfortable, which made Sero curious. "I think you and Earth Bitch will make... a good couple." Sero was surprised at him saying this but he also had the slight urge to laugh. It sounded like Bakugou had a bit of trouble of saying this and he so wanted to tease him about it but he knew now was not the time. Bakugou said something genuinely nice to him and he should learn to appreciate them, even if it was funny that it was hard for him to say it. He smiled at Bakugou and nodded.
"Thanks." He said. Bakugou then took his leave, not bothering to acknowledge his thanks. Sero finally let out a snicker that he had been holding in before sighing and shaking his head in amusement. "Geez, he can be so pathetic sometimes." Sero quickly put away the gift box and then made his way out of his room. When he turned after he closed his door, he found himself frozen when he saw Tera leaving her room as well.
"Oh. Hey Sero." She said with happy smile. Sero tried to think but his mind instantly went blank and he couldn't find it in him to do anything. Tera looked confused for a second before she let out a small laugh. "You ok? You look like you've seen a ghost." That comment from her made him shake his head, bringing back his senses and thoughts.
"N-no! I just..." He tried to think of something to say but he felt incredibly nervous and kept sputtering. This made Tera laugh a bit more, making Sero feel more embarrassed than he already was. He looked down in utter defeat and humiliation, letting out a groan. He saw her legs appear in his view as she walked up to him but he still couldn't bear to look up at her.
"Well, don't worry about it. I'm sure it was just they were messing with you, weren't they?" She asked. Sero quickly nodded since it was partially true. He let out a sigh as he finally looked up at her.
"So, you doing ok?" He asked. "We haven't had the chance to hang out in a while."
"Yeah, I know." She replied. "Sorry about that."
"No, no! It's ok. I totally get it." Sero immediately said. "I'm sure you guys wanna be ready for the concert. It's gonna the first time in years that you'll be performing." Tera looked away, slight blush appearing on her face.
"Don't remind me." She said nervously. Sero internally kicked himself for freaking her out. He reached over and held her hands, getting her attention on him.
"Hey, don't worry about it." He said. "You sound amazing and I'm sure it will be just as amazing. I can't wait to see you up there." Tera's face was filled with blush, making her look away from him and giggle sheepishly.
"Thank you." She said. Sero smiled greatly. Tera looked back up at him, blush still present. They stood there for a minute, staring at each other, getting lost in each others gazes as Sero held her hands for who knows how long. It wasn't until Tera seemed to have come to her senses, looking over to the elevator, breaking the spell. More blush appeared on her face as she chuckled.
"Uh, we should... um..." She tried to speak, only to end up chuckling out of shyness. Sero couldn't look away from her even then, finding her embarrassment cute. It took him a second before he let go of her hands and looked towards the elevator.
"Yeah, we should." He said. Tera let out a sigh before she nodded and they both walked towards the elevator.
Throughout dinner while he was talking with his friends and classmates, Sero kept finding himself glancing over at Tera, barely able to take his eyes off of her. It ended up with him getting weird looks from Ashido and Kaminari, which would be enough to bring him back to his senses. By then end of the night, everyone said goodnight to each other and headed into their dorms for the night.
Sero spent a bit of time up, laying on his bed, holding the necklace box. he thought up of million of scenarios of how he would would give this to her, what he would say, what might happen. He tried not to think of the latter too much because he would only end up thinking of the worst cases, which made him doubt himself. Still, thinking of the look on Tera's face, seeing he perform while looking the best she's ever looked, dancing with her, it all made him feel so giddy and excited for the ball to come. He sighed happily as he put away the necklace and got himself ready to sleep.
*Ahhh, it's all coming together and then end is getting closer. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and sorry if it took a while. lots of things have been happening that has been keeping me busy and not a lot of time to write. hopefully i can have some more time to be able to finish and maybe think of writing another fanfiction (ive got some ideas already). anyway, thank you all for reading. Please like and review. i would love to hear your thoughts on this fic. Stay tuned! :D*