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CHAPTER 9: ROOFTOP

The wooden comb Momo was brushing her now lay down hair with rested again on her desk when the raven-haired girl in question heard the knocking.

"Momo? Open up!" Jiro's voice rushed her from the other side of the door. Momo sighed in relief, for she wasn't willing to put on pants now that she was already in her extra long t-shirt.

"Jeez, Jiro what is it? Are you okay?" Momo asked without fully opening her door.

"We need to talk. Open up, silly," she said slightly pushing the door. Momo resisted.

"I can't let you in right now, what's up?" her nerves started to shake. If Jiro walked into her room, she would know her secret.

"What is it with you lately? You've been acting odd these past days," Jiro's voice lowered more and took a serious tone. "It's not like yourself."

"I know, but listen. I can't explain it right now, please." Momo pleaded. Out of desperation, she turned the lights of her room off. Jiro noticed this and took a step back.

"Fine…" she answered, pain showing in her eyes. "I won't force you. Just...know that I consider you my best friend," her voice was weak, even if she tried to hide it. "You know everything about me. I know something is bothering you, and I thought we could talk about it." she lowered her eyes and turned around. "Guess I was wrong." and without saying more, she walked away.

Momo saw Jiro slowly walk to her room and with a sigh and slowly closed her door. She looked around her room. A bed with cheap sheets, a few things on the closet, and a desk. How big the room seemed without her king-size bed and all the stuff from her original room back at her parents' house. Even when she had been kicked out months ago, it still felt so recent. Something about letting others see her new situation felt so unsettling as if the dream of someday going back home was still possible if no one knew. Maybe if she could keep this facade a little longer, things could return to what they were.

Jiro, however, was not easy to trick apparently. Momo did consider her a best friend, and it's not that she hadn't thought before about telling her. As a matter of fact, the only reason Momo had chosen to only tell her secret to Sato about this was that he was the kind of friend that knows how to listen and support. Jiro, on the other hand, was the kind of friend that needed reasons. Those reasons were the ones that made all this situation hurt the most.

I'm so sorry Jiro, I'm still not ready to explain everything.

She was thinking about going to Jiro's room to apologize and ask her some time before she could explain herself when a new knocking on the door startled her. Momo hurried to open the door for Jiro in relief that she had come back only to find herself looking straight at a black V-neck shirt and a pale thick neck with a slight stubble. Her eyes widened as she looked up to meet Mr. Aizawa's confused glance.

"Mr. Eraser- I mean, Mr. Aizawa."

"Well, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were waiting for someone." the taciturn way of conducting himself sent shivers down her spine. "Which would result in another violation of the rules, I must add." as low as his voice was, Momo could taste a hint of mockery in his words, which made her frown.

"I guess I'll never know when I'll be attacked and almost chocked to death again," she answered. "Don't confuse being alert with waiting for someone."

A short, ironic laugh escaped his lips, his eyebrows arched up as if it was surprising that she could talk back. "Oh, c'mon it wasn't that bad. I wasn't even going to let you faint, let alone die. I didn't choke you that rough."

"I'm confused," her head tilted to the side, pretending to try to understand. "Was it a lesson on quirks or kinks?" The second those words escaped her mouth, she regretted it. Sure, they were a witty response for someone trying to mock her, but this was her professor, not some idiot in a bar. Momo's back stiffed as she fixed her posture. "Anyways, is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Aizawa?" she quickly added, hoping the embarrassing moment had passed already.

"As a matter of fact, there is," he scratched the back of his head. "Look, Eri pointed out something I hadn't considered before. It's probably a burden for Eri to always be the one who hasn't experienced something. Always the last to try something, always the last to live. Everyone is always showing her something, she's never discovering something new along with someone in the same situation as her," Momo could tell how important this girl was to him just by how he talked about her. "Sssso, with that in mind," why wasn't he looking at her? "Given the fact that you've never been to the Kitsune Festival either," his look got lost for a moment on the door handle she was holding. "It would be a different experience if Eri had you there. Someone that hasn't experienced it either."

"You want me to go to the Kitsune Festival with you two?" something inside Momo started to flutter with anxiety.

"For Eri, y' know, so she won't feel so different from everyone else." he quickly added, finally looking back at her. "Please don't feel obliged, it wouldn't affect your academic record in any way. This is completely off the record. You could even call it a mission, really, and it's not like Midoriya hasn't gone on tons of this off-record missions all the time with All Might. Also,-"

"I'd love to go with you to the Kitsune Festival." Momo interrupted him. His mumbling stopped in a heartbeat. "For Eri, of course," she added. "She deserves to have as many normal experiences as she can, and I'd love to help you with that Mr. Aizawa." for some reason, her voice sounded rushed and a note or two higher than usual.

"Alright. We can leave the dorms at 7 pm on Friday," he answered with half a smile. Mr. Aizawa turned his back on her. "Oh and, by the way," he added before starting to walk away. "If you're planning on being this alert on Friday, at least wear some pants." and with that, he left, hearing how Momo grunted and smashed the door.

Momo had to open her window to catch some fresh air. Her cheeks were burning, and her heart was raising like crazy. She waited for several minutes for her whole body to ease itself, and eventually, her cheeks returned to their natural color. When the back of her neck cooled down and her legs stopped trembling she finally went to bed. She looked at the ceiling, trying to ignore the hummingbird beating its wings and trying to escape from the cage her ribs were.

"Choosing the rooftop of the dorms to talk? You're so dramatic Momo," Jiro had finally arrived.

The next morning, Momo had sent her a text to meet on the rooftop at sunset. They had spent the whole day without talking, even when they had been on a project together with Sero and Mina. She had decided they couldn't be like this if they were supposed to be best friends, so now here they were, both on the rooftop looking at the sunset.

Momo gave her a weak smile as Jiro sat beside her on the edge and rested her hands on the rail.

"Yeah well, you know me," was the only answer the raven-haired gave. Jiro looked at her.

"I actually don't know you that much anymore." was all she said.

"Listen Jiro," Momo started after a sigh. "Friendships are not something I am pretty good at. I'm still learning. I want to be the best friend you've ever had but-"

"I don't want you to be the best friend I've ever had," Jiro interrupted. Momo's eyes looked down. "Our friendship is not something you have to excel at all the time."

"I'm not sure of what you mean by that," Momo replied perplexed. Jiro gave her half a smile.

"I thought about our discussion last night. You seem to be going through something rough, and knowing you, you're probably trying to do the best of the situation. Because you always try to excel at everything," Jiro explained. Momo looked up in hopes to stop her misty eyes to pour.

"I do try, but that's not an excuse to shut you out," her voice now would've been described by her mother as croaky and unflattering.

"It's not, but, I get it. I'm just trying to tell you that even when you're not excelling as a friend, I'm there for you." Jiro's shoulders shrugged in resignation.

Momo's eyes felt like damns being destroyed by the force of her tears. Her heart shrunk and expanded as if it had been waiting for a chance to rest easy and stop pretending. She leaned on her friend's shoulder and wept. She cried for how alone she felt without her family, for how lost and stressed she had felt, for the fear she felt from the hurting memories she had lived before leaving her home.

"Now I get why you wanted to meet on the rooftop. Everyone downstairs will think the bad weather is back with your tears girl." Jiro mentioned. An ugly laugh shook the last tears inside Momo.

"I needed that," she replied. She created a handkerchief, pull it out of her wrist, and tried to clean her face. "I promise I'll tell you about everything. I just need-"

"Time. I get it," Jiro finished her sentence.

"And a nice robe." to this addition, Jiro looked confused at Momo. "I need something nice to wear this Friday."

"Momo Yaoyorozu, if you tell me there's a boy in your life that has you this destroyed I swear I am going to throw you right now." her glance was just like a mother scolding a small kid.

"Nothing of the sort. I'm going to the Katsuki Festival this Friday and I understand people use traditional clothing and, well, I don't have any at the moment," she rushed to explain.

"Yeah sure, I can lend you something but, are you sure this doesn't have to do with someone special? Is it a date?" Jiro enquired. Momo violently blushed.

"Absolutely not! Jiro! This is only something important I have to do. It's an impersonal, purely professional engagement." Momo replied flustered. Both stood up and headed to the door.

"And you wish it wasn't."

Momo rolled her eyes. "You're impossible."

I know it's a short chapter, but I am so excited that the festival is coming! I hope you enjoyed this bit and get ready for what's to come! Thank you for supporting this humble author. PLUS ULTRA!

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