"Speaking"
'Thinking'
As the morning sun rises, most people would be sleeping, showering or enjoying a beverage. Alas, this was not the case for one Izuku Midoriya, his drive to become the number one hero pushed him further and further until most of his days consisted of training. However... There was a reason why, His mentor All Might had used the last embers of One For All that he had in the fight with All For One. Thus, he retired, and Endeavor took his place as the number one hero. So Izuku would train for days on end, doing nothing else besides studying, eating, sleeping and bathing.
It took until the third day for his classmates to realize he wasn't giving himself a break. Usually it would inspire them but in light of recent circumstances, they worried for him.
Mina Ashido was especially concerned, she was proud of her classmate but also worried about him. She honestly had quite the interest in him. Ever since the sports festival where he fought Todoroki, she had wanted to be friends with him. So she decided she would dedicate more time to trying to help the poor green bean.
On the fourth day, Izuku woke at 5 a.m. per usual, making his way down to the lobby of the dormitory, in his U.A. tracksuit. However, the lights were on. He thought it was strange given that he's usually the only one up at this hour.
He then made his way further into the lobby and noticed the tv was on, as he approached it further, to investigate, he quickly noticed a pair of horns followed by a familiar shade of pink hair. He decided to let her be and get to his training, he had to get better no-"Morning Midoriya!"ooooor not.
Izuku turned around to see a fully awake Mina Ashido, dressed in her pajamas, smiling and giving him a gentle wave. "Whatcha doin' Midori?"
Izuku started to grow a faint blush "J-Just about to go out for my morning run."
Mina looked worried "Again? You've been doing this for three days straight. You need a break, man." She slowly got up and walked closer to him.
"W-Well we're heroes in training right? W-We need all the training we can get." As Izuku spoke he was becoming nervous due to how close she was.
Mina put her thumb and index finger to her chin before saying "Have you... Had any fun this week?"
Izuku was silent for a moment. He really hadn't done anything that could be considered fun, even to him. His silence spoke volumes to Mina, who suddenly took his hand and dragged him to the couch "No training today" Mina puffed out her cheeks.
Izuku sighed "A-Ashido, I have to-"
"Don't 'Ashido' me!" She cut him off sassily. "You've been ignoring one VERY important lesson in gym class. And that's that rest is just as important as training"
As much as he hated to admit it, she was right. All Might has even scolded him for not taking breaks in the past. Izuku looked at his pink haired friend. He couldn't help but stare at her wondering why she stopped him, usually she would pay him no mind and although it's not flattering, it's not surprising either. They never really connected or bonded over anything in particular.
"You ok?" Mina said as Izuku snapped out of his trance
Izuku's face became a hard red as he turned toward the tv and soon again went deep into thought as they say there comfortably. "F-Fine, sorry!"
Mina watched TV very loosely as the gears turned in her head. 'How can I get him to open up?'. An idea came into her head and she suddenly turned to Izuku and said "Do you wanna go to the mall with me?" The grin on her face made it a hard offer to refuse
"S-Sure thing, Ashido" he responded.
"Morning guys..." Said a new but tired voice as Uraraka made her way to the kitchen. This made Izuku and Mina turn towards her and wave. Uraraka blinked twice, now realizing who was sitting on the couch and strangely she felt a bit upset.
"Mina? Huh. You're up early today." Uraraka asked surprised.
Mina chuckled "Yeeeaaah I fell asleep way to early last night. Too much soda and I crashed." She admitted with a goofy grin.
Uraraka looked to Izuku "And I'm surprised you haven't started your training yet, Deku".
Izuku smiled sheepishly "W-Well it was Ashido-san who suggested I rest today instead." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
Mina let out a small chuckle "Yup! And pretty soon we're gonna head to the mall!" Uraraka felt a knot begin to tie in her stomach.
Izuku got up "I should p-probably go change" he walked back upstairs.
Mina got up too "I'll do the same!" She sprinted to her room. Uraraka thought about saying something... But she did just decide to push these feelings down. She got up and went to clean her cup but as she did, she couldn't help but feel she'd made a mistake.
Later at the mall
Izuku wore his t-shirt with 'T-Shirt' written in kanji on the front , a pair of black shorts and his famous red high tops. Meanwhile, Mina opted for a black shirt with the word 'ACID' written in pink on it, a pair of blue jean shorts with black tights and her pink sneakers.
"We really need to do something about your fashion, Midori." Mina chuckled as they walked around the mall. It was pretty busy today, not unlike any other day there.
Izuku looked confused "What's wrong with how I dress?" He looked at his clothes. They were comfy, clean and the right size, what was wrong?
Mina sighed "Your too plain, your clothes have no style!" She then thought for a moment and gasped in excitement. "Let's go clothes shopping!" Mina grasped his hand and sped toward a place she knew as Izuku was blushing uncontrollably.
Izuku and Mina shopped for hours, changing into various outfits and modeling for each other. Izuku, while bashful, started enjoying himself. Sure he would normally be around Iida, Uraraka, Todoroki and Tsuyu but something was different about Ashido. She's the complete opposite of him. Ashido is bubbly, confident, outgoing, and comedic. Izuku was none of those things, unfortunately as he thought of this he started to frown, thinking he was ruining her good time.
"You alright, Midori?" A concerned Mina asked her friend.
Izuku snapped out if his trance "Oh yeah! I-I was just thinking about stuff."
Mina gave a warm smile "About what?"
Izuku blushed hard "N-Nothing!"
Mina pouted "Awww fine... Hey. After this. Let's do something you wanna do!"
"A-Are you sure? I don't wanna bore you, A-Ashido" he says with worry
Mina chuckled "You're not boring, Midori! And yes I'm sure!"
They walked around for a bit before Izuku practically sprinted into a comic book store.
Mina entered the store and smiled once she found her similar haired friend fanboying over some vintage All Might comics.
"The have so many classics here!" He excitedly looked through some comics before Mina pat him on the back.
"Glad to see your havin' fun, Midori!" She gave a wide friendly smile which was met with a bashful pause.
"S-Sorry, Ashido... I-"
He was cut off when Mina responded "Why do you say sorry all the time?".
To be fair, it was a simple question. However, Izuku wasn't known for being simple, he was actually amazed that this was the first time he has been asked this question. He knew the answer, but that didn't mean he wanted to share it.
Izuku started to slump a bit as his eyes started to stare off into nothing. "It's... It's nothing, Ashido..."
Mina looked sorrowful for only a moment before her determination shot any and all sorrow out of her body. This had actually bothered her ever since the sports festival. This timid, nerdy, puddle of emotions known as Izuku Midoriya, was also the one who showed what real heroism is, and in the face of adversity no less! To say that Mina admired him would be an understatement, she was inspired by him to try and be a better hero.
Mina smiled and put a hand on his shoulder "Hey, sorry about that but listen. You don't ever have to apologize to me. Especially for looking at comics! I'm not gonna judge ya, Midori".
Izuku chuckled softly, trying to hide his embarrassment "Yeah I know, force of habit I suppose. I used to have comics like these when I was younger but I don't remember what happened ... To... Them..." As he finished his thought, he just remembered what happened to them, a smell of burning paper and a thunderous boom plagued his mind as he remembered.
Mina shook him a bit "Midori?"
He snapped to attention "Ah! Sorry again... I'll um... I'll buy these comics then we can do more stuff you wanna do"
It happened again, just as he was starting to open up, he put his shields back up. Mina can't resist juicy gossip as it is, but knowing that a friend needed to get something off their chest? She would be damned if she lets them suffer alone.
As he purchased his comics he turned to Mina "S-So... what do you wanna do now?" He asked with a nervous smile.
"Let's go get some food!" She cheerily suggested. Izuku agreed and before long they were at the food court ordering food and eating at a table as an... Uncomfortable silence filled the air.
Mina then decided enough was enough "Hey Midori?".
He looked up at her "Ye-Yes , Ashido?".
"Thanks for hanging out with me today, I know you didn't really want to and I've been pushing quite a bit but... Do you need to talk?" Mina spoke calmly.
Izuku's mind and body were screaming to let everything inside come out at once but instead "Not really Ashido... I appreciate your concern but I'm fine, promise" he refused...
Mina suddenly got quiet "... Why?".
Izuku raised an eyebrow "Why?".
Mina raised her head "Yes, why. You confront the league of villains, you help our classmate reach a new level of strength, you save a little kid from a muscle monster and you save your friend who is constantly yelling at and criticizing you... Why do you think you have to bear all these burdens alone?".
Izuku could hear it in the tone of her voice, she was getting frustrated but weirdly enough, it didn't sound like it was with him. "I... I feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders..." 'Oh crap. I slipped up! I let it out!'.
Mina voiced her displeasure "You're not alone you know, we're a class. We stick together, and if no one else wants to be there for you, then I'll be your shoulder to lean on!"
Her face began to heat up. 'What am I doing?! That came out so awkward!'.
Izuku blushed then went into some deep thought 'Shes not going to stop until she helps me but... I don't want to tell her about all those things! It's my burden to bare!... But then again... I've started making friends again, I've been training harder than ever, this might help me build some confidence... Maybe just this one little thing wouldn't hurt'.
Izuku sighed "Okay, Ashido... I accept".
Mina was a bit surprised. She didn't think he would actually accept her proposal! "Yay!" She cheered "You won't regret this, Midori! Tell you what. How about we go back to the dorms and you and I can talk at around 6:30! Sound good?" She was giving the most enthusiastic smile ever.
Izuku couldn't help but smile along "Yeah hehe sounds good".