Chapter Twenty-Eight: Stay Close
"Izuku, we've been studying for two hours. Can we please take a break now?" Kyouka questioned, her head beginning to rest onto the desk that the two were seated at. Izuku rolled his eyes as he leaned back in his chair and stretched.
"Well, it's because I've been trying to get you ready for this exam, don't forget that you asked me for help on your math." Izuku retorted, using his index finger to gently poke her cheek. "Plus you've improved so much! You should pass this exam with flying colors!"
Kyouka rolled her eyes and huffed, blowing her bangs out of her face with her breath. "You're dodging the question, Green. I want a break!"
"And a break you shall have." Mika stated, appearing from the door to Kyouka's room with a tray in hand. "I've brought some snacks for you guys, and thank you again, Midoriya-Kun. I know she's been complaining, but we all really appreciate you trying to help her out, even if she won't admit it."
"Oi! Don't make me seem ungrateful!" Kyouka exclaimed, whipping her head up to glare at her mother with a red face. Mika only giggled and placed the tray of snacks in front of the couple before walking off, closing the door behind them. "Ugh… S-Sorry if I was seeming a bit ungrateful though. Thanks for helping me understand everything…"
"It's no problem at all, don't worry about it. I'm happy to help!" Izuku said, grinning innocently before standing up from his seat and stretching his legs. Kyouka would spot Izuku's hoodie draped over his chair and snatch it while he was distracted, quickly putting it on as she brought the sleeves up to her nose.
Izuku would turn back around to see Kyouka wearing his white hoodie, which was obviously a size too big for her, but what made him especially embarrassed was the fact that she was sniffing it.
"K-Kyouka! What are you d-doing with my hoodie!?" Izuku questioned, receiving a rather nonchalant, but questioning expression from the purplette. She tilted her head and shrugged.
"I dunno I just kinda felt like wearing it, I mean it smells like you. Is that not okay? I can take it off if you want." Kyouka replied, unconsciously continuing to sniff his hoodie, furthering her green haired boyfriend's embarrassment.
Izuku sighed, "You know what, it's fine. Matter of fact, keep it for a while." The greenette then made his way back over, taking a look at the snacks as he picked up an apple slice.
Kyouka held out her arms as the greenette stood beside her. "Hug me, I need to recharge my battery."
"What? What are you talking about?" Izuku questioned, finishing off his apple slice before stepping into the purplettes arms. Seeing as she was still seated it was a bit more like she was stuffing her head into his torso, but for her it was preferred. "Is this what you meant by a break?"
Izuku would feel the purplette nod, and hum in confirmation. Izuku chuckled and subconsciously knew that he wasn't going to win this sort of debate with her, she's worked hard, so "Recharging her battery" was a well deserved reward.
"Alright, well…" Izuku started, lifting the girl up before making his way over to her bed. "If you're gonna recharge your battery, it's better to be comfortable, right?"
"You know that you don't have to carry me like I'm some helpless damsel, right?" Kyouka replied, furrowing her brow in annoyance, though she didn't resist being carried.
"Would you rather me put you down?" Izuku countered, a smirk on his face as he held her closer to him. Kyouka blushed and remained silent as the greenette laid her down on her bed. "That's what I thought."
The purplette rolled her eyes, "Oh, look at you getting cocky. What happened to the sweet nerd who let me tease him?"
"He met you and grew thicker skin? You still make me nervous, p-probably more than anyone else…" Izuku replied, a soft blush dusting his cheeks as he laid down beside her.
Kyouka pouted, "Yeah, well, it sure doesn't feel like it. You've been very bold lately and I haven't had time to catch up!"
"Kyouka, listen to my heartbeat." Izuku instructed, taking one of the girl's hands within his own. She blushed and attempted to say something about not promising not to, but Izuku swiftly cut her off. "I know I made you promise, but this time you have my permission."
Kyouka nodded, and slowly began to listen in on the greenettes beating heart. What came as a shock to her was the fact that it was beating almost at an irregular pace, he was seriously nervous right now despite how often they're like this.
"Izuku… Why?" She questioned, glancing up at his face. His blush was deep, and upon closer inspection he was shaking slightly out of anxiety. Was he afraid, or just more anxious than she had originally thought.
"W-Well, it just takes some getting used to. As someone who never really had friends to go from having one friend, to that one friend being my girlfriend, and it's only been like a month? I-It's definitely still giving me butterflies…" Izuku revealed, looking away from the girl in front of him out of embarrassment. Kyouka smirked.
"Aww! You still get butterflies when you're with me?" Kyouka questioned rhetorically, "That's so cute, you're such a sap!"
"Aaaahhh! No, I'm a hero in training, I'm not a sap!" Izuku argued, raising his voice as he shouted in embarrassment. Despite his declaration, he turned away from his girlfriend to hide his increasingly reddening face.
"Even heroes can be saps, Green. You just don't want to accept it, you're a cinnamon roll." Kyouka replied, poking the greenette in his cheek with her jack as he was turned away. "Don't try and hide it now!"
"I'm not hiding anything!" Izuku claimed, finally turning to face her with his reddened face. "I mean, it's just… Can you blame me!? You're just so cool, and perfect, and pretty, a-and you mean the world to me!"
Kyouka blushed, though she couldn't help but feel a residual pit in her stomach begin to grow as he described her as, "Pretty". Seems she still couldn't get rid of that lingering feeling of self-doubt.
"Izuku, I'm not any of those things. You're exaggerating a bit, don't you think?"
Izuku quickly sat up, his brows furrowing as he grew more firm in his statement. "No, you are those things Kyouka. You're absolutely stunning, both with your personality and…"
Izuku suddenly reached a hand out, and as Kyouka sat up, his hand would reach her face. He stared at her, almost in a trance as his thumb began to trace the definition of her face, before he rubbed his thumb against her bottom lip. "...Your looks. You're gorgeous, Kyouka."
"...So I just have a pretty face, is that it?" Kyouka questioned, annoyance laced in her tone. Izuku would squish her face in annoyance, but sigh as his blush deepened.
"I'd say more about your, um… Your body. But I don't think you'd want me to tell you what I like about your body." Izuku said, releasing the girl's face, and continuing to blush hard enough for it to reach his ears.
Kyouka looked down, deep in thought. On one hand the embarrassment would be astronomical, but on the other hand maybe hearing what Izuku thinks straight from his mouth would provide some sort of comfort. He had always done so without ever realizing so maybe she should communicate all of this to him.
"Well… I-It's not like I'm against it." She revealed, averting the greenettes gaze as she blushed softly. "I guess I've just been feeling insecure about my body, s-so I figured maybe hearing what you think might help me feel better… O-Of course you don't have to, um, y-you just have the tendency to make me feel better about this sort of thing."
Izuku's face softened, and his expression grew to look concerned for the girl. "Kyo… How long have you felt like this? Is it my fault, have I done something to make you feel like this?"
"What? No! God, no! I just… I just don't get what you see in me. I'm not really attractive or anything… Especially compared to those in our class, I just feel like you could do better.." She uttered, scared that maybe being honest like this was a bad idea. She knew how foolish her insecurities were, but holding them in or just trying not to think about it wasn't going to truly help her overcome anything.
"Kyo…" He mumbled, staring at her as she looked away. It was almost as if she felt like she had done something wrong, like she was guilty. He swiftly embraced her, hugging her as tight as he could as he felt her shake almost as if she might cry. "Kyo, you're beautiful. Do you even know how often I sneak glances at you whenever we're together? Out of everyone in our class, to me you remain the prettiest, there could never be anyone better than you. And there's no doubt of that in my mind."
"But… What even is it about this unfeminine body? I basically just look like some early middle school boy. Before you no guys were ever truly attracted to me, I always just looked like an easy target." She revealed, delving deeper into her own insecurities.
"That isn't true at all, Kyouka. You're strong, and I've seen you develop your body as we trained together. Your body is a lot more feminine than you think, I-I would know…" Izuku replied, standing on the floor as he slid off of her bed, gesturing for her to join him.
She slowly took his hand and hopped off her bed, "You would know? What, do you check me out or something?"
"Every chance I get."
Kyouka paused, her face flushing as she was left speechless. Izuku had said that seriously enough to shock her to her very core, and he wasn't done yet. Izuku would lead Kyouka to a full body mirror that Kyouka had in her room and stood behind her as he guided her in front of it.
This scene was very reminiscent of their earlier times out together when they had gone to the mall together. The memory was nice, though what came along with it was less than kind. Another instance of her feeling insecure, only to be saved by the angel that was Izuku Midoriya.
"Take off the hoodie." He instructed, causing Kyouka to look back at him with a rather suspicious glance, only following his instruction as he showed her that smile that she grew to love. A smile of comfort that would tell her to trust him, and trust him she would.
The hoodie would be removed, and there Kyouka stood in her red tank top with her black shorts. It was odd to say the least, Izuku's request made no real sense to her, at least until his hands were laid on her waist.
"W-Wait, Izuku, what are you d-doing?" She questioned, placing her own hands over Izukus. The greenette would simply lean closer to her ear, leaning his head into the crook of her neck gently.
"Trust me, just look, Kyo." He said, guiding her eyes back to the mirror. She would slowly let go of the greenettes hands as she gazed into the reflective surface, though her confusion would only grow more.
"Izu… What's this for? Looking in the mirror isn't going to change my mind…" She said, leaning into the greenettes chest as she continued to stare into the mirror. Izuku then pointed a finger out with one hand, tracing her hips in front of her eyes.
"Look at the curvature of your body, your hips protrude outward, and your legs… Well, don't even get me started, you have very smooth and slim legs and to top it all off you're fit. Your muscle definition is beautiful." The green haired boy pointed out, his hand returning to her hip as his cheek brushed against her own. He was right, she was in quite good shape, and despite what she had thought before her hips did protrude quite a bit. How did he notice all of this?
"I bet the thing you worry about the most is up here." Izuku commented, his hands wrapping around her lower torso, right beneath her chest. Kyouka flushed as she felt the greenettes arm right underneath her chest. "But even these are just as beautiful, Kyo. You have a gorgeous body, and definitely one I prefer because it's attached to a wonderful person."
Kyouka swallowed in anxiety. The most fearful part of all of this was that she truly was starting to believe him. "...Y-You… D-Do you m-mean it..?"
Izuku smiled, "Every word. You're beautiful, Kyo…" Izuku paused, hesitating as he contemplated saying what he wanted to say. His embrace around the purplette tightened, it was now or never. "I mean it because… Because I think I lo-"
"Hey, Kids!" Kyoutoku interrupted as he burst through the door. "Mika told me to come up and get the- HEY! HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!"
Kyouka's face became red with a mix of embarrassment and rage, her dad couldn't have came in at a worse time. "DAD! GET OUT!"
"NO! HE'S TRYING TO GET HANDSY WITH MY LITTLE GIRL, GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" Kyoutoku countered, stomping towards the cowering greenette, only being protected by his purple haired girlfriend. "Kyouka, move out of the way!"
"Dad, cool your jets! It was just a hug!" Kyouka shouted, glaring at her old man as he had just interrupted a rather touching moment between the two. It was always the parents. "I'm not letting you kick out my boyfriend."
"I don't care who he is, I like the kid, but he was obviously reaching up to cop a feel! Should have known you'd try something like tha- AUGH! MIKA!" Kyoutoku would attempt to accuse the greenette, only to be cut off by his wife stabbing her jacks into his neck and dropping him to the floor.
"Can you stop the shouting!? You know I can hear everything they're doing in here, right?" Mika scolded, glaring at her husband as she yanked on the blonde man's ear. The older woman would sigh and pinch the bridge of her nose, lifting up her glasses in the process. "Midoriya, just go home. He's not gonna stop until you're gone for the day.
Izuku would look at Kyouka apologetically and give her a swift peck on her lips before stepping over the ravaging father as he slipped past Kyouka's parents with a small glance back into the room before exiting the home.
"UGH! I can't believe this!" Kyouka shouted, picking up the white hoodie that the greenette left, staring at it somberly before pointing her jacks threateningly at her father. They glinted in the light with Kyouka's malice. "You're so gonna get it!"
"Mika!"
"Calm down, Kyouka. Honey, go clean the living room. You'll be staying there tonight because you ruined Kyouka's study time." Mika commanded, shooing the man out of the room before closing the door behind him, turning back around to see Kyouka sitting on her bed and staring at the white hoodie in her hands.
Mika would slowly make her way over to Kyouka's bedside, sitting on the edge as the two women sighed. "Your father really is too much sometimes. I'm glad Midoriya is able to help you, though I'm sorry for listening in, it was just really sweet."
"I don't blame you, mom… I just… He did the impossible for me. He really made me feel like…" Kyouka trailed off, clutching the hoodie closer to her body.
"Like what, Kyouka?" Mika questioned, placing a hand to her daughter's arm as she looked at her in worry. Kyouka seemed to come to some sort of realization as her eyes widened and she looked to her mother nervously.
"Mom… How do you know you're in love?"
Izuku opened the door to his home, sighing as the scent of his mother's cooking wafted into his nose. The smell of home always puts the mind at ease, even when going through some kind of emotional turmoil.
"Oh, Izuku? Is that you?" Inko questioned, stepping into the entrance of their home to greet her son. "Welcome home, I was actually just about to call your father."
"Hey mom, what's the occasion?" Izuku questioned, following his mother into the living room so that they could sit and chat. "You never really call him when I'm around."
"Well, he said he wanted to talk to you about something. Plus, isn't it good to talk to your father every once in a while again?" She answered, pulling out her phone as she video called her husband. The greenette would shrug and watch as the phone rang, eventually being answered by Izuku's rather gruff looking father.
"Hey, Inko." The man greeted, before spotting his green haired son beside her. "Ah, Izuku! Glad to see that she got you to join in, how are you doing?"
"Ah, I'm doing good, um…" Izuku would take in his father's surroundings, a few guitars littered across his walls and he seemed to have headphones around his neck. "Dad, where are you right now? Are you in the studio?"
"Ah, you got me! I've been working all day, but let's not focus on that. I have something to tell you guys!" Hisashi revealed, pulling off the headphones around his neck as he smiled brightly. Inko always did tell Izuku that he had his father's smile, and now he could really see the resemblance.
"What is it, Dear? Did you get a big brand deal?" Inko questioned, quirking a brow at her husband as he started reaching around a pile of papers.
"No, even better! My contract ends in a few months, I'll finally be able to come home! I'm thinking of signing with a different record label when I get back home, but isn't that exciting? In a few months I'll be coming back!" The man informed, causing both Inko and Izuku to stare at the man in shock, their eyes widening in surprise.
"Wait, really!?" They both simultaneously questioned, causing the man to laugh with glee at their reaction.
"Oh my goodness, we have to celebrate! Here, Izuku, talk to your father, I'm going to make something special for tonight!" Inko squealed, quickly running out of the room after handing the greenette her phone.
"Dad, I can't believe it! This is great!" Izuku exclaimed, watching as his mother smiled brightly, humming with joy at the news. She looked so happy, so… So loving of his father. "Mom looks so happy…"
"Yeah? And what about you, how… How do you feel about me coming back home, Izuku? I know that-"
Izuku quickly cut the man off, "As long as you guys are happy, I'm happy. Mom loves you a lot, dad… Maybe when you come back I can begin to see what she sees in you."
"Izuku…" The man trailed off, smiling softly as he looked at his matured son. "That means a lot to me, son. You have no idea."
"Well, you can pay me back by hearing me out." Izuku said, rising from the couch as he wandered into his room, sitting at his desk as he propped up his mom's phone. "I… I have something to ask you, a-and I already know how mom would react, so you're the next best thing."
"Ask away, I'm here for you if you want to have a heart to heart." Hisashi informed, giving his son a comforting smile. Izuku took a deep breath and began to twiddle his thumbs out of nervousness.
"Alright, well…" He paused, taking another deep breath, exhaling with a huff as he ran a hand through his unruly hair. "How did you know you loved mom?"
Hisashi's eyes widened, "W-Well, that's definitely a bit forward, um…" He paused, looking back on his younger years with Inko. "I guess it was when she truly encouraged me to go after my dreams. She was the only one who believed I could make it, and then we had you… And no matter how hard everything was on her, she was happy. She still loved me."
Izuku nodded, "Right, she gushes about that stuff a lot… Well, what did it feel like?"
"I was always nervous around her, even when we were already dating. But it felt like a strange pull on my chest that told me everything was better when it was with her. Your mother really is a great woman." Hisashi continued, smiling warmly as he reminisced on his relationship with the woman. The good times of them together, even after they had to be apart.
Izuku went silent, Hisashi watched his son deep in thought. It seems that someone had captured the young Midoriya's heart, and he had a feeling that he knew exactly who it was. "Does that sort of thing feel familiar to you? Does it at least answer your question?"
Izuku nodded, "I think I'm in love, Dad."