CHAPTER SEVEN - TRANSFER STUDENT

"My hand hurts." Shigaraki complained, although he said it without inflection, like he didn't really care that he was in pain, just stating it as a fact.

Kurogiri cared, however. He drew his brows together and reached over to gently take Shigaraki's hand, so he could check if the other boy had really damaged himself, before seeming to think better of it. Shigaraki didn't need the coddling, nor did he want it, so Kurogiri retracted the gesture with a sigh.

Fortunately, Shigaraki's eyes were closed so he hadn't witnessed Kurogiri's hesitance. He was soaking up the little bit of sun that had managed to break through the clouds, sprawled out on one of the benches in the school yard, his right arm draped over the edge carelessly.

"Probably shouldn't have punched Tamaki in the face."

"Worth it." Shigaraki flexed his fingers, opening and then closing his hands into fists, stretching out the joints and then cracking his knuckles.

Kurogiri nodded, looking sympathetic. Then sufficiently annoyed. Takami was a good student, Kurogiri had even considered him a friend once upon a time. He had no reason to hate the blond bird-boy, but because he knew Shigaraki didn't get along with him, Kurogiri had decided not to trust him either. He tried to not let it bother him, but sometimes it was just too much. Like their little spat during the fire alarm. It was unnecessary, and it put all of the students involved in a precarious position.

"You're not off the hook yet." Kurogiri stubbornly replied, crunching his soda can and binning it, "Takami might talk."

"No, he won't." Shigaraki replied confidently.

"He's the type." Kurogiri added.

Shigaraki was quiet for a moment, then opened his eyes and blinked up to the sky. Kurogiri was right. Takami was the type to snitch but he also wasn't an idiot. Currently they were standing on equal ground - a hit for an insult. Fair was fair. The blond wouldn't tip the scales now, not for a damn good reason anyway. That's how they maintained a mostly cordial relationship day to day. Balance.

"Heads up, you have a visitor." Kurogiri informed from the other side of the bench.

"Hi."

Shigaraki turned his head slightly and squinted up at the sound of an unfamiliar voice. His head and shoulders were blocking out his sun, but Shigaraki recognized the black mask hiding a good portion of a very angular face. It was the new kid.

"What's up?" Shigaraki greeted, sitting up on the bench. He pulled his foot up to rest on the seat and idly draped his arm over his bent knee.

"Can I sit with you?"

Shigaraki jerked his head to the empty space beside him, silently offering the dark-haired boy a seat, red eyes glowing beneath the shadow of the dark hood that was pulled over his head.

"Thanks," He returned before plopping down next to Shigaraki and nodding his head in greeting to Kurogiri. "You're a hard man to find."

"Not if you know where to look." Shigaraki digressed.

"Mmm." Kai murmured, seemingly in agreement, "So. UA High. Fun morning. So far, it's not what I expected from the most prestigious Hero School in the country."

"Meaning?" Shigaraki challenged, his eyes narrowing.

Kai reeled back slightly. He hadn't noticed how striking Shigaraki's eyes were until that moment. Now that he was up close and personal with the blue-grey haired boy, he thought they were terrifyingly beautiful. And, admittedly, having them fixed solely on him did make him feel a little uneasy. Not enough to retreat, of course, but still edgy.

Kai tugged his medical face mask down, away from his nose and mouth to rest at his chin and he smirked, revealing a set of perfectly straight, white teeth. "A lot less chaos, and a lot more… order."

Shigaraki remained stoic, his head tilting slightly to the side.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm pleasantly surprised." Kai declared, taking a moment to appraise Shigaraki's unheralded appearance.

Immediately, he noticed a couple of things. The dark circles beneath Shigaraki's red eyes suggested that the boy didn't get a whole lot of sleep, which only made Kai more curious. And the long scar that cut vertically down the center of his right eye gave him a certain harshness, as did the many other less visible ones. Shigaraki didn't look like a hero, and he certainly didn't carry himself like one either. Kai knew looks could be deceiving but there was something about Shigaraki, something that hinted at a darker side, and witnessing the fight with Tamaki earlier was a reliable indication that Kai was right about that.

What was someone like Shigaraki doing at UA?

He shifted his gaze to Kurogiri then back to his sudden obsession, "You know, I didn't think UA was the right school for me, too stuffy, too good, I didn't really want to be here. But you," Kai snickered, long dark lashes sweeping downwards, "Watching you beat down that little blond dick, well, you changed my mind in less than a minute."

Shigaraki's eye twitched, and he lifted his hand to scratch at his irritated neck.

"Between us," He leaned closer, whispering, "If you hadn't punched him when you did, I definitely would have. He's a real piece of work."

"For fucks sake." Kurogiri cursed. "Do not encourage him!" He grumbled from the other side of the bench, and his closed fist slammed down against the tabletop. "He's already in enough shit as it is."

"Heh." Kai grinned. "So Takami is also a rat?"

The corner of Shigaraki's mouth kicked up, amused.

"That's not…" Kurogiri shook his head and then abruptly got to his feet, "I'm going to class."

Shigaraki rolled his eyes. And he thought he was supposed to be the dramatic one.

Kai watched the other boy go, grinning to himself. "So, did he rat you out?"

"Nah," Shigaraki shook his head offhandedly, scratching again at his neck, "I was already on Mr. Aizawa's shit list."

Kai was even more curious, but thought it wasn't the best time to pry further, Shigaraki would have elaborated if he wanted too. He tugged his black mask back up to cover his mouth and nose.

"What's with the mask?" Shigaraki asked, "You sick or something?"

Kai snorted a laugh, "Call it, OCD."

"Don't like germs, huh?"

"Something like that."

Shigaraki nodded, eyeing Kai with suspicion before looking away. He seemed to be as curious with Kai, as Kai was with him. Curious, yet still cautious. The new kid seemed to be on the same wavelength as him, imperturbable but still receptive. And what Takami had said earlier, about Kai having a similar quirk to him, Shigaraki hadn't thought about it until now, but was interested. That combined with his sudden appearance at UA High, got him thinking. Why would someone transfer in their final year?

Shigaraki shifted his glance back to Kai. The other boy was watching him intently.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here." Shigaraki began, "You didn't just transfer to UA High, did you?"

Kai chuckled. Dark, low. "What makes you think that?"

"I'm just adding numbers together."

"Clever." Kai flicked his gold eyes up to meet Shigaraki's unswervingly, "It was not by choice, not mine anyway."

Shigaraki's brows knit tightly together. He wanted to know more but knew better than to ask. He knew a thing or two about the merits of trust and learned at a very young age that trust did not come cheap. If Kai was in fact anything like him, as he suspected, it had to be earned.

"But you know what?" He added just as the bell rang, as sharp and shrill as ever, signalling the end of their all-to-brief lunch period.

"What do you know?" Shigaraki asked, passive, lip twitching.

"I know that I already like it better here." He divulged, and then slid away, grabbing his bag on his way back up to his feet. "Maybe we can be friends."

"I have enough friends."

"But none like me." Kai bargained and took a few slow steps backwards. He seemed to take a moment to consider Shigaraki before turning away and heading towards the main UA building. He threw his arm up, waving in adieu. "See you in class."

Shigaraki watched him go, disquisitive, but not nearly as eager to get back to class. He needed some time to ponder the mysterious new transfer student and what his motives were. Maybe he didn't have any and legitimately wanted to make friends at UA. Shigaraki had his doubts of course but didn't want to judge Kai too soon.