Songs mentioned in this chapter: Jonathan(Acoustic) by Ice Nine Kills, This is Gospel by Panic at the Disco, Someday from the ZOMBIES movie(disney), Still into You by Paramore, and Stand By Me, covered by Florence and the Machine. Sorry this chapter is so long, but I think you all will enjoy it.

Also, merry christmas Kendall. You'll love that surprise I threw in for ya.

Enjoy the chapter everyone and happy holidays!


"I really really think I'm out of my element here," Leinei mumbles, sitting on one of the couches in the room Mina had rented for the next hour. Katsuki sits next to her, leaving a person sized gap between them as he rests his arm on the back of the couch. The lack of closeness makes her jumpy, scared. She wants to tell him to move closer, or to ask him if she could move closer to him.

She glances at him as Mina and Kirishima go through the available tracks, seeing the short sleeved black button down pulled over an orange tank top and a pair of jeans that when standing hang slightly off his hips. He was pointedly not looking at her, staring instead at his phone screen as he mindlessly scrolled through some social media app. Did I do something wrong? She looks down at her dress, feeling stupid all of a sudden for wearing it. I should have just worn jeans and a shirt. It's freezing here anyway…

"Lei!" Mina yells, getting her attention and using her finger to gesture her over. She gets up and walks over, looking at the track she had selected. "Do you know any of these songs? I meant to ask before. I know you were kinda sheltered growing up."

"I mean, some of them," she admits, Mina moving slightly as she can back out of the track and scroll through some of them. "My brother had a sea shanty phase for a while so I know some of those."

"Are you serious?" Kaminari laughs, dumbstruck. "I'm scared to know about your sister!"

"Reina was more into alternative stuff once she moved out," Leinei says, shrugging. "I know some bands like Paramore, My Chemical Romance, stuff like that."

"Have you heard of Ice Nine Kills?" Kirishima asks, tilting his head. "They do music like books and stuff. I listen to their Silver Scream album all the time. Literally one of the manliest bands I've ever heard."

"No, I haven't."

"Oh, um…Hey, Mina, do ya mind if I go first then?" the redhead asks, gently nudging the purple haired girl out of the way as he types the band name into the search bar. A handful of songs pop up, and he picks an acoustic version.

"Go for it!" the pink girl says enthusiastically, pulling Leinei to sit next to her. Katsuki glances up, seeing Mina between them now and huffing through his nose when she knowingly smirks at him. Kirishima walks to the front of the room as Sero and Kaminari cheer him on, the electric blond whooping for him. The opening cords start up, the redhead shaking as everyone watches him, even Katsuki out of the corner of his eyes.

"You got this, Ei," Leinei says gently, smiling and giving him a thumbs up. He grins, nodding. The words start to roll across the screen propped on the floor in front of him, him starting to sing the lyrics in a low gravelly voice. His voice cracked on one of the verses, but no one discouraged him. They listened patiently, attentive to their friend's musical musings.

~I've made sense of my senses, and made my defenses,

Internally this is what sets me free…

Inspired by hope, or defined by disease-

If you knew what it meant to be me,

Would you close your eyes?~

Leinei hadn't noticed the tears growing in her eyes, despite Kirishima's less than stellar singing. The emotions he had put into it, the emotions that were flooding out of him, she resonated with it. The sadness, the loneliness, the want to be better than he was. She could understand all of it, and he was putting it all into this song.

~I won't let this..

Drain the life out me…~

The song ends and she has the overwhelming urge to stand up and hug him. Mina claps the loudest, cheering for him as Kaminari rubs his ear. Sero gives a hesitant thumbs up. Kirishima grins despite this, the nerves gone with the first song. He wipes a few stray tears from his eyes as he walks back to the couches and sits between Kaminari and Sero. Leinei chews the inside of her cheek before smiling at him.

"What's the name of that song?"

"Huh?" he looks up, surprised a bit as Mina bounces over to the table. "Oh, it's their song Jonathan. I used to listen to it a lot when I was in middle school."

"Could you text me the name so I don't forget? I think I might start a spotify account or something so I can listen to them."

"Hell yeah!" he agrees, perking up as he takes his phone out and opens a new chat for him and her. "I can text you a list of their other songs too."

"Please do!"

Katsuki's eye twitches, watching them conversate. Instead of doing anything about it, he instead stares at his phone still, trying to debate if he should sing something to her, or..about his feelings in some capacity. He glances at Mina, who hums to herself as she scrolls through the plethora of songs. She knows what the fuck she's doing. I don't want to give her the satisfaction of her being right but fuck…What the hell do I do?

"Hey, Kaminari, I found a song for you," Mina says in a sing-song voice, the blond jumping up and walking over. His eyes widen and his grin grows, him starting to get fidgety as Mina laughs.

"Oh yeah, so gonna rock this one!"

"Should we record it for Jirou to watch?" Sero snorts. His face goes pink and he squeaks.

"Shut up! No, I mean if I do amazing yeah, totally send it to her. But like I don't want her to watch it if I make an absolute fool out of myself," he says sheepishly, rolling his eyes.

"You'll do amazing," Kirishima assures, giving his friend a thumbs up. "I did really badly but everyone was so manly about it and still cheered me on."

"I guess," he groans, slapping his cheeks hard enough to make Leinei wince for him. He takes a breath and nods his head. "Alright, I'm doing it. Mina, get the song going before I lose my nerve and crawl under a table and die. Kirishima, can you record it please?"

"I gotcha, bud," the redhead assures, holding his phone up as Kaminari gets to the front of the room. He takes another breath, exhaling through pursed lips as the music starts and the lyrics start scrolling. He starts singing, moving his body to the beat as the lyrics leave his lips. Leinei glances around as the others start to hum along, Kirishima mumbling the backup vocals under his breath. Even Katsuki was humming, his phone finally put away as he sways his head back and forth.

~Cause these words are knives that often leave scars

The fear of falling apart
And truth be told I never was yours,

The fear, the fear of falling apart~

By this point, Mina, Kirishima and Sero were singing the backup vocals as Kaminari continued the song, just about into it as Kirishima was into his. He dances around the front of the room, getting a few chuckles from his friends as he finishes the song out about a minute later, panting and bowing with a flourish. He stands up straight and wipes the sweat from his forehead.

"I vote Leinei goes next!" he announces, grinning at the lavender haired girl. Her face goes pale, her smile falling. "What? You've never done something this fun, so why shouldn't you? I'll sing with you if ya want!"

"Nuh uh, I have the best idea for a song for us two," Mina protests, standing up and grabbing Leinei's hands, tugging gently to get her up as she silently protests. "Come on, Leinei!"

"Do I get a choice in this?" she asks weakly, finally relenting to stand up and walk over to the computer with her. She glances over at Katsuki, who had finally put his phone away and started to pay attention to his friends. She swears she catches him smiling a bit, disappearing as soon as she blinks. She scratches at her wrist as Mina types in a song title.

"You'll like this one. Disney is always good for a beginner," she boasts, grinning at the girl next to her. Leinei nods, letting Mina drag her to the front. "You can be the pink, and I'll be the green, 'kay?"

"Alright."

Katsuki watches them, tapping his fingers in time with the tempo. The song is familiar to him, and he's struggling to place it. Mina did say Disney…it's definitely not from Lilo and Stitch…

~Oh I got a feeling, if you got to know me~

~Right from the start you caught my eye,

And something in me came to life~

~Oo, I've got a feeling~

~If you get to know me~

His heart skips a bit, his eyes widening. Mina winked at him as she sways her hips, bumping Leinei's just hard enough to make her jump and giggle. He stops tapping his fingers, instead digging them into the back of the couch as he grits his teeth. They keep singing, Mina definitely overpowering Leinei's soft voice as they get further into the song. She's doing this to piss me off, he thinks to himself as Mina twirls the lavender girl around with a loud laugh.

~Someday~

~This could be, this could be ordinary~

~Someday~

~Could we be something extraordinary?~

~You and me side by side~

~Out in the broad daylight, if they laugh we'll say

We're gonna be someday, someday, someday~

~We're gonna be someday~

~Someday, someday,

We're gonna be someday…~

As the song ends, Katsuki stands before Leinei and Mina can even catch their breaths. Mina sticks her tongue out at him as the girls accept their gracious applause from Kirishima, Kaminari and Sero, sitting down in their seats. Leinei pants softly, smiling wide enough to hurt her cheeks as she smooths her dress out.

"That was a lot of fun! I wasn't expecting a duet!" She tells her, breathless still. "Maybe I could sing alone next time, I feel a lot more confident now-"

"Shut up!" Katsuki yells, having found a song. "Or else I'll shut up and sit down."

"Oh crap, I'm so recording this," Kaminari whispers to himself, discreetly pulling his phone up as his friend stands at the front of the room. The opening cords start, Kirishima starting to bounce in his seat from excitement. Leinei perks up at the familiar notes, trying to remember where she's heard that song from. I'm pretty sure Reina used to listen to it all the time…

~It's not a walk in the park to love each other

Because when our fingers interlock,

Can't deny, can't deny you're worth it

'Cause after all this time, I'm still into you…~

He pointedly looks at Leinei as he croons, his voice a deep baritone as he sings into the mic. Kirishima whoops and shakes his fist in the air, earning a sharp glare from Mina on par with one of the patented Baku-glares to shut him down. Katsuki never felt more gratitude for someone beyond Leinei and his mom in that moment, finding a small smile tugging at his lips. Damn, maybe she really is on my side…Fuck it. It's nice having friends that actually want to help, and this is actually really fucking fun.

But also fuck you for singing that song. You dumb extra knew it was a love song.

He was too invested in the song, in his thoughts, to notice Mina gently ushering Leinei up with a big smile. The lavender girl stands next to him, awkwardly as Sero holds his phone up to record. Mina flicks her hands towards her, mouthing the words 'go on'. The chorus comes back around, Katsuki taking a deep only for-

~I should be over all the butterflies, but I'm into you~

It takes him a moment to process the fact she just came in and hijacked his song, looking at her wide eyed as she closes her eyes and belts the chorus out, as if it has some new meaning to her. Kaminari is cheering loudly, one hand in the air as Kirishima and Sero whoop. He grins and wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her to his side as he closes his own eyes.

~And baby even on our worst nights, I'm into you~

~I'm into you~

~Let them wonder how we got this far

'Cause I don't need to wonder at all

Yeah, after all this time, I'm still

Into you~

~I'm still into you~

~I'm still into you…~

The song ends and Katsuki looks down at her, seeing the bright smile on her face. He feels his heart melt, seeing the pink flush to her cheeks, the shine in her eyes. He can't hear the other's praises, lost in her smile and the way she's looking at him. His heart skips.

Leinei can hardly think straight, seeing the gentle smile he had tugging at his lips. The way his red eyes shimmered, the red tint to his face from belting the song out as if his life depended on it. She can see the corner of his bottom lip divot where he digs his canine into it, a flurry of emotions in his eyes, in his face, in the way his arm tightens ever so slightly around her waist.

I think…

I think…

I think I do love you.

"Okay you two, I can't have you showin' me up," Sero says, putting his phone and standing up. He stretches his arms above his head as the two separate, Katsuki coughing into his hand as they return to the couch, this time Leinei sitting closer to Katsuki than Mina. The pink girl grins, shooting a discreet thumbs up to the boys sitting across the room. Sero doesn't even hesitate to pick a song, grinning.

"Kaminari, use my phone to record me," he orders the blond, who nods and scrambles to his phone. He clears his throat and fixes his shirt, getting nervous as his friend records him.

"Are you singing for Kendall?" Mina teases.

"Shut up, maybe," he retorts, his voice cracking a bit. He clears his throat again as the somber music starts up. His soft tenor matches the cords, his entire body swaying as if drunk off the lyrics. Tears bloom in his eyes as he runs through the first verse, his voice breaking ever so slightly as he goes into the first chorus.

~No I won't be afraid,

Oh, I won't be afraid,

Just as long as you stand,

Stand by me, So darling, darling

Stand by me, sta~nd by me~

Since the first song Kirishima sang, no one interrupted. No one dared to, hearing the emotion he placed in the words, the way he gripped the microphone as if it was the only thing keeping him here on the earth. Katsuki's hand slid across the couch, his fingers lacing with Leinei's to squeeze ever so gently. She glances down, following his arm up to the tears in his eyes, the way his bottom lip is quivering. Everyone is just so vulnerable today…it…it's nice seeing it, honestly…

~Stan~nd by me,

Whenever you're in trouble,

Won't you stand by me, oh

Stand by me, oh

Stand now, stand by me

Stand by me…~

Sero finishes out the song, no one daring to clap until he takes a breath and smiles directly at the phone Kaminari is holding up. He places the microphone down and uses his fingers to wipe the tears from his eyes before laughing. Kaminari goes to hit the stop button, but Sero makes a gesture that tells him no.

"I love you, Kendall," he says, smiling wide and brightly. Mina makes a noise resembling a strangled pelican as he lets Kaminari hit the end button now. He sniffles and takes a shaky breath before laughing again. "Okay, someone needs to get up here and make an absolute fool of themselves before I start crying again."

"Alright, alright, Kirishima, you and me now," Kaminari laughs, getting up after handing his still emotional friend his phone back. "Oh I know, let's belt out some I Prevail."

"Manly!"

The rest of their hour went by fast, the group leaving the room laughing from the final song where all of the boys made absolute fools of themselves singing A Girl Worth Fighting For. Katsuki and Leinei brought up the rear of the group, Leinei still laughing so hard tears spilled down her cheeks. Her fingers are laced with Katsuki's, holding fast to each other. She could feel his quick heartbeat in his palm, looking up to see the way he used his free hand to cover his mouth and hide his smile and titters. He has such a beautiful smile.

"Hey, Katsu?"

"Hmm?" He clears his throat, dropping his hand from his face as Leinei wipes the happy tears from hers. "What's up?"

"I like your smile. You should wear it more."

"Same goes for you," he replies without missing a beat, smirking at her. She blushes, not having expected that answer from him. He waits until the group is a little further ahead, immersed in their own conversations as he pulls her behind one of the decorative pillars in the mall.

"Katsu, we should-"

"We will catch up to them in a minute," he assured her, glancing around the pillar to see them having stopped up ahead, just enough to give them privacy. Mina grins as she gives him a thumbs up, which he rolls his eyes at and leans back to look down at their still interlocked hands. "I just..do you remember the conversation we had in the forest? Before…everything went to hell?"

"I think so," she lies, tilting her head to the side as she fakes trying to remember it. He snorts and shakes his head. "Okay, yes I do. Why?"

"I…I just wanted you to know," he starts, struggling for the words. "I just wanted you to know I care about you too and I want to get to know you even more. I want to see you smile like you have today, and I want to be…to be the one you can come to when you're sad or hurt-"

"Are you…asking to be my boyfriend?" she asks, taken aback. He bites the inside of his cheek, eyes wide as he processes what he's saying and how it sounds. After a moment, he nods, looking down at his feet.

"I understand if not-"

His eyes widened as her lips found his cheek, a chaste kiss lingering just a few seconds long enough to make his entire body go numb and warm at the same time. Her hand squeezes his, bringing his eyes back to hers. She's smiling, the same gentle smile she always has for him, no matter what happens.

"I'd love for you to be my boyfriend, Katsu. I think Mina has been trying to orchestrate it for the longest time."

"I thought I was the only one that noticed."

"She's not exactly the most discreet about it."

"She really isn't, but…" He brings his other hand up to tuck some of her loose hair behind her ear. "I may or may not thank her later for it. Maybe. Depends on how they act after they find out."

"Oh they're gonna go insane," she laughs, leaning her head into his hand a bit. "Katsu?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm…I'm glad I met you. And I'm glad I didn't die."

"Me too," he whispers, before clearing his throat so that the tears growing in his eyes wouldn't fall. He shakes his head, coughing softly and squeezing her hand. "Let's go before they accuse us of kissing or something."

"Ew, like I'd be caught dead kissing you," she teases, which makes him snort as she tries to walk away. He tugs her towards him so her back rests against his chest. "Katsu-"

"Keep talking with an attitude and I'll put your ass on the ground like that first time we fought," he whispers in her ear, giving her cheek a gentle peck before letting her go. Her mind goes blank for a moment, her eyes wide as he walks past her with a cocky grin. "Well? Are you coming or what? I'm starving!"

"Ye-yeah!"

She follows him, her face burning red as he smiles. Her hand finds its way back into his as Mina yells at them to hurry up, Sero and Kirishima having wandered off to the food court already. Katsuki tells her to shut up as Leinei laughs, relieved things are going back to normal.

I'm glad…I'm glad I've met you all. I can't imagine my life without any of you.

"Ooh, Lei, what about this one?" Mina says, holding up a poster of Hawks. "I bet you don't have this one yet~!"

"I do actually," she laughs, looking at it. "It's one of his older ones, and a knock off at that. You can tell by the goggles. Hawks wears his on his head for photos like that, not on his face."

"And you would know how?"

"I have my sources," she replies simply, shrugging as she goes back to looking at the t-shirt rack. "I keep telling you, I don't need anything in my dorm room. Clutter space-"

"Makes for a cluttered mind, I know. You said it just a few hours ago."

Mina puts the poster back as they walk around the store some more, heading to the back area with the fancy figurines and Funko pops. Leinei scratches at her wrist as she lets Mina look around, glancing over her shoulder and spying a flash of familiar white and red hair. Shochan is here…That's interesting…

"Hey, isn't that Todoroki?" Mina asks, having peeked over with a Stitch Funko in her hands. "Oh by the way, I thought you'd like this."

"Oh my god this is so cute!" Leinei gasps, completely disregarding the fact Shoto and his siblings had walked into the store. She takes it from Mina and looks at the wall she had gotten him from. "Oh my god they have Lilo and Pudge!"

"Oh crap do they?" the pink girl gasps, walking back to the wall to get the girl and her orange fish. "Oh m'god, these are so cute!"

"Okay, maybe this was a good idea," the lavender girl laughs as Mina hands her the other box. "They would be so cute on my desk!"

"Right? At least you found something!"

"Lei-chan?"

She stiffens hearing that nickname, a familiar sweet voice saying it. She turns and smiles at Fuyumi standing there, smiling at her. The older woman comes in for a hug, something that makes her flinch and see Dabi for a moment. She steps away, Fuyumi's smile falling slightly.

"Right, you just went through a lot," she says. "I shouldn't have tried to push. I should have asked. You must be Ashido, right?" Fuyumi adds, holding her hand out to Mina. She eagerly shakes it. "I'm Fuyumi, Shoto's older sister. It's nice seeing he has friends!"

"Of course!" Mina laughs, rubbing the back of her head as Leinei looks down at her feet, keeping the boxes close to her chest with her arms turned inward. "You called Leinei Lei-chan?"

"Oh yes, we all used to play together when we were younger," the teal eyed woman laughs. "Lei-chan was the youngest of us when Shoto and her sister were in the training room. Oh, Natsuo would love to see you again! Nat-"

"N-no, that..that isn't necessary," she says weakly, trying to stop the brothers from coming over. She lets out a soft groan, audible only to Mina. Natsuo lets out a low whistle as he comes over, grinning at Leinei.

"Holy cow, little Lei all grown up!" he laughs, rubbing the back of his neck as Leinei offers a strained smile. Shoto waves slightly as he stands between his siblings, Mina trying hard not to laugh at the height difference between the brothers. "You're like what, fourteen?"

"I'm only three years younger than you, Natsuo," she grumbles, closing her eyes as she counts to ten in her head and tries to keep her breathing regular. "And yet I'm still somehow more mature than you."

"Ouch, damn. You got an attitude now!"

"I know, she was so shy when she first started at UA!" Mina gushes, poking her friend's cheeks as she groans. "Now she's so cool!"

"I'm really not…"

"How are you healing up?" Shoto asks, trying to redirect the conversation as he slides his hands into his pockets. "That scar looks pretty nasty."

"Yeah, the doctor's said I might have some lingering marks on it, but if it's still visible by Halloween maybe we can dress as each other?" Leinei offers, dying a little on the inside as an awkward silence fills the space between the five of them. "I-I'm sorry, I wasn't-"

"Oh my god that would be amazing," Natsuo gasps, looking between them. "You just need someone with burns on their ears and you can all do those evil monkey things!"

"Natsuo!" Fuyumi scolds him, reaching over Shoto to smack her younger brother's shoulder. "That's rude! You can't say things like that!"

"I think that would be fun, actually," Shoto says, shrugging.

"I don't even know why I said anything…" Leinei sighs, her shoulders slumping. "So..what brings you guys to the mall?"

"Oh, we were looking for stuff to put in Shoto's dorm. Maybe a plant or something. His bedroom at home is a little empty."

"Oh my god, we were doing the same for Lei!" Mina says, jumping up and down on her heels. "Well we went to karaoke beforehand, but it was still a lot of fun! We even found these cute funko pops!"

"Is that Lilo and Stitch?" Fuyumi gasps, leaning forward and fixing her glasses. "Those are so cute! I remember when you dressed up as Lilo for Halloween that one year!"

"Yeah…I remember…"

"I don't remember this," Shoto replies, confused. "What's a Lilo?"

"We're watching those movies when we get home," Natsuo tells him, wrapping his arm around the boy's neck. "Anyway, we heard about what happened. Sorry we couldn't come visit you in the hospital."

"It's not a big deal. No one really came besides Reina and our brother."

"You…I don't remember you two having a brother," Fuyumi says, confused as her brow furrows. She stands up and pulls her purse higher on her shoulder. Leinei's face flushes as Mina looks between them, confused herself.

"She talks about him all the time. Honestly we hear more about him than Reina," Mina defends, squeezing Leinei's shoulder. Leinei glances at her gratefully, shrugging.

"He's just busy…he's adopted family, I only met him after our parents' passed," Leinei says weakly.

"Ohh, that makes sense. Are you doing okay with that? I know you took it really hard at the funeral-"

"Fuyumi, please…I just, I don't want to talk about this," she pleads. "We'll see you on move in day, Shochan. It was nice to see you again-"

"Wait, how did your parents die?" Mina asks, confused.

"I just said-"

"Oi, what's going on over here?"

Relief floods her system as the boys walk up behind them. Shoto offers a small wave to them as Katsuki walks over to Leinei and glances over her quickly, taking in her body language and the way she's trembling. He brushes his fingers against her side as he stands between her and Mina.

"Bakugo, hey, how are you doing?" Shoto asks innocently, not processing the irritation radiating off the boy and the anxiety coming off Leinei. "Are you here with Leinei and Ashido?"

"What if I am?" he asks defensively, raising an eyebrow. "Who the hell are you two?"

"Oh, we're Shoto's older siblings," Fuyumi says. "I'm Fuyumi and this is Natsuo. We were just catching up with Lei-chan-"

"No, you were upsetting her," he corrects them, placing his hand in the middle of her back. "Leinei has been through a lot. She doesn't need to be bombarded with Icy Hot's crazy ass family when she's got her own."

"Bakugo!" Kirishima says in horror, Sero's jaw dropping and Kaminari whistling as he walks away to avoid the carnage. "You can't-"

"Shut up, Shitty Hair," he growls. "My girlfriend has been through enough. I'm not going to sit here and let you guys put her through more."

"Whoa, girlfriend?" Natsuo whistles, laughing afterwards as Leinei's face turns bright pink and her eyes go wide. "And here I was thinking you'd never get over Touya!"

"Natsuo!" Fuyumi gasps. "Will you stop-!"

"No, let him continue," Leinei says, handing Katsuki the funko pop boxes. "Because I want to get one thing straight. Shochan, this is in no way directed at you."

"Okay."

"I'm having a good day, or I was. Things finally go right, and all of a sudden, you guys come over and start dredging up the dead past. I get it, we were close as kids, but we aren't little kids anymore. Why couldn't you guys have waited until I was ready to reach out to you? I wanted to have a day where I didn't have to worry about what happened in the past and where I can enjoy what little freedom I finally found with my friends, and you guys couldn't let sleeping dogs lie. Leave me alone. Leave the past alone. It's not hard!"

Her vision is blurring as she speaks, her voice breaking out of frustration. Fuyumi is genuinely concerned, saying her name and reaching out to hug her again. Leinei growls in frustration, smacking her hands away before muttering a quick goodbye and running out of the store.

"Well, someone has a bit of an attitude problem," Natsuo mutters before walking away. Fuyumi mumbles an apology, following him. Shoto remains, rubbing the back of his head.

"We finally got her fucking smiling and opening up," Katsuki growls, his eye twitching. "All that should have been today is one day where she isn't crying because she's upset. Damnit, Icy Hot!"

"I…I'm sorry for them. Natsuo is just-"

"I don't want to hear the shitty excuses you come up for your even shittier family. You made my girlfriend cry. Walk. The fuck. Away."

Shoto leaves without another word, the blond boy taking a breath before walking up the counter and paying for the funko pops she had left behind. They came here for her, and he'd be damned if they didn't leave with something for her. He didn't even care for the price as the cashier bagged them up. I'm gonna punch their fucking faces in the next time I see them.

Leinei sits against one of the walls, watching the various people going by as she gets her breathing under control. She wipes the tears from her eyes, sniffling. Natsuo's words run through her head, her heart twisting. 'Here I thought you'd never get over Touya!'

Am I not allowed to? After everything he's done to me, I have to stay in love with him? I'm not allowed to love the people I'm with now? Am I not allowed to be happy for one fucking day?

"There ya are."

She looks up as Katsuki slides down the wall to sit next to her, setting the bag to the side of him away from her. He offers a small smile, but she looks away, picking at the hem of her dress. He sighs and wraps his arm around her shoulders, pulling her to his side so he can rest his head on hers.

"You were in the right to say what you said," he tells her gently. "Hell, if you hadn't, I would've."

"You..you didn't hear every-"

"I didn't have to. I saw how you were acting. For someone who's quirk is dealing with emotions, you're shit at hiding your own."

"Heh…really?"

"Yup. They didn't have the right to accost you because you have a history with them. You went through a lot, and they couldn't respect that. And honestly, seeing you snap like that is always kinda hot."

"You're a closet pervert, aren't you?"

"If it makes you smile, then yes," he tells her, lifting his head to look at her. She chuckles, giving a small smile as she looks up at him. "There we go. Now, whatcha say we go home and eat the rest of that pizza in the fridge?"

"Didn't we just have lunch?"

"There's a thing called second lunch y'know."

"Really now?"

"And I'm sure Mr. Spokes wants to hear all about this encounter."

"Yeah..yeah you're right."

"Damn right I am. Now let's go before the dweebiots find us."