Panic.
That was what Izuku felt when he first woke up.
He was lying on a comfortable and clean bed, surrounded by sterile white walls. A tall IV rod stood next to him, and a transparent tube was attached to her arm. The window by his bed let through warm rays of sunlight, giving the room a nice natural glow — it was all in all, a massive improvement from the cell that he had been stuck in for so long.
But it was missing something.
Where was the strange hero that had gotten him out of the horrible place? Suddenly, the room felt colder, and he shivered. He needed to get out of here. He wanted to find Shouta; it didn't feel safe without him. The door didn't look like it had locks, nor did it look sturdy. With his quirk, he could probably get through.
Nodding to himself in determination, he carefully took the IV out of his arm, wincing as the tape tore at his skin, and leaped off the bed. He landed somewhat painfully—his legs were still aching—but wasted no time in getting to the door. Just as his hand was about to make contact with the doorknob, it swung open abruptly. Izuku immediately leaped back, his heart skipping a beat.
It was a doctor—or at least he looked like one. His white coat was unkempt, and he looked frazzled.
"Woah," he said, looking down at Izuku with surprise. "You're… uh… awake and out of bed."
"Who are you?" Izuku backed away some more, eyeing him with distrust. Where was Shouta, and why was this unknown man here instead? He didn't like this. Not one bit.
"I'm Doctor Harada, and you're at a hospital. Now, you're still in the process of recovering, so why don't you-"
"I don't care! Where's Shouta? I want Shouta!" he wailed. "I want to see him!"
"Shouta?" the doctor asked with a strained smile. "Who's that?"
"He promised! He promised!"
"Alright! I'll see if I can find this… Shouta person, just please, calm down! You're going to hurt yourself," he said. He reached his hand out towards Izuku like he wanted to comfort him, but Izuku took another step backward. He sighed. "Well, do you at least know his last name?"
Izuku stilled for a moment as he tried to recall his conversations with the hero. "No…" Now that he thought about it, he didn't really know who Shouta was. Their time together was brief and filled with complete panic, so they didn't exactly have time to chat.
"Okay. I'll try my best. Just…wait a little and don't get too agitated." The doctor put a hand to his temple as he walked away.
The door closed shut, and Izuku's anxiety rose. He worried that it would never open again; that Shouta wouldn't come. Izuku waited, trying to stay patient. Shouta wouldn't just leave him here all alone, right? What if he thought Izuku was nothing but an annoying burden?
Time seemed to pass slowly as he thought about every conceivable reason for Shouta not being here. Maybe he had cried too much? Been too whiny? He didn't think he had been that bad, but he couldn't help but worry. He didn't want to be trapped in here with complete strangers.
The door swung open again, and Izuku looked up slowly, fully expecting it to be the doctor again.
It wasn't.
Shouta was standing at the doorway, this time not in his hero costume, but in a baggy sweatshirt and jeans instead. His tousled hair and red-rimmed eyes made it look like he just got out of bed, but Izuku didn't care. He came for him! All at once, Izuku felt relief surge through him like a tidal wave, washing all of his anxiety away.
"Izuku!" Shouta spoke first, quickly walking up to him, the tiredness in his eyes vanishing in an instant. "Are you okay?"
Without a word, Izuku nodded, instinctively launching himself at Shouta and clinging to his shirt like his life depended on it. It felt so much safer, somehow, knowing that he was here now. Like he knew everything was going to be okay.
Izuku heard Shouta grunt in surprise, but he still wrapped his arms around Izuku.
"Missed me, huh?" Izuku felt the slight rumble of his chest as he spoke. It was comforting.
"Uh-huh," Izuku mumbled into his shirt. He could faintly smell the lingering scent of coffee on it.
Shouta chuckled lightly. "I've missed you too, kid," he said, patting Izuku's back.
They stayed that way until Izuku's heart wasn't racing and his eyes weren't wet anymore. Untangling himself from Shouta, he sat back down on his bed. "Sorry," he muttered, wiping his eyes. "Kacchan always says I cry too much." He hoped he hadn't embarrassed himself too much, though judging by the wet stain on Shouta's shirt, he already had.
"It's fine. You can cry if you want," Shouta said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Do you feel better now?'
Izuku nodded, taking a shaky breath. Now that Shouta was here, his worries earlier seemed so needless. Of course Shouta wouldn't have left him. He had saved him, after all. "Sorry," he repeated. "I dunno what came over me."
"No, it's understandable. You don't have to apologize," he said.
"Sorry," Izuku said. "Wait, I mean… sorry." He sighed.
Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind too much. A beat of silence followed as Shouta frowned, considering his next words with care. "I know you probably don't want to talk about it right now, but I wanted to let you know that the raid was very successful, and all the villains are in custody now," Shouta said. "You're safe now."
"Already?" It was great news to Izuku, but he had stopped worrying about them the moment he saw Shouta. He knew if anything happened again, he would be there to knock the villains out, just like last time.
"Yes. All Might got all of them," Shouta responded.
"What about my mom?" Izuku asked hesitantly. He wasn't sure how he felt. Deep down, he knew she was the reason she was in this mess, but it was still difficult to be angry. She was his mom, after all. And Izuku still cared about her.
"She's… well…in custody at the moment," Shouta said. "But you don't have to worry about it. We're dealing with it."
"Oh," Izuku whispered. "I see."
"Do you want to see her?"
Izuku thought about it for a second. "I'm… not sure. But I… I don't think she would come, so…"
A flash of anger appeared on his face, but Izuku wasn't afraid—he knew the anger wasn't directed at him.
"I'm sorry for bringing it up then," he said. "Though, I have to ask. Do you have anywhere to go? Any family that could take you in?"
Thinking back to his extended family, he winced. He was most certainly not welcome there. "No, I don't think they'd let me stay."
"Then do you want to stay with me?" Shouta asked.
Izuku froze, his eyes snapping to Shouta's with shock. "W-what?"
"You heard me," he said gruffly. "Would you like to live with me, at my house? I can't promise that it'll be the b—"
"Yes!" Izuku said, his voice rising in his haste. "I mean, yes, I'd r-really like that," he amended in a more level tone.
Shouta looked vaguely shocked at his positive response. Izuku couldn't fathom why, though. Shouta was just so cool, strong, fearless, and most importantly, a hero. Izuku couldn't think of a single reason why he wouldn't want to live with him. He was honestly more surprised that someone like him would want Izuku around.
"Well, alright then," Shouta said, ruffling Izuku's hair gently. "I'll get started on the preparations. Meanwhile"—he shot Izuku a stern glance—"please try to behave for the staff here. Being woken up so early by a panicked call from the hospital was not how I prefer my days to start."
"Sorry! I didn't mean to," Izuku squeaked. "I just … panicked."
Shouta's stern expression immediately softened. "I know. You just worried me a little, that's all."
There was a soft knock on the door, and the doctor from earlier walked in.
"Hello," he said awkwardly, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Sorry for interrupting. I just want to check on Izuku for a bit, if that's alright. It won't be long."
"Of course, I'll leave you to it," Shouta said, standing up. "Remember what I said just now, Izuku."
"Okay," Izuku said, crestfallen. He tried to hide it, but Shouta seemed to have picked up on it.
"ll be back sometime today, don't worry," he said, patting Izuku on the back.
The anxiety and discomfort returned as soon as Shouta stepped out of the room, but it wasn't nearly as intense as earlier. Shouta said he was coming back soon and he hadn't broken any of his promises thus far, so he'd take his word for it. He'd stay calm for the doctor, as Shouta had asked him to. He wouldn't want to anger him when he had only been kind to Izuku. What would he do if Shouta doesn't want him anymore?
Shouta sighed, shaking his head as he glanced at the small boy sitting in the backseat of his car through the rearview mirror. He was currently staring out the window with a look of awe and wonder—an expression Shouta was starting to associate with the boy. How he could manage to stay optimistic through all the traumatic events, Shouta had no idea, but he was going to do everything in his power to protect it. It wouldn't do at all for him to become as jaded as Shouta was.
The words had left his mouth before he could register the gravity of them, and once he did, it was too late. Izuku looked way too elated for Shouta to take them back. So now, he had a … son; temporarily or otherwise. Despite him having no clue how to take care of kids—traumatized ones especially. He could barely take care of himself as it was. Still, he was sure he could figure it out. Well, reasonably sure, at least.
"Here we are," he said, unlocking and pushing the door to his apartment open. He had to do a massive cleanup with Hizashi while Izuku was still in the hospital. His house was definitely not suitable for kids before that. Everything from the counter to the space behind the shelves had to be wiped down with strong disinfectant before Hizashi declared it habitable. The reek of the alcohol remained, and Shouta made a note to open the windows later, lest he gets Izuku sick.
Izuku followed behind him closely, his head swiveling around so quickly Shouta was worried it would snap off. "Woah," he whispered, his wide green eyes taking in Shouta's humble living room.
"Make yourself at home," Shouta said, shrugging off his jacket and draping it on a chair. "It's your's now, too." It was a strange thought. He had been living alone for so long that he had forgotten what it was like to have someone else under the same roof as him. For the thousandth time this week, he lamented the loss of his solitude. He knew that Hizashi would insist on visiting Izuku under the guise of helping Shouta out, and there'd be nothing he could do to stop him. It was a miracle that he wasn't here today to welcome Izuku, and Shouta was sure that if it weren't for the urgent case that had popped up, he'd be here.
Shouta let him look around for a while before leading him to the room he had cleared out. "This is your room," Shouta said, waving his hand inside vaguely. It was a converted guest room—the only other room in Shouta's house. Maybe he should upgrade to a bigger house, now that he had Izuku. He had the money—he just never saw the point when he lived alone. "It's a little empty right now, but we can go pick out more things you like later. If you want."
"My room?" Izuku asked, staring at Shouta with such intensity that he had to look away. "Really?"
"Yeah. That's … what I said." Shouta cleared his throat awkwardly, uncomfortable with how excited Izuku was over a simple room. A simple room that was barely even decorated.
"I love it!" Izuku squealed, carefully stepping inside.
Shouta leaned against the doorway, watching Izuku slowly work through the room methodically, picking up the toys and decorations Hizashi had bought with him. He looked like he was satisfied with them all, to his relief.
When he was done, he walked back to Shouta with a large smile. "Thank you." His voice was heartfelt, and again, Shouta almost couldn't meet his eyes. He wasn't used to such warmth from others outside of his closest friends.
"Of course. You're my responsibility now, and it'd be pretty remiss of me not to give you the necessities."
Izuku nodded slowly. "Yeah, I know, but you didn't have to take me in," he said hesitantly, his eyes watering "So thank you."
"No, I didn't have to, but I wanted to, got it?" Shouta said. "You don't have to keep thanking me."
He pretended to look away while Izuku discretely wiped his eyes. "Yeah, got it," Izuku said weakly after a second.
"So, what would you like to do, now that you're discharged?" Shouta asked, changing the subject now that he deemed his emotional quota for the day reached. "I know I promised we can go see All Might, but I'm afraid he's a little busy this week, so it'd have to wait."
Izuku only gave him a faint smile, not looking at all disappointed like he had expected. "I think I wanna stay … home if that's okay."
Shouta blinked. "Are you sure? We can do anything." He'd have thought Izuku would want to go do fun things outside like most other kids instead of being stuck indoors with a boring adult, though he supposed he wasn't all that in-tune with how kids are these days to know anyway.
"Yeah. I'm a little tired anyway," Izuku said.
"Okay. Stay home, it is," Shouta conceded.
And stay home they did. Izuku had fallen asleep very quickly, leaning against Shouta on the couch as the show—one Izuku had picked—played on the TV quietly. Shouta sighed, shaking his head. And he thought he was the one who slept too much.
When Shouta tried to stand up to grab a blanket for Izuku, he mumbled something and stirred, like he was about to wake up. With another shake of his head, Shouta sat back down, resigned to being stuck on the couch for the rest of the day. Worst yet, the remote was slightly out of reach, so he couldn't even switch the channel to something more adult.
Yet despite the minor inconvenience, it was a lot calmer and quieter than he thought it would be. He had always imagined kids to be loud nuisances, yet Izuku hadn't shown any sign of that today. In fact, he was too quiet and said too few words; Shouta thought he wouldn't mind if he talked louder or shouted in excitement like he had seen kids at the park do. He'd welcome it, actually.
However, there was a long road ahead of them before any of that could happen, and that was okay. Truly.
