NeonHorizon: I had a terrible thought. I could just see Hikari actually meeting with Endeavor and he just sarcastically says something like "sure, your kid can marry my oldest son if you can find him". I'm not doing that, of course, but it would be kind of interesting in a horrible way. Anyway here's some cuteness.

"Yuki-chan! I didn't get to tell you how awesome you were at the sports festival! You looked so cool!" Kirishima greeted her with a grin as the girl arrived at the ramen shop. Looking past her at the brooding ash blond boy, his grin grew even more. "Oh, sweet. You ran into Bakugou on your way here?"

"We came here together," the boy argued.

"Huh? Like you walked here together?" He laughed a little and his grin relaxed into a warm smile, directed at the girl. "You were seriously awesome though, Yuki-chan. You looked like a pro out there."

Her face turned bright pink and she bowed her head to try to hide it behind her hair. "…th-thank you…you looked really cool, too…Kirishima-kun…"

"No way! I wasn't anywhere near as cool as you were!"

"If you guys are done arguing about who was the coolest, can we get some food? I'm starving!" Ashido interrupted before either could continue talking.

"Okay, okay. Do they have any seats open?" Kirishima started to turn, but paused and looked back to Shirayuki. "Hey. So, um, do you want to sit next to me, Yuki-chan?"

"…o-okay…" Behind her mask, she had to smile. It was a relief to be with her friends. She could at least try to forget what had happened with her mother. She was proud that she had stood up for herself and defended Bakugou, but it had still been a scary experience. Worse, she knew her mother would not give in so easily.

Shirayuki Hikari was a business woman. A self-made success with business in Japan as well as abroad. She was tenacious, dedicated, and above all else obsessive. If she wanted something to happen, she would make it happen. The fact that she had gone out of her way to hunt down and approach an intimidating hero like Endeavor was proof enough of this.

As always, Shirayuki enjoyed and greatly appreciated the food. She sat between Kirishima and Ashido, savoring the ramen and wondering if she could ever replicate the broth it was served in. Glancing at her friends as she ate, she felt a bittersweet happiness. She was glad to have friends she could celebrate with, but she remembered her grandmother's story about her father and his friends after their first sports festival.

Thinking about her father now, she slouched in her seat and frowned. She wished that he could have been there to see her first UA sports festival. She wished he could be there to stop her mother from acting the way she was. Hikari had never been so cruel when Shirayuki's father was alive. Would he…be proud of me? Would he be happy with how I acted today? Would he like my friends?

Bakugou never mentioned what happened after the sports festival, which she appreciated. It was embarrassing that she had yelled at her own mother, even if it was necessary. Soon it became just a faded memory as her friends talked about the sports festival and what their plans were for the next day.

"What're you doing tomorrow, Yuki-chan? Are you busy?" Ashido gave her a curious look, but seemed like she was insinuating something.

Her stomach twisted in knots and she shook her head. "…I don't…have any plans tomorrow…" she confessed. When she and Shinsou were still dating, they had talked about making plans, but now that they were broken up, she had no idea what she was going to do with the day off. The thought of taking her grandmother to the cat café seemed appealing.

"Want to meet up and we can all hang out? Is anyone busy tomorrow?"

While Ashido started making plans, Shirayuki bowed her head and stared down into her empty bowl. Shinsou. Is he doing anything tomorrow? He said that he still wanted to be friends so…could we still hang out in the evening? Does he still want to…after everything today?

The group of friends wandered onward to the next place where they would hang out. They settled on an arcade and Shirayuki felt a little awkward. She stood off by herself while the others played games, remembering when she and Shinsou had gone into this arcade during their date. Before she could stop herself, she had pulled her phone from her pocket and sent him a message to ask how he was doing.

She stared at the screen, holding her breath and gripping the phone tightly. When his reply came, her heart skipped a beat before she read it. A sigh of relief escaped her from behind her mask and she started to smile. He was doing fine and asked how she was. Shirayuki messaged back and forth with him, enjoying this moment until he said that he had to go.

But…at least we're still friends. We're friends. I have friends. She tucked her phone into her pocket again and looked at her friends, her smile growing. Ashido was watching Kaminari desperately try, and fail, to beat a level on a game. Sero was approaching them, snickering and shaking his head. Bakugou was standing at a game, his back to her, but it looked like he was in deep concentration. Where's…Kirishima-kun…?

"Yuki-chan. Hey, what's up? Why are you standing by yourself?" He approached from her right, frowning slightly. "Everything okay? You seemed kind of down earlier."

She bit the inside of her cheek and nodded. "…I-I'm fine…just tired…"

"Oh. Well, if you want to go home, I can walk you there. I'm kinda tired, too," he admitted. Leaning against the wall beside her, he focused his gaze on Bakugou. The ash blond was now banging a fist against the game he was playing and shouting at it, threatening it. The sight made Kirishima half-grin. "There's a man that hates losing," he stated in a joking sort of way.

"…he…really hates losing…" Shirayuki nervously fidgeted with the hairband on her wrist and gave a small nod. "…I…like hanging out with everyone…but…I'm sort of tired and I…think I do want to go home early…"

"Oh! Okay, don't worry; I'll walk with you! Hey, you guys!" Kirishima went to explain to the others.

Shirayuki was not left alone for long. Soon enough, Bakugou was storming over to her with a really irritated expression on his face and an embarrassingly cute kitten plush toy clenched in his fist. He shoved it into her arms, his cheeks dusted with red as he glared down at the girl. She stared up at him with wide, crimson eyes and realized that the game he was playing earlier had to have been a crane game. "…ah…um…Bakugou-kun…?"

"I blew a lot of tokens on that damn game so you'd better like that stupid thing, got it?! Put it on your bed or whatever." He quickly turned away, a scowl firmly in place.

"…th-thank you…it's so cute…"

"Look. After that crap that old hag put you through…whatever. Not like I care." Bakugou seemed to be struggling to find a reason for why he was giving her this gift and finally just blurted one out. "This is a reward, got it? Next time you stick up for yourself and raise your voice, I'll give you another one. Got it?! And if you yell, I'll make it something extra good!"

"…okay…?" Shirayuki bowed a little. "…thank you, Bakugou-kun…" It was a little confusing, but she was not about to turn down the gift. The stuffed animal really was adorable and she was excited to add it to her collection. He knows…and he's trying to cheer me up, she realized as he walked away to join the others.

Shift P.O.V

Staring up at the ceiling of his room, he frowned. Shinsou wanted to ask her if she was busy the next day. He wanted to spend their day off together. He wanted to see her and talk about the sports festival. However, he knew she was with her friends and they probably had plans for the next day.

I'll just have to wait my turn, he thought with a hint of bitterness. Of course he regretted ending their romantic relationship. After all, he liked her a lot. He had developed a crush on her in their last year of middle school and the more time he spent with Shirayuki, the more he liked her.

As he closed his eyes, he tried to think of something he could do. Something fun they could do together that would be something friends do. Nothing romantic. He was afraid that if it went down that road, he might be unable to stop himself from trying to take it further. They were still young, they had been together for such a short time. He knew that rushing things would ruin any relationship that they had and he wanted to keep her in his life.

Shift P.O.V

"So…is there a hero agency you really want to work for?"

Shirayuki was nervously fidgeting with her hairband again, walking with her head down. "…I haven't really…thought about that…um…I'd be happy to work for the same agency my father worked for, but…I-I guess I'd just count myself lucky to be picked by any hero agency…" She glanced over at Kirishima. "…do you…have an agency you want to work for…?"

He had been walking alongside her with his arms crossed behind his head, looking up at the stars dotting the evening sky. Now he grinned and looked over at her. "I want to be a hero like Crimson Riot! So any agency that can get me close to that goal!"

"…Crimson Riot…" She had heard of the hero, of course. "…that would be cool…" she admitted. Turning to look at her friend fully, Shirayuki smiled behind her mask. "…Kirishima-kun…your quirk is really powerful and…you're always trying so hard…I know you can reach your goal…you'll be…such an amazing hero…!"

The boy flushed almost as red as his hair for a second and turned his head to the side, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Yuki-chan, come on! You don't have to humor me; I know I'm a ways off from my goal."

"I…mean it." For the second time that day, she forced herself to speak louder and clearer. She even tugged her mask down to show how serious she was. "You're...already an amazing friend. I just know you're going to be an amazing hero!"

His eyes widened and he smiled. It was a sheepish sort of smile at first, as if he was suppressing it, but then it bloomed into pure joy. "Well if you say it, I've got to believe it, huh? Thanks, Yuki-chan." Kirishima hesitated for a second and then stepped closer, reaching out to take her hand. "That's one of the things I like best about you; you're always so sweet."

Warmth heated her face as she used her free hand to put her mask over her nose and mouth again. "…I'm just…telling the truth though…"

"You're going with us tomorrow, right? We're going to that movie. Are you okay with horror movies? I can tell them we should see something else if you'e too scared."

Crimson eyes blinked slowly, meeting his gaze. "…Kirishima-kun, you're…so chivalrous…" This seemed to make him even happier as he beamed. "…um…h-horror movies are okay…I need to be brave so…and with my friends there…it's less scary…"