"You've got a pretty big appetite today, Yuki! Did you get to help Tamaki this afternoon? He said you were going to visit Fat Gum after school." Togata gave her a smile when she lifted her gaze from her food and saw the girl's face gradually turn a vibrant shade of pink.
"…um…n-no, I…couldn't help since I don't have my license yet…I just…I-I eat a lot…when I get worried…" she confessed. Shirayuki slouched in her seat, the pace of her eating slowing down as she became self-conscious. She was already on her fourth serving of curry with rice and she had barely even noticed how much food she was going through.
Beside her, Amajiki frowned and slouched as well. "I-it's okay, though," he tried to reassure her.
"Do you want to talk about what happened? Tamaki, you sounded kind of panicky when you called me."
"It's…not really my place to say."
The girl set down her spoon with a trembling hand and bowed her head so her dark violet hair was hiding her expression. "…m-my mother…she was waiting at my house and…I-I'm not really…on good terms with her…Togata-sempai, I…live with my grandmother…and…my mother has been t-trying to…set me up with someone…like a quirk marriage…"
"Huh? I didn't think people still did stuff like that! That's pretty outdated!" Togata leaned forward a little so he could hear her better in the crowded restaurant. His smile had faded to a concerned frown and the boy glanced over at Amajiki. "So you guys just left?"
"S-someone else was there, talking to her mother…um…I don't know who that was, though." Amajiki lowered his head, staring down at his empty plate.
"Why don't we walk with you back home, Yuki? You still have to go home; you don't want your grandma to worry about you. But if Tamaki and I are with you, we can be like your bodyguards. Will that make you feel a little better?"
She nodded, but still kept her head bowed a little. After finishing her fourth serving of curry with rice, she began the walk home with her friends. Guilt settled in her stomach like a rock. She knew they both lived in the dorms at school so they were going out of their way to try to make her feel safer. I'll…have to make them something, she decided. And Nejire-san, too. I'll make cookies or…something else that's good.
"So what did you do this afternoon? You went to visit Fat Gum, but you couldn't really patrol, right?" Togata was walking beside Shirayuki with Amajiki trudging behind them.
"…I…um…w-well I walked with them…when they went to patrol…"
"Really?" He glanced over his shoulder and frowned slightly. Togata slowed his steps and nudged Amajiki between himself and Shirayuki. "So did you guys talk about anything?"
"F-Fat Gum told us stories about Calorie Bomb," Amajiki contributed. His face was rapidly turning pink and he shoved his hands into his pockets, his head down to try to hide his expression. "And...Y-Yuki has her summer break coming up, after her exam."
"So did you guys make plans?"
"Wh-what?! No…uh…Mirio, we didn't exactly-"
"I think it would be fun to go to the beach! Do you like the ocean, Yuki?"
The closer they got to her house, the more anxious she felt. Shirayuki only felt relief when she saw that her mother's car was gone. A sigh of relief escaped her, muffled by her mask. At least Hikari-san isn't there. But…I'm still worried. What if she comes back? What if she comes up to me outside of the school like after the sports festival?
The three students stopped in front of the door to her house and Shirayuki was about to thank them for walking her home when the door opened. The pale-haired woman from earlier was standing there and she smiled kindly when she saw the teenagers. Now that she was closer, she did look sort of familiar to Shirayuki.
There was something different about her now, though. The woman's left eye had been blackened, her left cheek looked a little puffy, and there were fingernail scratches along her right arm. Nonetheless, she still wore that smile. "Hey, Ume! Welcome home."
"Hi! You must be Yuki's big sister, right?" Togata greeted the woman with no hesitation and approached her.
"Second cousin," the woman corrected him. She ran her fingers along a strand of long pale hair and gave a small nod of greeting to him and Amajiki. "Naosu Sayuri. It's great to meet you both. I was hoping I'd get to meet some of Ume's friends."
"…ah…S-Sayuri-chan…?" Shirayuki vaguely remembered having an older cousin. The last time she had seen her was before her father had died so it had been years. She had been a little kid back then. "…is Grandma…?"
"Auntie Sumire's fine! Sorry; this probably looks bad. I'm just…staying the night to fend off Hikari, pretty much." She gestured at her facial bruises and gave Shirayuki a sheepish half-grin. "If you've ever wondered what it looks like when someone with a defensive quirk fights someone with a healing quirk…well, this is it. That was the lamest slap fight anyone's probably ever seen."
Shirayuki took a moment to thank Amajiki and Togata for walking her home before she followed her cousin inside. Her grandmother greeted her with a hug. She seemed worried, but looked like she was alright at least. It was worrying after seeing what her mother did to her cousin. Although she had to wonder what kind of state her mother was in after the fight.
Years had passed since Shirayuki had last seen her cousin Sayuri so she was curious about how her life had turned out. Sayuri had a powerful healing quirk that allowed her to take other people's injuries herself or give them to a different person. From the multitude of scars on her arms and the deep scar on her collarbone, it was obvious she used her quirk pretty often.
Apparently she had become a kindergarten teacher. She was currently living with her boyfriend, who she even took the time to call before she went to sleep, and she seemed to be pretty happy with her life. When she asked Shirayuki if she was dating anyone, the teenager went red and slouched a little.
"You know…boys come and go," Sayuri explained. "But friendships can last a long time. Fuyumi and I have been best friends for years. We're always there for each other and…there are just some things you can tell your friends that you can't tell anyone else. Friendship is important. It gives you support and stability. I'm not saying you shouldn't date, but there's nothing wrong with just being friends."
These words stuck with Shirayuki and she was thinking about this while she was walking to school with Shinsou the next morning. They were both silent; lost in thought about the upcoming classes. She fidgeted with the hairband on her wrist and slowly looked over at the indigo-haired boy. "…Shinsou…?"
"Yeah?" He turned his head to look at her and met the girl's crimson gaze directly for just a second before she looked away. Seeing the warm pinkish tint taking over her face, a faint smile made his lips draw up at the corners.
"…we're…we're still friends…aren't we…?"
"Yeah." Shinsou seemed to come to a conclusion about why she was asking and his smile fell to a slight grimace. "After we graduate, maybe-"
"No, I…I mean…I just…um…w-wanted to make sure we're still friends…because you're…you're the first friend I've ever had…and I don't…I don't want to lose you…if we start to drift apart during high school…" She felt a warm hand settle on her shoulder and glanced up at him.
Shinsou leaned down a little so his face was a few inches above her, his eyes showing concern. "That won't happen. We'll always be friends," he assured her.
Smiling behind her mask, she gave a nod of agreement. "…I-I'm glad…"
They began walking again and now that the silence between them had been broken, Shinsou had to ask a question that seemed to have been bothering him. "Who was that woman that came out of your house before you? She had scars on her arms…"
"…my cousin…um…Sayuri-chan…she was staying overnight…in case my mother came to the house again…sh-she got in a fight with her yesterday…"
"A fight? Like an actual fight?" He saw her nod and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you okay with that?"
Shirayuki's steps slowed a little as she considered this question. Am I okay with it? Hikari-san…really isn't much of a mother. She was out of my life for so long and then…came back to try to force me into a quirk marriage. Sayuri-chan seemed so angry about it…like she knows what this feels like.
Tightening her hold on her bag, she gave a small nod. "Sayuri-chan…did what she thought was best…and…she stood up to Hikari-san," she replied, forcing herself to be more confident. "And…I need to be as strong as Sayuri-chan…and stand up for myself and my grandma the next time Hikari-san bothers us."
Her confidence remained intact until she got to school. Shirayuki walked to her classroom with her head bowed, fidgeting with her hairband again. It felt good to feel confident. She was sure this was how a hero should feel. Now that her confidence was dwindling, she felt self-conscious and unsure of herself. She kept her head down to avoid eye contact with the other students and bit the inside of her cheek behind her mask.
I need to be stronger than this. I feel…like I'm shrinking in on myself. Why can't I stay confident around other people? How can I…ever be a hero…if I get like this around crowds? Tears of frustration started to form at the corners of her eyes, threatening to run down her face and soak into her mask.
"Oh, sweet! Is that a new mask? That looks pretty cute, Yuki-chan!" The call came from up ahead, down the hallway. Quick footsteps approached her and when she looked up from the floor, she was met with Kaminari's smiling face. "Want to walk to class together?"
"…okay…" She tilted her head slightly, a little confused. He usually showed up for class after her. "…you're…early today…"
"Yeah. I woke up super early and couldn't get back to sleep. I bet I've got bags under my eyes today," he remarked. "What about you? Do you like sleeping in or getting up early? You seem like an early bird, Yuki-chan."
"…actually…it's…it's kind of silly, but…I do wish I could sleep in more often…"
"Same here! That's what I love about days off; I could sleep in until noon if I didn't have stuff to do and stay up as late as I want. All the best shows are on pretty late anyway and it's kind of a pain to have to record them for later, right?"
"…ah…I just like it because…everything is calmer at night…it's quieter…"
"What?!" He raised an eyebrow, pondering this for a moment before he grinned. "Well, you've got a point. If you don't go out and do stuff, it's quieter. So you've probably never stayed out late doing karaoke, have you?" Seeing her shake her head, his grin grew. "We need to go at least once, Yuki-chan. You'll see. It's a lot of fun!"
They talked about karaoke for a while; mostly just Kaminari telling her how enjoyable it could be and trying to persuade her to go with him and the others. When they got to the classroom, he split away from her to talk to Sero and Shirayuki went to her desk. She got her textbook out for their first class and then rummaged in her bag for a book to read until class started.
Karaoke...with friends. Again, she thought of what her cousin had told her about how important friendships were. Friends…do things for each other. Whenever I'm feeling sad, my friends do things to try to cheer me up. I need to make more of an effort to try new things so I can do them with my friends.
"Hey, Ume! Quit spacing off! I'm talking to you!" A sharp kick to one of the back legs of her chair jolted the girl out of her thoughts. Bakugou leaned forward, gripping a strand of her dark violet hair and giving it a small tug to draw her attention to him. "What're you doing after school?"
"…ah…I'm…just going home…why do you…?" She half-turned to look at him, cautious not to cause any of her hair to be pulled out.
"I've gotta run some errands for that old hag. If you're not doing anything, you should go with me. I need stuff for Slasher anyway and you know about cats."
Now that she knew his cat was involved, she gave a small nod. "…ah…okay…b-but I need to…go home first…"
"Fine. I'll come get you when I'm ready." He was still holding the strand of her hair, staring back at her with narrowed crimson eyes for a long moment. Finally, the corner of his mouth twitched up into a smirk. "It's a date, got it?"
"…w-wait…what…?" Her hair was released and Shirayuki stared for a moment longer, trying to process what he just said. A date…? A date? No. We're not…dating, though. But no matter how many times I tell him that, he keeps insisting we are.
"Yuki! Morning!" Kirishima approached the side of her desk and flashed a grin at her as well as the boy behind her. "Morning, Bakugou."
"…good morning, Kirishima…" She lifted her head and smiled behind her mask, unable to keep frowning after seeing his cheerful expression. Though her smile was hidden, her eyes crinkled at the corners to show she was smiling.
"Quit being so friendly with my girl, shitty hair," their classmate grumbled.
"That might be kind of hard since we're best friends."