Fat Gum was trying his best. Doing everything he could think of to try to make her feel better. If he saw Shirayuki starting to look down, he'd bring up a topic he thought she'd like. Really, he wanted to take her mind off of the tragedy she'd suffered.
"Yuki, you want to stay out a little longer with Tamaki and Mirio? I can take care of feeding the cats tonight, if you want." The hero gave her a wide smile and patted her on the back, standing outside of the restaurant. "It's a pretty nice night! It'd be a shame for you to just go home again!"
"Oh, yeah! That's a great idea!" Togata slung an arm around Amajiki's shoulders and beamed back at the hero. "What do you think? Tamaki? Yuki? You guys want to keep hanging out for a while?"
Amajiki lowered his head. "I…I wanted to go home, but…I can stay out if Yuki wants to." He lifted his dark eyes and met the girl's shy, red glance.
Hanging out…? She fidgeted with the mask wrapped around her wrist and looked from Fat Gum to the two boys. Shirayuki had wanted to ask Fat Gum more about the investigation regarding her grandmother's death. She'd wanted to talk to Kirishima more about the plan to rescue Bakugou.
If she went with them to rescue him, she could find the League of Villains and try to get information. She needed closure and somewhere beneath the grief, a burning hatred was starting to take form. She'd noticed it, but tried not to acknowledge it. This increasing desire to hurt whoever killed her grandmother.
"Yuki? Hey, are you okay?" Fat Gum put a hand on her shoulder and frowned. "It's okay if you're not feeling up to it. I just thought-"
"N-no! I…um…" She took a deep breath, determined to push herself and talk louder. Be braver. The girl looked up at him and she gave a nod. "I-I want to do it. I want to…hang out with Tamaki and Togata-senpai."
"That's the spirit! We'll have fun! I promise!" The blond boy walked forward and put his free arm around Shirayuki, pulling Amajiki with him. He looked to her guardian and gave him a cheerful smile.
"M-Mirio, be careful," Amajiki mumbled.
They promised to make sure she got home safely and parted ways with the hero. Togata called Nejire to have her meet up with them while Amajiki and Shirayuki walked behind him. He happily chatted away with the girl over the phone as they made plans for what to do and where to go.
It was pretty crowded and Shirayuki still wasn't confident around strangers. She subconsciously moved a little closer to Amajiki and lowered her head. So many people. No one's…looking at me, are they? What if they are? What if I end up embarrassing my friends? This…this might've been a bad idea…
Someone's shoulder bumped into hers and the person whirled around to snap at her, but they didn't get the chance. Amajiki slipped between her and the stranger, glaring at them. They didn't take it further; just scowling around him at the girl and then walking off.
"A-are you okay?" He looked over his shoulder at her and his eyes widened when he saw her tears. "Yuki? Um…here." Turning so he could face her, both arms slipped around the girl and pulled her against his chest into a gentle hug. "Does that…does that feel better?"
I just…keep causing problems for everyone. She lifted trembling hands and grasped the fabric of his shirt. "…I'm…I'm sorry…"
"No. I-it's okay. Yuki, I just…I'm sorry." His arms pulled her even closer and he closed his eyes. "I…know you could've handled it, but I just…couldn't stand seeing that happen to you. I'm not good with words. I wish I was as confident as Mirio. I just…" Amajiki struggled to force himself to tell her what he was feeling.
Shirayuki could hear his heart beating; fast and erratic with panic. She could feel the soft exhale of a sigh against her hair when he bowed his head. "…Tamaki…"
He took a deep breath and pulled away enough that he could look down into her deep crimson eyes. A hot blush spread across his face and to the tips of his long, pointed ears. "I…I know you can take care of yourself," he started. "But I want to protect you. And I want to see you happy."
She blinked away tears and let go of his shirt so she could hug him back. I've been hurting everyone, haven't I? I just…keep making problems for everyone around me, but…everyone…no one's upset with me. Why? Why aren't they angry? Why does he…like me? Why does anyone-?
Shift P.O.V
Amajiki leaned down and brought his lips to hers very, very gently. Barely making contact until he was sure that she liked it. Then he couldn't help himself. Even with his blood pumping so fast he could feel it in his ears, he brought a hand to her cheek and his lips pressed closer against hers.
Expressing how much he liked her was difficult if he tried to use words. It felt like everything he wanted to say got caught in his throat and he just couldn't force himself to speak up. This was different, though. Hugging her, holding her hand, kissing her. These things made his heart skip and his face turn red, but he felt like these were easier ways to show her his feelings.
It hurt him to see her upset. She looked so sad and even more nervous than he felt. Even though he knew there wasn't much he could do, he still wanted to help her somehow. That's why he'd gone out that night, even though he normally would've just wanted to stay at home. It was worth the anxiety to be able to try to make her smile.
Amajiki closed his eyes and it felt like the rest of the world was falling away. In that moment, only he and Shirayuki existed; the crowds of people didn't matter. When he felt her kissing back, it made his pulse skip again. He just hoped that this made her feel as happy as he did.
"Awww! Tamaki, that's really cute!" Togata came up beside him, patting him on the back and making him stumble closer to the girl.
His fingers accidentally tangled into her long violet hair and tugged. Seeing her wince, his heart sank. "I-I'm sorry! Yuki, let me…" He tried to carefully get his fingers loose, but it was hard to keep concentrating. The blood was rushing to his face and he was getting increasingly embarrassed.
"…i-it's okay…um…" She lifted a hand to his and tried to help him. A bright red tint was spreading across her cheeks and the nervous way she bit her lip was making his heart pump faster and faster.
When her hair slid from between his fingers, a small sound came from the back of his throat before he could stop it. Just a tiny, almost whimper, of disappointment. He immediately looked away from Shirayuki and stammered a thank you.
"Okay! So Nejire said she'll meet us at this store nearby. Let's get going." Togata grabbed Shirayuki's hand, with complete nonchalance, and started to lead the way.
Amajiki couldn't help staring. Focusing his gaze on the way Togata's hand was holding Shirayuki's small, delicate one. Feeling a pang of jealousy in his chest, he immediately felt guilty afterwards and looked down at the ground. Mirio's…always so sunny and warm. He just doesn't want her to get lost. And he…can probably protect her better than I can. He could cheer her up better than I can, too.
A small, pale hand moved into his line of sight. He blinked in surprise and looked up to see Shirayuki blushing, holding out her free hand to him and glancing away in embarrassment. Amajiki accepted it and it was like an explosion of butterflies in his stomach. He couldn't help smiling.
Shift P.O.V
"Hey, Yuki?" The warm, sunny voice beside her startled the girl. Togata smiled and apologized for sneaking up on her, but his smile didn't last for long. "Are you doing okay? Fat Gum said you've been staying in your room a lot."
They were in a candy store, having met up with Nejire. The blue-haired girl was with Amajiki; picking out some sweets. Shirayuki was just staying in a less busy part of the store and watching them have fun from afar.
Honestly, she was thinking about it again. As much as she was enjoying herself with her upperclassmen, it kept forcing its way to the front of her mind. The tragedy. She couldn't stop thinking about it and the more she did, the more her stomach began to hurt.
When she saw Togata's smile fade to a concerned frown, she felt guilty for dwelling on it. "I-I'm fine," she forced out. "…um…I'm just…I'm sorry, Togata-senpai…but I keep thinking about my…my grandmother…and what happened…"
The blond boy leaned against the shelf beside her and continued to frown. "Yuki, I know it's tough. It's not something that should've happened. I mean, your grandma was an amazing lady. She didn't deserve…" Togata's eyebrows furrowed and he rubbed at the back of his neck. "Look, I'm worried about you. I'm really worried about you."
"I'm…fine, though." Her throat burned a little and Shirayuki could feel the swell of tears at the corners of her eyes. "I'm fine. I'm fine, I'm fine. I'm…" She didn't have to say anything else; an arm was wrapping around her and Togata was pulling her in for a hug.
"It's okay to not be okay. I haven't been okay, either."
A tightness formed in her chest because she'd forgotten. Togata was the one that'd found her grandmother. He couldn't be okay after that happened. She hugged back and closed her eyes. "I-I'm sorry."
"We can help each other through it, okay?" The hug and even his tone was gentle. "But, really, I want to make sure you don't do something dangerous, Yuki. I don't want you to try to find the person that did it. Promise me you won't do that."
"…what…?" She pulled away a little and looked at her upperclassman. Togata usually had such a bright, cheery look on his face, but his expression right then was serious.
"Nothing good would come of it. Okay? Promise me you're not going to try to find them." He was holding her shoulders and staring down at her intensely.
"…a-alright…" Shirayuki felt a sickening mix of guilt, shame, and grief. The idea of whoever killed her grandmother possibly escaping justice made her sick to her stomach, but it was clear just how worried Togata was.
"Okay! I'm going to go pick out a candy mix just for you! Wait here!"
She watched him join Amajiki and Nejire, who listened to him ecstatically announce his plan. The blue-haired girl smiled and was excited to help. Amajiki glanced toward Shirayuki to make sure she was okay on her own and she gave him a small wave to reassure him.
I can…handle being alone. I can handle this, she told herself. Togata-senpai is right. I shouldn't…try to get revenge or…catch that person myself. But I need to know why it happened. And…Sayuri-chan and her daughter. Where are they?
A prickly feeling began along her spine and she shivered. She knew this feeling. Like when Bakugou used to glare at the back of her head during class. The girl looked around to try to see who was watching her, her pulse racing. That was when her gaze fell on the sharp turquoise eyes watching her from near the entrance.
The figure was wearing the hood up on their jacket and a medical mask to conceal the lower half of his face. He was looking at Shirayuki from over the rim of a pair of dark sunglasses. The unmistakable purplish patches below his eyes immediately confirmed it; this was Dabi.
She thought she knew what she'd ask him if she saw him again. She thought she knew how she'd react to this. Instead, she stood numbly in place as the villain cocked his head to the side ever so slightly and curled a finger to beckon to her.
This was it. Shirayuki had wanted to find him so she could get answers about what happened to her grandmother, as well as where Sayuri and the little girl were. Now, instead of feeling confident, she was starting to tremble.