Chapter Four: Would You Be My Little Quarantine

By the next morning, Momo was overwhelmed in a second wave of emotional exhaustion. Even the morning light saw no reaction or response from Shoto. Further attempts to text and call him remained fruitless and even her messages to Midoriya and Ochako went far too long unanswered.

The whole morning was as stressful as the night before. She made tea, took one sip, looked at the breakfast Chef had left her, and walked right back out of the kitchen, before she threw it all back up.

The following few hours went by in this haze of anxiety marking the longest hours of her life.

When the phone rang she nearly had a heart attack, but it sank right down in her chest when she realized it was just Midoriya. She answered anyway, hopeful that he would have good news for her.

"Hey, Yaomomo."

"Did he say something?" she asked louder than necessary, not even coherent enough to find it strange that Midoriya had called her rather than Ochako.

"No, but I think I know why," Midoriya was frowning through the phone, "I keep going straight to voicemail when I call him, so his phone must be turned off."

"So, he's not answering because he just hasn't seen any messages," Momo felt a touch of relief. "I don't know if that's worse or better."

"I don't know either," Midoriya replied, "Why would he turn off his phone?"

Momo's lips curled in and she bit down while she paced the hallway. That was a very good point and started to create larger and wilder concerns that her currently irrational mind couldn't handle considering.

"You said there was nothing on the news yesterday," Momo fisted her fingers in her slept-on hair, "Has anything changed since this morning? Maybe it was too early and the news hadn't reported anything yet."

"I don't think it's anything like that," Midoriya said quickly, sensing her tone getting panicked, "I'm sure there would be a bigger public reaction if the No. 1 Hero and his family were under some sort of attack, especially during a pandemic."

"What if it's because of the pandemic that we haven't heard anything?" Momo was aware that she was only building her own stress up, but she had to consider the possibilities.

"They're still reporting normal news too, not just stuff about-" Midoriya was cut off by the door chime stealing Momo's attention from his attempts to calm her.

"Someone's at the door," she said, moving towards the front of the house without thinking.

"In a quarantine?" Midoriya asked.

Momo's heart skipped a beat, first with uncertainty and then in thrill when she realized. "Maybe it's my parents!"

Taking off in a run, her face lit up with relief, praying she'd finally see the faces she had missed so much these last weeks. Midoriya's words were tuned out by her excitement as she reached for the doorknob, her illusion not broken until she'd already started opening it.

"Wait, why would your parents be ringing their own doorbell?"

Momo froze in the open doorway, phone still to her ear, eyes wide and heart in her throat, everything Midoriya said fading out as soon as it had faded in.

The mask and sunglasses hid most of his face, an adequate disguise up until she saw his unmistakable hair slipping out of his baseball cap, giving him away effortlessly.

"Shoto?" her hand dropped to her side, leaving Midoriya to talk into the air.

No one moved, shock like static, as a lump lodged like a rock in her throat and a buzzing in her head overtook what were supposed to be thoughts.

The sunglasses came away from his face and the mask pushed down under his chin as Shoto hung about six feet from the doorway. His mouth was turned down as he stared at her, stance squared and regal as ever, but lacking his usual confidence.

Momo's mouth gaped and flapped in a search for words.

"Wha-uh...what are... how did you...?"

His voice was clear and strong when he responded, and her chest tightened to hear it in person.

"I didn't think it was a good idea for you to be by yourself and I was worried that if we weren't able to see each other for another month or more you wouldn't want to be with me."

"So...you came all the way across town during a lockdown?" Momo's eyes batted in amazement and confusion.

"I was very safe!" he said quickly, shifting on the balls of his feet on the front step, "I didn't take public transport and I stayed a generous distance from everyone I came in contact with. I wore a mask the entire walk here, I wore gloves, and I can sanitize everything on me. And neither of us have seen anyone since quarantine began, so I haven't been otherwise exposed and I'll do a total two week quarantine afterwards to be certain that no one else is exposed. I wouldn't have come if I thought I would be risking your health or safety. But if you don't want to let me in, I'll understand and go home."

Momo's inhale came in shaky with a tear rolling down her cheek. She had so many questions and so much she wanted to say and do; she wanted to scream for joy and leap into his arms, but also scold him for once again blatantly breaking important rules, and then possibly just break down into a puddle of tears in this double doorway. But in the end all she could even think was how amazing it was to see another human face. Especially this face.

He'd walked a long way too, without the assistance of transportation, all to stand at her door because he thought she needed him there. And after all that he was still willing to make the same long trek back without complaint if that's what she wanted him to do. If ever she had seen a romantic gesture this had just blown it out of the water.

A scowl followed his face down when his head dropped forward. "I've upset you again, I'm sorry."

"Oh my, no!" she shouted almost lunging out of the doorway before she caught herself, "I... You didn't have to do this, Shoto. I'm just crying because I'm really moved."

The back of her hand brushed away her tears, sniffling as she smiled at him like she was watching stars.

"I thought you were livid with me when I saw that your phone was off and that you weren't answering messages," she swallowed, "I was trying to call to apologize. I even had Midoriya and Ochako try to- Oh!"

The phone swept up to her eyeline, the screen still alive with an active call. She went beat red.

Momo spun away from the Shoto and put the phone to her ear again, sputtering as she tried to explain.

"Oh Midoriya, I'm so sorry I-"

"It's fine!" he laughed, his pleasant nature bright in his voice, "Just don't turn him away!"

Momo was so embarrassed she could have cried. He'd heard all that?

Her stomach fluttered and she bit her cheek. "You think it's a good idea considering the situation?"

"The last people we all saw before quarantine were each other," he smiled through his words, "And it's been over a week and no one has come down with it. Plus I don't think Todoroki would do something like this unless he was certain you'd be safe."

Dark brown eyes turned back to Shoto as she wrapped an arm around her middle, considering what she should do. Of course it wasn't protocol to let him hang out at her house, but the idea of sending him away was worse than any risk of catching some virus. She really wasn't entirely herself when it came to Shoto, not the rule abiding, cool headed aristocrat that she was raised to be. That's how she'd gotten herself into that situation at Kamino Ward too, one passionate redhead and one moving plea from someone who emotionally compromised her later and she was on a train.

"Thank you, Midoriya, and thank Ochako for me too," she said and offered a quick goodbye.

Her heart did a flip when she turned back to the boy waiting patiently for her to either invite him in or send him away. It was hard to sound firm when she was so excited, but this had to be taken seriously.

"Okay, you can stay, but we have to be safe and follow every protocol we can. I'm going to send the rest of the house staff home so there's no risk of exposure. Upstairs, the first door on the left is a shower, please go straight there and wash, then we can sanitize everything you have on you. I'm sure I can find something in my father's room that you can change into until we get everything cleaned. Take off the gloves, leave them on the doorstep and don't touch anything until you get to the bathroom."

Quick to agree to all of her conditions, he took off his shoes and carefully pulled the dark gloves from his hands, without touching their surfaces and left them on the ground by his feet.

Giving him a wide berth, Momo backed entirely away from the door when he entered. He didn't dally any step of the way, though they exchanged stares as they passed one another, her insides doing barrel rolls that Todoroki Shoto had just passed the threshold to her home.

She fought against her need to absolutely freak out until she heard the bathroom door click shut and then Momo immediately muffled a scream into her hands. It took a second for her to get her bearings and calm her excitement enough to act, but when she did she ran first to the kitchen to throw on water for tea and send a message out to all of the staff still in the house.

Finding all of them would be a chore on any given day so their home had a messaging system for communicating quickly with the staff. She didn't explain about Shoto being there, but she requested that they all leave immediately for the day and told them that there would be no gap in pay.

Catching a glimpse of herself in a mirror on her way back upstairs, Momo realized she looked a sleep deprived mess and decided it needed to be rectified before going on her search for something that Shoto could wear.

It was a quick fix, Momo putting her hair through a brief combing then changed her clothes into something still loungy but fresh. She dabbed a touch of concealer under her eyes to hide her exhaustion and brightened her cheeks to look like her usually composed self.

In her father's room there was a limited selection, but a few different clothing items to choose from for Shoto's purposes. Most of them were clothes her father refused to accept he had put on a few too many pounds to continue wearing, but even still were likely too big for Shoto. It was only temporary so they would have to do.

The water shut off as she knocked on the bathroom door and a moment later it cracked open to a gray eye peering through the slit.

Everything about this situation made her head reel, cheeks flushing to tomato red, face turning away and eyes closing as she held out the clothes to him.

"Here," she said, "I'm sorry if they don't fit. I don't have any brothers so there aren't any boy clothes just lying around besides my father's."

His hand brushed hers when he took the bundle, still damp from the shower.

"Thank you," his deep voice resonated in the wide empty hall and she glanced back as the door snapped shut.

When he'd finally changed and the door opened again, a waft of steam followed Shoto out. The clothes fit very awkwardly, but not as badly as she'd imagined. He seemed a bit taller than she remembered; possibly bulkier? Had two weeks training with Endeavor done all that? He didn't look like he favored Endeavor's physique at a glance, but give him a few years...

Shoto caught onto her wide eyed stare and looked over himself in bewilderment, trying to find the problem.

"Is there something wrong?" he kept searching.

"No!" she flung her arms in front of herself to dissuade the idea, "I was just, um… I noticed… You look like you've grown."

An awkward shift and a stiff nod were his only response. She cringed that she'd said it out loud.

"Ahem, yes, well, let's get your clothes washed and sanitize everything else," she moved to action, rejecting her fascination with a shake of her head.

"Wait, Momo, I-" he stopped her, but cut himself off, bringing short and uncomfortable silence between them.

"Let's finish cleaning up first," she grit her teeth, sheepishly, "There's a lot both of us want to say, but I want to be sure we've been completely safe first."

Shoto trapped the rest of what he was going to say in the back of his throat and gave a sharp nod.

Wordlessly the two set to a search through the mansion for the cleaning supplies. It was embarrassing to admit she had no idea where those things were kept in her own home, but she'd never needed to know until now. Unlike at the dorms, she'd never had to clean anything at home before and even when they finally found the supplies stashed away in the laundry room, she was entirely uncertain of what to do with what she did find. Luckily Shoto had a better idea of what to do with everything and directed her to the appropriate cleaning items.

Putting on masks and gloves they set off to the bathroom with enough disinfectant in hand to bleach the entire house.

Outside of brief instruction from Shoto, silence remained the outlier while they scrubbed down and disinfected every surface imaginable in the spacious restroom. Shoto gathered up all of his clothes into a bag and retrieved the items he'd left at the doorstep and, after every surface was cleaned, he disinfected his sunglasses and phone.

Some of the awkward silence finally abated by the time they made it back to the laundry room and began pondering together the intricacies of how a washing machine worked. Having a common point of misunderstanding was actually helping things feel more natural between them.

"Can you wash shoes?" Momo stared at the load they had thrown into the machine and his sneakers that had landed on top of the pile.

Shoto narrowed his eyes at it. "I don't see why not."

He poured out a capful and they locked uncertain eyes.

"You think that's too much?" Momo asked.

"Is it possible to use too much soap?" his brow pulled together at the cap.

"It says it's detergent, so maybe it isn't even soap. Maybe you can put too much. How do people just know this stuff?"

The level of fear in the room mounted uncomfortably, but before either could freak out Momo noticed the instructions on the back of the detergent bottle. Even after reading it thoroughly the half cap of detergent they added was poured into the tray hesitantly.

Just as that debacle ended, the shriek of the forgotten tea kettle swept in to take its place. Momo sent Shoto to wait for her in the nearest living room and dashed to the kitchen to handle the screaming of the boiling water and prepare tea for them.

Being alone in the kitchen let every ounce of nervous energy resurface and she gathered the teacups with shaking hands. She knew they needed to talk about what had happened yesterday and for her part she had quite the apology to make . Hopefully the tea would serve to buffer the uncomfortable conversation that was to follow.

Preparing a serving cart with a green leaf tea and some tea biscuits that Chef had made that morning, she joined up with Shoto in the living room.

She found him staring up at the paintings on the walls; a few old portraits of her parents in their youth looking rather dashing if not a bit pompous. Shoto acknowledged her entrance with a brief glance as she set the tea tray beside the couch and he went back to assessing the picture of her mother.

"I made tea," she gave the back of his head a smile and began preparing two cups of tea.

Another moment of observation passed before he pulled himself away and took the offered teacup with a grateful nod, sitting beside her with a forearms distance between them.

"Those paintings are very nice," he commented, "Your mother is very beautiful. You look a lot like her."

Momo almost choked on her tea. Instead she burned the tip of her tongue.

"Thank you…" she couldn't look him in the face, "Those paintings are kind of old, though. That one of her was from when she was much younger. She doesn't look quite like that anymore."

"Oh," he said shortly and sipped his tea, the temperature was no concern to him.

Momo followed the motion, trying not to burn herself this time, before turning to face him to say what she needed to. Her cup rested against her lap and her fingers skimmed it's rim while she mustered up the courage to speak.

"Shoto," she got his attention easily, "I need to apologize."

"For what?" He spoke like he really didn't know.

"Well, for acting so irrational and immature yesterday," Momo stared at her tea, heat rising in her cheeks, "I said things I didn't mean and then I worried you unnecessarily. Of all things I made you think that I wouldn't even be with you if you didn't sneak across town to see me. I feel terrible for that."

"I came because I wanted to, you don't have to apologize. I'm sure being by yourself hasn't been easy."

Momo squirmed uncomfortably. "You really didn't have to do this, though."

"If you don't want me here, I can still go home," Shoto's seat shifted nervously.

Her heart jumped in her chest, terrified that he might have actually misunderstood her and that he really might try to leave.

"No!"

Momo's hand jerked out and took his without thinking, shocking them both to momentary stillness. Hers seemed so small in comparison and his skin was rougher than she expected by just looking at it. Years and years of training, building calluses, breaking and resewing muscle and these strong hands were the result. They were imperfect, but she was thrilled to find not everything about him was as seamless as it appeared. It made her feel less diminished to be with him to know there were flaws.

Settling back a bit, he watched her intently, careful not to move his hand from its position against hers.

"I'm so glad you're here," she smiled broadly, finally building up the courage to meet his eyes, "This is… Well, it's exactly the thing I've been wanting. But I can't help feeling guilty that you're only here because I freaked you out."

"It was concerning," he admitted, shrugging one shoulder, "You didn't seem like yourself. But you don't need to feel guilty about me coming here. I wanted to see you in person… And I wanted to get away from my family for a while. I turned off my phone so they couldn't track my location or call me."

Momo nodded understanding before her expression plummeted into near panic. "Oh my… Are you going to be in trouble with Endeavor? Won't he be mad when he realizes you're gone?"

Shoto nodded with an affirmative noise. "Most likely."

"You're okay with that?" Momo was squeamish about getting involved in this rivalry Shoto had with his father.

But he shrugged it off as if it was nothing, no fear of the inevitable.

Not sure what else to say about that, Momo tried to shift out of the topic by taking another sip of tea and Shoto did the same. Their hands separated to hold their cups properly as the space filled with a calming aroma and the warm liquid hit their bellies.

The pregnant pause ended when Shoto continued his previous thought.

"I don't know if I was wrong to come here, but I felt like I should. It would have been wrong to leave you alone with no end in sight. As Kirishima might say, it wouldn't be very manly."

Momo chuckled fondly.

"I wasn't sure if you wanted to see me after what you said yesterday, but it was a risk I was willing to take. I was…" he hesitated, a quick side glance gauging her reaction, "I was worried about you."

Her insides melted like butter, her hands squeezing her cup over how deep the gooey feeling ran. It wasn't that she wanted him or anyone else to worry about her wellbeing, in fact it dredged up a hundred horrible insecurities she battled weekly since starting at UA. But there was something so devastatingly sweet about his concern; it was so genuine, so pure.

"I really appreciate that, but I don't want you to worry about me," Momo played a finger in fallen hair, "My parents will get to come home eventually, so it's not like it would have been forever. I'm sure I would have been… I'm sure..."

Her excuses had already been disproved and she couldn't verbally get out any more of them knowing that. Obviously, she wasn't fine and obviously nothing about this situation had been handled well at all.

It took an incredible effort to push down her pride and cut herself off, to simply accept that his concern had basis.

"Thank you, Shoto," she looked entirely away from him, embarrassed by her own shortcomings, "I'm still really sorry about all of this, but I'm really, really happy you're here. I don't like being the one that needs help, but if I have to be I'm glad it's you that came to my rescue from this dreadful quiet and these encroaching walls."

"There's no shame in needing help sometimes. That's why we do so much team building at UA. We're stronger together than alone." A fond look glinted in his eye and what was almost a smile angled towards her, "Back when we had to fight Aizawa-sensei during the exam I tried to do everything myself and we nearly failed because of it. We only passed because we followed your plan and worked together. Even then you knew we worked better together than alone."

Momo flushed and then gave a small giggle when she swayed to nudge his shoulder. "Well at least I wasn't the damsel in distress that day..."

He made a face; a subtle, but displeased one. It was incredibly cute and it was nice to see him a little defensive rather than just passive.

"I wasn't a damsel in distress," he countered, eyeing his tea, "We were outmatched by a pro."

Momo shifted a little closer to him and stopped further commentary on that. It didn't seem fair to continue teasing him after he'd come running to her rescue today.

"I don't suppose any of us are very keen on the idea of being rescued, are we? All of our classmates are like that too. Everyone wants to stand on their own two feet and sometimes it's hard to rely on others because of it."

Memories of Kamino Ward took prominence at the words. Memories of Midoriya having to almost manipulate Bakugo into allowing himself to be rescued because his pride wouldn't allow it. They all thought of Bakugo as the most proud and obtuse of their class, but he was just a lot more forward with things many of them already felt and Momo couldn't help that she respected it to some degree. Of course refusing rescue when it was obviously necessary was plain stupid, but if she were as bold and unabashed as him she can't imagine she would have felt any more keen on the idea of it.

"I guess that's what drives us to want to be heroes," Shoto replied thoughtfully, "We want to be the rescuers, not the rescued."

An agreeable nod passed in the following silence and it left Momo to reel back towards the start of the conversation again.

"Are you sure you aren't upset with me for what I said?"

She'd finished her tea now and set the cup back on the tray, able to give him her full attention. He finished his last sip and set it down beside hers before answering.

"I don't see what there is to be upset about," he shrugged, "As long as you're fine now."

Momo smiled gratefully up at him. There was no pretense to the things he said or did, no passive aggressiveness or guilt. He was always genuine, even to the point where he didn't quite have a filter.

"Well I'm still kind of in shock," she chewed her cheek, "But it's a good shock. I think I'm going to be just fine. And, if you're okay with it, I'd like to just put this whole thing behind us."

A firm nod confirmed it and relief ripped through her with the release of a pent up breath, which was immediately followed by a gust of newfound energy. With her fears subsided, Momo was finally able to access the pure excitement of him being here without the constant worry that he might still be resentful towards her.

Butterflies burst from her stomach up through her chest as she clapped her hands to her thighs. "Perfect!" she exclaimed, leaping to her feet, ready to get into what the rest of this day would hold for them.

Shoto visibly startled at the sudden change in attitude and energy and got stuck in a frozen stare when she snagged his hand and pulled him up to his feet.

"There's so much I want to show you!"

Two Hours Later

"And that's the Billiard Room, where father plays pool and billiards with his friends. They like to smoke cigars together in here."

"I can tell," Shoto's nose crinkled before a tug on his arm had them moving again.

"And up ahead is-"

"Momo," He interrupted her ceaseless tirade, planting his feet and tugging her to a halt. A surprised stare turned back to him, searching for the problem.

"Your house is amazing, but it's very large. Are we almost at the end of the tour?"

Momo grimaced as she realized how much time had been spent pulling Shoto around the endless halls of her home and how exhausted he must be by it; true to his nature she wouldn't have guessed it by looking at him, though. They'd explored both kitchens, the sauna, the estate room, 3 living areas, the study, one of the lounges, the dance hall, the portrait hall, ten of the fifteen bedrooms and now the billiard room and there were at least ten more rooms they hadn't touched yet. Until then she hadn't thought anything of the long tour, but his comment brought light to how excessive all of this was.

A short laugh covered her clear embarrassment.

"Well yes, this is the last room I was going to show you," she hoped it sounded convincing and not like she was trying to hide that she had more than an hour of tour left if the backyard was to be included.

Relief washed over his face and he started past her to continue, without further fear that he would be going through this tour for the rest of the day. But they stopped mid stride once again, this time halted by Momo.

"Wait. Actually, not this one."

Realizing that this would be the last room she showed him, she didn't want it to just be another living area or bedroom. The end of their tour should be something fun or at least impressive.

"I want to show you something else," she tugged his hand, "Follow me."

"I already am," Shoto observed, trailing behind her, "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Momo beamed, hardly believing it had taken her this long to think of showing it to him.

At the end of the third story's main hall there was a small side door, almost entirely hidden, big enough for one person to fit through at a time. It opened to a tight staircase that wound upwards and the moment Shoto saw it she could tell his interest was piqued.

"What sort of mansion would this be without a secret door or a hidden staircase?" she giggled and started up the stairs, ducking at the entrance.

Shoto made a humming sound, perhaps it was amused or intrigued, she wasn't familiar enough with him yet to tell.

The stairs stopped at an overhead hatch with a simple lock, meant more to keep it closed during storms then to keep anyone in or out. She unlatched it easily and pushed upwards, grunting with the effort of its weight, reminding her of how long it had been since she'd been up here.

When it dropped backward to fully open, sunlight burst through, momentarily blinding them both.

Momo climbed out first and then reached back down to offer a hand down to Shoto to pull him after her. When his eyes adjusted and everything came into full clarity, his hand tightened against hers and a serene look overcame Shoto's face as the smallest inkling of a smile touched pale cheeks. Momo expected no less. After all, there was no beating this view.

The entire city and the bit of countryside that sat between them was wide open to see in all of its glory, with rolling nature, tamed civilization and cloud filled skies. The Yaoyorozu property behind them was just as sightly, filled with the colors of the well manicured gardens and the clear water of the oval pool laid out like a tapestry.

Where they stood was not much more than a simple platform attached to the roof, big enough to fit about three people comfortably and entirely plain besides the short railing at its border and light canopy that jutted from the roof's slant to create shade and cover.

As a kid Momo used to come up here every day, but since she'd reached high school she was barely home let alone spared free time, which left this little place of escape unattended for some time. It was still maintained by the house staff, but it lacked the care she had given it in her younger years; the decorations, the blankets and pillows she'd drug up those stairs to create her space to do light or heavy reading in the peace and quiet.

"Do you like it?" she asked, eyes on Shoto rather than the familiar view.

"It's beautiful," he nodded, "If I had a place like this at home I might never leave it."

"I stayed up here most all the time when I was a kid," Momo chuckled, watching closely the enraptured look in the two toned eyed, "I worked on my quirk so much and learned how to make so many things up here. I'd spend hours on end reading books about material compositions and practicing creation uninterrupted. It helps that the view is inspiring and there's always a nice breeze here. I probably owe my entrance into UA to this place."

A full smile captured his lips and Momo almost stumbled straight over the edge. It was more beautiful than she ever imagined, especially pictured here, turned to the view from her favorite place in the world.

Be still my heart!

"What's that smile for?" she begged her voice not to crack.

He only seemed to realize how he'd been smiling when she pointed it out and it faltered a little he redirected it to her.

"Oh," he shifted on his heels, "I just realized that I like when you talk about your childhood. I like feeling like I'm getting to know you better."

Her heart cracked against her ribs, doing its utmost to escape. Their fingers shifted to lace tightly together and it didn't help the issue of her run away heart.

"I like getting to know you better too," she tucked her loose hair behind her ear, "And I like hearing about your family, even if you think they're annoying. I think they seem fun… Except maybe Endeavor. Sorry."

"There's no reason to be sorry about that," Shoto shrugged one shoulder, "He isn't fun."

Momo nodded back out at the scenery. "I can't imagine it's easy having someone like him as a parent. Not just the overbearing thing. Having a parent in the spotlight of constant public ridicule isn't easy either."

"Aren't your parents in a similar position, though?" Shoto gave their hands a curious glance when Momo started to swing their arms back and forth.

"I mean yes and no." She gave a small smirk at the reaction to the swinging hands and kept it up. "Their careers aren't contingent on people liking them and supporting them. They aren't the faces of their companies, they just own them and run them. They aren't out of the public eye, but it's not a constant and they have quite a few means of escape."

"That sounds nice," he hummed and looked intently to the fist he'd lifted in front of his face, "To have normal parents, I mean. Parents that aren't in the same career you want to go into. I want to be a pro hero and I want people to know my name and my face some day, but no matter what I do it will always seem like I'm just a legacy and not an individual."

Momo's smile dropped.

"I've decided to make the dream my father forced on me to be my own, but it's going to take a lot of work not to live in his shadow."

His expression turned to frustration and Momo frowned thoughtfully at it. All the time he was spending stuck at home with Endeavor was obviously not sitting well with him.

"I really don't know what that's like," she said, "Luckily my parents supported me in not wanting to directly follow their footsteps. It's still quite possible I'll inherit the responsibilities of their business some day, but I still have my own path."

There was a short quiet, before Momo added thoughtfully. "Have you ever talked to Iida about this?"

Shoto gave her a tilted look.

"He's sort of living in his brother's legacy," she looked away from his intense stare, "Which, of course, I realize is his own decision and definitely not your same situation, but maybe his perspective might help."

With a considering nod, Shoto hummed. "Maybe. Thank you."

The topic of family issues and legacies ended there. It wasn't their first time discussing Shoto's situation and she'd always felt bad talking about her personal experiences since her own struggles seemed so minute in comparison.

The view reabsorbed them quickly and both were happy to quietly take it in. Shoto gave extra attention to the property at their backs, eyeing the garden and orchard. Momo continued to watch him over everything else, but looked away in embarrassment whenever he addressed her, hoping he hadn't caught her staring.

"Would you like to go on a picnic for our first date?"

has stopped working.

"First date? Like...you mean today?"

Shoto pursed his mouth at the garden like a surveyor. "Yes."

A first date… A date. Did that mean…? Was he…?

Forcing down a girly shriek, she nodded excitedly, hoping the intention behind this was what she believed it to be. "That sounds like fun! We could go in the garden and set up something cute and romantic and we could cook together and-"

Before he even got a chance to try and calm her exuberant response, all of their hopes and plans were dashed with a single clap of thunder. Shoulders dropped and their eyes met with the same devastating realization. Coming from the east, a series of dark clouds were moving gradually towards them and the smell of approaching rain finally differentiated itself on the slightly harsher breeze.

"We should get inside," Shoto said and tugged her towards the hatch.

With a deep set frown, they climbed back down and sealed up the hatch tightly before winding back into the third story hallway they had come from. She went straight for the large, curved, Eastern window at the opposite end of the hall and watched as dark clouds rolled closer and closer.

"I guess it's not the best day for a picnic," she leaned into the window to better watch the approach of the rain that sought to end their good times.

"I'm sorry," Shoto commiserated, "I should have checked the weather before suggesting something like that."

"It's not your fault… Maybe the universe doesn't want us to go on a date."

Shoto's head tilted with curiosity at the comment, picking up on her unintended dismal tone.

"A countrywide lockdown goes in effect the same day I get the courage to tell you how I feel and even when we manage to get around the quarantine to see each other, nature itself moves in to ruin our plans," it was punctuated by a disheartened laugh, "Either it's irony or somebody up there doesn't like us."

Shoto was quiet and Momo started to worry that she'd single handedly brought down the mood. She could feel that dull pangs of depression edging their way back in and the added guilt from suggesting such dismal things wasn't helping.

But, ever her hero, Shoto swiftly adapted to the situation and took a quick, searching turn of the hall. "What's your favorite place in the house?"

Momo narrowed curious eyes at him. "Well… In the Southeast corner of the house on the first floor there's this small library. It's not like father's study, it's more for leisurely reading and there's this big window and a reading nook."

"We can do the picnic there," he said, taking her hand and leading them back downstairs.

"Wait, what?"

"It may not be traditional or a proper picnic, but we can make the most of it, can't we?"

"I...I suppose," she blinked after him, an adoring ache shooting through her sternum.

When they reached the first floor, Shoto stopped and turned thoughtfully to her. His mind was working quickly and it was clear on his constricted face.

"Can you check the weather? I don't want to turn my phone back on if I don't have to.."

Momo fumbled at her pocket and pulled out her phone, going to the weather app and pulling up the forecast for them both to see. Scattered thunderstorms until almost nightfall.

"Looks like we're stuck inside all day," Momo frowned.

"What do you usually do on rainy days?" he asked, tapping his lip.

Momo pocketed the phone. "Study, I suppose. Read. Drink tea."

"Me too," he hummed, still lost in thought, "I don't think we should do school if this is going to be a proper date, but we should do something fun while we're stuck inside."

If it had been the girls stuck here with her she knew they'd easily find ways to keep themselves busy, but she couldn't play those girly games and gossip with Shoto like she did with her girl friends. She didn't want it to turn into a study session or a girl's sleepover, but she wasn't sure what else there was to do.

"We could ask the others for ideas," Shoto suggested, "Having fun seems to come more easily to some of them."

"I don't like the idea of telling them that you broke the quarantine to come to my house…" Momo grit her teeth.

He frowned. Seeing the problem. Some of their friends would find it romantic or adorable, but others would want to scold. Neither were keen on hearing those reactions.

"Let's just do the picnic for now and we can worry about what to do with the rest of the day after," she waved away the idea, "That should keep us plenty busy for a while, shouldn't it?"

They agreed and set to putting together a picnic befitting a first date stuck inside during a thunderstorm during a nationwide lockdown.

Sometime Around Mid Afternoon

"Shoto, this is incredible! Have you been practicing at home?"

His smile was pleased and a little bashful as he took a cross legged position across from her, now back in his own clothes since they'd finished drying.

"I've been helping Fuyumi every night," he said, "I hope it tastes as good as it looks."

Momo had created a checkered blanket to better solidify the picnic theme and it served as a cozy surface for the spread of wonderful food Shoto had taken the lead in making. The food and the blanket were the only things that made it seem like a picnic given the cozy room and the rain pattering on the window beside them, but it was fairly perfect. A sunny day would have been better, but she couldn't think of a better way to beat the gloom of a storm than to sit across from Shoto in her favorite room partaking in a meal they'd made together.

Shoto had done most of the real work, though and Momo didn't agree that she deserved any credit for taste or presentation. The layout was all Shoto and it was beautifully done. Fresh cut fruits, onigiri with salmon, a small, supposedly French, finger food that Shoto had found the recipe for in the kitchen with little rolls and a creamy seafood sauce, and, of course, it wouldn't be a meal created by Shoto if there wasn't cold soba. All of it was displayed like he was being judged for competition and she almost didn't want to touch it and ruin the beautiful picture.

But then her stomach growled and she no longer cared about preserving it.

They offered a brief thanks and dug in, excitedly. She had a comment for every item and an excessive amount of praise to offer Shoto. The discomfort was clear in his body language, but he accepted every compliment graciously and tried to remind her that she'd helped every time she gave a positive comment..

Not even tasting the other foods, Shoto immediately took his bowl of soba and stuck to his preference of the cold noodles and broth. Preferably Momo liked hot soba so she only had a few bites of her own and stuck to the other foods afterwards. She especially liked the high carbed French dish since her lipids were getting low over the last week; her appetite had been uncharacteristically low along with daily quirk training and she could almost feel herself wasting away.

"I really like this, what is it again?"

"The recipe called it a Crawfish Pistolette."

"Crayfish," Momo corrected.

Shoto paused, mid slirp and frowned. "The recipe said, Crawfish. It must be a French term."

"I don't think that's what the French call them," Momo cocked her head at the snack.

Shoto shrugged, not seeming to care about the semantics of Roman-descent languages, "Is it good?"

"Incredible! I guess it doesn't matter what it's called as long as it's delicious. Would you like to try one?"

"No, thank you," he took another slirp of his soba.

Momo ripped her pistolette into quarters, creating a bite sized piece and lifted it towards him between chopsticks. He stared at it over his soba bowl and darted glances to her.

"You should try your own cooking," she encouraged, "All of the greatest chefs have to taste everything they cook, otherwise they never improve."

It was hard to argue her logic, so he lowered the bowl and met the bite halfway, taking it off of her chopsticks cleanly and sitting back to taste it. Momo drew back the chopsticks and firecrackers went off in her chest.

An indirect kiss.

Such a thought didn't seem to enter Shoto's head, though. He just chewed, swallowed, and nodded approval, before grabbing his soba again.

"It's very good," he admitted, missing her blush when she used the same utensil to take her next bite.

"So, what should we do the rest of the day?" she distracted herself with the question they'd spent the last few hours ignoring.

Shoto stopped consuming noodles and silently thought it out as they both turned stares to the pattering rain outside of the wide window.

Momo anticipated that the thoughtful expression was the precursor to a creative answer, but after a good thirty seconds he gave her a small shrug.

"I'm sorry, I just don't know. All of my original first date plans involved being out in town. Maybe we should ask for ideas."

Momo was fresh out of ideas herself so she didn't have another counterargument besides her original one. Her phone was in her hands and the class group chat was open, but she hesitated, still not hot on the thought of revealing that Shoto was at her house to her friends or admitting further incompetence to Midoriya and Ochako.

"What if I just ask the group chat for rainy day ideas and not specify why?"

"Good idea," Shoto nodded in approval.

[Momo]: Hey everyone! Can you share some of your favorite rainy day activities?

The phone sat faceup on the blanket after that, awaiting responses while they returned to their picnic.

"Have you read many of these?" Shoto scanned the bookshelves of the little library.

"Oh yes," Momo's lips spread into a wide smile, "I've read everything in here. I actually put most of the books on these shelves over the years. This room is a big part of my book collection."

Shoto's eyes widened. "There's more?"

"Well I have some in father's study too and there's a couple full shelves in my room," she tapped her lip, "And I like to hide a few in the rooms I frequent so I always have something to pick up and flip through."

He seemed impressed when he set down his empty bowl and looked to the shelf behind him.

"What are they about?"

"Everything," Momo opened her arms, thrilled to get to talk about her favorite hobby, "I have to constantly be learning to use my quirk properly. If I'm going to make something I need to know it's material composition so I have a lot of books to help with that. And then there's history books and literature. But my favorites are fiction. During the summer, sometimes I'll read an entire fantasy series in a day."

"No manga?" The question wasn't judgmental or joking or anything but his curiosity.

"Sometimes," Momo rocked a little where she sat, "It's not a very becoming genre for someone with my education and upbringing. But...I've indulged in it here and there…"

It seemed a little early to reveal how much of a guilty pleasure mangas really were for her, especially because most that she read were very sappy romance.

"I haven't read much either," he said, "But they seem fun. There are a lot of superhero ones."

"Oh, if you want to read about superheroes I have just the book!" Momo leaned forward and pointed behind Shoto to the nearest shelf, "That one right there is actually an indepth look at All Might's career and the impact to-"

The brring of her phone froze them both. They stopped and glanced down to the phone as Momo's knee moved off of its surface.

It took a good five seconds of staring to realize that what was happening on the screen was not a call request, but an outgoing call.

Momo gasped, eyes blown wide, as she scrambled to grab the phone and hit the button to end the call before the entire group chat answered. Shoto leaned in to see what was happening as she attempted far too late and multiple boxes popped up onto her screen before she could stop it. In the box that showed her mirrored image Shoto could be clearly seen peering in the corner.

Every few seconds more people appeared, but to Momo's dismay, the very first faces she saw were those of Iida, Kyouka, Midoriya, Ochako and Mina.

Momo hadn't even breathed yet when everything erupted into instant chaos just as she adjusted the camera angle to get Shoto out of the frame.

"Is Todoroki at your house?"

"That son of a gun!"

"He's where?"

"That's so romantic!"

"I'm pretty sure that breaks like a hundred guidelines."

"Yaoyorozu, do you have a chaperone?"

"All of you shut up! Can't you see how cute this is?"

Shaking her head exasperatedly Momo began panicking to find a way to silence them and defend herself.

"Everyone wait, please, it's not what you think, just let me explai-"

"Kaminari!"

Everyone startled and went silent when Bakugo of all people appeared on their call and immediately addressed the sparky youth.

"Stop texting me, you shit, or I'll rip out your damn spine!"

"As if," Kaminari laughed too carelessly for a person being threatened by UA's resident hothead, "You can't reach me from quarantine. Besides, do you see what's happening right now?"

"Um, Kaminari, maybe you shouldn't have texted Kaachan about this. That's not respecting their privacy."

"You trying to cut me out of the loop, nerd?"

"Hey, simmer down!" Kyouka broke in, angrily, "This isn't about any of you! And stop talking about Momo and Todoroki like they aren't right there!"

"Icyhot is here?"

"Yes," Shoto answered blandly out of frame.

"He's at Yaomomo's house," Kaminari clarified.

Shoto leaned over the top of the phone to show himself, and Momo's face fell into her hand, exasperated and mortified.

Iida's face and voice took the forefront. "I say again, this is very reckless and inappropriate and looks bad on you as UA students. It's a quarantine, not an excuse to go to your girlfriend's house!"

"Iida it's not-"

The slamming of Bakugo's fist on his desk was very audible. "Stop right there, Ponytail is dating Half n' Half?"

"Have you been living under a rock?" Kirishima snorted.

Momo rushed to interrupt, heart racing a thousand miles an hour, "If you just let me explain then-"

"You're all enemies of love," Mina shouted.

"You're being dramatic." An ironic statement from Tokoyami of all people.

Ochako shouted over everyone to the quarter of a face visible in Momo's screen. "Todoroki I thought we agree you'd talk to us before doing anything big. Are you sure this was a good idea?"

"Ururaka, I think-"

Midoriya was cut off by Shoto's deep voice addressing the chaotic situation calmly.

"I assumed you would try to stop me so I didn't ask," Shoto explained, "I only decided to do this after I had messaged you and Midoriya and that required that I keep my phone off. I apologize for goating you."

"Ghosting," Kaminari corrected.

"Of course, we would have tried to stop you, which is exactly why you should have asked," Ochako groaned.

"If Icyhot wants to get himself in trouble why do we care?" Bakugo scoffed.

Tsu took that one before anyone else could. "It's not just about him. Others can be hurt through exposure. And we as his friends should care about his safety too."

"Speak for yourself," was Bakugo's rebuttal.

"Everyone please be quiet for a moment," Momo said loudly, finally cutting the others off.

They did as they were asked and paused to let the subject of their conversation have her say.

Her eyes stayed on the squares of the blanket as her stomach roiled with discomfort. "Maybe it wasn't the best idea, but he came over of his own volition. I didn't ask him to. And he only did it because…" Momo locked eyes with Shoto, and instantly regretted starting that sentence. It ended right there and nothing followed it from her own lips.

Sensing her struggle, Shoto, took the phone and faced it towards himself while she faltered in shock.

"Momo's parents' flight has been delayed for over a week and she's been by herself," Shoto explained, making Momo's face explode with red, "I was concerned for her emotional health and came over so she wouldn't be alone while she waited for them to get home."

Amidst a mini-freak out, Momo snatched the phone back and sputtered, trying to move past that statement with a bit of rambling so no one would think too hard on it.

"We've taken every precaution that we can and made sure no one else has the opportunity to be exposed to anything! We're only here alone because that's the most prudent option so the house staff aren't accidentally exposed."

Shoto gave a small nod of agreement in his corner of the screen.

No one jumped to anger again. They let the excuses sit with them for a moment before speaking on it.

Iida was the first, words framed by a concerned scowl. "I thought you'd said your parents were-"

"I know," Momo winced, "I lied… I'm sorry."

"It was very brave of you to risk making that journey, Todoroki," Ochako said, hesitantly, "I still don't approve, but…"

"Isn't it just so romantic?" Mina sighed, cutting off her potential scolding as Bakugo practically gagged at her words.

"Whatever," disgust dripped from Bakugo's face, "Do whatever the hell you want."

His screen disappeared and in the same second Kaminari and Kirishima picked up their phones and started snickering to themselves, rushing to bother him again immediately.

"You've still completely disregarded your personal safeties and the guidelines set in place," Iida grumbled disappointment, far less adamant than he was before.

"I believed the risk to be worth it," Shoto said coolly, "It's what you're supposed to do when a friend needs you."

"Yeah," Kirishima gave an enthusiastic agreement, "We have to support our own! How else are we going to become great heroes?"

"By following the rules!" Iida rolled his eyes, "Obeying laws!"

"As a hero we have to make judgment calls sometimes," Midoriya defended, "Sometimes to do what's right we have to bend the rules. I'm sure Todoroki thought it through and I'm sure he wouldn't have broken quarantine unless Yaomomo really needed him."

Momo couldn't say she liked being the center of this ethical debate among heroes in training, but the video chat continued to sweep on without her.

"Love makes people do crazy things," Mina smiled at the screen, enamored.

Flecks of frost danced off of Shoto's arm as Momo practically choked. "Love…?"

"Isn't it a little early to be using terms like 'love'?" Tokoyami tilted his head at her.

"You can decide if you love someone in a week," Mina defended.

"But can they?"

"I don't really think-"

Momo tried to respond, devolving into an absolutely embarrassed mess as she did. "Wait! That's not-"

The screen flashed and all of the faces disappeared with one click of Shoto's quick finger. It was startling and relieving at once. The phone fell from her hands and dropped into her lap.

"What just happened?" her eyes widened on the checkered cloth.

Shoto was quiet, still leaning against his palms over the center of the picnic blanket. Momo's head was reeling with a hundred new anxieties, but Shoto was calmly frowning to himself while she started babbling on about everything.

"Will they tell Aizawa that we broke quarantine?" she gasped, "Or our parents? What if they-"

"Do you think Ashido was right?"

Caught off guard, Momo's tirade stopped before it had truly begun. "About what?"

"Do you think you can know if you love someone in a week?" his mouth tilted and he cocked a curious look at her.

Oh. Oh!

Her other concerns bled away on that one question, a million times more frightening than any other as her middle finger tapped her thigh rapidly, watching him closely, lost on how to answer. She knew how she felt, but was it too early to say something like that? Should she reveal how she felt before he did? What if he didn't feel the same yet?

She took it one word at a time when her voice finally got the courage to get out. "Well… Some people fall in love at first sight. Do you think it's possible?"

Careful wording danced coolly around what she wanted so badly to say, hoping he'd say it first.

Shoto nodded firmly. "Yes."

There was a poignant pause in her heart rate.

"Momo," he sat up straighter, taking her hand, "This isn't the date I wanted to take you on, but I hope it's good enough to show you my intentions."

There was sweat on his palm and it held onto her a little too tightly. Was he nervous? Was it possible for Shoto to actually get nervous?

"Which are?" She could guess, but she'd rather him say it.

"That I'd like you to be my girlfriend."

Much like the Wicked Witch of the West she was simply, melting, melting, her hand squeezing hard against his while her face flushed rose pink. All of the previous anxieties of classmates outing them to parents sat forgotten.

"I'd like that too," she choked out.

The delicate smile that tugged into Shoto's cheeks was perfectly genuine. Their locked eyes didn't falter, despite how easy it would have been to look away with embarrassment. It was one of those moments that lasted a lifetime and that neither wished to let end.

But a series of dings on her phone broke the spell and Momo frowned down at it for ruining her moment. Her anger abated immediately when she saw what the message previews read and a surprised chuckle filled the space as she showed the chat to Shoto.

The group chat was filling with rainy day suggestions and ideas. Even Iida dropped in a few things, making sure to add that he didn't approve at the end to retain his stance. Everything from board games, to completely inappropriate suggestions started new arguments in the chat and burst bashful warmth across Momo's chest along with private messages telling Momo that her friends were there for her if she needed anything while she waited to hear that her parents were coming home.

Even she couldn't confidently say that Shoto coming here during this situation was the completely correct thing to do, but the sudden burst of loving support from her friends, even when tainted with disapproval, calmed her every worry that their classmates would snitch.

"It looks like we're going to be okay," she let out a shaky breath.

Shoto had only given the group chat a moment of his attention and was now looking only at her, his level of focus unmatched. It was nice being the center of his attention, even if it made her insides squirm.

His hand shifted on hers and in moments their fingers had slotted into one another, her delicate hand lacing into the strength of his own.

"We're lucky to have friends like them."

They were lucky, all right, but she was the luckiest of all. Momo sighed and let herself get lost entirely into the crystalline, ocean blue and powerful smokey gray until she couldn't stare any more.