(3 Months Later - May)
-Toshinori's POV-
I sighed as I morphed into my hero form as I pulled up to the gate of the Todoroki estate. No, Rose wasn't with me. Today, I had some business with Endeavor that she did not need to be present for. Honestly, part of me didn't even want to do this, but I knew how much it would mean to her, so I decided to grin and bear it. It would be worth it to make her happy. As I pulled up the driveway, I saw the flame hero standing with his arms crossed in front of his house. I got out, and I noticed him looking at the passenger window, obviously confused and irritated by the absence of a certain ginger haired woman.
"Why are you here?" Endeavor all but spat at me. I gave him my best hero smile.
"Well, I couldn't exactly have Rose here for what I needed to talk to you about! It would ruin the surprise!" I bellowed with a nervous smile. He scoffed.
"Just get to the point! Why are you here?" he demanded, his flames growing with his irritation.
"Ahhh… About that…" I started nervously fumbling with the box in my hands, "You see… Well bluntly put: I want to ask Rose to marry me, and I wanted to ask your permission first." I finished with a hearty and nervous laugh as I scratched the back of my neck. The look on his face was almost enough to calm my nerves. He was completely thrown for a loop before he glared at me.
"Why the hell are you asking me for her permission?! I'm not her father! Are you trying to make a fool out of me, All Might?!" he suddenly roared, obviously confused and unable to sense my sincerity, but I refused to give up that easily.
"No no… I assure you I'm 100 percent serious! It's just that… Rose's father and her are not exactly able to talk anymore considering her entire family in the U.S. has been told that she's a dangerous criminal. And out of everyone here in Japan, it's you who she looks up to most as a male figure in her life, so I thought asking your permission would mean a lot to her," I explained quickly and sincerely. With that, his flames decreased but his distrusting scowl did not leave his face.
"Aunt Rose is getting married?! Really?!" an excited female voice exclaimed. Both Endeavor and I's heads snapped in the direction of the voice to see his daughter, Fuyumi, who immediately slapped her hand over her mouth in fear of her father, who just huffed.
"I suppose if she says yes, then yes," Endeavor finally said, and my smile returned full force.
"Does that mean you approve of me asking her?" I clarified eagerly. He scowled at me as he walked up and glared into my eyes.
"Listen here, you blonde oaf! I'm only approving this because I think it will make her happy, and she deserves that much after the hell she's endured. That being said, if you hurt her even a little, I will fucking cremate you alive! Got it?!" he growled, his fire increasing for emphasis causing me to sweat a bit from the heat, but my smile only grew.
"Endeavor, if I ever hurt her intentionally, I will personally let you cremate me," I stated, my smile turning to a serious expression, "I love Rose with everything that I have. My only wish is to bring her the happiness she so greatly deserves." Endeavor nods at this before walking off into the house. Fuyumi immediately runs up to me.
"Excuse me, All Might-san! Since this means you'll be our uncle, can I help you plan the proposal or do you already have it planned out?" she asked excitedly. I chuckled at her enthusiasm and blushed a bit at being called 'uncle.'
"Ah…. Young Fuyumi… Maybe don't let your father hear you call me uncle. I think that might send his distaste for me over the edge. And I do have a plan for my proposal already, but it's a secret I'm afraid. Many of the details are related to mine and Rose's relationship up to this point. I apologize," I replied in a lower voice than usual, not wanting to irritate Endeavor anymore than my presence seemed to on its own. Fuyumi just grinned and nodded in understanding before running back inside. I smiled to myself. Despite his demeanor, Endeavor ended up with some pretty great kids it would seem. With that thought, I got back into my car before getting outside of the gate and reverting to my normal form. I may have used some time in my hero form for this meeting, but it was worth it. Now to start putting my plan into motion.
-Time Skip to the end of school day (Rose's POV)-
I walked out of the school and my heart lifted as I caught sight of Toshinori leaning on the side of his car, wearing a light gray suit with a red tie and a matching red carnation in his hand waiting to pick me up as he did most days. His smile lit up his face as he noticed me walking towards him as he handed me the carnation with a kiss on my hand, causing my face to burn red.
"T-Toshinori? What's going on?" I inquired, feeling a bit embarrassed from all the attention we were getting from the passing students and my coworkers.
"It's a surprise," the blonde hero said lowly with a wink as he led me to the other side of the car and opened the door for me.
True to his word, Toshinori would not tell me anything in the car, and as we reached the apartments, I had given up on trying to interrogate him about it as he led me to my apartment and let us in. We had given each other keys to our apartments after I had a couple of rough nights of night terrors that had caused panic attacks for me. Anyways, he opened the door to my apartment, letting me in before leaning his face to my ear from behind.
"Meet me at my apartment in 20 minutes. There is a surprise for you in your room. I'll see you soon," Toshinori whispered, his voice low and thick with emotions causing me to involuntarily shiver as he quickly left and closed the door behind him.
I took off my shoes and set my wallet and keys on my front table before hurrying quickly to my bedroom to see a little cat plushy that had on an All Might cosplay outfit on. It was adorable, and I knew Toshinori probably saw it and thought of me. During our relationship, I had taken to getting a fair amount of his merch, partially because I thought it was cute how flustered he would get about it when I did so.
The cat plush was holding a red rose with the thorns cut off and was beside a new outfit that I certainly did not buy myself and a letter. It was a short red dress that seemed fitted on top that pulled in with a ribbon that went around my waist and then fell loosely to my knees. It had a high, straight neckline and was sleeveless. As I put it on, I smiled to myself. After the last dress he had gotten me, I had admitted that I hated tight fitting clothes on my stomach, a bit of self consciousness left from having a baby. Of course, Toshinori would remember. With that thought, I smiled and put on the black wedges that were also sitting beside the dress.
Finally, I grabbed the note and unfolded it to see a small letter that made my smile only grow more.
My dearest Rose,
Please accept this rose and plushy and put on the clothes beside them. I have a special night planned for us, and I hope I am able to keep you smiling throughout. You have brought so much happiness to my life, and as always, I'm hoping to continue to try and return the favor tonight. So please come over soon. I'm honestly probably a nervous wreck at the moment and could really use a hug. Oh well… I'm ranting now sorry. I love you, Rose. 3
Love Always,
Toshinori
I giggled to myself. Gosh, he was cute. I quickly grabbed my necessities before going and knocking on Toshinori's door. Seconds later, the door was open to see Toshinori with a giant smile and a blush on his face as he gave me a not so subtle once over. Deciding to tease him a bit, I gave him a small smirk and did a little twirl causing the dress to flow out a bit.
"Like what you see?" I teased with a wink, and Toshinori gulped and adjusted his tie nervously.
"Very much so," he responded, his voice a bit husky before he quickly cleared his throat and shook his head a bit to clear his head as I felt my face heat up at his voice. Moving to the side of the door, he motioned for me to come in, and I did so, gasping slightly in shock at the scene in front of me.
A small circular table for two with a white tablecloth was in his dining room area which was dark (as was the rest of the apartment I had just noticed) save for a small stand of three candles in the center of the table. Toshinori put his large hand on the small of my back as he guided me over to a seat at the table and pulling out a chair for me. I thanked him with a deep blush on my face as I noticed another red rose on the table in front of me with another letter. Toshinori had disappeared for some reason, so I took this time to open and read the letter.
My love,
I know you're probably confused by this point, but I ask you to bear with me a little longer. Just know that I am wanting more than anything to express how much you mean to me, and I'm hoping by the end of the night that my point will get across. By the way, I may have written this ahead of time, but I can already tell you look stunning in the dress.
Your Toshi
I blushed and panicked a bit. Was today an important date that I had somehow forgotten? It definitely wasn't our anniversary. That would be in November… And was hinting that he wanted to make love again? It's not like we hadn't done so more than once before. He didn't have to go through this much effort for that to be honest… Toshinori was so loving and never pressuring, so I rarely refused him if he asked.
Before I could panic myself anymore, my thoughts were interrupted by a plate being set in front of me as I sat the rose beside it on the table. The food was mouthwatering in smell, especially since I had spent most of my lunch break grading and had missed the opportunity to eat anything more than a granola bar. I looked at Toshinori with a quirked eyebrow as he sat down with his own plate in front of me.
"What's going on, Toshi? Did you cook this?" I inquired, and he just laughed nervously and gave me a sweet smile.
"Nothing, Rose. I just wanted to give you a special night is all, and I know you're not exactly a fan of crowds," Toshinori admitted and scratched the back of his head, "And yes, I did cook this, but I don't want to talk about how much practice it took." I giggled at this. He really was too sweet for me.
"Well then, we shouldn't let it get cold," I announced with enthusiasm, "Itadakimasu!" Toshinori mimicked thanking for the food, and we got to eating the meal in front of us, having our normal conversations about our days and other random things we thought of until we were finished.
Once we were both done, Toshinori walked over to me and held his hand out to me. I smiled and took his hand as he helped me up and pulled me into a firm hug causing me to smile even wider as I nuzzled my face into his firm chest.
"Thank you, Toshi. Dinner was wonderful," I thanked him sincerely, as he chuckled.
"The night is not quite over yet, my dear," he told me followed by a kiss on the top of my head as he led me out and to his car.
He drove us over to beach that we had gone to a couple of times for walks and had us get out there. Deciding not to question it, I took my wedges off, intending to walk barefoot because anything other than flats or tennis shoes on sand is a nightmare. Suddenly, I found myself in the arms of my blonde lover as he carried me bridal style to a pier that overlooked the ocean that had a white blanket spread across it. By now, it was dark out, and for some reason, the street lamps nearby were not on allowing me to see the stars in the sky much better which caused me to smile.
As Toshinori sat me down in front of it, I noticed there was another letter and another red rose. I looked back quizzically at Toshinori as he nodded, motioning for me to open it. I quirked my eyebrow at him one more time before shrugging my shoulders and deciding to go with it. Clearly, Toshinori had worked really hard at making this date night special for whatever reason, and I'd have been lying if I said I was not really enjoying it. Crouching down to not give a free show up my dress to any passerbys, I grabbed the letter and rose before standing up and opening the letter to read it.
Rose,
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what I would say to you in this letter, and to say I'm nervous would be an understatement of heroic proportions. -
I laughed a bit at the pun but quickly felt my heart start to race as I continued reading.
- Rose, I have never met someone as kind, strong, and caring as you are. Though you like to act like you're made of stone, I have seen time and time again that under the fiesty front you put on for the world is a woman who has had to fight her whole life, most of it by herself. It's one of your most admirable traits: your resilience.
When I first approached you at the apartments, I had no idea what you would do to me. That you alone would be the one that reminded me that I was allowed to fall in love too, even if I do have big responsibilities. Seeing you continuing to live after the tragedies you've faced so early in adulthood, it made me realize that time is short.
I do not want to waste anymore of the precious time that I have to be able to spend with you. That night, at the memorial in Santosh and Isha's honor, I promised your late husband that you would no longer have to fight alone. Tonight, I wish to show you just what I mean by that. Rose, my love, turn around now. -
My eyes were blurry with tears now as I stopped in confusion, tempted to keep reading, but turned around anyways as I looked up from the letter and immediately let out a sob. There was Toshinori on one knee with a nervous smile on his and a small red velvet box that was opened to reveal a simple white gold ring with several small diamonds set into the shape of a small rose on it.
"Rose, I know we may not have been together long, and I know you've got a lot of pain in your heart. But you've made me so happy since the day I met you, and I'd love it if you'd give me the chance to try and give you that same happiness for the rest of our lives," Toshinori confessed, his confidence seeming to grow a bit as love and affection filled his voice, his electric blue eyes sparking as he finally asked the question I was now waiting to hear, "Rose, my dear, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"
I was trembling now as sobs racked my body causing the blonde in front of me to look quite distraught, but he managed to maintain his nervous smile. Realizing the stress I was cause him, I knew I had to give him the answer my heart had sung as soon as he asked.
"Of course I will, Toshinori!" I sobbed, throwing my arms around his neck in a desparate need for his affection to ground me during a time when I was filled with so many emotions. Capturing my lips in a kiss as he stood up from the ground, Toshinori used this as a chance to take my left hand and slip the ring onto my left ring finger. He had even gotten my ring size right. I smiled to myself into the kiss. This man was literally too perfect sometimes.
Soon enough, we had to break for air as Toshinori kept one arm wrapped firmly around my waist and his other hand cupping my cheek as he pressed his forehead to mine affectionately. It was then that I noticed the tears falling from his eyes too.
"Thank you so much, my dear Rose. I'll do everything in my power to be the husband and hero you deserve," Toshinori said lowly, his voice sounding as happy as the smile on his face looked.
"You already are, Toshi. You've been my hero from day one," I admitted, and radiant did not even begin to cover how his smile looked as he pulled me in for another passionate kiss. With that kiss, we forgot about the rest of the world, even the letter that was left not completely read in my hand.
-Thank you so much for being a light in my life when I was falling into a darkness that I didn't know how to handle.
Love,
Your Future Husband (Hopefully) Toshinori Yagi
P.S. → I can't wait to see how you look in white future Mrs. Rose Yagi. 3
Song: 10,000 Hours by Dan and Shay feat. Justin Bieber