Two days had passed, but every time he thought about what had happened, he found himself unable to suppress a smile. Whether he was wearing his mask or not. Whether he was in his motel room or out for a walk to get cigarettes. Each time he thought about that moment, he felt his heart skip a beat. A pleasant warmth ran through his whole body and it was all he could think about.

The pain of his injuries could not dampen his spirits. Jin was so overjoyed at the memory, his brain seemed to decide to just not let him think about how that night had actually ended. It was probably a subconscious effort to preserve his own happiness. After all, the night had a less than romantic end to it.

The moment Neneko pulled up his mask to kiss him, he felt his pulse race and he moved on impulse. He already had her legs wrapped around his waist so when he pushed his hips roughly against hers, it brought them close enough that he could feel the warmth of her thighs against his sides. Jin, in this moment of extreme bliss and excitement, was unable to stop his hips from grinding forward into hers.

She broke the kiss, clutching to his shoulders and trembling. When Neneko's lips brushed his ear, Jin knew he had to leave. If he stayed, things would get out of control. He wanted so desperately to hold her. To kiss her again. To carry her down the hallway to her room and kick the door closed behind them.

So, in order to preserve his current relationship with her and not risk ruining everything, Jin carefully set her down. He pulled down his mask, his hands moved into a heart shape over his chest, he bid her good night, and promptly bolted from the building as fast as he could. Of course, that embarrassment faded into the back of his mind in favor of remembering the happy parts instead.

Even now, hanging out in the bar with the other villains, he found himself getting almost hyper from thinking about Neneko's kiss. It made him feel like he could take on anything. Even with his still-healing injuries.

His good mood did not go unnoticed. Jin was usually in a decent mood when he wore his mask, but he had literally skipped into the bar when he arrived. It was hard for anyone to not notice.

"What's your deal today? Did you chug some energy drinks?" Dabi sounded less than interested. More like he was just looking for a brief source of entertainment until something better came along.

"Hey now! My happiness is none of your business! I got a kiss from the cutest girl~!" His smile grew behind his mask, the eye parts changing shape slightly to show his elated emotion.

"Oh yeah? You've got a girl? What's she like?"

"I said it's none of your business! She's sweet and quiet and cute! She's the best!" Just talking about her was enough to ramp up his excitement. He wanted to just leave the bar and run to her apartment then and there, but he was trying to give her some space. If he went to her place now, she might think he was obsessive. Even if she was on his mind all the time, he never wanted her to be afraid of him.

"Sounds like you're talking about a dog," Dabi remarked with a smirk. Jin started to protest, but the fire-quirk villain shook his head. "She sounds boring."

"Hey, Staple Face! Miss me?" This voice came from behind them and it was low, rough, and female. Mystic greeted them both with a wave, her hips swaying in an exaggerated sort of way as she approached. A gloved hand lifted, fingers trailing over Dabi's scarred cheek as she smiled. "I said…did ya miss me?"

He gripped her wrist and tugged her a bit closer to him, his free hand settling on her waist. "What do you think? You want me to show you?"

Mystic snickered and shook her head. Those oil-dark eyes settled on Jin and she raised an eyebrow. With the lower half of her face hidden by the black spandex covering, it was hard to tell if she was really smiling or not. "How's it goin', Panda Man? Miss me?"

Jin's good mood started to fade as soon as their quirkless coworker appeared. Waving a hand wildly, pointing at her, he shook his head. "No way! Who'd miss you?! Okay! Maybe a little!" Behind his mask, he gritted his teeth. What's her problem? She comes in here…dressed like that and flirting with everyone! No! I won't…talk to her! I won't cheat on Neneko!

Taking a few steps back, the eye parts of his mask narrowed and he drew a thumb across his neck. "You can't tempt me! I'm not even into flashy girls like you!"

Shift P.O.V

Neneko's heart was pounding so hard that she feared Dabi would feel her pulse in her wrist. Thankfully, the sleeve of her dress and the material of her glove seemed to provide enough layers to hide it. She hated playing this role. Being Mystic the Quirkless Villain.

The persona she had to take on was so drastically different from her natural demeanor that it made her uncomfortable. To the point where she felt stress hives forming along her arms beneath her dress. Watching Jin back away, after having called her a "flashy girl", she did not know if she wanted to laugh or cry.

Dabi was still holding her wrist and his smirk fell when he saw her staring at Jin. "What? You sure that's not your type?" he taunted.

"Khehehe! Crazy's definitely my type!" She caressed his cheek with her free hand, her stomach churning with nervousness. "Question now is: how crazy is my sweet little Staple Face~?"

That was horribly unpleasant, but a necessary inconvenience. To be able to protect Jin, I must stay close. Being among those villains is unnerving, but…it allows me to see him more. The real issue is maintaining a safe distance from Jin while…mingling with the other villains. Blending in. Camouflage. Though I detest getting so close to…Dabi. Neneko reflected on the afternoon as she stood in her room, removing her villain costume.

It had been two days since her romantic moment with Jin. Every time she thought about it, her heart began to race and she felt a bubbling sort of happiness rise in her chest. That is, until she remembered his reaction to her kiss. His hips pushed forward into hers, seemed to grind for a moment, and then he quickly drew away from her and left the building.

She was still puzzled as to why he had brought her groceries. Everything she had asked Kita to buy was there, but there was no word from her assistant as to why Jin had the items. Every time she tried to call Kita, she was ignored.

Perplexing. Kita-kun is usually much more responsible than this. Could something…perhaps…? Immediately, she felt her heart drop into her stomach. She remembered Kurono's warning, issued the same day Kita stopped answering her calls. The translator rushed to finish dressing and grabbed her bag to go out.

Kita-kun. I have his address so it is simply a matter of going to his apartment to check on him. Yes. If he is in good health, but does not wish to talk, I will honor his wishes. I must know if he is alright, though. This is necessary.

She was putting on a jacket when there was a tentative knock at the door. Cautious, quiet. Neneko held her breath as she tiptoed over to check the peephole. She had never felt so glad to see her assistant's goofy half-smile before. The door was swiftly opened and she stared up at the young man.

Kita definitely looked worse for wear. His right eye had been blackened, his nose broken. A canine tooth was missing from his smile. His posture was a bit hunched, a hand pressing at the side of his ribs. A hand that was missing the fingernail off of his middle finger. "Kuroiwa-san, I'm sorry."

The woman shook her head and opened the door more, silently gesturing for him to enter. "The tea room, please. I will be there momentarily."

To calm herself, she began boiling a kettle of water and tried to select a tea for Kita. Her hands were shaking as she rummaged through the selection. She doubted that this was Chisaki's handiwork since Kita was alive and in such a condition. If it had been Chisaki, Kita would most likely be dead or at least horribly disfigured in some way. It was entirely possible that Kurono had done this.

Returning to the tea room, she set about pouring tea for them both and saw the boy smile weakly. "Please. Kita-kun, enlighten me as to what happened. A…particular client…brought my groceries and I did not-"

"Ah! Bubaigawara made it back with the bags? Good. I was worried about him." He rubbed the back of his neck and lifted his cup with his free hand. "He's a good guy. You wouldn't believe what happened, Kuroiwa-san."

Her assistant went on to explain that his memory was a little fuzzy at certain parts. What he did remember was that he bumped into Jin, who he recognized as one of her clients. The two ended up going to a bar. He had a few drinks and was planning to take her groceries to her, but he was jumped in an alley on his way back. Kita fought the attacker to the best of his ability and ultimately ended up using his quirk to try to defend himself.

Kita had a very odd sort of quirk. Without having it active, he appeared relatively normal. A bit too friendly sometimes and maybe a bit odd, but normal by all outward appearances. One might even think he was quirkless. When it was used, Kita was able to shift forms and become a large black and white dog.

As he explained the fight, Neneko soon realized why he looked so terrible. The attacker had managed to punch him in the face a few times before he used his quirk. Then Kita had latched onto the man's arm and pawed furiously at the attacker's chest. So hard that a claw, a nail, had broken off in the man's flesh.

"I got whacked in the head pretty hard and blacked out, but when I woke up, Bubaigawara was carrying me. He must've heard the fight or something because he promised me he'd get the groceries to you and he left me with my roommate. I think he might've gotten into it with the guy because he looked pretty banged up."

Jin…came to Kita-kun's rescue? While she thought it was incredibly noble, she felt dread tightening around her heart. He had put himself in danger. If Kurono had been the one to attack Kita, as she suspected, Jin could have been killed. She knew how dangerous Kurono was.

"Did you…by chance…manage to see the assailant's face?"

Kita blinked owlishly, his vision obviously blurred by his injury and his lack of glasses. "Uh…well, no. I didn't see. It was pretty dark in the alley. The guy hit really hard though!"

Her stomach twisted in knots and she bowed her head. "…I see…"

"You don't have to worry about me, though! I'm tough, Kuroiwa-san!"

"…Kita-kun…you are missing a fingernail…and a tooth…"

"But I'm okay! I'm still alive, see? So it's not-!"

"You are alive…due to Bubaigawara's noble actions." Neneko leaned toward him from across the coffee table. "Kita-kun, until certain…issues…have been resolved, I must ask that we put our arrangement to an end. You must understand. For your own safety, I request that you maintain a distance from me."

The young man frowned and lowered his head. "I'm sorry I'm not stronger."

"It is not that you need to be stronger. It is that the world…is unfair sometimes." She chewed at her thumbnail, her thoughts shifting to Jin as she began to worry for his wellbeing as well.

Shift P.O.V

Standing at his window, Jin stared out at the city. He wanted to see Neneko again. Every time he saw Mystic, he felt guilty. Even though he never reciprocated her flirting, he felt like he was somehow cheating on Neneko. Not that they were actually a couple.

Lighting a cigarette, he tried to push away the memory of Mystic's advances and focused on thinking about Neneko. The way her lips felt against his; so soft and warm. The feeling of her chest pressed against his, her legs wrapped around his waist. Butterflies seemed to take flight in his stomach and he inhaled from the cigarette, smiling to himself when he exhaled smoke.

I want to see her again, but I can't let her see me like this. I look hot and I know it! She can't resist all this! He grimaced, embarrassed at that thought, and bowed his head. "No…not like this," he argued with himself.

There were still some bruises and teeth marks on his body. The bites were mostly on his left arm and were deep, the bruises on his chest and stomach. Jin's face had been scratched, but he knew it was too shallow to actually leave scars. What would scar was the scratch down the right side of his chest. It had bled a lot and he had pulled a dog's claw out of the wound when he returned from Neneko's.

If she saw me like this, she'd get worried. I don't want to bother her again. I just want her to take care of me like last time! He released a sigh and closed his eyes as he tried to resist the urge to call her.

As if she read his mind, his phone began to ring and displayed her name on the screen. He answered with hesitation, half-afraid that she really could read his mind somehow. "Neneko…?"

"Are you…have you returned from your meeting?" she questioned.

"Yeah. Uh…do you need me to do something? Do it yourself!" He clapped a hand over his mouth, angry at himself for blurting that out.

There was a pause, in which he feared she might have taken offense. "I realize it may sound selfish, but…please…if I could trouble you to meet with me…"

His heart seemed to leap and he quickly put out his cigarette. "Y-yeah…sure thing. Sounds like a date! I'll be there!" Now he would need to make an excuse for his injuries.