6: She wasn't peeking, honest!

The guards were training in the barracks courtyard. Under the summer sun, they clashed dull blades over and over again, laughing good naturedly when one of them got a hit. More often than not, it was the green haired one who scored a hit as he danced around his partners blows and struck swiftly. Every now and then they would break away and talk before re engaging.

It was a nice display of companionship and swordsmanship.

But Ochako would be lying if that was all she was looking at. With the sun beating down on them, she couldn't help but watch as their shirts clung to their skin, showing every shift of muscle that lay beneath. It was nice knowing the green haired one wasn't just a pretty face and a nice guy.

Hands slapped down on her shoulders, making her jump. A teasing voice came from her right. "Eying the selection?"

Ochako shot back from the window, turning to her pink friend. "Mina!"

The girl in question leaned over Ochako, looking out the window herself. "So this is why you've been coming to the library so much. Can't say I blame you."

Mina leant back and Ochako shook her head. "That's not it at all!" Her face was hot.

Mina took a seat across from her, leaning her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her hands. She smirked. "Do you know how long I was watching you for?" Ochako looked at her book, waiting for her face to burst into flames. "Who would've thought my innocent little Ochako would be peeping on the boys? Did that green one steal your breath away that day?"

No, he most definitely did not. She definitely wasn't embarrassed when she looked into his emerald eyes after bumping into him. Her heart definitely didn't stutter when he smiled at her, her school pass in hand. And she definitely hadn't been coming to the library to watch him working out for the past month. That was what she wanted to say, but all that came out was a strangled noise.

Mina's eyes lit up. "Aww, you fancy him! Love at first sight, how romantic!"

Ochako tipped her hat over her eyes. "Please be quiet."

She was already in a monologue. "All it took was one glance for them to fall in love, their hearts beating in unison. An entire moon filled with sneaking looks and nervous blushes that hid the burning lust beneath their skin!"

Burning lust?!

"That's not true at all! I don't fancy him whatsoever!"

Mina looked out the window. "Is he taking his shirt off?"

Ochako's head whipped to the side to find the two sipping from their water flasks, shirts still on. She slowly turned her head to Mina, trying to delay the inevitable. Three seconds passed, and there it was: the image of smugness. Ochako sighed. "Maybe a little…" Mina raised an eyebrow. "Okay, quite a bit."

Mina leaned over the table and gave Ochako a hug. "Oh, I'm so proud of you! Your first fancy! It seems you have a good taste in men. His friend's not that bad to look at either." He was okay, Ochako thought. Nowhere near the level of the green haired one. "Why don't you go and talk to him? You don't even know his name."

"I can't just talk to him! What if I stutter? What if he thinks I'm an idiot after I bumped into him and lost my card? What would I even say?"

Mina sat back. "You could start with 'hi!' or something."

"Then what?"

"Ask his name?"

"Then what?"

"Are you seriously asking me how you talk to a person?" Mina sighed, the teasing look on her face going away. "I get that you're nervous, but you shouldn't overthink things. Worst case scenario: you find out he doesn't fancy you. Best case: you learn a bit more about him."

"That's true, but…"

"But what? He's just a guy. You speak with our male classmates all the time. He's not some dragon."

It was times like these she was glad she had Mina as a friend. As eccentric as the alchemist could be, even going so far as to dye her own skin and hair for experiments, she had a talent for putting things into perspective and cutting through Ochako's flimsy excuses. She was a direct girl, and kept persisting until she got results. It really helped Ochako break out of her shell at the start of school.

Ochako took a breath, a plan already coming to mind. "You know what? You're right. I just need to go and speak with him. I'll ask his name, and see where I can take it from there!" Okay, she had this! She'd talk to him when school ended and he was guarding the entrance. Easy.

She got up from her seat and scooped up her books. "Thanks for the help, Mina. I'll talk to you later!"

She had some rehearsing to do before lunch break ended.

Eijirou nudged Izuku with his elbow. "Hm? What's up?"

Eijirou smirked, nodding his head towards that window. "She was there again, you're fair maiden."

Izuku blushed. "I - I thought we wouldn't t-talk about this anymore!"

"Looks like she brought a friend," he continued, shielding his eyes as he waved. When Izuku looked, he saw a pink girl wave before blowing a kiss. Eijirou 'caught' it in his hand and pressed it to his cheek, grinning like an idiot.

Why couldn't Izuku be that suave?!

He put a hand on Eijirou's shoulder, face set and serious. "Teach me."

"What?"

"Teach me your ways."

"You're freaking me out."

A/N: Thank you for reading!

And here's another one, this train has no breaks! It's liberating, getting random thoughts on the 'page' and not caring about the word count. Lets me experiment with stuff as well. Hope you enjoyed!