Hey ya'll welcome back to my nervous breakdown glad to see you all coming back to enjoy (or hope you do) a new chapter.
I wanna go ahead and say that most of you who read my story probably have already read "Deku The Hunter: Support Hero" but for those who haven't go ahead and read it, it's wrapping up soon so now is a good time as any to read if you haven't.
It was one of the main inspirations on why I started to write again, I promise you that if enjoyed my story you'll defiantly enjoy it.
Anyways thank you once again for reading my story, please leave a review and if you liked leave a favorite and a follow.
After a long, grueling time of evading law enforcement, Deku made it to the train station, just barely missing the train and having to wait for another one. It was a relief as he approached the loft, choosing to enter from the front door this time since he was dead tired from earlier events. As soon as he entered, he shoved right back out the front door by Mei.
"Oh good, you're finally home! Let's go, your mom wants us to come over for a late night supper!" Izuku was crying internally as Mei told him of the change of plans.
"Buuut Hatsumeee, it's eight o'clock," Izuku whined, something he usually tried to avoid, but the boy was tired.
"Wow, I didn't know to be a hero meant being too busy to spend time with those precious to you, Izuku."
The poor boy simply sighed in defeat and followed his pink-haired companion. As they started to make their way over to the Midoriya residence, the pair started to make small talk with each other, discussing things like Mei's new inventions or Izuku's new 'friend' that he had made tonight.
"So, do you think you'll ever see Mr. Smiles anytime soon?"
Izuku thought about Knuckleduster and wondered why he was willing to come back and save him.
"I don't know, but I hope I do. After all, it would be nice to have someone out there willing to lend me a hand, ya know?" Mei looked at Izuku's bruised hand, his knuckles were white and slightly swollen.
"Yea, someone who can help you take care of yourself so you don't come back filled with bruises and cuts, my babies can only do so much Izuku." She gave him a slug in the arm.
"Ow, maybe I wouldn't have so many bruises if you'd stop hitting me," he joked, feigning injury and clutching at his arm. Mei erupted into a fit of giggles at his dramatics.
As they enjoyed their company together, Mei's phone began ringing. Taking it out she saw the caller ID was their gravity user friend, Uraraka.
"What's up, Zero G?"
"Oh my god, finally! I've been trying to get hold of you for a while now!" Uraraka was talking loudly and frantically, so loud that Izuku could hear her from where he stood, and it sounded like the end of the world was happening around her.
"Geez calm down, relax. What happened? Did glasses finally make a move?"
"Hatsume-chan, this is serious, I think I screwed up freaking badly," she continued. On the other side of the line she was at home pacing back and forth, biting her fingernails in frustration. "Is Izuku with you?"
"Oh uh, yeah. He's right here next to me."
"Put him on."
Mei passed the phone to Izuku, who was curious as to what the big fuss was all about.
"H-hello?"
"Finally, do you know how hard it's been to get ahold of you, what happened to your phone?" Izuku reached for his pocket, only to find it empty. Izuku started to panic as well, the last place he had it was back at Yokohama City.
'Crap I think I dropped it when I was changing out of my uniform.' Izuku thought, feeling a cold sweat overtake him.
"Uhhh, I misplaced it?" Deku laughed softly, hoping to play it off.
"This is no time for jokes, we got some serious crap going on!"
"S-s-sorry, what's wrong exactly?"
"I…. I think I screwed things up for you and Hatsume."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"I-I don't know how, but apparently you got somebody's attention at school and he sounds very adamant about finding you."
"W-what do you mean?" Izuku asked, suddenly very concerned that somebody was trying to track him down.
"He… he used his quirk on me, trying to find out info on you."
Izuku stood in place, worried about the dangers he might have put on Uraraka. Hatsume stopped walking when she noticed her partner had a look of unease on his face.
"A-are you alright? W-was he a villain?" Izuku was trying to think of any reason someone would try to go through Uraraka to get to him or even how they would know she was connected to him.
"No, at least I don't think so, he was a student at UA. I don't know what his problem was, but he was keen on meeting you. His quirk messed with my mind and he tried to get me to take him to you. If it wasn't for Katsuki storming in and breaking his concentration and his quirk's hold on me, I don't know what would have happened."
"Katsuki? Bakugo Katsuki? …. Kacchan?"
"Kacchan?.. Is that what you just called him? Do you guys know each other?" Uraraka asked very confused.
Izuku turned to see Mei staring at him with a worried look on her face. She remembered hearing that name, from two different people. First from Izuku as his most treasured friend and second from Uraraka, as the UA student who's explosive quirk was matched by his explosive ego. She found it hard to believe that both of them were describing the same person.
"Y-yea… he's my best friend…" Izuku reluctantly answered.
"Wait, really?" Uraraka found that information surprising, but continued on, "You mean the same guy you knocked the living daylights out of is your best friend…. Are we talking about the same guy because he was not giving me friendship vibes when he heard your name."
"Y-you said my name!"
"That's the thing, I called you 'Deku' and he looked at me like I insulted his mother or something." Izuku simply sighed pinching his nose as he took in what Uraraka was telling him.
"Yea… that'll do it… but I don't think it's anything we have to worry about right now." Izuku placed one hand on Mei's shoulder to reaffirm her everything would be alright.
"A-are you sure? Cause to me it sounds like he wants to kill you?" Uraraka was completely baffled at Deku's calm demeanor as she recalled Bakugo's reaction to hearing that name.
"Deku… there's no way that it could be him…. I couldn't have been beaten by…. HIM!" Bakugo's eyes felt like they had penetrated Urarakas very soul, it was the first time that she had ever felt intimidated by him before. The explosion user was trying to gauge some form of deception from her. Or maybe he had just misheard her, but he knew he didn't.
With a grunt he turned around and started to walk away, she could feel his rage still radiating off of him, his head tilting back to look at her with a sideways glance and simply saying, "If I find out who Deku is….. I'll kill him."
Uraraka could tell there was meaning behind those words, more than just a simple taunt like how he would announce threats to the class or even to Monoma. This time his word was absolute.
"Just… just be careful Deku, both you and Hatsume. You've got the attention of two very persistent guys," Uraraka warned, her tone felt very heavy, but heartfelt.
"Don't worry Uraraka, I'll be ready for whatever comes at us."
"Heh, whatever you say Deku, I'll see you guys later after the festival." With that, she hung up, now going to rest for her big day tomorrow.
The rest of Izuku and Hatsume's walk to Miss Midoriya's home was done in silence, as they both were lamenting over the fact that they were essentially being hunted down.
Once finally arriving at his caring mother's home, they entered and were welcomed with an overwhelming display of affection as Inko embraced them both. Mama Midoriya was excited to see Izuku, ever since he started to "work" for Aizawa his visits had become scarce. Mei on the hand made it a priority to visit Inko as often as she could, giving her updates on Izuku, well as much as she was able to divulge.
"Well, if it isn't my hardworking young man and Mei. Oh, you are looking lovely as ever." Inko looked at Mei so fondly, that Izuku couldn't help but chuckle. Mei, on the other hand, nervously scratched the back of her head, not used to people complimenting her looks since she was usually covered in oil smudges and reeked of fumes.
"I'm so glad that you both were able to make it even though it was kinda last minute. I was afraid that it might be a bad time, but I just had to see Izuku," Inko explained, feeling slightly embarrassed at her own overprotective nature.
"Haha, it's alright mom. I'm sure Aizawa wouldn't mind my absence for one night."
As he walked around the house, Izuku was surprised by how much he felt like a guest in his mother's home, even though he technically still lived here. Inko began to set the dinner table requested that Mei assist her, against Izuku's better judgment. He tried dropping hints that would make her reconsider, but his mother was adamant and Mei was more than willing to help.
Izuku sighed and left the two alone to go wash himself up for dinner, giving Inko a chance to have a heart to heart conversation with Mei.
"Mei.." Inko spoke in a low tone.
"Huh?"
"I wanna thank you."
Mei was confused at what exactly she meant.
"What do you mean Midoriya-san, it's just setting the table." Inko shook her head, fighting back her tears.
"No Mei, that's not what I mean.. I wanna thank you for helping my son." She paused as she was setting some silverware on the table, thinking back to her son's condition just a couple months ago.
"Before you came along, Izuku was in a very dark place…. It pained me to see my precious baby the way he was. Izuku never really had any friends in school and he was such a shy child, but he had such a good heart, always putting the needs of others before his own, even if never benefited him…. He's just like his father." Inko pointed Mei to a small shrine in the corner of the living room.
Mei observed the photo of the black-haired man, who shared a striking resemblance to her only friend, as the caring mother continued to pour her heart out to teen.
"Then, like out of the blue, you came into his life. I don't know how you both met, but I'm so glad it happened, you've changed his life completely. I haven't seen him so happy in such a long time." Mei truly felt happy, it was the same happy feeling she felt when one of her babies came out successful.
"If we're being honest Midoriya-san, it's you that I'd have to thank for raising such a sweet boy, he's one of the few people who's actually put so much faith in me." Mei couldn't fight the crimson wave that her face was now exhibited, she never gushed about someone like Izuku before.
Inko chucked at the young inventor's embarrassment, before settling back into her melancholy tone.
"It's why I have to ask you something… Are you both hiding something from me…?"
Mei nearly dropped one of the plates, Izuku had made it clear to Mei that his mother must never know about his vigilante lifestyle, stating that after losing his father, Inko couldn't handle the thought of possibly losing her son as well.
"N-no, whatever do you mean?"
"Hatsume, I know I'm not really the smartest person out there, but a mother knows when something is different with their child. Whenever he comes home, I notice when he has a slight limp or how he rubs his arm when I'm not looking, like he's nursing an injury… then there was that time he didn't call for three weeks… I started to worry that something terrible happened."
Mei wanted to at least tell her about the battery, but if Inko knew that it was her fault, she wouldn't be able to be with Izuku anymore.
"I..I…don't know what to tell you Midoriya-san.." It was the only thing Mei was able to say, not exactly lessening Inko's worries.
"It's alright, you don't have to tell me right now…. Just promise me that you'll watch over my son…" Mei was taken back by her request, the fact that Inko trusted her so much to watch over her son, it was very heartfelt.
Mei started to think of the nights and early mornings when Izuku came in with injuries and she was always there to treat his wounds.
"Don't worry Midoriya-san, that green haired fluff of ours doesn't make a single move with me finding out." Inko smiled, glad that she had someone who cared about her son the same as she did.
"Thank you, Mei, I'm so glad that Izuku has such a caring girlfriend."
"Hehe yup, that's me." Mei had no idea exactly what being a "girlfriend" entailed, but she decided to own the title given to her by Inko.
Izuku was still in the bathroom splashing cold water in his face, he was thinking over Uraraka's warning.
As he left the restroom, thinking of what was to come, he heard his mom laughing along with Mei and it brought him comfort that they'd gotten along so well. He made his way over to join them.
On his way over to the girls, he peered his head in his room, thinking maybe he had forgotten something important while he'd been away. Izuku flicked on the light and was amazed to find that his room was completely clean, the floor vacuumed, and his All-Might figures shining as if they had just been taken out of the box. There wasn't a speck of dust anywhere, Inko had kept his room in pristine condition, awaiting his return home at any moment.
Izuku felt blessed to have a mother who cared so much for him. Before leaving his room he noticed a stack of notebooks sitting on his old desk.
They were his old quirk catalog books that he made, what seems like forever ago, he picked them up and started to skim through them. Izuku had notes on everybody from All-Might to Kanumari Woods, to even Bakugo, and Izuku's mother and father's quirks were cataloged as well.
The young Midoriya thought it would be best for him to brush up on the quirks he had taken notes on, so he grabbed the whole set to bring with him, after all, knowledge is power. Now he finally made his way over to the two women who graced his life.
"Haha no way, did he really?" Mei asked Inko while trying desperately to catch her breath, she had laughed so hard that tears started to roll down her cheeks, Izuku instantly regretted coming over.
"I'm serious, one year for his class photo Izuku wanted to do an All-Might hairstyle, but I adamantly told him no, so what does the little rascal do?" Izuku sank into his chair as the memory of the event came crashing into him along with a wave of red, hot shame.
"He decides to do it himself, but unfortunately he didn't really think it through and what resulted was him ending up looking like a scared rabbit." Inko showed Mei the photographic evidence of the tragic event, making Mei clutch onto her side from laughter. Izuku desperately wished he had a quirk that allowed him to disappear away from embarrassing situations like this.
The laughter came to abrupt stop however when somebody decided to knock on the door, and in a rather authoritative way as well. Izuku arose from his state of self-pity and eyed the door with uncertainty.
"Huh, I wonder who it could be at this hour?" Inko asked, puzzled at who could be at the door this late.
"It's alright mom, I've got it." Izuku suspected the worst case scenario and grabbed the first thing off the table without anybody noticing what it was, a spoon, and casually approached the door. Steeling his nerves he opened the door cautiously. Izuku nearly dropped the spoon as he recognized the detective from early today.
"Oh… uh good evening Naomasa-San." Izuku tried to sound as cheerful as he could about seeing the young detective. Inko got up, surprised as well to see Naomasa, although not sharing the same deep worry her son had.
"Oh Naomasa-kun, so nice of you to join us, please come on in," she said, welcoming in the detective much to the discomfort to her son, who was completely nervous about the man's presence. As they made their way back to the dinner table Mei approached the nervous Izuku, perplexed about who the mystery guest was.
"Hey Izuku... Isn't that the dude who tried to stop you at gunpoint?" Mei whispered as Naomasa and Inko conversed privately.
"Yes, it is."
"Well, what is he doing here?!"
"Well uh... He's kind of a friend of the family."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, he was one of the first officers there when my father was killed," Izuku weakly explained.
Izuku still remained hunched over his father's lifeless body, still bawling his eyes out. Two police cars had arrived just moments before the small squad of assassins had fled. One of the officers noticed them leaving just in time and leaped out the car to pursue them, with another one following suit. A third stayed inside the cruiser and began to relay information through the radio, informing dispatch of the situation.
As this was going on a young rookie officer named Tsukauchi Naomasa approached the grieving Izuku, who stayed latched onto his father.
"Hey, are you alright little guy?" Izuku looked up to see the young police officer. The young child nodded his head slowly, his face covered in tears and snot.
"M-my daddy is gone…" he whimpered. Naomasa gazed upon the young boy with a heavy heart, these were the moments that made his job truly difficult.
"Come here, buddy." Naomasa gently patted Izuku's back, the little Midoriya slowly got up and followed the law officer over the cruiser. The officer opened the back of the door and sat the grassy green haired child inside, who was still rubbing his eyes dry with his sleeve.
Naomassa noticed Izuku's shoes and couldn't help but smile. He was wearing All-Might themed ones.
"You like All-Might too, I see." Izuku moved his arm a little bit to peak at the officer and simply nodded.
"Y-yea…. My Dad and I are real big fans…" he mumbled. Naomasa sat right on the cold ground right across from the boy and took out a small little keychain figure of a chibi version of a woman with black hair, a dark outfit, yellow gloves, and a white cape. She had a very cheerful demeanor, holding up her hands in a peace sign.
"Ya see, this is Nana Shimura, she was my favorite hero growing up. She used to always say 'No matter how scary things get, give 'em a smile, as if to say, "I'm a-ok".' So when I feel sad or scared I look at this little keychain of her and remember that in the end, everything is going to be okay... The people in this world who can smile are always the strongest." He handed Izuku the keychain to look at and the boy stared at the figure for a while before something warm was placed on his head, it was the officer's cap.
"You can hold on to that until you feel better, alright?" Izuku nodded with a small meek smile.
A group of police cars and one van came on to the scene, Naomasa got up and closed the door on Izuku, as he didn't want him to hear details about his father's murder. In the meantime Izuku just studied the small chibi figure and at its smile as he rubbed his thumbs through its plastic hair.
After awhile Naomasa came back to the small boy and told them that they would wait for his mother back at the station.
"Since then he's pretty much kept tabs on us throughout the years." Izuku finished explaining, Mei watched the man as he conversed with Inko about random topics.
"So Izuku, your mom tells me you got a job helping out The Eraser Hero: Aizawa? That's kind of a big job for someone so young," the detective said turning his attention to Izuku.
Izuku stammered a bit on his words, he had to be careful. He remembered that Naomasa's quirk was Human Lie Detector, Izuku knew that Naomasa would never actually use his quirk on him or his mother but he didn't want to sound too suspicious enough for him to even consider it.
"Oh uhhhh yeah, I guess, but Aizawa-san thinks I was worth a shot!" Izuku scratched the back of his head, as he wondered if the human lie detector bought his lie.
"Well, I'm sure that you have your hands full, what with his injuries and what not."
"Oh yea, he really keeps me on my toes but its fun working with all those pro heroes!" Izuku felt bad about lying to someone so kind to his family, but he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
Naomasa focus was instantly shifted to the pink haired girl with the weird eyes, who hid behind the young Midoriya.
"Well now, who's this young lady you have here Izuku?" Mei instantly tried to make herself seem even smaller behind Izuku, who just stood there confused.
"What's wrong with you?" Izuku whispered to his friend.
"Oh, that's Mei Hatsume," Inko said, walking over and placing her hands on Mei's head. "She's Izuku's girlfriend, he's growing up so fast." Izuku had never changed colors so fast before, he was stammering on his words, trying to come up with something cohesive.
"W-w-w-w-wa-wait ho-ho-ho-hold on!" Izuku pulled his collar to help elevate some of his nervous breakdown.
"Well then Izuku, I didn't expect you to be quite the charmer."
"And she's such a nice girl too, always keeping an eye on Izuku."
"I'm jealous Izuku, I didn't expect you to have a girlfriend before me, especially one so cute."
"Isn't she, I can't believe my baby boy is handsome enough to find someone so caring and pretty."
The two adults continued gushing over the two teenagers and at this point Izuku broke down into a stuttering, muttering mess with a face as red as a tomato. Mei finally came out of Izuku's shadow during the commotion, nobody noticed that she had put her hair up.
Naomassa looked at the girl, having a sudden, strange feeling that he had seen her before, or at the very least had heard her name from somewhere. His train of thought was broken when Inko started to speak again.
"So Naomassa-kun, have you had any luck on any of your cases so far?" The detective let out a sigh of defeat as he shook his head.
"I did get a breakthrough on one of them, actually it was thanks to your boss, Izuku."
Izuku had broken out of his trance of mortification and was intrigued at what he had to say.
"I can't divulge too much information, but I can tell you I did get to meet the main focus in my other case." Izuku and Mei both felt a chilling sensation run up their spines, they had the sinking feeling that he was referring to Deku.
"Oh, you don't mean that scary Raiju vigilante guy that's been running around, do you?" It damaged Izuku's pride a little to find out his mother didn't sound like the biggest fan of his alter ego.
"That's right, I was this close to catching him, sadly he managed to slip right through my fingertips." Naomasa looked down at his drink. "To be honest, I don't want to actually catch him, he's done a lot for the areas that he patrols. He also is able to bring light in places most heroes and police don't think about checking, I actually want to thank him, whoever he is."
Izuku felt his pride soar back up to find out that he was at least make some sort of difference.
"So does this mean you'd let him go if you ever caught him?" Izuku said with a small laugh, Naomasa joined in his laughter.
"Oh no of course not, I'm taking him down and throwing away the key."
"O-oh…"
'Guess he's not that big of a fan as I thought.' Izuku sulked a bit, he had a bit of hope when he asked that question, but he really shouldn't be that surprised. Naomasa was a very loyal detective.
"Well don't worry Naomasa-kun, I'm sure you'll catch him soon," Inko reassured the detective, giving him a small pat on the back.
'Thanks for being so supportive, mom.' Izuku internally sighed at the situation, what a mess.
Naomasa stayed for dinner and for conversation after, until finally annoucing that he had to turn in for the night. Before he departed, he asked Izuku to have a one-on-one talk with him. Izuku agreed to it but felt incredibly nervous about what the subject might be.
"So you've got a girlfriend now, Izuku?"
Izuku bit his tongue thinking, ' Not this again.'
"Hehe it's alright I won't tease you about it anymore. Just wanted to ask you, did you know that your dating the daughter of the infamous Superintendent Hatsume?" Izuku almost had a small heart attack.
'Superintendent!? Like the guy who's in charge of leading the SAT!?' The young vigilante tried not to fall over from the shock of this news. It was becoming increasingly clear to Izuku that Mei and his work was making a difference in criminal activity, but that didn't change the fact that they were being hunted by their friends and family.
"O-oh really? Th-th-that's c-cool, I d-d-didn't know th-that," Izuku managed to stammer out, unable to hide the immense fear he suddenly felt knowing that he girl he held dear to his heart had a father who's duty it was to try and bring him in.
"Hey calm down, I didn't mean to freak you out, he's actually a nice guy when you get to know him." Naomasa placed his hands on the young teen to try and calm him down.
"Oh, that's really good," Izuku blurted out, not really paying attention to the words, just trying to force a smile.
'Would he still be a nice guy after he finds out that I'm a rogue criminal!?'
"I mean, he does have a little bit of a temper but I'm sure that won't bother a brave soul like you."
"I'll just have to make sure to stay on his good side."
'You're not making this better, Naomasa-san.'
"Actually there's something else I have to tell you, Izuku." Naomasa's tone got deathly serious, as did his whole demeanor. " I didn't want to tell your mother because she looks like she has enough to worry about, so I thought I'd at least tell you about it. A couple of weeks ago there was a prison break at the Tartarus, at first we thought that we had prevented a major situation but… as it turns out one of them was able to change uniforms with an inside man and murdered him in cold blood."
Izuku was confused, he wasn't sure why Naomassa was telling him all this.
"That sounds awful, but what does this have to do with us, Naomasa-san?"
"The one who escaped was Gachi Kamomīru... But you may remember him by his alias, Spinal Tap…" The moment that name escaped his mouth Izuku's blood began to boil, he clenched his fist tightly, and his breathing began to go sharp, his eyes screamed death. Naomasa was able to quell the young Midoriya, placing his hand on his bushy green hair.
"Hey, easy now. I know it's frustrating to hear but listen to me." The detective lowered himself to meet Izuku at eye level. "This time I won't let anything happen to you or your mother, alright? I'll be keeping a close eye on you guys." Naomasa took out something from his pocket, it was the chibi figure of Nana Shimura. "Remember this?" The figure looked like it had seen better days but its smile was ever so present, like a beacon in the dark.
"The people in this world who can smile are always the strongest," Izuku said, repeating what Naomasa had said to him seven years ago, with a smile letting him know that the young boy would be okay.
"That's good to know you still remember, now if you excuse me Izuku-san, I have to get going. I've got a lot of paperwork I have to get done, I'll be seeing you now."
"WAIT!" The door flew open and Mei jumped out of the apartment, shocking both the Izuku and Naomasa. She approached the detective like she was on a mission. "You absolutely can not tell my dad where I am, and most certainly you can't tell him about Izuku!" She spoke with such intensity at the officer, he was completely taken back by her forward nature, it was almost like getting yelled at by the Superintendent himself.
The gumshoe simply held his hands up nervously. "O-of course, I promise." Mei just eyed the detective, uncertain if he would keep his word.
"You can trust him Hatsume, he'll keep his word." Mei backed down a little but still kept her gaze locked on him.
"Alright, but only because Izuku trusts you."
"Hehe al-alright.. See you guys later." With that, the detective made his leave.
It wasn't long however until the dynamic duo had to leave as well, but not before being assaulted by affection once more by Inko.
"Are you sure you guys can't spend the night here, I'm sure it's a lot more comfortable than staying at that rusty warehouse all the time?"
"I'm sorry mom but we've got a pretty big day ahead of us." Inko sighed, feeling a little heartbroken.
"Alright but remember that you guys are always welcome to come over at any time."
"Thank you, Midoriya-san, it was nice to see you again," Mei said, an air of contentedness falling over her.
With goodbyes out of the way, the duo made their way home. By this time it was really late at night, most of the streets were dark, the people that once filled the roads were now at home trying to rest their weary eyes for the next day.
Izuku and Mei walked in silence, lost in their own thoughts. Izuku was thinking about the vast amount of information he had gathered today, thinking of how he was going to deal with it, and more importantly, how he could keep Mei and his mother out of harm's way.
Mei, on the other hand, was trying to come up with a way to keep Inko's promise that she had made. She wanted to do more than just sit on the sidelines, she had to somehow protect him the same way he protects others…. but how? She stopped in her tracks and with her head hanging low, she grabbed Izuku by the collar of his shirt. Izuku turned around to face the pink haired inventor. Mei looked at him with glistening eyes.
"Izuku, tonight while you were busy I talked to your mom, and I've learned so much about you… all the terrible things that you've gone through. When I first met you I thought that you had simply had a bad day, but after tonight I realized that it's been building up over the years and somehow you've managed to stay sane and with that smile of yours that just… warms my heart… I don't know how you've managed to do it for so long." Mei started to tear up a bit but she did her best to keep her composure.
"I've known grown men from my dad's line of work who would have broken down much quicker, but an eight-year-old child is able to hold it together better than most hardened men. That's why when you finally did break, you didn't know who to turn to anymore, but your mom tells me that it was me that helped pull you out of that void." Mei let go of the young boy in favor of hold on to herself, trying harder not to break down.
"So, sorry if it's a little hard to believe that I could help someone so sweet and kindhearted as you, I can't imagine that the screw-up Mei Hatsume would be able to help the loveable Izuku Midoriya and keep him from going over the edge!" She yelled, finally letting go and allowing a steady stream of tears to fall from her eyes.
"That's why I made a promise with your mom… to watch over you, and I will. I'll watch over you like the hero you were born to be."
"….I'll be your hero, Izuku!…."
Izuku was at a complete loss for words as he watched in awe as the young girl before him was smiling and crying, with her thumb pointing at herself with complete and utter confidence.
"Mei…" Izuku slowly approached her, he wasn't sure what his plan was. Once close enough he put both hands on her shoulders as hers fell to her sides and gave off that smiled she was such a fan of.
"...Thank you for being my second wind…"
That being said Izuku pulled her in for a tight hug, this turn it was Mei who was at a loss for words. But she didn't need any, she simply returned the embrace back, wrapping her arms around him tightly.
They didn't know what this would do for their friendship, whether it would evolve into something new or simply just strengthen the bond they shared, the only thing they knew for certain is that they would treasure this moment for the rest of their lives.