AN: The IzuOcha special chapter I was talking about. What happened after Deku carried Uraraka home, I wonder?
Chapter 7.5. Erasing the Bad with a Glass of Good Orange Juice
Ochako doesn't need to open her eyes to know this is not her apartment. The bed she's resting on is softer than the futon she normally nestles in, and the room smells faintly of aftershave, detergent, and a scent of new notebooks and ink that Ochako has long since labeled as Deku.
A smile has already curled about her lips when her eyelids flutter open and Deku's room, still hazy in the corners of her eyes, welcomes her. The first thing she sees is the bed, empty except for her, his pillow absent. Her eyes then fall onto the floor covered in sheets, supposedly arranged in an improvised bed. The missing pillow is there too, and although its owner is nowhere to be seen, the signs of Deku's messy hair are imprinted on it. Ochako thinks it's cute that Deku never sleeps beside her unless he has her approval, and she guesses she passed out before she could persuade him to share a bed last night.
Ochako sighs as she rolls onto her back and stretches, feeling her muscles ache. The pain in her lower back is enough to remind her of the previous day and of Deku carrying her home. The memories are blurry, but the smell of Deku's shampoo is still pregnant in her mind, as is the feeling of safety that envelopes her.
As if on cue, Ochako sneezes and she instantly feels bad for contaminating Deku's sheets. Before her nose starts running uncontrollably, she wills herself to sit up and swings her feet over the side of the bed. She moves too fast, because she gets dizzy as soon as her feet touch the ground and the bed stops supporting her, and she grips the nightstand to steady herself. It takes her a moment to reassure her panicked brain that she's alright and that she doesn't need to alarm anyone by crying out in pain.
After her vision clears again, she finds the way into the bathroom easily, proving that her brain hasn't forgotten how to function entirely. Then again, Deku's house feels like home, and the feeling is only enhanced by the delicious smell of bacon, which reminds her she hasn't eaten in a while now. Blowing her nose and brushing her teeth with the spare bathroom kit she keeps at Deku's place is all she does before she stumbles into the kitchen to calm her rumbling stomach.
The sight of Deku checking the sizzling meat into the pan feels natural and soothing, and it's only once she gets a good look at his broad shoulders and well built frame that Ochako realises how much she has missed him, like she was missing a piece of a puzzle and couldn't see the whole image.
The comparison is cheap, but her tired brain sees no need for complications. The truth is that she missed him: she missed the way his hair refuses to listen to the brush early in the morning and sticks out in all the wrong places, and the way he offers his undivided attention to the task he's trying to accomplish, and she wonders whether her fever's kicking in again because she feels the sudden need to anchor herself to him.
Deku hears her footsteps on the creaking floorboards and whips his head in her direction before she can reach him, offering her a warm smile that weakens Ochako's knees more than any illness. "Breakfast's almost ready," he announces with the only voice that can make Ochako feel so safe and warm. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm better," she assures him, but his palm checks her temperature anyway, It takes Ochako only a glance at Deku's face to find worry displayed in the creases on his forehead. Her hand gently covers her boyfriend's, forcing him to lock eyes with her and drop his makeshift smile.
"I hate it when you're suffering and I'm not there to help you," he sheepishly admits. His wrinkles deepen with a grim expression, and Ochako can swear she hears a part of her heart break over the sizzling sound of the fat in the bacon. Her own face must be painted with the color of concern now, because Deku brushes it off quickly, "But that's something I need to deal with on my own. I know you're really strong, Uraraka, and I'm simply being stupid."
He turns back to check the stove and their meal, and Ochako uses this opportunity to see her plan through and hugs him from behind. She feels his muscles tense under her grip, and she buries her head in his shirt deeper. "You're not being stupid," she says, and although her words are muffled by the material of Deku's shirt, she knows he can hear her. "It's my fault for making you worry. I'm sorry."
She expects him to give her a pep talk about taking care of herself, and she's prepared to tell him that's the pot calling back the kettle, but instead he snickers. Ochako raises her head from his shoulder and peeks at his face- to her surprise, there's a genuine smile Wiping off the creases. "What?" she asks, finding it hard to process the mood swing.
"It's just- you're the one usually worried about me and you're constantly saving me so this is a refreshing reversal." Ochako remembers their first meeting, when Deku almost fell in front of her, and she also recalls how he made a very unexpected joke about "falling for her since day 1" that embarrassed both of them on their first anniversary. Right now, that somehow sounds funny, and she joins him with a giggle of her own.
Deku turns off the stove and Ochako fishes out two plates for them from the overly organised cupboard- A Cup of Magic seems messy in comparison to Deku's perfectly tidy apartment, where everything is in the most practical place and easy to reach. Even so, Ochako knows it's not because of how organised he is that she can find anything in this house- it's because all she needs to do to pinpoint something is think like Deku that she can almost navigate in the apartment with her eyes closed.
She sits down and allows him to pour her a glass of orange juice- of course he ran out to buy oranges for her early in the morning. The pills she needs to take are already next to her glass, and the more Ochako looks around, the more she feels like the whole place has been accommodated to her: there's a pillow on her chair and her dishware is pink, her cup is the one she received from A Cup of Magic as a Christmas/birthday present last year, and of course Deku has circled the dates of her exams on his calendar.
It's not like Ochako isn't used to all of this, but taking it all in and realising many people aren't fortunate enough to be able to take such kind and loving gestures for granted makes her heart swell with love for her caring boyfriend.
"Uraraka," he says, bringing her eyes back to his. He smiles when he realises she was tracking the apartment and mirrors the smile Ochako only now realises she's been sporting. "I've been thinking for a while now, and maybe this incident is the push I needed to ask but would you- would you consider… moving in? With me?"
Ochako blinks fast. Once. Twice. Deku is still staring at her, waiting for her answer. "Move… in?" is all she manages.
"Yes. Of course you don't have to answer right now and it's fine to take your time if this is too soon but I figured we'd move in together at one point anyway and now seems like a good occasion-" he stops for a moment to catch his breath and meets her eyes, and his vooce softens"-because I want to be able to take care of you, and see you everyday, and I don't just hear your voice over the phone."
Ochako feels the bubbly feeling in her chest swell again, until the bubbles increase in volume so much they pop and they overflow. "Yes, of course!" is all she says, but her eyes sparkle and she's sure that, if not for her headache, she'd be bouncing up and down in her seat. For now though, she stops at placing her hand over Deku's and squeezing it hard. "I'd love to," she adds and her statement is accompanied by snuffling. It's just because of her running nose, she is certain.
Deku is blushing, and Ochako's pretty sure so is she, if the warmth of her cheeks is anything to go by, but she doesn't particularly mind it. The prospect of spending more blushing mornings with him, of persuading him to share a bed and wake up with her face in his curly hair, a tangled mess of limbs and sheets, to share more breakfasts together and wake up early to make her famous pancakes is enough to choke her with happiness, and Ochako stares into Deku's warm and watery eyes with equal content.
And she thinks that maybe Momo was right, and that there is magic in the mundane, because that's the only logical explanation she can find for a nasty cold to bring her such joy.
AN: Hi guys!
I know it's been a really long time and this is very short but in my defense, school is putting me through the living hell known as term papers.
This chapter doesn't continue the main story, and it's more of a glimpse in IzuOcha's domestic life, but I'm rather fond of it. It's my first time writing izuocha although they're one of my favourite couples and I hope I did them justice:)
If you guys enjoyed this, I'll write more "special chapters" in the future. Either way next DOES come Kaminari (no more delays) and more Shouto!
Thank you for sticking with me and I hope you've enjoyed it! I can't thank you enough for the lovely reviews! I even received fanart which is know the cover image of this fic, this is crazy! I must thank the talented AlternateZaragoza for it! Here is the link, if you want to see the whole image: /art/A-Cup-of-Magic-A-Todomomo-AU-fanfic-743716497?ga_submit_new=10%3A1525611377
Till next time, lovely readers, back to our favourite cafe!