I want to apologize. I hate this chapter. I looked it over, added stuff in and still struggled to get a finish on it. It literally had take me months no joke to get to the end of it. I still hate it no matter how many times I reread it.

I started other stories to try and help, even posted a few new ones as well.
It's been like chipping away at a brick wall with a plastic spoon.

I know what I want and how to get there but it just wasn't happening.
Even editing it, i hate it lol

I reread it again an hour and finally added a few more things and i straight up said fuck it LMAO
Things are going to get worse before they get better...

Tomura cracked his fingers nervously. He never asked someone to hang out before. Normally Izuku was dragging him everywhere to do things but he wanted to treat him to something fun. He was still terrified All for One would come out of nowhere to kill him or abduct him but Izuku had given him new strength to keep going. He could go out in public alone. He wasn't a scaredy cat.

Mostly.

Nezu seemed particularly excited about this going out business. He had handed Tomura a stack of money and a card then told him to go nuts. He didn't know how to feel about his rat dad's excitement. It was weird seeing the way he grinned, it was almost creepy. Tomura had a feeling there would be someone tailing them at some point but he could deal with it…. They were just friends anyway.

The truth didn't stop the blush coming to his pale face with a vengeance. He normally didn't think like that with Izuku around or since they really started training but the thoughts came flooding back when he was alone.

Or when he couldn't sleep. The what ifs kept him up at night.

Don't think like that… he's my best friend.

I mean… Is he? I never asked if we were…

Tomura was stunned. He possibly had a best friend.

He rubbed the back of his neck before he continued walking.

I'm even going to his house. Would I have to meet his mom? Friends do that I'm sure. Maybe I should've googled it or asked Midnight about it some more… She's not socially stupid like Mic.

Even as a young child, Hana had been his only friend. Well… his dad had been a dick and he didn't socialize outside of school. Bringing friends over was a hell no, especially since he was quirkless. He hadn't been allowed to tell people he was.

He tried not to think about it sometimes but if his family hadn't died he wouldn't be at UA.

He could've died but no one else deserved that.

He rubbed his eyes. He suddenly felt exhausted.

Don't think about the past. You're here to have fun, not depress yourself by making Izuku take care of your ass. He's done that enough already. Get it together already! You're showing him fun!

Tomura sighed and shook his head as large white apartment buildings came into view. He could feel his hands sweating in his gloves. He was beginning to think it was a stupid idea. He almost whirled around to go back home and dive under the covers to hide himself.

Izuku would probably just find him again and break in anyway.

Grow a pair of balls! Friends do this all the time-

He threw his head back and groaned.

I need a female friend… One my own age so I can ask questions. This is stupid.

He stalled again then forced himself up the stairs to Izuku's apartment. He stared that white door down like it was going to knock on itself.

No, I'm going home-

The door flew open to reveal Izuku standing there with a grin on his face.

"Are you trying to escape?"

Tomura froze in his tracks. He looked back up at Izuku who had his head tilted to the side with his stupidly bouncy curls moving too. His heart fluttered and his face started to heat up.

"I figured you might try to chicken out so I waited by the door. I barely heard you but you must've been thinking pretty hard. I could smell it through the door."

Tomura flushed and snorted.

"Sure."

Izuku closed the door behind him and beamed at Tomura.

"I.. I um… don't need to meet your mom?"

"Did you want to?"

Tomura shook his head quickly.

"N-no. Not now."

"I figured that. She understands and she's not offended."

The older teen rubbed the back of his neck.

That's really thoughtful of him.

Izuku led them down stairs to the sidewalk. He looked around slowly, taking everything in.

"I'm sure I have someone tailing me for protection."

"I figured so. It's a good idea. We might need backup if anything happens."

Tomura snorted, "You think we're strong enough to take them?"

"Yes I do."

"Hm."

For several minutes, the walk was awkward and quiet until Izuku took upon himself to link arms with Tomura, throwing him through a loop. He really wished he Googled shit now because he was feeling some mixed signals. They felt mixed but his limited social interactions made him feel unsure about it.

"Where are we going?" Izuku asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Are you hungry?"

"I could go for a snack. Ice cream or a donut."

"Alright, ice cream sounds good."

Tomura led them to the nearest ice cream place which ended up being a little food trailer run by a man and his daughter. Tomura got something called cookie monster ice cream, blue with cookie dough chunks. Izuku picked out chocolate strawberry and they headed off once more, eating their ice cream fast before it could melt.

"Do you like arcade games?"

Izuku nodded, "Skee ball is my favorite."

Tomura grinned, "I bet I can kick your ass."

His emerald eyes sparkled with challenge.

"Alright, we'll see about that!"

They raced to the arcade like hell was on their heels, avoiding people, weaving in and out of crowds of people.

Armed with a bucket filled with coins, they picked two lanes beside each other and got started. Tomura was regretting his words now. Izuku somehow could throw that ball so fast, he was going through his rows of balls a lot faster and building up points quickly. It was throwing him off his game.

Tickets were flying out of the machine at an alarming rate once Tomura started catching up so that people had to watch out or they would trip. Occasionally Izuku would throw him a shit eating grin and Tomura couldn't help but give one back.

They spent two whole hours until that bucket was empty. Izuku won by ten points. It was a close game. They made sure to hit the reset button so people didn't have to go off their outrageous scores. They headed on an Angry Birds machine next. Once more they were locked into another challenge, trying to beat each other. They ended up hogging up the machine, some parents were downright pissed.

Tomura won that one by twenty thousand points or more.

Izuku guarded their trash bag of tickets while Tomura peed and then they snagged a cup of soda, watching other people play.

"We're one and one. We need a deal breaker," Izuku said looking at all the machines, "What should we play now?"

" Pac man."

Izuku grimaced, causing Tomura to grin evilly.

"Oh, are you bad at Pac man? "

"Maybe."

"Then I pick that one."
Izuku shot him a dirty look, making the older teen laugh loudly, making several people look their way. Izuku was indeed very bad at Pac man. After several tries, he couldn't get past level two, making Tomura the winner of their arcade visit. The lady behind the counter looked unimpressed with the amount of tickets as she fed it into the machine.

They had two thousand three hundred tickets. They picked out inflatable swords and left with grins on their faces. They headed for the nearest park to try out their new toys. Apparently neither one wielded a sword before from their stances but it was fun nonetheless.

They chased each other, yelling and hollering, causing people to stop and stare but they didn't care. It was normal. It was everything Tomura wished he had growing up but at least he got a taste of it now. He was thankful for that even when it started showering lightly. Izuku grabbed his gloved hand, taking them under a tree so they wouldn't get as wet and waited it out.

"Ah, shit. Mine has a hole in it," Tomura said looking at the deflating plastic sword.

"Mine too. We weren't going easy with it though."
They grinned at each other, still holding hands.

"I'm glad I came out. Thanks."
"It's no problem. I know you're really introverted."

Tomura snorted loudly, "It was never by choice until now."

"I know," he answered softly.

They looked away from each other, watching the rain ease up slightly. The sudden softness in his voice was too much for Tomura.

"I can't wait to see your costume."

Tomura stiffened up. He had been on the fence about the whole thing. He wasn't even sure if he was going to make it… even with all the progress he had made, it still felt pointless.

It almost seemed Izuku could feel his thoughts because he squeezed his hand lightly.

"You shouldn't worry about what the commission thinks. You're going to do great. I have no doubt."

"You seem so sure of it. I almost believe it."

"You should."

Tomura clenched his jaw, staring at his red shoes.

"If someone who was quirkless can handle a devastating quirk then you can control the decay. We will always have to work harder than everyone else but that's alright. We'll come out on top together. Right?"

"If you say so."

"I know so."

They stood there together in silence as the rain finally let up and they went to some buffet place and pigged out junk together. Izuku Midoriya could put down if he wanted to. He ate five plates worth of food and Tomura managed to get through two and a half. His dad would be so proud of him.

Evening was evident by the colors in the sky.

"This was the best day of my life," Tomura announced quietly, "Thanks for being part of it."

Izuku smiled softly at him, "It was an honor."

Tomura snorted as they walked up the stairs to Izuku's apartment.

"We need to get you working out."

"Ugh…."

"Hey now! You can't always rely on your quirk!" Izuku said with a grin, "You need to be able to knock someone out with those fists. You have to overcome your weaknesses."
"Yea, yea."

"See you in the workout room. Seven in the morning. It's Sunday, so you don't have to worry about others. I'll let Kacchan know since you live a little away from the place. I always get up early and run."

Tomura wrinkled his nose.

"There's nothing wrong with making your quirk powerful but you gotta back it up too. There's a limit to what everyone can do. Even All for One as well."

"Yea."

Hopefully.

They stood outside of Izuku's door. Tomura wasn't sure what they do now so he just stared at his feet hoping Izuku said something first. He didn't say anything at first, instead he slipped his arms around Tomura.

"Thanks for the fun day."

He laid his head against his chest.

"It meant a lot. I'm glad you trust me. I know it's not given freely."

Tomura's chest tightened up and he hugged him back.

"I trust you a lot. Thanks."

Izuku looked up at him, his chin in Tomura's chest, making his heart skip a beat.

"I'll see you tomorrow and text me when you get home ok? Be careful. If something happens, ping me your location. No questions asked, I'll be there."

"Yea, sure."

X

X

Izuku went to his dorm after they worked out and it went great. Kacchan had treated Tomura a little more decently than before and Tomura had to lay down for thirty minutes after lifting weights since his arms felt like lead but overall, it was great. What he didn't expect was Shinsou, Monoma and Ochako in his room. The three of them raised their heads collectively, pausing their game to stare at him.

"You guys don't have your own room?" he asked with a smile.

"Well, you haven't updated any of us in your adventures with your locker stalker," Ochako said with a sly smile, "I wanted to know how it was going."

That was one hell of a loaded question. How could he answer that?

"It's going well. He's doing better in training."

All three of them cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Nothing else?" Hitoshi asked.

Oh god-

What have they heard?

"You seriously have no news?" Ochako asked with a devious grin on her face.

"Izuku is oblivious."

Monoma held up his phone to show off the picture of Izuku and Tomura outside of Izuku's apartment building.

First he turned bright red because of how it looked then he paled.

Who took the picture?

"Where…. Where is that posted?" he asked quietly.

"Oh… online."

"Who?" he whispered, fear lacing his voice.

"It said: user1957 as a screen name and it tagged you."

Izuku had no friends with a screen name like that. Someone had been following them.

His stomach dropped and his heart threatened to stop. Suddenly it felt too hot in his room.

He turned around, his feet carrying him to Aizawa's room. He started beating on the door, tears stinging his eyes. The older man opened the door and Izuku fell forward onto the ground.

"What-

"Something's wrong!" he yelled, pulling himself up, "Someone was following me and Tomura yesterday!"

"Huh-

Izuku went through his social media and showed Aizawa. He frowned slightly.

"You don't know that name?"

"N-no-

The teacher took the phone from his hand and found out the person who posted the picture just made that profile yesterday.

Everything happened so quickly but it was too late. Inko Midoriya had been working when the apartment complex burned down to the ground. Eight people had died, leaving over a hundred people without a home. Izuku ignored all the calls and texts from Tomura.

All for One was targeting him to get Tomura back. His mother almost died.

Izuku leaned over the couch in the common area, proceeding to empty his stomach onto the carpet.

He knew what the picture was.

It was a message...

He knew what it meant and it meant he wasn't safe.

His mother wasn't safe.

And there was nowhere he could run or hide.