"...I think your jacket looks ok..."
Izuku barely caught the tail end of Todoroki's quiet mumbling in his panic to get out of that circle of onlookers. Heart pounding and face flush with embarrassment, he yanked Todoroki's arm so hard, the boy nearly tripped over his own skis as Izuku forcibly manhandled their way out of the crowd.
The clog of students began to disperse. Slowly. Still judging him. He could feel it. Izuku hurried to kick his skis off, scrambling over to the outdoor rack by the rental lodge, dragging a confused Todoroki by the back of his collar.
Tokoyami's eyes nearly rolled out of their sockets. Trying to salvage some sort of dignity, he leaned down and unclipped his skis, and then graciously helped Ashido out of hers. His very slow and deliberate clip-clip reminding Izuku that at least someone there knew what they were doing.
Watching him, Izuku briefly wondered how the other group leaders were fairing on their trip. Surely they weren't... the worst group to hit the slopes… right?
"Good thing we're getting lunch, you know," Ashido grinned at Tokoyami, ruffling his feathers while he kneeled over her boot. "I am feeling a bit peckish- eh? Eh? How about that one?"
Tokoyami looked like he wanted to scream.
" Still not funny," he grumbled, banging the snow off of her skis with excessive force. He reached up and placed her skis on the rack while Mina pouted, leaning off the handrail of the lodge's freshly shoveled stairs.
"Aw, boo, " she whined. "You're cute when you nibble, though!"
"Madness!" Tokoyami spat back, flinging a dramatic finger in her direction. "You shouldn't want to observe the fleshtaking of my craw!" and he slammed the rack's stopper-bar shut.
" What- ?"
Izuku laughed.
Todoroki sighed. "He said he doesn't like it when you watch him eat." He stood at the top of the veranda now, boots stomped clean, holding the cafeteria door for them to enter.
A 30 degree wall of hot air smacked Izuku in the face as they passed through the thick glass doors, cheeks and fingers tingling with sudden warmth. The smell of wood smoke and hot frying foods gently wafted through the vaulted ceiling of the lodge, deliciously enticing. His stomach growled, louder than the din of happily chatting crowds, demanding immediate attention. He hadn't realised how hungry he was until he saw the piles of food all around them. Izuku unzipped his dripping coat, and started stuffing his wet mits in his pockets until Mina elbowed him, pointing out the heated drying rack on the side wall.
The village cafeteria was a huge building, made in that fake Swiss chalet style, with three warm brick fireplaces and a bunch of rough-plank tables and benches dotting the hall. The wood-panelled walls were decorated with antique ski gear and old maps of the area when they weren't interrupted by enormous windows framing a gorgeous view of the mountainside. And in one corner of the room, a stuffed rearing grizzly that the park rangers affectionately named "Rambo" stood, watching all the passersby, and collecting charity donations in a can tied to his front paw.
Tokoyami found them a clean table, and Izuku, Todoroki and Ashido went to go line up and order. Izuku swore he spotted Aizawa over in the corner, sleeping in a plush armchair by one of the roaring fires. But it may have just been someone else who looked like him— and who also carried an orange sleeping bag around in public. A few other heads stood out to him as well; Shoji and Mineta near the window, Iida relaxing by himself, and Yaoyorozu, Jiro and Ojiro chatting on the bench right near his elbow. But- no…
"Hey, um," Izuku leaned over the wooden rail separating their order cue from the tables. "Have you guys seen Uraraka at all?"
Jiro squinted at him. "Have you seen my camera? "
"No," Yaoyorozu lowered her vanilla latte from her lips. "Why? She's not missing too, is she?"
"Oh no, no!" Izuku felt that flush rising in his cheeks again, desperately blaming it on the heat of the lunch room. "I mean, she just, she maybe said we'd kinda meet up for lunch… sortof. "
Did she? She said that, right? ' You'll have to tell me all about it at lunch.' That's what she said. Right? That meant they were gonna eat together. Right? Yes?
Yaomomo shrugged. "Did you text her?"
Izuku's blush quickly sank into a pale sickness knotting his stomach. ".. ...No. " He didn't. Because that's what smart people who aren't dumb idiots would do. Fuckleberry finn.
"Then how's she supposed to know you're here-?" Jiro added, deftly stealing one of Ojiro's fries.
"I dunno," Ojiro interrupted. "Don't girls have psychic powers? They always seem to know what I'm gonna say before I can say it."
"Yes!" Deku threw his arms up. "Thank you! Someone here understands women!"
"They're mean and scary," Ojiro nodded. "They can smell fear!"
"Definitely scary."
"Ugh..." Yaoyorozu took a deep drink of her coffee.
Izuku felt a small tap on his shoulder. "I hate to interrupt your casual misogyny, but we're ready to order." Ashido was already up at the front of the line, and Todoroki had found his way back to where Izuku hung over the railing, holding up yet another queue.
"Just... order me something-"
"What do you want?"
"Same thing. Whatever you get is probably fine. Don't pay." He gently swatted Shoto's arm until it retracted of its own accord, and Todoroki shuffled his way back up the line. Izuku ducked and swung under the wooden rail, inviting himself to sit between Ojiro and Jiro.
Jiro's eye's met Momo's. "I told you," she mouthed to her girlfriend.
Several silent eyebrows were exchanged.
"Shh," Ojiro leaned in and whispered in Izuku's ear, " they're communicating in lesbian !"
"We are not!" Momo snapped. "Besides- I think it's cute." she smirked, winking at Izuku.
"Who-? What? Was it what we said about girls being scary?" He could feel both their eyes working him up and down, analyzing his every anxious move and suddenly Izuku just didn't know what to do with his hands anymore. "If- if that was it, I'm sorry!"
"No, honey, that's not it," Yaoyorozu smiled, still sipping her latte.
"And anyway, you've got a lot of gall to say women are scary when men are camera thieves- " Jiro sniped, inserting herself back into the conversation.
"You're really not gonna let this one go, are you?" Ojiro smacked her hand away from another attempted fry-swipe. "He's probably just recording something for a music video or whatever."
Izuku sighed, trying to hide his disappointment. "I'm just surprised she's not here, is all," he said, pulling out his phone and reflexively thumbing the screen showing no new notifications. Text her, Deku. Text her. Just ask her to meet you. "I mean, weren't we all supposed to stay in our groups?"
"Oh gee, I dunno." Yaomomo rolled her eyes. "Have you asked Tokoyami over there, all by himself? He looks like he's about to come for your future kids."
Izuku turned around, slowly, vertebrae by creaking vertebrae, confirming the chilling worst; a fuming Fumikage across the room, tapping his fingers on the table he'd reserved and glaring death over at the four of them.
"We- forgot-" he gulped. Chills of dread ran up Izuku's spine as Todoroki shoved himself between him and Jiro, quietly mentioning something about how he'd ordered their lunches. Thankfully, Mina went over and began dragging an uncooperative Tokoyami by the arm to join them.
"Oh my god, you guys!" she chirped, shoving Tokoyami in beside Momo. "Check out this snap from Hagakure-" She produced her phone, waving it around the table. "Bakugou took off his shirt!"
Izuku caught a glimpse of a short video clip of Bakugou, naked from the waist up, flashing a peace sign at whoever was filming and dipping down into the half-pipe. "He must be freezing. Idiot."
Ojiro peered at her screen. "Did Kaminari and Kirishima follow suit?"
"Of course," Ashido laughed, flicking through her messages, pulling up various snaps and passing her phone around.
This was bad. Clearly. Evidently. Izuku's thumbs ran over his phone, habitually locking and unlocking his screen, no new messages to be found. Was Ochako still over at the terrain park? Was she watching a shirtless, abtacular Bakugou pulling sweet tricks? Should he text her and remind her that they were gonna meet, or would that sound needy and desperate? Should he mention lunch? Call or text? Calls are too personal. Definitely text. But then he'd have to consider how many and what kind of emojis to use to come across as carefree and easygoing and fun and maybe throw in a random flag one to show that he was funny and cool and unpredictable and-
Thankfully, Midorya's train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of their lunch. Anxiety being what it was, he'd completely forgotten what an incredible appetite he'd worked up— and was immediately disappointed by the overflowing pile of bean sprouts and kale placed before him.
"I got us macro bowls," Todoroki announced, rather pleased with himself.
"Right…" Izuku jammed his fork unenthusiastically into a sauceless cube of grilled chicken, staring longingly at the disgusting platter of ketchup-soaked curly fries and thick burger Tokoyami was currently ploughing into while Mina chugged her strawberry milkshake.
"-Gluten free, and should give us enough grams of protein for the rest of the day. Kale's also an excellent source of iron, my family knows a good recipe for-"
"Hey-y, Todoroki?" Izuku chirped, stabbing his fork back into his bowl. "Shoto? Dude, we are fucking fifteen years old." Izuku grabbed the other boy's face, cupping Shoto's cheeks for dramatic emphasis. "Do you understand the kind of metabolism that comes with being nothing but horny and angry all the fucking time?" Shoto quirked an eyebrow between his smushed features, and Izuku continued unperturbed. "I could eat literally anything and turn it into muscle if I work out. I swear to god, you name it. I could eat a bowl of laundry pods soaked in Pepsi and butter and sprinkled with bacon bits and still not get fat. This food is… It's unnecessary! That's how our bodies work right now!"
"Well, no," Todoroki's eyes were looking everywhere, anywhere except Izuku, "you'd be dead." But he didn't jerk his head away.
"Beside the point." Izuku let go of Todoroki's face. He grabbed the fork and chomped his bitter kale. "Testosterone's one hell of a drug. Has anyone heard from Uraraka?"
"For fuck's sake, just text her! "
"-Please don't watch me eat."
"But you're cute, though!"
"Laundry pods are poison."
Bowl half-empty, and ravenous teenage hunger mostly sated, Izuku pulled out his phone for the twentieth time while everyone else chatted around the table. There she was. Already up top in his frequent contacts. No new messages. Why did he feel so nervous? This wasn't, like, a real date or anything. He just needed to work up a little courage and- and just-
You - sent 1:11
[Hey, where are you?]
Ochakoooo - received 1:13
[Doing one last run before lunch! Wanna eat together?]
You - sent 1:13
[I'd love to!]
[But our group just ate ^^;;]
[so... I guess I could watch you]
Ochakoooo - received 1:14
[haha! creeper! Rofl]
Oh, no.
Ochakoooo - received 1:15
[Yeah, I can meet you there in a bit]
[I'm just doing one more run with Aoyama's group]
[should be done in 10 maybe 15]
Ochakoooo - received 1:16
[sound ok?]
You - sent 1:16
[Yeha of course ^_^b]
Ochakoooo - received 1:22
[Yeehaw lol]
You - sent 1:22
[lol]
Smooth.
By mid-afternoon, Ashido had skipped off to go join Hagakure at the terrain park, leaving the three boys by themselves with an extra bill for curly fries and strawberry milkshake. Tokoyami grudgingly covered it, muttering something about group leader responsibility and a sworn blood-debt soon to be repaid.
Izuku paced up and down the icy veranda outside the cafeteria, boots crunching on chunks of rock salt sprinkled all over, coming up with worse and worse excuses to stall for time. Several more of his classmates passed in and out of the cafeteria. But still, no Ochako.
You - sent 1:44
[heyy, how's the run going?]
Ochakoooo - received 1:48
[sorry, looks like I'm stuck! This is taking way too long… 3]
Heart?
Heart!? WHAT DID HEART MEAN!? Did she love it when things take too long? Was she happy that they're not meeting up? She deeply loves him, despite their ever-growing distance? What? Why were girls like this ?
You - sent 1:48
[haha no worries]
[take your time]
Fuck.
Fuckfuckfuntimes.
Izuku felt another tap on his shoulder as his eyes kept desperately scanning the lower ski area for Ochako's lavender ski jacket and pink hat. At this point he was getting kinda used to Shoto's communication MO.
"She's not coming, is she?" Shoto stood beside him, leaning against the rail with his skis in hand. He humoured Izuku, squinting out onto the bright snowscape, watching schoolmates and strangers pour down the mountain, but seeing no particularly familiar faces. No Ochako.
"Midoriya…"
Izuku finally tore his eyes away from his own creepy mountainstalking.
"...No." Izuku tucked his chin against his folded elbows on the rail. Everything for naught. This just wasn't fair.
Shoto shifted his skis under his arm. "Tokoyami and I are heading to the peak of the mountain."
"Huh," Izuku looked him up and down before reflexively turning back to the skiers trickling down the slopes. "I guess you have improved a lot in one-"
"He says the powder snow up top is easier to learn on," Todoroki interrupted him. He coughed slightly. "And that there's far less people."
"You mean less Mina."
"Don't tell him that."
"That's- fair."
"We were wondering if you wanted to come along."
"I do, but…" Izuku sighed heavily. No Ochako. No new messages. He scanned the bottom of the hill one last desperate time. Nothing. She wasn't coming. She really wasn't coming.
Maybe the sun was shifting in the sky, but the air felt just a little bit colder around him.
"You know," Shoto said, breaking Izuku's melancholy silence, "She probably wouldn't want you to waste your day waiting for something that wasn't going to happen."
"True."
A flicker of a smile formed on Todoroki's lips. "Maybe you should take your own advice and go 'connect with the ice and snow'."
Izuku snorted in spite of himself. He was right. Ochako wasn't trying to hurt him, she was probably just off doing her own thing and having fun. No sense crying about it and wasting a perfectly good day. No need to worry so much. They'd see each other later, maybe even after dark during night-ski. He still had time to sweep a certain someone off their feet.
"Yeah," he nodded. "I'd like that."