Once awake, Bessie began to gather her things. A moment later there was a knock at the door.
"Your chaperone to the airport is here!" said a familiar voice on the other side.
She opened the door to find the first Tokyo resident she met standing outside her room.
"Toshinori-san. It's good to see you!" she said. How have you been?
"No complaints, Bessie-chan. Did you enjoy your week with us?"
"So much!" she exclaimed. "I knew I'd be sad to leave the moment I arrived."
"Indeed," the skeletal man responded. "Are you ready to go?"
"Just about," she replied. "Just give me a few minutes? I need to say a quick goodbye."
"Certainly," Toshinori obliged. "I'll be right here when you're ready."
Bessie raced to Shoto's room and knocked on the door.
"Todoroki-kun! Are you in there?"
There was no answer. Bessie ran to Yaoyorozu's room to see if she knew where he was, but her room was empty as well. She tried a few more rooms, even Katsuki's, but no one was there.
"Where is everyone?" Bessie asked when she arrived back at her room.
"It's Sunday," Toshinori explained. "There's no school so most of the students are at home."
Bessie looked at the time on her phone. There wasn't enough time to go to Todoroki's house.
"We should really be going," the skinny man urged.
Bessie's hope fell flat. We never said goodbye…
On the subway ride to the airport Bessie once again found herself fighting tears. There were so many wonderful people she would probably never see again and she had failed to give any of them a proper greeting.
"This is where I leave you. I have to be somewhere," Toshinori said once they finally arrived at the airport. "You know where to go, right? Get your ticket from the desk over there. They'll take care of your luggage and show you the rest of the way."
"Thanks, Toshinori-san. Thanks for all your help," Bessie said. "Listen, can you do one more thing for me? I need to tell everyone that I'll miss them. And that I really enjoyed getting to know them all."
"I don't think they need me to tell them that," the near-skeleton smiled.
"Goodbye, Toshinori. Take care."
"Have a safe flight, Bessie-chan"
Like they had done before, Bessie and Toshinori exchanged both greeting gestures, and then they parted ways.
With everything behind her, Bessie felt like she was back in England already, and the attendant that helped her at the counter just happened to be Japanese.
"Just follow the signs to the departures gate," the kind young woman said. "Enjoy your flight."
As Bessie neared the International Departures gate she grew aware of a sound like applause and cheering. There was a large mass of people assembled just a few steps before the corridor to the boarding lounge. She immediately recognised a giant of a man with yellow-blonde hair in two upward-pointing strands.
All Might?
She started walking faster. There were children, too. It didn't take her long to recognize them, mainly because one of them stood out like a sore pink thumb. Everyone was there and it was beautiful. Even the teachers she had had lessons with and Principal Nezu, whom she had only seen briefly before Aizawa showed her to homeroom. Bessie abandoned her sped-up walking in favour of a flat-out sprint. The tears she had been holding back now flowed freely. Todoroki, too, ran to meet her and the two of them hugged.
"You didn't seriously think we'd let you go without a proper sendoff, did you?" he asked with a smile.
Bessie chuckled through the tears. "I was afraid-" she began. "I thought that…"
"Baaneto Erisabessu," All Might began. "On behalf of everyone here, I would like to thank you for the privilege of teaching someone from Ordina City High. It was a joy to have you here, and when the next OCH student arrives next year we hope it will be an equally pleasurable experience."
"I'll see to that," she replied, giving Shoto a wink.
One by one each of her classmates gave her a hug and a greeting. When Katsuki's turn came he merely patted her shoulder again.
"Go home. Get there in one piece."
Not surprisingly, Todoroki waited until last.
"I'll see you again, right?" he asked.
"I'll see to that." She repeated. "After all, I still owe Katsuki-kun a rematch," she added and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
THE END