It was intermission between tests during the Provisional Licensing Exam. Incredibly every student from class 1A made it so far, but for some there were more pressing matters. Mineta and Kaminari had just discovered that Midoriya was in a compromising position with Camie Utsushimi during the last test, a targeting battle. An "enviable situation" as Sero put it.
"What devious things were you doing with that uber hottie?!" Mineta demanded as he pointed at Camie. She noticed them and waved at Izuku, which made the curious duo even more impatient.
"What in the Plus Ultra did you have going on with her?" Kaminari yelled while shaking Midoriya's collar.
"Look, guys, Sero got it all wrong. It was just a side effect of her quirk. I actually had no idea what was happening and I almost failed the test." For the 2nd time today, Deku was in an unexpected and awkward position.
"But you saw her naked?!" Kaminari pressed.
"Well, sorta..." Izuku wanted this line of questioning to stop.
Uraraka was standing nearby and watched the interaction.
"Why is she still waving at you?! Details, details!"
"Don't lie to us!" Mineta and Kaminari weren't letting Deku go until he gave them satisfying information. But his honor wouldn't allow it.
"I swear nothing weird happened! That girl is actually really scary!"
Camie saw the commotion and approached them. "See you out there" she waved to Deku with a smile, which only elevated the curiosity of the nosy duo.
As Uraraka witnessed the two harass Deku for a scoop, she specifically eyed Deku's responses and posturing. She watched intensely even though she knew these rumors couldn't be true.
'Not Deku. Not in the middle of a match. He can't even talk to girls. But...she did kinda wish him luck on the next test, so something did happen.' Uraraka shifted her gaze towards Camie as she walked away in her skin-tight bodysuit that accentuated her figure.
'Okay. I get it. Deku said she was 'sorta' naked. She must have made some kind of move.'
She felt an ache in her chest.
'I don't like this. Why do I feel so flustered? I was fine when I was fighting earlier. But now...'
She looked back to Deku as he struggled to temper the expectations of his small audience.
'He's so honest.' Her mind went to warm thoughts to combat the part of her brain that was tormenting her.
She thought most guys would welcome and maybe even embellish that type of gossip, but Deku's behavior was always so authentic. He seemed to have pride but also a lack of confidence. He was open about his shortcomings and humble about his achievements, even after going beyond the call of duty and surprising everyone with a heroic act.
She felt a kinship with Deku ever since they met. A few days into their Hero Studies, she spotted him walking towards the entrance and talking to himself.
'He's kind of adorable, and seems nice.' Uraraka thought to herself. 'And he isn't walking with anyone. I'm gonna say hi'. He was standing still now, and she slightly quickened her pace to catch up, but as she got close enough to say something, words somehow escaped her.
'He seems like a loner, I better be delicate.' So she walked closer, and even though she was now within whispering distance, he was so consumed in his thoughts he didn't even notice her standing next to him, which made her even more nervous. She was just about to tap his shoulder and say hi, when this boy suddenly took a step and tripped over his own feet, falling head-first towards the ground. She instinctively placed her hand on his back while he was almost parallel to the ground, and used her anti-gravity quirk.
Deku was understandably shocked at becoming weightless and began stammering and kicking his legs. Uraraka couldn't help but giggle at the sight.
"Are you okay?" He looked at her as she brought him back to his feet, and he continued to stammer. He couldn't decide whether to express gratitude, or introduce himself, or ask questions about her power, and so ultimately said nothing. She could tell he wasn't used to making new friends, so she kept talking.
"I stopped you with my quirk. Sorry for not asking first, but I figured you wouldn't mind me catching you." Her tone was lighthearted and she smiled through the embarrassment. She was used to doing that. Uraraka was an outgoing person and comfortable talking to strangers. But this time she felt an added weight on her chest. Even before talking to him. From a distance he looked very approachable but after she got closer and met him face to face she felt...weird. He seemed so innocent, flailing and stuttering over his words.
"Isn't this all like way nerve racking?" she widened her toothless smile and squinted up at the clouds. Seeing the way he was blushing and searching for his ability to speak, she found it difficult to look him in the eyes. "Well, I guess I'll see you inside. Bye!" she quickly moved towards the main doors.
'What just came over me? He's so awkward. I'm so awkward'.
After that they steadily became friends along with Tenya Iida. The trio had good chemistry, but she felt something deeper than that with Deku, ever since they saved each other in the Practical Exam and teamed up to win All Might's combat training course. And then teamed up again for the Sports Festival. They've supported each other on and off the field. He meant a lot to her, but he didn't know the extent. 'My fault' she told herself. The urges she held in her chest were unfamiliar and gave her anxiety. And so she never expressed to Deku how she felt about him, or to anyone else for that matter.
People were really starting to notice him, but it was clear he didn't like the attention he was receiving at this moment regarding Camie. And neither did Uraraka. She found herself walking towards the three classmates. Her pace was slow but deliberate.
"Hey, Deku" she didn't know what she was doing, she didn't know exactly how she felt about Deku, either. But her body moved with a desire not to let him be harassed by friends and adversaries. She wanted to protect him. So she stepped in front of Deku, facing Mineta and Kaminari. She calmly grabbed Kaminari's collar and Mineta's ear and gently lifted their now-weightless bodies up towards the ceiling, with a slight rotation so that they slowly flipped end over end.
"Whoa what are you doing Uraraka!" Kaminari squealed. They were about 10 feet high and many other students including Deku looked up to watch. Several outbursts of laughter and taunting followed, particularly from class 1B.
Uraraka wanted to cut the conversation short but she also wanted to distract everyone from seeing what she was about to do, including Deku. She turned around and looked at him. His eyes were upwards like everyone else's in the immediate area, and his expression was both amused and confused. He lowered his gaze to see her taking a step closer with a determined look on her face. He now had instant butterflies to go with his bemusement.
'She's so close!' he thought before whispering "Uraraka?" She reached out with both hands and he put his up in surrender. He thought she was going to send him skyward to join the other two.
'Must be her idea of a prank.' Deku closed his eyes in anticipation, and suddenly he felt her hands on either side of his face. But instead of weightless feet, he felt something soft and warm on his lips. He opened his eyes when she touched his face, but before he could even react, she completely closed the gap between them and brought her lips to his. Deku felt like his heart was about to fly out of his chest. It all happened so fast that he could barely process what was happening before Uraraka pulled away and dropped her hands to her side.
They stared at each other for a second before she had to look at the ground. As she predicted, he was stunned and unblinking. She didn't want her eyes to betray the deep affection likely showing on her face. She didn't want him to know all at once just how serious she was and scare him away. His hand was shaking as he slowly reached up to cover his mouth. Almost like a frightened sloth. She started to bashfully gaze around the room for something else to look at while wringing her hands together. She noticed that everyone was still looking in one direction.
"Oh right! Release!" Sero and another student had already begun roping Mineta and Kaminari down, but they were still weightless. She was going to tell them it was a joke, but she didn't know what to tell Deku. Or what he would say. She looked back at him. Confusion was still on his face.
"I uhh. I uhh" he sounded like he did when they first met. She didn't think this far ahead.
To her great fortune, the bell signaling the end of intermission sounded. And a familiar voice was heard over the PA system, announcing that the last test is a rescue mission. Deku snapped out of his daze but still looked lost. The walls of the room again unfolded to reveal the field of play, and before he knew it, the test started. Students began running toward the disaster area.
"Come on, Deku!" Uraraka grabbed Deku's elbow and got his feet moving. But he forgot how his legs worked. "What are you, a zombie?" she said playfully with a laugh, and released his elbow in order to grab his hand and keep pulling. His pace returned to normal, but the color of his face did not.
'I KISSED A GIRL!' he screamed in his head. 'For the sake of the exam I have to act like nothing happened. But she totally just kissed me in a crowded space. People had to have seen it. And even though she's pulling me towards the next test, she's still technically holding my hand. What is her goal? Some of the other students definitely gave me curious looks, but it seems like most of their eyes were in the sky. She wanted people to see but also created a distraction? This doesn't make sense. Wait, did she just claim me?!'
"Deku! Let's go!" Uraraka yelled as she gave his hand a short, firm squeeze. She sent him a reassuring grin when his eyes refocused on her.
"Right! Sorry!" they let go of each other's hands and began to dead sprint. Blue-green sparks caressed his body, and he never felt more confident.