Izuku nodded as Aizawa delt out instructions. He listened dutifully, hoping it would ease Aizawa's stress. It didn't seem to be working. Izuku wanted to tell him that he'd stick close to his friends and tell them immediately if he felt like he was slipping and that he would avoid using his quirk for the next few days, but they were empty promises now.

Izuku felt his cheeks heat shamefully and sunk into his shoulders.

After so many lies and half-truths, Izuku felt like his words held little meaning. But he planned to show that he could be trusted again by following Aizawa's orders to the tee. Especially since Aizawa was reluctant to let Izuku go back to the dorms. But Izuku had argued that it was important for him to keep his routine and he'd be safer on campus.

Aizawa had immediately vetoed the proposal, but Mic managed to convince him with some offered restrictions.

Izuku wasn't bothered by access off-campus being revoked completely. That would mean that he wouldn't be able to go shopping with Shoji and Bakugo, but they were fine before he started tagging along.

Not being allowed to be alone was a little more troublesome. Izuku didn't love the idea of someone constantly having to be around him. Aizawa had argued with Mic on that one, pointing out that Izuku managed to slip away during communal breakfast which had sent Izuku sinking into his shoulders with a slouch. But Mic said that Shinsou had already agreed to keep an eye on Izuku during the school day and Bakugo while they were at the dorms.

Both he and Aizawa gave Mic an incredulous look at that. He shrugged, barely suppressing a smug smile. Aizawa muttered an agreement still not looking happy about it, but the tension in his shoulders eased away slightly.

He was also required to go back to two meetings a week with Mrs. Ito and possibly go back on the anxiety medication.

That made Izuku sour. He'd been happy, proud even when Mrs. Ito said he'd improved enough to come off the medication. But he didn't argue. He just reminded himself that it was his fault that this was all happening.

Even though Izuku knew Aizawa wasn't angry at him, Izuku couldn't shake his own anger. Maybe it was anxiety making him jumpy, but Dabi not appearing constantly set him on edge. No flickers of flames either.

Aizawa and Mic definitely noticed his fanatic looking around and the way he'd jump out of his skin when Eri grabbed his hand. That had led to a long-winded discussion about imaginary Dabi who'd been tormenting him for weeks, going into more detail than he had at the dorms. When Izuku finished, Aizawa very deliberately closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He looked hurt when he opened his eyes and looked at Izuku, asking why he didn't tell them. Izuku didn't want to answer but he did. They deserved that much. But the truth was he didn't want

to bother them with it and admitted that he didn't want to be held back in training any more than he was.

That resulted in an even deeper breath from Aizawa, and Mic looked like his nerves were beginning to fray as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Aizawa looked contemplative as Izuku admitted to actually being afraid of what the real Dabi would do in retaliation. That was the root of everything. Aizawa shared a look with Mic, silently making an agreement between them, before telling Izuku about the emergency mission they went on.

Izuku listened quietly, absorbing the information.

A chemical manufacture warehouse in Tokyo had been attacked, but the police were made aware of the attack by an anonymous call a few hours before which prompted the police into calling in every Pro-Hero they could get their hands on.

Multiple high-grade Nomu's and villains associated with the League.

The warehouse was raided of everything they could get their hands on. The fight decimated an entire city block and a good chunk of the warehouse.

It didn't make Izuku feel any better. In fact, it only confirmed his fears that the real Dabi was still out there and plotting.

However, his musings were interrupted by internet privileges being revoked for two weeks. Izuku couldn't help but huff at that. He loved the internet, but he understood their concern. Izuku had fearfully shown them the pile of notebooks he'd filled since the fire. Given their horrified looks as they flipped through the pages of diagrams, blobs of ink in the vague shape of a human, countless lists with scratched through ideas, and detailed retellings of his memories, Izuku really shouldn't have been surprised.

When Aizawa finished telling Izuku the conditions of a fourth time he waited for Izuku to agree. "I will," Izuku said, silently swearing to keep this promise.

"Alright," Aizawa said stiffly, glaring up at the dorms behind Izuku, "I'll see you in class." He turned to leave but paused.

A moment later, Izuku found himself in a tight hug. It shocked him and he looked around the courtyard. A few students were headed to class, but none paid attention. Still, it was odd for Aizawa to show affection outside of the house.

But Izuku didn't mind.

"You might be a problem child," Aizawa said, turning into Izuku's curls as he tightened his arms,

"but you're my problem child." He glanced around before quietly amending, "Our problem child." Izuku's breath caught in this throat. "I'm sorry," he said again because he felt like he couldn't say

it enough.

Aizawa's grip softened to the warmth Izuku knew so well. The same warmth he'd run from as a child when he found it in Mitsuki.

"I know you are," he said, pulling away but he kept his hands on Izuku's shoulders. "This isn't a

punishment, Izuku. It's no different than when you had to take time off to heal your burns." He gave Izuku a stern look, his thumb brushing over the scar on Izuku's ear. "You're hurt and you need to recover. We're here to help you do that. Understand?"

Izuku was quiet for a moment as he met Aizawa's dark eyes. "I didn't think of it like that," he admitted.

Aizawa smoothed his curls back, looking up as the door to the dorms opened. "Don't be late. Eat something and stick with Shinsou," he said before leaving.

"You ok?" Shinsou asked as he descended the steps.

Izuku tore his eyes away from Aizawa to Shinsou. The shadows under his eyes were darker. Izuku thought back to when he'd woken up in the hospital and how scared Shinsou had been. He didn't need to imagine how Shinsou might be feeling similar to that, he could feel the worry and turmoil.

"Better," Izuku said, turning to go up the steps. "I guess you're stuck babysitting me again."

Shinsou laughed lightly. "Don't worry, Mina's joined the rotation, so you won't only be stuck with Bakugo and me."

Izuku slumped as he pulled open the door. "I really suck," he grumbled, holding the door open for Shinsou.

"Hey." Shinsou grabbed Izuku's arm to stop him. "Don't be too hard on yourself, this is just because of how your quirk works."

"It's not," Izuku said, a hard line creasing between his brows. "It's more than just my quirk. We don't really have time right now, but maybe I can explain during lunch or after classes?"

Shinsou dropped his hand with a nod. "If you want to." "Izuku?" a voice called hesitantly as they entered.

Izuku recognized that voice and took a moment to gather his emotions before he looked up and met Mina's golden eyes. They were wide and full of fear. "Hey, Mina."

She took in a stuttered breath as her eyelashes lined with thick tears. "You're ok?"

"Yeah." Izuku swallowed hard as he walked to her. "I'm ok."

Mina wrapped her arms around Izuku's neck. "I'm glad," she sighed, relaxing against him.

"I'm sorry I worried you," Izuku murmured against his hair, remember the way she'd screamed his name.

Her arms tightened around him in response, and she turned her face into his chest. A second later she pushed herself away and roughly wiped the tears off. "You're ok, that's all that matters," Mina sniffed with a cross of her arms. "We still have some time before class if you're hungry."

Izuku let her drag him to the kitchen where the whirl of the blender filled the air.

"One more, Bakugo," Mina said, sliding into a chair next to Kirishima. Izuku sat down next to her.

Bakugo scowled down at the remaining fruit and vegetables. "I'm not your personal fucking chef, Pinky."

Mina plopped her cheek in her hand. "You're so grumpy in the mornings," she groaned with a roll of her eyes. "Not for me, for Izuku." She gestured to Izuku sitting beside her as Bakugo whipped his head up.

"No, it's ok!" Izuku said, waving his hand dismissively. "I already ate a bowl of cereal."

Bakugo's face pinched and he shoved the leftover smoothie prep into the blender. "Fucking cereal?" he shouted over the blare of the machine.

Izuku scowled back at him. "What's wrong with cereal?"

"That shit is all sugar, Deku!" Bakugo shoved the finished smoothie across the counter to Izuku. "You get pudgy again, I'll kick your ass."

Izuku felt his cheeks blister as he drank the smoothie, hating that it tasted so good.

"Not manly, bro!" Kirishima chastised. "Nothing wrong with some extra weight." He shot Bakugo a roguish grin. "Besides, you said—"

The rest of his sentence was cut off by the whirl of the blender filled with soapy water. Undeterred, Kiri talked louder, nearing a shout, but with Mina's added cackle his voice was drowned out.

The morning passed by uneventfully. Still no Dabi. Izuku didn't know how to feel about that, so he elected to not think about it for the time being and just enjoy the reprieve from his torment.

He and Shinsou managed to secure a table under a nice tree to shade them from the hot sun. Izuku tore open his bento, excited to have his appetite back after days of forcing himself to eat something, anything for the sake of eating.

"How was your date?" Izuku asked, trying to be nonchalant about it.

Shinsou narrowed his eyes, clearly not falling for the avoidance tactic. "Lunch period is short. Spill."

Izuku huffed because he did want to know how things had gone with Kaminari. After wingmaning he felt like he deserved at least that. "Fine," he grumbled. "It's kinda a long story, but I've been seeing Dabi for a while now."

"Dabi?" The clump of rice fell from Shinsou's chopsticks. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Izuku chewed slowly as he thought back to the times he'd worked up the courage to tell someone only for Dabi to appear with flickering flames and the courage turn to ash. "I'm scared of him and that he's still out there," he said quietly. "I wanted to, but then I'd see him again and I'd think about what might happen if he went after one of you and I just. . .couldn't."

Shinsou made a stressed hum as he picked through his own bento.

"And fire still bothers me," Izuku admitted, lifting his gaze to watch the other students milling about. "Even putting on my mask makes my heart race."

"I wondered," Shinsou said. "You have Dad stressed even more than usual, so I knew something else had to be going on."

The corner of Izuku's mouth turned up because for once he was pretty sure which one he was talking about. "H-How long was it before you started calling them that?"

Shinsou stopped mid-chew, his typically narrowed eyes rounding out as his cheeks turned pink. He swallowed hard. "A while," he muttered, scratching at his cheek. "Happened on accident, actually."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I wasn't really paying attention and he handed me something and I just said 'Thanks, Dad'." He dropped his head with a groan and Izuku felt a little bad for him.

"What happened?" Izuku couldn't image Aizawa making a big deal out of it, maybe Mic. Probably Mic. He wondered how they reacted to Eri. Suddenly, he was jealous he didn't get to see it himself.

Shinsou looked up from where he'd fallen on the table, the grid pattern stamped into his forehead. "I panicked and went to my room for the entire night."

Izuku snorted and struggled to suppress the rest of his laughter as Shinsou glared at him. "How long was 'a while'?" Izuku was nervous to ask, knowing his thoughts were obvious, but Shinsou just picked himself up and considered the question.

"Something like a year," Shinsou said. "But, if I'm being honest, I started thinking of them that way after a few months."

"Really?" The question came out soft, full of curiosity and the hope of something more.

Shinsou nodded, the blush lingering as he said, "I never thought I'd have a family either." He shrugged and shoved his mouth full of food. "Kids our age don't usually get a second chance, ya know?"

"Yeah," Izuku agreed. "It was definitely unexpected."

"Well, you were kind of dragged home," Shinsou laughed. "Did you seriously sleep in parks?"

"More like napped," Izuku explained, sipping his water. "Usually, I spent the night walking around the city." Izuku scraped out the rest of his rice into his mouth and set the plastic container down as loud as possible. "How was the date?" He grinned at Shinsou's heady glare.

Shinsou glanced around as if checking for eavesdroppers. "It was fine?" "Fine?"

"Fine," he hissed, face veering towards red.

Izuku huffed in annoyance. "Good fine or bad fine?"

Shinsou looked prepared to ignore him, but Izuku wouldn't let that slide.

Good fine or bad fine? Izuku pushed.

Shinsou slapped his hands over his ears like that would help. "Good," he bit out. "Sort of."

"Sort of?"

Shinsou stabbed his chopsticks at what was left of his lunch. "He short-circuited." His eyes narrowed. "He shocked me, too."

"Oh?" Izuku asked, feigning innocence. "That's unfortunate. How were you close enough to be

electrocuted?"

Shinsou's glare cut to him, but the threat was ruined by his painfully red face. "I kissed him—or tried to. I'm not even sure we got to that point before he tazed me."

Izuku slapped a hand over his mouth as he wheezed.

"He felt bad," he said, unable to hide his smile. "Bought me ice cream after to make up for it."

"Must've really wanted to kiss you," Izuku teased with a wide grin. "You're welcome."

Shinsou rolled his eyes. "You're as bad as Mina." He shoved the bento back into his backpack before he stood. "Let's get back to class."

Izuku followed after him. "So, are you guys like dating now?" "Shut up."

Izuku sipped his tea tiredly. He wasn't excited about having to re-tell the truth and backtrack all the lies again. It needed to be done, though. That's what he told himself. But he hoped it wouldn't take too long since Shinsou was waiting outside for him.

"How are you this afternoon, Midoriya?"

Izuku looked up from his mug and found a warm smile he'd become accustomed to over the months. "Good," he said and felt like it was true. "I'm not slipping anymore, so that means I've sorted it out."

Mrs. Ito laced her fingers on her desk, listening intently. "Let's talk about Sunday." Izuku sandwiched his hands between his knees. "I messed up."

"Let's talk about it, Midoriya," she said a bit more sternly. "Tell me what happened."

"I remember most of it," Izuku started, his voice reluctant. "Sometimes slipping is sudden. I blink and I'm somewhere else. Other times it's slow. My thoughts shift one word at a time till I'm headed in a different direction." Izuku shoved a hand through his hair as he tried to find a way to explain it. "I went to take the trash out, but I lingered, knowing I should go back inside, but I was forgetting to care."

Mrs. Ito nodded, silently urging him to continue.

"I took a step and then I was at the front gate, but my thought's melded with All For One's. I wanted to find someone." Izuku glanced to the shadows cast by the lamp, waiting for them to twist but they never did. "I don't remember a whole lot after that until I was in a part of the city I didn't recognize."

Izuku continued in careful detail. Every once in a while, Mrs. Ito would turn to her computer and type something out. His tea grew cold, but he still sipped it just to give himself a break between talking.

"I kept trying to get back to UA, sometimes with only the feeling that I would be safe here," he muttered and closed his eyes. "It felt impossible. I kept forgetting my name."

Mrs. Ito's brow pinched at that with clear worry. "Is that normal during these episodes?"

"Yeah, it's really annoying." He tried to brush it off with some humor, but it didn't really work. "Forgetting in general sucks. I'll see people and recognize that I know them, but I can't remember their name or how I know them." Izuku slouched in his chair. "Forgetting my name feels. . .hopeless. It's like the thing you're always supposed to have. But I lose it on top of my memories, where I'm supposed to be, or what I'm searching for. I'm just a shell of nothing."

Mrs. Ito let out a stiff breath, not liking the wording. "You're never nothing, Midoriya. I know it must be scary—"

"You have no idea," Izuku cut off, regretting it a moment later. "I'm sorry, it's just. . .this is why I didn't want to become a hero."

"Midoriya," she said, "it's ok to want something." She paused, waiting for Izuku to respond but he didn't so she continued, "Many quirks have difficult drawbacks and limitations, but that didn't stop those people from becoming heroes."

Izuku looked up at her. "I know. I do want to be a hero, but I also almost jumped off a roof. I can't ignore that."

"No," Mrs. Ito agreed. "That is very concerning. Why did that happen?"

"Dabi," Izuku spat. "I didn't really understand what I want doing."

"Dabi?"

Izuku nodded, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. "I started seeing him about a month after the fire."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I couldn't remember anything when I saw him, so it felt pointless." Izuku swallowed hard. "I didn't want anyone else to get hurt."

Mrs. Ito turned to type something into her computer. "But you don't remember anything more about your encounter with Dabi?"

"No," Izuku answered bitterly, "he taunts me about it—or used to. I haven't seen him since Sunday." Izuku sat back in thought, knowing Mrs. Ito liked him to be introspective. "I thought that if I told anyone about Dabi, then I'd be held back more than I already was." He scowled down at his mug. "That backfired."

Mrs. Ito smiled. "Mr. Aizawa told me about your restrictions."

"I didn't want to hurt them," Izuku said, looking down at the floor. "But that's what happened in the end. I pushed them away when they wanted to help."

"Sometimes we do things that don't make sense, but we did them because it felt safe. We've been there before, so we know how to deal with the outcome." She turned from her computer to look at Izuku directly. "Maybe you thought if you put people at a distance like you did as a kid, they'd be less likely to be hurt. . .or hurt you. Recovery is not linear, Midoriya, I told you to be gentle with yourself in this process. You made a mistake, but you can fix it."

"You sound really sure," Izuku said.

She smiled. "Because I am. You have a lot of people you care a lot about you, Midoriya."

When Izuku pushed open the door a long time later and bone-tired he saw Shinsou half asleep in one of the waiting chairs. Izuku poked his shoulder till he jerked away.

"Sorry," Izuku said through a yawn.

Shinsou stood with a stretch. "How'd it go?"

Izuku adjusted the backpack on his shoulders. "I'm tired and hungry."

"I'm sure Bakugo's got dinner started."

Izuku squinted up at the clock on the wall hardly able to believe he'd been in there for a couple hours. "Sorry, you had to wait so long."

"I got my homework finished," he said, holding the door open for Izuku. "You're still behind, aren't you?"

Izuku groaned. He didn't want to think about his late work. "I'm trying not to think about it."

Shinsou smirked at him. "I bet Bakugo will help you."

"Oh, are you busy?" Izuku asked, enjoying the way Shinsou got flustered.

"I may have agreed to a movie marathon with Denki," Shinsou admitted under his breath. "Apparently, it's a crime that I've never seen all the Star Wars movies."

Izuku grinned. "Denki?"

Shinsou walked faster, getting outside before Izuku. "One of these days you're gonna get a load of payback."

Izuku caught up with him, his grin falling. "What's it like dating someone?" "I don't know, I just started."

"So, you are dating now?"

Shinsou glared at him. "Why are you so curious?"

"Because I've known you've liked him for months now," Izuku said with a roll of his eyes. "Of course, I'm curious. I told him to ask you out, so really you should be thanking me."

"You got me electrocuted."

Izuku shrugged undeterred. "Maybe you're just a bad kisser."

Shinsou scoffed loudly. "Like you'd be any better."

"Probably not," Izuku said simply. "I haven't kissed anyone, after all."

"Have you thought about it?"

Izuku gave him a suspicious glance. "Not really."

"Seriously?" His brows rose in disbelief. "There's never been someone you wanted to kiss?"

Izuku felt his cheeks heat. "Sure, I've thought about it. Who hasn't? But I don't think I've ever wanted to kiss someone I know."

Shinsou blinked at him.

"Should I want to kiss someone?" Izuku asked, wondering if he'd missed something again.

Shinsou looked away as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess not if there's no one you like." He gave Izuku a curious look. "Do you like anyone?"

Izuku's steps slowed. "How do I know if I like someone?"

Shinsou stopped in the courtyard outside of the dorms and turned to Izuku. "Have you never had a crush?"

"I don't think so, but I'm not really sure either," Izuku muttered, his breath tight with stress. "What does a crush feel like?"

Shinsou spun around on his heel. "Nope. I'm not doing this."

Izuku grabbed his arm to stop him. "How did you know you liked Kaminari?"

Shinsou took a deep breath and turned back to Izuku. "I don't know. At some point, I just realized I wanted to kiss him."

"What does that feel like?" Izuku asked, tightening his grip on Shinsou.

Shinsou glared down at where Izuku was holding him, his face flushed to his hairline. "You just

know," he reasoned stiffly. "They'll just be doing something. . .and you'll know."

Izuku loosened his grip as he thought back to the day Shinsou let him use his quirk on him. "Like

showing you the poster to their favorite band?"

"Yeah," Shinsou grumbled, drawing his arm out of Izuku's fingers, "something like that."

Izuku stepped back with a hum of thought. He wasn't quite sure how that translated to wanting to kiss someone, but Shinsou looked about ready to pull his hair out, so Izuku decided to drop it.

"What the hell are you two doing?"

Izuku looked over Shinsou's shoulder to the mop of blond hair descending the stairs. "Hey, Kacchan, we just got back."

Shinsou gave Izuku a hard shove towards Bakugo. "He's your problem now."

"Have fun on your date!" Izuku called after him sweetly, grinning at the way Shinsou hunched his shoulders and hurried inside. He looked back at Bakugo as he said, "I invited Hatsume over tonight."

Bakugo frowned. "You look tired."

"I am," Izuku sighed, hoping that meant he'd actually get more than a few hours of sleep. "But I'll feel better if I talk to her." He relaxed as they entered the AC. "Is dinner ready?"

"Almost," Bakugo said, following Izuku inside. "Just waiting on the rice to finish."

Izuku dropped his backpack in one of the bar chairs. "Sorry I wasn't here to help."

Bakugo shrugged as he went to the sink to wash his hands. "I'm better at chopping than you are anyway."

"I've improved!" Izuku sputtered.

"You really can't go a day without teasing him, can you?" Mina asked, wrapping her arms around Izuku's shoulders from behind. She raised a brow when Bakugo didn't immediately retort.

Izuku smiled at her. "It's how he says hello."

Mina nodded in complete understanding. "Did you find out how the date went?"

"Shinsou said Kaminari shocked him, but other than that it went great."

Mina grinned. "Kami came back crying about it. Said he thought he ruined it."

"Well, they're having a movie date, so he must not have," Izuku said.

"Of course not," Mina snorted. "Those two just get in a tizzy whenever they're around each other."

Izuku sat up at the sound of familiar impending doom. "Uh oh," he said, whipping his head around to the front doors. He winced as Hatsume hit the glass and bounced off. "Not again." He hurried outside, Mina trailing behind him with wheezing laughter. "Serious, Hats, you're gonna hurt yourself."

Hatsume sprang up, eyes swimming for a second as she got her bearings. "Nonsense. I just recalibrated the jetpack, so I needed to test it out!" She stood and brushed herself off, swaying hard. Izuku grabbed her to keep her steady. "Besides, I didn't want to walk. This—" she patted the contraption on her back, "—is much more efficient transportation."

Izuku gave her a look of exasperation. "You ran into the doors like a bird!"

Hatsume squinted up at the dorms. "Without this test, I wouldn't know I need to adjust the repulsers." She ruffled Izuku's hair before strolling inside. "No innovation without failure, Izuku!"

"Hope you're hungry," Mina said, throwing an arm around Hatsume.

"Izuku's told me all about Bakugo's good cooking. I'm excited!" she laughed, grinning over her shoulder at Izuku. Her expression softened slightly as she reached a hand towards him.

Izuku took her hand and led her to the dining room to sit down. He quietly thanked Tsu for the plates.

"I can't stay long, though," Hatsume said, frowning down at her phone. "I have a committee meeting at eight." She gasped, dropping the phone in her lap as she turned to look at Izuku. "I need you to be my eye candy!" She grinned at Mina who choked on her water. "Nothing sells support items better than a hot hero repping them!" She turned back to Izuku with pleading eyes. "Please, Izuku, we need the donations!"

Izuku shook his head with a smile. "Of course, I'll go. When is it?"

"Saturday night in the big banquet hall." She thanked Ojiro for the glass of water. "You'll need a tux."

Izuku groaned. One plus of transferring was he didn't have to attend the galas and fundraisers. "Black tie? Must be some important people."

"We've invited the top fifty Pro-Heroes," Hatsume said through her teeth, clearly stressed about the number.

"Not everyone comes, though," Izuku tried to soothe.

Hatsume shook her head in despair. "Forty-seven have already RSVPed." She took a deep breath. "But it's fine. Endeavor loves to throw his money around, so we'll meet our donation and charity goals with no issue." She grinned at Todoroki sitting further down the table. "Thank you!"

"I didn't do anything?" Todoroki said with a slight frown.

"Ha! You're funny," she replied, only confusing Todoroki further. "Anyway, Izuku, I'll need you to be there for the entire event and butter up some heroes for me."

Izuku withered. "But—"

She waved him off, happily accepting the bowl of rice. "You just need to smile at them, and they'll love you. I need them in a good mood so when we do the support item demonstration, they're ready to open their wallets."

Izuku could practically see dollar signs in her eyes. "Alright. I'll do my best."

"Wait, the Support Course has to fundraise?" Mina asked from across the table. "I thought the school was loaded?"

"The Hero Course get's unlimited funding," Izuku explained. "Support, Business, and General Studies get a set amount of money each year, so anything over that has to be met through donations." He grimaced just thinking about the money request forms he had to fill out for every costume prototype. "Hence the big fancy galas."

"That doesn't seem very fair," Mina muttered, poking at her dinner.

Izuku shrugged. "Just how it is. Heroes are the ones actually saving people. It's important that they have the training for it."

"We," Mina corrected with narrowed eyes. "Training we have." Izuku swallowed hard. "Yeah, that's what I meant."

"Izuku's right," Hatsume said. "Besides, we'll have to do the same thing when we're out of school, so it's good practice."

"You guys would not believe how much it costs to make one of your suits," Izuku huffed. "Not even including support items."

Mina's eyes grew wide as she dared to ask, "How much?"

"It depends on the material but anywhere between a few hundred and a couple thousand for just the suit." Izuku glanced around as the table fell silent. "What?"

"I had no idea it cost so much," Jirou muttered.

Hatsume smiled tightly. "You don't want to know the number on support items." She shoveled the

rest of her food into her mouth with a content sigh. "This is delicious, Bakugo."

"Don't you live off microwave dinners and stale potato chips?" he asked, ignoring the glare from Izuku.

"Yep," she said, "the standard meal of a Support Course student." She sighed, though, and gave Izuku's arm a squeeze. "Clearly, the food you're feeding him is superior. He was a twig when I brought him to you."

Izuku pulled his arm away. "I'm not that much different," he grumbled.

Hatsume quirked a brow in challenge. "We had to take your suit out three times before the new one was made," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Hatsume," Izuku hissed.

She turned her nose up. "What's the point of being your best friend if I can't brag about you?" Izuku let out a defeated sigh but smiled fondly at her.

It was dark by the time they finished up dinner. Izuku followed Hatsume outside.

"I'm sorry about what happened last week," Izuku said, staring hard at the ground between them.

Hatsume stopped adjusting the jetpack to look at him. "I'm not upset, Izuku. I was worried, but everything's fine, so no reason to dwell on it. "

Izuku wished he could move on from things as easy as she could. He envied the way she accepted failure purely as a learning lesson and tried again undeterred.

"But keep your phone on you next time," she huffed, crossing her arms. "Would've made Sunday a whole lot easier."

"My phone?" Izuku frowned. "Wait a minute, is that the tracker?"

Hatsume raised a brow. "You kept losing it when I first made it for you!" she argued. "So it came in handy."

Izuku sputtered in disbelief. "That's how you knew I was outside UA? Seriously?"

She grinned, patting herself on the back. "Flawless execution if I do say so myself. It all worked out way better than I ever predicted."

Izuku let his aggravation go and drew her into a hug. "I'm sorry, Hats."

"It's really not—" she cut off as her voice cracked. Izuku tightened his arms as her breathing shuttered. "You're fine. . .so it's fine."

It sounded an awful lot like she was trying to convince herself. Izuku tucked her head under his chin. "It's ok to be scared," he muttered. "It's not fine either, but I'm going to figure this all out and get stronger and become the hero you want me to be."

Hatsume pulled back to look at him, shaking her head. "You already are a hero, Izuku." She stepped away and wiped the back of her hands across her eyes. "You surpassed everything I hoped for you a long time ago."

Izuku hugged her again, ignoring the way she yelped when he picked her up off the ground. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You'd probably still be sulking in the corner of the room," she quipped. Izuku laughed and set her down. "I'll see you later, Hats."

She waved before she flew off.

The moment Izuku stepped back inside a hand grabbed him by the collar and started dragging him to one of the study rooms. Izuku slumped into a chair and scowled at his textbooks already set out as Bakugo took the chair across from him. He was relieved to see some of their classmates join them.

"I brought snacks!" Mina kicked the door closed with her food and tossed the junk food on the center of the table.

"How are you still hungry?" Kiri groaned, looking at the pile of food spilling onto their homework. Mina shrugged as she tore open a bag of chips. "There's always room for pickle chips."

"Shut the hell up. I want to get this shit done with as fast as possible," Bakugo growled, shoving several packages of junk food away. "Where did you even get this crap?"

Mina ignored him and flopped down in her chair, kicking her feet up in a vacant seat. "Why don't you help Izuku finish his bio-chem and we'll start on the integral math?"

Izuku slowly opened his unfinished homework, wincing when he saw he only had three of the ten problems done. "I'm gonna fail." He sighed as Mina patted his back.

"You're not gonna fail," Mina said, leaning over his shoulder to look at his homework. "Ok, maybe."

Izuku jumped when Bakugo moved to sit beside him and pulled his book over. "Get to work, nerd."

Izuku bit back his complaints and silently followed Bakugo's instructions. He waited eagerly, struggling to stay awake hours later, as Bakugo looked over his work.

"It's good," he said and handed the paper back to Izuku.

Izuku immediately shoved it into his backpack and shook Mina awake. She squinted at him; a sticky note stuck to her cheek. "You're starting to look like Shinsou." Her eyes narrowed further. "You and Bakugo. Are you guys sleeping? Don't make me sick Iida on you with a lecture."

It took Izuku a second to register what she said. "Please don't," he whined, remembering the last time Iida cornered him about spacing out while watching TV. Something about it being bad for his eyesight. Mina poked his forehead, pushing him back as he leaned forward.

"You're on Izuku duty," she said to Bakugo, unceremoniously shoving her own books and homework into her backpack. "Kiri, Sero, get up." She nudged them with her foot till the two were startled awake.

The group trudged to the elevators, careful to be quiet at the late hour. Izuku glared down at his phone. Ten would only be considered late on a Tuesday night. Even though he felt exhausted and

barely able to keep his eyes open for more than a few seconds at a time, Izuku didn't want to sleep. He waved as Mina and Sero got off on the second floor.

Izuku stumbled into his room and let his bag slip off his shoulders. It landed with a thump, his shoes kicked off, too. Izuku tugged on a hoodie and forced himself to hang up his uniform so it wouldn't wrinkle before he got in bed.

Izuku stared into the dark until he passed out.

He woke up a couple of hours later shaking and tears stuck to his cheeks. It was the same every night. Izuku swung his legs over the side of his bed and let the silence press into him for a few seconds, the sound of his breathing rushed and heavy. He reached over to his desk and picked up the rock Eri had given him.

It felt icy in his flushed hands.

Izuku let eyes wander over to the wall that connected his room to Bakugo's.

Nightmares weren't a stranger to Izuku. Usually, he would sneak into Hatsume's room with his pillow and blanket and sleep on the floor. He'd wake up to a hand combing through his hair and a concerned furrow to her brow.

Izuku picked up his bedding with a spark of anxiety. Surely, after the other night, it wouldn't be a problem. But Izuku gulped as his hand wrapped around his door handle. He looked back at his bed, feeling his anxiety pool with a shiver.

It would be fine.

Izuku cracked his door open and winced at the light filling the hallway. He squinted as he looked around, ensuring that the coast was clear before he tiptoed over to the Bakugo's door. He reached up and knocked before he could talk himself out of it. It was one in the morning, and he desperately needed to sleep.

Just as he was about to knock again, he heard footsteps and quiet grumbles.

Bakugo pulled open the door, nearly closing it again as the light from the hallway assaulted his eyes. "Deku?"

Izuku took a step closer and clutched his pillow to his chest. "Can I sleep here?" Izuku stiffened as he realized Bakugo might say no. Mina would probably let him sleep in her room. He could deal with Iida later if he found out or Shinsou was a floor below—

"Did something happen?" Bakugo asked, stepping back to open the door further.

Izuku shrugged, eyes looked on the floor. "I just keep having bad dreams and I can't sleep."

Bakugo motioned for Izuku to come in. "How long?"

"A while," Izuku muttered, closing the door softly behind him. "I used to sleep in Hatsume's room when I had them."

"Since you transferred?" Bakugo asked in disbelief, a hand caught in his hair.

Izuku adjusted the blanket in his arms. "Used to be just when I was stressed out or my quirk was giving me trouble," he explained tiredly. "But since the fire. . .just about every night."

Izuku looked around, taking in what he could in the dark. He wasn't surprised that Bakugo kept his room clean and organized. He dropped his blanket and pillow on the floor, ready to flop down and try to actually get some sleep, but Bakugo stopped him.

"You're not sleeping on the floor," Bakugo said, grabbing Izuku by the arm.

Izuku looked at the bed situated on the far wall with unease. "I really don't mind the floor, Kacchan," Izuku said, not wanting to go into detail why. He felt the heat of Bakugo's hand pressing into his chilled skin. "It's cold."

Bakugo followed his gaze to the bed, his frown deepening when Izuku shivered. "Come on," he grunted and pulled Izuku with him across the room.

Izuku realized what he was doing and stammered, "Really, I can sleep on the floor! I didn't mean to bother you so late—"

"Deku," Bakugo cut off.

Izuku forced himself to take a breath. "Yeah?"

"I have them, too. About the fire." Bakugo looked away. "And about the other day."

Izuku stepped close as Bakugo let go of his arm. Even in the low light, Izuku could see how tired he was, and he remembered the comment Mina had made. "I'm sorry." He stepped around Bakugo and laid down, planning to say something but as his head hit the pillow his energy zapped and all he could muster was a feeble pat on the open area next to him.

He forced his eyes open when Bakugo chuckled and the mattress dipped. "Do you want to talk about it?" Bakugo asked, nearly a whisper as he pulled the blanket over his shoulder.

"Fire," Izuku breathed. "Sometimes it's different, but I was caught in fire and couldn't find my way out." He sighed heavily and turned his face further into the pillow, inhaling the smoky scent. "But sometimes I dream of Dabi and being burned. Or I'm falling. Or Yuri dies. Or you and Mirko die. Or—" he cut off as Bakugo pressed a hand to his cheek. "I hate it," he spat. "Nothing ever

changes. It's so frustrating."

Bakugo's hand shifted and pulled Izuku closer. "You always fall before I reach you," he murmured, fingers pressing into Izuku's back. "Sometimes, it's you who falls through the floor. Or you don't get up with Mirko tells you to. That one's fucking hell to wake up from."

"I'm sorry," Izuku said.

"They're just stupid dreams," Bakugo grumbled and rolled on his back.

Izuku let his eyes close but continued to fight off sleep just a little longer. "It's ok to be scared, Kacchan." He reached blindly forward, sure that his hand settled on a part of Bakugo's arm. "But I'm right here. I'm safe and so are you."

Bakugo was quiet for a moment before he said, "Go to sleep, Deku."

"Run?" Izuku gasped, startling himself out of almost falling asleep. "Will you run with me in the morning? I'll go with you to the gyms even though I don't like it."

"Go the fuck to sleep, Deku."

". . .Please?" "Fine."