Heyyy guys! I'm back from the dead—not literal but I'm here. Really sorry, been trying for a hot minute now to write something or keep adding to this chapter but haven't been fully immersed, just a lot more things these days that require my attention and haven't been to think of scenes for them properly. I guess you really can't force it unless you're spontaneously in the mood.
But thank you all for waiting and sticking around, enjoy~
Disclaimer in first chapter.
Spoilers to the anime season 1 and 3 but I mixed the scenes together for the sake of this fic.
Chapter 4:
The silverette gestured to Kurogiri who placed a list on the counter. The paper was passed around and when it came to Dabi. He noticed Shoto's name on the list.
'Hm…' Dabi stared at the name.
Shoto was perusing through the flower shop. It had been three weeks since he last visited his mother at the hospital and he wanted to buy her some nice flowers. He usually visited every other week, alternating with Fuyumi and Natsuo.
Dabi was passing by when he spotted a familiar spot of red in seas of purple flowers. He halted in his steps, did a double take, and stared a minute longer to confirm it was the same person. 'In a flower shop?' The ravenette raised a very curious brow. 'Just who exactly was he buying flowers for? Someone like him? Socially awkward.'
'Which ones…' Shoto glanced up and down the plants. He moved one of stems away and was jump scared by a face staring straight at him. The dual haired stumped back, heartbeat darting.
"Who are the flowers for?" the question couldn't leave the elder's tongue any sooner.
"H-huh?" Was all the teen could muster, brain still trying to process how Dabi was standing in front of him like that.
"I didn't know even the honor student had a crush."
"…What does that have to do with you?" Shoto may be imagining too much, but Dabi almost sounded jealous. It was kind of funny and maybe cute.
The ravenette wasn't expecting that response. "What is this? You're actually hiding it—hah! Lil' Shoto is growing up?" He pinched his cheek. The younger pulled away frowning.
"Stop, it's for my mom."
Dabi retracted his hand. "Your mom?"
"Yes. She's in the hospital."
"Hm," Dabi bobbed his head once up and down slowly, digesting the info. "I see." He was inclined to ask more but at the same time didn't deem this to be the time and place. "So, you picked anything yet?"
"Not yet. I couldn't decide."
"What's there to decide? Just take anything that looks nice, geez, you're just over complicating it in your little head."
"Like what?" Shoto sounded mildly annoyed.
"Here, take these." The ravenette picked out a bunch of pink and sky-blue tulips. "These'll get the job done."
"Um, okay, thanks?" Shoto didn't hate the flowers, in fact they seemed like a perfect option for something chosen at random. "I should pay for these. Were you here to buy flowers too?"
"Me? Pshhh, eff no. For who, exactly? I just came to troll." Dabi answered carefree. Shoto only stared at him in response.
"Right…I should get going then."
"Don't let me stop you." Dabi waved and the dual haired bowed his head once out of courtesy. The elder watched the teen walk away. He looked like a sweet little thing holding those flowers.
'His mom huh…'
The League of Villains raided their school one afternoon during Class 1A's training camp. It all started with Kurogiri surrounding them and the other villains joining in concurrently. It came to the point where Aizawa had to get involved especially when Shigaraki made an appearance. Shoto tried to freeze the villains where he could but there were too many for them to handle all at once. Furthermore, Kurogiri dispersed some of the students. He noticed Bakugo and Kirishima were missing along with Tokoyami and Koda.
Not long after, in the midst of his battle, he also blinked and opened his eyes to a new surrounding. 'What the? When did he…' Shoto studied his environment, he was on a rocky uneven terrain, similar to the indoor training camp but he knew this wasn't the same place. A few of the villains transferred over as well and demanded the younger's attention almost immediately. Shoto fought without question.
"Hahaha! That was fun, the look on his face, so worth it~" Dabi laughed out loud, returning from the scene where he ambushed one of the teachers from the other classes. He utilized Twice's clones to carry out the attack while his real body was waking back miles away from the scene. 'This might be fun after all, even if it is a bit of a risk. Maybe that's what makes it more exhilarating.'
He hiked through the rocky paths, hoping down from the higher rocks, to the foot trail until the ground shook. 'Great, now would be a great time for an earthquake.' The ravenette sarcastically thought. He heard an explosion and followed it around. Another rumble and boulders crashed beside him which he instinctively ducked. Between rocks and debri he saw a silhouette flying past him into the air.
'What the fxck—' Dabi peeked through his defense and recognized an all too familiar student. 'Shoto?' The ravenette's body moved on its own and he reached to grab the teen; however, the next minute he was tumbling down as well. Shoto was unconscious, probably from the blow or maybe a hit to the head against one of the rocks, so Dabi held his body close. They hit a couple uneven rocks on the way down and finally landed on Dabi's back. 'Shit how do I get myself in these situations?' He thought with a grunt. He then looked down at the teen to study him who was still unconscious.
The ravenette's hands shifted as he pushed to sit up and unintentionally palmed Shoto's butt. The first and only thing running through Dabi's mind was how firm it was. It was unusual for him, but he felt something in him stiffen. He then noticed the teen stirring and expression contorting.
"Mhh…" Shoto cracked his eyes open, feeling a throb at the back of his head. He moved his hands and felt something soft. 'Someone's chest?' The teen noticed he was laying on top someone and slowly looked up.
"This is gonna look weirder than it is, okay." Dabi forced an awkward grin as heterochromic eyes stared baffled at him. With no further words exchanged, the younger almost immediately thrusted himself away, heart losing its regular rhythm.
"W-what? How?" Shoto was at a loss of words, this was very different from what he last remembered.
"Relax. I'm a victim too." The elder held his hands up, surrendering. Shoto wasn't taking him too seriously. 'How is he so calm? Does he have any idea I'm with the people that attacked his school? I guess not…' "I was just passing by and saw someone flying, didn't expect to be thrown off too in the middle of my good deed."
'Oh, so he saved me…' Shoto concluded as he looked back up to the top of hill where they were previously fighting. "You…really have impeccable timing…" Just like in the café, the flower shop, and now here, their paths kept crossing into each other and somehow Dabi always ended up helping him out. 'Did he really want to be a villain? Because he seemed like an unintentional hero…'
"What?" The ravenette croaked when the younger continued to stare at him pensively.
"Nothing…" The teen composed himself. "The Leaue attacked our school, I have to get back and help them out. …You have a very strong quirk, perhaps you could lend a hand? Even Aizawa-sensei has his hands tied." He debriefed while standing up and patting himself down.
The elder stood after him, only smiling innocently. This was one sticky situation… "Yea…I don't know about that…I got some assignments that need finishing…" Dabi sheepishly scratched his cheek, looking away, obviously lying. Shoto furrowed his brows in confusion.
'Right, what was he thinking? He was the hero, not Dabi. He can't rely on others forever or put them in danger.'
The ravenette could see the conflict on the teen's face and actual guilt sank into his soul. "Hey, tell ya what?" The elder moved closer as they began to walk up the trail and placed a hand on the other's shoulder. Something about him, wanted him to be so touchy with the teen. He swore he was never this handsy with anyone else, neither did he care. "That Kurogiri guy, his weak points are his metal plates since they're physical." He whispered close to his ear. "You can hold him down that way."
More than the words that were spoken, Shoto was wary of the proximity between them. He could feel Dabi's cool breath on against his cheeks. He was reminded of how they were on top of each other not that long ago and how Dabi was holding him. It was too intimate for him and his body was growing warmer just thinking about it again.
'No, now's not the time.' Shoto internally shook himself. 'Wait, hold on, but how did he know about—' His thoughts were interrupted by his phone beeping which he looked down to attend. "Hello?"
"Todoroki-kun? Are you okay? Where are you?" Deku's urgent voice came out.
"I'm...somewhere—what's going on back at school?" The teen switched the subject instead.
"Oh that, Al-Might came and took care of them, they ended up retreating." Deku explained.
"That's great… I'll head back now." The dual haired told and hung up. "Looks like we won't need that help after all, it's taken care of." He informed Dabi.
"Well, would you look at that." The elder raised both his brows and cocked a smile, satisfied with the outcome. "Then, time to go home~"
"I have to stop by the school though, we still have class,"
"Geez, so uptight, you sure you don't wanna skip?" Shoto turned his whole head around to give him a look. "Kidding~" Dabi grinned, removing his hands. "Let's head back together." And so, they did.
The two came to a point near U.A. High where they had to separate. They were still a while away, but Dabi halted. "Okay, honor student I'd see you off all the way but looks like this is where I turn back."
"Yeah that's fine… you didn't need to come all the way, I told you we didn't need help anymore." Shoto stopped as well to face him.
"I know, I know. So what? I was headed the same way anyways." The ravenette smiled, stepping closer and rubbing his thumb on the younger's cheek. "I told ya, you overthink too much." Shoto stared into Dabi's oddly calm turquoise eyes looking back down at him. It was like he was looking at the true Dabi, someone who wasn't just acting carefree or playing a character. The younger felt frozen in place, yet the air around him felt warm and dense.
Shoto blinked out of his trance and turned towards Dabi's hand who slowly withdrew it picking up on the stiffness. "It was just a bit of dirt." Dabi played it cool as he showed his thumb.
"Oh, okay…thanks." The teen muttered, rubbing the side of his neck to calm his nerves.
'I better leave before they spot me.' Dabi's mind spoke but his body hardly budged. The dual haired hero standing there on edge and fidgety was quite a sight. "Okay, see ya hero."
"Bye." Shoto partially waved as Dabi dashed away. 'He was so cool sometimes. Doing whatever he wanted when he wanted. The complete opposite of him…'
The younger didn't stall for long and marched into his school, meeting up with the rest of his classmates as other heroes moved broken infrastructure around while the medics tended to the injured students and Aizawa-sensei. The students lined up and got evaluated. Shoto stood near the end of the line spaced out, gaze somewhere lost in space beneath him.
"Hey, Todoroki-kun, are you sure you're okay?" He wouldn't have known Deku was talking to him if it had not been for his name.
"Hn?" The dual haired looked up at him listlessly. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just a mild headache. Why?"
"You just seem out of it—I mean what happened shocked us all a bit but…"
"Oh that. No… I wasn't necessarily thinking about the villains. I just had…something else on my mind." The dual quirk user tried to convince.
"Oh I see…did something else happen?" The green haired probed.
'He ran into Dabi. And he was having mixed feelings towards him. That would probably sum everything up.' Shoto thought. "it's complicated…" He exhaled. To think of all the things that happened, this was on his mind. But he couldn't help it, his heart had a hard time staying on track whenever Dabi touched him, smiled at him so casually and stared at him with that unwavering fixed gaze. He was too much and Shoto never felt that way before. He also didn't understand why he was so drawn to the elder teen. Sure, he was cool, charming, powerful, and seemed to just be capable of doing anything he put his mind to but...
"You overthink too much~" Dabi's words replayed in his head conveniently.
Shoto considered getting a second opinion since it seemed like they'd be on the line for a minute. "…do I think too much?"
"Hm…that's random…Depends on what, I guess. I think being able to logically think through everything isn't a bad thing."
"Well, what if it's not hero related. In general, maybe…about having conflicting thoughts about a…person?"
"Oh. Interesting…people can be difficult to judge sometimes but I guess in that regard yeah…you can be a little closed off haha. I think maybe sometimes you should just let your mind go and follow your heart."
Shoto nodded. That pretty much confirmed what he needed to know. 'Follow his heart huh?' He echoed as he rubbed his right cheek, the same one Dabi caressed.
After that attack, things went back to normal for a period of time. Shigaraki still needed a group of them to carry out their first group mission which was kidnapping one or two of the students on the list but at the moment, classes were still the same.
Dabi received flowers from an anonymous someone. "Ah fxck no." The ravenette cringed so hard. One of his classmates was passing by when Dabi was angling the bouquet towards a trash can.
"Whoa~ that's such a waste!"
"What the fxck am I supposed to do with them?" Dabi turned his attention to the other.
"They're flowers, it's a nice gesture. Even if you're not interested, it's the thought that counts, doesn't it? Just keep them."
"I'd rather be seen dead than with these." His mind was made and he was going to chuck them. That is until he noticed a bunch of rowdy students from U.A. crossing the street. "Hm…" Dabi retracted the flowers and bounced them on his chin. 'I wonder how he'd react to something like this. That kid hardly has a change in expression.' Trolling the dual-haired was turning into his new hobby. On second thought, he threw the flowers over his shoulder and headed in the direction of U.A. High.
On the flip side, Shoto was standing by his lockers, changing his shoes. The lockers were exposed to the outside in an open hall. He also obtained a few plastic bags of cookies from other girl classmates which he respectfully declined but he could be a pushover at times. 'Oh well, I'll just pass them to Natsuo and Fuyumi. They'll be more than happy.'
The dual haired opened his lockers and was stunned to see it stuffed with deep blue roses, small petals fluttering to the ground, taking up the entire space. 'What the?' The dual haired instantly whipped his head around to find no suspect nearby or leaving the location. Neither was anyone hiding or popping out to see his reaction. He took out the bouquet and observed the flowers. They were such a unique vivid blue. A small post-it fell out from them and the teen reached down to pick it up.
Too bad I can't see your reaction in person~
Shoto only raised a confused brow. He had no idea who this was from. Had to be a girl but that message… The dark blue of the roses did remind him of someone.
"So, you do like flowers? Aren't they special?" A girl caught his attention as she walked pass him.
"Yea they are. Did you happen to see who left them?" the dual asked.
"I saw someone pass them to a student at the gate. They stood out so much I couldn't help but look." She answered.
"What did the person look like?" 'Did he have a stalker or something?'
"Hm…black hair, burnt skin, didn't look like a student here."
"What?" That description regardless of how brief, was way too specific of a certain someone. 'Dabi…? But why would he…what is he playing at? He was such an unusual individual sometimes.' The girl shrugged and Shoto thanked her before walking away with the flowers. He was semi regretting that because all eyes were on him as he walked down the front yard to the main gates holding a huge bouquet of cobalt blue roses. 'Was this part of his mind games again…?' Shoto wondered as he made it to the gate.
"They suit you, honor student~" A voice startled him and he whipped his head to see Dabi leaning against the brick wall of the gates. The elder teen grinned away feigning innocence.
"It's you… what's with the roses…? Are these really from you?"
"Well…yes and no?"
The dual haired only gave him a deadpan incredulous look.
"Why? You like them?"
"I mean…they're nice but…I just don't understand…"
Dabi came off the wall and trotted towards the teen, placing a casual hand on his shoulder. "There you again, overthinking it~ Just keep 'em, I sure as hell don't need them." He mumbled the last part. With that he began to walk away like he was on his way, peeking back over his shoulder at the younger teen once. Shoto was looking down at the blazing roses, gears probably coming up with a multitude of possibilities and scenarios but at the same time, Dabi could see a faint almost inconspicuous blush dusting one of his cheeks.
'Ah shit' Dabi was going enjoying this too much. Something in him couldn't leave the teen away. And it wasn't entirely his own fault, the awkward teen himself was too cute for his own good.
To be continued…
Again sorry for the long wait guys and hope you like the drawing as a little apology/bonus haha~ It's on my deviantart ^^
Thanks for the patience, reading and reviewing!