AN: Thanks for reading and leaving a review everyone!

No real notes this time, let's just jump right in.

Izuku materialized in the vestige realm, a smile on his face as he was ready to spend the evening with Ochako. He hadn't realized how much he missed spending time alone with her until after their walk back to her apartment; he looked forward to spending the whole evening just looking at the stars.

As he materialized, he saw Ochako standing there waiting for him, dressed in her usual pajamas of an old oversized shirt - this one space themed - and a pair of shorts. She opened her mouth to speak, but it wasn't her voice he heard.

"Izu!" Nana came flying into the room.

"Damn it!" Ochako suddenly yelled, causing the vestige to come to a screeching halt. "I'm tired of people interrupting us when I just want to tell Izu how I feel!"

Silence filled the vestige realm as the three stared at each other, Ochako's face turning red as she realized what she had just said. Recovering quickly, Ochako reached out and grabbed Izuku's arm before turning to Nana. "E-excuse us!"

The familiar touch of Ochako's hand on his arm was enough to snap Izuku out of his own shock, and he instinctively fell in pace beside her as she took off, the pair racing through the familiar halls of the observatory to the upper level that they claimed for themselves.

"Sorry I snapped at your grandmother back there," Ochako apologized, her face still tinged pink from embarrassment. "That wasn't how I wanted you or her to find out what I was planning."

"It's okay, Ocha," Izuku assured her. "This is why you were frustrated earlier, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," she said softly before a renewed look of determination filled her face. "But we'll talk upstairs!"

"Mhm."

Ochako reached the stairwell door first and wrenched it open, and Izuku continued through, taking the stairs two at a time until they reached the top floor. When Ochako emerged into the domed area, she saw Izuku holding a chair in his hands, ready to prop the door shut behind her.

Once the pair had secured the door, they turned toward each other.

"Izu-"

"Ocha-"

The pair laughed. Izuku awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "You go first."

"Thanks." Ochako gave Izuku a serene look as she gently reached out to take his hand. "I wanted to tell you since last night but people kept interrupting us." She let out a relieved giggle. "I guess I should have forced the issue sooner."

"Well, we're alone now," Izuku reminded her, his heart already racing. Despite the countless times the two of them held hands in the past, this time felt different. More intimate than it was in the past. He was filled with the same feeling that he felt walking home with her hours ago, magnified a hundred-fold.

"Izu I–" Ochako gazed into Izuku's green eyes - eyes that she had no problem getting lost in. Had gotten lost in countless times before. "-love you. As more than a partner. I've known for a long time but I grew complacent. And I made the same mistake I made back then. But then on the roof… seeing Nagant pointing a rifle at you. It was the first time I felt like I could actually lose you. That one day I would wake up and you would be gone. Trapped in here with the others, unable to follow me out of our shared dream and back to reality. And it scared me." Ochako looked down at the ground. "I just–" She looked back up at Izuku. "–needed to tell you how I feel. It's… I'll be ok if you're not ready to talk about it yet."

"Ocha…" Izuku looked at her round face reverently. Untangling his hand from hers, he slowly raised it to place his hand on her cheek, tracing the soft curves. Her warm brown eyes stared at him, a mix of anticipation and longing as she waited for his response.

He also knew she wasn't lying. She would wait forever for him if she had to.

She deserved better.

Sliding his hand to the back of her head, he felt her soft brown hair as it parted for his fingers, falling around his hand. Izuku's eyes darted to her lips, asking a simple unspoken question.

May I?

Always.

No words were spoken as he leaned in, both of their eyes closing as their lips found each other.

As he felt her soft lips on his, it felt like a circuit had been completed, two halves made whole as energy coursed through him. He separated from her for a moment, only for his lips to crash back into hers with renewed vigor as months of building emotion finally found release. His hands carded through her hair while hers wrapped tightly around his chest, pulling him close as the pair explored new ways to express their feelings for each other.

Several minutes later, they both released each other, panting heavily but unable to keep the smiles off their lips as they opened their eyes, once again finding themselves lost in the other's gaze.

"I love you too, Ocha."

"Holy shit Izu," Ochako said between breaths. "If I had known it would feel like that I would have told you months ago."

Ochako found herself immediately regretting her words as she watched Izuku sober up, a somber look appearing on his face. "I'm glad you waited, Ocha. I… don't know if I would have been ready a few months ago."

"Oh." Ochako's own face fell. "Because of Uravity?"

Izuku bobbed his head. "Is it okay if we talk about it?"

"Yeah," Ochako murmured, "it is."

Taking Ochako's hand, Izuku led them over to their shared couch and let go of her hand, taking a seat. Ochako sat down beside him and leaned into his side, their hands once again finding each other as they continued to draw strength from each other.

"Tell me about it?" Ochako asked.

Izuku took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts. "When we first came back it was… so easy to forget who you were. To pretend you were Uravity. In some ways it made things easier." Using his free hand, he rubbed the back of his neck. "Coping with what happened to us, I mean."

"I get it." Ochako gently squeezed his hand as she leaned further into him. "When you didn't bring up the fact that you were quirkless, it was easy to forget you weren't my Analyst. Even the notebook you gave me for my birthday felt like the gift he would give me." Izuku felt her vibrate as she giggled.

"Exactly," Izuku said. "It didn't help that we only saw each other a few hours each week, and all of the time we spent talking on the phone. But then… Himiko happened."

"Mmm, that wasn't my finest moment," Ochako agreed.

Izuku untangled his hand from hers and slipped it out from under her grasp, repositioning it to the back of her head as he began to card his fingers through her hair. "I know why you acted the way you did though. If things were different and you went after Tomura…" Izuku sighed. "But I think I needed it."

"What do you mean?" Ochako pulled back slightly so she could look at Izuku's face.

"Well, it really helped to show me that you are you, Ocha." Izuku's face screwed up as he tried to find the right words. "That you weren't Uravity. And after that… it became easier to separate the two of you in my mind."

"Then what happened?" Ochako asked curiously.

Izuku couldn't help but study her face, looking for any hint of judgment or pain at his words, but he found none. Despite his admission, she didn't seem to hold it against him for feeling the way he did. Feeling the knot in his stomach easing, he smiled at her. "You made me fall for you all over again."

Ochako gasped, a blush quickly spreading. "Izu…"

Gently, Izuku's fingers guided Ochako, tilting her head toward him as he leaned in for another kiss which she gladly reciprocated. "So thank you, Ocha, for waiting for me."

Ochako smiled at the green-haired boy. Her hand found its way to his face as she traced her finger along his soft, boyish features. "It's not like I wasn't going through the same thing, silly." Looking into his eyes, her soft expression disappeared as her face turned serious. "I guess it's my turn?"

Izuku nodded wordlessly, and Ochako looked away from him. She didn't want to admit it, but she found him too distracting and needed a moment to focus. Taking a deep breath, she turned back to Izuku.

"I think I had it a little easier than you at first. While it was easy to forget you weren't Analyst, every time we talked about One For All I was reminded that you were you," Ochako admitted.

"Sorry about that," Izuku apologized.

Ochako frowned at him and jabbed his cheek. "You shouldn't be! Besides, it doesn't matter now!" With a giggle, she gestured with her eyes to indicate the room they were in.

Izuku simply followed her gaze around the room before his cheeks began to heat up.

"Anyways, I think Himiko helped me too. Even though the distinction was always there, seeing you so thoughtlessly chase after her really cemented it in my mind." She gave him a fond smile. "By the time we visited the planetarium, I was actually afraid that it wasn't you sitting beside me."

"You've felt that way for that long?" Izuku asked nervously.

"Mhm." Ochako nodded. "It took a few more months before I really knew. But that was the first time that I genuinely felt saddened by the thought that you weren't you."

"I'm sorry I took so long."

"Don't be, silly!" Ochako sat upright. "I didn't want to force it. Our whole… Everything is so complicated as it is. I didn't want our love to be complicated."

"I get it," Izuku said softly. "I feel the same way. I want to love you because of you. Not because of who you remind me of."

"Exactly!" Ochako's face lit up. "I love you because of who you are. You are kind, thoughtful, selfless to a fault…" Ochako leaned forward and gently placed her lips on his. "And I've never felt stronger about anyone before."

"Not even Analyst?" Izuku asked nervously.

Ochako giggled. "Not even Analyst." Gently, Ochako removed Izuku's hands from her hair and held them in her own. "When I look at you, I see you, Izu, not him. And what I feel for you is so, so much more than I ever felt for him."

Izuku smiled back at the girl, letting himself get lost in her mocha-colored eyes. "I feel the same way. Uravity was my first friend. But you, Ocha, are the first girl I fell in love with."

"Don't let Himi let you hear that." Ochako smirked.

"I- she's different!" Izuku protested. "She's family! Besides, she's been waiting so long for us to get together that she'd probably be offended if I said I loved her before I loved you."

"That's true," Ochako laughed. "She thought we were dating back when I first moved to Mustafu, after all!" With a content sigh, she leaned forward, burying her head in Izuku's neck. "So you'll be my boyfriend then?"

"O-only if you'll be my girlfriend," Izuku said, his face heating up slightly at the word.

"Of course!" Ochako sat up again, her brown eyes gazing lovingly into green. "I'm ready for everyone to start teasing about it, too."

Izuku paled slightly. "I'm not ready for Himi to find out."

"Or Aika," Ochako added, adjusting herself and leaning into Izuku's side. "At least we have tonight to ourselves, just the two of us."

"Mhm." Izuku wrapped his arm around his girlfriend. "I don't think Nana's going to come after us after that outburst."

"She'd better not!" Ochako exclaimed. "I was serious about what I said yesterday - I want to spend more time alone with you - just the two of us."

"I guess we can now tell people we're busy because we are going on a date?"

"Yeah." Ochako smiled serenely at the thought. "We can."

Hours later, Ochako let out a loud yawn. The two had settled on the couch, limbs tangled together as they wrapped around each other and watched the sky. It was an activity that the pair had done dozens of times before, but tonight was different. As the two looked at each other and smiled, they knew exactly why.

"You ready to tell your parents you have a boyfriend?"

"Yep!" Ochako giggled. "I'm sure Dad'll want to talk to you."

"He's been threatening to give me 'the talk' for months now," Izuku sighed. "I guess I can't really avoid it now?"

"Nope!" Ochako gave Izuku a goofy grin. "It'll be fine though! My parents love you."

"Yeah…" Izuku extracted a hand to rub the back of his head.

Ochako leaned up and kissed Izuku on the cheek. "It's not going to be any worse than me dealing with your grandmother tomorrow."

Izuku laughed nervously and checked the door. The makeshift barricade was still in place, providing the illusion of privacy. He'd have to talk to Yoichi tomorrow and see who had managed to keep the seventh holder corralled for the entire night and thank them. "I wonder if the lower levels will have any flood damage tomorrow."

"Hopefully whatever quirk magic built this place prepared for it," Ochako teased. "Then again, I'm not sure Yoichi was prepared for Midoriya-level tears when he created this place."

"We could go look?"

"Nope," Ochako responded by wrapping herself even more tightly around Izuku. "Sleepy. I just want you to keep holding me until I slip back into my body, then I'm gonna track you down and kiss you some more - I want to know what it really feels like."

"That sounds nice," Izuku agreed. "We'll deal with Nana tomorrow."

Izuku adjusted himself slightly so that his arm wouldn't fall asleep before he did and closed his eyes. "Goodnight Ocha, I love you."

"Goodnight Izu, love you."

Ochako's eyes snapped open as she woke up in her room, the lingering warmth of Izuku's touch fading into a memory. Quickly crawling out of bed, she grabbed her gym uniform and went to the bathroom, getting ready for her morning jog.

As much as she had other things on her mind, she knew Izuku, and that meant that the two of them would be jogging this morning, and as much as she wanted to just drag Izuku to the beach and spend the day with him, she knew that he'd insist that they get their morning jog in.

Afterward, however…

Ochako stared at the mirror with a giddy grin. Hopefully the beach won't be crowded today.

After she changed, she grabbed a protein bar and left her family's apartment, beginning her jog toward their meeting spot. She knew she was early, but she silently hoped Izuku was as excited as she was and would be just as early.

Minutes later as she approached her meeting spot, she couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment when she didn't see Izuku waiting for her nor did she see his approach. Slowing down to a halt, she unwrapped the protein bar she brought with her and took a bite, slowly chewing it as the morning air chilled her skin.

Ochako was two-thirds of the way through her breakfast when she saw a familiar mop of green hair coming from the direction of his apartment. Already smiling, she shoved the rest of her meal into her mouth, quickly swallowing it before waving in his direction.

"Morning Izu!" Ochako called out.

"Good morning Ocha!" Izuku smiled at her as he slowed to a halt, his cheeks already tinged pink. "Um… last night. We were in the vestige realm together, right? I wasn't dreaming by myself?"

Ochako giggled before she leaned forward, placing a soft kiss on his cheek before whispering in his ear.

"Nope, not unless I was having the same dream."

She took pleasure in watching Izuku shudder as her breath hit his ears before he turned to look at her and let out a sigh. "Good, I was worried that everything…"

Ochako cut him off, already feeling her heart cracking. "Izu, don't think like that! Even if it was a dream, I'd still love you and all you'd have to do is ask me out."

"Oh."

"I meant everything I said last night." Ochako took his hands and leaned forward, a smile on her lips. "And I really want to know what kissing you out here feels like."

"Me too," Izuku whispered as he began leaning forward, seeking to meet her halfway.

Once again their lips found each other as they kissed. The sensation was different then their kisses in the vestige realm. The literal energy that had passed through them whenever they kissed was gone, replaced by a new, different kind of energy.

Ochako couldn't get enough of it as she wrapped her arms around Izuku, pulling him close as she felt his hand found its way to the back of her head, fingers beginning to slip through her hair as they traded a series of quick pecks on the lip back and forth.

"So what do you think?" Izuku asked, all of his nervousness seemingly melted away in light of their impromptu make out session.

"I definitely prefer kissing out here," Ochako admitted. "There's just something missing that I never noticed until now."

Izuku bobbed his head in agreement. "Me too."

Pulling away from her boyfriend, Ochako fiddled with her hands. "So I was wondering - after our jog, would you like to go to the beach with me? I know Himi's got plans and we don't have anything with-"

"Ocha, I'd love to," Izuku said. "It sounds like a lovely first date."

"Yep!" Ochako pumped her fist in the air. "That's what I thought too!"

"But jog first."

"Of course." Ochako rolled her eyes at Izuku but made no indication that she was going to fight him.

With a bright grin, Izuku began jogging down the street, only for Ochako to fall in alongside him.

"If we're fast enough, we might be able to watch the sunrise from the beach."

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Ochako asked before she increased her speed and pulled ahead.

"Hey, wait for me!"