Ch 5: Local Celebrities
Note: Hey guys! I hope you all are having a great day today. I don't have too much to say before jumping into this chapter but i would like to answer a question first regarding the book Peter gave to Yaoyorozu:
@SulliMike23: Originally, I had planned on writing my love for Lord Of The Rings into the story by making Peter a Tolkien fan, but after I read over it a few times, I decided to just leave it vague so that everyone could sort of insert their own favorite book making it a little more personal for you guys. My personal copy of LOTR has a grey worn cover as well and the pages have yellowed. Ive carried it around with me for a pretty long time.
As always, thank you guys for continuing to read this. I promise to try to get the next chapter out as soon as I can.
I do not own any of the characters depicted in this story...
Peter gently kicked open his apartment door and slowly backed up into the living room carrying his end of his new couch. Angling his end just right it fit through the door without too much trouble. "Alright Brodoroki bring your end through."
Todoroki wedged his end through the door and stopped. "Why do you keep calling me that?" He asked his friend raising an eyebrow.
"Because you're my friend dude!... And it's funny." Peter responded as they put the new couch in its place in the living room. "Oh... Alright then." Shoto shrugged as they both sat down on the new couch and exhaled. They decided to order some food and relax after all their efforts.
In just one Saturday morning the two had moved in an entire brand new set of furniture and assembled it all before noon. It was a lot of hard work but they made excellent time.
Peter's first few weeks at UA had seemingly flown by. In that time he had grown quite close to the son of the number two hero. They often hung out at his apartment and trained together after school. Shoto had really become an incredible friend to him. He had even met his sister, Fuyumi, on one occasion where Shoto introduced them over dinner at a sushi restaurant.
Todoroki wasn't the only person Peter had gotten close to though. A certain girl with a knack for creation had also become one of incredible importance to him. She had become the person he always started every day with by meeting her for coffee every morning at the same cafe they had frequented ever since the night of his welcome party. The two were becoming rather playful with each other as well and spent the majority of each night texting until they fell asleep. Though he had never made it known to anyone, he was beginning to feel a magnetic-like pull to her in his heart.
"Thanks again for all your help man. Couldn't have done it without ya." Peter said as he tossed Shoto a can of soda.
"Can't you lift a car?" The red and white haired boy asked as he popped the tab on the can.
"Well... Yeah but that's beside the point. It would've been boring to do this by myself." Peter pulled out his phone and began to order some soba for the both of them when he received a text message.
Momo:) : Hey! How's the redecorating going? Making any progress?
Peter smiled at the screen and typed out his reply:
Just finished up. About to order me and Todoroki some soba to celebrate a job well done. How was the gym?
"Is that Yaoyorozu?" Shoto asked as he noticed the smile on Peter's face as he put down his phone.
"Yeah she's wondering how it's going over here." Peter said before taking a sip from his can.
Shoto turned on the TV and put his feet up on the coffee table. "So are you guys dating or something?" He asked in his regular plain tone.
Peter nearly spat out his drink. "N-no... Why do you ask?"
"Because you guys are always texting each other... I'm pretty sure you're the only guy in school she talks to consistently... And you guys also go to the same cafe every morning before school... And you smile every time you text her... And she stares at you a lot... And you call her by her first name... An-"
"Alright. Alright. I understand where you're coming from but we aren't dating." Peter interrupted his friend. "How do you even know about all that stuff?" He asked as he went back to order the food.
"When you sit quietly and watch the people around you, you'd be surprised how much you learn about them." Shoto responded, "and you guys are always showing up to school at the same time holding the same paper cups."
"Point taken. Here pick whatever you want to eat." He said as he tossed Shoto his phone. "Speaking of watching people, have you noticed that Midoriya and All Might have been eating lunch together in the teachers lounge lately?"
Shoto ordered his favorite: Zaru soba. He handed Peter back his phone. "Yeah I have. There's something going on between those two I just can't figure out what."
"Maybe he's just taken a liking to him. The guy seems to want to be a hero more than anyone else I've ever met before. You think he's giving him advice?"
"Not sure. But you've had to have noticed by now how similar their quirks are. I think they are hiding something."
Peter was slightly amused by how much of his friend's brain seemed to be dedicated to figuring out the dynamic between the two in question. Little did he know, the interest of All Might and Izuku Midoriya went much deeper than plain curiosity. He was never made aware of the broken relationship between Shoto and his father or the details surrounding the dark past of the Todoroki family.
"What would they possibly be hiding?"
"I have a few theories but they're kinda on the conspiratorial side. Like, what if they're related somehow?"
Peter stared at his friend with furrowed eyebrows and a mirthful grin. "There's absolutely zero chance of that being the case."
Just as he finished his sentence Shoto noticed a news headline on the TV and turned up the volume.
"In other entertainment news, the highly anticipated UA sports festival date has finally been announced by the schools administration. The event will take place next Saturday starting at 9 A.M. The world renowned tournament has been the subject of great controversy after first year class 1A was attacked by a group of villains in a UA facility, with many wondering if now is an appropriate time to host the event in light of the situation. The school ultimately decided to postpone the event, however, after a recent press conference with the faculty and administration present, the school is confident in their ability to ensure the competition will be safe and have assured members of the media that the security issues have been dealt with. Though the UA sports festival is a spectacular contest where all competition is fierce and unpredictable, one thing that channel 5 news can guarantee is that you absolutely don't want to miss out on watching UA's Class 1A in action!"
The boys turned to each other. "We've got some serious training to do." Peter said and Shoto nodded in agreement. The UA sports festival was going to be their first chance to get scouted by the pros. And the two sitting on the couch already knew just how important this opportunity was.
*Ding
"Yaoyorozu wants you." Shoto jabbed with an actual grin on his face.
Peter side eyed his friend and unlocked his phone. "Actually that's from the restaurant. Sobas on the way."
"Good, I'm starting to get pretty hungry."
*Ding
Peter looked at his phone again. "That is from Momo." He chuckled as he opened the message.
Momo :) : Gym was pretty good. We had it to ourselves today. I'm afraid Ashido and Jiro might not ever go back with me after what I put them through lol. You should come with me sometime if you want! By the way I finished the book :) you have excellent taste in a story. I could drop it off to you later if you want.
The boys eyes got wide. Did she... Want to come over to his apartment?!
Shoto noticed Peter's reaction to the message. His eyes were locked onto the screen and his hands shook ever so slightly. "Everything alright Parker?"
"Y-yeah... she just asked me to go to the gym with her sometime and wants to come over to drop off my book I let her borrow." He replied.
"What's the big deal? You seem pretty worked up about it."
The boy sighed and looked at his friend. "I have to tell you something."
"Okay.."
"I... I have a crush on Momo."
Mina threw herself onto the massive couch in one of the living rooms of the famous Yaoyorozu mansion. "YaoMomo...*Pant I have...*Pant no idea... *Wheeze why you do this... *Pant to yourself every day."
Jiro followed suit as she put her water bottle up to her mouth and gulped down the contents as if she had been without any kind of liquid for days. "Honestly though. When did you become such a workout warrior?!"
"This is just my regular routine, you guys just happen to normally go with me on my light day." Momo chuckled as she handed Mina a water bottle. The girl took it without hesitation and began to drink rapidly.
"So how's the YaoyoRomance going? Making any progress?" Jiro asked as she began to regain her breath from chugging her water.
In the weeks that passed, Yaoyorozu was becoming more and more comfortable with her ever growing attraction to Peter. It made her feel happy to spend time around him. He made her feel like the world stopped turning when the two of them were together. She woke up with excitement every day, eager to meet him at the cafe that had become their regular spot. They were able to talk about anything under the sun and every conversation was filled with humor and wit that kept a smile on their faces the whole time. She wished she could spend more time with him but hopefully that would change soon enough with the help of her two friends breathing heavily on the sofa.
"It's kinda hard to say..." Momo admitted as she sat down on the end of the couch and pulled her knees to her chest. "Can I be honest with you two for a second?"
"Of course YaoMomo! What's up?" Mina said as she sat up straight.
"It's just that every day I feel like my feelings for Peter get deeper and deeper. It's to the point where I'm starting to desperately desire more than the friendship we have now." She began as her hold around her legs grew slightly tighter, "But the thing is, I'm terrified to tell him that. I don't want to ruin the friendship we have if he doesn't feel the same way or want the same things as I do. He's become so important to me. What do you do in this situation?"
Mina and Jiro blinked at their friend's description of her predicament. They knew Momo was crushing hard on Parker but this was sounding like it was turning into something much more than that.
"Wow that's pretty intense." Jiro sympathized and turned to Mina. "Got any ideas?"
Mina smiled, "Of course I do! But first let's hear some details of what's going on with you guys at the moment. Have you talked today yet?"
Momo let go of her legs and folded them crisscrossed underneath her. "Well we went for coffee like always and talked for a while at the cafe. But he and Todoroki are moving furniture into his apartment today so we haven't really texted as much as we normally do." She remarked.
"Those two have been hanging out quite a bit lately." Jiro pointed out with a smile. "Leave it to Parker to be able to befriend the most quiet kid in class."
"I think it's adorable! Peter told me when they started hanging out that he saw a lot of himself in Todoroki because he was so shy before he moved here. I'm glad they have gotten to be such good friends. Apparently Todoroki is really beginning to come out of his shell." Momo said with a smile.
"Text him and see how it's going." Mina instructed.
Momo did as she was told and sent Peter a message. To her surprise she got a reply almost immediately.
"He says they just finished up and now they're getting soba as a reward." She shook her head with a smile. Those two could hardly go an hour without having something to eat.
"Geez they furnished the entire apartment before noon?! I feel bad for complaining about your workout now... Talk about hard work." Jiro said impressed.
Mina clapped her hands together. "Alright I have an idea on how to get you guys to hang out more than you already are. Whether you tell him how you feel can be up to you but I think he's super into you."
"What is it?" Momo perked up.
"First off you can hand me your phone. I'm gonna hook you up for the night." Mina declared as she reached for Momo's phone only for the girl to hold it away from her.
"What are you planning on sending him?" She asked suspiciously as she narrowed her eyes.
"Re-lax! I'm just gonna see if I can get you a trip to hang out at casa de Parker tonight." She said as she held out her hand.
"You're going to try to get me invited to his apartment?! Don't you think that's a little too forward?" She asked nervously.
"Not if you have an innocent excuse to swing by." She winked.
"What are you getting at here Mina?" Jiro interjected.
"You said you finished that book he gave you right?" The pink girl asked as she turned her attention back to Momo.
"Yeah... I was going to give it back to him at school on Monday. Why?"
"Because you're going to offer to bring it by tonight instead."
Jiro chimed in again, "Okay but how does that plan work if he just walks outside to meet her?"
"Ahh but the guy just finished redecorating his apartment with brand new furniture. If he doesn't offer to give her a tour, then she can ask politely to see the new pad and she's got a ticket in the door." Mina said with a raised finger.
The musical prodigy raised her eyebrows. "That's... Actually pretty genius."
They both turned their attention to Momo. "If it's what you want, I gave you the blueprint on how to make it happen."
Momo didn't even need to think it over to know that it was exactly something she had wanted to do for a while. Only one problem...
"I don't know how I'd even begin to word that text without being awkward." She admitted to her friends.
"Girl! That's why my hand has been held out waiting for you to give me your phone this whole time!"
"No offense Mina but giving you my cellphone in this scenario feels like giving a pyromaniac a blow torch." She said nervously causing Jiro to laugh loudly.
"I can definitely tell you've been spending time around Parker!" The purple haired girl said as she regained her composure.
"Oh come on now!... I'm just trying to help. Look, how 'bout I type the message and give the phone to you. You can look over it and edit it how you want and send it yourself." She compromised.
"Alright..." Momo agreed and handed Mina her phone.
She took the phone and began to type, "Good instincts by the way. I wouldn't have been able to resist adding a little too much flirty flair. Now... How... About... This?" She handed the phone back.
Shoto raised his eyebrows at the sudden declaration. "Wow... I honestly didn't expect you to just come out and admit it like that."
"Dude, your my best friend, if I can't tell you about this then I can't tell anyone." Peter said as he muted the TV.
"I'm your best friend?"
"Yeah?"
"Cool."
Knock *knock *knock
"Truly heartwarming. Now can we discuss this please I'm kinda getting anxious here." Peter said as he got up to answer the door.
"Is that the soba?" Shoto immediately changed the subject.
Peter squinted his eyes at the boy and they both chuckled. "I still can never tell when you're screwing with me." He said before he opened the door.
He took the food, thanked the man, and closed the door behind him. He handed Shoto his noodles and the two dug in while they discussed the matter of his feelings for Momo.
"So why is this such a big deal? You seem to be pretty self aware about how you feel." Shoto said as he slurped up a bite of his take out.
"Because if I tell her and she doesn't feel the same way then she might not want to be around me anymore." Peter said lowly, "She's important to me man. She's the first person I see every day and the last person I speak to before I go to sleep... I don't want to scare her off."
"Why do you have to tell her?"
"Because it's starting to eat a hole in my brain." Peter admitted.
"What makes you so sure she doesn't feel the same way?"
"It's just hard to fathom someone like her liking me in that way... I don't know man, it's complicated. It's just scary to be vulnerable like that without knowing for sure how the other person feels." He said as he finished his drink.
"You should just have her over. Whether you tell her or not doesn't have to happen tonight but at least you could hang out for a while." Shoto said as he continued to eat. "You could offer to make her dinner or something."
"Wouldn't that be a little weird?"
"Why? You've cooked for me before. You're really good at it."
"Yeah but that's different." Peter countered.
"It doesn't have to be. Just offer her some food and act like you guys do every time you go to that coffee shop. Then invite her over more often. Eventually you might feel comfortable enough to tell her what you told me."
"A-...Are you actually good at this stuff?" Peter asked caught off guard by the actual sound advice he was receiving from his friend, who had a tendency to be socially dry.
"I have absolutely no way of knowing that. It just seems logical to be friends before being involved in a relationship. And you two are definitely already close. I just don't see any reason to over complicate things."
"You're right... I'm gonna tell her to come by tonight." He said as he picked up his phone and sent a response. "Wanna go to the store with me to help pick up some food for tonight?"
"Sure." Shoto shrugged as he finished his soba. "After that I'll take off so you can get ready."
"I owe you one man." Peter smiled as they got up from the couch and headed out the door.
*Ding
The notification sounded more like a gunshot than a soft chime. All three girls turned in the direction of Momo's phone. She picked it up in a hurry as the other two peered over her shoulder.
"WHAT DID HE SAY?! WHAT DID HE SAY?!" Mina practically foamed at the mouth.
Momo read the text and a huge smile appeared on her face.
Peter :) : Sounds good! Come on over around 6:00pm and if you want, feel free to stick around and hang out. No pressure though.
Mina squealed with excitement as Jiro patted her best friend on the back with a smile. She checked the time on her phone. It was almost four o'clock.
"Is it too early to start getting ready?" She asked nervously.
"No way! We're going to get you looking absolutely gorgeous for this! Take me to your closet." Mina instructed.
Momo led the two girls up to her room and into her massive walk-in closet and they all started digging for the perfect outfit. They were looking for something casual but also something flirty, while highlighting comfortability for a cozy night in. The trio continued to comb through the closet and after a short while they came out and sat the articles of clothing they had picked on her bed and began to mix and match different combinations. Momo began to hold each outfit against her body while the other two gave notes.
"No too formal."
She held up the next outfit.
"Oh wow not formal enough." Jiro said with raised eyebrows and wide eyes. Mina just snapped her fingers in disappointment as her outfit choice was tossed into the "no" pile
Finally she held up an outfit that was perfect.
"I like it. That's very you YaoMomo." Kyoka said with a thumbs up.
"Parker's gonna love it!! Now go shower. Get the gym smell off ya." Mina directed as Momo laughed nervously as she made her way into the bathroom with the chosen outfit.
"I'll be fast I promise!" The excited young lady said as she closed the door behind her.
Jiro sat down on one of the lavish arm chairs in her room as Mina began spinning in Momo's desk chair.
The music lover had never seen her best friend as happy and giddy as she had been over the past few weeks. She looked over at Ashido who had pulled her phone out to put on some music while they waited. A sense of gratitude for the amber eyed girl grew inside of Jiro. Mina had been helping Momo navigate this delicate personal situation the whole time. Without her kindness, none of this would be happening so smoothly. "Hey, I just wanted to thank you for helping YaoMomo out with all of this. It's nice to see what this is doing for her confidence."
"Ahhh it's no big deal. I like hanging out with you two." Mina said as she continued to spin around on chair. "Of course, whenever it's my turn to ask for help landing a guy, you two get to return the favor." She smiled widely.
"Have your eye on someone do ya?"
"Maybe I do, maybe I don't. To be honest I'm still figuring it out for myself but there's promise. How about you?"
The image of a certain classmate ran across her mind. "Nope." She said plainly. "So how do you think it's gonna go tonight at Parker's?"
Mina stopped spinning, "I think it'll go over great! Even if neither of them admit they like each other, they always have a good time together from what I can tell."
"How are you so sure he likes her back?"
"I just see the way he interacts with her. He gets nervous, but in a sweet way. He's always trying to make her laugh. The guy also pays a special kind of attention to her that he doesn't show anyone else. He's never too busy for her..."
The pink haired girl wasn't able to finish her explanation however, as the sound of running water in the bathroom suddenly came to a stop. After a few seconds Momo emerged wearing the outfit that was chosen. She had on a soft white turtle neck sweater with faint black pin stripes that fit comfortably but accentuated her... Chest area... as well as the rest of her figure. She also wore leggings that clung to her lower half like a second skin of midnight black. In her hands she carried a pair of white comfortable boots to match her sweater.
The two girls applauded the outfit with compliments on how wonderful she looked.
"You're ready girl. All that's left is to do your hair." Mina smiled widely.
"Actually... I think I'm gonna wear it down."
"That's even better. Has he ever seen your hair down? It's gorgeous. Poor boy might have a heart attack." Her pink friend said as she plugged in the straightener. After a few minutes of brushing and straightening, Momo looked at the final product in the mirror. She smiled as the girls nodded at each other.
Jiro checked the time. It was nearing 5 o'clock. "Uhhh hey Mina, it's about time we headed out. She's gonna have to leave soon."
*Ding
Momo ran over to the table where she left her phone. It was a message from Peter with his address. "Yeah I'm gonna need to get going." She said as she grabbed the book off her nightstand.
"Go get him girly!" Ashido said with a wink before turning to Kyoka. "I think Ochako and Tsu were gonna go get dinner later. Wanna see if we can meet up with them?" Mina offered.
"I could eat." Jiro replied suddenly aware of her empty stomach.
The girls all made their way out of the mansion and through the gate. They both hugged their friend and wished her a good time before heading off in opposite directions for the evening.
Peter was pacing the ceiling of his apartment nervously while trying to calm himself. He checked his phone every few seconds, continuously monitoring the time. He was way out of his element. He took a deep breath to calm himself. It wasn't like some random stranger was coming over... It was Momo. He began to settle down as he remembered Todoroki's words...
"I just don't see any reason to over complicate things."
He hopped back down to the floor. His friend was right, he shouldn't be worried and awkward, he should be excited. After all, this was something he'd been wanting to happen for a little while now, he just never knew how to initiate the conversation to invite her over. He passed his bathroom then backed up and checked his reflection in the mirror. He had decided to wear his favorite grey beanie with a white t-shirt that said: "If you believe in telekinesis, please raise my hand." And his only pair of jeans that had yet to have a hole in them somewhere on the legs. After checking his teeth he headed into the kitchen and began to pull out the cookware he needed to make dinner. He checked his phone again. If he hurried he could have everything nearly finished by the time she got there. He began to throw his dinner plan into action.
A few minutes later he received a message.
Momo :) : Hey! I made it I'm heading up to your floor now!
He sat down some bowls on the bar of his kitchen and turned off the music he was listening to. He had finally composed himself. He wanted to make her feel comfortable enough to come back again and that started with him relaxing his demeanor as if it were just another morning at the cafe. Moments later there was a knock at his door. He shuffled over and opened it to see what he would describe as beauty incarnated as Momo Yaoyorozu.
He couldn't help but look her up and down. Her outfit left the boy speechless and her hair was down, falling over her left shoulder like a waterfall of obsidian. She was clutching the book she had promised to return, to her chest with both arms crossed over it. She smiled warmly at him as her eyes seemed to shimmer with unexplainable beauty. "Hi Peter." She said in a sweet soft tone. Her cheeks began to redden at the sight of the boy in front of her.
He fell back to reality at the sound of her voice and smiled. "Hey Mo. Wanna come in?"
She nodded happily as he stepped aside and let her into his home.
She stepped inside halfway expecting to be a nervous wreck but as soon as she set foot inside the door she felt an unfathomable sense of comfort. Like her heart was telling her she was supposed to be there. She looked around the living room as Peter shut the door behind her. Everything was very clean and organized. His apartment was bigger than she had imagined. A smell of freshly cooked food wafted its way into the room that made her mouth begin to water. It smelled delicious.
"I hope you're hungry. I made some stir fry... I remember you saying it was your favorite." He blushed slightly.
Momo was struggling to find words. He... Cooked for her... And he remembered her favorite meal. She had only mentioned it briefly once on one of their walks to school. "I-I could eat, yes." She managed to say still awestruck by the gesture as she handed him the book before following him into the kitchen area.
She sat down at the bar directly across from the stove as she giggled at his shirt.
Peter looked up from the opposite side of the countertop with an amused smile. "What's so funny?"
"Nothing, just your shirt." She smiled at him.
"Ahh... I thought you might like it. I've got tons of em that have something funny printed on them."
"My favorite is the theoretical physics one. But that's a close second."
"Yeah I was gonna wear that one but I haven't made it downstairs to do laundry yet." He said as he turned around and opened up the fridge. "Sorry the foods not done yet. I wasn't sure what kind of protein you preferred. I have... Steak, chicken, and pork... Or I could leave it vegetarian for you if you want."
"Oh please don't apologize! This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me! I'll just have whatever you have. You really didn't have to go through all this trouble."
Peter smiled at her kind words of gratitude. He felt like he was doing everything right. It made him feel a tiny bit confident. "Ahh, it's no trouble. I'm glad you're here. To be completely honest I've been meaning to ask you to come by for a while. I was just afraid I'd stutter uncontrollably." He chuckled as he pulled the steaks from the fridge and began to season them.
Momo began to wonder if Mina was actually right. Could he possibly feel the same way towards her as she did him?
He pulled out a bottle of something without a lable and squirted a tiny bit into the pan. "Watch yourself." He warned as she sat up straight.
A small amount of controlled flames flashed in the pan and died down in an instant. He placed the steaks over the heat. As he glanced up at the girl he noticed she looked at him as if he had sprouted a third arm, causing him to grin sheepishly.
"I had no idea you knew how to cook so well!" She said in astonishment.
"Yeah, my aunt was actually extremely good at it. She taught me how because I think she knew she wouldn't be around too long after I became a young adult. She always looked after me and made sure I knew how to take care of myself and a home. If she was here right now I think she'd be teasing me senseless about cooking for you."
Momo's cheeks reddened as Peter put food into their bowls and sat down beside her.
He waited patiently for her to take a bite. She lifted her chopsticks to her mouth and tasted the most delicious stir fry she had ever eaten before. "Oh my God, wow! This is incredible!"
"Yeah, Aunt May's recipe. I don't make it nearly as good as she did though." He said as he also began to eat. "So how'd you like the book?"
Momo's eyes sparkled, "I couldn't put it down! I loved everything about it. It painted such a picture of each moment. I actually ended up reading it twice." She admitted with a shaky voice. "Thanks for lending it to me."
"I'm glad you liked it!" He chuckled as he certainly understood the appeal.
The two continued to discuss their favorite chapters and characters of the book they now shared a special fondness of as they continued to eat. The single bedroom apartment became their own private paradise. Everything felt natural. In that particular moment there was just the two of them enjoying each other's company. As they finished eating Peter took their empty bowls to his sink and the two migrated back to the living room, each taking a seat on opposite sides of the couch. Peter kicked his feet up on the coffee table as he was used to doing, and Momo sat cross-legged, a habit that stuck around with her since she was a little girl.
"So did you see the news today about the sports festival?" He asked. To his surprise she seemed completely out of the loop.
"No I actually didn't. What did they say?!"
"One week from today at 9am. Apparently, since you guys survived that villain attack our class has a pretty big spotlight on us." Peter deduced.
Momo began to fidget with her hands, "Yeah it seems like the pressure is on now doesn't it."
Peter nodded, "Are you nervous?"
"I... I am. I know I've been training hard but I'm just not sure it'll be enough to go very deep into the tournament. Our class is full of highly motivated powerful students... I'm just not sure how I stack up one on one with the majority of our class." She confided in him.
Peter was confused. To him, she was among the most highly skilled people at UA. To hear her doubt herself didn't sit right with him. He wanted to help her feel as strong as she actually was. He looked her in the eyes and made a proposition. "Well, we have an entire week to get ready for this thing. Would you be interested in being training partners?" He swung his feet from the table and sat up straight.
Her faint expression of dread turned into one of enthusiasm. "You'd train with me?! Are you sure I wouldn't hinder you?"
"I'm positive Mo! Let's do this together! We score insanely high on every hero training exercise we get grouped together in, why not prepare for this as a team?" Peter pressed, trying to stamp out the flames of doubt in her mind before they could begin to burn.
She looked into his steely blue eyes and began to believe in herself. Before she could think she sprung from her spot on the couch and wrapped her arms around him tightly. The boy was caught off guard. His arms hovered in the air as she continued to squeeze her body against his. His face flushed a deep shade of red as he felt her chest press against his own and her cheek rest on his shoulder. Momo soon realized the sudden position she had put herself in and inwardly began to panic. Just as she was about to pull away in embarrassment she felt two strong arms wrap around her, holding her gently in place.
Her mind stopped working as the moment engraved itself in her memory. A memory that she would carry with her from this point forward. This whole night had been nothing short of perfect.
"S-so... um...I'm gonna take that as a yes then." Peter stammered.
His voice caused her to snap out of her state of tranquility as the two slowly separated. "You're very perceptive." She quipped. "Thank you Peter. I feel better about my chances already. Hopefully Todoroki doesn't mind me taking his place for the week."
"Actually he was over when we saw the announcement on the news. Before he left we had talked about it and he seemed pretty set on training by himself... So don't worry about that."
"Well in that case, I'm excited to get started!"
Peter nodded in agreement. "Wanna start tomorrow morning after coffee?"
"Sounds perfect."
Peter smiled and checked his phone, secretly hoping that time had decided to stop. "So it's only a little past 8:30, do you have to be heading home or do you have time to hang around a little longer?"
Momo wasn't quite yet ready to leave. She jumped at the offer to stay. "Well my parents are in Tokyo for the weekend for business purposes and our butler has the weekend off so I don't exactly have a curfew... Are you sure you wouldn't mind me sticking around a bit longer?"
"Positive. I was actually hoping you'd stay a while, because..." He got up from the couch and grabbed something from the TV stand, "I have this if you're interested." He handed her a movie case.
She took the case in her hand and an eager smile crept onto her face as she immediately recognized it to be the movie adaptation of the book she borrowed. "Oh, I'm most definitely interested."
"Full disclosure it's kinda long. We're talking two and a half to three hours here... Still interested?"
She sat up and grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over herself leaving enough for him to join her. "Better get started then."
He smiled as he started the movie and sat down beside her. As the movie played on, the two became so occupied with the events on the screen that they were completely unaware of the fact that there was no longer any space between their bodies.
Monday:
As Peter and Momo arrived at school, they ran into their best friends near the entrance.
"Good morning you two!" Momo greeted them with a chipper attitude.
"Hey you guys! How are you?" Jiro greeted sleepily.
"Doing alright. Just ready to get the school day behind us so we can start training for the sports festival." Peter responded as he took a large bite of the bagel Momo purchased him.
Shoto nodded to his friend. "So how's your training going so far?" He said as his eyes drifted to the breakfast in his friend's hand.
Peter swallowed his bite and tore Shoto off a piece of the bagel. "So far so good!" He pointed his thumb at Momo, "She really took it to me yesterday."
Momo giggled, "He's just being modest. We mainly just refined some combat techniques then went to the gym."
"Better you than me. I'm still sore from the last time I went to the gym with her. She's a madwoman." Jiro said to Peter.
"Don't worry I'm sure I'll find out all about it today after class. We planned on hitting it pretty. How about you guys?"
"I'm going to do some training at home." Shoto said as he swallowed the last of his piece of the bagel.
"I think I'm gonna stick with my regular routine and go light today to start the week."
As the group walked through the halls they noticed something a bit strange. Everyone seemed to stop and stare at them as they passed. It made them a little uneasy. "What's up with them?" Kyoka wandered out loud as they continued towards their classroom.
Momo noticed Peter's gaze shifting from one student to another as they passed each one. "It's almost like they're sizing us up." He pointed out
"We are the class that survived the USJ attack. I'm sure the news story reminded some of them of that." Shoto said as he glared at people whose stares lingered on a little too long for his taste.
They finally reached their classroom to find everyone buzzing about the news segment.
"Man isn't it so cool that we got mentioned on TV?!" Sero said with vigor in his voice.
"Yeah it's almost like we're local celebrities now." Denki gloated as he put his hands on the back of his head.
The four students who just entered the classroom took their seats. "The top school that pumps out pro heroes was attacked, that's what the media cares about. Try not to get a big head." Jiro said to the boy.
Peter sat down and noticed Midoriya was shaking in his seat. He tapped him on the shoulder. "Everything alright buddy?"
Midoriya turned around and flashed a nervous smile. "Oh u-uh yeah Parker I'm fine, I'm just a little bit over excited. I'm not sure how much you know about the UA sports festival but it's the most watched competition in the country. Pro heroes everywhere watch it to scout us out for internships and work studies."
"I'm aware. It's popular all over the world. They used to broadcast it in Times Square back in New York. I never would've thought I'd be a part of it though back then."
Midoriya suddenly looked at him questioningly, "But you're insanely powerful? Why wouldn't you think you could."
Peter chuckled, "Dude I used to live on the other side of the world. Powerful or not, Japan used to be a wonder of imagination for me." He looked the Midoriya in the eyes, "Don't psych yourself out man. I've heard about your power, you're gonna do just fine... but if you get too worked up you won't get anything out of your preparation."
The green headed boy began to relax a bit. "Thanks. That's good advice."
Peter patted his shoulder and turned back towards Momo. She was busy reading his copy of the prequel he had let her borrow. She glanced up at him and smiled warmly. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the class rep bursted into the room.
"ALRIGHT EVERYONE THERES GOING TO BE A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT TODAY! EVERYONE QUIET DOWN AND TAKE YOUR SEATS!" Tenya shouted as the class just looked around the room. Peter couldn't help but laugh quietly to himself in amusement.
"Uhhhhh Iida..." Midoriya started shakily, "you're the only one standing."
The class rep took his seat with an embarrassing tremor. He was only doing his best to carry out his duties correctly, but this sort of thing always seemed to happen to him. "Dang... It." He shook with gritted teeth.
Uraraka took pity on him and patted him on the back. "Don't sweat it big guy."
Aizawa entered the class as the bell rang and the room fell into silence. He shuffled his way up to the podium and looked around the room at his students. After noting everyone's attendance he began to speak.
"I assume that you all have already heard the news, but I am obligated to go over this with you anyway..." His tone didn't carry its usual hint of indifference, there was an intensity behind it. "Your fight is about to begin... Because the UA sports festival is about to start."
The announcement made it official to the class as determined grins crept across the faces of most of the students. For some of them, this was the entire reason for choosing UA over Shiketsu as their hero academy.
"I don't think it needs to be mentioned how important this competition is for all of you. Pros from all over the world will be watching you and after the festivities I, as well as the other teachers, will be tasked with providing those of you who catch the most attention with your internship offers. It will be your first official step towards becoming a pro." He said with a highlighted sense of importance. The students became more and more amped up as their teacher continued.
"All of the training facilities the school has to offer will be open to you for the entirety of the week. If I were you I'd take full advantage of them as often as you can. You only get three chances during your time at UA. I would advise that you don't waste them."
Leave it to their homeroom teacher to put a certain brand of pressure on them that always left a slight chill running down their spine. But much to their surprise, some welcome news came right behind it, lifting their spirits back up to where they had been.
"You'll have the remainder of the week to focus on your training. Class dismissed." He stated as he walked to the corner and zipped himself up in his sleep sack.
"Hell yeah! Let's kick some ass!!" Kirishima shouted rearing to go. Everyone seemed to share in the redheads sentiment.
"You better hope you don't have to match up with Yaoyorozu again or you're toast." Kaminari jabbed playfully.
Kirishima looked to the girl in question and chuckled nervously as she grinned back at him glancing up from her book.
One by one the class had began to stand up out of their seats and formed small clusters. Some began to talk amongst themselves about training plans, others discussed ways to draw attention to themselves during the contests to gain some notoriety. The count down to one of the most important moments of their journey had officially begun.
Peter turned around in his chair, "Ready to get started?"
Momo nodded and marked her spot in her book before closing it and placing it in her bag. "Where are we headed?"
"I figured we'd start at Gym Gamma with a little bit of sparring." He replied as the two stood up and started for the door. As they passed Todoroki, Peter patted his shoulder. "Don't be a stranger this week dude. I expect you over at the apartment from time to time." He stated with a smile.
Shoto offered a nod and a small grin. "Try to take it easy on him Yaoyorozu. He's probably gonna be a little distracted..."
Peter narrowed his eyes, "Last time I share my breakfast with you dude." He joked.
"Nevermind, show him no mercy." Shoto quipped. Peter's social habits were starting to be adopted by the hot and cold quirk user.
Peter rolled his eyes as Momo simply nodded with an amused smile.
"Good luck Par-ker" Jiro teased in a sing songy fashion as the boy reached for the door handle.
"No one has any faith in me." He shook his head sarcastically.
"Poor thing. How about I treat you to lunch to make up for all the injustices you've bravely faced before nine o' clock today." Momo piled on.
"Here's the thing, I know you're messing with me, but I'd quite literally never turn that down."
She beamed at him. "Sounds like a plan then."
As the boy opened the classroom door for Momo the two stopped in their tracks. Shoto looked to his right in surprise as the rest of the class stopped their discussions. One by one everyone's heads turned towards the door. Blocking their exit was a hoard of students from the other classes...
HERE'S THE PREVIEW!!!
Momo: *chewing happily
Peter: "Heheh... you want me to take care of this while you keep eating your stir fry?"
Momo: *Nods sheepishly
Peter: "Alright, let's see here..." *flips through a script. "Momo and Peter start a week long training session... awesome!... Bakugo decided to piss everyone off and put a huge target on class 1A... *sighs in annoyance* sounds about right... Shoto's gonna share his source of motivation for winning the sports festival... interesting... and... Oh... U-uh h-h-hey Mo? You uh... wanna take a look at this?"
Momo: "Why? What does it say?" *reads the next line and drops her chop sticks* "No... Hey! Where are you going?!"
Peter: *Spider sense tingling* "Out that window... Next Time!!! A Declaration of War!!!"
Momo: "LIKE HELL YOU ARE!! DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!!"
Peter: *opens window* "GO BEYOND!!! Good luck Mo!!! Please don't hate me!!"
Momo: "Don't... you... dare!!!"
Peter: "PLUS ULTRA!!!" *Dives out window*
Momo: *sigh* "You're lucky you're cute..."
YaoMama: *Door bursts open* "AHHHH! MY LITTLE GIRL HAS A BOYFRIEND!!!!"
Momo: *gulp*