Rei hums as she makes her bed in the morning. Today is the last day that she'll see Shouto before he goes on his school trip. She hopes that he went to the festival that he talked about previously. It's the first time he's gone to anything like that and her son deserves to finally create some pleasant memories.

It may just be Rei's imagination but, despite Shouto's usual lack of expression, he does seem more approachable as he walks in today. "Hello, Shouto." She says as she embraces him. "You mentioned you were thinking about going to a festival? Did you end up going?"

"Yeah, I did go. Some of my classmates also went."

"Oh? Did the whole class go?"

"No, I think only a few people went. I only saw one of them, but I heard three of them talking about going to the Festival on the morning of."

"Did you say hello to that other person?" She asks, knowing that common courtesies occasionally slip her son's mind.

"Yeah, I saw her at the entrance and we actually spent the whole night together."

'Her? Could it be…?' The gears in Rei's head begin to spin. "Who was it?"

"Yaoyorozu."

"Really?" Her face desperately wants to form a large ear-to-ear grin, but she holds herself back and only allows a small smile to show on her face. "What happened next? Don't leave out any details."

"I didn't think I would see her since I heard her reject Uraraka and Hagakure's invitation to go with them in the morning. Something about how her mother wouldn't approve. On the other hand, I didn't see Uraraka or Hagakure who I knew was going. I was surprised to see Yaoyorozu at the entrance. I went over planning to just say hello before going in by myself, but then I saw her in a yukata that I couldn't see from a distance. I told her it suited her."

While not exactly the greatest compliment in the world, it's probably the best she can hope from her son. "How did she take that?"

"Her cheeks turned red and she thanked me."

"Well done." Rei can't help but comment.

"...She was mumbling about something that I couldn't hear and still seemed apprehensive about going, so I took the initiative and asked her if she wanted to go with me. She said yes and we tried out many different foods and activities. It was also her first festival. At first, she wanted to rely on me. But, when I told her not to because I don't know much about it myself, she took the lead. It was quite nice to see her so excited, and she's definitely more suited to leading than following."

"Did you have fun?"

"Yes." He immediately responds. "If I were by myself, I might not have been able to say it so quickly. I'm glad she was there and I asked her to come with me. I'd like to think that she also enjoyed it since she was constantly smiling. But… I almost ruined it at the end."

Rei's mouth turns from curving upwards to a flat line. "What do you mean by that?"

"Somewhere along the way, I let my guard down. She asked me whether I liked the Ennichi Festival. Instead of just saying yes and being done with it, I told her I didn't like or dislike it. She looked worried and asked me why I was there if that was the case, so I told her I thought I should try coming once since I've never been to Ennichi or any other festival. All those families there, enjoying themselves… Everyone there knows that as 'normal' for them and that affected something in me. I almost told her about our family situation. I don't know what came over me, but I managed to stop myself at the last moment. I apologized for making the mood awkward and wished her good night."

Rei takes a moment to process this new information. "I think it shows that you trust Yaoyorozu-san a lot." Rei regains her smile while not finishing her sentence with 'and maybe something more than trust.' Instead, she produces a new sentence: "Otherwise, you wouldn't have even thought about doing that."

He ponders for a moment. "When you put it like that, I guess I do trust her a lot."

"So was that the end of the night? You saying good night to her and each of you being on your way?"

"Actually, no. The fireworks started right after that and she stopped me before I could leave. She asked me if it was beautiful before saying that she's not just someone else. She told me that she is a classmate and friend of mine along with Iida, Midoriya, and Uraraka. All of them are my comrades. I only nodded and said thanks at the time, but I'm still having trouble understanding why she said that."

"It sounds like she was trying to say you should trust her more. And, if you can't trust her, your other friends. They're all there for you."

"...I've already told Midoriya. Maybe I should think about telling the others as well. I told him more on a whim than any logical reason."

Rei flashes him another knowing smile. "Take your time with this. Just know that perhaps someday you'll trust her so much that you'll want to tell her, not just about our family but about… other things as well. When that time comes, follow your heart." He has a perplexed look on his face so she moves on to another topic. "So you had no idea that she was going to be there?"

"Nope."

"Perhaps it's fate..." She mutters under her breath.

"Did you say something? I didn't quite catch that."

"Fufu," Rei chuckles and then produces a wide, knowing grin, no longer as concerned about appearances. He only returns yet another confused look and she chuckles a little more before responding. "It's nothing."

"Ah, your face just now." He points out. She wonders if there's something on her face. "It reminds me of Uraraka's."

"Hm?"

"She had the same expression that you did just now when she asked me about Ennichi the next day. It seems like they saw me but not Yaoyorozu since she and Hagakure asked who was with me that night. I only said Yaoyorozu but they immediately began snickering and gave me the same look that you just did. When Yaoyorozu walked in, they simmered down a little but were still obvious enough that she noticed and asked them why they were blushing. I'm not sure how she even noticed that Hagakure was blushing since she's invisible. Regardless, they both responded with an emphatic 'Nothing!' I was wondering if you could tell me a little more about that expression."

'It seems like I'm not alone in supporting their relationship. Some of his classmates also seem to be getting an idea.' Rei finds this more amusing than anything. "Both this Uraraka-san and I- and probably Hagakure-san as well- just think that you becoming close to Yaoyorozu-san is... something worth supporting."

"So their giggling is them being supportive of our friendship? Should I thank them for that?"

"There's no need for that... There are other ways you can thank them."

"How so?"

'You can start by asking her out.' She is highly tempted to say. "You can just figure things out as you go along."

"I'll be at the class retreat so I won't be able to visit you next week, but I'll make sure to come the week after. Take care, Mom."

"Have fun on your retreat."