As the end of November neared the students of U.A. High School, Izuku's studying and training consumed his time. Despite the times they met in Izuku's dorm room, it became sparse. Not that it was bad, but a sense of loneliness instilled itself within him.

When Eri was admitted to the care of Aizawa and UA High School, Nejire took the mantle of being a big sister to her. This eventually led the three to a nearby park to give Eri time to play as a normal child. Izuku recognized the rational reason they were there, but it was odd being the only male there on a late Saturday afternoon. Wasn't Mirio supposed to be the caretaker for Eri? Did Nejire pull some strings?

But seriously, where was Mirio?

Izuku sat on the bench and stuffed his hands in his coat pockets to keep them warm. The gloves he wore did little to protect him from the frigid air. Luckily, the wool winter hat Nejire made for him was the perfect remedy for the icy wind. And for his cat ears.

Izuku observed the way Eri smiled as Nejire played a game of tag with her. However, it evolved into a game of hide-and-seek.

Somehow, he was able to avoid partaking in their game, but he was sure they were going to try again. For now, he was enjoying the part where he was spectating.

Nejire put a finger on her chin as she hovered across the area. "Hmm... I wonder where Eri is? I can't seem to find her in this vast playground."

Eri couldn't help but giggle, giving her position away from underneath the platform of a structure leading to a slide. But Nejire pretended to be oblivious as she continued to drift around the premises, searching for Eri.

"Hey, hey! I heard a laugh coming from somewhere…" Nejire said, a mischievous smile crossing her face.

Eri giggled again.

Nejire turned and stared at the wrong area of the playground intentionally. "That's weird! I swear I heard a laugh from over there."

Nejire floated higher into the sky, urging Eri to wonder where she disappeared. Eri poked her head from underneath the playground and looked up in confusion. From Izuku's perspective, he could see Nejire descending from the air in Eri's blind spot, upside down.

Nejire glanced at him and lifted a finger to her lips. Izuku smiled and nodded his head before he looked elsewhere, in case Eri looked at him for any hints. He would not ruin the moment of serenity between the two of them.

Once Nejire made it to her desired position without being spotted by Eri, she popped into Eri's vision.

"Boo!" Nejire exclaimed, opening her hands to add effect.

"Ah!" Eri shrieked.

She fell on her back in surprise before laughter followed. Nejire joined in Eri's amusement and floated underneath the playground to help Eri onto her feet and pat the debris off her coat. "So that's where you hid! You're so good at hiding from a hide-and-seek champion!"

"Woah, really? You were a champion?" Eri asked.

"Of course! How do you think I found you?" Nejire said, tapping Eri on the nose. "Anyway, stay right here! I'm going to go get big brother Izuku to join us! I think he looks a little lonely there all by himself, don't you think?"

"Okay!" Eri said.

Izuku perked up when he heard his name being mentioned and refocused his vision on Nejire. Then he stared at Eri. From the way Eri emanated with joy, it was obvious to tell she was enjoying her time with Nejire.

It was a blessing to his heart. Eri certainly looked happy. It was like her grim past with Overhaul never happened.

"Hey, Izuku. What are you doing here all alone? Don't you want to join us?" Nejire asked.

"Yeah, in a bit."

"Is there something wrong?"

"Oh... No, there's nothing wrong. I was just thinking... I think Eri likes you a lot."

Nejire grinned and glanced at Eri, who was staring at a couple of birds chattering to each other. "Well, she is a cute little girl. And I think as a hero, my tendency is to care for her, especially when Aizawa sensei placed her in our trust. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her ever since she went through... Well, we know what she went through. Now she deserves some rest and fun! And I can say the same to you. Eri likes you a lot, too. Also, you need to have some fun too~!"

"Haha, I'm sure I do… Morning training took a bit out of me. I'll join now," Izuku said without moving.

Silence entered their conversation as they both looked at Eri, who pointed at the birds and peered at them. Eri inched a little closer, but they flew away once they noticed her presence closer than before. Eri watched them land on a tree and disappear as they hopped into the maze of branches.

Nejire looked at Izuku and smirked. "Hey, hey. So, do you think this makes us a couple right now?"

Did he hear Nejire correctly? His brain confirmed it as it replayed what she just said. He cleared his throat and turned to hide the blush appearing on his face.

"W-What makes you say that?"

"Come on, silly! Take a look around!" Nejire exclaimed.

When Izuku turned his face further, Nejire could only laugh at his bashful reaction.

"Sorry if I'm pushing things too far. It was just the perfect setup."

"Ah, no! You're fine! A-Anyway, I'll join. What game are we playing?"

"How about oni tag? That's a fun one! Or we could just play hide-and-seek again! Or maybe we could buy some bread from a nearby convenience or grocery store for some bread and feed it to the ducks!"

"Can we play oni tag and then feed bread to the ducks?"

"Oh, you're a greedy one! Sure! But come on! Let's play before the sun goes down! After that, I'll buy some bread so we can feed the ducks. And then we can go get some dinner afterward."

"But I don't have that much money…"

"Who said you had to buy?"

"Eh?"

"Hehe, come on, Izuku! I'll buy everything for us today! Now come on, stop stalling!" Nejire said, grabbing Izuku by the hand.

And so, Izuku had to follow Nejire. Together, the three of them played oni tag. Eri liked the game, but because of her lack of speed and endurance for the cardiovascular activity, Izuku and Nejire accommodated by losing on purpose to keep her entertained. Despite being older and feeling like he was too old to enjoy a game of tag, it was oddly the most fun he ever had.

The smile he saw on Eri and Nejire's features as they played brightened his day in return. The magic was in the laughter and warmth shared among the people he was the closest to.

Eventually, Eri told them she was exhausted. Nejire dismissed herself to grab some cheap bread from a nearby convenience store while Izuku took Eri under his wing. They walked the trail of the park surrounding a lake. To his surprise, Eri reached out and grabbed his hand for comfort. Initially shocked, Izuku adjusted and led her to the pebbled shores of the lake where a couple of ducks quacked away.

Together, they stood in the quiet until Izuku broke it.

"Hey, Eri. Are you cold by any chance?"

Eri shook her head. "No, I'm fine. Big sister Nejire bought me some warm clothes yesterday before we came here."

"They look good on you." Izuku complimented. "Maybe I should ask Nejire if I can go shopping with her one day."

"Can I join when you two go?"

"I don't see why not. We can go on either a weekend or after school, whichever lines up with Nejire's schedule."

"Okay," Eri said as she focused her attention on the ducks.

Something clicked inside of Izuku. Somehow, he didn't realize everything she was seeing was for the first time. Izuku smiled and patted Eri on the head out of sympathy, not realizing what he was doing until it was too late.

But it felt right.

Eri closed her eyes and giggled, relishing the comfort of Izuku's hand. "Deku... I was wondering something."

"What is it?"

"Are you dating big sister Nejire Hado?"

Izuku's cat ears turned rigid out of embarrassment. He watched her twiddle with her fingers in anticipation of his answer. Clearly, she had great observational skills. Or maybe the way the two of them conversed hid nothing about their friendly relationship at all.

"No, I am not. But I..." Izuku trailed off, hesitant to continue until his brain came to the rescue. "Well, let's just say we're great friends."

But was that the correct answer?

"Oh, okay!" Eri exclaimed, satisfied with his answer.

But Izuku didn't know if he was. His mind pondered the possibility of dating Nejire. He didn't know how to go about it without ruining something special he had built with her for the past two months. Additionally, there was a tiny voice in the back of his mind telling him Nejire only liked him for his cat ears.

It was a sound argument, especially from his perspective. Every time Nejire visited him, it was mostly about his cat ears, so it was a difficult thought to ignore. And it wasn't like he could read her mind to see what she was truly thinking.

Even if he could somehow convince himself Nejire liked him and she did, he wasn't sure the doubt would vanish. He needed to hear her say it to him personally. But would it disappear if she did?

Izuku's train of thought came to a halt when he heard a swish of wind behind him. He turned and found Nejire descending until her feet touched the ground. She held her hands in the air and smiled.

"Got some milk bread to feed the ducks! I hope they're hungry! And if we're hungry, we can also feed ourselves too!"

"We're going to feed them bread?" Eri asked.

"Yup! The birds you see quacking are called ducks and they love bread! At least, that's what I learned when I was younger, but I'm not sure if it's healthy for them… But occasional treats should be fine! Just like people need treats, so do ducks!"

Nejire set the bag of milk bread on the floor and untied it.

Eri glanced at the ducks and marveled at the thought of feeding them. When Nejire handed her a slice of milk bread, Eri's excitement was palpable. Eri looked at the slice of bread and then at the ducks before she looked at Izuku with confusion.

"Um... Deku, do I give this whole slice of bread to them?"

"Ah, no... You can rip off pieces of it like this and give it to them. Here, let me show you how," Izuku said, squatting next to Eri.

He took the slice of bread from her hand and tore a tiny piece. He threw it to the ducks, who were gathering around their position on the rocky shore. They kept their distance, but once the bread landed next to them, they rushed in a frenzy. When the lucky contestant won the prize and gobbled the bread, the remaining hungry ducks squabbled with each other until another piece of bread came their way, courtesy of Eri.

Eri smiled as the ducks bickered amongst each other again until the cycle repeated. More and more ducks appeared, yearning to fill their bellies with something scrumptious. Eri giggled as they nipped at each other with their beaks from envy.

Izuku smiled and stepped back, letting Eri indulge herself. But as he continued staring at Eri, he felt something land on his head. He turned and heard a soft plop as a slice of bread fell from his head to the ground. Nejire laughed and handed him another piece of bread, which he accepted.

"I'll take the one that dropped," Nejire said, reaching for it.

"No, I'll do it," Izuku said.

Before either of them knew what the outcome of this situation would bring, their hands touched each other. They stayed like that for several seconds before Izuku retracted his hand as quickly as possible, a blush lighting his face.

"Well, aren't you a romantic individual~?" Nejire teased with a smile.

"I-I didn't mean to!"

"Oh, I'm sure you didn't. But it doesn't excuse it. I don't think I would reject if you got down on your knee and proposed."

"W-What?"

"Just joking~! Come on, lover boy! Let's go feed the ducks with Eri!"

With a swift motion, Nejire took his hand and retrieved the bread from the ground before guiding them to Eri's side. From there, she released his hand to join the entertainment of feeding ducks.

Izuku could feel the warmth of her hand dissipating into the air as he looked at the slice of bread in his hand. He returned his gaze to Nejire and watched her toss pieces of bread into the water. She glanced at him and playfully bumped into his shoulder with a laugh.

After that, scenes blurred with one another. When he went to his dorm room and got into bed after everything, he lay wide awake. He couldn't get rid of the thought of her shoulder bump. Most importantly, he couldn't neglect the joke she made with him.

Proposing? Was this a secret sign that she liked him beyond anything he thought?

Izuku sighed and turned to his side, staring at his desk and the posters on the wall. It was barely visible in the dim moonlight, but he could make out the designs. When he looked at his phone, he panicked at how late the time was. The journey his brain could take him on was frightening.

He needed to sleep. Hopefully, tomorrow will hold a kinder day for his overthinking brain.

Author's Note: Hello, friends! It is with great pleasure I can announce that Izuku is dense! As dense as a neutron star! Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk! XD

If you enjoyed it, don't be shy to leave some interactions!

With love from your favorite writer, Out4Lunch!