Izuku had dropped the woman off at the little restaurant a number of blocks from their apartment. It was a little bit of a walk for her and he was surprised that she made this commute daily for something as simple as a bare minimum wage job. And the fact that she made this walk all alone in such a poor neighborhood really did not sit well with the man. The thought of her walking alone especially at night was unsettling and there were not a lot of options for him to fix that. The one he could assume would not get him yelled at too much was the idea that he would start walking her to and from work. Though he could easily remember that she had not liked the idea of him walking her to and from work regularly, she had already told him no when he brought it up earlier when he had been sipping tea with her in her kitchen.
Well that was going to make it harder to keep her safe. He could start adding the area into his patrol route and ask the agencies in the area to pick up extra routes or ask some of his friends. But he had a feeling Kacchan would not exactly want to go out of his way to come so far just to walk the streets because Izuku asked him to. Either way both options were not perfect. So as he started to walk towards his own agency to check in he could not help but rack his brain on attempting to figure out what to do in order to make himself happy and know that the woman would be safer while working and while walking around after work. So Izuku decided to spend the rest of the day at his agency even if he was not actually scheduled to work that day. Though that was nothing new to his coworkers as he always was at work, the fact he took days off was more surprising than seeing him walk into work.
Aoi simply got to work once she wished Izuku a good bye and slipped into the building not bothering to watch to see where the man was walking off to once he started down the street not turning around to head home. Maybe he had errands to run, after all he had been stuck bed ridden for a couple of days. A normal busy person probably had things to do after their life had been forced on pause. She slipped through the rows of tables to a back office in order to let the boss know she was there and start her way out into the maze of tables taking in stock of which tables had customers and which did not. Taking in who had food already and who did not was easy as she got started with her shift falling into the routine that had become her job.
So should she have been surprised or irritated when her shift ended and she did not even get all the way down the block before she stopped and glanced around before looking up. People typically never look up, she learned a long time ago that if you want to ambush someone and have a hope of winning you attack from above. It also offers a good position to look out over an area making it easier to spot a target. And apparently villains were not the only ones to use heights to their advantage. She never even heard him as he dropped down when it became apparent she was not going to keep walking. Clearly he had been caught red handed as she watched him adjusting the hat he was wearing as her neighbor stepped out from the shadows of the alley.
And so she always kept an eye on the rooftops when she was walking around. And since most people left rooftops alone it usually was not too hard to notice when someone was peeking over the side to look down at a street. It also did not help that Izuku was a hard person to miss with that wide stature. Though she did not realize it was him until she spotted him as he easily made his way down the side of the building as if he was part monkey. That may also explain why he had little issues climbing up the side of their building.
"Are you stalking me? That's not a very heroic thing to do?" She asked softly, arching an eyebrow as she watched the man walking towards her. Of course his face grew red around his mask. His hand flew up as if he was being arrested as he quickly shook his head.
"No. Uhm it's not like that. I knew you were getting off work soon and I was heading home myself after stopping at the agency. I figured maybe you wouldn't mind some company?" He stuttered as his hand rubbed the back of his neck as his face continued to fill with colour, almost hiding the freckles that scattered across his cheeks. She very much so wanted to continue teasing him that his reply still sounded like a stalker to him. But she assumed the man simply had been bored with nothing better to be, or maybe it was that stupid hero logical brain of his that made him feel the need to help the poor helpless quirkless woman. Of course that thought irked her, she completely hated it when she was seen by others as some helpless idiot who always needed protection. She had survived on her own for a long time and she would continue to survive on her own with no issues. Exhaling a breath through her nose she started to continue walking back towards their apartment building so she could head home. The last few days had been exhausting and now she looked forward to relaxing at home.
Izuku had noticed the woman's exhale of breath, was she mad at him? She was, dang it he knew he would have pissed her off if she found out he planned to keep an eye on her as she walked home from work. And of course he could not blame her, it was creepy and he knew it. But she would not let him just walk her to and from work. It made him feel bad that he had upset her to some degree even though she did not actually say anything to him and had just started walking away which he was quick to run after her as his steps fell in time with hers.
"I'm sorry. I know it seems creepy. But well I figured it would be nice to walk home with someone. How about we go for dinner somewhere? It will be my treat. We can go anywhere you want and I will pay," He said quickly as he fell into step beside the woman after catching up to her. Of course she shot him a skeptical looking light glare. But at the same time she could not help but roll the idea around in her head. It was free food, free food being used as a bribe but still.
So was she willing to accept his bribe in order to accept his apology? She wanted to say no. Nothing was ever actually free even if she knew the man did not have any out right strings attached to his offer.
"It's okay I would not want to trouble you," she said softly as she continued to walk. But she watched him out of the corner of her eye and she was pretty sure the man looked like someone had just kicked his puppy. It almost made her feel bad for declining his offer.
"It would not be any trouble at all. It's only fair after all the hassle I have put you through," He said, still trying to persuade her. Why did she have a feeling that even if she tried to deny him yet again he was not going to just drop it. This was like him wanting his agency to pay her. How annoying.
"If I say yes will you just let it go? And not follow me to and from work again?" she asked, throwing yet another glare at him. Though he seemed to be rather unfazed about her less than happy tone.
"Yes. I know a great little place not too far away. A real little hole in the wall place. The food is really great," He said, seeming to come alive extremely happy to hear her questions even though she had not completely agreed to his offer of going with him for some dinner. But it seemed he knew she was caving as she sighed softly.
"Fine, lead the way," She said, allowing him to lead the way down the street as they started to head in a slightly different direction than their apartment complex. Why did Aoi have a feeling that this man was going to be a thorn in her side, he was too friendly, too happy to try and help. Being a hero he felt the need to help even if he was not needed. And getting that point across that his help was not needed was going to be the hard part it seemed.
She followed the hero as they walked side by side silently down the street. She had quickly noticed although it seemed he was looking straight forward his eyes were actually darting around a little. A typical hero was well alert and watching for enemies. She knew the look well, it was one she had learned to do as well. One did not roam dangerous streets without learning very quickly to watch out for danger and to do it without being noticed. She imagined a hero was accustomed to similar threats when out on patrols. Still even if he was keeping his attention on what was going on around them she did not let her own nerves dull. If anything, walking beside her made her feel more on edge. He was a walking beacon, whether he was in his hero costume or in civilian clothes he still looked out of place among these streets. He was well dressed, large and clearly muscular. She wouldn't be surprised if drunks tried to pick fights with him just cause they could and wanted to see if they were stronger. It was a common thing to see in the late nights once bars kicked people out. There were always some idiots picking fights in the back alley's often to see who was stronger, or someone just looked at someone else the wrong way. Drunks were always looking for fights in this area. And Izuku would catch anyone's eyes, though she wondered if it may be his wide muscular build along that drew attention. He looked like a gym rat who lived in the gym all day. But she expected a hero would need to be in peak physical shape, especially one that fought so much close range combat.
The thought of his combat skills had her eyes drift over to glance at the man beside her. She knew his legs were extremely strong, he used them as much as his fists. She had never really paid a lot of attention to his fighting before, hero's had never been an interest of hers. But now she was wondering she had always assumed his quirk had been a physical enhancement one, but with how built he was maybe he simply worked very hard to be as physically strong as he was. She may not have any actual idea of what his quirk is now that she was thinking about it.
She had almost walked past the little hidden restaurant until she noticed the man had stopped. Pausing, she turned just in time to watch him open the door for her. She could tell he was smiling widely at him as wrinkles creased around the edges of his eyes. She thanked him as she walked past him and walked into the little restaurant. She had noticed it but had never actually eaten inside of it. She did not usually eat out often, it was not something she could afford to do. It did make taking up his offer almost worth it. Key word there was almost. She had a feeling that giving in to this man's whims was only going to make him more persistent than he already was.
It seemed he must have eaten at the small family run restaurant a few times as the little old lady who greeted them was all smiles and waves as she quickly asked the young man how he had been. To which he answered with a simple oh you know the usual. He even pulled the face mask off that he had been wearing and once they sat down his hat also came off. He must feel very comfortable removing his little camouflage. The restaurant was not very big, it was a small little ramen place, but boy it smelled wonderful inside. Her stomach growled as she was sitting there. That seemed to draw the man's attention as he smiled at her now that she could actually see his face. Of course the sound of her stomach growl had him chuckle softly.
"Did you not eat anything while you were at work?" He asked her softly recalling how she had eaten breakfast but that was it and it was already well into the evening now. She had gone most of the day without eating.
"No it was too busy today," She said softly, not wanting to admit she had no money to buy anything and then also she had not brought anything either to eat from home. He had been with her keeping her from packing herself a snack or lunch to eat.
"Well order anything you want and eat all you want. I did say it was my treat after all," He said smiling widely at her. Even though she was still looking at him unhappy about his offer and having been talking into accepting. He was a nice guy, he was good company, even if he was a little annoying at times. She sighed softly; it was his nice personality that made it hard for her to just cut ties. She could have kicked him out the second he was healed and gone back to living like she had no idea who lived in the apartment beside hers. He seemed so genuine it was hard to hate him or even try to still be mad at him.
"If I clean out your wallet then do not complain," She said simply as she started to eye up the different options the little restaurant had. A nice ramen actually sounded so good and the smell in the building was making her mouth water. And there was no reason to not stuff her face aside from the fact it would not be attractive if she ate multiple bowls of ramen. Then again should she really be worried about that? She wanted to say no. And yet it still did not sit well with her that it may look attractive if she was to stuff her face in front of him. It was odd, it's not like she had ever cared about eating in front of others before. So why was it now sitting on the edge of her mind?
Izuku chuckled softly at her comment, unaware of her own little tornado of thoughts that were flying around in her mind. It was almost making her dizzy with herself as she tried to figure out why the sudden thought of eating a lot in front of him was nerve racking. At least she was lucky that the man sitting across from her had been unaware of the stress she was feeling as he continued to smile at her softly.
"I am not too worried, number one hero remember? I can afford to buy you anything you could want to eat, and I am always happy when my money is supporting a little local business," He said smiling at her as he did not even touch his menu, already well aware of what he was going to order.
"Do you eat here a lot? They seem to know you here," Aoi quickly welcomed the chance to change the subject from how much she was allowed to and may eat.
"Oh yes. I found this place a few years ago when I was fighting with a villain a few blocks away and he took off trying to run for it. He ended up on this street before I apprehended him. But a car had gotten tossed around by the villain and it almost crashed in through their front door but I was able to stop it before it could damage their restaurant. As I was waiting for the cops to come and pick up the criminal they had come out and thanked me. And I came here for a meal once and I fell in love with their food. Now that I live closer I plan to eat here a lot more often," He said completely rambling on about how he found the little restaurant. I was how he found a lot of great places to eat. He would have continued his rambling and gone on to talk about other places he had found had he not looked up and been surprised that she was actually paying attention and was listening to his little ramble. Izuku was very much aware that he rambled, a lot, and people usually just did not pay it a lot of attention. But she was actually listening to him. It had been a while since someone had actually listened and paid attention to his rambling.
"Oh so mister hero saved the day and you found somewhere to eat good food. Sounds pretty lucky," She said simply as she glanced down at her menu.
"Well then is there anything you would suggest?" She asked, still a little unsure what to get.
"Oh do if you like spicy food, they have a really good spicy ramen options. Kacchan even likes it and he is very picky. But if you don't then they have a mild option that I really like myself," Izuku said happily, starting to give options that he liked and knew others had liked. Of course at the sound of spicy food and the number two current hero Aoi scrunched up her nose.
"I am not a fan of spicy foods. I much more like sweet foods," She said as she decided to go with a more mild pork broth and not something spicy. Izuku smiled softly at her trying not to chuckle as he watched her face scrunch up when he spoke about a spicy option for the ramen. He would have to remember that she was not a fan of spicy food.
They quickly ordered and Aoi would not admit it but the man had a good taste in restaurants, it tasted wonderful once the food arrived. Oh how she wished that she could eat here more often. It was a flavourful broth and she almost had to bite her tongue not to moan softly at the taste. This was much better than going home and just eating some fried rice. She smiled happily as she ate her meal unaware of the soft green eyes that were watching her as she ate her large bowl of ramen. It was so easy to make her happy and seeing her happy made him oddly happy.