Aoi learned a few things with her time spent actually leaving her room. First off Izuku had filled the bathroom with a very large array of smelly soaps, shampoo's, salts, body washes and things she honestly was not even sure what they were for. Everything smelled good, and scents ranged from all sorts of things. Some more floral, others like vanilla, she was pretty sure she even smelt something citrusy. The scents for the most part seemed to feminine for Izuku to use, or more so she was pretty sure she would notice if the man smelled like he walked through a flower shop. She did notice the citrusy smelling body wash was one she thought she smelled on the man. It did not take much to assume that all the sweet smelling things were meant for her to use. Still it seemed so over the top as she spent almost more time sniffing the smelling bath stuff than actually washing herself. It almost felt like the man had bought out an entire bed, bath and body shop. Made her cheap shampoo and body wash smell like nothing good. And she did not hesitate to use some of it either since it was most likely meant for her anyways. Made her wonder why they even packed her old cheap stuff. Still she would not argue in the moment.
Next the closet by the bathroom had been filled with an array of towels of a few different colours but all were large, soft and fuzzy. She also had seen a few different bedsheets and blankets that had also been folded up in the same closet. Clearly she did not need her old crappy sheets, or her crappy bath stuff. She was pretty sure if Izuku had the choice he probably would have just bought everything for her completely anew. The only thing she truly needed was her old clothes. But she was sure he would have happily bought her an entire new wardrobe as well.
Once she was done with soaking in the bath trying to relax both her mind and body but it had not done as much good as she would have liked. But still that did not stop her from spending well over an hour in the bathroom. It probably did not help that she had only retreated straight to her bedroom once she did finally leave the bathroom. She did not wish to talk with the hero who was also living in the house. She knew she should be thankful. He had saved her, had made sure she was healed, and now had a free roof over her head and warm food in her stomach. In the past she would have done almost anything to have a warm, safe place to sleep and a full stomach. But right now she could not enjoy the opportunity. All she could feel was like a caged bird. This warm home and free food was not free, she paid for it with her freedom, her life, everything she had.
Aoi was thankful that Izuku gave her some distance, well what distance he could offer while they were both stuck in the same large apartment. If she had her bedroom door closed he left her alone, only knocking and interrupting her sulking when he deemed she needed to eat, so at least twice a day he would bother her. But she could not complain as she was hungry. Though on the second day she was surprised to learn that the man could actually cook. He had ordered fast food the night before. But in the morning he actually cooked some breakfast which was better than she expected. Had she not been sulking and grumpy she would have complimented him and asked why he always had her cooking their dinner when the man could cook himself. But she did not wish to talk with the man she felt like was her warden at the moment.
Aoi had spent a few days hiding in her bedroom, but it was quickly driving her crazy. She was never one to hide away. She was used to being busy, always trying to work, or looking for work, struggling to eat or just walking the streets looking for food or shelter. She could not remember the last time she had spent so much time hiding away doing nothing. And so she felt the need to pace in more space than just her bedroom as she finally left her bedroom on her own accord aside for food and the bathroom. At least this time she had put on pants, well shorts, since she did not wish to make things more uncomfortable than they already would be since she was well aware that poor Izuku nearly had a heart attack every time he saw her walking around without pants. Even after she had told him she was going to wear what she wanted and did not really care about his thoughts on the matter. Though that may change when she walked from the small hallway of bedrooms and into the living room to find said man that she could make so uncomfortable with ease shirtless doing pushups in the middle of the room as the television was on with some show going on but the hero was clearly not paying it any attention as he was simply working out. He had also apparently not noticed her, or if he did then he did not make any move to show that he was aware of her presence as she stood there rather frozen as she watched the man.
She had seen his top half naked before, she had bandaged him up and sewn up a hole in his side. This was not a new view. And yet she found her eyes shamefully roaming over the mass of muscles that ran over his back and shoulders. The way the muscles moved underneath his skin was oddly memorizing. But she would be damned if she was caught staring as she strolled behind him and made her way towards the couch wanting to at least look like she was calm and not internally panicking over the desire to want to watch the man as he continued to do something as simple as some push up in the middle of the living room. He had not even broken a sweat.
At the sight of her sitting down on the couch she watched as the man seemed to light up. He was clearly happy to see her leave her bedroom of her own will finally. She watched him as he effortlessly pushed himself to sit up and cross his legs as he turned to smile widely at her. He looked like some damn happy puppy smiling up widely at her.
"Oh Sugahara. How are you feeling?" His greeting was warm and clearly meant nothing bad but still she did not return his smile.
"Fine," She answered and watched that stupid golden retreiver look he gave her as his head tilted slightly to look at her almost skeptical, or maybe it was doubtful or even confused. She could not completely tell as she watched him just look at her with his head tilted. She snapped first and looked away.
"I am bored. Being locked up is making me feel stir crazy," She admitted as she looked away from him and around the living room. She tried to get her attention to linger on the tv but it really did not hold any interest to her. What the hell did people do who never left their homes? This was making her skin crawl wanting to leave the apartment before she started to crawl up the walls.
That answer got her an apologetic smile from the man who was sitting in front of her on the floor.
"Yeah I know the feeling. I know this is not ideal. There is a gym in the building if you want to go down and use it," Izuku offered but all that got him was an unimpressed look. He may be happy to go work out in a gym all day but she did not enjoy that thought. Sure working out would be good for her but it did not sound fun.
"I'll pass," She said simply as she watched his smile falter for a second before he forced it back.
"Uhm okay. Well are there any hobbies you do? Anything you would like? I can have someone get stuff for you. If there is anything you want or need just let me know," he said smiling widely at her again.
A hobby? She did not have one. She worked to survive. She could not afford such luxuries to waste money on. She had her cell phone and that was it. The few free games and apps she had on it had been the reach of her fun stuff she had. What did normal people do? She wasn't very artistic so drawing seemed useless. She had never been one to play video games, she barely touched her apps on her phone. She had no desire to grow plants or anything that required having a green thumb. What the hell did normal people do that could be done inside and alone? This was harder than she thought.
"What do you do in your spare time?" She was unable to help but ask him curious what the hero does in his free time.
"Hmm well if I'm not at the agency or out on patrol I am usually hanging out with some of my friends. Or I'm at the gym," the man answered simply. So he was a gym rat, or a workaholic, she was leaning to the latter. She also was well aware the man was an All Might fan and probably spent some time and a lot of money working on that collection of his.
"So we are both workaholics. Great," she had grumbled the last word to herself with a huff through her nose. Well she at least hoped the man was as bored and stir crazy as she was feeling.
"Any chance we can go for a walk or something? I could really use some fresh air," she asked, watching him as he seemed to think the idea over.
"I am not sure. It has not even been two weeks since we freed you," Izuku said, a little unsure as he rubbed the back of his head. She could tell he was trying to find a nice way of saying no. How annoying. She huffed out softly with a pout.
"Come on Midoriya. I'll have you with me. Someone would have to be a real moron to attack a girl while she's walking with the number one hero beside her," Aoi pointed out as she watched him rolling the idea around. She could only hope either his own need to get out or his need to please her would be enough to help push him to agree. She even proceeded to give him large puppy dog eyes which seemed to have the large man squirming under.
"Okay. We can go for a little walk. But we won't stray too far from the apartment," he said, caving actually quicker than she expected him to as she nearly jumped off of the couch and to her feet.
"Awesome I'll go get dressed," she said, quickly walking away to leave the man still sitting on the floor as she walked into her room now on the hunt for a bra to put on and some socks. Who knew the simple thought of being allowed outside could help lift her sour mood.
With socks on her feet and a bra now on under her shirt she nearly bounded out of her bedroom. Funny how the thought of being allowed to go for a walk could make her so excited. She may as well be a puppy running to the front door after being asked if she wanted to go for a walk. Of course she did not like that idea, it did have her slow her steps a little and the bounce in her step disappeared. It was a sour thought that had killed her happy mood a little. Damn it.
Midoriya was waiting for her, a ball cap and medical mask on his face already ready to leave as she slipped her shoes on and let the man walk out into the hall of the apartment before her as she followed after him. Even if she felt like a damn dog being taken for a walk she could not deny that the second they stepped out of the building she took a deep inhale. The fresh air smelled heavenly after being either in a hospital or that damn bedroom. With a few deep breaths she could feel her shoulders relax a little. It was not much but she really did need to get out a little. Though she did not miss how stiff the hero beside her grew. He was on high alert. Though she did not share his same fears. She knew she should, her body was still aching from the abuse she had suffered, and she would never admit that nightmares filled her dreams from those days. She almost wished she could just be allowed to deal with this alone, she knew how to hide in the shadows, this was not the first time someone wanted her dead. But the red tape of her protector being a hero really had her uneasy with how he could protect her.
Even if the league was gone she knew she still had friends, still had connections with some who would be able to keep her safer, people who would kill for her or at the very least kill for a price. And that sounded much safer to her mind that the hero was walking beside her as they started down the sidewalk. She imagined they were simply going to walk around the block and come back to the apartment. Still the simple walk was welcoming. The fresh air was good for her and helped clear her mind a little, or at least it felt like it was.
"When do you go back to work?" She asked, trying to start a little small talk. But really she wanted to know when she would have the privacy of the apartment to herself and then maybe she would plan a way to get out of her new prison.
"Huh?" She watched the confusion quickly cross the man's face before she quickly continued her question.
"I know you are taking time off of work to stay with me. Don't think I am an idiot. I am not a baby. You do not need to stay and watch me. Japan need's their number one. You need to return to work. When are you going to go back to being a savior for other people?" She asked with a slight tilt of her head as she watched him. She knew he had missed almost a week with her already between her time in the hospital and now at the apartment.
"Well I know the agency would like me back at work as soon as possible. But my friends have been adamant that they can hold the fort for as long as we need," Izuku answered as he scratched the back of his neck. If he had his way he would spend the next month with the woman not at all wanting to return to work while he could clearly tell she was struggling. Dark circles lingered under her eyes. Her shoulders had been tense till they walked out of the apartment building. And she had avoided him like the plague the last few days. He could not understand why she was avoiding him so much. He had assumed it was her way of coping. She was hiding away trying to deal with everything on her own was his assumption. Which was why he could not say no when she finally started to talk to him again and had made a request of something simple as going for a walk. He did not like the idea of letting her out of the apartment, but seeing how happy it made her made it worth it.
"You should go back to work. I am fine. And you say the apartment is safe. There are a few armed men walking around the place, and you say hero's live in the building as well. Sounds like it would be a suicide attempt to break into that place," She said watching him look at her with an off look on his face when she pointed out the armed guards she had noticed both on their way in an now on the way out days later.
"Don't look at me like that. I know what a man packing heat looks like. They carry themselves like secret agents or some shit like that. They don't walk like you heroes, they're too rigid. They look like ex-military or something else," She said simply with a shrug of her shoulders.
"You have really sharp eyes," Izuku points out, attempting to change the subject.
"So I have been told. But you still have not answered my question. When will you go back?" She asked again, a little irritated he would not just tell her. She did not even try to stop herself from glaring at him as they made their way around a corner. She watched the man just sigh under his breath as he watched her glare at him as they walked. He had no desire to piss her off more and drive her back into hiding from him.
"Well I do not want to rush back to work too fast," he mumbled softly at her as she watched his large scarred hand rubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck.
"I am fine. You do not need to stick around just for me," She says simply as she glanced around the street taking in the slightly unfamiliar area. This was a nice neighborhood. Fair better than the crappy one she had lived in before. This was the kind of neighborhood she would expect a hero like Deku to live in. But this was not a neighborhood she was used to living in.
"Are you really?" The question was almost so quiet she could have missed it had she not been paying attention to what he was saying even as her eyes were looking around taking in all the buildings and what was were. She may need to memorize these streets to help herself get away.
"I am not some broken little toy Deku. This is not the first time I have taken a beating, nor has it been the first time someone has wanted me dead. And I am sure it will not be the last. Although I would like to deal with it my way I will let you do as you want. But do not treat me like some fragile little flower," She could not help the growl her voice took on as her tone dropped and her eyes grew rather cold as she glared over at him quickly before she looked around again. The way she used his hero name nearly made the poor man shutter. Her tone was dark when she told him not to treat her like something broken. He wanted to argue with her. He wanted to say he did not see her as someone broken. But at the same time he could not help but see her as a struggling woman. Even if she did not want to admit it she was still a defenseless, quirkless, young woman. And recalling the way her body had been limp in his hands when he had carried her out of the warehouse after they had stormed the building looking for her. It was hard not to remember how beat up and bloody she had been. Her face had been so swollen and she had almost been unrecognizable. That was something Izuku never wanted to see again and the memory haunted his own dreams. His brain alone loved to remind him that had he been any later she may not be alive now. He could have very easily carried a limp, cold and lifeless body out of that building. And that realization terrified him.
"I know. I just can't help myself but worry. I can not get that day out of my mind. And I can not ignore the fact that I could have just as easily found you lifeless rather than alive. I know you are not broke. But that was still a very traumatizing event. I just want to make sure you are okay," His voice had gone so soft. She watched as tears filled the man's eyes. And she felt her own heart tighten with guilt. She could no longer look at the man as their steps slowed and she came to a stop. She had been dealing with the event in her own way. But she forgot she was not the only one who was clearly suffering, Izuku was clearly still beating himself up for what had happened to her and how he had found her.
"I am sorry. I know you're just trying to help. But I will be okay. You do not need to worry so much," She said softly, quickly starting to walk again not wanting to see how torn up she was at seeing how upset the man had gotten.
With that the two fell silent as they continued their little walk around the apartment building before they returned. Silently she followed him back into the apartment before heading to her bedroom. But this time she left her door open allowing the man to be able to at least look into the room and can see how she is doing rather than her hiding behind the closed door of the room.