Today was another day in the dorms as Deku played Perfect Dark on his Xbox Series X. Overall, it wasn't an easy day of classes, but it wasn't brutally hard, either. In spite of this middle-of-the-road kind of feeling, there was something that Deku had boiling in the back of his mind ever since he returned to UA, and no matter how many dataDyne thugs he blew away, it kept percolating in there like an overdone pot of coffee. Then, he was snapped out of his trance when somebody knocked on his door, so he paused the game.

"Come in."

The door opened up, and sure enough…

"Hey, Deku!"

Todoroki entered, and Deku approached her, upon which they gave each other another hug and kiss.

"Thanks for coming, Shoko. I needed to talk to you about something."

Todoroki's look turned serious. "Oh, what about?"

"Come, let's sit on my bed."

Deku and Todoroki did so.

"What's on your mind?" asked Todoroki.

"So…I know you know about One For All, but there's something else I never told you about it…"

Todoroki leaned in a bit closer to Deku. "What?"

"When I was unconscious, speaking with the past holders of One For All, I learned that previous users – barring All Might – had dramatically shortened lifespans because they held One For All alongside their original Quirks, but more importantly, I learned that because there are fewer and fewer Quirkless people in the world, I…well I…"

"Yes?"

"I might be the last person to wield One For All."

Todoroki put a hand on Deku's shoulder. "That must be a heavy burden to bear. What are you going to do about it?"

Deku sighed and slumped a bit. "I dunno, I might just let it die. After I defeat All For One, what use would there be in prolonging it?"

Todoroki smiled. "I'm not quite sure how to respond to that, but I understand if you don't want to pass it on to a successor, and I'll still love you forever." Todoroki averted her gaze and frowned. "Actually, now that you're here, there's something I need to talk to you about…"

"What?"

"Ever since you and I got back to UA, people have been giving me weird looks, even my friends. I'm not stupid; I know they're looking at me like that just because of Toya, and it hurts my feelings knowing that people associate me with him." Todoroki hung her head.

Deku put a hand on Todoroki's shoulder. "Shoko, your worries are understandable and valid. I don't like it any more than you, but know this: you're not Toya. You're the sweetest, most caring girl I know. Also, remember how you said you'd always remain by my side?"

Todoroki looked over at Deku and nodded. "Yes?"

Deku smiled. "I'll remain by your side as well. That thing I said about not wanting to spend my life with anyone else but you, that still stands."

Todoroki formed tears in her eyes. "Oh, Deku…"

Todoroki gave Deku a big hug and cried, and he hugged her back. Even if it would be a while before people stopped associating her with Dabi, at least she could rest easier now knowing that her little green bean still loved her.

Criticism is gold. Negativity and nitpicking are pyrite.