Having a girlfriend was nice.

…

Okay, that was the understatement of the century. Having a girlfriend was really nice - no, great. Hell, it was amazing.

The fact that it was Nejire made that feeling ten times better. It constantly felt like his heart was going to beat right out of his chest.

In a good way, of course.

"Izu! Say 'aah'!"

Case in point…

Izuku's ears burned as Nejire held her chopsticks up in front of his face, a small piece of chocolate being held within their grasp.

He squirmed in his seat slightly, his girlfriend waiting with the patience of a saint for him. "B-but they're right there…" he mumbled, "I-Isn't it, um, a little i-improper to do this in front of t-them?"

Nejire shrugged, an easygoing smile sitting atop her lips. "You think too much." She hummed. "Who cares? They're our friends. We're a couple. This is fine!"

His blush only intensified at her words. But she was the expert here (even if Nejire had already told him that she was as new to this as he was).

"...Aah," Izuku said, opening his mouth enough for Nejire to place the chocolate in his mouth.

It was pretty sweet. The chocolate was nice, too.

"See?" Nejire giggled, tracing her fingers along his arm, "That wasn't so bad!"

"N-No," Izuku agreed, face as red as the strawberries on Haya's plate, "It was n-nice."

As the newly-anointed couple fell into their own little world, three people stared at them with wide eyes and slack jaws.

Well, two of them did. The third one was trying not to laugh.

"What the…?" Mirio whispered.

Tamaki looked shell-shocked. "...Since when are they…?"

"Nejire told me it happened four days ago," Yuyu explained, looking away from the pair to offer them some semblance of privacy, "And that it would have been five had someone not interrupted their little moment together on the beach."

Mirio blinked. "What did I do?"

"You totally interrupted her as she was going to confess her love, you idiot!" She said angrily, "Do you know how long Nejire had been planning that scene in her head? You totally ruined it!"

The blonde looked eager to fire back, but he was interrupted by Tamaki's mutterings. "It's like they don't even realize we're here…" he whispered, watching in shock as Nejire wiped away a chocolate smear on the corner of his lips with her finger, "Or that they're in public…"

Yuyu rolled her eyes. "Let them have this," she huffed, "At least they waited until the desserts came out to start being all lovey-dovey. Nejire has been wanting this for at least a month, and I'm sure Izuku is over the moon but too embarrassed to admit it."

"Izuku?" Mirio repeated, "Since when are you two–"

"If he's close enough to us to date Nejire then he's close enough to me for me to use his first name." She said simply.

Tamaki sighed. "Good for them," he said, giving his approval to the new couple, "B-But, um, couldn't they have, you know, t-told us?"

Yuyu gave him a strange look. "She literally told us, and I quote, 'Me and Izuku are together now!' the moment we arrived."

"I thought she meant together like they were around each other again."

Her strange look became a deadpan stare. "You cannot be serious," she groaned, "Nejire literally hugged him into her boobs and held him there the moment she saw him."

The Manifest user shrugged. "That's happened before. Several times actually, now that I think about it."

"I just can't believe that they're actually a couple," Mirio added, still shocked, "But I'm happy for them! Congratulations, you two!"

He started clapping. Tamaki joined in. Yuyu wanted to pull her hair out in frustration.

"Thanks, guys!" Nejire cheered, "Glad you approve! Isn't this wonderful, Izu?"

He nodded slowly, wishing for nothing more than the ability to melt into his seat to escape the situation of being applauded for dating her. "Y-Yeah," he agreed wholeheartedly, "T-Thanks. I p-promise I won't, um, hurt Nejire - not that I c-could! I mean–"

"We know what you mean," Haya interrupted, "And we know you wouldn't. But if you ever did… no one would find your body."

Izuku nodded, suddenly very serious as he met Haya's eyes unflinchingly. "Understood."

"Yuyu!" Nejire pouted, "Quit teasing my boyfriend!"

She pulled Izuku in for a hug, burying her face in his hair and making Izuku look like a fresher strawberry than anything found in Dionysus's vineyards.

He still hugged her back. "N-Nejire–"

Togata's eyes sparkled. "I can't believe how well they go together!"

"I can't believe Nedzu approved Nejire's request of letting her leave campus every day to spend time with him," Tamaki mumbled, "I mean, he was laughing as she walked out of his office. L-Laughing! Have you guys ever heard Nedzu laugh before?"

Izuku perked up slightly at the mention of U.A.'s principal. "Is he r-really that scary?" He asked, "I-I mean, he must be r-really nice to let Nejire basically ignore the whole s-stay on campus rule…"

Togata shrugged. "Who knows with our principal!" He shrugged. "He's a mystery sometimes!"

The Quirkless teen nodded quickly, averting his eyes from All Might's successor as quickly as he could and refocusing his attention on anything else. Namely Nejire, because she was still holding him like a stuffed animal (not that he minded in the slightest). He hadn't been able to so much as look in Togata's direction without becoming immensely uncomfortable, which was unfair to the guy since he hadn't done anything and had been nothing but nice to Izuku, but he couldn't help but be reminded of each and every one of his inadequacies everytime his eyes landed on the blonde.

Lucky for Izuku, that wasn't exactly a far cry from his normal behavior. He could pass it off as normal, at least for a little while, and then he would just get over it, right?

"The real miracle is all of us getting today to be off campus," Haya added, "I mean, I know that third-years get a lot more leniency with this stuff than the freshman, but still - it's like our days off are shared on purpose or something."

Tamaki sighed. "Snipe-sensei told us in homeroom on Monday that that was exactly what they did. Were you not paying attention?"

"In case you forgot," she pointed out, "I'm in 3-B. And also I wasn't because Nejire had just told me that she and Izuku were together, so I was a little more focused on being happy for my friend."

Togata tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Why did Nejire tell you right away when we're only finding out about this now?"

"Because I have been helping her with this for the past month!"

"Yeah!" Nejire finally pulled away from the red-faced (and secretly giddy) Izuku to playfully glare at Togata. "You wouldn't know love if it hit you in the face, Mirio! And Tamaki's too shy for what I was planning!"

Tamaki sighed. "It's true, I would have suggested waiting for Izuku to make the first move."

"Yeah." Haya rolled her eyes. "That would have worked great."

Izuku shrank in his seat. "P-P-Probably not," he mumbled.

"That's okay," Nejire hummed, "I'm more than happy with how things turned out."

He nodded in agreement, sighing softly. "Definitely."

All that tension that had been seeping out of his body at her words came back to hit him like a freight train as Izuku's girlfriend placed a kiss on his cheek - making Togata laugh at the face he made, Tamaki gasp and whisper something about how scandalous Nejire was being, and Yuyu roll her eyes (but the tiniest little smile on her face was unmistakable).

Yeah, okay. It didn't matter that Nejire was his girlfriend now.

She was still going to kill him.

(Not that Izuku cared. He loved each and every moment with her.)

–

"Well," Tamaki sighed, "I guess it's time for us to go back. We only get a few hours, and me and Mirio already burned most of that hanging out with our families."

Togata rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Time flies when you're having fun, y'know?"

"Okay!" Nejire nodded quickly, "Nedzu said I can have all the time I need, so I'm going to stay out and explore!"

"Which is just code for 'I'm going to spend every moment I can with Izuku," Haya translated.

She didn't bother disproving the pink-haired girl. "You can come if you want, Yuyu!"

Haya declined the invitation with a shake of her head. "As fun as I'm sure it would be," she said coolly, "I know you've been waiting for this for months. Have fun, you two."

"Bye guys!" Togata waved happily, "See you back at U.A., Nejire!"

"See ya!"

Izuku waved back hesitantly, though his eyes were anywhere but on Togata, and his mind was stuck on Haya's words from a moment ago. "M-Months?"

Nejire blushed softly. "Yeah," she mumbled, "Months. Um, I don't know about you, but I kind of started realizing how much I was attracted to you after that day we slept together at your house."

His face became beet red almost immediately - even if Izuku knew what she was talking about, why did she have to word it like that?! "O-Oh. W-Well, uh, I d-definitely had a crush on you for a w-while, too…"

There was no world where he could say that with a straight face, including this one, but the fact that they were finally together gave him enough courage to spit it out.

Nejire's giggles made it all worth it. "I'm really happy you did."

She punctuated her statement with another kiss on Izuku's cheek that gave him butterflies all over. "I s-still do," he admitted bashfully, still red as a stoplight, "B-But, um…"

His hesitance caught her attention easily. "Is something wrong?"

"N-No!" Izuku said quickly - too quickly, "I-It's just, um… Maybe we should be less, uh, a-affectionate in p-p-public? T-That doesn't mean I don't like it! I really do! B-but, um, everyone seemed at least a little off-put. M-Maybe it would be better to save that s-stuff for d-d-dates?"

Nejire stared at him like he'd grown a second head, at least until she finally figured out what he was stammering about. "I don't care what a bunch of strangers think," she decided, "I like being cute with you."

He blanched. "I w-was talking about, um, T-Togata, Tamaki, and H-Haya. I t-think they felt a little… awkward, w-watching us."

Her eyes widened in understanding. "Ohh," she breathed out, "Really?"

Izuku nodded slowly. "I-I'm sure t-that they're happy for y-you– er, u-us," he stuttered, "But I d-don't think they really care for w-w-watching that."

Nejire hummed. "Alright, I guess that makes sense," she agreed, "But if it's just us I still want to be able to hug you."

"L-Like I said, I d-d-do, too. It's really n-nice," he mumbled, "But it'll feel better if we're alone. L-Like, on d-dates and stuff."

The girl's grin turned dangerous. "Izu," she crooned teasingly, "Is this your way of asking me out today?"

His face fell slightly. "W-Was it as bad as it sounded?"

Nejire's giggles were music to his ears. "It was very sweet," she decided, pulling him in for a hug, "Very you. I'd love to; did you have somewhere specific in mind?"

Izuku blushed as he returned the hug, resting his head against her shoulder. "I-I've been looking up d-date ideas…" He really liked the way Nejire lit up at his words. "Um, do you like roller skating?"

"I do!" Nejire said excitedly, "When I was younger, I would use Wave Motion to push me forward really fast on my skates! I crashed a few times, but it was worth it! Have you ever been roller skating before?"

He shrugged, internally thrilled that his idea had landed. "A few times," he said, "I was… o-okay."

By okay, Izuku meant that he fell on his face more times than he could count. But he could deal with possibly humiliating himself if it meant Nejire had a good time.

That was still okay for him, though, since he sucked at just about everything, but that was neither here nor there.

"That's fine," Nejire hummed, "I can teach you! Do you want to go now?"

Izuku offered the most amazing girl he had ever met a shy smile that made her heart soar. "I-If you'd l-like to…"

"I would."

His smile became that much bigger. "G-Great."

–

Izuku slipped his shoes off quickly, moving to strap his rental skates on as quickly as possible.

Nejire had finished five minutes ago.

She gave him an amused look. "Need help with that?"

"I'm g-good," he muttered, fiddling with the straps on the skates. "T-Thanks, though."

He hesitated. "Um, how much time do you have?" Izuku asked, "I d-don't want to make you l-late or anything, and I really don't want you to get in any t-trouble…"

His girlfriend waved off his concerns. "Didn't we talk earlier about how Principal Nedzu basically said I could do what I want?" She asked.

"Well y-yeah, but I t-thought you were exaggerating…"

Nejire shook her head. "Nope!" She said, popping the 'p', "I'm as free as a bird! As long as I'm back at U.A. before my curfew, which is an hour later than everyone else's, I'm good!"

She smiled as she thought back to the conversation she had had with her principal.

–

The door opened as soon as Nejire approached - not that that surprised her anymore.

"Come in, Hadou-san!" A cheery voice called from inside.

She walked in calmly and confidently - she had to do this. For herself, and, more importantly…

For Izuku.

"Hello, sir," Nejire said, trying to keep an air of professionalism around her, "Thank you for agreeing to speak with me."

Nedzu waved her platitudes off. "Think nothing of it!" He said cheerfully, "I'm always happy to speak with my students, especially one as exemplary as yourself."

She smiled. Maybe she had earned enough goodwill to get an exception after all!

"Now." Nedzu clapped his paws together. "What is on your mind, Hadou-san?"

Hope bloomed in Nejire's chest at the easy smile on her principal's face. "I'd like to see if I could get some kind of exception to the new rules regarding our required presence on campus."

"Denied." Nedzu's smile didn't even twitch.

Nejire deflated immediately. "What?!" She cried, "But I haven't even–"

"These rules were implemented for a reason, Hadou-san," the chimera said coolly, "And as a third-year, you are already granted far more freedom than even most teachers. That should be more than enough time for any possible off-campus needs."

Damn. She didn't stand a chance, did she? Nejire was half-ready to throw in the towel already.

But then Izuku's happy smile came to the forefront of her mind - as well as his bloody and bruised face after she had first visited his school, and his remorseful admission of how all his classmates hated him.

They would go after him again, wouldn't they?

Her eyes narrowed. "With all due respect, sir," she began, tone guarded, "You haven't even heard my reason yet."

The edges of Nedzu's lips quirked up. "Very well," he agreed, "Please, enlighten me."

Determination bloomed in her chest. It wasn't over yet!

"I need the time off to spend with my friend, Midoriya Izuku–"

"Granted."

Nejire blinked. "Wuh?"

If Nedzu's smile was calm and practiced earlier, now it looked wild and giddy. "Permission granted, Hadou-san." He seemed to relish in the confusion on her face, quickly typing into his computer. "So long as you are back on campus by curfew, which will be extended to an extra hour to account for traffic and other unforeseen circumstances, you have full permission to leave campus once per day for as long as you wish. This privilege can and will be revoked if you abuse it, or if your academic performance slips as a result of this privilege, but otherwise you have my full support."

The confusion that marred her eyes was wiped away by happiness almost immediately after - though she was still more than a little confused. "Thanks, Principal Nedzu!" She said gratefully, "If there's anything you ever need me for, don't hesitate to ask!"

She stood to leave as the door opened behind her, but waited for the verbal dismissal. "Think nothing of it," he hummed, before putting a paw up to stop her exit, "But if you got the chance, would you ask Midoriya his thoughts about U.A.? Perhaps see if he has an interest in pursuing a greater education than he could ever hope to achieve at, what was it? Musutafu General Education?"

It took Nejire a moment to figure out what he was implying, but when she did her smile threatened to split her face in two. "Yes sir!"

She saluted the principal, and was quick to make herself scarce incase Nedzu changed his mind - her pace only increased as she heard him start to laugh, which was really scary.

Nedzu hummed quietly as his chuckles died down. Based on how eager Hadou had looked, it seemed like he'd finally get his chance to invest some more time into his next big project.

How fortuitous.

–

It was weird, but Nejire wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Izuku smiled, completely unaware of the fact that Nejire was currently lost in thought. "That's good," he said, rising to his feet slowly, "Um, if you're r-ready, I think I'm– woah!"

As soon as he tried to take a step Izuku stumbled backwards, not used to the feel of walking (or sliding) around with wheels on his shoes. He landed squarely on the bench he had been sitting on to attach his shoes in the first place, grunting as the wind was briefly knocked out of him.

Nejire was dragged back to reality almost immediately, her eyes landing on him in an instant. "Are you okay?" She asked quickly, moving over to his side with no trouble at all.

"Y-Yeah." Izuku nodded slowly, wincing at the thought of immediately falling on his face in front of Nejire. "I g-guess I'm not as good at this as I t-thought I would be, hah…"

He sighed. Was there anything Izuku was good at?

Drawing Nejire didn't count. Was that still weird, or was it okay now since she was his girlfriend?

His hobbies were so lame.

Nejire reached her hand out to him. "C'mon!" She smiled at the confused look on his face. "Let's go! It's okay if you stumble a bit, I've got you!"

He blushed as he accepted her help (and at the ease at which she was able to pull Izuku onto his feet), only to stumble yet again as he tried to maintain his balance.

But like she said, Nejire got him. She giggled as he crashed into her torso, being nudged backwards slightly by his weight, but was able to keep her footing with no problem whatsoever. "See?" She asked, "I got you!"

The warmth in his cheeks was like the gentle glow of a setting sun. It was like she was trying to make him fall in love with her for a second time. "T-Thanks, Nejire."

He gave her a brief, tight hug for a moment, before quickly separating - though he held onto her hands to make sure he didn't fall again.

Nejire cooed at him. "You're so sweet, Izu," she teased, running her fingers through his own, "You ready?"

Izuku offered his amazing, awesome, perfect girlfriend a shaky smile. "As ready as I'll ever b-be."

–

Izuku lied.

He was not ready.

Not at all.

"See?!" Nejire shouted over to him, "This is awesome!"

Nejire was, to put it mildly, really good at roller skating. She had even chosen to use inline skates for their date, and was putting them to good use. She weaved through imaginary obstacles in her path on the rink, expertly weaving and bobbing around without a care in the world.

And that was before she added Wave Motion to the mix.

She mostly used it as a means of propulsion, shooting tiny, harmless little spirals out of her hands that gave her a little extra 'oomph' and meant she didn't have to raise her legs to speed up. They also doubled as stabilizers, since Izuku knew there was no way she should have been able to stay on her feet with some of the moves his girlfriend was pulling off.

All in all, it was quite the spectacle.

It was also very good at stoking Izuku's feelings of inadequacy. How was he supposed to keep up with that? Izuku could barely stand on his own two feet right now, and Nejire may as well have been flying around the rink. Was he just going to be holding her back? Would she rather spend their time alone, having more fun than she ever would have with him? What if this was just the beginning of the end, and Nejire realized that she'd be so much better off without him? She could have any guy in the world, after all, maybe she'd realize how big of a mistake it was that she had somehow managed to fall for him.

And then Nejire shot him the most beautiful smile in the world, and all his worries melted away. How was she so good at that?

She came to a stop right in front of him, pretty periwinkle hair flowing gracefully behind her. "Your turn!"

Izuku paled. "I d-don't think I c-can really do, um, t-that…" He gulped. "Y-You're amazing."

Nejire blushed - it felt really good to be able to make her do that, by the way - and shook her head. "I didn't mean exactly that," she giggled, "Just go around the rink once or twice and see what it's like!"

"O-Oh." He nodded at her words, pushing off the small orange wall that ran around the rink to protect people from stray skaters and making his way to the floor itself.

She stopped him before he could.

"For good luck," Nejire whispered as she grabbed his hand, holding him in place for an instant. Before Izuku could ask what she meant, she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss that left him weak in the knees and with his stomach doing somersaults.

Her blue eyes sparkled at the stupefied expression on his face. "Sorry," she chuckled, though she didn't seem very apologetic, "But I couldn't resist. You can't just say those things to me and not expect a kiss anymore, okay?"

He nodded dumbly - Izuku's brainpower was basically reduced to that of a Neanderthal. "Okay."

But even with Neanderthal-level intelligence, Izuku could still make the connection that compliments equaled kisses.

He'd have to give Nejire more compliments.

Because Izuku really liked her kisses.

He stumbled his way onto the smooth, slightly curved floor of the roller-rink, off of the dark shag carpeting that covered the majority of the building. He was ready to do his best to impress the beautiful girl, who he knew was watching his every move with undivided attention–

Izuku slipped and fell on his ass the moment he tried to move.

Because of course he did.

He scrambled to his feet as quick as he could, cheeks burning as he tried to ignore Nejire's gasp from behind him. "I-I'm okay!" He practically shouted, with the other skaters doing their best to avoid his downed form.

In Izuku's haste to escape from his embarrassing fall, he moved too fast - and fell again.

Please kill him.

He got up slower this time, both as a result of being humiliated and the knowledge that he could fall again at any time. His legs were shaky, but he was able to slowly roll around the length of the circuit back to Nejire - even if he wasn't able to do anything close to what she could on her wheels.

He also fell a third time, because why not. He was pretty sure the other skaters around him were starting to laugh.

"You definitely got better as you went around," Nejire noted, "That wasn't bad!"

Izuku sighed. "You don't have to s-sugarcoat it…"

She shook her head quickly. "I wouldn't do that," Nejire insisted, "I mean it! You looked like you were really getting the hang of it by the end!"

"I'm still nowhere near as g-good as you…"

Her eyes briefly darted around the building, looking towards all the other patrons. "Do you think any of the people here are as good as me at roller skating?"

He shrugged. Most of them didn't exactly scream athletic to Izuku. "P-Probably not."

"Exactly!" Nejire clapped her hands together. "Just because I've been doing this forever doesn't mean you can't be doing good yourself, Izu."

"I-I know, but–"

She tapped his nose with her index finger. "No buts! You were improving, and that's all that matters. Now let's go!"

Nejire stepped out onto the floor with him, snagging his hand in her own as she started to skate. Izuku didn't really have much of a heads up, and so soon enough his girlfriend was pulling him along as she moved with the elegance of a swan.

"W-Wait!" Izuku interrupted, doing his best to match her movements - even if she wasn't doing anything fancy, it was still tough to keep pace with Nejire. "W-We're skating together?"

"Mhm!" Nejire said happily. "I told you I was going to teach you, didn't I?"

She squeezed his hand gently. "Besides," she hummed, "I like holding your hand way more than spinning around in circles. It's not even close."

The words came tumbling out of his mouth before he could even think about it. "I love you," Izuku blurted out.

His face immediately turned deep red, but as much as he would have liked to walk back the embarrassing statement it was true - and he wasn't about to look Nejire in the eyes and say he didn't mean to say it.

Nejire giggled. "I love you too, Izu," she whispered, "Lots. Don't you forget it."

"I w-won't." He couldn't fight the smile that slowly grew across his face. "Um, I w-wanted to ask, though, H-Haya said that she, uh, was helping you? With, um, 'us'?"

The taller girl nodded. "Yep," Nejire confirmed, "I've never had a boyfriend before, or even, you know, felt like anyone the way I do about you, and Yuyu's had a bunch of boyfriends, so I figured that if anyone knew romance it was her! She was super helpful with trying to get us some alone time over and over, and also was the one who suggested that I model bikinis for you to show you that I liked you! Did that help?"

Izuku sent a silent prayer thanking Haya. He had never been more grateful for the pink-haired girl than in that moment.

"I d-didn't realize that was what you w-were trying to do…" he mumbled sheepishly, "B-But, um, I liked it."

That last part was muttered as quietly as possible, partly thanks to his own embarrassment and partly due to the fear that she'd call him a pervert for saying it, but Nejire seemed more pleased than anything.

"I can live with that," she decided, "It probably wouldn't have been very romantic for you to confess in the middle of the store! And I don't mind hearing you say that, Izu, it just means you think I'm pretty!"

"You're so b-beautiful it makes my head spin," he admitted, "I mean, n-no one even comes close to you, Nejire."

She smiled, squeezing his hand a little tighter. "And I guess that means I look even better in a bathing suit?"

"Y-You look g-great in e-everything…" Izuku whispered, well aware that this conversation was toeing the line of something indecent for a public space, "B-But yeah."

Nejire slowed them down to a pace barely above walking speed so that she could lean into his ear. "I guess that means we're just going to have to go back to that store soon so you can get me a few more bikinis then, hmm?"

Izuku fell on his face. He fully blamed Nejire, this time.

–

It seemed like they were roller skating for hours.

Maybe that time frame was accurate, maybe it wasn't.

But every moment that he spent with Nejire felt like it stretched on forever, and he relished in every moment of it.

So whether it was minutes or hours, it ended far too soon either way.

But that wasn't the end of their date. Not by a longshot - especially since it seemed like neither of them could get tired of each other. When Izuku offered to make Nejire dinner, the offer was accepted without a second of consideration (she did request omurice again though, but Izuku was more than happy to spoil her in any way he could).

It was unfortunate that she fell asleep on the train ride, though.

His face blazed crimson as Nejire napped, head resting gently on his shoulder while her arms were lazily attached to his midsection. She was as cute as ever, but it was a little embarrassing when there were plenty of other passengers around them.

Especially because they were getting looks. Nejire was a celebrity, after all - her popularity was only slightly diminished from the time since her win in the Sports Festival, and even at the roller rink there were children lining up for her autograph whenever they took a break.

And it was only made worse by the fact that people were taking pictures. It left Izuku trapped in a really awkward situation where he either woke Nejire up, thereby interrupting her nap (and he had no clue if she needed the sleep or not), or he said nothing and let people photograph them when she might not want to be.

As much as he liked the feeling of Nejire resting against him, his gentlemanly side (or whatever he had that constituted such a thing) won over. He nudged Nejire once, twice, and then a third time - and she finally stirred.

"Y-You m-might want t-to wake up," Izuku whispered, doing his best to appear discreet.

Nejire blinked wearily. "Huh?" She mumbled, "Are we at our stop?"

He shook his head slowly - even though she was awake now, she hadn't lifted her head from its spot in the crook of his neck. "N-No, but people are t-taking pictures of us."

She hummed non-committedly. "Does that bother you?"

"N-No, but–"

"Then they can take pictures, I don't care." She punctuated her statement with a brief kiss on his cheek that really got people's attention before closing her eyes again and going back to dreamland.

Oh man. If looks could kill, some of the guys on the train would have to have been charged with murder with the way they were looking at Izuku. He had never seen anyone so jealous, much less jealous of him - but to be honest, he couldn't blame them.

He did have the most amazing girl in the world hanging off his arm, after all. Izuku was completely undeserving of Nejire's affection, and it seemed like anyone with eyes (that wasn't one of their friends, that was) could tell.

But he didn't care. As long as Nejire loved him, for whatever reason that may be, he was going to embrace it.

His arm crept around her side, pulling her slightly closer to him. Even though she was asleep, Nejire leaned into the touch. She exhaled softly, her breath tickling his neck and sending goosebumps down his skin.

Izuku tried his best to meet every stare (and every lecherous leer sent Nejire's way, for that matter) evenly. It was terrifying, and he'd much rather have curled up in a ball and let them send their dirty looks, but something about Nejire's comforting presence gave him the courage he needed to stand up for himself.

The fact that he really didn't like the looks some people were sending Nejire helped, too. Otherworldly beauty only deserved so much attention…

…Even if Izuku knew he was probably the worst offender in regards to staring at Nejire. But he had a right to (even if he tried not to, something told him that Nejire would be more than happy with Izuku staring at her with nothing but awe in his eyes).

It wouldn't be the first time, after all.

–

"I still can't believe how good you are at cooking," Nejire complained, goodnaturedly "Like, I've tried making omurice before, and this isn't even close! How long did you have to practice to get this amazing? Have you ever thought about a career in cooking? I bet I could get you a job working for Ryuko as a chef, and we could see each other at work too, even if you were only there on the weekends! Oh, wait, you could also be an artist! Which career sounds better?"

Izuku smiled shyly at the way she raved about his food. It was even better than when his mom praised his efforts. "I'm really h-happy you like it," he said, eyes crinkling slightly at the way Nejire beamed at him, "I just sort of started one day a few years ago and kept cooking ever since. I don't know when I got, uh, 'good' at it, but my mom has never said anything I've made is bad… not that I think she would. Being a cook or a chef would be a p-possibility I g-guess, but I've sort of looked around at that before, and m-most restaurants prefer people with Quirks that help them cook. And they check. B-But, ah, y-you don't have to get me a job working f-for Ryukyu! I-I've never thought about being a full-time a-artist either - I've n-never really c-considered that I could do that…"

Nejire hummed, pondering his mutterings as she placed her now-empty plate on the table in front of them. They were sitting together on the loveseat as some old Pre-Quirk television show played in the background (Nejire seemed happy to trust his judgement with whatever he wanted to put on television, saying that she never could sit still to watch a thirty-minute show), so he put one of the tamer episodes of Kitchen Nightmares on.

What could Izuku say? He liked Gordon Ramsay (it had something to do with the way he yelled at other people as much as other people yelled at Izuku). And it wasn't like they were paying attention to the television in the first place. Nejire and Izuku only had eyes for each other.

"Well I guess you're just a natural, Izu!" Nejire ruffled his hair playfully. "Just like with mini golf! I used that game you gave me, by the way, and it was fun! I couldn't beat Yuyu or Mirio or Tamaki, but we all had a good time! But I was serious about that job offer for Ryuko - she would never discriminate against someone because of their Quirk, or lack thereof. You have my word. If you ever need a job, I'm sure she'd hire you in an instant. Ryuko really likes you too, y'know? I've told her a lot of stories about you, obviously, especially since you're my boyfriend and she wanted to know all the details of that, but you left a really good impression on her!"

Izuku's heart ached. Nejire was so amazing. "T-Thanks," he muttered, touched beyond belief at just how… everything she was. How helpful, thoughtful, encouraging, he could go on for days. "I-I'll, uh, I'll k-keep t-that in m-mind. E-Excuse me."

He stood up suddenly, grabbing both his and Nejire's dirty plates and bringing them to the sink to wash for later. It was a convenient excuse to give him some breathing room from his girlfriend for a moment, because damn if his heart hadn't already exploded from how amazing she was it was getting really close to.

Is this really what being loved felt like? It was the most wonderful thing in the world - he would never get tired of it.

As he mused about how perfect Nejire was in just about every way imaginable, his girlfriend took the time to turn the volume up on the TV - and the sound of English swearing was quick to drag him back to the present.

"Wow, Izu!" She laughed, "This show is crazy! And kind of gross - why'd you put it on for us while we were eating? And who is that angry old guy?"

He hurried back to the couch to see Nejire's eyes locked onto the TV - and now that the food was out of the way, her legs sprawled along the length of the couch, covering most of the cushions. "Woah! They really served that stuff to people?!"

Izuku chuckled weakly. "Y-Yeah, um, s-sorry…" He began awkwardly, "I-It's just a show t-that I like from way back when. I-I figured if I put it on as b-background noise it w-would be fine, s-since we were talking to each other…"

She nodded. "Yeah, you're right! But who's the old guy? And why can't I stop watching?"

"T-That's Gordon Ramsay," he explained, still standing up, "Um, h-he was a famous pre-Quirk chef, m-mostly for the screaming he does on his shows. I g-guess it can be kind of addicting… t-there's a lot of times where I lose track of time watching it."

"I…" Nejire nodded slowly, eyes still transfixed on the screen. "I understand completely."

He looked down at the couch again. There was still a little room on the far end for him to sit and not disturb her, but…

"N-Nejire?" He asked quietly.

Her eyes flickered back to him. "Yeah?"

Izuku swallowed hard. "I-Is it okay if I, uh…" His eyes darted between her face and her legs, and she froze as she realized what he was asking.

"Oh, sure!" Nejire said quickly, swinging her legs off the couch and patting the spot beside her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to kick you off!"

"T-Thanks," he mumbled, "B-But, um, t-that isn't what I m-m-meant."

She blinked in confusion. "Then what did you–"

"Doyouwanttocuddle?" He blurted out, before immediately slamming his hand over his mouth in embarrassment. "N-Nevermind–"

Nejire's giggles were still music to his ears. "So bold, Izu~!" She teased, returning to her original position on the couch and patting her legs, "That was my intent with sitting like this, by the way - you don't have to ask!"

He nodded slowly, unsure of whether to be thankful or upset that she was wearing long pants. It was probably for the best that she was, because he definitely wouldn't have been able to take his eyes off of her legs otherwise, but he kind of wanted to do it anyway.

Izuku's face was hot enough to melt steel beams as he gingerly laid on top of Nejire, his head resting right above her chest. "I-Is this okay?" He asked shyly, causing her to lovingly run her hands through his hair.

"It's wonderful," she cooed, "You're nice and warm. But don't get comfortable yet~."

"Huh–"

Nejire moved one of her hands down to his cheek, lifting his head up slightly as she kissed him. Unlike their kiss at the roller skating place, this one was long and slow, almost like their kisses in the park. By the time they separated, the redness on Izuku's face was no longer from embarrassment - rather, a lack of oxygen.

"That was for taking me out on a very nice date," she whispered (slightly red in the fact herself), only to lean in and kiss him again after a moment. "And that one was for cooking us a really nice dinner."

And then she kissed Izuku a third time. He was literally gasping for breath by the time they stopped, but he couldn't be happier. "W-What was t-t-that one for?"

Nejire beamed at him, her smile bright enough to blind. "That one was because I love you, and you make me feel like the happiest, most important, and most special girl in the world when I'm with you…" She moved her lips towards his ear. "And you can have as many of those kisses as you want~."

Okay. Now his face was red because of the massive blush on it again. It was like Nejire knew exactly what to say to make him blush like an idiot. "I l-love you too."

Both of them leaned in again, lips already only centimeters away from each other–

"YOU FUCKING IDIOT!"

Nejire and Izuku yelped as one as they shot backwards at the sound of shouting, only to freeze as their eyes landed on the television where the TV chef was berating the foolish owner of a restaurant lost to time.

She started to laugh, and it wasn't long until Izuku joined her, resting his head against her shoulder.

"This is a good show," Nejire decided, placing one hand on his back and another in his hair "I like it."

Izuku wrapped his arms around her in turn, nuzzling her neck slightly as he inched even closer to her. "I'm g-glad I can share things I l-like with you."

Nejire hummed softly, and he became acutely aware of the fact that he could feel her heartbeat. "Don't you remember, silly?" She asked, gently playing with his hair, "I'll like anything so long as I'm enjoying it with you."

Izuku loved her so much. That thought was one of only two things he could think about as they laid together and watched several hours of mediocre television together.

The other?

How in the world did he get so lucky?

–

A/N: Finally, some good fucking fluff (Another Gordon Ramsay reference for the uninitiated). It's nice getting to finally write out Izuku being happy and loved, even if it's a bit difficult to strike the balance between fluff and horny. Hope I'm not butchering it lol.

But with this chapter, Arc 3 has begun! For reference, Arc 1 was Chapter 1-8 and Arc 2 was Chapter 9-16. We'll see how long this one is. Should be fun!

As always, a big thanks to my betas, Lugia and Helia, who instead of doing other things take time out of their day to read my story and help me make it better. Much appreciated!

Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you thought! See you next time!