A/N: For all my US friends that are having a hard time right now, I feel you, I see you, and I'm right there with you. I can't offer too much other than my writing at the moment, so I hope this chapter brings you some sort of joy. I definitely had a lot of fun writing it, and I think we all need a good distraction right about now. So eat a bunch of chocolate, take a hot bath, chop off all your hair, whatever you need to do to get through this. And indulge in Fandom stuff. It's been an amazing serotonin booster for me. I love you all, and I'm here for you all. Now let's read some nonsense together~
Five whole days of house arrest.
Oh, not just any house arrest, though. Buddy house arrest. What does that mean? Well, simply put, Shinso is required to wake up early, trek to the B dorms, and assist Monoma with any and all cleaning tasks for the day. Then, they have to walk together to the A dorms, rinse and repeat. Five days of spending essentially every school hour unseparated, assisting one another, tackling their tasks as a team.
Just kill him now.
Well, it wasn't the worst, at least. So far, so…mediocre. No great strides made by way of bonding. Absolutely not one word of conversation, either, which Shinso didn't mind. In fact, he preferred cleaning in pure silence over chatting. Music in the background would be ideal, but any attempt at playing something had the potential to start a massive argument that Shinso didn't feel like having. He and Monoma fought enough.
"So, I hear our beloved Tokage's lowered her standards to be seen hanging around Sero these days." Monoma kept his back to Shinso, focused on polishing the B dorm window. "Remarkable young lady, throwing him a bone like that. I wonder how she'll try to lose him once someone better comes along."
Apparently, Monoma thought they didn't fight enough.
Don't engage. He knew Monoma's tactic at this point; poke, prod, play victim. Talk up your opponent until they can't help but throw the first punch. Juvenile stuff, really. Anyone can talk shit; he's nothing special in that respect.
"What? You don't think that lanky tape dispenser is actually good enough for her, do you?" Still poking, Monoma turned his head to look over his shoulder at Shinso, who stayed focused on mopping.
"Sero's a good guy." Shinso mumbled, trying not to raise his voice. "Their relationship isn't any of our business."
"Isn't it, though?" Monoma dramatically flopped against the wall, striking a pose with his hand behind his head. "I mean, I know you're a stoic loner brooding in the corner, but aren't you burning just the slightest bit with curiosity about what's going on between them?"
Shinso gripped the mop a little tighter. The last thing he wanted was for Monoma to be right about anything, ever.
That being said…he wasn't entirely wrong.
Sero protected his phone a lot these days. Missing hangouts to supposedly hole up in the library and "study." Never, ever walked to gala practice without Tokage by his side, claiming she'd unofficially named him co-captain so they had to discuss things constantly. So many excuses for something everyone found painfully obvious, but still, no confirmation.
"...Maybe a bit." Shinso admitted after a moment.
"Wait, really?" Monoma popped off of the wall. "So you ponder how they possibly connected as much as I do?"
A little. Tokage just seemed so…proper. More dignified than the likes of shenanigan pulling, gossiping, mildly pervy Sero. If they did turn out to be in some sort of relationship, Shinso didn't think either one of them made a bad choice; just odd ones considering their personalities. But he was not about to disclose or discuss that with Monoma, of all people.
"It doesn't matter." Shinso shut him down quickly. "Like I said, their lives aren't any of our business. If they like each other and want to date or go to the gala together or whatever, then that's for them to know. And Sero is absolutely good enough for Tokage. You'd know that if you spent any time talking to him."
"Oh?" Monoma cocked an eyebrow. "Of course, once again, the impenetrable defense of class A strikes me down. Can you people really do absolutely no wrong, ever?"
"I'm on house arrest." Shinso pointed out. "Same as you."
"For a fight that everyone agrees I started." Huffing, Monoma tossed a washcloth over his shoulder.
Shinso rolled his eyes. "You did start it."
"Did I? Because I don't remember hitting anybody."
Yeah, that one punch he'd managed to land never qualified as a hit. He should one hundred percent stick to verbally assaulting people if he wanted to preserve his minimal dignity.
In spite of himself, Shinso snorted, unable to control the laughter at his own internal joke. Monoma whirled on him, eyes narrowed.
"And just what's so funny over there, emo boy?" Suspicion radiated from his clipped tone.
Shit. Shinso held his breath in an attempt to contain his laughter. This only made him snort harder; his hand flew to his mouth to try and muffle the sound, but that didn't accomplish anything in a room with no other noise to cover him. Goddammit, it wasn't even that funny!
"I'm waiting!" Monoma snapped.
"Sorry." Shinso gasped, his laughter subsiding, leaving only a humorous grin on his face. "I'm laughing…at myself."
"Oh, really?" Monoma didn't sound convinced. Yeah, that figures.
"Honest." Shinso returned his hand to the mop. "I mean, your right hook is disappointing enough to be laughable, but that's besides the point."
The sound of a spray bottle clattering to the floor jerked Shinso's head towards the window. Monoma stared daggers at him, fully turned towards him with his fists balled and chest puffing out.
"You want to have a round two about it, Grimace?!"
"The fuck?" Shinso pulled a strand of his hair to his line of vision, questioning if it was purple enough to warrant such an insult. "Why would you even–"
"I don't fucking know, do you wanna fight?!"
That crazy eye twitch put him off so badly. Whatever Monoma was on today, Shinso wanted none of it. Shaking his head, he returned his hand to his mop and continued slowly running it back and forth on the floor. Just focus on the tasks; no need for any of this bullshit.
"Hey!" Monoma, who couldn't stand not being the center of attention even if there was only one other person in the room, launched a Windex-soaked washcloth across the room. "I'm talking to you, mindsweeper!"
That actually wouldn't be a bad hero name. Ugh, Jesus, now's not the time.
The washcloth landed at Shinso's feet, prompting him to nearly slip on it. Quickly, he kicked it out of the way, shooting Monoma a glare. Monoma stared back at him, eyebrow raised, an irritatingly smug smirk on his face. His mildly punchable face.
"No." Shinso stated flatly. "I'm not gonna fight you again. Stop asking and get back to work."
With that, he returned to mopping, adamant in his word to ignore Monoma at all costs.
Monoma faced the window again, agitated. Poking Shinso came so naturally to him for some reason; with that as his only option for social interaction, he now felt forced to endure painstaking, ringing silence in the background of cleaning. Something he already hated doing. This day just kept getting worse, he realized tiredly.
'This is HELL.' He screamed internally.
Haha, Hell. As in "Hell Is Forever."
….
Hell is forever…
"Whether you like it or not." He murmured to himself, nodding along to the rhythm of the 'Hazbin Hotel' song that started to play in his head. "Had their chance to behave better, now they boil in the pot…"
Well, no one told him he wasn't allowed to sing.
"Cuz the rules are black and white." His volume increased slightly, not enough to disturb Shinso, just so he could enunciate a little better. "There's no use in trying to fight it…"
"They're burnin' for their lives until we kill 'em again."
Monoma froze. That last part didn't come from him. Rather a deeper, octave lower voice had joined his karaoke, if only slightly. He'd barely sung the actual words, and kept his volume way down, but his participation was undeniable.
Shinso just sang along with him.
"Did you just…?" Monoma whipped his gaze to him.
"What?" Shinso replied too quickly, his eyes widening. "What are you…what do you want?"
A cheshire cat grin lit up Monoma's face.
"You were singing." Monoma confirmed. "Singing 'Hazbin Hotel,' no less."
Shinso's face felt suddenly aflame. Crap, he'd never meant to actually sing anything out loud. This isn't nearly as embarrassing as Monoma made Shinso feel, right? He didn't necessarily need to hide his interests. Especially from Monoma, of all people. Who cares what he thinks?
"M-maybe?" Shinso stammered after a moment. "I've…watched it, heard the songs, and–why are you looking at me like that?!"
Clearing his throat, Monoma picked his jaw up from the floor. He hadn't meant to make his shock so obvious, but for some reason, the idea of the two of them having something in common sent his head spinning. Not to mention…something so musical.
"It's just, that doesn't seem like your vibe, is all." He replied after a moment.
Shinso shrugged. "I don't know, I like it okay. It's got its edginess and whatnot, I guess."
"Edgy? It's the most theater kid bullshit that's hit mainstream in the past few years!" Monoma argued, a laugh in his voice.
"Maybe." Shinso turned back to his mop. He really didn't want to have this conversation. "I don't know, I like the characters. They're cool. And the songs are…catchy, I guess."
Catchy? Oh, that's the word someone uses when they don't want to admit how obsessed they are with a certain song or genre. Shinso may be brushing off his enjoyment of the show, but Monoma instantly saw right through him.
"They are, aren't they?" Monoma leaned against the window, fully committed to prying into Shinso's brain. "Which one's your favorite? I personally couldn't ever decide, so I just play the soundtrack on loop half the time."
"Don't know." Shinso took a glance around the common area, deciding what needed to be done after he finished mopping. "Hey, do you guys have a duster somewhere?"
"Don't change the subject, you closet case!" Monoma wagged a finger at him. "Favorite song. Go! And you'd better not disappoint me!"
There had to be a supply closet around, right? Like, he didn't need Monoma to answer him, did he? Sighing, he propped the mop against the kitchen counter and wiped his hands on his PE pants.
"Can you finish those windows, please?" He asked as he looked around. "We don't actually have all day here, you know."
Monoma scoffed. "Please, we have all the time we need, and I'm just getting started! We still have to go over your favorite character, favorite episode, oh my, how deep into the lore are you? You know this thing stretches back several years, don't you?"
That caught Shinso's attention. "Several years? What are you talking about?"
"Uh, the comics?" A valley girl 'duh' echoed through Monoma's tone. "The pilot on YouTube? Come on, tell me you're up to speed on everything! You can't possibly call yourself a fan unless you–"
"I'm not calling myself a fan." Shinso rolled his eyes. "I didn't even finish the full show. Now, can you–"
"What?! How did you not finish it?!"
"We're done talking about this." Shinso snapped, finally tired of getting needled into. "Can we just clean? Please?"
It seemed Monoma finally got the hint, turning and spraying that stupid window he still hadn't fucking finished cleaning. A newfound vigor fueled his arms while he worked, some sort of smug, flouncy energy that immediately put Shinso on edge.
"Fine. But I'm going to be singing at the top of my lungs from here on out." He replied haughtily, loudly clearing his throat before continuing his little concert. "You've got it twisted, I'm not the one who needs a new attitude–"
Patience, Shinso. Another fight would cost a hell of a lot more than buddy house arrest, and that price he couldn't afford. Already, he'd lost way too much training time. But if Monoma didn't stop acting like such a pain, he might be forced to brainwash the guy into shutting the fuck up. Honestly, not a bad idea if it came down to the wire.
Monoma should count himself lucky that Shinso would never, ever abuse his powers that way.
XxXxXxX
Day one of presentations. At the front of the corral of students stood the principal, All Might, Present Mic, and of course, Vlad and Aizawa. The teachers opted to have one group perform per day this week, going in order of performance to give ample time for critiques, run throughs, and hopefully, generate massive improvements. First up: Stealth.
Jiro took a deep breath. Now's the time, she realized nervously. Her team worked immensely hard so far, and her pride in their perseverance outweighed the growing pit of dread in her stomach, though admittedly, not by much. Despite her confidence, getting up in front of people always left her anxious to some degree.
"Jiro?" Aizawa nodded to her, a softness underlying his authoritative stance. "Is your team ready?"
Exhaling deeply, Jiro nodded back. "Ready. Let's go, guys."
"And girls!" Hagakure looped her arm through Jiro's, the only indication of her presence anyone received.
Smirking, Jiro kept hold on her friend's arm, staying linked as their group made their way to the platform stage. Having some support reassured her, and right now, Jiro needed all the positive energy she could possibly obtain.
"Whoo! Alright, Jiro!" Kaminari clapped loudly, throwing in a few whistles and cheers of encouragement. "Let's go, Team Stealth!"
"Enough, Kaminari." Aizawa ordered lazily.
Squeezing her eyes shut, Jiro bit her lip in an attempt to hide the grin threatening to form on her lips. Sure, Kaminari's enthusiasm did embarrass her somewhat, but in a…charming way, she supposed. At least she knew someone in the audience rooted for her. Realistically, everyone watching them right now would be supportive and encouraging, but it felt validating actually hearing it.
"Okay, team, are we ready?" Jiro gathered everyone in a huddle off to the side of the concrete stage in the training gym. "Koda, you got the birds on standby?"
Koda pointed to the window, which had been pulled open in preparation for today's check in. A flock of pigeons flapped just outside, watching Koda intently. He turned back towards Jiro with a thumbs up.
"Nice! Hagakure, lights?" Jiro turned to her invisible friend.
She held up her wrists to show off the disco ball bracelets Yaoyorozu had been kind enough to create for them. "Ready to dazzle!"
"Awesome, and Team Shadows? Are you two ready?"
Tokoyami and Kuroiro both nodded dutifully, otherwise staying silent. Well, if they weren't prepared, they'd definitely speak up, so Jiro didn't worry. She didn't have the energy to, at this point.
"Then let's rock this out!" She pumped her fist in the air. Her team followed suit, letting out grunts and cries of agreement.
"Wow, Jiro seems pretty hyped for this." Sero commented.
"As she should be!" Kaminari watched as Jiro directed her team toward different positions on the platform. Man, she looked so cool taking charge.
"You seem excited too, Kaminari." Kirishima observed, grinning at Sero. "Any particular reason?"
"Hm?" Kaminari glanced over at his friends. "Oh, well, I'm just really happy for her, is all. And proud, I guess. After all, Jiro's worked her ass off for this, and I can't wait to see how she does!"
"Pfft." On the sidelines, Mineta slumped his face against his hand. "That implies she had an ass to begin with."
Kaminari froze, half in surprise, half in anger. Sure, Mineta could be gross, he knew that already. Something about what he'd just said crossed a line, though. Had he ever talked about any of the girls like that before? Sexualizing them, yes, but full on insulting one of them? That felt new.
"Mineta, shut the hell up!" Tsuyu whacked him over the head with her tongue. "If I have to listen to you talk about a girl's body one more time, I will drop kick you into the earth's core and then have Yaomomo build me a cannon that sends you flying into the sun!"
"Agh! Why are you girls so violent lately?!" Mineta ducked, covering his head. "Kaminari, Sero, little help?"
Sero didn't hear a word of this interaction, already having been sucked into a conversation with Tokage off to the side. Kaminari wanted to follow his lead and pretend he hadn't heard anything that just happened.
Too bad he couldn't.
"You don't need to talk about girls like that, bro." Kaminari spoke uncharacteristically seriously. "It's…it's not right."
…Really? That's all he had?! That didn't feel like nearly enough in this situation. But Kaminari floundered, unsure what more he could add. After all, it's not like Mineta really meant anything by his comment.
Did he?
"Oh, really? Stop acting like you're some kind of saint, man!" Mineta pointed his finger at Kaminari. "You have no right to judge me, you–"
WHACK
Kendo's enlarged fist appeared just above Mineta's head, smacking him towards the back of the room and into the wall.
"Heard your little comment there, shortstack." The redhead returned her fists to normal size and dusted off her hands. "And when I saw Asui putting you in your place, I couldn't help but join in."
Mineta, who now resembled a fly that lost a slam dunk battle with a flyswatter, merely grunted in response.
"Alright!" Uraraka gave Kendo an exuberant high-five. "God, can you be around, like, always? That was amazing!"
"Seems like you've already got a good handle on it." Kendo grinned. "Truthfully, I'm impressed you went that easy on him. I could never listen to his nonsense all day, everyday. Especially living in the dorms together. How do you stand it?"
"GIRL." Uraraka grabbed Kendo's wrist, eyes wide. "You have NO idea. You know we have to guard our laundry?"
Listening to her, Kaminari swallowed nervously. True, Mineta definitely presented as a menace, and he could see why the girls maybe weren't his biggest fans, but…he wasn't all bad. His sexuality seemed to take precedence over basically every other aspect of his personality, yes, he'd never deny that. Did the girls really distrust him this much, though?
"Hey, Kirishima." He switched his attention towards his other friend, whom he found nervously checking his phone. "How's Mina doing? Has she updated you?"
Biting his lip, Kirishima shook his head. "Nothing. Not a single text from her all day."
"Wait, what?!" Kaminari's eyes widened, alarmed. "She's literally sent me TikToks in her sleep before! How has she not texted you even once?"
He stopped, watching Kirishima's lip quiver. Anxiety rose up in his friend's face which Kaminari didn't blame him for.
"God, I know, right?" His voice trembled a bit. "Oh, man, maybe I should ditch right now and check in on her. Do you think that'd be bad? It's not like my group is up today, and I…"
Well, nothing about the situation struck Kaminari as particularly good. Class took precedence over most everything else; obviously, that's the point of school. But Mina's health mattered more in this instance, at least as far as he could tell. And truth be told, he'd adopted his own prick of concern hearing about Mina. She was one of his best friends, after all, and Kirishima checking on her also meant they'd get some sort of update on how she's feeling. Besides, it's not like missing one training session would ruin Kirishima's career.
"Honestly, I wouldn't have even showed up if I were in your shoes, man." Kaminari rubbed his neck. "Sick girlfriend not texting back sounds kinda serious. You should make sure she's okay."
Most people didn't take Kaminari seriously enough to listen to his advice. Thankfully, Kirishima had never been one of those people. He respected Kaminari in a way a lot of his other friends didn't. So when Kirishima's face hardened in determination, it gave Kaminari a sense of validation that he'd been right to make such a suggestion.
"I'm out, then." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Tell anyone who asks I'm in the bathroom, kay?"
"You got it, man!" Kaminari flashed Kirishima's retreating back a thumbs up.
"Attention up here, please!" Vlad silenced all side conversations.
Kaminari stepped within the line of vision where Kirishima disappeared, hoping he'd somehow managed to block him from the teachers' view. Once everyone quieted down, Dark Shadow hit the lights, preparing the room for the performance. Kaminari's thoughts immediately ceased, his focus returning to Jiro and her team.
In the darkness, a small rumble erupted, pumping similarly to the rhythm of a heartbeat. Vibrations quivered throughout the room, operating on a separate beat, the two meeting in the middle to create a fast paced bassline. Finally, Jiro rounded it out by throwing in some light beatboxing, humming through it to give the performance some melody.
"Warp refraction!" Hagakure's voice called in time with the tempo.
The disco ball bracelets reflected her light, illuminating the room from several different angles and shedding a glow on the scene before them. Finally, the audience caught a glimpse of everyone onstage. Jiro knelt in the middle, maintaining her earphone jack rhythm, while Hagakure appeared to be standing just in front of her. Above Jiro floated Tokoyami, engaged in Dark Fallen Angel. In one hand, Dark Shadow held Koda, Kuroiro in the other, both facing forward purposefully.
"Now's the time, my avian friends!" Koda called out.
Through the open window, a sea of pigeons poured into the room, carrying a black sheet that they displayed behind Tokoyami. Once secured, Kuroiro slipped from Dark Shadow's grip, melding into the opaque sheet immediately. At this point, Tokoyami levitated downwards, planting his feet on the ground before releasing Koda.
"Advance, Dark Shadow." Tokoyami commanded his companion.
Dark Shadow slithered up the sheet, grabbing it from the pigeons' grasp and holding it up. The flock dispersed, a select few birds landing on Koda's shoulders and head, awaiting further orders. Meanwhile, Kuroiro popped in and out of the sheet, catching himself with another melt, all in tune to Jiro's underlying rhythm, popping into spots of light reflecting off of Hagakure. Koda directed the birds to swoop back and forth throughout the display, adding more dimension to the scene.
"Whoa!" Sero gasped. "Dude, this is awesome!"
"It's like a mini bird rave or something!" Uraraka's eyes widened excitedly.
Kaminari stayed silent, drinking in the performance before him. Everything worked together in perfect harmony, just like their band did under Jiro's lead. All the players knew what to do; Jiro had set all of them up to shine. And although she could have easily taken the spotlight here, she opted not to, instead choosing to hold everyone down in the background, keeping the performance on course, leading, not starring. Pride swelled in Kaminari's chest. As of this moment, Jiro was never allowed to doubt herself again.
When she briefly tilted her head up, Kaminari immediately caught her eye. It felt intentional, as if their gazes were magnets inherently drawn to one another. A small, confident smirk crossed her face, and she shot Kaminari the quickest wink.
His heart skipped a beat. Blushing, he broke eye contact, shifting to concentrate on Koda and the birds instead. Confidence looked good on Jiro, he rationalized flusteredly.
Maybe a little too good.
Jiro widened her eyes at the ground. Did she really just do that? Blushing, she quickly cleared her head. Right now, performance time. Afterwards, she could…honestly, probably pretend that never happened. She didn't know.
Their big finish wasn't anything special. Actually, quite the opposite; a fade in, then fade out, the way stealth operations should be conducted. Jiro kept up the rhythm until all the birds had dispersed from the room. Hagakure's light began to dim, signaling her to slow down. The declining tempo cued Kuroiro to disappear for the second to last time, and Tokoyami began lowering the sheet. Jiro felt when he'd let go completely, allowing Kuroiro to take it over.
The performance ended with Koda and Hagakure huddling close to Jiro, who had almost completely stopped the beat. Tokoyami hovered in the back while the sheet descended down over them with Kuroiro riding on the back of it. He gave the audience one final grin before seeping into it for the last time, reappearing underneath it right beside Hagakure.
Music? Out.
Everyone held their breaths for a second, allowing the moment time to settle. Kaminari broke the silence, loudly cupping his hands together and whooping in delight.
"Yeah! That was awesome!" He cried.
"Great job, you guys!" Kendo echoed his praise.
"HELL YEAH! STEALTH RULES!"
"Not as far as you're concerned, buddy." Awase turned to Tetsutetsu sheepishly. "Maybe take it down a notch."
"Outstanding work, everyone." All Might gave an approving smile.
Jiro's excitement swelled at his expression as her team popped out from under the sheet. Working this hard was rough, Jiro couldn't lie; seeing this much positive audience reception, though, made every second of her stress worth it.
"You guys, that was amazing!" Hagakure threw her arms around Jiro in a tight hug, squealing in delight.
None of the boys in the group were particularly outwardly expressive or ones for physical touch, but the high-fives, thumbs up, and smiles exchanged showed their quiet pride in themselves. Jiro briefly clasped hands with Tokoyami, silently acknowledging his support of her leadership from the beginning.
"Indeed." Vlad agreed with All Might. "Certainly a lively opening. I like how it sets the stage for the upcoming groups while still being a solid performance in its own right."
"I'll say." Nezu raised his eyebrows. "That went above and beyond what I was expecting, to be honest. You're an incredibly cohesive unit, the group of you. Truly a recon-stealth dream team."
"That's what we're going for!" Hagakure chirped.
"Oh?" Aizawa raised an eyebrow. "Jiro, walk me through the intention behind your choreography. I'm curious about how you came up with this."
Jiro sucked in a breath, suddenly feeling like she was being tested. "Uh, well, we've worked pretty hard to combine our skills. To be honest, everyone's been contributing a lot to the final product. This is definitely a group effort, it doesn't all fall on me–"
"But you're the leader." Aizawa cut her off. "So yes, it does. Talk about your teammates."
Man, way to suck the fun out of a great show. But Aizawa didn't do things just to upset his students; he went out of his way to create teachable moments. That's something Jiro learned from attending his class everyday for two and a half years. He didn't put her on the spot just to watch her clam up and stutter. He wanted her to realize, reflect on, or acknowledge something.
It'd be nice if he would just come out and say it, but, you know, the plot.
"Well." Jiro swallowed her fear. "This performance…was made for us. Both power wise and our personalities. I mean, most of us like to hang in the background, even while wanting to help as much as we can. But that doesn't mean we can't shine, or be noticed and utilized positively."
Aizawa inched his head down, urging her to continue.
"It's…just like music." Immediately, it clicked. "Like in a band. Everyone plays a different instrument to create one sound. And the guitar or lead singer might be flashier and attract more attention, but the bass and drums and synth need to be there or the sound is…empty. It doesn't have the same effect."
A satisfied wave of relief crashed over her as she finished her thoughts. "We're the background, sure, and our powers lend themselves way better to the unseen roles of heroism. But that doesn't make us unimportant. We're in the band, just like all our classmates, and our sound is saving lives. That's our passion and our purpose!"
"Yasssss!" Hagakure clapped.
"Dang, well said." Awase raised his eyebrows, Kaibara and Tsuburaba nodding in agreement beside him.
"That's an incredible self analysis, Jiro." Aizawa stepped forward to look down at her. "I'm aware you questioned our appointing you leader of this group. Do you still feel that way?"
She met his eye, that same relief quelling the nerves rising in her stomach. Keeping her smile level, she shook her head.
"Not at all."
Finally, Aizawa smiled, patting her head a couple times.
"Good. I'm glad you're starting to see what I see."
XxXxXxX
Cementoss kindly constructed something that happened to be a lot bigger than Tsuyu expected.
Their trick didn't land in the category of Stealth or Speed, rather acting as a bridge between the two segments, meaning their performance didn't have a designated showcase day. No matter; the two of them practiced long enough for this to be at least presentable. Admissible. Something the faculty would watch and not immediately think "oh, let's cut that."
"Tsu?"
"Hm?" She tilted her head upwards, catching Tokoyami's eye. "Yes?"
"You're feeling alright about this?" He looked so serious, it startled her a bit.
"Of course." She replied steadily. "What have we spent all this time practicing for, right?"
Outwardly, she appeared relaxed. Focused. Like she'd done this a million times before. Nobody had any reason to believe she wasn't one hundred percent confident in herself. That's the front she'd put up since first year. Generally, that seemed to be her personality; calm and levelheaded. She didn't get anxious specifically because she didn't like to. It's not in her nature.
Which made it significantly easier for Tokoyami to discern which points those negative emotions grew within her.
Over the course of their practice sessions (in between gossiping about their classmates, something he chastised himself for enjoying) he made sure to keep a close eye on her reactions. Refraining from coming off creepy, of course. Exclusively to ensure that she never lied about being okay with flying through the air in such an unsafe environment. Right now, the tension in her shoulders mixed with the slightly increased breathing indicated her anxiety levels to be slightly elevated. Only slightly; he'd yet to see her in a full blown panic state, but this didn't look too bad. Mild reassurance would quell her.
"Keep calm." He spoke stoically, though still gently. "You're perfect every time we run this. Today has a low probability of being an exception. But always remember this:"
Extending his hands, he grabbed her shoulders, prompting her to lock gazes with him in surprise.
"You don't have to be afraid of falling. No matter what, I'll be right there. Catching you is my number one priority. Are we understood?"
Eyes wide, Tsuyu blinked, then jolted herself and nodded. Weird. The more he spoke, the more she got lost in his words. His vernacular interested her since their first year, but on top of that, she suddenly found herself fully caught up in the sound of his voice. The warm, soft spoken bass that only deepened in the past couple years captivated her for a second, making it difficult to focus on what he'd actually said. Fortunately, she'd managed to shake herself out of it, giving him a grateful smile in response.
"Thank you, Tokoyami. I won't let you and Dark Shadow down!"
She could never. Especially not with that sweet, adorable demeanor. Tokoyami settled his own emotions, suppressing his own nervousness for Tsuyu's sake. He'd remain true to his word; catching her took priority over everything else right now.
"We're ready!" Tsuyu turned and gave a thumbs up to Vlad.
Vlad halted mid conversation with Nezu, acknowledging Tsuyu in a vigorous nod once he understood what she'd said. The teachers dispersed, all of them now focused on the diving board standing thirty feet high behind the platform.
Geez, that's higher than Tsuyu anticipated.
"Dark Shadow."
Tokoyami's quirk emerged from his chest, ready to obey his command.
"Ready when you are, Fumikage!" He exclaimed exuberantly.
"The gala routine." Tokoyami explained. "We're going a little higher this time. Are you up to the task?"
"I'm on it. Tsu and I got this!"
"That's the attitude!" Tsuyu patted Dark Shadow's head.
After settling into their starting positions, with Tokoyami behind the base of the diving board while Tsuyu and Dark Shadow stood on either side of the pillar, Aizawa gave them the go-ahead. Immediately, they ascended, Dark Shadow looping back and forth around Tsuyu. She climbed expertly, with total ease, weaving around the concrete faster than even Tokoyami expected her to. Before he knew it, she'd reached the top, poised to cartwheel across the board.
"Dark Shadow, Dark Fallen Angel, now!"
Dark Shadow retreated, returning to Tokoyami and taking his place underneath the cloak of his costume. Tokoyami levitated, ensuring he and Dark Shadow were steady, then quickly flew underneath the diving board, watching closely for Tsuyu.
Oof. This really did stand a lot higher than what she'd gotten used to. Usually heights didn't bother her, nor did backflips. Free falling, though? A little scarier. Intimidated, she took a small step back, stumbling slightly. Terrified, she dropped to her knees, gripping the sides of the board for stability.
The reality that no safety nets, railings, or even training mats sat anywhere near her escalated her fear. If she fell, it'd be her, the concrete, and whatever remained of her bones. Why did this suddenly scare her so much? Life didn't come with a security blanket, so why should she expect gym equipment to?
Pressure exploded through her. All the anxiety she'd suppressed about this situation boiled over at once, leaving her paralyzed in her spot while everything spun around her. Trying to move forward proved impossible; her vision grew too dizzying for that. The only motion in her body was her chest heaving, her breathing quickly becoming panting, shallow and sputtering into her lungs.
'Get ahold of yourself!' Even her internal monologue's voice quivered.
If she didn't do something soon, people would start to wonder. Wonder, then worry. About her. No. That's the last thing anyone needed. Whether she felt like she could or not, she had to do this, and do it now. If not for herself or her class, for Tokoyami, who'd worked so hard to pull this off with her.
Closing her eyes, she timidly rose to her toes. This definitely wasn't her smartest decision, but not seeing how far off the ground she'd climbed did make this easier. Just a few cartwheels and a quick flip. Nothing to it. Then she'd be done with this, at least for right now.
Deep breath. Somersault. Backflip. Glide through the air.
After veering off the side of the board during the somersault.
What did she expect, doing a flip with her eyes shut? Even mid-fall, she couldn't help but internally berate herself for such a moronic decision, probably only able to because she hadn't fully registered the situation. Right now, all her brain let her focus on was minimizing. It's no big deal, she'll likely be fine, maybe she can use her tongue to get out of this? The shock kept her from screaming, at least, preserving her dignity as her classmates and teachers all gasped in horror at her slip. Somehow, shrieking and flailing felt like the last reaction she wanted to have. Of course, several emotions heightened her fear as she fell, none of which she could put into words, but she found her throat too constricted to make a single sound.
So she had no idea how Tokoyami reacted as quickly as he did.
It felt like she'd been falling for both an hour and a second all at once. Realistically, she'd been airborne for at least a few seconds before a familiar pair of arms broke her downward spiral, catching her around her waist.
"Tsu!" His voice sounded far away, confusing her. "Are you alright?"
Instinctively, she slid her arms around his shoulders, her face numbly drawing closer to his. Those ruby eyes no longer looked at her calmly, she noted. This time, when she met his gaze, she found alarm, determination, and alertness staring back at her. Strangely, it felt reassuring, seeing him so high strung. Her nerves didn't immediately settle, but the realization that she was safe because his adrenaline propelled him to her improved her emotional state significantly.
"I'm fine." She assured him softly, in a fog.
"No, you aren't." Shaking his head, he commanded Dark Shadow to slow their descent, tightening his grip on Tsuyu. "Steady your breathing, Tsu. You're shaking."
Was she? Somehow, she didn't feel that. Now that he'd mentioned it, though, she watched the back of her hand from Tokoyami's shoulder. Definitely trembling. Well, how was she supposed to fix that?!
"Here."
One of Tokoyami's arms tightened around her waist. The other slid upwards, stopping at her upper back. Using his hand, he pressed her chest against his, bending his face down next to hers.
"Center yourself." He calmly urged into her ear. "Match my breathing. In through your nose, out through your mouth. Focus only on that, I'll get us to the ground."
Tsuyu squeezed her eyes shut. For a moment, she'd forgotten they floated in midair. Tokoyami just held her so securely, she guessed. She gripped his shirt a little tighter, then resolved to do as he said. Steady her breathing. Copy the rise and fall of his chest. Slower. Slower. Easy. Don't think about anything else.
She bent her head into his neck, continuing her breathing. He reached up and rested a comforting hand in her hair, making sure to hide her face from their spectators. By now, their classmates had settled down, reassured that Tokoyami's intervention took care of the problem. True as that may be, he saw Aizawa, Vlad, and All Might tear across the training stage the instant Tsuyu fell, and he knew they waited at the foot of the diving board for them to come back down. He hoped to have calmed her down a fair bit by then; one thing he'd picked up about her, she hated showing negative emotions.
They finally landed, Tokoyami keeping his arms firmly around Tsuyu. Aizawa got to them first, hand shaking with concern.
"Asui! Tokoyami! You're not hurt, are you?" He extended his arm toward Tsuyu, who tensed up. That meant leave her alone.
Pulling his arm from her waist, Tokoyami held his hand up to stop Aizawa. His teacher froze, looking at Tokoyami quizzically. Vlad and All Might hung back, watching Aizawa for cues on how to proceed.
"Give us a moment, Mr. Aizawa." Tokoyami gestured to Tsuyu with his eyes. "We'll…be ready in just a second."
Tsuyu took one final deep breath. She shouldn't let her teachers see her like this. What kind of hero breaks down over one stupid fall? One she should have recovered from herself, no less. Tokoyami never should have had to swoop in and save her. Shame washed over her that she quickly suppressed. She'd deal with that later. Right now, she needed to let her teachers and all her friends know she was okay.
"I'm alright." She pulled back a bit, looking up at Tokoyami. "It's fine."
No, it certainly wasn't. He knew that much. But he also knew she wanted it to be. And she'd calmed down enough to put up the front that she'd fully recovered, which he'd be remiss to contradict.
"Are you sure?" Aizawa's eyes flitted between them and the diving board. "That's quite a fall you took, Asui. Are you sure you're not injured?"
"Not at all." Tsuyu's voice stayed level. "Tokoyami caught me before anything actually happened."
"Outstanding work, young man." All Might made his way to Tokoyami, patting his shoulder. "Your quick thinking saved young Asui's life."
"Though I appreciate the praise, that's my entire job." Tokoyami gave All Might a respectful head bow. "She's the one brave enough to face something as terrifying as setting foot on a railless platform thirty feet in the air. Truly an impressive feat."
At this moment, Tsuyu realized that Tokoyami's arm hadn't left her waist, and the hand he'd used to stop Aizawa from stepping closer now rested on her shoulder, keeping her curled against him. She'd managed to turn out slightly in order to talk to the teachers, but her hands remained clutching his shirt.
Oh, she'd so have to answer for this at the next sleepover.
Despite that, she stayed put, letting her hands remain where they were. Holding him comforted her, and she hadn't fully recovered from her panic attack, so she needed that. She needed him.
"Okay, you two, be honest: is this trick still something you think you can perform?" Aizawa looked back and forth between the two of them. "We can cut this if it's too much trouble. Right, Vlad?"
Vlad, surprisingly, nodded in agreement. "Your safety is most important, kids. I'm sorry I put you through all this. If this trick doesn't work out, there won't be any hard feelings–"
"I still want to do it."
Even Tokoyami's eyes widened at Tsuyu's response.
"Tsu…" He bent his face down toward hers. "I know you want to rise to everyone's expectations, but–"
"But when I fell, you caught me." Her eyes twinkled up at him. "Just like you said you would. And now that it's actually happened, I'm…I don't think I'm scared anymore. Not as long as you're there."
Tilting her head against his shoulder, she maintained her gaze. All that anxiety must have tired her out; she found herself barely able to stand.
"Stay with me on this, okay?" Her voice even dropped a bit in volume, barely audible to anyone other than Tokoyami.
He still had reservations. Hesitations about putting her safety at risk. Worries that one day, the timing would fall apart and despite his best efforts, he still wouldn't get to her in time. Fear of the worst happening to her because of him. Yet, when she looked at him like that, standing with her body pressed up against his, gripping his shirt, for God's sake…he found his knees practically buckling.
He'd do anything she wanted.
Swallowing, he turned back to Aizawa, fighting to hide how flustered he'd gotten.
"It's her call." He stated simply. "If Tsu wishes to continue, then I'm behind her, one hundred percent."
The two blushing teenagers in front of them didn't have a clue how not subtle they were being. Vlad and All Might exchanged a knowing smirk; they saw through Tokoyami's reasoning, and quickly deciphered why he'd actually told Aizawa yes.
"You're sure?" Aizawa confirmed for the umpteenth time.
"Positive." Tsuyu poked her tongue out. "Next time, I'll do the trick as planned. Do you think we could get access to the higher diving board to practice on? I trust Tokoyami, but I also don't want a repeat of this experience."
"Of course!" Vlad stumbled in. "And if you'd like some, uh, faculty supervision, just let us know. You know, for extra security."
'Or because you ship my students.' Aizawa briefly side-eyed Vlad, who had always been there for the gossip. Or the 'tea', as Mina and Hagakure refer to it these days.
He didn't have room to judge, though; every one of them saw the look on Tokoyami's face when Tsuyu complimented him for catching her. And he couldn't deny even he supported more alone time between the two of them after that. Within school limitations, of course.
"Alright, if you're sure, I'll give you a do over on Friday to show us what you've got." Before they got excited, he held up a finger. "But if you still can't perform after some practice, I'm cutting this. Understood?"
"Thank you, Mr. Aizawa!" Tsuyu's shoulders relaxed, visibly relieved. "We won't let you down!"
"You never do." Aizawa gave them a half smile.
'And she never will.' Tokoyami thought proudly. 'Even today.'
XxXxXxX
Get to her. Now.
At a speed he liked to pretend could rival Iida's, Kirishima bolted to the locker room, stripped out of his costume and into as much of his uniform as he deemed necessary (his pants and an unbuttoned shirt,) and took off to the dorms. His bag jostled against his side, the half undone buckles threatening to burst open and spill his belongings all over the ground, but he didn't pay it any mind. It's not like his grades would suffer too badly from missing some homework assignment, anyway.
"Mina?"
He slammed the door to the lounge open, eyes hungrily scanning for any sign of her. It didn't appear she'd come down to watch TV or get a snack in the past few hours. His worry doubled at the thought of her not having eaten in the last day. Maybe he should bring her food? But what? It's not like he knew how to cook.
No. He needed to see her and assess her condition. From there, he'd have an easier time figuring out what to do for her. Up the elevator and down the hall it is, he finalized with a few tired pants.
Once he got there, he pounced. Without knocking, Kirishima threw open the door to Mina's room. He found her curled up in bed, clutching a lavender squishmallow to her stomach. Oh, man, she must have some serious nausea. How long had she been laying like that? Poor girl, he thought, his heart pounding in his chest. What kind of boyfriend didn't think to check on his ailing girl until now?
"Babe?!" He shut the door behind him and scurried to the bed, carefully settling down on the end so as not to jolt her too much. She didn't move or respond, so he took that as a sign she wasn't affected. "Oh, man, how are you feeling? Do you have a fever? Have you eaten at all today?"
Her puffy eyes stared blankly ahead. Was that a sign of something more serious? Kirishima's anxiety spiked again. Maybe he needed to call in Recovery Girl for this.
"Baby, can you hear me?" He rested a hand on her shoulder, shaking her gently. "If you can, let me know! I'll take you to Recovery Girl if–"
"Did you call her?"
Kirishima stopped. "What?"
Finally, Mina sat up. Shock flashed through him at the sight of her. In the dim light, her face glistened with tear streaks, eyes glowering at him, fiery and bitter. Holy crap, what the hell happened?
"Oh my God, Mina, baby, are you crying?" Instinctively, he reached forward, ready to pull her into a hug. "Aw, come here, what's wro–"
She smacked his hand away. "Don't you act like a hero right now, Red Riot! Who did you call after I left last night?!"
Panic socked him in the gut. How did she know? Oh, shit, what did she hear? Or see? Thoughts raced through his mind a million miles a second. His pulse quickened as he tried to come up with something, anything to tell her. He hadn't planned for this. The plan had been for her to simply not suspect anything. What was he supposed to do here?
"How did…what did you–"
"I saw the text!" The tears welling up sprang freely down her face, and she did nothing to stop them or clean herself off. "Through all your crazy new security locks, by the way. Something about a drop spot, call me as soon as Mina leaves, a number that…that's not even saved, babe, who could that have been? Someone whose name you didn't want me finding, obviously, but…I…."
Initially, his brain reacted to the fact that she'd looked through his phone. Not in a "how dare she" way, but more "how did she even find that much?" He'd have to protect his texts even more now, he noted to himself.
That was a problem for later, though. Right now, his girlfriend screaming in his face took priority.
"Okay, babe, let's calm down for a second." Kirishima held up his hands. "I think I know what you saw, and I–"
"You think?!" Outraged, she dropped her squishmallow to the floor. "So there's other texts like that in your phone? How many other girls are there?"
What? Girls? What is she—oh.
Ohhh.
"Wait a minute." He shook himself, grappling with her accusation. "Hold on, you think I got that text from someone I'm…cheating on you with? Mina, that's ridiculous, you can't–"
Hearing him say the words 'cheating on you' flipped some sort of switch in her brain. She'd spent all night awake, sobbing, googling 'signs your boyfriend is unfaithful' and connecting dots she wasn't totally positive about, but twisted to suit the narrative her anxiety pushed onto her. Being more cagey about his phone (hiding it under the pillow, installing security codes, cryptic fucking texts,) pulling away from her, spending more time in the gym, things just kept adding up in her mind until nothing he did or said could satisfy her. By the time he'd thrown open the door, she'd decided what was going on behind her back, and she refused to take it lying down.
"There! You're the one who said it!" Her finger jabbed at his chest, her voice rising. "Normally I'd say I expected something so low from a man, but I thought you were different, Eijiro Kirishima! You're the last guy I ever thought would pull something like this! How could you?!"
Crap. This got bad fast and just kept rolling downhill. He knew he had to find a way to fix this, but frankly, he couldn't think. He stood paralyzed between telling Mina the truth (which he firmly wasn't allowed to do) or keep lying, which at this point, she'd likely be able to call him on. And she'd already gone and assumed the worst, meaning if he tried another lie, he risked losing her.
No. He refused to let that be an option.
Her sobs were cut off by him grabbing her by the shoulders. Shaking, she lifted her head to look him in the eye, startled by how serious his expression became in the matter of a second.
"Exactly." His voice dropped. "How could I? How could I ever betray the only girl I've ever loved? Mina, think about it. You really think I would do something like that?"
Panting, she tried to wriggle away from him. He didn't actually think he'd weasel out of this by guilting her, did he? Of all the nerve, to go and do whatever he did, then try and pull the "you know me, babe" card? Absolutely not.
"You obviously did something." She spat. "And you have five seconds to tell me–no, show me the truth, or I'll drop your ass, you got that?"
Danger zone. Officially code red. Granted, she looked a bit startled by her own words, clearly not anticipating taking things this far. But honestly, given what she'd found, Kirishima didn't blame her. She had every right to kick him to the curb over this. Something in him just hoped that she wouldn't.
"Okay, look. I can't show you anything, so you're just gonna have to take my word for it." His shoulders slumped. "Please, can that be good enough for now?"
"That depends on what you tell me." She replied coldly.
Well, great. "Babe, the only thing I can assure you of is that I'm not cheating."
Unconvinced, she shook her head. "Then why–"
"I can't tell you that. I'm sorry, but…I can't."
A burst of anger shot through her. "Then how am I supposed to believe you?!"
"Because I can't tell you only for right now!" Eyes wide, Kirishima kept his grip on her, maintaining her gaze as much as she'd let him.
He figured, weirdly enough, honesty was the best policy at this point. Obviously, he still had to keep the specifics under wraps. But this wasn't something he needed to keep secret forever, and maybe if she knew that, he could salvage this thing.
God, please let him be able to salvage this.
"Right now, this minute, you can't know anything." Desperation fueled his words, making him speak a mile a minute. "But I promise you can really soon, okay? I'll tell you everything I swear, just give me…give me till next Friday. After the Sidekick Awards. Deal?"
"The Sidekick Awards?" Apprehension colored her tone. "Babe, you're asking me to just…trust you, just like that, for that long, with nothing to back your word up?"
"I know it's crazy." He sighed. "And…I get it. If I saw something like that on your phone, I'd probably lose it, too. But I'm using my whole heart when I tell you that I would never, ever run out on you like that, babe. We've been friends since we were kids, Mina. We've fought, we've trained, we've been so close for so long, I just…tell me you know me better than that, right?"
His eyes gleamed at her hopefully. For some reason, it reminded her of a time in middle school when one of Kirishima's friends had been accused of cheating on a test. She remembered the kid burying his head in his hands, petrified, while Kirishima stood up in front of the class and shakily defended him. Generally with the same arguments; 'we all know Ito, he'd never do something like this, he's always been so honest!' His voice broke a lot, he stammered every other word, and truth be told, he didn't accomplish anything (thankfully, enough eyewitnesses confirmed his friend to be innocent.)
What stood out to Mina in that moment were his eyes. As she watched him plead with the teacher to believe him, pure emotion rippled through him, tears welling up and threatening to spill over onto his cheeks. The desperation, not to mention sheer sincerity, had been so palpable in that moment, she'd honestly trusted Kirishima despite him producing not one shred of tangible evidence.
Right now, she studied him–really watched him make that same face, searching for any sign of insincerity–and ultimately came up empty-handed. Why? She couldn't fully say. Maybe the terror in his face swayed her, maybe the fact that she loved him so damn much did. But for whatever reason, her gut told her to believe him, and she couldn't put up any sort of fight once she'd decided.
"Please, Eijiro." More tears began to spring forth. "Please, don't be lying. I don't think I could t-take it if you…."
Heart breaking, Kirishima lifted his hand to her face, using his thumb to wipe her eye. It tore him up to see her like this, especially knowing he was the cause of her pain. God, he'd make it up to her tenfold, he swore that to himself. She deserved it after this.
"Baby, I'm not." He wrapped his free arm around her waist, and she allowed him to pull her into his lap. "Oh, babe, I'm so sorry to put you through something like this. You know I love you so much, right?"
"I love you, too." Mina sniffled against his chest, cuddling up to him in spite of herself. "You're telling the truth? You promise you'll tell me everything?"
"Everything." He kissed her forehead gently. "You'll know some of it before I tell you, though. But I'll explain. You have my word, babe."
"Okay." She whispered. "I'll take that for now."
Relief visibly washed through him, his shoulders instantly relaxing. His arms tightened around her, squeezing her against him. No more crying, he willed her silently. Everything would be okay, he'd make sure of it.
"Thank you, my love." His own tears trailed down his face, though he held them back as much as he could. This wasn't his time to get emotional; Mina needed him.
After all the crying, outbursts, and overthinking she'd been dealing with, it felt heavenly to be curled up in his arms. Despite him being the one upsetting her, he was also the only one who comforted her perfectly. For now, she felt she could accept his word, because he cuddled her so perfectly, if for no other reason.
XxXxXxX
Yet another search result came up unsuccessful. Unsurprising; in searching her memory, Yaoyorozu barely managed to scrape together a last name, and the more she tried to use it, the less confident she grew that she'd guessed correctly.
"Hey."
Yaoyorozu looked up from her seat on the stairs, smiling at Todoroki when he stepped out of the door to Heights Alliance.
"Todoroki, what brings you out here?"
"I came to ask you what you'd want for dinner." He settled down beside her. "You asked me last time, and I wanted your opinion on something fairly simple, if that's alright."
She giggled a little. "Let me guess: your helpers aren't well versed in the culinary arts?"
"Ojiro and Hagakure." Todoroki scoffed. "They're great people, but they seem more interested in one another than the kitchen."
That sounded entirely plausible. Both of them had let their studies slip since they began dating during second year, so it didn't surprise Yaoyorozu to hear that mentality translated into other aspects of their lives.
"Hagakure's rather hopeless in the kitchen either way. Too easily distracted." Yaoyorozu smirked. "If you're feeling unsupported, I can offer up a hand. I'm not particularly busy at the moment."
Todoroki perked up. "R-really? You're sure it wouldn't be any trouble?"
"Oh, not at all!" She turned to him enthusiastically. "Until the dorms, I'd actually forgotten how much I enjoy cooking. Doing it on a regular basis provides a positive sense of structure and control for me, so I don't mind helping at all!"
That was a lot of information. Todoroki took a second to process, blinking at Yaoyorozu while he did. Her energy, though a bit confusing, was contagious, and he found himself smiling at her enthusiasm.
"Well, as long as I'm not interrupting you–"
Her phone buzzed before he finished his sentence. She quickly unlocked it, reading over something and letting out a small giggle.
"Sorry, something Awase sent me." She shook her head, grinning and pocketing her phone. "So, shall we?"
Todoroki's stomach dropped. The thought of Awase sending her something, anything that made her giggle like that bothered him. A lot.
"He, uh, sends you things?"
"Hm?" She blinked. "Oh, yes, sometimes. Just little Instagram reels or quick questions about how my day's going. He's confessed he struggles with chemistry lately, so I think he wants to get to know me well enough to ask if I'll tutor him."
Oh, there's no lack of chemistry in this situation. Squeezing his jeans, Todoroki gritted his teeth.
"Are you gonna do it? If he asks?"
He didn't mean to come off so…dark. Angry. He'd held back as much as he could manage, but his tone still came out with an edge that Yaoyorozu obviously picked up. Looking a bit taken aback, she nodded slowly.
"Um, yes, I think so." She looked down at her knees. "He's…I don't know him too well, but he seems nice enough. Why?"
Why? So he can find a way to break into the teacher's files and write in perfect grades on Awase's records, ensuring he will never, ever need a tutor for any reason at all.
Wait, what?
What the hell kind of reasoning is that? Todoroki internally smacked himself. What's gotten into him? Where was all this rage coming from?
"No reason." He finally replied curtly.
Yaoyorozu paused, watching the stiffness in Todoroki's jaw. Something she'd said angered him, she'd deduced that much. But what? They didn't have very much of a conversation to begin with. She truly didn't understand this reaction, though she'd certainly try to.
"I apologize, Todoroki–"
"No need." He shook her off, rising to his feet. "And don't worry about helping me tonight. I can figure things out on my own."
Her chest deflated. Now she knew something was wrong. Terribly so, from the looks of it.
"If I said something, Todoroki, just tell me–"
"It's fine." He turned away from her. "You've never done anything wrong. Ever. That's the problem."
…What?
Sadness mixed with embarrassment pricked her, swelling in her chest as she watched him return through the door. She ran the conversation through in her head, combing through each sentence, trying to determine which part elicited this negative energy from him. This had happened a few different times at this point, leading her to believe that something she'd done or said consistently upset him. And she needed to figure it out soon, before he stopped talking to her altogether.
The thought of that spiked her anxiety. Todoroki getting angry with her every so often she could handle, but losing him as a friend completely? That's a fate she didn't have it in her to stomach. Instinctively, she clutched her hand to her chest, squeezing the fabric of her T-shirt. Surprised at herself, she quickly released it, shaking herself back to reality.
Things will be fine, she reassured herself. Todoroki needed time to process, but they'd talk again soon. Maybe at dinner, after he figured out what he planned to do. She wished she could be in there with him, but she seemed to have lost that privilege.
Instead, she decided to refocus on her initial objective: finding a single previous staff member from her parents' estate on social media. She had a few specifics in mind, but overall, she just wanted to see if she could name even one person who'd worked for her family in the past ten years.
Because after the locker room conversation, it became clear to her how much she didn't remember.
And the more she tried to come up with a name, the more that started to concern her.
XxXxXxX
Another annoying text.
Todoroki's patience had been forcibly worn paper thin. Endeavor left him alone, sure, though some of the wording in Fuyumi's texts implied to him that his father co-wrote with her about certain things. Lately, all she'd been asking about was the gala, urging him to answer as soon as possible about whether or not he'd be going with his family. The three times he outright told her no, he'd been met with "okay, just think about it a little more." The attitude seemed to be that if they asked enough times, they'd wear him down to the point of saying yes to get them to stop.
Luckily, he'd inherited his father's stubbornness.
"Ramen's ready." Todoroki turned to Ojiro and Hagakure, who'd been tasked with chopping vegetables. Surprisingly, Ojiro got a lot done, his bowl mostly filled.
Hagakure, as Yaoyorozu said, was hopeless with a knife. Not that Todoroki had room to judge; two years of trying and he still didn't know how to properly cut chives. Bakugo always got onto him for it, even broke down and formally taught him, but somehow, he always messed it up.
"Oh, shoot!" Hagakure let out an embarrassed chuckle. "Um, Todoroki, can you just give me, like, five minutes? Or, hey, what if–"
"I got it, babe." Ojiro took over immediately, smiling as he worked. "Why don't you go get the dishes together?"
"Really? That's a great idea, baby, you're the best!"
Todoroki heard a noise that indicated she'd kissed Ojiro. A moment later, he saw her skip up to the cupboard and start assembling some bowls. The cheerful energy between the two of them pepped Todoroki up a bit; their bond radiated so much positivity.
His spat with Yaoyorozu came to mind, jolting him. Once again, he'd left things in such a bitter place. He tried to write it off as a reaction to being obsessively texted by his family, but that excuse didn't hold up for him.
"Todoroki?" Ojiro tapped his shoulder. "Veggies are done. Are we ready to serve?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, sounds good. Can you let everyone know food's ready?"
With a good natured smile, Ojiro flashed a thumbs up. "You got it, buddy."
Fifteen minutes later, the class had gathered in the lounge, opting to eat on the couches rather than the tables. Some people settled on the floor or the ottomans, everyone wanting to sit in generally the same circle. Todoroki noticed Yaoyorozu off to the side, choosing to stand and eat her food despite several people scooting over and offering her a seat. They briefly made eye contact, but the sight of her nervous expression amassed a flood of shame that jerked his head downward to stare into his food. Despite loving looking into her eyes, right now, he couldn't bear to.