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“Ma', I'll be heading back to the dorms now,” Hanta informed, putting on his shoes on the small house’s entrance.
His mother appeared behind him in her typical batik dress and beaded jewelry. She looked sad to be left alone again, and it made him sad, too. She wouldn’t be alone, per se. There were twin monsters running around the second floor, though they were seven, and a conversation with them wouldn’t be as fulfilling. His two older sisters would probably come visit more than he does, but he doubts it would help much. After all, they were both settled down with their own families.
The train back to Musutafu was about two hours away, but for safety reasons, they were only allowed to visit their home towns every three weeks or so.
He felt a tickle between his ankles. A white cat purred, seemingly not wanting him to leave. He crouched down to pet the fluffy head. “I won’t be gone for long, Pusa. Don’t miss boring ol' me too much.” Yes, he named the cat himself, plain and simple. Maybe translating “cat” to Filipino wasn’t creative, but it was just like him.
“Have a safe trip." She gave him a large tote bag. “I made a few vegetarian meals that will last you the whole week."
“Thanks. See ya soon!” He left through the door out to the sidewalk. This corner of Tokyo wasn’t as crowded or noisy as one would expect. There were cherry blossoms slightly affected by the upcoming winter. Dim, flickering lights of hostels and the 7/11 across the street.
It got more busy, loud and hurried as he walked deeper into Nerima City towards the station. People coming from different parts of Japan, fated to bump into each other in the capital. Or so, that’s as romantic as the last manga he read put it. He wasn’t used to shoujo manga, as he was rather a basic Shonen Jump type of guy.
Todoroki was more versatile in that aspect. He didn’t seem to understand romance and focused solely on the plot of the manga instead, but he had liked the amount of fantasy action and thought Sero could give it a look over. He never expected to actually look forward to the interactions between the pining idiots dancing around each other, or to even searching up List of romance action manga on the internet, afterwards.
He thought about it while getting on the train, having to hold on to the hangers due to the lack of available seats. The sudden interest in romantic scenarios wasn’t foreign to him when he had gossip-starved friends like Ashido and Kaminari. When he was a kid, he often pictured himself as a C-ranking pro-hero, married to a faceless girl, guy or distinguished individual, and with equally faceless children. That is, if he ever managed to land someone in first place.
He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn’t notice Hagakure, Ojiro and Iida joining the wagon a few stops later.
“Phew. I had not missed Tokyo one bit," Ojiro said, grabbing the hanger behind Hanta.
“Agreed,” replied Hagakure, standing next to Ojiro. “I did miss my family, I just hated making the line to add credits to my train card."
“I reckon a cellular phone application for recharging pass credits is on the making. I will have to consult my cousins,” Iida chirped from behind Ojiro, which sparked their interest.
Hanta smiled and turned to face them. “Whoa. That’s awesome, dude. Do tell us when it’s on the market.” Iida responded by nodding and pushing his glasses up.
The rest of the ride involved pointless chatter. Some jokes here and there. Hanta just wanted to throw himself on bed and read manga. Not before annoying Bakugou, arm-wrestling with Kirishima, playing video games with Kaminari or maybe asking Ashido to give him a face mask and paint his nails simply black. He felt giddy at the thought. It’s not like he had been friendless his whole life. He had always been quite sociable and friendly. People knew that he existed. They interacted with him and invited him over to play hide-and-seek and some sports.
Still, there was never a group of friends, just people to hang out with. His first real friend was when he was eight. Mami-chan had a lot of friends and always did her best to include everyone. She happened to live near Hanta, so she didn’t mind walking home with him.
“You’re kinda lame, aren’t you?” She asked without malice, just curiosity.
“I guess so.”
He had no reason to disagree with her. His favorite music was indie no one recognized. He liked mainstream TV shows. He was average at sports and school. There was nothing remotely interesting about him, and he was fine with that at some degree.
He begrudgingly accepted that he was meant to be the background character, which is why he easily went along with being considered an extra by Bakugou. There were no flaws in that statement, and it’s not like he felt completely bad about it. Sure, late into the night, his tucked away insecurities lurked in the back of his head, like a whisper coming from the pillow. Nonetheless, being unremarkable had its perks like people not expecting too much from you.
“Attention to all passengers. You have arrived at Musutafu Station. The east wing elevators are out of commission. Please take the stairs-"
“Welp, we’re here,” Ojiro sighed. They all knew what went unsaid with the sigh. It meant ‘For a new week without villain trouble in UA'.
The walk to The Heights Alliance was relatively short and, before Hanta knew it, he was already on the elevator to the fifth floor. On the way to his room he walked past Todoroki’s, whose door opened right then.
“Hey, Todoroki! What’s up?”
Todoroki nodded in greeting. “I didn’t go home and stayed here taking care of my plants. How about you?”
Hanta refrained from wincing at the thought of Todoroki avoiding his house. They weren’t that close for him to know the details. He did understand from a few tidbits, like shrinking at the mention of Endeavor, that it wasn’t the best.
“That’s cool. Oh!” He rummaged through his backpack, “Here’s the manga. I binge-read it on the weekend and loved it.”
That made one of the corners of Todoroki’s lips curl up. It was the closest thing to a smile he had seen from him, caused by something he said. The only other people had been Midoriya and Bakugou with their antics.
“I'm glad. You can come in and borrow some more.”
Hanta shook his head. “I promise next week I will. I found a nice manga online that peeked my attention. Afterwards, I'll drown myself in some more.”
“Okay, enjoy.” It might have come out as apathetic to anyone else, but Class 2-A already knew that it wasn’t that Todoroki lacked interest in others… Okay, maybe the first months into UA he might have. Other than that, it was just the way he expressed himself. He was blunt in some ways, which supported his genuineness.
Hanta began turning the doorknob to his bedroom before wearing a sly grin. “Good night, ‘Roki.”
This time, Todoroki's smile was noticeable. Small, but evident. “Goodnight.”
It took Shouto a while to notice his classmates. Perhaps the people around him, in general.
He had been locked away for so long, that even when seeing new quirks should have impressed him, he forced himself to ignore them. His father had told him that he was going to be the best. He was convinced the others shouldn’t matter. In that case, what was the meaning of being a hero, when he was raised to believe in egocentrism?
He slowly understood the meaning of being a hero when he found a best friend in Midoriya. Based on him, it meant selfless duty.
Bakugou also helped indirectly, not that he would tell him, just for the fun of teasing. To him, Bakugou was an inspiration to do things because you wanted them, not because anyone else forced them on to you.
Step by step, he allowed himself to meet the rest of his classmates. To understand their ambitions, quirk techniques. But more than that, he was understanding what human interaction was supposed to be like. There was compassion, care, unity.
Now, he might have admitted, albeit a little rudely, that it took him a lot longer to notice what was Sero Hanta.
It was easy to notice loud people or those who were always on the brink of death. Sero was just the guy he froze out of anger in a one-on-one match. Sometimes, said frozen guy tried to form a conversation with him. He wondered how Sero wasn’t mad at him for humiliating and hurting him like that on public. Was he trying to become friends with him, so then he could trick him and get his revenge?
Shouto didn’t avoid him too obviously those days after the Sports Festival. He would nod whenever he asked him something, only partially in acknowledgement, then keep walking to dodge any further comment.
Even if abstaining from any talk with Sero, from afar he started observing him. During classes. During training.
He noticed that Sero was always surrounded by people. He had no trouble talking to any of the other nineteen students in their class, except maybe Shouto. He had a graceful strategy with his tape shooting that could be both defensive and offensive. He seemed to know how to use it for multiple purposes, despite not being able to win against people like Midoriya, Yaomomo, Bakugou, and himself.
He had already let Midoriya force himself into his life, somehow bringing along a whole squad of friends that loved his presence. It wouldn’t hurt to also give Sero a chance.
Then the chance came after Bakugou’s kidnapping.
They had been through a lot that needed resolve. It was just his luck that when they turned UA into a boarding school, Sero happened to be his next-door neighbor.
One of those days after moving in, he saw him lying on the common room couch, reading what seemed like the fifty-fourth volume of Gin Tama. He felt elated that manga was something he could talk about.
He was a future hero. The future number one hero. Instead of waiting for Sero to notice him and start the conversation, he would have to do it himself.
“I have every volume,” he deadpanned. He hoped he didn’t sound like he was showing off. He didn’t have a happy tone like his friends. Suddenly, he wanted to hide behind his curtain of bangs.
“Really? That’s so cool, man! I just bought this one. Did you read the entire series already?”
He refused to raise his head to look him, but by his tone, Shouto could tell he was happy. He dared not confirm it yet, though.
“Yes. I can lend you the rest, if you wish.”
In a matter of weeks, he had evolved from returning the nods to answering longer sentences whenever Sero asked about his day.
They kept through that exchange even after the war. They would still only talk about manga, occasionally how they felt after their internships, the war and school. But Shouto found himself wanting to be closer. He didn't know how. Were they friends already? He certainly thought so. Did Sero?
Midoriya
How does one engage in conversation with someone?
(02:04)
Todoroki-kun, hi!
It’s 2am lol
(02:05)
Not like you weren’t awake
Say hi to Bakugou for me
(02:05)
TODOROKIIII!!
HE’S NOT EVEN HE4E
(02:06)
Right
(02:06)
Midoriya and Bakugou had begun dating after Bakugou apologized and... many other situations they'd rather not talk about. Needless to say, Shouto was very happy for his friends.
So regarding your question. It really depends on the person. If they’re already your friend then I'd already know a certain hero, game, color or food they like, so I'd form conversations about that. If it’s an acquaintance, I'd start by asking how their day was. What did they think about classes or their job, then get straight to the point. If they’re a rival, I'm not sure I can help you with threatening talk and if it's a villain I'd be concerned on why you wanna talk with one whether it be for undercover stuff or…
(Sent 02:10)
You even ramble through text
(Sent 02:12)
!!!
Okay, but does that help??
(Sent 02:12)
I think so. Thank you.
(Sent 02:13)
It didn’t help as much as he wanted it to. He should’ve specified the Sero situation. Should he have come clear with “Midoriya, I wish to be friends with someone I've only talked to about manga, but every time he tries to form longer conversarions, I make excuses and return to my room. Now I fear he might hate me if he didn’t before"?
He shook his head and went back to sleep.
In the morning, he went through his morning routine, continuing his thoughts about the night before.
Even though it had been a little more than a year since he and Sero began exchanging manga, they still didn’t know about each other’s lives. And it was okay. They had their own groups of friends, hero work and all that.
Shouto only knew basic things like his favorite food (courtesy of Bakugou) and manga characters. Sero also took on calling him 'Roki, which was honestly endearing and made him feel things he didn't quite understand.
Among the things he learned from mere observation, he knew although Sero wasn’t studious, he was quite a nerd for environmental sciences. He was a vegetarian (thanks again, Bakugou). He had a mini garden with bonsai, cacti, aloe vera and succulents in his mother’s house and he would give one of each to him as a ‘thank you’ for every manga he borrowed. Shouto didn’t see how that was fair, as the manga had a free round trip while the plants were gifted.
He heard Sero's own group of friends joke about Sero being quite basic, to which he shrugged off with a light laugh. Shouto felt offended on Sero's behalf, because he was nothing but amazing in his unique way.
Sometimes he had no other excuse for spending time with him, and it made him disappointed in himself for not being as open as others. When Sero came back to the dorms after being home for the weekend, Shouto could only come up with asking if he wanted more volumes, to which Sero declined, for he gained a sudden interest in shoujo manga. He hadn’t specified it was shoujo, but he figured the last one he gave him had a different pace and theme. He didn’t have any more manga of that genre, so it explained why Sero would’ve had to turn to online recommendations.
‘Maybe I should buy a whole new fantasy series that includes romance. It wouldn’t be too bad for me to read them, as well.’
“Todoroki, you’re paired with Sero,” Aizawa called. Oh, right. They were in Ground Epsilon, which simulated a small, remote town at the bottom of a mountain. The infrastructure was unstable and its floor was designed to produce an earthquake whenever Aizawa pleased. The houses were prone to being crushed by unforeseen landslides and the hypothetical villagers had a forest, not too different from Ground Omega's, where they got their herbs and berries from; crop fields and small ponds surrounding them. It resembled something out of the feudal Japan era.
The plan was simple. There were no villains, except for the magnitude of the earthquake. Just rescuing people from a catastrophe that would cover up at least nine squared kilometers. And, assuming there was no reception, getting them to the nearest hospital, which would be at least five kilometers away on foot. Sure, Ground Epsilon wasn’t that big, but they’d have to take the saved villagers to a designated spot that would draw the attention of emergency helicopters.
“Alright! We got this.” Sero beamed at him, offering a fist bump. There was a time Midoriya wanted to do that with him, but Shouto barely understood the concept. At least he did now, and managed to bump his fist rather awkwardly with Sero's.
They were at the far-away headquarters to the ground, which was unaffected by the terrestrial motions from the previous participating teams. They were the seventh group and, this time, Aizawa turned off the monitors for the rest of the class. The obstacle was pretty direct and the same for everyone, which is why he wanted to be fair on those who went first, so the remaining groups didn’t have advantage over having seen their progress. Only if a pair had already participated, they would be allowed to watch the other ones in another room.
“Good luck, Seroroki,” Kirishima and Mina hollered. They’d been using that term a lot lately and it warmed him a little, flattered that people portrayed them as being a close enough pair.
“Your face is flushed, Sero,” he pointed out as they walked towards the village. “Are you that nervous?”
“Yup!” he suspiciously yelped, “That’s totally it ”
“You’ve done scarier things. I believe you’re more reliable than you think.”
“Thanks, 'Roki. It’s not like I doubt myself constantly. Just the whole landslide scenario reminds me of-" he shuddered. “Nabu Island.”
Shouto nodded in acknowledgment. Even so, he thought Sero in Nabu Island was very badass.
The ground began shaking when they were only a few feet away from the village. They immediately crouched near each other in the open space, covering the back of their necks and avoiding any possible power lines. Cracks started forming on the floor and extended towards the first row of houses.
Speaking of houses, about ten of them rumbled down completely and a few boulders from the mountain were already rolling to the bottom.
Once the seism stopped, Shouto acted fast in throwing a layer of ice over the cracks.
“It'll only last so long until it melts,” he shouted.
“Hold off the rocks. I'll get the people.”
Sero had ran off before Shouto could agree. He could see as his form became smaller and smaller with distance, using his tape to hold together one of the home’s entrances, allowing him to go inside.
He knew Sero was strong. He had to focus on finding a way to hold off the falling boulders.
He took a deep breath. “Heaven-piercing ice wall!”
He decided that for the time being, it was better to make a giant ice wall than to freeze the entire mountain and pass out.
“That should hold it for a while,” he muttered and turned back to the village to help Sero.
Sero was on a shattered rooftop. A few shouts were heard from beneath the crack.
“How many of you are there? Is anyone hurt?”
“It’s only us four,” a tiny woman answered in distress while what seemed to be her two sons wailed. “My husband, I think he broke his leg. We can’t get out through the entrance!”
“I'm gonna get you out, okay? Tape Shot Trident!” Multiple threads come out to grab the family at once and settled three of them on the ground below. “I’ll need you to orderly head to the outskirts near the main road. The rest of the villagers are there. I’m gonna patch your husband’s leg and I promise to take him back to you.”
The woman seemed hesitant, but she agreed and left rather quickly when a minor rumble was heard.
“I think the boulders are breaking through the melting ice wall. We must hurry,” Shouto warned.
“On a scale of one to ten. How dizzy are you?” Sero asked the villager and Shouto surveyed the area around them.
“Twelve… teen.”
“Yeah, no. Stay awake, buddy. I'll carry you to the safe place, alright?” He wrapped an arm around him and turned to Shouto. “So, he's got a concussion. The other families evicted safely and are waiting for us to lead them to the helicopter site.”
“Got it.”
On their way to the townspeople, Shouto observed Sero up from where he was, sliding on his ice-ramp. The way he kept a conversation going with the civilian in order to prevent him from falling asleep. The way the man was being held tightly with one arm while the other helped Sero swing from tapes that stuck to any tree he found.
He wondered how it would feel like to be held and swung by Sero. It reminded him of MJ and Spiderman in the comics he read a long time ago. Those counted as romantic right? Maybe he should ask Sero if he liked those.
His face was getting warm despite having only used his right side that day. ‘Am I getting a fever for quirk overuse? I barely did anything.'
Aizawa congratulated them on their good job. For the first time, Hanta was proud that he hadn’t done just a satisfactory performance. It wasn’t too bad to aim for more, was it?
It had been a tiring morning, but he was happy to finally join his friends for lunch and eat the food his ma’ made. She had even packed oranges!
He saw the Bakusquad sitting on their usual table and approached them. “Hey hey,” he greeted as he took the seat next to Kaminari.
“Heyyy, so tell me!” Ashido stood up abruptly, “How did partnering up with Todoroki go? Did you make him do all the work?”
“Leave him alone, Mina. I actually saw them through the monitors and they both did great. In fact, Sero was who dealt with the whole twenty people population,” Kirishima defended, which Hanta was grateful for.
He obviously knew he could never in a million years compare to Todoroki Shouto, but it felt good to be validated.
She pouted, “Sorry, Sero.”
“It’s alright!” Sero smiled.
“Speaking of Todoroki, why isn’t Bakugou in their table? Or why isn’t Midoriya here with us?” Kaminari asked with his mouth full while munching on a hamburger.
That earned a scowl from Bakugou. “Well, unlike some idiotic couples, we’re not that clingy! We need space once in a while.” He angrily chewed his noodles.
“That’s a lie. Midoriya definitely wanted to join both squads, but Mr. Grumpy here refused to be in the same table as Todoroki."
“SHUT THE HELL UP, RACCOON EYES!”
Ashido blew a raspberry at him and the others laughed.
Hanta leaned his head on his hand, arm propped against the table as he slurped some exotic fruit juice with a stainless steel straw. He hated plastic straws with his life. In front of him were Bakugou and Kirishima, lightly arguing about something Hanta tuned out. Because between them, a few tables away, he could spot Todoroki with his group of friends.
He watched as he blew on his bangs; scratched the back of his ear; ate the nearly frozen bowl of soba. He heard a faint “It wasn’t that hot, Todoroki-kun. You didn’t have to freeze the table” from Uraraka.
“Oi, stop your ogling. It’s creepy as fuck,” Bakugou snarled.
Hanta blushed furiously. “Fuck off, man. I wasn’t! And it’s not like you haven’t stalked Deku for more than ten years.”
“YOU WANNA START A FIGHT WITH ME?”
Kaminari patted Bakugou's elbow, “Kacchan, chill”
“Stop using that nickname,” Bakugou grunted, but slowly calmed down.
Sometimes Shouto would feel alien when he didn’t see the big deal in looking at X-rated magazines.
One time in first year, the scumbag Mineta had shoved a double-page in his face and asked what his type of woman was. He later found out that everyone just wanted to know what type of person he would date.
Being a teenage boy, he was expected to gush hyperbolically like Kaminari and Mineta, or blush immensely like Midoriya and Sero, when faced with a woman in compromising positions. Men, even, when Kaminari was the one to bring the magazines. Instead, he felt the rushing need to avert his gaze elsewhere.
“Why are you showing me this?”
“I told you! I need to know the type of girls I'm competing for!”
Shouto met Sero’s gaze a few seats away, and Sero seemed to notice his discomfort. “Shut up, Mineta. They’re not a prize,” he grabbed the grape child from the back of his shirt and threw him on his desk.
“Don’t you wonder the same thing, Sero?” Mineta cried.
“So, what? It'd be fun to know people’s type to tease them a little, but I won’t shove an unsolicited naked pic on their faces,” he rolled the magazine and bonked Mineta's head.
Shouto sighed, grateful for Sero's help back then. Mineta was thankfully gone and now Shinsou took his previous seat.
He must have been wearing a defeated look because, out of nowhere, Sero stopped talking to his group of friends and sat on Tokoyami’s seat in front of Shouto, just until the owner got to the classroom.
Sero tilted his head worryingly. “You okay?”
Shouto nodded, even though he wasn’t sure himself. He looked dejected, “I don’t know how to explain it.”
Sero bumped his fist lightly into his arm, “Hey, you don’t have to. I'm sorry about whatever's bothering you, in any case.”
He shook his head, “It's not your fault…” and pondered for a second. “Can we talk about it during lunch?” he asked shyly.
“Of course! We can go to the rooftop if you want secrecy.”
“Yes. I’d like that.”
When lunchtime arrived, he didn’t even tell his friends where he was going, which concerned them a little but shrugged off as unimportant. He ran upstairs to the rooftop of the Main Building, or what seemed to be above the Administration Office. Sero arrived no more than two minutes later and sat next to him, opening his bento box and sending a small prayer before eating.
Sero had a calming aura about him. He seemed like someone who knew how to relax, and what fruits reduced stress and anxiety. He wasn’t pushing him to talk and they continued to eat in silence while Shouto gathered his thoughts.
“I think I'm broken,” he finally admitted.
Sero furrowed his brows. “What? Why would you say that?”
“I don’t enjoy staring at explicitly shown bodies. It’s been bothering me once in a few internal monologues since that time in first year with the magazine.”
“That’s okay! Teenagers are portrayed as hormonal and all, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.”
“I don’t like staring at men or women’s bodies for sexual purposes at all. This- this is embarrassing. I've never…” Shouto turned completely red and covered his face.
Sero awkwardly chuckled and blushed as well, “Touched yourself?”
He nodded hesitantly. “I've never liked anyone like that, either.”
“Hey, look at me.”
Shouto shook his head frantically, refusing to look at him.
“Yo, I'm glad you trusted me enough to tell me this. I'm surprised it was me and not your usual friends, but I guess it makes sense."
“I feel like Iida, Midoriya and Uraraka would stutter while giving advice on the subject. Asui is more of a listener.” He finally looked at him.
Sero snorted, “I can totally see that happening. And listen, attraction is a complex thing. Some people don’t want that type of intimacy unless they feel a deep connection with someone. Some people don’t want that intimacy, like ever and it’s totally cool!”
“Really? It’s normal?”
“Of course, dude!”
They stared at the clouds above them. People have told him that clouds could resemble anything you came up with, but they were all blobs to him. He soured a little at the thought that he lacked imagination.
“What’s your type, then?” Shouto bluntly asked him. He didn’t know what made him curious, but he felt like asking.
It was good that Sero didn’t seem bothered by the question. “I don’t know. I think anyone can be attractive in their own way. I can’t say I like someone because they’re smart, beautiful or nice, because that description could fit a lot of people in our class for example. I think I'd be into someone I can have common ground with. Understanding at best and just… knowing you can rely on that person to not shatter your heart, y'know?”
Shouto hummed, “That sounds nice.”
“Yeah?”
“Mhm. Is there anyone like that now? If you don’t mind me asking.”
Sero looked alarmed for a brief second before answering, “I'm not sure. I have my theories on what could possibly be a new crush, but I'm scared to put my feelings on the line like that.”
“Why?”
“There’s no way they'll ever like me back.”
“You can’t just assume that. I think you’re very cool, Sero. You’re kind and you have a nice smile. So, maybe they won’t feel the same way, but you can’t put yourself down like that.” He didn’t know what inspired him to give that speech, but it sounded like something Midoriya would say, so he mentally patted himself in the back. It was true, though.
“Wow. Don’t get me wrong, but I never thought you’d give such a motivating talk.”
“I do hope it raises your spirits. I meant every word."
That made Sero redden again. He thought it made him look very cute. “Thank you.”
“I'm obliged to you, as well. I'm glad we both helped each other, then.”
“Agreed.”
Hanra threw himself on his bed and aggressively buried his face on the pillow, avoiding to scream. He grabbed his phone from the nightstand and dialed Ashido.
“I'm in the middle of applying eyeliner. This better be important.”
“I've got a crisis.”
“Oh, dear. Scale?”
“Eight. Probably nine.”
“Yikes. Turmeric or charcoal mask?”
“Turmeric. Bring the mustard yellow nail polish this time.”
“Be there in five,” and she hung up.
Exactly five minutes later she showed up with a half a gallon of orange juice, a pink bag with lotions, bobby pins, nail polish and face masks.
“I'm surprised you called me instead of Denki, but I ain’t complaining. Does this have to do with whatever you did during lunch where you totally ditched us, and Todoroki just happened to also be missing from his table?”
He groaned into his pillow again. “How’d you jump to that conclusion?”
“Okay, but was I right?”
“Yes.”
“Sit down, sweetie. Let’s pull your hair into a ponytail first. " She crawled behind him, rubbing two drops of argan oil serum in her hands and running it through Sero’s scalp. She took a thin, seamless headband to hold his short bangs back. She began humming a song she knew they both liked as she looped the elastic band around the rest of his long hair.
“So, what happened?”
“I like Todoroki.”
“Doesn’t everyone, though?”
“I mean, yes. Everyone does, but I realized I have a big, fat crush on him.”
She turned him around so she could put the creamy, orange mask on his face. “I… already knew this?”
“What? I just came to accept it today!”
“Well, unlike you, the whole Bakusquad saw this coming since first year. Thank Kirishima for coming up with such a glorious ship name that stuck."
“I- I thought that was just a hero duo type of pun. You guys would actually be okay with me being with someone so out of my league?”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold your horse, buddy. Why wouldn’t we be okay with you being with someone you like? Sure, if it were some creep with toxic energy, we'd do anything in our power to prevent it. And second, what do you mean ‘out of your league’?”
“Uh, um. Well, he’s Todoroki Shouto and you know, Midnight has said it and so have you guys. I'm very plain in general, imagine in comparison.”
“Then, I'm sorry, Sero, but you’re shallow as fuck. For starters, I don’t know Todoroki that well, but if he’s only into people based on appearance, then he's not that big of a deal. It sounds as if you only liked Todoroki because of how beautiful he is. If that’s the case, then newsflash! Every single person that confesses to him is based on that, so your crush is not special.
“Second, we tease you all the time for being the most normal-looking person in Japan, but it doesn’t make you any less hot.”
“Hot? Me?”
“Yes, you! I swear, children these days have such a low self-esteem.” She clicked her tongue and put the mask container away, grabbing a mirror and revealing an orange-faced Hanta. “See? Very hot ” she snickered.
He whined. She took his right hand to paint his nails.
“And I don’t like him because of his appearance. I mean, maybe at first I did, but man. He's brilliant and can be very funny at times. He doesn’t even know it! I feel like I can tell him anything and he won’t judge me. And just ugh! He and I had a really nice talk today.” He had a dreamy look that resembled braindead Kaminari for overusing his quirk.
Ashido smiled, probably glad that her oblivious friend was finally aware of his feelings. “This shade goes with your hero suit. Nice choice.”
Someone knocked on the door and Ashido huffed when Hanta moved while she was still painting his thumbnail.
“Be there in a sec,” he shouted at whoever was outside. He opened the door with his left hand to avoid messing up his drying nails.
“Todoroki!” he jumped a little before composing himself. “Uh, what brings you here?”
“I, um,” Todoroki seemed to stare at his orange face for too long. Hanta was embarrassed. “I can come back later.”
Ashido cleared her throat, not being subtle at all.
“I'm not busy, honestly. You sure?” Hanta implored.
“Yeah, I- there’s this new comic, but we can talk about it whenever.”
“Of course!”
“Well… bye,” and he stiffly returned to his room. Hanta was still holding on to the doorframe wondering that the heck just happened.
“What the heck just happened?” Ashido voiced. He hated her smirk.
“Same.”
As planned, Sero and him were in the former’s room reading Inuyasha, which Shouto recommended.
When he was nine, his father prevented him from seeing his siblings, and he had no time nor desire (or so he thought) to befriend anyone in school. His only source of entertainment were plush toys.
One of those days back then, Endeavor was out for a week. Shouto walked through the lonely hallways of the abode and found an All Might comic book thrown on the floor. It was either of his siblings', but intrigued, he took it and hid it in his room. After that, when he became of age to walk alone on the streets, he used all of his savings on the comic book store.
To him, reading was an escape. Distracting himself with fictional people solaced him.
Sero was lying with half of his body upside down on the foot of his bed, while Shouto was curious about the comfort of a hammock.
“I’ve never seen fabric like this before.”
Sero shrugged. “I don’t know its name. It's probably something cheap Ma' bought back in the Philippines. She wove it herself.”
“Oh. Are you half Filipino?”
“Yup,” he grinned. “If there’s a reason I look like the stereotypical Japanese dude, it’s because of my late dad.”
Shouto struggled to sit up in the hammock to look at him. “I'm sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Don’t worry about it. Nuclear plant accident. Five years ago.”
Shouto remembered watching that on the news. The heroes could only save a few of the workers and people around the factory. Endeavor had turned off the TV, muttering something about mediocre jobs rather than lamenting the deaths.
“Are you an only child?”
“I’m the only male. Middle kid. The eldest is expecting a baby in two months…” he seemed to be debating whether or not to keep going and scratched the back of his neck. “Being a middle child is nice. Parents put high expectations on the eldest and focus on spoiling the youngest. You can observe and learn passively about stuff around you without actively being in the spotlight. Sure, chances are that you end up being the repressed or neglected kid, but it’s nice in my case."
Shouto tensed. He felt selfish to wish he would've preferred to be neglected than put on a high pedestal, but he didn’t want to bother Sero with his problems. “There’s so much I don’t know about you.”
Sero raised a brow. “I guess I don’t know a lot about you, either. It’s never too late to start!” he cheered. “That is, if you want to, of course.”
“I do.” ‘One day I'll tell you.’
“Awesome! By the way, Kikyo gives me the creeps…”
A few weeks afterwards, they were allowed to visit their families again. He decided that he’d only go to see his siblings, since his mother wasn’t receiving visits that day.
Last time, Fuyumi was busy on a field trip with her students and Natsuo had a late lab report that he had to catch up on and went to a friend’s house. He told Shouto to never take all-nighters.
Now, they’d finally be at home with no Endeavor in Japan for a few days, and at least Natsu and Shouto were happy to spend time together without him around.
“So, how are your friends doing?” Fuyumi asked him as she stir-fried veggies and tofu in the pan. He wondered if his sister was the type of person who was actually cheerful or just pretended for the sake of bonding.
His relationship with his siblings was like that one of divorced parents who lived far away, signed exclusive custody for distributed kids and never let the siblings meet each other. On an American movie he saw once with Uraraka, the siblings would find out they’re related in first place and got mad they were unaware of each other's existence.
“They’ve been worse,” he answered, unfocused as he read the first chapter of an old comic book Natsuo gave him.
“I should’ve given you that before you left. You seemed excited to talk with us and now you enjoy reading the comic more,” Natsu mock cried. “Are we not enough?”
Shouto immediately closed the book. “Don’t say it like that.”
He gave an evil grin. “Good. Now I've got your attention. Tell us more details about them. Got a rival? Never mind, everyone is your rival there.”
“Mhm.”
Natsuo’s phone chimed. He began blushing, checked the text, replied quickly and put the phone away.
“What’s got you red?” Shouto woke his brother out of his reverie.
“Oh, um. My girlfriend.”
“You’ve got a girlfriend? Since when?” Fuyumi asked, bringing the food to the table.
“Yeah. She’s a pre-med student a year older than me. We met in organic chem. After months of using our tests as an excuse to study and hang out together, she asked me out.”
“You can use studying as an excuse to hang out? Don’t you get distracted?” Shouto hadn’t wanted to sound mean. He was a little jealous that anyone else could just accept distractions like that into their daily routine without feeling as guilty about it.
Natsuo didn’t seem mad at all. “Sometimes, it was hard. I'd get nervous if I didn’t seem smart enough or if I got caught staring, but I pulled through.”
“Sounds like she’s the one who pulled through,” Shouto remarked.
Natsu attacked him with nudges. “Who taught you to be so sassy huh?”
Family. What a term.
“Want to study for pre-calculus with me?” Shouto asked Sero on their way to their classroom about two days after.
“Argh, man. I'd say yes, but Bakugou usually tutors us. I don’t wanna drag you down from your own studying.”
“I don’t mind. I can tutor you.” He'd never once tutored in his life.
“Really? Well, it does give Bakugou less people to work with, so sure!” he gave him a dumb grin that did things to Shouto’s stomach.
Todoroki was a terrible tutor.
“Did you get it?” and the way he asked Hanta was so innocent. His lips curled up a bit, possibly waiting to receive a nice feedback.
Hanta’s smile was forced and awkward. “Yup,” he lied.
It’s not like Todoroki was mean whenever he explained something, but he would skip steps as if Hanta would magically understand them. He wasn’t such a bad student that he was hopeless. Somehow, he managed to get through what Todoroki meant to teach, and it was only because Bakugou had explained similar stuff several times before.
The reason Bakugou’s a good tutor was because he already knew his friends were dumb as shit. Even though he tried to hold his patience together and it was perceptible through his pores, he would explain as many times as his friends needed. Sometimes, his reviews and methods were personalized to each different empty brain.
Deku had the good intentions and intellect, but contrary to Todoroki, he over explained and way too quickly, which could bore anyone who tried to learn.
Yaomomo was also a great tutor, and he had gone to her house a few times with study groups. Anyone who wasn’t on the Bakusquad went to her, so her hands were already full. Jirou was smart, but like Todoroki, she sucked at teaching. Unless of course, it was related to music.
“You’re lying.” Well, at least he didn’t seem angry.
He sighed, “Yeah, I am.” There’s no way he'd start lying on the friendship he's wanted for so long.
Todoroki actually looked… dejected?
“Is it me? Am I doing a bad job?”
“What? No, please don’t feel like that, man. I'll be honest. You’re so smart that you’re able to skip steps straight to the answer, but I'm not like that. So, it's me who's the problem.”
Todoroki clenched his fists over the table they were in on the common room. “No.”
“No?”
“If Bakugou can tutor you in a way that you get at least 75-88, then it means you don’t have a comprehension problem. It just depends on the way that it’s explained."
Hanta had to refrain from voicing out loud just how hot defensive Todoroki was.
“I'll work on it,” Todoroki finally said with determination.
“Work on it?”
“I'll be a better tutor. We can also spar, if you want.”
Who was he to refuse Todoroki wanting to spend time with him?
“We can. I'm not complaining, I just… why are you doing this? Going this far to help me”
‘Why are you paying so much attention to me? I'm not that worthy of it, and that’s okay. I was happy with it.’
“You’re my friend.”
Sero’s heart exploded.
‘Why do you stare at me so intensely? As if I've done something outstanding.'
“And it’s what a good hero would do. Try to be helpful and all…”
“You’re right! Thanks, Todoroki!”
And that’s how Hanta knew he was entirely fucked.
Sero didn’t have a bad technique. He just wasn’t as quick as Shouto. They were at the training room. It was about 9pm and had been sparring for almost two hours.
There were moments where Sero pinned him down, and the sight above him would paralyze Shouto briefly before taking over and winning.
“Do you want to try again?” he asked Sero, who was sprawled on the floor panting.
The guy looked defeated, honestly, but there was a challenging gleam in his eyes that told Shouto he wasn’t giving up soon.
‘I know I'm not gonna win, but I don’t wanna lose, either.'
He felt himself almost smile at the memory. At the time, everything from that match was unmemorable. For… research purposes he had looked up the video on the internet. Saw how everyone cheered for Sero even after losing miserably. How he tried even after knowing the obvious difference in experience. Sero was truly something else.
Sero stood up from the floor and stretched his arms, looking at him with a cocky smirk. “Bring it on, pretty boy.”
Pretty boy
Pretty boy
Pretty-
Okay, so Shouto was aware he was considered probably the most handsome guy at UA, after so much insistence from Uraraka. He pretended not to hear the comments. That with scar and asymmetry on either side of his body, he still received confession letters every week.
There was no way to explain why he felt the way he did when Sero said it.
They went to the locker rooms to wash away the sweat. From the corner he was standing, he could see Sero taking off his shirt.
It was supposed to be normal. He had seen every male classmate shirtless before, whether it be in the pool or in the changing rooms. He couldn’t help but notice the very dark moles and beauty marks that dotted Sero’s back. He was rather lanky, and the broadest part of him were his shoulders. Shouto didn’t know about his abs, but the biceps, along with the obvious tape dispensing elbows, were quite defined.
When he noticed he was staring, he snapped his head back to the locker. He felt warm all over. It was weird. He had never prolonged his sight at someone’s half-nakedness before, and that scared him a little.
Manga nights became more usual than the faint ones they had since first year. They didn’t speak much, which Shouto's introvert roots were thankful for. They enjoyed each other’s presence when in silence and noise.
Shouto improved his tutoring skills after totally not begging Momo for two weeks to give him tips learning how to understand what Sero liked more. Was he a more diagram visuals person? Did he like listening more than reading? How many breaks between lessons did he need? 45-minute studying with 15-minute breaks for three hours? 50-minute study with 10-minute breaks?
Eventually he got there, and Sero was doing a lot better in his Math and History subjects. It might have taken a while, but it was worth it. He was worth it.
Sero had a way of being reassuring that made Shouto trust him more little by little. His smiles, the nudges on his arm, his lame puns and testing Bakugou’s patience.
Speaking of the explosive pomeranian, he saw how Midoriya pecked his cheek before going to the elevator.
“I'll be going ahead, kay?” Midoriya did not know how to whisper. Unless it wasn’t meant to be one.
“I'm getting some snacks, then,” Explodey grunted and turned to the kitchen.
Todoroki directed his gaze elsewhere, trying to be inconspicuous.
“Oi, Candy Cane.”
He slowly moved his face to look at him from the couch. “Hm?”
“What're ya looking at? You wanna blabber all about everyone’s love life now.”
He shook his head but said nothing else.
“Tch. Whatever.”
Before Bakugou could get to the Kitchen, Shouto called him.
“I was wondering… how do you do it?”
“Hah? Do what?”
“You used to be so focused on becoming the #1 hero. Now you’re dating Midoriya."
“WHAT’S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN? I'M STILL GOING FOR THAT GOAL AND SO IS HE AND I’M GONNA WIN!”
Shouto was not startled the slightest by his outburst. “What I meant was: isn’t that distracting?”
Bakugou calmed down and actually seemed to think about it. “Well, it makes the competition even better,” he grinned maniacally. “Other than that,” he looked around them. “If you ever tell anyone, I swear I'll murder you and you’ll really become a support cane-”
“Go on,” Shouto cut him off, looking extremely bored.
It was obvious Bakugou wanted to yell at him for interrupting, but he cooled down by taking deep breaths. Huh, therapy had helped a little.
“I think it makes us even stronger,” he grumbled. “We’re strong together ‘cause we’re hella fucking great, but having him by my side… it makes me look even more forward. We're also trying to see who of us both can protect the other better, and it’s…” Shouto only heard a mumbled, incomprehensible ending.
“What was that?”
“FUN. I SAID IT’S FUN.”
“You? Having fun?”
“Like you're one to talk, Half-n-Half. Your idea of fun is pairing socks.”
“Hm? You’re the one who does that every Saturday morning in the laundry room.”
“ICYHOT-”
“Yo, what’s going on here?”
“PLAIN FACE! Control your boyfriend.”
“W-wha?”
Sero looked mortified at Bakugou’s words, and although Shouto knew how to hide his shock, he didn’t feel any better. Why would Bakugou mention Sero's boyfriend out of nowhere? And why didn’t Shouto know about him having a boyfriend in first place?
“Good evening, Sero.” He did his best to hide the feeling of betrayal.
It’s not like they were the best of friends, but he knew Sero liked, or thought he liked, someone and, deep down, Shouto wanted updates. Was this person nice? Did he like Sero’s hair? His smile? How the corners of his black, almond-shaped eyes stretched whenever he wheezed of laughter?
“Roki! Hi, um. Why is Bakubro so mad?” He was totally going to ignore the boyfriend subject, wasn’t he?
“He isn’t. It’s his complicated reflex by habit, I’m sure.”
Bakugou visibly tensed. He inhaled and exhaled slowly for what seemed to be ten seconds. “I'll leave now to look for snacks.”
Sero blinked and Shouto just shrugged after Bakugou left to the kitchen.
“You have a boyfriend?” Something his classmates considered a curse was his level of bluntness. He could mask his emotions easily, but his words were another case.
Sero was red from his ears to his neck. “Huh? I don’t. What?”
“What Bakugou said."
“No. He meant you…” he scratched the back of his neck. “Since we’re spending so much time together lately, he decided to tease us a little. I'm sorry if it makes you uncomfortable.”
“It only makes me uncomfortable if you are. You clearly are.”
“I swear it’s not because I dislike you. You must know that.”
“I understand," Shouto replied. “It's because of your crush.”
His eyes widened and panic struck on his face. “My crush?”
“Yeah. You don’t want them to misunderstand. Rumors of being with me will scare them away.”
“NO!” Sero yelled a little too loudly for it being eleven in the night. “I mean, don’t worry about that, okay? I promise it’s cool.”
“If you say so. I can still announce that you are very much single if anything goes wrong.”
“Yeah, no, but thank you.”
Weeks went by and he finally went to visit his mother at the hospital. She always asked about his day, even though he only answered with “Nothing much, really.” Sometimes he told her about Midoriya and Bakugou.
He couldn’t help but resent his father for the fact she was still at the hospital. She wouldn’t see her son becoming a young man. She wouldn’t make dinner when he brought his friends home: Uraraka would've told her all the secrets of UA. Rei would’ve cooked with Tsuyu and Bakugou. Iida would help her sew new winter outfits. She’d nicely ask Midoriya about himself and after five minutes, he’d already be talking her ear off about heroes.
He figured she’d like Sero very much, as well. He could talk with her about plants all day. She was a fan of flowers and tea leaves. He wondered if Sero liked flowers. Would he want his crush to give them to him?
She laughed, bringing him back to reality. “Your friends keep getting more hilarious by the day. I'm so proud of you, Shouto.”
He didn’t know how to react to that. He was used to hearing his father say he was either proud or disappointed in “his creation” rather than his son. He felt kind of overwhelmed, confused, happy, hurt?
“Anyways,” she gave a small smile, “do you have a girlfriend?”
“Huh?”
“Or a boyfriend. Partner?”
“I- uh, no.”
“Really? Do you like someone, then?”
The hands over his thighs gripped his jeans a little. “I don’t know what it’s like. How do you tell the difference between liking someone as a friend or wanting to pursue a romantic relationship with them?”
She spaced out, seeming to be deep in thought. “You can desire touch platonically, but there’s a different type of tingle when the person you like touches you. Maybe you also find them attractive.”
That didn’t help. He thought all of his friends were at least okay-looking. At first, he didn’t like being touched, but as he grew more trusting, he didn’t mind being touched by his friends. In fact, he secretly liked it when they hugged him.
“Well, those can be platonic, true. Hmm, perhaps you’d like to kiss that person. See yourself in a future going out on dates and holding hands.”
“Is that how you felt with Endeavor?” He didn’t know why he felt like acting petty in that moment. The whole subject in general confused him when it came to himself. He went along with his mother’s description, but he thought she was the second to last person he wanted to hear love advice from.
“He’s your father, Shouto.”
“Is he acting like one?”
“No, but-”
“You forgave him, didn’t you?”
“…I might, eventually. The war changed him."
“I can’t believe this,” he stood up from his chair and paced around the room. “He hit you. Did some stupid flowers make up for everything he did?”
“He's trying…”
“No! He thinks it’s really that simple, huh? Fuck trying to romanticize ‘an ideal family’. Both you and Fuyumi are letting this off so easily. I don’t get how you could.”
He hadn’t noticed that unconsciously, his left side had incinerated on its own. Not to hurt his mother. Never for that. Just a reflex that he needed to learn to control more due to closing off that side for so long. He didn’t burn anything, at least.
Without any thought, he had already ran away. Too lost in his mind to realize he was already on his way back to the dorms. He hated that part of himself. The one that was still angry. He wanted to be at peace with himself and try to forgive his father, but he couldn’t bring himself to.
His father was the reason he was afraid to let himself be loved and cared for. He knew he was capable enough to protect himself physically, but after being exposed to so much joy, he was scared he'd be too vulnerable. He was still learning to acquire self-love.
Somehow, he found himself knocking on Sero’s door. He didn’t hesitate in skipping to the point when it opened.
“My father is an asshole. I most certainly need therapy due to my childhood trauma and I'll tell you about it.”
Sero looked very confused, but said nothing as he let him inside. He patted the spot next to him on the bed so Shouto would sit.
He explained everything. Vomiting every week since he was five because of exhaustion. How he got his scar. How he wasn’t seen as a kid, but a robot. Why Shouto had expected to not have friends in UA. Being sad about Dabi escaping after the war instead of attempting to make amends with his siblings and thinking it's entirely Endeavor's fault.
Sero listened attentively without interrupting. There was an occasional gasp and his eyes were red, as if he would cry any moment. Shouto figured Sero knew he didn’t need pity, and that was probably why he held back from actually bursting into tears.
“Can I hug you?” Sero asked after he finished talking, and to both their surprises, Shouto answered by hugging him tightly.
His head was settled on the other’s shoulder. Sero raked his fingers through his hair, and he found himself enjoying it more than he should.
He never wanted to let go of him. He remembered wondering in Ground Epsilon how it’d be to be held by Sero Hanta. Now he had the chance, and realized it was way better than he imagined.
“I'm sorry and angry that you had to go through that. Endeavor is a sac of shit, and if I were powerful enough, I'd give him a piece of my mind. In fact, forget being powerful. I will try when I see him. But guess what? You'll be a real hero with a genuine heart. You'll be better than him in every single way.
“And if you do get therapy, I’ll support you all the way, you hear me? You’re wonderful, Roki. Never forget that.”
Sero’s face was so full of emotion. His eyes were sad, his eyebrows were angry, but his smile was determined.
‘You're wrong' Shouto thought. ‘You’re the one who’s truly wonderful.'
“You know something Ashido does whenever I'm sad? She starts painting my nails and putting masks on my face. We could do that. Or do you wanna read manga?”
“All of the above.”
“Even the nails part?”
“It'll probably make my father mad. So, yes.”
“Really? I only have black nail polish, but we can work with that. Gimme a sec.”
When Sero returned to bed, he pulled Shouto's bangs back with a headband, then his own hair in a low ponytail.
He liked how Sero looked with his hair up. He didn’t understand it back then, but the day he knocked on Sero’s door and saw him like that and with a face mask on, his heart stopped.
He grabbed his hand and painted his nails with so much gentleness. So much care. They were close. Too close and Shouto could barely breathe.
“You said Ashido did this whenever you’re sad. That time I went to your room…”
Sero blushed and loosened his grip on his hand a little to look at him.
‘Please, don’t let go. Hold it strongly again.'
“Oh, yeah. I was a little down that day. I’m okay now-”
“Was it about your crush?” he interrupted. His heartbeat accelerated, anxious about the answer. Did he really want to know?
Sero cringed. “Um… yeah.”
Whoever had Sero’s attention was more than blessed. They’d be treated with devotion, support and such care. They weren’t in their right mind if they didn’t even give him the time of the day, and he was ashamed to think that in first year, he was that person who ignored his existence. Not now. Not in the new, bright light that shone on Sero.
Suddenly, an epiphany.
He wanted to be Sero’s object of affection.
Oh, no.
He mustered all the courage he had left. He knew Sero wouldn’t be disgusted by him, at least. He wasn’t that type of person.
“I like you.”
But it wasn’t Shouto who said it.
Shouto blinked.
“I like you,” Sero repeated. “In a very romantic way. You’re probably not into that sort of thing and I understand. I just… really needed to get it out of my chest. It’s not the best time, I know. You just told me your life story! I forget to read the room sometimes, but-"
“Sero.”
“-hell! You probably won’t wanna share manga with me, anymore. But I thought it was very important-“
“Sero-"
“-to remind you that even after all you went through, you are loved and worthy of admiration. Maybe it isn’t as flattering coming from me but-"
“Hanta.”
Well, at least that shut him up. It got a funny reaction out of him. Mouth agape while wearing nothing but charcoal on his face.
“I like you, too.”
Sero's reaction didn’t get any better.
“You- you do?”
He nodded. “I only realized it seconds before you confessed. Regardless, I think I've liked you for a while.”
“Wow, this… I must be dreaming. I’ve dreamt this a million times before.”
“I assure you it’s not. I'm new at this, but I hope you’ll still want to date me. I promise to be a good significant other and bring you oranges every day.”
That apparently made Sero snort, which in turn made Shouto tilt his head in doubt. “Is that not what people in relationships do?”
Sero laughed a little louder. “Sorry! You're just so cute. You don’t have to do that.
Now it was his turn to blush. “I want to. I like it when you’re happy.”
Sero made a noise that sounded simultaneously like a choke and a squeal. Before he knew it, he was being tackled into bed with a strong hug. He smelled like eucalyptus and lemongrass oils.
“Just this. Being like this right now makes me happy,” he said against the skin between his neck and ear.
Shouto hugged back, and they stayed like that for a while.
“I think your nail polish spilled on the bed.”
“Holy crap, you’re right!” Sero yelled, looking for napkins to wipe off the black stain left on the comforter.
Shouto had to at least chuckle at his panicked face. He covered his mouth a little with his hand.
“Hey, that’s mean.”
“I don’t see why it is,” he feigned.
When the laughter died down, Shouto felt the air tense.
“Hey, um. Do you want to keep this a secret?” Sero asked.
“Huh? Why would I?” Did Sero want to keep it a secret?
“Your father and well, school…”
“So?” Okay. Maybe he underestimated the weight of being in a hectic hero school with a little more than a year left to graduate. Not to mention his family. Once Sero confessed, Shouto didn’t have time to evaluate the pros and cons because he was just so happy.
“I mean,” He grabbed Sero’s hand. “It’s fine if you don’t want to, but I mean it when I say that I don’t want to keep it a secret.”
And it was worth it. For Sero’s smile was wide teeth and took the majority of his lower face. It was perfect.
DUDES
HOLYSHIT
SNHFHSHT
GSJE HELP
[Mina] ?
[Denki] Did Todoroki say something like “Idk what porn is” And u thought it was the cutest shit ever
Uh no
Wtf
I CONFESSED AND
HE LIKES ME BACK RUHSBTB
[Mina] HRHWBRBAH
[Mina] I MEAN I EXOECTED HIM TO LIKE YOU BUT!!!!
[Kirishima] I'M SO PROUF OF YOU BRO <3
[Denki] GET IT KING!!! OFC HE LIKES YOU BACK
[Bakubro] go tf to sleep
[Bakubro] btw congrats or whatever.
[Kirishima] @Bakubro yo, why you leaving your room at 12am
[Denki] O.o he's going to Midoriya's room isn’t he?
[Mina] Nahh not tonight. I bet he’s threatening Todoroki now
[Denki] Oooh you're right he definitely is
What?
Why?
@Bakubro ANSWER
!!!!!
[Mina] Idk I also feel like talking with Todoroki, don’t cha think? @Denki @Kirishima
[Denki] *evil cackle*
[Kirishima] ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Guys? What do you mean?
WHY ARE THERE SO MANY KNOCKS NEXT DOOR?
ANSWERRR
Hanta didn’t expect for Todoroki to show up next morning on his door.
“Good morning, Hanta. Ready to go?”
“Oh? Good morning, um. I usually show up a little later than you to class. I don’t even have my shoes on yet.”
“I'll wait for you,” and suddenly he was sitting on the hammock while Hanta finished getting ready.
“It’s nice to know that your friends truly care about you,” Todoroki voiced pensively as Hanta combed his own hair.
Hanta groaned in embarrassment. “Oh my, what did they do?”
“They just asked me if my feelings were genuine or if it was my emotional constipation confusing me.”
“I am so sorry about them. You’re not emotionally constipated,” he said even if deep down he wondered how Todoroki came to realize he liked him.
“Midoriya once defined what emotional constipation meant after someone else said it to me. Afterwards, I looked it up online and I came to realize that yes, I am.”
“… I, um.”
“It’s fine. Like I said, I like it that people are paying attention to you.” The intensity of his stare made Hanta almost die on the spot.
“I- I guess.” He put his comb on the drawer and motioned Todoroki out of the room. “We shall go, then."
They walked in silence to the school for five minutes. This was happening. He was dating his crush.
“Should we hold hands?” Todoroki asked once they went through the gates, shocking Hanta grandly.
Oh.
“Do you want to?”
“Yes.”
“I know we talked about this and said it was fine if people knew, but y'know… the PDA part. You don’t mind?”
“I’m not familiar in terms of touching and affection, but I'd like to learn. I don’t mind.”
Hanta thought that, deep down, Todoroki probably minded.
“You know we can take this slow, right? It’s my first relationship too. I don’t want you to think we must act like every couple we read about.”
Todoroki looked down, most likely going through his thoughts. Probably overanalyzing whatever this was. Midoriya had been quite the influence on him in that aspect.
“I like touching you.”
“Don’t word it like that, Roki,” he mumbled, blushing.
Innocent, Todoroki ignored that and kept talking. “Besides, it'll prevent people from confessing their feelings for me.”
“People will never stop confessing their feelings for you, man. Not when they think I'm disposable enough for them to ‘win you over’ or something along those lines.”
He felt a hand grip his tightly and pull him a little, as if to let people walking by know that they were holding hands. “Shouto, wha-”
Todoroki glared at him. “You don’t think that, do you?” He began redirecting that gaze at everyone around them.
Hanta stabilized the others’ head by putting both his hands on his cheeks. He disliked drawing attention sometimes. He wasn’t uncomfortable in the public eye or in social situations, like at all, but he would have rather not being noticed. Then people would be looking forward to whatever ‘the tape hero’ would do, and he hated that. “Hey, hey. No, I don’t believe that. Look, they probably don’t even know who I am.”
“They won’t win me over.”
Hanta smiled. “I know."
“OH MY GOD, THEY’RE HOLDING HANDS!” Of course, it wouldn’t be Kaminari if he didn’t make a scene.
They were already inside the classroom when that happened. People in the halls minded their business unless they were Todoroki’s fan club, which was quite large. Other than that, walking around holding hands wasn’t as unbearable and he thought.
It was funny that when Todoroki offered his warm hand, they had a silent argument through stares after Hanta took his right hand instead. Todoroki had furrowed his brows doubtfully, but a comforting rub over the hand with his thumb assured that he wouldn’t feel cold.
He'd equally give affection to either side of him. Whether it’s the side Todoroki hates or the side that would freeze him again in a match.
“Okay, Todoroki-kun. Spill,” Uraraka banged both hands on the cafeteria table. That had startled a few people around them, but the peering eyes of the Dekusquad ignored them, seemingly interested in the subject.
“Yeah, Todoroki. I noticed you two were spending more time together, but I thought it was only about manga,” Midoriya added. For an observant person, he really was clueless to anything romantic, but not like he was one to talk, either.
“I’m happy for both of you. Ribbit.”
Iida indignantly put his fist over his heart. “It appears I am the only one in this group of friends that is not in courtship with anyone.”
Midoriya panicked at the incoming crisis of their friend. “That’s okay, Iida! Don’t feel bad.”
“Yeah, Iida-kun! We're still young.” Uraraka turned to Todoroki. “But seriously, how did this happen?”
He shrugged. “I like him and he likes me. We’ve confessed.”
“YOU MAKE IT SOUND SO EASY!” Uraraka yelled.
“Okay, so this one’s called the child pose. No, don’t look so tense. Extend your arms a little more. There you go,” Sero instructed.
Sero's room smelled like incense and diffused tea tree. Sero had told him that he did yoga whenever his elbows hurt too much or when stressed about not passing physical tests. He invited him over, which lead them to be weirdly stretched on their mats.
It wasn’t his go-to activity from what he’s experienced, but maybe he should keep trying it and hope for a miracle.
He also might have asked Bakugou for his therapist's phone number. After a few threats on Bakugou’s behalf asking if he only wanted to extract info from them to blackmail him, and that he couldn’t because of patient confidentiality, Shouto confirmed that he wanted one for him instead.
He also had to pester Aizawa to sign permission for academic purposes. He wasn’t dumb enough to ask his father to take him to the therapist.
His first appointment would be in a few days. The plan would be simple: go to the office and head to visit his siblings. He honestly didn’t know what to expect. He told Sero his fear of not knowing how to organize his complicated thoughts to talk about them, or even managing to speak about his past.
Sero kindly suggested to close his eyes and pretend he was talking to him, Midoriya or Natsuo, then he asked if he wanted to join him for yoga. He agreed, because he wouldn’t refuse some relaxing time. Not to mention if said relaxing time involved his very cute boyfriend.
Right. Boyfriend. That they were.
It was still strange for him to get used to. They hadn’t gone on dates outside UA. Sure, manga nights turned more cuddly and they used the comfort to things out of their chest. Communication is key, after all.
They still hadn’t kissed yet, either, and Shouto never initiated contact like handholding and hugs ever since they confessed. It had been three weeks already. The fact that Sero hadn’t called him out on it made him feel both thankful and bad.
Sero was a great as a person, partner and future hero. He had no idea how much Shouto looked up to him. Shouto only hoped that in near time, he’d have enough confidence to conventionally flirt back, compliment him and be a reliable support. Whatever Sero saw in him besides his apparent attractiveness still made him question everything.
“So, you’re telling me that you would’ve probably been an interior designer in a world without quirks and your father, huh? That’s actually very interesting, Shouto-kun,” Dr. Heiwashima told him while they typed on their computer.
“You really think so?” he was happy to tell someone his secret passions. He hadn’t even told Sero about it. He wanted reassurance from someone else that it wasn’t a stupid thought.
“Not at all. In fact, even if you are busy with hero work in the future, you might as well take some online courses. It’s a hard enough job to consider a simple hobby, but for your own knowledge and satisfaction, I mean.”
“I never really thought of it that way.”
They nodded. “It might also be the perfect break from everything around you. It’s okay to not let your life revolve around one single thing. You mentioned this Hanta is into civilian rights and animal activism, yoga, comic books. That’s his method of escaping the stress of the hero courses.
“Likewise, it’s nice of you to slowly experiment with the things you like and don’t like. Now, it’s also one of the tips I’ll give you to handle your anger towards a controlling parent…”
It was an understatement to say that Shouto left his appointment very satisfied. He texted Sero a small update before walking towards his family’s house. Sero responded with a meme about cats.
Shouto didn’t understand meme culture, but Sero’s spontaneity was enough to actually make him laugh, if they even sounded like laughs. He was grateful for someone like him, who had a weird, yet surprisingly stylish fashion sense similar to bohemian Americans. Sero who, after training, made sure his cellophane was properly placed where it would biodegrade.
He was so happy that he didn’t even remember Endeavor was supposed to be around that weekend.
“Shouto,” Endeavor acknowledged when he saw his son coming into the dining room.
It wasn’t unexpected to find Natsuo's chair empty and a nervous Fuyumi trying to ease the tension.
“Shouto! I'll go get the food I saved you.”
Shouto didn’t know how her leaving for the kitchen was supposed to make things better.
Endeavor eyed Shouto up and down, and scoffed. “Why are your nails painted? That’s not very professional.”
“Says who?” Shouto cooed. ‘Deep breaths. Don’t get riled up.’
“Under my criteria it isn’t. You are supposed to listen to my advice.”
“You mean ‘manipulative orders’?”
Endeavor banged his fist on the table. “Don’t talk back to me.”
Fuyumi came back with a bowl of food, but no one paid her any mind. “What’s going on?!”
“And what’s this that you have a- a boyfriend? That is distracting you from being number one in your own class-”
The sound of a punch against a jaw was heard along with a bowl dropping to the floor.
“Don’t you dare even think of treating him like this again!” Natsuo breathed heavily with his fist growing redder by the second. “Not on my watch. Not ever.”
“Natsu!” Fuyumi screamed with tears on her eyes and froze Natsuo’s feet to the floor. It was the first time Shouto had seen her use her quirk. He had once told his mother about it. She answered that Fuyumi probably thought that there was no use for her quirk at all. Even if Natsuo could also freeze, neither of them were able to thaw like Shouto could with his left side, which meant Natsuo was stuck to the floor until the ice melted.
The impact of the whole thing seemed to stun Endeavor silent. All he did was put his palm against his cheek in attempt to soothe it.
“I tried! I really did,” Fuyumi began. “I was forgiving you. So easily. I wanted to go back to being a normal family. I thought you were trying to change ”
“Fuyumi-”
“No! I've only seen Shouto less than ten times since he turned five, and even I can tell that he’s been happier,” she cried. “I don’t want you to fight, yet I can’t help but feel so stupid because Natsu warned me. He told me you wouldn’t change and I should’ve known by Shouto's hesitation.”
“I'm not mad at you Fuyumi…”
“Neither am I,” Shouto added.
A long, pregnant and intimidating silence appeared. Unpredictable and quite eerie until their father broke it.
“Very well, then.”
No one processed the fact that Endeavor had left till after the teapot began hissing, startling them back to reality.
“What’s gonna happen to him?” The youngest asked.
“I don’t know. He still has that one house on the beach… and the chalet on Mt. Fuji... and the studio on Nabu Island, and the villa in I-Island..."
“Will we have to worry about him?”
“Not for a while, no," Natsu sighed. "At least I don't think so.”
Hanta expected light things to happen when it came to Todoroki. Things like ‘I bought a ¥10,811,500 manga’ or even ‘I joined a Brazilian zumba lesson.'
He never expected Todoroki asking him to meet his mother barely halfway on their second month together.
Even if Todoroki never initiated contact, he still didn’t hesitate when letting people know they were dating. He was surprisingly bold in that aspect, and Hanta envied him for it.
“W-what?”
“I’m still mad at her, but she deserves to know,” he replied as if it were no big deal.
Hanta refused to be any less confident. “Alright, then. Only if we take the train to Nerima so you can meet my family, too.”
That made Todoroki blush. “Will they all be there?”
“If you mean Ma', Tanso, Yuka, Yakani, Beru and Pusa, then yes.”
Todoroki nodded. The red hadn’t left his cheeks yet. In Hanta’s eyes, nothing was more adorable than that.
Meeting Todoroki Rei was more easy-going than he thought it’d be.
She was a lovely woman, who although surprised when they came into her room holding hands without context, she gladly accepted that her little boy was finding happiness and overcoming the childhood obstacles she was unable to prevent.
While on the train, they decided that if they arrived to Tokyo by one in the afternoon, they’d stroll around the city to go on a proper date. By proper, they meant taking Todoroki to try plant-based street food and showing him the comic book store he had been going to since he was a kid. Yes, very proper.
It was no surprise that his mother and sisters were already at the door not even two seconds after ringing the doorbell.
Whispers of “Oh my God. He's handsome," “You go, Hanta", and “How did he even manage?” bounced around the entrance.
Todoroki was frozen in place, no pun intended. Hanta thought he might have been overwhelmed by the attention, but after following his line of sight, he saw Pusa approaching Todoroki’s socks. Todoroki must have been quietly observing the cat, afraid to startle her.
“You can pet her, you know? She's friendly when you first meet her. She ignores you once she’s used to you, though.” Hanta encouraged Todoroki to crouch, which he did.
Once facing the cat, Todoroki had a staring contest with her for a few seconds before reaching to rub the fur near the base of her tail. “Hello.”
The attention-starved Pusa purred and dwelled on the comfort provided. Hanta was jealous that Pusa only ever paid attention to him whenever he was about to leave the house. It didn’t mean the sight didn’t make him smile.
“Then Hanta here cosplayed as Spiderman and tried using his quirk as an advantage for show,” Yuka, twenty-seven and pregnant, decided to bring up story time while they ate.
“He was thirteen and untrained, so of course he dangled from one of the air pipes on the ceiling of the convention center,” Tanso, 24, added.
“Stop…” Hanta warned.
“Do you have any pictures?”
“Roki!” he gasped in betrayal.
“We do, actually-”
“MA'!”
His mom shot crochet thread out of her elbows, grabbing a photo album from one of the shelves and pulling it towards the table.
“This is so embarrassing…”
“Here it is. Oh, and here’s Hanta with braces. That one summer he had severe acne.”
“Please, kill me ”
After dinner, Shouto offered to help with the dishes while Sero took a shower. He had never washed a dish in his life before moving to the UA dorms. His friends were nice enough to teach him how to do it properly.
Mrs. Sero begged for them to stay the night. After all, the weather was turning close to snowy in late evenings. The house was cramped with people, so he would have to stay in Sero’s room.
It was obvious Sero's mom wanted to talk to him.
He didn’t know how he understood. Maybe it was the way she threw glances at him every now and then as they ate. Sero joked multiple times that his mother was secretly a bruha and he was starting to believe him.
They had a silent pace. She washed the dishes as he dried them with a towel.
“I’m really glad you’re here,” Mrs. Sero spoke.
“Oh, um. As am I.”
She giggled a little nervously. “I mean, yes. I am glad you came here to meet us. But, I was talking about being there for my little boy,” her eyes turned sad. “He's never seen himself as special. If there was anyone who saw a greater worth in him, it was his father..
“His death devastated him. It only motivated him more to become a hero and care for his younger sisters.”
She sniffled. “I never gave him the attention he deserves, yet he’s doing fine on his own. He’s so important to me. It bothers me that he settles so easily. He settles for average because he doesn’t believe he can do more. He settles for being unnoticed because he thinks he’s boring…”
Shouto nodded in agreement. He respected Sero more than anything, and he would respect his decisions, as well. Yet he understood Mrs. Sero's concerns.
“He’s told me so much about you, Shouto-kun. I'm glad you see in him what he doesn’t see in himself. The fact that he also has a group of friends makes me so happy.”
“He truly is fantastic. I promise to cherish him,” he assured.
She smiled. “I don’t doubt it.”
After he showered, he found the way to Sero’s room and saw him lying on his bed with headphones on, probably listening to anime soundtrack. Beside the bed was a small futon.
He liked futons better, to be honest, but he glared at it as if it had offended him. He expected that, since not even in the dorms they had ever slept in each other’s rooms. Not because they didn’t want to… well, at least Shouto certainly wanted to, but he’d be fine if Sero didn’t want to. It was still early in their relationship.
“Something wrong, ‘Roki?”
Sero had sat up on the bed and taken off his headphones, staring at him with concern.
Shouto didn't answer and crawled over to him between his legs. His head was tucked below Sero's chin and his arms wrapped around the strong torso.
“Oh? Well, hello there,” Sero chuckled, pulling him closer.
Shouto hummed, listening to Sero's quickening heartbeat. One of Sero’s hands began petting his hair and the other drew circles in his back. Feeling bolder, his legs wrapped around his boyfriend’s hips.
“W-wow, okay.”
Shouto pictured Sero blushing, so he lifted his head to look at him and was proved right. “Is this alright?”
“It definitely is.”
Shouto glanced down, to look at Hanta’s pajamas. It was a matching set of a white background with yellow mandalas printed in them. He looked very good in yellow.
Sero poked between Shouto’s eyebrows. “Whatcha thinking about?”
“That I like the way you look and if you’ll allow me, I'd really like to kiss you.”
Sero spluttered. “For real?”
“Yes.”
“I gotta warn you, though. I only once kissed a girl in a play in elementary school and a boy in junior high because of a dare. I'm not experienced.”
“You say that as if I were.”
“Right, right. Um,” Sero took a deep breath, but Shouto was the one to close the gap with a terrible aim, landing on a corner of his lips.
That made Sero laugh, looking at Shouto as if he were a precious gem, placing his hands on both of his cheeks. He tilted his head a little to avoid the nose bump.
When their lips finally met, they barely moved. Despite not being as active as the movies showed, Shouto had never felt safer than in Sero Hanta’s hold; than being the receptor of his smiles and warm looks.
“I want to sleep with you.”
“Huh?” Sero's pitch rose an octave.
“Rephrasing. Sleep on this bed. With you”
“Oh. Of course, yeah. Sure. Yup.”
“Sure?”
Sero cleared his throat. “Yes.”
They still had a lot to work on regarding themselves. They had to be their best in order to become great heroes. Mere children they were, with so many plans, a thousand illusions to see their dream grow, and be not what the world expected for them to do, but what lay in their heart and mind.
“Wanna read manga before going to sleep?”
They'd be alright.