Chapter Text
The trip back to the dormitories was a quiet affair. Class 1A had all but celebrated and hugged each other until exhaustion forced them to retreat to their sleeping quarters. Phone calls to family and friends had been made and Sakura was dreading making the phone call to Ren-senpai, that was if Nezu-ojisan hadn't done so already. The girls and boys were walking in separate groups, chatting quietly amongst themselves. Sakura was a little ways behind, watching a video of their final exam which had been recorded. A lot had happened with her classmates and she wanted to be up to date if they had to discuss.
"Haruno-chan!"
Sakura looked up from her cellphone to see Yuuga walking towards. She paused the video and put it in her pocket, intent on seeing it later in the comfort of her room. "Hey what's up?" she asked the blonde boy. "Nothing much. I just wanted to know how you were, with the pressure of the exams and all," he replied with a good natured smile. "Well, I failed. That much is obvious since I'm not celebrating with anyone," she said, an undertone of bitterness in her voice. "I almost failed but somehow, I managed to make it. Honestly, I don't know how it would've been if I hadn't done anything but excellence. My parents made it crystal clear that failure was not an option considering the work that they did for me to be here," he stated. Sakura chuckled lightly, her fox ears twitching. "What, did they pay Nezu-ojisan for you to be accepted?" she teased.
Yuuga looked horrified. "Oh my, no! We're far too elegant for something as low as buying success," his smile slipped from his face. It was the first time she had seen him not smiling and he looked devasted. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean any offence. I was just teasing," she quickly apologized, surprising even herself at how fast an apology came out of her mouth. They weren't even that close. "It's okay. It's easy to assume that since my parents are lavish than most," he said as the smile crept back onto his face. "Wow, very humble," she retorted, sarcasm dripping from her tone. "Perhaps one day, I can tell you all the work that they did for me.
You'll be the first to know," he promised her. "I must be very special then," she drawled out with a roll of her red eyes. "I don't know. Some people tell me you are," he said with a side glance before he moved away from her, joining Izuku and Tenya who were walking ahead of them.
Sakura's heart beat rapidly against her chest. His statement left a sour taste in her mouth. It couldn't have been just a sentence. Did he know something about her? About what she was able to do? No one knew apart from Nezu, a few teachers and the Big 3. That was a part of herself she want to bury under the ground, never to be discovered. Or maybe it was someone else entirely? Someone she didn't know? Because there was no way that Nezu would be stupid enough to let someone as shallow as Yuuga know. She ought to keep her guard up around him.
"If you keep on looking at him like that, you're gonna burn holes in his uniform," a voice spoke beside her. She turned to look at him, surprised. It was Shoto and he was starting a conversation with her. She quickly schooled her expression into something neutral. "I doubt his parents would let him wear something that would get destroyed by a little heat, considering his quirk and all," she replied. "Really? I think your gaze is hot enough to melt him," he stated with a serious a expression. Sakura chuckled. "I don't know if you being unintentionally funny but that was a terrible joke," she spoke as she held back laughter. "I'm serious. Your eyes look as if they're staring deep into one's soul. Maybe you have lazer eyes," he said as he held his chin in thought.
Sakura laughed until she was wheezing. "Wow, I definitely needed that. Is this your attempt at making feel better that I failed? Because it's working," she said as she wiped tears from her furry face. Shoto looked at her curiously for a moment before he gave her one of his small smiles. "I suppose I have my sister to thank for that," he told her. "Fuyumi was it?" she asked him. The double quirked boy looked at her in surprise. "How do you know her name?" he asked with a casual raise of his eyebrow.
"As much as I am embarrassed to admit, I'm a fan of Endeavour and at one point, I was obsessed about knowing everything about him. So I stumbled upon your names a few times," she confessed with an embarrassed flicker of her ears. He stopped and looked at her with a blank expression. Sakura stopped as well and blinked in surprise at the sudden mood change. "Is that so?" he muttered, mostly to himself. He looked at though he was thinking hard about something. "I remembered I have something to do," he spoke, turning and walking away from her.
It took Sakura a good five seconds before what had happened registered with her. Just a few moments ago, they were laughing and he closed off all of a sudden. Did she do something wrong? Was it what she said? But what could it possibly be that could set him off like that? They were beginning to be friends, weren't they? Or maybe she was being delusional.
"Sakura! Come over here!"
She heard Mina call her name as she walked with the girls ahead of their group. "Coming!" she replied. She looked at Shoto was walking near the boys but not quite part of their group. His hands were shoved in his pockets and years of observation told her that he was angry, judging from the tenseness in his shoulders and his slightly stiff gait. Her ears drooped. If she knew what had set him off like that, she would apologize but it seemed he didn't want to speak to her, judging by how he even hadn't said goodbye.
.
He should've known! He should've damn well known that no one would be interested in him without the shadow of Endeavour hovering around him. It seemed people only knew of his existence because he's was Endeavour's son. Nothing more, nothing less. His hand absently went to his scar. The skin was no longer rough as it had been the first few years since he had gotten it but it wasn't as smooth as the rest of his face, a stark reminder of why it was a curse to be born as Endeavour's son. He didn't even need the damned fire quirk. He was quite content with his mother's ice quirk!
He stole a quick glance at the half-human half-fox walking ahead him. She was strangely quiet and only spoke when spoken to. It filled him with an unexplainable rage. She had friends who wanted to befriend her because she was just her. Not someone's daughter. Simply because she was Sakura Haruno. For a moment, he thought of freezing her stupid tails but thought against it. He was better than that. He had learned to rein his emotions in ever since his mother burned him with boiling water. To think that Endeavour's quirk couldn't protect him from hot water yet he believed it to be the superior quirk.
His thoughts went back to the girl walking ahead. He had long since learned that most people wanted to befriend him because he was Endeavour's son or he had two quirks. It made him a socially awkward person, in Fuyumi's point of view. Or a dick, according to Bakugo. He chose to believe the former. He hadn't wanted to befriend Sakura, let alone speak to her. He wasn't even interested. But she pestered him, albeit in an unusual way, and he had relented. He was quite confident that they were on their way to become friends. He was even jealous when Inasa extended his invite for other activities outside of school. That counted as something because he usually didn't care! Until he cared, only to be stabbed in the back.
Well, maybe calling it betrayal was too much but it stung nonetheless. It was because of Endeavour that she sought him out. She even knew his siblings' names. That only acclimated to her being a stalker. She might've found the information on the internet since it was everywhere but he felt indignation at the moment and chose to believe anything that made her out to be the bad guy.
He sighed as he rubbed his scarred eye. It was itching and it happened whenever he was in a bad mood. He ought to get to the dorms soon and relax. They had been given a week off before they could start their internships under their agencies. He had to retake the exam in three months time. Meaning he could do nothing but wait. As he has always believed, he looked out for himself and himself only.
.
By the time they arrived at the dorms, everyone was exhausted from the rush of adrenaline from taking part and passing the exams. They quickly bid each other good night before retreating to their respective rooms. Sakura wanted to go to sleep but it was way past her bedtime and sleep had eluded her. She decided to take a bath and maybe watch TV until around 3 when sleep would claim her again. With that thought in mind, she discarded her uniform and took a long hot shower.
She used three different towels to dry her head, tails and her human body. After that, she changed into a pair of sweatpants and sweatshirt which were a deep red color. She brushed her teeth, paying special attention to her long canines. After cleaning up the mess in her room, she left and went downstairs to the kitchen, wanting to grab a packet of potato chips.
However, she was surprised to find Shoto staring intently at a bowl of cooling soba. He must've heard her because he raised his head to look at her when she entered the kitchen. They looked at each other without blinking for what must've been a long time before he looked away. She felt awkward as she stood there, bit knowing whether to proceed with her plans or to retreat back to her room.
It seemed as though whatever tension had been there the last time spoke had intensified. She shifted uncomfortably then went to the one of the cupboards, taking a packet of salt and vinegar chips. Though she didn't turn to look at him, she felt his eyes on her the entire time, burning holes into the fabric of her sweatshirt. She wanted to curl into a ball out of embarrassment or whatever she was feeling. She felt her ears twitching nervously and her tails swishing behind her, the sound slightly calming as if to comfort her. 'Ah, to hell with it!' She decided to address the giant in the room.
"Listen, I don't know what I did or said to make you angry but at least, you can tell what it is so I can apologize and fix it," she rushed out, her heart beating rapidly against her chest. He raised a single red eyebrow. "I'm not angry," he told her simply. That caused her to become angry. "Yes you are! I'm well familiar with the feeling to know the difference between being angry and royally pissed off, of which you're the latter. Now out with it!" she demanded.
They held each other's gazes for a moment too long before Shoto finally spoke. "Be honest with me. Did you befriend me because I'm Endeavour's son?" he asked plainly. Sakura taken aback. She was not expecting that. She pondered the question for a second and her immediate response was no but then thought better of it. He told to be honest. And truthfully speaking, she did befriend him because she was interested in his fire quirk. And also because he was Endeavour's son. She could lie to him and say no. He'd never know. But the vulnerable expression on his face told her to reconsider. She swallowed audibly.
"I......yes. Initially, it was b-because you're Endeavour's son but I-" "Guess that explains it. You never wanted to be my friend, it's only because of Endeavour that I even registered on your radar," he spat out, his face pinched in disappointment. "Look, I was honest and admitted it to being one of the reasons I wanted to befriend you. But I'm being honest again, it's no longer because of that. I genuinely want to be your friend," she retorted hotly. "Any why should I believe you?" he said. "I was honest when I answered. What makes me you think I'm lying to you?" she replied.
"The fact that the entire foundation of our relationship is based on a lie," he stated simply. "What lie?" she asked incredulously. "I'll be frank with you. I hate Endeavour and wanted absolutely nothing to do with him. I'd pick being fatherless than having him as a father. So if you think being his fan will score you points in my book, then think again," he told her with a glare. Sakura wanted to reply but he was out of the kitchen before he could.
'What just happened?' she asked herself.