Chapter Text
The school trip crept up on Mina faster than she expected. It was finally the time of year when the hero course began their break with the Okinawa trip. The trip commemorates second-year students for their hard work before they start their third year. About 30 years ago, U.A. established a private training facility in Okinawa for third-year students to train and practice as part of their senior practicums. It was an extremely popular program and a highlight of many third-year experiences at U.A. As the academy expanded, it built more training bases across Japan and some overseas, leaving the original in Okinawa abandoned. Since then, the facility has hosted second-year students occasionally for seasonal training.
When Mina tried to recall memories of going to the beach, all she could remember were fuzzy recollections of a better time. She'd spend her days walking between her parents on the beach, holding their hands, searching for hermit crabs, chasing after the tide. Even now, she could close her eyes and almost perfectly recreate the smell of salty air and the waves crashing at the shore. The idea of the school trip to Okinawa used to make her heart skip a beat as she planned out the trip in her head. The thought of it now made her stomach churn.
Desperate to clear her mind, she started folding the mountain of clothes on her bed. She smoothed out the creases of her shirt with her fingertips before folding the sides over each other and placing them within a pile. She repeated the action mindlessly until there was one shirt left to fold. She gathered the fabric in her arms and held it close to her chest.
There really is no way of getting out of this trip, is there? She admitted softly. The memory of Uraraka showing up to her dorm looped through her mind, her tear-streaked face, the pleading for honesty, the lie that left Mina's lips. How could she even begin to make this right if Midoriya didn't want to talk to her?
Midoriya had seen her that night—she was sure of it. For a fleeting moment, they locked eyes across the dance floor, and he vanished as soon as she was confident it was him. She stared blankly into the void of her suitcase. The black hole seemed to be pulling her in.
She began to take small steps toward the void, calling to her until both her feet were in her suitcase. She crouched down before letting herself sit on the floor. She curled into herself, holding her knees to her chest, and let herself succumb to the darkness below her. She pulled the cover over her, and all was one.
The top of the luggage blocked all light from the ceiling. Mina was alone, with only her thoughts to keep her company in the vast null she had created. She closed her eyes and opened them again to see nothing had changed; he was still on her mind, and she was in her suitcase. Hot tears stung her face with a soft hiss as they fell down her cheeks. "God, I am in such deep shit." She whispered. The tears started to race down her face, and she opened her mouth to speak, only for an audible sob to escape. She didn't stop; she couldn't stop. She lay in the suitcase for a while, letting her sobs comfort her. Her cheeks burned slightly from her tears; she needed to regulate her emotions. The stinging was more annoying than painful.
She kicked the top of her luggage and winced from the blinding light. Tomorrow was going to come no matter what; all she could do was hold her head high, so that is what she did. She pulled herself up and looked in the mirror.
Her cheeks had some discoloration from the acid in her tears, which would heal by morning. She needed to wash and style her hair, but she skipped wash day while sulking in her misery. Her eyes had sunken into her skull, and she looked rough. Her hands found her face, and she massaged tiny circles into her cheeks as she stared at herself.
Despite everything, it's still me, Mina thought. Things would be okay; she just had to take things one day at a time. It's not like she had much of a choice.
She began by styling her hair, gripping the thick clumps and sectioning them into manageable parts. She lathered some pre-shampoo on her hands and tackled each section one at a time. She moisturized the entire section, from ends to the root, and combed through it with her hands. When she finished, she twisted the section into a two-strand twist and moved onto the next one.
Mina glanced at her phone—2:23 AM. Noone should be up at this hour. She grabbed her shower caddy, shower shoes, and robe, and slipped into the bathroom. Sure enough, she was right; the bathroom was empty. She wasted no time claiming a stall and washing her hair. She made sure to rinse the shampoo out of her hair thoroughly. As her nails traced little circles on her scalp, she sighed deeply. When was the last time she had taken care of herself like this? She took her time, rinsing out the shampoo and then applying conditioner.
The idea of slathering loads of gel and creams after spending an hour washing and detangling her hair in the shower would sound extremely unappealing if it weren't 3 AM, and she had spent the last two hours crying in her suitcase. She used her brush to form a slick, back-puff hairstyle that would last for the next four days. She made sure to pack her hair products for touchups.
With her headscarf tied tightly on her head, she finished. She collapsed on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She could count the tiny popcorn kernels bulging from it. She would like to think that's how she fell asleep last night, mind empty and ready to tackle the road ahead, but it was only a pair of green eyes flashing in her mind that managed to calm the storm in her head.
---
She reprimanded herself in her head for showing up at the airport early. She was able to get through security with ease and sat by the gate by herself. Dozens of pairs of eyes stole glances at the pink-skinned girl sitting by herself. They were watching her every move and pretending not to notice. Mina's eyes hung heavily, fixed on her phone, doomscrolling the internet, as she tried to ignore her classmates' behavior. She fished around in her pockets for her earbuds, put on her dad's playlist, and tried to block out the noise.
"Did you hear about Uraraka?"
"I honestly couldn't believe something like that-"
"Has anyone seen Deku lately?"
She heard snippets of these conversations as people passed by her bench, which only made her fixate harder on the article she was reading about Okinawa.
Relax, Mina. She told herself. Th ey're not talking about you. Her thumb pressed firmly on the volume up button, and she closed her eyes. Take some de ep breaths, Mina, deep breaths. Her body followed her command; she visualized her chest rising and falling slightly as she breathed in and out. It was something she had picked up from Dr. Kudo.
"Yo," someone tapped her shoulder, pulling her out of her thoughts. She turned to her left to see a floating sweatsuit sitting to her side. She grinned a little at the sight of her friend.
"Tooru?" Mina questioned, removing her earbuds from her ears.
"Well, yes, who else would it be?" The invisible girl said sarcastically. "Long time no talk! How have you been?"
"You have way too much energy for it only being 6 AM," Mina chuckled halfheartedly."I've had worse days. I'm feeling uneasy. "
"Cheer up!" She felt two arms envelope her in a tight squeeze. "I think you just need some time to relax and forget about everything! This trip is the perfect chance to do so! Did you bring your bikini?"
"Tooru," Mina side-eyed her friend. "The memo they gave us last week said we could only bring our UA swimwear, no outside swimwear."
"I know that, silly," She yawned. "I'm talking about the beach parties. You didn't seriously think we weren't going to hit the beach at night, did you?"
"No, I knew you guys were going." She said softly. " I also knew that I would stay my ass in bed while y'all are acting a fool on the beach."
"Mina," Tooru whined. "You're no fun. I know a lot's going on for you right now, but I really think this could be a good way of letting off some steam! One last hurrah before break?"
Tooru could be very passionate, for better or worse. It can be endearing to see her passion for people, her hobbies, and wanting to be a hero, but it can also turn into stubbornness very quickly. She bit her lip.
"I'll think about it," She lied. "Please don't hold me to anything."
The truth was, she would be a dumbass to show her face at a party with the whole second-year class while she was 80% sure there was a rumor going on about her and two of her friends. What benefit would there be in going? Adding more fuel to the fire? Mina could definitely do without that for a while.
"Good enough for me!" Tooru cheered. The invisible girl stood up from the bench. "I'm going to go find Kyoka before we start boarding the bus. You coming?"
Mina shook her head. "No, I need to catch up on these emails from my internship," she lied again. "Save a spot for me on the plane?"
"I already got you, girl," Tooru giggled. "See you in a bit!" Tooru didn't waste any time running off and disappearing into the crowd. Alone again, Mina put her earbuds back on. It wouldn't be too long until they could board the bus. She closed her eyes again and restarted Dr. Kudo's exercise.
---
Despite arriving early, she was not among the first to board the plane. Fellow second years filled almost all of the seats on the plane. This is what she gets for trying to get a little snack while they were boarding. She trudged slowly in the aisle, bumping into others and muttering apologies. She scanned the aisles for empty seats. Tooru didn't keep her promise, for she was sitting next to Yaomomo.
Through the sea of people, her eyes focused on a tuft of green hair. He was sitting next to his girlfriend and holding her hand tightly. She leaned in and whispered something into her ear. Whatever it was, he giggled, and the pair laughed together.
Maybe she imagined it, but she could have sworn that he looked her way. Maybe she wasn't imagining things; maybe he really did catch her eye just now. He looked away quickly, getting back to his girlfriend. Something about the way he looked at her, his demeanor didn't quite match his eyes-
"Hey, can you keep moving? You're holding up the line." Someone behind her said.
"Oh, I'm sorry," She blushed. She moved forward, scanning the aisles until she came across the first seat she could find. It was weird to see Bakugou on his own. He had the window seat, headphones on, and gazed out the window. Surely he wouldn't mind if Mina sat down. She made her way into the aisle, putting her bag under her seat and sitting down next to the blonde.
He turned around and frowned. "Who the hell said you could sit her?!"
"I did," She shrugged. She gestured to the line of students still standing in the central aisle, looking for a place to sit. "I just grabbed the first empty seat I could find."
He scrunched his face and put his headphones back on, tuning out his seatmate. Mina did the same. The flight was roughly 2 hours and 30 minutes; it wouldn't compensate for the night of sleep she missed, but it should be enough to help her get through the day. She logged onto her school's page for the itinerary. Although this was a school trip, they would spend most of it training. There wasn't much free time for students until the evening. The regret from staying up last night crept in as she looked at the plan for the next three days.
---
She slept like a baby through the flight, so much so that Bakugou had to wake her up and tell her she was snoring too loudly. She ignored him, of course, and nestled back into her comfortable position to get back to sleep. Unfortunately, they were about 5 minutes out from landing, and she had a rude awakening from the rough landing when the plane touched back down onto the ground. She jolted awake, holding the armrests tightly until the aircraft rolled to a stop.
Around her, her classmates all cheered and clapped to be safe on the ground. Weirdos . She thought to herself.
"Alright, everyone," A voice called out. Mina looked up to see Mr. Aizawa standing at the front of the cabin. "When the flight crew gives the all-clear, you need to line up outside the terminal. We have buses at the ground level that will transport us to the training base. If we leave without you, we will not be coming back. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Mr. Aizawa," The students cheered in unison.
When the seatbelt sign turned off, all the students wasted no time filing out of the plane. She could hear her laughter and cheers from the terminal about the upcoming trip. That glee seemed to infect everyone except herself and her seat partner. He wore that furrowed brow like he always did, and sucked his teeth.
"Can you get a move on already?" The blonde growled.
"Yeah, yeah," She rolled her eyes. She stepped out into the aisle so Bakugou could move in front of her. Bakugou could take his stank attitude and march out of the plane, or wait for her. She decided to choose for him. After he left, she opened the overhead bin in front of her, handed a suitcase to someone, and grabbed hers. Grabbing the handle and pulling it open, she dragged it behind her and made it out of the plane.
---
Rain poured down hard from the sky on the ride to the beach. She'd never seen rain at the beach. It was amusing watching everyone scramble like ants to find shelter. She rested her head on the window and watched the raindrops chase after each other before coming together.
The bus passed through a vast overhead sign reading: U.A OKINAWA TRAINING CENTER . With the passage through the sign, the trip had officially begun. They rolled past the two groups of beach cabins. They were all formed in a semicircle, with a small fire pit in the center of each. One would be for the boys, the other for the girls. Past that was the giant gymnasium, where the students would spend most of their time. The dining hall wasn't too far either. Finally, the bus slowed to a stop in front of a large clearing. She had a clear, unobstructed view of the beach with a small wooden pier in the distance. It was empty, the rain had just cleared everyone out, and the waves thrashed hard against the pier's legs.
I wouldn't be surprised if the class sneaked out to go here . She thought to herself. Mina stuffed her headphones deep into her pocket to keep them dry. The dismissal of the bus was more orderly than that of the plane. The students lined up in a single file to stand under the pavilion of the dining hall. She brushed shoulders with her estranged friend and looked back to see if he had noticed. To her surprise, he did, and they held each other's gaze for a second before she looked down at her feet.
Pull yourself together, Mina . Now isn't the time to be thinking of such things . She reprimanded herself. She could feel her cheeks growing hot from the moment they shared. She slapped her hands against her cheeks to cover the lilac shade. Hopefully, no one would notice.
Midnight and Mr. Aizawa took turns explaining the ground rules and the itinerary for the day. It was nothing new to Mina; all the information was in the forms that went home a month ago and the emails they sent out over the last week. Her mind wandered to the waves crashing softly at the shore, and how good it would feel to float in the sea, with her worries carried away with the water.
---
They caught each other's eyes during sparring practice. Midoriya almost got hit by Kirishima because he was looking in her direction. You would think that after that, he would make a greater effort to avoid glancing at his forbidden situationship, but he didn't.
They saw each other again at lunchtime, this time Mina looked for him first. He was carrying his lunch tray, looking for a place to sit. They locked eyes, and he bit his lip. His pace quickened, and he walked to the other side of the lunch room to sit next to his girlfriend. She noted how he squeezed in close to Uraraka, pulling her chair closer to him. Mina looked away and stabbed her straw through her juice box. This is going to be a long trip. She thought to herself. She shook the thought away and continued eating her lunch. She poked at her tray with her fork, her appetite had disappeared.
---
The night carried a biting chill in its air. Goosebumps covered Mina's pink skin as she sat near the bonfire, taking in the sight of her classmates all around her. Tooru and Kyoka had convinced her to come out tonight; they said it would be fun. Mina looked over to where the girls were. Kyoka was holding back Tooru's invisible hair as she puked behind a dumpster. She frowned; the dumpster wasn't full so that she could have puked in it. Mina shook her head at the sight. She folded her arms over her stomach and shuddered. She reprimanded herself in her head for going out on the beach in a skimpy top and short jean shorts when it was chilly outside.
The rest of the second-year class didn't seem to care about the temperature. A few girls from 2-B were taking a night swim, couples made out by the bonfire, and students scattered about the rest of the beach dancing, chatting, and having a good time. It was a miracle that Mr. Aizawa and Midnight didn't wake up to shut the party down; maybe they didn't care? Mina wasn't concerned enough to find out the answer. Kirishima and Kaminari were pouring shots for everyone and making them chase it down with fruit punch. She told Kirishima not to buy cheap liquor, but it didn't seem to matter much, as everyone was already drunk out of their minds and having a good time.
She threw her head back and looked at the stars. She would give anything to go back into her cabin and sleep the night away. Unfortunately, someone tipped her off that the girl's cabin would be used for hookups that night. Until everyone had gotten their fix, Mina was confined to the beach.
The pink-skinned girl stood up and dusted the sand off her shorts. She walked over to where the blonde and red-haired boy were pouring drinks and waved.
"Mina!" They cheered in unison. "Finally drinking tonight? Ready to pre-game!?"
She shook her head and laughed. "The two of you have been pre-gaming for the last two hours." She bit her lip. "Can I just get a soda? I have a pounding headache and don't feel like drinking tonight." She frowned.
Kaminari opened up the cooler and tossed her a green can. "Suit yourself."
"Thanks! I'll see you guys tomorrow?" She waved.
Before she could turn to walk away, Kirshima called her name. "Wait, Mina. You're not staying to dance?" He pouted. "Come on you gotta let looooose." He slurred his words. She could smell the cheap vodka on his breath and tried to hold back scrunching up her face.
"No, sorry, I think I need to be alone right now. We can catch up tomorrow, though! Okay Kiri? Kaminari?" She avoided making the mistake of staying there long enough for the boys to get another word in. She lightly jogged down the beach, a bit farther away from the noise of the party, to the pier from this morning. The moon sat just above the line where the night sky met the sea, and it was staring back at her. She slipped her shoes off and walked to the edge of the dock. She stared at the moon for a second and let herself bask in the moonlight.
Mina dipped a toe in the water, only to wince at the temperature. She wiggled her toes in for a bit before dipping in more toes, then her whole foot, and then her second foot. The wind whistled softly, leaving her cold as she gazed up at the night sky, which was breathtakingly beautiful. The scene felt familiar, eerily familiar. Mina alone at night, taking in the scenery, getting comfortable with the idea of peace. Something was missing.
As if on instinct, she turned her head to look behind her. At the beginning of the wooden pier stood Midoriya. She froze in place. Would this cat-and-mouse game finally come to an end? If he took another step toward her, she wasn't sure of how her heart would react. She blushed furiously.
He walked along the pier, and as he got closer, she could make out the freckles she had seen millions of times, the darker strands of his hair, and his dark emerald eyes.
They were a few feet from each other now. Midoriya looked down at her, and she looked up at him.
"Hey," He whispered.
She sighed, her heart heavy with the feelings she tried to push down. "Hey," she whispered back.