Chapter Text
Touya woke up before sunrise as he knew he needed to get a move on. Izuku was well behaved and slept through the night, which Touya was extremely thankful for. After their short sleep, Touya took a shower and got changed, knowing he may not have access to running water anytime soon. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a change of clothes for Izuku, so he just bathed him and put him back in his previous attire.
“Okay, Izuku,” whispered Touya, “let’s get you nice and clean! This won’t be too hard, right?” Izuku opened his eyes and cooed at the sound of his name. The motel room wasn’t equipped with a bathtub, so Touya searched around for something else he could use to wash Izuku. He scanned the room until he saw something that fit his needs yet made him recoil in rich-kid horror. “...I guess this will have to do…,” he grimaced as he picked up a trash can from the corner of the room. Holding the bin out in front of him like it could bite back, Touya turned the rickety old shower to scorching hot heat and threw the trash can in. “This better kill all those germs I know thrive in that thing.” While waiting, Touya entertained Izuku, who was intent on grabbing his fingers. After near-melting the poor receptacle, Touya turned down the temperature of the water and filled the can up. “Alright, Izuku, I sure hope you’re more ready for this than I am,” said Touya as he lowered the child into the bucket.
Unfortunately, Izuku seemed less than inclined to cooperate with him. Izuku touched the water and screamed bloody murder, causing Touya to panic. “Shhh, kiddo, please stop that!” hushed Touya urgently. He never told the people at the front that he was bringing a baby with him, just in case they realized his identity. “I don’t wanna get caught after just one night, and I don’t want to give you away, especially not right after deciding to keep you!” Touya hugged Izuku close in an attempt to calm him down. After a few minutes of rocking him, Izuku finally calmed down enough for Touya to try again. “Time for round two,” thought Touya. Again, he lowered Izuku into the vat of quickly cooling water. This temperature must have been just right, as Izuku didn’t make a sound and instead grinned. Touya mentally cheered and used a plastic cup that he found on the bathroom sink to pour water on Izuku. He had to bathe his younger siblings before, which gave him enough experience to know what he was doing here. Soon enough, he finished cleaning Izuku and toweled him off enough to get him back in some clothing. With that, Touya thought about what he was going to do today.
Originally, he had enough money to support himself for a couple of months if he was careful with his spending. Now, he wasn’t so sure. “What the hell do babies need, anyways? How much is it all gonna cost, as well?” Touya started a mental checklist. “Well, babies definitely need food, specifically specialized food. Now that I’m thinking about it, does Izuku even have any teeth yet?” Touya went over to Izuku, who was rolling around on the floor, and opened his mouth slightly. A small tooth was poking out at the bottom of his mouth. “Hey, this helps narrow down his age! Nice!” Touya moved on to the next point. “Kid’s obviously gonna need some clothes, too. Might have to skimp on that a bit, though.” Touya suddenly remembered one of the more important things. “Diapers!” Touya said and slapped himself on the head. How could he have forgotten that, especially since he had to take one off of Izuku to bathe him? No matter, Touya continued on. “He’ll also need some toys and such, though that’s gonna have to wait ‘till I can make some money.” The rest of Touya’s list went by easily, as Izuku’s needs were the same as his. “I guess we’ve gotta go shopping, then!”
-
Touya shortly left the motel, making sure to do so with as much stealth as possible. Obviously, he didn’t want to get caught. After staying in the shadows for a few blocks, Touya integrated with the now-full streets. Hiding with the crowds was much more inconspicuous than lurking in the shadows, especially with a baby that could burst into tears at any moment.
He walked down the street, looking for some sort of supermarket. He only knew the one he used to go to with his mother, which was unfortunately way out of his price range. After about thirty minutes of walking with no luck, Touya decided to stop someone and bashfully ask for some help. He tapped the shoulder of a passing young man who looked a few years older than himself. “Excuse me? Do you know where the nearest grocery store is?” The man stared at him with an incredulous look that morphed into pity. “Dude, you’re going the exact opposite way. Take the bus thataway,” he pointed in the direction that Touya had been walking away from, “for a good twenty minutes. I suggest you don’t come back around here, kid. This is a real dangerous place without any sort of amenities for your little family,” The man said while staring at Izuku. "Ha...thanks for the help and the warning," Touya said awkwardly; Izuku waved at him. The man said his goodbyes and went off to wherever he was headed. While Touya wanted to save money and just walk there, Izuku was starting to get fussy, so he made his way to the bus station and bought a ticket towards the shopping district.
After a short bus ride, Touya and Izuku got off and started down the streets. After wandering aimlessly for a bit, Touya made the realization that the stores seemed to get more run down the more he went in the direction of where he used to be. “Usually this wouldn’t be a cause for celebration, but I definitely see this as a win,” thought Touya as he meandered into a store advertising bruised produce for cheap. He grabbed a cart and walked down every aisle, trying to get a sense of where things were. As he walked around, he grabbed some essential products that seemed fairly low-price. Eventually, he walked down the baby product aisle. “Oh, hell!” Touya thought in horror. “These prices are outrageous! How am I supposed to afford Izuku, even if I get a job?” He stood there in shock until Izuku started crying, effectively snapping Touya out of his stupor. “Well, less crisis-ing, more buying…” Touya picked up the cheapest baby food they had, some formula, and some diapers that looked around Izuku’s size. Next, he grabbed some onesies in the same size as Izuku’s current clothing. Lastly, Touya grabbed a small toy and gave it to Izuku immediately. After gathering the last of the groceries he needed, he made his way to checkout. The price for everything, while low enough to afford, was definitely too much for Touya to be paying regularly. Izuku grew bored of his toy and started throwing a tantrum as they made their way out.
“Goddammit, Izuku, I just wanna rest for a moment,” whined Touya, though he made his way to a public rest area. “Let’s figure out what you need, buddy.” First, Touya brought him into a restroom to change his diaper. It took him some effort and a lot of scrubbing his hands afterward, but he succeeded in the end. Next, Touya sat Izuku on his lap and got out some of his new food. “Hope you enjoy this, because I’m not buying anymore anytime soon!” said Touya as he took out the plasticware he filched from some open packages in the store. Izuku made a happy noise as he started to prepare the food, as well as opened up a can of soup for himself. He quickly fed Izuku, who was quite hungry. Once he finished, Izuku yawned. His bright green eyes and petite nose crinkled, and Touya could not help but stare in awe at the child’s fragile face. “You really are mine now, aren’t ya? How did I land the most precious little kid out there?” Touya continued to look on lovingly until hesitantly getting up. “We gotta go, bud. I’ll try to let you sleep on the walk, though.” Touya collected their things and started his trek back to the seedier area of town, ready to truly start his life away from the Todoroki clan.