Work Text:
Izuku flinches when his phone begins to vibrate on his desk—he’d set it face down as he was doing his homework. And while he’d set it that way so it wouldn’t be a distraction, when it goes off like that, it’s hard to ignore. He swipes the phone off of the desk to see three notifications from Todoroki. The first one is just an address.
[7:34 PM] todoroki:
Can you meet me here? Urgent but not emergency. Don’t worry
[7:34 PM] todoroki:
By yourself is fine
Izuku blinks down at the message, taking a moment to think. The location Todoroki had sent isn’t far from the UA dorms, but it does seem like a sort of random place to be. Nonetheless, he texts Todoroki that he’s on his way before he shrugs on a sweatshirt and slips on his shoes, then heading out of his dorm.
As he walks a few streets over, his shoes scraping against the pavement, the streetlights switch on overhead. He wonders what Todoroki could need at such a place and time, but nothing really comes to mind. Todoroki had specifically told him not to worry, but he can’t help but gnaw at his bottom lip as he gets closer. He eventually quickens his pace, too, eager to know what’s urgent but not an emergency.
Izuku’s mind gets the better of him—what if he’d been forced by someone to text that?—and by the time he reaches Todoroki’s location, he’s sprinting. He whips around the corner, and lets out a sigh of relief when he sees Todoroki standing on the pavement in athletic wear—he’d just been on a jog.
“Todoroki-kun, hi,” he pants, setting his hands on his hips as he catches his breath.
Todoroki quirks an eyebrow at him, his arms crossed over his chest. “I told you not to worry.”
Sheepish, Izuku scratches at the back of his neck. “Yeah, well.” He pauses, takes a couple more steps toward Todoroki. “What did you—?” He cuts off abruptly when he realizes that no—Todoroki does not have his arms crossed over his chest. He’s cradling something.
Before Izuku can ask, Todoroki shifts his weight from foot to foot and says, “I found a kitten.”
Izuku cranes his neck to see a tuft of fur in Todoroki’s arms, white and grey. Suddenly, two kitten ears pop up from the crook of Todoroki’s arm. The kitten stares at Izuku with wide green eyes.
“Oh!” Izuku exclaims, watches as Todoroki gently takes one of his hands and strokes the top of the kitten’s head and down the back of its neck. It relaxes, it’s eyelids drooping. “It’s very cute,” Izuku says.
Todoroki nods, scratching it between the ears. “I heard meowing while I was running, and it was stuck in that dumpster back there.” He lifts his hand from petting the cat to point down an alleyway a short ways away.
“Do you think someone threw it in there?” Izuku questions, frown pulling at his features.
“There’s no way to know,” Todoroki replies. “It could’ve crawled in there before someone closed it.”
Izuku’s gaze flickers down to the kitten again, and it purrs, content in Todoroki’s arms. Todoroki moves to hold the kitten slightly outwards. “Do you want to pet it?” he asks, and Izuku takes another step closer, reaching his hand out to run his fingers down the kitten’s soft fur on its back.
“Cats really like being scratched just behind the ears,” Todoroki says, taking Izuku’s wrist lightly to move his hand from the kittens back and to its head.
As Izuku scratches the kitten behind its ears, its eyes close and it nuzzles into the crook of Todoroki’s arm again, so Izuku pulls his hand away and smiles up at Todoroki.
“Are you a cat person, Todoroki-kun?” he inquires, genuinely curious.
Todoroki stares at Izuku for a moment before he answers, “Yeah, probably.”
“Do you have a cat at home?”
The corner of Todoroki’s mouth twitches. “No. My father wouldn’t allow pets.”
“Oh, I’m…” Izuku doesn’t want to say he’s sorry. He’s sure Todoroki’s heard enough of that.
“It’s fine,” Todoroki says regardless. “At the hospital my mom stays at, they have therapy cats. My mom loves them.”
This wipes the frown from Izuku’s face. “Really?”
Todoroki nods, his features soft. “Yeah. Her favorite’s name is Koko, and she’s all black with white ears and paws.”
Izuku juts his bottom lip out, before crooning, “Aww.”
Todoroki chuckles, a bit. “They’re all pretty cute. And this one, too,” he says, scratching the back of the cat’s neck. “Should we name it?”
“What do you plan to do with it?” Izuku asks, and the kitten raises it head as it yawns.
“Since it’s Saturday tomorrow, I’ll bring it to my mom’s hospital and see if they’ll take it in. If not, I’ll bring it to a shelter,” he answers, watching as Izuku reaches forward to scratch the kitten under its chin.
“What about Fuku?” Izuku suggests, then. “Lucky—I think it’s a pretty lucky cat, since you found it.”
Todoroki’s lips pull into a slight smile. “Cliché,” he says, “I like it.” He then tilts his head to look down at the kitten. “How are you doing, Fuku?” he asks it softly, and Izuku’s heart soars. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen something so cute.
They stay out for a little while longer, but eventually Todoroki suggests they head back. The streetlights flicker over them as they discuss how to smuggle a kitten into Todoroki’s dorm room for the night. Once they’ve decided on tucking it underneath Izuku’s sweatshirt, Izuku inquires, “Why was it so urgent for me to come if you were just going to bring it to your dorm room?”
Todoroki clicks his tongue to the top of his mouth. “I hadn’t decided what I was going to do when I texted you.”
“Okay… But still—urgent?”
He shrugs. “I didn’t want to stand out there all night waiting.”
Izuku scowls, but the expression doesn’t stay long—it can’t when Todoroki’s holding a kitten. It can’t when Izuku thinks about how he was the first person Todoroki thought to text, the only person Todoroki wanted to come out and meet him.
And Izuku thinks about how someone wise once said that one can tell a lot about someone by observing how they treat animals, and as he looks at how tenderly and carefully Todoroki holds and pets that kitten, he thinks that whoever said that was right on point.