Work Text:
When Ochako awoke early that morning, she was delighted to see that bright, warm sunlight was already pouring into her room through the gaps in her curtains.
A perfect day for swimming.
She rolled out of bed, stretched, and then headed off into the bathroom for her morning routine of showering and toothbrushing. It seemed pointless to wash her hair right now, knowing that she’d have to remove the chlorine from it anyway after being in the pool, but she did it anyway. After all, she didn’t want to look a mess in front of everyone else, right?
Especially not Tsuyu.
Her friend’s hair always seemed to shimmer, falling in a beautiful dark wave of silkiness down her back. Whether it was something to do with her frog quirk, or just a really good brand of shampoo that Ochako could in no way afford, Tsuyu’s hair somehow seemed to maintain perfection regardless of how active she was.
But Ochako put that out of her mind for the moment.
Once dried, she slipped on her swimming costume - the school issued one that Kyouka suggested they wear to avoid having the likes of Mineta ogling them - and then her clothes on top.
“It’d be nice to have something new to wear…” she said to herself as she looked at herself in the mirror, her t-shirt the same one that she’d worn the day they’d all gone shopping together. She doubted any of her classmates would say anything about it, but she felt self-conscious all the same. Most of them would be used to having new clothes whenever they wanted, certainly those from wealthy families like Iida and Momo…
“Enough of that! We’re all going to be in our school swimwear anyway, so it doesn’t matter!”
Her cheery smile returned to her face. Things like that weren’t important. Today was all about getting to spend time with her friends.
When she arrived at the school, she found Tsuyu waiting by the gates for her.
“Ochako-chan!” she called out, waving her hand.
Ochako ran up to her friend, smiling brightly.
“You ready for some swimming?”
“Now that’s a silly question, Ochako. I’m always ready for swimming.”
The two of them laughed. Ochako loved the way Tsuyu laughed, a little bit croaky, the same way that she talked. She never had the same fits of hysterical giggles that Ochako had, staying much more in control of herself, but it was infectious all the same. Everything about her laughter - no, everything about her - was so calm and collected, but never cold. Ochako loved that about her.
They walked along to the changing rooms together, chatting mostly about how excited they were for the training camp, and how much both their families hated the hot weather:
“All this sun is no good for us frogs.”
“Yeah, it’s the worst! It’s hard to get any construction work done when there’s this much heat… The workers just get worn out.”
Tsuyu had also taken the initiative to put her swimsuit underneath her outfit, so the two of them were ready almost straight away. They stored their regular clothes and shoes away in the lockers and headed through to the pool, towels held under their arms. Momo, Kyoka, Toru and Mina were there already, as well as some of the boys who had been invited along by Deku. Ochako glanced around for him and saw that he was yet to arrive.
“Ochako! Tsuyu! Over here!” Mina yelled from the opposite side of the pool, where the other girls had laid out towels. It looked like they were all set for a day of sunbathing.
They headed over and put down their own things - Tsuyu had a water bottle and Ochako had brought along a cheap pair of flip-flops
“We’re keeping on this side of the pool, and the boys are having those lanes to do endurance training. Or, at least, that’s what they told Mr Aizawa,” Momo explained just as she conjured a inflatable beach ball from her back. She handed it to Ochako, who began to blow air into it.
“Why bother with training when it’s so hot out today?” said Toru, making splashes by the edge of the pool with her invisible feet. “And we have the training camp for that!”
“I guess they thought Aizawa-sensei wouldn’t let them use the pool otherwise,” replied Tsuyu, tapping her finger against her chin. “Especially not if Mineta or Kaminari suggested it.”
Ochako looked around to see that those two hadn’t arrived yet either. What a relief. They might be in modest swimming costumes, but Mineta could be pervy no matter what they were wearing.
“We should probably warm-up a bit before we start swimming, don’t you think?” she suggested to the others.
“Excellent idea, Ochako!” Momo agreed.
Just as they were finishing their stretches, the tiny, ball-haired Mineta suddenly came racing into the pool area, Kaminari alongside him and Deku following along just behind. Ochako had to hold in her laughter upon seeing their faces when they realized that they wouldn’t be seeing the girls in skimpy bikinis and when Iida dragged them off to actually start doing the endurance training they’d signed up for.
Serves them right , she thought to herself, letting out a little giggle.
“Are you going to jump in, Ochako?” Tsuyu asked, gently putting her hand on her friend’s arm. Suddenly, Ochako found her face getting much warmer. But that was just the sun… right?
“Sure I am. Watch this!”
She walked to the edge of the pool and pressed the pads on her fingertips to make herself feel light. She braced herself, then leapt into the air, floating above the pool for a moment before releasing and falling down with a huge splash. When she emerged from beneath the water, she saw that she’d sprayed water all over Tsuyu. But, of course, her friend was smiling.
“That was so cool, ribbit!”
“Watch where you get that water, Ochako. We don’t want to create a slipping hazard!” Iida called from the opposite end of the pool, waving his hand up and down in a serious manner.
“Sorry!” Ochako called back to her, but she was giggling. Typical Iida .
“Can you move out the way? I’m going to dive in,” Tsuyu told her.
Ochako swam a couple of feet away from where Tsuyu stood at the side of the pool, looking up at her friend expectantly. Tsuyu took a deep breath, put her hands together, and took a jump forward, her body forming into an elegant curve as she dived into the water. She hardly made a single splash in the water, sliding into it with precision and grace.
“You’re so good, Tsu!” she praised once her friend had come up to the surface, clapping her hands together.
“My quirk is a big help. Plus, my parents have been helping me train since I was really small. Being in water to me is as natural as walking on land.”
The two of them swam a few lengths of the pool, Ochako losing every race against her friend, even when she used her quirk to make herself lighter. She couldn’t beat Tsuyu in a breath holding contest either, nor in the game of keeping up the ball (Tsuyu always managed to use her long tongue to catch it no matter how far it was thrown).
The rest of the girls had gone to lie by the poolside, sunbathing on their towels, sunglasses propped on their noses, but Ochako and Tsuyu decided to stay in the water, lingering at one end, watching the boys as they took turns diving and doing laps.
Ochako let her muscles relax, arms floating up by her side and looked up to the sky.
“We should train here more often. I like the way I feel in water… like I’m weightless,” she said softly.
“Isn’t that something you’re already used to?”
“I guess. But this is a different kind of weightless. When I use my quirk, there’s usually some kind of challenge involved. Like we’re doing training or I’m having to lift something heavy. But this… it’s like the water just takes away all the worries, washes them away.”
“I know what you mean.”
Ochako looked back at her friend. Tsuyu’s hair was framing her face, darker than usual because of the water. It still shimmered, though, glistening with tiny water droplets. Ochako thought she looked even more beautiful like this. Natural.
“Ochako-chan?”
“Hmm?”
“You’re staring at me. Is something wrong?”
Argh! She’d completely zoned out. How could she even explain this away?
“I-Uh! Oh, it’s nothing! Really!”
Tsuyu tilted her head to the side slightly, putting her finger to her lips in that adorable way that she did. “You seem flustered.”
“Me? Flustered! No, I’m not flustered! I’m… Whatever the opposite of flustered is! Unflustered! Is that a word? I don’t know, maybe it should be!”
“Okay, if you say so, Ochako…”
Tsuyu glanced over to where the boys were gathered. Deku was in the middle, laughing along to something Iida had said.
“Is it because of the boys?”
Maybe this would be a good chance to get out of the situation. She could simply say that, yes, it was because all the boys were topless. All those rippling muscles! Those chiseled abs! It was a perfect excuse. It would let her get away with not talking about her feelings. Because it was so much simpler, wasn’t it? To say that she liked a boy. Deku, Iida, Kirishima… She could say any of them, and Tsuyu would probably believe her. They’d laugh about it and maybe Tsuyu would say that she liked one of them as well. And then they could go on being friends like normal.
But she didn’t want it to go that way.
She especially didn’t want to find out if Tsuyu had a crush on any of the boys.
The thought of it made Ochako feel…
Jealous?
“No, that’s not it at all,” she said, her voice much quieter now and her demeanor more composed. She rubbed her hand against the side of her face, twirling a strand of wet hair around her finger. It was hard to look into those ernest, honest eyes of Tsuyu’s.
“Don’t worry about it. If you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t make you, ribbit. Should we go and sunbathe with the others?”
Thank god for Tsuyu’s ability to make any situation more comfortable. It was a blessing.
Ochako nodded, returning quickly to her usual chirpy self. “Let’s do it!”
The two of them observed the boys’ races, cheering on their friends. It was amusing watching how competitive they got, especially the likes of Bakugou and Deku. She had to wonder if some of the results were really legitimate, considering many of them didn’t even touch the water, instead flying over using their quirks. But, of course, if they had been swimming and if the girls had been involved, then Tsuyu would have beaten the lot of them. Her friend didn’t mention this, though, or look bitter in any way that she wasn’t getting any glory. Modest, as usual, and happy to support the others in their success.
Just as the final deciding race was about to begin, they were all thrown out by a grumpy looking Mr Aizawa. Once again, Ochako had to stifle her giggles as Deku, Todoroki and Bakugou awkwardly splashed down into the pool, unprepared for having their quirks suddenly erased. It was a bit of a shame, though - she would have liked to have seen the result of that race between the three close rivals.
Everyone headed off into the locker rooms, each of them drying themselves off and changing back into their normal clothes. Momo and Kyouka were the first to get ready, and headed off home together. Mina followed, then Toru shortly after. Ochako and Tsuyu were left alone together, listening to the boys in the next room who were loudly chatting (or shouting, in Bakugou’s case) about the races.
“I had fun today,” Ochako said as she brushed her hair back into place the best she could. It still felt rather damp, but the sun would dry it off more as she walked home.
“Me too. I like getting to spend time with you outside of lessons, ribbit.”
Ochako could feel the blush again in her cheeks, but she hastily hid it with her towel.
“Y-yeah! We should… we should hang out again! After the training camp! I mean, you might have other plans, too, but I’m free almost all the time so just whenever you want to, hit me up with a message and I’ll be there!”
“Ochako?”
She felt a soft hand against her wrist. Slowly, Ochako lowered the towel away from her face, looking straight at Tsuyu.
“You don’t have to act nervous around me.”
“I’m not--”
Tsuyu linked their fingers together gently.
Ochako wasn’t sure if she could still feel herself breathing.
“Is this alright?” Tsuyu asked softly, giving her hand a squeeze.
Ochako nodded, for once lost for words.
“Shall I walk you home?”
“I’d… I’d love that, Tsuyu.”
The other girl didn’t let go of her hand all the way back to the apartment. Everything felt so peaceful during that walk, except, of course, Ochako’s heart, which was beating rapidly inside of her chest. She’d barely acknowledged her feelings for her friend in her own head, yet Tsuyu was so ready to accept it.
And maybe reciprocate those feelings?
They reached Ochako’s front door and still their hands remained linked. The two of them were silent, not quite sure what to say, what to do. Ochako wanted to cling to this moment, to this day, like it was the last time that she had left on earth.
“Thank you for walking me home,” she said eventually, a shy smile on her lips.
Tsuyu reached out her free hand and tucked a strand of Ochako’s hair - now dry - behind her ear. So tender, so fond…
“You’re welcome, ribbit.”
“I, uh--”
“It’s okay, Ochako…”
She leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Ochako’s lips. It was closed-mouthed, only a little peck. But, to Ochako, it felt like the warmest, most wonderful sensation in the world.
Tsuyu pulled back and smiled, her mouth curling in that cute, crooked way that she did, and gave Ochako’s hand a final squeeze.
“I’ll see you at the training camp, Ochako-chan.”
With that, she let go of her hand and began to walk away. Ochako was still incapable of words, but when Tsuyu turned around to wave from where she stood at the corner of the street, she returned the gesture, smiling brightly. As her friend disappeared slowly into the horizon, Ochako couldn’t stop staring in awe at just how much Tsuyu’s dark hair shone in the light of the gradually setting sun.
She watched until the other girl was just a black dot on the horizon, then let herself into the apartment. She flopped down onto her bed, looking up at the ceiling.
And, in that moment, she felt weightless.