Chapter Text
The perks of sitting at the back of the class meant Ochako usually saw everything. Like whenever Kaminari played with Ojirou’s tail (she personally found super cute). Or Aoyama looking out the window most often even though he seats right by the door. It was these little things that she enjoyed about her classmates and room throughout the week.
She was scribbling in her notebook in free period, hearing the rumbling jokes of Sero, Kaminari, and Kirishima on the other side of the room and the conversation of Iida and Deku in front of her.
She lined the solid figure of the fire doodle over again with her pencil when Deku’s voice pulled her out of it. “Hey Uraraka-san? Can I talk to you about something?”
Ochako looked up to the face of a shy soft expression and large green irises. “What about, Deku?” She smiled. She ignored the heating of her face, butterflies rumbling from the proximity.
“Um, it’s kind of personal. But I really wanted to tell someone.” Deku started, twiddling his index fingers together. “So is it fine if we meet up after school?”
Huh, it was rare Deku seemed nervous to talk about something. Usually, he’d leave these conversations to All Might or even Todoroki. “Sure, Deku! Courtyard, then?”
“Yeah, perfect. I’ll see you, then.” A smile pulled at the boy’s lips. He nodded and sauntered back to his seat.
She couldn’t help but stare after him, thoughts brimming. “Hm…” The eraser tip rested against her bottom lip. Then, it was broken by Iida ordering everyone to get back in their seats for English class starting next.
-
“I’ll see you later, Ochako!” Mina cheered, waving as she walked past her.
“I’ll see you, ribbit, Ochako-chan.” Tsuyu also waved. The girls also gave her some sort of bidding as they parted around her to the dorms as Ochako made her way to a secluded area in the school courtyard.
She decided to wait underneath a shady tree, shuffling her feet antsily. She glanced again at the entrance, knowing Deku usually comes out last due to other matters or talking to people.
Bakugou was exiting, hands in his pockets. His posture got slightly better through the years, but he still kept that slightly slouched look. Ochako giggled to herself and Bakugou’s eyes slid over to hers. She gave a friendly smile and she pretended the tip of his head was some kind of acknowledgment as he continued walking.
She liked to think they developed some kind of friendship ever since the sports festival and all their time together, though she doubted Bakugou even considered them that.
Finally, a running Deku made his way over to her, waving. “Uraraka-san!” He panted. “Sorry! Did you wait long?”
“Hey! No, I just got here a minute ago. So what’s up?” Ochako asked.
“Well… um…” Deku started again to fiddle with his hands, sitting at the bench.
Ochako followed him and then soon got a weird feeling that it seemed really important.
Actually, just sitting together alone after meeting up almost feels like… like he’s going to confess to her. Ochako’s eyes largened and she swallowed a yelp, keeping herself composed in her seat.
“Uraraka-san… I have to tell someone. And you’re one of the most supportive, understanding people I know.” He smiled brightly at her.
Ochako nodded slowly, egging him on. “Okay.”
He took a deep breath, eyeing the sky for a while before turning to her. “I like someone.”
-
She’s stilled, and she’s so glad she only gasped internally. Her expression must’ve said it all, but any any hint of heartbreak she had was covered by shock and honor in him trusting her enough to her this. “Who?”
The boy expected her surprise, but still seemed hesitant himself. But, it seemed like a child holding onto a news himself he wasn’t allowed to tell others even though he wanted to. He was gripping the front of his shirt and lifted his eyes to her. There was something behind them, like it was sparkling, bright, just waiting to be revealed. His voice was like a whisper at first.
“Uraraka-san… I think I like Todoroki-kun.”
Her mouth popped down in an ‘o’. Deku wasn’t as focused on her reaction as he was seeming just amazed he let that out. “I… I like Todoroki-kun.”
Feelings she’s had were set aside, and the sheer look of pure happiness on Izuku’s smile sent tears glassing in Ochako’s eyes. “Oh, Deku…” She clasped her hands over her mouth. Her own cheeks were pink as his. What were her back seated feelings again? There was just something in Izuku telling her this, trusting her with this, and seeing him like this that made her mouth form in a big smile.
He let out a deep breath, still holding his shirt. “I don’t know what to do, Uraraka-san.”
She took in a deep breath herself. “I hate to say this Deku, but I’ve been waiting for this.” At Izuku’s alarmed eyes, she quickly retracted herself. “I mean! I mean not that I knew your feelings, or assumed anything, but… for the last 3 years, seeing you two together, talk and hang with each other, I… I’m not as surprised as I thought.” She let out her smile, staring at him.
The boy gawked and then blinked, looking down. “I’ve just… been slowly realizing it this whole time. And just recently, when I was with him, and our hands were next together, it kind of just– hit me.” He covered his face in his hands, being the Izuku she knew and loved. “Uraraka-san, I like Todoroki-kun. I like…Todoroki-kun.”
And then Ochako hugged him tightly and the two stayed like that for a while before they made their way back to the dorms.
–
Ochako was sitting at her desk, the only light in her room being the lamps. It only sunk in for her on her side that it was a heartbreak. She truly didn’t have a chance now. Deku likes boys.
Okay, her feelings for Deku evolved over the years. Ever since first year.
Ochako’s eyes widened, gasping when she remembered something. She slid out of her chair and went to her closet, tiptoeing to grab a small pink shoe box from the top shelf.
When she set it back on her desk, she opened it, revealing several neatly and colored letters. It was 5 letters. Addressed to 5 people.
Eijirou Kirishima.
Midoriya Izuku.
Denki Kaminari.
Tsuyu Asui.
And Katsuki Bakugou.
She smiled and pulled out the one addressed to Izuku Midoriya, and held it to her chest, closing her eyes.
See, when Ochako feels something for someone, something she can’t contain, she writes about it. They’re just for her, and they’re never meant to be sent.
To Ochako, there’s different types of love. She’s never really been infatuated with someone, but she gets different certain feelings from different certain people. Whether it’s a crush, or some type of feeling.
She writes about it until she finds relief or doesn’t imagine eating mochi alongside of them anymore. And then, she seals it away with a sticker.
In the letter she’s holding, it’s the one 15-year old Uraraka Ochako wrote for Deku.
Ochako sat down and stared at the letter wistfully, remembering that crush. Izuku, soft, relentless, amazing, Izuku. She wanted to be like Izuku when she realized her crush– courtesy of Aoyama though. That nearly killed them if it weren’t for Thirteen not meaning to actually suck them into his quirk at all. “What a fun detail…” Ochako laughed to herself.
Written inside the letter, and even after, it was fair to say her feelings didn’t just go away.
Being with Izuku over the years, she knew she still felt something for him. How could Ochako not? He was her best friend.
But that’s also it.
She supposed over the years, watching Izuku’s ambition and passion to become the number one hero without any distractions, Ochako's feelings had melt into something she considered a different kind of love. It was almost like metaphorically put in the backseat.
She could continue her life around him. With him. But they were still there.
But today, she was so happy for him. She’s never seen him act that way about someone. Even if it was considered also a heartbreak for her. That’s why she even helped him figure out what to do and be what he needed her to be.
Either way, she would support him to the end.
“This is it.” Ochako said. She grabbed a new blanket piece of paper and began scrawling down letters. A finishing letter piece. A closure to her first letter. This is where she lets it all out, and lets it go.
Dear Izuku,
–
It was 1am when Ochako finished. She stood up, sealed it, and placed it back in the pink shoe box. She looked at the 4 other letters underneath it.
Carefully, Ochako placed the lid back on the shoe box and yawned, crawling into bed and turned off the lamps.
—
Kirishima, Ochako has known for 7 years. She met him before UA High, and became friends quickly.
Kirishima Eijirou was hard not to love. She wouldn’t say she was in love with him, but she couldn’t help but not feel sunshine in her heart when she was around him.
She wanted to be like Eijirou.
She admired Eijirou.
A small part of her thought they were meant to be in a distant dream. Where even if right now they were together, they’d easily be married in the far future. Gentle, warm Eijirou. Having their manly escapades and perhaps cuddling in the sun together.
So she wrote him a letter, naturally. Right before focusing on the Entrance Exam. It was a new start. New focus. And Eijirou was trying to get in too. They gave each other good luck.
—
Kaminari. This one didn’t surprise her. Kaminari is one of those people you don’t think you like, but have a crush on at one point.
He’s a dimwit, but he’s friendly to a fierce point. He’s charismatic, knows things more street-wise, and will be the laugh you need on any occasion. She brought mochi to lunch one day and Kaminari said the matcha was his favorite and took a great chomp of it when she offered. For some reason, the skies parted on him that day for Ochako and she found her pen in hand later the day.
—
Tsuyu was Ochako’s first girl crush. She’s her best girl friend, and Ochako knew she could always count on her. And when others just saw her as someone with frog powers, Ochako saw her as Froppy and every deeming quality about her. She loves Tsuyu to the end of the Earth, and maybe a part of her love did hold some non-platonicness for a few days so she had to write a letter about it. But that short-lived and very inconsequential, but she enjoyed writing out verbal rainbows about Tsuyu Asui in her paper.
—
Maybe it was the way he took her seriously and respected her each time they interacted. How she always felt like an equal with him involved. It was just since the sports festival did she start noticing his eyes were a red that swirled more like a scarlet color. That they weren’t just bloodshot, but ambitious and more bark than bite. That when he wasn’t yelling, he was well aware of his surroundings. And that his way of caring is yelling, and telling someone not to fucking get in his way when they’re walking on a narrow sidewalk by a busy road.
But he was also Katsuki Bakugou, and Ochako was fine where she was with her him. She sealed the letter anyway.
-
When Ochako groggily woke up in the morning, the shoe box was still sitting on her desk, and she vaguely heard the reminder that it’s trash day down the hall as she headed down to get breakfast.
She continued to not pay attention to it and its slightly ajar top when Ochako returned and dressed for school, leaving.