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The slight pitter patter against the building was soothing, what wasn't soothing was the howling wind and rumbling thunder every couple minutes. Momo was never afraid of rain storms, she thought they were beautiful, but recently she had had a nightmare about another villain attack in the rain, and so she couldn’t help but feel vulnerable and threatened while walking down to the main room for a glass of water.
She was up late studying, her mind whirling with compositions and facts about new materials and weapons she was going to start trying to make during class next week. Before bed, she usually drinks at least three glasses of water, but she could just feel how dehydrated she was tonight and knew automatically that she was gonna need to stay in the kitchen for a bit to make sure she drank enough before heading to bed.
All the other students were probably fast asleep, she thought to herself, and that only made this trek in the dark even scarier. She switched on the lights that lead to the kitchen and jumped a bit when a flash of lightning illuminated the window beside her. She didn’t even want to glance out to the courtyard, but her mind was so curious she ended up sliding her gaze to the glass window and peering into the dark.
Don’t look out there, you’re going to freak yourself out even more, Momo sighed to herself, shaking her head and continuing her walk down what felt like the longest hallway in Height Alliance. In the corner of her eye she thought she saw something move out in the courtyard and she squeaked, pushing her hands to her face and repeatedly telling herself to not look outside.
Do not look outside, do not look outside, do no -
Too late. The creation student focused her eyes on a tree that looked to be waving at her and let out a breath of relief. Why must her mind be playing tricks on her like this? Why do humans fear so much?
A rumble of thunder began in the distance, and then a crack and a strike of lightning. The wind howled and she picked up her pace into the kitchen. Momo poured herself a glass and quickly downed it, feeling like somebody was staring at her from behind.
The black-haired girl whipped her head around and scanned her surroundings. No way something would get into the dorms; she was just scaring herself. But how come her body feels like there’s a pair of eyes on her? How is that possible?
Her palms began to sweat and she unknowingly shivered, a panicked chill running down her spine.
There’s nothing to be afraid of Momo, you’re in a safe place. But what about the training camp? Oh god, the training camp.
She suddenly got flashbacks of that night—the nomu that attacked her, the gas, the fire…. The unbelievable pain in her chest due to how rapid her heart was beating. The ache in her head where the nomu had hit her. The fear surging through her system as she had thought—really thought—that she was going to die.
It was not a safe place, so how were the dorms a safe place? Her jaw tightened at the thought and she forced another glass of water down, not taking her eyes off her surroundings. There was another strike of lighting, and the rain began to pick up.
“You’re fine. You’re fine Momo.” She murmured to herself as she poured more water, going to grab a bottle from the fridge to bring up to her room. As she went to grab it, her mind soared to an ungodly place.
What if you close the door and someone’s standing behind it? What if there’s someone looking over your shoulder? Someone peering at you from the top of the fridge? Someone crawling along the ceiling?
“Stop it.” She hissed, shuttling the fridge and almost shutting her eyes with it. But she stood strong, letting out yet another breath of relief as she turned back to the counter and drank more water.
“Let’s sleep now Momo. Just go to bed.” She walked back to her room with cautious steps, occasionally glancing behind her. The lights seemingly flickered above her and she squeaked, jumping back a little.
That wasn’t real. You imagined it. The lights are fine. She let out a sharp breath and picked up the pace, her footsteps echoing off the walls.
Or was someone following her?
Tears pricked at her eyes the longer she thought about it, No Momo, there’s no one there. Her footsteps became even more rushed and once she reached the elevator she slammed her hand across the button and held herself, curling around the water bottle she grabbed from the fridge.
The elevator took it’s time and she watched with a sweat on her forehead as it finally stopped on her floor. A crack of thunder resounded off the walls of the dorms and she quickly stepped into the small mechanical room, her breath fast and her heartbeat even faster.
“We’re fine, we’re fine.” She whispered to herself, but her nightmare came flooding back and out of nowhere she began imagining the nomu coming for her, reaching its arm out to her and almost making it into the elevator with her.
“No!” She howled, throwing her arms in front of her as the doors closed. She opened her eyes, unaware of when they had shut, and backed up even further into the elevator. Once her body hit the wall, she let out a small whimper and shook her head.
“This is nonsense Momo. Everything’s okay!” The elevator suddenly began it’s ascent and she didn’t mind it until realizing...she hadn’t pressed the button for her level.
The student lurched forward and pressed her floor, hitting the button over and over again in hopes that it won’t stop anywhere else. Her hand was visibly shaking once she pulled it back and held herself again.
To her dismay, her attempt to go straight to her floor fell through and the elevator slowed onto Jirou’s floor. She blinked a couple times when the doors opened and the lights in the elevator flickered.
“No, please.” She blubbered, not knowing if she wanted to stay in the elevator any longer. She just had two more floors to go, but as the doors closed again and she was isolated under the flickering bulbs, she let out a cry of fear and pressed the button to open the doors again.
As they opened, Momo noticed the door of one of the vacant rooms...shaking? No, not possible.
With much hesitation and a ridiculous amount of fear, she put one foot forward and began her journey down the hall toward the stairs. No way was she going to stay trapped in a small mechanical room with barely any light. It already moved slow enough, her panic would only increase.
If she wasn’t hyperventilating before, she definitely was now. Why was it taking so god damn long for her to get to her room!?
The lights in the hall flickered, and another crash of thunder was heard outside. The hero in training let out a shaky breath, clinging to herself as if she were going to fall apart, and picked up her pace. As she made her way past the door she thought was shaking, it creaked open, causing her to jump to the side, letting out a small yelp of fear.
Without thinking, Momo sprinted toward the stairs and practically rammed into the door, doing her best to jiggle the knob and open it. Wind continued to howl loudly and she could hardly hear herself think. She dropped her water bottle in the process of trying to get the door open, another low rumble of thunder shaking the building and making her head spin.
No matter how hard she twisted the knob, it didn’t open; it wouldn’t budge. Her hands were so sweaty she could barely keep her grip on it and as she felt a pair of eyes on her and thought she heard a small hiss and footsteps coming her way, she cried out, those tears from earlier finally spilling over.
The wind was deafening now, and as she got the door open, she fell forward, not even bothering to pick up her bottle. The rain hit the building louder than ever and all the images of the nomu picked and proded at her in her vulnerable state. There was another loud hissing sound and a sob racked through her. Momo crawled back onto her feet, hitting her shoulder on the wall beside her as she did her best to zip up the stairs, but unsuccessful because she tripped due to her pajama pants catching on her heel.
Her crying was loud, she couldn’t seem to control her volume as the only thought in her head was to survive. She picked herself up and took in a deep breath, a couple more sobs sounded from the back of her throat and she made her way up the stairs. Once she opened the door that led out to the fifth floor, she saw a dark figure out in the hall and squeaked, cowering back and hitting the wall behind her.
“Yaoyorozu.” A low voice sounded, making her sob even harder.
“Don’t!” She screamed, accidentally misstepping and falling down a flight of stairs. She groaned and quickly pulled herself together, clawing at the stairs under her as she tried to escape and go back down. Her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest and the lack of oxygen she was receiving was making her panic even further. Her limbs were growing numb, her skin tingling and the tears rushing down her face showing no signs of stopping.
She didn’t want this again; she didn’t want to be hurt again. That night in the forest was the worst day of her life and she was so scared. She wanted to keep living! There was so much she hadn’t done yet! So many different things she hadn’t learned yet! She hadn’t even gone on her first date yet or learned how to cook some of her favorite recipes.
She didn’t even get the chance to tell her parents she loves them! She wasn’t even able to tell her friends that she loves them! This wasn’t fair, and the more she thought about these things the harder she sobbed, the harder her chest heaved, the more she panicked, and the more she started giving up.
“Yaoyorozu!” A hand grabbed at her shoulders and soon she was being pulled into somebody’s chest. She froze—or at least she tried, her body was still shaking and her shoulders rose and fell violently as she continued to cry—and the person holding her put a hand on the back of her head, telling her she was fine, she was safe.
“I just saw - I thought - I thoug - There was - I’m - Oh God I was so scared.” She wailed, suddenly throwing her arms around Todoroki and squeezing him to her.
“I know, but you’re safe. I promise you’re safe.”
“I kept thinking about the villain attack at the training camp and I - and I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t run. My body failed me! I - I just -“ She wept some more and Todoroki swallowed thickly, his heart breaking as he sat and watched her fall apart before him.
“Th-There were - I heard noises and - and then the lights and - I just - I ran, like in the forest I ran. I was so scared Todoroki-kun . I was so scared!”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that again Yaoyorozu. But you’re not alone now, I’m here, I promise.”
“Y-You wouldn’t let them h-hurt me aga-again, would you?” She whimpered, her face pressed so far into the crook of his neck her tears were spilling all over him.
“No, I’d never let them lay another hand on you, ever again. I won’t let that happen.”
“I’m - I’m sorry you have to see me like this. I - I’m usually fine when it rains b-but something about tonight - it just -“
“Yaoyorozu,” His tone was sharp, “You’re the smartest girl in our class, I take it that you understand that what you’re feeling this way for a reason. You got triggered by something and reminded of a time your life was in danger. You’re not in the wrong, and I don’t need an apology. You only apologize when you’ve done something wrong, and feeling scared—feeling vulnerable—is not wrong. What you went through that night was horrible, and I’m sorry I was not there at the time to protect you. But you were so brave, so strong, and even now you are so strong Yaoyorozu.”
“I’m - I was just so scared Todoroki-kun.”
“You’re only human.” He held her to him a moment longer, listening to her calm down and sniffle against him. The wind was still blowing against the building, and the rain had died down a bit. The thunder no longer shook the building, the worst part of the storm seemingly past.
“This is so embarrassing, I hope I’m just in another nightmare.” The black-haired girl murmured, pulling from her classmate and wiping under her eyes.
“Would you like me to treat this like it never happened?”
“Well…” The endearing tone in his voice pulled at her heart strings and she took in a deep breath, “I suppose you don’t have to…”
“If that’s what you’re more comfortable with, I’m more than willing -“
“No it - it’s okay Shou - I mean, Todoroki-kun.”
“You can call me Shouto, it’s okay.”
“Well then I expect you to call me Momo if you want me to disregard formalities.” She reasoned, a hint of playfulness in her voice.
“Okay, if you wish it, Momo.”
“Thank you for this… I can’t imagine what I’d be doing if nobody came to my aid.”
“Glad it was me and not Bakugou.”
“Why do you say that?” Yaoyorozu laughed, putting a hand to her mouth.
“I don’t think he would’ve been much help, that’s all.”
“Shouto!”
“Is it not true?”
“Well it is, but nevertheless he is our classmate and an aspiring hero. I’m sure he could’ve helped in his own, Bakugou-esque way.”
“Look at you, kinder than ever. I shouldn’t expect anything less from you.”
“You flatter me too much.” She mumbled behind her hand, her eyes still puffy but now her cheeks were red with them.
“Would you like me to walk you to your room Momo?” Said girl felt her heart skip a bit at the idea and she smiled at the boy in front of her.
“I would appreciate that greatly, Shouto.” Her very own knight in shining armor.