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Smoke. Screams. The ringing of car alarms. To a normal person, this was chaos. To Denki Kaminari, this was his lunch break. As soon as the explosion rocked the bank across the street from his second favorite deli in Hosu, he was up from his table and his admittedly very good sandwich was unfortunately on the floor. Kaminari felt ice shoot through his chest, the way he did every time, but swallowed quickly, and threw on the moneymaker.
“Good people of this deli!” Kaminari felt the frightened eyes of his fellow patrons turn to him and hit them with his most dazzling grin. Aizawa’s impatient grumble drifted through one side of his brain and into the other. Stand up. Survey. Comfort civilians. Stay vigilant.
“Stay calm! The other pros will be on their way soon. Everybody stay safe, okay?” Kaminari’s words placated the crowd, and Kaminari felt deep in his soul that there was only one thing left he had to do: get a good laugh.
Kaminari put on his sternest look, dusted debris from the shoulder of his leather jacket and pointed directly at his fallen chicken parmesan. “Now I’m gonna go out there and avenge the HELL out of this sandwich!”
Kaminari was met with confused looks and waited for the laughs. None came. Okay, maybe it wasn’t his best material, but he didn’t have that much to work with. In any case, they’d be safe. They were a pretty tough crowd. Unfettered, Kaminari winked to the cashier as he strolled out of the deli, clinking the bell gently as the door swung open and he stepped into the open street, and saw the massive hulking beast of man before him, gesturing wildly with a chainsaw mounted on his hand. Two cops had already arrived on the scene, handguns trained on the man as he continued to scream and gesture as bills fell out of the gym bag strapped to his back.
“THE NAME’S BUZZKILL AND IF YOU PEOPLE KNOW WHAT’S GOOD FOR YA YOU’LL STAY THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY,” the man, Buzzkill apparently, bellowed.
Kaminari murmured a quick “Hi!” to Sansa and the other officer standing next to him as he walked past the cop car and stood, jacket blowing in the slight breeze behind him. Kaminari felt the storm lurch at the reins within him, and smiled as the scarred brute before him continued to scream insults.
“Hey, big guy!” Kaminari smiled widely. “Can you put that thing down and be a little quieter? People are trying to have lunch right now.”
Buzzkill’s red eyes flashed with anger. “ Chargebolt, ” he rumbled, “I will cut open your chest and rip your heart from your body as you scream and beg for me to--”
Kaminari grimaced. “Dude. There are kids listening. Robbing a bank is one thing but I’d really appreciate it if you kept it PG. That reminds me, you big on westerns?”
A vein bulged in Buzzkill’s forehead. “You pathetic wretch. I will rip out your eyes and skullfu-”
“Draw.” In an instant, there was a thunderclap in the middle of the street as a bolt of golden-yellow energy burst from Kaminari’s fingertip, sending Buzzkill flying back into the window of the bank behind him, shattering it. The smell of ozone wafted through the air and hung over Kaminari like a specter as he lowered his outstretched fingertip down to his side.
Kaminari blew imaginary smoke off of the tip of his finger. “The first rule of a gunfight, pardner, is to always keep your eyes on the other guy’s gun. I mean, mine’s a bit more finger-y, but still.”
Buzzkill was dazed, but still getting to his feet when Kaminari heard a familiar voice behind him.
“Kaminari! That was so cool!” Kaminari swiveled in place as his old friends, Ashido Mina and Asui Tsuyu pushed their way past the widening circle of officers and stood next to him. His smile turned genuine and he blushed in spite of himself.
“Right? I’ve been practicing the finger gun one-liner for like, so long--” Kaminari’s reply was cut off by the sound of his cell phone buzzing in his pocket and took it out, and felt his stomach drop into his shoes as he saw the caller I.D.
“Guys, it’s Dr. Takemi. Jirou’s at the hospital. I have to go. Right now. Can you guys--” Kaminari’s voice was shaky.
Tsuyu nodded as Mina gasped out an OH-MY-GOD. “Go, Kaminari. We’ve got him.”
Kaminari breathed out a quick “Thank you!” as he raced past the two of them, his head spinning. Things would be fine. Jirou would be fine. He would be fine. He felt his spare set of sunglasses slide out of his pocket and shatter on the sidewalk behind him as he ran, which was fine. Kaminari was going to the hospital and Jirou was going to be happy and healthy and he would be there for her and that would be that, hopefully.
He heard a “Chargebolt?” or two as he raced towards the parking garage where he had parked for patrols that day, his heart pounding in his chest. Most days he’d love that. Today was not most days. His wife needed him. Not that she said that she had needed him because he had talked to the doctor but he was confident that he needed to be there because it was important and oh-good-god-he-had-left-his-parking-pass-in-the-deli. As Kaminari rounded the corner, he stopped in place. Without the parking pass, he’d have to rely on his natural charm, and as the garage came into view, he was reasonably certain he’d be okay. His feet pounded against the cement steps of the garage as he raced up the stairs, thankful he had a job that kept him active. Kaminari raced over to his car, clicked open the door and was stepping into the driver’s seat when he heard a small voice behind him.
“C-Chargebolt?” Kaminari swiveled and took in a small girl, maybe 4 or 5 with an out-of-breath father in tow. Please, any time but this. They both had small horns poking through the tops of their bright orange hair, and from the looks of it, they also had fangs despite being very much so human otherwise. The little girl wore a shirt with a Chargebolt logo on it, and Kaminari’s heart sunk. Wordlessly, the little girl held open a notebook filled with the signatures of scores of heroes, some of whom he knew.
Kaminari sighed. “I’m really, really sorry, but I don’t have time to talk or sign anything, but I love your shirt.”
The little girl’s face fell as an idea instantly formed in Kaminari’s head. As the girl’s father started to speak, Kaminari handed him the business card for his hero firm. This was an emergency but god help him if he was gonna make a little kid cry.
“Call this number, and ask for me for her next birthday party.” Kaminari squatted down in front of the little girl as her face perked up. “I’ll bring Red Riot and Alien Queen with me, okay? I might even be able to get Froppy or Deku, too.”
And with that, the little girl’s face shone as Kaminari pulled out, his car humming beneath him as he drove as fast as he legally could to the bottom floor of the parking garage, and reached the attendant. The attendant regarded him with tired eyes. The electric guard gate sat there, barring Kaminari from driving out to the freedom he so intensely desired.
Kaminari threw on his best smile and tried not to look as panicked as he felt. “Hey, uh, I forgot my card. Can you please just let me through? It’s an emergency.”
The attendant stared at him silently and pointed to the sign. “No exit without a pass,” it said, in bold lettering.
“Dude. Please.” Kaminari begged, the charm fading away as panic washed over him.
The attendant stared blankly and pointed to the sign again, more aggressively this time.
“Screw this.” Kaminari scowled and sent a jolt of electricity into the gate console, making sparks fly out of it as the arm of the gate went vertical and the attendant threw open the window of his booth, ready to scream at Kaminari. Kaminari chucked a wad of cash through the open window and sped off to the hospital, finally on his way. He was going to make it there on time.
The next morning, the sound of the hospital door creaking open awakened Jirou, and instantly made her wish she hadn’t. Her body hurt like nothing she had ever experienced before, a dull ache that sounded like a gong and resonated throughout her body. Jirou wanted to be home, in their bed, with their soft sheets and their comfortable pillows, and sleep for the better part of a decade. But, truth be told, the pain was a relief. The pain came with a sense of accomplishment, a sense of pride, and as her eyes landed on the swaddled, softly sleeping bundle in the metal bassinet next to her, it came with an overwhelming feeling of warmth.
“How are my girls doing?” Kaminari whispered from the door, closing it slowly with one hand while balancing a takeaway tray with two cups of coffee precariously perched atop it with the other.
“Tired,” Jirou croaked, and gratefully accepted the coffee from Kaminari as he leaned in and kissed her softly on the forehead. The kiss and the coffee warmed Jirou and she felt a bit of life return to her as she sipped caffeine for the first time in months. Jirou blinked the exhaustion out of her eyes and took in Kaminari, who, quite frankly, was a wreck. His stubble had scraggly hairs poking out of it, his hair hadn’t been washed, and the bags under his eyes were so big he looked more raccoon than man. All the same, when he leaned over their quietly breathing daughter all of the exhaustion plain on his face seemed to wash away and Jirou saw her husband’s face soften in the same way that he did when Kaminari looked at her.
“What the fuck?” he murmured softly to himself, as his eyes met Jirou’s and he broke into a grin.
Jirou’s laugh was short and coarse. “Watch your language, Jammingwhey.”
“I know, it’s just like, we made that,” Kaminari said, eyes wide and quietly gesturing towards the bassinet with his hands.
Jirou laughed lightly, taking in another sip of coffee and appreciating that Kaminari had remembered the amount of milk and sugar she liked in it and said, “I’d hope so, or else we accidentally stole someone else’s baby.” She paused for a moment and said, “Oh, and, uh, thank you for remembering how I like my coffee, I know it’s been a little while since you made it.”
Kaminari’s million-watt grin energized her just as much as the caffeine did as he replied, settling into the chair on Jirou’s opposite side. “Fatherhood is a hell of a lot easier than what you just went through, I’d imagine. I’m just doing my part, babe.”
Flashes of pain, of the operating room, and of the feeling of Kaminari’s hand clasping hers as Kaminari said words of encouragement floated through her exhaustion-addled mind. Jirou leaned over and kissed him softly on the coarse edge of his jawline and said, “I don’t care if it’s easier, dummy. You were there for me then and you’re here for me now.”
The grin shifted right from jovial to sheepish as Kaminari blushed bright red and stuttered out a quick response. “Well, I mean, I gotta. I can’t ditch my girls, now, can I?”
Jirou raised an eyebrow as a smile danced across her lips and said, “Your girls? We’re a family, not a strip club.”
Kaminari’s eyes went wide. “Wow, I thought it was cute, but it does kind of have that vibe, doesn’t it?”
Jirou laughed, high and clear in the early morning light basking the hospital room. “No, it’s cute. I like it, honestly.”
Kaminari did his best to raise an eyebrow, but ended up just raising both. “Oh, so are we making jokes, then?”
Jirou rolled her eyes at him and flicked him on the nose as she said, “Of course we are. Just because we’re responsible for Chihiro doesn’t mean we give up our comedy routine, babe.”
Kaminari reeled back, with mock indignance. “What routine? I’m the most serious person this side of Hosu!”
Jirou laughed again, and felt her exhaustion ebb away. “The one where I’m right and you’re a moron.”
Kaminari’s mock indignance only intensified. “Hey, I can be both right and a moron!”
Jirou’s eyes flicked towards the ceiling as she settled comfortably into the natural back and forth between her and Kaminari. This was the way things were, and now, with that softly sleeping bundle, things were going to be different. Different wasn’t bad, Jirou mused, just, well, different.
Kaminari started in place and said, “Oh! Everybody’s waiting outside, but I’ll understand if you’d rather rest up a bit first and stuff. But, uh, I do wanna stay with you for a while.”
Kaminari scratched the back of his head nervously. “Kiri went on for a while about how death during childbirth was one of the most honorable and manly ways to die in Aztec culture in the waiting room, which was like, so not helpful during the surgery and I just kinda wanna be here with you and her.”
Jirou smiled softly. “Tell everybody that we’ll see them in a couple hours, dummy. You definitely don’t need to explain why you want to spend time alone with your wife and newborn daughter. And if any of them ask why, I’ll kick their ass.”
Jirou clasped Kaminari’s hand in hers, feeling the warmth from his hand, her smaller fingers covering the patchwork of lightning scars that raced up from his fingertips to his forearms. The scars had some sort of fancy scientific name, according to Yaomomo but Jirou had never cared about the name. They were Kaminari’s. Those strange fractal patterns were just part of what made him special; another thing that made her want to be his and for him to be hers. Kaminari smiled back at her gently and then placed his lips on hers, stopping the world in its tracks.
Kaminari savored every last second of feeling his wife’s lips on his. Jirou was safe. Chihiro was safe. Things were okay. He had made it.
Jirou jerked her head towards the empty space in the cot next to her, placing her coffee cup on the small table next to Kaminari. “But before you do that, there’s probably more than enough space if you wanna try and squeeze in here. You know, just make everybody wait a bit.”
Kaminari smiled gently. “I literally can’t think of anything better.” He climbed in close, and wrapped Jirou up in his arms, the tightness in his chest finally loosened as he spooned her, his head over her shoulder as the two of them stared at their baby.
“I got to say the ‘draw’ thing today,” Kaminari softly murmured as Jirou nuzzled herself closer into him and his warmth.
“Mmm, that’s nice. Was it cool?” Jirou tried to snuggle in as close as possible to Kaminari, welcoming his tight embrace.
Kaminari smiled, his eyes still drawn to Chihiro sleeping softly and quietly. “Yeah, it was super cool.”
Jirou giggled quietly, her voice lowered as not to disturb the baby. “I’m so proud of you. You’re finally cool.”
Kaminari arched his neck to stare down at Jirou. “Excuse you. I’ve been cool since high school.”
The two of them shared a muted laugh, both of their eyes still solidly locked on their baby. The laughter faded into a comfortable, soft silence as the two of them sat there in silent awe, before Kaminari spoke. “I love you, Kyouka.”
Jirou closed her eyes, letting her exhaustion wash over her and finally feeling comfortable for the first time in months. They were together. They were a family. “I love you too, Denki.”