Work Text:
They’re at lunch when Momo first approaches him with the job. He’s halfway through a box of sweet and sour chicken and two pages into his reading for chem lab. Momo sits down across from him with a dramatic groan. Shouto looks up from his book to quirk an eyebrow at her as he takes another bite of chicken. They’ve been friends since childhood. So, he knows her well enough to know that she needs something from him, and that he probably won’t like what it is.
“One of our male cabin leaders got a new job, so we’re short a counselor for the summer,” She begins. Shouto assumes she’s talking about Camp One For All, the summer camp she’s been going to since they were in grade school, where she now works during the summer. He’d never been before- his father didn’t approve of “hippy socialist communes” like summer camp .
“No, no way, absolutely not,” he says.
“No what?” asks Inasa from his left side.
“Yeah, I’m confused,” pipes Camie.
“Momo is going to try to convince me to work at her summer camp this summer, despite the fact that I have no experience with children and have never even been to a summer camp before.” Shouto explains to his friends at the table.
“But I think you’re great with kids!” Momo chimes unhelpfully. She gives Shouto a critical look over. “Remember when we had to do all those community service hours in high school for student council? We worked at that daycare center for a couple of weeks and the kids loved you!”
“Aw, Shouto worked at a daycare?” Camie coos. “I would pay good money to see that.”
“You could always come help at camp, too!” Momo says. Camie shakes her head.
“I’ve got an internship lined up in NYC already. Sorry sweetheart.”
“And I’ll be working with my father in Berlin.” Inasa says, damning Shouto to Momo’s pleading gaze.
“Come on, Shou.” Damn her, she pulls out the childhood nickname. “It’s just for one summer. Plus, what else do you have going on?” She has a point, although Shouto is loathe to admit it. His summer, as of right now, consists of nothing but trying to find a part time job and avoiding his father. Since Fuyumi moved out last summer this will be his first time alone with his father for an entire three months. He loves his sister, but damn it why did she have to move to the other side of the state?
“Well, I was thinking about taking summer classes,” he begins but Momo quickly cuts him off.
“Shou. Listen. Just promise me you’ll think about it, okay? I mean, what do you have to lose?”
---
He makes his decision three days later when his father sends him an email about having him intern at his office for the summer. Unpaid, of course.
After all, working with kids has to be better than a summer spent living and working with his father.
---
If nothing else, the location is beautiful. Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Camp One For All was almost picturesque with its log cabins and giant lake and hiking paths. The car they are arriving in (a shady van filled with all of the counselors arriving from the airport that squealed more than was probably safe) pulls up to a large two story building.
A sign hanging up on rusty chains over the front door says “OFFICE”. Shouto files out with the rest of the group, the others chatting and laughing with each other like old friends, despite some of them being first time counselors like himself. They file into the office, and are greeted by a group of 3 staff members.
“Welcome to Camp One For All, counselors!” The first one greets. “My name is Mirio Togata, and I am the lead male counselor. With me is Nejire Hado, the lead female counselor,” he gestures to the equally peppy woman to his left, “And Tamaki Amajiki, our office coordinator. We’ll call you up one by one to confirm we have all of your paperwork, check you for lice, and then we’ll head off to the cabins to get you all set up for training week!” The man, Shouto decides, has entirely too much energy for 8am on a Monday.
“Ok, first up, Mei Hatsume?” One of the chatty girls from the bus steps forward, her big pink curls bouncing with every step she takes. Everyone else seems to take this as a sign to begin socializing again, and Shouto is almost immediately swarmed by a crowd of people.
“Hey so I don’t think we got to introduce ourselves earlier, I’m Eijiro Kirishima!” An enthusiastic redhead grabs his hand and begins shaking it. Shouto does his best not to wince- his grip is rock hard. His hand gets passed around from person to person, and he begins to lose track of names.
A few stand out- Tenya Iida, who goes to school with him and Momo, although Shouto doesn’t recall ever having met him before, Ochako Uraraka who smiles like his sister, Tsuyu Asui, who proudly introduces herself as the head lifeguard and Ochako’s girlfriend, and Katsuki Bakugou, who refuses to shake his hand and just gives him a dismissive look over before declaring that Shouto would never be able to hack it as a counselor. He’s probably right, but it rankles a bit and Shouto decides he doesn’t like the guy. Finally his name is called, and he makes his escape from the mob.
His paperwork is all filled out correctly and as the camp nurse gently combs through his hair in search of lice, Mirio begins explaining a few things to Shouto.
“For now,” he says, “The counselors will all be sleeping in the same buildings. We have two male cabins and two female cabins set up for training week. At the end of the week, you’ll be assigned to a cabin with another counselor. The two of you will have the last day to bond, get your cabin set up, set up your cabin rules, and other things of that nature before the kids start arriving. Don’t worry, we’ll be going over everything in training, so even first timers like you won’t be totally lost,” Mirio smiles a thousand watt smile and Shouto almost winces. Almost. “Once we’re done here we’ll take you to the cabins and give you some time to set yourselves up, then we’ll have a tour of the camp, a catered dinner, and then the rest of the night is free for you all to do whatever you please with. Do keep in mind that training begins tomorrow at 8am sharp, so try not to go too crazy, alright?” Mirio hands him a binder full of what looks to be schedules, rules, policies, and the like, and gives him a big thumbs up. Shouto nods and goes back to the group. At least that night would be relatively easy going , Shouto thinks to himself.
---
When Shouto wakes up at 7:30 the next morning with a pounding hangover, he finds himself beginning to regret signing up for this job. Momo had failed to mention that the counselors kicked every season off with a rousing, alcohol fueled rager that lasted until 3 in the morning. He vaguely recalls standing in the corner, some godforsaken concoction made of four different types of vodka in his cup, watching as his coworkers slowly got wilder and wilder as they imbibed. He assumes that’s how he spent the entire evening, as that would be entirely par for the course. His alarm is still going off and he groans and shuts it off, eyes stinging at the light from his phone. The rest of the cabin is waking up around him, so he forces himself to join them. Luckily someone thought ahead and a bottle of ibuprofen is passed around. Shouto dry swallows a few and then goes to splash his face with cold water from the sink. It makes him feel slightly more human.
The feeling fades once they reach the dining hall. Mirio is incredibly chipper, and when he announces that it’s time to start learning camp songs Shouto feels something akin to dread. He tries to shoot a glare at Momo, who had conveniently left out that he would have to learn songs , but his line of sight is interrupted.
Oh god, is it interrupted.
The boy standing next to him is beautiful. Shouto feels his mouth dry a little bit. Fluffy green hair and freckles and eyes that seem to almost glitter in the morning sun. He turns his head and sees Shouto looking at him.
“Hi! I’m Izuku Midoriya!” He says, sticking out his hand for Shouto to shake.
“Shouto Todoroki,” His hand is warm and his grip is surprisingly firm. Shouto’s throat feels a little dry as well, although that may just be the hangover talking. He’s not a talkative person, he never has been, but suddenly Shouto feels the need to say something.
Before he gets the chance to open his mouth and embarrass himself though, the rest of the counselors begin to head into the dining hall. Several other counselors- Shouto recognizes them as the returners- greet Izuku warmly, and strike up a conversation. Shouto can’t seem to keep his eyes off of him, and almost doesn’t notice Momo walking up next to him.
“So... I see you met Izuku,” She says in a tone that Shouto does not like at all. He glances at her, and she’s smiling in a way that sets off at least twenty different alarm bells in his head.
“I did. Do you know him well?” He asks as casually as possible.
“Yes, he start here two years ago. The kids love him.” Momo says smirkingly. “He’s by far our most popular counselor, both with kids and with other counselors,” Shouto frowns.
“And what does that mean?” He asks hesitantly. Momo sighs and shakes her head. They approach the buffet, and Momo is drawn into a conversation with another girl, leaving Shouto to his thoughts.
They wind up sitting at a table with four people that Shouto vaguely remembers meeting the night before. There’s Jirou, who is a returner like Momo, an incredibly pretentious blonde guy, a girl with blonde hair and a horse riding helmet, and a redhead who keeps smacking the blonde dude. They’re chatting amongst themselves, and Shouto starts to zone out over his scrambled eggs and toast.
He finds his gaze drawn to another table, where Izuku is sitting with some of the people he met yesterday. He remembers a few of them, but the rest are strangers to him. Izuku is telling a story of some sort, his arms wildly gesticulating as the table bursts into laughter. Shouto wonders what the story is about. There’s conversation happening at his own table, but he can’t find it in himself to really pay attention. Not when his stomach feels leaden and his tongue thick. He wants to say it’s just the hangover, but the honest truth is that he’s somewhat terrified as to what all is involved in counselor training. Unlike probably most of the people here he’s not an education major, and being the youngest child his experience with children is slim at best.
But hey, what’s the worst that could happen?
---
The worst that could happen is high ropes, it turns out. Shouto has never been a fan of heights. Probably due to some deeply rooted childhood trauma that he’s buried deep within his psyche, but hey, who knows? One look at the rope ladder he has to climb up just to get up to the first rope bridge is enough to make him start sweating.
“First time doing high ropes?” Comes a soft voice from behind him. It’s Izuku. Shouto laughs dryly.
“That obvious?” He asks, his voice coming out much raspier than normal. Izuku seems to pause for a moment, but smiles and continues on so quickly Shouto thinks he must have imagined it.
“Yeah, a little. Want some advice?”
“If you say ‘don’t look down’ please know that I can and will glare disapprovingly at you,” Shouto remarks. Izuku seems to find this hilarious, and lets out a loud laugh.
“No, no, no bullshit, I promise.”
“Then please, be my guest.”
“The slower you go the more unbalanced you may feel. It’s all about confidence and pacing. So call the obstacle your bitch and go for it,” Izuku says between chuckles. Shouto does his best not to start laughing too, but he does let his mouth quirk up a tad. Izuku stops laughing.
“You have a really nice smile,” Izuku says. Before Shouto can ask what he means, his name is being called. He turns to the ladder and takes a deep breath.
“I own you, bitch,” He whispers as he begins to climb.
---
Izuku is shocked to learn that Shouto has never been canoeing before.
“See, it’s really easy, just paddle left then right when I do.” Izuku says like it’s the easiest thing in the world. It’s not- they wind up spinning in circles more than once. They’re the last canoe to finish, but Shouto feels proud of what he’s done.
---
During first aid training Shouto gets asked about his scar. He’s been waiting for it to come up- it always does. The rude blonde guy is the one who asks, though he’s quickly reprimanded via slap to the back of the head by the red-haired girl who he always seems to be with. But the question has been asked, and he can feel more than a few pairs of eyes on him, waiting for a response.
“Hey, come on guys, that’s not cool.” Izuku says as Shouto opens his mouth to answer. “Pay attention to the activity,” His tone brokers no argument, and people go back to what they were doing, slightly chastised. Shouto murmurs a quick thanks to Izuku, who waves it off with his own scarred hand.
---
It’s the second to last day of training, and Mirio is getting ready to announce cabins. There’s two counselors to a cabin- one staff counselor who teaches a class during the day, and a cabin leader who accompanies the cabin to each activity. Shouto is a cabin leader, and he wonders who he’ll be spending his summer with. The girls have gone already. Momo is partnered with Jirou, who teaches the music class, and Shouto notices her looking a little blushy. Interesting.
“In Cabin One is Kaminari and Sero!” Mirio says with a flourish. The two exchange an excited high five.
“In Cabin Two is Bakugou and Kirishima!” Kirishima seems more excited about the announcement than Bakugou.
“In Cabin Three is Shinsou and Iida!” The two nod at each other respectfully. Shouto doesn’t doubt for a second that they’ll have the best behaved cabin.
“In Cabin Four is Todoroki and Midoriya!” Mirio announces, and Shouto looks at Izuku, who smiles at him happily. Shouto gives a little wave back. He hopes they can be friends by the time the season’s over. That would be nice.
---
Their cabin gets set up quickly. They agree to take beds on opposite ends of the room, and Shouto is glad that Izuku is one of the neater counselors. While he wasn’t super picky himself, he’d seen the explosion of stuff around Kaminari’s bed and shudders thinking of what all could be living in that. They get to work cleaning the cabin- sweeping and dusting, opening up the windows to let in fresh air. When they finish, they decide to tackle their next obstacle- cabin rules.
“I’m going to be totally honest with you,” Shouto starts, “I’ve never been to camp before, and I’m not an education major so I have no idea what to do here.” Izuku smiles his thousand-watt smile and Shouto feels a pinprick of warmth in his chest. Odd.
“Actually, a lot of us aren’t education majors. In fact, I’m a journalism major,” Izuku explains. “And don’t worry, a lot of it is common sense stuff, like no fighting, use the buddy system, bedtime is at 10pm sharp, stuff like that. The binder has a few base guideline rules, but the rest are up to us,” Shouto nods in understanding.
“I see. Well, maybe we could start with keeping the cabin neat?” He suggests. The two spend the rest of the morning fine tuning their rules, and when they write them out on their piece of poster board and pin it up on the wall, Shouto can’t help but feel a little proud of it.
---
The first round of campers arrives the next morning, and Shouto feels the anxiety he’s been harboring in his chest for the past week bubble wildly. There are ten kids per cabin, and once he and Izuku have collected them all from their parents they lead them to their cabin.
“Now you all get to go set up your beds, then we get to choose our cabin name!” Izuku explains excitedly. Shouto hasn’t said more than a few words to the kids, but Izuku is in the zone, chatting away and befriending them with ease. As the kids get to work, Izuku comes to stand next to Shouto.
“You okay?” He asks, genuine concern in his eyes. Shouto shrugs.
“Yeah, I just have no idea what I’m doing. It comes so naturally to you, but I just feel awkward, I guess.”
“Don’t worry, Shouto,” Izuku says, clasping his arm firmly. “You’re gonna do great, I just know it.” He wanders off after that to help a kid set up his sleeping bag, and the warmth from his hand seems to linger on Shouto’s arm.
---
The first heat wave of the summer is in full swing. Shouto takes another swig of his water bottle, and watches as his and Momo’s kids run wild around the field as they make their way towards the archery field. It’s not yet noon, and Shouto already can’t wait for free time back in the cabin. It’s not air conditioned, but thanks to his and Izuku’s fans it’s at least cooler than outside. At least Momo looks as miserable as he feels. With the way these kids run around Shouto would almost think they didn’t feel the heat.
As they approach the path through the forest, Momo yells for the kids to huddle up. They listen to her, and Shouto resists the urge to pout a little bit. When he asks for his kids to do things they ignore him. Maybe it’s the lack of experience? Momo and Izuku definitely have more experience than him, so he figures that’s why.
The forest is about five degrees cooler than the rest of the camp, and Shouto feels relief course through his veins as the temperature drops. The kids form a herd around him and Momo, and they continue their course towards archery class. Shouto feels a quick pinch of jealousy towards Sero, the archery instructor, who gets to spend his days in the forest rather than traipsing about all over the mountainside, but it disappears as quickly as it came. It’s too hot, even in the shade, to feel emotions.
“How is it this hot in June?” He asks Momo. She shrugs and wipes a layer of sweat off of her brow.
“Something about camp always makes it feel hotter than it actually is. Probably the lack of air conditioning.” She responds. She sighs, noticing that one of her kids is wandering off the path. “Hold on, gotta handle this.” She dashes off, leaving Shouto to walk in contemplative silence. Suddenly, there’s a tug on his shirt, and he looks down to see one of Momo’s girls staring at the ground.
“Yes?” He asks slowly. What was her name again? She was one of the quiet, shy ones. Katie? No. Kayla? No. It was K something, he was sure. “Do you need something?” He asks again. The girl squeaks and thrusts her fist out. Clenched in it is a small white wildflower that he’d seen growing along the edges of the trail.
“For you.” She mumbles, so quietly Shouto almost misses it. He blinks, once, twice, three times. For him?
“For me?” He asks. The girl nods.
“It’s pretty, like you.” She half-whispers.
Shouto is flabbergasted. How does one react when a small child tells you you’re pretty like a flower, and then gives you said flower. His chest feels warm as he pauses to kneel next to the girl. Kylie, that’s her name.
“Thank you, Kylie,” he says, and feels a small smile break across his face. She gapes at him, then beams brilliantly and hands the flower to him. He tucks it in his hair like he’d seen his sister do before, and ruffles her hair good naturedly. He stands back up, only to see the rest of the kids staring at him agape. He turns to Momo in confusion. She’s chuckling as she walks over to him.
“I think this is the first time they’ve ever seen you smile.” She explains. Shouto feels his cheeks flush slightly.
“Oh,” Is all he can manage to say. Suddenly one of his boys pipes up.
“WHOEVER CAN MAKE SHOUTO SMILE THE BIGGEST WINS!” He yells, and the kids explode into action, running to and fro, picking things off the ground to pile into Shouto’s unsuspecting hands.
“Wait, no-” Momo groans and starts attempting to corral their kids. “Come on everyone, remember the camp rules? Take nothing but pictures…”
“Leave nothing but footprints.” The kids chorus, although they look somewhat put out now that their game has been suddenly stopped.
“You know what would really make me happy,” Shouto says, and he feels a surge of excitement as every head in the vicinity turns to face him, “Is if we make it to archery on time.”
He regrets that statement a moment later as the kids go barreling down the path, leaving him and Momo behind. They take off after their kids, yelling for them to slow down and be careful, and Shouto can’t help but enjoy the light feeling in his chest.
---
Counselor Chat
Sero Hanta [11:36 am]: [smiles.png]
Sero Hanta [11:36 am]: The ice prince blesses his loyal following with a smile
Mina Ashido [11:37 am]: OMG IS THAT TODOROKI WEARING A FLOWER CROWN
Uraraka Ochako [11:37 am]: excuse me while I save this to my phone for reasons
Jirou Kyouka [11:37 am]: I didn’t know he was capable of smiling
Yaoyorozu Momo [11:38 am]: neither did most of our kids. theyve taken it upon themselves to make him smile as much as possible. it’s become something of a competition. hence the flower crown. sorry for disrupting your lesson like this sero
Sero Hanta [11:38 am]: Nah it’s chill, I needed the break
Uraraka Ochako [11:39 am]: Deku! What do you think?
Uraraka Ochako [11:39 am]: Deku I can see you’re online
Uraraka Ochako [11:39 am]: DEKU I CAN SEE THAT YOU’VE READ MY MESSAGES
Uraraka Ochako [11:39 am]: STOP IGNORING ME
---
It’s ridiculously hot out today. Shouto is half tempted to let out a cheer when it’s finally time for swimming. He unleashes his kids into the lake, yelling out a reminder about sunscreen and horseplay and not trying to eat frogs again, and stakes out a spot in the shade. The kids start playing and shrieking with joy as they plunge into the cold water. He lifts his hand in a half wave as Tsuyu passes by, whistle at the ready, and she nods in acknowledgement. Soon the other counselors and their kids begin trickling in, followed by the staff. Uraraka is the first to arrive, spotting Todoroki and breaking into a slow jog to join him under the tree where he has staked out a spot.
“If I have to hear one more complaint about the weather I might just shave someone in their sleep.” She grumbles as she takes a seat near him. Shouto hums in sympathy. Uraraka sighs and takes a long drink out of her water bottle. She waves as Iida approaches them. Even the unshakable Iida seems to be suffering in the heat, as he wipes sweat off of his brow.
“How’s your cabin doing?” Uraraka asks. Iida grunts.
“Hot, sweaty, and gross.” He says, joining them on the grass. “I have so much sympathy for my mother now. How do boys get so gross so fast?” Shouto snorts in agreement. “Uraraka are your girls this bad?”
“Hygiene wise? Sometimes. Some of them don’t want to shower ever, and then think they can mask it with their Victoria’s Secret perfume which gives me such a bad headache we had to ban it’s usage in the cabin. But our bigger problem is that most of them don’t want to get out of the shower, ever, which causes nightly drama over who’s guaranteed a hot shower and who has to settle for vaguely warm-ish. Mina and I keep telling them to shower in the mornings but god forbid they have to get up that early.”
“How do you deal with that?” Shouto asks, genuinely curious.
“If they take more than five minutes to shower we start blaring Mina’s bullhorn until they get out,” Uraraka snickers, and Iida chuckles as well. Shouto shakes his head. Suddenly Izuku appears out of the corner of his eye. Shouto waves and Izuku comes jogging over with his trademark beam.
“Oh sweet, you guys got the shade tree!” His freckles seem to be extra prominent today, perhaps due to the glaring sunlight pouring down from the heavens. He sits down next to Shouto. “What are we talking about?”
“How Uraraka harasses her campers,” Iida says.
“It’s not harassment!” Uraraka jumps to her own defense. “I give them a fair warning that if they take too long we’ll annoy them out of the shower.”
“Bullhorn?”
“Yeah, bullhorn.”
“Shouto and I turn it into a competition. Whoever can take the shortest shower wins. Winner gets to stay up an extra half hour.” Izuku offers. Uraraka thinks about that for a moment.
“I’ll mention it to Mina, see what she thinks of that. How was class today?” Izuku groans and flops backwards onto the ground.
“That bad, huh?” Shouto says sympathetically. Izuku groans again, this time louder and more dramatic.
“It’s just so hot,” he whines. He flips over onto his stomach, and props his head on his hands, legs kicking back and forth idly. “Iida, make it be cooler.”
“Mmmm, no,” Iida says from where he’s leaning against the base of the tree.
“Please Iida,” Izuku begs. “turn the sun off. Extinguish it. Just for a few hours. Please? For me?”
“Absolutely not!”
“Iida, I swear to god I will break our snap streak.”
“You wouldn’t!” Iida gasps, clutching a hand to his chest. “It’s six hundred and seventy days long!”
“Try me bitch,” Izuku deadpans.
“Deku, I will end you!”
“Bold of you to assume I can be killed.”
Maybe it’s the heat, maybe it’s the way Izuku manages to say the line, maybe he’s just finally losing his mind, but something about that makes Shouto snort with laughter, which causes a domino effect that leads to all four of them laughing hysterically, gasping for air and tearing up. Izuku falls to the side a bit, and leans onto Shouto for support. Their shoulders shake as they howl, and Shouto turns to say something to Izuku, only to find himself staring directly into his eyes. The sun suddenly feels ten times warmer, and Shouto can’t bring himself to look away. Izuku makes no move to stop staring, either. They’ve stopped laughing. Shouto notices for the first time a very thin ring of golden flecks in Izuku’s eyes, and he feels as though his very soul has caught on fire.
“SHOUTOOOOOOOO!” Shouto jerks his head back- when had they gotten that close?- and turns towards the voice calling for him. It’s one of his campers, doing a very familiar dance. “CAN YOU TAKE ME TO THE BATHROOOOOOOOOOM?” Shouto sighs and goes to take the kid to the latrines a short hike away. Izuku turns back to Uraraka and Iida and begins regaling them with a tale of how Bakugou had talked his campers into forming a protest during his soccer class earlier that morning, and as he walks away Shouto can’t help but to rub at where their bodies had been leaning against each other.
---
They have teenagers this week, and Shouto finds that he enjoys them more than the younger kids. For starters, he hasn’t had to have a talk with anyone yet about why it’s not okay to bite people when you’re mad, and that’s always a bonus in his book.
Two of his kids are sitting on a bunk, puzzling over a book. He approaches them and asks what they’re up to.
“Summer homework.” One explains. “Chemistry. I just don’t get it, man!” The kid rubs frustratedly at his forehead.
“Maybe I can help,” Shouto says, and examines the problem. He quickly explains it, and the kids look at him in something akin to awe.
“Thanks Shouto!” The first kid chirps. “It totally makes sense now!”
“Yeah, you’d be an awesome teacher!” The other chimes in, and they go back to their work, leaving Shouto to feel a flash of warmth in his chest.
Maybe he would have been a teacher in another life.
---
It’s free time, and luckily their group this time around is the kind that enjoys napping, so the cabin is mostly quiet. Shouto and Izuku are sitting next to each other on Izuku’s bed, enjoying the fan. Izuku is scrolling through his phone and muttering to himself over an article. Shouto makes a questioning noise.
“Just reading an article about the national soccer team,” He says, not looking up from his phone. “All Might is going to be signing on as head coach!” It’s not the first time he’s mentioned All Might. The retired pro player, known for being the best goalie in the history of the team, retired a few years ago. Izuku is- according to himself- the man’s biggest fan.
“You know, I’ve never told anyone this before, but I want to be the next All Might.” Izuku says, causing Shouto to look up from his book.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I know it’s kind of a pipe dream, but I’ve always wanted to go pro.” Izuku rubs the back of his neck bashfully, turning to look at Shouto. “Silly, right?” Shouto thinks for a moment.
“I don’t think so.” He says after a moment of consideration. “Remember the soccer game we had at the end of training week? With just what I saw from there I think you could definitely have a shot.” Izuku says nothing, just stares at Shouto with wide eyes. Shouto looks back to his book after a moment, his face strangely flushed.
---
“Aw, Todoroki, are you sure?” Uraraka asks for the fifth time. Shouto sighs and nods again. As much as he enjoys spending time with his coworkers (Are they his friends? He’s not quite sure. Is it too soon to call them friends? Izuku is his friend, so that should make the others his friends too right?) he had been looking forward to spending some quality time alone today. Everyone would be out today- some sort of festival is going on in town- but that means that the couch in the employee lounge will be free and Shouto fully plans on taking advantage of that in order to take the nap of a lifetime.
“Well, alright.” Uraraka finally relents, and she, Tsuyu, along with Iida drive off. They were the last to leave. Shouto waves as they leave, then looks around the now empty camp, sighing in relief. He walks himself back to Cabin 4, packs up his blanket, some snacks, and treats himself to a brief- but loud- cursing session as he stubs his toe on the loose floorboard. It’s funny, the things you come to miss when you spend your days surrounded by children. He wasn’t normally one for cursing, but having gone so long without it, he realizes just how nice it is every once in a while.
Grumbling, he loads his stuff into the passenger seat of a nearby golf cart and begins the drive to the lounge. The sky is quickly darkening overhead, and Shouto dashes indoors just as rain begins to pour. He sighs in relief. He’s been caught in more than a couple of rainstorms before, but he’s glad he missed this one, as he didn’t bring a change of clothes with him, and napping in wet clothes is nobody’s idea of fun.
“Oh, Todoroki, is that you?” Shouto whips around, startled. Sitting on the coveted nap couch is none other than Izuku, looking just as surprised as Shouto feels. His green curls seem poofier than usual, and Shouto assumes it’s because of the rain.
“Oh, sorry, I didn’t think anyone else would be here today,” Shouto says, picking up his stuff. At least the cabin will be empty- he can just nap there.
“Ah yeah, I kinda wanted to relax today.” Izuku says, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully. “You can stay if you want, I was just gonna watch a movie.” He scoots over on the couch, making enough room for Shouto. Shouto finds himself moving towards the couch without a second thought. He seats himself on the couch next to Izuku, close enough that they’re almost touching. If Izuku says anything about his seat of choice he says nothing, just smiling back at Shouto beatifically.
“Is there anything specific you want to watch?” Izuku asks. Shouto shakes his head and Izuku turns back to the tv, muttering to himself as he scrolls through documentaries on Netflix. The noise soothes him somehow, and Shouto feels his eyes growing heavy. It’s cool in the lounge, the air conditioning humming along in the background just under the noise of the rain outside. He pulls his blanket over himself, then offers the other half to Izuku. Izuku looks surprised for a moment, but slowly accepts it, a soft, pretty smile- the one Shouto has come to think of as his smile- making its way across Izuku’s features. He murmurs a quiet word of thanks and the boys start their movie.
Shouto could not have told you what the movie was about. The warmth of the blanket and the cool air of the room on his face was quickly pulling him into a much needed sleep. Izuku at his side was glued to the tv, his wide green eyes absorbing the new information with wonder. It made Shouto smile a bit. He liked that about Izuku, how genuinely excited he was to learn new things. He liked a lot of things about Izuku.
‘Oh.’ He thought to himself. ‘I like Izuku.’
Perhaps this realization should have caused him some level of panic or distress. Perhaps it would have for anyone else. But Shouto prided himself on his honesty, and he knew that what he was feeling was true. It made sense, in a way.
“You okay there, Shouto?” Izuku asks him, suddenly pressed up against Shouto’s side. He nods.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m okay.”
---
Shouto feels himself rousing. He doesn’t remember falling asleep, but he feels better rested than he has in quite some time. He’s warm, and there is a comfortable weight on his chest-
Oh, there’s a weight on his chest.
He slowly forces his eyes open. It’s evening now, and the rain has stopped. The sun is setting outside and casting a warm orange light through the windows into the lounge. It shines beautifully off of Izuku’s curls from where he’s laying across Shouto’s chest. Well, that would certainly explain the mystery weight. They’re tangled up together, Izuku’s head pressed against his chest and his hands clutching at Shouto’s shirt. The blanket had fallen to the floor at some point while he was asleep, but Shouto notices that he feels perfectly warm without it. In fact, he feels as though he could get some more sleep just fine. With a fast, secret smile, he wraps his arms around Izuku, who hums happily at the action, and lets himself fall swiftly back asleep.
---
The curtains rose and the spotlight shone directly on Shouto and Izuku. Their audience burst into laughter.
“Hey hey hey campers! Are you ready to ROCK AND ROLL?” Izuku shouts, throwing up a fist and gyrating wildly, just as their head of staff was prone to do.
“Hmph.” Shouto grunts from behind his black wig. Their campers and coworkers are going wild, but Aizawa looks less than pleased that his employees are dressed up as him and his husband.
---
The day was warm and breezy and as Shouto walks his kids to Izuku’s soccer class, he couldn’t be sure what he was more excited about- not dying from heat or what was going to happen once they reached the field. His boys swarm around him, too excited to be subtle. Momo shakes her head at their antics, even though she and her girls are in on it, too.
Izuku calls out to them when they reach the field, and is instantly surrounded by 20 campers armed with water balloons. Shrieks of joy ring through the clearing as they chase him around and pelt him with their weapons. Izuku tries to run to Shouto for help, only to get pegged in the face with the one Shouto was hiding behind his back. The look of betrayal makes Shouto laugh so hard he shakes.
The water balloon fight soon becomes a free for all, and they return to their cabins that night muddy and soaked but full of joy.
---
A storm rages outside as Shouto sits at a table in the arts and crafts building. Outdoor activities have been canceled, so Izuku had joined them for the day. Kendou leads the kids through a tutorial on how to make friendship bracelets. Shouto quickly falls into the activity, the knots flying from his fingers as he weaves a bracelet for himself. There’s a tap on his shoulder and he looks up as Izuku hands him one he just finished, woven in various shades of green. Shouto lets him tie it on, and feels his face grow warm when Izuku’s hand lingers for a second longer.
The warmth returns as he ties one on Izuku later, woven in shades of blue.
---
The campfire is large and bright and Shouto is already regretting letting Momo talk him into leading campfire songs for the night. Healready feels the confusion of the gathered group as he takes his seat, borrowed guitar in hand. He takes a deep breath, and before he can allow himself to freak out, he begins to play. The fire pit grows quiet as he sings.
The first song is Country Roads, of course, because it’s how they begin every campfire. He’s a little rusty, his voice rough. It’s been awhile since he last sang. Momo quickly joins in, and the two of them sing together, like they used to when they were young. Back before his father forbade it, claiming a future doctor would have no use for frivolous activities like music. It’s familiar and comforting.They easily slip into the next song, and then another.
The shock of the crowd has worn off, and some sing along, while others talk amongst themselves. Momo leaves after the fourth song to help set up the smores station. Shouto continues playing, and finds himself slipping into the chords of a song he hadn’t played in a while, one he hadn’t thought of in a while, really. It had been his mother’s favorite song. He takes a deep breath and begins singing.
It feels freeing, somehow. He imagines his mother sitting next to him, singing along. He glances up and makes eye contact with Izuku from across the fire, who is watching him as though entranced. The song is a love song, but Shouto can’t pull his eyes away from Izuku as he sings it, about winning his love. Somehow the words burn true as they float away into the night sky.
---
Shouto’s not entirely sure how he got dragged into going out on his day off, but here he is. Huddled in a back booth at a nearby bar, surrounded by others, who he now realizes are his friends. There’s seven of them crowded into a four person booth, and Shouto finds that he doesn’t quite mind the company. The fact that Izuku is half on his lap in order to make room for Ochako and Tsu is making him a little light headed, but that could also just be the alcohol talking. It’s late and everyone’s a few drinks in, somehow the topic of conversation has made its way to school. Shouto learns that Ochako is a physics major who dreams of being an astronaut, and that Tsu will be spending her spring semester at sea studying migration patterns of a rare species of fish. Iida talks of his dreams of designing engines and Jirou complains about having to leave camp early to attend beginning of the year auditions at her music school. Izuku is finishing a story about his internship at a magazine last semester, and he leans further into Shouto. He feels even warmer than before.
“What about you, Todoroki?” Izuku asks, and Shouto, feeling too warm and light to try and stifle himself the way he was always taught to, huffs out a frustrated sigh.
“Well, I’m a pre-med major, right? But like, I don’t wanna be a pre-med major. I don’t wanna be a doctor,” Hm, maybe he’s a little more drunk than he thought.
“Well, why not just switch majors then?” Iida asks, sipping on his margarita.
Shouto shrugs.
“If I did that I’d be disowned for sure. My dad is kind of a major asshole and he wants me to be the next brain surgeon in the family. Some bullshit about tradition or something,” Oh good lord he’s cursing, somebody shut him up now. “Like, I love science and what not. But I don’t want to be a doctor... but I can’t go against my dad or I basically end up homeless and broke.”
Silence falls over the group and Shouto feels himself slowly retreating back into himself like some kind of socially awkward, drunk turtle. This, he reminds himself, is why he doesn’t go out drinking with others. Because then he opens his stupid drunk mouth and makes everything awkward and uncomfortable for everyone else. He gently nudges Izuku off of his lap and exits the booth.
“I think I’m gonna head back now,” He says awkwardly. He rushes up to the bar to pay his tab, feeling the eyes of his friends burning holes into his neck. He’s out the door before he notices he has a shadow. It’s Izuku, because of course it is.
“Want to walk around a bit before we head back?” Izuku asks, and Shouto agrees because he doesn’t think he could ever say no to Izuku.
The night is balmy and quiet as they meander through the town. Shouto’s not quite sure where they’re going, but the sky is clear and the air is fresh, so he can’t find it in himself to complain. Izuku takes a turn that Shouto recognizes as heading towards the town square. He follows quietly behind, taking a moment to admire the way Izuku’s hair gleams in the moonlight.
Eventually, Izuku stops in front of the fountain in the square and takes a seat on a nearby bench. Shouto sits beside him, and Izuku turns to study him. Shouto flushes under his scrutiny, but can’t seem to tear his gaze away from Izuku’s. Eventually Izuku turns to look at the fountain, and Shouto feels both relieved and disappointed.
“You know, I think you should change your major.” Izuku says. His voice is quiet, but it still startles Shouto. “Maybe this is presumptuous of me, but I think you have a lot to offer the world, you know? And I feel like it would be wasted as a doctor.”
“I wish it were that easy,” Shouto says morosely. He can’t bring himself to look at Izuku. “My dad-”
“Fuck your dad!” Izuku yells, and Shouto’s head whips up to stare at him in shock. “It’s your life, Shouto! Maybe I’m stepping way out of line here but I know I’d rather be alone and broke and happy than stuck to a shit lord that controls my every move in life!”
“But-”
“No buts, Shouto! Live your own damn life, and fuck anyone who thinks that that’s not enough. Listen, you were the first person to believe in my dream, so god damn it I’m gonna believe in you, too!” Izuku is magnificent in the moonlight, his voice passionate and commanding. Maybe it’s the alcohol, maybe it’s the warm night or maybe it’s the speech that has managed to touch his soul in a way Shouto didn’t think was possible until now, but something makes him surge forward and press his lips against Izuku’s.
It takes him a minute to process what’s happening. As soon as his brain catches up to his body he begins to pull away, to apologize, to try and salvage the friendship he’s likely shattered. Before he can, Izuku’s strong, warm hands tangle themselves in Shouto’s hair, pulling him back in.
The kiss itself isn’t anything special, really. There are no fireworks behind his closed eyelids, no sparks, no shattering earth or thunder and lightning, or any other hundreds of cliche, rom-com descriptors. But it’s warm and real and the lightness in his chest expands and expands until it suddenly bursts into an explosion of laughter that comes spilling out of his mouth into the kiss. Suddenly, Izuku is laughing with him and they stand there, wrapped up in each other laughing and kissing and wondering what took them so long. For the first time in a long time, Shouto feels like his life is going right.
---
Izuku is addictive. Every moment he can Shouto is pulling him behind a tree or around the side of a building to lock lips with him. Izuku reciprocates just as enthusiastically, and Shouto understands what people mean when they claim to feel up in the clouds. He doesn’t want this to end, not ever. Not the warm strength of Izuku’s hands, not the smell of grass and sunshine that wraps around them, not this damnable feeling that swells in his chest every time he and Izuku so much as look at each other.
But as the heat of the summer swells, Shouto watches as his calendar slowly counts down to the days when they will have to part. His heart squeezes painfully in his chest. He doesn’t know how he’s going to let this go, this peace and rightness that he has been craving for so long. He doesn’t want to go back to how things were before. He understands now. For the first time in so long, too long, he feels as though he has a family again and he can’t let go of it. Not just Izuku- jokes from Uraraka, debates with Iida, the quiet companionship of Jirou and Tsuyu. Shouto clutches at his shirt as he thinks of everything he will miss when the season ends.
But more than anything, he will miss Izuku. Izuku, his first friend here, his partner in crime, sunshine personified and somehow, somehow his. His what, exactly, he’s not sure- they haven’t discussed what they are, not really. So for now he enjoys the moment. He lets the laughter of his friends wash over him and clasps Izuku’s hand under the table just a smidge tighter and does his best not to think about the end.
---
As with all things in life, the summer comes to an end. The last round of campers leave, waving goodbye to their counselors as they drive away, and Shouto feels the lump in his throat grow. As the last car disappears from sight a cheer goes through the gathered staff, and Shouto finds himself smiling along with them.
“Don’t forget everyone,” Mirio cries above the chatter, “End of the year banquet tonight! Be in the dining hall at 7!” With this the crowd disperses, everyone off to go spend time with their friends and pack before they leave the next day. Izuku’s hand silently slips into his, and Shouto finds himself being walked toward their cabin.
The air is heavy with the promise of an afternoon storm and Shouto and Izuku make it back to their cabin just as the first clap sounds out through the mountains. The rain soon follows. The two stand in the doorway of the cabin, taking a moment to take in the silence. The bunks were all empty except for theirs, and it felt somewhat lonely without the chatter and hubbub of campers.
Izuku leans against Shouto, and they take another moment to absorb each others’ presence. Slowly, Izuku maneuvers them over to his bed, and they curl up together on the mattress. Shouto takes his phone out of his pocket and checks the time as he sets it next to the pillow. Noon. With a heavy sigh he wraps his arms around Izuku and pulls him flush against his chest, and allows himself to drift away to the sound of Izuku’s quiet breaths.
He’s half between sleep and wakefulness, the pounding of the rain and the warmth at his side lulling him into total relaxation. Time ceases to exist, and all he feels is warm. Eventually he feels gentle fingers trace his face. He presses a kiss to them as they pass over over his lips and open his eyes halfway to stare into the adoring gaze of Izuku.
“I’m going to miss you,” Shouto says quietly. Izuku pulls himself in even closer. There’s no space between them now, and Shouto buries his face into Izuku’s curls. Izuku says something, but Shouto can’t hear him.
“What’s that?”
“I don’t want this to end,” Izuku says again, and Shouto’s heart clenches painfully. “I know we’ve only known each other for a few months but Shouto I can’t imagine my life without you anymore. I don’t- I mean, I can’t- I just-” Shouto can’t see Izuku’s face but he can feel his tears seeping into his shirt. Izuku suddenly sits up and Shouto goes up with him. Tears are streaming down his face but Izuku looks straight into Shouto’s eyes.
“I love you, Shouto,” He says. Thunder booms outside and Shouto pulls Izuku down into a heated kiss, his hands cupping Izuku’s face.
“I love you, too, Izuku.” He says, leaving Izuku’s lips to press kisses to his forehead, nose, eyelids, cheeks, ears, throat, collarbone, lower and lower and all over until Izuku is laughing and sighing and gasping and they forget what they were even talking about in the first place.
---
They remember a little while later. They’re tangled up in each other and Shouto is weaving a curl between his fingers.
“I hate that we live on literal opposite sides of the country,” Izuku says finally, and Shouto nods, sighing.
“I mean, that doesn’t mean we’ll never speak again,” Shouto muses. “We have each other's phone numbers and snapchat and what not.” Izuku looks up at him curiously. Shouto blushes and averts his eyes. “I’m just saying that, you know. If you want to keep this going. I’m, well, that is, distance doesn’t matter to me. Uh. Personally. But if, like, you don’t want that then-”
Izuku kisses him quiet, and Shouto takes that as a resounding yes.
---
They walk hand in hand to the banquet that night, and Ochako is the first to notice.
“You owe me twenty dollars, Tsuyu!” She calls across the room, and everyone turns to stare.
“Ugh, finally!” Momo calls out, and the hall erupts in a cheer. Shouto flips her the bird. Their friends surround them, congratulating them and asking the occasional question. Shouto is glad to let Izuku answer and instead simply revels in the feeling of their hands clasped together.
Aizawa calls for order and they take their seats. He begins the evening by playing a slideshow of pictures from the summer, and Shouto is surprised to see how many he’s in. Talent shows, hikes, meal times, campfires, even the high ropes course from the first week flash before him, and he looks around at his friends as they laugh and reminisce and he feels as though maybe he has found something of a family along the way. Shouto groans as the picture of him in the flower crown flashes across the screen, and Izuku chuckles.
“You know, I think that’s when I started to realize I love you.” Izuku says, and Shouto turns to look at him.
“That picture? Really?”
“Yeah. I knew you were attractive, I’d known it since we met that first morning at breakfast, but something about that picture…” He trails off, then smiles and shrugs. Shouto leans in an presses their foreheads together. He can hear Ochako and Momo cooing from the other side of the table, but he doesn’t really care. He’s happy, his body feeling as though it is overflowing with joy, and nothing can ruin the moment, not even nosy friends.
---
They spend the night together in Izuku’s bed, trading kisses and touches and moments Shouto swears he’ll never forget. They stay up long into the night, making promises to call every day and to visit each other as soon as possible, and Shouto feels swept away by the pure wave of love that washes over him as he holds Izuku in his arms.
---
The day dawns bright and clear and to the sounds of bullhorns shrieking outside their cabin. Izuku and Shouto bolt awake, Izuku scrambling and falling out of bed with a yelp.
“Come on you two!” Calls out Ochako. “You’re going to miss breakfast!”
“Remind me to shave her head in her sleep,” Izuku grumbles, still face down on the floor. Shouto snorts and exits the bed much more gracefully, leaning down to smack Izuku’s bare ass, which earns him a yelp. The two finish packing their things away and only get distracted by each other twice. They’re late to breakfast, but neither really care. The dining hall is boisterous and they’re quickly pulled over to a table with Ochako and Tsu and Iida. Breakfast is light hearted and energetic, and even when they’re forced to sing the camp song one last time Shouto can’t find it in himself to stop smiling. Izuku begins telling them about his course load once he returns, and how he’s not sure how he’s going to handle a full load along with being vice captain of the soccer team.
“You’ll be fine, ‘Zuku.” Shouto says around a mouthful of pancakes. “You always are.” Izuku laughs at this, and Shouto chuckles as well.
After breakfast ends, the hard part begins. The counselors leave one by one, until their little group is the only one left. They pile into the creaky camp van that will drive them to the airport. The ride there is quiet, nobody wanting to be the first to acknowledge their departure. They check in for their flights, make their way through security, and wait together in the terminal for Shouto and Momo’s flight. Iida is staying a week longer to visit family in the area, and Ochako, Tsu, and Izuku’s flight back to California doesn’t board for another hour and a half.
Entirely too soon, the flight attendant begins calling for boarding.
“Well, I guess this is it.” Shouto says awkwardly. He’s never been one for goodbyes. He’s shocked when Ochako wraps him into a hug. She’s small and soft and smells like flowers and he’s not quite sure what to do with his hands.
“Keep in touch, okay?” She says, sniffling a little bit. Shouto pats her back and she disentangles herself so that she can claim Momo for her next victim. Iida gives him a firm handshake and offers to meet up for lunch some time back on campus, to which Shouto readily agrees. He gets hugs from Tsu and Jirou both, although much more relaxed and casual. And finally it’s just him and Izuku.
They stand there for a moment, neither wanting to be the first to say something, to acknowledge that their time together is, for the moment, over. The wind ruffles their hair, and Izuku surges forward to capture Shouto in a searing kiss. Shouto pulls him close, closer, until they’re flush against each other, trading desperate kisses like they’re running out of air. They slow, eventually, until the two are just standing there, foreheads pressed together, breathing synchronized.
“Call me when you get home?” Izuku asks, his voice cracking. Shouto nods and places one final kiss on his brow.
“Yeah, talk to you later.”
---
“So Fuyumi is moving back to town.” Shouto says. Momo glances over at him from the window seat. It’s the first words that have spoken since they left.
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. She brought it up when we talked on the phone last weekend. I told her about my plan after that, and she said I could move in with her. It’ll be a bit of a commute, but I can manage.”
“That’s good.” They fall back into a companionable silence. As the sky rolls past them, Shouto turns to Momo once again.
“Hey, when does hiring begin for next year?”
---
Fall in Boston is, without a doubt, Shouto’s favorite time of year. A crisp breeze blows across campus, ruffling his hair as he walks with his friends. Camie is vigorously retelling a story of an incident with her boss and a loose pigeon in the office, which makes Momo and Inasa howl with laughter. Shouto chuckles to himself as Camie pantomimes a frantic middle aged socialite with a broomstick.
A notification makes his phone buzz. He looks down at it and smiles at his background picture. It’s from the end of the season baquet. Uraraka had snapped a picture of him and Izuku talking, their faces close together and beaming at each other. Breaking his gaze off from the picture, he reads his notification. It’s a reminder for his meeting in half an hour.
He says his goodbyes to his friends and heads off to the building that houses his academic advisor.
“So how can I help you today?” She asks once all of their regular pleasantries are exchanged. Shouto takes a deep breath.
“I’d like to talk to you about changing my major.”
---
“So basically what I’m going to do is finish with a major in chemistry and a minor in biology, which will actually let me graduate a year early. Then I’ll apply for a masters in education.” Shouto explains to his friends. They smile at each other, and Shouto is half tempted to throw his fork at Momo’s face for giving him a knowing look.
“And how does your dad feel about this change?” Inasa asks carefully. Shouto shrugs.
“I haven’t told him yet. I figure he’ll be pissed enough to finally disown me, so I’m applying for a bunch of scholarships to cover my costs for next year. Fuyumi offered to let me move in with her, though, so that’s good at least.”
“Well, I for one am very proud of you.” Momo says. Camie and Inasa nod their heads in vigorous agreement. “You know who else will probably be proud?” She says slyly. Shouto shoots her a glare and is about to retort scathingly when his phone begins to ring. Sure enough, it’s Izuku. He leaves the table to go answer the phone, as Camie wolf whistles at his back.
“Izuku, hello.” He greets. “So, I did something a little crazy today…”