Work Text:
The danger was over, and so the crowd moved far more calmly as police directed them to relief camps to find rest for the night and hopefully meet up with loved ones who had gotten separated or trapped in the attack. The streets thrummed with excited chatter about the battle that had just been broadcast all over the country on live television.
All Might! Even in his weakened state, barely skin and bones, nothing but a spark of the larger than life hero they were used to, All Might had saved them all yet again! Was there nothing the number one Pro Hero couldn’t do?
And what he said at the end there.
“Now it’s your turn.”
Chilling.
It was all over, and Momo Yaoyorozu finally realized just how exhausted she was. Between creating another receiver, facing All For One, Bakugou’s rescue, and these cursed heels mercilessly squeezing her feet, she didn’t want to think about the long trek home they still had ahead of them. The street was still so filled to the brim with people that traffic couldn’t get by easily. The trains were down with half of the ward gone.
She just wanted to go home. No, scratch that. She wanted a bed. Any bed. Well, preferably a soft bed. With a pillow. Several pillows. And the idea of hunkering down in a cot squeezed like a sardine amongst complete strangers was not her idea of a good night’s rest. Which she felt they totally deserved after everything they had gone through.
Yet Todoroki marched on, and so Momo kept her complaints to herself and followed him. Besides, what should she say?
Hey, Todoroki, how about we get a hotel room for the night?
Yeah, right.
She listened as he told the rest of their classmates over his smartphone that the two of them were okay, that they were headed for a relief camp, and that they would meet up with everyone at U.A. in the morning. God, even the thought of making plans exhausted her, her brain fogged over with fatigue. She should say something. She should —
“Ack!”
A very unfeminine sound burst out of her throat when her ankle suddenly rolled as if her foot was trying to escape its heeled prison on its own accord. Her arms waved out on instinct to keep her balance, but her reaction time was far too slow and her movements sluggish. Before she hit the ground, a strong arm grabbed her waist.
“Yaoyorozu! You okay?”
It was cute how much Todoroki clearly cared for his classmates even as he behaved otherwise. Like he just couldn’t help it. Momo allowed herself just a few short moments of leaning against his body for support. He was strong and warm. Smelled good, too, like woodsmoke and cold rain.
“I’m okay,” she said, straightening and stepping away from him. What was she even doing, indulging herself like that?
“You look beat,” he observed. Honestly, so did he. Even in this dim light, his heterochromatic eyes were glazed over with the same fog in her head.
“I’m fine,” Momo insisted. Because she knew that Todoroki would never admit he was tired. She didn’t want her own weakness to hold him back.
Todoroki glanced at his phone and shook his head. “No. You need rest.” And then, with a long sigh, “We need rest.“
Oh, he did admit it.
“I don’t like the idea of sleeping on a cot, either,” he continued like he could read her thoughts. “Maybe we should find a hotel in one of the safe zones?”
A hotel? He was suggesting a hotel!?
Momo’s face flared. It really was a smart idea, wasn’t it? Why hadn’t she suggested it when it came to her earlier? Why had she hesitated?
“Y-yeah,” she said, and the slight trip over the word was enough for him to notice.
Todoroki tilted his head, raising one thin eyebrow. “You don’t want to?”
“No, I do!” Oh, that came out a little too enthusiastic, and she quickly backtracked, the heat in her ears now. “I mean, it’s the smart thing to do! It’s been quite a day.”
He nodded. “Yeah, it has.”
Was it just her or was the air around them suddenly kinda awkward? Todoroki tended to keep himself well guarded, and therefore was a rather difficult person to read sometimes. “So where should we stay?” he asked. “I’m afraid I’m not very familiar with this area.”
“Hotel Dolphin,” Momo replied, almost too quickly. No, she had never fantasized about staying there one day or anything, what?
“Sounds rich,” Todoroki replied dryly.
“Oh, come on, I think we both deserve a night of pampering,” Momo shot back. “The spa is open 24/7, they serve English breakfast in the morning — “
“We’re not here on vacation, Yaoyorozu.”
Her eyebrow twitched. He could loosen up a little, geez.
“And it’s not like just anyone can book a room there,” she continued on as if Kill Joy here hadn’t said a word. “This part of Kamino ward is a party district, and it’s incredibly popular, attracting people from all over the country and even foreign tourists. Hotel Dolphin is an extremely high-end business hotel whose rooms are reserved for only the elite.”
She might have been reciting the pamphlet at this point.
“All the other hotels will be booked, especially tonight, so this is the one place, if not the only place, where we’ll be guaranteed a room. To be honest, I really don’t feel like going from hotel to hotel to find vacancy. And it is located in one of the safe zones, very close by to us. We won’t have far to walk at all.”
Todoroki blinked at her as if taken aback. “Well, if you really want to stay there — “
“I don’t, it’s just practical!” she insisted, surprised at how boldly she had spoken.
He just nodded. “Okay. Yeah. Hotel Dolphin it is.”
Momo tried not to bounce in her giddy excitement as they followed her phone’s GPS to the hotel. And it really was only a five minute walk from where they were at. The lobby was stunningly gorgeous, massive crystal chandeliers hanging from an ivory ceiling. The floor might as well have been actually made of gold. Plush white furniture stood neatly arranged around tall plants from exotic places. A marble fountain stood in the center as water trickled pleasantly from a dancing alabaster dolphin. That she took her time taking it all in was the only reason Momo didn’t take off running straight for the front desk when they stepped inside.
“Two rooms, please,” she said, the family credit card already in her hand. “Upgraded to suites.” Tonight, they were going to have only the best.
“I’m sorry, miss, but we are all booked for the night,” the eight-armed clerk replied, his voice professional, tinged with just the right amount of regret. “All of that business with that horrible villain and such. Since we are considered a safe zone, we’ve opened our rooms to anyone who needs one for the night. Free of charge. ‘Twould be rather inhumane of us to capitalize on such a tragic event.”
One of his tentacle appendages typed on a computer, while the others busied themselves with various other tasks like writing in a large accounting book and wiping down the desk. Then all arms paused, as if a thought occurred to him.
“Ah, except for one room, a single room in the business suite. The guest who had reserved it never showed. No doubt because of the trains. Would that be acceptable?”
Momo froze all over. A single room? Sh-sharing a room? With Todoroki? Crap, crap, she hadn’t thought this far ahead!
Were there at least two beds? Sometimes single rooms came with two beds, right? She didn’t voice this concern, however, in order to not give the clerk the wrong impression.
And she didn’t dare glance back at Todoroki who was hanging around by the furniture poking at a palm leaf to let her do business in private. Even so, she wasn’t about to let this setback stop her from staying in the hotel of her dreams. Besides, they were already here and she was just so, so tired.
“Okay, that’ll be fine. We’ll take that one, then.”
Once the booking was completed and she had the keys in her hand, Momo shoved her nervousness down as she smiled at Todoroki. “All set.”
“Good.”
Now that they were no longer hidden by the shadows and dim street lights, Todoroki definitely looked as tired as Momo felt. It was okay. This was still a good idea. Everything would be fine.
Yet, Momo’s heart pounded hard in her ears when she opened the door to their business suite. Todoroki seemed completely unfazed. It was a nice room, spacious with a kitchen and living room, a huge bathroom, and then the bedroom.
Please, two beds. Please, two beds, Momo kept praying since she had booked the room.
There was only one bed.
A large bed, king-size, roomy and comfortable. This type of suite was no doubt built for foreigners who were used to having larger accommodations while traveling on business.
“One bed, huh,” Todoroki remarked.
“I’m sorry, this was all they had,” Momo quickly said, her face heating up.
“It’s okay. I can sleep on the couch.”
They both looked at the couches in the living room, and they both came to the same conclusion. Those were very tiny, cramped pieces of furniture that they were, a pair of two-seaters and an armchair that didn’t recline. None suited for proper sleeping. Poor Todoroki would be wrapped up like a pretzel all night.
“W-we can share the bed!” Momo suddenly blurted before her nerves could stop her. “I don’t mind.”
What was she even saying? Had she lost her damn mind?
He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think that would be very appropriate, Yaoyorozu.”
Did he always have to be so... sensible?
She pursed her lips, a bit irritated. “Probably not, but what choice do we have? You can’t get a proper night’s sleep like that, and I don’t have enough in me to make any kind of bed for you, not even a futon.”
Making all those tiny components for that receiver they used to track Bakugou had already taken quite a bit out of her before they even arrived at Kamino ward. Not to mention she was still recovering from her head injury. All in all, she was about to drop dead from fatigue. She’d be lucky to create a toothbrush so she could at least brush her teeth before bed.
“It’ll be fine,” she pushed, unable to believe her own boldness and yet unable to stop herself from talking. Like floodgates opening. Like her exhaustion had overtaken all of her inhibitions. “We’re classmates. We’re going to be heroes, right? So...”
Her face turned bright, bright red and she suddenly couldn’t look at him directly.
“I... I trust you.”
In this moment, she was glad she couldn’t read him. Todoroki stared at her with his usual stoic expression, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking. Good. She didn’t want to know, anyway.
After a few heavy beats of silence, he sighed. “Okay. If that’s how you feel, then I accept your offer. Otherwise, I’m sure we’ll argue about it all night.” His lips curled then, a tiny, rare smile. “Y’know, you can be quite stubborn when you really want to be.”
Was Todoroki actually teasing her?
Momo’s chest swelled with a warm feeling that was far different than the flustered embarrassment she had been enduring for the past few hours. Todoroki seemed so cold and distant, but around her, he was caring, warmer, and even sometimes smiled. It was like a side to him meant only for her eyes to see.
No doubt it was just the circumstances, but she was going to let herself have this, dammit.
They discovered matching blue pajamas hanging in the closet, clean and pressed, courtesy of Hotel Dolphin. Good. Momo didn’t have to spend the rest of her body’s resources trying to create any, if she could even get a shirt to materialize at all. And she wouldn’t have to sleep in this dress which was constricting her as much as her heels had been.
“Fancy,” Todoroki remarked as he felt along the silk material of the pajamas she handed him. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever stayed in any place like this before.”
Momo blinked in surprise. “Really?” Todoroki’s family had to have more money than hers did. His father was Endeavor, after all. Being the number two Pro Hero came with quite a hefty paycheck.
Todoroki gave her a startled expression, as if he hadn’t realized he had just spoken out loud, like he said something he shouldn’t. “Uh, because of my training. I was always too busy training. And father often traveled by himself.”
Yeah, Endeavor didn’t exactly have the personality of a lovable family man. “Ah, I see,” Momo said and left it at that. She knew better than to try and pry further. Todoroki’s feelings about his father weren’t exactly a secret to anyone who paid attention.
Momo changed in the bathroom and used the last of her power to create her toothbrush. It was nice, just standing here brushing her teeth, getting ready for bed like it was a normal evening, and they hadn’t just risked their very lives to rescue a classmate mere hours ago. It was a little unnerving how the ease in which she was able to go back to her usual routines grew more and more after each traumatic encounter.
Was this what it meant to be a Pro?
A part of her didn’t want to think about that.
Her mind had been so wrapped up in their thoughts that her body went into autopilot. She stepped out of the bathroom without announcing herself. Like she truly was back home getting ready for bed.
Todoroki hadn’t put his shirt on yet. He stared at her standing in the doorway of the bathroom with the sleeves still hanging off his arms. “Um... Yaoyorozu?”
She was gawking at him. His voice snapped her back to reality. “I’m so sorry!” she squawked and slammed the door shut. Her back hit against it, heart racing. She grabbed her chest as if she could force the thing to slow down with her own hands. Such an idiot. How could she have forgotten Todoroki was on the other side of this door... getting dressed? Meaning he needed to undress before getting dressed.
Goodness, he was... solid.
The only word she could think of that remained respectful to her classmate. Heroes they were all striving to become, most of the boys in their class were still rather lanky and awkward in some places. It was no surprise that Todoroki would already be so built despite being one of the youngest in the class. Endeavor was a powerhouse, built like a raging bull. It made sense his son would also be so, erm, developed even at this age.
He was just so well toned, it had been nearly impossible for her to tear her gaze away from the slender line trailing down the curve of his spine. It was as if her brain was trying to memorize every sharp angle of his back muscles and the strong curve of his shoulders.
Momo’s heart nearly leaped out of her throat when nerves suddenly kicked in the moment she remembered what exactly was about to happen. They were about to share a bed. Together. Like a... like a...!
A soft knock on the door made her yelp in her throat. “Yaoyorozu? You okay in there?”
She barely had enough air in her lungs to answer, and “I-I’m fine!” came out in a tight squeak.
“I... ummm... I need to use the bathroom. When you’re finished, that is.”
“Oh! Oh, o-of course!”
She opened the door, and he stood there so close to her, much too close, close enough for her to feel his body heat and smell his smoky scent and convince herself that he could definitely hear her heart thundering against her ribs. She pushed past him, feeling a bit guilty for coming off so rude, but unable to do anything else that wouldn’t result into a full blown panic.
What was wrong with her?
She made a beeline for the bed. Curled up beneath the covers as far to one side as possible. The heat from her face warmed her pillow quickly. She was so obvious. That was the worst part. How could she not be so obvious?
God, Momo hadn’t even decided if she even liked Todoroki like that yet, anyway. Sure he had been incredibly kind to her in the past, and it was so touchingly sweet that he had voted for her to be class president. He had such confidence in her, where she barely had none, and she appreciated him very much for that.
That hardly amounted up to relationship compatibility.
And she still wasn’t strong enough as a hero. She had such a long, long way to go. A boyfriend, or dating anyone, having any kind of love life, would only be a distraction. She had seen pure evil with her own eyes tonight. The villains would only become stronger. Momo didn’t have the time, the luxury, to live like a normal teenage girl who had no desire to be a hero. That wasn’t her.
The bed dipped as she was about to drift off to sleep. “Sleep well, Yaoyorozu,” Todoroki said softly as the light turned off, bathing the room in silent, comforting darkness.
“You, too,” she replied in a sleepy whisper. If she had been worried about not being able to sleep with Todoroki next to her, the soft mattress and fluffy pillow were quick to remind her just how exhausted she was. Her body was already shutting down for sleep, and quickly, and her anxious brain was far too tired for once to make any kind of protest. Her reply had barely left her lips before she had drifted off to nothing.
Shoto woke up in the middle of the night.
It was a habit, which was why he was always sleepy. Daddy Dearest got quite the kick out of waking up his son in the middle of the goddamn night for some spontaneous training. “You’ll never know when you are needed,” the old man would bark at the shivering child desperately trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. “To be the strongest, you must always be prepared, no excuses!”
And then the ass would have the audacity to get mad when Shoto’s teachers reported him falling asleep in class. Like what did you expect would happen, you dense bastard?
As usual, whenever he woke up in the middle of the night, his thoughts immediately went to his father, and then he would be too pissed to go back to sleep. The sheets heated beneath him as anger poked at the embers of his quirk.
A slightly distressed groan next to him snuffed them out.
Oh, right, he was sharing a bed with Yaoyorozu.
Sharing a bed.
With Yaoyorozu.
Who had, at some point in the middle of the night, snuggled right up to him for warmth.
Oh.
For a long, long minute, Shoto struggled to recall how he ended up in such a position. In the same bed with Yaoyorozu, that is.
Oh, right. All For One. Rescuing Bakugou. They had gotten separated in the chaos. None of the trains were running, so he and Yaoyorozu booked a hotel room for the night. Got it. He was caught up now.
Still didn’t explain what she was doing curled up on his chest like a cat, though. Hadn’t she been way over on the other side of the bed the last time he checked?
Now that he thought about it, Yaoyorozu had been acting kinda weird for a while there, hadn’t she? Shoto thought she was just tired, but then she suddenly went and hid herself in the bathroom for no reason. Oh, well, he supposed she did walk in on him undressing but she barely wore anything for her costume, anyway, so what was there to be embarrassed about?
He didn’t get it.
Crap. What was he supposed to do now? This was... absolutely not appropriate. In any sense of the word. And no doubt she hadn’t realized what she had done, being asleep and all. If she were to wake up like this in the morning, it would be a disaster. Yaoyorozu was a bit innocent.
Not that he was much different.
He should definitely, definitely figure out how to move her back to her side of the bed. Preferably without waking her.
Yet, he felt kinda bad about it. She looked so comfortable, so at peace. And far be it from him to deny her that peace given tonight’s horrific events. Her face was soft, not a single wrinkle of distress from any kind of nightmare on her pale skin, only her long dark lashes making a mark. She had forgotten to undo her ponytail, so now about half of it had fallen out of the hairtie in wild, chaotic black waves. Her breath fell across his chest slow and even.
What to do, what to do, what to do???
It wasn’t like Shoto minded her being there.
Well, the fact that he didn’t mind her being there was precisely why he should push her back to her original spot. Because suddenly his late night thoughts weren’t about dear ol’ Pops, but blanking out entirely. As if Yaoyorozu was suddenly the only person who mattered.
Were all girls this soft? Did they all have hair that smelled like roses... he was assuming her hair smelled like roses, he couldn’t really think of any other sweet smelling flower. In fact, he could barely think at all.
She shifted and sighed from the depths of her sleep.
Her shirt fell open.
Not by much. Honestly, her costume revealed much, much more skin than those few loose buttons on her silken top. But her costume called for a strictly professional environment, something that was worn as a necessity for the job and her particular quirk.
Not the same as being snuggled against him. Not while sharing the same bed. Just a small, modest line of cleavage molded perfectly to his body.
“No, thank you, I’ll take jasmine today, please,” she mumbled, her pink lips turned at the corner in the slightest of dreamy smiles.
It was enough to snap Shoto back to his senses. He pushed away from her. And kept going, as far to the edge of his side of the bed as he could.
Then his stomach dropped as he fell to the floor taking half the sheet with him.
The downstairs neighbors probably didn’t appreciate his body slamming against their ceiling in a solid thud, but no sound came from Yaoyorozu. As Shoto strained to listen over his thundering heart, he heard her breathing as rhythmic and slow as ever. He hadn’t woken her up, after all. Perhaps Yaoyorozu was actually a heavy sleeper.
Shoto’s head fell back against the floor with a sigh. Just his luck.
He had worried over nothing.
They had just enough time to eat the English style breakfast that morning. Shoto’s limbs ached from sleeping on the floor, and Yaoyorozu wouldn’t stop apologizing, blaming herself, thinking she had kicked him out of the bed. “I didn’t think I was such a bed hog!” she cried. “It’s... it’s not like I’ve ever shared a bed with anyone before.” Her cheeks took on a tinge of pink that he couldn’t help but find endearing.
“I honestly didn’t notice,” he kept telling her. Which was a lie, but better than the truth. Shoto had opted to spend the rest of the night on the floor, leaving the bed to Yaoyorozu. If he had climbed back in, it would’ve been more of the same all over again. He didn’t think he could handle that.
No, he definitely couldn’t handle that.
His words didn’t seem to have much of an effect as Yaoyorozu still looked guilty. She barely touched her food, just kept poking at her fried eggs and nibbling off the corners of her toast. It was a little disheartening to see how disappointed she was that she didn’t get to enjoy her favorite hotel like she had wanted. He wondered if maybe he could make it up to her somehow, one day.
After checking out of their room, they had an interview with the Kamino police about what they had witnessed during All For One’s attack the night before and why they were there to begin with. They had rescued their classmate, but had not engaged in battle, only used their quirks for strictly non-combative purposes. That was good enough for the law, and the two students were dismissed without issue. Finally, they could take the afternoon train home.
They managed to find a seat instead of having to stand so at least one thing was finally going right. The train was surprisingly not very crowded. A lot of people seemed to be sticking by the Kamino ward today, being questioned by police or still looking for loved ones within the relief camps.
Yaoyorozu eventually stopped apologizing, much to his relief. To be honest, Shoto didn’t really get that, either. Why must she apologize all the time? He wondered if it had anything to do with her lack of confidence despite her incredible potential and capability.
That’s what he liked about her. Her capability, that is. When she managed to push past her anxiety, she was so strong. Smart and clever. Despite suffering from a head injury from summer camp, she had managed to create a tracking device to stick on the Nomu that would lead them to their kidnapped classmate.
She was amazing to watch. Just amazing overall.
Okay so he liked her. Even though he had only known her for a few short months.
It wasn’t a particularly startling revelation. What fool wouldn’t fall for her?
It was a long train ride back home. Shoto didn’t realize he had been dozing off until he felt Yaoyorozu’s head collapse against his shoulder, fast asleep.
This again. Shoto wondered what happened to make him suddenly so appealing as a pillow.
Wait. Maybe she... actually... ?
No.
He wasn’t going to allow himself to even entertain that thought. As much as he did like her, did have a few soft feelings for her, that was something to keep under wraps and never burn much more than the warmth blooming over his chest at her closeness.
They both saw what happened last night. It reminded them that they didn’t have the luxury to be normal teenagers, to let schoolyard crushes develop into something more.
A part of him, a small yet very vocal part, would not accept that.
As if in defiance of his own common sense, Shoto settled back in his seat and laid his head against hers. He could smell the still lingering rose-scented shampoo in her hair.
This time, he let her stay there with him. He’ll deal with the consequences later.