Work Text:
With the upcoming second round of internships on the horizon, to say everyone was stressed was an understatement. There was a lot of preparation left to do before students were ready to get back out there. On top of teaching responsibilities, the steady increase in crime meant hero work had begun to reach an almost overbearingly stressful peak.
Finding time to relax and destress was crucial and it seemed as if everyone had their “thing” to do just that. Mic had his late-night radio show, Yagi had his ridiculous dvd collection of Western “oldies” (which he’d adamantly argue were ~classics~ at your insistent teasing), and Midnight...well she had her own hobbies that was for sure.
Even Aizawa seemingly had something that he did on a regular basis, although of what was a complete mystery to everyone. It was just known that on Thursday evenings, he was nowhere to be found. As for you? Well, you had nothing. You had been so focused on keeping up with grading, internships, and your own hero duties it left little time for...well anything else.
You were sure you had hobbies before you moved into the staff dorm, absolutely sure of it, but it was clear as day you didn’t anymore. You would get home and just sit there. Occasionally you’d flip through some pop culture article on your phone, or browse overly filtered celebrity pictures, but other than that there was nothing. You were bored. Bored and stressed.
Even though you had moved to the city some time ago and had enough time to get well acquainted (and even become good friends) with your fellow teachers, you hadn’t spent a whole lot of time exploring the fun possibilities out there. Not that you had much spare time for fun activities anyway.
All you knew was that work was getting busier and your stress was beginning to override everything else. Mic and Midnight had offered plenty to drag you out bar hopping with them, which you indulged occasionally. However, that kind of scene just wasn’t for you. You were much more of the quiet, indoor type.
Which meant you got along quite well with your grumpy, no-nonsense neighbor. Instead of exploring or finding new activities to do, you often found solace in bugging Aizawa at odd hours of the night. You both worked late hours and his inability to commit to a decent sleep schedule meant he was usually available to pester.
You had spent countless hours complaining, venting, and the occasional post-bar crawl sobbing on his couch. You had a running joke with Mic that Aizawa’s furniture would just include his sleeping bag if the school hadn’t provided staff with actual furniture. To be fair, you also didn’t have much to move in either but that was neither here nor there…
“Y’know I pretty much live here now,” you mumbled as you shoved some of your favorite guilty-pleasure snacks into his cabinet, pushing his protein pouches towards the back.
He glared as he reached over your short form to grab a pouch, you could feel the daggers he was sending your way without even looking up. Perhaps annoying him is my hobby you mused to yourself.
“Remind me to start charging you rent,” he chided.
“ You don’t even pay rent. None of us do.” you teased, reaching up on your tippy toes to grab a bag of chips that was one shelf too high.
“I’m sure they’d make an exception for you.” he sighed, grabbing ahold of your prized snack to put it closer to your reach, only to place it one more shelf up the moment you went to take it. He cracked the smallest of smirks as he quickly sauntered away from your immediate swearing, hunching himself back over his laptop on the bar counter to resume work.
His eyes flit up to watch you hoist yourself up on the counter, you were determined to not have him win this round (the score was already way too favorable on his side). He set his attention back to grading before your eyes met. You leaned over, chips proudly in hand, waving one about to accent your words.
“Hey don’t you have somewhere to be tonight?” you inquired while chewing. He huffed in response, not bothering to look up as he continued typing away.
“It’s Thursday, usually you’re out and about.” you continued as you rummaged the bag that most certainly wasn’t going to be your dinner. (At least that’s what you’d tell yourself so when morning came around you wouldn’t feel bad at your lack of “adulting”).
“Y’know. Out and about doing….?” you questioned musically, brow hopefully arched. Yet, no matter how many times you’d poke and prod, he always found a way to not give this secret up. The most you’d ever get out of him about his mysterious Thursday routine was a dully noted “errands”, much to your disappointment.
“Aren’t you supposed to be doing something? Patrol? Grading? Anything else that’s not a complete waste of time?” he teased, with no real bite in his feigned scolding. You were amazed with his ability to multitask as he continued on typing up a report.
“Got the day off and I’m all caught up with grading, if you can believe that.” you mused, a frown growing as your hand reached the end of the bag to find nothing remained.
“I can’t.”
You stuck your tongue out as you threw away the bag, sulking over to his couch to lounge about, gossip article already loaded up and ready on your phone. As you lazily scrolled about, you paused to take note of Aizawa’s hunched form. Eyes darting to the window, the sun had begun to set, usually he would be out by now.
As you continued to observe him working away, you concluded he didn’t go out every Thursday night. You realized on the nights where you didn’t have patrol or other obligations (those other obligations being some obnoxious event Midnight would drag you to) he would stay in. You began to worry, were you keeping him from something? You enjoyed pestering him but didn’t want to completely get in his way.
“Hey Sho,” you whispered, sitting up in his direction. He turned to see your worried form, looking down, hands fidgeting with your phone.
“Hmm?”
“I’m not...keeping you from anything am I?”
“What?” he tilted his head, brow arched, hands completely leaving his keyboard so he could turn towards you, as far as the chair would allow.
“It’s just, I know I tease you about Thursdays and all but I don’t want to bug you by staying here if you gotta go.” a hefty silence loomed about the room, which felt increasingly smaller the more you kept staring at his deadpan expression.
“I...I’m going to head back to my room, thanks for letting me bum here for a bit.” he held an index finger up as you started to stand, preparing to gather your things. You curiously watched as he turned back and typed up a word or two before closing his laptop.
“...Sho, wha-” you were immediately shushed as he walked towards the door, adoring his scarf and shoes, he quickly glanced up at you while shoving his keys, followed by both hands, into his pocket, head gesturing towards said door.
“Come on” he hummed. His restless eyes darting back towards the door as you continued to stand there, dumbfounded.
“Wha-”
“I’m not repeating myself.” he warned. You hurried along side him, nearly tripping over yourself as you shoved your shoes on as he started walking ahead.
----
You lost track of how many blocks the two of you had walked. You kept a watchful eye out for any landmarks or interesting sights that might be the destination to wherever the hell he was leading you. You didn’t dare ask in fear he would stop and change his mind. You could see your breath before you as the night chill began to settle.
You almost ran into him as he abruptly stopped, face buried in his scarf. Your confused gaze holding his before looking about. You were stopped in front of a window adorning multiple cat decals, the buzzing “open” sign catching your attention. Your eyes met again, his quickly darting towards the floor before shrugging.
“What is this?” you pondered but received no response. You hummed in as it clicked, the storefront proudly displaying some kitschy name followed with “Cat Cafe”. He shuddered as a large grin danced across your features. He had prepared himself for the ruthless teasing that was surely going to follow.
“This is…” you began, he cursed his scarf for not letting him sink further in.
“...really neat. I didn’t know something like this existed?” your eyes widened with excitement as you walked towards the window, admiring the vibrant decor that awaited you both inside. The woman behind the counter took note of Aizawa outside and cheerily gestured him in. You quickly looked towards him, grin still plastered.
“So every Thursday, huh?”
“So help you if you tell Mic or M-” he hissed before you raised your hand towards him, index finger tapping against your lips.
“I’ll take this secret to the grave.” your smile softened, clasping your hands together excitedly, continuously looking between the sulking man in front of you and the cheery employee.
He sighed and opened the door, standing aside while gesturing you in, you happily obliged. You were both greeted by the employee who had already started on what appeared to be Aizawa’s usual order. You did your best to contain the giggle as she handed him a mug decorated with cats dancing about.
It took everything in you to not snap a photo or two of such a grumpy man holding something so delicately cute. You would have died a happy death earning said photo but you had yet to experience what the cafe truly had to offer. Maybe after, you thought. It took you awhile to pick something from the menu, there were so many delicious sounding items, it was hard to pick.
You were too busy admiring the little cat figures next to the register that you missed the nod between the barista and Aizawa. You gave her a confused look when she waved off your card as you tried to pay for your goods, completely unaware of the small smile, concealed beneath a scarf, that had formed on the man standing next to you.
The employee ushered you both into a gated area. You settled down on a cushion, warm drink and pastry in hand. You took in the sights around you, you two must have been the only ones there. It was near closing time and you didn’t have to think too hard as to why this was Aizawa’s preferred time to come here. It was quaint.
You enjoyed cats but never had much interaction with them. You began to fidget with the fabric of your coat, grabbing Aizawa’s attention.
“...you’re not afraid of cats are you?” you didn’t realize you had been staring into your drink until he spoke up. You coughed away a giggle at the deadly serious expression that greeted you when you looked up.
“N-no!” you stuttered, playing with the rim of your cup.
“I just haven’t been around them a whole lot.” you continued, taking a sip.
You gasped as the employee opened up a back door. Any stress you had walking in instantly melted as an array of pitter-patter and bells echoed into the room. Aizawa quickly saved the mug you absent-mindedly placed down, nearly missing the table all together. He took note of just how much you were into it. He felt a type of calm rush over him, one he hadn’t felt in a long while.
The cats entered the room and did their thing, some playing around, others finding snacks to munch on, and you were amused at how many of them immediately curled up next to Aizawa. A soft smile grew as you sat and watched him pet each one. Eyes met as you chuckled when one reached a paw up to bat at the longer stands of his hair.
You noticed the employee was holding an orange tabby kitten, walking about as the other cats did their thing. You stood up, hands clasped again, tippy toeing to take a better peak at soft ball of fur nestled into the employee’s arm. You gingerly smiled when the employee caught your terrible attempt at being discreet.
“Do you want to hold him?” she asked.
You were taken aback. Of course you wanted to hold him! But he seemed so small and delicate, you were worried you’d disturb him or mess it up. Sensing your hesitation, she gestured you to sit down, which you did right next to Aizawa. At least he’s right there to swoop in if you horrendously fail, like you almost did with the mug. If I can’t even manage to not drop a mug... you began to fret.
Aizawa bumped his knee into your own, causing you to hold his gaze. He nodded and reached out to adjust your arms so they’d be ready to hold such a tenderly small creature. You whispered a “thanks” and smiled. The employee knelt down and cradled the kitten, leaning over to nestle him gently in your arms.
He stirred awake briefly before mustering the smallest “mews” you had ever heard. You noticed he was missing an eye as he opened and shut them before dozing back off, curling into you. You thought you’d just melt and die right at that moment. The employee observed your worried expression.
“He just recovered from a pretty nasty illness, he’s fine now, but still adjusting to the whole ‘one eye’ thing.” she marked, gesturing towards her own eye.
You nodded and continued to stare at this little ball of pure heaven. You heard Aizawa murmuring next to you.
“You’re not going to break him” he huffed as you gave him a panicked expression in response. He crooked a finger under the kitten’s chin and began to scratch it. You gasped again as you felt a soft vibration ringing throughout your chest. Aizawa couldn’t contain his amusement with the amount of coos and awes that stirred from you. The employee spoke up before leaving the two of you alone.
“He’s not up for adoption yet but will be soon.” she winked at you.
You looked back down at the tuffs of orange, you never knew how badly you could want something until now.
“I-I’ll think about it.” you managed. You turned to Aizawa and took in his peaceful expression. You had never seen him so relaxed, this was definitely a great way to combat the stressors you both faced. You leaned in and breathed out.
“Can we do this again?”
He nodded. Soon enough, you both were nowhere to be found on Thursday nights.
----
You weren’t able to commit to taking the little guy home, you thought it’d be best if you didn’t, with all the responsibilities you had and what not. However, that didn’t stop you from making it a point to check in on him every chance you had, Aizawa always in tow. He understood all too well how responsibility had a way of preventing true enjoyment.
Aizawa would never admit just how much joy seeing you coo over the little furball brought him. But come each Thursday, he’d get enough joy to last him through whatever headaches his students or villains (or both) would bring him for the next week. Aizawa usually enjoyed doing things by himself, it was more troublesome including others, however, you were beginning to be the exception to that.
The both of you had seen the other cats come and go but the orange tabby had remained, much longer than most. You weren’t sure if the employee was showing you mercy or if the poor little guy’s eye warded potential adoptee’s away. Whatever the case was, you were grateful. You were able to see him grow into a rowdy, energetic cat. Aizawa was more than happy to entertain the other cats while you dotted on the “troublemaker” as he’d call him.
----
Thursday came around and once again you two were cafe bound. As you both entered, Aizawa immediately noticed the employee’s grimace. Obliviously, uou beelined towards the gated area, opting to swing your leg over it instead of opening it, and spotted your feline pal while your tired companion walked up to the counter.
“Your friend is going to be really disappointed. Someone came in and signed the papers for him.” she whispered, glancing over to your form. You were cradling the tabby, gently bouncing him - which he tolerated for a few minutes before softly batting your nose. Aizawa was also observing you, the giggle you made coiled dread in the pit of his stomach. You were so happy.
“When is he leaving?” Aizawa turned back and questioned.
“He’s set to be picked up on Saturday. Do you want me to break the news?”
“No,” he immediately shot back.
“I’ll take care of it”. He didn’t want to burst your bubble but he’d be damned if he let someone else do it.
He walked into the gated area, hands deeply rooted in his pockets, chin buried in his scarf. You had grown pretty adept at reading him, even when only presented a small portion of his face. You could tell he was frowning. You paused in dangling some string and scowled back at him.
----
The walk back to the dorms was quiet. Well, it was usually quiet but the silence was far from the type he was comfortable with. You chose to walk ahead of him, arms crossed together while your eyes continuously scanned the pavement. He didn’t dare ask if the sniffling was from the cold. He let you curl up on his couch that night, offering a blanket and a head pat, as you sniffled into the couch pillow.
He also shushed you when you frustratedly complained about it being silly, and shushed you again when you said that you were “overreacting”. You were crushed., he knew that. You knew the cat would eventually be adopted but you just got so used to having him be a routine part of your life. You couldn’t quite bring him home but just knowing he was there, waiting to make you laugh, was enough. Aizawa murmured while grading papers on the table.
“We’re going on Saturday.”
“No, there’s no way. I don’t…” you sat up and whined at him, tears threatening to break at the thought of having to say goodbye. You nestled further into the blanket.
“He needs a proper send off.” Aizawa replied, pen scraping against paper.
“You’ll go with me?”
“Of course.”
----
The next few days were awful. You couldn’t focus and your mind kept drifting back to the tabby. My tabby you thought. Was he going to a good home? Would his new owner be as gentle with him as you? Would his new owner know to be gentle when moving around his blind spot? Your train of thought was interrupted by a head pat. Aizawa’s stomach turned when you looked up at him with a watery pout. He murmured, eyes flitting away.
“It’ll be okay”
----
Getting you to put on your shoes and out the door on Saturday was more difficult than the usual villain scarf wrangling Aizawa was used to. You attempted to grab a snack out of the cabinet before heading out, Aizawa right behind to grab one of his pouches. He found you once again on your tippy toes going for a bag of sweets that was just out of reach. He didn’t expect you to damn near sob when he actually grabbed it for you instead of putting it up higher.
He didn’t expect to use as much of his strength as he did to usher you inside the cafe, he was almost impressed with how much you could dead weight on him. He tilted his head in confusion as he looked around, he expected weekend to be bustling here. Sensing his confusion, the employee pointed to the sign on the window that noted “closed for a special event”.
Aizawa mouthed a quick “thanks” at the employee’s consideration. The tabby was the only one roaming about in the gated area. Aizawa ushered you off before him. You were going to kill him the way you sat defeatedly in the corner, holding the mewing fluffball. He walked up towards the counter, grabbing the mugs already set out for the both of you.
He opened his mouth to question the employee when the store’s phone rang. He paid attention to the way the employee’s face startled, followed with a deep frown as she hung up the phone. She softly smiled at Aizawa. The employee sighed.
“He’s going to have to stay here for a bit longer, the person backed out of taking him home. Bad news for him but good news for your friend at least, yeah?”
Aizawa glanced in your direction before placing the mugs back down. He hummed in acknowledgement, eyes darting to you before looking back at the employee with renewed determination.
----
The employee opened the gate for Aizawa as she entered with a pet carrier. You softly squeezed your orange friend before whispering to him, poorly fighting off tears that began to fall.
“I need you to behave okay? You’re going to have to be nice and make lots of new friends okay? I’ll miss you but thank you for being so wonderful.” the employee gestured the carrier in your direction, a feigned frown as she caught Aizawa’s eye before focusing back on you.
You picked up the tabby, who damn near shattered your heart as he instinctively curled into your embrace. The employee held open the crate as you gently placed him into it, looking away immediately as he started to mew. The employee placed him on a nearby counter before going into the back. You shakily breathed.
“Do you think he’ll have a nice home?”
“Probably.”
“Do you think they’ll be really nice to him?”
“Perhaps”
“You don’t think they’ll let him get too fat do you? He likes to snack a lot.”
“You two have that in common.”
You shot him a scowl, crossing your arms. Aizawa huffed back a chuckle and shook his head, patting your head once more. You wiped your cheek with the sleeve of your jacket and took a breath in, fiddling with your cuticles while you waited for the employee to return to give your final goodbye. The back door opened and the employee walked out with a small bag of supplies and papers in hand.
“I’ve got some goodies for our orange friend here to take with him -” You cut her off and interjected.
“Did you put some of the chicken treats in there? Those are his favorite!” you quickly apologized and clasped your hands again. The employee smiled and nodded.
“Of course, he’s got all of his favorites in there. He’ll need a collar though before going to his new home, can you help me pick a decent one out?” you nodded and picked a dark green one out of the selection she presented. You leaned in and opened the crate and clipped it snuggly around him. Giving him one last head pat, to which he leaned in and nuzzled his cheek against.
You were too focused with dotting on him that you almost missed the exchange of papers happening behind you. You closed the crate and turned towards the rustling, confusion settling as you looked at Aizawa studiously writing on the forms. He handed the stack back to the employee who widely grinned at you.
“Alright then Mr. Aizawa, you’re all set.”
You stuttered, opening your mouth, but words failed to form. You kept looking between the two, before looking back at the mewing tabby. You felt like someone had opened the floodgates as you silently sobbed to yourself. The employee smiled towards Aizawa before nodding and waving, heading back towards behind the counter. You felt the firm press of a hand against the small of your back.
He was taken aback at how you immediately leaned in, wrapping your arms around him to pull him close, squishing your forehead against his chest. It took you a few moments to settle down, although your tight embrace never wavered. No words were exchanged as he wrapped his arms around your shoulders, chin settling on top of your head.
You felt his jaw move before you heard him speak.
“I’m guessing I’ll have to charge you both rent.”
The giggle you let out reverberated against his chest. He added another source of joy to his very small list that day. You shook your head against him before pulling away, turning to coo and awe at your new friend. Your new friend. On the walk back, the both of you argued back and forth about what to name him. You’d come up with some ridiculous name and Aizawa would immediately shoot it down.
The two of you settled down, nestled shoulder to shoulder on his couch, blanket lazily draped across your laps. Tabby (you two never did settle on another name) kneaded and curled alongside you both. Thursdays still occasionally included trips to the cafe but cuddled couch naps, with feline in tow, quickly took over as the preferred stress relieving activity.