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Midoriya hates how cold hospitals are. Recovery Girl’s office is usually kept at a comfortable temperature that he’s grown used to, but hospitals are completely different. The bitter air blasting from the air conditioner makes his hands and feet numb, and the lack of pockets on his hospital gown don’t help, either. The neatly pressed bedsheets and blankets are stiff and just as frigid, supplying no warmth. He never complains though, not wanting to be rude or cause the nurses any trouble, so he withstands the painful chill of the hospital instead.
He wouldn’t be able to complain about it now, anyways. If anything, he should be getting some sleep considering how late it is. The plain curtains are drawn tightly closed, but every so often they’ll part open from the air circulating around the room and reveal a sliver of moonlight. A clock with an almost silent tick hangs on the opposite wall telling him that it’s 12:49 a.m.
The doctors and nurses have told him to get more rest to help heal his wounds. Without Recovery Girl’s quirk, the healing process is taking a lot longer than Midoriya likes. But with the agonizing low temperatures of the room and his still shaky nerves from the battle, it’s been almost impossible to fall asleep. The one thing keeping this situation from being downright unbearable is that he’s not alone.
In his neighboring bed, Todoroki lays wide awake, staring up at the ceiling. Midoriya can see him out of the corner of his eye, and he’s tempted to call for him, to at least ask him if he’s alright. He knows that his injuries are the least serious out of the three of them, back when Iida was still in the hospital, but they shouldn’t be dismissed. He waits, glancing at Todoroki every few seconds, gathering up the courage to say something. A few words of empathy and worry assemble in his head and as he opens his mouth to speak, Todoroki’s voice slices through the silence in the room.
“Why do you keep looking at me, Midoriya?”
In that moment, all words escape him. He was in his own head for so long that he hadn’t realized how much he had been staring at the other boy. Awkward stutters leave his throat as he tries to explain himself.
“Eh— oh, sorry! Sorry! I didn’t realize I was looking over at you so much. I just, uh, wanted to ask you if you were okay.”
“Okay? I mean—“
“It’s just that I saw that you were still awake and I thought that maybe you were having trouble sleeping cause I am, too. And I thought that we could talk about what was keeping us up and we could fall asleep eventually that way.”
“I suppose that’s—“
“Because I have a lot of things on my mind. But it’s also because of my injuries. And I’m also cold, and I figured you were cold, too— wait, you have your left side, so you wouldn’t be cold. Uh, never mind.”
“Midoriya, I—“
“But I just wanted to make sure that— oh. Shoot. You were trying to talk just now. And I keep interrupting you. Uh— um, I should stop talking.”
Embarrassed, Midoriya shields his face with a partially bandaged hand, but from his peripheral view, he can see Todoroki smile. He tries to recall another time where he’s seen him genuinely smile like that, but no thoughts come to mind. Even in the frigid room, heat rises to his cheeks at the sight. It’s a beautiful thing, he thinks.
“I’m okay, Midoriya. I appreciate your concern, but there’s nothing that can be done now. Let’s just try and get some sleep,” he says as he pulls the covers even closer to him and shuts his eyes.
Unsatisfied, Midoriya faces Todoroki and props his body up on his uninjured elbow. “Don’t you want to talk about it? I won’t force you to, but you’re not gonna be able to sleep if you keep thinking about it alone.”
Todoroki doesn’t move, and he thinks that he’s probably fallen asleep already. Suddenly, the other boy shifts and opens his eyes, turning his head towards him. At the same moment, the curtains part, casting a portion of moonlight across Todoroki’s tired face. His breath suddenly catches in his throat at the sight of his two-toned hair being illuminated by the silver light. His single turquoise eye stands out against his reddish scar like a gem. Midoriya is stunned by his natural beauty. He’s almost jealous, but more amazed than anything.
“I suppose you’re right. Would you like to talk about what’s keeping you up?” Todoroki whispers.
His mind is vacant. The only thought running through his head in that moment is Todoroki. His clashing red and white hair. His different colored eyes. The burn mark that splotches the left side of his face. The way he fights. The way he stands up for his friends in battle. The way he speaks. His smile.
“You.”
“Me?”
“Uh—!” Shoot, he hadn’t meant to say that out loud. “I- I was just thinking about, uh, how things were with your family. From what you told me back at the sports festival, it seemed like you were having a rough time. And now that your father is taking credit for Stain’s capture, I was just wondering if you were okay.”
He doesn’t reply, and Midoriya is about to apologize for possibly overstepping a boundary, but he then laughs. And, god, his laugh is even greater than his smile.
“You worry too much about me, Midoriya. I was expecting you to talk about your injuries or Stain, but you always seem so concerned about other people instead.”
“Oh, s-sorry.”
“It’s not a bad thing. You’re very selfless. But I’d wish you’d care more about your own wellbeing, too.”
“Y-yes! I’ll make sure of it,” Midoriya proclaims, nodding. Todoroki smiles again, and he tries to ignore the sudden quickening speed of his heartbeat. His gaze then shifts downward, and his smile turns into something more sad.
“But, to answer your questions, yes. Things are rough for me at home. My mother is in the hospital and my father is ruthless. Luckily he spends more time at his agency than at home, but I still despise him.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t— please don’t apologize. I understand that you’re concerned for me, but you have nothing to be sorry for. If anything, you’ve made my life better.”
His heart jumps at the praise. Making someone’s life better, it’s all he’s ever wanted. It’s why he wanted to become a hero in the first place. To know that he’s made Todoroki’s life better makes him warm all over.
“Really? You really mean that?”
“Yes, of course. My left side, I’ve always hated it. I hate my father and the power he passed down to me, and because of that I’ve hated myself. I wanted to become a hero with only my right side just to spite my father. And then you told me...” Todoroki pauses, catching his breath. Midoriya looks on in awe. This vulnerability coming from him is raw and intimate. Todoroki shakes as he inhales to continue speaking.
“You told me that I wasn’t my father. That my power was my own. And even though I beat you in that fight, in a way you won, too. Because you saved me. You were a hero.”
Midoriya is silent, dazed. The boy across from him keeps his head down as he continues to smile. His hands interlock in his lap and he fidgets with his thumbs, thinking. Midoriya stays silent, giving him time to reflect. Guilty, however, he keeps his eyes on him, observing his handsome face and divine features. Eventually, Todoroki’s eyes shift back to him and Midoriya acts like he wasn’t just staring at him the entire time.
“Midoriya?”
“Hmm?”
“Can I sit with you in your bed?”
That’s a surprise. He blinks once, then twice, struck by Todoroki’s suggestion. Before the other can take back his words, Midoriya shifts over to make room for him. Todoroki takes the invitation and stumbles over to Midoriya’s bed. They sit together on the tiny hospital mattress shoulder to shoulder. Todoroki’s left arm presses hotly against his own and he relishes in the new found heat from the other boy’s quirk.
“Can I ask why you wanted to sit with me? Not that I’m complaining or anything, I just wanna know.”
“Well, it’s just nice to share the same space as someone else. Someone you care about. Don’t you agree?”
Someone you care about? His heart can’t seem to stop drumming against his rib cage. With their arms so close together, their fingers sometimes brush against each other. Midoriya tries not to stare so deeply into the other boy’s eyes.
“Y-yeah. It is nice.”
“You’re face is all pink. And you’re warm all of a sudden. You’re not sick, are you?” Todoroki frets, completely clueless of the current situation. He gingerly lays the back of his right hand against Midoriya’s forehead. With the contrast of his ice-controlling hand and his feverish skin, it would seem like he’s caught something. Midoriya can’t find the strength to tell him the real reason why he’s so warm.
“No, Todoroki. I’m fine, really,” he says, pulling his hand away by the wrist. They’re so close all of a sudden. Their noses are only centimeters apart. He’s not fine, Midoriya realizes. He’s about to crumple under the weight of Todoroki’s dazzling eyes. Another gust of cold air circulates around the room, and moonlight peaks through the curtains again.
“Midoriya,” Todoroki starts, his voice suddenly heavy. “Has anyone ever told you how... pretty your freckles are?”
“M- my freckles?” Midoriya internally grovels at his voice crack. “No, no one’s ever told me that.”
“Well, they are. They’re pretty.” Todoroki tilts his head, tracing every freckle only his cheeks with his eyes alone.
“You’re pretty, too, Todoroki.”
“You think so?”
He nods. Midoriya’s eyes dart down to the other boy’s lips, and Todoroki must have noticed because he leans in just an inch closer.
“Y’know, I wanna be a hero like you, Midoriya. Someone who saves people.” He can feel Todoroki’s breath against his lips.
“Well, you did save Iida and I from Stain. We would have been completely done for without you.”
“That’s not exactly what I meant.”
“Eh?” Midoriya feels a shock travel up his arm when Todoroki takes hold of his hand.
“I want to give people courage. Make people believe that they’re worth something. Like you did to me.”
His heart is beating so fast that he worries it’s going to pop right out of his chest. The blood flowing up to his head thumps in his ears. His face is burning. His right arm is even warmer from being nestled against Todoroki’s left side. Midoriya’s lip quivers as he opens his mouth to speak.
“Todoroki—“
His thought is shut down by the other boy’s lips meeting his. He jolts for just a second, but does not pull away. Instead, Midoriya parts his lips even more, opening up to Todoroki to let him get a better grasp. The kiss is gentle, blissful, a secretive moment shared in the dark. Todoroki’s cold hand moves back up to Midoriya’s face to graze his freckles cheek. The contrast between his right hand and his warm, redden face sends a chill up his spine. A few seconds pass and the kiss is broken with Todoroki pulling away from him, a small sigh leaving him as he does.
They sit there, silent and waiting in the dark, just staring at one another in awe. The room has gotten so cold that Midoriya can see puffs of warm air leaving Todoroki’s mouth as he pants. The hand still wrapped in Midoriya’s own has grown warmer, soothing his palm like the flames of a campfire. In the earnest, expectant silence of the hospital room, Todoroki clears his throat.
“Was... was that alright? The kiss?”
“Uh— y-yes! Yeah, Todoroki. I liked it.”
“Oh, good. I wasn’t sure cause... it was my first kiss. So I don’t really have any experience and—”
“Oh! Don’t worry about that. I’ve never kissed anybody, either,” he reassures. A sudden spark lights up within Midoriya knowing that he was Todoroki’s first kiss. Hell, it’s a shock being anybody’s first kiss, let alone the prettiest boy in his class. “I’m kinda surprised that you actually wanted to kiss me. Have you always felt like this about me or was it just, y’know, a spur of the moment thing?”
Todoroki tilts his head and looks at him blankly. “I— huh. I’m not sure. I think I’ve felt a certain way about you before all this, but I’m not sure when it started. You’ve just always seemed very interesting to me.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah,” he trails off, then suddenly breaks eye contact. “Sorry. I’m very new to all this. These feelings... I’ve never really felt this way about anybody, so I don’t know how to explain it.”
“I- it’s all right, Todoroki. I understand.” Midoriya leans against him, taking in his warmth. Todoroki eyes crinkle at the corners as he smiles. He still hasn’t looked at him again, however; instead, he stared at a certain spot in the opposite wall. Midoriya senses something off about his behavior, but before he can ask him about it, Todoroki speaks.
“Midoriya, I’ll probably be released from the hospital tomorrow morning since my wounds aren’t severe.”
“Okay?”
“And I’ll have to meet up with my father again. But the thing is that I’d rather stay here with you.”
He feels his stomach fluttering and his face warming up. The idea of being Todoroki’s safe place, of being wanted by someone else, makes his heart beat faster.
“And I’d like to stay here and share the bed with you tonight, but it would be pretty strange if the nurses found us sleeping in the same bed. Don’t you think?”
“Well, I guess... We don’t have to share the bed if you don’t want to.” Midoriya is surprised that the idea was even brought up. The thought hadn’t crossed his mind, but he figures that it might have been a possibility after the events of tonight.
“It’s not that I don’t want to, Midoriya. It’s just that... I’m worried about my father. If he ever found out about this...”
“Oh! Of course. I forgot about that,” he laughs to distract himself from the awkward tension he’s created. Todoroki, however, doesn’t notice and instead smiles at him and gives the hand he’s still holding a squeeze.
Slowly, almost painfully, Todoroki pulls away from him. Midoriya’s shoulder slump and his face falls at the loss of body heat and contact. He watches, dejected, as the other boy crawls into his own bed and wraps himself in the thin blanket. Despite being in the same room, a mere five feet away from each other, he already misses him. He misses having his mismatched eyes so close to his, sharing the same breaths, having his arm presses against his own. He lets out a sign and lays down as well. The two stare at each other in the dark from the comfort of their own beds. Midoriya almost wants to reach out for him, beg him to come back so they can share the same space just for tonight. But it’s a selfish, fantastical idea, so he pulls his damaged arms close to his body and watches Todoroki until his eyes start to flutter close.
Before drifting to sleep, he whispers “Goodnight.” His eyes shut, and Midoriya figures that it’s time for him to go to sleep as well. But he doesn’t. He keeps staring as Todoroki’s chest rises and falls to the rate of his steady breathing. His sleeping body is basked in moonlight as the curtains fly open once more. His heart thumps loud in his chest and echoes in his ears like a cry. A call. A voice. After a minute, he can’t stand the sizzling sensation of impatience under his skin, and he pulls the covers off of him and walks over to Todoroki’s bed. In a sudden rush of adrenaline, he leans over him, brushes his multicolored hair off his forehead, and kisses him right above his scar. It’s light, not noticeable enough to wake him, but enough to make him stir in his sleep.
“Night,” Midoriya whispers before returning to his own bed. He rests atop the spot on his bed that is still warm from where Todoroki sat. The hospital blankets are hardly enough to protect from the cold of the hospital room, but he doesn’t complain.