Chapter Text
Despite being educated on all matters of proper speech and articulation, Momo still struggled in clearly expressing her feelings for Todoroki.
Social convention dictated for her to confess her feelings, perhaps in the manner of a love letter or through a gift of something special.
Momo had no problem procuring these things. The only problem came when it was time for her to actually talk to Todoroki himself.
Oftentimes, she was reduced to a pile of blushing and stuttering mess so uncharacteristic of herself that it led to Todoroki either being concerned she had a fever or fearing that she was becoming insane from academic pressure.
Other times, it was fine with Momo ending up talking to him properly and handing out the gift, only to chicken out at the last second and give it as a friend—a well-meaning token that embodied appreciation for Todoroki's continuous friendship with Momo, even though she was an indecisive, weak-willed coward.
It is during these moments that Momo wished she possessed the brusque quality of Bakugou and the straightforwardness of Iida.
She was supposed to have gotten better in handling her self-confidence (a problem Todoroki had helped her with) and also with opening up (a problem she helped Todoroki with).
She already knew that her feelings were not a mere one-sided crush that was certain to disappear given enough time, but rather, a profound fondness and respect that slowly developed from the time they became partners during their first year.
From then on, their relationship became stronger, and one of its highest points was their date during the Ennichi Festival.
Momo wanted to call it a date, but really, it was more of two classmates awkwardly finding each other and going together for lack of something better to do. It wasn't a bad thing however—that night gave Momo some insight into Todoroki's mind and also view him in a new light.
She had found him to be human. It was silly because he is one, being in the same species as her.
But back then, she only saw him as some prodigy she recognized back from the recommendation exams.
The exemplar who achieved second place in their first Sports Festival. And worst of all, the son that wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, the Top 2 hero, Endeavor.
Now, Momo only perceives him as someone capable of having the same feelings and experiencing the same struggles she has.
Todoroki was not cold, only socially inept; there were quite a bit of occasions where she had to stop him from blurting out something so insensitive.
She also knew he was not arrogant, but that he took things seriously and literally to the point where he had trouble understanding obvious jokes, and sometimes, she had to explain them to him.
He was adorable truly, and so endearing, especially when he tried to comfort Momo during her bouts of low self-esteem in his own clumsy way.
Indeed, she was happy to be someone that Todoroki can be comfortable with. Yet the same couldn't be said for her as she continued to choose her words with a difficulty similar to that of their upcoming finals.
Come their third year of high school, Momo remained stuck in a roundabout of back-out confessions and unsaid feelings.
She had wasted approximately two and a half of their total school years with nothing to show for it. It was just her luck that Todoroki had wasted his as well, avoiding romantic entanglements even with numerous confessions from both genders from their upper- and underclassmen.
In fact, it seemed as if he was waiting for someone else.
Yesterday, Momo made up her mind to finally confess once and for all. She planned to do it at night, after dinner, when most of their classmates had gone back into their respective dorm rooms, and thus, will not be spectators to an event she wanted to be private.
She wanted to do it outside; under the cover and shade of trees where they can be hidden, and share a kiss after.
She had prepared gifts he was sure to like: two coupons for a meal at a high-class soba restaurant, and a box of cheese tarts made by a renowned pastry chef.
Needless to say, Momo considered herself well-prepared.
However, there was one factor she failed to account for. Nighttime came and Todoroki was nowhere to be found.
She asked the always-alert class representative Iida who boomingly replied, "Apologies Yaoyorozu-san! But I haven't seen him at all!"
She asked Tsuyu who answered with a croak, "Sorry Yaomomo, but I last saw him here a while ago."
She even considered asking Mineta, but decided against it for better reasons.
Todoroki was missing.
All of a sudden, a series of cheers erupted behind her. From the front door of their dormitory entered Todoroki and Midoriya, both tomato-red in the face.
Momo could have even sworn that steam was emanating from Todoroki's head.
The pair was silent and couldn't look each other in the eye. And yet, they were both holding hands.
It was Ashido who became the first to cheer, "Congratulations to both of you! Took you long enough already"
Sero let out an audible sigh, "I want someone to confess to me too."
Even Tokoyami gave an approving nod, "May the red strings of fate that bind you flourish evermore."
Oh.
Oh. For some reason, Momo found that she was at a loss for words. Maybe her brain wasn't working properly. Perhaps it needed more fat to properly process things.
She stepped out from the increasing hubbub of people hounding the newly-formed couple, making her way to the stairs then into her room where she locks herself. That night, she opens the box of gourmet cheese tarts and even raids her secret stash of snacks.
Her room fills with the sounds of her munching and the crunching of food but she still overhears cheers and joyful hollers coming from downstairs. Her room is dark with all the curtains spread out but she still sees their happy faces, particularly those of Todoroki and Midoriya.
She doesn't like it.
Later on, she began coughing; perhaps, from a lone piece of food that found its way into her trachea or from inhaling the wrong way, she didn't know. But it was getting harder to breathe, and she felt like hacking her lungs out of her body as she tried her best to free whatever was lodged in her windpipe.
Instantly, her hand curls into a fist that presses against her abdomen. The small wastebasket in her room is positioned in front of her, ready to catch whatever falls.
Tears began leaking out from her eyes as she continued to cough for what felt like eternity.
The feeling of it moving up burns her throat, and right on cue, a disgusting slurry made up of morsels and undigested food exits, falling directly into the wastebasket.
She tastes what she had eaten all over again; the tartness of cheese, the sweetness of chocolate, and even a bitterness that wasn’t familiar.
By the end of it, her head is left spinning, her esophagus burning and her eyes seeing white spots. She is also sure she had expelled half her intestines as well.
After wiping the sides of her mouth, she leans on one side of the wall hoping that no one heard her throwing up. She doubted it; save for Tsuyu, no one else lived at their wing on the 5th floor.
The air now smelled sour due to the ejected contents of her stomach. Not wanting to let her mess curdle in the room any longer, Momo stands up to open the lights. They flicker open, and she reflexively shut her eyes.
When she opens them, she is greeted by an odd sight.
Amid the regurgitated bits of cheese and pastry in her wastebasket, were clumps of flower petals floating on top.
They were blue.
A small cough escapes her, and something falls onto her palm. She blinks.
It is another petal.