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“Fuck, I’m going to be so late.” Shinsou runs through the streets, hiding under awning to awning from a torrential downpour. “Eri had to insist on making me breakfast. Saying it was important. Fuck.”
When two shady men in dress suits come running out of an alleyway with blue flames nipping at their heels, the U.A. student is forced to stop in his tracks. “Godda-”
“Yeah! Run you damn cowards!” A man of patchwork stomps out to the entryway of the alley, completely soaked and shivering. “Go pick on someone your own size,” he spits before retreating to the alley.
He seems familiar…
Out of sheer curiosity, Shinsou quietly follows the other.
The goth man clicks his tongue, kneeling as he holds his hand out.
A small black cat sniffs his hand. She looks injured and starving.
Once the cat deems the other trustworthy, he picks her up as he stands, and is about to place her in a pocket inside his jacket.
But then he makes eye contact with Shinsou, seemingly just noticing the student. He looks Shinsou up and down then to the cat and back to him. “You’re a hero student. Here.”
The stranger holds the cat out to Shinsou.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m broke. I can’t take care of poor Zero here. But I know the school has a healer.”
Shinsou just stares at the other and the cat. Why the fuck does he seem so familiar? Shinsou might be able to recognize him if he had an hour’s sleep the past four days.
The other sighs, shoving the cat into Shinsou’s arms. “I can’t help Zero. You can. Now get.” The stranger turns away, walking deeper into the alleyway system. “You’re going to be late for class, Kid.”
Shinsou curses. He fucking forgot he’s late!
“Meow.”
The cat- Zero- looks up to Shinsou, paw lightly batting at his lips, claws retracted.
“Well. I’m already late. May as well take my time. We can probably stop at the lunch room on the way to Recovery Girl.” Shinsou uses his training shirt as a makeshift bed for Zero in his backpack. He leaves a gap unzipped and puts the bag on backwards, so he can keep an eye on the injured cat.
Shinsou uses his uniform jacket as a cover for himself and Zero. As he begins his jog to the school, the sound of a bike zipping through puddles mixes in with steady increase of the downpour.
“Shinsou?”
The student looks over to see Ojiro slowing down next to him. “You’re running late too? What were you doing off campus?” The uncontrollable urge to smile hits Shinsou, almost making him trip.
The tailed hero student smiles. “Visiting my parents for the weekend; and you?”
“Visiting Eri.”
Ojiro does a once over before suppressing a chuckle. “Are you smuggling something in your bag there or are you trying to fix your awful back posture?”
Shinsou gives the other a huff of laughter. “Very funny dude. But, it’s a someone. I can show when we get to campus and not under the pouring rain.”
Ojiro maneuvers his tail. “Hop on, we’ll get there early if I speed down a shortcut.” The blond stops to move his bag in the same fashion as Shinsou.
The insomniac thanks Ojiro as he settles on his tail. “I’m not too heavy, am I? Like this doesn’t hurt?”
“Nah, don’t worry ‘bout me Shinsou. My tail is very powerful.” Ojiro looks over his shoulder to the other. “And on that note, you might wanna hang on tightly.”
Shinsou nods as he presses closer to the other, careful of the bag containing the… adorable contraband. He grips Ojiro’s shirt tightly, arms wrapped the other’s midsection. For extra measure, he uses his capture weapon to wrap around the two of them several times.
Once Ojiro pedals down an empty backstreet, Shinsou realizes it’s a straight shot to the school.
In the same moment that he realizes what’s about to happen, he tightens his grip so much, his knuckles turn white as Ojiro uses his tail as a power speed boost.
Shinsou has to yell so his words aren’t just lost to the wind. “Is there a law limiting how fast you’re allowed to go on a bike?!”
It’s almost drowned by the high-speed winds, but it’s there. A whole-hearted laugh that rumbles under Shinsou’s finger tips, rattling him to the core. “Nope! I can’t use my quirk to make jumps to the campus. Nothing about using it just once to… give a lil boost!”
Shinsou just shakes his head with a smile. Despite the borderline dangerous speed they’re going on a bicycle, he feels this emotion wash over him, easing his tense muscles. He feels relaxed; safe.
They make it to the school in not even two minutes. That distance, and on his usual route, would have taken Shinsou forty-five minutes.
Ojiro looks to Shinsou as the insomniac climbs down. “Call me up whenever you need a lift. I don’t mind.”
Shinsou gives him a smile, “Thanks.” He looks left and right before motioning the other hero student closer, opening his bag a lil more to reveal the cat curled into a ball, covering her face with her paws as she snores softly.
Ojiro’s smile softens. “An injured cat. I am not the slightest bit surprised.” The blond fixes his bag as he puts his bike up in the school’s shed. “I can tell Aizawa that you got injured on the way to school and had to go see Recovery Girl.”
“Yeah, thank you again Ojiro.” Shinsou watches as the cat whimpers, still in pain from her injuries. “Or… You could come with me and I can just text Aizawa that I sprained my ankle on the way to school,” Shinsou tiredly brings his gaze up to meet Ojiro’s, “so you insisted on taking me to Recovery Girl.” He chuckles as he rubs the back of his neck, “I mean, sounds like some noble shit you’d do.”
Ojiro’s smile brightens the entire area around him, but not blindingly; more of in a gentle way. In a contagious way. “Yeah, I like that idea.”
Shinsou sends a quick text to Aizawa.
Hey Dad, I sprained my ankle on the way to school. My dumbass slipped in a puddle, but luckily Ojiro was on the same route to the campus. He insisted on taking me to Recovery Girl, so we’re both going to be a smidge late to class.
Right after he hits send, he sees the three dots of the other typing out his reply. Before Aizawa finishes his response, Shinsou turns his phone off to talk to Ojiro on the way to the cafeteria before walking up to Recover Girl’s office.
“How has your training been going Shinsou?”
Shinsou uses one of the ends of his capture weapon to playfully boop Ojiro’s nose. “Thanks to having Aizawa teach me, I’ve been able to pick the art up much faster than he did. Yamada has been helping me a lot with picking up different voices.”
The smile the other gives Shinsou- Shinsou has to take control of himself to not physically melt in it’s sincerity and softness. “You’ve made a lot of progress. You’re going to be an amazing hero.”
The stupid grin that grows on the insominac’s face- he knows how fuckin dumb it is, but it’s that dumb smile that he has no power over. “Thanks, Ojiro.”
He forces his gaze farther down the hall before he continues because he isn’t sure if he’ll be able to handle looking at Ojiro as he speaks. “Ever since joining class A, the entirety of the hero course students have been very supportive of me. I was new to that type of support, even when I got it from the gen ed students.” He rubs the back of his neck, suddenly finding one of the plants in the cafeteria really intriguing. “I was so sure that the hero course was going to be filled with nothing but cutthroat, competitive, self-righteous students that would do anything to come out on top. So sure that I made the decision that I wouldn’t want to get to know any of you. I tried so hard to keep to that even after finding out that was not the case.”
Shinsou hears a soft huff from the other. “I’m glad you just couldn’t seem to be able to keep your distance from us. We really like you. As a person and a friend, not just another student.”
There’s a short silence before Ojiro speaks again.
“I really like you.”
Shinsou short circuits, eyes snapping to the blond who’s eyes shift away from him as he lightly scratches his cheek.
“I really like you too, Ojiro.”
They both silently decide to leave the conversation at that until later, when they’re both ready to dive into what they mean.
They’re able to sneak small bits of steak and wrap it in a napkin for when Zero wakes up.
When they make it up to Recovery Girl, she gives them both the look.
“You seem to be walking just fine for someone with a sprained ankle.”
The two students nearly jump out of their skin when their homeroom teacher speaks up from the wall he’s leaning against.
“It’s my fault,” Shinsou immediately drops. “I told Ojiro I would text you so I could have him walk with me.”
“Don’t care. My question is why.”
Shinsou unzips his bag to reveal the cat he smuggled onto the campus (not so subtly either). “She’s injured.”
Aizawa just stares at his adoptive kid for a moment before moving his gaze to the blond.
“Since class hasn’t started yet, you’re not in trouble. But next time you lie about why you’re skipping class, you’ll both be grounded. Am I clear?”
They chime in unison, “Yessir!”
“Good. Leave the cat with Recovery Girl.”
And with that, Aizawa leaves.
The hero students turn to their resident doctor.
“We got some food for her from the cafeteria for when she wakes up.”
Recover Girl sighs before taking both the cat and her food. “These kids…” She continues to mumble to herself as she walks over to the nearest bed before shooing both of them.
The boys share a smile before leaving her office to wander back to class together.
Their hands hover near each other, brushing together every so often.
Shinsou builds up the courage to curl his pinky around Ojiro’s, feeling warmth rush to his face. Ojiro returns the same, small amount of strength back.
Shinsou’s glad Eri insisted that Breakfast was the most important meal of the day.