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If his mother had still been around, Hawks imagined, she’d probably be nagging him about how he was already 22 and had never had a girlfriend. That he should settle down and start a family. That she wanted grandchildren.
Admittedly, his mother’s voice sounded a lot like those middle-aged women he passed by on his daily patrols, hugging close to their sons’ arms, chatting a mile a minute about her friend’s brother’s daughter who was very cute and also available and your mother's not going to be around forever you know. Meanwhile, the young men in question would walk in step, looking beleaguered or, in most cases, dead inside.
Once or twice, Hawks had wondered what a normal life like that would be like before dropping the idea completely. It would never happen. He’d probably be dead in the next five years, if he was being generous. And he was okay with that. So long as he'd achieved the goals he'd set out to accomplish before he kicked the bucket, that was enough for him.
His thoughts were quickly dispelled as the latest mother-son duo passed out of earshot. Hawks made a quick detour inside his usual convenience store for breakfast before starting his shift.
As he had done almost every day, he swiped a can of coffee from the cooler and a donut and made his way to the cashier. It was always the same guy in the morning—youngish, dark hair with glasses and tired eyes.
Hawks rocked back and forth on his heels as he waited, wings pressed flat against his back, lulled into a dull state of existence as he listened to the muzak playing over the speakers.
He was caught off guard suddenly by someone smacking into him from behind, followed by a harried oh my god, I’m so sorry!
Hawks’ feathers ruffled back into place as he turned. “Hey, no wor—”
The woman standing there quite literally stopped him in his tracks. He could have sworn he heard singing somewhere—maybe not a choir of angels, but at least one or two off in the distance.
The first thing he noticed about the woman was how astonishingly white her hair was, like a first snowfall in winter, mixed with red flecks like tiny flames. The second thing he noticed was the striking slate-grey of her eyes as she stared up at him. The third thing he noticed was that he was also staring back.
“Hawks!” the woman said finally, as if snapping herself out of deep thought. Or maybe surprise. Her eyes had been very distracting, Hawks realized. “I’m so sorry! I’m running late for work and I just—I wasn’t paying attention at all.” She let out a haggard sigh before giving him an apologetic smile. She shook the coffee can and smoothie she was holding. “Breakfast of champions.”
Hawks offhandedly wished she could be late more often if it meant running into her like this. They’d only spoken a few words and already he felt like his day had become considerably better.
Hawks finally managed to pull himself together enough to speak again. “Most important meal of the day,” he agreed and wondered suddenly, as his stomach twisted in embarrassment, at what point had he turned into a 90-year-old grandma. He had half a mind to follow up with something less dumb, but then the woman laughed, pretty as a windchime, and Hawks once again found himself at a loss for words.
A buzz from the phone in his pocket a moment later launched him back into functionality. A text from Endeavor, reminding him about a meeting that morning before patrol. Ah, right, he was a pro hero and work was a thing he did.
Hawks cleared his throat. “Hey, go ahead of me,” he said, stepping to the side as he flashed the most charming pro-hero smile he could muster. “I’m not in any hurry.”
She let out a relieved sigh. “Thank you so much.”
They stood in slightly awkward silence as the line crept forward. After the woman had paid, she turned and gave Hawks a little wave goodbye and a smile.
“Thanks again,” she said as she quickly made her way out. Hawks had only enough time to tip his head in acknowledgment before she was gone.
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A week later, it was Hawks’ turn to be on night shift. He’d never really minded the schedule—the more interesting characters came out after sundown—but boy did he always crash hard after getting home at dawn.
One night in particular, Hawks’ usual coffee from the convenience store wasn’t cutting it. He popped into a cafe, one of those big chains he usually avoided. They were almost always crowded, full of high schoolers and twenty-somethings on their laptops. At 11 at night, however, the clientele was sparse.
On the wall he read a menu that was far too full of things that didn’t sound like coffee at all before he finally asked the cashier for a large black coffee and nothing else. She scribbled Hawks’ name on the cup without having to ask, and he waited at the end of the counter after paying. He realized after a moment that there was jazzy music playing. There was an overstuffed couch in one corner and big cushiony chairs set up in random spots. It was kinda cozy. He could sort of see now why so many people liked this place.
Still, he lamented, the price of a plain cup of coffee…
His thoughts faded away once he laid eyes on a familiar pair of glasses and striking white hair. There was no way…
The woman from the convenience store was sitting cozily in one of the cafe’s giant chairs, one leg tucked under her, typing away on a thin laptop. There was an empty mug on the coffee table in front of her.
She glanced up and locked eyes with Hawks. A look of surprise passed over her face before she smiled. She stood and took her mug up to the counter. “We meet again, huh?”
Someone upstairs must have been taking a liking to Hawks lately, considering his luck. “Late night?”
She glanced back at her laptop. “Yeah, just going over some homework for my kids.”
Kids? The woman didn’t look much older than him, Hawks thought, trying extremely hard not to appear as surprised as he felt. He hummed what he hoped came across as a nonchalant acknowledgment as he took a sip of his coffee.
“What about you?” she asked, sticking her hands in her pockets. “Working the night shift?”
Hawks nodded. “Just stopped for an extra pick-me-up.” In the back of his mind he knew he needed to get back to patrolling, but the longer he spoke to the woman, the more he found himself wanting to stay. He wondered offhandedly if that was her quirk. Could be useful, he supposed.
“Of course! I won’t keep you then.” She made a motion like she was about to leave, before changing her mind midway. She turned back to him. “Um. I’m Fuyumi, by the way.”
Fuyumi. Fuyumi. Her name was even prettier than whatever he might have imagined it to be the first time they’d met.
“Fuyumi,” he repeated, and his lips itched to smile as he said it.
“Maybe we’ll run into each other again,” Fuyumi said with a smile and the barest hint of cheekiness and wow did Hawks want to just sink into one of those big armchairs next to her and never leave.
“Cheers to that,” he said as he lifted his cup and mentally congratulated himself for keeping his cool. “Hey, have a good night, okay?”
“You too!”
His night was certainly better already.
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The next time Hawks encountered Fuyumi was, he swore, absolutely, completely by chance. Nestled between two small apartment buildings was an empty school playground he’d passed by on his usual route dozens of times before. Today, however, it was alive with children shrieking and laughing, covered up in bright jackets and sweaters to protect against the chilly spring air.
Hawks slowed his walk, hands stuck in his pockets as he watched from behind the chain-link fence that separated the school from the sidewalk. It didn’t take long before two boys stopped in their tracks, pointing and shouting once they noticed the number two hero standing right there. Soon, the entire playground had materialized at the fence, children of all ages huddled around, waving and grinning and shouting at him in tiny, hoarse voices.
Hawks had never really considered himself a kid person, but this was kinda cute. He stopped to wave and entertain many high fives before he heard a familiar voice.
“Hawks?”
His gaze snapped up over the crowd of children. Fuyumi, for reasons he couldn’t understand, was on the other side of the fence. With her soft, pale green button down shirt, jeans and sensible flats, not to mention the lanyard around her neck, she almost looked like a teacher.
“Hey Fuyumi!” A friendly grin crept upon his face as she made her way towards him. “What are you doing here?”
Fuyumi glanced around before she smiled at him curiously. “I’m a teacher, Hawks.” She spoke gently, as though she were explaining a difficult math problem to a child. “I work here.”
Huh. Hawks leaned against the fence. He lazily stretched his right wing, then the left. He chewed over this information in his head before he spoke again. “So wait—at the cafe that night, when you were talking about your kids, you didn’t mean—”
Fuyumi’s eyes widened as she made the connection. “Oh—no! I meant my students. My kids.” Her cheeks were rosy and she laughed and god it was so lovely when she did. “These are my kids.”
Well, that answered at least one question. “Hang on, I’ve walked this route for weeks now. How come I’ve never seen you out here before?”
“We have a special assembly later,” Fuyumi explained, “so our schedule is a bit different today.” She glanced down at her watch. “We’re actually about to go back inside.” She gave him another apologetic smile. “It was nice seeing you again.”
You have no idea, Hawks mused as he watched students line up and disappear back inside the school.
As he continued along his route, Hawks had an idea. A stupid idea, probably, he thought to himself as he headed back to Endeavor’s agency at the end of his shift, but an idea nonetheless. He found one of the part-time pros in the lounge, one of the few Hawks knew who had kids.
“Just curious,” he said offhandedly, “when do the schools around here get out for the day?”
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When Hawks just happened to pass by the school again as Fuyumi was leaving, he chalked it up to a complete coincidence. Or at least that’s what he told her. Whether or not she believed him was another story. However, when he asked if she had time to grab a coffee from the place down the street, her response was an enthusiastic yes.
They settled into friendly conversation almost immediately, Fuyumi sharing stories about her students and Hawks entertaining her as he recounted some of his more interesting patrols. What felt like both hours and only seconds later, they parted ways outside the cafe and Hawks walked home feeling lighter than if he’d been flying with his own two wings.
He dared to go back again a few days later, and couldn’t believe his luck when Fuyumi suggested they try a place nearby that she’d heard made great tea.
He met her after school for a third time. And a fourth, until slowly Hawks realized they kind of had a routine going. He looked forward to the evenings when they would meet, feeling an odd excitement when he noticed she’d begun waiting outside for him, not to mention her little smile that would creep up as soon as she’d see him. It was addicting, and Hawks found that he didn’t want to stop.
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Over a month had passed since they began their usual outings, and one night in particular found Hawks and Fuyumi seated on a park bench, chatting late into the early summer evening. Hawks found it extremely unfortunate, however, when Fuyumi checked her watch, her eyes going wide.
“It’s getting late,” she sighed disappointedly. “I’m sorry I can’t stay out longer, but it is a school night.”
“Don’t worry about it, I understand.” Hawks held out a hand to her, and Fuyumi accepted as she got up from the bench.
“Tonight, um—this was nice. Really nice.”
“Likewise.” Hawks hesitated a moment before he went on: “Hey. Could I walk you home?”
His feathers picked up immediately how Fuyumi suddenly froze. “Oh! Um. I appreciate it, but I’ll be fine. Really.”
Hawks frowned. “Are...you sure? It’s pretty late, and this area can be a little sketchy sometimes.”
Fuyumi smiled. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind, but...I think you might be a bit surprised to see where I live.”
What was that supposed to mean? A million scenarios ran through Hawks’ mind. Was she living in squalor? Or maybe she was one of those super rich folks who just never flaunted their wealth. Did she belong to a brothel?
“Don’t worry about it!” he replied enthusiastically. “I’m not here to judge.”
And he meant that honestly. There was a lot he hadn’t shared with Fuyumi either that was ripe for judgment.
Fuyumi bit her lip in thought, and Hawks inwardly cursed at how attractive he found it.
“Alright,” she agreed cautiously. “I suppose you’d find out sooner or later anyway.”
Hawks brushed off her vaguely ominous comment and stuck his hands in his pockets, falling in step with Fuyumi as they left the park.
They continued chatting as they walked, Hawks taken so completely by Fuyumi that the few familiar landmarks he noticed around them disappeared from his mind almost immediately, his thoughts consumed by the woman next to him.
When Fuyumi stopped at the gate of a very large and very traditionally Japanese estate (the only word that came to mind at the sight of it), it took Hawks a moment to get his bearings. He knew this place. He stared curiously at the nameplate that read Todoroki in big, bold characters before turning back to Fuyumi.
“Why’d we stop here? Are you like an Endeavor fan or something?”
“I live here,” Fuyumi replied, again in that same gentle tone as though she were speaking to a darling, but slow, child.
Hawks cocked his head. “You…?”
“Todoroki Enji is my father.”
If Hawks had been drinking something, he would have spat it out. A cold something seeped into his belly. He gaped at her. “Number One is your dad?” He leaned an arm against the brick wall surrounding the gate as he braced himself, his wings rustling uncomfortably behind him.
Fuyumi laughed and took his hand. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to keep it a secret from you, but I just thought—well, since you work with my father, if you’d known—I mean, I’m sure you would have found out eventually, but I guess I was worried about how you might have reacted if you knew.”
There were a lot of things swimming around in Hawks' head, so much so that he completely tuned out Fuyumi for a good minute. First: eventually? Was he supposed to take that to mean she’d been planning to keep seeing him? The giddiness he, at any other point in time, would have felt about that was now pushed aside by another, much more looming piece of information: Fuyumi was Endeavor's daughter.
Forget whatever words of wisdom Hawks' imaginary mother would give him in this situation, Endeavor would most likely just throttle him and send him on a one-way trip out of the country before he had the chance to explain himself.
Or would he? He had never considered what Number One was like during his downtime.
Well, if Fuyumi ever invited him over for dinner with the family he could find out— no! He mentally smacked himself. Bad Hawks! It was way too soon for that.
He exhaled loudly, somewhat exasperated. “You’re too much, Fuyumi. And I mean that in a good way.” He scratched absently at his cheek. “I think.”
Fuyumi folded her arms and gave him a nervous smile. “I guess my secret’s out. And I completely understand if you’re uncomfortable or if you don’t want to, um…” She hesitated in her search for words.
Hawks raised a curious eyebrow. “Want to what?”
He noticed Fuyumi’s cheeks turning pink under the glow of the streetlights. “If you don’t want to—you know—keep...running into each other. Like we do.”
They had never put a name to their meetings (dates? Could he call them that? He’d never actually been on a real date before), but Hawks knew it was unfair to both of them to pretend like there was nothing going on.
He had to wonder though, throwing Endeavor into the mix now, how many more “meetings” they could get away with. He’d been in more perilous situations before, right? And, he had to admit, she was worth the risk.
Hawks rubbed the back of his neck. “I was actually thinking we should run into each other more often. Well. If you want to, I mean.” His feathers began to rustle nervously the more he went on.
He was enormously relieved when he heard her reply with a smile, “I’d like that.”
For now, that was good enough for him. They could work out the details later.