Chapter Text
Ice littered the arena floor, splatters of blood like raindrops did the same - Shoto Todoroki had won the fight. But she still didn’t feel like a winner, her opponent laid far in front of her; his right arm and both legs were in shambles, mangled and twisted to the point where recovery seemed almost impossible, his green hair obstructed his beaten face so she couldn't see it, which some would argue was the best thing for the shaken girl.
Her breathing was rapid and out of sync, her burnt uniform fapping slowly in the harsh winds. Thankfully she still had a bra to cover her chest, but practically the whole of her gym uniform’s top had been incinerated due to the extreme heat of her fire quirk.
Amidst the silence, a voice suddenly boomed from the woman watching the match from the sidelines. “Midoriya has been knocked out of the ring,” Midnight began, raising the small whip in her right hand, “Therefore, Todoroki is the winner”. The once silent crowd erupted into a course of cheers and yells, everyone chanting the girl’s name as a way to celebrate her victory.
The victor’s dual coloured eyes widened slightly as she watched Izuku’s limp body being carried to Recovery Girl’s unit. Her expression had returned to her default expression of a scowl, thin lips pushed together in a soft frown as she went to turn around, her long red hair covering fragments of her face for a second before joining its white counterpart in the neat ponytail. Her eyes glanced towards the crowd, they locked with a certain hero - her father, The Number 2 Hero: Endeavour. Hatred built up inside her as she saw the disgusting smirk cross his face; she scoffed simply and stuffed her hands into her trouser pockets before walking down the alleyway to the outer walls of the stadium, her mind fixated on something.
“Do you think Deku is gonna be okay, Iida?” a brunette asked the male sitting next to her - an obviously worried expression resting on her chubby pale face. She had always been a close friend of the male, both the one next to her and the one who had just lost the battle; so it was only natural that she was worried.
“I hope so…” was all she received as an answer as the male watched Shoto leave the arena. Tenya pushed his glasses up and sighed quietly, keeping his worries internal as to not worry the poor girl sitting next to him.
There was a sort of a quiet aura hanging over the class of UA’s 1-A, all were worried for Izuku’s health. Some worried he wouldn’t be able to continue his hero work - and of course, Ochaco Uraraka was the most worried.
Soon enough, Shoto returned to her class; (With a quick change into a spare Gym Uniform due to the state her previous one ended in) she didn’t say a word but then she never really did, so this wasn’t much of a shock. The girl placed herself next to Ochaco and remained silent as she glanced at her right hand. But, despite her silence, Ochaco could swear she swore an expression she never saw the girl have, genuine sadness. Slowly she reached out her hand and placed it on Shoto’s thigh, feeling the subtle temperature drop but not really minding too much. Shoto gasped softly as she glanced at the smiling brunette.
“He’s gonna be okay…” She whispered with a comforting smile, her eyes seemed soft and her gaze genuine. “You can always visit him if you want!” her tone picked up too, giving the shaken girl a small shred of hope.
Shoto gazed at her for a second, trying her best to push a smile as she glanced away. The idea crossing her mind over and over again. “I can… See him…” she thought to herself as her eyes glanced at her own hand once more. With a few seconds passing between what Ochaco said and her next move, she slowly arose from her seat and continued her pace to the room in which Izuku was being cared for, her mind racing with every step. The hope Ochaco had just given her beginning to strip away as her mind slipped into a state of overthinking.
Was she too rough?
Was he injured badly?
Her mind was running in circles with no end, trying to calm herself down but instead only stressing herself out further, deep breaths grew rapid and frantic. She was nearing the door now, anxiety peaking as a now violently shaking hand reaching out for the door handle. Thoughts and regrets flashed past her in a sea of confusion. With a quick click and push, the door began to creak slowly - revealing an image that soothed her fears.
Brisk winds blew in from the open window, playing with the lace curtains slowly - hospital equipment littered a table nearby the door: scalpels, syringes, tongs and everything of that nature. A bed laid just adjacent to the open window, with a heart monitor beside it - the gentle sound of beeping filled Shoto with a sense of ease as her dual coloured eyes glanced to who was laying on the bed.
“Oh, Todoroki!” the flustered yet gentle tone of the voice tugged at Shoto’s heartstrings, making her smile out of pure impulse. “Yo-You were really great out there!” his praise only made her cheeks burn up, a small flame picking up on her shoulder as she couldn’t control her quirks.
“Thanks… You too” was all she could manage to reply, internally yelling at herself for giving such a dry response to someone she had hurt.
But Izuku didn’t seem too bothered as he continued smiling at the dual haired coloured female, scooting aside slightly before patting the space next to him on the bed, the sound was a comforting pat as he couldn’t hit the bed too hard, due to the injuries on the arm he was using. A gentle smile remained on his face as he locked eyes with Shoto yet again.
“You can.. Sit down if you wish…” he said in a flustered mutter as the beauty of her gaze was too much as he glanced away quickly, eyes now looking at the table littered with medical equipment.
It took Shoto only a few seconds for her to realise what he meant, only making her blush darker as she shuffled her feet along the floor to sit next to the green-haired male. She was quiet as her legs remained crossed, her eyes fixated on her own feet as she was obviously deep in thought, mind still racing about winning the fight and almost beating Izuku to a pulp. A soft shuffle coming from the direction Izuku was in snapped her out of the thoughts as she glanced her head to the side, red and white hair flowing gently in the autumn winds.
Outstretched arms met her gaze as Izuku’s face was a beautiful mess - his pale skin was coated in red as he was blushing deeply, his lips were stretched into a welcoming smile as his wide emerald eyes were shut to make his smile all the more inviting. “Do you n-need a hug?” he asked innocently, eyes opening slowly as they glowed in the low light from the ceiling, “Hugs always help me!” he added, showing he just wanted to make his classmate happy.
This simple gesture warmed Shoto’s heart more than she thought anything ever could - just the idea alone that someone she had put on such a high pedestal as Izuku wanted to help her just meant the world to her. After years of being discarded as nothing more as a tool for her father’s success, someone finally saw her for what she was - a person.
With a slow shuffle, she awkwardly placed herself in Izuku’s arms. She never really had received physical affection so this was all new to her. But despite this, Izuku really didn’t care - he just placed his arms around her slender body and held her gently. “I’m sorry… This sorta came out of nowhere… But… But it just seemed like you needed one” his speech was slow and quiet as he began running a hand up and down her back slowly, trying his best to comfort the girl in his arms.
Overwhelmed by the sudden affection, Shoto could only shaker head and let out a barely audible mumble. “It-It’s okay… M-Midoriya…” despite her flustered dialogue, she was oddly comfortable, even closing her eyes as he began to rub her back. Finally, after 15 years of living: she was at peace.