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Izuku doesn’t know what to think of the customer who keeps coming into his bookstore. The guy wears a hoodie to hide his face, never makes eye contact, and always goes straight to the gaming section. He browses for a bit and then he leaves, never buying anything- until one day he walks up to the register.
He lays some strategy books for games on the counter and Izuku gets a look at his face for the first time; his piercing red eyes seem familiar in a way he can’t quite place.
“Thank you, Tomura,” he says, getting the name from the guy’s credit card. “Please come back again!”
“Oh, I plan on it,” says Tomura as he walks away. “Have a nice day… Izuku.“
Startled, Izuku realizes he’s not even wearing his name tag. He is preoccupied for the rest of the day, trying to figure out why the guy is so familiar.
The next day, the customer returns, and says he has something important to say. He convinces Izuku to sit down with him at the store’s cafe, and that’s when he explains that they knew each other in another life. He says that Izuku was a hero, and that he himself was a villain, and that everyone had the equivalent of magic powers, but called them quirks…
It was all so confusing and hard to follow, but Izuku has heard conspiracy theories before so he knows just what to do. He’s heard just about every version of the tinfoil hat, ‘I-have-a-secret-no-one-knows’ conspiracy, and although this is a new version, at its core it’s the same as all the others. He knows most conspiracy theorists just want to be heard, so he listens to Tomura describe this fictional world.
“I was on the wrong side back then,” Tomura says as he concludes his story. “That’s why I had to find you- to apologize and make amends.”
“Of course!” Izuku says, though he doesn’t believe a word of it. “How do we do that?”
“Well, I don’t know,” Tomura admits. “I suppose I apologize and hopefully you forgive me. I’m sorry, Izuku.”
“I forgive you, Tomura,” Izuku tells him, and he can see from the tears in the other’s eyes that his words have power. “I forgive you,” he repeats, “and that is all behind us. If you want to make amends, strive to be a good person in this life. Be kind to others and help those who need it. Go out and live your best life.”
“I will!” says Tomura. “I definitely will!” He thanks Izuku and leaves the store.
“What the fuck was that about?” Katsuki demands. “You had me come and watch your register for that? Why do you encourage these extras? You know they’re all batshit crazy!”
“Yeah, I know,” says Izuku. “But did you see how happy that made him? Sometimes it doesn’t hurt just to pretend.”
“I’ll never understand you,” Katsuki grumbles, and they both go back to work.