Archive of Our Own

The afternoon breeze was cool against Shoto's skin when they arrived at Takoba beach.

The scenery was gorgeous, golden sand spread out around them, while the ocean waves reflected the rich blue of the summer sky. The beach itself was rather quiet for the time of day; a small family was building an elaborate sandcastle, complete with a flag and moat, while a few people walked along the pier situated a little further down.

Shoto's hair blew across his face and his lilac, short-sleeved button-up rustled ever so slightly. Closing his eyes, he inhaled sharply; the smell of salt flooded his nostrils. After he grew accustomed to it, he then bent down to take his shoes and socks off, feeling the sand beneath his feet and curling his toes experimentally.

'I'm so glad you guys decided to come.' Midoriya chirped, hugging a beach ball close to his chest. His unruly hair was pulled back out of his eyes using an All Might-themed headband - one without the signature ears, much to Shoto's dismay. 

'Of course, Deku-kun!' Uraraka slapped him on the back, giddy, as she rushed forwards with Tsu and began setting up their blanket.

'Yes, this place is quite magnificent, Midoriya-kun.' Iida placed his hands on his hips and adjusted his glasses as he admired the view. Uraraka had previously mentioned that he looked like a dad when he did that, but Shoto couldn't quite see it. 'It must've been nice living near such a beach as a child!'

'Ah! Well…' Midoriya rubbed the back of his neck. 'It actually used to be a dumpster, until someone cleaned it up a few years ago, so I haven't had that much time to enjoy it, especially after we moved into the dorms.'

'A dumpster?' Iida exclaimed, before dramatically hand-chopping the air. 'Are you sure it's quite safe for us to go bare footed, Midoriya-kun? Not that I don't trust your judgement, but the safety of-'

'It's okay, Iida-kun, I promise!' Midoriya smiled nervously. 'I made sure to- to- to- er, check that the person had been thorough with their cleaning and they were. This beach has no more risk of infectious sharps than any other city beach.'

That seemed to satisfy Iida, who then commended Midoriya on his research. Shoto wasn't paying attention though, he was too busy observing the changes in Midoriya's facial expressions. He noticed the way he smiled so easily while he spoke to Iida, and Shoto found himself trying to see if he could mimic its brightness.

Halfway through his attempt, Iida stopped talking and then verdant eyes turned to meet Shoto. 'T- Todoroki-kun? What are you doing?'

'Um…' He tried to hold the almost pained smile for another moment, before it became too much and he relaxed his face back to normal. 'Your smile looked nice so I thought I'd give it a try. I don't think it worked though.'

Iida blinked dumbly, while Midoriya turned pink.

'Ahem!' The former coughed into his fist. 'I think I'll help Uraraka-kun and Tsu-chan-kun with that blanket.'

Before either of them could say anything, the class rep sprinted across the beach, spraying sand behind him.

'I THOUGHT YOU SAID THE IMPROPER USE OF QUIRKS WAS PROHIBITED?!' Midoriya yelled after him. When Iida didn't even acknowledge him, he snorted. 'Hypocrite.'

'Not setting a very good example.' Shoto agreed with a shake of his head, prompting Midoriya to look at him once more.

'You do know you don't need to copy my smile, right?' He asked softly, eyebrows furrowed with worry. Shoto nearly got whiplash at how quick the topic backpedalled to his earlier comment. 'Your smile is already perfect on its own.'

Now, that did things to his heart.

Shoto looked away and rubbed his arm, not really knowing how to respond to that. No one had ever complimented this smile before, not that he smiled often. The fact that Midoriya - whose own beaming smile was brighter than the sun - thought it was something to marvel at was perplexing.

'I don't think it's perfect. I don't even do it that often.' He eventually settled on with a shrug.

'That just makes them even more special!' Midoriya grinned, eyes crinkled happily. 'It makes me feel lucky every time I get to see it.'

'It's not luck. Looking at you just makes me smile anyway.'

Midoriya turned bright red and Shoto tilted his head to the side in question. He was just speaking the truth, why was he embarrassed?

'L- Looking at you makes me smile t- too.' Midoriya stuttered out before hiding behind his hands and, oh, now Shoto could understand why his friend was so flustered.

He felt his cheeks warm as he swallowed thickly. His quirk began messing with his body temperature and he frantically tried to correct it, as he thought of a more composed response.

Luckily, he didn't need to; Midoriya beat him to it, throwing his hands away from his face and staring, eyes wide. 'Anyway! Now that's settled, let's go see the others!'

Shoto could do nothing but nod as his friend grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the blanket, which was fully set up, with their shoes scattered on top of each corner to weigh it down, along with their bags. As they approached, he caught Iida slapping masses of sun cream over every inch of exposed skin, while Tsu applied a more reasonable amount onto Uraraka's back, now that she had removed her shirt to reveal a pink bikini.

Maybe Midoriya would ask Shoto to apply sun cream to his back… He hoped so.

'Glad you got sorted.' Iida welcomed, as he handed them a bottle - a white stripe covered his nose where he hadn't rubbed it in properly. 'I made sure to bring a lot just in case, so do not hesitate to properly protect yourselves from the sun's rays!'

'Thank you, Iida-kun!' Midoriya saluted, while Shoto elected to nod in agreement.

'Todoroki-chan.' Tsu called, placing a contemplative finger on her chin, while her other hand rubbed around pink straps. 'We were wondering, with your quirk, can you get sunburnt? And if so, can you burn anywhere or is it just your right side?'

Shoto felt four pairs of eyes zone in on him, but he hardly acknowledged them. Instead, he looked off towards the sea and gripped his chin in thought.

‘I suppose it’s a good question, because using his fire side doesn’t seem to lead to burns from his flames. Even his hair isn’t affected.’ A familiar voice began muttering in his head. ‘Although I suppose that his scar means that he’s not immune to all kinds of burns. Maybe his right side is immune to ice burns, given that they’re caused by ice crystals forming in the skin, which would happen a lot when Todoroki-kun uses his ice, while his left side is immune to heat burns. If that is the case though, we still don’t know whether he’s protected from radiation burns, which is typical of sunburns. Perhaps-’

‘Slow down, Deku-kun, geez! None of us can understand you!’ Uraraka suddenly exclaimed, shaking Shoto from his thoughts. Confused, he turned to find Midoriya’s eyes blown wide, poised in his usual muttering position with his lips pursed between his fingers.

Oh, the voice in his head had actually just been Midoriya muttering. Now the third person made sense.

‘I understood you.’ Shoto reached out a stiff hand to pat green curls. ‘You’re right. While each side is immune to different types, radiation burn isn’t actually something I’ve experienced much of in my life to give a concrete answer.’

‘What?!’ Uraraka shuffled around to face them fully, despite Tsu’s gentle chastisement. ‘You’ve been out in the sun before, right? I know you have.’

‘Not enough to get sunburnt.’ He shuffled awkwardly. His father had made him face extreme weather conditions for training before, but he didn’t exactly want to tell his friends that he wasn’t sure whether his skin had peeled from the sun or the flames around him when he tried to escape. He didn’t train outside much after that.

Silence lingered over the group then, before Midoriya suddenly raised his finger.

‘I have an idea! We could put sun cream on your upper body and leave your legs. Then, if there’s any change during the day, we’ll be able to tell.’

‘I don’t think that’s a good idea, Midoriya-kun!’ Iida hand-chopped again. ‘We’re compromising Todoroki-kun’s skin safety. Exposure to ultraviolet light is one of the main causes of skin cancer and should not be treated lightly.’

‘I mean, sure, but he’s not gonna get skin cancer from getting sunburn once, and that’s if he even does burn.’ Uraraka pointed out, grabbing the bottle and spraying some at Iida. ‘Chill out and let us do our science experiment, Class Rep!’

He started to protest, when Shoto decided to weigh in his decision.

‘It’s okay, Iida.’ He spoke firmly, handing the bottle to Midoriya. ‘I give my informed consent, but only if you apply it, Midoriya.’

A few minutes later, when his top had been discarded, leaving him in just his shorts, Shoto felt calloused hands rubbing the cream between his shoulder blades and mentally high fived himself for a job well done.

Several hours passed in a flash, until Shoto found himself laid out on the sand, panting for breath.

His hair was still damp from when Tsu had eventually dragged them all into the ocean. The mental image of Iida spluttering incoherently after Uraraka tackled him into the water was ingrained in his memory forever. He snorted at the reminder and ran a hand through his hair.

His legs burned. Contrary to their theory that Shoto was resistant to the sun's deadly lasers, his lower limbs became bright pink within the first hour of their experiment. When they realised, Midoriya had quickly lathered cream onto his legs and muttered several apologies, while Shoto had assured him that he had known what he was getting himself into.

Even so, the sand still prickled his sensitive skin as he shuffled around on the floor to get comfy.

‘Come on, Todoroki-kun! Get back up, we’ve still got this!’

Shoto sat up and mustered his biggest dead-eye stare, but that didn’t stop Midoriya from bouncing over and dragging Shoto off the floor, which he wasn’t exactly complaining about. No, what had him on the floor in the first place was Uraraka and her dumb idea that they play volleyball. Initially, it had been a great idea to have her and Iida vs him and Midoriya, with Tsu refereeing. Now though, Shoto realised why the latter had been so adamant to officiate instead of play.

Uraraka was a cheat, who definitely manipulated the ball with her quirk, despite Iida’s explicit rule prohibiting the use of quirks during the game.

Iida was also pretty fucking quiet about it when Shoto called her out though, as was Asui. Absolutely disgusting behaviour. There was no trust anymore.

‘Do we have to?’ He moaned as Midoriya lifted him into the air by the armpits so he could stand on his own.

‘Yes!’ Midoriya wiped some sand from his back, hand lingering for a moment. ‘Real life villain fights aren’t fair either, but you don’t just give up.’

Shoto groaned and reached out a hand to cover Midoriya’s face, accurately conveying his disapproval. His friend squawked indignantly at the treatment, then licked his palm in retaliation.

‘Ew.’ Shoto drew back, wiping his hand on Midoriya’s shirt, before he realised that no, it was actually his shirt that Midoriya had borrowed after getting his own wet.

He stepped back then, as Midoriya stuck his tongue out, and admired his friend. His shirt was far too baggy on him, except at the shoulders, which weren’t used to accommodating for such a bulky form. Midoriya seemed to combat the tightness by leaving a good few buttons open though, giving Shoto the opportunity to rake his eyes over his toned chest, covered in a thin sheet of sweat from their exercise.

‘Oi, Todobroki, stop eye-fucking Deku-kun and get back into position so we can beat your asses!’ Uraraka called out, releasing Shoto from his Midoriya-induced stupor.

‘Uraraka-san!’ Midoriya squeaked, while Shoto’s cheeks dusted pink. However, before he could throw back a retort, a new voice rang through the air.

‘Hey! You guys need any extra players?’ 

Shoto looked up to find a group of three walking towards them. They looked around the same age as them. The boy who had spoken carried his own volleyball under his elbow, while the one on his left looked at his nails, uninterested. On his other side was a more enthusiastic girl, who was already stretching her arms.

‘Yeah! Itachi doesn’t want to play, so it’d just be us two!’ She added, warmly. ‘We were gonna have a game ourselves, but seen as you’re already set up, we figured we’d ask first. I’m Aina and this is Kenji.’

'My name is Iida Tenya!' The aforementioned bowed in greeting. 'I see no problem having two extra players. What does everyone else think?'

'Sure.'

'Fine with me, kero.'

Midoriya stood stock still, back facing the newcomers. He stared off in front of him, eyes unfocused. Shoto didn't even think he was breathing.

'Midoriya?' He murmured softly, closing the distance between them and resting a hand on his shoulder, frowning when he initially flinched at the touch. 'You okay?'

His friend looked up at him then, eyes wide and panicked and Shoto knew that expression well from years of growing up in his father's house. Midoriya's eyes were almost pleading and his body was tense, like he was about to bolt.

Shoto inhaled sharply, before addressing both their friends and the newcomers. 'Good timing actually. We were just about to take a break, so you guys can fill in.'

'Sounds good to us.' Aina looked to Kenji, who nodded.

'Are you sure, kero?' Tsu croaked. 'Three aside is fine as well.'

'Yeah, but I'm not feeling well.' Shoto lied, thumb rubbing Midoriya's shoulder. 'I think I swallowed some sea water earlier.'

'You should've told us!' Iida hand-chopped. 'In that case, please go rest. Your health is more important.'

Shoto hummed quietly and nodded to his friends, before gently guiding a trembling Midoriya back towards their blanket. He switched sides to hide his friend from view.

'Hope you feel better, Todoroki-kun!' Uraraka waved. 'Deku-kun, you better look after him!'

'Oh no…' Midoriya stopped in his tracks to whisper, before hiding his face in his hands.

Shoto was confused at the action, until he heard three gasps, followed by laughter.

'Deku-kun?' Kenji asked Uraraka, bemused. 'Don't tell me…'

'Oh my god, is that really Deku?' Itachi finally seemed interested in the conversation and was moving his head to try and get a glance at Midoriya.

Shoto blocked his view.

He had suspected that Midoriya knew these people, but that just solidified it. Anger bubbled inside Shoto - what sort of people were they to get Midoriya to act this way?

'Do you three know Midoriya-kun?' Iida addressed them.

'Yeah, we do.' Aina breathed, looking at Shoto's back as if she could see through him. He didn't like the smirk on her face. 'Hey, Deku! Why don't you introduce us to your friends? They all quirkless nobodies too?'

All five heroes froze for a moment.

Uraraka recovered first.

'What the fuck's that supposed to me-'

'Oh! Hi, guys!' Midoriya interrupted, mustering a bubbly persona as he weaved around Shoto and walked back towards the volleyball court. He waved stiffly, his smile so incredibly forced. 'Sorry, I didn't realise it was you! Long time, no see!'

'No, I don't think so.' Aina placed a hand on her hip and looked him up and down, then eyed Shoto who situated himself slightly in front of his friend, protectively. 'No, I think you were trying to run away from us, weren't you? Same old Deku as always.'

'Midoriya, who are these people?' Shoto frowned when his friend's false smile began to waver.

'W- We used to go to mi- middle school together!' He let out a nervous laugh. 'Guys, these are my friends from UA! We're all in the same class.'

'Nawww, it's cute that you think they're your friends?' Aina gushed. 'You still think people could actually like you?'

'I still can't believe they let someone like you into UA.' Itachi scoffed. 'Like you could ever be a hero.'

'Midoriya already is a hero.' Shoto puffed his chest out. 'Only an idiot would suggest otherwise.'

'Are you calling me an idiot?'

'Yes, I am.' Shoto crossed his arms over his chest. 'Well spotted.'

'Sorry, handsome, but I think you're the delusional one.' Aina gave him a once over. 'Deku's the most worthless waste of oxygen I've ever laid eyes on-''

'Listen, fuckface.' Uraraka marched to Midoriya's other side, closely followed by Iida and Tsu. 'I don't know who you think you are, but you can fuck off if you're gonna insult my friend!'

'Wait, you're actually friends?' Itachi sounded genuinely shocked, before he turned to Midoriya, who had lowered his head. 'Why would you want to be friends with a quirkless freak like him?'

'Midoriya-chan isn't quirkless nor is he a freak, kero.' Shoto had never seen Tsu look angry before. It was a very subtle change, but her eyes were dangerous enough that even he could tell she was pissed off. 'And even if he was, why would that stop us being friends with him?'

'Oh wow, you've got these guys good.' Kenji sounded almost impressed. 'I didn't think you'd ever manage to trick anyone into giving you the time of day, Deku, but colour me shocked.'

'He didn't trick anyone.' Shoto glared at him, eyes gradually staring down each one. 'The fuck is your problem?'

'The only problem I see right now is Deku breathing.' Itachi answered easily… too easily.

'You want to fucking go, you bastard?'

'No, Todoroki-kun, don't!' Midoriya scrambled to place his hands on Shoto's chest, stopping him. 'It's fine, really. I'm used to it.'

Before Shoto could argue that no, it wasn't fine and he shouldn't be used to it, Midoriya turned to his old classmates. 'I see you guys are just as er... energetic as ever, just like old times! Ha... Well, it was nice seeing you again, but-'

'Not still thinking of running away, are you?' Kenji raised an amused eyebrow and turned to Shoto. 'Yeah, he's a real hero alright.'

'Shut your mouth.' He growled.

'I suggest you leave.' Tsu spoke, while Uraraka started cracking her knuckles.

'You really haven't changed at all, have you, Deku?' Aina looked positively delighted. However, when she stepped towards Midoriya, she was met with four pairs of feet mirroring the action, and stopped, smile wavering. 'Still latching onto the strongest, hoping they'll protect you? You know how annoyed Bakugou-kun used to get when you'd follow him around.'

'That's not… I'm not…'

'What was that, Deku? Speak up, we can't hear you.'

'Get the hell out of his face.' Uraraka snarled, kept back only by Midoriya's hand, which latched onto her wrist. 'Get the fuck out of here if you know what's good for you!'

'Oh, but it's so fun to see him squirm.' Aina laughed. 'You know, seen as jumping off the school roof didn't work, why don't you try drowning yourself instead? Even a worthless shit like you could-'

A flash of blue shot forwards and, before anyone could even react, Iida landed a solid punch to Aina's jaw. She smacked the sand, hard, lip bleeding. Shoto had only ever seen Iida like this one other time; the absolute loathing in his eyes.

This time though, the feeling was mutual.

'Consider that a warning.' Shoto stepped forward. Ice crawled up his arm while his crimson hair went up in flames. 'Fuck off now, while you still can.'

Kenji pulled Aina to her feet and the three stared at them in shock, before turning on their heels and running away, muttering curses as they went.

Shoto reined in his quirk and sighed; Iida was still panting next to him.

'My apologies, I shouldn't have punched her.' He turned to the others, surprised at his own action. 'I couldn't just… do nothing while they were saying such awful things about my friend.'

'I'm only disappointed that you beat me to it.' Uraraka sighed wistfully. 'Punching a girl though, Iida-kun? I didn't think you had it in you.'

'It would have been sexist not to punch her purely because she was a girl.' Iida coughed awkwardly and adjusted his glasses. 'Gender doesn't matter when it comes to defeating villains.'

'You… You shouldn't have done that at all.' Midoriya's broken voice suddenly rang out and the four of them looked at their friend as he crouched down and hid his face in his hands. 'None of you should've… They'll just… I'm not… They'll tell and you'll get in trouble because of m- me and-'

'Deku-kun, relax.' Uraraka bent down to place a hand on his back. 'It's okay. They're gone now, they won't tell anyone. Come on, breathe with me.'

Shoto watched helplessly as Midoriya stuttered through each breath, faltering a few times and getting frustrated with himself. When it seemed like he was about to start hyperventilating, Uraraka forced him to look at her, each intake of breath deliberate, until Midoriya matched her perfectly, a lot calmer.

When she was confident he wouldn't spiral, she pulled back with a smile. 'Good job, you did really well.'

Midoriya tried to smile back, but it was merely a shadow of his usual brightness. 

After several moments of silence, he stood up and rubbed his arm, face uncharacteristically blank.

'I need to be alone.' He told them flatly, before turning around and walking towards the ocean.

They all watched him go, concern evident, and Shoto knew his friends were thinking the same thing he was. They all liked to believe Midoriya wouldn't act on what that bitch had told him to do, but that didn't stop the nauseating anxiety that had settled in their stomachs. Thankfully though, when he reached the shoreline, Midoriya stopped, shoving his hands into his pockets as the water tickled his feet.

'I think I'll start packing our things away.' Uraraka stood up and sighed. 'Mind giving me a hand, Todoroki-kun? Tsu-chan and Iida-kun can watch Deku-kun while- wait! What're you doing?'

Shoto didn't bother answering her and strode forwards. He knew Midoriya wanted to be alone, but he also knew that being trapped in his own mind was a recipe for disaster.

It didn't take long for him to reach his friend, coming to a stop beside him and following his gaze ahead. They stared at the ocean together, watching the waves overlap each other with crashes and bubbling foam. It was a calming sight, but after a while, Shoto found himself more drawn to the man beside him.

Midoriya was like the sun. He lit up every room he entered, he was a determined ball of energy that refused to give up. He made the world a brighter place, with his words and his smile and his shining eyes. Midoriya was Shoto’s hero; he saved him that day at the sports festival and every day after that. So, to see him now, looking so utterly defeated and hollow, unable to even shed a tear, it was terrifying.

Shoto had only ever seen him like that one other time… He did not want to repeat that.

He shuffled closer, so their shoulders brushed, a gentle reminder that he was there for him. If Midoriya wanted to talk, he would, but if not, Shoto was fine just being by his side.

Midoriya’s lips pursed as he chewed the inside of his mouth, eyes still staring blankly ahead.

'Do you ever regret being friends with me?' He eventually asked.

Shoto frowned as he regarded Midoriya. He looked almost resigned, as if expecting him to answer yes.

'There are a lot of things I regret, but being friends with you is not one of them.' Shoto continued to watch him, expecting verdant eyes to become watery, but it never happened. 'Do you regret our friendship?'

Midoriya lowered his head and fiddled with his hands.

'Being friends with you is an honour that I treasure so much.' Shoto sensed a but. 'But sometimes I feel like I'm dragging down everyone around me. Sometimes, I wonder if they're right and I have tricked you all into liking me, because what is there to like?'

'There is everything.' Shoto replied immediately, coaxing Midoriya to look at him. His expression was so vulnerable. 'You are everything and more. I know that’s not statistically possible, but it’s true. You didn’t trick anyone. Those bastards don’t know you like I do, like Uraraka and Iida and Asu- Tsu do. They’re so blinded by their ignorance and prejudice that they never bothered to get to know you, but we did and we’re all infinitely better because of it.’

‘But that- that’s not...’ Midoriya’s lip wobbled, walls gradually thawing. ‘You’d all do just as well without me.’

‘Not really.’ Shoto told him firmly. ‘Uraraka always talks about how your drive inspires her. You’re the only one Asui goes to when memories of the USJ incident start bothering her, and to put it simply, without you, Iida would be dead. As for me, I wouldn’t be where I am today if not for you, Midoriya. You saved me from myself despite how awful I was to you.’

‘You weren’t awful, Todoroki-kun.’

‘Then neither are you.’ Shoto shot back without hesitation. ‘I know it’s hard to think otherwise when you’ve been conditioned into believing such negative things about yourself, but the truth is that you’re incredible. I know I’m not good with words like you or Uraraka, but I need you to know that.’

‘But why?’ Midoriya whispered, tears forming in his eyes. ‘I’m Deku… Useless, worthless Deku, the one who-’

‘Deku is the name of a hero.’ Shoto countered. ‘You said that yourself, remember? And Deku is a great hero, but he’s also Midoriya Izuku, my best friend. You’re so much more than you give yourself credit for. Your kindness, your drive, your empathy, it’s all you. There’s no trickery. We see you, because Midoriya Izuku doesn't hide his emotions and isn’t afraid to cry.’

Shoto couldn't recall the last time he had talked so much. He was usually a man of few words, but it seemed important to say more now, and from the way Midoriya was looking at him, it was working. A stray tear leaked from his eye, staining a freckled cheek, and without thinking, Shoto reached forward to brush it away with his thumb, before nervously lowering his hand.

He noticed his friend frown at the loss and shuffled awkwardly. ‘You don’t realise how much you mean to us all… to me. You’re everything to me, Midoriya. Not a day goes by where I don’t think of you. You make me happy and comfortable and warm in ways I didn’t even know were possible. Don’t believe for one moment that you’re worthless, because you are the best thing that has ever happened to me.’

Swallowing the anxiety that almost had his throat closing up, Shoto reached out and took his friend’s crooked hand with both of his own, rubbing circles over scar tissue. Midoriya inhaled sharply at the action, but didn’t pull away. Instead, he looked up into Shoto’s eyes, searching.

He gave his hand a gentle squeeze and met his gaze head on, their foreheads almost touching. ‘I can’t imagine a world in which I don’t adore you, Midoriya Izuku.’

When his friend’s head bowed and he leant forwards, Shoto didn’t even hesitate to open his arms and wrap him in a hug. Tears dampened his chest and calloused fingers splayed out across his back, but Shoto just held on tighter, cradling the back of Midoriya’s head while his other hand rested between his shoulder blades.

As long as he needed, Shoto would hold him, telling him it was okay and pressing his cheek against green curls. It didn’t matter if their friends had fully packed up and were waiting for them, it didn’t matter that the tide was now covering their ankles, he’d be there.

‘I’m such a mess.’ Midoriya eventually murmured against him, voice wet and breath warm. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘There’s nothing to apologise for.’ Shoto huffed. 'You're our mess.'

'You mean it?' Midoriya pulled back to look up at him, but didn't let go. 'W- What you said...?'

'Every word of it.' Shoto nodded.

His friend flushed, lowering his head to look at Shoto's chest. He bit his lip, as if debating his next words.

'Thank you, Todoroki-kun.' He sniffed, before flashing him a small smile. 'And for what it's worth, I adore you too - I always will.'

Shoto mirrored his smile, before cupping Midoriya's cheeks and finally resting their foreheads together.

'Hearing that is worth so much, trust me.' He whispered, relishing in how Midoriya relaxed against him.

Another minute passed that way, before Shoto murmured, 'Do you think you're ready to see the others?'

There was a moment of hesitation, before Midoriya nodded against him.

'I think so.' He pulled away to wipe his eyes. 'Thank you for not leaving me alone. I thought it'd help, but it was just making everything worse. I think I'm okay now, though.'

'I'm glad.'

'And… And I feel like something between us has changed.' Midoriya admitted almost shyly. 'I- I want to talk about it, but maybe not when you're covered in my snot.'

'Whenever you're ready.' Shoto's lips twitched. 'Snot or no snot, my feelings won't change.'

Midoriya hummed softly and the two of them turned to see their friends watching them. No tact at all, the three simply waved at having been spotted and Shoto's heart soared when Midoriya laughed at them.

'I'm so lucky.' He waved back, while his free hand reached out to take Shoto's own as they made their way back. 'Stay with me, Shoto-kun?'

He felt his cheeks warm at the sudden use of his given name. Surprised, he stared at Midoriya, admiring his shining eyes, filled once more with light, despite the blotchy skin from when he'd been crying.

Shoto smiled as he tilted his head to the side and nudged their heads together affectionately.

'Always, Izuku.'