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The first thing Izuku noticed about the day was the heat. He woke late in the morning, having somehow thrown his duvet across the room during the night, in a pair of pajamas that were drenched in sweat.
It only got worse throughout the day. Because it was sweltering, both outside and in. Not a nice heat like warm hot chocolate after being in the winter rain, or bundling up in a cozy blanket by the fire. No, this was near unbearable.
It was the heavy kind of heat. The one that made your clothes stick to you and your lips crack from dehydration. The kind of heat that would be endured at home, opening all the windows in the house and turning on all the fans. Possibly even sitting by the open freezer door - Although, Todoroki’s right side was a decent substitute.
But that’s not how Izuku was enduring the heat. No, he was suffering through the heat on a packed, sweaty train, on the way to the beach.
Now Izuku has nothing against the beach - He rather enjoys the sand actually, and he’s not against swimming either - but doing so in this weather, especially when everyone and their mother would be at the beach was not a good idea.
But then again, Kaminari has a lot of ideas. Not all of them can be great ones. Like the time he tried to bake a cake for Sero’s birthday and accidentally blew up the oven - Izuku was there to watch it, and he still doesn't know how that happened.
But he’s here regardless. In fact, all of 1-A is on the train, headed for the beach. Aizawa-Sensei had thought that a class wide trip to the beach was a great idea - mainly because he didn’t have to go, and because he didn’t have to deal with them all day - and so they were all suffering together in the hot car, praying for the train to arrive at their stop soon.
Then of course, there were people like Kaminari and Kirishima who, despite the heat, were happy to be outside. They were making plans about the beach, speaking loudly about all of the games they would play. The sun bathing they would do to get that “ultimate summer bod”.
They may look unaffected by the heat, but Izuku could see they were uncomfortable because of it. The only person that looked, and was, completely unaffected by the heat was Todoroki.
Izuku couldn’t help but be jealous.
But then again. Having to constantly fight people off when it got too cold or too warm must be annoying.
Anyways, not the point.
The point is that Izuku is hot - Uraraka would surely be laughing her ass off if she could hear his thoughts right now - and tired and ready to be done with this surprise beach trip.
At least, despite the scorching heat, the weather is nice. They might have fun at the beach actually, though a little cloud cover wouldn’t go unappreciated.
By the time they got to their station, they were almost tripping over themselves to get out of the train. But it seems that most of the other passengers had the same idea, as it took them a good 10 minutes to get everyone off safely.
Izuku doesn’t like to think about what would have happened to Eri if she were with them. There isn’t a doubt in his mind that they would have been separated in the crowd, and then she’d be lost all over again.
But she’s not here, thankfully. She’s with Aizawa-Sensei, probably going to the UA swimming pool to cool down.
Thinking of the UA swimming pool always raised some fun memories, but the one that stood out the most had to be teaching Eri how to swim.
It was probably one of his fondest memories.
“Before we start swimming we need to learn to float, okay?”
Izuku was in the UA’s baby pool (why did they even have one of those?) with Eri. The tile was smooth beneath his knees and the water was calm, if not a little cold.
“O- okay Deku!”
Eri looked up at him, bright red eyes filled with trust. She looked hilarious in her swimsuit, the floaties she was wearing nearly dwarfing her arms entirely. The purple goggles on her head clashed horribly with the lime green arm bands that adorned her like ornaments.
‘Mic-Sensei must have dressed her this morning.’ He thinks, barely stifling a chuckle. ‘There’s no way Aizawa-Sensei would let her out of the house dressed like that.’
Swallowing his laughter and brightening his smile, he gestures for Eri to get into the pool with him.
“So the first thing we do is stand up.” He demonstrated by standing up to his full height, leaving only his shins submerged in the water. “Can you do that for me?”
“Yeah!” She shouted, somehow more enthusiastic about than before.
Eri stood up on the tips of her toes, obviously trying to imitate Izuku’s height.
“Okay Eri!” A laugh escaped his lips at her efforts to be tall, “Now we just have to hold out our arms like this.” He brought his arms up to be perpendicular to his torso, nodding his head for her to try too.
“Yeah, like that!” He smiled at her, giving the little girl a thumbs up before continuing.
“Now. You have to be super brave for the next part. Can you do that?”
Eri looked up at him, fixing her face into one of determination that looked suspiciously like Bakugou’s scowl, before nodding her head with furrowed brows.
“Okay. For the next part, you need to close your eyes tight,” He screws up his face to demonstrate before opening one eye and seeing Eri do the same. “And then you have to lean back on your feet and fall into the water.”
With both eyes open, he can see how Eri’s determined face flaters for a moment before she scrunches it up again and nods her head.
He watches as she slowly leans back on her feet with her arms still out in the air before she tilts too far and falls back into the water.
She lies there for a moment before a giggle erupts from her throat, shortly followed by another set.
He smiles at the display before getting an idea and crouching in the water. He doesn’t have to worry about being seen because her eyes are still closed, but there’s still a high chance of being heard so he moves slowly through the pool until he’s right beside her.
“Be careful though.” He brings his hands up in front of him and shapes them into claws, ready to attack. “You wouldn’t want to run into any…”
“Sharks!” and with that, he pounces on Eri. His clawed hands dive straight for her feet where he begins tickling her mercilessly.
Her laughs could be heard across the campus.
He shakes himself from the memory and follows his classmates as they… arrive at the beach? He must have spaced out for longer than he thought. It’s a good thing he didn’t get lost.
He and Shouji started unpacking all of their stuff and setting up the umbrellas (it was done so much quicker thanks to Shouji’s quirk) while the others went to get ice cream or started making sandcastles. Doing the sort of things that normal teenagers do.
“Hey Midobro! Come play volleyball with us.”
Kaminari, Kirishima and a tired looking Sero all came running towards him when he had finished setting up the umbrellas, one of which he was now sitting under.
“I’d love to guys, but… maybe later? I kinda just want to relax for a little bit if that's okay. I’m a little bit hot right now and I want to cool down before I do anything.”
He might be laying it on a little thick, but he's tired and hot and the idea of playing volleyball in this weather is unappealing on many levels.
"That's okay bro. We can play later!" Kirishima takes it in his stride, challenging Sero and Kaminari to a sandcastle competition. He then tells them it's a race and sprints off towards the sea.
Kaminari sprints after him, faster than he ever has in training. You'd think someone was dying with how quick he was running.
Sero falls to his knees, cursing and grumbling, before getting up and trailing behind the energetic duo.
Izuku can relate. It's too hot to do anything but lie down.
So he pulls out a book - he likes to read, sue him - he's not actually sure what it's about. The cover was plain and told him nothing while the blurb was short and left him reeling for more.
That's probably why he bought it actually.
Eh. As long as it doesn't read badly he doesn't care. He doesn't exactly have a preference when it comes to books. Although, he likes to read pre-quirk media to see the things they came up with when quirks were little more than a dream. They had such interesting ideas.
So he opens his book and is pleasantly surprised to see a map. He likes when books have maps, it makes things easier to visualise.
The map shows an island of lush jungle broken only by a wide river that cuts through the middle of the island. A shelter is shown on the beach of the island. Further down, a beached ship lies in a wreck.
There must have been a storm.
Izuku still doesn't know what the book is about but he's certainly intrigued.
So he flicks to the next page - skips past the "this is dedicated to" and the "special thanks to" - and starts reading.
He gets a few chapters in before his eyes start to droop. Of course, he doesn't quite stop them and so he keeps reading.
Because of this, he doesn't realise as his eyes slip shut.
“Hey Mido-”
“He’s sleeping. I’m sure he’ll wake up soon and you can play volleyball then. If he doesn’t, then I’ll play with you guys.”
“He’s asleep?”
“Yep. Couldn't wake him if I tried.”
“You know what we have to do, right?”
A knowing look is passed around the small group, wide grins fixed on their faces.
“Someone get the shovel.”
Izuku smiled as he felt the sun on his face.
He would be the first to admit that he could act like a cat. Constantly falling asleep in the warm summer sun, seeking heat from his friends during the cold winter months, being cranky when he was woken up prematurely.
So you can't blame him for enjoying the warm sun on his face.
He went to stretch out his limbs - yes he's like a cat. He knows - but… he couldn't.
Why couldn't he move his arms?
Why weren't his legs moving?
His head wasn't moving either. Why? Why couldn't he feel his hair against his skin?
His breaths came quick and shallow as he tried to feel for his fingers and toes. Finding them almost completely numb, dead to the world.
He started struggling more, using a small percentage of his quirk in an attempt to get his limbs to move. Until he heard a giggle.
Followed by another.
And then a few more.
Fuck, if only he could see what was-
Oh, he was a moron.
He opens his eyes, immediately regretting it as the bright sun invades his vision.
He closes them again before opening them once more, slower this time.
And when he did, he could see the small group of his classmates that stood over him. Could see the wide grins on their faces, and the phone in Mina's hand.
He watched as their grins grew wider once they realised he was awake. Watched, and almost had to close his eyes, when the camera flash went off.
"Right. You've had your fun, now I'm getting out"
He readied his quirk, a solid 10% which would no doubt get him out of the sand quickly while also waking him from his post-nap fog.
"Aw come on Midobro! Let us take another pic. One with all of us in it."
Kirishima's voice was loud in Izuku's ear, loud enough to make him wince.
"Yeah" Came Kaminari's voice this time, "We need at least one picture where you're actually awake."
"..." "How many do you have?"
If Izuku's life were an anime or a cartoon, he's sure that at *least* one of the quartet above him would have one of those little sweat drop things. He doesn't know what it's called but he knows what it is.
"Please. We just need one more!"
Izuku didn't expect Sero, the voice of reason in the bakusquad to be asking asking another picture. So he said yes and dutifully ignored the knowing look Sero gave Kaminari afterwards. The look that said 'you owe me'.
He sat there wondering what creature he had been made into as the others got into position for the picture.
"Right. 3. 2. 1. Smile!"
Izuku grinned at the camera, pretending that he was enjoying himself "for the memories".
He didn't have very many pictures due to his general dislike of being photographed. Of course, his quirklessness didn't help that. Every year book he's in was always defaced and vandalised.
So eventually he stopped showing up for picture day. He'd go to homeroom and make sure he was marked in, then he'd hide in the bathroom for the rest of the day until lunch when he went home.
His mother usually slept in until noon because of her late night shifts, and she would be out of the house by one at the latest in order to get to the hospital in time for her shift. She'd stay there until two in the morning and get the train back before falling asleep around two hours later.
Then the cycle would repeat.
This, of course, meant that Izuku could go home whenever he liked so long as he was marked in for the day.
This habit had to change once he got to UA, so there are two yearbooks in which he's listed. Both taken at the beginning of their respective years, making first year Izuku look like a twig when compared to current, second year Izuku.
So he smiled even though he didn't like pictures, and he humoured his friends until they got up, complaining of sore necks and backs and how "I'm not flexible enough to do that anymore" "You were never flexible enough to do that Kaminari" "Shut up! Not all of us can have weird elastic joints like yours Sero".
He got up again. Not using his quirk, seeing as the weight on his body was just sand and would go everywhere if he used his quirk, which meant it would get all over their stuff and- that's a conflict he'd rather avoid if at all possible.
So he got up slowly, trying not to shake too much lest he get sand on the blankets that surrounded him.
"Now that you're up we can play volleyball!" Said Kirishima, still looking energetic and happy despite the heat.
Izuku took a moment to stand and look down at his limbs, limbs that we're coated in sand.
The sand didn't get on his stuff, but it stuck to his body like a second skin. He'd need to wash it off because trying to get it out of his hair dry was a lost cause.
He knows from his months of cleaning Dagobah. The amount of times he fell over in the sand, having to go home earlier than usual so I could get the sand out of his hair before school started was unreal. It's fair to say that he hates sand at this point.
Not enough to steer clear of the beach, evidently, but certainly enough to be wary of it.
Had he not fallen asleep, the sand would never have gotten in his hair. Or his shorts. God, it's so uncomfortable.
"I'm gonna wash this off in the sea, but we can play when I get back?" He phrases it as a question, even though he'll be taking a dip in the waves regardless of their answer.
"Oh uh… sure Midoriya! Sorry 'bout that by the way, I didn't realise it would get everywhere." Sero answers before Kaminari can protest - because Kaminari was going to protest. Izuku could see it in his eyes. At least he has the tact to look sheepish.
"Don't worry, just don't do it again please." His hand scratches the back of his head as he laughs awkwardly, hoping it didn't sound too much like a demand. "What did you make me into, anyways?"
That brings life back into the group, because Kirishima and Kaminari resume their giggling from earlier while Mina hands him her phone and scrolls back a few pictures.
And Izuku understands why they're laughing now. Even he has to admit that it's funny.
So he laughs, the traitorous giggles escape his throat and flee into the open air as he stares down at the picture.
There he is, in all his sleeping glory. It's a sloppy sculpture, but that only serves to make it funnier. Because when put together with his sleeping face, the sculpture of Aizawa-Sensei looks all too realistic.
The poorly done jumpsuit bares an uncanny resemblance to Aizawa-Sensei's hero costume, and the hair - Izuku isn't really sure how they did that without his notice - is standing straight up, as if Aizawa were in battle.
"Hey, we got Midobro to laugh!" Kaminari seems to have recovered from his laughing fit, because he hangs his arm around Izuku's neck and presses their faces together, cheek to cheek.
While Izuku is better with unexpected touch than he was in first year, he still isn't all that fond of it. But he can't really do anything about it when he's with Kaminari. Kaminari just likes touch, and Izuku has never voiced his dislike for it so…
"Oh ew! There's sand all over my face now."
"Karma's a bitch Kaminari! You should know this by now with how many times you've both met." Well. Sero isn't wrong.
Izuku watches as Kaminari launches himself at Sero and starts play-fighting. Kirishima joins in not even a moment later while Mina just puts her head in her hands and groaning.
Izuku takes that as his cue to go wash off and heads down the beach. He chuckles to himself, remembering the sand sculpture before realising that Aizawa would string him alive if he ever saw it.
Unless of course Aizawa understood that Izuku wasn't a willing participant in making the sculpture.
Yeah that might work.
And even then, he'll only ever need to explain himself if Aizawa sees the picture. So he just won't let that happen.
He'll be fine.
Izuku continued down the beach, aiming for a small little cove at the end of the beach. He would take the seclusion over a crowded patch of sea any day of the week.
He passed a few of his classmates as he went, most of them laying in the sun, hoping to get a tan. But there were the odd few that weren't, like Hagakure who couldn't get a tan. She was making a sandcastle, if the body-less swimsuit was anything to go by.
He waved to a few of his friends, laughing when his eyes found Todoroki. Or rather, the pile of people taking shelter by his right side. If Izuku was being honest though, he couldn't really blame them.
He trudged through the sand, trying to pick little rocks and shells off of his skin before he reached the water, hoping it would take less time if he did that.
He yawned into his hand as he flicked a shell from his elbow. Somehow, despite getting what seemed to be a few hours of sleep, he was still tired.
'Is this what Aizawa-Sensei feels like all the time?'
He cut through the rocks that surrounded the cliff until he reached a small passageway, barely big enough to let him through.
But finally, he had reached his destination. Oceanic erosion had weathered down the soft rock of the coast and formed a small sea cave. It was a pretty thing, the sun came in from above and painted the water a clear, crystal blue.
It was a far cry from Dagobah, that's for sure. And it was secluded. That was Izuku's favourite part.
Nobody knew it was here except for him. He'd found it a few weeks ago, thinking of bringing his friends to the cave over the summer.
But then Kaminari invited everyone to the beach, and it really wouldn't have been fair to run away with his friends and leave everyone else behind.
It's not like he could bring everyone either. Despite being beautiful, the cave was small. It would probably only hold five or six people comfortably. And even then, there wouldn't be much space to move around.
It's a shame, but he can come back another day with his friends. Preferably a colder day when the sun isn't trying to scorch everyone away.
Speaking of the sun, Izuku noted that the cave wasn't all that bright. In fact, if he moved closer to the water's edge, he could see the sun hanging low in the sky. It wasn't setting, but it was low enough to keep in mind the temperature change that sunset would bring.
Well, Izuku would probably be heading back to UA at that point. He'd rather not catch a cold and miss out on training. So he emptied his pockets and put his phone on a ledge of stone that jutted out from the cave wall. He didn't bother with a timer, seeing as he would only be rinsing off the sand on his body before heading out again.
He stretched, letting out another yawn before wading into the water. He started with his feet rubbing at them until no sand remained. He then worked up to his calves and thighs, his torso and chest, his right and left arm, his shoulders and his face.
Finally, he got to his hair. This would be, without a doubt, the most difficult part. Let it not be said that Izuku hated his curly hair. Because he didn't. In his opinion, it was a lot better than straight hair. But that's not the point.
Izuku did not like how much care his curls needed. He did his best to keep them healthy, but Mina would probably wring his neck if she found out about his almost non-existent hair routine. Curly hair couldn't be brushed like straight hair or it would frizz.
So Izuku couldn't take his fingers through his hair to rid it of the sand or he'd look like Denki zapped him a few hundred times. He would just have to hope he got all of it out before he went back to the dorms and took a proper shower.
He looked down at the water, remembering the first thing he taught Eri when she started swimming.
Floating. Just like we practiced.
Yeah, that might work. He just needs to lay down in the water and hope that the sand gets out at some point. He doesn't know how to properly care for his hair so what he's doing might not work but he doesn't really have any other ideas.
So he walks out a bit further, until the water comes up to his shoulder. He's near the entrance to the cave now. Its pretty, especially with the sun low in the sky casting a golden glow over the coast.
He lies down on his back until his ears are submerged, leaving only his face above the water. Like this, everything is muted. It's peaceful. He can hear the methodical push and pull of the waves, the slow beating of his heart.
He stares at the small and wispy white clouds as they pass overhead, not noticing how his eyelids flutter shut.
"Do you think we should go looking for him?"
"Give it a few more minutes. Text him again and if he doesn't respond respond we'll start looking for him."
"I shall call Aizawa-Sensei to inform him of the situation so he may intervene if needed."
"Fuckin' Deku probably got lost. He'll be back in a minute. He will."
"I dunno Bakubro… he left to wash off a few hours ago. I hate to say it, but he might not-"
"He will."
Izuku gasped as a weight crashed onto his face. His eyes opened quickly despite the sleep that clung to his eyelashes.
He immediately went to sit up, before remembering where he fell asleep. He calmed down slightly and focused his sight above him, at the top of the cave-
That's not the cave.
What the fuck.
Instead of the cave ceiling peppered with stalactites, was a dark sheet of cloud that covered the sky.
Izuku's eyes widened and his breaths came quick and shallow.
He looked around again, twisting his neck so fast he surely gave himself whiplash.
But that's not important. Because he's surrounded by towering waves and rolling clouds filled with lightning and the distant crash of thunder.
There's no land in sight. There's nothing.
Nothing but blue. Blue on every side.
Not the nice blue of summer skies.
No, this is dark blue, almost black. It promises, not of comfort and warmth, but of suffering and pain.
And Izuku watches the dark blue waves crash against the darker sky. The only light comes from the brief, terrifying flashes of lightning that strike the sea far too close for Izuku's ensured survival.
His heart continues beating its staccato rhythm, desperately trying to escape his chest as he lies there in the ice cold water.
Floating.
Alone.
With no way home.