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Ochako stared at her reflection in the mirror, observing her cute outfit. She had gone for a simple forest green dress with a black belt wrapped around her waist to compliment the color. Plucking a black scrunchy from her dresser, she tied her hair in a ponytail. Over the school year, she allowed her hair to grow out. Now, it nearly met the small of her back.
'It looks really nice. I hope he likes it too.'
She had been flabbergasted when Izuku asked her out on a date. Her! Somebody, please pinch her. She could've sworn she had been dreaming, but as he awkwardly waited for her response, she realized that it was, in all its genuine glory, reality .
A real date with Izuku.
A-And not one of the many ones that she often fantasized about!
He was going to take her on a date to, in his words, “the best place to get a frozen yogurt.” And who was she to refuse such a delicious offer? Desserts were her speciality, but mochi was her life. However, that didn’t mean she was going to miss out on such a tasty opportunity. She was a fanatic when it came to anything sweet and yummy!
To go to a place full of delectable delicacies was one thing, but to go with Izuku? It only further fueled her excitement.
Underneath said excitement though, she was a bundle of nerves waiting to explode. She hadn’t expected him to ask her out. At the very least, she thought that she would be the one asking him! 'What if after the date, he doesn’t want to be my friend anymore—' No. She couldn’t think that way. She couldn't! She needed to be positive!
'A date with Izuku!' She excitedly jumped up, punching a fist into the air. 'HELL YEAH! A DATE WITH IZUKU!'
“Chako, are you ready?”
“Yes, Mama!” she responded. With a twirl of her dress, she admired herself once more again. “A date with Izuku.”
'It feels too good to be true.'
Izuku paced his room as he couldn’t but contemplate one thing:
“HOW THE HELL DID I ASK HER ON A DATE?!”
It had taken him a lot of pep talks and advice - some good, more often bad (Mineta…) , before he finally mustered up the fleeting courage to walk—or rather, mechanically march—up to Ochako and ask her on a date. He was fifty percent sure at the time that she would recognize him as the awkward, sweaty mess he truly was and turn him down. Maybe politely, maybe bluntly, but turn him down all the same.
But to his utter bewilderment , she agreed to it! Their friends went wild the next day, and he meant it; they went totally bonkers! He received several lectures that day from the boys about how to treat her, what to do, and how not to “fuck up the date” (the last part from Kacchan's unexpected coaching).
He blew out a shaky sigh as he stared at his reflection. What does she see in me? Before he could let himself get any deep in thought, his mother called.
“Izuku, sweetie, are you ready?”
“Almost!”
Actually, Izuku was done. He was all set for his date. He just needed time to contemplate on how the hell did he ask his crush on a date.
“Izuku! Are you done?”
Okay maybe not now. He could do so at a later date. Right now he had a date with his best friend and crush. He had to keep all his energy and attention focused on making her happy (and also not making a fool of himself).
“Coming!” He looked at himself over in the mirror again before leaving his room.
Ochako nervously walked back and forth near the front door, fiddling with the belt on her dress. It was almost time for the date. Her mom had taken a couple of pictures of her in her outfit, and her dad gave her some tips on how to knock out her date if he tried to do anything she wasn’t comfortable with.
She was pretty sure that she wouldn’t need to use his advice, but it was sweet nonetheless. Right now, she was alone. Her parents had gone to work a while ago, leaving her to impatiently wait for Izuku to arrive.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
She sped to the front door, wrangling open the doorknob. There he was—dressed in cargo shorts and flannel T-shirt with the word ‘Flannel’ imprinted on it. Mina and Bakugou would kill him if they saw what he was wearing. He timorously waved at her and she shyly waved back.
“Are your parents home?”
“They’re at work—”
“SO THIS IS THE GUY THAT ASKED MY LITTLE GIRL OUT FOR A DATE.”
'He didn’t go to work?!' She noticed how Izuku became pale at the sight of the burly man. She whirled around to face her dad. “Papa… what about work? Didn’t you have to go to work today…?”
“And miss seeing my daughter go on her first date? Hell no,” he stated. “Now sweetheart, can you go into the kitchen and grab me the small bento on the counter?” Ochako eyed her dad suspiciously, but left to go into the kitchen regardless, leaving poor Izuku with the older man.
As soon as Ochako was out of sight and earshot, his aura instantly changed. The warmth in his eyes and the honey laced in his voice were replaced with cold, ruthless bitterness. Then…he smiled. It was not the affectionate and caring one that Izuku often saw Ochako wear, but one that seemed to promise one thing: one wrong move, and his body could be found at the bottom of the ocean.
Izuku gulped.
The man spoke, “Listen kid, I want her home at exactly 8pm; and no funny business. Any later, and we’ll have a slight problem, you hear?” Izuku nodded so fast, his head blurred with the motion. “And you better make sure to treat her well.”
“Papa! I don’t see any bentos in the kitchen.”
“I guess I must’ve left it at work!” he chuckled with spontaneous merriment. “My mistake.”
Ochako emerged from the kitchen, eyeing the two of them—Izuku’s suddenly very stiff posture and her dad’s wide grin.
“ Okay… ” She tackled her dad in a hug and waved him goodbye as she led the shaken-up boy onto the sidewalk. “Bye Papa!” As soon as she and Izuku were out of sight, she turned around to face Izuku. “What did he tell you?”
“Uh…t-to, u-u-um , to have a g-great life -! I MEAN- d-dAte!”
She was not buying it. “Don’t worry about him, okay? He’s a big softie inside, you know? I’m positive he’ll warm up to you!” The uneasiness from Izuku disappeared, replaced by warmth. The effect this girl had on him was tremendous. “So, why don’t you lead the way? Since, I don’t really know where this frozen yogurt place you’re talking about is.”
Izuku grinned. “Sure!”
Izuku couldn’t help but watch as Ochako’s eyes filled with wonder and awe as she scanned around the frozen yogurt place. The frozen yogurt shop had been dubbed “The Green Tea” for its signature and popular green tea flavor.
Today, it was surprisingly not crowded. Every day of the week, this humble ice cream place was packed full with people, excited to pick out the dessert they wanted from the appetizing array of flavors they had in store.
“So…how does this place work, Izuku?” Ochako eyed him briefly. She noticed immediately how differently this frozen treat shop operated from the other places she'd previously been to. Instead of sitting down and waiting for a server to bring the food, many of the customers present were up and at the grand machines fitted into the walls, looking at flavors and making small talk.
“Well, we'll be picking out the flavors we want. Think of it as a buffet, but with frozen yogurt!” Izuku explained. “You can get a sample cup and try out some of the flavors you’re not sure of getting, and when you’re ready, you can choose whether you want a cone or cup!”
Ochako eagerly and ecstatically bounced up and down, before dragging Izuku over to one of the frozen yogurt machines. Grabbing a sample cup for herself and Izuku, she asked him, “What flavor’s your favorite?”
“Hm…I’d have to go with green tea. It tastes really good, but they typically run out before I get the chance to get one—” A large gasp caused him to turn to the brown-haired girl next to him. “What’s wrong?”
“They have green tea!” Ochako squealed, dragging Izuku along behind her. She swapped her serving cup for a regular cup and took a heaping amount of the green goodness. Turning to Izuku, she switched his empty sample cup for a regular one as well and filled that one to the brim too. “There! We got some before it could run out!”
“You sure? You didn’t even try it to see if you liked it!”
“I am an adventurous woman! Besides, if you like the flavor, there’s a fifty-three percent chance that I’ll like it as well.”
“That’s pretty bold of you,” Izuku mused. “What will you do if it’s the other forty-seven percent chance you won't like it?”
“There are sample cups for a reason.”
Izuku laughed. As Ochako approached the register, Izuku’s eyebrows knitted with confusion. “Hey Ochako, don't you want any toppings on yours?” He pointed to the counter overflowing with syrups, gummies, candies, and all kinds of delectables treats.
The plastic spoon in Ochako’s hand dropped when she squealed, “YOU DIDN’T TELL ME WE COULD PUT TOPPINGS ON THEM!” She rushed over to the counter, a speedy blur as she tossed as many treats as she could fit into the cup. Izuku beamed with amusement as he started putting his own toppings for his froyo, albeit a more reasonable amount.
Once Ochako was done with her work of art, she carefully walked towards the register. Only there was a problem: the toppings started to slide off her dessert mountain. Izuku noticed the worry bundled up in Ochako’s face as more of the toppings began to slide.
Izuku set down his own froyo and cautiously took hers and walked over to where the cups were stacked. He took the biggest size that froyo could come by and placed the already sticky smaller cup inside. Walking over to Ochako, he handed her back the rescued froyo. He couldn’t help but smile when he watched her eyes sparkle with delight.
He grabbed his own froyo lying beside the toppings and handed it to the cashier, watching as the cashier put both of their frozen yogurts on the scale. It was a bit on the pricey side somehow, but nevertheless, he paid for both of their desserts before Ochako could interject.
Spotting an empty booth fit for two that resided next to a window, he led her there. The two of them took their seats, sitting across from each other. Anxiety bubbled up within both of them, all while giddiness and excitement were on full display.
“Time to try this flavor out!”
He sniggered with a sing-song tone, “Forty-seven percent chance~”
She sung back with equal snark, “Fifty-three is greater than forty-seven~”
Ochako took a scoop of her froyo and slowly brought the spoon to her mouth. Izuku ignored his own dessert in anticipation to see if Ochako would enjoy the flavor that he deemed his favorite. She closed her mouth, sealing the fate for the small morsel of frozen yogurt, taking the time to contemplate the texture, flavor, and richness. When her eyes lit up, he knew: this was going to be her favorite, too.
With a smug smile, she continued enjoying her treat. “And what were you saying? About that forty-seven percent chance again?”
"You sure you're not just imagining things? I haven’t the slightest clue what you are talking about~" he cooed. He then snubbed his nose when she attempted to correct him, "Can't hear you over the delicious taste of this sacred, heaven-made dessert."
Ochako rolled her eyes, betraying the brilliant smile on her face. Finally, Izuku began eating his own melting froyo, and Ochako’s attention shifted onto Izuku. She giggled, causing Izuku to look up at her. “Mm? What’s so funny?”
She pointed to the side of her cheek. Immediately, he rubbed his own with heated embarrassment, only to end up rubbing the wrong one, judging by how she giggled even more Leaning across the table, she swiped away the stray bit of yogurt off his cheek and sat back down. It took her a full minute to realize what she did, Izuku's face turning bright pink making for a fantastic indicator.
“Th-thanks,” he shyly mumbled. She nodded, silent over her daring gesture. He peeped, “S-so… what do you think? A-About this place, that is?”
“I really like it!” Ochako declared. “We should definitely come back in the future!” Little did Ochako know of the impact her words had on him.
'Does that mean she wants to go on another date with me?!'
Apparently, the meaning of her words finally caught up to her, making her face bloom pink too. To distract herself from her own blushing, she continued digging into her froyo. 'I’ll shift the conversation to something else.' “H-hey Izuku, how is your research project going? Did you find anyone you wanted to research?”
At her question, Izuku’s eyes lit up with enthusiasm. She could see the fire burning behind those smoldering, emerald eyes. A shiver ran through her, breaking her out of her stare. He rambled on about how he was trying to decide on doing the research project on All Might, or another celebrity, because all his past projects were already on All Might.
Hearing him babble on about the assignment so passionately made her own heart warm. It was nice listening to him. She would interject some of her thoughts every now and then; but overall, she just liked listening to and watching him. The way he would excitedly move his hands around as he explained something. When an interesting point came to mind and his eyes brightened even more…His voice was so soothing. She could spend forever in this sweet place with him.
When Izuku became aware of her silence, his rambling died down. “Ah, sorry… I-I didn’t mean to go on for so long …”
Ochako raised an eyebrow. “Who said I minded?” Her question left him speechless. “I’m having a great time just hearing you, Izuku. You could never bore me.”
From that, Izuku broke down into a sputtering, blubbering mess. It didn’t help when Ochako laughed from his bashfulness. “When did you get so confident?” he grumbled under his breath. Unfortunately for him, Ochako heard it.
“Pft! I’m not confident! Inside, I’m freaking out over how I said that!”
That made Izuku chuckle. He stood up, cleaned up their table and gestured toward her. “Follow me…I have one more place I want to take you.”
Ochako gazed at the cherry blossoms that donned trees, some gracefully fluttering and floating, others covering the path they walked. Izuku had apologized that it wasn’t something big, but Ochako didn’t care. What mattered to her was that she was with him. They could have had a date in a dark and damp alleyway, and she would still be content (not that it was ideal ).
Compared to the uncrowded froyo place, the park was teeming with couples and families, chattering and playing around. Spring really was a time to be alive. And to be with Izuku only made it all the better. She sneaked glances at him as he took in the beautiful scenery. Her eyes glanced down to his lonely hand, and then realization hit her.
When she led him away from her house.
When she led him to the frozen yogurt machine.
When she led him to get freaking green tea froyo.
'I’VE BEEN HOLDING HIS HAND THIS WHOLE TIME!' She slapped her hands to her cheeks so hard, it startled Izuku. He turned his attention to her, concern splattered over his face. 'What am I supposed to tell him? Oh, I just realized that we’ve been holding hands several times today, and I want to hold your hand right now. Is that okay? HE’LL THINK I’M AN OBSESSED, LOVESTRUCK WEIRDO, MAYBE AS BAD AS TOGA!'
“I-I’m fine,” she reassured him, “just thinking about…s-some stuff.”
He smiled at her, but it didn't do anything to ease the worriment that he had inside.
And she knew it. She pulled her eyes away from him and looked off to the side-! A quiet gasp escaped her when she spotted a familiar couple. She tugged on Izuku’s shirt, causing him to gawk at her once again. “Look!” she said, pointing at the laughing couple, “it’s—”
“Wildcard and Violet!” Izuku finished. “I thought I’d never get the chance to get their autographs!”
“Well, now you have the chance, don’t you?”
He smiled, taking a few steps forward…before stopping. “Wait, but we have our own date. I don’t want to abandon you.”
“You’re not abandoning me; you’re just getting an autograph!”
“R-right!” Izuku agreed, walking towards them once again— “Ochako, I don’t know if I can do it. It looks like they’re on a date and—”
“Oh, look! They’re walking towards us!” Izuku turned his head so fast, he nearly got vertigo. They were waving at them with their signature outfits and sunglasses to blend in.
“Hello there!” Violet greeted.
“Hiya!” Ochako replied. “It’s a pleasure to meet you!”
“Same here! Are the two of you on a date?”
Ochako’s face turned slightly pink but she nodded regardless. “It’s our first one.”
“Aww, that’s so sweet. Young love . I remember our first date. We went ice skating.”
Ochako nudged the timorous green-haired boy next to him, encouraging him to say what was on his mind.
He squeaked at the nudging, blurting out, “C-Could I have y-your autographs?”
“Of course,” Wild Card said. Izuku took out a notebook and pen, clumsily handing it to the celebrity duo.
“Ochako really likes to listen to your band, Phantom Thieves. She listens to it almost all the time when we’re walking home. She even bought all of your albums..”
Ochako pouted at him before sending him a smirk. “And Izuku is obsessed with your movies. He’s watched them all at least eight times. That’s not even all of it. He also has posters of you guys in his room.”
He was rendered speechless when she exposed his secret, betrayal comically plastered onto his face.
“That so?” Wild Card amusedly said, handing the notebook and pen back to sheepish Izuku. “Well maybe, sometime we could go on a double date, if you’re both interested.”
Izuku and Ochako shot each other a glance. “We’ll think about it,” Izuku replied, a grin stretching ear to ear.
Violet checked her phone, her eyes widening at the time. “Oh geez, the time’s already 7:50. We’ve gotta go or we’ll miss the screening!” she cried, pulling her boyfriend along. “It was nice meeting you!”
“Hope the rest of your date goes well!”
The pair waved them goodbye as they disappeared out of view. Ochako couldn’t help but giggle when she saw Izuku’s awestruck face. “Maybe you can do your research project on them?”
“Huh…I do really need to try and write something that’s not about All Might, for once.”
“And they did offer to go on a double date…”
“Would you go on a double date with me?”
“Aw man!” Ochako sulked.
“I-it’s alright if you don't want to go—”
“That’s not why I’m pouting, silly! I wanted to be the one to ask you out for a second date.” Ochako cut him off before he could delve into one of his ramblings. “But now you stole my thunder! Hmph!”
The distress in Izuku’s face disappeared, replaced with a coy pout. “You can still ask me, you know…”
Ochako made up her mind. “Okay! Izuku Midoriya, would you go on another date with me?”
“Are you asking me politely?”
“So demanding,” Ochako laughed, “Please go on a date with me, Izuku Midoriya.”
“Hmm… I don’t know… I’m still kinda hurt from how you told them about the posters in my room.”
“At least I didn’t tell them about the merch you’re hiding.”
Izuku gasped, flinging a hand over his chest. “How did you know I have merch of them?!”
“I didn’t.” Ochako mischievously beamed at him. “But now I do~”
“Why are you being so mean to me?” he whined. “I haven’t even told you my answer yet.”
“I know you’ll say yes.” He pouted, pulling out his notebook and pen once again. She joked, “You really carry that notebook and pen everywhere you go.”
“You never know who you’ll bump into,” Izuku responded, “and it looks like it’s a good thing I did.”
“Whatcha writing down?”
“Just a small reminder.”
“Whatever you’re planning, you won’t win,” she retorted, glancing up at the sky. “Woah, it’s almost dark out.”
That made Izuku freeze. 'What time is it again?' He shot a look at his phone, the numbers making him turn pale. They had to go now. “Hey Ochako, first one to your house wins.”
“You’re on.”
Ochako was the first to arrive at the house, slightly panting with beads of sweat all over her face but victorious. Not long after, Izuku came jogging afterwards. He snuck a glance at his phone: 7:59pm. 'That was so close.'
“I won~!” she cheered. “See, whatever you were planning, you just lost.” Izuku grinned, stepping closer towards her, stooping down, and pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. Her expression was priceless with the dopey smile she wore on her face. He would have that memory burned into his mind.
“Looks like I won,” he teased, playfully sticking his tongue out. “Bye Ochako, can’t wait for our next date!”
She dreamily watched as Izuku walked away, her heart pounding inside.
“Bye Izuku,” she softly replied before walking inside and closing the door.