Chapter Text
Izuku twiddled his thumbs as the plane began its descent. He looked out the window to see Otheon coming into view. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to his mother sitting next to him.
“Izuku, is everything alright?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine!”
“I know you must be nervous, but I promise, this will be good for us.”
She grabbed Izuku’s hand and squeezed it tightly. He squeezed back and managed a small smile.
-----
The mother and son duo managed to catch a taxi in the chaos of the airport. They began the car ride to their new home on the outskirts of Otheon. Izuku’s mother had taken a new job opportunity here, and while he was happy for her, he greatly missed Japan.
The moving truck was already at their house by the time they arrived, and people were unloading various boxes and furniture inside. Inko stepped out of the car and began talking to one of the movers. Izuku got out and grabbed their suitcases from the trunk of the taxi. He rolled them inside, leaving his mother’s bags in her room downstairs and bringing his things upstairs. He spent a few hours unloading his suitcase and setting up collectibles around his room. Eventually, his mother called him downstairs for dinner. They ate together at their new kitchen table and split a cheese pizza. Izuku went back up to his bedroom, snuggled underneath his sheets, and quickly fell asleep from the long and exhausting day of travel.
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Izuku was up bright and early for his first day at his new school. He knew his mother was worried about how he would fare, so he did the best he could to put on a happy face for her before walking out the door. As he got closer to the school, more students began littering the roads. He began to get stares and did his best to keep his head down and ignore the looks.
He made his way to the second floor and “Room 213” came into view. Izuku lingered outside the door, nervous to enter. He saw someone that looked like his teacher begin to walk towards him.
“You must be Izuku! It’s so nice to finally meet you!”
The teacher held out her hand and Izuku shook it. His hands were clammy from how nervous he was, so he quickly wiped them. The teacher walked inside the classroom and motioned for Izuku to follow her.
“Alright class, we have a new student joining us! His name is Izuku Midoriya and he’s a transfer student from Japan! Please welcome him with open arms!”
The students began murmuring quietly and Izuku anxiously bowed.
“I-I look forward to studying with you all.”
As Izuku lifted his head up, his gaze landed on a boy in the back corner of the classroom near the window. He was staring outside, completely oblivious to Izuku’s entrance. Izuku snapped back to attention and made his way to the back of the classroom where one seat was open for him. The eyes of the other students followed him intently. He sat down and began to take out a notebook and a pencil. The students finally settled down and their first lesson began. Izuku couldn’t help but look over at his classmate who was scribbling in his notebook for almost the entirety of class.
-----
The bell for lunch finally rang. Izuku saw all of the students leave the classroom, so he decided to follow them. He entered the overflowing lunchroom and instantly became overwhelmed, so he decided to eat outside. He found a quiet area to sit in, and as he unpacked his bento box, a note fell out. He picked it up and it read:
“I hope you have a good first day at school! I know you’re going to do great! I love you! ~ Mom
Izuku smiled and slid the note into his backpack. As he was about to take a bite of his food, he heard a loud thump and looked up to find someone laying on the ground near him. Izuku got up and ran over to find out that it was the boy he sat next to in class.
“Are you okay??”
The boy opened his eyes, and Izuku’s heart skipped a beat as his classmate’s gray eyes pierced him.
“Oh yeah, I’m fine! I bail all of the time.”
“Bail?”
“Yeah, like bail on my skateboard.”
Izuku looked up and saw a skateboard a few feet away from them. Izuku reached out his hand to help pull his classmate to his feet.
“Sorry, I haven’t properly introduced myself. My name’s Rody Soul, nice to meet ya!”
“Izuku Midoriya, nice to meet you too!”
The two boys shook hands.
“You’re from Japan, right? That’s super cool! How you liking Otheon so far?”
“I’ve only been here for a few days, but it’s good so far!”
“I’ve lived here my whole life, so I know this town like the back of my hand. If you ever need a tour guide, I’m your guy!”
“Thank you! I’ll keep that in mind!”
Rody walked over to grab his skateboard.
“I’m gonna ride around a bit before lunch is over. I’ll see you in class, Izuku.”
“See you then! Bye Rody!”
Izuku waved goodbye and Rody set off on his skateboard across the campus. Rody’s long hair flowed gracefully in the wind. That wasn’t a weird thing to notice, right?
-----
The day finally came to an end and Izuku began to head home. The main road grew quieter the further he got away from school. Suddenly, he heard the noise of wheels grinding on the concrete and turned to see someone fly by him. It turned out to be Rody on his skateboard. He came to a stop up ahead and waved to Izuku.
“Hey Izuku! You heading this way too?”
“Yeah! My house is pretty close by.”
“Wanna walk together?”
Izuku felt his heart begin to pound.
“Sure!”
Rody picked up his skateboard and waited for Izuku to catch up to him and soon, the two boys began walking side by side.
They both remained quiet. It was a comfortable silence, which Izuku wasn’t used to. Usually, he felt compelled to start a conversation and fill the space, but he didn’t feel the need to do that with Rody. Rody’s presence was comforting, even though Izuku had just met him.
“So.. what brought you to Otheon?”
“My mom got a job here!”
“Ah, so you didn’t come here of your own free will, huh?”
“I guess not.. But I’m really happy for her! She’s super excited about her new job, so I gotta be excited too, ya know?”
Rody shrugged his shoulders.
“I mean, leaving home is never easy, so I think you have the right to feel a little upset.”
Izuku wasn’t expecting that remark, but appreciated the kindness. He noticed the skateboard under Rody’s arm and wanted to know more.
“So, how long have you been skateboarding for?”
“About 10 years now! I started when I was a kid. It’s my favorite thing in the entire world! Have you ever ridden a skateboard, Izuku?”
“No, but I’d love to learn how to!”
Izuku had never thought about skateboarding until now. He had no idea why he was saying that he wanted to learn all of the sudden.
“Really?? I’d love to show you if you would let me!”
Rody’s eyes sparkled brightly, and Izuku couldn’t say no to him.
“That would be great!”
Izuku was extremely clumsy, so this could only end in disaster, but if it meant that he could start to spend more time with Rody, then maybe the bumps and bruises would be worth it.
“How about we have our first lesson this weekend? I can show you some simple steps to start out with, and we can work our way up!”
“Sure, sounds like a plan!”
Rody’s excitement was electrifying, and it made Izuku eager for the weekend to arrive.