Chapter Text
Todoroki Shouto is aware that on some level, a lot of his theories are bullshit. Not to say that he doesn’t believe them entirely, they’re just less important than his more plausible theories. It’s more convenient for his classmates to gawk at the idea of celebrity-figure Hawks being replaced by a double while Shouto is still hiding the most incriminating texts possible in his notebooks.
Shouto purses his lips at the amount of work he has to prove his most important – and relatively recent theory. It’s nearly complete.
His table is littered with papers, all schoolwork.
He exhales tiredly at the sight, and pulls out his other, more discreet bag from under his desk which had been filled to the brim with his journals. After a short skim, he plucks the one labelled simply as ‘#5’ and flips to page 58 with his bookmark. Page 58 is just a nearly complete checklist. All he needs is a phone number.
A small beep from his pocket takes him out of his meandering thoughts. He fishes it out, a thoughtful hum upon seeing his phone. It’s sleek, almost looks new (with how much Shouto’s been neglecting it up until recently). The only disturbance being the shoddy duct-tape on both sides of his cameras.
The latest notification of his blog stares at him. (It brings him a little happiness to know that people enjoy his musings.)
He puts the journal and his bag back into its original place, and prepares to head out.
It’s oddly quiet today, devoid of the chaos his classmates usually bring. Peaceful. He wonders where they are.
With a final glance towards the empty living room, Shouto starts briskly walking towards his teacher’s office. Before he can even step out of the collective dorms, a calloused hand gently clamps his shoulder and he instinctively jolts. It quickly retreats, and his gaze follows it towards—
“Midoriya,” he greets. Cursing God.
“Hey Todoroki!” He smiles, a dimple forming in his left cheek. “All of us are gonna go out right now, you wanna join? We’re going somewhere new.”
“I’m collecting evidence today.”
Midoriya’s face blanches considerably at that simple phrase. Clearly remembering hours of following Shouto poking at rotting raccoon carcasses the day he had asked to join him. While he feels guilty for freaking Midoriya out a little, he can’t help but feel relieved that he hasn’t asked or followed him since.
Shouto trusts Midoriya, but he knows that letting him in on what he’s actually doing will probably not benefit the both of them.
“Oh, um - okay then!” He stammers, still light-hearted.
“Thank you for the offer though. I might join another time.” Shouto turns before he can respond, and continues to stalk towards his homeroom teacher’s office.
—0—
He reaches his destination within a few minutes - and as he stares at the imposing figure of Aizawa’s door, he can’t help but feel a little intimidated. It only takes a few knocks before the door cracks open. Shouto stares at his teacher’s impossibly tired eyes. His eye bags, already so dark and prominent, seem to expand twice its original size upon seeing him, and he wonders why that is—
“Todoroki.”
“Sir. I would like to request permission to leave the dorms today.”
“What for?”
“I am going out with a friend.”
His teacher raises a brow at that - and Shouto notices that he’s eyeing his completely normal outfit. (Unfortunately, wearing his old-fashioned trench coat draws more attention than when he’s not, and he needs Aizawa to accept his request today.) The silence hangs a little heavy in the air, and Shouto can feel his hands getting clammier.
“Go ahead, I'll write a slip.” He murmurs offhandedly, beginning to do that.