Chapter Text
You smiled to yourself as you walked, happy you’d actually gotten ready early for once. You sipped on your dirty chai latte and looked up at the trees, scraggly as they were, to try to spot some birds. Nothing could ruin your good mood. Dynamight was coming into the bookstore today for a publicity event. Your favorite hero was coming into your place of work!
You hummed a bit as you waited at the crosswalk next to some businessmen. The light changed, and then you were walking into the street, one step closer to the best day of your li—
You tripped.
Time seemed to move in slow motion as you fell forwards, pushing your arms out in a vain attempt to catch yourself. It didn’t work. You hit the ground, your drink exploded up into your face and hair, and your elbows scraped painfully on the pavement. Being the big city it was, nobody bothered to stop to see if you were okay, or even cared that some person had crash-landed in the crosswalk. They just kept walking to their destinations.
You got up, cursing a blue streak, and grabbed the now-empty cup off of the pavement, stomping to the other side of the street and tossing it in the first trashcan you saw. Now your day was ruined. The special event shirt you were wearing (bright orange, bearing an explosion graphic with the event slogan inside) was now soaked in coffee, tea, and milk, as was your hair and the upper half of your body. Thankfully, your elbows weren’t bleeding, so at least you had that going for you.
You continued swearing under your breath until you reached the bookstore, beelining to the backrooms. You explained your drowned-rat appearance to your supervisor, who promptly told you that all of the Dynamight merch for the event was off-limits until it was over, and you’d have to pick something from the various random leftover merch from other events. You closed your eyes and willed yourself not to scream as you realized the only shirt that wasn’t an XXS was the world’s most obnoxious Deku t-shirt. You snatched it out of the cardboard box and pushed into the bathroom, locking the door. You washed your hair as best as you could in the sink and ran a wet paper towel over your sticky skin before pulling the godawful shirt over your head. No wonder nobody wanted this thing. It’s ugly as all fuck.
You realized you’d have to hide in the back where hopefully nobody would notice you, especially not Dynamight. A worker at his event wearing a stupid Deku shirt, of all things? Not gonna fly.
The time passed relatively quickly as everyone got ready for the guest of honor. Five minutes before he was slated to arrive, you hid in the backrooms to wait for the event to start so you could sneak into the back of the main area to watch. Soon, you heard cheering and yelling, and desperately wanted to peek out of the door to see him, but you held yourself back by glancing down at your whack-ass outfit.
The cheering eventually died down and you snuck out of the backrooms as you heard your supervisor start the opening announcements on the mic. You found a spot between two of your coworkers in the very back and prayed that the teal and red tie-dye didn’t stand out too much behind the bright orange of their event shirts. You sighed once again at your stupid-ass outfit before actually looking forward.
There he was. Your hero, your idol, your role model. In the flesh. He’s sitting casually on a tall stool, waiting to be handed the mic and looking for all the world like he’d rather be anywhere else. He’s perfect.
You were so caught up in your daydreaming that you didn’t realize the announcements were coming to a close. You’re shaken back to reality when his familiar gruff voice fills the room.
“Thanks for having me or whatever. Let’s get this thing going before I have to go kick some villain ass!” He shouts. You see some mothers covering their children’s ears after his swearing and roll your eyes. What did you expect from Dynamight? A G-rating?
The long line for the meet and greet forms as he takes his seat behind a table bearing various merch items. You eye the shirts and hoodies with longing, feeling the fabric of your borrowed shirt itching against your skin. You look back to Dynamight, only to meet red eyes that are already locked on you. Mother. Fucking. Shit.
The one person you were praying not to be noticed by had seen you. And he didn’t look happy about it. Curse this bitch-ass shirt. I’m burning it when I get home. Surprisingly, he just huffs and looks away. You’re puzzled for a moment before seeing the numerous cameras aimed at him. He must not want to make a scene at the moment…? That isn’t really like him, but it means I get to live for now, so I’ll take it.
The meet and greet passes in a couple of hours, and you thankfully don’t need to do anything besides watch. Your coworkers step out every now and then for a guest in line who has a question, and you hide behind whoever’s left standing with you. Eventually, it’s down to the last few fans, and the merch is thoroughly picked clean. Anything wearable went an hour ago, and all that’s left is a few water bottles and stickers. You’re not sure how Dynamight still has use of his hand after signing so much shit. You head to the backrooms again once there’s only two fans in line in order to avoid him during his departure. Maybe you can meet him someday, but today is not that day. Not like this.
What you weren’t taking into consideration was the sheer number of fans who hadn’t left when their time was up, intending to hound him on his way out of the building. You also weren’t expecting your supervisor to offer him use of the back exit as a safer way to leave. Imagine your surprise when Dynamight himself bursts through the door into the back hallway.
You stare at each other for a moment, and then you turn beet red. This is not how you wanted to meet your favorite hero.
“ You,” he says, jabbing an accusatory finger in your direction. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing, wearing a damn Deku shirt at my event? Did you wanna get a rise out of me? Hah?”
He came closer with every word, stalking towards you threateningly. You allowed yourself a singular gulp of nerves before you stood your ground.
“Listen,” you started. “I don’t want to be wearing this either! Trust me when I say that. I spilled my latte on my event shirt and this was all we had that would fit me.”
“Why wouldn’t you just get some of my merch, hah? Why did you go for damn Deku?” He accused.
“ Because, all the Dynamight merch was off-limits until after the event. I had no choice. I mean, look how ugly this thing is! Don’t repeat this, but I think he’s an annoying crybaby who’s obnoxiously heroic. It’s nauseating.” You scoff, looking off to the side.
When you look back at Dynamight, he simply blinks once before storming back out the way he came. What the fuck just happened?
You don’t have much time to contemplate your interaction with your favorite hero, because he returns shortly with a hoodie, which he chucks at your face.
“Here. This is ten times better than repping that shitty nerd,” he says, before leaving again.
You shake the hoodie out of the way he balled it up, only to gasp softly. It’s…one of the very first Dynamight merch designs. And it smells stupid good, upon further inspection. Holy shit. Holy shit. This is…This is Dynamight’s personal hoodie.
Your face immediately turns a shade of crimson that could rival Red Riot’s hair, and you quickly shuck off the Deku shirt before pulling on the Dynamight hoodie. You wished there was a mirror in the back hall to see yourself in it, but alas, that’d have to wait until later. You shove the Deku shirt into a trashcan and cautiously open the door to the main floor. Glancing around, you don’t immediately see Dynamight. You just see the fans mulling around, some browsing the selection of books, and the rest of the staff, who are trying to clear out the bookstore. You step out a little further and let the door fall shut behind you.
“Took ya long enough.” A voice says from your right.
You whirl around and Dynamight is standing in the corner, hands in his pockets. You make eye contact and then he turns away, ears red.
Oh?
“C’mon, let’s go.” He says, grabbing your wrist and dragging you into the back hallway.
Oh.