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Aizawa pulls the chair away from his desk to sit down. Papers are scattered across his desk from work, or papers he still needs to grade.
I have to give these back to the kids tomorrow, so I guess I should start with those.
He places a pair of reading glasses on his face before picking the first one up. His eyes are burning by the time all the papers are graded.
“Why did I wait until the day before to grade the biggest idiot’s paper,” he says, gingerly rubbing the bridge of his nose.
I should get some sleep.
He slouches over to his bed. It’s not long before he’s settled in bed, but instead of sleeping, all he can do is lay there trying to quiet his thoughts. Eventually he does slip into sleep, but it’s not a restful sleep.
“Shouta, come on, hurry up. We’re gonna be late,” Hizashi says, pulling on Aizawa’s arm.
“How are we going to be late to the arcade?” Aizawa demands, attempting to pull his arm away.
“I asked him the same thing, but he just set a time for us to be there so you wouldn’t take a nap. Maybe you should try sleeping more at night,” Kumo says, turning around to walk backwards so he’s facing them.
“I hope you trip over a fire hydrant,” Aizawa mutters bitterly.
“I know that you have sleep issues, but you gotta try something. You fell asleep in class yesterday.”
“I constantly fall asleep in English. I’m not interested in learning something that I already know. Also, he has a boring voice,” Aizawa complains, folding his arms.
Hizashi frowns at him.
“I like English. What do you think?” he asks, turning to Kumo.
“I think that I don’t wanna get involved in your argument. I’m not the biggest fan of school at all, so can’t we pick something else to uselessly bicker about?”
“Sure, how about Pokemon?” Hizashi asks.
“I still think that game is stupid, and if you’re not smart enough to watch where you’re going, you shouldn’t be playing it. How are so many people getting hit by cars? It’s not even that difficult of a concept,” Aizawa says, shaking his head.
Kumo smiles. “Well, I completely agree. No one with access to a game like that should have a hard time with the concept of looking both ways before you cross the street. I learned that at five.”
“Alright, that might not be the best topic either. How about we talk about Pac-Man?”
“What about Pac-Man?” Kumo asks, turning around so he can watch where he’s going again.
“I think Ms. Pac-Man is better,” Hizashi replies.
“I disagree,” Kumo says, sounding a little scandalized.
“Why does it even matter?” Aizawa asks.
“I guess it doesn’t. Even if we fight, we’re always going to be friends, right guys?” Kumo asks.
“Yeah,” Hizashi says, a smile also gracing his lips.
Blood covers the scene, and it takes Aizawa a second to realize that he’s covered in blood too. Kumo’s body is covered, but he knows who it is. Hizashi’s voice sounded devastated over the voicemail he left Aizawa when he didn’t come to school.
“I need you to answer me. Shouta, I’m really worried about you. We can be here for each other. You have to let me help though. Just call me back.”
Blood covers his hands, his face, it stains his soul.
I can’t answer. I can’t even exist anymore.
“How did this happen?” Kumo’s mother asks as she stares at the body bag. Aizawa doesn’t hear the answer though, he can only feel the blood coating his mind. A hand lands on his shoulder.
“Where is this boy’s parents?”
“They haven’t answered any of our calls. He said that they were busy. We’re keeping him until they show up.”
“Do you want to come home with me, Shouta? Are you alright? You look like you got hurt.”
“He did, but he already got checked out and patched up.”
“Alright, you’ll come home with me then. I’ll call your parents if you just give me their numbers.”
He doesn’t reply, doesn’t look up from the floor. The next thing he knows, Hizashi is in front of him.
“Shouta, are you alright?”
“No, I can’t get the blood off. Help me.”
Two words he almost never uttered, and hasn’t uttered since that day.
He sits up in bed, sweat soaking his shirt and hair. He shakes his head, turning to look at his alarm clock. It’s only five a.m., so he gets ready to take a shower, and get some more work done in his free time. Class comes too soon, and everyone is looking at him weirdly. He ignores them. Midoriya walks up.
“Sir, are you alright?”
“Yes, while you’re up here, take the tests with you. Pass them out to your classmates. Everyone at least wrote their names at the top, so you should be able to pass them out without a problem.”
“Sensei, you’re rambling,” Bakugo says, twisting his pencil in between his fingers.
“Right, take them.”
After class Mina, Midoriya, and Bakugo all walk up to his desk.
“Sensei, are you sure you’re alright?” Mina asks.
“Hm?” he asks, looking up from his phone with a tired expression.
“Are you alright? You didn’t even sleep during class.”
“I was so tired that I forgot to. Now, get going.”
She nods, but she doesn’t look put at ease. He shakes his head to clear it before focusing on the paperwork in front of him again. He’s only completed a few lines before someone knocks on his desk. His head jerks up, meeting eyes with Present Mic.
“Hizashi.”
“The kids told me about how out of it you’ve been today. Did you have another episode?”
Aizawa nods, too tired to lie and argue.
“Come with me.”
He nods, pulling himself to his feet. His legs barely work and he has to lean on Mic to stay standing. Mic leads him back to his room. He pulls Aizawa’s shoes off of his feet for him, before pulling the blanket over him.
“Sleep, I’ll be here when you wake up. I’m not going anywhere, I promise.”
Aizawa nods against his pillow as Mic stands up to diffuse lavender to help him sleep. This time instead of bloody hands and fear, he dreams of sweet things. Getting his hero license with his best friends, getting a job with his first agency, and the late nights that he would spend studying or working with Mic. He wakes up feeling refreshed, and Mic is sitting at his desk, just like he promised he would be. A smile graces his lips.
I’m not alone, even if I messed up last time, it didn’t leave me alone.