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“Shouta.”
“Yes?” Shouta said, looking up from his laptop.
“Got a question for you.”
“What is it?”
“What do you think about…taking in a foster?”
“A foster?”
“Yeah. You know like…adopting, but no—"
“I know, and yeah. Sure.” Shouta tried to keep his cool, but a smile broke out anyway. Finally! He’d been hoping Hizashi would agree for the longest time.“When do we go pick?”
“Pick? Uh…no. They have one lined up already. It’s a bit of an emergency.”
“Oh okay. How old?”
“He’s six.”
Shouta nodded. “Cool.”
“Really? You sure? I thought you’d be harder to convince. I prepared a whole speech and everything. What a waste.”
“Why would I be?” he asked, tilting his head.
“Well, no reason. Never mind.“
“When are we going to pick him up?”
“They’ll come drop him off.”
“Alright then.” Shouta briefly considered asking for a picture, but he could wait. There were no ugly cats, after all. They were all equally cute, and he had absolutely no preference.
“Oh right. He also comes from a bad background,” Hizashi said quickly. “Abuse…neglect…you know. All that bad stuff. He might be a little…difficult to take care of.”
Shouta’s heart cracked. Who would abuse a little cat? “Poor thing.”
“Mhm. Yeah. You’re still okay with fostering him, right?”
“Yeah. Of course. Why would that change my mind?” He had never taken care of a cat before, let alone an abused one. He wondered how much harder it would be.
“Just thought you should know,” he said, eying Shouta strangely. “Wow. You’re really chill about this. That’s great.”
“Again, why wouldn’t I be?” He couldn’t believe Hizashi was finally coming around to fostering cats. He had been pestering for ages, but he always had excuses as to why they weren’t ready.
He wondered what changed his mind.
Today was the day. Shouta was so excited he even gave Tsukauchi a smile at work. He didn’t look too thrilled to have received it, however, and had shivered, but Shouta wasn’t about to let that get him down.
His phone beeped.
-He’s here. Come home.
Shouta nearly sprinted to his car. He wondered what kind of cat Hizashi had gotten. He secretly hoped for a tabby, but he’d be alright with anything.
“I’m home!”
“Shouta, what took you so long?”
“Sorry. Where is he?”
Hizashi stepped back, giving him a clear view of the living room. Shouta looked around, excited to meet their new cat, when he saw a boy on the sofa.
A boy who was most certainly not a cat.
He stopped in his tracks, and he stared. The boy looked back at him, his green eyes wide.
“Oh.”
“Izuku, this is my husband, Shouta. He’s a hero too. Shouta, this is Izuku. Say hi.”
“H-h-hi,” he muttered, fiddling with his hands.
“H-hey.”
What.
The.
Fuck?
This was not what he signed up for! How did Hizashi even get this to happen on such short notice?
“Um…I’m sorry,” the boy wailed.
“Aw, it’s okay, kiddo. You didn’t do anything wrong,” Hizashi cooed, hurrying over to comfort him. “Did Shouta scare you?”
“N-no, I’m okay,” he said, bursting into loud tears.
Yikes. he winced, recalling what Hizashi said about his background. What had set him off? It couldn’t be because of Shouta, right? He didn’t even say anything yet.
This was not good. Did the fostering agency take returns? It didn’t feel good to do, but Shouta was most definitely not qualified to take care of a traumatized kid. He didn’t know a single thing about kids anyway. This was a terrible idea.
“Oh no,” Hizashi said, looking distraught. “Shouta, smile, you’re scaring him!”
He thought about Tsukauchi’s reaction. “You don’t want that.”
“What?” he said, frowning at Shouta before turning back to the kid. “Don’t mind him. He’s just like that. He doesn’t mean any harm.”
He was about to panic more when the furniture started to rattle. Smaller objects floated, inching their way toward the kid. “Uh…”
Izuku’s eyes were glowing bright green, but he didn’t seem to have noticed. Was it his quirk?
“Shouta!”
“Right.” Shouta quickly activated his quirk, and everything fell back into place at once.
“Oh dear. Are you alright?”
The doorbell rang, and Izuku practically leaped out of his seat.
“That must be the takeout. Can you get it, please?”
Shouta nodded numbly, taking as much time as possible to get the food. He didn’t want to look at the kid’s distressed face anymore.
When he got back, he thankfully looked much calmer.
“Let’s eat,” Hizashi said, looking relieved. “I got us some pasta, hope that’s okay, kiddo.”
Izuku nodded, wiping his face on his sleeve. “Sorry,” he whispered.
Shouta couldn’t stop staring at the kid as they had dinner. He was so small, so fragile, that Shouta worried a gust of wind would straight up kill him. His large eyes were still red and slightly watery, and he had no doubt he’d start crying if Shouta spoke up again. It was so pitiful it made Shouta feel sick.
How was he supposed to take care of that? Shouta could barely function on his own. The only thing he could offer was his quirk. Hizashi was definitely better, but Shouta knew better than anyone his loudness when excited wouldn’t be good for the kid.
They just weren’t a good fit.
Izuku seemed to have sensed Shouta’s stare and looked back at him. His thin shoulders quivered, and he lowered his chopsticks, looking even more pitiful.
Shouta scowled. Why was he looking at him like that? Like he thought he was going to hurt him.
“Shouta, why aren’t you eating?” Hizashi said, glancing at Shouta meaningfully.
“Oh.” He looked at his bowl, which was still untouched, and reluctantly took a bite.
“You too, Izuku. Eat as much as you want, okay?”
“Y-yes. T-thank you.”
The rest of the dinner went by so slowly that he started staring at the clock. He needed to tell Hizashi about the misunderstanding as soon as possible so they could rectify it. It wouldn’t do to lead the poor kid on for too long.
It took far too long for Hizashi to finish showing him the guest room and to tuck him in.
“Hizashi!” he hissed. Finally.
“What? What was that? I thought you were on board.” He didn’t look very pleased with Shouta, but he had a bone to pick.
“I thought you meant a cat!”
“Oh. Oh!”
“Yeah. Hizashi, we can’t take care of a kid! How did we even get approved?”
“We have a fostering license, Shouta! Remember?”
It took a second, but he did. “Oh.” They had gotten one because of Shouta’s quirk, but he didn’t think he’d actually use it. It was only for emergencies anyway, just in case there was a kid with an incredibly strong quirk who needed a place to crash for a little while.
Though, the kid’s quirk did seem somewhat strong. Not catastrophically so, however. Not enough to warrant needing Shouta’s help.
“Oh, man. This makes a lot of sense. I thought it was weird how quickly you agreed,” Hizashi said, slowly running a hand through his messy hair. “But did you really not notice me decorating the spare room and buying toys?”
“I thought they were for the cat.” He had wanted to help with preparations, but work had been too hectic. He wished he had now. Maybe it would’ve prevented this whole absurd misunderstanding.
“What cat needs a whole room and a box of toys?”
“My cat.”
They glared at each other for a second.
“I don’t suppose they would take him back?” he asked.
“No, Shouta! We can’t do that to him. He’ll think he got abandoned.”
“But…”
“Look. Since this was partially my fault for not being more clear, I’ll take on most of the responsibilities,” Hizashi said. “I don’t think he’d want you to anyway, after what happened earlier.”
Shouta made a face. He wanted to explain to Hizashi just how much the kid terrified him but had no idea how to put it into words that weren’t offensive. “I wasn’t trying to scare him. I was just surprised,” he protested.
“Hmm…”
“I was excited for the cat and everything…”
Hizashi sighed. “Fine…If we do this, we can get a real cat after. Okay?”
“Alright.”
“Come on, Shouta, please. Try? The poor kid has no one. He was so sad earlier when you frowned at him.”
“I said alright,” he grumbled. “I’ll be nice.” Fostering was only temporary anyway. He could do it. He could endure.
“Thank you.”
True to Hizashi’s word, he took up the bulk of the caretaking. Shouta would help out in other ways, like doing all the chores and preparing meals, but it hardly seemed enough.
The kid though, seemed to be getting marginally better. He stopped flinching every time Shouta walked in the room, for one. And he had also been talking to Hizashi a lot more.
Shouta had never felt so tired, and he was barely doing anything.
“Shouta, did you notice? Izuku’s been taking some food from the kitchen and hoarding it in his room.”
“Oh.” No wonder. A lot of his jelly pouches have been disappearing from the fridge, and he knew Hizashi hated that stuff with a passion.
“Just thought you want to know. Make sure he doesn’t take anything perishable, okay?”
“Yep.”
“And…I also got called in to work today,” he said. “Can you watch him, please? I know you’re not very comfortable with it, but I promise I won’t take too long.”
Shouta glanced at Izuku, who was currently huddled in the corner with a piece of paper and a crayon. “Yeah. Okay.” He supposed it was his turn to contribute a little. He had been feeling a little guilty about leaving Hizashi with most of the work.
“Thank you!” Hizashi looked far too relieved. “I’ll try to wrap up fast.”
“No, it’s fine. I’m not that useless. Just be careful.”
“You got it,” he said, giving him a huge thumbs up.
Izuku didn’t seem happy about Hizashi’s departure. Like, at all. Shouta didn’t blame him. He kept staring at the door longingly long after he was gone, leaving him feeling even more awkward.
“So, uh…”
Izuku finally stopped staring at the door and looked at Shouta instead, his gaze far too intense for someone his age.
“How are you…finding…things here?”
“It’s good…”
“Great. That’s great. Um…” Shouta scratched his head, his stress skyrocketing. This was somehow more intimidating than most villains he had dealt with.
“I’m sorry,” Izuku muttered.
“What for?”
“I dunno…just…sorry.”
“You don’t have to be so scared of me,” he said awkwardly. “I’m not going to do anything. You know that, right?”
“Um…yeah.”
“Good.”
Shouta waited for him to say more, but he never did. So, Shouta spent the rest of the time staring at him and trying to think up of ways to make him feel more at ease.
Naturally, the rest of the time was spent in silence.
“I’m home.”
Shouta leaped up fom the sofa. Finally. He had never felt so relieved. A glance at Izuku told him he felt the same way.
“Hey. Welcome home,” he said, trying to hide his joy.
Hizashi grinned. “So, what have you two been up to? Bonding, I hope?”
“Uh. Sure. You can say that.” He didn’t make Izuku cry, so that’s got to count for something, right?
Yeah. He’d count that as a win.
“Hm…everything okay?”
Izuku nodded. “Welcome back,” he said in a soft voice.
“Thanks!” Hizashi smiled, looking much happier than when Shouta had greeted him. “Look. I got us some food. Your favorite, Izuku. Katsudon.”
Izuku brightened, already looking more cheerful than he did the entire day.
Maybe Shouta needed to get his act together. It wasn’t that he hated Izuku. He just had no idea how to talk to him.
“Cheer up, Shouta. You look like you ate a lemon.”
Shouta woke up from his before-work nap feeling more refreshed than ever when he came to a horrifying realization.
Izuku’s gone. Izuku’s…gone? His room was empty. He frantically checked the rest of the house, tearing through every possible hiding spot, only to come up with absolutely nothing.
Picking up his phone with trembling hands, he quickly dialed Hizashi’s number.
“Hey, w—“
“Hizashi! Is Izuku with you?”
“No. I’m at work. Isn’t he home?”
“Oh…” Oh no.
“Why are you asking?”
“Um…he’s not at home.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, his room is empty. And the rest of the house is also empty?” he said, wincing.
“Oh no! You’re kidding. What happened?”
“I don’t know. I just took a nap to get ready for work, and when I woke up, he was gone!” he said, pacing back and forth. “I’m going to go look for him. He couldn’t have gotten far.”
“Shit. Shit!” Hizashi let out a loud sigh. “Okay. I’ll let the police know.”
“Okay. Okay…”
Shouta hung up, and he took a deep, calming breath.
And proceeded to panic.
“I can find him. It’s fine. He’s probably just around,” he told himself, all the while tugging at his hair.
The image of him crying all alone out there intruded upon his mind, and he cringed.
“Oh god.”
Shouta forced himself to stop thinking about the worst scenarios. He needed to move.
He gave the house one last check, just in case.
Still no Izuku.
“Man…” Shouta groaned. Why did he take that damn nap?
Grabbing the big bag of snacks that he had bought for Izuku to steal, he headed out. Maybe he could bribe him back with these.
“Izuku!” he called. “Where are you?”
No response. The old man who lives across the street gave him a weird look.
“Hey. Have you seen a green-haired kid about this tall?” he called, making a gesture with his hand.
“No.”
“Oh. Thanks anyway.”
He decided to leave some of the snacks in front of their front door. Perhaps it would lure him back.
It was now midnight, and Izuku was still nowhere to be seen. He had called into work to take his shift off, but he wasn’t sure if he could do it again tomorrow. He had to find him today.
Hizashi and the police hadn’t turned up with anything either, somehow.
This was the worst.
“Hey, Hizashi.”
“Shouta, you look terrible!”
He frowned.
“Do you want to go home and rest? Maybe get something to eat? I’ll keep looking for the two of us.”
He shook his head. “No. He must be starving and cold out there. I can’t just laze around. You should go rest. You already worked today.”
“I’m not tired, but here, if you can keep going, can you check these places out?” he said, showing Shouta a map.
“You got it.”
When 4 a.m. rolled around, Shouta was so stressed he could cry. He had scoured every place he could think of, and all he found were some feral cats—which was great, he always liked seeing cats, but not today. Not now.
He couldn’t stop worrying. The kid was so damn frail and small. How was he going to survive out there all alone? What if he got attacked? He was so small that even the stray cats Shouta saw earlier could take him. The only thing he had going for him was his quirk, but it didn’t seem like he knew how to use it at all.
Maybe Shouta should’ve taught him some self-defence. He made a note to do that later after he’d found him.
A noise coming from a shadowy alley grabbed his attention. Another stray cat? Shouta sighed and walked over, trying to keep his expectations low.
“Izuku?”
The noise stopped.
He frowned.
There, next to the pile of trashbags, was a familiar mop of green hair. He was sitting on the dirty ground, his thin arms wrapped around his legs. A particularly cold gust of wind raked over them, and he shivered violently.
Shouta stumbled forward. “Izuku, there you are.” Words couldn’t describe the relief he was feeling right now. He sent a quick text to Hizashi before crouching down in front of him.
He slowly raised his head, his watery eyes meeting Shouta’s. “Oh…” A few small objects near him started to float, and his eyes glowed dimly.
His quirk begged to be used, but he knew his red eyes would only freak him out. “What were you thinking?” he said softly instead. “It’s dangerous here.”
He flinched. The objects started to rattle.
Shouta tensed. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”
“No,” he said, voice so quiet Shouta had to strain his ears to hear it.
“What?”
“No.”
“W-why not?”
His lower lip wobbled. “I…I’m just a burden. You don’t want me, I can tell.”
“No. That’s not…”
“I’ll be okay here.”
Shouta’s heart squeezed painfully. “No. Don’t be ridiculous.” This was all his fault. “I do want you around.”
“But you’re always glaring at me and you never talk to me.”
“That’s just how I look,” he said, showing him the bag of snacks he had brought with him. “Look, kid. I got a ton of snacks. Let’s share them, okay? You must be starving.”
He glanced at it, eyes still shimmering with uncertainty.
“Hizashi’s worried sick too.”
“I don’t want to…I don’t want to bother you guys anymore.” The objects stopped rattling, and a few fell to the ground.
Shouta heaved a sigh of relief. That must’ve meant he was calming down.
“You’re not bothering us at all.” He hesitated for a few seconds, making up his mind. He looked so cold. If he stayed here any longer, he’d catch a cold. “Let’s go.”
Before he could talk himself out of it, he scooped him up.
“Shouta?” he squeaked. “What are you…?”
“It’s okay. It’s okay now.”
To his horror, he burst into tears.
“Izuku?”
“I’m okay,” he muttered. “Just...tired.”
Izuku felt so cold, almost like he was carrying a block of ice. Shouta put the bag of snacks in his arms. “Eat.” If he’s eating, he won’t be able to cry anymore.
“T-thank you,” he said, slowly unwrapping a chocolate bar.
Nope. He was still crying. While eating. That couldn’t be good.
“It’s okay, kid. We’ll be back home in no time,” he assured.
Izuku sobbed in response.
Great. Shouta prayed for Hizashi to get here sooner. He had location tracking on his phone, so he should be getting here anytime n—
“Izuku! Shouta, you found him!”
He eagerly looked over, finding an exhausted-looking Hizashi sprinting towards them.
“Aw, poor baby. You must’ve been so scared!” he cooed, looking over Izuku. “And you’re shivering. Here, take this.” He put his jacket over Izuku like a blanket, leaving himself with only a t-shirt.
Shouta really should’ve had the foresight to bring an extra jacket.
“Hi Hizashi,” Izuku said quietly, wiping his tears. He seemed to have finally cried himself out.
“Man, I don’t know if I should be mad or happy,” he said. “I’m glad you’re okay, but never do that again, okay?”
“O-okay. I’m sorry. I didn’t t-think you’d look…”
“Of course we looked. ” Hizashi said. “We looked for you all night and would’ve kept going if Shouta didn’t find you.”
“Thank you,” he muttered.
He tightened his hold just a little tighter.
“Don’t thank us for something so basic,” he said.
Izuku didn’t respond, and Shouta hoped that meant he finally believed their assurances.
“Let’s go home. He’s going to catch a cold if we’re out here any longer.”
“I can carry him,” Hizashi said, holding his arms out.
“No, it’s fine.”
“You sure?”
“Yep. He doesn’t weigh much.” Shouta was not going to let go of him any time soon, not after all that anguish he went through trying to find him.
“Okay,” Hizashi said, looking crestfallen.
By the time they arrived at their car, Izuku had finished all the snacks and had snuggled into Shouta’s hoodie. Even though he knew he still didn’t trust him, Shouta still couldn’t help but feel slightly pleased.
It must just be the tiredness playing tricks on him.
“What’s all this?” Hizashi asked, examining the snacks Shouta had left out on their doorsteps.
“I put them there. Thought it might lure Izuku back,” Shouta said, unlocking the door. “I’ll pick them up tomorrow.”
“When did we get those? I don’t remember buying them.”
“Uh…”
“Did you steal them from work again? I told you to stop doing that.”
“I bought it. And for the last time, I had permission to take it,” he grumbled. The warm air inside his house was a welcome reprieve, and he felt all his muscles relax. What a night.
“Yeah, yeah. How’s Izuku doing?”
“Sleeping. Thankfully,” he said, moving towards his room.
“Good. Where’d you find him, anyway?”
“In some sketchy alley.”
“Damn. Why would he go there?” Hizashi asked, opening the door for him.
“Thanks. He said it was because he didn’t want to bother us anymore.”
“Bother us? Why would he think that?”
“Shh. You’re too loud,” Shouta grumbled. Izuku was still fast asleep. He quickly put him on his bed before that changed.
“Sorry.”
“Ugh. I’m so tired.” He gently pried the empty snack wrappers out of Izuku’s cold hands and pulled the blanket over him. Izuku made a soft, content noise and instantly snuggled into it.
It was a sweet sight.
Wait. Did he just tuck him in?
“Aw. So you can be nice when you want to,” Hizashi said, clapping him on the back. “All it took was Izuku running away, huh?”
“Meh.” He was too tired to argue. “I’m gonna sleep.”
“Yeah. I’ll join you in a sec.”
A small pile of snacks in the corner of the room caught his eye, and he went over to investigate. “Hey, aren’t those my jelly pouches?” he asked. “And your chocolates, too.”
“Yeah, that’s the secret stash I was talking about.”
“Why didn’t he bring them with him when he ran away?”
“No idea. Kiddo doesn’t have the best survival instincts, I suppose.”
Shouta thought about it for a second before deciding that it didn’t matter. There were still a good amount of snacks in the bag from earlier, and he dumped it on top of the pile. He’d need to stock up again soon.
Things didn’t magically improve after Izuku’s escape attempt, but he didn’t try again, which he took as a win. He did start taking over some caretaking duties from Hizashi, however. Like babysitting him today with no supervision. The last time he had watched Izuku when Hizashi was gone went catastrophically, but he was going to make sure it went perfectly this time.
“So, Izuku,” he started. “How…how are you?” He winced before even finishing the sentence. Why? Why of all things did he ask that?
“Um…good.”
“Great. Uh...” He wracked his brain for something normal to say but came up with nothing.
“It’s okay, Shouta,” he said, not looking him in the eye. “You don’t have to force yourself to talk to me. I know I’m annoying.”
“What, no. You’re not annoying at all.” That was one of the reasons why Shouta tolerated having him around. He was always so quiet, almost worryingly so, and never really bothered him when he was working.
He didn’t look very convinced.
“Look, kid. About what you told me that day you ran away…” Shouta sighed. This was not really what he wanted to talk about. “I’m really sorry. I know I haven’t been very welcoming so far, and there’s no excuse. Let’s start over, okay?”
“It’s okay, really. I’m fine. I’m not upset.”
He hesitated. “Then…do you want to do something together? I know Hizashi’s not here right now, but we can still have fun.”
“Like what?” he asked, perking up slightly.
“Well, is there anything in particular that you want to do? Like…” Shouta suddenly realized he had zero clue what kids did these days. “Going to the park?”
Judging by Izuku’s unimpressed look, he determined that he was wrong.
“Got any other ideas?”
“You’re a hero, right? Like Hizashi?”
“Well, yes. Do you like heroes?”
“Yeah! Um…what’s your hero name? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
“It’s Eraserhead. And you haven’t heard of me because I’m an underground hero. I try to stay out of the media as much as possible.”
His eyes widened, and he looked more interested than ever. “Woah. What’s your quirk?”
“I can erase other people’s quirks with eye contact.”
“Cool! Can you show me, please?”
“My eyes turn red and it’s a little scary. Are you sure?”
He nodded and levitated a piece of paper on the table. “It’ll make this drop, right?”
“Yes. I’m going to use my quirk now. Don’t be startled.” Shouta activated his quirk, half expecting Izuku to start crying, but he didn’t. He just grinned and watched the paper slowly float down.
Was this the first time Shouta had seen his smile? It was surprisingly…endearing.
“That’s s-so cool!” he whispered. “What else can you do?”
“Well, since my quirk isn't exactly combative, I rely on my capture gear to fight,” he explained. “It’s like…a very long scarf made out of metal. I use it to restrain villains.”
He again, watched Izuku for any signs of fear and panic, but he just seemed more excited.
“Can I see?”
“Oh, I don’t know. It’s still a weapon,” he said uncertainly. “You’re a little young…
“I can’t?” he said, slumping. “I’m sorry for asking. You don’t have to.”
“Nope. I will show you,” he said, getting up. “Lemme just go…get it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah…” As long as Hizashi doesn’t find out, everything will be fine. He just needed to show Izuku before he got home. “One sec.”
Izuku watched him the entire time as opened his costume box and took his capture gear out.
“It’s so long,” he said, staring at it with wonder. “Can I touch it, pleaase?”
“Yeah. Why not,” Shouta said, holding it towards him.
“Is this really made out of metal?” he asked.
“It’s some kind of alloy, from what I know,” he replied.
“How’s it work? Can you show me?”
“Well…okay.” It was so hard to say no to him. He reluctantly put his gear on his neck and let it unfurl a little. “There.”
“Wow! It’s floating! That’s so cool!” Izuku gushed, his previous timidness nowhere to be seen. “Can you…can you attack something with it? Like…like this.” He held up a stuffed bear that Hizashi had bought.
“Sure. Set it down.”
Izuku did, practically vibrating with excitement.
“Alright.” This was good practice for his control, he supposed. With ease, he wrapped his capture gear around the innocent bear and flung it into the air.
“Cool!” he squealed, watching with wide eyes. “That’s so cool!”
“Thanks, kid.” Shouta gently lowered the bear back to its original spot. It was nice to be appreciated for once.
“Now do me! Do me!”
“Huh?”
“Use it on me. I wanna try.”
“Kiddo, it’s not a toy. It’s a weapon. I don’t want to hurt you by accident.” His control was more than excellent, but it didn’t feel right to use it on such a small kid.
“Aw. Okay.” His smile faded and his eyes lost its shine. How was it possible to look so sad in a split second?
“Okay, fine. Just don’t look at me like that,” he grumbled.
“Yay!”
“Ugh.” This kid was going to be the death of him. As gently as possible, he carefully picked him up with the capture gear and lifted him a tiny bit above the couch.
“Woo!”
Shouta had never seen Izuku so happy. He wasn’t sure what was so great about being wrapped up in his capture gear, but maybe kids were just weird these days.
“Okay. I’m gonna put you back down.”
“A little higher, please!”
Against his better judgment, Shouta raised him a little higher.
At the same time, he heard the sound of the front door being opened.
Uh-oh.
“I’m hooome!”
“Oh no,” he muttered, trying to lower Izuku. It was too late, wasn’t it?
“Wait. What’s going on here? Shouta! What are you doing?” Hizashi said shrilly.
“Hizashi! Hi! Look. I’m in Shouta’s weapon!” Izuku said.
“I…I can see that. Um…”
Shouta sighed and slowly put him back down on the sofa. “Hizashi, I can explain.”
“I’m waiting,” he said, checking Izuku over.
“He wanted to see. So I showed him.”
Izuku nodded. “Yep. It felt really cool. Kinda like I’m flying, just super slowly.”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Well, alright, I guess. At least you didn’t break anything,” he said, ruffling Izuku’s hair. “And you’re bonding. That’s great.”
“You’re not mad?”
“Nah. Just don’t do it again. I thought I was gonna have a heart attack earlier.”
“Aw. We can’t do it again?” Izuku asked, looking sad again.
Hizashi stared back, his faux-annoyed expression melting. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“See? That’s how he got me to do it in the first place,” Shouta said, feeling vindicated.
“It’s dangerous. Once is enough”
Izuku pouted but seemed to bounce back fast enough. “Okay…Thank you, Shouta.”
“Y-yeah.” He must’ve liked heroes a lot for this to have worked so easily. Shouta wished he knew sooner.
“I’ll show you my quirk next time, Izuku,” Hizashi said, grinning. “It’s even cooler.”
“Woah. Really? You’d do that?”
“Of course!”
“You want me to come in now?” Hizashi said into his phone, pacing around the living room. “But I have to watch my kid.”
“It’s fine, Hizashi. Go to work. I’ll watch him,” Shouta called.
“What? But, I wanted to hang out,” Hizashi said, moving the phone away from his face.
“Just go. I got it.”
He seemed to hesitate. “Okay, but don’t go playing around with your capture gear again.”
“Yeah, yeah. I won’t.”
He picked the phone back up, “Alright. I can do it. Be right there.”
“See you later,” Shouta said as Hizashi threw on his jacket and grabbed his keys.
“Bye Hizashi.” Izuku added.
“Bye, guys! Don’t have too much fun without me,” he said as he left.
“So, Izuku.”
“Yeah?”
Shouta resisted a smile. He finally stopped pouting whenever Hizashi had to leave. He knew he still didn’t trust him fully, but they had made so much improvement since he first came. It was honestly a miracle. “There’s a place I want to show you. Wanna go?”
“A place?”
“Yeah. It’s not too far. We’ll be back before Hizashi’s done with work.”
“Okay. What kinda place is it?”
“You’ll see,” he said, grabbing the car keys.
“Wait, but Hizashi said not to have fun without him.”
“Don’t worry. He’s been there before,” he said. “Come on. Don’t forget your jacket.”
Izuku nodded and pulled it on, scampering after him.
Ten minutes later, Shouta was pulling up at their destination. It felt strange, to bring someone who wasn’t Hizashi here.
“Aizawa-san. You’re here again,” the receptionist said, smiling at them in greeting. “And you brought a new face! That’s rare. Hello there.”
“H-hi,” Izuku said, suddenly hiding behind Shouta.
“Aw. Who’s this cutie?”
“My kid,” Shouta said curtly. “I want to show him the cats.”
Her eyes widened. “I didn’t know you had a kid! Congrats. You should’ve brought him here sooner.”
“Er…”
“Anyway, go show him around. You know the place well enough, don’t you?” she said. “Oh, and make sure to give Lulu some special attention. I think she misses you.”
“You got it. Come on, kid.”
Izuku scurried behind him, giving the receptionist a shy wave.
“I used to volunteer here when I was in high school,” Shouta told him as they walked past the dogs. “I had to stop because of work, but I still try to come visit the cats every so often.”
He looked around, taking everything in with wide eyes. “There’s a lot of them.”
“Yeah. They take as many in as they can,” he said. “Here. We’re at the kittens.”
This was his favorite part of the shelter. He loved helping them socialize the tiny kittens and wear out all their energy. He also loved playing with the older cats as well but thought Izuku might enjoy playing with the kittens a little more.
“Oh…they’re so small,” Izuku said, staring into the enclosure.
“Yeah. The dark gray one is Lulu and the light gray one is her sibling, Leo,” he said. “Want to play with them?”
Izuku nodded enthusiastically.
“Okay. Put on those gloves and step into the playpen.”
He did, and Shouta carefully lifted the two kittens out of the enclosure.
“Here. Be gentle, okay?” he said, putting them into the pen.
The two kittens wasted no time in sprinting around, pawing at all the toys lying around. Shouta grinned. He could watch this all day.
Izuku was watching them intently as well.
Once the kittens gained their bearings, they both sprinted towards Izuku, clearly wanting to play.
“Hi,” he said, giving them gentle pats.
“Here, try using this,” Shouta said, handing Izuku a feather on a stick. “Just wave it around and they’ll love you.”
Izuku gave it a hesitant wave. The kittens instantly jumped, swatting at it eagerly.
“Just like that,” Shouta said with a chuckle.
Once it seemed like Izuku was settled, Shouta put on the gloves and got in too. Leo immediately came over while his sibling stayed with Izuku, too enthralled with her battle with the feathers. He gave him a gentle pat on the head, listening contently to his purrs.
“Um…what happened to them? Did they get abandoned?” Izuku asked suddenly.
“Someone found them in a cardboard box in front of their house.”
“That’s sad.”
“Yeah, but I’m sure they’ll find new homes in no time.”
“What’s going to happen to them?”
“Well, hopefully someone adopts them soon. They’re still young so we have high hopes. We’d prefer if they’re adopted as a pair, though, and that could make things slightly more difficult.”
He was quiet for a bit. “What about the older cats?”
“They get adopted too. Just not as often.”
Izuku’s eyes watered.
“Oh no. Are you allergic?” Shouta asked, moving over instantly. His heart pounded with panic, and he instantly started running a list of nearby hospitals. Were they close enough?
“No. I’m not,” he said, sniffling.
“Then…” He slumped with relief. So he was just crying! That’s great.
“I’m fine. The cats are just really cute.”
Shouta totally understood, but he had a feeling that wasn’t the real reason. “Don’t lie. What’s wrong? You can tell me.”
He was silent for a moment, then started crying harder. “Nothing. It’s just…they’re like me!” he wailed, putting the stick down. “No one wants them.”
Lulu whined and nuzzled at Izuku, begging him to keep playing.
“Oh no,” he muttered. He’d screwed up again. He should just stop talking forever. “No. That’s not true. They do get adopted. I’d adopt all of them if I could. They’re wanted.”
“So I’m less wanted than cats,” he cried, tears and snot streaming down his face. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Shouta wanted to help him wipe it off badly.
“No! That’s not true either. Um…” He tried too hard to not think about the conversation he had with Hizashi the day he came to their home.
He kept crying, all the while patting Lulu’s head. “I…I…”
“We want you,” Shouta said finally. He knew he shouldn’t make promises he couldn’t keep, but he couldn’t help it. This was too heartbreaking.
Izuku didn’t look convinced, but he still wiped his eyes and stopped. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“It’s alright. It’s understandable.”
Izuku picked the stick back up and started playing with the kittens again, but the atmosphere wasn’t the same. Shouta had never felt so sad while he played with kittens before. How was he supposed to convince the kid that he was wanted when their whole arrangement was temporary?
Despite how disastrous the animal shelter expedition had gone, Izuku had been acting more and more friendly towards Shouta. They had been hanging out a lot more as well, sometimes with Hizashi, sometimes without. There also hadn’t been a quirk accident since the day he ran away, which Shouta took to be a good sign.
Today was the first weekend that all three of them were completely free. They had gone out the entire day to get Izuku some fresh air, and to get him some new clothes as he didn’t have enough winter clothes.
All in all, a great day. Shouta had a lot more fun than he thought possible—going outside was usually terrible. Izuku’s excitement at absolutely everything was quite entertaining to look at.
By the time they got home, Izuku was so tired he had to be carried. Shouta managed to beat Hizashi to the punch again.
“Man. It should’ve been my turn to hold him. You keep hogging him,” he grumbled, flopping onto the sofa.
“Next time,” he responded, joining him with Izuku in tow. “I’m beat. What should we do for dinner?”
“We can ask Izuku when he wakes up.”
“He’ll say katsudon again. We’ve been eating that every day.”
Hizashi shrugged. “It’s growing on me, I think.”
“Well, it’s not for me,” he grumbled.
Izuku was still snoozing on Shouta’s lap, and he was too tired to move him even though his legs were protesting.
“Hey, I know this is sudden, but they’re saying they’ve found a potential family for Izuku,” Hizashi said, interrupting the blissful silence. “They want to set up a meeting. What do you think?”
“Huh?” He felt all his exhaustion vanish, and he sat up a little straighter.
“They’re pretty qualified, from what I’ve seen. Want to check their file out?”
Shouta frowned.
“What’s wrong? I thought that’s what you’ve been wanting all this time.”
He glanced at Izuku’s peaceful sleeping face, and his heart clenched. “No.”
“No? No, what?”
“No.”
“Shouta. Use your words properly. I can’t read your mind. Do you have a problem with the family already?”
He scowled. Did Hizashi have to make him say it? “I don’t trust them.”
“Okay? You haven’t even read the file though.”
“I don’t want to look at it.” They wouldn’t be good enough for Izuku anyway. He didn’t have to look at the file to know that. Besides, even if they were, Izuku would have to go through another painful adjustment period and he wasn’t sure if he could take it.
Hizashi huffed and crossed his arms. “Why are you being so difficult?”
“I’m keeping him,” Shouta decided.
His eyes widened comically.
“And I’m still getting a cat.”
“Oh. Uh…” Hizashi’s eyes flickered to Izuku, then back at Shouta.
Shouta patted Izuku’s head, feeling rather self-satisfied. This was good.
“Ha. You’re attached,” he said, snickering. “You’re like those dads who say they don’t want a cat, but then end up liking the cat the most. I knew this would happen.”
“Excuse me?”
He took out his phone and snapped a picture before Shouta could protest. “This is hilarious. I love it so much.”
Shouta flushed. “Stop. Are we keeping him, or not?”
“Yeah, of course,” he said, sobering up. “He really grew on us, didn’t he?”
“Sure did,” he murmured.
Izuku suddenly stirred, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. “Mm…Are we home?”
“Yeah, kid. You were completely wiped.”
He pouted. “But I wanted to see the zoo.”
“They’re closed already. Next time.”
“Aw. Okay,” he said, climbing off Shouta’s lap. “I’m kinda hungry.”
“Want katsudon again?”
“Yes, please.”
“Alrighty. Let’s get that,” he said, tapping away at the food delivery app.
Shouta wondered how much they had spent this month over just deliveries alone, but decided not to comment. There was something more important on hand, after all. “Izuku, do you like living here?”
“Yeah,” he said, tilting his head. “Why?”
“What do you think about staying here for a…longer period of time?” He needed to do this before that family swoops in and snatches him up—not that he’d let them.
Hizashi snorted and looked at Shouta with clear amusement.
“A longer period of time?” Izuku echoed.
“What he means is he wants you to stay with us forever.”
“Well, not forever. Until he’s an adult,” Shouta said. Why wasn’t Izuku answering? What if the answer was no? What if he would rather go to that other fa—
“What? I can keep staying here?”
“Yeah. But more importantly, do you want to?”
For a second, he was completely quiet. Shouta waited with bated breath, trying to prepare himself for a rejection. He’d been terrible to him at the start, after all. It would be no surprise if he said no.
“Yeah. I d-do,” he said finally, wiping his eyes furiously. “Is it really okay?”
Hizashi nodded, his eyes suspiciously glossy. “Yes, of course.”
“And the kitties? Can they come too?”
“Er…kitties, plural?”
“What if no one adopts them? They must be lonely.”
Hizashi glared at Shouta. “Well…I’m not too sure we have the space and the time,” he said. “What about one older cat?”
“But they looked so sad all alone.”
They didn’t, but who was Shouta to correct him?
“Two kittens will wear each other out. It might actually make things easier,” Shouta said carefully. “The shelter always tries to have sibling pairs adopted together.”
He sighed, the look of defeat washing over his face. “Fine. If Izuku wants. But you have to help out, okay? It’s not that easy having pets.”
Shouta couldn’t believe how easy that was. He’d have to treat Izuku to some gourmet katsudon later as thanks.
He nodded, a huge smile stretching across his face. “I’ll help! I’ll do all the work.”
“Good boy,” Hizashi said, ruffling his hair. “Come here. Gimme a hug.”
Izuku obliged. “Thank you,” he whispered. “I…I really, really like it here!”
“I’m glad,” Hizashi said, smiling at Shouta. “We’re happy to have you here too.”
Unsurprising, Izuku burst into tears. Shouta wasn’t too panicked, this time, however. It wasn’t the same as his usual kind of crying. Instead, he smiled. There was something comforting about this tender scene in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. Like looking at a crackling fireplace while sipping on hot cocoa—or at least, that’s how he imagined it would feel. He’d never tried it before.
Two cats and a kid. It seemed like a lot if he was being honest. But, as the last couple of weeks had shown him, he was a little more skilled at caretaking than he thought. Only a little though. He was still pretty bad, even by his standards. He was certain that he could figure it out, however.
It would be worth the effort.