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1
Shouto doesn’t know what to think of Hawks.
When he first met him on patrol with his old man, he seemed nice enough. Helped out his father and willingly gave the three of them a book he wanted to give Endeavor. Their conversation seemed tense, but Shouto always thought it was entertaining when someone else poked at his father’s buttons. After Hawks had left that day, Shouto believed that would be the end of it, maybe catching a glimpse of him every once and a while.
Now it seems that Hawks is everywhere. Anytime Shouto goes to Endevor’s agency, Hawks is making his way out of the building. He will meet with his father while he is on patrol, and Hawks is walking right next to the flame hero. The most confusing time was when he swung by his old man’s house and he saw a red feather on the couch. The hero must’ve come by, or the feather was stuck to Endeavor when he got back to home, but something about it was still strange.
Nothing was as strange as this moment right now.
Shouto was looking for Endeavor, no one in the agency actually knowing where the Number One hero is. His father had told him he wasn’t in his office but still in the agency—the most cryptic way to describe a location—and now here he was searching.
He decided to just give it a shot and check his office. There was a chance that he had actually set up there and was just sending Shouto in a wild goose chase. Why? Who knows why Endeavor does anything.
He gave the door a knock, waiting a few moments. Silence. Shouto frowned. This was the last place he could think of his father being in the agency. In a last ditch effort he tried the handle and it gave way, the door pushing open into a dark office.
A sigh of relief. Endeavor never leaves his office unlocked unless he is inside. Fully prepared to face his father, he pushes the door rest of the way to see—
“Hey, close the fucking door.” A voice snapped at him from the dark. Shouto jumped at the disembodied voice, quickly reaching and turning the light on.
Shouto’s eyes adjusted as he heard a groan and what sounded like “fucking Enji”. He frantically scanned the room to find the source of the sound, knowing it wasn’t his father’s, and soon found a certain Number Two hero laying on the couch.
“Hawks?” Shouto questioned. The winged hero was laying down on Endeavor's couch, one wing spread out over the back while the other one was covering his face and upper body. From what Shouto can see he is curled up in a ball, as if he is trying to be as small as possible. “What are you doing in my father’s office?”
“I would love to tell you, kid. However, these lights are killing me and I am 2 seconds away from vomiting.”
“You’re not feeling well?”
They were plunged back into darkness, a red feather flying by Shouto back towards Hawks. Shouto blinked to try and adjust again, but left the lights off. He didn’t want to test the hero’s wrath.
“I have a migraine, and they’re not exactly easy to deal with.” Shouto heard shuffling as he assumed Hawks moved around. He moved closer to see Hawks sitting up, wings no longer hiding his face. “I come to your old man’s office because the scary demeanor keeps everyone away.”
“And he just lets you stay here? When he’s not here?”
“Shhhhh!” Hawks waved his hand in Shouto’s face, snapping his fingers in a ‘be quiet’ motion. “Yes—well, no, he’s still in the building. I haven’t earned that much privilege yet.”
“Oh.” Shouto didn’t know what to say. Obviously Hawks was trustworthy, being the Number Two hero, but he didn’t think he and his father were that close. Endeavor was never one to leave his office alone unattended, especially when someone was in it.
“I’m assuming you didn’t come in here to talk to me though,” Hawks continued. “Looking for your dad?”
“Uh, yes,” he whispered, not wanting to make his migraine worse. “He said he’d be in the building, but not where. So I decided to check here but obviously…” he trailed off.
“He’s not here,” Hawks mumbled. “Or, well, he said he’d be back. Quick store run. When did he tell you to stop by?”
As Shouto is about to answer, there is a gentle knock on the door before it opens up a crack.
“Keigo?” Endeavor calls, immediately confusing Shouto. He’s on a first name basis with Hawks? “Are you feeling better?”
Hawks sighed. “I couldn’t sleep. Someone is terrible at giving their son directions, so said son came here.”
“What?” The door fully opened, the light from the hallway illuminating the middle of the office. Even though he was still sitting on the edge of the light, Hawks covered himself with his wings.
Endeavor stepped into the office, a convenience store bag hanging from his hand. He was keeping his flames lower than normal, but not completely off. He looked between Shouto and Hawks with growing agitation on his face.
“Shouto!” He loudly snapped. However, his eyes quickly glanced over to the winged hero before he continued in a quieter voice. “What are you doing here?”
“We were supposed to meet, but I couldn’t find you. So I checked your office.”
Endeavor huffed. “I believe I specifically told you that I would not be in my office.” He motioned over to Hawks, who has not moved since Endeavor has entered the room. “You have bothered Hawks while he is trying to rest after a difficult patrol.”
Shouto glowered at the man. He hated when Endeavor scolded him for any mistake, but he hated it even more when the mistake wasn’t his fault. Endeavor never listened when he tried to explain, though. He always finds a way to blame Shouto.
“I wouldn’t have had to come to your office if you had told me where to find you.” Shouto argued. “I didn’t know Hawks was here, so don’t try to turn this on me.”
“This is highly inappropriate, Shouto—”
“Kid, give me your phone,” Hawks suddenly chimed in. Both Endeavor and Shouto snapped their heads towards the hero. His hand was extended past his wings, face still covered to hide from the light.
“What?”
He shook his hand. “Show me the conversation between you and Endeavor. I’ll see who is right.”
Shouto thought about denying him, not wanting to bring him into their fight, but it might help. Having someone else back Shouto up will get Endeavor to back off. He digs his phone out of his back pocket, quickly opening up to his messages before handing it over to Hawks. Hawks takes the phone and brings his arm back behind his wings, still refusing to expose himself to the hallway light.
“Hawks, you shouldn’t—” Endeavor starts, but Hawks loudly shushes him. Shouto thinks that Endeavor will snap at him, but he stays silent, lips tightly closed.
Finally, Hawks slowly unfurls his wings just enough where they can see his face, though they are still held close to him. He hardly spares Shouto a glance as he hands his phone back, keeping his gaze fixed on Endeavor.
“This is your fault, Enji,” Hawks snapped. He did flinch at the volume he spoke, but kept going. “I know you’re bad at texting, but this is a pretty cryptic text.”
Endeavor looked sheepish. “I thought it would be best that he didn’t bother you, so I just told him not to go to my office.”
“No, you said you weren’t in your office, but gave nowhere else to look.” He sighed and hid behind his wings once again. “Now please, go have your lovely father-son bonding time somewhere else. As lovely as it is to listen to, I will throw up on this office floor if I have to be awake any longer.”
Both Todorokis readily agreed, Shouto quickly made his way out of the office. He stood at the door as Endeavor walked over to Hawks to set the bag next to him.
Shouto watched the heroes interact, curious to see how close they were. He watched Hawks reach out to Endeavor and grab his hand, pulling it behind his wings before releasing it again.
When Endeavor left the office and closed the door, Shouto could see a small red tint on his cheeks. The two walked in silence to a conference room to have their meeting. Shouto had questions though.
“You’re on a first name basis with Hawks?” he finally asked. Endeavor visibility tensed up at the question, refusing to look at Shouto.
“We are close, being the top two heroes.”
“I’ve never seen you call anyone else by their first name, especially All Might.”
The flames on his father’s face grew brighter as he snapped “Enough!” They reached the meeting room and Shouto had to drop the topic.
For now.
2
Keigo was sprinting down the Todoroki hall, feathers clipping the corners as he made the sharp turns. He looked inside each room, hunting for the one person that would help. Who will save him, protect him from this situation—
“Enji!” Keigo yelped, quickly running into the kitchen, where Enji was washing dishes to get ready for dinner. Keigo used the few feathers he had to run faster to the man, crashing into his back.
“Keigo!” Enji grabbed Keigo’s hands where they wrapped around the large man. “What are you doing?”
“Big guy, love of my life, I need you to hide me. No questions, there’s no time.” He was glancing around the kitchen for an easy place to hide. There was not time, he needs to hide--
An enraged “Hawks!” is heard from down the hall, stomps echowing within the kitchen. Keigo scrambles away from Enji and hides behind the island, back thrown against the cupboard. Enji followed him, confusion written all over his face. Before he could ask what he was thinking, the threat entered the room.
“Where is he?” Shouto snaps, storming the kitchen. Keigo shakes his head frantically hoping that Enji will not give him away.
Thankfully, he didn’t. “Where is who?”
“You know who . Don’t act dumb!”
Enjo huffed. “There are multiple men in this house, Shouto. You need to be more specific.”
“ Hawks, your dumb boyfriend!” The floor was quickly dropping in temperature. Hawks watched as a bit of ice inched towards him as he scrambled farther away.
Shouto was walking closer to Enji as he argued with his father. He decided to take this time to slowly move around the island, making his way to a possible escape route.
“Shouto! Do not be rude.” Enji raised his voice at the boy, but quickly brought it back down. “Why are you so mad at Hawks?”
“He invited a classmate! Without running it by me!” Shouto was quickly losing his cool. Keigo glanced around the corner to see that his attention was fully on Enji, though, so he continued to move his way around.
The situation was a tricky one. He had hope that Endeavor would not snitch on him, and even more hope that Shouto’s rage would be contained to his father so that Keigo could sneak out and escape yet again. And then he is in the clear!
Enji huffed before turning back to the dishes. “Yes, I know.”
“You knew? And you let him invite him?”
“Why are you mad? I thought you were friends with Tokoyami.”
Shit. They weren’t supposed to share this lie with each other until it was too late. Keigo started tiptoeing even faster towards the exit. He was almost there, just had to get past the doorway and he was home free.
Shouto let out a groan. “He didn’t invite Tokoyami! He invited Midoriya!”
Almost there! Keigo was a few steps away from the door when he felt a pair of eyes turn on him.
“You invited Deku?” Shit. Keigo slowly turned his head to meet the two Todoroki’s eyes, where Shouto was seething.
Keigo said nothing, just staring at the duo. Then he turned to run the last few steps he had.
“No!” Keigo tried diving forward the last few steps to stay out of his range, but it was too late.
Shouto shot his ice out across the floor towards Keigo. Keigo let out a yelp as his feet were frozen to the floor, therefore stopping his escape.
“He-ey, Shouto, we can talk about this!” Keigo laughed, turning to face Shouto’s icy glare. “I thought you would want to spend more time with your friend! I mean, you only ever see him with Endeavor or at school right?” He crossed his arms over his chest to appear nonchalant, even though he was actually a little nervous. Shouto wouldn’t hurt him. Right?
“You damn chicken!” Shouto yelled, storming closer to Keigo.
“Hey hey! That’s just mean.” Keigo leaned back as the teen came closer to him, trying to frantically break out of the ice. Damn, it was strong. If only he had more feathers, then he could pull himself out of them. “I’m not a chicken, I’m a hawk! It’s in the name!”
“Shouto, this seems a bit excessive--” Endeavor tried to intervene, though Keigo could tell he was hesitant. Really Shouto never shows this much emotion, so it is healthier that he is expressing his anger. Keigo just wishes it wasn’t targeted towards him , but what can you do?
Shouto turned his glare on his father, effectively shutting him up before he turned back to Keigo. “I told you I didn’t want to talk to him! And then you go and invite him to my house?! You don’t even live here!”
“You’re making it sound like you guys are in a fight,” Keigo laughed. “You just don’t want to tell him that you’re in loo—”
“Stop!” he yelled, flames now burning. He must have ignited as a way to hide his blush, but he can’t hide from Keigo. He is a spy after all, he can easily tell when a teenager is blushing over their crush. “I’m gonna kill you!”
“You can’t kill me!” Keigo tried to lean back further away from Shouto, but only ended up falling on his ass. He was now stuck looking up at the raging Todoroki, and oh man . He really looks like Enji like this. The flames and the ice, the angry eyebrow furrow, hell even the arm position.
It’s kinda funny. He’s not gonna tell Shouto that though.
“Enji, save me!” he whined. He looked around Shouto’s legs to see Enji’s exasperated face staring at the two of them. It was an endearing look, actually. If only Keigo had his phone.
Finally, he sighed. “Shouto, you cannot kill Hawks. We have a guest coming over.”
“Wow, not that I’m literally the love of your life?”
“But I will let you two work this out,” he continued, completely ignoring Keigo’s argument. Rude. “Hawks is a grown man. He can fight his own battles.”
“Wait wait wait, Enji!” he yelled. Enji passed the two of them without so much as a glance. “Don’t leave me here!”
“I have to help Fuyumi set up the table,” he said before disappearing down the hall.
Keigo turned back to the youngest Todoroki, who thankfully turned off his flames. At least he won’t burn him.
“Are you sure we can’t talk about this?” Keigo tried one more time.
He was met with deafening silence. Well shit.
---
“Thank you so much for inviting me to dinner, Hawks! And Mr. Todoroki!” Midoriya smiled wide. “It tastes good!”
“You should be thanking Fuyumi for that,” Hawks brushed off. “She does most of the hard work.”
“Oh, but Shouto helped me this time!” Fuyumi jumped in. Keigo saw Shouto blush, keeping his eyes pointed down.
“Really? I didn’t know you could cook, Shouto!”
“I’m only learning,” he mumbled.
“Well if you need a guinea pig, I’m open to try some!”
Keigo let out a small laugh as Shouto’s face got brighter. Said teen shot Keigo a glare, but he just brushed it off.
“Oh, Hawks,” Midoriya turned his attention to Keigo as the family finished up dinner. “I had a question. If you don’t mind me being a bit invasive, that is!” He quickly tacked on. Hawks gave him a reassuring smile.
“Shoot, kid!”
“Where did you get that bruise on your head?” Natsuo started coughing in a poor attempt to cover up his laugh, as Enji and Shouto just stared at each other from across the table. “It looks like it hurts.”
“Oh, this?” he touched the bruise and flinched. Man, Shouto can pack a punch. “I was in a scrimmage. Nothing to worry about, it’ll heal soon enough.”
“Oh. Okay,” Midoriya accepted.
“Why doesn’t Shouto show you around the garden, Midoriua!” Fuyumi suggested. Keigo gave her a knowing look as Shouto’s head shot up.
“What?”
“That’s a great idea!” Keigo agreed. “It’s a wonderful night for the garden!”
“I don’t want to leave you all with the mess,” Midoriua nervously looked around the table at all the piling dishes.
Fuyumi gently patted his back. “Natsuo and Hawks will get it this time, don’t you worry about it.”
Midoriya and Shouto both looked like they were going to argue, but Hawks pulled them up with two of his feathers and started pushing them towards the door.
“Off you go! Feed the fish for me, would you?”
Shouto’s glare was just as icy as it was earlier in the night, but Hawks knew he was safe now. There was no way he would beat up on Hawks while Midoriya was here.
Once they were gone, Enji let out a huff. “I cannot believe you are meddling in his dating life.”
“Better than if you were doing it,” Natsuo rolled his eyes. “Isn’t Midoriya super close with All Might? Can’t believe you are even letting them be friends, let alone Shouto trying to date him.”
Enji kept his eyes down on his plate while Natuso picked up the dishes. Hawks rubbed his back to provide comfort, but said nothing. This wasn’t his battle to fight.
3
It was nice to take a break every once in a while.
The weather has been incredibly nice lately so the class wanted to take a break and go to the beach.
They decided on the beach near Mirdoria’s house, the one that has been piled with trash for most of Shouto’s life. There was plenty of space for everyone to do their own activities, a dock for anyone who wanted to practice their diving, plus a gazebo for maximum relaxation.
Shouto had chosen to relax on the dock, near the gazebo. His classmates had started bickering about who was more athletic in some fashion, Bakugo taking personal offense to whatever the fight was (Shouto had stopped listening halfway through), and Kiroshima seemed to be egging him on. He wanted to avoid getting a headache today, so that brought him to the dock.
He was enjoying watching the ocean. It was calming to watch the water ebb and flow with the current, glistening under the sun. Shouto rarely got a break to just sit and exist. It was a privilege he wasn’t allowed growing up, so he was taking any chance to enjoy it now.
“Shouto!” he heard a voice call. Shouto turned around to see Izuku running down the docks towards him. He let a small smile cross his face as Izuku got closer.
“You shouldn’t run on the dock,” Shouto softly scolded once the boy reached him. “You could slip and fall in.”
“Ah, don’t worry!” Izuku waved the concern away. “I took plenty of swimming lessons growing up. The only thing that would hurt is my pride.” Shouto nodded in understanding. He couldn’t say the same for himself, but he didn’t need to tell Izuku that.
“What’re you doing here?” he asked.
“Well, you seemed a little lonely over here, so I thought that I should join you.”
Shouto looked up at Izuku and saw a blush take over his face. He nervously looked down at his hands where he fiddled his thumbs while avoiding eye contact. Shouto smiled up at his boyfriend.
He was always so considerate, but rarely confident in what he did. He acted on impulse and felt nervous about the results, though nevertheless determined. You see it in his hero work and in his relationships. Shouto thinks it's nice.
Before Shouto could reassure him and invite him to join, they heard commotion coming from the beach. Shout and Izuku turned around at the noise and saw Hawks on the beach surrounded by their classmates. He was wearing corduroy pants and a black tee—not beach appropriate wear, but that didn’t seem to bother him. He’s talking to those who aren’t playing in a game of volleyball (guess that’s what Bakugo was so heated about), seemingly unbothered by the heat.
“What’s Hawks doing here?” Izuku asked. Shouto thought back to the planning of the trip.
“I think I heard Mr. Aizawa say something about keeping an eye on us,” Shouto guessed. “He must have been able to convince Hawks to do it.” Not that it would’ve been hard. Hawks seems eager for any chance he can get to be around 1-A.
Shouto looked up to see Izuku watching the commotion. He had the look he gets when he is about to start fanboying, a look Shouto has seen multiple times before. Knowing his boyfriend, he would elect to sit with Shouto even though he really wants to speak with Hawks. He was a hero that Izuku didn’t get to speak with often.
“Izuku.” Shouto’s voice snapped Izuku out of his head, looking back at Shouto. “You can say hi to him.”
“Oh, are you sure?” he asked. “I would feel bad about leaving you out here by yourself. Maybe we can both go see him together—”
“No, you go,” he stopped Izuku. “I’m fine here.”
Izuku paused for a moment. He seemed to be studying Shouto to see if he was telling the truth. In the end, he smiled.
“Okay! I’ll be back.”
Izuku watched as we walked back down the docks to join everyone else. Hawks seemed to have moved on to chatting with Tokoyami, likely discussing the next time Tokoyami will be working with him. Izuku approached them and eagerly joined the conversation, Hawks taking to his presence eagerly.
Shouto turned back towards the water. Hawks has become a consistent part of his life in recent months. Ever since he was able to get it out of Endeavor that he and the Number Two hero were dating, he has been bringing Hawks around more.
Hawks didn’t expect anything from the Todoroki children either. Shouto was surprised when he told Hawks that he was angry that his dad was dating him, that Hawks completely understood. He didn’t try to soothe Shouto, tell him that he had nothing to be angry about. He accepted that Shouto was mad, understood that there was a past between him and his dad that he will never understand, and told him that no matter how Shouto felt about him, he would respect it. The same would go for his siblings. Shouto began to warm up to Hawks, though it has been a rocky start. Still, Hawks has been taking it in stride.
A voice startled Shouto. “Heads up!”
It all happened so fast.
As Shouto was turning his head towards the beach, a white object collided with his face. The ground he was sitting on seemingly disappeared as he fell forward from the force of the object, knocking him into the cold water.
He let out a gasp, but then immediately closed his mouth, trying to hold in the little air he had. He frantically searched for the top, limbs flailing in an attempt to swim. It didn’t feel as if he was making progress. He was sinking farther and he couldn’t use his quirk, useless when he doesn’t know where he is.
He’s panicking. He’s almost out of air. His lungs are on fire and he can’t hear anything, can’t see, can’t breathe—
Suddenly something grabbed him under his armpits, pulling him up. Shouto tried to pull away. He didn’t know what it was, what could be under the water pulling him, but it felt like a pair of arms.
His head broke through the water into the air and Shouto took a deep breath before violently coughing. The arms around his waist were holding all of his weight as he leaned forward to get all of the water out. His lungs hurt and he felt like he was going to hurl.
“Midoriya!” he heard the voice behind him yell. Shouto flinched but couldn’t speak. “Here, grab him.”
The arms around his waist let go as two different pairs of hands grabbed onto his arms and pulled him up. The person who saved him helped push him up as he was dragged onto what he assumes is the dock. Once he felt solid ground under him, Shouto pushed himself into a sitting position as he tried to catch his breath.
“Yo, Todoroki! Are you okay?” Kirishima—or who he assumed was Kirishima, everything was still a blur—started patting his upper back to help him. Shouto nodded his head before he gagged, spitting on the ground below him. God, he was dizzy.
“Back up, give him some space.” The hand on his back left just as Shouto felt like he could breathe a bit better.
It took what felt like forever for Shouto to finally feel like he had his body back under his control. His chest was still burning and his eyes hurt from the salt water that got in them, but he could finally sit up and look around him.
About half of his classmates were sat around him, all looking at him with fear and worry on their faces. The closest to him were Kirishima and Izuku, Kirishima leaning over his shoulder and Izuku right in front of him. They were probably the ones who pulled him out. The sight that surprised him the most, behind Izuku, was Hawks.
Hawks was drenched. His hair had lost its volume and was sticking to his forehead, his shirt not faring much better. Shouto couldn’t see or focus on his wings in the position he was in now, but he can’t imagine they would be faring much better.
“Okay everyone, seriously, move!” Hawks snapped. Izuku and Kirishima immediately moved away and Hawks took Izuku’s place in front of Shouto. “Are you okay? Do you feel nauseous?”
Shouto nodded. As he opened his mouth, his body decided that’s when it would get rid of all the water in his body. He quickly turned to his side and hurled, feeling Hawks pat his back as he gagged.
This continued, with Hawks going through a list of questions and Shouto stumbling through the answers. At some point Hawks had sent everyone away, assuring them that Shouto would be fine and sending Izuku to grab his phone.
Once Shouto had his breathing under control, Hawks began his other questions. “So, what happened?”
“I got hit in the head.” His voice was scratchy from his coughing and lack of use, but it didn’t feel as bad.
“Look at me?” Hawks gentle grabbed his head and forced him to look in his eyes. He watched as Hawks glanced between his eyes in quick concession before nodding. “So you might have a concussion,” he concluded. Shouto didn’t answer him, just moved his eyesight away from the hero’s. “That would also explain why you couldn’t get yourself righted.” Hawks let out a sigh. Shouto saw him shift out of the corner of his eye. “Though you could have floated, right? Kick up? Whatever tactics you were taught in the case of falling in water.”
Shoutu should’ve stayed silent. It was an embarrassing fact, even though it wasn’t his fault. Maybe it was the exhaustion or suspected concussion that had him say, “I don’t know how to swim.”
“What?”
“I don’t know how to swim,” he repeated. “Never learned.”
“Your dad never taught you how to swim?”
Shout scoffed. “There was never time. I was always training or studying. Never had time for fun.”
A tense silence fell over the two. Shouto made no move to speak, already embarrassed beyond belief. What broke the silence was Izuku’s frantic footsteps running back down the dock carrying Hawks’ cell phone.
“I found it!” he yelled as he approached. “It has a crack in it, but it seems like it still works.”
Hawks gave Izuku a smile. “Thanks! I hate to make you run on another errand, but could you grab Todoroki some clothes? A long sleeve shirt if you have one. We don’t want him suffering from hypothermia.”
Izuku stood ramrod straight, aggressively nodding his head. “Of course! It’s no problem! I will be right back!” And then he was gone.
As soon as Izuku turned his back, Hawks dropped the smile and Shouto saw him open up his phone. He watched as Hawks typed away on his phone, a deep scowl on his face.
“What are you doing?” Shoutu finally asked.
“Texting Endeavor,” Hawks clipped. Shouto snapped his head towards the Pro Hero, ignoring the pain it shot through his head.
“You can’t tell him!”
“I have to, Sho.” Hawks put his phone down and turned his full attention to Shouto, facing his anger head on. “If I was a teacher of the school I would be legally mandated to tell him. While there is no law mandating that I tell him, I am still his boyfriend and I need to tell him when something happens to one of you guys under my watch.”
“I wasn’t under your watch ,” he grumbled. “You just happened to be here, and then it happened.”
“Anytime we’re in the same area, you’re under my watch, Shouto.” Hawks kept his voice calm but firm. He wasn’t rising to Shouto’s anger, but he wasn’t going to just say what Shouto wanted to hear either. “I know this isn’t ideal, but we can’t pretend you didn’t almost die. He needs to know.”
Shouto went to say something else, but Hawks stopped him. “It’s not just for you. I have a few words I want to share with him as well.”
Just then, Hawks’ phone began ringing. The two of them looked down to see a photo of Endeavor in a kitchen, holding a mixing bowl with flour all over his face and shirt while he glared at the camera. Shouto couldn’t even enjoy the embarrassing photo before Hawks grabbed the phone to answer.
“That was quick,” Hawks answered. Shouto listens to mumbling on the other side, his dad’s deep voice sounding frantic.
Hawks wasn’t in the mood. “Yeah yeah, he’s fine, he’s not dead. Like I said, he needs to go to the doctor to get checked out, but it's likely not anything serious.” He waited to see if Endeavor would answer before he continued. “It’s not as bad as it could’ve been, but worse than it should’ve been. Why the hell does he not know how to swim , Enji?”
Silence, then more mumbling. Shouto watched as Hawks grew more tense as anger overtook him. It seemed like he was trying to keep it under control as he knew that several people would be watching him, but it wasn’t doing much. “No time? No time! Enji, I don’t know one fucking Pro Hero that doesn’t know how to swim, or even float! What, did you think they’d teach him at school? That Aizawa would set aside time to teach a 16 year old boy how to tread water?”
Izuku was coming back with the clothes that Hawks had sent him out for. Shouto motioned behind Hawks to inform him, and thankfully he understood the hint in the middle of his tirade on his father. Before Izuku reached them, he stood up and made his way further down the dock to the gazebo. Shouto could still hear him yelling at Endeavor even at the end of the dock.
He felt a towel drop over his shoulder. “Thanks,” Shouto mumbled, using the towel to dry his hair before wrapping it around himself. He was colder than he thought.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Izuku asked as he sat down next to him. Shouto just shrugged. He was exhausted, angry, with a pounding headache and lungs that went through a workout he wasn’t prepared for.
“I’ll be okay,” he assured him. Izuku didn’t look like he would believe him, but decided to drop it.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Hawks get that mad,” he said instead, taking the topic off of Shouto. Shouto looked over at the hero to see him waving his arm around.
“Neither have I.” Endeavor and Hawks have been dating for a while, but he doesn't think he has ever seen or heard of Hawks getting this mad. He’s a little worried knowing his father’s past with partners getting mad at him, but he wasn’t going to dwell on it. Endeavor said he was going to do better.
“I wonder if his wings are bothering him,” Izuku mumbled. “I mean, he didn’t hesitate diving in once we realized you weren’t coming back up! But I would think that he would send in a few feathers to help you up, but even then they likely wouldn’t do well in the water—”
“Izuku, please,” Shouto stopped him. “I usually don’t mind your mumbling, but I have a pounding headache. Get to the point.”
“Oh, right, sorry.” Izuku handed him a shirt that he had, which Shouto took with gratitude. “I was just thinking that his feathers can’t do well fully submerged. I mean, he has so many of them! Having all of them shoved underwater has to feel terrible with how heavy they would be.”
Shouto didn’t even think of that. He looked back over at the hero (who seemed to finally be done yelling at Endeavor) and took a closer look at his wings. Compared to their usual upright position, they were leaning back behind him, as if they were tied down with a weight. Shouto watched as Hawks kept shaking them every few seconds, likely trying to shake off the water, but it was no use.
“Heroes risk their health for others, don’t they?” Shouto told him, but he didn’t think that was it. Hawks has mentioned how close he feels to the Todoroki family, often buying small gifts or setting aside time to talk to them.
Anytime we’re in the same area, you’re under my watch, Shouto.
Hawks obviously cared a lot about Shouto. He doesn’t know if he sees him as a step-child (a thought he was not ready to face anytime soon), or just someone he needs to be nice to in order to stay on Endeavor’s good side.
It seems deeper than this though. It’s nothing he wants to try and figure out when he sees him walking back from the gazebo.
---
Todoroki Enji: How does Saturday at noon sound for swim lessons?
Todoroki Shouto liked your message
+1
Something happened between his dad and Hawks.
Hawks didn’t show up to their weekly dinner, where he has had a permanent place at the table. Shouto assumed he had been called out or fighting a villain.
By the third time he missed dinner, they realized something was up. Fuyuomi was the first one to ask their dad, who just brushed them off with “he can’t come” with no further explanation. Shouto could tell that Fuyuomi didn’t believe him—Shouto didn’t either—but they didn’t push it.
His dad has also been on edge more too. He has been snapping at interns more often, flames burning hotter than is necessary. He also seems to be calling Shouto to his office more often than not to scold him for any little thing he does wrong.
It’s pissing Shouto off.
On top of this, he still has seen no sign of Hawks. It’s been three weeks and there’s been no sign of the man. Over the past few months it has been impossible to go one week without the winged hero crashing a meeting Endeavor is in, joining them on a patrol, or dragging his dad out for lunch. So when it is nearing a month without seeing or hearing from the hero, Shouto was beginning to become irritated and a little worried.
So when Shouto was walking out on the street and saw Hawks stopping a bank robbery, he knew now was his only time to get the answers to his questions.
“Hawks,” Shouto called towards the hero. Hawks quickly turned around and lit up at the sight of Shouto.
“Hey! Todoroki!” The hero looked exhausted, standing with significantly less feathers then he has on a normal day. While the fight was only with a bank robber, his quirk was strong enough to give Hawks an actual fight from what Shouto saw.
“You’re not on patrol today?” He asked as he approached Shouto.
“Maybe I should have been,” he answered, looking back at the villain being pushed into the back of a police car.
“Aw, you’re gonna hurt my feelings with talk like that!” Shouto shrugged.
Hawks easily brushed off the response, laughing as he always does. Something was off with his laugh this time, his overall presentation seems…tired.
Shouto has seen him patrolling more often, though coming by the office less. One would think that would mean he would be getting more rest, but his demeanor says otherwise. What could possibly be keeping him up? Is it the same thing that is keeping him away from the dinners?
“Well, I should probably go. I gotta patrol longer, fill out paperwork. Boring old hero stuff.” As he started to walk away, Shouto finally connected the dots.
“Wait!” he called.
Hawks stopped and turned back, head tilted in confusion. “Something wrong?”
“Did you and my father get in a fi—“ Before he could finish the sentence, a feather flew into his mouth, silencing him.
Shouto started coughing, trying to get the smaller pieces to when Hawks grabbed his shoulder and shook him.
“Oh no, are you okay?” He asked, as if he wasn’t the one who did this. “Let’s go get you some water! Gotta make sure the Number One’s son is okay, don’t worry everyone!” Shouto assumes he called back to the crowd that has gathered around the crime scene.
Once the duo was farther away, Hawks pulled him into a random alleyway and set him against the wall.
“You would think they teach you some discretion at that school,” Hawks grumbled. He leaned against the wall, shoving his hands in his pocket. His smile was gone so Shouto could see how tired he was. Bags under his eyes, shoulder slouched in a way that didn’t seem purposeful. Completely different from how he usually carries himself.
“Sorry,” he answered.
Hawks stared down the youngest Todoroki, likely trying to decide if he was actually sorry. In the end, he shrugged.
“Not the end of the world. But now you can ask what you want.”
“Did you and Endeavor get in a fight?”
“Why do you think that?” He was deflecting. Subtle, but Shouto has seen him do it a few times.
“You haven’t been to the dinners, I haven’t seen you around the office, and I don’t think you two have been on patrol in a while.”
“Wow, you’re observant. Good trait.” Shouto didn’t satisfy him with an answer. Hawks knew he wouldn’t rise to the bait.
Hawks let out a small smile. “Thanks for your concern but we’re good. Nothing that’s going to affect our hero work.”
“It’s already affecting his work,” Shouto told him. “He’s on a short fuse, yelling at everything that moves.”
“He’s always got a short fuse,” Hawks shot back. Shouto glared at the man. He was being dense on purpose.
“What did he do? Hit you?” Shouto snapped. He promised this would never end up like it was his mom, but Shouto barely trusts him. Hawks avoiding the agency suddenly makes sense, Shouto will kill him—
“Don’t worry, he didn’t hit me.” Hawks’ voice snapped him out of his spiral. Hawks pushed himself off of the wall, closing the gap between the two of them before placing a hand on Shouto’s shoulder. “I know you guys have been worried about that, but he has been true to his word.”
“Then what is going on with you two?” Shouto asked, annoyed. Hawks closed his eyes and took slow deep breaths. Shouto stood and waited for him to gather his thoughts.
“What has your dad told you?” He finally asked.
Shouto scoffed. “Nothing. Fuyuomi asked why you weren’t there and all he could say was ‘he can’t come’ and left it at that.” Shouto was surprised to see Hawks let out a laugh.
“Your impressions of him are getting good.” Huh. Shouto didn’t even realize that he did that. “But that doesn’t surprise me. It took him eight months to tell you all we were dating.”
“He didn’t tell us.” Hawks blinked.
“Right. You just put it together.” Groaning, he threw his head back. “Man, history really does repeat itself.”
“You two broke up?”
“Don’t go blabbing, but yeah.” Hawks turned his back to Shouto. “Don’t worry about it, Shouto. Your dad will get over himself soon, so hopefully you won’t have to deal with it for long.” He made eye contact with Shouto over his shoulder, his usual smile back on his face. “Don’t think that I’m not in your corner anymore. My door is always open!”
Before Shouto could ask him any other questions, Hawks spread out what was left of his wings and flapped them. Shouto flinched back at the gust of wind, watching as Hawks hovered above him.
“See ya!” With that, he flew off, leaving Shouto behind in the alley.
Hawks was visibly tired, anyone who knew him could see that. He’s avoiding the topic of his father, but you can tell it’s weighing on him. Besides the bags under his eyes, Shouto can see that he carries himself differently. He should just leave it be, not get in the middle of his fathers relationship.
But he can’t deny that Hawks was having a positive effect on him. Even Hawks seemed happier when he was around Endeavor. In a strange way, the two just worked. Seeing them not spending almost every second together just felt strange.
Maybe he’ll get to the bottom of this. For Hawks’ sake.
—-
“Wow, I’ve never been on UA’s campus before!”
“Really? Not even for the tournaments?” Tokoyami asked, looking up at Hawks.
Tokoyami was going to join him on a patrol this afternoon, a way for them to get practice with using Dark Shadow in the light. Even with the hero fighting he has been doing, more practice never hurt. Though right as they were going to start, Tokoyami realized that he had forgotten his cloak—a necessary item in order to use Dark Shadow effectively.
Hawks felt no qualms about flying him back to the dorms to grab it. It would be faster than waiting for the teen, and he had always been looking for an excuse to sneak onto UA’s campus.
“Nah,” he smiled. “I was always too busy to watch, and there was no way I was gonna spend a day playing bodyguard. Too slow for my taste.” He dropped the two of them down in front of the entrance to the dorms, following Tokoyami inside the building.
He let out a low whistle. “This is where they’ve been keeping you all? Living the high life, I would say.”
“I am humbled by the facilities that they gave us students,” Tokoyami replied, ever the polite one. Hawks chuckled as he followed his mentee to his dorm room.
UA really went all out when they moved these kids into the dorms. Their security system was already top notch, the dorms adding a whole other layer. It was one of the places that he felt that people could truly feel safe. He’s heard this Nezu guy was serious about protection, and he’s heard enough about teacher’s kicking people’s asses to save these kids. It’s likely the safest place they could be, so Hawks felt comfortable letting his guard down.
Dark Shadow came out while they were standing in the elevator, hovering closer to Hawks than he was Tokoyami. He always had a worried look on his face when he did it too. Could Tokoyami and Dark Shadow pick up on him being upset?
“Is everything okay, Tokoyami?” Hawks asked while he gave Dark Shadow a smile. “You seem to be worried lately.”
Tokoyami kept his eyes down while Dark Shadow nodded, voicing his agreement with Hawks' worry.
“I apologize. You just seem to have been more stressed lately. I guess Dark Shadow has been picking up on this as well.” Dark Shadow flew to the other side of Hawks, tears in his eyes as he nodded along. Hawks let out a laugh, patting the shadow on the head.
“I appreciate the worry, but don’t worry! All is well.”
The elevator door chimed, and the trio made their way down the hall. Tokoyami stopped in front of an unlabeled door. Strange, you would think they would be labeled with their name? Of course the students would know where they live.
“This is my room,” Tokoyami supplied. “You can look around if you would like.”
“Man, how noisy do you think I am?” Hawks teased, knowing fully well that he was going to take the teen up on his offer. He opened the door wide, still looking back at Tokoyami as he spoke. “I like to leave some mystery to those around me—”
“Hawks?” he heard a voice ask. Endeavor’s voice.
Hawks snapped his attention forward to see Endeavor standing in the room. He had his casual outfit on, though his flames were burning bright.
What the fuck was he doing here?
Before he could ask, he felt Dark Shadow wrap around him, fully compressing his arms and wings before shoving him in the room with Endeavor.
“I apologize about this, Hawks,” is all he says before the door slams shut. Hawks can see under the door that Dark Shadow is still there. Is he holding the door closed?
“Hey! Tokoyami!” Hawks yelled as he stomped over to the door. “What is the meaning of this?! Let me out!”
“This is ridiculous,” Endeavor snapped. “How can we be locked in a room by a child with a quirk weak in the light?”
Hawks flinched at the scolding, but turned around to give him a smile. “Well, Endeavor. He has given Dark Shadow a shield from your flames! So burn bright all you want, Dark Shadow is protected. And I’m sure UA would hate to hear that the Number One hero burned down one of their rooms.”
Endeavor just scowled at him—which, okay, rude. Yeah, we broke up, but not even acknowledging what he said?
“Welp!” Hawks clapped. “I’m gonna head out. You may have to use the door, but I have multiple ways out.” He bumped Endeavor with his wings as he walked by. Was it on purpose? No, but it did make him feel better.
“Wait, Hawks—” he starts as Hawks gets closer to the window. Before he can continue, a burst of heat appears outside the window.
Hawks gasps as he jumps back. Behind the heat, he sees Shouto Todoroki.
“Shouto!” Endeavor snaps.
“What the hell, kid?!” Hawks watched as Shouto sat outside the window—he could not see how he was doing that—keeping his flames bright, blocking the only other path that Hawks had out of this room.
“You two need to talk,” Shouto explained. “The tension between you two is beginning to affect the rest of us. It’s annoying.”
Hawks glared at the teen. “So your genius plan is to lock us in a room together against our will?”
“Would you have talked to him if I asked?” Shouto shot back. Hawks quickly shut his mouth, but his glare was still strong.
“Shouto, let us out this instant!” Endeavor yelled. “I do not have time for your games!”
Shouto just rolled his eyes. “We will not let you out until you talk about whatever happened to you.”
“We already have!” Hawks yelled, throwing his arms up in exasperation. “There’s nothing to talk about! We’re just two adults who amicably ended our relationship because it didn’t work.”
“Liar!” they hear a muffled voice yell. Hawks turned his glare towards the door. What did Dark Shadow know?
“We have places to be, Shouto,” Endeavor tried again.
Shouto shrugged. “Then you better figure it out quickly.” Then he disappeared, but his flames stayed. Does this school not have any anti-fire protection?
Hawks let out a sigh as he flopped onto the floor, exhausted. He didn’t want to be in this scenario at all. He was hoping he would never have to be alone with Endeavor in a room again.
“He really got your stubbornness,” Hawks commented. “Unless this is from Rei, but any day with you will show that it’s not from her family.”
“I…apologize that he dragged you into this,” Endeavor spoke, press voice grating Hawks ears. God, he isn’t even allowed a coworker tone?
“Well, we likely wouldn’t be here if you just told him why we broke up.” Hawks snapped. He wants to keep it together and not snap, but god this is the first time in a month that Hawks and Enji have been alone. The emotions are still raw, especially when Enji has been sure to never talk to him outside of work.
Enji tensed up. “How do you know I haven’t?”
“Shouto told me.”
“I thought you told me you would not speak with them?”
“I said I would not contact them, never said I would ignore them.” Hawks felt his wings puffing up as his anger was rising. “Like I told Shouto, my door is always open for them.”
“You do not have to do that.”
“I’m the Number Two hero, Endeavor!”
Enji’s flames seemed to glow brighter as he glared. “If they have a problem, they know they can contact me—”
“And what if they can’t reach you? Or they are already with you?”
“Hawks! This is a pointless conversation!” Enji yelled at him. He began to move closer to Hawks and Hawks stood his ground, refusing to be intimidated. “I do not want my children being closely involved in our relationship. That is all!”
“But why not at least tell them why I am not around anymore? Not coming to family dinners?”
“It is none of their business—”
“No, none of that bullshit.” Hawks pushed into Enji’s space and pressed his finger to his chest with every word. “You just refuse to let anyone but yourself in on your actions, your reasons. You believe that the whole world is you’re alone to support, and that especially goes for your relationships. Romantic or not.”
Enji and Hawk just stand there glaring at each other, neither of them moving. Both of them have always been stubborn, and at this point Hawks would have left, either calling Mirko to bitch or take a flight to get some restless energy out. Enji typically would hide in his dojo and work out his frustrations physically or write in the stupid journal that Hawks bought him as a joke . A pink journal with sparkles on the front, with a heart shaped lock made for preteen girls.
But he can’t leave now. They’re locked in here until they work theri shit out, because two fifteen year old boys have decided that their mentors’ personal relationship is their problem now.
“I do not believe that telling my family the exact reason we broke up is necessary. That is not their burden.”
“Then could you at least fucking tell me?!” Hawks yelled. Enji’s face morphed into shock as Hawks could feel the dam breaking, the emotional stress he has been harboring for weeks finally breaking through. “Could you, for five fucking minutes, think about anyone but yourself and your redemption, and let me know why you decided what we had wasn’t good enough?!”
“Keigo—” Enji started, but Hawks wasn’t done.
“No! Shut the fuck up!” He backs away from Enji to put some space between them, keeping his wings close to him in an attempt to comfort himself. “I’ve been wracking my brain trying to figure out what the fuck I did wrong! Where it all fell apart! Because you just decided that we were better off apart, that you needed time away from me!”
“I—I believed that would be best.”
“But why?!” Enji looks thoroughly scolded, flames no longer burning as the fight drags on. Hawks hates the fucking look. “What did I do, Enji? You never gave me a chance to try and fix it! You just let me walk in, happy as a fucking clam, and then told me it’s over!”
“It wasn’t you—”
“Don’t start that bullshit with me—”
“Keigo!” Enji yelled. Hawks glared as Enji took deep breaths, head in his hands in an attempt to regulate himself. “It—It was not you. It was…”
Hawks watched as Enji looked around the room, eyes pausing on the flames that were still covering the window, blocking both of their escapes. Hawks is acutely aware of Dark Shadow’s presence at the door, Tokoyami having moved further down the hall in an attempt to give them privacy during their hostage situation.
Enjo turned his eyes down to the floor, almost mumbling, “I was jealous.”
Hawks blinked. “Jealous?”
“Yes, jealous. It was…childish of me, but I was.”
What could Enji be jealous of? Hawks didn’t flirt with anyone since they became official, keeping friendly distance with those around him except Mirko. But he and Enji already had a conversation about how close he and Mirko were, how affectionate they were, and assured Enji that he would never leave him for her. Not just because he wasn’t attracted to her and would never be, she was a lesbian. Their relationship was safe with her around.
He racked his brain for anything that Enji could have picked up as a romantic interaction, anything that would point to Enji’s jealousy. But nothing came up.
“What were you jealous of?” Hawks finally asked. “I didn’t flirt with anyone and as far as I know, nobody has been touchy with me?”
“I wasn’t jealous in that way.” He took a deep breath before finally looking Hawks in the eyes, shame and embarrassment written all over his face. “I was jealous of your relationship with my children. My family.”
“ What?!” Hawks yelled. “You were jealous that I was being friendly with your children?”
“Like I said, it is childish. I had seen how attached they have become to you, and it just began to…irritate me.”
“You were irritated that I was putting in effort to build a relationship with your kids?”
Enji nodded. “I did like it at first. You being around helped them become more comfortable when we have dinner, and I can see that having a third person outside Rei and I was…nice for them, just to have an outsider see. Us.”
“So when did you start hating it?” Hawks snapped. “I mean—Enji, I was only getting as close to them because they were your family! I didn’t want to pretend that they didn’t exist! They are a large part of your life!”
“I know,” he agreed. “And I appreciated it. I enjoyed it when I saw that you were all getting along. But…after that day at the beach, I began thinking.”
“The day at the be—you mean when Shouto almost drowned?”
Enji balled his hands into fists, a comfort movement that Hawks recognizes. Something to ground himself, even if it was morphed from his worse days. “Him almost drowning was a direct effect of my past actions. And you scolding me and saving him, while I appreciated it, did anger me. That someone other than his parents was making decisions as to enroll him in swim classes.”
Hawks scoffed. “What, do you want me to feel bad about that? The kid almost fucking drowned, Enji. I’m not going to apologize for yelling at you for being a bad parent.”
“And I don’t want you to,” Enji assured him. “However, I recognize that moment as the catalyst into my inadequate feelings growing. And instead of talking them out with you, I decided—”
“That pushing me away and taking me out of their lives entirely was the best move.” Enji looked down at the ground, not answering.
Hawks let out a loud groan. The audacity of this man, the absolutely stupidity to think that his issues would be fixed if he just pushes them away. Which, yeah, Hawks knows that’s what he has been doing his whole life. That’s why he is in therapy now. He would hope that the first test to see if he is changing his past behavior would be his jealousy towards his partner.
“You are a stupid man. I mean—” Hawks motions to the room they are still trapped in. “Look at where your inability to address your problems has gotten us. Locked together by your child and my mentee, forcing you to stop hiding from me.”
“I’m sorry.” Hawks watched as he knelt down on the ground, bowing deep at Hawks’ feet. “It was cruel of me to do that to you, as well as my children. I know you had hoped that I was doing better, but in the end I hurt you all.”
Hawks puffed up at the apology, staring down at the man who has brought him so much joy over the almost two years of his life. They’ve been through a lot both as a couple and as heroes. The pain he has gone through the past month can’t be ignored either. It’s been eating away at him at what happened, what made Enji want to throw their relationship in the trash.
And now that he has the answer, what does he do now? He got the answer to the question that has been plaguing him every waking moment. And that answer was given to him by the problem, in a way. And Enji seems to be truly upset about his mistake, and wants to right his wrongs. Which is an improvement.
Hawks let out a deep sigh. Slowly, he lowers himself down and sits criss-cross in front of Enji, letting his wings gently relax behind him. “I understand.”
Enji looks shocked at Hawks’ easy acceptance, so he quickly continues. “That doesn’t make it okay, Enji. We were a couple, a duo. You should have worked these feelings out with me, or even with your therapist.”
“I know,” Enji agrees. “And I’m so sorry. I recognize my failure to hold up my role in our relationship.”
“You did really fumble it. But I understand why you were upset. I get that your relationship with your kids is fragile at best.” Hawks slowly reaches forward and grabs Enji’s hands, forcing the man to sit up with Hawks. “I accept your apology.”
Enji nods his head, squeezing Hawks’ hands as well as he can. “I—I do hope that we can try again. If you are willing to give me a second chance.”
“Well,” Hawks hummed. “I think more conversation and boundaries need to be had. But I am willing to give us a second try—though you’re on your own if Mirko comes knocking on your door.”
Enji flinches but nods. Hawks pulls Enji towards him and into a tight hug, wrapping his wings around him to engulf them in their own little world.
The door opens behind them. “Oh, there is less damage than I thought there was going to be.”
“Shouto.” Enji pulled back from the hug and fixed his youngest with a stern glare. “This was highly inappropriate. Do you have any idea how much turmoil this could have caused?”
“Hate to be the bad guy, but I’m with Number One on this.” Hawks moves to stand and turns to Tokoyami who looks sheepish. “We are late for patrol, and you abused my trust.”
“I deeply apologize, Hawks,” Tokkoyami bows. “Shouto had addressed me about the situation and I believed it would be best to help. You have been…not yourself lately. I was worried.”
Hawks looked between the two boys, both expressing very different levels of remorse at the situation. Finally, Hawks sighs.
“Well, no harm done. I know my sidekicks can handle the heavy load for a little bit.” He fixed Tokoyami with a firm stare. “But you are going to be paying for it. In training.”
Tokoyami flinched, but nodded in agreement. Shouto nervously looked between the three of them, before glancing at Endeavor.
“Well? What’s my punishment?”
Endeavor pursed his lips. “I do not believe a punishment is needed this time. I was unfair in holding the reason why Hawks was no longer coming around from you and your siblings. But I am sure it will not happen again, or else I will have Eraserhead involved.”
Shouto looked as shocked as Hawks was. While Endeavor has been getting better, he does tend to still have a short fuse.
Shouto fixed his father with a suspicious glare. Before any more tensions could grow, Hawks clapped his hands. “Welp! Problem solved, you forced us immature adults to talk out our issues. Now we do actually have to get back to our jobs. Tokoyami?” He begins walking to the window, Tokyami following him. Hawks glanced over his shoulder and saw him pulling out his cloak from his backpack.
“Did you actually forget your cloak?” He questioned as they got ready to fly.
Tokoyami nodded. “You are too sharp of a hero for me to simply lie while I had it. So for the plan, I did leave it in my dorm room.”
Hawks let out a loud laugh. “Smart kid!” He flies farther ahead from the teen, smirking over his shoulder. “Keep up!”