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Deku couldn't be more delighted when Rody's contact appears on his screen. He beams and rolls over onto his stomach, using his pillow as a stand and swinging his legs in the air so whimsically. He looks at the clock and wonders briefly what time it is in Otheon before swiping to answer the call, feeling far too giddy.
When the call goes through, Deku can only see Rody's vague figure in the darkness.
“Hey, handsome.” Rody opens in the most casual tone imaginable, making Deku gawk for a second before his face heats. He promptly ignores the provocation, opting to flick his fingers at the front-facing camera in defiance.
“Hi, Rody,” He replies, unable to keep the fondness from his voice. “You called?”
“I did,” Rody says as he grooves his phone against something, then the screen is bathed in white as a light is turned on. The camera adjusts, a warm lamp bringing color and shape to Rody from behind his phone, his elbow on the desk and head propped up on his palm. Now able to see his face, Deku can't help but notice half lidded eyes weighed down by want for sleep rather than a lazy demeanor. “You answered?”
Deku decides not to comment, instead just taking a moment to study every beautiful 480p detail of Rody's sun-kissed face before allowing himself back into the exchange.
“It's late…” He observes from the soft blue light pouring in behind Rody, nearly drowned out by the lamplight. “Are Roro and Lala in bed?”
“Nope, it's the weekend so the kids are out with friends. It's just you n’ me, hero.” The stress lines beneath Rody's eyes soften with his wink and playful smirk, and Deku thinks he can't get anymore charming. It's then he realizes Pino is on his shoulder, her tiny face somehow perfectly portraying a small, sleepy smile as she sways a bit. Deku's heart absolutely swells.
Rody starts spreading booklets and papers and textbooks around his desk, clutching a worn down pencil between two bandaged fingers. Deku smiles, “Needed a study buddy?”
“Somethin’ like that,” Rody drawls through what seems like a good stretch, arms reaching above him. “You would not believe how tedious all this practical knowledge stuff is. I care about this and I'm still bored.”
Deku understands it a little too well, recalling far too many frights from his head dipping toward his desk in Aizawa's class. “Needed something to keep you awake, then?”
“Somethin’ like that, too.” Rody says, then twirls his pencil and opens his notebook in a swift, determined movement. It reminds Deku a lot of himself. “You don't have to stay on the phone, but, y'know. I did call you for a reason.”
Deku nods, though Rody doesn't see it, as he's already set his focus on the dog-eared page of his aviation text. Deku sends another unseen smile before he shuffles off his bed and takes his phone with him.
He grabs a few miscellaneous books and research pieces from his unorganized shelves as he makes his way to his desk. He pushes aside a few All Might figures and props his phone against the wall, switching on his own lamp before getting comfortable in his seat. Study buddy he will be, he decides, as he might as well brush up on whatever he can for the hell of it.
Observing his spread, he sees he's grabbed a completely blank notebook, an old news print out about a random All Might rescue from 5 years ago, and a study on the utilization of flight-like quirks among pro heroes. Well. He snorts, looking at Rody who couldn't care less about what isn't directly in front of his eyes, and thinks, silly coincidence. To each their own, as they say.
Deku opens the blank notebook and dives in. Together, the two sit in tandem with nothing but the sharp sounds of frantic scribbling on paper- though, that isn't totally true, as the occasional tired groan or yawn buzzes through the speaker of Deku's dinky little phone. He pretends not to notice how Rody's pencil stills for long moments, how he begins to sag before sitting back up in a snap and starting to write again. If Deku weren't so familiar with the feeling, he'd assume the boy was just a slow reader or something.
He isn't sure how much time passes. The bustle of his classmates moving about the building and wreaking mild havoc doesn't distract him in the slightest. The only thing he really hears is the scratch of Rody's pencil, so of course he catches when it entirely stops for a good stretch longer than normal. He's about halfway through a bullet point about how Endeavor's fire propulsion could technically count towards flight quirk capabilities when he chances a glance at his phone screen.
Rody is slumped over his desk and onto his arm, his pencil slack in his hand, having clearly moved into the ‘just resting my head on the table and writing my totally legible notes sideways’ position at some point. Pino is curled against his hand, letting out barely audible snores as trilling little chirps. Deku somehow hadn't realized Rody's hair was out of its ponytail earlier, as now it spills over the desk and blends with the gentle brown of the wood. Deku wants to reach out and run his fingers through it, already futilely making the motion for it.
He just wishes he was there, so badly- there to close his books and tidy up his desk and lift him up and into bed with strong arms that might as well have been made for it. And though he's usually not one to settle, he can for this, content with the sound of soft breaths and the slow rise and fall of shoulders. He'll settle for it a million times over if it stays this wonderful. And even if it doesn't.
He leaves the call going and keeps writing until Rody disconnects, presumably his phone dying or some sort of internet fuzziness. Deku, a little tired himself now, ignores the sudden sting of loneliness he feels as he picks up his phone and opens his messages. He finds Rody's contact and after a moment of scrolling up through their message history, he writes:
Deku ^-^
Goodnight, Rody. <3
Deku closes his messages, closes his phone, closes his books. Then he stands, flops onto his bed, and closes his eyes with the warmest smile on his face. He dreams of carding his fingers through soft strands of earth-colored hair.