Archive of Our Own

The first thing he was aware of was a knee landing in his stomach.

Rody groaned, rolling onto his side as he blinked the morning bleariness out of his eyes. Sunlight filtered in through a slit in the curtain, much too bright for how early it was. Lala was never up at this hour. Not willingly. He watched her trot off into the hallway before pulling himself up. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, turning his attention towards the other end of the mattress.

Rody couldn't remember the last time he was last to get up. That could only mean one thing: he overslept.

"Lala?" he called out. "Is Roro out there?"

"Nyope!" came her reply. Rody breathed out a sigh of relief. Roro's absence meant that he had gotten up for school. He could only hope that he wasn't too late.

Rody dragged his hand down his face, landing on the side of his neck. He glanced down at where Pino lay. The small bird was sprawled out on her back. She gave him a tired look.

The sound of cupboard slamming shut echoed down the hall, spurring Rody to get out of bed. He plucked his hairtie from the dresser and pulled his hair back, wincing when a jolt of pain shot through his skull. Oh-kay, that's not normal, he thought. Less normal was the fact that his hairband contributed to the mounting pressure in his head. Whatever. "C'mon Pino, let's get the day started."

When she didn't fly to her nesting place in his hair, he turned around. Pino hadn't moved an inch. She met his eyes again and groaned, sinking further into the pillow.

Rody sighed, scooping her up and carrying her in his palm.

He poked his head into the other room just as Lala closed the fridge, clutching the carton of milk to her chest as though it were one of her stuffed animals. "Do you need any help?"

"Nyope!" She placed the milk down and gestured to the table. "I got everything by myself because I'm a big girl, and big girls don't need help with getting cereal."

Rody smiled. "Of course, how could I forget?"

"Because you're silly."

"Whaaaaat? No way."

"Uh huh! You're too silly and it makes you forget that I'm a big girl and that I don't need help."

"Ever?"

"Ever."

"Welllll, I guess that means you don't need me to tie up your hair anymore so—"

Lala's triumphant grin fell into dejection. "Um, well, um, maybe just for today."

"You sure? I thought big girls didn't need help."

"No, but, um, I like when you do it because when I do it it falls out always."

Rody put on a big show of thinking, leaning against the wall and tapping his chin. "Hmmmmm… okay, just for today."

Lala beamed. She started to turn back towards her cereal when she caught a glimpse of Pino. Her brow furrowed. "Is Pino okay?"

"Hm?" Rody glanced down. "Yeah, she's okay. Just a little tired is all, nothing to really worry about." He paused. "How are you feeling? Better than yesterday?"

"Mhm!" She stretched out her arms as far out as they could go.

"That much better?"

"Yeah!"

"Better enough to help me take care of dishes later?"

Lala pulled her arms closer, lowering her chin towards her chest. "Um," she feigned a cough, "maybe not that much better."

"Aw, too bad. If you were that much better, you'd be able to come down to the airport with me to pick up Deku."

"Ohhhh!!!" She started bouncing on her heels, shaking her fists up and down. "I am that much better!"

"Better enough to help with the dishes?"

"Uh huh!"

"You sure?"

"I'm sure!"

"You're absolutely sure?"

Lala looked him dead in the eyes. "I'm absolutely, positively sure," she said with utmost seriousness.

"Woah!" Rody held up his hands. "Can't argue with that."

Satisfied, Lala turned her attention to her empty bowl and poured herself a heaping portion of rice cereal. Already starting his morning so late, Rody decided to join her, pouring himself a bowl. Lala was very insistent that she poured the milk for both bowls. To Rody's pride, she only spilled a little.

As she put the milk back, Rody dropped down onto the couch and leaned back against the cushions. He picked up his spoon and stared at it, debating, before holding it out to Pino. Pino turned her head away with a sigh.

"When's Deku gonna be here?"

Rody looked up. "Hm?"

"When's Deku gonna be here?" Lala repeated.

"Around 2."

"How long till 2?"

"A few hours."

"Aww, that's too long."

"It'll go by before you know it."

Lala thought about that for a moment, munching on her cereal as she swung her legs back and forth. "What's Deku gonna do when he gets here?"

"Well, after we drop his things off here, I'm going to give him a tour of the city since, the last time he was here, he was on that super important hero mission."

"Oh, oh, can we go to the, the, uh, the museum with the dinosaurs in it?"

"Not today."

"Why not?"

"Because you're only going to be there for the trip to and from the airport."

"What?!" her voice squeaked. "Why?!"

"Because, after we drop his things off here, we're going to drop you—" Rody poked her nose, "off at June's."

"Oh yeah!" Lala's face briefly lit up. "But, um, I also wanna hang out with Deku…"

"Deku's gonna be here all week; you'll have plenty of opportunities to hang out."

"Mm, okay." She hopped up and carried her bowl over to the counter, climbing onto the stepping stool and gently placing it into the sink. "Um, is it okay if I help with dishies later?"

"As long as you brush your teeth."

Lala threw her head back and let out a very exasperated and prolonged groan as she dragged herself to the bathroom. Rody watched on with an amused grin, laughing quietly before turning back towards his own bowl.

He stared at it, his cereal having gone soggy during the conversation. He twisted his spoon between his fingers. The thought of taking a bite sent his stomach into knots. With a sigh, he got up and binned the rest. He wanted to write it off as anxiety. He was anxious, of course. How could he not be? It'd been months since they'd last seen each other. But… he could see it reflected in Pino, the weariness that weighed heavy in his muscles.

He was getting sick. Of course he was getting sick.

Rody walked into the bathroom, squeezing in next to his sister. He inspected his face in the mirror. He looked fine, at least. Maybe a little pale but it wasn't really noticeable, not unless someone was looking for it. Deku had no reason to look for it. Therefore, it was fine. A measly cold wasn't going to ruin his day.

He grabbed his toothbrush, running it under water. It's fine! It's fine.

Walking through the doors to the airport felt… strange. Last time, it was for a goodbye. This time, a hello. Now that he was here… Rody couldn't help but feel… awkward. He wasn't wearing anything unusual, just a simple dress shirt, some jeans, a coat, his gloves, and his sunglasses— not his goggles, unfortunately. He was essentially wearing what he wore the last time they saw each other. That wasn't weird, right? Maybe he was overthinking things. No, he was definitely overthinking things. Anyways.

The main hall of the airport was sparse, composed of chairs that were mostly empty. The few people that inhabited them were lost in whatever activity they had chosen to busy themselves with, whether it was reading a book or scrolling through a phone. The café was to his right. Rody wrinkled his nose as they passed by, the smell of coffee and confections overwhelmingly strong when paired with the din of the surrounding conversation.

With Lala's hand gripping his own, Rody guided them towards the empty ring of chairs. They both just had to deal with it.

And, thankfully, not for long.

The moment he saw that familiar, bright yellow backpack, he felt his heart leap into his throat. With that leap, he saw Pino fly out to greet him, excitement overpowering the exhaustion that had been plaguing him all morning. It was difficult to see from this distance, but he saw Deku's face light up, mouth twisting into a dimpled grin as he greeted the bird. Even with the cacophony around them, he could hear his "Hi Pino!" Then, he traced Pino's flight path back to where they were seated. Their eyes met. Rody acknowledged him with a nonchalant wave as the hero rushed over to greet them.

"It's so nice to see you all again!" Deku beamed. He was dressed in casual attire: a white shirt with text he couldn't read, a blue puffer vest, and a nice pair of jeans. He was dragging a luggage case behind him. Pino had settled on his shoulder with a serene expression on her face. "How are you both doing?"

"Good!" Lala answered, bouncing on her heels. "This time, we're gonna show you what's so, what's so great about Otheon!"

"Later," Rody reminded her. "You're still going over to June's."

Lala pouted.

"Aw, it's okay!" Deku knelt down. "It just means you have something to look forward to for tomorrow."

"I guess…"

Deku gave her a sympathetic look.

"Let's walk and talk, 'kay?" Rody gestured towards the door with his head.

"Oh! On the way, you can tell me what you and your friend June are going to do!"

Lala perked back up.

The walk back home was pleasant, Lala telling Deku in great detail about how her friend knew all sorts of plants and flowers and how they planned to rip out a bunch of weeds that had overtaken one of the flowerbeds while the hero enthusiastically nodded along. Rody kept a few steps behind them. Pino hadn't returned to him. He eyed her carefully, watching as the shiver that passed down his spine rattled her body. He glanced at Deku.

Rody couldn't be more relieved that he was too distracted to notice.

"Wait up, will you?"

Rody slowed to a halt, craning his neck to look behind him. "Sorry, I didn't realize that a big shot hero such as yourself would have such a hard time keeping up."

"It's not that," Deku pouted. "I didn't realize how uneven the ground was over here."

Rody pulled his hand out of his pocket and scratched at his cheek. "Guess I don't really think about it that much." Eastside didn't have the luxury of regularly maintained roads. The further you were from town, the more makeshift the path. "Watch your step, there's a bit of a divot there."

"Oh, thanks." Deku carefully stepped over it. "Has it always been like this?"

"For as long as I can remember, yeah. Why?"

Deku fell quiet, his face pulling together with the weight of something on his mind. Rody didn't have to wonder for long.

"I… didn't see much from this side of the river. The first time I was here, I mean."

Rody tilted his head.

Deku looked up, tracing the lines of clothes that hung from building to building with his eyes. "When we first landed, Flying Squirrel was there to meet us. We spent very little time here, and the little time we did I was… I guess I was just a little too in my head to actually be aware of anything." He shrugged, poking a piece of rubble to the side with his foot.

"Oh…kay?"

"Sorry, I don't know, I guess I just, feel weird? I mean," he sighed. "I keep thinking about when you told me that—" Deku stopped.

Rody followed his line of sight to a burst of color on the wall, a patch of grafitti he's walked by nearly every day. A valiant hero with a beaming smile, crossed out by white paint. In vibrant red, the words "No hero." Rody glanced back at Deku. He was frozen in place, his lips parted in a quiet gasp. Rody wasn't able to fully parse the emotion that hung on his face. Something surprised. Something conflicted. Something guilty.

"C'mon, let's go," he said, jerking his head in the direction of the train station.

Deku blinked and shook himself off. "Yeah, yeah, okay."

In hindsight, a trip to the train station maaaybe wasn't the best thing for his budding headache.

The train was packed, people standing in the middle of the aisle as they sorted out their luggage. The two boys shuffled awkwardly into their seats, Rody's knees bumping against the back of the seats in front as he sat down. Deku placed his bag by his feet and breathed out slowly, leaning back and patting his lap. "It's, uh, nice to be on the inside this time."

"Don't jinx it, hero."

"I won't."

"Now you've definitely jinxed it."

"I have not!"

"Have too. In a few minutes, the windows are going to shatter and we're going to have to make a run for it again."

"If that happens, I'll protect you like I did last time."

"By diving into the river and almost letting me drown?" Rody asked, quirking a brow.

Deku sputtered. "There weren't really any other options!"

"You could've waited until after I finished choking up water to call your friends."

"I was panicking!"

"You were panicking? At least you were in control of the situation."

"Control? I was barely in control! I didn't intend for a villain to start shooting at us!"

"Well, sure, but you weren't the one being lugged around like dead weight. How do you think I felt?"

"I mean—! Well, okay, yeah." Deku's face fell. He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, cheeks tinged with embarrassment. "Sorry."

Rody elbowed him. "Hey, don't sweat it, hero. I'm just teasing." His smile faltered and he looked away, focusing on the back of the seats in front of him. With sincerity, he added "You got me into that mess, but… if you hadn't, I wouldn't be where I am now. I appreciate it." Appreciation didn't feel like enough.

Deku nudged him back. "Give yourself some credit; you made the effort to change."

The train started forward. Rody glanced outside, watching colorful buildings inch away.

He whistled. "This is a weird mood we've created."

"Yeah, it is." Deku smiled a little. His eyes traveled around the room, presumably looking for something else to talk about. Then, he paused. "Pino seems pretty sluggish today," he said, shooting him a pointed look.

Rody shrugged. "Kinda hard to fall asleep when you know your favorite hero is gonna be in town the next day." A half-truth. Pino slumped against his neck, trilling softly.

"I know how that is," Deku said lightheartedly. His brow pinched forward. "Do… you wanna head back? It's okay if—"

"I can sleep later," Rody replied, waving him off. "It's selfish, but all I really want is to have some time alone with you."

Deku drew in a breath. Then, his expression softened, a warm glow radiating from his eyes as he looked him over, gaze lingering on Pino. He exhaled, nodding his head. Whatever he was going to say, he decided against it.

Rody sunk back into his seat, drumming his fingers along his knee. He didn't like the look on Deku's face when he saw Pino. He didn't like that he hadn't noticed her coming out, either.

In response, Pino shuffled closer, hiding underneath his collar. He breathed out a sigh, lifting a hand and stroking her cheek with a finger.

The dull ache behind his eyes had worsened. It's fine, he repeated. It's fine.

Deku took charge once they reached the city. They hadn't made concise plans for what they'd do once they arrived, partially because there wasn't really anything Rody found to be all that remarkable other than the swathes of tourist traps littered around every corner. He knew of a few nice views, a few neat shops, a few interesting museums, but it wasn't anything he felt particularly up to doing. The idea was to walk around and, if something caught Deku's eye, they'd check it out or note it for later.

Having Deku's attention anywhere other than his exterior soul was just an added bonus.

"You sure you don't want anything to eat?" Deku asked, offering him a pastry.

"Ate too much at breakfast," Rody lied, waving him off. The malassada stand they stopped by was one of his personal favorites but the thought of eating something fried, let alone eating made his stomach hurt.

They stood there for a few minutes more, Deku finishing the last bite of pastry before wiping his fingers off on a napkin and glancing around for a trashcan.

The day continued on like that, moments of mundanity flavored with his friend's presence. Not much had caught his eye yet. Rody got the feeling that Deku was just as inexperienced with the notion of doing, well, normal activities as him. Or maybe he was just looking for something specific.

"Do you know how many heroes are out?"

"Wh—" Rody cleared his throat. That tickle wasn't there before. "Sorry, what? Out?"

"Out on patrol. I'm surprised I haven't seen a single one."

Rody racked his brain for patrol schedules. "Might be because it's Squirrel today. Have you looked up at all?"

"I haven't!" His eyes snapped towards the skies, scanning for any trace of the flying hero.

"What, you looking to get into some trouble? Cause if you want, I know—"

"Wh— no!" Deku was astounded. "Rody, I thought—"

"Relax, I'm kidding. I am curious, though, as to why you're looking."

"Oh, well, it's a bit of a habit." He drummed his fingers excitedly. "I've been studying heroes ever since I was a kid. Costumes, fighting styles, signature moves…! I have it all logged in my hero notebooks. I was hoping to add some of Otheon's heroes to them. Do you wanna see? I can—!" he started reaching for his bag.

"Woah, right now? Don't you want to find some place to sit first? Might be a little easier."

"I don't mind! I have… a lot… of practice." Deku tugged on the zipper. It had caught on the fabric of his bag. People moved around them, a few passerbys casting odd looks.

"Here, how about this: we find someplace to sit and then you can show me your hero books."

Deku paused to consider. "Yeah, sure!"

Finding said place to sit turned out to be a challenge in itself. They walked by numerous tables set up around numerous shops, each and every one miraculously having their seats filled by people sitting around and gossiping about whatever. It was annoying. To make things worse, the persistant tickle in his throat was driving him nuts.

Rody cleared his throat. It almost ended as a cough.

Wuh oh.

If he coughed, he could just chalk it up to not having anything to drink, right? Deku wouldn't assume that anything was wrong. That was a normal thing that happened. It wasn't anything to be nervous about. Why would he be nervous about it? He was fine. He was fine and coughing was fine and the day would just continue on as normal and he'd wake up feeling better tomorrow and everything would be fine—

Rody jerked back, catching himself just before he walked into a complete stranger. He blinked, once, twice, before realizing that Deku wasn't next to him. He turned around. He hadn't even noticed that his friend had slowed down, wholly absorbed in whatever was across the street. He studied him briefly, taking note of how his grip had tightened around the straps of his backpack, absently thumbing at the fabric, before deciding to see what had grabbed the hero's attention.

There was a small shop shadowed by a vibrantly-colored awning, casting blue and yellow light onto the sidewalk below. An array of daffodils were planted in the window boxes. A small chalkboard easel was propped up against the wall with the words "HUGO'S HEROISM ANTIQUES" written in big bubble text.

He looked around. As luck would have it, there was even a bench nearby.

Rody held his breath. He was never one for missing oppurtunities, after all. "I can wait out here."

"You sure?"

"I wouldn't be offering if I wasn't." Rody walked over to the bench and dropped himself into it, dismissing his friend with a wave. "Go on, knock yourself out."

Deku looked between him and the shop, rocking on his heels. "I'll be right out!"

It wasn't until the hero was fully out of sight that Rody finally relented, slightly blue in the face as he threw his arm up, his lungs seized by a coughing fit. Once it subsided, he sunk back into the bench with a sigh. He could run a mile, weave effortlessly through crowds, soar across rooftops all while hardly breaking a sweat, and yet here he was, bogged down by some stupid little cold. He might as well had been thrown into the river with how much his head was swimming.

He crossed his arms, adjusting himself. The bench wasn't too uncomfortable. The air had grown somewhat chilly but it wasn't unpleasant. Even the passing conversations weren't as obnoxious as usual. Maybe a little shuteye couldn't hurt…

The next 30 minutes proved otherwise.

"—dy? Roooooody?"

Rody groaned, blinking his eyes open to a bleary street.

"Sorry to wake you," Deku said with a note of amusement. He had been very gentle when waking him up, almost as though he'd anticipated that this would happen. "Is the lack of sleep catching up to you?"

"Just a little." Rody stifled a yawn, wiping his eyes as he sat up. Nails scratched at the inside of his throat. "Sorry."

"No worries." Deku gave him a sympathetic glance as he pulled away, clasping his hands together. His eyes wandered over to his other shoulder where Pino currently resided. Pino… Rody didn't know what she looked like at the present moment but, judging by the subtle shift in Deku's expression, it couldn't have been great. The following question only confirmed it. "Are… are you feeling okay?"

"Never better," he answered, offering a smile. As he did, Pino coughed, her tiny body jerking from the force of it. Rody kept smiling.

"Rody."

"Okay, okay, sheesh!" He crossed his arms, focusing on the brightly colored banner that hung across the street. "So… maybe I'm not 100%."

Deku looked at him expectantly.

Rody sighed, dropping his head. "Roro brought something home from school. Lala caught it too. They're better now buuuuuut I guess it's my turn now. It's just a headcold, though." He paused to clear his throat. "Nothing to worry about."

Deku furrowed his brow, green eyes darting between him and Pino as his lips pressed into a thin line. His fingers drummed rapidly against his pantleg before stopping abruptly. Before Rody could process what he was doing, an icy cold palm pressed against his forehead. He flinched, swatting Deku's hand away with the back of his hand.

"For now. Rody, you have a fever."

"You don't know that for sure," he bit back, swallowing thickly. The tickle in his throat had grown persistent again.

"I don't need a thermometer to know that you're not feeling well."

"… So?"

"So?!" Deku recoiled back, astonished. "You need to rest."

Rody looked at the bench and shrugged. "We're resting right now, aren't we?"

"No, I mean—" he let out an exasperated sigh. "You need to go home."

"What?! No, Deku, c'mon—" Rody cleared his throat again, holding back a cough. "You're only here for a week! Can you blame me for wanting to make the most of our time together?"

Deku opened his mouth and then closed it. He studied his face for a few seconds, the corners of his mouth dropping into a frown before he let out a quiet sigh. "Well, no, but… Rody, I don't want you to sacrifice your health just to spend time with me." His gaze fell. "That… doesn't really make me feel great?" A pang of guilt thumped against Rody's chest. Deku must've seen something— Rody didn't know what Pino was doing— because the ridges of worry on his face softened. "I can't force you to do anything you don't want to, but… if it's alright with you, I do want to take you home and I want to help you rest."

Rody closed his eyes, chewing the inside of his cheek. Around him, the world continued as usual. People passed by them on the street, hardly paying attention to their conversation on the bench. Somewhere down the way, he could hear laughter. A light breeze passed overhead, cold against his skin.

It was that breeze that made him think about himself. Really think about himself.

He thought about how heavy his limbs felt, the ache that picked away at his muscles. He thought about the dryness in his mouth, the cough that lurked at the base of his throat. He thought about the worsening pain behind his eyes, the uncomfortable heat that burned at his cheeks. And he thought about how, even in the darkness behind his eyelids, he could still feel the world spinning.

There was no point in beating around the bush any longer: he felt terrible. Even terrible felt like sugarcoating it.

Rody scrunched up his brow as he nodded his head. "… Yeah, okay. Fine."

The sun had disappeared below the horizon by the time they made it back, the last traces of orange sky melting into the blue of night. Warm light had begun to fill the surrounding trailers, lit windows spotlighting various patches of dirt and grass. A few of his neighbors were outside, sitting around makeshift tables with bottles and cigarettes, sharing stories about the workday. One man, Rody recognized him as the father of one of Roro's classmates, briefly acknowledged him with a wave before returning his attention to his buddies.

As he started up the steps, Rody found himself lurching forward, his foot caught underneath a plank. He threw his arms out to catch himself, only to find that he was suspended mid-fall. "Thanks, hero. I can always count on you to have my back."

Deku hummed, pulling him to his feet. His fingers loosened around his coat but his hand remained firm on his back. Rody shrugged him off before pulling open the door.

"We're hooome," he called out.

Roro's head snapped up. His face lit up as soon as he saw the green-haired boy, dropping his pencil as he launched up from the couch. "Deku!"

"Oh, hi Roro! It's nice to see you again."

Roro gawked at the hero, looking him up and down. "How was your flight? Did you stop any vi— wait…" he furrowed his brow, glancing towards the clock. "Aren't you guys home a bit early? Rody said that you guys weren't going to be back till around 10."

"Yeah, about that…" Deku rubbed the back of his neck, looking back towards Rody. "He's not feeling well so we decided to call it for the day."

Roro's face dropped.

"It's just a headcold," Rody quickly added. "Don't sweat it, alright? I'll be fine. How was school?"

Roro examined him for a few seconds before launching into a recap of his day. Standard day, relatively uneventful save for a bird that had flown in through a vent. His brother smiled when telling him about how his teacher had panicked, quickly directing them out of the classroom, but Rody could tell that the recollection did little to ease the guilt that hung over his shoulders.

"What kind of bird was it?" Deku asked.

"Uh, I think a pigeon? It was kinda hard to tell from all the flapping but it was gray." Roro looked at the clock again. "What time is Lala supposed to be home?"

"8:30-ish. Her friend's mom was gonna walk her over buuuut do you think you can handle picking her up? Just so she knows what to expect."

"Duh. They're just around the corner."

"Thanks, little man." Rody cleared his throat, suddenly feeling very awkward. "Soooo… I guess, uh, I'm gonna go lay down, so… y'know." He turned towards Deku, gesturing at the cabinets. "If you need anything, just ask or, y'know, help yourself. I don't care. What's ours is yours and all that."

"Oh, um, alright."

Not knowing what else to do, Rody gave him a thumbs up before slipping into the bedroom, leaving any care of being a decent host behind.

He shrugged off his jacket, throwing it over the corner chair and collapsing onto the bed. With as minimal effort as possible, he kicked off his shoes, letting them fall unceremoniously to the floor. He saved his hairband and hairtie for last, placing them on the nightstand before rolling onto his back. Pino rolled with him, flopping onto the pillow.

The day wasn't supposed to turn out like this. This? This sucked. There weren't enough words in the dictionary to describe just how much this sucked. He wanted to crawl into a hole and— no, not die; someone needed to be there for his siblings. He wanted to crawl into a hole and wallow in self-pity. Yeah, that sounded better.

There was a gentle knock on the wall. No doors meant no privacy but Deku still found a way to remain polite.

"Here," Deku said, handing him a bottle of fever reducer.

"Huh! Who knew being sick would get me my own personal nurse?" Rody quipped.

Deku rolled his eyes. His cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

Rody sat up, studying the bottle in his hand before pouring himself the recommended dosage. He stared at the darkly colored gloop, gently swirling it around and around before downing it in one go. He gagged, clasping a hand over his mouth and shuddering. "Eckk. Does it have to be so thick and awful. Ugh."

"Well, they have to make sure no one takes more than they're supposed to."

"Yeah yeah, I know. Just… ugh. It couldn't be just a smidge nicer? I mean, okay, the taste, sure, whatever, that can stay awful, but thick? Blech. Way to make it harder to stay down." Rody set the bottle down on the nightstand and pushed it away.

Deku rubbed his arm, the floorboards creaking as he shifted awkwardly on his feet. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Have you eaten today? Like, actually eaten?"

"What, you don't believe me? For shame."

Deku pursed his lips.

"… Can't get anything past you, huh?" Rody sighed, crossing his arms. "I tried to, okay? I wasn't gonna force it. I'll just make myself some soup or something tomorrow, no big deal."

"If you want, I can heat some up for you right now."

Rody squinted. "Wh—" he broke off into a stifled cough. "I'm sorry, what." He continued, interjecting before the green-haired boy could respond. "Look, Deku, I appreciate the thought but… this is your vacation. I don't want you to waste it doing things for me because of my failure of an immune system."

"I don't mind."

"Well, I do."

Deku frowned, his big, stupid eyes falling to his side. Couldn't he at least try to be subtle when looking at her?

Rody took a deep breath and sighed. "Whatever." He reached over, tugging the blanket over him as he laid back down. "Small pot is in the drawer underneath the oven. Roro can show you which cabinet stores our food."

"… Are you sure?"

"Do whatever, man—" another coughing fit racked his lungs. He buried it in his pillow.

Deku didn't respond that time. Rody could feel his eyes on him, burning holes through the thick blanket. And then he finally, finally, walked away.

As he listened to the quiet conversation that carried down the hall, to the sound of cupboards opening and closing, Rody took the time alone to think.

There were many things he hated about his current predicament. Being sick was one thing. The fact that Deku could see it with his own two eyes was another.

Rody was the caretaker. He raised his siblings, took care of each and every one of their needs to the best of his ability. He helped keep Deku's arrow wound under check back when they were on the run. He was meant to look after others, not the other way around.

He didn't need Deku to take care of him. He didn't need Deku to do anything for him.

Pino huddled closer, wilting from the shame that weighed heavy in his chest. Her feathers had lost their luster, disheveled from the illness that rattled both of their systems. Tears beaded in the corner of her tired eyes.

Slowly, Rody raised a hand, sliding his thumb underneath her mask and peeling it off. She cooed softly, nudging his palm with her beak. He sighed, setting the mask on top of his hairband before stroking her cheek with his finger. What an awful night this was turning out to be.

About five minutes had passed before Deku returned.

"I'll just, um, leave this here." He set the bowl down on the nightstand. Rody expected him to leave after that. Instead, he heard the sound of a chair being placed next to the bed.

Rody craned his neck over his shoulder. "What are you doing," he flatly asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Deku laughed, taking a seat.

"Looks to me like you're asking to get sick." Rody rolled over, glancing down at the phone in the other boy's hands. "If you wanna watch something, why not do it in the living room? You're free to use the tv."

"I know, but…" Deku trailed off, thumbing the corner of his phone. "…you're not in the living room. You're in here."

Rody bit the inside of his cheek, sitting up slowly.

Deku continued, keeping his voice soft as to not let his words escape down the hall. "You said earlier that you wanted to make the most of our time together. Hasn't it occurred to you that I want that, too?" He went quiet after that, absently fiddling with his phone.

From somewhere to his side, Rody could feel a shudder tear through Pino as she melted into the pillow. It did occur to him. Of course it did. Hearing it said aloud… it left his insides feeling all soft and gooey like a marshmallow staked over a campfire. Maybe the fever really was frying his brain.

Rody grabbed his bowl, balancing it carefully on his lap. He twisted his spoon between his fingers, staring at the piping hot soup. All they had was chicken noodle. The noodles were shaped like flowers. He prodded at a tulip. "… I'm serious about the 'getting sick' thing."

"I'll be fine. I have a pretty strong immune system."

"What was it you said earlier? 'I can't force you to do anything you don't want to'? Yeah, so, with that in mind, let's put it on record that Izuku Midoriya, hero name 'Deku', willingly chose to spend time with a sick person, saying that 'he'd be fine.'"

Deku rolled his eyes, lightly shaking his head.

"… Thanks, by the way. For the soup."

"You're welcome."

Rody burned his tongue. "AH."

"Oh, careful! It's still pretty hot."

"Yeah, I got that." He blew on the next spoonful. "So, whaddya gonna watch?"

"Hm? Oh!" Deku scooted closer, showing him his screen. "It's an hour-long video essay about defunct hero attractions in America."

"That's a thing?"

"Yeah! From the research I was able to do on this topic, it was an early effort to garner mainstream approval from civillians, around when heroes were first becoming popularized. I could never really find anything about why these attractions were eventually abandoned…"

"Sounds like there was maybe some sort of scandal." Rody paused to take a sip of his sufficiently cooled soup. "Mind if I watch with you?"

Deku beamed.

The rest of the night was… oddly comfortable. When Lala came home, she was, of course, upset to learn that he was sick but was too tired to really hound him about it, much to his relief. That would be tomorrow's headache. Roro took care of her, taking after Rody's example and ushering her to the couch. It wouldn't be the first time they've had to sleep there, but Rody couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt each time.

They didn't stay up too late themselves, having made it through most of the — admittedly interesting — video before Rody could hardly keep his eyes open. As he settled back into bed, he felt a knot unravel, a tangled web of anxiety and stress that had twisted up his insides since the morning. There was no grief over Deku putting up his bowl. No argument about him deciding to sleep on the floor. No further embarrassment over being sick. They still had the rest of the week. Everything was going to be okay.

Besides, no matter what happened, Rody did have something to look foward to: telling Deku "I told you so" when he inevitably gets sick.