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“Don’t come home.”
The words stung.
Yet—
At the end of the day, he’d half-expected Inko to say something eventually, maybe even sooner, yet knowing he wouldn’t be welcome in his own home left a thudding ache. He sat there in his hospital bed, bandages around his middle, knowing she’d finally reached her breaking point.
“You know how I feel about all of this, how finding out may impact Izuku. It’s why we don’t talk about what you do, what you really do at home.”
“You know that wasn’t…” Hisashi started saying, “…the original reason we didn’t,” only for Inko to snap.
“I had to hide the paper, Ashi! I had to hide the paper because your face was splashed across the front page, making it bloody obvious that you were not only a Pro Hero, but that Izuku’s dad was a Pro Hero when you know very well,” Inko cried, and when she cried, he always broke, just as he broke whenever Izuku cried, just as he broke—
“When that other child cried.”
“You know our Quirkless son aims to be a Pro Hero, but you do nothing to discourage this when you’re home. You had to ask him how he planned on doing this without a Quirk, which gave him the idea it was possible! And now he’s got his hopes up for the entrance exams, only he’ll have it completely dashed to pieces!”
A part of him wanted to say, “Why can’t he?”, but he held his tongue, letting her berate him.
“How is it you can never tell him no!”
“Now hold on,” Hisashi said. “That’s very unfair, but I told you, my family situation…”
“I don’t know what’s so horrible about your family situation that you can’t tell a child no to something dangerous like this!”
“Why?”
He remembered another person telling another child that they couldn’t become a hero, how that backfired, how he’d been forced to cut ties, yet did their situation with Izuku even compare, as Inko was inclined to believe, always thankful she’d not made the connection, as Izuku being Quirkless frazzled her enough as it was.
“Is this about Izuku, or is it about me, Inko?”
And then she looked at him, tears welling in her eyes. She didn’t have to say because he knew her to well, that Inko hated not knowing if he’d come home at night, and how he almost didn’t, and how she’d worry he’d leave her for a prettier face, given the weight she gained from worrying over their son’s situation, no matter how many times he told her she was still the most beautiful woman in the world to him.
“I just can’t do this, but things would be easier if you just didn’t come home, Ashi. Please. I just can’t.”
“Will it?” he wanted to say, but instead, “Okay.” Because he always did what his Inko wanted, following the boundaries she set. “I’ll follow your lead.”
“I think you should go back to using your family name.”
Hands clenched the sheets as he swallowed, before asking, “Are you sure?” He could hear his voice breaking. “Are you absolutely sure, Inko?”
She looked at him, then looked away, meaning the next words out of her mouth would be avoidance of some kind. “Of course I am.”
“No, no, you aren’t,” he thought, yet part of him chided himself that maybe he was kidding himself, his entire world breaking.
“I need to get home,” she said, shifting her purse. “I need to take care of Izuku and make sure he doesn’t find any newspaper articles on this.”
And as much as he wanted to protest, as much as he tried to say he wanted them both in his life, or that she might change his mind, he let her go, always wanting to do right by them, yet never knowing how, particularly given—
“Backdraft, sir?”
“Uh, yes?” His voice trembled, while he wondered how the others from the same area were doing after being attacked by Stain.
“There’s another Pro Hero here to see you.”
“Oh,” he said. “To ask me what happened?”
“I guess. The number two hero seems a bit high up, though.”
To which his eyes widened, his breath hitching. “Ah, yes. Well.” He swallowed. Then his mouth twitched. “He’ll likely light your reception desk on fire if you don’t let him, so…”
“Uh, I understand, sir,” the medical staff member said, hurrying off, though he knew they couldn’t possibly understand, but when the Pro Hero arrived—
“En-en!” he said, putting on his most cheerful smile. “What do I owe this visit to?”
“Cut the crap, Hisashi,” which resulted in the staff member flinching upon hearing Endevour use Hisashi’s given name, but Hisashi waved them away as the man stepped in.
Easily, he could tell the man in front of him to cut the crap himself, finding his visit beyond frustrating, particularly after Inko came in and pretty much said things were likely over between them, but instead, he changed the subject, or tried to. “How are Rei and the kids?”
Endevour glanced over his shoulder before pulling the door shut and making to take a seat. “Rei’s being treated for her mental health.”
Hisashi swallowed, noting how Endevour cut himself off. “So…” He said slowly. “I saw you managed to squash that dream of his.”
Endevour stiffened, looking right at him. “What?”
“Toya. Becoming a hero. I looked for his name, you know.”
The man continued staring, then, “Hisashi. Toya’s dead.”
Which made his blood run cold. “What?”
“He was thirteen.”
“And you didn’t…” Hisashi felt himself breaking all over again, his mind pounding as he fought back, bursting into tears in front of that person, that person who did so much damage because, “You didn’t think, Enji, I should know that…” He choked out the words. “That my nephew’s dead?”
“And who the hell was the person who cut ties, changed his name to make sure I couldn’t find him?”
“You damn no well why, but if you had listened! Only listened!”
“I shouldn’t have come,” Enji said, getting up. “I don’t need a lecture from you all over again.”
The man stepped through the door as Hisashi snapped. “Rei’s in a mental hospital, obviously, even though you don’t say it, and Toya’s dead!”
“I don’t see…”
“Damn it, Enji!” Hisashi said. “This is just like Oto-san all over again!”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re doing the exact same thing as when he died.”
“What are you even…”
“You’re hurting! And refusing help from everyone!” Hisashi said.
“This was years ago.”
“And so was dad’s death before Rei and Toya got you out of that funk, but you’re right back there!” Hisashi said.
“What would you know?”
“I know my aniki better than he may know himself,” Hisashi said, feeling himself break. “And I saw what Toya’s situation…”
“Enough. We’re not talking about this! If you cared, you would never have left in the first place! I shouldn’t have come, but don’t expect me to reach out again, Backburn.”
“It’s Backdraft,” Hisashi said, his voice straining, only for his older brother to respond by slamming the hospital door shut behind him, but in the end, Hisashi knew how stubborn the man could be.
“Backdraft, sir?”
Hisashi sighed, his head aching, hand to his eye as tears began to flow.
“Should I report…”
“No. Please don’t,” Hisashi sighed. “I don’t want to trouble Endevour-san any more than…”
“I know he’s the number two hero, but he shouldn’t…”
“No, no,” Hisashi said. “Please. It has nothing to do with En-En being the number two hero. It’s…” He took a deep breath. “Complicated. Uh…” He glanced at the palm of his hand, noticing how wet it was. “We’ve just not talked in a long time, and he let slip something that…” He leaned back, arms going limp. “I’m not upset with him, but the news he delivered. That’s all.”
“Oh.”
“So, uh, can I have some privacy?” he asked. “I mean, uh. Someone died, so…”
“Oh. Because of the Stain incident?” She gave a slight bow. “Yes. I’ll give you some privacy.”
He stared, what she said sinking in, and then—
The tears came from the grief over that child, his own, and things with Inko potentially ending, while—
“Why can’t he see just how much he’s hurting, and why can’t nii-san ask for help?” He took a deep breath. “Wow. I’m one to talk, aren’t I?”