Work Text:
Hitoshi knows he shouldn't get attached to Aizawa and Yamada but they make it difficult. They make him comfortable in a way he isn't used to, doesn't know how to guard himself against and it's getting worse every day.
"Hey, kiddo, time to get up!" Yamada cheerfully calls out as he knocks on Hitoshi's door and Hitoshi tenses for a moment, still waiting for him to just come in, to treat this space as his own instead of Hitoshi's, but nothing happens and Hitoshi takes a deep breath before he speaks.
"Coming," he gives back, because he knows from experience that Yamada is going to stay camped out there until Hitoshi gives a sign of life and Hitoshi doesn't hesitate any longer to go over and open the door.
"I'm up," he says and then looks down because Yamada's beaming face is a lot to take sometimes. "Good morning."
"Good morning, kiddo," Yamada happily gives back before his face settles into a frown. "You're up and dressed already. How did you sleep?"
Hitoshi's posture goes rigid for a second because it's too close to so many of his previous foster parent's accusations, but he reminds himself that Yamada doesn't mean it like that.
He's allowed to come out of his room, he's allowed to use the bathroom whenever he wants and Yamada is only asking out of concern.
"I slept a little," he gives back because that's always what he does.
He only ever sleeps a little, has since his quirk first came in, and it's fine. It's totally fine.
"Mh," Yamada hums out and reaches out to push his hand through Hitoshi's hair.
Hitoshi fights his instinct to flinch away, because previously a move like that promised pain and injury, but Yamada's hand is soft and the gesture is sweet in a way Hitoshi isn't used to, but he still leans into it.
"You feeling okay? Is this normal or cause to worry?" Yamada wants to know and Hitoshi is reminded that he hasn't been staying with them for long at all, so of course they don't know that yet.
"It's normal. I think my quirk is the cause," he admits and the contemplating look on Yamada's face doesn't change at all.
"Has someone checked that out yet? Taken you to a quirk specialist?"
Hitoshi snorts out a laugh before he can help himself, because no one ever cared to figure anything out.
"Taking that as a no," Yamada says, his voice weirdly pinched and Hitoshi shrinks in on himself because that sounds like displeasure and displeasure is dangerous.
It means pain for Hitoshi, always, and he really doesn't want to start his day like this.
Yamada seems to immediately notice, because he takes a step back, giving Hitoshi space and it's so thoughtful that Hitoshi feels his eyes burn.
"I'm not angry," Yamada says, because they do that, too.
They explain things to him, they explain themselves to him in a way no one ever has done before and they explain their emotions.
Because sometimes they are angry not because of him but for him and that, too, is something Hitoshi has no reference for because it never happened before.
"I'm not entirely happy either, because your previous guardians should have taken you to a specialist to see if it really is related to your quirk or if there is another reason for it. That's all. You didn't do anything wrong, kiddo."
The reassurance slides down his back like a warm blanket and Hitoshi nods to signal his understanding because he doesn't trust his voice to hold.
"We're going to get that checked out, but for now: have you noticed a change since you came here? More or less sleep, feeling more rested or the opposite? Any change might be worth noting down."
Hitoshi treats the inquiry with the required seriousness and thinks back to all his nights here and then shakes his head.
"No change at all. I mean—I guess I do feel a little bit better cause I sleep deeper here, but the hours haven't changed at all."
And it's the truth—he feels as if he sleeps deeper here than anywhere else, which probably has to do with the fact that he doesn't have to jolt up at any tiny noise, that he doesn't have to worry about his own safety at any given time.
Yamada rewards his answer with a blinding smile before he ruffles Hitoshi's hair again.
"Alright, kiddo, if the hours change you let us know and we'll get on that appointment with a specialist," Yamada promises him and Hitoshi nods his understanding and he knows they mean it.
If they said it, it will happen, because that's just how Yamada and Aizawa are.
"Now, you ready for breakfast?" Yamada asks and that, too, is not a misleading question.
There will be breakfast for him, and there will be as much as he wants, with no restrictions on how much he can eat.
And that might be one of the things Hitoshi loves most here, so he nods and gives Yamada a small smile.
"Ready," he agrees and starts in his day not with a threat of violence but with concern and love.
~*~*~
Hitoshi gnaws at his lower lip, rapidly tapping his pen against his homework sheet and he can feel cold sweat breaking out on his skin.
He can't solve this; there's no way for him to know how to because this is a subject exclusively taught to the hero course and he clearly missed the first part of this, being stuck in Gen Ed and all and so he can't even start to guess on where he should start with this.
There's an obvious solution for this—Aizawa is out in the living-room right now and he keeps telling Hitoshi to ask if there are any problems but it doesn't feel right.
It feels like an admittance of weakness, of stupidity, and those normally come with flying fists and sneered curses and Hitoshi could do without them.
But then again, this is Aizawa, who hasn't done anything to him in all the time he's been staying with them and Aizawa told him to come to him should he ever have problems with his homework.
It's not an easy decision, even with Aizawa's steady reassurances but after another ten minutes spent over his worksheet with no damn clue on where to even start, Hitoshi admits defeat.
He gathers his homework and shuffles out of the room, clutching the papers as if they are a lifeline. Aizawa notices him the moment he steps into the living-room and his eyes fall down to the sheets almost immediately.
"Trouble?" he asks and there's no judgement in his voice, just simple curiosity and it gives Hitoshi the strength to nod. "Come here then," Aizawa says, waving at Hitoshi, while pushing his own papers away, making space on the table.
It looks as if he's been grading and shit, Hitoshi shouldn't have disturbed him, he inconvenienced him and he should go back to his room, he should—
"Breathe," Aizawa says, still seated at the table and merely looking at Hitoshi. "Breathe and relax, you didn't do anything wrong," he reassures him because he always, always knows when Hitoshi is spiralling and Hitoshi forces himself to do as he was told.
He breathes and he relaxes and then he holds out the papers.
"I can't do this," he admits and while normally the admittance that he can't is closely followed by a beating, Aizawa only nods and pats the space next to him.
"Come here and let's go over it together," he offers and Hitoshi does.
He goes over and he spreads out the sheets and Aizawa takes time out of his day to explain it to him in a way that's easy to understand and it barely takes them fifteen minutes until Hitoshi gets started on scribbling on the page.
Hitoshi is so engrossed in his homework that he startles badly when a cup of tea is suddenly put down in front of him.
"Time for a break," Aizawa gently reminds him and a quick glance at the clock reveals that Hitoshi has been working on this non-stop for almost an hour.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to—"
"And you didn't," Aizawa cuts him off before Hitoshi can even figure out what he's apologising for and Aizawa's voice doesn't allow any argument. "You've been working very diligently and now you need a break, that's just how it is."
There's no judgement in his voice, nothing that makes Hitoshi believe that he's displeased or even angry and so he allows himself to relax again.
"Thank you," he quietly says and grabs his tea, wrapping his hands around the cup and leeching its warmth.
"You're welcome, kid. Homework makes more sense now?" Aizawa asks, sitting back down next to Hitoshi and he nods.
"Yeah, thanks again for explaining," he mumbles into his tea and Aizawa pats his head.
"No problem. If there's ever anything else that gives you trouble, ask away."
It's an offer he has repeatedly put out there but today was the first day Hitoshi really took him up on it and if this is how it's always going to go then Hitoshi will ask him more often.
"Can I—stay out here?" Hitoshi hesitantly asks once his tea is gone and he's tensing up in anticipation of Aizawa telling him to get lost and to hide himself away in his room, because out of sight, out of mind after all, but Aizawa only gives him a small smile.
"I'd like that. School work—no matter if it's homework or grading—is always much more fun if you have company for it."
It's an open invitation to keep Aizawa company whenever one of them have to work on something like this and it makes Hitoshi's eyes burn, so he quickly ducks his head.
"Okay," he eventually agrees and just like that, they get back to it.
And homework doesn't feel all that bad like this.
~*~*~
Hitoshi is nodding off on the couch, but he's determined to stay up until he finished the book they were assigned to read, Yamada’s radio show running quietly in the background, but it seems as if Aizawa has a different idea because the book is being pried out of his hands.
"Hey," Hitoshi sluggishly says, his vision barely staying clear and Aizawa bonks the book slightly on his head.
"Go to sleep, kid. You're almost there anyway and you won't remember what you read now. You still have time, there's no need to rush."
Hitoshi pouts and makes grabby hands at the book but when Aizawa continues to keep it out of reach, Hitoshi flops back down on the couch, and just laying down is enough to almost drag him into sleep.
"In your bed," Aizawa admonishes him and pokes Hitoshi's side until he grumbles and pushes himself up.
"Alright, alright, stop nagging, dad, I'm going. Good night," Hitoshi slurs out, stumbling over his own feet on his way to the bedroom and he faceplants into bed without another thought passing through his mind.
Hitoshi sleeps blissfully until he's rudely awakened by something slapping his face.
He jolts upright, wildly looking around as his heart rapidly beats away in his chest, and it takes him a long moment to notice Aizawa standing next to his bed, his arms crossed in front of his chest and some sheets sitting in Hitoshi's lap.
"What the hell," he mumbles, but instead of explaining, Aizawa only nods at the papers, so Hitoshi takes them and quickly skims them.
And he must be dreaming, he must still be sleeping, or maybe he's hallucinating because—
"Did you just hit me with adoption papers?" he weakly asks, his hands shaking where they are clutching the sheets and Aizawa tilts his head.
"Well, did you hit me with a dad-bomb?" he gives back and it takes Hitoshi a moment to understand what he's talking about but when he finally remembers, he goes bright red in the face.
"I—that was—I did?" he finally offers, his voice shaking and he would think he's in trouble, but the papers in his hands say something else.
"You did," Aizawa says with a nod.
"And because of that you—"
"No," Aizawa immediately cuts him off and sits down on the edge of Hitoshi's bed. "We've had these papers for a while, because we want to adopt you. Have wanted to do that since the moment we took you in, but we wanted to give you time to get used to us, time to adjust, time to figure out if you'd want that. But you seem plenty comfortable to us now and with that little slip—we figure it's time."
"Time to—"
"Ask you. If you want us to adopt you."
It's not a question Hitoshi ever expected, because he bid that dream farewell a long, long time ago and to have it offered to him like this again brings out tears Hitoshi wasn't prepared for.
He's scared of getting any of them on the papers so he quickly lowers them and since he doesn't trust his voice, he simply nods so hard his hair flops around and Aizawa's face goes all soft.
"Alright," Aizawa gently says and pulls Hitoshi forward so he can fall into his chest. "We'll hand them in as soon as the office opens," he promises and Hitoshi continues to cry because that means they want that, they want to call him their son and not just kid or kiddo like they have been doing and just the thought of that is overwhelming in the best kind of way.
"Thanks, dad," Hitoshi says, testing it out, saying it consciously, and Aizawa hums.
"You're welcome, son," he softly says and Hitoshi is pretty certain he can never put into words just how much this means to him.
Going by the way Aizawa holds him for the rest of the night, Hitoshi guesses he knows it anyway.