Work Text:
You roll uncomfortably in your bed, tossing and turning for what feels like hours at this point. Unfortunately, your uterus has decided to bless you with your menstrual cycle coming a little early this month. It seems to have also decided to give you some of the most painful cramps you’ve had the absolute pleasure to experience… Great…
You already took some painkillers, but it hasn’t been long enough for them to kick in properly. Also great… You knew you should’ve taken them sooner, but you figured they wouldn’t be that bad. Until, suddenly, they were. So, now you lie with a heating pad that feels like it’s barely there on your lower abdomen and a blanket covering your entire body, head to toe.
You lie for a while, giving up on moving and opting just to remain lying on your back, being able to think about nothing but the excruciating pain in your body.
Why… Why does it have to be this way? You go through this thought process every month when you get punched in the gut and forced to deal with the uncomfortable physical and emotional feelings that come with possessing a uterus. Something that you didn’t even ask for, mind you. Just a fact of life that, unfortunately, if you’re born with female anatomy, you must go through the motions and suffer the consequences.
Well, not exactly consequences since you didn’t actually do anything to warrant- OW. OW. OWIE. OUCH. Okay, another wave has hit, and it somehow feels worse than before.
You wince, curling into yourself as you groan out loud, “Owww…” Your face scrunches up uncontrollably, and you curl into a ball and wrap your arms around yourself in a feeble attempt to stop this agonizing pain.
After a minute or so, your eyes open and find your nightstand that you’re now facing. You spot your phone sitting there, and a thought comes to mind: you have a wonderful boyfriend in the same building as you, just an elevator ride and a short walk away. You think for a moment longer, contemplating whether you should bother him with this.
“He’s probably tired of hearing about your pain every month…” or “He might be busy with something, it could be a bad time to bug him…” On and on, your brain gives you reasons not to contact him and ask him for some comfort and allow you to vent.
But, finally, after you get hit with yet another spike of pain, you push through the hesitation and text him. He cares about you. He'd want to help in any way he can, he’s told you so a thousand times. You should really believe him more!
You hastily grab your phone off the nightstand and tap to his contact. You start typing…
You: owieeeee :((((
Izu <33: What’s wrong hun??
You: my uterus hates me and wants me dead every month and im SICK OF IT.
You: fucking free me please i’m actually begging OW OW OW
Izu <33: Oh baby :(
Izu <33: I’m so sorry you have to deal with this 😢
Izu <33: I’m coming over to your dorm now! Any requests on my way?
You: izuuuu :(((((((( you’re too good to me i don’t deserve you
Izu <33: You do though love ♥️ you deserve so much more too :)
You: just bring yourself and maybe one of your shirts that’s all i need 🥹
Izu <33: You got it! I’ll be there in 5!!
You: thank you 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
Izu <33: Anything for you ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️!!!!
Well, that was fast… if you’d known it’d be that easy, and that you wouldn’t even have to ask him yourself, you would’ve texted him an hour ago when this all started! At least he’s on his way now, and you’ll have your much-needed warm boyfriend cuddles in no time!
Around 10 minutes later, he knocks at your door. You call out a “Come in!” and he quickly obliges, shutting the door behind him and dropping his bag and shoes by the door.
“Hi, honey…” he turns to you with his usual gentle smile. “Sorry I took so long, I decided to make you a tea to help with the cramps.”
You glance down at his hands and notice, now, that he has your favorite mug full of what appears to be your favorite hot tea.
“Oh... Izuku.” The warmth that swells in your chest at this simple gesture is immeasurable. There are no words to describe how grateful you are for him, to have him in your life.
“Thank you…” is all you can muster, trying to sound as sincere as you feel.
“It's no problem.” His smile never falters as he sets the mug down on your nightstand and turns to you.
You reach your arms out for a hug, welcoming him into your warm bed. He happily accepts and hugs you close while sighing contentedly. You nuzzle into his neck and just hold him there for a while, as he begins to rub slow circles on your back in an attempt to help you feel better. And it most certainly is working. You already began to forget about the pain you were in moments ago (and the pain killers seem to finally be doing their job).
“How has your day been?” you ask softly. He hums in thought for a moment.
“It's been good. I was just studying for the upcoming exam most of the day.” You giggle a little at that, as the exam he’s referring to isn’t for another two months. But it’s Izuku, of course; he likes to be prepared for anything that comes his way, the unstoppable force of nature he is.
“But then you texted, in need of a hero.” You both laugh to yourselves, and you roll your eyes in jest. “So now I'm here…” he smiles down at you and kisses your forehead lightly, “and I'm so happy to be.”
You smile uncontrollably at his genuine affection for you. You genuinely can’t wrap your brain around it. This man, the one who saved the world and went through so much to do it, loves you. You, of all people. It feels like a dream, honestly…
“You know, I almost didn’t text you…” you start, and he looks down at you a little concerned and confused. “I didn't wanna bother you if you were busy or something.” You huff. You already know what he’s going to say, but still, it doesn’t hurt to hear it again.
“Oh, baby…” he coos, and holds you closer, hugging you a little tighter, like maybe it’ll help his words finally stick. “You never bother me. I'm always happy to be there for you.” He hates that you always come back to this thinking. It's gotten better since being with him, but he knows you can’t just get rid of these thoughts so easily. Regardless, he continues to do his best and provide any and all reassurance you need.
“I know…” you sigh into him, “I just- you know…” You nuzzle your face back into his neck, and he holds you somehow even more securely. You've never felt more safe with anyone than with him in this moment. God, you just love him. So much, it becomes overwhelming.
As much as you try to hold them in, some tears start to slip past you. “Sorry...” you stutter out as more start coming.
“Oh, hun… It’s okay.” He starts rubbing your back gently again in an attempt to calm you. “Just let it all out, it’s okay,” he says, his voice so soft and gentle and encouraging. It starts to make you cry more at this rate, likely the opposite effect Izuku was going for.
His grip never loosens, though. His movements never slow. He just lets you sob into his neck, keeping you safe and cared for, his heartbeat keeping yours steady, along with his breathing.
Eventually, your tears slow enough that you can speak again. “I just love you so much…” you whisper, pulling back from his shoulder. “You care about me so much and I- I don’t understand it sometimes.” Sighing, you take a moment, as to not start sobbing again. He waits and listens, patient as he watches you.
“But it makes me so happy… It’s impossible to express in words.” You laugh gently to yourself and sniffle. Izuku brings his hands up to your face, cupping your cheeks tenderly and wiping your tears away with his thumbs.
You stay still for a moment, watching his face. His smile never leaves, the love and adoration in his eyes as he stares back at you ever present, and his touch so comforting and delicate. You never want this feeling to end. You could stay like this forever.
Your eyes trail down to his shirt, where you were once sobbing into him. You let out a quiet “Oh,” and chuckle. “Sorry about your shirt...”
His eyes follow to where yours are looking and he chuckles along with you as he sees the wet spot left behind on the fabric. “It’s alright,” he says through his giggles.
Suddenly, he perks up with a small gasp. “Oh! You had asked me for some of my shirts,” he shifts to get up, and you reluctantly let him cross your dorm room to rifle through his trusty yellow backpack. “I wasn’t sure which to bring, so I brought the three I remembered you saying you liked in particular.” He walks back over to you with the neatly folded shirts in his hands.
You sit up as he sets them down on the bed for you to look at. “I hope I picked good… I assume you want them to wear after I leave?” he rubs the back of his neck shyly, and you smile at him, nodding in confirmation of his suspicions.
“Yeah... I needed a refresh. The ones that I…” you pause thinking for a moment, “definitely didn’t steal before, don’t smell like you anymore...” you laugh, a little embarrassed at your own admission. It feels so corny to say out loud, but it’s true.
Izuku laughs at your antics and nods in understanding, moving to check your closet for his missing shirts. Meanwhile, you pick up the three shirts and assess them. He definitely picked well, and his memory served him right: two All Might themed t-shirts and one of his iconic and hilarious “T-shirt” t-shirts.
You pick one up at random and change shirts while Izuku is busy searching for his lost clothes in your closet. You pull the hem down over your head and glance towards the closet, Izuku emerging with a pile of his stolen clothing items.
“And here I thought I was running out of clothes!” he teases you as he moves towards his bag. You blush and scratch your cheek with a guilty expression. You let out a quiet, “My bad…” before the mug on your nightstand catches your eye.
You completely forgot he brought you tea! How rude of you to let it sit there for so long untouched. You move back to sit up and lean against the headboard as you grab the mug off the nightstand carefully. You hold it with two hands in your lap, and Izuku comes and joins you back in bed, snuggling up next to you with an arm draped over your shoulders. You lean into his touch and take a sip of the warm tea.
You smile at the taste. He indeed got your favorite flavor perfect. You hum in satisfaction as you let your eyes close for a minute, soaking in the warmth of tea and your lover beside you.
Izuku watches you with a content smile, feeling accomplished in being able to make you feel better compared to 30 or so minutes ago. His face starts to flush as he quietly watches you, everything he loves about you coming to mind uncontrollably.
“I love you… so much,” is the most he can say to express his thoughts and feelings without going on an entire tangent, like he often will. You open your eyes and look up at him, and you almost struggle to keep eye contact as the statement flusters you a little.
Your face heating up, you simply reply, “I love you too.” Your smile grows when you, too, add “so much.”