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The ‘Class 1-A Family Dinners’, as they were called, had begun after the Kamino incident.
Ashido had approached Iida and Yaoyorozu one afternoon and suggested that the entire class should all eat dinner together at one big table.
“It’s the perfect way to strengthen our bond as a class!” she added, all but begging them to agree.
Iida and Yaoyorozu didn’t have to put much thought into Ashido’s proposition. They both believed that it would be a nice thing for the class to be able to do in the evenings. A set period that would sometimes last thirty minutes, sometimes an hour, maybe even longer occasionally, where the twenty hero hopefuls didn’t have to worry about villains or tests, they could just be themselves and enjoy a meal with their friends? Who could say no to that?
The rest of the class echoed that sentiment and, although Bakugo scoffed, he didn’t complain when Yaoyorozu had asked if he would help her in the kitchen from time to time.
That very night, the students of Class 1-A were sat in twenty dining room chairs all around one large table, which Yaoyorozu had created herself, laughing and bantering as if they weren’t hero students but normal teenagers.
Two weeks later, they had managed to rope Aizawa into eating with them as well. They sat him at the head of the table, where he could watch all twenty of them.
After the war, at the request of Aizawa, they added an extra seat at the other head of the table for Present Mic, who ate with them when he could spare the time between radio segments.
For a while, it was exactly what they needed.
Until it wasn’t.
At least for one person.
As their second year ended and Class 2-A became Class 3-A, their conversation topics changed.
Bakugo’s yelling became quiet declarations of starting his own agency and becoming Number 1.
Iida’s scolding everyone about their table manners became passionate explanations of how he would work with and one day take over the IidaTen agency.
The joking and the laugher quickly turned into real talks about plans for their futures after graduation.
For most of them, it was only natural.
For Denki Kaminari, it was torture.
While the idea of graduating UA and finally becoming heroes was the dream for his classmates, it absolutely terrified him.
He was afraid that his peers would rocket ahead of him, leaving him behind, forgotten in the dust of their successes.
His breaking point came on a Friday evening.
It was one of those nights where both Present Mic and Aizawa had been able to attend dinner.
At first, everyone had been talking about Eri, as she had taken up a singing as a hobby following the war.
“From what I’ve heard, she’s improving,” Aizawa remarked, eating the food on his plate for once rather than the nutrient jellies he had preferred when the class had first met him. “According to Mandalay, she wants to perform for you all before graduation.”
The table erupted into cries of “aww!”.
The last time she had visited, she had to be given a ukelele because she couldn’t hold the full weight of a guitar yet.
“I’m sure it’ll be a great performance!” Midoriya exclaimed, giving Aizawa a wide smile.
“Speaking of performance,” Ashido said, nudging Jiro with a mischievous grin on her face, “why don’t you tell everyone your big news?!”
Jiro blushed and shook her head, but Hagakure shook her by the shoulder.
“Oh come on!!” she whined. “It wouldn’t be fair if only the girls knew, right?!”
At that, the male members of Class 3-A took to grumbling amongst themselves. They were used to their female friends having secrets, but it annoyed them nonetheless.
Jiro looked to her two teachers for help, but found none, as both heroes wanted to hear this news for themselves.
“Alright! Fine!” she conceded at last. She began tugging at her remaining earphone jack and closed her eyes as she told them.
“After graduation, my parents offered to sign me with their agent so I can book gigs of my own.”
She opened her eyes and, seeing that all 21 heads at the table were staring at her, covered her face with her hands.
Present Mic was the first to speak.
“THAT’S INCREDIBLE, LISTENER!!” He shouted, but he was mindful not to use his quirk in such a proximity.
Everyone joined in, offering their own forms of cheers and congratulations.
Kaminari, who had been sitting across from her, raised his glass toward her.
“Congrats, Jiro!”
She blushed, and clinked her glass carefully against his.
What Kaminari failed to realize was that wasn’t the end of the conversation.
“That’s good news, Jiro,” Aizawa said, his own way of acknowledging her accomplishment. “Perhaps one day you’ll be sharing the stage with Eri.”
Jiro nodded enthusiastically. “I’d love to have her as an intern once I open an agency!”
Yaoyorozu gasped. “Your first intern, Jiro!How exciting!!”
Kirishima turned to Bakugo, who had his arms folded and was glaring at Jiro.
“Don’t think that just because you got an intern first it means you’re any better than me,” he spat, though everyone knew by now that he didn’t mean it as an insult. “I’ll rocket so far ahead of all of you loser, you’ll forget I was even in this class.”
Kaminari felt that familiar fear pooling in his stomach. He was grieving a class that hadn’t parted ways yet. He hated it, but he couldn’t help it.
“Hey, there’s no need to be that blunt! At least pretend you care about us!” he whined, trying to keep his normal tone of voice.
To his relief, no one called his bluff. Kirishima even pitched in to help him.
“Yeah, man! This is one of our last dinners all together, if you think about it! Don’t spoil it with your ‘I’m better than you’ act!”
Bakugo scowled, but offered no further comment.
Meanwhile, the anxiety became a physical pain in Kaminari’s heart as he realized Kirishima was right.
Sure, they were all together now, but one day they wouldn’t be. Present Mic wasn’t even with them every night! How long until they started getting busy, too?
His breathing must have changed, becuase he felt someone tap his shoulder. He looked up and saw Sato point to Koda, who had been trying to get hidden attention. Sato turned away and began talking to Shinso, allowing them a moment to talk.
(Are you feeling okay?) Koda signed, looking at him nervously.
Kaminari tried to laugh it off. “I’m fine! Just…ate a little too much, I think.”
Koda nodded, but he looked at Kaminari as if he didn’t fully believe him.
Meanwhile, Kaminari took a breath and tried to steady his hands, which had begun to slightly shake.
Just have to get through the rest of dinner
And so he sat, poking around at his food, taking small bites whenever he felt Koda’s worried eyes watching him.
For a while, it worked. He was able to keep himself from crying and control to painful beats of his heart.
Until it didn’t.
What set him off was Midoriya’s rambling.
Present Mic had been talking to Jiro about her becoming an intern for Put Your Hands Up Radio, and Sero had made a comment about everyone’s new schedules.
“With all these things we have going on, how will we ever find the time to meet up?”he had asked.
“We could always have class reunions.” Shoji said, much to Kaminari’s relief.
The class chorused agreement with that idea. To everyone’s surprise, it was Midoriya who had his doubts.
“That would be great Shoji!” he began. “But, speaking realistically, since we’re all going to be doing different things, it’s going to be difficult to find a time where all of our schedules align with time off. Especially with Shinso and Tokoyami choosing a more underground, nighttime hero route.”
Shinso looked down guiltily. “Sorry..” he muttered.
Midoriya frantically waved his arms. “No, no! I didn’t mean it like that! I think it’s amazing that you’re following Aizawa-Sensei’s footsteps. I only mean that there’s such a variety in the hours we’ll all be working that finding a point in time in which we can all meet up is unlikely.”
“I cannot help but agree,” Tokoymai added. “Especially taking into account the different locations at which we’ll be stationed, we’d be fortunate to find even a single day once a year that works for all of us.”
Kaminari’s heart lept in his throat. His head spun with a sickening dizziness.
Once a year?!
The words echoed in his head like a broken record.
He hated not seeing his friends during school breaks. How would he survive entire years?
He must have gone pale because Ojiro, who was seated next to Kaminari, suddenly leaned over and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“You okay, Kaminari? You look kinda sick.”
Kaminari couldn’t respond. His breathing became quick and shallow inhales, and he couldn’t see straight.
Around him, the conversation continued.
“Winters are going to be especially hard for me, ribbit,” Asui was saying.
“Because of your hibernation, right?” Mineta asked. “So that’s a whole season that’s out!”
A whole season…?
We’ll never be able to get together.
This is it.
This is our last year together.
Graduation is the end
It’s all ending..!
Kaminari stood before he could even register the motion.
Before anyone could say anything he bolted out of his chair, knocking it over in the process.
“Kaminari?!”
“What’s going on?”
“Where are you going?”
The voices of his peers rang out, but he didn’t register any of them. His chest tightened, and tears filled his eyes. He wanted- no, needed to get out of there.
He rushed past the table and ran straight for the door, neglecting a coat entirely.
“Kaminari!!” Aizawa’s voice sounded as he called for his student, but his call was met with the slamming of the front door.
Everyone was confused, but even that was an understatement. If he had been nauseous, he wouldn’t have ran to a garbage can. If he had a headache, he wouldn’t have leaned his head on Ojiro’s shoulder or started absentmindedly playing with his tail, as was his tendency to do.
No one had ever seen him flat out run away before, and it scared them.
As comments of confusion and concern filled the table, Aizawa stood to go after his student.
Present Mic was faster.
“Eraser, I got it,” he said, standing and heading for the door.
Aizawa didn’t sit.
“He’s my student.”
“And he’s probably halfway across campus right now!” he fired back, though it lacked the intention of arguing.
He sighed and approached Aizawa, placing a hand on his shoulder.
“Look, Aizawa,” he said, using his friend’s name despite the presence of the students, “the kid is probably scared for his life, and you know how adrenaline works. He could run laps around campus if he wanted to. It’s late, your prosthetic won’t be light enough to keep up with him, and the other 19 need their homeroom teacher to tell them that everything is okay. Please, let me do this.”
Aizawa huffed in concession.
“Fine,” he grumbled.
To anyone else, it may have sounded like he was annoyed. The Voice Hero, however, knew better. He could tell that underneath the gravelly voice that sounded like one too many sleepless nights, there was a deep layer of worry.
Present Mic gave his friend’s shoulder a soft squeeze. “Don’t worry,” he reassured him, letting a glimpse of his usual smile touch his face, “I’ll bring him back before curfew, and then you can give him all the detentions you want!”
With that, he opened the door and embraced the night air, hoping to find Kaminari before he got himself into trouble.
Fortunately, he wouldn’t have to look very far.
———————————————————————
Denki Kaminari could have run far away if he had wanted to.
He could have ran all the way to the training grounds. He could have ran into the support course lab. He could have even left campus.
But he didn’t.
Kaminari looked up at the sky, which was now being painted red and orange by the setting sun, and saw the reflection of it glimmering off of his school building.
He fell to his knees and began sobbing, finally releasing the tears and panic he’d been bottling up since dinner.
In a few months, he told himself, effectively bringing on a new wave of sadness, this won’t be my school anymore…
He brought his hands to his face and continued to cry.
He cried for the places on campus that watched his quirk become the powerhouse that it was.
He cried for the teachers whose classes he would do nothing but complain about.
He cried for the friends who would become top pros and leave him in the wake of their success.
And he cried for the moments that would all too soon become memories.
As Kaminari’s tears fell and his breaths became much too quick, he failed to hear the quiet footsteps approaching him.
“Hey, Listener,” a calm and unusually quiet voice called, so as to not startle him.
“Mi-Mic-Sensei!”
Kaminari whipped his head around and through his slightly puffy eyes, he saw his English teacher standing a few feet away from him.
He desperately wiped his eyes and face. He tried to get his breathing under control, leading him to burst into further tears when he couldn’t.
Present Mic slowly walked closer to him, giving the boy every opportunity to back away or yell at him if he needed space.
Kaminari, however, allowed Mic to approach. He looked at him with panicked eyes.
“The- The dinner…” he choked out between his hyperventilating breaths. “They’re all g-gonna-“
He stopped suddenly as he felt a hand on his shoulder.
“It’s okay, Kaminari,” Mic said soothingly. “Whatever’s going through your brain right now, you don’t have to tackle it alone.”
Kaminari glanced at him with a look of pure pain that broke the Voice Hero’s heart.
Present Mic opened his arms and smiled warmly. Kaminari fell into his teacher’s waiting arms and sobbed as he held Mic in essentially a death grip.
It was clear to Yamada that the kid had needed a hug like this for a long time.
He pat Kaminari’s back and thanked God that it was him and not Aizawa that came after him, knowing how aversive Shota tended to be with physical touch.
Mic sat with Kaminari and let him get all of his emotions out. He repeated phrases like “it’s okay”, “let it out”, and “I’ve got you”, for fifteen minutes until his student’s sobbing became deep breaths with occasional hiccups of sadness.
Once Kaminari’s breathing had slowed enough to not be hyperventilating, Mic pulled back enough just to look the kid in the eyes.
“You wanna give me the rundown, Listener?” he asked gently, his tone making it clear to Kaminari that he wasn’t being forced or rushed.
Kaminari’s lip trembled, but he spoke slowly.
“I- Everything’s ending and I- I don’t want to be alone!”
More tears streamed down his face, and Present Mic sat patiently rubbing circles into his student’s back until he could bring himself to speak again.
“When we graduate,” he choked out between gasps of air, “everyone is going to become great heroes and they’re all going to leave me behind! Every time something good happens now, I can’t help but remember that in less than a year it’s all going to be over…We survived a war and Mr. Aizawa’s tests together, and now we’re going to go out seperate ways like it’s nothing?!”
The Voice Hero nodded sympathetically as Kaminari rambled. He let him finish, understanding how important it was that his student felt heard and understood.
“Oh, kid,” he said, placing a comforting hand on Kaminari’s shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell anyone?”
He wiped his eye and answered, “I didn’t want to ruin what’s probably going to be some of our last moments together…”
Mic gave him a sad yet understanding smile. He put an arm around his shoulder, once again leaving Kaminari the time to ask for space if he needed it.
Instead, he seemed to lean into his teacher’s support.
That gave Mic a glimmer of hope.
“You know..” he began, looking up at the towering school building before them, “I thought that way when I graduated, too.”
Kaminari blinked at him incredulously.
“Really?”
“Heck yeah, Listener! Aizawa and I had gone through something rough our second year, and Aizawa wanted no part of any graduation festivities. It made me think that he didn’t want anything to do with me anymore.”
“But- you guys are friends, aren’t you?”
“Best friends! But do you know why that is?”
Kaminari shook his head.
“It’s because I didn’t let my fears and insecurities stop me from reaching out. Whether it was a ‘Hey, let’s go grab coffee!’ or ‘If you need a place to crash after patrol, my door’s unlocked’. I kept reaching out, and one day, when I got sick on my birthday, Aizawa came to the apartment I was renting and made sure I wasn’t spending my 18th alone.”
For the first time since he’d left the dorms, Kaminari smiled slightly.
Mic looked at him and grinned proudly.
“The point I’m trying to make is this,” he continued, his voice growing in confidence seeing that his story broke through Kaminari’s depressive fog, “the future is scary because we can’t be certain of what it looks like. But if someone really wants to be in your life, they won’t let time put a distance between you. And I can tell just by looking at them: your class is NOT going to let that happen.”
Kaminari slowly nodded, realizing that Present Mic was right.
They had survived an entire war together. They’ve bled for each other. Even when things got life-threateningly tough, none of them turned their backs on each other. Why would they start now?
“Guess I’m pretty stupid, huh?” he joked in a self deprecating tone.
Mic squeezed his shoulder.
“Not a bit! You got overwhelmed, so it’s perfectly understandable that you’d get yourself outta there. What’s important is that you realize now that me, Eraserhead, and the rest of your friends are here for you. You don’t have to keep your feelings bottled up until they explode, ya dig?”
Kaminari laughed a bit as he nodded.
He met his English teacher’s eyes, his usual smile back in place.
Present Mic clapped him on the back lightly and stood, extending a hand to Kaminari after.
“Alright, Listener! Let’s get you back to Heights Alliance. If we get there fast enough, they might have some leftovers for you!”
They walked back to the building slowly.
Present Mic kept a hand on Kaminari’s back, just to keep him steady.
“Hey, Mic-Sensei?” Kaminari said after a few minutes of silence. “Thanks for coming to find me.”
Mic reached a hand over and ruffled Kaminari’s hair.
“No problem! Between you and me though,” he leaned in a little closer, as if conveying a secret, “if I hadn’t, it would’ve been Eraser. And he’s probably counting out the number of weeks you’re gonna have detention for!”
Kaminari winced.
“That bad, huh?”
Mic laughed.
“I’m only teasing!!
…Mostly…”
———————————————————————
“KAMINARI!!” Ashido squeaked as she nearly tackled her friend to the ground.
Shoji and Tokoyami ran over with genuine concern in their eyes. Dark Shadow squeezed Kaminari in a hug so tight that Kaminari thought he was getting revenge.
“S-Sorry guys…I didn’t mean to worry you!” Kaminari admitted, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
“Yeah, well, you did,” Bakugo spat, though it wasn’t his typically violent tone.
Jiro walked over and punched him in the arm- not hard enough to hurt, just enough to make him regret leaving. “What gives?!” she scolded, “You scared us half to death, Jamming-Whey!!”
Despite her insulting words, Kaminari couldn’t help but let out a breath of relief.
“Kaminari.”
The familiarly stern voice sounded through the common room like a gong.
Kaminari tensed and looked beyond his relieved classmates to see his homeroom teacher crossing his arms. His remaining his stared him down like a parent who was preparing to deliver a life-long punishment.
At Iida’s urging, the class departed, leaving Kaminari to his fate.
The class proclaimed “Dunce” stepped forward.
“Sensei, I-“
He was promptly cut off by Aizawa letting out a sigh.
Kaminari’s eyes shot to the floor.
This is it, he thought. I’m done for! He’s going to put me in detention for years, he’s going to yell at me, maybe even expel me and-
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Kaminari looked up, confused.
“I…what?”
Aizawa took a breath.
“This obviously isn’t your first time feeling something like this, otherwise it wouldn’t have sent you running. So, I’ll ask again: why didn’t you say anything?”
Kaminari let out a sigh of his own. Aizawa was right. Of course he was. Kaminari had learned very early into his UA career that Aizawa was very rarely wrong, and that there was little point to hiding anything from him, because he would always find out.
“I’m sorry, Sensei. I didn’t mean to ruin dinner. I just-“
He had to pause. Aizawa didn’t tap his foot. He didn’t look bored or even tired. He simply waited.
After Kaminari got his breathing under control, he continued.
“Everyone has all these great plans for the future, and ever since the war ended I’ve been reminded over and over again one day it’s all going to end.”
Aizawa didn’t answer immediately.
He didn’t understand what that was like. His graduation had been undermined by the death of his good friend Oboro Shirakumo the year before. Once that happened, couldn’t wait to get out of UA and become his own hero.
Kaminari was experiencing the exact opposite, and the worst part was he didn’t know exactly how to fix it.
It wasn’t a problem he could just “ration” or “logic” away. Not feelings like these.
Aizawa knelt in front of Kaminari, effectively forcing the boy to meet his gaze.
This time, it wasn’t stern. It wasn’t waiting to give him detention. It wasn’t even upset. It was kind.
“I won’t pretend to know what that feels like,” he began honestly. “I only had two friends by the time I was a third year, and even then I couldn’t recognize how blessed I was to have them want to be in my life.”
Present Mic, who hadn’t left, smiled sadly in the background.
“But,” Aizawa continued, “when you have friends that truly care about you, they’ll find you now matter how far you run or how many times you push them away.”
Mic scoffed. “If that ain’t the truth..” he mumbled, earning a glare from Aizawa.
“The point is,” he continued through clenched teeth, which he unclenched once Mic raised his hands peacefully, “you evidently care about your classmates a lot, and I can’t imagine I’d be lying if I said that they care for you as well. You all went through classes, exams, villain attacks, and a war with each other. That kind of bond can’t be broken by distance.”
Kaminari let out a breath that was very nearly a laugh.
“You know, that’s what Mic-Sensei told me,” he said.
Aizawa stood slowly and let a faint smirk touch his features.
“Who do you think I learned that from?”
That earned a full laugh from Kaminari.
Not just a breath. Not just a chuckle. A full, wholehearted laugh.
And as Aizawa smiled and Mic came to his side, slinging his arm around Aizawa’s shoulder and ruffling Kaminari’s hair, Kaminari realized how right that advice was.
Sure, they’d all go their own ways and become their own heroes, but they were just that: heroes.
They had faced villains with the ire hatred in their hearts and powers beyond comprehension- what was a little bit of change compared to that?