"You can do it, Tsu!" Mina encouraged the girl in the shadows behind Height's Alliance, "You heard her say that she liked you. Just go out there, ask if you can speak to her quickly and then you two will be dating. Easy as that!"

"But that's not easy," Tsu croaked, "What if she says no? She said she wants to focus on her studies, you heard her say it as well!"

"Psh," Toru dismissed with a wave of her hand, "As if she'd reject you. She's got the biggest crush on you, I can just tell. I was staying quiet because it's the polite thing to do."

"Sure you were," Kyoka scoffed from her position leaning against the wall. Her face was cast into shadow, but Tsu could still see the disbelieving eyebrow she had raised in Toru's direction. 

"Let's not argue," Momo placated kindly-though there was an amused glint in her charcoal eyes "Tsu, I highly doubt Ochako will turn you down. I can see the same adoration you have for her reflected in her eyes. Now, be brave, relax, and go out there and win yourself a woman!" 

Tsu took a deep breath and nodded resolutely. Her friends were right, she had heard Ochako say that she liked Tsu. What reason would Ochako have to lie to Midoriya, one of her closest and most trusted friends? If it turned out she didn't have feelings for Tsu, then they could just continue to be friends. It was as simple as that.

"Ok. I'm going out there." Tsu stated firmly.

"Good luck, Tsu!" all of the girls said in harmony, they were sure to keep their voices down ever so slightly, lest Ochako, Todoroki, Midoriya and Sero hear them from where they stood a few hundred meters away.

"I don't know, I still think the third volume had the best cover art," Sero sighed. He and Todoroki had been locked in a debate about their favourite manga series for the past five minutes, and Ochako could say with certainty that she was not engaged in the conversation at all. Midoriya, of course, could happily engage in any conversation he was faced with, it was an uncanny ability that Ochako wished she possessed at that moment in time. 

"But the sixth volume's cover art captures the protagonist's struggles extremely well as well as the character and emotional development of the deuteragonist," Todoroki rebutted almost instantaneously. 

"You know what, why don't we meet in my room after dinner so that we can look over the plot and the cover art again. I swear, dude, the online forum I'm in agrees with me wholeheartedly!" Sero said passionately.

"Sure, but this time I'm choosing the snacks, you have a bad taste in food," Todoroki hummed.

As the conversation continued from there, Ochako was left to ponder just how often Todoroki visited Sero's room and vice versa. It had never crossed her mind just how comfortable and familiar the two boys were. Ochako's train of thought, however, was brought to a grinding halt when she noticed that Tsu was slowly making her way over to the small group, every step she took infused with an almost overwhelming amount of nerves. 

"Hey, Tsu, what's up?" Ochako sked brightly, glad to be able to focus on anything else aside from the topic of the boys' conversation. 

"Uh...Hey, Ochako. Can I talk to you for a second?" Tsu requested. Ochako could tell that she was trying her best to disguise her nerves, but she wasn't completely successful in her endeavour.

"Sure! Bye guys!" Ochako said, not even waiting for a response before she took Tsu's hand in her's and pulled her away. Try as she might, Ochako couldn't quite disguise the reddening of her cheeks at the feeling of having Tsuyu's hand clasped tightly in her own.

Once the two girls had gotten away from the others, Ochako came to a halt and turned to Tsu, "What did you want to talk about, Tsu?"

"I'm just going to come out and say it, and if I make you uncomfortable when I say this please say. I'm really sorry if I upset you," Tsu rushed out in a way that was very out of the ordinary for the usually calm and collected girl.

"I could never be angry at you Tsu," 

"Anyway, umm... I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date with me," Tsu rushed out. Her words blurred together into an incomprehensible mass of jumbled letters. 

"Sorry, what was that? I couldn't understand you," Ochako chuckled lightly, though not at Tsu's expense.

Tsu let out a deep breath before she tried again, this time, a bit slower. "I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date with me? You can say no, of course, but..." 

"Yes!" Ochako squealed before Tsu could finish her trailing sentence, "Of course I'll go on a date with you!" 

"Really?" Tsu asked, excitement began to bubble in her stomach and cloud over her mind and all rationality. She had, logically, known that the likelihood of Ochako rejecting her was very lowly,  but there was always the chance that she would, and that minuscule possibility had worked Tsu up into a nervous frenzy of bitten lips and twisted shirts. 

"Of course! When are we going on the date? I'm so excited!" Ochako continued to squeal. Her excitement had overtaken her body, it seemed. 

"Umm... We can have the date today if you want. It's only eleven, I could make us a picnic for lunch and we could meet in front of the dorms at half-past twelve?" Tsu offered.

"That gives me an hour and a half to get ready," Ochako mused, "Ok! I'll meet you in front of the dorms at half-past twelve, I can't wait. See you soon, Tsu!" Ochako dropped a chaste and sweet kiss to Tsu's cheek before she skipped off to get ready for her date, leaving Tsu to stand with flaming cheeks and a love-struck expression. 

As Ochako expected, the date was amazing, she wouldn't expect anything less from Tsuyu. Tsu always went out of her way to make everyone feel included and comfortable, even if she was rather blunt in doing so, of course, her planned dates would be amazing. They ventured to the rooftop of Height's Alliance and dined under the sun's gentle light. Even if the date was rather low maintenance and could be considered rushed, Ochako loved it just as much as she would have loved going to a restaurant. By the end of the date, Ochako came away with a slight tan, a new fond memory, and a girlfriend. When she had woken up that morning, she hadn't been expecting to have such a good day. 

"We're so happy for you!" Mina squealed when Ochako and Tsu emerged from the stairwell hand in hand, "What did we tell you, Tsu? She would never reject you!"

"Thank you, guys," Ochako beamed. She pulled Tsu over to the sofa and fell down onto it. Tsu sat next to her, close enough to show her affection, but not snuggling into her side as Toru was prone to do with Ojiro. They hadn't even been together for a full 24 hours yet.

"Now that you two are together, we don't have to suffer in silence when it comes to your pining!" Toru exclaimed rather dramatically as she threw herself back into the sofa's cushions.

Everyone laughed at her antics and the room was coated in a calm atmosphere, there was very little that could break the girls' jovial mood. Unfortunately, the appearance of Mineta was one of the few things (amongst a villain attack, a medical emergency and various other things) that could pierce their happy little bubble. 

"Well hello ladies," Kyoka felt her blood run cold and anger work into her system upon hearing the slimy boy's voice. Of course, Kyoka liked to think that she was a fair person, reserving judgement for when somebody actually did something wrong, but it was hard to do that when Mineta made her skin crawl. Practically every interaction she'd had with him had been negative. 

"What do you want Mineta," Tsu grumbled "I'm sure that you're well aware that none of us wants you here."

"Chill, Tsu, that's pretty mean of you," Mineta sighed, "I'm only over here because I thought I heard that somebody was dating somebody else. I need to see who's off the table now."

"Nobody was on the table when it came to you, anyway!" Kyoka snapped, "Plus, you don't seem to care about boundaries. Momo is a lesbian and Mina is demiromantic, but you still harass them." 

"Those are just phases," Mineta dismissed. Kyoka, at that moment, pondered if it was worth going to prison and losing her chances of becoming a hero for murdering Mineta. A boy who was continuously proving that he was the scum of the earth. Kyoka believed that people could change for the better, but it was becoming hard to believe the same for Mineta.

"Every woman needs a man in her life to sexually please her, that's just how nature and biology work." Mineta shrugged. 

"If that's just how nature and biology work then why is your 'pleasure spot', to put it simply, in your ass?" Mina snapped, "Not to mention the fact that homosexual behaviour had been observed in hundreds of species."

"I'm not saying there's anything wrong with being gay. If a guy wants to get with another guy, that's what he wants. I'm just saying that girls need a man in their life, otherwise, how will they be satisfied?" Mineta replied nonchalantly. 

Kyoka was... baffled, to say the least. Kyoka was well aware that people like this existed. People thought that being a lesbian was completely fine, but being gay was abnormal and a slight against nature. However, Kyoka had never seen the reverse, people that thought that being gay was fine but being a lesbian was disgusting. Of course, both schools of thinking were completely wrong, it was really nobody else's business when it came to relationships unless somebody was getting hurt or if the relationship is pedophilic. 

"What the fuck!" Toru exploded, "That literally makes no sense!"

"Whatever, I'm only here because I thought one of you got into a relationship," Mineta dismissed.

"Tsu and I are dating. So you can go away now! We don't want you near us!" Ochako sneered, pulling Tsu closer to her as she did so. Even in this high tension situation, Kyoka watched as Tsu's cheeks gained a rosy hue.

"Oh, so it's only you two dating. That doesn't matter then. Relationships with two females aren't real relationships." with that last disgusting remark, Mineta swaggered off, leaving the girls of class 2A thoroughly disgusted. The calm and peaceful mood from earlier was gone. 

It didn't take long before all of the girls dispersed. Ochako and Tsu left for some alone time, hand in hand and with matching looks of frustration on their face. Mina ran off to the gym to work out her anger through dancing. Toru said that she was going to find Ojiro. That left only Momo and Kyoka sitting on the sofa, stewing in their own discomfort and anger.

Kyoka had resolved herself to asking Momo out earlier that morning. She had been laid in bed, staring at her vast array of instruments as the time ticked over into the second hour of the day, and she had promised herself that she would admit her feelings to Momo. She was certain that her feelings were reciprocated. Now, after Mineta's foul comments, all of the confidence Kyoka had amassed had evaporated into thin air. No longer did Kyoka feel comfortable expressing her emotions to Momo. It pained Kyoka, and angered her to no end, that a little bastard like Mineta could influence and control her life so much without even trying. He had affected her when he had commented on her eating habits. He affected her whenever he said some misogynistic bullshit. Now he was affecting her ability to initiate a relationship. It truly was a man's world.

"Are you ok, Kyoka, you look like you're on the verge of tears," Momo whispered gently. She placed a comforting hand on Kyoka's shoulders and looked at her with wide, ebony, understanding eyes.

"Yeah," Kyoka coughed slightly, subtly trying to wipe the few tears that had escaped, "I'm just kinda pissed. But that's not anything new when it comes to Mineta, is it?" Kyoka's attempt at a joke fell flat. Instead of Momo's refined chuckle, Kyoka was greeted with her pitying gaze.

"Anyway, I'm gonna head up to my room, play out my frustrations. Do you want to come? You can play my keyboard" Kyoka offered. Momo's smile was immediate and it warmed Kyoka's heart. 

So maybe she wouldn't confess to Momo today. But there was no way she was letting the bigotry that spewed from Mineta's mouth inhibit her from expressing her emotions. Kyoka was expressing her feelings to Momo the next day, even if it killed her (which it most certainly would not).

Dinner in the 2A dorms was a nice affair, ordinarily. When Mineta managed to keep his mouth shut. When Bakugo and Midoriya's friendly arguments didn't spiral out of hand. When Todoroki didn't accidentally bring up their tragic childhood. When nothing went wrong, dinner was a peaceful affair. And, maybe, it would have been a peaceful affair that evening if Mineta wasn't present. 

"So Tsu was the one who confessed?" Midoriya inquired kindly, there was a spark in his eyes that spoke of his pure joy upon seeing his friends happy. 

"Yeah, I'm kinda glad she did. I probably would at some point, but it would take me a while." Ochako chuckled.

"I'm happy that you two have started a relationship. I truly believe that your friendship and comradery will benefit from this development!" Iida announced.

"Yes, congrats, Tsu," Koda's voice was a whisper amongst the chaos that was dinner time in Height's Alliance, but Tsu still heard zir voice and appreciated zir comment.

"I don't know why you're acting like they're actually in a relationship," of course, Mineta had to speak up, why wouldn't he?

"I'm just playing the devil's advocate here," he continued, earning the attention of the vast majority of the class, "but how is a relationship between two females any different than a friendship. There's no difference, you're just playing pretend."

Even if Tsu had wanted to silence him with a slap, she was too far away, and there was no way she was using her tongue. Luckily he was dealt with a firm punch by Bakugo, he sneered down at him afterwards, voice full of nothing but contempt when he spoke. 

"I know what kind of things you read and watch, so I suggest you shut the fuck up before I make you. Permenantly." Bakugo hissed. 

Nobody was quite sure what to do after that, slowly, everyone returned to their previous conversations, though their voices were subdued and stilted. Mineta's real quirk seemed to be destroying the mood of the room with his words.

"It's infuriating!" Kyoka screamed into a sofa pillow, her voice came out muffled, so Momo had to strain her ears to hear.

"I know, we'll talk to Aizawa about it, and maybe we'll mention it to the boys. Give them a lesson," Momo reassured her crush. Hesitantly, she placed a hand on Kyoka's head and ran her finger through the girl's silky purple tresses.

"As annoying as it is that Mineta refuses to acknowledge mine and Tsu's relationship, he's the only one," Ochako sighed, "Everyone else is super accepting and kind. We're bound to face a lot more people like this in life, especially being pro-heroes. We'll just have to grow a thick skin."

"But we shouldn't have to!" Kyoka grumbled alongside Mina. 

"I agree dudes," Kirishima popped up out of nowhere. He was met with wide eyes and slight jumps, "Whoops! Sorry, didn't mean to surprise you. I can leave, if you want, this seems like a private subject." 

Kirishima rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, chuckling ever so slightly as he did so.

"No, it's ok. Come and sit down, Kiri," Toru smiled, patting the sofa cushion beside her, "This isn't a closed discussion."

"Thanks!" Kirishima smiled as he fell onto the sofa beside Toru, "As I was saying, it's not fair for anyone to have to pretend to be somebody they're not just to keep other people happy."

"Yeah," Mina sighed, "But what else can we do? We might be aiming to be heroes, but we can't remove all of the sexism and homophobia from the world just by snapping our fingers. Not to mention that Mineta's quick to dismiss Tsu and Chako even though we all know he fetishises wlw relationships. It's hypocritical." 

"People like to pick and chooses when it comes to who they support," Kirishima sighed heavily, "Some people support one group in the community whilst completely discrediting a different group." 

"When we become heroes, we'll just have to advocate for equality then, won't we? Not only, between genders but also between sexualities and all walks of life." Momo hummed, "Maybe we can't change everything right now. People are still going to fetishise same-sex relationships in spite of their blatant homophobia, we just need to push against their bigotry with our positive message." 

"Yeah, you're right, Yaomomo," Kirishima smiled, "There are already heroes out there doing what they can. We can't find and beat up every bigot out there, but we can show them how wrong they are!"

"That's the spirit, Kirishima!" Momo cheered. 

Conversation after that followed a more relaxed and neutral path. Other people piled into the lounge room and joined in with the meaningless conversations. It was nice spending time with classmates, Momo thought, especially when Mineta was confined to his room by an industrial lock that only Momo had the key to. 

Thank you for reading and I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are.