The cat sighed, clearly realizing that it had no control over my nonsense. Which, to be fair, was something even I had given up on.

"Alright, Magic Menace," the cat drawled, hopping off my shoulder and landing gracefully on the pavement in front of me. "Now that you've single-handedly ruined All For One's life, what's next?"

I tilted my head, thinking.

"...Nap?"

The cat groaned.

I grinned. "Okay, but seriously, I think I deserve a break. I turned the Big Bad into a magical girl, survived multiple assassination attempts, and, oh yeah—managed not to die. That last one is really important."

The cat rolled its eyes. "Yes, yes, congrats on the whole 'continuing to exist' thing. But you do realize this isn't over, right?"

I squinted.

"...You say that like I actually thought it was."

The cat narrowed its little beady eyes. "You're way too smug for someone who just made an enemy out of every villain in Japan."

I shrugged. "Oh, you mean the ones who are now in my squad?"

The cat stared.

Then it let out a very long, very tired sigh. "I hate you."

"You and half the country."

The cat just shook its head before pausing. It gave me a look—a serious one, which was honestly a little unsettling coming from a furball with no eyebrows.

"...You do know this power isn't just some joke, right?"

I stopped smiling.

"Yeah," I said, my voice quieter than before. "I know."

The cat studied me for a moment, as if searching for something.

Then, as if deciding it wasn't worth it, it simply turned around and started walking away.

"...Where are you going?" I called after it.

It didn't stop. "Wherever I want. Unlike you, I don't have a squad to babysit."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Go be mysterious somewhere else."

The cat flicked its tail in response, and just like that, it was gone.

I had just barely recovered from my existential crisis (brought to me courtesy of a snarky cat and my own questionable life choices) when my phone buzzed in my pocket.

I groaned, already knowing that whatever this was, it was going to be a problem. Because let's be real—whenever my phone rings, it's never good news.

I pulled it out and saw the caller ID: Shoto Todoroki.

I blinked.

Weird. Shoto never calls me. He texts, sure. But a phone call? That meant one of two things: either someone was dead, or he needed something.

I sighed and answered. "If this is about you setting something on fire, I don't wanna hear it."

There was a pause.

"...That only happened once," Shoto said flatly.

I raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. Sure. And I'm the Queen of England."

"Regardless," he continued, completely ignoring me, "Bakugo and I are getting drinks. You should come."

I blinked. That was... not what I was expecting.

"...Wait. Hold on. You and Bakugo?"

"Yes."

"You. And Bakugo."

"Yes, Izu," Shoto said, now sounding mildly annoyed.

I squinted at my phone. "Are you being held hostage?"

"No."

"...Is Bakugo being held hostage?"

Shoto sighed. "Zu, do you want cake or not?"

I froze.

Cake?

Damn it. That was a cheap shot.

"...What kind of cake?"

There was a pause. Then, in the most serious voice imaginable, Shoto said, "Chocolate."

I was already putting my shoes on.

The café they picked was weirdly fancy. Like, too fancy for a bunch of battle-scarred twenty-somethings who had absolutely no business being in a place that didn't have sticky floors and cheap coffee.

I walked in and immediately spotted them in the corner.

Shoto looked exactly the same—calm, composed, and somehow still out of place despite the fact that this café was literally designed for people like him.

Bakugo, on the other hand, looked like he wanted to punch the entire building.

I grinned. "Wow. You actually showed up, Kacchan. I didn't think you knew how to sit down and have a normal meal."

Bakugo scowled. "Shut up, Deku."

I slid into the seat across from them. "Aw, come on. Don't be like that. I'm just impressed you made it this far without blowing something up."

Bakugo grumbled something under his breath and violently stabbed his fork into his slice of cake.

Shoto, as always, was unbothered.

"I already ordered you a slice," he said, gesturing to the plate in front of me.

I blinked and looked down.

He wasn't kidding. A whole slice of chocolate cake. Just sitting there. Waiting for me.

...This was a trap.

I narrowed my eyes. "Okay. What's the catch?"

Shoto took a sip of his drink. "No catch."

Lies.

Bakugo snorted. "He just doesn't know how to say 'I wanted you here,' like a normal person."

Shoto gave him a look. "I literally just told him to come."

"Yeah, like a goddamn robot."

Shoto frowned. "You're just mad because I beat you here."

Bakugo's eye twitched. "YOU LEFT FIRST, YOU DAMN ICE CUBE."

I smirked. "Wow, you guys are adorable."

"DIE."

Shoto just sipped his drink again like he wasn't instigating a fight.

I laughed, finally picking up my fork and taking a bite of the cake.

...Oh.

Oh, this was good.

I actually closed my eyes for a second, just letting the rich, chocolatey goodness melt in my mouth.

Shoto nodded approvingly. "Good, right?"

I swallowed and pointed my fork at him. "Okay, yeah. You win. This was worth showing up for."

Bakugo grumbled something that sounded suspiciously like "Damn nerds and their cake."

An hour passed, and somehow, we were still there.

And even weirder? We were actually... having a good time.

I mean, sure, Bakugo was still half a second away from trying to launch me into the sun, and Shoto was still emotionally constipated, but somehow, it just worked.

At some point, the conversation shifted to old UA memories.

"You remember the USJ attack?" I said, taking another bite of cake. "Feels like a lifetime ago."

"Tch. Yeah," Bakugo scoffed. "Half those losers in class wouldn't have made it out if it wasn't for us."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, please. Like you didn't almost get swallowed by that warp villain."

Bakugo's fork snapped in half.

"...That didn't happen."

Shoto hummed. "It definitely did."

Bakugo turned to glare. "WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON, ICY HOT?"

Shoto took a slow sip of his drink. "The side of historical accuracy."

Bakugo looked like he was about to have a stroke.

I was dying.

It went on like that for a while. Just talking, arguing, laughing—it was... nice.

Like, really nice.

And maybe that's why, when the conversation finally lulled, I couldn't help but smile.

"...You know, I don't think we've ever done this before," I said, leaning back in my chair.

Shoto raised an eyebrow. "Had cake?"

"No, you idiot," Bakugo grunted. "Hung out. Without some world-ending crisis."

Shoto tilted his head, considering.

"...Huh," he said. "I guess we haven't."

I chuckled. "Well, maybe we should start."

They both stared at me.

I frowned. "What?"

Shoto shrugged. "Nothing. Just... that's probably the most normal thing you've ever said."

Bakugo scoffed. "Yeah. Weird."

I narrowed my eyes. "Wow. Heartwarming."

They both just smirked.

I rolled my eyes, but... I couldn't help but feel a little lighter.