The walk of shame wasn't quite how I envisioned ending the night. Kaito and I trudged down the street, Hawks' broad wings casting a shadow over us as he guided us home. After the near-death rooftop incident, Hawks had made it very clear we weren't going to slip away quietly. He wasn't just going to let us off with a warning—he was delivering us to our parents, personally.

I shot a glance at Kaito, who was glaring straight ahead. He'd been unusually quiet since the rooftop, which probably had something to do with the fact that Hawks saw him dangling over the edge while I barely managed to pull him up.

"So, do you guys do this every night?" Hawks asked casually, his tone way too calm for my nerves.

"Not every night," Kaito muttered.

I elbowed him in the side. "No, we don't," I said quickly. "This was just... a lapse in judgment."

Hawks gave me a knowing smirk. "Lapse in judgment? That's what you're going with?"

I groaned, running a hand through my hair. "We're sorry, okay? It won't happen again."

"Uh-huh," Hawks said, not sounding convinced. "You're lucky you've got skills, kid, but you've gotta use your head, too. One wrong step, and this could've ended a lot worse."

Kaito flinched at that, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. I could tell he didn't want to talk about it, and honestly, neither did I. But Hawks wasn't about to let us off the hook, not when he saw everything unfold firsthand.

We reached Kaito's house first. Hawks landed in front of the door, his wings folding neatly behind him as he motioned for Kaito to step up.

"Alright, you first," Hawks said. "Let's have a chat with your parents."

Kaito looked like he wanted to melt into the pavement. "Do we have to?"

"Yes," Hawks said firmly, knocking on the door.

It didn't take long for it to swing open. Kaito's mom, a petite but fierce-looking woman, stood there with a questioning look that quickly turned into concern when she saw her son, Hawks, and me standing there.

"Kaito," she said sharply, her eyes narrowing. "What did you do this time?"

Kaito mumbled something under his breath, but Hawks didn't hesitate to step in. "Ma'am, your son had a bit of an adventure tonight. Let's just say it involved rooftops, a close call, and some very impressive parkour skills."

Her expression darkened immediately. "Parkour? On rooftops? Are you insane?"

"I'm fine, Mom," Kaito said, raising his hands defensively. "I didn't fall or anything."

"You almost fell," Hawks corrected, giving Kaito a pointed look. "Your friend here saved you just in time."

Kaito's mom turned to me, her eyes wide. "He almost fell? Off a building?"

"Uh, yeah," I said awkwardly, rubbing the back of my neck. "But I caught him. It's fine now."

"It's not fine!" she yelled, her voice rising. "What were you thinking, Kaito? Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? You could've—"

"I know, I know!" Kaito interrupted, looking thoroughly embarrassed. "It won't happen again, okay?"

"It better not," she said, her tone sharp enough to cut through steel. "Thank you, Hawks. And you, Izuku baby too," she added, her voice softening when she looked at me. "I'm glad you were there."

I nodded quickly. "Of course."

Hawks, clearly used to these kinds of interactions, gave Kaito a light pat on the shoulder. "Alright, I think he's got the message. Have a good night, ma'am."

As we turned to leave, I heard Kaito's mom start up again, her voice echoing through the house as she lectured him about safety and common sense. I winced, feeling a little bad for him, but I couldn't say he didn't deserve it.

Next up was my house. The walk felt heavier now, the adrenaline from earlier finally fading away. Hawks was quiet for a moment before speaking.

"You've got good instincts, kid," he said, glancing at me. "Pulling him up like that, staying calm under pressure—it's not something everyone can do.. react that quickly in that friction of time....."

I shrugged, not sure how to respond. "I just... couldn't let him fall."

Hawks nodded. "That's what makes you a good friend. Just make sure you're keeping yourself safe, too."

When we reached my house, Hawks knocked on the door with the same casual confidence as before. It swung open almost immediately, revealing my mom. Her worried expression quickly shifted to confusion when she saw Hawks standing there with me.

"Izuku? What's going on?" she asked, her eyes darting between us.

Hawks smiled politely. "Miss, your son's had quite an evening. He and a friend were doing some rooftop parkour, and things got a little... intense."

Her brow furrowed, and she looked at me. "Rooftop parkour?"

"It wasn't that bad," I said quickly. "Kaito almost fell, but I caught him. We're both fine."

Hawks raised an eyebrow. "It was definitely that bad."

My mom sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Izuku, you can't keep scaring me like this."

"I know," I said softly. "I'm sorry."

She looked at Hawks, who was still standing there with his calm, almost amused demeanor. "Thank you for bringing him home. I really appreciate it."

"No problem," Hawks said. "Your kid's got a good head on his shoulders—most of the time. Just make sure he's not pulling stunts like this too often."

My mom nodded, then smiled warmly. "Would you like to stay for dinner? It's late, but I can heat something up."

Hawks held up his hands, shaking his head. "Thanks for the offer, but I've got to get back to patrol. You two have a good night, alright?"

With that, he gave me a wink and took off, his wings spreading wide as he disappeared into the night sky.

Inside, my mom turned to me with a long-suffering sigh. "Parkour, Izuku?"

"I'm sorry," I said again, rubbing the back of my neck. "It just... happened."

She gave me a pointed look but didn't press further. Instead, she smiled softly. "You know, I trust you, Izuku. I know you're careful, and I know you've got good instincts. But you're going to be a hero one day, and that's dangerous enough. Don't go adding more risks on top of it, okay?"

I nodded quickly. "I promise."

Just then, the doorbell rang. My mom frowned, glancing at the clock. "Who could that be at this hour?"

She opened the door to reveal Kaito, looking sheepish. "Uh, hi, Mrs. Midoriya. My mom kind of... kicked me out for the night. Can I crash here?"

My mom blinked in surprise before stepping aside to let him in. "Of course. Are you hungry?"

Kaito's face lit up. "Starving."

As my mom busied herself in the kitchen, Kaito plopped down on the couch next to me, his usual grin back in place.

"Your mom's way cooler than mine," he said, leaning back with a sigh.

I smirked. "She's just used to me being... me."

"Well, thanks for saving me again. And for putting up with my mom."

"Anytime," I said, smiling. "Just don't make a habit of falling off rooftops, okay?"

"No promises," he said, laughing.

Despite everything, I couldn't help but feel grateful. For Kaito, for my mom, and for the strange, chaotic life I was building. It wasn't perfect, but it was mine. And that was enough.