"I understand you're all still shaken from the USJ incident, but your fight isn't over yet." Aizawa declares. I look up over the top of my arm, Waiting for what he's about to say next, knowing from his expression that it wasn't going to be another villain attack or something. Kaminari and Kirishima were freaking out a little.

"Don't tell me we have to fight more villains!" Kirishima says, standing up in protest. Aizawa pauses for dramatic effect, the corner of his mouth quirking upwards a little at their worry.

"It's almost time for the sports festival." He says. I sigh, turning my head down again and closing my eyes, my left arm as a pillow and my right over the top of my head, shielding me from everyone else. Todoroki taps my shoulder and I tilt my head to look at him without taking my head off the desk.

"You okay?" He asks. I grin and nod.

"I'm just a bit tired. Don't worry about it." I say. He nods and turns his attention back to the front, listening to what Aizawa was saying now.

"As you probably already know, the sports festival will be a way for you to show off your quirks and impress the pros. If you perform well, it's possible that a pro hero will offer you a place to intern with them afterwards." He says, looking around the room. I didn't quite understand what he said, but thankfully Kaminari started talking to Kirishima and Jiro.

"It's like being a sidekick for a week, huh?" he says, glancing back at me. I give him a small smile, and he smiles back, the expression lighting up his features. Kirishima follows his gaze and grins, waving me over to them.

"What's up?" I ask, standing behind Jiro's chair.

"What kind of internship do you want to do?" Jiro asks, draping an arm over her chair so she can see me.

"Probably one where I can learn martial arts. I'm good at finding weaknesses and my quirk usually lets me get in close without anyone noticing me, but I can't actually back anything up. I rely completely on surprise, so if I'm in a fight where the villains know I'm there, I'm at a disadvantage." I say, nodding to myself as my brain goes into overdrive.

"Then again, it might be better for me to do something where I can learn how to use my quirk more efficiently. Right now, all I do is just transform into my true form and go in kicking, but that wouldn't work if the villain had something to guard against me with. Maybe I should look out for someone with experience training people to be better fighters and quirk users. But then I might miss out on survival skills that I might need out in the world, even the simple stuff like making a fire or a rope or things like that. If I do that, though I'd completely miss out on rescue training-"

"You're starting to sound like me now!!" Midoriya suddenly says, looking at me in surprise. I look around and realise quite a few people were staring at me. I shyly avert my eyes, laughing awkwardly and subconsciously hunching my shoulders. Kirishima laughs, patting my shoulder, and Aizawa speaks up.

"Don't worry about it, (Y/N). I'm glad you're thinking about this so much already. This is a very important part of your training, so you should all use it well and think about your decision if you get any offers." He says, "Class dismissed."

~

"Man, I didn't realise you could go full Midoriya like that!" Kirishima laughs.

"F-Full Midoriya?" I ask, still a little shaken about being called out and stared at. My social anxiety was screaming.

"What, you've never heard him mumbling before?" Kaminari says, nudging my arm.

"Maybe. I don't remember, if I did." I say, smiling gently at the ground. My heartbeat was calming down now that we were outside, underneath the tree we always sit at.

"Hey, (Y/N)...?" a quiet voice asks. I look up, surprised to see Todoroki standing there, looking almost... shy?

"What's up?" I ask, shuffling around so I could face him.

"Do you still have that storybook?"

'OOF HOLY SHIT MY HEART-'

"Do you wanna keep reading it?" I ask, chuckling lightly. He shifts his weight around a little, confirming my suspicions. I laugh, taking it out of my bag and holding it out to him.

"I-I meant... Y'know... Together?" he stutters, averting his eyes and not taking the book.

'I CAN'T FUCKING HANDLE THIS AFSADASKJFJJSF-'

"Uh... sure. See you later, guys." I say, waving to Kaminari and Kirishima as I zip up my bag, standing up and swinging it onto my back. "Tell Sero I'm with Todoroki."

"Uh... sure?" Kirishima says, not entirely sure what was going on. I honestly wasn't too sure myself, and I was the one who basically started this.

"Sorry for taking you away from your friends." Todoroki mutters, leading the way into the forest, towards the same clearing we had sat in together a while ago.

"It's fine. And you're my friend too, so I don't mind." I say, grinning at him. He looks at me in surprise.

"We're friends?"

"Of course we are. Friends sit under trees and listen to the same music and read weird stories that are biased against wolves together." I say, my grin widening. He stares at me with a neutral expression, hiding his thoughts from me. I shrug, ducking underneath a branch.

"And I guess they stare at eachother really weirdly so the other can't figure out what they're thinking."

He scoffs, ducking his head, and I catch a glimpse of his smile. It was like Kaminari's, lighting up his face, his eyes warming. It honestly looked a bit strange, like he wasn't used to smiling, but it was still cute.

'Cute? Really, (Y/N)? Get a hold of yourself.'

"Uh... earth to (Y/N)?" Todoroki says, waving a hand in front of my face. I realise I had accidentally started staring at him and feel my cheeks grow warm. I laugh it off, turning and walking into the clearing with him.

"Can we start from the start this time? You were already half way through the book before I joined you." Todoroki asks. I nod, sliding down the tree and opening the book at the first page. Todoroki sits next to me, our arms brushing, as he reads over my shoulder. I pause for a moment, grabbing out my phone and headphones again, then passing one to him and putting on some music.

"Seriously, why do so many people hate wolves? I like them." I say as Todoroki turns the page, going onto a new story. He shrugs, not saying anything. This new story was about an egg falling off a wall and shattering, and all the kings horses and men couldn't piece it back together.

"Why would they need to piece together a broken eggshell?" I wonder aloud. Todoroki shrugs again and turns the page, his arm brushing mine. I eventually stop reading, since I had already read all the stories, and fix my gaze on a bird pecking at the ground nearby. I pass the storybook off to Todoroki and grab a notebook and pencil out of my bag, starting to sketch the bird. I was so focused on my drawing that I didn't realise Todoroki was watching over my shoulder. As soon as I finish the sketch, the bird spreads its wings and flies off.

"I didn't know you could draw?" He asks, startling me a little. I laugh and shake my head.

"Not very well. I can only really draw plants and birds." I say, closing the notebook.

"Do you mind if I see?"

I glance between the notebook and his face, then pass it to him. He opens it up, flicking through my various sketches and drawings of mushrooms, trees, flowers and birds. Some of them were in colour, but most were just black and white.

"Why are there so many orchids in here?" Todoroki asks, pausing on the sixth drawing of one. I shrug.

"I just like them a lot. I grow a few at home, but I don't think I'm doing it properly." I laugh, remembering my first time taking care of a plant. I thought it was going well until I realised I was watering it with vinegar instead of water. It died the next day. Todoroki hums in response, flipping to the next page. That one was a drawing of a mushroom I had seen a couple days ago. I didn't know the name of it but I found it aesthetically appeasing so I decided to sketch it.

"This is an amanita mushroom, right?" Todoroki asks, nodding at the sketch.

"I have no clue. I just say it and though 'hmm that's an attractive mushroom' so I drew it." I shrug. Todoroki laughs.

"I think you're the only person who would find a mushroom attractive." He says, handing back the notebook after taking another look at the bird sketch I just drew.

"What can I say? That mushroom pleases my eyesight." I laugh, flicking through the pages before putting it away again.

"I'm fairly certain it's poisonous though, so please don't go around trying to marry an amanita." He jokes. I snort.

"Don't worry, the only mushroom I'm even on speaking terms with is Kaminari."

"He isn't a mushroom, though...?"

"He turns into one when he overloads on his quirk." I snicker. Todoroki grins, then a frown falls over his face.

"Hey, (Y/N)...?" he asks. I tilt my head at him.

"What's wrong?"

"No, nothing is wrong, but... ah, nevermind." He says, standing up suddenly and giving me the storybook. I put it away, making a mental note to bring it back to the library soon and grab a new one.

"Okay, but if you need to talk, I exist." I say, grinning at him. He nods and smiles back, but it doesn't reach his eyes.

"Thanks, (Y/N). I appreciate it."

~

"So what were you guys doing anyway?" Kirishima asks as we walk to class.

"Just reading a book." I say, not entirely the whole truth but close enough. He nods, and I feel Kaminari's arm brush lightly against mine, sending a little static jolt through me. As the tingling feeling subsides, we walk into the classroom and take our seats. Todoroki didn't look at me the whole lesson.

"Yo, (Y/N), Kaminari, Sero, wanna come to my place for the night?" Kirishima asks, swinging his bag onto his back, "I've got snacks and video games!"

"Oof how could I say no to free food." I say, grinning.

"Same. I'm in." Sero says, his trademark triangular grin on his face.

"Sorry guys, but I need to pass on this. I really need to get my English assignment done." Kaminari says, sounding remorseful.

"What? Dude, that's due the day after tomorrow. How have you not done it yet?" Sero asks. Kaminari winces.

"W-Well, I'm having trouble with the phrases..." he mutters. I sigh.

"I'll help you, then. Kirishima, you better bring me some food tomorrow." I say, shrugging my bag onto my shoulders. He grins and nods, giving me the thumbs up.

"I'll bring you the best of snacc!" he declares.

"Are you saying snack with two c's...?" I ask, then shake my head, "Nevermind, that's not surprising."

"See you guys later!" Sero says, laughing as he follows Kirishima out of the room. Kaminari grabs his bag and we walk together down the road, me wheeling my bike.

"T-Thankyou for deciding to help me. I'm an idiot, so I probably wouldn't have been able to figure it out on my own..." he mutters, looking at the ground.

"You're not an idiot, Denki." I sigh, then freeze in shock.

'Wait a moment, Denki? DENKI?!'

(For the benefit of anyone who doesn't know, only close friends and family call eachother by their first names. If a stranger calls a person by their first name, it can be taken as an insult.)

"I-I'm sorry! I said that on autopilot!" I say, my eyes wide with apology.

"N-No, it's fine. I don't mind." Kaminari says, averting his eyes. A light dusting of red was spread across his cheeks, accenting his eyes. I sigh in relief, forcing myself to calm down and walking in silence to his front door. He unlocks it and leads the way inside.

Or, he would have, if Pixel hadn't literally bowled me over.

"Pixel, no!" Kaminari scolds, grabbing his collar and pulling him off me. I laugh, taking off my shoes and leaving them by the door.

"Don't worry about it, he just missed me." I say, getting up and scratching the dog on the top of his head. He leans against my legs, almost toppling me over again before Kaminari grabbed my hand and steadied me, the static from his touch making my body tingle.

"Oi, Denki! Is that you?" Kaminari's mother calls, walking around the corner. Her face lit up when she saw me. I only realised then that Kaminari was still holding my hand.

"Oh, I didn't know you would be here! If I did, I would have cleaned up a little." She says, grabbing Pixel's collar and dragging him away from me so I can stand properly and not have to worry about the giant dog. Kaminari drops my hand.

"It's fine. I don't clean up my place even if I know that there's going to be visitors." I say, grinning up at her. She laughs, grabbing my arm and leading me into the dining room.

"You arrived just in time for tea. Denki, sit your ass down with us and tell me about this nice girl you've brought home again." She says cheerily. Kaminari's face turns red again and he sits across from me at the table. His mother pours us both a cup of tea and then props her head up on her hand, waiting for him to start talking.

"S-She said she was going to help me with my English assignment, since I can't do it on my own. She's in my class at UA and hangs out with me at lunch, along with Kirishima and Sero." He mutters, holding his cup with both hands and staring down into the liquid inside.

"Nothing else to add? That's boring." His mother says. I chuckle, taking a sip of the steaming drink in front of me. I immediately regret my decision, as the tea tasted like it was a year off and covered in elephant dung. I don't let it show on my face, though, and force the liquid down, trying not to shudder at the flavour.

"Do you like the tea? I'm not very good at making it, but I always try. Denki never has any so I can't get any outside opinions." She says, shooting a glare at her son. He just nods, looking at me with pity. She turns to me, her expression hopeful, and I feel a lump rise in my throat.

"Y-Yeah, it was good." I lie, unable to tell her the truth. Her expression lights up and she claps her hands in excitement. Kaminari looks at me in surprise.

"Is that so? I'm so happy you like it!" she says. I smile, then realise she was watching to see if I would take another sip. I keep my expression carefully happy as I tip the cup up again, downing the whole thing in one go and refusing to let my disgust show.

"You know, I think that's the first time anyone's ever finished a cup of my tea before. Would you like another?" She asks, holding up the teapot.

"No thankyou, I'm not very thirsty anymore. And, I would like to start on Kaminari's assignment." I say quickly, feeling my stomach turning. I swallow some spit, trying to get rid of the lingering taste in my mouth, as his mother nods.

"That's understandable. There's always more, though, if you want any later on!" She says cheerily, standing up and taking our cups – mine empty, Kaminari's still full – and walks out of the room.

"I can't believe you drank the whole thing and said it was good." Kaminari chuckles, standing up and leading the way up to his room. It was on the second floor.

"She was so hopeful! I couldn't say it wasn't!" I protest, crossing my arms. He laughs.

"You feeling okay? Her tea can be a little... upsetting."

I nod. The churning in my stomach had settled down, and I could no longer taste the repulsive tea in my mouth anymore.

"I'm all right. And it wasn't that bad."

"Uhh... sure. Keep telling yourself that."

He pauses in front of a closed door with a name tag shaped like a lightning bolt hanging off it. The tag said "Denki Kaminari" and had a little scratch on the right, marring the paint.

"I-I'm just gonna tell you now, my room is a mess. Probably the biggest mess you've ever seen." He says, grabbing the doorknob and looking back at me.

"Okay." I respond, interested to see what it would look like now. My phone buzzes in my pocket and I take it out, realising my mother had sent me a message asking where I was. I quickly text back that I was at a friend's house helping him study, and would probably be really late back home.

Mother Bear: Just make sure you're home before midnight, okay?

Lil' Bro: But I have to be home before ten!

(Y/N): That's just because I'm older than you. And I'll make sure I'm home before midnight :3

Lil' Bro: You're mean.

Mother Bear: Stay safe, kids.

After that little texting episode, I realise Kaminari was still waiting for me.

"Sorry about that, just my mother asking where I was." I say, putting my phone back into my pocket.

"Oh, okay." He says, twisting the knob and opening the door. It was actually a lot less messy than I thought it would be. There were a few clothing piles, an open magazine, a stack of Pokémon cards, a few skateboards and a clothing hanger lying around on the floor, and a shelf completely stacked with figurines of video game characters. A tv was mounted in the centre of the wall above the shelf, facing towards his bed, and a glass cabinet with video games inside it was sitting in a corner. A large window in front of us illuminated the room with a bright blue sky, only just starting to turn orange on the horizon. Dark curtains were tied back beside the window. A bedside table had a gooseneck lamp on it, and there was a children's storybook on the top along with a keychain of a lightning bolt.

"D-Do you like my room?" Kaminari asks, shrugging off his bag and crouching beside it, searching for his textbooks.

"Yeah, it's cool." I say, walking into the room and looking out the window. He had a view of the street below, and way off in the distance I could just see the edge of the ocean. The roofs of the houses seemed to blend together after a while so I couldn't see my house, but I definitely knew that was the same cove I always go swimming in.

"Could you read this and tell me if I'm doing okay?" Kaminari asks, closing the door with a click and holding a sheet of paper out to me. I turn around, almost laughing as I realise he had a poster of All Might on the back of his door and take the paper. I skim over it quickly, already seeing lots of mistakes in the spelling, phrasing and sentence structure. When I point this out to him, he nods and grabs a laptop out of his bag, sitting on his bed and making edits to the script. I sit beside him, my legs crossed, and start suggesting different words he could use to make the writing more diverse.

"Instead of just using he said, she said kind of words, try using cried here and shouted here..." I mutter, pointing to a word on his screen. He nods, changing the words to the ones I suggested. Time flew and before I realised it, the stars and moon had come out.

"Kids! Food!" Kaminari's mother shouts, her voice echoing up the stairs.

"I should probably leave soon." I say, packing up the notes from class I had brought out.

"A-Ah, okay. Thankyou for all the help." He says, saving the document and closing his laptop.

"I could probably come around again tomorrow, if you want?" I suggest, shrugging my bag across my shoulders.

"Yeah, please. If it's not too much to ask." He responds, opening the door and leading the way down to the kitchen.

"I was wondering if you heard me or not. Now, why don't you sit down and-"

"Thankyou for the offer, miss Kaminari, but I really need to start heading home." I interrupt, eager to escape before she brings out more tea.

"Oh, of course. I hadn't realised how late it was! Denki, walk her to the door." She says, just as Kaminari sits down. He sighs, getting back up again, but I could see the smile on his face. Pixel ambles up to me, nudging my leg with his nose, and I give him a scratch behind the ears.

"Oh, and (Y/N)? Call me mum." She calls as we start walking away.

"MUM, PLEASE!!" Kaminari shouts, an enormous blush creeping across his face. She laughs evilly and I grin, nodding.

"Sure thing, mum-"

"KITTEN DON'T ENCOURAGE HER!!"

"Ooooh, you call her Kitten?" Kaminari's mother purrs, and I swear his blush turned a shade darker. He hangs his head, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Y-Yes, I call her Kitten. She said she likes it." He mutters. I pat his back.

"Don't worry about it, sentient battery pack. See you tomorrow, miss Kaminari." I say, grinning and waving at her. She laughs and waves back. Pixel follows after us as we walk to the door, nudging me with his nose as I tie up my shoes.

"Sorry about my mother. I love her, but sometimes she can go a bit too far..." he mumbles, watching me as I stand up.

"Nah, I had fun. I like her." I say, smiling at him. He smiles back.

"Listen, um... would it be weird to go in for a hug? 'Cause I kinda feel like I want to hug you right now..." he says shyly, grinning awkwardly and looking away. I laugh, stepping forwards and wrapping my arms around his body, static leaping through me. I don't think I would ever get old of that feeling. He hugs me back, and I could feel his smile against the side of my head.

"Thanks for all the help, (Y/N)." he murmurs, absentmindedly running his fingers through my hair. I give him a light squeeze and step back, hoping he doesn't notice the blush across my cheeks.

"No problem. I'll see you tomorrow, D-Denki." I say, stuttering over his name. His face lights up and he nods, then grabs Pixel's collar so the dog doesn't chase me outside as I grab my bike, swinging my leg up over it and waving one last time to Denki, who was standing in the doorway with Pixel sitting beside him before pushing off and starting the journey home.

~ Kaminari's P.O.V ~

As I watched her ride away, disappearing into the night, I close the door and release Pixel. He immediately started sniffing and scratching at the bottom of the door, whining a little bit.

"Don't worry boy, I miss her already too..." I mutter, crouching beside him and giving him a few scratches behind his ears. A small smile crept over my face as I remembered the feeling of her arms around me, her warmth so close to my body. It took so much strength not to kiss the top of her head during the hug.

"Denki! If you're kissing her goodbye, at least tell me about it."

"MUM I SWEAR TO GOD-"

(Oof 4k words)