Zip!

Zip!

Zip!

Three arrows, all angled with each of their points making their mark on a circle of many colors. The paper was flawless, not a tear or a hole besides the very middle where the arrows stood. There’s oh so many reasons why you can’t competitively shoot guns or arrows despite how badly you’d love to. Your parents words would always echo through your head, there’s always a time and place for everything but not now… Use your quirk to help others instead of personal gain.  Not necessarily why you’re now a student going to UA. Want to know the real reason behind trying out for UA? Your damned sister… Mei just had to try out for UA, it’s because of her your parents forced you to follow in her footsteps and somehow you managed to land a spot in the hero course. You won’t complain though. You got a great class, a surprisingly lazy yet supportive teacher and you’re an intern under your main inspiration of a Pro Hero named Snipe.

Everything is great, sort of. Yeah you got the class, the mentor, the quirk… Just not as many friends as you wish you could have. You’re too shy to really talk to anyone; more of a reason why you’re always shooting your bow and arrow from after school to dusk.

Your breath was beginning to mystify within the grey sky of the falling sun. The goosebumps littering your arms began to cry for warmth. It’s about time you turn in for the night. “I hope Sato baked something sweet tonight! All I smell is cake,” and thus your mouth began to water. Caramelized sugar, roasted pecans and sugary frosting to make your stomach yearn for nothing but sweet savory goodness. Better pack up everything quickly!

You ran over to the tree that had your paper target nailed to it’s barky surface. While the target is biodegradable, you just used pure raw strength to dislodge your arrows and retreat. The last thing to cross your mind was the ghastly young man standing before the fence of the class dormitory. His eyes were blank, almost dull and devoid of life while his hair was a frenzy of lavender or a near grey. You’ve seen him around campus a few times, but you’ve never thought you’d speak to him before today.

Luckily, he spoke first after matching your gaze. “I see you’ve finally noticed me.”

Instinctively, you loaded your bow with an arrow and pulled it back to graze your cheek. Your eyes began to illuminate a piercing gold with scopes circling the pupils. Your mark has been made, all you had to do was release the string. “N-noticed? Y-You’ve been watching me for how long?” You tried to sound confident, but it all fell through.

Shinsou, aware that his life was in imminent danger, raised his hands to touch the sky. “As creepy as it sounds, I've been watching you train for maybe a week. Under your sister’s request before you ask.”

“Did Mei pay you to prank me or something? I’m sorry I wasted your time…” You carefully unloaded your bow to make sure no one got hurt. Now your head was throbbing with the beginnings of a horrible headache. To focus on a target too long had its drawbacks.

Shinsou lowered his arm back down to his sides. “She asks me to check in on you often that’s all.”

“That’s… Nice of you,” a man who takes time out of his day to check in on someone even though he had the right to go about his own business instead.

“Any reason you do the same thing each day? I mean I’ve never seen you miss a target,” Shinsou was perceptive that’s for sure. Then again, you’ve never missed a mark in your life.

“I’m miserably shy,” your voice is just barely a whisper. “It feels like i’m about to piss my pants just talking to you.”

“So what Hatsume said is true,” Shinsou hummed.

“W-What? What What she say about me?” You feared for the worst.

“You’re so shy you barely take care of bodily needs. It’s well past nine… Have you eaten yet today? I’m also aware you don’t eat in front of people often,” Shinsou is freaky scary right now like a stalker. He remembers the smallest details whether someone has told him or he’s caught onto them on his own. Is he being a stalker right now, or selfless?

“I haven’t ate today but I’m about to though… Please leave.”

“Sure,” Shinsou spun around without a thought.

“You’re… You’re gonna leave just like that?” And just when you thought that someone was beginning to care about you.

Shinsou glanced over his shoulder, “I’m gonna be back tomorrow of course.”

“I honestly expected you to say that,” you admit sadly.

“Let’s do something tomorrow alright? You could use a friend,” without a response, Shinsou began the journey to his class dormitory. This boy cares more for you than he should.

Is it wrong to say you’re actually willing to play along with this mystery guy? You only know him through the sports festival when he competed against someone within your class but nothing more than then. No, actually Aizawa talks about him every now and then. Still… Shinsou is a mystery and why does he care so much about you when he’s never spoken to you a day in his life before now…

Long story short, you called your sister for not only an explanation behind choosing Shinsou of all people to watch you and not herself. The first time Shinsou checked in on you, Mei asked him to do so because she was stuck in her workshop overtime because too many students needed uniform alterations as soon as possible and Shinsou was one of those students who needed the alterations. Every time afterwards, that was all out of the goodness of Shinsou’s heart because of how long you train yourself each and everyday. Mei would tell him how she makes sure to check in on you often because you’re a mess. Too shy to talk to people, you don’t like to eat in front of others, and you don’t eat anything besides sugar. Shinsou figured his training could take a break if he’s helping someone else. You really can’t tell Shinsou off now because he’s only trying to help.

Since school got out, you got yourself dressed and out of school uniform just to wait outside for Shinsou. He came around pretty soon after you began to await his arrival. That tall boy of lavender hair dressed himself in blue jeans and a black hoodie, his hands cradled within the stomach pocket all cozy within this pre-winter setting. “I see you’ve been waiting for me,” the boy smirked.

“FYI my sister spilled the beans,” you smiled devilishly.

“Then you’re aware that tonight we’re going on a date,” Shinsou wasn’t phased with your abundance of knowledge.

Unfortunately, you were. “She didn’t tell me that…”

“What’d Mei tell you,” Shinsou cocked a brow.

“That you only want what’s best for me.”

“Not the entire truth but alright,” Shinsou shrugged. “It’s a very faint crush but your sister really seems to care for you and I can see why she does. I was gonna treat tonight like a test run to see if you’re comfortable enough with me,” Shinsou only knows what he does about you through the stories he’s heard from Mei. Most of them were intriguing and kept him hungry for more.

“Okay…” You began to blush. “Nobody has ever bothered to show any interest in me and here you are treating me to a date,” your heart could give out right about now. This is the longest you’ve spoken to someone within a singular day in weeks and it’s sweeter than candy.

Shinsou too felt great. He’s normally kept to himself more than he would to others. “Cosmic arena sound good to you?”

“They have everything there!” You gasped. They have the best sweets in town, the largest arcade, glow in the dark bowling and an escape room! It’s everything you’ve been dying to try for years now but had nobody to do it with. Today you finally had the person to do it all with.

Off you both went, a long satisfying yet cold walk into the town. You’re guessing Shinsou had no idea as to what your quirk was because you both went to bowl first. Bullseye: As long as you focus on a given target, whatever you shoot or throw doesn’t miss its mark. After the second round of nothing but strikes, Shinsou asked that you stopped using your quirk for a change. Just to be a tease, you never did turn it off and got a perfect score for the third turn in a row. Shinsou began to yell nonsense and clouding your vision with his hands just before you’d toss the ball in an attempt to distract you. Most times he couldn’t pull it off, but when you would miss you’d batter him up in a flurry of slaps in playful irritation. Eventually, you let him win by turning off your quirk and playing for real. Every ball except for a lucky few went into the gutter just like your confidence in almost everything. 

Losing actually felt better than winning for a change.

The next plan for the night was to hit up the arcade for a little then go home. Shinsou had given you a few dollars to play with while he had plans in the bathroom. You found yourself stuck before a claw machine filled top to bottom with a glorious mountain of stuffed animals. At first you didn't pay the machine any mind, but double take had occurred when a long haired cat plush had caught your eye. "So cute..." You awed before throwing in a few quarters. The metallic claw dangled and swung violently with each slight adjustment made. Time ran out on the machine, the claw descended on it's very own... Just slightly off from the cat and raised back to its dangling hell without a prize in its grasp.

"You got between me and my cat..." Your throat began to tickle with a growl. "Wait... If I don't miss with a gun or a bow... Would my quirk work on a machine?"

"Play fair..." Shinsou sighed although he is pretty amused with your way of thinking.

You're startled, but turned your upper half around to Shinsou. "It got between me and my cat!" You nearly cried out. To live without it would rip your heart out!

"And Hatsume was right," Shinsou snickered. "You are quite a sore loser when things don't go your way."

"Can you quit bringing up Mei? We may be sisters but I hate her guts..."

"I can stop," he nods. "I'll get the cat for you," you had stepped aside when Shinsou moved towards the machine with his careful eyes examining the contents of the machine.

He's been studying it too carefully for your interest. "You're not gonna win anything if you keep staring at it," you pout.

"Just studying it to see if this thing is rigged," He hugged with a hand to stroke his chin.

"Is it rigged?" Your curiosity kicked in. The machine looked like any other machine you've seen around Japan.

"I don't think so," Shinsou came to a conclusion.

"How?"

"I played these games quite a bit when I was younger," Shinsou dug through his pocket to deposit an entire dollar. "I would always win stuffed animals cause I didn't have friends so I had to compensate. Prizes in the windows are impossible, too tightly packed makes it difficult, the prongs on the claw can change the outcome too," Shinsou's eyes were locked on the plush cat that lied on its side near the prize chute of the machine. "Two prongs impossible, four prongs you need precision, and three is just right..." Luckily the machine had three prongs. The hand opened up after Shinsou lightly tapped the glowing red button. The hand lowered and lowered, blanketing the plush. It clamped down around the body and up it went!!! The second the prize door rattled meant the prize was as good as yours.

You were so stunned you've completely forgotten how to breathe. Shinsou had claimed the prize and nearly panicked when you began to turn red. Luckily at last second all thoughts can came back on track and all you could do was awe as Shinsou had lied the gift between your outstretched hands. You were cherishing the gift with care as if it was a real kitten. Shinsou must've been the first person besides your own family to gift you with anything.

The cat was embraced into your chest softly. "Thank you. Thank you Shinsou. You're so nice... Maybe you can teach me your tricks some day," such a genuine smile. Shinsou has officially fallen in love.

"Why not now? I have an extra credit in the machine."

"Okay," you hunch yourself over just enough to get a good view and reach of the machine and the controls. You were searching for the perfect plush for Shinsou since you need to win something on your own. There's a goofy yellow duckling, a wide eyed owl, a rainbow dog, a long camouflage snake, and then... There it was! A cat just like yours except it was a purple while yours was (h/c). Perfect!

This opportunity is just too perfect, don't waste it. On your own you lined up the claw over the purple cat plush, when time was almost out, your made the plush your target. Shinsou took notice that it had became your target as those eyes of yours illuminated a liquid gold that never blinked up until the time went out and that plush was in the chute. Your eyes dulled out into their original color, a pleased smile on your face as you presented the prize to your date. "Here Shinsou, It looks just like you," your smile was stretching ear to ear.

Shinsou, he was about to point out how you cheated and right in front of him too. He looked past your little insecurity, the one that desired a near perfect winning streak because that prize must mean the world to you. The plush violet fur grazed his fingertips. Shinsou saw his own resemblance within the flat faced cat with a frenzy of fur. "I'll take it under one condition," the boy smirked.

"And that would be?" Your eyes glistened with curiosity.

"Clearly you really like me and I like you back... Wanna make it official?" It'd make tonight one of the best he's had in forever.

"I'd love to," now you've practically shoved cat Shinsou into his hands. It's a bit creepy, having an exact Replica of yourself in cat form. At least it came from someone who cares about him and you can say the same.

So, this oneshot is kind of like a play on a real life event that had happened to me in the past. It was my 15th(?) birthday and my neighbor/bestfriend at the time that I had a diehard crush on noticed that I was struggling at a claw machine and he ended up getting me a prize from the machine. Afterwards I was fawning over him more than I ever was and named my large spiky rubber ball thingy Sam just like Septic Sam. Although in the back of my mind I should've named it Nick like him.
I KNOW SOME OF YOU HAVE HAD A MOMENT LIKE THIS!!!