Candlelight

TodorokiXFemale!Reader Oneshot

-Reader afraid of the dark-

"Everyone is afraid of something."

.:+:.

"... Alright, that leaves everybody paired to a room except Todoroki and (Y/N)."

You blinked at the sound of your name, sitting off to the side beside Tokoyami and quiet for the majority of the small sit down in the lounge area of whatever UA owned Training Camp this was, and of which Class 1-A as a whole had been bused out to. Well, Class 1-A as a whole discounting one Mashirao Ojiro- who unfortunately had to skimp out on this three-day Training Camp gig because of some killer flu virus that had passed on from somewhere else in the school.

Poor guy really, but maybe it made things easier for Mr. Aizawa when it came to breaking everyone up into teams and whatnot, since the usually odd number of 21 people in this class was now bumped down to an even 20 with Ojiro out of the picture.

Since arriving about twenty minutes ago, Mr. Aizawa had herded the whole class into the lounge area and started listing off a multitude of rules and whatnot, as well as briefly explaining what the Training Camp would entail the next few days. Unsurprisingly it was a number of training exercises and mock rescue operations to be conducted in the heavy wood surrounding the area, and it was sure to be a lot of hard, and straining work.

(To which, many of your classmates grumbled at- and you did, a little... but hey, that's what the Hero Course is meant to be right? Hard work so you can be the best Hero you possibly can be, yeah?)

Anyway, after all of that he'd started to divide the class up into pairs, each of which that would be sharing a room while staying here. The other girls in your class all got paired with another girl, and the guys were the same- until the uneven number of boys and girls became apparent, and you and Todoroki were left as the last pair to be possibly made.

Mr. Aizawa's tired eyes trailed slowly over toward you, and then toward the nearly stoic figure of Todoroki a few dozen feet away from you. Your teacher seemed almost pensive, his eyes narrowed at you and Todoroki for a few seconds before he glanced left and toward the stairwell at the edge of the lounge filled with students. His lips pulled into a tight line as he mused to himself for a moment, his eyes dropping closed as he let out a sigh.

"I can pair you both into a room and make two groups of three, and leave a room empty." He murmured, "... Or I can place you both in the same room." He mumbled, you blinked at that. There was also a quick wash of murmurs and grins that spread among the other students at the prospect, understandably maybe. It wasn't normal for any highschool to pair up a girl and a boy in the same room, and ultimately sharing the same bed, right?

"It is up to the both of you, and I only offer it because I doubt either of you will do anything stupid." Mr. Aizawa told you both lowly, and you blinked again.

I suppose that's high praise from Mr. Aizawa, in some way...

Your eyes flicked away from your Homeroom teacher and toward the other student in question, catching Todoroki's teal blue eye from the side as he glanced toward you in the same instant. There was a few seconds of silence where you two caught eachother's sideways glances, and it seemed like some unspoken words passed between the two of you- though you certainly didn't hear anything in your head that could be considered a conversation.

"I don't mind sharing a room." Todoroki replied to the Erasure Hero, his voice calm and steady as his eyes dropped closed. You glanced away from him, biting the inside of your cheek and catching Mr. Aizawa's eyes as you nodded toward him.

"I don't mind either." You murmured softly, the words making it passed your lips with little a thought or a care. And honestly, you didn't really mind sharing a room with him, he'd never bothered you, and you two had never had any issues or anything with each other. Granted, you and Todoroki had never really talked much, nor did you consider each other on bad terms or enemies or anything like that- but you two weren't exactly friends either, you were just... mm... content maybe was the word.

So there was no instinctive aversion to the idea you two would be sharing a room together for the next three days, and you had complete faith that you two could coexist in that amount of time with no real issues to be heard of between the two of you. No fights, no annoyance, no snapping eachother's heads off or anything of the sort. And like Mr. Aizawa, you trusted that the ever stoic and rather quiet (or maybe more serious is the word?) Todoroki would not try anything unwanted.

Unlike what you'd expect from Mineta...

There was one little thing though, despite how quick you were to relent to the idea. One tiny, twisting, uneasy feeling in the bottom of your stomach that never went away and maybe got a little bit worse..... One uncertainty, and one that got paired with the faintest bits of nervousness as soon as you agreed to share a room, and you bit the inside of your cheek harder instead of letting your posture or your expression betray what you were feeling. Something that had in all reality been a worry for you form the start of finding out about this trip... But what the hell were you supposed to do?

You'll be fine (Y/N)... it'll be fine.

You wished you sounded more certain of that... you wished that a lot, actually.

Damn it

Mr. Aizawa brushed his bangs back from his face with a tired sigh when both of you agreed to pair up, he seemed unsurprised with the answer, and quite unbothered by it too. "Fine." He murmured, "The Training will begin at 6 sharp tomorrow morning. For now, everyone go to your rooms and get settled in, dinner will be served in about an hour."

Your eyes reflexively trailed sideways again toward the red and white haired boy you were paired up with. Todoroki didn't glance your way and after a minute you looked away from him altogether, still chewing the inside of your cheek as you tried to crush that seed of unease taking root in your core.

"Yes sir."

.:+:.

"I can't believe you and Todoroki are gonna be sharing a room!"

"Yeah! Are you two gonna get up to no good all alone like that, huh? Huh?"

"... of course not.."

"I bet you he snores! He seems like the sort of guy who does that!"

"Mmm, nah! I think he's more the sort of guy that sleeps with his eyes open!"

"Creepy!"

"Quit you two, you're being silly. Todoroki does not snore, and he certainly doesn't sleep with his eyes open..."

"... Todoroki's a nice guy, right? He'll be super nice to you (Y/N), I'm sure of it!"

"Yeah, you really shouldn't worry (Y/N). Everything will be fine, ribbit."

"... thank you, but I wasn't worried..."

... at least... not about Todoroki...

Night came quicker than you could have imagined, especially after having the other girls in the class giggling (Mina and Hagakure in particular) about your sleeping arrangements all through dinner and the few hours afterward before the whole building seemed to settle down for sleep. The hallways grew empty and the shadows stretched out across the floors, the lights on in the kitchen and other common areas being snuffed out as people disappeared into their rooms with their temporary roommates. You stepped inside the confines of the room you were sharing with the quiet Todoroki close behind, and you cast a wary glance backward into the hallway, before focusing instead on what was ahead of you.

It was a fairly simple room, with a small bathroom attached and two dressers and desks pushed to the edges of the room. There was a series of three large windows that were set into the far wall from the door and the stark, looming and dark figures of the trees outside and their winding branches were all that could be seen- outlined in the dusky violet night sky getting darker by the second.

And in the center of the room and pushed against the wall that was left from the entrance, was a single queen sized bed all done up nice and neat and with a spare blanket laid on the end. There were two nightstands flanking either side of the bed itself, and it was plenty big enough for the both of you and Todoroki to share without really worrying about touching each other or anything. Not that accidentally bumping against one another was really an issue with you- you didn't have a problem with personal space or anything... and while you couldn't speak for Todoroki, you were a particularly quiet sleeper, and you didn't move hardly at all when you drifted off.

You heard the door click shut behind you as Todoroki closed it, and you cast a glance over your shoulder at him.

You two had said little to one another when you came into the room to unpack and settle things a bit, which wasn't much a surprise. Todoroki was a particularly quiet person by nature, and you were very much the same way- so you two said a few things between each other along the lines of; 'Do you mind if I put this here?' or the occasional apology when you bumped into one another during the unpacking stage. He'd also asked you if you were 'really' alright with sharing a room, and you'd replied that it was fine. You wouldn't have agreed to it if it wasn't, but it was nice he made sure. He was a pretty polite person, and you'd already guessed that before hand, but it was easier to see it now.

But apart from that you two hadn't said much to one another, even though there has been something you meant to ask, but you hesitated to do so... And still hesitated, even now.

You cast a lingering glance at the dark silhouette of the trees and their jagged, winding arms outside the window, chewing the inside of your cheek again as you had been doing frequently the last few hours.

... I should ask, but...

"You can have the bathroom first to change." Todoroki told you, breaking your attention on the window as you glanced his way quickly. He caught your gaze with his mismatched one, and you faltered for a small second at the words, before you nodded a little and offered up a small smile.

"Right, thanks. I won't take long." You murmured, he dipped his head in a single nod.

"Take your time." He replied with ease, and you smiled a little more before you turned away and gathered up your sleepwear and headed into the bathroom. You nudged the door open and your hand quickly felt along the wall just inside the threshold for the light switch, flipping it on and bringing harsh yellow light to flood the small space.

You stepped inside and without a word, your eyes finding Todoroki digging in his bag with his back turned to you. You closed the door and cut off your view of him, your hand lingering on the doorknob as you stared at the plain white wood in front of your face and held your clothes to your body with your other arm.

... I don't know if I should ask... I don't wanna bother him... And I don't wanna be a bother either...

You sighed internally and grimaced to yourself, your forehead pressing against the door for a few moments as your eyes dropped closed.

... It's stupid... And not exactly normal... Maybe... I'll just... Deal, I guess... I can do that, yeah?

It's only for a few nights, (Y/N). You have to be courteous, and you don't wanna be a bother for Todoroki... This will be good for you... You'll be fine...

Again, you really wished you sounded more sure of that.

With a quiet, half exasperated and half weary growl at yourself, you pulled away from leaning against the door and quickly changed. When you were done you pulled the door open and stepped outside, only to halt halfway through the movement when your eyes landed on Todoroki and the makeshift sleeping place he had begun to create on the floor(?).

"... Ah, Todoroki...?" You murmured, he glanced up at you.

"Hmm?"

"... what are you doing...?" You asked, he blinked.

"You can have the bed, I'm fine with sleeping on the floor." He answered evenly, and you blinked several times in surprise. You took a few steps further into the room and toward him, your eyes glittering slightly.

"You really don't have to, the bed is big enough for both of us." You told him quickly,

"I know, but I thought you'd be more comfortable if we slept separately." He replied, you smiled slightly.

So polite...

"I really don't mind sharing a bed." You murmured, "It's nice of you to think about making me comfortable and I appreciate it. But I'd hate to have you sleeping on the floor for my sake when you really don't need to." You told him softly before pausing a for a moment. "... that is unless you personally aren't really comfortable with it, and you'd rather just sleep on the floor..." You added as an afterthought, he blinked once. There was a small few seconds of silence where you held one another's gazes, before Todoroki broke the eye contact and nodded slightly.

"If you're sure..." He murmured,

"Of course." You told him, he cast you a glance that looked almost unconvinced, but he left it alone as he started to undo what he'd done to set himself up for sleeping on the floor.

"Alright." He murmured, picking the pillows up and setting them lightly on the bed. "I'll sleep on the right side." He told you, and you nodded though you weren't sure why he made a point to specify a side...?

It probably didn't matter, and he clearly wasn't looking to give an explanation for it. You paused a few more seconds to watch him, before you moved toward the dresser you had put your things away in and set the clothes you had taken off inside.

Your hand brushed along a small, pale colored candle tucked away inside the drawer that you had placed there earlier in the day when you unpacked. You cast a quick glance over your shoulder and toward Todoroki as he gathered up his things to go and get changed, and then your attention flicked toward the nightstand and you chewed the inside of your cheek again. Your eyes glittered as you paused where you were, your hand held lightly over the candle and fixed to your spot for a few seconds.

... maybe if I just set it there, and imagine it, it'll be fine...

Your fingers curled around the candle as you pulled it out of the drawer, sighing silently as you moved back toward the bed and Todoroki moved to change in the bathroom. You were too busy standing the candle up on the night stand beside the bed to notice that he glanced back toward you once he reached the door. He paused for a few seconds, eyes narrowing as he watched you gently stand the candle up and the way your fingers lingered on the waxy edge before you pulled away entirely. He couldn't see your face, since your back was turned to him, but he could see the faintest bit of tension woven into your shoulders and your posture.... it was tension that had been there the entire time, he'd noticed.

He blinked, letting out a silent sigh as he looked away and shut the door behind him as he stepped into the bathroom.

Your head tilted slightly as you heard the bathroom door click shut, leaving you alone in the room for a few minutes. Your eyes scanned the wall and the windows, searching fruitlessly (and rather pointlessly...) for curtains over said windows... of which there weren't any, and you'd noticed that the first time you'd walked into the room.

You fished your phone out of the pocket in your sweatpants and settled down to sit crosslegged on the left side of the bed, and started to fiddle with it only to be met with the signal for no service- which meant you were forced to deal with what little games were on the device that didn't require a connection. Namely; solitaire, and you hoped it might keep your attention long enough to wear you out, and then you wouldn't have anything to worry about. And certainly to keep your attention away from being so damn, acutely aware of the way in which the sky outside was getting darker, and darker, and the room too, despite the overhead.

Once again... you're fine, (Y/N)... you're fine.

You're fine

You were faintly aware of Todoroki coming out of the bathroom in a long sleeve shirt and a pair of sweats, and he moved to deposit his clothes off amongst the rest of his things as you troubled yourself with picking your next move. Your eyes betrayed your playing though and you glanced over toward him, your stomach knotting again as you told yourself to ask- just ask. It's not hard...

... but it is a little childish... so I won't.

Confound it. You were embarrassed about it... you hated that.

"... do you want me to quit playing so you can go to bed?" You asked him softly as he slowly made his way up to the side of the bed. You asked out of consideration, you knew it could bother people if a roommate stayed up longer than the other wished to, and you didn't want to be a bother.

"You can keep doing what you wish for as long as you want, I don't mind." He replied coolly as he set his phone down on the nightstand beside him. You smiled at his answer and nodded your head,

"Thank you." You hummed, he nodded in reply before his eyes trailed to the light-switch on the wall.

"You mind if I turn the light off though?" He asked calmly, and you did your very best to not to let it show just how much the suggestion made your stomach knot and your heart race. Your smile faltered a little no matter how hard you tried to not let it, and your posture grew the slightest bit rigid from where you were sitting. His eyes were not on you as he asked the question, and it was probably a good thing he wasn't- in the few seconds he was looking at the wall you managed to get rid of your nervousness at the suggestion, and smiled a little softer at him.

"Go ahead." You murmured, your voice dropping a little further than you meant it to. He nodded at you and moved to turn the light off, and you quickly adjusted to lower yourself against the pillow and pull yourself under the sheets, before pulling your phone up and tapping quickly against the lock button to bring the screen back to life before-

The overhead light went out at the sound of the switch being flipped, sending the room cascading into instant darkness and your heart jumped the minute it did. You locked your gaze with the screen and the light it gave off as the shadows engulfed the room and tried to swallow up that little light you were allowed, and you didn't dare let your eyes wander lest your focus get lost in that jet black nothingness all around that had your heart rate slowly rising.

And you couldn't help it damn it, it was just ingrained reaction- insane, irrational and even stupid- but it was instinct and it was fear that had plagued you for as long as you could remember. But you kept your mouth shut, and you kept still, and your eyes stayed glued to your phone as you tried desperately to focus on it and it's glow and not...

... stop it (Y/N), you're fine... you're fine... just relax...

Todoroki settled down into the bed on your right, his movements light and slow as if he was doing his best not to move the bed too much- not that you were paying attention to him enough to care. He settled down all the way whilst leaving a generous bit of space between the two of you, and his eyes trailed sideways toward you as he watched your thumbs tap rather rigidly against the phone screen for a few long minutes, and again- you never noticed him watching. After awhile his eyes moved from you and toward the roof overhead, before he let out a silent sigh and his eyes dropped closed.

And you kept on playing solitaire until you'd played about a dozen games and the last few had all gone rather poorly. You cast a wary glance sideways to see that Todoroki's eyes were closed and the soft tenor of his breathing was the only thing of note to hear in the room outside your own. You glanced at the clock on your phone and grimaced when you realized it was almost midnight.

I should go to sleep... we have to get up early tomorrow...

... oh if only you felt tired. In reality you just felt stiff, and your heart rate really hadn't settled out even through all the playing of your game(s).

You swallowed the lump in your throat and tentatively set your phone down on the nightstand. You buried yourself a little further under the comforter as your gaze lingered on the light of your phone, and your heart pounding faster with everything second that passed before the screen timed out, and then it was completely dark.

Completely. Dark.

You swallowed again, your eyes scanning the dark and the dim all around as the shadows seemed to grow heavier and sink into everything. What little ambient light was allowed let the shadow of the twisting trees outside fall across the windows and the floor, swaying and moving in the breeze outside. Your gaze found every pitch black corner and swept across a roof almost impossible to see, your vision swimming and your heartrate getting faster and faster the longer you let your eyes wander and try to make out anything in the near black.

Ingrained, stupid, childish, irrational... and yet sheer and utter-

Your eyes glittered in the lowlight, your lips a tight line and your arms hugging yourself as you quickly closed your eyes to keep your attention from wandering the unending darkness.

Stop, stop, stop... You're fine... Just go to sleep...

You kept very still with your eyes shut tight for as long as you could manage, and it felt like a million years had passed before curiosity or paranoia or whatever the hell else it was had your eyes opening again to the darkness and you froze.

Your breath caught in your throat as you stared straight up ahead, the shadows in the room seeming to swim at the edge of your vision and slowly creeping in closer toward the center and toward you... Suffocating and cold, and the twisted, gnarled lines stretching out across the roof and swaying sickeningly slow. The longer you looked at them the more they moved, the darker they got and the more freakish shapes they began to take. They swam across the roof and in and out of sea of pitch black, clawing and biting and their maws open in soundless howls and wails that seemed to slowly start to echo in terrible cacophony in the back of your mind. But even that got drowned out by the thundering pound of your heart in your chest and your ears... Dread and panic sank in faster and came to drown you as quickly as the darkness closed in to swallow you whole.

C.. Calm down... Y... You...

It was no use, you were far passed being able to reason with yourself and you felt like you were falling- spiraling quickly downward into a chasm where the light had never existed, and never would.

S..shit..

"... (Y/N)?"

Your jaw locked in the same instant you let out a sharp yelp of surprise, and you jumped at the sudden interjection of Todoroki's voice breaking into your world and your whirling mind in the most jarring way imaginable.

You reflexively shuffled away from the movement at the corner of your eye in your fright and panic, scooting backwards across the bed and toppling off the edge of it in your haste. You slammed into the floor with a painful thud, winded now and making it harder to think rationally than it already was with how worked up you were. You shook your head to clear it as you sat up and froze again, your heart sinking and your blood running cold when the sheer black void underneath the bed faced you. You couldn't see anything, it was a wall of nothing but thick shadow and yet it moved in your slightly frenzied mind, and your eyes lit up in pure wild fear. You were paralyzed, you couldn't move and the thundering of your heart behind your ribs was deafening and painful.

"(Y/N), are you alright...?"

Somehow Todoroki's voice broke through the drowning noise in your head and ears, and your eyes snapped up toward him, wide and glittering and like (E/C) pools full of nothing but fear as your gaze locked with his mismatched one. He'd sat up and moved across the bed to the side you had fallen off of, settled on his knees and looking down at you calmly, but the shock and confusion on his face was clear. His eyes moved over you and your form quickly, searching for injury from the harsh fall and he found nothing- except the way your body was trembling as you sat there on the floor looking absolutely petrified.

"... You're shaking." He breathed, his eyes narrowing at you a little. "Are you alright? What's wrong..?" He asked softly, and you swallowed.

S-shit I didn't mean to...

Your eyes fell from him and back toward the slowly closing darkness under the bed, and your paralysis kept you from reflexively moving backwards away from it.

"... (Y/N)."

You glanced up again toward the gentle call of your name, your eyes fixing on to the hand that Todoroki had extended toward you as he leaned over the bed a bit. You blinked, staring for a few seconds as you mind struggled to come to terms with what he was doing...?

"Come on, let me help you up." He murmured softly, his hand inching closer as he waited patiently for you to reply or just... Do anything.

You swallowed again and your hand slowly reached up to grab his, shaking in his hold and stiff as he slowly pulled you up onto your feet. You sat down on the bed quickly, your legs were shaking so much you probably wouldn't have been able to stay standing for very long, and you pulled your legs up onto the bed to in order to avoid the shadows surely biting at your heels. You didn't let go of his hand and you didn't notice it either, you were distracted with trying to calm down and Todoroki seemed to realize it probably wouldn't help anything if he forced the contact to end... So he settled into sitting on his heels beside you and kept hold of your hand as he searched you and your expression. But your eyes failed to meet his as you seemed to hunch in on yourself and you stared pointedly down at your lap.

"... (Y/N), what's wrong?" he asked again, and still so softly as if he was afraid of pressing you too hard. He was confused though, and he had a right to question you after seeing how you were acting... You just didn't know if you could calm down enough to answer without sounding like a petrified rabbit. "... You have been very tense for awhile now, is something bothering you?"

He noticed that...? Damn it...

You swallowed again and held your breath for a few seconds in the hope it would earn you some semblance of composure- and it really didn't, but you weren't gonna keep ignoring him now that he had asked more than once.

"... I'm sorry..." Your voice came out hushed and shaky, but it was steadier than you could have hoped for. He blinked in surprise at your apology, his head tilting slightly at you. "... I didn't mean to bother you or freak out or anything... It's stupid really... I... I thought I'd be fine...i...it's just..." You trailed off, your shoulders hunching as your expression twisted. You shut your eyes and lowered your head so he wouldn't see your face and you couldn't see his if you were to open your eyes again. Your hold on his hand unconsciously grew a bit firmer and you shook your head at yourself. "... I'm just... I'm not so good in the dark..." You mumbled, grimacing. "...no... More like... I'm afraid of the dark... I can't help it... I know it's childish, but..."

Damn it... I hate this...

"... You're afraid of the dark?" Todoroki echoed calmly, you nodded stiffly.

"... Yeah... it's kinda a stupid thing to be afraid of... But I've always... I've never gotten over it... And now I've freaked out, and I'm sorry you have to deal with me when I'm a mess..." You apologized quickly, "... I wasn't trying to freak out... I thought I could handle it..."

"... You don't need to apologize." Todoroki murmured quietly, you paused as his right hand fell gently overtop the hand you still had holding his left one. You shivered involuntarily at the sheer difference between the warmth of his left hand, and the chilly cold of his right- like a literal few dozen degrees difference.

His fingers curled around your hand so you would let his left one go, and you obliged quickly upon realizing you hadn't ever let go in the first place. You were about to apologize for holding on to him for so long, but you got distracted when he suddenly leaned in a little closer to you out of nowhere- and you hadn't a clue why, or what he was doing.

Uh...?

He leaned a little passed you though, your head finally tilting up again as you watched him reach out toward the nightstand behind you and to the candle you'd set up earlier. Your eyes glittered as the dim light all around was suddenly cut through by the soft and warm light of a little flame that suddenly came to life around his hand, and he tapped his fingers against the wick of the candle to give it life through his Quirk. You watched, fixed and quiet as the flame settled and the shadows retreated from around the both of you, driving the darkness back in an orange and yellow glow... Words could not describe the sheer amount of relief that settled over you when you looked at that flame.

You let out a small sigh of as your shoulders quickly settled out of their hunched composure. Todoroki leaned back again and onto his heels as he watched the fear in your expression slowly melt away as you looked at the flame, the glow making the color of your eyes wash out in a wonderful, soft golden hue. He watched you for a few seconds more before glancing away almost sheepishly, though his expression didn't give any hint to that.

"... I was wondering why you'd brought that with you." He pointed out quietly, earning your attention again, only this time he wasn't looking at you. "... You really don't need to apologize or worry you're bothering me or anything, (Y/N). You could have told me you were afraid of the dark, I wouldn't force you into doing something that scared you... And I would have been fine with keeping a light on, if you wanted." He added, you blinked at him as he kept his eyes on the candle and not you.

"... I'm sorry I didn't say anything... It's just... It's not normal for someone my age to still be afraid of the dark..." You mumbled, embarrassment washing over you as the fear and tension slowly faded.

"Everyone is afraid of something." he replied evenly, "And there's plenty of people afraid of the dark, regardless of how old they are." he told you, and for a moment your expression fell flat in surprise, before you smiled softly at him. You let out a small breath, smiling still as he finally deigned to glance back at you, and question flooded his expression when he saw the smile you had.

"... You're really nice, Todoroki." You hummed softly, his eyes widened slightly at the words, and for a moment he seemed a little stunned- before his eyes averted from you and the faintest bit of flusteredness appeared in him.

"... Thank you..." He murmured quietly, and you smiled a little more at his embarrassment. Your eyes traced along his red and white hair, and then down toward his right hand, of which he had pulled back toward him a few moments ago after setting the candle alight.

His hands were totally different temperatures.... I suppose maybe they would be, given how his Quirk works.

..... wait a minute, is that..?

"... Todoroki?" You asked,

"Yes?"

"Did you specifically take the right side of the bed, so I'd be on your left side?" You asked quietly, your eyes glimmering as he stiffened ever so slightly at the question, his eyes averting from you again. "... cause your right side is ice, and the other side is fire..?" You murmured slowly, his eyes dropped closed as he seemed to take in a silent breath.

"You could get cold, if you slept on my right side." He murmured softly in answer, and you smiled more at it.

So he was thinking about me.... he's so nice... geez...

"You're thoughtful too, huh?" You hummed lightly. He seemed to bite the inside of his cheek a little a the comment, and this time you saw his cheeks flush.

"... I wouldn't say that, it's just polite." He mumbled, you smiled still. He was right of course, it was the polite thing to do- but there was a difference between being polite, and being thoughtful, and you felt this certainly called for that difference. Though granted that he seemed flustered about you pointing it out, you thought maybe it would do well to simply leave it alone, so you did.

He was a pretty quiet guy, Todoroki.... and thus far he'd seemed rather solitary and even at times utterly emotionless. It was nice to see there was something warmer under that cold and stony face he seemed to wear all the time.

Him being embarrassed by you complimenting him was cute though- a surprise for sure- but cute.

I didn't realize he thought about other people like he seems to, and he was so gentle and understanding about the being afraid of the dark thing... he's a much kinder person than he lets other people know, hmm?

"Well, thank you." You told him, "Really, I appreciate it... all of it, and you being so understanding especially." You told him softly, before you smiled wryly, "... even if we could have avoided all of this staying up till 2 in the morning and freaking out and everything if I'd just asked you if I could keep a candle lit... but hey, I guess I've learned my lesson." You chuckled, his expression softened at the words. Your hands clapped together in front of you quietly, "I promise tomorrow night will be much less a mess, by the way."

"Don't worry about that... And you're welcome." He replied quietly, you nodded in return. You yawned then, your eyes watering as the last bit of your tension and your nerves became almost nonexistent and exhaustion started to settle in. Your hands fell a little and you sighed, smiling wearily.

"I'm pretty beat... Probably time we go to bed, huh?" You asked quietly, he nodded.

"Probably." he replied, "... Are you alright with just the one candle? We can turn on more lights if you'd prefer."

Geez, this boy is secretly some sort of prince, isn't he? Who'd have guessed...

You shook your head at him, "No, I'll be alright. Usually the one candle is plenty enough." You murmured, he nodded in understanding. The both of you settled back down again with that generous room between the both of you that had been set before, but for the first time you noticed the clear warmth he gave off even with the distance between the two of you. You'd been so strung out and worrying you hadn't even realized it, but it was definitely warm... He was warm, and that paired with the orange glow from the candle was almost bliss in a way you hadn't expected, nor could have imagined. Your eyelids quickly grew heavy and dropped closed as your mind began to teeter away into nothingness, and you drowsily rolled over a little to face him, though your eyes never opened again even as you did so. "... Goodnight, Todoroki..." You murmured softly, your voice dying quickly even as you said the words.

Todoroki blinked, his eyes shifting toward you from the side and lying on his back. He noticed you roll over in his direction, and he heard your voice just barely before your breathing deepened and you fell asleep. He paused for a small moment, before shifting a little himself to face you a bit more directly.

The candlelight reflected in his eyes and shimmered slightly off your hair as the light outlined you from behind, and you slept on soundly as his gaze slowly traced over you and took in how calm and at ease you were.... you were sound asleep, and it was good you were... and good you'd calmed down.

His eyes danced from you and toward the flame of the candle he had given life to..... How odd it was, and uncanny really, that that little bit of fire could manage to put you at so much ease.... One flame, and the hours of being stiff as a board and the sheer fear that has gripped you was no more... With just one flame.

His eyes dropped down to his left hand as he brought it up in front of him, his eyes glittering as he let out a soft sigh and he let his attention trail along his palm quietly. Maybe... Maybe there was more good it could do than he had ever considered, or imagined, or even hoped..... He shook his head at himself and his hand fell back onto the bed between you and himself, and he let his eyes drop closed.

His fingers brushed ever so faintly against your hand as his lowered all the way, your skin making contact and yet barely a ghost of it- and his first instinct was to pull back. But he hesitated, and remained still for a few long moments, and then he didn't pull away... And he wasn't sure why.

It was just... Warm. You were warm. And he... liked it. It wasn't the same sort of warmth that came from his flames or even from the likes of his father. This was a different feeling, a sort of warmth that was soft and gentle, and something so foreign to him- but he liked it, and he didn't understand why.

His left hand inched a little closer until your hands were pressed lightly against one another, and he relaxed against the bed as his own mind started to spiral away into sleep.

"... Goodnight, (Y/N)."