Finished - November 4, 2022

Word Count - 3047 

Music - Rebirth of a Legend - Tartalo Music

********************************

Midweek classes were always the toughest, once Wednesday hit everything seemed to spiral downhill. Energy levels, motivation and attention spans plummeted. This particular morning was no different.

Allira had been training with Bakugo every morning over the past week, forced to wake up at unholy times and dragged back to the forest to practice. Thus, Allira was finding it impossible to focus on President Mic's math class. The poor professor was doing his best to teach a difficult subject to students not really interested in finding the area of a triangle.

Sat in the front row, Allira was obviously falling asleep. Her eyelids bounced up and down, trying to focus on class. She constantly fidgeted in her seat, trying to find the most uncomfortable position in attempts to stay awake. Yet it all proved impossible as her head swayed from side to side, up and down as she nodded off for just a moment, only to force herself away again. Over and over the process continued. A constant battle to keep from drifting off.

Since she sat in the front row, most of the class noticed her inner battle, especially President Mic. Though he knew Takari was a good student and was working hard, he decided not to scold her. Instead, he thought it best to let her sleep for the moment. Besides, his class was almost over and lunch was directly after. She would definitely wake up after lunch.

There was one person who noticed Takari's odd behavior more than anyone else. Not simply because he sat directly next to her, but because he couldn't take his eyes from her drowsy completion. Bakugo too found it challenging to focus during poor Mic's class, his attention unwillingly drawn towards Takari.

The slight movement of her head swaying, the way her eyes fell and how soft her face looked when so close to sleep. Nevertheless, he willed himself to pay attention to his studies.

Needless to say, Takari didn't make it to the end of class. Her lethargy got the better of her and she officially fell asleep. Her head hung down, slightly to the side hanging just above her chest. Her short white hair floated on her cheeks as it covered her face. Which only allowed her lips to peek out from below her hairline. The position didn't look comfortable and she would definitely wake up with a sore neck.

Bakugo debated on what he should do, he wanted to fix her position to allow her to sleep properly. But he couldn't do so without the entire class seeing his actions. He didn't want to be caught doing something sweet, something that everyone would tease him about. He knew that if he did help her, he would never hear the end of it.

Nevertheless, he wanted to help her, to care for her. Why did he feel this way? This pressing desire to take hold of her and never let go. He shouldn't have those thoughts, he didn't have the right to think about her that way. She wasn't his, she was her own person.

The longer he thought about it, the more class he was missing. The thoughts distracted him from what he should be learning. Thus he decided to bite the bullet and just get on with it. He would deal with the consequences later.

With a heavy sigh, Bakugo leaned over and reached out towards Takari's desk. With both hands he carefully maneuvered her head down to rest on top of her desk. Her hair felt smooth against his fingers as she hummed quietly, moving with his guidance.

Only when he was sure she looked comfortable did he retreat back to his own space. He didn't dare look back at the classroom behind him, for two reasons.

Number one: he could hear the murmuring caused by his actions and knew that it did not go unnoticed. At that moment, no one was listening to President Mic's speech. All too baffled by Bakugo's out of character actions.

Number two: Bakugo's face was beat red with both embarrassment and annoyance. He would not give his classmates the pleasure of seeing him so flustered/aggravated.

After the room calmed, Bakugo focused intently on his notes. He wrote everything down, making sure he didn't miss anything. Both the important and trivial, he took it all. He was making up for the time he lost dwelling upon Takari and her stupid sleeping face.

In addition, if she wasn't getting anything from class, he would get it for her. The thought of sharing his notes was enough to make him motivated. He would make these notes the best freakin' notes of his life! The most thorough, the most accurate and easily read.

The rest of the class passed quickly once Bakugo was able to focus. President Mic wrapped up his talk and dismissed his students for lunch. The room grew in volume as the students stretched and started light conversation.

Bakugo packed up his things, he didn't plan on staying to make small talk. He had no intention of talking about his decision during class, therefore he made quick work of gathering his items. However, he had one last thing to do before he could leave.

He slung his bag over his shoulder, which held all of his belongings, all except for one thing. His notebook, the one which held his detailed notes of class. He took this book and lifted it in the air, just above Takari's desk. The desk where she still sat, sleeping peacefully. Not for much longer.

He took the red notebook and slammed it loudly on the side of Takari's desk. The noise and tremor, distrbed her rest and forced her abruptly awake. Her eyes swung open and she sat up straight in shock.

"W-what?" Takari looked around the room and noticed that everyone was packing their things, ready to leave. She must have slept through class.

"You're going to need these, dopey" Bakugo dropped his notebook on her desk.

She looked down at the book upon her desk, a bookmaker stuck out above the spine. She opened it to see a section of very well organized notes. Labeled by date and class. The mathematical notes she had slept through.

"Thanks." Her eyes traced the detailed pages.

"If you're going for one of the seven dwarves, at least use the right one. Sleepy." Kaminari intruded upon their conversation with a smile.

"If we're going for accuracy, then you are most definitely Dopey." Kirishima chuckled whilst pointing a finger back at Kaminari.

"Oh come on, we all know Bakugo is Grumpy." Jiro commented casually, which caused the entire classroom to burst into laughter.

"You are all idiots!" Bakugo threw a tantrum, his face puffing smoke in fury.

"Lighten up dude." Kirishima pat his shoulder.

"You can all point fingers all you want, I'm outta here." Bakugo huffed and stomped out of the classroom.

Takari observed his behavior curiously, she knew why Bakugo acted out. He didn't want to look silly in front of his friends and yelled more out of embarrassment than actual anger. Besides, she knew he had good intentions. Underneath his spiky exterior, he was actually very kind.

For example, he gave her his notes to study. She made a mental note to thank him properly later. For now she needed to follow her classmates to lunch.

Everyone else was gathered by the door, ready to leave. However, because of her slumber and encounter with Bakugo, she hadn't even started packing her things yet.

"You guys go ahead, I'll meet you in the cafeteria." Takari didn't want to keep them waiting for her and told them to leave her behind.

"You sure, we can wait." Uraraka offered.

"No no. You all need to stand in line for food anyway, go." Allira waved them off.

"Alright." Midoriya pulled his backpack closer to his shoulders. "We'll save you a seat."

The small group of her classmates that had waited, left the room and headed down the hall. With them gone Allira didn't feel rushed and took her time gathering up her things.

Notebooks, pencils and papers carefully placed into her bag as she put everything away. However her fingers lingered upon the plain red notebook Bakugo had lent her. The simple spiral bound booklet caused her to think.

Bakugo really was caring, he just showed it differently than most people. He was helpful in his own way. In fact he helped Allira in many ways.

Bakugo trained with her, helped her study, and spent time with her. More than anyone else, he was the first person she thought about. The first person to break down her walls and actually get to know her.

In many ways, this scared her. It had been years since she felt genuinely close to a person. She usually never allowed herself the thought of becoming close to anyone. So, this thing she had with Bakugo was frightening.

She tried to push away the scary emotion and headed out the door, hoping that new scenery would distract her from her thoughts. However, the bland hallways were no help to settle her nerves.

In deep thought, she didn't even notice the group of students approaching her. Head down, mind distracted, she ran into them.

"Whoops, sorry." Allira lifted her head and apologized quickly.

"Watch where you're going, lowlife." One of the students insulted her. This situation was familiar to Allira, she got bullied all the time and it didn't really affect her anymore. At least, she knew how to pretend not to care. It was the best way to get out of bad situations, not to let them think they got to her.

Therefore Allira stayed silent and tried to move around them, but at this point the entire group had turned around to face Allira. They blocked her path and stopped her from leaving. Escape wasn't an option anymore, looks like she was in for trouble.

"You're on the wrong floor pansy. General Studies is downstairs." One of the students said threateningly.

"Maybe she thinks she is a Hero Major." A second mocked.

"No way, she is too tiny. The wind could carry her away, no way she'll ever be a Hero."

Allira stayed silent and tried to drown out their insults, as she had done many times. As long as they didn't get violent, she could walk away and pretend this never happened.

"What the hell is wrong with her skin?"

"Yeah, look at her hair too." One of the bullies grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled it.

Allira kept her voice quiet, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of hearing her cry. Nevertheless it was still painful and in retaliation she dropped Bakugo's notebook that she had been holding. Her hands lifted to her head and tried to pry her hair from the student's grasp.

"Get your filthy hands off her." A deadly voice growled from a few feet behind. The tone sounded too monstrous to be a human and all heads turned, expecting to see a large beast. Instead, they were faced with an incredibly furious Bakugo.

"Look who it is." One of the bullies laughed. "Mr. First Place in the sports festival. What a win."

Allira didn't understand the context of their comment, but it obviously didn't sound friendly. Even if the words were complimentary, their inflection proved otherwise.

This was a mistake. Not only had they insulted Bakugo, but they also threatened Takari right in front of him. He was angry before, but now he looked ferocious.

"Are you deaf? I said leave her the hell alone!" Bakugo exhumed "patience" as he stepped forwards slowly, anger growing inside his chest.

Allira had seen Bakugo angry hundreds of times, but this was different. This was not the aggravated Bakugo she was familiar with, this was beyond rage. His face was dark, his body stiff and slow. His eyes squinted into tight slits and almost seemed to glow a brighter color of red than normal.

She should have been scared, but for some reason she wasn't. Instead, she was more nervous about what he was going to do to the students.

"Oh yeah?" The student with his hand still in Allira's hair pulled a bit harder. "And why should you care about this lowlife?"

"I'd be careful, that lowlife is the daughter of Pro Hero Ultraviolet. She could snap you all like a twig." Bakugo sneered.

"U-Ultraviolet?" The bully immediately released Allira's hair and took a nervous step backwards.

The energy of the situation flipped over completely, the group of students suddenly scared of both Allira and the angry teenage boy.

"Screw that, I'm outta here." One of the students feared for his well being (smart guy) and ran away. His companions followed suit and fled down the hallway. Which left Allira and Bakugo alone in silence.

Allira was stunned by the altercation and stood speechless. Her feet hadn't moved from their stop on the floor, seemingly glued down to the tile. Meanwhile, Bakugo walked towards her slowly, bent down and retrieved his notebook from the floor.

"Here." He stood back up to his full height, which was much taller than her and handed her the book.

She lifted her hands and accepted the notebook for the second time and traced the edges of the worn paper. As she studied the book, she felt Bakugo's hand rise to her head and fix her hair. The same place where she had been grabbed, his fingers smoothed over her head and untangled the strands. The notion felt comforting and safe. His touch was gentle and nurturing. A sensation she hadn't felt since her mother passed.

"You knew my mother?" Allira asked as he continued to fiddle with her hair.

"Of Course." He answered as if it was no big deal.

"You never said anything."

"Neither did you. I figured it wasn't something you liked to talk about." Bakugo finished untangling her hair and dropped his hand. Only after he had stopped did Allira realize she wished he hadn't stopped. "Deku talked about her all the time, it was impossible not to know who she was."

Allira had forgotten about the childhood connection between Bakugo and Midoriya.

"Thank you." She acknowledged his kindness of "saving" her.

In response Bakugo only shrugged, not wanting to talk about his act of kindness. Regardless, Allira was still grateful for his actions. This experience was new to her, no one had ever stood up for her like that. No one had ever cared. She never had someone take time out of their lives to do something nice for her.

She never had anyone she could count on, a person she thought about on a daily basis. Someone who valued her opinion and helped become a better person. Bakugo did all of these things and more.

Bakugo had become a person she valued. A person she didn't want to lose. A person she liked.

"Whatever." Bakugo straightened his shoulders. "Let's get to lunch before they start wondering where we are."

"Oh." Bakugo's comment caused Allira to remember something. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small container. "Here."

"What's this?" He asked skeptically.

"T-This is..uh...my thanks." A moment ago, Allira didn't feel nervous about giving Bakugo the gift. But since her mind realized her feelings towards him, she was now incredibly nervous and awkward.

"I already told you to forget it." Bakugo refused the package.

"Not for today. For the curry you made." Allira didn't let him say no and shoved the box into his hands. "I made this for you."

Bakugo was taken aback by her actions and popped the lid of the box open. The contents of the container held a simple, yet delicious looking packed lunch. Fried egg on seasoned rice, roasted fish and a compilation of sauteed vegetables.

"It's not as fancy or flavourful as the meal you made, but I hope you like it." Allira fidgeted uncomfortably with her necklace and shifted her weight from side to side.

The man examined the simple lunch and didn't say anything, not a thank you, not even a nod of approval.Instead, the notion brought a smile to Bakugo's features, an expression not often seen and Allira soaked in every second of it.

Bakugo was never very good with words and didn't usually vocalize his thoughts properly. Therefore Allira became an expert of caughting onto those little hints that gave away his state of mind.

This was enough for Allira, to know that her efforts were not in vain. Her actions made him happy and this made her happy too.

"I told you I made amazing curry." Bakugo lifted his chin in pride.

"Yeah yeah." Allira rolled her eyes.

"So you agree then."

"Whatever you say, master chef." Allira pretended a bow.

The conversation continued as they walked towards the cafeteria. The lighthearted banter felt comfortable and easy as the mood lifted from its once serious tone. It wasn't long before they both completely forgot the unsettling events of the bullies and were completely focused on eachother.

Once inside the large lunch room, their friends spotted them immediately and called them over. The class had saved a spot for each of them and they took their seats. Coincidentally the two open seats were directly across from each other, which allowed them to maintain their conversation.

In Particular, Kirishima and Mina noticed how unusually cheerful they looked. How involved they seemed in their exclusive dialogue.

Bakugo was usually so aggravated and jumpy, he hardly ever engaged in long discussions. Meanwhile, it took Takari a long time before she sat willingly at their table. She was always distant and only spoke when asked a question, even then her answers were short.

But this. This was completely different. Both Takari and Bakugo seemed lively and bright, their energy refreshing to the rest of the class.

In addition, it was very obvious that they were eating matching lunches. The same style of packed lunch in the same style lunch box. This small fact went unnoticed by many, but not Kirishima, Mina and Midoriya. They saw it for what it was and what it meant.

All three of them shared an understanding gaze as they looked between their close friends, both delighted that they looked happy with each other.