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Today was absolutely the worst day of Todoroki’s life. To say that a day was the worst was always surprising considering his life has always been a living hell. He grew up in an abusive home and had little to no care for himself anymore. Bruises and burns were no shock to the dual-haired boy so breaking down over a few impulsively spoken words seemed inconceivable.
“What the fuck is wrong with you now? Did you not hear me? I said you’re weak. You’re never going to be the number one hero, so you should just quit.” Bakugou has always been a brash teen and everyone knew it. Todoroki was used to physical pain and could almost always block out his emotions. That didn’t help explain why it didn’t seem to work anymore. He can’t breathe.
“Fuck- Icy-hot? Shit, someone get a fucking teacher!” People were hurrying around him and yet, he felt his vision failing him as he started succumbing to the blackness. Something, no, someone was holding him by his shoulders and Todoroki chased the comforting feeling.
“Can you hear me?” The deep voice caused the most soothing feeling to wash over the teen as he attempted to utter out a quiet noise.
“Yeah, I-“ the words stopped as a cold wave of emptiness filled his mind. It felt like wave had crashed over him and he felt himself getting more and more calm by the sounds of consistent waves crashing around him.
“Breathe normally and close your eyes.” The words were so soft and seemed to mix perfectly with the crashing waves. The air in his lungs helped calm him even more as he felt himself drifting to a complete state of calm.
“You’re going to be okay.” The voice reminded him in the constant calming voice. In this moment the dual-haired teen was reminded of a memory he’d thought he’d long forgotten. The smell of cinnamon cookies baking as his mother smiled at him sweetly. The kitchen table was filled with his three siblings fighting over some random tv show they all watched and Todoroki couldn’t help but feel safe.
“I’m going to let you go now. Go slowly and don’t strain yourself.” The memory seemed to rewind slowly until the waves returned and then washed back over his head until he was blinking in the bright colors of his surroundings. He saw a perfect purple fill his vision and unconsciously latched towards the beautiful shade. Arms wrapped hesitantly around his back as he held on tighter to the other teen.
“How’re you feeling?” He recognized the voice and smiled contentedly. He wasn’t sure when the tears started falling, but they didn’t stop. It felt like a dam had finally broke and Todoroki couldn’t keep the water in anymore. The teen held him tighter and it was more comforting than anything he’d ever felt before and it brought more tears.
“You’re going to be okay, I’m not going to leave you. You’re safe with me.” Several minutes had passed before the tears finally started to subside. Todoroki’s throat was sore and his eyes were red and puffy. He felt a huge weight lifted from his shoulders as he slowly pulled back to look at his savior.
“Thank you.” He feels a genuinely happy smile creep up on his face and laughs slightly at his own surprise.
“It’s really no problem. Panic attacks are perfectly normal and I’m here for you if you ever need help again.” Todoroki nodded at the other teen with a rare soft smile and a slight blush to his cheeks.