Work Text:
Hizashi knew there was something different about Shinsou Hitoshi around the third time that his husband had mentioned him.
It wasn’t so much the fondness. It had certainly taken root, but was still early at that point for such emotions to have flourished. Plus, even if they had, Shouta spoke with well concealed fondness for most of the students in his current class anyway. So it wouldn’t have been that indicative. No, it was more of a… Targeted and focused personal interest.
It was getting more and more evident with every passing mention. These mentions, ranged from Shinsou’s academic and physical progress, to troubled speculations laced with protectiveness about his wellbeing relating mostly to the kid’s home life rather than his hero-to-be training.
(It was that last distinction that had Hizashi wondering if the second and bigger guestroom they used as storage space could use some renovating).
The afore-mentioned lack of fondness changed within a week –maybe one and a half if one is generous and willing to give Shouta the benefit of the doubt- after Shinsou officially became Eraserhead’s personal trainee.
It wasn’t a transition that anyone not well acquainted with Shouta would have caught on, but this was Hizashi. He spoke Eraserhead fluently (he would have even put that to his credentials if he didn’t dread adding ‘Underground Hero Translator’ to Present Mic’s never-ending list of responsibilities).
So in retrospect, when Shouta started testing the waters about Hizashi’s willingness to add a child in the household, Hizashi hadn’t been surprised.
It wasn’t the first time they had broached this subject. They both loved kids- with being teachers and all- but with their line of work and their workload combined, focusing on the idea and committing to it just kept getting postponed indefinitely.
Now… If someone asked Hizashi to set his cards on the table and be completely honest, he would have to admit that there was an extra cause of reluctance that had kept him from ever pursuing the matter. He would say something along the lines of:
‘After rescuing thirty nine stray cats in the span of five years -and the instantaneous attachment that sprang by them which temporarily caused Shouta’s reasoning to malfunction and put me in the unfortunate position of being the voice of reason in order to move them along for fostering or adoption instead of keeping them- it was only a matter of time until something similar happened with one of the kids in his care. The one child he wouldn’t be able to walk away from was prone to show up sooner or later’.
All they had to do was wait.
The first time Hizashi met Shinsou outside of school had been when the teen had missed the train to his house and reluctantly had come to ask Shouta for a place to stay in order to avoid returning home after curfew. The surprise and confusion on the kid’s face upon discovering Present Mic in the flesh, casually nursing a cup of tea slouched on his mentor’s kitchen counter with a sleeping kitten on his shoulder had been priceless.
Hizashi had made a note not to assume familiarity.
As much as he craved to get to know the kid his husband had grown to care so dearly for (and his potential future ward if Shouta’s suspicions about his home life turned out to be correct), the last thing he wanted was to overwhelm him. Instead he made sure to convey to Shinsou that he was welcome with little words and gestures. He also might have cheated a little by channeling some of his stage persona in appropriate times, once it appeared to be receiving a positive reaction.
By the sixth time Shinsou showed up on their doorstep he had warmed up enough to Hizashi to settle to the couch and accept a cup of hot chocolate without putting up a fight, even if Shouta was on patrol duty at the time and wasn’t expected to return for hours.
Taking Shinsou out of the foster system hadn’t been very hard once the teen himself had shown willingness for it.
Shinsou’s quirk that basically classified him unadoptable in the eyes of the system actually proved useful in this case. Eraserhead’s hero status certainly didn’t do them any harm either. Sure, Present Mic might have had to pull a few strings here or there –being the most influential figure among the three and whatnot- to move things faster and get them custody within a month, but hey. What’s the point of all the fame and the power that came with said fame if he didn’t use it to help himself and his loved ones now and then?
Fully gaining the kid’s trust on the other hand had been… a challenge.
One would think that they would be past that point, but apparently all the progress they had made during Shinsou’s more casual visits and sleepovers had been overshadowed by the switch from temporary visitor to permanent inhabitant of the house. Once Shinsou had moved in, Hizashi and Shouta had been practically stepping on eggshells of Jurassic proportions for weeks.
As an adjustment period and it was quite nerve wrecking for everyone involved, but they powered through it.
Things settled.
They settled better than anyone would have expected considering the rocky start they had.
Hizashi had managed to get Hitoshi to drop the ‘Mr. Yamada’ in favor of ‘Mic’ or ‘Hizashi’ before they took him in, but the switch of ‘Mr. Aizawa’ to ‘Dad’ happened around the fourth month after the adoption was completed and it took place on a neutral ground. Specifically, the UA ground, as Hizashi found out later on when he privately asked Shouta about it, upon noticing the change. According to Shouta, Hitoshi had brought it up as a joke, claiming it had originated from a third party (Shouta suspected his problem child was said third party) but after some reaffirmations Hitoshi stuck with it. The word growing steadier and more confident with every time he used it.
Hizashi found it precious. It warmed his heart to see the soft look that came over Shouta’s features every time Hitoshi called out to him like this even for everyday mundane things.
He wasn’t jealous.
From the moment they had started mulling over the possibility of taking in Hitoshi, Hizashi was aware that there was a pre-established connection between the two. Heck, his main concern going into this had been that Hitoshi would reject him, or feel threatened by him, either as an adult, or as someone he would have to share Shouta with. Hizashi didn’t want to put Hitoshi in a position where he would just have to tolerate him as they co-existed, or god forbid make Shouta feel like he needed to pick a side. He wanted the kid to at least be comfortable around him and hopefully even like him enough to the point where his presence was –if not welcomed- at least perceived not negatively.
When the visits had started becoming more regular, Hizashi realized it wouldn’t be enough. Before they had even gotten close to adopting him, Hizashi was too far gone. Being ‘a little more than tolerated’ by the child wouldn’t cut it for him. It wasn’t enough. He needed the child to like him and not just because Shouta was involved, but because Hizashi himself was fully invested in every possible level.
So suffice to say, Hitoshi welcoming his presence and embracing it was more than Hizashi could have asked for. The boy seemed comfortable around him, appeared to enjoy his company and occasionally acted like he actually, genuinely trusted him. Which, considering Hitoshi’s upbringing, was a huge accomplishment that Hizashi could hardly believe he managed to achieve.
Therefore Hizashi was content.
Things had been going well and despite what anyone would believe judging from his flashy lifestyle, Hizashi wasn’t greedy. He worked three jobs he adored, even though he occasionally whined about them. He had a husband that he would die for and now he also has a son for whom he would bring the world to its knees for.
A picturesque little family unit beyond his wildest dreams. Four cats and everything.
Hizashi wasn’t about to complain about not having reached the level of intimacy with Hitoshi that Shouta had, or dwell on whether or not he would ever reach it. They were perfectly happy as they were now. It was more than he could ever have asked for.
He was content.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Days off and lazy afternoons, where every member of the family was safely accounted for at home, were luxuries that no one in the Aizawa-Yamada household took for granted. They were to be cherished and treated with the utmost respect.
“Hizashi.”
“Hmh?”
Said respect entailed things like casually watching movies for example… Maybe playing a board or video game with your family or inviting some friends over. Or, you know, actually acting like it was your god damn day off.
“Will you put that thing down? We’re supposed to be off duty today… All duties.”
To his credit, Hizashi did raise his eyes from the laptop to validate his husband with a fond smile. He also had to suppress a grimace as he did so, at the way his neck creaked when he turned, realizing he must have been in that position for a while. Well, at least he had remembered to put a pillow against the armchair’s arm to support his neck up this time. It wasn’t his fault that the staff at the station couldn’t properly orient things without his guidance. Or that most people seemed too incompetent to organize his live appearances on national TV. Or that his Social Media was overflowing and his friends needed advices on things. Or-
“I’ll be done in a bit.”
“So you said.” Shouta replied flatly from the couch next to him, where he was perched up against with two of their cats using him as a heating pad “Two hours ago.”
He gave him a look that Hizashi was painfully familiar with. It was the ‘I am peeved and also kinda concerned’ look that always managed to make him feel pinch of guilt. Not enough to persuade him to shut the laptop though. Not anymore at least, years of practice dealing with that look had built him some level of immunity to it.
“I’m sorry. Look- I’ll just check on a few more things and I’ll be-“
Shouta clicked his tongue and groaned loudly, dropping his head against the back of the couch and bumping it against it a few more times to emphasize his frustration.
“Come on, Shouta…” Hizashi’s frown deepened “Look, technically, I am resting!” he huffed with a forcefully cheery note, dangling his legs off the side of the armchair and showing off his relaxed posture with a theatrical wave to prove his point. The three legged kitten curled next to his head opened one eye and gave him a look that for some reason –probably Hizashi’s guilt projection- felt like mocking doubt and Hizashi had to bite his tongue in order to not call out the betrayal.
“It doesn’t work if your brain is on overdrive. Not to mention your arms are getting strained in that position.” Shouta pointed out, giving him an exasperated scowl while still somehow maintaining his default deadpan look. Hizashi was always in awe by his husband’s ability to convey emotions without actually conveying them.
Hizashi looked down at his arms while giving them a flex to check if that was the case. His left one didn’t seem to be having too much trouble, since it had the back of his seat for cushioning the elbow, but the right one complained strongly when he lifted it off the keyboard.
From the end of the corridor a door opened, followed by familiar soft padding making its way toward them.
“Just a few more minutes” Hizashi added in a more hushed tone, marking the end of their conversation. Shouta let out an annoyed, defeated sigh and turned his attention back to the TV, while Hizashi consecutively focused to his own screen, resuming his work and tapping away between tabs like he hadn’t been interrupted at all.
The light steps came to a halt as they made it at the end of the hall where the living room started.
Neither adult paid any mind at the hovering teenager. Hitoshi tended to do that sometimes. Usually it meant one of three things. One was that he had something in his mind and was debating on whether or not to bring it up and/or how to broach it. The second was that he had forgotten what he wanted from the kitchen behind them and was trying to remember (or just forgetting why he left his room altogether). The third was that he was on a quest to find a cat and was doing a headcount from where he stood.
Hizashi suspected that out of the few times where Hitoshi claimed he forgot why he left his room, it meant that he had either chose against bringing up whatever he had on his mind, or simply wanted to observe them for a little bit, which Hizashi could relate to. He too found himself in moments where he simply needed to take in the sight of his family and just absorb the feeling of having them there and that this was his reality. Sure, being on the other end of this assessment felt a little strange, but it was endearing nevertheless and there was no reason to call the kid out for it.
Whatever the reason of his hovering, Shouta and Hizashi would eventually address him if it went on for too long, in case he needed a nudge. While they wanted Hitoshi to feel comfortable to aimlessly stand around in his own home, they didn’t want him to think they were ignoring his presence.
Today it appeared they wouldn’t need to push, which was nice. Lately he needed it less and less.
“Dad?”
From the corner of his eye, Hizashi saw Shouta roll his head toward the voice.
“Yes?”
“Not you, the other one.”
A short but utter silence followed, during which Hizashi didn’t realize he had stopped typing, what with having frozen in place and all while he was doing a double- and maybe triple and quadruple- take. Once he blinked a few times his body reminded him that breathing wasn’t an optional activity and took in the oxygen he had neglected in past twenty seconds.
Tilting his head to the side he found two pairs of eyes transfixed on him.
Hizashi couldn’t for the life of him tell what expression Shouta was wearing, as his own eyes had zeroed in on the fidgeting teenager who was watching him with an uncertain, sheepish look, shifting his weight between his heels and toes. Hitoshi’s usually pale cheeks had taken a light rosy color and Hizashi had the suspicion that his own face was starting to contest that.
“Oh…” he let out finally “Oh! Yes? Yes!”
The three legged kitten rightfully mewed in displeasure as it was almost launched across the room from its resting place. Blond locks were suddenly yanked upwards with the confused pet tangled in them, when a fully flustered Hizashi jolted into sitting position. Thankfully the pro-hero’s reflexes, even in his current disorientated state, were enough to subconsciously catch it mid-air and lower it back to the pillow, before it was met with such fate, without so much as sparing it a glance. Right away, the kitten found the warm spot of the pillow where the blonds’ head had resided and curled into it without a care.
“What- Um…“ for someone whose two out of three jobs entailed masterful use of words, Hizashi was embarrassed to find he had difficulties articulating a simple sentence right now “Is everything ok, sugarplum? Do you need something?”
“Uh…” Hitoshi’s nervous bouncing ceased upon receiving a response, but the blush remained prominent at the tips of his ears as he rubbed the back of his neck “Would you mind looking through the corrections in my English assignment with me? I need some clarifications.”
“Why of course! Anything for my favorite listener!” Hizashi chirped hurriedly, snapping the lid of his laptop shut without a second thought and unceremoniously dropping it on the armchair as he hoped up. If his feet had gone to sleep by the lack of blood circulation due to his previous pose, he didn’t let the discomfort show.
“I’m your favorite listener” Shouta deadpanned from somewhere in his peripheral.
“Anything for my favorite little listener” Hizashi relented without missing a beat and -after taking a brief second to stabilize himself- he bypassed Shouta’s couch and made a beeline to stand by his son “Happy to be of assistance.”
As they stood opposite each other, Hitoshi stared up at him with an unreadable expression, until all the tension he had apparently been holding was released from his shoulders and he offered Hizashi a small yet genuine smile. Then he turned on his feet and led the way to his room, waving for Hizashi to follow him.
Breaking eye contact seemed to be what Hizashi had needed to snap out of his daze and remember that the rest of the world still existed. With that reminder he turned toward his husband with a movement quick enough to cause a few of his bones to snap, but he didn’t notice. There were so many things he wanted to say, but he couldn’t exactly find the right words to express his feelings, as it felt as if nothing would do them justice. Thankfully, from the affectionate and understanding smile that Shouta granted him when their eyes met, he guessed that the side splitting grin plastered on his own face, making his cheeks hurt, got across at least part of what he meant to say.
Without further ado -and before he had the chance to start screaming in excitement like a high school girl- Hizashi followed his son, who had paused outside the door of his room, at the end of the corridor and patiently waited for him. Bless his heart; he didn’t tease his –currently overly emotional- father for his childish giddiness, even though Hizashi detected some amusement in those eyes.
When they sat at the desk, Hizashi had the chance to settle down, as he slipped into his teacher role. Looking over the English assignment he had given out a few days ago and corrected the previous day, he and Hitoshi passed a few questions and answers back and forth, clearing up a few details Hitoshi claimed to have trouble with.
Now, it would be important to note, that Hitoshi was a good student.
Even before he ended up with two teachers for parents, he was attentive in class and overall had a good grasp on theory. More usually than not, if he asked for a clarification during class, once was enough for him to memorize the information and move on to the next thing. The same applied in the house. After Hitoshi had come out of his shell enough to start asking him and Shouta for assistance on stuff (or questions in general), it very rarely concerned his homework.
With that in mind, and taking into consideration that one of his parents was his English teacher, it should have come as no surprise to Hizashi that the mistakes in the kid’s paper were either small blunders or pretty self explanatory. And technically it didn’t, but mostly because Hizashi wasn’t in a mind-space to notice it at the time. He was busy, hyper focusing on teaching in order to keep his emotions in check. The realization that maybe the homework assistance was an excuse to try out the name would come later that night, when he would be in bed and about to sleep, but Hizashi wouldn’t address it then. Or ever.
You do not question the motivations behind a gift like that.
“Ok, I think I got it.” Hitoshi murmured, while suspiciously squinting at the things he had highlighted on his English textbook as if expecting them to contradict him.
Hizashi hummed approvingly “Anything else you would like help with?”
Hitoshi’s eyes rose to meet his and attempted a reply but seemed to decide against it and shook his head. His eyes gravitated back onto the open textbook as the color of his cheeks begun warming up again.
“Is something wrong?” Hizashi urged softly with a note of concern, leaning his head to the side to get a better view of the kid’s face. It always made him uncomfortable when Hitoshi chose to communicate non-verbally. It was kind of giving him flashbacks of the more difficult days they had had to face during the adjustment period.
Thankfully it appeared this time there was no cause for alarm.
“No, nothing wrong,” came a hushed reply after a small –very characteristic for a teenage boy dealing with emotions- shrug. Hitoshi raised his head once more to face him and offered a small but heartfelt smile “You can go back inside. Thanks for the help, dad.”
Hizashi’s heart skipped several beats.
In his defense, he hadn’t had the chance to adjust yet. He hadn’t had the time to entertain the possibility of having the word repeated to address him a second time. Despite logic, which specified that titles like that are usually used in long term, it felt like it was too precious to be thrown around casualy like that. Therefore, upon hearing it a second time and fully facing his son while hearing it, his barely restrained resolve was crumbling down in rapid pace and it was pure stubbornness to not ruin the moment that kept him from crying right then and there.
Biting the inside of his bottom lip, Hizashi stared at his kid like he held all the answers to the universe and gave a quick nod, before answering hoarsely “Yeah, no problem… Anytime sweetie.”
With that, the blond rose to his feet, with purple eyes following him, expectantly. As if Hizashi needed any coaxing to pull his child into a tight hug. Hitoshi sighed in contentment, readily wrapping his arms around the taller figure in return and nuzzling into the warmth as Hizashi placed a kiss on top of his unruly hair.
They remained like this for a little while, with Hitoshi resting his head on Hizashi’s chest and the later running his fingers through messy purple locks.
Shouta and Hizashi had an unspoken agreement to not break contact that Hitoshi initiated himself unprompted, in order to allow the kid, who had clearly been deprived of affections for too long, to set the pace and indulge himself. Not that either of them were unhappy to provide and Hitoshi had a strong awareness of boundaries. He made sure to never overstep them if they had been previously established.
That being said, Hitoshi had yet to hit any limit with either of them on the affection department, and it could either be that he wasn’t asking for much anyway, or that both adults had an abundance of it to offer.
Hitoshi’s head shifted to look up at the blond, giving him a fond smile that was eagerly returned, before letting go. Hizashi in turn released his son and ruffled his hair one last time before leaving the room without risking another word. His steps were steady, but he made a point to not look back as he closed the door behind him, as the wetness in his eyes reached a peek and overflowed. As soon as the door clicked, Hizashi allowed himself a sniffle under the condition that the rest of the tears that followed, would come without sound effects.
The short distance to the living room was unusually emotionally charged, but Hizashi had approximately zero complains as he covered it, scrubbing at his eyes and wiping his cheeks and nose with the sleeves of his sweater without worrying about how messy it looked.
His chest was just bursting.
He was happy.
“There are the waterworks,” Shouta commented, over the back of the couch, dryly when Hizashi reached the end of the hall and entered the living room. Hizashi couldn’t quite see him- more of a blurry mop that he knew was his husband’s head-, since his glasses had crooked up as he was wiping his eyes, but he suspected the existence of some sort of smug smile judging by the tone. Balancing his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose, he found that his suspicions were correct.
“You're just jealous because I have functional tear ducts,” he retorted; although it lacked the bite that was usually present when he was sassing back his husband.
An amused exhale was all the answer that Shouta granted him with.
Regaining his composure was a work in progress, but in front of his spouse, Hizashi didn’t worry too much for appearances. He continued a completely undignified sniffling parade on his way to the kitchen and back to the living room. As much as he wanted to scream about what just happened, he needed to first release some pent up emotions in liquid form and also privately cherish it. To be a little selfish with it for just a bit.
It was only once his face was mostly dry and he headed for his armchair that he encountered a different issue.
“Shouta, where’s my laptop?” he huffed, sending a half-hearted glare at his husband, whose attention (or at least his eyes) was once more on the TV screen.
“Somewhere safe.”
“Shouta!” it wasn’t quirk level volume – not even near it actually- but it was definitely loud enough to indicate that Hizashi was significantly more level headed now than he was a few minutes ago.
“I have work, I need it! You can’t just take it!”
“Well, in that case it should be where you left it,” the little shrug that accompanied Shouta’s lazy statement was making the whole thing more infuriating.
Hizashi would have put up a fight and would have won. He would have, but the sound of the door at the other end of the hall opening, had him hushing himself and looking up as Hitoshi’s form emerged hurriedly. His eyes met first Hizashi’s, since he was standing opposite him, and then Shouta’s who had once more decided to crane his neck in order to face the kid instead of shifting his body like a normal person (not that anyone in this house had any expectations of normalcy, but still).
“Yes, dear?”
Hitoshi’s shoulders relaxed as he faced Hizashi once more “Are you guys busy?”
Once again, Hizashi was interrupted mid-breath, this time by his so-called partner in life.
“I am not. But apparently Hizashi has work to do. He is looking for his laptop, in case you’ve seen it” Shouta’s head returned to its previous position, facing Hizashi with an open challenge.
Hizashi barely had the time to shoot him a glare, when a questioning hum came from the teen at the edge of the room.
“But isn’t it your day off?” and ok. They had to be doing it on purpose, because Hitoshi was doing the curious puppy head tilt and the slight concern in his voice was more disarming than Eraserhead’s quirk.
The radio host turned his fiery gaze to the other adult in the room, because there was nowhere else he could aim the exasperated gawk toward without feeling guilty later.
‘This is sabotage’ he mouthed.
Shouta didn’t filter the smug smile in the slightest. He even had the audacity to pet Football (their black and white elderly cat) while maintaining eye contact like a god damn movie villain.
Accepting that this battle was as good as lost and resigning to his fate, Hizashi sighed and brushed his hair back, clearing his throat.
“It was… It can wait, I suppose. Is there anything you need, sugarplum?”
Hitoshi smiled brightly, and held up a DVD case.
Any lingering annoyance disintegrated.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hizashi’s was losing a fight with sleep fast and the fingers soothingly brushing through his hair, or the soft heartbeat under his head weren’t helping. Persistently lulling him toward sleep, but he didn’t want to go yet.
In the privacy and safety of his room, after a few days of little sweet moment’s like that first one, he wanted to talk.
To share.
“He called me dad at school, today…” he mumbled. There was no reply. The fingers continued their gentle movements as Shouta patiently waited for him to continue. He hadn’t asked him to elaborate in the past days, or pushed for any details. He had allowed Hizashi to fully experience this new thing on his own, and now he waited.
“No one else was around, I don’t think… But still. He said it so naturally” Hizashi sighed, urging his eyelids to remain open “I was worried we’ll get mixed up, but he is using the English word for me. Have you noticed? I hadn’t noticed if he was doing it from the start. It comes with being bilingual I guess, sometimes I am not sure which language I am hearing… But it was a pretty clever distinction I think. That way we know which one he’s calling” the chest he was using as a pillow twitched with an amused sigh “Yesterday he used Yamadad and I didn’t realize it was a pun right away and I thought he went back to last name basis and… My heart kind of hurt and it took me by surprise, so I didn’t manage to hide it, I am pretty sure he read me well and hurried to explain the pun and I felt bad. I don’t want him to feel obligated to use it…”
“I don’t think he feels obligated…” Shouta’s voice was lower than usual, matching Hizashi’s whispering and keeping the conversation hushed. It didn’t make his point sound any less matter-of-fact “It's not like we asked him to. He chose it… I think he has yearned to use it and has been pretty consistent with it for me when we aren’t in a professional environment. So you should probably get used to it.”
Hizashi’s head felt heavy with sleep as he lifted it, to look up at his husband.
“Have you?” he asked “Gotten used to it?”
In the darkness of their bedroom and without his glasses, Hizashi couldn’t make out the expression Shouta wore, but he saw the light movement of his head shaking and imagined a rare gentle smile hidden in there.
“No… I doubt I ever will.”
The little flutter in Hizashi’s chest settled a bit in the knowledge that he wasn’t alone in feeling this way and with a fond hum, he snuggled closer to the warmth of his spouse and allowed sleep to take him.
Feeling utterly content and happy.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~