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College, Shouto decided, was a joke.
As a high school student he had yearned for his college days to arrive just so he could leave Japan and, by extension, his father’s clutches. He had picked out the farthest college overseas and in the first two months he arrived in the heart of New York City his mother divorced his father, the bastard got sick and landed in the hospital, Touya got laid and a boyfriend, and Natsuo and Fuyumi got promoted. Shouto wished his life was as good as theirs but as a student, well, he was ready to smack his face with his five pound textbook with every all nighter he pulled to pass his stupid exams. Seriously, fuck chemistry.
He started out freshman year of college on the pre-med track and ended up switching to the creative writing track somewhere during his second year. It was by far the best decision he’d ever made. It involved no chemistry so really, it was a win-win situation.
Of course, living in New York City meant he met a lot of people, some good and some bad.
The bad included hookups that went disastrously wrong and the good included friends like Camie and Momo who adopted him when he got lost trying to get to Times Square and ended up in the Bronx Zoo looking at giraffes. Camie adopted him first, calling him ‘adorable’ while Momo questioned how he had managed to screw up so bad.
“Todoroki, there’s an uptown and downtown train for a reason.”
“I guess there really is a difference.”
By the time he was twenty-one and legally old enough to drink, his friend group had expanded from Camie and Momo to them and Kyouka, Tenya and Inasa. Most of his friends —namely Camie and Inasa— were drinking when they were eighteen but Shouto in his paranoia of being caught underage drinking refused, and it was fun until he turned twenty-one and Camie all but dragged him against his will to a party nearby at someone’s apartment.
His other friends were no help either though Tenya did try to stop her only to get a lipstick tube to the face.
“We need to get Shouto babe laid, Tenya!”
“Okay.”
“Tenya, you betray me.”
Shouto appreciated Tenya’s efforts but despite all the excuses and complaints and fake vomit and headaches he found himself somewhere in Harlem in a small apartment crowded with way too many drunk people at eight pm with only Camie to blame.
“Shouto babe, you’re going to love it here!” Camie squealed as she pulled him through the crowd with a perfectly manicured hand.
“Somehow I doubt that.”
“Oh don’t be so sour,” Kyouka laughed at his side, shoving him playfully. “You might end up enjoying this night a whole lot more than you think.”
“I was dragged out against my will,” Shouto retorted with a scowl. “I just wanted to sleep.”
“Last I heard your roommate was planning on hooking up with someone tonight since everyone and their mother was invited to this party so I don’t think you would have slept much.”
“It’s better than being stuck in sweat city.”
“Sweat city!” Inasa laughed loudly, “good one, Shouto!”
Shouto sent him a withering glare. “I see you pregamed this stupid party.”
“Of course! Didn’t you?”
“No because I didn’t want to come here in the first place.”
Momo let out a heavy sigh from behind him. “Being sour isn’t going to make the evening magically get better, Shouto. At least have a beer or two.”
“I can’t believe you’re endorsing me becoming an alcoholic,” Shouto deadpanned. “You, a doctor in the making.”
“Agreed,” Camie nodded. “I think he needs two beers and a hot dude to go home with tonight.”
Shouto wrinkled his nose. “What am I, a prostitute?”
“Please don’t call yourself a prostitute,” Tenya said wearily.
“Whose party is this anyway?” Shouto asked with a disgusted glance around the crowded room. “It looks like they invited all of New York.”
“Mina threw this party to celebrate the end of midterms,” Kyouka replied easily.
“I can celebrate the end of midterms with a nap.”
Camie blinked. “Maybe dragging you out to a party wasn’t such a good idea, huh.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Shouto glared.
“But anyways!” Camie laughed, “I have a couple of other friends who want to meet you guys! You know one, Momo! Remember Uraraka? The cute bubbly girl who out drank Katsuki at the last party?”
Momo gasped. “Yes, I remember her! I had biology with her last year! Is she here too?”
“She’s here with a couple of friends,” Camie said with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. “I think you’ll like them, Shouto.”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Oh, no reason. Come on! They should be in the kitchen!”
Shouto was helplessly dragged through the crowd by the hand by Camie, glaring at everyone, including the dog who barked at him when he almost stepped on its tail.
Shouto sighed in relief when he was pulled into the kitchen where there were less people and more fresh air. That relief lasted five seconds before Camie was squealing loudly.
“For the love of god, warn a guy before you do that,” Shouto hissed.
“Uraraka!”
A short girl in a cute pink button up and blue skirt with shirt brown hair turned around, her confusion melting away into a bright smile when she caught sight of Camie.
“Oh, hey! I was wondering where you were!”
“We’re like totally sorry we’re late but someone didn’t want to come,” Camie said with a pout aimed at Shouto.
“Oh crucify me for wanting a nap,” Shouto snapped.
“Be nice,” Momo said with a slight pat on the back of his head before smiling widely at Ochako. “It’s certainly nice to see you again.”
“Yeah, likewise!” Ochako giggled before gasping. “Oh, I should introduce everyone. This guy over here with the purple hair is Hitoshi Shinsou, and blonde guy somewhere off making out with Kirishima is Katsuki Bakugou. And,” she said with a playful twinkle in her eyes, “this right here is Izuku Midoriya! But I call him Deku.”
Shouto briefly glanced at the boy she was talking about with a raised brow.
He was taller than Shouto by one or two inches and far more muscular than him, but not so much that he looked like a body builder. Wild green curls rested on top of his head, matching the emerald green color of his eyes, eyes that were filled with curiosity and just a hint of nervousness. The freckles splattered everywhere on his cheeks were adorable, Shouto had to admit, especially the one on the tip of his nose. Izuku Midoriya was certainly a beautiful mixture of hot and cute all in one, but Shouto could care less right now.
“I want a nap.”
“You’ll get your nap later,” Kyouka hissed as she poked him in between his ribs. “Now be nice and greet Uraraka and her friends!”
“Ow! Fine,” Shouto said with a glare at Kyouka. He turned to look at Izuku, nodding slightly. “I’m Shouto Todoroki and I want a nap.”
“Oh for the love of–"
“Not a fan of parties, huh?” Izuku said with a slight upwards curl of his lips.
“No. But I am a big fan of napping.”
“Ah, I felt like that during my first party too,” Izuku chuckled. “But don’t worry, it gets better! It usually only takes a beer or two before you settle in fine.”
Shouto nodded. “Thanks, but I don’t plan on drinking myself stupid like Camie and Inasa tend to do.”
“Guys, I think I found some special brownies!” Inasa called out holding a pack for Cosmic Brownies up.
“See,” Shouto deadpanned, making Izuku stifle a laugh behind his hand.
“Guys, we should play truth or dare!” Ochako enthusiastically said, holding an empty beer bottle up. “Who’s up for it?”
“Isn’t that a children’s game?” Hitoshi asked with a slow brow raise.
“It’s either that or hear Todoroki whine about wanting to nap. So? Are you in?”
“Hey,” Shouto pouted, only to be patted on the back by Kyouka.
“See? Even she thinks your complaining is annoying.”
“Oh trip on a stick, Kyouka.”
The game started out innocently enough, though Shouto’s silent prayers that he would be dared to go home withered with every passing turn.
“Ochako, I dare you to sit in Iida’s lap,” Izuku said with a wicked grin.
“Deku, I will kill you,” she hissed as she sat in a flustered looking Tenya’s lap, the girl rushing out apologies while Tenya assured her it was fine.
“How’d you know he liked her?” Shouto whispered to Izuku.
“He walks by our psychology class every day just to see her,” Izuku grinned.
“Oh. I see.”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, my turn then,” Ochako said with a pointed glare at Izuku. “Mark your days, Deku.”
“I love you too, Ocha!”
Ochako spun the bottle with the ferocity of one thousand men, glaring at Izuku the whole time with pink stained cheeks.
Then, as if by fate, the bottle landed on Izuku.
Shouto watched on with morbid curiosity as Izuku’s face dropped and he mouthed “no no no” while Ochako practically beamed, all her embarrassment forgotten.
“Oh Deku,” she said with wicked grin, “I have a nice dare for you.”
“Ochako–"
“I dare you to spend an entire hour handcuffed to Todoroki!”
“Ochako!” He cried, cheeks dusted a heavy shade of red while she cackled loudly.
Shouto blinked. “Did she say handcuffs?”
“Hitoshi, give me the handcuffs!”
“Here,” Hitoshi said with a small smirk, tossing her a pair of black handcuffs along with the key.
“Where on earth did you buy handcuffs?” Tenya asked horrifiedly.
“Walmart,” Ochako replied easily as she hopped off his lap to get to Izuku, mirth heavy in her eyes.
“Say, Deku, maybe you should have thought twice about daring me to sit on Iida’s lap, huh?”
“Are these sex toys?!” Izuku screeched as the handcuffs were tied to his and Shouto’s wrist, Shouto’s right and Izuku’s left.
Shouto flushed red at the green haired man’s words, looking at Ochako helplessly. “I just want to nap. Can you take it off?”
“Sorry Todoroki, but Deku needs to learn a lesson,” she replied with a smirk.
“I did nothing but help you, woman!”
“And I’m returning the favor!”
Shouto silently groaned as he looked down at the handcuffs tying him and Izuku together.
I just wanted to nap.
“I want to nap,” he hissed, tugging on the handcuffs. “Midoriya, what on earth did you to incur that woman’s wrath?”
“Well I think it started with me over watering her plant last weekend...”
“Oh my god,” Shouto groaned, shaking his handcuffed hand before standing up and slamming his hands on the counter. “I’m getting some fresh air.”
“Wait, Todoroki–"
Shouto tried moving away but soon heard a cry of surprise and fuck, he had forgotten that the handcuff meant he and Izuku were stuck together.
“What if I have to piss? You can take it off then, right?”
“Just don’t pee for an hour,” Kyouka replied with a shrug.
“Don’t we pee out of our belly buttons?” Inasa asked Camie who only laughed loudly as she downed her fourth beer of the night.
“Fine,” Shouto scowled, tugging Izuku along, “you’re coming with me.”
“Do I have any say in this?”
“No.”
Shouto practically stormed through the crowd that parted easily when they saw his scowl, and soon enough he was out on the front stoop that was mysteriously void of any other human presence. Somewhere down the street a dog barked and a cop car sped by with bright lights and a shrill siren over pothole filled streets. The people up on the roof laughed and cursed as they did drugs and drank alcohol, faint pop music filtering into Shouto’s ears. The air was fresh save for the lingering smell of sweat from the party and other drugs being used up on the roof and some food from one of the neighboring houses, maybe a broth with potatoes and carrots, and Shouto inhaled it in deeply.
“I’m sorry,” Izuku spoke up at his side, chewing on his bottom lip nervously. “I know you didn’t sign up for Ochako’s craziness or any handcuff activity. This is all my fault.”
Shouto heaved out a sigh. “It’s fine. I’m just overreacting.”
“No, I don’t think you are. If I wanted to nap after midterms and my friends dragged me to a party instead I’d be ready to commit murder too.”
Shouto let out a small snort, lips twitching slightly. “See? You understand.”
“Midterms are rough,” Izuku conceded with a shrug. “I don’t blame you for wanting to nap instead of partying.”
“My English professor had me type up a twenty page paper analyzing an English novel.”
Izuku’s brows shot up into his hairline. “Twenty pages?”
“Well, she said eight but I hate The Great Gatsby and had a lot to say, so I gave her twenty pages.”
“I see,” Izuku snickered. “I personally liked that book. Why don’t you?”
“Daisy is one of the most selfish characters I have ever had to lay my eyes on,” Shouto said in disgust. “And Gatsby...fucking Gatsby himself was a nutcase.”
“How?”
“This idiot bought a house across from hers with the plan of whisking her away when she was already married and had a child. I mean, that’s peak stupidity. Plus he didn’t realize Nick had a thing for him the whole time. I find that The Great Gatsby has a forced heterosexual agenda. And to top it off no one ended up happy in the end. Gatsby ended up dead, Daisy didn’t even show up to his funeral despite her supposed ‘love’ for him, and Tom was just a bumbling idiot– why are you laughing?”
Izuku tried hiding his laughter behind a hand but his eyes crinkled at the sides, mirth heavy in those beautiful emerald eyes.
“I’m sorry, but you’re so passionate about this,” Izuku laughed. “I believe you when you say you wrote a twenty page paper criticizing it. Though,” he said with a grin, “I didn’t think Nick was gay for Gatsby.”
“Midoriya, there is nothing heterosexual about the way Nick describes Gatsby. And because he’s in love with Gatsby, the reader’s view of Daisy is also skewed because Nick could have just painted her in a negative light because he was jealous Gatsby gave all his attention to her and not him.”
“You’ve put a lot of thought into this, huh.”
“Nick was gay for Gatsby, Midoriya. The evidence is all there.”
“Do you criticize all the classics like this?”
“Only if they deserve it.”
Izuku hummed. “Okay, so Wuthering Heights. What’s you’re opinion on that one?”
“Incest.”
Izuku let out a startled laugh, and Shouto’s lips curled upwards into a grin.
“Seriously?!” Izuku wheezed, “that’s all you think about when you hear Wuthering Heights?!”
“I can’t for the life of me understand why there was so much drama and incest,” Shouto said with a wrinkled nose. “I understand it wasn’t technically incest but at the same time it was. I mean, the plot line jumped like crazy and everyone died. What was the point?”
“Okay,” Izuku snickered, “enough of that. What about Pride and Prejudice?”
“That book set my entire standard for romance,” Shouto solemnly replied.
“Oh thank god,” Izuku wheezed, “I was about to kick you if you had something bad to say about that one.”
“I can write a novel about how Pride and Prejudice set the bar for how men should act and romance overall. Mr. Darcy is one of the best male written characters and so is Elizabeth Bennet.”
“I always liked Mr. Darcy!” Izuku smiled, “it seemed like he was cold at first but he ended up just being a really shy and awkward man. He’s always been my favorite character. I think he was my first fictional crush, too.”
“I like Elizabeth more,” Shouto replied easily. “I didn’t have a crush on her but I admire her character.”
“Oh yeah? Why?”
“She wasn’t submissive like most women are,” Shouto shrugged. “Comparing her and the Catherines in Wuthering Heights, she sets the bar for all female characters. She didn’t just give into Darcy’s proposal; she respected herself first and foremost even though she loved him. I think her character was extremely well written. Plus, her romance with Darcy is one of the best I’ve seen written.”
“A fan of the enemies to lovers trope, huh.”
“If my life were like a novel I’d want it to be enemies to lovers. Unfortunately I have no one to play the trope with. The only trope I’m playing is strangers to friends via handcuffs.”
Izuku let out a snort. “How romantic.”
“What other novels have you read that you hate?”
Shouto’s brows crept up curiously. “Do you really want to know?”
“Yeah!” Izuku laughed, “I think your analysis is interesting!”
Shouto stared at Izuku in disbelief.
No one had ever cared to listen to his rants about how much of a nutcase Gatsby was and how he hated Wuthering Heights. Momo wrote it off as ‘being unable to appreciate the classics’ while Kyouka didn’t care for reading as did most of his friends.
Shouto hated to admit it but sometimes he felt a little lonely in his world surrounded by novels he had tons to say about but no one to tell. But here Izuku was with a bright smile and a genuine opinion on the classics like Shouto’s, and maybe that left him a little bit smitten and less inclined to take that nap.
“Okay,” Shouto said with a bright smile, “what other classics would you like to discuss?”
Izuku Midoriya was convinced the world hated him.
It started out when he got only got accepted into a college overseas rather than his first option, Kyoto. Granted it was an Ivy League school so he shouldn’t have been complaining, but still. Then it continued when he realized Katsuki who he hadn’t seen in years was also at the same school. Granted Ochako put him in his place when he tried to come up to Izuku, but still.
Ochako laughed at Katsuki before kicking him and an apology soon followed from Katsuki’s lips so maybe it wasn’t all terrible, but he was still convinced the world hated him when The Incident occurred.
He walked into his chemistry lab freshman year, nearly blew something up in front of the prettiest boy’s marble grey and turquoise blue eyes, and the boy only glared at him before saying, “watch it.”
It wasn’t until weeks later that Izuku learned his name; Shouto Todoroki.
Izuku had embarrassed himself in front of the prettiest boy on campus, and pretty soon after the boy dropped out of the lab course. He was pretty sure that was his fault, and the guilt ate at him every time he saw Shouto. Shouto was always scowling when he saw him so Izuku was a bit scared of him.
Then one day, one day he saw Shouto laugh at something his friend with a ponytail said, and his entire world shifted on its axis.
Literally. He fainted because of heat exhaustion and the last thing he saw Shouto’s beautiful smile and heard his melodic laughter.
If he was going to die, at least he was going to die seeing the beauty that was Shouto Todoroki.
Their third year of college started and Izuku found himself always looking for Shouto, and he always found him.
The crush that started out small evolved into something larger. It grew when he saw Shouto help and old woman cross the street. It grew when he saw him play volleyball with a couple of high school kids on the open field, surprisingly athletic. It grew when he accidentally heard Shouto’s conversations with his mom, his voice smooth and low when he said, “yes mom, I love you.”
Izuku was a sucker for men who looked cold at first but ended up being sweethearts, so to course he fell. Hard.
He fell for a stranger though, because Shouto had no idea who Izuku was.
That was when Ochako came in.
“Deku,” she sang sweetly as she handed him a cup of coffee with five sugar packets in it, “you’ve been keeping something from me.”
Izuku blinked. “I didn’t eat all your cheese, that was Aoyama.
“What? No! I mean your crush on a certain pretty boy!”
Izuku flushed red and averted his gaze to the street sign. Morningside Dr. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Aha! I knew it!” Ochako cried, “you like him!”
“And what if I do? It’s not like he’s going to notice me,” Izuku said as he took a sip of his coffee.
“Actually, I just got off the phone with Camie Utsushimi, one of his best friends. She agrees that you two should meet and she’s bringing him to you at Mina’s party this Friday. You’re welcome.”
Izuku spat out his coffee. “What?!”
Ochako had only laughed before fondly reassuring him that his meeting with Shouto would be fine, that nothing could go wrong.
Considering the handcuffs, she had made a severe miscalculation.
“...and yes, while the Roaring Twenties were accurately portrayed in Gatsby, they focused too much on the rich and their problems than other social issues like homosexuality or others. In conclusion, the Great Gatsby is a classist novel and Nick was secretly gay for Gatsby.”
Though, Ochako might have been onto something with the handcuffs if it meant being literally stuck with Shouto and listening to him rant about classic novels.
It was so endearing it hurt.
Izuku had always imagined Shouto to be a little like Mr. Darcy; cold and stiff at first, but sweet and awkward when you actually got to know him. And he was right. Maybe he fell a little bit more in love listening to him rant, but honestly who needed to know?
“Okay,” Izuku laughed, “you’ve convinced me that Nick was in love with Gatsby. It took you thirty minutes but I think I get it now. I see how it could affect what the reader thinks about Daisy too. But wouldn’t that make him sexist and Daisy-phobic too?”
Shouto blinked. “Yes, it would. Because Daisy was both a woman and in the time period she was born in–"
“Oh nooo,” a familiar voice called out, “Shouto babe’s started to rant about Gatz again!”
Shouto’s smile dropped into a scowl. “Camie. You’ve drunk yourself stupid again, haven’t you.”
“ ‘S the only time I can relax!” Camie pouted, nearly tripping over her heels.
She blinked. “I wanted to say something but I forgot.”
“You idiot,” Shouto shook his head, making Izuku grin.
“You’re so mean to your friends, Todoroki!”
“Didn’t you threaten to kill Uraraka over the handcuffs?”
“I’m a changed man now.”
Shouto let out a snort of amusement just as Camie gasped.
“I remember now! Yeah, Ochako lost the key to your cuffs.”
Silence. Then,
“I just wanted to take a nap today!”
“ ‘S not her fault, Shouto babe! Katsuki made her drink a lot and she hurled into the toilet. It was like, so gross,” Camie shuddered. “When she stood up she accidentally flushed it down the toilet. Oops!”
“What do you mean oops? Are you saying Midoriya and I are stuck together until the hardware store opens up and we can get this shit off?” Shouto hissed.
Camie rolled her eyes. “No, don’t be so dumb Shouto. Ochako has another pair of keys in her apartment! Buttt she won’t be going home until like, five am so you guys are stuck together until then. Bye!”
She sauntered back into the house with a hoot and took a beer off of a coffee table, leaving Izuku and Shouto to stare at each other in disbelief.
Izuku winced when Shouto glared at him. “Yeah, sorry about Ochako. When she parties, she parties hard.“
Shouto let out a sigh. “It wouldn’t matter anyways. My friends all stay out late too and Momo confiscated my dorm keys.”
“Why?”
“So I wouldn’t try to run away.”
Izuku let out a small snort. “Wow, you really hate parties.”
“After this whole handcuff situation I hate them even more,” Shouto deadpanned. Then he averted his eyes to the side, and much more softly, said, “though I suppose you make it more bearable.”
Izuku’s cheeks heated up an significant amount, and he found himself grinning like a fool.
“So do you, Todoroki.”
Shouto cleared his throat. “Yeah, well, now what are we supposed to do? I’ve already spilled enough of my Gatsby analysis.”
Izuku hummed. “Okay. How about...twenty one questions?”
“Isn’t that a children’s game?”
“Do you have a better idea to spend our handcuffed moments together?”
Shouto opened his mouth to answer before closing it. “No, I suppose I don’t.”
Izuku grinned. “It’ll be fun!”
“Yes, but first of all, I’m hungry.”
“You’d didn’t eat before coming?” Izuku asked curiously.
“I honestly didn’t expect to be here for more than twenty minutes before my friends got tired of me and sent me back.”
Izuku squinted his eyes suspiciously. “Do you get loose tongued when you’re sleepy?”
Shouto blinked. “No, why?”
“Uh-huh. Well, there’s a McDonald’s a few blocks away that shouldn’t be closed yet. Wanna try there?”
“Are you paying?”
“Only if this is a date,” Izuku replied without realizing what he said, laughing.
“What?”
“What?”
Izuku blinked. His words came back to him and he stared at Shouto with a look of comedic horror etched all over his features.
“I was joking, I promise! Sorry! Yes, I’ll pay because it’s my fault we’re in this stupid situation in the first place, so the least I could do is pay for your hamburger or something-“
“Midoriya,” Shouto spoke up with a king of amusement in his eyes.
“What?!”
“I like chicken nuggets.”
Izuku blinked. “Okay, I’ll get you chicken nuggets.”
“Thanks.”
It was eleven at night when they decided to walk down to a McDonald’s tucked away on the edge of campus, their shadows on the pavement non visible as they talked quietly amongst themselves.
“So who’s going to start it? Me or you?”
Shouto shrugged. “It was your idea to play so you go first. Ask me whatever.”
“Uh, okay. Let’s see...oh! What’s your major and why’d you pick it?”
Shouto smiled easily. “You probably guessed it from the Gatsby analysis but I’m a creative writing major. I switched out of my biology major and pre-med track in the middle of my first year.”
“First year...”
Shouto had stopped coming to the lab in the middle of his first year. So it wasn’t because of me?
“Why’d you switch out though?” He asked nervously. “Did something awful happen to you in a chemistry lab or something?”
Shouto cast him a weird look. “No, nothing like that. Simply put, my father made me sign up for the medicine track, but I decided to say ‘fuck it’ instead after we got rid of him. You see, I always wanted to be a writer.”
“Oh really?” Izuku asked curiously. “What type of writer?”
“A good one,” Shouto replied with a small smile. “I know it sounds vague, but my idea of a good writer is one who writes something they enjoy and shares it with others, not one who writes to please people.”
“And if you had to write a book? What type would it be?”
Shouto smirked up at him. “That’s another question, Midoriya. It’s my turn to ask you one.”
“Oh come on! Please?”
“Nope.”
Izuku pouted. “Fine. Ask me a question.”
“The same one you asked me; what’s your major and why did you pick it?”
“Oh!” Izuku smiled, “I’m a chemistry major! I picked it because I want to go into medicine, you know, to save lives.”
“Voluntarily?” Shouto asked with raised brows.
Izuku let out a small laugh. “Yes, Todoroki, voluntarily. Not all of us are forced to go into medicine.”
“You’re so lucky.”
“Okay, my turn again! What type of book would you write and why?”
Shouto rolled his eyes good naturedly. “I have too many ideas and not enough time to write, but one story idea that has been bothering me for a while is a story within a story.”
Izuku blinked. “What does that mean?”
“It’s like the main character is telling you a story while they live through another one,” Shouto explained with a tiny smile. “It’s confusing I know.”
“How would that even work?”
“Well, in my head I have a story about a boy who leaves his homeland because he doesn’t want to be around the person of his unrequited love. He comes back five years later to write a book and falls ill, and he decides to write a book about his life’s experiences with his own unrequited love through the eyes of his main character. Complicated, isn’t it?”
“And sad,” Izuku frowned. “Does he beat his illness? Is his love requited at some point?”
Shouto shrugged. “Not all stories and couples have happy endings so no, he would die and the love would have been requited but never spoken out loud.”
Izuku could do nothing more but stare at Shouto incredulously. “What on earth would posses you to write that?!”
“I love stories that hurt you down to the deepest parts of your soul,” Shouto replied solemnly.
“Well if I had to write that book I’d make sure he lived and they got together,” Izuku huffed.
“So vanilla,” Shouto teased with a click of his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Don’t you like it when books cause you pain?”
“Not when the characters I like die!”
“But Midoriya, life isn’t all vanilla and rainbows. There needs to be someone to write some realistic stories, stories where people die and things go unsaid.”
“I just think it’s sad. People deserve happy endings.”
“But not everyone gets them,” Shouto shrugged.
Izuku frowned. “Please don’t tell me all your story ideas are this sad.”
“Would you like me better if I said they weren’t?”
“Oh my god.”
“Then no, everyone lives and falls in love at the right time.”
“Oh my god!” Izuku cried, flashing Shouto a scandalized song. “Who hurt you?!”
“Is that your next question? I’ll have you know it’s my turn now.”
“It was a joke but now I’m sort of concerned over why you thought it was a genuine question.”
Shouto grinned and nodded at the McDonald’s across the street. “Let’s eat.”
“Fine, but don’t think you get to escape me asking about your tragic backstory.”
“I wouldn’t dare dream of it.”
Their orders were given to them relatively quickly, and seeing as to how they were handcuffed they decided a twenty-piece chicken nugget order with two large fries would work best for them.They sat in a small table near the front entrance in black chairs, side by side because of the handcuffs.
Izuku secretly found himself enjoying this whole ‘being handcuffed to Shouto Todoroki’ thing more and more as the night progressed.
“So,” Shouto spoke up as he chewed on a fry, “where are you from? New York?”
“I’m from Japan, actually! Yeah, I wanted to go to Kyoto but got accepted into Columbia before that and my mom practically made me come here.”
“In a good or bad way?”
“The good way.” Izuku smiled, “I love my mom. She wanted me to ‘expand my horizons’ or whatever that means even if it meant leaving her.”
“She sounds like a lovely woman,” Shouto replied with a sincere smile.
“She is. She’d like you, you know.”
Shouto snorted softly. “Would she? I mean, I’m not exactly pretty to look at and I rant about stupid things.”
“I think your Gatsby rants are endearing,” Izuku said with warm cheeks and a helpless smile. “And you are pretty to look at, Todoroki.”
Shouto’s marble grey and turquoise blue eyes widened ever so slightly before he turned to stare at his fries, the barest hint of a blush staining his cheeks.
“Yeah, well, so are you.”
“Right, thanks,” Izuku replied, voice cracking.
“So your question?”
“Ah, yes. The question! The question...oh yeah! Who hurt you?”
“Do you want an actual answer or a funny answer? I have both.”
“Actual answer if you’re comfortable with it.”
Shouto shrugged. “Well, it’s a really shitty life story. I was raised to be a doctor so I was practicing with surgical kits when I was five and studying anatomy textbooks when I was ten. My dad wanted me to become the best neurosurgeon the world has ever seen because he failed at beating Yagi Toshinori out of it.”
“Did he...?”
“Hit me? Many times,” Shouto said with a faraway look in his eyes. “It was a rough childhood. My eldest brother flunked out of the pre-med track so I was left to pursue it. It was rough.”
“But your mom was there to support you right?”
“My mom gave me this scar,” Shouto deadpanned, pointing at the scar over his left eye. “She wasn’t well in the head when she did it, though, and I’ve forgiven her for it but yeah. My childhood wasn’t exactly rainbows and sunshine.”
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked–"
Shouto shrugged. “It’s fine. I’ve made peace with my past and I’m on good terms with my family. Besides, the old bastard isn’t even in my life anymore so I don’t care.”
“Still,” Izuku frowned, “I can see why you like angsty stuff now.”
“I like nice things too,” Shouto argued with a pout. “Just...to a lesser degree than painful stories.”
“Uh-huh, sure.”
Shouto rolled his eyes. “Alright, I’m next. What was your childhood like?”
Izuku flashed him a tiny smile. “It wasn’t a terrible childhood but it wasn’t a good one either. My dad wasn’t around and I was bullied a lot as a kid. Katsuki Bakugou, you know him?”
“The blonde Uraraka out drank?”
Izuku let out a small giggle. “Is that what he’s know for? In any case, yeah, that’s him. He bullied me a lot as a kid and no one wanted to be friends with the bullied kid, so I grew up friendless. It was...it was a very lonely life.”
“I’m going to kill him.”
“No, don’t!” Izuku sputtered, putting his handcuffed hand over Shouto’s own. “It was in the past! He’s apologized and is trying his best to be a good friend!”
“That doesn’t excuse his past actions though. How on earth could he bully some as precious as you?”
“Back then I didn’t have muscles, Todoroki. I was a shrimp.”
“Shrimp or not, what he did was cruel. If I had met you when we were young I would have been your friend.”
Izuku smiled softly. “If I met you when I was young I probably would have been your friend too.”
“Would you, though?”
“I mean, we could have been lonely together. Wouldn’t that have been nice?”
A small smile appeared on Shouto’s lips. “Playing on playgrounds and swinging up on monkey bars.”
“Throwing pennies into pools and casting wishes.”
“Sleepovers and movie marathons.”
“It would’ve been nice, wouldn’t it?” Izuku asked with a wistful smile.
“Yeah,” Shouto said quietly, “it would have. But I’m content to have met you know rather than never at all. You’re good company, Midoriya.”
“You were just cursing me under your breath for getting us handcuffed together two hours ago.”
“You heard that?”
Izuku let out a loud laugh, a warm feeling filling his core. “You’re funny, Todoroki. I like you.”
“Yeah well, you’re an idiot for incurring your friend’s wrath and getting us handcuffed together.” His words lacked any malice though, and Izuku only smiled wider.
“Alright, my turn to ask a question next! Have you ever had a really awkward night with someone?”
Shouto winced, and Izuku stared at him.
“Was it that bad?”
“He moaned his mother’s name.”
“What?!”
“I wish I were lying but I’m not. He moaned his mother’s name and I didn’t waste any time in leaving. I blocked his number and switched my class slot so I’d never have to see him again.”
“How,” Izuku wheezed, “does that even happen?! I thought that was only in movies!”
“A bad stroke of fate.”
“More like the wrong stroke of a dick.”
“It was the worst hook up of my life,” Shouto admitted with flushed cheeks. “I’ve never slept with anyone since, and that was last year.”
“Oh you poor thing,” Izuku teased with a grin. “It’s your turn to ask a question, you know.”
“I’ll give you the same one; have you ever had an awkward one night stand?”
Izuku flushed red and averted his gaze to the side. “She took my wallet and money and left me tied to my bed post.”
“She?”
“She,” Izuku affirmed with a nod. “Ochako and Hitoshi had to come free me and Ochako hasn’t stopped teasing me about it since.”
“Just tease her about her obvious crush on Tenya and it should be easy to get her to stop,” Shouto replied with a small laugh.
“Maybe. Okay, next question! Have you ever...”
The night progressed as did the questions that grew more and more wild as the hours ticked by and they remained handcuffed together, roaming the streets like two drunkards without actually being drunk.
“Okay,” Izuku wheezed at three in the morning, “I’m getting tired. Do you want to go back to the party?”
“Considering the fact that we’d have to walk back up about twenty blocks, no.”
“So where do you want to go?”
“Washington Square Park,” Shouto solemnly replied.
“Todoroki, that’s on the Lower East Side!”
“Who got us handcuffed in the first place, huh?”
“Fair point. Do you want to use my metro card?”
Shouto smiled smugly. “That’s what I thought."
“You’re a menace, Todoroki.”
“But apparently you like it if you’ve been following me around for so long.”
“I’m quite literally handcuffed to you.”
“Technicalities,” Shouto said, dismissively waving his free hand.
They ended up taking the one train down to NYU before making the trek to the park, passing through the famous arch with a snicker, Shouto comparing it to “arriving at the pits of hell.”
“So I’m guessing you were rejected from here too, huh.”
“Fuck NYU.”
The water fountain was on despite it being four in the morning, and Shouto and Izuku sat on the edge of it, staring out at the park in front of them, basking in the late night air.
“What number were we on? Fifteen?” Shouto asked after a moment of silence.
“Yeah. Uh, have you ever gotten lost in New York?”
“The first week I was here I wanted to visit this park and ended up taking the uptown train into the Bronx,” Shouto replied with a pout. “Momo still won’t stop teasing me about it. You?”
“Is that your next question?”
“Obviously.”
Izuku let out a small snort. “Okay, yeah, I got lost on the train too. I was trying to go to the Bronx Zoo and ended up in Coney Island.”
“Coney Island?”
“Coney Island," Izuku affirmed. "I met Hitoshi there and he hasn’t let me live it down either even though he got lost too.”
“Did you think uptown and downtown meant the same thing too?” Shouto asked curiously.
“No, I just didn’t read the signs and ran into whichever entrance was closest to me. I’m never making that mistake again.”
“Midoriya, we almost got lost on the one train twenty minutes ago.”
“That dies with us, okay?”
Shouto huffed out a bright melodic laugh that warmed Izuku’s heart, his smile going soft at the edges.
“Okay, my turn. Have you ever been in love?”
“So nosy,” Shouto grinned. “What would your mother say?”
“My mother is as nosy as me so she would be curious too,” Izuku replied easily. “So? Have you?”
Shouto hummed and looked up at the polluted sky. “I had a a boyfriend my second year here and I loved him but he didn’t love me. He moved onto someone new a week later.”
“Todoroki...”
“He moved on so fast, you know? And the people I dated after that...none of them stuck around either,” Shouto frowned. “I don’t know if it’s because of who I am or if it’s something I did, but am I really so unlovable?”
“That’s not it at all,” Izuku frowned. “You’re an amazing person, Todoroki, and if they couldn’t see that then they’re blind! You have a pretty face and an even prettier heart. You’re more than enough.”
Shouto cast him an odd look. “Really?”
“Yes! I mean, if they can’t enjoy your Gatsby analysis then they’re dumb. I’d be honored to be your boyfriend.”
Maybe he said it so easily because he was sleep deprived. Maybe he said it so easily because Shouto needed some reassurance that he was deserving of love. There were so many “maybe’s” but there was one thing he knew for certain; he would absolutely love to date Shouto.
Shouto hummed and averted his gaze to the tips of his converse. “And you? Have you ever been in love?”
“Yeah,” Izuku said, heart singing as he stared at Shouto fondly, “I have.”
“Oh yeah? What do you love about them?”
“Their good sense of humor, for one. And their eyes...their eyes are the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. And they’re extremely kind despite looking like they could kill someone.”
Shouto raised a brow. “Your taste in partners is questionable. Are you in love with a prisoner?”
“Nah, they’re just a broke college student like me.”
Shouto let out a snort. “How romantic.”
Izuku huffed out a small sigh. He’s so dense it’s frustratingly endearing.
“You know what?” He asked after a moment of silence.
“What?”
“Let’s dance!”
Shouto gaped at him in disbelief. “I’m sorry, did you say let’s dance?”
“Yeah! Let’s dance!” Izuku laughed, standing up and offering a scarred hand to Shouto. “Come on!”
“There’s no music, Midoriya.”
“I brought my earbuds and I have Spotify premium.”
“It’s embarrassing.”
“There’s no one here, though.”
“I don’t know how to dance.”
“Neither do I!”
“Fine,” Shouto huffed after Izuku didn’t back down, “I just don’t want to.”
“Well I want to and you’re handcuffed to me so you kinda have to,” Izuku replied with a cheeky grin.
“I have never hated anyone more than I hate you right now.”
“You know you’re lying.”
Shouto rolled his eyes but nonetheless reached out to take Izuku’s scarred hand with his own slender one. Izuku popped an earbud into Shouto’s ear and pressed play, grinning when Shouto shook his head.
“This is a very sad song. Why are we dancing to a sad song?”
“Don’t you like sad things?”
“Oh shut your trap,” Shouto said with a small blush.
Nonetheless, he placed a hand on Izuku’s shoulder and linked their handcuffed hands together, finger intertwined. Izuku’s own free hand went down to rest on Shouto’s lower back, and they pressed up against each other, chest to chest, so close they could hear each other breathe. It was incredibly intimate, and Izuku smiled down at Shouto, and whispered, “is this okay?”
“Yeah. It’s okay.”
Izuku continued smiling as he led them into a waltz, dancing to The Night We Met as he mourned the passing hour.
Soon it would be five in the morning. Soon Ochako would go back to their shared apartment and get the key to the handcuffs. Soon the sun would rise and Izuku would have no reason to be this close to Shouto ever again, and it left him feeling just a little bit empty inside. Now that Izuku had gotten a taste of what Shouto was like he didn’t want to let go. It hurt to just think about never being able to hold him this close again, so he held him closer, and Shouto didn’t protest in the slightest.
The song ended and soon Izuku and Shouto found themselves laying down on a park bench, the tops of their heads pressed together and their handcuffed hand resting off the side of the bench.
“Okay, this is the twentieth question,” Izuku said. “If you had to survive a zombie apocalypse where would you stay?”
“Anywhere but a school. I’d stay near a lake in a forest somewhere for food and build a trap for zombies.”
“Smart. Your turn.”
“Where do you want to live after you’re done with college?”
Izuku hummed. “I know Japan is my home, but I really like New York. I’d probably live in a shitty apartment because it’s expensive to live here, but I wouldn’t leave.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Wouldn’t you?”
“I’ve never had a good enough reason to stay in New York,” Shouto replied easily. “Though, it might be easier to live here if I were to become a professional writer.”
“Oh yeah? Where would you live?”
“Probably the Lower East Side or something. Anywhere other than near our school, though. I don’t want to linger in my college days any longer than I have to.”
Izuku let out a wistful sigh. “Isn’t it crazy that we’re going to graduate next year? We’re going to be adults!”
“That’s too much of a heavy topic to be discussing at five in the morning. Please refrain from speaking to me about growing up.”
“You’re going to be twenty-two like your book character when he returned to Japan.”
“Yeah, but unlike him I’m staying here.”
Izuku raised a brow. “Didn’t you just say you didn’t have a good reason to stay?”
“I think I’ve found a pretty good one,” Shouto replied quietly, swinging their handcuffed hands slightly.
Izuku blinked. “Oh. What?”
“You’re incredibly dense, you know?”
“I’m the dense one?” Izuku asked incredulously, “I’m sorry, but have you met yourself?”
“Now you’re just being mean. It’s not my fault my father didn’t raise me right.”
“Oh my god.”
“Anyways, it’s the last question. Do you want to ask it?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I do.”
“Shoot.”
Izuku intertwined their fingers in the handcuffs, and after hearing Shouto gasp, timidly asked, “if you ever had to love someone again, who would it be?”
Shouto let out a stuttered breath. “Do you want a name or a description?”
“Either one is fine.”
“Okay. He would have green hair to match his beautiful eyes, and an adorable freckle on the tip of his nose that I’ve been dying to kiss for hours. He would make my view of love turn from black and grey to golden. He would listen to my rants about the classic novels and how Gatsby was queer coded. He would be incredibly kind and beautiful, both inside and out.”
“And his name?”
“Izuku Midoriya,” he breathed out with a small laugh. “His name would be Izuku Midoriya.”
“And you?” Shouto asked, voice barely above a whisper.
“He would rant about Gatsby and how he’s obviously queer coded. He would have beautiful eyes and an even more beautiful soul, and he would be the person I see myself being with for the rest of my life.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“And...his name?”
Izuku huffed out a small laugh. “His name would be Shouto ‘I want to nap’ Todoroki.”
Shouto let out a small snort, slapping their intertwined hands playfully. “That’s a terrible decision, really. I don’t think he’s worth staying around for, especially for the rest of your life.”
“I beg to differ. I would love to spend the rest of my Christmases and New Years kisses with him.”
“Oh yeah? What would you do during the holidays with him? It’s a very serious question, Midoriya. I’ve heard he loves the holidays.”
Izuku smiled widely. “I’d help him put up Christmas lights and let him leave them up until January. I’d throw holiday parties and invite his mom and siblings to New York, pay for their plane tickets even.”
“Would you play in the snow with him and make him hot chocolate after?”
“I’d take a bath with him after the hot chocolate and hold him close while he bitches about Gatsby. Then for New Years I’d go home to Japan with him and kiss him in front of everyone when the clock hits twelve.”
“Will you help him find his shoes when he inevitably loses them on New Years?”
“Yeah, because I’ll probably lose mine too. And I’d make him dance with me too.”
“What if he doesn’t want to?”
“He will if it’s with me.”
Shouto let out a snort. “So full of yourself. Will you promise to love him forever, even when he wakes up because of nightmares and cries over books?”
“If he promises to love me when I have my own nightmares and cry over my textbooks then yeah, I will.”
Shouto gently squeezed their intertwined hands together. “I think he won’t have a problem doing that.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Shouto?”
“Deku!”
Both Izuku and Shouto sat up and were met with the sight of Ochako being held up by Tenya, Momo and Kyouka beside him.
“How’d you know where we were?” Shouto asked curiously.
“Deku posted a bunch of pictures of you guys together to his Snapchat,” Ochako giggled, obviously drunk. “So cute! You guys would make a cute couple.”
“Ochako, do you have the key?”
“Yeah, yeah, I have it right here!”
Ochako giggled, “apparently it never went down the toilet in the first place! Oopsies! But here you go, you’re free!”
The handcuffs fell off and Izuku and Shouto found themselves staring at it, a shared amount of sorrow between them at having to leave the night behind.
“Come on, let’s get you back to your apartment,” Tenya said while Ochako giggled and patted his bicep.
“Yeah, take me to bed!”
“Uraraka!”
Kyouka hid a laugh behind her hand while Momo sighed, eyes shining with amusement. “Well, you two are free. Tenya drove us down here in his car so we can give you a ride back to the dorms.”
Izuku and Shouto exchanged glances as the sun began to rise behind them.
“Actually,” Shouto said, “I’d rather take the train home.”
“Yeah, same. We’ll meet up with you guys later!”
“Huh?”
But Izuku only laughed as he grabbed Shouto’s hand and led him away from Momo and Kyouka, Shouto laughing along the whole time.
“Where are we going?!”
“To get some breakfast! We’re going to have a breakfast date!”
“Where?!”
“I don’t know!”
They ran until they realized they went in the wrong direction, and then they paused to laugh, holding onto each other for support.
“This is what I have to deal with for the rest of my life?” Shouto laughed, cheeks flushed.
“You’ll like it, I promise!”
Shouto smiled at him, a genuine fond smile laced with a great amount of love, and said, “I know I will.”
“Aren’t you glad you didn’t take that nap?”
“Come on,” Shouto grinned, taking Izuku’s hand again, “let’s go buy some bagels or something.”
Izuku allowed himself to be led by Shouto towards the park entrance, and with his heart singing and his fingers intertwined with Shouto’s he realized he should really thank Ochako for handcuffing them together.
“Ochako, remember when you handcuffed me and Shouto together?” Izuku asked two years later as he planned his and Shouto’s wedding.
“How could I not? It started your epic romance!” She laughed, “and to think I had to pretend to lose the key to get you two to talk!”
Shouto froze with his head in the fridge, hand gripping onto the handle tightly. “What.”
“I said nothing!”
Izuku only laughed while his fiancé chucked a piece of cheese at Ochako’s head, cheering him on while Tenya begged him to stop wasting food.
Life in New York, he decided, was never going to be dull with Shouto at his side.