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Hanta liked oranges. Cara Cara and Lima oranges were his favorite.
Shouto liked the citrusy smell that followed him around after he peeled one of said fruits with his hands.
Sero liked fluffy socks but only if they didn’t have the grippies on the bottom of them. He liked loose, flowy pants and especially enjoyed the ones that flared at the bottom. He liked long shirts and neutral colors. He did not like small dogs. They were loud and always tried to trip whatever unfortunate soul happened to be walking next to them. Todoroki concurred. Hanta found chipmunks charming though. And chickens made him laugh.
Much to Todoroki’s chagrin, Sero liked spearmint more than peppermint. (Something that small should not have disheartened Todoroki as much as it did. But did that mean Sero would like Midoriya's hair more than Todoroki’s? After all, Bakugo called him “peppermint head” and spearmint was green like Midoriya’s hair.)
Sero did not like artificial cherry flavoring and he hated lemon scented candles. Todoroki did not mind the flavor of cherry, though. So whenever Sero happened to have cherry candy, he would give it to Shouto.
Hanta did not like ovals on clothing patterns but he liked zig-zags very much. Shouto did not care about patterns enough to weigh in on that one.
Hanta adored old horror films and romance movies and he only liked documentaries if they had baby animals in them. So Shouto sent him videos of small animals if he ever found any and in return he would receive a line of superfluous, nonsensical letters. A “keyboard smash” as Sero had called it. It was something that was seemingly unnecessary but surprisingly useful for expressing emotions that could not be put into words. Both of them enjoyed keyboard smashes.
Shouto had not always known that sero hid candy behind his manga, or that he liked the sound of heels clicking on wood floors; he had learned those things through friendship, something he was becoming accustomed to by now.
Shouto knew love. Briefly and in a shallow way. In all of the forms except the one it was meant to be in. He knew the love his father had for his power. Not for him. He knew the reserved, desperate love of his mother (those wounds had begun to heal though. He was being introduced to real motherly love). He knew the love of an older brother who would punch walls and shout and demand to see him. The love of someone who would fight for him whenever he could, but was never there enough. He knew the love that was spread thin by the burden of acting as a mother before even having a boyfriend, the love that his sister had that was tired but pure and desperate for familial bonds.
He knew the love of friendship now. That was something he had not even realized he had wanted until he had it. The kind of love expressed by shouts of encouragement, arms slung around shoulders, teasing comments, excited jabs, kind words, enthusiastic rambling, and movie nights in the dorms. He knew about the love he had for his classmates: a loyal sense of kinship that brought them together and kept them afloat in the hardest of times (even when they tested his patience). He liked this kind of love.
Friendship with Hanta was unexpected on his part. Somehow, they began trading manga. Then they began spending weekend afternoons in the same room, silently eating snacks and reading. Suddenly, he was tutoring Sero in math (it was good for both of them, Shouto learned how to be a better teacher and Sero learned logarithms). Weekend afternoons were spent leaning against one another while they shared food and read. Sero would even listen to his theories (even Midoriya told him to not pry into others lives, but Hanta encouraged it. They were both sure that Shinsou was related to Mr. Aizawa). Then they began to go out to get food and shop and relax at the park while they talked about classes and Shouto listened to all of the gossip Hanta had for him that day (Sero called it “Tea Time With Todoroki”. Shouto liked the alliteration). Time passed and they grew closer. Shouto grew comfortable, he extricated himself from his usual silence when they were together. After long training sessions, weekend afternoons were spent with one of the two reading aloud while the other massaged their tight shoulder muscles (Sero was an incredible masseuse, it turned out).
Hanta told him about growing up with lots of cousins, conservative relatives, and about his first crush (she had not been graceful when turning him down) and his first relationship (he was a nice boy, but they were better off as friends). Shouto admitted he never really had any crushes, and had never been in a relationship. Sero didn’t believe him, “But- but you’re you !” he had insisted, seemingly flabbergasted. Shouto didn't know what to think of that, but it seemed like a friendly complement. So why did his heart flutter?
Todoroki told Sero about his upbringing, about the long grueling hours spent on the floor of the training rooms, of the icy breath and sweaty palms, of the taste of bile in his throat and the sound of an earth-shaking voice insisting that he “suck it up and get back on his feet”. He told Sero about the burn, the tears, the stress and the isolation that left him feeling etiolated and out of place.
Instead of pity, Todoroki received support, a hug, and a teasing snicker of, “that explains a lot”.
He told his mother about Hanta and she chuckled then looked at him with a knowing twinkle in her eyes, “I am glad you have found someone you can trust. I am glad you’re happy, Shouto” she had said softly.
One day when Shouto was laying down across Sero’s bed, mindlessly scrolling through his phone, Sero had approached and in one smooth movement, he lifted Todoroki’s head and sat down, lowering Shouto’s head onto his lap. It became a ritual, one would lay in the other’s lap and have gentle hands brushed through their hair. A week or two after that, Shouto had been tired, and laid down on Sero’s bed. Sero had grinned, throwing himself on top of Shouto, tangling their limbs together and insisted that it was nap time.
At first Todoroki had been taken aback by the blatant display of affection, however, it became a regular occurrence. After all, they were friends. On more than one occasion Shouto found himself seeking out Sero’s warmth, letting his knee brush Sero’s while they read or leaning in closer than necessary when explaining a math problem to his friend. The closeness and gentle contact rounded his edges and the ‘class pretty-boy’ took every opportunity that presented itself to chase that feeling of comfort. Todoroki and Sero sat closer to one another than necessary during study groups and the shorter one of the duo was often seen standing around with Hanta hanging idly off of his shoulder. They were attached at the hip and Todoroki would not have it any other way. Sero had slid into his life and his heart so seamlessly Shouto did not realize it until it was too late.
By the time he realized just how much he valued Sero, his love for his friend had burrowed under his skin and cemented itself as a part of him like the pest it was. Midoriya had asked him about Sero one day while they were walking back from the nurse’s office, “Todoroki-kun, I don't mean to pry but I've been wondering… do you like Sero?”
“Of course.” Shouto had said without a second thought. The question was absurd honestly. Of course he liked Sero. Realization began to creep up his throat, undetected for now, as it spread its ghostly fingers along the insides of his esophagus.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Midoriya’s eyebrows raise in shock before they settled quickly to accompany his quizicall gaze, “I mean like like.” he gesticulated, “No- do you have feelings for him? Romantic feelings? I don’t mean to make assumptions but you two spend a lot of time together and you seem to really trust him not to mention the fact that you let him touch you, he puts an arm on your shoulder and you barely react, if anything i've noticed you welcome his presence and touch, not that i've been watching that would be creepy it was just an observation…”
Izuku’s superfluous muttering became background noise to the sound of Todoroki’s heartbeat roaring in his ears. Realization pushed its way up his throat, forcing pressure into the muscles in his jaw and neck and its teasing laugh left his ears ringing. It swarmed its way into his head and sailed along the blood in his veins and thrummed against his ears and it was so overwhelming . What Shouto had accepted as platonic love and friendship was a trojan horse. Unassuming friendship and trust grew into an ugly monster called love. And with Love came it’s even worse twin: Vulnerability.
Vulnerability was a scary thing. Vulnerability meant pain. It meant giving up a piece of himself. It meant trusting someone with something more fragile than life.
“Todoroki Kun, are you okay? I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable.” Midoriya’s voice pulled him out of his head and he blinked at his friend who put a gentle hand on his shoulder.
He nodded sagely, “I'm alright. I just need some time to relax and think.” he decided out loud, “excuse me, Midoriya.” He veered off of their set path and walked wherever his feet decided to take him. Maybe if he walked fast enough he could leave his feelings behind.
Love. He did not want this feeling to be love. Was it really love? Then again, what else could it be? Shouto was frustrated with himself. How could he have let himself fall so easily? Shouto generally thought that relationships were fruitless, they weren’t worth the heartbreak. Oranges were sweet. He liked oranges, but not when the juice got into his eyes and burned. That is why he tended to let others peel them. He would let others tempt love. Because nothing good could come out of these feelings.
‘Except happiness.’ The tradorous voice in his head crooned, ‘ Except stability. A companion. Touch. Attention. Love.’
No. Those were things he wanted ; Todoroki did not need them. At least that's what he said to himself as he passed a couple laughing at something on one of their phones.
Wants like those were a distraction. They would only hinder his progress and eventually hurt him.
‘Or they might make you stronger. He is good to you and he is good for you.’ His heart ignored all logic, feelings were trying to take control in a way he had never let them before. It was scary. Shouto let spite and anger hold the reins once upon a time. Before Midoriya had forced him to see how they’d been driving his every action. Shouto had never let any positive emotion guide him.
He never planned on letting that happen, either. Logic was flawless, it had no bias and led him to quick, reasonable solutions. Emotions only got in his way and made everything more convoluted. They were always brewing under his skin but Todoroki learned to ignore them and move on with his life. But then Love had snuck up on him and tried to seize control like the traitor it was.
Shouto made a decision: He was going to protect himself. He would not let his emotions get the better of him.
‘But in retrospect, isn’t that conclusion based on emotions?’ He pretended he didn’t hear his heart that time. He had control now and that was what mattered. The hurt would not be worth it and his progress would not be hindered by something as trivial as love. The need for physical contact and touch was something those with weak will power caved to. The need for acceptance and love was for attention seekers.
‘So why do you always wonder if he is watching you? Why do you fall asleep easier when he is next to you? Why do you sit so close? Why do you try to make him laugh?’
He had no excuse.
Some time later that day, Todoroki found himself in his room, sitting against the wall with his right hand to his temple. He had come to a few alarming conclusions:
one was that he loved Sero as much more than a friend(as if he had not known that already). Life without him did not seem fathomable. He wanted to be held by him, to hold his hand and see him smile, to kiss his lips (they probably tasted like oranges and mango just like the lip balm Sero always used).
The second was that he could not act on his feelings. Sero would probably not reciprocate and then things would be tense between them. Even if he did reciprocate the parasitic feelings, there was no way their relationship would last. The heartbreak he would feel would only increase the longer shouto let himself entertain these feelings. What he had was enough. In the name of self preservation, it had to be. So he decided his next course of action.
The plan was simple: fall out of love.
Turns out, that is not as easy as it seems. Love stuck to him like wax from an orange peel, staining his fingers. Falling out of love is much harder than falling in it. Todoroki couldn’t just avoid Sero. He had tried that. And after one day of radio silence, found himself hovering next to the man’s door after dinner and then sulking in the corner of the common room while Sero won a game of UNO. The next day he tried again and found himself staring across the classroom, thoughts too loud to hear the lecture at the front of the room. He peeled and ate two oranges that day. Then he bought Sero four more.
Two days later, a knock at the door of his dorm room snapped him out of his wallowing and Shouto stood up from his bed to open the door.
He smelled oranges.
Sure enough, Sero stood there with a plate of orange slices and strawberries. Strawberries were his favorite. Hanta had remembered. His traitorous heart fluttered at the realization. Shouto must have looked like a fool, standing there with a slightly dumbstruck expression on his face, throat tightening.
“Hey Roki.” Hanta started. That was enough for Shouto's heart, ‘Let him in!’ it demanded, “This is a peace offering… sorta. I don't know what I did but I've noticed you have been avoiding me. Can you tell me why? I just- I wanna know what I might have done. I miss hanging out every day.”
Shouto hated the way his body moved without his permission, stepping aside to usher his friend inside. “I have just been… dealing with some personal things. I apologise.” Shouto said, feeling guilty despite not having told a lie, “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
Sero’s eyes softened with something akin to relief and Todoroki’s stomach churned with guilt. He hated himself for doing that to Hanta, “okay. I get that. Let me know if I can help at all, i'm here for you.” Sero smiled at him and despite himself, he smiled back.
“Stay. We can watch something.” Shouto said against his better judgement, shutting the door properly and moving to the large beanbag in the corner of his room. (After realizing shouto had nothing but a tatami mat for sleeping on, Sero had insisted that they get a huge bean bag to relax on together.) Todoroki opened his laptop and looked up to meet Sero’s eyes as the man sat next to him, his weight dipping the beanbag, causing their sides to press flush together.
All he could smell was oranges, and the subtle scent of Hanta’s body wash.
The rest of the evening sailed by and as he got ready for bed, Shouto realized that his fingers smelled like the oranges they had shared. Maybe he enjoyed that.
Todoroki had never had a particular affinity for citrus. Lemons stung the scrapes on his hands when he cut them, limes were nice flavoring but they weren't anything incredible. Oranges stung papercuts but they were sweet, so he could forgive them. He never thought of them in a special way, though. Until Hanta.
Hantas hands smelled like oranges most of the time. Shouto liked to watch his nimble fingers peel the skin off of oranges as big as his hands because he always did it the same way and in one piece. Hantas lip balm was citrusy (he had insisted that shouto smell it because, “you’ll wanna eat it! It’s so good!”). Dried orange slices were hung on a string in Sero’s room and when the sun hit them they glowed just like Hanta’s smile glowed. Hanta’s favorite food was oranges. They were growing on Todoroki too.
But so was Hanta. He hated it.
Solo training sessions turned into an outlet; Shouto would train until his left arm was numb, his breathing was labored and there was frost on his tongue. He would work until his clothes nearly burnt off, until his skin was red and felt as if each pore was a piece of molten sun. He would train, punching and jabbing until his knuckles were scraped up, tingling, and sore. Ojiro had lent him some wrapping tape to protect his knuckles with and Kirishima offered up his boxing gloves. That helped his bruised knuckles. It did not help his heart.
Every time he smelled citrus, irrational agitation would flare in his sternum. Yet he continued to enjoy them, and continued to love Sero.
Normally, he would confide in Sero. But this was a matter he had to keep to himself. Shouto had forgotten how hard it was to carry burdens alone. He hated that. Vulnerability was terrifying. Vulnerability is only easy when you are unaware that you are letting your walls down. The second you realize what you are doing, it becomes near impossible to relax.
Todoroki would get over this alone. He had to.
“Roki!” that nickname made his heart flutter (much to his chagrin). Hanta caught up to him as the last bell rang through the halls, signaling the end of the school day, “The bookstore gets a new shipment today! Wanna come with me and see what they’ve got?”
He did. And for a moment, he considered declining but the influence of love or “being whipped” as Ashido might say, took hold of his body and he found himself nodding silently.
“Great! I already got sensei's permission to go. Meet me by the front gates in fifteen minuets okay?” Sero’s grin was almost too bright. But he could not look away. Shouto nodded once more in affirmation and Sero hesitated, a small frown playing on his lips.
‘No. No don’t frown. I like your smile.’ His traitorous heart begged silently.
“Hey- is everything cool? Remember I’m here to talk whenever ya want.” Sero gave Todoroki a softer smile and suddenly Shouto felt guilty.
He wanted to explain. He wanted to come clean and admit that he was in love and that he was terrified of it. That it kept him up at night and that it made him feel such strong emotions that breathing became a herculean task when he was alone in the dark and stuck in his head. The the idea of it all made him hyper aware of the pressurized weight covered in cotton that was stuck in the base of his throat. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream and cuss out whatever deity decided that making him capable of love was a good idea.
Todoroki wanted to admit that if he was given the chance, he did not even know if he would date Hanta because vulnerability was dangerous and the idea of it made his stomach tighten and his heart rate speed up.
He had sworn off the idea of letting emotions drive him and here he was, catering to his fears. Shouto felt his hands clench and he willed his fingers to uncurl. “Thank you Sero. I’m alright. I have been studying a lot more and I think it’s tiring me out.” he tried for a reasonable explanation. He hoped that whatever was making him feel these feelings of love and fear was happy because he sure was not.
“Hanta. Call me Hanta.” Sero insisted, swinging his backpack onto his shoulders in order to free up his hands as they walked towards the Heights Alliance.
His heart danced. “Only if you call me Shouto.” he said, the corners of his lips tugging upwards just like they did every time the two of them had this conversation.
As always, Sero grinned and bumped their shoulders together, “aww, do you not like my nicknames, Roki?” he teased.
Todoroki only hummed in acknowledgement, trying to stop himself from smiling. He loved Hanta’s nicknames for him, everything from ‘Roki’ to ‘hot-shot’ or ‘casanova’ but he would never admit that outloud. He couldn’t.
Sero’s hands gripped the straps of his bag. They were strong and lean. Long, nimble fingers and soft palms despite the calluses built from training. Hanta used moisturizer religiously- speaking of, the man had just reached into the side pocket of his bag and pulled out a small bottle of it, squeezed a dolip into his hand and offered some to Shouto who politely shook his head. He just shrugged as if saying ‘suit yourself’ and returned the bottle to its pouch before rubbing his hands together.
Shouto watched as long fingers danced between one another, pressing into palms and massaging knuckles. Only after he felt his ears burn with a blush did he realize he was staring. Quickly, Shouto averted his eyes and if Hanta had noticed, he didn't show it.
Months passed and it only got worse. He did not fall out of love. If anything, he fell even further into it. He stared at Sero’s hands more. He took flustered glances at his forearms that were accentuated by muscles and veins. He did his damn best not to stare in the locker rooms when Sero’s back was turned to him to show off his back, laden with muscles that rippled when he moved his shoulders. He craved the moments they sat together in silence, reading and eating oranges. He found himself perking up whenever he heard Sero’s laugh, hating himself for savoring every second that Sero’s hand was on his shoulder, and buying extra oranges whenever he went out so that he would never have to hear the disappointment in Hanta’s voice when he realized there were none left.
Hanta did not know what to do. Todoroki was hard to read as it was, but lately his mixed signals had been giving Sero whiplash.
He liked the way his eyes would soften when he saw baby animals. He found his infatuation with soba cute (and a little bit worrying). Hanta’s knees threatened to give out whenever Shouto focused during training; That glint in his eyes had Sero swooning (Kaminari loved to make fun of him for that). In his eyes, Shouto was nearly infallible.
He made a conscious effort to not stare at Shouto’s abs in the locker room. Todoroki was cute in the mornings, dazed, tired, rubbing his eyes and pouting at the sun (or whatever had woken him up that day). Sero liked the way Shouto’s hair would fall around his face when he was looking down at his manga and the way that he pressed close to Hanta when they were on the same bed watching a movie.
It was sweet, how much he liked strawberry milk and how his eyes shut every time he ate a strawberry as if it was a religious experience.
Hanta had always enjoyed strawberries. They could be sprinkled with sugar or eaten right from the plant. They made good jam and the ones that came right from under the sun had a sweetness he savored. Much like Todoroki when they were alone. He would loosen up, he would smile, and his laugh made Sero’s heart sing, he became even sweeter. He would give almost anything to hold his hand, and kiss his cheek, or present him with a carton of fresh berries just to see his eyes light up-
Hanta was yanked from his reverie by a gleeful shriek. “All I'm saying is that Bakugo has nice pecs!” Kaminari insisted, raising his arms in defense as a pen was thrown at his face.
“All im saying is that you’d better shut the fuck up or i’ll fuckin make you!” The owner of the projectile snarled and reached for something else to throw at Denki.
“It's a compliment!” Kirishima tried to defend Kaminari, putting a solid hand on Bakugo’s shoulder. The explosive blonde hurled a small planner at Denki and sank back into his seat, still trying to kill Kaminari with a glare.
“Exactly! It's not like I wanna suck your dick!” Denki continued, piggybacking off Kirishima's defense and completely ignoring Bakugo’s look of irritation, “Me saying you have nice pecs isn’t the same as Sero saying Todoroki has nice abs!”
Sero, who had not been a part of this conversation, looked up with a frown, “hey. You don’t need to bring me into this.” He insisted, but did not deny Kaminari’s accusations.
His brows furrowed as Mina gave him a commiserating look, “I take it it's not going well with hot n’ sexy?” she said, tilting her head and making her curls shift.
Suddenly, focus shifted and all eyes were on him, “What do you mean?” He asked dumbly, trying to think of a way to derail the conversation.
“Dumbass. You're in love with that dense idiot. Just go and tell him straight up or it won't get through that thick ass skull of his. He will have a mental fucking breakdown and then you either get rejected or you fuck.” Bakugo crossed his arms and rolled his eyes as if Hanta had just asked him what two plus two was, and not like he had just given out advice that was sending Sero deeper into emotional crisis.
“That's one way to put it.” he heard the redhead scoff before Mina appeared directly in his field of vision.
She pursed her lips and studied him. Hanta did his best to look bored. She sighed, “I hate to say it, but Blasty is right.” An incredulous scoff could be heard to his left, “you may not see it, but he looks at you like you created the sun-”
“And I've totally seen him drooling over your back!” Denki cut in, “and he stares at your arms and hands when we all have study groups and- oh my god! Do you think he has a thing for your hands?” Denki looked around wide-eyed and gleeful before clapping, “wear bracelets and rings. If his ears go red, he totally wants you to- hey !” He was cut off by Bakugou who sent another writing utensil flying at his head.
Minas lips turned upwards into a cheshire grin, “oh yeah, Denki? And how do you know that he will find rings and bracelets hot? Do you find them hot?”
Without missing a beat, Kaminari scoffed, “well duh.” he said.
“They are pretty manly. Plus, you could totally pull off some silver chains.” Kirishima leaned forward only to be kicked in the side by Bakugo, but that did not seem to perturb him in the least.
Bakugo retracted his foot, “Shut the hell up you don't know shit. Gold and black will look best with Soy Sauce’s skin tone. He's got stupid warm olive undertones so they will make him look less like a corpse.”
A moment of silence followed before kirishima launched himself at Bakugo, draping an arm around his shoulder, spewing something about how manly he was. Mina didn’t even get the chance to tease him before Bakugo was defending himself, “It’s basic fucking color theory you morons!” the blonde growled in indignance, “If any of ya had more than three fuckin’ braincells you’d know this shit too!”
Later that night, Hanta made a few online purchases with Kaminari’s help. A week later he picked up the package and made a beeline for his room, Kaminari hounding his heels and making incoherent noises of excitement as he skittered into his friends room, shutting the door and demanding that Hanta open the package. He did, and they spent the next half an hour decorating Hanta’s hands and wrists in different ways, “oh my god your hands look so hot right now, man.” Denki gushed, grabbing Sero’s left hand and shaking it back and forth with energized vigour, “Todoroki so has a thing for your hands- and if he didn’t, he will now.”
Sero did not feel much different. The weight of the bracelets and the way they shifted was a bit distracting, but they did look good. Plain, thin bands decorated his ring and index finger on his left hand, and on his right there was a small ring that looked like a snake that coiled once around his middle finger. On his right wrist there was a simple, beaded bracelet and a thin chain bracelet. They were all beautiful pieces but they seemed like too much all together.
Kaminari must have seen his apprehension because he smiled, “You don’t have to wear them all at once. Just wear one ring and a bracelet or something- just to draw attention to your hands.”
So he did. Sero settled on one gold band with a zig-zag pattern engraved in it to wear on his right middle finger and the small gold chain bracelet to wear the next day.
In class, Kirishima gave him a not at all subtle look and a thumbs up while Denki fanned his face and pretended to swoon. He flipped them off. Bakugo looked much too smug about it all and Mina chose to draw attention to them, “Sero that's such a cute ring!” she had said, “Look! We almost match!” She held up her own hand, on her pointer finger there was a small, plain silver band with a purple stone in the middle, “and your bracelet! So classy!” she crooned.
Mina’s noise must have attracted the attention of Momo, who approached and smiled politely, “Those are tasteful accessories.” she agreed, “You have a good eye, Sero.”
He gave her an easy smile, “Thanks! Believe it or not, Kaminari helped me pick them out.” Sero laughed, stilling slightly when he felt a presence behind him.
He looked back to find Todoroki leaning over his shoulder to glance down at the topic of conversation, “I didn’t know you liked jewelry.” He said, “what is your favorite brand?”
Sero had no clue. Even if he had, he doubted the words would make their way out of his mouth eloquently when he could feel Todorokis breath so close to his face. Not that he minded. Before he could begin to attempt to reply, Mina cut in, “Mikimoto! Totally. He loves their stuff, right Kaminari?” she looked back at the blonde who had been approaching.
“Oh yeah! He’s always wanted a piece- it would be a great gift!” he nodded, grinning a little too widely for Sero to trust.
Todoroki seemed to take it all in stride, nodding, “ I see.” Momo held a hand to her mouth, chuckling at him.
During class, Hanta looked the brand up and nearly screamed when he saw their collections. One ring seemed to be worth his weight in gold. Shouto spent his class time lost in thought, daydreaming about the way a gold bracelet might look on Hanta’s wrist. He realized that he could never be completely inviolate in terms of feelings. He might as well make the object of his affections happy, right?
‘Don’t kid yourself. You are trying to woo him.’ his heart hissed. The universe was undoubtedly laughing at him and his excuses.
After classes, they convened in Sero’s room as usual. Strawberries, oranges and some chips were stacked on a plate between them while they silently filled out their packets for English. Shouto couldn't quite focus. It was pathetic really, the way he would get one or two questions done before being distracted by his friend's hand picking a strawberry from the plate between them. Shouto caught sight of the bracelet for the hundredth time that day and followed it with his eyes, watching Hanta's ringed fingers as they held a pencil and wrote.
He had never thought of hands as an attractive thing. Then again, he hadn't seen arms, or smiles, or jawlines as something to ogle at either until Hanta came along. He blushed, glaring at his homework as he silently chastised himself for letting his thoughts wander. Hanta had spoken he realized, five minutes into the anticipatory silence, "sorry. What?" Todoroki asked prosaically.
"It's all good. I just- I wanted you to know that I don't actually like that kind of super expensive stuff. This probably sounds really stuck up and egotistical but I wanna make sure you don't buy anything. God it sounds so self centered to say out loud. But Momo gave me that look and-" He smiled sheepishly, rolling his eyes at himself.
"No. You're okay- it's good you said that." Shouto spoke without realizing it, "you know me too well. I was looking at getting something for you."
Shouto could only hate love and what it did to him when he was not around Hanta. The second the man was within three feet of him, his walls crumbled and no matter how hard he tried to rebuild them, he couldn't. It was frustrating, but Shouto supposed it was a sign. It had to be, for his own sanity. He had thought about it a lot since that month or two ago when he realized what his feelings were. He had accepted them. He couldn't get them to leave. So he would just have to live with the tightness in his throat when he thought about how much he valued Hanta. He would have to live with the way his heart panged with agitation every time he heard Mina encouraging Hanta to start dating people. He’d have to live with the painful truth of the situation. He'd have to live with the knowledge that he was in love with his best friend. Even if it hurt.
Hanta laughed, "I guess I do." He smirked, "anyways- What did you get for ten and eleven?"
It was comfortable. What they had between them. Months passed and Shouto learned to cherish their relationship, and the opportunities he was given to express his adoration. Months passed and Sero slowly began to understand Shouto's feelings. Flirting went over Shouto's head (mostly). Sometimes he caught on and his heart would subsequently trip over itself.
When Todoroki got caught staring, Sero would wink. Todoroki’s ears would turn red, he would look away, and one time during training his hand had caught fire (that had been incredibly embarrassing. He had considered moving away and becoming a hermit after that).
Sero took every chance he got to make Shouto blush because it was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. It was unparalleled in his eyes.
They sat closer together. Even closer than usual, and neither of them pulled away. They went out together all of the time and their friends weren't sure if those outings were dates or not. They had movie nights every other night. More often than not, it would end with Todoroki falling asleep on Sero's shoulder or chest. He never got to see how red Sero turned when it happened. Todoroki was happy with their close friendship. Happier than he had been in a while, even if it scared him.
It was a Friday and training had been grueling that day. Both boys were in Hanta's room listening to some sort of lo fi background music and relaxing. They sat next to each other on Sero's bed, backs against the wall, in a comfortable silence for a while before Sero moved to sit on the edge of the bed, stretching out, and cracking his back.
He winced slightly and immediately Shouto was at attention, "are you hurt?"
"Na. Just a bruise. Ojiro's tail packs a punch." Sero laughed softly. Upon realizing that Todoroki didn't look convinced in the slightest, he rolled his eyes, " 'Roki, I'm fine. Look-" he moved back to faceTodoroki and lifted his shirt slightly, enough to show a rather large bruise blossoming right below his left rib cage. It was discolored, blue and yellow and purple and Sero realized that probably was not helping his case so he dropped the fabric quickly, "Recovery Girl already fixed me up. It's just a bruise." He pressed, trying not to be smug about the way Todorokis ears turned red.
"You should ice it." The bi colored boy said, trying to be stern, gaze flickering between Sero's eyes and his ribs. Shouto's mind was racing a mile a minute. He had a few options at this point and the most appealing option terrified him. He wanted to offer to help. To have an excuse to touch Hanta, even for a moment. His body seemed to respond to his wishes before his brain had time to logically think about his options. Shouto scooted forward, placing himself on Sero's left, next to his legs, facing him, "Let me." He said softly, nervousness lacing itself into his voice. Shouto offered up his right hand and let his temperature run cold. Hanta felt a blush on his cheeks. A moment of hesitation and he smirked, but obliged and lifted his shirt again. This seemed oddly intimate. Maybe it was the silence between them, or because they were both subtly blushing, or because Shouto seemed so tentative as he reached out with his right hand and placed it softly against the bruise.
Sero smiled at his friend as tension unwound from his side. He doubted a normal ice pack would work as well as Shouto's hand. Hanta leaned into the touch slightly, "Thanks. Feels great." he said, keeping his voice low.
Todoroki felt his heart ricocheting off of his rib cage and around his chest like some sort of bouncy ball. He let his hand cool off even more and the tension in the air seemed to become thicker and thicker while Sero watched Shouto, who focused his attention on his right hand. They were close. Shouto's palm moved slightly, pressing against the bruise. All he could think of at the moment was the coolness of his hand and the way Hanta's eyes seemed to be searching him. The tension was palpable in the air that it made his breath stumble. Those eyes looked at him softly and oh .
Some sort of magnetic force seemed to pull Todoroki closer to Hanta. His breath caught in his throat when he saw the other's eyes flicker to his lips. Despite his fears and his panic and his brain screaming at him to ' pull yourself together! And don't cave in!', Shouto let himself go, ignoring any remonstrance from within his head as their lips met.
His head buzzed and his heartbeat was erratic. Energy spiked under his skin and a conscious effort had to be made to prevent his face from bursting into flame. It took a few seconds before Shouto realized what he had done and to his surprise, jubilance rushed over him. It was thrilling. Sero was smiling, watching as Todorokis eyes widened to the size of saucers before a blush took over his cheeks. Not that Hanta was faring any better. He was flushed, his nerves tingled and he could not stop staring at Todoroki. His thoughts were febrile but somehow, his hand stayed steady on Todoroki’s knee.
"Oh." Shouto said after a moment of silence.
Sero gave him a small, synthetic smile, "I didn't fuck it up did I?" He asked, voice wavering.
"I… I don't think you did." Todoroki mumbled, pulling his hand away when he realized it was getting colder still, "I'm just-" the pause was agonizing for both of them, their heartbeats seemingly loud enough to fill a coliseum with noise, "I'm scared I think." Todoroki finally verbalized.
"Of what?"
"Of ruining what we have." He could barely breathe.
"But what if we make it even better?"
'What if you made it better?' His heart chimed along. He hadn't thought about that. Not in the heat of the moment. Not from this point of view. Not after having a taste of what it could be like.
The silence from Todoroki prompted Hanta to speak again, "Hey… it's okay if you don't want to..."
"I want to." He insisted, "I just don't want to ruin what we have."
' What if you make it better then?'
"I want to."
That was it. His final decision. Despite the riot his logical instincts were having and the nervousness creeping through his limbs, he refused to waver. It was what he wanted. It was what would make him happy. Even if it ended in pain. The experience would be worth it. Because it would be with Hanta and that was more than enough.
Sero grinned, "so, you'd say yes if I asked you on a date?"
There was a moment's hesitation that pulled as tight as a bow string before Todoroki answered, "yes."
A wave of euphoria ripped through Hanta and he laughed, nodding happily, "good. That's good." He said, unable to keep the grin off of his face.
Shouto smiled. He couldn't help it. Sure, fear lingered in the back of his stomach but it was overrun by tumbling feelings of glee and excitement and love. He smiled and let himself relax, grinning as he ducked his head and leaned in, meeting Hanta’s embrace.
They sat like that for a while, hugging, until the position made Todoroki's back ache and he had to pull away, "Are we boyfriends?"
Sero nodded, "if you want to be, I'm down." That cheshire grin made the corners of Shouto’s mouth turn up.
"Boyfriends then." Shouto said with more confidence than he felt, "you're mine."
"And you're mine." Sero reached to ruffle Todoroki's hair, earning an indignant huff.
The tension cleared away like morning fog and they sat there grinning like fools. The rest of the night was spent cuddling, feeding off of each other's warmth and trading chaste kisses.
All Shouto could smell was oranges.
Dried orange slices hung on a string in the window and when the light of the sunset hit them, they glowed just like Hanta’s smile glowed. Just like Shouto's smile glowed. Hanta’s favorite food was oranges. And shouto learned to love them. Just like he learned to love Hanta. All he could smell was oranges, and he was perfectly fine with that.