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Izuku is thoroughly annoyed. He really doesn't want to be here. He just wants to stay at home in the peace and quiet studying quirks through videos sent to him by Pro-Heroes and the Police Force but no, his dad just thought it'd be a fan-fucking-tastic idea to drag him all the way to UA. He's kept himself holed up in his dad's house ever since he tried to kill himself in the first year of middle school and his dad had stopped and saved him. His dad had gotten him away from his abusive parents and away from that part of Musutafu.
He reluctantly follows the gun slinging Pro down to the teachers' lounge while dragging his feet. He doesn't understand why he needs to be here in person. His dad could just have Eraser and Vlad record their classes and send him the videos.
"Dad... please. I don't wanna be here," Izuku whines. "Why do I need to be here in person?"
"'Cause ya've kept yerself locked up at the house fer three damn years, Zu. Ya need to be 'round kids yer age again," Snipe answers. "It'd be good for ya to study their quirks in person as well. Ya never know. Ya might make a friend or two."
"People are assholes though. And quirkist. And...," –Izuku pauses to gag– "All Might and Bakugou are here. I don't wanna be near them."
"I'll shoot both of 'em if they step outta line, Zu," Snipe says and Izuku whines.
They enter the teachers' lounge and Midnight and Mic immediately scoop him up into a hug. "Awww! The cutest analysis bunny is here!" Midnight coos.
"Stop calling me that and let me go," Izuku deadpans as he goes limp noodle in their hold; forcing them to hold his deadweight in hopes that they'll let him go.
"If you'd stop wearing those cute bunny-eared hoodies we will!" Mic says as he struggles to hold Izuku up. "God damn. You're heavy."
Izuku gasps in a scandalized manner, "How dare you! I'm at a healthy weight for my height! My body mass index is perfect!"
"Now ya've done it," Snipe chuckles while shaking his head. "The inner perfectionist has been triggered."
"Sorry! Sorry! I wasn't meaning it like that, little listener!" Mic says as Izuku gets himself out of Mic's hold and glares at him.
"Sure you weren't!" Izuku says with a huff, then shivers when he makes eye contact with All Might.
"Hello, Younger Jūdan," All Might greets with a sickly sweet smile that makes Izuku's stomach churn and his mouth water; a sign that he's going to vomit.
"Do not speak to me," Izuku says before he quickly darts into the teachers' lounge bathroom to throw up.
Izuku doesn't understand how UA would allow that man onto a campus full of children. He knows that his dad had informed him that it was the Commission that placed him there but to put him around children is absolutely sickening to him. He dry heaves several times after he's emptied the contents of his stomach as he attempts to calm himself down. He sighs softly as his dad enters the bathroom and places a freshly snapped ice pack on the back of his neck.
"I'm sorry that ya have to be here, Zu but it's best to analyze these kids' quirks in person. While yer here, Yagi will not be allowed to be 'round ya," Snipe says softly as he wets a cloth then wipes Izuku's sweaty face off. "Ya want some saltines an' a ginger ale, Bun?"
"Yes please," Izuku answers softly as Snipe helps him to his feet.
When they leave the bathroom, Izuku sticks to the perimeter of the lounge as he follows his dad to his desk. The man hands him a sleeve of saltines and a bottle of ginger ale. He opens the bottle and takes a few sips of it before slipping it into his hoodie pocket to join the saltines. The warning bell rings and Shōta gestures for Izuku to follow. He grabs his purple bunny shaped backpack and follows the man.
"Can I kill Bakugou if he gets too close to me, Eraser-Oji?" Izuku asks him softly as he touches up his makeup a bit as his dad had smudged some of the foundation with the cloth.
"No. Unfortunately murder hasn't been legalized yet," Shōta answers and Izuku huffs out a pout and Shōta snorts a bit at the boy. They make it to the door and Shōta holds his hand up to him, "You wait here for a moment. I'll make sure everyone understands to be kind before you come in."
"Sure. Good luck with that," Izuku deadpans as he opens the saltines next so he can nibble on them.
Shōta pats the boy's head lightly as Izuku wrinkles his nose a tad at the action before entering the classroom just as the final morning bell rings. His students are all in their seats and being quiet; good, they learned fast. "Alright assholes, UA has asked Snipe's son to do some analysis work on your quirks so we can all hopefully combat weaknesses and other things of that nature. You all will be nice to him. No discrimination, no touching him, no approaching him from behind, and no getting into his space, he puts himself into yours. You will be expelled without hesitation. Do you all understand?"
"Yes sir!" the class calls out in understanding.
Shōta turns to the door, "Okay, Izuku, you can come in."
Izuku shyly enters the classroom and he has a saltine hanging out of his mouth. He's already pulled his tie-dyed rainbow bunny-eared hood over his head and is hiding. He quickly finishes the cracker before giving them a shy wave. Izuku immediately turns around and puts himself into the corner next to the door as small explosions pop off.
"Deku! What the fuck?!" Bakugou roars out.
Izuku feels his mouth starting to water again and Shōta sees the signs and is quick with the classroom trash can as Izuku vomits into it. He curls himself up around the small trash can as he starts dry heaving into it. Shōta sighs softly as he fishes out another snap ice pack out of Izuku's backpack and removes the boy's hood revealing the long white and pale green hair that's been put up into a messy bun. He snaps the small ice pack and places it on the back of Izuku's neck.
"Bakugou. If you call him that one more time, I will expel you," Shōta growls out.
"Is he ill? He should go home if he is," Iida advises.
"He's not ill. It's an anxiety response that he has," Shōta explains before turning to Izuku. "Drink some of your ginger ale. It should help."
Izuku nods his head as he stands up and fishes his drink out of his pocket. He takes a few tiny sips of it before looking over the class of students. "They're just a bunch of bunnies," Izuku whispers to himself softly; trying to convince himself that they are harmless. "I wanna go home," he says that out loud before he steps outside of the classroom and slides down the wall.
He really just wants to go home. He doesn't want to be here. He just wants to go home. He doesn't even hear the classroom door open nor does he see one of the students in the classroom step out into the hallway; he's too lost in his own thoughts to even care.
Hitoshi had asked Shōta to see if he could possibly help Izuku a bit and had promised the man to keep himself at a respectable distance. He sees that Izuku has simply seated himself next to the door and he sits down in front of him a couple of arm lengths away.
"I have pretty bad anxiety too," Hitoshi says softly and his heart flutters a bit as Izuku quickly looks up and makes eye contact with him.
"I haven't been around people in three years," Izuku says softly. "It's safer for me to keep myself holed up at home as a teenage hermit."
"That's no way to live though," Hitoshi points out.
"My dad says that all the time," Izuku says softly; he's trying to figure this boy out. He sees the eye bags, the slightly bloodshot eyes, the deadpan face, the muzzle scar across the bridge of his nose, the deep soothing voice. "Mental based quirk. More than likely a puppeteer or maestro. Voice activation, either question or phrase based, probably both. Brain always active, chronic insomnia, reliant on caffeine during the day and possibly sleeping pills at night. Voice has underlying notes."
Izuku has moved closer to him and Hitoshi turns into a statue as Izuku studies him. Hitoshi has no idea what's going on as Izuku rambles on. Hitoshi has barely said anything at all to him and yet this boy already has him figured out. He just lets Izuku study him as he remains quiet. He's never heard someone speak so quickly before. He jolts a bit as Izuku gently feels his throat with the softest hands he's ever felt before. It makes him melt a little as no one has ever been gentle with him, it's always beatings and yelling.
"Your hands are really soft," Hitoshi says softly and now Izuku is really feeling his throat. "I'm guessing my voice feels nice?"
"Lace your quirk into it," Izuku answers and Hitoshi hesitates. "I don't mind you using your quirk on me. I'm not afraid of it."
"Not sure what to say," Hitoshi says as he laces his quirk into his voice and now Izuku is rubbing his Adam's apple.
"Fas..," Izuku says as Hitoshi's quirk snaps a hold of him. Before he's able to release Izuku, Izuku breaks the connection himself and now Hitoshi is completely flabbergasted as no one has ever been able to do that before. "Fascinating. A dual-wielded quirk that works in tandem and presents as a singular quirk. Extraordinary. Very rare. You have beautiful quirks."
"How'd you do that?" Hitoshi asks in surprise.
"How'd I do what?" Izuku asks as he tilts his head a bit; it still hasn't registered in his brain that he's in close proximity to Hitoshi and still has his fingers against his throat.
"How'd you break out of my hold like that?" Hitoshi asks. "No one's ever been able to do that."
"Oh, my quirk, it makes me resistant to other quirks. It affects me for a brief moment before I'm immune to it. If you try using your quirk on me again, my quirk will immediately block your connection," Izuku explains. "Try it and see."
"What's your favorite color?" Hitoshi asks while lacing his quirk into it.
"I don't have one," Izuku answers and Hitoshi feels how his connection bounces off Izuku's mind.
Hitoshi stares at him with wide eyes. There's someone who he can speak to without having to worry about quirk accidents. He doesn't even realize that he has tears running down his face until Izuku uses his hoodie sleeve to wipe his cheeks off.
"Feels pretty good to be able to speak freely, huh?" Izuku asks with a soft smile.
"Yeah. It does," Hitoshi says as he sniffles. "Can… um…. can I hug you?"
Izuku's smile widens a bit, "Yeah. A hug sounds nice right now."
Hitoshi gently pulls Izuku into a hug and just buries his face into the boy's neck and relaxes. It's been so long since he's hugged someone and it feels lovely. Izuku is warm, soft, and smells like fresh fabric softener.
Shōta is standing just inside the door as he watches on with a surprised look on his face. He took a video of the interaction and is going to show Snipe because he knows that the man is going to be absolutely floored by Izuku touching and hugging a stranger willingly. He can tell by the look on Hitoshi's face that the boy himself definitely needed a hug.
"Heroics will be beginning shortly. Are you okay to tag along, Izuku?" Shōta asks him.
Izuku pulls away from the hug and it's obvious that Hitoshi wasn't done with it just yet and Izuku feels a bit bad about it so he makes a mental note to give Hitoshi another hug later on. Izuku stands up and looks at Shōta, "Just as long as Bakugou doesn't call me 'deku' again then yes, I'll be fine to tag along."
"I'll expel him if he does," Shōta says loud enough for Bakugou to hear.
"Why's he calling you that?" Hitoshi asks sheepishly as he stands up; he doesn't want to pry but he's curious as to how his classmate knows this cute boy… Hitoshi mentally slaps himself; he's such a sucker for cute, soft, feminine-like boys.
"Oh, I grew up with him. I haven't seen him in three years though after my dad… after my dad... stopped me," Izuku explains softly as he pulls his hood up over his head to hide himself away.
Hitoshi immediately feels his heart break into a thousand pieces, "I'm sorry. If… if you ever need someone to talk to that's your age... I don't mind lending an ear or two." He has no idea where that's coming from but he just said it and now he's having an internal panic as Izuku's mismatched green eyes stare into his in shock.
"I um... s-sure. I-I'd like that a lot actually," Izuku says as he blushes a bit; he finds Hitoshi's lilac colored eyes quite striking and lovely.
Shōta can not believe what the fuck is happening in front of him. Izuku, the very definition of a recluse, has literally gained a friend in less than fifteen minutes and has even touched and hugged Hitoshi without pulling away in disgust or limp noodling as a form of escape. Snipe is never going to believe this shit unless he sees it for himself. The bell rings for the end of homeroom and Shōta has them all grab their hero costumes.
Once everyone is changed, Izuku then goes by seat number. He's analyzing Aoyama first and he just studies the boy. He knows that some quirks can have drawbacks and stuff but he can tell that Aoyama's quirk is physically harming him. "What are your parent's quirks?" Izuku asks him with an intensity in his eyes.
"Oh um... my-my parents are quirkless," Aoyama answers and Izuku takes a step back and studies Aoyama some more.
He can tell by the boy's body language that he's nervous, he looks like he's caught between a rock and a hard place. Izuku is aware of All For One but he also knows that that man is dead so even if Aoyama got his quirk from that man, it would have been when he was a toddler and would have already built up some kind of resistance to it or would have gotten used to it.
"Was it a forced, or a stress-induced manifestation, or was it a late bloomer kind of deal?" Izuku asks him.
"How do you know?" Aoyama asks him.
"Because I'm not stupid. Your quirk isn't suitable for your body now please answer my question," Izuku answers, his voice void of all emotion.
"Forced. I was being bullied and yeah... my body just came out and did that," Aoyama answers sheepishly.
"Should probably be in quirk counseling then. Find you a suitable support item that will help you not be in pain every time you use your quirk," Izuku says as he jots down notes before moving onto the next person.
Shōta watches as Izuku makes his way around the students in his class. He doesn't fail to notice that he keeps at least two arm lengths away from each person he's talking to and that every time he gets too close to Bakugou, he dry heaves a bit. Shōta definitely feels sorry for the boy. Izuku had been through too much at such a young age starting from when he was an infant up to the point of Snipe saving the boy.
Snipe had been the first person to actually be kind to Izuku but it definitely still took months for Izuku to even allow Snipe to hold his hand or pat him on the head. Shōta still remembers when the staff all met Izuku for the first time and how Izuku immediately spiraled into a full blown panic attack when Nemuri had given him a hug without asking first. It took the staff a lot longer to gain Izuku's trust than it did for Snipe. He's given them permission to give him friendly pats and non-excitable hugs even though his automatic response is to go limp in their hold so that he can slip away from them without snapping at them. Shōta is definitely still cautious of even just patting Izuku's hair, as in the past, Izuku would go straight into fight mode; for a lanky teen, he packs quite the low aimed groin punch. Now when Shōta does give him a small head pat, he does it so Izuku can see his hand even if the boy still wrinkles his nose at the contact. It's a lot better than almost losing a testicle.
"Toe beans," Izuku says and Shōta raises a brow at that as Izuku studies Uraraka's hand.
"I'm sorry. What?" Uraraka asks in confusion.
"The pads on your fingers look like toe beans," Izuku explains and Uraraka still looks confused. Izuku sighs a bit before he reaches into his backpack and pulls out a pair of black gloves and slips them on before revealing the pink cat paw toe beans. "These are toe beans. The padding on the paws of a mammal."
"Why are you so girly?" Ojiro asks and it's quite clear that he's done with Izuku being around.
"'Cause I like it and you're clearly not the targeted market," Izuku retorts and Shōta has to hold back his laughter as he often forgets how easily Izuku becomes 'sassy snappy' as Snipe calls it.
"Targeted market?" Ojiro says in confusion.
"He means he's gay, monkey boy," Bakugou says in exasperation; he still understands 'Izuku language' even after three years of the boy basically poofing out of existence.
Izuku gives Bakugou a slow clap, "Oh congratulations, Kacchan. You get a nonexistent cookie for figuring it out so fast."
And now Shōta is trying really hard not to lose it and laugh as he knows that if he does Izuku will be interrogating him, asking him what is so funny as the boy doesn't even realize how unintentionally funny and sassy he is.
"Fucking smart ass," Bakugou growls.
"Says the one who can literally shit out an entire encyclopedia collection," Izuku retorts.
"Fuck you," Bakugou snaps.
"I'd rather you not. I might catch the clap," Izuku snaps back and Shōta is wheezing as he laughs silently to himself.
Shōta is quick to stifle his laughter as he makes eye contact with a confused looking Izuku and he already knows what's about to come out of the boy's mouth. "Why are you laughing, Eraser-Oji? What's so funny? You and my dad always do that. I start saying stuff then one of you starts laughing to yourselves. I don't get it," Izuku says as he tilts his head in confusion.
"You can't be serious right now, you damn nerd," Bakugou says in disbelief.
"What?" Izuku asks in confusion.
"You're very sassy," Hitoshi chuckles.
"Sassy? But I'm just being myself?" Izuku says while tilting his head a bit at Hitoshi.
"Well yeah, you can be yourself by being sassy. There's nothing wrong with that," Hitoshi says as he tilts his own head at the boy as now he's starting to understand that Izuku doesn't understand himself to an extent. "You're very funny and sassy. Obviously in an unintentional manner but you are and I'm meaning that in a positive manner as well."
Izuku stares at Hitoshi for a long moment before looking over at Shōta and the man nods his head. "You are, Bunny Boy. It's a good thing. I promise."
"Didn't realize that I was," Izuku deadpans. He doesn't even know what to think. He's always just seen himself as rude and closed off. He's never seen himself as the 'unintentionally funny' type but others are now saying otherwise. Izuku clearly drops the subject as he goes back to analyzing quirks.
When the class is called to an end, Izuku sheepishly taps on Hitoshi before the boy can walk away and turns to look at Izuku with a questioning look. Izuku fidgets for a moment before he opens his arms to silently invite Hitoshi into a hug. Hitoshi gives him a surprised look and is gentle with it as he hugs him. Both boys stand there hugging for a long moment and Shōta is pretty damn positive that he's hallucinating right now and quickly takes a picture of the scene before him as he really has to show Snipe during lunch.
Hitoshi pulls away from the hug and gives Izuku a soft smile, "You're very good at hugging."
"I only ever hug my dad. I've given the staff permission to hug me if they wish to do so but I normally turn into a noodle and slip away from them," Izuku admits softly.
"Well, I'm glad that you decided that you wanted to share a hug with me. It was very nice. Thank you," Hitoshi says before he pulls out his phone. "Here, you can put your number in my phone if you'd like to. I don't talk much but I do like sending cat memes."
Izuku shyly takes Hitoshi's phone and puts his number into it and texts himself. "Got any bunny ones?" Izuku asks as he hands the phone back to Hitoshi.
"I'm sure I can find some," Hitoshi says with a smirk as he pockets his phone. "I'll text you later today. Gotta get going. See you... um... I'm sorry. I'm not sure what name you'd like me to call you by."
"You can just call me Izuku. I don't mind being called by my first name," Izuku says with a tiny smile and a soft blush on his face.
Shōta is one-hundred percent positive that he's having a full blown stroke or something while witnessing this.
"Okay, I'll talk to you later, Izuku," Hitoshi chirps softly before he takes off to get to the locker room so he can get changed.
Izuku goes up to Shōta and grabs the man's hand and Shōta leads the way back into the school. He's definitely surprised right now. Izuku has never held his hand before. The boy has only ever asked Snipe for affection and has only ever held Snipe's hand as well. They walk into the teachers' lounge together and everyone has looks of surprise before Izuku lets go of Shōta's hand and disappears into his newly chosen hiding spot of one of the private lounges.
"Zu let you hold his hand?" Snipe asks him in shock.
"No, he held my hand," Shōta answers and the gun slinging Pro looks even more shocked. "That's not the best part though, he silently asked Shinsou for a hug and even exchanged phone numbers with him and was getting all blushy and smiley too."
"Aww! The Bun has a little school boy crush! Shinsou is definitely a sleepy cutie!" Midnight gushes in excitement.
Snipe has no idea on what to say. He figured that Izuku finally getting around kids his own age would be good for the boy, he just didn't expect for his son to catch a crush so quickly. When he had stopped Izuku from jumping off a bridge three years ago, the boy had been so badly beaten and had burns so badly infected that he can still smell the rotting and burnt flesh in his nose to this day. Izuku had refused to speak to anyone for the entire month that he was in the hospital recovering, had refused to speak when the defense lawyer called him up to the stand, and then still refused to speak to Snipe for at least another two months after officially adopting him and bringing him home to stay. The same day that Izuku spoke to Snipe was the same day that Izuku held his hand then it was uphill from there; it was slow but Izuku has finally gotten comfortable enough with him to silently ask him for attention and love. He's trying not to get teary eyed at his son finally starting to worm his way out of his shell but he's definitely teary eyed.
"You okay, Hirohito?" Hound Dog asks him.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just happy that Zu is, ya know, startin' to bloom," Snipe says as he sniffles a bit.
Once lunch rolls around, Lunch Rush delivers Izuku's lunch to him as they know that he won't go to the cafeteria himself to get it due to the sheer number of people out and about during lunch. He's scrolling through pictures collecting all the cute bunny memes that he can find so he can send them to Hitoshi when the other boy texts him later. He pauses when he sees a cat and a bunny snuggling and saves it then continues saving similar ones.
Snipe is on their shared tablet out in the open lounge eating his own lunch as notifications keep popping up that photos are being saved to the cloud so that's where he goes to find out what's going on and is met with cute bunnies and cats snuggling and napping together. He's very confused as to why Izuku is saving so many pictures and the file keeps growing.
"Shō, why's Zu savin' a bunch of bunny memes an' photos of bunnies an' cats cuddlin'?" Snipe asks.
"Probably because Shinsou said that he mainly sends cat memes and Izuku asked him if he had any bunny ones," Shōta answers. "Not sure about the cuddly pictures though."
"He has a little crush that's why," Midnight teases.
"Zu barely cuddles with me, Nem. I highly doubt he wants to cuddle with a stranger even if he's got a lil crush," Snipe says with an eye roll.
"I mean, he willingly hugged Shinsou twice and got into the boy's space touching his throat and wiping his tears without being disgusted by it," Shōta points out.
"Well, Shinsou does have that gnarly looking muzzle scar across his face so maybe the little listener feels like he can relate to him," Mic points out.
"Zu doesn't have a muzzle scar though. Zu was literally tortured by his shitty ass egg an' sperm donors. His hair is almost completely white now an' he's blind in his left eye. Those two boys have gone through two totally different things," Snipe states.
"He could possibly relate to him to an extent though," Hound Dog says while agreeing with Mic. "Shinsou has had a few sessions with me just like Izuku has as well. I'm not gonna go into detail but while Izuku definitely had it a lot worse than Shinsou, there'd still be a level of understanding between the two of them."
"I feel like Shinsou can get on the same wavelength as Zu as well. He's respectful, polite, gentle, asks for permission before doing something, double checks to make sure. I feel like he understands him. He may not know what happened to Zu but he can most definitely tell that Zu has been through some shit to cause him to act the way that he does," Shōta says as he also agrees with Hound Dog and Mic.
"Is Hirohito jealous cause Zu is giving Shinsou attention?" Midnight teases.
"No, I ain't got no reason to be jealous of my kid possibly clickin' with someone. I'm just nervous 'bout Zu gettin' too far 'head of 'imself an' gettin' hurt," Snipe argues.
"I seriously do not believe that Shinsou would ever do anything to harm or emotionally hurt Izuku. He acts cold and bothered but he's very gentle natured and understanding," Hound Dog says with a small smile. "Izuku is also almost an adult, you can't shelter him forever. He's going to want to get out there again eventually and be a teen slash young adult and that includes finding someone to love and to love him in return."
"Yeah," Snipe says while rubbing his face then pauses. "Wait. What if Shinsou isn't gay, bi, or pan an' Zu is actually crushin' on 'im?"
"If Zu asks him before he gets too deep into his feelings, he should be fine," Shōta says.
Hitoshi is standing out in the hallway with a deep blush on his face. He had gone to the teachers’ lounge to ask Shōta if he could teach him how to use a capture weapon and has overheard the entire conversation. He's definitely gay so he knows that Izuku wouldn't need to worry about rejection, he's just worried that he might accidentally hurt Izuku or end up not being Izuku's type. He flinches and covers his mouth when his shoulder is grabbed. He turns his head when he sees that it's All Might.
"Young Shinsou, shouldn't you be at lunch?" All Might asks him with a smile that for some reason sends an unpleasant chill through him.
"I uh, I came to ask Aizawa-Sensei a quick question," Hitoshi answers sheepishly; hoping that the man didn't witness him overhearing a conversation about himself and Izuku.
"Ah! I see! Then we can enter the lounge together," All Might says as he directs him in the direction of the lounge door and escorts him in with his hand still on his shoulder.
Izuku has come out of the private lounge so he could ask his dad if he could use his laptop to do some schoolwork when he sees All Might with his hand on Hitoshi's shoulder. He moves faster than anyone realizes what's going on and lands a strong kick to the man's side, causing him to let out a harsh wheeze along with the sound of some cracking. As soon as the man lets Hitoshi go, Izuku goes all in on beating the man.
Shōta wraps Izuku up in his capture weapon but he can tell that Izuku is in full rage mode as he powers through the bindings to get back to All Might. "Izuku! No!" Shōta shouts as he wraps him up again.
This time Snipe joins in and wraps Izuku up in a bear hug followed by Hound Dog as Izuku attempts to still get out of their holds. "Yagi, get the fuck outta here!" Snipe demands.
"He attacked me for no reason!" All Might states as he places his hand back on Hitoshi's shoulder.
"Get your filthy fucking hands off him!" Izuku snarls and Hitoshi's eyes widen a bit.
"There's yer damn answer now get the fuck out, Yagi!" Snipe states. All Might huffs and walks out while wiping the blood off of his face.
As soon as All Might is gone, Izuku escapes them and starts fretting over a very confused Hitoshi, "Are you okay, Shinsou? Did he hurt you? Did he touch you inappropriately?"
"What? Yes, I'm okay. He didn't do anything to me. I'm so confused right now," Hitoshi answers and he can see how panicked and concerned Izuku is.
"He's a disgusting human being and shouldn't be around children, period," Izuku explains and now Hitoshi is staring at Izuku in concern.
"He didn't do anything to hurt me, I promise. I was already heading to the lounge to ask Aizawa-Sensei a question and we ran into each other at the door," Hitoshi says in hopes of soothing Izuku's worries.
"He really didn't hurt you?" Izuku asks.
"He really didn't hurt me. His smile kinda creeped me the fuck out but he didn't do anything to hurt me," Hitoshi answers and Izuku nods his head before turning on his heel and walking away with Snipe and Hound Dog following after him.
Hitoshi looks over at Shōta in complete concern, "I'm safely assuming that All Might did something to him in the past."
"That would be something for Izuku to tell you if he wants to," Shōta answers. "Now what was the question you had for me?"
"I was wondering if you could teach me how to use the capture weapon? Please?" Hitoshi asks.
"Yeah. I can definitely teach you. Just have the Support Course make you one with your DNA and we can start," Shōta says and Hitoshi nods his head in excitement then frowns a bit.
"Izuku was able to get out of it though. Would it not be good to have?" Hitoshi asks.
"The only time the capture weapon would fail like that is if you're facing off against someone with like a mutation quirk that enhances their strength or someone with a quirk that can cut or destroy fibers," Shōta answers. "The only reason Izuku was able to get out of my capture weapon is because he has an inhuman amount of natural strength plus he was in full rage mode so that didn't help either."
"Could he wipe the floor with you?" Hitoshi asks in amusement and Shōta rolls his eyes.
"As much as I hate to admit it, yes he could," Shōta says as he ruffles Hitoshi's hair a bit. "Zu didn't accidentally strike you, did he? His punches pack a lot of kick."
"No, I'm all good," Hitoshi answers with a small smile. He's hoping that by learning the capture weapon under Shōta that the man will end up wanting to adopt him, that's his main goal right now so he can get out of that orphanage.
"I'm so sorry," Izuku sniffles out as Snipe holds him close.
"You don't need to apologize for protecting Shinsou, pup. You reacted on instinct, it's a natural response," Hound Dog says in reassurance.
"But… but what if Shinsou is-is afraid of me now and won't wanna be my-my friend anymore?" Izuku asks him.
"He didn't look like he was afraid of you. He looked like he was confused and concerned," Hound Dog answers him.
Izuku just shakes his head and cuddles up against Snipe who pulls him closer, "I highly doubt Shinsou is afraid of ya, Bun. He didn't look like he was."
Hound Dog steps out of the private lounge and sees that Hitoshi is still there, "Shinsou, come here for a moment, please."
"Oh okay," Hitoshi says as he comes up to him. "What's up?"
Hound Dog leads him to the private lounge and Hitoshi sees that Izuku is crying. "He's worried that you're afraid of him and that you wouldn't want to be his friend anymore," Hound Dog whispers to him.
Hitoshi enters the private lounge and puts himself in a good spot where Izuku can see him, "There's no need to be crying, Izuku. I'm not afraid of you and I'm most certainly not going to be upset with you either for protecting me from someone who I feel is some kind of boy lover."
Izuku looks over at him as he sniffles, "So... so you don't hate me?"
"Why would I hate you? You haven't done anything to me to make me hate you. You'd have to do something to actually hurt me to get that to happen and I feel like I don't need to worry about you hurting me on purpose," Hitoshi answers and Izuku shakes his head a bit.
"I couldn't do that," Izuku says.
Hitoshi shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, "Then you don't need to worry about me hating you or not wanting to be your friend. If I didn't wanna be friends with you, I wouldn't have exchanged phone numbers with you."
Izuku wipes the tears off his face as he stands up and sheepishly approaches Hitoshi before opening up his arms to invite him in for a hug which Hitoshi happily obliges. He feels Izuku relax into the hug so he relaxes into it as well. He feels eyes on him and he meets Snipe's completely dumbfounded and shocked expression and that confuses him quite a bit but he's not going to ask. Izuku pulls away from the hug when the bell rings for lunch ending.
"I'll text you later tonight, Izuku," Hitoshi says with a soft smile as he waves bye so he can get back to class.
Snipe is still staring at Izuku in shock and sees the light blush on Izuku's face, "Zu. Ya catching a crush on Shinsou?"
"Maybe if he's into guys that is," Izuku answers softly and Snipe pats him on the head.
"Doesn't hurt to ask 'im his sexual orientation before ya get too deep into yer feelin's," Snipe advises and Izuku nods his head before Snipe takes his own leave to get to his next class to teach.
Later that night, Izuku is lying in bed with an overly full belly as his dad had made spaghetti and garlic bread for dinner and he's found that he likes the Western food quite a lot. He's a bit groggy when his phone pings and squints at the brightness of his phone before turning it down so he can see and sees that it's a message from Hitoshi and smiles at it.
Lilac Kitten:
Hey, are you doing better now that you're home?
Sage Bunny:
Yeah but I should be asking you if you're okay. I kinda went feral earlier so it definitely wasn't very pretty.
Lilac Kitten:
Actually, I found your feral side badass. You can kick some serious ass and I like it
Sage Bunny:
You like that??
Lilac Kitten:
Hell yeah I like it. Make everyone underestimate you and *bam!* whip out the one two combo
Izuku can't help the smile and blush on his face. Hitoshi likes something about him and it's making him giddy.
Lilac Kitten:
I also like your sassiness and I really like how cute your small smiles are. I bet you have a beautiful smile when you smile fully
Now Izuku is really blushing. He doesn't know what to think so he gets up and heads to his dad's home office.
"Hey dad?" Izuku says softly.
"What's up?" Snipe asks as he looks up from grading papers.
"So um… Shinsou is texting me and well… he says that he thinks my smiles are cute and that he bets they look beautiful when I smile fully," Izuku says while blushing and Snipe attempts to keep his expression neutral even though he's definitely surprised by Hitoshi's forwardness. "Is um... is he like just complimenting me or is he… or is he flirting with me?"
"Ya want mah honest opinion?" Snipe asks him and Izuku nods his head. "It kinda sounds like he's flirtin' with ya. Just flirt back an' see what happens."
"It wouldn't be weird?" Izuku asks him. "What if he's not into guys?"
"Well, the easiest way to go about it would be to flirt an' see how he responds to it cause askin' his orientation right now would be jumpin' the gun a bit so flirt for a bit then ask 'im," Snipe advises.
"Okay. I'll try that," Izuku says as he turns back around to go to his room.
As soon as he's gone, Snipe lets out a heavy exhale as he rubs his neck. He has no idea if he's giving Izuku the correct advice as it's been a while since he's flirted with anyone and he most certainly wasn't mentally prepared to be giving Izuku fatherly advice like that either. He sighs a bit before going back to grading papers.
Izuku lays back down so he can text Hitoshi back:
Sage Bunny:
I really like the color of your eyes and how soothing your voice sounds
Hitoshi blushes a bit as he reads the new message. He was having a mini panic thinking that he had gone a bit too far with his flirting when Izuku didn't respond back right away. A smile wobbles onto his face as he gets brave:
Lilac Kitten:
Would you be willing to get coffee or ice cream with me tomorrow after school lets out?
Izuku's eyes widen in shock as he jumps back out of bed and rushes back to his dad's office where the man gives him a startled look. "Dad! Shinsou is asking if I wanna get coffee or ice cream with him tomorrow! What do I do?!"
Snipe snorts a bit at that, "Ya answer 'im."
"That's zero help, dad," Izuku says in a bit of a panic.
"Just say yes an' go with 'im. I'll even give ya extra money with yer allowance just in case ya need to spot him," Snipe says.
"O-okay," Izuku says nervously as he turns back around so he can give Hitoshi his response.
Sage Bunny:
I'd love to
Lilac Kitten:
It's a date then <3
Snipe watches as Izuku turns into a tomato from the neck up as the boy blushes deeply, "Ya okay there, Bun?"
"He said 'it's a date then' with a little heart emoji," Izuku squeaks out a bit. "Is that like, just a saying or is it like, an actual date?"
"It could be one or the other. Just gotta read his body language an' how he looks at ya," Snipe explains.
The next day, Izuku was quite nervous about seeing Hitoshi again since he's going to be helping the students design some support items for themselves. He tries to rub the blush off his face as he follows Shōta down to 1-A.
"Why are you blushing?" Shōta asks with a raised brow.
"Sh-Shinsou um, he invited me out for coffee or ice cream later today and... and he asked after we flirted a little bit? I guess it was flirting. My dad thinks that he was," Izuku explains. "He um, he thinks my small smiles are cute."
Shōta is staring at Izuku in surprise, "Oh, so you've got a little crush on him then and now you're nervous about seeing him face to face?"
"Yes," Izuku answers.
"You'll be okay. Almost everyone gets a school crush and they still have to face them everyday so this isn't any different. It's just another day in Whoville," Shōta says before giving Izuku a light pat on the head. He tilts his own head a bit when he sees that Izuku doesn't wrinkle his nose at the action.
"But this isn't some Dr. Seuss book, Eraser-Oji, this is real life," Izuku says as he tries to get the blush off his cheeks again.
"Okay then Busytown," Shōta says in amusement and Izuku glares at him.
"Not Richard Scarry either," Izuku says with a huff.
"Frog Creek?" Shōta says while chuckling and now Izuku is just giving him a deadpan stare.
"If this was Frog Creek, my ass would have already gotten into that damn tree house and went on a magical fucking adventure," Izuku says in exasperation.
"Ah, so you're narrating Wishbone now. Don't know how well a bunny would work though. The dog is more suited for the role," Shōta says with a sly grin on his face.
"You're seriously asking for it, Eraser-Oji. I will make you rue the day," Izuku says while jabbing Shōta in the chest.
"Okay, Poe, this isn't the Tell-Tale Heart, you don't need to be sticking my corpse under the floorboards," Shōta laughs as Izuku swats at him.
"Why are you picking at me?!" Izuku asks.
"To get your mind off your nerves, duh," Shōta says, then snorts as Izuku's expression goes blank.
"Touché," Izuku says as they reach the classroom door.
They enter the class just as the bell rings and Izuku makes quick work of pulling his hoodie over his head so he can hide. Shōta explains what they will be doing and Izuku goes from person to person giving suggestions. He makes it to Hitoshi and he has a blush so harsh that it's going down his neck and he can feel it on his chest as well.
Izuku couldn't get any words out and Hitoshi raises a brow at him as he can see the blush and can visibly see Izuku struggling to speak to him even though he had no issue speaking to everyone else. A blush starts to form on his own cheeks as he remembers what he overheard yesterday about Izuku possibly crushing on him and then how he flirted and asked him to go out with him later that day.
"If you're too nervous to speak to me then skip me and come back," Hitoshi suggests in a whisper.
"N-not afraid to sp-speak to y-you," Izuku stutters out.
"I know. But that's not what I meant," Hitoshi says as his blush deepens and Izuku's eyes widen a bit. "I'm… I'm a bit forward when it comes to flirting so I'd be a bit flustered as well."
Now Izuku is in full swing of having a gay panic. Hitoshi just admitted that he was flirting with him and sees that Hitoshi has his own blush going on. "S-s-so the c-coffee or-or ice-ice cream th-thing… is a da-date date th-then?" Izuku asks him as he pulls his hood tighter around his face.
Hitoshi's hand is on the back of his neck as his blush starts to spread to his neck, "Y-yeah unless you don't want it to be that is."
"Th-that sounds nice," Izuku says softly as he fights back tears. He actually has a date with someone and he was being flirted with. He's so happy right now and he really wants to go run and tell his dad but he has things to do first.
"Stop being so damn gay! It's disgusting!" Mineta shouts at them and Izuku feels like he's just had a bucket of cold water dumped over him as he sets his sights on the boy.
"Shut the fuck up," Izuku growls out.
"There is no need to be growling like that!" Iida says while chopping his arm in Izuku's direction. "You're supposed to be helping us not setting up dates with someone you barely know!"
"One, I'm allowed to defend myself and Hitoshi if I damn well please. Two, the date itself was already established. I was simply flustered since this is the first time someone actually likes me like that, and three, that's literally the entire point of going on a date. It's to get to know one another," Izuku says in defense and Shōta stands in the corner of the room hiding his smirk as Izuku lays into Iida for trying to scold him.
"You shouldn't even be trying to date a student when you're supposed to be professional!" Iida argues.
Izuku starts laughing, actually laughing and now Shōta has a wide eyed look as no one has ever heard him laugh, not even Snipe. "You're fucking hilarious! I'm not being paid to help you dumb dumbs! I'm doing this shit for free like I always do cause analyzing quirks is my hobby, it's what keeps my mind busy and occupied!"
"Whoa, wait, pause," Kirishima says as he stands up and gets in the middle of the two of them. "You're not being paid to help us?"
"No and I don't expect to get paid either cause like I said, it's my hobby," Izuku answers.
"People still get paid for their hobbies though," Yaoyorozu points out.
"Highly aware but I didn't ask for compensation for my time. If I did, I'm more than positive that I would indeed be getting paid. But getting back on track," Izuku says as he locks eyes with Iida, "since I am not getting paid, I don't need to act one way or another so you can fuck off."
Iida goes to argue again but the bell rings for the end of class. Shōta informs them that they will continue going over costumes and support items tomorrow. Shōta watches as Izuku gives Hitoshi a shy wave goodbye before the two leave the classroom where Izuku immediately takes off running in the direction of the teachers' lounge.
Izuku makes it to the teachers' lounge and is face to face with his dad at the man's desk where Snipe is giving the bright eyed and bushy tailed Izuku a look of shock.
"Ya okay there, Bun?" Snipe asks.
"More than okay, dad! Last night, Hitoshi was flirting with me and it is a date, like an actual date!" Izuku says in excitement and a smile forms on Snipe's face.
"That's good, I'm sure that y'all will have a good time gettin' to know one 'nother," Snipe says as Izuku vibrates in excitement. He's never seen his son excited about anything before and most certainly has never seen him smiling this brightly or this widely before either.
Izuku gasps as he grabs the front of his own hoodie, "Oh no! I'm dressed like a bum! Since it's an actual date, I can't be going out dressed like a bum!"
"I highly doubt Shinsou is gonna go all the way home to change out of his school uniform then come back here to take ya out on a date. What ya have on now is fine," Snipe says.
"No! What if he has street clothes on him to change into?!" Izuku asks as he grabs his dad's arm and shakes him a bit. "What am I gonna do if he has a change of clothes for himself?! I'll still look like a bum!"
"Then just take yer hoodie off. The shirt yer wearin' under it is perfectly fine fer an ice cream or coffee date," Snipe says.
"But it's a short sleeve. He'll see my scars," Izuku points out.
"So? Shinsou literally has a giant scar 'cross his face. I doubt he's gonna care that ya have yer own. If he asks 'bout 'em, just kindly tell 'im that you'll tell 'im yer story the more y'all get to know each other," Snipe advises and Izuku thinks about it for a moment.
"Do you think that he'd find me ugly if he sees them?" Izuku asks softly.
"I don't think he'd find 'em ugly at all, Zu. He seems like the kind of person to praise ya fer the battle that ya won," Snipe says as gives Izuku's back a light rub. "Don't think too much on it. It's part of ya an' I feel that he likes ya fer who ya are."
Izuku gives his dad a wobbly yet nervous smile, "Yeah. I hope that he does."
Later that day, the last end of class bell rings for the day and Izuku is in the teachers' lounge bathroom staring at himself in the mirror. All the skin graft scars running down his arms makes his heart twist a bit because he is covered in them due to his sperm donor burning him. The man couldn't burn him with his quirk due to Izuku being resistant to his fire breathing quirk so he had to get creative when punishing Izuku. He digs the makeup wipes out of his bag as he's decided that if he's going to show Hitoshi his scars, he might as well show all of them. He rubs the makeup off of his face and neck before getting the travel size face wash out and thoroughly washing his face. He dries his face and neck with the paper towels and looks at himself, his facial scar running diagonally across his face; the injury that his mother gave him that had made him blind in his left eye and then the rope burn scar around his neck when she had attempted to kill him. When Izuku steps out of the bathroom, he doesn't expect Hitoshi to be there already and the two basically crash into each other.
Hitoshi has a wide eyed look on his face as he stares at Izuku's makeup free face and neck. He didn't even know that the boy was wearing makeup to begin with but now he can see how Izuku is blind in his left eye but what catches his attention is the freckles that are lightly dusting across Izuku's cheeks.
"Your freckles are beautiful," Hitoshi says softly and completely forgets to ask permission before lightly brushing the back of his index finger against Izuku's cheek.
Izuku is too hung up on Hitoshi's words to even care that he just got touched without permission. "Y-you th-think s-so?" Izuku asks.
"Yeah, I do. They make the color of your eyes pop," Hitoshi answers and Izuku's heart flutters at that.
Izuku starts blushing a bit and now Hitoshi's heart is doing a little flutter of its own because the freckles stand out more against the light flush. "Th-thank y-you," Izuku says while wringing his fingers together since he doesn't have his hoodie to hide himself in.
"Of course," Hitoshi says with a soft smile. "Are you ready to go? I'll let you pick where we should go. Both places are within walking distance from school."
"Then um... maybe ice cream? I know the place up the street has a java milkshake," Izuku says.
"Yeah? That's perfect then so let's go," Hitoshi says as he offers his hand out to Izuku who shyly takes it and they intertwine their fingers together before leaving the teachers' lounge.
Snipe and the rest of the staff are completely dumbfounded by the interaction. "Holy shit. Shinsou touched Zu's face without askin' an' Zu didn't have some kind of meltdown," Snipe says in shock.
"I like that Shinsou completely overlooked Izuku's scars and just zeroed in on the freckles that he has," Shōta comments.
"Oh me too! I really wasn't expecting to see the analysis bunny to take off his makeup," Midnight says in agreement.
"Shinsou is a very sweet and caring boy. He may be growing up in the system but he definitely has a good moral compass on him despite his own upbringing," Hound Dog says. "I feel like Izuku's heart will be safe with him and Izuku is a good judge of character since he can read people like they're an alphabet book."
Snipe has tears running down his face that he tries to hide but they are obvious. "Hirohito, you okay there, man?" Mic asks him.
"Yeah, I'm good. Just... just happy to see that Zu's startin' to come more an' more out of his shell. I'm glad that I dragged 'im here. I-I had a gut feelin' that havin' 'im 'round kids his age would be good fer 'im," Snipe says as he dries the tears off of his face.
Izuku is on cloud nine right now. He's holding hands with a boy as handsome as Hitoshi and having his hoodie and makeup off around him feels so freeing as he can see that Hitoshi hasn't taken any interest in them and is acting as if they're not even there. They make it to the ice cream shop and order what they're wanting and Izuku attempts to pay but Hitoshi beats him to it and the two sit down with Hitoshi's java milkshake and Izuku's matcha ice cream.
"So, you don't need to tell me if you're not comfortable but I'm curious as to what All Might did to you to act the way you do around him," Hitoshi says before taking a sip of his milkshake.
Izuku sighs a bit as he slowly gathers up a bite of ice cream, "Well, it's a combination of what he did to me and what he didn't do for me. Biologically, he's my uncle, my egg donor's older brother, and well, he knew what my donors were doing to me and just didn't do anything to help me. There were a couple of times where he'd grab and feel up on my ass but it was never anything more than that. It was just enough for me to be completely disgusted and repulsed by him."
"And when you saw him with his hand on me, you just moved on instinct to protect me from going through what had happened to you?" Hitoshi guesses and Izuku nods his head. "Well, while he most certainly didn't feel me up, I have been felt up by the other kids at the orphanage that I live at. I'm not the youngest one there but I am the only one there that has a mental based quirk so that automatically makes me a target for that kind of stuff cause they can get away with it since the headmaster doesn't give a shit."
"That's awful, I'm sorry that you have to go through all that. Maybe some sessions with Hound Dog?" Izuku says softly.
"Oh I'm already seeing Hound Dog. I just don't trust him enough to go into full detail but I'm sure he's already figured it out on his own which wouldn't surprise me," Hitoshi states with a soft smile. "I um… this is gonna sound weird but I'm kinda hoping that once I get my capture weapon and start training with Aizawa-Sensei that he'll end up liking me enough to want to adopt me."
"Why not just ask him if he could adopt you?" Izuku asks him.
"No, that's a bit creepy. Well, in my head it sounds creepy," Hitoshi explains and Izuku nods in understanding.
"Yeah, I get that. When... When my dad found and stopped me from jumping off a bridge, I knew immediately that I wanted to stay with him. I was basically knocking on Death's door with how infected my entire body was. I smelled absolutely foul from the burns and the infections from them but he still reached his hand out to me and held me. I cried so hard that it hurt. I've never had positive physical contact before and that hug he wrapped me up in… it unraveled my emotions and they just came tumbling out. I didn't speak to him though. I didn't speak to anyone for almost an entire year including my dad. It wasn't that I didn't want to talk, I just couldn't mentally and physically get the words to come out of my mouth. When I did start talking, that's when I initiated some positive physical contact and it was slow but I've finally gotten to a point where I can safely say that I really like the feeling of parental love and affection," Izuku rambles out without much of a second thought then pales as Hitoshi stares at him in absolute horror.
"Holy shit. I definitely figured that you had gone through some sort of abusively traumatic experience due to your behaviors, I just didn't think it was a full blown living nightmare," Hitoshi says in shock. "I'm so sorry that you had to go through all of that. No one deserves that."
Izuku calms down a bit because he was afraid that he had scared Hitoshi off, "You don't need to apologize, it's all in the past now and I'm still healing but I'm definitely a lot better than how I used to be. My dad… my dad has been so patient with me too. Never forced me to do this or that. He let me come to him when I was ready. It… it feels good to be loved and I know that he loves me. I do feel bad that I haven't told him that I love him. I want to, it's just... it won't leave my mouth."
"Might just be afraid that once you say it, that he'll end up leaving you behind in some fashion," Hitoshi suggests. "That's really the only thing that I can think of that would cause that because I feel like it's some kind of subconscious fear that's at the back of your mind that's staying hidden because you're afraid of how he'd react."
Izuku is staring at him with wide eyes, "I never thought of that. How do you think he'd react?"
"Well, I don't know your dad very well but he very obviously loves you. If he didn't, he wouldn't have taken you in and helped you heal. The amount of time and energy he's put into bringing you back to health just shows you how he feels even if he doesn't necessarily tell you. Actions do speak a lot louder than words," Hitoshi says with a soft smile then blushes as Izuku gives him a teary smile.
"Thank you. I needed to hear that," Izuku says. "Now let me hear your story if you're willing to tell me."
"Well, after my quirk manifested, a muzzle was slapped on me and I was placed into the orphanage. The very same one that I've been in since then. I already mentioned what the other kids do to me but the adults, well, they just flat out ignore me unless I speak then the muzzle goes on. It hasn't gotten too terribly bad. Just a little while longer and I'll age out of the system and I won't have to worry about it anymore," Hitoshi explains to him.
"Ah well, if Eraser-Oji adopts you, you won't have to wait for freedom," Izuku points out. "That orphanage sounds like a literal prison."
"I don't know if he would or not. I'm a 'child with unlovable and unadoptable qualities'," Hitoshi says while making finger quotes.
"Well, I think they're wrong. You're very sweet, kind, and caring. So very gentle and compassionate. I think Eraser-Oji would love to adopt you," Izuku says with a soft smile that grows into a brighter and wider one as Hitoshi blushes at Izuku's words. "Also, I think you're going to make a fantastic hero. You have the qualities of a fantastic hero in the making."
Now Hitoshi is the one giving Izuku a teary smile, "Thank you… I'll-I'll try to build up the courage to ask him to see if he's interested or not."
"Yeah, just go for it. Nothing wrong with that either," Izuku says as he reaches across the small table and lightly holds Hitoshi's hand where the other wiggles them around until their fingers are interlaced together.
After their milkshake and ice cream is done, Hitoshi walks Izuku back to UA where Snipe is waiting for him before he heads back to the orphanage. When he walks in, the headmaster is standing there with the other adults glaring at him while some of the kids are snickering.
"And where exactly have you been, boy?" the headmaster asks him and Hitoshi remains silent. "Speak, boy!"
"I was hanging out with a friend after school," Hitoshi answers.
"Ah well, I don't think that this friend is actually a friend since you're holding hands with another boy," the headmaster growls out.
"Friends can hold hands. Hand holding is innocent," Hitoshi says in defense.
"Are you back talking me, boy?" the headmaster asks angrily.
"I'm simply stating a fact," Hitoshi answers and the headmaster grabs him by the face roughly.
"Watch your tongue boy or you'll lose it," the headmaster warns coldly.
"Or what?" Hitoshi dares.
—
"Dad! Hitoshi is so sweet and nice! And he really doesn't care about my scars or anything!" Izuku gushes out as they head home.
"That's great, Zu. I'm glad that ya've got yerself a potential… boyfriend," Snipe teases playfully and Izuku blushes a bit at that.
"You really think so?" Izuku asks sheepishly.
"Yeah, I think ya do," Snipe says with a smile and Izuku returns it with his own.
They make it home and the two get showered and changed into fresh clothes before they start working on dinner together. It's quiet and peaceful and the words are sitting on the edge of Izuku's tongue. He wants to say it so bad. He mentally keeps telling himself that Snipe loves him so it's okay to say it.
Izuku takes a small calming breath as he pauses what he's doing, "Dad?"
"Yes?" Snipe asks.
"I love you," Izuku says and Snipe's head snaps over to him in shock.
Snipe can tell that Izuku is waiting so he shakes himself out of his shock quickly, "I love you too, Zu."
A teary smile wobbles onto Izuku's face before he starts laughing wetly then throwing himself into a hug with his dad as his laughter turns into crying. Snipe has his own tears in his eyes as he wraps Izuku up in a hug. He never thought he'd ever hear those words and he never thought he'd ever hear Izuku laugh but he just got both of those and he's so very relieved and happy.
—
Hitoshi is on the run, well, on the limp as he escapes the orphanage through his window after managing to get himself free from the adults who began attacking him as the other kids all screamed and ran off leaving him to fend for himself. One of them had a knife and had stabbed him in the shoulder, the calf, and someone had assisted in prying his mouth open so now his tongue is sliced and can't move it in order to speak. He pulls out his phone and texts Izuku as he's the only person he can actually trust right now.
Lilac Kitten:
Zu. I need help. The adults at the orphanage attacked me and I need medical
Please help me
Izuku and Snipe are eating dinner and Izuku's phone pings. He sees that it's Hitoshi but his dad has a no phone use at the table rule. Well, that is until he sees the second message pop up of Hitoshi asking for help. He clicks on the notification as his dad gives him a scolding look but ignores it when he sees what the first message is and is on his feet in an instant.
"What's wrong?" Snipe asks him.
"Hitoshi is saying that the adults at the orphanage attacked him and that he needs medical," Izuku says as he rushes to his room and grabs his backpack.
Sage Bunny:
On my way. Where are you at right now?
Lilac Kitten:
Idk. Never been this way before
Sage Bunny:
Share your location with me
Lilac Kitten:
<Location Sent>
Sage Bunny:
I know where you are. Just stay put and hide if you think you've been followed.
Izuku rushes out the door with Snipe hot on his tail following after him. Izuku knows exactly where Hitoshi is and he himself hasn't been back over there in three years.
Hitoshi has to stop to catch his breath. He leans forward a bit as he lets his mouth hang open so he can get the blood out of his mouth without hurting himself further. He's never been to this part of Musutafu before. He glances around him and sees a small bridge and he can tell by how steep the slopes are and how high the railings are that the water below is deep and violent. He can see some spots in his vision so he's not sure if it's a concussion or if it's from the blood loss. He leans up against the closest tree so he can take some of the weight off of his leg and sighs heavily. He feels a chill run through him when he hears some rustling then familiar laughter.
"Finding you was way too easy, boy. You bleeding all over the place gave you away," the headmaster says with a sly grin. "Since you're already here, we might as well toss you over that bridge. That should finish you off just fine."
Just as Hitoshi goes to try to start running again, he flinches when he hears a gunshot then turns to look back and he watches the headmaster wobble on his feet for a moment before collapsing with a dart sticking out of the side of his neck. He shrinks down a bit as three more shots go off as the three others attempt to run away. He hears rushing footsteps and closes his eyes in anticipation.
"Oh my gosh, Hitoshi," Izuku says softly as he finally gets a good look at him. "Why'd they do this?"
Hitoshi blinks back tears as he opens his eyes and makes eye contact with Izuku and sees that he has a gun slung over across his back so he knows that it was Izuku who had stopped them. He can't move or feel his tongue as he shakes his head and opens his mouth where Izuku gasps in horror.
"Okay, my dad is calling the police and stuff so we'll make sure you go to the Hero Ward for treatment," Izuku says softly. "You know how to sign?"
Hitoshi nods his head before he starts signing, 'A few of the kids at the orphanage saw me holding hands with you and they told the adults. It's a religious based orphanage so they just started laying in to me after I talked back to the headmaster about it.' Hitoshi can see the look forming on Izuku's face so he starts signing again, 'It's not your fault. If I were blaming you for me running my mouth then I wouldn't have contacted you asking for help.'
"It's not your fault either though. You're allowed to verbally defend yourself hell, you're allowed to defend yourself physically if you need to," Izuku says as he wipes the tears off of Hitoshi's cheeks. "Eraser-Oji will have to take you in as his ward now since he is your homeroom teacher. It's his job. As shitty as the situation is, you can use this as your chance to get adopted by him."
'Yeah, I can,' Hitoshi signs as a response. He's confused as to why Izuku is changing the subject to that. He's not worried about that at the moment, 'Why are you telling me this?'
"To keep you awake. The tree can only support you for so long and passing out right now wouldn't be very good," Izuku says and Hitoshi nods his head; he didn't think about that.
'You with a gun is sexy,' Hitoshi signs without thinking.
Izuku has a harsh blush on his face at that, "You think that's sexy?"
Hitoshi nods his head as a dopey smile forms on his face and signs an answer, 'Yeah. Very sexy… Bet you look sexy while shooting it too.'
"You'll have to find out for yourself when you're actually coherent," Izuku says with a bit of a smirk.
Hitoshi hums in his throat as he struggles to keep his eyes open. 'Sexy flirt. I like it,' Hitoshi signs before he starts sliding down the side of the tree and Izuku hooks his arms under his to keep him upright.
"Need to stay awake for me, Toshi. Falling asleep while bleeding isn't good," Izuku warns and Hitoshi just hums sleepily.
Izuku sighs softly in relief as the paramedics rush up to them and get Hitoshi on a stretcher. Izuku moves over to stand next to his dad as they watch them put Hitoshi in the ambulance.
"He got attacked cause we were holding hands with each other," Izuku says softly. "Hitoshi says it's not my fault that he mouthed off to them but we still held hands."
"It's not yer fault, Zu," Snipe says as he directs Izuku over to the truck so they can meet Shōta at the Hero Ward. "The hand holdin' was mutual. It wasn't either of y'alls fault so don't beat yerself up over something innocent."
They meet Shōta there and can tell that the man is worried. Izuku explains why everything happened to him then decides that he's going to drop a bombshell onto his pseudo-uncle.
“The reason Hitoshi wants to learn the capture weapon with you is so that you'll end up liking him enough to want to adopt him,” Izuku states firmly and Shōta stares at him in complete shock.
“Zu,” Snipe scolds lightly.
“But it's true, dad,” Izuku says while nodding his head. “I told him at the ice cream shop earlier that he should just ask Oji about it to see if he would want to or not. Since he's gonna be his ward now, he might as well know.”
“I understand that, Bun, but that was something that Hitoshi should have told him, not you,” Snipe explains gently and Izuku pouts a bit at being scolded.
“It's alright, Hirohito. To be honest, I was already thinking about adopting him before he even asked me about the capture weapon thing. I was honestly going to use that time to gain and earn his trust enough that he'd want to open up to me. Knowing that he basically had a similar goal in mind makes things a lot easier as I have a feeling that he'll still keep to himself for a while. I can use the information to surprise him with finalized adoption paperwork,” Shōta says as he sits down and rubs his legs some to calm his shot nerves down.
“See? It all works out then,” Izuku says, then gives his dad a sheepish smile as the man gives him a scolding look; he's definitely not off the hook for butting into others personal affairs.
“No need to scold him, Hiro. It's fine. I just won't tell Hitoshi that I'm aware. What's more important right now is finding out how he's doing,” Shōta says with a bit of a sigh. “He has me absolutely worried, especially with the amount of blood he lost and with the injury on his tongue. If he loses his ability to speak, then he's gonna fall into depression cause then he won't be able to use his quirk and then his dreams and everything will basically go down the drain.”
“Well, from what I saw of his tongue, it was cut vertically, so between the two muscles that make up the tongue. It should heal just fine once it's stitched back together,” Izuku says in reassurance. “He was starting to get loopy from the blood loss since he started dirty flirting in sign to me.”
Snipe snorts and Shōta rolls his eyes a bit. “Dirty flirtin’, huh? What was it that he was signin’ for ya to consider it dirty?”
Izuku blushes a bit as he answers, “He said that me with a gun is sexy and that he bets I look sexy while shooting it.”
“Ah, at least he knows what he likes,” Shōta says in amusement before he starts his teasing while doing his best impression of Hitoshi if he had a posh accent, “My my, I do say that the cute bunny child with that rifle is quite the sight.”
“Exquisite taste, my good Hitoshi. Now if only he'd consume more of his fruits and vegetables. I'd be more convinced of him being a bunny child if he did so,” Snipe says as he joins in on it.
“Oh you are quite right, my fine Hiro. The child consumes too many chips, crisps, and sugary biscuits to be a full fledged bunny child,” Shōta says in agreement as he keeps up the act and tries not to laugh at Izuku's very done expression.
“Y'all are mean,” Izuku states with a pout.
“Such a big baby,” Snipe teases. “Don't make me turn ya into a bunny burrito.”
“Oh to become one with my burrito-ian ancestors. May we all be overflowing with beans and cheese sauce,” Izuku says dramatically, causing Snipe and Shōta to snort at his antics.
Their goofing around is cut short by the doctor calling them all back to see Hitoshi. “So he's a bit loopy due to pain meds but he'll be just fine. His tongue will heal but he might need a bit of speech therapy since the injury didn't exactly get right between the two muscles. It was more on the left so it basically split that muscle but I'm confident that it'll heal just fine. His other injuries will heal as expected. They weren't as deep as we thought when he first got here. He did receive some blood as he had lost quite a bit. We'll keep him here for a couple of days for observation before releasing him.”
“That's good to hear,” Shōta says in relief. “What do you think his chances are of possibly needing a speech therapist?”
The doctor hums as he thinks for a moment. “I'd say about a seventy-five percent chance, just to be on the safe side. It's still quite swollen so it's hard to tell. We'll know more once the swelling dies down some,” the doctor answers.
They enter the room and Hitoshi immediately tries to speak but quickly realizes that he can move his tongue so he signs, ‘Hi, dad.’
“Boom, what'd I tell ya?!” Izuku says with a laugh while pointing at his dad who is trying to cover up his amusement.
‘Telling my secrets?’ Hitoshi signs to Izuku with a pout.
“You just called Eraser ‘dad’, Toshi,” Izuku reminds him and he just shakes his head in confusion.
“It's the drugs talkin’, Zu,” Snipe says in amusement as Izuku pouts.
“He did just admit that it was a secret,” Izuku points out.
“He's still high as a kite,” Snipe chuckles.
“He can call me whatever he wants. Whatever makes him happy,” Shōta says as he sits down on the bed with Hitoshi who just stares at him with glazed over eyes and dilated pupils. “Oh boy, they really do have you orbiting Earth.”
‘I-S-S?’ Hitoshi asks and Shōta gets a confused look and Snipe looks just as confused.
“International Space Station,” Izuku deciphers. “I think he's asking if we're on the International Space Station.”
They all snort as Hitoshi nods his head. “No, Hitoshi, weren't not. I'm just talking about how doped up they have you on pain meds.”
Hitoshi makes a hand gesture before signing, ‘Aliens.’
Izuku snorts before he starts laughing as Shōta and Snipe watch on in confusion. “I'm not saying it was aliens, but it was aliens,” Izuku giggles and a smile wobbles onto Hitoshi's face.
‘K-L-I-N-G-O-N?’ Hitoshi asks.
“No, I do not speak Klingon,” Izuku answers as he giggles at Hitoshi's exaggerated pout.
‘Your mother was a hamster,’ Hitoshi signs.
“And your father smelt of elderberries,” Izuku says in amusement.
“I think someone needs to sleep it off,” Snipe chuckles.
“I agree. It's late and bedtime needs to happen,” Shōta says in agreement.
‘Cuddle?’ Hitoshi asks Izuku.
Izuku blushes a bit as he thinks about it. He's only ever cuddled with his dad but he doesn't want to deprive Hitoshi of some kind of comfort. “Just for a little bit cause I can't stay the night,” Izuku says as he shyly moves over to the bed and joins Hitoshi.
He's silently freaking out as he doesn't exactly know how he feels about cuddling with Hitoshi so soon into them getting to know each other. He just wraps his arms around one of Hitoshi's as he rests his head against his shoulder. He knows that Hitoshi isn't in his right state of mind at the moment but he knows that if Hitoshi caresses his thigh, he'll have a complete meltdown as he's not ready for anything like that to happen. He calms down a tiny bit as Hitoshi keeps his hands to himself though. He can smell the sanitizing products on Hitoshi's skin and it brings back some old memories. He squeezes Hitoshi's arm a bit as he cuddles closer to him for comfort. He can feel himself becoming nauseous so he keeps swallowing to keep it at bay. He can tell that his breathing is shaky as he mentally tells himself that everything is okay. He startles as a hand lands on his and sees that it's Hitoshi's. He watches as he just draws a circle on the back of his hand with a finger and he's so focused on trying to figure out what Hitoshi is doing to notice that he's calmed down.
‘He calmed Bunny down,’ Shōta points out as he signs to Snipe.
‘I was getting nervous,’ Snipe signs as he sighs softly in relief.
‘I feel that Purple calms himself like that,’ Shōta continues to sign and Snipe nods in agreement.
Izuku relaxes fully against Hitoshi once he realizes that he's calmed down. He figures that cuddling with Hitoshi isn't so bad. He just wishes that they weren't cuddling in a hospital bed in a hospital room. He hates hospitals and for good reason. He closes his eyes as he feels Hitoshi go lax so he knows that he's fallen asleep. He can feel himself starting to drift as Hitoshi is warm and comfortable. Izuku is almost out when his dad gently nudges him.
“Let's go, Bun. Ya can sleep in mah bed tonight if ya want to,” Snipe whispers and Izuku sleepily nods his head. “We'll come back to see Hitoshi tomorrow after school lets out.”
Izuku gently slips away from Hitoshi then follows his dad out of the hospital. He nods off a bit in the truck but stays awake enough to not fall asleep completely. He gets showered and changed into some pajamas before laying down with his dad and promptly passing out.
The following morning, Izuku really just wants to go and be with Hitoshi but he still has 1-B's quirks to analyze. He gets along with Vlad to an extent. He just doesn't like how loud he is. He finds it intimidating and his loudness is much too similar to All Might's own for his liking. When Vlad isn't speaking loudly, yelling, or being too boisterous in his laughing, he's fine with him.
He's silent as he waits for the bell to ring so he can follow Vlad. When it does, he remains quiet as he follows the Pro.
“I know I'm not your dad or Eraser but I'll try my best to get my class to behave properly around you. There's a couple of them who may test the waters and get too close to you. It wouldn't be in a perverted way but one doesn't understand boundaries and the other likes to spook others for fun,” Vlad informs him.
“Soooo, I have permission to punch them if they don't listen is what you're telling me,” Izuku states it as a fact as he's not questioning it, he will punch them if they get into his space without consent.
“Well, I'm not necessarily going to condone it but your dad and Eraser aren't here to stop you sooo, yeah, by all means,” Vlad says with a shrug; maybe Izuku will give some of his students a wake up call.
Izuku follows Vlad into the classroom and is quick to cover his head with his head and face with his hoodie. “Class, this is Izuku Jūdan, Snipe's son. He's been asked to analyze your quirks in order for you all to make possible improvements on strengthening weaknesses and suggesting support items that may be of assistance to you. You all are to keep two arms lengths away from him, he'll put himself into your space if needed. No approaching him from behind either. He'll punch you. His fists know no gender. They are rated E for everyone.”
“Making me sound like a woman beater,” Izuku grumbles.
“I mean, you've punched Nem before,” Vlad says in amusement.
“She hugged me without permission and caused me to have a panic attack,” Izuku says in defense. “It was completely justified according to Oji.”
“You've punched a Pro-Hero,” Monoma asks.
“He's beaten up just about every teacher here with an exception of a few,” Vlad answers.
“They should have listened better,” Izuku states. “Anyways. I wanna get this done so I can leave.”
“Oh yes, to go be with your boyfriend,” Vlad teases.
“We ain't dating,” Izuku points out.
“Yet,” Vlad adds while still teasing.
“Continue to tease me and I won't warn you like I warn Eraser-Oji,” Izuku warns and Vlad pouts a bit; he was hoping to start earning an Oji title as well.
Vlad gets his class to collect their cases before they all head out to one of the gyms. Once the students have changed, they all start showing Izuku what all their quirks can do. Izuku is quick to back away from Monoma's reach and has his face scrunched up in distaste.
“My quirk requires contact,” Monoma explains.
“I don't give a shit. Don't touch me without consent,” Izuku growls. “I believe you can show me what you can do with one of your classmate's quirks.”
“But wouldn't it be best if I showed you using your quirk?” Monoma asks.
“My quirk makes me immune to emitter type quirks so no. It wouldn't,” Izuku answers and Monoma blinks at him in surprise.
“So, you're kinda like me. You're basically quirkless in a sense,” Monoma says in curiosity.
“If you want to look at it that way then yes, I'm basically quirkless,” Izuku states. “From what I can tell of your costume, you have no form of offensive or defensive support items to aid you when you don't have a quirk nearby to copy. My advice to you would be training yourself in weaponry.”
Monoma scoffs, “And I'm guessing that you've been trained in weaponry?”
“My dad is Snipe. Of course I have,” Izuku answers with an eye roll. “Yesterday, I shot four adults who were attempting to murder a child. Granted, they're still alive but I shot them nonetheless.”
Monoma wrinkles his nose at him a bit, “How can you be so nonchalant about something like that? That's fucked up.”
“I don't like people,” Izuku answers simply. “Especially people who abuse or bully others because they are different from them. I'm not better than you and you're not better than me. The only thing that makes the two of us different is our morals. I don't know what yours are and I don't care what they are but I know mine are and I know that if you can't respect me and how I handle things, then I won't respect you nor how you would handle things when faced with a dilemma such as dealing with adults trying to kill a child.”
Monoma just stands there in silence as he knows that he can't argue against what Izuku has just said. “If Young Shinsou wasn't so weak, he would have been able to defend himself properly,” All Might deadpans; he had silently entered the gym during the conversation.
“Yagi, you know you're not allowed to be around Izuku,” Vlad warns and he can see the rage burning in Izuku's eyes so he knows that if All Might doesn't leave, Izuku is going to tear into him.
“This is technically my class right now. I should be teaching it,” All Might states as he approaches the group.
Izuku starts backing away and he doesn't care if he's backing into the other students as he does so, he just wants All Might to leave.
“Yagi, I'm giving you one more chance to get the fuck out of here or I'm going to move you by force. Hirohito has told you several times not to get near Izuku and you have yet to listen,” Vlad states in annoyance.
All Might scoffs, “Izuku is my biological nephew. I should have custody of him. Not Jūdan. I should honestly fight to get custody of him.”
“I'd fucking kill myself before that happens,” Izuku states and he can see the students’ looks of horror but he doesn't care; All Might is the last damn person he'd want to have custody of him.
“I'll have you committed,” All Might threatens. “But back to the matter at hand, if Shinsou wasn't weak, he wouldn't have needed to be rescued by the likes of you.”
“One unarmed child against four armed adults is so fucking unbalanced. Even if Hitoshi was armed, they'd still have him outnumbered,” Izuku argues; he's really trying not to throw up and he can tell that the students around him notice this. “And he's not weak either. He has a support type quirk. He works best at a distance and his hand-to-hand combat so far, as someone inexperienced, is disarming and restraining someone. Do tell me how he would disarm and restrain four people who are all larger and stronger than him combined?”
All Might stands there with a scowl on his face and before he has a chance to answer, he gets interrupted, “He wouldn't have been able to. If he managed to get one, the other three would still be able to overpower him. It's only been a couple of months into us training to become heroes, none of us have the strength or power to be able to do that,” Awase states. “As someone else with a support quirk, I'm not afraid to admit that I would have gotten my shit rocked too. Especially if my opponents were full grown adults.”
All Might scoffs but doesn't say anything as he turns away and leaves the gym. Izuku is quick to scan the gym and finds the trash can so he can vomit into it. He dry heaves several times before he startles when Vlad places one of his ice packs on the back of his neck to cool and calm him down. He just sits on the floor as his thoughts start to fill him with dread. It doesn't take him long to spiral into a panic attack. He's still shaking as he starts to come to and when his thoughts clear enough for him to fully come back to reality, he notices that it was Vlad that helped him and he sighs softly.
“I'm sorry,” Izuku whispers.
“It's not your fault. Yagi knows better than to come around you,” Vlad whispers back.
Tears start running down Izuku's face as he stares at Vlad as the thoughts start coming back, “What if he tries to take me from my dad?”
“He's not. He already tried that shit when your father was working on getting full custody of you. It's on record what he did and didn't do for you. He knows he won't win. He only said that shit to get into your head. You're safe, you're not going anywhere,” Vlad says in reassurance. “What you need to worry about is getting yourself cleaned up so you can go be with Hitoshi without the poor boy worrying why you're a wreck and fretting over you. He seems like the fretting type.”
Izuku gives him a soft smile as he nods his head, “Thank you, Blood-Oji.”
Izuku snorts as Vlad places his hand on his chest in a dramatic fashion, “Finally. I've joined the Oji Gang. I beat Mic to it.”
“No you didn't, I just haven't called him Oji to his face yet,” Izuku states then snorts at Vlad's pouty expression.
“I still beat him at something then so ha,” Vlad says as he helps Izuku up. “The others are getting changed so just go ahead and head back to the teachers’ lounge. Your tears and sweat have smudged your makeup.”
Izuku just nods his head and makes quick work on getting to the lounge so he can wash his face. He thinks about reapplying it but decides not to as he feels that Hitoshi likes seeing him without it. He's relieved when he and his dad leave shortly after the bell and Izuku tells his dad about All Might on the way to the hospital.
“He lost once before, he'd lose again. Plus, yer fifteen almost sixteen, ya have legal say in who ya want to have legal custody of ya,” Snipe says with a smile as he pats Izuku's head. “Ya ain't gotta worry about that blonde jackass, Bun. I should honestly just shoot ‘im but I don't think jail time would look good on me.”
“That makes me feel a lot better,” Izuku says with a soft smile. “Jailbird Dad does sound fun though.”
“Mm, don't tempt me,” Snipe says as hums in amusement as Izuku giggles at him. Hearing Izuku finally giggling and laughing warms his heart and he feels that Hitoshi has played a major role in getting Izuku to come out of his shell and he's grateful for it.
They arrive at the hospital and make it up to Hitoshi's room and see that he's asleep. They glance over at the couch and see that Shōta is napping as well. Izuku fidgets for a moment before going over and inviting himself up onto Hitoshi's bed and snuggling up against him. Hitoshi wiggles for a brief moment before settling back down. Izuku just buries his face against Hitoshi's arm and relaxes. He doesn't even realize that he's fallen asleep until he's nudged awake. He blinks in confusion, then meets Hitoshi's surprised look and smiles softly.
“Hi, Toshi,” Izuku whispers.
Hitoshi grabs a pen and pad and writes something out before showing him, ‘You're cuddling me?’
“Yeah. I cuddled with you last night too,” Izuku informs him.
‘I don't remember that happening,’ Hitoshi writes out.
“That's because you were soaring. They had you on the good stuff,” Izuku explains. “Are you hurting at all?”
Hitoshi writes his response, then shows him, ‘A little sore body wise. Tongue wise, I feel like it has its own heartbeat.’
“Do you want some ice chips? I can go and get you a cup of ice,” Izuku offers and Hitoshi nods his head.
Izuku gives him a small smile before getting up to go and get the ice. He tries to be quick with it as he doesn't want Hitoshi waiting too long for it. He gets a cup from the nurse at the nurses’ station and heads back to Hitoshi's room with it. When he walks in, the last thing he expected to see was 1-A all crowded in the room and Shōta looking annoyed beyond belief while Hitoshi is trying to hide under his hospital blanket.
“Y'all are making him uncomfortable,” Izuku deadpans and watches as Hitoshi peeks out from under the blanket at him.
The students have to do a double take as this is their first time seeing Izuku without his makeup on. “We're just trying to visit our classmate,” Iida says while chopping his arm in his direction.
“Did y'all even ask Hitoshi if he wanted a lot of visitors?” Izuku asks and they all get looks of shame. “Does he look like he wants visitors right now?”
“N-no. He doesn't,” Hagakure answers.
“Then apologize to him and leave,” Izuku states firmly as he approaches Hitoshi and hands him his cup of ice. The students all remain silent and that rubs Izuku the wrong way, “Well?”
They all murmur out apologies and quickly leave the room. Izuku lets out a satisfied huff before taking a seat beside Hitoshi. Hitoshi holds up his notepad, ‘Thank you for making them leave. And for the ice.’
“You don't need to thank me, Toshi. I understand how you feel. I didn't want to be gawked at while in a hospital bed either,” Izuku says with a smile as he makes himself comfortable with his own notebook so he can come up with support item ideas for 1-B.
As he's reading and making small notes, he feels Hitoshi rest his head on his shoulder and snuggle closer to him. He has a little bit of a blush going as he's finding that snuggling up with someone other than his dad isn't such a bad thing after all. He continues with his task for a while before freezing when Hitoshi slips his arm around his waist. He waits to see what he's going to do but finds that he doesn't do anything more than that so he relaxes and gets back to work.
Hitoshi sleepily cuddles with Izuku as he watches him work. He loves how neat and fluid Izuku's handwriting is despite how quickly his pen moves across the paper. He shows Izuku his hands before signing, ‘Like B-O-B R-O-S-S making happy little trees.’
“Watching me write is like watching Bob Ross paint?” Izuku asks and Hitoshi nods his head. Izuku snorts a bit at that, “My handwriting isn't that nice.”
‘Very pretty,’ Hitoshi signs before going back to cuddling.
“Can't tell if you're being genuine or if you're still a little dopey from the meds,” Izuku giggles softly as Hitoshi hums sleepily and pulls Izuku closer to him. “Get some sleep, Toshi. Gonna need a lot of it to heal properly.”
—Two Months Later—
“Aw come on, Toshi! It's just us here!” Izuku says as he gives him a pouted look.
‘I have a permanent lisp,’ Hitoshi signs as he gives Izuku a pout. ‘Everyone's teasing me.’
“I'm not gonna tease you. You should know that I'm better than that by now,” Izuku points out. “I'm sure the speech therapist helped you out a lot more than you realize.”
Hitoshi fidgets as he stares at Izuku. He knows that Izuku wouldn't be pushing him if it weren't for a good reason. “I uh, I can't do some of my consonant digra-affs.”
“That's okay, Toshi. Just need to get your tongue to move the way you're wanting it to move,” Izuku says as he hands Hitoshi a small support item case. “This is a support item that I made for you. It'll help teach your tongue how to move the way you're wanting it to. If it helps with your digraphs, then I can work something similar into your voice modulator.”
Hitoshi takes the item with a teary smile and Izuku helps show him how to place it properly and adjust it. “Thank you, Izu.”
Izuku gives him a cheeky smile and wiggles his brows at him, “It's what I do. You don't need to thank me, Toshi.”
“So cheeky,” Hitoshi giggles.
“Knowing him, he's probably scheming something,” Shōta deadpans as he joins the pair on the couch.
“Nooo, I ain't scheming nothing,” Izuku says as he waves his hand at him. “Your dad is bullying me, Toshi. Discipline him.”
“One, that's weird, he's a grown man. I'm not disciplining him. Two, last I checked, he's not my dad. He's my foster,” Hitoshi points out.
“Oh I beg to differ,” Shōta says as he holds out an envelope to him.
Hitoshi blinks at him in confusion as he takes the envelope from him and opens it up. He reads over the paper as tears well up in his eyes. “Y-you adopted me?” Hitoshi asks.
“Been planning on it for a while. That's why I so easily agreed to showing you how to use my capture weapon. Wanted to earn your trust so you'd become comfortable enough to open up to me and adopt you like that but then, someone blabbed and it made my decision a whole lot easier since we had similar goals in mind,” Shōta explains and tries not to snort at Izuku's betrayed expression.
“Ah, isn't karma such sweet justice, Zu,” Snipe teases.
Izuku shushes him as he whispers, “Shhh. He doesn't need to know, dad.”
“I already had a feeling that you blabbed, Izu. I saw your notes on me. ‘Tell Oji to adopt Hitoshi’. Snitched on yourself, just didn't know if you actually said anything to him or not,” Hitoshi says as he laughs and wipes the tears off his cheeks.
“Ah, so my analysis notes have actually come in handy for once,” Izuku giggles.
“Boy, don't even go there,” Snipe says in amusement as he taps Izuku on the head with a pen.
“Know what we need to do now?” Shōta asks.
“Go out and celebrate?” Hitoshi guesses and Shōta gives him a smirk.
“Yas! Food!” Izuku says in excitement as he hops off the couch.
“The analysis bunny is gettin’ in touch with his inner bunny,” Snipe teases. “I'll buy.”
“Need to find a hoodie with a bunny tail,” Hitoshi giggles.
“Gotta shake my fuzzy wuzzy wittle tail,” Izuku says with a wink and Hitoshi blushes while the two adults groan at that.
“Safe to say that he's completely out of his shell,” Shōta says as he teases Snipe.
“More like he's out of his burrow and is causin’ chaos,” Snipe chuckles; he's glad that he drug Izuku to UA those couple of months ago. His child is finally acting like a child.