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Do you believe in God? Once upon a time, humanity had a belief and a religion it followed. Everything that couldn't be explained, as well as what happened and couldn't be resolved through human efforts, could be resolved by God if it was His will.
The idea that everything revolved around the Earth was also linked to the belief that everything around it was connected to the gods. When aliens invaded their planet, causing the destruction of humanity, the remaining humans became small pets used for entertainment, taken in high-tech ships to their world. As a consequence, humans stopped believing in gods, erasing their faith in anyone, just as they stopped believing in soulmates.
Soulmates became rare. After many lost theirs and the possibility of finding one was almost nil, now in the reality they had to live in, not only because of the difficulty but also to avoid more pain to themselves, those who stopped believing in soulmates stopped seeing the red thread of fate and, as a consequence, contracted the Hanahaki disease if they were not reciprocated.
One day Izuku was with his mother hiding among the rubble, and the next, a three-meter-tall monster was taking him away. The planet he was taken to was similar to Earth, but it was as if they were closer to other galaxies due to the star-infested sky. The aliens placed him inside a laboratory that looked more like a snow globe. There he found several children of different ages, all wearing collars that looked more like animal collars. Later he discovered it was not much different from what he imagined. Despite the existence of a glowing garden, there was also the testing room, where blood was collected every day, and punishments were administered.
However, Izuku never imagined he would find his soulmate on the day he was caged like a wild animal. Midoriya knew that the only way to find the one he was destined for was through the red thread attached to the ring finger of each pair when they were about a meter close to each other. When Izuku followed the line's trajectory, he came across a boy his age. He had a scar on the left side of his face and hair in two tones, split exactly in the middle. The right side was like freshly fallen snow, and the left like the hottest flames, but what surprised him the most were his heterochromatic eyes - gray and blue - like storm clouds and the clearest water. He was beautiful.
His first thought was to tell about his discovery, but he decided to wait. Creating bonds was the most important thing now; maybe his soulmate could also see the thread connecting them, and they could escape this miserable place together.
Over the months, Izuku got closer to Shoto Todoroki – his soulmate. He was a quiet boy, but very sharp and intelligent. His rare smiles warmed Midoriya's heart, making him forget where they were. The two spent many days together sharing special moments, as did Uraraka, who got closer to them, especially Izuku. Ochako Uraraka became his confidante, as he became hers. Midoriya discovered that Asui Tsuyu – another child brought to the dome – was the soulmate of his friend, making them more intimate. They sought each other to confess feelings they were forced to repress for their friends.
The aliens performed more and more laboratory tests on them as they grew. Singing lessons were introduced, and they no longer had as much time to play with the other children trapped there.
Izuku noticed that things were changing. The monsters roamed them more and more, besides being forced to serve them when requested. One time, Ochako was taken by force while screaming, and Izuku – who could never see such injustice with his friend – intervened between the alien and her, resulting in a severe punishment. Midoriya was taken to a dark room, where he was beaten and marked with "Deku" on his neck, besides being gagged and having his arms and legs chained. Izuku thought it was the end, but in the middle of the night, Shoto appeared and took him out of there, without giving Midoriya time to ask why his lips were bleeding and his skin was so pale.
Years passed, but Izuku never stopped defending his friends. He was punished more and more, being considered a complete danger. His limbs were broken several times, only to be mended by Shoto, who only cast indecipherable looks at him but never asked questions, not until that day, the day he was the one taking care of Todoroki.
"Why?" Shoto asked. Izuku cried while cleaning the wounds on his precious person's face.
"Huh?"
"You get hurt for Ochako, but cry when they do the same to you."
"She's important to me," Izuku sniffled. He wanted to say, "And you even more so, that's why I can't stand seeing you get hurt," but long ago, he understood that to survive and not have Shoto used against him, his love should be kept secret. But there was something he wanted to know. "Do you believe in soulmates, Shoto?"
His hands stopped to face Shoto. Shoto's eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes darkened. It wasn't an expression he saw often; it only appeared on his face when Todoroki fetched Izuku from the isolation chamber after his punishments. His heart sank at the realization that the subject made him furious.
Silence fell between them. Izuku mentally tortured himself for bringing up the subject, remembering that even though Shoto's parents were soulmates, everything that the meaning of it represented wasn't enough for them to be happy. Shoto lived with his family an entire life of abuse.
He didn't believe. He couldn't see the red thread connecting them. That was his conclusion.
"Do you believe?" Shoto's question took him by surprise.
"I..." Izuku lowered his gaze timidly. He didn't want to see what expression Shoto would make. Maybe he should give some hint about them? "I found my soulmate here in this place."
He waited for some response, but the only thing his ears picked up was the rustling of Shoto walking away. Izuku lifted his head in search of something to show how Todoroki felt, but Shoto was already turned away from him.
"Thanks for helping me," Todoroki said as he left.
"Shoto..."
Izuku didn't have another chance to talk to Shoto. All who had turned twenty that year were separated the next day. They became private slaves through an auction among the more powerful aliens. Then, finally, they discovered why the older ones never returned to the dome.
Izuku's master, All For One – as he liked to be called – dressed him in the best clothes and made him rehearse songs to exhaustion, and if he didn't meet expectations, he was punished, but this time, Shoto couldn't help him when he lay on the ground.
The next night, he was left in his room. A huge projector showed an arena in space, surrounded by the starry sky. A panel above showed the face of his friend Ochako and Asui, leaving his heart with a bad feeling as he saw an entire crowd of aliens shouting in ecstasy.
Ochako and Asui began to sing as if they were floating in each other's gravity. Their bright and passionate smiles were as visible as the blood that stained Tsuyu's beautiful white dress. In shock, Midoriya spent the whole night with the image in his mind of Asui dead and Ochako crying over her body, having to be dragged by those monsters.
Now the nights filled Izuku with an indescribable fear. He saw each of the people he grew up with there die. He saw Kirishima and Bakugou refuse to sing and get shot in the head. He saw Denki win against Hitoshi and go mad upon seeing him dead. Then, Shoto appeared, and he cursed himself for wishing Tokoyami to lose. Izuku couldn't bear to see his soulmate die without being able to do anything.
Shoto sang so divinely that it was as if he were the very star of Izuku's universe. He was beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
The panel then lit up, announcing Shoto Todoroki's victory with a score of 90, while Tokoyami fell lifeless with the number 76 glowing red above him.
Izuku stared at the microphone in front of him with dead eyes.
No.
No.
No.
The panel with the picture of Izuku and Shoto shone behind them. Izuku couldn't face Shoto, fearing that his soulmate might not care enough about the situation. The music started playing, and it was as if someone was controlling his body. Verses came out of his mouth like words of curses. He was singing the death chant.
Then, he was no longer able to hear or sing. Images of everyone flashed through his mind like an infinite loop of his friends' deaths: of Ochako being reported missing after punching Aoyama in the face, of his wish for Shoto to defeat his competitors and him winning against Momo Yaoyorozu, causing her death.
Cold hands squeezed his throat, snapping him out of his trance. Shoto looked at him so sadly, even as he was choking him. Maybe he wanted Izuku to keep singing or thought it was a way to end this, but in Midoriya's mind, dying at the hands of the person he loved was the best thing he could ask from any higher being. He just didn't expect soft lips to press against his so aggressively. At first, out of shock, he tried to pull away. Shoto was kissing him, while his hands were firm on his neck.
Izuku accepted the kiss that deepened more and more. Shoto looked at him and at the scoreboard, as if he were in a hurry for something. Izuku closed his eyes, returning the kiss as if his life depended on the simple contact between their lips, Shoto's hands never ceasing to push him away, choke him, and pull him for another kiss. When Izuku opened his eyes, Shoto was looking at him. His lips moved slowly in a single phrase before a small smile appeared. Blood was running down his lips. Shoto loosened his grip and, like the flowers that were expelled from his mouth and fell like feathers, he also fell.
The stage light went out. The music ended. Applause was heard in the background. Izuku stared at Shoto's motionless body in a pool of crimson red, staining his white suit – now shredded by the bullets that hit him. Izuku lost his soulmate without having the chance to tell him, left only with Shoto's confession breaking his mind and heart. Above Izuku, something glowed in red. "Izuku Midoriya winner."
When Shoto found himself trapped in a dome full of children of various ages, with no adults, he was almost happy knowing he would never see his father again, even though he missed his mother and siblings. Shoto was good at adapting. He met Izuku and Ochako on a clear day. Ochako was a bright girl, but she couldn't compare to the freckled boy with the radiant smile. The two seemed to have been born from the sun itself, with the warm energy they emitted, causing a feeling of envy and jealousy in Shoto. Even though Izuku gave a lot of attention to Shoto, telling him all his interests and talking about his favorite things from when they lived normal lives on Earth, Izuku still sought out Ochako to share his secrets.
They went through many things together, especially Izuku, who got more involved in problems as they grew up. Seeing the person he loved getting more and more hurt for others awakened in Shoto enough determination to also fight for him. The aliens always let Shoto take care of Izuku's injuries at night, with the condition that Shoto would pass on information he heard in the dome about possible uprisings.
By this point, Todoroki already knew he loved Izuku and that Izuku probably loved Ochako, who loved Asui. But hearing from Izuku himself that he had found his soulmate in that hell made the petals, which had been expelled from his body for some months, become full flowers. Shoto contracted Hanahaki disease due to his unrequited love.
Shoto stopped believing in soulmates when his father hurt his mother, so he never had the chance to see his red string that connected him to his destined person. How could he believe in something that could cause more pain? In the end, he fell in love with Izuku Midoriya, and even though Izuku wasn't his soulmate, it was Izuku who saved him with his kind heart. Shoto didn't have the opportunity to talk to Midoriya after he left him alone in the room. He couldn't give an answer that could end their friendship, especially when he could feel flowers scratching his throat, begging to come out and show themselves to the owner of his love.
The day they started entertaining the aliens to survive was the day he made his decision to protect Midoriya. Companions were eliminated one by one, with no chance to fight back. Asui was the first, sparking Ochako's misery, which ricocheted into Izuku. When he and Izuku were scheduled for the sixth battle, Midoriya seemed lifeless. The shine in his eyes had disappeared, dark circles were visible, and he could barely stand.
The music started, and Izuku's angelic voice sounded more like something mechanical, with no emotion, until he stopped singing. The scoreboard indicated that Shoto was winning, even more so now that Izuku was just standing still. He couldn't let this happen to the most important person to him. He walked over to Izuku and extended his hands toward his throat, choking him. The game rule stated that aggression between players during performances was prohibited. Shoto hoped his score would drop by stopping singing, but it wasn't enough to make his score lower than Izuku's, so he appealed to this rule. After all, provoking his own death to protect the one he loved was better than dying slowly, remembering that his love would never be reciprocated by Midoriya. After all, Izuku could still live without Shoto, going after Ochako, who was probably the one he was talking about when he said he had found his soulmate there, but Shoto could never live without Izuku.
He wanted so much to be his soulmate.
Consumed by his desire to have Izuku for himself, even for just a moment, he pulled Midoriya into a kiss. At first, Izuku tried to push him away, but that didn't stop him from continuing. Gradually, Izuku reciprocated, opening his lips even more, allowing their tongues to intertwine. It was warm and gentle, just like Izuku. Shoto would give anything to stay like that for just another second, but he had to pull Izuku away to see the scoreboard. Then, a sharp pain in his abdomen made his vision blur. He could feel the liquid running down his skin.
Shoto looked at Izuku for the last time, trying to remember every detail of his face and the position of each freckle. Flowers started being expelled from his mouth along with the blood that dripped. His lips moved like a final wish, and the words "I love you" came out so softly that he would never know if Izuku heard them. Then, everything went dark.