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“Okay, I’m all set, Ms. Sosaki!”
“E-Eri, are you sure you’re bringing… all of this?”
Eri was excited.
She finally graduated from middle school just a couple days ago, and she even had a hearty sushi buffet celebration courtesy of Mr. Aizawa last night, and she’s now on her way to the music studio of the one and only Earphone Jack.
Eri hadn’t had much time to spend with Auntie Kyoka, with the latter being rather busy as of late. She’d seen multiple reports on TV lately of a new crime syndicate on the rise and the Heroes she knew personally were the most common respondents, Auntie Kyoka being one of them.
Today was a rare occasion. Not only was she finally free from the clutches of school for a couple of months, one of the many presents she received for graduating was a stay-over vacation at Auntie Kyoka’s place for a week.
“What do you mean, Ms. Sosaki?”
“Eri, I know you’ll be staying over at Kyoka-chan’s place, but you might’ve gone a bit too overboard. I think you packed your entire wardrobe!” The motherly pro hero jested.
“I-I’m just making sure! And you never know, maybe Auntie Kyoka will like me staying over so much she’ll decide to call you to ask that I stay a little longer!” Eri half-joked.
“Eri…”
“Plus it’ll be good for me! I don’t wanna let my scholarship go to waste. Living with her might improve my skills!”
Eri already had her mind set on becoming a musician, much like the pro hero she idolizes. She had become a skilled multi-instrumentalist at such a young age, mastering established band staples like guitar, bass, drums, and keyboard over the years, and she’s just getting started learning other instruments like saxophone and violin. Not to mention, she’d even taken on the task of learning how to make music digitally, which was another ball game.
She was scarily good at music her middle school teachers suggested she go into a prestigious performing arts high school, which the horned girl took to heart, even earning one of the rarest scholarships in the music industry.
Many of her friends and family, and even some of her bullies had to admit the girl was on track to becoming an established name in the music scene. Eri, however, humbly denies this and says a lot of it is thanks to Earphone Jack. After all, the pro hero was responsible for getting her into music, and was the one who taught her the basics in the first place.
Getting to spend time with Auntie Kyoka was practically a cheat code before she would step foot in her music school of choice.
“... Ah, I can’t deny your wishes. You had more than stellar grades and you’re a soon-to-be scholar. You deserve this choice.” Sosaki grumbled in defeat.
“Yes!” Eri raised her fists in the air in success.
“Okay, okay, you slimy unicorn.” Sosaki ruffled Eri’s hair as she grabbed one of the bags on the girl’s bed. “I’ll get your things packed in the car. Say goodbye to Kota before you go.”
“Do I have to?”
“Eri.”
“Fine…” Eri walked out her room, clad in a striped white-and-red cardigan, black flared pants, and chunky red shoes much like his other green-haired idol. She tied her hair into a ponytail as she waltzed into the room of Sosaki’s nephew.
“Hey, Wethose! Wake up, sleepyhead!” Eri shouted while flicking the lights on and off, trying to stir the aspiring hero awake.
“Hng… Eri… I’m trying to catch up on some sleep… You’re making too much noise…” Kota lazily replied, throwing his comfy blanket over his head.
Seeing that her friend was too busy getting some shut-eye, she decided to dive onto the unsuspecting teenager with a war cry.
“OOF-”
“Get up already!” Eri playfully wrapped Kota’s head around her arms in a headlock position. “You won’t be seeing this pretty face for a week, you better see me off!”
“Get off me, you crazy woman!” Kota growled out squirming around to escape the girl’s clutches.
After about three seconds, the boy had just about enough of Eri’s antics, spraying some water in her face courtesy of his quirk, making the horned girl release Kota, wiping her face with his blanket.
“My makeup! Grr, I swear, Wethose, I spent thirty minutes on it!” She grumbled as Kota stood off his bed, still groggy.
“Then you shouldn’t have jumped onto me, damn it! Grah… where’s Auntie Shino?” He said, rubbing his eyes.
Eri stood up from his bed. On cue, the sound of a car engine starting up echoed through the house. “She’s just about ready to bring me to Auntie Kyoka.”
“Oh… right… that’s today…” Kota sighed. “Be careful out there okay? I’m not gonna be there to save you if someone decides to bully you.”
“Please, I’m not defenseless you know?” Eri held her fists up, indicating some knowledge of martial arts. “That and who in their right minds would test making Auntie Kyoka angry?”
“I know, I know…” Kota smiled and walked up to the girl, wrapping her in a tight hug. “I know it’s only gonna be a week but I’m gonna miss you.”
A slight blush enveloped her cheeks. “You’re rarely sappy.” She returned the hug.
“Eri! We’re burning daylight here!” The two of them heard Sosaki shout from downstairs, prompting Kota to release the hug and giving a heavy pat on her shoulder.
“Come on.”
The two teens rushed downstairs and out the front door of the modest house, a secret safe house Sosaki bought years ago as a hideout for herself and the other Pussycats, now transformed into a co-ed house for both Kota and Eri. The pro hero was standing by a sedan out on the road, waiting for the horned girl.
“I’ll see you soon, Wethose. Say hi to Uncle Deku for me when you return to U.A.”
“A-actually, he-”
The sound of Eri’s phone ringing stops Kota from spilling what he’s about to say, as the girl fishes out her phone. “Wah~ It’s Auntie Kyoka!”
Immediately answering, Eri brings her phone up. “Auntie Kyoka!”
“Hey there, Eri-chan! Just calling to ask where you’re at.”
“We’re just about to leave, actually! I’ll see you there, Auntie!”
“Okay, be safe!”
The phone hangs up. “I think that’s my cue! What were you gonna say, Kota?”
Kota hesitates for a while before smiling. “Nothing. Just take care, okay? I’ll be sure to let Deku-sensei know where you are.”
“Alright.” Eri runs down the walkway of the house and out the gate, opening the door to the car. “See you!”
“And Kota, be sure to lock the house when you go back to the dorms later, okay?” Sosaki shouted.
“Yes, Auntie!” Kota waved at the two.
“Alright, Eri… buckle up.”
“You’re awfully chummy today.” Denki quipped.
“Don’t start, Jamming-yay.” Kyoka chuckled as he gave the electric hero a light punch on his shoulder.
Kyoka had just finished talking to Eri on the phone and the pro hero couldn’t be more excited. From her count, it had been months since she’d seen the little girl in person. Online chats could only do so much.
Knowing that Eri was on her way to her music studio had brightened her admittedly stressful day.
“So, Eri-chan’s visiting. For how long?” Denki asked.
“Only for a week, though, if I’m being honest, I wanna have her over at my place for the kid’s whole vacation before she goes off to high school. Who knows when I’ll see her again after that begins.” Kyoka grumbled.
“Man, it’s so cool that you’re her mentor. Then on top of that, you had that batch of interns from Shiketsu come over, they were the WORST.” Denki reminisced.
Since both of their agencies were right next to each other, many students from various hero schools thought it’d be a good idea to take their internships under the two of them following a curriculum requirement to intern under at least two heroes before the end of the term.
While the two weren’t averse to the idea of taking interns under their wing, they underestimated the number of students who wanted to work under them, resulting in a hectic schedule for both Denki and Kyoka.
“Heh, no kidding.” Kyoka followed up. “Though, I still think the new first-years from U.A were so much worse…” Kyoka remembers one of her interns, a student with a quirk that could vibrate anything made out of concrete, destroying multiple high-rise apartments during a pursuit with a villain.
“Those particular students have Midoriya as their advisor, right?” Denki put a finger on his chin, trying to remember if he remembered his details right.
“Right, him.” Kyoka could feel a vein pop up in her forehead. “I swear when I come back to U.A., I’m gonna give Midoriya a healthy slap to the back of his head. His students are a pro hero’s NIGHTMARES in the making.”
Denki laughed heartily. “Come on, you don’t mean that.”
“Uh, yeah, I do. You try taking that Hamigaki kid under your wing. That kid’s quirk is creating toothpaste out of his feet. TOOTHPASTE. And somehow that broccoli-head manages to make him one of the scariest pro heroes to go up against if the Sports Festival is anything to go by.” Kyoka raised her eyebrows as she put out her argument.
“Okay, fair point.” Denki tilted his head.
“And let’s not forget that Uisukii kid. If I find out that mophead was the one who suggested he drink moonshine to boost his power-”
“Okay, I get it, jeez.” Denki put his hands up to get the purplette to stop complaining. “You signed up for this craziness by having them intern with us anyway. Remember, you had the final say.”
Kyoka sighed. “I know.”
Denki giggled, soaking in one of the rare moments he’d have the upper hand in his arguments with the hearing hero. He took a sip of the coffee in his hand. “How is he, by the way?”
“Hm?” Kyoka turned to Denki. “Hamigaki or Uisukii?”
“No- Not them! I meant Midoriya!”
“Oh. Well…” Kyoka stared into the distance.
It had been a while since she’d seen the now-quirkless hero. As a matter of fact, their last interaction was the day they responded to a distress signal during one of their get-togethers, a rare moment these days given their schedules, and that was months ago.
For all of the happy vibes that that get-together had, and the top-notch camaraderie they had displayed dispatching the villain that day, Kyoka could tell certain hints of her messy green-haired friend feeling somewhat isolated.
Kyoka felt bad not talking to him as the end of their reunion approached.
“You haven’t.” Denki’s tone shifted, to one of serious concern for his friend.
Kyoka let out a huge sigh. “I should’ve talked to him more during the reunion.”
Denki gave her a light chop to the head. “Yeah, you should’ve. I can’t believe you, dude. You two were inseparable during our second and third year! I was dead sure you were gonna pop the question to him that day!”
Kyoka rubbed the spot the electric hero chopped. “Huh? What are you talking about?”
“Oh please, don’t be dense.” Denki sneered.
“Denki, seriously, I have no idea what you’re implying.”
The electric hero scoffed, shaking his head. “Right.” He replied sarcastically. “... Are you serious?”
The purplette lifted her prosthetic earphone jack, aiming it right at Denki’s eye as she raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.
“Woo, man. Don’t be mad at what I’m gonna say next.” He continued sipping on his coffee. “I was almost certain you were gonna ask him out.”
…
“Wh-what?” Kyoka blushed up a storm.
“Okay, now I know you’re bullshitting me.” Denki continued as he laughed, completely missing that Kyoka’s jacks were going haywire like a dog wagging its tail.
Kyoka nervously laughed. “Th-that’s not funny.” This prompted the blonde to laugh even harder, almost spilling some of the coffee he was holding. “Hey! I’m serious, that’s not funny!”
“Alright, alright… jeez… hehe.” He finished the remaining contents of his cup and threw it in a nearby trash bin.
“What even warranted you to say that, Chargedolt?”
“Dude, it’s not just me. Mina bet Toru a lot of money that you were gonna say something to him that day.”
“Yeah, but that’s Mina Ashido. You know, the girl who “shipped” EVERY ONE OF US with each other back in high school. That’s par for the course. Even you and Mineta.” Kyoka rebutted.
“That’s fair… but Yaomomo… hey, she’s your closest girl friend, she was convinced you two were gonna become a thing.” Denki put both of his hands up.
“What? Who else thought that?”
“Oh, well… Eijiro, Hanta, Ochaco-chan, even Bakugo and Todoroki.” Denki started listing off names from their class. “Even some of the boys and girls from the other class like Setsuna-chan, Monoma… I wasn’t kidding when I said ‘it’s not just me’.”
“Okay, I get the point you’re trying to get across here but… why are you-”
“Dude, didn’t you have a crush on Midoriya?”
Kyoka’s mind blanked for a bit.
She was about to rebut what the electric hero had said until she went deep into her well of memories to think about it.
Yes, it was well-documented among their class that she and Izuku had started spending more time together, particularly around the latter half of their second year and all throughout their third year.
It was a series of interactions that began around their second semester in their second year, during the winter time.
The first one, she remembers vividly, given that it involved her favorite little unicorn girl. Izuku had decided to bring Eri to the dorms once more, giving Kyoka another chance to teach the little ball of energy more guitar chords. During this time, Izuku found his way into one of Eri’s tutoring sessions. To fill the silence in between Eri figuring out how to read sheet music, the two then-teens would go from light small-talk and go off the deep end, having conversations worthy enough of a podcast episode.
By the time Eri was done, she was certain a friendship blossomed between her and All Might’s successor.
Other times that the two would converse would be far from any prying eyes or ears. Kyoka had developed insomnia which she figured was a byproduct of the trauma she was sure she acquired from her mini-battle with All For One. Due to this, she often found herself breaking curfew hours, taking runs around the campus grounds to clear her head… which just so happened to be the one thing Izuku did when HE couldn’t sleep. Over time, her feelings of dread dissipated, replaced by a calming sensation every time she found herself in his presence.
Their friendship even gave way for them to do some rather unorthodox tandems when it came to their classes. One thing Kyoka had learned from the green-haired boy was how out-of-the-box Izuku’s thinking tended to be. This style of strategy from him would lead to some moves that she wouldn’t have ever conceived of doing in her lifetime, though, it came with the cost of Aizawa scolding her for how dangerous some of the tactics tended to be (which, to be fair, was a valid criticism given that the tactic involved making her heart, a.k.a., a vital body organ, go haywire for more damage output).
Outside of hero studies, the purplette even persuaded the timid boy to pick up some guitar lessons from hers truly. This wasn’t particularly difficult to do; Eri slowly but surely picking up the basics of every instrument she owned gave way to Izuku showing some degree of curiosity despite no history of ever playing an instrument, let alone singing a song. Much like Eri, however, Izuku found himself slowly becoming adept with the guitar, even developing a killer husky voice perfect for those indie folk acoustic artists Kyoka listened to from time to time.
The peak of their friendship in her opinion was when Izuku actually initiated the talk, asking her to be his prom during their third year. Kyoka wasn’t particularly fond of such events; she found herself just not interested in them due to thinking she felt and looked out of place at such occasions, but for him to not only disaffirm that thought of hers and asked her out (in a friend way) to the prom made her feel seen, and admittedly, made her a little giddy on the inside. They weren’t particularly skilled in the formal dancing part of the actual dance that night, but there was no denying, they both had fun being in the other’s presence.
Now that Kyoka thought about it, her friendship with Izuku was so strong during the third year that they evolved into being a little… touchy, with one another. A couple head pats here and there, less flinching and nervousness when something involved touching each other’s hands, affectionate teasing nicknames, all that stuff. Izuku’s anxiousness considerably decreased when she was with him that he was even dishing out quips she’d typically hear coming from the other rowdy boys like Kirishima and the electric hero beside her right now.
But… for all of those things to have happened between them… Kyoka still swore that even with all that history, she didn’t have something. Sure, she thought he looked cute, he probably thought something about her looks in some way, but beyond that? There’s probably nothing…
“O-O… Okay… look…” Kyoka held her hands up to tell Denki to slow down a bit. “I can understand why someone would think that we would’ve become an item now that I look back at it… but come on… even if I did… and THIS is a huge what-if…” Kyoka pointed a finger at Denki before he could even come up with a quip. “It’s been YEARS. Something surely would’ve happened between us, dude…”
Denki scrunched his face, looking at the hearing hero incredulously. “That is a bullshit excuse and you know it.”
Kyoka scoffed. “It’s very much valid, thank you very much.”
“Okay, riddle me this then…” Denki put his hands together. “How many years did it take for Aizawa-sensei to admit that he liked Ms. Joke?”
“Uh… ten years… B-but come on… that’s not-”
“I know, it’s not comparable, different situations, all that… but you can’t use the excuse of time.” Denki pointed out. “But hey, you did say it was a what-if…” He continued, exercising his sarcasm.
“Y-Yeah… it’s just a what-if… I don’t… like him… We’re just good friends. That’s it.” Kyoka muttered.
“Sure, but let’s be real, Kyoka… the only reason I’m the guy from class you spend the most time with is because I’m at the agency next door. We both know you’d use your free time to spend time with the girls, and if they’re not free, you’re gonna try seeing if Midoriya is free.” Denki chuckled.
“Th-that’s not true…” Kyoka turned to the side, looking like a pouty schoolgirl. “Look… we’re just friends… I’m sure that’s what he thinks of me as well-”
Their conversation gets disrupted by her phone ringing.
“Distress call?” Denki asked, straightening his body just in case.
“No, this is just my regular ringtone… Who could be calling me, though? I messaged everyone ahead that we’d be busy.”
Kyoka fished out her phone from the sleeveless leather jacket she wore. She stared at her screen…
…
“Midoriya?!”
“Whoa ho ho! Talk about coincidence!” Denki elbowed her side, prompting the hearing hero to stomp on his foot.
“Quit it, Jamming-yay!” Kyoka said through a blush.
She steeled herself, taking in a deep breath and exhaled before answering the phone.
“H-Hello?” She croaked.
“H–hello? Kyoka? Are you there?” The unmistakable soft voice of none other than Deku spoke on the other line. Kyoka noted how refreshing it was hearing his voice again.
“Hey, Mr. One For All Hero! What’s up?” The hearing hero spoke, her confident tone coming back.
“Ah… I’m doing alright… I’m just grading my students’ papers… How are things going with you and Chargebolt?” Izuku asked.
“Pretty boring where we’re at. We’re at this local coffee shop just taking a break… no distress calls in our district, but we gotta keep posted. Don’t want that new syndicate catching us with our pants down.”
“Ah, perfect. Uh… how do I say this?”
… Why does it seem like he’s gonna confess to her or something?
…
“No way, is he actually gonna?” Kyoka’s delusions took hold in her mind.
“U-uh… what’s up, mophead?” She subconsciously twirled her jack with her free hand.
“Well… I’m sorry for springing this onto you all of a sudden… I realize we haven’t talked much since that reunion… and… saying this now might be really bad timing and awfully rude on my part… but…” Midoriya continued on.
“Oh my god is he actually gonna confess?! No way! But no… over a phone call? He wouldn’t do that… or… maybe he would, given how shy he is with this kind of stuff…” Kyoka’s deluded thoughts continued pouring into her psyche.
“I wanna know the address to your music studio. I’m planning to stop by… Ehe…” Izuku chuckled on the other end of the line and Kyoka could swear her heart skipped a beat.
“O-oh! U-uh…” Kyoka blushed. Hard. “I–I’ll send you the address through text so there’s no confusion.” Kyoka chuckled nervously. “Wh-what for, though?”
“Hm? Oh! I’m such an idiot… I forgot to mention… Eri-chan is staying over at your place for a week, right? I’m planning to surprise her by showing up… I-it’s to make up for missing her graduation a couple days ago.” Izuku explained.
“O-oh…” Kyoka deflated. “S-sure thing! I’ll just not mention anything to her… Wouldn’t wanna spoil the surprise, do we now? Hehehe…” She laughed awkwardly.
Izuku laughed back. “Yep. I might arrive around five in the afternoon… Thank you so much, Kyoka… and… it’s… nice to talk to you again…”
“... It was nice talking to you again, too, Izuku… I’ll see you there.” Kyoka replied, a subconscious soft smile gracing her lips.
“Alright, you and Kaminari have a safe patrol now! Goodbye.”
“Thanks, you too!” Kyoka hung up the phone.
…
…
…
“‘Thanks, you too?’ He’s at the school right now, Kyoka, you idiot!”
Though, that phone call… Kyoka might have to reconsider her thoughts on the matter of her “crush” on the freckled man.
She did not expect those thoughts to enter her mind during that call, not to mention the little feelings she had throughout.
Maybe… maybe she did like him… She just tended to not acknowledge such things and brushed it off as irrational thinking… But no WAY in hell was she gonna admit that to the man beside her right now…
…
…
…
A terrified expression envelops her face as she immediately turns to look at Denki, sporting the most shit-eating, smug grin across his face. Denki had not looked like this during their high school days, and Kyoka cursed herself for allowing the electric hero to get the upper hand in their mental warfare once more.
“You mind running me over that ‘I don’t like Midoriya’ stuff again?” He spoke, chuckling in between words like a fox.
After a rather uneventful day of patrolling, Kyoka finally found herself in front of her current home, a music studio on the outskirts of Musutafu.
On the outside, the studio looked very much like an average suburban home, free from suspicion from anybody who didn’t know any better. The house being situated on the border of the city made it fairly remote and somewhat safe from any prying eyes. If anything, she was the prying eye, given how it was sat atop a hill overlooking Musutafu and another city on the other side.
While Kyoka was a pro hero doubling as a musical artist, having released a couple of albums and held multiple concerts, she still liked having some semblance of privacy in her quite frankly, lively, professional life. Only her fellow heroes and a couple close family members and friends know of the location of this studio.
Eri had called ahead, saying that Mandalay had already dropped her off and she’s head on in the studio. It was a good thing Kyoka got Sosaki to hold onto a duplicate key to the studio, otherwise the horned girl would’ve been standing outside the gate for hours on end.
As she opened the gate to her current home, her thoughts raced back to the call she had with the object of her current obsession: Izuku Midoriya.
It dawned on her that this was gonna be the first time Izuku was gonna be in her humble abode… ever… that is, barring the countless times he’d been in her dorm room back in their U.A. days. This was actually kind of a big deal.
“Damn you, Chargedolt… Now you’ve got me thinking about Midoriya…” Kyoka rubbed the temples of her head.
It was surreal having to think about Izuku in such a manner. For years, she’d seen him as simple as a friend. A close friend, even.
Did some impulsive, intrusive thoughts cross her mind about the guy? Definitely, everyone has those kinds of thoughts with their friends. She may have thought about seductively rubbing her hands over his body, maybe giving him a light kiss on the lips in her thoughts, but beyond that?
She just didn’t really think of it as a possibility. She didn’t know why, but she was dead set on the idea that Izuku had different tastes in women, specifically, women that weren’t like her. A sad, self-deprecating thought, for sure, but surely if Izuku hadn’t made advances towards her in the last eight years, then that should mean there was nothing in terms of a spark there, right?
That and Izuku was just that valuable of a friend. She couldn’t imagine destroying what they’d built up over something she wasn’t even sure was there. Hell, she wasn’t even AWARE of any sort of romantic interest she apparently had until Denki pointed it out earlier this morning.
She sighed. He was coming over, there was no need to have all these thoughts circling her mind, unless she wanted his stay to be as awkward as possible, god knows he doesn’t need any more anxiety-inducing social interactions.
The moment she got closer to the door, it immediately opened up, revealing the horned teenager smiling ear to ear.
“Auntie Kyoka!!!” Eri dove from the doorstop and into Kyoka’s arms, the tight embrace from the teen crumbling the leather jacket she had on.
“Eri-chan! Oh man, it’s been so damn long…” Kyoka let out a hearty laugh. “Tell me, how’s my favorite unicorn doing?”
Eri let go of the hug, posing akimbo. “Honestly? Amazing. I’ve graduated and I’ve got a great scholarship to ANY school of my choice! And I get to spend a week thinking about my choice with the best musician pro hero!” Eri’s words made Kyoka feel all mushy. “Where do you think I should go, Auntie?”
“Well…” Kyoka put a finger on her chin. “My old man started his music education in high school just like you. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it, but it’s the Richard D. James Performing Arts School.” Kyoka walked inside her home, with Eri following suit.
“No, actually, I haven’t heard of it…” Eri spoke as Kyoka undressed her jacket, hanging it on a coat hanger and taking her boots off and placing them by the door. “But if that’s where your dad went, it must be a good school!”
“Oh yeah, definitely… It’s one of the best in the country, and you can even continue your music education there all the way until your college years. Though, I think you’re not gonna like it there.”
“Hm? You said it’s one of the best, though.”
“Yeah, but it’s located in Hokkaido.” Kyoka could hear a groan of disappointment from the horner girl as she stretched her arms. “I knew it, you can’t stand being so far away from family, huh?”
“Yeah… I don’t wanna be alone in the big cities.” Eri tapped her fingers together.
“Well, don’t worry kid. I know a couple of music schools within Musutafu or in cities near us.”
The two of them walked into the house, revealing a sleek black-and-white aesthetic around. It didn’t have the typical arrangement of a home that Eri or Kyoka had seen. It was spacious, the borders between rooms having been removed, save for the living room which had been converted to resemble a recording studio. Instruments such as drums, various guitars and basses, a couple of keyboards in a rack, microphones, and even a grand piano were arranged in order inside the recording booth, with a DAW room on the far side, separated by a large see-through window. Outside the box was a lounge area, which had taken the job of being the living room, adjacent to it being a modest kitchen complete with an oven, a microwave, stove, and a counter. The stairs were at the far end, leading up to the rooms where Eri had already placed her stuff and where Kyoka’s bedroom was also located.
“Which schools, Auntie Kyoka?” Eri excitedly asked.
“There’s the Manilow Institute in Hosu city. It’s just a train ride away. They place heavy emphasis on classical pieces, though, I’m not sure if that’s your thing.” Kyoka explained.
“What else?”
“Hmm… Caravan Palace Music School in Kamino. They’re a jack-of-all-trades so you’d fit right in, but you’d better have some decent skill in digital music, they’re very particular with that stuff.”
“Hng, this is gonna be harder than I thought…” Eri grumbled, a slightly annoyed expression on her face.
“What was your first choice when you learned you were having a scholarship?” Kyoka asked the horned girl.
“I thought it’d be cool to attend the Amadeus Phoenix Conservatory, but I have a friend whose brother studied there and he says the curriculum is so strict. I don’t know… their brochures look cool, but I’m not trying to hate music.”
Kyoka laughed. “Well, at least you still got the spirit. Don’t sweat it, Eri-chan… like you said, you’ve got a week to think it through.” She stepped towards the kitchen, grabbing some juice and an apple, the latter she threw at Eri who caught the fruit flawlessly. “And even if you do get through the week without a choice, surely you’ll have a choice by the time vacation’s over.”
“Mhm, thanks for the apple, Auntie.”
Kyoka took a healthy gulp of the juice, slamming the bottle down. “So!” She clapped her hands. “I’m gonna take a shower. Why don’t you set up the studio after you finish that apple and we’ll get to jamming when I come back downstairs?”
“Now you’re talking!” Eri gave the pro hero a high-five as she rushed into the studio, doing a horrible job hiding her giddiness at finally getting to mess around with the one and only Earphone Jack’s studio.
Kyoka chuckled as she headed up the stairs, looking to get refreshed before spending some time with her mentee.
U.A. had never changed one bit over the course of eight years.
The curriculum was still one of the best when it came to hero education, facilities were still top-notch, and even improved upon given the fast rise of improvements in technology, and the students were hungry, if not, hungrier than they once were.
Izuku had never imagined himself being a teacher at one of the most prestigious hero course-aligned schools of the country, but he thought he was doing pretty well with this job. It was perfect to satiate his interest in quirk analysis whenever he was away from gathering data for his hero suit.
Not only that, he was able to help many students realize the potential their quirks had. He’d lost count of the number of students who thought their quirk was ‘useless’ all of a sudden, shot up to the top of the class standings after a little guidance from him. Situations like this were this close to making him go on an ego trip over how cool of a teacher he must be.
To go from being one of the students going through the motions and improving as the years went by, to mentoring the next generation of hero aspirants. It was fulfilling work…
… Apart from the paperwork, which only served to make him hate the job momentarily.
While U.A. was currently on vacation mode following the end of the academic year, this didn’t mean that the teachers had the same luxuries that the students had. They still had to come to meetings and discuss the next year’s curriculum, brainstorm ideas for hero exercises, grade paperworks, and a lot more Izuku would rather not get into thinking about.
The now-quirkless hero sat at his desk, continuing grading his students’ end of term History papers.
“You do realize you can just bring those home with you, right?” A lanky man approached him from behind, startling the freckled hero for a moment.
“Ah- Aizawa-sensei…” Izuku chuckled. “I could do that… but honestly, I miss the school environment.”
“... You work here. You’re not missing anything.” The erasure hero deadpanned. “And you don’t have to keep calling me ‘sensei’.”
“I know… force of habit. It’s kinda hard to let go of that when you’ve been our homeroom teacher for two years.”
Aizawa chuckled, a rare display of outward happiness from the lanky man. He took a seat in the empty cubicle beside Izuku. “So, I hear Eri’s on her way to Jiro’s.”
“Yeah.” Izuku perked up as he stopped grading and turned to Shota. “I just talked to Kyoka over the phone, actually. I’m planning to stop by. Do you wanna come with me, sensei?”
“No need.” Aizawa waved off. “I already spent time with the little bugger a couple days ago. My wallet’s aching after all that sushi we ate.”
Izuku giggled. “Hey, she rarely gets to eat the high-quality stuff, go easy on Eri-chan.” He bantered.
“I’m glad that kid finally knows what she wants to do with her life. It honestly still feels like yesterday that we were rescuing her from Overhaul.” Aizawa exhaled. “And to be frank? I’m glad she decided to pursue music instead of hero work.”
“Why’s that, sensei?”
“I dunno… it’s far away from the stress of hero duties, villains, all the like. I don’t know if I’d be able to handle her wearing a U.A. uniform.” Shota droned off.
“Still feeling some semblance of overprotectiveness over her, I see? Mandalay-san’s capable of taking care of her.”
“You haven’t seen Eri for a while.” Aizawa changed the subject.
“Yeah, I still feel like kicking myself for missing her graduation. That's why I wanna make it up to her by going over to Kyoka’s place.” Izuku looked off to the side. “I’ll get to kill two birds with one stone by doing that too.”
The erasure hero raised an eyebrow. “Ah. Right, you and Jiro.”
“Hm?” Izuku turned to his teacher. “What about us?”
“You haven’t talked to her a lot since your class graduated. Forgive me if I sound gossipy, but did something happen between you two?”
Izuku could’ve sworn he saw a small smirk form at the corner of Aizawa’s mouth. “No, nothing. I guess we’ve just been really busy and our schedules never seem to line up…”
“Is that so? That’s a shame.”
“... why do you sound disappointed?” Izuku chuckled.
“Hm?” Aizawa was confused for a second, until it seemed like a realization hit him. The lanky semi-retiree groaned in annoyance. “Damn… Emi’s antics are getting to me.”
“How is she doing, by the way?”
“Emi’s as fine and dandy as you’d expect her to be.” Aizawa spoke. “But that woman… she’s gonna be the death of me.”
“I can imagine that.” Izuku quipped.
“More importantly, that’s not who we were just talking about. Why haven’t you talked with Jiro in what I’d assume is months by now?” Aizawa deflected the conversation.
“W-well…” Izuku’s trademark timidness returned. “Apart from our schedules not lining up… I just didn’t wanna… disturb her… during her hero work…”
“You’ve had a whole eight years where you weren’t involved in hero work, and now you have the suit. And you mean to tell me, during that entire stretch of time, the two of you have never gotten to talk with each other?” Aizawa deadpanned.
“W-well, you’re exaggerating. Of course we talked! You know, just a handful of catch-up conversations over the last couple of years… but… nothing too big… you know?” Izuku explained.
With this topic of conversation being the purplette, Izuku reminisced for a moment.
The time that he’d spent being one of the hearing hero’s best friends was one of his favorite memories of his days as a student in U.A.
He’d learned guitar from her, they became workout buddies, even had her be his prom date.
That all changed the moment they graduated though.
It’s not out of anything like a big argument between them that only the two of them knew about, no. As a matter of fact, Izuku wasn’t exactly sure. They just kind of stopped interacting with one another.
He could just chalk it up to conflicting schedules; him losing the embers of One For All the moment they graduated meant that he couldn’t jump into hero work right away.
Another part of his brain that he hoped wasn’t real but had a very high likelihood of happening was Kyoka finding a partner. A lot of his batchmates stopped being talkative the moment they figured out some of them were dating other pro heroes on the scene, so this could’ve been the case with Kyoka as well. It had been years after all. And with Kyoka’s hero agency being beside Kaminari’s agency? He’d seen tabloids covering rumors of the hearing hero and the electric hero going out together. It wasn’t far-fetched.
The reunion that they had a couple of months ago only served to make his worries worsen. For the first time in a long while, he felt out of place being there. He knew that his classmates didn’t care about his quirklessness, but the irrational voice in his head was planting seeds of doubt within him. On top of that, his conversation with Kyoka that day wasn’t of any substance at all. He was certain after that day that his crush on the woman was gonna be nothing more than a pipe dream.
Crush.
He wasn’t exactly sure when it happened. Maybe it was the day he entered her dorm room for the first time while Eri was learning guitar lessons. Maybe it was when he was listening to her air her grievances out. Maybe it was the day he decided to ask her out for prom.
One thing was for certain.
Izuku Midoriya liked Kyoka Jiro.
The only issue was he didn’t know if she liked him back. And quite frankly, he’s SCARED of admitting it to her.
Admitting it during their high school years is one thing. It would’ve been acceptable, after all, they were young back then. But now that it’s been eight years? Izuku selfishly hoped that the feelings he harbored for her would dissipate as time went on, but her absence ended up making him crave her presence that much more.
It just seemed too fantastical to believe that after eight years, he still had a chance to be involved with her romantically.
But if he were to admit this, and on the worst case scenario, she rejects him, he’s afraid that the friendship they’d curated when they were still in U.A. would vanish. He’s heard many horror stories about childhood friends suddenly falling out when one would confess to the other. He didn’t want that to happen, and that wasn’t even considering the potential damage to Eri that that would do, given that the girl looked up to both of them.
He figured it was best to keep this happy little secret to himself.
“It’s obvious you have a thing for the girl, you know?” The erasure hero spoke, breaking Izuku out of his stupor.
“Wh-what?” Izuku waved his hands as a blush crossed his face. “N-no… Don’t be ridiculous, Aizawa-sensei… Ehehe…”
All the raggedy-looking man did was look at him with an unimpressed stare.
On cue, as if the universe deciding to spare him from any further embarrassment, the door to the faculty room opens up, revealing none other than U.A’s vice principal, All Might, and.. Mei Hatsume?
“You two look snug in those cubicles of yours.” Toshinori guffawed.
“A-All Might! And… Hatsume-san?”
“Hey, there, Midoriya! Long time no see! Suit’s working wonders for you, I hope?” The dreadlocked woman shouted out.
“Y-yeah, it’s great! I never actually got the chance to properly thank you and Shield-san for that, so thank you so very much.” Izuku stood up and bowed.
“Oh please, enough of that nonsense.” Hatsume waved it off.
Izuku stared back at her, noticing the woman was clad in a formal suit. A black coat over a gray dress shirt with black slacks and leather shoes. Her hair was tied up neatly as well, devoid of the goggles she wore practically 24/7.
“What’s with the get-up?”
“Ah. About that, Young Midoriya.” The retired pro hero spoke up. “Hatsume-san over here is gonna be our latest addition to the faculty staff of U.A. She’s gonna be handling some classes of the Support Course.”
“Whoa…” Izuku walked over to Hatsume, grabbing her hand and shaking it vigorously. “Welcome aboard, Hatsume-san! I’m sure you’ll do great!”
“Yeah, if she can help herself from blowing stuff up.” Aizawa quipped.
“Don’t let my prior explosive tendencies fool you, Aizawa-sensei!” Hatsume pointed a thumb at herself proudly. “This woman right here is the CEO of one of the fastest-growing hero tech companies, Lightly Labs!”
“Right. The advancements your company has put out are honestly scary.” Toshinori spoke up. “I’m certain the longer you stay afloat, the prospect of quirkless heroes won’t be too far-fetched. Our boy Midoriya here just so happens to be the current standard.”
“Thank you, All Might.”
“Alright, enough about my greatness! I wanna know how you three boys are holding up!” Hatsume walked up to Izuku. “Especially you! Any new developments?”
“He’s actually on his way to Earphone Jack’s studio to give Eri a surprise visit.” Aizawa spoke.
“E-eh? N-no, I’m still staying behind to grade some papers-”
“You can do those another time. The deadline for submitting the grades is still two weeks away. You can handle being away from your work for a while.”
“He’s right, young Midoriya.” All Might interjected. “Don’t get too invested in your work. That and I’m pretty sure young Jiro is also dying to see you again.”
Izuku scrunched his face in confusion. “E-eh?”
“What?” All Might asked, himself confused at the reaction from his successor.
“Like I said, Midoriya. Obvious.” The erasure hero spoke up, the grin on his face much more obvious.
“N-no… come on guys… it’s n-nothing like that-”
“Ha! At least your media training skills are ingrained in you!” Hatsume cackled like a madwoman. “You’re not exactly the best at keeping secrets, you know?”
“... I was hoping nobody would find out.” Izuku chuckled, admitting defeat and revealing his crush to the three.
All Might cackled much like Hatsume did moments ago before placing a heavy pat on his shoulder. “Come on, boy. Don’t be like that. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Y-yeah, but it’s been years… it’s kind of embarrassing… I should’ve at least tried to confess before we graduated, you know?”
“You haven’t seen her in a while, and you haven’t had a real heart-to-heart in forever. Now, you have your chance. You never know, right?” All Might continued.
He supposed his mentor was right.
Yes, there is that lingering fear of their friendship being ruined, but if she was a true friend, she surely wouldn’t let something like that get in the way of their bond, right?
While Izuku did regret not saying anything sooner to the musically-inclined pro hero, he surmises that it’s never too late. While he did initially think that it was better to carry this baggage with him to the grave, there is some semblance of comfort to be had with the idea of baring his true feelings to her.
He just had a small lingering hope inside of him that those feelings would be returned.“
No… no this chord isn’t it, Eri-chan…”
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
“It’s not hitting as much as I’d like… hmm…”
“Maybe a major seventh? You did say you were looking for something ‘nostalgic’.”
The jam session was pretty much Kyoka’s excuse to include Eri in the production of her upcoming projects.
Apart from being a place of recuperation for herself, this was also where she’d record her music. Kyoka was actually in the process of recording yet another album, this time, opting for a more slow, mellow rock vibe.
“Okay, try the seventh.” Kyoka said as she played the recording.
A calm, slow rock song began playing on the speakers. A tight drum beat accompanied a dreamy sounding combination of guitar and keyboard, and modest bass playing in the background. Occasional chops of a twangy lead guitar would break in between the instrumental.
“Hmm… hmm…” Eri began tapping her foot, feeling the beat and rhythm of the song playing over the speakers, a purple stratocaster guitar on her hand.
After a couple of seconds, Eri plays the chords Kyoka had asked her to. “Did that sound good, Auntie?” She yelled from the recording booth.
“Mmm… nah… that’s not it…” Kyoka stopped the recording on her DAW and pinched the bridge of nose, exhaustion setting in for a brief moment. “Let’s take a breather. I just realized we haven’t eaten anything in a while. Mandalay’s gonna kill me if she finds out I’m starving you.”
The pro hero stepped out of the DAW room and crashed onto one of the sofas in the lounge, feeling for the remote on the coffee table and turning the TV on for a background ambiance. Eri followed suit and sat on a couch adjacent to her. “I’m too lazy to cook myself, so I’m just gonna order some takeout. Are you thinking of anything in particular?” She lifted her head towards the horned girl.
“Oh- uh…” Eri put a finger to her chin. “I don’t know… maybe pizz-”
Her train of thought gets cut off by the sound of a doorbell.
“Huh. You’ve got a visitor.” Eri spoke.
Kyoka acted oblivious. She knew EXACTLY who it was at the gate.
Izuku had texted ahead saying that he left U.A. early but was gonna pick up some things before heading for Kyoka’s studio. The hearing hero hadn’t mentioned a word about Izuku’s plan, so she had to hide the slightest sneer on her face as she walked to the door, leaving the horned girl behind as she switched TV channels.
The hero opened the door and looked at the gate.
Sure enough, there he was in all his glory.
Izuku Midoriya.
He was facing away from the gate, but there was no mistaking that messy green hair of his. He was wearing a simple navy blue long-sleeved polo shirt, black slacks and his unmistakable chunky red sneakers.
Kyoka felt the corner of her mouth turn up. She had not expected to be this happy just to see him.
She ran up to the gate to get it open, the sounds of her footsteps prompting Izuku to turn back around to face her, his own eyes widening in surprise and happiness at finally seeing Kyoka again after a long while.
As soon as Kyoka opened the gate, the two of them just stared at the other, Izuku himself just slack-jawed upon seeing his friend (and crush), and Kyoka herself unintentionally just chuckled at seeing him again, so spoken words between the two for a couple of seconds.
“... Hey.” Izuku smiled.
“Hey, yourself, mophead.” Kyoka moved, her arms stretched outward a little bit. It was as if she was inviting Izuku for a hug, but she wasn’t too committed, fearing that it’d make things awkward.
Izuku seemed to contemplate for a second, hesitating before laughing heartily and bringing her in for a tight embrace. Kyoka yelped slightly as she got swept off her feet.
“Hey- Easy now!” She chuckled. Izuku let go after three seconds, planting her back to the ground.
“I missed you.”
Kyoka blushed slightly, hoping that Izuku didn’t see it. “... I missed you too…”
Izuku got a good look at the woman that was just in his arms a couple seconds ago. She was wearing a loose-fitting Daft Punk T-shirt, black leggings, and purple Chuck Taylors.
He eyed her face next. She no longer sported a bob cut, her hair dropping down to shoulder length. He eyed the prosthetic jack for a bit, then proceeded to look at every part of her face. Her eyes, her lips…
She still looked just as gorgeous as she was a couple months ago, and all those years ago.
“Auntie Kyoka, what’s taking so- UNCLE DEKU!!!”
A white-and-red blur came rushing at the two of them. Much like how Eri dove into the arms of the purplette, the horned girl came flying towards her other idol who caught the ecstatic teenager with ease.
“You didn’t say you were coming here!!!” Eri laughed.
“My bad, Eri-chan… I wanted to surprise you…”
“Are you kidding?! This day just got even better! I get to spend it with both you guys?!” Eri let go of the hug and pumped her fists high up.
“Okay, you unicorn, that’s enough, you’re gonna pull a muscle.” Kyoka put Eri’s arms down.
“What’re you guys up to now?” Izuku asked.
“Oh… we actually just took a break from recording some tunes…” The hearing hero answered.
“We’re just figuring out what to eat…” The aspiring music student rubbed her belly, the sounds of her stomach churning made evident that they hadn’t eaten anything in a while.
“Ah- perfect.” Izuku stepped back out the gate and picked up some plastic bags along with two flat boxes that he placed by Kyoka’s gate.
“I figured you guys might be hungry by the time I got here, so I got us some snacks and some pizza.”
“... Are you a prophet, Uncle Deku?” Eri looked in awe.
“H-huh? What do you mean?” Izuku looked at the horned girl incredulously.
“Great!” Kyoka clapped her hands. “Guess that’s some savings from my bank account for a while. Thanks for the food, mophead.”
“Don’t sweat it. Come on, you guys must be famished.”
Eri stared between her two idols as she grabbed another slice of the pizza on their table.
Auntie Kyoka looked like she could barely get a sentence out. She could’ve sworn the hearing hero’s cheeks turned a pinkish color around ten times by now.
Uncle Deku wasn’t faring any better. He was talking much better than Auntie Kyoka, but he WASN’T blinking. He was just looking at the woman in front of him like a hawk.
The ambient sound of the TV currently on a sports analysis channel for quirk baseball filled in the very obvious gaps of silence that would come as a result of the two seemingly having no idea how to hold a decent conversation.
It was slowly driving the horned girl mad.
“So… you mentioned you were at U.A. grading papers… uh… how… how about your hero work?” Kyoka croaked out as she grabbed a chip bag out of the plastic bags Izuku brought with him.
“... It’s been great… the suit Hatsume-san and Shield-san created is fantastic…” Izuku said, the last couple words of that sentence being said slowly. “What… What about you? Anything interesting outside of hero work?”
“W-well… it’s just the same old same old for me and Denki, hehe…” Kyoka fiddled with her prosthetic jack. “Honestly, I’m just… waiting for that crime syndicate to do something… you know… so we can… stop ‘em?” She said as she grabbed her cup of milk tea.
Izuku chuckled. “Right. I hope I’ll be there beside you when that does happen.” He said, unaware of how flirtatious that line sounded and completely missing the purplette nearly choking from her drink.
“They are so obvious yet they’re so clueless, it’s driving me insane.” Eri thought as she finished the slice she grabbed earlier. “You’ve been pining for each other since I was a kid, just ask each other out!”
“So… you and Eri recording more tracks, I assume?” Izuku giggled. “Your last album was pretty good! I saw your social media posts and you’re trying a more mellow sound now… Would you be willing to reserve a spot for me when you do your pre-orders?”
“S-sure! By all means!” Kyoka recovered from almost choking to death.
“That’s great!” Izuku smiled and exhaled. He looked at his lap then back at Kyoka, a longing expression evidently spread across his face. “I’m… I’m glad to be speaking to you again… it’s been so long.”
If the blush on Kyoka’s cheeks weren’t obvious earlier, they are now. “P-please, it hasn’t been THAT long… only like… ten months… ehe…”
“Yeah! Ten months too long, if you ask me!” Izuku exclaimed. “Honestly I’m just glad I get to speak with somebody from our class… It’s better that it’s you, but you know…”
“You flatter me, mophead…” Kyoka managed a chuckle.
“I hope my students weren’t too much of a hassle during their internships.”
Eri noticed Kyoka’s vibe shift, being a bit more authoritative. “Oh, you have NO idea, Izuku Midoriya. You and your teaching methods.” Kyoka put a finger directly in front of his face.
“E-eh?”
“Your students are actually headaches, dude.” Kyoka smirked. “Do you have any idea how much paperwork we had to file just for the damages they alone caused? I HOPE Aizawa-sensei is scolding your ass out.”
“W-were they that bad?” Izuku looked apologetic.
“Like I said… you have NO idea.” Kyoka leaned back and drank more from her drink.
Eri continued looking at the display before her as the two got to more conversation topics they could muster.
Everything about her current situation was odd. She was expecting a nice vibey hangout with her Auntie and that they’d be messing around here and there, making tunes for the entire week.
She had NOT banked on the vibe of the first day of her hangout being oddly… familial.
She took one look at the purplette then the freckled man.
She couldn’t help but think about how it felt like she was their daughter.
Now that the thought has crossed her mind… She was sure she’d be immediately repulsed by it. She loved both Auntie Kyoka and Uncle Deku, but she didn’t really think of them as her parent figures. Those mantles belonged to Ms. Sosaki and Mr. Aizawa. The pro heroes she was currently sharing a table with were simply her idols, so to think about them as if they were her parents was quite frankly, an odd thing to think about.
Though, there was no denying the profound impact each of them had on her. Uncle Deku alongside Uncle Mirio were the two people she associated the most with as her saviors from Kai Chisaki all those years ago. She learned a lot from the two of them acting as her big brothers. Then there was Auntie Kyoka: the first person to make her smile, and the one person that influenced her life choices. She’s the reason she’s about to enter music school in the first place.
While she was fine with the two of them simply being her idols, she couldn’t WAIT for the two of them to get together. Even as a kid, Eri noticed that Auntie Kyoka and Uncle Deku would exchange looks that were different from how friends would look at each other. Sure, it took her until her first couple of interactions in middle school to understand, but the moment she looked back at the two in retrospect, it tugged at the horned girl’s heartstrings.
As much as she hated bad-mouthing two influential people in her life, she had to admit the two were being dumb, even if it wasn’t on purpose.
“So… Eri-chan.” Izuku turned to the horned girl, stopping her train of thought.
“Oh- yes, Uncle Deku?”
“Why don’t you and your Auntie Kyoka show me what you guys have been working on?” Izuku stood up as he held an energy drink in his hand.
“R-right! I think it’d be awesome that the first person to get a sneak peek at my- no, OUR latest project, Eri-chan, is none other than the One For All Hero, Deku!” Kyoka followed suit.
“Sure thing! Oh, you’re gonna LOVE it, Uncle Deku. Auntie Kyoka’s such a genius! But, I guess you already knew that.” Eri laughed, a cheeky grin enveloped her face.
“I like the way you think, my little horned friend!” Kyoka put her hand up, and Eri ran towards her, giving the hearing hero a crisp high-five and sharing laughter as Izuku looked on in amazement at the duo’s tandem antics.
The two headed on into the recording studio with Izuku following a bit after. He noted the sleek appearance of the confined space, with the instruments laid about in a uniform manner. Eventually, his eyes landed on the purple stratocaster lying about, still connected to its amp.
It made him remember the guitar he had back at home. A guitar that he bought in secret after learning the basics from Kyoka all those years ago: a dark green and black telecaster. His reason for not saying anything to the punk girl was he wanted to surprise her for when they finally had the chance to hang out together properly in the future, which never happened.
He was surprised the guitar lasted for all these years, though, the last time he’d played was before he received his hero suit from All Might.
Still, there was a small itch to pick up the guitar and pluck a couple of strings. He had become a somewhat decent guitarist after eight years. Enough skill to be able to record songs or play in a band, but he was certain that if either girl asked him to play, he’d show signs of rustiness.
“Alright you two… What did you cook up?” Izuku grabbed the stool meant for the drums and sat on it as Eri stood by, waiting for Kyoka to start talking into the intercom.
Kyoka, who was in the DAW room, talked into her mic. “I’ll play the recording, I want you to give it a listen, Izuku.”
The recording starts playing, with a calming fingerstyle riff. After a couple seconds, the drums come in to signal the next part of the intro.
The song immediately starts sounding a lot more dreamy. Izuku himself suddenly felt warm and fuzzy on the inside hearing the guitar continue playing the main riff as keyboard chords chimed in.
After a bit of time, the guitar goes quiet and the drums become a lot more mellow. “This is where I’d have the vocals in. I’ve got the lyrics down, but Eri-chan and I are still working out the kinks with the chords in the bridge, so I haven’t put it in yet.”
“I can see that! This sounds great so far. It’s calming but still can make people jive along the beat.” Izuku affirmed.
Izuku is then surprised by Eri, who had picked up the purple guitar and was playing a different riff as the verse section went on. The pre-chorus section then came along, noted by the change in the chord progression and the entry of the other instruments.
Eventually, the chorus comes in, essentially serving as the more upbeat version of the intro. Izuku found himself nodding and closing his eyes, letting the music flow through him. It was one of the most comforting songs he’d heard in a long while. Eri wasn’t kidding. Kyoka was a genius.
The same pattern occurs over the next sections of the song, albeit with slight alterations and additional guitar adlibs courtesy of Eri.
The song then reached the bridge, which Izuku noted sounded very empty. “This is currently where we’re having some problems…” Kyoka spoke into the intercom. “I’m currently lost on what exactly we’ll do at this part.”
Eri spoke up next. “We’ve tried every chord combination, even took the drums out at one point. Not too sure as well how we do this bridge.”
Izuku stared at the speakers still playing the track. He could feel the cogwheels in his brain turning. It was great he got into music as well. Now, he could use his analysis and brainstorming skills and apply it in this scenario.
“Hmm…” Izuku put a finger on his chin.
“What’cha thinking, Uncle Deku?”
“Well, I don’t wanna impose on you guys but… don’t you think a guitar solo works in this part?”
“Hmm… Huh…” Kyoka’s face contorted into that of realization. “Huh… you’re not a half-bad composer yourself, mophead!”
“Alright then…” Eri stretched her hands. “Time to get these fingers to work!”
“A-actually, Eri-chan…”
Yes, he was rusty.
Yes, this was probably a bad idea.
But he probably isn’t gonna get another chance like this in a long while.
It wasn’t a bad idea to give it a shot.
“Let me try doing the solo… at least, for the first half of the bridge.”
“... Whoa, seriously?!” Kyoka expressed her surprise on the intercom. “Are you sure, broccoli-head?”
Izuku looked at a green stratocaster hanging on the wall. He walked up to it, strapping it around his shoulders as Eri and Kyoka looked on in amazement (and how awesome he looked). He grabbed one of the free amplifiers, connecting it to the guitar and adjusting the knobs. “Yeah… hit me with it, Kyoka.”
“Alright then, mophead. You better not play any trash, otherwise I’m kicking you out of here.” Kyoka playfully joked.
“Just listen, eggplant-head.” Izuku teased, a rare moment of smugness in his voice.
Kyoka plays the recording just right before the bridge, giving Izuku ample time to prepare himself.
Once the bridge came in, for some unknown reason, Izuku felt himself entering a flow state. He didn’t know how, given that he hadn’t played for a long time, but he could feel his pick plucking the strings of the guitar as if he had owned the instrument since he was a kid. He found himself playing a riff, his fingers rolling naturally between each string as he plucked away, the tone of the guitar sounding a little bit more distorted and dreamier than the rest of the instruments on the track.
He continued playing the rift well into the second half of the bridge. His eyes were closed and his face wrinkled just like how most musicians would do whenever they were into the music they were listening or playing.
Eventually, the bridge came to an end, marked by a high note on the keyboard and right back into the final chorus of the song, prompting Izuku to stop playing.
He opened his eyes, being met with the shocked look on Eri’s face and an even more shocked look etched on Kyoka’s.
“... Holy shit…” Kyoka thought to herself.
If she had any doubts earlier about her crush on the freckled hero, those were now gone.
This man just smoothly played a solo over her SONG. That was so FUCKING HOT.
“Dude.” She spoke on the intercom. “Where the hell did you learn to do that???”
“Well…” Izuku scratched the back of his neck. “I… kinda have been playing guitar for the past eight years from time to time. I wanted to surprise you when we finally got the chance to hang out… but you know… Didn’t expect it to happen after eight years, hehe…”
Kyoka could feel butterflies in her stomach.
This man was gonna be the death of her.
She had that much of a profound effect on him by just teaching him the basics of guitar, that he ended up learning a bit more over the past years?!
“W-wow…” She sat back down on her chair, leaning back, the surprised expression on her face still glued on. “You never cease to impress me, Izuku Midoriya.”
Izuku blushed.
“Wait, Auntie Kyoka! Now that Uncle Deku pretty much solved our problem, we can add the vocals now! Let’s switch places!” Eri shouted, as if a lightbulb in her head went off.
“Oh yeah, you’re right!” Kyoka stepped out of the DAW room and urged Eri to take her place, the horned girl happy to do so, taking off the purple guitar and handing it to Kyoka before stepping into the DAW room herself.
“Should I go with Eri-chan?” Izuku asked.
“No, no, stay. I need you here.” Kyoka momentarily blanked at the double entendre she had just spit out. “I-I mean… uh, I need you to play the solo! I-I prefer the solos played live over the recording of the song…” She explained hastily.
An intrusive thought slipped past her.
The song she was recording was intended to be a duet.
While Kyoka hadn’t begun talks with other artists to provide their vocals to the song, she did plan to sing alongside whoever would feature on the song.
But now that Izuku is here…
She did note that Izuku developed a distinct singing voice, caused by his exposure to her.
…
Screw it. It wasn’t like she was gonna get another chance at this.
“A-also… if… if you don’t mind… I kinda want you to sing along with me…” Kyoka immediately put her hands up in defense, as Izuku blushed slightly. “I-I-I just w-wanna see if y-your voice is gonna be… perfect… for this song… I haven’t e-exactly found an artist to s-sing this with… yet…”
Before Kyoka could further embarrass herself, looking at Eri through the window, who was sporting a raised eyebrow and an unimpressed look, she grabbed a sheet of paper from one of the music stands in the studio. “H-here’s the lyrics… the part in blue highlights is your part, mine is in red… if it has no highlights, we sing together.”
Izuku held a hand up as Kyoka set up two microphones. “Wh-whoa, hold on a second, Kyoka… I don’t know how the melody’s supposed to-”
“I-It’s fine! I don’t expect to get this in the first take anyway!” Kyoka cleared her throat. “Please, I insist… I… I want you to sing.”
Izuku looked her in her eyes, a genuine request. The shine of the studio’s lights bouncing off of them made her look all the more better.
How could he say ‘no’ to such a face?
“... Alright then, Kyoka… I’ll give it my best shot.” He smiled.
Kyoka’s face lit up with a wide smile. “O-okay, hold on… Eri-chan! Stand by for a bit, I’ll just teach this mophead the melody, it shouldn’t take long.”
“Copy that, boss.” Eri spoke on the intercom.
It took approximately thirty minutes, but Kyoka had managed to teach Izuku the lyrics, and even how they’d harmonize. She was glad she gave him the spark to learn a bit more when it came to music; it didn’t take as long as she’d expected to teach the melody.
“Alright, Eri-chan. Let’s take it from the top.”
“You got it, Auntie. Playing the song, now!”
The song starts over, with the intro riff filling the recording booth. Kyoka and Izuku both take their positions in front of their microphones.
The song then gets livelier, the drums and other instruments coming in. Kyoka was feeling out the beat, nodding along while Izuku was exhaling, getting his nerves to calm before it was his time to sing into the microphone.
Eventually, Izuku felt the verse section about to kick in and he stepped up to his mic.
“Am I wrong,
To say what’s wrong with life?”
Kyoka was broken out of her stupor, looking at the mophead beside her. The subdued, clean baritone voice emanating from Izuku gives her a warm, fuzzy feeling on the inside. His eyes were closed, himself feeling the music.
She couldn’t look away.
“Don’t need to take it far,
‘Cause I’m a long way back, from this high
And I don’t know why…”
He steps back from the mic, a soft smile on his face. He turns to Kyoka, eagerly waiting for her to start singing into her microphone.
Kyoka’s heart skipped a beat at Izuku looking like he was longing for this moment.
“Am I strong
Enough to show you that I’m right?”
Kyoka sang in a higher register, higher than what she typically sang in her songs before. Izuku looked on as the girl closed her eyes, with him feeling a shiver all around his body at the purplette’s voice.
“About all of the heartache
that you put me through,
And it’s true, that I think of you…”
Kyoka opened her eyes at the last line, stealing a glance at Izuku with a smirk on her face. Now, it was Izuku’s turn to look at the girl in awe for what seemed like the nth time today.
He giggled silently as he stepped back forward to the mic, the song kicking in at the pre-chorus section.
“Please don’t tell me, things won’t go our way.”
The two harmonized, both feeling an exhilaration creep up their spines.
“Can I be beside you for the rest of the day?”
The two were now locking eyes with the other, bright emerald meeting dark amethyst, getting lost in the other’s gaze while still being actively conscious enough to ready themselves for the chorus.
“‘Cause I don’t wanna be lonely,
I don’t wanna be sad,
I don’t wanna be just a thing that you had.”
Izuku was singing the main melody, with Kyoka providing a second voice, resulting in a layered chorus to work with.
“Don’t wanna be thinking,
We’ll never be.
‘Cause you just never know what you mean to me~”
Both heroes were so lost in the song that they started adlibbing some scats and guitar licks in between the wait for the next verse to kick in.
All the while, Izuku was thinking about just how much he loved being right by Kyoka.
Key word ‘loved’.
It was a strong word, for sure. He knew the gravity of such words wasn’t just something to be taken lightly.
But at the same time, he felt that any other word of less intensity just didn’t seem fitting.
He liked being beside her as they played music. It’s true, but the word ‘liked’ feels like it’s understating how much he was feeling.
He enjoyed singing and listening to her voice. He did enjoy it… but ‘enjoy’ feels… playful… If anything, Izuku wasn’t fooling around when it came to how he felt towards the hearing hero.
‘He loved being with her’ just felt right…
…
Especially in the context of the song they were singing.
He may be an admittedly, absolute dunce when it comes to anything romantic. But he wasn’t stupid.
He’s aware the lyrics to the song are very… longing. While studying the song before they got to recording it, he felt attacked, in a good way.
It confirmed to him how much he actually wanted to be with Kyoka, not just in a friendly ‘let’s hang out’ sense, but in a ‘I wanna spend my time with you’ sense.
He was aware of his hesitation back when they were in high school. He had multiple chances thrown at him by fate. Hell, he even asked the woman out for prom, for crying out loud.
Maybe at the time, it was the doubts of him slowly feeling his quirklessness coming back, the readjustments, the altruistic complex in him telling him to focus on others’ needs before his, the slight fear of burdening her…
The uncertainty that things would be fine.
Eight years later? He was sure he was a fool for even doubting it.
“Please don’t push me away~”
He liked her. And he wished… WISHED… he said something in the past to avoid this feeling of awkwardness welling up in.
“‘Cause you know I’m here to stay.
I got one foot forward where I’m at,
I ain’t looking back…”
Kyoka was faring a lot better than she’d thought singing with Izuku.
The warmth. The comfiness. His presence just made her entire mood.
She kicked herself mentally for missing out on this amazing feeling for the past eight years.
“And it’s me…
You told when you said it would be…”
Her thoughts circle back to the conversation she and Denki had earlier today. How she was adamantly denying everything the blonde would throw at her, her ammunition lessening as the conversation went on.
She already felt bad not initiating some level of conversation with the quirkless hero, then she’d go on and try to gaslight herself into believing her true feelings were just a misinterpretation.
Kyoka realized it now. No matter how hard she tried to keep it in, she liked Izuku.
She liked him enough to want him to stay.
… She began thinking about the song they were singing… realizing that her having him sing with her was practically some sort of subtle confession. I mean, come on… with a chorus like that, singing it with a person who she’s had a situationship with for the past eight years? She’s not exactly a master at romantic interaction, but she isn’t dense.
She was tired of putting this stuff in the ‘maybe’ bin.
She was tired of pretending the feeling wasn’t there.
She regretted not making things clearer between the two of them…
She was certain now.
“Don’t wanna call you out,
But that’s the way it goes and everyone knows,
That you can’t oppose…”
The next pre-chorus comes in, a knowing look in their eyes as they stare at each other once more, this time, a newfound sense of confidence welling in them.
“Please don’t tell them that I was a fool,
I don’t think my pride can take it that cruel…
Don’t pretend that I’m not even here.
Why don’t you wanna make things crystal clear?
The second chorus kicks in.
“‘Cause I don’t wanna be lonely,
I don’t wanna be sad,
I don’t wanna be just a thing that you had.”
“Don’t wanna be thinking,
We’ll never be.
‘Cause you just never know what you mean to me~”
Both of them smiled widely at the other, turning to Eri who was sporting an equally large smile as she nodded her head back and forth, clearly enjoying the recording of the song and how it was gradually taking shape.
The two singers repeated the chorus, with a little more pizzazz in their voices.
“I don’t wanna be lonely,
I don’t wanna be sad,
I don’t wanna be just a thing that you had.”
“Don’t wanna be thinking,
We’ll never be.
‘Cause you just never know what you mean to me~”
The bridge gradually came crescendoing in, Izuku swaying his entire body as he readied his fingers.
He then played the same solo he played earlier, with a little bit more sway in the notes he played. His fingers rolled along the neck of the guitar as he felt the pick in his plucking hand, the dreamy tone of the guitar causing him to start seeing metaphorical colors circle the recording booth.
The one color that circled around Kyoka, however, was this warm pinkish color.
He felt giddy on the inside, seeing Kyoka gear up and warm her fingers up.
Once the second half of the bridge came in, the punk girl joined in on the solo while he continued playing the same riff. She employed the same technique he used, a sign of her musical ability to improvise as a song went on, but the tone of her guitar was brighter. While his part in the solo was a comforting cold, hers was like a burning warmth.
Izuku looked at Kyoka getting even more lost as she played, her guitar sounding as if it was singing. He could see her shiny teeth as she grit through the solo like the rockstar he knew she was, pure bliss on her face as she was oblivious to him gawking at her.
Near the end of the section, they had a moment of synchronicity, the two nodding at each other to signal the end of the solo, a couple of plucks to their guitars, followed by the high note on the keyboard.
Kyoka mouthed a ‘hell yeah’, Eri had the most disgusting look on her face as she looked at the two of them, a clear sign that they had a stellar performance. But now, came the final chorus.
“I don’t wanna be lonely,
I don’t wanna be sad,
I don’t wanna be just a thing that you had.”
“Don’t wanna be thinking,
We’ll never be.
‘Cause you just never know what you mean to me~
I don’t wanna be lonely,
I don’t wanna be sad,
I don’t wanna be just a thing that you had.”
“Don’t wanna be thinking,
We’ll never be.
‘Cause you just never know what you mean to me~”
The outro of the song kicks in, with Izuku playing a riff as a way to signal the end of the song. Kyoka once again joined in after his riff, the second guitar cutting in and voicing a melody, as Eri began signalling for the end, the song recording and Kyoka’s guitar slowly fading into nothingness.
…
“That was… Take 1.” Eri said, a slight note of disbelief in her face.
Izuku panted a bit. He hadn’t expected recording in a studio would be a little tiring. “Well… do you wanna do another take?”
Kyoka was stuck looking at Izuku, not responding to his question. Her hands still clutched the guitar, a small grin on her face.
“K-Kyoka?”
“I think…” Kyoka took the guitar off her shoulders. “... That was the BEST TAKE!” She lifted her arms as she exclaimed loudly. She placed the guitar onto her stands and gave the freckled man a tight hug. “You were AMAZING!!!”
“Th-thank you, Kyoka…” Izuku blushed. “I wouldn’t have been this good if it weren’t for you though…”
The girl let go of him. “Nonsense. You did all that work by yourself! I didn’t even teach you how to do guitar solos!”
Eri entered the recording booth. “You two were so awesome!” She dove towards the two of them with a hug.
“I’m glad you liked it, Eri-chan…” Izuku patted the horned girl’s head.
“Okay… so… you don’t mind if I… use this as the final take, right, mophead?” Kyoka asked.
“Oh- by all means!” Izuku said. “It was great to help you… that and…” His timid disposition returned. “It… it’s kind of nice to know I was one of the personnel for your album…” He giggled.
Oh wow. Kyoka hadn’t even thought of that.
She had already put Eri’s name in the credits of one of her songs in the past. She had no problem including the horned girl again… but for her to put the current No. 4 Pro Hero, the One For All Hero: Deku, Izuku Midoriya in her album personnel?
Answering that question for when she starts promoting the album is either gonna be fun or a straight–up nightmare.
“Well… now that that’s done… what’s next?” Izuku asked the two of them.
Eri looked at the built-in digital clock in the recording booth, reading 19:43. “It’s still pretty early in the night- Oh- Wait, Uncle Deku… don’t you still have work at U.A. tomorrow?”
Izuku facepalmed. “Ugh… no… I completely forgot…”
Kyoka’s mood instantly deflated at what the greenette had said. “... Do you gotta dip?”
“... Yeah… I-I’m sorry… we just came off of the awesome session and now I brought the mood down…” Izuku said, sounding incredibly apologetic.
“H-hey, don’t feel bad…” Kyoka patted his shoulder. “I… I understand… That work ain’t gonna finish itself… Man…”
Kyoka turned to Eri, a slight scowl on her face. “Speaking of work, thanks for the reminder that I also have work tomorrow, you unicorn.”
“Hey, don’t take this out on me.” Eri play-pouted. “Aren’t you two supposed to be responsible adults?”
Izuku chuckled. “You sure have gotten comfortable messing with each other, huh?”
He stepped out of the recording booth, eyeing the food they had left on the table in the lounge.
He hadn’t even begun stepping out of Kyoka’s house and he was already missing it.
Kyoka eyed the man, sensing the same longing vibe she could’ve sworn she’d seen in him earlier while they were eating.
Steeling herself, she took the initiative, grabbing the man’s hand, making him jolt slightly.
“Y-you know… you’re free to visit whenever.” Kyoka said as the man turned around to look at her. “I mean… you don’t have a reason not to… I literally just gave you my current home address, hehe…” She quipped.
At that, Izuku smiled.
Then, he furrowed his brows, seemingly thinking something over in his mind.
“Ah!”
“Wh-what’s up?”
“D-do you mind if I… help you two record the rest of your album?”
What.
“I-I mean… well… to be frank, Kyoka…” Izuku rubbed his arm. “I… I wanna spend some more time with you… you know… catch up and everything, and… if I can help you out while doing so… why not, right?” He chuckled, hoping his explanation would be enough of an excuse.
Kyoka had run out of descriptions for how giddy this dork made her feel. What in the world was he saying? She literally just said he was welcome anytime. And he could actually hang with her and Eri on creating some tunes?
“S-sure! I… I’d love for you to be a part of my work!”
If having Izuku sing alongside her wasn’t enough of a confession, this has gotta be one by now.
“You- you mean it?!” Izuku smiled like a puppy who’d received a chew toy.
“Of course, you dummy.” Kyoka playfully punched his chest.
“A-Alright! I-I’ll come over as many times as you need!”
It was at this moment, Kyoka realized she hadn’t let go of his hand yet.
They both pull back, slight embarrassment and cringe take over them for a moment.
“I-I’m gonna…” Izuku gestured towards the door.
“R-right! I-I’ll see you out…” Kyoka and Izuku both shuffled to the door. “E-Eri… if you may, clean up the table?”
The two of them went outdoors, failing to hear the grumble of annoyance from the horned girl.
As they approached the gate, they took in the appearance of the sky. The stars and the moon were starting to be more visible, small hints of an orange hue painted the horizon. A sole black sedan was parked a couple of feet away from the open lot of the house.
“So…” Kyoka started, making Izuku turn to her.
“... That was one of the most fun nights I’ve ever had in my life.” Izuku said, catching her attention.
They find themselves staring at each other’s eyes once more. A silence emanated between the two of them, cicadas and the ambulance sirens filling the dead space between their speechless stupor.
A giggle emanates from the purplette, followed by a soft smile from the quirkless man.
“I’m glad you think so, mophead…” Kyoka unlocked the gate, waiting for Izuku to step out, but he remained unmoving… and silent.
“... Something on your mind?” Kyoka asked, secretly wishing he would ‘pop the question’, as Denki had said earlier.
“Yeah… but… I think it’s best I bring it up at a later day.” Izuku said.
“Oh come on, stop being cryptic.” The girl crossed her arms, prompting Izuku to pinch the bridge of his nose.
“No really… I really think this is better to be said when I’m not leaving your home, Kyoka…” He smiled at her.
Kyoka was optimistic. She was around seventy percent sure she knew what he was gonna say. “Very well, mophead. I’ll shoot you a message to let you know when we’ll need your mad skills.”
The greenette grinned. “Very well…” He moved past the gate, stopping and exhaling. He didn’t wanna leave.
“I’ll see you.” He turned around and gave a goodbye nod.
“I’ll see you too.”
With that, Izuku started walking away from the house, lifting a hand and giving a goodbye gesture without looking back. The black sedan beeped and the freckled man opened the door, giving one final look at Kyoka who was still eyeing him at the gate.
He stepped in and started the engine. He found it physically difficult to move the car, not wanting to lose sight of Kyoka.
Eventually, he drove off, beeping his horn as a final goodbye and drove off, ready to reunite with the rest of civilization.
Four days later, he was at Kyoka’s studio once more.
While he did get to talk to both Eri and Kyoka over the phone through messages and calls, nothing beats being with them in person.
The quirkless hero had managed to breeze through grading his students’ papers within two days since his visit to the studio. Aizawa looked at him like he was possessed when he submitted his report to U.A. that day.
On top of that, he’d even managed to go on patrol duty. Thanks to Hatsume being present in U.A., that meant constant diagnosis of the hero suit he uses. After a couple of maintenance fixes from the gearhead, Deku was once again on the field.
But now wasn't the time for that.
Now, he is currently staying over at the home of Earphone Jack.
He’d actually been here since high noon. He completed his school work early (again) so that he could rush to Kyoka’s place, not before buying food enough to last them until that day’s dinner, opting to buy ingredients for him to cook alongside the hearing hero and Eri.
After a healthy and productive afternoon of producing songs, the trio of musicians had actually managed to complete recording the songs, Kyoka’s voice still managing to sound pristine by the end of the recording. All that was left to do was edit the songs in post-production to make it sound cleaner for the album’s release.
That night, Izuku opted to cook simple modest meals for them to enjoy: donburi bowls, tempura, a big batch of curry that’ll last for as long as Eri stayed with Kyoka, and even takoyaki, given that Kyoka had the specific machine for it.
They continued working on the album well into the late hours of the night. Izuku had no knowledge whatsoever when it came to music mastering, opting to watch Kyoka and Eri go at it in their lounge.
After some time, Eri had retired to her room, exhaustion finally setting in and greeting the two a good night’s sleep.
The two heroes, however, were still wide awake.
Izuku, in a more comfortable pair of jeans, a dark blue sweater, and a different pair of red sneakers, was taking a look at his phone for the latest news. A re-release of Shuichi Iguchi a.k.a. Spinner’s memoir detailing the League of Villains history, Melissa Shield being appointed the new president of the renowned I-Island Academy, Dynamight thwarting a rising terrorist threat in Okinawa.
“Everything’s business as usual.” He muttered to himself.
Suddenly, he feels a chilling, metallic touch to his cheek, startling him and causing him to look up.
Kyoka was standing beside where he was seated, holding out an ice-cold can of beer, she herself already holding an opened can in her other hand. The girl herself was wearing a plain black t-shirt and jean shorts.
It took every bit of willpower from Izuku to not stare too long at the woman’s slender, milky legs.
Izuku grabbed the beer. “Thank you.”
“Man… it’s late… we’re closing in on midnight. Are you really okay staying here?” Kyoka took a seat beside him, placing her beer in a built-in cup holder on the sofa.
“Yeah… I took the liberty of submitting my reports early… I don’t have to report to U.A. for a while.”
“Lucky you… I do not have that luxury…” Kyoka grabbed a laptop resting on the table opposite her, continuing the mastering of the songs they’ve recorded.
“I’m still not exempt from hero work though… I still gotta continue gathering more data for the suit…” Izuku spoke.
“Yeah well… you’re not exactly running a hero agency and releasing music left and right.”
“Hey, you signed up for this.” Izuku quipped, opening his can of beer and taking a sip. “Out of everyone in our class, you’re probably the one doing the most work.”
“Oh please, it’s not that bad…” Kyoka replied, trying her best to keep humble.
The freckled man rested leaned back on the head of the sofa, closing his eyes and letting out a loud sigh. “This is nice.”
“I’m glad you think so. I had to dig deep to get good upholstery for these couches.” Kyoka said as she continued editing away, an earbud in one ear.
“What? No- I meant… spending time… with you… and Eri-chan…” He trailed off.
Kyoka stopped looking at her laptop, silently cursing herself for missing the point. “O-oh… Well… I… I find it nice too…”
Again… an air of silence filled the studio. The only sound that could be heard was the light humming of the AC to keep them ventilated.
“How are the others?” Izuku asked.
“... Who exactly?” Kyoka answered.
“Well… the only ones I’ve recently spoken to were Tenya, Ochaco, Kacchan, and Shoto. Tenya’s doing the typical rounds, Ochaco’s providing some quirk counselling sessions, Kacchan… I just saw the news… Shoto’s currently abroad.”
“Ah… you mean everyone in our class… Well, me and Denki are practically inseparable, our agencies are next to each other. Honestly, I’m getting sick of seeing his goofy face whenever I go out for patrols.” She deadpanned, making Izuku laugh.
“Yaomomo and the other girls, Mina, Toru, Tsu… they’re just doing their rounds… Oh- I heard Sero’s slowly starting to climb up the ranks.” Kyoka listed some of their classmates.
“That’s good to hear. I’m sorry I haven’t been active in our group chats…” Izuku said. “It’s still kinda overwhelming.”
“Really? Come on dude, it’s been eight years… it’s not gonna hurt to shoot us a message every so often.” Kyoka reasoned.
“Yeah, you’re right. I’ll try messaging from time to time.”
Kyoka enjoyed the vibe tonight was giving.
As much as she loved the little unicorn, Eri not being around to act as the third wheel was significantly improving the mood of their conversation.
It had been a hot minute since they’ve been this… intimate… with one another. The last time she could remember being in his presence in this way was during the day before their graduation.
“Hey, Kyoka?”
“Y-yeah?”
“I…” Izuku steeled himself, taking another sip of the beer he’d been holding. “I missed you.” He said matter-of-factly, no smile on his face, but he looked determined while saying it.
Kyoka blushed slightly, taken aback by how upfront the greenette was. She knew exactly the context.
“... I missed you too, Izuku… I’m sorry… I don’t know why we drifted apart like that…” She placed her laptop back on the table. “It’s not like we fought or anything… I don’t think I did anything wrong… did I?”
“What?” The greenette leaned forward. “No! Don’t think that!” He placed his hand on the couch’s armrest.
“I just… feel bad…” Kyoka sighed. “When we graduated, I didn’t know you’d lost One For All’s power on the day of. You didn’t say anything about that to us, but I feel bad not figuring it out, you know? It’s why I was the first to pitch in when Bakugo came up with the idea to fund a hero suit for you.” She looked off to the side.
“... You were the first one?” Izuku said, making her turn to look at him, a look of surprise evident on his face.
Kyoka gets flustered. She realized Izuku didn’t know much about the details of how his hero suit came to be. All he knew was the entire class funded it.
“Y-yeah… I… Like I said, I felt bad… That wasn’t the only time I felt bad when it came to you, though.”
…
“Remember the last reunion we had?” Kyoka asked.
“... Yeah, I do.”
“I’m sorry if you felt left out that day.” Kyoka spoke slightly faster.
“... Kyoka…”
“No… no, I can feel you’re about to say what I think you’re gonna say.” Kyoka held her hand out.
“Kyoka, it’s fi-”
“Don’t say ‘it’s fine’.” Kyoka clicked her tongue. “You have this… weird habit of adhering to the principle of ‘as long as everyone around me is okay’. I could tell, mophead… you felt isolated that day… and… I feel like such a shitty friend for not making you feel included… I did talk to you, yeah, but beyond surface-level catching up, we didn’t really get to speak to each other…” She continued.
“And… it’s not just that…” She took her beer out, taking in a couple gulps. “All these years. While I was busy establishing myself as a pro hero… you were stuck in U.A. watching as everyone else around you climbed the ladder. I did talk to you over the phone, messages, calls, what-not. But not once did I think to stop by. I could’ve visited you during times when I was creating my music, hell I could’ve visited you with Eri-chan…”
Kyoka shook her head, not expecting to let this all out. It wasn’t making her teary-eyed, but she felt frustrated with herself for not being a good friend to the quirkless hero.
It was great that he managed to find a footing after he received his hero suit, but what would’ve happened to him without it? Granted, it’s not like she thought he’d be somewhere working a dead end job, Izuku was smart and resourceful enough to find another way to be a hero without the suit. But that would only serve to alienate the guy further, she thought.
Part of the reason she was frustrated in herself was because she figured out she couldn’t bear the idea of Izuku being lonely, far away from the friends he’d made while in the hero course, while she continued on gaining traction and strengthening the bonds she’d formed.
She couldn’t bear the idea of being lonely in this studio.
Suddenly, she felt a thud on her forehead.
“Ow! What the-” Kyoka looked at Izuku, who had flicked a finger at her.
“You worry too much.” He giggled.
“... Come on, dude, don’t discount your-”
The freckled man held a hand up. “Whoa, hold on. My turn.”
Kyoka closed her mouth, taking the earbud out of her ear, ready to listen to whatever it was Izuku was about to say.
“I’m really grateful that you thought about me over the past eight years. That’s enough for me to get rid of the doubts in the back of my head.” Izuku looked her in the eyes. “Quite frankly, I was scared that the moment I’d lost One For All, everyone in our class would’ve cared significantly less. But after what you said? I’m glad to find out that you do care… so, thank you very much, Kyoka.”
“Of course I care about you dude, you’re one… no… you’re my BEST friend…” Kyoka said, contemplating if she’d say more than that.
“I know… you’re my best friend too, Kyoka…” He turned to look off in a random direction. “You may be right… I did feel kinda lonely during that party… but come on… you’d think that a guy like me would’ve learned to initiate a conversation by then, right?” Izuku quipped.
“I can’t be the same shy, timid, ball of anxiety that I was during our high school years all the way up until adulthood. I should’ve tried talking to you. Hell, I had eight years. I managed to ask you out to prom, but I couldn’t even try reaching you during those eight years properly? Some guy I am, right?”
He sighed. “The point is, I’m also at fault for failing to try. We’re heroes, part of our job description is to reach out, even when the recipient doesn’t want to. And for me to not reach out to you? For all we know, you could’ve been facing your own set of problems, and I was just sitting in my cubicle grading papers and coming up with curriculums for my students.”
He noticed Kyoka’s hands were resting on the armrest, just inches away from his own hand.
He grabbed it.
“I’m blessed… to have you in my life. And I should learn to cherish your blessing.”
Izuku felt a heavy weight lift off his shoulders. He’d finally said the one thing that’s been eating away at him to the girl he cared the most about in his life.
To the girl he wanted to be by the side of.
Kyoka sighed. “You never change, mophead. Even to this day, you still have a way with words.”
Izuku chuckled. “My mumbling had to count for something.” He joked.
They stared at each other a little longer, aware that their hands were still connected.
Kyoka sighed. “Be honest with me.” A playful smirk plastered on her.
Izuku silently huffed. “Hit me with it.”
“... How long have you had a thing for me?”
Izuku had to admit. He was kinda surprised. He wasn’t exactly keeping it a secret, but he was banking on Kyoka playing the ‘oblivious and dense’ game.
He had to chuckle. “Since our third year.”
Kyoka breathed shakily. “... Wow… it’s… it’s surreal, hearing it from you… hehe…” She blushed heavily, her jacks going haywire on their own. “Why… Why did it take you this long to say anything?”
“... Because I was scared.” Izuku admitted staring off again. “I was scared that whatever we built would come crashing down… Though, I have to also admit that I did kinda feel selfish? It’s like your song’s lyrics said, I didn't wanna be lonely or a thing you had.” Izuku turned back to look at her. “If I’d keep it the way we were, at least I know you were there… Admitting my crush could’ve meant us truly drifting away.”
Kyoka made a risky move, putting her other hand to his cheek and cupping it. “Damn, I had the same fear. But I feel stupid for pushing it back and convincing myself it wasn’t real, especially when you’ve been up front with how you felt all these years, hehe…” She moved her thumb to caress his cheek. “I was also scared that drifting apart would’ve been bad for Eri-chan… Yeah, we’re not her parents, but it’s obvious that the kid worships us.”
Izuku couldn’t think of anything to say.
So he stood up and pulled her in for a hug.
It wasn’t as tight of a hug as he’d given her a couple days ago, but it was the most heartwarming one he’d given her, especially in the context of their recently recontextualized relationship.
He could feel his eyes become watery for a bit. “I’m sorry I made you wait this long…”
“... Don’t be, you mophead… I guess what matters is… I’m here with you, and you’re here with me, finally.” Kyoka returned the hug, burying her face into his neck.
They stayed like that for what felt like a minute, just feeling the other’s touch, hearing the other’s heartbeat.
Eventually, they separated from the hug but still kept a hold of the other, Izuku’s hands on the woman’s waist, Kyoka’s hands on his shoulders.
Their eyes looked even more mesmerizing than usual.
“What happens now?” Kyoka asked.
“... To be honest, I have no clue. I’ve never gotten this far.” Izuku replied, a smile on his face.
“Same here…”
“Did you ever think that we would’ve become a thing?” It was Izuku’s turn to ask.
Kyoka pressed her lips. “I hate to say it, given what transpired between us, but I didn’t. And this isn’t just with you… this is in general… I didn’t really see myself having a romantic relationship at all.” She looked at herself. “I guess it’s how I looked. But with you here? You’ve helped a lot with making me feel less undesirable.”
Izuku scoffed. “You really should take a good look at yourself in the mirror. You do NOT realize how amazing your face looks.”
“Oh wow… you’ve gotten smooth after all these years, I see.”
“You’re not exactly an influence that’s easy to get rid of…” He lifted one of his hands to caress her cheek. “I gotta thank you for that… Not only did you influence me by making me take on a musical hobby, you’re an integral part in my social improvement.” He said genuinely.
Kyoka laughed, prompting him to laugh as well.
They leaned their foreheads against each other as their laughs dissipated, replaced by soft yet heavy breaths.
They could smell the beer coming from their breath, making them think if their words might’ve been influenced by the alcohol.
Either way, they were still conscious, and they didn’t regret it.
They had laid bare their true feelings and emotions with one another.
There was no point delaying the inevitable.
Both Izuku and Kyoka leaned forward, closing their eyes, anticipation creeping in…
… Until they felt a soft touch grace their lips.
The two get lost in finally getting a taste of the other, Kyoka pushing her head forward for more contact and Izuku reciprocating in turn.
They pecked each other’s lips for a decent half-minute before Izuku asked for permission to be let in, his tongue making contact with Kyoka’s upper lip. The girl jolts slightly, before deciding that she wanted him to taste her fully. She opened her mouth, her tongue meeting his halfway, until they played around the other.
The man had moved the hand that caressed her cheek behind her head, pulling her in deeper. This was followed by the woman bringing both her hands from his shoulders back to his face. One hand cupping his cheek, the other playfully dragging its fingers along his jaw.
After some time, Kyoka moaned in satisfaction, Izuku chuckling slightly at managing to elicit such a reaction from the punk girl. Their tongues were no longer just touching tips, it felt like they were devouring each other.
They had been making out for what felt like the better part of two minutes before separating, a trail of saliva being the only thing connecting their lips together as they panted, not expecting to be lost in the other’s taste.
They locked eyes.
“... That was phenomenal…” Izuku said,
“... Wanna keep going?” Kyoka replied, her voice sounding needy and hot.
The man didn’t need to be told twice, going back in for seconds, the purplette herself surprised at Izuku’s hedonistic pleasures.
They continued making out for another minute…
“... Ew.”
The two immediately stop and pull back, a huge blush taking form on both of their faces.
They turn to the source of the third voice, seeing a groggy, bed-headed Eri wearing a Lemillion-themed onesie, rubbing her eye as she eyed the two of them with a disappointed scowl.
“Seriously? You couldn’t…” Eri yawned. “... Do it in your room?” She walked to the fridge, opening it and grabbing an apple, taking a bite out of the fruit.
“... At least tell me you’re done or at least CLOSE to mastering the album, Auntie Kyoka.” She grumpily grumbled, reminding the two heroes of their lanky homeroom teacher.
“R-Right! U-Uh…” Kyoka immediately grabbed her laptop and scrambled to wear her earbuds. Izuku on the other hand, went ahead and cleaned the table of the dishes from which they had eaten earlier.
Eri trodded back upstairs. “Finally… Jeez.”
“Hello everyone, and welcome to Ohayo Tokyo, Japan’s number one daytime news show! It’s good to be back, I am your host Shirase Repota, and boy oh boy, have we got yet another day of exciting news for today.
For our big stories coming up, the downfall of Musutafu’s latest crime syndicate, the Geniuses of the Sky, in full detail! Next, the latest details of the current ongoing memorial parade for the anniversary of the Jaku City disaster.
We also will get an exclusive interview with the one and only Shoto, No. 2 Pro Hero, and his opinions on the latest Hero Popularity ranking polls that occurred last Thursday! That’s not all the interviews, folks, we also will have retired legend, Toshinori Yagi a.k.a. All Might, discussing the latest admission details for all our aspiring hero entrants aiming to get into U.A.!
In our latest showbiz news, Current No. 3 Hero, Mt. Lady is revealed to be the lead in the suspense thriller, “The Flood at Fontaine Bay” directed by legendary French filmmaker, Furina Lemieux. And for our musician hero enthusiasts out there, be on the lookout for Earphone Jack’s latest album, “Heartbeats”, more details to come and is set to release right after our programming ends.”
“We have confirmed that the reports of the Musutafu crime syndicate, the Geniuses of the Sky, have been arrested earlier today at dawn, at exactly 3:54 A.M. Leading the charge and arrest was none other than the No. 4 Hero, the One For All Hero, Deku, dispatching the top bosses of the syndicate. The syndicate was led by the CEO of Damage Control Industries, Iyo Stardom, a shock to the system for many in the hero tech industry, leading to concern from heroes and the general public over whether the tech from Damage Control Industries may be compromised. Stardom has now been taken into police custody, and is set to attend court hearings ten days from now for charges of conspiracy. Back to you, Repota-san.”
“Yes, Repota-san… the parade here at Jaku city has been going as planned. The only hiccup in the celebrations are a group of protestors off to the side, all of whom have been doing so peacefully, but just in case things go awry, a police presence is here on standby just behind our cameras.”
“So, Shoto-san- is it okay if I call you that?”
“Yes, I don’t mind.”
“Ah, very well. So, Shoto-san, is there growing concern from you now that Deku and Dynamight are catching up? Many have speculated that Mt. Lady is soon to drop down the rankings, especially since as we found out earlier, Deku has taken care of the Geniuses of the Sky syndicate!”
“I’m not concerned at all. I see these rankings as nothing but friendly competition, and I personally think it’s stupid that some pro heroes in the rankings see it as a popularity contest.” Shoto lifts his hand to his mouth in faux-Freudian slip as a live audience laughs in the background. “Whoops, was I supposed to say that out loud?”
“So, Yagi-san. Should our aspiring U.A. applicants be on the look-out for anything?”
“Yes, actually. I suggest that you kids get to training and cover all bases because whatever rumors you hear from your higher-ups regarding our hero course are now completely null and void.” The retired hero laughed. “We’ve changed how our admission works, but that doesn’t mean the quality of our assessments have gone down. However, if you truly want some sound advice, a little edge in being tech-savvy may help you out.”
“Ooh, how so, Yagi-san?”
All Might laughed once more, seemingly more maniacal than the last. “I’m not sure if you’ve seen, but Lightly Labs founder, Ms. Mei Hatsume has taken up a post as a teacher, but while she may be in the Support Course, she’s no stranger to helping us out when it comes to creating U.A. tech. Make of that information what you will, aspiring heroes…” All Might flexed and showed off his hero form slightly. “And always make sure to Go Beyond, Plus Ultra!”
“What was it like working with the one and only Furina Lemieux?”
Mt. Lady blew a raspberry. “Oh man… she’s the WORST. In a good way. I appreciate the effort and vision that she puts into her films, but for someone such as myself, having my film debut be under Madame Lemieux is taxing. I still love her though, she makes me wanna push myself.”
“What was it like working with your co-stars?”
“Oh, they were amazing. Just the best. I feel humbled being in their presence and they made sure my work was cut out for me. But hey, I’m the star of the show guys, I’m not gonna quit just because you pull some pranks on me! And remember…” Mt. Lady gestured a whisper. “... I’m a Pro Hero.”
Laughs from the live audience echo through. “Of course, of course… Well, thank you for your time, Mt. Lady, and folks, be sure to check out “The Flood at Fontaine Bay”, releasing in theaters this weekend!”
“How much does this album mean to you, Ms. Jack?”
“It means a lot to me… specifically thanks to the personnel that helped me produce the record. It may not have as many songs as my prior albums, but this is a deeply personal album and I hope that many can feel that as well.” Kyoka answered.
“The personnel, I see? I do have an early copy of the album here with me.” The reporter pulls out the record, the cover art being a gradient of green and purple with a faint ECG symbol in the middle. “Let’s see- Oh my!”
Kyoka chuckled. “See what I mean, Repota-san?”
“My oh my, you might have just fed all the showbiz outlets some articles for days, Ms. Jack! Folks, one of this album’s co-producers is Izuku Midoriya, a.k.a. The One For All Hero, Deku!”
“Yes, he is.”
“He’s not known to be a musically-inclined hero, though!”
“Oh, well, the man’s full of surprises.”
“You mean to tell me Midoriya shredded that solo on your album?!”
“Yep.”
“No way… Deku, that was so cool!”
“Hehe… thanks, Ochaco…”
Another reunion had been set for their class.
They had once again chosen Yaoyorozu’s house for their meetup. It was the perfect venue to celebrate Sero’s meteoric rise on the Hero Billboards and Kyoka’s album hitting platinum within two weeks.
“Maaan, if only you’d have played guitar during the school festival… How cool would that have been?!” Denki exclaimed.
“Mhm! And not only that, you were singing in that one song too, Deku!” Ochaco followed suit.
“Hey, at least he’s playing now to at least help me out.” Kyoka elbowed Izuku’s side. “I can see this guy becoming a regular staple in my records going forward.”
“Is that so?” A smug grin came from the electric hero.
“Uh… Kyoka?” A worried voice came from behind them.
“Hm? What is it, Yaomomo?”
“You might wanna come to the lounge and see what’s on Ohayo Tokyo.” The lady of the manor said.
“Ugh, it’s Ohayo Tokyo, I don’t need to see the stupid paparazzi photos-” Kyoka trailed off.
“W-well… the photos happen to contain you… and… Midoriya.”
“What?!” The two yelled simultaneously, prompting the two of them to run into the mansion’s lounge at the same time, with Denki and Ochaco following after them, sporting equally surprised looks on their faces.
“Oh my god, no wonder Earphone Jack has Deku as a key member of her latest album’s personnel, look at this picture!”
The TV screen showed the two of them walking side by side, wearing sunglasses to hide their identities, even for just a little, but now they’ve realized that the eyewear didn’t really do its job.
“Kyoka, you sly dog! You and greenie finally made it to the big leagues!” Ashido exclaimed. The rest of the class howled in laughter, all while Kyoka and Izuku stood still with flushed faces.
If there was one con to this whole relationship thing as a hero, it’s having to deal with the paparazzi.
But hey… At least they would have to deal with it together…