YOUR OWN RULES AND STORY — KOZUME KENMA.

why do i have the feeling that kuroo is married to someone in the post-time-skip arc

seven hours later and i am still crying my heart out 😩🧡🧡

thank you, haikyuu. (2012-2020)

yo levi ackerman + an airport reconciliation 😔 running to him just so he could pick you up and kiss you djeyeheshsghs my heart hurts

euphoria — levi ackerman

— levi ackerman x female reader (modern au)

— warnings: none, just fluff <3

— summary: long distance relationships might sound scary but you and levi made it work. when you told him you're visiting him during spring break, it feels like he was given this chance to enjoy you in his arms again.

— word count: 2.7k

— notes: i just can't help but make this into a small fic, it's simply adorable and it's making me feel things :<< here's levi and those airport reunions we always see in movies <33

reblogs are greatly appreciated!!

When you told Levi that you got accepted to your dream university that was miles away from his chosen college, disbelief washed over him like a bucket of cold water. He tried so hard to be happy for you, to make you feel precious before going away to the other side of the continent, but it didn’t ease the nervousness he felt every time he thought about you going away. Levi was so used to you being around him, dating him while you’re in sophomore year of high school, and being his childhood friend — growing up with him since you two were in kindergarten. His memory always came up with your face every time he reminisced his carefree days, alongside you, Isabel, and Farlan. It was the same case as the other two but their college plans didn’t impact him as much as yours. You always gushed about getting accepted to Eldia University since you started your junior year. As much as it pained him to listen to the probability of you separating, he still made eye contact with you every time you talk to him about it.

The airport was such a bitter place to say your goodbyes.

“We’ll still be together,” you reassured him, looking sympathetically at his watery small smile. “I’ll Facetime you every day, Levi. Even update you on my schedule so that you know when’s my free time.”

He nodded, cupping your face with tender hands, forehead pressed affectionately against yours. His lips fluttered on your jutted bottom lip as he whispered in a low voice meant for you, “We’ll make this work. I know we’ll get through this.” Levi lets the butterflies engulf him for the last time in a short while, closing his eyes at the feeling of your lips briefly touching his. He tilted his head to capture you in a kiss, both of you desperate for the final contact of affection. He didn’t go as far as tasting you since he knew it would be too hard for him to let you go if he did that, so, he pulled away to regain his bearings. Damn, he’s going to miss your kisses so much. Levi’s eyes are still closed when his words stroke your lips, “I love you, beautiful.”

“I love you, too, Lev,” you muttered with stars dripping on your eyelashes. “I’ll definitely visit you.”

The overhead speakers repeated the pre-boarding announcements. His somber eyes followed you as you hug your parent tightly. With a final wave, you finally made your way to the boarding area of the airport and Levi watched you go.

Now, Levi couldn’t comprehend how time flows so fast. That was more than two years ago but it felt like yesterday. However, he was in a different city this time. A week after you found out you passed for Eldia University; he received a letter saying he got accepted to the University of Trost. Kuchel told him to take the opportunity and that he shouldn’t worry about her living alone, which he reluctantly nodded at upon concluding that Kenny might be a frequent visitor of their house the moment he’s away. By picking this college, the distance between the two of you will increase yet you brush his worries off by saying that you two will make this work. And he did just that.

The first year at the University of Trost, Levi didn’t expect to make friends that quick. Enter Erwin, his roommate, and Hange, the loud person he got paired up with in a general education class during freshman year. The three of them became close-knit, reminding Levi of his own set of friends back in his hometown. It didn’t occur to him to inform them that he was already dating someone until Hange set him up with a girl from the Sciences department. At first, the brown-haired person masked the blind date as a random hang-out between the two of them but Erwin’s guilty eyes gave everything away. Levi didn’t think much about it. But when he saw a strawberry blonde waiting for him in the university restaurant Hange instructed him to go instead of his idiotic friends, Levi felt like an asshole for getting out of the establishment that fast.

Hange got an earful from Levi that night.

Truth be told, Hange and Erwin didn’t believe you exist when Levi relayed the fact that he’s in a happy and perfect relationship with the most precious person in his life — his exact words. (Hange couldn’t believe their ears when Levi used those words.)

At one point, though, Erwin would hear voices coming out of Levi’s room. It was one gloomy night, the clouds promising another period of rain. Erwin was planning on doing an all-nighter, yawning in the kitchen to fix himself some coffee and midnight snacks to keep him awake until morning. There was a sliver of light coming from the bottom of Levi’s door so the taller blond didn’t find anything out of the ordinary from it since Levi also pulled all-nighters when some schoolwork needed it. However, as he passed by his best friend’s door, he heard Levi laughing.

Levi laughing genuinely. What the fuck?

Erwin stopped in his tracks and softly walked back to Levi’s door. He pressed his ear on the wood to hear it clearly. Maybe drowsiness was starting to wash over Erwin. When the next few minutes of him looking like a dumbass eavesdropping on his roommate, the same laughter in Levi’s deep voice rang out again. Erwin was confused. Levi never laughed like this when he’s with them, except for the times he found something adorable like a pair of puppies playing with each other or remembering something while gazing at a large hoodie in a rack. But those laughs were only low chuckles. This was a full-blown laugh. Erwin heard a conversation and he held his breath to hear it more. God, Hange will be having a field day when they hear this. The blond’s eyes widened when he heard, “I miss you, beautiful. I want to hug you so bad. When can I see you again? Hmm? Fuck, you’re so pretty. Agh, why are you so adorable? Makes me want to jump through the screen and kiss your face.”

Then, Erwin heard a name.

“[Name], love you.”

Cue the stalking. Hange thought Erwin was lying but the look on the blond’s face made Hange open an Instagram tab on their laptop.

“Did you catch any last name?” Hange peered over their computer.

Erwin shook his head.

“Bummer,” the brown-haired person murmured. The only way they could access something from Levi is through his dry-ass Instagram account. Hange searched through Levi’s list of following, which are just five people. Them, Erwin, someone called Isabel, a guy named Farlan, and a username that didn’t show any relation to the name Erwin overheard. They clicked that profile and Hange felt so proud of themselves. The profile picture was just an aesthetic shot of a butterfly but the feed, Hange was at a loss for words. Levi’s dating somebody this ethereal? “Are you sure this is the right person, Erwin? This is too good to be true. Look at her.”

Erwin transferred his seat to the one beside Hange’s. “Damn,” he breathed in awe at the series of pictures present in Levi’s supposed girlfriend’s feed. “She’s—”

“Fucking beautiful. Glad to know you think so, Eyebrows. You, too, I guess, Four-eyes.” Levi nonchalantly sat in Erwin’s previous seat, taking out his MacBook and reference book, ready to study for a couple of hours before getting dinner. He didn’t meet his friends’ eyes as he lined everything up in his spot on their group study room’s table. He knew that they had comical faces on but he couldn’t prevent the snort of laughter coming out of him when he finally faced his friends. “You don’t have to go and stalk her, you know? But it’s not my fault you guys don’t believe me when I said I have a girlfriend.” He shrugged impassively. “You fucking idiots even dare to stalk her Instagram account.”

“Damn, Shorty, never knew you had it in you to date someone this pretty.”

“Me, too.” His eyes softened for a moment, pausing in flipping the textbook to his assigned readings. “She has so many admirers that I’m surprised she fell in love with me.”

“We have to meet her! Where is she right now?”

“Oh, you will meet her, eventually. She’s in EU right now, though.”

“That’s pretty far,” Erwin stated but he quickly replaced his thoughtful face with a smile. “Nonetheless, we’re excited to meet your girlfriend, Levi.”

“Yeah, she’ll love you two.”

Spring break in their junior year was nearing and with it came a message that had Levi standing up from his bed. He was just taking a fifteen-minute break, feeling the slight throb of incoming back pains. Plopping on his bed for the remainder of his break, his timer ticking away, Levi fixed his half-lidded stare on the ceiling. Thoughts about passing his exams made him groan. He didn’t notice the vibrating device for one second before groaning again since he assumed the vibration came from the timer of his break. He patted his duvet for his phone, eager to turn off his timer and to assign another fifteen-minute break. He needed it. Your contact name, however, was the source of the vibration. Levi sat up with narrowed eyes. You rarely text every time Levi informed you that he will be studying for his exams.

Love 💕

i’m so sorry for disturbing you, levi :<

just wanted to tell you that i’ll be visiting you for spring break!

there’s no conflicting schedule this time

see you, lev 🥰

Levi’s dark gray eyes kept reading that message all over again while he was hunched on his seat in the airport. His chest was pounding with a tumultuous beat, anticipating your arrival. A consistent tapping on the floor was a sign that he was getting nervous. He turned on his phone to check the time, his lockscreen of you making him smile. It was only about fifteen minutes since he sat down. Five minutes left until you’ll be in his arms again. When you texted the time of your flight, Levi instantly got himself ready and took off on his convertible thirty minutes before your estimated arrival. He kept fiddling with the ring you sent him on your anniversary, the jewelry reminding him to keep calm. When that wasn’t effective enough, he scrolled through his Twitter, snorting at some idiotic posts Hange made or Mike’s selfies that looked like a father took it. He remembered you teaching him how to take a decent selfie, all your instructions flying off his head because you look cute telling him things.

“Levi!”

Levi looked up in a hurry.

Fuck, you’re so pretty for a person who endured a four-hour flight.

You were running towards him and he was just gawking. He probably looked like an idiot right now but he doesn’t care — you’re finally here and you’re carrying the brightest smile in the airport. You’re shining in his eyes. Or was it because the tears were starting to mist his vision?

God, is that his hoodie you’re wearing?

As you’re becoming nearer, Levi could faintly detect the hoodie he bought in his senior year of high school, the piece of clothing that he couldn’t find in his closet because you’re wearing them for the day after staying over at his house. His heart became warm. When you reached him (your suitcase left by the chairs he was sitting on) he didn’t hesitate to wrap you in the tightest hugs he ever gave a person. He didn’t care if people stare at you two but he couldn’t resist lifting you until he felt your legs wrap around his waist. There was a buzz of excitement running through him. Your laughs were the most beautiful thing he ever heard all day, blessing his ears since they weren’t from a computer or phone as he buried his face on your neck. He unwrapped one arm around your back and lifted it to cup your face, tears sparkling against the glass windows of the airport. He stared at your ethereal visage for a second before pulling you in a kiss.

It was as if he feels so alive again — the butterflies flooding his senses and urging for spring to blossom in his body, tingling his every nerve.

Levi poured everything in the kiss. The two years he had to endure without you by his side; of not waking up next to you, of never experiencing you cook for him under the early morning glow, of not feeling your eyelashes on his bare skin when you trail soft kisses over his heart. He buried his hand in your hair, tilting your head to deepen the kiss. He was craving to taste home on your lips for so long. Your bottom lip was caught between his teeth, eliciting a gasp that made Levi’s face and chest warm. He tasted you, tenderly brushing his tongue against yours, with his groan meant for your ears only. Eventually, you would have to pull away for air but when you two did, he immediately pulled you in for another kiss filled with pining. His grip on your back tightened even more and you noticed how his muscles bulged against his shirt and leather jacket. (You remembered how he updated you every time he went to the gym and you couldn’t resist deeply kissing him for the second time.)

Levi had no plans of letting you go.

However, with a final soft kiss from you, you two slightly pulled away. The gray eyes you fell in love with crinkled at the corners, the lips you just kissed were glossy with your lip balm. Levi held himself back by biting his bottom lip at the sight of your kiss-swollen lips, his half-lidded yet hazy eyes focusing on them before trailing to your loving stare. He watched you press your foreheads together, noses brushing against one another in the affectionate way Levi missed so much. He blissfully sighed at the small action that impacted him more than he expected.

“Welcome home, love.”

You chuckled, patting his shoulder to let him know that it’s okay for him to let you stand. With a hand rubbing circles on your waist over his hoodie, you stared at your boyfriend with a giddy smile. “I’m home, Levi.”

Levi’s smile widened. He nuzzled his face on your hair, inhaling the scent of your shampoo that was still the same as high school. “Fuck, I miss you so much, beautiful.”

“I miss you and your hugs, Levi,” you replied softly. Your eyes then caught something glinting on Levi’s ears. You gasped at the small hoop earrings adorning your boyfriend’s ears. “You got your ears pierced. When did you do this?”

Levi breathed a laugh, giving you a peck on the lips before taking your suitcase from the side. He directed you towards the exit of the airport with an arm wrapped around your waist. “Two days ago. I want to surprise you so I impulsively did it. It was either a tattoo or this. I’m not mentally ready for a tattoo yet but piercings sound cool so I picked them instead. Do you like them?” He glanced at you with a cheeky smirk.

“I love them. You look good with piercings.”

Levi felt so happy that he couldn’t breathe. You beckoned him to catch up to you since he paused in his steps to blatantly admire you. But he couldn’t take the step because you’re just so fucking beautiful being happy like that. He was convinced that this was a dream. However, when you pulled on his hand, he was thrown back into reality. And as you walk ahead of him towards his car, your laugh captured in his memories when you turned around with a lovely smile, Levi thought you’re the Sun in his eyes — happiness so raw and carefree blanketing him that reminded him of his childhood.

You’re his euphoria.

general taglist:

@angelofthorr

at this point, i'm really convinced that furudate hates nekoma :))

LOVE EQUATION. 𓍯 CHILDE SMAU

PREFACE. embarrassed by your three year (and counting) long crush on zhongli, you suddenly claim you have a boyfriend. there enters childe, your crush’s best friend and the one who’ll either help with your lie or report you to the police for harassment. or in which caught up in a lie, you had no choice but to kiss the closest person next to you.

FEATURING. childe x she/her!reader, a little bit of zhongli x reader, other genshin impact characters! (they are too many to list)

GENRE. fluff, slight angst, highschool au, fake-dating trope

TAGLIST. please send an ask / message if you wish to be tagged.

AUTHOR’S NOTES. (🧸) means there is a written portion within the chapter. based on ali hazelwood’s the love hypothesis 🫶 one of my fave books and key motivators as a woman in stem!

✹ profiles .𓂃 wonder pets | ass shakers

ch. 01 — three years worth of pining

ch. 02 — eat the rich

ch. 03 — the list

ch. 04 — overpriced coffee and chemical equation 🧸

ch. 05 — overpriced coffee and chemical equation pt. 2 🧸

ch. 06 — hey fake girlfriend *obnoxiously winks*

ch. 07 — terms and conditions

ch. 08 — insufferable pda 🧸

ch. 09 — is this what you call soft launching

ch. 10 — first date

ch. 11 — after school activities 🧸

ch. 12 — childe’s homemade lunch 🧸

ch. 13 — annual sports fest

ch. 14 — volunteer work

ch. 15 — a volleyball player’s WAG 🧸

ch. 16 — after party

ch. 17 — cat whisperers ( literally ) 🧸

ch. 18 — insufferable pda minus the p 🧸

ch. 19 — monthsary

ch. 20 — yoimiya carry fr

can i please request for late night road trips with not-yet-boyfriend levi ackerman? they're pining for one another and wanted to know each other on a deeper level. so, they went on an impromptu road trip at night and they had deep talks <3 tysm aaaa

ready to love  — levi ackerman

— levi ackerman x female reader (modern au)

— warnings: none, just fluff <3

— summary: levi is one of your best friends but before he became one, he admitted to having feelings for you. and now with an impromptu hang-out, you started to realize that he's more than just a friend all these years.

— word count: 6.6k

— author’s notes: i'm so sorry for replying to this request late aaaaa i hope this poorly edited fic will compensate for your wait njwebj i can't help but put the new song of seventeen as the title because i'm obsessed with it since their mini album released. btw, i think i didn't comprehend your request that well so i apologize in advance if it's starting to drift away from the main theme of your request dnwbje happy reading and thank you for requesting !! <333

i can't help but imagine a much taller levi every time i write something set in the modern world lmao and i actually tried a different writing style for his point of view so i hope it works out ksksks

reblogs are greatly appreciated !!

You don’t know where you can place your relationship with Levi Ackerman.

He confessed to you out of the blue while walking you back to your dorm after working on a group project together. To say you were surprised was an understatement because that man has never talked to you outside of your academic requirements. Hell, the first sentence he said to you was about splitting the workload and he looked ready to bury you more than six feet under the ground with his indifferent eyes. When he confessed to you, an unhurried ‘Please hear me out, I have feelings for you for some time now’, you actually didn’t know what to say. You racked your brain for your interactions with him that might give away his supposed feelings for you but it came into a blank. In the end, he managed to continue with a flushed face that he will wait for your answer no matter how long it takes. You had no choice but to nod in understanding. Your voice didn’t come until you went inside your room, with your roommate, Hange, asking what made you look like you saw a ghost.

Can you blame yourself though? You never had someone confess to you before. You always do those things, never the other party. It was mainly the reason why you avoided relationships since you last confessed to a person you liked during high school. That was a nasty experience — them saying you’re not their type hit you closer at home than you anticipated. In short, confessing to someone is a savage thing to do if you don’t want to get hurt while letting go of your feelings.

Levi confessing to you, however, happened in your second year in college.

Oh, how you wanted to go back to those times because being a college senior wasn’t for you at all. You groaned when you noticed that you forgot to buy your daily coffee from the university café. You’re running late for a lecture so you had no choice but to jog a little to avoid being in the spotlight. The fucking door to the lecture hall is in the front of the seats and you don’t want to experience being the center of attention just because you’re late for a couple of minutes. Plus, the professor you have for this class isn’t compassionate and understanding at all.

Thankfully, you arrived seconds before your professor entered the lecture hall. You didn’t even drink your version of a serotonin boost, much less eat a balanced breakfast, so you were already drifting every fifteen minutes of the class. You promised yourself that you’ll be serious for your senior year, not that you weren’t taking your previous years in college seriously, but you needed to focus since it’s your final year before graduate school. More like a New Year’s resolution but make it a resolution for a new academic year that you always narrate in your mind but you failed to always make it happen. But it was starting to be draining listening to your professor drone the theories and applications when you have an empty stomach and zero social battery. The whole time you were sitting in the middle of the seats was spent staring mindlessly at the projected slide and your iPad. Your notes weren’t even that legible anymore.

With a final reminder of your college thesis (you had a small internal meltdown at this), your professor dismissed you after three hours of lecture.

“Hey, [Name],” came a familiar voice behind you.

You turned around and flashed a small smile at the person. Even though you always have a drained social battery when it comes to interacting with your classmates, there are still some exceptions to your little solitary moment, and the person calling for your name is one of them. “Hey, Nanaba,” you greeted the tall blonde and waited for her to reach you so that you can walk together out of the building.

“I saw that you didn’t take down that many notes this class so I wanted to tell you that I’ll be sending my notes in your school mail later,” she told you while hiking her bag on her shoulder. “You look out of it.” Nanaba rose a hand to feel your forehead. “Are you feeling alright, love? Did you stay up late because of your readings again?” She has this habit of calling her friends terms of endearment and it didn’t fail to make your heart warm. “I think you should go back to your apartment to give this day a rest. Self-care is always important and should be put first, you know?”

You chuckled, taking her hand and patting it gently. “I know. But I still have another lecture in about,” you looked at your phone, smiling at the photo of you and Levi after turning it on, “twenty minutes and it’s in the Science Department. I might have a free afternoon so I’ll use that time for sleeping.” You sighed, smiling at Nanaba who was looking at you with a knowing smirk. You rose an eyebrow at her in confusion. “What?”

“For a person who says they’re just friends, you still have that picture as your lock screen,” Nanaba teased, pointing at your phone.

You felt your cheeks go warm, looking away from your friend and fixing your attention on a group of students doing a round of review for an exam in the courtyard. One of them recognized you and rose a hand in a slight wave. Armin Arlert, the first-year who asked you for directions and advice knowing that you two belong in the same department. You returned his wave with a smile before glancing at Nanaba, who was still smiling smugly. “It’s cute,” you murmured under your breath with a jut of your bottom lip. “Plus, he’ll think there’s something wrong if I change it. And for your information, it was Hange who told me that it’s alright to put it as my wallpaper. We’re really just friends.”

“Hmm, now why is that?”

“It’s not what you think! I mean, he’s one of my best friends and I sort of appreciate him by putting this picture as my lock screen.”

Nanaba continued humming with a half-smile. You were so cute when you were flustered and the tall blonde couldn’t help but tease you some more. It was true that Levi’s one of your best friends despite having confessed to you when you were sophomores (Nanaba doesn’t know this fact) but the blonde could tell that something was underlying in your friendship. Friends don’t just casually kiss each other on the corner of the lips whenever they meet after a long day in university. Maybe Nanaba was looking too much into this because today, you can be platonically in love with your friends but the way Levi looked at you every time beholds something more than friendship. If Nanaba could place it in words, Levi is madly in love with you. Well, she doesn’t hang out with your friend group but she can tell when Levi picks you up sometimes.

It’s quite fun being a bystander to all of this so Nanaba patted you on the head as a way to stop her teasing. She will have to gossip about this to Hange later.

“Trust me, you won’t be friends any longer.” The blonde looked up and nearly cackled at a familiar man waiting for you at the nearby bench. “Well, speaking of your little devil, he’s here, [Name].”

“What?” You asked, looking up from your phone. Hange texted you about getting some groceries because they forgot to buy them yesterday. It was quite amusing rooming with Hange for your entire college experience, from the dormitories to renting out a decent apartment. Rather than getting mad at them for their antics, you found them endearing. You looked around with furrowed eyebrows. “Where?”

Nanaba gently guided your head to look at somewhere to the right. “There.”

True enough, Levi was casually sitting on one of the benches, scrolling through something on his phone. It was as if he felt you staring at him so he looked up directly in your direction, pocketing his phone and slinging his backpack over his shoulder right after. There was a familiar large cup in his other hand and it made you crave your coffee again. He never took his eyes off of you as he made his way over, glancing at Nanaba and nodding at her once he reached the two of you.

“Hey, Nanaba,” Levi greeted, tugging on a piece of your hair to get you out of your daze.

Nanaba’s smile made you narrow your eyes. (Levi tugged on your hair again to catch your attention.) “Hello, Levi.” She then perked up, not liking the way Nanaba wiggled her eyebrows at you. “I’m meeting up with Nifa for some late breakfast so I hope to see you guys later. And, [Name],” Nanaba pointedly looked at you, “think about what I said earlier. Rest and do things that can make you feel relaxed. Play your games or read a book, just don’t grind for academics for one second. Levi, keep an eye on her. Bye!” The tall blonde turned around and bounded off to the opposite direction of where Nifa’s department building is.

You didn’t notice Levi squinting at how you stared incredulously at a retreating Nanaba. The whole time he made his presence known, you didn’t give him the greeting you always exchange together. You heard a faint, “Hey,” near your ear. It made you turn to Levi, only for your voice to disappear when he leaned in to give you the usual kiss on the corner of your lips. The contact lingered for a couple of seconds so you returned it as soft as you can. However, Levi slightly turned his head to meet your pretty eyes, with your kiss landed at the center of his lips instead. The two of you stare wide-eyed at each other, not comprehending what transpired at the moment. As much as it ensued both of your heartbeats to pound in a song, Levi made sure to capture you with his stare. Your face started to become warm when you saw his face being painted with rouge as you pulled away.

Levi lightly licked his bottom lip. “You taste like watermelon.”

If the world stopped when you accidentally brushed your lips against his, his words just made an uncontrollable torpedo of butterflies flutter the insides of your stomach and chest. You hitched your backpack on your shoulders and walked away from him with fast footsteps. Nanaba was right, you two weren’t ‘just friends’ at all. There was something behind every gesture that made your body tingle with emotions that weren’t supposed felt for a close friend. You tried so hard to bottle everything up, resorting to thinking about Levi deep into the night whenever you have some backlogs to finish. After his confession during your sophomore year, you saw him in a completely different light. This man who was just a passing face in your day became one of the many people you look forward to talking to. Once he started being your friend, Levi made you feel loved and special through his little actions that sometimes, you wish it didn’t give you butterflies every damn time. You even wonder if Levi forgot about his feelings for you as the years go by.

What they said was true — that you’ll slowly notice the person who expressed their feelings for you.

You heard footsteps following close by but you didn’t have any strength to stop and turn around, fearing that looking at Levi right now could make your brain malfunction. A gentle hold on your wrist held you back, slightly turning you around, and yet you could only fix your stare on the pavement.

“Don’t be sorry, okay? It’s my fault. A-And it’s not like I don’t like it.”

You looked at him through your eyelashes, feeling his thumb rub the inside of your wrist. He was wistfully looking down where his hand was wrapping around your wrist before meeting your eyes, the eye contact spanning more than eternity. Once again, your face felt warm. “I don’t mind it either,” you whispered.

“G-Good to know.” He let go of your wrist to scratch his undercut. “Uhm, here’s my drink. I have an inkling that you didn’t get to order your coffee earlier so here you go.” Levi handed you his tall cup of hot tea, slightly raising his eyebrow when you only stared at it. “What? You don’t want it? There’s still caffeine in here, you know?”

“Are you sure?” You slowly asked him because you know how Levi cherishes his daily tea from the university café. One time, Hange reached out for a sip and Levi smacked their hand so hard that you had to apply ice on her hand. Levi apologized for that only because you made him feel guilty about it. After that incident, you, Hange, and Erwin always made sure to buy your own drinks when you have your hang-outs. “I don’t want to have a repeat of what you did to Hange.”

His shoulders shake in a silent laugh. “No, I will never hurt you. Four-eyes had it coming anyway because they didn’t ask for my permission but I’m genuinely offering this to you so it’s kind of different.” Levi fiddled with a lock of your hair and you felt your cheeks becoming warm again. “Are you just going to stare at me like I’m your worst nightmare or are you going to take it?”

You shook your head. “No, you’re not my worst nightmare and I’ll be accepting this because you so graciously offered it to me.” With a soft smile, you took the cup of tea from his hand and took a sip. At the taste of the sweet drink, you hummed in contentment. Nothing beats a good, sweet, and warm drink to fill up your serotonin levels every morning. You detect a slight scent of strawberries and a small amount of milk in the tea, wondering when Levi started asking for add-ons in his drinks. You always remembered his favored drink since you were sometimes tasked with telling the counter your orders and it was always black tea with nothing at all. You narrowed your eyes at him from over the rim of the cup, detecting the delighted shine in his gray eyes. “You don’t put anything in your tea. Especially sweeteners and milk.”

Levi shrugged with a small smile, ruffling your hair before wrapping his arm around your shoulders to steer you to your next class. “I wanted to have something for a change.” He glanced at you from the side of his eyes. “From the way you’re drinking it, I think it’s a good idea to change my order for the day. You need it more than me anyway. I can manage a day without some tea from the uni’s café. I make better tea than them, to be honest.”

You laughed at his last statement, slightly leaning on him. You felt his hand transfer from your shoulder to your waist.

“Is this alright?” Levi whispered in your ear.

“Yeah,” you hummed, praying that Levi wouldn’t hear your heart racing in your chest.

You seriously don’t know when you started falling in love with him but the present is all that matters.

Levi knew exactly when he started falling in love with her.

It was a coincidence that his schedule matched up with her but it wasn’t a coincidence that she caught his attention while walking out of a class with Erwin during freshman year. His tall friend was telling him about a new book that was coming out. All Levi could remember from his gushing was how the book had unknown creatures in them that made the blonde excited enough to buy it. Something was occupying Levi’s mind that muddled his memory of what Erwin was talking about. Actually, it wasn’t something. A girl walked out of the building they were walking along by and Levi felt his curiosity piqued, Erwin’s words becoming static as his gray stare never left her. She wasn’t even wearing flashy clothes but the moment she turned her head in their direction as if she was looking for something, Levi’s heart stuttered in his chest.

She’s so fucking beautiful to him — like the shooting star he found mesmerizing while he was stargazing with his mother when he was twelve. The whole minute was spent just looking at her, seeing how she shifted her attention to the other side of the courtyard before bringing her pretty eyes to him again. He saw how her eyebrows slightly furrowed at his gawking, irises glinting with suspicion. Levi didn’t realize he stopped walking when Erwin jogged back to him, checking to see what made his friend stop. Levi didn’t even register that Erwin was beside him once again as he watched her wave at a tall brown-haired person.

“Hey, Erwin, who is that?”

Erwin followed his gaze to the pair walking away, looking back at Levi who was still looking at the girl. He chuckled before patting his friend on the shoulder. “That’s [Name] if I can recall correctly. She’s also in my Statistics class. She’s pretty much a quiet person most of the time but when you try to approach her kindly, she’ll warm up eventually. The person with them is Hange, her roommate, I think. Why do you ask?”

“Nothing.”

It was not nothing, of course, because Levi found himself looking all over the campus for just a glimpse of the girl. She was very much like a passing wisp every time Levi walked down the hallways of the different buildings of their university. For a huge campus, there was no chance of seeing the girl again and Levi was left with the remnants of her in his memory. No matter how much he convinced himself that it was an attraction that he felt when he first saw her, Levi would always crane his head over the crowds, wishing that he could float on a cloud to overlook everyone else. All to search her. And finding her was like a stroke of luck because Erwin showed him an Instagram account with pictures of her. Levi followed the account without any second thought. That only added to his never-ending curiosity and interest for the girl named [Name], making his chest blossom with red carnations and yellow tulips.

Levi was perfectly content with admiring her from afar. Their paths sometimes intertwined with each other whenever there were events around the campus. She was always with that tall, talkative brown-haired person that Levi was starting to think that maybe she already gave her heart to another. But that didn’t stop him from glancing at her if they were in the same vicinity. Levi couldn’t fathom how a person could be that pretty without even trying – mesmerized at every action she did no matter how small it is. Everything paled in comparison whenever she’s around.

He always knew that he was the kind of person who never delved deeper into strange connections with others, relying on interactions to further deepen the bond they already established. This is the case with every person Levi encountered in his life. His hometown friends, Isabel and Farlan, and even Erwin were prime examples. Nobody could ever break down his well-crafted walls with just a single word. It wasn’t that [Name] was an exception (she still didn’t earn his permission to enter his life simply because they never talked once) but Levi will readily shed his guard little by little upon knowing what kind of person she is. Too bad Levi was too shy to approach her. The rest of his first year in university was spent complying with the requirements of his courses and thinking so hard on his newly-accumulated feelings for a girl he doesn’t know anything about (except for the little posts her roommate writes on Twitter, tagging her in some of them). He decided that if everything was unrequited, he will do himself the favor to confess to her and let the feelings go because it wouldn’t benefit him in the end.

Everything came into place when he was in sophomore year.

Every shred of his plan of burying his feelings for the girl vanished like a wisp he saw on the night sky.

“Please hear me out, I have feelings for you for some time now.”

Levi knew that was a wrong move. If this was a chess game, he was already risking his king of being placed in checkmate. He had no control over his mouth when it came to her and he hated himself for that. It might be the comfortable atmosphere they established or it could be that Levi found her beautiful under the stars, but he knew that his feelings were overflowing to the point that he couldn’t hold it in anymore. Her shocked face was piercing, hurting him in the best way possible because she still looked pretty. The disbelief painted on her face was enough for Levi to realize how stupid he was at blurting out his feelings.

But fate thought it would be funny to make them closer as friends after that incident.

The late-night musings immediately stopped when the next song played in Levi’s earphones. He was doing revisions in one of his courses, his desk piled up with readings and highlighters that were still aligned beside the papers. He ran his hand through his hair, making it flop on his forehead. The weight of being a senior was getting to him as he let himself fall back on his desk chair. The little glow-in-the-dark star stickers [Name] placed on his ceiling greeted his vision. She was cute while reaching up on the small ladder Levi placed in the middle of the room. Levi remembered how she slipped and how she snuggly fit in his arms in a desperate attempt to catch her. He shook his head to quell his fast heartbeat, every single thought revolving around the young woman rendering him breathless. The moment his stomach growled, Levi straightened himself in his seat and took a deep breath.

His phone was then in his hands, his fingers typing out a message without second thoughts.

Hey, I’ll be picking you up in ten.

With a pounding heartbeat, Levi put on one of his jackets before taking his car keys. Locking his apartment, he went out and drove to her shared apartment with Hange. The moment he parked his car, he went out and leaned himself on the door to the passenger seat. Levi was preoccupied with reading some of the tweets in his timeline when he heard the sliding doors to the apartment complex open to a very concerned [Name]. She ran towards him and patted his tense figure before turning his head from one side to another as if searching for any injuries. Her sigh of relief followed as she placed her hands on his chest.

“I thought something went wrong.” Her dazzling eyes looked up at him, narrowed yet captivating at the same time. “You rarely text something that cryptic, Levi.”

Levi said nothing, his silver eyes roaming on her figure. With a hum, he cupped her face with a gentle hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his front. He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss on the corner of her lips, hearing her breath hitch. His heart accelerated once again at the thought of kissing her fully on the mouth. If he could just tilt his head a little bit more to the right, he would’ve done that. He couldn’t forget the taste of her watermelon chapstick earlier, how intoxicating it was that it distracted him from all of his lectures. Not to mention that the hoodie she was wearing was one of his. The physical contact lingered for a few moments until they stared at each other, Levi’s thumb rubbing on the apple of her cheek. The warmth on their faces could be picked up at their proximity. Levi wished he could stop time right here but he remembered how hungry he was.

Pulling his face away from her mesmerized one, Levi caressed the small of her back. “I’m hungry.”

[Name]’s love-struck face turned into a reprimanding one. “You didn’t eat dinner again, did you?”

He shrugged. “Sue me.”

The woman in his arms sighed before turning around to gesture him to follow her. “Come in the apartment. I know Hange won’t mind if I cook for you at this hour. They’ll probably even rejoice you’ll grace them with your presence at this late evening.” She felt his grip around her tighten. “Levi?”

“Let’s drive around town.” Levi prayed that she wouldn’t see how his cheeks became red. “I want to spend this night with you. Alone.”

It looked like [Name] wasn’t breathing as she stared at her close friend. “Oh.” The locks of her hair fluttered from the wind as she looked at the side to hide her warming face. This man will be the death of her someday. It wasn’t fair that he was constantly running his mouth to say things that can make her heart stutter in her chest. “Uhm, sure, but I’m actually dressed for bed right now. I hope that’s okay with you?”

“You’re perfect either way.” Levi tugged at the hem of the hoodie [Name] was wearing with a half-smile. “I’d rather stare at how you look good with my clothes on.” When he continued tugging, he caught a glimpse of a very familiar shirt below the thick material of the hoodie. “And is this my old jersey from the volleyball team? You still kept it? It’s so worn out, you know.”

“It’s comfortable,” she smiled, fiddling with the ends of his hoodie. A laugh laced with playful disbelief bubbled in her chest. “I still couldn’t imagine you playing volleyball during freshman year,” she stated as Levi pulled her to the vehicle. Once the two of them settled in the warm confines of Levi’s car, [Name] turned to him with a grin. “I swear, I didn’t even know that fact until last year when Erwin randomly said it.”

“It’s not that important, to be honest. I was roped in because somebody practically shoved the application form in my hands while Erwin and I were walking around the welcoming booths at the start of freshman year. It was a chaotic mess and I couldn’t return it because the person got swallowed by the crowd. I didn’t know what came over me to join. All I know is that I can’t juggle academics and sports at the same time so I quit in sophomore year. I couldn’t get used to it, I guess.” Levi steered the car to the nearest McDonald’s, his hand comfortably placed on [Name]’s bare thigh (she was wearing shorts, a fact that always distracted Levi), rubbing on her skin until he felt warm in his side of the car. “What about you, any secret clubs you forgot to mention to me?”

[Name] hummed before Levi felt her fingers tracing the back of his hand. He mindlessly turned his hand palm up for their fingers to entwine, gaze focused on the road. “I once joined the softball team.”

“What?” Levi glanced at her for a second. “Really? When was that?”

“Same as you. At the start of freshman year. I quit before that academic year ended because I thought being on a sports team would take too much of my time. Hange was probably the one who convinced me to join the university team. They said that I should also focus on my physical fitness because I was acting like a slug most of the time in our dorm.” She chuckled at the memory, wistfully staring at the blinking cityscape as they passed by some of the establishments in their side of the town. “They even pinpointed my many mannerisms just to rile me up and eventually I joined.” Levi glanced at her once again, the sight of her measuring their hands together making him smile a little. “I had no idea how the sport works. The senior in the team was kind enough to teach me the basics but it wasn’t for me at all.”

“I understand,” Levi replied, turning the car to the right until they saw the sign of the fast-food restaurant ahead of them. “Peer pressure sucks. Especially if that friend is Four-eyes. I hate it when they put me in the hot seat sometimes.”

[Name] laughed. “That’s Hange for you. They mean well though.”

“For you, I guess. For me, I’m starting to think they’re trying to embarrass me.” He squeezed her hand to catch her attention. “Hey, should we order in the drive-thru?”

“Works for me.”

Levi nodded and drove towards the drive-thru of the building. Once their order was packed in paper bags, he handed them to [Name], who happily gasped when she saw that he ordered the strawberry shake she always bought. When everything is in place, Levi focused on the road again until he felt something poke his lips. He looked down on a piece of French fry being handed to him by a bright-eyed [Name]. He lowly laughed before opened his mouth to let her feed him the fries. His hunger made the food even more delectable, making him hum in satisfaction, with his last meal being lunch which was hours ago. “Where do you want to stop, beautiful?” The terms of endearment flew out of his mouth without him controlling it, never noticing how [Name] froze in the passenger seat with warm cheeks. “It’s going to be hard eating all of this in the car.”

“Anywhere you like, ‘Vi,” she murmured, trying so hard to brush away the nickname.

“Mm-hmm. How about going to that hill overlooking the university? We can stargaze as well.” Levi sheepishly gazed at her. “That is if you think it’s not too far.”

“Never.” She shook her head, an endearing smile painted on her face. “We have the night to ourselves, might as well go for it.”

Levi fell in love with her all over again.

The stars were brighter than usual as you gazed up at the canopy of constellations, the midnight hue of the sky is reflected in your eyes. The weather was in your side, with the night breeze occasionally ruffling your hair, with you wondering who was thinking of you at the moment for the wind to gently thread its fingers through your hair. Levi retracted the roof of his convertible to let the moment play out, the low tune on the radio filling in the background as you two munched on your food (for Levi, his dinner, while for you, a late-night snack). At times, you didn’t notice how his silver eyes flickered at your side profile. For him, the night sky and you are the perfect combinations for a distraction in the dreaded senior year of university. Everything you do is spell-binding for him, even if you were taking a bite of your chicken sandwich and slurping it down with your strawberry shake. As if sensing the stare, you looked back at him, raising your eyebrows cutely to wordlessly ask what was wrong.

Levi shook his head, his hand pinching your cheek. “Nothing.” He continued staring at you with the softest gaze, his smile reaching the corners of his eyes. “You just look so pretty, that’s all.”

“Don’t make my ego inflate even more, Levi,” you joked. “I look like a hobo. You look, well,” you shifted your attention on the windshield to avoid his inquiring eyes, “you look amazing for someone who is studying for more than three hours. Good for you.”

“I try.” The onyx-haired man shrugged lightheartedly. “But you’re the pretty one in this relationship, and that’s a fact.” He punctuated his statement with a bite of his burger, careful enough to not let the lettuce slide down his hand. “Hey, can I take a picture? I know I’m not good at taking pictures but I need a new post. Hange was pestering me to keep my account alive.”

“They’re right,” you nodded, popping a fry in your mouth. “Your last post was three months ago.” Wiping your hand on the napkin found in the paper bag, you shifted in the passenger seat so that your back was facing the door. “So, what do you want me to do?”

“Just sit still and look pretty.”

You laughed. “How do I do that?”

“I don’t know, you always do it. You’re just unaware.”

The heat on your cheeks was traveling towards your ears now, the butterflies continued fluttering inside your stomach and chest. You thought of how Levi continued to be your friend after spilling out his feelings to you and how he always made you laugh at the most random times of the day with his dry humor — the loving smile directed at the person behind the camera appearing instantly on your face. You didn’t know how many pictures Levi took but at that shot, he slowly lowered his phone with a star-struck expression stuck on his face. You also didn’t know what made him look like that but you couldn’t help but be captured in his gaze as well. The two of you looked at each other until Levi cleared his throat before opening his phone to tweak the filter of the pictures. However, the spell wasn’t broken because you sat near him, placing your chin on his shoulder as you watched him make the shots even more aesthetic. After a few moments, your phone dinged with the tag from him and you straightened on your seat, already missing Levi’s warmth.

“There,” Levi murmured with red cheeks. “Hange and Erwin should be happy by tomorrow when they see this.”

You smile at the comfortable silence, letting the radio play a random song. It was then that a thought came into your mind that you couldn’t stay quiet.

“Levi, when did you fall in love with me?”

You always ached to ask that question because you couldn’t draw something from your freshman year until sophomore year. You couldn’t believe how such an amazing person managed to stumble in your life. It was true that you don’t remember meeting his eyes while you just got out of your classes in search of Hange but you remembered how he always stared at you whenever you talked. He always made sure you were heard. But the times before that, you were beyond confused that he would randomly tell you that he liked you for a while. You wanted to ask him that question ever since his confession became reality two years ago and you wanted to know if he still feels the same way. You have to make sure because what you’re feeling for him at the moment wasn’t meant for friends. How could you even tell him that, to begin with?

“Which time are you asking?” Levi softly asked, never looking away from the beauty that is you.

“What?” Your confusion is apparent in the air but Levi only answered with a chuckle. “Hey, I’m serious. You know, I never had someone confess to me until you. It was always me who was doing the confessing. I stopped doing that in the last year of high school because I sounded dumb with my reasoning. Even though I know I don’t have a chance with him and that I wasn’t his type at all, I still said it. We were sort of mutual friends and I kind of ruined it. I was thankful when I found out he was going to another university.” You laughed humorlessly. “Every single time, it was always unrequited and I was sick of it to the point that I told myself to never engage in those feelings when college starts.”

“That guy’s an asshole,” Levi snorted. “When I started crushing on you, I was perfectly fine with being a distant admirer. Have you seen yourself?”

You looked anywhere except for the man beside you. “No?”

He softly flicked your forehead. “Idiot. What I’m trying to say is, those people you’ve been confessing to, they don’t know how lucky they are to hear you say those words. I’m not saying that I should be hearing those words from you right now but to have someone this amazing and talented and beautiful falling in love with them, they pretty much have the entire world the moment you said you liked them. I might be looking at everything in rose-colored glasses but everything you do, [Name], is absolutely mesmerizing to me.” He placed the large cup of soda in the cupholder before holding your face in his hands. “They don’t appreciate that a piece of art was doing the admiring when you should be the one being admired. I would give the world to hear you say you love me back, beautiful, but I’m willing to wait years for you to feel the same way as me.”

Your vision became misty, throat clogging with emotions, and bottom lip being bitten to prevent a small sob. “So when?” You asked again with a shaky voice.

“I fall in love with you so many times, [Name]. Every time we’re in the same frame for a picture. Every time you smiled at me, God your smile is just perfect. Every fucking time you call my name, no matter what kind of shit you’re pulling.” Your laugh rang through the night, making Levi smile. “I fall in love with you every time you’re near me, when you touch me with your soft fingertips, when I feel your hugs give me the comfort I needed. The power you have over me is something that I have no control over because you are just perfect to me.” He squished your cheeks softly when he saw you open your mouth to retaliate. “And before you tell me that you’re not perfect, screw that thought because you are in my eyes. Plus, your heart is so fucking big for welcoming me as your friend despite having feelings for you.

“Fuck, I still do.”

The butterflies once again came to life with his words, your breath heavy and years clinging on your eyelashes. “When’s the most recent time you fell in love with me then?”

Levi neared his face to yours, your foreheads pressed against each other. His lips were just centimeters away when he murmured, “Right now.”

“Me, too,” you whispered, your lips brushing on his. “I fell in love with you again at this moment, Levi, and I’m ready for you to make me breathless every single day.”

Levi’s eyes widened at your words. He was so drunk in you that he didn’t know he was making a face many people wouldn’t associate with him. “When?” He threw your question right back at you because he couldn’t believe what he was hearing right now.

“Ever since you started telling me to stop drinking too much coffee or when you started making me some of your tea recipes. Like you, it just started a loop with every little thing you do for me. I just accepted it when Nanaba talked to me earlier this day. I’m sorry I took so long to give you an answer, Levi.”

“No, it’s perfect. My wait is worth it.”

The stars swooned when your lips finally met his. Because when a person was ready to love someone, nothing can come between them. They will feel as if they reached the highest point in their lives as if they were blessed by the gods for finding their other half. Nothing can stop them, not even the cosmos shining down at the birth of the blissful lovers.

𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐘𝐎𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 𓇢𓆸 — a compendium of historical AU stand-alones

A/N: from ancient dynasties all the way to the roaring twenties—as of late, i've been obsessed with reading and writing historical AUs, and i'm not very sure i'll be any different as the years go by. i have so many ideas to be written, and plenty to be read, so why not compile them all into one list? men of the modern world are all assholes; historical men just do it better.

PS: these will all have eventual smut (additional content warnings are labeled on the original posts); minors do not interact

↳ PSPS: none of my work is to be reposted, copied, or modified; cool? cool—thanks for reading ദ്ദി(ᵔᗜᵔ)

𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗥𝗢𝗠𝗘 — Roman Empire ↳ 𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐈, 𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐈, 𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐈 ♛

SYN: abandoned as a mere newborn, you were taken in by none other than the emperor and his wife, who failed to have any real children of their own. you were treated as a princess, given a life full of prosperities, so it was only fair you got to attend gladiator matches, too, right? well . . . , you might want to rethink that when a notorious competitor, Ryomen Sukuna, wins a match during his zenith, and is granted whatever prize it is he pleases—also know as . . . you, a woman he's grown enamored by after catching your eye in the stands.

CONTENTS: gladiator!Sukuna x princess!Reader ⁘ 18.9k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝗗𝗔𝗥𝗞 𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗦 — Medieval Period ↳ 𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐓𝐇 ❦

SYN: your village considers you an anomaly: one who has been born with something called cursed energy; when you turn eighteen, they decide to sacrifice you to the beast whose manor overshadows your village. fortunately for you, the strangely generous vampire spares your life, and, in lieu: takes you in as a lawful servant. for years, you live well-off with his lordship, until one day, he falls ill—in need of . . . blood.

CONTENTS: vampire!Sukuna x servant!Reader ⁘ 10.8k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝗠𝗜𝗗𝗗𝗟𝗘 𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗦 — Medieval Period ↳ 𝐉𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑’𝐒 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐆𝐄 ⚜

SYN: the term jester's privilege refers to the particular entertainers' ability to do just about anything. from mocking peasants to pranking kings, their humor knows no bounds. the deviants are praised for their wit and cunningness, and seen as nothing short of crucial to the liveliness of kingdoms. jesters can do many things, jesters can be many things. now, as for what jesters cannot do? little to no people would know, but if thou were to ask Gojo? he would dare thee to fall in love with a lady of the royal court, one he had sworn to hate.

CONTEXT: jester!Gojo x lady!Reader ⁘ 16.2k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝟭𝟵𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗬 — Regency Era ↳ 𝐁𝐄𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐃, 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃, 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐁𝐄𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 .𖥔 ݁ ˖

SYN: when it's the 1800s, nothing is more important than attending balls in search of finding the love of your life. when your aunt and cousins convince (force) you to converse with people you've never met, you find yourself becoming acquaintances with a rather disagreeable man—whose scowl catches your eye, but countenance you deem tempting. he is everything you hate in a gentleman—incredibly bothersome, but he is everything you find bewitching in a bastard.

CONTENTS: bachelorette!Reader x bachelor!Sukuna ⁘ 15.7k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝟭𝟵𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗬 — Wild West Era ↳ 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐔𝐍 𖤓

SYN: save a horse, ride a cowboy? you've heard that phrase a-many of times before, seeing as you have lived in the Wild West your whole life; but, only now are you actually giving it a go after crossing paths with a particularly handsome cowboy at your uncle's saloon: the House of the Rising Sun. between your little . . . affair, you get caught in the crossfire of your lover, and another man who wants him dead. just how good are you at patching up a gun wound, is the question.

CONTENTS: cowboy!Geto x barmaid!Reader ⁘ 8.9k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝟮𝟬𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗬 — Dust Bowl ↳ 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑’𝐒 𝐃𝐀𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐑 ♱

SYN: the town of Bromwell, Alabama is dusty, dry, and dirty; the residents know nothing other than to "live by God, and by God, they shall live." on a Sunday Service morning, you accompany your father like always, and meet a pink-haired boy who's recently moved in to town. you become friends, grow up together, share your first kiss with each other; but, little did you know, that, hanging out so much with an atheist would have such an effect on your life, your faith, and your relations.

CONTENTS: preacher's daughter!Reader x atheist!Sukuna ⁘ 15.4k words ⁘ eventual smut [MDNI] ⁘ available on ao3

𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗕𝗘 𝗔𝗗𝗗𝗘𝗗 . . . ↳ i'm, for the most part, a Sukuna-centric blog, but i do want to try expanding my horizons; so, expect many other characters' names to appear on this masterpost in the future :)

GENERAL INFO: – Requests are temporarily closed! – Please do not repost my writing on another website without my consent! * = may contain smut (minors do not interact) italicized = coming soon

ACOTAR x Reader

Rhysand

Fate's Sweet Curse: Part 1 | Part 2* | Part 3 *| Part 4*| Part 5 | Part 6* | epilogue

Easy Like Sunday Morning*

Against Your Brother's Wishes* | Part 2* | Part 3*

Welcome Distraction*

Shape of You*

Little Reminders

Azriel

A Call in the Night

Annual Visit | Part 2* | Part 3 | Part 4*

Bad Idea, Right?*

Forced Revelations

Inadvertently Yours | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5* | Part 6 | Part 7* | Part 8 | Part 9

A Simple Crush*

Never the One | Part 2

Cassian

What Are Friend’s For?

Magical Hands

Blood Rite Celebrations*

Just Friends*

Second Shadow

How Kindness Lingers | Part 2

Never Considered

I'll Show You

What Happens in the Summer Court

Halley’s Comet*

Helion

Fate's Sweet Curse: Part 1 | Part 2* | Part 3* | Part 4*| Part 5 | Part 6* | epilogue

Warm Love

NSFW Mating Ceremony blurb*

A High Lord's Scholar

Isn’t She Lovely

Before It’s Too Late

Eris

Destiny’s Battleground | Part 2* | Part 3 | Part 4*

In Spite of Our Differences | Part 2* | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5* | Part 6* | Part 7 | epilogue*

My Lonely Throne*

Great Rite*

The Prince of Blood (Vampire!Eris drabble) | Part 2* | Part 3*

Poly

Always Ours - Nessian x Azriel x Reader

Payback* - batboys x reader

Headcanons

Social Anxiety HCs

Nessian x Azriel x Reader HCs

ACTOR Ships

Azris

Marital Privilege*

I'll Be Yours (Even If I Can't Tell Anyone)*

Ditto [s. todoroki]

𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝒹𝒹𝓁𝑒, 𝐿𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒶 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒, 𝒟𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓃𝑜 𝓇𝒾𝒹𝒹𝓁𝑒, 𝒮𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉, 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀, 𝑜𝒽 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉 𝒹𝒾𝓉𝓉𝑜 — 𝒟𝒾𝓉𝓉𝑜, 𝒩𝑒𝓌𝒥𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓈

→ summary: when you transferred to U.A., you didn't anticipate slipping on a pair of chopsticks in the middle of the crowded cafeteria during your first week. however, what was more surprising was the unexpected fall for the boy who gracefully caught you.

→ pairing: shouto todoroki x fem!reader

→ genre: fluff, strangers to friends to lovers

→ word count: 13.1k

→ warnings & tags: sfw, female pronouns are used, usage of y/n l/n, Class 1-A are now third-year students aka 18+, swearing, the usual U.A. chaos, reader has a Quirk, misunderstandings, some training violence, minor injuries, mentions and discussions of insecurities, aizawa briefly belittles the reader as a form of motivation, beginnings of a panic attack but it's cut short, there is one instance of the reader appearing to be ‘flushed’ in regards to a fever, since this is my first bnha fic some characters might be ooc? | please kindly let me know if I missed any tags!

→ author's note: AHHHH HERE IT IS! I've been working on this for almost a year now and I am so excited to finally share it with all of you. Honestly, I didn't think I would ever finish this story, but I kept slowly chipping away at it thanks in part to the encouragement from @andypantsx3, @missrosegold, and @getstarried. Special thanks to @pikatsum for beta-reading this for me! Thank you girls. This is for you🫶🏻

The cafeteria at U.A. High School was a pretty chaotic environment, you quickly learned within your first week after transferring from another Hero Course in the countryside. There were multiple things that could and would happen after the famous students had gotten some much-needed nutrients in their systems.

It was only three days into the school year and nothing had happened just yet, but in the U.A. world, that something was overdue.

The first chaotic event of the year that everyone had been anxiously—or in some cases, excitingly—waiting for happened on Thursday.

The day started off average; you got to school with three minutes to spare, which was a new record, but you had forgotten your pencil pouch in your dorm room, so you had to borrow some pencils from a girl who sat in front of you; Mina Ashido.

“Thank you,” you whispered as you took the pastel pink utensil from her. There was even a cute little fluffy puffball at the end in exchange for an eraser. Good thing you had an eraser in your bag.

“No problem! I gotcha!” She physically lit up and gave you a bright smile before turning back to focus on the blackboard.

You somehow managed to get through your morning classes running on the four hours of sleep you got the night before. You were cutting it quite close to passing out at your desk during calculus class, but you were saved by the lunch bell.

As soon as you stepped foot into the hallway, you were wrapped up in the faint, delicious scent of your favorite food coming from the cafeteria. Your mouth instantly watered, and you made a mad dash for the source of the delicious scent.

“Hey!” a sharp voice made you freeze in your steps. You glanced over your shoulder to find Tenya Iida, Class 3-A’s representative, glaring at you. The light reflecting off his glasses made him appear more threatening than he really was, but regardless, you still found yourself shying away from his harsh glare and rapid-moving hands. As they passed by, some students gave you apologetic smiles while others were not shy about openly staring at the scene before them, wondering what you possibly could have done to induce the wrath of the student representative. “There is to be no running in the halls!” You cowered some more at his brisk and overly formal tone.

Geez, what a stuck-up, you thought to yourself.

“My apologies, Iida.” You respond with a bow. He accepted your apology with a curt nod before he continued on his way to the cafeteria.

You waited for him to pass before rising from your bow. “Wow, he makes it feel like I broke the law or something.” You mused aloud.

“Don’t take it personally,” a comforting voice said from behind you. You turned to find Momo Yaoyorozu, Ochako Uraraka, and Tsuyu Asui standing before you. Ochako gave you a slight wave in greeting. “Iida can be quite demanding,” Yaoyorozu reassured you.

“Thank you.”

Tsuyu regarded you with gentle onyx eyes. “It’s L/N, right?”

You smiled, happy that she remembered your name from roll call. “Y-yeah! I’m Y/N L/N.” You introduced yourself. “I, um, already know who you guys are.” You suddenly felt shy, and you bashfully rubbed the back of your neck out of nervous habit.

Before your transfer was finalized, you did extensive research into your future school’s history and future classmates. Thankfully—or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it—a lot of information is public knowledge; the various attacks on the school in the year leading up to and the conclusion of the War between the Paranormal Liberation Front and the Heroes, not to mention the various televised sports festivals, and the fact that the members of Class 1-A are practically household names even before their graduation.

The girls invited you to sit with them in the cafeteria. You had been keeping to yourself the first few days of school, choosing to observe from afar the already established social circles and friend groups. You had waited for an invitation to join one of said groups, and here was your opportunity.

The four of you made small talk as you made your way through the lunch line and to the table. Right away, Asui told you to call her by her given name. You told them about your life growing up in the countryside—with you and Uraraka bonding over your shared reason for becoming Pro Heroes—about the friends you had, embarrassingly funny stories from your junior high days, and eventually what led you to transfer to U.A.

“Well, this is the best Hero Course in the country!” you all laughed. “But to be frank, the only teacher at my old academy who could handle my Quirk retired, and none of the other academies within the prefecture had the resources to help me advance. Plus, my mentor is an U.A. alumnus, so naturally, the only other choice was U.A.”

Yaoyorozu hummed. “It is a shame about your mentor retiring, but that is what led you to transfer to U.A., and for that, I am grateful.” The class vice representative regarded you kindly. “I am a firm believer of things happening for a reason, and your transfer doesn’t change that.”

Uraraka nodded her agreement. “Momo’s right. U.A. is a place where anybody can make a difference, and I think you will find success here.”

You were rendered speechless. The tips of your ears turned red as your classmates regarded you with so much hope and sincerity in their eyes. “Uh . . . I,” you bashfully scratched the back of your head. Not knowing how to respond, you instead reached for the small bottle of milk on your lunch tray and brought it to your lips.

However, before you could take a sip, a BOOM erupted from the front of the cafeteria, accompanied by a gruff voice yelling, “Don’t walk in front of me, Icy-Hot!” You reflexively jolted at the loud noises and lost your grip on the glass, spilling the half-full bottle all over the front of your uniform.

“Shit,” you exclaimed as you instinctually rose from your seat, only to quickly sit down again when the liquid started to fall to the floor. The girls gasped and were quick to hand you all the napkins in the vicinity.

“Are you okay, Y/N?” Asui asked as she watched you pat down your sodden skirt.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” You waved off her concern as you continued to wipe away the remaining liquid. The napkins managed to soak up most of it, but your skirt was still damp. If you didn’t change skirts, you were going to smell of milk for the rest of the day, and you didn’t want to start off the school year with a reputation for smelling vile. “I’m going to go back to the dorm really quickly and change into a clean uniform. Please let Mr. Snipe know that I will be late for class.”

“Do you want us to accompany you?” Yaoyorozu asked. She began to rise from her seat, but you stopped her.

“No, no. I’m okay, really.” You gave her what you hoped to be a reassuring grin instead of a grimace. “Thank you for offering, Yaoyorozu, but I’ll be fine.” Before your classmates could respond, you stood from the table and made your way to the exit.

Great, this is just great, you thought as you walked, not really paying attention to where you were going. As soon as I make some friends, I make a fool of myself.

Unbeknownst to you, there was an obstacle in the aisle directly ahead. You were too distracted by your growing inner turmoil to notice the pair of metal chopsticks lying on the ground before you until your foot made contact and slipped out from under you.

It all happened so fast that you couldn’t even react.

Time froze as you became weightless, and you felt your body become briefly suspended in the air. Before you could react and rotate your body to prevent yourself from violently banging your head on the tiled floor, gravity took hold and yanked you back down toward the ground. You squeezed your eyes shut, not wanting to witness your classmates’ reactions to your misfortune.

Great, now I’m gonna embarrass myself in front of the entire school. Fuck you, chopsticks.

You prepared yourself for the pain of hitting the hard floor but were shocked when you were suddenly wrapped in a chilled warmth. You did slam into a hard surface, but this didn’t feel like the cold tile you expected.

“Are you all right?” a voice asked from above. You opened your eyes, only to find yourself captivated by a beautiful graphite and turquoise gaze. Your mouth opened to respond to the inquiry, but you couldn’t speak. This strange yet calming gaze hypnotized you, causing the rest of the world to fade into a buzzing silence. You watched as the perfect eyebrows of the owner of those magical eyes furrowed downward at your prolonged silence, the action momentarily drawing your attention.

With your attention span no longer zeroed in on the heterochromatic gaze, the world around you suddenly slammed back into your senses at full force. The volume of your fellow classmates’ conversations was deafening at first, but your ears grew accustomed once again to zone them out and focus on the person before you.

It took about thirty seconds for the entirety of your current predicament to register within your brain.

You were hanging about ten centimeters off the ground. The only thing keeping you upright and injury-free was Shouto Todoroki’s firm grip on your wrist.

“Um, hello?” the dual-haired teenager once again drew your attention to him. His grip slightly tightened before he tugged you up onto your feet.

“I think you broke her, Icy-Hot.” A rough voice drawled from your peripheral.

The intrusion of the other voice is what finally brought you out of your stunned silence. “No, I’m okay. Not broken.”

“Did you hit your head?” Todoroki inquired. He steadied you on your feet but didn’t release your wrist from his hold. Katsuki Bakugou was standing off to the side, trying to appear like he wasn’t involved with either one of you.

“I-I don’t think so.” As you reached down to brush yourself off, you caught a whiff of the unflattering scent of old milk emitting from your clothes. You held back your gag and turned to face Todoroki and Bakugou. “I’m sorry to rush, but I really do need to go.” You gave a quick bow. “Thank you for catching me, Todoroki. Bye!”

The two boys watched you sprint away like a bat out of hell. “T’fuck is her problem,” Bakugou muttered. “Fuckin’ extra makin’ me late for lunch.”

Todoroki didn’t respond to his classmate’s remarks. His lips pursed together as he watched you nearly run into a couple of first years before you disappeared around a corner, out of sight.

“Don’ even think ‘bout it, Icy-Hot.” Bakugou drawled from beside him. Todoroki cocked an eyebrow, the only sign of emotion on his otherwise indifferent expression. “Gettin’ involved with ‘hat extra will ruin your precious bloodline.”

You tried to forget about the cafeteria incident, but the embarrassing ordeal refused to secede from the forefront of your mind. As you lay in bed that night, your thoughts ran a hundred kilometers a minute, antagonizing and overanalyzing every second of what had happened.

As the night dragged on, your thoughts shifted from the overall event to one single individual: Shouto Todoroki. You knew who he was, of course. You didn’t grow up underneath a rock. Yet, you weren’t prepared for how much more handsome he was in person than on the news or in photos.

You overanalyzed everything he did in the brief two minutes you were blessed to be in his company, every word he said, and every brief flash of emotion that showed in his heterochromatic eyes. Todoroki had tried to approach you after training in Ground Beta once you had returned from the dorms, but you avoided him, not wanting to face him again so soon after the embarrassing first meeting.

By Sunday, you had begun to forget about your embarrassing cafeteria incident. Your newfound friends didn’t bring up the spilled milk, and thankfully, they didn’t see you slip on the chopsticks and fall into Shouto Todoroki’s muscular arms. You breathed a sigh of relief when you found out that last part. You didn’t want them to think you were a total klutz.

Todoroki may think otherwise.

As you were rounding the corner to walk back up the stairs to head back to your dorm room, Todoroki happened to be walking down. You both turned at the same time and walked straight into each other.

He wasn’t fazed by the sudden collision; however, you were taken completely off guard. No matter how strong you may be, suddenly walking into about a hundred kilos of pure muscle would make anyone stumble. While he remained steadily standing, you, on the other hand, fell back onto your ass.

It took about three seconds for the two of you to comprehend what the hell had just happened. You groaned out when pain flashed across your backside.

“My apologies, I did not see you.” Todoroki said as he offered you a hand. You begrudgingly accepted his assistance, face heating as your super handsome classmate helped you to your feet for the second time in a week.

“Thank you,” you bowed your head to him. You brushed away some dust from your sweatpants, finding yourself too shy to look back up.

You felt a firm, yet gentle hand land on your shoulder. You jerked your head upwards to meet Todoroki’s captivating gaze. “Are you injured?” His heterochromatic eyes searched you for any injury, and they glimmered with relief when he found none.

“No, I’m okay,” you reassured the male. “I may be a little bruised in the morning, but I will be fine.” Not to mention my bruised ego.

Todoroki hummed in acknowledgment, his hand still resting on your shoulder. His eyes were hyper-fixated on you, leaving you to feel bare under his intense gaze.

You shifted your weight back and forth as the silence between you dragged on for a couple more seconds. “Um, I—” You cleared your throat. “I should be on my way now. Got things to study, you know.” You told him with an awkward laugh.

You moved to step around him when it became obvious he wasn’t going to move. Your movements are what must have shaken him out of his stupor, with him bashfully stepping to the side to allow you access to the stairway.

“Right.” He said as you walked by. “Take care, Y/N.” You startled at his sudden usage of your given name, but nevertheless, you felt oddly relieved. You smiled shyly and bid him goodbye. Nothing else was said between the two of you, but you felt his eyes on you as you walked up the stairs.

I hope he likes cinnamon; you thought as you peered into the oven.

To be fair, you should have considered that before laboring for over two hours making kinako cinnamon cookies from scratch—which absolutely failed. Therefore, as a last resort, you were forced to run to the store and buy a box mix.

The he in question?

Shouto Todoroki.

It had been several days since your embarrassing first interaction with the dual-haired male and forty-five hours since your second, literal, run-in—not that you were keeping track, of course.

You wanted to do something nice for him as a way to apologize for your newfound clumsiness and thank him for his assistance in both instances. Your calligraphy skills were not . . . up to par, so to say, by any means, so a handmade thank-you card was off the table, and you highly doubt Todoroki was a flower guy. Not to mention his affluent background, so buying him a gift or offering to take him out to dinner was null—and way too straightforward for two people who were barely even acquaintances.

Therefore, you were left with only one option: homemade cookies.

Besides, all the old aunties back home always said the quickest way to win anyone over was through food.

“Ooooh, something smells amazing!” someone exclaimed from the stairway. Smiling slyly to yourself, you turned away from the oven to the new arrival.

You hadn’t interacted much with Rikido Sato save for the casual good morning greetings and thanking him for the delicious red velvet cupcake he baked for you as a welcoming gift to U.A.

“Thanks,” you said, grinning at the male.

The combined low mutterings of more approaching classmates brought your and Sato’s attention to the doorway where Mina Ashido, Eijirou Kirishima, Denki Kaminari, and Hanta Sero were entering the dorm.

“Woah something smells fantastic!” Kaminari said, gazing into the kitchen in hopes of spotting the source of the delicious scent.

“Yeah, it does!” Kirishima agreed.

“Oh my gosh, what is it?” Ashido asked as she walked over. Her eyes lit up when she spotted you. “L/N! Did you make something?”

“I did.” You confirmed with a slight nod. “I’m making kinako cinnamon cookies.”

“Oooooh, yummy!” the pinkette exclaimed as she bounced over to peer into the oven. Your other classmates quickly joined her, all of them staring into the soft, golden light of the oven with stars in their eyes.

“They look so good!” Kaminari was practically drooling at the tawny treats. At that moment, the timer went off with a soft ting! You politely shooed your classmates back as you pulled a hand towel over your hands.

“Step back, everyone,” you warned as you opened the oven door. “They’re going to be hot.” You carefully reached in and grabbed the cooking tray, cautiously sliding it off the rack and fully into your cloth-covered hands. Despite taking precautions, you hissed as the hot aluminum seeped through the towel and made contact with your flesh. As quickly as you could without dropping the pan of cookies, you turned and set it down on the kitchen island.

“These look delicious!”

“Woah, man, they look amazing!”

“I bet they taste as scrumptious as they lo—”

You zoned out the boys’ compliments as you moved to the sink and turned on the tap.

“L/N, are you okay?” Ashido asked as she followed you. Her question caught the other's attention, and they, too, turned to watch you quizzingly.

“Yes, I’m fine.” Your response ended with a wince as your skin made contact with the cool water.

“Here, let me see,” Ashido gestured to your hand. With your permission, she took your wrist with gentle fingers and held it up for you both to inspect. Your skin was reddened slightly, but it wasn’t anything serious. You let out a sigh of relief. “It’s not serious, thankfully, but we should still put some burn cream on it just in case,” Ashido advised as she turned off the tap.

You nodded your head again and followed the pink-haired girl as she went to retrieve the first-aid kit. Before you walked too far from the kitchen, you shouted over your shoulder to your classmates, “Please don’t eat the cookies, boys! They are still hot and are for someone special!”

There was a noticeable delay in response to your warning. After a pregnant pause, there was a muffled, “okamph!” in response. You were about to turn around and make sure that they weren’t eating your treats, but Ashido calling your name changed your plans.

“Let’s fix you up, yeah?” She said as you both entered the girls' bathroom. Ashido gestured for you to sit on the counter while she dug through the first-aid kit for burn cream.

“Thank you, Ashido,” you said a few moments later as she lightly applied the cream to the worst of the reddening. Your skin wasn’t blistering, which was a good sign, but it was beginning to ache.

“No problem,” she replied. She began to gently rub the cream into your skin, mindful of the sore spots. She beamed at you as she said, “And you can just call me Mina. We are friends!”

You smiled at her. “Okay, Mina.” The two of you were silent for a couple of minutes as Mina continued to dress your burns.

“So,” she started, breaking the silence. “Who did you make the cookies for?”

You sharply inhaled. “W-what? What do you mean?” You tried to play it off by playing dumb, but Mina gave you an are you kidding me look.

“Don’t play that game with me, girl.” She scolded you. “So, tell me, who is this ‘special someone’?”

You let out a heavy sigh, dropping your shoulders in defeat. “One of our classmates. . .” You trailed off, turning away from the pinkette, and absentmindedly twirling a strand of hair around your finger.

Mina’s eyes lit up and her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. “Oh my God, seriously?!?” She squealed. You turned to face her again. “Girl, you absolutely gotta tell me! Who is it?!” She went to grab ahold of your hands but stopped herself when she remembered your injury. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” You said. “But, um, I—” You hesitated, searching for the right words, but you couldn’t find them. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.” You said, barely above a whisper, turning away from your classmate once more in embarrassment.

Mina leaned back, taken by surprise by your change of tone. She studied you for a few seconds, her expression falling when she saw the look on your face; the clenching of your jaw.

“It’s okay, girl,” she reassured you. She set the roll of bandages down on the counter as she finished wrapping your hand. “You don’t have to tell me who your crush is if you don’t want to.”

You whipped back around to face her, eyes wide. “C-crush?!” you stammered out. “W-what?! I don’t have a crush! I never said I did.” you explained.

“Yeah, sure,” Mina smirked at you, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “You wouldn’t of baked cookies for them if you didn’t like them.”

“Um, because I’m nice?” you asked with a lilt in your voice. Mina does have a point, though, you thought.

Mina laughed. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go with that.”

A couple of minutes later, you and the pinkette exited the bathroom, laughing over something Mina had said. Your hand had been expertly wrapped and treated with some burn cream. Your injury didn’t even hurt anymore, but you were still going to check in tomorrow with Recovery Girl as a precaution.

As you rounded the corner to go back into the kitchen, you stopped dead in your tracks as your eyes fell to the now-empty pan where twenty cookies sat not even ten minutes ago. Mina stopped next to you, and you could see her giving you a questionable look, but you didn’t—couldn’t—acknowledge her. You just stared blankly at the pan, trying to process what you were seeing.

What the hell? you thought.

“Ah, man,” a voice drawled out. You slowly turned towards the source; Denki Kaminari. He was lounging against the counter as he rubbed his stomach for emphasis. “Those cinnamon kinako cookies were delicious!” Your brain blanked out when you heard that, the organ pathetically trying to comprehend and respond to the current situation.

“You’re telling me!” Kirishima piped up from beside the blond. Sero and Sato voiced their agreement from where they were seated on the couches. “They really hit the spot after the day I had.” The redhead noticed you and Mina. “Hey, guys, welcome back!” he greeted with a wave, a broad smile overtaking his features. “How’s your hand?”

You did not formulate an answer right away, your brain still processing the crumbled remains of your cookies. Your delay didn’t go unnoticed by the others, but before they could question it, Mina came to your rescue.

“It’s okay! Y/N is alright, nothing major.” She informed them. Kirishima’s gaze left you to focus on the pinkette by your side, but Kaminari’s remained transfixed on your blank expression.

“Oh, well, that’s great to hear! I was worried—”

“But you should be ashamed!” Mina cut the redhead off, tone sharp as a blade. “All of you.”

“What—?”

“Mina, why—?”

Kirishima and Kaminari spoke at once, their voices clashing, but the pinkette interrupted them once more.

“Y/N didn’t make those cookies for you.” She said. “She made them for someone special, yet you guys ate them even after she told you not to.” She just about bit the last part out. The boys gaped at Mina, her scolding catching them by surprise.

“Is that true?” Sato asked, rising from the couch to approach you. Everyone fixated their attention on you, waiting for a response.

You hesitated at the sudden limelight, and also in shyness. When you originally set out to bake the kinako cookies for Todoroki, you didn’t expect them to 1.) burn your hand and 2.) for them to be eaten by others. Even though you were upset, you didn’t want the others to be ashamed or scolded. But they did eat them after I told them not to, you thought, pondering your next move.

After a few moments, you squared your shoulders and steadily said, “Yes. I . . . made them for somebody.” At your words, the room’s atmosphere soured. The boys’ shoulders slumped as they realized their mistake.

“Shoot, L/N, I’m sorry,” Kaminari said, stepping forward to gently grab your uninjured hand and bow.

“Yeah,” Kirishima added, scratching the back of his neck and looking away slightly. “That wasn’t really manly of us.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Sero intoned, looking sheepish.

Sato came to stand in front of you next to Kaminari, who still had a gentle hold of your hand. “I’ll be more than happy to remake the cookies for you.” He said. “If you want that, of course.”

You smiled, though it was closed-lipped. “Thank you, Sato, but not today.” He bowed his head.

Suddenly, the front doors slammed open, startling the six of you. You all watched, shell-shacked—you did, at least—as a fuming Bakugou stepped inside, loudly exclaiming, “I had ‘hat dumbass villain handled! Damn Sidekick extra jus’ had to step ‘n and—” He noticed your little group gaping at him. “The hell ‘re ya fools lookin’ at?” As the words left his mouth, the other two members of the infamous U.A. trio entered as well.

“Kacchan,” Izuku Midoriya said, trying to placate the explosive male. “He was just trying to . . .” The rest of his sentence fizzled into the background as the entirety of your attention span landed on Shouto Todoroki.

It had already been well-established that the youngest Todoroki son was even more handsome in person, but seeing him in his Hero costume did things to you. Your mouth almost dropped open to gawk at his god-like appearance, but you clenched your jaw tightly shut to avoid that catastrophe. Despite that, you were pretty positive your eyes were as wide as saucers, greedily taking every inch of him in as if it were the last time you would see him.

I should sue him for the cost of my medical bills when I develop heart palpitations, you thought.

“Shut the hell up, ya stupid nerd.” Bakugou snapped at a sputtering Midoriya, drawing your attention once more. You could practically see the steam coming out of his ears.

“Is he always this angry?” you asked under your breath; half-serious, half-rhetorical.

“Oh, yeah,” Mina confirmed, voice just as low.

Sero snickered from his post next to Sato. “You get used to it after a while,” he reassured you.

One of Kirishima’s blinding smiles makes its appearance once again. “Katsuki’s always been passionate about, well, everything.” He told you, not bothering to lower his voice. “It’s who he is. We love him regardless.”

Sato chimed in with, “Platonically.” The boys snickered and Mina rolled her eyes, yet there was a small smile playing on her lips.

“Even though his sour attitude can be harsh and lowkey over the top,” Kaminari began, eyes shining with mischief. “It sure makes him fun to mess with!” Your companions groaned in exasperation and started to voice their reservations.

“No, Denki. Leave him be—” Mina urged him.

“Awe, come on, man. Don’t—”

“Heyy~ Katsuki,” Kaminari crooned, rocking back on his heels as the pale blond’s attention zeroed in on him. Kirishima and Sato facepalmed. “Why have trouble catching a ‘dumbass villain’?” he teased. “Bad day? Your head not in the game?” The hair on your arms rose to attention as an electric charge swept the room, putting everyone on edge. Kaminari’s baiting also drew the attention of the explosive male’s companions. Your eyes briefly met captivating graphite and turquoise, eliciting a sharp gasp to leave your lungs.

“You’re gonna regret the day you were born, dumbass!” Bakugou bellowed, pointing an accusatory finger at the electric blond, snapping your attention from the hypnotizing gaze. You fully expected him to charge the male, already taking a cautionary step back, but instead of explosions ripping apart the building, Bakugou grunted and moved towards the showers.

Mina turned to the blond and shouted, “Now why did you do that, Denki? You know better than to rile Katsuki up like that!”

Kirishima dragged a large hand down his face before running it through his unruly red locks. “I’ll go check on him,” he announced before jogging after the sandy-blond. You were at a loss for words as you continued to watch your classmates scold a shit-grinning Kaminari, not even the tiniest bit remorseful for his teasing of Bakugou.

“Please don’t take Kacchan’s rashness to heart.” A new voice piped up. You turned to meet the electric green gaze of none other than Izuku Midoriya, the new generation’s proclaimed Symbol of Peace. “I’m s-sorry, I don’t think we have properly met. I’ve been in and out of campus lately—with missions and such.” He practically skipped over to stand in front of you. He smiled brightly as he gently took your hands in his large, calloused ones. “I’m Izuku Midoriya. I’m so happy you are here at U.A.!” he excitedly exclaimed, lightly squeezing your entwined hands. You couldn’t hide your wince and small gasp of pain as Midoriya unknowingly squeezed your burns. The green-haired male let go of your hands so fast as if he was the one burned instead of you, eyes growing wide. “Oh my gosh, are you okay?!” he asked, noticing the bandages wrapped tightly around your hand. Midoriya’s frenzy caught the other's attention, and all eyes were on you yet again.

The tips of your ears grew hot at the unwavering attention from the Heroes-in-training—especially from a certain icy-hot male who made your heart falter in its beating. “Y-yeah, I’m f-fine.” You stuttered as you met each of your classmate's gazes, trying to reassure them of your stability.

“What happened?” Todoroki inquired, eyes hawkishly zeroed in on your face.

“U-um, well . . .” you trailed off, words fading from your brain as you slightly cowered under his unwavering attention. “I—”

“She burned herself while baking kinako cookies,” Sero spoke for you, having caught onto your growing anxiousness. You didn’t miss Todoroki’s eyes narrowing at the black-haired male’s words. Sato and Kaminari made noises of agreement, the blond absentmindedly rubbing his stomach in content.

Midoriya’s eyes shined. “Really? You did?!” He looked behind you to the kitchen, eyes searching for the aforementioned treats. “Where are they?” he asked when he didn’t spot any, only a plate littered with crumbs. He turned his attention back to you. You opened your mouth to answer, but a wave of shame overcame you as your eyes once again met those of the one you had made the cookies for.

Mina noticed your hesitation, giving you a knowing look as she answered for you. “The three idiots to your left ate them all,” she said with a little bite to her words, glaring daggers at the culprits. “After they were specifically told not to.” She reaffirmed. The boys shuddered at the reminder of their disobedience. The pinkette turned her attention back to the green-haired and dual-haired males. “I patched her up, though. The burns are minor.”

Midoriya nodded his head in understanding. “You should still see Recovery Girl,” he instructed, unashamedly expressing his concern for someone he had just properly met. “At least let her take a look at it.”

“I’m going to stop by to see her in the morning,” you reassured him, words coming back now that your mind was a little clear. His shoulders slumped in relief.

“You should rest, Y/N.” Todoroki’s searing gaze trailed over your form, calculating eyes searching for any additional outward signs of injury or discomfort. “After suffering an injury, no matter how insignificant, rest is important.” He softly chided.

“R-right.” You stammered out, at a loss for how else to respond to your handsome classmate's concern other than compliance. A wave of exhaustion washed over you at that moment. Your feet stumbled as you became lightheaded for a split second. You noticed the dual-haired male take a step towards you, catching onto your sudden exhaustion, but you quickly rightened yourself. “Thank you, Todoroki.” You’re not exactly sure why you thanked him, or what for. His concern, perhaps? He subtly nodded as you turned from the small group, breathlessly mumbling some sort of farewell and something about retiring to your room for the rest of the day.

The others muttered their goodbyes as you made your way to the stairwell.

As you walked up the stairs, head hung low, your throat began to burn and your vision began to blur with tears. The first one fell when you reached your floor, quickly followed by a couple more. You wiped them away, sniffing, as you made your way to your door. You didn’t react to the sudden presence next to you and the weight draped around your shoulders.

Mina didn’t say anything, only traced comforting circles into your back as tears flowed freely down your cheeks.

The next day, you and your classmates were gathered outside Gym Gamma for an impromptu training session. You were surprised that Class 3-A still regularly trained together, but in your defense, that assumption came from someone who didn’t have many options when it came to sparing partners up until your transfer—a major shortcoming in retrospect.

“Today we are working on ‘last stand’ combat.” Mr. Aizawa drawled in his natural I Don’t Give A Fuck tone. “Close-quarter combat in which a violent assailant has obtained the upper hand and corners you in an attempt to defeat you.” He proceeded to explain the instructions of the training exercise and pair the students into groups of four who would take turns being the Heroes and the assailants.

“Midoriya will be with Jirou.” Mr. Aizawa intoned, briefly glancing at the two students to confirm they heard. “Todoroki will be with L/N.” Your muscles stiffened when you heard that. Your heart began to race as you watched the red-and-white-haired male make his way over to you.

“H-hi,” you greeted him, giving a soft smile.

“Hello,” he said, politely inclining his head. “I look forward to working with you.”

“Same here.” You said before facing forward once more as the first group began their round. You and Todoroki observed the match in silence, with you paying extra attention to your classmates’ movements and taking mental notes of how they incorporated their Quirks into hand-to-hand combat.

The sound of approaching footsteps drew your attention. Expecting the new additions to be Ochako and Asui, you turned to greet them with a warm smile but paused when instead of your friends, Midoriya and Kyoka Jirou were standing next to you, both with warm expressions on their faces.

“Hi!” Midoriya greeted with a wide smile and a small wave. “I’m excited for this training exercise! It’s going to be so cool to see everyone’s improvement with hand-to-hand combat over the break! And any new moves! Or Quirk Awakenings! Or—” You had a hard time keeping up with what he was saying as it turned into a stuttering rant as he went on about each individual’s Quirk.

The rumors were true regarding his ramblings, you mused to yourself, wondering how long he could go on for before a small hand on his shoulder made him take pause.

“Midoriya,” Jirou intoned. “Calm down.” His cheeks flushed a bright red. He began laughing nervously while absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck.

“S-sorry,” he said, shyfully.

“It’s okay,” you reassured him. “I agree with your stance, though. Observing others' skills is an effective way to improve your own. Get an idea or two.” You turned your attention back to the ongoing training, taking mental notes of your classmates’ fighting stances and their defensive moves, trying to get a better understanding of the why behind them. You pulled a small item from your jacket pocket, absentmindedly rubbing it between your thumb and forefinger. The movement caught Midoriya’s attention.

“What is that?” he asked, green eyes alight with curiosity.

“What? This?” You held up your good luck charm; a small, pink parrot keychain from a popular cartoon series you had won years ago at one of your hometown’s summer festivals. It was lucky because at the moment, while little you were trying to win, your Quirk had manifested. “It’s my good luck charm,” you explained the pink parrot’s value to you.

“Oh, cool!” Midoriya exclaimed. “You know, I used to have a good luck charm—it was my super rare exclusive All Might trading card! First edition!” His eyes shined as he reminisced. “I would bring it with me everywhere! Even Kacchan—”

“Deku,” drawled a low voice from the other side of your gathered class. The temperature fell as Bakugou’s vermillion eyes narrowed onto Midoriya. “Don’t say another word.”

“He’s such a fanboy.” Jirou chuckled, fondness seeping into her voice. Midoriya smiled sheepishly, not bothering even to try to deny the label. You spent the time until your group’s turn getting to know the two, quickly finding out that you and Jirou share the same taste in music; vowing to swap playlists after class. You were so caught up in your conversation that you almost forgot about Todoroki's presence, if not for the awareness of a body next to you. His chilled warmth seeped into your muscles, causing you to relax one moment, and tense up another.

“Are you all right?” he softly inquired, spying your tensed posture.

“Yeah, I’m good.” You replied, softly smiling but it didn’t reach your eyes. “Just a lil’ nervous, is all.”

Todoroki frowned slightly, not understanding how you could be experiencing anxiousness. “Wh—?”

“Oh yeah!” Midoriya suddenly interjected. “This is going to be your first time demonstrating your Quirk, huh?” he asked you. “Or at least this is gonna be the first time I will see it. What is it again? Object—no—um, yeah, anyway I bet it is awesome!” His eyes still shined with his enthusiasm and curiosity. “Sometime you gotta let me ask you about it! I have so many! Does it work like Ochako’s Zero Gravity? Or Yaoyorozu’s Creation?”

You couldn’t help but give a small laugh at his eagerness. You had never met someone as enthusiastic about Quirks as Izuku Midoriya. It was kind of refreshing to interact with someone as passionate as he was.

“Kind of,” you began, silently pondering over what you know of the brunette’s Quirk and comparing it to your own. “Ochako and I have the same limitations when it comes to the weight of an object, but besides that, our Quirks are different.” Your Quirk was object manipulation; you could telepathically manipulate objects within a certain range. To you, your Quirk wasn’t all that—wasn’t anything unique by any means—but to others, you were seen as a powerful goddess. “To be honest, I’m lacking in hand-to-hand combat skills.” You sheepishly smiled.

“Really?” Midoriya asked, blinking in shock. “I thought your previous school would have prepared you for all types of situations.” Jirou nodded her agreement with the green-haired male. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Shouto continue to observe you with a calculating expression on his face.

“Unfortunately, no.” You shrugged. “Their curriculum was more focused on improving the individual’s Quirk than learning how to fight without it.”

“Oh, wow,” Jirou said. “That could put you at a great disadvantage down the line.”

You nodded. “Yeah, I know. That’s why—” You were cut off by Mr. Aizawa calling for your group to begin your training round. “Welp, this is it, I guess.” You chuckled nervously.

Midoriya gave you a reassuring smile. “You’ll do great!” he said, giving you a thumbs-up accompanied by a warm smile.

“Do your best,” Jirou added before moving towards the training pitch.

You started to follow, but a cool hand on your shoulder made you pause, shivering softly. You turned to find Todoroki giving you an expectant look. “You’ll do fine,” he said, confidently. He looked as if he put his entire faith in you. “I’ll be by your side the entire time.”

You felt a surge of confidence fill you at his words. You gave him a determined look. “Right,” you said. “We got this.”

You swear up and down his eyes twinkled when he looked at you, but it could have been a trick of the light. “You got this.” He replied, softly. The two of you walked into the pitch together, side by side.

The training went . . . not terrible, but it could have been better on your end.

Todoroki, Midoriya, and Jirou were amazing. Even without using their Quirks, they each were a force to be reckoned with. You were captivated by how swiftly they moved—as if they were ballerinas performing Danse des Petits Cygnes.

You weren’t on the same level as them and the rest of Class 3-A. You knew that, and you acknowledged it, but to see and be confronted by it so bluntly in person made you feel a whole other level of embarrassment and shame. You weren’t weak by any means, you could hold your own in a fight for some time, but not like your classmates could—and had.

Perhaps that is what separates you from your classmates. They have battle experience. Hell, they fought in a fucking war for crying out loud while you were on the other side of the country, guarding civilian shelters. You were fortunate not to see much bloodshed, but maybe that brought you to a disadvantage against these future Heroes surrounding you.

The horn had sounded as Jirou pinned you in the dirt for the sixth time, signaling the end of the round. You heard the sounds of Midoriya and Todoroki’s scuffling come to a halt from somewhere off to your left as Jirou lifted herself off of you. She offered you a hand as you began to rise from the ground. You accepted her extended hand with a grimace as the muscles in your back burned.

“Nice work.” Mr. Aizawa said as the four of you approached. “You performed adequately,” he addressed Jirou, Todoroki, and Midoriya. He turned to you. “You, not so much.”

You flinched as the words landed home. Damn, you thought, but he’s not wrong. You had naively allowed yourself to believe that Eraserhead wouldn’t call out your inferiority, at least in front of others. Then again, he was Eraserhead—infamous for his bluntness and apathy.

“Your skills are greatly lacking in hand-to-hand combat,” he continued. “I haven’t seen somebody so physically inadequate since your classmates were first years. Coming from another Hero Course, especially one with its reputation, it’s to be expected that you’re not up to par with your new classmates, but I didn’t think it would be this bad.” As he spoke, he never broke eye contact with you, scrutinizing you. Even with one eye, his unrelenting gaze made you feel as if he could see every minuscule detail about you. “Based on the performance I saw today, it was a mistake to put you in this class.”

You heard a gasp from one of your classmates; its owner unknown. You gulped down your shame and remained silent. You had a feeling Aizawa wasn’t finished with you.

“From here on out, I expect you to train harder and push yourself further than anyone else. Extra training, extra classes—anything that will make you catch up.” His eye narrowed. “If I do not see substantial improvement in one month, you will be expelled. No exceptions.”

Your eyes widened, but your shock did not stop you from replying. “Yes, sir.” You said, keeping your tone neutral as you mulled over his words. Although extreme, I understand the reason for Mr. Aizawa’s methods, you thought. He’s right though. I’m far from even scrapping the level these guys are on. I need to be more disciplined and work even harder if I want to stand on equal ground with my classmates. Resolve made, you promised, “I will go Plus Ultra!”

“Yaass, Y/N!” Mina cheered. “Woohoo!”

Aizawa didn’t say anything else to you, promptly dismissing the class. Midoriya praised your performance and commented on his wish to sit down and talk in-depth with you regarding your Quirk. You promptly accepted his request, telling him you would let him know when you were free. He smiled before walking off to join Iida and Ochako.

“If it means anything,” a voice suddenly intoned from behind you. You spun around, having not sensed the person's approach. You weren’t all that surprised to find Todoroki there, softly regarding you. “I think you did well.”

You scoffed but smiled softly. “Thank you, but you don’t have to patronize me. I have a lot of work to do if I want to catch up.”

“You will,” he declared, before quickly clarifying, “Catch up. Especially with my help.”

You furrowed your brows. “Excuse me?”

“Should I repeat myself?” he inquired, his heterochromatic eyes swimming in mirth. “I will assist you in your training and classes.”

You didn’t respond right away, regarding him with suspicion. You waited for him to name a condition for his help, but when he offered none, you relaxed. “Thank you, Todoroki.” You inclined your head. “I greatly appreciate it.”

“Shouto,” he corrected.

You blinked at him, taken aback. “What?”

“Shouto,” he reiterated. “You may call me Shouto. We are friends, are we not?”

You gaped at him for a moment, processing his words. “Ye-yeah!” you said a little too loudly. “We are friends, Shouto.”

The small smile that graced his lips lit up your entire world and caused your heart to speed up, pounding almost painfully against your ribcage. “Meet me here tomorrow after class.” He instructed.

“Tomorrow.” You repeated in confirmation.

His smile grew a little wider. “See you then, Y/N.” He said before turning on his heel and strolling away. You watched him go in a daze, in disbelief of what just occurred.

“Oooooooo, Y/N’s gotta date!”

You shrieked at the sudden voice and spun around for a second time to find Mina standing there, hunched over laughing at your reaction.

“Mina!” you shrieked, placing a hand over your heart. “You scared the shit outta me!”

She continued to laugh. “Sorry,” she said once her laughter died down. “You were so entranced with Todoroki that you didn’t even realize I was here!”

“Oh, yeah right.” You responded, playfully rolling your eyes. The two of you began to walk to the dorm. “I wasn’t entranced with him.”

The pinkette gave you a look of disbelief, an eyebrow raised. “Yeah, sure,” she retorted. “You can lie to yourself all you want, but you ain’t lying to me.”

You scoffed but didn’t attempt to refute her claims. You put your hands in your pockets and looked to the ground, lost in thought. Mina didn’t say anything else, allowing you both to walk in silence.

The next afternoon, you met Shouto at the training grounds outside Gym Gamma for your first tutored training session. He regarded you kindly as you slowly approached, suddenly feeling quite bashful.

“Thank you for offering to do this, Shouto.” You said when you arrived. “It really means a lot. I don’t know how I’m going to repay you.”

“There’s no need for repayment.” He softly responded. “I volunteered to assist you. Therefore, no repayment of any sort is necessary.”

“Are you sure?” you asked. “I don’t want to inconvenience you—”

His soft call of your name made your next words die in your throat. “I assure you, this is fine.” He said. “Your company and attention are substantial enough.” You felt your face warm at his admission. Shouto gestured towards the training pit. “Shall we begin?”

He started by teaching you some stretches that are supposed to help decrease sudden muscle spasms and strengthen them. Afterward, he had you show him the little knowledge you had of hand-to-hand combat to gain an idea of where you stand in regard to U.A. training. Once you had demonstrated the few kicks and different styles of punching you knew, you turned to judge Shouto’s impression.

Your breath caught at what you saw.

His handsome features remained stoically blank for the most part, but the pursing of his lips and slight furrowing of his brows spoke a different tale. He grumbled something under his breath that sounded a lot like they didn’t prepare you at all, but you weren’t one hundred percent sure.

“Shouto?” you inquired, voice slightly uneven as your mouth formed the syllables of his name. “Is everything alright?”

His beautiful eyes snapped to yours, and once again you were frozen by the intensity with which he looked at you. His gaze was calculating, and you could just about see the cogs turning in his brain as he silently regarded you. A couple long moments later, his lips parted on an exhale and he finally addressed you.

“We have a lot of work to do.” He declared. “But we already knew that.” You slowly nodded your head, curious as to where he would be going with this conversation. “Thankfully, you’re not completely helpless,” he intoned dryly. “Even though you don’t have many skills regarding physical, non-Quirk combat, I have identified several places where we can start, correct, and then build on.”

You steadied yourself, resolve firmer than ever before. You declared, “I’m ready.”

Shouto gave a quick, but detailed, overview of his plans for your ‘training tutoring’, you referred to your sessions as. He was going to teach you everything he thought you should know—which was everything he knew—in order to successfully become a Hero people could rely on.

The two of you began by improving your physique. You joined him on his early morning run along with Midoriya and Bakugou, who welcomed you with contrasting fervor. When you met for your afternoon training, you would run five kilometers before learning various grades of combat moves, and then concluding your time together by sparring.

It was established early on that neither of you would use your Quirks during your tutoring as the two of you were well-adapted to your respective Quirks—and the strict rules regarding their usage.

For the next several weeks, you worked tirelessly on your training, and your dedication and hard work paid off. At your end-of-the-month assessment, Aizawa was pleased by your rapid and exceptional improvement and announced you could stay at U.A. He also informed you that it was never his intention to expel you in the first place, but nevertheless, he was impressed by your efforts.

You and Shouto continued to grow closer as time went by. You still had your training tutoring sessions in the afternoons, and you became a regular on his early morning runs. You even hung out outside of class and training; preparing pre-workout meals and drinks together, and various study sessions at all hours of the day and night. Once, you even packed him a small canister of his favorite brand of soba noodles for lunch one of the weekends he was interning at his father’s Agency. When he came back to the dorm after his shift, he made a beeline for you and promptly informed you that from then on out, you would be solely responsible for packing his lunches.

“Now why would I do that?” you implored. You crossed your arms, awaiting his response. “Are you gonna pay me?”

Shouto slowly blinked at you in the way a cat would. “Why would I compensate you for an action you chose to do?”

You had no retort for that.

As you spent more time together, you noticed some changes. Shouto would stare at you for seemingly no reason, and whenever you called him out on it, he feigned innocence. He also sought you out more often, insisting on walking to your next class or to and from the dorm by your side. He even began to occupy you on your shopping runs, dutifully holding your bags for you. And whenever you would thank or compliment him, his whole demeanor would light up as if Aphrodite herself had shown favor towards him.

You weren’t any better, though.

If Shouto would do so much as even blink in your general direction, your heart would soar and butterflies would take flight in your stomach. At first, you brushed it off as nerves for being the subject of the Shouto Todoroki’s attention, but you were in denial, not wanting to admit what was actually occurring. Looking back, you realized that deep down, you had known all along what was happening, but at the time, you weren’t ready to admit it—to yourself and him.

Regardless of your rebuttals and lack of admission, you were falling for your dual-haired classmate, hard and fast, and there wasn’t anything you could do about it.

3 months later . . .

“Y/N! It’s starting! You’re gonna miss it!” Ochako shouted from the couches, the other girls of Class 3-A surrounding her, all dressed in comfortable loungewear. It was the class's annual Girl’s Movie Night, which was held every couple of months. Tooru told you earlier that week that they would like to have it more often, like once a month, but given their hectic and ever-changing schedules, the girls had to settle for every few months. They took turns who got to pick out the movie. It was Mina’s turn this time. True to her nature, she selected an early 2000s chick flick set in the States.

“Hold on, wait for me!” you hollered back as you finished pouring the freshly popped popcorn into a large bowl, a few kernels spilling out as you whirled on your heels to sprint into the living area. You nearly tripped over Jirou’s legs as you practically threw yourself towards the last remaining free spot on the couch.

“Ah, sorry!” you exclaimed as you settled yourself into the cushions, checking over Jirou and your popcorn bowl. “Did I miss anything?”

“No, it’s just starting,” Momo said, taking a sip from her cup of tea as the opening credits began to roll.

“Ooh, this is one of my all-time favorite movies!” Mina squealed next to you. “Have you ever seen it before?” she asked.

You hummed, acknowledging her question. You thought hard, trying to recall if you’ve ever seen the characters on the screen before. “I’m not sure,” you said. “I don’t think so.”

The pinkette gasped aloud and theatrically placed a hand on her chest, sprawling backward. “Y/N! You wound me!”

Across the room, Tooru piped up from her spot next to Asui. “How could you not have?! It’s only one of the greatest movies ever made!”

“Oh, I’m not so sure about that,” Ochako interjected. “Gonna have to disagree.” You expected them to start arguing back and forth over what is truly the greatest movie ever made, like your friends back home would have done, but they don’t. Mina stuck her tongue out at Ochako before turning back to the movie.

You all watched the movie in relative silence, save for the light background noise of popcorn moving around in a bowl and slurping from a now-empty straw. It was nice, peaceful; a well-deserved and appreciated respite from the grinding hustle of being Pro-Heroes-in-training.

“Just confess already!” Jirou shouted at the screen as the main character allowed another opportunity for them to confess their feelings for their classmate slip through their fingers. “Gosh!” A corner of your mouth curled at her irritation. A few grumbles of agreement sounded from the others as the movie continued playing.

You had to stifle your laughter as the main characters continued to pine after one another, completely oblivious to the other’s growing feelings. I can’t believe there are actually people in the world who are like them, you silently mused. It’s so obvious they like each other. I can’t believe they don’t see it.

“Ugh, the anticipation and pining is killing me!” Tooru cried out, her slippers moving frantically in the air as she kicked her legs.

Asui raised a brow. “I thought you’ve seen this movie before?”

“Well, yeah, I have,” the invisible female said. “But the suspense still gets to me!”

“It is quite intense.” Ochako agreed. “I hope they confess soon. It hurts to see them think the other doesn’t return their feelings.”

“I don’t understand how they cannot.” You admitted, shrugging your shoulders. The girls turned to look at you as you continued, “I mean, they’re so obvious.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda annoying at this point,” Jirou mumbled.

Mina snickered. “Y/N, as if you’re one to talk.”

You gave her a questioning look, eyebrows furrowing. “What do you mean by that?”

“Oh, come on. You’re so obvious, too, with your crush—”

You cut her off, “I do not have a crush.”

“You have a crush?” Asui asked. You and Mina responded at the same time.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, she does.”

“What is this about?” Momo inquired, reaching for the remote and pausing the movie.

“Nothi—” you began but was swiftly interrupted by the pinkette next to you.

“Y/N has a crush on Todoroki!”

The girls gasped and gapped at you, eyes wide.

“I do not!” You said, face burning as you tried to mitigate the situation. “We’re not like that!”

“Oh my.” You thought you heard Momo say under her breath, but you couldn’t really hear since Tooru started shrieking with glee.

“You guys would be the cutest couple!” she exclaimed, jumping up from her spot on the couch and racing over to pull you into a tight embrace.

“I mean, it does make sense given they spend so much time together.” Ochako mused, a finger on her chin as she considered the situation.

Asui jumped on the bandwagon with, “Oh they are definitely into each other.”

“One hundred percent,” Mina agreed.

“Girl, you gotta spill the tea!” Tooru exclaimed as she pulled away. “Tell us everything!” The others voiced their agreement.

“I do admit, I am curious as to how this relationship came to be,” Momo vocalized, setting her tea cup down onto its saucer. “That is if the two of you have gotten that far into your companionship.”

You blinked at the midnight-black-haired woman, shock clouding your brain for a moment as you processed her words. “Um, n-no. We aren’t in any type of r-romantic relationship.” You clarified, but immediately you could tell certain people thought your answer was complete horse poop. “We aren’t!”

“Regardless, you guys are pretty close,” Ochako interjected. “I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

Jirou nodded in agreement. “And all the extra training you do together.”

“The early morning runs,” Asui added.

“Okay, okay,” you threw your hands up in a placating manner. “I understand what you guys are trying to get at, but you’re wrong.”

Mina came to stand beside you, giving you a knowing look. “Girl, Y/N,” she began. “You can try with all your might to deny it, but it’s obvious what is really going on between you and Shouto.” She placed a delicate hand on your shoulder. “And I know you know it, too.”

You stared at the pinkette, pondering her and the other’s words. You wanted to continue denying what they were saying, but you were getting tired of denying your feelings to yourself. You slumped your shoulders, the tension leaving your body as you resolved to come clean with the truth—to yourself and your friends, besides a certain dual-haired male. “Alright, fine.” You let out a heavy sigh, mentally preparing yourself for their reaction to your next statement. “I like him a little.” You confessed, looking at the floor, too afraid to meet any of their gazes.

The room was dead silent for two breaths before Mina erupted in choking laughter. “’A little’? Yeah RIGHT!” She laughed so hard that tears began to stream down her pink cheeks. After she managed to calm down a bit, she turned to face you fully, laying a hand on your knee. “Girl, you’re lying to yourself.” She told you, tone light yet serious. “We have all seen the way you look at Shouto—” the others nod in confirmation. “—and your eyes tell it all.”

You flinched as embarrassment flooded you. “Is it really that obvious?” you asked. You turned to the others to gauge their reactions. “Am I?” They all nodded.

“Definitely.”

“For sure.”

“We could see it from a mile away.”

You gasped. “Oh my,” you covered your face with your hands. “Do you think Shouto knows?”

“I doubt so,” Momo said. “Shouto is quite intelligent and a formidable force to be reckoned with, but as I’m sure you’re aware, his experience and understanding of social concepts and cues are fairly limited.”

“In other words,” Jirou interjected. “He’s none the wiser.”

You released a sigh of relief. At least he doesn’t think I’m a psycho stalker or something.

“Hey, give him some credit, guys,” Ochako remarked. “Todoroki’s more aware than he’s given credit for.”

“Moving on,” Mina said. “Have you thought about confessing your feelings to him?”

You crossed your arms over your chest, shamefully looking away. “No. . .”

“What?!”

“Really?!” Tooru shouted. “But he’s so hot!” The sleeves of her shirt crossed in front of her. “I would do anything to be his girlfriend.”

You laughed. “While you are correct about his handsomeness, I don’t even know where I would begin or how I would confess.”

“Your feelings are valid, Y/N,” Asui assured you. “Confessing one’s feelings for another is a life-changing occurrence.”

“You gotta do it before graduation in a couple months, though,” Ochako added. “If not, then you may never get another chance to do so.”

“Why do you say that?” you asked. “As Pros, wouldn’t we work together often? Why does it need to be before we graduate and turn Pro?”

“Possibly, but with our chosen line of work, there is always a possibility. . .” she trailed off with a grimace.

You understood immediately. “Oh.”

“Although rare in the line of duty, it does happen.” Momo said. “I wouldn’t worry about that though, but I agree with Ochako.”

“Plus,” Mina began, mischief glowing in her eyes. “If the two of you get together before you make your Pro Hero debut to the world, you wouldn’t have to worry about him falling in love with some random civilian he rescues on the street or another Pro.”

You nodded. “You have a point.”

“Either way, I think it will all work out in the end,” Ochako said, her cheeks widening with her smile. “I think perhaps Shouto returns your feelings, and just simply doesn’t know what to do about them or how to address them, therefore you should tell him.” The other girls voiced their agreement.

“Yeah, it doesn’t have to be some big romantic gesture or anything,” Jirou said.

“Just be honest with him, Y/N,” Asui said.

“Yeah, girl,” Mina added, giving you a warm smile when you met her gaze. “You got this. Besides, he can’t reject you. You’re too hot for that.”

You squared your shoulders as a burst of confidence filled you thanks to the encouragement you received from your friends. “Okay, I will!” you loudly announced. “I will confess my feelings to him!”

The others cheered as you all held up your lemon water in a faux toast. In your happiness, none of you noticed the shadows shift in the stairwell and the soft noise of retreating footsteps on the wood.

You were screwed.

“How am I gonna tell him!?” you mewled aloud a couple of days later in the cafeteria. You dramatically slumped your forehead on the tabletop, mentally kicking yourself for allowing the girls to convince you that confessing your crush would be an easy endeavor. You felt a reassuring pat on your shoulder. Groaning, you lifted your head from the table to shoot puppy eyes at Ochako. “Ochako, help me!” you cried. “How do I confess?”

The brunette gave you a sheepish smile. “I don’t know, Y/N.” She professed, her eyes apologetic. “Proclaiming one's love for another isn’t really my strong suit.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Asui mumbled under her breath before taking a sip of her drink, receiving a glare in response.

“Y/N, sweetie,” Mina cooed from your other side. “I think you’re overthinking it a little. It shouldn’t be but so hard. Just be honest with him!”

“But that is hard!” you said, waving your hands in the air. “I can’t just walk up to him and say, ‘hey, Shouto, I think you’re really hot and amazing. Wanna go out with me?’”

“Sure you can,” Momo intoned, trying to reassure you. “Maybe not in those exact words, but when the time comes, you will know what to say.”

“I hope so,” you sighed, slumping your shoulders. “I hope so.”

As time passed, you found that you did not, in fact, know what to say when the time came to confess your feelings to Shouto Todoroki. Whenever you were near him, you became tongue-tied and could barely speak without becoming a stuttering mess. During each interaction, Shouto would give you a long, confused look, his eyebrows drawn downwards as he watched you struggle for words. He wouldn’t comment on it, bless him, but he must’ve thought you to be a total weirdo.

Yet, he still accompanied you on the walk back to the dorm every day after classes ended, and he insisted on continuing your training sessions every weekend after he finished his shift at Endeavor’s Agency. The two of you grew closer, to your absolute delight, and yet you still hadn’t managed to work up the courage to confess your feelings to him.

Until one day . . .

You were sitting in homeroom during free period, chatting with Midoriya about the latest episode of the rebooted All Might: The Mightiest Man TV series.

“I’m telling you, Midoriya,” you said. “It doesn’t matter how much the animation and special effects have improved, the original will always be better than the reboot.” You crossed your arms and lounged back in your chair, waiting for the forest green-haired male to start sputtering his counterargument. “You can’t change my mind. I will die on this hill.”

“Are you seriously sayin—?”

A call of your name from a familiar tenor drew your attention. You turned towards the source to meet a pair of heterochromatic eyes. Shouto was making his way to your desk, coming to a stop right in front of you. You had to tilt your head back in order to maintain eye contact. After a moment, he turned his attention to Midoriya next to you. “Pardon me, Midoriya, but I need to speak to Y/N in private.”

You and Midoriya gaped at the dual-haired male for a good twenty seconds before you slowly rose from your seat. “O-okay.” You turned to face your green-haired companion. You hoped your eyes were conveying your inner panic as you said, “Midoriya, I’ll be back.”

All he could do was nod as he watched you follow behind Shouto, wondering why you looked so panicked to go with the male. Maybe you were constipated.

As Shouto led you toward the classroom door, Ochako and Mina shot you curious glances. When you met their gazes, they gave you a reassuring smile and a thumbs up, respectfully.

“Good luck, girl!” Mina whisper-shouted.

“You got this, Y/N,” Ochako said. You tried to match her comforting smile with your own, but it didn’t reach your eyes.

You followed behind the dual-haired male, silently wondering what was going on. Once you were outside the classroom, he led you down the hallway to a little corner nook bathed in the golden light of the afternoon.

“Shouto, is everything okay?” you asked, anxiously shifting from one foot to the other. “Is something wrong?” At your inquiry, he finally came to a stop in front of a set of windows and turned to face you.

“Yes, everything is fine.” He reassured you. “I have something I’d like to discuss with you.”

You blinked. “Okay,” you said. “Shoot.”

Shouto likewise paused at your usage of unfamiliar slang but didn’t comment on it. “Um,” he started, but drifted off, not finishing the thought. He opened his mouth only to shut it again after a moment or two without making a sound. You furrowed your brows as you continued to watch him struggle for words.

“Um, Sho?” you prodded. He didn’t respond, however, still thinking over his next words. Shouto never hesitates, you thought with a mixture of wonderment and anxiety. Is something bothering him? you thought with growing concern. You felt your heart come to a skittering stop as another horrifying conclusion came to mind; am I the problem?

“I overheard you and the other girls’ conversation on Movie Night,” he confessed at last, interrupting your spiraling train of thought. He bashfully looked away as if he was ashamed.

“Oh, okay?” you responded, absentmindedly going through the events of the night in question. Your heartbeat began to calm down to a normal rate. “What conversation?” You couldn’t think of anything in particular and were about to ask him to elaborate before the realization hit you like a freight train.

“I like him a little.”

“Okay, I will! I will confess my feelings to him!”

“Yeah, girl, you got this. Besides, he can’t reject you. You’re too hot for that.”

Oooohhhhh.

Fuck.

Maybe he didn’t hear that particular part of the conversation! You tried to reassure yourself as you waited for Shouto to answer your question. Your heart rate picked back up as panic began to settle in. We were there for several hours. There is so much he could’ve—

“You have an admiration going on.” You hate to admit you gawked at him for a couple of seconds before his formal wording translated into modern speech. You have a crush.

FUCK!

“Oh my God, I am so sorry!” you rushed out, trying to save face and whatever friendship you had with Shouto. You felt your cheeks burn. “Please, just forget you ever heard that!”

Shouto snapped his head to you as your words registered in his brain. “Why would I do that?” he asked after a moment. “We live in the same building with shared living space, barely anything is not overheard by another.”

Oh God, how much did he overhear?

“Besides,” he continued. “At our age, it is completely natural for one to harbor feelings for another.”

You blinked at him as his words registered, your cheeks now tingling due to the burn. Gosh, he sounds like a grandpa giving the birds and the bees talk.

“It—it’s j-just,” you stammered. “I-I-I—” You let out a harsh breath in frustration when your words continued to fail you. Shouto raised a brow before his eyes narrowed. Your heart sank when you saw that.

Oh great, he’s annoyed!

“Are you all right?” he asked before moving so he was right in front of you. You squeaked at the sudden warmth of his body heat as he placed a hand on your forehead. “Do you feel ill? You feel warm, and your face looks to be flushed with some perspiration gathering on your forehead.” His eyes frantically looked you up and down as he examined you for any further signs of sickness. “I should get you to Recovery Girl.”

“N-no!” you exclaimed when he went to sweep you off your feet. “Sh-Shouto, I—I’m fine, really. I’m n-not s-sick.”

“Oh?” Shouto blinked in confusion and, adorably, subtly tilted his head to the side. “Then why are you so febrile? And you are stuttering?”

“It’s not because I am sick. I’m just em-embarrassed.” You whispered the last part, and you couldn’t help but look away from Shouto in shame.

“Embarrassed? Why are you embarrassed, Y/N?” You shut your mouth, refusing to speak. Shouto sensed your hesitation. The light slowly left his heterochromatic eyes and he bashfully looked away from you. “Is . . . is it because you don’t want to be seen with me?” he asked. “For fear that your crush will see us together and not return your affection?”

You let out a gasp in surprise. “What? No!” You are quick to reassure him—your actual crush—of your intentions. “That’s not it at all!”

Shouto met your gaze again. His eyes lit up with what looked like . . . anticipation? Hope? You weren’t sure, but your heart began to race in trepidation. “Then what is it?”

“I like you,” you blurted out. You shut your eyes and covered your face with your hands, trying to hide from your drowning embarrassment. “Like, not even a little bit, but, like, really, really like you.” You whispered from behind your hands.

There was no immediate response from the dual-haired male. You didn’t dare to remove your hands from your face to check if he was still standing in front of you.

He probably didn’t hear me. You internally slapped yourself upside the head.

Before you could react, Shouto was carefully removing your hands from your face. His touch was gentle, like he was afraid you would crack and break under his fingertips. “Why are you hiding from me?” he whispered. Your breath caught in your throat as you stared wide-eyed at him.

“I—I.” Despite your efforts, words weren’t able to come out of your mouth.

“You should never feel like you need to hide,” he continued. He let out an airy tsk before he reached his hand up and gently tucked a piece of stray hair behind your ear. You felt your face heat up even more at the action. “Especially from me.”

What.

“W-what?” you voiced aloud. You blinked a couple times, trying to bring your brain back from the brink of short-circuiting.

Shouto chuckled lowly, moving impossibly closer into your space. “I think you need to get your hearing checked out, love.”

You blinked some more. “What?”

“Have I broken you?” he asked, the corner of his perfect lips turning up at the thought. “First you forget your words, and now you have lost your hearing. . .” he trailed off as he continued to stare intently into your eyes.

What is he playing at. . .? you wondered as you blankly stared at him.

The two of you stood there and took each other in for quite a while. In reality, it mustn’t have been for very long—at most a minute and a half—but to you, it felt like hours. You were so close you could see the light reflecting in his heterochromatic eyes and the small streaks of gray in the turquoise-colored one.

“I . . . like you, too,” Shouto suddenly confessed, violently snapping you out of the daze his proximity causes. “I have harbored feelings for you for some time now.”

WHAT!?

“You . . . do?” you asked, skeptical. You were hesitant to believe his words in fear that this whole thing was some sick prank. But—

No. Shouto isn’t that type of person, you thought. He barely understands humor as it is, so he must be telling the truth.

“I do,” he confirmed.

“Oh, um.” You fumbled again for words, embarrassment flooding your entire system once more. You licked your dry lips, missing the way Shouto’s eyes locked onto the movement. “Cool.”

Shouto blinked at you, one of his perfect eyebrows raising. “Cool?” he repeated with a sly smile overcoming his lips.

“Mhm.” You dumbly nodded. “Cool.” You paused before muttering a small, “Ditto.”

He chuckled again, subtly moving the tiniest bit closer to you. He was just about crowding you into the corner at this point. “Ditto, huh?” He mumbled under his breath with a widening smirk playing at his lips. “I think I have broken you, dear.”

You grinned. “Perhaps.” Shouto chuckled again before falling silent. The two of you stared at the other, lost in each other’s gazes.

“Can I kiss you?” He spoke on an exhale, his deep voice somehow even deeper. Before you could internally flip the fuck out and fully comprehend what was happening, you were already nodding. That was all the confirmation Shouto needed before he brought your lips in for a sensual kiss. Fireworks exploded behind your eyelids as you relaxed into him.

You smiled into the kiss. Thank you, chopsticks.

The next day, you and Shouto walked into the classroom holding hands. Everyone collectively stopped what they were doing to openly gape at the two of you as Shouto, always the gentleman, escorted you to your seat. The shocked silence lasted all but three seconds before Mina and Tooru let out ear-piercing shrieks and practically tackled you.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” Mina was shouting meanwhile Tooru was holding onto you so tight to the point that she was nearly crushing you into her invisible body.

“AHHHH, I knew this was gonna happen!” she exclaimed before somehow pulling you in closer.

“Can’t . . . breathe.” You wheezed out before your boyfriend pulled you away from the two fangirls and protectively held you to his chest.

“I would be grateful if you didn’t crush my girlfriend to death, Tooru.” He intoned in his naturally dry tenor. His statement only made them freak out even more.

“Ah! Look at the two love birds!” Ochako swooned.

“Fuckin’ disgustin’,” grumbled a deep voice from somewhere in the back of the room.

Before you could turn to shoot Bakugou a death glare, Shouto was already clapping back. “What, are you jealous, Bakugou?”

The desks which had surrounded the blond a moment prior were blown to shiverines.

“I’LL END YOU!”

Fin.

→ extras: snapshot 1, snapshot 2, fic tag

No plagiarizing, re-uploading, translating, or copying of any kind or on any platform of my writing or inserted into any type of AI generator. Do not recommend my work on TikTok. Do not repost on YouTube.

hey drei!!!!! rmb to drink water and take care of yourself yeah?!!!

emmmm,, istg you never fail to make me soft 🥺 ily so much and also don't forget to stay hydrated and healthy !!! 🧡✨