Sunrise (Todoroki x Reader)

Chapter 13 - Combat

"Come in" called out a voice.

Y/n opened the door of training room 5. It was roughly the size of a large dance studio but with tall ceilings and had a large mirror wall. The floor was like one in a dojo, covered in a soft but firm mat material. This must be the martial arts training room.

"You're here." called out a voice from the other side of the room near the boxing equipment.

 Todoroki walked casually over to the door. He was barefoot and wearing a light blue tank top with dark grey sweatpants. As he came closer y/n's already short breathing became even shallower. She started at his bare arms and shoulders and felt her face go red.  

Woah... his arms look so toned... Oh my god, his shoulders...I-

Y/n jumped a little when realised that she hadn't said anything out loud and was just panting there while Todoroki was just staring at her, waiting for a response.

"Ah! Yes, I'm here!" wheezed y/n. Todoroki narrowed his eyes at her in curiosity.

"I assume you were warming up?" he asked.

"Well..." panted y/n with an awkward smile, "If you call sprinting down four flights of stairs to make it here on time a warm up, then, yes!" Todoroki tilted his head a little with surprise.

"You ran down the stairs... so you would be here at exactly 6pm?" he inquired, raising his eyebrow.

"Um... yes!" affirmed y/n with a dorky nod. Todoroki's face seemed to darken for a moment.

"Why?" he asked coolly. 

Y/n gulped at his sudden coldness. This was the same, detatched tone he'd used when he first talked to her before he ran off jogging on Tuesday morning. And he was doing the intense thing with his eyes again, staring into her soul...

"Because I didn't want to leave you waiting." y/n answered with sudden firmness. 

Her embarrassed smile didn't leave her face, but she hardened her eyes a little and she stared right back at him. She wasn't quite sure where she was pulling this self-assurance out of, but there was something about the way he asked her that she didn't like. That tone... it's like he was almost looking down on her. 

After a few tense moments, Todoroki relaxed his face. 

"Hm. Anyway, we should begin." he said as he walked over to the centre of the training room. 

She sighed in relief. For a moment it seemed like he was testing her, watching carefully how she'd respond... But maybe he was simply curious as to why she had bothered to run so fast to make it on time to a simple training session. Y/n wasn't sure; his expressions were very hard to read. 

Y/n quickly slipped off her shoes and socks and put them in a corner. She quickly inhaled and exhaled, closing her eyes to relax her nerves, closed the training room door and jogged over to meet Todoroki in the middle. He turned around and faced her, his arms crossed.

"So, y/n. What do you know so far about combat?" he asked in a calm and collected voice. 

Y/n looked at him in surprise, not having expected Todoroki to start off like that. She shuffled her weight from side to side, racking her brain for answers.

"Um... definitely not as much as you do." she said shyly. Todoroki shook his head.

"This isn't a time to be humble. You've used combat in hero training this week." he suggested. Y/n tilted her head as she thought about that for a moment.