Forgotten Nostalgia (Dadzawa)

Should I Cry Or Laugh First?

Izuku POV

Keep in mind how Izuku and how Shouta view the situations are different. Shouta is a lot more dramatic. 

The car ride back to the airport was silent.

Shouta's eyes occasionally flickered to the backseat, locking onto Izuku's for the briefest of seconds before quickly looking back at the road. Izuku could tell he felt guilty, probably regretting taking them to America in the first place. They'd gone with the highest hopes possible and were returning with a broken arm and crushed dreams. Well, it wasn't all a loss, Iida had gotten to get something called a "finger licking-grandma approved-hundred percent chemical" biscuit.

Yay.

It wasn't that Izuku's heart was broken- it wasn't thriving- but the damage was bearable. He still had his friends, well assuming Iida was human-like he said he was and not a robot. He still had Shouta. Izuku should be grateful. So why was he still blinking back tears?

Things didn't get much better when they arrived, stepping out of the rental car building and into the airport was the longest two minutes of Izuku's life.

"Stay close to me," Shouta said, slowing his pace so that Izuku could walk next to him.

Izuku suddenly wondered if Shouta was being nice to him out of real affection or just pity. Poor little Izuku, no longer able to use his quirk or remember his friends. The thought made something inside him burn and want to cry all at the same time. What if this whole trip had been one big pity party for him? Obviously being a hero was out of the question with his memories gone. Would Shouta no longer want Izuku to stay with him? To no longer be a burden? The longer they walked the more Izuku's thoughts spiraled. It was all too easy to doubt when the atmosphere was so melancholy.

Seeming to sense his unease, Shouta glanced down at him. 

Izuku quickly averted his gaze, not wanting Shouta to catch onto his feelings. The last thing he needed was to be interrogated in an airport with his friends pretending not to listen while secretly hanging onto every word. Instead, he focused on the tiled walk, counting how many steps it took him to get to the next crack in the flooring.

Shouta cleared his throat before whispering, "Izuku?"

Izuku kept looking down, embarrassed at how quickly emotions overcame him from just one word. He blinked furiously, praying the other travelers did not see the state he was in. If the hospital waiting room was any indicator, the rumors were fast spreading. Thank God Iida had lent him his spare hoodie, the oversized clothing did wonders at hiding Izuku away from unwanted eyes.

Shouta must have understood the silence better than Izuku wanted him to because he didn't try to get him to speak again, instead whispering to him they would talk about it later.

The plane trip back was a repeat of the car ride except for Uraraka burying her face in Iida's side as the plane took off. Izuku couldn't tell if she behaved this way out of motion sickness or just plain fear. Either way, he couldn't really blame her. Sitting in an airtight box hurtling across the sky at some crazy speed while being told to expect turbulence wasn't exactly comforting. The trip in had seemed so magical but with the fluff of their "vacation" out of the way it seemed more like a punishment to travel this way.

The other's parents picked them up from the airport seeing as the school had a long weekend. Izuku watched in silence as his friends were greeted and hugged, asking a myriad of questions about the trip that they weren't supposed to answer. The one that picked up Todoroki looked more like a sibling than a parent but Izuku wasn't about to question him.

It was raining when they stepped out of the airport, a slow drizzle that had greeted them from the time they broke through the clouds and didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. It painted the world in gray, all the buildings and bright suns suddenly seeming much duller.