I'm not on EITHER side

"I GOT IT!"

Izuku's POV

The past few weeks have been going by pretty well. I eventually opened up my cafe, I got to learn more about Yagi, Uraraka and I have gotten closer, and the League haven't shown up at all recently.

I've been thinking about what to name the cafe, so I've been asking Uraraka and Yagi for help with it. They haven't met each other yet, but I hope that I can introduce them to one another sometime soon.

Uraraka's over today, and we've been talking about what to name the place while the customers file in and file out at random intervals. "Well, we've already exhausted everything we can with naming it after Hosu. There's already a bigger Hosu Cafe in the center of the city. We don't wanna make it confusing for customers."

"You're right. But there's gotta be something that sounds good and works with our little quaint town vibes. I want this place to feel safe and like you're not judged here. I've been in too many places where that isn't true." Uraraka looks at me a little confused, and that's when I realize that she doesn't know that I'm quirkless.

"Shit, pretend you didn't hear that."

"I can't. What do you mean? Are there people who've hurt you? If so, why?" I sigh, already knowing that I won't be able to get out of this.

"Alright, promise me that you won't judge me or think any less of me. I just have had a lot of friendships end because of this."

"I promise. There's nothing you can say or do that can make me think any less of you." I look at her and smile before taking a few deep breaths.

"I'm...quirkless. You don't have to pretend to like me anymore or act like it doesn't matter to you. I get it if you want to stop being friends, just don't lie to me and say-"

"That's it? That's the thing that killed some of your friendships. You must've had really shallow friends. Who gives a fuck if you're quirkless? You're still a smart, funny, interesting guy." I can feel the blush spread on my cheeks as she goes on.

"Are you okay?" I look at her confused and give her a look that asks what she means. "You're crying." I feel my cheeks and notice that there are tears falling down them. I wipe the tears off my face and offer a smile.

"Sorry, it's just that no one has really given me a chance. My mom is...gone. My dad left when he found out. My mom just seemed out of it after that. She wasn't mean or anything, she just seemed lost. Like she didn't know what to do anymore. All the friends I had as a kid stopped talking to me or started bullying me. I haven't really had a chance to prove myself without someone judging me for something I couldn't control."

I look up and see her with tears in her eyes. I feel bad for saying anything and go to apologize, but she cuts me off before I can even say anything. "I'm sorry that it's been so hard for you. You're a really good person, and I can't even begin to understand why someone would care about anything other than that. I hope you know that I'm not ever going to judge you. Just continue to be yourself."

We just sit there for a bit before I hear the door open. I look up and see a customer walking in. I ask what they want and get started while continuing to think about what to call the cafe. After I serve the person, I turn to Uraraka and see a smile on her face. "What's up?"

"You know how you said you wanted to create a nice little place that feels safe and everything?" I nod and she continues, "Well, you've created that place. It makes me feel safe and comfortable. It feels like...home." I smile at what she says and then it hits me.

"I GOT IT!" I see Uraraka and the customer jump out of the corner of my eyes. "Sorry." I turn back to Uraraka and explain. "You said this place had a homely feel, right?" She nods. My smile gets even wider. "Well, why not name it the 'Home Away from Home Cafe'. It's the place you can go when home feels like too much is going on, or when home feels too far away. We're always here to be the place you can go when you need that feeling of home."

"Midoriya, that's perfect. This is place is my little home away from home, so you've already achieved that for someone. I can help you make this place more homely on my days off if you want." I nod and go back to my work. Today has been pretty good. Nothing could ruin it.

I hear the bell ring and someone walk in to order something. I turn to go see who it is and immediately feel my anxiety rising. Not him. Not today, today was supposed to be good. I think Uraraka sees me panicking because she walks over to me to check if I'm okay.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just have a small request for you."

"Of course, whatever it is, I'll do it."

"Handle this customer for me, please?"

"Sure, but why?"

"I'll explain later. I'll do all the baking and stuff, just do the face-to-face stuff please." She hesitantly nods before going to the customer. They seem to know each other, and that just makes me even more worried that she'll end up not liking me.

Uraraka tells me his order, and I make it as quick as possible. Hearing her call his name and having it go throughout the shop makes me shudder. He doesn't scare me, he just makes me relive bad memories and makes me think I'll have to leave this place.

After he leaves, I can feel my muscles relax and I take a few deep breaths before going back to the front area. "Can you tell me why you were so afraid of one of my classmates?" I figured she knew him from somewhere, I just didn't know he got into U.A.

"He doesn't scare me, but he makes me remember all the shit I went through in the past. I  think that if he finds out I'm living here now, he'll drag me back to where I used to live and make me go through it all over again. I'm scared of not being able to stay here."

"And why is it specifically him that makes you feel this way?"

"Because he's my childhood bully, Katsuki Bakugou."

Word Count: 1096

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry it took so long, I just didn't feel like writing. My spring break starts tomorrow and lasts for a few days, so I might be able to crank out a few more chapters in the next few days. Let me know what you think, and let me know what you want to see in the future. Once again, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thanks for reading. Have a good day, and remember to drink some water.