Indefinite [BNHA x Male OC] by FluffBunWifuu

CHAPTER 4

       Kei glares across the small table at Kouta, his father, who chats animatedly with Ikari. The two of them had gone through topics so fast Kei's head spun trying to keep up. Right now, it sounded like gossip about some idol. Kei glares harder, a scowl twisting his face. They ignore him.

       "Oh, and did you see what she was wearing?!", the winged girl exclaims with apparent disgust.

       "I know!", Kouta winces, "I can't believe they let her go out in that. She looked poured into that dress".

       Kei shakes his head at the pair, going back to his meal and book in his hand. He didn't understand how this had happened. Thirty minutes together and you'd think they'd been best friends for years. 

       'Still', Kei thought, glancing up at Kouta again, 'it's nice to see him so happy'.

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       About an hour later, after Ikari could be dragged away from the gossip, Kei trudges beside her down a sidewalk to the subway station. He glowers at anyone who glances at them, silently daring them to approach the tiny character as she hurried by his side. Ikari for her part, seemed oblivious to his behavior and was rambling incessantly about how nice his father was.

       "And then he's just so big. I was scared at first but he's actually really cool and so much fun to talk to...", Kei tuned her out again, going back to glaring at a man who snatched his away from Ikari's rear pocket. Putting a hand to the small of her back, Kei hurried her down the stairs to the subway, through the terminal, and onto the next train heading east under the city. 

       "You don't have to take me all the way home you know." Ikari tugs his jacket with a smile.

       Kei scoffs, waving her hand away. "You almost got pickpocketed twice on the way to the train".

       The girl's eyes widen, and she looks away, cheeks flushing pink. "Oh."

       They sat in silence as the train sped along the tracks, Kei standing guard as Ikari continue to ramble.

       Kei struggled not to wince as people shifted around him, standing too close, touching him. He tried to focus on Ikari as she spoke, deepening his breathing and squinting his eyes nearly shut. 

       He hated the trains, busses too. There were too many people crowded around him. He could feel their heartbeats, every shifting body made him want to claw his skin. Their breathing was deafeningly loud, the smell of sweaty skin and fast food roiled his stomach.

       As the train slides to a halt, Kei snatches Ikari's arm, dragging her through the opening doors. He doesn't stop until they reach the surface, ignoring Ikari's cries for him to slow down. 

       Lurching out of the crowd into an alley, Kei leans against a brick wall. His breath rasps harshly in his throat as he struggles to calm himself. A warm hand tentatively rests on his shoulder, and Kei flinches as Ikari's face comes into view. 

       "Hey, you're ok. Deep breaths". Ikari watches his face worriedly, rubbing his back as well as she can considering their difference in height. 

       Slowly Kei's breathing steadies and his heart stops pounding in his ears. The volume of passerby and Ikari's heartbeat recede to the back of his mind. He straightens, Ikari's hand falling away from him as she steps back to give him space. 

       Glancing at her concerned face Kei mentally curses himself for allowing his senses to overwhelm him. Avoiding looking at her again, Kei stuffs his hands in his pockets and steps back onto the sidewalk, pausing for her to follow.

       They walk the rest of the way to her home in silence, Ikari stepping quickly to match his long stride. 

       Kei stops across the street from much nicer apartment building, it's paint not peeling and all its windows intact. Ikari stops beside him.

       "Thank you for walking me home." She smiles warmly, "And for helping me at school".

       Kei nods stiffly, eyes on the sidewalk. He watches silently as she walks across the street and is welcomed warmly inside by a friendly looking older man. She glances back at him and waves before entering the building. Satisfied that she won't be getting mugged, Kei turns and begins his long walk home. 

       He avoids the subway of course.

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       Its nearly midnight by the time Kei flops into his bed, having changed into a comfortable pair of sweats and a t-shirt. The apartment is quiet, his father having already left for his shift at a nightclub several streets west of home. 

       Kei spends some time reading a book and listening to music on his phone before turning in for the night. It always feels a bit unnatural to sleep at night, his instincts urging him to explore and 'hunt' instead. Eventually though, his body relaxes into the webbed sling he uses as a bed as he falls deep into unconsciousness.