Affinity

Chapter 37 - Problem Children

Shota Aizawa always said he would never interrupt a student's personal life. As far as he was concerned, students were allowed privacy, so long as what they were choosing to do in their free time was not causing them physical harm. For years, he allowed students to handle their issues on their own, only stepping in when he felt it absolutely necessary.

That is, until his current class of problem children. Each and every single one of them was in some state of crisis currently, and Shota couldn't handle it all on his own.

"Mr. Aizawa?" A voice called, just outside the tightly shut classroom door.

Before he had a chance to respond, to invite the student in, the smiling face of Denki Kaminari poked through a crack as he pushed the door open.

"Yes, Kaminari?" He responded, setting down the application sheets he'd been reading over. The pages shuffled slightly as they settled, spreading out slightly. The names and faces he'd been looking over for hours peered up at him.

"D'you have a second to talk?" Kaminari mumbled, stepping fully into the room. It was the end of a school day, so Kaminari was still in his class uniform, though looking slightly more rumpled than usual. His hair was pulled back from his hair with clips and he had heavy bags under his eyes, and Aizawa knew he hadn't been sleeping well. "I know you don't..."

"Yes, Kaminari. What's going on?"

Shota knew Kaminari well, as the boy reminded him of a young Hizashi in their day. Both were loud and brash and often did things without fully thinking them through, though Shota knew that despite their rash behavior and their outgoing, exuberant personalities - both his oldest friend and his student felt things incredibly deeply. He'd seen the worried way Kaminari looked at Bakugo and Emiko after their encounter with the League of Villains, and Shota wished he could help quell some of the boy's fears.

Denki Kaminari had come to Shota many times since the first interaction with the League of Villains. He'd been scared the first time, a feeling of guilt associated with that fear. Kaminari wanted to be a hero, and to him that meant he was never allowed to show fear. He had to be bright and happy and cheerful just as All Might was.

He'd never say it in front of the students who so clearly idolized the man who'd been the number one hero for as long as he could remember, but Aizawa wished he could. These students idolized a man who was flawed and who lied to everyone around him. Perhaps not many people saw it as he did, but Shota knew that All Might was never fully honest about himself or his past, and that made him uneasy. All Might had broken Midoriya's back during the final exams, had hit Bakugo so hard that he'd thrown up from the pain and still the students couldn't see through the rose coloured haze that seemed to follow the pro around.

Shota had comforted them, of course, promising the blonde haired boy that he'd keep them safe. That no matter what the league of villains did, no matter what stunt they pulled, the students of 1-A would be protected.

"Is Emiko... okay?" Kaminari mumbled, seemingly embarrassed at the question. Shota knew Denki and Emiko weren't particularly close, and he knew the girl had nearly bitten Kaminari's head off during the sports festival - though, he couldn't really blame her for that, if he was honest. He did call this group of students his problem children for a reason.

Since then, though, Denki had been putting in work to make up for his actions that day. He'd asked Shota and Hizashi how to apologize to the girls of his class, and they'd told him the truth. That any apology given without proper work being put in would only be laughed off. The girls in 1-A, despite how much they put up with from men, were not the type to easily forgive. They'd never make it hard for Kaminari and they'd never purposely exclude him from things, but they also had kept themselves separate after the incident.