New Beginnings

What My Future Holds

MIDORIYA'S POV

"Can't stay away?" Uraraka asked with a chuckle as I walked into the gas station.

I shook my head. "Every day when I wake up, this little place here is the first place I want to go. It's pretty much the only comfort I have here right now."

"You've been here a whole week. I take it our small corner of the world has grown on you?"

It has. Everyone is kind here. There aren't many places available here, but there were two apartments. They were rundown and outdated, but they were cheap. As soon as I get an income, I'm going to apply to them.

"It has. As soon as I can find a job, I'm going to apply for the apartments around here."

"Good luck finding a job in this town. You might have to work at a truck stop on the highway or the next town over. There isn't a lot going on here. The grocery store is usually hiring, but they can't keep employees, which isn't usually a good thing." She wasn't wrong. If a place couldn't keep a staff, there was usually something wrong with the work or the management.

"I don't mind a short drive. I know running out of gas was terrible, but I'm glad it happened. You know, when I passed the truck stop down the road, I felt sick to my stomach at the idea of stopping to fill up. If I had, I would have driven right through this town without a second thought." I don't know why I needed to tell her, but I wanted her to know that chance and bad feelings led me to this little town.

"Well, I'm glad you ran out of gas here." Her smile was warm and inviting. "And now that you've told me a little more, I'm going to pry."

Oh no. Please don't pry too much. I'm not a great liar and don't want to dig too far into my past.

"Where are you staying? Todoroki said he saw your car at the truck stop every time he passed it. Please tell me you haven't slept in your car all week." Crap. I have been sleeping in my car all week. I don't know how to get out of this one, either.

"I'm a little short on cash right now," I mumbled. I wanted to turn around and walk out of the gas station. I know she's only trying to be polite and make sure that I'm doing okay, but I'm ashamed and disgusted about it. I'm embarrassed that I have to sleep in my car and inhale snacks because I can't afford a full meal.

"Midoriya, why didn't you tell us? Around here, we like to take care of one another." She reached over the counter and grabbed my hand. "All you had to do was ask for help."

"I was a stranger coming here from hundreds of miles away. I had no cash and nothing to offer. Why would anyone help me? I was surprised when you two helped me with the gas. That alone was probably the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me. I didn't want you guys to feel like I was using you or anything like that."

Smiling at me once again, she said, "Don't be silly, silly. I am not sure about where you came from, but here, we help out even strangers." She looked away before adding, "You know Tsu and I have been talking, and we agreed if you were sleeping in your car. We wanted to offer you a couch. We have an extra couch in our garage."

I pinched my brows together as I stammered. "W-What? N-No, I couldn't trouble you two like that. That's too much." After being forced to depend on someone else for everything by my ex and constantly having it thrown in my face, that is the last thing I want. I can't stand the thought of being unable to do everything alone.

She giggled. "You're being silly again. It's no trouble, really. You can help out around the house or something if it makes you feel better."

Chewing my bottom lip, I asked, "Are you sure?" I could hear Tenya yelling at me in my head. "Nothing comes free in life! Someone always expects something in return!" I just hoped she couldn't see the distress in my eyes that I tried to hide with a smile.