A Blossoming Lotus

3. Growing Roots

I stared up in awe and wonder at UA High. I had never seen the building up close until now. There appeared to be four main buildings made entirely of glass windows, each one connected by a glass bridge in the middle. It reflected the sky perfectly. The buildings stood taller than some mountains, at least thirteen stories high, if not more; and there was a wall boxing in the entire campus.

The wall was as high as the tallest tree in the area. The school was not only known for teaching the best heroes, but also for its security. Hence the wall. The wall itself was massive and decently wide. A thick layer of trees could also be found on the inside of the wall, but I couldn't see much from where I stood. The wall was a beige-like white, it appeared to be mostly concrete, until the entrance.

The entrance changed to red bricks, with an arc outlined in blue. Embedded on the arc was the UA High emblem. It was shaped like a U with an A inside of it. It appeared to be made out of gold, or maybe silver with a gold plating. That was where I needed to go.

With all of their precautions, UA High was easily one of the safest high schools to attend.

Once I was able to stop staring and begin my day, someone came barging up from behind me and rudely shoved me to the side. I nearly fell over, but I was able to catch myself by waving my arms to the side and frantically trying to recenter my force of gravity.

"Stop staring and move!" A growling voice spoke out. A spikey haired blond, who now stood in front of me, turned and gave me a side glance glare. His eyes were red and his pupils were small. He looked pretty pissed off.

I swear I recognize him, but from where?

Beside him stood a girl with curly green hair, but I didn't pay much attention to her, as she seemed a bit out of it, and I was way more focused on the boy in front of me. His familiarity filled me with a sense of dread.

Seriously, where do I know him from?

~~~

I was sobbing outside the classroom. My rosewood colored hair soaking in my face, as I wrapped my knees in my arms and buried my face in my knees.

"Hey, what's wrong?" A young girl walked up to me and put her hand gently on my shoulder.

"I-I..." I could hardly speak through my sobs even if I wanted to. "H-he was..." I just cried harder and tried to hide myself.

"It's kind of rude to hide from someone who's trying to help." The young girl stated. "I can just leave if you'd like."

I shook my head. I didn't want to be alone. "I-I'm so-sorry." I stuttered out.

"Don't be sorry!" She said, "You don't have to tell me what's wrong if you don't want to."

I finally looked up at her and wiped my tears. She had the most beautiful green eyes, they were almost glowing. Her hair was a darker green than her eyes and it was curly, which really made her eyes pop. She also had freckles on her cheeks.

"I'm Ruri, by the way!" She smiled brightly and held out her small hand.

"A-Ame." I spoke quietly and shyly reached my tiny hand to hers. She helped me back to my feet and we walked into the classroom together.

That was the day I met Ruri. The day that would set the rest of my life on course.

The blond boy with red eyes was glaring at me intently as I walked back into the room, but for some reason, now that I was with Ruri, he wasn't approaching me. His name was Katsuki Bakugo. Famed class bully for nobodies like me, yet a hero to those with powers inferior to his.