~Stars~ Todoroki x Reader

Chapter 61 - Fragile

The roar of the crowd was deafening the second Todoroki and Midoriya's fight was over. A mix of excitement, cheers, and criticism. Pro heroes of all ranks debating whether or not they'd make good heroes, or would peak in high school and fall off. 

Y/N only had one thing on her mind as her shoes slammed against the pavement. Her heart pounded against her chest- not from adrenaline but from an uneasy feeling she couldn't shake. She pushed past the spectators, and down to where their locker rooms were. He had to be there by now. 

After the fight with Midoriya Y/N knew something changed, something shifted. What Endeavor said during the fight, didn't sit right with her. The quirk marriage, talking about Todoroki as if he was some subject from a lab, the way Todoroki has been acting all day. She wanted answers. 

With each step her shoes echoed down the corridor far away from the audience, far away from their current reality. Turning a sharp corner, she finally saw him as he entered one of the locker rooms, his shirt tattered from battle and a weird aura looming his expression. 

Her chest tightened, but she forced herself forward, stepping into the locker room after him. The locker room was dimly lit, and there was no one else there. 

Todoroki didn't acknowledge her, But Y/N could tell he knew she was there. His posture was rigid, his fingers curled into a ball parts of his knuckles going completely pale. His eyes were fixed on something only he could see. It wasn't his reflection, not the floor, just the space in front of him as if he was waiting for something to appear and solve all his problems. His chest rose and fell steadily, but there was deep tension in his shoulders. 

As the heavy steel door shut behind her, it was then he realized, he glanced back though his eyes didn't quite meet hers. He seemed to wrestle with something for a moment, as if looking for the right words to say if anything, but then his shoulders slumped and he looked down. 

"Hey-" She softened her tone, just a little, but didn't let go of her firmness. She placed a hand softly on his shoulder, only for him to pull away in the same moment. 

Y/N let her hand drop, exhaling through her nose. "Oh, cool. we're are at the 'flinching away from human contact' stage that's new." 

He didn't respond, but she wasn't expecting him to. Still, the way he recoiled- it wasn't just from her touch. He was pulling away from everything. Her kindness. Her friendship. Maybe even himself, or who he thinks he was or supposed to be. 

She leaned against the table beside him, arms crossed. "So, are we moving on to where you pretend I'm not here and hope I go away. 

Another beat of silence. Y/N exhaled sharply, pressing her lips together. This was proving to be more frustrating than she was comfortable with. But she couldn't back down- not this time. 

She'd let Star go. Let him slip through her fingers like it was nothing. No matter what she told herself, that's what happened. She didn't fight got him. She didn't push. She just let him treat her like she was disposable and walked away. 

Not this time. 

"Well that's too bad- I'm not leaving. I won't let you push me away like this Todoroki." 

Todoroki exhaled sharply, eyes fixed on the floor. "I'm not-" He paused, jaw tightening. "I'm not pushing you away." 

His voice laced conviction, though, like even he wasn't sure if he believed it. 

"Oh don't do that," Y/N huffed. "Don't act like that's not exactly what you are doing. You go on and on about not being here to make friends, and every time we take a step forward, you shove us three steps back!"