PLASTIC FLOWERS ( k. bakugou )

chapter 29

' tale as old as time '

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Nostalgia. When the youth woke up on a desolate alleyway, familiar days of the times before she was invited to join All For One and the rest took over. The street rats scampering and playing around with the garbage cans, the nasty smell of sewers and decomposing garbage inside metallic cans, the azure skies above tainted with grey clouds.

A violent shudder crawls on her spine when she thinks of the upcoming rain, but she tries to stand despite the wobbly legs and tries to walk on the streets. Donned in casual clothes- a russet colored jumper over an ice blue blouse paired with flip flops, she maneuvers easily through the crowd and when she spots the perfect spot to garner the attention of concerned citizens (if there were any, she thinks bitterly recalling her days of struggle) or heroes, she takes in a deep breath and let the tears flow.

Scratched feet wanders, tears falling from her face and when she bumps into a personage, she would have regained balance but chose to fall to the ground and release another downpour of tears.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" the person who bumped into her yelled, but it was drowned out by the sea of voices in the streets.

Capricious girl Kaede would have ripped him to pieces but she clings to the last thread of patience and opts to answer with her staged, preordained words. "I-I'm lost." And I you hope you are too, until it's revealed that you aren't really lost, but dead. Torn to pieces and disemboweled, you piece of shit.

"What?" the person asks and when she looks up to see him, she's meet with crimson irises and a scowl. A person no older than her wearing a white school shirt and baggy pants that he handled quite fashionably, but the youth still wished a thousand tragedies to befell him.

Already rid of patience, she replies with words partnered with a glare. "I told you, didn't I? I'm lost," she even elucidates the last word and she swore that if he didn't leave, somebody would shout bloody murder.

"Well you're fucking rude for someone who's lost," he said and she was still sprawled on that dirty concrete- Tomoe would have a field day with lecturing her of the importance of hygiene, and she would have a blast ignoring him- and when she was reminded of Tomoe, she was reminded of Tomura who she played video games with and sensei who taught her with patience. Patience.

"And you're too curious for someone who doesn't give a shit," she replied, minus the glare and people would have thought that she wasn't making any progress, but this was improvement in her book.

"You look like you're starving," he pointed out, both hands in his pockets and his blonde hair caught the sunlight and darkened over the edges as it was protected by the shade of a nearby tree.

The youth crossed her arms over her chest, pondering if she should stand up, but the thought that she preferred not to was stronger so she remained. "Well I've been lost for one day, seven ho- I mean I've been lost for almost two days now."

"You have endurance for someone who looks weak," he said.

The youth agreed with that, this body, whoever it belonged to, that almost indecipherable scream at the back of her (?) head, was by all means weak. It would help her. It should because she's sacrificed so much for this.

"And you're too curious, I repeat," she said, slowly getting rid of the expletives, naturally (as if) reverting back to benign lost girl who did not lace acid on her words. "If I wasn't thinking straight, I'd say you're almost concerned, but that'd ruin your future as Most Villainous Person in the Planet."