Mirror World

1

He giggled and pushed my shoulder. I smiled at him which had become less and less rare nowadays. He orchestrated my smiles and knew every small thing that made my dry lips tilt into my lopsided smile he loved so much. He wasn't mine, but we had our moments of happiness.

"A memorial service will be held to honor our fallen heroes, All Might and Deku-"

The TV was on but we weren't paying it any attention. I reached over to him and started to slide my fingers along his nose and down his cheeks as my lips moved slowly while I counted the many freckles he had on his skin that created his own constellation.

"-a young hero All Might took under his wing as his apprentice after Deku, also known as Izuku Midoriya, graduated from UA High School with honors-"

"Are you counting them again?" He said with a light chuckle; his emerald eyes fixated themselves on me as I traced his dots. I nodded and smiled at him. His cheeks were brushed with a light shade of pink underneath his freckles.

"I find them intriguing." I said.

"Fans, family, and friends of these heroes gather together to build a shrine at UA to remember and honor them as they died protecting the students locked inside the school-"

He giggled again and it rang through my ears. His arm twitched and I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at him in confusion. He smiled at me as though nothing happened. I turned my attention to the TV screen as it shone its light down onto the ground and illuminated our faces.

"-by the hands of the villain All For One, All Might's proclaimed arch nemesis. All For One got away and has yet to be seen or heard of, and we all hope he has disappeared and never to be returned-"

"Deku," I said.

"Yes, Kacchan?" He responded instantaneously.

"If there was a world without All Might, which side would you have chosen?"

"Hero, of course."

"-Events following this tragedy will be those of mourning and remembrance, but most importantly, a celebration of two lives who risked everything to keep our city safe-"

"Deku, your nose is bleeding." I reached over to touch the blood that dripped from his nose, but it caused more blood to rush out of his nostrils. His lips turned into a cruel smile; his teeth stained with blood as globs of blood oozed from in between his teeth and dripped over his lip and down his chin. I jumped back in horror as his skin started to tear and bleed; his limbs started to crack and deform. His smile became more and more maniacal, his pupils shrunk as his eyes widened. He let out a slight cackle before shrieking. I covered my ears to block out the sound, but it reverberated through my skull. My eyes started to spin and I closed them tightly.

Then the screaming stopped.

"-Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of these fallen heroes; their bravery living on through memories."

I opened my eyes and stared at the TV screen in front of me. The newscaster signed off and the camera lingered on the shrine people had made for Deku and All Might. My heart raced and tears streamed down my face. I realized I had covered my ears, so I brought my hands down to my lap. I heard voices behind me, but only muffled. I knew it was my mom and Inko, Deku's mom. Inko came over earlier this week to stay with us while she grieved. Mom didn't trust her to be alone, so she invited her to stay with us. I could barely look her in the eye, even to this day three days after her son...

More tears streamed from my eyes and I covered my face with my hands. After a few minutes of sitting and listening to mom talk, Inko crying, and the news, I reached for the remote and turned off the TV. I stood up weakly and headed toward the stairs to head up to my room. I gripped the railing on the way up the stairs as my limbs shook with each bit of pressure applied to them.