STUTTER | KIRISHIMA EIJIROU.

chapter three.

     The next few months after that went by like a warm, summer's breeze. Your friendship with Kirishima only grew stronger, but you still met up with him in your cat form. He would place you in his lap and mindlessly pet your coat of white fur while rambling his head off. You would also regularly hang out after school, whether it be catching a new movie, spending extra change at an arcade, or just relaxing within each other's presence at your house.

     With the pass of time also meant that U.A.'s entrance exam was getting closer and closer. You and Kirishima had also spent the months training and building up endurance. Despite him knowing about your shapeshifting quirk, he never asked or looked suspicious about your possible link to the cat he's been seeing. Actually, he had brought up his encounters with you as a feline before with endearment dancing in his eyes.

     "There's this one really cute cat that I see almost everyday!" he said excitedly one day with a toothy grin. "I'm pretty sure she has a quirk since she understands everything I say, so she must be special, right? But too bad that she doesn't have a home..." his smile turned into a frown. "I can't take her in since my parents won't let me." he let out a long, dejected sigh.

     You hid your amusement by mirroring his frown. "That must suck. It's impossible for me to adopt that cat though." you replied back; once again, you weren't exactly lying.

     The next revolutionary moment in both your and Kirishima's lives was U.A.'s long awaited entrance exam results. You had received your letter first, but decided to wait for your best friend to receive his until you opened it. You opened it with shaky hands, right next to him. Two holograms played at the same time and held the same results:

     "You have passed the entrance exam, Kirishima Eijirou, and scored second place in the practical!"

     "You passed the exam, [Surname] [Name], and scored third in the practical exam!"

     "Welcome to your hero academia!" the two different pro heroes said simultaneously before the hologram flickered off.

     There was a moment of shocked silence between you two before Kirishima loudly yelled out, "Holy crap, we did it! We passed, [Name]!" His strong arms instantly pulled you into a hug, and you felt your shoulder get damp with his emotional tears. "We got in."

     You couldn't resist the wide grin that overtook your face. "...yeah!" you nodded your head before pushing his shoulders back to gaze into his watery eyes. "We did it together, and we're going to become heroes together, Kirishima!" yours glimmered with so many hopes and joys that he was left breathless. "Just like we said."

     Kirishima stared at you with a starstruck expression. He never thought that you could get anymore beautiful than the day you said that you believed in him, but the beaming smile that blossomed on your lips and your dazzling eyes had proved him wrong. He felt his face flush with warmth when he realized how long he was staring for. "I— um— yeah! T-Together..." he stuttered, wide eyed.

     You tilted your head, curious about his sudden change in tone, but brushed it off as his lingering disbelief. Your hands left his shoulders to grasp one of the papers that came in U.A.'s envelope. "Ah, I got into Class 1-A." you announced after absorbing the information given to you.

     Kirishima's hands fumbled with his own, and he could barely concentrate on the words written on the paper. "Same here!" he claimed with a burst of happiness exploding in his heart. Spending high school with his best friend? Stellar in his books!

     "Looks like we're stuck with each other for a bit more," you joked with an easygoing smile. You lifted your fingers from the letter in your hands to ruffle his head of black tresses. "Not that it's a bad thing." you added while winking playfully.

     Kirishima grinned as well, enjoying the feeling of you petting him. "Not a bad thing at all."

     It was hours before your best friend left your house with his acceptance letter held proudly in his possession. You waved him one last goodbye, which he returned more enthusiastically. When he turned around the corner, your arm fell at your side with a light thump.

     A frown formed on your lips while you clutched onto the practical exam results in your hand. You didn't want to believe it, but it was something that you always knew would happen. You were just fortunate enough to not be on the same battlegrounds as him during the exam.

     "First place: Bakugou Katsuki, huh?" you read off the name full of bitter and sweet memories. "Safe to assume he'll be placed into Class 1-A, knowing how screwed my luck is..." a pained smile made its way onto your face, but was quickly replaced with confusion when you saw another familiar yet unexpected name. "Sixth place: Midoriya Izuku...?"