His Personal Hero (TodoDeku)

Apology

  Day two of being on house arrest came and went slowly. The entire day was boring. Well, until Kacchan and Shoto had their next fight in the courtyard. I didn't bother Shoji with eavesdropping on them again. I wanted to avoid anymore trouble and I believed I already had enough information. I just casually watched the fight from my window.
  It was a much longer and tedious battle than before, but in the end Kacchan won. Shoto's defenses were stronger and he occasionally had successful offensive attacks against Kacchan, but Kacchan blinded him with a Stun Grenade. The effect heavily disoriented Shoto, causing Kacchan to subdue him. When it was over, Mr. Aizawa spoke to them before dismissing them. Of course, I wasn't able to understand what was being said, but it must have been bad. Shoto appeared very displeased with himself. It hurt me to see him so frustrated.

  The third day of house arrest was a bit more interesting. I was resting on my bed listening to music when there was a knock at my door. Was it already the afternoon?
  "Midoriya?" Shoji called for me. I popped my headphones out of my ears before opening my door.
  "Yeah?" I answered.
  "Hey, so I thought I should warn you before you find out." He abruptly stopped and hesitated to continue.
  "About what?" I tensed as thousands of impossibly bad scenarios played through my mind.
  "There are rumors floating around in class regarding why you, Bakugo and Todoroki are on house arrest. It seems that they know Bakugo and Todoroki were fighting over you."
  "Oh err," I turned away as my face grew red. Great, now everybody knows. Kacchan is going to be pissed if they say anything to him.
  "Yeah, I felt obligated to tell you so you wouldn't walk into it blindly later."
  "Thanks Shoji. I appreciate you telling me. I also wanted to thank you again for the other day." I smiled brightly.
  "No problem. I'm glad I was able to help. Oh! And another heads up, there will be a Christmas party in our common room tomorrow evening. The girls and teachers will be here."
  "Oh great." I spoke sarcastically. He shrugged his shoulders before proceeding on to his room. This party is going to be insanely awkward. I just hope nobody bothers Kacchan with the rumors. Who am I kidding though? Of course somebody is going to. It'll probably be Kaminari or Kirishima.
  "Midoriya," Mr. Aizawa ripped my attention away from my mind, startling me.
  "Come with me."
  "Um, okay." I spoke hesitantly. He came out of nowhere. I snatched up my blue hoodie before closing the door behind me and rushing to catch up with him.
  "Uh, where are we going?" I asked as I tossed on my hoodie.
  "You'll see."

  Mr. Aizawa led me outside onto the courtyard. We approached Kacchan and Shoto as they were preparing for their last fight. Their reaction to seeing me was just as surprised as mine for being there. What's Mr. Aizawa planning?
  "Ignore Midoriya. He isn't here. Go ahead and start." Mr. Aizawa spoke monotonously.
  Shoto and Kacchan glared back at each other. Immediately starting off, Shoto stepped forward and spread a blanket of ice in front of them. Kacchan avoided it by propelling himself into the air. He hovered over top of Shoto, aiming his palm directly down and igniting an explosion overhead. Shoto promptly blocked with an incredibly strong ice shield. Woah, it didn't even crack from the pressure!
  Kacchan quietly growled in response to him blocking. Hmm, he wasn't expecting that. As he landed behind Shoto from his aerial move, Shoto turned and sliced an ice shard against his back.
  "Ah, fuck!" Kacchan grumbled through clenched teeth. The gash bled into his ripped uniform. My entire body cringed from the sight. Kacchan is strong and highly pain-tolerant, but even that evidently hurt him.
  He twisted around and shot a powerful controlled blast into Shoto's chest, knocking him back several feet. But in response, Shoto lifted a small ice wall behind him to prevent him from sliding any further.
  Once he recovered his posture, he struck a series of ice shards back at Kacchan as well as strategically-placed ice walls. Kacchan successfully dodged them by flipping through the air away from Shoto. It appears Shoto is trying to force distance between them.
  Kacchan was progressively and rapidly becoming furious. The last two fights went quicker and easier than this one. Shoto was putting his all into this. He studied Kacchan and is now aware of his typical attacks. Kacchan has to switch it up if he is going to win.
  Shoto's left side became engulfed in flames, melting away the sheet of ice on the ground. He was warming his body to equal out the freezing temperature from his ice.
  "Dammit Half-N-Half." Kacchan mumbled under his breath.
  "Heh, come on King Explosion Murder." Shoto said tauntingly while a smirk and laugh drew from his lips.
  The mockery caused Kacchan's rage to skyrocket. He rushed him, but instead of landing a punch or explosion, he flew over and attempted to snatch him by the neck. He was preparing to lunge him over his shoulder, but Shoto dodged flawlessly and swept Kacchan's leg out from under him once his feet hit the ground. This caused Kacchan to drop to the ground with his chest hitting it brutally.
  Shoto covered Kacchan's arms and legs in ice. He specifically ignored his hands so Kacchan couldn't immediately shatter the ice with his quirk. He was held down efficiently for several moments, but Kacchan broke through as the ice weakened from him struggling. Of course, Kacchan would never let himself be forced down consciously in a fight.
  Kacchan sprung forward into the air and snagged Shoto into his arm. He was livid. Using his free arm, he created explosions to spin them around viciously. Oh no, he's using Explode-A-Pult. Shoto began encasing them together in a glacier to slow Kacchan down, but Kacchan already had enough momentum to propel Shoto across the courtyard. Unfortunately, Shoto smacked ferociously against the ground quite a distance away, knocking the air out of him. I winced as I watched him gasping.
  "Enough. Bakugo, you win." Mr. Aizawa stated.
  Kacchan was hunched over, panting hard but smiling. The blood from his back was clotting up into his clothes. I saw the anger in his face defuse once he realized he was victorious.
  "Heh, that'll teach you to mock me." Kacchan mumbled under his breath as he watched Shoto pleasingly. Shoto was still trying to catch his breath.
  "Bakugo and Todoroki. Listen closely," Mr. Aizawa started once Shoto finally recovered. "I made you two fight for the past three days as a punishment, as a vigorous training session and as an eye opener." He paused.
  "I wanted you to realize you're both incredibly strong and keen students, but when paired against somebody who is closely your equal it takes specific requirements to win. Todoroki, in an enclosed building you have an advantage over Bakugo. You can manipulate his quirk to overpower him. Bakugo, in an open arena you have the advantage over Todoroki. Pick your battles. Be smart enough to know when you're at a disadvantage. Todoroki, you greatly improved in each fight as you learned Bakugo's fighting style. But, when you're against a villain you only have that one chance. You have to outwit your opponent the first time, not just outmatch his strength. You both fought very hard. Thank you for respecting each other enough to give each other the full effort of your abilities." As he finished, he observed Kacchan and Shoto's faces. They were receptive of his lesson. Kacchan wasn't appearing as prideful anymore.
  "I also believe this has helped mend some of the other issues amongst the three of you," he said as he glanced at me. "I brought Midoriya with me so he could analyze the fight as well as to help prove a point. In the hallway three days ago, he was in the middle of your personal fight. He broke you two up, but not without getting hurt in the process. Now, I don't know which one of you burned him, but it doesn't matter. The fact is he got injured. Always be aware of your surroundings. Midoriya was involved in your collateral damage because you were too focused on hurting each other. You became irresponsible and careless. That should never happen." Kacchan and Shoto glanced away. Mr. Aizawa gave them a harsh reality check as disappointment coated their faces.
  "Do what you will with that, but nobody should ever get hurt because you were too focused on taking your opponent down." Mr. Aizawa began to step back, "oh and you're no longer on house arrest. Tomorrow we will not have class because there will be a Christmas party hosted in your common area. It was voted on in class today. The females as well as some of the teachers will be attending. I expect you three to behave." He finished and started to walk away, "you're dismissed. Bakugo, go see Recovery Girl about that injury."
  The three of us shared glimpses amongst each other. Kacchan and Shoto appeared upset from the realization of Mr. Aizawa's lesson. I stood there awkwardly. Have I mentioned I hate awkwardness?
  "Um, I'm sorry. This was all my fault. Kacchan, are you alright? Your back looks pretty painful." I said to break the silence.
  "Ha, you're certainly right about it being your fucking fault." Kacchan said as he began to walk towards me, "I'm fine, don't worry about me. You need to apologize to Todoroki and not fuck anything else up with him. Got it?" He spoke very softly to prevent Shoto from hearing, "also, I'm sorry I burned you."
  My eyes flashed back towards Shoto as Kacchan walked past me towards the school.
  "A-Are you okay? That impact looked really painful too."
  "Yes, I'm fine." He spoke swiftly. He was trying to avoid conversation.
  "Uh, Shoto? Can I talk to you?" I asked reluctantly.
  "I have too much going on right now. I need to go." He turned his back to me and stepped forward, but I jerked his arm back.
  "Please. Please let me say this." My voice started breaking, catching his concerned attention.
  "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I caused all of this. I'm sorry I never told you about Kacchan. I'm sorry I lied to you. I'm sorry I got you into trouble. I ruined everything between us. I should have told you exactly what happened that day at Kacchan's house when you asked. I didn't then, but I am going to now." I took in a deep breath.
  "When I got there, Kacchan was really upset. I tried to talk to him, but he was pushing me away like normal. I kept pestering until he finally broke and told me. He confessed his feelings to me and kissed me. He asked me if I wanted to be with him, but..." My voice was shattering as the tears rolled down. Shoto ripped his arm out of my grasp and stepped back.
  "I can't do this. I can't be with somebody who doesn't know what they want." He continued distancing himself from me, "Izuku, tell me, who do you want? Is it him or me?" His voice was quiet but ridden with pain.
  "You!" I screeched, "you're who I want!" I was choking on my tears as they continuously streamed down. "I want you! And I told him that! All of that time ago, I told him I wanted you! He got upset and lost control of his anger. He cracked some asphalt that was beside me and caused the cut on my cheek. I told him then and I never changed my mind. I always wanted you. Ever since that night in your room, I was entirely sure of it. That night sealed my feelings. I never wanted Kacchan, only you." I buried my face in my hands as the tears soaked them. My heart was aching from Shoto's rejection and uncertainty.
  As I lost myself in my sobs, I suddenly felt warm arms wrap around me. I realized he pulled me into a hug which only made me cry harder. I clung to him, gripping his shirt tightly into my hands.
  "Izuku, thank you for apologizing and telling me the truth." He softly whispered in my ear.
  "I'm so sorry." I cried out into his shoulder.
He pulled out of the hug and lifted my chin. My eyes were so watery and blurry they couldn't focus. He brushed his finger against my tears, wiping my face free of agony. He titled my chin up some more before smoothly pressing his lips onto mine. In that same moment, my heart melted and butterflies flew around in my stomach. I was no longer in pain. I was no longer shaking from anxiety. His embrace calmed me. He dispersed every ounce of stress I was carrying in a single kiss.
  I effortlessly kissed him back. My hands still tightly gripped into his shirt. I felt his hand reach around to the back of my neck, gently holding my head in place. Our lips repeatedly kissed one another until Shoto finally receded. His mouth skimmed against mine as he pulled back. I gleamed my watery eyes at him, but his face was still expressing confusion. He was battling his inner thoughts.
  He sighed heavily, "I still care about you and I still want you, but I need some time to myself. I need to find where my head is and re-orientate my focus. You have been all I've wanted lately. You don't know how bad I've been needing to kiss you again. But, this is causing me to fall behind academically and physically. I couldn't even handle myself against Bakugo. How am I supposed to protect you if I can't withstand an opponent like him."
  "But you did. You did protect me."
  "No I didn't. You got hurt."
  "Because of myself, but you protected me the entire time. I was never in harm's way. You made sure of that. You kept Kacchan off of me. I was safe because of you." I bit my lip.
  His mouth grew into a huge smile, "you're so sweet." He nuzzled his face against mine before kissing me again, softly. The butterflies started floating in my stomach once more. "But," he spoke in the kiss, "I still need time. Are you willing to give me that?" His insatiable lips were millimeters from mine. Oh, how badly I wanted to kiss him again.
  I nodded, "yes, but I'm here if you need me, at any point."
  "I know." He smiled.
  I think I did it. I think I saved us. He may need some time, but I think we're going to be okay. I shyly smiled back at him as he began to walk backwards towards the dorms, still keeping his eyes on me. Before turning to face the building, he winked at me and softly laughed. I giggled in response as my heart jumped. Heh, flirty Shoto is back.

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