fight for me (Todoroki X Reader)

Chapter 13: Unsettled

Todoroki spent the next day checking his phone, but he didn't get a call from Y/N. He texted her several times to check in, but to no response. He was worried, but he wanted to respect her boundaries as she grieved.

Pretty soon, three whole days of school had gone by with no contact. Endeavor had told Shoto that the funeral for Mentality was that afternoon, even though her body had never been recovered. He decided that he'd call her tonight.

Around 7 o'clock he dialed Y/N's number. It rang for quite awhile before she answered. "Hello?" she said on the other end.

"Hey," he said, "I just wanted to check in, see if you needed anything."

"Oh hey, Shoto." Y/N said, "I think I'm fine for now, but thanks for calling. I'm sure I'll be back at school soon."

"Really?" he was surprised. "I'm sure the school would understand if you need more time with your dad -"

"No, it's fine. I have to go, Shoto. I'll see you soon, though." She hung up the phone after that, leaving Shoto confused. She had never been so short with him before... and it was weird for her to ignore him. Had he done something wrong?

Todoroki sighed and laid down on his bed. He thought that maybe he should've stayed with Y/N longer that day. He understood that people grieved in different ways, but still... she was acting strange. He hoped she'd return soon, though, so he could see her in person.

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It's not that Y/N didn't want to talk to Shoto, she just didn't want to bother him anymore. Her whole world had been turned upside down and her mother was gone. It felt like this giant whole had been ripped through her, and although she had learned to numb herself, it was an unimaginable pain.

She knew she couldn't force her friend to go through that with her. At least, that's what she told herself. He shouldn't have to take care of her.

Y/N went downstairs and started making dinner for her and her father. She brought him his bowl and took hers upstairs to her room. She sat in bed staring out the window a while, though, letting her food get cold on the nightstand beside her. They had told her that Mentality had "been lost" while saving civilians. Y/N scoffed. What was that supposed to mean? You can't lose a whole person...

At the funeral today, tons of people had showed up, despite her family's wishes that it be kept private and small. Many people shook Y/N's hand, told her stories about her mom, and claimed she was the best hero they'd known. Nobody told her what she really wanted to learn, though.

Y/N sat there a while thinking, until she couldn't take it any longer. She pulled out her phone and began searching the internet for what really had happened that day. Most of the articles she found were just fluff on how citizens would miss her mother, and how she gave her life for the greater good, and all that other nonsense. She finally found a descriptive account from a witness about the fight, but Y/N stopped reading halfway through, tears of anger filling her eyes.

Her mother had been killed by those giant, monster freaks. Those brainless, awful creatures. Y/N wished she could hurt them all, the League of Villains, and the Nomu, and... everyone. She grew so upset that she felt the glass break on the screen of her phone. She looked at it, suddenly remembering that moment in the exam with the blue light and the glass shattering...

But who cares? None of this mattered. Y/N didn't know if she even wanted to be a hero anymore. What good was all that power inside of her, if she couldn't save her mother?

She cried awhile longer, until she fell asleep.

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A few days later, Y/N returned to UA. The whole class hushed as she walked into the room and took her seat in the back. Even Todoroki stared at her. Y/N walked quickly, keeping her head down and praying that Mr. Aizawa would be there soon.

After class, Aizawa stopped her. Y/N silently hoped that this wouldn't be a heart to heart moment.

"I spoke to the board on your behalf," he said, "And they've agreed that with the effort you put into the first part of the exam, and the hard work you've been showing in your classes, you deserve your provisional license." He handed her a card with her name and photo ID. "Congratulations."

Y/N thanked him and left, staring at the card in her hand. She could feel the sting of pity reflecting off the little laminated thing in her hands. Y/N knew that if it had been anything else - if she hadn't passed the second part of the exam, they never would've given her this.

She held the tears back and shoved the card in her backpack. She wouldn't need the stupid thing anyway...

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Todoroki didn't know how to act around Y/N anymore. Everytime he tried talking to her, she would make some excuse and leave. She barely spoke to anyone, she would disappear at lunch, and would go straight to her room everyday after class. Even in class, Y/N seemed disconnected, and would hardly use her quirk, unless specifically told to do so.

Shoto sat in the back of the class, wondering what he could do to fix everything. Was she mad at him? Had he not been there enough for her?

He decided to confront her. He had to know what was going on in her head. She had said they were best friends, after all... Didn't that mean anything?

Shoto was so much involved in his thinking, he nearly missed Aizawa's entrance. He looked at Y/N as she took a seat beside him, avoiding his eyes.

"Alright, class, today is going to be a little different." Aizawa said dryly. "I've noticed moral around here has been pretty low, so today we're going out into Ground Beta to test what you've learned about rescue training. We've pretty much destroyed a lot of the area, so it won't look like the normal city you're used to. Instead, it's a disaster area, just like what you'd encounter while working in large urban areas."

Y/N sighed beside Todoroki, and he turned to see her face hidden in her palms. Was she thinking of her mother?

"I'm going to pair you up, and you and your teammate will have to search through the rubble of the city to find each 'bystander' waiting to be rescued. The team that gets the most bystanders to the Safe Zone wins."

"That doesn't seem too hard," laughed Kaminari.

"Yeah we've got this!" said Ashido.

"Oh right," added Aizawa. "While you're waiting for your turn at the course, you will play the bystanders in the area. And you're welcome to add any extra difficulty for the team hunting you, like hiding, feigning injury, or even resisting help. Just don't kill each other please. Now change into your costumes and meet me on the course."

"Yes sir!" said the class.

As the class headed to Ground Beta, there was a flurry of excited whispers. "This might be harder than we thought," said Ashido, "I mean, who would want to try and help Bakugo? All he'd do is scream at you."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY YOU DAMN LOSER?!" screamed Bakugo from behind them.

"See?" laughed Ashido. Deku gave Shoto a nervous expression, as if he already knew the trouble Bakugo would give him on the course.

Shoto gave him an understanding look, then glanced behind them, where Y/N trailed behind the rest of the class. She looked worried, almost. It was just school, why did she have to be nervous?

Once they reached the front of the course, Aizawa held out a box. "I've put all your names inside. Go ahead and draw lots to see who will be your partners." The class drew names one at a time. Shoto reached into the box and pulled out a piece of paper with 'Y/N' written on it. "Great..." he thought. "How were they going to win if she wouldn't talk to him?"

He found her in the back and stood next to her while they listened to the rest of Aizawa's instructions. She refused to look at him, making Shoto angrier by the second. "You all have 15 minutes to capture as many of your classmates as you can." Aizawa said.

 "Y/N and Todoroki," he said calmly. "You're up first."