Engines- A Kami-Iida Story

Chapter 17

Denki’s POV

    I was holding freaking Tenya Iida’s hand. I took a risk when I grabbed his hand, but he hadn’t pulled away! I think that’s a pretty good sign. I felt on top of the world! Even with that run-in with the press, we had still managed to enjoy each other’s company. And along with that, it seems that Tenya liked me a bit more now. I don’t call him Tenya out loud, but I honestly enjoy his first name a lot. The Iida name seems to be something that weighs on him a lot, with the whole “legacy” thing, but Tenya is just him. No legacy, no family name to uphold, just the class representative who I loved. Loved? Maybe that’s a bit much, but it felt right. 

    “Kami? Are you listening?”

    I snapped back to reality and realized I had been spacing out for the past couple minutes. What was he saying? We had gone to get food, and then he was talking and… wait a minute.

    “Did you just call me Kami?” I said, looking towards him questioningly. I saw him visibly stop and his face flushed a bright red.

    “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t think about it. My apologies, Kaminari, it won’t happen-”

    “It’s fine. I like the nickname.” I said, placing my hand on Tenya’s shoulder. He flinched, but I remained still, hoping to maintain the physical contact. After a moment, I took my hand off and looked to him.

    “I spaced out though, what were you saying?”

He laughed a bit at me, but just continued to talk. He talked about Tensei and his girlfriend Tomoko (which makes more sense now), and about his family and how he’s been trying to be a better hero to uphold the family name. I loved listening to him talk, watching his gesture in his stiff manner while he smiled slightly when he talked about Tensei or about his future as a hero. He definitely doesn’t make it easy to not fall for him. 

    We ended up talking into the evening, until we had to be back to the buses to go back to UA. It was about 9 PM when we finally got over there, and the two of us were quite tired. As were most everyone, as today had been a long day and it seemed we weren’t the only people to have to encounter the press today. We all stood as they called names to make sure we had everyone, and eventually every name had been called and accounted for. The teachers stood in front of us once again, each looking worn out (except for Present Mic, who always seemed to have a little bit of energy no matter the time of day).

    “Hello, students! Please sit with the same people as you did on the ride here, or at least sit in a way that you are still two to a seat. Try to keep it orderly as you get on! I will talk to all of you lovely students when we get back to the school.” Principal Nezu said, tiredly. With that, we all made our way to the buses when I was suddenly stopped by Aoyama. 

    “Monsieur, may I request something from you?”

I looked at him, and nodded. I figured it couldn’t be all that bad, and it would get him to go away.

    “May I.. trade seating partners with you? Monoma and I have things to discuss, and while Iida is a lovely partner, I would much rather sit next to Monoma.” He said, a little less confident than normal.

    “Sure!” I said, a little too excitedly. He gave a curious look, but shook it off and ran ahead of me to tell Monoma. They sure are an odd pairing, but I guess to each his own. I made my way onto the bus and found Tenya sitting by himself. I stepped into the row and sat down next to him.

    “Um, Kami, I’m afraid my seating partner is Aoyama.” He said, a slight hint of sadness in his voice.

    “He talked to me and wanted to trade seats. Are you okay with that?” 

    “Of course! While that does go against the rules a bit.. I guess I can make an exception for you.” He said, sighing and settling back into his seat a bit. Today had been a long day, but I got to spend the last of it with my crush. Who could ask for more?

    The bus began to move with a jolt, and I fell forward a bit. Tenya reached out and caught me quickly, and laughed a little at my klutzy behavior. I blushed a little, embarrassed, but I guess it could’ve been worse. When the bus began moving, I pulled out my phone and earbuds. I plugged them in, and was about to put them in when I got a great idea.

    “Hey Tenya, do you want to listen to some music with me?” I said, offering an earbud.

    “S-sure! As long as the music is appropriate obviously.” 

I chuckled a bit at his comment, knowing that he would say something along those lines. We both put in earbuds and Rhythm of Love by Plain White T’s began to play. I looked to see how he would react, but he seemed to have closed his eyes to enjoy the music. It was a really beautiful sight, his peaceful face in the moonlight. I couldn’t help but sit and admire until he looked over at me. I quickly turned back, blushing furiously but not regretting it for a second. 

   

When the moon is low

We can dance in slow motion

And all your tears will subside

All your tears will dry..

    I couldn’t help but think of us as it played. If only we could have that. Us, cuddling and watching movies together. Us, going to get coffee before school in the morning. Us, kissing during a sunset after a long day. I couldn’t help but let my imagination go, thinking about all of the ways in which we would love each other. I felt my eyes become heavy, and I leaned over a bit. Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep on Tenya’s shoulder, dreaming of us together.

Tenya’s POV

    Oh my gosh. He’s asleep on my shoulder. What do I do? He’s just laying there, snoring gently (and quite adorably). In a lapse of common sense, I reached up with my free hand and ran my fingers through his hair. His hair was so soft, and smelled a bit like citrus. His face was so relaxed, so peaceful. I admired him as he slept until I heard someone try to get my attention.

    “Look at you two! Such a cute pair.” Mina said, sitting in the row across from us, with Sero laying on her lap and snoring. 

    “If only.. No, he doesn’t like me like that.” I said, looking back down at him.

    “Well, at least you get this moment, right? Just enjoy it.” She said.

I paused and nodded. She turned back to pet Sero as he slept, and I was left with my thoughts again. His music continued to play, coincidentally playing love song after love song. Awfully good for the situation, at least for me. We continued to ride, and I suddenly had a thought. I tried to push it away, but I couldn’t seem to stop thinking about it.

    In my tired state, I decided that I might as well. I turned my head to him, and leaned in. Everything inside me began to panic, but I ignored it. This might be the only chance I get to do this. I brushed his hair aside and slowly kissed his forehead. His skin was soft, and I felt a rush of butterflies in my stomach. I pulled back quickly, my face a bright crimson. With that, I decided that I, too, should get some rest. I leaned back towards him, and rested my head on his. With that, I fell asleep, thinking of him and I and what it all meant.

Mina’s POV

    As soon as the two were fast asleep, I nudged Sero. He looked up at me, with a questioning look on his face. I smiled down at him, and kissed his forehead. He smiled, still a bit confused. I giggled and whispered “Time for Operation Kami-Iida: Phase Two.”