𝑨𝑬𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑰𝑼𝑺 𝑴𝑬𝑳𝑨𝑵𝑪𝑯𝑶𝑳𝑰𝑨 •𝒃𝒙𝒃•

lower your eyelids to die with the sun

"Kill me?" His lips pulled back in a hint of a smile, "You can't kill me."

Really? He couldn't?

The crackling of the lighting just grew louder and louder, sound changing into that of distorted bird chirping, "I can't? How so?"

His father's smile widened, top lip pulling up only to be replaced by a sharp grin, "Because you're weak, aren't you?" The blues in his eyes easily mixed with the silver hues, reflecting the blaring sun from high up, "You're not strong enough to kill me."

Not... strong enough? What does he know about his strengths and weaknesses? He wasn't there to see him grow—to see him change. He wasn't there at all, so what does he know about him?

"Weak?" He couldn't stop the shimmer of amusement from seeping into his tone, "Do you even know what being weak means? Tell me, father," he sneered out, tightening the grip on his hand, "when you look at me, do you see weakness?" He asked, staring straight into those glinting eyes of his, into the eyes he himself had, "Do you see someone who's afraid—someone who has no courage to stand up for himself?"

Louder, louder, louder the crackling went.

The man didn't answer and instead chose to stare down at him.

"I am anything but weak."

The wind whistled, blending in with the deafening noise his quirk produced. His father's hair fluttered, blond strands flying back, revealing more and more of his tanned features, more and more of the features he didn't inherit from him.

Then, softly, Arashi heard him whisper: "You failed to save her, didn't you? Tell me, is that a strong person's trait?"

He felt a throb in his ears and silence followed suit.

The space around him lit up in a bright flash of blue and the familiar, screeching noise of his quirk replaced the brief silence as his control slipped away.

He failed to save her? He failed to save her? He failed to save her? He failed to save her? He failed to save her?

His fingers twitched at his sides and his nerves felt like they were on fire, as if lava crashed upon them and coated them in its scalding heat.

"Shut up..." he forced out, not even registering his own voice through the ringing in his ears, "Don't screw with me, you damned murderer!" His teeth clicked together, but he paid it no mind, "That was not my fault! I am not the one who went ahead and killed someone, you did, so don't try and blame this on me!" From where he stood, he couldn't see the man anymore, but it didn't matter, "I did not fail as a son—you failed as a husband and as a father!"

The next thing he knew, he was on the ground, the back of his head throbbing in pain. Black spots filled his vision and he dug his fingers into the ground, trying to get back on his feet. His whole balance was disrupted by a single blow and he couldn't even stand up straight at that point.

The click of a tongue came from behind him, before he heard a hum, "You're wrong about one thing: I didn't fail."

He said it with such confidence, with such conviction, that it almost made Arashi believe him.

"Shut up..." he muttered, feeling the dirt slide under his fingernails, "You failed... You failed both of us...! How dare you...?! How dare you try and tell me otherwise?!"

Sleek black shoes appeared before him and then a hand wrapped around his wrist, before another pushed his wristband down, "See?" The man began, unbothered by his previous words, "You're weak because you gave in to the pain."