"Besides...what kind of hero doesn’t have a few scars here and there…?”
It was cold that night, a light layer of frost coating the world outside, giving everything an almost black and white appearance as the sun dipped down behind the clusters of buildings and trees. Yaoyorozu rubbed her arms, exhaling slowly. It was cool enough to see her own breath as it left her mouth.
She was once again left looking for the duel quirk-wielding boy, searching city streets as dusk fell over Japan. She stopped at a certain alleyway, her eyes trailing inside as dark shadows loomed in the narrow entrance. It was the same alley Todoroki had hid in the last time he ran off; it was the alley he had burnt her in. Yaoyorozu reached a hand up to her neck, lightly touching the bandages, then quickly continued on her way, forcing herself to keep going.
Crash!
Yaoyorozu nearly jumped out of her skin as something like a gunshot pierced the air. “Todoroki?” She whispered softly, then took off toward the noise. He was at the edge of someone’s private property, glancing back over his shoulder. A large plank of wood that had been covering up a fence was on the ground, and she assumed it had been the cause of the loud noise. Fear flashed in his eyes and he turned to climb the fence.
“Todoroki!” Yaoyorozu sprinted toward him and snatched his arm, tugging him back. He stumbled, falling to the ground a few paces away from her. He attempted to get back on his feet, but Yaoyorozu was much quicker, hurrying over and kneeling on the ground beside him. “Todoroki, please don’t do this again. Just come back to Yuuei. It’s nothing; you’ll be okay. Please, just quit running away from me,” she begged, her hand firm on his shoulder.
Todoroki was tense, his hands hovering over his knees as they trembled, smoke rising from them as heat emitted from his skin. “Don’t touch me!” He shouted. She ignored him.
In one swift move, she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him from behind. Todoroki held his hands away from her arms, keeping them suspended in the air, refusing to let himself touch her. “Please. You’ll be okay. You’ve gotta be okay.” Yaoyorozu buried her face in his shirt, closing her eyes. “Stop running away. All I want to do is help. You’re worrying me; you’re starting to scare me, Shoto. Please-” She clung to him slightly tighter, her eyes narrowed as she opened them, “-just let me help you…”
"Yaoyorozu, I-I can’t-” he stuttered, his voice hitched, “I don’t want to hurt you again. It’s stronger; I-I need time to get it back under control. Please just let me go. I’ve already burned you once before, I don’t want to make that same mistake again by not pushing you away.”
Yaoyorozu released her grip on him, and he clutched his head with his hands, hunching himself over as his fingers slipped into his red and white hair. She watched him worriedly, then carefully placed her hands over his, leaning over him to press her lips to the back of his neck, shutting her eyes as she intertwined their fingers.
"Pushing me away was the mistake to begin with…” She whispered softly, leaning into him and sinking into his nape. “I can help you through this. I already am. Just look-” She gently pulled his hands away from his head, their fingers still weaved together, “-you’re not burning me.”
Todoroki opened and closed his mouth to no effect, wanting to respond. Instead, he turned to face her, releasing her hands and meeting her eyes. They glittered a glistening onyx, filled with worry and concern. She reached forward to touch the burn scar on his face once more, lightly running her fingers across it as she stared directly into his eyes, her gaze set with grim determination. Without uttering a single word, she tilted her head toward him, and softly brushed his lips with her own. When she pulled back from him, she gazed at him with sad eyes, but the worried expression she wore did not waver in the slightest.
