May Each Soul Find Another Soul to Love

Chapter 31

The final chapter is finally here, and I just want to say think you to everyone who took the time to read and support this work. Enjoy!

If there's one thing I can say, one thing I can hold onto, it's that I keep my promises. Over a decade ago, I was just a brat barely out of diapers, and even at that age I knew what I was meant to do, who I was meant to become. I promised myself then that I would graduate at the top of my class and I'd become the best damn hero the world had ever seen.

When I made that promise all those years ago, I thought it would be my singular goal and nothing could ever be more important. But I was naive, oblivious to what else life might have held for me. I was fucking wrong.

Instead, I met this nerdy brat, so obsessed with heroes and saving the world he often neglected to take care of himself. He was selfless to a fault, but he was also brave and insanely smart. Whether he knew it or not, he constantly pushed me to be better, to work harder and reach higher. He was everything a rival should be and I'm fucking lucky to have had him not just as a friend but as my person. So, it's only natural that my true singular promise would be to him.

These rings are- well they're just rings. But to me they symbolize the commitment I've made to love you unconditionally, to care for you and to stay by your side. I'm not giving up on you, Deku and I swear I'll stand by you through everything.

Until the end?

Until forever, Izuku.

After spending an entire month in the hospital, fighting his disease as best he could, we were told that his condition was too critical and all they could offer was to keep him comfortable. Izuku didn't want hospice care, instead electing to spend his remaining days at home with his mom. UA gave me permission to live off campus during that time, offering me the invaluable gift of waking next to Izuku each morning and going to bed with him each night.

It didn't take long before that awful, life altering morning finally came. The morning that wasn't supposed to happen until we were old and grey, until we've shared an entire life together. I can remember every single detail about it clear as day.

I woke up first that morning, the same as any other morning. Deku, the lazy ass, was buried in a mound of blankets with only a few green curls poking out of the sheets. Deciding to let him sleep, I rolled out of bed as quietly as I could and went into the kitchen to make breakfast. Even though he was barely eating, I still made the best damn breakfast every morning on the off chance he'd take a few bites of food.

Auntie was already awake, holding out a steaming mug of coffee to me as she lightly sipped on her own. Muttering my thanks, I took it and got to work. Usually, I prepared a traditional Japanese breakfast- fish, rice, miso soup, the works- but for whatever reason I decided to make pancakes instead. I worked quickly and silently, Auntie and I enjoying each other's presence but not really feeling the need to talk.

When everything was ready and set on the table, I shuffled back to Izuku's bedroom, ready to wake him up and get him moving. So as not to startle him, I gently nudged the door open with the toe of my slipper before approaching his side of the bed. After calling his name and jostling where I assumed his shoulder was beneath the blanket, I peeled the comforter away, annoyed with the nerd for being so stubborn.

It only took one look, my breath hitching as the blanket slipped past my fingers, pooling on the floor by my feet. The perpetual look of poorly concealed discomfort which had marred his face for too long had finally been washed away, replaced by what I could only describe as peaceful serenity. His once lively complexion devoid of color, ashy and dulled. His form was still, the subtle rise and fall of his chest gone along with any other sign of life. I thought I would be ready for that moment, but nothing could have prepared me for the cascading emotions which tore through me like a violent storm.

Disbelief

Pain

Anger

And a sorrow so shattering it sucked the air from my lungs, casting me into a suffocating void of emptiness I wasn't sure I could escape from. It happened quickly and by the time tears finally spilled down my cheeks I fell to my knees and wept, soaking his fucking ridiculous Almight night shirt as I clutched his stone-cold hand in my own.

I don't know how long I stayed like that, sobbing over the lifeless body of my boyfriend, my brain still working overtime and trying to mend the jigsaw pieces of my broken heart just enough so I could survive this loss. Long enough that Auntie and the Hag both found their way to us, wrapping their arms around me, crying with me.

The next few days were a blur, like a waking dream with only bits and fragments taken to memory. I remember feeling empty, hollowed out and disoriented by the gravity of everything. As much as it fucking pains me to admit it, I owe a lot to the extras, especially Shitty Hair and Pink Cheeks. Shitty hair was there when I needed a good distraction, or just something that could really take a blast to the face and Cheeks, well she was there for everything in between.

It was the two of them that kept me from breaking my first promise, making sure I remained caught up in our coursework during my leave of absence and kicked my ass into gear when I refused to get out of bed. Yeah, it took time but eventually I could at least go through the motions of regular life on my own. I missed him like hell though, the feeling of being left behind etching a permanent void in my heart.

But I fucking survived it, and when I finally graduated, I dedicated my speech as valedictorian to Izuku, who the school offered a posthumous degree to for the dedication and love he had for heroes and the hard work he put in to become one too. After graduation I spent my first year working as a sidekick through Endeavor's agency. The man is a fucking asshole but he is the number one hero, and there's no such thing as condemning character when trying to set myself up to replace his ass one day.

Speaking of condemning character, I must have lost my fucking mind because even now, two years after his passing I still find myself visiting the penitentiary every Wednesday. I don't know why, maybe it's because Izuku would have wanted me to, but I visit that She-witch every week for about a half hour. She's miserable, maybe the only one who looked worse than I did after his death. Serves her fucking right.

As far as I know, I'm the only one who does visit her and while the extras are supportive, they're also really confused why I do it and I guess I am too. The fact is, Izuku forgave her so if he can do that then It's just the right fucking thing to do. So, we play a game of cards and I regale her with tales of my hero work. Once in a while it devolves into me screaming at her for being such a piece of shit, but she always takes it and still accepts my visit the next week.

Auntie and I started a nonprofit dedicated to supporting individuals involved in quirk "accidents." Both UA and my parents made generous donations under Izuku's name to get it started and the foundation has picked up a lot of good press and helped a lot of people since. It's given Auntie a necessary outlet, reaching out to people who need help like her son did, making sure they got it before it was too late. And for me, well, it's given me purpose, something more meaningful to work toward than a simple title like number one hero.

It still hurts whenever I think about him, about the way his face would light up when he started rambling about hero shit or that look of pure focus and determination whenever things got complicated. I miss the sound of his laugh, the faint echo of it still rings in my head sometimes, bringing a smile to my lips as I remember his infectious joy and his passion. My heart aches when I remember the way we'd just lie in bed together, close enough that I could kiss each freckle on his face before moving to his inviting mouth. These memories hurt and I think they always will, but I also think I'm a better person because of them, because of him.

There will never be a day I regret spending his last few months with him, letting him in in a way I'd never have dreamt of offering to anyone else. If anything, his memory pushes me to be better, both as a person and as a hero. I know wherever he is, he's watching me, waiting for me to be the hero we both knew I was always meant to be.

"Don't forget somewhere

between hello and goodbye

there was love. So much love."

The End