Letting you go after that letter was one of the hardest undertakings of his life. You'd written the truth, where you were off to, what you were going to do, what you needed to do. You didn't leave out how much Shoto meant though, his place in your life- his irreplaceability.
When you looked at Tenko in those final days, he looked like a corpse once holding the soul of a sibling long lost.
Shoto. He was the one you'd had all along, waiting for your return. He had no idea the gratitude you felt for that.
"I must look like hell right now," you laughed.
As if he didn't notice yet, the boy took a tiny step back. He took in your apparel: disheveled shoes, practically torn pants, and shirt, sunken under-eyes, waxen and sallow skin from lack of sleep, food, and care. Cheeks stained with streams of your homecoming too.
"Yes, you do." He agreed, making you chuckle once more. "But even in tears, you seem happier now. A little older." He added, taking you in one last time and this new aura you beheld. "You grew, y/n."
Atomic fluttered inside you at the words, smile unfaltering.
"Yeah, I think I did."
"Mm," Todoroki nodded, taking your hand in his, opening the car door. "Let's go home. I've got so much to tell you."
"Really?"
"Yes. My internship with father was a great success. Bakugo and Midoriya came with me. They even had dinner at the house."
"How'd that go?"
"It was disastrous."
"Oh no," you couldn't help but say that with humor.
"Bakugo saved Naoto from a villain. Both of them were unscathed, but Bakugo did say father smelled like an old man. I've never thought about it, but now that he points it out-"
Endeavor and Aizawa settled into the two front seats.
Shoto stopped for a moment, looked at the two of them, at you by his side. He had to take it all in again. That you were here. That you were back. In the flesh, alive, and almost well.
He had to take in the wonder on your face. The thanks shinning in their gaze as he told you of his adventures, perhaps happier once than you'd been subjected to on your journey.
So rather than ask questions, questions you'd undeniably had been asked and would have to be asked enough, the boy squeezed your hand, smiled some more.
"Would you like to hear the rest of my stories?" He asked.
"Yeah," you said. "Tell me everything."
***
"I have to go. She's-"
The front door clicked, unlocked from the outside. The metal's shift alone silenced the entire room. Bakugo stilled, Kaminari and Kirishima's hold faltering. That second that went by before the door finally opened was an eternity. When it did, the winter air flowing in gracelessly, three people filled the entryway.
And one of them was you.
No one said a thing. Everyone simply stared. Aizawa held the door open. Todoroki stood just behind, at your side.
If it was possible? Bakugo felt his heart start beating again at the sight. As if it'd stopped dead after you parted in that hotel room. Needed the feel of yours nearby to regain its rhythm.
No one said a thing. Everyone simply stared.
The comfort of your home was right over the barrier of that doorway. After so long, surprisingly, it felt just easier to cross it than ever before.
