Running Solo

Chapter 25 - Neighbors

-Izuku's Perspective-

I think that's everything that Kurogiri asked for.  I thought as I made my way up the stairs to the apartment on the third floor. It was high enough to discourage anyone from breaking in though the windows, but low enough for me to jump onto the roof of the two-story building next to the apartment complex if I needed to.

I made it to the third floor and started digging through my pockets to try and get to the apartment key. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going, and I had my guard down for once, so it was understandable when I bumped into someone. That didn't mean that I wasn't surprised, though. I found myself slipping into my head as apologies spewed from my mouth.

"I-I am so, so s-sorry. I w-wasn't looking where I was going, a-and-" Drop the stutter. They hate the stutter. Get rid of the stutter or it'll hurt more.

"It's fine. I'm alright. And it's not entirely your fault. I wasn't paying attention either." a kind, tenor voice said from in front of me.

My head snapped up and I found myself in front of a man with long forest green hair that was up in a high ponytail. The color of his hair startled me and my eyes shot up to meet his concerned ones. I expected to meet the matching deep green of my mother's eyes, but was instead met with one emerald eye and one gold eye. There were a few freckles dusting his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. His eyebrows were black with a slight green tint. I swallowed deeply and tried to get my tongue to work.

"What about you? Are you alright?" the man asked as he adjusted the messenger-bag sitting on his shoulder.

"Uh, y-yeah." I forced out.

"Is everything alright, Hiroshi?" a familiar female voice asked from behind the man. The man shifted to look behind him.

"Yes, dear. I just bumped into this nice boy." the man responded. He shifted over to the side and I was able to get a better look at the person walking up to us.

"Ichika-san?" I asked in surprise. The woman looked away from the man and towards me in surprise.

"Itamie-kun? Is that you?" she asked as she quickened her strides. Riku was in her arms, twisting around in his mother's grip to look at me.

"Ita-kun!" Riku cried happily. He started wiggling in his mother's grip. When he found himself still in her arms he looked up at her with a face of childish exasperation. Ichika looked down at her son when she felt him stop squirming."Down, please, Mama." he said politely.

Ichika smiled and gently set him down. As soon as his feet were safely on the ground and his mother had let go of him, the little boy barrelled towards me. I braced myself for impact, but it never came. Instead, Riku stopped beside the man and grabbed his hand.

"Yua, you know this boy?" the man asked with a confused frown, his eyebrows pulling together.

"Sort of?" the woman responded sheepishly as she reached the man's side. "We met at the store a few days ago." Though the man's frown lessened at that, he still looked pretty confused. "What are you doing here, Itamie-kun?" Ichika turned to me and asked.

"Oh, umm, I just moved here a few weeks ago." I answered quietly.

"Really?!" Ichika asked excitedly. "Which apartment?"

"It's number 24. Just right there, actually." I said nodding my head towards a door not too far behind them. Ichika and the man looked back before Ichika whipped back towards me, her expression filled with a giddy glee.

"We're number 25, so that means we're neighbors!" Ichika exclaimed. The man cleared his throat from beside her, one eyebrow raised. "Oh, I am so sorry! I haven't introduced you two! Hiroshi, this is Itamie Nashio. Itamie-kun, this is my husband, Ichika Hiroshi." She said, gesturing to each of them in turn.