Bubble of Death (BNHA x OC)

Chance Encounter

“What is it, Izuku?  You’ve been distracted this whole time,” Inko said, looking at her son, the urgency in her tone signaled the dam of tears that might break out if the answer Izuku gave wasn’t good.

They’d been grabbing their bags after shopping.  Inko had taken one look at their fridge and decided to go shopping while Izuku tagged along to grab a refresh of the workout food All Might had recommended near the start of his training.

Izuku looked at her, gave a smile, and waved her concerns off, “Nothing mom… Just thought I recognized someone, that’s all.  Here, I’ll carry your bags.” 

“Recognized someone…?” She looked back while Izuku took her bags and took note of the girl with black hair and translucent skin wandering into the cleaning supplies aisle, “You don’t mean that girl Koko you used to be friends with do you?”

“Yeah, her,” Izuku said, now, with two bags in each hand.  He noticed how the bags that Inko had held weighed a lot more than she was making it seem, ‘She must have been using her Quirk on the heavier items,’ he mused. 

“Remind me, what happened to her?  Did she move away?”  They walked through the automatic doors, and towards the crosswalk to avoid the morning foot traffic.

“She got adopted from what I heard, and her new parent preferred her to be homeschooled.”

"You guys didn't live that far from each other right?  I figured we'd run into her at some point."

“I thought so too.  But after a little bit, I went to the orphanage she stayed at and asked where she was currently living; they told me she had moved to America.”

“America?  That’s quite a change for someone that young.  Learning a new language and all.”

“I’m sure she’s fine.  She was fluent in English.”

“Ah, well I hope she’s doing all right.”

The light turned red, and the cars fell in line.  As he crossed, Izuku quickly took glances at the drivers, and passengers if there were any, who stopped.  He had to be careful not to stare if he saw someone interesting.  The experience of awkwardly walking by the person who caught him happened far too many times. Eventually, someone caught his eye.

It was a boy, around his age, sitting in the passenger seat. He had a to-go bowl cupped in two hands. A thin trail of steam - that was actively getting larger - began billowing from the bowl. A heat-type Quirk. ‘Is it activated from skin contact or just from the hands like Kacchan?  How hot could he get?  Judging by the speed in which the bowl started stea-’

“Speaking of English.  How have things at school been?” Inko said with a sidelong glance, interrupting Izuku’s downward descent into Quirk analysis.

“Things are good,” Izuku wasn’t lying.  Everyone else who had been picking on him was too focused on the exams to pay any attention to him, and Bakuguo had more or less left him alone after the incident. Kind of like the time after Koko had left.

‘There I go thinking about her again.’

It was hard not to, she was an interesting girl. Whatever it was she always kept the same indifferent attitude.  He had his theories, of course. His running one was muted emotions.  Maybe caused by her Quirk or something genetic.  He couldn’t be too sure. “Was that why she stuck around me?” He muttered darkly, “Because she didn’t care enou-” Izuku caught himself, and took a glance at his mother.  She hadn’t noticed.  He shook his head.  He had been her friend and she his. It wouldn't do any good to think any other way.