His Hero

3 | The Middle School Experience

When will it end?

The day was finally over. But that wasn't a good thing. The day being over meant an opportunity for a certain blonde and his goons to bully them. Sometimes, others would stay to watch as if their pain was mere entertainment in their eyes.

The blonde walked up to Izuku's desk, sparks popping in the palm of his hand. The noise and familiar burnt caramel smell made the greenette feel even more terrified for whatever was to take place in the next five seconds.

Katsuki Bakugou. His quirk is 'explosion'. He sweats nitroglycerin, which can be powered into powerful explosions. With the right amount, he can make an explosion big enough to tear through walls.

"Just reminding you, you can't be a hero without a quirk, Deku."

He'd heard that line so many times.

But it still hurts.

"Trying to be a quirkless hero is practically a death wish. I'd advise you to give up." He said as he began to leave the classroom, almost sounding like he genuinely cared about the boy.

Hitoshi went over to Izuku's desk. Bakugou had been bullying them both for the last two years, so he found it weird that this time he hadn't left a mark. But he was grateful. Both their parents were home today as U.A wasn't open yet and they surprisingly had no daytime patrols on this particular day. There was no way they could hide the marks from them. They would notice the moment the both of them walked through the door.

"You need a quirk to be a hero, Deku." He smirked, looking back at the duo, a sinister look in his eye. "If you want to reach that hero dream, take a swan dive off the roof of the building and pray for a quirk in your next life."

Shinsou was practically fuming at this point. He didn't leave a physical mark, but decided a permanent one was better? What if Izuku actually jumped? On a second note, he didn't want to think about that. If their parents knew, Bakugou would be murdered.

But the greenette had begged him not to tell anyone. He had begged Hitoshi not to say a word that one night after they'd started middle school. He had said he would be fine, but now look where it got them.

"Come on, Zuku." He said, helping him up out of his chair. "Let's go home, alright?"

Izuku just nodded, not noticing the subtle interlocking of their hands, the words circling in his mind over and over like a constant loop. Each time, it got louder and louder until it was all he could think about.

If you want to reach that hero dream, take a swan dive off the roof of the building and pray for a quirk in your next life.

They both walked out of the building, Izuku being deathly silent the whole time. It was like he was physically there as he was walking and looking ahead, but he wasn't mentally there. His eyes were dull, his movements guided by Hitoshi as they exited the property.

Hitoshi knew what was happening. It had happened on multiple occasions, most of them being after school, during school and at night. He knew, yet he couldn't do anything about it.

Ever since they had entered that hellhole of a school, his brother had begun to have dissociative episodes. They were minor, such as becoming so absorbed in his notebooks that he loses awareness of his surroundings. But, when it came to the bullying, he was just silent and not there.

They were genuinely grateful that they weren't injured today. Normally, they'd come home with bruises, cuts or burns. Most of them were supposed to be directed at Izuku, but Hitoshi got in the way as a protective method.

He didn't understand why but Katsuki had a burning hatred towards Izuku for something as minor as being quirkless. He didn't have that same hatred with Hitoshi, but soon after they had begun middle school, he had hated him for getting in his way.