Blue Madness (Touya/Dabi x Reader)

XIII. Nice t-shirt

I swallowed hard. I had obviously told Fuyumi about my evening the day before, recounting the events at the hospital. The only detail I had left out was that I had heard the name of the raving lunatic.

I had never told Fuyumi that I nicknamed her older brother 'Dabi'. After all, it was only between Touya and me. She wouldn't have been able to make the connection with her brother if I had revealed the villain's name to her; however, for the time being, I preferred to keep this information to myself.

Just in case.

Fuyumi had been the only person around me to fall victim to the attack. At the time of the incident, Natsuo was at a college friend's place, miles away; Shouto was training with his father outside the city; my mother was taking care of one of her patients, in the west of the city; and my father was working at his restaurant, located in the heart of downtown, but which had miraculously been spared.

And that gave me even more reason to doubt the villain's identity. Had he deliberately avoided burning down Dad's restaurant?

Obviously not. I was being ridiculous. Grotesque, even. Despite these few troubling coincidences, I tried my best not to delude myself. My Dabi was dead and would never come back. The other was just a creep with the same nickname and a strangely similar Quirk. I wanted so desperately to believe that Touya was still alive, out there somewhere, that I was becoming paranoid.

Nevertheless, against all odds, even after I had come to my senses when the drug had worn off, I hadn't given up on the goal I had set myself the day before: to find that villain.

And that's when, as I looked at my childhood best friend who was starting to shed tears again as she stared back at the school that had seen her grow and flourish, I made a definitive decision.

I would officially begin my search for this asshole tonight.

**

Maybe I had thought too big.

Just over three weeks had passed and the end of August was fast approaching. Downtown Musutafu was slowly recovering from the attack. While the buildings were gradually being rebuilt, people had stopped talking about it, trying to forget the tragedy. For my part, despite the time that had passed, I was forced to admit that I still hadn't found out anything about the mysterious 'Dabi'.

At first, I hadn't really known where to look, nor where to start. What did I expect, anyway? Signs with bright arrows pointing the way to the hideout of the country's most wanted criminal organization? Even the police and the best superheroes couldn't locate them, for fuck's sake! And I, a naive little insignificant woman, really thought I could do better than them?

The first evening, I had wandered alone for hours, once again observing the ruins of downtown, then the buildings a little further north. I had also looked at the people who crossed my path without really seeing them, unconsciously searching for his face, his eyes, his hair. What would he look like today, if he were still alive? Needless to say, I had asked myself this question countless times before. To make matters worse, since I had returned to Musutafu, my imagination had become increasingly carried away, and I seemed to see him absolutely everywhere. However, I was certain of one thing: if he had been alive - which he wasn't - and I came across him - which would never happen - I knew I would recognize his turquoise eyes, which were as brilliant and mesmerizing as an aquamarine.

Because you never forget eyes like his. Never.

On the second evening, I had ventured into the eastern part of the city, without finding the slightest clue. On the third evening, I had gone west with the same result, and on the fourth, to the south. As expected, I had come up with nothing.