metamorphosis | various bnha

special - cold-blooded

He slightly shifted, uncomfortable with his thoughts. Everything was so one-sided and he hated it. Is this how girls from his middle school felt when they talked to him? He seemed to understand love even less. Do you even see him as a man? Or is he only Natsuo's little brother to you...? There's only a year between you two, so why do you see him as a little kid?

Your antennae licked the air and pointed towards him. You must've sensed his movement. Your antennae never failed to impress him. They were able to sense even the slightest of movements without fail. You turned your head and locked eyes with him. You were already smiling (of course you were, you were with Natsuo), but it seemed to get wider at the sight of him. Were you happy to see him? That warm feeling he always got when he was with you returned.

Shouto gave you a small smile back, but it must've looked strange because you began to laugh, just miniscule titters spilling through your [lip size] [lip color] lips. His smile flattened.

You leaned back, supported by your palms on the tatami mat. "Oh, Otouto-san!" you exclaimed, beckoning him over. There it was, Otouto-san. Little brother. It was a term used to refer to either your own little brother or the little brother of a friend. You used it affectionately, and, at first, he liked it. It was a nickname basically, something that friends call each other. But then he really thought about it one night. You considered him Natsuo's little brother, but he wanted you to see him as Shouto. Just Shouto. He was his own person. Not Natsuo's little brother, not Endeavor's son, but Shouto.

"Yo, Shouto!" Natsuo greeted, curtly raising his hand with a small smile. Natsuo's relationship with his younger brother was definitely... something. He had lived his childhood envious of the boy. He had a perfect quirk and all the attention of their father. In contrast, his ice quirk was much weaker in comparison and his father quickly disregarded him when Shouto was born. However, as he grew older and matured, he realized that his younger brother's relationship with their father was not something to be jealous of. No, Shouto took the brunt of it all, it seemed.

Natsuo was glad he had you for a few years. You were a comforting presence. One that Shouto never had.

And as he got older, it was just awkward. He wanted to try fixing his relationship with his baby brother, but he just didn't really know where to start. In a way, he was trying to connect with him through you. Shouto clearly doesn't mind you.

Shouto walked over and loomed over the two of you. He got a closer look at the glowing laptop screen, and saw two little characters; one was red, the other was blue. He's never seen this game before. Granted, he usually played board games like mahjong solitaire. Occasionally, he would play a round or two of shogi with Fuyumi. He would always win. "What are you doing?" he asked, curious.

"Playing Waterboy and Firegirl. Wanna play?" You then paused and considered his upbringing for a quick minute. There was a contemplative glint in your black eyes as you considered a certain possibility, one you didn't want to believe. "Have you played Waterboy and Firegirl before?"

He shook his head in denial, causing you to audibly gasp in shock. "Really?" you questioned in disbelief.

"I mean, the first time I played it I was in computer class," Natsuo chimed, rubbing his chin. "Shouto, did you actually do what the teachers told you to do?"

No one actually practiced typing in computer class. Everyone just went onto RadMathGames, but Shouto's pretty literal, huh?

Shouto nodded and tilted his head to the side. "May I try?" he asked.

You thought it was cute. You eagerly nodded. "D'you wanna play with me or Natsuo-kun?"

"You," Shouto responded, not skipping a beat.