Monster

5 | Rescued

- TENKO -

"Wh-Who are you?" I asked, voice hoarse and scratchy. My throat hurt, my muscles aching as I stood in front of the two strangers.

The black-haired one stayed where he was. "I'm a pro-hero, Eraserhead." he introduced. He looked like a hobo, the black bags under his eyes a sign he was tired. I wondered if I looked like that, considering my lack of sleep over the past few days. He let go of his scarf, pulling a card out of one of his many pockets.

"H-How can I trust you?"

He held the card in front of me, the hallway light illuminating the space. Fortunately, I still remembered how to read basic words. It had basic information on the card such as his name, hero identity and birthdate.

I didn't know whether to trust it. He seemed like a genuinely kind person, but it could be the underlings pretending again like they used to do. "Y-You could've j-just made that u-up." I added.

I knew it was wrong to fight back, but I had to check. If it really was the underlings, they'd shout at us. Hell, sometimes they'd either leave us in the dark or separate us.

"I promise it's a real ID, kid." the hero assured. "I wouldn't waste my time on a joke like that."

"Um," I looked over, forgetting about the girl that had been with the man. She had purple hair that reached her shoulders, and these things that were hanging off her ears. "Sorry to interrupt, but is your friend okay?"

I looked down at Zu who was still crying silently at the noise. I held him tighter. "H-He's fine. He hates loud noises."

"Oh, I think I brought a spare pair of headphones with me if he wants that. It helps reduce the noise a little." she offered.

I looked at him before nodding at the girl. She fumbled in a back-pocket, bringing a spare pair of black headphones out. How big were her pockets? I kept the thought to myself, watching as she walked towards us cautiously. She stood awkwardly with the object in hand before she spoke.

"Can I put them on him? Your hands look full." she chuckled.

I tapped Zu with one finger for a moment before he looked up. "This girl has some headphones. Can she put them on you?" I whispered.

He nodded, looking towards her. His eyes were red and swollen, searching for any sense of trust in the girl. It was hard for us to trust anyone, due to our treatment in the lab. And yet, I felt as if I could trust her and the hero. It was like a gut feeling.

She slipped the headphones over his ears, adjusting them so they fit snugly. "There! Is everything better now?" she asked softly.

Zu nodded, attempting to smile at her. It was the wobbly type, yet it still didn't look right. It was understandable, considering most of our moments were spent in pain rather than joy.

He gave up trying, instead attempting to speak instead. "Th-Thank y-you," His voice was quiet, and cracked in some places.

The girl smiled at him, choosing to stay with them. "It's quite alright!" Her smile dropped, instead a shade of red appearing on her cheeks. "Oh, right! I'm Kyoka Jirou, hero name: Earphone Jack!"

"Thanks, Earphone Jack." I said.

The man coughed, as if on purpose. "As this is a rescue mission, we need to get out as soon as possible. Are you able to walk?"

I stammered. "Y-Yes but.." I looked at my hands. My quirk could destroy things, turn them into dust. My gloves had been taken from me a long time ago, but since this room had quirk suppressants, we were fine. But.. going out of the room without them.. I didn't want to turn him to dust.