Freeze Frame

Chapter 56

Let me just confirm that Lillian was three years old when her not-parents kidnapped her from the hospital. 

Third person pov

Hitoshi knocked on the frame of the teacher's lounge door, earning the attention of everyone who was inside. Neito took this chance to shove Lillian inside. The girl clutched the papers in her hands tighter, holding them up to her chest like they were a shield. The teacher's blinked curiously at the wide-eyed girl, their chatter ceasing.

Most of them had Lillian, and they knew she was extremely shy. She barely spoke unless it was to Shoji, Koda, Tokoyami (oddly enough), or some of the other girls in class. If not engaged, she remained completely silent and reserved. She was one of the most timid people the hero course had seen since Amajiki Tamaki, the third year who'd only joined due to his friend Mirio Togata. Lillian had joined by herself, though she had reportedly made friends.

Mic tried not to freak out, outwardly. He hadn't said much to Aizawa all day. He had the blurry picture in his back pocket. It felt like it was burning a hole in his jeans. Shota hadn't noticed his avoidance, but he would if Mic dared to keep it up. The blonde didn't know what to do. He'd spent all night trying to hunt down Lillian's mother, but there was no trace of her anymore. She'd dropped off the map after Lillian went missing. As for Lillian, he'd found her missing person's case, but even the police hadn't been able to figure out her real name. It's not like they'd gotten to test her blood to identify her before she was taken from the hospital.

"Lillian?" Aizawa drawled from his place across from Mic. "Did you need something?"

Lillian glanced nervously at the rest of the teachers, who watched with keen eyes. Face burning, she ducked her head and shuffled over. Mic, who'd been acting weird and oddly quiet all day, brightened at her appearance. Aizawa was more curious than excited. Lillian clearly didn't want to walk into a room full of staring pro-heroes, but it must have been important if Neito and Hitoshi were forcing her to.

Lillian stopped in front of her homeroom teacher, shuffling nervously. Aizawa waited patiently as she glanced down at the papers. She looked incredibly unsure of herself, clearly gnawing on the inside of her cheek as she internally debated about god knows what. The papers in her hands crinkled as she carefully pushed them towards him, averting her gaze as she set them on the very edge of the table. He raised an eyebrow.

"C-Can you, u-uh... s-s-sign... f-for..." She trailed off, bringing her hands up to cover her face. Aizawa's eyes trailed towards the papers. He almost dropped his chopsticks in surprise when he saw they were the forms for the sports festival. There were several permission slips that required a 'parental signature' of some sort. He felt a small smile spread across his face under his bandages. Mic stared at them with his lips parted in surprise. He knew Lillian didn't know, and that Aizawa didn't either, but damn.

"I can do that!" Mic chirped decidedly, determination flashing in his eyes as he snatched the papers. He'd need to work twice as hard now that Aizawa really was Lillian's dad. Not that... either of them knew... yet... ugh, this was horrible.

Aizawa's smile dropped into a grimace, and he immediately snatched them back without much thought. "She asked me to." He snapped before he could stop himself. He swiped the papers back with clear annoyance, much to the surprise of everyone present. Nemuri looked ready to whip out her phone and start filming, and Lillian looked like she had no idea what to do.

"I'm her favorite hero." Mic said nonchalantly as he took them back.

"I'm her favorite teacher." Aizawa grumbled back, swiping them again. Mic's smile twitched, and Aizawa glared. The present teachers all looked relatively amused, if not a bit lost, as they watched the interaction. Lillian looked like she may cry. She clearly had no idea what to do in this situation. Midnight felt some pity for the poor girl. She looked paralyzed.