DEAD STARS

XXI. STARS FROZEN IN TIME

When I finally did appear behind Todoroki, which was where his guard was the weakest, I thought for a second that I caught him. But he span around just as quick and delivered a kick on my stomach that I cam flying a few feet. I thought I was going to fly out of bounds when my back landed on ice. Actually, I would've liked it if I did fly out of bounds. Because honestly, the impact of my back hitting the ice was more painful than his kick.

I coughed a few times, my back is starting to feel numb because of the cold while I can taste the metal in my mouth. I gasp for a much needed air and opened a portal, slipping in. When I landed inside my portal my knees gave up and I fell. I was tempted to stay here. To just lie down until the match was over. Count the stars and just fall asleep.

"Not yet," I told myself.

"Not until he use his left side on me as well."

Because right now, I'm actually starting to feel jealous. When he was fighting Midoriya he used his left side. Now, why wasn't he using it on me? Or why wasn't he using it on himself to prevent the frostbites? What's the difference between his match with Midoriya and his match with me?

"He's not giving it his all!"

Now I'm feeling something I've never felt in a long time. When I started to care about everything and everyone, that feeling is bound to return.

Anger, was it?

Now I'm seriously mad.

I opened a portal and slipped outside, a few feet away from him. And the guy managed to smirk. "And here I thought you've fallen asleep inside your portal."

My glare was enough to tell how serious I am that his smirk was instantly wiped out of his pretty face. He, too, became serious as he proceeded to trap me in his ice.

But each shards of ice became nothing against my portal. The Swallowing Dead Stars. All the ice he emitted were literally swallowed as the portal disappeared.

I saw how his eyes widen as he emit more ice directed towards me. But every time his ice get near me I would touch them and bring them inside my portal.

His attacks were continuous. While his movements started to slow down. He is panting as puff of smoke came out of his mouth. He knew his ice attacks were futile, I would just bring them inside my portal. So he went from long-range to short-range attack.

For the first time I was thankful my brother taught me basic martial arts and self-defense otherwise I wouldn't have been able to counter him. It's also fortunate on my side that his ice attacks became gradually slower.

I managed to slip inside my portal before he could trap me with his ice and appeared behind him where his blind spot was located. Or so I thought was his blind spot. However, I was taken by surprise as he kicked me on the stomach, for the second time. But this time, there were no ice to land on.

I was in midair, I could see the white line before the boundary. Right when I was mere inches from landing on the edge of the fighting stage, I managed to open a portal and slip in just in time. That was close, really close. I didn't have the precious time to stay inside my portal as I made my way outside, right behind Todoroki, this time instead of me grabbing his arm, I was more than startled to see him grabbing my hand.

Now on any other occasion, and possibly a more positive scenario, I would've feel a flush on my cheeks as his hand held mine. However, the gesture was not the least bit romantic. Because he wasted no time to freeze my hand and cover it in ice up to my elbow. That was seriously really cold.

But, he, too made a mistake.

I looked at him, straight in the eye. "Todoroki, you shouldn't have done that."