Seeking Comfort ( Izuku X Uraraka)

Chapter 21

What none of the 1A students had expected was to enter the building and come face to face with heroes of all rankings. Gran Torino and Aizawa-sensei were even there, which only perplexed the newcomers further as to why they had been called. The only information the students had gotten was the meeting place and that costumes weren't needed. Seeing local heroes and big shots like Ryuukyuu could only mean that something was amiss and Izuku instantly felt the icy grip of despair seize his insides. A few calming breaths and a discreet, but worried glance from Uraraka made him able to rein himself in until everyone was called into the conference room.

The meeting that followed their arrival was nothing short of horrifying. All this time Izuku had been selfishly thinking about himself and how he fit into this new world he had entered, and he never once gave it thought that someone as young as Eri was being used to manufacture drugs. The terror that rippled through him was followed swiftly by guilt, anger and frustration. Izuku could feel sweat gather at his hairline and drip down his face and it felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. He couldn't breathe.

Beside him he could feel Togata-senpai shake from a torrent of emotions and Izuku guessed his senior was feeling exactly the same as him. How was he supposed to become the greatest hero when a little girl's quirk was being abused and he had been too incompetent to save her even as she gripped onto him for dear life? He hated how weak and pathetic he was. He should have fought Chisaki right then and there and poor little Eri wouldn't have been taken away again.

Izuku could feel all eyes in the room on him as he stood with Togata-senpai and vowed to rescue Eri.

After returning from the meeting, the four students agreed that they couldn't mention anything that had been discussed to their classmates. The information was classified so sharing it would have severe consequences and it was best to keep quiet to avoid raising suspicion. Izuku hadn't been able to sit still all day and guilt had wracked through him every couple minutes, so he had changed out of his uniform and headed straight to the gym where he spent a whole hour letting out all his frustrations. The crackle of electricity that appeared every time he activated One for All was strangely comforting and Izuku found himself repeatedly using it as a distraction for the thoughts that whirled inside his head.

After having mangled the dummy he had been using his power on, the green-haired teenager left the gym and opted for a run. As he ran, Izuku pushed himself harder than he ever had before. His lungs were burning and his legs were shaking, but he inly increased his pace as he ran laps around campus. Sweat was making his hair stick to his face and his shirt cling to his back, but it didn't stop him and he kept running until his legs gave out.

He had reached a patch of grass when pain shot up his left leg and he slowly came to a stop, gingerly putting weight on his foot. The pain hadn't been intense and his ankle wasn't sprained, so it was likely just from exhaustion or from having stepped on uneven ground. Deciding not to risk an injury, he allowed himself to rest for a few minutes and sat down on the grass. He hadn't noticed that it had gone dark as he worked out and wondered how much time he had spent thinking himself to exhaustion. A gentle breeze cooled his skin and the sweat on his face slowly dried as he sat and stared at the sky.

"What's wrong?" Izuku was startled out of his thoughts by Uraraka. He had been sitting for a few minutes and hadn't heard her approaching footsteps. She was standing next to him and bent down to join him on the grass, but he didn't look up at her.

"Everything?" Izuku sighed and leaned back on his hands to look up at the stars again. It occurred to him that she might have meant what was wrong physically, but she didn't correct him so he let the silence stretch between them and tried to find the best way to explain what was going through his head when Uraraka spoke again.