Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be given. That it's Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, Izuku Midoryia believed that to be the world's one, and...
"AND THE WINNER IS MIDORYIA!!!" called Presents Mic. The crowd cheered loudly, and Midoryia stood there in the center. But the cheers didn't reach him. He simply stood there. Perplexed. What did these dreams mean? What were these figures that kept appearing?
He shook the idea for now. Perhaps it was something psychological. He did see a lot of things when he entered the gate of truth. Maybe this what part of the price he paid. He thought this to himself, as he clutched his metal arm.
He released the prosthetic, and raised it in the air victoriously. This earned even louder cheering from the crowd. Midoryia went over to Shinso and offered his right arm. "Good match. Your quirk had me going for a sec. I was getting pretty panicked when that happened." he said with a grin.
Shinso was shocked at Izuku's kindness, but soon took the gesture and was helped to his feet. The two grinned at each other, before they left the arena for the next match to occur.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
***
Izuku sat down with the rest of his friends. Iida's match merely consisted of Hatsume using her gadgets until she had used all of them at least once. Iida was somewhat annoyed at how he was basically used as Hatsume's billboard.
Then came Ochaco's match. Izuku was genuinely nervous about this. Mainly because Ochaco was facing Bakugo. And Izuku knew just how ruthless he could be. He was worried. Worried about Ochaco. His mind wasn't even lingering on the strange dreams he's been having.
The match started. Izuku tensed in his seat. Why was he being like this? In the one year that he's had his automail, she's thrown a wrench every time Izuku needed repairs that weren't routine. But perhaps it was because they had grown so much closer. Perhaps it was the dance they had shared a few nights ago. Either way, watching her try so hard not only to dodge Bakugo's explosions, but also get back up after getting hit, it was...
Terrifying.
Every time Izuku saw her winning, he would see the orange glow of one of Bakugo's explosions consume any attempt at her victory. But still, even through the fear. Through the pain of her pain. It was inspiring. To see her keep going. To get back up. Over and over.
Eventually, Bakugo was victorious. Izuku's anger towards Bakugo became even more justified. Even though Bakugo had helped him during USJ, a bit of anger still lingered inside of Izuku. This flame was only fueled when Izuku saw Ochaco's injuries.
He quickly ran to the break room where she was assigned. He knocked frantically on the door, which soon opened to show Ochaco's injuries had lessened since he had seen her last. She must've been to Recovery Girl recently.
Izuku entered the room and embraced her. "Thank god. Are you okay?" he asked.
She giggled. "I'm fine you dork."
Izuku sighed. "I'm glad. C'mon. Let's sit down."
She obliged without any hesitation. They sat down, staying there in silence. Not awkward, but comfortable. They had been through so much together. The silence lingered until Ochaco tentatively grabbed Izuku's hand. This time, instead of feeling the saddening cold metal of his left hand, feeling the warm skin of his right.
Izuku looked over to her and saw her face. Her warming features being covered somewhat by... tears. Tears that had been shed on numerous occasions. Izuku had seen this time and time again. He removed his hand from Ochaco's grip, and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Something he always did to comfort her. "What's wrong?"
"I lost." she said. "I wanted to beat him. So badly. I thought that if I could beat him that... that it would be a start. A start to help me accomplish what I want. I want to be a hero so I could keep what happened to my parents from happening to the parents of any other scared little girls or boys out there." she said, as she began to sob. "Kids like me, and especially kids like you. Kids who are so torn up by their parents dying, being taken from them, that they do something terrible. I wanted to win. For them. And for you." she said as she wrapped her arms around him, crying into his chest.
Izuku stroked her hair with his metal arm. "I understand wanting to win for your parents. But I'm positive that they are very proud of you. They opened the gate just enough to see you fighting hard. Getting back up all the time. But you don't have to carry so much pressure. You don't have to do anything for me." he said as he pulled her closer. "You don't even have to cry for me."
Ochaco sniffed. "You're the one who taught me that. Taught me to keep going on. If you wont cry for yourself, then to pay you back, I've cried for you."
Izuku's eyes widened. He sighed. He pulled her in closer, hugging her tight, as she cried into Izuku's chest.
Izuku felt guilty. He had no idea that he had caused her so much suffering. The hours she spent on his automail. The amount of concern she would always show. The battles she fought for him. The tears she shed. He was filled with such guilt that he had caused her such suffering. But at the same time, the guilt was cancelled out by something else. By happiness. Happiness that she was willing to be there for him. Happiness that she has done all of these things for him.
After Ochaco's tears were spent, the two remained in the same position. Ochaco's feelings were so jumbled up. She had no idea what to make of them. She was sad, happy, angry, scared, and everything in between. But there it was again. That warmth. That oh so wonderful warmth she felt whenever she was with Izuku. She focused on that warmth, on Izuku. The way she felt so safe in his arms, metal or otherwise. The way his heart beat like a drum.
Why? What was the connection between this amazing, addicting warmth, and Izuku? Could she be falling for him? Could she have fallen for an Alchemist? These thoughts filled her head. Normally she would just brush them off. But this time, she couldn't.
She thought on this for a while. The way she felt right now was amazing, and would be proof enough. But then she recalled the dance they had shared. They way she was so scared after the music had stopped, the she was set at ease when they kept dancing anyway. The disappointment she felt after they stopped. But what really sold her was the way she felt after. They way she couldn't stop thinking about him until the next time she saw him. She had obviously fallen for him.
She pulled away from the embrace, looking into his eyes. Like a summer forest, so obscured by trees that when you enter, it's almost as if the day had never come.
Izuku stared into her eyes as well. The way the brown of her eyes was so alluring. Like the richest, sweetest chocolate ever made.
Izuku had known about his feelings for his mechanic since his mother died. He had never acted on them because he thought that he was duty bound to his Alchemic studies and searches. But now, none of that mattered. His own feelings burst like a volcano. The way she would always root for him, and support him, the joy of their dance. All of it came so fast.
"Ochaco. Listen." Izuku said as he stared into her eyes. "I can't keep pretending. I thought that I would end up hurting you if I told you how I felt. I thought that if I brought you close, that my work would lead to you... god I can't even say it." he said. He took a deep breath. "But Ochaco. I need to say it. I'll try my hardest to make sure you don't get hurt by my searching, or my studies. I want to protect you. I..."
The intercom went off, interrupting Izuku's confession. "Iida Tenya has forfeited the competition due to a personal matter."
***
Please don't hate me for the cliffhanger, or the confession interruption. I didn't intend for there to be a confession between the two for a while, kind of like how Ed only confesses to Winry at the end of Brotherhood. But yeah. The story is going to be arriving at it's climax soon, so I hope y'all are ready. I know I said I would end the first book at the end of season 2, but instead I'm gonna end it at the end of the internship arc. Mainly because that would make more sense plot-wise. Anyway, Click all de Buttons. BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
