Halfway to the Moon

Burning in the Red Sunset

 All Might nodded, and Izuku went to stand up on shaky legs.

 His muscles still burned from overworking them, but at least he could use them now. He walked over to where All Might was previously sat and picked up a water bottle half-buried in the sand. He opened it and took long gulps, leaning against the side of an old refrigerator.

 It'd been a long day and he was so, so very tired. He had to devote so much energy just to staying focused in class. It was difficult to keep grades good, to keep training his body so religiously, to keep attending work every other night at the expense of adequate sleep, all while putting up with school bullies, the pressure of one day bearing One For All, and the mysterious rain cloud that seemed to loom over him constantly. It was a lot.

 But he'd been doing it, was doing it, could do it. Which meant as soon as he put down his water bottle, he was pulling out his phone and telling his mother he'd be late again tonight. She still didn't know he had a job- he'd been waiting to get his first paycheck to tell her.

 "Who are you texting, my boy?" All Might asked, coming over to stand across from him.

 "Ah, just my mom!" He replied as he put his phone away, tucking it away safely in his back pocket.

 "Your mother… I believe you mentioned her once before. Inko, correct?"

 "Y-Yeah, I'm actually kind of surprised you remember!"

 All might smiled somewhat sheepishly and brought a hand up to scratch at the back of his neck.

 "Yes, well, you talked about her so fondly, I couldn't help but commit the name to memory. She seems like a sweet woman."

 Izuku smiled brightly up at his mentor. It made him feel happy and warm to hear the other man using such kind words when referring to his mother.

 "She really is," he said, eyes glazing over for a fraction of a second as memories flashed behind his eyes like a rapidly spinning roll of film. Luckily, All Might didn't seem to notice, as in the next moment, he was leaning down and gathering his things.

 Izuku did the same, and soon, they were back at the beach entrance.

 "You did well today, Young Midoriya. Keep it up!" The man said, smile wide on his gaunt face. Izuku offered a bright smile of his own in return, but once All Might was turned around and walking away, he let it drop.

 He wanted to smile, he always did, but the effort required to make himself do it just didn't seem worth it when he was alone.

 Sighing, he began his journey toward the store he worked at only one block over. It'd been two weeks since he got his job, and while it wasn't a particularly hard job, it was quickly becoming exhausting to the point he was having a hard time getting himself to go. He would debate with himself after training every time he'd have a shift scheduled. Did he really need to go? Would it really hurt all that much if he missed just one shift? Ultimately, distant visions of missed dinners and the pink shards of porcelain piggy banks always won out- pushing him through the clear, sliding doors and towards his station every time.