04. GRATITUDE

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HER ONCE SMILING FACE WAS REPLACED WITH A SOLEMN ONE, EYES FLUTTERED SHUT AND THREATENING TO NEVER OPEN AGAIN. Her once flawless skin was damaged and scarred, scratches and bruises among the damage as well. The girls of Class 1-A sat at their friend's side, waiting for her to finally wake up. During the whole event, she had been mostly doing well, using villains to go against their own peers. She fought them with a staggering smile alongside Bakugo and Kirishima, throwing a few punches and kicks to steer them away from the rest of her classmates.

It was all going well until she saw her teacher battered underneath a large mass of muscle and the murderous intent of the head villain as she reached to hurt her friend that it finally went wrong. She had thrown herself in front of Tsuyu after separating from the blond and the redhead, being lost earlier amongst the sheer amount of attacking villains. Bakugo had panicked, searching everywhere for the girl he had come to adore.

He had been the one to watch as her skin flaked away into scabbing, reaching the right half of her body go scabbed. He had watched as she bit back a scream and Aizawa had stopped it from going further, her limp body falling to Midoriya's feet. Mineta had been the one to let out a wail; regardless of his disgusting attitude, she had always attempted to at least try to treat him decently. Tsuyu had pulled her friend to her side with fat tears rolling down her cheeks.

And even as her body bled out, she smiled.

He knew it was forced— all those days spent alongside her had shown him the difference. He watched as Midoriya punched the giant thing that had defeated Aizawa before getting pulled away by Tsuyu, the girl then limp in the frog girl's arms. "Have no fear, for I am here!" If that was the case then why was he trembling? All Might had come too late— if he was number one, she would have been safe in his arms.

But she wasn't.

She was hurt and now she laid in the hospital bed with endless wires and needles poking at her fragile skin. And the fact of the matter was, she was never his. His crimson eyes met indigo ones that were filled with the same worry he had in his own. What was so good about this guy anyway? Monoma wanted to scream and insult the boy before him. If he was there why didn't he save her? He bit his sharp tongue back and instead stepped into the room, avoiding the boy's gaze.

The girls in the room looked to the blond with tear-filled eyes. He said nothing, leaving behind the bravado he had worn in front of their class all the time. "We'll give you some time alone," spoke Uraraka, pushing the girls out despite their complaints. Of all the girls there, she knew what had been going on between them. After all, best friends told each other everything.

Monoma stared at her delicate frame. Her hero suit had been folded neatly at her side, her body instead being covered by a pasty green dress. It didn't suit her in the slightest. The rosy cheeks would have contrasted against the sickly color of the slacks. Instead, they fit almost perfectly against the sickening brown scars along her frame and the paling of her skin. His list sat crumpled in his hand, hiding the endless amount of tear stains it held.

Hesitantly, he took a seat, placing the list on the bedside table that had been littered with letters and flowers, a few balloons sitting in the corner nearby. The letters that sat in his schoolbag seemed to be the opposite of what had been laying there. He sat in silence for what seemed to be an eternity, the occasional beeping from the machine next to her pulling him to and from reality. He reached for her faintly warm hand, gripping it tightly as tears threatened to fall.

The sudden opening of the door made him let go, looking to find an angry blond there. The door slammed shut, and he leaned against it, opting to look out the window instead of the two. "You know she likes you now, huh?" he spat, glaring intently at the setting sun. Monoma nodded and almost reached for her hand once more. "Well, I like her too." The blond nodded once more— only a total idiot wouldn't have noticed. Bakugo lacked his teeth, shaking his head before brushing a hand through his hair.

"And she doesn't like me back, so fucking listen up, okay?"

Both boys looked to one another as the machine continued to beep at a steady pace. "Take... take good care of her for me." Bakugo looked away, opening the door before looking to him again, "or I'll beat your ass into next week." He stopped in the doorframe, hesitating as if he wanted to say something more. "I will." The crimson eyed boy scoffed before stepping out and slamming the door once more behind him.

"Does this mean we're dating?"

Monoma whipped around wide-eyes landing atop her bruised figure. She stared at him lovingly, a beautiful smile upon her features. She struggled to sit up with a laugh, Monoma rushing to help her sit up. "H-How much of that did you hear?" She chuckled as the button she pressed brought her up. "Pretty much all of it. I was pretty surprised to hear Kacchan say that though..." she trailed off, tilting her head to the side. Monoma went red in the face before grabbing her hand and pulling it to his chest.

"I love you."

Her face went red, his eyes glimmering underneath the dim hospital lights. "I-I know that it's really sudden but all those letters you sent gave me hope," he began, pulling out a small box of them to rest on her lap, "and I felt so much more confident with those compliments." Her own eyes lit up as he smiled, placing a kiss upon her hand and holding it to his cheek.

"It means the world to me, you know? All those letters. So, thank you."

Pushing the box to the side, she pulled him forward into a kiss, hand pressed into his soft cheek. Pulling away, she saw the blush atop his cheeks and ears before he pulled her into another kiss. His lips were soft and tasted like cinnamon against her slightly chapped ones. As they pulled away once more, he smiled so brightly she felt her heart do cartwheels. Her eyes filled to the brim with tears as he held her hand with eyes that held the emotion that she always wanted to see in them.

PURE, EVERLASTING HAPPINESS.

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