Because he is dead.
The phrase kept repeating in Y/n's ears like an echo, even after Aizawa was gone. He left almost immediately after telling her how Oboro died crushed by debris during a fight with a villain. Then nothing more was said and she didn't even notice when the front door closed, leaving her alone in the apartment.
She didn't know how much time she stayed there, staring at nothing, but eventually she went automatically to bed and lay down staring at the celling for a while, her mind processing the fact that one of her great friends had died in combat not much after she was put under sleep by Kronos.
Shirakumo Oboro.
From all her friends, Oboro was the one Y/n thought would live a long and happy life. He deserved it.
But destiny was one more time revealing their cruel side.
He died and she wasn't there. She wasn't there to help him, to save him. She didn't even know about his demise until now.
Memories of their time together flowed in her mind vividly and she finally let go crying tears of guilt and grief.
She would never see again that excited teeth-bearing smile and those blue eyes and strands. She would never hear his loud laugh and be crushed by his warm hug.
Y/n smiled remembering their time together, but at the end sadness and regret prevailed and her happiness faded like the last rays of sun before a harsh winter.
She curled up, her chest tightening in a hurtful way.
She missed him.
And it hurt.
A lot.
So much she desired to stop feeling everything.
Thinking that way, numbness wouldn't be that bad if it meant all the pain would go away. She would trade in a blink moments of joy for moments of peace.
"Why did you save me..?" the girl whispered to the darkness, crystalline drops sparkling in her eyes.
It was already late — or early — when Aizawa came back from his vigilance. The apartment was quiet and immersed into darkness. Through the window, the moon shined with a timid glow outside, it's subtle rays of light illuminating the tatami floor with a cold and melancholy hue.
Y/n wasn't at the living room where he'd left her so, slowly, the male direct himself to his bedroom noticing the shoji doors were open. Inside he saw the silhouette of the girl laying on the futon without blankets. She was shrunken and shaking a bit while her moonlight bathed face contorted in what seemed to be pain or fear. A nightmare was probably disturbing her sleep.
Worried, Shota entered the room silently and touched her arm slightly noticing how cold her skin was. Despite being soft, his touch appeared to be felt by the girl since she jolted but then immediately stopped shaking and her features finally relaxed. Y/n turned around and for instants he feared he had woken her up. Her eyes, however, remained closed and her breathing pattern became less erratic.
He sighed in relief but stopped when noticed the wet traces on her face, from her eyes to the bottom of her cheeks. Wavy marks like running water.
She'd cried.
Aizawa stared at her for a few minutes; in the end covering the girl with the blanket.
"Don't be tough with yourself." his voice cut the silence despite being said in almost a whisper. "There was nothing you could have done. I was there and I couldn't save him."
Y/n didn't answer or gave any signs she'd heard him. He didn't mind, being glad she now seemed to be having a tranquil sleep.
Checking her one last time, he left the room closing the shoji door behind.
The following morning, she woke up with a warm feeling on her face. Opening her eyes slowly Y/n saw the morning sun through the window, its rays bathing her skin with a smooth light, but sufficient to wake her up.
She got up and spread her arms like a cat feeling her joints extend and her sore muscles complain. A little dizzy the girl looked around, absorbing the plain, though comforting, appearance of Aizawa's room.
"Last night surely sucked..." she murmured remembering crying herself to sleep with a broken heart, only to be tormented by nightmares.
The hint of those nightmares could still be felt, even though she didn't remember them, and so could the pain but crying her eyes out the previous night did help to soothe it. Now, with her mind clearer, she could think straight.
Oboro...
The image of him grinning showed up on her thoughts.
She blocked it not wanting to follow that path, since she'd probably end up feeling miserable again. Choosing to start the day, Y/n gained courage and got up, walking to the bathroom.
A few minutes after the shoji doors of Aizawa's room slid open and she came out.
"Ohayou. (Morning)".
Y/n was immediately greeted by the unusual sight of his friend wearing a red apron with Midnight's winking face while carrying a plate of tonkatsu* and onigiri* sprinkled with furikake* in each hand.
"Ohayou..." she answered back confused. For an instant she thought she was dreaming. "Shota, did you...cook?"
"Yes. Why so surprised?" he answered placing the dishes on the kotatsu.
"You... Well, you never seemed the type of cooking... Also you survived upon snacks when we were young. I used to lecture you about it all the time, remember?"
"I still do. Cooking is troublesome. But I know how to make tonkatsu and onigiri. Now sit and let's eat. You have class in less than an hour."
She sighed but stopped upon noticing a bottle of cold mugicha* besides her plate.
Tonkatsu, onigiri with furikake and cold mugicha.
They used to be her favorite things to eat during lunch time at school.
Realizing what he did, she looked at the male watching him take his place in front of her. Noticing her gaze, Aizawa met her eyes.
"You didn't need to do this. But I appreciate it." she gave him a warm smile.
"Don't need to thank me."
"Arigato ne, Shota. (Thank you, Shota.)" Y/n ignored him and smiled again. He rolled his eyes, starting to eat.
"Eeeh?!" she shouted suddenly stopping and staring at her food disbelieved, almost dropping her chopsticks due to her astonishment. "This is.. So good!!"
Aizawa only gave her a glance but a small smile played on his lips.
"When did you learn to cook so well?!"
"It was a long time ago..." he replied simply but continue when noticing she wanted more information. "It was before U.A.'s Festival."
He made a pause knowing that was a delicate topic. For a second Y/n's eyes dropped to her hands but she soon raised them and signaled to him to continue.
"Oboro wanted to make you a treat to celebrate your second place and since he knew it was one of your favorite dishes, he annoyed Hizashi until he taught him the recipe. In the end it became a culinary class and somehow they got me involved, however..."
Shota stopped and gave her an understanding look.
He never had the chance to cook to me because of everything that happened next.
She finished in her thoughts, knowing very well what he wished to imply.
Now staring at him with wide eyes, Y/n said nothing, but her face was filled with a hurtful expression. She never knew Oboro had learned how to cook just to give her a treat.
"Why would he go to the trouble to do that?" she asked back, a little confused.
Aizawa only stared at her.
I thought he had told you. Or you might have already realized until now.
Y/n, however, was staring back at him not understanding his delay in answering.
"..You won in second place. He wanted to celebrate." he gave an excuse, choosing not to tell her the truth at that moment. "Now hurry up and eat."
She didn't question him further, rolling her eyes to his order.
"Ok, dad."
It was his turn to roll his eyes.
"So...what about the apron? My gut feeling tells me it has an interesting story behind." the girl started another subject, her mouth acquiring the shape of a playful smile which soon grew upon seeing her friend's reaction to her question.
"She gave to me as a gift." he sighed. "To all of us teachers."
Y/n laughed knowing Nemuri senpai would do something like that.
"But it doesn't explain why you use it."
He seemed ready to contest but thought better. Knowing her he knew she would keep pestering him until he admitted liking the apron — which was not the case. The fact was he only used it because he didn't have any other. But Y/n wouldn't believe it. So why bother explain everything when he could end that topic with a simple:
"Shut up."
Just as he predicted, she laughed but stopped annoying him.
"Well, will you walk with me to U.A.?" the girl asked after finishing her meal.
"No."
"Why not?!"
"I thought you wanted to keep a low profile. If anyone see us together it might raise questions."
She sighed knowing he had a point.
"Then you go first and I follow after what... 5 minutes? This really sound like we're scheming..."
"No. You go first, otherwise you won't arrive in time."
"So will you!"
"I'm the teacher, I can arrive late. You can't."
She huffed. Aizawa grinned.
"And be ready because today is gonna be a busy one."
*tonkatsu: fried pork cutlet.
*onigiri: rice balls.
*furikake: japanese dry condiments made of a mixture of sesame seeds, dried fish, seaweed, salt, sugar, etc. Usually sprinkled on onigiri, cooked rice and fish. It tastes salty but at the same time sweet.
*mugicha: barley tea. Can be enjoyed cold or hot.
ヒーローファイル
(Heroes Files)
• Y/n has a great intuition when it comes to interpret others intentions and emotions, but she sometimes lacks this ability when those are directed to herself — specially in relationships. She can be a little bit dense...
• Midnight launched a culinary set of things with her image on them. She gave each friend one item.
• Usually polite and shy with others, Y/n acts different when she is around Aizawa. With him she is not afraid to be herself.
End of Files