The world tilted and morphed yet never settled. His head ached, his skull throbbing as he tried to tune back into his surroundings. Dust and dirt caked the air around him, making it incredibly hard to breathe. Something heavy weighed down on his chest, the crushing pressure made it impossible for his chest to expand. He tried to move, the action only brought intense, overwhelming pain, erupting in his leg from a wound he could not identify.
He couldn't feel his arm, a desperate part of him wondered if it was even still there. He hoped it was. Hoped it was only the boulder that was currently restricting his blood flow. His breath came in heaves, panic rising, almost suffocating with its intensity. It surprised him, really, that he was breathing at all. The third bomb was smaller than the others. It seems its sole purpose was to take out the warehouse. To take him out.
He could taste copper on his tongue, it made him want to wretch. Tears sprung to his unseeing eyes, a groan escaping his lips as he tried once again to lift the boulder caging him in. His limbs felt heavy, unresponsive. His entire body burned, pain flaring with every muscle he tried to use. He was going to die here, wasn't he?
The thought made him feel numb. Disconnected from the reality bearing down on his entire being. Was this how it was going to end?
"-Ku can you hear me?" The soreness in his head amplified as he tried to listen. The new presence brought overwhelming relief. The voice was familiar. Achingly so. "You're going to be okay! We're going to get you out of there, do you hear me?" And as if calling out to someone else, " Uraraka! I need you to move this boulder!"
The weight crushing him to the ground disappeared, as whatever was holding him down was floated into the air. A new kind of pain erupted in its place as the blood rushed to his legs.
Something pressed into his wounds, his vision turning white for a moment, overtaking the previous darkness.
"Shit." The hero hissed from his place above him, "You need to stop moving, okay? This is going to hurt."
"Ai- Aizawa?" His throat felt raw, the words sandy and stinging. A distant part of him thought it was somehow fitting, that he was here. The same man who'd been there, all those years ago, when it all began. His vision was blurring, dark spots forming around the world.
"It's okay, you're going to be alright. I just need to keep applying pressure." Shouting to someone behind him, he continued, "Ca-all an ambulance!" His voice cracked. Shattering his composure.
"What- what do we do?" Shinsou was here too? It wasn't safe, what was he doing here? His mind felt foggy, detached.
"Help me get him out of here. This structure isn't going to hold out for long."
"B-but h-his arm-"
"Now Shinsou! I need you to pull yourself together!"
Without truly registering the words, he felt two pairs of arms wrap around him.
They lifted him, the movement bringing unfiltered agony, racing through his entire body, and lighting his nerves on fire. Something wet dripped onto his forehead. His mind distantly noted that it was starting to rain.
That was good? Right? It meant the fire would disappear. He wanted it to.
_____________________________________
They walked slowly, carefully, trying their hardest not to jostle him. However, before they could make it out of the rubble and into the open street, a rumble sounded around them.
The ground shook, pebbles vibrating from their resting place at their feet.
A great massive boom resounding through the air as a figure crashed into the building situated right next to them.
From the dust and smoke emerged none other than All Might. The man looked worse for wear, blood sluggishly oozing from a wound on his shoulder. Dirt and grime covered him, making him look almost deranged.
Another crash was heard as a new figure joined the scene. His presence alone sent shivers running down Shinsou's spine. His body freezing as if his limbs were no longer his own to control.
"This isn't good, we need to get out of here." Aizawa hissed, readjusting his grip until most of Izuku's weight was resting on Shinsou. "Take him to the others, I need to make sure they don't see you."
With that, the man took off, using his capture weapon to launch himself in the direction of the fight.
Izuku was heavier than he expected, or maybe it was his own body that felt weak. It felt as though his legs would give out at any moment.
As they staggered across the rubble, he couldn't help his gaze from straying towards the battle taking place near them.
A crowd had formed in the distance, as if following the match. Like all hero fights, the danger didn't deter the audience.
All Might and the villain were fighting with an intensity that rivaled the greatest wars. Their punches created whirlwinds, shaking the very earth with their movements. Every hit echoed through the ravaged field like thunder.
Craters formed in their wake, remnants of a fight between titans.
It felt surreal, to watch this. Two men with powers rivaling the gods, fighting amongst the mortals. The hair on his arms stood on end as the battle raged between the two entities. It made his veins throb with a constant state of alertness.
It felt as if he was never meant to witness this immense display of power. As if the events were momentous, yet forbidden to his earthly eyes.
He couldn't let it consume him though, couldn't let the sight suck him in, swallow him completely. The fate of the boy leaning against him rested on his ability to keep moving. So he did. He pushed through the urge to remain there, as if stuck in time and marched forward. Each step feeling heavier than the last.
Kirishima and Todoroki rushed to their aid. However, before they could get to them, another rumble reverberated through the ground beneath their feet.
A distant shout of "Look out!" desperate and horrified, sounded behind them. The voice was only drowned out by the rain and the shockwave that came right at them. The impact split the concrete, separating them from the other students. Almost knocking him down, had he not braced himself for it.
Too busy trying to remain upright, he didn't see the wave of shrapnel and rubble coming right at them.
Something caught his side and pushed. The next thing he knew he was tumbling down. Skidding across the ground, skin scraped raw as he rolled across the dirt.
Wheezing as the breath was knocked out of him, he didn't give himself a moment to rest. His body already moving to get up, to check on Izuku. Make sure he was okay.
The first thing his mind registered was All Might's triumphant position, his hand was held high, fist pointing at the sky as he heaved, Aizawa standing a couple of feet next to him.
The crowd roared, loud and overwhelming to his ringing ears. Yet, even as the noise heightened and the chaos reigned, he could focus on nothing else. It felt like they were the only people frozen in a bustling crowd, standing there, as if in the eye of a hurricane.
Suddenly the world felt muted, as if all sound were suddenly dimmed, as though they were drifting aimlessly under water.
He watched, as though in slow motion, as blood spluttered from Izuku's lips, a soundless cry spilling from his throat as his knees gave out. The crimson red seemed to draw him in until it was all he could see, as the boy's body crumbled to the ground like a ragdoll whose strings had been cut. One hand, his only remaining one, his mind noted morbidly, heart wrenchingly, was outstretched towards him, still in the motion of pushing him away.
That sight would forever be engraved in his mind, a picture straight out of his nightmares. He felt hollow, unmoved as he realized just what had happened.
A metal rod was sticking out of Izuku's chest, his soot-covered costume rapidly darkening with blood.
With a detached kind of horror, he saw a small smile stretch across Izuku's features, as if the teen was pleased. Satisfied.
His body moved even as his mind reeled. Limbs feeling steadier than his psyche as he stumbled towards the boy's fallen body.
This was not happening. It couldn't be.
The rain was beating down on them, a tangible curtain forming around them, blocking out the rest of the world.
All he could hear was Izuku's faltering breath, all he could see was his pale, broken body lying on the ground before him. "No, no-no." He whispered desperately. "Stay with me, WHERE'S THE AMBULANCE?!" He screamed at no one and everyone. Wide, hysterical eyes looking up at his gathered classmates. Uraraka had a hand to her mouth, stifling a sob as she huddled into Iida's side. Bakugou was shouting at someone on his phone, his rage reverberated through Shinsou himself. A perfect picture of the storm that brewed within him. He wanted to scream at them some more, tell them there was no reason to look that heartbroken! Izuku wouldn't- he would make it out of here. Why did they look so sad?
With delicate, tentative movements, he cradled the boy's upper body, letting Izuku's head rest on his folded legs. Trembling fingers came up to push the teen's hair out of his eyes, tears already spilling down his cheeks. It felt wrong to touch him. As if at any second he would break. Shatter along with the boy holding him in his arms like fragile glass.
"Hi-hitos-shi" Izuku's chest convulsed, trying in vain to expand and failing miserably.
"Why-"His voice broke, "Why would you do that?" and he knew, even then, that Izuku wouldn't have even given it a second thought. It didn't stop him from feeling as though a part of his soul was crumbling into dust.
"I- I'm n-not s-sorry" Blood was pooling on the ground under them now. The liquid mixed with the rain and seeped into his clothes. The cold he was feeling had nothing to do with it, however.
"Don't talk, y-you're going to be alright. You're going to be fine. Do you hear me?" His voice was breathy, hysterical. Everything's going to be fine." His heart felt like it was being shredded into pieces. Washed away with the downpour along with the tears that slid down his face, indistinguishable from the rain.
"It- its o-okay." The words were broken and faltering. The pain was now evident on the teen's features, his eyebrows scrunching with agony despite the smile showing his bloodied teeth. His eyes, though, his pale green eyes, were clearer than he'd ever seen them before. It reminded him of that day, all those months ago, standing in the rain. "I- I was never m-meant to li- ive this l-long."
"Stop! You're not going to die! Do you understand! You're not allowed to die on me! Y-you promised you wouldn't-"He couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. They had promised each other. They had so much left to do. They were supposed to have more time. "You promised." He repeated feebly, another sob wracking his body as he clutched desperately at his fading love. Afraid he would disappear at any moment. Wash away with the rain.
He could hear Yaoyorozu and Kirishima openly crying now. Bakugou was silent, however, crouched near them on Izuku's right, his phone held loosely in his hand as if he'd forgotten about it, eyes trained aimlessly on the ground.
"Where are the medics? Come on! Someone go get them already! WHAT'S TAKING-" A touch to his cheek made him falter, gaze immediately drawn back to the boy shaking in his hold. The touch was feeble, as light as a feather, surely leaving a blood trail in its wake. It brought warmth to his chest even as it threatened to tear his heart apart.
"H-Hey" Izuku's eyes were somehow meeting his own now, the calm green pulled him into their depth, as if by a trance. "It-it's raining Hi-Hitoshi." A small, fragile smile stretched the boy's face. Bloodied yet no less precious. He could feel it, the last remnants of life tethering this boy to the waking world. Unraveling like loose threads on a torn tapestry, as brittle as powdery sand, slipping through his fingers. He could see it, the exact moment life seemed to drain from those emerald eyes. The moment the last breath of air escaped his failing lungs. He could feel it in his very bones, as if he was the one lying there, wasting away right before his eyes. "I- I al- always h-hoped it would ra-ain."
The pain he felt, snaking into his heart, was unbearable, making him want to howl into the night. Scream at the world for this unfairness. For this cruelty.
"No." He pulled the boy closer to his chest, head burrowing into the boy's neck. Wanting nothing more than to be close to him, to have him open his eyes and talk to him. "Please. N-No."
He wanted anything, anything but this empty vessel he was clutching onto like a lifeline.
His body heaved with unsuppressed sobs, as he wept with everything he had.
"What are you doing?" Get him up!" Sirens flared in the distance, but his mind barely registered it, he didn't bother to look up at Bakugou. He couldn't bring himself to tear his gaze away from the boy in his arms. "The medics are almost here!" The rain beating down on them made the boy's hair fall over his eyes, making him look almost deranged.
"H-hey man, don't-" Kirishima's cried feebly.
"What the hell is your problem? Do you want him to die?!" The blond shouted back, tone frantic as he got closer.
Shinsou's arms unconsciously tightened around the body in his grasp.
"Stop." The whisper sounded broken even to his own ears. "I-it's over." And the words felt thick, wrong to his throat. "Just- just stop." He looked up then, sorrow and a deep coiling sense of sadness burning in his eyes as he pleaded for Bakugou to understand. "H-He's gone."
He watched the moment reality seemed to settle over the boy, like a weight too heavy for any of them to bear. It brought him down onto his knees, as a scream, louder and harsher than he's ever heard tore itself out of his lungs as he punched the ground in his anger, splashing the water beneath on contact. It filled the air with anguish, sending vibrations echoing into Shinsou's very soul. Only making him want to cry harder. To disappear, to no longer exist.
It was there, under the heavy rain, cold and unforgiving, that Shinsou lost everything he ever loved.
__________________________________
Light shinned through the thinly veiled fabric hanging on the walls, separating the room from the outside world as if time was meaningless here. Inconsequential. The moon was high in the sky, clear and void of any cloud or blemish.
There, amid the darkness, inside an abandoned drawer rests a paper and a red pen. The former was creased and frayed with time. Stained with tears and ink on its yellow-brown surface.
Two different scrawls adorn it. A blue childlike scribble, clumsy and written with crayon. And another straighter, more eligible red handwriting.
Despite the pathetic state of the paper, it is treated as the most precious of treasures. Held only with reverence and love.
There's a small checklist on it. A bucket list.
Trivial, silly things.
A desire to do something reckless. A desire to save. To help. All of them were marked as completed. Checked.
One item was streaked, as if the boy had tried to erase it, but failed.
The wish to become a hero.
Next to that blue discarded wish, the words Become a hero were written in red. Marking them as achieved.
And finally, on the bottom, in a blue childish scrawl were the words.
X Fall in love.
The box next to them was marked as checked.
Kira's note
So, it's been a long, wild ride guys, I hope you liked this story! Don't hesitate to tell me what you think! I hope all the emotions i've put into this has reached you.