Different people cope in different ways. Some yell until their vocal cords completely give out. Some hide, to disappear from others as their loved one did to them. Some cry until their eyes burn more than their heart.
I take pictures of the moon.
~
"Tomorrow the entrance exams for U.A start," I slow my steps. "I'm overdoing my training again. I shouldn't be running so much the night before the exams," I said to myself, out of breath. Ever since I moved from my home country to Japan, I've been training like crazy to get into U.A.
I usually trained at night. Every time I simply walked around during the day I was met with weird stares. Some filled with disgust, others filled with fear. I tried to ignore them, but they always seemed to get to me.
I found a bench and sat down while I pulled my phone out. I pointed it at the moon and I smiled to myself. I took a picture.
"Picture 100."
My mood slightly dropped. I wondered if that was something to be proud of or upset about. The pictures reminded me of her and everything I could've done to prevent it...
I spaced out for just a moment.
I snapped out of it and checked my phone to realize that it was well past 10:00pm and I needed to return home to get some sleep and pray Isha'. I put my phone back into my pocket and started running again.
I returned home and tiptoed to my room, careful not to wake up my parents. I wanted to collapse onto my bed and not wake up for the next week, however I had to freshen up and pray. I went to the bathroom and took a shower, the thought of getting rejected from U.A filled my mind. I was confident that my quirk would prove to be more than enough to get me a spot in my dream school. Although, my confidence was always easily crushed from nagging thoughts. They should be ignored, but that's easier said than done.
I stepped out of the shower and struggled to put on my pajama pants. "Running for miles is not nearly as difficult as putting on pants after taking a shower," I said, with a slight chuckle. I dried my hair and started brushing my teeth. I picked up my phone and admired the photo I took just an hour prior.
The moon has always been so beautiful.
I left the bathroom and prayed, making dua to get into U.A in sajdah. After I finished praying, I went to bed. "If I don't pass, I'm making a U.A hate page." I sighed.
"Inshallah I pass."
It felt as if the moment I closed my eyes, they opened.
"Wake up Y/n, you're going to be late for the entrance exams" my father said, leaving my room shortly after. I'd usually be groaning and procrastinating whether or not to get up 20 minutes after he tells me to, although today, my thoughts differed. I was both nervous and excited.
I quickly changed into baggy pants and a loose long sleeve shirt. I didn't pay too much attention to how my clothes looked, rather, I focused on clothes that would allow me to move easily and were modest.
I grabbed my phone and headphones. I listened to Surah Al-Baqara while I quietly recited it and walked downstairs. My father seemed to be talking to me so I held up the side of my headphones to hear him clearly. "What do you want for breakfast?" He asked.
"I'll make my own breakfast, thank you. Go to work, you're gonna be late."
My father worked to make gadgets for pro heroes. His quirk was 'Telekinesis'. Many people thought, him becoming a hero would've been more logical, but I admire his choice. It was what he wanted to do.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure"
He grabbed his keys, "Good luck Y/n, I know you'll pass, Inshaallah."
"Thank you." I said, putting toast in the toaster while he ran out the door. Around this time my mother would be making breakfast, but she was so tired from a gathering that she went to the night before. She was sound asleep, so me and my father decided to let her be.
My mothers quirk was 'Seen Space', she could cross her eyes and see any part of space she wanted. Whether it be a planet or the whole milky way.
I started thinking about getting into U.A high school. Then, my thoughts trailed to making friends. I wasn't a loner and I enjoyed having friends. I was just simply an introvert.
Making friends didn't come as easy in Japan. Or at least for the short time that I was here. If I wasn't nice 24/7 then I was automatically perceived as "aggressive" and "a terrorist." On the other hand, if I was too nice, I was labeled "untrustworthy" and "suspicious but I went with the latter anyway.
Of course Islam teaches you to act with kindness no matter what, so that's what I ultimately tried to do. Having to be around people who believed that I was too foreign and too dangerous made that difficult. Regardless, I hoped that I would make at least a couple new friends this school year.
My thoughts trailed again, "That's if I get in."
I flinched at the sound of the toaster going off. I checked the time, just to realize that I was gonna be late. I turned to look at the toast, "Astaghfirullah, it's going to go to waste.." I started to walk out the door. I lived close to U.A and I enjoyed walking. It was a win-win. Of course that was only the case when the stares I was given were ignored.
10 minutes passed and I paused the surah on the 15th page. I put my headphones around my neck and put my phone in my pocket. "Finally here." I thought.
I was actually a little early, about 3 minutes. I walked inside of a stadium for the exam orientation and looked for an empty seat. I sat down and started scrolling through my phone. I was scrolling through the family group chat that I was in. It included my mother and her family, as well as my father and his family. The adults were sending links to quotes on Facebook, and the rest were mostly sending some Muslim memes.
I laughed quietly at one of them until my attention was caught.
"What's up U.A candidates! Turn your attention to me, your school DJ. C'mon and let me hear ya!" I heard a man with oddly shaped hair say. The crowd stayed silent.
"That's got to be embarrassing," I mumbled to myself.
"Oh my goodness, it's the voice hero. Present Mic!" I heard someone say, sitting in the row in front of me. "I listen to his radio show every week! It's so crazy nuts that all the U.A teachers are pro heroes!"
"Please shut up." The blonde guy next to him said, irked.
"Well that was rude.." I thought.
Present Mic continued to explain the concept of the physical exams while our cards were being passed out. I turned my attention back to Present Mic.
"Excuse me sir, but I have a question." A guy with blue hair stood up, raising his hand.
"Yes?!" Present Mic replied, holding onto the last of his enthusiasm.
"On the print out, you put 4, not 3 villains. With all respect, if this is an error on official U.A material, it is shameful. We are exemplary students. We expect the best from Japan's most notable school. A mistake such as this won't do." He turned around to face the area around me and pointed at the previously excited guy.
"Additionally, you with the unkempt hair. You've been muttering this entire time." He narrowed his eyes at the person muttering. "Stop that. If you can't bother to take this seriously, leave. You're distracting the rest of us."
He covered his mouth, "Sorry.." he mumbled. He misunderstood. Green guy wasn't talking because he wasn't focusing. He was mumbling because he was excited. It seemed to be a force of habit.
I wish I would've stood up to him and defended him.
"Okay, okay, relax. Examinee number 7111, thanks for asking your question!" Present Mic said.
Present Mic answered the glasses guy's question, but I zoned out. "I wonder if my toast is stale by now. Haram.. I ruined perfectly good toast. I'll be sure to not waste any food from here on out." I thought.
"That's it for today. I'll sign off with a little present. A sample of our school motto! A true hero is one who overcomes life's misfortunes." He paused. "Are you ready to go beyond?! Let's hear a plus ultra!" The audience stayed silent. "...Good Luck!"
I walked out of the stadium and looked down at my card. "Battlefield B.." Once I reached the battlefield, I stretched a little.
"Get moving! There aren't countdowns in real battles!" That's all I needed to hear to start running. He wasn't done talking, but I wasn't gonna take any chances.
My quirk was called 'Tidal Orbit'. I could control anything around a certain person whether it was a book or simply an element as long as it wasn't living. I haven't tested how far that thing could be from the person yet. I needed a living thing to use as a foundation, similar to how the sun is used as a foundation for the planets around them to orbit.
I could take that thing and control its "orbit." Meaning I'm able to spin it around someone, and hit them with it. For example, say someone is holding a knife or has a knife laying somewhere around them. I could control that knife from afar to make it stab that person or orbit them in any way I like. One might say it's more useful to hit them with the object, but spinning it around them is crucial for me if I want to confuse my opponent.
However this entrance exam gave me a huge disadvantage. The robots weren't human, meaning I couldn't use the objects around any of them. Although, the people I was fighting beside, were human. So I used the objects around certain people to hit the robots. To some, it looked like telekinesis, but to me, it was complicated and required a ton of focus.
Someone once told me that my quirk reminded them of the moon's orbit..
I heard the crashes of robot parts left and right. "Ten seconds left!"
If I was counting right, I had gained 70 points. I hoped that was enough to let me pass. But just in case, I looked for one last 2 pointer.
"Times Up!"
"Phew, just in time."
~
When I got home, I felt at ease. Like the difficult part was finally over, but that was hardly the case. I still had to wait in suspense for a while before I got my results.
I decided to eat something since I skipped breakfast. I walked to the kitchen and my eyes met the toaster. "I should throw that toast away."
~
The next couple of days consisted of constant nail biting, duaa, and running to ease my stress. In short, I was still a nervous wreck.
"Your U.A letter is here!" I heard my mother say from downstairs.
My heart sank. I stayed still for a second, but the next, I was running down the stairs.
I took the letter from her hand and ran back up to my room, leaving my mother with a stunned look on her face.
I sat on my desk and just stared at my letter. I couldn't stand the disappointment I'd feel if I didn't get in. But curiosity was eating at me so I decided to go for it.
I came down the stairs with a look of disappointment on my face. When my eyes met my parents, their faces fell. "There's always a next time," My father said, trying to comfort me.
"There won't be.. because I got in!"
"You idiot!" She shoved my shoulder.
"Ow!"
"Don't scare us like that!" My mother said.
"Okay! Okay.."
I knew you could do it, Alhamdulillah." My father happily replied.
"Thank you," I said with a smile plastered on my face. I walked back to my room, satisfied.
I decided to go out for a walk and think about what attending U.A will be like. It got me thrilled. I was incredibly intrigued as to how U.A has managed to shape top heroes into who they are today throughout the years. I was especially excited to meet the pro heroes that'll be teaching me.
I started to look around the streets, with little light to guide my eyes. My eyes traveled from building to building. Going on walks, as boring as it sounds, always kept me calm.
I took out my phone and pointed it at the moon.
"Picture 104, a waxing crescent."