sweat pooled at your brow, your chest heaved with every short inhale and exhale, muscles cramped and on fire, a stitch in your side that only got worse with each movement you made.
the gym was silent save for your labored breathing as you continued to train, a flashback of the last hero exercise still fresh in your mind, aizawa's criticism and your class's judgmental stares.
"that's not enough, (name), quit being irrational!"
you screamed, letting a ball of energy fly towards your target.
it immediately burst into flames, and its ashes fell to the gym floor. your heart ached from the unusual amount of energy. but as much as it hurt, you needed to give more.
unbeknownst to you, in the gym window, a duo of red hair and blond hair was watching you. watching you scream as your voice grew hoarse. watching you pour every bit of yourself into each hit but cursing as it wasn't calculated enough. watching you with frustrated tears as you got back up after a nasty shot took you down to your knees.
"the hell's up with her?" bakugou grumbled.
kirishima shook his head. "i... i don't know. i've never seen her like this before. whenever we train, it's... it's never like this. something has to be up."
the blond rose a brow. you didn't do too well in hero training earlier, and you'd seemed to be off throughout the rest of the day.
"we should stop her," kirishima said.
but bakugou held out a hand to stop him. "wait a second."
"you can do better than that, push yourself, (name)!"
you grabbed your head, shouting at the top of your lungs. the last bit of your energy expelled from your body as you screamed, and it shattered every target, every light, every window. darkness encased you, and you curled into yourself with heavy sobs racking your body.
your team's mission was a failure because of you. because you hesitated with your energy. you didn't think you'd had enough to win the round, had enough to protect them, had enough to help them. but, because of your hesitation, your team had failed the mock mission, and you were all to blame.
everything hurt; arms, legs, fingers, toes. your head was pounding, heart was racing, and skin was aflame. shattered fragments circled around you, caught up in the negative energy swirling around the gym.
all you wanted was to be a hero. why was is so fucking hard?!
everything hurt; arms, legs, fingers, toes. your head was pounding, heart was racing, and skin was aflame. shattered fragments circled around you, caught up in the negative energy swirling around the gym. your legs gave way, and you slipped to the floor.
the blond's eyes widened at the scene, and he didn't hesitate as he ran towards the entrance.
"bakugou, it's dangerous!" kirishima called after him.
"i don't give a damn, shitty hair, get fucking recovery girl!" he shouted back. he'd blasted open the gym doors and sprinted towards your figure. "oi, shitty girl, wake up!"
but you didn't move a muscle.
...
bright light filtered in through the blinds of recovery girl's infirmary. the window was cracked ever so slightly to allow in a soft breeze, the sound of birdsong filtering in with it.
you groaned, head feeling as though it had been trampled on by a herd of elephants. you opened your eyes groggily and looked around blearily. how did you get into recovery girl's office? the last you remembered was training in the gym?
"good morning," recovery girl greeted as she strolled around to your side, cane aiding her in one of her hands.
you murmured a morning greeting of your own and blinked the sleepiness from your eyes. you lifted a single hand to cover a yawn, glancing down at the weight of it and noticed a cast. looking to your other arm, you noticed bandages wrapped around it. "what happened?"
she smiled your way. "bakugou-san brought you in last night after he saw you pass out in the gym.
"what?!" you sat up quickly, immediately sitting up and immediately regretting the decision. you winced, and recovery girl motioned you to lay back down. "ba-bakugou brought me in?"
recovery girl nodded, "he did. he's been pacing around outside since he got up this morning i would assume."
a blush colored your cheeks. "oh."
"i'll send him in on my way out, (last name)-san," she replied.
you fidgeted with your hands, pulse raising. oh kami, why did it have to be bakugou to bring you in? that's so embarrassing, you shuddered. but you didn't have time to dwell as the blond stepped into the infirmary, lips pulled in a frown. he made eye contact with you, crimson meeting (eye color).
"i guess i should thank you," you murmured.
his brow rose as he sat. "just what the hell did you think you were doing?"
"training."
"training like that isn't fucking healthy, (name)." he squared you with piercing and calculating eyes.
you mumbled something he couldn't quite hear.
"fuck was that?"
"i said you wouldn't understand."
"try me," he said. he crossed his arms over his chest, waiting on your explanation.
a sigh left your lips. "you're good. you're good at, well, everything. you wouldn't understand what it's like to not feel good enough, to feel like your slowing everybody down, to feel like you'll never become a hero because you hesitate too much because you're scared."
"this is because of the stupid mock missions yesterday, isn't it?"
ashamed, you nodded. "i caused the whole team to fail."
"so?"
"so?! what do you mean so?!" your eyes widened.
"just that. fucking so what? you're at yuuei to learn, dumbass. no one cares if you fail right now because you learn from your damn failures," he said. "so, there's no reason to fucking go out of your way and hurt yourself for dumb shit like that. got it?"
tears sparkled in your eyes. "i know, but i just... i don't want to slow anyone down."
"shut the fuck up, dumbass," he groaned. the blond sat on the edge of the bed and placed a single hand on the top of your head. "don't push yourself too hard. understand?"
you nodded, bottom lip quivering.
he sighed and pulled you into his chest. "good. don't fuckin' scare me like that, (name). when i watched you fall...."
you mumbled something inaudible from his chest, hugging him tightly. you pulled away a moment later. "m'sorry."
he huffed. "you're lucky you're fuckin' cute, or i'd kill you for making me worry like that, damn dipshit."
a small smile graced your lips, and you kissed his cheek. "thank you."
his cheeks reddened, and he rolled his eyes. "yeah, yeah, whatever."
...
this is just smth short to put me back into my writing mood. hope you guys enjoy it, had a lil fun writing this!