Izuku was rushed into an ambulance quicker than he could struggle. The claws from the Nomu had slashed his skin, causing him to bleed. Its strange, he hadn't felt the pain until then.
He kept trying to get up, to move away and distance himself from the gloved hands that held him down to the gurney. He hated hands, especially gloved ones.
Pain flared through his body and he squeezed his eyes shut and hit down hard. He had to get away, he had to find help. Osachi and the others still needed help. They were moving somewhere. Where were they going?
Something cold was strapped across his chest and then his legs and kept him down. Fear spiked and he struggled harder. There was something placed on his face that blew air into his mouth. Words were being said but he couldn't understand it clearly.
Why was everything so hazy?
Why couldn't he move?
"Honey, you need to calm down. You're safe, nothing is going to hurt you. I'm trying to help you, can you let me help you?" A soft feminine voice said.
He whimpered and tried opening his eyes again. The light overhead was almost blinding in comparison to the dark alleys that he'd just come from. A figure leaned forward into his vision and covered the light. A woman with long straight white hair that was red at the tips. She had strawberry red eyes and freckles like him.
Her hand pushed his hair back and out of his eyes and wiped his forehead with a soft rag.
She looked like a good person.
Izuku relaxed slightly and let her work. He expected pain from her touch, but was shocked when none came. If he could speak he'd probably ask who she was and what she was doing, but he was suddenly too tired to care. Why was he so tired all of a sudden? Was it her Quirk?
Against his will, his body went completely lax as two more people began to work his torso. The woman with the white hair stayed next to him, gently petting his hair back until the vehicle they were in came to a stop.
He was scared again. It was like the Doctor all over again. He was strapped down and being taken somewhere where people would do bad things to him.
The struggle picked up as he was taken out of the vehicle and rolled into a building down lengthy hallways. The lights overhead were brighter than they were before and made his head hurt.
"Hon, you need to calm down. Everything is fine, you're safe. No one is gonna hurt you," The woman said as she came into his peripheral vision. There were orders being made from people he couldn't see as adults in white lab coats hurried by.
This was all so overwhelming.
He didn't want to be here. He wanted Eraserhead or Present Mic, they had to be somewhere.
Where were they?
_
Shouta groaned when he heard his phone go off in the middle of the night. People who knew him, knew that he didn't take calls late at night unless he was on patrol. This was one of the rare nights that he got to sit back and relax.
He'd just gotten those insufferable bandages off of his face and he no longer looked like a mummy. His doctor still banned him from patrols or any other strenuous activities.
He was fine with that.
People knew that this was his week off. All of his students were out on internships so he didn't have to take care of a bunch of brats. No hero work, no school, nothing. That was until he got that phone call.
They wouldn't be calling unless it was important right?
He groaned again into his pillow and reached a hand over to his bedside table. It was the hospital.
Shouta was wide awake now.
Pressing the button faster than he could think he put the phone up to his ear. "Hello?"
"You're Aizawa Shouta, correct? This is Hosu general hospital, I'm calling because Iida Tenya wished to speak with you. He wanted to make a call and gave me this number," A young male voice spoke.
"Iida Tenya is my student. What happened? Is something wrong?"
"He has an encounter with Hero Killer, Stain, along with what I'm assuming is his classmate Todoroki Shoto. They both survived and are in healthy condition. They just wished to speak with you."
Shouta was up and dressed by the time he finished his first sentence. "Please hand the phone to him?"
A voice spoke in the background before he heard the distinct sound of his student. "Hello Sensei."
"Iida-kun, what the hell happened? No wait. Tell me once I get there, are you okay?" Shouta asked as he grabbed his keys and rushed out the door.
"We're fine. No permanent damage other than my left hand, but that can be fixed with surgery. Todoroki-kun was stabbed in the arm, but that's mostly it other than frost bite. That's not the reason I was calling you though," Iida said.
"What?"
"That boy from the USJ. The one that was next to Shigaraki Tomura? He saved me," Iida spoke.
If Shouta pressed harder on the gas pedal then no one had to know. "He was there? Is he safe? Where did he go?"
"Yes, he was there. Medics took him into an ambulance right after the fight. He's safe and in the hospital with us. They haven't told me which room, but I know he's here."
"Good. Don't move, I'll be there soon," Shouta said.
"Sensei, if I may ask, what happened to him?"
The buildings flying by his vision seemed to slow as the world came to a stop. In truth, Shouta has no idea what Izuku had been through. All he knew is that it was nothing good, and that it would take a long time for him to heal from this.
It was a moment later he realized he was still on the phone. "I don't know, Iida-kun. That boy is someone who has needed help for a long time, and it's about time someone helped him."
"Alright. Thank you, Sensei."
"I'll be there soon," He said and hung up the phone.
Shouta's nerves started to eat at him. The last time he'd seen Izuku was during the USJ incident and the boy had looked so fragile then. What happened after the villains made their escape with him? They didn't hurt him because of Shouta, did they? What if Izuku never forgave Shouta for not being able to protect him? He wouldn't blame him if that was the case.
It was Shouta's fault to begin with.
The scenery passed by and he soon found himself running up to the Hosu general hospital doors. The receptionist was a young man who couldn't have been older than thirty with a blue nurses outfit on and short black hair.
"Hello, I'm here to see Iida Tenya and Todoroki Shoto. What room are they in?" He asked.
"Can I see your ID first?" The man asked.
He pulled out his wallet and showed the young man his driver's license and watched him pull out a visitors card. "Room 183. Fourth floor."
"Thank you," He took the card and sped off in that direction.
Walking in the door to his student's hospital room, he saw that they were both talking in hushed whispers. "Hey."
They looked up at him and relief flooded into their features, though Iida looked a little guilty as he stood and bowed deeply. "Sensei. I apologize for my actions and will accept any punishment you see fit."
"Depends on the actions that you believe are worth punishing you over," Shouta said.
Iida straightened his back but kept his head down with his gaze on the floor. "I think it would be best if you sat down."
And just like that Iida explained the whole story from his perspective, and once he was done Todoroki explained his. Shouta was in shock, the mere thought that two of his students had come in contact with the Hero killer and not only survived but won.... it mortified him. He took a deep breath to calm himself but it didn't do much.
After a moment of holding his head in his hands he looked up at them. "I'm just glad that you're still with us. You two aren't off the hook, but for now, let me just be thankful that you're still alive."
"Sensei-," Todoroki started but Shouta cut him off.
"Are you sure you don't know where Izuku-kun is, though?"
"Izuku? You mean Midoriya-kun? After the medics put him in the ambulance we don't know. We asked the nurses and they said that he was here too, but wouldn't share his room number," Iida explained.
"Alright, well I'm gonna go check on him if that's okay with you," He stood time leave and was halfway out the door before Todoroki stopped him.
"Aizawa-sensei, wait. What is it with this boy? I know you already said that you don't know what happened to him, but how do you know so much about him?"
He looked at his student for a moment, not knowing what to do, before sighing deeply. "I found him when he was about eight, or more like he found me. He was abandoned by his parents and living out on the streets. I was coming back home with food and he followed me in hopes of getting some. Tsukauchi, the detective from before that had taken your statements on the USJ, he told me to take care of him until morning when he could come pick him up. That night Izuku disappeared."
Todoroki's eyes widened slightly in shock, "You didn't look for him?"
Shouta eyes narrowed, "Of course I looked for him. I looked everywhere. But after a while you learn that sometimes you can't look forever. I had to accept it and move on. I thought he just ran away."
"Clearly he didn't," Todoroki said under his breath, looking down at the bed sheets.
He was about to reply before rapid footsteps came from behind him. Turning around he saw nurses running down the hall with frantic expressions. He went outside the rooms and stopped one. "Ma'am, what's with all commotion?"
She looked towards the direction they all were going before quickly looking back at him. "Theres a patient that's freaking out. Nothing you have to worry about. Sorry about the noise," She said and then sped off.
Shouta ran off in her direction and once he turned the corner down the hall he saw five nurses all huddled outside a room. Worry etched their features as they whispered amongst each other. "Honey, it's okay. You're safe, no one is gonna hurt you here," A voice inside the room spoke in a soft but pleading way. "Someone go get Kikira-san, her Quirk should be able to help with this."
One of the nurses nodded to the person inside the room and quickly made her way past him.
Curious, Shouta decided to approach. He made it to the doorway and peered in to see two doctors and another nurse trying to coax a patient out from under the hospital bed.
"I heard he hit Somai-san when she came to check on him. She was holding her arm when she left," One of the nurses whispered to another.
"Poor thing. He must've been abused," The other whispered back.
"Midoriya-kun, please come out. We're not going hurt you," The female doctor said.
That's when Shouta burst into the room. The nurses tried to stop him, to tell him that this was a private part of the hospital and he wasn't permitted, but he didn't listen. "Izuku?" He knelt down at the foot of the bed and looked under.
Izuku was in a new light blue hospital gown with brand new white bandages on his forearms and calves. His left ankle was wrapped properly and he was being careful not to put too much pressure on it. His hair was brushed out of knots and his face cleaned. He was still scrawny and would need time to build up a healthy weight but at least he was alive.
Around his left wrist were two different colored hospital bracelets. A fluorescent yellow one, and a red one. The normal standard white one had a bar code, his name and his patient number.
His eyes were dilated and afraid as he pressed himself further back. "Hey Izuku, it's me. You remember me, right?"
The boy stopped shaking and looked him in the eyes, searching. It was like he was a deer caught in headlights. Recognition crossed his face as his brows furrowed. He still didn't make any move to come out though. "Do you think you can come out, please? We don't wanna hurt you, we just think that you would be more comfortable on the bed than you would be under it. You could get hurt down there."
One of the doctors sitting next to him turned towards him in surprise before looking back at Izuku. "Yeah, everything is alright. We just wanna help you."
He still looked apprehensive and hesitant, turning to look between them and the nurses at the door. His gaze found Shouta's and he nodded slowly, cautiously moving towards him.
Shouta didn't move as the boy came up to him, but when he felt hands clasped his shirt he slowly wrapped his arms around him and picked the boy up to place him back on the bed. He ended up sitting down with him when Izuku didn't let go of his shirt.
A woman came through the door with the same dark blue nurses outfit as the rest. Her hair was long and white with red tips. She looked out of breath like she'd run all the way here. In her hand was a syringe with what he assumed was a sedative. Her eyes found the huddled form of Izuku and her brows furrowed in confusion when she saw Shouta.
"Who are you? You shouldn't be in here," She said sternly.
"I'm a hero. I know this boy," Shouta explained.
"Oh. Can you confirm his name is Midoriya Izuku? It was on a wristband he was wearing when he came in, but the boy that name belongs to is legally dead."
"Yes, that's his name," Shouta replied.
"Sir, we have to run a few tests on him. He just woke up now from surgery and this is standard procedure," The male doctor said.
"Izuku? Do you think you can let them run a few tests? They just want to make sure your healthy."
Izuku looked over his shoulder at the nurse that just came in and his eyes found the syringe in her hand. He shivered at the sight.
Reluctantly, he let go of Shouta's shirt and let the man stand up. He sat down in the chair next to the bed to offer support. The nurse put the syringe down on a table and Shouta watched as Izuku relaxed substantially.
A fear of needles maybe?
The male doctor came closer up to the bedside and Izuku backed away slightly. The doctor picked up a discarded IV needle and held it for Izuku to see. "I need to put these back in. It'll help make you more hydrated. Can I?" He asked carefully. Izuku almost looked confused at the question, but still slowly nodded.
He was tense as the doctor gently took his arm and wiped a small area clean with an antibiotic wipe. The area had been covered with small droplets if blood from where the IV had probably been ripped out.
Once the other IVs and wires were back in their place, the doctor started asking Izuku small questions and asking him to do small things to see if they worked. Shouta watched as the doctor asked Izuku to say his name, to which Izuku tried but broke into a coughing fit.
The doctor's brow furrowed and he pulled a small wooden stick from his pocket and asked him to open his mouth. "The muscles in your throat are atrophied from lack of use and scratched up. You'll need some physical therapy to help, but with more and more practice you can speak again," He said. Izuku looked up at him in surprise. "For now though, I think I have a way for you to communicate. We keep these in rooms for patients who can't speak or need practice in learning how to write again."
He opened a drawer and pulled out a notepad and pencil, and then handed it to Izuku. Who began writing immediately. The boy held it up for the doctor to see whose face scrunched up in concern.
"Are you sure? We can keep you in here where you can have privacy, if you want. The boys are fine, just some minor injuries, but you sure you want to move?" He asked.
Intrigued, Shouta leaned in. "What do you want to do, Izuku-kun?" The boy turned the notebook to him and he looked down to read surprisingly neat handwritten words.
Where is Iida-kun and Todoroki-kun? Are they okay? Can I please be moved to their room?
Given a chance to communicate and he immediately asks about others. Why did Shouta get the feeling he shouldn't be surprised. "Well, I'm okay with it. They were asking about you earlier. If the doctors think it's okay and if Iida and Todoroki are okay with it, then it should be fine."
"I'll go ask," Said one of the nurses that was still in the doorway.
After about half an hour, Izuku was set up in the two other boys' room with his IV and his notepad. Shouta stepped out into the hall to leave the boys alone to talk and pulled out his cell to make a very important phone call.
"Hey, Nezu. I know it's late, but there's something that you need to hear."
Good day/night my gorgeous readers!
Did I end this chapter on a cliffhanger?
Yes.
Do I regret it?
No.
You'll have to wait until next week and that's just the cold hard truth.
Did you know that I did a lot of research for this book? First thing I researched: What happens when you don't speak for eight years?
I learned that yes, you can in fact learn to speak again after you stop speaking for years at a time. What happens is the flaps in your windpipe that are used for speaking become lax, where as a normal person who speaks daily, their vocal cords are taut. Which means that if you just keep trying and practice, you can get those muscles to be taut again. All it takes is time and physical therapy. I also did research on the different colored wristbands that hospitals use.
Each hospital is different though.
I hope you enjoyed this weeks chapter!
Thanks for reading!
Bye!
~Ace-chan