Chapter Text
Shouto knew it wasn’t just his imagination. He knew for a fact that the staff at Yuuei Psychiatric Hospital were incompetent and this was proven multiple times when him and his family tried to get any useful information from staff.
”Sorry, but we can’t confirm or deny that someone by the name of Midoriya Izuku is a patient here. Wait – what is the confidentiality policy here?”
“Who are you calling about? Midoriya? That sounds fake.”
“I don’t know where that kid went. We’re kinda busy, so call back later when my shift is over. ‘kay, thanks!”
“Can I tell you about my friend, Jesus?”
“Shiozaki, how did you even get in here?!”
Shouto let out a frustrated groan and slammed his head on the dining table.
“I swear, we didn’t have this much trouble when we called about you.” Fuyumi stated. “They sound like a bunch of new hires.”
“I think it’s time we put on our thinking caps,” Natsuo said while slowly placing his snapback on top of his head. Both of his siblings rolled their eyes at his antics.
“That was awful. You should feel ashamed!” Fuyumi chastised as she tossed his cap.
“C’mon! You know that was good!” the man-child pouted.
“Did your friend happen to give you his mother’s information? Maybe she could let you know how he’s fairing,” his mother suggested, bringing the children back to the matter at hand.
“No, I don’t even know her name. I don’t know how much help she would be anyway. From what Izuku told me, I really don’t think she’s that interested in his well-being,” Shouto explained.
Natsuo stroked his imaginary beard, humming to himself. “Well, who else can we ask about your friend’s condition?”
Shouto wanted to pull his hair. He needed to ask for a specific staff member. Someone who would actually be helpful and cared about Izuku…
Shouto slammed his hand on the table, startling his family. “We need to ask for Aizawa!”
“Alright, my turn,” Natsuo said, dialing the hospital phone number. They had each taken turns calling once they saw Shouto slowly (immediately) lose his patience. “Hi, can I speak to Aizawa uhhh,” Natsuo covered the microphone. “What’s his first name?”
“I don’t know.”
“Uh..yes, I’d like to speak to Aizawa no first name, please?”Shouto groaned into his hands. “Uh huh. Okay, thanks.” Natsuo ended the call. “Good news, they knew who I was talking about. Bad news, they said he’s not there.”
It was hopeless. He was never going to get any answers this way. He needed to go to the hospital and demand they take him to Izuku.
“Aizawa probably went home, right? Maybe I can find out where he lives, like how I found Touya.” Fuyumi said with a smile. Fuyumi suddenly became Shouto’s favorite sibling. “I know it’s extreme, but a life is on the line!”
“But we don’t know his first name,” Rei said.
“Shouto, do you know anything about this guy? Like, if he’s married or if he has kids?”
Shouto thought about what he knew about the man. All he could come up with was that the man might like cats. “I-I don’t know! I only know that Izuku calls him Aizawa-sensei because he used to be a teacher.”
“That’ll work! Do you know what grade he taught?” Shouto shook his head. “That’s okay. Luckily for us, schools never update their websites. I’ll just go through the faculty rosters of every school in our area until we find him.”
Shouto’s eyes widened. Was she really willing to waste a large chunk of her day for him? “That could take a long time...”
Fuyumi smiled warmly at her youngest brother. “That’s alright. I took the whole week off because we didn’t know what day you were coming back. I’ve got nothing but time! Besides, I want to do this for you.” She rested her hand over Shouto’s and gave it a light squeeze. “Let me help you.”
Shouto nodded. “Thanks, Fuyumi.”
His sister grabbed her laptop and went straight to work. Just as she predicted, the schools really did not update their websites. She started with junior high schools in the Musutafu and planned to move on to high school if she couldn’t find him. Junior high schools were a deadend, but she did find something on a high school social media page. It was a picture of a tired Aizawa surrounded by a group of high school students posing around him, the caption reading, “We miss you, sleepy time hero, Aizawa-sensei!”
“That’s him!” Shouto exclaimed.
“Looks like he they couldn't tag him. He must not have an account, but now we know where he last taught!” Fuyumi quickly went to the school’s website and sure enough, Aizawa’s name was still on the list of employees. “See? Schools never update their sites!” she said proudly. “Aizawa Shouta. That’s so close to your name.”
“What happens next?” Rei asked.
Fuyumi adjusted her glasses. “Now it’s time to take advantage of all our information just floating around the internet. It’s kinda scary when you think about it.”
“Well, let’s not think about it! We’re on a mission!” Natsuo said gleefully.
It took some time, gathering some parts of his address from one site, his phone number from another site, they even found out he was married! Fuyumi was able to find his address.
“I searched the address and it belongs to an apartment complex. I couldn’t get his apartment number, but I’m sure we can find it on the mailboxes or the callbox.”
“Alright! Let’s go!” Natsuo said, grinning at his brother.
“You’re going to take me?” Shouto asked.
“Of course, lil bro! I want to help you too. I…wasn’t there for you before, so let me support you now.”
Shouto stared wide-eyed at his family. They were all trying so hard to help. It was still so hard to believe that they not only wanted him around, but they wanted to help him. Maybe he would be able to depend on his family. Maybe they can heal together.
“Thank you.”
The car ride to Aizawa’s apartment was long and torturous with Shouto being forced to listen to Natsuo butcher every song that played on the radio. Shouto took back everything he said; there’s no way their family can heal.
“You know you love this voice!”
“Sorry, I can’t hear you over the sound of blood dripping from my ears.”
Natsuo gasped, feigning hurt. “How dare you!”
Shouto planned on tuning him and the radio out when a familiar tune started playing. “Starmarker…” he whispered.
“Eh? You know this old song?”
He kept his gaze out the passenger window. “It’s Izuku’s favorite song.”
“Hey,” Natsuo started, “I don’t typically believe in fate or whatever, but maybe this is a sign. Maybe he’s letting you know that everything is okay.”
Shouto didn’t respond, but he hoped for once his brother was right.
When they reached their destination, Shouto immediately jumped out of the car. He was going to start running towards the building when his brother startled him.
“Hey! Don’t you want me to come with you?” Natsuo screamed from the car.
“No, I’ll be fine.”
“You sure? This guy could be a killer in his spare time.”
Shouto rolled his eyes. “I’m going now.”
“I’ll be right here waiting for you!” Natsuo sang off-key.
Shouto ran up to the apartment complex and spotted the callbox by the main entrance. He was so thankful the former teacher’s name started with an “A” as he was the first name to pop up on the screen. Apartment 318. He was slightly nervous to push the call button. What if he didn’t answer? What if he didn’t want to talk to him outside of the hospital? What if—
He didn’t need to finish that thought because someone was walking out of the main entrance. Shouto quickly grabbed the door and ran inside the building. He spotted the elevator and once inside, he repeatedly pushed the number 3 button as if that would make the machine move faster. He exited the elevator with the quickness and went to the left looking for Aizawa’s apartment. Once he noticed the numbers were too low, he quickly turned down the other hallway. There should be a sign directing people—oh, there was a sign right by the elevator. Whatever.
This was the moment of truth. Shouto braced himself and pounded on the door. He waited. He waited for what seemed like an eternity, but it was probably two minutes. The longest two minutes of his life. The door finally opened, revealing a purple-haired teenager who looked more exhausted than Aizawa. Shouto didn’t even know that was possible.
“Is Aizawa-sensei here?!” Shouto asked hurriedly, always one to get straight to the point.
The boy dropped his jaw, his eyes widening slightly. “Candy cane?” he whispered.
“What?”
The boy shook his head. “Uh, nevermind. He’s not home right now. His work schedule is messed up, so I don’t know when he’ll be back.”
Shouto clenched his fists, keeping his gaze down. He was so close to getting an answer.
The boy sighed and opened the door wider. “Do you want to wait inside?”
“Really?!”
The tired teen shrugged his shoulders and stepped aside to let Shouto in. Shouto took him up on the offer and was shocked to see the apartment was so…cozy. Aizawa didn’t seem like the type of person who liked fuzzy blankets, fairy lights, or cats. Maybe that was his spouse’s design choice? Shouto spotted the cats scurrying around the apartment.
“Don’t mind them,” the boy said as he pointed to the couch in the family room. “Sit there. My name’s Hitoshi by the way.”
Shouto took a sit and gasped when a little girl popped up behind him. “Hi!” she squeaked as she climbed onto the couch and placed a cat sticker on Shouto’s arm.
“And that’s Eri,” Hitoshi said, picking the girl up and playfully throwing her on a bean bag chair.
“I can’t believe candy cane is real!” the young girl giggled.
“I know. I thought dad was exaggerating.”
Shouto blinked. “What? Why do you keep saying candy cane?”
Eri pointed to his hair and grinned. “Your hair is red and white like a candy cane!”
“Dad uses nicknames for the hospital patients,” Hitoshi explained. “So, you’re probably here to ask him about green bean, right?”
Shouto immediately shot up. “Do you mean Izuku? Is he alright?!”
“Sit down. I don’t know. Dad only said green bean was hurt but nothing other than that.”
“Oh.” Shouto deflated as he plopped down onto the couch. He took out his phone and updated his brother on the situation via text. He was surprised again when he pocketed his phone and Eri was suddenly right in front of him. “Uh…” he said intelligently.
“We’re the same! I have a scar too! See?” Eri lifted her bangs revealing a large scar on her forehead. Shouto frowned. He could tell it was an old scar based on the color but it still hurt that someone that young had to go through something traumatic. “Don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt, but it itches.”
“Mine itches too,” he said softly.
“Dad saved me and my brother from a bad person,” Eri said as she touched Shouto’s scar. “Did someone save you?”
Shouto flinched, only used to one person ever touching his scar. “Y-Yeah,” he said. “Someone saved me too.”
Hitoshi lifted the small child. “You can’t go around asking people about their backstories, Eri.”
Eri pouted. “But we’re twins.”
Hitoshi made a buzzer noise. “Wrong answer,” he said as he tossed Eri back onto the bean bag chair and threw pillows on her. The two siblings tossed pillows back and forth, laughing at each other, as Shouto watched awkwardly. He didn’t really know what to do in social situations.
“Hey!” Eri screamed. “Candy cane, do you wanna color with me?”
“You can call me Shouto.”
Eri beamed. “Shouto, do you wanna color with me?”
“I wo—"
“Nope. Shouto is playing a game with me,” Hitoshi interrupted as he sat next to Shouto.
“You always make people play with you!” Eri whined.
“Because I know what’s best for everyone.” He shoved a controller into Shouto’s hand. “You ever played Super Smash Bros?”
Shouto raised an eyebrow. “Super what now?”
“Perfect,” he said darkly.
Eri sat on the floor next to Shouto with a coloring book and a cat plush in her hands. “He won’t let me play with him because I always beat him,” she stated.
“Tch. You don’t always win.”
Eri tugged Shouto’s pants and said loudly whispered, “I always win. He's a sore loser.”
Hitoshi rolled his eyes. “Let’s stop living in the past. You ready, Shouto?”
“I don’t even know how to play.”
“Just pick a character. A and B are your attack buttons, press L to grab and R to shield. Got it?”
Shouto furrowed his eyebrows. “No?”
“Sounds good to me. Pick a character, but not Pikachu! That’s my character.”
“Okay?” Shouto picked a pink circle (Jigglypuff??) and their match began. He had no idea what he was doing or what was going on, but it was a nice distraction.
“What the hell?! How are you killing me?” Hitoshi exclaimed, sitting up as if that would help him win.
“Am I winning? I don’t even know where I am,” Shouto said.
Shouto and his pink circle character apparently won the match as Hitoshi’s character was forced to applaud. Eri laughed at his brother’s defeat.
Hitoshi’s glared at the television. “Okay, best 3 out of 5.”
Hitoshi lost every round.
Two hours later, Aizawa entered his home and was dumbstruck when he saw Shouto in his home playing a video game with his children.
“What is going on?”
“Hi, dad!” Eri waved from her seat beside Shouto.
“Hey,” Hitoshi grunted.
“Don’t ‘hey’ me. Are you just letting anyone into our home now? And where’s Hizashi?” Aizawa as he stepped into the room.
“He was called into work,” Hitoshi explained before eyeing Shouto. “Hm. I could take him if he tried something.”
Aizawa pinched the bridge of his nose. “That’s not the point.”
“He fit the description of Candy Cane perfectly, so…” the purple-haired teen shrugged.
Shouto shot up, facing Aizawa. This was his chance! “Aizawa-sensei, is he alright?! How is Izuku?”
“And you! How did you even find out where I lived?”
“Is Izuku still alive?!” he screamed.
All three children looked at Aizawa waiting with bated breath for the answer.
“He’s alive.”
Shouto fell back on the couch, his elbows resting on his knees as he held his head in his hands. This was great. He still had a chance to see Izuku again.
“Hitoshi, did you even offer him anything to eat?”
The boy rubbed the back of his neck, looking anywhere but his father’s face. “No…” he mumbled.
Aizawa rolled his eyes as he went into the kitchen to apparently get something for Shouto.
“I’m glad green bean’s okay,” Eri said, patting another cat sticker on Shouto’s leg.
“Me too,” Shouto said softly.
Aizawa came back with a cup of tea for Shouto and Hitoshi and a cup of juice for Eri.
“You didn’t have—“
Aizawa gave him an onigiri. “Eat.”
“I’m not really—“
“Eat.”
Shouto sighed and did as he was told. “How is he?”
The man let out a long sigh. “Terrible.”
Shouto frowned. “Did you tell him I was discharged?”
“He already figured that out before you even left.”
“What?! How did he know? I didn’t even know I was getting discharged!”
Aizawa shook his head. “He’s a smart kid. Self-sacrificing to a fault but smart.”
Shouto dropped his jaw as he suddenly remembered what Izuku told him.
“When you’ve been here as long as I have, you can tell when someone is about to be discharged.”
Of course he knew. He felt like such an idiot for not realizing sooner.
“It’s not your fault,” Aizawa said. “Don’t blame yourself. He was just trying to help you.”
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t get discharged if you break the rules. Bunking together is against the rules. What did he tell you that made you stay in your room?”
“…he said the administrators were doing a surprise inspection.”
Aizaawa let out a humorless laugh. “That’s a good one. As if upper management cared enough to check on the patients.”
Shouto gritted his teeth, shaking his head at his own stupidity.
“Hey, that’s not your fault. There’s no way you would’ve known that was a lie unless you worked at the hospital.”
That still didn’t make him feel better.
“I should’ve realized something was wrong sooner. I’m sorry I let both of you down,” Aizawa said.
“You didn’t! Thank you…for taking care of Izuku.” He paused before glancing at Aizawa. “What happens now? Can I see him?”
“No, he has to recover first. His injuries were…intense. After he recovers, he’ll be forced to do one-to-one observation and then he’ll be allowed back on his unit.”
Shouto sighed. “Can I see him after he’s on his unit?”
“That’s up to his therapist, Sasaki Mirai. He gets the final say on visitors.”
“Great,” Shouto huffed. According to Izuku, that man was an asshole. He just wanted to let Izuku know that he wasn’t alone. That someone was waiting for him. That someone cared about him and missed him.
“Are you sure you want to see him?” Aizawa asked.
“What?” Shouto asked incredulously.
“You have your own recovery to focus on. Are you sure you can handle that as well as someone with depression and suicidal tendencies?”
“Izuku is my best friend and no mental illness can change the way I feel about him! We have our own issues, but we can get through it together. We’re stronger when we’re together!” Shouto said with fierceness in his eyes.
Aizawa smirked. “Good answer. Wait here.” The man stood up and walked out of the room, but not before ruffling his daughter’s head causing her to laugh. When he came, he had a cat stationary in his hand and a purple pen. He gave the items to Shouto and said, “Well, you better let him know that he has a friend on the outside waiting for him.”
Shouto smile and nodded. He poured his emotions into the letter, grateful he had practice when writing in his journal. There were so many things he needed to tell the boy. So many things he needed to know. But there was one thing he couldn’t put in a letter. It was something he needed to say to his face and so he would wait until Izuku was discharged to tell him.
Shouto put his new address in the letter, as well as his phone number, Fuyumi’s phone number, and Natsuo’s phone number…just in case he couldn’t reach Shouto for some reason. Should he put his blood type too? No, that's not necessary...or is it? Once he was finished with his letter, he signed it with a purple heart and handed it to Aizawa.
“I’ll give it to him the next time I see him.”
Shouto bowed. “Thank you, Aizawa-sensei.”
“Yeah. Do you need a ride home?”
“No, my brother’s waiting for me.”
“Good. Now get out of here. And no more surprise visits,” he said as he gave Shouto a piece of paper with his phone number. “Next time, call me if you need me.”
“Oh, put my number down too!” Hitoshi grinned. “I want a rematch, Shouto.”
“Bye Shouto!” Eri said, giving the teen’s leg a quick hug.
And so Shouto left the apartment, gaining information and some new friends.
“Dude, why are you covered in cat stickers?!” Natuso asked.
And he gained some new cat stickers.
“I want to speak to Sasaki Mirai,” Shouto said firmly.
“Okay, hold on,”
Shouto tapped his foot impatiently waiting for the line to connect. As soon as he reached home, he called the hospital again. His family was nearby cheering him on.
"Sasaki speaking."
Oh, that was surprisingly quick. “I want to see Midoriya Izuku,” Shouto said, blunt as ever.
“He can’t see any visitors right now. He’s fragile, extremely weak-minded and anything could trigger him. He can’t handle any visitors.”
“He would want to see me. I’m his only friend! I was discharged and he needs to see me. It would make him happy.” He heard the man chuckle.
“Right, you were Nemuri’s patient. I remember the team discussing your discharge. I don’t know what ridiculous thoughts she filled your head with but the power of friendship isn’t going to save that boy.”
He was going to kill this man.
“Izuku is a hopeless case. He refuses to do his labs and I can’t help him unless I know how the medication is impacting him. Facts and science help people, not friendship.”
“You can’t—"
"Imagine how Izuku would feel when he sees you, a free man, having to check on him in the hospital. He would see you moving on with your life and he would just be stuck here. You'd be a constant reminder of his inadequacies because he can't get better."
“You might feel that you’re fine because you were discharged before Izuku, but that’s not a really a great feat. Focus on your issues because I know Nemuri’s methods aren’t going to help you in the long run. Izuku’s simple mind can’t handle speaking to others, so no visitors until I deem him mentally competent. Goodbye.”
The man hung up. He actually hung up! Shouto immediately formulated a pros and cons list for murdering Sasaki.
The pros: Izuku would get assigned to a new therapist, Shouto would avenge Izuku because no one insults his greenette and gets away with it, Shouto was still a minor so he could get away with murder, and the world would be a better place without therapist like Sasaki.
The cons:
Exactly. It was time to enact his murder plan.
“Shouto, are you trying to strangle your phone to death?” Fuyumi asked.
“…Oh,” he didn’t realize he was gripping his phone that hard.
“What happened?” Natsuo asked.
“He…he won’t let anyone see Izuku,” he said quietly.
“Oh, Shouto.” His mother wrapped her arms around him. “I’m so sorry.” She pulled back and gave a small smile. “The therapist might prevent you from seeing Izuku, but he can’t stop you from writing him.”
Shouto gasped. “Yes, I’ll write him every day!”
“I’m sure he’ll appreciate it,” Rei said softly.
He would do it. Shouto will write Izuku daily as he waited for him to get discharged. No matter how long he had to wait, he believed Izuku would find his way back to him. Shouto just needed to wait and Izuku was worth the wait.