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If Shouta had to boil down his list of things that he hated to just the top ten then it wouldn’t take long to bring bullies right up near the front.
Of course, Shouta hated many things in this world. It was hard for him not to considering the state the world was in and the shit Shouta had gone through growing up. The shit he had seen from the moment he was dropped off at the orphanage and was left behind by his family the moment his Quirk came in. With his Quirk and the status it gave him, Shouta had been forced to see the rougher side of society pretty early on in life. But for all the things that Shouta had seen ever since he was six years old and he was abandoned, since he was sixteen years old and saw one of his best friends be buried underneath rubble, since he was eighteen years old and entered into a world of Heroics that he was not, in any real way, prepared for, Shouta believed that bullies would always be up high on the list of things that he hated.
Too many days had been spent running through alleyways and away from the pounding feet of other kids in his class, Hero hopefuls who wanted to stomp out the future Villain in the making. Even now, at almost thirty one years of age, Shouta could pinpoint the exact scars on his body that had come from school classrooms and playgrounds instead of on the streets with a Pro Hero License. He had Lichtenberg scars running from his right elbow and down to his right wrist because of a kid in his Elementary school thought it was her right to “punish” the villain whenever he stepped out of line. Apparently, Shouta had stepped out of line a lot. It had only been because of one of his foster mothers at the time – one of the only kind placements he had ever received, two older ladies who had both been killed by a villain attack and sending Shouta back into the foster system – had spotted the lightning injuries and rained down hell with the fury that only a mother could bring until Shouta and that little shit had been put in separate classes. His foster mother wanted her expelled. It hadn’t worked. Obviously.
But it kept happened over the years. Kids who thought that they were higher up than Shouta just because they had the right kind of Quirks and Shouta didn’t. Even when Shouta was in high school, there had been those who tried to push Shouta back into what they claimed was his place. Calling him a villain or spies for various different Villains. Shouta had managed to learn how to ignore those taunts and mocking words and grew a thick enough skin that those words didn’t hit as hard as they used to. But whenever Shouta thought of those bullies, he always went right back to that kid in elementary school. The one who would grab his arm whenever he did anything deemed Villainous and send a volt of electricity through it. Villain Prevention, she called it. And while Shouta’s Quirk status definitely helped with it being ignored for so long, he liked to believe that he knew another reason as long.
That girl had had an extremely powerful electricity Quirk that had given her the power to send out lightning bolts of various degrees of powers from her hands. What a Heroic Quirk, Shouta had heard everyone claim from the moment he had met her. What a Heroic Quirk, perfect for a budding Hero in the making. No matter what the girl had done or how many rules she broke, she had barely ever been punished. It hadn’t been until they had both entered middle school and she had, apparently, gotten a semi-competent teacher that she had been forced to stop going around and zapping everyone. But even then, she still had walked around with a smirk on her lips and with the knowledge that she would, one day, be the best Hero ever.
As much as pre-teen Shouta had hated her and as much as he still hated bullies, adult Shouta thought back to the girl whose name that he couldn’t remember and felt extreme pity for her. She had made it into a Hero School because of course she had. Ketsubetsu. With a Quirk like her’s, it was basically guaranteed. And she had been both expelled and charged with assault after she had sent a lightning bolt at yet another person that she had deemed Villainous because the kid had a Quirk that was both mental and took over a person’s bodily functions. A kid who just so happened to be the Granddaughter of an old Hero and whose Grandmother was more than happy to send all of her lawyers after her the first time she had come home sobbing with burns laced up her arm from a confrontation on the subway.
As much as Shouta may find Fukukado Emi annoying as hell and hated the advantage that kids with Heroes in their families received, He couldn’t find it in him to be annoyed at that. Emi hadn’t deserved to have Lichtenberg scars burnt into her skin. Not like Shouta.
But that girl, the girl who had seared burns into Shouta’s skin, had been mistreated too. Not in the same way. Oh, definitely not in the same way. While Shouta had been pushed down and spat on by everyone except for a select few, the girl had been boosted up onto a pedestal from the very moment her Quirk had manifested. What did it do to a kid as young as a toddler to be told that they were better than everyone else? That they could do no wrong because they were going to be a Hero? So, yes, Shouta pitied kids with strong, Heroic Quirks who were pushed to be Heroes from the very moments their Quirk Manifested. But, another thing had to be wondered as well.
Did it excuse any of the things that they did? Did it excuse any of the people that they hurt because they assumed that they were above them?
No. Of course it didn’t. There came a point in time where everyone made a choice. That girl had made her choice when she sent lightning into Shouta and Emi’s arms and the consequences had fit the crime. Shouta had known many kids with strong, Heroic Quirks over the years. While some of them had been right pieces of work, some had been genuinely kind kids if a little spoiled. It all came down to choices at the end of the day. Society may push them down one path but no one forced them to hurt others. That was a choice kids like that girl made each day and choices always came with consequences.
Shouta liked to think that, at the end of the day, he did his best by those kids just like he did any other kid in his class. Maybe they didn’t see it that way. Maybe they looked at him and compared him to the teachers who had let them away with anything and everything and found him extremely lacking because he didn’t let them get away with things. Because he held them to the exact same standard that he did anyone else and didn’t care about their strong Quirks. Because he didn’t treat them like little Gods but just normal kids. But Shouta looked at it in a different way. He remembered that girl who had sent lightning bolts both his and Emi’s way and had spent nearly six months in a detention hall for Delinquent Youths. What would life have been like for her if someone had told her no before? If she had actually received consequences for her actions before it got to the point of her attacking the wrong person? Would she be a Hero instead of whatever civilian career she was in now?
So, as much as they all may hate him for it, Shouta truly believed that he was helping these kids by being a hardass and forcing them to face consequences for their actions. If they were booted out of Heroics and put into General Education for bullying or harassment or whatever else they pulled in his classroom then better that than being put in a jail cell later on in life. So even though Bakugou Katsuki had a powerful Quirk and had gotten into the top five on the Entrance Exam, even though any number of Hero Schools would’ve killed to get their hands on him, Shouta treated him like he would any other kid who attempted to attack two others for no reason and showed Quirkist Behaviour. He called his parents to come down to pick up their son, scheduled a full meeting the next day after school, and started up a form to transfer him from Heroics to General Education.
As much as the kid may hate him for him, Shouta truly believed that this was the best for him in the long run. Even taking out the fact that it was his Apprentice who the kid had tried attacking – and had probably attacked several times in the past - he believed that this would be the end result either way. Because a kid like this? A kid so entitled that he believed that it was his God-given right to be a Hero and damn anyone and everyone who got in the way? A kid who saw nothing wrong with outing a Quirkless person and did so without any thought of the consequences? A kid who attacked others the moment that he lost at a stupid obstacle? Maybe some B-List Hero School would give him some leeway or look the other way. Let him become a Hero that would go on to be the next Endeavour. But not Yuuei. Not Shouta.
And, though Bakugou might not see it this way at first, Shouta did think that this would help the kid grow. That and the mandatory therapy that he knew that Hizashi made each and every one of the kids he got that had been transferred from Heroics go through. Maybe, with the proper help, the kid would make it back to Heroics. Or maybe the kid would stay in General Education. Or maybe a number of different things would happen. But it would start out in General Education in Class 1-C. Because as he was? Bakugou Katsuki was not ready for Class 1-A.
Shouta just hoped that, whatever happened, it wouldn’t end with a headache for him. Though it probably would. Most things usually did.
He tried his best to push the thoughts of Bakugou Katsuki out of his mind for now, circling his Apprentice and eyeing him with narrowed eyes. Midoriya was out of the suit that Shouta had brought him and in his gym uniform with one of Shouta’s old capture weapons coiled around his neck. The two of them were in the same gym that Shouta had learnt how to use his own Capture Scarf in. It was after school hours and Shouta had hoped that this lesson would be better than the Fundamental Heroics had been. Though, with how things had gone, he was starting to think that a hike through hell would be better than that first class.
Shouta’s Problem Child was tugging at his Capture Scarf nervously, eyes stuck on the ground and not looking nearly as excited as Shouta had hoped he would during the first lesson of the Capture Scarf. Though, with the way that the first Heroics lesson had gone for him, he couldn’t blame him. Not in the slightest. “Stop tugging on it,” he chided, making his far too anxious student freeze. Shouta fought the urge to sigh and gently tapped Midoriya’s cheek, waiting until the kid looked up at him before speaking again. He searched his eyes for a moment – spotting anxiety and nerves rooted in there - before sighing and shaking his head. “Take it off.”
Midoriya’s eyes widened and his breath hitched. “But, but sensei, I-“
“You’re too nervous,” Shouta said shortly, silently cursing himself. He had hoped that doing the first lesson with the Capture Scarf today would be a good treat for the kid after the hell that had been Fundamental Heroics. He should’ve known better. He should’ve immediately, immediately, decided to take a different route today. With the bomberanian attacking, getting his Quirk status revealed to everyone, and having a teacher nearly telling 1-A that they need to be careful with him as if he was fragile, of course Midoriya would be stressed. Shouta was an idiot to think that having a lesson with the Capture Scarf right now was a good idea. He tried his best to soften his tone from its usual gruff nature. He doubted that it worked. “A Capture Scarf isn’t a toy, Problem Child. If you’re not one hundred percent focused, especially when you’re still learning, then it’s very possible that you could hurt yourself or the people you’re fighting against. I can already see that if we do this now you’ll end up with, at the very least, a sprained shoulder. We can try this again another time.” He swore to God, as Midoriya flushed in shame and looked away, that this kid was going to break him down into feeling actually, genuine emotions one day. Probably a depressing cocktail of regret, guilt, and shame for being such a shitty mentor.
Shouta sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He knew that at the start of this Apprenticeship that he would eventually have to have . . . emotional discussions with Midoriya. It was an unfortunate side effect of this whole arrangement. With his usual students, Shouta was able to hold emotions as far away from himself as he could or deal with them and the student feeling them just long enough to get the kid to calm down and then chuck them at the nearest competent adult. Which was very obviously not him.
But Midoriya? Midoriya was Shouta’s responsibility. His direct responsibility. Shouta had known from the moment that he had signed those papers that he had basically signed himself on as a parent. He couldn’t chuck Midoriya at a competent adult because Shouta was the only one who had signed on to teach him and, in a way, raise him to make sure that he was emotionally healthy. Hizashi would help if asked, no doubt, but a large part of Shouta didn’t want to do that. This was his Apprentice, after all. Not Hizashi’s. Or anyone else’s. This was Shouta’s Apprentice.
Which meant that Shouta was the one who needed to have the emotional discussions with the Problem Child. Fuck.
The kid jumped a little when a hand landed on his shoulder and glanced up shyly. “C’mon, Problem Child, let’s have a chat,” he sighed, nodding towards to a bench at the side of the gym. Shouta led his Apprentice over to the bench, sitting down with a heavy sigh and bracing his hands on his knees. He waited until Midoriya was sitting next to him, staring down at the ground with pursed lips and disappointment in his eyes, before speaking bluntly. “So, shit day, huh?”
Just like any kid who heard a teacher drop a sudden swear, Midoriya’s lips quirked up a little in both shock and amusement before they fell again. “I . . . I’m being stupid,” he mumbled. The kid toed at the ground and shrugged. “Sorry, sensei. I know I should be focusing-“
“I’m not angry,” Shouta said, forcing patience into his voice. “With Fundamental Heroic today, I’d have trouble focusing too if I were you. I should’ve recognized that and pushed this lesson back for another time. That’s on me, not you.” He reached out and gently laid a hand on his Apprentice’s head. “But I need you to talk to me here, Problem Child. I’m your mentor – both in Heroics and in life - and I can’t help you if you don’t let me. Emotions aren’t stupid,” Shouta lectured gently, trying to not feel like the biggest hypocrite ever for lecturing the same thing to his Apprentice that took his therapist almost three years to shove into his thick skull. “Especially if they interfere with your performance during training. If you really rather to not talk about them then fine. We won’t. But bottlings them up just leads to a bigger explosion down the road. Better to just let them out before they have time to fester.”
There was a long pause where Shouta just waited patiently for his Apprentice to decide what he wanted to do. Decide if he wanted to actually talk or if he needed more time. For a moment, Shouta thought that the kid would close himself off again and he’d have to think of a different thing to do during this training session that wouldn’t result in the kid breaking his own neck if he lost focus. Finally, the kid looked up from the floor and met Shouta’s eyes. “Is Kacchan going to be expelled?”
Ah. Fuck. Of course the kid would ask that.
“That’s up to him,” Shouta said with a sigh. He pulled away from Midoriya and stared up at the ceiling. He could lie, he supposed. Tell the kid that Bakugou was going to stay in Heroics and that everything was fine. But what would that do except break Midoriya's trust in him when he found out the truth? “I know that you don’t want to talk about your past with him-“
“I don’t have a past with him,” Midoriya blurted out, panic dripping from his words. He blushed at the arched eyebrow Shouta sent his way and winced. “Sorry, sensei. For, um, interrupting.”
Shouta rolled his eyes – this fucking kid – and continued. “I know that you don’t want to talk about it. But I’d be a shitty Underground Hero if I missed the big red warning signs in the relationship between the two of you. The way you flinch from him . . . that’s not normal, kid.” And it reminded Shouta far too much of himself in high school and his various foster placements. “And from how he behaved today towards you? Kid, even if you weren’t my Apprentice I’d have to act. My job is to teach Young Heroes and I can’t do that if one of my students react to getting last in an obstacle course with attempting to attack the winner.” He spread his hands. “Does that seem like good Hero behaviour to you, Midoriya? Do you think that if I lost to one of the other Heroes at this school in an obstacle course or even a fight that I would react that way? By grabbing them with my Capture Scarf and attempting to hurt them?”
Midoriya’s eyes widened, looking horrified by the very notion of Shouta ever doing something like that. “Of course not, Sensei! You’d never!”
“So, why should Bakugou be able to get away with it?” Shouta gently tapped the kid’s cheek again when Midoriya tried looking again, meeting Midoriya’s eyes firmly. Maybe it would be best for the kid to look at it a different way, at least for right now. “Do you think I’d be doing him any favours if he did? Everyone needs to face the consequences of their actions and Bakugou is no exception. He’ll never learn if he doesn’t. He’ll be put into General Education but if he can prove that he can act like a Hero then he can return to 1-A. Maybe he will, maybe he won’t. But that’s up to him, kid. Not you.”
Midoriya chewed on his lip, looking conflicted. “. . . I don’t think he was going to actually hurt me,” he whispered. “Not really. Just leave a few burns.”
Shouta fought the urge to sigh, feeling pain grow in his chest. Sometimes, when he looked at Midoriya, he felt like he was staring at a younger version of himself. A kid who fought so hard to get into Heroics and someone who had to take a different, more unfair path compared to everyone else. A kid just bursting with potential and a kid who would be a great Hero one day. Probably shake up the Underground forever. But also, a kid who had been hurt for so long that he had just accepted it. It hurt sometimes. To see those parallels. “He shouldn’t be doing that much, kid,” he said patiently. “But I’m guessing that you haven’t heard that before.” He gently tapped at Midoriya’s wrist where a burn scar was – a twisting one that almost looked like a handprint – and gave his Apprentice a sympathetic look. “Huh?”
Midoriya ducked his head, staring at the handprint. Finally, he sniffled and rubbed at his eyes. “He . . . he could be a great Hero,” he whispered. For a moment, Shouta thought that the kid was going to just defend Bakugou again. But then he continued. “But maybe . . . maybe he’s not ready right now. T-to be one “
“Exactly, Problem Child. Exactly.” Shouta gently nudged his shoulder against Midoriya’s, quirking his lips up into a tiny smile as his student ducked his face down into the Capture Scarf coiled around his student’s neck. Cute. “If he ever gets ready, he’ll be welcomed back into Heroics.” With the proper marks on his file to show whatever teacher was teaching him what they were working with. “But I don’t want you to worry about him, okay?” He firmly poked Midoriya’s chest. “You worry about yourself, got it?” He nodded sharply at Midoriya’s quickly given nod before softening a little. “Bakugou all you worrying about, kid?”
Suddenly, Midoriya decided to find the wall across from them very interesting because he wouldn’t meet Shouta’s eyes. “It really is stupid,” the kid sighed, picking at his nails. Shouta pulled out the spare tangle fidget he kept in his jumpsuit, right next to the spare fidget cube he kept for Hizashi, and offered it. Midoriya hesitated before taking it, pulling at it absentmindedly as he tried to collect his thoughts. “I knew that me being Q-Quirkless would, um, come out soon. I’m um,” he smiled and shrugged a little, “kind of surprised? That n-nobody figured it out before? But . . . It was nice,” he whispered. “To have friends. And I d-don’t want that to change.”
This. Fucking. Kid.
“I get that, Midoriya. I do.” Shouta put a hand on Midoriya’s shoulder and squeezed. “But just because they know you’re Quirkless doesn’t mean that they won’t want to be friends with you. Hey, it doesn’t,” he said firmly at Midoriya’s doubtful expression. “And if they do decide that they don’t want to be friends with you because of that, that reflects badly on them, not you. You’re a good kid, Problem Child. If they can’t see that then they’re blind. Besides, you should focus on the kids who didn’t freak out about it. Shinsou and Yaoyorozu? They both obviously knew about it and they both obviously didn’t care. And Kaminari and Aoyama both come from Countries where Quirkless people are much more common so they obviously don’t give a shit. Try giving them a bit of credit, okay? Those four seem like damn good kids. And the rest of the kids might surprise you too. A lot of them seem like good kids.”
Midoriya nodded slowly and smiled. “Y-yeah, they are. I, um, haven’t spoken, spoken to Aoyama-kun much but he s-seems really nice. And maybe the others won’t, won’t care. Maybe. Todoroki-kun seems really nice and he stopped Kacchan from, um,” he hesitated and glanced up at Shouta who was arching an eyebrow at him.
“Go on. Stopped Bakugou from what?”
Midoriya quickly waved his hands in front of him wildly. “It wasn’t bad! And I’m not hurt, sensei! Promise!” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Just grabbed me in the changing room and popped a few ex-explosions in my face. He was, um, mad about me being here as an Apprentice and wanted answers. Guess he t-thought he deserved them. Todoroki-kun stepped between us and made him stop.”
Annnnnd, Todoroki Shouto just jumped to the front of the kids that Shouta could tolerate the most. “Good, that’s good Midoriya. Not that Bakugou attacked you but that Todoroki stepped in between you both. That’s what Heroes do, kid.” Shouta squeezed his shoulder and sighed, standing up and stretching his arms up over his head. “C’mon, Problem Child, let’s go on a run. I don’t know about you but I always feel like nothing helps shitty days like a good run.” He pulled off his Capture Scarf and held out his arm for Midoriya’s, softening when the kid hesitated. “We can do this tomorrow, kid. But nothing good comes from trying a new technique when you’re unfocused. Nothing wrong with taking a break. Good?”
“G-good,” Midoriya stuttered with a little smile, pulling off his scarf and tucking it into Shouta’s hand. Shouta considered the stark white colour of the scarf as he led Midoriya out of the training room, slinging both scarves over his shoulder. With Midoriya’s black and green costume, a pure white scarf wouldn’t be ideal. Not in the slightest. Maybe they could dye it for him, either a dark green or a black.
Something to think about anyway.
The two of them had only been walking down the hallway for a few minutes, Shouta aiming them towards Ground Beta where he could take Midoriya on a brisk two or three mile run, when he noticed that there was one of his students leaning against the wall, eyes closed and heel tapping against the floor. Strange, seeing as school had ended almost thirty minutes prior. But, thanks to small mercies, it was one of Shouta’s students that hadn’t proved yet to be a little delinquent. Shinsou had his bag slung over his shoulder and, surprisingly, Uraraka’s as well. The kid opened one tired eye as they walked closer to him and hummed. “Hey, Aizawa-sensei, Midoriya-kun.”
Shouta arched an eyebrow at the kid and dipped his head slightly. Admittedly, he felt a bit of a connection with Shinsou just like he did with Midoriya. Not as much as one, of course. But he knew what it was like to have a non-offensive, Villainous Quirk while being in a class full of those with more offensive, Heroic Quirks. The kid would have his work cut out for him but as long as he showed the same competitive spirit he had shown today as well as the ability to be a good sport when he lost then Shouta saw no reason why he would fail. “Shinsou. Is there a reason you’re loitering in the hallways with yours and Uraraka’s bag after school hours?”
Shinsou shrugged. “Uraraka-san and the rest of the girls were called back to have a meeting with Kayama-sense but Uraraka-san asked if I’d wait to ride the subway with her since she doesn’t like riding it alone. I don’t have anywhere to be so,” he trailed off meaningfully with another shrug. Ah, yes, Nemuri’s yearly meeting with the First Year Heroics Girls where she’d be giving them a talk about how they could always go to her if something ever happened that they didn’t feel comfortable talking to a male teacher about. Nemuri was a champion to all girls at Yuuei high school but especially to the Heroic ones. After all, she probably knew better than anyone just how easily those girls could be taken advantage of in their industry. Shinsou’s eyes shifted over to Midoriya and the kid’s lips quirked up a little. “Hey.”
“H-hi, Shinsou-kun,” Midoriya said with a little nervous smile. He was gripping his tangle fidget tightly, probably extremely nervous to be seeing one of the kids that he had been outed to as Quirkless so soon. Though, judging by how Shinsou just immediately jumped to Midoriya’s defence without any thought to it, Shouta suspected that the kid had known about it beforehand. Probably had taken one look at those bright red shoes and known exactly what they meant. “Good job on, on the obstacle course today. Y-you were really good at it. And your costume was super cool too.”
Oh, Fucking God, that costume. Shouta had just stared at it during Heroic and had to try to stop his eye from twitching. It was a purple version of his own costume with a few variations and no Capture Scarf. Which the kid, judging by the innocent little smile he had given Shouta, absolutely knew. Which meant that the kid knew who he was. Which meant that more kids might know who he was. Which meant that Shouta really might need to get a PR manager.
Shinsou glanced at Shouta before breaking out into the same innocent little smile from before. Brat. “Thanks. Worked hard on the design.” Cheeky Brat. “And not good enough to beat you.” The kid smirked. “I’ll get you next time.” There was a bit of a competitive edge to it, a bit of the same sharpness that Shouta saw in his own smile whenever he and Hizashi were competing with each other. “You kicked ass today. Don’t start slacking though or I’ll catch up.”
Oh. Oh, this was fucking adorable. Shinsou was attempting to court a new rival for himself.
Probably the best choice for one too. Would Shinsou and Midoriya be able to keep up with the others in 1-A? Of course, they wouldn’t be in their respective places if they weren’t capable. But they were both going into Underground Heroics – of, at least, that’s what Shinsou claimed he wanted – they both had to fight Quirkless, and they both, no doubt, knew what it was like to be discriminated against for not being born “right”. As long as that rivalry was based off of respect, they would absolutely be good for each other. Of course, that would only work if Midoriya, who was shy and flighty at times, was okay with being a rival which Shouta wasn’t sure –
“You’ll, you’ll have a f-fight on your hands, Shinsou-kun,” Midoriya said softly but with a sharp little smile of his own. “’Cause I don’t plan on slacking.”
. . . Shouta should remember that this was the kid who ripped an arm off of a robot with his bare hands in the Entrance Exam more often. A child that feral? Of course he would jump at a new rivalry.
He sighed and rolled his eyes, tapping Midoriya on his shoulder and jerking his head towards the training grounds they had been aiming towards. “If you’ll excuse us, Shinsou, I was just taking my Apprentice out on a run,” he said dryly, cutting off the silent conversation the two of them were sharing. Probably telling each other they were going to kick the other’s Goddamn ass. Cute. “Kamaya-sensei shouldn’t be too much longer.”
“Thanks, Aizawa-sensei. Oh, shit, um,” Shinsou faltered and rubbed the back of his neck, glancing at Midoriya almost shyly. “Um, Midoriya-kun, um,” he sighed and looked away. “I wanted to check to see if you were good. I mean, after today. Having your Quirk status outed like that must’ve felt pretty shitty. So, I guess, uh, I just wanted to make sure that you were doing alright?”
So. Fucking. Cute.
Midoriya winced before looking away. “I’m okay, Shinsou-kun.” He forced up a smile. “Thanks though. And for saying what you said to Kacchan.”
Shinsou blinked slowly before grimacing. “Kacchan? That dick?” He glanced at Shouta, flushing a little at Shouta’s arched eyebrow. “Ah, sorry. But seriously, Midoriya-kun, don’t worry about it. No one with any brain cells is going to give a shit. You’re here, yeah?” He smirked a little and shrugged. “Must mean that you’re pretty strong. And I saw you at the Entrance Exam. Anyone who runs around kicking robot ass with their own body parts is cool in my books.” He hesitated before saying softer, “And thanks. By the way. For what you said that day. I doubt that I’d be here if you didn’t kick my ass into gear.”
Oh God, Shouta needed to get out of this emotional mess immediately. His Apprentice was already tearing up and Shouta was – though he would die before admitting it - a sympathetic crier. Something that only Hizashi and Nemuri knew and he was fucking keeping it that way. “Midoriya,” he drawled. He arched an eyebrow when the kid looked up. “Training? Running? Something that we are supposed to be doing right now?”
“R-right!” Midoriya wiped at his eyes and gave Shinsou a bright smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Shinsou-kun?”
The purple haired brat smirked and nodded, tipping his head. “Sure will. Who else is going to give you a challenge during Fundamental Heroics?” He hesitated and glanced at Shouta, pulling out his phone. “. . . Can I delay him for just two more seconds so we can trade numbers, sensei?” Midoriya immediately looked at Shouta with pleading eyes and Shinsou, after glancing at Midoriya’s wide puppy eyes, quickly aimed his own at him. Which worked annoyingly well.
Fuck, this Goddamn Problem Child and this Cheeky little Brat.
“Hurry up, Brat,” Shouta sighed, leaning against the wall and closing his eyes. He listened to Midoriya and Shinsou trading numbers, Midoriya giggling slightly at something Shinsou muttered to him, and had to fight to keep his face neutral. It looked like he was right after all. There were good kids in his class after all.
Now Shouta just had to hope that the rest of his kids would prove to be just as good.