Chapter 54: Dancing and DelightNotes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Time was moving slowly. Too slowly. It was almost a crawl. A damn worm taking its sweet time to get to the goal, maybe throwing a nap in the mix too. Of course the slow thing would get beaten by a rabbit-
- Wait, was that the story? Ugh, was it a worm or a turtle? Yeah, probably a turtle... But it still doesn't make sense for the rabbit to lose... Uh, was the rabbit the lazy one? Oh, yeah, now it makes sense... - Mina daydreamed, her thoughts running free for a few moments.
Her eyes moved from the words on the blackboard to the clock over it, its hands having barely moved since the last time she had checked, if at all.
Mina wanted to groan, but it would have been a rude thing to do during Midnight's lessons. The teacher wasn't even the problem. The girl managed to pay more attention to her mentor's subject than in, say, Math and Modern Literature, and she had scored some good grades on Modern Hero Art History... But any lesson would have felt the same to her just a few minutes before the school day's end.
This damn sixth period seemed unending to her.
She had already done everything she could to make time pass faster, from actually listening to the teacher to doodling and spinning a pen between her fingers. Now, out of patience and bored to a fault, she kept glancing at the clock to make sure it worked fine. Strangely enough, the minutes' hand wasn't responding to her mental pleas and intimidating techniques.
- Come on, move. Pleeeaaase. Moooveee. Okay, you're shy, I get it. I'll look away, and then you'll move... Now! Still there?! You, sir, have no decency. Just do your job and move! Is it too much to ask? Alright, you've asked for it. I didn't want things to get ugly, but- -
"And that's all for today," Midnight said just a second before the bell rang. "The homework will be due for next Thursday."
"Yes, Miss Kayama!" Mina piped up with a big smile. She would have to ask somebody what she'd lost in the last five-ish minutes.
As her classmates gathered their stuff, Mina sent a last glare at the clock. - You've gotten lucky, but this isn't over... -
No response from the coward, not even another move. Typical.
After filling her bag by pushing her stuff into it in a single swoop, she skipped over to the back of the class. The bounce in her step was pretty noticeable, as she couldn't stay still for the life of her.
"Wow, Mina, you're really excited today," Ochaco pointed out with a giggle.
"Yup!" she replied with a grin. "'cause today..."
"We dance, ribbit," Tsuyu concluded.
"It's the only thing you've been talking about since yesterday's dinner," Toru added with a titter.
She pouted. "Well, excuse me, your teach, for being excited for her class!"
Tsu hummed, letting her gaze move to the pinkette's messy bag. "If only you were as interested in the lesson we just had, ribbit."
At that, Mina chuckled in slight embarrassment, checking from the corner of her eyes if the teacher had already left, which—luckily—was the case. The frog girl was just too good, and having her in the desk behind hers made things all the easier.
"Well, ya know... I was just thinking about what I should teach you..."
Tsu didn't seem to buy the excuse, huffing, but showing a small smile. "I'll show you my notes later, ribbit."
"You're the best, Tsu," she sighed thankfully as they moved to the door.
"Never forget it," Ochako giggled, making the frog girl let out a pleased ribbit.
Joining Midori and a few others, the friends walked out of the classroom and to the end of the corridor, all the way to 1-B. A few students from their sister class were already waiting there.
"Ready to go?" Itsuka asked, leading the group.
Mina's "Yeah!" was outclassed by Tetsutetsu's, the yell echoing on the walls and making a few heads turn. The pinkette couldn't help but think that the steely boy had been lucky at not ending up in Mr. Aizawa's class.
The walk to the gym was uneventful, but not boring. Mina spent most of it chatting with Toru, gossiping a bit to pass the time. Sadly enough, nothing exciting had happened in the last few weeks—if she didn't count her own work in progress, which she wasn't. She said nothing from the secrets she'd been entrusted with, of course; mouth sealed, scout's honor, and all that stuff.
She also spent a fair bit reviewing what to do as they got changed from their stiff uniforms into something more comfortable, trying to think about what the day's participants might be able to handle. A few of their members were missing—like Kinoko, Set, Sato, and Shoji, each taking care of some chore or personal stuff—but she was glad to have things made easier for once.
After three sessions, Mina had to come to the conclusion that teaching was pretty damn hard.
Increased respect to Miss Kayama, Mr. Aizawa, and everybody else aside, getting a good result out of her first attempt had been a tough nut to crack. The girl was confident in her skills, but she now saw the difference between showing them off and passing them onto others. She wasn't out of her depth, nah, but her knack for learning didn't magically translate into a talent for teaching. Which, to be honest, kinda sucked.
It didn't help that her style was a bit too carefree at times. She was good at improvising, but that could leave something to be desired. She hadn't gone off-script in their first two meetings, but that was only because there had been no script to follow from the beginning. Things... let's say that they could have gone better. Nobody had gotten hurt or anything, but she had found it really hard to run the whole circus by herself. Since she wanted to do her best (and show off a bit, why not), she couldn't just do stuff randomly!
Luckily, she had found a good helper in Midori. He was a good dancer already—not on her level, but very damn close—and he did have a gift for teaching, as everyone had already noticed. Mina had to admit that she didn't quite have as much patience as the boy did. By, like, a really, really wide margin. He was waaay better at handling the slowpokes, which gave her ample time to check how the others were doing—and something else, if her eyes happened to fall here or there.
The greenette had also made a few suggestions that had helped her sooo much. Splitting the group by how receptive her friends were to her teachings had been a saving grace, as putting some of them to dance together was like mixing acid and water: Not always the best idea.
Itsuka, Tsu, Ojiro, and Rin were the least of her problems. They were the most dexterous of the group, so they had almost no troubles in their movements. Apart from a few but forgettable cases of "tail-interference" and "I'm going so hard at this that I forget there are other people around me," ordinary stuff, they were doing fine. She could show them a move, and they would practically get to it without any additional help needed.
Toru, Ochaco, Sero, Awase, Mineta, and—surprisingly—Tetsutetsu needed a bit more effort, but they were improving by leaps and bounds. There had been more than a handful of falls and other silly incidents, but they had all gotten back up with a laugh. She spent most of her focus on them, as they needed that little push to start rolling.
But when it came to Ida and Shishida... Yeah, the two might have been fast and powerful in their Hero costumes, but here all that came out was stiffness. Trying to teach them anything even remotely close to break-dancing was as hard as making them miss an assignment. Overall, their progress had been consistent, but on the slower side. As slow as a cursed minutes' hand, she would say. Thankfully, Midori could take care of them, getting them from point A to point B, even if it meant repeating the same sequence of moves a thousand times… But she agreed with him about the effort being incredibly worth it if it meant seeing the tall duo go from a barely acceptable robot impression—holding in the laughter at that had been impossible—to an almost flawless mix of toprock moves like cross step, salsa rock, indian step, and kick side step—basic, but oh so satisfying to watch.
When everybody was ready and in their gym clothes, warming up their muscles on their mats, she clapped, pushed a button on her phone to put on some upbeat tunes in the background, and kicked off the fun.
"Alright! Since we've mastered some of the basics, I think that it's time to dial it up a notch! Today we'll be doing flares!" she said with a big, bold smile.
"Already?" Itsuka asked.
"You've got enough body weight strength to pull 'em off! Just remember to be flexible and you'll be fine, no worries. On that note, let's start with stretching! Follow after me!"
Mina lowered herself on the gym floor mat—firm with just the right bounciness—and distended her legs, all the while keeping an eye on the group.
"This is a 'seated straddle' pose. You may wanna be careful with it, so don't try and push yourself more than you can handle. Just go until you're comfortable," she warned as she started to show the movements.
"You may want to take a bolster and a belt," Midori suggested to the less flexible among them, passing those same objects with his black whip thingy. "Sit on it and roll off, so your hips will straighten automatically. Otherwise your hips will be tilting backwards and your spine will be rounded, which would only hurt you."
"Thank you, Midoriya!" Ida replied all too eagerly, followed by a few more grateful others.
"Yeah, thanks Midori," she gave a big thumbs up and waited for the group to be in position. "First, we spread our legs, but not so wide that we can't fold forward. Tetsutetsu, that's already too much, you won't move an inch like that… Okay, that's better. Now, support yourselves with your hands. No, Sero, don't fold yet. You see how straight my back is? I'm opening my chest, improving my breathing, and stretching aaall of these parts," she explained as her hands pointed to her inner thighs and groin.
She held herself back from smirking. Showing a good way not to hurt themselves was a good thing, and getting to see how many hints of red appeared on their faces was a nice extra boon. Some of these guys were still so pure, making for the perfect teasing targets and sources of amusement.
"Just staying like this for a while will do a lot of good for you, but we can do better. Now, this pose can be used to go forward, like this—" She quickly reached down, touching the ground with her forehead before moving back. "—but we'll do side stretching, 'cause I think they help more in this case. Just copy me and try to reach your foot. If you can't, just use the belt Midori gave you to grab it.
After showing how she could grab her right foot with ease, she started correcting as the group practiced.
"Tetsutetsu, it's not a tug of war, keep it down or you'll hurt yourself."
"Yes ma'am!" the boy boisterously replied, having her contain a snort.
"Tsu, remember to use your other arm as support."
The frog girl ribbited in understanding before following the suggestion.
"Mineta, just 'cause it's easy doesn't mean you shouldn't take it seriously."
"Sorry!" he replied, immediately going back to a perfect toe-touch.
"Ida, be careful with your calves, don't slip on your pipes."
"I'll do my best! Does my form comply now?"
"Yeah, that's better," she noted. "Now try and go from side to side… and you can also move forward, like this. Doesn't it feel more natural now?"
A few minor interruptions and pulled hamstrings avoided later, Mina moved to the next step.
"So, I hope you kept training the leg raises and holds I showed you last time," she said with a hint of challenge. If they hadn't, they would be feeling the consequences by landing on their butts very soon.
"Of course, I practiced diligently!" Ida started with a hand chop.
"Yeah! No sweat!" Toru rejoiced, with Tsu croaking in agreement.
"Um, I wouldn't say that it was that easy, but I did them," Ochaco nodded, a bit worn out by the experience.
"No cheating?" Toru asked with a teasing tone, making the brunette pout and shake her head.
"The V-hold was rough on me, but I did succeed," Shishida confessed.
"Yeah, that was bad," Sero added. "The N-hold was easier though."
"Benefits of a step by step process," Ojiro noted.
"Can't be easy for you with that added weight," Awase commented, eyeing the other's tail.
"It's been a lengthy process," the blonde sighed.
"Alright!" Mina smirked. "Then you can all show me a perfect L-sit, right?"
Mineta gulped. "I-I haven't gone further than the single-leg hold. I keep falling after a few seconds."
"Ah!" Tetsutetsu clenched his fist, sure of himself. "Falling is nothing! Endure and go on!"
"Hey! That's easy to say when you can't get hurt because you can turn into steel!"
Itsuka almost facepalmed, instead sighing deeply. "And I guess that's why I kept hearing thumps coming from your room all week."
"Uh, I-"
"He's dug a cavity in the floor, yeah," Rin confessed.
"Hey! Not cool man!" Tetsutetsu groaned back. "And I thought my rug was covering it!"
"Tsuburaba almost fell in it. How were we supposed not to notice?" the Chinese student deadpanned.
"At least Shoji hasn't complained," Sero thought aloud, making Mina wonder how the silent guy would have reacted at a steely ass breaking his roof and falling down from the upper floor.
"Yet, ribbit."
"We'll ask Cementoss to put it back together," Itsuka bemoaned, the "again" going unsaid as it was unneeded.
They all knew that stuff broke at an alarming frequency when they went "Plus Ultra." Really, it was the school's fault for encouraging them that much.
"And remember that you shouldn't use your Quirk here. Wrong gym," Midori pointed out, making the gray-haired boy groan.
"And your whips?" he questioned with a bit of a pout.
"I have signed approval for it. But you're right, I'll refrain from using them more than necessary," the greenette simply conceded.
"He also doesn't break holes into the floor with those," Awase teased.
"Alright, alright, enough about holes and back to the holds," Mina finally interjected with a chuckle. "Mineta, try and unshrug when you're in that position, or you won't have enough strength to keep it up. Go on to a bent knee hold whenever you feel ready. The straighter your legs, the harder it'll be, so experiment."
"Will do, thanks," the short boy nodded.
Turning back to the rest of the group, she went back to the challenging tone as she took the hardest hold she'd shown yet. "Now, everybody who managed to get a L-hold, show me what you've got!"
Rin, Itsuka, and Midori seemed unbothered by the fatigue, but they were outliers. Tsu and Ojiro were among the most unlucky because their mutations actually hindered their attempts, but they pulled through by sheer will and experience. Ida, Shishida, and Tetsutestsu still struggled to get in the position, and she could tell that most of the others wouldn't be able to endure it for long. Still, Mina felt satisfied by the result. It wasn't bad at all for rookies like them.
She grinned widely, letting her body start to move a bit, oscillating from side to side. "You're a letter now, congrats!" she exclaimed jokingly. "Aaand here's what we'll be doing!"
Giving herself a spin by kicking off the ground and tightening her core, Mina began to show one of her coolest moves. Her hips drew circles in the air, her legs kicked up, in, and all the way around to the back, her palms held her whole weight as it shifted continuously. She effortlessly chained one flare into the next, the gestures being like a second nature. She could fall a bit, extending her reach to touch the ground with her forearms, or go even higher, briefly flying between each push of her hands.
She was a vortex, an eye-catching pink tornado that could keep spinning until her arms gave out.
She loved this feeling.
Here, for those few moments of interrupted flow, she was as free as she could be. There were only her, the music, and her movements. If the public was enjoying it even a fraction of how she was, they'd never wish to stop looking.
But she also couldn't keep going forever. The show had to go on!
Mina stopped a minute or so later, landing on her feet with an energetic jump, getting to watch as the majority of her friends were looking at her with mouths open, eyes wide, and asses on the ground, the previous exercise forgotten. Even Midori had seemed enraptured by the performance, though he kept showing a big, warm smile.
"I guess you have questions?" she smirked at her classmates before they started showering her with praise and a series of various interpretations of "how the hell do we get to do that?"
The sound of her alarm interrupting the music made Mina click her tongue in disappointment. A couple of hours weren't nearly enough to do everything she wanted, but she wasn't the only one here. She knew that they had a schedule to respect, and most of her friends looked positively done with their exercises, if all the sweating and panting was any indication. All things considered, the group's results had been good, and those that hadn't quite gotten the flares right had still put in a lot of effort.
"Alright guys, that's all for today!" she yelled loud enough to be heard by everybody, as little groups had scattered around the gym to get more space. "Go ahead and get changed while I clean and close up!"
"Don't mind if I do," Sero chuckled, getting up and lending a hand to Mineta.
"Don't have to tell me twice," Awase puffed while stretching his back.
"Thank you for the lesson and the courtesy, miss Ashido," Shishida said, bowing lightly, as the group walked out.
"Yeah! Thanks Mina!" Ochaco merrily added, followed by the rest of the group.
"Nah, thank you! It's been a blast," she responded with a big smile. Annoying time limits aside, her hobby never failed to put her in a good mood.
"Need some help with those, ribbit?" Tsuyu asked, eyeing the pile of used tools.
"Eh, I sure wouldn't mind it," she laughed, her hands full of rolled up mats, bolsters and belts.
The frog girl croaked before surprising her, speaking with a flawless poker face. "Midoriya, would you mind helping Mina putting everything back in storage? I'd do it, but I'm sure that you'd be way faster."
"Sure!" the boy replied without missing a beat.
Mina met Tsu's eyes for a moment, noticing an almost imperceptible wink and a glance to the side. In that direction, just behind her, Itsuka was chatting with Ochaco, standing remarkably close to the brunette as they followed the boys to the exit.
- So that's how she wants to play it… One point for wingwoman Tsu, - Mina thought with a smirk.
The frog girl then made a short nod towards Midori, who was already grabbing the rest of their training tools. Tsuyu wasn't one to waste an occasion, and she had just made the perfect setting to let Mina do her job.
She'd gotten the short straw, after all.
Mina swallowed, taking a second to quell her anxiety and focus on the excitement. As much as the thought of what she had to do gave her a bit of a weird feeling in her chest, she refused to think of it as a chore. She really, really wanted to see how he'd react firsthand.
Giving a quick thumbs up to her friend, Mina turned and followed Midori to the storage room on the other side of the gym, letting him open the door for her and preceding him inside. The place wasn't that big, having just enough space for a pile of mats, three metal containers for soft or bouncy stuff like the bolsters or balls, and a couple of shelves for everything else. She let all but a few pieces of her cargo fall to the ground before starting to put—or better yet, throw—the stuff back from where they'd taken it. Meanwhile, Midori was filling the silence by humming a catchy tune that she couldn't quite catch—she'd have to ask for it later.
Since they were working together they would be done in half the time, so she had to get to the point sooner rather than later. And yet… she couldn't help but try and satisfy her curiosity first.
"Hey, Midori, I wanted to ask…" she started as she shot a bolster as if it was a basketball. "Why don't you call me by name?"
- Why do the others get it and I still don't? -
The girl saw from the corner of her eye that he'd frozen for a moment.
"Uh? Sorry, what?"
She turned slightly to look at him directly. "Just wanted to know why you aren't calling me Mina yet," she said as innocently as possible.
He blinked, apparently confused, before looking at the stuff in his hands. "Um… You never asked?" The boy's tone held something along the tones of embarrassment, an intuition highlighted by his sudden difficulty in keeping up his gaze.
"Really?" she questioned, eyebrows raised at the boy's predicament. "Sooo… If I asked you to call me Mina, you would?"
"Um, yeah…" he continued with an awkward nod, before showing a small smile. "If that makes you happy, sure."
She hadn't expected such a simple answer, but mostly she hadn't expected him to be shy about the issue, of all things. He didn't give nicknames—no matter how many others gave him—but always greeted everyone as warmly as possible. Given his usual friendly attitude and the fact that he was already on a first name basis with four—five, maybe six?—other girls, she would have never guessed that the boy could have been so timid underneath.
-So he's also got a shy side when it comes to this stuff… - she thought, her brain doing some more gymnastics. - But what about… -
Just like that, a couple of moments started making more sense. Toru had told her how he'd been a bit fidgety at asking her to rest on his arm during the battle trial—yeah, that was still gold as far as teasing material went. During the Sports Festival, he had run away with Ochaco as soon as Mina had started asking about his relationship with that Mei girl. He usually deflected compliments, redirecting them at the people around him. He hadn't shown problems when addressing Tsu, but maybe that was just the case for nicknames, or he was screaming inside and putting up a very good front. He hadn't been shy when she had melted his uniform during their fight, but he also hadn't been touched once directly. He had definitely blushed and looked away as she straddled and hugged him after getting her uber cool Hero name.
So, if she excluded handshakes, fights, and carrying others to the Infirmary, how often did Midori touch others directly? Or, how often had he initiated any such touch?
Something clicked in Mina's head.
Midori didn't have a problem with friendliness.
Midori had a problem with unforeseen intimacy.
Which probably meant that he hadn't started anything of his own volition, just going along with how the others asked to be called. He wasn't against using names if his friends asked for it, but he also wasn't the one making the offer.
She had gone about it all wrong, thinking that she'd missed some sort of moment here or there, when all she had to do was ask to have the boy answer with a meek smile and a delighted "Sure!"
…
Maybe she could help him with that?
It was something worth thinking about…
Still, that also meant that she had to reconsider a couple of things about her friends.
She crossed her arms, humming in admiration. "Damn, I gotta give it to my girls then. Never expected Ochaco or Momo to be that forward… So what, they asked back at the Sports Festival?"
Midori remained lost in thought for a moment. "Well, it just sort of… happened, I guess. We kind of agreed that we were past surnames, so… yeah." He shrugged lightly and went back to showing that little smile. "It wasn't planned or anything, I think. But it was nice of them."
"Eh, I bet," Mina smirked. She was pretty sure that the girls weren't just being "nice." She wasn't.
Taking a step in his direction, she put her hands behind her back and bent a bit, looking up into his green eyes. "Then, Midori, I'll be nice too. Just 'Mina' from now on, 'mkay?" she spoke before giving him the widest smile she could muster.
He nodded and returned her expression with the same glee. "Yeah, got it, Mina."
- Damn, that warmness in my chest is kinda addicting… - she thought before deciding to play a little more. - A little fun never hurt anyone, right? -
"So, that's it?" she asked, voluntarily sounding baffled. "No grand show? No signed and countersigned stationery? No knightly sworn oath with horse joust and sword blessing thingy?" She crossed her arms and shook her head in fake disappointment. "Man, that's a bummer. I had already prepared for all three. I'll have to return all those party poppers… Ya think they'd take back the sword and the horse too?"
After a moment, the confusion disappeared from the boy's face. Midori laughed at her antics, just like she had hoped he would.
"I wouldn't know about that, but I know who'd take them off your hands. Koda would take great care of the horse, and Tokoyami would go crazy over a real sword," he said, making her let out a mix of a chuckle and a groan.
- You dork… -
"Sure, sure," she hummed, before deciding to prickle him a bit. "Man, you really had me hung up on this. I thought I'd made myself pretty clear too… We could have been here a lot sooner, ya know?" she said as she shook her head.
"Um, sorry?" He rubbed the back of his head, looking plenty apologetic. "Didn't want to assume…"
"Looks like you're also a bit dense sometimes, uh?" she tittered, content with the reaction, but not done. "Midori! You're usually so perceptive! How did you not catch the signs?"
The boy chuckled awkwardly. "Well… I guess I'm just being… careful, you know?" he said, scratching his cheek with his index. "Some people aren't comfortable with using given names, so-"
"And when did I ever make you think that I was as serious as Ida?" Mina interjected with a bit of a sly grin. "Though I guess my imitations are top notch. 'Midoriya! Good morning! Kaminari! Sit straight! Ashido! Stop copying me!'" She did her best Ida caricature, including stiff movements and hand chopping.
Midori laughed again, closing his eyes as his hands covered his mouth and held his stomach. His joy was almost contagious, but she kept herself from laughing hard. The sight was making those pesky butterflies in her stomach flutter all around, and they were more than a little distracting.
- How is he even cuter when he laughs? -
The pinkette bit her lower lip, but the act didn't quite help her exercise any kind of restraint.
Mina now knew that the boy was shy, but she also knew that it wasn't as simple as that. Maybe the whole thing was more complex than she imagined, with a lot of factors mixed in to make a damn mess out of it. Maybe it was a matter of time and place, maybe it was a matter of just being more and more comfortable around each other… But all she could think about was that he didn't seem to mind her closeness, even as she stood a mere feet away.
As it often happened to her, Mina followed her heart. She was a spontaneous girl, and she had never been great at keeping her emotions in check—Why would she, when she could spread her happiness that easily?
Her left hand took hold of the one that covered his mouth as it moved, swiftly intertwining their fingers, while her right moved to the side of his head, her tips brushing the green locks over his ears. Her lips almost crashed into his, being met with a warmness that she hadn't quite expected. The boy's eyes widened from the surprise—making her think that she had messed up badly for a long instant—before closing again as he leaned into the contact, his free hand going to cup her face to mirror her pose. The warmth and care of the movements was more than lovely, just as the whole thing had ended up as much more than a quick peck.
That kiss might have been an impulsive decision, but Mina decided that it was a good one.
Past
If you asked anybody what they thought of walking around U.A.'s grounds after curfew, you would get different answers. Some would deem it stupid, some would see it as childish, most would call it risky, and a small percentage would find it very thrilling.
It wasn't hard to guess which category was Mina's.
"Come on, we're almost there," he heard her whisper. Mina's voice held those palpable hints of excitement that only doing something they shouldn't could give her.
Izuku swallowed as he let himself be directed by the girl, his hand in hers. The blindfold over his eyes and the fact that he certainly didn't want to disappoint his girlfriend, eager to show him something she had prepared in secret, didn't leave him much of a choice. Moreover, it wasn't like he had put up much of a resistance.
The idea of a surprise prepared for him—And how good was it that he could actually believe that there wouldn't be anything nasty on the other end of it?—had him nodding along almost instantly. She was good like that, turning his hesitation into approval with a few words and a sly wink.
He still didn't want to get in trouble for it, so he'd sent a quick message to avoid the possibility of being caught red-handed in whatever the pinkette was going to have them do. Asking Nezu not to worry about the whole thing would cost him a bit—he was already running out of chess strategies to use against the principal—but the smile he had received from Mina after agreeing made it all more than worth it.
"A-Are we?" he asked, if only to listen to her again. Maybe the thrill of being naughty was getting to him.
She hummed lightly and squeezed his hand. "Almost~ Ya feeling a little lost yet?"
"A-A bit," he responded, though he most likely wasn't as lost as she'd expected him to be. Knowing the school's whole planimetry by heart was enough to make most of her attempts at deception—a few extra turns around what he guessed were trees and that round trip on a long path—pretty much useless. They had gone a bit further than he would have expected, but he could guess where they were headed.
Still, why steal her thunder when she was having this much fun?
"Alright, just a sec," she said, moving a bit and handling something metallic and clinky.
The door was opened and they slid inside before the girl could close it again behind them. Then she kept guiding him forward for another hundred steps, further inside the building. She repeated the process with some other keys and another door, and only then did the girl stop.
"Okay, we're here," she said, her tone now higher than the previous whispers. He felt her hands reaching for the hems of the blindfold, sliding it off carefully.
His eyes opened to complete darkness, leaving him puzzled. "Um, Mina-"
"I know, silly," she giggled as she walked around him, her hands tentatively reaching out to the nearby wall. "Just wait a sec aaand- Done!"
A little click was all the warning he got before getting blinded for a moment, the light causing him to close his eyes again to slowly adjust. A moment later, after she'd dragged him a few more feet to the left and away from the door, he finally got to see what Mina had prepared.
The storage room was noticeably different than usual. Things had been moved around to create a bigger empty space in the middle, the floor being covered with a round, fluffy rug. Multicolored sheets covered the shelves, making the room look smaller and cozier. There was also a somewhat hidden cubicle made of containers and floor mats—resembling what kids may build as a "fort"—with plenty of cushions inside. And, most importantly, he could see a pink and green banner hung between the higher shelves, showing a date he knew very well.
6 months.
His eyes widened almost comically as he started, mouth agape, for a moment.
"Yes, yes, I know what you're thinking," she tittered, softly sliding to get in front of him. "'Did I forget? Oh no!' And let me stop you there. No need to panic! I know that you know that the big day's tomorrow. I'm just early, silly," she said with a grin.
He blinked, the words taking him out of the stupor and rising panic.
Well, yeah, he did remember precisely—he'd checked about a hundred times, per day, for a week—that their six months celebration was tomorrow. He had been preparing too, after all.
"Then…"
"I just wanted to make it a bit of a surprise," she giggled. "I'm sure you've got something prepared for tomorrow, Izu~. Ochaco wouldn't tell me what, but I know it's something~"
"Yeah… I kind of have." He looked down, rubbing the back of his neck. At least his friend hadn't spilled all the beans.
The girl let out a short squeal of excitement. "Ooh, I can't wait! But also, I won't be outdone, no sir!" Mina continued eagerly, spinning on the spot and opening her arms to showcase the room. "And I thought, 'Why be limited to only one date? After all the messes we've been through we deserve more, dammit!'" She turned to wink at him. "Sooo, I asked Midnight for a small favor… And now we can have both a big and exciting trip tomorrow, and a cozy and secret date tonight!"
Izuku smiled widely, feeling the girl's contagious loving energy. He would have been lying if he said that the idea wasn't to his liking. Few things were as pleasant as time spent with Mina anyway.
Mina made everything… more.
More exciting. More interesting. More restful. More entrancing.
Funnier. Sweeter. Cozier. Warmer.
She suddenly let herself fall backwards in that angelic pose, completely trusting, letting him catch her and slide to the floor in the attempt. Fortunately, the rug was soft enough to give them a comfortable landing. She settled with her head over his legs, hands reaching up to find his face.
"My hero, and a good boyfriend too~" she teased, looking at him upside down and licking her lips. "I think you deserve a reward…"
Her black sclera might have been as dark as the night, but her golden pupils were as warm as a star. He couldn't tear his eyes away if he tried.
Many adjectives would be required to describe Mina, some stranger than others.
Energetic. Relaxed. Friendly. Upbeat. Athletic. Eye-catching. Cheerful. Fluffy. Easygoing. Alien-looking. Unique. Heroic. Loving.
Finding a good pet name had been hard because of that. He couldn't quite choose just one, there were so many good things about her… Until he'd found one that suited her perfectly, and which she happily reciprocated, because she also saw the same in him.
"Bottled Sunshine."
The two didn't shine as the sky's star did, but their love for the other was just as warm.
"Whatever you want, Sunshine."
Present
In hindsight, Izuku really should have expected it.
Though he probably wouldn't have stopped Mina from acting even if he had known… He was far too selfish to do otherwise.
- Selfish and greedy, - he mentally grimaced.
"Kid…" Daigoro grumbled in his ears as Nana sighed sadly.
He and Mina separated, their hands still loosely holding and their gazes lost in each others'. Molten gold wouldn't shine as brightly, nor was the night's sky as deep.
All those memories, and she could still ruffle his feathers as easily as if he didn't have them.
The pinkette's fingers brushed his lips as a soft smile graced her own. "You liked that?"
Izuku swallowed, doing his best to put up a good front."Y-Yeah…"
The sound of his voice made her smile wider, radiant. "Yeah, totally worth it."
He shouldn't go for a second. He knew he shouldn't. It wouldn't be right. Not now, not as they were, not before explaining.
But he also knew that he wouldn't be able to bring himself to stop her if she wanted to continue.
So he stayed still, letting her decide. A cowardly discharge of responsibility? No, he would still take the blame if anything happened… But giving her all the agency was a cowardly way of not taking a stance.
"To err is human, to persist if of the Devil," the voice snickered, feeling like a cold vice on his insides. It was making itself really hard to ignore.
Thankfully, after a few moments, the girl made her choice.
Mina released his hand and took a step back. A light lilac blush was on her cheeks and her eyes started to look down, her expression turning flustered. "Um, sorry, that was a bit rushed even for me…" she spoke with a slightly apologetic tone.
"D-Don't worry." He raised his hands between them, mildly waving them to dissuade her from dwelling on the incident. "It's- It's all good. Really."
She let out a breath. "Ooh, that's a relief. Sorry if I made everything awkward out of nowhere."
"N-No problem," he stuttered. He wasn't exactly sure why Mina was stepping back so quickly, but he took solace in her taking away his chance at making a bigger mistake.
The girl widened her eyes as if a thought had stricken her out of nowhere. "Oh! Don't think I don't want to continue! I totally would, but…" She bit her lip, looking for the right words. "I- I have to- Urgh, this is too hard."
His confusion must have shown on his face, because after a look she took a big breath and calmed herself.
"Alright, um, I really, really want this," —She brushed his arm again— "but… do you mind if we delay it for a few more days? I- There is something I have to do first…"
He didn't interject, all too caught up in his own mind.
It couldn't be, right? "Early" didn't even begin to describe this.
But... It also could. He had messed up plenty already this time around.
"Could you just… Keep one of your weekend evenings free?" she asked, hope reverberating in her voice. "Like... Sunday? We- We can talk then…"
Izuku would have remained in his stunned silence if it wasn't for a loud cough in his head, courtesy of her master's master.
"Um, sure. I'll do that," he nodded, opting to show a nice, understanding smile.
It wasn't half as radiant as the one Mina reciprocated with.
"Great! I'll see you then! And in the dorm too, duh," she said while rolling her eyes at herself, probably trying to break the tension with a chuckle.
Her part of the job already done, Mina turned on her heels and skipped to the door, but stopped on the threshold.
"And, Midori?" She waited until he had met his eyes again. It felt as if she could see right through him… But he knew that nobody could. "Would you mind if I switched to Izuku?"
Oh. That he could allow without having to think twice.
"N-No. Not at all, Mina."
She smiled like the sun, gave him a wink, and disappeared behind the door.
Izuku remained still for a few seconds, hearing her steps get further away, before letting himself slide to the ground, half-covered with the training equipment he was supposed to put back.
"It shouldn't be happening yet," he whispered, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Premature or not, we can deal with it," Yoichi reassured with his kind voice.
How he hoped so.
"You're strong enough to manage it," Second offered despite his usual "if it doesn't affect our grand fight, it's not worth bothering with" way.
One domino knocked down, and the entire world changed. But what had he pushed, and where would the chain reaction end?
Nana hummed along. "Let's just breathe and focus on the present for now. Alright, Sprout?"
He followed her counting to get himself back into shape, minutes passing in the solitude he couldn't grow accustomed to.
Mina still couldn't stop grinning as she exited the gym.
She had made a bit of a mess out of things, but she wasn't a girl that would cry over spilled milk. - Mina doesn't do regret, - she thought with a smirk as the sensation on her lips settled comfortably in her memory.
No regrets… But she really hoped that Tsuyu, Ochaco, and the others would be more than understanding. Though she was sure that they could get why she had taken her chance…
Her mission completed, although almost at the last possible moment, Mina started to briskly walk back to the dorm. She expected an interesting few days ahead.