Chapter 10
Groaning, Eijirou slowly blinked his eyes awake. He still felt the mask resting across his mouth, his jacket sleeve had been completely ripped off when Katsuki had cut it to clean the slice. Slowly turning his head, he peered at what was left, a pale scar, the length of a credit card, made its home on his shoulder. He was no longer bandaged and he was merely staying with Recovery Girl to gather strength.
His eyes slid along the walls of the room he was resting in, it held a few pictures, all of a woman who slowly ages through them. Slowly sitting up with a pained groan, he adjusts his mask. His hood is still covering his hair, but no doubt they had seen his firetruck hair. Looking around, he realizes he’s on a couch that is resting against a wall under a window, “Someone must have moved me…” Hearing a soft click along the hardwood floors draws his attention to an open door. He sits a bit straighter and watches cautiously.
In walks the women in the pictures, Recovery Girl.
She comes in, a soft smile blesses her face. The soft click was her syringe cane. “Hello dearie. How are you feeling?” She asks, walking over to him, her smile never leaving her face. She stands in front of him and gives him once over, her gaze lingers on the scar resting on his shoulder for only a second longer.
“Fine, ma’am.” He says, watching her every move. She may have helped him, but she can still turn him in. She motions for his hand, a questioning look on her face.
“May I?” She asks, watching him just as he’s watching him. With a reluctant nod, she gently grabs his arm and makes him move it in various directions. “Well, this shouldn’t affect many things. You’ll just have a scar there. I was able to heal it completely. I do ask that you relax on any strenuous activity for a while to be on the safe side. The slice went down to your muscle so any new activity can agitate it and affect it in the long run.” Her tone was laced full of motherly love and affection, something so foreign to Eijirou. "Well, if you follow my directions, you are free to go." She gently patted his hand and backed up, allowing him to stand.
Standing, he adjusts his mask and hood before following Recovery Girl. Looking towards him, she says "I have some clothes in the bathroom that's right by the front door. If you would like to change so no one recognizes you, you are welcomed to. I will be in the kitchen, so I won't see you." She eyes him slightly, noticing his twitches. She notes that his eyes are darting from every entrance and exit.
“Thank you, ma’am…” He mutters, a small nod along with a fidget of his stance.
“You be careful now.” Recovery Girl leaves with that, walking into the kitchen and starting a kettle for tea. He quietly makes his way to the bathroom she had mentioned. It’s right by the front door, the kitchen separated by a hallway and a wall. He walks in and sees a set of clothes. A plan navy blue, long sleeved shirt along with some tan cargo pants lined with pockets. They rest neatly folded in a black reusable bag. Inside is also a black baseball cap and some socks. Looking in the mirror, Eijirou sighs, taking off his mask and beanie. His firetruck red hair is pulled back in a bun and his roots are slowly growing in.
Shaking his head, Eijirou quickly changed, folding his uniform and putting it in the reusable bag. “I hope she doesn’t mind if I take this…” he thinks. Wearing the borrowed clothes, he puts his mask back on and hides his hair under the cap and leaves the bathroom, bag in hand. He pauses outside the bathroom and listens as Recovery Girl walks around the kitchen making tea. The soft click of her cane echoes throughout the apartment. “Thank you ma’am!” He calls out, grasping the door handle and opening. The sun is illuminating the hallway outside from a window out in the hall.
“Bye dearie!” She calls out, not leaving the kitchen like she said. “Be safe!” And that’s the last thing Eijirou hears before he makes his way out the apartment building and heads to the library. A few people are outside the apartment building, some resting on balconies, either watching the late morning hustle or tending what plants rest around.
The street was relatively empty, a few people walking. A few parents with their children running around. Considering it’s the weekend, Eijirou is a little shocked at how few people are out. A family of three, a mom and two children, rush past Eijirou. What looks to be the youngest one; a boy, bumps into Eijirou and falls forward. Rushing forward, Eijirou catches his arm before he hits the ground. The boy yelps at the grab and flails slightly. “Are you alright?” Eijirou asks, helping the boy steady himself.
“I’m okay Kyaku-kun! Thank you!” The boy says bowing slightly at the waist before looking back at Eijirou. The boy is short, wearing red high tops, light washed blue jeans, an All-Might graphic tee-shirt and his hair, a chocolate brown, is a fluffy mess on top of his head, his eyes the same brown with paint splatter freckles. “Kinda looks like Izu… if he had brown hair” he thought.
“Asashi! You okay?” Looking behind, Eijirou sees a middle aged woman, the same chocolate brown hair and eyes. She’s tall, wearing a blue sheer blouse with a blue tank top underneath, black ripped jeans and heeled brown boots. Her hair is pulled back in a low ponytail. Next to her is another boy, older. His hair is dark black with blonde roots, fringed over his face. His shirt is a tank top with the sleeves hanging open along his torso and black ripped jeans. His shoes were red high tops and his ears had earrings that matched the shoes.
“I’m otay momma!” the younger boy, Asashi, answers, a large grin on his face. He’s rocking on the balls of his feet, hands behind his back. The mother looks between Asashi and Eijirou, a look of relief flashes across her face.
“Thank you for catching him before he fell.” She says, bowing her head slightly. The boy next to her did the same.
“It’s alright ma’am.” Eijirou says, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Momma! I didn’t activate my quirk this time!” Asashi says proudly, a look of pure excitement flashes across his face. He bounces and shakes his arms in front of his chest.
“What’s his quirk?” Eijirou asks, looking back at the mother. The other boy voices instead.
“His quirk causes your nerve endings to fire off when he touches someone, making everything really sensitive and painful.” His voice is gruff, he sounds older than Eijirou, but isn’t as tall. Eijirou’s eyes widen, really glad it didn’t go off.
“Oh wow! Good thing you have that under control, huh?” Eijirou asks the boy, watching as he beams under the praise. Eijirou notes he doesn’t look him in the eyes, rather at his nose, but his smile and excited aura is contagious. Eijirou looks back at the mother “Well, I’ve got to get going. Good job on keeping control of your quirk Asashi-kun.”
“Bye-Bye Kyaku-kun!” Asashi says, waving bye to Eijirou as he walks away. The mother and other boy wave as well. The family and Eijirou walks away in opposite directions.
Continuing his walk to the library, Eijirou’s eyes bounced from person to person, opened and closed stores. He watches heroes stop every once and while for pictures or autographs, then continue on their patrol. He sees some sidekick follow along, sometimes showing their quirks off when someone asks. Children and adults alike watch with amazement and admiration, some bow and offer thanks for a rescue from a previous attack, other watch from afar with clear admiration in their eyes and soft fond smiles across their face.
The walk to the library takes about 15 minutes of contempt but anxious silence, watching as each person look at him then continue their walk. Children running around him to catch up to friends or cling to their parents, either asking for something in a store, swinging their hands, or lag behind throwing a tantrum. Soon, the library is within sight, the large building stands tall surrounded by different types of greenery and people. Trees and bushes with lush green grass around it, people running around or laying on a blanket eating or reading a book. A large clock sits in the front wall of the library reading 11:36 in the morning.
Taking off his mask, Eijirou looks around searching for a family blonde and greenette. He keeps looking around as he gets closer, praying that he won’t have to wait long for them to show up. As he gets closer to the staircase leading to the door, he sees two familiar shapes, huddles against each other, eyes closed. Ōkoku held in Izuku’s arms, curled in a ball with her head hidden between his arm and torso. Her tail is droopy and swaying slightly. Eijirou’s face splits into a bright smile, breaking into a sprint to get to them sooner. “Zuku! Tsuki!” He calls out, raising a hand to wave getting their attention. At the sound of their nickname, their eyes shoot up, locking eyes with them.
“Ei!” Katsuki calls out first, breaking from Izuku’s hold and collides with him in a crushing hug. His arms wrap around his torso, holding fistfuls of his shirt, and buries his head in his shoulder. Eijirou drops the shopping bag of his clothes and holds Katsuki in a just as tight hug. A hand wraps around his waist as well and a hand comes up and rests in Katsuki’s hair, holding him close. His nose buried in the blonde locks. Izuku rushes over as well, hugging both Katsuki and Eijirou, but soon Eijirou takes his hand from around Katsuki’s waist and holds Izuku. Ōkoku is meowing loud and happy in-between them all, her paws cling to Eijirou. “Thank fuck you’re okay…” Katsuki mumbles into his neck, tightening his hold on the other.
The trio had stood together, basking in each other's comfort and holding each other. This had been the first time someone had gotten hurt and hadn’t been able to take care of it in the safety of their home. “Let’s get home…” Eijirou mutters, pulling away enough to see the tears welling in Katsuki’s eyes, whereas Izuku’s have already started to fall down his cheeks. Katsuki swallows harshly and nods jerkily.
“Let’s get out of here…” He mumbles, grasping Eijirou’s hand tight. Izuku grabs the reusable bag before Eijirou can and motions to Katsuki. He walks ahead of the two, holding Ōkoku in his arms and the bag. Eijirou and Katsuki follow, the two having a silent conversation via hand squeezes. Eijirou notes Katsuki’s distressed face, which is slowly relaxing with every tight hand squeeze he receives from Eijirou. “He took me getting hurt harder than I thought…” he thinks, noticing a slight shake in his other hand.
They walk in a peaceful silence, Izuku a few paces ahead of them, throwing a look over his shoulder making sure they’re still behind him and safe. They get back to their home in about five minutes. They weave through the trash mounds and avoid alarms and traps, walking into the center of home. The fire is in embers and there are few footprints in the sand. Eijirou looks around, Izuku walks into the shipping container, most likely to put Eijirou's uniform away. He looked at Katsuki, he had refused to meet his eye since their hug back at the library. “...Tsuki?” He asks, watching as his face twitches, eyes slowly glossing over. “What’s goin’ on in that head of yours?”
“You got fuckin’ hurt and I couldn’t do shit about it…” He mumbles, squeezing Eijirou’s hand tight, his hand slowly getting warmer than normal. Eijirou stands in front of Katsuki, holding both hands in his own, watching as he stares off, eyes unfocused and glossy with unshed tears. He takes a deep breath, his lips warble and he goes to speak again but his voice is cut off by a choked sob. The tears slowly build in his eyes until they fall, his breath picks up steadily. “I-I couldn't do shit about you gettin’ hurt!” He cries, pulling his hot hands from Eijirou and as soon as they are away, the spark and pop.
“Tsuki, you did do something. As soon as you could, you rushed and helped me. That’s better than anything. I’m okay! I’m healthy and I’m safe. Recovery Girl said she didn’t see my face and let me leave still anonymous.” Eijirou hardens his hands, his smooth skin turning hard and jagged, and grabs Katsuki’s still sparking hands. He has tear streaks running down his face, his eyes slowly getting more red and puffy. “Tsuki, I’m okay.” He reinstates, watching as Katsuki slowly looks into Eijirou's eyes. He hopes that his eyes portray that he isn’t mad at Katsuki, that he’s safe. They must have, because soon Katsuki’s hands stop sparking and he tackles Eijirou in a hug, the two fall to the sandy floor. Katsuki sits in Eijirou’s lap burying his head in his chest and sobs.
It’s the most heart-breaking sound either Eijirou or Izuku have heard in a long time. Eijirou holds Katsuki close, his own eyes watering. He keeps his breathing steady, holding Katsuki and rubbing soothing circles on the small of his back. He slowly sits up, Katsuki’s legs wrap around his waist as he sits in his lap, his head moved from his chest to his neck, hiccups and sobs wracked his body. Izuku watches from the doors of the shipping container, his own tears falling from his face. Katsuki has never taken the people he cares about getting hurt. Not after the attack that left them alone. Eijirou looks over slightly and sees Izuku watching, and opens an arm out to him, motioning him over with a single motion. Taking a shuddering breath, he slowly walks over before breaking into a run, sliding down on the sand and into his arms, his own cries shaking his form. Eijirou’s eyes water as tears slide down his face, the people he considers family are hurting and he will offer all the comfort that he can. “I’ll never leave them alone again.”