Hawks' dilemma
Keigo isn’t a very paranoid person, well at least he thinks so. Nor did he think he’s a very clingy boyfriend. He throws those notions out the window the morning he wakes up and receives no text from Touya. The blond frowns as he checks his phone, it was eight am and yet there was no word of him. That wasn’t normal for the couple, but Keigo shrugged it off.
He must be sleeping in. The hero thought. Wish I could do the same.
Keigo sighed as he pulled himself out of bed. Morning patrols were never fun. Sometimes the blond wondered what his life would be like if he wasn’t scooped up by the Commission and forced to become a hero, maybe he’d still be asleep.
The winged hero can admit that day's patrol was super boring, but he would be lying if he said he wasn’t looking forward to his lunch break. Normally Hawks would find himself hanging around the Number two hero, admiring his amazing work ethic even through his break hours, yet according to his agency he was absent.
Which is why he calls his bunny best friend, who else is gonna treat him to an awesome meal?
“Hey Rumi,” Hawks said the second she picked up “You busy?”
“What is it this time, Hawks.” The number six hero didn’t sound too impressed, nonetheless, she answered the call within seconds.
“C’mon, you don’t wanna hang out with me?” The winged hero faked the hurt in his tone.
The blond could hear Miruko’s heavy sigh on the other side of the line, “Let me guess, KFC in five?”
Hawks laughed in response, “Yep! You know me!”
“Jeez, that’s not healthy, ya know? Do you eat anything other than fried chicken? That’s a little concerning.” Rumi complained. It was true, Keigo’s diet did often consist of chicken--he didn’t consider it cannibalism, of course.
“But I really wanna talk to you! I’m not completely shallow…” Hawks didn’t lie, although KFC was a complete bonus, the number three hero really wanted to vent to his friend, and it was always hard to spend some free time with Rumi with all his damn hero work.
“Fine.” The rabbit hero eventually complied. “Only cause I care for you, got that?”
“You’re a blessing, babe!” Hawks cheered into the phone.
“Don’t forget it.” And with that, the line went dead and the call ended. Keigo was in a better mood already.
The bird happily munched on his crispy chicken leg, humming to himself as Rumi stared at him incredulously. Eventually, Keigo caught her questioning glance.
“What?” The blond put his food down for a second, maybe I should talk more and eat less...
“How was your patrol?”
Hawks let out a long sigh and leaned back in his seat, “Boring, I was hungry the entire time, you?”
Rumi rolled her eyes, “Mine wasn’t any better. Endeavour’s sidekicks were a pain in the ass, running around like headless chickens, getting in the way of my work,” She huffed, “I swear, that flaming idiot should learn to control his agency when he’s gone.”
“Aw! Don’t be so harsh on the Number 2! I’m sure it’s not his fault his sidekicks got in your way today! Being second only to All might means he must have a lot on his plate!” Hawks responded quickly. Endeavour couldn’t be held accountable for his agency when he was away, right?
Rumi frowned. “I don’t know why you protect him,” The rabbit hero crossed her arms. “He’s not a good man. Not even Ms. Joke could crack a smile out of him.”
“Okay so he may not be the friendliest dude ever, but he’s a super cool hero! He’s like the entire reason I got into this business!” The winged hero gushed. The Number 2 was his idol, after all, of course, he’d defend him.
“Fanboy much?”
Hawks took another bite of his delicious chicken, “Yep!” He agreed proudly.
At that moment the blond felt a buzz in his pocket, taking a break from his lunch, he reached for his pocket. It was his phone, obviously. Keigo hoped Touya had finally texted him. He knit his brows as he realized it was a notification from the HPSC, not Touya. Hawks decidedly ignored it and realized the time.
Wait, it’s half-past twelve? He thought to himself Seriously, why hasn’t Touya talked to me? Is he mad?
Hawks clicked on Touya’s contact and chose to check upon him.
Yesterday 11:25 pm
Me: Goodnight! <3
Touya: Night.
Touya: <3
Today 12: 32 pm
Me: Hey
Me: Are you okay?
Me: Hello? Touya?
Keigo glumly stared at his screen with no response from his boyfriend, all his messages left unread. That certainly was out of character for him. They’d always text each other, in the morning and at noon at the very least. This was the first time that Touya had been reply-less.
Hawks wanted to press the issue further and continue texting Touya but feared coming off as an annoyingly paranoid boyfriend. For all, he knows Touya could’ve been in the shower….for five hours…
“What’s wrong, bird boy?” Rumi questioned, noticing her friend's absence from the conversation and his intense glare directed to his phone. “Who’re you texting?”
Hawks sighed, there was no point in hiding his relationship status with his best friend. Especially since he was concerned about Touya and he needed to vent. “It’s just...my boyfriend...he hasn’t talked to me today.”
Immediately the bunny hero spits her drink out in pure shock, chunks of her carrot smoothie landing everywhere. “What? boyfriend?” She composed herself, crossing her arms. “Here I thought you were the ultimate bachelor-playboy!”
Keigo rolled his eyes, “That’s just what the Commission wants the public to believe.” He put his fingers up as if to quote something, “Another aspect of being the ‘perfect hero.’ and everything”
“And you never bothered to tell me you were tied down?” Rumi accused, “I’m like your closest friend!”
“He’s just a very secretive person,” Hawks retorted. “Neither of us wanted to tell anyone about our relationship, me being the Number 5 and all…”
.
Miruko leaned her body forward and propped her elbows on the table, “Okay, but now you have to spill the tea to me. So what’s he like?” The rabbit hero prodded.
The winged hero’s face became flushed. “Look, Rumi, let’s focus on the important stuff! He hasn’t responded to any of my texts! He’s gone MIA!”
Rumi sighed. “Clingy much? Maybe the guy’s busy, ya never know.”
“I’m not clingy!” Hawks sputtered, “We text each other every day, when we wake up, in the afternoon and at night! I’ve gotten nothing from him today!” Hearing those words coming out of his own mouth made the blond more worried than before if reality wasn’t setting in on him before it was now.
“God you two sound disgusting.”
“I’m in love, Rumi! I know it’s only been like a year but I can’t help but be hung up on this,” Hawks frowned. “I’m super concerned.”
“It’s gonna be alright, birdie,” The bunny hero soothed, using the nickname Touya had for him brought some comfort, “Why not try and call him?”
“Right now?”
Miruko nodded. “Can’t hurt, right?”
“Okay.” Hawks nodded, pressing the call button firmly.
It rang once, then a couple, then a few times. Keigo’s anxiety grows with every ring, Touya has never missed a call either.
The ringing finally ceased, This is Touya. Please leave a message. And then there was a loud beep.
Hearing Touya’s voice made Hawks’ panic worsen, he didn’t even know he longed to hear it till now. His heart sunk at the fact that his boyfriend didn’t pick up.
“Should I leave a message?” Hawks mouthed to Rumi, who furiously nodded.
“Uh, hi! Can you call me back the second you get this? I’m really worried! Hope you’re alright! K, love you, bye.” He ended his message and put his phone away, letting out the breath he was holding.
“Maybe round two of some Kentucky Fried Chicken will make you feel better? Or yakitori?” Rumi offered, noticing the upset within her friend. The rabbit hero herself had never witnessed Hawk’s care for someone as much till now, and it obviously hurt her to see her best friend hurting.
Keigo’s eyes lit up for a second before his shoulders slumped. “Ugh. I can’t. I gotta go and drop off something at Endeavour’s agency before my break ends.”
Rumi stared at him, “Eh? Why? His agency is so far from here, why’d you need to go there anyway?”
“Ah, the commission wants to team up with the Number 2 hero of course! So I have some business to attend to today, nothing with the big man himself of course since he’s away, but just boring paperwork n’ stuff.”
“Wow, I bet you're so happy with that arrangement.” Miruko feigned the excitement in her voice. “Get to work with the flaming bitch himself.”
Ignoring his friend’s sarcastic tone and insult, Hawk replied happily, “Yep! And I bet you're jealous!” He winked. “Now I gotta fly, catch ya later!”
“And how do you plan on flying?” She retorted. “You got nothing but baby wings, bird for brains.”
“Eh?” After Hawks got up from his seat he spun around and sure enough, all his primary feathers were completely missing. “I must’ve forgotten...heh...guess I got carried away on patrol…”
Rumi chuckled. “Well, good luck getting all the way there!”
So it did take him a while to travel without the use of his wings, Hawks had to admit. It would’ve been a lot faster if Keigo was smart and still had enough feathers, alas he’s not and he didn’t. Instead, it took him three hours just to find the right prefecture. He had no clue how hard it was to navigate Japan from the ground and not from the view of the clouds.
“I feel bad for people who don’t have wings all the time…” Hawks muttered to himself as he felt a vibration in his pants pocket.
Hawks sighed, expecting another notification from the HPSC, yet he was pleasantly shocked by Touya’s contact name. Without a second thought, the blond opened his phone, furiously checking the message.
Today 3: 45 pm
Touya: 303-1208, Minoshima
Keigo frowned. An address? Why hadn’t he said anything more? Keigo has been so worried about him all day! The blond suddenly stopped in his tracks.--wait--could Touya be in danger?? Sending a location could be a sign of distress!
Without another thought, the winged hero turned away from the direction of Endeavour’s agency and straight towards the given address. It’s not too far from here.
Hawks really cursed himself for not having his wings in this situation. If his wings were still intact he’d fly over to Touya no problem, but with just his legs he could only hope he’d make it fast enough. With an ominous message like that coming from his boyfriend the winged hero could only assume he was in trouble. It explains his absence during the day.
Hold on, Touya. I’m on my way.
The area in which the address was located was a quiet one. When Keigo arrived he was alone, and he took a look around. The place was a part of the town the hero hadn’t been to before. The text led him to what seemed like an abandoned parking lot, surrounded by shady alleyways.
Why would Touya want to meet me here? Hawks shuddered. He had a bad feeling about the meetup. Is he even here?
Something moved in the corner of his vision, Keigo turned his head and spotted a figure emerging from the shadows. He hoped it was Touya, but what he was not expecting was a meek young woman to approach him. She seemed distraught, her hair messy and her face and clothes covered in ash.
The girl stepped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.
The words that came out of her mouth was something Hawks never could’ve expected.
“Are you Keigo Takami?”