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When Hitoshi woke up the next morning, it was to the sight of your sleeping face. As the night’s events came rushing back to him, he felt his cheeks burn, but he couldn’t stop the smile tugging at his lips. Even with your tangled hair and drool pooling in the corner of your lips, you still looked so beautiful to him. There was just something so endearing about the sight of you laying there in the morning light coming through the blinds.
Your eyes fluttered open, and you blinked blurrily at him before a slow smile slid across your face. Hitoshi swore his heart had stopped when you murmured, “Mornin’, Toshi.”
He expected you to pull away from him now that you were awake, but you didn’t. Instead, you squeezed his waist gently and snuggled closer to him. “D’you sleep well?”
Hitoshi felt too embarrassed to admit that it was the best sleep he’d had in years, so he merely buried his face in your hair and nodded. You smiled, nails scratching absentmindedly along his hip where his shirt had ridden up. Hitoshi shivered in your arms, completely unaccustomed to such a light and kind touch.
“Cold?”
He shook his head. “Just not used to being touched like this…” He murmured shyly.
You tensed. “I didn’t make you uncomfortable, did I?”
“No!” He squeezed you tighter when you tried to move away, holding you against his body. “It’s not bad! I…” Hitoshi swallowed dryly. “I like it.”
“Oh.” After a second, you relaxed into him again, your fingers resuming their scratching motions, but this time, you dragged them higher, pushing his shirt up further. You ran your fingertips up his side and traced his ribs as you brought them down again.
Hitoshi gasped softly, digging his face into the pillow to muffle it. You didn’t let on that you had heard it, not wanting to embarrass the boy further. You knew Hitoshi found it difficult to talk about how he felt, so you were content to shower him with affection while he relaxed. After all, isn’t that what you do for the people you love?
Yes, love. You had realized that your feelings for Hitoshi weren’t exactly platonic back in second year, but it wasn’t until the two of you kissed for the first time that you realized your simple crush had turned to so much more. Even so, you had no intention of telling him. Hitoshi had told you a few days after his breakup that he was going to focus on his hero training rather than waste time on things like romance. Hearing that had hurt, but you figured over time, you could learn to be content with just being friends. The last thing you wanted was to lose Hitoshi. So, you locked up your feelings and swore you would never tell him. You would focus on your hero career, as well, and keep moving forward. Even when it hurt.
Hitoshi did eventually leave your room after making sure no one else was around to get the wrong idea. When he got to his room, he changed clothes and, after debating it for almost ten minutes, slid the hoodie you had given him over his head. It smelled like (favorite scent), just like you. Hitoshi wondered if it was the type of detergent you used or if it was just your natural scent. He shook the thought from his head and decided to go downstairs for some coffee.
Hitoshi had barely made it a few feet into the common room before Uraraka noticed him. She waved at him from where she sat next to Tsuyu on the couch.
“Good morning, Shinsou! There’s coffee in the kitchen if you want some!” She called happily.
Hitoshi nodded and offered her a grateful smile. “Thanks.” He was about to go into the kitchen when Uraraka stopped him again.
“Wait…Isn’t that Y/n’s hoodie?”
Hitoshi looked down at his shirt and blushed. “Y-You must be misremembering.”
“No way, I remember them showing it to me!” Uraraka argued. “Wait, are you two finally together?!”
“No, we ar-!” He paused. “What do you mean ‘finally’ ?”
Uraraka shared a glance with Tsuyu, who answered him instead. “Um, it’s kind of obvious you guys like each other, ribbit.”
“Obviou- Since when?!”
“Since, like, second year.” Uraraka snorted. “Gods, I never knew you were that oblivious.” She teased.
“Sh-Shut up!” Hitoshi snapped indignantly before stomping into the kitchen.
Was all of that really true? Had he seriously been the only person that didn’t realize he was in love with you?
Hitoshi covered his burning face and groaned loudly. He was an idiot.
It was a cool Saturday morning. The sky was blue and cloudless. The sun was shining. Birds sang quietly from the trees. It was a picture perfect day, but Hitoshi couldn’t enjoy it.
Why?
Because he was currently preoccupied with emptying the contents of his stomach into the toilet bowl. He distantly recognized the creak of the bathroom door before cool hands were carding through his hair, brushing it away from his face.
Fuck, that’s right. You had fallen asleep in his room last night while watching a movie together. His mad dash for the bathroom must have woken you up.
You fiddled with his hair for a few seconds, and he slowly realized you were tying it back in a ponytail. Once you were finished with that, you crouched down beside him and began to rub his back soothingly.
“Don’t look at me…” Hitoshi groaned embarrassedly. “I look disgusting…”
“Most people don’t look all that great when they’re puking their guts out.” You pointed out, earning a weak glare from the violet haired boy. “I knew what I was signing up for when I came in here.”
His protests were cut off as another wave of nausea hit him. He retched and gagged, tears dripping down his cheeks. All the while, you continued to rub his back in steady circles. It helped more than he wanted to admit. Something about the calming, repetitive motion kept him grounded.
Once he had gone a full five minutes without throwing up again, he leaned back. He wouldn’t meet your eyes, clearly still embarrassed, but you didn’t mind. You flushed the toilet and got up, holding out your hands to help him to his feet.
You led him over to the sink and turned on the water. “Figured you would want to rinse your mouth out.”
While he did that, you grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste from the cup on the counter and squeezed some toothpaste onto the brush. Hitoshi spit out the water, and you handed the toothbrush to him.
“Thanks.” He rasped, throat still raw.
You simply smiled and walked over to the cabinet, returning to his side with a rag. You wetted it in the sink and squeezed out the excess water while Hitoshi brushed his teeth.
“I’m gonna shower. I feel like I’m soaking in sweat.”
“Okay. I’m gonna stop by my room, and I’ll be right back.”
He nodded, and you retreated back into his bedroom. You laid the rag on his nightstand for now and walked back upstairs to your room. You took some DayQuil pills from your bathroom drawer and slid them into your pocket. Then, you grabbed a few of the extra blankets from your closet, a change of sheets, a few pillows from your bed, and the little, gray, cat plushie you had won at a street fair last weekend.
Several people gave you strange looks as you trudged back down the stairs, sight almost completely obscured by the mountain of stuff in your arms.
“What are you doing?” Mina asked as she passed you.
You glanced back at her. “Oh, Hitoshi is sick, so I’m trying to help out.”
“By drowning him in blankets?”
“You can never have too many blankets.”
Mina laughed at your deadpan response and patted you on the back. “Well, good luck. Hope he feels better soon.”
“Thanks, Mina.”
When you got back to Hitoshi’s room, you set about stripping the sheets and blanket off his bed. You figured it would be better to wash them than let him continue sleeping in them. You changed the sheets and carried his bedding down to the laundry room. You managed to fit all of it in one washing machine, much to your appreciation, and soon, they were being rolled around as the washing machine started up. You snagged a few bottles of water from the fridge in the kitchen, as well as a few snacks. Your calves started to burn as you ascended three flights of stairs for the third time that day. Man, inclined walks never got easier, did they?
When you opened the door to Hitoshi’s room, you found him standing in the center of the room, just staring at the mass of blankets and pillows on his bed.
He turned to you. “Did you do all of this?”
“Yeah? Is it too much?”
Hitoshi shook his head. “No, it just…surprised me, I guess? You could’ve just done nothing, but you…did everything instead.”
You were having a bit of trouble deciphering if that was a compliment or not. You assumed it was, though, when Hitoshi walked over and plopped himself in the middle of the bed, pulling the cat plushie into his lap. He petted its felt ears, and your heart warmed at the sight. He was so endearing.
“Lay down.”
Hitoshi didn’t argue as he laid back against the pillows. You grabbed the damp rag from his nightstand and sat down on the edge of the bed, placing it on his forehead. “Better?”
His eyelids drooped as he nodded. Now that he was comfortable and laying down, he was getting sleepy again.
“Hey, don’t fall asleep on me yet, Toshi. You still need to take some medicine.”
You pulled the bottle from your pocket and dumped one of the pills into your palm, handing it and a bottle of water to Hitoshi, who took it gratefully. Once that was done, he settled down again and, soon, fell asleep.
Hitoshi woke up several hours later to find that you had dragged his desk chair over to his bed. You had your cheek resting against your arms on the edge of his bed. Despite the awkward position, you were sleeping peacefully. He noticed a sandwich and a note on his nightstand. He picked up the green, sticky note, smiling when he read the words you had scrawled across it.
Hey Toshi, here’s some food if you’re feeling less nauseous now. Don’t forget to take some more medicine after you eat.
Hitoshi lovingly combed his fingers through your hair, his heart flipping when you smiled contently, leaning into the touch in your sleep. Really, Hitoshi didn’t think he could’ve found a better person to fall in love with.
There was one disadvantage of realizing he was in love with his best friend, and that was the fact that he frequently kissed said best friend. Don’t misunderstand. He liked kissing you. Gods, he really liked kissing you. The problem was that, now, he turned into a nervous wreck every time. It was like he just forgot how to function every time you were close to him, which was incredibly inconvenient in this moment, considering you had him pinned between your bedroom wall and your body. The worst part was that it was his own damn fault. He was the one that had asked how to french kiss someone. I mean, he knew how, in theory , just not realistically.
“A good place to start is with a regular kiss.” You explained, pressing a soft peck to his lips.
Okay, that was simple, familiar. Hitoshi could handle that.
The two of you continued kissing like that for a few minutes, until you bit Hitoshi’s bottom lip and squeezed his hips firmly, drawing a startled gasp from the violet haired boy. You took the opportunity to slide your tongue into his mouth. He clamped his eyes shut, shivering at the wet heat invading his mouth. The hands resting on your shoulders shifted as he curled his arms around your neck and tugged you closer.
Hitoshi had kissed people before, but it never felt like this. Maybe his problem wasn’t that he was a bad kisser. It was that he hadn’t wanted to kiss anyone before. Hell, the only reason he had kissed his ex was because they had complained that he hadn’t done it yet. He had felt obligated to.
Kissing you was different because Hitoshi wanted to kiss you. It made his heart race and his hands sweat. It was the kind of thing he had always imagined kissing would be like only to be disappointed when it had left him feeling…empty. But this, the kisses he shared with you, wasn’t empty. On the contrary, it made him feel full. Full of warmth, full of life, full of love .
Overwhelmed by the strength of his own feelings, Hitoshi whispered against your lips, “I love you.”
His eyes snapped open seconds after the impromptu confession. He tried to push you away, to explain, but you only held him tighter. You sealed his lips with another kiss before smiling against his mouth. “I love you too.”
“Y-You- huh?”
“I love you too.” You repeated, leaning back enough for him to see the sincere happiness in your expression.
A blush bloomed like roses on Hitoshi’s cheeks, a smile as bright as sunshine painting his lips. You grinned back at him, strawberry cheeks and a cotton candy smile, so open and sweet.
“Can I take you somewhere? Like…Like a date?”
You giggled at the clumsy proposition. “I think I can free up some time for you.”
“Yeah?” Hitoshi asked breathlessly.
“Yeah.” You agreed, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek. “I’d like that.”