pandora's box [bakudeku/tododeku] [pt.1 of where's my love fic series]

the great pretender

summary: it's the first day of classes for izuku's last year of middle school! his day is full of surprises, making him think that this just might be the year that something finally changes.

he isn't wrong.

notes: this chapter's song: "the great pretender" by the platters. again, any underlining means a strikeout since this horrid app doesn't have the strikethrough option.

warnings: anxiety, anxiety attacks, bullying, homophobia, child abuse, some violence, mentions of nightmares.

"we'll meet soon, izuku. keep your eyes open, there are a lot of things that you don't know."

a blinding, white light glows, clouding izuku's vision, making him lose sight of the dark room.

izuku gasps awake, jolting up in his bed. his green eyes are wide and full of fear, his chest heaving as his breaths come out ragged. his hands clench his bed sheets tightly, turning his knuckles white from his tight grip on the sheets. what...what was that?

ignoring the cold sweat dripping down his face, izuku tries to calm down, blinking away the tears gathering in his eyes. that was awful, he frowns, sniffling as he tugs one of his all might plushies to his chest, hugging it tightly.

i hated every second of that. izuku takes deep breaths as he thinks back to his nightmare, remembering the burning sensations all over his skin. it had felt so real, the burning feeling eating at his skin as if it were actually happening to him. even now, as he sits in bed, he can almost feel the remains of the painful stinging on his chest. he glances around his dark room, suddenly feeling like he's being watched. he shakes the feeling off, deciding to ignore it. i'm just shaken from the dream, that's all.

stealing a quick glance at his alarm clock, he realizes he woke up two hours before his alarm even rang. a glance to his window confirms the early hour, the sky still dark. great, i woke up too early.

with a groan, izuku reluctantly gets up from his bed, rubbing his eyes sleepily. recently, his nightmares had started becoming frequent, having one nearly every night. as he got older, his dreams - or nightmares - had gotten more intense, izuku often waking up screaming in the middle of the night. he often felt like he had spent hours in his dreams, sometimes begging on his knees to have the horrifying dream end. however, the kind voice had also gotten clearer as he got older, but it never responded to izuku's calls or questions, seemingly acting on its own.

sighing, izuku takes off his all might hoodie from katsuki along with his shorts, changing into his black school uniform. he had ordered a bigger size for his uniform, wanting to keep a scrawny look. due to hisashi's training, izuku had gained a bit of muscle in his arms (not too much!) and had an overall more fit body. he continues changing, grabbing the black shoes issued by the school and placing them by his door. he then quickly makes his bed, knowing fully well that he won't be able go back to sleep.

after finishing getting ready for the day, izuku dumps new notebooks, pencils, and other school supplies as well as a first-aid kit inside his yellow backpack. he had long since learned to always carry a first aid kit, having had many altercations with bullies in the past. he puts a bandaid on his cheek, covering the small injury he had received from skating with hanta the day before.

at the thought of the tall, skater boy, izuku smiles. he found out that the boy's name was hanta sero and went to a middle school a few districts over. he had come across the skatepark after leaving his mom and little sister at the mall to shop, not really wanting to drag behind his family while they shopped for hours.