8 Bit Glitch

Part 19~Water and Electricity Still Does Not Mix

Groaning, I collapsed on the ground in front of Aizawa and the wild, wild pussycats. "I'm dead!" Kaminari wasn't in a much better state, his brain had stopped functioning about a mile ago.

"Oh, there you are! We were starting to get worried," Mina exclaimed as I groaned.

"Who the fuck throws a kid with known heart problems, off a cliff to be attacked by the muddy beast from hell?!" Katsuki chuckled a little, pulling me off the floor. "I can't feel anything! I think I'm having another heart attack! I'll be dead and it'll be all your fault!" I pointed an accusing finger at Aizawa who didn't seem very impressed.

Katsuki pulled me onto the bench, hitting my arm. "I'm sure you'll be fine."

"No, I won't be!" I could barely keep my head up as Katsuki shook his head.

"Eat. It'll help you recover." Katsuki forced a fork into my hand, making me grumble.

"I get no sympathy."

"Nope. I've been dealing with your shit too long for me to see it as any less than that."

The class seemed to find Katsuki's comment funny as they laughed. With the little energy I had left, I zapped Sero's shoulder causing him to yelp in pain. Now that was funny.

Slowly, Kaminari regained his normal brain function and joined us in eating. He let me lean on his shoulder, taking the time to feed me small pieces that he thought I would like. Personally, I would prefer to sleep but clearly, Aizawa didn't like me.

~~~

I just want to sleep. Glaring, I stayed as far away from the bath as possible. Kaminari tilted his head in confusion, kneeling beside me. "Don't tell me you're afraid of water."

"Of course not!"

"That's right, I forgot that you were afraid of water," Mineta claimed as I hissed at him.

Kaminari tilted his head, a glint of hurt in his eyes. "You knew?"

"Well yeah. I was with Midoriya when he landed in the flood zone. He was pretty freaked out the whole time." Mineta chuckled, striking a pose. "Naturally, I was totally calm during the whole event."

"Lier!" Kicking, Mineta into the far wall, I huffed.

"Woah, that must have been awful. I would have no idea what I would do when I have to deal with both villains and my greatest fear," Kaminari stated, sitting beside me.

"I didn't really do anything. Tsu was the one who saved us. Thanks for that again!" I raised my voice at the end, hearing Tsu shout a 'your welcome, kero' back. "You should enjoy the bath, I'll have a shower later."

Kaminari looked conflicted before standing. I sighed a little. A small part of me had hoped he would stay. "You're coming too." Kaminari held out his hand as I shook my head.

"No! No way! I'm not going near that death puddle!"

Kaminari chuckled, taking my wrist and pulling me up. "Don't worry. I'll be there the whole time and I'm not expecting you to do everything the first time but this phobia will hold you back. Just dip your feet in to start with." Kaminari jumped into the water causing me to flinch.

It looked so deep. I know realistically it really wasn't and even if I did get in, it would probably only go to my thighs but that didn't help me right now. Kaminari held out his hands, letting me interlock out fingers. I reluctantly sat beside the bath. I could see Katsuki watching me out the corner of my eyes and I could tell he was getting ready to intervene should something go wrong. Logically, nothing could go wrong but... It just looked so deep, like it was going to swallow me whole.

"Hey, it's alright. I'm here." Kaminari rubbed the back of my hands as I let out a sigh. Slowly, painfully slowly, I lowered my leg, flinching when I felt the cold liquid. My breathing sped up, no! I couldn't do this. "Izuku! Look at me. it's alright."

Kaminari's eyes held so much trust and belief. He believed I could do this. Taking a deep breath, I let my other foot go into the water. Kaminari cheered excitedly as I shook my head. "Can I get out now?" Kaminari nodded, babbling about how he was proud of me. I still didn't like water but I made sure to stay close so I could watch Kaminari.

Yawning, I leaned against my arms, my eyes catching a glimpse of someone on the divide between the two baths. He seemed to be on the lookout, good for him.

"Oi, Pikachu, I think you should take Dekiru back." Katsuki hit Kaminari on the back of his head as he turned to look at me. I didn't want to cut off his fun but at this point, I was too tired to argue.

"Come on Izuku, let's get you that sleep you promised." Kaminari helped me up as I nodded tiredly. Kaminari led me to the sleeping room thing. He let me pull out my clothes, getting changed before I collapsed to the floor. He chuckled, lying beside me and brushing some of my hair out of my eyes. "You should take better care of yourself."

"It's not like I intend to stay awake that long."

"I know. Just get some sleep. Sweet dreams Izuku." Kaminari gave a kiss to my forehead as I wrapped my arms around him. As I fell asleep, I missed the saddened expression on Kaminari's face. One full of regret and guilt. "Don't worry Izuku, I'll protect you. I'll give you the life you deserve."

~~~

By the time morning came, the clear benefits of sleeping two hours before everyone else was showing. This was the most rested I've felt in a good while, possibly since the USJ incident. Kaminari seemed glad that I was more awake now. He swung our hands back and forth, almost as if reassuring himself I was here. Aizawa led us through the forest and into the clearing.

Aizawa wanted me to throw a ball with my Quirk. Exactly like the apprehension test. I flicked on my power pack, letting Ukon take over. Ukon seemed more than glad to test against himself, blasting the ball into the sky. Aizawa held up the score as Ukon gasped. 1235.8 meters, barely a few centimetres better than last time. Ukon grumbled, throwing his launcher down as I turned off my power pack.

Aizawa wanted us to improve the base power of our Quirks. Oh, my poor heart is not going to survive by the end of this. So much for cutting down on heart attacks.