Love Denied

Chapter Nine: Burden

The heavy rain came down on Asaka. It had been cloudy all day and, in the evening, it had finally started pouring down heavily. Like a much needed, refreshing bath, it splashed down the whole city, bringing down the temperature and making the air feel fresh and cool. Thunder echoed throughout the sky. It wasn't loud or scary. Just an ominous rumble that highlighted not just the current atmospheric conditions, but the psychological conditions of a certain hero.

As she looked out to the city from her balcony, Uraraka felt she could relate to the weather. It somehow portrayed her current mental state. Muddled, gloomy and wild. So many conflicting thoughts going through her head. Was she supposed to feel happy that she found Deku? Or sad about the fact that he had become a vigilante? What will she tell him when she finally gets to talk to him? Will he hate her? Or smile at her?

The gravity hero looked up to the sky as she took a deep breath. She had waited for this for so long, but now she didn't even know how to feel or what to think. Uraraka visualized this moment before. When she daydreamed of the day, she would find Deku. She imagined running into him at a café or restaurant. Or maybe at some park or hero convention. They would talk, she would apologize, he would forgive her. Then, they'll talk some more, laugh, smile at each other, catch up in later meetings and then... maybe, even go out on a date.

Needless to say, things didn't turn out like that. Oh no, not by a long shot. She and her boss were in Asaka, tasked with capturing a seemingly unstoppable vigilante, and in some cruel twist of fate, that vigilante turned out to be Deku. That, she still had a hard time believing. I mean, seriously, what are the chances of something like that happening? Pretty high, according to the universe.

After the fight to capture Darkmask or more appropriately, Deku, she had stayed around talking with detective Daiki and Ryukyu. They explained the timeline of events leading to the fight and how things had gone down. After some paperwork and some more talks at the agency, she had gone home. There would be no talking with Deku until the next day at the earliest if he got released from the hospital.

Uraraka's thoughts were interrupted by her phone chiming with a text. She unlocked her screen to see a text from Sai. "Hey, I'm at your front door 😊"

The brown-haired girl's eyebrows went up in surprise as she blinked a few times. Sai was at her place? Why? They didn't plan anything for that day. Oh well, she didn't have anything to do so she guessed a little chit chat wouldn't hurt.

The gravity hero made her way to her front door and looked through the peephole to make sure it was her friend. Before opening the door, she checked what she was wearing to make sure it was ok. Deciding that her current blue pajama shirt and shorts with yellow stars were ok, she opened the door. "Sai? What are you doing here?"

The telekinesis hero was wearing khaki shorts with black high tops, a plain white t-shirt covered with a black jacket. She also had a folded umbrella, since the weather called for it. The blond girl gave her a hesitant smile, "hey, Uraraka. Sorry for just showing up without asking, but honestly I didn't think this was the best time for you to be alone."

After a second of silence, Uraraka gave her a small chuckle, shaking her head slightly, "I'm okay, Sai, really."

Sai twisted her mouth in doubt, "Oh, come on, boss. A little company won't hurt." She then lifted the plastic bags she was holding, "I even brought dinner and your favorite drink." She said with a wide smile while pulling the wine bottle out of the bag.

The gravity hero laughed a little. Sure, she was feeling down because of everything that had happened, but Sai was right. She sure needed a little company and if said company brought a nice bottle of wine, then even better. "Yeah, I guess you're right. A little company won't hurt."