My Escape || Todomomo

Chapter Twenty-Eight ☆

The familiar sound of rumbling cars on the streets and distant laughter filled Momo's ears as she and Uraraka headed to a park after school. Momo tried to cling to these moments where she could relax with her friend, for they were few and far between because of her home situation and their hero work.

It had been close to three weeks since Momo had spent the night at Shouto's house, something she will never not be grateful for. That one night away from the tension under her own roof was one of the most soothing experiences. Though unfortunately, it may not happen again. She knew that Shouto would be more than willing to have her over again, though she would never go out of her way to ask.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Ochaco's voice pulled Momo from her own mind and she realized that she had been yawning. She let out a sigh and glanced at her friend wearily.

"Not really, no." she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand as if trying to push energy back into them. She had stayed up considerably later than normal for two reasons; one being that she was researching the recent surge in villain sightings, and the other being her parents back and forth screaming until the early hours of the morning.

She felt frustration rise up in her chest. I'm supposed to be a hero. She thought pitifully. If getting a little less sleep at night messes me up this much, I'll never make it. 

Momo narrowed her eyes. No, that won't do. She straightened her back and took a deep breath, shaking her head slightly. Heroes don't pity themselves. They use setbacks as ways to motivate themselves to do better. Turning self-doubt into motivation was arguably one of the most difficult things to do, but Momo was determined. 

"It's alright, though." she cast a cheerful smile at Ochaco and shrugged. Through her façade of sudden motivation, she wondered if her observant friend could detect just how much he feared her own failure as Pro Hero. "I'll be okay after I rest up a little."

Uraraka's expression brightened. "That's good to hear, I can't have you falling asleep on me in the middle of a mission! Speaking of which..." her smile melted away into something much more serious, and she glanced down at the ground as they walked. "Aizawa seemed pretty concerned about how many villains were suddenly being spotted lately. You don't think they're planning anything, do you?"

A sudden breeze blew past them, and Momo clenched her jaw as she remembered the night she and Shouto encountered those villains. She vividly remembered the feeling of her blood running cold as she made eye contact with the man covered in purple stitches. Her mind wandered back to when his arms were caged around her, making her unable to move, and she shook her head wildly to try and chase the thought away.

"Who knows." keeping her voice from shaking was harder than he anticipated, but thankfully Ochaco didn't seem to sense that anything was off. "Whatever's going on is obviously putting the Pros on edge, and that's what's making me nervous." 

The afternoon air was chilly, and Momo shivered as she pulled her school uniform blazer tighter around her. "If they think we're going to be in more battles, that means we'll have to start training harder than ever." she groaned. The brutal training regiment Aizawa had his students on was already making her muscles feel like lead, and she couldn't imagine doing anything more strenuous. 

Ochaco nodded in response. "You know," she glanced sideways at Momo and tilted her head mischievously. "You could just ask your boyfriend if his big shot, Pro Hero father has any more information on the villains."

Momo snorted. "Yeah right. He's not my boyfriend, and I'm not pushing him to ask his father anything. And besides," She kicked a stray pebble and watched as it bounced a few paces away. "Even if he did ask, I doubt Endeavor would tell him anything worthwhile."

"It's worth a try, don't you think?"

_____

Later that evening, Momo was sitting at her desk, her chin resting in her hand as she scrolled through news reports from the last few weeks. It was one of the few times both her parents were out of the house and she got just a few moments of peace and quiet. 

MULTIPLE VILLAIN SIGHTINGS AROUND TOKYO - HEROES GIVING LITTLE TO NO INFORMATION.

Momo narrowed her eyes. They must really be nervous. she pondered. If this were any other day, they'd be constantly reassuring civilians. 

She clicked on a link from as recent as yesterday morning and shifted in her seat as she began to read.

PAWNSHOP RAIDED BY VILLAINS OVERNIGHT - 6 CASUALTIES

A small pawnshop tucked away in the outskirts of the city was broken into by multiple villains. There were six people in the shop when it happened, and only two survivors. The shop was completely destroyed, and the four victims who died were all burnt to the point where they could not be identified. Parademics on the scene said their bodies seem to disintegrate when touched. 

The two survivors were used as witnesses, and said the last thing they saw before going unconscious is an 'aura of blue surrounding them'. When brought to the attention of the Pro Heroes, a few seemed familiar with this statement but refused to elaborate. Could our own Pros be withholding information from us? And if so, why?

Momo let out a groan of frustration and pressed her head into her hands. She knew that villain. She saw him with her own eyes. She felt his scorching touch on her skin. So why was everybody keeping quiet about it?

Endeavor knows him. Momo thought. She took in a shaky breath and leaned back in her chair, gazing up at her ceiling. He knows and he won't say anything. Does Shouto know? Has Shouto asked Endeavor about it already? Maybe I could... No, I won't make him do that. As desperate as she was to learn more about the villain sightings, she wouldn't make Shouto interact with Endeavor longer than he has to.

This whole situation was making her overthink far too much. Momo stood up from her chair and stretched her arms, trying to clear her mind as best as she could. When I see Shouto at school tomorrow I'll ask him what he thinks.

She quickly shut off her computer and ran a brush through her hair before falling into her bed. Falling asleep before her parent's car pulled in and the fighting started was a rare blessing, something that Momo was granted tonight.

________

A/N: hey! it's been a while, huh? :') i'm so sorry I went so long without an update. this past year has just been absolutely insane, and I barely even recognize the person I was when I first started this story. I couldn't be more different than I was back then. Not to say that's a bad thing, but I'm very different now. This is the first time I've written anything in nearly a year, and I'm sure it shows, so please bear with me while I get familiar with it again.

That being said, here's a few new things about me: Tokyo ghoul has recently captured my heart as my favorite anime/manga right behind Fullmetal alchemist. I have to admit I'm not as invested in MHA as I was a year ago, so I have a few things to catch up on. Feel free to correct me or give tips on how to improve! 

and as much as I love him, and always will, todoroki is not my #1 character anymore :') juuzou suzuya from tokyo ghoul captured that spot months ago. i would LOVE to write about him eventually, but I don't know when that'll happen or if it'll happen at all. For now I'm trying my hardest to focus on this story and to keep updating it for you guys.

I checked it today and realized it has nearly 100k reads. That completely blows my mind and brought me to tears almost immediately. thank you so, so, so much from the bottom of my heart. i love you guys so much and i'm so happy you stuck with this story for so long.

look out for the next chapter hopefully coming soon! <3