Nonchalant

Chapter 5

Izuku didn't like how his mother immediately acted like he existed in front of Mitsuki and her son. But a part of him was glad that his mother acknowledged him for once, even if it was forced.

"Where were you, Izuku? You kept Mitsuki and Katsuki waiting!" Inko waved him over to the dining table. Izuku bowed politely to the guests. Bakugo scoffed and looked away, earning a smack on the head from his mother.

"I'm sorry, I was out." Izuku replied, taking a seat. 

Mitsuki and Inko started talking about random things. Izuku and Bakugo just looked away and said nothing. 

What could he say to his bully?

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After what seemed like forever, Mitsuki and Katsuki finally left.

Izuku retreated to his room in the blink of an eye.

God, he hated socializing. Most people loved to laugh at his quirkless status and he was afraid other people would do the same.

But isn't everyone worried about that?

He turned on his phone and checked it time. It was only ten. Maybe he could try falling off another building again. At this point, Izuku didn't think twice when he put his foot over the edge or when he laid the blade against his wrist.

Yeah, that was a great idea.

Izuku pulled up the next location and read the directions. Fifteen minutes from home, twelve minutes if he went through a shortcut. 

He slipped out of the house and set out, turning and entering the shortcut as displayed on the map.

It was a dark alleyway, eerie and creepy in the dark. Izuku made his way over the piles of trash and random boxes lying around. Izuku heard the hoots of an owl a few times, but didn't bother.

Why was the owl getting closer?

In a flash, a figure appeared before him, tall and dark. It had bright golden eyes, and feathers lined his hands.

Did he have an owl quirk?

The figure smirked and pulled out a gun, aiming for his face.

"That's a pretty phone you have there, kid. Hand over all your valuables or I'll shoot!"

Izuku didn't need to be told twice. He shoved the phone into the man's empty hand and pointed at the gun. "Do you mind shooting me in the process? It'd help me a lot, thank you."

This statement obviously confused the crook, seeing as he lowered his weapon. "What the heck?" 

Izuku rephrased himself. "Shoot me."

The stranger was baffled. Who would want to be shot and killed? 

"Suit yourself, kid."

He raised the gun and focused on Izuku's head, moments away from pulling the trigger. 

Nothing can go wrong this time...

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Aizawa almost yelled out. 

He was moments away from letting Midoriya get killed. Ten minutes until patrol was over, and he was scouting the area for anyone is trouble. So, when he noticed two figures in the dark, one being Midoriya, he'd jumped on the other person immediately, hooking his capture weapon around the gun in his hand while keeping a firm grip on him.

Aizawa swore Midoriya looked almost disappointed. 

Geez, how many times would he have to save him before he realized that he mattered?

Midoriya picked up something from the ground. From the looks of it, it was his phone. The screen was cracked, but he seemed fine with it as he turned it on to check if it still worked.

Aizawa called the police after tying the person up. They were arriving in a few minutes, which gave him enough time to check on Midoriya.

"You okay?" Aizawa grabbed a small first aid kit from his pocket. Midoriya nodded.

Aizawa peered at him to make sure. 

He looked fine, save for the bloody left sleeve and red hand.

Wait, bloody left sleeve?

Aizawa worriedly pulled out a roll of bandages, wanting to check his arm for injuries and patch them up when Midoriya turned and fled.

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His cuts reopened. 

Eraser Head had noticed.

His screen was cracked. 

Izuku's day couldn't be any worse. Once he noticed the pro hero staring at his arm, he himself turned his sight to his sleeve and froze. 

The liquid dripping from his fingers was dark.

Eraser Head had pulled some white cloth from his pocket and was walking closer to him, probably to try and see what was wrong. 

He couldn't let him know.

Izuku turned on his heel and took off, running as fast as he could. He could hear the hero calling his name and the sound of his capture scarf whistling through the air. 

He was thankful that he was always pretty fast.

Clutching his wrist and his phone, he ran in lefts and rights, jumping here and there like a rabbit. Finally, he saw his apartment in the distance and used all the stamina left to rush up the stairs and shove the key in the lock. Izuku got inside and slammed the door shut.

Whether he bothered his mom or not was irrelevant. She wouldn't care anyways.

He frantically locked all the windows in the house and pulled the curtains over them. He hoped that Eraser Head didn't see which door he went in, or else he was screwed.

Izuku put his ear to the door. He heard the sound of footsteps, it must've been his neighbor since it was the sound of high heels. Unless Eraser Head secretly had a liking for women's shoes.

Besides, Eraser Head was an experienced pro. There was no way he was going to make any sound.

After ten minutes of cautious door-guarding, Izuku slipped into his room to take care of his wounds.

As he wrapped the bandage around his wrist, he couldn't help but wonder why the hero wanted to patch him up. Saving him from jumping off a building every night was already too much.

Wasn't he being a bother?

Wasn't he getting in the hero's way?

He didn't understand.

Izuku took a quick shower to get the sweat off and got into bed, deciding on avoiding Eraser Head for the next few days.

He didn't want to answer any questions.

He didn't want Eraser Head to think he was pathetic and an attention-seeker for cutting when there were other people in the world with worse problems than himself.

He was being overdramatic.