Sons of Eraserhead | Dadzawa [BOOK 1]

Chapter 11 - The Todoroki Family

"Right guys." Hizashi stood in the centre of the lounge, hands planted firmly on his hips. "It's time." 

"For what?" Midoriya asked, slightly nervous. The air in the room was tense as Shota stared sternly at Hizashi. 

"Christmas decorating." Hizashi said.

"If you couldn't tell," Hitoshi whispered to Midoriya, "Pa takes this very seriously." 

"You don't say." Neito muttered from Midoriya's other side.

"Shota." He pointed to his tired-looking husband. "You're on tree duty." 

Shota let out a groan. "Can't I just sleep instead?"

"HA! Funny." Hizashi said, then turned to the younger boys in the room. "Hitoshi, you can help your dad with decorating. Neito, you're with me and the lights outside. Hanta and Midoriya, you're in the kitchen." 

"Wait, you want me to help?" Midoriya asked, taken aback.

"Of course." Hizashi stated, confused as to why this would even be questioned. Midoriya opened his mouth to further enquire, but second guessed himself and stayed quiet. "Everyone good with their assignments?" A series of nods and 'yeah's filled the room, then everyone set to work. 

*******

"So what exactly are we doing?" Midoriya asked, tying is apron behind his back.

"Baking." Hanta said, pulling out a stack of bowls and trays from a cupboard. 

"Erm." Midoriya paused, his tone catching Hanta's attention.

"What? You don't know how to bake?" Hanta asked with a chuckle, though his face changed when he realised he was right. "You don't know how to bake?" Midoriya shook his head sheepishly. "Don't worry." Hanta gripped his shoulder. "We'll sort that out." 

Midoriya had never been more afraid of Hanta more than he was in that moment. 

"So... what do you want me to do?" He asked, fingers drumming along the countertop as he stared at the mountain of appliances and ingredients Hanta had lined up. 

"Can you measure out five-hundred grams of flour for the gingerbread, please?" He said, placing a set of scales, a bowl, and a bag of flour in front of Midoriya. 

"Yeah, sure." Midoriya said far more confidently than he should have done. As soon as he grabbed the flour a white cloud erupted from the opening in the bag, spilling out all over the surface. "Guess not." 

Hanta looked over and shook his head, muttering "No han pasado ni cinco minutos."

"Huh?" Midoriya looked at him in confusion. 

"Huh?" Hanta looked back. "Oh! Sorry, sometimes I talk to myself." He said, grabbing a cloth to wipe up the flour. 

"That wasn't Japanese, though." Midoriya said, tilting his head to the side in thought. "Wait, don't tell me." He rubbed his temples as the racked his brain. "That was Spanish, right?"

"Oh right. Yeah." Hanta nodded. 

"I didn't know you could speak Spanish." Midoriya said, making a mental note to add that to his Hero Notes later. 

"I'm almost fluent." Hanta said as he binned the flour-coated cloth. 

"When'd you learn?" 

Hanta paused for a moment. "My mom taught me." 

"Your..." Midoriya's eyes widened. "Oh. I'm sorry I shouldn't have-"

"Nah, it's cool." Hanta smiled sadly. "I don't mind talking about them. My mom did her best to teach me and my siblings Spanish to keep us in touch with our culture. But um... she- they died before any of us were fluent."