The One Who Lived // Izuku Midoriya

10. A Formidable Opponent

"I don't think you need to be too nervous." Ochaco said, sitting across from you in the prep room.

You had managed to get away from Midoriya and Todoroki to have some time to think. You were exhausted, even more so after Recovery Girl used her quirk on you. You were also terrified of facing Bakugou. He was just so powerful.

And incredibly determined.

All that time you spent training with Midoriya felt useless now.

"Why?" You slumped yourself over on the table.

She didn't laugh like you expected her to. Your classmates usually laughed at your 'laziness' or how childish you could get. She was taking you seriously and you appreciated it more than she could ever know.

"You beat Todoroki. That's huge."

You looked up at her with wary eyes. "Todoroki could have beaten me." She looked surprised as you sat up once more. "He had two issues, he didn't use his quirk fully and he allowed whatever issues he has going on to stand in his way."

Ochaco nodded.

"Bakugou on the other hand, he won't let anything come in his way of winning this tournament."

You knew this was going to be his most vicious fight yet.

"I think you should take up martial arts Ochaco-San."

"You do?" She asked with a tilt of her head.

You nodded. "I was just sitting here wishing I had your quirk. I will probably be able to get close to him, I'm good at that. If I could just make him float that would be everything."

She smiled at the way your eyes sparkled when you talked about winning. "Have you ever tried floating a person?"

You laughed. "Not successfully."

She tilted her head again, silently asking you to elaborate.

"I can float smaller objects but I have to be pointing at it which is a pain in the ass."

"Do you think this is something you could work on in class?" She offered.

You thought for a moment. "Maybe." Your lips twisted into a wicked grin. "I'll make Midoriya my test subject."

She let out a laugh but you noticed how she cut it short. "I'm sure he would be willing."

"What's wrong?" You asked.

Her eyes met yours for a moment but she shook her head and looked down at her hands that were crossed together on the table. "It's nothing—"

"Ochaco."

She stiffened.

"Please, you can tell me." You smiled gently.

She sighed before laughing softly again. "I admire  Deku. He's really strong and tries really hard at everything he does." She shook her head. "I want to be like that too."

She wished she could tell you how she was developing a small crush on the boy, even though she decided to chalk it up to admiration.

But, how could she tell you?

She saw the way the two of you looked at each other and the way you interacted.

Even just then as she spoke his nickname, your eyes lit up.

He was important to you, she couldn't stand in the way of that.

"I agree he's a pretty cool guy." You smiled almost shyly.

"I think you two are really great together."

Your head shot up. "What do you mean?"

She giggled at your reaction. "You know what I mean Y/n-San. You bring out something special in each other. You've only known each other for a few weeks and you've grown so close."