LOST // BAKUGO X OC

Hunch

Mr Aizawa stood in front of Estelle, holding a paper bag in one hand and a juice box in the other. He stared down at her with seriousness as he dumped the load on the table. The students were currently in class with Present Mic, so he figured now was a better time than any to see if his hunch was correct.

He had done some shopping earlier in the week to test his theory. Ignoring the puzzlement on Estelle's face, he handed her a juice box from his pocket before digging into his paper bag.

Thanking him, Estelle stabbed the juice box victoriously before sipping as she watched her teacher pull out various books. Squinting her eyes to get a closer look, Estelle had no idea what she was looking at. "Umm?"

"It's colouring books," Mr Aizawa monotoned, his straw still in his mouth.

"What's that?"

Handing her a book, Mr Aizawa watched as she flipped it open to view the colourless pages. The surprise showed on his face as she muttered, "Why are there pictures of pretty sirens?"

"Huh?"

"They look like pretty versions of Sirens. They're dark sea spirits that lure Cambions with their voice, but they're a hell of a lot more ugly than this," Estelle explained as she held up the book to point at a picture of a mermaid.

Bewildered that was actually a living creature in her world, Mr Aizawa shook his head to remove the thought before explaining the premise of the books. His initial assumption was correct by the look on Estelle's face; she was utterly unaware colouring was a thing.

"But, why are you giving me a children's task?" she muttered once he finished his explanation.

Sighing, he grunted, "It's for all ages. I think you'll find it soothing. Give it a try."

Handing her many coloured pencils, Mr Aizawa sat on the couch to her right to observe. Watching her from the corner of his eyes, he could see the slow process unfold.

She was confused as she tried to start off, slowly colouring in the pretty Sirens' hair like she was unsure the picture would jump out of the page to gobble her up. It took a while for her to warm up to it, but he could see the slow relaxation of her body as she began to get used to the idea.

Eventually, Estelle became engrossed in the picture. Her hands flickered up to grab another colour before ducking her head back down to continue fulfilling the image in her mind. He watched as her tongue peeked out between her lips, concentration in her brows as her hand moved like lightning through the page.

Leaning back, Mr Aizawa held in his satisfaction from the sight before him. Estelle was utterly calmed as she focused on the simple task at hand.

The idea came when they initially had the talk after the warning came through. The more the teacher thought about it, the more he understood that Estelle never had a childhood. She never had the chance for simplicity in any facet of her life. Most children get the opportunity to do all of this and then mature and grow out of it.

But for Estelle, he had a hunch it would be the other way round. She never got to experience colouring, exploring, enjoyment and just living. That's why she loved nature shows and partly why she loved kids.

It just made sense for Mr Aizawa. Plus, this activity was a relaxing one that needed minimal thought behind it. Estelle was a person who thought everything out to the fullest possible; it showed in everything she did. Had she ever just sat down to do a simple task like this? Probably not. He wanted to show her that escapism with the media wasn't the only outlet she had.

By the looks of it, he could already see the bright effect colouring had on her. She looked comfortable, lost in her own world as she focused on a page. It eased him to see the expression on her face, and the budding hope in him skyrocketed from the scene.