Forever and Always - SHOTOXOC (Eng Ver.)

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Shoto! We need to get closer to Deku. I can't see him from here and it's impossible for me to get his sash."
Shoto nods at my statement as I hand him the sash from another team I just retrieved.
The boy ties it around his neck as we coordinate our movements to reach Izuku.

Most of the teams are in the same situation as us, all focused on him.
Tokoyami must have seen us coming from a distance because he is using the Dark Shadow to hide their rider.
I give a smirk. Clever.
"Iida advances. Yaoyorozu increases defense and prepares the host! Mei and Kaminari..." Shoto begins to instruct us on what to do.

"Yes, I know!" Denki and I say in unison. We exchange a smile and in a second Momo creates the conductor cloth to shield us from Kaminari's counterattack.
Our comrade uses his quirk with the most powerful attack he has.
All the rest of the teams get hit hard by the quirk and this gives us a big advantage.

Shoto also goes on the attack by freezing the ground and thus freezing everyone in place.
I take the opportunity to retrieve their bands by taking control of them and passing them to my best friend.
I exchange a glance with Mono who nods at me proud of our work.
We are finally facing the 10-million-point team.

We all get into position as Tokoyami uses Dark Shadow to attack us.
Without hesitation Yaoyorozu protects us by creating a shield in front of us.
"Hold position!" Midoriya yells to his team.
Only one minute to go and we still haven't managed to get that damn sash.
I see Shoto analyzing the situation and I also realize that in the position we are in, it would be impossible for him to use ice.

"Guys there's only one minute left...I'm sorry but I think I'll be useless after this. So I'm counting on you. Mei get ready! And take it!"
Iida finishes saying the sentence and we hear him activate the horses to the max in his calf.
Mei stand ready!
Hard all a split second. As soon as Tenya runs we pass by Deku's team and there it is clear in my eyes.
I immediately take control of the band around the back of his head and hand it to Shoto in an instant.

I've done it! I got it back!
"TWIST! TODOROKI HAS THE TEN MILLION!"
Iida is out of breath and can barely move due to overuse of his quirk. He has incredible power.
"IIDA YOU WERE GREAT!" I shout, raising one arm in the air.
I see him smile as he catches his breath.
"Let's not let our guard down. They are getting ready to attack."
Shoto recomposes us, reminding us that it's not over yet.

Indeed, they have not given up. They are advancing toward us again.
"Todoroki, exchange the bands." Momo suggests in a whisper so that only we can hear her.
My best friend does as he is told and we prepare our defense for the coming attack. We see Midoriya's arm light up, a symptom of his quirk activation.

"SHOTO!" I shout seeing Izuku ready to strike him in the face.
The latter prepares the blow while Shoto covers himself with his left arm.
For a moment I can clearly see the flames he used for cover.

I remain motionless.
He used- he used flames- in a battle.
He had never done this before and I know very well why. He let the adrenaline overcome him and broke his vow.
I can clearly see his face darkening and gnashing his teeth in anger. He has obviously noticed it, too. But this leads him to become distracted, and Midoriya manages to steal a bandana from him.

According to what Momo advised us, they should have taken the wrong one.
In fact, the one in his hand is the 70-point one.
I give the team a small smirk.
"Naive." I whisper before stroking Shoto's leg still worried about the use of his left side.

He seems to recover and at that moment the 10-second countdown starts.
We hear explosions and see Bakugo jumping across the ice and coming toward us; at the same time Deku's team also runs toward us.

Shoto gets ready to defend us. We have almost made it. We only have to hold on for a few seconds.
As they rush toward us, the end of time finally clicks.
We simultaneously breathe a sigh of relief as we lower Shoto to the ground.

"FIRST PLACE GOES TO TEAM TODOROKI."
I give a big smile and notice in the distance my parents waving to me so I enthusiastically respond.
I turn to go celebrate with the rest of the team but my gaze falls on my best friend.
He is staring intently at his left hand containing the anger I know he would like to explode.
I walk up to him and see him clenching his fist tightly. I don't think he even notices me.

I rest my small hand on his and bring it to my lips.
The boy seems to recover but the expression on his face does not change. I leave a kiss on his knuckles and give him a small smile.
Shoto finally raises his gaze to me and I really cannot interpret what is going through his mind at this moment.
I could easily use my quirk, but I don't want to do it on him.
I never have.

A mixture of emotions shines from his face. Anger. Bitterness. Astonishment. And disappointment.
I move a little closer to him.
"Shoto..." I whisper letting go of his hand and resting my palm on his face.

This brings him totally back to reality and he does the last thing I ever expected from him.
He takes my hand and moves it away from his face.
I look at him with a questioning face. Why is he doing this? Why is he withdrawing from me?
He has never turned away from me for any reason.
Without a word, he turns and walks away, leaving me so alone, my hand in midair, in the center of the arena.

I remain motionless, staring at his back moving farther and farther away.
I feel tears well up in my eyes but this is the worst time to cry.
I take a big breath before turning toward my companions.
The only ones left looking at me are Momo and Bakugo.
I try to put on a smile to let them know it's okay but they know it's not too.

The blond says something to the girl and I see her walk away. Katsuki walks up to me and grabs my arm. "Let's go eat." Without waiting for me to respond he drags me along with him.

"I'm not that hungry." I hide my emotions with a small smile.
"You have to eat." It is the only response I hear coming from Bakugo as he puts me in front of him in line to enter the cafeteria.
Exactly at that moment we see Deku and Shoto pass in the distance and walk toward the entrance reserved for students and faculty.
Bakugo and I exchange a glance before breaking away from the line and following those two.

A/N
I will not apologize for the situation I am creating between Mei and Shoto 🌚

Thank Endeavor for that. 🙃