Cosmic Love

First Day Jitters

     It was an ordinary Monday for the residents of Musutafu, Japan. A relatively large city that neighbors Tokyo, a healthy 7 million people called it home. Serving as the de facto base of operations of Japan's greatest hero, many who lived here aimed to be just like the smiling paragon of justice; The Symbol of Peace, All Might. One such person was Matthew Clouse, a young man from America who moved overseas to pursue his dream of becoming a hero. The glossy form of his soon-to-be school shined in the distance, a beacon of hope for the future of heroics and Japan at large.

     UA, the premier high school for the next generation, was Japan's #1 destination for any student looking to get their foot in the door to heroics. Graduating from UA was a surefire way to secure at the very least a sidekick gig with a reputable professional, if not an outright jump to being a professional from the get-go. Matthew knew he'd have his work cut out for him, but in the end it would all be worth it. A young American upstart fresh off the plane, given room and board to attend such a legendary school; he could probably write a book about his journey for all he knew. That was neither here nor there though, Matthew had his first day of school to get ready for. He didn't know it at the time, but his decision to attend UA would change his life in more ways than he thought possible, good and bad. This is the beginning of that story.

COSMIC LOVE

By: Crazy_Diamond

     Matthew had always preferred the rain, it was comforting to have an excuse to stay inside and take it easy. Warm, cozy, and at his own leisure. As he sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes, he leaned over towards the window and pulled up the blinds, expecting gray skies and the soft pitter-patter of rain on the window like the last few days. Instead, he stared directly into the sun.

     "OW FUCK!" Great way to start the day, hopefully he didn't wake up his neighbors. Palming his eyes as he got out of bed, Matthew made his way out of his bedroom and into the rest of his apartment. As per his exchange student scholarship, UA housed him in a humble one-bedroom apartment in Musutafu's business district with a weekly allowance for groceries (and some spending money if his budget allowed). Brewing himself a cup of black tea, he quickly downed it with a piece of toast and changed into his UA uniform. He looked himself up and down in the mirror, twisting and turning to ensure not so much as a single thread was out of place (sans his tie, he could never get so much as a half-windsor correct). He smiled at himself, an unusual sense of pride swelling in his chest. "You've got this, Matt. New school, new country, new me. No family to worry about, I'm finally on my own." He took a moment to psych himself up some more before grabbing his school bag and stepping out his front door. Was it wrong to be excited to live away from his family? Probably, but that was neither here nor there.

     UA's campus was a respectable 20 minute walk from his apartment, which wouldn't be so unbearable if it weren't for the sun relentlessly bearing down on him as he walked. Musutafu's business district was busy no matter the time of day, making navigating the crowds a significant portion of his commute. Thankfully, his height afforded him the ability to see over the majority of the crowd and navigate it with relative ease. Finally reaching the base of UA's notorious hill (or rather, mountain), he took note of the other students around him. Some with mutant quirks, some with no obvious quirk, and some even showing off their quirks to the other students.

     Matthew hoped his quirk would stack up to his classmates'; he couldn't really train back in the U.S., so for all he knew he could be well behind his classmates already even with his admittedly flashy quirk. He was able to place different explosive properties on objects or himself, allowing him to create large explosions just by touching something. Such a quirk made his practical test ridiculously easy, given that ballistic gel doesn't stand much of a chance when being blown up from the inside. The adapted written test was pretty easy as well, being in his freshman year of american highschool offered him lots of time to study after all. He'd certainly have to adjust to Japan's school system though, back in America he'd be a sophomore in highschool, whereas in Japan he's only a freshman. He continued to think as he walked, so absorbed in his own thoughts he wasn't even paying any mind to the hellish trek up the hill. Before he knew it, he had breached the top of the hill and was face to face with the one and only UA. The sun glared off of its glass face, forcing him to shield his eyes. Matthew's legs locked in place for a moment, a sense of apprehension washing over him. First day jitters, perhaps.

     "C'mon man, it's right here. Just go inside, you've got this Matt..." Thankfully he could at least mutter to himself in English. His Japanese was fine by reasonable standards, but speaking in his mother tongue was comforting in a way. As he took a deep breath and started to step forward, suddenly someone appeared just in front of him. A pair of royal blue eyes met his, boring a hole into what felt like his soul. "I- I'm sorry, can I help yo-"

     "Woooaaahhhh you can speak English?!"

     "W-wha-"

     "Is it because you're American? You look American. Oh! Are you from England instead? Say, do England and America hate each other? From what I hear they-" Is this girl going to stop talking? Matthew was already overwhelmed by the speed at which she fired off questions, and he had just seen her for the first time 5 seconds ago.

     "I'm sorry, can you slow down? My Japanese isn't that good..."

     "Oh! I'm sorry, you're right. Hoowww slooowww dooo I neeed tooo taaaalk?"

     "Are you patronizing me?"

     "Was I?" Matthew sighed, already knowing this conversation was going nowhere at this rate. She didn't sound sarcastic or rude at all, was she really just that much of an airhead?

     "You can just speak normally, my Japanese is fine enough I guess."

     "Alright! Well first things first, quirks." The girl stepped back and gave Matthew a once-over with her gaze, taking an extra moment to study his face. "Yep, definitely American. You don't look British."

     "Is that an insult or...?"

     "Just an observation, was I wrong?"

     "N-no, but-"

     "See? No problem! So, you've got an emitter quirk then? You're clearly not a mutant and you don't strike me as the type with an enhancement quirk."

     "How did you..."

     "Just a hunch. Wanna guess mine?" Before Matthew could respond, the girl took a step back and clasped her hands behind her back innocently. Quickly looking her up and down, Matthew didn't see any kind of mutation or indication of what her quirk was. Probably an emitter, it wasn't like he cared enough to guess seriously anyways. Although, she was strikingly beautiful... Large blue eyes and a pretty face, long periwinkle hair that reached to and twisted around her waist, and she was definitely in shape. A small blush formed on his face as he took another moment to study her face, forgetting for a moment what he was supposed to be thinking about. A coy smirk quickly formed across the girl's face."...checking me out?"

     "H-huh?! No, I was just-!" She began laughing, Matthew realizing she had probably played him. "You're messing with me, aren't you? Can I just get to class before we're both late?" The girl stopped laughing, fixing a loose strand of hair as she smiled at him.

     "Yeah, sorry. Here, I'll make it up to you." The girl looked him up and down again, taking much longer this time around. She took a step forward and studied his face, her face turning ever-so-slightly pink. "You're pretty good-looking, even for an American." She playfully knocked him on the chest with the back of her hand, waving back at him as she started off towards the entrance to the school building. "Catch you later!"

     Matthew stood in place, stunned at what just happened. Was he just flirted with? She was really pretty; if he had a type, she would be it he supposed. She definitely looked to be the same age as he was, with any luck she'd be in his class. That would probably be really awkward though, if she was as flustered as he was right now at least. Given his track record with girls, Matt knew he'd be better off not engaging; for his sake and probably hers too. Sure enough, the girl was just as flustered as he was. She sped down UA's hallways towards Class 1-A, muttering something to herself about someone's advice.

     "Dammit Yuyu, why do I listen to you? I'm not here to flirt with boys, what the hell's gotten into me? God that was so corny, please don't let him be in my class..."