Ultra Responsibility (My Hero Academia X Spider-Man Reader)

Issue 63 - I'll Save You

Ashido woke up to the kind of quiet that felt heavy.

Not peaceful. Not comforting. Just... weight. Like the air in her room had forgotten how to move.

She stared at the ceiling, eyes dry but burning anyway, and waited for her brain to do the thing it always did. The rewind. The replay. The cruel little highlight reel.

Y/N running toward danger like it was his job.
Her reaching for him like it was hers.

And then the gate. The flames. The moment his silhouette got swallowed up and the world decided to keep spinning like nothing had happened.

Her throat tightened.

Home was supposed to mean safe. Home was supposed to mean warm food and clean sheets and "it's over now."

But Y/N was gone.

Kidnapped.

And the worst part was how her mind kept trying to fill in the blanks. Like if she imagined every horrible outcome first, it would hurt less when she heard the real one.

She turned onto her side, pulling her blanket up like it could block thoughts. Like it could block guilt.

He saved me.
Again. Again. Again.

Explosion at his birthday party. Armed thugs. Villains. Sports Festival chaos. He was always there, like a stubborn miracle that refused to be late.

And the one time he needed her?

She did nothing.

Her hands clenched so tight her nails bit into her palms.

"What kind of hero..." she whispered into the pillow, voice cracking. "What kind of hero can't even save her friend?"

A knock echoed through the house.

Ashido froze, hoping it wasn't real. Hoping it was just a dream sound.

Another knock. Firm this time.

She forced herself upright, legs heavy, hair a mess, eyes aching. She shuffled to her door, then down the stairs, each step feeling like it belonged to someone else.

When she opened the front door, the morning light stabbed her eyes.

And there, standing on the porch like she'd dragged herself through a war and refused to fall over, was Chui Bacharu.

Bandages wrapped around her arms and shoulder. A tired bruise blooming near her cheek. Her face pale but her eyes sharp, locked in place like they were holding something back.

Ashido blinked, surprised her brain could still recognize anyone.

"You're..." Ashido swallowed. "Chui Bacharu, right? Y/N's friend."

Chui's mouth twitched like she was about to make a joke and then remembered the universe wasn't funny right now.

"Yeah." Her voice was quiet, rough. "And I can see it."

Ashido frowned. "See what?"

Chui lifted a hand, pointing at Ashido's face like she was drawing an outline in the air. "That look. Guilt. Anger. That stupid voice in your head telling you you weren't enough."

Ashido's stomach dropped. She didn't answer, because if she opened her mouth she was pretty sure the sound that came out would be embarrassing.

Chui's hand shifted, pointing at herself now. Her fingers trembled. "I've got it too."

Ashido's gaze flicked down. Bandages. The exhaustion. The way Chui's posture was trying to stand proud while everything else sagged.

"I couldn't save Peni," Chui said, and the words came out like she hated them. "One job. One thing. And I screwed it up."