Dancing Shadows

Chapter Forty

Ellowyn's POV-
   Once Katsuki and I sneak back to his room without getting caught, I throw myself into his bed with a relieved sigh. "We're so lucky we didn't get caught by Aizawa."

   "We would've been fine." He says as be takes a seat next to me.

   "Are you crazy? We would've been in huge trouble!" I exclaim as I sit up.

   "It wouldn't have been that bad. Your fucking anxiety is getting to you."

   "How do you know?" I ask defensively.

   "I've been caught outside the dorms before. It fucking sucked but it wasn't that bad."

   "Really? What happened?"

   "Deku and I got into a fight last year."

   "Why?"

   "It was after I escaped the League." He quickly changes the subject by saying, "Enough about me. We need to talk."

   I nod. "Okay. I'm listening."

   He takes my hands in his before speaking. "You can't do anything like that ever again. You have to tell me about how the fuck you're feeling."

   I can't even look at him. The look in his eyes tells me that I hurt him, even if he won't say it out loud. "I know. I'm sorry."

   "It's okay. I'm not very good at talking about that stuff either. But we have to get better because..."

   I look up at him to see that he's struggling with saying what he wants to say. "Because?"

   "Because I can't lose you. And I think you feel the same way."

   My heart feels like it's about to explode. "Yeah, I do."

   "Good. In the future, don't be afraid to sit down and talk to me about this type of shit. And...and I'll do the same."

   "Okay." In an attempt to lighten the mood, I stick out my pinky finger and send him a playful smile. "Promise?"

   He rolls his eyes before interlocking his pinky with mine. "I promise."

...

   The next Friday, Katsuki decides that we should continue working on controlling my quirk. "Practice is key. You were able to gain control of your full quirk but you still can't do it unless your guard is down. So we'll do it again and again and again until it feels natural."

   After we set up all of the dummies all over the room, Katsuki stands behind me once again. I feel my skin heat up as I remember what happened last time. "It's the same as last time but I'm not going to help you quite as much. You just need to stop overthinking it. Get the hell out of your head and let it happen. You can do this."

   When I nod in response, he wraps his arms around me and rests his head on my shoulder. I take a deep breath as I close my eyes and try to focus. Him being there helps me calm down but I still can't stop thinking about how stupid this is. I can't do this. I'm just wasting Katsuki's time. I'm a waste of time. I can't-

   No. Katsuki told me to stop overthinking it. I can do that. I just need to think about something else. What did I think about last time? Oh, yeah. That's right. I was thinking about him. About his touch and his smell and his voice. His lips on my skin. If I focus on how warm he feels and his caramel scent, I think I can distract myself long enough to use my quirk without my own mind getting in the way. I can do this.

   I don't hesitate any longer before snapping my eyes open and using my quirk on one of the dummies in front of me.

   And it works. The dummy turns to dust in an instant. I don't want to think about what it means that Katsuki is able to distract me so well, but at least it works. "Good." Katsuki mutters in my ear. "Now do it again."

   I destroy the dummies over and over and over again, only failing a few times at the beginning when getting too distracted. By the end, I'm consistently using my full power without too much thought.

   When there are only five dummies left, Katsuki asks me to stop. He completely walks away from me before saying, "Now destroy the rest."

   I close my eyes and focus once again. I try to distract myself by shifting my focus completely onto Katsuki, but it's more difficult when he isn't right next to me. Just as I try to use my quirk on the dummy, doubt invades my mind and the dummy only partially decays. It's the same for the next two.

   Already feeling a bit embarrassed that I'm struggling to use my own quirk without him basically holding my hand, I turn to Katsuki to suggest giving up for the night.

   Before I can say anything, Katsuki says, "Try again."

   "But-"

   "You can do it."

   I calm myself before turning back to the last two dummies. I decide to try a slightly different approach by choosing to focus on a specific memory.

   The first memory that comes to mind is of a time I woke up before Katsuki and decided to lay in bed for a bit. I played with his hair while taking a moment to soak in all the little things about him that I don't usually get to stare at. The slight crookedness of his nose and the scar above his eyebrow and the darkness underneath his eyes and every other tiny little detail I can find.

   "Cherry?"

   "Sorry!" Suddenly reminded of what I'm supposed to be doing, I don't hesitate to focus on the two dummies in front of me and completely destroy them one at a time.

   "Good job."

   I can't help but smile as I walk over to Katsuki. "Thank you. I'm actually kind of proud of myself. I know it's not perfect since I can't really do it on command yet but I'll keep working. I'm not-"

   "Cherry, you should be proud. We're done for today. Let's go get some dinner."

...

Katsuki's POV-
   After dinner, Cherry and I take showers and head to bed. We are lying in bed together that I get a call from my father.

   "Hey dad. What do you want?" I grumble sleepily.

   "Hey, sorry for calling so late son. I had to wait for your mom to go sleep."

   "You're fine. What's up?" I try to stay quiet since Cherry is already asleep.

   "Well, your mom's been a bit down recently so I wanted to surprise her. Do you have the time tomorrow to come visit for dinner?"

   "Yeah, I'll come by."

   Cherry shifts beside me, rubbing her eyes before looking over at me. The way she tilts her head and furrows her eyebrows when she's confused makes me want to kiss her. "Katsu, who are you talking to? Did something happen?"

   "It's okay. It's just my dad."

   "A girl? What happened to being too busy becoming number one to date?"

   "Dad, come on-"

   "No, it's okay. You know how your mother and I feel. You're a teenager. Dating is normal. I'm just surprised."

   "Well, yeah. I'm dating someone." I can tell Cherry is stifling a laugh at the apparent nervousness in my voice.

   All I can do is glare at her as my dad says, "You should bring her with you tomorrow. I can make dinner for the four of us."

   "I'll ask her."

   "Okay, just make sure to let me know early tomorrow. I'm going to the store after lunch to buy stuff for dinner."

   "Will do. Goodnight dad."

   "Goodnight Katsuki."