maneuvering through

Too many dreams, so little time

"I may have lied when I told you I wasn't interested."

He said coolly, the morning breeze tousling his hair, halting in his tracks to fully face her. And her heart wanted to bolt out of her chest at the weight of his stare.

"Raven-san...I.."

'Please don't say it..."

"I think I like you."

"Eh?"

There wasn't any amount of apprehension or fear. The realization that nestled for maybe weeks now has come into a fact in those three little words.

"You remind me so much of Maya. And I feel awful for thinking that way. You're not her. And she can only live in the past."

'Maya?'

His follow-up flowed effortlessly she marveled if it were practiced or planned, yet, she hadn't detected a quaver in his voice. They came off as naturally like breathing air. This man appeared not to harbor shame once he already had his goal set. Or better yet, just had enough of keeping his emotions bottled in. Either way, he mystified her.

"But, you don't have to worry about me. I am well aware your heart belongs to someone else. I just wanted to tell you, at least how I feel."

She was lost for words, biting her lower lip unsure of what to say. Thankfully though, he was surprisingly abundant with words and did not leave room for awkward silence. So then he went on, " And also, to tell you I'm leaving the agency."

That last one reached and enabled a reaction from her as she just spluttered the first words that usually spring out from a shocked mind.

"Wha-what?! You're leaving?"

He smirked, with an amused huff from his nostrils. "After all, I confessed and only the leaving part stuck on you..."

"What?! Of course not...I'm just..."

"Don't take it to heart Momo-san. I already have this offer lying somewhere. Just finally acquired the qualifying experience to go for it."

He smiled meaningfully at her that somehow had her guilt crawling up a level.

"I'm leaving today."

"Oh. I... I wish you all the best then..." She muttered under the soft whiffs of air.

He simply answered with a nod. "I could have brought you the last cup of coffee but... after yesterday I decided not to." After another few beats added, in a barely heard voice, "I wish I could have done something about my feelings though..."

The shy autumn air brushed past them. The thought remained hanging at the moment. And as the confessed heroine was about to speak, he beat her to it, chiming in before anything else.

"I must go now, Momo-san didn't want to take much of your time."

He bent in a bow, straightened back, and pivoted on his heels, tilting his head back, he smiled over his shoulders and walked past and across the street. And left her with the thought of not seeing him again.

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Your attending doctor says you're free to go the day after tomorrow." Fuyumi greeted happily stepping onto the threshold of his room Natsuo emerged behind her.

"Hello bro!" immediately bending down the mini-fridge to rummage for anything he could snack on. "Man, I'm starving."

"You should have gone to a konbini if you're hungry," Fuyumi said pulling out her laptop and activating it to life.

Natsuo finally took out a bento box and did not bother asking if his brother wanted it and situated close to his brother.

"Good thing you recover quite fast Shou-chan..." He said through slurping over the lunchbox with soba.

"I believe it was somebody's quirk working..." Fuyumi said squinting over her glasses. "How do you think heroes who have taken grave injuries recover like it's nothing?"

Mumbling Natsuo replied, "Thoot so thoo.." turning at his younger brother, pushing noodles down his throat. "Kinda remind me of your suicidal friend, the one that gets crippled after a punch, Deku was it?"

Sighing wearily at having to repeat an old knowledge, he answered without looking, "T'was Midoriya..." groaning as he did. "Can't believe you did not have the decency to remember when he aided in saving you from your kidnapper..."

Natsuo seemed unnerved scoffing over to what seemed like noodles, making his indifference known through every loud slurp.

"Is this your cooking Fuyumi? This soba kinda tastes differently..."

The said sister pushed her eyeglasses, "I did not have the time to prepare soba, I have classes...It must be Mom's..."

"Impossible," Shouto negated, pointing a thoughtful look at his brother who hung back from his vehement feasting. "I ate those yesterday..."

The three lapse into seconds of silence.

Mystery shrouded, Natsuo slowly puts down the bento box, eyes tainted with a glint of panic. "Wait are you telling me none of you knew who brought this? What if it's poisoned?! Probably it is?! It tastes a bit off..."

Fuyumi rolled her eyes at the over-the-top reaction. "If it is, your mouth should be bubbling by now...surely one of your friends has brought it," turning at her younger brother who was maintaining a perfunctory expression.

"None that I can remember..."

The spiky, silver-haired Todoroki shot right up his seat freaking over the anonymous person whose soba he ate without caution. "I think I feel...Oh my lord...Am I seeing double?"

"Simmer down, Natsuo, you can always run to the emergency..."

"You have no heart, nee-san..." Natsuo sobbed theatrically, his whines clashed against the temperate demeanor of his sister.

Now that Shouto had the opportunity, he fixated his stare on the innocent bento wrapped around his brother's hand, the exquisite pattern designs he felt he had seen somewhere, elevating his interest by seconds. The matte crimson snapped something inside his head as the revelation came to reveal itself.

"That was Momo's," He whispered to himself, eyes swelling ever so subtly. And all while his siblings were still at it, he imagined Momo right there with him, last night. Watching over him while he sleeps. That must have been her routine since his confinement and never once did he have the coincidence to be awake at her presence.

Instinctively, he leaned toward it, blinking over the half-spent soba. Then it crossed his mind-- an ominous foreboding from the depths of his psyche, grimacing instantly at the thought. "You ate my soba?!" Shortly darting a glare at the culprit, making his spite known with every line of frown on his usually blasé face, enough to freeze the male sibling.

Natsuo held shut out of his pretense, a face of naivety.

"This was Momo's and you ate it?"

"In Natsuo's defense, he didn't know it was Momo's..." Fuyumi piped in.

"Tch. It would have saved him..." he hissed, "...but he really finds it necessary to say it tastes odd..." The creases between his brows didn't cease as Natsuo guiltily scratched the back of his head.

"Not bad odd... I said differently..." inwardly amused at his younger brother's outright indignation, sitting back on his chair.

"Do you have spare chopsticks nee-san?" Ignoring the pesky smile emanating from Natsuo.

"Well, I have brought mine..."

Shouto was still glaring, rejecting the taunting smiles thrown at him. "My, my, Shou-chan," he sang, "You're head over heels for Mo-chan..."