[OLD] Caffeinated Coffee

21. (An apple a day doesn't) Keep Everyone Away

Okay, so let Saiki explain.

A robot literally comes out of nowhere to punch the living daylights out of one unsuspecting Mineta. The robot is green and huge, resembling the towering one from the Entrance Exam strongly, and wow, how long ago has that been? Nearly two months? Shorter? Longer? Who knows.

Anyway, not the point. Point is that Saiki wants to explain that his race—this obstacle course right here—is the most annoying thing he's doing. It will also end up being the most annoying thing he has done in a while, which is saying a lot because he witnessed tuna crepes from Nendo, a weirdo who works at a fortune-telling shop (which he will never visit, mind you), a game of hide and seek from a brother he'd instead burn his hair than to willingly spend even an hour with, and not one, but two vigilantes while playing said game of hide and seek.

Suddenly there's ice crawling on the ground and the robots—seriously, a little much, Todoroki—just as the bulk of the competitors had finally freed themselves from their first ice prisons. The ensuing curse words are . . . something, to say the least.

So yes, Saiki may be participating and yes, he may be trying to win and yes, he's putting a smidge of elbow grease into it because yeah, the adrenaline is just a little bit addicting now that he's high on it, but that doesn't mean that he'll like it. It as in the race. He gave his thumbs up and hopes the best but, being honest, he doesn't think everyone is trying to win, such as some people are trying to simply put just enough effort into getting eliminated from the race before taking a nap through the remainder of the Sports Festival. Not that he blames them.

Saiki, completely unimpressed with it all, raises his hand and shatters the ice at his feet. He can't help anyone, and no one seems to be getting hurt (aside from Mineta because that hit sounded like it hurt, but he got up askly as he fell down, so all seems well or something like that. He never thought he'd be concerned about someone who he's sure looks at porn in any scrap of free time he has, but life is pretty strange like that) so all is well. For now at least.

Not to mention that Bakugo challenged him, of all people; Todoroki challenged Midoriya, the boy who cried over a dead worm in middle school, but you didn't get that information from Saiki. With everything going on, from Nendo's boobs to the looks he and Bakugo have been getting (he wishes that they don't get the wrong idea, but it may be too late because Saiki Luck is just special like that) to the apparent tension in the air between hero courses and the rest of the first years, a challenge seems to just be another obstacle thrown into a basket full of them.

Ice shatters and robot arms start to invade his vision. More ice breaks, and this time it isn't because Saiki shattered it. A glare from mismatched eyes set the mood for a challenge. Vindictive for something no one really can put together.

It's a collaboration of moods: the creativity from Nendo and the determination from Tsuyu and the drive from a blonde boy (not Bakugo) with a distinctive laugh and the exasperation from anyone who didn't care for the Sports Festival. A cluster of people and emotions just brimming under the surface—

"—AND TODOROKI STARTS OFF STRONG!"

There's no cry from a speaker—instead, there are cheers from the crowd bleeding into the narration. There's Saiki's annoyance because the world is so loud and cluttered. Eyes are on them and he and the race and people gawk and awe—probably little kids and big kids and adults who never quite left their heroics phase behind. In this society, no one really leaves their hero phase behind.

He picks up the speed and runs, feeling air whip his clothes like butter knives, and for a moment, he almost smiles. Just to celebrate the feeling of pure something bubbling in his veins. It's probably joy. It's probably insanity. Either way, it's amazing. And frustrating. It's a collaboration of things that make things the way they are today, for better or for worse.