Sound of Silence (Aizawa X OC)

Ch. 26: Reality [is the Worst]

-----Shinobu's POV-----

It was finally the day I had been dreading all week. Tonight, Shouta canceled our patrol so I could attend this dinner with my aunt and uncle. I tugged at the bottom of my flowing long-sleeved lavender shirt nervously as Nii-san drove us to my aunt and uncle's house. To my surprise, we came to a stop much earlier than it should have taken to reach there.

When I looked up to see where we had stopped, I was surprised to see the back door of Nii-san's car opening and none other than Shouta slide in beside me. Instead of his normal hero outfit or sweatpants that I was used to seeing him in, he was wearing a dark button-up shirt with dark wash fitted jeans. His usually shaggy black hair was also tied up in a bun, and his usual stubble was missing. He looked ridiculously handsome and I found myself blushing as I gave him a questioning look.

Instead of giving me an answer, Shouta just shrugged, a small smirk appearing on his lips as he gently grasped my hand. A new wave of calm crashed against my rising anxiety, and I felt a lot better. Even if him showing up to come along was odd, I would be lying if I said I wasn't thankful for his presence. Suddenly, a clearing of Hizashi-nii's throat in the front seat interrupted my thoughts.

"Look, I'm cool with you two dating or whatever, but no making out in the back of my car!" Nii-san teased, his voice clear that he was actually a bit uncomfortable but trying to be understanding about the whole thing. I let out a silent giggle before leaning up to the front seat and speaking quietly, barely loud enough to be heard over the engine running.

"So does that mean if we move to the front seat we can?" I teased causing Nii-san to let out a yelp of surprise as he gave a childish pout at me. Suddenly, an arm wrapped around my waist, and I was pulled back into the back seat. I looked over to see Shouta with an amused but stern look on his face.

"Don't distract the driver. That's dangerous, and you've already proven that you're quite accident-prone," he chided, his voice sounding tired and bored like usual but there was a hint of concern in it. He was right. Since moving back to Musutafu, I found myself getting hurt way more often than I had in the past, and especially since I got stabbed on our last patrol, Shouta had become more protective, though he wasn't obvious about it. If I wasn't used to working on my own and being more aware of my surroundings, I wouldn't have noticed.

In what felt like no time at all, we had made it to my aunt and uncle's house, and the anxiety that had been temporarily fought off by Shouta's presence came barreling back into the forefront of my mind. Before leaving the car, I looked at Shouta and gave his hand one final squeeze, needing the comfort, and he thankfully returned it giving me a nod as well before tucking a stray strand of silver hair behind my ear before pulling away and releasing my hand.

The house itself was just as I remembered it, making me worried that the memories I had of this place were accurate and not created by that villain's poison. The walls were starch white with accents of burgundy and brown, colors that would have been inviting if not for the intimidating figures of my uncle and aunt who greeted both Shouta and Nii-san with kind smiles before turning to me with a much more sinister glint in their eyes. Not wanting to make things awkward, I came up to them with a timid smile and a wave.

"Oh wow, Shinobu! Have you put on weight?!" my aunt exclaimed with a fake concerned expression causing my face to go red in embarrassment as I felt my heart drop to my stomach. I shook my head, trying to keep a smile on my face hoping that would be the end of it. But of course, I could never be that lucky with them.

"Oh still can't control your quirk, huh? Must be difficult to find a job when you're that useless. No wonder you've put on weight," my uncle added, rubbing salt in the open wound left by my aunt. I hadn't put on weight, and I knew that. But weight is an easy spot to hit any girl and make them insecure.