Replay

A/N: This is based off of a TikTok by creator fugaciousapidae_cos. I hope you enjoy! <3

If Denki thought that his first year at UA was hard, he had no idea what was in store for him the following two years. Sure, there were tradeoffs, like he finally got his quirk under control by the time third year came around, so it had been over a year since he had short-circuited when Aizawa and Vlad King paired the Class 3-A and 3-B students off with each other.

It was a relief, honestly. At the same time, though, it kind of felt like a huge weight hanging over his head, like it was too good to be true. He always knew that if he didn't get it under control, he'd have to give up his dream of becoming a hero.

It was a recurrent nightmare he's had since he made it into UA. He'd be fighting a villain, didn't matter which one or just a vague mishmash of what a villain is in his mind. He would short-circuit after being careless with his power output or having to go all out to save someone with no other choice. He then would be taken hostage by the villains who would laugh and taunt his teammates as they were forced to pull back, all because Denki couldn't handle himself in the field and became more of a liability than an asset to the team.

He could have had it worse, though. He knew others woke up screaming; he's heard it. He only woke up with tears streaming down his face. He wouldn't call it trauma, not like the others have, but that made it worse in a way. They all suffer so much to be here and to do what they do, and his biggest fear comes from inside himself, so much so that it even overwrites the villains that they've faced when it comes to his nightmares.

Because he has avoided short-circuiting, though, his memory has never been better, and he has been staying consistently at the middle of the class instead of falling dead last like he had for the majority of first year and the first half of the second year.

"Team ups in the field happen randomly, at times. It's not always who works best together, or whose quirks work best together," Vlad King announced to the students.

They all stood in a semicircle around him and Aizawa, all giving him their complete attention, standing still and straight, without fidgeting, looking like they were part of an indestructible unit all standing tall in their gym uniforms. They looked more and more like heroes every day if Vlad King had anything to say about it.

"You're all intimately familiar with your own classmates' quirks, so we'll be pairing you off randomly with someone from the other class," Vlad King explained. "You'll have thirty minutes to analyze each other's quirks and come up with strategies based on who you might be paired against in the next exercise. Use this time wisely, and don't take it for granted. Remember, this is training, and out there, villains aren't going to allow you time to come together and brainstorm. Use this time to become more flexible and quicker with your thinking and teamwork."

Denki sat with Shinsou Hitoshi on the floor of the large gym, other groups of two spaced out further from them, notebooks and pencils out as they talked and dissected each other's quirks. Denki was grateful that he had spent some time with Midoriya, so he knew some of the basics of quirk analysis from the expert of their class. Otherwise, he knew he'd be a burden on Shinsou.

Shinsou with the pretty eyes and fluffy hair. Shinsou with the captivating voice that reverberates through his brain like a sledgehammer hitting off a steel beam. Shinsou, who smiles mischievously and flirts back.

Maybe if Denki could prove that he's not just an empty-headed jerk, Shinsou might take that flirting to the next level? Denki could dream, at least.

"Can we start with our support gear?" Denki asked Shinsou.

"Yeah, that's perfect, actually," Shinsou said.

He pulled his artificial vocal cords support item off of his neck and handed it to Denki, who tried to play off his surprise, but probably failed spectacularly. He didn't expect to be handed something so intricate, is all.