Wake Up To Reality

Chapter 12: Festival Build-Up

3rd POV

The sound of crickets chirping under the night sky was abruptly interrupted as a skinny blond man rang the doorbell of an apartment, he stood still in the cold and waited until a pink haired lady opened the door.

Kirisu: Yagi.

Fully expecting the blunt greeting, Toshinori brushed it off.

Toshinori: Nice to see you as well, Kirisu. How's Izumi holding up?

Letting the man inside the apartment, Kirisu brought out some tea she had prepared and they both kneeled down at her table.

Kirisu: She has been a lot quieter than usual, it makes sense though, experiencing a villain attack in the flesh must have been quite traumatic.

Toshinori held his tea as guilt gnawed away at him as he recalled when Izumi took the full force of the masked villain's fire attack.

Toshinori: Has... has she spoken to you at all.

Kirisu: She has, but only briefly, and if you're wondering, I tried to talk to her about the attack, but she said she isn't ready to recall the events.

He took a sip of his tea, trying to calm his emotions, but the scene of the trembling form of his daughter, ready to be killed by the masked villain, kept replaying in his mind, reminding him of his futility.

Toshinori: ... Thank you.

Kirisu: Hm?

Toshinori: Thank you for taking care of my daughter for so many years. Me and her mother haven't always been there for her because of work, and because of what happened to her mother in the U.S.J, it might get worse than before since I'll be filling in for her until she wakes up. If there is anyway I can repay you for the good you have done for me and my family, I'll give it to you in a heartbeat.

Letting the blond man's words sink in, Kirisu was perplexed. Yes, she had helped the man's son and daughter for years and had given them support where she could, but that's just the humane response to someone in need of help.

Kirisu: Yagi, I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm not helping your daughter for personal gain, I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do, and because... it's what Izuku wanted to do.

A moment of silence passed over them, like it was tradition whenever the boy's name was spoken.

Kirisu: If you wish to repay me, make an effort to spend more time with Izumi. She is a bright and wonderful girl, Yagi, and I don't want to see her in more pain than she is already in.

Toshinori took a second to process the pink haired woman's wish and then sent a thousand-watt smile her way.

Toshinori: I'll make it a priority!

Kirisu: Good. I'll go get Izumi and then you can be on your way.

Time Skip

After giving the students of 1-A a day off to collect themselves, and to give the staff some time to recover, they find themselves back in class ready to move on from the attack on the U.S.J, but despite the break, the mood in the class wasn't quite as upbeat as usual.

Toru: Did you guys see the news yesterday?

Ojiro: Yeah, they're laying into U.A pretty hard right now, some of the critics are even making shouts for the school to be closed until they can bump up the security.

Momo: I doubt the principal would shut the school down, it would jeopardise a lot of students' progress, and that goes more so for the third years who will be turning pro come graduation.