ℂ𝕣𝕦𝕖𝕝𝕥𝕪 | 𝕊𝕙𝕠𝕥𝕠 𝕋𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕠𝕜𝕚

sixty nine

Tokyo was a busy city. Infact, it's one of the busiest in the world—bustling with a plethora of people and vehicles. Shibuya is the most crowded, it being the center of the metropolitan city.

It's impossible for me to walk anywhere nowadays. The paparazzi are like soul sucking leeches—latching onto whatever scrap of detail they can. Honestly, they're extremely annoying and I try to avoid them as much as humanly possible.

So I don't know what I was thinking when I thought hanging out with my friends in Tokyo would be fun.

"GET THE FUCK OFF ME, YOU LEECH!" I grab the back of Katsuki's hoodie before he blasts the woman trying to get his attention to hell. Mina buries her face in her hands, the mob around us stressing her out.

Kirishima comforts her while Denki wraps an arm around Jiro, securing her to his side. "Katsuki, stop it." I hiss through my teeth as he curses out a man trying to interrogate him.

Shoto sighs as he tries to push everyone back with Midoriya—they don't budge. The continuous battle for a second of me on camera continues and the end of the tunnel seems far out of reach. They continue to shout questions.

"HOW HAS RECOVERY BEEN?"

"WHAT DO YOU SAY TO THE RUMORS?"

"DO YOU FEEL UNSAFE FROM YOUR BROTHER?"

"ARE YOU WORRIED YOUR PAST WILL COME BACK TO HAUNT YOU?"

They onslaught of unnerving questions continues and I frown from behind my hair. Initially, I'd thought the media attention would die down but evidently, it hasn't.

It's been two months since the trial and yet, they still seem to follow me like a bad case of the flu. Katsuki is ready to blow their heads off their shoulders and I realize then that if I don't solve this and quick, it'll be a bloodbath of bad press in the tabloids.

I pull him back and stand infront of him, attempting to put a barrier between the paparazzi and him. A few people go to grab me but I back up to avoid their hands.

I decide to speak up, "May I please have your attention!" They immediately turn dead silent and every camera zeroes in on me. It's as if I'm a bacterium under a microscope—one slip-up and it's over.

"This is getting out of hand. Harassing a group of teenagers—whether they be heroes in training or not—is absolutely unacceptable not to mention illegal." A guy tries to swipe for me again and I death glare him.

"Try to grab me again, sir, and I will sue you for every last penny you have in your bank account. I don't take well to people who can't keep their hands to themselflves." I glower at him making him back up.

"If I feel comfortable enough, I'll be glad to answer a few questions before we go on our way but I'd appreciate it if you could leave my friends alone, we're trying to have a nice day out and you're stressing them out."

A few people shout a flurry of questions at me but I choose one person and answer their questions only. "How are you recovering?" She asks and I feel touched that people cared about that.

Tucking my hands into the large hoodie I'm wearing, I speak with a small smile. "I'm feeling much better now and I thank all of you who supported me through such a tough time. I may not know you but I am eternally indebted to you."

She smiles and then speaks again, "Most of Japan love you, Ikari. But there are also those who believe you haven't changed, that you're still a villain. What do you say to these people?"

I shift my weight, cracking my fingers in an attempt to relieve some stress. Of course I knew there were some haters out there, it comes with the territory, but I didn't know how to respond so I just winged it.

"I've been taking villain reform classes. Though, I'm not sure I ever needed them. I never liked being a villain, it always didn't sit right with me but alas, when you're young and in need of some semblance of love, it's easy to be manipulated."

I feel an arm wrap around my shoulder and I don't need to look over to know that it's Shoto. I can tell from his scent. It warms my heart that he's offering me a sense of comfort right now.

She takes my answer for what it is—which I respect—before moving on, "Many people theorize that your brother is ready to come after you, do you believe this to be true?"

I feel my stomach drop and my hands clam up as I work my throat. I hate to feel so vulnerable infront of the press but the fact of the matter is, I still fear him. I'm so scared of Tomura sometimes thinking about him brings me to feel faint.

I move to change the question but think otherwise when I realize this is exactly what he wants. He wants my silence, my fear to shrivel me up from the inside out. I refuse to give him what he wants.

"Growing up with Tomura was challenging to say the least but the upside of it all is I know him better than he knows himself. He's like a child—always wanting things to go his way."

"If my intuition is right—which it usually is—he's currently planning his next move. He knows what it is and I don't doubt that he's going to come after me for some semblance of revenge."

She speaks, "If he does, Japan is in grave danger. What do you say to this? He'll undoubtedly try to kill you, leaving whatever wreck lies in his path to do as such."

I know what he wants. He wants revenge but the funny thing about revenge is, it always comes with a price.

I lock eyes with the camera, "He can try to do whatever he likes, if he wishes to kill me then so be it but I can guarantee that I won't let him touch a single soul. I'm much stronger than I ever was and much stronger than he will ever hope to be. I will give my life for this country. I won't back down."

"I'll never cower from you again." I scowled into the camera, knowing he's watching. I don't care what he thinks he can do, he can kill me—rip my heart from my body for all I care—but I will never let him tear this country down.

Shoto squeezes my waist in comfort and it takes every piece of self restraint in me not to lean into him. "We appreciate your dedication, Ikari. On a lighter note, the people want to know if you're single. The fan boys want your hand in marriage." She chuckles with a wink.

I'm sure my cheeks are dusted pink at her sudden question as I try to hide deep into the hoodie I'm wearing. It's Shoto's and it smells like him, giving me a sense of comfort and making a smile grace my lips.

I struggle to find the words to answer her question but it turns out I don't have to. Shoto pulls me closer to him and speaks, "She's not single as I'm courting her. I'd say that asking for her hand in marriage is a pipeline dream to all of you fanboys but I don't think that's necessary as she's mine anyways."

My cheeks are bright red, our friends laughing at me as I hide my face in Shoto's side, gripping onto his shirt like it's my lifeline.

"Endeavor's son, right? Shoto, was it? I can already tell you'll be a future power couple! You're so cute together!" I stop hiding my face and look at the floor, muttering a 'Thank you'.

"We should really be on our way, my friend Denki is getting hungry." I laugh and the blond brightens up as I turn to look at him, him nodding wildly. Reading his mind is a blessing and a curse.

The paparazzi parted for us and we continued to walk down the road, pedestrians splitting and pulling out their phones to record us. Mina and Kirishima walked next to Shoto and I, his arm around her shoulder like Shoto and I.

Denki and Jiro were behind us, talking and Jiro huddled into his side. I looked ahead to see Katsuki stomping down the road, pissy about something. Midoriya walked next to Shoto and they talked as we advanced down the road.

"This feels so weird." Mina muttered from next to me, referring to the attention we were getting. I wasn't used to all eyes being on me. I used to be a super villain, undercover all the time without any attention on me.

I was just a whisper, a tale about a girl who could kill without batting an eye. A concept that was never caught because how could All for One's child ever be caught? This attention was definitely new to me.

"Tell me about it."