I Provide Protection || BNHA OC

Ch. 70 - Over a Cup of Halo-Halo

A/N: ⚠️Gonna try to update twice this week!! I wanted to post this LAST MONTH but I decided to change the last scene of Ch 67 and first scene of 68, so I recommend you reread those bits. I spent a lot of time thinking about it and decided to change it since the change also slightly affects future chapters I haven't posted yet :0 ⚠️

Anyways! Expect the next chapter on Friday (hopefully). I spent the past week or two drawing several chapters so I should have stuff backlogged to post a bit more frequently this month (and school is ending next week eyyyyy ;DDDD). Now back to Hitomi's regularly scheduled dumbassery 🫡

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Hitomi sat on a bench at the opposite end of the street, hugging her knees to her chest.

She needed some time to cool off. Bakugou had been a nuisance, irritating her and hounding her on what was wrong with her, when the answer had been him.

He was the problem. He was the reason she was constantly feeling like crap, he was the reason she was dealing with so much anxiety, he was the cause of so much frustration, he was the one who... who...

Hitomi looked at her hand, staring at the pink Hello Kitty band-aid wrapped around her finger. Her frown deepened and she slouched further into the bench.

...That wasn't it.

It was her that was the problem. She was the one being ridiculous, blaming him for something that was the result of her own feelings. Bakugou hadn't done anything wrong. He was just being himself.

And instead of being grateful, saying thank you for helping her with the cut, Hitomi... had snapped at him. For reasons unknown to him.

She felt awful.

What... is wrong with me...?

She had to get rid of these feelings as soon as possible. So she wouldn't act so foolish, so unreasonable. So dreadful to him. So she could just be friends with him again. She felt horrible for saying the things she did, even if he couldn't understand a single word of it. The way she'd acted was completely unacceptable.

Hitomi sighed, resting her forehead on her knees.

She... needed to apologize to him.

She didn't move from her seat, only thinking back on what she'd said to him.

"Ayoko ko ikaw."

"I hate you."

Well, at least she'd still been able to speak Tagalog fluently without having to think about it too much. She laughed to herself bitterly.

"Kanetsukabe?"

Hitomi looked up, finding Todoroki's tall frame looming over her.

"...Todoroki? What are you doing here?"

The heterochromic boy shrugged, gesturing towards the plastic cup in his hand. "I was at a food stand nearby and I saw you sitting alone on the bench. You looked..." He seemed to pause, looking contemplative. "...upset."

"Oh..." Hitomi's eyebrows furrowed. Was she really sulking that badly...? "It's... nothing, Todoroki." She stared at the cup in his hand, eyeing its contents thoughtfully. "So... you bought halo-halo?" Quick to change the subject.

Todoroki stared down at the dessert. "Is that what this is called? I didn't think to ask, I just saw it had ice cream... I don't know what else is in it, though."

Hitomi finally smiled, albeit crookedly, and patted the spot next to her. Todoroki understood the gesture and took a seat on the bench. "Good thing you have me," she laughed sheepishly. She observed the cup for a few seconds, pointing out the various ingredients inside.