ℂ𝕣𝕦𝕖𝕝𝕥𝕪 | 𝕊𝕙𝕠𝕥𝕠 𝕋𝕠𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕠𝕜𝕚

seventy eight

Sitting at a dinner table has never felt so awkward. I mean, dinner at my grandparents can be tense sometimes due to my idiot cousin, Monoma.

But this? This is a whole new level of awkward. Not only can I feel the tension between Midoriya and Katsuki but I also feel the tension between Shoto and Endeavor.

God, what did I do to deserve this?

I'm probably not going to go to heaven anyway, I've killed a whole army of people. Fuyumi and I exchange a few words, the rest of the table too tense to talk.

"You're such a good cook, Fuyumi. Is there any chance you can teach me a few recipes at some point?" She beams and agrees as she describes the steps, telling me she would love to show me some time.

The door to the room opens and a tall white haired boy stands there, his eyes raking over the room. He glares at Endeavor and then Fuyumi speaks.

"Natsuo! I'm so glad you managed to make it!" He gives her a smile and then regards Shoto. "Hey, bro, nice to see you." Shoto gives him a nod and then Natsuo walks in, taking a seat across from me.

His eyes light up when he sees me, "Nozomi! What a pleasure to meet you." I shake his hand with a smile, a sense of pride taking over me that he'd recognized me by my hero name.

"The pleasure is all mine Todoroki." It feels weird calling anyone but Shoto that. He waves me off and tells me to address him by his first name, introducing himself to the other two boys too.

It goes quiet for a long while and I feel the tension seep back in, Natsuo now glaring at Endeavor in tandem with Shoto. "How was the work-study today? Anything interesting?" I try to fill the void.

Shoto looks at me and Midoriya feels the tension too because he begins to overly praise the food.

Katsuki glares at him to stop being weird and I hide my smile when Midoriya avoids his eyes. "Fuyumi has been doing all the cooking since the caretaker retired." Natuso mentions causing his sister to wave him off meekly.

"Don't give me all of the credit, you cooked some of the food too." This seems to pique Shoto's interest because he takes his focus off of glaring at Endeavor.

"You cook?" He asks his brother who nods in response to his question. "I used to cook alot when we were kids but you probably never tried any of my food because Endeavor didn't let you." I shift uncomfortably.

Endeavor clears his throat, "I suppose there is truth to that." Natsuo scoffs and goes back to his food, the atmosphere so tense it could be cut by a knife.

"Shoto, what kind of food do you guys eat at school?" He blinks at Fuyumi's question before answering. "The cafeteria kind?" I chuckle at his confused response.

"I don't think that's what she meant, Sho." He gives me a confused look and I shake my head in amusement. "Natsuo, I'd like to try your cooking next time." Endeavor speaks up causing a few excruciating seconds of silence. Natsuo gets up.

"Thanks for the meal, sis." He walks towards the door, "I showed like I said I would but now I'm done." I purse my lips as he opens the door, Fuyumi shouting a 'wait'.

"Sorry but," a beat, "I just can't do this." He closes the door leaving us in total silence. I look towards Fuyumi and notice the frown on her face, my heart clenching a little.

I know what it's like to long for a family, a sense of wanting to feel whole with that kind of love. And I sympathize with Natsuo too, having Endeavor as a father mustn't be easy.

I stand from the table causing all eyes to fall on me. "I'll be back, please, finish without me." I bow a little before starting for the door. "Don't concern yourself with matters that don't involve you, Maindo." I roll my eyes at Endeavor's comment.