Blood and Air |The Sequel| {Bakugo X FemOC}

Worried

3rd POV

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Shoto walked into the boys lounge, coming out from the baths. After a long and arduous license-training session, he took a bath in an empty space to relax. His mind has been all over the place lately, and it helped to have a moment just to himself.

Izuku was in the boys lounge, sitting at the coffee table, working on a homework assignment. The green-haired man looked up as Shoto sat across the space from him, steam coming off of his head as he used his fire Quirk to dry his hair.

There was a look of concern in Izuku's eyes as he contemplated whether or not to ask. He's noticed Shoto's mood and loss of focus the past few days. He was also aware that Shoto would not say anything unless approached first, so that made Izuku take initiative.

"Hey, you okay Todoroki?" Izuku asked hesitantly. The last time he asked, there was a bit of an argument that happened, and Shoto stormed off.

Shoto looked up, his heterochromatic eyes full of thoughts. He looked over his friend, one of the few people who knew his backstory, one of the few people Shoto truly trusted.

He had half a mind to lie to Izuku, not sure if he wanted to un-package all that he was feeling. The same pain in his chest that has barely lighted since Mira had woken up, the confusion that has been swirling in his mind since he went to eat soba with Lyria, the half memories he's been having. All of it was trapped in his head, and Shoto wanted to expel it.

"... I have been feeling off," Shoto admitted, taking Izuku by surprise. He wasn't expecting it. "There is a lot going on I want to change. For starters, I need to talk to Mira alone, without Bakugo hanging over her. I need... I need her back in my life," Shoto whispered at the end, his heart clenching painfully.

He's already had to go a year without her. And now, even after she came back from a coma, Shoto has barely had alone time with his best friend, someone closer than family. And it really all is Katsuki's fault.

Izuku could understand that sentiment, but stayed quiet, letting Shoto vent.

"And I've been interacting with Lyria, even though I still am not fond of her. She does know great places to eat," Shoto admitted, not proudly. At first, it was what Lyria represented. But now, there was more to why he was still not ready to call her a friend or even an acquaintance. "But the more I do spend time with her... 

"I've started to feel like I'm remembering someone." WIth this sentence, his brows furrowed, his expression showing the mental disarray he was experiencing. Izuku's leaned forward, a sympathetic and interested look on his face. 

"I can't actually see her, but I know I forgot someone who may have been important to me when I was younger. And it's not Lyria, she's just triggering these thoughts. This girl is... blonde, I think. And the feeling I get from these half-memories feel so... strong? Sentimental? Sad? I don't know how to describe it. I just know that I should remember this person but I can't."

Izuku blinks, a bit taken aback by the words and truth Shoto was admitting. He was well aware that both he and Mira had a terrible childhood, and that they were still struggling through the effects of that. And with everything that has been going on with Mira recently, Izuku has noticed that Shoto was becoming more quiet and stressed.

But he would have never expected that Shoto was dealing with memory issues. Especially considering that Shoto could tell this person was important to him, but he wasn't able to remember, struck Izuku as odd.

"Do you think maybe you're remembering wrong? That this person isn't actually important to you, or not even a new person. Maybe you're remembering something about Mira?" Izuku proposed, unsure himself. This felt off, but Izuku couldn't explain why.