The Light of A Hero: Side Stories

Theme Park Date

After the final exams and that terrible encounter with Tomura Shigaraki at the shopping mall, Katsuki took me out on our third date. On our second date, he took me to see the Dragon Queen movie again since we didn't get to watch it til the end on our first date (Read what happened in the first book). This time, I calmly figured out what to wear on my date instead of panicking while my room looked like my dad fought a wind villain. I looked at myself in my full-length mirror and put on some lip gloss. I wasn't wearing anything fancy. Just an orange striped halter top with denim shorts, a pair of gold heart-shaped diamond earrings, and black converses.

After getting my black crossbody purse from my closet, I went downstairs. I smiled as soon as my eyes met my boyfriend's.

"Hey, Katsuki!" I greeted him before pecking his lips.

"You ready to go?" Katsuki asked.

I nodded with a hum and took his hand. "So, where are we going for our third date?"

"You'll see when we get there."

I chuckled as Katsuki and I left my house for our date. Just like our first date, Katsuki didn't tell me anything because he wanted to surprise me. I don't mind, though. I think it's sweet and romantic. We had to take the train because the place Katsuki's taking me is pretty far. When we reached our destination, I was definitely surprised. He took me to Zoo Dreamland --- a theme park with a wildlife motif. With mock forest and savanna zones, among others, the park was popular with patrons of all ages. I heard that Kaminari went here with Iida, Mineta, and Tokoyami. Katsuki already bought our tickets in advance, so thankfully, we didn't have to wait in the long lines at the entrance for too long. The very first thing I did was drag Katsuki excitedly to a nearby shop that sold animal ears, tails, and paws. The majority of the visitors are wearing animal ears, so why couldn't we?

"The hell?" Katsuki glanced at the assortment of animal accessories with dissatisfaction. "Do we really have to wear this dumb crap?"

"Just the ears!" I grabbed a pair of lion ears and placed them on my boyfriend's head. "Plus, it would be more stupid if we came here and didn't wear animal ears while enjoying the magic of this theme park!"

Katsuki sighed. "Fine." 

I used my phone to take a picture of my explosion boy wearing his lion ears. My eyes scanned the array of wild cat ears on display. Before I could grab one of the lioness ears, I felt my boyfriend place a different pair of ears on my head. I looked back at my boyfriend in confusion before turning my head towards a nearby mirror. They were orange tiger ears. I gave my boyfriend a approving smile. He blushed and turned his head away from me as he went to pay for our animal ears. I made sure to grab one of the maps that are close to the check out counter. I made sure to grab one of the maps that were displayed close to the check out counter. Now that we have our own animal ears, and got a map of the park, our date at Zoo Dreamland continued. The first thing we rode was a merry-go-round. Since this was Zoo Dreamland, the usual horses were joined by rhinoceroses, lions, elephants, and the like. Katsuki chose the orange tiger, and I, the snow leopard. The second ride we rode was a bird-themed aerial ride. We then rode a ride called Oasis Teatime. It's the same as any other spinning teacup ride at a theme park. I was starting to get dizzy, so we took a break at Forest Sweets and tried the limited-time apple pie. Well, I tried the pie at least. Katsuki wasn't interested in sweets as much as I was. Once we were done resting, we decided to go into the haunted house. Thanks to my confrontation with Shigaraki, and another horrific event I witnessed when I was four-years-old, I wasn't scared of the haunted house at all. The only thing I did was flinch whenever someone or something grabbed me. I even flinched a couple times when my boyfriend touched me. After that, we rode a snake-themed roller coaster. The next ride we rode was a crocodile water ride. I didn't like the fact that the ride didn't come with seat belts, but Katsuki and I still got inside the fake crocodile. I took the front spot and Katsuki sat behind me. Since the ride didn't come with seat belts, we needed to keep our feet inside the "crocodile", Katsuki had to wrap his arms around me from behind, and I had to hold on to the sides of our crocodile boat. At first, it wasn't so bad... until we went up and then straight down. The ride became more wild, I screamed every time we went down, and Katsuki and I obviously got soaking wet. I skillfully used my Quirk to bend the water out of our clothes and off of our bodies. Then, we went to one of the gift shops and Katsuki bought me a lion bracelet, a panther keychain, and a cute wolf stuffed animal. I didn't want Katsuki to be the only one buying stuff during our date, so I got him a black wolf t-shirt. And finally, we rode the ferris wheel. Our pod rose higher and higher, and my eyes were glued to the window, enjoying the view.

"...I'm sorry..." Katsuki said, making me turn my head towards him.

"Sorry for what?" I asked my boyfriend even though I can think of several things he's possibly apologizing for.

"For... how I acted during our final exam. If you hadn't pulled me and Deku through that mess, we would've failed..."

I liked that Katsuki is apologizing, but it sounds like he's holding back. I smiled at him.

"It's okay, Katsuki. Yes, you were being absolutely difficult at the start of our exam, but you realized your mistake and finally worked with me and Izuku so the three of us could pass the exam."

"Yeah... but still."

"Katsuki." I reached out and gently held his hand. "Is there something wrong?"

Katsuki stared at me for a moment before slowly pulling his hand away and turning his head away. His action hurt me.

"I-I'm fine! Anyway, are you having fun?"

I nodded with a smile. "I am. Thank you for taking me to Zoo Dreamland, Katsuki."

"You really don't need to thank me. I just heard that you wanted to go here, so I chose this place for our date."

So, he heard from one of our classmates that I wanted to go to Zoo Dreamland? Or maybe I mentioned it when he was nearby? Either way, I'm glad to hear that Katsuki is paying attention to what I'm interested in. It means that he's putting effort into our relationship. It's a big deal to me. 

"But... I'm glad you're having fun." Katsuki hesitantly takes my hand. "I'm... I'm new to this whole "dating" thing, but I really do like you, and... I don't wanna lose you. Just the thought of some shitty side character touching you in any way infuriates me! Also, I... I... I have fun on our dates, too." He pulled me closer to him and kissed me. 

🐯

After we finished our date, we headed back home. Since Katsuki and I already ate dinner at a restaurant before returning home, so I didn't eat dinner with mom. I did chat with her a little, though, before taking my bath. Wearing my Star and Stripe pajamas, I got out my tablet and sat on my bed. Just when I was about to login to one of my usual anime streaming websites, I got a notification. It was a new email from someone named Melissa Shield. Shield... that's the same last name as my parents' old friend and former sidekick, David Shield. Are the two related? I opened the email and read it out loud.

Dear Hikari Yagi,

My name is Melissa Shield. My father, David Shield, is a scientist that specializes in Quirk research. You probably already know this, but my dad and your parents are good friends. I am writing to you for the first time because the I-EXPO will be held in I-Island, where my dad and I live, and I'm going to send you, Uncle All Might, and Auntie Hope invitation cards. I can't wait to see the surprised look on my father's face when you all come to visit! Just think about it: Two Japanese Heroes who fought with villians while being exchange students, and their reunion with an American scientist for the first time in so many years... Doesn't that sound cool?

P.S., Ever since Uncle All Might and Auntie Hope told me about you, I've been dying to meet you!

Until then,

Melissa Shield 

Oh! I remember her! Melissa Shield and I never actually met, but mom and dad did tell me about her and her dad. I wonder how she got my email address? I bet it was my mom. I-Island is an artificial moving island inhabited by over ten thousand scientists conducting research on Quirks. The results of said research is then showcased at the I-EXPO. Getting an invitation to the I-EXPO sounds like a once in a lifetime opportunity. Plus, I'll get to meet my parents' friend and his daughter. I don't know when or if a chance like this will happen again. As I was about to send a reply, I got a text message from my boyfriend 

Lord Explosion Murder❤️‍🔥: Hey. I got invited to this I-EXPO, and I'm allowed to bring two extras. You wanna come with me?

As soon as I read the message, I smiled.