Zero Hero || MHA ||

27. Gone Hero

I peeled my eyes opened upon hearing a voice. Through the darkness, the clock read 8:32 pm. My eyes were sore and swollen. I must've cried myself to sleep.

        My throat was totally parched. I untangled my body from the sweaty sheets and shuffled out of my room to get water. Creeping down the stairs, I noticed that the kitchen light was on. My parents' shadows cast on the tan tiles. There was another, but I didn't recognize it. Gently placing my hands on the wall, I peeked into the kitchen. Dad was leaning on the kitchen counter with his arms folded with Mom sitting at the dining table. Sitting across from her was the back of Corvade's head. What was she doing here? Why is she talking to them? What are they even talking about?

        "I think it's time we tell her," Dad said.

        "It's too dangerous," Corvade curtly replied.

        "Dangerous? She's already in danger!"

        "That's exactly why she can't know!" she snapped. "She doesn't need to get dragged into our drama. We shouldn't pass on our problems onto her; she's been through enough already. I don't want her to end up like Kiyoshi or Hiro. Or like..."

        I waited for Corvade to finish, but she just stopped. Mom's face went solemn, and the wrinkles on Dad's face deepened.

        "At this point, there's no use continuing this lie. The only reason why this's been working for the past 6 years is because of the accident. She's been suppressing her Quirk but now it reawakened. She knows that it isn't like mine or Anri's. If she's not already suspecting something, she will soon. She's old enough to understand these things."

        What things are they talking about? I leaned in closer to hear.

        Mom closed her eyes, letting out a shaky sigh. "This is very difficult for all of us, you especially. We love Rin, and I know that you do too. She's so confused right now, and I'm willing to tell the truth if it means it'll make her feel less lost. We can't keep lying forever," she quietly spoke. "When you brought her that day, I remember the look you had on your face. We knew we couldn't turn you away. We promised that we'd look after her and...failed. I-I'm so sorry."

        My heart started to pound in my chest. My mind started to race all over the place as the words rang in my ears. I couldn't believe what I heard, I didn't want to believe it. Are they actually admitting that...?

         "You did nothing wrong. She wouldn't have grown up as she did if she stayed with me," Corvade replied. Hearing that last line made the pounding in my chest intensify.

        All of a sudden, Dad's eyes flickered in my direction. Crap! I quickly ducked behind the wall and tried to make my getaway by tiptoeing back upstairs when he called out to me.

        "Rin, come here. We need to talk."

        With my cover blown, I had no choice but to sulk into the kitchen. The air got heavy and everybody's eyes were on me. Mom began twirling her hair. Corvade, whose back was what I saw earlier, turned around. She wasn't wearing her cloak. Moving from the counter, Dad took a seat next to Mom. He told me to sit, and I did.

        "...How much did you hear?" Dad asked. He was fiddling with his fingers.

        I flickered my eyes to Corvade, to Mom, then back to Dad. "Stuff about my Quirk and um, how you guys were gonna tell me something..." I swallowed the dryness in my throat. "I didn't say it earlier when you asked at the hospital, but Kiyoshi told me something. He told me that you, Mom, Hiro weren't...my real family."

        His shoulders stiffened and his fingers froze. He glanced at Corvade, practically burning a hole through her. Although he was silent, Corvade knew what he was saying and she didn't like it one bit. Turning to me, she asked if I believed him. I told her that I didn't at first but after everything that's happened and what I just overheard...