A Lost Creation

Learning Something New

You'd looked everywhere for Dabi within the building when you got back, but you couldn't find him, or Tomura anywhere.

You wonder if maybe they'd fought so badly they'd both left, until you smell smoke coming from one of the big glass doors in one of the unused rooms. Curiously, you approach it, spotting Dabi sitting on a balcony that you hadn't known even existed, his back turned to you as he sits cross legged on the balcony.

You open the door, having to tiptoe to reach the handle.

"Not now." Is the flat response from Dabi, who doesn't even turn around before speaking.

"But I wanna see you." You say sadly.

He peers over his shoulder at you with the cigarette hanging between his lips. "Ah, Starshine. Sorry, hon. Thought it was Toga. C'mere."

He throws his cigarette over the edge of the balcony as you cautiously come out of the building to join him.
He reaches for you as you settle down, wrapping his arm around your waist and tugging you to his side.

"Give your paw a hug." He says softly.

You wrap your arms around him automatically, but alarms are going off in your head. Dabi next to never openly asked for hugs, not like you did, which meant he must be really upset.

You squeeze him tight, pressing your face into his side so harshly that it makes the tube hurt your nose a bit, which makes you catch your breath.

"Carefully, dummy." He says, pulling your face away gently and looking over it with worried blue eyes. "Don't go hurting yourself."

"You're the dummy." You argue weakly.

"Nice one, Star." Dabi snorts and then rolls his eyes. "Sure showed me."

You squeeze him a little tighter again wordlessly, not wanting to argue, even in jest, with him like he did with Tomura. You didn't want to make him even more sad.

He drops a kiss to the top of your head, gently easing a few strands of your hair from the staple at the corner of his mouth as he pulls away.

"Nurse Wani says that smoking kills people." You say simply after a while in silence.

"Uh-huh." Dabi responds dryly.

"You should stop." You say, looking up at him with big, pleading eyes.

He looks conflicted for a second before rolling his eyes, and looking away from you. "Don't be a nag, Starshine."

"I'm not nagging!" You defend.

"Buggin' me like the little snuggle bug you are." He continues to tease, but for some reason the fact he'd said you were bugging him stings a little bit.

So you go quiet. You don't bug him anymore, not like you did mom and her boyfriends. You were already causing arguments between Tomura and Dabi, so you didn't need to add to it by annoying Dabi as well.

"Didja have fun with the old man?" Dabi asks after a while, leaning his cheek on your head.

"Mhm. I saw Uncle Jin." You reply, trying to keep your sentences as brief and concise as possible.

"He's awake, huh?" Dabi asks, a small smirk pulling his mouth upwards ever so slightly. "Bet he was glad to see ya."

You nod. "He said he wanted to see you too, next time."

Dabi hums absentmindedly.

"He said you carried him to someone and told them to take him to a clinic that looked after him for a while." You tell him. "He called you a hero."