Play Nice (Tomura Shigaraki x Reader)

Chapter 20: Interlude I. Love

She was at a breaking point. No seriously. She didn't know how much more of this she could handle.

"The relationship between polar coordinates and the standard rectangular coordinates x comma y is represented in the four equations x equals r cosine-theta, y equals r sine-theta, r-squared equals..." she mumbled through her notes.

She was pretty sure that she wasn't even processing the words she was saying anymore, she'd been studying so long. But honestly, what other choice did she have right now?

With swim practice canceled this week for finals, her friends preoccupied with their own study frenzies, and Shigaraki in Kyushu for the week, she had no distractions, no excuses to fill her freetime with anything other than studying. And with not only finals this week, but entrance exams following close around the corner, she was determined to take full advantage of that time.

...Maybe too full of advantage. She dropped her head on the desk, mind completely swarmed with static. She was pretty sure that if she tried to stuff one more vocabulary word or equation into that brain of hers that it'd actually explode. She could practically smell the smoke coming from her own ears.

She peered up as her phone buzzed up a storm next to her. At last, a respite from her own brain. It was probably just spam, but even making dumb smalltalk with the robot asking her about her car's extended warranty sounded like a great break at the moment.

But then she saw who was actually on the caller ID, and was instantly filled with confusion and a light garnish of dread.

Mirio Togata.

Why was he calling her? Wasn't he supposed to be at work right now?

Against the nagging feeling in her gut, she answered the phone.

"Hey, babe!" he chirped on the other end, supposedly full of his normal enthusiasm, there was something kind of off about his voice, although she couldn't quite put her finger on what.

"Hey..." she said cautiously, "What's up?"

"Not much! The weather's awesome today, isn't it?! Makes me wish I didn't have to work! How about you?"

"Um... I guess, maybe?" she answered, pushing open her blinds slightly to reveal a definitively gray sky, "I haven't really been outside either..."

"Studying hard, or hardly studying?" he joked.

"Uh, well I..." she sighed, a little annoyed and wanting to just get to the point, "Is something wrong? You don't usually call when you're at work."

There was a pause on the other end, Mirio caught off guard by being confronted directly. He'd obviously hoped to have some weird segue into whatever he was calling about.

"Mirio—?"

"Haha, yeah, I guess you caught me there, huh?" he laughed, clearly forced, "I guess I just—! Well, um..."

Her brows furrowed, Mirio was at a loss for words. That was really not like him. Now she was getting worried.

"...Yeah?"

"Well, there's something I want to ask you and I really don't think it can wait any longer."

"Okay..."

"So um, yeah here it goes!" he laughed nervously, "Were you with Shigaraki last week?"

Wait, that was it?

The way Mirio had been ramping up and beating around the bush so much, she'd assumed that this was going to be about something way bigger, maybe something involving the swim dinner or before. About an incident with Shigaraki that he didn't know about. But asking about last week? What was the problem exactly?