healing takes time (none of it is linear)

Chapter 9

Izuku didn't like surprises, and he didn't like being given anything special either. They never meant anything good, and more often than not, 'surprises' would leave him cold and aching by the end of the night. So when he was told that there was a "special surprise" waiting for him when they got home from their day at the park, Izuku wasn't exactly excited or looking forward to it. He tried to believe it would be ok, he tried to remind himself that these alphas wouldn't do that to him, but who knows, maybe they were just biding their time until he was comfortable just to bring it all crashing down. But that couldn't be it... right?

Izuku pulled at his fingers and tried his best not to show his panic. He had nothing to worry about, right? This was Eijiro, Shoto and Katsuki he was talking about. They were good, right? They had to be good.

They had to be good.

As hard as it was to adjust, Izuku liked them. He really liked them...

"Izuku? Are you ok?" Shoto asked quietly from beside him.

"Huh?" Izuku looked up at the alpha quickly before putting on a fake smile. "Oh- y-yeah- I'm fine-" he tried to stutter out. He was fine. He was fine. Nothing bad was going to happen. He was fine.

"You don't sound ok," Eijiro said, looking through the rearview mirror to see Izuku. "Or look ok."

Izuku looked down at his lap, hiding behind his bucket hat and continuing to pull at his fingers.

"Oi, tell us what's going on," Katsuki said.

Silence followed for a few more seconds. "I don't like surprises," Izuku muttered, "or- or anything special- it usually ends badly for me."

Eijiro glanced over his shoulder before focusing back on the road. "Izuku, we promise it won't end badly for you," he said softly.

"Even if you don't like it, we'll understand, and it'll be 100% ok, and we'll forget about it," Shoto added. "Ok?"

Izuku didn't react. He just mulled over the words and tried to figure out what the surprise would be.

When he felt Shoto's hand on his knee, Izuku flinched and looked at him, then realized it was supposed to be a calming gesture and tried to relax. He looked back down at Shoto's hand, blushing, before turning his face to the window.

Just ignore the weird butterflies. Ignore them.

"Izuku? Would you mind staying in the car with Sho for a few minutes while we make sure everything's in order?" Eijiro asked as he parked the car in the garage.

Izuku doubted he had much say in this, so he just nodded, keeping his head down.

Katsuki reached over and pulled Izuku's hat down again, "stop being so tense."

Izuku peeked out from under his hat. His eyes met red. He couldn't bring himself to look away.

"Nothing bad's gonna happen," Katsuki insisted, holding Izuku's gaze for another moment before getting out of the car.

Eijiro followed him out of the car, leaving Izuku and Shoto alone.

"Katsuki's right," Shoto said softly, reaching over to fix Izuku's hat. "You don't have to worry so much."

Izuku nodded slowly. "Sorry... I'm trying," he muttered. He really was trying. He had been given no reason to worry so much. But not having a reason to worry was making him worry. His anxiety fizzed under his skin, and he didn't know how to get rid of it.

Shoto sighed softly. "You don't need to apologize." He patted Izuku's head, and when the omega leant into his touch, the alpha put his arm around Izuku to pull him closer. "Just relax." He rubbed Izuku's back gently, making Izuku shiver.