False Reality

Babysitting

You managed to get a little sleep before being woken in the morning, only to be told you were going to be given local anesthetic by the short, old doctor Ujiko.
You figure it's impossible to argue with him or to try to move while he operates on your broken wings, so you lay there, being obedient, even though he's massively unsettling to be around.

You can't place your finger on it, but it was probably the fact you now knew he was the person that made nomu. The person that... made Zero?

And Zero was annoyingly present, even when Shigaraki wasn't. He stayed with you while Ujiko operated on your wings, watching him with a sharp look in his eyes that you hadn't really seen before. It only worsened when he'd do something you could feel, and wince at, and Zeros' smile would drop immediately, his eyes narrowing, like he was getting angry or protective.
It made you feel a little better about him following orders, but it was admittedly also a little nerve wracking.

He stayed with you constantly, apart from when you used the bathroom.
He didn't speak to you unless you spoke to him first, though, which you were thankful for, but that could also be kind of intimidating too.

So when you realise that you're thoroughly stuck in this situation, trapped in a hospital room with Zero because Shigaraki was doing the rounds and making sure everyone was receiving proper care, you end up deciding to make it a little more entertaining for yourself.

"You said you're dead." You say to Zero bluntly.

"Legally, yes." Zero replies as if it's the most normal thing to admit to.

"Do you remember being alive? Before you were a nomu?" You ask.

Zero hums a little to himself, his eyes rolling to the side in thought. "Not really."

"Doesn't that make you sad?" You ask, leaning your chin on your pulled-up knees.

"I don't have emotions." Zero replies honestly.

"Why?"

"They get in the way of following orders." Zero replies.

You eye him dubiously. "Sounds fucked up."

"That's not nice language for a girl your age."

"Didn't ask."

"Didn't need to." Zero smiles a little more, almost like he was enjoying the banter.

"No emotions at all?" You double check, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, Hakuchō." He replies.

You hum, rolling your head to the side to rest your cheek on your knees. "That sounds nice."

"Why's that?" Zero asks curiously.

"Emotions are messy." You reply absentmindedly, your thumb rubbing over the raised, red scars on your forearm.

Zero watches you carefully, his mismatched eyes a little thoughtful. Slowly he reaches out to you and takes your arm in his hands gently, even though you flinch. One of his rough thumbs runs over the marks you'd mindlessly been tracing, and he looks at you directly.

"There are healthier ways of dealing with your emotions."

"I didn't fucking ask." You snap.

His expression is still soft, and he releases your arm. "Again, you didn't need to."

You turn your head away from him, signaling that you're finished with the conversation, and he seems perfectly happy to finish the conversation there, humming to himself before falling silent again.