In the Cold of the Apocalypse ( Shoto Todoroki x Reader)

After the War

The final war had left deep scars on the world and even deeper ones on the
hearts of those who survived it. Shoto Todoroki, standing alone in the vast, empty halls of the Todoroki estate, felt the weight of those scars more than ever. The victory over His own brother had come at a great cost, and the once-fractured Todoroki family was now irrevocably broken. Endeavor The Hero was gone, and the rest of the family had scattered, seeking solace in their own ways. Even his mother, Rei, though slowly recovering, now takes care of his father.

For the first time in his life, Shoto felt truly alone. The silence of the house, once oppressive with the echoes of his father's ambitions and his own struggles, was now just hollow. The icy side of his Quirk flared up unconsciously, frost creeping along the walls as his thoughts drifted. His mind, however, kept returning to one person—Y/N. He has been thinking about her a lot lately, he can't deny the fact there's something between them, she's a steady presence that he hadn’t fully appreciated until now.

As the first snow of the season began to fall, Shoto left the cold, empty estate behind and made his way through the streets of Musutafu. The city was quieter now, the people still recovering from the devastation of the war. The snow fell softly, covering the ground in a pure, white blanket, muffling the world in a peaceful silence that contrasted sharply with the chaos of recent months.

Shoto barely noticed the cold; it was an old companion, one he had learned to live with. But as he walked, the cold seemed to seep into his soul, filling the empty spaces left by the war, by his family’s separation, by his unresolved feelings. Y/N had always been there, just out of reach, a quiet presence in the background of his life. She had fought beside him, supported him, and now, in the aftermath of everything, she was the only person he could think of.

When he reached her apartment, Shoto stood outside the door, his heart pounding in his chest. For years, he had buried his feelings, convincing himself that there were more important things to focus on, that he didn’t deserve to feel anything for someone like her. But now, standing there with the snow gently falling around him, he couldn’t deny it any longer. He raised his hand to knock, but before he could, the door opened.

Y/N stood in the doorway, her dark hair dusted with snowflakes, her eyes widening in surprise as she saw him. “Shoto,” she whispered, her voice barely audible in the quiet of the night.

“I… I couldn’t stay away,” Shoto said, his voice rough with emotion that he had kept buried for too long. “Not anymore.”

Y/N stepped aside, letting him in. The warmth of her apartment enveloped him, a stark contrast to the cold outside, but it was her presence that truly warmed him from within. She led him to the window, where they could see the snow continuing to fall, the world outside a pristine, silent white.

They stood there in silence for a moment, side by side, the unspoken tension between them palpable. Shoto struggled to find the right words, his heart racing as he tried to sort through the emotions he had kept locked away for so long.

Finally, he spoke, his voice soft but filled with conviction. “I thought… I thought everything was over. The war, my family… me. But then I realized that you were the only thing that made sense to me anymore.

Y/N turned to him, her eyes searching his face, trying to understand the depth of what he was saying. “Shoto, I—” she started, but he gently placed a finger over her lips, silencing her.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he murmured, his hand dropping to take hers. “I just wanted you to know. You’re the reason I’m still here. The reason I’m still standing. Without you, I don’t know where I’d be. I can remind you of those countless times you showed me exactly what to do, supported me with my mental health”

Tears welled up in Y/N’s eyes, and for a moment, she couldn’t speak. The emotions she had kept hidden, the fears and the hopes, all came rushing to the surface. Shoto’s words touched something deep inside her, something she had tried to ignore for so long. A single tear slipped down her cheek, and then another, until she was crying softly, overwhelmed by the depth of her own feelings.

Shoto, seeing her tears, felt a pang in his chest. He reached out, cupping her face gently with his hand, his thumb brushing away her tears. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

Y/N shook her head, a small, trembling smile forming on her lips. “No, Shoto, it’s not… It’s not sadness,” she said, her voice shaky but filled with warmth. “These are happy tears. I’ve wanted to hear those words for so long… I just never thought you’d say them.”

Before Shoto could respond, Y/N closed the distance between them, standing on her toes to press her lips against his. The kiss was soft at first, tentative, as if they were both afraid the moment would shatter. But as their emotions surged, the kiss deepened, filled with all the unspoken feelings they had kept hidden for so long.

As they kissed, the lyrics of the song they had danced to on that one rare, peaceful night during the war floated through Y/N’s mind: "Your lips, my lips, apocalypse…" It was a haunting melody, one that had stayed with her, reminding her of the fragility of their lives and the deep connection they shared.

The world outside continued to disappear in the snow, but inside, everything was warm, everything was right. When they finally broke apart, their foreheads rested against each other, their breaths mingling in the cold air.

“I love you, Y/N,” Shoto whispered, his voice full of the certainty he had never felt before. “I think I always have.”

Y/N’s eyes glistened with unshed tears as she smiled up at him, her heart swelling with joy. “I love you too, Shoto,” she replied, her voice firm and unwavering. “I always have, and I always will.”

They stood there for a long time, holding each other close, as the snow continued to fall outside, wrapping the world in a blanket of white. In that moment, they knew that no matter what the future held, they would face it together.