Echoes of Vapor (Shoto Todoroki)

02.05

PART 05

BLAZING

On the second day of school, it became abundantly clear that the only spectacular part of UA was the heroics course. Everything else was pretty much standard high school protocol.

Ryou did notice that the quality of teachers was significantly higher, but he wasn't sure if it was just because he attended crappy schools his whole life, or if it was because the teachers were not only better, but suited his learning style more.

Ryou sat in the very back, though it didn't bother him as much as it used to ever since Ben bought him contacts and a pair of glasses.

When class was over, he got out of his seat, taking a moment to stretch his arms, before he began to look for Midoriya. Suddenly, a hand tapped him on the back of his shoulder, alerting his attention. Ryou turned around, locking eyes with a cheerful Kaminari.

"Hey, man! Wanna eat lunch with us today?" He asked, jabbing a thumb back towards Kirishima, Sero, and Ashido, who both eagerly waved his way.

Ryou blinked in surprise, before he looked back towards Midoriya, who watched from the other side of the classroom alongside Iida and Uraraka. He must've had a conflicted look on his face, because Midoriya was quick to send an overly-encouraging thumbs-up in Ryou's direction.

Ryou nodded his head before turning back to Kaminari, "Sure, I don't see why not."

Kaminari grinned as they all began walking to the cafeteria.

After they had all gotten their lunch from Pro Hero Lunch Rush, Kirishima took the lead in deciding on where they sat. Kirishima paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression on his face as he looked for an ideal spot.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he began making his way towards a table.

Ryou was a bit surprised to see that Kirishima had happily begun trotting to a table where Bakugo had been sitting at all by himself. It was understandable that no one was sitting at the same table as him, but it was odd that the tables surrounding the grumpy blond were empty too.

When Kirishima called out to Bakugo while placing his tray next to his, Ryou wasn't surprised when the blond raised a brow, his grumpy expression darkening.

"Eh? Who said you extras could sit with me?" He grumbled after chewing his food, a small irk mark appearing at his temples. Ryou huffed out a small laugh at Bakugo's quick, but predictable reaction. Ryou had expected Bakugo to have terrible manners for everything, but he strangely took care of speaking when his mouth wasn't full.

"What're you laughing at, blueberry punk?" Bakugo sneered, but despite the irritation that Ryou wanted to feel towards Bakugo's attitude, it only fueled his amusement.

Ryou shrugged, "Nothing, I just think it's funny how you're so grumpy despite us only being here for under a minute." He said with a small laugh at the end.

Kaminari seemed unphased, laughing alongside Ryou. "Come on, Bakugo! Let us keep you company," He said, placing his tray down across from Bakugo's, to the grouchy blond's dismay.

Ryou glanced at Sero and Mina, who both seemed a bit skeptical, but mostly on board with the thought of accompanying Bakugo. He smiled encouragingly at them, placing his tray down next to Kaminari and taking a seat.

Ashido sat down next to Ryou, leaving Sero to sit next to Bakugo.

Immediately, the rowdy group erupted into chatter while they all ate, with Ryou and Bakugo being the quieter participants.