Silhouette

Ch. 7

The next day was the end of Izuku's mandatory leave, and he was itching to get back to work. It had absolutely nothing to do with his declaration to his childhood friend the night before, absolutely nothing. At least, that was what he kept telling himself. 

When he walked into the agency building the next day, he almost made it to his desk without getting stopped. He was only a few feet away when he heard the familiar groan of his best friend. 

"What're you doing, Deku?" Uraraka asked as she appeared at his side. 

Izuku didn't pause his movements, dropping into his desk chair and pulling up a few reports he needed to look over before heading out for the evening. "Working? What does it look like?" 

"Don't get snappy with me," she pouted, leaning her arms on the short walls of his little cubical. 

As the number one hero, Izuku should definitely have his own office, maybe even an agency, but... It was so much easier to stay with his friends and let someone else manage the company he worked for. He fought villains, and the management team handled most of the paperwork. 

"You aren't supposed to be back until tomorrow," she reminded him, her wide eyes glancing down at what he was working on. "The Zero and Red case? Is that why you're back?" 

"They were spotted on my route," Izuku said in what he hoped was a nonchalant voice. "That makes them my problem." 

Uraraka frowned as she rested her cheek against her folded arms. "You work too much," she mumbled. "When was the last time you left the house for something that wasn't patrol?" 

"Last night," Izuku answered quickly. "Got dinner with a friend. I'm doing fine, Ura." 

Her eyebrows shot up at his words. "You got dinner with a friend? What friend? I know all your friends, and Iida and Todoroki were both scheduled last night. Was it Shinsou? You guys used to be close back in school, but I didn't think you still hung out." 

"You're rambling," he muttered, keenly aware that she'd picked the habit up from him. "And I have more than three friends." 

A gleeful smile took over her features, and Izuku's stomach dropped at the sight. That smile never meant anything good for him. "Were you on a date?" she whisper-yelled, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one else was in earshot. "You totally were, look at how red you are!" 

"It wasn't a date," he hissed quickly, taking a few deep breaths to try and calm his growing blush. He was quick to fluster, even as a fully grown man. Some things you just never outgrow. "It wasn't even a one-on-one thing. It was dinner with two friends." 

"Now you're changing the story," she teased, using one finger to poke his scarlet cheek. "You went on a date last night and didn't tell me! I thought we were best friends, Deku. Who was he? Do I know him? Is he another pro? Who am I kidding, of course, he was!" 

"Ura," he hissed, just wanting her to quiet down. "It wasn't a date." 

"Sure, sure, sure," she said absently with a small nod of her head. "You don't want it to get out; I can respect that. Plus, I bet you don't want Todoroki to find out. The guy is still hung up on high school," she muttered. 

Izuku clenched his eyes shut at the mention of his high school relationship with the half-and-half hero. It wasn't something he enjoyed remembering. They had started dating in their second year and kept it up until right after graduation when Izuku bailed. At the time, he'd never dated anyone, and Todoroki seemed like the perfect fit. He was attractive, considerate, kind, a bit standoffish, but he really opened up after their first year. It wasn't until a few months in that Izuku realized just how badly Endeavor's parenting had skewed his child's idea of love, but that was a secret he planned on taking to the grave. He'd moved past it, and so had Todoroki. There was no point digging it up now.