𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙧

008 ; the weight of change

i woke up earlier than usual, sunlight barely beginning to creep through the curtains, casting faint golden streaks across my room. for a moment, i just laid there, staring up at the ceiling, letting the reality of yesterday settle in. we were signed now—officially under titan records. it didn't even feel real yet, but the weight of it was heavy enough to press down on my chest. i could already hear faint noises around the house, the kind of sleepy movement that happened before anyone was truly awake.

the clock read 7:00 a.m.

'too fucking early'

and i forced myself to sit up, throwing off the covers. i'd already woken up this early yesterday, and here i was again, wide awake and jittery.

when i made my way to the kitchen, denki was sitting there, still in his pajamas and halfway through a bowl of cereal.

"morning boss." he said, drawing out the words as he waved his spoon in my direction.

"morning sparky." i replied, trying to match his casual tone.

"you look... stressed." he said through a mouthful of food.

"and you look... hungry." i shot back.

"why are you even awake, usually if no one wakes you up you'll sleep till the other day" i added.

"kinda hard when you're trying to imagine what it's like being rich and famous." denki said.

"your right..."

denki then chuckled and went back to eating while i busied myself making coffee. the sound of the coffee maker humming filled the air, and for a moment, it was easy to pretend that this was just another day. but it wasn't.

"so..." denki said, leaning back in his chair, "have you thought about the move?"

i sighed, leaning against the counter. "i've thought about it all night, and i still don't know."

"what's there to think about? it's closer to the studio, it's bigger, and it's, like, fancy." he waved his arms for emphasis.

"but it's not home." i murmured.

denki paused, his spoon halfway to his mouth. "yeah, but isn't it about where we're going, not where we've been?"

his words stayed with me even as kirishima wandered into the kitchen a few minutes later, yawning and rubbing his eyes. "what's going on?" he asked, his voice still scratchy from sleep.

"the boss is overthinking again." denki replied.

"what else is new?" kirishima grinned, and i rolled my eyes, tossing a dishrag at him.

by mid-morning, the house was alive with movement. mina arrived not long after, letting herself in like she always did.

"you guys are a mess," she declared, looking around at the half-packed boxes that had already started piling up in the living room.

"thanks, mina." i said dryly.

"just being honest." she said, plopping onto the couch. "so, what's the plan? are you moving or not?"

i looked at the others, but no one answered. the silence stretched on, and mina sighed dramatically.

"you guys need to make a decision." she said. "you can't just sit here forever."

sero walked in then, holding a cup of coffee and looking like he hadn't slept at all. "we're thinking about it." he said, his voice calm but firm.

mina raised an eyebrow. "thinking? it's not exactly a luxury you guys have right now."

"we know." i said quickly, not wanting to escalate things. "it's just... a lot."

mina softened at that, her expression shifting to something more understanding. "i get it." she said. "but you've worked so hard to get here. don't let the fear of change hold you back."

the rest of the day passed in a blur of packing and half-hearted attempts at organizing. every time i picked up something to put in a box, i'd get distracted by the memories tied to it. there was the chipped mug denki had insisted on keeping, the old posters kirishima had taped to the walls, and the collection of random knickknacks that bakugou had begrudgingly allowed me to display in the living room.

at one point, i found myself sitting on the floor of my room, flipping through an old notebook filled with song lyrics. some of them were laughably bad, but others... others reminded me of how far we'd come.

"you okay in here?" kirishima's voice broke through my thoughts.

"yeah." i said, though my voice wavered. "just... processing."

he sat down beside me, his broad shoulders brushing mine. "you know, no matter where we go, it's not the building that matters. it's us. we're the band, not this house."

his words were comforting, but they didn't completely ease the ache in my chest.

by evening, we were all gathered in the living room, surrounded by boxes and the smell of takeout pizza. mina had ordered it as a way to "keep us motivated," though most of the motivation had turned into laughter as we reminisced about our time here.

"remember when bakugou tried to fix the sink and flooded the kitchen?" denki said, grinning.

"you were the one who broke it in the first place!" bakugou shot back, his voice rising in frustration.

"minor details." denki replied, waving him off.

sero cracked a smile at that, and for a moment, it felt like nothing had changed.

later that night, after mina had left and the boys had gone to their rooms, i found myself sitting on the back porch, staring up at the stars. the night was quiet, the kind of stillness that made you think about everything and nothing all at once.

"you still up?" bakugo's voice startled me, and i turned to see him leaning against the doorway.

'him again...looks like im not getting rid of him soon'

"yeah," i said. "just... thinking."

he walked over and sat beside me, the wooden steps creaking under his weight. "about the move?"

"about everything." i admitted.

bakugo nodded, his gaze fixed on the horizon. "it's a lot." he said after a moment. "but it's worth it, don't you think?"

i looked at him, surprised by his certainty. "you really believe that?"

"yeah," he said, smiling faintly. "we've come too far to stop now."

his words stayed with me as we sat there in comfortable silence, the cool night air wrapping around us. no matter what happened, i realized, we'd face it together. and that was enough.

word count : 1058