The Tempo of Love

Kissed by the Moon

"Momo, I'm sorry again for disturbing you. You always do so much to help others, but I can't do anything to repay you for this." Jirou sighed. Tears began to form in her eyes once more, but this time they were not from pain. "No matter how many times you say that I don't inconvenience you, I still feel you suffer because of me. I mean, you're missing out on precious sleep because of me."

"Jirou-"

"I just feel inadequate compared to everyone here. What if I made the wrong choice in enrolling at U.A.? Sometimes I feel I should have just become a musician like my parents, but I feel that I'd have wasted so much of my life then."

"Jirou listen to me." Jirou stopped talking, tears streaming down her face. The usually stoic girl was in shambles. "Jirou, don't compare yourself to me. Don't compare yourself to anyone for that matter. You have your own amazing talents just like everyone else, and your drawbacks like, once again, everybody else."

Jirou wiped away a tear, but it was soon replaced. "What drawback do you possibly have? I'm not as fast as others, I'm not as strong, and above all else my own quirk prevents me from even sleeping."

"Sure, you might not be as strong as Ojiro or as fast as Izuku, but you have something that everyone can admire – you keep a level head under pressure. Back when the League of Villains first attacked, you kept a level head when Kaminari and I were practically panicking." Momo took a deep breath, "And you're not the only one whose quirk hurts them. Just think about Kaminari!"

The two girls shared a chuckle, but Jirou soon returned to being solemn. "Sure, but nobody knows that at first glance. You and Todoroki are always the first people think about when they think about U.A. heroes, and a lot of it is due to your looks."

There it was. Momo had always known that Jirou wasn't very confident about her body, but she had never talked to her about it for one reason – she wasn't sure if she could keep her secret hidden.

"Jirou, looks aren't everything. It's simple genetics that determine what we look like, but how we act can only be determined by our own minds."

"Mineta – that bastard – doesn't even comment on me! Someone as desperate as him overlooks me still!" Jirou began to cry again, her head falling into her hands as if it were dead weight.

Momo winced, "You're seriously this upset about what Mineta thinks? It's obvious he doesn't look at what matters in a person. He changed his mind about Lady Midnight pretty quickly after his internship with her after all."

"He even commented on Hagakure! She's invisible for fuck's sake!"

"Jirou – he only cares about the carnal in the body. What he doesn't see are the most important parts of you. He doesn't see how you smile when you do things you love. He doesn't see how you shake your head to whatever music you're listening to. He doesn't see how unique you are – especially with the pulses in your hair. In fact, I think he's too short to notice that." Jirou stifled a laugh, remembering how Mineta nearly lost in height to the principal, who was quite literally a rodent.

"You know Momo, you always know how to cheer me up." Jirou sniffed back more tears and wiped her eyes clean. "But I do have one more question – why do you call the lines in my hair 'pulses'?"

There it was. The line that Momo knew she couldn't resist responding to, no matter how much willpower she put into it. "It's simply because you always seem to steal my heartbeat when we talk."

Even in the dim light of the room, it was obvious that Momo was blushing a red fiercer than an apple ever could hope to have. In her mind, Momo was kicking herself over and over for admitting her love. Now whenever she helped Jirou it would always be awkward for both of them.

"Momo, do you really mean that?" Jirou's ear jacks were twisting over each other, a sign that only Momo knew – Jirou was nervous.

"Y-Yes, I do. I've admired your audacity ever since I first met you, and I've always thought that I'd rather see your face come over the horizon rather than the sun, because it makes my life that much brighter." Momo took a quick breath, "Sorry! That was probably really weird to hear, maybe I should just go-"

"No." Jirou took Momo's hand, causing her to freeze. "I feel the same way, though I can't say it the way that you do. I think the reason I didn't score as well as I'd have liked on the final last year because when you were helping us study, I kept looking at you instead of my notes."

Jirou slowly shuffled closer to Momo, hesitating after every movement in case Momo pulled away – instead Momo moved closer as well. Their hands soon found each other's, and so did their eyes. Their heads moved towards each other's painfully slow, but as soon as Momo closed her eyes, they both knew that the kiss was inevitable.

When their lips touched, Jirou felt a rush like nothing she had felt before; not from playing her guitar, not from kicking butt at training – no, this was something completely different. Momo's lips felt like silk, and Jirou couldn't get enough. She whimpered when Momo pulled away, and they both opened their eyes once more.

"Momo... would you mind staying here tonight? In case my headaches come back, of course."

Momo didn't hesitate to respond: "I'd love to."