I Royally Decline// Todoroki Shouto x Reader

Ch 22: The Princess Saves the Prince

Your POV
"Wow, you look terrible," a quivering smile tried to mask the tears threatening to fall from my eyes. It fell, however, when I noticed Shouto refused to turn around an acknowledge me.

"Gosh, I thought you'd run to me crying after after, what, almost four months now? Guess I was wrong," I grunted with irritation. I began to wonder if this really was the red-and-white haired dork I fell in love with or if it was some decoy. "Sho... why won't you-"

"Don't call me that," he snapped. I stepped back in shock and bit my trembling lip.

"Wha-what? I thought you liked when I called you that... what happened?"

"No, I never said I liked when you said that. I said that I liked when (Y/n) called me that, not you," his voice quaking and not settling on a pitch.

"Sho-Chan, it's me... (Y/n). I'm here... I'm here to save you," I spoke calmly and walked closer to the cell.

"NO YOU'RE NOT REAL! YOU'RE JUST MY IMAGINATION! I'LL GO TO RUN TO YOU AND BEG FOR YOUR FORGIVENESS FOR WHAT I DID, BUT, AS SOON AS I GO TO HOLD, YOU YOU'LL DISAPPEAR AND I'LL FALL TO THE GROUND. (Y/N) ISN'T EVER COMING BACK AND I KNOW THAT! I WON'T LET MY MIND FOOL ME AGAIN!!! YOU'RE. NOT. REAL!" His words shook my heart. I dug my nails into my skin as I saw him turn around and look at me with broken eyes. I couldn't believe what he had been through. Why didn't he fight back?

"If I wasn't real, could I do this?" I placed my hands on the cold, metal bars and let bursts of light leave my hand and destroy the bars. I stepped into the cell and kneeled down beside him, but he only turned his head.

"They're not really broken... they're still there."

"I swear, you are more stubborn than I am. Fine, if I wasn't real, could I do this?" I jerked his head towards me and supported his abused body by holding his left shoulder with one hand and his chin with the other. His eyes widened with shock as my lips slowly fell onto his. He remained motionless, but it was enough to tell him I was really there. I retreated from the kiss and pulled him into a tight hug, noticing the whip slashes on his back, visible because his shirt was thin and torn.

"(Y-Y/n)? Y-you c-came? Why? I-I-I was so... so cruel to you!" He burst into sobs as he gripped onto my cape, digging his face into the crook of my neck.

"You were just doing what you thought was best. You proved that you were willing to give up everything to protect me. Sho, I came back because I was selfish in thinking that you really hated me... I never thought that you could possibly be trying to protect me. I came back because I love you," I pulled him out of the hug and held him by his shoulders to look into the heterochromatic eyes I fell in love with. Tears dropped from my eyelashes, as I tried to be strong. Shouto's eyes kept shifting between mine and my lips, obvious that he had been craving them for so long. I granted his wish and our lips crashed onto each other, causing him to fall in the process. He propped himself up with a wall, while I straddled over him, in order to reach his pale face. His lips were cold, but I couldn't care. Both of our mouth were hungry to taste the other's, after being separated. It was a messy, unguided kiss that lead to our teeth getting in the way, but neither of us cared for we were finally together. I never realized how much I actually missed him until that moment.

We pulled back from the kiss, and his weak hand floated up to my cheek, thumb caressing my tear-stained skin. I placed my hand over his, to help support it. I stepped over to one side of him and sat down, letting him rest on my lap. My fingers ran through his hair and down to his back. I could see scars scattering his back that had never been there before. His breath stopped for a moment when he realized I had found them.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Shouto said, finally sounding like himself.

"Not as bad as it looks?! You can barely sit up!" I exclaimed, anger boiling inside of me and wanting to get vengeance.