a groan comes from over by the sofa as i finish mixing up a medicinal paste that was passed down to me from my gran. it stung like a mother but it really did work well.
walking over to the sofa i see that the dishevelled man lying on my sofa had begun to regain consciousness.
"where,,, the fuck,,, am,, i" he groaned.
"i think the words you're looking for are 'thank you'" i replied, still not quite sure as to why i decided that bringing this stranger back to my apartment instead of calling the ambulance was a good idea.
he attempted to sit up but winced in pain and fell back onto his back.
"please don't try to sit up right now, you'll only make things worse for yourself." i states, his eyes locked with mine. they were pitch black, much like his hair. they lock for only a second before i dart mine away, coughing slightly and redirecting my gaze to the open wound on his torso. i've already removed the dagger and bandaged it up, i did that while he was still unconscious so he wouldn't lose anymore blood. Now it needed cleaning, which was going to be a lot more painful. pulling his shirt up his torso he let out another groan.
"what're you doing" he managed to croak out, clearly still not completely with it.
"i need to clean your wounds, it's going to get infected otherwise and i imagine that'll be a lot more painful." i replied, checking his temperature by placing the back of my hand on his forehead. i raise my eyebrow, and meet his eyes, waiting for him to say that it's okay for me to go ahead. his eyes meet mine and after a few seconds of silence he grunts, nodding and letting his head fall back onto the pillow. i take his arm, the one closest to me and raise it above his head, giving me more room to work. i tell him to brace himself as i take the white paste i mixed and gently wipe it onto the wound. clenching his teeth the man grips the back pillow of the sofa tightly, his arm tensing and back slightly arching with the sudden wave of pain. i mutter my sorrys as i continue to spread the paste around. his breathing gets more ragged and i continue to move the paste around. suddenly his raised arm flys down to my arm, his hand completely wraps around my arm, gripping it tight, but not enough to hurt. i look up, his eyes seem to almost plead to me as his teeth remain clenched. i assure him that i'm almost done as i wrap new bandages around the wound, letting the paste soak in and do it's job. his grip loosens and his breathing slows, but he doesn't let go. as i scan his torso i see other fresh wounds, not as severe as the most recent, but still enough to worry me. bruises and scrapes scatter his body. using the remnants of the paste i put small amounts over any larger scrapes i can see. as i continue to scan i can see his arms are also scattered in old scars and fresher scrapes. who is this guy and why does he have so many wounds? my first assumption is that he's a professional hero, and considering earlier it would line up but, his appearance and the way he talks doesn't seem very hero-like to me. infact if i hadn't had seen him in the bar earlier i would've assumed he was a villain. maybe he was, after all it's not like i know anything about the guy, but something is telling me that he can be trusted, i just hope i'm right. pulling his shirt back down i shuffle upto his shoulders, his hair still wild and tangled covers most of it, gently, trying not to pull any of the knots i push it away from his face. surprisingly despite appearances it's not as tangled as i expected, infact it's almost soft, falling back away form his face to reveal stubble covering his jaw. prominent cheekbones with sunken eyes. he was almost, handsome. infact he was really handsome. swallowing i continue to move aside stray strands of hair, there were only a few scrapes on his face, just enough to use up the last of the paste. gently i put paste on a scrape above his eyebrow. he takes in a sharp inhale, i mutter an apology once again. he lets out a small laugh.
"hmm?" i ask "did i do something?"
he opens his eyes to meet mine "you don't need to keep apologising you know." he replies, still in his monotone voice.
"ah,, s-sorry." i mutter, i can feel the heat rising to my cheeks as i look back at the wounds on his face, i can still feel his eyes on me. moving onto the next scape i place a small bit of paste onto his cheek, where a long thin cut lies. still feeling his eyes on me i move onto the final graze, a small cut on his lower lip. taking the last drop of paste i gently place it onto his lip with my finger, i realise i'm holding my breath for some reason. i linger for a moment, not thinking before snapping back to reality and losing my balance i fall back. before hitting my back into the coffee table behind me i see a flash of white and feel a sudden pull dragging me back the way i came. before i could register what had happened i found myself suddenly hanging over the stranger, one arm placed on the back of the sofa keeping me from falling and the other placed beside his head, in an attempt to brace myself. but the cloth held me in place anyway, my knees were still firmly on the ground but the bandages didn't move. my breath was fast from the sudden movement and i let out a nervous laugh as i realise how close i am to the strangers face. i still don't even know his name. "thank you" i manage to whisper, my breath still not quite back to normal. he lets out another small chuckle before his cloths move back into their place around his neck. i sit back, creating some distance between us once more, though something in the back of my head wishes i hadn't.
"so are you going to tell me your name?" i ask, trying to regain my composure. the man turns his head to look at me, one eyebrow raised
"you don't know who i am?" he asks, i laugh,
"no? am i supposed to?" i ask, slightly concerned. i didn't really take him for the boasting type.
"no no i just,, uh, the names Aizawa Shouta. Though most people know me as Eraserhead" a small half smile crept across his face, he seemed almost, friendly.
"Eraserhead?" the name rang a bell, but i couldn't put my finger on where i'd heard it before. i sat for a second, wracking my brain for an answer when it suddenly hit me
"oh!" i exclaimed "i heard your name on the news earlier! you were involved the the incident earlier?" i say, the excitement from figuring out where i knew him from was quickly replaced by curiosity.
he let out yet another small chuckle, he looked at me like i was something he'd never seen before.
"yeah im a teacher there, you really don't know who i am, huh? have you not watched the news in the last year?" he scans my face, i'm not sure what he's looking for but once again i feel the heat rise to my face.
"oh i uh, i actually left the city last year, moved out to the country and we didn't really have any tv out there. i only moved back today." i reply, getting up from where i was kneeled and walking over to the kitchen.
"can i get you anything to eat" i ask, hoping the subject change will be enough to stop him from asking anymore about my time away from the city.
"yes please, i was going to eat earlier but i was interrupted by those damn villains" he paused for a moment "you brought me back to your apartment despite not knowing me? why didn't you just call the ambulance, i could've been any freak?" he croaked out the words as he slowly pulled himself up into a slightly more upright position.
"yeah i guess so, i mean you asked me not to call so i figured there must be a good reason as to why. And i couldn't leave you there, especially after you put yourself in danger for the sake of others." i pull some of my leftover dinner from the fridge, it was a bowl of katsu curry with deep fried salmon, a favourite of mine. bringing the bowl over to him i apologies for it not being heated, i don't really trust the microwave in this place. he thanks me and starts to eat, i can see the pain even the slightest movement, though i'm sure he thinks he's hiding it well. i suppose he's used to hiding his injuries, especially in his line of work. though i can't say i blame him, hiding pain is often the easiest way, i would know.
we spend the night making small talk and discussing his work. we turn on the news and see another coverage of the incident earlier. apparently the two villains aizawa knocked out were taken into custody, but the third remains unfound. aizawas mood dampens, he doesn't seem to like the world of villains and hero's. i would ask to see why but, that could open upto more questions about me and well, that's still not a situation i want to find myself in.
checking the clock i finally realise the time, it's 1am. i apologise for keeping his awake all night.
"you really do apologise a lot, don't you." he remarks, i don't know how to reply, i would say sorry but that would only prove his point.
there was only a couple seconds of silence before the small pattern of feet broke it. in came Ritoruhīrō, his scruffy grey coat looked almost dusty in the dim lighting. his orange eyes reflect what little light there is and make his eyes look like they were almost ablaze.
aizawas mood suddenly brightens as he sees the scruffy tomcat. "and who's this handsome little guy then?" he asks, a small smile creeps across his lips. i've only known him a few hours but still i think i've only seen him smile a select few times. it was nice, he suited it.
"this little scruff is Ritoruhīrō, though he only really responds to scruff" i replied, running my hand along his back as he walks past me and straight towards aizawa. "that's weird" i mutter "he normally hates strangers" i continue while i curiously watch my typically grumpy and distant cat jump up onto this strangers lap. Scruff curls up into a ball on his legs, a rough purr can be heard coming from his chest, and just like that he's off to sleep. i'm amazed, in all my years with this grumpy little creature i've never seen him act like this. i keep my gaze on scruff and watch as aizawa gently pats his fur, his hands have small scars littered across them, probably from all the injuries from all the fights the past few years. i let out a deep breath, it's nice to have company, it's been too long. the tv drones on in the background though it's too quiet to hear, slowly my breathing slows until i eventually drift away.
