Finding Me (Todoroki x Reader)

Chapter 46

"Let's begin," Mr. Aizawa announced. "The teams will take the practical exam in the order you were called. We have a stage prepared for you. Sato, Kirishima, you're up."

"Yes sir," both of them answered, stoic and ready as the teachers walked away.

'Preparing for our tests, no doubt.'

"Those waiting their turn to fight can either watch the exams or try to strategise together as a team. It's your choice. That's all."

And with that, our sleepy homeroom teacher left with the others, leaving the rest of us in a silence so deafening, I could barely hear myself breathe. Now that I knew what we were meant to do - meant to achieve - I finally processed what that meant. My heart pounded more at the thought of facing them head on.

'And just my luck,' I thought, clenching my fists to smother my rising anxiety, 'that I've gotta go up against the principal, of all people.'

I let out a breath, steeling my nerves and honing in my focus. 'I can do this.'

"Okay, then..." I turned to Shoto and Momo, giving them two thumbs up and the most encouraging smile I could muster. "Good luck to you guys! But I'm sure you won't need it. I have all faith in you two. If anyone from our class is gonna take down Mr. Aizawa, it will be you two, for sure."

Momo returned a smile of her own, her stunning, onyx eyes shining with gratitude. Or maybe that was just the sunlight?

"Thank you, Y/N," my raven-haired friend said. "Good luck to you, as well. I mean, Principal Nezu will be... interesting."

I nodded, rubbing my neck as I gazed to my teammates a few meters away. "Yeah, he is quite an unpredictable character. Unconventional, if you will."

I sweat-dropped when I saw Kaminari and Mina babbling excitedly about something. 'They're probably not even talking about strategies. Ugh... better go sort them out.' I did like the two, but it seemed to me that they shared only one braincell between them.

Waving at my friends, I flashed them a broad smile, "Better let you guys strategise, then. See ya afterwards-"

"Y/N."

I paused at Shoto's voice, raising my brow at his sudden break of silence. I had taken a few steps away already, but I made no move to step back towards. When Shoto saw that, he decided to close the gap between us. Now, we were in our own little world, no one else around as we stared at each other. I kicked myself at how my heart rate spiked from his close presence.

"What is it, Shoto?" I asked, tilting my head in confusion. His heterochromatic hair shifted in the breeze and as he turned away from me, mumbling something I couldn't quite hear. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

Shoto sighed, lifting his head so his eyes met mine after a moment. I couldn't help but notice the rose-pink hue that was spreading across his cheeks, making me internally coo.

"I said..." he said a little louder, "to be careful, okay?"

I stood staring like a stunned mullet, eyes wide and body in a state of shock. 'Did he just...? ' The raging blush that now covered his cheeks only confirmed my thought. 'Did he just tell me to be careful... because he's worried? '

I noticed how his eyes ducked away from mine, and the teeny tiniest shake in his hands as he clenched them. All the signs that would indicate that he was nervous. However, I could never believe that he was nervous for himself. For someone else, however...

"You care about this one the most, right?"

No matter how hard I tried to not think about that awful night, I couldn't help it. A lot about Midoriya, Iida, Shoto and I was revealed that night, and I remembered distinctly finding out that one fact from none other than the Hero Killer, himself.