Saving Me [Monoma x Reader]

2o. Challenger

I had already told Hagakure about my plans for training. Not so much exactly what I would be doing, but that I wouldn't be able to hang out after school for the next couple of weeks. She was disappointed that we wouldn't be riding the train together for awhile, but she understood, and she had her own plans for being noticed at the sports festival, too.

"OH MY GOSH!!! [L/N], WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FACE?!"

That was the first thing she screamed at me the next morning, and my body tensed at all of the sudden attention aimed towards me.

"I'll tell you later..!" I whispered, trying to duck down, but there really was nothing to hide behind at my desk.

"Tch, what a dumbass. Just like a moron to go and get beat up before the sports festival." Of course Bakugo had something to say. But I had something to say back, too.

Turning around, I showed him the full damage. One of my eyes was nearly swollen shut, and I had bandages pretty much all over my face, with bruises and cuts underneath them. My hands were wrapped like a mummy. "Well, this 'beat-up moron' is gonna kick your ass."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

"Woooooah! Did I just hear [L/N] declare war on Bakugo?" Kirishima whistled from his desk. "A lotta fire goin' on around this class!"

There were other murmurs quickly spreading around the other 1-A students, but I paid them no mind. I had a battle right here to deal with. 

I stared the ash blond down with my one good eye. "Take a good look at this hand," I told him, lifting my right hand which was bandaged from just below my fingernails to my wrist. "It's the same hand I'm gonna use to beat you."

Hagakure gasped, probably holding her face between her hands. "........YeAH THAT'S RIGHT, [L/N]! You TELL HIM! YOU LET THAT FIRE OUT!" she crowed.

I could see the red veins streaking through his eyes and how his face contorted into one of sheer rage. He grit his teeth and the very sound of his snarl was enough to make me quiver in my shoes, but I would make my stand against every student in this room if I had to. I had a goal, and I would not go down easily.

"Real bold of you to talk like that, chair brat..." he started, but then his expression of rage shifted into one of crazed furor. "I'm gonna crush you so hard, YOU'LL NEVER GET BACK UP TO FACE ME AGAIN!"

I was sweating puddles at this point. Who the hell did I think I was? It was one thing to tell Todoroki that I'd beat him, and now, I was somehow waving my pitchfork at Bakugo, too?

"I'll keep getting back up, no matter how many times I get knocked down." And with that, I turned right back around and continued my conversation with Hagakure, ignoring the kicks to my chair and angry insults at my back.

"What are you, crazy?" Jiro nagged, pointed her chopsticks at me. "I mean, look. [L/N], I like you, but you're really asking to get your ass whooped."

It was lunchtime with the sisterhood, and time for girl talk. I had already explained to them that my injuries were from training yesterday, but now we were chatting about my headbutts with two certain boys.

"Yeah! It's one thing to challenge Todoroki, but it's totally another to challenge Bakugo, too," Ashido pointed out. "Are you sure you're up for this??"

"You're one brave soul, ribbit. Rest in peace."

I couldn't believe they were already preparing a funeral for me... but at the same time, I also could.

"C'mon, you guys! It's obvious that [L/N]'s aiming for the top!" Uraraka said. She balled her fists and pulled them in front of her. "And I am, too! I'm gonna give it my best, and I'm gonna win! So that means you'll have to face me, too, [L/N]!!" She gazed at me with an enthusiastic, yet determined look.

At least Uraraka believed in me.

I nodded my head. "Yeah... we're all gonna be competing against each other, and I want for everyone to do their best. I don't want for any of this to get in the way of us being friends, though..."

"What?? No way! We'll always be friends, [L/N]!" Hagakure assured me as she hugged one of my arms. "Nothing will ever get in the way of that."

Uraraka emphatically nodded twice, fists still pulled in front of her. "Don't be mistaken! I'll still come at you with everything I've got, but we'll still have lunch together and talk about stuff like usual!"

Yaoyorozu sighed while crossing her arms and closing her eyes. "It'd be a real shame if any of us stopped hanging out because of the sports festival," she reasoned. "Of course we'll be fighting each other, but that doesn't mean we have to fight each other outside of it. Besides, some of us might end up working together after graduation, so it's important that we continue to nurture the friendships we make here."

"Ribbit, Yaoyorozu has a good point."

"I'm glad you all feel that way." It was my turn to sigh. "I just hope I didn't ruin anything with Todoroki..." My eyes drifted over to where he was sitting by himself. Normally, I would have either sat with him or invited him over, but the air around us had been... a little tense ever since yesterday.

"I'm sure he understands," Ashido comforted. "Both of you are super focused right now, so maybe this kind of space is good! You gotta get your head in the game, and then after all of this is over, you can go back to how things were!"

"Yeah, and it's not like we don't want to have lunch with him," Jiro stated dryly. "He can come over and sit with us, too. It doesn't always have to be you going to him." 

"I guess... that's true..." I reluctantly agreed. Would things really go back to the way they were?

"Anyways, you should really get your injuries checked out with Recovery Girl. Maybe even after you finish eating, so you have extra time to train once school is out!" Uraraka offered.

"What have you been doing, by the way?" Asui asked. "You don't seem like the type to let yourself get beat up so easily, ribbit."

"Yeah! Have you been running into a wall or something??" Ashido questioned with big eyes. 

Running into a wall wasn't too far from the truth. I had been jumping from high places to force myself to fly, and after a number of landing rolls, I eventually started getting sloppier, and my landings got rougher. There was a point when I almost had it, and I was so excited that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going and slammed face-first into a tree.

I let out a nervous laugh. "It's a secret... for now. I want to make it a surprise for when the sports festival comes around."

"Oooooh, a SECRET!! I can't wait to see what you have up your sleeve, [L/N]!" Hagakure excitedly clapped her hands.

I nodded. "I just hope I can have it ready by then." Picking up my tray of empty dishes, I stood up and pushed my chair out. "Anyway, I'm gonna take up Uraraka's advice and go see Recovery Girl before lunch ends. I'll see you all back in cl-"

"Well, well, just a few days ago you punched me in the face, but look who's all beat up now."

If I could have rolled my eyes back into my brain, I would have.