Turning the Tables [Shoto Todoroki X Reader]

Chapter 50: Are you alright?

Nobody's POV

(L/N) stood in the viewing room with everyone else who had seen her cloak being torn off.

They all saw.

Even though she had retrieved her cloak and had it draped around her shoulders once more, her hood remained off.

She kept her arm hidden, though. She herself couldn't see her horns without a mirror, but her arm...

"Hey... (L/N)? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She gritted out. Why was everyone asking that?

"But—"

"I said I'm fine! Drop it." She growled.

No one knew what to do. They weren't used to (L/N) acting like this.

It wasn't only her behaviour that had them confused.

She thought she had them fooled, but her emotions caused her to lose complete control over her quirk, and her emptiness hung like a dark cloud around her. It was completely at odds with the way she was acting, and left everyone worried.

She left the room, annoyed by the pestering.

Todoroki followed her silently.

She stopped in the hall, and turned around slowly to face Todoroki.

The lighting from above cast her tilted face in harsh shadows. It only highlighted the redness of her eyes and the rawness in her expression.

She wasn't doing a very good job of hiding her emotions for once.

"What do you want?" She spat roughly.

"I," he paused. What did he want? He hadn't followed her with a specific purpose in mind, "don't know."

He admitted it shamelessly. It was true.

"Leave me be then."

"I can't do that, (L/N)."

"Why not?!" She sounded like a whining child, but she didn't care.

She wanted to be alone.

At least, she thought she did.

"I need to talk to you."

She sighed in exasperation. "Fine."

He gestured for her to follow him, and led her to a room where they could talk.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine! I've been asked this over ten times. My answer isn't changing."

"I thought you didn't like lying."

Her eyes widened slightly.

"Whenever I get near you, I feel a wave of nothing."

Her expression changed from confused to understanding.

Then its angry mask slid back into place.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Why are you lying?"

She scoffed, but her eyes slid away from his, to the floor.

Now she didn't know what to say. What could she say?

"You're worrying everyone."

Her eyebrows lifted. "Everyone? Really?" She laughed disbelievingly. "I doubt that."

Some of the first truthful words she had spoken since this conversation began.

"Why? Why do you doubt that? You seem to underestimate your worth over and over again!" A note of frustration slipped into his usually monotonous voice.