Wherever You Go

Drug Deal

Dear Keigo, you've been passed out for several hours.
We had to take you to the hospital down in Portland..
No matter though..
It seems the plan has changed slightly. There's somewhere else we're going- it hasn't been explained to me yet but I don't like it.
I think it's a–

July 7th.
You've been awake and ready for a few days- can't even sit still.
I still don't know what's going on or what exactly happened at the bar..
I'm going to pop the question soon; I promise.
I just need some time. Okay?

July 9th.
We've been in West Virginia for approximately twenty minutes and I already hate it.
It smells, there's druggies staring me down everywhere I go, and you've been acting weird..
I don't get it.
I just don't.
I really want you to talk to me about it but you keep shooting me down.
Why?

July 10th.
We met up with the most sussy boys today and you almost blew it, Takami.
Why would you almost blow our cover?
We practiced.
You know better!
What the fuck is up with you, baby bird?

Dabi shut his notebook and shoved it back in his backpack as the winged hero approached.
"Staples, look!" He called excited, holding his hands out in a balled shape.
Before he could even question what secrets those hands held, Hawks moved his top hand and a little frog popped up.
The villain's eyes widened with a childlike wonder as he leaned closer to see the countless spots like star spatters in the little amphibian.
"He's so fuckin cute!"
"I know right?!"
Keigo's eyes were shimmering with a soft sort of tender joy.
It'd been a while since Dabi had seen that; he was going to make sure it stayed as long as possible.
Just amp it up.
Hype it!
Just like for the videos- you just make everything seem way more exciting than it actually is, got it burn man?
Great.. am I talking to myself now?
Fuck it-

With careful hands, Dabi gently petted his boyfriend's new companion.
The frog curled back slightly but seemed to enjoy the warmth of his fingertips.
The two men started laughing quietly to themselves just as they had as children.
It was nice to have a little peace again.

...

Enji glanced over at the giggling dou across the small park they'd found themselves in.
The sun glistened off the two and set them out with an angelic glow.
Even though he'd set his heart long ago on having his eldest son marry a kind young woman to carry on the Todoroki bloodline, Enji couldn't help but think they looked like a match made in heaven.
A small part of him still saw them as children; a tiny winged boy cheerfully shoving a baby frog in a bandaged rebel's face.

He blinked his eyes slowly, clearing the image from his mind.
Often times he'd have to remind himself that Touya wasn't a child anymore- he was a grown man who's blossomed into his own person.
I just wish he'd channeled that hatred for me into being a better hero than me rather than a villain.
But, he supposed nothing could change how life had turned out.
They could only move on from the past and learn from it rather than wish to change it– just as he had.

...

"Hey, All Might?"
"Yes, young Midoriya?"
The green haired student fiddled his thumbs anxiously.
Dabi had stopped staring his down so aggressively but still, something about the former villain always made his skin crawl.
"When can we go home?"
The shadowed blue eyes of his mentor darkened ever so slightly as his gaze shifted to the cloud speckled sky. "It depends on when we complete our mission."

Why don't you just tell me?
Can't I help complete this stupid mission sooner if I actually know what on earth it is?!

Frustration burned hot in his blood. Wasn't All Might supposed to teach him?
Why would no one explain why he'd up and left Japan?
All they'd done is sight see, a few small meetings, and more sight seeing!
Japan could be in trouble and here they were prancing around America like it was the only country in the world!

...

Dabi shifted in his chair uncomfortably. He hated wearing suits. They always tugged his staples and restricted his movements.
What was the point in wearing a suit to some drug deal anyway?

He inwardly groaned as he looked at the men across from him. They wore dark masks with no cut outs anywhere, like empty voids rather than people.
Even their fingers were covered in the opaque material.
Why'd I take up your offering, Spinner?
Keigo is in bed at our hotel and I'm out doing illegal exchanges..
Whatever, just focus.
You're not Touya. You're Dabi– a big badass that no one fucks with.

He slowly ran one finger along the cool metal briefcase laid on the table before him.
"You and I both know what's in this case." He smirked slightly, staring straight into the void like face of the main man of the exchange.
"Or do I really?" rumbled the man quietly in a voice which almost sounded more like gravel.
"You do." Dabi reassured him. "We agreed upon it. All you have to do, is hand over my twenty-five grand and we can both walk out happy today, okay?"
"Prove that it's in there."
Both of the opposing side's companions raised a pistol and aimed them at Dabi's head.
While he remained calm and collected, inside he was screaming.
He was pretty sure that he didn't have what they were wanting..

Spinner, I really hope you actually put it in there ya son of a scaly bitch–

...

Keigo sat up slowly in the dark hotel room. The air was light and thin, almost uncomfortably so.
A chill spread through his sore limbs, making him shudder slightly.
He automatically reached over for Dabi, hoping to find refuge in the warmth the dark haired male never failed to provide.
Empty air and sheets however, were all the hero's hand found.

After peeling open tired eyes, Hawks found that his lover was gone.
But where could he have wandered off to in the dark hours if the morning?
Had he decided to go for a walk?
After his little incident in their first hotel, he felt a little off at the thought of the former villain going out alone.
What if he got into another fight?

A side eyed glanced across the room showed Enji to be sound asleep. That was good.
If Keigo was going to sneak out without anyone knowing, it was better that the others remained asleep.

Once outside, the poor winged hero only grew colder.
The late night air was full of thick fog, coating the landscape in eerie blur of mysterious curling dankness.
That was no problem though. He'd trained and done rescue work through the fog countless times back in Japan.
Surely he could do it here too.

Every footstep seemed to echo louder than an avalanche, but Hawks knew it was just his senses heightening from paranoia.
Three attempts at calling the burnt man had proven unsuccessful.
Still, he wasn't about to wake Endeavor up at three in the morning if he could find Dabi on his own.

A clanking noise came from the distance, making his feathers ruffle. It wasn't much but it was start.
If I just go inspect–
His thoughts were interupted by a shadowed figure creeping ever so low and slow in the sea of glowing gray.
The yellow light of the lone street lamp flickered, then shut off with a buzz, plunging him in total darkness.
So, with a pounding heart, Keigo rushed into the unknown.