The Sound of Your Voice

Chapter 2

Aizawa entered the bar, regretting his decision already. He was just about to suggest they find a quiet corner to sit down when Ms. Joke waved ahead to the other teachers who were already there.

Enthusiastic greetings were exchanged and Ms. Joke and Present Mic were quickly swept up into the conversation. Aizawa sighed inwardly and followed behind, wondering if it would be rude to break off on his own.

He ordered himself a drink and sat down with the others, putting on a polite smile and nodding along with the conversation.

It didn't take long, however, for someone to pick up on his discomfort.

Aizawa jumped slightly as he felt Present Mic tap him on the shoulder and lean in closer. "Do you want to go drink somewhere else?" He asked.

Aizawa nodded gratefully and the two stood up, excusing themselves from the table and finding their own booth to the side. "Is Ms. Joke not joining us?" Aizawa asked, somewhat cautiously.

"She said something about not wanting to interfere?" Present Mic replied with a shrug.

"Right," Aizawa nodded slowly, starting to wonder if perhaps Ms. Joke was getting too perceptive for her own good. Maybe he was overthinking it though.

Present Mic interrupted his thoughts as he leaned back and sipped on his own drink. "You remember when we graduated? You were just as unenthusiastic if I remember correctly."

To his own surprise, Aizawa chuckled, "I'm sure I wasn't that bad. Graduating was exciting, I thought I'd start doing some good."

"And now? Is it different being a teacher?"

Aizawa shrugged, "Fame is a scam, I'm still doing good work, just behind the scenes. And some might say it's better, even."

Present Mic laughed, "So serious all the time! Drink more."

Aizawa downed the rest of his drink with a lopsided grin. "I told you, this is me in a good mood. Besides, you can't tell me you're not sad to see the kids go, too."

"Of course I'm sad," Present Mic, "But I'm also glad to see them get out there and start doing what they love. We'll see them again."

"Well put," Aizawa nodded.

As the night went on, the two eventually rejoined the rest of their fellow pro heroes. Participating in a couple rounds of karaoke and poker. Although Aizawa always inevitably ended up drifting back to the outskirts and Present Mic took care to notice his friend when he did so. Never leaving him alone for too long.

At one point, Aizawa briefly rejoined with Ms. Joke while Present Mic was off singing along to some American song he didn't know.

"I've barely seen any of you tonight," Aizawa said, less guarded than usual thanks to the alcohol. "Why drag me here if you're not even going to talk to me?"

Ms. Joke simply gave him a knowing smile. "Like I told Present Mic, I'm not getting in the way of that," she said, "We can talk tomorrow." And then she was off.

Aizawa puzzled over that for a while. He had a sneaking suspicion he knew what she was getting at, but wondered if the drinks were dulling his judgement.

He didn't have too long to pursue this train of thought though, before Present Mic roped him into a duet he didn't want to sing, and the interaction was forgotten.

Soon, it was getting late and people were starting to head home. Present Mic, Aizawa and Ms. Joke left the bar together, along with a couple other teachers and heroes.

"Kamui's our driver," Ms. Joke said, gesturing behind her, "How are you two getting home?"

Aizawa thought for a moment then made a face and groaned, "I hadn't thought of that, I drove here myself."

Present Mic threw an arm around Aizawa's shoulder, "Hey no worries, I live super close and was just going to walk home. You can crash at my place and come get your car in the morning."

Ms. Joke's words from earlier came back to Aizawa as he caught her try to hide and a smirk and hesitated for a moment before shrugging Present Mic's arm off. "Sounds good, I'll have to head out pretty early though."

"All right!" Present Mic cheered, "Just like when we were kids, right?"

"The good old days," Aizawa laughed.

Ms. Joke nodded, "Well, have a good night then. Stay safe." She waved farewell and headed off towards the cars.

'Let's go then," Aizawa yawned and began to walk, "I'm ready to go to sleep."