Worthless Necessity [HitoZuku]

Chapter 158 - Down in the dirt

Shinsou yawned and flipped over, before blinking in confusion, noticing the absence of something. Something felt different, but he wasn't too sure what it was. Blearily opening his eyes, Shinsou gazed around his room, bringing his arm up to rub his eyes, taking note of the disappearance of the green haired boy that he had gone to sleep with.

He did hear some sounds coming from the bathroom, so it was pretty likely that Midoriya had just gotten up to use the toilet. He didn't know what time it was, but Shinsou could see small beams of light peeking in through the gaps between his curtains, so it probably wasn't too early. Still, Shinsou really didn't want to get up, and groggily shifted around a little; it was cold, and he was nice and warm under the blankets.

The lavender haired boy heard the sound of the toilet being flushed, and water gushing out of the tap. There was more silence, before the tap was switched on again, and it wasn't long before the tap was switched off, and the bathroom door opened. Midoriya walked out, wiping his hands dry on the towel that Shinsou usually left hanging on the door knob, before he climbed back onto the bed and pulled the blankets over him, before snuggling closer to the taller boy.

"Morning." Shinsou murmured sleepily, and Midoriya opened his eyes slightly, glancing at Shinsou, "Sorry... did I... wake you?"

"Nah... I woke up a few minutes ago." The taller boy tiredly muttered, before he paused, processing that Midoriya had literally just pulled the blankets over himself; Midoriya had never liked blankets, and even Nezu had mentioned that when Midoriya was hospitalized.

"I thought you didn't like blankets." Shinsou muttered, gently pulling Midoriya closer, and the smaller boy admitted, "I... really don't. They're not safe."

"But you just pulled the blankets up?"

Midoriya looked up, noting the confused yet tired look the lavender haired boy was shooting him, before he wiggled closer, nuzzling Shinsou gently, "Yeah, but you're here. It's safer."

There was some silence as Shinsou tried to process what Midoriya had just said. Someone had probably tried to hurt him with a blanket, most likely while he was in foster care. While Shinsou wasn't too sure how someone could be hurt with a soft and fluffy blanket, his main weapon of choice was a freaking scarf with thin threads of metal weaved into it, so he really couldn't say that it was impossible.

"Want to talk about it?" The taller boy awkwardly asked.

Midoriya gazed up at him, before he pressed his cheek against the pillow, pressing his forehead against Shinsou's chest, before he softly spoke up, "I... while I was... still in foster care..."

He struggled to get some of the words out, and Shinsou gently ruffled his hair, "Relax. If you don't want to talk about it, don't force yourself."

"No... If I... don't say it now..." Midoriya shook his head, clenching his eyes shut, "...I'll never be able to say it."

Reiko must have sensed the boy's distress, and she jumped off the kotatsu, where the two felines and the one avian had been sleeping that night, and pulled the drawers under Shinsou's bed out quietly, before she used it as a foothold to climb up onto the bed. She pawed over to Midoriya, and settled down by his neck, gently licking his chin, and Ryuto fluttered up to join the cat, tugging on Midoriya's earlobe affectionately.

It took some time until Midoriya was able to talk, and the boy opened his eyes slowly. He exhaled, before he started, "I was... nearly suffocated with blankets."

Shinsou, Reiko, and Ryuto all froze, blinking in shock, not knowing how to react.

"How... long ago was that?" Shinsou managed to ask. Midoriya was shaking, tears starting to form at the corner of his eyes, "When I was... around eight."