Like Friends Do

Chapter 9

It became a competition quickly, as all things tended to become with Class 1-A.

"Alright," Ashido threw a fist into her opposite palm in determination, "here's how it'll work. We'll go around the circle. Anyone who doesn't speak their truth or complete the dare is out!"

"What's in it for the winner?" Kaminari yelled out in a voice that said 'I'm totally prompting you right now, Ashido'.

"I'm glad you asked!" Ashido pointed proudly to Kaminari. "The winner gets the snack table!"

All eyes settled on the picnic table nearby, a little difficult to see between the setting sun and the shade obscuring said sunlight. The bonfire's light didn't reach quite far enough, and from here Midoriya could only see faint outlines of the various bags and boxes. A few hoots and hollers erupted from the excited class, and a few others protested, claiming that the snacks were for communal use.

"It is up to the winner to decide what happens to the snacks!" Ashido wagged her finger at some of the protesters. "Maybe they'll be kind and share. With some people."

Midoriya nudged at Todoroki's side, grinning. "This is exciting, isn't it?" he beamed.

"Sure," Todoroki shrugged. "I'm not much of a snacks person, though."

"You're not much of a 'anything other than cold soba' person, Shouto," Midoriya huffed, puffing out his lip in a beautiful pout that Todoroki (dreadfully) found himself wanting to kiss directly off Midoriya's dumb, adorable face.

Todoroki had a reply prepared but it was forgotten the second Ashido clapped her hands together, returning the attention of the class to herself once more. "I'll start, since I suggested it," she placed her hands to her hips boldly. "We'll do a coin toss to see if we go to my left or my right."

"Go left," Jirou grumbled from Ashido's right.

"Well? Kaminari?" Ashido looked to the blond in question, who sat in a slouching folding chair to Ashido's left.

"Sure, I guess?" Kaminari shrugged.

"That settles it! Let the 'Truth or Dare' competition...begin!"

Ashido had always been something of an inspiration to Midoriya, he thought idly, in her confidence. The way she threw her hands to her hips and demanded the attention of her classmates suited a true leader. Midoriya knew, perhaps better than any of the others, how strong Ashido's Quirk could really be if she put more effort into sparring outside of class; but then, a small, selfish part of him feared that development when he would have to inevitably face her in class training. He watched her intently as she struck another confident pose, pointing a stern finger directly at Aoyama, who had taken an entire bench to himself by lying on his back to stare up at the net of tree branches above.

"Aoyama!" she spoke with the lilt of an oncoming rush of laughter. "Truth or dare?"

"Why me first?!" Aoyama cried dramatically, striking a pose of his own – his left hand flew up to his forehead, his right clutching his chest. Midoriya supposed that the two would deny it until they died, but their personalities were quite similar.

"Because you annoyed me on the bus earlier!" Ashido let that laugh escape her, now, and Jirou and Yaoyorozu joined in.

"You were pretty spectacularly irritating with your loud-as-fuck music," Jirou said pointedly. "And it wasn't even good music. You have no taste."

"No taste!" Aoyama cried just as dramatically, sitting up finally to look between Ashido and Jirou at some invisible camera stationed behind them in the trees. "I will show you 'no taste'! I choose dare!"