ꁅꍏꎭꍟꋪ ꁅꀎꋪ꒒ (ꌃꈤꃅꍏ & ꂦꉓ)

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"Stupid heroes, going on and on about popularity and money. Who cares about that anyway?"

Kota kicked a pebble near him with pure hatred. "Hey." Kota looked up to see Yumiko who was leisurely making her way to sit beside him.

"What the heck are you doing here again?" Yumiko narrowed her eyes into slits which gave looks that could kill. "You're too young to use no-no words. Now, shut the hell up and listen to me rant about how wise I am." Yumiko smacked the back of Kota's head which angered him even more.

"What are you even doing here? Aren't you supposed to be eating?" Kota sat down reluctantly beside her as she hummed in reply. "Well, I wasn't hungry. And I brought some snacks to share. Would you want one?" Yumiko offered, holding a delicious-looking caramel snack bar in front of him.

"Why are you even being so nice to me anyways?" Kota grabbed the caramel bar out of her hands as she softly smiled. "It's how I treat people who feel important to me. Although we just met, I feel like you're one of the cutest things ever and I just wanted to get to know you more. Is that not allowed?"

Yumiko huffed and pouted, handing over one side of her ear pieces to him. "There you go. I feel like both of us can kinda relate to this song right now." Kota stared at the wireless earpiece in her hand before taking it.

Playing: July by Noah Cyrus

"That's...a nice song." Kota blushed slightly while Yumiko childishly gave him tiny finger guns. "Told ya." Both of them sat outside the cave in peaceful silence before Yumiko decided to speak up. "You know, you won't always be alone. If there's anything bothering you, you...can just tell me right away." Yumiko turned to give him a tiny smile which caused him to stare back at her in awe.

"Y-Yeah sure-" "KOTA!"

Both Yumiko and Kota stared at a human broccoli who was panting heavily with a plate of curry in his hands. "O-Oh Y-Y-Yumiko...y-you're here too...I j-just thought t-that Kota w-would be hungry s-s-s-so I brought f-food for him-"

"What are you doing here!" Kota shouted in anger.

TIME SKIP

"I don't understand why crazy people call themselves heroes or villains just to kill each other!" Yumiko and Midoriya both realize that Kota's issue isn't just with heroes, it's with quirks and superhero society in general.

"Y-You know, I've had a q-q-quirkless friend b-before..." Yumiko tried to stifle her laughter, knowing that quirkless friend was Midoriya himself. While Midoriya tried giving a different perspective to Kota, Yumiko was silently staring at the amazing view from the mountain while eating the plate of curry that Midoriya had brought.

Still feeling angry, Kota stubbornly refutes Midoriya in the end. Feeling defeated, Midoriya and Yumiko headed down the steep mountain together. The awkwardness in the silence both of them shared caused Yumiko to speak up, making the tension between them even more awkward.

"So erm...heh heh, have you ever seen this meme where the mother duck stepped on its baby's neck? IT'S SAD BUT I'M LAUGHING REALLY HARD FOR SOME GODDAMN REASON- Alright I'll stop talking. What's wrong?"

Yumiko rolled her eyes at her awful try at social interaction. 'I just want to be at home cuddling with my plushies and playing my games and here I am trying to solve social problems. wOw.'

"Hey Yumiko?" Yumiko turned to look at the bushy-haired boy who was cutely staring at the ground. Yumiko hummed to let him know that she was listening. "What does being a hero mean to you?"

Yumiko stared back at the ground. For some reason, the ground today was very interesting. She pondered for a moment before lifting her head to look up at the quiet night sky. Yumiko kicked some pebbles on the ground as she crossed her arms behind her back.

"Well...multiple reasons. One is to defend myself. Another is to strengthen my body." Yumiko turned her head to make eye contact with jade green orbs. "The last is to see people living on Earth peacefully like danger doesn't even exist. That, is the true definition of being heroes." Yumiko stared sadly ahead.

'Unfortunately, I'm not strong enough to do that...' Her mind was clouded with rage and fury but Midoriya's voice brought her back to reality. "You're right. You're absolutely right! That was the main reason why I wanted to be a hero!" Midoriya spoke with stars in his eyes as he unconsciously held both of Yumiko's hands.

Realizing what he was doing, he immediately let go of Yumiko who was flustered and asked, "S-S-SORRY! I-I-If you d-don't mind me asking, w-what do you mean b-by strengthening your body?" Yumiko sighed and fiddled with her fingers.

"Well, ever since I was born, I have a very weak body, weaker than average. The doctor said that my quirk may overpower my body which would result in me dying. So my mother would tell me that there are only two choices for me to choose. Either rest or fight." Midoriya stared at her with wide eyes.

"You're not the only one cursed here Midoriya." Yumiko sadly smiled at him before continuing. "When I was younger, my father would always torture and ignore me ever since my mother passed away. It was brutal. He would never abuse my siblings because I always took the fall for them. Well, at least I hope that old man is dead now. But just when I thought I had no one left..."

Yumiko stopped walking and turned to Midoriya. "You and the rest of the class were there helping me. And I could never be more grateful to you guys. Thank you, for making my time in this world worthwhile." Midoriya's cheeks burned as he smiled sweetly at Yumiko.

"Thank you for helping us and telling me this Yumiko." He then hesitantly opened his arms which Yumiko graciously accepted. "Wow, you smell nice." Yumiko bluntly said as Midoriya began flailing his arms wildly again.

'If only time could stop right now.'