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Rule #10 - do not date each other

Summary:

48-students, 4 student-apartments (named after Hogwarts houses) and one rule that is ruining everyone's life. rule #10 - do not date your fellow students. This year was asking for a lot of rule breaking.

Seven fluffy (overarching) stories for bnha fluff week
-----------------------------------------
Day 1 - Time (Uraraka & Shinso)
Day 2 - Animals (Todoroki x Midoriya)
Day 3 - (video) Games (Iida x Kaminari)
Day 4 - Dates (Momo x Jiro) ft. Iida x Kaminari
Day 5 - Flowers (Ochako x Mina) ft. Uraraka & Shinso
Day 6 - Family (Iida x Kaminari)
Day 7 - AU or Cosy

Chapter 1: Prologue

Chapter Text

Hizashi resisted the urge to rub his hands together in anticipation. The last residents of this student complex either had graduated or were relocated to other complexes, which meant they would get a new batch of first-year students.

“They look so young,” Nemuri said, peeking at the gathered group of freshmen.

“They look like trouble,” Shouta muttered.

Looking at the gathered crowd, Hizashi saw that all the chairs were occupied. It seemed everyone was present, and right on time.

“They’re all here. Who's going to do the opening word?”

Both Shouta and Nemuri stared at him with a ‘are you really asking look’. Hizashi shrugged. “Maybe you guys wanted to do the opening speech for once.”

“Nah, I’ll let your charm the crowd,” Nemuri said, sending him off with a wink.

Walking up to the makeshift stage, Hizashi noticed that the crowd of freshmen grew quiet. They probably had expected a to see someone in a suit and not Hizashi, who was wearing sweatpants, a loud shirt and wore his hair up in a messy hairdo. If he had been a couple of years younger, he might as well be a student here.

“Welcome everyone,” Hizashi announced. The rest of the noise immediately faded. “I’m Hizashi Hizashi, one of the heads of this apartment complex. You’re now a student at U.A. university, and foremost, part of the housing complex Epsilon. Let me explain how housing work.”

Behind the scene, Shouta turned on the screen, and the logo of U.A. university popped up. He gestured to Shouta to continue the presentation, and the schematics of the ground floor popped up.

“The ground floor has storage space for bicycles, scooters or anything too big to store in your apartments. Next to that, there is a study room. You go need somewhere quiet to go, but the library is closed. The laundry is also located here. You’re expected to take care of your own laundry. If you don’t do that, you’ll have the last pick when it comes to the laundry schedule. The 5am time slots are murderous, let me tell you. And that’s for the communal area.”

On cue, Shouta put on the next sheet. The schematics of a student apartment popped up. Hizashi let the students take it in, since this would be their home for the next four years.

“These apartments have twelve assigned bedrooms, four bathrooms, communal storage space and a shared living, dining and kitchen space. There are four apartments, originally named Epsilon-A, B, C and D. It has been dubbed by the last group of students as Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. We decided informally adopt that name to create more of inter-house unity—though please refrain from starting silly rivalries. You're all stuck with each other, and next year we're mixing it up again.”

Mentioning the Harry Potter reference seemed to do the trick in engaging the audience, as Hizashi saw several faces lit up in recognition, and there were some whispers. Hizashi let the people chat for a bit, happy that they were socialising. Hizashi knew that it was hard for the students to leave their homes behind and actually live in dorms. Most of them never have cooked a meal before, or have done laundry, or bothered about groceries. This will be a new experience for them.

“Tomorrow, me, Shouta, Nemuri and Kan—who couldn’t be here today—will sit down with each house and go over the rules in depth. But since everyone is tired and ready to move in, I will summarise the most important rules to get you started.”

Hizashi went over the basic rules. Keep your personal items in your room, don’t enter other people’s bedrooms without permission and respect your fellow students and housemates. Put the lid down on the toilet. Don’t eat other people’s food and no noise after eleven unless every roommate agrees on it. Even eleven against one counts, though in those cases, you go to one of the house leaders. And there was Hizashi’s favourite.

“And the final rule. Rule ten: do not date each other.”

Hizashi watched as the group of students stared at him in shock. This year was going to be a good year.

Chapter 2: Day I - Time

Summary:

Ochako hated that she had to use her bike for travelling since her parents couldn't afford to pay for public transport. Thankfully, it wasn't all bad. She somehow ended up making a friend.

Notes:

For more context, read the first chapter (which is basically an introduction). But all you need for the current story is to know that both Ochako, Shinso and Iida live in apartment Epsilon-C (Ravenclaw). Deku is in Epsilon-B (Hufflepuff). Housing is randomised.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Ochako couldn’t help feel a little bit lonely being left behind in the dorms. It was totally reasonable, of course! She was going by bike since it would save her money. Public transport was expensive, and none of them had cars. But it would have been fun to spend time with her fellow Ravenclaws (it still felt weird to use those names, but it was better than Epsilon-C’s) to travelling, instead of having to make the trip alone.

While waiting for the time to pass so she could leave at a reasonable time, and not arrive early, her phone went off, Tenya’s name flashing on the screen. Maybe someone had forgotten something? Or did they change the time? Or the location?

“Hello?” Ochako answered, waiting for Tenya to explain why he called.

“We forgot someone,” Tenya said, his voice coming out in a rush.

“Someone?”

“Shinso.”

It was still hard to remember all the names since everyone but Deku and Tenya were new to her. But she remembers Shinso as a guy with curly, purple hair who generally was found napping somewhere in the apartment’s living room. He reminded Ochako of a cat.

“I will check if he’s still here.”

Glad that every door was named, Ochako managed to find Shinso Hitoshi’s room with ease. She knocked, but there was no reply, so she gently opened the door and peeked inside. Shinso was curled up in his bed, looking quite adorable and very much asleep. Shit.

Closing the door, Ochako checked if Tenya had hung up yet. He hadn’t.

“He’s still asleep,” Ochako answered.

Tenya cussed. “I don’t think he will make it by public transport, and Aizawa will put our entire house on cleaning duty if one of us is late.”

Ochako checked the time, did the mental math, and realised that if she didn’t mind some rule breaking, she could get Shinso there in time.

“I will bring him,” Ochako announced. “Try to.”

“Good luck—Aoyama, please stop that. I have to go.”

The line went flat.            

Ochako was a little nervous because she didn’t know Shinso all that well. He was a student and napped, and that’s all she knew. But she couldn’t just let him face the wrath of Aizawa.

She was relieved that five minutes later, a straight-up exhausted looking Shinso was staring at her bike.

“I think the saddle is too low for me.”

“That’s why I am cycling.” Ochako put her backpack on her chest, sat down on her saddle and patted her carrier. “Eat your breakfast and please don’t fall off.”

For a moment, Ochako wondered if Shinso was going to just turn around and return to bed, or demand he was the one that was cycling, but he sighed and nodded.

Ochako took off, and Shinso awkwardly managed to slide on the carriage.

The first ten minutes was pretty quiet. It took her a while to get going since Shinso wasn’t particularly light, so she didn’t have a breath to spare. The mood wasn’t improved by the that Shinso wasn’t particularly talkative. Or the fact that he was eating a granola bar Ochako had packed him.

“Do you cycle a lot?” Shinso asked, starling Ochako slightly. She had expected that she was the one to start the conversation, so this came as a definite surprise.

“Yes. It was… quicker to cycle to high school than use public transport,” Ochako settled on, feeling uncomfortable talking about her parent’s financial struggles.

“Cool.”

Well, that was that for this conversation. They travelled in silence for a while, ‘til it drove her crazy. She was so used to noise, with Tenya and Deku always being loud,

“Do you like cycling?” Ochako asked.

She felt relieved that Shinso answered. He took his sweet time, but he answered. “A lot. I don’t like the stuffiness of public transport.”

“Then why don’t you have your bike here?”

Shinso let out a sigh. “My mum recently got another job and needed the bike to get there, and since we live so close to school, she got mine.”

Ochako felt a little for him. While she started using her bike because it was a necessity, she enjoyed cycling. It gave her the freedom to go whenever she wanted and where she wanted.

“You can borrow my bike sometimes if you want,” Ochako offered.

“Really?” Shinso sounded hopeful.

“Sure!”

There was a long pause. “Thanks, that’s really nice.”

Ochako wanted to say something along the lines ‘it’s no problem, really’, but noticed that they were getting close to where they were supposed to be.

“What time is it?” Ochako asked, not daring to take out her phone. While it was illegal to carry a second person on a bike, it wasn’t particularly dangerous for anyone but themselves. But texting? Too risky.

“Eight-fifty,” Shinso answered.

“Shit.” Despite her promise to Tenya that they will make it time, they might as well be late.

“Hold on tight,” Ochako warned. “Gonna go fast.”

Shinso let out a squeak when Ochako started to increase speed, wrapping his arms around her waist. They did get a few odd looks from pedestrians, but Ochako had no time to give them any attention. She refused to lose the battle against time and be late, especially since she didn’t want to be on cleaning duty. Cleaning duty sucks.

~*~

She and Shinso made it in time, with minutes to spare. Their arrival made the Ravenclaw apartment the only apartment that had all the students present, which relieved them from cleaning duty. And the best thing about it was that Ochako felt like she had made a new friend. Shinso had sat down next to her and made the boring lecture much better with showing her cat pictures and dry jokes.

 

Notes:

That was it for day 1 for fluff week (Bnha fluff week Tumblr)! I had difficulties with figuring out something for this prompt, so I ended up with a friendship I had interest in exploring (and someone suggested Shinso when I was talking about bicycles, so that is that). Btw, it's illegal in Japan to carry a second person on your bike (if I remember correctly).

Chapter 3: Day II - Animals

Summary:

Shouto found cats, Izuku is a little smitten.

Notes:

For more information about the setting, read the introduction. Today's prompt was animals, though the kittens only play a minor role. Day 2 for fluff week ((Bnha fluff week Tumblr) It was a little easier this time, because animals.

Chapter Text

Midoriya Izuku had a problem. Though he hardly could call it a problem. Inconvenience sounded better. After all, he passed his mid-term exams, he loved his housemates (once they were down to eleven) and he had made some friends beyond Tenya and Ochako. The issue was that one of those friendships also turned into a ridiculous crush. And a crush wasn’t the issue. The issue was that Izuku wanted to date him, and that was against the rules. Not that Izuku had found that back in the papers they had gotten, but he assumed that the rulebook was outdated.

“I don’t know what to do,” Izuku complained. “You aren’t allowed to date your fellow students, right?”

The only one that was currently present was Mina, who was putting curlers in Izuku’s hair. Izuku had learnt that it was the best to just go along with Mina’s shenanigans. It has been months and his hair was still alive.

“Honestly, I think it’s just a recommendation. You aren’t telling me that I have to wait four years to date Ochako.”

“Technically, am I.”

“I respect most of the rules here, but not that one.”

Izuku sighed. He had hoped that Mina would talk him out of it, but she wasn’t any help either. He had tried with both Tenya and Ochako, but both were ready to throw that rule in the bin. Ochako obviously liked Mina, and he had heard from Ochako that Tenya was pining after one of their housemates. It was moments like these he wished he wasn’t in Hufflepuff but in Ravenclaw, where both his high school friends were. Maybe next year.

“I had hoped that you would talk me out of it.”

Mina laughed. “Darling, if even ‘I love rules’ Iida decides to bin that rule, I don’t think that there is anyone that actually follows that rule.”

Izuku hung his head in defeat, letting Mina tug on his hair and making a mess out of it. Well, it seemed he had no excuse anymore to not ask Shouto out.

 “So I just should ask Shouto out?”

“Definitely,” Mina agreed.

Izuku heard his phone buzz and picked up. Speaking of the devil. He was surprised though since Shouto never texted him first. Shouto generally just sought him out, although they were in different student apartments. Thankfully, the Gryffindor apartment was below Hufflepuff’s. There wasn’t such a great walking distance between them, and they were all on pretty friendly terms. (Izuku was glad that his childhood… friend? Childhood acquaintance Bakugo was stuck on the top floor in the Slytherin house).

Todoroki Shouto: I need your help.

Well, that was unexpected. Shouto didn’t really like to ask for help, and he rarely needed it. He was one of the best students and rarely had any issues outside of that. He was a little socially awkward, but he wasn’t the only one.

Midoriya Izuku: what’s wrong

The response was almost immediate

Todoroki Shouto: I found… something.

Midoriya Izuku: and that something is against the rules?

Todoroki Shouto: Definitely.

Izuku sighed. He knew that technically, he shouldn’t condone rule breaking. But why not. He likes Shouto, both romantically and as a friend, and Shouto had done that for him before. Breaking the rules, that is. And the good thing about not sharing an apartment with Tenya was that he didn’t have to deal with Tenya’s nagging about rules.

Midoriya Izuku: sure. text me where i need to be, will be leaving as soon as Mina releases me from my confinement.

Mina coughed. She couldn’t act to save her life. “Let me guess, Shouto?”

“Yup.” He watched Shouto send him a Google Maps point. “I am going to do something illegal, apparently.”

“Sweet.”

~*~

His hair had basically grown in volume once Mina was done with it. Mina liked testing things out on Izuku’s hair because they had similar hair textures and length, and it was easier to test it out on someone else. Easier access, and if it went wrong, it was their hair, not yours.

“Please don’t get us in trouble,” Mina said, slapping him on the back before basically shoving him out of the apartment. Sometimes he questioned his friendship with Mina. But he did the same with his friendship with Tenya, and even sometimes Ochako, so he supposed that it was part of friendships.

It was a pretty chilly March afternoon, and Izuku regretted not putting on more than a coat. But since Shouto had been waiting for him for over half-an-hour, he supposed that cold fingers weren’t the worst. He would be surprised if Shouto weren’t at least a little angry or annoyed.

He found Shouto ten minutes later leaning against a wall, looking bored out of his mind while scrolling through his phone. He thankfully didn’t look angry or annoyed. It was a weird place to wait though since it was right next to an alleyway. Somebody could just appear out of there, snatch up your phone and run away.

“Hey Shouto,” Izuku greeted.

Shouto looked up, meeting Izuku’s gaze. He hadn’t even been partially startled by Izuku’s sudden appearance.

“Did your hair grow?” Shouto asked, cocking his head a little.

“I think?” Izuku runs a hand self-consciously through his hair. “Mina wanted to experiment.”

Shouto nodded, looking a little lost for words.

“So, with what do you need—”

Then he heard a soft meowing. No way. No fucking way. Animals weren’t allowed in their building because it would get messy way too quickly. Not to mention that some were allergic to animal hair. Nobody in Izuku’s apartment was, but he was quite sure that someone in Shouto’s apartment was. Which probably was why Shouto had asked him for help.

“Shouto, please don’t tell me that there are kittens in that alleyway.”

A guilty look crossed Shouto’s face.

Izuku walked into the alleyway and found a box with kittens. They probably weren’t much older than two weeks old, since they weren’t moving around all that much. They were absolutely adorable. Counting the kittens, Izuku counted just four of them. He was relieved that it was a small litter, which made it easier to smuggle in.

“Shouto, I hate you,” Izuku said, his voice cracking. “I’m weak.”

“I’m sorry.” Shouto didn’t sound sorry at all. “I just couldn’t leave them out here alone. It’s a miracle they’re still alive.”

Izuku had to agree with that. He picked up one of the kittens. The little lad looked a little thin and dirty, but he—correction, she—was adorable and very much alive. She was squirming in Izuku’s hold and meowing up a storm.

“Let’s hope that Aizawa isn’t going to check in today,” Izuku said, putting the kitten back in the box. Then he picked up the box, figuring that it was sturdy enough to hold four kittens.  “Could you ask Koda to check on the kittens later on? I think they mostly need some food, but if someone knows, it’s probably him.”

He finally turned around, facing Shouto again. Shouto was flustered, his eyes wide and pink staining his cheeks.

“What?” Izuku asked.

“Nothing!” The flush grew even darker. “Let’s go.”

A warm feeling settled in Izuku’s stomach. While he could be wrong, he had a good feeling about it. He decided that it was worth the risk.

“Hey Shouto, are you free this Saturday?”

Shouto, who already had walked off, looking back in surprise and confusion.

“Yes?”

“Would you like to go on a date with me?”

For a few seconds, Shouto just stared. Thankfully, he eventually nodded, a small smile blooming on his face.

Mina obviously had been right that nobody cared about the ‘not dating’ rule. It was a little bit weird anyway. It would make sense in a professional setting, but they just lived together. Not to mention that making something forbidden made it all the more tempting try. What if it was just an elaborated plot them get them to date each other? He really should suggest this to Shouto—this was more up his alley than Izuku’s.

Chapter 4: Day III - (video) Games

Summary:

Denki loves their weekly video game nights. He could see his friends from the other apartments, there was always good (and unhealthy) food and it was the only time friendly rivalry was allowed. And secretly, he was happy that Iida never joined, until he did and Denki doesn't quite know how to function.

Notes:

This is for day 3 for (Bnha fluff week Tumblr). It has gotten a little longer than planned, but when doesn't that happen XD I have never written from Kaminari's POV so I am a bit iffy about the characterisation. (also, Smash Bros references to Super Smash Bros Brawl)

Chapter Text

At first, the idea of moving out of his parent’s house and live together with fellow students had sounded exciting to Denki. However, once he moved in, he found it hard to find his footing. He had hoped he had been put in the same housing as Tetsutetsu, a guy he went to the same high school with. They didn’t know each other well, but he was at least someone familiar. It didn’t happen. But it turned that his student apartment wasn’t too bad. Despite ironically being put in Ravenclaw; he knew that they were one of the two houses that actually had their shit together. Denki was quite sure that all of them had to thank one Iida Tenya for that. While Momo and Tokage also were good at keeping things organised and set a positive mood, nobody was so good with rules and rallying the troops like Iida.

Iida was a guy who liked order and rules. Who would berate you for not doing your chores but also who would stay up till late to help you understand the course material. And Iida Tenya, who had legs for days, could run like the wind and on who Denki had a ridiculous crush on. He never expected Iida to be his type, but he wasn’t even sure what his type. However, when you see your housemate lounging on the couch, and you want to cuddle with them, you have a pretty good idea how much attracted you’re to them. Too much.

~*~    

Denki didn’t know when this tradition started, but he silently thanked the person who came up with it. They had a weekly gaming night, and the winner was allowed to host it and put the shield on the wall. Out of the eleven games they played, Denki won two for his apartment, and Aoyoma won one—when they played some fashion video game. The Hufflepuffs sucked at video games unless it was a particular one. Mina—who was Denki’s favourite pink-haired girl after she broke Mineta’s nose—was great in DDR, and Ojiro kicked ass in street fighter. The rest of the time, the Hufflepuffs barely had a shot. Hilariously, the Gryffindors were the most passionate about winning, yet they only won once. Though both Kendo and Jiro were scary and Denki had a healthy amount of fear and respect for them both. The Slytherins were by far the best gamers, winning five out of the eleven games.

“Kaminari, throw me the chips, will ya!” Sero shouted from where he was slouched in a lounge chair.

Making sure that the bag was securely closed—Denki had been on cleaning duty for a week when he accidentally had strewn chips everywhere—he aimed and threw the bag at Sero. His aim was a little off, and the bag smacked an unassuming Kirishima in the head. Uraraka, with who Kirishima was talking with, started to laugh.

While Kirishima rubbed his cheek, Sero snatched the chips of his lap and got comfortable in his lounge chair. Since Ravenclaw won the last round, Kaminari was holding gaming night in the Ravenclaw living room. Out of Denki’s eleven housemates, only Uraraka, Shinso and Iida were present. Shinso was napping in one of the lounge chairs, not even bothered by the ruckus the group of students were making. Uraraka had now moved on to chat with Mina. He had the feeling that if someone broke the ‘no dating’ rule, it would be the two of them. Iida was being a good student and doing homework. If it were up to Denki, he would invite Iida to play Smash Bros with them, but he was too much of a baby to actually ask. He wasn’t even sure if Iida liked video games.

“You’re not subtle at all,” Jiro pointed out, after jabbing him in the ribs. “Stop drooling please.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He reached for the popcorn on the table, stuffing a handful in his mouth.

Kendo clapped her hands together to gather everyone’s attention. “Okay, we’re playing Smash Bros today. Tournament mode, four players per game. We play five games, in the hope that we don’t have a tie. It’s each on their own, characters can be picked, but positions are randomised. Anyone is allowed to join later on. You aren’t allowed to physically hinder each other. Did I cover everything?” Kendo was waving around her Wii-mote, almost hitting a hanging lamp. Whoever designed these apartments didn’t keep video games in mind.

“Sounds about right!” Jiro shouted. “Who’s joining?”

It was Kendo and Jiro from the Gryffindor apartment, Mina from Hufflepuff, Denki and Uraraka would represent Ravenclaw and Slytherin had brought in their A-game with Sero, Kirishima and Mei.

The first victory went to Uraraka, to everyone’s surprise. Denki knew that Uraraka could get competitive, but she was straight-up vicious when playing video games. She and her flying pink blob reigned terror on everyone. And the draw for the Slytherin team was in their favour. Mei and Sero had to play against each other, and Kirishima lost to a level-nine CPU. Not that his housemates’ luck lasted long. Mina managed to get in a lucky win, and then Slytherin won two thanks for Kirishima and Mei.

“I’m out!” Jiro announced, grabbing the bowl of popcorn off the table and shoving a handful in her mouth. “It has no use to win this thing, because those bastards will take home the shield, again,” she said with a mouthful, gesturing in Sero, Kirishima and Mei’s general direction.

“Second that. Jiro, you’re coming? I’m going to grab some more snacks from our own apartment, so we’ll see you guys in a bit.”

Muttering something under her breath, Jiro placed the bowl back on the table, got up and followed Kendo out of the apartment. Now the seat next to him was empty, and Denki couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

“Mina, you’re on our side,” Uraraka announced. “Which makes it a fair fight. Three-against-three.”

“Really? I think you need the odds in your favour to win this thing.” Sero tried to sneer, but it wasn’t in his nature. It turned into a pained laugh, which caused Mei to let out a loud laugh.

“Sero, please never try that again,” Mei wheezed. “Your face is hilarious.”

Sero’s cheeks grew pink.

Out of nowhere, elbows propped themselves on the back of Denki’s couch. The rolled up sleeves of a dress-shirt gave away who it was. Only Iida bothered to wear dress shirts. Denki wondered why he even knew that. (Maybe Jiro was right, and he stared way too much).

“So, are we winning?” Iida asked, sounding genuinely interested.

“They wish,” Mei laughed. “Kendo and Jiro are already out, and these three only won with luck.”

“Hey, you lost to a Kirby,” Ochako pointed out.

“Everyone has their off games.”

“Can I join?” Iida asked.

Denki looked up at Iida in surprise, and he was quite sure that the rest was equally as baffled.

“Yeah, sure,” Kirishima said. “Have you ever played before?”

“With my brother, yes.”

Iida sat down next to Denki. Only now he realised how small this couch actually was. With Jiro, he hadn’t minded sitting basically knee to knee, since she was just a friend. But Denki had an obvious crush on Iida, and now their knees were touching, and he was quite sure that his cheeks were a fiery red. The shit-eating grin that came from Sero confirmed his suspicion.

They started up the fifth tournament. Denki picked his main character Pikachu, despite that it wasn’t the best character in the game. He liked playing Pikachu, it was cute (the same reason Uraraka played Kirby probably). He was surprised that Iida picked Meta Knight. He had expected Iida to pick Sonic since he was on the track team and all. But maybe Iida knew Smash Bros well enough to know that Meta Knight was one of the best characters competitively.

After the first round of matches, Ochako and Kirishima were out, which wasn’t too bad. Iida was actually pretty good. Good enough to raise a few eyebrows here and there. Denki got his ass kicked in the semi-finals, just like Sero and Mina.

The final consisted out of Mei, and surprisingly, Iida. It seemed that Iida needed the first two rounds to warm up because he got better after each press of a button. Denki had the feeling Iida had played this more than once. He sort of wished that Iida wasn’t good at this game, because Denki was definitely staring. Not at the game, but at Iida’s face which was scrunched up in concentration. Yup, Denki definitely likes guys, especially guys who looked good and could kick ass in video games. He was happy that Jiro wasn’t back yet; otherwise, she would tease him mercilessly.   

“Iida, what the fuck,” Mei cussed as Iida won the game. “That’s so unfair!”

There was a small, satisfied grin on Iida’s face, and Denki was ready to weep.

“Who’s playing Meta Knight?” Jiro’s question broke the slight tension in the room. Denki hadn’t even realised she had returned. He wished that she could leave again.

“Iida,” Kirishima answered. “Who decided to join.”

“And stole my seat,” Jiro mentioned, but she didn’t even bother to shoo Iida away; instead, she squeezed herself between Mei and Kirishima. “But I got the vinegar chips!”

There were a couple of cheers. Kendo had sat down on one of the lounge chairs, popping open the bag of vinegar chips and passing it over to Sero, causing crumbs to fall on a sleeping Shinso. He didn’t even stir.

“Who’s playing in the finale?” Kendo asked after stuffing a handful of chips in her mouth. “Ravenclaw and Slytherin?”

“Yeah,” Kirishima answered. “Three vs three? That’s the fairest.”

Mina looked disappointed that she had to sit this round out, but she did snatch up the bag of vinegar chips and starting to eat straight from the bag, not bothering to pass it to Uraraka. Denki supposed that was some form of revenge.

Denki said that he lost because he had to play the first round against Iida and that Iida was just way better. It was partially the truth. The real reason was that Iida was just too distracting. Their legs were pressed together, their shoulders occasionally bumped, and it was hard not to stare at Iida’s face. The tongue that poked out, the concentrated look, the red flush of his face. Denki had a big issue.

Nobody was surprised when Iida won the tournament. Mei was a bit annoyed because she clearly had it in the bag, but her annoyance was paid off with food. Denki had opted to hide his face into his knees, which was the only way he was sure he wouldn’t look at Iida. The downside of that was that people started to notice.

“Kaminari, are you okay?” Uraraka asked.

Jiro started to laugh loudly. Denki wanted to do nothing else but sink into the couch cushions and disappear from existence, but life wasn’t that kind to him.

There was a gentle touch on his shoulder, and he just knew that it was from Iida.

“Are you okay?”

Denki hated it how genuinely concerned Iida sounded. That guy was so blind.

“I’m fine, just really gay,” Denki answered. He couldn’t pinpoint who snorted, so he assumed that almost everyone had made some kind of noise.

“Gay?” Iida’s voice was a little high-pitched.

Uncurling himself, Denki found the courage to look Iida in the eye. He was surprised to see that Iida was red in the face, his eyes a little wide.

“Technically bi. I wouldn’t mind to date either you or Jiro. Of course, neither of you are interested, so that makes being bi a little bit useless. And Jiro is a lesbian, so she gets a pass.”

It took Denki a few seconds to realise what he had said. He just had told Iida that he was perfectly fine with dating him.

Before Iida could realise what he had said, Denki got up in a hurry and wished everyone goodnight before running off to his room. Fifteen minutes later, Uraraka showed up with his phone.

“You know.” She spoke once she made sure that the door was closed. “I think Tenya is interested.”

Denki couldn’t help but let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Why would he be?”

“Because you’re funny, kind, a good sport and you never make fun of Tenya’s weird tendencies.”

“That doesn’t mean that he’s romantically interested. Also, remember the ‘no dating rule’?”

“And you were ever the one to follow the rules?”

“No, but Iida is.”

Ochako laughed. “Tenya looks like he is good at following the rules, but trust me, we went to the same high school. If he thinks he’s doing the right thing, all the rules are ignored.”

Iida the rule breaker. He would love to see that side of him, though that would mean that he had to spend more time with Iida. Ochako was a clever woman, knowing exactly how to pique Denki’s interest. What did he have to lose anyway? They were all adults here. Even if Iida weren't interested, they still would remain professional, and it wasn't like he was living together with just Iida. There were ten other students in his apartment and an additional thirty-five students that also lived in this building.

Chapter 5: Day IV - Dates

Summary:

Momo thinks she is on a date. Jiro tells her it isn't, they're just playing wing women. It still ends up being a date.

Notes:

Guess who doesn't know how to write Momo? Me.

Chapter Text

Momo had been excited when Jiro had asked her out on a date. On the inside, she had completely freaked out, but physically, she just had beamed at Jiro and agreed on going on a date. She would be crazy not to! She likes Jiro. She was fun to be around, a little rough around the edges, but Momo didn’t mind. She even liked it—it was unlike anything she was used from back home. Not to mention that Jiro was pretty.   

Sadly enough, it turned out that the date technically wasn’t a date. Momo would be acting as Jiro’s semi-date. Because Jiro had insisted she was making sure that Iida didn’t break Kaminari’s heart during their date. Momo was quite sure that he had heard Iida talking about teaching physics—the two were in the same engineering course. Momo was quite sure that Kaminari was calling it a date and Iida had no idea. She couldn’t believe that out of her, Iida and Todoroki (people she knew ever since childhood), socially awkward Todoroki was the one that actually knew what he was doing with his romantic life. He got a cute boyfriend.

After following Kaminari and Iida around for a good thirty minutes—which passed way too fast for her liking—the two guys finally settled down in a café. Kaminari went to order something to drink, Iida was unpacking books, and Jiro finally made a move. She was still surprised that neither Kaminari nor Iida had spotted them.

“Let’s go in,” Jiro muttered, taking Momo’s hand in hers and tugged her along.

The blush staining Jiro’s face made her feel a little more hopeful. Maybe this was a date after all! Why else would Jiro be flustered? There were over forty other students could choose from.  And it wasn't like Jiro didn't have other friends. She got along with most of the girls from the different apartments, not to mention a couple of guys. If she had shown up here with Kirishima, nobody would bat an eye.

Jiro got them a table and went to order them drinks. Since they arrived only minutes later, Kaminari was still in line. Momo felt a little nervous as she watched Jiro and Kaminari interact, but their conversation ended with Kaminari laughing and slapping Jiro on the back, before fetching his and Iida’s drinks. Whatever Jiro had told him, he clearly was buying it.

“Got you Matcha Green tea and a cinnamon bun,” Jiro handed her the drink and food. “I’m paying.”

Momo wanted to argue that she could pay for herself, but the silencing look Jiro threw her was saying plenty. Jiro was paying, and that was finale.

“What did you tell Kaminari?”

“That I’m allowed to spend time with my friends.”

Noticing that Jiro’s behaviour was a little off—she was purposely avoiding eye contact, despite that she usually could stare down any person if she wanted—Momo figured that this wasn’t what she told Kaminari. However, Momo refused to make their outing awkward by going to push. Friends were allowed to go out together, even one-on-one outings (despite that she and Jiro never have hung out before).

The worry she had about whenever it was a date or not easily faded as time went on. Two hours passed in what felt like seconds. Her stomach was hurting from laughing, Jiro’s cheeks were dark and stained with tears, and she was smiling too. She liked it when Jiro smiled.

Glancing over at the table Kaminari and Iida were studying, Momo realised with a jolt that they were gone. She was about to point it out to Jiro, but she noticed that her friend now too was looking at the empty table. Momo struggled not to sigh, realising that this probably meant the end of their not-quite-date.

“We lost them,” Momo apologised.

Jiro leaned back in her chair, balancing it on two legs. “Eh, it’s fine. I wasn’t in the mood to play Kaminari’s wingman anyway.”

Momo was confused, to say the least. Jiro had explicitly said that she wanted to keep an eye on Kaminari, making sure he wouldn’t do something stupid. Momo was there as support, and to make sure Jiro didn’t look too suspicious. But Momo had been a terrible buddy wing woman, completely forgetting to keep an eye on her housemates. Though, thinking about it, Jiro had spent more time looking at Momo than at her friend.

“I have to tell you something,” Jiro said, letting the chair fall back on its four legs with a thud. “I got you here under false pretences.”

Jiro was pressing the tips of her fingers together, something Momo recognises as her being nervous. “I used following Kaminari and Iida around as an excuse for just the two of us hanging out and seeing if you might be interested in making this a date.”

Momo couldn’t hold back the laugh of relief. So she hadn’t been imaging it all!

“I would love to make this a date,” Momo gushed, flustered by her own enthusiasm. “I thought it was a date already until you told me that it wasn’t.”

“I’m so relieved.” Momo never had heard Jiro’s voice be that high and squeaky. “I thought you would’ve said no.”

“Why would I?”

Jiro gestured to herself, then to Momo, then back to herself, and repeat that a couple of times.

“Why would you ever want to date me? You’re beautiful and I—”

“—And you’re awesome!” Momo interrupted. “I love spending time with you.”

Jiro grew more relaxed, smiling softly at Momo. Momo was quite sure that her heart was trying to leave her ribcage, but she was fine with it. So they both wanted this to be a date! Which also meant that Jiro liked her. Though, she wondered how they were going to do with the ‘do not date each other’ rule.

“Aren’t we supposed not to date each other?”

Jiro smirked. “Are you telling Todoroki that?”

Oh yeah. No. She wasn’t going to tell Todoroki that. Or Midoriya. Or any of the people who were dating each other. The not-dating rule was a bit silly. While they all had their own room, you saw each other daily. It was not hard to form friendships, rivalries and romantic feelings.

“So, are you free next weekend? There is a movie I want to watch, but I haven’t managed to find a date yet.”

Momo felt her cheeks heat up. Trying not to look too eager, she nodded.  

“Fuck yeah!” Jiro pumped her first in the air.

“But I will pay for the next date,” Momo announced. “Since you paid for this one already.”

Jiro shot her a shy smile and Momo couldn’t help but feel giddy. This wasn’t the outcome she expected, but definitely, the one she wished for.

Chapter 6: Day V - Flowers

Summary:

Two disaster girls, a lot of flowers and caring friends.

Notes:

What's up, I rarely write Ochako, am two days late with this entry and didn't even bother to properly edit it fingerguns

Chapter Text

“Have you ever have seen a girl so pretty you want to cry?”

“No.”

“A guy?”

“No.”

“Have you ever seen anyone so beautiful that you wanted to cry?”

“No.”

Ochako let out a deep sigh. Maybe Shinso wasn’t the best conversational partner to gush over Mina with. But Deku pretty off-limits since he ‘secretly’ started to date Todoroki. They didn’t even try to be subtle. The only thing that probably saved them from being caught was the fact that they lived in different apartments, which decreased the time they could interact. There was still Tenya, but Tenya couldn’t even get his own love life together so there was little hope he could fix hers. So Shinso was her third best option.

“Do you ever cry?” she asked, watching Shinso finally crack open an eye.

“Kittens. I teared up when I caught Midoriya and Todoroki sneaking in the kittens.”

Ah, the kittens. The Hufflepuff apartment had turned into many people’s favourite spot to hang out at, everyone desperate to pet the four rescues Deku tried to ‘sneak in’. Shinso had been ecstatic about the kittens—Ochako even could vaguely recall Shinso looking a little mystified when seeing the kittens.

“But back to your love life. Did you really cry when you first saw Mina?”

“Of course not!” Ochako exclaimed, feeling her cheeks grow hot. She had thought Mina was pretty though—but that had been the impression about most of the girls here. “It’s an internet thing. I think it was—oh you little shit.”

Shinso was grinning like a Cheshire cat.

“Did you really think I didn’t know what you meant,” Shinso let out a loud laugh. “But seriously, can’t you like, ask her out? Midoriya managed.”

“Yeah, but Midoriya is basically ‘ride or die’. If there is no logical reason not to, he just goes for it.”

“And is there anything holding you back?”

Technically not, but unlike Deku, she was really nervous. What if she had been misreading all the signs? What if Mina saw her nothing more than a friend? It would get really awkward between them, and unlike Deku, she wasn’t ready to take that risk.

Shinso had taken that silence to check out his phone. Ochako was happy that he had put his focus on something else, which meant that she could change the subject in five minutes and find another person to talk with. Maybe Tsuyu? Though there was the risk that Mina overheard since they were housemates and all.

“Hey, Midoriya just texted me. I think Mina is taking him hostage, again.”

Ochako wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry. Laugh because her good friend didn't know when to say no, or cry because she wanted to be Deku in that situation. She wanted to spend one-on-one time with Mina, but it seemed that faith decreed otherwise.

“Do I have to save him?” Ochako asked, pretty sure that the answer was ‘yes’.

“Well, Iida is out, and Shouto is scared he’ll be roped into it,” Shinso said, not even looking up from his phone. “So that leaves you, and me.”

She and Shinso went down a floor to the Hufflepuff apartment. The door was unlocked—which was a must as it otherwise was a safety hazard—so she just stepped inside, Shinso trailing behind her. The living room was deserted aside from Ojiro, who was doing some homework.

“Hey Ojiro,” she greeted.

Ojiro looked up from his homework, not looking even remotely surprised to see her here.     

“Hi Uraraka,” he said, waving awkwardly. “Looking for Mina or Midoriya?”

“Both.”

“Well, that makes it easier, the second bathroom. Tell Tooru that I will be able to help her with English in five minutes.”

She noticed Shinso perking up. “English?”

“Yes, Tooru said she needed some help.”

“Can I join?”

Ochako wanted to scold Shinso for having the tact of a bull, but Ojiro didn’t even look bothered. He just flashes Shinso a smile. “Sure.”

Shinso looked caught off guard, staring for a hot second before excusing himself to get his homework.

Leaving Ojiro be, Ochako headed to the second bathroom and knocked on the door. A ‘come in’ came as a response. Entering the bathroom, she saw that indeed Tooru, Mina and Deku were crammed in there. A huge bouquet of flowers laid on the sink. Like, Ochako wondered where they even find a bouquet that huge. Aside from that, there was a big pile of bobby pins and hair-ties.

The bouquet wasn’t complete anymore, there were gaps, and some of the flower stalks were decapitated, the flowers had ended up in Tooru’s hair. The big, black curls were waved together in a loose braid, bright flowers popping up here and there. Ojiro would get a heart-attack if he saw her like that.

“Hi Ochako!” Tooru greeted, trying not to move too much as Mina was pinning another flower in her braid. “What brings you here?”

“Ojiro said that he was ready for English,” Ochako said, relieved that her voice wasn’t too squeaky.

Tooru’s face lit up.

“You can go,” Mina said, patting Tooru on her shoulder.

“And, uh, Deku, Aizawa was looking for you. I think it’s about the kittens.”

Deku wasn’t an amazing actor, but he managed to stumble his way through an excuse. Mina looked disappointed. First Tooru had left, and immediately after, her second ‘victim’ had left.

“Where did you get the flowers?” Ochako asked, sitting down on Tooru’s old seat.

Mina shrugged. “They aren’t mine, they are Tooru’s. She got them for White Day.”

Ochako remembers that White Day was yesterday, but since she hadn’t bothered to celebrate Valentine’s Day, she hadn’t expected to get anything. Her expectations were correct. Though she wondered why Tooru would sacrifice her huge bouquet of flowers to make flower crowns. Ochako would be flabbergasted as her Valentine would give her such a large bouquet.

“But why? Why cut the bouquet up?”

“Tooru said she got them from someone she doesn’t like—romantically. It was all a bit awkward if I had to believe her. Anyway, she decided that this would be a better use for them.”

Ochako wondered who this person was, but since Mina hadn’t told her, she assumed that the only one who knew was Tooru herself. And Tooru had just left to get tutored in English,  

Absentmindedly, Ochako twirled her hair around her finger. She regretted that she kept it short. It wasn’t even short-short, but it was nowhere as long as Tooru’s hair. Admittedly, Deku’s hair was shorter than her’s, but she knew that Mina liked it because it resembled hers. It was the perfect person to try out new hairstyles on.

“My hair is too short for this, isn’t it?”

Mina’s mood, who had gotten a little sombre, perked up.

“Na-ah, your hair is perfect.” Mina was a bit too close for comfort. Why was she so pretty? It was so unfair. “I would love to work on it!”

Ochako let out a hesitant ‘sure’. If Mina had been too close to comfort before, now she definitely was crowding in Ochako’s space. A comb appears out of nowhere, and Mina started to comb through her hair. Right. Nothing romantic about this, Mina just enjoying hair related things and Ochako being one of her many ‘victims’. She didn’t like calling any of the victims since, in the end, they all agreed

It was unusual for Mina to be quiet, but Ochako figured that she was focussing on the task at hand. Multitasking was hard, especially when you worked with something as delicate as flowers.

She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but it was long enough for her to be lulled into a false sense of security. Ochako almost let out a scream when Mina placed a hand on her shoulder, announcing that she was done.  

“You gave me a near heart-attack,” Ochako pointed out, but the annoyance she felt melted as she saw herself in the mirror. She almost didn’t recognise herself.

Her hair was completely pulled back, leaving her face quite exposed. Something akin to a flower crown adorned her hair. The top part was pretty bare, with just small leaves, berries and flowers, but the rest was more heavily adorned with colourful flowers. The yellow ones in particularly popped against her hair. If she didn’t know better, she could have stepped straight out of a wedding magazine, or out of a fantasy novel.

“It’s beautiful,” Ochako said in aw, tucking a rogue strand of hair behind her ear. She was almost too afraid to touch anything. “You could become a wedding stylist!”

Mina’s brown cheeks got a little darker, her eyes shining. “You really think so?” she asked, sounding hopeful.

“Of course I do! It looks beautiful.”

“I mean—you make it beautiful.”

Ochako saw her face growing a dark shade of red. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest, her mind mulling over Mina’s words.

Gathering the same courage Deku had to ask Todoroki out, Ochako looked away from the mirror, looking up at Mina. She felt like her smile was a little forced, but that might be the nerves.

“Would you like to go out next weekend? Maybe catch a movie? Go rollerskating?”

Mina puts Ochako’s smile to shame with her radiant one. Who gave the right for that woman to be that beautiful? Because Ochako was sure it would send her to an early grave.

“I would love to!”

~*~

Ochako felt a little flustered when she and Mina finally left the bathroom. She hoped that the living space of the Hufflepuff apartment was completely abandoned. But instead, everyone she didn’t want to see was there. Tooru, Ojiro and Shinso were pouring over homework, though stopped the moment she and Mina entered the room. There was also Deku, who was chatting with Shouto and playing with the kittens. They soon should be rehomed, but she didn’t have the heart to tell him.

“I told you it would work!” Deku cheered, scaring the poor kittens.

“I can’t believe it actually worked,” Shinso grumbled.

“What worked?” Mina asked, her voice a little sharp.

Ochako suddenly got the feeling that her friends had been playing matchmaker, though she wondered what they did.

“I got the bouquet from Midoriya!” Tooru chirped.

“And I got them from Shouto,” Deku added.

Todoroki shrugged, picking one of the kittens up and putting it on his head. The kitten already started to make itself at home. “Izuku asked for the flowers, and my father paid for them, indirectly.”

“And I just had to get you and Mina in the same room, which turned out to be the bathroom.” Shinso offered.

“I was never part of the plan,” Ojiro admitted sheepishly. “I just was caught up in their schemes.”

She realised that their friends had banded together to get them finally to start dating. While Ochako couldn’t help but feel annoyed by them—she could’ve handled it herself—but she appreciated that they cared enough. And it wasn’t like they were forcing her and Mina to confess. They just created a scenario that might lead to a confession.

Tetsutetsu and Kirishima walked into the apartment, laughing about a joke the rest clearly had missed.  

“Wow, I didn’t expect to see this many people here,” Tetsutetsu said, looking around the living space before his gaze settled on her and Mina. “Wow, Uraraka, you look like a fairy.”

Ochako felt her cheeks heat up.

“I know, right?” Mina beamed at the two newcomers.

“Mina, don’t—”

Mina faced her, her eyes sparkling. “But you’re pretty. I think you’re beautiful and I am blessed to go out with you.”

Quite sure that if she were a computer, her systems would have overloaded, Ochako sat down on the ground and curled up, hiding her head between her legs. How was she even going to survive their first date?

Chapter 7: Day VI - Family

Notes:

Should I have edited this? Yes. Did I? Nope. proceeds to cry

Chapter Text

Denki always believed in a little bit of magic. Miraculously catching the bus while he was running late, just getting enough points to pass a subject, finding money in his pockets. However, he didn’t believe in the big picture. Wizards didn’t exist beyond fiction, he doubted that there were aliens somewhere out there, and he definitely didn’t believe in time travel. If there were time travel in the future, Denki would have jumped back to the past and told his past self what the things were he should avoid at all cost. Like getting a crush on Iida.

Right now, he was starting to believe that time travel might exist. Because this guy looked an awful lot like Iida, only fifteen years older. Would Iida look like this in his mid-thirties? Because if so, Denki wanted to know his secret. His face was a bit broader, hair messier and he had lost his glasses, which Denki was unsure about. He liked Iida with glasses. Clothing wise, he hadn’t changed at all, which made this guy look like a really convincing Iida from the future. Okay, now he was a little creeped out.

“Uhm, Iida?” Denki asked, approaching the man.

Iida looked up, meeting Denki’s gaze. But there wasn’t even a hint of recognition. This could mean three things: this wasn’t the same Iida he knew, Denki hadn’t been part of Iida’s life for a long time, or this Iida was from an alternate universe. 

“Ah, yes!” Iida got up from the couch. He offered Denki a dashing smile and a hand. “Aizawa told me someone would pick me up. I’m Iida Tensei—Tenya’s older brother.”

Denki awkwardly shook Iida Tensei’s hand. He just had described his crush’s older brother as hot. No way he was ever going to tell everyone that.

“Let me guess, you’re here to surprise Iida—I mean, Tenya,” Denki generally didn’t stumble over his words, but he generally didn’t make such a fool of himself. Time travel, really?

Thankfully, Iida’s brother nodded, his smile not even fading.

“I think he’s home right now, so I can bring you to him.”

“That would be great.”

It was really weird to climb three levels with Iida’s brother in tow. It wasn’t weird that Iida had a brother, but the gazes they got were… interesting. Mina did a double take, and he was quite sure that Todoroki was actually considering time travel and that Iida’s brother was actually Iida from the future. 

“You know Tenya well?” Iida’s brother asked in the meantime, sounding genuinely interested instead of trying to make some chit-chat.

“Apartmentmates,” Denki explained. “And he has been a great help with my studies! The guy is brilliant.”

Iida’s brother looked like a proud mother, which was slightly disturbing. On the other hand, looking at the age difference between them, Iida’s brother could almost be his dad. That surely had some influence on their dynamic. He couldn’t imagine being more than two years younger than his sister. She would totally baby him! Or tease him (though, she already did that).

Denki wondered why Iida had never told him about his brother, but he realised that Iida had mentioned his brother. Just once. The only time he vividly remembered was the same night he had made a fool out of himself—when Iida had joined them during video game night. Admittedly, if his studies allowed it, Iida joined more frequently nowadays, to the Slytherin apartment’s dismay. Iida was good at video games.

“Let me guess, he got his video game skills from you?”

Iida’s brother looked surprised, but it didn’t look like a bad kind of surprised. More like, ‘I can’t believe my brother shared that with people’.

“Yes. Our age difference made it hard to really connect, but video games don’t have such an age-restriction. We bonded over that.”

It was sweet. But he supposed that he was a little bias. (Only a little).

He was glad to see the apartment door that read ‘Ravenclaw’.It felt like he had been climbing stairs for ages and ages. Maybe that’s he partially was being interrogated by his crush’s older brother. Had Iida ever told his brother what had happened during video game night? That Denki did something stupid.

 “We’re here,” Denki announced, opening the apartment door and walking in, signalling for Iida’s brother to wait. 

As he expected, Iida was the only one who was currently present. He was hunched over homework, looking deep in focus. He probably hadn’t even noticed that Denki had arrived. 

“Iida?”

Iida looked up from his homework, eyes glazed over a little. Yup, he still finds Iida really attractive. Why couldn’t he be a jerk?

“I found someone that was looking for you,” Denki gestured to the hallway, and on cue, Iida’s brother appeared in the doorway.

Clearly, Iida’s brother had been right when he told it was a surprise because Iida looks pretty surprised. 

“I’ll leave you guys be, to catch up,” Denki said, shooting Iida awkward finger guns. Why? “Still have to help Ochako carrying home the groceries.”

Iida’s brother looked bewildered. “Wait, you weren’t supposed to pick me up?”

“Nope,” Denki admits. “I thought you were an Iida from the future. If you excuse me, like I said, I have to help out Ochako.”

Denki fled, like the coward he was. 

~*~

Denki hadn’t told Ochako a single thing about why he had been a little late. When they had arrived back home, he had offered to carry groceries upstairs while Ochako was going to check out if someone could fix her bicycle.

Opening the apartment door with his elbow, he saw that it was still just Iida and his brother. Iida was almost beaming, chatting animatedly with his brother. Denki was glad, as he had slightly worried that the two might not be on good terms. They clearly were.

“Got the groceries,” Denki said, awkwardly showing off the shopping bags. “I’m just going to, you know, store everything.” He gestured to the kitchen. “Carry on.”

Being the smooth guy he was, Denki strode to the kitchen and started to actually store away the groceries. Technically, it was Ochako’s job, but he was here anyway, and he was welcoming all the distraction he could get. He could hear Iida and his brother talking in the background, but couldn’t pick up on anything they were saying, which was good. He felt awkward just being here.

“I will get going,” Iida’s brother said loudly, obviously intending for Denki to hear him. “Don’t want to distract you too much from your studies.”

Denki started with putting the cookies high up, making sure that only Iida and Shoji could reach them. Not that ever stopped Ochako from climbing on the counter and still grab the cookies, but they at least could capture the moment and tease her for the rest of the year.

The apartment door closing was the sign that Iida’s brother had left. Denki felt himself relax a little. He hadn’t expected to meet the inlaws before they even could become the inlaws. 

“Do you have a moment?” Iida asked.

“Sure.” Denki sat down on the counter, feeling a little bit taller. Iida was unfairly tall, or Denki was just short. Or both. It was unfair nonetheless.   

“I’m sorry about my brother.” Iida apologised, looking a little bit lost. 

That wasn’t what Denki had expected to hear. “Why apologise? He was nice.”

“He didn’t say anything weird?”

“Not really.” Denki tried to recall the conversation, but nothing really stood out. “He asked if I knew you, and told him I did, and that was pretty much it. He didn’t even ask for my name.”

Iida relaxed on the spot. Denki had expected an explanation, but Iida totally dropped the conversation.

Why would it matter if Denki had told Iida’s brother his name or not? It probably was a name his brother would immediately forget—that’s what Denki did. He already had forgotten the brother’s name, he just knew that it sounded a lot like Iida’s first name. 

“Hey, why that question? You can’t let me hanging like that!” Denk grabbed Iida’s arm.

“I—” Iida’s was avoiding his gaze, but Denki didn’t have to look in his eyes to see the redness on his face. Was his embarrassed. Why would he be so worried, unless—  

“You told him about that?”

Iida looked a little stumped, eyebrows pulled together in a frown. “Told him what?”

“About my, uhm, accidental confession?”

“No—I never could.” Iida looked like how Denki felt, ready to sink straight through the floor.

It finally hit him. If Iida hadn’t said bad things about him but had talked about him nonetheless, the things must be…good. Iida had painted him in a good light. But did that also mean that Iida liked him?

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure?” Iida didn’t sound all that sure.

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why didn’t you tell me you like me back?”

“I—” Iida looked like a deer caught in the headlight. “I wasn’t sure if you were joking or not, and I like what we have.”

“So do I,” Denki admits. “But I never joking about that, but since you weren’t weird about it, I pretended that nothing happened.”

Before anything else could happen, Ochako entered the apartment, protesting loudly that her bike was a pain in the ass. Ochako tended to cuss when she was angry. Denki, of course, let go of Iida’s wrist. 

“I will—” Denki started out, but it seemed that Iida didn’t let him run away for the second time.

“Do you want to go out next Saturday?”

“Uh, sure,” Denki tried for a winning smile but was failing terribly. “I think I still need help with engineering.”

“As a date.”

Denki was quite sure that his heart had leapt into his throat. There was no way that he could misinterpret this. 

“Sure.”

“Finally!” Ochako squealed. “I’ve been waiting for this for months!”

“I second that.” Denki laughed in relief, wanting to do nothing else but kiss that goofy smile of Iida’s face.

“Please don’t make out in the kitchen,” Ochako hollered. “We might decide to go ‘fuck it’ with the dating rule, but I don’t want to see you suck face.”

He was forever grateful that Ochako lived here and not Mina because that would be a pain. Mina would’ve been straight-up gloating.

~*~

“This doesn’t look like a study session.”

Denki almost screamed—according to Tenya he actually screamed, but Tenya was bias—when nobody else but Tenya’s brother was standing at their table.

“That’s because it isn’t,” Tenya said matter-of-factly, thankfully, he was still blushing.

“Please take care of him.” It took Denki a hot minute that Tenya’s brother was addressing him. 

“Me? Shouldn’t you give me the shovel talk?”

Tenya’s brother laughed, and it was hard not to see the resemblance between him and Tenya. “I would rather give Tenya the talk that he shouldn’t fuck this up. This is the first time one of us actually is dating someone.”

Denki found it hard to believe that Tenya’s brother never had dated anyone. Were they blind? Or maybe he was an equally big disaster as Tenya.

“But I will leave you two be. Make sure you two visit during the summer—I think mum and dad would be ecstatic.”

If it were up to him, Denki would happily skip meeting his future in-laws for a while. He wasn’t sure if he could handle more excited people.