10 - first time for everything

Shit. Shit. Shit. My alarm didn't go off this morning and now I'm running late to work. I kept bumping into people as I ran to my agency, quickly apologising to them. In my head, I kept thinking about all the moments where Tatsuo was running late to class, hoping to not get in trouble with Aizawa, but he always did.


"I am here," I yelled out, unknowing quoting All Might, as I burst open the doors to my agency. "Sorry that I'm late!"


Aimi giggled and shook her head. "H/N, you do know that you're a hero and have your own agency, right? You don't really have to worry about being late or not."


"I know, I know," I took a deep breath, trying to control my breathing. "It just being ingrained in me to always be on time."


I started to walk towards my office when Aimi stopped me.


"Before you go in," Aimi went around her desk and whispered in my ear, "I wanted to tell you that there's someone waiting for you in your office. They told me to keep a secret from you, but I know that you don't like surprises."


Oh god. Please don't be Hawks. I've been avoiding him for the past couple of days, not wanting to talk to him just in case he brought up anything in person. When I woke up the next day, I had a lot, and I do mean a lot, of notifications from him. I didn't have that many pictures posted on my Instagram, but Hawks still liked all of them and he did it on purpose. How do I know this? Because he told me himself. I was literally thinking of ways of how to delete my number from his phone, but knew that none of them worked. And I hate to admit it, but I kinda liked the attention. It was stupid. He's stupid.


"Aimi," I hugged her, "you know me so well. I don't deserve you."


She laughed and patted my back in softly. "You shouldn't keep him waiting."


Fuck. It is Hawks.


I let go of her and she, oh so gently, pushed me towards my office, knowing that I wouldn't move on my own accord. My hands hovered over the doorknobs, hesitating on opening the doors. It took a minute for me to get the courage to finally open them. When I realised who it was, I immediately ran towards him and hugged him so tightly.


"Taishiro!" I could feel my eyes start to water, "I missed you so much!"


"Gummy bear," Fat Gum laughed softly and felt him return my hug, "it's only been a couple of months."


I've missed his hugs so much. "I know," I pulled away and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, "but they've been overwhelming."


"But you're doing an amazing job, Y/N." Fat Gum waved his hands around, "I mean, just look at this! You're only twenty and already have your own agency! I make my own until I was twenty-four. Or was it twenty-five. Wait, how old am I?"


And I also missed his enthusiasm and optimism so much. "I didn't know you were going to visit me today, Taishiro, or else I would have brought takoyaki with me."


Fat Gum smiled and moved a bit to the left, pointing to the bags on my desk. "No worries. I brought some with me. Now," he grabbed one of the containers and handed it to me, "let's go on patrol. I wanna know everything."


We left the office and before we left the agency, Fat Gum gave Aimi a container too. It was like the good old days, with Fat Gum eating takoyaki and patiently listened to me talk. Every once in a while someone would stop him, wanting to take a picture with him. Fat Gum would greet anyone that would say hi to him and helped some people with mundane tasks. Whenever I would get recognised, Fat Gum had the biggest smile and would even be the one taking the picture of us.


After an hour or so, we stopped in front of a tall building. Fat Gum said that he needed to talk to someone, and he needed me there with him. I didn't question him and followed him inside. The front desk person happily greeted us and told us to go to the top floor. We both said thank you and headed to the elevator. A bumpy elevator ride later and we finally made it to the top floor. The elevator doors opened and standing in front of us was really well dressed man.


"Right this way," was all he said.


Fat Gum whispered to me. "These top hero agencies are no joke."


I nodded in agreement as I left the elevator, following the man. He stopped in front of two large doors, leaving once Fat Gum joined me. Fat Gum was the one that opened doors and walked in first, letting me trail behind him.


"Fat Gum! H/N! Took you two long enough to get here," the voice said in a playful tone.


Uggggghhhh. Of course. Why didn't I put the clues together? It's okay, Y/N. Don't freak out yet.


"You didn't tell me that you were going to meet with Hawks," I tried my best not to look at the winged hero.


Fat Gum smiled guiltily. "Sorry, gummy bear. I just needed to talk to the both of you. And I felt in my gut," he placed both of his hands and his belly and extended it dramatically, knowing that it would make me smile, which it did, "that if I told you that I wanted to meet with Hawks, you wouldn't come with."


Damn it, Taishiro. His gut instincts were always right, and this time was no exception.


Hawks told us that we could sit in the chairs that were in front of his desk. There was a candy jar on his desk and Fat Gum asked if he could have some. Hawks nodded his and head and Fat Gum took the whole jar, placing some of the candies on the palm of my hands.


"I looked over the files that you sent me, Fat Gum," Hawks said as he sat back on his chair.


I opened one of the candies. "What files?"


"Do you remember two years ago how we took out that criminal group? The one that were selling the drugs?" Fat Gum's mouth was full of candy.


"Uhhh," I could feel the gears turning in my head as I tried to remember, "you gotta be a bit more specific than that."


Fat Gum waved a candy wrapper around as he talked. "The Viper Pack. You know the one!" He snapped his fingers and got so excited about his thought that some of the candy from the bowl spilled out. "Oh! The one where the leader kidnapped you!"


"Oh!" My eyes widen when I realised who he was talking about. "Omori! You're talking about Omori!"


"You were kidnapped?!" Hawks asked in shocked and disbelief as he pointed at me. Then he pointed to the both of us, "and why do the both of you sound so happy about this?!"


Fat Gum and I stared at each other and, in unison, we turned and looked at Hawks. "Uhh, yeah. I was kidnapped, but it's not a big deal."


"Not a big deal?!" Hawks sat upright and kept looking at me with that same shocked expression.


"Because I wasn't in any danger," I sighed as I remembered that event. "Omori was the leader, sure, but while he looked dangerous, he was anything but that. His quirk wasn't all that powerful either. To be honest, we don't really know how he became the leader when..."


"When his second-in-command was the dangerous one," Fat Gum finished the sentence for me.


Hawks blinked a few times in disbelief. "Did you two ever think that maybe the real leader was the second-in-command?"


I nodded my head, "but afterwards, we interviewed the members and there was never any hint of a power struggle."


"All of the members loved and respected Omori," Fat Gum continued, "and would do anything for him."


"So, what happened?" One of Hawks' feathers took the empty candy bowl from Fat Gum's hands. His attention was on me now and his expression was unreadable. "And how did you get kidnapped?"


Fat Gum looked at the empty bowl with a sad expression. "It was a sting operation. We knew that they were going to move locations soon and we didn't want to lose them. So, we attacked."


"And this was my first real big operation since graduating and," I cupped my cheeks with my hands, and I could feel how hot my face was getting, "well, I wasn't paying attention to my sunlight levels, and I may or may not have pushed myself a bit too far."


"How could you put yourself in danger?" Even though Hawks' wasn't yelling, his voice held so much animosity. "Why did you fight all on your own? How could you do something so reckless?"


I let go of my face and clenched my hands under my costume. "I was not on my own. And like I said, it was my first big operation and I wasn't paying attention to myself because I was focused on trying to get Omori. And you have no room to talk, Hawks. You might be a top hero, but you still pull juvenile stunts all the fucking time."


"H/N..." Fat Gum said softly, looking at me in a shocked expression.


This was the first time I cursed in front of him, but I didn't pay attention to that. Hawks and I stared at each other, neither of us breaking eye contact. This was the first time when one of our convos held such hostility for each other. I got so used to Hawks' carefree and flirty personality, that I never thought that I would see the other side of him. Luckily, Fat Gum was the one that broke the heavy silence in the room.


"Hawks, H/N. This isn't time for that," his expression was serious, contrasting his usual cheery self. "Yes, what H/N did was foolish, but she learned from her mistakes and tries not to overexert herself. But, sometimes, you do have to go beyond your capabilities and that is all part of being a hero." Fat Gum pulled out a lollipop from his jacket, "now for the reason why I'm here.


Omori and his second have resurfaced. I wasn't sure at first, but then things were starting to add up. While they might not be dealing drugs this time around, I know for certain that it is them. Luckily, the numbers of their members is significantly low, but they are still a threat - especially to you, Y/N." Fat Gun never called me by my name when we were on hero duties, and it sent a shiver up my spine. "My gut is telling me that Omori will want to find and capture you again. And that is why I wanted to meet with you both. You're an amazing hero, Y/N, but I fear that you are in danger and I want Haw..."


"No," I quickly said, knowing where he was going. "Taishiro, I can take care of myself and I don't need protection."


Fat Gum nodded. "I know you can, but something is telling me that Omori won't stop until he gets to you. And we have no idea what he has been up to these past two years." He got another lollipop from his pocket, "And it will only be until we apprehend him."


"I'll do it," Hawks said, not bothering to look at me. "I'll look after Y/N."


I got up, unknowingly pushing the chair back. "I don't need protection. I'm not the same hero that I was two years ago."


"Y/N," Fat Gum's voice was gentle, "what if he attacks at night? When you don't have the sun's energy constantly refilling you. What if he attacks you while your levels are down? Or when you're feeling weak from your hero duties or mission?"


Hawks chimed in, "she did faint a couple of nights ago. Luckily, I was there so there was no damage done."


God. I wish I knew how to activate my flower spore and make him go to sleep again. "Fine! You two win! Fill me in when you two have decided on a plan. I'm leaving."


Only Fat Gum tried to stop me as I left Hawks' office. I just don't know what made me more upset. The fact that both of them just accepted the fact that I need protection. Or the fact that my quirk is so fucking weak and useless. Fucking shit. Fuck. My eyes were starting to get teary because of how I upset I was and because I didn't know what to do. Calm down, Y/N. You need to calm down. Someone bumped into me and quickly apologised as they passed by. Okay. Maybe try to calm down when you're not standing in the middle of the sidewalk.


I want back to my agency and grabbed a few times before I left again. Aimi was worried about me, but didn't ask what was wrong and I was so grateful that she didn't. Like the past few days, there were petty crimes being committed, with little action. I had so much pent up energy, anger, and frustration that need to get out, but when I saw the little boy that I saved from the fire, every negative emotion left my body. He recognised me and quickly ran towards me. Without a second thought, I picked him up and embraced him in a tight hug.


His brother, and what I assumed to be their mother, made their way towards me. Both of them thanked me and apologised to me. The brother explained how the little boy's quirk manifested while their mom was at work. And because he had no control over it, the little boy unknowingly started a fire in the apartment. The mother was in tears while explaining the aftermath of the incident. I tried my best to keep it together, but I couldn't. All three of them comforted me and told me that it was okay for me to cry. Afterwards, I said my goodbyes to them since I was still on duty. The mother handed me a picture of them and told me to always remember how if it wasn't for me, none of them would be together.

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