Reunion

Requested by @AllisonTart

"Keigo!"

The young boy turned around to see you running toward him with the largest smile plastered on your face. He returned the smile, the corners of his lips pulling upwards as he started to run towards you too.

You stopped abruptly and held his hands. "Come on, the ice cream shop opened up! I got some money from my mom, we should go!"

His smile falters for a second, but it returns brighter than ever. He nods, then you lead the way holding on to his hand.

You stayed with him until dark, playing on the play structures and ending the day on the swing set. Your feet slowly swing back and forth trying to reach a new height as Keigo barely swings in comparison.

Upon reaching the highest you can go, you release the swing as it launches you into the air. For a second, you feel weightless as your momentum makes it feel as if you're flying. You land on your feet, stumbling to your knees but landing successfully. You pop back up on your feet and look over your shoulder at Keigo, "Did you see that? How high did I go this time?"

Keigo flinches when he realizes you are talking to him. He stops swinging to say, "Oh, sorry, I didn't see."

Your brows furrow at his response, adding this to the list of how strange Keigo had been all day. You step towards Keigo and stop before him. Crossing your arms you ask, "What's wrong? You've been weird all day. You didn't even play cops and robbers with me even you love to play."

His head hangs slightly in shame and he avoids your stare. "It's nothing."

You grab the chains of the swing he sits on and give it a shake. His little wings spread open slightly as he tries to maintain his balance. The sight of wings catch your attention—you've always thought of them to be the prettiest wings you've ever seen.

His wings fold on his back once you stop shaking his swing, but he still doesn't look at you.

You crouch to get a better look at him when you realize the tears starting to spill from his eyes. "Why are you crying? Are you hurt?"

Keigo shakes his head, his wings now spreading to envelop his body as he wipes his eyes.

"Did something bad happen?" You ask.

Keigo shakes his head and keeps shaking until it turns into a slow nod.

"What happened?"

Keigo opens his eyes and finally looks at you. You're still crouching at his feet, your hands placed on his knees to balance yourself, and eyebrows furrowed in concern for him.

His lips tremble as he answers, "I'm going away tomorrow."

"Oh..."

He wipes his face again, despite the absence of tears. "I don't wanna go. I wanna stay here with you."

He hiccups, and continues wiping his eyes as more tears start to form. "But I need to go."

Keigo has been your closest friend ever since you moved into this new city. You had met him at this very play structure. Back then, he was a silent boy always holding onto an Endeavor plush. These past few weeks, he smiles brightly at you and you love to play games with him.

Now, you're losing the one person you can call friend.

"Why are you leaving?" You finally ask.

He shakes his head, a small whimper escapes his lips as he hides his face. His wings tremble as he tries to keep wiping his tears.

You heart squeezes at the thought of losing your friend. But it won't be forever.

You clap your hands, making the boy flinch and stop wiping his face. You hold out your pinky as you say, "Promise me."

Without hesitation, he locks his pinky with yours.

"Promise me, we'll meet again. I don't know when and I don't know how, but we'll play games and—and we'll," your facade cracks as your breath hitches at the thought of never seeing him again. Your eyes well up with tears but you try not to blink so they don't fall.

"We just have to see each other again. You promised," you say as you stamp your thumb on his, making the promise official.

***

It all had happened so fast. You were at home catching up on some shows, when the city speakers announced to the citizens of a villain attack. Everyone was told to evacuate to the nearest shelter or school and take refuge there until the heroes were able to sort out the situation. You jumped off your couch and started to run around the house as you grabbed your precious valuables when the ground beneath you quakes.

Your wall crumbles to pieces and a new light enters your broken house. A large villain is in your house, leaning on the frames that keep your house standing. Your heart is pounding against your chest at an alarming speed and your shaking limbs fail to keep you standing. The villain groans causing your house to tremble from the pressure.

A hero of the same size, three stories tall and covered in scratches, grabs the shoulders of the large villain and pulls them off your house. This is your chance.

You try to get to your feet, scrambling around on the floor like a newborn calf. You feel weak and with every breath you breathe in floating dust and possibly debris.

You look around to see your house in shambles. A wall is completely missing, welcoming the outdoors, and everything is broken and on the floor.

The ground shakes again and you see the hero fall to the ground from a punch thrown by the villain. The hero catches the next punch and kicks the villain away. The ground quakes again as the hero jumps to her feet.

You have to get out of here.

You scramble to your feet, a pitiful attempt, but this time you manage to get close to the wall. You lean on it for balance as your legs tremble.

The world quakes again and you look over your shoulder to see the back of the hero falling your direction.

You can't run. You can't scream. Pure fear freezes you in place as you try to come to the conclusion that you're going to die. You're going to die by the hands of a hero. You're going to die having broken your promise to Keigo.

You close your eyes, shielding yourself from your incoming death.

Suddenly, you feel yourself swept off your feet. You feel weightless as the wind breezes by your skin. You feel like you're flying.

Is this what death feels like?

You open your eyes, ready to see the world before you when you're met with a yellow tinted visor and blond hair. The flapping of wings catches your attention and you see the most beautiful pair of red wings. All you can think of when you see the wings was how similar they look to Keigo's.

The hero is carrying you through the sky, his hands at the back of your legs and on your upper back. Looking behind him you see the hero and villain continuing their fight. They leave buildings in shambles and the earth quaking with each step.

You lock your arms around your hero's shoulders when you feel an imbalance of your weight. And now that you're closer you get a better look at your savior.

He has blond hair and faint stubble sprinkled on his chin, his thick eyebrows are furrowed in concentration. His golden-broken eyes are narrowed as he glances at the world below, searching. He has a familiar pair of black triangles at the corner of his eyes, similar to that of a bird.

Then, you finally realize what you're seeing.

"Keigo...?"

The hero flinches, his wings stuttering, and he finally looks at you. His eyes widen and you confirm your suspicions.

"Keigo!"

You hug him tightly, burying your face in the fluff of his collared jacket. You push away from him, just enough to see his face.

"I can't believe it's you!" You say as he stares back at you in disbelief.

You've come to realize that he's no longer flying with a purpose, but merely flying in place as he stares at you. He's scanning your features, his grip tightening on your body as he does.

"It's you...," he whispers out.

You ignore the way his voice makes you shiver.

"It's been so long," you say with a smile.

"I thought you were just a dream," his voice whispers as he lowers onto a nearby rooftop.

Your heart flutters. That's new.

He doesn't let you go despite having landed on the rooftop. He stands there holding you and watching you.

"I thought we promised to meet again," you tease as you flex your pinky at him.

Without warning he presses his forehead against yours, his breath coming out in shaky. "I thought it wasn't real," he whispers again.

Your heart is beating against your chest once more, but for a whole new reason. Has Keigo always made you feel like this?

He holds onto you tightly, pressing your body closer to his. His forehead presses against your own, but you don't mind the pressure as it grows. His eyes are squeezed shut as he seems to focus on holding onto you.

"So you're a hero now? You used to always carry around an Endeavor doll," you say, trying to keep your mind off how his voice is making you feel. You don't remember seeing anything about him in the news, so he must have recently started hero work. If you had known earlier, you would've stormed into his workplace to see him.

He stays silent, spending a few seconds holding you in his arms.

"Keigo?"

"I'll never leave your side again," he suddenly promises.

Your heart skips a beat, and you can feel your palms start to sweat. "What?"

He finally looks in your eyes, a new determined expression plastered that handsome face—has he always looked this way?

"You were the best person to ever come into my life—you made my childhood all the more tolerable. I searched everywhere for you, but it was hard since I didn't know your surname. I searched for so long it felt like I made you up in my mind. And before I knew it, I gave up my search, believing you were just a dream."

He locks his eyes on you and you alone. "I'm not letting you remain just a dream. I'm not leaving your side again."

You stare at him, taking in his words carefully. He had been looking for you too. You didn't believe he was a dream, but he was just as hard to find. And now he is here. Holding you in his arms waiting for your reply.

You held out your pinky, flexing it in front of yourself. "Do you promise?"

He smiles and you see the boy from your childhood again. It's him. After so many years, it's him.

"Promise."

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