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Saturday went by in a blur because you were so exhausted. Tired, but content for the first time in days, getting to sleep once you had gotten back was a near impossible feat. A part of you still wondered if Present Mic would stick to his original promise that no one would come after you. He may have only meant it if you had decided to join the side of heroes or… Whatever.
The thought made you shudder.

When you finally finished your next day you felt a breath of fresh air, and felt your body finally give into the physical and emotional fatigue you had endured over the past week. Sunday morning you opened your eyes with a joyful hum. No Pro’s pounding at your door! Mic seemed to be a lot of things, and being a stand-up guy was one of them! You wouldn’t have anything to worry about on your day off- and it felt nice to relax in your apartment where you were safe once more.

You ate breakfast fit for royalty and slowly regarded your books across from the table… The books and the paper scratched with the phone number on top of it.

You could still see the bright green sharpie-marker from over your miso soup. Yamada Hizashi: “Text me!” Even when he wasn’t on the radio or right there; you could still hear him yelling. Yamada… That was his surname. You hadn’t really cared enough to learn the names of heroes before. In fact, you avoided them any time you had the chance.

In your years of being a vigilante; you knew that when heroes were coming it was game-over. You had to bolt out of there as fast as you could. That may be why most of your vigilantism was based more in stopping crimes before, but not AS they were happening.

Speaking of which… You looked to your closet where the various items of your disguise hung dutifully together, ready to be adorned for another justice-serving romp. Honestly though, the sentiment was all gone. You’d have to incorporate the individual pieces into other outfits if need be.

It was still sort of sad, though, and it was a huge bummer to look at when you couldn’t really do anything.

You let out a groan and moved your way to your computer. Your life was changing too fast… Perhaps you couldn’t go bringing the fight to criminals anymore, but that had nothing to do with dropping tips to the authorities… Surely, that was just being a Good Samaritan! Your fingers glided skillfully over your pc’s keyboard visiting all the usual sites you hit up in order to get in on some tips.

You also, idly turned on the radio.

You had grown more used being on in the last week and you saw no harm in keeping that habit, you’d have loads of free time now. Besides, it was easier than opening up a music or news streaming service while you searched for… Something productive to do online. You scrolled and made a few mental notes of a few suspect chats, a few strange but ultimately unrelated hypothetical posts, but there was… Surprisingly very little. It was as if all the active forums and chats had just… Stopped.

You closed your eyes and leaned back, looking back over to your outfit, then back to the radio. The sound of a bubbly pop song was playing as you thought about early Saturday morning.
“Why aren’t you a hero?... Cause’, personally, I thinkyou would be a great hero.”

If only it were that simple…

“You’re making a mistake.”

You were doing what was best for you.

“Imagine what would have happened if I hadn’t been in that shopping center on Sunday.”

The villains probably would have made off with a fairly sizable amount of cash. Probably. Though, Snipe was nearly on his way. He probably would have gotten them first, he had a pretty effective hit ratio.

Yes. You were certain everything would have been fine.

Suddenly the joyous J-pop song screeched to an electric halt as a pre-recorded announcer calmly spoke into the Microphone.
“We interrupt this program to bring you a news alert as Pro Heroes frantically attempt to evacuate a local neighborhood in central Tokyo. A small group of villains have immolated a large portion of the neighborhood- their motives yet unclear- as Heroes from the surrounding area are pulling help and resources from the surrounding area including U.A. Highschool.”

… What?

“This message will repeat. All current citizens within the sector are instructed to please proceed calmly to the ends of the streets where a rescue Hero shall escort you safely to shelter. If anyone has any information regarding the attack, please, contact local authorities at-“

They were pulling teachers from U.A? Surely that meant that Present Mic… “Yamada” would be there.

A shiver made its way down your spine.

Other heroes would be there, too. This is what they did for a living, they’d all be fine. He’d be fine.

You placed your hand over your chest, realizing immediately you had done so because your chest was beating in frantic worry… They’d be fine. The Citizens would be fine. You weren’t needed… Everything was going to be fine.

But what if it wasn’t going to be fine?

Could you live with yourself knowing you did nothing? Knowing that people would get hurt- people would probably die?... Could you live with yourself knowing you had done nothing? Especially if it had been someone you knew?

“You’re making a mistake.”

You looked over at your outfit one last time. The way that it sat patiently on your closet door almost made it seem sentient. It called to you, begged you to take action, somehow. Surely you could slip in and out of the affected area just to check on everyone without them noticing?

“… Imagine what would have happened…”

No. No you promised… He had been, all things considering, very sparing on your proclivity to break the rules… But WHY were you so uncomfortable?

You held your phone in front of you and looked at the number.

To: Yamada
“I got your note.
Heard they were pulling UA teachers to help with that fire. You okay?
Please text back when you get this. I heard it’s really bad on the news.”

Now all that was left to do was wait. Wait and hoped he’d text back… You could do that, right? Well, certainly you could. Your phone lit up moments later and you jumped on it practically like a cat does a mouse.

From: Yamada
“ : D”
“Refrain!”
“:V I Can’t text now. TTYL!”

You let out a groan as he sent a small stream of texts your way… Called you Refrain… He was dead-set on that, wasn’t he?

To: Yamada
“Do you need me to come and help?

Augh. No. That was a bad message.

To: Yamada
“Do you want me to run by?

No, somehow that was even worse.

To: Yamada
“I’m heading that way. Do you need me to get you anything for when you get out?”

Without noticing you had gotten up and begun dressing yourself in your vigilante outfit- but you denied yourself the convenience of your wig and your gear. Not a vigilante. Not a vigilante… You looked over at the phone- it hadn’t gone off yet.

Maybe you needed a few bottles of water… And some burn gel… Surely that’d be enough. For now, right?

Hizashi had gotten your text and smiled mirthfully at his phone as he placed it back into his pocket… Only to be met with the reality that was the hellish inferno he was standing in right now. He let out a scoffing sort of sound as he placed the portable oxygen tank to his mouth and inhaled.

Today had, honestly, turned rather sour. Saturday was his one scheduled “Day off” and here the villains went making a mess of things… Ahhh, but you had texted him. Finally. Maybe “Returning Hero” was a good name for you. Maybe. He’d have to wait and see if you came running into the fray clad in your home made costume.

God, what was he going to tell Eraser?... What was he going to tell Midnight? That this person was a vigilante fighting on the side of the heroes—but they had saved him last week; so they were cool. Hah… He could practically feel Eraser’s death-glare and Midnight’s signature thumb-of-approval. Hahhhhhhhhh….

Right, fantasize about this later. He was a pro with a job to do, and standing around like he was waiting for you wasn’t going to make the neighborhood any LESS evacuated or any less villain-free.

Hah. Present Mic couldn’t imagine… You showing up to make sure he was okay, despite telling him you’d hang up your cape.

Ah. One could dream, right?

You couldn’t believe you were doing this!

Even after you said you wouldn’t…. Here you were running from rooftop to roof-top in an attempt to avoid the crowded car and foot traffic below- using Backlash to bounce in between the allies you couldn’t cross on your own… This was taking a lot more out of you than originally anticipated- though you couldn’t help but feel a little exhilarated being back in your costume and on your way to help Yamada.

Right. Just… Think about him as a person. Not a hero- he was a good person. A good person you were helping. Or checking in on. YEAH! That worked. You were just checking in on him!... Carrying five bottles of water, burn-gel, bandages, aloe, and other various medical supplies in your bag as you looked onward into the smoking neighborhood… And a small sugary snack…. Just in case.

You took a moment to pause, let Backlash recharge and contemplate your most recent of life choices. What… Were you doing? It would have been so much easier to stand aside and let him do his job- see him after the fact. This may be giving him the wrong impression on how you view yourself as a hero…

Hm… Well. He did just GIVE you his phone number to text. Maybe some of the miscommunication wasn’t all on you—no. Scratch that. It definitely was not just your fault… Speaking of communication; you figured now would be a good time to check your phone for any messages back.

Nope. Not a single one.

You felt your chest let out an involuntary sigh as you plopped yourself down on the roof’s edge… And tossed your wig to the side. No point in getting arrested for looking like a vigilante who just set fire to a neighborhood.

To: Yamada
“Okay. I’m waiting nearby. Just text me when you’re getting out.”

After you sent the message you could have sworn you regretted not sending more.

To: Yamada
“We can still get diner food. If you want.”

You must have waited… Hours on that rooftop. You couldn’t exactly remember when you had texted him the first time, but when you had finally realized how late it was getting blue skies were turning an orangey-pink. The smoke had died down a significant amount and you spent all that time watching news streams. No one mentioned a hero getting injured, or killed… Or anything.

So now you just sat there like a fool, feeling guilty for even coming.

To: Yamada
“Please tell me you’re still alive.”

You sent that final text as a sort of final reminder to yourself the entire reason you were here was because you just wanted to make sure he was okay. You weren’t expecting a near instantaneous response.

From: Yamada
“!!! AHHH Refrain!”
“I’m sorry I just got done! D:”
“Please don’t be mad! I just got your texts!”

A relieved, if not slightly expectant groan worked its way into your mouth.

From: Yamada
“I can afford another cheat day! :3”
“Should I come to you, or should we meet up somewhere?”
“Your pick. My treat. I made you wait.”
“Sorry about that btw.”

Well now you felt the bigger fool for coming in your full costume… On foot. There would probably bet little time to run back to your apartment, change and be back without seeming suspicious. Augh… Well. You supposed You could leave your jacket here if need be. This was just an outfit after all.

To: Yamada
“Let’s meet up. What’s nearby? I’m pretty sure I’ll find something I like no matter where we go…”
“And don’t worry about it.”

This… Was becoming a disaster.

“Hey hey, Refrain!” Yamad-… No. Present Mic called you as you entered in the building of the family restaurant. In all fairness you had expected him to look like a Hero. He had just gotten off-duty, after all, but that didn’t mean you were any more equipped to deal with it and it felt… So strange… Because you wanted to see him- and that terrified you.

But that wasn’t all.

“Oh, is this your friend?” came another Hero- in their full hero regalia. She was tall, slender but curvaceous in all the right places and made absolutely Zero attempt to hide who she was.

“M-Midnight… And-“ And to her right was someone you’d also recognize… Though he seemed plainly normal at a first glance. That was Eraserhead.

“In the flesh!” the indigo-haired woman purred. “It’s nice to finally meet Hizashi’s date. He’s been staring at his phone and giggling like crazy since we got here.”

Your eyes darted to Present Mic who shrugged sheepishly. “I was not giggling.”

“Yeah,” Eraser said, his tone absolutely monotone. You couldn’t tell if he was bored, irritated or just plain tired… Maybe all three. “You were.”

“See?” Midnight said. “Oh, but we’re sorry to crash your date. We’ll grab our food and go, but I had to meet this person Yamada’s been talking about all week.”

You looked perplexed for a moment, and maybe it was plain to see. Midnight tilted her head. Did- did she just call Present Mic Yamada?... “Are… Are you okay? You seem a bit pale.”

Date?

“Ah—“ Present Mic reached out to put a hand on your shoulder and lean you towards him. Your heart was racing- but for all the wrong reasons. “Been a stressful day. They’ll feel better after they have some food in them….” You saw him glance to you. “… Right? Seriously, now I’m worried. You okay?”

Your legs were turning to jello beneath you as your vision began to wobble.

“Don’t just stand there,” came the sudden voice from between them as Eraser-head grabbed your other shoulder. That made you hold your breath for the longest moment until he had you sitting down in a chair.

“How long as it been since you’ve eaten?” the dark-clad hero asked. All eyes were on you, and frankly your heartbeat was only making things worse… At this rate it wouldn’t be too long before you were having a full panic attack… What… What was going on?

You were panicking… You were panicking…

Wait… You were just… Panicking.

You swallowed and rubbed your eyes. “I- I I’m sorry…” you said, forcing a smile, despite the fact your heart was still pounding. “I- I was so worried. H-Hizashi didn’t text me for so long. I just—“

And just like that the tension between the four of you fell exponentially. It even fell in you somewhat when you saw Midnight make a small little “Aw” before she grabbed Eraserhead’s shoulder. “Give them some space Aizawa. They just need to sit down for a moment….” She looked between the three of you. “We’ll go place our order. You two just… Sit here and chat, I think.”

Sure enough the two of them left- they were still in eye and in earshot- technically, but they were gone. You watched as they contemplated the menu they were looking at before you looked to Present Mic- his face riddled with an expression you couldn’t describe.

“Sorry,” you said, clutching your chest. “I wasn’t—I wasn’t expecting other heroes,” you said after a moment.

You watched him swallow, then sit down beside you. He scooted his chair a little closer so you two were nearly flush together before he leaned over… To anyone looking it would seem like he was just resting his head on yours… But you were able to hear him.

“… You’re scared of heroes?” he asked.

You didn’t even have to answer him. The tension in your body could be felt immediately… Yeah. You were horrified of Heroes, actually. It was WHY you hadn’t tried to become one in the first place. Ever since you were little heroes were that constant thing which haunted your nightmares and followed you in the dark at night after curfew.

“… And you still came to check on me?” he asked, his voice filled with disbelief. Humor, almost. After a long moment of pausing he let out a sigh and stretched his arms above his head. “Unnnnnbelievable…” he said in more of a humored way than anything else… And then you felt something clamp around your head.

You looked over to Mic where he was holding some sort of cordless MP3. The sound of little tumblers rang in your ears as he selected something for you to listen to. When he was done you heard the sound of guitar began to play as he resumed his position on your head- trying to avoid putting pressure on the headphones that were now on your head.

Your ears perked for a moment. “… Is this… Ellegarden?”

“Mm-hm,” he said as you helplessly began to bob your head slightly. “Is this good?”

“Yeah…” you said, feeling him sling an arm over your shoulder.

You leaned a little more into him. Just close enough to smell the cheap cologne he was wearing underneath his jacket.

“Did you know refrain has two meanings?... It can either mean ‘to repeat’, or ‘to stop one’s self’.”