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Lani POV:

I stood outside the HPSC Headquarters, checking the time on my phone for good measure.

7:01pm.

Heh. Perfect.

I gripped my umbrella tightly as the rain continued to pour down on the streets of Musutafu, scanning the entrance of the building for my target.

My heart jumped when that red and white head ducked out of the building almost quicker than I could blink, causing me to chuckle deviously as I ran after him.

He didn't see me at first, too busy looking up at the storming sky before reaching into his bag for, no doubt, something to shield himself from the rain.

With a cheeky grin, I held the umbrella over his head first, resting my chin on his shoulder with greeting.

"Need an umbrella? I got you covered. Get the pun?" I said smugly, feeling his body stiffen and freeze at the sound of my voice.

I had to hold in a laugh at the way his eyes closed in realization, enjoying how easily I was able to get under this guy's skin.

He doesn't react to much. Even if it's because he despises me, I enjoy the fact I always seem to get such a reaction out of him.

With a sigh, he shrugged my chin off his shoulder, walking out under the cover of my umbrella. "Why are you here?"

Quickly, I caught up to him, matching his insanely fast walking pace and keeping the umbrella over his head intentionally.

"I did say I'd get your schedule, remember?" I mused, brushing my shoulder against his as we sped-walked. "Your boss Eraserhead and I go way back. I agree to keep his secret relationship out of the tabloids, and he gives me....you."

His brows furrowed as we approached a crosswalk, forced to stop running away from me now as the cars passed.

"Secret relationship? I didn't know Mr. Aizawa was in a relationship." He muttered, shoving his hands in the pocket of his coat.

"Kinda the whole reason he calls it 'secret.'" I pursed my lips, rocking back and forth on my feet.

Comfortable silence ensued between us as we waited for the crosswalk to light up. Between the rain and it being nighttime, it was pretty cold.

But, for some reason, being on Shouto's right side of his body, it gave off a comforting heat, causing me to instinctively huddle closer to him.

He didn't shrug me off this time, barely glancing at me before looking straight ahead.

You call that 'nothing.' I call that 'progress.'

With a lazy smile, I held up my hot latte towards his mouth.

"Coffee?"

He looked at the cup before shaking his head no, remembering something I thought he'd long forgotten about it.

"Didn't you already have a vanilla latte with cream on top when I spoke to you on the phone earlier?"

My brows raised slightly in surprise for his, apparently sharp, memory, taking a sip of the scalding hot coffee. "I usually have at least two coffees a day. If my blood isn't 90% caffeine, it's not enough."

I had a feeling he'd take that comment literally and I was not disappointed.

His eyes widened in genuine concern for my words. "Your blood has that much caffeine? That sounds like a serious health concern. You should get checked out somewhere."

"No need." I whispered, leaning in closer to his ear to emphasize the 'secret.' "I'm actually invincible."

The smell of shampoo greeted me being this close, making me realize he probably just showered in the locker rooms before leaving.

He turned his head towards me, studying my face through a narrowed, focus gaze before the realization hit him.

"You're lying."

I smirked smugly at his certainty. Only a few days ago, he wouldn't have been able to understand I was bullshitting.

Aww. They grow up so fast, don't they?

With a soft chuckle, I looked down at his mouth, taking my lip between my teeth.

"Oh yeah? How can you tell?"

The corners of his lips barely curled up in triumph as he broke our eye contact, turning his attention forward.

"I've learned that the tip of your nose twitches when you're joking."

My brows raised a bit in surprise, grazing my fingers along my nose slightly. "It does? Wow, who knew..."

"I did." Shouto said a little slower, thinking I didn't understand him. "That's why I said it."

Heh. So oblivious.

Sighing in content, I nodded dismissively to his usual seriousness, continuing to wait at the crosswalk as I changed the subject.

"So," I said, nonchalantly, resting my chin atop his shoulder again. "How was work?"

The little victory smile on his mouth left as quickly as it came, morphing back into his usual stoic stubbornness.

"Will you just go away?" He muttered, throwing his head towards the sky, only to be met with my umbrella above him.

He can't escape me. I'm everywhere.

The crosswalk man turned white and I prepared my feet to run after him again. But, this time, he kept his walking pace slow and normal, continuing to walk right next to me even though he told me to leave.

"You already know I'm not going anywhere—how was work?" I repeated again, causing Shouto to respond curtly.

"Same as always."

I rolled my eyes at his dryness, lightly pretending to snore from the boredom. "Blah, blah, blah, 'Same as always.' What does that even mean?"

He said nothing in reply, seeming as if he was hoping my presence would disappear if he just ignored it.

Stubborn. Bratty. As I always say, one step forward with him comes with two steps back.

Even so, I think I'm starting to gain a better understanding of how he operates.

Letting out a louder sigh, I shrugged unbothered to his usual sour attitude, walking side by side with him down the street. "Look, Shouto. I plan to find out everything about you one way or another. You can't keep giving me the cold shoulder forever."

"If your shoulder's cold, you should have worn a warmer jacket-"

"I'll know you like the back of my hand, whether you want it to happen or not." I continued, peering at him through determined eyes. "What sets you off. What you like. What you don't like..."

His face looked too bored for my taste, causing my lips to curl with a slightly devious smile as I took it a step further.

Like I said, I like getting a reaction out of him.

"Your secrets. Your desires. What exactly you're attracted to..."

His eyes barely blanked out at the words now, his throat bobbed with a nervous swallow.

Actually, I do find myself a little genuinely curious. Does a guy like Shouto even have attraction at all? What's his sexuality? What's his type if he has one?

It's important to know. For work purposes...

"Don't you think...that's too intrusive?" He mumbled a little quieter, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's part of the job. The one you agreed to." I shrugged, before wanting to ease his worries. "Don't worry, I'll still be respectful towards your boundaries. But, the quicker you start spilling stuff? The quicker it'll feel less intrusive."

He didn't seem totally convinced. But, also not unconvinced....

"Sounds more like you're trying to force me to be your friend." He said, sounding a little too cocky for my taste.

I scoffed slightly at his insinuation. He's so blunt, I'm not really sure—but, I get the impression he's making me out to be a desperate creep.

Not that I care what he thinks, but—well, I should be allowed to set the record straight!

"Please. I'd never be your friend." My professionalism slipped a bit.

Well, that wasn't in my script. I'm supposed to be kissing his ass, not saying shit like that.

It seems he wasn't expecting my blunt honesty, barely glancing my way with an unreadable look.

He despises me, so I can't imagine I piqued his interest with the comment.

But, just in case...

"I can see you don't like to be challenged. I happen to love a challenge. Our personalities clash in that respect, I suppose." I dismissed, starting to pick up the slow walking pace.

I thought that would be the end of the conversation. Shouto's made it very clear he doesn't want to be my friend, and the feeling's mutual. What more is there to say?

"I don't mind a challenge." He said quicker than I expected, trailing after me as I left him in the dust.

Interesting. It sounds like he said the words for the same reason I said mine earlier—like he was trying to paint himself in a better light and prove my assumptions wrong.

"I'm not talking about on the battlefield, Shouto." I said, feeling his shoulder brush against mine as he got back under the umbrella. "That's obviously where you're comfortable."

He was quiet, seeming as if I'd read his thoughts correctly.

"I'm talking about in social settings. That's actually the goal of tonight." I said, gesturing to the bar at the end of the street. "We're gonna be chatting up strangers."

Nothing could go wrong, right....

Shouto looked at the bar without care, sighing tiredly at the long night he had ahead of him.

"Sounds like a waste of time."

"You know, I had a feeling you'd say that."

****

Knowing how difficult social situations are for Shouto, I tried to pick a very relaxed bar for him to gain some practice.

It's one with many good social settings. Games. Movies. Karaoke. There's a lot of different ways he could get acquainted with people here.

But, with it being Friday night, it was much more crowded than I anticipated, causing me to grab Shouto's wrist so we wouldn't get separated.

Even if he's a badass hero, he's like a lost little puppy when it comes to this stuff. I don't wanna leave him on his own.

He allowed himself to be tugged by me as we walked through the bar, his eyes blanking out slightly at the amount of people and chaos happening around us.

Every introvert's worst nightmare.

Grabbing one of the empty tables, I sat down, causing Shouto to follow my lead and take the chair across from me.

Already, he seemed extremely out of place here, watching people laugh and yell happily with pure confusion.

"What...is going on?" He asked in pure confusion to everyone's happiness, barely speaking loud enough to be heard over the bar noise.

I folded my hands on the table, giving him a confident smile to try and ease some of his concerns. If he even had any.

"Friendship. That's what."

He seemed completely checked out after that, barely rotating his body in a way that looked like he might try to leave.

"I don't need friends. I have enough-"

Quickly, I reached across the table and grabbed his wrists in my hands, forcing him to stay put.

"Look, I'm all for close friendships." I squeezed his wrists in reassurance, causing him to look down at my hands. "But, aside from your highschool pals, when was the last time you really interacted with strangers?"

"You." He said instantly, acting like that was a passable answer.

I didn't say my next thoughts out loud, but if Shouto and I's first few interactions are anything to judge his social skills on, he needs a lot of work.

"Aside from me." I smiled patiently, giving his wrists a small rub.

He pursed his lips in thought to my question, looking around passively as he tried to remember.

"About six years ago."

"Oh yeah? When?"

"That's where I met my highschool friends."

My brows raised slightly at his words. I figured he didn't get out of his small social circle very often, but it's been that long since he chatted with strangers who became friends?

Not that I blame him. People suck. I know that too well.

And what about before his highschool friends? Did he make any friends as a child? I'm really curious to know how he was brought up...

Not wanting to make him nervous about the exercise, I kept my concerns hidden.

"Right. Well, you're gonna be meeting a lot of new people as a hero, as I'm sure you're finding out. Sometimes....you'll even need to socialize with them." I explained, watching his face darken in annoyance.

"...why?"

A soft chuckle came from my mouth at such a grave expression from him. The guy fights killers on the daily, but socializing with human beings is where he draws the line?

My kind of person, honestly.

"I know." I reassured in amusement, absentmindedly gliding my thumbs along his wrists. "It's not my favorite thing either, but necessary for our line of work."

He said nothing, barely peering his eyes around the countless bodies again with more disdain than before.

I already know this idea is probably overwhelming for him, even if he won't say it. It's necessary for him to learn, but I also don't want him to feel too uncomfortable.

We'll take it slow.

Slow and steady. That's how he works best, remember?

"Look, the goal of tonight isn't to make any lasting friendships. It's just to learn how to speak with people. How to use all that sweetness I know you have tucked away in there." I encouraged, nodding towards his heart.

"Sweetness? What kind of sweetness?" He asked genuinely, looking too adorable and innocent for the demon brat I know he is.

Releasing his wrists, I sat up straight, and demonstrated.

"When being charming, you want to smile a lot." I grinned artificially, holding up a stupid peace sign. "You know, show people you're approachable. Give me your best smile."

All he gave me was a raised brow of confusion. "But, isn't friendship about honesty?"

"Wha—well, yeah. So?-"

"So I wouldn't normally smile when meeting someone new." He said much too literally. "Doing so now would be a lie. The friendship would be built on a lie."

I met his blank gaze with my own, feeling my head short circuit into speechlessness.

"You know what? Forget the smile thing." I instantly changed the subject. "How about we think of some good conversation starters instead?"

He scratched his chin, looking down at the table with growing, clueless intensity. "I didn't realize there was a certain way one has to start conversations..."

Quickly, I held up my hands, trying to reassure him of this new scary time.

"Chill. It's just when you're first meeting someone. People love compliments. Saying something nice about someone's appearance can be a great lead in to speaking with them."

Glancing around the bar for an example, I found a girl who looked to be around our age, gesturing towards her subtly.

"Don't look too fast, but that person behind you-" I started out, before Shouto turned around as fast and obviously as possible.

Closing my eyes in annoyance, I reached across the table, lightly gripping his cheeks in my hand before turning him back around.

"What did I just say?" I raised a disciplinary brow, trying to hide my smile at the sight of his face.

For good measure, I gently squished his cheeks tighter between my hands, pressing my lips together as he spoke muffled.

"Youff shaid thur wa someone behind me-"

"I also said don't turn around so quickly. Did you listen to that part?"

"No."

"Exactly."

I looked at his funny face in silence for a few more moments, losing a handle on the exercise as I broke out into a small laugh.

He looks cute.

Shouto didn't understand why I was laughing, furrowing his brows and making his squished face look even funnier.

Ah. I haven't genuinely laughed in a long time.

I directed my face down towards the table as I giggled quietly, trying to hide it as best I could.

I've always been self conscious of my smile. My real smile.

It was only when I felt Shouto's face moving in my grip that I looked up, seeing he was trying to crane his head lower to see my features.

Releasing his cheeks, I instinctively held a hand to my mouth as I pulled myself together, feeling my own face a little pink as Shouto's eyes were glued to me.

"Why did you look down at the table when you laughed?" He asked me, unknowingly calling me out on an insecurity.

I was surprised when he reached across the table now, gently catching my wrist in his grip before pulling my hand away from my face.

Having composed myself, I allowed him, only smiling very faintly now.

"It's just a bad habit of mine, I guess." I shrugged, feeling his hand warm around my wrist.

He nodded in acknowledgement, furrowing his brows and thinking carefully before saying his next words.

"You should...maybe you should...um......take classes to get rid of your bad habits, too." His eyes softened, causing me to chuckle.

Shouto being Shouto, I thought he was serious at first. But, I'm starting to learn his eyes soften when he's trying his best to make a joke.

It's cute. Especially because jokes don't come naturally to him. I know they're out of his comfort zone, and he's actively trying.

Warmth bloomed in my chest, activating my soft giggles again. With Shouto holding my wrist, I used my other to shield my laughing mouth.

He looked at my reaction curiously, not understanding, but wanting to.

"Are you laughing...because it was funny?" His voice was lighter, seeming as if he actually wanted to smile in pride.

Wanting him to be fully sure, I kept my answer clear and direct.

"Yes."

He absorbed my words purely, looking down at the table with soft eyes as a smile creeped onto his face.

"Cool."

The two of us sat in comfortable silence, looking at the janky table like it was the most precious thing in the world. I don't know when we tuned out the background noise of the bar.

I slowly peered up at Shouto, causing him to follow my lead and look up at me, too.

His hand rested loosely around my wrist, dual colored eyes looking more unique and pretty than I previously realized.

"What...did we come here for?" I asked him distractedly, feeling my great memory suddenly turn to mush.

"To make friends?" He murmured, not seeming to care about the exercise in the slightest as he looked at me.

"Oh—right..."

I cleared my throat and looked around the area, realizing Shouto was waiting for me to take the lead.

"What are we waiting for then? Let's make some friends."