Kirishima's POV

Midoriya has been stuck in the hospital for several days now. Although he has more color in his face and is able to stay awake longer, I don't think he is doing well.

After explaining to us what happened with his father he's been quiet. Only really speaking when spoken to. He constantly is looking off into the distance, sometimes not focusing on anything at all.

Kat and I have stayed here as much as we can. We usually have to leave at night because visitors are no longer allowed, but we're straight back here bright and early. Occasionally Kat and I will split who goes down to the cafeteria to get food for the three of us and sometimes the teachers who stop by as well. Mostly it's Aizawa and Present Mic that are also constantly here with us. Even Shinso had made an appearance.

However, Midoriya has not wanted anyone else to know. None of his friends or classmates are even aware that he is in the hospital right now. He said he wanted time to think about everything before telling anyone else.

I respect him on his choice, but a part of me wishes he would've told his friends because maybe they'd be able to help cheer him up, something Kat and have been struggling to accomplish.

Right now, Kat and I sat in two chairs right next to Midoriya, while he is just leaning back on his pillows, his gaze focused out the window. Kat was on his phone, trying to distract himself from the awkward tension in the room that seems to be the only thing lingering in here for days.

"You get out later today. Are you excited?" I asked, trying to break the intensity of the room.

Midoriya turned his gaze to me, no hint of a smile on his face or even twinkling in his eyes. He looked almost numb, like he didn't want to feel anything anymore.

"Yeah." He said simply, not elaborating on it anymore.

"Hospitals suck. It'll probably be nice to rest in an actual comfortable bed." I said, trying to get him to talk more.

"Yeah." He said again.

This is officially going nowhere.

I looked at Kat a little desperately. He made eye contact with me and sighed, setting his phone down beside him.

"Alright. Get talking." Katsuki said towards Midoriya.

Midoriya's head tilted slightly in confusion. "What?" He asked.

"You're obviously not okay. We're all ears. Tell us what's on your mind." He stated.

Midoriya looked down at his lap and bit the corner of his bottom chapped lip.

"I-I-" He started, but I think he was having a hard time figuring out the right words to say. Kat and I stayed silent, letting him figure it out on his own. "I f-feel so stupid!"

"Why's that?" Kat said, wanting him to explain more before ranting at him.

Midoriya shrunk into himself, hugging his knees tightly. "I-I just keep thinking that I was given this incredibly powerful q-quirk and I still manage to get m-myself and others hurt. It's like someone's t-telling me to just g-give up, that I should just stop trying, that I'm not g-good enough." He stuttered, his voice cracking and being overflowed with emotion.

"Midoriya that's not-"

"But it is! If I can't even protect myself, how am I going to protect others?"

"Damnit Deku! That not fucking true and you know it!" Katsuki yelled.
Midoriya quickly looked up at Kat, his eyes going wide. "Everyone needs help every once in awhile, it doesn't make you weak and it doesn't make you unworthy. Even All Might and all the other pros out there need help on occasion, so start taking notes! All that matters is that you believe in yourself and you give it your all." He encouraged. Midoriya and I were both stunned. "You're supposed to be my competition damnit! Don't quit on me now!" He added to make it sound a little less mushy, but we all knew the intention nonetheless.

A small, but noticeable smile appeared on Midoriya's face at his words.

I still find it astonishing how much Midoriya really looks up to him. Like staring awe struck at a pro hero in the limelight.

"Okay Kacchan." Midoriya said, his smile getting wider.

"You're smiling! I'm so happy!" I cheered, totally changing the atmosphere.

Midoriya's face turned red from embarrassment. "S-Sorry, I really didn't mean to worry either of you." He told us, a flash of guilt crossing his features.

I smiled brightly at the green haired boy. "No, don't apologize. I'm just glad you're a little bit more cheered up than you were before. You're so beautiful when you're happy and smiling like that!"

Midoriya's mouth fell wide open and his cheeks turned brighter.

At first, I didn't know why until I realized what I had said. "W-Wait, I-"

I covered my face with my hand.

Katsuki burst out laughing. "Nice way of exposing yourself, shitty hair!"

"Kirishima, you-" Midoriya stopped. He stared off into the distance in thought again.

"I'm sorry, Midoriya. I didn't mean to embarrass you like that." I told him, my face still beat red.

"I found it hilarious, who cares if it was embarrassing?" Katsuki remarked.

"Katsuki." I warned, finally removing my hand from covering my face and stared directly at Kat.

He only snorted and turned back to Midoriya, who still seemed lost in thought. "Deku?" Kat called, noticing the quietness from the boy.

His eyes flickered to Kat and then to me, seeming to realize we were staring at him.

"S-Sorry!" He said quickly. "I-It's okay Kirishima! Do you really mean it though? W-What you said." His eyes filled with worry and a small frown found its way to his lips.

I gave him a gentle smile. "Of course I did! I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it. You're so adorable when you smile." I told him honestly.

He turned red again, but this time he smiled brightly. Enough to light up a whole room.

I could definitely get used to seeing that every day.

Midoriya tried to say something else on the matter, but the door to the hospital room opened up and in came five people.

All Might, Aizawa, Present Mic, Shinso, and Recovery Girl.

It looked like they were talking about something together before coming in. Seeing as it was ironic that all of them entered together.

The three of us focused our attention on the new arrivals, expecting them to say something.

"Hello Midoriya! How are you feeling?" Recovery girl asked.

"I-I'm doing good." He responded in a slightly quiet voice.

She smiled. "That's great! Well I have good news. Your labs came back and everything is looking normal. You're free to leave the hospital as long as you promise to take it easy for the next few days and get plenty of rest." She said enthusiastically.

"Oh." Midoriya looked the exact opposite of everyone else in the room. The smile we've worked so hard for vanished in an instant and a look of fear and sadness glassed over his eyes.

"What's wrong, young Midoriya? Aren't you excited?" All Might asked him.

"I-I am. I-I'm not a fan of h-hospitals." He responded, but something still seemed wrong.

Is he worried his father will come back after him? 

"Then what's wrong?" Aizawa interjected.

Midoriya stayed silent. He bit his lip a little harshly and messed with his fingers that sat in his lap. I watched as his eyes began to swell up with tears, something clearly unnerving him.

"Midoriya?" Present Mic called gently, concern washing over his face. 

"Where will I go?" He asked in a low and broken voice, tears now slipping down passed his eyes.

"What do you mean?" All Might asked.

"He was the last f-family I had. I don't have a-anyone else, what will h-happen to me? Will I have to l-leave U.A.?" He said, now looking up at us all. He looked so fearful of what will happen to him in the future and if you asked Kat and me, we're worried too. There were several nights the two of us would sit up and talk about where Midoriya would go once this whole thing was over.

Aizawa came over to the corner of the bed and sat down, laying a gentle hand on his leg. "No. That's not going to happen."

He tilted his head to the side, confused and still rather upset. "I have no family. I can't a-always stay at U.A. and Spring break isn't e-even over yet." He explained, trying to curl himself in a ball so he could continue to cry, but didn't really get very far without wincing in pain.

"You do have a family." Aizawa said gently. "How about you come stay with Hizashi, Shinso, and I?" He asked.

My eyes began to bulge out of my head as I stared at my homeroom teacher.

Was he asking what I think he is asking? Is he going to adopt Midoriya? For real?

To be honest, that would be the best scenario. Midoriya will get to continue at U.A. He would get the help he needed, he would be in the arms of someone that will keep him safe and protect him. It's honestly a good deal.

Midoriya also looked as shocked as Kat and I. We speculated on the possibility, but never in a million years did we think he'd actually do it.

"W-What?" He stuttered.

"Come stay with us." Shinso told him, smiling gently as an encouragement.

Midoriya looked back and forth between Shinso and his two teachers, pondering what they were offering.

I thought maybe I would see joy flash through his eyes, maybe for him to jump up and scream 'yes!' but that didn't happen.

Instead, he started hyperventilating and pulling at his green hair roughly, attempting to curl up into a ball. How quickly the panic seemed to wash over him alarmed all of us. Midoriya has been a lot more open with all of us and since the incident, he hasn't had a panic attack.

"Midoriya?" I called, right away getting worried. I stood up from my seat and approached him slowly, Kat following my lead and everyone else took a step back for a moment. Aizawa did remain where he was, but allowed the two of us to approach him, probably figuring we should handle this.

"Midoriya, can I come sit next to you?" I asked, wanting to get his approval.

He nodded his head after a moment of thinking on what I was saying. 

I sat next to him, now watching the tears fall from his eyes rapidly and he slowly started to rock.

"Can I give you a hug?" I asked.

After the last panic attack. I looked up ways I could better support Midoriya through them and one thing that every website said, was to never do something unexpected and always ask if something was okay. 

He nodded his head again and I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him in. His head rest on my chest and his eyes closed quickly, obviously trying to steady his breathing, but was still struggling.

"Is it okay if I ask you a couple of questions?" I whispered to him.

He sobbed, his voice cracking. "Y-Yeah." He said.

This is good. The fact that he communicated verbally with me means he is still pretty aware of his surroundings, instead of lost in negative thoughts.

"Okay. What is five things you can see?"

He opened his eyes and began looking around, his eyes still full of tears. "Y-You, the bed, Kacchan, A-Aizawa, and the T-TV." He responded.

"That's good! Now what is four things you can touch?"

I felt him move his hand around him before responding. I quickly noticed his breathing beginning to even out. "U-Uh, the blanket, your s-shirt, the cool air, my s-skin?" He said, with a slight question mark.

"You're doing great! What is three things you can hear?"

This time he responded pretty quickly. "The fan, your heartbeat, my b-breathing." He said.

"Good job! Just a couple more. What is two things you can smell?"

He took in a few deep breaths before responding. I noticed that this one really helped to steady his breathing entirely and he is no longer shaking. "Your cologne, c-cleaning supplies."

"That's awesome! One more, okay? What is one thing you can taste?"

"M-My apple juice." 

I smiled brightly at him and he gave me a small smile in return.

Looks like the internet really does have all the answers. It helped calm him completely down and he no longer looks like he is about to faint. Though, he does look exhausted now, and could probably go for a nice nap. "I'm so proud of you! You did amazing!" I cheered.

His smile widened a bit more. "Thank you, Kiri." He said and hugged me tightly.

I only hugged him back and whispered, "You're welcome. I'll always be here for you."

Midoriya pulled away and looked over at Aizawa. "I-I'm sorry." He told our homeroom teacher.

"No, Midoriya. It's alright. It wasn't your fault. I shouldn't of overwhelmed you like that. It was on me." He responded.

Midoriya bit his lip. "I-I don't know how I feel about it." He started. "I would like to. I know that none of you would do anything to hurt me, but I don't want to be a burden." 

"You could never be a burden on us, kiddo. We're happy to give you a proper place to call home." Present Mic interjected.

Midoriya looked over at him. "Are you sure?" He asked, hesitantly. 

"Yes. Absolutely." Present Mic responded.

Midoriya looked down in thought, before quickly looking back up at his two teachers. "O-Okay, b-but I wanna t-try it out first and then s-see where everyone stands. I-I don't want you to h-hate me." He said.

"There is absolutely nothing you could do that would make us hate you, but if you want to take baby steps and see how comfortable you are, first, then we can definitely do that." Aizawa said in all seriousness.

"O-Okay. Let's try it then."

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Hey Guys! I am so sorry for the late update. So I moved into my first apartment and I am currently having internet problems there and so I have not been able to write, like at all. It's honestly been driving me crazy, especially since school has started back up and I am still taking completely remote classes.

I am looking into ways to get my internet fixed, hopefully that will be taken care of in the next week or two, because, you know, internet company won't call me back! But I will try to get more updates out and to you guys in the meantime. I was only able to get this chapter done because I decided to stay the night at my parents house to catch up on school work and some writing, but obviously I am not going to be able to get a lot done in one night. I am praying this will no longer become a problem soon! I have so much more to add to this story and I am also working on more MHA content that I am excited to be releasing soon.

Anyways, thanks for everyone's patience and I hope you enjoyed!