How on mother earth do they still manage to be noisier than everyone else despite the fact that they were in another school?

(Y/n) looked up from her plate to shoot another annoyed glance at Katsuki's table. Even from a distance, both Kirishima's and Kaminari's screeching laughter was able to cut through the other students' overlapping chatter. The grip on her chopsticks tightened. They were being loud and causing quite a scene. It was both embarrassing and honestly irritating.

That or she needed to chill. Besides, it's not like they had anything to worry about. Like how they just brutally embarrassed themselves in front of their crush.

The mental image of Midoriya's reaction to her botched pick-up line flashed in her mind and her cheeks flared up. She squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose. She then let out a low groan as she held herself back from repeatedly slamming her forehead against the table in response to the cringe-inducing memory.

Booking a flight to a remote country and changing her name sounded like a really good idea at that moment.

Once the feeling gradually faded, she opened her eyes and rested her cheek on her palm. She looked back down at her untouched plate and began pushing around the vegetables, noting how they had started to look dry and undesirable, a side effect of allowing them to go cold. She curled her lip at the thought of eating them.

Resting her chopsticks on the side of her plate, she sat up straight and folded her arms on the tabletop. She glanced at her temporary tablemates. They paid no mind to her as they continued talking about God knows what. She, on the other hand, sat silently at the end of the table, thankfully going unnoticed and drowning in her thoughts and post humiliation of what had happened between her and Midoriya.

If only she could turn back time...

"Uraraka, cats, or dogs?"

Her ears perked up at the question and her eyes fell on Satori, then on Uraraka, who sat across from them, in between Iida and one of Satori's friends, Fumiko. Meanwhile, she sat next to Satori, who was in between her and another friend of Satori's, Akane. A thing she had noted when they sat down was that Satori's friends weren't sitting with their assigned buddies as expected. Maybe they had gone off to sit on their own like Katsuki and his friends did? If they did mention who they were, then she hadn't caught it.

"Uh..." slightly caught off guard not by the question but by the person asking the question, Uraraka hesitated for a while as a nervous chuckle passed through her lips. From where she was sitting, (Y/n) could easily tell that Uraraka still felt intimidated by Satori and didn't want to look like a fool in front of her. She couldn't blame her. Satori was like a mix of Katsuki, Todoroki, and Mina, all in one. A true chaotic neutral in the flesh.

Choosing not to trust herself to answer the question, Uraraka slowly turned to Iida as a silent plea for assistance.

"Is that a, uh..." she cleared her throat, "trick question?"

"It could be," Iida nodded and gently rubbed his chin. His expression hardened in thought. "Some people use that question to reflect on one's psychological make-up. While others use it to gauge one's personality."

"Or it could be a simple question to know your preferences," Akane said with a shrug and smile.

(Y/n)'s eyes slid to her. If there's one thing she'd say about Akane, was that her defining feature was her brilliant red hair. It was truly something to awe at. She didn't know much about her to judge her personality yet but if she was Satori's friend, she was sure to have much more going for her than her looks.

"I don't think so, Akane," the girl next to Iida, Fumiko, added as-a-matter-of-factly. Her tone reminded (Y/n) of how Yaoyorozu would sound like while answering questions in class. "In my opinion, preferences can determine what type of personality the person in question has. For example, dog people tend to be seen as more outgoing and carefree while cat people are more reserved and independent."

"Oooh," Uraraka mused, her eyes lighting up at the newfound knowledge. "Is that so?"

"Please," Satori scoffed a chuckle. "Don't take what Fumiko says to heart. Most of what she says are speculations and bullshit she read on the Internet."

Fumiko frowned in offence. "It's not bullshit."

Satori pointed her chopsticks at the girl with a smirk. "Doubt it." She then turned back to Uraraka. "Look, the secret is not to hurt yourself by thinking so hard about it, okay? The answer doesn't matter in the end. Whether you like cats or dogs..." she lifted her shoulder in a half shrug, "it doesn't determine your weekly horoscope or whatever she said."

Ignoring Fumiko's protests that followed after her words, Satori went to roll her chopsticks into her noodles when something caught the corner of her eye. She turned towards the girl sitting next to her. (Y/n) was still watching the others as they continued to converse on the topic, unaware of Satori's scrutinizing grey eyes on her. Looking down at her plate, the dark-haired female frowned upon seeing that her food remained untouched.

She gently elbowed the female's side, making her jolt. (Y/n) shot Satori a surprised glare.

"What?" she asked in a low murmur.

"You've been silent since we sat down," Satori said, her voice equally low. "At least socialize a little so you can stop overthinking about your embarrassing meltdown earlier," her eyes then darted down at her plate. "And eat. You need the energy for later."

(Y/n) scowled at her. The food was already cold but she didn't care. She wasn't hungry. And the reason as to why she wasn't was the same one telling her to eat.

Satori raised a puzzled brow. Though it didn't take her long to realize why she was looking at her like that. When she did, she huffed out a chuckle while rolling her eyes. "Oh, don't give me that face. We both know that it was all you."

(Y/n)'s mouth flopped open, her eyes narrowing into slits. How dare she-

"So, do you guys have any idea what the test will be about later on?"

Both girls turned away from each other towards Uraraka.

"Uraraka," Iida pushed up his glasses and sent the brunette a scolding look. "It's quite unseemly for you to ask about the test this early."

"No, it's alright," Fumiko waved him off with a small smile. "Besides, if we knew, we'd have let you in on it already." She shrugged. "We're also in the dark about it, to be honest."

"Either way, I hope it's not too hard," Akane let out a resigned sigh and propped her chin on her palm. She cast a dejected gaze to the side. "My partner isn't what I would call...co-operative. Of all people I just had to get Fujimi..."

Satori scoffed. "That's nothing compared to what she's got," she jerked a thumb towards (Y/n), who on cue turned to give her the dirtiest of looks. "(Y/n) here is paired up with the one and only Katsuki Bakugou."

Fumiko's eyes widened. "Wait...really?"

Akane's head lifted from her palm to regard her in disbelief. "Like, for real?"

(Y/n) sent Satori a betrayed look before her shoulders slumped in defeat with a sigh. She slightly shrugged before nodding.

"Oh..." the redhead placed a hand over her chest, her face twisted in sympathy, "my deepest condolences."

Pink tinged (Y/n)'s cheeks at the unwanted pity and she hurriedly shook her head. Even they knew how fucked up he was, especially after four of their classmates, including their class president, came back covered with bandages because of him.

Wonderful.

"It's not that bad. Besides, we'll..." she carelessly shrugged, "probably, maybe not, interact much during the activity..."

Sounds of unsure "yeahs" and doubtful "rights" came from the occupants of the table. In their mind, (Y/n)'s words sounded more like they were meant to put her mind at ease other than theirs.

Sweat beading his brow, Iida cleared his throat, a finger hooked under his collar to tug at it as he avoided (Y/n)'s eyes. Akane and Fumiko exchanged looks before going back to their food. Satori pursed her lips together and awkwardly turned away from (Y/n) as if to say she had nothing to do with all that happened. Uraraka was left staring at (Y/n), an unreadable expression etched on her face.

Feeling worse than she did when she sat down at the table, (Y/n) hung her head. She should really learn to shut up sometimes.

Honestly, thinking back on it, her whole situation would've been avoided if she had kept it to herself. From confessing to Midoriya to telling Uraraka her secret, confessing to Katsuki, all the way back to the time she first talked to Katsuki. In fact, if she hadn't indulged him in a conversation that evening and shut him down instead, she wouldn't be in the mess she was currently in.

What was it called again? The butterfly effect? Figures.

Katsuki was right...she should take responsibility for the mess she put everyone involved in. All this time she's been playing the victim of his feelings when she was the one who started it all.

Bitterly scoffing under her breath, she picked up her chopsticks and pushed her vegetables around a bit more when a burst of loud laughter caught her attention. She already knew where it came from. She could recognize that voice anywhere, even with her eyes closed.

With a dull look, she raised her chin and trained her eyes on the jovial table at the far end corner of the cafeteria. Ever since spotting his table, she had avoided looking at him but now her eyes were solely narrowed on him, filled with mixed emotions. Meanwhile, Kirishima was animatedly talking to Katsuki while handing his phone over to him, presumably to show him something on it. Without a word, Katsuki took the phone and checked out whatever it was on it.

As if he could sense the spiteful eyes staring at him from afar, Katsuki suddenly whipped his head up. Specifically towards (Y/n)'s direction.

Her heart jolting in place, (Y/n) quickly snapped her head towards Fumiko's direction, narrowly missing his eyes. But despite her quick reflexes, she could tell that he knew that she was staring at him as she could feel his glare linger on her, searing her skin. She didn't dare meet his fiery gaze.

It didn't take him long to finally take his eyes off her, allowing the feeling of ease to wash over her. Once she was sure he wasn't looking at her anymore, she decided to risk a peek at him out of the narrow corner of her eyes. He was back to looking down at Kirishima's phone. But this time, his expression was different from the calm one before. He seemed like he was deep in thought. Probably thinking of more ways to make her life a living hell during the activity.

Sighing, her eyes slowly trailed back down at the table and she bit the inside of her cheek.

Now that she thought about it, has there ever been a time when any of her interactions with him have been positive? Once maybe. But that was neither positive nor negative. The rest of them though...Every one of them has only been negative, filled with pointless arguments, heated feelings, silent treatments, and glares exchanged from across the room. Whenever he was around, she always felt like she was walking on eggshells. It was mentally taxing, emotionally draining, and honestly, she was sick of it.

Their whole relationship, if she can even call it that, was so toxic to the point that sharing the same room with him made her feel like she was drowning while struggling to keep her head above the water. Interacting with him was like fighting a battle she was destined to lose from the beginning. And to make it worse, she didn't know what to do anymore. Things were becoming too much for her that confiding in her diary just didn't cut it anymore.

She couldn't tell Midoriya for obvious reasons, Uraraka just wouldn't understand and Satori...

(Y/n) threw a glance at the girl sitting beside her as she talked to Akane. She thinned her lips and looked away.

Satori wouldn't listen to her. Especially if it's about Katsuki. Her answer would be obvious. Ignore him. He'll eventually go away.

(Y/n) sighed. If only it was that simple...

Katsuki wasn't just any guy. Ignoring him would only rile him up, if not make his blood boil. She learned that the hard way a month ago. And if she dared attack him head-on like she did the previous day, she'll only suffer the backlash and somehow end up being the "bad guy" in the story. There was just no winning with him.

And if she let Satori handle it, she'd only make things worse for her. The main reason as to why she didn't tell her about what happened the previous day.

In other words, she was left with no viable options. In the end, anyways, it was always up to her. And now, she was paired with him for God knows what activity for who knows how long it will take.

The reality was slowly dawning on her and she quickly had to find a way to deal with it. If she could just try to keep it to herself until the day ends, maybe things won't take a turn for the worst.

Unfortunately, it wasn't as easy as it sounded.

***

"Your hair is so pretty! I wish mine was as pretty as yours!"

"What are you talking about? Yours is pretty too! And longer than mine."

"But it's so plain..."

(Y/n) threw a side-long glance at the two girls at the other corner of the girls' bathroom. She was leaning back against the sinks' top, ankles crossed and fingers jammed into the front pockets of her school jacket. After finishing up on their lunch, she and Satori separated with the rest of the gang and had decided to pass by the bathroom. So currently, she was waiting for Satori to finish up so that they can finally head to class for the last two lessons before the awaited activity.

Turning her attention away from the girls, she stared down at her jiggling foot and frowned.

"I'm not letting you go until you tell me what the fuck you see in that fucking shitnerd!!!"

(Y/n)'s eyes snapped up from her shoes, her foot ceasing all movement. Sighing, she pushed off the sink and turned around to meet her reflection in the mirror.

There she goes again. Ever since the topic about pairing had been brought up back at the table, her mental state hadn't been the same again. She's been at war with herself and it's all her fault for not giving herself time before to properly think about her argument with Katsuki. All in a bid to prevent her mood from plummeting. But now that the test was slowly nearing and the reminder that she was paired up with him kept nagging at her at the back of her mind, she couldn't stop thinking about everything that had gone down between them.

Especially his scalding words.

"You're the crazy one to even fucking consider that wonder-fuck Deku the better guy!"

Katsuki's gruff voice rang loud and clear in her mind as if he were standing next to her, shouting the same hostile words back at her like a broken record.

"It's her fucking loss anyway!! Can't heal the fucking blind, can I?!"

Her eyebrows slowly drew closer, her dazed eyes trailing absent-mindedly down to the bottom edge of the mirror.

"And I don't have to know you well enough to know that you're a weakling who can't handle being rejected and cries every time she catches a fuckin' feel."

"I couldn't give a single fuck about you even if the fucking world burns down with me in it!"

Her hand fisted the fabric of her jacket over her stomach.

"I'll say it one more time in case your ears weren't fucking working. I. Don't. Fucking. Need. You."

Her fingers tightened.

"It's no wonder no one wants to be around you."

"Hey."

(Y/n)'s head snapped up to Satori, who she hadn't noticed come out of the washroom as she was too deep in thought.

Regarding her with confusion, Satori stood at the sink beside her, washing her hands.

(Y/n) instantly relaxed, her hand releasing the grip on her jacket. "Oh, hey."

"Wow," Satori chuckled as she focused back on her hands, "zoning out already? Are these sinks that interesting to look at?"

"I...I don't know," breaking off eye contact with her, (Y/n) shrugged, still dazed from her thoughts. "Maybe?"

Satori sent her a look and closed the tap. "Power down, sass robot. That was called a joke."

(Y/n) rolled her eyes as Satori passed her to dry her hands. She looked back at her reflection.

She felt nauseous.

"Okay, real talk," she turned away from the mirror to Satori. The girl stood with her hands on her hips, concern written all over her face. "What's up with you? You've been like this since lunch and now it's starting to bother me."

Of course, it is. Furrowing her eyebrows, (Y/n) looked back at her image and shook her head. "It's nothing."

"Not everyone gets to blurt out how they fuckin feel every minute of their miserable, pathetic life so get with the fucking program!"

(Y/n) set her lips in a hard line. He's right. I'm doing this for the greater good. I'll only make things worse for myself if I tell her.

Her eyes flickered past Satori's reflection. The female was studying her, eyes narrowed in suspicion and lips pursed. (Y/n) gulped silently and turned back to Satori.

"What?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"I'm still waiting for you to tell me what's wrong," Satori said, her eyebrows raised as she looked back at her with a 'duh' face.

(Y/n) inwardly sighed. She couldn't give in yet. She needed to handle things on her own some times. Even though she hasn't been exactly stellar at handling the situation with him in particular.

Forcing out a dry laugh, she gave Satori a small smile and shook her head. "I swear, I'm fine," she then looked back at her image. Her smile faded. "Just bored. That's all..."

"Don't lie."

At Satori's words, (Y/n) threw back her head, eyes closed, and let out a defeated sigh. Why can't she just be like Uraraka and leave me be? She sent Satori a resigned yet stubborn look. Can't you just let it go for once?

"I'm not lying."

"Yeah, you are," Satori insisted, making (Y/n) roll her eyes even though they were facts. "I know when you're bored and this isn't you being bored. This is something else." The dark-haired female paused to give (Y/n) a once-over. "Are you still down because of the blunder with Freckles? You know, I can talk to him if you want. Set things straight... tell him you weren't yourself and all that jazz."

"Please don't do that," (Y/n) said with a firm tone, a hard look set on her face. "Please."

"Are you su-"

"I said please."

Satori raised her arms in surrender. "Okay. Okay fine. I won't."

When (Y/n) relaxed, Satori dropped her arms to her sides and placed a hand on (Y/n)'s arm. "What is it then? Come on, you can tell me. I'm all ears, babe."

(Y/n) pressed her lips together. She had to admit, a part of her wanted to tell her but if she did, would that make her a crybaby? It probably would but keeping it in would just piss Satori off. And Satori was the persistent type, she wouldn't let it go that easily. But then again, it's not like Satori would help her in any way. Honestly, she was better off not included.

Such a dilemma...

"Okay," (Y/n) sighed with a shrug. In the end, she decided to take the high road called "fuck it". "Fine. I'll tell you."

Who knows? Maybe this time Satori would have something else to say that will be useful in her shit-uation. Talking to her wouldn't hurt. Hopefully. All she had to do was not mention anything about the previous day.

Confident with her decision, she opened her mouth to speak but snapped it shut when she remembered that they had an audience. She cast a wary glance at the two girls at the far end of the bathroom. Satori followed her line of vision before she rolled her eyes.

The girl waved a dismissive hand towards them. "Don't worry about them," (Y/n) turned to her. Satori's hand slid down her arm to hold her hand. "Even if they listened to what we were talking about, they wouldn't be able to connect the dots in a million years. So go ahead. What's up?"

(Y/n) briefly looked down at the hand that held hers. She knew that Satori meant well, she did but that didn't help the fact that she made her feel like more of a charity case.

Without a word, she pulled her hand out of the grasp and turned her head away from Satori.

Taken aback by the unusual action, Satori blinked but decided not to comment on it. She simply brushed it off by crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well, if you really wanna know..." (Y/n) began. She took in a deep breath and released it in a sigh. "It's... other than, well, Izuku, I'm just...bummed about the test. I mean, you know, being paired up with him and all."

"Oh," Satori scoffed a laugh while rolling her eyes. "Him again. Of course."

(Y/n) ignored her snide comment but not without shooting her a quick glare.

"Anyway, as I was saying, I just can't help but think about everything we've been through and it's making me sick to my stomach. The past five days haven't been easy on me and dealing with him always takes a toll on my emotions," the female scowled down at the ground. "I hate thinking about him, because every time I do, I feel like there's this...this weight on my shoulders that I can't seem to shake off...and with every interaction, the weight, it's like it gets heavier and heavier and I just don't know what to do about it because every time I'm with him, we just argue and it doesn't help with the situation at all..." she turned to Satori, who seemed to be intently listening to her. "and now...we're paired up and honestly, I don't know what to do. I didn't wanna tell you this because you'd think I'm just being melodramatic and-"

"Okay, do you wanna hear what I really think?"

Something dropped in (Y/n)'s chest.

"What?" Her forehead creased. "No-"

"I think that you are being melodramatic and you should calm down. Take a chill pill. I know it sucks a lot and truly," Satori flipped one of her twintails over her shoulder before placing a hand on her chest. "I feel for you. Like, I get it, okay? I know that at the moment you're feeling a lot of stuff and you just wanna let it all out and I get it. And if there's anything I would've done to help, I swear, I totally would've done it by now."

(Y/n)'s face slowly went blank. "You don't get it..."

"Yes," Satori countered. "I do. And I think you're getting too bent out of shape because of this. Plus isn't Kakahoe like some madman intent on winning? Not in any way intended to toot his big ass horn," she rolled her eyes with a scoff, "but I don't think that he'd let your pairing get in his way of winning against your opponents. And you," she jabbed a finger on (Y/n)'s arm, "are going to take that to your advantage. It's really simple. Just mind your own business and do your thing. After he wins it for the both of you or vice versa, you don't have to worry about being paired up with him again or dealing with him ever again."

"Hmm," (Y/n)'s eyes trailed away from Satori towards the space between them. Disappointed yet not surprised. "How sure are you about that?"

"Oh, I'm sure. Because after today, you're gonna undergo an extensive self-care routine. Eat some sage, shove a crystal up your ass, drink diet water, fuck a tree, levitate above the Sensō-ji temple. Cleanse yourself from his impure spirit."

(Y/n) squinted her eyes at her. "What..."

"Self-care, honey," Satori firmly patted her shoulder. "This is your mental well-being we're talking about here and we're sure as hell not going to let him bother you anymore."

NO! YOU DON'T GET IT! IT'S NOT THAT EASY! YOU CAN'T JUST TELL ME TO IGNORE HIM AND EXPECT IT TO FUCKING WORK! HE'S ALWAYS GONNA BOTHER ME! "Right..." (Y/n)'s voice trailed off as her dull eyes fell on the floor.

"See?" Satori held up her arms, palm up as a satisfied smile played on her lips. "What you needed was some advice from me and now you're good."

No. What I needed was you to listen. Even it was for a minute. I was right all along. Telling you wasn't going to make the situation any better. (Y/n) looked back at her and tightly nodded, a fake smile playing on her lips. "Yeah. I guess you're right." I should have just kept it to myself.

Smiling back, Satori tilted her head towards the bathroom door, causing her cross earrings to sway with the motion. "Now, c'mon. We've already got to the bottom of whatever's bothering you so stop looking so down in the dumps," Satori shrugged. "I don't like it."

(Y/n) scoffed under her breath. "Yeah, well, you don't like a lot of things so that's no surprise."

Satori narrowed her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," (Y/n) shook her head, all the while avoiding meeting with Satori's gaze. "Let's just go, okay?"

Satori considered arguing but remained silent. The door to the bathroom was pushed open and in walked three girls, all laughing to themselves while sharing an inside joke. Satori's eyes followed them from the moment they walked in, but her mind was at a far off place. Her eyes then darted back to (Y/n). The girl's (e/c) eyes were never still and she never looked at her except in passing. It was becoming clear as day that the problem ran deeper than she made it seem.

Satori ran her tongue over her front teeth before nodding to herself. It appeared that the situation needed more than just her advice.

"That's it," she said in finality. "I'm going to talk to him."

"Wait, what?!" sudden panic flashed across (Y/n)'s face as she watched Satori turn towards the door. "Who are you going to talk to?!"

"Oh," Satori paused to shoot her an innocent smile over her shoulder, her two twin tails whipping back to accentuate the look. "The root of your problems, of course."

Suddenly, her smirk disappeared and an ominous shadow fell over her eyes.

"It's time to uproot a bitch."

***