KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

I jolted and hid under the covers as if I was back in that small little room, unknown and alone. I didn't know what to say anymore, and if I did say anything, who's on the other side?

"Nana?" The voice said, cold and level, "It's Todoroki and Koda..." Still, I didn't say anything, flinching hard when I heard the uneven squeak of a voice I'd barely heard before, "I brought the bunny. I thought Yuwai-Chan could make you feel better." I didn't say anything... I was shaking and scared... completely afraid of what would happen if I spoke, if I moved.

"We're coming in," Todoroki said, no hesitation to him opening the door, my body quaking under the covers. I could hear the door shut behind them, both of them coming towards the end of the bed, but they only set down Yuwai-Chan and didn't come any closer.

"Jiro said she saw you and Bakugou yesterday," Koda said, his voice quiet and timid, "Did something happen?" Yes. I shook my head... No! Tell them it... tell them the truth... I couldn't find it in me to say it. Not after I told Grand Torino and All Might about my Mom... their reaction to me after that... it was painful to see the trust between people crumble so easily... for people to be so afraid of me. For everything, I've tried to fall apart so easily. Then with Bakugou... what did he mean by that? Why was it that his angry voice was all I could hear? That those pained eyes were looking at only me!?

"Koda, I'll bring Yuwai-Chan back to your room when we're done," Todoroki said.

"A-Ah... are you sure?" Koda asked. Silence filled the room... and slowly it drifted away with Koda... after he told me I could rely on him. I've heard that before... and it's always a lie. Todoroki didn't say anything to me, he only moved over and sat at the edge of my bed, his back facing me as Yuwai-Chan hoped up and slipped under the covers with me.

"We have the test later," He told me, though I already knew that, "Everyone's been training non-stop... he was just tired..." Maybe you're right...

"No," I stifled in a soft cry. Todoroki turned around and pulled the blanket back from my head, then we sat there, quietly... patiently, and in silence, both of our eyes caught on each other. I've had few moments like this with Todoroki and no one else, and it was these moments where nothing else mattered. I could feel his calmness and his warmth and his chills. I could feel everything else about him in a single glance, and in turn, he sees all of my pain and hardships, everything I want to keep bottled up.

"I want to see you smile," Was the last thing he said to me. I didn't feel like crying after that, because he reminded me, even if I don't... someone accepts all of those parts of me.

"I'm getting kinda nervous," Jiro says as we stand in front of the Exam Site. All of us holding our costume cases in hand.

"I wonder what they're gonna make us do," Mineta said as he bounced back and forth on his feet. Today, I stood near Koda and Todoroki... but I kept my head down, and my nerves were shaking too much for me to know what to do about them. "What if I can't get my license?"

"Mineta," Aizawa said and leaned forward, "Don't ask if you can, say you will."

"Right! Sure, I've so got this," Mineta corrected, but he didn't seem sure at all.

"If you can pass this test and get your Provisional Licenses, then you novice eggs will hatch into chicks," Aizawa said, "You'll be Semi-Pros. I expect your best."

"Are you nervous?" Koda asked, and I shook my head, though I was screaming inside to turn back and not take this test. To not be here... Bakugou wouldn't stop staring at me the whole time we were on the bus.

"We'll be fine," Todoroki said, meaning all of us, "There's no reason any of us would fail."

"I can't wait to be a Heroic Chicken!" Kaminari shouted above everyone else.

"Let's call out the usually you guys," Kirishima said, "On my mark, go Plus-"

"ULTRA!" Someone else yelled, their voice loud and deep, hurting my ears. I flinched back and hid behind Koda, my body trembling.

"It's okay," Koda said quietly.

"You know it's pretty rude to barge into other people's huddles like that, Inasa," Someone else, behind him said, purple hair shading over their eyes.

"What? Pardon me," The tall guy said, "I am! So! Very! Extremely! SORRY!" He slammed his head into the concrete, one yell after another, and I couldn't take it. It was so loud that I ended up clinging behind Todoroki, my body trembling beyond comprehension.

"It's okay," He said, his voice as it had always been, level and cool.

"Uh-Who is this guy!?" Kaminari yelled, "I do not trust his enthusiasm!"

"Hey, look at their uniforms," Jiro said as I poked my head out. They all looked so similar to ours, when the class came up it was hard to tell who was from where anymore.

"Yeah, they're from that famous school on the other side of Japan," Sero continued.

"UA in the East, Shiketsu in the West," Bakugou ended.

"I wanted to say it just once!" The loud one said and stood straight up, "'Plus Ultra!' See, I really love UA High School! I am extremely honored to compete against such incredible students!" His head was bleeding, and I couldn't come out, no matter how hard I tried. "I'm so looking forward to it!" They walked away after that. Everyone still and quiet, except for Mr. Aziawa who was explaining who he was.

Inasa Yoarashi. He was the same age as the rest of us and turned down going to UA, even though he claimed to love it so much.

"Can we go inside yet?" I whispered to Todoroki, "There are too many people out here..." He exchanged a look with Koda before taking a few steps forward, but then stopped again. Another school was coming.

"Just stay behind me," Todoroki said, "You don't have to show your face."

"Over here, everyone!" A woman with green hair yelled, I didn't even notice her walking over, "This is UA!"

"Oh whoa," A boy with spiky brown hair began, "It really is Class A."

"2nd Years from Ketsubutsu Academy," The green-haired woman said, "This is Class 2, they're my students."

"Hey, I'm Shindo!" The brown-haired boy said and grabbed Midoryia's hands, "Seems like UA must've had a lot of trouble this year. Must have been tough for you." He moved on to Kaminari. "But even so you're all still aiming to become Pro Heroes, despite those hardships." Next was Jiro. "It's wonderful." His eyes locked on me as I tried to hide even more behind Todoroki. "Ah, right, a rumor went around you guys got a new student in your ranks too. It's nice to meet you." He reached for me and I jerked back, Todoroki pulling me under his arm and away from this Shindo boy.

"She doesn't like being touched," He said, despiting touching me himself.

"Ah, no problem," Shindo said and gave me a bright smile. It wasn't real, I could tell... and so could Bakugou, who somehow had gotten beside me, staring the guy down.

"Oh, Bakugou!" He said, "It must've been hard for you, what with that whole kidnapping incident." HE KNEW?!??!?!? Somehow my fear tripled and I was trembling on the back of Todoroki. If he knew Bakugou was taken, did he know who I was? Did he know about All For One?

"It's okay," Koda whispered, "We'll help keep you safe." Nothing subsided.

"Today I'm gonna do my best to learn from you," Shindo said with a smile that was once more, fake, "I really hope you don't mind."

"Stop pretending," Bakugou said and smacked his hand out of the way, "What you say doesn't match the look in your eyes."

"Hey man, don't be so rude!" Kirishima yelled, "Sorry, he's just like that." Not tired... not at all.

"All of you, get your costumes and head to orientation!" Mr. Aizawa said, "There's no time to waste."

"Yes, Sir," Everyone said at once and we walked off.

"We can do this," Koda said to me, "There's no reason to be nervous."

"Only the people scare me," I muttered into Todoroki's shirt.

"Nana," Todoroki said and I looked straight at him, letting go of his shirt, "It's not that." He tugged at his sleeve in case I wanted to take it... and I did. Holding it between my two fingers as I stepped forward, dragging my feet slowly. "I was just going to say that there's no way you can abandon any of your fears." Koda looked surprised and my body shuddered. "It's just not something that's so easily left behind." I was pulling off again, searching for the bus behind the class when he grabbed my sleeve and looked at me with a calm and simple smile, the same one I had like from Bakugou just days before. "But what you can do is use that fear. If someone else was in trouble if they needed your help. You know from experience how scared they must be. You can help them in ways others couldn't." I looked up at him with my mouth wide, fighting it in me to not cry.

"The changing rooms for girls are this way," Jiro said as she came up to us. I nodded and followed suit behind her, giving a quick glance back to Todoroki, who once again had found a way to surprise me. "Don't tell me you have a crush on Todoroki?" I looked at her strangely...

Why would I want to crush him?