Oof, it's a long one.

Also, this kinda tugs your heartstrings. So ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Also also, anyone else a fan of BNHA/MHA?

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The world has changed much in the past decades.

All over, people began to gain special abilities. Some were strong, some were weak, all were unique. These abilities were dubbed 'Quirks'. People developed their Quirks by the age of four, though there were a few late bloomers. Quirks opened up many new doors that had been closed before, one leading to a profession many dreamed of going into that was only heard about in comics and movies.

Superheroes.

These heroes worked with the government to control the rising crime numbers, a negative effect from the rise of Quirks. They were documented and licensed by the government to keep an eye on them, so as they too would not allow their powers to turn them into villains.

By the time Lukas was born, under ten percent of the population did not have a Quirk.

He watched his classmates all develop their own Quirks, each child fascinated and joyful when they finally got theirs. However, when he was four, his Quirk still had not developed yet. His classmates made fun of him for it, seen as it was very rare to find someone with no Quirk, and if you were deemed 'Quirkless', it was one of the worst things that could happen to you.

So imagine his joy when he finally discovered his Quirk.

It had started as an average day for the ten-year-old. He had been on his way to school, trying to ignore the merciless other students around his age, when a woman cried for help from behind him. The blond turned around to see what had happened, only to spot a man wearing dark clothing running away from the woman who had screamed, holding a purse in his grasp. People around him just watched, not knowing what to do to help, and the man rushed toward Lukas. He had planned on going right on by the scrawny ten-year-old, escaping easily with the woman's purse.

But he hadn't expected the blond to grab his arm.

The robber was halted instantly, unable to move forward from the vice-like grip around his arm. Lukas refused to give any ground to the man, somehow managing to overpower a fully-grown man that appeared to have some muscle on him. Everyone around them watched the scene, including the boy's tormentors, whose eyes were wider than saucers. The blond held the man still until a licensed hero walked up and took over the situation, restraining the robber while returning the purse to the woman.

Lukas was praised for his actions in helping, and his tormentors finally stopped tormenting him. He was finally accepted by those who had previously pushed him away because they believed he was Quirkless. He finally knew what his Quirk was. He should have been overwhelmed with happiness.

But he realized that his happiness was not real.

His 'friends' could care less about him, only leaving him alone because they had no real reason to make fun of him. The Quirk he gained was not flashy nor especially strong. Some tried to say that his dream of becoming a hero would not be in reach due to his Quirk, which seemed to pale in comparison to his peers'. Whenever he wanted to help people, they only rejected his offers.

It was tough.

Despite all this, he applied to the best superhero training school nearby, managing to make it into the school alongside quite a few others. It was there where he found new, real friends, each with special Quirks that made them perfect candidates to be heroes. Petra had Pyrokinesis, Axel Explosion, and Olivia Telepathy. They all got their Quirks at four years of age, allowing them time to properly cultivate the powers to where they would be acceptable candidates. Even despite his lack of training, Lukas managed to catch up to his peers and compete with them. They were all close friends.

Well, everyone except one.

The girl was silent and secretive, only ever speaking when asked a question by the teacher. After multiple weeks of no progress to make the girl their friend, many just gave up. Lukas refused to do so, occasionally sitting next to her at lunch or trying to make conversation. She was just as stubborn as the blond, not saying anything and completely ignoring him. This lasted for four long years, from the time they entered the school at thirteen years old all the way to seventeen years of age.

It was one wintery day when the snow was falling in thick layers, that Lukas was walking out of the school when his blue gaze caught a lone figure walking down the main path slowly. She was wearing the school-issued uniform of a maroon skirt and white undershirt. A dark gray blazer that carried the school emblem on the right breast pocket was buttoned up with a maroon tie. To keep warmer, her knee-high black socks had been traded for stockings that went up to her thighs while a heavy jacket was draped over her shoulders. She wore a pair of plain black boots to walk through the snow. Her ebony black hair was carefully braided over her shoulder, her emerald green eyes staring ahead blankly at the path ahead of her.

Her name was Jessica.

No one knew anything about her, only knowing her name and bits and pieces of her Quirk. She never spoke to anyone, only ever talking to the teachers on occasion. They only knew about her Quirk because of the training practices they had, where they were forced to use their Quirks. Even then, she never spoke, never taunted anyone, never retorted anyone's words that were shot in her direction. Jessica pulled off her cold facade quite well, especially with her pale skin, dark hair, and almost glowing green eyes. It would be impossible for someone like Lukas, with his tan, smiling face, loose blond locks, and bright blue eyes to pull off something of the sort.

"Jessica!"

The teenage girl stopped walking, looking over her shoulder slightly to see who had decided to try and talk to her. Her face remained expressionless as Lukas jogged up, his smile wide against his red flushed cheeks. "Hey, Jessica. What are you doing?" he asked, tilting his head to the side slightly, his blond locks carefully bouncing with every step he took. Jessica turned her gaze from the blond back to the path ahead, her lips forming a thin line as she continued walking. Lukas tried not to let his smile fall as he fell into step beside her.

"Isn't this snow cool? Do you think we'll get a snow day like last year? What are you planning to do with it if we do get the day off? Do you like spending time inside when there's snow or-"

"Please stop talking."

Any words he had left immediately died in his throat, his blue eyes wide as he gazed at Jessica. Her green gaze fell to the ground, her walk slowing to an eventual stop. Lukas' mouth was parted slightly as surprise washed over him. Never had she ever spoken a single word to him, not even when he had spoken faster or had spouted out dozens of more words. Her voice was soft, almost uncertain. It was like she was scared of him. Or scared of what he'd do.

"Listen, I don't feel comfortable hanging out or talking to anyone. Please, leave me alone."

"Why? We only want to be your friend."

"I... have a bad history with people who call themselves my 'friends'."

"Can't you tell me?"

Jessica remained silent, her pale pink lips pursed together tightly. She didn't say a word for multiple, long moments. Lukas too was quiet as he waited for any response from the ebony-haired girl. Her skin was flushed red from the cold, snow littering her clothing and hair and eyelashes. Finally, she spoke, voice softer than before.

"...Just leave me be..."

She walked ahead of Lukas, who remained still at the gates to the school. He was silent, watching the teenage girl walk further and further away from him. Nothing could come to his mind as to why he suddenly stopped, why he didn't chase her, even call out to her. Maybe it was because she sounded so defeated and sad in her last few words, or it could have been that little sparkle in her emerald eyes. Whatever it was, Lukas didn't make a move to go after her. She needed time, and he knew to give it to her.

Jessica continued walking, her gaze remaining on the ground as she trudged through the snow-covered pathway. Her gaze, which normally was blank, was sparkling as past memories flooded through her head. Tears began to form at the corners of her eyes. Her cheeks reddened. Deep sadness and loneliness filled her whole being, her eyes seeing the memories no one else could, her ears hearing the voices no one else heard.

"She's changing our emotions about her!"

"All she wants is attention!"

"How can we know our feelings are our own when she's around?!"

Her Quirk had caused her more pain than one could first believe. When she was four, she developed her Quirk, like many other children. Jessica was proud of her Quirk. Whenever she wanted, she could change the emotions of anyone around her. Some thought this wouldn't be helpful in fighting villains and being a hero, but to Jesse, it was the most important Quirk ever. She could alter a villain's feelings and make him surrender, or she could grant bravery to those too scared to move from a dangerous situation to help them escape it.

However, her peers were scared of her.

They all believed that she got her friends by altering their feelings about her. It had started among only a few, but by the time they were six, no one wanted to be Jessica's friend. They didn't trust her, thinking that if they let their guards down, she would alter their emotions to be in her favor. Some began to say she could become a villain with a power like that.

It was horrible.

And so, when Jessica applied to the hero school, she decided to not get close to anyone. She just couldn't even if she wanted to. No matter what anyone did or said, she just ignored them, fearing that if they knew what her Quirk was capable of doing, they would fear her. Even despite this, one boy, one blond-haired, blue-eyed boy kept trying to talk to her. He claimed that he wanted to be friends, but Jessica knew the moment what her Quirk could do, he would run away.

The thought utterly terrified her.

A deep sigh escaped her lips as she continued walking, paying no attention to any other people rushing by her to get to their next destination. Many held looks of discomfort and annoyance from the cold and snow. They didn't stop or, at the very least, slow down to take a closer look around them. Maybe if people had done that, Jessica wouldn't have had to feel so alone, so scared. Maybe someone would have seen how she truly felt and tried to fix it. A single tear slipped down her cheek.

But some things were just wishes that foolish children wanted.

Lukas continued writing notes in his notebook, the pen in his hands sketching across the paper to leave words behind. All around him, his friends were packing up to leave, but he did not plan on leaving school just yet. First, he wanted to finish his notes, then he would head to a training gym to practice using his Quirk. Some thought he was a bit strange for willingly staying after school to do these things, but Lukas knew he had started behind his peers due to not discovering his Quirk until he was ten, and he was determined to catch up and surpass them.

It had been almost two weeks since he had last spoken to Jessica. She seemed even more distant before, some days she missed school, and Lukas knew better than to try and talk to her. It had taken him four years, but she had finally gotten her point across to the blond. Jessica wanted to be left alone, and Lukas wasn't one who would continue doing something if someone specifically asked him to stop. So he did as she asked him and left her alone.

Finally, he closed his notebook and packed it into his backpack with his other supplies. A couple of binders, his planner, pens and pencils, a textbook, and multiple notebooks all fit inside. Once everything was packed, the blond stood up from his seat and walked out of the classroom, going down the empty halls as he made his way to the training gym he had reserved a spot at. Along the way, he stopped in the locker room. He dropped his bag and uniform off in his locker, putting on his training suit and grabbing a bottle of water before entering the gym. However, much to his surprise, he was not alone.

There was someone else in the training gym. A teenage girl his age. A very familiar teenage girl. She was at the training dummies, punching and kicking and dodging and blocking. Sweat had begun to form little droplets along her pale skin, her black hair swayed with each movement in its ponytail, and her emerald green eyes glared at the dummies as she practiced. She was swearing the school-issued training pants and tennis shoes, but she left the t-shirt off and instead wore a plain black sports bra. Lukas watched from the doorway for a few moments, unable to move or speak. His blue gaze remained on her face, seeing all the different emotions swirling in her eyes. Anger, pain, regret, grief, fear. They all clashed together and created a storm in those emerald orbs, trying to tell a story that Lukas couldn't comprehend.

Even though Lukas had said nothing, made no sound whatsoever, Jessica seemed to know he was there. She stopped moving and stood still for a few moments, the training dummies around her slowly shutting off by the lack of fighting. Her head turned slightly to look over her shoulder, emerald green gaze meeting a diamond blue one. Not a word was spoken. For many long, tense moments, they simply stood where they were, not even trying to speak.

"What are you doing here?"

At the sound of her voice, Lukas was shaken from his silent stupor. He stumbled over his words as he attempted to form coherent sentences in his head. "I-I-I al-always come he-here t-t-t-to train," he stammered, tearing his gaze away from Jessica's. Her emerald green eyes softened as a frown crossed her pale pink lips, her guilt rising up in her throat above all her other emotions. She felt horrible pushing away the teenage boy, he had shown her nothing but kindness, and she repaid him by ignoring him and trying to get him to leave her alone. In her fear of others pushing her away, Jessica had pushed others away herself. It was a vicious cycle she had thrown herself into.

And it was one only she could break.

"I-I'm sorry..."

Lukas immediately looked up from the ground. His diamond blue gaze found Jessica, who had turned her gaze to the ground as she turned to fully face him. Her emerald eyes swirled with the same emotions as before, storming as they clashed together. For another few moments, they were both silent. Finally, Lukas finally parted his lips, hearing himself ask, "Why?" Jessica still didn't look up from the spot her gaze was trained on, tears beginning to prick the edges of her vision. Her bottom lip quivered as she struggled to turn her storming emotions into words. The knuckles on her fists began to turn white from the force at which she clutched them, to the point where they shook.

"I'm sorry for everything... You've been nothing but sweet and kind to me even though I acted like you didn't exist. After four years you kept trying to be my friend even after everyone else gave up. You never left until I asked you to, and even then, you never could leave me alone. I've acted horribly to you and you never deserved it. I pushed you away because I was scared you would push me away all because I let my past dictate what I did in the present. I never should have done those things... I'm so, so sorry..."

By the time she had finished, Jessica's head was hung low, her eyes shut tight as tears fell down her reddened cheeks. Her body shook from the tension she held and from holding back most of her grief, only letting a few teardrops escape for Lukas to see. The blond stared at her with widened blue eyes, shock rendering him unable to move or speak. But, as Jessica tried not to sob, he walked forward until he stood in front of the ebony-haired girl. She still didn't look up. A single tear fell down Lukas' cheek as his hand carefully raised her chin, so her shimmering emerald eyes met his diamond ones. Never before had he seen those orbs of hers shine with so much emotion, and he desperately wanted them to shine not with the emotions he could see in those emerald depths, but with happiness, laughter, and love.

He carefully pulled Jessica against him, holding one hand to the back of her head while the other wrapped securely around her waist. The ebony-haired girl wrapped her arms around Lukas' torso, burying her face in his chest as she let all the tears she had held back out. They flowed down her cheeks as her body shook from her sobs. Lukas ran his hand along her head soothingly, whispering soft reassurances to the teenage girl. The two remained that way for what felt like forever, but couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes, until Jessica's sobs had reduced to small hiccups, her cheeks and nose red from her tears. She pulled her head away from Lukas' chest, tilting her chin up to meet his blue gaze. For a moment, their gazes didn't part, and not a word was said. They didn't have any words left to say anyway.

Lukas' hand slowly moved down from the top of Jessica's head to her cheek, delicately holding it as he would hold a deep treasure. His head dipped down slightly as Jessica tilted her head back further, raising herself to the tips of her toes. Their eyelids fluttered closed as their lips hovered not even an inch away. Both hesitated for the shortest of moments, but it was swiftly broken when Jessica pressed herself up on her toes just a bit higher, breaking the space between them as her lips touched Lukas'. The blond gripped her waist ever so slightly tighter as her arms rested on his shoulders, fingers linking together behind his back. It was sweet and gentle, a kiss that both adored.

He had never felt more happiness than what he felt then.

And she had never felt so wanted or loved before.