(L/N) stood awkwardly off to one side of the room, unsure as to what to do as his classmates branched off into their established friend groups. Money discretely exchanged hands while Yaoyorozu was busy with dish duty and Iida assisted others with their studies. The number of people gathered around the tables to work on homework had doubled from before dinner, while the handful of students with the worst grades in the class reminded everyone just why that was as they neglected their studies in favor or goofing off in the living area.

With no place to go, (L/N) nervously wandered into the kitchen. Koda and Todoroki were at one sink, working as a team to vigorously scrub the larger pots and mixing bowls used to make dinner, while Yaoyorozu worked on her own to handle the many plates and bowls. (L/N) stood off to the side, still unsure of what he should do, and listened to Yaoyorozu hum to herself as she absentmindedly rinsed the soapy water off several plates. After a minute or two, he timidly moved next to her and, picking up a towel, silently began drying off the growing pile of clean dishes.

"Oh, no, (F/N). Here, give me that." Momo dropped the two bowls in the drying rack and took the towel from him. "You've done enough for the night."

"But I-" He was about to say he wanted to help her, but she had already turned her back to him. "Oh." (L/N) dropped his hands as he realized what she was really saying. He opened his mouth to say something but stopped himself before the words came out. He didn't want to bother her anymore.

It was a few seconds later, while Yaoyorozu was scrubbing out another bowl, that something in her brain clicked. She looked back at (L/N) only to find him no longer next to her. Looking around she saw him standing several steps back. The corners of his mouth were downturned in the feintest traces of a frown, his true feelings hidden behind both his blindfold and the mask he constantly wore. But Yaoyorozu had long since learned that his true emotions were revealed by his brow, and it revealed his despondence.

"Wait." Quickly drying her hands, she just barely managed to grab his sleeve before he could retreat from her rejection. She mentally scolded herself for not realizing how lost he must be feeling. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean I don't want you here. I just meant, you already made dinner for everyone, so it's only fair someone else do the cleaning." His face brightened just a bit, but Momo could tell he still doubted whether or not she truly wanted him around. "Stay. Please." She gently pulled him closer. "I don't want you to feel obligated to help, but... I'd like your company."

The shadows on his face faded and it made her smile to see him look so close to almost happy. She had yet to see him truly smile, but he didn't look as forlorn as he usually did, and that alone gave her hope that one day she might see him truly happy.

Yaoyorozu stepped to her right to give (L/N) more room to stand next to her. Sinking her hands back into the soapy water of the sink's right tub, she resumed her cleaning. With a glance sideways she saw a cloud of steam rising from the mountain of clean dishes as (L/N) used his quirk to evaporate the water and then sent them across the kitchen to their appropriate cabinets. He then plunged his arms into the left tub of the sink and began polishing off the chopsticks beneath the warm water.

Momo looked down intently at the soap bubbles, hiding her smile. They were almost shoulder to shoulder, and though (F/N) had not said or done anything that could be construed as anything other than a classmate helping with the dishes, she had seen the way he nervously rubbed his arm just seconds before, and how he shyly shifted his weight from one foot to the other, taking small steps to his right, closer to her, before using the dishes as an excuse to be so near to her.

She took quick furtive glances at him every so often, she couldn't help herself. Something about the whole situation had butterflies taking flight in her stomach. But even despite her own elation, there was still something about the way (L/N) held himself that signaled something was bothering him. Biting the inside of her mouth, Yaoyorozu decidedly bumped her shoulder into him. He looked over at her with a questioning expression , but she hid her smile and pretended to focus on the dishes, and so (L/N) dismissed it, assuming it had been unintentional. A few seconds later she did it again, this time with a bit more force. He looked at her again, his brow pinched in suspicion. Laughing softly, she smiled up at him and bumped into him a third time.

Watching him out of the corner of her eye, she could see the confusion on his face. He looked quite cute with his lips bit together and his forehead wrinkled in puzzlement. Then, hesitantly, he shoulder bumped her back. Momo couldn't help but laugh at the nervous look on his face. To assure him he had done nothing wrong she knocked into him again, and this time she left her shoulder against his. She smiled up at him and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards. Momo returned her eyes to the sink, but (F/N) still had his attention on her. The second she looked away his shoulders sank. The darkness crept once more unto him as he focused on the side of her face nearest him, and the area hidden just beneath her hair.

With both of them working, the dishes in the sink quickly transferred to the drying rack. As the number shifted more in favor of the clean dishes, (L/N) took to accepting the plates and bowls from Yaoyorozu as she finished with them, and hand dried them with a towel.

"All right, this should be the last one." Yaoyorozu handed him one final plate. "I was thinking," she said as she rinsed off her hands and arms, "maybe, if you wanted, we could go back to my room and- oh." Yaoyorozu jumped in surprised when she turned to see (L/N) standing so close. "W-What are you..."

Her voice trailed off as his hand slowly came up to brush a strand of her hair from her face. Her cheeks turned red, and for a fleeting second, she thought he might be about to... but no. There was a heaviness in his heart as the pad of his thumb gently traced over the line of stitches on her left temple. He could sense the discoloration of the skin, and even once the bruising faded and the flesh healed, he knew she would be left with a scar. It wouldn't be the first one to mar her once flawless skin, nor the deepest or most visible. The world would still find her beautiful, and ultimately the scar's presence wouldn't matter. But it would still be there, and he would always know.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

"Hey, it's okay." She soothed, placing her hand over his. "It was an accident."

(F/N)'s hand slid down to rest on her cheek. "It's always an accident." He said, pulling his hand away.

"Listen to me. It wasn't your fault, okay? I don't blame you for what happened."

For some reason this made him shrink even further. She could only imagine why, and it pained her to think that he had heard this all before. Yaomomo wished they had more privacy from the others; instead, she placed a lingering kiss in her palm and brought it up to (F/N)'s cheek, trailing her fingers back and forth along his skin as if she were rubbing it in.

"Remember what I told you this morning?" She said to him. "I really care about you. Hey." Reaching down, she took his wrist and lifted his hand in front of them. Her other hand she placed palm to palm against his. "This." She indicated their touching hands. "This is a promise. I'm here for you. Always." Spreading her fingers apart, she gently slipped them between his, interlacing their hands for the first time. "I'm not going to leave you."

(L/N) didn't say anything. His attention was completely captivated by the way her fingers felt laced with his own, seeping into the gaps in his hand and filling them with warmth, the same way she had done with his heart. In that moment, the rest of the world seemed to disappear until all he could feel was her hand. Just her hand and the promise it held.

A silent understanding passed between them. This thing they had, whatever it was, was only just beginning. There would be more doubts, more hardships, more things to be addressed. But they would face those challenges when they came, just as they had so many times before. Until then, this was enough.

Momo smiled at (F/N), and with a final comforting squeeze, allowed his hand to fall just as the doors to the main entrance opened. The heavy sound of the oakwood leaving its frame turned several heads as Mr. Aizawa slipped inside.

"No need to get up." He told them all as he tapped the toes of his shoes on the entrance mat, shaking loose any dirt. "I'm just here to talk to (L/N)." His eyes quickly scanned the floor, mildly surprised to find the young man in question standing in the kitchen. Normally he would have retreated to his room at the first sounds of his classmates. The fact that he hadn't wasn't lost upon Aizawa. Nor was the proximity between (L/N) and Yaoyorozu. "I know suspension from classes isn't exactly your idea of a punishment." Aizawa said to (L/N). "That being said, I trust you understand the purpose of your suspension was to allow you time to reflect upon the severity of your actions."

"I... yes, sir."

"Good." Aizawa said with a tone of finality. "Then as of right now you can consider your period of introspection over."

Several people looked at their teacher in surprise, including (L/N). "Already? But I..."

"I know you're well aware of the consequences that come with your actions." Mr. Aizawa cut off. "You probably understand better than anyone else in this room."

Eraser Head allowed for a few seconds silence to see if anyone would protest (L/N)'s return to class, but looking around he could tell they all remembered the conversation they'd had on the ride back from the Provisional Licensing Exam.

"I should mention however, that this early dispensation comes with two conditions." He held up two fingers. "The first," he said, putting down his middle finger, "is that your return is welcomed by Yaoyorozu. After all, she's the one you hurt during your lapse in restraint."

(L/N) guiltily dropped his head in shame, but before he could so much as open his mouth to once again apologize, Yaoyorozu was already addressing their teacher.

"It's alright." Behind the counter, out of sight from the others, she had reached for (L/N)'s hand. "I've already told him I don't blame him for anything that happened. I would be glad to see him back in class."

"Well," Aizawa reached into his pocket for his eyedrops and tilted his head back, "(L/N) wouldn't actually be returning to regular classes."

"Why not?" Yaoyorozu asked quickly. Her teacher raised an eyebrow, and Momo blushed when she realized she had failed to hide the disappointment in her voice.

"That brings me to the second condition. An offer has been made for (L/N) to participate in a work study. If you want your suspension to end, Principal Nezu and I expect you to accept the invitation. So?"

(L/N)'s brow pinched together in thought. On one hand, the thought of returning to the hero course wasn't very appealing to him. More importantly, he didn't feel like he deserved forgiveness. But on the other, he knew Yaoyorozu would want him to accept, and after everything they'd been through and everything she'd done for him, he owed her.

"Who is it with?"

"The same agency you did you internship with." Mr. Aizawa said. "The Watcher."