Third person pov

Hoshi Kansai. Quirkless stoner of a dance student who liked to drink, party, and generally act like an idiot all around. He was a sad little virgin whose only companions were Hamilton, Heathers, and Dear Evan Hansen, along with a plethora of other Broadway hits he usually liked to belt out whenever he deemed it appropriate. Not the brightest crayon in the box, but not the dullest. Things often times flew over his head. Like the fact that he'd run into his soulmate on the street, and that his soulmate was the Number One Hero, Endeavor. It really just didn't click in his big boy brain that he'd crashed headfirst into his destined other.

Being away from your soulmate was hard. Once you met their eyes, there was no going back. Hoshi was experiencing that without knowing what the sensations were. He'd feel this aching all over his body. Like this reflex begging to go off and touch something, only there was nothing to touch. At first Hoshi thought he was just horny. Which was right and wrong. It didn't matter how much gay porn he watched or how many times he rubbed one out. The feeling of being pulled towards something by in invisible force remained. That left only one explanation. The only plausible one he and his friendless self could think of.

Cancer.

That had to be it! Weird clenching in his gut? Cancer. Crying himself to sleep at night despite being pretty content with his life at the moment? Cancer. Wanting something, but not knowing what that something was? It was fucking cancer! There was a tumor-- probably in his brain-- messing with his senses. It was driving him nuts. How was he supposed to live his best life whilst his body was in the middle of betraying him? He was going to crack his own skull open, reach in, and take the tumor out himself at this rate. He just wanted it to go away! This shit was keeping him up at night and raining on his parade. He wanted to get a total of four hours each night and attend countless raves, all while running the risk of overdosing on some miscellaneous drug! 

Today during class, he'd been miserable. Anyone who sent even so much as a mere glance in his direction was struck by his appearance. Dancing was cutthroat, and not a lot of his classmates were friendly towards him for competitive purposes, but even a few of them had asked if he was alright. He looked that bad. Like death on two feet. He'd even heard someone whisper 'mood', and that was saying something considering the person who'd whispered it was the eighty year old homeless woman who begged for money outside their studio.

Across from the building Hoshi was exiting, Endeavor stood. He was in casual clothing. A large jacket, a ball-cap pulled low over his face, and a pair of jeans to go with the boots he was wearing. His flames were off, but he still got a few suspicious glances nonetheless. He was the Number One Hero, after all. He stayed inconspicuous enough not to draw a crowd, and that's what really mattered. He had to meet his soulmate. For real, this time. He'd been going crazy this past week. It was like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. He'd tried to convince himself he didn't need it, he wasn't gay, and none of this was real, but it had slapped him upside the head about five minutes after he'd decided all of that bullshit that it wasn't going to fly. He'd met Hoshi's eyes. They'd bumped shoulders. It was too late for both of them now.

Hoshi should've appeared vaguely horrid in Endeavor's eyes. The younger man had bags under his eyes and unnaturally pale skin, yet still looked absolutely adorable. It was the first time Endeavor had seen him in person since that day on the street, and his breath was immediately stolen from him. His heart rate increased, a vast amount of heat rose to his cheeks despite his attempts to push it down and away, and what was worse, his jaw dropped. It was all reflex. Everything was tingling, and he was totally taken. He didn't care if Hoshi was a small individual who wanted to dance and quite possibly-- and Endeavor prayed this wasn't the case-- sing. 

His hair was the most unique shade of blue. The few pictures featuring him didn't the hue justice. Though there was quite some distance between them, the Flame Hero could still make out those two glittering aqua pools from where he stood leaned up against the wall. His curls bounced as he walked, his feet dragging pitifully. The sudden urge to scoop them up and just carry them was overwhelming. Hoshi was clearly tired. That was his soulmate. Soulmates were supposed to do anything for one another, right? Wait-- he was getting too ahead of himself. He and his 'destined other' surely wouldn't be forming any romantic bonds. They'd just reap the benefits of one another, that's all. 

Endeavor cleared his throat and stepped away from the wall, shoving his hands deep in his jacket pockets as he began to stalk towards Hoshi. He kept his head lowered, and most people averted their eyes and created a wide berth for him to get by. Enji was quite glad for that fact. He wasn't in the mood for interruptions. He wanted to get to Hoshi, introduce himself, and then... well, he wasn't sure what he wanted to do after that. There was no telling what kind of person this young man was. 

Hoshi felt Endeavor approaching before he saw him. His entire body straightened up before he even realized what was happening, his back arching slightly and head swiveling about as he blinked curiously. Like a puppy who'd caught the scent of something, or heard a noise it didn't recognize. The aching in his body subsided in a way, but also got worst at the same time. Hoshi wasn't sure how that was possible. Again, the only valid explanation his brain cells could cobble together was: cancer.

"Oh my god, I think I'm dying." Hoshi whispered to himself. As if on cue, a large hand clapped down on his shoulder, successfully scaring the absolute, complete, and utter shit out of him. He jumped a solid three feet in the air, spinning around and coming face to face with someone's chest. Hoshi wouldn't call himself tall or anything, but this man was a hulking beast. And his hand felt really, really good. The aching? Tossed out the window of a burning building, only to land in a vat of flames below. Totally decimated. All the air got sucked out of Hoshi's lungs as his darker eyes met a pair of turquoise ones.

For a moment, all they could do was gape at one another. Hoshi had to crane his neck to look up at this guy, who was looking more and more familiar the longer he looked at him. His face was almost recognizable, but it looked as though something was missing from it. Hoshi could barely focus on that part. Sparks were flying. It felt like he'd just been touched with a live wire, but in a good way. Not a kinky way. Just a... warm... way. Or something. He didn't know! His brain cells had all died off far too long ago for him to be processing any of this, or to be thinking of clever metaphors to describe his deepest thoughts and emotions.

"Oh." Endeavor choked out, not letting go. That was... something. A great feeling, for sure. Better than anything he'd ever felt, anyway. He was usually pretty quick to act, but he had no words. He was really and truly dumbfounded. Bamboozled, in every sense of the word. He couldn't believe it. All the soulmate shenanigans people posted online were legitimate. None of it was bullshit whatsoever. Or maybe it was. He didn't know. Was he imagining this? It could be just some mental thing. No, that didn't explain the butterflies in his stomach. Or did it? It sort of did. But he was pretty sure this was all real, and he had a male soulmate.

"Wow, you're hot." Hoshi blurted out. He immediately regretted it. He'd scare the hot stranger off! He quickly closed his eyes and shook his head to try and clear it. There wasn't much to untangle up there. In all honesty, his noggin was relatively empty most of the time. Though an idiot, at least he was a self-aware one. "Sorry. You're a stranger. I, uh- nice... jacket?" 

A weak save. Endeavor could only stare in mute awe. Hoshi fidgeted under his gaze, eyes trailing to where Enji's hand was sitting on his shoulder. It felt better and better by the second. Should he mention that? Or was this one of those unspoken things? Maybe he wasn't supposed to say a word, and instead they were just supposed to nod to one another silently and then part ways. Hoshi sort of didn't want to separate from him. Would hugging him be inappropriate? He looked huggable. Like a giant teddy bear.

"I'm Enji." Endeavor found himself saying before he could very well stop himself. When was the last time he'd introduced himself using his real name, instead of his hero one? It had been a long time, and doing it now left a warm feeling sitting in the pit of his stomach. There was some sort of swing in his outlook all of a sudden. Sort of like a gay awakening, but so much different. He was such a shitty person. He hadn't realized that until the warmth of this other person dawned on him. He didn't deserve it. "I'm your soulmate."

Hoshi's jaw dropped, and Endeavor couldn't help but smile at the expression. This poor man clearly had no idea. How it hadn't clicked, Enji wasn't sure. It had been abundantly clear to the taller of the two when they'd run into each other on the crosswalk. That was fine. It could be that it just hadn't occurred to him. Soulmates were genetic. There was a chance he had none in his bloodline. Endeavor clearly did, if his children were anything to go off of. Probably Rei as well if he had to guess. Wherever she was now. He wasn't too concerned over it anymore. If she sued him, he deserved it. Hopefully she'd found somewhere to stay, and was comfortable.

"O-Oh. I'm Hoshi." Hoshi took a small step back, his eyes wide. Endeavor's hand slipped from his shoulder. "I'm a quirkless stoner who identifies as a trash bag."

Quirkless. Okay, that was a surprise, but they could work around that. They had to work around that. Endeavor had already gotten a taste, and was already taking a step forward to stop his soulmate before he could think twice. Hoshi felt himself as that same hand came right on back down on that same shoulder, too enticing to pull away from a second time around. His nose scrunched up as he hesitantly looked up at the familiar man. Was he familiar because they were soulmates, or because they'd run into each other before? Most likely the latter. God, Hoshi was an idiot. Cancer. Fuck!

"I don't mind." Endeavor said the words before they processed in his mind. And then, in bout of inappropriately timed honesty, "I'm not a good person."

Hoshi gave him an odd look. "Dude, I took out half a keg two nights ago, got thrown through a window, and decked this chick in the face for taking my joint. I'm at the bottom of the barrel." He shrugged. Endeavor cracked a grin again. He hadn't smiled so much in a long, long time. Not genuinely, and without an air of cockiness surrounding him. His soulmate didn't appear to recognize him as Endeavor. This was a fresh slate.

"I'm under the barrel." Endeavor admitted. "Can we discuss over coffee?"

"Are you a serial killer?" Hoshi checked. Endeavor chuckled.

"Not last time I checked." Being a hero, he'd hope not.

"Serial rapist?" Hoshi double checked. Endeavor removed his hand from his shoulder, instead reaching down to grab his hand. Half so he couldn't run off, and half because he was so small, Endeavor was afraid of losing him in the crowd.

"Also no." Endeavor assured. Hoshi squinted at him, not seeming to mind or even notice the hand holding. It was all... very natural. Especially considering they didn't even know each other.

"Sounds promising enough." Hoshi shrugged. "I've been single my whole life. Don't expect the peak of romance and suave poetry from me."

Endeavor was beginning to think that, maybe, having a soulmate wasn't so bad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Recovery girl assessed Touya with a calculating look. The redheaded man could only fidget under his intense gaze, Takashi squeezing his hand reassuringly as they waited for her assessment. They'd done this with another doctor before, though it had been when Touya's scars were still fresh. With medicine where it was today-- quirks only serving to help in the medical field-- there was a high chance of treatment to remove the markings. It's not that Takashi minded them, or that Touya did, but they did cause the redheaded man a great deal of pain. The staples were a mood too, and not at all a perfect fix.

"I think I know a few colleagues who'd be happy to take a look at you." Recovery girl announced after a moment, tapping her cane lightly on the side of Touya's leg. "The scars don't look like they completely fused to your healthy skin, if the staples are anything to go by. Removing them would definitely require surgery, and there'd still be some marks. But..."

"Would the pain go away?" Takashi checked hopefully. Touya held his breath. Lately, the tissue had felt more irritated, and Touya wasn't sure why. They did their usual treatments, but the scars were becoming tighter and more constraining. They ached and stung, and had started to keep him up at night. The burning sensations weren't getting any better, and they'd talked about getting Touya surgery for a while now, so it wasn't like this was a new topic. A sucky one, yes, but not terribly new.

"Yes. After the recovery period, which would go rather fast thanks to me, I do believe the pain would vanish completely. Save for anything mental. Phantom aches, and such of the sort." Recovery girl got to typing away at her computer. "I'll email a few surgeons. You'll be in good hands."

A new face to go along with his not-so-new name. Without his scars, staples, and jet black hair, it was reasonable to assume he'd be unrecognizable. Nobody would be able to place him as Dabi. He could finish his reform, which Tsukauchi had long since got approved on the legal side of things, and he'd be cleared.  He could completely start over with Takashi. A clean slate for them to draw on however they pleased. The thought was more enticing than he'd dare to admit. If... If they decided to adopt kids, then...

"Thank you! It means a lot!" Takashi chirped, standing up and pulling Touya with him. The taller blinked a few times rapidly as he was pulled from the office. "Keep us updated!"

Recovery didn't verbally reply, though raised her hand just as they exited. Izuku and Todoroki hopped to attention immediately as they exited, their hands also clasped together tightly as they waited quietly for the news. Takashi was beaming, but that didn't mean much. He smiled even at the worst times. Though, Touya couldn't stop himself from grinning either. This could be it for them. When they'd expressed concerns about the cost while talking to Nezu-- updating him on their progress, all that was going on in the class, and somehow, the scar pains-- he'd simply laughed at them and said he'd pay for it. As though it were really that simple. And hey, maybe it was.

"She's going to contact some people." Touya announced, feeling oddly proud despite not having done anything.

"She said it looks promising, and that she thinks there's a way!" Takashi squealed. Izuku grinned, and Shoto gave a small smile.

"That's amazing! Medicine really has come a long way, hasn't it?" Izuku was just as excited as the brunette, all but bouncing on the heels of his feet. This was a potentially big thing, and none of them were taking it lightly.

"Now all you need is a child to adopt and a house to buy, and your lives are complete." Shoto's tone was dry and joking, but Takashi and Touya still shared a look. They were right. But where were they going to find a judge who'd be willing to give them custody of an entire ass child? Barring Shoto, who was a special case, and under Takashi's care specifically, with no affiliations to Touya. Maybe that was the answer. Perhaps it was circumstantial. Perhaps... it would depend on the child entirely.