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Todoroki and I met regularly at his house to study and spar in the following weeks. Endeavor was barely around the house thanks to his work, and Todoroki's elder sister, Fuyumi, often brought us food while we huddled at the living room table, piled with textbooks.

The half-and-half boy was a surprisingly hard worker. I'd had him pegged as the naturally-gifted type, but he was a very well learned individual. Most of our studying was spent in long stretches of silence, with Todoroki occasionally pointing to an incorrectly conjugated English verb on my sheet. We also made use of the dojo when Endeavor was away, which was a beautiful hardwood room with tons of space, mats, and equipment. When I wanted to work on my Quirk, we moved to the backyard, which was an expansive piece of property with a freshly mowed lawn and traditional rock gardens.

After a particularly gruelling sparring session, we lay in Todoroki's backyard staring at the stars. His house sat on the outskirts of town. The steep incline of Sekoto Peak was practically its backyard. It was rare I was this close to the mountain, and the sight gave me chills.

I cleared my throat to draw my attention away from it. "Todoroki, what makes you want to be a hero?" I asked on a whim.

Todoroki's heterochromatic eyes flicked my way. "I wish to surpass my father," he answered shortly. Then, he took a slight pause. "But... I used to admire All Might when I was young – I would like to be like him.

"What about you? Why do you want to be a hero?"

I released a long hum. "I owe it... to the country."

Todoroki looked back to the sky and contemplated that. "I had an older brother," he spoke. My brow furrowed and I remained silent. A soft breeze ruffled the moonlit grass while I waited for him to continue. "...The eldest. He passed when I was young, but I remember he wanted to be the best more than anything. I suppose, in a way, I owe it to him."

It was the first time Todoroki had opened up to me since internships. I struggled to find the words. "I'm sorry for your loss." I gave his shoulder a small squeeze.

Todoroki scoured my face for a brief moment, "...I'm sorry for yours." He seemed to have something more to say, but his lips remained pressed into a thin line.

I raised a brow. "That's cryptic," I muttered, pushing myself to my feet. "Thanks again for the food and the practice."

"Will you be here next week?"

"Nah, I'll be babysitting Bakugo and Kirishima, unfortunately."

"Ah." Todoroki nodded grimly. I helped pull him to his feet. "Good luck."

I snorted, grabbing my things. "I'll need it. We still on for Friday?"

"Of course."

I smiled. "You're a great friend, Todoroki."

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I stood before my closet with my arms crossed. It remained depressingly lacking. I'd been wearing my U.A. uniform and training gear to spar at Todoroki's place. Neither of those seemed fitting for a public library or cafe.

I opened my wallet and pulled out a little black card. Keigo had given it to me for allowance, but I'd never used it. Sighing, I grabbed my phone and dialled a number. It only rang once.

"Hey...! You wanna go to the mall?"

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I cringed at the bustling crowd of people: children, their parents, and the most terrifying: high schoolers. They swarmed the food court and the trendy outlet stores after a long day of school; a swarm of judgmental gazes and brightly passing colours.

"I can't believe you finally agreed to go to the mall, Aki!Not only that, but you asked me first!" Mina raved, dragging me from store to store. Her wrists jangled with shiny bangles and she wore a brightly-patterned tank-top and some distressed little jean shorts. "So, you said on the phone you wanted more casual clothes, because..." she eyed me up and down. "That's all you have going for you?"

I fiddled with the end of my compression shirt, looking down at the too-large basketball shorts. "It's that bad, is it?"

"No! It really suits you, Aki. It's just... you know! We might as well have you try out some new things! So, what kind of budget are you on?"

I pulled the black card out from my wallet. "Um, I don't think I could overage this in one trip if I tried... It's been collecting money since I was 11."

Mina stared at my hand with wide eyes and her jaw hanging open. "That's..." It was clear she hadn't heard a word I said since I pulled out the card. "First things first! Let's get you shoes with a better silhouette!"

She dragged me all throughout the mall, chattering excitedly all the while. "We gotta find a key piece to centre your whole personal style around! I like taking clothes from gyaru subcultures. I think you could easily pull off prep-school athlete style, more on the masculine side of course – we could get you some jerseys and sambas or something like that! Of course, if you want to try something new, I'm all here for it!"

"Um, something I can work out in and also wear in public would be ideal..." I said, while Mina dragged me to the first store. She tossed a couple of crewnecks, shorts, and a seashell necklace my way. "Try these on, and see if you look too douchebaggy or not! You're nice and tan, so for summer, you could easily pull off some American Surfer type!"

I tried to look at her over the huge pile of clothes in my arms. "Okay...?"

Mina radiated pure joy as she watched me model the outfits. "Eek! You're such a dreamboat, Akiharu!"

I selected a few of the items out of the pile to get. While I got out the card to pay and pulled a few hangers out, Mina piled a few accessories and bags top, grinning at me.

Next, we stopped at a sportswear shop so I could get a new water bottle. "Everybody needs at least two pairs of shoes!" Mina ranted. "One for exercise and one for show. Of course, I like to have a hiking pair I can get dirty, one for the beach, dressy sneakers, boots for parties and heels for a nice dinner... Honestly, you can never have too many shoes!"

Mina piled another six shoes on the bench next to me. "Try all these on!"

I selected a white pair to wear out of the house, and a new pair of proper athletic sneakers for running. "I never knew how expensive shoes were..."

I took them to the counter and the lady running the register smiled as I tapped the card. "Oh, it looks like you're selected as a recipient for a brand ambassadors' perks. Would you like to apply for an additional 15% off?"

I glanced to the life-size cutout of Hawks showing off a pair of flashy winged sneakers. "Um, sure. By the way, do you have those sneakers in stock?"

I was now hauling two bags full of things. "This should be enough, right?"

"We should pop into that store to get you a nice pair of jeans! You can't go wrong with a good pair of jeans, Aki. And we should get you a hair claw for your hair, too! You took off a lot of length but you can still put it up."

I smiled to see how much fun she was having. "Okay."

While Mina browsed through the perfect pair of jeans for me, I wandered to go get us a drink at a bubble tea place. I ordered and started making my way back when I passed by a shop. In the window, on a mannikin, was this long green skirt. It was intricately patterned with little green beads and looked reminded me of deep forest moss and lichen. I tore my eyes away from the store and walked back to Mina, who waited with a few pairs of jeans for me to try on.

We were heading to the other end of the mall when we passed by that same store again. Mina saw me glance and stopped.

"Wanna go in?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I don't think there's anything in there I could pull off."

"What do you mean? It's totes your colours! Let's just take a look around." She pulled me into the store, which was filled from floor to ceiling in flowing skirts and shirts mottled in greens and browns. "It's very boho-hipster in here," she said. "I like it!"

I found the green skirt that was on the mannequin, fiddling with the material. It was soft and light – perfect for spring and summer. "I don't know... I feel really out of place."

"Yeah, you're probably dressed for the opposite aesthetic right now. But you know, it's never a bad time to try something new! That's a gorgeous skirt. Why not get it?"

"Well, it's a little... I dunno. I've never been one to dress..." I waved my arms around a little. "Unpractically?"

"Have you ever tried a skirt before?"

I scratched my head. "I never had the chance."

"Then how about you give it a try!" Mina took it off the rack and folded it on her arm. She grabbed out a few shirts to go with it. "Unless money is the problem..."

"No, but..."

"Aki not once have I seen you more intrigued by anything more than that skirt," she said, plopping them on the cash register. "If I let you leave without buying it, then I'd be a terrible best friend." She piled on a few necklaces and a belt from the nearby accessories. "The card?"

I handed her the card and let Mina scan it for me.

"There!" she grinned. "Now if you regret the purchase, you can blame me." She folded everything and put it in a bag, holding it out to me. "Here!"

I took the bag from her with a smile. I couldn't picture myself wearing anything from the store, but... They were pretty.

"Now, one last thing, Aki..." Mina turned to me with eyes sparkling in pure childish glee. "Have you ever thought about trying makeup?"

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Thanks for reading everybody!! love you 🫶🫶

~ 1738 words