How It Goes – My Hero Academia (2019)

Overview: A “My Hero Academia” piece that wanted to focus on the idea of Shinsou Hitoshi being adopted by Present Mic and Eraserhead and focusing on his past as an orphan/foster child.

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia     

Relationship: Shinsou Hitoshi & Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Shinsou Hitoshi & Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic/Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead

Characters: Shinsou Hitoshi, Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead

Rating: Teen Audiences

Word Count: 10,016

Summary: Despite having lived with Aizawa Shouta and Yamada Hizashi for the past couple of months, Shinsou Hitoshi still found himself watching his steps and being careful not to do anything to ruin the miracle that had found him adopted by the two people he looked up to above all others. When he finally does slip up and get in trouble, he finds himself on edge and waiting for the real punishment to come – a grounding couldn’t be as simple as being banned from television and video games and coming straight home after school, right? There had to be more to it than that, he just… needed to wait until they told him what that was. (Posted to AO3)

How It Goes

Chapter One

Half-awake and stumbling around his room in a useless attempt to find where he had put his finished homework, Shinsou Hitoshi paused when he heard soft knocking on his bedroom door. There had been a time in his life where the sound of someone knocking on his door only meant he was in trouble for something that wasn’t his fault, but now the knocking was usually followed by the reminder that breakfast would soon be ready. It was a change that, even months later, he was still adjusting to.

Dropping a pile of somewhat-dirty laundry and backtracking to his bedroom door, Hitoshi nudged it open with a yawn, gratified to see that Aizawa looked just as exhausted as he felt, blanket around his shoulders and gaze half-vacant as if he was still asleep. Hitoshi saved him the trouble of trying to wake up fully by asking a soft, “Breakfast?”

“Ten minutes,” was the equally quiet response, Aizawa gently patting the top of Hitoshi’s head as if it was second-nature, Hitoshi trying not to laugh as the man then shuffled off towards the direction of his bedroom. Hitoshi had no doubt that Yamada would cave and let Aizawa sleep in for another ten minutes at least. 

Leaving his door open, Hitoshi went back to gathering his own things together, taking a few moments to let himself marvel on the fact that not only had he successfully transferred to Class 1-A in the Heroics Department, but that he had been adopted, after over a decade bouncing around the foster system, by none other than Present Mic and Eraserhead; two heroes he had looked up to since he had first learned about them as a kid. Overall, it was hard to believe the life he was living was his own, but he was relatively certain that a dream couldn’t feel so real and last for months. 

“Breakfast time!” The call, bright and eager, had Hitoshi snorting to himself as he dragged himself out of his room, down the stairs, and towards the kitchen, completely unsurprised when he was given a cheerful, warm hug along with another ruffle to his hair, this time by Yamada. “Morning, ‘Toshi!”

“Morning,” Hitoshi echoed, letting himself relax into the affection and trying not to let out his laughter when the hug became tighter for a minute. “Do I have to worry about eating eggshells this time?” 

“Hey! That was one time!” Yamada looked horribly betrayed and it was almost enough to make Hitoshi laugh, but instead he managed to hang on and resist the urge. “I was just… a little sleepy.”

“Hey, we both told you to remember to take your hearing aids out that night since construction was going on to repair the street,” Hitoshi shrugged, finally laughing at the loud whining as Yamada near hung off of him, collapsed dramatically as if overwhelmed with pain. It was an everyday event that Hitoshi still wasn’t used to, but he at least was always pleasantly amused by the theatrics.

“Okay, okay,” Hitoshi sighed, trying to hide his smile. “I’m sorry. Your cooking is amazing.” Which wasn’t even a lie. Yamada was an excellent cook and Hitoshi half feared the day he would never be able to eat Yamada’s meals again. 

“Hell yeah it is!” Yamada laughed, standing up properly and pushing Hitoshi towards the kitchen. “Now-” The word wasn’t even fully finished before the man paused and looked around with squinted eyes, as if realizing something was wrong. He then turned to look at the hallway that led to the staircase, frown appearing on his face. 

Hitoshi, knowing what it was about, rolled his eyes with a soft snort of laughter, “He went back to bed, I think.”

“Of course he did,” Yamada huffed, Hitoshi trying not to laugh as he saw the slow smile creeping up the man’s face. “Go ahead and start eating, kid. I’ll make sure Shouta joins us for breakfast.” 

Hitoshi almost – almost – felt bad. He probably would have if he didn’t have Yamada’s cooking to look forward to, so instead he nodded easily, headed into the kitchen, and made sure to fill up his plate. It was nice that he no longer felt guilty about eating too much during their meals – or at least, if he ever did, he made sure to try and shove that feeling down instead of having to deal with another intervention from the two that ended up with them all feeling overly emotional. 

Collapsing into his usual chair at the table, Hitoshi covered his ears and waited patiently for at least a minute. He could hear the faint sound of a cheerful, “Good morning, Shou-chan!” that no doubt echoed throughout the house. Hitoshi was certain that if the house hadn’t been soundproofed after the two bought it than there would be more noise complaints than they knew what to do with.

Giving it a moment or two more and catching the faint sounds of what sounded like one of them trying to pin the other, Hitoshi lowered his hands and dug into his food, silently delighted at how everything was one of his favorites. Yamada, for as ‘Present Mic’ as he could be, was rather good at observations and figuring out Hitoshi’s favorite foods just by having watched his reactions. It was as impressive as it was creepy.

It was also a good excuse to have his mouth full, though, so his snickers wouldn’t be noticed when, like always, Aizawa trudged his way into the kitchen with an expression that screamed for revenge. Yamada, also like always, cheerfully followed him.

“Good morning,” Hitoshi greeted cheerfully, doing nothing to hide his smirk as Aizawa sat down at the table with his own plate with a look that was mildly frazzled. It was still a thrill to have the man ruffle his hair and then use his hand to tilt Hitoshi’s head down in ‘annoyance’ before muttering his own greeting. 

That was probably the biggest change in his life after Yamada and Aizawa had taken him in, Hitoshi decided. Every touch given to him or form of contact was always soft. Hitoshi hadn’t ever thought either of them would purposefully hit him or abuse him in any way, seeing how they were, but he had never expected to be given so many soft, friendly little touches that always made him feel like some small piece of weight was disappearing from his chest.

It wasn’t just those two, either. Ever since his transfer at U.A. it seemed as if all of 1-A had taken it upon themselves to try and be his friend, always hugging him, patting him on the back, or just sitting next to him at lunch. There were a few that weren’t exactly ‘friendly,’ but no one outright attacked him like he had expected. It was to the point where Hitoshi looked forward to going to school and hanging out with people who probably would be his friends by the time the year was over. 

At the end of the day, Hitoshi wouldn’t hesitate to call his life nothing short of perfect; one of the reasons it was so startling when, after his last class, he was in shock at answering his phone and hearing the voice of one of his old foster sisters, “Heeey, Shinsou, long time no talk! Heard you finally got adopted by some rich heroes or something like that. Great job!”

It wasn’t impossible to hear the voice of a foster sister he had talked to or seen in a couple of years, but it was startling enough that Hitoshi didn’t think before starting to answer, “Nakamura-san, how-?”

Hitoshi snapped his mouth shut the moment he realized he had been about to ask a question to someone who knew what he could do, taking a few seconds to let out a soft sigh. He had gotten far too comfortable in his new life, he decided to himself, before changing his tone to something flat and dull, “You have my number.” 

“Yeah! We exchanged numbers a few years ago, remember? At the Ito home?” While he did faintly remember giving his number away when he stayed with the Itos, Hitoshi was more focused on how Nakamura sounded chipper and upbeat on the surface, but with a nervous shake to her voice that could mean nothing good. “It’s good to hear your voice again! Are you still in class?”

“No, I just got out for the day,” Hitoshi said, deciding to focus on her question rather than her comment. It wasn’t that he had anything against his older foster sister, and she had been one of the few to never outright attack him over his quirk, but… she still hadn’t stood up for him, either. He was surprised she had even kept his number. “Is- It sounds like something’s wrong.”

“Well… Kind of. Look, I know it’s been a while, but you know that center over on the outskirts of Tochigi? The one you said you lived in when you were ten or something?” Tochigi? Hitoshi frowned to himself, thinking it over before nodding and then huffing as he remembered he was on the phone. 

“Yeah, I remember it.” It hadn’t been the worst center he had lived in during his time in the system, but it hadn’t exactly been the best, either. It was honestly one of the ones he would be happier forgetting. “Why.” Hitoshi flattened the word as best he could, relieved when Nakamura didn’t call him out on asking a question. 

“I need you to go over there and pick up a bag I left there.” She… what? “Look, if I could ask anyone else I would, but you’re the only one who kept the same number and I just got put in a new home today in Saitama and you probably live around that same area and I could really use the help, Shinsou!” 

There was a lot to unpack there, but Hitoshi managed to stumble out a weak, “I- I live in Musutafu, Nakamura-san.” The loud, defeated whine was enough to make Hitoshi wince, pace slowing down as he finally left through the front gates of the school, half-turned towards the direction of where he lived when Aizawa and Yamada weren’t forced to play guard at the dorms. “Look, I- I’m sure you can get it yourself over the weekend-” 

“You know I can’t! There’s a chance my bag is already gone and it has stuff from before I was put in the system!” Hitoshi resisted the urge to swear at the genuinely panicked tone. There was always that desperate need to cling onto whatever one had when they ended up a foster kid, but to have things from before the system? Even Hitoshi couldn’t say no to that. “Please, I know- I know it’s a long way out from where you are, but I don’t have any money and I don’t want to piss off this new family already and-”

“I’ll do it.” Hitoshi hadn’t even been aware he had been planning to agree before the words were out of his mouth. “Do you- You know where you left the bag.” 

“Yeah! I had it under my bunk in the room for my age group on the second floor!” Okay. If they hadn’t changed the layout too much then Hitoshi knew where that was, and… well. It was sort of his job as a hero student to help people who needed it, wasn’t it? 

Glancing back at U.A., Hitoshi sighed and made peace with the fact that a good deal of his savings were going to go into hopping from train to train to try and get to Tochigi of all places, a place that was a good two hours from where he lived with Aizawa and Yamada. Nakamura, being in Saitama, at least, was good news. It was somewhat on the way between the two places. 

“Look, just text me your current family’s address and I’ll let you know when I get near your place and you can come out and get it or I can leave it behind a trash can for you to get in the morning or something, I don’t know. I’ll be there in three or four hours.” 

“Thank you so much, Shinsou! I knew I could count on you!” The call ended as abruptly as it had begun, Hitoshi sighing as he rubbed at his eyes before shoving his phone away and making his way towards the station. 

He probably wouldn’t get home until late, but Aizawa and Yamada were laid back to the point that Hitoshi was sure they wouldn’t mind if he got home at a later time than he usually did. They probably wouldn’t be thrilled, but at worst Hitoshi just had to worry about not waking them up if they were asleep by the time he got back. Besides, helping a former foster sibling out of a tough situation? They would probably be delighted. 

Having half a mind to text them about his change in plans, Hitoshi decided not to bother them with it, instead shoving his phone away and picking up the pace. He’d be home before they even noticed he was gone, anyways. 

⁂

Dragging himself through the front door and seeing the small clock by the entryway flash the time at him, Hitoshi suppressed the urge to give a tired groan at seeing it read just after midnight. It was the latest he had ever gotten home after moving in with Aizawa and Yamada and he had a feeling they wouldn’t be exactly thrilled with him when they found out.

While getting the bag had only taken a couple of hours and Nakamura had been delighted to get it back, she had trapped Hitoshi into a conversation that lasted hours so she could ‘catch up’ with him. It had been an obvious excuse to avoid talking to anyone else in the new house, but by the time Hitoshi had managed to get away he had been forced to deal with a long train ride that was made even longer by one of the trains getting derailed by a villain attack.

He hadn’t been at the site of the actual attack, thankfully enough, but it had made an already long day even longer. There was still the fact he hadn’t been able to even look at his homework and he had missed dinner which, after three meals a day consistently for months, was not something his stomach was pleased about.  

Hitoshi stared at the time as it ticked over into another minute, finally sighing as he kicked his shoes off, stumbling against the wall as he mumbled a soft, absentminded, “I’m home.” 

“Welcome home.” The cold, sharp words, soft as they were, had Hitoshi standing up straight at once, heart racing in his chest fast enough to hurt as he realized the living room lights were still on and, instead of Aizawa and Yamada being asleep like he thought they would be, they were both standing in front of him and staring at him with looks that had Hitoshi wanting to take a couple steps back because they were… not happy. 

Hitoshi wasn’t sure if he was grateful or not that the silence didn’t last long, Yamada bursting out with a frazzled, loud, “Where have you been?!” 

“I-” Hitoshi didn’t get the chance to defend or explain himself before Yamada’s voice got louder, drowning out his own. 

“You’ve been gone for hours and we had no idea where you were! You could have been dead in a villain attack and we would have had no idea!” The volume level had Hitoshi’s ears ringing, heart speeding up even more because he had never seen Yamada so angry. “Hitoshi you could have been- Been killed or kidnapped and we would have had no fucking idea!” 

Hitoshi was unable to stop himself from taking a small, stumbling step back because it was one thing to hear Yamada yelling, but it was another to hear him swearing like that. Yamada swore all the time on his radio show and casually when he was even mildly inconvenienced, but he had never sworn when angry. It was enough that the fear finally had his mouth moving, trying to stumble through an explanation, “I- I had to go to Tochigi to pick something up, and then Saitama to-” 

“You were where?!” There hadn’t been a trace of the man’s quirk in his voice, but Hitoshi almost wished there had been, so he had an excuse to explain why his body wanted to do nothing more than cry at what was possibly the worst time for crying. “You can’t just- You can’t just disappear to another prefecture without telling us, Hitoshi! You can’t do that!” 

The familiar words, different as they were in a voice that had never spoken them before, had Hitoshi straightening his stance and blanking his expression at once, even as his heart felt like it was ready to burst out of his chest because that, at least, he understood. He had broken a rule.

It was a rule he hadn’t known about – or one he had possibly forgotten – but it was a rule he had broken. It explained why the two were so upset, and it was easy to shove down any urge to cry once he realized what had happened. Besides, Hitoshi hadn’t cried in front of an adult since he was nine and it wasn’t about to change anytime soon.

Gathering himself together and forcing his breathing to even out enough that his voice wouldn’t shake, Hitoshi stared straight ahead as mumbled a soft, “I understand.”

“Do you?” The words had come from Aizawa and, even with his understanding and forcibly blank expression, Hitoshi couldn’t stop the flinch that came; as if the question had been a physical blow. It had been a long, long time since he had heard Aizawa sound so cold and quiet with such a blank look of his own thrown his way. Hitoshi had gotten too used to those warm, fond looks, he supposed. “We’re not done talking about this, but you are grounded.” 

Ah… and now came the punishment, Hitoshi thought to himself, mind already flipping through possibilities. He hadn’t been in trouble since his adoption and he honestly wasn’t sure what the two would do to punish him. 

“One week,” Hizashi sighed roughly, the sound enough to cause Hitoshi to quickly hide another flinch and a mental curse. He used to be able to hide his emotions better. “No friends over, no television or video games, and straight home after school – and I do mean straight home.” Waiting for the real punishment, Hitoshi jumped when he heard the quiet – quiet, but still sharp, “Go to bed, Hitoshi. You have school in the morning.” 

Hitoshi had a question on the tip of his tongue, but he quickly shoved it down and nodded before slipping around the two and towards his bedroom, not having the courage to look back as he hurried inside and shut the door behind him as quietly as he could, biting the inside of his cheek to keep himself silent as he stood against his door and stared at the floor, mind racing. 

He wasn’t sure how long it took before he managed to suck in a deep, slow breath, calming himself down as best he could. Whatever punishment they actually decided on in the morning, it wouldn’t be anything too bad – or at least, it wouldn’t be anything physically painful. Aizawa and Yamada would never be violent with him, but that still… He still didn’t know what they considered an appropriate punishment for what he had done. 

Other homes he had been in wouldn’t have cared if he didn’t turn up for a few days at a time, but he should have known that those two, that pro heroes, would be worried if he didn’t come home by a certain time. The villain attacks were only increasing by the day, after all, and it made sense as to why they would be so harsh for something like staying out too late. 

Hitoshi should have known better and at least contacted them before he went running off towards different prefectures without their knowledge, but at least now he knew that if he had to go somewhere again, he now had to be home by a certain time. They hadn’t really given him a curfew, but they probably would after this. 

Hearing the beeping of his clock ticking over into a new hour and jolting him out of his thoughts, Hitoshi sighed and moved to collapse on his bed, curling up and not bothering to even change. It wasn’t like he would be getting much sleep with how worried he was. 

He just… had to remember that Aizawa and Yamada were different. They wouldn’t hurt him. He would be… fine. He would just have to accept his punishment and deal with the consequences. He wasn’t afraid. It was impossible to be afraid of them. He just had to keep it together.  

Groaning and turning to bury his face in his pillows, Hitoshi decided that it was going to be a long night. 

⁂

Hitoshi shut off his alarm a few minutes before it was due to go off, climbing out of bed and collecting his bag that he hadn’t even had a chance to unpack, making a mental note to do any homework during lunch to try and catch up. The last thing he needed, on top of getting punished, was to fall behind in his classes; especially when he was already so far behind after transferring in halfway through the year. 

There was also the fact that he needed to especially stay on top of his grades to avoid getting into any more trouble or disappointing Aizawa and Yamada more than he already had. It was bad enough remembering that he still had an unknown punishment to look forward to beyond just the simple ‘grounding.’ 

Hitoshi still knew, with absolute certainty, that they would never give him a physical punishment like other homes he had stayed in had done, but that still left the question as to what they would do. There was always the chance they would ground him from his meals or just from breakfast and dinner. It was an easy punishment to give and to follow and, while it had been some time since Hitoshi had survived on only one meal a day, he could manage for a couple of weeks if he needed to. 

A light knocking on his door knocked him out of his thoughts, Hitoshi almost dropping his bag as he stumbled back in what… was fear. The realization that what he felt was fear was enough to freeze him in place as if someone had pressed the pause button on his entire being, Hitoshi barely able to hear the soft, “Breakfast in ten.”

He assumed Aizawa shuffled away back to the bedroom or the kitchen, but that thought was lost easily as Hitoshi focused on the fact that, for the first time since he had started living with Aizawa and Yamada, he had felt genuinely afraid of them. That… He had never felt afraid of them, especially not after Aizawa had started training him and helping him into Class 1-A. It wasn’t possible to be afraid of them.

No. No, no, no, he wasn’t afraid of Aizawa and Yamada. He was simply angry at himself for getting in trouble with them when he should have known better, and he was worried about what more they would have to say on the subject, but he wasn’t- Hitoshi wasn’t afraid of them. He could never be afraid of them. With how little sleep he had gotten, he had probably just been startled by the sudden noise – startled, but not afraid.  

“Right,” Hitoshi mumbled to himself, grabbing his bag and gripping the strap tight enough to feel the nail marks forming on his palm. “I was just startled.” There was a shakiness to the words that Hitoshi ignored, instead brushing his wrinkled school uniform down and making sure it was presentable enough for his classes before hesitantly opening his door and peering out into the hallway. 

There was the soft sound of Aizawa and Yamada talking in the kitchen, the words too soft and far away for Hitoshi to hear clearly. They were just loud enough, however, that it threw Hitoshi back into one of his first memories of being inside their house, cautious and hesitant to make too loud of a noise and terrified of doing something to upset them. 

Hitoshi had thought his behavior had changed since that first day he was brought home with them, but he supposed there was just no changing some things; or perhaps, more accurately, there was no fixing what was long since broken.

Trudging his way down the stairs, Hitoshi made sure he was heard as he walked towards the kitchen, giving them time to finish up their conversation so they wouldn’t assume Hitoshi had been eavesdropping. It was better to be safe than sorry, in his experience.

“Good morning, ‘Toshi!” Yamada greeted, Hitoshi trying not to flinch at the change in tone. The man still sounded like his usual cheerful self on the outside, but there was something there in his voice that carried with it something that was very much the opposite of cheerful. It wasn’t anger, at least, and for that Hitoshi was thankful enough to not risk anything beyond a quiet greeting of his own. 

A flash of movement coming towards him out of the corner of his eye, however, had Hitoshi flinching away, quickly covering up the action by walking towards the table and taking up his usual chair, backpack tucked between his feet to be out of the way and hands resting in his lap as he stared down at the table, heart racing like it had been the night before. 

The kitchen was silent and Hitoshi only half-felt the crushing weight of it, instead focused on the fact that he had flinched away from Yamada’s usual morning hug. It had been months since he had second-guessed the casual affection that he received from the two, and it had been longer still since he had flinched away from it. There was no reason to fear someone like Yamada Hizashi, but… then again… There was always the chance that Yamada hadn’t been attempting to hug him or ruffle his hair, right? There was always that chance and Hitoshi had long since learned not to take chances, as much as it made something in him ache.  

“-give you a ride to school, if you want?” Coming back to himself at the question, Hitoshi blinked at Yamada as a plate full of breakfast food was set down in front of him. 

“That’s okay. I’ll walk.” They weren’t banning him from meals, then- Or maybe it was a test? The two seemed like the type to be fond of giving their grounded kids tests, so maybe if he went along with it and didn’t eat breakfast, like they no doubt expected, his overall punishment would be lessened? 

“If you’re sure,” Yamada’s tone still sounded uncertain as he took his own seat, picking at his food and shooting Aizawa a not-so-subtle look and, well. It made sense for Aizawa, who was the ‘stern’ one, to explain the rest of his ‘grounding.’ 

Aizawa was silent for a few moments more even after Yamada’s look, Hitoshi thankful for the brief reprieve that allowed him to gather himself together. “Hitoshi, can you tell us why you went all the way to Tochigi last night?” 

Slightly startling, Hitoshi finally looked up, glancing between the two and finally deciding that the best answer would be the truth. Knowing that he had been helping someone would probably lessen their anger, if nothing else. 

“I was helping a girl who used to be my foster sister a few years back, Nakamura Sakura,” Hitoshi said carefully, looking back down to his plate. It was a shame he had to skip it. Yamada’s cooking really was the best. “She was moved to a new foster home yesterday and left one of her bags at a center in Tochigi that she used to live in. I lived in it for some time when I was ten, too. She still had my number and called to ask if I could help by delivering the bag to where she lived in Saitama.” 

“And neither of you thought to contact an adult? Either the one your friend is now being cared for or someone at the center itself?” The questions had Hitoshi snorting before he could stop himself, words tumbling out alongside the spike of fear he couldn’t quite deny. 

“You don’t trust the adults that work that system.” Aizawa and Yamada were outliers, along with a few other families that truly did care for the kids that came into their care. Typically, though, in Hitoshi’s experience? Adults weren’t meant to be trusted. Not when it came to kids with quirks like his.

A few moments passed and the silence in the room had returned, Hitoshi patiently staring down at his food and waiting for whatever was to come next. It was a long silence before it was broken, Aizawa sighing softly, “Why didn’t you think to contact us and let us know that you would be home late?” Ah, and there was the true deciding factor of it all. Why had he broken one of their rules? 

“I… thought I would have gotten back sooner than I did. I wasn’t counting on Nakamura-san wanting to catch up when I reached when she lived,” Hitoshi settled on, refusing to raise his gaze. “I’m sorry for my actions.”

“‘Toshi?” Yamada’s voice, quiet and soft and so easy to relax at, had Hitoshi risking the quickest glance up at him that he could. “You know we aren’t angry at you… right? We were just worried, especially after hearing you were in another prefecture.” Ah. Another test. 

Silent for what might have been a beat too long, Hitoshi rushed out with a quick, “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.” 

Hitoshi looked back down to his plate, trying not to think about any looks the two might be sharing, no doubt trying to decide if his words were believable. Aizawa and Yamada might have been amazing people, but they were still adults in charge of a ‘problem child.’ There was only so much even they would accept. 

“Well… we’ll have to leave for school, soon, so why don’t you eat up, yeah?” Yamada’s voice was soft and welcoming, and Hitoshi prayed to whatever was left that would listen to him that he was passing their tests. 

“I… I’m not hungry,” Hitoshi said softly, refusing to risk looking up to see if they believed him or not. The lie still hurt to tell, even if it was a test to find out how well he followed their rules. He… He wasn’t sure he had lied to Aizawa and Yamada since they had brought him home. 

He had definitely avoided the truth of some of his nastier homes, but he had never outright lied regarding a direct question they had asked him. It was a hard feeling of guilt to ignore, Hitoshi found. 

“O- Oh. Yeah! Of course, just… make sure to eat something at lunch today, okay?” Hitoshi gave a quick nod before standing up with his bag, heading for the door, mumbling an excuse and a goodbye before he was out the door and heading towards the direction of the school quickly. 

There had been no mention of whatever the rest of his grounding would entail, but Hitoshi could assume well enough that it would involve missing some of his meals and… something. There had to be more than just ‘grounded to his room.’ That was hardly even a punishment– That was more of a vacation when he considered all the people in Class 1-A that tried to hang out after school with him. 

No, there had to be something that they weren’t telling him yet. Or, maybe, it was something they were watching him to see if he truly deserved it? Hitoshi wouldn’t be surprised if they were the type of people to base their punishments off whether or not the kid was truly sorry about what had happened. They were both pretty soft teachers, after all. 

Well, whatever it was, Hitoshi would just have to accept it, prove that he was sorry about breaking their rules, and then everything would go back to normal. 

Easy. 

⁂

Except the mess Hitoshi had found himself in wasn’t easy and he was certain, with every part of him, that he was about to be the youngest kid in U.A. history to have a complete mental breakdown with the way his week had gone. 

“Hey, Shinsou-san!” After doing his best to not jump out of his skin, Hitoshi looked up at Uraraka, who was half-leaning over his desk and looking more excited than any person had a right to. It was mildly disconcerting. “Did you ask your parents if you could go to that concert next week with us?” 

“Oh. Right.” The concert that Hitoshi had been planning to ask ‘his parents’ about before the complete shitshow that had been dumped onto his life courtesy of Nakamura. “I forgot where I’ve been dealing with my grounding and everything.” 

Uraraka frowned, Hitoshi half-worried before he realized it was a sympathetic expression followed by a soft, “Aw, that’s right. Are you grounded next week, too?”

“I… don’t know yet.” That was part of the reason as to why Hitoshi was ready to be the youngest person in U.A. history with a complete mental breakdown. 

Hitoshi had found himself barely eating his lunches while at school, let alone the meals he shared with Aizawa and Yamada, and he kept second-guessing every word and movement made around the two as if one more wrong thing would get him tossed out on the street. 

Not to mention the fond, warm touches had all but disappeared due to Hitoshi’s own fault, his stupid body flinching away every time one of them so much as came too close to him. It was worse than when he had first moved in and, over the last couple of days, the two had been sharing… looks. 

Hitoshi hadn’t been able to tell what the looks had been about, but after almost a full week of them he had little doubt that they were starting to realize they had chosen the wrong kid to adopt. Fuck, Hitoshi wouldn’t have been surprised if they tossed him back into the system for a couple of months; maybe until he could prove that he could follows their rules and directions. 

Granted even Hitoshi realized it was a rather crazy conspiracy theory, but, as of yesterday, all those fond, warm looks and hugs and ruffles to his hair had stopped. There wasn’t much else something like that could mean. 

“Well! Just let me know if they let you go!” Uraraka’s cheerful call snapped him out of his thoughts, Hitoshi giving a quick nod before the girl was running off to infect someone else with her cheer; thankfully. 

It wasn’t that Hitoshi had anything against the bubbly hero hopeful, but the half-realized thought that he might get into even more trouble for talking to his friends and classmates had him staying quiet in class, citing excuse after excuse to the others as he focused on his homework – or tried to, at any rate. He wasn’t sure how much Aizawa and Yamada were buying his ‘dutiful student’ routine. 

The announcement for lunch had Hitoshi out in the hall with his things before he could be stopped by either a teacher or his classmates, thankful for the excuse to avoid interaction. If he hurried, it was possible he could grab his lunch and manage to actually eat something before hiding out on the roof until it was time for the next class. 

That had been the plan, at least, until he had heard the far too cheerful, “Shinsou!” Hitoshi didn’t have to turn around to know that Midoriya was quickly approaching and, after multiple classes and exercises, Hitoshi knew that there was little chance of him outrunning the other when he was exhausted and distracted.

After a moment of convincing himself that he was perfectly fine and could handle dealing with the overwhelming force of cheer that was Midoriya Izuku, Hitoshi greeted the other with a soft, “Hey, Midoriya.” 

“Hi!” The kid smiled bright enough that Hitoshi almost wanted to squint. “I wanted to ask if you wanted to have lunch with us today.” Hitoshi almost felt bad saying no with how bright the kid was smiling. Almost. 

“Sorry, I’m busy catching up on some work, still. Maybe next week.” If Hitoshi was even still in the Heroics department. He was still too far behind on work for his liking. “Unless you needed anything else-”

“Actually…” Midoriya trailed off and Hitoshi braced himself for the well-meaning nosiness that was about to come. “I- Well, you’ve looked distracted the last couple of days, and…” Midoriya trailed off, fumbling with his words before meeting Hitoshi’s gaze nervously. “Is everything okay?”

Hitoshi blinked, speechless for longer than he would have wanted because he hadn’t… even realized he was acting all that differently. Midoriya looked like he was waiting for an answer, though, and Hitoshi finally stumbled through the question he couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Why do you think everything isn’t okay?”

“Oh! Well, uh… I don’t know. You were opening up to the class, but now you seemed to have started ignoring everyone like you did when you first transferred in. You also go out of your way to avoid bumping into anyone or even getting too close to them, and yesterday in our search and rescue exercise you almost dropped the I-beam you were holding up with your binding cloth because Sero touched your shoulder.”

“I… You noticed all of that?” Hitoshi asked quietly, feeling something in his chest start to shudder at the thought that not only had his behavior changed so suddenly without his notice, but that everyone else had noticed the changes.

Midoriya nodded, smile as embarrassed as it was sympathetic, “I kind of have a habit of noticing things about people. And, I mean, I guess all of that could be explained away, but then it struck me as weird how you started acting around Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei. You were always friendly towards them, but now you act almost as if you’re scared-”

“I am not scared of them!” The shout took them both by surprise, Midoriya stumbling a couple of steps back and Hitoshi biting the inside of his cheek hard enough he was surprised he didn’t taste blood. “Look, I have to go. I have work-” 

“Did something happen, Shinsou?” Fuck, leave it to Midoriya, who actually cared about people and was heroic in every sense of the word, to notice the things Hitoshi hadn’t wanted noticed. “I’m sure-” 

“Nothing happened, Midoriya,” Hitoshi snapped, almost groaning at the earnest expression still directed at him. “Look, I just broke a rule at my house and got grounded for it. That’s all. There is nothing else wrong with me.” 

“I never said there was anything wrong with you, Shinsou.” Of all the fucking people to dig into his business of course it had to be Midoriya who Hitoshi couldn’t even feel angry at. “Rough grounding?” 

“No, it isn’t,” Hitoshi snapped off bitterly, storming his way past Midoriya and completely unsurprised when he heard footsteps following him. “That’s the problem.” 

“It is? Wait- You’re upset because you think you deserve a worse grounding for whatever rule you broke?” Of course Midoriya had to be smart the one time Hitoshi didn’t want him to be. “Do you think maybe you’re being too hard on yourself-” 

Hitoshi stopped abruptly enough that he felt Midoriya almost crash into him, but instead of giving the other time to recover, Hitoshi spun around and glared at him. “I broke one of their rules. Maybe it’s different in other families, but when you’re a foster kid who just got adopted? You don’t break rules without consequences. You break a rule once and that’s it. I’m lucky Aizawa and Yamada didn’t just toss me out of their house!” 

It took half a second for Hitoshi to realize just what he had let slip, every response he had screaming for him to run before Midoriya was immediately holding up his hands with a quick, “I won’t tell anyone! Just please don’t run and hear me out!” 

“You have ten seconds,” Hitoshi finally muttered, resisting the urge to just take off down the hallway instead of dealing with Midoriya of all things. 

“Okay, so, first I really do promise I won’t tell anyone what you just told me – both being adopted and who you were adopted by. I… I definitely understand about keeping parts of your life a secret, even if it’s nothing bad.” 

Hitoshi let himself relax a small amount, silently deciding that if he had to be stressed enough to reveal that of all things, at least it was to someone like Midoriya, who actually had a sense of decency and wouldn’t run off gossiping. “And second?”

“Second… I might be overstepping, but I think you should talk to them about how you’re feeling,” Midoriya said carefully, as if fully realizing how stupid his idea was. “I mean… Things were pretty rough between me and my mom for a while because I didn’t tell her how I was feeling about things that were going on in my life and that put more pressure on me than I thought it did. I think it might be the same with you.” 

Breathing steadily for a few moments, Hitoshi finally groaned and moved to lean against the wall, doing his best to not just collapse as he muttered an exhausted, “Explain.” Thankfully, Hitoshi didn’t need to elaborate. 

“You’ve been… maybe not jumpy, but you’ve been a lot more tense and wound up this week, and I don’t think I’ve seen you really eat lunch since Monday. Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei haven’t exactly been themselves, either, and I don’t know exactly what has you so worried, but if it had something to do with being grounded and your… parents, I, uh, I think that maybe you should talk to them and tell them how you’re feeling. It won’t make things worse- It never makes things worse.”

“I…” Hitoshi trailed off, letting his eyes shut for a moment as he took a deep breath, thinking over Midoriya’s words. It really did sound like the absolute worst plan. “I’ll think about it.” 

“Great! You can think about it while you have lunch with us today!” Snapping his eyes open to see Midoriya’s cheerful expression that meant he wouldn’t take no for an answer, Hitoshi narrowed his eyes before snorting and starting to walk towards the cafeteria, Midoriya falling into step beside him. “So, uh… Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei…?”

Hitoshi couldn’t stop his laugh, half-aware that it was his first one since he had been grounded before he was shaking his head, “It just… works between them.” 

Hopefully, if Hitoshi was careful, he could make it work between all of them without having to really talk to them about what he was feeling. It wouldn’t be easy to avoid them until it was all over, but it wasn’t like it could be too difficult.  

⁂

Hitoshi mumbled his usual, “I’m home.” under his breath softly before trudging his way into the house, exhaustion dragging him down along with indecision as to whether his weekend homework or a nap should be first. The choice was taken away when he heard Yamada’s soft voice from the living room. 

“‘Toshi? Can we talk, kiddo?” The words were said softly enough that Hitoshi almost didn’t worry, but it was impossible to hear the words can we talk without feeling the fear that often came with them; especially with the way his week had gone. 

The fear, however, didn’t stop him from hesitantly walking into the living room, a glance around the room showing Yamada and Aizawa both on the couch, Yamada fidgeting nervously and Aizawa looking worryingly expressive. 

Aizawa was the first one to talk, greeting Hitoshi with a soft, “Welcome home.” Yamada was quick to parrot it, Hitoshi offering a weak smile of his own in response to theirs, shuffling his way towards one of the armchairs.

It felt like an eternity of silence before Aizawa broke it again, speaking softly, but firmly, “First off, we’re not talking to you because you’re in anymore trouble. Neither of us are upset at you in any way. Got it?” 

“Got it,” Hitoshi said quietly, his fear no longer growing, at least. Aizawa, while blunt, had never tried to manipulate or lie to him, and he doubted the man was about to start anytime soon, even after everything that had happened. It was enough to settle something in him; however small it was. 

Yamada, perhaps sensing his change in mood because Yamada was just like that, beamed as he chirped out a cheerful, “If anyone’s in trouble, it’s Shouta for not doing the dishes last night like he promised.” 

The sight of Aizawa flushing with embarrassment, while not new, was startling enough after the last couple of days that Hitoshi couldn’t help the weak smile he felt on his face. It wasn’t quite a laugh, but Yamada looked pleased, at least, and that… that was something. 

“This might be a bit awkward, kiddo, but do you feel up to answering some questions for us? Nothing too personal! Just… it’s about this week, mostly.” Ah, and there it was. They were probably going to talk about the behavior they had observed in him before deciding his final punishment for his rule breaking. “Okay, so, first, do you feel like you need to go to a doctor?”

“I- Wha-” Snapping off the question, Hitoshi took a moment to center himself before shaking his head. “No. I don’t need to go to a doctor. I’m not sure why you think I do.” 

“You haven’t been eating.” So they had noticed that, then. “You’ll eat a few bites when Hizashi asks you too, but otherwise I don’t think I’ve seen you eat breakfast or dinner since Monday.” There was something accusatory in Aizawa’s gaze that had Hitoshi on edge even more than before. “I haven’t seen you in the cafeteria the last couple of days at school, either, not including today.” 

Hitoshi shifted in his seat, trying to push down the sudden bout of nervous fear that he felt like drowning in. It was impossible to lie to himself anymore and say he wasn’t afraid. “I just… haven’t been very hungry. I don’t think I’m sick or anything, though.” 

“Does your lack of appetite have something to do with you no longer asking questions?” Yamada asked softly, Hitoshi freezing for a moment at how the man almost sounded upset that he was no longer risking anything by asking questions like he had been. 

Struggling for an answer, Hitoshi finally just shrugged, looking away from them after risking a quick glance. They didn’t look angry, at least. “I guess I just… didn’t have any questions to ask lately.” There was a sound like a laugh from Aizawa that had him hiding a wince. 

“‘Toshi,” Yamada almost whined with how hurt he suddenly sounded. “You’re- Kiddo, you’re pulling away.” Alright, that had Hitoshi looking to him in confusion. 

“I… I don’t know what you mean by that.” It was true he had gone straight to his room after school instead of sitting in the living room with his homework like he had done over the last few weeks, but he hadn’t thought he was pulling away from them. Not really, at least.

“Kid,” Aizawa sighed, something deep and tired. “You flinch when we get too close to you. You haven’t done that in months.” That… they had noticed that, then. “At first we just thought you were having a bad day, but it’s been going on almost all week, Hitoshi.” 

“And you know we want you to feel safe enough to have your own space, but… You haven’t been sleeping well, either.” They had noticed that? “Put that with not eating and flinching away and no longer asking questions and it- It doesn’t look good, kiddo.” 

Had… they really noticed all of those things? It wasn’t like Hitoshi had tried to hide anything, but he- It was a part of his grounding – or it was supposed to be. That’s how it was supposed to be. 

“Hitoshi.” Aizawa’s voice was soft and worried. “We can’t help if we don’t know what’s going on with you. What happened?” 

“I…” Did they not realize that what he had been doing was just what happened when you grounded a kid? It was normal. It had to be normal. 

“Just tell us what’s wrong, ‘Toshi, and we’ll do our best to help.” Yamada sounded so damn earnest and it reminded Hitoshi of his conversation with Midoriya and the other teen urging him to just talk to them. 

Hitoshi wasn’t that good at talking about his ‘feelings,’ though, and he made that clear with a simple, “It’s not that important.” Because it wasn’t. It wasn’t important, it was just… It was how it went. He was fine. It was fine. 

“Yes, it is.” Aizawa sounded serious in a way he hadn’t been when Hitoshi had come home so late. He sounded serious in the way he had promised Hitoshi would never have to go back to his last foster home – or any foster home. “You’re important to us, Hitoshi.” 

The words… hurt. The words, the tone, the expressions, the way they seemed like they cared so damn much– It hurt. It hurt enough that Hitoshi jumped to his feet before he could think the action through, words leaving him in a rush because wasn’t it obvious? “I’m fine, I’m just trying to figure out when you’re going to finish punishing me!”

Not pausing to see their expressions or hear their responses, Hitoshi shoved a hand through his hair, wincing at the stab of pain from the aggressive action. “I mean- I get it. I fucked up. I broke a rule by not getting back at the right time, so why won’t you just get it over with?! It can’t just be as light as telling me no games or anything and sticking me in my room for a week- That’s not how it works. 

“You’re supposed to limit me to one meal a day, or tell me to do all the chores in the house until I’ve learned a lesson, or make me get up earlier and get less sleep or something, or- Or-” 

“Or hit you?” It wasn’t the words that had Hitoshi snapping his mouth shut so much as how pained Yamada sounded as he asked them. 

“I… that’s how it goes, isn’t it?” Hitoshi watched as Yamada stood up, eyeing him warily until the man was close enough to touch him, staring at him evenly with eyes that looked suspiciously wet. 

“Right. I’m going to hug you, okay?” Hitoshi blinked, caught off guard before blinking as Yamada wrapped him up in a tight hug, Hitoshi only absently realizing that he hadn’t flinched. Instead, he froze at the feeling of warmth and safety before he near collapsed in the hug, silently hoping Yamada would forgive him for how tightly he was clinging to him. “‘Toshi… Hitoshi, we could never- We could never hurt you like that. Those aren’t- Those aren’t groundings. That is abuse, Hitoshi.” 

A moment passed before there was the feeling of fingers combing his hair back gently, Hitoshi cracking his eyes open – surprised he had even closed them – to see Aizawa looking as emotional as Yamada usually did. “Hitoshi… we didn’t ground you because you broke a rule, we grounded you because we were scared for you.” 

“I… what?” Hitoshi felt the hug get tighter, words stuck in his throat before he managed to get them out. “Why… why would you be scared for me?” 

A near hysterical laugh left Yamada, Hitoshi wincing at the sound and feeling a stab of guilt he couldn’t explain. “Why would we be scared? Because you’re our son. We were scared because you went two prefectures away and we didn’t know if you had been hurt, or were in trouble, or- We were scared of losing you, Hitoshi. We were never angry at you.” 

“We love you, Hitoshi.” Aizawa said it simply and bluntly, as if it were just another fact he was stating. They were only four words that should not have made Hitoshi feel so overwhelmed. “Nothing you do could ever make us love you less, either.” 

“You… really aren’t angry,” Hitoshi said softly, something in him almost collapsing in relief as he felt his eyes start to burn. He was almost positive neither would mind, or comment, if he did actually cry. “But-”

“No buts,” Aizawa cut him off, a corner of his mouth lifting into an amused smirk. “If you’re really still unable to accept it, however, then your punishment is to never forget that we love you, even if we seem upset or disappointed in you. Okay?” 

“That was lame,” Hitoshi mumbled even as he felt the burning in his eyes get worse. “Okay.” It was a punishment he was sure he could handle, all things considered. 

“Shouta is pretty lame,” Yamada mock-whispered, rubbing at Hitoshi’s back and almost causing Hitoshi to let out a sob at the feeling. “Poor thing… you’ve really been through it this week, haven’t you? Tell you what, why don’t we watch some dumb tv for a while, and then you can catch up on some sleep and all the meals you’ve been missing.”

Hitoshi was silent for a moment, more and more of him relaxing at the soft, warm touches that he had felt starved of over the last few days. Finally, though, he managed to grab enough control to roll his eyes, pulling back enough so Yamada was sure to see it. “Aren’t I supposed to be grounded from television for the entire week?” 

There was a snort of laughter from Aizawa even as Yamada looked like he had been terribly betrayed. It was a common enough occurrence that Hitoshi felt something in him settle, fear wiped away like it had never been there at all. 

“You know, kid, I think you punished yourself enough to make up for it,” Aizawa said quietly, gently tugging him out of Yamada’s grip before leading him to the couch. “C’mon, let’s pick a movie while that idiot starts on dinner.” 

“You’re so mean to your husband,” Yamada whined, long and loud and dramatic enough to draw Hitoshi into a bout of laughter that he knew the two were all too pleased by. “I’ll make dinner for both myself and my son, but I’m not sure, Shou-chan… you might be on your own.” 

“Hm. Alright. I’m sure I have a few energy pouches-” Aizawa was cut off by Yamada’s screech, Hitoshi trying to smother his laughter at the fact Aizawa looked so smug. 

It was just what Hitoshi needed, eating dinner with his parents and curling up between them on an overstuffed couch that was buried under a pile of blankets and pillows with dumb movies playing in the background. 

It was perfect enough that Hitoshi had to mumble a soft, “I promise not to tell anyone we cuddled on the couch watching old animated movies if you guys promise, too.” 

“Great minds think alike,” Aizawa replied simply, Hitoshi stifling a laugh from where he was tucked against the man’s side, feeling more than hearing the other’s own small huff of laughter. “Although Hizashi probably already told someone by now.” 

A glance to Yamada, who had his phone out and was looking way too guilty, and Hitoshi settled for rolling his eyes as dramatically as he could manage. “Please tell me it was Kayama-sensei and not your Twitter account.” 

“I would tell you that, but, uh, not sure I should be setting a bad example by lying, kiddo.” Silent for a moment, Hitoshi tilted his head back so he was looking up at Aizawa. 

“Congratulations. You’re an only parent.” Yamada, Hitoshi decided, was dead to him. 

Yamada gave a broken, betrayed whine the same moment Aizawa burst into a bout of laughter, Hitoshi settling down and listening to them ‘argue’ as he focused on them more than whatever movie had come on. 

It was loud and chaotic and full of more interaction than he had ever had to deal with in a home, but it was… it was good. It was good and, even with all of his doubt over the week he had been grounded, he still had never felt unsafe when with Aizawa and Yamada. He had been terrified they would get rid of him, and even at points afraid of them, but he had never felt like he wasn’t safe, and that alone was enough to reassure him that even if he were to be grounded again, because he was self-aware enough to know that his idea of ‘self-care’ was bad on a good day, he at least wouldn’t immediately think the worst. 

When Hitoshi really thought about it, being grounded to his room had been a blessing and a great reason to avoid Class 1-A and their attempts at ‘bonding’ with him, especially Uraraka and her latest attempts to drag him out to a concert which, Hizashi startled at realizing, was next week. 

“Hey,” Hitoshi spoke up, interrupting the arguing and pleased when both his parents looked to him at once. “Since we’re sharing and everything, can I get grounded for another week?”

“That depends,” Yamada said slowly, narrowing his eyes. “What do you mean by grounding and why do you want it?” Hitoshi had to work to stifle a laugh before he continued.

“Confined to my room and not allowed to hang out with my friends until Thursday.” The concert was on Tuesday, but if he was grounded until Thursday then it would seem less like he was trying to avoid spending time with them by using his grounding as an excuse. “Uraraka, Iida, and Midoriya are trying to drag me to some kind of concert they got permission to go to.” 

Yamada and Aizawa shared a look over his head, Hitoshi waiting patiently before Aizawa nodded with a shrug and a simple, “Sure.” 

“Wha- No! The look I gave you was obviously not agreement, Shouta!” Yamada puffed out his cheeks in a pout, struggling to sit up properly from under a heap of blankets as he got ready to argue. 

“You would torture our son by forcing him to socially interact outside of a school setting before he’s ready?” Aizawa hadn’t even fully finished before Hitoshi had turned to hide his face against the man’s side, attempting to stifle his laughter as Yamada kicked up a fuss. 

As the two ‘argued’ between their bursts of laughter, Hitoshi relaxed more and more into his blankets, eyes closing as his body decided stuck between Aizawa and Yamada was the perfect chance to catch up on his lost sleep. 

A soft laugh above him had him only barely twitching, a hand threading through his hair relaxing him the rest of the way as a voice on his other side whispered a soft, “Sleep well, ‘Toshi.”

Hitoshi didn’t even try to hide his smile, deciding that, if nothing else, he never had to worry about dealing with his problems on his own. It was a good feeling. “Thanks, Dads.” 

Chapter Two

Between the constant vibration of his phone alarm, the non-stop purring vibrations of both their cats, and the morning sunlight that fell just so in an attempt to blind him even with his eyes closed, Yamada-Aizawa Hizashi finally admitted defeat with a soft groan as he opened his eyes. He then immediately closed them as a yawn overtook his body and tried to drag him back under.

Before he could give in to the temptation, the arm thrown over his side twitched and the chest Hizashi had been peacefully asleep on rumbled with a small, short vibration. Hizashi, still half-asleep, managed to grumble out a soundless, “Stop laughing at me.” He then buried closer to the chest, snuggling into the warm fabric and even warmer man it belonged to.

When there was only another vibration characteristic of his husband’s short, sharp laughs, Hizashi pouted and pushed himself up to at least be sitting, squinting down at what he knew would have been a smile if he could properly see it. “You’re so mean to your husband, Shouta.”

There was shifting underneath him, Hizashi dozing off even just sitting up before he felt his glasses gently being slipped into their proper place. A couple of fuzzy blinks and Hizashi watched as Shouta, rumpled and still looking drowsy, used his hands to sign out a lethargic, ‘You like it when I’m mean.’ 

Hizashi didn’t even try to stop his bark of laughter, catching Shouta’s hands with his own before leaning in to give him a sweet, lingering kiss that as all too easy to get wrapped up in. It was made even easier when Shouta wrapped an arm around him and dragged him back down and under the covers.

“Hey, some of us actually like to wake up in the mornings,” Hizashi complained, not needing his hearing aids to know Shouta was calling him out for his lie while giving him a judgmental look. He did as he always did, however, and pretended he didn’t know a thing of what the man was saying. “Sorry. I’m deaf.”

Shouta rolled his eyes and the next thing Hizashi knew he was laughing from under a blanket that had been dragged over his head. It took a bit of struggle before he finally managed to escape, whining softly when he was only dragged back in close to Shouta. It would have been far too easy to fall back asleep for another hour or two – which was no doubt Shouta’s plan.

Turning in the hold to argue his way to freedom, Hizashi paused. He then narrowed his eyes and watched Shouta blink tiredly down at him. Moving his arms to free his hands enough to sign, Hizashi signed out a quick, ‘You know, you look very exhausted for someone who went to bed early last night.’

The guilty expression was one he would have been able to make out even without his glasses, Hizashi mused to himself. Settling back, he gave Shouta a few minutes to try and think of a lie, watching the man calmly blink up at him in what was suppressed panic. Finally, though, he signed out a quick, ‘Weird dreams?’

Trying to stifle what was probably more laughter, Hizashi shook his head and honestly, his husband. ‘You got caught up trying to finish paperwork, didn’t you?’

‘No,’ Shouta signed, guilty expression never wavering. ‘I was grading.’ Hizashi wasn’t sure what was cuter; the fact Shouta never changed, or the fact that he was pouting.

Shaking his head, Hizashi signed out a quick, ‘Alright, alright. You get another hour, but I’m going to start on breakfast. Any requests?’ 

‘Chef’s choice,’ Shouta signed, hands moving to cup the back of Hizashi’s neck and drag him back into a soft, lazy sort of kiss that Hizashi would never get tired of. It was a kiss that would always remind him of lazy mornings, soft touches, and the knowledge that there would be hundreds more. He then realized it was a trap.

“Oh, no! You’re not winning that easily!” Hizashi managed to drag himself away from the kiss and out of bed, ignoring Shouta’s laughter. “Your hated of mornings will never win!”

Watching Shouta snort and roll back over to go to sleep, Hizashi shook his head and finally moved to slip off into the bathroom to take a quick shower, make sure his hearing aids were fully charged, and get himself together for the day. 

It was a routine that was years old, but with one new addition that Hizashi delighted in as he did every morning. 

The door that used to belong to the guest bedroom was now a door Hizashi opened carefully and quietly, peeking in not to see a plain bed and an empty desk and set of drawers, but a room that was stuffed with pillows, blankets, scattered homework, and even more scattered pieces of clothing and hero merch that was often hidden under dark corners. 

There, in the center of the bed, though, was their adopted son Shinsou Hitoshi, dead asleep in a messy nest of pillows and blankets with one arm thrown over the edge of the bed, another thrown over his eyes, and his hair an utter and complete wreck. Hizashi did nothing whatsoever to hide his silly grin as he shut the door carefully, taking a moment to revel in the fact that they had a son. 

It took a few moments before he pulled it together and managed to start on breakfast, but soon enough Hizashi had everything spread out along the counters and ready before he was leaning out of the kitchen to shout out, “Breakfast time!” 

Thankfully, unlike Shouta, Hitoshi actually came when called the first time, Hizashi happily greeting the kid with a tight hug as soon as he came into view – he also tried to smooth some of his hair down, but he wasn’t sure how successful he was in that one. If the kid’s hair was anything like Shouta’s, it was a losing battle on Hizashi’s part. “Morning, ‘Toshi!”

“Morning,” Hitoshi said softly, leaning forward to return the hug, and, really, Hizashi wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from hugging the kid even tighter if he wanted to. Of course, Hitoshi, because he was also Shouta’s kid, gave a soft snort when he asked, “Do I have to worry about eating eggshells this time?”

“Hey! That was one time!” Hizashi pulled back just enough to pout at him, trying not to break the illusion by beaming at how Hitoshi looked like he was doing his best to not burst into laughter. “I was just… a little sleepy.”

“Hey, we both told you to remember to take your hearing aids out that night since construction was going on to repair the street,” Hitoshi shrugged, tired eyes and sleepy, amused smile so much like Shouta’s. It was all Hizashi could do to fake a loud whine, bringing back Hitoshi into another hug because god, this kid was most definitely theirs. 

“Okay, okay,” Hitoshi sighed, Hizashi hearing the faint edges of suppressed laughter. It was so different from when he had first started living with them months ago and could barely even work up a smile. “I’m sorry. Your cooking is amazing.” 

“Hell yeah it is!” Hizashi finally laughed, letting Hitoshi go and making one last attempt to fix the kid’s hair before he was pushing him towards the kitchen to eat breakfast. “Now-” Breakfast. It was breakfast and Shouta hadn’t come down yet. 

Glancing around the room just to make sure Shouta hadn’t snuck his way in while he was greeting Hitoshi, Hizashi frowned and oh, that little… Behind him, Hitoshi gave a snort of laughter, along with a quiet, “He went back to bed, I think.” He knew it. 

“Of course he did,” Hizashi huffed, crossing his arms for a moment before cheering back up because, well, he would just have to wake Shouta up himself, if that was the case. “Go ahead and start eating, kid. I’ll make sure Shouta joins us for breakfast.” 

Hardly a minute and Hizashi was up the stairs and in front of their bedroom door, pushing it open as slowly and quietly as he could before grinning at seeing Shouta curled up under the covers. It was unlikely that he had actually fallen back asleep and Hizashi knew for a fact that, since the man hadn’t had patrol last night and had only done grading, he was being lazy rather than sleepy. It was unforgivable when that meant missing family breakfast time. 

Thankful for his pro hero training, Hizashi crept closer as silently as he could, scanning the room quickly. Both of their cats he had seen downstairs and already eating their own breakfast, so that meant he only had to worry about dodging one person instead of one person and two cats. Nodding to himself, Hizashi let go of his control on his quirk just a hair before shouting out a cheerful, “Good morning, Shou-chan!” 

Hizashi had barely finished before he was sidestepping Shouta’s quick attack after his launch from the bed. He then had to throw an arm up to block the pillow flying at his face, snorting at the ‘attack.’ His amusement quickly faded for a yelp when familiar white bands shot out, wrapping around him and pinning his legs together and his arms to his body. A quick twist and Hizashi was on the floor, rather painlessly, he noted, with Shouta sitting on top of him with a slight smirk, excess bands wrapped loosely around his neck.

Hizashi had no qualms about pouting and whining and squirming around underneath him to try and be as annoying as possible. “Shouta! Weapons are cheating you promised you would stop cheating!” 

“Then stop using your quirk and I wouldn’t have to do this,” Shouta shrugged, the bands around Hizashi loosening as Shouta gave a lazy yawn and leaned back. “Is breakfast done?”

“Yup! And as cute as you look when asleep, there’s no missing out on family breakfast time,” Hizashi lectured, deciding his lecture lost some impact when he was still tied up on the ground. Shouta, however, didn’t seem to be in any rush to let him up.

Deciding that was just fine, Hizashi gave a few short tenses and wiggles of his body to test the hold. There was a reason, after all, that only Hizashi had sparred against Shouta by the time they were in their third year of U.A.

A sharp wiggle in just the right way had his arms free, Hizashi dragging Shouta down into a tight hug that had the man laughing. Hizashi gave a soft hum at the sound, turning just so to press an equally soft kiss to Shouta’s cheek, hands settling on the man’s lower back. “No more sleeping. It’s a school day, anyways.”

Shouta sighed, shifting and turning until he caught Hizashi’s lips in a soft kiss before finally standing up, heading for the bedroom door. Hizashi didn’t let him even touch the handle before he was up and grabbing Shouta’s arm, stepping out of the bundle of binding cloth on the floor and pulling Shouta towards the bathroom. “Nope! Meds first!” 

The dirty look he was given was one Hizashi was very used to, deciding he would deal with whatever revenge Shouta came up with later. Someone had to make sure his idiot took his medicine, after all.

It was another few minutes before they made it back downstairs, but soon enough they were all seated at the table and eating properly, Hizashi marveling once again at the fact that they had a kid. 

It may have been months since the official adoption, but that didn’t mean Hizashi was ever going to stop feeling gleeful about it – or that Shouta would ever stop teasing him about it. Honestly, how was Hizashi not supposed to be gleeful every time Hitoshi welcomed their little touches and hugs without flinching away like he used to do? 

And, yes, Hizashi might have indulged by making Hitoshi’s favorite foods a little too often, or happily driving him to school with him and Shouta every morning he could, but the way he saw it, he was just making up for all the good the kid could have had in life.

“Honestly,” Shouta sighed, giving a look to Hizashi over the roof of their car. His look was one that probably had to do with the fact Hizashi was still half-watching Hitoshi to make sure he got into the school safely – nevermind the fact that he was as safe as possible when they were essentially locked onto the U.A. campus once they passed the gates. There was also the fact that they were in the teacher’s parking lot, too, which made it even more safe if anything were to happen. “You look at him like he’s your firstborn.” 

“Oh?” Hizashi finally shut his door and made sure the car was locked before giving his full attention to Shouta. “This coming from the one who brought home adoption papers one day out of nowhere.” A bit of an exaggeration, granted, but not much one of one.

Shouta, on his part, gave him a long, slow blink, staring at him blankly before turning away and walking towards the school. Hizashi couldn’t help but to beam because that meant he won. It was a nice feeling, overall. 

It was especially nice when Hizashi realized it would be a day like all the ones before it where he would get to return home to his family and relax with everything being so right. 

Except Hitoshi hadn’t come home.

It had been normal enough to not see the kid when they first got home. Their schedules after school didn’t always line up and sometimes Hitoshi liked to wander the neighborhood, get in an extra workout back at U.A., or even just visit their local cat cafe because he was worse than Shouta ever had been. 

Hitoshi not answering his texts or calls, too, was rather normal. It was something Hizashi was working on training Hitoshi out of, but, well… It wasn’t hard to see that Hitoshi hadn’t exactly had a stable support system growing up. The kid left his phone on silent or vibrate more than he should – probably no doubt used to no one attempting to get into contact with him. 

It was when dinner had come and gone, and Hitoshi still wasn’t home or answering any calls or texts, that Hizashi felt himself start to spiral down into his panic. It was only his rapid pacing up and down the living room floor that kept him from completely losing it and running outside to search the entirety of Japan.

“And he hasn’t answered any of your texts, either? Are we sure he didn’t tell one of us something or leave us a note anywhere?” Hizashi barely paid attention to Shouta’s quiet shake of his head, instead checking his phone again. There were no new messages since his last check and the last message from Hitoshi was a string of emojis in response to some cat video Hizashi had sent him that he could no longer remember because his kid was missing. 

Hizashi barely realized he was swearing under his breath until he came close to either throwing his phone or punching the wall out of mounting frustration because his kid was gone and he was just standing there. “It’s almost midnight! What if something happened to him and we’re just sitting here!”

It was only years of training that kept Hizashi from activating his quirk as he gave a short, frustrated scream, “There was a villain attack on one of the trains today! What if he’s hurt and in the hospital, or at the police station with a broken phone, or- God, we’re such awful fucking parents! I should have driven him home after school! I saw him leaving through the gates today I should have just followed him and dragged him into the car or something!”

Sucking in another deep breath to keep going, Hizashi froze in his spot and felt his heart skip a beat. He was still aware enough to know he was spiraling into his panic, but he was also aware enough to know that Shouta wasn’t trying to stop him. 

A quick glance to the couch, where Shouta had sat himself hours ago, showed that the man was staring blankly at his phone, a tremor in his shoulders making Hizashi absolutely certain that he would never breathe again. If Shouta was panicking… Oh, God, if Shouta was panicking then that meant their kid was dead-!

The soft sound of the front door opening and closing had Hizashi’s thoughts rapidly disappearing into a blank, sudden silence. Whipping around showed that Hitoshi, tired and alive and not at all hurt was shuffling in place and kicking his shoes off, stumbling against the wall in what was clear exhaustion. 

Hitoshi was okay. He wasn’t hurt, he was alive, he was clearly exhausted, but he was alive and safe and that was good. That was so good because that meant Hizashi wouldn’t feel one bit bad about scolding him because he had been worried sick. 

“I’m home,” Hitoshi mumbled softly, almost as if talking to himself or repeating the phrase on instinct. On any other day it would have been wonderful to know that Hitoshi felt so naturally at home with them, but, well.

Hizashi wasn’t about to let his mushy feelings ruin the fact he needed to impress upon Hitoshi just how serious his running off and not contacting them had been. Thankfully, he had Shouta, who had already moved to stand beside him.

“Welcome home,” Shouta said softly, Hizashi so clearly hearing between the words just how sick with worry Shouta had been himself. The man had probably been having USJ flashbacks for hours.

Hitoshi looked at them with wide eyes and Hizashi didn’t even last a second before he finally asked the question that had been running through his mind for hours, “Where have you been?!” With the question out, Hizashi felt his worry come back full force, along with the fear that if one thing had been different, it was possible that Hitoshi might not have come home. 

“You’ve been gone for hours and we had no idea where you were!” Not coming home for an extra hour or two, that was something Hizashi understood! He himself had been the type to stay out late, but staying out until midnight with no explanation or even a text? “You could have been dead in a villain attack and we would have no idea!” 

There had been that attack on the train and three people had been sent to the hospital and it was a train that Hitoshi would sometimes ride and he could have been hurt. “Hitoshi you could have been- Been killed or kidnapped and-” And it would have been their fault because they were his parents. “-we would have had no fucking idea!”

There was a moment of silence in the room, Hizashi starting to feel guilty for no doubt raising his voice, but god. He had been so scared. He thought he was ready for all the challenges involved in being the parent to a teenager, but… He had never thought he could be so scared. Being a pro hero had nothing on being a parent.

“I-” Hitoshi stuttered over his words, something about his tone off in a way that Hizashi, still fighting his panic and worry, couldn’t quite puzzle out. “I had to go to Tochigi to pick something up, and then Saitama to-” 

“You were where?!” Saitama- Tochigi-! That was multiple prefectures away! That was hours away! “You can’t just- You can’t just disappear to another prefecture without telling us, Hitoshi!” If something had happened- If Hitoshi had called or texted them for help it would have taken far too long to get there. God, his kid had been in Tochigi and Hizashi hadn’t even known. “You can’t do that!”

He knew Hitoshi had been through a rough childhood, but that was no excuse- He wasn’t an adult! He may have thought he was invincible, but he was still just a teenager. He didn’t… “I understand.” Hitoshi’s expression was almost blank, his voice soft and even and did he understand?

“Do you?” God, fucking bless Shouta for being a mind reader. The man still sounded and looked as shaken as Hizashi felt – no doubt Shouta was blaming himself even worse than Hizashi was. He had always been protective of the kids in his care, and this incident had probably hit too close to home. “We’re not done talking about this, but you are grounded.” 

Gathering himself together, Hizashi sighed, trying to drown out his anger at himself and keep his voice reasonably calm as he looked back to Hitoshi, “One week. No friends over, no television or video games, and straight home after school – and I do mean straight home.” 

Watching the kid still staring at him, as if waiting to hear the rest of it, Hizashi clenched his fists for a brief moment, wishing he could throw one at whoever had hurt their kid so badly in the past. It wasn’t exactly hard to guess some of what Hitoshi had gone through when in the system. “Go to bed, Hitoshi. You have school in the morning.”

It wasn’t until Hitoshi was firmly out of sight and Hizashi heard the sound of the kid’s door closing that he shuffled over to the living room couch and collapsed face-first. If he was lucky, he might even suffocate. It would at least stop him from feeling the pain that came from having to ground their kid for the first time. There was also the fact he was still recovering from fully believing their kid had died.

Groaning when he felt the couch dip next to him, Hizashi relaxed at the hand that slid through his hair even as he managed a mumbled, “Do you think we were too hard on him?”

It wasn’t like he and Shouta hadn’t discussed what to do if they had ever had to ground the kid. Hitoshi may have been laidback, easygoing, and had an aversion to breaking rules, but, well, he was a teenager. Hizashi had been prepared for it, he had just hoped they never would have to ground him. 

“I think he would have a different definition of being ‘too hard,’” Shouta finally replied, Hizashi groaning even louder because that was a worse thought – and no doubt a true one. Hizashi had been a part of the system himself when young, and although he hadn’t been in it for as long as Hitoshi, he worked with kids daily. He knew what it was when a kid flinched away like Hitoshi did. 

Shouta’s sigh brought Hizashi back to the present, the hand running through his hair gently moving to instead cup the back of his neck before Shouta said a soft, “Relax, Sunshine. He’s safe.” Yeah. There was at least that much.

“I’m taking that kid’s phone and making it so he’ll never be able to turn the volume down again,” Hizashi decided, Shouta giving a quiet laugh above him.

“He might fight you on that one. He might also be angry at us for a few days, but he needs to learn that this isn’t like his other homes and that we care if he gets hurt doing things like this. If we’re lucky this might teach him to take better care of himself.”

Hizashi managed a quiet laugh, carefully sitting up before slumping down to lean against Shouta, smiling as the man supported his weight at once. “Let’s be honest, Shou,” Hizashi laughed again. “We’re not exactly great at taking care of ourselves either.” 

“Maybe not,” Shouta hummed, lips brushing against Hizashi’s temple. “But that’s why we have each other. And now… he has us.”

Quiet for a moment, Hizashi finally huffed as he shifted and twisted to wrap his arms around Shouta, hugging him tightly. “What the hell, Shouta, we talked about you being sappy, yo! You know I get emotional!”

“That’s why I do it,” Shouta snorted, own arms wrapped tight around Hizashi. “Relax. You can make it up to him by making his favorites for breakfast.” 

“Of course! I’m gonna spoil the crap out of that kid!” Hizashi still felt bad that they had to ground Hitoshi, but, barring some teenage angst, a good night’s sleep and good food would help. 

Besides… Hitoshi was safe and with them. That was all that mattered. 

⁂

Aizawa-Yamada Shouta was used to disciplining teenagers. How could he not be? He worked with students almost every day of his life – students who were dumb teenagers with powerful quirks that they were training to make stronger. It was impossible to be the teacher of a pro-hero school like U.A. without learning the best ways to discipline a teenager and what was most effective. 

Some students responded better to detention, using the time to reflect on what they had done and realize that there had been other solutions. Some responded better to extra chores around the school, the activity tiring them out and making it easier to think through things. There were even a few that responded better to being given extra work or work in leadership positions, which allowed them a chance to become more confident in themselves. 

After so many years and so many students, it was rare that Shouta didn’t know how to get through to a teenager. This time, however, he was firm in the feeling that he had, in Hizashi’s words, ‘fucked up.’

“We fucked up, Shou, we so fucked up!” Hizashi was half-shouting and half-whimpering in his rant, hardly focused on the road at all. It wasn’t exactly reassuring as he was the one driving them. “We didn’t even get a chance to talk to him before he was out the door! He didn’t even eat!” 

Neither of them had gotten the best amount of sleep after they had finally dragged themselves to bed, and after that morning it seemed Hitoshi hadn’t faired much better. It hadn’t been hard to see how the bags under the kid’s eyes were even deeper than normal, and, well, he really was their kid. 

Shouta had little doubt that instead of being angry at them like any other teenager might, he had spiraled into his panic like he and Hizashi both tended to do. It hadn’t exactly been surprising that Hitoshi hadn’t opened his door when Shouta had knocked that morning, but breakfast… 

“He flinched, Shouta!” Hizashi’s dramatics, so easy to pick apart now, showed he was as devastated as Shouta felt. “I went to hug him like I do every morning and he flinched.”

“I know, ‘Zashi,” Shouta sighed, rubbing at his eyes hard enough to sting. The pain didn’t help distract him, his thoughts still centered on that morning. Hizashi had gone to hug the kid and Hitoshi had jerked back like he had been shocked.

It would have been fine if the kid had just been startled due to a lack of sleep, but Hitoshi had flinched back like he was about to be… They had known what kind of home Hitoshi had come from. They knew far too well what the kid had faced through his reports and what he had shared with him, but it never got easier to see it. 

God, Shouta wasn’t sure what had been worse in that moment, either. Hitoshi had flinched away and then near ran to the table as if that would hide his reaction while Hizashi… Hizashi had flinched back like he had been the one who had been hit. 

“Shou, what if we were too hard on him? What if-” Hizashi cut himself off with a sharp yelp, Shouta letting go of the skin he had pinched. 

“Hizashi. We weren’t too hard on him. We grounded him from television and video games he never plays, he spends most of his time in his room anyways, and he’s never brought a friend home since the moment we took him in. It’s not the grounding. I think it was the fact we grounded him at all.” 

Hizashi went silent for a moment, Shouta watching him pull himself together before he gave a soft sigh, “Because in his eyes ‘grounding’ means something a lot worse… This probably brought up some unwelcome memories.” 

“Definitely,” Shouta agreed, looking out the window to see they were almost at the school. “You remember how he was in the beginning. He probably thinks we’re angry at him and that scared him. The best thing we can do is give him time to settle himself down before we approach him. He’ll realize that we’re not angry at him and we can talk it out.” 

“I guess…” Hizashi trailed off, quiet as he pulled them into their usual parking spot before turning the car off, sitting silently. It wasn’t hard to imagine that Hizashi was thinking about his own childhood. “You remember what he said about not trusting adults who work the system?”

“Hard to forget.” Especially with the way the kid had said it with that bitter laugh and that look of fear in his eyes. “Why?” 

Hizashi gripped the steering wheel tightly for a moment, head bowing as he sighed with his whole body. It felt like an eternity before he managed a soft, “He was right. There’s always the occasional outlier, but typically… The system is fucked, Shou, especially with kids with quirks like Hitoshi’s.” 

Shouta hesitated, not sure if Hizashi was referring to the fact Hitoshi had a ‘villainous’ quirk or a voice quirk. He didn’t get to respond, Hizashi already speaking again, “It’s not just crowded homes and the fact the older you get the less likely you are to get adopted. It’s- God, you’ve seen the cases, Shou. There’s so many kids that just disappear out of the system because of the quirk they have.”

“Yeah,” Shouta said softly. “There is.” It was one of the biggest problems in Japan. The rise of quirks had brought with it a rise in power, and quirks were getting stronger all the time. The open cases that involved kidnapped children with powerful quirks were too many for Shouta’s liking.

“Hitoshi is lucky. Even with how shit his life was and how fucking much he went through, it could have been so much worse. A quirk like his…” A quirk like Brainwashing where he could control people? Both sides would want a quirk like that. “And I’m scared of what he hasn’t told us about his time in the system, yet.”

Silent for a long moment, Shouta finally stretched a hand out, smiling when it was gripped tightly after a few seconds. “You want to talk to him about it more?”

“Not now,” Hizashi sighed, tension leaking out of him as he gave Shouta a tired smile. “Like you said, he needs time. But… I think it’s a good idea to talk with him more about his time in the system.”

“We’ll do it soon,” Shouta promised, giving Hizashi’s hand a tug and pulling him over until he could kiss his cheek. “Come on. We have work.” 

“Ugh, we do,” Hizashi groaned, Shouta seeing the edge of a smile on his face. “Remind me why we work at the school we attended as kids?”

“Nemuri.” While Hizashi groaned again, Shouta took a moment to calm himself the rest of the way down. Hitoshi would be fine. They just needed to give him time. 

Except giving him time wasn’t working. 

Shouta hadn’t been too surprised by Hitoshi’s behavior the first day, especially after his and Hizashi’s conversation, but as the days passed it seemed the kid was getting worse. 

Hitoshi was skipping or picking at all of his meals, flinching away every time the two so much as got too close to him, not getting any sleep- He was getting less sleep than Shouta, who had both narcolepsy and insomnia. The bags under Hitoshi’s eyes were starting to get him dirty looks from Recovery Girl and he was hearing more and more about how Hitoshi would pass out in the middle of classes – which was no doubt his body just giving out on him. 

Shouta hadn’t even been able to talk to him about it, either, because Hitoshi had somehow found every single way to dodge him at school. He also went straight to his room when home and while he never locked the door, Shouta had a feeling confronting him in his room, his one safe space in the house, wasn’t going to help matters. 

Hizashi wasn’t doing much better, stressing himself out to the point he was starting to crash in the teacher’s lounge for naps instead of powering through the day with ‘a healthy diet’ and copious amounts of coffee. 

Shouta wasn’t sure which one of them was going to break first at the rate they were all going. He had a feeling, though, that it was going to be him; especially with the look in Nemuri’s eyes as she entered the teacher’s lounge and went straight for them. 

“Oh, Shou-chan!” Ah, childhood nickname. She was pissed. “There you are! I was hoping we could talk for a little bit.” Nemuri ‘smiled’ as she grabbed Snipe’s chair and slid it over before taking a seat. Shouta felt fear start to settle in. “Now, are you going to wake Hizashi up or should I?”

“Neither,” Shouta groaned, leaning back in his own chair that he had pulled over to the couch where Hizashi was passed out and sleeping fitfully. It was a miracle he had made it until lunch with how poorly he had slept the night before. 

“Fine by me,” Nemuri shrugged, crossing her legs daintily after a spin in her chair. “That just means you’ll be on your own during this little interrogation of mine.” For a moment, Shouta couldn’t help but to remember Nemuri’s ‘brutal efficiency’ when it came to their training for interrogations during their U.A. days. “Now, are you sure you don’t want backup for this one?”

“You both are so dramatic,” Shouta tsked, slumping down in his seat before giving a shake of his head. “Let him sleep. He needs it.” Shouta wasn’t the one who worked three jobs, after all. “Where do you want to start?” 

“How about the fact that Hizashi looks like a walking zombie and you look as tired as you did after you recovered from the USJ attack.” Nemuri crossed her arms, looking like she wasn’t going to be letting the conversation go. “Don’t even get me started on Hitoshi. He’s fallen asleep three times in my classes this week.” 

Shouta hummed, doing his best to try and keep eye contact. He had a feeling he failed as he gave a simple shrug. “Dunno. Maybe your classes are just boring.” 

Nemuri didn’t take the bait. She was serious and that typically meant Shouta was fucked. “C’mon, Shou-chan,” Nemuri cajoled, reaching out to lightly kick at his chair, sending him rolling back a couple inches. “I thought we were friends.” 

“That means nothing to me,” Shouta scoffed, watching as Nemuri only looked at him patiently. Deciding that she had the patience to stay there for days, Shouta sighed and got to the heart of the problem. “I’m a horrible parent.”

When Nemuri didn’t interrupt or rush to either agree or deny, Shouta leaned back in his chair and, after a quick glance to make sure no one else was listening, explained the situation. 

It could at least be said that Nemuri knew how to listen when the situation called for it. She let Shouta recount everything; Hitoshi not showing up until past midnight, the way he flinched away from Hizashi the next morning, his lack of sleep and eating, and everything else he could think of. 

When he finally finished, Shouta swallowed whatever was left of his shredded pride and met Nemuri’s gaze. “Nemuri… I could really use some advice, right now.” 

Instead of smug and satisfied, Nemuri blinked. She then leaned back and blinked again. “Are you…” Oh, for god’s sake. “Are you seriously asking me for advice on how to raise a kid?” 

“Yes, but if you’re going to prove useless-” Shouta cut himself off as Nemuri swatted at him, which, fair enough. He supposed she would be a little startled. It wasn’t often that he had reached such low levels of desperation. “Just… You’re not that useless with kids.”

“Gee, thanks,” Nemuri scoffed, lips tilting up in a smile anyways. “First of all, I won’t wake Hizashi up, but you have to tell him everything I tell you, okay?” Shouta gave a single nod, startling when Nemuri took both his hands in her own and gave a small squeeze. “First of all, you are a wonderful parent, Shouta.” 

It was Shouta’s turn to be startled, opening his mouth before closing it and shifting uncomfortably. Nemuri only smiled, giving his hands another squeeze, “I’m serious, Shou. Look at how much you do just for your students. Of course you’d be a wonderful parent – you and Hizashi both. I’ve seen it up close just from how much you fought to get custody of Hitoshi and give him a place to actually call home.” 

Nemuri sighed, her smile soft even as she shook her head. “Being a wonderful parent doesn’t mean you’re not going to make mistakes, though. This was one of those times, but that just means you’ll learn from it. You two are pretty good at that, right? Besides, there was no way you could have expected how bad this would get. Hitoshi’s a smart and mature kid, but he’s also just a kid.

“So!” Nemuri sat back up, giving a cheerful smile. “You want my advice on what to do? Talk to him. Physical abuse is sometimes easier to overcome than emotional abuse, and it’s easy to see Hitoshi has gone through both. While he knows you won’t hit him, he likely thinks you’re both angry at him.”

Shouta didn’t even get to respond before Nemuri was shaking her head with a soft, “I know you’re not, and he probably does, too. He’s just scared, Shouta. He’s a kid and he loves you and looks up to you just as much. He’s also your kid. He probably worked himself into a panic thinking you were angry at him or were even going to give him up.” 

It… made sense. Hitoshi had the same problems Hizashi did with letting his panic get the best of him. He may have logically known what was happening, but, well… Panic didn’t always adhere to logic. 

“Shouta,” Nemuri said softly, drawing his attention back to her. “He needs to hear from you two that things are going to be okay.” 

Giving Nemuri’s hands a squeeze in return before letting go, Shouta nodded with a quiet, “You’re right.” Pausing just long enough to let Nemuri swell with pride, Shouta smirked. “You’re still never babysitting my kid, though.”

“Wha- Excuse you! I’m a great aunt! I would be a great babysitter!” Nemuri near screeched, Shouta sighing as Hizashi gave a twitch and a wiggle to show he was awake. Idiot had probably forgotten to take his hearing aids out again. “I am a great babysitter!” 

“Tensei would disagree,” Shouta shrugged, hiding a smile behind his binding cloth as he ignored Nemuri’s dramatic fit. He’d let Hizashi deal with it. Besides, he had to plan on how to trap his kid in one place for longer than a few minutes. 

What he wasn’t expecting, though, was Midoriya.

“Aizawa-sensei?” Midoriya had at least waited until the last class of the day to approach him, the rest of the students already gone and off towards the dorms. 

“What is it, Midoriya?” Shouta was already prepared for a story about a broken bone or some villain attack he hadn’t yet heard about.

“I- Well- It’s about Shinsou.” Ah. He could safely say that he hadn’t been expecting that. “Nothing bad! He didn’t do anything or isn’t hurt or anything, but, um- See- It’s kind of-”

Shouta sighed, making a mental note to speak to All Might about the kid. While he had improved a lot, he let his nerves get the best of him too often. “What about Shinsou, Midoriya?”

“I’m worried about him,” Midoriya blurted out. It was a day just full of surprises, Shouta mused to himself. “It’s- Well-” Midoriya seemed to have an internal battle before he was drawing himself up and speaking more calmly. “He let slip some of what was worrying him the past week. He also let slip he was recently adopted.”

Oh. Shouta set his bag and folders down, giving the kid his full attention. While they had told Hitoshi that he was free to tell his classmates about his new living arrangements, the kid had been adamant that he was all too happy keeping it to himself.

“I don’t know the full details of what happened to cause everything and I know I’m probably overstepping, but I do know that he’s been stressed and worried all week. It’s getting to the point where it’s starting to get dangerous.”

Wasn’t that an understatement. Hitoshi had been doing poorly in the training session all week due to his lack of sleep and eating. Recovery Girl had already made it clear that if he wasn’t better by Monday, she would drag him into her office herself. Shouta was inclined to help if it came to it.

“Like I said,” Midoriya continued. “He hasn’t told me much about what’s fully bothering him, but I think… I think he wants to talk to you about it, but he doesn’t know how.” Midoriya took a breath, looking at Shouta evenly. “I’m not asking this as your student and you my teacher, but as Shinsou’s friend and you as a parent to him. Please talk to him.”

Quiet for a moment, Shouta nodded as he picked his things back up and made sure he had everything on him before finally speaking, “You’re right. You are overstepping.” He didn’t let the kid fret for long, reaching out to give a pat to his head. “But you’re a good kid and friend. Don’t worry about it anymore for now, Midoriya. I plan on talking to him tonight.” 

Midoriya slumped in relief, mumbling a few vague things under his breath before making an excuse to leave. Shouta made another note to himself that he didn’t really need to talk to All Might before leaving the classroom and heading towards the teacher’s lounge to grab Hizashi.

It was time for an intervention. 

It didn’t take long for them to get home and it took an even shorter amount of time to explain his plan to Hizashi. Then again, Shouta wasn’t sure how much of ‘trap Hitoshi in the living room and talk until he tells us what’s wrong’ was a plan.

“Are you sure this is the best idea?” Hizashi asked nervously, fidgeting with whatever was in reach as they nervously waited on the couch for Hitoshi to walk through the door. “Maybe we should…” Hizashi trailed off, as if he had no idea how to finish. 

Quiet for a moment, Shouta sighed as he rested his head on Hizashi’s shoulder, “No. I’m not sure this is the best idea, but I already told you what Nemuri and Midoriya said. Leaving this alone has only made things worse, and the least we can do is try.” 

“So logical,” Hizashi complained, pressing a kiss against Shouta’s temple that had him briefly smiling. “Fine, just… let’s be careful?” 

They heard the sound of the front door opening and closing before Shouta could respond, the two sitting up as Hitoshi trudged his way inside. The kid looked exhausted, and Shouta felt guilt clawing at him for not noticing just how bad it had gotten. 

“‘Toshi?” Hizashi asked softly, smiling when he had Hitoshi’s attention. “Can we talk, kiddo?” It took a moment, but Hitoshi finally fully entered the living room, looking tense and on edge even as he tried to act calm. 

Shouta was the first to break the silence with a soft, “Welcome home.” He was relieved when, after Hizashi parroted it, Hitoshi managed a small, weak smile. It was something, at least. The kid also didn’t make an excuse to run, instead heading towards one of the armchairs. 

It wasn’t until he was sure Hitoshi was settled and paying attention that Shouta began, making his voice firm because, if nothing else, he wanted the kid to believe he wasn’t in trouble. “First off, we’re not talking to you because you’re in anymore trouble. Neither of us are upset at you in any way. Got it?” It wasn’t hard to know what to say when he had been Hizashi’s friends for years and Hitoshi’s teacher, and parent, for months.

“Got it,” Hitoshi finally said. He didn’t look entirely relaxed, but he at least no longer looked afraid. That was more than enough for the moment. 

Hizashi then twitched beside him and Shouta tensed as he knew what was coming a moment before it happened. “If anyone’s in trouble, it’s Shouta for not doing the dishes last night like he promised!” Ah… betrayed by his own husband. 

Shouta couldn’t find it within him to be too upset when it made Hitoshi smile, though. Hizashi seemed to think the same, giving a bit more of a smile before he was softening his voice again, “This might be a bit awkward, kiddo, but do you feel up to answering some questions for us? Nothing too personal! Just… it’s about this week, mostly.” 

Hitoshi twitched and Shouta hid a sigh. They really had let it get bad. Hizashi, at least, didn’t falter, only waiting until Hitoshi gave the smallest of nods. “Okay, so, first, do you feel like you need to go to a doctor?” 

“I- Wha-” Hitoshi snapped his mouth shut, Shouta feeling a stab of pain as he realized what had happened. It wasn’t the first time the kid had forcibly stopped himself from asking a question, but it hurt every time. “No. I don’t need to go to a doctor. I’m not sure why you think I do.”

“You haven’t been eating,” Shouta said softly. “You’ll eat a few bites when Hizashi asks you too, but otherwise I don’t think I’ve seen you eat breakfast or dinner since Monday.” Which had near drove Shouta to drag Hitoshi to Recovery Girl himself. “I haven’t seen you in the cafeteria the last couple of days at school, either, not including today.” He had no doubt Midoriya had been responsible for that, considering their conversation after school.

Hitoshi, instead of staying calm like he had no doubt been trying to do, instead shifted in his seat, looking nervous as some of that fear leaked back into his eyes. “I just… haven’t been very hungry. I don’t think I’m sick or anything, though.”

“Does your lack of appetite have something to do with you no longer asking questions?” Hizashi asked, Shouta glancing at him to see he was no longer fidgeting, attention solely focused on Hitoshi. Hitoshi, who was avoiding looking at them for too long and finally just shrugged. 

“I guess I just… didn’t have any questions to ask lately,” Hitoshi mumbled, Shouta unable to hide a quick snort of laughter at the thought of Hitoshi not being curious. The moment he had broken the kid of his habit to not ask questions he had never stopped asking questions. It was only at the last second that Shouta caught Hitoshi’s wince.

Hizashi must have seen it too, his voice a low, hurt whine as he called Hitoshi’s name, “‘Toshi. You’re- Kiddo, you’re pulling away.” 

For the first time since he had sat down, Hitoshi looked up, confused instead of scared and overwhelmed. That was progress, Shouta supposed. “I… I don’t know what you by that,” Hitoshi finally said.

“Kid,” Shouta sighed, feeling as if the exhaustion from the long week was hitting him all at once. “You flinch when we get too close to you. You haven’t done that in months. At first we just thought you were having a bad day, but it’s been going on almost all week, Hitoshi.” 

“And you know we want you to feel safe enough to have your own space, but…” Hizashi trailed off, as if trying to push down his worry. He no doubt was. “You haven’t been sleeping well, either. Put that with not eating and flinching away and no longer asking questions and it- It doesn’t look good, kiddo.” 

“Hitoshi,” Shouta called softly, trying to get his attention. “We can’t help if we don’t know what’s going on with you. What happened?” 

“I…” Hitoshi trailed off, as if he didn’t have the words to convey what was going through his head. Considering everything, Shouta wasn’t sure if the kid did have the words. Hitoshi was the type of kid used to being blamed for problems that weren’t his fault simply because of the quirk he had. Put that together with his time in the system? When was the last time an adult in charge of him had cared as much as they did, Shouta wondered.

“Just tell us what’s wrong, ‘Toshi, and we’ll do our best to help,” Hizashi pleaded, Shouta feeling the same edge of desperation that were in the words. 

Hitoshi, instead of opening up, seemed to start shutting down, uttering a weak, “It’s not that important.” The kid was shutting down and Shouta wasn’t about to let that happen again. Not when letting that happen had caused stress for all of them.

“Yes,” he pressed. “It is.” He had promised Hitoshi that he had a home here, and that came with parents that cared for him. He wasn’t about to let the kid forget that after he had opened up so much. “You’re important to us, Hitoshi.” 

Shouta couldn’t say he hadn’t expected the break to come, but that didn’t mean he still wasn’t surprised when Hitoshi jumped to his feet, near shouting his response, “I’m fine, I’m just trying to figure out when you’re going to finish punishing me!” 

Unable to respond, Shouta glanced to Hizashi. The man looked as gutted and wrecked as Shouta felt because that was what it had been about? Hitoshi thought… God. Of course he did. In his experience being grounded and punished probably meant something so different.

“I mean- I get,” Hitoshi continued, tugging at his hair sharply – another habit they had thought was broken. “I fucked up. I broke a rule by not getting back at the right time, so why won’t you just get it over with?!” 

Oh… Hitoshi. “It can’t just be as light as telling me no games or anything and sticking me in my room for a week- That’s not how it works. You’re supposed to limit me to one meal a day, or tell me to do all the chores in the house until I’ve learned a lesson, or make me get up earlier and get less sleep or something, or- Or-” 

“Or hit you?” The words were finished by Hizashi, Shouta near jolting at how pained the words were. Of course they would be, though. For as much as this was killing Shouta, it was no doubt worse for Hizashi, who knew the system firsthand. 

“I…” Hitoshi trailed off, sounding and looking so young. “That’s how it goes, isn’t it?” Hizashi moved before Shouta could, standing up and walking towards Hitoshi slowly and calmly. 

“Right,” Hizashi said. “I’m going to hug you, okay?” That was all the warning the kid was given before Hizashi had him wrapped up in what was no doubt a tight hug. Shouta stood up himself, relieved when he noticed Hitoshi, for the first time since the mess had started, hadn’t flinched. Instead, he near collapsed into the contact. “‘Toshi… Hitoshi, we could never- We could never hurt you like that. Those aren’t- Those aren’t groundings. That is abuse, Hitoshi.” 

Shouta felt another pang of guilt and pain at how Hitoshi looked like he would shake himself apart if Hizashi let go of him. He didn’t even pause to run a hand through the kid’s hair once he was close enough, trying for a smile when Hitoshi cracked his eyes open to peek up at him, “Hitoshi… we didn’t ground you because you broke a rule, we grounded you because we were scared for you.” 

“I… what?” God, the kid sounded so confused over such a simple thought. “Why… why would you be scared for me?” 

Hizashi laughed, the sound edging on hysterical. Shouta couldn’t really blame him after the week they all had. “Why would we be scared? Because you’re our son. We were scared because you went two prefectures away and we didn’t know if you had been hurt, or were in trouble, or- We were scared of losing you, Hitoshi. We were never angry at you.” 

“We love you, Hitoshi,” Shouta said, trying to make the kid see that those words were a fact. It was something that wasn’t going to change. “Nothing you do could ever make us love you less, either.” 

“You… really aren’t angry.” Hitoshi collapsed the rest of the way into Hizashi’s hold, eyes tearing up. Shouta made a mental note to not bring any attention to it whatsoever, and, if asked, to never admit he had seen anything. “But-” 

“No buts,” Shouta cut off, finally giving a small smile as he ruffled the kid’s hair. “If you’re really still unable to accept it, however, then your punishment is to never forget that we love you, even if we seem upset or disappointed in you. Okay?” 

“That was lame,” Hitoshi sniffed, a few tears spilling over even as he grinned. “Okay.” It was the grin, more than anything, that let Shouta know everything was going to be okay. 

“Shouta is pretty lame,” Hizashi ‘whispered,’ rubbing at Hitoshi’s back and holding the kid close when his breath hitched and he pressed even closer. “Poor thing… you’ve really been through it this week, haven’t you? Tell you what, why don’t we watch some dumb tv for a while, and then you can catch up on some sleep and all the meals you’ve been missing.”

Shouta couldn’t stop his laugh when Hitoshi pulled back enough to roll his eyes, pairing it with a dry, “Aren’t I supposed to be grounded from television for the entire week?” 

“You know, kid, I think you punished yourself enough to make up for it,” Shouta finally said, gently extracting him from Hizashi’s tight grip and leading him towards the couch. “C’mon, let’s pick a movie while that idiot starts on dinner.” 

“You’re so mean to your husband,” Hizashi whined, Shouta smiling as everything fell back into place just like it was supposed to. 

Soon enough and it felt like the world was finally back to normal, the three of them curled up on the couch with far too many blankets and snacks and Hitoshi falling asleep against Shouta with his legs hooked over Hizashi’s lap.

There would be more to talk about in the future, but they had made a start, at least. That was more than enough for that moment – plus, Hitoshi was almost completely asleep the next time Shouta glanced down at him.

Shouta couldn’t help a soft laugh at the sight, threading a hand through the kid’s hair as Hizashi smiled and whispered a quiet, “Sleep well, ‘Toshi.” 

Hitoshi had a soft, almost silly grin on his face when he mumbled back a soft, “Thanks, Dads.” There was a quiet, sharp inhale from Hizashi where he was settled right next to them, Shouta freezing himself and staring blankly down at where Hitoshi, who seemed to only take another moment or two before dropping off into actual sleep.

“Shouta,” Hizashi hissed, voice barely above a whisper as he batted at Shouta’s shoulder frantically. He sounded as wrecked as Shouta felt. “Shouta. He- He said- He called- Shouta he called us his dads.” 

Tucking Hitoshi closer to him and making sure the blanket was wrapped around the kid tight enough, Shouta managed to mutter a quiet, “Pull it together, ‘Zashi.” He decided to ignore the fact that he could feel his eyes stinging. 

“Says the one crying.” Then again, his husband was a traitor who constantly betrayed his trust. It was at least gratifying to see that Hizashi had teared up himself and had near knocked his glasses of his face to try and scrub the tears away. “He actually- I mean- It’s not like it’s a surprise, but also- Shouta.”

Shouta couldn’t help a soft laugh, watching as Hizashi near vibrated and wiggled in place all while trying to stay still so he didn’t wake up their kid. The sight was amusing enough that Shouta almost wanted to grab his phone just so he could record it. He then noticed, however, that Hizashi had his phone.

“Really?” Shouta asked, snorting at Hizashi’s guilty expression. “If you post this on any of your accounts and he finds out he will disown you.” Probably. The kid seemed more amused when it happened than anything else, and Hizashi had always been good at staying vague even as he shared every little detail about his life.

“I was only going to text our very close friends to tell them the good news,” Hizashi insisted, as if lying would work against Shouta. “You know, like Nem and Tensei. And maybe a couple people I work with at the station. And a few of the other teachers. And-”

“You know, if you really want to cut down on the time it would take, just go up to the roof and shout the news. I’m sure they would all hear you.” Shouta took the swat to his shoulder with grace, more amused at Hizashi’s ‘glare’ than anything else.

“Honestly…” Hizashi tsked, very dramatically turning his phone off and dropping it on the couch cushion next to him. Shouta gave it ten minutes before it was back in his hands. “Hey, are you really going to ground him just so he doesn’t have to go to a concert with his friends?” 

Shouta gave a soft hum, moving an arm to wrap around Hizashi’s shoulders as the man shuffled closer to them, tucking the blankets around all three of them. He couldn’t help but think about Midoriya earlier that day, dragging Hitoshi to lunch and then approaching Shouta himself because he was worried for his friend more than he was worried about Shouta’s reactions. 

“No,” Shouta finally said softly. “Those three kids are good for him.” Hitoshi had come out of his shell at U.A. just as much as he had at home, and Shouta was certain those three had a lot to do with it. “Besides, I just found a new way to ground him when he gets into trouble.” 

“Oh?” Hizashi perked up, tilting his head back to look up at Shouta before frowning and squinting at him. “I don’t like that grin, Shou-chan.” 

Shouta only let his grin grow. “Next time he gets in trouble, I’ll ground him by forcing him to spend time with his friends.” All things considered, Shouta thought it would be a rather effective punishment. 

It took only a few seconds before Hizashi was twisting around and trying to stifle his laughter in Shouta’s shoulder, body shaking with the effort. “Oh, Shouta, leave it to you to think something like that is a punishment!” 

“I think it’s perfect,” Shouta hummed, hiding a smile against the top of Hizashi’s head as he closed his eyes for a moment, relaxing in the moment as everything felt so right. 

Maybe, in the end, they weren’t the worst parents in the world.