I should not have said that.

Shota wanted to take it back, but he couldn't speak. His mouth was dry, and his tongue felt thick in his mouth.

"Thank you for telling me, Shota." Toshinori said, calm as always. His face was hard to read. Shota felt like he was stuck in quicksand, slowly sinking, unable to move.

Being in this weird ex situation with Hizashi is bad enough. Why did I have to go and make another friendship weird? I should have just valued Toshinori as he is. I shouldn't try to turn this into something more. I should not have said that.

"How about we… talk about this? I can make us some tea." Toshinori's tone was casual as he pushed himself upright, his muscles trembling with exertion. Shota wanted to reach out and steady him, but he felt like touching him right now wouldn't be appropriate.

"Yeah." He was surprised he was able to speak, his throat was so tight.

When they left the bedroom, Toshinori left his door open, in case Fearless wanted to explore the apartment further. They entered the kitchen. Shota got the teaset down from Toshnori's cupboards, but otherwise, stepped back and let the taller man do most of the work. He seemed to want to do it himself, and Shota was trying to give him space.

It was agony, waiting for him to speak. But Shota didn't break the silence. Toshinori was probably thinking, trying to unravel how he felt about this little revelation, and put together his words. This wasn't the sort of discussion he was going to leave to snap judgements. Despite how impatient he felt, Shota was grateful for that.

It was an eternity and five minutes later, and they were sitting on that uncomfortable, springy couch, cups of steaming green tea in their hands. Shota sipped it, but his throat was tight. He could hardly swallow. The water burned against his still-healing lips.

"I told you in the car earlier that I'm feeling a bit of whiplash." Toshinori began, pausing to sip his tea. "How long have you had feelings for me?"

"Weeks. I think I was just in denial."

"Even before Kamino?"

"Yeah."

"I see." Toshinori took another sip of his tea. Shota could see the wheels turning behind his eyes. He didn't interrupt. "And you don't think it's just because I've been helpless?"

"No. As I told you before, my feelings for you are genuine. I respect that you might not feel the same way. I respect you might not be gay. I'm content just being your friend."

"What is it you're looking for in a relationship?"

Shota rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know. I just know it's not Hizashi. He's the only other person I've ever dated. He wanted to go out and do crazy things, he kept hugging me or kissing me, he wanted spontaneity and adventure and he wanted to get drunk and go partying all the time. Just… too high-energy. And too needy. He likes buying a lot of things. But I like staying home. Keeping things simple. And I don't like being touched."

Toshinori nodded. "Yes, I see how I would be a bit more compatible with what you're looking for."

"Yeah. I felt comfortable here. I think we get along. We have similar needs."

They were quiet for a while. Toshinori hadn't turned him down, but he hadn't accepted his confession, either. Shota still couldn't read him. As the silence stretched on, Shota was able to gather his thoughts. "I'm lonely. I just… have a feeling that you are too."

Toshinori stared down at his teacup, its contents half-empty. "Yeah. I am."

Shota tried to drink his tea, but his guts felt too twisted up to get much down. His grip on the ceramic cup was shaking.

Toshinori continued. "I've… never pictured myself with a man. And I've never dated anyone before. I don't know what's right to do or say."

"If you think it wouldn't work, just go ahead and say it, Toshinori. I can take it."

"That's… not what I'm saying, either."

"Then what are you saying? What do you want?"

Toshinori sighed, running his fingers through his hair, combing back his weird bangs. Shota used to think they looked goofy, but now, he thought it was charming. It certainly framed his face.

"I don't want to be alone, either."

Shota turned to face him more fully, a lump in his throat that he couldn't dislodge. "Are you willing to give me a chance, Toshinori?"

It was the longest minute of Shota's life, waiting to hear Toshinori respond. He didn't want to look desperate. He didn't want to stare or sweat or breathe so shallowly, but his body acted on its own volition.

"It… makes sense now. Why you exposed my secret to the media, why you've stuck around even though things were awkward. I was thinking it was a little out of character for you, Shota. But you've liked me, this whole time." Toshinori calmly sipped at his tea. "I know you want to hear a straight answer. You… probably need to hear one, don't you?"

"Yeah. You're kind of driving me crazy right now."

"I'm sorry, Shota. Honestly, I wish I could give you an easy 'yes' or 'no' right now. But I can't. I'm thinking. Is it alright to give me some time to think?"

"Yeah. Yeah, that's fine." Shota said, but he didn't feel like it was fine. He hated waiting to hear a verdict, it was torture. "Would it help if you talked about it? Your concerns and hesitations?"

Toshinori drummed his fingers on his cup. "Yeah. I think so."

Shota turned away from him. The teacup was feeling too hot in his palms. More waiting.

"Lots of people have confessed love to All Might, but not me. I've never taken confessions from people seriously, because it never felt real to me. I just brush them off politely." Toshinori explained. "Nobody's ever been interested in me. Just, me."

"I've always liked you better than All Might."

Toshinori laughed wearily. He hung his head, twirling one of his bangs around his finger.

When he didn't say anything, Shota said, "If you're worried about the gay thing, no one will know. If we were a couple, I wouldn't want it to be public."

"I don't want to hide something like this, if we do it."

"I see."

More waiting.

Toshinori asked, "what is it about me that you like so much, above everything else?"

Shota's response was immediate. "You love, protect, and nurture our students. You live by example, and you give hope to kids. Not just the students at UA, but kids all around the world look up to you."

Toshinori's eyes softened. There was a smile on his lips, one of the soft ones that showed his teeth. The Toshinori smile that Shota had come to love so much.

"It's only fair that I tell you what I like about you, then." Toshinori said. "You don't play by the rules and you ignore social convention to do what you think is right. You pursue fairness and justice in your own way. Even if other people think it's wrong, you stand by your convictions."

Shota felt heat in his cheeks. In all the time he'd known Toshinori, he'd never been complimented like that before. He rubbed at his unshaven jaw, careful not to brush his fingertips against his bruises.

Toshinori asked suddenly: "so you don't want to sleep with me or anything?"

Shota spluttered. "Hell, no."

Toshinori laughed heartily, tilting back his head, his eyes wrinkling around the edges as he rubbed at his forehead. "You know, if I didn't feel the same way, I might have been offended by that."

"I already know your preferences. I have no intention of ever disrespecting them, Toshinori." Shota said. "As I said before, I don't really like to be touched, anyway."

"Thank you."

The knot in Shota's gut was starting to untangle. He could breathe. Hearing Toshinori laugh was like deflating a ball full of bad energy, and Shota felt light inside. He could finally drink his tea without feeling like it was getting stuck in his throat. He could finally speak freely. "You told me earlier that it was comfortable to exist in the same space. That's how I felt, too. I just like existing with you. I liked making you dinner. I liked sending you cat videos. I liked sleeping over here, knowing you were nearby. It… meant a lot when you rushed in when I had that nightmare. I felt stupid, but… it. Mattered to me."

"I… slept better with you nearby, too." Toshinori admitted.

"So I just… want more of that. I like you,Toshinori. Nothing has to change. Honestly, I don't want to do things any differently. I just want to be around. Like we have been all weekend."

"Do you want to move in here?"

"Not necessarily. Unless it was something both of us thought would work out."

"I see." Toshinori was quiet for a few moments, before he asked, "If we were to date, what are you most afraid of happening?"

"That it won't work out and things will be awkward at school."

Toshinori laughed again. "Yeah. That's my fear, too." He grinned at him. "So, no hidden skeletons in the closet you're worried I'll find out about?"

"No." Shota replied. He eyed the man a moment, and asked cautiously, "what about you?"

Toshinori took some time to think, and Shota figured he had gotten to the root of one of his hesitations. For as honest and upstanding as Toshinori was, Shota knew he kept secrets. Big secrets. And those secrets had a good chance of causing tension in a relationship.

"I hide things, but I don't lie. There are things about me that I don't want anyone to know. Not because I have done something immoral, but because I am afraid for their safety. Is this something you can accept, Shota? That I keep secrets?"

"Are the secrets going to hurt you, or others?"

Toshinori thought about that. "I think people are safer if they don't know the truth. That goes for me, too. I am safer, keeping these secrets."

"And you believe that, wholeheartedly?"

"Yes."

"Does this have something to do with Izuku Midoriya?"

Shota didn't even have to hear him say anything to know the answer. It was written all over his face. His guess was accurate.

"You betrayed my trust recently, Shota, and that's not something I can just forget about. I'm wary about telling you about this." Toshinori said, his voice tight.

Shota swallowed. "I… respect that. But… we're not going to make it very far if trust is an issue between us. On my end, or yours."

"Yes, I understand. That's why I'm thinking about this." Toshinori massaged his face.

Shota waited for him to think. Some of his diffused tension was returning, albeit slower, more hesitant.

"I'll tell you something to ease whatever concerns you might have, but I'm not willing to go into any details right now. Can you agree to that?" Toshinori said.

"Yes." Shota said.

"I gave my quirk to Izuku, so he could pursue his dreams of being a hero. He was born quirkless, but his heroic spirit was unmatched by anyone I have ever seen. I wanted to give him the power to succeed."

It took a few moments to sink in. Shota stared at him, his brow furrowing.

"You… gave him your quirk?"

"Yes."

"That's … not possible."

"As I said, I can't go into detail right now. And don't tell anyone. This is something about my quirk that has to stay a secret."

Shota felt like his whole world had turned upside-down. Here he was, sitting on Toshinori's couch, confessing feelings for him, and hearing bizarre things about his quirk that he never thought possible.

"So that's why his quirk is so much like yours. That's why you were in his corner from Day 1. You knew him already. You… gave him your power. Like a present."

"Yes."

"I… I see." Shota reached up to touch his nose, and quickly regretted it. It still stung like hell to touch. "Thanks. For telling me. I promise, I'll keep it to myself."

Toshinori nodded.

Shota had a very good guess as to why Toshinori didn't want this information getting out. If his superpower could be passed along from one person to another, he wondered if it could also be taken- by force. A villain getting a hold of All Might's superpower would be absolutely devastating.

Shota was then struck with the chilling realization that it was currently his responsibility to teach and raise the next All Might.

How lucky we are that Toshinori Yagi is such a good person. If he wasn't… that superpower of his would have surely killed us all. He could have ruled the freaking world. And no one would have been able to stop him.

And he's given that power away. To a child.

A good child. But a child, nonetheless.

And now, it's up to us to keep Midoriya on the right path. To raise a good hero. A responsible hero. A hero who recognizes the gravity of the power he has.

"That is my biggest secret. You can… rest easy knowing the others are of similar caliber. I'm not hiding anything immoral or obscene, but I am worried for your safety, and the safety of the world. How do you feel about this, Shota? Knowing this about me?"

"I'm okay. I understand. I respect it." Shota responded, and it was true. He was okay. A little freaked out, but okay. He could move forward, armed with this information, prepared to keep the secret of the power that fueled the legendary All Might.

More silence. More waiting. But this time, Shota felt a little less tense. Their discussion had gone well. From what little he could read of Toshinori's emotional state, he seemed receptive to this. Shota was still worried about being rejected, but it seemed like a less probable outcome now.

He was expecting he would be left waiting a day or two for Toshinori to sort out his thoughts, and Shota was in the process of preparing himself for it. He was finding a good place, an emotional center. He was feeling okay about this. Calm. Rational.

Then, Toshinori set his teacup down on the coffee table with a clatter, and said in a huff: "Oh, what the hell. Let's try this out, Shota. Let's date."

Shota blinked at him, dumbfounded, his jaw slack. Did he just hear that correctly?! "I-... really?"

"Yes, really. I feel good about our discussion, so there's no point in thinking about it more. I've made up my mind."

Shota laughed. It was a single-syllable huff of air that hardly qualified, but it was the most Toshinori had ever heard him laugh. In fact, it was the most he had ever heard himself laugh in ages. "Th- thanks. Thanks, Toshinori. Thanks for giving me a chance."

Toshinori grinned lopsidedly at him. Then, he said, "you… might have to help me out, though. I have no idea what to do next."

"We don't have to do anything different. Just. Go about our day. I can make you supper and we can watch cat videos or something. I'll sleep over, for one more night, to make sure you're recovered. I have patrol tomorrow, so I can't be here tomorrow night anyway."

"Yeah. That sounds nice." Toshinori said. "We can figure it out a day at a time."

Shota found himself sitting there, at a loss of words as he tried to process what had just happened. He felt like he had just run an emotional gauntlet and come out victorious on the other side. Breathless and shaken and weary, but victorious. He didn't know if there was anything left that needed to be said or established. But Toshinori said it best. Taking it a day at a time was best. They didn't have to plan everything out at once.

The best he could do now was the next thing on his list: cooking dinner.

It had become a familiar feeling, playing classical music over his cell phone's speakers while he worked in the kitchen, cooking up stir-fry with soy sauce and adding in some of yesterday's leftover rice. As he worked, more questions and concerns kept springing to his mind, things he shelved away to talk to Toshinori about some other time. He didn't want to overwhelm the man with a thousand questions.

Occasionally he glanced over at Toshinori as he worked, finding the man still on the couch, drooping. Shota remembered he was still in pain. He hadn't taken his medication. He'd prepare his dose along with his food.

As Shota waited for the meat to finish cooking, he glimpsed something gray moving near Toshinori's bedroom door. Fearless had come out of the room to investigate the apartment beyond. She was hobbling less than she was earlier, growing accustomed to her life as a 3-legged cat. Her head bobbed around as she looked up and down at all the unfamiliar furniture. She stopped to sniff Toshinori where he sat statue-still on the couch.

Shota watched Toshinori cautiously lower his hand for Fearless to inspect, half expecting the cat to find this an unwelcome gesture. To his surprise, Fearless rubbed her face against Toshinori's hand, then rubbed against his legs.

It warmed his heart to see. That timid little kitty seemed to be accepting her new lot in life without too much of a fuss.

When dinner was finally ready, Shota served it and seated himself on the couch next to Toshinori again, tucking in to his stir fry. The flavor was mild. He didn't add any of the spices he usually liked, knowing Toshinori probably couldn't handle it. Fearless found a spot on the floor to sit nearby, keeping watch on both of them as they ate.

"So does this make us 'boyfriends?'" Toshinori asked as he poked at his rice.

"If you want to call it that." Shota said. "How public do you want this to be, anyway?"

"Well I'm not announcing it on Mic's radio show." Toshinori laughed. "But if anyone asks, I'm not going to lie about it. You can act familiar with me, and call me by my first name, whatever you want."

"Yeah, I suppose that's the best way to go about it." Shota said between a mouthful of rice and beef. "I'm buying you a TV, by the way. You said you liked movies, right? We're going to watch movies. A lot of movies."

"I'd like that."

At long last, Toshinori took his medication, and Shota got up to put the leftover food into the fridge. Despite serving Toshinori a tiny, miniscule portion, he still hadn't eaten it all, so Shota put his plate in the fridge instead of wasting it. While he was washing the dishes in the sink, he saw Fearless pawing at the couch, trying to jump up into the empty seat that Shota left behind, but unable to accomplish the feat without her hind leg. Toshinori leaned forward to pick her up and plop her gently onto the seat. The once-timid kitty crawled into Toshinori's lap and curled up into a little ball.

Shota smiled at them, his heart full, though his mind swirled with new worries. Things couldn't be so bad, right?

Even if things don't work out between us, I'm grateful for this experience. This moment, right now.

Shota returned to the couch after the dishes were washed, his hands feeling a little pruny from the hot water and soap. He took his phone out of his pocket to glance through social media.

Conversation in the #AllMight tag was dying down, shifting gears. There were a few threads about their radio explanation this morning, and it seemed to be doing its job at calming down the confused masses. There was less hate about Eraserhead- or, at the very least, it was less vocal. And, to Shota's relief, the pictures that Spark-Foot Guy posted earlier had been taken down and his account was banned.

Disrespecting All Might, the former #1 Hero, had its consequences- and it seemed whoever was in charge of moderating that garbage fire of a social media platform didn't let Spark-Foot Guy get away with it.

Good, Shota thought, as he closed the app. I hope he learned his lesson.

He looked over at Toshinori, intending to tell him this good news, but saw that his dark eyes were closed, and his head was tilting sideways. He was breathing deeply. One of his hands was resting on Fearless's back, the cat looking equally exhausted.

Shota would have tried to move Toshinori to his trusty recliner, if it weren't for the fact that moving him meant disturbing the 3-legged cat, who already expended so much energy just to get over here. So, he put his phone away, scooted a little closer to Toshinori, crossed his arms, and leaned his head against his shoulder.

He felt Toshinori's weight shifting as he fell asleep, pressing against Shota's side. The two of them counterbalanced each other. It wasn't the most comfortable position in the world, but it was doable. And it was warm. And, as far as Shota could remember, it was the closest they had ever been. He adjusted a little so that he could lean more comfortably, his cheek pressed against Toshinori's bony shoulder.

It's going to be weird for a while, as we figure this out, Shota thought as his thoughts began to fade into a haze of sleepy fog, but everything is going to be okay.

As he fell asleep, he felt himself smiling, and it wasn't an Eraserhead smile.

It was a Toshinori smile.