When we got home, Mrs. Kubo asked while making dinner, “How was your day?” I sigh, “Difficult. I don’t know if it is because Present Mic is so loud and obnoxious, but I am having a hard time following along in his lessons.” I start crying, “What if my dumb nature gets Ayaka expelled or kicked back to general studies?” Mrs. Kubo steps away from the stove for a moment and hugs me, “Shhh. You aren’t dumb. There is a big difference between uneducated and dumb, and you are the former. You will catch up to the others in no time, I am sure.” She lets me go from the hug so she can go back to the stove to cook, and she continues while glancing at Ayaka, “Honey, why don’t you help her study?” Ayaka asks me, “So what do you need help with?” I sigh and say, “Everything.”
Mrs. Kubo says while working on dinner, “Dinner is going to be a while, so why don’t you both study in the meantime?” I nod and pull out my notebook, and Ayaka exasperatedly sighs and gets hers out as well. Judging by her sigh, she must not like studying. I ask her, “Do you not like studying or something?” Ayaka groans and says, “Something like that…” I ask, “For Algebra, how do I solve for ‘X’? I was so lost in class and didn’t know where to start.” Ayaka groans and looks like she is trying to think, and then says, “First, you have to do this. Then this. Then this….” I say, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up, can you explain why you are doing that?” Ayaka groans in frustration, then says, “I am not sure how to explain it, I just do it.” I sigh, realizing her apprehension was due to her lack of teaching ability, not the actual studying itself, “So, you won’t be able to help me either…” Ayaka closes her notebook in disappointment and says, looking bummed out, “Sorry, I figured something like this would happen. I am not exactly the best teacher. I’ll ask Yaoyorozu if she can help you tomorrow. She is good at stuff like this.”
I look at the burnt hoodie in my backpack with watery eyes, and Ayaka’s eyes follow mine and she grabs it and takes it to Mrs. Kubo, “Mom, Sekai got blasted by a classmate protecting me earlier, and she was upset that you would be mad that the hoodie you bought her was ruined.” Mrs. Kubo abandons dinner a moment to rush to me and hug me, “Sekai, with how you protect my daughter, you are family now. Family doesn't get mad at family for protecting family. Just wear one of the other hoodies for now, and I will buy a replacement black one for you next time I'm out, ok?” I clutch her tightly and say, “O-ok. You don’t have to buy another one, you bought me so many… I don’t want to be a burden.” I hold her tightly, afraid that if I let go, she will abandon me. Mrs. Kubo strokes my hair with one hand while still holding me with the other and says, “Don't worry, you aren’t a burden, and we are not going anywhere.” Her saying that opened the floodgates of my eyes.
When she releases me, she says, “Shit, the food!” We both look over and see Ayaka took over cooking for her mom, and Mrs. Kubo says, “Wow, you have only been here for 1 day and you are being a positive influence.” I have always been treated like garbage and was constantly falsely accused of stealing because of my background and obvious money struggles. No one bothered to get to know me, much less give me praise like this, so I cried even more hearing her words. I find myself feeling so emotionally raw the past two days, as if my body is catching up on emotions I suppressed. Ayaka smacks her teeth, interrupting the motherly moment with her mom, “Tsk. What's wrong with wanting to eat something edible?” I chuckle through my tears and say, “I would eat anything you put in front of me.” Ayaka points at me and says, “I don't want you to settle for anything. You don't need to anymore.” Mrs. Kubo rubs my head, messing up my short pink hair, “Exactly what she said. If we mess up cooking, we will just order takeout. We don't want you eating anything that might upset your stomach.”
I chuckle through my tears, “I can practically eat anything now. I basically poisoned myself repeatedly throughout the years, and it is difficult to make me sick from food.” The keyword here is ‘food’. Not the literal shit that Isamu made me eat. When comparing Bakugo and Isamu, that shithead is worse. That spiky bastard was more hands-off bullying with the occasional explosion. At least I could go dumpster diving after he burnt my food. The only thing that consistently made me sick was eating shit. I don't know if I can tell them that part because it is the most embarrassing detail. Ayaka furrows her brow, “Well, just because you can eat everything doesn’t mean that you should. From now on, only let real food pass between your lips.” I awkwardly nod, still overwhelmed with all of these positive emotions and not wanting to ever leave this place.
The next day after morning classes, I eat with the girls from class 1-A in the lunchroom. I decided that I will order everything off the menu here to see all of what I like. It was Ayaka’s suggestion, so today I ordered the omurice. Not only was it first on the menu, but I already know I will probably like this since I remember my mother making it for me. She would draw pictures on it with ketchup since I couldn’t read back then. I have seen videos on those street screens where people get messages like “I love you” and stuff like that written in ketchup. I mean, assuming that that really happens. Not everything that happens on the screen is real. I KNOW THAT MUCH.
I get my omurice and go to sit down with the other girls, and the other girls are making conversation, and Tsu asks, “Hey, Kubo and Sekai! We were just talking about our favorite heroes. Who are your favorites?” I sit down, and Ayaka says, “Asui, my favorite is Midnight. She is just so beautiful and confident and isn’t afraid to show skin. I want to grow up to be as confident as her one day.” Tsu says, “That is awesome… Also, I told you to call me Tsu.” Ayaka apologizes nonverbally, and I respond, “My favorite hero is Ayaka.” Ayaka blushes and goes 2D, leaving all of us behind in 3D while they giggle and Hagakure says, “From her story, you saved her, not the other way around.” I clutch my purple hoodie that is covering my uniform, “She kept saving me over and over the day we met when all other heroes and people ignored me.”
I got yoinked into 2D suddenly, and I yelped in the process (from surprise), and Ayaka started kissing me. The girls squeal at the romance, and Mineta’s pervy senses were going off, and he immediately tried to drool over us kissing. Tsu grabs him with her tongue and he says, “Put me down! I. MUST. GET. IN. ON. THE. ACTION.” Hagakure says, “Can’t you see that you aren’t invited? You dumb pervert!” Ida approaches the scene and says, “Mineta! You know that you are not supposed to objectify your classmates! That is not hero behavior! Kubo and Sekai, the student code of conduct says that public displays of affection are not allowed!” Yaoyorozu creates a blanket and covers our 2D image and says, “Now they are private.” She says with a wink that we missed because we were covered.
Ok, maybe she isn’t so bad.I still don’t know what it is about her that I don’t like, but I am thankful for her to shield us from the pervert. I hear Ida stammering, not sure what to say, “I- That- is- That-” I hear Hagakure say, “Class rep, it may have been a public display of affection, but that is the most reliable way for her to use her quirk without removing her clothes. Don’t you think that this is a more appropriate way for her to utilize her quirk?” We continued to kiss while they were talking, but now Ayaka hit her limit from taking me with her, and we came back to 3D. I was straddling her in her seat, and the blanket fell to the floor. Mineta knocked himself out with a nosebleed, seeing this, and I immediately sat back in my own seat and pulled my hood over my furious blush. All of the girls were laughing at our reaction, and Ayaka went back into 2D, embarrassed, and I wanted to join her.
Yaoyorozu asks while I hide behind my pink hair and hood while I eat my omurice, “Kubo said you needed help studying, Sekai. Would you like to come over to my house after school for a study session?” I nod, and then she asks, “What subject do you need help with?” I clutch my hoodie, embarrassed, and say, gritting my teeth, “A-a-all of them. I am sorry. You probably don’t want to teach basic shit to someone. It must be boring and a hassle.” Yaoyorozu says, wearing a warm smile that is slightly comforting, even though there is still something about her that I don’t like, I feel comforted by that smile, “Don’t worry about it. I am glad to help. You are a classmate now, so don’t feel bad for asking for help.” I stammer, “B-b-but I’m a middle school dropout. There is a lot of mate-”
Ayaka comes back into 3D, and she covers my mouth and says, “Just accept the help, ok?” I nod, and she says to Yaoyorozu, “We will meet you outside the gate after school.” Yaoyorozu then says, “Great! I will need to call home to have the butler prepare the great hall. Oh, and tea! We will need to have tea for you both. Do you guys have any favorite tea?” THAT IS IT. SHE IS RICH. That was the thing I didn’t like. I didn’t like her slight air of privilege. I hate how she is such a good person because I want to hate her so bad. Ayaka shrugs, as do I, since I haven’t had tea before (besides what the principal made me), so I don’t have any preferences yet.
After school, I am exhausted from dealing with that loudmouth all day. While wearing my usual default scowl, I raise my hood and ignore everybody on the way to the gate and at the gate. I am only looking for Ayaka. As that spiky bastard would say, ‘Screw these extras.’ I see a few other girls and guys from class 1-A, though I was only introduced to the girls, and most of the boys I don’t know. Hagakure approaches me first, “Hey, Sekai! We all talked it over, and we are all going to come over to study. I hope that you don’t mind.” I sigh and shake my head, “I-it’s fine. I just hope that my dumbass doesn’t drag everyone else down.” I mumble that last part, and the guy with the multitude of arms, eyes, and ears says, “The only dumbass in our class is Kaminari.” The guy who I assume is Kaminari with spiky blonde hair says, “Tsk. That wasn’t nice, Shoji, and not to mention out of nowhere.”
Shoji says while shrugging, “It wasn’t out of nowhere, I was responding to Sekai to make her feel better.” Kaminari groans and pouts, “Yeah, at my expense, dude.” Shoji responds with what I think is a smile under that mask of his from his eyes, “Don’t worry, you have your positive attributes as well.” A guy with spiky red hair rubs Kaminari’s hair, “Aw, come on, Kaminari, we love you even though you are a dumb ass. Own it like a man!” Kaminari confusedly says, “Thanks?” That spiky bastard smacks his teeth to the other two, “Tsk. This was a mistake. I am leaving. Screw you, extras!” The spiky bastard goes to leave, and the nerd says, “Wait, Kacchan! I thought you needed help studying!” Bakugo yells, “Get lost, Deku! I don’t need anyone’s help! I will do just fine on my own!” Midoriya sighs, slumps down, rejoins everyone, and says, “Sorry, I thought I could bring him back.”
I smack my teeth, “Tsk. Maybe you shouldn’t meddle so much, then.” The nerd says, “All Might says that meddling is what makes a hero.” I groan. If he really took those words to heart, he would have reached out to me back then like Ayaka did. Ayaka arrives, and she bonks me on the head, “Hey, why are you giving him attitude?” I stammer in a whisper, “I-i- I-it’s embarrassing. I will tell you later.” After I said that, she kissed me on the cheek and said, “Ok, you ready to go study?” I blush and nod, “Y-y-yeah, I guess.” Tsu giggles, “Wow, she has you wrapped around her finger. Just how much have you made her do, Kubo?” Ayaka gets flustered and goes 2D while I cover my face with my hands, embarrassed. I say while wanting to fade into the background, “Goddamnit, Tsu.” Tsu giggles, and Mineta groans, “Awwww, no kissing for the quirk. Such a bummer. No fan service these days. Tsk.” He says, turning his face in a grumpy scowl. Says the one who was quite literally drooling over us earlier at lunch.
We arrive at Yaoyorozu’s mansion, and the gates make it look like a barrier meant to keep the garbage like me out. I can’t help but think that they will try to blame me if anything goes missing. It has always been that way. They are always quick to blame the person who appears like they would steal it before looking at anyone else. If I weren’t so scared of everyone else's quirks, I probably would have turned out to be a thief. I lost count of how many times I fantasized about stealing street food. Those street vendors would stare at me like a hawk since they could see the obvious desire on my face, along with the stream of drool. Those looks of contempt while looking at me were worse than being invisible. What if something similar happens here?
Walking inside Ayaka’s house had me in awe, but this house is a fucking castle.I feel so foreign here. So out of place. As I hold Ayaka’s hand, she feels me tense up, and she whispers in my ear, “Are you ok?” I grit my teeth and whisper back, “I feel so out of place here.” Ayaka whispers back, “You are not out of place. You are exactly where you are supposed to be. You are the reason we are all here, you know?” I ask back in a whisper, “Really?” She nods and whispers back, “Really. They want to help me by helping you, since you are my sidekick. Class 1-A sticks together.” The octopus dude, Shoji, turns and nods while not saying a word. Ok, maybe he isn’t so bad either.
The guy with the two-toned hair who is accompanied by a dude with weird elbows says in an almost uninterested tone, “Impressive, Yaoyorozu.” The guy with the weird elbows says to the two-toned guy, “I know, right?! It is pretty insane!” The guy with the weird elbows is looking around in awe as with everyone else. The insufferable pretty blonde says, “This mansion twinkles almost as brightly as me!” I groan at him. Bright personalities like his piss me off. There are more people here today since the boys are joining us, and I don’t know a lot of them. There is a dude with a black bird head with a human body, a dude with a big ass tail, a dude with loads of muscles, a guy that is insufferably full of himself, the spiky red-haired guy, and a large, quiet guy with a weird face. Along with the others, I learned their names are the octopus dude Shoji, Mineta the pervert, and Kaminari the idiot.
We get to a large room where we sit down and grab our notebooks out, and Yaoyorozu asks her butler for the refreshments. I want to be pissed that she has a butler, but I have to admit she was pretty alright when she covered us when Ida was making a scene about our kissing. She sits down and says, “Why don’t we have the guys introduce themselves to Sekai? We girls introduced ourselves already.” The guy with the spiky red hair says, “I’ll man up and start first! I am Kirishima, and my quirk is hardening.” He makes his skin look rough and hard as he says that. The guy with the weird elbows says, “I am Sero, and I can shoot tape out of my elbows.”
The two-toned guy said in an uninterested tone, “I am Todoroki, and I can control ice and fire.” The bird man says in a cool voice, “I am Tokoyami, and my quirk is dark shadow. The quiet one here is Koda, and he can talk to animals.” The musclehead says, “I am Sato, and my quirk is sugar rush. I get stronger when I eat sugar.” He says flexing. The insufferable pretty blonde says, “I am Aoyama, and my quirk is navel laser. C’est magnifique, right?” He says, winking as I roll my eyes. The other guys whose names I caught earlier introduced themselves officially. Starting with the spiky blonde, “Name is Kaminari, and my quirk is charge-bolt.” He says, letting off some electric sparks. The octopus guy says, “My name is Shoji, and as you can see, I can grow any body part on my body.” The dude with the tail says, “The name is Ojiro, and I obviously have a tail.” The pervert then says, “I am Mineta, and my quirk is pop off. The balls on my head can pop off and stick to things.” Midoriya starts twitching, “Y-y-you already know me, Sekai.” I smack my teeth, “Tsk. Yeah, just shut it, nerd.” Ayaka bonks me on the head.
Yaoyorozu asks, “So what do you want to start with, Sekai?” I say, “Tsk. Can you teach me to solve for x?” I still feel pretty salty about feeling out of place and can’t help but let my feelings show a bit. Yaoyorozu says, “Yeah, we can start there.” With a warm smile, she says, “The goal is to get the x by itself.” I ask while wearing my usual scowl, slightly aggressively, “How do I do that?” She breaks it down step by step. “Tsk. Thanks, I guess. That makes a lot of sense.” Ayaka bonks me on the head, “You know you could have said that thanks without the attitude.” I blush and then I stammer, “T-t-thank you, Yaoyorozu.” Everyone laughs, and I pull my hoodie down in embarrassment. Ashido laughs and says, “We need to find someone like that for Bakugo, too.” Everyone’s laughter gets more intense at her comment.
When we got home, we were chatting in her room while Mrs. Kubo was making dessert for the dinner we had just eaten, since it wasn't ready yet. She asks while we chill, sprawled out on the bed, “So, what's your deal with Midoriya?” I sigh and say, “We went to the same middle school briefly, and he was also bullied for being quirkless. I guess you could say I resented him for being stronger than me and hating him meant I could distract myself from being so weak.” Ayaka makes a confused face and asks, “What do you and Bakugo mean by quirkless? I saw his quirk myself, and it was hardcore.” Now I'm confused, and I say, “That can't be right.”