Chapter Text
Having wounds is normal when you’re a hero-in-training. You fight, you spar, and you get injured. There’s not a time where you don't get even a slight bruise when fighting, because it is just inevitable. Kyouka knows this. She is aware that even the simplest of things can land you in the nurse's office when dealing with heroes-in-training. And yet she still has a small moment of panic when she sees an injury on Yaomomo.
“M-Momo! Your hand!” Kyouka whisper-yells, pointing to the other girl's delicate hand, where a giant purple and yellow bruise is forming. It’s ugly on the dark and pretty skin—making a grand entrance of hideous colors. It looks a bit swollen as well.
Yaomomo’s face falls into a surprised gaze, eyes looking down at her hand before going back to the soft smile she had beforehand. She laughs, light and sweet. “Oh, it’s just a bruise. You scared me for a moment, Jirou.”
Kyouka seems to deflate, because seriously who did Yaomomo think she is? Just a bruise? That's a whole fucking injury! “Shouldn’t you check that out with Recovery Girl?” Kyouka asks, voice quiet enough for only them to hear. She was never one to embarrass people or point out their flaws (unless it was Kaminari. Then she went straight for the throat).
Yaomomo hums, matching the quietness of the other girls voice. “It doesn't hurt. I’ll be fine. Making Recovery Girl look at such a simple thing would be an inconvenience.”
“You’re not an inconvenience, Momo.”
This makes the girl laugh again, hand covering her mouth politely. Kyouka always hated when she did this, for she wanted to see her straight and perfect teeth framed by her glossy lips. Yaomomo has always been one to take care of herself—if her beauty routine was anything to go by. Yet she was also one to cover up such perfection in the blink of an eye. Kyouka likes to think that if she was that pretty, she’d let the whole world see her smile.
“Thank you, but really I am alright.” She lets her gaze fall onto Kyouka's face, eyes flicking to every crease and corner before redirecting it towards the TV.
Right, today was dorm movie night, how could she forget? It's a ritual at this point—everyone gathering around the small television and eating salty foods. Kyouka liked it enough. She liked the quietness of it all, along with the noises of emotions from her classmates; some angry, some sad, and some happy. There was always Bakugou as well, cackling madly when a character dies, or making loud gagging noises when characters kiss. She liked the movies they picked out most of the time, even if she would never say it out loud. Most of them were action films that everyone has seen before, but Mina always sprinkles in some romance here and there. And surprisingly Tsu and Midoriya have a thing for horror movies, making them watch the classics since 1990. Not that Kyouka minded. (Yaomomo hates horror movies and likes to cling to the nearest human body—typically Kyouka—every time there's a jump scare. So really she didn't mind not one bit).
Today was Tokoyami’s pick—an older style indie film with a dash of romance. Kyouka isn't as invested as she should be, instead opting to watch the delicate features of Yaomomo’s face. She has nothing against indie films nor Tokoyami, but as she directs her eyes to visit Yaomomo’s bumped nose, and beautiful round lips, she thinks to herself that indie films really can't beat this. No film can.
Kyouka watches as her features change with her emotions, always so open and invested in every movie they watch that it should be laughable. Her nose moves as she smiles softly, her eyes dancing with colors as black orbs watch the television. Her eyelashes flutter nicely, and Kyouka wants to brush her thumb across them to feel the slight tickle. She doesn't though, trying to maintain a nice stiff position on the floor, sandwiched between Yaomomo herself and Mina.
Mina is mumbling next to her, obviously trying to stay as quiet as she possibly can during the movie. This happens a lot, and everyone always has to shush her, especially when she blurts out spoilers. It's not that she means to though, Kyouka knows that, but it's funny nonetheless. And annoying when it's a movie she is actually invested in.
The movie is close to being over, the characters finally meeting their climax, and Kyouka can hear the other students letting out sleepy yawns next to her. Bakugou had left not only four minutes into the movie after hearing the starter song, claiming it was lame. Kyouka had laughed at this, flicking him off when he did it first. Then, in the middle of the movie, Kaminari left, stating he was long overdue for a rematch. To what? No one got an answer to. They assumed it had to do with a video game. But with the two of them gone, the room was oddly quiet. Bakugou, Mina, and Kaminari are always the ones to be the loudest during films—sometimes Midoriya as well with his constant mumbling. But Mina and Midoriya were also stumped on adding commentary, offering only slight gasps and mumbled words of ‘oh my god…’
It's a pretty anti-dramatic film, so Kyouka is not all surprised.
Yaomomo next to her looks over, hand clutching her knee protectively as she leans forward, and for a moment Kyouka thinks she's going to be hugged. But then Yaomomo keeps leaning and whispers something to Mina, who laughs too loudly in such a quiet atmosphere. Kyouka frowns, wanting to know why she totally bypassed her, and whispered to Mina. But she stays quiet, already hearing what had been said.
Do you think that girl is hotter than Midnight?
Hotter than Midnight? Kyouka watches the screen, frowning as she sees the female lead. She's pretty, pale skin with long dark hair. She looks a little similar to Midnight, but lacks the overly sexual outfit and big boobs. Instead, her chest is flatter and outfit is simple; sweatpants with a big t-shirt.
Now, Kyouka isn't really sure what to think at the moment. For one, Yaomomo just openly said that Midnight is hot. Do straight girls even say things like that? Is that a thing?She had known Mina for being very openly open about her sexuality—claiming she is in fact only into sexy people, girl, boy, or neither. So her agreeing came to no surprise. But Yaomomo even saying such a thing is a shocker.
And for seconds, if Yaomomo thinks that Midnight is hot, does that mean she likes Midnight type of girls? Big chests, long hair, sharp features. Amazing fashion senses and funny humor? Perfect girls? If so, Kyouka has zero chance. She is none of those things, or so she thinks. She is flat chested, extremely boyish and her humor could be considered dog shit at best. So no, she was definitely not a Midnight-level kind of girl.
The more Kyouka looks at the girl on the screen though, she can see similarities. Does Yaomomo find this girl hot? Does she even like girls to begin with? The flow of questions makes an ocean in her head, eyes unfocused on the television screen and body becoming stiffer than before. It's not until the end of the movie, where everyone is getting up and moving along to their dorm rooms, does Kyouka feel a tap on her shoulder.
It's Mina, a smile so soft and gentle that Kyouka wants to flick her off. “Coming to the dorms, babe?”
Kyouka stares back at the TV for a moment again, flicking to the black corners. It's easy to do so, letting every question escape her mind for the time being. “Yeah, let's go.”
Mina helps her walk to the top dorm rooms, legs wobbly from sitting on them all night. Apparently, the movie had been a lot longer than anyone anticipated—three hours. Almost longer than Planet of the Apes, which Kirishima forced them to watch awhile back.
When Mina drops Kyouka off at her door, she finds herself frozen in front of it, staring off into the white wood. Mina notices, stopping as well to watch her with curious eyes. It's an awkward silence, but neither moves. Kyouka sighs heavily, eyes tracing the wood. “What’d Momo say during the movie?” She asks, her fingers finding her ears and twirling them. A nervous habit she picked up when she was younger. It's been harder to break since she started going to UA, with all the villain attacks and such, she hasn't been able to get better habits that would probably be more effective.
Mina makes a noise of question, head tilting to the side. “Momo? She asked me if the lead was hotter than Midnight. It's a joke we picked up when we first became friends.” The pink girl laughs, and it's so free and happy that Kyouka feels sick. It's a joke. Here Kyouka was worrying and all along it was a joke.
“Oh, goodnight Mina.” Is all Kyouka says as she opens her door and slams it shut behind her. It's petty and very rude, she knows this, and yet she still feels no regret as she slams her body onto her unmade bed. She's very much aware of the fact that she's overreacting. She shouldn't have been ease dropping to begin with.
There's a heavy silence in her bedroom—one where she feels like suffocating herself. She hates the silence, a thing most people knew about her. The silence reminded her of many things—things she wants to forget. Like her insecurities, her anxiety, and her undying love for a girl who finds her sexuality to be a joke. A funny little joke between friends.
But yet she's too exhausted to get up and turn on her CD player or even plug her phone in, so she closes her eyes and hopes the silence really does suffocate her in her sleep.