The One Where You Do Not Really Answer

Before heading to the kitchen the next morning, you checked your phone. Last night's disaster was bound to be all over the news. You sat on the floor, scrolling through what the media caught during the chaos. Apparently Stain was caught and defeated by Endeavour, along with three Nomus. As expected of the number two hero, I guess.

What caught you by surprise were the casualties. Yes, you killed a few people in the heat of the moment, but as far as you could recall, you were not the cause of the death of 'Pro hero Native and one UA student.'

Upon further digging, you discovered that the student was your own classmate: Iida. Your phone slipped out of your hand.

Dead?

You were never close to him – heck, you barely liked him, but you felt terrible realizing his life had been cut short. And I did that to the people I killed as well.

You could not confide in Wook about how you felt about this. You definitely could not tell the League or anyone at school. Well...

There was Shoto, who supported you. Shoto, the one who had a shockingly supportive reaction after you confirmed that you were willingly to take the other road. Shoto, who was your only friend.

Except you wouldn't be able to see him in person for quite some time. Your mind wandered back to Wook. He hadn't done anything harmful to you – maybe he would actually understand your feelings.

Or you could just set those feelings aside and deal with them later.

You stepped out of your room and began your hopeless trek through the dark hall. You still hadn't navigated around it by yourself yet. Today would be the day! You knew the kitchen was somewhere to the right. Keeping your hand on the wall, you walked to the general "right" direction.

That first night, when Wook revealed how Van came to be, you were walking to the kitchen. You were too focused on his story to feel your way around the hall. Why was the hall so dark, anyways?

I wanna kiss Wook.

Yes. This was it. Yet another crush – you had too many in the past to keep count. Sure, he was stranger, sketchier and much older, but... Wook. While he had kissed you three times now, you hadn't done the same to him a single time.

But I'm his intern.

It wasn't like your past crushes had been successful, so this one would probably come to pass like always.

"Wandering... wandering..." you whispered to yourself in a sing-song voice. You were still having a lovely stroll through the pitch-black hallway. "... to-ta-lly lost..."

"(Y/n)! Lost again?" Van's squeaky voice chimed from behind you.

It took everything in you to not jump and screech. How did she manage to sneak up on you? You never heard her or Wook coming. "Yes."

"This way!" She stomped now, so you followed the sound of her feet. She was walking in the opposite direction in which you were going. You... had been going the complete wrong way.

—

"Faster. You're too slow."

You were a panting and sweating mess, trying to run without rattling the gun in your quaking hands. "This is," you choked on your words. "as fast as I c-" you cut off to breathe again. At last, the extent of your athletic abilities were being revealed to Wook.

As if you weren't already hot from moving around so much, the embarrassment of being exposed in such a way made it seem as if the room were an oven. You shot, and the bullet missed by a landslide. You came to a stop.

He crossed his arms and leered at you. "It's a shock that your teacher hasn't expelled you yet."

"Yet?"

"Why did you stop? Keep going until you at least hit a foot within the target," he ordered.

You couldn't muster up the courage to ask for a break. Being ordered around was not terrible, either. You complied and picked up your pace again.

Bam. Miss. Bam. Miss. You glanced at Wook each time the bullets sounded, and each time, he shook his head.

Needless to say, it was a very long day.

—

"Why did the man get hit by a bicycle every day?"

Not even a second after you answered the phone, Shoto had begun speaking. You wondered what the hell he was blabbering about. "Wha? Who's getting hit?"

"No one. It is a joke."

Your eyebrows furrowed. "Why would you say th-"

"He was stuck in a vicious cycle." You were speechless. The silence from you panicked him, so he quickly added, "Ha-ha-ha."

"......"

"It is a joke. Funny, right? Bicycle, cycle."

The secondhand embarrassment was so real to the point where you couldn't even bring yourself to respond. After a very awkward ten seconds, you said, "Since when do you tell jokes?"

Since today. His search history was filled with 'funny jokes' and 'very corny jokes that people will laugh at.' Was he too bland for your liking? Someone like Wook who was confident and never showed weakness or insecurity was bound to grab your attention. So what better to steal your affection back with than jokes?

"Since today. Is it funny?" he asked again. Was his plan backfiring? The tone of your voice sounded concerned if anything.

"I guess... hahaha."

You needed to get out of this situation, and fast. As if hearing someone calling your name, you responded (to nobody), "Huh? Okay, I'll be right there." You brought your phone closer to your face. "Sorry Shoto! I have to go."

"(Y/-" You hung up.

You gasped. He was still talking. Were you a terrible friend? Yeah, probably.

—

•

Break Time

Author's Confessions

Van's name was originally going to be Enir!
I put zero effort in creating the name "Profe Gun." It is literally "Professor Gun" but shorter.

And so we continue...

•

—

"Huh. Looks like I am going back tomorrow," you murmured, reading the email that Aizawa sent all of the students.

Because of Iida's sudden... demise... internships were cut short. The decision to end them was understandable, of course, but you couldn't help feeling disappointed.

Van continued to eat unbothered. "Van still gets to see (y/n), so it's okay."

Ah, right. The League. This wouldn't be the last that you'd see of her and her father. Whether you liked it or not, they were also a part of your secret life. "True," you replied.

Wook said nothing and quietly ate. There wasn't much to talk about for the rest of dinner, so you were doomed to an uncomfortably long silence.

To seem like a good person, you offered to wash all of the dishes. Turning on the tap water, you voiced what you had been planning on saying during the entire meal. "Thank you for having me, even though it was only, like, two days. Because now I can shoot a gun and..." You faltered, forgetting the words to your beautiful speech.

"You can recite your gratitude to me tomorrow, when you are leaving," Wook cut in. "(Y/n), because our time together has been cut short, I must inform you of something that was meant to be said later. Follow me."

Hah? You looked to him, then to the wet and soapy dishes. It was the little moments like these that made you want to curl into a ball and never speak to anyone again. Go with Wook and leave the mess or say 'No' and continue cleaning?

You hadn't realized it, but a minute passed as you stressed over which option. Wook watched you struggle, wondering how you would deal with the situation. The thing is, you didn't deal with it. You stood there frozen. He sighed.

"Never mind. Have a good night," he eventually said. With that, he made an exit, leaving you in confusion and shock.

Your hesitation was more than enough to answer his unvoiced question.