Chapter Text
Todoroki Shouto was never known for being emotional. He was awkward, a bit dry, monotone without meaning to be. He wasn’t nearly as expressive as his peers, usually settling for a small smile when he deemed it appropriate. Midoriya and the others never really complained about this (besides Bakugo, who constantly teased him), so he assumed that this much effort was acceptable.
Until he met you.
You weren’t a huge standout in the class, usually average or slightly above when it came to tests and examinations. Despite this, Todoroki couldn’t help but pay attention to you. You were beloved by nearly the entire class for your sunny personality and witty humor, so much so that even Bakugo was forced to grin at your antics sometimes.
Todoroki couldn’t help but feel a bit envious at your ability to draw people to you. You were wildly expressive, like a bright sun that compelled people to stop and stare. Not that Todoroki wanted tons of attention, but he had a slight desire to be a little less… “fucking boring,” as Bakugo had put it.
He watched you dance between the aisles of desks on that bright Monday morning, greeting your classmates with smiles, smirks, and jokes. He wondered how it must feel, to be regarded and accepted by everyone so warmly.
Lost in his wandering thoughts, he accidentally caught your eye before he whipped his gaze downward, nearly burning holes into the wood of his desk with his intense stare. The quick action seemed to draw your attention even more, because you began striding toward him.
“Hey hey, Todoroki!”
Todoroki cringed at the prospect of interacting with you, not because he didn’t like you, but because he didn’t know how. You got along best with people like Kaminari and Mina because they could match your energy, while Todoroki could barely match half of it. He looked up hesitantly, clearing his throat.
“Oh, hello. Good morning.”
Under the weight of your stare, he suddenly felt his face heating up, and he couldn’t blame his quirk. You offered him a small smile, tilting your head slightly.
“Good morning,” you chirped, bouncing on your feet, “you looked really deep in thought for a second there. What’s going on in that mind of yours?”
You clasped your hands behind your back, leaning forward with a wide smile on your lips, while Todoroki instinctively leaned back.
“Ah, I’m just thinking about exams.”
The lie sounded lame, and Todoroki knew it, but you didn’t seem to care. You nodded enthusiastically at his response, and his heart rate sped up.
“Yeah, they’re coming up quick! Studying will be a real challenge.”
At that moment, the bell rang and Aizawa addressed the class, and Todoroki had never been more relieved. You winked at the boy before scurrying back to your seat in preparation for the lecture.
Now that you weren’t staring at him, Todoroki let out a sigh of relief, but his heart was still beating miles a minute.
At lunch, Todoroki silently dug into his cold noodles as his classmates chatted around him. With a jolt, a bento box dropped onto the table in front of him, and he lifted his eyes to see you. Everyone sitting at the table greeted you enthusiastically, while Todoroki just raised his eyebrows in acknowledgment and gave a short nod.
Now that you were here, the mood at the table seemed to improve.
You talked animatedly with Midoriya, who sat next to you, as Todoroki watched you silently. He didn’t even know what part of him was so interested in you. Something about the way you flowed with the conversation so naturally made him take notice. During a lull in your chat with Midoriya, you noticed Todoroki’s stare.
“Oh, hey Todoroki,” you said brightly, “sorry I didn’t greet you properly. You seemed very focused on eating and I didn’t want to interrupt you.” You accompanied that last comment with a mischievous smirk, and Todoroki gave a slight smile.
“Yeah, I guess so.”
For the rest of the lunch period, you talked with Todoroki, and despite his awkwardness, he let himself relax a little when he was talking to you. You didn’t seem to mind when he gave short answers, still responding enthusiastically, and always knew how to keep the conversation going.
If Todoroki were to describe the feeling, he would say it was comfortable.
You were kind, but not too kind that Todoroki felt that you were babying him. He had a feeling you knew how uncomfortable he was interacting with you, and supplemented that with your own energy to match his comfort zone. It was a delicate balance, but you seemed to make it work.
Too soon, the bell rang, and everyone started to pack up their lunches and clean the tables. Just before Todoroki placed the cover on his bento, you stuck your chopsticks in, snatching up a noodle before eating it quickly. When he stared at you in shock, you merely smirked at him teasingly.
“I just wanted to see what makes you go so crazy over these noodles.”
He nodded, not knowing what else to say. In the chaos of everyone else cleaning up, you decided to do one last thing to shock him. Placing your chopsticks down, you reached your hand over the table, and poked Todoroki directly on the nose.
And as soon as it happened, it was over.
Todoroki stood there, frozen, face flushed red in shock, as you got up from the table. You started skipping away, but not without one last call over your shoulder.
“Thanks for the chat, Todoroki! I’ll see you in class.”
Well, now Todoroki had a feeling why he was so attracted to you. He didn’t really know why, but he felt like smiling now. He didn’t have the correct words to verbalize it, but if he had to guess, it would be because you were an enigma. You confused him to the point that he had no choice but to know more about you.
And, despite his better judgment, Todoroki would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested.