Haru sat alone in the player waiting room, trying to calm down. His Quirk was acting up, causing him to flicker back and forth between two chairs like a glitch. He couldn't seem to stop trembling.
They all hate me… I've ruined my reputation as a hero…
All because I tried to keep my promise.
He'd just been trying to use a strategy like Mina, but he'd failed to account for how it would make him look.
Aizawa had tried to negate it with that speech, but how much would the crowd really listen? They'd be more inclined to form their own opinions.
Tokoyami had come in earlier, and the two of them had made awkward eye contact before the shorter boy had silently left. Haru had half been hoping that the Dark Shadow user might have had some advice for him, but that wasn't really in Tokoyami's character, was it? He was more the type to just give an upset person their space.
He and Todoroki would be fighting by now. The first semifinal. Haru's own semifinal would be soon.
I must go out there and redeem myself. I HAVE to try.
The door flung open. Haru looked up from his knees, surprised.
"Namikaze-kun!" Hagakure exclaimed. "There you are… ouhhh, what?"
It was hard to tell with her, but Shoji, Mina, and Tsuyu's eyes were all darting back and forth between the two chairs Haru was flickering between.
Haru tried to smile. "My Quirk is hiccuping. It used to do this when I was a kid, but it's been a long time." His words came out stuttering, a side effect of the minuscule delay between the flashes.
"Have you overused it?" Shoji asked. The three girls came further into the room.
Haru shrugged. "Possibly. Recovery Girl said I was fine, though."
"But you aren't fine." Tsu leaned down in front of him, or at least… one of the chairs. "You got jeered at by thousands of people, ribbit. Anyone would be upset."
Haru frowned sourly, and briefly stabilised himself in the chair in front of Tsu. "Yeah, but a hero shouldn't get upset."
Hagakure seemed to roll her eyes. "Oh, come on. Why are all boys like this? It's okay to be upset, you know! It doesn't feel like a burden for us. It's okay to look vulnerable!"
Shoji shifted uncomfortably. "I see your point, but I see Haru's as well. If we are training to be heroes, we must learn to go through life with a smile, like All Might. That is how you gain trust from the public."
"Even if some people out there in the crowd don't hate me, after what Aizawa-sensei said," Haru muttered, "then they probably pity me. Pity is the death of desire."
Mina's eyes widened.
Haru looked up at his confused friends. "I only mean, like… the pro heroes. They value strength. I'm not going to get any work from them if they just feel bad for me."
"No," Mina said, with such steel in her voice that everyone turned to stare. "You'll get work from them by being yourself. "
Haru raised his eyebrows as the pink girl, the one he may or may not have feelings for, the one he'd embarrassed himself in front of during their match, the one he'd defeated, leaned down in front of him, next to Tsu.
"Haru. These past two weeks and earlier today, you barely cared about competing in this festival. Even now you're still conflicted about it. And… even WITH all those feelings, you still made it into the top four. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Her black-and-gold eyes glistened with hope. "You're amazing, Haru. Your power is amazing. The pros would be idiots not to consider your potential. And unlike the rest of us, you still have a chance to turn it around. You've got another match."
"Yes," said Shoji, "against Bakugo. Whatever feelings you may have had before now, you will need to cast them aside in order to face such a powerful opponent."
"Yeah, and the crowd is mixed on Bakugo too!" Hagakure chirped. "I'll bet they'd rather root for you, and then you'll be good again!"
"I realise I can be blunt sometimes, and that probably doesn't help," Tsu croaked. "But please don't feel bad about us trying to support you. We're here because we want to be, ribbit. It's okay to rely on others. And I promise… for me, at least… that I don't pity you. I acknowledge your strength, Haru."
"As do I," said Shoji.
"Oh, and Sero said to send his regards!" Hagakure added.
Mina beamed as she and Tsu stood back up. "And I'm sorry for sort of causing this mess. I shouldn't have… messed with you like that."
Haru sniffed. "That's alright. I wasn't mad at you." I could never be. "Thanks, everyone. I feel like I need to repay you all somehow…"
All four of them protested at once.
"Goodness, Haru," Mina chuckled. "You never change, do you?"
"No, I do." The boy stood. "I will change for the better. And it starts now."
The acid user took a step toward him, and poked him in the chest, her eyes suddenly taking on a more seductive quality. "Just remember one thing, Mr. Confident. Now that you've beat me, you BETTER win this thing. I won't accept getting beaten by anyone but the winner, you hear me?"
Haru didn't recoil from her touch. He only smirked back. "Loud and clear."
As the four of them went back to the box, leaving Haru to await his match, Mezo Shoji felt a tug on his uniform.
Mezo looked back and downward. It was Tsu. Ashido and Hagakure were going on ahead, chattering happily. They had a shield of noise; whatever Tsu wanted to say, she wanted to only say it to him.
"Shoji-chan," she said in her low voice. "You're pretty observant, aren't you?"
"Not always by choice, but yes." He'd unintentionally eavesdropped on many conversations over the years, thanks to his Quirk.
"I was wondering." She blinked her large, vacant eyes. "Do you think Haru has a bad home life?"
Mezo took a pause, and swallowed nervously. "What gives you that idea?"
"When we brought up siblings, he only mentioned his sister briefly. He's the only one who hasn't divulged his parents' Quirks in the group chat. He's always talking about how he has chores to do. And he doesn't seem to be very connected to the hero world or the Internet, and not by choice."
Mezo felt his eye twitch. "I… have noticed all these things, but they mostly happened a while ago. Why bring this up now?"
"The way he acts when we try to support him. Like it's a bad thing that he has to rely on other people. He feels the need to pay us back for simple kindness. That sort of behavior… is the mark of someone who's been mistreated."
Mezo inhaled, and then exhaled. "Even so… what could we do with such info? If he doesn't want to talk about it, then… we can't exactly ask him, Tsu."
"No, I know. But… just keep it in mind, I suppose."
Mezo nodded forward to the two more bubbly girls conversing in front of them. "Are you going to tell them?"
"Toru-chan perhaps." Tsu's eyes seemed to focus on Ashido. "I think Mina-chan needs to figure it out for herself."