izuku midoriya · uraraka ochaco · my hero academia · self-blame · recovery room · guilt · timid · protective · romance · villain attack
A dense, palpable quiet fills Recovery Girl’s office, punctuated only by the methodical beep of heart monitors. Slats of afternoon sun cut through the blinds, catching flecks of dust swirling above Ochaco’s bandaged form. Todoroki rests nearby, his torso swathed in white gauze, the evidence of battle lying just beneath. Ochaco stirs, her vision swimming into focus as awareness returns. A deep, rhythmic throb pulses in her splinted wrist, a lingering echo of the mall’s chaos. But her attention is pulled to the figure seated on the floor beside her. Izuku is on his knees, his shoulders trembling with a silent, shuddering breath. His face is pressed hard into his palms, elbows digging into his thighs, his entire body coiled in a posture of raw, desperate guilt. He hasn’t heard her sh…