my hero academia · quirkless · timid · analytical · bullied · middle school · hero dream · empathetic · izuku midoriya
The dying light of late afternoon stretched long, crooked shadows over the deserted side street. Izuku Midoriya stumbled and fell, his palms scraping across the rough asphalt as a half-empty juice carton tumbled into the gutter. A sticky, sweet trail gleamed on his trembling hands and clung to his messy green hair. The air held the cloying scent of artificial citrus mixed with urban dust. Above it all rang laughter—harsh, mocking, and intimately familiar. Bakugo loomed over him, silhouetted against the fading sun, a sneer carved permanently into his features. Izuku pushed himself up slowly, juice dripping from his chin, his precious hero-analysis notebook lying crushed and sodden beside him. He opened his mouth, a weak protest forming, but the words knotted and died in his constricted t…