Chapter Text
Todoroki had only been on his mission for three days.
Iida had said goodbye to him—of course he had—wished him luck on his mission, and told him to return as soon as possible.
He was only supposed to be gone for a day…he should have been back yesterday, at the latest…but that was fine, right? It was normal for missions to take a little over the expected time.
Yes, he shouldn't worry about Todoroki. He shouldn't worry about the classmate most precious to him. He shouldn't worry about the capable man being missing for long. He shouldn't worry that the mission had been in Hosu City, the same city where Tensei had been so gravely injured.
He shouldn't worry…right?
There are a few minutes before class starts, so Iida picks up his phone, rereading the messages he had sent Todoroki so far.
Three Days Ago
Tenya: Hello, Todoroki! I do hope your mission is going well. It's merely the first day, so I do understand if you won't be able to respond immediately. But do so soon!
Tenya: You've just arrived in Hosu City, if I'm correct? Do be careful. I'll keep some soba cold for when you get back.
Two Days Ago
Tenya: Hello again, Todoroki! I suppose it was foolish of me to text so late yesterday, haha…forgive me. I wanted to make sure you had arrived in Hosu City safely.
Tenya: Is your mission going well? I do hope so. Please be safe.
Tenya: Hopefully you're on the train back today! I'll see you in class soon.
Yesterday
Tenya: Todoroki, I see you're not back yet. I understand if your mission is taking longer than normal. I do hope you can take some time to respond to my messages.
Tenya: …I know that you know Hosu City brings fear to me. After…after Tensei. So if you could just reply, at any time, my heart will be eased, if only slightly.
Tenya: I love you. I hope to see you soon.
He reads the unread, unmarked texts multiple times, his throat growing slightly tighter with each reread sentence. He checks the time—two minutes until class starts. Alright then.
His trembling fingers tap in a new message.
Tenya: Shoto. Please be okay. Please reply. Please.
[send]
Iida jolts as the bell rings, shoving his phone into his pocket and taking his seat. He silently takes roll of all his classmates before Aizawa himself does, trying to restore order, trying to straighten out his racing mind…
"…Tenya Iida. Tenya Iida."
"Ah!" Iida gasps, fumbling as his head snaps up. "Apologies, Mr. Aizawa—! Present!"
The teacher simply sighs, his gaze flicking from Iida's folded hands, to the empty seat behind Tokoyami…before moving to the next person. "Ochaco Uraraka…"
Iida shoots a quick glance behind him, shooting a quick, shaky smile at Uraraka's worried look before fixing his gaze on Todoroki's seat.
Empty.
He stares at the chair for a long, long time before he turns away again, shoulders slumping.
"Alright, everyone, moving onto today's lesson…"
There's a quick tap on Iida's shoulder, and the boy jolts again, almost yelping in surprise as his head whips around, almost hoping that it's Shoto, here to tell him it's okay, he's here, he's safe—
Uraraka sits leaning back, wide-eyed and hands raised in surrender. He cocks her head to the side, mouthing, "Are you okay?"
Iida tries to hide the slump in his shoulders, tries to quell the disappointment curling like a tired cat in his stomach. He blinks harshly, mouth twitching up into an unconvincing smile—accompanied by an even worse, jerky nod.
Uraraka's brow furrows, but before she can ask anything else, Iida turns back to face the board, smile slipping off his face the second she can't see his expression.
You are the class president, Iida. Keep it together.
Stay calm, strong, in control.
That is what the Iida family line is meant to do.
His pen hovers above his notebook for almost all of the day's lesson. He barely hears anything Uraraka or Midoriya is saying at lunch…he's just staring at the konpeito he brought. The konpeito he'd split with Shoto at the start of the week.
He can't enjoy his favorite beef stew or even his orange juice—picking at both as he can feel his friends boring a hole into him with their worried gazes.
Training in the afternoon is a blur. Iida can barely focus, and the only vivid memory he has is when Kirishima nearly chopped his head off.
"Oh my fu—holy crap!!" Kirishima's arm shifts back to normal skin, and he shakes his head so fast Iida thinks it may come off…he wishes he could warn the red-haired man of that, or scold him for his very near obscene language—but all he does is blink dazedly. "What's up, Iida?! You didn't dodge! If I hadn't missed, you'd be—uh…Prez? You alright?"
Iida blinks once more, rigidly, almost mechanically smoothing down his hair where the missed strike had ruffled it.
I didn't even react. How did I miss it? My engines…even if I wasn't paying attention, they should have kicked in…what's even been happening…?
He mumbles a "yes" and a hurried excuse about being thirsty before heading to the water fountain, wincing at the way his voice cracks—completely unlike his normal, loud, booming responses.
Iida makes a cup with his hands, splashing his face with the cold water before he takes a few gulps that border on desperate.
I'm troubling everyone. As the class president, I'm supposed to be strong—the rational, stable one. Not the weak link. Just look at their faces...
His damp fingers rub his temples as he closes his eyes, trying to get his breathing under control.
Just let the day be over…I need to see if he replied…
The second class is finally over, Iida nearly jerks his phone out of his pocket even as his classmates rush to their lockers. He gets carried in the tidal wave of students, and the young man is forced to clutch his phone to his chest so it doesn't fall.
"Heyyy, Yaomomo! What are you gonna do the rest of the week?!"
"Rest of the…? Oh, that's right. We have the rest of the week off…thank you for telling me, Mina. I might have come to school otherwise…"
"Hey, Bakubro!! Wanna hang out on Thursday?! Or tomorrow! Hell, we could arm wrestle!"
"Shut up, shitty hair…"
Iida blinks absently. He naturally picks up the conversations happening around him, and only from them does he remember—today and Monday were their only day of classes. The rest of the week was to be dedicated to rest and recuperating…
Todoroki has to have replied by now, right…?
Unable to wait a second longer, Iida turns on his phone, goes into his messages, and—
No notifications.
His grip tightens on his phone as he blinks fiercely, trying not to shake.
Has something happened…?
No, no, don't jump to conclusions…I'm sure it's fine…his mission is just going a little longer than it should be…of course, he's busy…
The class president tries to turn his focus back to the chatter of his classmates, all about weekend plans and hangouts…
"…Tokoyami! Have you seen Iida?"
"Hm? No, Midoriya, I haven't…not after the end of class…"
"Oh, Tokoyami…please, it's important…"
Midoriya? Uraraka, too?
"Oh—Oh, there he is! Iida!"
"Tenya! Tenya, wait!!"
Midoriya comes running up to him, nearly stumbling over with his phone held out. Uraraka follows close behind, arms crossed over her chest as if to hug herself.
"Ah…Midoriya! Uraraka! Is there something you needed?" He straightens his glasses, voice almost cracking with forced volume.
"Well…well, Iida…" The green-haired boy begins to wave his hands, eyes worried, before he pulls his phone away. "We just…uh…are you doing anything over the break?"
Waiting for Shoto to reply. Hoping he's okay. Trying not to panic.
"…Nothing of importance," he decides, the lie bitter on his tongue, "Likely studying and working on my legs. Why? Is there something you wanted to do?"
"Well—not really," the boy admits. He suddenly becomes very interested in his shoes.
Iida's brow furrows. Midoriya is one to wear his emotions on his sleeves…and right now, he has the face he makes when he's holding something back.
"Midoriya, Uraraka…is something wrong?"
"Well…well, yeah." Midoriya finally looks up, phone clutched close to his chest.
"It's…it's about Todoroki."
Iida's head snaps up at that name, eyes going wide as he takes a step closer.
"Sho—Todoroki? Why? What's wrong? Is he back from his mission?" The last question catches in his throat, but he forces it out anyway.
"Did—Did something happen?"
Midoriya and Uraraka exchange a worried, silent glance. Then, the smaller girl steps up to Iida, placing a hand on his shoulder and guiding him toward the bench in the middle of the genkan.
"…You might wanna sit down for this, Tenya."
Once Iida is situated on the bench and the genkan is empty except for them, he simply looks up at Midoriya and Uraraka.
"…you start, Deku…"
"Well, Iida…I…something happened on Todoroki's mission…
He got hurt. Hurt bad. They took him to the hospital—"
And it feels like the bench has been pulled out from under Iida.
He barely picks up the rest of the news—only fragments like, "comatose," "critical condition," "just heard today," "out for two days already," "was coughing up blood…"
His eyes are burning. He's sure his soul has been pulled out of his chest.
Oh.
Oh gods, Shoto.
His hands, loose against his knees, curl into fists.
How could I have let this happen? All this time, he's been in a coma, and I just…
"…We know this must be a shock to you, Iida. It's just that you've been so worried, and we—"
"I'm going to Hosu City."
The identical gasp from both his friends makes Iida look up—and he sees the shock spread across their faces.
"W-What?! Iida, right now?!"
"But—But Tenya—we thought you swore to never return to Hosu! Not since your brother—"
Midoriya shoots Uraraka a warning glance—he's already upset, don't say anything more—but Iida has already flinched, fists turning white-knuckled.
"I—I know," he manages, voice seconds away from breaking—he figures it's just like him using Recipro Burst: he has ten seconds, tops, before he breaks down. "But—I have to see him…I need—need to make sure he's okay…I—"
Nope, he has a lot less time than he thought.
Iida straightens, standing up from the bench with a curt bow. "Thank you for telling me. Midoriya and Uraraka. I will be leaving now. Enjoy your week."
"Iida, wait—!"
He doesn't wait for Midoriya to respond or catch up to him. He's already three strides ahead.
His engines flare, a roaring, desperate sound echoing the feelings swirling in his stomach. Iida grabs his bag and sprints out of the genkan, letting the wind dry his eyes before anything can spill over.