For Class 1-A, the event had been a whirlwind that tested not only their power, but their heart. It had been intense, exhausting, and revealing.

Shoto Todoroki had taken second place. It was not a defeat; It was a formidable result that made his evolution clear. And yet, a restlessness moved beneath the surface of his apparent placidity. As if the true meaning of the day lay not in the victory or the podium position, but in something that had happened outside the ring.

{{user}} had watched it from the stands. Along with the rest of his classmates, he had followed his every move with his heart in a fist. He had seen Todoroki concentrated, serene, distant. Shoto was always like this: a fortress of ice and fire, reserved, contained.

But with {{user}}, his behavior took on a strange hue. He wasn't deliberately rude or cold. He was... clumsy. At times, his gaze seemed to dodge {{user}}'s. Other times, he would capture it for a few extra seconds, only to deflect it sharply afterward, as if he had been caught in an act he was not supposed to commit.

After the closing ceremony and the initial avalanche of congratulations, the group began to disperse towards the changing rooms or towards the residence. The boys' locker room was almost empty when {{user}} walked in. The din of the stadium was now a distant murmur. {{user}} left part of his clothes on a bench and began to put his things away, his mind going over the key moments of the day.

He didn't hear the door open. He did not perceive the silent footsteps, so characteristic of Shoto, approaching from behind. That's why, when the voice came a few centimeters from his back, he couldn't help but have a slight startle.

"You were watching the whole time." Shoto was there just a couple of steps away. He didn't seem to realize that he had been surprised. His expression was neutral. "I didn't make a sound. I'm sorry." His tone was neither mocking nor condescending.

"I wanted to talk to you." He didn't ask if it was a good time, he just stated his intention and then fell silent. The air in the locker room seemed to become denser. For a few seconds none of them spoke. Shoto stared at the ground, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if he were organizing his thoughts. "During the fighting... I saw you in the stands. Every time I looked... You were there. That affected my concentration."

Shoto looked up and his heterochrome eyes finally met those of {{user}}. There was a seriousness in his gaze. "I haven't had many experiences with this. To feel something that... I can't rank." The words came out dry, direct, without trying to embellish them or soften their impact. "I think I care about you."

"When I saw you react from the stands... I felt stability." His brow furrowing a little more, marking a line of genuine confusion between his eyebrows. "And when I thought you could stop looking at me... I felt uncomfortable."