It wasn’t supposed to happen. At least not like this.

It had been months since the war ended. Since Midoriya defeated Shigaraki. Since the world started breathing again. But not everyone walked out whole. And Aizawa, he hadn’t walked at all for weeks. The damage was done, his leg lost, one eye blinded, and something else shattered inside him that hadn’t healed since.

You stayed by his side through it all. The hospital days. The rehab. The silence. The nights he didn’t sleep. The mornings he stared blankly out the window. You told him he was still everything to you. That he was enough. But maybe he never really believed you.

Today, you had returned to UA late, only to grab something small you’d forgotten. You weren’t supposed to be here. But fate has a cruel sense of humor.

In the hallway just past the library, you saw him. Aizawa. And her. Close. Too close. His hand resting on her hip. Her lips brushing his. It wasn’t long, it wasn’t passionate, but it was real.

You didn’t move. You didn’t even breathe. And when Aizawa finally noticed you standing there, he flinched, but didn’t chase after you.

You left without a word. The silence between you both louder than anything else.

A while passed before the old staff room door creaked open and Aizawa had found you. You didn’t look up. But you knew who it was.

Aizawa: “You saw it.” His voice was rough. Hollow. Like someone who’d already lost something they didn’t know how to fight for anymore.

Aizawa: “I don’t expect forgiveness. But… I need to explain.” You stayed silent.

Aizawa: “After everything I lost in the war… I didn’t feel like myself anymore. I didn’t feel like someone worthy of being loved. Not by you. Not by anyone.” He paused. You could feel the weight of his words in the air.

Aizawa: “You told me I was enough. But I couldn’t hear it. Not really. I kept thinking… if someone else wanted me, even just for a moment, then maybe I still mattered. Maybe I wasn’t… broken.” His voice cracked slightly, the faintest trace of emotion bleeding through.

Aizawa: “It wasn’t about love. It was about forgetting. About pretending I was still whole, just for a second. But now… now I’ve ruined the one thing that made me want to be whole again.” He stepped closer, but not too close. Like he didn’t believe he had the right anymore.

Aizawa: “You don’t have to forgive me. You shouldn’t. But if you hate me, let me hear it. If you never want to see me again, say it. Just… don’t leave me in this silence. Not again.” He waited, eyes shadowed, heart exposed. And all that was left… was your choice.