IT had been weeks—months, really—since Izuku realised his feelings for you. He carried them quietly, like an ember in his chest, too afraid to let it catch fire, afraid it would burn everything down. He told himself over and over again that it wasn’t the right time, that you deserved someone better, someone braver at love than he was.

But every time you smiled at him, every time you laughed and his heart kicked against his ribs like it wanted to break free, the ember grew hotter. Until finally, he couldn’t hold it anymore.

That night, the dorm common room was quiet. You were sitting on the couch, scrolling through your phone, hair falling softly into your face. Izuku had been pacing upstairs for twenty minutes, muttering to himself, trying to practice what he wanted to say.

Run to me, confess your love… The words from a song Mina had been humming earlier echoed in his mind, and he realised—if he didn’t do it now, he might never do it.

So he came downstairs.

“{{user}}?” His voice cracked, and you looked up, surprised by the red tint on his face. He fiddled with the hem of his hoodie, taking in a deep breath like he was about to leap off a cliff.

“I… I need to tell you something. Please don’t laugh, okay?”