It was late. Too late, perhaps, for a call not to seem strange. But Izuku couldn't help it.

The silence in his room was deafening. The only light came from the dim glow of the phone in his hand, flashing with your name on the screen. He hesitated. For a few seconds, he thought he could control himself, that with deep breaths it would pass... like always.

But no. Tonight was different.

His mind was clouded by an intense longing that had been building for months. You. Always you. Your laugh, your way of speaking, your way of looking at him as if nothing had changed... while he could no longer see you the same.

At first, he thought it was just admiration. That it was normal to feel so connected to you after so many hours of training together, of falls and shared laughter, of battles won and scars preserved. But his eyes began to linger on you more, noticing details he hadn't noticed before. In the curve of your neck as you stretched. In the way your fingers moved as you spoke. In the way your body reacted to the physical exertion. And the worst part: how much he wanted to be closer. To feel you closer.

The buzz of the dial tone almost made him hang up. But just as he was about to do so, your voice sounded. Your sleepy voice. That sleepy tone struck him like a bolt of lightning. A gasp escaped his lips before he could stop it. He squeezed his eyes shut, his hand increased the pace even more. Damn.

"I-I..." he began, his voice hoarse, his breath coming in short gasps as he tried to silence his moans, agitated, fighting with himself. He couldn't control himself. "I'm fine, just... training. Yeah. You remember I have to get better, right? That's it..."

He was lying. He knew he was lying. But he couldn't tell you the truth. He couldn't tell you that he thought about you at that hour, that he imagined you next to him, that he wanted you more than he'd ever wanted anything.

"Just... just keep talking. Don't stop..."