“You could’ve killed them.”

Aizawa’s voice was sharp, low, cutting through the silence of the apartment like a blade.

You stood across from him, arms crossed, chin raised like it made the weight in your chest easier to carry. “He pulled a knife first.”

“You disarmed him. He was done.” A pause. “But you kept going.”

“I learned from the best, remember?” you snapped. “My dad would’ve just killed him outright.”

The room felt like it dropped in temperature.

Aizawa’s jaw clenched. “Don’t say that like it’s something to be proud of.”

You rolled your eyes and turned away, pacing. “You all think throwing me in some rundown apartment with a hero who didn’t even want me is gonna make me change. Like I’m some broken pet project.”

“I didn’t want a pet,” Aizawa said coldly. “I was forced to take you in because Nezu thought it’d be better than throwing you into the system.”

“Oh, so what, I should say thank you for not sending me to the quirk correction center?” you laughed bitterly. “Should I kneel? Apologize for existing?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“You didn’t have to. I get it,” you said, stepping closer, eyes burning. “I’m a villain’s kid. I steal, I lie, I fight. That’s all I know.”

“That’s not all you are.”

Your voice cracked. “You don’t know me.”

“I’m trying to,” Aizawa said, quieter now. “But every time I try, you act like this. You push. You provoke.”

“Because if I don’t act tough, I’ll break.”

Silence.

You didn’t mean to say it.

Aizawa’s expression didn’t change, but he stepped closer, just a little. “I know what it’s like to be raised in survival. To think kindness is a weakness.”

You looked away. “That guy… I didn’t mean to go that far. But I couldn’t stop. My head kept saying ‘make sure he doesn’t get back up.’ That’s what my dad used to say.”

“You’re not your dad.”

You scoffed.

“You’re not,” he said again, firmer this time. “You’re fifteen. You’ve been through hell. But you don’t have to keep living like you’re still in it.”