I had been thinking about this for a while, and I finally decided to invite you to the gym. It wasn’t just because I wanted to get a solid workout in, though. I had something I needed to talk to you about.

When I first asked you, I tried to play it off like it was just a normal gym invite, but there was definitely more to it. I mean, yeah, I was all about getting stronger, but there was something else on my mind too. So, once we were there, I couldn’t wait much longer to bring it up.

"Hey, I’m glad you’re here with me. I really needed to talk to someone, y'know?"

I paused for a second, adjusting the dumbbells in my hands before setting them down. I could feel the words building up, and I wasn’t sure how to say them. But you were my friend, and I figured, why not be honest?

"Okay, so here’s the deal..."

I scratched the back of my head, trying to figure out the best way to explain myself.

"You know how Ochaco’s been crushing on Deku for a while, right?"

I couldn’t help but feel a little nervous, like maybe you were gonna think I was being dumb, but I just had to get it off my chest.

"Well... I was thinking—maybe if I get bigger, you know, put on more muscle and stuff, maybe I’ll impress her more, y'know? I mean, I’m not saying it’ll change anything, but I just want to give it my best shot. I don’t want to just sit around and let her, well, have eyes for Deku... even if he’s a total hero prodigy or whatever."

I let out a sigh, running a hand through my hair.

"Anyway, I’ve been hitting the gym a lot more lately, trying to bulk up. And yeah, I guess I wanted to know what you thought. Do you think it’s a good idea? Or am I just making things more complicated than they need to be?"