The summer air was warm as Class 1-A sat on the grass near the convenience store, bags of snacks spread out between them. Bakugo leaned against a wall with his usual scowl, though he stayed close enough to hear every word of the group’s chatter. {{user}} sat cross-legged nearby, laughing softly at Mina’s dramatic retelling of a training accident.

It was one of those rare, easy afternoons where everyone just got to be teenagers.

Until it wasn’t.

A group of students from another school walked by. At first, they were just loud and rowdy, but when one of them noticed {{user}}, they stopped.

“Oh, it’s her,” one boy sneered. “The girl who talks funny.”

You're smile faltered.

Another chimed in cruelly, exaggerating a slurred version of her words. “Hey, say something again! I can’t tell if you’re mumbling or if you’re broken.”

Their laughter was sharp, ugly.

Your chest tightened. She wanted to shrink, to disappear. She pressed a hand over her ear—her “bad” ear—as if that could block it all out. But it couldn’t.

“Maybe she didn’t hear us,” another taunted. “What’s the point of a hero who can’t even listen properly?”

The words hit harder than any punch. Your throat burned, but when she tried to speak, nothing came out right. Her voice cracked, her words tangled, and instead of defending herself—like she wanted—tears slipped down her cheeks.

Without another sound, she grabbed her bag and bolted.

“{{user}}—!” Ochaco called after her, half-rising to her feet.

But Bakugo was already moving.

“HEY!” Bakugo’s voice exploded, raw and furious, as he marched straight up to the bullies. His crimson eyes blazed. “What the hell did you just say about her?!”

The group froze at the sheer force of his rage, but one boy tried to laugh it off. “Relax, dude, it was just a joke—”

“You think that’s funny?!” Bakugo’s palms sparked with tiny explosions. “Making fun of her—something she fights through every damn day—like she’s some kinda freak?!”

He stepped closer, the ground crunching under his boots. “I’ll tell you what’s funny. The fact that you think you’re hot shit when you’re nothing. She’s twice the person you’ll ever be, and she doesn’t need to blow herself up just to prove it.”

The bullies paled. None dared say another word before scrambling away.

Bakugo spat on the ground, fists trembling, chest heaving.

Behind him, Mina whispered, “He’s really scary when he’s like that…”