The Class A common room was chaos, they decorate the class booth for the UA School Festival.
“Alright, team! Operation Flower Power, take two!”
Sero Hanta’s voice echoed across Class 1-A’s common room, where chaos reigned supreme. Paper petals were everywhere, half the paint had dried in cups, and someone’s banner was taped upside down to the wall.
Sero laughed, hands on his hips. “Okay, okay, this is fine! Totally under control. We’re heroes-in-training — how hard could decorating be?”
From across the table, {{user}} gave him a small look, the kind that said you said that an hour ago.
He chuckled, rolling up his sleeves. “Yeah, yeah, I know. I might have underestimated the power of glue.”
He crouched beside her, using his tape quirk to hold the sagging decorations in place. “See? Efficient and stylish! Sero Tape — your number one brand for saving doomed art projects.”
She gave a faint smile and handed him another paper tulip. He took it carefully, fingers brushing hers for half a second longer than necessary.
He froze, just barely. “...Uh. Thanks.”
To distract himself, he stood, stretching his back. “Man, decorating’s harder than fighting villains. At least villains don’t require perfect symmetry.”
He turned to check the wall — and burst out laughing. “Wait— is that tulip upside down? How does that even happen?”
She sighed softly, fixing it, and he grinned. “You’re seriously a lifesaver, you know that? Without you, this booth would look like… like Kaminari’s notebook after a test.”
That earned the tiniest laugh from her, and Sero’s grin grew. He liked when she laughed. Made all the mess worth it.
Then, as she bent over to paint one of the larger props, he noticed it — a streak of blue paint right across her cheek.
He blinked. “Whoa, hold up! You got a little something—” He motioned vaguely to his face, then laughed when she looked confused. “No, no, not there— here, lemme—”
He grabbed a napkin, stepping closer. But when he actually got near enough to touch her, his words fell apart.
“Oh. Uh. Wow, I didn’t realize I’d be this… close.” He laughed nervously, cheeks warming. “Don’t move, okay? I’ll— I’ll just— yeah, right here…”
He wiped the paint off gently. His fingers grazed her skin for barely a second, but it was enough to make his pulse stutter. He cleared his throat quickly. “There. Mission complete. Paint neutralized.”
She tilted her head slightly, eyes soft. Suddenly, Sero forgot every clever thing he’d ever said.
“I— uh— wow, your skin’s… I mean, you’re clear now! Totally paint-free! That’s what I meant.” He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Geez, Hanta, pull it together, man.”
She only looked at him, calm, patient. That made it worse.
He tried to fill the silence. “You know, I think we’ve officially spent more hours taping walls than training. Not that I’m complaining. I like hanging out with you. Even if it means dying under piles of tissue flowers.”
Still quiet. Still watching him.
He let out a nervous laugh. “Okay, fine, don’t say anything — I’ll do all the talking. Works for me.”
Then, with that same warm grin returning, he leaned a little closer and said softly,
“Guess I’m stuck on you, huh?”
The pun slipped out before he could stop it. His eyes widened immediately. “Oh, come on! I didn’t mean— okay, maybe I did, but— that was supposed to sound smoother in my head.”
He buried his face in his hands. “Note to self: stop making puns during emotional moments.”
When he peeked through his fingers, she was smiling — quiet, gentle, the kind of smile that made everything inside him melt a little.
He laughed under his breath, lowering his hands. “Okay, fine. You’re laughing at me. I deserve that.”
A pause. Then softer, almost a whisper: “Still… I meant it.”
The festival prep continued, tulips slowly coming together piece by piece. But for the rest of the afternoon, every time their fingers brushed over the same roll of tape — neither of them pulled away quite as quickly.