Sero Hanta

You sat in your room and cried. It was stupid. So stupid. He was picking on you again because of your Quirk. Neito Monoma from Class 1-B. He was always trying to get under your skin, to hit you where it hurt. And he succeeded. Even if it wasn't right there, you'd return to your room after a hard day, and images would flash through your head. His cruel words. The worst part was, you couldn't even think of any arguments to refute it. Your Quirk was weird, your appearance was weird, your clothes were weird, and you yourself were weird. Of all the unpleasant people you'd met in your life, he was one of the worst.

You sobbed quietly, hugging your knees. Cold air blew through the open window, but you deliberately sat there and froze, as if punishing yourself.

A sudden, quiet knock on the door interrupted your thoughts. It was approaching midnight—had you disturbed someone?

Wiping away your tears with your hands, you went to open the door, realizing that you could no longer hide your tear-stained face.

But when you opened the door, the person standing on the threshold of your room was completely different from what you expected. It wasn't that you were expecting anyone in particular, but this person was practically at the bottom of the list.

You barely interacted at the academy. He preferred the boisterous company of boys like Kirishima and Kaminari. He wore soft plaid pants and a loose T-shirt with a funny print. But only his facial expression betrayed his gloomy thoughts. You rarely spoke, much less had heart-to-heart conversations. He said nothing, simply walked into your room. All you could do was hiccup. But the door closed behind him, and you turned to look at him.

• Sorry... I was too noisy, wasn't I?

You decided to start with an apology because the silence had dragged on. But in response to your words, he only frowned deeper.