green smog

box 26

Thin strands of smoke flew out of the end of the cigarette. The greyish-green smoke danced in the air as it escaped into the night. The burning offered warmth to the male's hand as he held it near his face. A heavy sigh left his lips as he stared into the starry night sky.

"What does one do when there is nothing else that could be done..." He asked the moon, longing for an answer. Dead silence is all that he got in return. The stars flickered almost as if they were teasing him. It was like they knew the answer yet refused to tell a soul.

"But sick or well, humans are fragile creatures, you know. There's no anticipating how or when they might die, or for what reason." He spoke recalling the quote from his favorite book. A book about loneliness and human nature. "Sōseki Natsume spoke those words, did he not?" A new voice spoke from under the tree. The crunching of leaves could be heard as they grew closer.

"Indeed, he did. My father gave me that book when I was a child." A dry laugh erupted from Zihao's throat. "A book about pain given to a child who does not yet understand the ways of humans. How trivial." A sad smile adorned his face, a sight so beautiful that the moon would engrave it into the sky.

Zihao glances down at the figure below and continues. "You know, in the entire book there is only one line that fits my father perfectly." He stares back into the sky with an unreadable expression. "I tried instead to drown my soul in drink. I cannot say I like alcohol, but I am someone who can drink if I choose to, and I set about obliterating my heart by drinking all I could. This was a puerile way out, of course, and it very quickly led to an even greater despair with the world. In the midst of a drunken stupor, I would come to my senses and realize what an idiot I was to try to fool myself like this. Then my vision and understanding grew clear, and I sat shivering and sober. There were desolate times when even the poor disguise of drunkenness failed to work, no matter how I drank. And each time I sought pleasure in drink, I emerged more depressed than ever."

"Do you hate your father?" The person asked, keeping their eyes trained on the male. Looking for any hint of hatred or disgust. Yet, much to his surprise it never came. Only an alluring look of sadness could be seen. 'Such a lovely expression of melancholy.' A moment of silence passed before he spoke. Almost as if he needed to calculate his thoughts.

"I do not hate, nor do I admire my father. While he was an idiot, he was still a broken man. Could I welcome him with open arms? Most likely not. Yet I couldn't bring myself to turn him away." No more words were said between the two as they bathed in the smell of tobacco. Only on few occasions would he use regular cigarettes, but on nights like these the smell could only remind him of the home he lost. The smell that will forever haunt his dreams, always lingering in the back of his mind.

Jumping off of the branch Zihao landed near the male on the ground. With a solemn smile he looked at the equally broken boy who also once yearned for his father's love. No tears could fall from the nineteen-year old's face, only a single drop of blood travelled down his scarred cheek.

"Touya please don't make us your enemy. We've already lost so much already." A gentle hand caressed Dabi's face as it wiped the stray drop of blood. His thumb delicately moved across his scars with a loving gaze. "I do hope you aren't on the other side of the field when we see each other again."

Dabi watched the figure of his old friend disappear into the night. The scent that drew him near in the first place left alongside him. 'Why did it have to be UA?'

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The next morning arrived too quickly for Zihao's taste, with a groan he went to push himself off of the bed but was met with a body weighing him down. Laying across his abdomen rested a sleeping Kota. His leg hung off the bed and right into Hu's face. Zihao rolled his eyes as he pushed Kota to the side, stepping over Hu's body carefully he tip-toed out of the room.

"The students have to be up and ready by 5:30. Let's see its 4:30 right now so let's just make congee and bacon. I'll prepare energy bars too." He nodded to himself and began preparing everything. Rolling up his sleeves he laid out the bacon and rice and got to work.

After pouring the congee in separate bowls, he added a lid and put them in bags so they wouldn't get cold. Each bag had two energy bars and fruit. Momo and Sato had extra sugars and lipids added into their bags to better help with their quirk. Tokoyami received an extra apple in case Dark Shadow tried to fight him for his.

Wiping off the imaginary sweat from his forehead he stood in front of the bags proudly. Footsteps slowly approached the kitchen as a few yawns could be heard. The greenette glanced at the clock, 'right on time.'

As the class walked sluggishly into the room their eyes grew big as they saw separate lunch bags with their names labeled on them. "Take your bag and go eat before Ai throws a fit." He waved them off as he began taking the spare pots and pans to the sink.

Zihao noticed Kouda's nervous look as everyone pulled out bacon from their bag. He tapped the first year on the shoulder and whispered, "I used tofu for yours. Don't worry." Kouda smiled sheepishly as he signed a small thank you. Giving him a gentle pat on the back he pushed the quiet male in the direction his fellow classmates were going.

The male yawned as he took a seat at a spare table, the lack of sleep began to weigh on him. His eyelids seemed to grow heavier and heavier until he finally welcomed slumber with open arms. 

A faint sound of yelling drew closer as two boys argued. Their footsteps grew louder with each passing second. "I wanted to share the bed with Zihao!"

"Suck it loser." The younger of the two said while flipping the pinkette off.

Hu audible gasped, a look of betrayal on his face. "You take that back!" Kota smirked smugly as he shook his head no. The two were on the search for Zihao, they both expected to find him laying the bed when they woke up, but much to their surprise he was nowhere to been seen.

They continued to bicker openly as they waltzed into the kitchen. Before they could continue, they were met with a sleeping Zihao. Ceasing their conversation to a halt they slowly exited the room, in fear of waking him up and closed the door gently. As soon as they were sure they were out of hearing range they began to fight again.

If you recall to the chapter where Bakugou ate lunch with Zihao, Zihao made a comment that "Todoroki was finally telling someone" Inferring that Zihao somehow knew about the quirk marriage earlier :)

And in act one it stated that Zihao and Hu "almost" made the perfect team. do with the information as you wish :)

Me writing this chapter: yay first half, shit there needs to be a second part