𝘽𝙉𝙃𝘼 𝙊𝙉𝙀𝙎𝙃𝙊𝙏𝙎

i still get a little scared of something new // todoroki centric

a/n: this was supposed to be a 5+1 fic but i gave up halfway through so enjoy this 2+1 instead <3

content warning for some internalized ableism.

he was being messy, he knew he was being messy. aizawa was watching him from the other side of the training arena, frowning the way he did when shouto was doing something blatantly and obviously wrong. he could feel izuku's eyes on his back, knew he was probably confusing everyone. he was confusing himself. he looked down and realized his ice sheet was starting to melt beneath his feet and now the cold water was sinking through the soles of his shoes. he moved his left hand to draw it up, meld it into steam, but the moment his palm tingled with heat, his chest tightened and it dissipated.

fuck.

"todoroki," aizawa called, and shouto turned to meet his steady gaze. there was a solemn frown on his lips and a strange, sharp emotion set in his face that shouto couldn't read. "take five."

his stomach dropped, and he bit his lip against the sudden burning in his eyes. nodding, he walked towards the edge of the room, ignoring the concerned looks he felt his classmates cast his way, and took up residence in the corner, far enough away from the action that he wouldn't get in anyone's way. the plastic of his bottle crunched beneath his hand as he gulped down his water by the mouthful. there was an uncomfortable thrumming starting up beneath his skin, a pressure against the sides of his skull. he surveyed his classmates, all of them in their zones, entirely focused on what was in front of them.

"you truly think your friends matter? you will be a hero shouto, and when you are, you will mean nothing to them. all they want is to surpass you."

boom!

shouto flinched.

it's just bakugou, he thought, trying to calm his racing heart. it's fine.

he dug his nails into the skin of his palm, glancing at the clock. barely two minutes had passed.

he didn't know if "take five" meant he had to stand here for five whole minutes, but he didn't want to risk angering aizawa-sensei if he misunderstood.

he sighed, looking back towards where his pathetic ice sheet sat, slowly melting under the lights. he could feel izuku's concerned gaze, and it felt like someone had dropped a hot coal into the pit of his stomach.

he was being so stupid. of course aizawa thought something was wrong with him, he'd gotten over his issues with his fire months ago, and now he was having problems again just because of a phone call from his dad?

it was stupid, he was stupid, and all of his classmates knew it too. no one else had to take five. at least not for something like this. sure, aizawa told kaminari to go sit down and drink some water when he shorted out, but that was different. that was understandable. shouto was just being ridiculous.

aizawa caught his eye from across the gym. shouto looked away as quick as he could, but he'd already messed up. aizawa was coming over. shouto kept his gaze firmly locked on his own shoes until aizawa was too close for him to politely ignore his presence.

"todoroki," aizawa-sensei mumbled, and shouto lifted his head, so as to not seem disrespectful. "are you alright?"

fuck.

"i'm fine, sensei. i apologize for my underperformance in class, but i'm fine."

he could tell from the flash of something in aizawa's eyes that it came out too sharply, but he pushed off of the wall before aizawa could say anything.