Tummy Trouble

The teachers spent one night a week getting together for dinner and drinks at a local bar. Participants came and went when they chose, sometimes never showing up at all or just a few times a year. There were, however, a few staples that almost always made it. Present Mic, Eraserhead, Midnight and Cheshire were there like clockwork every Friday.

Hizashi drank a lot, as usual, but today the food must have been slightly off or he was losing his tolerance. Halfway through the evening he started to look a little green and he excused himself to the bathroom.

Fifteen minutes later Aizawa had to drag him back out.

"Outside," he grunted, tugging on the Voice Hero's side. Hizashi had one arm slung over his friend and was wobbling unsteadily.

Elly's ears perked and she all but leaped from her seat. "Zashi? Is he okay?"

"No," Aizawa said shortly. He pushed the door open and half-dragged, half-carried his friend out, followed by the worried counselor. Midnight sighed, drained the rest of her glass and signaled the owner to bill them electronically. They did that often so it wasn't a problem. What turned out to be the issue was poor, obviously sick Hizashi.

"Looks like he ate some bad food."

"Wouldn't be from here, then." Aizawa shrugged. "It takes awhile for food to make you this ill." He pointed to where the blond man was trying desperately to hold everything in. He was very pale now, with hectic patches of color on his cheeks.

"Guys, I'm dyin' here," he panted. "I think I accidentally ate somethin' dairy, yo."

"Hizashi, you're lactose intolerant?"

"Damn near completely intolerant," Midnight confirmed. "He once had a bite of sausage from a sandwich someone offered him and was puking his guts out for the rest of the day."

"Comes an' goes," he wheezed. "It's been bad lately th -" He whipped around and threw nousily up in the alley.

"I'll take him back," Elly stepped in, her expression firm with resolve when she saw his suffering. "I've gone through this before and I know what needs to be done."

"If you're okay with it." Aizawa shrugged.

"He's a whiny baby when he's sick," Kayama sniffed disdainfully, staring down at the slumped over figure beside the counselor. She tapped her foot on the ground. "Just be aware that you're probably going to have to keep him from using his quirk. Last time he was sick he blew half the windows out of the complex."

"I can do that. I think," Elly murmured.

"Yes, but can you drive his car?"

"And will he let you?" Midnight snickered. "He loves that loud piece of shit."

"It's fine," Hizashi waved them off. "Just... get me a bag. I ain't gonna throw up in my car."

Elly grabbed a few bags from the bar and bundled the sick man up in the passenger seat of his old mustang. "What's your parking number?" She asked as she pulled out into the street.

"23-A," he moaned dismally. Then, "Oh god... not again."

Once they arrived on campus he let her guide him. Hizashi was too distraught to realize she led him to the wrong door. But after she ushered him inside and they took off their shoes, he noticed it smelled different. And when he raised his pale face, he saw they were in her house!

"Wait," he husked weakly, "isn't this your place?"

"Yes. Down the hall before you start again." Elly took him by the arm and led him to the bathroom. When they got there he assumed she would leave him, but she surprised him even in his state. She gently removed his red-rimmed, floating frame glasses and placed them on a counter. His knees buckled and he knelt by the toilet, opening the lid and seat so he could have the best access. Meanwhile, she was bustling about in the cabinets and running water while muttering to herself.

"There it is!"

Hizashi's stomach clenched, and he groaned loudly, clutching the counter on one side and the edge of her tub on the other. His hair had started to come undone from the messy bun he had tied it back in, but he was too dazed to do anything about it. He would have thrown up with it tangling in his mouth, but she deftly caught up the long, golden locks that had slipped free before then. He threw up a shower of bile and shivered, sweat standing on his brow and chilling his neck.

"It'll be okay," she told him quietly. Elly undid the man bun and gently pulled his hair back into a ponytail, then doubled it in a firm style that kept it away from his face.

Hizashi breathed hoarsely, spitting to clear his mouth out and shivering, when he felt a warm cloth wipe his neck. He sighed and rolled his neck back in a silent plea for the comforting cloth to soothe his face and it did, wiping his tightly-drawn brow and blotchy cheeks. Fingers stroked the back of his hair and he choked, then did it again.

After several more times his body only had the dry heaves. In some way this was far more unpleasant as there was no relief to be had.

"Unnn... I can't stop."

"You're emptied out now, though. Sit up, Zashi."

He rolled back on his haunches, his greenish-gold eyes hazy with pain. "Yeah, baby?"

Elly tried hard to shake off her shock at him calling her by that name, but there was a funny little warm spot in her own stomach when she heard him.

"O - okay, so. Dehydration is going to be an issue, and we need to stop those dry heaves. Stay put for now. I'm getting you some medicine."

"I - I can't take anythin' yet," he protested. "I already took a probiotic and lactose pills. If I try poppin' any more I'm just gonna barf again!"

"Don't worry. It's not pills." She darted off for the kitchen and rummaged around in a cabinet close by the floor. "Aha."

Hizashi had, of course, not listened to her and had followed, hugging closely to the wall as he stumbled after her. He frowned at the bottle she held in one hand. "Izzat alcohol? Are ya nuts?!"

"Blackberry brandy," she clarified, popping the top off and tossing some crushed ice from the freezer in a glass. Elly poured the brandy over the ice and shook it experimentally, watching it settle. "Here. Sip this slowly."

He took it, wrinkling his nose at the smell. But when he saw her watching him calmly, tail twitching behind her as though she could stand there all day, he sighed and took a sip.

"Hey!" His face brightened noticeably. "It's not that bad."

"It should settle your stomach," she told him. "After that and some rest you should be able to keep real medicine down. For now, though, finish that, okay?"

"Uh huh." He crunched an ice particle thoughtfully between his teeth. "You know - owww -- thanks. For lettin' me stay."

"I have what you need here." She shrugged. "And whatever you do to my bathroom can be cleaned up. It's nothing I haven't done myself before, anyway."

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that."

"Don't worry. It's not bad. You have amazing aim."

"Heh heh." He laughed feebly, then set the glass aside on the counter, seconds before doubling over in pain.

"That's it, time for bed."

He didn't even argue and once again let himself be led by the hand into her bedroom. It was dark and oddly comforting, especially after she turned on a large glitter lamp on the nightstand. He vaguely thought she would love his lava lamp before tripping over the edge of the bed.

"Lay down before you faint," she ordered.

"Okay, okay." He flopped over on his side, curling up instinctively into a ball. "Ugh... it hurts."

"I know. You already drank enough of the brandy, though. Does it feel a little better at least?"

"Maybe... but, um. Listen, can you rub my tummy?"

Elly's ears perked. "You said what now?"

Hizashi whimpered. "I dunno, it just feels like it would be soothing. I'm pressin' my hands on it but I'm so tired."

"Oh, honestly," she began, but when he sniffled sadly, she froze. "Wait. You're serious?"

His greenish-gold eyes were filled with tears, his lower lip trembling as he stared up at her in supplication.

"Oh, geez." She scrunched over on the bed so she was sitting close and reached over. "Stay still, now. Try to relax." Elly lifted his red shirt up, pushing it so she had access, and began gently rubbing his stomach. There were soft hairs on either side of his navel, and she tried very hard not to think about what she was doing.

It was worth it, however.

Hizashi tensed a little at her touch, at first, but soon relaxed into it. He hummed, a pleased sound, and closed his eyes. Her warm, smooth palm moved in circles, calming him enough for him to eventually drop off to sleep.

Elly yawned. She was tired as well, and didn't want to leave him. She tugged his shirt back and leaned as far down as she could for the fleece blanket that lay at the end of the bed. Shaking it out revealed it was big enough so she laid beside him, fully clothed, and pulled it up over them. They were both in need of sleep, so why not?

She woke a couple hours later comfortably warm, the scent of bubblegum-sweet hair product strong in her sensitive nose. Elly purred faintly as she woke, realizing she was not alone. Hizashi was tightly wedged up against her, clinging with his arms wrapped around her waist. His head was buried in her neck, his golden hair spilling down his shoulder onto her chest. Her face flaming hot, she hesitantly touched him and he snorted awake.

"Mwha?"

Oh my god his mustache is mussed.

She blinked at him in flustered confusion while he yawned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "How much did we sleep?"

"A couple hours. Do you always..?"

He squeezed her gently, grinning sheepishly as he did. "I, uh, can get kinda clingy," he half-apologized. "I don't do it to everybody though."

"Oh, good." She rolled her eyes sarcastically. "Um. You're still doing it."

"Sorry!" He jerked his hands back. "You were all warm and, like, purring and stuff. It felt good."

Elly was inclined to agree with him on this. His arms around her, though he had been sick, were still strong. They had felt very good.

His breath, however, was an absolute nightmare.

"Christ, Hizashi, you need to brush your teeth!"

He covered his mouth with a hand. "Erk."

"There's a new brush in the cabinet in the bathroom - use that. I always buy stuff when they're on sale so I have extra."

He nodded, lips pressed tightly together.

Elly shook herself the rest of the way awake and strode purposefully into the kitchen while he brushed his teeth.

Hizashi found the tooth brush and splorted a huge wad of paste onto its bristles. He was feeling much better physically, which meant the weight of his embarrassment was finally crushing him to pieces.

He had thrown up repeatedly in her toilet. While she watched. And clung to her like he was a child and she was his favorite stuffed animal as they slept.

They had slept together!

He groaned, losing control of his quirk in his dismay. The mirror rattled and he choked back the remainder of sound that wanted to escape his throat. There was no way he was going to break stuff in her home besides all the other embarrassing crap he had already done.

"What else did I do?" He whined, staring at his reflection. He grimaced, seeing himself, and quickly finished brushing. There was no way to clean up perfectly, but he washed his face and pulled his hair into a smoother ponytail. Then he grabbed his glasses off the counter and the world came completely back into focus again.

When he hesitantly crept into the main area, he found her bustling about with a pot on the stove and a box of crackers sitting on the table along with two place settings. His stomach immediately started to growl when he smelled the broth she was boiling.

"Oh, uh... gosh, Ches. You went to so much trouble for me."

Elly shook her head from where she was stirring the pot. "No way. I've been sick from food allergies like that before. I know how horrible it can be to try and struggle through that on your own." She turned the burner off and brought the pot to the table, pouring a small amount in each bowl.

Hizashi sat and watched her, his expression unusually enigmatic. He was thinking very, very hard. "Yeah," he said at last, his voice deepening. "But ... you didn't have to. You volunteered. When Shota was sick a few months ago, you didn't nurse him back to health."

She sat across from him at the table and picked up a spoon. "He's not you," she said simply. "Now eat slowly. If you're okay with the broth you can have a few crackers too."

He grinned and hung his head, though he kept his eyes on her. "Yes, mommy."

He felt so much better after eating that he was able to leave for his own place. Elly seemed relieved and he told himself it was probably because he was better and not that she wanted him out of there.

Though he felt a nagging suspicion all night long.

What had she meant by saying Shota wasn't him? It implied she did it only because it was Hizashi - and why would she?

Sometime around two a.m. he woke, his heart pounding heavily in his chest as his brain startled him awake with a memory.

"Mother of all shitfuck! I called her 'baby'!"

Hizashi remembered.

He sat up in bed, holding his knees tight to his chest with his eyes bulging brightly in the glow of the lava lamp nearby.

She had said, "sit up" or something and he had replied, like the idiot he was, "yeah, baby".

Shit.

Oh shit!

How was he going to live this down? Maybe he was imagining things. He frowned, sweating nervously. There was a possibility that he could be, after all, he had been sick as hell. But her hands on the back of his neck, and the cloth wiping him gently down - he remembered all of those things.

It had happened; he was sure of it.

Hizashi fumbled clumsily for his cell phone that lay beside him on the king-sized bed. He grabbed it and tapped on her name in his contact list, his fingers hovering over the keyboard...

...and stopped, dumbfounded.

"What th'hell do I even say?"

In the end he let his nerveless fingers drop the phone. He was a Pro Hero, sure, but he was a coward when it came to bugs - and also, apparently, the girl he liked. He berated himself until he dropped off to sleep again, tangled in his sheets with a fussy pout on his face.

The next morning at school the others were curious about how things had gone. Midnight kept poking Cheshire about "taking care of baby" until Hizashi's ears felt like they were going to melt off his head they were so hot.

"Quit sayin' I'm a baby!" He snapped after the seventeen time, his jaw clenched in anger and embarrassment.

Elly sighed and covered her face with one hand. She had come into the teacher's work area for some papers, and was now regretting her choice of not waiting for Midnight to leave.

"Oh? You're not? But she took such good <i>care</i> of you, Yamada -" She reached out and pinched his cheek and he flinched away.

"Knock it off." He sat back down at his computer, rubbing at his cheek in disgust. "You don't need to tease her 'cause of me. Just lay off."

"Ooooh, protective!" Midnight's eyes flashed with sudden intuition. "Are you sweet on our little counselor then, Voice Hero?" Her lilting tone rose at the end, mocking him as always.

Hizashi tugged on his long leather collar, ducking down into his neck speaker a ways. "She was real good to me, Kayama," he said in a deep, serious voice. "Don't joke about that anymore."

Midnight blinked, startled into silence for the first time in a long while. She pursed her ruby red lips and stared first at Hizashi, who was glaring back at her, and then at Elly. The counselor was blushing lightly, her eyes cast down.

"You two aren't any fun," she sighed at last, then sat down and started typing.

Hizashi slumped in his chair, relieved she had decided to stop bugging them. His eyes met Elly's over his laptop and they smiled at each other.

To his surprise, she motioned to the door. He stood somewhat uncertainly but moved when she did, walking out into the hall.

"Can I see you in my office?" She asked him softly.

"I, uh ... sure. Yeah." He followed her like a boy awaiting a scolding with his head hanging down. Though her smile had been warm, he was anticipating the worst.

Elly closed the door after him and flipped her sign so they wouldn't be disturbed. "Sit, Mic. It's okay."

He rubbed a hand over his mouth, dragging it down. "Er, well yeah. I mean, no problem."

"Thanks for standing up for me," she told him as she walked over.

He jumped when she laid a hand on his, resting on the arm of the chair. "Oh! That was ... Midnight can be a pain in the ass. You shouldn't hafta put up with her crap. Especially over me. It was my fault you were dragged into nurse duty the other night."

"I didn't mind." She squeezed and he swallowed hard.

"Well... look, I wanted to thank you but I didn't know what to do. Or what you'd like. Or - or if you'd be offended if I gave you flowers or -"

She sighed and leaned down to his level. "Mic... Hizashi."

"Er!"

"The only thing I want is to spend more time with you."

"More time?" He bit his lower lip, struggling to make sense of what she was saying. "Like, you want to see me more?"

She nodded.

There could be only one way to interpret this, along with the evidence he had from when he was sick. A million little touches and offhand comments, light brushes on his arms and hands, a pass in the crowded hallway. He realized things were far better than he had thought.

"Ohhhh. Wait. Okay, all right." He pulled his hand back and held it out in front of her. "Let me get this straight - you sayin' you like me, <i>baby</i>?"

"Took you long enough," she smiled back.