It's a date

 

To say Present Mic was irritated was an understatement. He was louder than usual in the morning meeting they had before classes and he kept knocking things over while fidgeting restlessly at his shared desk. The other teachers were happy when lunch came and he stayed in the office, waving one hand around as he claimed he "wasn't hungry".

Rather than call him on this obvious lie, they nodded and left, happy to escape him for a little while. The only one that stayed behind was All Might, since his dietary needs were very little due to his old injuries.

"Not eating, Yamada?" Yagi frowned at the blond-haired man across the way. "You're usually voracious by this time."

"Don't feel like it." Hizashi stared blankly at his phone for the hundredth time.

"I do hope you're not getting sick."

Hizashi stood and walked over to his side at the desk. "Okay, alright, I can't take it anymore! What the hell is this? Didja go on a date last night?!"

Yagi blinked up at his colleague in perplexion. "I'm sorry, Mic - what was that?"

"I asked how your date yesterday went." It came out less sullen this time but he was clearly not happy about it.

"What date?"

"You and Ches? You went out to dinner..?" Hizashi shoved his phone in the other man's face. "It's <i>all over</i> social media!" The article on his screen showed the two of them seated at a cozy booth in a prominent American restaurant. They were smiling and Yagi had one large hand on top of hers.

He rubbed at his eyes, blinking repeatedly in shock. "Oh! But it really wasn't like that, anyway..." He shrugged. "We both lived in America and wanted to share those previous experiences."

Hizashi looked over at the door, nodding at Aizawa and the handful of others coming back from lunch. The two moved to the far windows to continue their talk, where they would be out of the way.

"Was that what's been bothering you all morning?"

He grunted, folded his arms and not trusting himself to speak.

"It wasn't a date. But you should ask her out," Yagi murmured in English.

"Nah," Hizashi cleared his throat, pulling nervously at his long leather collar. He also spoke in that language, since the room was filling back up. "I'm not real big on rejection, ya dig?"

"What makes you think she would say no?"

Hizashi shook his head in wonder, his huge plume of hair rustling. "What makes you think she'd say <i>yes</i>?!"

"Just ask her out," the big man said calmly. "All I did was ask if she wanted to go and talk. I wasn't even romantically inclined -"

"But that's - you're All Might. I can't freakin' compete with <i>All Might</i>!"

"You don't <i>need</i> to." Yagi pointed. "Look, she's coming over. Please ask her out. See for yourself." He paused, the blue of his sunken eyes lighting up momentarily. "You could always play it off as a casual thing if she acts hesitant."

Hizashi looked panicked, his eyes wide and the color rushing to his cheeks as the counselor walked beside him.

"Hello, Cheshire," Yagi smiled.

"Hi Toshi. Hey, Yamada," she grinned, her cat's ears wiggling in amusement. "You're all red-faced and ...quiet? What's up with that?"

He <i>wanted</i> to tell her she looked really pretty. And although he thought that a lot, today Elly was wearing a little sprig of lavender tucked in her hair - a gift from a student this morning. Instead, he blurted out, "Did you see what the bad news media is sayin' about you two?"

She shrugged. "Uh huh. They sensationalize everything nowadays. I'd have to admit, though, I'd be proud if the guy I liked asked me out and we made the news."

Yagi had slipped back into his seat at the common desk space with a small smile during this exchange, but he heard this. He gave the nervously sweating Voice Hero a thumbs-up.

"Oh? What if <i>we</i> were seen together?"

A pair of deep purple eyes stared back at him from under lowered lashes. "You have to ask me out first."

Feeling emboldened by her gaze, he pursed his lips and tapped one boot on the floor. "On an actual date, riiiight? How about after work? We can go get somethin' to eat after we get outta these." He poked his neck gear briefly, referencing his Hero outfit. "'Course, I'm a lot less recognizable without the hair. Do you still get people following ya?"

She nodded. "I can make my ears and tail invisible, but I'd rather not. My tail's still there, and it gets yanked around if people can't see it."

"Those pretty stripes a dead giveaway, huh?"

Elly's blush matched his as she giggled lightly. "They're recognizable, but no one's ever told me they were pretty before."

"Mic," Aizawa called flatly from behind him. "Get back to work. You can flirt later, on your own time."

He snapped his mouth closed and shot her a jaunty finger gun as he settled back down to work. Elly waved back before leaving for her personal office.

Time seemed to creep slowly that day, but eventually the last bell rang. An hour or so later they were ready to shower and change for the night. A flurry of texts followed as it took Hizashi much longer to scrub all traces of Mic away than Cheshire to strip back to basics.

<b>Mic</b>: <i>Sorry babe, I'm almost done. You sittin in the commons?</i>

<b>Cheshire</b>: <i>Yeah, Eri came out and is "helping" me with my hair lol</i>

<b>Mic</b>: <i>Awww cute! I'll be out in a few</i>

When Hizashi did walk out into the common area in the teacher's dorm, Eri was gone. He rubbed the beaded bracelet on his wrist in a nervous gesture and checked his clothing once more.

"You look fine, go get her!"

He jumped at Kayama's exuberant approval, clutching the soft cotton of his red shirt over his heart. "What're you <i>doing,</i> tryna put me in the hospital?!"

Elly laughed from her position, turned around on the longest couch with her arms folded over the edge. "Your expression was super cute, though."

"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow at her and flopped down on the couch beside her.

"She obviously likes dorks," Kayama called over her shoulder as she made her way to the kitchen.

Hizashi thrust his lip out in a pout, and Elly laughed even louder.

"Ugh, whatevs," he scoffed. Then, to the woman next to him, "Hey, so where you wanna go to eat?"

She shrugged. "I'm not fussy, really. I guess I'm in the mood for, like ...coffee and sandwiches?"

"That sounds like American Diner style food!" Hizashi scooted closer, talking animatedly about this place he'd found awhile back. "...and no one here liked it enough to go back with me," he added sadly. "Or, at least that's what they said. Maybe they just couldn't read the menus."

"English?"

"Yeah. A couple from - uhh, let me think, I'll remember -- Fl-l-l ...orida? Florida? Owns it?"

"Are they a little older?"

"Yeah." He nodded happily. "Nice little old couple."

"That makes sense. There's a lot of retirees there." Elly patted him on the arm. "Are you driving? I heard you had a hell of a car."

Hizashi's green eyes lit up at the mention of his car, and he didn't stop talking about it on the walk to the parking lot <i>and</i> the drive to the diner. Elly was interested though, and asked a lot of questions. He was amazed that she wasn't put out by his display of affection for his vehicle. Sure, it was expensive and imported, but no one else seemed to care.

They parked and he sighed gustily, staring out of the windshield before removing his seat belt. "I just <i>love</i> shit like this, yanno? Flashy, pretty, loud American stuff."

Elly grinned slyly at him. "I hope so."

Hizashi's car hadn't gone unnoticed, as it was rare enough to spark interest when seen around town. The local paparazzi and reporters in general knew Present Mic drove that particular model, and they took note when Cheshire was seen stepping out with him in casual clothing. More gathered when it became obvious they were on a date, and they were tracked blithely along as they walked downtown chatting after dinner. They had fun window shopping and shared a small ice cream at a stand.

To be honest, they barely noticed the reporters until they were back at his car again. She paused, then set her back against the door on her side while he drew closer. Hizashi realized this would be the only window of time he had for now for a kiss, and he started to sweat. He coughed and tugged at his bracelet, fidgeting with the beads until she caught his hand in hers.

"Don't be nervous <i>now</i>." She smiled, a hint of her fangs showing.

"Um."

"You know they're there."

"Yeah. Before, it didn't seem to matter, but..."

She nodded. "And they'll probably tail us until we're back at U.A."

Hizashi slid his arm lower around her waist. "You wanna give them a good photo op before that?"

Elly shivered lightly in anticipation, turning to face him as they stood in the little circle of light under a street lamp. "What do you have in mind? An after-date kiss?"

"<i>Ding-ding-ding!</i> Smart lady." He placed his other hand on her cheek, cupping it and tilting her up to meet him. "This can be as little or as much as you want," he hummed softly as he brushed his lips on hers. "Guide me."

"No problem." Moments later he was tightening his gentle grip on her waist, whimpering lightly as she pressed back more passionately than had dared to dream.

"Mnn," he whispered. "Mmn... yer killin' me, babygirl. So s - soft. So <i>sweet</i>."

She parted her lips in silent invitation and he eagerly deepened the kiss, forgetting they were being watched and likely photographed as well. They clung to each other for a scandalous amount of time, neither willing to let go from their soulful embrace.

They needed to breathe, though, so at last it happened.

Hizashi's glasses were askew when they parted. He shook his head, his spiraled pupils seeming to spin as a very large, dopey grin crept onto his face. "<i>Whoaaa.</i>"

"I think," Elly said somewhat breathlessly, "that our date is going to overshadow the other day's headlines."

"Good," he said without thinking. Then he coughed, rubbing the back of his neck shyly. "Uh. That was more of a giveaway than th' whole night, kiss included, wasn't it."

"You're adorable." She kissed him again, this time on the corner of his mouth as he opened the car door for her. "It was, and I'm glad. I like you a lot."

His ears burned hotly at her confession. Not willing to be outdone, he switched to English as he slid into the driver seat. "I love you."

Elly smiled and leaned against him.





Bonus:



The teachers sitting at the communal desk looked up as they entered together the next morning. Each person had a different expression on their face, but they all were holding their phones out.

The headlines were huge - Mic was a Celebrity Hero, after all, and Cheshire was popular -- but it was the pictures that were the focus of every article and post. Crisp, clear and in perfect focus, they were exactly as the new couple wished; a clear indication of their status for all to see.

Surprisingly, Aizawa was the first to speak. "How is it possible for you <i>both</i> to be so loud without making a sound?"