forum Erasermic RP | OxO | CLOSED

Started March 29, 2021 by Deleted user

tune

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_{(Sorry for the wait! My mom just had surgery done, so I've been super busy taking care of her on top of my other responsibilities)}

Shouta raised an eyebrow at his mini tangent, this time unable to fully suppress the small twitch of his lips. He couldn't help it—the voice hero was too damn cute ranting about lizards, of all things! He passed off the lapse of control as a yawn, grateful for the turn in their route that would give him an excuse to look away again without making it obvious he was avoiding eye contact.

"More like furry bastard," he grumbled fondly. "Snuck into my room and knocked some caltrops off my desk, then bolted before I could grab him. He's lucky I realized what they were before stepping into them blindly, or it'd be back to the shelter with him," he added, pretending as if it wasn't obvious how much of an empty threat it was. He glanced up at the imposing view of UA before them, double-checking he had his ID on him before daring to wander through the gates.

(Oh geez- It's totally okay! I get it if you need to take a little while, that's completely understandable.)

Hizashi chuckled. "Like you could live without him at this point." Suddenly his eyes widened and he turned to Shouta excitedly. "That reminds me! I grabbed a bunch of catnip at the store the other day. Thought we could have some fun with that." Hizashi didn't have any pets of his own, though he always wanted some. He had plans to adopt around a year ago but he couldn't make up his mind, and postponed it until he was more sure. The time where he could choose just one animal would never come. He knew he would go into the place and walk out with every animal inside.

He nodded towards the building drawing closer. "Ya think they'll have to check us in this time?" He had his ID in his wallet as always, which was tucked away in his pocket. Summer was always a low-risk time though, so he doubted there'd be any actual people to check them in. Probably just the scanners.

_{(Thank you!! I might be less active but I definitely want to keep this going! <3 Also omg the friends are back and I love them–)}

Shouta blinked, narrowing his eyes at his friend suspiciously. "Are you trying to bribe my cat again? He already likes you better," he complained, knowing full well the other hero bought catnip with his cat in mind. If he declined the blond would probably find some other cat to play with—Hizashi loved animals too much to let it go to waste—but it wasn't like he was going to say no, now was it?

"You know you're welcome at mine whenever, unless I say otherwise," he reminded the other, partly because it gave him some sense of control to act as if his friend wouldn't show up whenever he felt like it, regardless, and partly because he hoped he'd take the subtle hint that today would more than work. "Just let me know ahead of time."

At Hizashi's question, he shook his head. "No," he responded simply, gesturing with a nod of his own to the empty desks beyond the large glass door where the usual receptionists were missing. This time he reached the door first, opening it for the other with the barest trace of a shit-eating smirk and a knowing glance.

(Okay! No worries if you can't respond for a bit though. And ikr- I think my favorite would have to be Mario.)

"Pfft, he loves you just as much as he loves me. You've got more in common with him, after all. Your sleep schedule is just as inconsistent, for example!" Hizashi grinned. "Besides, we're his dads so he can't have a favorite. It's morally wrong." He knew Shouta wouldn't protest to getting his cat feline-drugs but even if he had, Hizashi would've figured out a way. He came over so often at this point that he could've just put it in his pocket and claim he forgot about it.

Hizashi made a small humming noise as he saw the empty desks behind the doors. Knowing he wasn't keeping anyone waiting, he lingered near the grass for an extra moment and admired a particularly chubby squirrel in a nearby tree. After the squirrel (which he had dubbed Margo) disappeared, he went to open the door only to find Shouta had gotten there first. It wasn't fair how his smirk made Hizashi's stomach flip. "What a gentleman." If he didn't feel as if he'd just gotten off a roller-coaster, he would've had a better comeback. He just hurried through the door, and didn't let himself look back at Shouta. Goddammit, Hizashi, pull yourself together!

He fumbled for his ID for a second before managing to scan it. The small green indicator popped up, and he slipped the card back into his wallet.

"We're his dads…" The sentiment lingered in Shouta's mind for longer than he'd care to admit, mainly because of how casually it had been said. He breathed out the barest of exhales, taking a moment to collect himself while Hizashi was distracted by a squirrel. Knowing him, he's already named the thing, he thought distantly, replacing his previous expression in time for the other hero to turn around.

He grunted noncommittedly at his comment as if it hadn't warmed his supposedly cold, dead heart, letting the door fall shut behind them softly. Hizashi, Nemuri, and Nezu were probably the only ones who were aware that he actually knew what manners were, he realized as he retrieved his own ID. His class was too used to threats of expulsion and seeing him sleep in the corner or under his desk to know that about him. Smoothing out his sleeping bag fondly at the thought, Shouta scanned his card and followed after the voice hero, content to linger behind now that they were closer to whatever Nemuri had planned.

The longer they walked, the more the prickly feeling of uncertainty began to get under his skin. He found himself subconsciously scanning the halls for anything out of the ordinary, and he sighed. It was too quiet, but that was to be expected of a school during the summer months. Resisting the urge to grab his capture weapon—it was almost pathetic how vulnerable he felt without it settled around his neck, especially since USJ—he cast a glance at his friend to see how he was handling the suspense.

Hizashi shook his head softly, trying to clear his mind. Walking through the empty school halls, he felt rather nostalgic. It was strange to see them this empty when he was so used to them being filled to the brim with laughing teenagers. He hummed softly to himself as he reminisced on his years working here. He had never had a truly bad moment in these halls. There had been bittersweet moments, of course, but nothing truly bad. He remembered calming students from panic attacks, reassuring neurodivergent students, even comforting a few that had started to lose their hearing because of their quirk. He had always, without fail, sent them to Hatsume, knowing she would be more than glad to hook them up with some hearing aids if they needed them, or special headphones. Since his addition of headphones to his hero costume, he didn't have to worry about hearing loss much. There was always a slight ringing in the background from before they had been added, but it was barely noticeable most of the time.

While Hizashi's memories of the school were mostly fond, he knew Shouta's PTSD probably wasn't handling the silence well. He cast a few glances over at Shouta, trying to determine if he needed to do something or not. As mysterious and hard-to-read as the other man tried to be, Hizashi had always been able to read him like a book. When he saw Shouta's shaky hands and his careful scanning of the hallways ahead of them, his heart sank. God, Nemuri better have a good reason for calling them here. "Hey." He spoke softly and gently, a voice only Shouta got to hear. After a second or two of contemplation and a deep breath, Hizashi gently took Shouta's hand in his. "You're not alone. I'm right here."

He wasn't sure why the simple gesture caught him so off guard. Shouta was watching him, studying the flicker of indecision just before Hizashi took his hand, and it still managed to surprise him. It wasn't even as if it was a totally abnormal occurrence; Hizashi was a naturally outgoing, touchy person, and holding hands was just a side effect of being friends with the man. Still, he couldn't help but relax a little at the reassurance, the physical contact almost frustratingly effective at soothing his nerves.

There was another pause, this time hesitance on Shouta's part, before he gave a light squeeze. "Thanks," he said, allowing a note of genuine appreciation to slip through his usual monotone. It's a good thing the students are all at home, he mused, knowing he'd never live it down if his problem children caught wind of this. Even picturing Ashido or Kaminari's reaction was enough to give him pause, and he tactfully pulled away as they reached the door to the teacher's lounge.

A big part of him protested at the action (it felt like it'd been so long since he could indulge in casual touch), but Nemuri was supposedly on the other side of the door, and he really didn't want her dropping any more too-obvious hints about his crush in front of the man himself. Steeling himself, he arched an eyebrow and nodded towards his friend. "Ready?"

He smiled softly. "Any time." He wanted to vocalize so much more, but he settled for that. He had to forcibly put a stop his wandering thoughts- now wasn't the time.

As disappointed as he was to let go of Shouta's hand, he knew it was better if he did. Nemuri already knew way too much about his hopeless feelings for the man, and this could've been the last straw needed for her to blurt it out in front of him.

"It's just Nemuri, of course I'm ready." He grinned, his typical cheerful attitude back in place. He pushed open the door, holding it for Shouta once again. "2/3, I win." He whispered at the other man, sticking out his tongue playfully. Glancing around the room, it didn't take long to find Nemuri lounging on the couch. She appeared to be scrolling through some social media app on her phone. "Yo!" Hizashi greeted her loudly, strolling over and sitting on the coffee table despite the fact that there were several more suitable places to sit.

"It's just Nemuri," his brain repeated mockingly, as if that wasn't the exact reason he was apprehensive in the first place. Alright, let's just get this over with. Maybe she's trying to drag us into her antics this time, rather than making us the victims, he told himself doubtfully.

He made a move to grab the door handle, but Hizashi beat him to it. At the blond's whispered victory, he rolled his eyes and elbowed him in the ribs, adamantly ignoring the gaze he suddenly felt on him as Nemuri glanced up from her phone.

"You two took your time," she observed, her smirk growing as Shouta's eyes darkened in warning. He shifted his small collection of items to his other arm, waiting until Hizashi wasn't looking to give her the bird.

"Not really," he replied levelly, acting as if he weren't the reason behind her sudden burst of laughter. "I left as soon as I saw you high-tailing it out of my apartment building. Care to explain?" he asked, pulling the note from his pocket again and letting it flutter onto the coffee table beside his friend. He elected not to join them sitting down, instead leaning against the arm of the couch and crossing his arms over his sleeping bag and gear.

The R-rated hero clicked her phone off and leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. "Well, you have a habit of leaving me on read when I text, and it's not fair for Hizashi to always get stuck with 'Shouta retrieval duty'," she replied accusingly, her eyes sliding to meet Hizashi's with a sugar-sweet smile. "He doesn't leave you on read, does he?"

Shouta glared, the tips of his ears burning again. "You only text me when you want something. If it was important, you'd call," he retorted defensively. And it wasn't as if he never left the blonde on read, although, statistically, he did tend to answer Hizashi's texts more frequently.

Nemuri huffed, unable to argue with that, at least.

Hizashi watched the two go back and forth for a moment, a soft smile on his lips. When Nemuri finally looked over at him, he chuckled nervously. Gosh, she was intense. "Uh, f-for the record, I don't mind 'Shouta retrieval duty'. Gives me a chance to see Koto, too." He really did love the feline.

"Sooo… why are we here? Nothing too important, right?" He swung his feet back and forth, unable to sit still. It was summer for God's sake, so Hizashi was hoping this wasn't work-related. He just wanted to lounge around and melt in the hot summer weather like he always did, maybe see Shouta shirtless at some point. That sounded pretty nice. Ooh, maybe he could convince him to go swimming later! Though any pool would likely be crowded today. Eh, he'd find a workaround.

"I think you both already know why," she responded matter-of-factly, standing up from the couch with a flourish and leaving her phone to bounce onto the cushion.

Shouta narrowed his eyes, trying to hide his dread. The first thought to jump into his mind was that she had no fear and planned on spilling his secret regardless of how he'd threatened her not to, but he relaxed marginally when he realized she'd said 'both'. Not that it really cleared anything up, but he was reassured, at least, that she hadn't called them here to discuss his feelings.

"I don't."

Nemuri closed the distance between them quickly, her face mere inches from his as he met her mischievous gaze with a deadpan one. They were so close, in fact, that Shouta's nose was assaulted with the cloyingly sweet scent associated with her quirk. It had no effect, of course, as long as she wasn't actively trying to use it, so Shouta felt safe enough to indulge in a blink or two.

"Why don't you have a seat, Sho?" She phrased it like a question, but barely gave him time to react as she curled a hand in the collar of his shirt and all but dragged him to the spot in front of the coffee table, where she promptly pushed him into sitting. And now he was having a gay panic because there was less than an inch between him and Hizashi, and Nemuri was smirking and he was so done with having his feelings exploited like this. Still, he made no effort to resist, keeping the same unfazed expression trained on the R-rated hero as she stepped back and gave a nod of satisfaction.

He did, however, begin to protest when she pried his sleeping bag from his grip, taking his capture weapon and goggles along with it, only to silence himself when she shot him a glare and rested his items on the table beside him.

"…Nemuri, what are you doing?" he asked tiredly as she took her seat back on the couch and held out a hand expectantly.

"Give me your hands. Both of you," she demanded, gesturing impatiently with her fingers.

Shouta hesitated, glancing at Hizashi for any indication that he knew what was going on. Doubt began to trickle back in, but he ignored it and breathed out a sigh, reluctantly complying.

"Uh-" Hizashi's eyes widened when Shouta was sat down on the couch across from him, much closer than he had expected. He quickly turned his gaze back to Nemuri, hoping he hadn't given the other man time to see how red his face was getting. Leaning his chin on his hand effectively covered the lower half of his face, but put him a bit closer to Shouta. He shot Nemuri a look that very clearly said 'what the hell is happening?', and hopefully construed his panic.

Slowly offering his other arm, he raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What's goin' on?" He couldn't think of any reason she might need both of their hands for, but he complied anyway. Most of Nemuri's plans don't make any sense. Ooh, maybe she'd made them friendship bracelets! This was a weird way to go about gifting them, but… that was the only idea Hizashi had for what could possibly be happening right now.

Nemuri responded to Hizashi's panicked look with a near devilish grin, holding fast to both their wrists and glancing between them in a calculating manner.

Shouta refused to make eye contact with the man in front of him, focusing all his attention on Nemuri and adamantly ignoring how close he was to the blond. Their knees were practically knocking together, for god's sake! He was so going to have a private talk with Nemuri later.

"For some of the most perceptive and competent pro heroes out there," the R-rated hero slowly began, the two complementary descriptions somehow sounding like insults out of her mouth. "You two are probably the most insufferable and oblivious people in existence." She punctuated her words by tightening her grip, careful not to hurt either of them.

The scruffier of the males frowned at that, but before he could say anything Nemuri continued.

"I have been waiting for you two to figure this out since high school!" she exclaimed, standing and taking their hands with her. "That's almost fifteen years!"

"Figure what out?" Shouta asked, exasperated at her avoidance and unable to take his mind off the fact that his hand was now brushing against Hizashi's again. Did they miss something important to Nemuri? A date, maybe? Why did she need their hands?

She paused, glaring at Shouta before seeming to calm herself. "Close your eyes for a second."

He stared at her in apparent disbelief, but seeing the unwavering glint of determination in her eyes, he only sighed and let his eyelids flutter shut.

Nemuri waited for Hizashi to do the same, then shifted both of their wrist to one of her hands. There was another pause and a clink of something metallic, and then cold against his skin. Shouta nearly opened his eyes there, but the R-rated hero preemptively flicked him in the forehead as a warning to keep them shut.

It was precisely two seconds later that a familiar click and the feeling of metal locking around his wrist made him stiffen.

He was standing in an instant, murder in his blazing red eyes as loose strands of his hair began to float. "Nemuri Kayama, remove these. Now," he said, his tone dangerously low.

She danced out of the way with a laugh, only saying, "You'll thank me later!"

"I'm plenty observant, I'll have you know! I wouldn't be able to miss anything for fifteen years, no matter what it was!" Hizashi frowned, only half-joking. He couldn't be so oblivious that he missed something for that long, right? That had to be an exaggeration.

Still somewhat hoping for a friendship bracelet or something, Hizashi didn't hesitate to close his eyes at Nemuri's accusatory glance in his direction. She was known for mischief, but she wouldn't do anything that they would actually have to worry about. Probably. Well- alright, she would, but it wouldn't be anything they couldn't undo. Eventually.

It all happened incredibly fast. When the telling click sounded, his eyes flew open. He was just as quickly dragged forward when Shouta jumped to his feet and he stumbled a bit, just narrowly keeping himself from tripping over the coffee table and toppling onto the other hero in front of him. …Which wouldn't have been the worst thing in the world, now that he thought about it.

Watching Nemuri skip out of the room as Shouta yelled after her was like getting a prison sentence. There was no way for the two of them to get out of this, which raised countless problems that were both physical and emotional. In the silence that followed her exit, Hizashi brainstormed quietly. "…I could try and yell really loud and see if that breaks them. Y'know, like how ladies will sing and break glass in the movies."

Shouta's eyes continued to glare red for a moment, then abruptly lost the hue as he forced his significantly more dry eyes shut. His hair fell back into its original state, albeit more messily, to frame his increasingly frustrated expression. Maybe when he opened his eyes, Nemuri would be walking back through the door, laughing like a hyena as she unlocked the cuffs. Surely she wasn't just going to leave them like this? She had a mean streak in her for sure, but this was downright cruel.

Eventually, he was forced to admit to himself that he wasn't being very rational, and begrudgingly, he opened his eyes to confirm Nemuri was truly gone.

"Well shit," he commented rather bluntly, fixing the cuffs with a critical stare as if it was their fault. How didn't he realize what she was up to? Looking back it was painfully obvious, but in his defense, he really didn't think he'd have to look out for such a blatant betrayal from one of his oldest friends.

Hizashi's voice pulled him out of his thoughts, as usual, and his eyes flickered up to see if he was joking.

"I like having my eardrums intact, 'Zashi," he responded doubtfully, the nickname slipping off his tongue traitorously. It wasn't that he never called the other hero such, but it was usually saved for situations involving heavy sarcasm and teasing. Neither of which fit the current mood at all.

Electing not to acknowledge the slip-up, he looked around the room for anything they could use to get the cuffs off. "Do you have a hairpin or something?" he questioned, figuring that, if anyone did, it was Hizashi.

The words he had been planning to say got caught in his throat when Shouta called him that. 'Zashi. He called Shouta all kinds of nicknames- even pet names occasionally- but Shouta had never responded with one for him. Well, not seriously anyway. 'Zashi. A familiar tingle spread through his body and he tried to hide his flustered smile. He glanced around the room, clearing his throat before he tried to speak again. "Ooh, maybe. You know how to pick locks?" Rooting through his pockets, he tossed onto the table his wallet, his phone, his keys (which were on a tasteful Shrek keychain he'd nabbed from a lost and found), a few red hair ties, and exactly three bobby pins. "Bingo." He held out the bobby pins to Shouta with a proud smile.

He watched Shouta fiddle with the lock for a moment. "…She'll unlock these, right?" He laughed nervously. "I-I mean, I'm sure she's having a good laugh right now, but any second now she'll come back in and unlock them."

Shouta took the bobby pins gratefully, brushing off the prickle in his fingertips where his skin met his friend's. He fumbled with them for a moment, then shifted two of them into his right hand while the other went to work poking around in the small lock. "Among other things," he responded distractedly, for once unintentionally coming off as cryptic. Of course, all hope was dashed when the tip of the pin sank(?) further into the lock.

Frowning, he pulled the pin back out to reveal a small gray clump of— "Clay. She jammed clay in the locks," he exclaimed in disbelief. He wiped the residue on the hem of his shirt, only refraining from throwing the pin across the room because it was Hizashi's, then deposited the three back in the other hero's hand.

"Knowing Nemuri, she's probably already left the campus," he seethed, once again glancing around the room for anything useful. His eyes landed on the foot of the couch, and he wondered idly if they could break the links between cuffs with enough weight at the right angle. But that would be a lot of awkward maneuvering, and he doubted they had enough weight between them to fully snap the chain. "Seeing as she stuffed the locks with clay, I doubt she's planning on coming back," he reasoned with a huff.

Visibly agitated, he slowly sank back into the couch—this time conscientious enough to keep his arm extended so Hizashi wouldn't be dragged along with—his free hand rooting itself in his hair as he wracked his brain for a solution. Of course, there were plenty of people who could get a pair of handcuffs off of them, but getting ahold of someone who would was an entirely different story. As far as he knew, no one else would be on campus this far into summer break and, with Nemuri as the primary culprit, she'd probably already contacted their fellow staff in advance to warn them not to respond to any calls. It had happened before to a different, equally unfortunate victim of one of her "pranks".

"Any ideas?" he wondered aloud, staring dejectedly at the ground because how was he supposed to handle this? If it were anyone else he'd probably just go charging through the streets until he found some poor uninvolved bystander with a quirk that could get rid of the offending contraption. He'd give permission to use their quirk in public, of course, and—wait. He stiffened, lifting his head suddenly. There was nothing stopping them from doing exactly that. He started to voice his idea to the other hero when a blaring siren cut him off.

Lights flashed eerily red as shutters rolled down to cover the windows and door, and Shouta flew to his feet for the second time within the past five minutes. "I'm going to end her," he declared monotonously, staring with barely concealed fury as the inconspicuous sheet of paper slipped beneath the door before the shutters could fully overlap. The alarm and lights cut off without warning, leaving them in total darkness.

Did she really just trigger an intruder drill to keep us in here? Without telling us why in the first place?

"Well, uh- points to her for being so thorough." Hizashi chuckled nervously, taking the pin from Shouta and slipping it and all his other items back into his pockets. He tried to keep a cheery outlook, knowing Shouta would likely take a pessimistic route with all this- and rightfully so. He tried his best to balance out every negative thought the other man had with a positive one of his own. It almost always worked, somehow.

Hizashi carefully took a seat next to him on the couch, gently pulling his hand from his hair. "Don't want you to hurt yourself," he mumbled, not making eye contact afterwards. He was too worried that his expression would give something away. Instead, he began scanning the room in hopes of finding a solution.

"I got nothin'." He sighed. He was Present Mic, he would find a solution somehow! It was what he did for a living, for God's sake! He could find a way out of this, he was sure of that. …Until he made a realization. Despite it being a negative one, he voiced this to the other man anyway. "Nemuri was here before us too, so she probably swept the room and checked for anything we could use to get these suckers off." If she'd put enough thought into this to jam the locks, there was likely no point in looking around the room.

The sudden loud noise of the shutters slamming down paired with the sudden intense lighting, caused Hizashi to visibly panic. His hands instinctively flew to his head, clutching against his ears where his headphones should've been. He'd never been good with sudden occurrences, whether it be light, sound, taste, smell; anything really. It was unnoticable when it was something small, but when two or more of them paired up and happened together, it got to him sometimes. However, his headphones in his hero costume helped him keep calm when those situations arose during an investigation or a fight. But they weren't here. Why weren't they here? He whipped his head in all different directions, trying to process everything that was happening. This time, when Shouta moved suddenly, he didn't collect himself in time to keep himself upright. He pitched forward, tumbling awkwardly half off the couch. When the lights went out, he was honestly glad.

"S-sorry-" He managed to get out, though shaky. He settled himself on the floor in front of the couch. He couldn't see anything, but that meant that Shouta couldn't see the state he was in right now, so it was alright by him. It was always embarrassing as all Hell when someone saw him like that. He just had to take a moment to right himself, tell himself that everything is okay, then he was good to go, but God. It was such an overreaction to a simple thing, and he knew that, but it happened anyway- though significantly less nowadays.

Shouta held back another curse as he unintentionally pulled his friend off the couch, immediately crouching next to him to decrease the pull of the cuffs. "Hizashi?" he called softly, unable to rid his thoughts of the way his friend's eyes had blown wide in panic. "I'm going to put my hand on your shoulder," he said, waiting for any sort of protest before gently following through, using their tethered arms as a guide in the darkness.

He absolutely did not allow himself to dwell on the temporary loss of sight—face smashing into the ground, blood running into his eyes, a musty, makeshift blindfold, and snail-paced movements while his students were in danger—only offering a steadying presence as his friend caught his breath.

"The lights should kick back on in a few minutes," he informed quietly, his voice deliberately calm despite his rampaging anger at Nemuri and the persistent anxiety over the total darkness. "She really planned this out, didn't she? I bet she recruited Nezu, the damn sadist," he added lightly, though it was unclear whether the 'sadist' part referred to Nemuri or the principal himself. Not that it mattered; both were notoriously invested in chaos, although the principal usually hid it better.

"Sorry for dragging you into this. A home invasion from Nemuri would've been easier to deal with." He sighed and shifted his legs so he was sitting beside Hizashi, shoulder to shoulder, while they waited for the lights to flicker back on.

Hizashi nodded quickly, shakily placing his own hand over Shouta's. "I-I'm okay. I'm okay." He carefully scooted a bit closer to the other hero, hoping that in the darkness he wouldn't notice. "Thank you," he added softly. God, he cared so deeply about the other man that it scared him sometimes. "You're the absolute best, y'know. Of all the people I could be handcuffed to right now, I'm glad it's you." He sent a smile Shouta's way, whether he could see it or not.

As soon as Shouta started apologizing, though, Hizashi quickly shut it down. "Hey hey hey, this isn't your fault. You had no way of knowing what she was up to. Besides, it's Nemuri we're talking about here, no one ever knows what she's planning," he added with a soft chuckle. He had no idea what he was going to do about all this, frankly, but keeping a brave face would help the both of them. Once the lights came back on, they would figure something out. Until then, there was really nothing they could do than try to keep each other sane.

"How're you holding up?" His voice held that gentle tone it took on sometimes around Shouta, that anyone else might be surprised to hear. Even Nemuri had only heard it a few times, and she'd sent him a Look(tm) every time. It wasn't like he meant to only use it with Shouta, it was just coincidental. That's what he told himself, anyway.

Shouta scoffed at that, rolling his eyes fondly knowing full well his friend wouldn't see. He wouldn't admit it, of course, but being handcuffed to Hizashi wasn't the worst thing in the world. Granted he'd be a hell of a lot more at ease if they were this close on their own terms, but the dark-haired man didn't see that happening anytime soon. All that said, Nermuri would have hell to pay when this was over.

He bit back the automatic "I'm not anything special", not wanting to trigger another lecture on self-deprecation in an already sucky scenario, and listened to Hizashi's firm shut down. It was…logical, what he was saying, and he said as much. "I'm supposed to be the rational one," he grumbled—dare-he-say jokingly?—, trying his best to ignore how hyperaware he was of the faint heat radiating off the other hero. "At least it's air-conditioned here."

He repressed a shiver at his friend's voice, the back of his neck prickling thanks to the close proximity doubled with that damned tone. He wondered once again what it was about that particular inflection that made his heart speed up. Idly, he theorized it had something to do with the fact that he'd only ever heard Hizashi use it when it was just the two of them—which wasn't rational at all because it was just a pattern of rising and falling syllables—but he reminded himself how absurd that would be if it were true. Realizing he had yet to give a response, he gave an unconvincing, "fine," that even he winced at. "Better when the lights turn on," he added.

"Mm." Hizashi hummed softly in acknowledgment. Part of him wanted to reach for Shouta's hand again, but he'd taken the other's hand just thirty-ish minutes ago… Instead, he positioned his hand slightly closer to his friend's, letting their fingers brush together every now and then. He figured he would let Shouta make the decision this time.

Once he'd gotten over the initial shock of the whole situation, this was actually kind of… nice? He was with his favorite person, after all. Nothing could be bad when Shouta was with him. It'd be better when the lights came back on, though- Personally, he didn't mind the dark, but he wanted Shouta to be comfortable. He didn't hesitate to voice (most of) that, either.

"Yeah, the air-conditioning is nice. I mean, this is kinda… well, look at it this way; we know for a fact that no one can get into the room right now, whether it's another teacher or a villain. Hell, I bet we're the only ones in the whole building, and it's going to stay like that for at least the next few minutes. We know we're safe. And worst comes to worst, phone flashlights could be pulled out in a pinch. We're not alone- one could argue that you're the opposite of alone since I never stop talking- and it's kinda nice to just sit somewhere safe in the dark with your favorite person." He wrapped up his mini tangent with a soft inhale. He hadn't meant to slip in the 'favorite person' at the end of that, but oh well. It wasn't inherently romantic, so he was fine.

If Shouta noticed the way his fingertips brushed against Hizashi's every so often (which he most definitely did), he didn't comment. He did, however, resist the urge to interlock them, because that would be weird, and surely their fingers only kept touching because of the awkward positioning with the handcuffs. If Hizashi wanted to hold his hand, he'd have already done it. That's just the type of person he was. So Shouta refrained.

His brain was so caught up in those thoughts that he only half processed the rest of what the voice hero was saying. He definitely caught the "favorite person" part, though. …Maybe it's a good thing the lights are off, still, he decided, knowing for a fact the tips of his ears were flushed again, this time without the excuse of the heat to cover for him.

As if to spite him, the emergency lights flickered on at that exact moment, dimmer than the normal fluorescent, but bright enough after the sudden darkness that he had to blink several times to adjust. Luckily Shouta was used to life spiting him and he quickly gathered up his best mildly amused expression, arching an eyebrow and turning to say something in reply, only for the words to die on the tip of his tongue when he realized just how close their faces had gotten in the dark.

"That's—good point," he stuttered—fucking stuttered! God, it was like he was a teen again. Normally he could suppress his feelings long enough to act like a normal goddamn human being, but there was always something else to rely on to devote his attention to then. Something playing on a TV in the background, Koto being his normal furry bastard, people on the street walking by. Maybe that's what he should do. There was bound to be something to hide behind if only he—the note!

He pulled away swiftly, clinging to his tattered pride and forcing his normal deadpan expression to take over. Before Hizashi could call him out on it (God, he hoped he didn't), he gestured towards the small slip of paper lying just in front of the door. "Nemuri must've slipped it under before the shutters closed," he explained, gently tugging on the cuffs in lieu of asking if Hizashi wanted to go over and check it out.

Hizashi forcefully shoved away any disappointment he may have felt when he didn't get to hold Shouta's hand, burying it in the back of his mind. He hadn't truly expected the other hero to take his hand, and yet… Whatever. He gave up trying after a moment and shifted his hand away, not wanting to make things any more awkward than they were. He brushed it off, plastering a smile back onto his face.

"Heeey, the-the lights are back." What a great observation, Hizashi. God, he was a mess. He swallowed hard and tried not to make eye contact, despite how much he wanted to. He exhaled in relief (and tried not to be disappointed) when Shouta shifted away.

Following Shouta's gesture to the scrap of paper sitting on the tile, he furrowed his brow in confusion. Confusion, and also mild excitement. This whole situation was ridiculous and he was sure if he told Toshinori about it, the man wouldn't believe him. Frankly, he wouldn't mind sitting in the staff room with Shouta for a few hours if he wasn't sure that his feelings were unrequited.

He nodded in response, carefully standing up. "What do you think it is? Ooh, maybe she left us a scavenger hunt! That doesn't sound like her, but it'd be fun." Awkwardly shuffling to the door, he carefully picked up the folded slip of paper, handing it to Shouta with a flourish of his hand, a bow, and a goofy smirk.