Chapter Text
You had a problem. And that problem was a massive, overwhelming, inconvenient, and certainly unrequited crush on your roommates. This problem was exacerbated by the fact that your roommates were a couple. And gay. At least, you were pretty sure they were gay. They’d never said so explicitly, but they’d also never mentioned dating anyone other than men. And while your gender may sometimes be complicated, you were pretty sure you weren’t their type.
Not that it mattered, considering they weren’t single.
A small part of you regretted moving in with them. A very small part. Mostly you were just grateful. Grateful that Nemuri had been looking out for you. Grateful that the guys had opened up their home. Grateful that you got to experience feeling safe for the first time in years.
As you watched Aizawa come into the kitchen topless from over the rim of your coffee cup, long hair clinging damply to his shoulders, you once again wished they just weren’t so damn attractive. “Morning Sho,” you said, schooling your face into your usual early morning cheer, hiding how flustered the sight of his bare chest made you.
"There any more of that?" He asked, his gruff voice making you shiver. You nod at the mostly full pot and he grunts, shuffling across the kitchen to pour himself a cup. For a moment you admired his shoulders from behind, before an overly loud voice brought you back into the present as Hizashi pranced into the kitchen.
"Good morning, my two favorite people," he said, making you blush and shake your head as he left a loud, smacking kiss on your cheek. It didn't help your crush in the slightest that he was so physically affectionate. It had taken a while for you to warm up to them, to be comfortable with casual touching, but he'd slowly earned your trust. Unfortunately that meant you had to endure lots of hugs, cheek kisses, and the occasional hair petting from the handsome man. You were thankful that he understood your discomfort with returning affection, though he was wrong about the reason.
"What are you two doing up so early on your day off?" You asked, watching Hizashi snuggle up to Aizawa.
"I thought I'd walk you to work," the voice hero responded, offering you a grin and making you blush.
You ducked your head, trying to hide the blush behind your coffee as you replied, "You don't have to do that, I'm perfectly fine walking myself."
He laughed, leaving his husband to come wrap his arms around you instead. "I know you don't need an escort, but I want to. Besides, you know how much I love seeing your flowers."
All you could do was shake your head. There was no changing his mind once he'd decided to do something. "Fine, fine, you win. I'm leaving in fifteen though, so you'd better be ready." The man whooped cheerfully and disappeared from the kitchen, presumably to get ready to leave, leaving you alone with Aizawa. “And what about you? I know how much you treasure your sleep.”
He hummed noncommittally, before saying, “Hizashi was overly enthusiastic this morning and woke me up. Couldn’t get back to sleep.” You made a sympathizing noise, taking another sip of your coffee. “It’s okay, there was something I wanted to talk to you about anyways, and I wanted to catch you before work.”
A flare of anxiety sparked in your stomach, but you forced it down. He didn’t sound upset or mad, so it wasn’t likely anything bad. “What’s up?” You asked, trying to keep your voice from trembling, hoping your scent wasn’t giving away your anxiety.
“Nemuri is dragging us out tonight,” he answered, and you felt the tension flee. “To a bar. There will be some drinking, some dancing, knowing her and Hizashi. I was wondering if you’d like to come along.”
He was inviting you out. Oh. That was… not where you thought that was going to go. You set your coffee down, considering both him and the invitation. It had been a long time since you’d been out. Hell, it wasn’t even that long ago that you’d managed to go to the grocery store for the first time alone. But a bar, surrounded by people and loud music? Could you handle that?
You met his patient, caring gaze, and felt some of your worry melt. If he and Hizashi were there, you could manage it. They made you feel safe in a way nothing else ever had. “Okay,” you said, offering him a tentative smile. “That sounds like fun.” The smile he offered you in return was warm, and full of an emotion that made you uncomfortable. Pride, maybe, or affection. Too much from the normally stoic alpha.
“I’m glad. I’ll let Nemuri know you said yes, she’ll be excited,” he said, turning back to his coffee and allowing you to panic in peace. Ten minutes later, your breakfast was eaten and Hizashi was dancing back into the kitchen, entirely too energetic for so early in the morning.
“How did I get stuck with you again?” You grumbled, shrugging on a jacket and slipping on your shoes, fighting a smile as he stuck his tongue out at you childishly. Gods you were so gone for these men, it was entirely unfair. The walk to work was uneventful as he bubbled endlessly about the plans for the evening, about his problem students, about what kinds of flowers you’d be growing, anything that popped through that blonde head of his.
You loved it, loved listening to him ramble about everything and nothing. He was so good about controlling his volume around you, knowing how uncomfortable you were with loud noises. And even though you grumbled about it, you liked when he walked you to work. It felt safer, knowing you were with a pro hero. The only time you really felt safe and relaxed nowadays were when he or Sho or Nemuri were around. You knew in the long run you’d need to learn how to manage on your own, but for now, you were just grateful the three were so protective of you.
The man paused his rambling as you stopped in front of your shop to unlock the door. Well, it wasn’t technically your shop. Not yet. But the owner, sweet little old Mrs. Shimizu wanted to retire soon, and had been increasingly leaving the care and running of the shop in your hands. It felt good, helping this little flower shop blossom and flourish, and having your talent be recognized. Not just for your quirk, but for your general good business sense as well.
“What are you working on right now?” Hizashi asked, poking around among the flower displays as you started to set up for the day.
You offered him a smile, nodding at a small pot along the wall. “Those orchids have been my latest project. I finally got the color just right, so technically I’m between projects now.” He made his way over to the orchids in question, cooing over their rich blue coloring, and the soft flush of purple on the insides.
“How much was quirk and how much was husbandry?” He asked, gently stroking his fingers across one of the plush petals, as you felt your mouth go dry, imagining those fingers on your skin instead.
It took a moment to shake the thoughts and respond, “Mostly husbandry. I mostly used my quirk to accelerate the growth and strengthen it. I wanted the end result to be replicable without quirk use, and I finally got it so cuttings and seeds always produce that blue color.” His impressed grin took your breath away, and not for the first time you cursed your attraction to these men.
You chatted about the process for a couple of minutes before he excused himself to go run some errands, promising he’d be back at closing to walk you home. There was no use arguing with him, so you nodded and smiled instead, letting out a sigh as the door shut behind him with a little jingle of the overhead bell. Time to attempt to focus on literally anything else.
The morning was slow, and two hours later one of your part timers showed up, a high schooler who helped with the afternoon rush on the weekends. “Morning miss,” the black haired boy said cheerfully, pulling an apron over his clothes. “Sorry I’m a little late, was up late working on homework and I overslept.”
“No worries,” you responded, brushing some potting soil off your hands and giving him a look. “You know I don’t want to get in the way of your school work. If you need to come in later, or need some time off, I’ll manage fine.”
“Oh no, I like working here too much,” he said with a grin before laughing nervously. “As long as my classmates don’t find out. They’d probably laugh at me for liking a flower shop.”
“Well that doesn’t sound like a very good attitude for a bunch of future heroes,” you responded as he came around the counter to look at the order list. You ruffled his hair as he got close, making him laugh and dart away. “You’ll make an amazing hero though, and I can’t wait to see it.” He turned away quickly, but you could still see the flush that covered his cheeks.
The rest of the afternoon passed quickly, the two of you working together comfortably through the rush, cutting flowers and putting together bouquets. An hour before closing you waved him off, wishing him a good night and starting your closing tasks. The bell over the door alerted you to someone entering moments later, and you poked your head out of the back, thinking he’d probably forgotten something.
The shop was empty.
Your brow furrowed, and a shiver ran down your spine as you tried to convince yourself you just imagined it. That bell had chimed so many times through the day, of course you were still hearing it. Glancing around the shop once more, you forced it from your head and went back to closing up. The feeling of unease never quite left.
It wasn’t long before Hizashi showed up, his grin settling you like it always did. “Hey there flower, you almost ready to go?” He asked, leaning on the counter.
You nodded. “Yeah, I think I might lock up a little early.” For once, the shop didn’t make you feel warm and safe, and you were ready to be home.
He looked visibly surprised, concern in his eyes before they cleared. “Ah, wanna get home and get ready for tonight? I see through you. Come on, the sooner we go eat dinner, the sooner we can go out!”
Actually you’d completely forgotten you’d agreed to go out with them. All of the unease from the day fled, replaced with anxiety about the coming evening. Hoping it wasn’t bleeding into your scent, you offered the tall alpha what you hoped was a light smile. “Let me just grab my jacket from the back and I’ll be ready.”
He nodded and you slipped into the back, before freezing. Something felt… wrong. Hadn’t you left your jacket on the hook by the door this morning like usual? Fighting a shiver, you snatched it from the desk and hurried out. Maybe you were just on edge because of your nerves about the evening. That had to be it. Nothing else. Nothing was wrong. Not here. Not now.