Chapter Text
Midoriya can’t say he ever envisioned himself as the dating site type.
To make a dating profile seemed to be somewhat like admitting defeat—“yes, I can fling a man through three consecutive skyscrapers, but I can’t seem to find someone that wants to call me back after the first date!”
But, to be fair: he can’t say he’s been trying terribly hard. While there’s certainly something sexy about going on a date with Japan’s No. 1 hero, the appeal drops quickly when you find out he spends 17 out of 24 hours working, six days a week. Not to mention, he doesn’t really meet new people often unless they’re a) becoming his coworker or b) getting snatched from a burning building, carried away from a fight, or shoved away from oncoming peril. Both present not-so-ideal prospects for future life partners.
So, yeah. Maybe he needs a little help on the romance front. He had been functioning under the assumption that he’d stumble on someone someday, but his friends were a little less patient.
Hence, he finds himself perched in his bed, back to the wall as he gingerly clicks around on his laptop. Uraraka is draped next to him on her back, absentmindedly watching the screen and occasionally piping in commentary for pictures. Iida is poised on the sofa across the room, reading out loud a list of potential hobbies.
“Stargazing?” he says in a voice that suggests “interviewing for a job” rather than “filling out a dating profile.”
“I haven’t done that since elementary school,” Midoriya denies with a small smile. “There’s too much light pollution, these days.”
Iida scoffs, then crosses it out. “All right, then. Knitting?”
Midoriya shakes his head again, right as Uraraka flips onto her stomach and points at his screen. “That one! That’s a really good one of you.”
“Uraraka, they use that photo of me in every tabloid ever. People are going to think I’m catfishing.”
She puffs out her cheeks, sinking back down. “Ugh, what a shame. But… you should still use it as one of your pictures. It really brings out your eyes!”
Midoriya rolls said eyes. “Okay, if you say so. But if I don’t get any matches because people think I’m lying, I’m blaming you.”
“I take full responsibility,” she says with a sly smile, crossing her heart.
“Last one, Midoriya: traveling.”
Midoriya thinks for a moment before nodding. Iida checks it off with a flourish, rising from the couch to deposit the list in his friend’s hands.
“Out of a list of 121 hobbies, you have agreed with 15,” he summarizes. “Your top enjoyed activities are: hero-watching, eating, working out, reading, and watching movies. Your description currently reads: Pro hero. All Might enthusiast. Let’s get katsudon, some time!”
Uraraka purses her lips as Iida summarizes, eyebrows furrowing as she listens. When Iida finishes: “Midoriya, can I be honest with you?” she asks.
“Sure.”
“You sound like the most generic guy ever. Or… I guess more like someone’s best approximation of what you’d be like, just going off of press interviews alone.”
Midoriya’s face flushes, and he stammers a moment before speaking: “I mean—I don’t have too many hobbies because I’m working all the time. What am I supposed to do? Make up things I enjoy? Sensationalize myself?”
“No, not that! I mean. You just… you really need to make your description pop , you know?” She says, hands flaring accordingly. “You’re a sweet guy with an incredible life—you need to really make that come across!”
Iida nods his agreement. “Your hobbies are generic enough that you really have to ace your description. Something witty, but sentimental. Thoughtful, but not overly thought-through. Memorable, but—”
“Okay, okay, I get it,” Midoriya says, hands waving. “But I’ll need both of your help with that. I’m not exactly great at one-liners.”
“I beg to differ—what was it you yelled, last time you got into a tough fight? That jewel thief?” Uraraka teases, a finger pressing into her cheek. “Was it something along the lines of… ‘here’s a taste of justice,’ right as you kicked him in the face? Or wait, was it ‘I’ll show you a necklace’ when you wrapped that wire around his neck?”
“I thought it was ‘crime is no one’s best friend’ as he ripped the bag of diamonds from the thief’s hands,” Iida adds helpfully.
Midoriya groans, dropping his face into a pillow. Muffled: “Fine! Fine. Just please, make sure I’m not embarrassing myself.”
“You got it!” Uraraka shoves the laptop back towards him, watching him expectantly. He tilts his head back up, settles his hands on the keyboard, and thinks.
“Pro hero. All Might enthusiast. I do my best by this city, and I’ll do my best by you.”
Uraraka reads it over. She crinkles her nose in mock-disgust: “Cheesy—gross!” Right as Midoriya is about to protest: “ But... endearing. I like it.”
“It definitely sounds like you,” Iida adds.
And after one final deep breath, Midoriya presses the publish button.
The notifications don’t exactly come pouring in the way he’d hoped.
A 65% match from a woman in insurance—no thanks, since he personally is probably a pain in her company’s ass. An 72% match with a man in the entertainment industry—his pictures make him out to be a bit pretentious, though, and he doesn’t sit right with Midoriya. He scrolls through potential matches, clicking for potential yes's, only to see that they’ve rejected him back.
As he waits the week out, he can’t help but wonder if people do think he’s an imposter. That people aren’t expressing interest because they think it’s not actually him, sitting behind the keyboard. That he’s just there to frustrate other lonely hearts.
He can’t really blame them. He wouldn’t believe that a pro hero had to resort to online dating, either.
So he does what he always does: he distracts himself with work. There’s—luckily?—a flare-up of a crime ring in the fifth ward, and he tackles the job with enthusiasm. He spends his week researching, surveying, and infiltrating—the more time away from the computer, the better.
He’s a week and two days into waiting and has honestly almost forgotten about the site, when a notification pops up in his email. He sighs, flopping onto the couch and plugging in his username and password.
93% match. Todoroki Shouto.
The name makes Midoriya doubletake. Todoroki? Like, No. 2 pro hero Shouto , Todoroki Shouto? The stoic guy he sees sometimes at public events and magazine shoots? The guy who, at the Hero Billboard Chart JP announcement this year, said all of ten words when accepting his ranking?
Midoriya clicks on the profile, not entirely sure what to expect.
And, well… It’s a good thing he didn’t get his expectations up. The photos are all ripped straight from various gossip and tabloid websites. The descriptors aren’t groundbreaking: 26, male, half-cold, half-hot quirk. The bio is generic: “Pro hero. #2, looking for his #1.” The hobbies listed that they didn’t match on are coffee shops and stargazing.
Ha, as if.
Midoriya sighs, resigning himself to yet another dud. But before he closes out of the tab, he sees a red notification on the chat window.
Message pending from Todoroki Shouto.
He sits and stares at the circle for a moment.
What harm could it do? He’ll just tell this person off, then go back to work.
He laughs and clicks it.
T: Funny seeing another pro hero on here.
T: Not just that, the number one pro hero.
T: What brings you around here?
The comments make Midoriya smile—great, the catfisher already sees him as a catfisher. Oh, the irony. Time to lay it on thick.
M: same as you
M: i’m in the pursuit of my partner-in-(fighting) crime!
M: your bio says you’re looking for your #1, and well
M: here i am! :D
T: I have to confess—that line was not my work.
T: My friend came up with it and forced me to keep it up in the bio.
T: And honestly, I’m growing to regret it more by the second.
Midoriya is somewhat ashamed that the string of messages makes him laugh out loud. Great, whoever is behind the other screen has a sense of humor.
M: that’s okay, it’s still charming!
M: it definitely got my attention
M: tell your friend to keep up the good work
M: they could write pick-up lines as a side job
T: Yeah, I’ll let him know.
T: Because hero work definitely doesn’t pay the bills by itself.
M: todoroki, i have to say that you’re just as sassy as they make you out to be in the tabloids
M: you are todoroki shouto, right?
T: Yes?
T: My pictures are right there.
T: And you’re Midoriya Izuku, right?
Midoriya is choking back tears of laughter as he types:
M: yeah, duh!
M: my pictures are right there, too!
M: why, are you doubting me?
T: No, I believe you.
T: I only ask because it looks like you’re doubting me.
M: no, i believe you! 100%!
M: but anyways—todoroki, it looks like we have a lot in common!
T: I know. 93%, huh.
T: That’s my highest match so far.
T: I guess us hero types are all the same.
M: you definitely have some interesting hobbies, though
M: you don’t strike me as a coffee shop kind of guy?
T: And you don’t strike me as a reality TV kind of guy.
T: Yet here we are.
M: touché
T: I have to go—I have work.
T: But… let’s keep talking.
T: You seem like quite the character.
M: oh definitely
M: good luck on your shift and talk to you later!!
Midoriya shuts the laptop feeling slightly less pleased with himself than he thought he would.
He hates to admit it, but he… actually had fun, talking to that catfisher? Even though they’re quite obviously not Todoroki.
Although he initially told himself he wouldn’t, maybe... just maybe, he will continue the conversation. Really, what’s the harm?
T: You still there?
M: yes!
M: did you think i’d disappear?
T: Well, actually…
T: Yes?
M: a promise is a promise!
M: i said we’d keep talking and thus
M: here i am :D
M: how was your shift?
T: Quiet.
T: But I’m probably not supposed to talk about it on an insecure network, so...
M: got it!
M: will keep the job specifics to a minimum
M: wouldn’t want confidential information falling into the wrong hands!
T: Right.
T: That wasn’t sketchy at all.
M: everything i type looks inherently sketchy
M: it’s the curse of using exclamation points
T: This might come across as rude, but…
T: Are you really. Like, that positive in real life?
M: ...what?
T: It’s just.
T: You always seem to be smiling in everything. Even in the middle of fights.
T: Doesn’t your face start to hurt? How is it possible to smile that much?
M: that’s just my face!
M: i like to think that my overwhelming optimism gets me through a lot of tough situations!
M: but no, the real answer is i’m not that smiley in real life
M: even my face needs a break, sometimes
T: I knew it.
M: alternatively
M: how do you keep your face so neutral all the time?
T: That’s just my face.
M: okay, haha
M: very funny
M: but really, though
T: There’s not really a solid explanation for it.
T: I guess that’s just how I was brought up.
T: My old man taught me that a fight is no place for emotions.
T: You don’t burden other people with how you feel.
M: oh.
M: wow, okay
M: i mean, no offense to your dad but
M: that’s just… wrong
M: and unhealthy
M: and just bad parenting in general, hero or not?
T: No, yeah, full offense to my dad.
T: That guy’s an asshole.
T: A talented asshole, but an asshole.
M: ...the press really wasn’t exaggerating for once, huh.
M: he was truly that bad
T: Are you telling me you look at the press?
M: i mean
M: yeah
M: sometimes
M: that’s what got me into heroes!
T: ...Tabloids full of stalker photos taken by grown-ass men and women and gossip typed by underpaid interns is what got you into heroics?
T: That’s kind of sad?
M: no! no, absolutely not
M: i mean online fan boards
M: which. yes, had some influence from the tabloids
M: but the people on it were way less insidious than the press
M: it was mostly talking about new heroes, looking at stats, passing around theories
M: it was fun stuff!
M: and while i don’t buy the magazines, i do pop my head in on the boards every once in a while
T: Do you ever contribute to the conversation, knowing what you know now?
M: …
M: maybe
M: but only about myself
M: and only if they’re going totally off the rails about me
M: i saw someone theorize once that my dad was all for one
M: like. you can find my family photos online!
M: geez!
T: …
T: But who’s to say that’s your real father in the photo.
M: excuse me?
T: Sorry.
T: Oh shit—
T: Sorry again, I have to go.
T: Talk to you later.
M: ...yeah
M: talk to you later.
M: so
M: i have to ask
M: why stargazing
T: What do you have against stargazing?
M: i don’t have anything against it
M: it’s just not a hobby that many people in a big city have
M: what with light pollution and all that
T: ...Maybe we should start lighter.
M: oh. okay
M: sorry, i didn’t realize
M: we can talk about something else
T: You’re fine. I’ll tell you about it sometime later.
T: But as for you—travel?
T: I’ve never seen anything about you traveling.
M: well obviously i can’t travel that much these days
M: and i can’t really say i’ve traveled a whole lot in the past
M: my dad was rarely in town and my family doesn’t really spend frivolously
M: but every other summer, my mom and i would go on a trip to okinawa
M: touristy, i know
T: Uh, yeah.
T: That’s the tourist beach.
M: i know, i know
M: but even then, i loved those trips
M: it was always so cool, going someplace different for once
M: and getting to see all the different kinds of people
M: it felt like an adventure every time
M: i haven’t been back in a few years at this point, but i don’t think i want to go back
M: feels like if i do, i might… i don’t know. ruin the magic?
M: so i’ve been eyeballing different beaches instead
M: maybe i’ll get to go in my golden years, haha
M: what about you?
M: have you traveled much?
T: Not particularly.
T: My family has a mountain house we would go to every once in a while, I guess.
T: But that was mostly for training.
M: sounds kind of fun?
T: Not at all.
T: Those are actually the days I dreaded the most throughout the year.
T: It was literally just wake up at sunrise, then running myself ragged all day while my father watched on.
T: Luckily, I only had to deal with it for about seven years before my father decided the trip was too much of a hassle to continue.
T: All the nice gyms are in the city, anyways.
M: you didn’t get any downtime?
T: Nope.
T: I couldn’t even tell you what else is in that mountain town, other than the actual mountain and the training area my father threw together in our backyard.
T: My siblings came with—maybe they got to do things in town?
M: …
M: i’m sorry to hear that
M: and i’m sorry for prying
M: especially after you said wanted to stay light!
T: Don’t worry about it too much.
T: Remembering the mountain house just makes me laugh these days.
T: I took it all so seriously back then, but really?
T: I was just some shrimpy nine year old flipping tires and shooting flames at mannequins.
T: It felt like life or death—I mean, it kind of was, considering what I was training for, but…
T: I was incredibly intense. It was a lot of focus, for a kid.
T: I’m happy I mellowed out.
M: we all took ourselves a little too seriously as kids, don’t worry about it.
M: i did a lot of note-taking and hero analysis as a kid—like my life depended on it!
T: Ah, yes, the old hero forums.
T: Forums that you never left.
M: >:^|
M: was that sarcasm
T: The world may never know.
M: >:^|||||
T: Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.
T: And besides, I think it’s cute.
M: …
M: ……
M: oh. okay
T: But back on topic:
T: You still take those notes, though, right?
M: i mean. yeah
M: i have my little notebook that i keep on me to jot stuff down
T: I thought I heard about that through the grapevine.
T: But my point is: you made it a habit when you were a kid, and you still use it to this day.
T: Sometimes, the things we take too seriously as kids make us better adults.
T: I may think it was silly of me to take my mountain target practice and meditations so seriously, but, well…
T: I guess part of me is still grateful that they happened.
T: ...
T: I do still want to take a vacation for pure enjoyment, at some point.
M: that’s fair
M: i definitely feel like you’ve earned one!
M: when we both retire, we can plan our vacation together, haha
T: I’ll hold you to that.
M: yeah, hit me up in 20 years and we’ll organize it :D
M: goodnight, todoroki
T: Goodnight, Midoriya.
T: You know, I’ve always wanted to ask you something.
T: And I feel like we’ve reached a place where we’re comfortable asking uncomfortable questions.
M: love where this is going
M: love this vagueness
T: Well, if you don’t like vagueness:
T: Midoriya, are you All Might’s illegitimate son?
M: …
M: todoroki
M: i thought you were smart
T: I don’t think the question is that out-there?
T: Your quirks are very similar.
T: And whenever they do Yuuei staff interviews, they always hone in on the fact that you two were very close.
M: we both have strength augmentation quirks
M: a relatively common quirk classification, might i add
M: is it that wild that he would act as a close mentor to a student with a similar quirk
T: I’m still not convinced.
M: why didn’t you put ‘conspiracy theories’ under the hobbies list on your profile?
M: that was false advertising
T: Midoriya, can you answer the question?
M: no!
M: obviously no, all might is not my father.
M: all might was just my mentor and role model!
M: and i already have a dad!
M: honestly, i’m offended you’re buying into conspiracy theories over me
T: Oh.
T: Sorry.
T: Okay, I believe you.
M: thank you.
M: geez, how long have you been sitting on that one?
T: Um.
T: It’s probably best I don’t answer that.
M: todoroki, w h y
T: I mean, I’ll be honest.
T: That was my first ever curiosity about you. But now...
T: You’ve subverted a lot of my outsider expectations on what you’re like.
T: That one, included.
M: oh?
T: My first impression of you was watching you Yuuei students during the Sports Festival. First year.
M: oh NO.
T: Why “oh no?”
M: i was a totally different person back then
M: i had no idea what i was doing
M: also, i thought that breaking my bones was a good way to go about using my quirk
T: Yeah, uh. That part is still a little weird to me.
M: let’s not get into that
T: Okay.
T: But regardless, I remember watching you on that screen and honestly?
T: You pissed me off.
M: wow, i’m flattered
T: Obviously, you don’t anymore.
T: But back then…
T: There you were, some untrained kid messing around in the arena and winning.
T: It went against everything I had been taught.
T: I learned growing up that only the most disciplined students could become top heroes.
M: in my defense
M: i wasn’t messing around
M: i was just so sloppy at that point that it looked that way
M: wow, how did i not accidentally kill anyone back then?
M: i was a disaster
T: Actually, I still think you’re kind of similar to how you were back then.
M: you’re just really laying the flattery on thick tonight, aren’t you?
T: Okay, that came out wrong.
T: But I mean it.
T: Yes, you’re more controlled and more practiced now.
T: But you still have all that spirit that I saw all those years ago.
T: And I sometimes wish I could have the same degree of... open fighting spirit.
T: It’s what makes you such a standout hero, I think.
M: …that was actually very nice of you to say
M: thank you!
M: i wish i could give you the same degree of character analysis but
M: honestly, i don’t know much about you outside of typical news outlets
M: i only knew of you in high school, mostly because of your dad
T: You wouldn’t want to know me as a student.
T: I wasn’t particularly friendly, back then.
T: Just angry.
M: i think you had a right to be angry, considering the circumstances
M: and who isn’t angry as a teenager?
M: but i’m glad that you got to a point where you took control of your own career
M: i know you struggled with using fire for a bit
T: I’m glad it worked out, too.
T: I just wish I had figured it out a little earlier.
M: i’m really sorry, but i actually have to go
M: but todoroki?
M: i’m glad i’m getting to know you better, now.
T: Me too, Midoriya.
T: Have a safe shift.
T: You asked me a while back about my stargazing hobby.
M: dude, it’s 2am on a monday night
T: Sorry.
T: But also, why are you up?
M: work
M: it’s some downtime right now, though
M: so we can talk
T: Okay.
T: But—remember how I said my family used to go to the mountains?
M: yes
M: and how it was a miserable experience that you did not enjoy at all
T: Well, it wasn’t all miserable.
T: There was a singular good tradition that made those trips bearable.
T: It would be the end of the night.
T: I would be dead on my feet after a day of training, curled up in my bed and ready to go comatose.
T: But before I could fully fall asleep, my sister would sneak into my room and shake me awake.
T: And she’d grab my hand and we’d sneak out the window, up onto the roof.
T: My brothers would be there waiting for us.
T: And we’d just… sit up there and look at the stars.
M: a bunch of kids sitting in complete silence?
M: really?
T: I mean… yeah. We had to stay quiet.
T: Our father would definitely not approve, if he found us.
T: Technically, we weren’t even supposed to be interacting with each other.
T: So we’d sit in silence and just enjoy each other’s company.
T: And sometimes my sister would take my hand and trace out a constellation.
T: She told me that that’s what my mom used to do back when she was younger.
T: I guess my sister tracing them out for me was the next best thing.
M: oh man
M: ….
M: todoroki, i’m sorry i tried to force this out of you earlier
M: and i’m honored that you trust me enough to share this now
T: I swear this isn’t all totally out of the blue.
T: Actually, I’m at my childhood home in the mountains, right now.
T: And, well. I’m sitting on the roof, alone.
M: oh?
T: And the stars are amazing. They really are.
T: The constellations are just as I remember them.
T: But, well.
T: Something is still missing.
T: And I’ve been up here for an hour or two, trying to figure out what it is.
M: and you think *i* can help you figure it out?
T: Oh, ha, no. I already figured it out.
T: See—
T: What made it so special is that I had someone to share the view with.
M: todoroki?
T: Midoriya, can I meet you? In person?
“I don’t think you should go,” Iida says bluntly. “There are all sorts of impersonators, these days. You’re a profitable target! Imagine what a scandal they could create. And you’ve only been talking for two weeks. No, I can’t stand by this.”
Midoriya sits in front of his two friends, laptop spun towards them so they can see Todoroki’s profile. He listens intently to Iida, lower lip pinched between his two fingers as he processes his friend’s thoughts.
“That’s a valid point,” he murmurs, reaching over to jot the thought onto a piece of paper labeled “Pros and Cons.” He scribbles hurriedly, then returns his hand to his face.
“I mean—look at his pictures!” Iida exclaims, prompting Midoriya to scroll through them. “They’re all tabloid photos! Not only is this an imposter, but a bad one, at that. I remember Tensei having to deal with at least two profiles of this kind every week, back when we were in high school.”
Midoriya picks up the pencil once more, pushing its eraser into his cheek. “To be fair—I used a tabloid photo of myself, too.”
“You didn’t exclusively use tabloid photos.” Iida huffs, arms crossing. “This is definitely not Todoroki Shouto, and I’m shocked you’re still entertaining the idea that it is.”
“It’s not even that I think it’s Todoroki, at this point,” Midoriya counters, scrolling back to the original photo. “It’s extremely unlikely that it’s actually him.”
Iida pushes his glasses back up on his nose, eyebrows raised. “So what is your dilemma, here?”
“It’s just… whoever is behind that screen is so engaging?” Midoriya says, feeling idiotic to say the least. “And... I actually really enjoyed talking to them?”
Iida and Uraraka merely exchange a look.
He sighs, leaning his weight backwards onto his hands. He mutters to himself: “And I don’t think that I’m totally stupid, for thinking it might be worth meeting them. I mean, I don’t think that our conversation moved too fast? Or seemed forced? I don’t think there are any expectations to meeting, other than just talking. But maybe I’m just being naive. People fall for this act all the time. Everyone always says ‘it won’t happen to me’ and then it inevitably happens to them because they put their guard down—”
“Well, I think it’s worth going,” Uraraka interrupts his thoughts, earning a look of astonishment from Iida. She walks behind Midoriya, sinking into a cross-legged position. “What do you have to lose?”
“My dignity,” Midoriya mutters, which earns him a light whack from her.
“Midoriya, come on. You’re the number one pro hero in Japan!” she exclaims, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him. He does nothing to resist, merely letting his limbs go limp like a ragdoll. “If anyone tries anything, you’re the last person that would let them get away with it.”
“She has a point, there,” Iida concedes. “It’s harder to get away with crimes when you’re committing them directly against the top hero in the country.”
“You let Iida and I read a little bit of your chat and honestly? It didn’t seem that sketchy!” she continues. “Other than the name and the pictures, this just seems like a nice person trying to find someone else! Sure, they’re spinning a whole narrative of Todoroki’s life from tabloids—but still, some of that stuff was downright poetic.”
Midoriya is still not fully convinced. He sinks backwards until his head falls in Uraraka’s lap, arms clutching his list to his chest.
“Okay. Fine. Sure, I don’t have to worry about someone stealing my credit card. But even then… what if….”
“‘What if’ what?” Uraraka asks, craning her head to peer down at him.
Midoriya bites his lip. “What if I get there and there just… isn’t a spark? What if they’re way more charming online and I’m wasting my time? What if I’m way more charming online and I’m wasting their time?”
The question earns a laugh from Uraraka and a small smile from Iida; Uraraka gingerly reaches over and tugs the list from Midoriya’s hands, placing it by her side and out of his immediate reach. “That’s just dating in general, unfortunately,” she admits, hands coming to clasp his shoulders. “You never really know how it’s going to go. You can’t make a list to predict all the outcomes. But that’s kind of what makes it fun.”
As Iida comes to sit beside them, Uraraka’s right hand comes up and tousles his hair: “And maybe, as your friend, I’m a bit biased in saying this, but—if this person isn’t charmed by you in person, then… well, then they’re a complete dummy.”
Iida huffs from next to them. “I hardly think that you’d be the issue in this situation, Midoriya. And while I can’t say I’m… thrilled , for you to go on a date with an obvious fake, I would be happy to patrol the area in case trouble arises.”
Only now does Midoriya smile softly. “Thanks, you two.”
“Of course,” Iida says. “But I
will
be wiretapping your clothes, as forewarning.”