"...What about All Might?" I asked.

All three of them looked at me.

"What about him?" asked Nemuri.

"Why don't we ask and see if I can stay with him?" I asked.

"I dunno, Doe. He didn't exactly sign up for this." said Hizashi.

"Technically, neither did any of you. You all were just thrown into this the moment I came here." I argued, "He was the first one I ran into, so he at least knows who I am and about the situation."

Everyone thought it over for a minute or two.

I hoped they would go with this new option, and even moreso, I hoped All Might would agree to it. Hizashi seemed like a cool dude, but with the way these two have been prying tonight, I felt less inclined to go along with their original idea. With All Might, I could at least lay low, dodge unnecessary hovering, and maintain some privacy.

And even though I'd prefer to just stay at Aizawa's apartment, Hizashi and Nemuri had a point. It wouldn't be safe, especially knowing that the League was aware of my presence. Being with a pro would at least cover my bases.

"I don't think it would hurt to ask." said Aizawa who looked at me, a faint smile on his face.

There was another pause before I heard Nemuri let out a sigh.

"Alright, fine." said Nemuri, "But if he says no, she'll need to stay with Hizashi."

"Only if he insists on taking the job seriously." said Aizawa.

"Tch! Way to throw me under the bus, man! When don't I take the job seriously?!" yelled Hizashi.

"Is that a rhetorical question, or would you like an answer?" Aizawa quipped.

Before any of them could argue further, the Okami came by to take our empty plates before handing them off to her assistant.

The rest of the dinner remained relatively quiet, which was a relief. Though, a part of me couldn't help but be on alert. Both Nemuri and Hizashi were already testing the waters, seeing which one of us would crack under pressure. Now it was just a matter of what they would do next and when.

By the time we had finished our final plate, the Okami thanked us all for our business and showed us out.

"You two go on ahead," said Nemuri, "Hizashi and I will take care of the bill."

Aizawa nodded and we walked our way out the entrance doors.

After a few feet, I looked behind us and saw the two still inside, seemingly not paying attention to us. I let out a sigh of relief.

"Think we're in the clear?" I whispered to Aizawa.

"For the time being." he answered quietly, "But don't let your guard down. They could be watching us from afar to see if we make a move."

"You think that's why they told us to go ahead and not wait up for them?" I asked. He nodded with a hum, "So you think this was a set up, too?"

"I knew something was suspect the moment Nemuri told me where we were going. It's not like her to make reservations like this unless there was a reason. Given that she didn't tell me what that reason was, I assumed it was to keep a close eye and catch us both in the act." he said as we continued to walk.

By the time we had made it to the car, Aizawa slumped next to the wall of the gated entrance.

He let out a sigh as he looked down at the ground.

"I apologise for their foolish behavior in there." he said.

"I mean, you did tell me I'd learn my lesson the hard way. So I kinda had this one coming." I said with a chuckle.

"Still," he said looking back up at me, "It's not acceptable behavior, even if it's expected. I only wish they'd keep their antics focused on me and not target you, but they are a persistent bunch."

"Have you ever been successful at getting them to stop?" I ask, feeling bad for him.

"Short of pretending to be dead, no. And even then, I've thought about it. Like I said, they're persistent." he said.

I thought for a moment about what our next move would be to foil their plans, but then, it clicked.

"I have an idea, but I'm going to need you to go along with it and be as convincing as possible." I said with a smirk.

He blinked in confusion, but then stood up straight from the wall and nodded.

"I'm all ears." he said.

After a couple of minutes, I could hear Nemuri and Hizashi close by from the sound of their shoes on the gravel. They were finally in earshot.

"Inconsequential?!" I yelled angrily at Aizawa, "Is that what my presence means to you?"

"What else were you expecting me to say?" said Aizawa, raising his voice.

Good.

Let's sweep the Oscars with this performance.

"Oh, I don't know. Something a little more thoughtful!" I snapped.

"I am your guardian, and nothing more, Miss Doe." he said firmly, "Whatever ideas you may have chalked up in your head during your stay is not my problem."

I scoffed.

"Oh, so it's all in my head? Is that it?" I growled back.

"I'm not going to entertain this tantrum. Any further discussion of what else you were thinking this was, and I'll rethink the decision of having you released from the psych ward." he said back, his eyes glaring at me.

'Ooh, nice.' I thought.

"Fucking inconsiderate asshole!" I shouted.

"Whooooooooa!" said Hizashi with his hands raised, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Chill! Trouble in paradise already? What the Hell did we miss?"

"It's fine." said Aizawa through gritted teeth, "We were just finishing this conversation."

"Like Hell we were!" I shouted back.

"Enough!" screamed Aizawa. I had never heard him raise his voice to that level before, but it stopped me in a heartbeat. Even though we were faking this argument, I instinctively remained silent as he slowly approached me, his quirk activated, and bits of his hair floating away from his face. He stopped a foot or two away, as he looked down at me with his glaring red eyes, "We are done here." he said in a low growl, "Now you are going to get in that car and remain quiet for the rest of this evening. I don't want to hear another word, or any other foolish, childish thoughts out of you again. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

I couldn't help it, but tears started to form in my eyes. I knew deep down that he wasn't being serious, but still - those words hurt like a motherfucker. I bit my trembling lip as I turned away and headed for the car.

***

(Aizawa's POV)

I watched as (Y/N) went for the backseat of the car as I blinked, nullifying my quirk. My heart felt like it was going to shatter into pieces seeing her like that.

'Fuck.' I thought, 'Did I just go too far? She told me to be convincing, but did I accidentally fool her instead?'

I heard both Nemuri and Hizashi approach me.

"You okay?" asked Nemuri quietly, her hand on my shoulder.

"Fine." I said harshly, nudging her hand away, "Let's go."

"B-but...," started Hizashi, "we were planning to go on a nice, leisurely stroll afterwards! M-maybe grab a few drinks-"

"Look, this dinner was your bright idea, and look where it got us." I seethed at the both of them, "I had a feeling you both would test my patience tonight, but this? You two have really out done yourselves."

"We're just doing our jobs!" said Nemuri defensively, but I wasn't having it.

"And does your job involve setting up your colleague and their ward to a dinner that could easily be misconstrued as a date? Are you fucking kidding me? I would've expected better from you." I shot back at her.

She immediately shut her mouth and looked away.

I felt like such a hypocrite giving this lecture, but it needed to be done in order to get them off our trail. They were on to us and that needed to stop.

"This ends now. There is nothing going on between her and I." I lied, "Now, if you two refuse to believe that, then that's your problem to deal with, but I will not take part in these games anymore, and neither will she. Understood?" I said firmly.

They both looked down solemnly and nodded before I turned around and headed to the front seat. As much as I wanted to sit next to (Y/N), I knew I couldn't. It wouldn't make much sense to do so after a "fight".

"This is gonna be one hella awkward ride home." I heard Hizashi groan before getting into the driver's seat.

The rest of the car ride was completely silent. I made sure to keep most of my focus forward on the road and not to (Y/N) in the rearview mirror, who remained quiet in the backseat. I managed to steal one glance, and it hurt to see. Her eyes stayed focused on the ground as Nemuri looked at her with concern and regret.

Goddamn. I hoped she was only acting.

By the time we made it back to my apartment, (Y/N) and I started to get out.

"Hey, Sho," said Hizashi quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, I know." I said to them, "but I'm not the only one you should apologize to."

But before Hizashi or Nemuri could say anything, (Y/N) had let herself out of the car, prompting me to get out and follow her. We both walked to the entrance to my apartment as their car stayed put. By the time I had gotten to unlocking my door, I saw them drive away.

As (Y/N) got into the apartment, I quickly got in with her and closed the door. The second I did we both embraced each other.

"I'm so sorry for saying that back there." I muffled into her hair as I held onto her.

"You almost had me fooled." she said as she lifted her head away from my suit and looked up at me.

"I can say the same for you." I said to her, caressing her cheek, "You had me genuinely worried."

She smiled but then frowned a little and paused. Her innocent, worried eyes looking up at me.

"Am I really inconsequential?" she asked.

I let out a laugh.

"Hardly. Is it actually uneventful being here?" I asked her.

Her smile reappeared as she shook her head.

"Then you have nothing to worry about." I said to her as I kissed her lips. I had been wanting to do that all night. Restraining myself to do so felt torturous.

She parted for a moment.

"Question. What you say or do if I did actually think being here with you was uneventful?" she asked with a mischievous grin.

I smirked as I kissed her again, humming lowly into her lips.

"Is that a challenge, Miss Doe?" I teased as I went back to kissing her, each touch becoming more fervent than the last.

"Maybe." she managed to say between each kiss. I felt her hands wander up my dress shirt as mine wandered down from her neck to her waist, pulling her in close.

I quickly picked her up, bridal style, eliciting a surprised squeak out of her.

"Then I better get started and show you how wrong you are." I said to her as I immediately headed towards my bedroom with her in tow.

While she did look stunning in that gown, I knew it would look much better on the floor.

---------

Author's note: I would've had this chapter out yesterday, but literally most of my state got screwed with a power outage. Who knew you could basically get hurricanes in the Midwest? Weeeeeee!