In which we finally receive the goodbyes we were owed years ago.

______

-Two, Sleeping at Last

_____

Harsh, flourescent lights burned into [Name]'s blurry vision. She sat up, and a sharp pain rocked her head as she felt her blood coursing through her veins once more. Only after a couple of seconds of processing the fact that she was alive, did [Name] notice that blaring music in the background was quite literally causing her ears to bleed.

"EVERYONE! SHE'S OKAY!" [Name] heard a familiar voice yell. Fluffy green hair came into view. Midoriya, clutching [Name]'s shoulders, with a relieved look on his face.

"I feel like shit. What happened?" [Name] groaned. "Am I on a mission? Did I almost die?"

"Nah, you just blacked out at our high school reunion," Kirishima said. "You got FUCKED UP."

"Damn..." [Name] looked around, uncomfortably.

She was tired, grumpy, and nothing short of a mess, just like she used to be. But she had grown considerably, and it wasn't just that her [h/c] hair that was in a slightly different hairstyle, or her change in wardrobe, which was an upgrade from the dumbest fucking clothing about 'I love hot dads' and whatnot.

It had been years since [Name] had stepped foot on UA's campus.

Seven years ago, [Name] had decided that she was truly not happy. Of course, she always knew that in the back of her mind. A rough childhood, mental problems, the desperate need for a REALLY GOOD therapist– that was all obvious, from the start. [Name] knew that distracting herself by whoever made her heart beat out of control, hot pockets, and whatever else was only hurting those around her.

[Name] had almost died, multiple times. Probably almost every week in her life. This bitch could NOT catch a break. And it was exhausting. Sometimes, [Name] felt that she FELT too much.

It was time for a change.

[Name] graduated early. She for once, studied her ass off and completed all that was required of her. She then went on to travel the world, became somewhat of a vigilante, and help those in need. Specifically, those who had a background like hers- children who were hunted because of their quirks.

But now, here she was again, getting shitfaced in Yaoyorozu Momo's million-dollar basement.

"Dude, who's the DJ? This music is so ass." [Name] deadpanned.

"Sorry pookie, I'll do better next time 🥺," Kaminari cried.

Truth is, [Name] wasn't ready to face her friends. She left UA without a proper warning, and boy, did that break quite a few hearts. Everyone's in fact. Bakugo and Midoriya stopped fighting. Kaminari didn't smile as much as he used to, nor did he flirt with everyone he saw. Kirishima refused to throw away his red hoodie that [Name] had borrowed all those years ago no matter how crusty it got, and as time went on, the black roots of his dyed hair began to show. Todoroki couldn't use his fire quirk without his mind wandering to the girl who once gave him a kind of warmth he didn't flinch away from.

Aizawa was concerned at first. He felt as if [Name] was running away again, refusing to deal with her problems at their core. But as he looked into her tired [e/c] eyes, he knew–she needed a break. She needed to take her own path.

And so she hopped on the first plane to anywhere, and she was the same old [Name], but grown. From time to time, she'd get letters from her high school friends. She kept them, but she never replied. Aizawa had to send them to her since she conveniently failed to mention her location to anyone but him, and Hawks (and that too, only because the bird-man insisted on her keeping his protection feather).

Eventually, everyone in class 1-A went on with their own lives. They established hero agencies, worked their way up the charts, and became known as notable figures within the community. They all went on their own paths, but they all never forgot the classmate that they once thought they knew so well. And, they all apparently decided to come to this stupid high school reunion.

[Name] hadn't wanted to go at first. She felt awkward and guilty, showing up out of nowhere with a "hey bitches I'm back after 5 years of no contact" move. She wasn't scared of everyone being angry with her. She was scared that they would cry. Hug her. Tell them how much they missed her. And she couldn't handle that, because she knew she'd start crying too.

Spoiler: that's exactly what happened.

"WE MISSED YOU, GIRL!" Mina sobbed, clinging onto her. Ochaco giggled as she grabbed [Name]'s hand, not noticing that the two were floating into the nearest chandelier. Midoriya, his emerald eyes full of tears, hugged [Name] and spun her around.

"Do you know how much I've thought about you?"

"How many restless nights we've been up, just wondering if you were alright?" Kirishima added on, wiping away tears of his own.

Bakugo's soulless red eyes bored into [Name]'s skull as he walked up to her. [Name] gulped, fully ready for a violent spew of words. Instead, he hugged [Name] tightly without a word.

"Don't you dare leave like that again." Of course, the man still insisted on being edgy.

[Name] sighed quietly. She had decided to come because fuck it, free food? And also, she was an adult now. How could she face the world's vilest criminals if she couldn't even look her old friends in the face?

"I'm sorry..." [Name] mumbled.

"Sorry? That's all we get? You were gone for like, forever." Shinso huffed.

"Oh, by the way, Mineta's like 6'4 now. He's also a millionaire and dates a new girl every week." Kaminari said.

"Dude. Ain't no way." [Name] gaped.

"Yeah. And Dabi's somewhere in jail, probably. Toga's getting help because, well, she was just a kid."

[Name] smiled. She finally understood that the world kept spinning, wherever she was. And she was truly happy that everyone else was happy. Well, except for Dabi. That mf was probably miserable right about now.

"How's All Might?" [Name] turned to Midoriya. But as soon as the words escaped her mouth, her chest stung with regret. Midoriya's face morphed into one of pain. Kirishima shook his head quickly, and sadness clouded [Name]'s eyes.

"It's alright," Midoriya smiled sadly. "He said he was proud of me. Of us. He was happy in the end. On a brighter note, let's make a toast to the fact that we're all together once more."

He raised a glass of some shitty $2 ripoff of kool aid. Hey, adults have to pay bills.

"To the fact that we're all on our own paths, but also how the years that I spent with you all still guide me to this day," Kirishima grinned, meeting eyes with [Name] her heart quickened, and she looked at the ground.

"To all the laughter and love we shared in our youth," Kaminari continued, raising his glass and winking at [Name].

"To the training and the fights and stuff... And I guess, the slow and steady friendships." Bakugo said quietly, joining in, sneaking a glance at [Name].

"To the ups and downs our class has faced together," Todoroki smiled gently at [Name]. She immediately felt warm inside. His eyes and persona had become considerably less icy since they had last met.

"To the many years we'll spend working together in Tokyo as heroes!" Ochaco chimed in.

"To the high school experience, ribbit."

"To all the throwback songs that were played at this party that reminded us of our time together, even if the dj sucked."

"Shut up, Jirou!"

Silence. [Name] felt eyes on her. She looked up and her nose stung.

No no no no this can't be happening. Suck it up.

"To each and every one of you, class 1-A." [Name] said, as tears filled her eyes.

"Cheers!"

—

[Name] sat quietly on Momo's nice ass roof, aimlessly staring at the sky. She just needed a moment alone. Yes, it was fun to meet her friends after so long, but also a bit overwhelming.

She felt different, though. [Name] found her purpose in the past 5 years, but part of her still felt a bit incomplete.

She was ready to feel complete. Coming here wasn't a step back–it was healing. And as she thought of a specific person's face, it felt like minutes went by. The stars glimmered, ever moving in slow motion.

...

...

"[Name]?" A quiet voice.

[Name] turned around to see her person's familiar colored eyes, gleaming with soft adoration. Their hair, styled almost the same as it was 5 years ago, sent a wave of nostalgia through her body.

"Just the person I was looking for." [Name] grinned.

_______

an open ended romantic non romantic ending?!!! booooo!!!

i happened to open wattpad randomly this evening and decided to fuck it and write this chapter to conclude this book. I could have just left it bc honestly, i'm not into mha anymore, i'm going to college in a month, i'm getting treatment for some stuff, and i just have no interest in writing fanfiction anymore.

but as told in this chapter, even though I, and you all have gone your own ways in your lives as individual readers and people, i love each and every one of you and thank you for such an exciting part of my online life. if you happen to make your way back to this chapter of lacuna like a reunion, just know that you always have a place in my heart.

-bella

𝐣𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟑𝟎, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐