Touya had not been pleased when Tomura had finally arrived, Ujiko and HakuchÅ in tow.
"What the fuck is she doing here?" Touya sneers angrily, glaring directly at the teenager beside Tomura.
Her eyes are on the floor, her mouth shut and her body language is tense, and defeated, which tells Touya that Tomura had been sensible enough to tell her she was on thin ice with his partner.
"Sit." Tomura directs her, gesturing to a chair a little ways from Touya.
She sits where he gestured towards immediately, her splinted wings sagging behind her as though today was the worst day in her life, which Touya knew was categorically untrue.
Tomura murmurs a quiet order to Zero, who stands up from where he'd been sitting at Touya's bedside for days now, and sits beside HakuchÅ instead, who practically shrinks in on herself the second his thigh brushes against hers slightly.
Tomura takes Zero's place instead, running his eyes all over Touya as if to assess the amount of damage that'd been done to him.
Eventually he leans forward, seeming to be expecting a kiss from his hospitalised partner, but Touya just glares at him.
Tomura gives him a faint look of amusement, leaning back again and allowing Ujiko to run checks on Touya without having to watch a child he basically raised kiss his fucked up partner.
"She was found in a HSPC building." Tomura finally answers.
Touya throws her another look, but she's still very much avoiding looking back at him.
"Well put her back." He says as Ujiko huffs, retrieving a clipboard and wandering back out of the room without a word.
"Eye for an eye." Tomura replies blandly.
"You can't be fuckin' serious. She's the reason Star still can't fuckin' eat!" Touya snaps. "I'm not taking care of that little cunt."
"Touya." Tomura warns, his eyes flashing dangerously for a split second.
Touya scowls, forgetting himself and moving to cross his arms stubbornly before remembering he doesn't have a lower arm anymore on one side and hissing in annoyance.
Tomura gives him another amused smirk before leaning forward again and presses his cracked lips to Touya's.
"Don't be stubborn." He says, his voice sounding warm in comparison to his usual rasp.
"Get fucked." Touya replies sharply, but Tomura's eyes are still soft on him regardless.
"Mm." Tomura smirks at him, sitting back fully into his chair. "I hear you took down Endeavor. Congratulations."
Touya's heart soars from pride, and although he'd have preferred to be told 'good job' rather than 'congratulations', he was going to take it anyway, because he had been stronger than Enji in the end.
Enji's son, discarded for not being strong enough, finally was able to make a mark on him, finally being seen by the man for as strong as he'd always been despite being forgotten about.
After all, how many thirteen year olds survive a forest fire as serious as the one he'd caused and live to tell the tale?
"I had to kill my teacher." Tomura says casually.
"What?" Touya asks, frowning slightly in confusion.
"Once I managed to get One For All, he turned." Tomura shrugs. "I was just a means to an end. He wanted it and I wasn't going to give it to him."
Touya scowls.
He knew he was a fucking prick from the second he met him. But he did think there was some kind of genuine care for Tomura somewhere within the black hole that resided in AFO's chest, after all, the best part of a decade was a long time to take care of someone that you simply wanted to use as a pawn for your ultimate goal.
And Tomura really did respect the old creep too, which was what was bugging Touya the most about it.
"You good?" Touya asks. "You're... yourself now?"
"I'm fine." Tomura replies, looking at Touya in a way that tells him that he's telling the truth and completely unphased. "And yes. So I'd like to enjoy it."
Touya stares at him blankly, which only makes Tomura look all faintly amused again.
He turns his attention to Zero and HakuchÅ without moving from his seat.
"Zero, why don't you go into a nearby private room for the night with HakuchÅ? You know the order." Tomura says.
"Of course, sir." Zero bows his head, standing up and waiting for HakuchÅ to get up, too.
For the first time, she looks up at them in panic.
"You're making me stay in a room with him?" She asks, petrified.
Tomura gives her a look which Touya knew translated to 'you're testing my patience', folding his arm over the back of the plastic chair he's sitting on.
"You can stay, but you won't like what you see." Tomura shrugs casually, and what he'd been hinting at before finally clicks in Touya's head. "Zero is safe. I've told him to watch over you."
"But... in the same room?" She asks nervously. "What if he-"
"He won't do anything. Scram." Touya snaps.
Tomura turns his head and raises a non-brow at him, but it seems to do the job as HakuchÅ finally stands up, although she does look pissed off about it.
Tomura's already tying his hair up and beginning to climb up onto the bed with Touya when he calls out: 'I'll check on you later'.
"You're not getting out of talkin' about this with me." Touya informs him with a smirk, his hand going to his partner's side.
"Later." Tomura promises, pressing his lips to Touyas.
*â¢*
Touya wakes with a start to the sound of his phone going off, vibrating loudly against the wooden bedside table. He blinks sleep from his eyes, reaching out for the phone.
He's overly conscious of the heavy weight of Tomura's head resting on his chest on his other side, finally asleep for the first time in days, knowing his boyfriend's insomniac tendencies.
He squints at the screen in the dark.
Star.
He answers it instantly, pressing his phone to his ear.
"Star? Whassup honey?" He asks, his voice rough with sleep.
"I had a nightmare!" She cries down the phone, sniffling.
"Oh, dollface." Touya sighs, glancing at Tomura to make sure he's still asleep.
He really must have been tired, because the usual light-sleeper is completely out for the count, his expression soft and peaceful as he continues to rest squeezed against Touya.
Star sniffles and sobs on the other end of the line, which breaks his heart, because he's so far away from her, unable to hold her close like he would usually do.
"Tell me what happened."
"It was mom again." She whines. "And then you didn't want me anymore. I couldn't find you anywhere, and Tomura told me to go away when I found him!"
"That'd never happen, darlin' girl." Touya reassures her quietly.
She just carries on crying, her little sobs and sniffles faint in the room through his phone.
"Hon, I'd never get rid'a you. You're stuck wi' me. Forever." Touya reassures her again.
"But I was mean about your arm." She sobs.
"You were surprised. Not mean." Touya corrects.
"Uncle Giran said-" She begins to argue.
"He there?" Are the first words out of Touya's mouth.
A sniffle. "...No. He's making me cocoa."
Touya huffs. Giran's lucky day then.
Touya thinks for a second, about how he had been feeling lately too before speaking again.
"It's really upset you that much thinkin' about not having me around?" He asks, trying not to sound too hopeful.
"Please don't leave me behind." She begs tearfully. "I'll be good."
Touya's expression grows sorrowful, but it makes him feel a little relieved to know that she feels the same way he does about fearing being apart from each other for another long stretch of time.
"I would never." He says firmly, still trying to keep his voice hushed. "Never ever, Starshine."
She sniffles a little, still quiet on the other side of the phone beyond that, and Touya sighs, wishing he could pet Tomura's hair mindlessly while he holds the phone to his ear.
He decides to be vulnerable with her too, to share the fear with her in a way he'd usually avoid.
"I've been worried you don't really wanna be with me anymore, either, hon." He admits quietly. "You seem happy wi' the old man and Aiko. Happier than you were with me."
He swallows loudly. "Worried I ain't good enough to raise a lil' star like you. Like you hafta pretend you love me now, 'cause you're scared."
"Nuh-uh!" She exclaims on the other end of the phone. "I miss you lots! I wanna go home!"
Tomura stirs a little next to Touya, making his blue eyes snap to him in fear of waking him up, but he still seems to be asleep, his cool, even breaths fanning over Touya's excessively hot skin.
"And I do love you! Lots! I was just scared that I'd be told off for it or that I was bad for doing it because you did a bad thing. But Endeavor was really bad too! He hurt you, 'Yumi and your brothers!" She defends. "But you're always nice to me, you cuddle me lots and make sure I'm okay and that we always have food and somewhere nice to sleep, and no-one's ever mean to me anymore."
"You still love me, even though I did somethin' scary? Somethin' bad?" Touya asks quietly, pathetically needing the reassurance that she did still want him too, and wasn't fawning out of fear.
"Mhm, I'm sorry for making you think I didn't." She replies, crying again.
"You don't need ta cry or apologise babygirl." Touya says softly. "I just get scared one day you're gonna wanna leave me. 'specially when you get all grown up."
"I'll never wanna leave you! I'll live with you and everyone else forever and ever!" She vows.
Touya smiles a little to himself. He doubted it, but he could play pretend while she was growing up.
"Yeah? What about when you grow up an' you find yourself a nice guy that looks like Spinner?" Touya can't help but tease. "What if ya wanna get married, hm?"
"Stop it!" She sniffs. "I'll always live with you, pawpaw."
There's a brief pause before she speaks again.
"You'll want to live with me even if you and 'Mura get married?"
Touya rolls his eyes, biting back a sarcastic comment about kicking her to the streets if that ever happened. "'Course hon."
"You promise you'll always love me more than Tomura?" She asks quietly.
Touya takes a moment to think about how to phrase his answer. "Hon, you have a piece'a my heart no-one'll ever be able to take. What me and Tomura have is a different kinda love. One that should never affect me and you, even if it happened with your mom. You understand?"
As if saying his name a certain number of times summoned him, Tomura raises his head, squinting at Touya in the dark.
"What're you doing?" He asks, his voice extra raspy from being asleep seconds before.
Touya gives him an apologetic look. "Star had a nightmare."
"Is pa there?" Star asks as Tomura nods at Touya's explanation, and begins reaching for the phone.
"Yeah, babygirl. Wanna talk to him?" Touya asks.
"I wish I was there too..." She says, sounding on the brink of tears again.
"Yeah? Even with my freaky arm?" Touya teases to try and cease the crying before it starts up again.
"It's not freaky..." She replies, and Touya chuckles. "...Please can I talk to pa, too?"
"Of course darlin'." Touya says, passing the phone to Tomura.
Tomura takes it from him, his finger still raised despite having full control of his original quirk now. His head goes back down to Touyas chest as he addresses the little girl.
"Hello, Starlight."
Touya listens to Tomura's side of the conversation, absentmindedly running his fingers through the long hair splayed over him and the small area of bed that was free.
"No, I'm not hurt, I'm just seeing your dad."
"Yes I liked the drawing, Sorry for not replying, I've been busy."
"...Your aunty Aiko sounds very switched on."
"Do you feel better now?"
In a more amused tone: "Yes, it's still in my hair."
"I can visit you too, would you like that?"
A small pause.
"You're upsetting yourself, little Star. We can all hug when Dabi has his arm modded."
Amused again: "...Fixed, Star."
"Of course I will. Love you, little Starlight."
Tomura then passes the phone back to Touya, getting up beside him slowly, probably giving up on sleep for at least a few hours, if not for the entire night.
"Better?" Touya asks Star as he watches Tomura get out of the bed and pull his pants on.
Maybe he was checking on HakuchÅ and Zero again before settling back down.
"Mhm. I wish you were here though..." Star replies.
"Here's what you're gonna do, darlin'." Touya leads gently. "You're gonna go drink your cocoa, an' then cuddle up with Star Jr all snug, 'kay? He'll keep you safe from any nasty dreams."
"...He's just teddy."
Touya smirks immediately. "Yeah yeah, dork. Go get some sleep, okay? I love ya."
"Love you too, pawpaw." Star replies. "Night night."
"Night, doll."