Flamme-shigaraki-spithoe - Just A Big Simp 🤌✨

I choose both i just love him so much 🥺

Be honest, which shiggy do you prefer?

(Reblog if you have another answer or you jus wanna rant about which shig you like better x)

Heyy just wondering if any one would like to help me about something...i wanted to write somes smut about shigaraki but i..i don't really trust my capacity to write in the language (im french by the way)

any chance of me being okay with Shigaraki taking up the name 'Shimura Tenko' again has withered, meta-wise. I hate seeing that name in Deku's dialogue bubbles. I hate that he feels he can call Shigaraki that. All he ever cared about was The Crying Child - Tenko. Then he failed to save Tenko. THEN Deku had the gall to expressed disappointment that Tenko - the very source of the kindness and friendship that readers all kept saying is why Shigaraki is still Tenko, why he should be saved, how the League is proof of 'Tenko' still existing! - would stay being leader of the League of Villains. And Deku saying 'Tenko' is supposed to be some sort of win???? Supposed to be touching?????

And I hate that this is probably how All Might and Gran Torino finds out the name of Nana's grandson, because they never bothered to check on the family and never tried to save Shigaraki and All Might tries to comfort Deku by saying 'well how did he look at the moment of his death?' as if that fixes anything, and now they're going to use that name. Never tried to save the boy when he was Shigaraki Tomura. But now they can mourn Shimura Tenko. because that's who deserved to be cared about. The melancholic reminder of a 5-year-old ghost, connected to someone they actually cared about. Not a villain they might have no connection to, god forbid. Why would they ever save an evil rando like that?

I think none of them should ever be allowed to say that name. They don't deserve knowing it.

Shigaraki.

A man so beautiful, so sexy, so perfect the world can't handle him. Therefore he couldn't be real, and the sky weaps for him.

A new life for Tomura part4

Sanctuary of Nightmares PT2

Platonic SB x GN Child Reader

Chapter Selection

Prev Chapter / Next Chapter

Tw: Mentions Of Abuse, Slight Blood

A/n: ayo wtf I did not expect any of y'all to actually enjoy this. 300 notes on the first part? Fucking insane. Anyway, I didn't sleep last night so guess what? Part two is out today baBY. Enjoy.

You continued to feel suffocated in this environment as you followed the bot through the crowds. You hadn't ever been anywhere this loud before, let alone with so many people in it. You felt wildly out of place, that at any moment someone would point you out as a stranger, that they'd notice that you didn't belong and they'd kick you out.

But no one did.

All seemed too worried about their own lives to notice you, even as you followed the bot with a flashing yellow light still on its head.

It led you through what you believed was a theater, though not one currently in use, before you found yourself right next to a huge play area. One absolutely crawling with toddlers and younger kids alike. The security bot continued to move towards a person who, without question, opened the door to the play area. You looked up to the person a moment, unsure of making any type of movement. It was after they gestured forward that you decided it best to enter. With apprehensive movements you made your way in, the door quickly shutting behind you. You turned back to see both the bot and human walk off, leaving you to your own devices.

You didn't move for a while, instead taking in what was happening around you. Kids crawled all over the jungle gym, their screams of joy ringing loudly in your ears. Across the room you saw running children and little play areas with plenty of toys. There was an art station, a ball pit, practically any fun activity a little kid could dream of was here. Yet you didn't feel like it was a good idea to step into the madness. No, you didn't belong there. Not among the laughing faces or the happy smiles. You didn't belong here- you shouldn't be here! No no, this was all wrong-

Your thoughts were interrupted by a terrifying surprise as, out of what you belived was literally nowhere, a certain jester dropped down in front of you.

"Hel-LO little friend! What are you doing over here?! I didn't see you come in!" He excitedly spoke, his face mere inches from yours. You jumped away from him, though your eyes never turned away. You stared in absolute silence with a look of clear terror on your face after having been spooked so badly.

"Friend? Can you hear me? Can ya?" He repeatedly asked as he continued to come closer. You leaned further away while keeping your feet planted in case your moving would upset the bot. You took a second to let your brain catch up before you slowly nodded.

"Well that's great news! I don't know how I missed y- Oh! I know, I know! One of the staff must have let you in! You didn't go down the slide! Of course, of course!" He nearly bounced with energy, full of joy after having solved his little puzzle. You continued to stay put as you watched the jester celebrate his little achievement.

"There's so much to do! So much to catch up on! You're late but that's okay! That just means you have to do everything faster-!..." He suddenly stopped his excited rantings, his body falling still as he stared at you. You felt your heart drop when he did so as a spike of fear overtook you.

Did you break it-?

"YOU'RE HURT!" He suddenly screamed and in reaction you quickly covered your face, the roaring sound shocking every sense you had. Suddenly you became light, your body pulled from the ground. You let out a whimper, terror rushing through your veins as your hands remained covering your face.

"WEEWOO WEEWOO! AMBULANCE COMING THROUGH!" The animatronic screamed as he quickly moved. His agility was a feat to behold as he effortlessly navigated around screaming children that all wanted his attention. He held you high above his head and quickly managed to make his way across the play area. It was a few seconds into this walk that you slowly uncovered your eyes, the sudden shock of fear only continuing to rise as you realized how high off the ground you were. You then clung to the animatronic for dear life, afraid that you might drop at any second. He carried you to a small corner of the playroom across the ball pit where a make-shift doctor office was made, though it seemed more like a pretend one than a real one. It had little chairs, a table, and plenty of typical medical supplies that were all brightly colored with childish designs covering them. There was also a lady fully dressed as a doctor sitting in the only big chair. She didn't look over to the noise Sundrop was making, then again she must have been accustomed to it by now. 

"Ms. Doctor! I have a patient! They require immediate help!" The excitable bot quickly explained as he placed you on the table next to her.

"Thank you Sunny, I'll be with them in a moment. Why don't you go hang out in the art corner? I heard a few kids needed more glitter glue" she suggested as she typed the last few sentences into a computer.

"A glitter glue shortage!?!" He shouted in a shocked tone before bounding off, likely to do what was asked of him. 

You sat with tense posture, the adrenaline spiking through your veins after that terrifying experience having been enough to skyrocket your anxiety. You were only allowed a few secodns to calm before the woman you knew only as Ms. Doctor finally turned away from her computer to look at you, a soft expression found on her face.

"Well sweetheart, where's it hurt?" She asked as she scooted her wheeled chair closer to you. Feeling a severe case of emotional whiplash from the bouncey yelling of the sun animatronic to the calm care of the doctor caused you to blink a few times as you adjusted to the difference. Even so your body once again leaned away as you were entirely distrusting of this stranger. Noticing this she grew a concerned look.

"Do you want me to call Sun back over?" She asked to which you very quickly shook your head. With that answer she let out a soft sigh. Not out of annoyance or anger but instead with a tired expression.

"Okay...will a sundrop candy help?" She asked as she reached into one of her many pockets before pulling out a small sphere-shaped candy wrapped in clear and golden plastic. You stared at the sweet treat for a moment, your body slowly calming as you looked between her and the candy. 

You very rarely ever had candy so any chance you could you had always taken some. This time though you remained still as you debated whether or not to take it. You didn't know the full intentions of the doctor nor why she was so calm after Sundrops excited yelling. It didn't take long before you lost your resolve, the sweet treat too much of a temptation to your sugar deprived life. With a nod from you she handed the candy over, your eyes following it the whole way. You almost didn't believe it was real when it landed in your hands, let alone when you unwrapped it. It smelled of lemon, a flavor you don't think you've ever had before. It was a hard candy too, a type of candy you've had very few of in your life. So you happily ate the candy, your comfort levels clearly rising as it began to melt on your tongue. The doctor gave you a small smile, seemingly happy to have calmed you.

"Now can you tell me where your boo-boos are?" She asked again, her voice momentarily pulling you from your bliss which raised your guard once again, though not as much as before since she didn't seem as dangerous now.

You pointed to your legs, her eyes finally trailing down and noticing the slightly torn fabric of your pants along with the bit of crimson that had clung to them. Her face twisted into concerned confusion, the jaggedness of the cuts something she wasn't expecting. The whole place was padded to hell, how had you managed to hurt yourself that badly?

Then again kids your age always amazed her with the myriad of ways they somehow always managed to hurt themselves.

"Alright, let's get you fixed up"

-

It was a few minutes into the bandaging and she had already given you three sundrops since you were a particularly skittish kid. She had managed to get wrapping around one leg, though not without some struggle as you pulled away at any sudden spike of pain. It was only after covering your first leg that she even realized your hands were cut up too, a fact that only made this slow process all the more agonizing. It was just after the second bandage though that a sudden call came to her phone. She sat up, quickly finishing the last part of the wrapping before handing you yet another Sundrop.

"I'll just be a minute" she quickly spoke before sliding away to her desk to answer the phone.

"Daycare, Ms. Zell speaking" she answered into the phone, the buzzing of a voice on the other side not heard by you over the sounds of joyful children.

"Again? Alright, I'll be there as fast as I can...yes I know I-...fine, but I'm going to need more people...alright, alright I'm coming" she then hung up the phone, a deep sigh leaving her before she turned back to you. She stared at you a moment, a look of contemplation on her face as she did so. It was after this moment that she slightly turned back to her desk before hitting a small button. It was barely a few seconds later when a certain sun turned up.

"You called!" He yelled, his voice startling you as it came from above your head. You turned to look only to see the jester hanging upside down from the netting of the daycare. The doctor looked up, her face more serious than it was before as she stood from her chair, grabbing a few tools along the way.

"There was an accident at Roxy Raceway again, they need me down there. Can you finish patching them up? They just need some bandages on their hands and they should be fine"

"Of course Ms. Doctor!" Sundrop spoke before jumping from his spot on the netting. Surprisingly there was no loud thunk as the metal animatronic hit the ground, as if he almost didn't weigh anything at all.

You did not like this arrangement. You liked the doctor, she was calm and it was easy to predict her movements. But this neurotic child's toy? It was impossible to tell what he'd do next.

Even in your discomfort you said nothing. You didn't believe you had any power to change this decision.

"Thanks, I should be back soon- oh! And uh, one last thing" she stopped herself from leaving for a final moment and pulled out a few extra pieces of candy before handing them to the robot.

"These should help while you're patching them up" and with that she walked off in a hurry, though not as fast as she would have liked as she didn't have the same ability as Sundrop when it came to swerving around running children. You kept your eyes on her as she left, almost hoping she'd turn around. That she would regret leaving you here, that she'd think twice about it, that she'd just turn the wheel back around and-...

She wasn't going to come back was she

"Alright! It's doctor time!" The bot happily announced as he grabbed a nearby doctor coat. It was mostly similar to the one the doctor wore except for the sun logo sloppily drawn in marker on all of the pockets.

"I am doctor Sundrop and I'm here to assist! Now, can I see your boo-boos?" He spoke in a highly overdramatic voice, his posture rigid and his hands behind his back. Though even in his attempt to seem serious he were very easily seen through, especially as small cracks in this serious facade broke through with short snickers.

Now, while he was still rather too over the place for your liking you did have to admit, his get-up was a little silly and now that he wasn't so incredibly in your face his child-like behavior was almost comforting. You hadn't ever met someone so boisterous and over the top before and while it was still incredibly anxiety-inducing, it also pulled on the reason that you daydreamed about the PizzaPlex in the first place.

To be a kid, to play, to sing, to mess around until playtime was over. You wanted nothing more than that. To be allowed to be a kid.

Yet faced with the possibility of it you hesitated...

Once again receiving no answer from you as you kept you hands close to your chest, Sundrop lost a little bit of his bubbliness. His posture fell and his hands along with it. Even though he didn't really have an expression you gathered that he was either confused or saddened. That was until he suddenly sprung back to life. 

If he was any more cartoonish you wouldn't have been surprised if a light bulb had appeared on his head.

"Oh! Right!" He spoke with a raised finger to further insinuate that an idea had formed before he then turned back to the desk and grabbed one of the left behind candies. He then quickly turned back to you with three candies outstretched.

"You like these right? Here! Just for you! I can even get more if you want!" He happily exclaimed, his face spinning with excitement. You stared wide-eyed as he handed you the treats, the sweets almost irresistible now that you knew what they tasted like. You looked between Sundrop and the candies before slowly taking one. You remained cautious though, just in case this was a trick. Once you did so his already excited mood skyrocketed. He believed he had made progress with you.

"More! You can have more! Do you want a fizzy faz too?! You like treats! I. Can get you more!" He swayed and slightly jumped as he talked. He seemed unable to stay in one place for too long when he was excited. Your eyes widened in surprise as he continued to outstretch the candies towards you. You hadn't expected to be allowed to have that many. You took the other two gratefully and with a look of astonishment that only furthered Sundrop's joyful state.

"Great! I'm glad you like them! Can I fix your boo-boo now? Can I? Can I!?" His hype level didn't seem to have a limit, though his excitability was growing on you. So, placing the candies next to you, you nodded, slowly outstretching your scratched-up hands to the animatronic. 

"Oh no! You had a big bad fall didn't you? Don't worry! Doctor Sundrop will make it all better!" He joyfully spoke before practically throwing himself into the wheeled chair of the doctor before him. Granted he didn't entirely fit as his legs bent and his head was way taller than the chair, but he did anyway.

Even though it looked incredibly funny

-

Due to the nature of hands you couldn't just put a bandaid on your scratches, so he had to use wrap-around bandages to help cover the cuts. Luckily he seemed at least a little experienced with fixing injuries as he knew where everything was and how to do it. He kept you distracted the entire time with little jokes, even more of the Sundrop candies, and, when you would get especially anxious, funny gestures. It didn't take long at all before you were fixed up. In fact, he was just about to finish the second hand when you let out a sharp wince. Something that most definitely shouldn't have happened considering he was no longer near your cut up hands, the end of the wrapping stopping at your wrists just to keep them more secure. He suspected there were more injuries so he went to pull up your sleeve. He didn't get that far though as you quickly snatched your hand away, an almost panicked look taking over your face. Something that was quickly mirrored in Sun's posture and he assumed he must have really hurt you.

"Sorry! I-I didn't- uh- candy! You want more candy?! I can do more tricks! Sorry sorry I didn't mean to hurt you!" He bumbled over sounds like a panicked child, his words genuine as he quickly attempted to find anything to make you feel better. Once you saw your panic in his gestures you immediately calmed, realizing that your panic only induced his own. You felt guilty in a way, as if you had caused him stress. That being said, you still didn't give your hands back to him. You didn't want him to see, you didn't want anyone to see. 

It only ever made things worse when someone else knew...

Seeing your calmed posture he calmed as well, though that only left confusion in his body language.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked, now unsure of his assumptions. When you slowly shook your head it only served to confuse him more. He tried to figure it out, to understand why you had pulled away, but he was truly at a loss.

"Can I see your hands again?" He asked with the utmost curiosity, only to receive another slow shake of the head.

"I-I promise I'll be gentle! I won't hurt you! I'll even pinkie swear on it!" He quickly spoke before outstretching his pinky to you. He was attempting to get answers to solve the sudden mystery before him, his hightened sense of curiousity not something easily dissuaded. Not to mention that if it was another injury he wanted to help make it better.

You thought on it a moment, his attempts to gain your trust having wilted down your initial apprehension towards him. Dispite his first impression he had a way of calming you down, of knowing exactly what you needed when you needed it. He had been gental with your cuts and had tried to keep your mind off them throught his time fixing them. Maybe...

Maybe it wouldn't be bad to let them see.

Maybe he really did want to help...

Slowly, and fighting your paranoid thoughts the entire way, you pinky promised with him, an action that once again caused bounciness in him. He did try to keep it contained as to not further harm your hand but it was still very visable. After you pulled away from the pinkie promise you kept your hand out so he could continue. Carefully and as gently as he's ever done anything he pulled up the sleeve you had attempted to hide behind.

He noticed a few bruises at first, a lot of them actually. He began to wonder what type of fall you must have had to gain this many. What he found most unfortunate though was the fact that he couldn't help with bruises. There were no amount of bandaids he could cover you with that would help with those. He was already saddened by this so by the time he realized what you had actually been trying to hide he practically froze.

Bruised onto your tiny body was a handprint. One too big to be a child's, one too small to be an animatronic. It was clear by the deep color that harm had been intended in whatever grip had caused it and the thought alone brought a horrible feeling throught Sundrops system. It was after noticing it that he looked back over the other brusis, now noticing fingerprints in a few of them.

The thought of what those meant brought a sickening, dreadful feeling through his wiring and it came with his own horrible memeories. Of losing control, of being forced into his moon state when he wasn't ready and not being able to keep the kids around him safe. Of failing to protect, failing to care for...

It was then that he looked back up at you, his permanent smile not allowing him to show the devastation that ran through him, a shock of pain that began to mess with his coding.

He would protect you, he would keep you away from the harmful humans that had done this to you.

No matter the cost

A new life for Tomura part4

SHIGARAKI >:D!!!! Red tinted :D!!

If you can show your appreciation somehow, please do!!! (if you use)

A new life for Tomura part 7

blind date (shigaraki x reader)

After endless failed attempts to help Tomura up his game, his friends have settled on their last resort: A blind date. Even before you show up, it's not going well. No quirks AU, 2k words.

this was originally in the x reader lovers community, but I figured I'd release it into the wild as well!

Tomura gets being a little late. “A little late” is practically his middle name. He waits until the last minute to do almost everything, and that means any complications mean he’s running behind. Hypocrisy pisses him off so much that he tries to avoid it all costs, so that means he has to put up with it without bitching when somebody else is a little late, too.

Except half an hour isn’t a just a little late for anything, let alone a blind date Tomura didn’t want to go on in the first place. He’s been waiting outside the bar you were supposed to meet at for half an hour, and he’s pissed.

“That’s it,” he says after the eighteenth time a woman his age has walked past and hasn’t been you, whatever the hell you look like. “I’m out of here.”

“Just a little longer, honey,” Magne says. She’s smiling, but she’s also got her arm around Tomura’s shoulders, and if she squeezes any harder, Tomura’s going to pop like a balloon. “She’ll be here.”

“No, she won’t.” Tomura crosses his arms over his chest, tucking his hands in so nothing will bite them. They’re on the waterfront, in the summer, and there are insects everywhere. Whose dumb idea was this? “You showed her a photo of me and she changed her mind.”

“It’s a blind date,” Magne says. Like Tomura’s supposed to know what that means. “She doesn’t know what you look like, either. That’s why you have to stay right here and keep wearing that baseball hat. Otherwise she won’t know it’s you.”

Tomura hates the hat. Right now he hates everything. “So she got here on time, saw me, and left. Can I go?”

Magne shakes her head. “You promised you’d try.”

“I showed up. I waited for fucking half an hour. I’ve tried.” Tomura finally shoves Magne’s arm off his shoulders. “I’m done.”

Tomura wishes he could say he didn’t know how he got here, except he does. One of his friends is getting married, and there’s supposed to be a wild bachelor weekend in Vegas, one last blast of stupid before settling down. Most of the groomsmen are planning to hook up with as many people as possible, and that’s where the problems start. According to his friends, Tomura has no game. Zero game. Negative one hundred game. If he was rolling for his game stat, it would be a critical failure – and none of his friends want to babysit him when they could be getting laid.

Tomura wouldn’t want to babysit when he could be getting laid, either. His solution was to skip the bachelor weekend and just show up for the wedding in his stupid rented suit. But apparently his friends really want him to come to the party, and they decided that what he needed was to get some practice in before the trip. Which means that for the last month, Tomura’s spent every Friday night and weekend getting dragged through his own personal hell.

They made him try dating apps, which were a disaster, even though Tomura let Toga set up his profile and make the first move. Then they tried traditional online dating, which also sucked, because Tomura’s too picky and other people have standards. Hanging out in bars and clubs worked exactly how it’s always worked – it doesn’t – and when Dabi pulled out the big guns and dragged Tomura to the sex club where he met his fiancé, the only people who talked to Tomura were guys. Tomura thought that was sort of a good sign, even though he’s not into men, until he remembered that guys will fuck anything with a hole in it. He’s not high on himself on his best day, but that was a really shitty night.

He thought they were going to quit after that, but his friends had one last ace up their sleeve – a blind date, Magne’s idea, which Toga enthusiastically signed off on when she saw a picture of the woman Magne wanted to set Tomura up with. Toga’s type and Tomura’s type line up, sort of, and Spinner giving the photo two thumbs way up sealed the deal.

It’s not like Tomura was hopeful or anything. He just wanted to get his friends off his back. Still, rejection sucks, and ghosting sucks worse. He’d rather have you show up and tell him to his face that you weren’t interested than stand him up.

Magne collars Tomura again, but her phone starts ringing at the same time, Toga’s contact info popping up. “Don’t go anywhere,” she warns Tomura as she raises the phone to her ear. “We’re here. She’s not here yet. Can you tell him –”

Tomura ducks out from under her arm and books it into the crowd of people on the waterfront, figuring he can make it to the metro stop before Magne figures out which way he’s going. But even that can’t go his way today, because he runs into somebody who’s moving at warp speed in the opposite direction, colliding at the shoulder hard enough to make him stagger. Tomura’s not confrontational, but it’s the wrong fucking day. “Can you watch where you’re going? It’s not like you matter to whoever you’re going to –”

“Are you Tomura?”

Tomura’s heart lurches. He stares hard at you as you right yourself, picking up the backpack you dropped in the collision. There’s no way this is happening. There’s no universe in which his blind date would be someone like you.

He can see right away why Toga and Spinner approved of you, but he thought you’d be someone in his league, not somebody who’s several kilometers above it. Maybe Tomura’s too excited that you actually showed up to evaluate what you actually look like. He looks away, then looks back. Nope – you’re still pretty, even though your face is flushed and you’re breathing hard like you’ve just been running. Did you run here to meet him? Only one way to find out. “I’m Tomura.”

“I’m so sorry,” you say. “My boss held me back at work, and I missed my train –”

You’re wearing some kind of work uniform. Scrubs, maybe. Are you a nurse? “And then I couldn’t decide whether to wait for another train or just run, so I ran – but I don’t really run, so it took even longer –”

Tomura doesn’t run, either. When he was doing the stupid online dating thing, he sorted out everybody who said more than one sentence about working out. You pause to suck down a breath, then keep talking. “I know everything I just said sounds like an excuse, and I know you’re leaving,” you say, “but I was hoping I could catch you so I could say I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stand you up. I get it if you want to call it off.”

Before Tomura can answer or even think about what he’s going to say, Magne bursts out of the crowd. “I told you not to run off,” she scolds, collaring Tomura again. “If you don’t stay put, there’s no way she’s going to – oh! You’re here!”

You nod. Magne looks you up and down. “I told you to dress cute,” she scolds. “And to get here on time. I practically had to chain him to a streetlight so he wouldn’t escape.”

“I’m sorry,” you say. “My boss –”

“Of course,” Magne says, scowling. “He’s never met a good time he doesn’t want to ruin.”

Magne knows who your boss is? “How do you to know each other?”

“She’s a pharmacy tech at the place I go to pick up my E,” Magne says. “She’s the only one who works there who isn’t an asshole, and her boss is the biggest asshole of them all. I only go in there when she’s on and he’s off. But let me introduce you the right way. Shigaraki, this is – ”

Tomura misses your name the first time Magne says it, catches it the second time, but it barely registers except as something he probably shouldn’t forget. You’re pretty. You’re not an asshole, or at least you’re the same kind of asshole as Magne and everybody else Magne’s friends with, including Tomura. Your boss is the wrong kind of asshole, which means you probably didn’t blow Tomura off on purpose. And you ran here so you could meet him even when you knew you were really late. You must have really wanted to meet Tomura. What did Magne tell you about him?

Tomura can ask you about that later. “So?” Magne is saying expectantly. “Can I leave you two alone, or are you going to run away again?”

“No,” Tomura says. “You can go.”

You look surprised. “Um –”

“Now.”

Magne cackles. She snatches the hat off Tomura’s head, ruffles his hair, and slaps him on the back hard enough that he staggers. “Have fun! I want all the details later!”

“Sure,” you say, bewildered, as she kisses you on the cheek. Tomura’s going to have to talk to you about that – any details you share with Magne will be fair game for the rest of Tomura’s friends, and he’s not sure how much he wants them to know. “Um, bye.”

Magne waves and vanishes into the crowd. Now it’s just you and Tomura standing on the sidewalk. You shuffle off to one side, out of the way, and Tomura follows you. “Are you sure you still want to do this?” you ask once you’re both leaning against the railing. “I get it if you’re not in the mood. When I’ve gotten stood up, I haven’t wanted to –”

“You’ve never been stood up in your life,” Tomura says, and your expression changes from confused to offended. “Look at you.”

You look down at yourself, then back up at him. “What does that mean?”

“I didn’t know anything about you and I got here on time. If I knew what you looked like beforehand I’d have been two hours early.” It sounded like a compliment in Tomura’s head, but he can’t tell if you’re taking it that way. “People like you don’t get stood up for dates.”

“I wish that were true,” you say. You look away. “I know how it feels. I get it if you don’t want to go out anymore.”

Tomura pretends he’s thinking about it. “How far did you run to get here?”

“Sixteen blocks.”

“You ran sixteen blocks to meet me. That cancels out being late,” Tomura says. You look up, surprised for a second or two before the relief kicks in. “I still want to go out.”

“Me, too,” you say. You smile at him. Women don’t usually smile at Tomura. People don’t usually smile at Tomura. He doesn’t know what to do with it. “Thanks, Tomura. For giving me a chance.”

“Yeah,” Tomura says. “What do we do now?”

“I don’t really know,” you admit. “It’s been a while since I went on a date.”

“Same,” Tomura says. ‘Never’ counts as a while in his book. “I don’t know – grab drinks or something?”

You nod. “Can we find somewhere to sit down for a second first? I don’t usually run that much, and I don’t want to pass out on you.”

“You can pass out on me if you want,” Tomura says. You blink. Tomura facepalms even though you’re looking right at him. “There are benches back there.”

The crowd on the sidewalk is only getting denser. Tomura doesn’t want to get separated from you, so he tells you to hold onto the back of his shirt. You grab his hand instead, and you’re still holding it when the two of you find a place to sit down. Still holding it once you’re both settled, searching for something to talk about. Tomura’s not optimistic about this. You’re too good to be true – the kind of woman who’d run sixteen blocks to meet him and hold his hand is a kind of woman who doesn’t exist. Even so, it’s – nice. Tomura laces his fingers with yours and decides to enjoy it while it lasts.