Deku's Extraordinary Playlist - Chapter 2

By the time Izuku got out of hospital, he was well and truly sure that he had gone insane some time during the fight. 

He’d overheard one too many songs sung by the hospital's inhabitants. Nurses to the young doctors,  patients lamenting their illnesses and injuries, parents serenading their newborn babies... It was all sweet, of course, but it was driving him crazy. He was even starting to wonder if it was just a weird kind of boredom going on, his brain making up little song and dance numbers to entertain itself as his body healed. He was projecting his own thoughts on other people, on patients he pitied and nurses he suspected had crushes – or maybe he just had a crush. The young doctor who came by daily to check on him was cute, after all. Tall and strong looking, with curly blond hair that seemed like it would be just as hard to tame as Izuku’s was. Not that he really tried that often, he mostly just cared about keeping it short enough to not get in his way while he was fighting. He’d considered just buzzing it down ridiculously short a number of times, but he was too afraid of looking like a lumpy egg underneath it all – at least if he made no drastic changes, no one would pay him too much attention for it, positive or negative.

He’d never thought that hard about crushes and romance, in all honesty. He knew a few of his friends were in happy, long-term relationships, but he’d never considered his own feelings that deeply. Maybe that was why he kept hearing these love songs and hallucinating random dance numbers? He was feeling some kind of new emotion that he hadn’t taken the time to think about and understand, and his brain had come up with some weird way of bringing it up, making him face it.

So the love songs from Katsuki and Shouto…

Well, they were his best friends, he supposed they were the closest he had to any kind of strong feelings, right? But the thought of Shouto wanting to hold his hand had been so jarring. He hadn’t stopped to think “that sounds nice” or “we could try it out”, he’d just been so ready to let his friend down easy. Because that’s exactly what they were – friends – and Izuku liked it that way.

He closed his eyes to consider it, as he waited at the front door for his ride, imagining himself lacing his fingers through Shouto’s hot ones in the winter to warm up, his cold ones in the summer to cool off. Practically speaking, he would be a great partner. Attentive, caring, with a good job… He imagined cupping a soft cheek in his hand, leaning in closer, and…

Nope.

Yeah, no, never mind. The idea of being intimate with him was just… Too much. Too far. Definitely a non-starter. He felt bad for feeling that way, but Shouto had been one of his best friends for so long, the idea of going beyond that was…

Izuku shuddered.

It was just wrong.

So it wasn’t a projection of his own feelings, then. Or maybe it still was, and his brain just wanted him to consider the idea? His brain did some weird shit at times, after all. Maybe the cute doctor-

“Deku-kun! Sorry we’re late!”

“You’re not late,” Izuku grinned, returning the embrace when Ochako slung her arms around him. “How are you?”

“Good! More importantly, how are you? It’s been a long time since you had to spend a whole week in there!”

“Yeah! I guess I need to be more careful,” Izuku said sheepishly. “Thanks for checking up on me so much, it made it much easier to get through.”

“Of course! I couldn’t bear to let you lie there alone and bored!”

She led him over to where Tenya was waiting in the driver’s seat of their car - a dark, practical model that befitted Tenya’s personality much more than his bank account. He climbed into the back seat, quietly pleased when Ochako slid in beside him to keep him company, and Tenya turned to smile back at them as they buckled in.

“It’s good to see you up and about.”

“Thank you,” Izuku laughed. “It’s good to be up and about. Things have been so crazy, I feel like I was going insane in that bed.”

“Really?” Ochako asked, eyebrows shooting up. “You seemed so calm and normal! I get antsy when I’m in there, you just seem like you’re on holiday.”

“The break is nice for my body, but my brain goes wild, I even started hallucinating at times.”

“Really? Did you mention it to the doctors?”

“Oh, no, it’s no big deal!” Izuku assured her. “I just kept imagining that people are singing and stuff, it’s really weird. Getting back home to books and my laptop, and eventually to work, should occupy my mind. I'm sure it'll stop by the time we get back to my building! Thank goodness.”

As Tenya drove them back to Izuku’s apartment, he told them all about the weird dreams, realising exactly how ridiculous and absurd it all sounded as it came out of his mouth. All the random songs from patients he’d never even met before but had struck up conversations with in the aftermath, the doctors and nurses who danced like they were made for it, he even managed to giggle about it as they joked together, his heart so much lighter than it had been only minutes ago.

“Even Shouto sang to me at one point,” he grinned. “It was like he was confessing his love to me at my bedside, how silly is that?”

The car fell silent, and Izuku cringed, immediately feeling the tension overwhelm the couple.

“What did I say?” he asked. “Is that mean?”

“N-No, Izuku, you’re fine!” Ochako assured him hurriedly, her smile a little pained. “Not mean at all, don’t worry! I just, uh… You two are super close, right? You don’t… Have feelings for him?”

“What? No! Did you think I did?!”

“Well, I guess I considered it?” she said sheepishly, patting his shoulder. “Relax, it’s okay! I just thought… I don’t know, that maybe you’d think about it?”

“Do you want me to date him or something?”

“Well, you’d be a cute couple!” Ochako laughed. “But no, no, of course not, only if you like him!”

“And if he liked me. He doesn’t, he likes another guy!”

“He does?”

“Yeah! Oh. But that guy doesn’t like him, apparently. I probably shouldn’t be telling you this.”

Ochako and Tenya exchanged a look in the rear-view mirror that Izuku only just caught, but couldn’t begin to decipher. He opened his mouth to ask, but Ochako beat him to the punch by a mile.

“It’s okay, we know he likes someone!” she assured him. “I just didn’t know you knew. He says the guy doesn’t like him, but we weren’t sure, you know?”

“He says the guy is in love with someone else.”

“Really? Who?”

“I don’t know, ‘his best friend’ he said? It was all kind of cryptic, I just figured he didn’t want to talk about it, it must be hard.”

Ochako winced, nodding faintly, and Izuku tilted his head to one side as he considered her.

“Is it someone I know?” he asked. “Is that why you’re making that face?”

“Ah. Um, y-yeah, it is. He, um… Forget it. So these… Songs. Is there um, any chance… Maybe it could be a quirk?”

“A quirk?” Izuku repeated, eyes widening. “You mean like, I got hit by one?”

“Yeah! Maybe you’re not really hallucinating, it could be quirk induced?”

“I never thought of that. It wasn’t the villain’s quirk, so I just kind of… Didn’t even consider it,” Izuku admitted, folding his arms. “I guess it could be? It’s a weird quirk if it is, though. And where would it even have come from?”

“What about the hostages?” Tenya suggested, pulling into the parking lot outside his apartment complex. “Did you get close to any of them?”

“I did, actually. Both of them. Do we have any information about them? I never learned their names or anything, let alone their quirks. Wow, this might be way less weird than I thought it was. I’m so glad I have you both!”

“I’ll look into it for you,” Tenya offered, pulling the handbrake and turning off the car. “You just need to rest and relax, just because you were discharged doesn’t mean you’re back to normal!”

“I know,” Izuku assured him. “I have another week off work, and they'll probably try to put me on admin when I get back. I’ll take it easy, I promise!”

“Good,” Ochako grinned, the awkwardness thankfully dissipated. “If you need anything, just give us a call! I’ll be here in a heartbeat!”

“Thank you, you’re really sweet.”

“I know you’d do the same for me!”

Together the trio headed inside, taking the elevator up to Izuku’s floor – he usually preferred to take the stairs, but even without his protective friends either side of him he didn’t think he was entirely up to it just yet. Five flights was a lot of stairs for someone who just got out of hospital.

He produced a plastic bag from his pocket, holding the little collection of belongings the hospital had found in his tattered costume, and pulled out his key to let them inside. Even though he'd seen it already, he still grimaced when he saw his shattered cellphone screen next to it - the device didn't even light up when he pushed the button, he'd tested it many times. 

Regardless, he shoved his key in the lock to let them in, and Tenya groaned the moment he set eyes on the apartment within.

“I didn’t expect to be in hospital for a week,” Izuku pouted knowingly. “I thought I could clean up when I got home!”

“Sit and rest,” Ochako instructed, ushering him to the couch. “I’ll do a quick clean.”

“I’ll do it,” Tenya sighed. “You keep him company.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, it’s quite alright. I’ll have this place sparkling in no time.”

Izuku shot him an apologetic smile, but Tenya just shook his head fondly, opening the hall closet to find some cleaning supplies.

Honestly, it could have been a lot worse. At least Izuku had rinsed his breakfast dishes before heading out on patrol, or else they might have arrived to mould and ants – or worse.

“So tell me more about these songs,” Ochako pushed. “You said Shouto sang one?”

“Um, yeah,” Izuku pulled a face, running a hand through his hair awkwardly. “It was just kind of… Weird. It wasn’t like him at all. And people don’t seem to realise I’m there or talking when they’re singing, like if I try to stop them or ask them a question or whatever they just don’t even hear me.”

“What do they see, then? Did Shouto say anything?”

“He said no time had passed. I um, I asked why he was singing and he was really confused, he said I’d literally just woken up, but for me it had been a few minutes. So I guess it’s more like a dream? It happens super fast but feels longer for me?”

“That’s so cool! I bet you can’t wait to analyse this quirk, if that’s what it is.”

Izuku’s eyes widened. He’d been so caught up in the weirdness of it all that he hadn’t even thought that far ahead. Now his mind was suddenly reeling, his hand itching for a pen, only snapping back to attention when he heard Ochako laughing.

“That’s a yes, then,” she grinned, reaching over to pat him on the head fondly – a habit she hadn’t managed to drop even after he got too tall for it to really be practical. “Did you not get to shower at the hospital?”

“Oh god, I’m sorry, my hair is so gross,” he cringed. “I should have warned you. I pretty much just got to wash myself with a cloth, I never got a proper shower or a bath.”

“You should go have one now, while we’re here. Just in case you slip or anything, you know?”

“Would you mind?”

“Of course not! Get clean and have a nice long soak, I’ll let you know when we have to leave so you can get out, but we’re not in a rush.”

“That would be kind of amazing,” he admitted sheepishly. “Thank you.”

“No problem at all! Here, let me help.”

She scurried ahead as he got up, gathering him up a couple of towels and starting the bath running, setting his toiletries and loofah all within reach of his little stool. She even helped him strip off, his shoulders protesting when he lifted his arms to get his shirt off, and when he was clad only in a pair of boxers that also needed a damn good wash, she left him to it.

“Call me if you need anything,” she reminded him. “If you’re naked, I’ll send Tenya.”

“Ochako!”

“I’m serious! He won’t mind!”

He burned bright red all the way down his face and neck, and Ochako just grinned at him one more time, shutting the door behind her as she stepped out to let him wash.

His embarrassment was forgotten immediately when he felt the hot water pour from the shower head, groaning as it hit him in just the right way. He took his time lathering up, washing every part of his body twice just to be sure, and even considering a third round on his hair, settling for scrubbing at it with conditioner instead lest it all turn to green straw. He rinsed out the first lot and doused it much more gently the second time around, climbing into a nice, hot bath to relax and let it soak in. He hadn’t even realised how stiff all his muscles were until he felt the heat cutting through it all, turning him into a pool of jelly that never wanted to move again. It was a struggle to even keep his eyes open, but he knew if he gave in to the lead weights in his eyelids they might never open again, and drowning in the bath didn’t exactly seem like the most heroic way to go. So instead he focused on the ceiling, tracing the patterns of the tiles to distract himself from the fatigue that was trying so hard to beat him down.

It might have been the toughest villain he’d ever faced, honestly.

He could heard his friends cleaning up after him out in the living room, and the slightly-less-tired part of his brain felt a little guilty for it. He knew it made no sense, it wasn’t like he’d asked them to do it, and they wouldn’t have offered if it was a big deal – not to mention he’d have done the same thing if their situations were reversed – but still he just had a weird, nagging feeling of rudeness over letting them clean his dishes. He even heard the vacuum cleaner start at one point, no doubt Tenya’s perfectionist nature taking over the show.

He really did have great friends.

When he finally hauled himself out of the bath, drying off and wrapping a towel around his waist for decency, he heard a faint sound of humming coming from down the hall. With a little smile, he stopped to peek in at them, finding Ochako perched on the back of his couch, singing quietly as she watched Tenya dust. He hummed along with the bubbly little tune, sweeping his rag across the shelves in time, occasionally sparing a glance over his shoulder just to smile at her. Her foot tapped on the floor, her fingers drumming against the couch where they rested on the dark fabric, and Izuku felt like he was glued to the scene, watching them share their little moment that should have been private.

They’d been together since high school, the longest of anyone from their class, and as far as he knew, there was only one couple in their entire generation of heroes who beat them out for the longest streak. He thought maybe he could understand that, a little, when he watched Ochako stand up, watching her sidle up to her husband as she continued to sing, plucking the rag from his hand and setting it aside to lace their fingers together instead. The two of them swayed side to side together, staring into each other’s eyes like the rest of the world didn’t exist, but Izuku couldn’t seem to make his feet move to leave, to let them have their peace. Tenya wasn’t the biggest fan in the world of public affection, and Ochako had always been happy to respect that, so to find them sharing such an intimate moment felt like a huge invasion of their privacy, even if it was in his living room.

When Tenya looked down at her with eyes full of love, lips parting on his own quiet words, Izuku was… Honestly stunned. He knew Ochako had called him romantic, but he’d never seen it, and had certainly never expected to hear him sing his love so sweetly. They shared the words line for line, seamless, like they did it every day, their voices in perfect sync and harmony even without any real music to back them up. Maybe they really were made for each other – two halves of the same whole, separated just so they could find each other again, to sing about future plans and you and I.

Tenya raised his arm, twirling her beneath, and Ochako’s face lit up like it was the most amazing thing in the world, spinning back in to wrap herself up in his arm and tilt her head back just to meet his gaze once more. His lips quirked into a little smile, and Ochako’s hand shifted to his cheek, fingertips stroking lightly over his skin as she sang to him without missing a beat.

With his arm wrapped around her waist, Tenya guided her around the room, effortless and aimless, yet somehow never missing a step, never tripping over each other’s feet or stepping on their toes. He’d never seen a pair so connected, like even their hearts were beating in time with each other, and Izuku felt himself tearing up a little as he watched. They’d been two of his first friends at high school, two of his best friends, and he didn’t even have the words to explain how glad he was to see them happy together, to see how much joy and love they shared every day of their lives. He hoped he could find someone, one day, who would look at him the way his friends looked at each other. He wasn’t entirely sure that was possible, though. What Tenya and Ochako had was one of a kind, a once in a lifetime find. Izuku would never be that lucky.

“Deku-kun?”

Izuku jolted upright, off the wall he’d been resting against, only to find Ochako back to her perch on the back of the couch, watching him curiously as he stared at them with his face burning bright red.

“S-Sorry! I didn’t mean to interrupt!” he stumbled quickly, raising his hands like they could create some kind of barrier between them, erase everything he’d seen. “I’m sorry!”

“Interrupt?” Ochako asked, glancing at Tenya with his dust rag back in hand. “You didn’t interrupt anything, Deku-kun, relax! The kitchen is all clean now, Tenya insisted on doing your merch shelves too though.”

“O-Oh, thank you so much, that’s so nice of you,” he stuttered. “Um, I should… I should go get dressed, one moment!”

“Get your pyjamas on!” Ochako grinned, calling after him as he scurried down the hall. “You have nowhere to go, get comfortable!”

His heart was pounding when he reached the bedroom, breathing surprisingly hard for so little exertion, and he took a moment just to sit on the edge of the bed and get the air back into his lungs. His pyjamas were still laying haphazardly on his bed covers, the sheets tangled and messy from crawling out of bed on the day of the fight – it was like he’d never left, when it felt like forever. He pulled on the fluffy sweatpants first, dark and just slightly too big, the way he liked them. The drawstrings were bright orange, just like the print that slashed across his thigh, a big X designed to look like someone had graffitied it there. They were his favourite recent purchase, he’d barely taken them off for the week leading up to the accident, and there was something comforting about putting them back on again.

The t-shirt he slid into was much older, faded and worn with frayed hems, but he knew Ochako would appreciate it nonetheless. It was a total coincidence that it had been the one lying out, but he was sure she wouldn’t believe that – at least she’d be able to clearly see how much love it had gotten, though. It was another simple design, pale pink with white letters across the front, but the fabric had just been so perfectly soft and cozy.

Izuku was starting to see a pattern in his favourite pieces of merch – if it was soft, and it was designed with one of his friends in mind, he was immediately on board.

“Did I get a song?” Ochako pressed, the moment Izuku returned. “Is that why you were staring like that?”

“Maybe,” Izuku grumbled, sinking onto the couch. “I’m sorry.”

“What? What are you sorry for? That’s so cool! What was the song? Did I dance? Was it cool? Was it sexy?”

“Ochako! No!” he insisted, covering his face with his hands – god, he really had lucked out, hadn’t he? He could just as easily have gotten a very different vibe from their duet. “It was sweet, it was really nice, please stop.”

“Was it a looooove song?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh! Really? Did I finally get to serenade my love like I’ve always wanted?”

“Ochako,” Tenya sighed, “don’t tease the man.”

“Sorry,” Ochako giggled, ruffling Izuku’s damp curls. “It wouldn’t be the first time I sang to him and made him all awkward for no reason.”

“It was a duet,” Izuku mumbled through his hand-wall. “You were very sweet.”

“A duet? Awww! Babe, we should learn a duet!”

Tenya let out a sigh that sounded almost painful, and Izuku cracked his fingers apart to give him what he hoped was an apologetic look.

“You just seemed really happy and in love,” Izuku explained. “It was nice, I was happy for you.”

“Hmm… Maybe these songs really are real,” Ochako mused. “I mean, we are happy and in love. Cutesy duet seems right on the money, you know? But I don’t think your brain would jump to that, you’d jump to something like… I don’t know, bouncy and happy and flinging myself at him?”

“I would not! I know you’re in love!”

“You know what I mean, though,” Ochako laughed. “It doesn’t seem like it aligns with your thoughts, especially after the Shouto thing. If it really is a quirk, maybe there’s some truth to this stuff.”

“Well, Shouto did say he liked someone,” Izuku sighed. “Maybe he was thinking of someone else, even if he was looking at me? And the doctor, the one people kept throwing themselves at, he was an attractive guy.”

“Do you think they’re trying to tell you something?”

“I’m not sure what I would get out of knowing that half the hospital are lusting after the same doctor.”

“But you admitted he was attractive too. And they’ve all been romantic, right? Maybe this quirk wants you to get in touch with your romantic side.” Ochako gasped, leaning in close and making Izuku jump. “What if that doctor is your soulmate?!”

“I don’t think so,” Izuku laughed awkwardly. “For one thing, we would never see each other, except maybe when I get injured.”

“People have made worse schedules work!”

“And for another thing, I met his wife one day when I went for tests.”

“Oh. Well, he could still-”

“No, Ochako, I don’t think he’s my soulmate.”

She pouted a little but sat back all the same, giving Izuku back his space, and he breathed a sigh of relief. The whole thing was making him weirdly twitchy, like he was constantly on edge, and he was starting to think it would be easier to just go to bed for a nap and maybe not face anyone for a week.

“Are you hungry?” Tenya asked, as he rinsed out the dust rag and hung it up to dry. “I can make you something.”

“No, I’m good,” Izuku smiled faintly. “They actually fed me at the hospital just before I left, so I’m still full.”

“Maybe you’d like to watch a movie then, or read a book? Is there anything I can get you?”

“I think he might be ready for a nap,” Ochako giggled. “Maybe we should just leave you in peace.”

“I love having you guys here,” Izuku insisted, struggling to hold back a yawn that bubbled up inside of him. “Please don’t feel like you have to rush off.”

“A nap would be good for you,” Tenya agreed, ignoring his protests. “Sleep helps your body to heal, you should get plenty of rest.”

“Okay,” he caved, hoping he sounded more reluctant than he really was. “I am pretty tired.”

“Come on then, time to get tucked up in bed,” Ochako said firmly, standing up and offering him a hand to help. “Tenya, can you grab a water bottle in case he gets thirsty?”

“I can do this stuff myself, you guys.”

“Don’t be silly! We’re here to help, gotta get you comfortable and settled in before we take off.”

“Thank you. And again, for picking me up. I appreciate it, you guys are the best.”

“Nonsense, just doing what any friend would do!” she led the way down the hall, and hovered in the doorway as Izuku crawled into bed, only stepping aside to let Tenya by with a water bottle. “Get some rest, Deku-kun, and call me if you need anything at all!”

“We’re on patrol tonight,” Tenya reminded them both. “But someone else will drop by later to check on you.”

“We have a group chat and everything,” Ochako grinned. “I think Shouto and Kirishima both said they were free, so probably one of them!”

“Thank you, you’re all wonderful.”

“We love you,” Ochako reminded him, blowing him a kiss. “Get some rest!”

“Goodnight,” Tenya added, waving from the doorway. “I’ll make sure the door is locked behind us.”

“Thank you, goodnight.”

“Sweet dreams!”

He listened as they showed themselves out, and when the door was safely shut, he snuggled down into his blankets, reaching for his spare pillow to hug. He wasn’t good at sleeping like a normal person, always had to have something in his hands or arms to hold onto, but there was also something comforting about having the squishy pillow pressed to his chest, perfectly positioned to lean his cheek on as he curled up on his side. 

With the curtains drawn, his room was pleasantly dim despite the bright afternoon sun, and with a little yawn Izuku finally closed his eyes, letting the sleep win.