The city was quiet in the space between evening and night.
Not silent — the distant hum of trains still ran like steel arteries under the streets, and the occasional motorbike cut through an intersection — but quiet enough. In his room, Nagato sat cross-legged on his futon, phone glowing against the dim, lamp-lit walls. T
he UA results were in, sealed into memory for each of them, and there had been a kind of collective pause all afternoon.
had gone home after their letters, digesting the reality.
His phone buzzed with the chime only one group thread had — a thread named Dumbasses Assemble.
Bakugo: Oi guys — I got second. And it must be you Nagato-
It was like him to be both blunt and smug in one sentence.
Nagato: ?
Bakugo: At first place or what else, dumbass.
A sideways grin lifted Nagato's face without his permission.
Nagato: Yeah.
Not thirty seconds passed before Midoriya's reply popped up, his text almost vibrating with his polite excitement.
Midoriya: Congrats to you both! I got 3rd.
Nagato could picture him now: tapping the message three times before sending, cheeks a little flushed even though no one could see him.
Bakugo: Damn, you're getting closer. Only 7 points difference!
Midoriya: Hehe.
A comfortable lull fell, filled by the sound of street noise drifting through Nagato's window. Then he typed, thumbs quiet against the glass.
Nagato: I gotta have dinner.
The reply from Bakugo was almost immediate.
Bakugo: Even after eating hotpot you're hungry??
Nagato sent back a shrug emoji.
Not to be outdone, Midoriya chimed in.
Midoriya: Yeah… I'm a bit hungry too.
Seconds later, Bakugo's rolling-eyes GIF shifted on the screen, perfectly summing up his opinion.
Bakugo: Good night, idiots.
Nagato returned the sentiment with a thumbs-up, Midoriya with a polite good night! The chat dimmed into inactivity, the kind that meant they'd see each other soon enough without needing more words.
---------------------------
The morning began with the sharp, clean light of late winter sun pooling over the city.
Pale gold poured through the edges of Nagato's curtains and cut across the floorboards, painting a stripe just at the tips of his shoes where they rested neatly by the bed.
He sat up, stretched until his spine popped, and moved toward the corner where yesterday's package still sat on his desk.
He'd unboxed it once already but couldn't resist unfolding the fabric again.
UA's standard boy's uniform: slate jacket with brass buttons fastened in a single proud column, stark white shirt, green-trimmed trousers.
His fingers worked each button with unconscious precision, like preparing ritual armour.
When he slid into the jacket, the fit was clean—trim at the shoulders, no sag at the cuffs.
The fabric smelled faintly of starch, but under it was the sharper scent of something new, something important.
Nagato craned his neck in the mirror over his desk.
"Hmm," he said to no one, smoothing the front with a palm. "Perfect fit."
From the kitchen came a voice, the kind that still had the power to put a pause in any day.
"My, Nagato…" His mother stood in the doorway, hands still holding the cloth she'd been drying.
She was as her friends always described her: somehow still youthful after years that could have worn anyone down, the sort of beauty that came not from untouched features, but from a life lived with intent.
Her eyes — eyes he'd been told were exactly like his — softened. "You've grown up," she said warmly.
"Now… almost become a hero." The words trailed just enough to let the emotion underneath come through.
"Be safe, my sweetie."
He stepped forward without hesitation, wrapping his arms around her.
"I'll be going then," he murmured into her shoulder before pulling back with a small smile, grabbing his satchel from the hook by the door.
Her hand lingered for a moment at his sleeve, then fell away as he turned to wave his goodbye.
The apartment building's elevator groaned faintly as it descended, the muffled hum of each level passing marking the seconds until the doors split with their practiced shudder.
The lobby smelled faintly of polished tile and someone's overly sweet coffee. Beyond the glass doors, the air was crisp, shaded from the first warmth of the sun.
Two silhouettes stood just beyond the awning: one leaning against the railing with all the lazy arrogance of someone who refused to admit nervous energy, the other straight-backed with the faint bounce of someone fighting it.
Bakugo wore the uniform as if it had been tailored exactly to his brand of sharp edges and impatience, the jacket open just enough to hint he'd button it under duress later.
Midoriya's fit was tidier, the trousers a touch loose like he'd grown into them too recently, the sleeves of his jacket pushed neatly up to his wrists.
They spotted him at the same time. Their expressions weren't synchronised — Bakugo's quirked smirk versus Midoriya's soft, genuine smile — but the effect was the same.
Familiarity. The unspoken there you are.
"Oi, you're finally here," Bakugo said, like Nagato had kept them waiting hours.
"What, had to preen in front of the mirror first?"
"Morning to you too," Nagato replied mildly, shifting his bag onto his shoulder.
The voices of passersby filtered into their bubble, threads of recognition and admiration weaving through the street noise.
"Wow, they all got into UA!"
"Good luck!"
"Such clean uniforms—look at them, they're going to be heroes."
It was mostly older shopkeepers, people who'd recognized them from the neighbourhood before today, but a few younger faces watched too, eyes bright with the same curious hope Nagato remembered wearing in his own expression years ago.
Nagato glanced between the two beside him — the explosive persistence of Bakugo, the methodical spark of Midoriya — and felt the weight of the path they were about to step onto. He let the moment breathe, the three of them standing with the morning wind tugging at their jackets.
"Are you guys ready?" he asked.
Two sets of eyes met his over the space of the sidewalk. Bakugo's grin sharpened; Midoriya's hand tightened on his strap.
Ready wasn't even the word.
[A/N: Sry for late updating. I am a lotta busy these days on top of 3 fanfics , lol. But ill not drop!]