Deku's Unexpected Craving

The UA High School dormitory was a fortress of silence at this hour, the kind of quiet that made every creak of a floorboard sound like a thunderclap. Izuku Midoriya, better known as Deku, tiptoed through the shadowed hallway, his green eyes darting around like a thief in the night. He wasn’t stealing, though—not technically. He just needed a snack. A late-night, post-training-session, I’m-too-hungry-to-sleep kind of snack. His stomach growled as if to punctuate the urgency, and he winced, pressing a hand to his abdomen.

“Shhh, we’re almost there,” he muttered to himself, rounding the corner into the shared kitchen. The room was dimly lit by the faint glow of the refrigerator light as he swung the door open, revealing a treasure trove of half-eaten leftovers and questionable containers. His gaze landed on a sleek, unlabeled glass bottle tucked into the corner of the top shelf. It shimmered faintly, almost invitingly, under the cool light.

“An energy drink?” Deku mused aloud, tilting his head. “Maybe Kirishima left it… or Kacchan? Nah, he’d never share anything this fancy.” He reached for it, his fingers brushing the cold glass. The liquid inside was a curious amber hue, not quite like anything he’d seen before. But hunger—and curiosity—won out over caution. Popping the cork with a soft *pop*, he brought the bottle to his lips and took a tentative sip.

The taste hit him like a freight train. It wasn’t sweet, nor was it bitter. It was… indescribable. Warm, musky, with a lingering heat that coated his tongue and sent an unexpected shiver down his spine. His eyes widened, cheeks flushing as he pulled the bottle away, staring at it in a mix of horror and fascination. “W-what… what *is* this?” he stammered, his voice barely above a whisper. And then, against all better judgment, he took another sip. Just to be sure.

That’s when the kitchen light flicked on.

“Enjoying yourself, Midoriya?”

Deku nearly choked, the bottle slipping from his grasp and clattering onto the counter as he spun around. Standing in the doorway, arms crossed and expression as unreadable as ever, was Shoto Todoroki. His heterochromatic eyes—one icy blue, the other a smoldering gray—pinned Deku in place, and the air in the room seemed to drop ten degrees. Yet, there was a faint flush creeping up Todoroki’s neck, barely noticeable but impossible to miss for someone as observant as Deku.

“T-Todoroki!” Deku squeaked, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as if that could erase the evidence. “I didn’t—I mean, I wasn’t—uh, I just found this in the fridge and thought it was, um, a drink! Like, an energy drink! Not that I’m snooping or anything, I swear!”

Todoroki’s gaze flicked to the bottle on the counter, and for a split second, his composed facade cracked. His left side—the fiery one—seemed to flare with heat, a subtle steam rising from his shoulder as his jaw tightened. “That,” he said, his voice low and dangerously even, “is *not* an energy drink.”

Deku blinked, his brain scrambling to catch up. “W-wait, what do you mean? What is it then? It’s not… poison, is it? Because I feel fine! Great, actually! Maybe a little warm, but—” He cut himself off, realizing he was rambling. His face was now a brilliant shade of red, rivaling even Todoroki’s left side.

Todoroki stepped forward, his presence commanding the small space between them. He reached out, snatching the bottle from the counter with a swift, almost protective motion. “It’s personal,” he said sharply, his tone leaving no room for argument. “And it’s mine. You shouldn’t be touching things that don’t belong to you, Midoriya.”

Deku’s mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. “P-personal? Like… how personal?” His voice cracked on the last word, and he immediately regretted asking. The implications hit him like a punch from All Might himself, and his knees nearly buckled. “Oh no. Oh no no no. Todoroki, I didn’t mean to—I mean, I didn’t know! I’m so sorry!”

Todoroki’s icy stare softened just a fraction, though the embarrassment was still evident in the way his fingers tightened around the bottle. “Stop apologizing,” he ordered, his voice cutting through Deku’s frantic babbling like a blade. “You didn’t know. But now you do. And I expect you to keep this… incident to yourself. Understood?”

Deku nodded vigorously, his hands clasped together as if pleading for mercy. “Of course! I won’t tell a soul! Not even Kacchan, I promise! But, um…” He hesitated, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. “It didn’t… taste bad. I mean, not that I’m saying it was good! Or that I liked it! I just—uh, never mind, forget I said anything!”

A rare, almost imperceptible smirk tugged at the corner of Todoroki’s lips, and Deku felt his heart skip a beat. “Careful, Midoriya,” Todoroki drawled, stepping closer until there was barely a foot between them. The dual temperature of his aura—frost on one side, heat on the other—made Deku’s skin prickle. “You’re treading on thin ice with comments like that. Or should I say… hot water?”

Deku let out a nervous laugh, his hands flailing in front of him. “R-right! Thin ice! Hot water! Got it! I’ll just… stop talking now. Forever, maybe.”

Todoroki tilted his head, studying Deku with an intensity that made the smaller boy squirm. “You’re blushing,” he pointed out, his tone matter-of-fact but laced with something dangerously close to amusement. “Is it the heat in here, or are you just that flustered over a little sip?”

“I-I’m not flustered!” Deku protested, though his voice betrayed him, climbing an octave. “I’m just… surprised! And confused! And maybe a little mortified! But not flustered! Definitely not!”

Todoroki raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. “If you say so. But let me make one thing clear.” He leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a near whisper, each word deliberate and commanding. “If you ever touch something of mine again without permission, I’ll make sure you regret it. Personally.”

Deku gulped, his mind racing with a thousand inappropriate thoughts he desperately tried to shove away. “Y-yep! Understood! Crystal clear! I’ll never touch anything ever again! Not even my own stuff, just to be safe!”

Todoroki straightened, finally stepping back, though his gaze lingered on Deku a moment longer than necessary. “Good. Now, go back to bed, Midoriya. And forget this ever happened.”

“R-right! Forgetting! Already forgotten! What bottle? I don’t even know what a bottle is!” Deku stammered, backing toward the door with all the grace of a newborn deer. He tripped over his own feet but caught himself just in time, offering Todoroki a shaky thumbs-up before bolting out of the kitchen.

Todoroki watched him go, the faintest hint of a sigh escaping his lips as he glanced down at the bottle in his hand. “Idiot,” he muttered under his breath, though there was no real venom in the word. If anything, there was a flicker of something else—something warmer, more curious—as he turned off the light and disappeared back into the shadows of the dorm.

And somewhere down the hall, Deku collapsed against his door, heart pounding and face still burning, knowing full well he’d never forget the taste of that “drink”… or the way Todoroki had looked at him when he’d caught him red-handed.