" You're lost? "
" Yeah. "
Hawks broke a small laugh.
" Sure then, I'll take you to the police station. What is your name?"
" Akira. "
" So Akira chan, how exactly did you get lost?"
" I was going home thinking about something and got lost. "
" So you're really lost?" Hawks was not sure. The circumstances are telling she is but her state of mind is telling the opposite.
" No. I'm not lost. I'm just telling a pro hero on patrol that I'm lost just for fun. "
And that made him immediately laugh out loud.
" You have nice humour kid. I like you. " He says laughing as he bent to her level and ruffled her hair which she lowkey felt like her dad's doing it making her crack a smile.
It was at this moment that her stomach decided to start grumbling from the hunger of not eating anything all day .
Hawks immediately caught onto that and took her to a 24/7 convince store in the street.
" Just so you know, I don't have money rn. "
" Sure sure. What kind of hero makes a kid pay?"
" I'm not a kid. "
" You are. "
" Then you're old. " She laughed mentally knowing technically he's roughly around the same age as her. And being called old at that age is a huge punch to the gut.
" You're too mean for your size. I'm only 18. " He goes ruffling her hair a bit too hard .
" Yeah yeah. I get it. You're ancient." She shoots back regaining her balance from that aggressive ruffle.
" You're a brat. "
" You're a fossil. "
" You're just doing it on purpose at this point. "
" Took you long enough to understand. 😆"
That earned her a boink on the head.
" This is child abuse! "
Hawks just raised his brow and smirked.
" Didn't you say you are not a kid?"
She just stuck her tongue out and snarked " Well I'm saying I am right now. "
" You're quick to change identities. "
" You're just too slow. " She claps back while picking bananas from the aisle.
" You're getting fruits? "
" They're healthy. "
" Don't you like chips or chocolates?"
" Well I do but they don't have any nutrition value. "
" Do you want to be a hero?"
" Maybe? I'm not sure tho. I'll think about it later. "
Hawks found himself a little disappointed.
He liked the kid for some reason. More than he expected.
She was… easy to talk to.
No filter, no hesitation—just said whatever came to mind.
It was kind of refreshing.
Nothing like him at that age.
The thought made him huff out a quiet laugh.
Would've been nice to see her at his agency someday. Maybe when she got into high school.
But she genuinely looked uninterested in hero business.
" You don't want to be a cool hero?"
" Cool hero? You mean glorified soldiers? I don't want to risk my life for some PR ratings. "
" Well you're not entirely wrong."
Hawks has no answer other than that.
He was completely caught off guard. What she just stated in that one sentence is his entire life. A child soldier raised to be a weapon.
"You want a banana?" She noticed the shift in his demeanor and offered him what she has at that moment while giving him a hug. Even if it was a banana that was bought by him.
And the hug caught him off guard again. He expected another layer of sass from the kid.
" Why are you hugging me? " He asked raising a brow almost teasing.
" Well you looked like you needed one. "
And that was everything it took for the girl he met 30 minutes ago to make him feel like a kid. Something he never felt. He pulled her up as he stood up and held her smirking.
" Put me down! "
" Do you want to fly?"
" Fly? Like in the sky?"
" I thought I'd give you a free flight but looks like you only want land"
" Yess!! Let's fly! Like really high!" She cheered.
And Hawks found the gleam in her eyes that is completely opposite of the tired adult persona she gave until now and cherished it.
He paid the cashier and shot high in the sky.
" Wooaaahh! I take it back! You're not slow!"
" You like heights?" He asked as the wind muffled their voices.
" Like? I love them! Dad always used to throw me up and catch me all the time!"
Hawks immediately caught the 'used to ' but kept it to himself.
" Can we go higher?! Like above the clouds?!"
Hawks went above the clouds and slowed down hovering.
" This.....wooowww. Do you come here daily? This is amazing!"
" Daily?"
" Yeah! You can fly! You can do this daily! It's so fun! "
Hawks just let the words stay in his head. He never thought about the joy with his quirk. He has a job to do. His quirk is a weapon. Not something he used for... this.
A small fulfilling smile tugged at his lips.
Joy..... Joy of flying..... How did he.....a bird.... forget it? He realised he forgot to enjoy the view the sky offers in search of the targets.
" I think we should go back now and get you home. "
" Already?! We just came here!"
" Come on. Where's your house?"
"....err.....I don't know? In my defence, I came here just a week ago and never left the house. "
Hawks sweat dropped.
" Reasonable. "
"Let's go to the station then. They'll help you find your house. "
" Yeah sure. Do a dive. "
" Heh? Don't be a scared mess later. "
He teases before completely retracting his wings and shooting down right infront of the police station.
" Aaaahhhh!!!!" She shouts in unfiltered joy from the fall unknowingly projecting the trust in her dad onto Hawks.
Just as they were about to hit the ground, Hawks wings spread open like a wildfire breaking their fall asleep they glide above the road and slowly come to stop infront of the police station and hover there for a second catching the eyes of everyone in the station with a pair of eyes belonging to our lovely Aya.