Starter for @xamassed
A couple of weeks had passed since her meeting with Tamaki, and one more after the most exciting event in her life since she moved to Tokyo -- being saved by a professional hero.
Both events had left a strong, yet different mark on Haruko. After her encounter with Fat Gum, she had started collecting any newspaper mentioning her saviour, holding her breath whenever he appeared on TV and asking her parents to turn the volume up when he spoke. Her mother obliged with a smile, while her younger brother, Keitaro, answered with an eyeroll while Haruko listened to her hero with her lips pressed in a tight line and her eyes shining at the sight of his wide grin -- the same he had dedicated her on the day she met him.
At school, she had found out Fat Gum was popular among girls, but not as much as other pro-heroes. Her female classmates liked to fawn more about guys like Hawks or Best Jeanist -- Fat Gum had a different kind of charm, to them.
"He's cute," they agreed, "kinda like Totoro!"
"Yeah! He's all big and cuddly, right?"
Haruko nodded, not too convinced. To her, Fat Gum was way more than cuddly -- he was valiant, reassuring, bright, charming... And whenever she recalled being in his arms, her heart started racing like crazy, making her cheeks burn.
Ever since he had promised her he'd visit her at the Coffee Bean, Haruko's head kept jerking up and her heart missed a beat whenever the bell on the door announced a new client walking in. But day after day, her hopes started vanishing, and she kept lowering her head with a sigh and a disappointed pout when the face on the door wasn't the one she wished to see. She had been a stupid for really hoping for him to pass by; he was a pro-hero, and certainly a busy one too. It made sense for him to be short on time, and he was certainly not going to dedicate her the little spare one he had on hand.
Tamaki, on the other hand...
She hadn't seen the shy boy in a while, but their meeting had rooted in Haruko's head in a surprising way, making a hundred questions bloom inside it. She kept wondering about quirks, how strong they could get, how they could be trained... And even more weirdly, she kept coming up with questions about his quirk specifically, so much she even kept a small list of them under the counter, where she noted them down each time a new one popped up in her mind in the hope to discuss them someday. She was looking forward to seeing him again, to asking him more about his skills... But Tamaki hadn't showed up again. And while she could understand he might be busy too, just like Fat Gum (he was his pupil, after all, as she had found out), she also wondered if she maybe hadn't put the shy boy at unease without realising it, and maybe that was the reason why he hadn't shown his face at the Coffee Bean anymore. The mere thought made her stomach twist with guilt and disappointment -- she had hoped she had made a friend, but clearly, she had read too much into it.
So, after some days, Haruko had stopped perking up with excitement whenever the door to the cafe rang open. And it felt just as an ordinary, dull day when, one afternoon, her boss called for her while she was busy preparing some mixtures in the back of the store.
"Are you busy?" He asked. "A bunch of clients just arrived, I think they are looking for you."
"I'm coming," Haruko replied, without particular enthusiasm, too busy dosing the juices to notice the amused grin under the man's moustache.
But when she walked back to the counter, her heart did a sommersault -- no, a double sommersault. Because not only Tamaki was back, but his whole squad was with him. Fat Gum included!
"I... Uh..." Haruko stammered, face burning bright. "We-Welcome to the Coffee Bean! What can I serve you??"
