A Watched Pot (Yandere Endeavor/Enji Todoroki x Reader)
Enji would be home any minute now.
He was never the kind of man to be late, to take the scenic route home or to—god forbid—go out for drinks with his colleagues. And in some ways, you almost appreciated that about him, how you always knew what to expect. But that also meant that at times like this, when you could feel him getting closer while for your part you were rushing to meet his expectations, you definitely wished that just for once he wouldn’t be in such a hurry to get home to you. You hardly even had time for such wishful thinking though, not when you were so frantically busy tearing through the kitchen.
Each night when he came home from hero work, Enji expected nothing less than a warm and delicious homecooked meal to be waiting for him. And that was usually stressful enough for you, having to force yourself to eat a few bites while you anxiously awaited his verdict. But today that stress had positively transcended its usual plane of existence, conjuring images of what Enji’s reaction might be if he came home to find you not ready to properly celebrate his return. At this point, you knew very well that he would not accept that you had simply lost track of time today. To him, there would be no excuse good enough to justify ruining his vision of you as his dutiful little spouse. The only question then was what he would do if you failed to live up to his fantasy’s standards.
Would he simply yell while waiting for you to finish? Maybe you’d be that lucky, you thought, if he had a really good day at work. Or maybe he would go with the oh-so-fitting classic of sending you to bed without supper. Of course, there was always the possibility of being forced to stay in the basement for a few days or even getting a fresh new burn to decorate your body. The thought of that had the spoon you were stirring with shaking in your hand. But, you reminded yourself, Enji wouldn’t need to do any of those things if you just got dinner done in time. You would just need to work a little harder, a little faster, and then you would have nothing to worry about. And then you would get to hear Enji say thank you, maybe with just a quiet grunt or, if you were lucky, with a gentle kiss to the top of your head. Either way, you would be glad for it.
With that extra motivation pushing you forward at an even greater speed, it wasn’t too long until you had the pot simmering lightly to keep everything nice and warm while you waited for the telltale sounds of Enji’s footsteps trudging up to the front door. Needing to make sure that the table was set perfectly before he arrived, you took out the red tablecloth, the one that you knew reminded him of his own flames, making sure that it was draped evenly across the table. After setting down the plates and silverware though, you just couldn’t help feel that something was missing. It had all of the requirements that Enji was set upon, and yet there was an almost queasy feeling resting in the pit of your stomach.
“It’s just not good enough,” you mumbled to yourself in contemplation.
Wait, murmured a small voice from inside your head, since when do I care about doing more than the bare minimum for him? Since when do I care about making things good enough for him?
Those questions making their way past your harried haze, you faltered slightly, frowning as you tried to find the answer. The more that you thought about it though, the less that you wanted to think about it. So when that last-needed addition to your table setting came to you in a sudden fit of inspiration, you were more than happy to let that distraction wipe away whatever it was you had even been thinking about.
Instead, you grabbed a candle from the cupboard, placing it right in the center of the table and lighting it, happily watching the flame flicker so peacefully. Finally, everything was perfect. And just in time too, if the sound keys in the door was anything to go by. Quickly tearing off your apron and throwing it onto the kitchen counter, you ran to the front door, waiting patiently as Enji threw the door open.
“Hi,” you said quietly. “How was your day?”
“Eh,” he grunted, making his way inside. Eyes narrowed, Enji took in the scene before him, from the fragrant kitchen to the intimate table setting. His expression softening ever-so-slightly, he gave the very smallest of nods.
“Something smells good.”
Perhaps noticing how much your smile grew at his approval, Enji must have decided to reward you for doing such a wonderful job today as his little stay-at-home sweetheart. Enveloping your body in his, he brushed his lips against your forehead in a rare tender display of affection. And that was the only thanks you needed.
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