Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Hey, whatcha up to?”

Denki’s sitting at the table, staring at his laptop, deep in thought. He’s got earbuds in, Kyouka notices.

He startles when he hears her voice. “Oh! You’re just the person who’d be interested in this, huh?”

It’s about music, isn’t it. She’s not entirely happy to be stereotyped like that, but he isn’t wrong, and he’s not usually too into the things she listens to. “What do you mean by that?”

“Well,” he starts, looking back to his screen. “Midoriya’s kinda gotten into researching the past recently, and he mentioned that songs people made all the way back then are still available on streaming!”

Smiling, he points to his Spotify tab. “So I figured I’d check some out, and… they’re actually really good.”

Now that piques Kyouka’s curiosity. She plugs one of her jacks into his laptop, and he presses play.

---

新時代はこの未来だ / Shinjidai wa kono mirai da / We can choose the way of our future

世界中全部 / Sekaijuu zenbu / Try a brand new path

変えてしまえば 変えてしまえば / kaete shimaeba kaete shimaeba… / we can change the world, we can change the world…

---

Over the next few days, Denki continues to find old songs. He finds that they were the biggest songs back when they were made.

Rock songs, pop songs, rap songs. Songs about love, songs about hard times, songs about self-worth.

Over time, he finds, he’s started to learn how songs communicate. How they get their message across. He finds that he’s enjoying them a lot more than he thought he could ever enjoy music.

And sometimes, Kyouka’s there. Watching him do his thing, looking at centuries-old internet links for lists of songs to listen to. When they find a song that she truly enjoys, and her face lights up, her eyes shimmering in the light…

Denki can’t deny it. His heart flutters a bit. Not that he’ll ever tell her that, though.

He enjoys connecting with her. They’d never really had a single hobby they both enjoyed, but with this he feels that they finally have something in common.

---

ひとひらの想いよ / Hitohira no omoi yo / Oh, those pieces of thoughts

届け届けと血を巡らせて / Todoke, todoke to chi wo megurasete / Pass it out and linger in their blood

一途に見つめます / Ichizu ni mitsumemasu / I don't need a reason

理由なんて必要は無いの / Wake nante hitsuyou wa nai no / To stare straight ahead with my sole heart

---

“Why don’t you go further back than this year much?”, Kyouka asks one day.

Denki thinks about it for a second. “Eh, never really felt like it.”

He looks at her deadpan stare.

“I’m serious! Although… I dunno… back then, they didn’t really use streaming like we do now. They bought CDs, and I don’t mean in the way that you do. It was all they did.”

“Huh.”

“Yeah. And a lot of those CDs… they were by idol groups. Not really my taste, if you get what I mean.”

Kyouka nods along. She respects the work that idol singers put in, and definitely doesn’t envy the public scrutiny, but… still. She can handle regular pop sugar, but not that much sugar.

“But still!”, Denki relents. “There’s a few gems in there. Here, lemme show you one!”

---

好きだよと伝えればいいのに / "Suki da yo" to tsutaereba ii no ni / I could just let you know that "I love you"

願う先怖くて言えず / Negau saki, kowakute iezu / But I can't, because I'm scared of what will follow

好きだよと、好きだよが / "Suki da yo" to "Suki da yo" ga / All these words "I love you", "I love you"

募っては溶けていく / Tsunotte wa toketeku / Keep growing larger, and then melts

---

After awhile, Kyouka begins to wonder.

“You know, I haven’t really seen you get so into a hobby like this before.”

Denki pauses. “...Huh. I mean… I can’t think of another time, so… maybe you’re right.”

She shrugs. “Honestly, I never would have thought you’d be the type of person to get into this. Historical research, listening to music…”

“I guess so…”, he responds, staring out the window. “I never really… had something like this that would occupy my time. As a kid I’ve always felt…”

He looks down.

“...directionless, I guess.”

Kyouka puts a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, you’ve found it now, no need to worry about the past, okay? If you’re enjoying it, that’s what matters.”

And I’m enjoying spending my time with you here, she thinks, but doesn’t say.

---

別に君を求めてないけど / Betsu ni kimi wo motometenai kedo / It's not that I want you again

横にいられると思い出す / Yoko ni irareru to omoidasu / When I'm next to you, I remember everything

君のドルチェ&ガッバーナの / Kimi no doruche ando gabbaana no / Your Dolce & Gabbana

その香水のせいだよ / Sono kousui no sei da yo / It's because of that perfume of yours

---

Kyouka’s begun looking into the music from that era, as well.

It’s not that she dislikes today’s music. It’s more so that… this music captures a time without quirks. Something radically different to anything she has ever known.

And yet… it’s mostly the same.

She feels a bit wistful, thinking of it that way.

She enjoys a lot of it, due to that. Music is music, after all, and the creators of that time were just as talented as the creators of her time are.

But she finds that she enjoys sharing it with Denki, most of all.

---

会いたいんだ忘れられない / Aitai n da wasurerarenai / I miss you and I can't forget about you

猫になってでも現れてほしい / Neko ni natte demo arawarete hoshii / Even if you've turned into a cat

いつか君がフラッと現れて / Itsuka kun ga fura to arawarete / At someday please unexpectedly turn up

僕はまた、幸せで / Boku wa mata, shiawase de / I would be happy once again

---

“Do you really enjoy this?”

“Huh?”

“I mean…” Denki fumbles his hands in place, trying to find the right words. “The music, it’s not that different, is it? I hear what they play nowadays on the radio.”

He sighs. “I only started this because of an offhand suggestion by Midoriya. I’m not sure if it’s all that interesting, honestly. Do you really enjoy the music enough to watch me look around random websites and point out some useless facts about the names I see?”

“Well…”, Kyouka starts, a bit surprised by the question. “I do enjoy the music. It’s like you said, it’s the same as it is today, but I do like today’s music, so that’s not really a bad thing.”

She looks up, deep in thought. “And…”

“Well… I like watching you. It’s kinda cool to see you actually passionate about learning, for once.”

“Hey!”

“No, really! I think it’s good for you to have found this. You finally have something you’re passionate about. A project, I guess. Something to be proud of.”

Denki looks at her, a little bit confused. “But would anyone care about this? Why would anyone else care about some music from a hundred years ago?”

Kyouka looks him in the eyes. She sees a raw innocence, a fear of being rejected, that she rarely sees in him. It makes her want to hug him tight, tell him he’s worth the world, that he shouldn’t be afraid of nobody caring about his passion projects.

But she doesn’t have enough self-confidence to do that. So instead she says, “I care…”

Oh wait. That’s still pretty daring. Oops.

Denki’s eyes shine even brighter. “...Do you really?”

She starts to grumble internally. “Yes, of course I do. And I care about you, too! Is that so hard to believe?”

Denki looks down, again. “I mean… there’s nothing that cool about me, is there?”

He points at her. “You’ve got your rock band stuff and you have a really nice and smooth vibe to you. I’m a complete mess who had no hobbies, who had nothing interesting except video games and my quirk, and can barely get passing grades and-”

“Shush,” Kyouka interrupts him, rolling her eyes. “Don’t beat yourself up like that, you doofus. You’re trying your best, I can see that.”

“Y’know, not a lot of people I know care all that much about my hobbies. And that’s okay. They’re for my enjoyment and mine alone. Same with yours”

“But…”, she trails off, blushing a bit. “I do care about your hobby. And like I said, I care about you.”

I like you , she thought, but once again didn’t say.

“That…”, he tries to speak, choking on his words. “That… that really means a lot to me. Thank you!”

Kyouka smiles. “No problem, buddy.”

---

一人じゃ何一つ気づけなかっただろう / Hitori ja nani hitotsu kidzukenakattadarou / If I was alone I wouldn't even noticed

こんなに大切な光に / Kon'nani taisetsuna hikari ni / This gentle light

普通のことだと 悦ける君に言いかけた / Futsū no kotoda to tobokeru kimi ni ii kaketa / You feigned ignorance, said it's normal

I love… その続きを贈らせて / I love… Sono tsudzuki o okurasete / So let me finish what I started saying to you "I love…"