I guess this is what ‘friendship’ is

At 10:10 AM, ten minutes after Café Perry opens, the door chimes, warning them of the appearance of their first customer of the day, which is the same guy every single day.

"Welcome— Oh!" Uraraka Ochako stops mid-greeting upon seeing the always punctual customer and her best friend. "Midoriya-kun!" She runs towards him and gives him a tight bear hug.

"I missed you, too, Uraraka-san," Midoriya says in a strained voice, face slightly turning purple. "But you're choking me."

" Oh!" She gasps, immediately removing her arms. Uraraka excitedly turns around, shouting towards the kitchen. "Come here, we got some customers already!"

Iida Tenya emerges from the corner, with his crisp uniform and his 'I'm a bocchan' aura . He wears his usual no-nonsense demeanor, just like how he should. It was such a horrible sight to behold, seeing him during the time Midoriya was still in the state of comatose.

Iida frowns upon seeing his freckled friend, who is waving nervously at him. Todoroki blinks, not expecting this kind reaction from Midoriya's other best friend. Iida brisked walks towards them with a rather stern expression. Once he is in front of them, Izuku noticeably tenses up while Uraraka rolls her eyes at her boyfriend's antics. Todoroki tilts his head like a clueless puppy.

"Didn't I tell you to take a rest—" Iida reprimands, doing his intense hand gestures while he's at it.

Todoroki couldn't believe he's going to say this, but it was a nice sight to see Iida being his usual prim-and-proper self. The last time he saw this eyeglass-wearing waiter was in the hospital, dark blue eyes were devoid of life and glassy. Midoriya was informed by Uraraka that Iida blamed himself for what happened to him, saying, "I failed to protect Midoriya-kun again."

"Relax, Iida-san." Izuku cuts him off immediately, which is a surprise in itself because this man is usually too timid to do such a thing. "I'm here as a customer today. Right, Shouto?"

Seeing Deku's warning glance, Todoroki nods with his usual deadpan.

Todoroki understands, though, Iida's guilt for what happened. After all, he felt the same for quite some time. But Midoriya assured him that it wasn't anyone's fault, so nobody should take the blame for his actions caused by his brain being incapable to produce a stable supply of neurotransmitters.

"Are you sure you're fine?" Iida asks, just to make sure.

Yes, Iida is a different case. He knows what the fuck a neurotransmitter is. He was also there when Midoriya first tried to commit suicide, and this is his second time experiencing the fear of losing his long-time friend.

"Yes," Midoriya takes his Iida's large and sturdy hand, squeezing it in assurance. "You know I'd never lie to you."

Iida's usually intense eyes soften. Abruptly, he pulls Midoriya closer to him and traps him in a tight embrace.

"I missed you," His serious facade breaks down, he sobs just like a child. "you idiot."

Midoriya chuckles, returning the hug with equal vigor. Soon enough, his shoulder was wet from the tears of a man who rarely cried. "Sorry for making you worry. I heard that you and Uraraka-san were there in the hospital with me while I was in a coma, I—"

Iida abruptly pulls away, turning his face away from Midoriya in shame. Midoriya's eyebrows furrows, thinking he said something that might've hurt his friend's feelings.

"I apologize for being a worthless friend." Iida grits his teeth, his face full of anguish. "I wasn't there to support you during your rehab sessions when you needed it the most..."

Soon, tears start streaming down his cheeks. Uraraka and Todoroki are alarmed with what suddenly transpired, but Midoriya remained calm. Instead, he talks to Iida with a gentle voice.

"Hey, Iida-san." But Iida refuses to meet his gaze. "Iida-san." Midoriyas tries again. "Iida-san!" He takes hold of Iida's face between his hands, trapping him like an idiot sandwich that Iida is.

This effectively shuts him up.

"I know you also have your own life and you had to catch up with your school work and Café Perry shifts. I'd be mad be if you shirked your responsibility because of me." He adds belatedly, exhaling hmmp playfully .

"But—" Iida attempts.

" No buts !" His words might be harsh, but Midoriya has a tender expression on his face as he wiped a stray tear with his thumb.

For some reason, the tensed atmosphere finally feels light-hearted. Iida sighs, finally accepting his defeat. He gently takes hold of Midoriya's hand that was cupping his face, wrapping it up with his own. "Thank you."

Forest green eyes widen. "Why are you thanking me? I should be thanking you for taking care of me ."

Iida shakes his head, his dark blue eyes moistening up for the nth in the mere few minutes since they set afoot on Café Perry. He opens his mouth, speaking slowly with an unusual quiver in his voice.

" Thank you for being alive ."

For the next few minutes, the roles are reversed. Midoriya bawls, covering his eyes with the back of his palm. Iida panics, thinking that he accidentally offended Midoriya. While Uraraka shouts, "Group hug!" as she traps the three men into a tight little hurdle. Todoroki maintains his usual deadpan even though he's low-key getting suffocated by an unexpectedly strong Uraraka. However, to a very trained eye, his deadpan is a happy deadpan. A sentence only Midoriya can understand.

I guess this is what 'friendship' is.