You Are Beautiful, I’m Afraid

Natsuo had lent him some clothes from when he was younger, since Natsuo is much larger than Dabi. A black Maximum The Hormone shirt and some distressed gray jeans. It was truly the only thing in Natsuo's closet that called out to him. Dabi didn't change his underwear too often since his will to live wasn't strong enough to demand that from him, so for now he'd be good. Also platforms. He was eight years older than Shouto and yet the same height as him, which really dug at his already dwindling self-confidence.

Shouto was also ready to go to the mall, though he looked pretty much the same as usual; despite the absence of his signature facial scar. Dabi never truly knew how that scar got there in the first place, and now that it's missing, he's really beginning to wonder how much damage he really did.

He'd been given one of Fuyumi's older phones, which was fine. It was so he could contact Endeavor if he needed to. Fuyumi said he could keep it even after he left since nobody was using it and she didn't need it.

She'd also given him some old makeup. She ignored him when he asked why she gave it to him, though. He also noticed the absence of foundation. Blue eyeliner, white mascara, and dark magenta lipgloss. He tried to imagine Fuyumi in dark magenta lipgloss. It… wasn't her color. This explained the practically unused nature of the container.

He did a slight pin-up eyeliner, only using the mascara to brighten his lashes (clumps were the devil and he did NOT want to look like a high school girl). He finished with the lipgloss, feeling an awful lot like himself. Just… without the ugly.

Fuyumi smirked at him when she noticed he was wearing the makeup. Damn, familial intuition.

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Shouto's friends were waiting for him outside the mall, watching them both as they walked up.

Dabi scanned the students. There was the green-haired boy Shigaraki and Toga were obsessed with, a brunette girl he vaguely remembered Toga ranting about, a bulky blue-haired boy with glasses similar to Fuyumi's, a dark greenette girl with long hair in a low-hanging foxtail, and then there was the kid he'd kidnapped that one time.

He could be wrong, since he wasn't very active in his brother's life, but he was pretty sure those two weren't friends.

The brunette spoke up first, "Sho, I thought you said you were bringing a guest?" She tilted her head with a finger to her chin.

The two boys stared at her, not sure what she meant, so she elaborated, "You two look like siblings- Are you not?"

Dabi is the only one who knows they're actually siblings and seeing Shouto's friends connect the dots was a little laughable.

"We are not siblings. This is Shinkawa, Touya. He's staying with us for a month or so." Shouto said blandly.

"You just look very similar." The brunette shrugged.

"We do, don't we?" Dabi said in an attempt at small talk. Shouto could be very dense at times and he knew that well because it ran in the family.

The green haired boy eagerly approached him as the brunette went to talking to Shouto, "Shinkawa, was it?"

Dabi only nodded, wondering why Shouto's friends would want to interact with him.

"I'm Midoriya Izuku, Sho's friend-" The boy introduced himself before Dabi interrupted.

The former scoffed, "I figured as much. That you were friends, I mean."

Midoriya only blushed, furiously scratching the back of his head apprehensively, "Ha, yeah, you're right-" as if a switch were flipped, the boy pulled a notebook out of nowhere and opened it excitedly, "I was wondering what your quirk is?"

Shouto's friends all looked curiously, wanting to know as well it would seem.

"Frost Resistance." Dabi answered the question, not knowing the boy expected much more from him.

"How does it work?" The boy pressed on, scribbling away in his notebook furiously.

"I-" He averted the boy's gaze, not really wanting to explain the abilities of a quirk that wasn't really his, when he spotted a pair of red wings among the crowd.

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Dabi looked into the mirror at his reflection, disgusted by who he saw staring back. It wasn't him. No, the him he remembered had fluffy white hair, big teal doe-eyes, pale and flawless skin, and was thirteen. The man looking at him now has disheveled black hair, cold; half-slitted cerulean eyes, burns held together by medical staples all over his body, and was twenty-three. The man looking back was ugly.

Hawks had entered the apartment they occasionally shared together quietly, worried to see his boyfriend having what appeared to be a very quiet panic attack in the mirror.

"Hey, Dabs… what happened?" He asked in the softest voice he could manage. The voice he used on rescue missions with young children.

The raven took a moment to reply, "Why are you dating me?" he asked, catching the blonde off guard.

"Because I love you. Don't you know that?" Hawks asked, setting the duffle with his hero costume down and approaching his boyfriend from behind. Gently placing his hands on his elbows, guiding him to the couch where they sat down, "Tell me what happened."

Dabi gently rubbed away some blood threatening to spill from his staples, "I was told earlier today that my face was mangled beyond repair. That it was so far gone, not even my mother would love me. They told me I should just kill myself so nobody has to look at me."

"Well, they were wrong, because I love you. I may not be your mother, but that's still someone. They're just jealous." Hawks affirmed, side-hugging Dabi with each of his hands firmly planted on both shoulders.

The former hiccuped in dry tears, "You don't get it, Kei, you're still fucking gorgeous. Everybody loves you. And I'm- I'm just some freak."

Hawks sighed, "Who cares what they think? I know I sure don't because their opinion is wrong. You're beautiful. Alessia Cara said it first, and you know what, she was right."

"Please-! My skin looks like it's gone necrotic, Kei, I look like Frankenstein's monster. I can't even cry properly, my eyes are bleeding, Kei." Dabi's eyes dribbled with blood as his emotions got the better of him.

The blonde curled the taller man down into his chest, rubbing circles into his back as he kissed his hair, leaning his cheek to rest atop his head, fully embracing him.

He began to hum softly, slightly rocking them back and forth, "Anything that is beautiful… people want to break. And you are beautiful, I'm afraid." he sang gently, his voice breaking from emotion.

He was very worried. He loved Dabi very much. Dabi may not be conventionally beautiful by any means, but he didn't care. Dabi's eyes were the brilliant turquoise of the Caribbean, while his own were gold like the Sun. Every evening the sun drowns in said ocean, leaving the world in the dark.

If it proved that he loved him, Hawks would drown in that ocean every day just to see a smile on his face.

He hoped his mission never came to an end, lest his own forlorn body be left in a ditch, never to be loved by anybody again.