Letter

His eyes drifted to the black words written on white paper.

"Kacchan—" it started off. Stupid Deku. He'd already left the letter specifically for him. Why would he need to address him again?

"Before anything else, I want you to know that my decision was not your fault. Don't worry, I would never let something that I do affect your future. Just in case they overlook it, I left a letter explaining everything on the table. I can't live without you, but I also can't live in the face of you despising me at every encounter.

There isn't a day that doesn't hurt.

The Midoriyas, that is, a person who contains the slightest bit of Midoriya blood, tracing back up to a hundred and fifty years ago from when Quirks first manifested, have a mutation Quirk. It wasn't always the same, but before Quirk manifestation, Midoriyas all possessed some form of Empathy.

Our Empathic powers used to be a general Empathy, which was directed at every individual we came across. Before Quirks, Midoriyas were well known to be charismatic, social butterflies. Psychiatrists, nurses, doctors, anything to do with mental and social health, there was a Midoriya who topped the field.

Everything changed when Quirks emerged in China. To be honest, this manifestation happened to our Clan before any discoveries were made. The Midoriyas all developed some sort of mutation in our Empathic abilities.

Specifically, our Empathic abilities became focused on a single individual. They later theorised that the first person we exchanged a full kiss with, lip on lip, would be the person that our Quirk locked on to."

As Katsuki read the letter up to this point, he had a slowly growing sense of horror that was budding in his chest. His knuckles whitened as he unintentionally wrinkled the paper slightly with how hard he was gripping it. Deku –

"Midoriyas call our Quirk the 'Soulmate Quirk', or 'Soul Quirk'. There are also some who call this manifestation 'True Love's Kiss', and 'Certain Death'.

It doesn't matter who we first exchange a kiss with. Something in our brain gets triggered, and Midoriyas experience their 'First Love' and their 'Only Love'. Nothing will change the course of our feelings. They can be nurtured and grown over time, but all of us will love unconditionally.

Partners of Midoriyas who are infidel, who don't love back, even those who murder, etc. It doesn't matter. Midoriyas have one shot at love, and only that one shot. Later generations learned to zealously guard our first kiss, but the damage had already been done.

Midoriyas were once a widespread and well-known name, but after our Quirk made its appearance, there were no shortage of us who essentially became a Villain in the name of love.

Everything depends on the Midoriya in question, as well as the person whom they first exchanged the kiss with.

On the contrary, something that will never change is the suicide of the Midoriya who has lost a partner to death. There are also those like me, who will never be able to receive any positive emotion from their love, who choose to end their life rather than suffer the pain of the contempt and hate from the other party.

Our Quirk allows us to feel the other party's emotions in depth, and while it may seem to outsiders that this is an invasion of privacy, we have no way of control over our Quirk, and whatever the other party feels specifically for us is multiplied, often overriding our own emotions in whatever context.

We would never allow ourselves to hurt the other party, regardless of what has been done to us. Living without the other is impossible, but living with hurt every day is preferable from being apart from them.

There have been some of us who have successfully furthered ourselves from the other party in the case of them not returning our affections, but the hollowness in our Soul drives us insane.

Rare are the chances of a Midoriya finding a love that lasts long. My father was one of the rare minority that was able to build a family.

Of course, everything changed the day my mother died in a Villain attack. What happens next doesn't need to be described in detail, but he tried to hold on longer out of love for me, but ultimately succumbed just like many others of our Clan.

Now, I am the last of the Midoriyas. May this Quirk end with me, and never have any others who suffer like I do.

Kacchan, I don't blame you, nor do I regret having my first kiss stolen by you.

Living day by day with your hatred directed at me, I'll be honest. In the beginning I was mainly startled at the changes of your emotion when you first had the conclusion that I was "Quirkless".

Our Quirk is a secret Midoriyas hold close to our heart. Oftentimes, many significant others do not know of our Quirk. I'm leaving this behind only to explain in hopes that you don't blame myself for your death. Even my mother knew nothing about our shared Quirk.

Should you want to know more, we have the books containing the Midoriya Legacy left behind in the study room.

The day you stole my first kiss was the day my father had sat me down at the table, explaining everything. When you kissed me as 'the Hero gets a kiss from the Damsel in Distress', that was the first day the love I hold for you bloomed in my heart.

I've held your affections for two years, and that's much longer than some of the other Midoriyas who have never experienced anything. Whatever positive emotions you had for me changed to despise, annoyance and contempt. I tried to hold on longer, but I can't. I'm sorry.

I don't regret having my first kiss with you. Even if I could change it, I wouldn't. I've never thought of trying to forget you, like how some of the Midoriyas before me have tried to do. Your existence fulfils something deep inside of me, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

It's better I go now before my death can have any impact on your future ambitions. If I could go after you've made it into UA, I would, but I don't have the strength to continue struggling on anymore.

If there's anything I regret, it's that I have nothing that can help you, besides being some emotional support should you ever need it, and knowing you, Kacchan, you probably don't.

Unfortunately, I'm just Deku.

I'm no help to you for your Hero ambitions. The data I've collected on other Heroes, you don't need. The research I've made on your Quirk, you don't want.

I have no reason to continue living.

I'm worthless.

I've made the arrangements for my body, but if you are willing, would you consider doing me a favor and scattering my ashes in the wind? That way I'll always be around you. If you don't want to, that's fine as well.

I love you, Kacchan.

I hope you find love one day, and that they will love you just like how I've loved you.

– Deku"

Katsuki had completely crumpled the paper from how hard he was gripping it. Deku – he was…what? Going to kill himself…? No!

What did he think he was doing?!

The blonde tore out of his room, dropping the paper on his floor in the process.

Mitsuki is startled as her son barrels down the stairs. She gets a shock as she realizes that Katsuki's face is completely devoid of blood. He looks pale and panicked.

"What happened?"

"Mom!" he yells, gripping onto her wrists. "Did Deku tell you where he's going?"

The moment the words "No" make it out of her mouth, he's out the front door, running as hard as he could towards Izuku's house. He doesn't hear the startled words of his mother, his mind completely focused on Deku.

No. He can't just die like this. He can't end his life only at the age of fourteen. Katsuki made no move to suppress the horror and dread growing within him. It was all his fault. If only he could look past Deku being "Quirkless", treating him the same as he had before. If only he hadn't let other people's perceptions influence him.

His pride wasn't worth this. Wasn't worth Izuku's life.

The moment Katsuki arrived in front of Deku's – no, Izuku's door, he prayed harder than he ever had that the door wasn't locked. He could blast the door down, but what if Izuku was behind it? What if – he pushed his errant thoughts away, refusing to entertain the thought that Izuku might already be dead.

Katsuki felt the dread and horror overflow within him. Luckily, the door was unlocked. Was that so when we come for his body we wouldn't have to expend extra effort –

The teen hurriedly stepped in.

He had never heard a silence quite so loud.

The scent of blood was overwhelming. It was overpowering. The metallic scent that he had become intimately acquainted with over the years had never gave him the dread that it did today.

Izuku's blood.

He wasn't quite sure how he found his way to the bathroom, but the sight that greeted him would surely give him nightmares in years to come.

Izuku's unmoving body lay in the pristine white bathtub. The mossy-haired teen's lips were tinted blue from the lack of oxygen and blood.

Katsuki collapsed to his knees.

Izuku looked like he was already dead. The tears that hadn't come before suddenly sprung to his eyes now. The green-haired teen was covered in his own blood. In the back of his mind, Katsuki deduced that the other had slit his wrists.

The teen's originally white uniform shirt was mottled with spots of blood. The blood was pooling underneath his body. Trails of blood were on the sides of the tub, and his face had a few errant drops here and there.

Most prominently, Izuku had evidently pressed his lips to his wound, covering his lips with a deep shade of red.

Deku – Izuku – no – no – he can't be dead.