Strong Bonds

The walk to Mika's home was quiet until they arrived at the front of the apartments. Mika turned to Koji and smiled, "Thanks for walking with me to my place, Koda." she said. Koji rubbed his arm, "I-It was nothing." he said with a wry smile.

As Mika looked at Koji, she remembered something, *"Do you have any other feelings for him?" Mina asked.* The thought made Mika blush a bit and look away. Koji got worried, "I-Is something wrong?" he asked.

Mika shook her head and turned to Koji, "There's something... I'd like to ask you." she said; he nodded, "W-What is it?" he asked.

As Mika opened her mouth, they heard a voice, "You're back already, kiddo." they looked up and saw Saburo on the apartment balcony next to the stairs; Koji panicked a bit.

Mika blushed a bit and looked at Saburo, "H-How long have you been there!" she shouted. Saburo smiled, "Oh, long enough." he said, "My little girl talking to a boy; I'm happy and scared about this at the same time."

Mika's face got redder and quickly waved her hands, "I-It's not like that!" she shouted, "H-He's a friend of mine!" Saburo walked towards the stairs and walked down them, "Is that so..." he said. Saburo turned to Koji, "Then, may I ask who you are?" he asked.

Koji was shaking in in place, but he looked at Saburo, "H-Hello Mr. Lyoko." he said. Koji held his hand out, "M-My name is K-Koji Koda." he stuttered. Saburo smiled a bit and shook Koji's hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Koda." he said, "And please, call me Saburo."

Koji nodded and was still shaking as Saburo examines him, "I've heard a lot about you." he said. Koji was shocked, "Y-You have." he said. Saburo nodded, "Don't worry about it though." he said smiling; Koji was still nervous.

Saburo had a grin, "Well... since you were nice enough to bring my daughter back home, how about you stay here for dinner." he said. Mika looked at Saburo, "Dad..." she said.

Saburo turned to Mika, "Oh relax, Mika." he said, "I won't do anything bad to him." Saburo turned to Koji and smiled, "I would like to know more about Koda since you talk about him a lot." he continued.

Koji nodded, "I-I'm fine with th-that." he said. Koji pulled his phone out of his pocket, "I-I'll just t-text my mom th-that I'm st-staying at a f-friend's house f-for dinner." he continued.

Saburo shook his head, "No need for that." he said, making them looked at him, "I did a little background check on you and your family. I called your mother and let her know that her son will be with us for a while."

Mika's face was red, and she looked at Saburo, "Dad! Was that necessary!?" she shouted. Saburo laughed as Mika covered her face in embarrassment, but Koji blushed a bit with a wry smile.

All of that stopped when they heard a whistle. They saw Yuma at the balcony, "*That's enough dear.*" she signed, "*Don't embarrass your daughter in front of our guest.*"

Saburo scratched the back of his head, "Sorry dear." he said. Saburo walked up the stairs, "Let's hurry inside before it gets dark." he continued; both teens were blushing a lot.

Koji turned to Mika and held his hand out to the stairs, "L-Ladies first." he said. Mika nodded, "Thanks." she said as she walked up the stairs; Koji followed her soon after.

Koji felt nervous as he entered Mika's home; he looked around and saw that it was comforting, making him relax a bit.

Saburo placed his hand on Koji's shoulder, making him flinch a bit, "How about you help me out with dinner while Koda and your mother sit in the living room, Mika." he said smiling, "It's curry night." Mika turned to Saburo and nodded, "Sure thing." she said.

Mika turned to Yuma, "Mom, please say nothing embarrassing about me." she said. Yuma smiled, "*Isn't it a parent's job to embarrass their children.*" she signed. Mika tried to cover her face and entered the kitchen with Saburo; Koji was still nervous.

As Koji turned to Yuma, she had a gentle smile, "*Please take a seat, Koda.*" she signed. Koji nodded, "Th-Thank you, Mrs. Lyoko." he said as he took a seat on the couch.

Yuma shook her head, "*Call me Yuma.*" she signed as she sat at the armchair. Koji nodded, "*I've heard many things about you.*" Yuma signed. Koji looked at Yuma, "Y-You have?" he asked with worry.

Yuma smiled and nodded, "*Don't worry, they were good things.*" she signed. Koji sighed in relief, "*I also heard that you were the one who complimented her when she wore her hero costume.*" Yuma signed.

Koji panicked, "I-I didn't mean-" he stopped mid-sentence when Yuma continued signing, "*I know you're not that kind of person.*" she signed, "*I'm just happy that she's getting out of her comfort zone because of you.*"

Koji nodded and relaxed a little, "*Do you like her?*" Yuma signed. Koji nodded, "A-As a friend o-of hers, I-I do." he said, "Sh-She has done s-so much for m-me, during th-the entrance exam a-and at U.A." Yuma tilted her head, "*How so?*" she signed.

Koji looked at the ground, "Before I-I got into U.A. High, I-I didn't have many friends a-and the only comfort I-I had was with animals." he said, "But... during th-the times I-I spent with her, sh-she helped me."

Koji looked through a small opening between the living room and kitchen. Koji saw Mika and Saburo cooking the curry and rice; he smiled a bit.

Koji turned to Yuma, "Before th-the entrance exam, I-I wasn't sure what t-to expect from her." he said, "I-I thought she was like other people a-and would leave me be, but during th-the entrance exam... m-my thoughts changed a-about her."

Yuma tilted her head, "Before th-the physical portion of t-the exam, she yelled at me and said that my Quirk w-was just as good as hers." Koji continued, "A-And during the exam, she apologized. But somehow... I-I knew she d-didn't yell o-on purpose and sh-she cared for me."

Yuma smiled, "*That's my daughter for you.*" she signed, "*She has some of her father's personality, calm during serious events and energetic for something fun. She also gets angry like him if they doubt themselves; sometimes it leads her to yelling.*"

Yuma looked at the opening, "*But she also has my personality, her kindness and care for others instead of herself.*" she signed.

Koji smiled a bit and nodded, "Y-Yeah." he said as he fiddled with his thumbs, "And the times w-we spent together at U.A., she helped me even more f-from making other friends t-to motivation."

Yuma tilted her head, "*Motivation?*" she signed. Koji nodded, "She motivates me t-to well in m-my hero training." he said. Koji looked at his hand, "She even helped m-me a bit with my fear." he continued.

Koji looked at Yuma and smiled, "Lyoko is an amazing person, and I'm lucky th-that she's a friend of mine." he said. Yuma smiled, "*Do you think of her more than just a friend?*" she signed. Koji was confused, "Wh-What do you mean?" he asked.

Their conversation was interrupted when they saw Mika at the opening, "The food's ready." she said. Yuma nodded as they stood up, "*Thank you, dear.*" she signed. Yuma turned to Koji, "*Come along, Koda.*" she signed; he nodded as they entered the dining room.

(Small Time Skip)

They sat at the dining room table, eating the curry Mika and Saburo cooked. Saburo looked at Koji, "Do you like the curry, Koda?" he asked; he jumped a bit and quickly nodded. Saburo chuckled a bit, "You don't have to worry about it, Mika was the one who cooked the curry." he said.

Saburo pointed to Mika, "When Mika was little, she was always my little helper in the kitchen." he continued, "Now that she's older, it's the other way around."

Koji was shocked; as he turned to Mika, her face was red. Mika looked away, "I-It's not a big deal..." she said lowly, "I needed to learn how to do it anyway… for hero reasons…"

Saburo laughed, "My little girl always liked to cook ever since she was little." he said smiling, "She's gotten a lot better at it. When she was young, she would usually make some mud pies from the park and bring them here and pretended that it's a cake."

Mika covered her face in her arms and made some muffling noises; both parents laughed a bit. Saburo looked at Koji, "So... how did you meet my daughter?" he asked.

Koji blushed a bit and looked down, "W-We met d-during th-the ex-explanation o-of th-the entrance exam." he stuttered; Saburo nodded, "Ah, I see." he said.

Saburo looked at Koji a little serious, "Do you plan on taking my little girl away?" he asked; he panicked a bit. Mika's face was red, and she looked at Saburo, "Dad! We're only friends!" she shouted.

Saburo got serious, "I know, sweetheart." he said, "But... I don't want any jerk hurting my little girl's heart." Mika's eyes widened; she slammed her hands on the table and stood up, "Koda is not like that!" she shouted, surprising the parents.

Mika looked at Saburo, "He's a nice guy." she said, "He may be one of the shyest people I know, but he cares for others, including me." Mika glared at Saburo, "So don't accuse him for being a jerk!" she shouted; Koji looked at her in complete shock.

Saburo chuckled, "You really do care for him, huh." he said, making Koji look at him, "I had a feeling he was a nice guy. So.. I wanted to test how far you would protect him." Mika pouted in annoyance, "You were testing my friendship with Koda." she said as she sat back down, "Seriously."

Saburo nodded, "I'm a commissioner of Tokyo's police station." he said, "I always test how far police officers protect their partners. That's a major thing you would need with other pro heroes… trust."

Mika looked away for a bit and nodded; Saburo turned to Koji, "Anyway... I apologize for doing that to you, Koda." he said, "I just wanted to test my little Mika."

Koji shook his head, "I-It's fine." he said; both parents smiled. Yuma turned to Mika, "*Can you do the dishes Mika, please?*" she signed. Mika nodded as she stood up; she got all the plates on one hand, and the empty curry pot and empty rice bowl on the other.

Koji got out of his seat, "H-Here, let me." he said as he grabbed the pot and the bowl out of Mika's hand. As Koji walked towards the sink, he placed the pot and bowl on the counter and started filling one side with water.

Mika looked at Koji, "You don't have to help me." she said as she placed the plates on the counter. Koji turned to Mika and nodded, "B-But I want to." he said, "I-It's the least I can do since y-your family invited me."

Mika sighed in disbelief, "Alright..." she said. Mika looked at Koji and held her hand out, "But I'll wash the dishes and you'll rinse them." she continued, "Deal?"

Koji smiled and shook Mika's hand, "Deal." he said; she smiled a bit as they started doing the dishes together. The parents were shocked at the scene, *They're soulmates!* they thought; they looked at each other and smiled.

(Time Skip)

After they finished with the dishes, Mika walked to the train station with Koji. As Mika looked at Koji, memories from her nightmare returned; she looked down as she remembered them. The man covered with hands... the villain's creature... the sight of her dead teacher and classmates.

"Lyoko." Mika snapped back to reality. As Mika looked forward, she noticed Koji was ahead of her. Koji saw tears pricking Mika's eyes, "I-Is something wrong?" he asked with worry.

Mika quickly shook her head, "N-No, it's fine." she said with shaky breaths, "Don't worry about it..." Koji sighed a bit and looked at Mika, "Lyoko... what's been on your mind lately?" he asked.

Mika waved her hands, "I-It has nothing to-" Koji's expression softened, "Please... I want to help you." he said; her eyes widened.

Soon after, Mika looked at the ground, her bangs covering her eyes, "After the USJ incident... I had a nightmare." she said lowly. Koji got worried, but nodded, "What was the nightmare about?" he asked.

Mika bit her lip, "I was alone... darkness all around me at first, but I see a light and wound up at the center of USJ... near the fountain." she said.

Tears pricked Mika's eyes, "I saw you and everyone else from class... dead on the ground." she continued, "After I discovered you were all dead, I was on my knees crying."

Mika looked at Koji as tears fell down her face, "Afterwards, that creature All Might fought with held our teacher's corpse in its hands and dropped it right in front of me." she said, "It let out a terrifying scream, making me cover my ears."

Mika looked at her hand, "Soon after, the man covered with hands saw me and commanded his pet." she continued, "It... broke my legs, and the man covered with hands placed his hand on my face, killing me afterwards."

Mika was shaking in place, "In my nightmare... I blamed myself for not saving all of you." she continued; Koji frowned and walked towards her.

Mika closed her eyes, "I don't know what would happen if we lost our classmates. I don't know what I would do if I lost y-" Koji grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a hug; she was completely shocked.

Mika looked at Koji, "We won't lose any of our classmates, Lyoko." he whispered. Tears pricked Koji's eyes, "You won't lose me either... I promise you that." he continued.

Tears fell down Mika's face again; she slowly wrapped her arms around Koji and laid her head on his shoulder, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." she said lowly. Koji shook his head, "It's alright... it sounds like you wanted to get that out of your system for a while." he said; Mika slowly nodded.

When Mika stopped crying, she lets go of Koji, "Thank you, I needed that." she said smiling. Koji blushed a bit and nodded, "N-No problem." he said.

Mika sighed in relief and wiped the tears off her face, "Hopefully, things will be better for us." she said. Koji nodded, "I hope so too." he said, "I-I'll see you in class." Mika nodded and waved goodbye, "See you later, Koda." she said; Koji waved goodbye and left for his train.

Mika walked away from the train station, *I want things to go back to normal, but I have a feeling that incident was just the beginning.* she thought.

Mika stopped walking and looked back at the train station, *Either way... let's do our best.* she thought. Mika nodded to herself and headed back home.