The atmosphere in the room gradually settled as the girls joined the others, each taking a seat while exchanging knowing glances with one another.
Unbeknownst to the boys, several large buckets filled to the brim with water balloons had already been prepared and hidden away near the pool entrance.
In fact, the girls had gotten far more invested in the idea than Akira originally intended.
There were way too many water balloons now. Momo may have gone slightly overboard.
Akira leaned back against the couch, stretching her arms behind her head as the room slowly quieted down.
" So guys! Let's talk. "
The sudden seriousness in her tone caught everyone's attention.
Even Bakugo stopped struggling against the blood restraints for a moment.
Akira stared at the ceiling for a second before speaking again, far less playful than before.
" I'll go first. "
The room fell silent.
" I was terrified when that Nomu popped out of nowhere and looked at me. Like damn. My heart almost burst out of my chest. "
A few uneasy expressions appeared around the room at the memory.
Midoriya unconsciously clenched his injured hand being treated by Uraraka.
Tsuyu lowered her gaze slightly.
" And..." Akira continued more quietly, "...I did kill people today."
The air instantly became heavier.
" While it's technically murder, I don't regret it. The situation was either us or them. "
Nobody disagreed either. Because that was true. Because that was the same thought going through their minds during the whole fight.
Because they all knew she was right.
Akira let out a slow breath before forcing a crooked grin.
" But I am kinda scared their ghosts are gonna haunt me tonight. "
A few students glanced at her again after that.
Some surprised, some relieved.
Because she sounded scared too. She felt too distant until then, having everything under control.
But they realised now. She was not fearless. But moved despite the fear. That made her more admirable in their eyes.
Akira straightened slightly and looked around the room.
" We can talk now you know. Or it'll bite us later.
And nobody's gonna judge anyone here, alright? So come on guys. Even the teachers aren't here right now, so we can talk without worrying about hero protocols and all that stuff. "
Silence lingered for several long moments.
Then Momo laughed bitterly, a very soft sound that would have been missed if not for the silence.
" Akira-chan..."
Everyone turned toward her.
Yaoyorozu quickly looked down, wiping at her eyes as tears began slipping out despite her efforts.
" I don't want to think about it but..." her voice shook, "...I killed... I killed a lot of people."
Tsuyu's eyes widened slightly.
Jiro immediately looked away, guilt flashing across her face as if hearing the words aloud made everything more real.
Momo's shoulders trembled.
" I didn't see any other option..." she whispered. " One of them almost got Tsuyu-chan and..."
Her breathing hitched.
" I aimed for his heart."
The words made several students freeze.Even Bakugo's expression stiffened slightly. Todoroki looked down clenching his fists. He did that too.
" Most of the ones I killed..." Momo continued shakily, "...I want to brush them off as accidents but... but..."
Another tear slid down her cheek.
" I was the one who pointed my gun at them."
She clenched her hands tightly in her lap.
" Without any training... I just wanted to immobilize them..." her voice cracked harder, " I don't know what took over me. I wanted to become a hero... not..."
Another sob escaped her.
"...not a killer."
Before she could spiral further, Akira quietly moved from her seat.
The blood restraints around Bakugo loosened and dissolved as she walked over without another word.
Then she sat beside Momo and pulled her into a hug.
Momo instantly melted into her, breaking down completely as muffled sobs shook her shoulders.
Akira simply held her there silently.
Neither joking nor teasing. Not offering useless words. Just presence and warmth.
A silent reminder that she was not alone in this.
The room remained painfully quiet.
Then Kirishima spoke.
His voice sounded disturbingly small compared to usual.
" It was... too easy..." Everyone looked toward him.
Kirishima stared blankly at his hands.
" I just wanted to create some distance..." he muttered. " But... I..."
His fingers trembled.
" I punched straight through them."
The room went still.
Kaminari's expression paled.
Midoriya looked sick.
Kirishima swallowed hard.
" Actually..." his voice weakened further, "...I can still feel their guts around my hands."
Sero quietly placed a hand on Kirishima's shoulder, grounding him a little.
Akira spoke again after a moment, her voice calm and steady.
" Life is pretty fragile...." Everyone stayed silent, listening.
" I can sit here and tell you that you didn't mean it. Because you didn't." She looked directly at Kirishima. " But we also can't change the fact that they're dead now."
Kirishima's shoulders tensed again.
" Sharky..." Akira continued more softly, " Sometimes we make mistakes we can't take back. But that doesn't mean everything is over.
She leaned back slightly , a hand still wrapped around Momo.
" We learn from them. We carry them with us. And honestly?" She let out a quiet breath. " None of this was fully our fault either."
A few students looked up at that.
" We were supposed to spend today learning how to control our quirks better." Her expression darkened slightly. " Not fight for our lives against actual villains."
Her gaze drifted around the room slowly.
" Things don't always go according to plan. Sometimes circumstances shove people into situations they're not ready for."
Her voice remained quiet but firm.
" It is natural to feel like a murderer. To still feel how we removed life. But the thing is, we survived. I know it's hard but I don't want any one of you hating yourself for doing your best to survive. "
The room fell silent once more.
But this time, the silence felt a little less suffocating.