the frozen mornings of kissing the sleep out of each other's eyes and frosty nights of cold feet torturing warm exposed skin were coming to an end, with only one morning left and one night to send everyone out of the comfort of the Yuuei winter break and back into the dorms-turned-into-homes.

"have you seen my sock?"

"toshi, i told you it was under the couch when you asked five minutes ago."

"oh, of course. thanks."

"no problem."

"you ready, pretty girl?"

shinsou's eyes glinted, bright winter light streaming through the window.

"of course, i am. the question is, are you?"

"look at me," shinsou spinned as i watched. one of his feet was missing a sock, "don't i look ready?"

i dropped my gaze down to the bare foot before returning it back to shinsou.

"okay, i get it, tough crowd." shinsou sighed as he walked off to collect his sock.

"mina texted me saying everybody's down in the lobby. we should probably hurry up." i studied my eye makeup in the mirror.

"i'm almost done, do you want to head down before me?" shinsou locked eyes with me through the mirror.

"i don't mind waiting, you almost done?"

"yeah, just give me a second." i watched as shinsou disappeared into the room, probably to find his shoes.

"y/n-"

"they're under the foot of the bed, toshi."

shinsou made a noise, signifying that he had found his shoes, before returning his thanks.

"alright," he reemerged a few seconds later. "let's go, pretty girl."

"let's."

"wait, wait, wait." shinsou waved his hands in the air, the door was halfway open and i leaned up against it.

only offering a raised eyebrow, i stood there waiting for shinsou to state what was wrong.

"we're missing something." was all he said.

"what do you mean?"

i watched as he approached me, taking my hand into his, his own fingers making quick work of separating the finger that was decorated with my ring.

"it's wrong." shinsou muttered to himself before pulling off the ring. panicked, i tried to ask why it was wrong but i couldn't form the words.

"hitoshi, what-"

he paid no mind to my choppy sentence as he slipped the ring back onto my finger, my ring finger.

"it's better like that." he hummed, gazing softly at my hand before putting his own up. the band on his finger was also on the same finger.

"don't you think?" his gaze returned to me and i searched his eyes for an explanation to his behavior.

"yeah, i think so too." i decided.

"good," he brought my hand to his lips, "now, let's get going."

"oh, right." i had forgotten that was what we were doing.

shinsou laughed quietly.

interlocking our hands together, "l/n."

"hmm?" i hummed as i guided us out of the resort room.

"nothing, i was just... just thinking."

-

"y/n! we've been waiting for forever! the others already left in the other limo with momo but there's another one on it's way."

"sorry, mina. hitoshi can't keep track of any of his things."

"hey!" across the room, shinsou was protesting his exposure.

i glared softly at him but turned to mina, "who's already at the ball?"

"oh, well, momo said she could take up to six people so it was her, jirou, katsuki, izuku, tenya, and eijiro who left. it's just us left, others left early."

glancing around the room, i confirmed the statement as hanta and denki were talking animatedly with shinsou, and the lobby was empty besides those three and the exception of mina and i.

a guy, dressed in valet uniform entered the lobby and announced that he was here for us.

"let's go, guys!" mina called back to the boys before pulling me out into the night.

the car was full of drinks, ice, and a few sweets all which were inspected by denki. after moaning about a stomach ache, denki settled into our conversation.

"so, hitoshi, you graduate before us, right?" the blond sucked on an ice, the cube puffing out the side of his cheek.

"yeah, i got into Yuuei early." shinsou confirmed. i watched as he took a sip from a drink he was nursing.

"cool! do you have any idea about your future after Yuuei, then?" denki continued. the conversation was going over my head as i was busy holding mina's drink as she plopped more ice into her cup. i missed the way shinsou's eyes flickered towards me.

"i have a bit of an idea." i heard him say before denki interrupted him again.

"that's great! but also, i was wondering if you could help me get a job. i heard you have one near campus, right?" denki continued to ramble about his sudden need for money.

it was only when the limo came to a stop that denki put a pause to his babbling.

"i'll ask around about a job. okay, denki?" shinsou offered.

the blond nodded excitedly, "yes! thank you, hitoshi. anyways," denki stepped out of the limo, thanking the valet holding the door for him, "we'll go find out where we're sitting. momo mentioned something about assigned tables."

"i'll tag along," shinsou said, following both denki and hanta.

with a wave, mina's attention was pulled towards my hand.

"oh. my. god. did hitoshi propose?!"

"mina! don't be so loud," i covered my face from the curious eyes glancing our way and before i realized my mistake, mina was already yanking my hand towards her shining eyes, examining the band around my finger.

"wow, the ring is gorgeous. it's simple but so gorgeous, very college couple. wait, why didn't you text me about this!"

"mina, i didn't text you about it because shinsou didn't propose."

"but... but... your ring is on your ring finger?" the girl bobbed her head to the side, confusion prominent. "i saw you had it on your pointer finger when you first got to the resort but now it's here."

mina had a point but even then, the affection of shinsou's actions made me blush like a schoolgirl with a silly crush.

"shinsou moved it to my ring finger earlier," i explained to her, lowering my head as i felt heat crawl it's way up my neck, conflicting with the cold of the night breeze.

"so, no proposal?" she joked, but i could see the seriousness behind the glimmer of her eyes.

"mina, you'd be the first person i told if he proposed, okay? you've contributed too much for shinsou and i's relationship to actually happen that i feel i owe you at least that."

mina's grin grew smug, mischief and pride flashing over her. "yeah, i guess i did do a lot for you guys, didn't i?"

i laughed at her response, slinging a hand over her shoulder. "don't let it go to your head, mina. it's already big enough as it is."

"y/n," mina whined, drawing out the last syllables of my name, "don't say that."

i watched as mina patted her own head self-consciously but as she caught sight of the rest of the group, her head was forgotten. she slipped her hand into mine. "oh, look! there are momo and the others! let's go announce your future engagement."

and i could only sigh, already too used to mina's antics, though i had grown to love them.

"what are we waiting for, nerds? let's get inside!" mina shouted, grin wide and teeth on display.

shinsou's eyes dropped to mine and mina's hands, then he pressed a kiss into my temple.

"jeez, chill out, hitoshi. i'm not going to steal your girlfriend." mina stuck out her tongue at shinsou.

"i don't know, ashido, you've been serious competition since the beginning." shinsou retaliated, sticking out his own tongue.

"what?! no way! i've been rooting for the two of you since day one! come on, now." mina gasped and turned to me, shinsou did too.

"was mina ever a consideration?"

"oh, absolutely. if you hadn't come around, hitoshi, i would've been with mina."

"see, i told you."

"what?! why did i never know this, i would've totally stolen your girlfriend, hitoshi."

the three of us burst out laughing, ignoring the stares from people around us.

"i need a drink. i have so much to rethink." mina announced, already making way towards the mini bar. "you guys want anything?"

shinsou and i both declined her offer, opting to sit at our assigned table, finding a boy there. knowing i had seen him a handful of times, i tried to recall his name.

"shoto!" shinsou reminded me as he greeted the boy, "hey, i didn't know you were here."

"shinsou," shoto acknowledged with a nod of his head, his eyes flickered to me and i watched as he pressed his lips together, seemingly trying to recall my own name.

"y/n," i provided.

"oh, right. shoto, this is y/n, my girlfriend. and y/n, this is shoto. he's in a few of my classes."

"hi," i waved with shy fingers.

shinsou and i both settled down at the table. "what's his major?" i decided to ask in a whisper, eyes still on shoto as he studied the dance floor.

"he's undecided. that's why i have him in so many classes."

"oh, cool."

"yeah, his dad's a professor at Yuuei too. and he's loaded, like yaoyorozu."

"i didn't ask for all that, toshi. i just asked his major." i whispered, smacking his knee lightly.

"you started it, you could've just asked him for his major."

"i didn't start anything, you're the one gossiping."

a cough was heard from across the table and shinsou and i both turned our attention upwards.

"um, enjoying the ball, shoto?" i began, nervously smoothing down the front of my dress.

"i suppose, it's better than being at home." the boy answered dully, not very interested.

i glanced at shinsou for help, he shook his head.

"well, we're going to see what there is to eat. would you like to come along?" i stood up, ignoring the fact that shinsou and i had only been at the table for a few minutes.

"i'm good, thank you." shoto dismissed with a soft smile, the look barely reaching his eyes.

i nodded and shinsou followed as we did go check out what they were serving.

by the time shinsou and i returned to the table, shoto was off and no longer there. his absence was replaced by tenya and denki.

"hitoshi! tenya was telling me about the job you guys have at All Mighty Here, do you think i could apply?"

the three fell into a conversation, talking about the owner of the restaurant and other things that would work in denki's favor to get him a job there.

mina, along with a few others, joined us at our table, so many that we needed to pull chairs from other tables to fit everybody. there was a buzz in the air and a complete change in feeling from when i was here last year, everything was different.

"hey, pretty girl." shinsou had whispered to me at some point, it was dark in the ballroom, lights having dimmed as they were getting ready to transition from formal music to a more modern take. "let's go dance," shinsou murmured into my shoulder, "before they change the music."

i nodded distractedly and i let shinsou guide me away from the table and onto the dance floor.

the music was quiet, i couldn't really place the tune and i was too distracted too. it was more of an embrace than a dancing posture, the way shinsou was holding me, but there were no complaints. and surrounded by his warmth, i couldn't really remember that we were at a winter ball.

there was no seasons with shinsou, it was only ever just him.

"i always feel like you're going to disappear."

shinsou's grasp grew tighter after his confession.

"why's that, pretty boy?" i could only whisper, afraid but not sure of what.

shinsou didn't reply for a moment and the music playing through the ballroom made up for the unspoken words.

"you know."

i didn't.

"i love you."

i couldn't tell if the words were a figment of my drunken imagination but my skin buzzed at the phrase.

"hitoshi?"

"i love you, y/n l/n."

even repeated, the words warmed me.

"i love you too, hitoshi shinsou."

and i savored the way the pronouncement tasted; i could get used to saying that.

-

bonus :

i couldn't even remember how we managed to get to the resort room, it was all a staggering jumble of cold, dark and laughter.

as soon as the door closed behind us, shinsou latched himself to me, with a fevor that made my head spin, eyes fluttering to a close. like he was convinced i was going to slip out of his grasp, like sand through the hold of his fingers, shinsou pushed to be closer and once he was close, he marked his existence into my skin. he pushed the hair away from my neck and his lips sizzled a hot trail in its wake.

the expensive resort sheets were nothing compared to the softness of shinsou's skin.

'please,' i remember pleading at some point, not sure for what, but i remember the way shinsou dissolved at my touch, letting himself become putty in my hands.

sight too pretty; shinsou splayed underneath me, fading lilac hair fanned across the satin pillow. he keened upwards, lips resembling an o, swollen from all the kissing. he never stopped with his soft caresses, trailing his nimble fingers up my sides.

"fuuuck," he groaned. "i love you."

the words fluttering their way into my heart.

it seemed that a dam had broken, shinsou had said those three words and couldn't seem to stop repeating them.

when he brushed and kept my hair out of my face, when he rubbed reassuring circles into my skin and whispered soft nothings, when he nipped and soothed bruised skin with kisses; every action was followed by a confession, like he would never get tired of the words.

"i can't believe you're mine." he would say, looking down at me and no longer with hunger but instead a sense of contentment.

"all yours."

-

the night was quiet and i wasn't sure what time it was. shinsou's arm was draped around me, his fingers rubbing soft circles into my shoulder.

"do you remember," the boy broke the silence, his voice coming out as a mere whisper. "our first kiss?"

i hummed, closing my eyes in thought. "i do. it was before my recital, wasn't it?"

"yeah, you were so angry at me. i was surprised you even kissed me back, you know?"

"angry?" i shifted, "i wasn't angry."

"you totally were, y/n." shinsou's voice increased in volume, in disbelief. "you had been ignoring my calls, you didn't go to the party i invited you to, and you always avoided me on campus."

"well, sure but that didn't mean i was angry. why would i be angry?" i frowned up at the boy.

"you tell me, pretty girl." shinsou smoothed down a furrow in between my brows before placing a kiss on the lines. "i tried to figure it out myself and just figured you were upset at our date and how it ended."

"wait," i pushed up, resting on my elbows, "i thought you were the one who was upset? i clearly remember you made a face after i kissed your cheek."

shinsou seemed to rack his own brain for a recollection of his actions.

"oh." was all the boy had to offer.

"oh?"

"yeah, oh." shinsou stated, like it was obvious, pinching slightly at my cheek before his thumb caressed my cheekbone. "i was already pining after you at that point, y/n. i didn't know how to react after you kissed me, i guess it just showed on my face."

i sighed, "yeah, i guess. jeez, if we were better at communicating, it would've been a lot easier, don't you think?"

"well," shinsou moved a bit, "it wouldn't have happened the same, you know?"

"yeah, i suppose. but you'd really take our complicated course over anything else, over something easier?"

the boy looked down at me, eyes shining in the moonlight. "being here with you now makes every single thing that happened worth it." 

~

a/n: ahhhhh hi!!! it's been a while n for that i apologize 😓 but! school is over n i'll be able to write more often , tho i do have exams still (which is a little weird) but either way yeah!

i hope u guys enjoyed the chapter , i feel like it was short but then again , i combined two chapters so idk 🧍🏻‍♀️

n e ways , i don't think i have much more to say other than the usually which is thank u sm for reading , voting n commenting !!

i love u guys sm so take care n stay safe! i have something in store for u guys so defs look forward to it <3 okay , mwah, bye !