NeonHorizon: There were no fanfics for Twice exclusively so I made one. Because I like Twice. I'm going to do my best to make this a sweet love story with bits that are a bit funny, but there will be sad parts as well because Twice is sort of a sad character. Trigger warning for sad bits, I suppose. Anyway, this is for my fellow Twice fans out there!

It felt like he was splitting apart. Standing in the alley, clutching his head with both hands, he cursed himself for having left his mask behind. He had been in a rush. This errand should only have taken a few minutes. Now he was struggling to hold himself together.

What had triggered it was the cashier in the convenience store asking if he was having a good day. Part of his mind wanted to say he had had a good day and part of him wanted to say he had a bad day. So when he replied with a simple "yeah", he immediately followed it up with a "this was a terrible day".

He hurried out of the store before he could really start to feel like he was coming apart and managed to get to the alley before his pulse began to race. Gritting his teeth, he closed his eyes tightly and tried to keep himself in one piece. The fear of splitting was almost too much to bear. Memories of the past, of his doubles killing each other.

Images of himself, killing themselves, as he was forced to watch and then wonder if the real one had in fact died. If he was, in reality, just another clone and once he was destroyed, he would be erased from the world forever. Panic made his heart pound so hard, so fast, that he could hear it. An echo from within.

Jin knew that he had to get back to the hotel room. He had to get back to his mask before this feeling became too much to bear. Already, he had the strong urge to just hunch over in the alley until it faded. It would only grow, though. Until he had his mask on, this feeling would only increase until he became incapacitated by fear and panic.

He forced himself to leave the alley, but he was having trouble. He swayed as he walked, stumbling a little as he tried to hold his head and concentrate on getting back to his hotel room. At least it was dark outside so no one was really out to see him acting this way. Drawing attention to himself would be bad; he was a wanted criminal. It was one thing to just walk around outside because he looked normal enough, but staggering around would definitely make people notice him.

Traveling down the sidewalk, in the dimness of night, he hated that this was happening. It made him feel upset that he was unable to do something as simple as go to the store without feeling like he was coming apart. Frustration made him growl as he approached an alley and that growl triggered the fateful encounter to come.

"What's your problem, dude? Just move on! This doesn't concern you!"

"What? You planning to play hero?"

Hearing the two male voices taunting, calling his way, Jin looked into the alley and realized what was going on. The two men that were yelling at him were facing him, partially obstructing the two figures further in the alley. One of those figures was a man, who stood over the other figure. The second person in there was on the ground, half-curled into a ball. The man standing over them was holding something that glinted faintly in the light from the streetlight that shone in.

Jin was not a hero. He could watch a robbery happen with no problem. He could walk away after witnessing a burglary. However, something was different here. It might have been that the two men were now coming toward him. It might have been that their accomplice was now hauling the huddled figure to their feet and shoving them against the wall. It was more likely that Jin caught sight of their prey as the light faintly illuminated them.

Their prey was a young woman and there was a bloody, deep cut on her left cheek. Tears were streaming down her pale face as she remained silent, despite the knife's close proximity to her. She was wearing a baggy dark sweater and a long skirt so it was hard to tell if she had been injured anywhere else.

Again, Jin was not a hero. He was a wanted criminal. Even if he could ignore a burglary or robbery, he still had some sense of justice. It was a bit skewed, but he had a sense of justice. Especially when it came to women. Since their prey was a woman, he would be unable to just walk away.

His eyes narrowed, teeth gritting so hard they might crack. Jin let his hands curl into fists as the two men approached him. Using his quirk was out of the question; this was going to have to be a brawl. Still struggling to keep himself together, he launched into the fight.

He had to be careful, of course. In his mind, he was probably just a double of the real Jin. If he took too much damage, he would fall apart and it would be the end of him. He would be gone forever.

For the most part, he was able to dodge their punches. No quirks were used. Partially because one man's quirk was just having weirdly looping horns. The other simply seemed content to fight with fists so he either did not have a quirk or it was too weak to be of help. Jin took a few hits to the face and chest, but eventually managed to knock them both out.

The third man saw this and yanked the young woman away from the wall, pressing his knife's tip against her throat. "Don't come any closer or I'll put this through her neck, got it? Just toss your wallet over here and we'll call it good!"

What this man did not realize was that Jin was not the usual sane interloper that would normally intervene in a mugging. His adrenaline was pumping hard and fast through his veins as he approached. He was already bloody and bruised. He knew he could take a few more hits and one stab would be fine as long as it avoided anywhere vital. What was driving him onward was the look on the woman's face.

Pure fear filled her features. Tears trickled down her cheeks as she met his gaze. The darkness of the alley made it hard to see what color her hair and eyes were, but he could still feel what she was trying to convey. Despite having not said a word or even cried out. She was silently, desperately, begging for his help.

That was all it took; one look in her eyes. The next few seconds were filled with him first charging forward and smashing his fist into the man's face, grabbing the woman's arm with his free hand, and shoving her to safety behind him.

Shift P.O.V

Watching this stranger slam his fist directly into her attacker's nose, she felt her heart skip a beat. Those narrowed eyes. The way his jaw clenched. The determination in his expression. To her, he looked so much like a hero. He could only be a hero or vigilante.

The woman wiped at her eyes with her sleeve, grimacing as she accidentally brushed the deep cut on her cheek. It stung, but she knew it could have been much worse; they could have cut down to the bone. Her vision was blurred by tears of gratitude as the man delivered a rapid punch to the attacker's gut, knocking him backwards and onto the cold, hard ground.

A hand grabbed hers and she was led out of the alley at a fast pace by the benevolent stranger. She quickened her pace, running beside him and keeping her head bowed. This person, whoever he was, had taken so many hits to save her. How could I ever repay such kindness? A man of virtue…coming to my aid…defending me with such determination…

He led her through another alley, keeping a fast pace so the attackers would be unable to keep up. The man seemed to know his way around the alleys pretty well because he navigated through the labyrinth with ease. When he finally came to a stop, it was in front of the very convenience store she had been walking to when she was grabbed by those men.

The light from the sign perfectly illuminated his face and she was taken aback by what she saw. His nose was bleeding and one cheek was swelling, sure to darken with a bruise later. He was trying to catch his breath, still holding her hand as he looked around to be sure no one had followed them.

She lowered her head again before he looked her way and dug in her pocket. With a trembling hand, she offered him her handkerchief to wipe away the blood. While she was grateful that he saved her, she felt terrible that he had been injured.

He turned to ask if she was alright, but stopped mid-sentence when he saw her timidly offering the neatly folded, flower-printed cloth. "You…don't have to-"

"P-please…it's the very least…that I can offer you…" Her voice was soft, whispery. It seemed to almost take him by surprise. She bowed, still holding out the handkerchief and waiting for him to take it. After all that you've done for me, I only wish that I could offer you more. Sacrificing yourself to ensure my safety. Only a truly noble person would do this for a stranger.

The man looked a bit uncomfortable with accepting her offering, but took it nonetheless. His eyes shifted away from the young woman as he wiped away the blood, his mouth contorted into a frown. "Are you okay?"

"I'm…fine, but you…sir…are you alright?" It was now that she took in the finer details of his appearance. Looking past the injuries, she saw that he was at least a foot taller than she was. He had a good build; toned, but not overly muscular. His hair was blond, short, and a bit messy and his narrowed eyes were a gray-blue shade. A deep scar ran down the center of his forehead and it looked as if the wound would have been quite painful.

He finished wiping away the blood and looked conflicted for a moment. As if struggling with the decision of whether or not to return the now stained handkerchief. "I'm fine. I got messed up because of you! No! I'm sorry…" He clapped a hand over his mouth, the muscles in his neck tensing as he looked away.

That was…so peculiar. My hero. So strange, yet he's still so brave and noble. She could tell that the outburst, the accusation that it was her fault he got hurt, was entirely unintentional. The young woman fidgeted with the hem of her sleeve, bowing again. "Ah. My name is…Kuroiwa Neneko…"

With his hand still over his mouth, he bowed slightly. "Bubaigawara Jin," he hesitantly offered.

"Um…Bubaigawara-san…to repay you…for your kind, noble deed…" Neneko dug in her skirt pocket and drew forth a small business card. She held it out to him with both hands, though they trembled with residual fear. "I truly could never repay your brave actions today. I can offer you my services, though…if you are ever in need…"

Shift P.O.V

She was not the typical damsel in distress and he found himself thrown off by her. This young woman with long obsidian hair and soft violet eyes, wearing dark and baggy clothing. Kuroiwa Neneko. She spoke softly and formally. Her voice was just barely above a whisper and he found that he rather liked it.

He liked a few things about her, in fact. She had a rather dainty frame; a least a foot shorter than him and having delicate little hands. It made him feel powerful and enhanced the pride that came with saving her from the muggers.

Kuroiwa Neneko. Right at this moment, she was holding out a business card to him, offering her services to repay him for saving her. When he took it from those delicate, trembling hands, he was puzzled to see what was on the card.

It would seem that her occupation was "translator" and the card listed her name, her phone number, her email, and all of the languages that she was fluent in. It was truly an impressive list; English, Korean, German, Spanish, French, and Russian.

She must be really smart. If she's so smart, why was she walking by herself at night?! Looking over the card again, he nodded to himself. Though Jin could genuinely never imagine that he would need someone to translate for him because he had no business with foreigners. "Thanks."

The woman bowed again, her soft pink lips curling into a small smile. A rosy hue bloomed in her cheeks as she met his eyes directly. "Please, Bubaigawara-san…if you ever need a translator…feel free to contact me."

"I will. You think I have money to spend on a translator?!" Cursing himself in his head, he covered his mouth and struggled to hold himself together.

Most people would probably walk away quickly when they saw a man holding the side of his head and having an internal argument. Instead, she stood there patiently as he sorted himself out and chewed at a loose thread on the hem of her sleeve. When he seemed to be alright, she softly spoke up.

"Ah…Bubaigawara-san…I would never dream of charging you for it…no matter the word count or hours demanded. I owe you a debt that I may never be able to repay so I can only hope to aid you in ways within my capabilities."

Jin nodded as he looked at her card again. "Do you…need someone to walk you home?" He hesitated to ask. Partially because he was afraid of seeming creepy and partially because he was starting to get that feeling again. Like he might split apart. He gritted his teeth as he fought back the conflicting words that wanted burst from his mouth.

"Thank you, but I…don't want to impose on you any further." She bowed again and went into the convenience store to go about her shopping.

He started back to his hotel, lighting a cigarette. She was nice. Nah!