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Jirou sat at her desk, tapping the end of her headphone jack against the wooden material. The day was so close to ending, and yet her annoyance grew and grew by the moment.
"Yeah! You're never going to believe what happened next," the blond man snorted and grabbed his stomach while he began to laugh.
Kaminari Denki had a distinct laugh. One Jirou had always been drawn to. It was nasally, but resonated deep in his chest, his whole body vibrating with the sound.
He was an idiot through and through, and yet, Jirou found herself watching him, listening to the way he spoke, enjoying the timbre of his voice as she honed in on it.
"I love this part, I love this part!" The other man Sero Hanta, his partner in crime, or... so to speak, always laughed with him. The two of them fueling each others jokes.
Who would've guessed they were pros now.
"So I grabbed her, trying to rescue her and she made some pun about how I'm positively electrifying..."
And now it was time for Jirou to tune out. So damn annoying. They really shouldn't be talking about their flirting and random hookups in the office. No one wanted to hear about it!
Especially not Jirou.
Okay, maybe it wasn't just his voice. Kaminari's face was also... stupid... but oddly handsome. Stupid, but handsome, words Jirou found herself thinking on occasion... or more often than not... or... all the time.
She huffed and pushed herself away from the desk. This was the problem with being at the same agency as her damn high school crush! Said crush was never going to go away, even though she knew he wasn't interested at all.
"Oi, oi! Jirou! Are you going home?!" Kaminari said, stopping her as she walked by. Why did he do this? She knew he could be an idiot, but was he so much of an idiot that he didn't realize she went home every day after her shift ended?
"Uh, yeah?" she said, popping her hip out as she looked at him and Sero.
"Scratch that plan and come with us out drinking!" he smiled.
This wasn't unusual. After their shifts, the two boys would go out for the night, occasionally meet up with Kirishima and Bakugou, if they could actually get the idiot out for the night. They invited her often and usually Jirou's response was...
"No."
Ugh. She hated the way his face fell, looking so disappointed she turned him down yet again. She knew how it would go though. The boys would all sit together and she would sit quietly with them, growing more and more annoyed with how rowdy they were. Then, Kaminari and Sero would wingman each other until they eventually went home with some girls or empty handed.
Either way, watching it was painful; for more than one reason.
"Aw! You always say no, Jirou!"
"I'm going out with Yaomomo tonight," she shrugged, flicking her jacks back and forth.
"Bring her!" Sero smiled.
"No way. We're not gonna sit there and try and talk while your drunk asses parade around the bar," Jirou scoffed. "Forget it."
Jirou really did hate when Kaminari actually looked disappointed. His bright eyes would turn to the floor and he'd let out the softest of sighs. "One of these days I'll get you to say yes!" he chuckled, pointing his finger at her. She could see the sadness glistening in his eyes and she resisted the urge to roll her own.
It wasn't like he would really even care if she was there or not.
~~
"He invited you again?" Momo asked, gently blowing on her tea. The two girls sat on the floor of Jirou's small apartment.
"He invites me every time," Jirou said flatly, shrugging her shoulders.
"And you always say no even though you do want to go?" Momo hummed, cupping her hands around the hot porcelain.
Jirou's cheeks heated up, her eyes glancing to the side. "Why would I want to go to that?"
"Well because you-"
"Don't say it..." Jirou sighed, running her hand down her face. "I know it's totally pathetic," she mumbled, letting her chin rest against the table. "I just can't go and watch him leave and..."
Momo sighed. "Kyouka-chan, I really stand by what I've always told you. You should tell Kaminari-san how you feel-"
Jirou groaned, looking at her best friend with a flat expression. "I didn't tell you about my feelings so you could use them against me."
"I'm really not trying to use them against you," Momo giggled. "I'm trying to help you! We all think Kaminari-san would be thrilled if you asked him out."
Narrowing her eyes, Jirou leaned forward over the table. "Who exactly is 'we all'?"
Momo looked flustered, her finger brushing over the rim of the cup. "Y-You know... the girls... Ochako-chan, Mina-chan, Tsu-chan, Tooru-chan..."
"Do you guys just sit around talking about this?" Jirou muttered.
"Sometimes," Momo giggled. "But it's only because we want to see you two together and happy! Everyone knows Kaminari-san had a crush on you in high school!"
Jirou raised her eyebrow. "Yaomomo... I'm pretty sure Kaminari had a crush on every girl in high school." She said that, but she was honestly skeptical of herself being on that list. She recalled how perverted he could be sometimes and it never seemed like he was looking at her.
"N-No!" Momo said, waving her hands.
"You just didn't notice because you were crushing on Todoroki," Jirou teased.
"T-This isn't about me and Shouto-kun!" she hissed, taking a sip of her tea.
"Right, right," Jirou sighed; because Momo and Todoroki were together and happy and in love and blah, blah, blah. Yuck.
She was happy for her friends, she really was.
"How about next time he asks, we can all go out together! I'll bring Shouto-kun too," she said. Jirou couldn't imagine Todoroki sitting at a bar, it just didn't seem like his scene, but still, it was nice of Momo to offer.
"I dunno..." she mumbled.
"Okay, okay, new topic!" Momo said. "Iida-kun and I are working at getting the location for the class reunion together," she said.
"I still can't believe it's been five years," Jirou murmured. Five pathetic years of her still pining after some electric loser.
"Right!" Momo said, clapping her hands together. "We found this cute ballroom. We can set up a table and bar for food and drink in the corner and everyone can dance. There's also a beautiful balcony overlooking the city!" she explained, pulling up pictures on her phone. Jirou could imagine if she wasn't a hero, Momo would probably have been a party or wedding planner, she was so damn organized.
"Heh," Jirou smiled. "It looks perfect."
"I know!" Momo smiled, taking another sip of her tea. "Maybe you and Kaminari-san can dance together!"
"Oh my gosh, let it go!"
She wished she was more excited for the reunion, but Jirou kept imagining watching a lot of her friends dance together while she sat alone at a table, listening to the vibrations and tones of the popular music they chose to play.
~~
"Morning, Jirou!" Kaminari smiled, walking by his desk. He was always a bundle of energy in the morning. Sometimes it reluctantly made her smile.
"Morning, Kaminari," she muttered, flicking her hand towards him.
This was how it would go, day in and day out. Kaminari would say good morning to her and then they both spent their mornings working through paperwork. Then, they would go their separate ways for patrols, occasionally respond to a villain call together, and then the end of the day would come and Kaminari would ask the same question he always did.
"Hey Jirou! We're going out! It's Thursday, so you should come," he smirked, leaning his hand against her desk.
Her eyes fell upon his fingers, looking at the small scars and calluses. She wondered briefly what would happen if she slipped her fingers forward and wrapped them around his. She could imagine he would probably freak out, maybe pull away... or think something was wrong with her. It could've been all of those things maybe...
"What does it being Thursday have to do with anything?" Jirou asked, tilting her head up at him.
"I dunno..." Kaminari shrugged. "It's kinda close to the weekend?"
She snorted and glanced at her phone. Maybe Momo was right. Maybe if she went out they could talk and she could stop feeling so damn sorry for herself. Jirou Kyouka wasn't some lovesick fool!
"Fine," she sighed, folding her arms over her chest. "I'll go with you."
Kaminari gasped, his eyes widening. "Really?! You will!?"
"Yeah, just this once Sparky," she snorted, pointing her headphone jack at him.
"Okay, okay, we'll be on our best behavior!" he said, and dashed back to his desk to grab his coat. "Let's get going!"
The walk to the bar wasn't very far, and Jirou followed casually behind them while Kaminari excitedly bragged to Sero that he was the one who actually convinced Jirou to come out.
"See!" he said, plopping down in one of the booths. "I can get Jirou to do anything!"
"Yeah, right," she snorted, taking a seat next to him. "I was just in the mood for a drink is all. You two are collateral."
"Ouch dude," Sero winked, smirking at Kaminari.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll grab us some drinks." He scooted out of the bar and immediately returned, the three talking and drinking jovially while they all ordered another round.
"Jirou was so cool the other day, against that one bat villain," Kaminari laughed, starting on his next drink. "You were perfect for that job!" he said, nudging her side.
"Thanks," she smiled, her cheeks warm and red. She was on her third drink now and it was hitting her harder than she expected it to. "You guys are, uh, always doing great too."
"Hell yes, but you, man... Jirou... you're incredible!"
"S-Shut up!" she said and jabbed her jack against his cheek.
"O-Ow!" he laughed, grabbing his cup. "I'm gonna go refill! How about you guys?"
"I'm good," Jirou said, shaking her head. The last thing she needed was to be hungover at work tomorrow.
"I'll take one more!" Sero laughed, gently hitting his hand on the table.
"Gotcha! Be right back!" he said, pointing at them, stumbling back over to the bar.
"You know," Sero sighed, leaning back against the booth. "He really does think you're incredible."
"Eh?" Jirou gasped, glancing over towards Kaminari leaning against the bar. He was laughing, talking to some guy sitting at the counter, his body leaning over the bar. "What are you-"
"I mean he talks about it all the time, how awesome you are. He's always saying you're gonna end up climbing the ranks way above us," Sero said, glancing at him. "He's an idiot, but he's a good guy. That is... he means well."
"Yeah I never... thought he was bad..." Jirou muttered. Her eyes turned up quickly when she heard him laugh from across the bar. It was always a noise which drew her in, even if it wasn't aimed at her. The loud, raucous sound echoed into her ears and made her turn towards him immediately. Her gaze was fixated on Kaminari now. He was speaking to a woman. Her fingers were wrapped around his shoulder, and she tossed her long dark hair back, laughing at something he said. She was pretty and her lips glistened in the bar lighting... she had on a cute dress too which fit snugly around her waist. Kaminari laughed back, the evil tempting sound drawing her eyes to where his hands fell, patting against her hip.
This was exactly the problem.
"But you know... I really should get going. I don't know how you two do this all the time! I'm exhausted!" she said, faking a yawn and pushing herself out of the booth. "This should cover me," she said, tossing some money down on the table before stepping out of the bar. If Sero called after her, she definitely didn't hear him.
Kaminari thought she was incredible? So what? He thought everyone was incredible. Kaminari Denki was the kind of person who could be friends with anyone. He was the kind of person to lift everyone up. It was one of the things Jirou liked about him so much.
She couldn't quite remember when her crush on Kaminari began... but it was sometime during school. For a while, he would give her various compliments and it would always make her blush. Whenever she succeeded at the tests, he would be telling her how amazing she was. When she sang for the class, he constantly brought up how talented she was.
It wasn't until far later on that she realized her blushing was because her heart fluttered a little harder every time they spoke. Her mind often wandered, wondering what it would be like to hold his hand, and as she grew older so did her thoughts, imagining what it would be like to kiss him and more.
That's why it hurt so much to see him with other women. She had no right to be mad at him, especially when she hadn't even tried.
~~
The next morning at her desk, Jirou decided she regretted getting drinks with Kaminari and Sero. Her head was pounding and she felt a little nauseous, even having downed multiple glasses of water before bed.
She even texted with Yaomomo a bit, telling her about the fiasco. Still, Momo said she was proud of her for going at all.
"Morning, Jirou! I'm sad I didn't get to say goodbye last night-"
"Forget it, Kaminari," she snorted, pressing her head against her hand.
"Hungover? It has been awhile for you," he sighed, shaking his head dramatically.
"Ugh, go away," she groaned. "You're too loud!" She just didn't want to be around him anymore.
"O-Oh..." he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry Jirou. I have some uh, Advil, if you need it."
She ignored him, letting him walk away. All of this was getting to be too much. Five years they had worked at the same agency... and over five years Jirou had held these secret feelings. She had to move on.
Maybe at the five year reunion she could just blurt out her feelings and then disappear into a hole and never be heard from again. Maybe if she just got them off her chest all would be better.
"Oi! Jirou! Kaminari! It's a code red! They need all of us downtown pronto!" Sero called out, waving his arm towards them as he frantically ran by their desks.
Whatever her feelings were, she would have to put them aside for now. She pushed herself up from her desk and grabbed her communicator, heading towards the stairs, Kaminari running directly behind her.
"I know I probably shouldn't find this exciting cause... there's a villain and all, but uh, it's always awesome working a mission with you," he said, running down the stairs with her.
So much for pushing aside those feelings. "Y-Yeah..." She hated how her voice caught in her throat, and she hoped he would chalk it up to her running, instead of being a total loser around him.
"I trust you in the field," he nodded.
"Me too. I mean... I trust you," she said.
Every time she talked to him it seemed to just deteriorate more and more.
The villain's quirk allowed him to spit up water and he was flooding the streets downtown, causing extreme panic and havoc, regular citizens attempting to escape the flash flood.
Jirou bit her lip. This wasn't a good situation for Kaminari. Any electricity used would ultimately shock anyone touching the water... but if they could isolate the villain from the water, then maybe...
"Chargebolt!" she called out, running up next to him. "We need to get this villain above the water. If we do-"
"I can shock him and send him plummeting down into the water."
"Yes!" she nodded. "We can use Cellophane's tape to wrap him up if we catch him."
"Perfect!" Sero nodded, giving her a thumbs up. The three of them pressed against the corner of the wall and Jirou slowly lowered her headphone jack into the water. The distortion made her ears ache and she pressed her hand close to her head.
"Hgn...." she grunted.
"Jir- er... Headphone Jack," Kaminari hissed, kneeling down with her. All these years and he was still terrible at using hero names in the field. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, it's just distorted weirdly, I can't hear how close he is, the sound is uh, warbled?" she said, trying to explain.
"Mmm..." Kaminari hummed, keeping his hand on her shoulder while she focused. The vibrations from his footsteps, though masked by the water were getting closer. She took a deep breath and moved her hand to her chest, focusing on each wobbly step.
"Now," she hissed.
Sero jumped forward, shooting his tape towards the large man, swinging himself around to wrap the tape around his body. The villain shot spits of water towards him and Sero jumped down onto the balcony of the nearby building, bracing himself as he yanked the man into the air. "Now Charge! Go!" he called out and Kaminari leaped out, aiming his finger directly towards the man.
Jirou stepped forward, pulling herself up onto an overturned car, not wanting to be touching the water just in case.
Kaminari sent a bolt of electricity directly towards the man, his body shaking from the shock. Sero immediately yanked on his tape, pushing the man down towards the flooded street, his body flopping over as it jerked about in the water. He screamed, his voice loud and trembling, the water sparking around him.
As Jirou was about to cover her ears, she noticed Kaminari starting to fall back towards the water, with nowhere to land. Idiot! Why hadn't he thought of that when he originally jumped out?!
He began to laugh... or scream? Or maybe both. The sound struck fear into her chest.
She didn't want to lose that laugh. She wanted to hear it again, over and over, everyday until she could hear no longer.
"Kaminari!" she yelled. Stretching her ears towards him, she wrapped around his body, yanking him towards her on the car, both of them falling backwards.
"E-Eh?! J-Jirou!" he breathed. "Shit... you saved me..."
"Of course I did dumbass!" she yelled, her ears still clutched tightly around him. "You would've electrocuted yourself if you landed in the water right next to him."
"Eh... I'm used to it," he shrugged.
She rolled her eyes and quickly unwrapped the headphone jack, letting him flop forward on top of the car. He was such an idiot!
"Besides, I told you I trusted you in the field. I had nothing to worry about."
"Dumbass!" she snapped, her jack poking at his cheek.
"Ow! Jirou!" he whined and rubbed his cheek with his hand. Still, he pushed his glasses up and turned to look at her with a smile. "Thanks, Jirou, for saving me. My hero!" he sighed dramatically, his face far too handsome for his own good.
Her shoulders rose slightly, her cheeks flushing. "W-Well..." she coughed. "Someone had to save your dumb ass..."
"I'm glad it was you," he laughed, giving her a thumbs up.
Yeah. So much for pushing those feelings away.
~~
Flopping face first into her pillow, Jirou groaned as she lay in her bed. This was so stupid. Everything about it was just stupid.
The group walked back to their office and Jirou said goodbye to Kaminari and Sero, happy to hear both of them were going home after the stressful battle with the villain. She loved doing hero work. It was always very fulfilling, but it was tiring, and sometimes scary.
And sometimes it made her wonder if she should just tell Kaminari how she felt. What if she hadn't caught him today? He claimed he was used to being electrocuted, and while that might have been true, how would he have fared in the water?
She sighed and rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling. Her hand flopped around beside her as she tried to reach for her phone.
[Text Momo]: Do you think I should tell Sparky at the reunion?
[Text from: Momo]: Tell him!
It was an unsurprising answer. Honestly Momo was probably sick of hearing Jirou complain about it so often.
Maybe it would've been easier to get over him if they didn't work at the same damn agency, if she didn't save his damn cute ass from near death or whatever... Or maybe it would be easier if she just told him how she felt. If she spoke the words out loud, really let them vibrate in her chest, her feelings would finally escape her and she could be free from her self-inflicted torture.
[Text Momo]: Or maybe I just won't go at all.
[Text from: Momo]: You can't miss the reunion.
She could almost see her best friend's face. She would probably be devastated if Jirou didn't come to an event she planned, especially one where all their friends would be. It wasn't like Jirou wanted to miss out on seeing all her old classmates...
[Text Momo]: Fine, but if I cry, I'm blaming you.
[Text from: Momo]: I promise you won't cry.
Jirou wasn't much of a crier anyway, but after keeping feelings bottled up for years upon years, maybe everything would just explode out of her like a sound wave she couldn't hold back.
She put her phone down with a sigh.
She supposed it was unavoidable now.
~~
"You look stunning, Kyouka-chan!" Momo smiled, clapping her hands together as she adjusted the small ribbon she placed across Jirou's har.
"I guess," she hummed. She supposed she looked as good as one could for their heart's demise.
"No seriously! This dress is very fashionable, and it looks amazing on you!" Momo gently tugged on the small skirt of the dress, smoothing it out for her. "I love it!" she smiled.
"Yeah, thanks," she shrugged, knowing Momo wouldn't let her get away with wearing anything but something cute.
The two decided to meet a few hours before the reunion. It was probably one of the more girly things she had done recently. When Momo was involved, she didn't mind being a little more girly than normal.
She twisted her hips, trying to look at the dress from various angles. It really did look nice and for a moment she wondered if Kaminari would like it. He did always look a little surprised when she wore a dress, it would be cute to see that shocked look on his face yet again.
No. It wasn't good to get her hopes up. Not at all. She saw how he acted with the woman in the bar, she saw how he acted other nights and the way he spoke with Sero.
Damn, she was an idiot. Why was she so bad at feelings?
She followed Momo to the car heading to the private venue. She spoke about how excited she was for everyone to see it, and she nervously chattered on about being worried about the food and if there would be enough and all the things that suddenly came to a head now that she was supposed to be done with planning.
"Yaomomo," Jirou said softly. "It's going to be great." She gently touched Momo's knee, hoping she would calm down a bit. "You should enjoy yourself tonight. I bet Todoroki can't wait to dance with you."
"E-Eh!?" she gasped, and cupped her own cheeks. "Do you think so!?"
"I know so," she giggled. Momo could be so adorable when she got all flustered.
"I think tonight will go well for you too," she nodded, and Jirou wondered where her blind confidence came from.
"Guess we'll find out."
The two girls made their way into the dance hall, where many of their classmates were already buzzing about. It was a beautiful dance hall, just as Momo had described, tall ceilings, decorated with ornate chandeliers and long windows which all looked out onto the city. The floors were smooth, shimmering with a polish that looked as if it was brand new. The wood glistened against the sparkling lights.
There were tables against the walls with various food dishes and drinks, as well as some circular tables in the back where some people were already sitting and chatting. Some Class B students looked excited and happy to be enjoying their meals.
Towards the front there was a live band, and the music caught Jirou's ears immediately. It was soft and unimposing, but it was something they could dance to if they wanted to. However, no one was yet, probably too early for that.
"Jirou-san! Yaoyorozu-san! It is so good to see you both!" Iida called out, waving his arms frantically. He seemed to be the greeting squad.
"It's good to see you too, Iida," Jirou smirked, happy to see the energetic man hadn't changed at all.
Momo bowed her head. "Please try to enjoy yourself tonight, Iida-san," she said and smiled. "We worked hard."
"Yes! I want to make sure this event is a positive experience for all!"
Jirou swallowed. Yes... didn't they all.
"Shouto-kun!" Momo smiled, waving as they approached him and Deku standing by one of the circular tables.
"Ah... Momo," he hummed and wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his nose to her cheek.
Right. Sometimes Jirou forgot just how disgustingly in love they were until she saw them.
"Hello Midoriya-san!" Momo said, pulling away from Shouto to greet their other friend.
"Hello Yaoyorozu-san! Jirou-san!" Deku smiled and waved. He was always so cheerful, even after the many hardships he faced over the years.
The group of them decided to get food together, enjoying the festivities from the table while they ate. The food was delicious, and Jirou ate faster than she meant to, especially seeing as her nerves kept rising and rising.
"The party is wonderful," Todoroki smiled and slid his hand down to take Momo's. She smiled and leaned towards him.
"I'm so glad you think so! We worked hard to find a good venue," she nodded.
"Yeah, it's so beautiful," Jirou murmured, glancing around the room.
She heard his laughter first, the chortle hitting her ears like a ton of bricks. She could've picked it out from anywhere. He was doubled over, his elbow nudging a very angry looking Bakugou, and Kirishima was desperately trying to hold Bakugou back from exploding anymore than he already probably was going to.
Whatever. Kaminari probably deserved it.
Still, he looked like he was having so much fun.
"Kyouka-chan?"
"Huh?" she blinked, turning to look at Momo. She had her arm hooked through Todoroki's and she smiled.
"I was just wondering if you would be okay if Shouto-kun and I danced for a bit."
"Oh!" Jirou blinked, realizing she must have been spacing out. "Yeah go for it." She wasn't going to stop them from dancing just because she would probably sit alone for a bit. Many of their classmates had already paired off, taking time for each other to dance. Even Iida was dancing with Hatsume... an unlikely pair that somehow worked.
She stroked her finger over the tablecloth, letting her jacks flick back and forth gently with the beat of the music. She hummed along, the rhythm of the song a simple one she was able to decipher and guess as she enjoyed the sound.
"Oi, Jirou-"
She immediately froze, snapped from her music hypnosis. She wasn't surprised to come face to face with the one person she knew she shouldn't be avoiding.
"Kaminari-"
"You're probably going to say no-"
"I need to-"
"Huh? Oh... you go first," Kaminari said, awkwardly gesturing towards her.
"No, no... uh... you go ahead," she insisted, her cheeks flushing pink.
"Well..." Kaminari's bright yellow eyes moved back and forth quickly. "You look really nice."
"Oh uh... right," she giggled nervously, gently touching the side of one her jacks. "Yaomomo picked it out."
"I guess I'll have to tell her she did a good job," he chuckled. "Anyway, I, uh... wanted to ask... and you can totally say no. In fact, you probably will, knowing you... but do you wanna maybe... you know..." He pushed his thumb towards the dance floor.
"Dance?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. Was he really asking her to dance?
"Yeah!" he cheered and grabbed her hand. He blushed and suddenly let go as if he realized she hadn't actually said yes. "Uhm... I mean if you want to."
"Yeah..." she whispered. "I... I really do."
"Great!" he smiled, pulling her quickly to the dance floor.
The music was louder now, the sounds echoing in her sensitive ears. At least it drowned out the sound of her beating heart.
Kaminari smiled, wrapping his arm around her waist as he pulled her close, his fingers lacing around hers. The two of them began to sway with the music, and Kaminari snorted. "I... actually haven't done this much, so sorry if I suck."
"You're a little stiff," she teased, a smirk pulling across her lips. "But it's not too bad."
"Oh thank you, wise expert," he laughed softly, and oh gosh she wondered how it would sound if they were close together, curled up in bed, sharing secret laughs they would only show to each other.
"Psh," she scoffed. "I'm good with music, not dance."
"I dunno, you look pretty great right now."
She balked. She hated that she did, but her feet almost froze, and she did her best not to completely stumble over herself. "T-Thanks," she said.
She allowed the music to take control of her body, swaying in time with the soft violins and gentle piano. Kaminari wasn't speaking, but his golden eyes looked kind as always, and he was staring at her so intensely.
Her hand squeezed his and tried to not look away. He was so cute, smiling at her; for just this one moment she was his entire world. It was like something out of a fairy tale. The music lifted her heart, echoing in her ears and for a brief second it was just her and Kaminari... no one else around. It felt like her feet were gliding across clouds and his smile made her cheeks heat with a fire she hadn't felt in so long.
This would never be how it was. After this song, her bubble would burst. It wasn't like anything beyond this moment would ever be real. He probably only asked her because all of his friends were off dancing with someone. Kaminari didn't actually care about dancing with her. He probably just didn't want to look like an idiot alone.
"I-I'm..." she said, and shook her head, stepping away from him, her illusion shattered.
"Jirou?" Kaminari took a step forward, his hand outstretched.
"I'm sorry!" she gasped and immediately dashed away from him.
She needed to get air. Her head was drowning in the sound of the band and the room suddenly felt small, constricting her chest and suffocating her. She pushed towards the doors and swung them open, running to the balcony. Her body lurched forward when she stopped herself at the railing, gasping for air.
How could she have been such a fool!?
Kaminari was all about having fun... going out with his friends. Jirou was a quiet loser who did her job and didn't know how to have fun or appreciate a moment apparently.
She was such an idiot.
And now she was an idiot about to cry.
"JIROU!" Kaminari gasped, his body falling forward as he tried to catch his breath. "W-Why did you run-"
"L-Leave me alone, Kaminari!" she yelled, quickly wiping her eyes.
"I-I just... did I do something wrong?" Oh gosh, his voice. It sounded like he was breaking just as much as she was. She could hear every small hitch of his breath, every crack trapped in his throat, every breath deep and desperate.
"W-What? No... I just... look I felt stupid making you dance with me."
"Making me?" Kaminari tilted his head, taking a few steps closer. She curled her hands around the rail. "But... Jirou, I asked you."
"Oh... right..." she muttered and looked down at the ground. "No!" she called out. "I'm fine!"
"Please," he said, still approaching her. "I just wanna fix it if I upset you!"
"Y-You didn't!" she said and shook her head, not wanting him to get closer.
He frowned and gently took her hand in his. "Then why did you run away? Why are you looking like you're standing here crying? How can I not think that's my fault when you randomly run away from-"
"I like you!" she yelled, blurting out the words as fast as she could get them out of her mouth.
"-and it’s not... wait... what?" He looked at her, confusion clear on his face.
She tried to yank her hand away, but he held on tighter. "You heard me. Now I can move on and leave you alone."
"Wait... move on?" Kaminari said, staring at her. "Jirou... But I... You... like me?"
She nodded up and down slowly. Jirou never before wished so greatly that her headphone jacks were larger so she could cover her whole face and maybe even her whole body.
"You... like me?" he repeated, pointing at himself and then at her.
"Yes. What part of that don't you understand!?" she said, blushing furiously. She wished his hand wasn't gripping hers so tightly, both of them stuck in place.
Kaminari bit down on his lip and shook his head, small laughs and snorts slipping from his mouth. Was he laughing?
Not fair. She was always so weak to his cute, nasal laugh, even if was directed at her. Kaminari Denki with all his stupid, cute charm.
"Yes. Ha-ha. So funny. We can move on."
"W-Wait!" he said and grabbed her other hand, squeezing both now. "I-I'm sorry, I was just... so surprised..." he whispered. "All this time, I've been... trying to get your attention and I thought you hated me! I mean you always said no to going out, but Sero told me to keep trying and now you're telling me you like me!"
"...S-Sorry, what?"
"Duh!" Kaminari laughed, swinging their hands back and forth. "I mean I kept asking you out because I liked you. I guess I've kinda always liked you..." he admitted, his golden eyes focused so hard on their hands.
What?
She couldn't bring herself to ask. Not yet... she needed him to keep speaking, even if his voice was a trembling mess.
"In high school, I always thought you were the coolest. Kickass, smart, the best singer I know... I mean I knew you were way out of my league. Then we started working together and I just kept thinking about how cool you were... on missions, even just doing paperwork you always looked so... uh... focused? I suck at that!" he laughed again, the sound resonating in the air.
"That's why I kept asking you out for drinks. I wanted to... ask you out on a date... but you always said no to even hanging out... so I tried to just let it go... but it was hard..." he admitted. "Then tonight you looked, so perfect in the dress... I just had to ask you to dance..."
"Wait... that was you asking me out?" she gasped, thinking of all the many times she said no, instead choosing to sit in her apartment.
"I mean n-no! It was sort of like pre-asking you?"
"But you were always hanging out with other girls..."
"I mean... you said no. I kept trying to moving on. It just didn't work so great. I rarely ever made it out of the bar with any of them. Usually I just... went home on my own. It was too weird," he muttered.
"Kaminari Denki you absolute idiot," she said softly, a laugh slipping from her lips. All this time they could've been together. They could've been a thing...
"I dunno! I still feel like you're pretty out of my league!"
"Yeah... I probably am," she whispered, turning her dark eyes towards his. She pressed herself up, brushing their lips together.
"Finally..." he whispered and pulled away from her hands to cup her cheeks, pulling their lips close together, kissing her softly.
His lips were a little dry, but he kissed her gently, as if her lips might break if he pressed too hard.
"Yeah... guess it really does feel like 'finally'..."
"Yeah..." Kaminari chuckled, and damn she loved how gentle his voice was against the cool night air. "Could we uh... maybe finish that dance? And then... maybe I could take you on a real date?"
"I think I'll say yes, to both," she smiled.
He pulled her close to him again, his arm wrapped around her waist, his hand curled around hers. They began to sway, the sound of their shoes soft against the balcony as they danced underneath the stars. In the distance, she could still hear the violins and piano from inside, but she liked the faint noise. Right now, dancing with Kaminari made her feel like she was floating, her own personal fairy tale, just as she imagined earlier.
Kaminari actually liked her back! It wasn't a dream...
And she could've danced out there all night forever.
~~
Kaminari sighed and wrapped his hands behind his head, leaning backwards. "Man, patrols are so lame. Especially when nothing happens!"
"You want crime to happen?" Jirou scoffed, narrowing her eyes at her rather stupid boyfriend.
"Uh... no?" he muttered, shrugging when she nudged her elbow into him. "I mean it's better with you here at least," he sighed dramatically, wrapping his fingers around hers.
They were lucky they were able to patrol together. It made it easier to spend time together, even though they often took turns spending the night at each others places. Jirou loved looking at Kaminari in the morning, his quiet, sleeping form, the way his gentle breath trickled from his lips.
Her boyfriend was stupid, but also perfect.
"So are we going on that double date with Yaomomo and Todoroki this weekend?" he asked, swinging their hands back and forth.
"Yup," she nodded. "Yaomomo is really excited, so don't be weird about it!"
"Why would I be weird about it!?" he sighed. "You always make these assumptions-"
"-which are usually true."
"Okay, okay. I'll just act like myself! It's not like we're not all friends," he shrugged.
"Yeah, yeah," Jirou snorted, laughing at how casual he was being. Knowing Momo they would go somewhere fancy and Kaminari would be totally out of his element but it would be cute to kinda watch him stumble.
He puffed out his cheeks, but then his golden eyes lit up, like he had an amazing idea. "So if I ask you to get dinner after work, just you and me, you'll say yes now right?"
Jirou rolled her eyes and poked her jack against his cheek. "I guess I could say yes."
"Good!" he said, and began to chuckle. "I'll check in with you after work." He winked.
Dork.
He could've asked her now and she would've said yes.
Instead the two of them laughed, continuing their patrol, his laugh reverberating in her chest, making her feel warm and happy... and maybe a little bit in love.
That damn, stupid laugh.