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Jiro had one goal. Tell that damn boy how she’d felt ever since they met. She remembered them in her room at that house party. Their parents didn’t bat an eye when they both went missing for two hours.
She heard him making a comment about all the instruments in her room and how they could start a band with them. She still had all of them and more in her dorm room now.
“Let’s go back to my room,” she said. “I want to play some music, and my room has all the instruments.”
“Alright,” he agreed since it made sense, already walking toward the stairs. Jiro stopped him and put a hand on his back.
“No, we’re going through the window.”
He let out a laugh that sounded more scared than amused. “Haha, What?” Kaminari asked.
“We’re going through the window,” She replied almost casually, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the window. She unlatched the window and opened it, letting in the cool night air.
Her going down to stay up in the dorms at night was a routine, but ever since she tried to go back up the stairwell and ran into a sleepwalking Todoroki, she’d gone through the window instead.
She would climb up the ladder, go through the empty dorm room that was never locked, and walk back to her dorm room. No one ever woke up to see what was happening.
She hadn’t stayed up and done this in a while, but tonight she had a lot to think about, and she stayed down this time. She hoped nothing would be different.
Besides, it was her turn to surprise Kaminari now. He’d done enough of that recently.
“Why not just go up the stairs?” he asked as she leaned out the window slightly. “Because the stairs are too risky. I once walked into Todoroki sleepwalking and I’m not taking that chance again,” she replied.
“Right, I forgot you do this nightly. Anyway, Sero owes me 50 bucks.” “Why?” Jiro asked, sliding her feet into a pair of boots next to her and Kaminari. “I made a bet with him that Todoroki sleepwalks. There were rumors. Thanks for proving me right, at least!”
“You’re welcome,” she scoffed as she leaned to the side out of the window, locating the ladder that was bolted to the wall outside.
“Anyway,” she said, stepping one leg out the window. Her other leg followed.
“It’s much more fun this way!” She disappeared from his view as she swung out the window, stepped on to the ladder and put both her feet on the second rung.
Kaminari stepped out the window and landed on concrete. He looked to his left, confused because he didn’t see Jiro grab the ladder. He looked to his right and then saw the ladder, and looked up to see Jiro climbing it, already up high.
She peered down to see Kaminari barefoot, dazed and confused, but slowly realizing what he was about to do. “Get up here!” she called from above, slightly smiling. She looked back up the ladder, as looking down would make her sick.
“Are you crazy?!” He exclaimed from below. “We’re already going to wake everyone up, Kaminari!” Jiro yelled back. “And aren’t we all crazy? You can’t argue with that!” She was now hanging from the ladder with her hands behind her back, leaning down towards Kaminari.
At the same time she said these things, she moved her feet around the ladder and her soles clanged against the metal. And the shiny metal chains on the side of her boots hit the sides of the ladder and made clinking and jingling sounds.
“You might wake everyone else up with those boots,” he retorted, smirking. She just laughed in response. “You got me the chains, though. You like spoiling me, don’t you?” She snickered, amused. “You kill me, Jiro.” He jokingly clutched his chest like he’d been shot and stumbled. She laughed at this.
It was easier to see in the moonlight because the sun wasn’t in her face, but the breeze was harsh on her legs as she was wearing nothing but the Deep Dope T-shirt that Kaminari got her for Christmas a year ago, underwear, and pitch black combat boots that went halfway up her knees.
She wondered if Kaminari noticed the fact that she was wearing it right now, and how she wore it a lot when she went to bed, even after she jokingly denounced it, then giving in and saying she would wear it once to make him happy.
This was the first time she wore it in front of him, even though she wore it a lot more than once. Every time she had a thought like this, she scolded herself. Why did she care? Recently, she figured out why, but she still wasn’t ready to say it out loud.
“Anyway, come on! I’m already halfway there!” her voice brought him back to his issue at hand. Kaminari sighed and swallowed nervously. Great way to die, he thought, watching Jiro continue to climb the ladder. God, he hated heights. Though, Jiro didn’t know that about him outright.
Jiro turned back around, much to his dismay, and began climbing up the ladder again, though her boots made her actions nothing short of pure stomping. He would have to suck it up and climb that ridiculously long ladder. Why did their dorm building have to be so tall?
He stepped on the ladder, wondering where it went. He’d never seen the ladder when he’d walk by the building. Maybe that was because it was painted the color of the building and it blended in.
Kaminari kept climbing, keeping his head snapped up at the sky. No wait, he would be staring into Jiro’s ass. But looking down is even worse. He would go sick and dizzy instantly. He can’t close his eyes either. That was a death sentence.
While Kaminari was dealing with his moral dilemma, Jiro let go of the ladder with one hand. She leaned back and over so she could look at Kaminari. “This is the floor, I'm pretty sure. Come up here,” she said, as Kaminari caught up to her and hung right on the other side of the ladder.
She put her leg on the windowsill and reached her hand towards the latch. She did this ever so slowly, and she wobbled a bit because she was dangling on the ladder with one leg and one arm.
She unlatched it silently, and she hopped up on the windowsill. Kaminari inched closer and heard voices, so he drew back.
“Wait, Jiro-" It was too late, and she grabbed his wrist and pulled him through the window and into the room.
He heard what happened before he saw it. His head grazed the top of the window and he ended up landing face first. Jiro rolled into the room head first, crouched on the floor. She went silent the moment she landed. He finally opened his eyes.
The overt brightness of Aoyama’s dorm room hit him like a truck. His eyes stung and he had to close them, but he had to see what Jiro literally dragged him into. She squinted her eyes too. After nothing but scarce moonlight outside, Aoyama’s godforsaken room walls were burning their way into Jiro and Kaminari’s vision.
Kaminari could make out a few, if not blurry, figures. Two guys sitting in chairs across a table, holding something? Kaminari had no idea, he was just starstruck by this damn room and partially Jiro. For other reasons.
But with rapid blinking, none other than Aoyama, the U.A traitor, and class 1-A’s biggest adversary, Neito Monoma came into focus. Aoyama looked at them with a blank expression.
Monoma's face flushed instantly when Kaminari made eye contact with him. He shut downand stared into the distance, seemingly to avoid eye contact with a member of class 1-A.
Ironic, considering now that Kaminari’s sight had returned back to normal, and he noticed a few things. One, they were both sitting at a table, holding cups of tea. Two, they were both deep in conversation before Jiro and Kaminari broke through their window.
Clearly, this was meant to be a secret interaction between the two boys. And the other two had invaded their tea party, from their observation.
Jiro blinked a few times. “We won’t tell.” “Agreed.” Everyone in that room had come to a silent agreement. Kaminari got to his feet and so did Jiro. They slowly stepped out of the door, since it was still unlocked.
Once they walked a few feet out of the room, they exhaled loudly. The tension didn’t allow them to breathe.
“That may have been the wrong floor,” Jiro admitted. “How do you climb up a ladder to the wrong floor?” Kaminari smirked. “It’s not my fault Aoyama had blackout curtains.” “He’s had them since last week. I thought everyone knew!” he said.
“I haven’t stayed up late in the dorms since last week! I forgot the layout,” she retorted.
Kaminari was now curious. “Why did you stay up tonight?” he asked. She looked at the floor. “Because things happened today, and I… had to think…” Her voice trailed off.
Kaminari’s noticed her go quiet and his expression softened. “Are you still worrying about Mineta?” he asked. Before she could answer, he replied. “Don’t. And you don't need to thank me for what I said.”
Jiro nodded, her eyes glazed over. That morning was a lot for her. Her insecurities had engulfed her before she could stop them and she lashed out on Mineta. Sure, he may have deserved it, but her morals told her otherwise.
She could never thank Kaminari enough. He’d saved her from herself more times than he could count. She’d done the same as well, though she didn’t believe it.
She then changed the subject, because she was on the verge of tears now, and she wanted to tell Kaminari everything she felt right then and there. But she had to save it for later or never, because they were right outside someone’s dorm, and this was poor timing in general. They’d started walking up the set of stairs that led to their floor.
“Why do you hang out with Mineta in the first place?” She accused him, pointing a finger at him. “I feel… What's the word for when you feel like you have to do something even though you probably don’t have to? I know it starts with an O.” he answered.
She looked at him, really considering how stupid he could be. “Obligated?” She said, dragging out the word to mock him. “Middle school word, by the way,” she teased, smiling. “Hey! Not everyone is as smart as a middle schooler, Jiro.” “Kaminari, you’re digging yourself deeper.” She laughed out loud.
“You make me feel so much smarter.” “If that’s what it takes,” he grinned despite himself. Sometimes, he acted dumb(er) when she was sad to make her feel better. It was worth his damaged reputation to see her smile after she had a rough day.
“Anyway, I feel bad for him, so yea, I feel obligated to be his friend.” “I thought it was because you’re a pervert.” “Excuse me? I don’t hold a candle to Mineta’s level of weirdness. I haven't harassed anyone."
“And I thank the higher ups every day. You should too.” “Ugh. You’re so mean.” “You like it. You pervert.” He just groaned. Any response would get him hit upside the head or mercilessly taunted. She was right too. She was hilarious, and he enjoyed it a lot. Even if he was most often the source of her jokes.
They finally reached her dorm and she opened the door. She flopped onto her bed and spread her arms like a starfish. Kaminari just sat at her small recording desk with the chair that spins.
He put his feet up on the desk and his eyes flickered back and forth across her room. He forgot how cool it was to him when he first saw it. The red and black design tickled his brain in a certain way.
He was easily entertained. He pushed off the desk with his feet like a rocket and his chair flew into the amp and he fell backwards. She choked on her laughter. “Dumbass,” she laughed, reaching for her bass. She sat up and slung the strap over her shoulder.
Denki tried getting up, to no avail, because he was laughing like mad too. She started to play, and Kaminari suddenly had full control of his body. Suspicious. He got up on the chair again, and watched her play.
Kaminari had given up on hiding it. He was lovesick to the point where Jiro’s every action was deeply interesting.
Once he turned around and dropped everything when she hit her knee on a desk in the middle of class. Sero waggled his eyebrows at him when he looked back at him after Jiro said she was fine. And Sero continued giving him the side eye for the rest of the day.
He still did that to this day and it pissed him off because he was right.
“Can you still play the flute?” He said this as he looked at the corner of the room, where a flute sat against the wall. Clearly, Jiro didn’t want the flute displayed.
“Yeah. Barely. I don’t know why I still keep this thing. I hate it,” she said, walking over and grabbing it, manhandling the flute by the barrel.
“Can you play it now?” He was now shamefully lying on her bed, one arm braced against his cheek. He kept wandering around the room, unable to stay still. He was practically rolling on the floor at this point.
“Fine.” She put it up to her lips, still holding it the way she was, and dejectedly blew into it. A strangled C sharp came out.
“Told you.” “You put no effort into that!” “I also told you, I hate this thing.”
“Why do you hate it?” he asked. She looked at him, tired yet smiling. “I always hated the flute. I had no choice.” The funny thing is, she could call it quits and ask him to go back to his dorm right now. But she didn’t want to. This was now a game she was willing to play, and win.
Were there any winners in love, though? Did they both lose, or win? What was winning even like? Hopefully she’d find out.
God, thoughts like these made her head hurt. Not ideal in the dead of night.
“Do you remember my reason for joining the band back then?” she started. “Nope.” He wondered where this was going. “I had two reasons. One was my love for music,” she said, looking around her room, clear proof of her words.
“But the other was you.”
He went silent and red began to blossom on his face. He stammered out a “thank you”. She let out a laugh. That was another thing. Her voice was wonderful. He loved listening to her, whether she was singing, speaking up for herself, or if she was laughing at something someone said.
“That surprised you, didn’t it?” It did, but based on her expression after, Kaminari realized she was being genuine. He stared at her, starstruck. “Yeah.” She crossed her legs and started playing her bass.
Eventually, she started humming and the bass slowly started into “Misery Business”. And, she started singing.
“I’m in the business of misery, let’s take it from the top. She’s got a body like an hourglass, it’s ticking like a clock, it’s a matter of time before we all run out, when I thought he was mine, she caught him by the-”
“You sing so well.” He said this while laying on the floor, grinning like an idiot. Honestly, how did she not put two and two together yet?
She stopped playing and leaned down at him. “This is your kink, isn’t it?” She whispered mockingly, but made it sound reassuring. “WH-” He pointed at her, trying to desperately defend himself. “Knew it. Voice kink.”
“You have so many secrets,” she began playing her bass again. “You do too.” “Bet you have more.”
“Okay, we both have a lot of secrets,” he reasoned. “Truce?”
He held his pinky up towards Jiro. A pinky promise. She rolled her eyes, but she smiled and put hers up as well.
“Truce,” they both said as they linked their fingers together. “Just for the night,” she told him, grinning mischievously. He laughed in response.