Forgive And Forget (Kamijirou)

Chapter Ten: Crunch Time

"An adequate work partner, adequate Sero," Kaminari exclaimed with clear frustration.

It was around 3:25 PM, each member of the team had actually been interviewed for the public briefing, but between everyone, Jirou had spent most of the allotted time at that podium. Sero and Kaminari were both within the break room, finding something to drink or eat.

"Why do you sound like you care so much?"

"Because, Sero, it means I'm enough. Not that I'm good, or honest, or intelligent-" Kaminari pressed.

"Intelligent?" Sero snorted.

"Stop, stop, that's not my point," Kaminari found his friend trying to hide an amused smile. "She said Ashido was charismatic and intuitive, she said Goto was precise and perceptive, she said you were direct and straightforward, and she hasn't even worked with you yet," Kaminari shook his head and folded his arms across his chest.

"So what you're saying is, you're jealous?" Sero cocked his head with a telling smirk.

"No, I'm not," Kaminari defended himself, shifting his eyes toward a random wall. "Why would she say that about you and say 'adequate' for me?" Kaminari said with a stinging bitterness.

"You just have a really annoying personality," Sero joked, taking a sip of his cup of water.

"You're not helping," the blond rolled his eyes. "Because of that, it'll look like I'm just here to fill a spot on the team, not because I'm actually worthy of making it here, don't you get it?"

A few distant voices ceased their conversation. Sero looked up from his cup, finding the 3 women from their team all talking with one another.

"Don't look now, but I think a certain someone's coming," Sero dipped his eyes back to his cup to finish the water. Kaminari sat at a seat across from Sero with a sigh, pretending to ignore the 3 who walked in. Although, Ashido made that hard.

"Hey, someone said there was a cheesecake, there better be more slices left," Ashido's joyful attitude fluttered into the room, it was enough to mask the cold aura Jirou held as she stepped in next.

"I don't know, maybe a little left," Sero shrugged, sitting back in his chair.

Ashido swung open the fridge to find enough for two leftover slices, taking the plastic tray out.

"Either of you want any?" Ashido turned to Karada then Jirou, whisking 3 forks from a drawer.

"A few bites, I'm not eating a whole slice," Karada took a fork from her, handing the last to Jirou.

"OooOoh, it's strawberry," Ashido dug around for a knife, slicing a small portion for Karada and placing it on a plate.

"When Sergeant said 9 to 3 I didn't expect it to actually go 9 to 3," Karada took her plate and leant against the counter. "Jirou, do you normally have press conferences as chaotic as those?"

Jirou blew air from her nose with a smile.

So you're smiling for Karada now too? Kaminari felt another pang of jealousy as he turned back to his drink.

"I honestly think this was one of my more pleasant ones," Jirou responded, sticking her fork into her slice.

"Seriously? Ignition is so off the media now that we rarely get press conferences," Ashido got her own plate, tossing the emptied tray into the trash bin nearby.

"We were never as popular as a place like Rev, but when I was younger, Ignition was all the way up there, next to Windbreak and Illumity," Karada seemed to muse, lost in a nostalgic daydream.