It was a bit nerve-wracking, waiting to meet others.

That was what Mitsuteru knew as he sat in one of the common areas within Border.

Kane-shima: "Hey, stop your fidgeting. You're making Rokuta a nervous wreck."

He was quick to look around the area, trying to find where his former teammates could be watching him from.

The plan had been to come by himself after Shigenaga had told him that she wanted him to meet her squad.

When he heard that she had joined a squad he had been excited for her. Happy in knowing that she was taking a step forward by trusting herself with others instead of just himself. What she had failed to mention was that she wanted him to meet her squad in order to see if he could join them.

Ever since the sudden disbandment and loss of his first squad he had been moving from one squad to another, each time letting his squad know that he was more of a provisional member than anything else. They had mostly taken it well, some only speaking out to ask if he had wanted to join completely.

He had rejected them each time. None of those squads had felt right to him.

But there was one squad in particular that did not seem to hold back from telling him that he was idiot while also continually trying to get him to join them.

Daybreak: "I'm sorry for the trouble, Rika-san."

6Ri: "No no no! It's nothing you are doing, Mittsun-san!"

I doubt that, he thought.

Urushima Squad had been the only squad he had joined and left that continued to try and get him to join them once more. While Rika had seen him off with a smile, Wataru had not stopped trying to get him to join them. Each time he had used excuses or even money to try and get him to join.

He gave a slight laugh at remembering those times.

For Wataru-kun to go to such lengths for someone like me... He can be a bit much. Still, I did enjoy him time with them. And we're still on good terms.

Even if they were no longer his squad he had thought that they were the only other ones he was close to besides his classmates and Shigenaga. Having them around felt more freeing and released some tension that tended to build up.

Knowing that they were still looking out for him here brought up a bit of warmth.

They are good people. He had found them a bit away, so they could likely only see him and not hear him. Oh, I really am making Rika-san nervous here, aren't I?

Wataru was probably helping her to calm down while keeping an eye on the chat.

It felt nice to know that they were there for him.

"You must be Ariake-kun. The friend Shigeko talks about."

.

Seiji had finally found him. The boy his teammate had spoken about before.

It had been difficult to find the boy when he there was not much of a presence when compared to everyone around him. The only way he knew who it was had been due to the way he had looked over to Urushima Squad off to the side.

Well that is surprising. Shigeko had said that he was nothing special but I didn't expect him to be this plain.

...It kind of make same want to tease him a bit.

But then Shigenaga would get on him for messing with her friend like that.

He also seemed like a decent person.

"Yes, I am. Hello, Meishō-san."

That was new. Most people tended to stare at him in shock before giving exaggerated responses. It had always been due to his former career.

Yet this boy bowed like a normal person and responded like a normal person.

"Thanks for looking out for Shigeko. I appreciate it.I know how she can be a bit rough, but she always means well."

"She had been helping a lot, so it's no problem at all."

"That's good to hear. Uh, sorry if this is a bit forward, but...can we get to why we're both here?"

Oh?

He was speaking casually while also seeming polite. It was a general politeness that strangers took with each other instead of someone looking on at someone like him.

This only went to show why Shigenaga had decided to be friends with this boy.

He likely makes her feel comfortable simply by speaking so casually with her.

So to return that casual politeness he smiled and seated himself.

"Yes. Let's."

.

6Ri: "M-M-M-Mittsun-san, do you know who that is!?"

Daybreak: "Shigeko's captain?"

Kane-shima: "I'm not getting paid enough for this..."

Daybreak: "Are you taking money from Rika-san? Wataru-kun, do we need to have another talk?"

Kane-shima: "I don't wanna have that kind of talk with you again! It was bad enough hearing it for the first time!"

It really was, Mitsuteru thought as he remembered how red the both had been by the end of it.

Now that I think about it... How did our talk of his money addiction get to the point that it did?

Rika had not been there at the time but the both of them had informed her of what had happened. It would do no good to have her out of the loop.

But that was then and this was now. There was someone who he had to speak with and he didn't want any bias to come into play here.

Daybreak: "So, I'm guessing this guy has some importance. But don't tell me anything yet, Rika-san. I would rather talk to him as another Border member than anything else."

6Ri: "...Okay. I will wait to say anything particular."

Kane-shima: "Hey, don't go selling yourself short like that again. You have at least some value. If you didn't then I wouldn't have bothered to try and get you to join us permanently."

It was the closest thing to a compliment he would be getting from Wataru, so he decided to take it.

With his focus back on Meishō in front of him, he could see that he did have the feeling of being important to him. The way he held himself and even his appearance was that of someone who held much more value than he did.

He felt a bit of jealousy at that and quickly squashed it before it got out of hand.

Taking in a breath he felt his tension start to build up again. Releasing the breath through from his nose he felt that tension leave his body.

"A breathing technique? Maybe to calm down?"

"Something like that..."

"I see," Meishō nodded. "Maybe to get rid of some of that stress? You are like how Shigeko described, but seeing you for myself is enough to tell that you really are filled with tension."

"It's a bad habit of mine to collect tension. Shigeko tries to help with that, but she tends to add to it."

"Has that always been the case?"

"No. I was pretty tension-free up until-"

His first squad.

"-some time ago. At some point I had started getting tense more often than not. It really sucks, but it is what it is."

"I can tell you how to relieve some that of that stress, if you would like."

"That would be pretty nice. Maybe later."

"Of course."

They had gotten off topic, but that was fine.

"So, if you don't mind me asking, how is Shigeko getting along with your squad? She tells me the more general or statistical side of things, but I want to make sure she is fine with you all."

"Oh? What a nice dad she has."

"Ha ha ha. I guess I would come off that way." He could feel some more tension build up, but stopped himself from letting out another breath. "She just has a hard time all around, so I want to make sure she is fine. You know, from one friend to another."

"And she feels the same way about you."

"Huh?"

He had stop at that one.

It was not to tease him or catch him off guard. Meishō was saying something he knew as fact and planned to go somewhere with it.

"She spoke about how much of a normal person you are. About how you ended up with a squad far beyond what you should have had to deal with, which led to some issues stemming from that. Now you are refusing to join any one squad for too long, likely afraid of something else happening."

"...So she told you all of that, huh?"

"Not all of that. Some of it I had come myself while speaking to you here."

He was sharp.

Mitsuteru knew what it looked like for someone to be so sharp that they could figure things out from a casual conversation. This person was someone who could accomplish that without giivng anything away.

In its own way, that was terrifying.

The tension in his body began to hurt, starting from his neck and shoulders.

...I should get away.

Before he found his chance, Meishō continued to speak, smiling all the while.

"I decided to look into you myself. Your record is nothing special, nothing that sticks out when compared to others. The squads you had been a part of had all been bottom tier of B-Ranks, yet you still didn't stay with them. That has me interested, but I stopped before going too deep into anything."

"Hearing someone say they're interested in me kind of freaks me out. I'm nothing so special as to catch other peoples' interests. I barely catch their line of sight most of the time."

"The plain and simple nature of yours is what's interesting. Border has a lot of strange and extravagant people in it, yet here you are. I don't know what kind of squad you had been in at first, but the fact you remained here means that you still think that it's worth it to be here."

"It's more of an after school activity than anything else. I didn't join Border because of some want to help others or a need to fight Neighbors. ...Someone had suggested it to me, I took it up with my parents, now here I am."

"That only makes it better."

A loud clap filled the space as Meishō smiled toward him and stood up.

He wanted to get away while he could, but the look he was getting held him in place.

Off to the side he could hear a chair scrapping the floor violently and the sound of someone being nervous. Nothing happened after that, meaning that the two off to the side were ready for something but stopped before acting on it.

"I do want you on my squad now. But I won't be pushing you to it. I won't be using Shigenaga against you either, so no need to worry about that."

"Then..."

"It was nice meeting you, Ariake-kun. We should talk some more later on."

"R-right... Nice to meet you too..."

Meishō gave him one more smile before walking away.

.

Mitsuteru released a heavy breath he had been holding in before slumping down into his chair.

The entire conversation had been short, but it had also been tension filled from start to finish.

Now that he could take a few breaths he felt just how much tension really had built up in his body. His neck and shoulders were stiff while his stomach churned in an uncomfortable way.

"Mittsun-san, are you okay?"

"I am, thanks. Sorry to worry you, Rika-san," he said while rubbing his shoulders.

Both Wataru and Rika had moved over to his table once Meishō had left and were looking down at him. Their expressions were what he expected to see.

Wataru-kun is mad at me and Rika-san is worried for me.

He let out another breath.

It's been awhile since I was part of their squad and yet they still act like this.

He was glad that they were still on good enough terms that this was the case, but he felt bad for the way he got them to react like this every time something came up with him.

"So who was that, anyways? I only know him as Shigeko's captain, nothing else."

"Do you watch any movies?"

"I'll admit to not watching that many movies. Only anime ones really."

"That explains it." Wataru sighed at him but made no other movement. That meant he wasn't charging for this information. "That was Meishō Seiji - a former famous actor who quit to join Border."

That explained his importance. It was not a full value on Border itself, but the people around him probably enjoyed having him around. Famous people joining Border sounded like it would be a given, but this had been the first time he was hearing about it.

He felt like freaking out might have been in order, but his body was too stiff for that kind of movement right now. Besides...

Even if he was an actor, I know some pretty extraordinary people who can easily outmatch that.

He gave a bitter laugh at his memory before waving off the other two's concerns.

"I guess we'll see what happens next then."

"You better not join them."

Mitsuteru looked up to see Wataru glaring down at him.

"If you join them, it makes it harder for me to get you back to us."

That was the chance he had been waiting for.

With a start, Mitsuteru jumped to his feet and reached for Wataru. With how sudden it had been, he was quick to catch the Gunner and get him into a loose headlock.

"You really miss me that much? Aw~ I knew you cared about me, Wataru-kun!"

A month.

It had been a month since Meishō had gone to meet him. Within that time he had ended up meeting the other two members of Meishō Squad while Shigenaga spoke to him about it. She never pressured him into joining, only saying what they were already capable of.

Now that the month had gone by, and he understood what the squad was like, he stood before the door to their operating room.

In his hand was his phone, messages behind the lock screen he had set.

Yes: "Nice job finding a more solid squad!"

3o: "Have fun with them. We'll see you in the rank wars soon, right?"

Other Zō: "Let us know if anything happens."

The captains from the other squads he had joined also sent their regards to him concerning his decision. Each one of them supported his choice here and backed him up as much as they could.

All except for one.

Kane-shima: "I hate you."

It had been a bitter pill to swallow once he confirmed that Wataru had been serious about his words there.

When he received the message he had thought that it was strange, but played it off as nothing particular. Likely something having to do with what Wataru thought he owed him.

It was only when they meet back up that he realized those words were true. The atmosphere had been suffocating and there had been no time for any sort of fun. All that had been there was a glare sent his way and a confirmation of what he had been sent.

Mitsuteru let out a breath as he thought back to that.

A few slaps to his cheeks pushed that memory back. It would do no good to meet his new and permanent squad with a bad mindset.

Whatever had came up for Wataru could be put off for later.

With a final breath, he gathered his nerves and reached for the door.

Once it was open...

"Welcome to your new operating room, Ariake-kun."