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After Egypt, it feels like everything in Kujo Jotaro’s life is… insignificant. So out of place.
Then there was Kakyoin. Kakyoin, who was doing his damndest to recover. Who raised his middle finger to Fate and Destiny itself and fucking lived to tell the tale. A little light in the dark expanse of post-Egypt reality.
Kakyoin, who he visits every single week like clockwork. Kakyoin–
Who’s on his bed right in front of Jotaro. Bored as hell and definitely not in the mood to fuck around.
Jotaro grunts, "Hey."
"Hey yourself ." A smile, just the tips of Kakyoin’s lips turn up, but it’s still a smile. Jotaro feels his confidence waver. There’s something tugging at the ends of Jotaro’s gakuran.
"Looks like Hierophant missed you too," Kakyoin says, the green ropelike stand already curling up Kakyoin's bed and snaking his way to Jotaro’s leg.
"You good?" Jotaro asks again. Hierophant Green pulls away from Jotaro, all of his threads hiding under the western-style bed, “Hierophant?”
Kakyoin only scoffs, "Hierophant’s okay, still takes a bit to maintain human shape but it’s getting better. I’ve been through shittier times, Jotaro. Like that time I wasn’t eating solid food. God. I missed out on ice cream. On my birthday . I missed cherry season, Jotaro . ”
“That was two months ago. You were recovering. We could go to the ice cream shop right now,” Jotaro snarks back, pulling a chair closer to Kakyoin's bed and sitting there. “Since when did cherry eating become your entire personality?”
“Ever since Singapore. And Ryoko did tell me that the ice cream was good,” Kakyoin mumbles, “What, you gonna bridal-carry me the entire way? That fan club of yours might mob me to death, Jotaro.”
Jotaro clicks his tongue, “Won’t let them. You’re too important.”
Laughter. It sounds nice, hearing Kakyoin this carefree, “Never imagined that you have a soft spot for little ol’ me. I’m kinda touched.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Jotaro asks. Kakyoin's hands are warm when they brush fingers. There's more color on his face where there was not much when Cairo happened.
“Okay, fair point.” Kakyoin shrugs. He'd managed to pull himself to a ln almost half-sitting position, hints of red, angry scarring when he moves.
“Gimme a fucking break.” Jotaro says. “Anything hurt today?”
“Does what’s left of my stomach count?” Kakyoin snorts, "Then again, it always hurts. A lot better now, used to be on painkillers 24/7."
“Good grief. May I?” Jotaro asks, his hand hovers over Kakyoin’s pajama top, right around where the scar is. "You don't have to if you really don't want to."
“Trying to get me naked, Kujo? Not adverse to the idea by the way, surprised it took you a few months to ask,” Kakyoin replies, complete with eyebrow wiggling and everything. Jotaro shakes off a thought that shouldn't be about his totally platonic best friend Kakyoin.
It’s taking all of Jotaro’s self control to not scream. He averts his eyes, a shaky hand going to grip the rim of his hat by instinct, “Jesus Christ. I–”
“I’m just kidding. It’s alright if you look, it’s you, ” Kakyoin replies, “We’ve done worse, like. Murder someone and hide the body kinda bad. Might look a little weird though since I don’t really have a belly button anymore. Skin grafts and all that jazz.”
“ That’s what you’re concerned with?”
“Yeah, not having a belly button is weird,” Kakyoin muses. He looks straight into Jotaro’s eyes, “That weird to you?”
“You didn’t have a digestive system for a day or two. Your belly button should be the least of your priorities.” Jotaro lifts up the thin fabric. Kakyoin’s torso is understandably a mess, albeit better than Jotaro thought it would be. True to Kakyoin’s word, he also does not have a belly button now, “It’s not that bad.”
Jotaro, against his better judgment, pokes at an red spot. Kakyoin hisses like an overgrown cat.
"Ow."
"Sorry. Was just curious."
If glares could kill, Kujo Jotaro would be a dead man right about now. Thankfully, the expression softens after a good five seconds of dead air. Kakyoin tugs his shirt down, obscuring the scar, “Actually, 'm not sure what they did to the internal shit but I’m pretty much set for now. But gee, thanks. Ryoko almost threw up on me when she first saw it.”
“She’s seven, Kakyoin. Cut the kid some slack," Jotaro points out.
“Yeah, but still." Kakyoin does some vague hand gestures, swatting at air like a madman. "Also, speaking of that kid, she wrote a while back. She’s asking about you. Told her that it was none of her business.”
“Really now?”
“Nah, I told her you were planning to major in marine biology. She told me to tell you that she thinks it’s boring as hell.”
“Tell her that lobsters piss at each other to talk. Maybe she’d change her mind."
“Hm. Maybe I will. Don’t worry about it, she called me a nerd when I told her I was considering something in tech. I think she spent too much time with you.”
“It was three hours max. Whatever it is, it’s not my fault. Besides, kid's related to you. Pretty okay companion too, given everything," Jotaro says.
“Glad to hear that you have a new favorite Kakyoin," Kakyoin replies in the most deadpan voice Jotaro's ever heard. "Whatever shall I do with my deep, intense feelings for you, Kujo?"
Cue dramatic sigh and a snicker. Jotaro could only choke back a fit of laughter.
"Hey." Jotaro play-punches the redhead's shoulder. Kakyoin hisses at the impact. "She's not the one I went to Egypt with. You jealous?"
“Jus’ happy that I’m not competing with a seven year old for your affections.”
“So you are jealous,” Jotaro repeats.
“You do know I've liked you for a while, right, Jotaro?" Kakyoin asks him, like he's not dropping an information bomb into Jotaro's hands.
Jotaro is trying to keep his composure intact, hands balled into fists and shoved down pockets that shouldn't exist. This is a weird development. Yeah. Weird. Definitely not the outcome he wanted, right?
"Since when?" Jotaro asks, dumbstruck and stupid. "What?"
"Holy shit, I thought I was being obvious. Hah. I am definitely not embarrassed by this revelation. Jotaro, I've been flirting at you for months."
There was a lot of nervous laughter. A lot, even for Kakyoin. Oh. He's actually serious about this. Fuck.
Jotaro sighs, hand on his neck, "Answer the damn question, Kakyoin."
"Since you pulled out that flesh bud, really. I almost died, Jotaro. You saved me. Who wouldn't fall a bit in love?” Kakyoin sighs, a small, apologetic smile of sorts on his face, “If I died in Egypt I think I’d have a few regrets. Not telling you that I liked you would be uh, number three at least.”
"No, no. It's just. I think I like you too."
"You big fucking sap. I can't believe this shit. What, you see me half-dead and thought yeah he's actually kinda cute all beaten up? Come here, you asshole." Kakyoin laughs at the morbid thought. Jotaro sighs for what feels like the thousandth time today but he relents.
He inches a bit closer, sitting on the side of Kakyoin's bed. They're close enough to touch, "Kakyoin–"
Kakyoin laughs, "Noriaki, Jotaro. Call me Noriaki. Feels a little weird that you still call me by my last name after everything that’s happened."
“Stop joking about it, Noriaki.” The sound of his name is foreign to Jotaro’s lips, but it’s his name and it feels like it has always belonged there.
"Noriaki," Jotaro repeats. It feels nice to say. Noriaki. Noriaki. Noriaki.
“That’s more like it,” Kakyoin– no, Noriaki, mumbles straight to Jotaro’s ear. His breath is warm, and Jotaro trembles where their skin touches. "No promises 'bout the jokes though, fun seeing you get flustered like that."
(What the fuck does that mean?)
“I’ve never done this before,” Jotaro admits.
“What? Kissing? Falling in love? You gotta be more specific, I think,” Noriaki teases, a hint of a smile on his face. He pulls Jotaro closer, their noses almost touching. Jotaro’s heart starts to beat faster and faster and–
Oh.
Is this what those girls feel whenever he’s close?
No, it can’t be– Jotaro never showed them the kindness and the easy companionship that Noriaki has to him. Maybe that was a measly reproduction of what he feels right now. Wow. Love. Who'd have thought?
(Much later, Joseph Joestar will pat them both on the back and tell them that the pining stage was too difficult to see in real time. They both raise their middle fingers to the old man and tell him to fuck off.)
“Both?” Jotaro blurts out.
Noriaki laughs, a small yet so all-encompassing thing, he scratches the back of his neck, averting his gaze, “Don’t worry, I haven’t done this too. If I’m being honest. I’m kinda scared. Uh. Really scared. And uh, I like you. You already know that.”
“Don’t be. It’s just me, right?” Jotaro reassures.
“You dumbass. God. Now I’m fucking embarrassed. Yeah, this is great. Nice. Uh. Yeah.” Noriaki flushes red. Cherry red. He buries his red, red face into his equally red hands. It’s fucking adorable. He laughs again, stilted and rough and awkwardly endearing, “Kiss me? I mean you don’t have to it’s just nice if you could k–”
"Shut up for one second, okay?"
It isn't perfect nor is it ideal. This was something to be hidden away in the deepest recesses of Noriaki's room. This is all awkward limbs and stares from two teenage boys that haven't settled completely into their own selves.
But it feels right, maybe that's all that matters right now. Maybe it's all that would matter in the future. It feels right when Jotaro gently eases Noriaki’s hands away from his face. It feels right when Jotaro closes the distance between them. It feels right when Noriaki reciprocates. Jotaro feels like he could melt into the other boy's arms forever.
"Hey," Noriaki drawls, pulling away from a soft peck of lips on lips.
"Hey yourself," Jotaro scoffs, warmth creeping into his cheeks. The hard edges of his tone melts like ice cream on a hot day. He closes in for another stolen kiss, and Noriaki rests a hand on Jotaro’s equally warm cheek.
Noriaki laughs. He buries his face into Jotaro, “Nah, it’s alright. Stay a while?" Noriaki asks, breathing warm and alive where it grazes Jotaro's ear. His hand is over where Jotaro’s heart is.
If there were any more walls in between them, it would've faltered from that alone. Jotaro sighs, a small smile on his face, "Alright."