Chapter Text
Grocery shopping in another country was always strange, even when Avdol had visited a country as often as he did Japan. They hadn’t had cause to so far, living in a hotel room meant they had to eat every meal out, and they both had packed enough for atleast a month – expecting that to be the longest they’d stay. Now they were running out of toothpaste and other essentials, evidence of Avdol’s miscalculation. Another unexpected need was baby food and nappies – both things they went through at a rate of knots. It was a shame that they’d had to split up – Avdol cursed his lack of foresight in forgetting how curious people were about babies – but he’d be done shopping soon, as their list of needs was mercifully short. He’d been looking forward to being able to go out with Adilah, to be able to watch her interact with the world. It worried him, that her control of her stand hadn’t improved, even though he knew he was probably being paranoid. Most children with stands that manifested from birth couldn’t control them at all until they were at least a year old – really he should take it as a victory that she’d only expanded the field of her invisibility twice since Joseph had left her with them.
He turned the corner, preoccupied by his current train of thought, and almost slammed his trolley into Okuyasu, carrying a stack of 9-packs of toilet roll so tall they obscured most of his face. The kid jumped back, sending the top layers of toilet roll cascading into Avdol’s trolley.
“I’m sorry Mr. Avdol! I didn’t see you there!” Okuyasu apologised, trying to pick up the packs he’d dropped without dropping any more. Avdol laughed and moved to help the boy, stacking the toilet paper with ease.
“Don’t worry about it – I should have been looking where I was going.”
“Good afternoon Mr. Avdol – I’m sorry about that.” Josuke said, walking up to him, similarly laden with toilet roll. Avdol knew that Okuyasu had to do the shopping for his own household – but even then the boys had far too much toilet roll to justify with household use. He could guess pretty easily exactly what the boys were planning to use it for, but he decided to feign ignorance instead.
“Why are you two buying so much toilet roll?”
“Oh, we’re gonna chuck a bunch of it at Rohan’s house.” Okuyasu answered, far to easily. Josuke shook his head at his friend, exasperated.
“Bro…”
“Sorry bro – but Mr. Avdol’s cool, I swear.”
Avdol did his best to pretend he didn’t hear that last bit, though it did give him a feeling of immense satisfaction. He couldn’t say he exactly disapproved of their plan – it was a harmless prank and it wasn’t like he particularly liked Kishibe. Still, it was probably his responsibility as an adult to at least check why the boys were doing this.
“Why are you going to throw toilet paper at Mr. Kishibe’s house?” Okuyasu blinked, and then replied simply.
“Oh, it’s revenge.”
That explained absolutely nothing.
“For what?”
“Well, when we first met him he was using his stand to mess with Koichi, and then when I tried to stop him he tried to make me set myself on fire. Josuke kicked his ass though, so Koichi and I were ok.” Avdol blinked, trying to process that. He wasn’t quite sure what Kishibe’s stand even did, but that seemed like quite an extreme first impression.
“He tried to set you on fire?”
Okuyasu nodded, and then shuddered.
“Basically. His stand can make you do stuff – it’s real creepy.” That was enough for Avdol – he’d set his own fair share of people on fire before, but only ever as a last resort. It was a horrible way to die, and to threaten a child with that was awful. There was no way Okuyasu had done anything even close to justifying that sort of threat. Avdol nodded, then addressed the boys.
“Put the toilet paper back.”
Okuyasu and Josuke both deflated at that, turning to put their spoils back. Avdol continued, and they turned back.
“We’re getting eggs.”
---
“I told you Mr. Avdol was cool – he even paid for the eggs!” Okuyasu whispered cheerfully, pumping his fist in the air, careful not to disturb the shopping bag hanging from the crook of his elbow, lest he damage the fragile contents.
“You got me there bro.” Josuke agreed, carrying his own plastic grocery bag. Avdol pretended he couldn’t hear the boys as they walked ahead of him, leading the way to Kishibe’s house. It was sweet, watching them interact without the looming threat of an enemy stand user – and though Okuyasu had definitely relaxed since he’d confessed his crush to Avdol, it was still clear to him that the boy was on edge around Josuke. Not exactly uncomfortable, but anxious with an innocent sort of anticipation. Avdol wasn't sure exactly how Josuke felt about his friend, or even how he would react if he found out the truth – not that any of that seemed important right now. But the boys were clearly very close, and Okuyasu’s regard seemed natural.
Avdol wished he’d had a friendship like that when he was their age. He hadn’t been all that alone as a teenager, or he had, actually, but had found it too embarrassing to acknowledge at the time. Either way, he didn’t have that kind of closeness with anyone his age at the time. In hindsight, the isolation wasn’t nearly as shameful as he’d felt it was at the time – one of the many benefits of nearing 40 was the distance it put between yourself and teenage awkwardness. It also made sense to him now, why he’d been so lonely. As a teenager he’d been so terrified of being caught out, of friends and family figuring out there was something wrong with him, that he never showed more interest than simple politeness in other people. And then he’d been convinced that the reason he was alone was because there was something wrong with him, stuck in an anxious cycle that only broke when he moved 2000 miles away from home. It was cathartic then, seeing the way Josuke and Okuyasu had such open and sincere regard for each other.
Both boys stopped, staring up at the house ahead of them. Now that they were here, they seemed sheepish and awkward, unsure of how to start. Avdol shook his head gently – for all the boys’ bravado they suddenly seemed far too straight laced. He pulled a single egg from the top carton in Okuyasu’s bag, gripping it in his right hand, and pulled his arm back, letting it sail through the air. The egg landed perfectly on a second story window, cracking wetly, and Okuyasu and Josuke cheered behind him, pulling out their own eggs, ready to follow his example.
---
“I told you Kishibe was a dick.” Avdol declared, looking rather pointedly at his partner. Polnareff shrugged in agreement, conceding to his point.
“I can’t argue with that. I think he’s more unhinged than actually evil but that’s still fucked. His heart’s in the right place. Sometimes.” He looked unsure of that last point, and took a bite of his ice cream to avoid continuing his train of thought.
“No, Mr. Avdol’s right. He’s a dick.” Josuke piped up from ahead of them – after they’d egged Kishibe’s house they’d met back up with Polnareff, and he and Avdol had offered to buy the boys ice cream. They were walking to a nearby park now, wanting to make the most of the summer heat before it got unbearable.
“Probably. Still, he seems pretty committed to hunting down the serial killer, so I’m not gonna try to piss him off too much.” Polnareff countered, not particularly eager to make an enemy of the man just yet, even if it were primarily for Reimi’s sake.
“I’m afraid that ship has already sailed in my case.” Avdol added with a small grin. Polnareff rolled his eyes at his partner – anyone who thought Avdol was the sensible one of them was profoundly mistaken. He acted serious, but underneath that he could be just as childish as Polnareff.
“You always do this.”
“Yes, because it’s always funny.” Avdol challenged, and Polnareff laughed at his partner. He was right, of course.
“It is very funny.” He conceded, and his hand found Avdol’s quietly. Josuke wasn’t particularly looking back at them, and it felt worth it right now.