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When Josuke woke up, everything was normal. He was still the first one awake in the house (to do his hair), and his mom still had a breakfast (if minimal) ready by the time she had to leave for work. Regular, every day sort of stuff. Even Okuyasu showing up early was fairly normal, as Tomoko always tried to make a little extra food for him.
“Josuke, Okuyasu’s here!” She clicked her tongue, hands on her hips, “I swear, if that boy spent half as much time studying as he did on his hair, he could take care of me in a few years.”
Okuyasu laughed, “Do you really want him to cook for you everyday though, Tomoko-obasan?”
“No way! He’ll have such a high paying job that he can afford to take me out every night. That’s the kind of son I’ve strived so hard to raise!”
Upstairs, Josuke could hear the the faint sounds of his best friend and his mom’s banter. They get along way too well, he thought, standing in front of the door of his room. Turning the doorknob seemed an impossible feat. Any other day, he would have already been downstairs, moaning that his mom treated Okuyasu better than her own son. What the hell’s wrong with me? It’s just Okuyasu and mom. Only, it wasn’t just Okuyasu anymore. The person waiting for him, the person who had come early to pick him up and walk to school with him, was his BOYFRIEND. The previous night, Josuke had felt like he was wrapped up in a blanket of happiness. He had pulled the metaphorical blanket over his head as well as the physical one and slept hard, a deep dreamless sleep carrying him to morning.
Was his mom going to be able to tell? Was Okuyasu going to do something stupid like kiss him or try to hold his hand in front of her? All that Josuke was certain of was that he did not want his mother to know that her only son was dating the boy next door. What had him worried, however, was that Tomoko was perceptive as all hell. Nothing got past her. It was at that moment that Josuke realized that staying in his room for any longer would be even more suspicious than meeting his friend and going to school like usual, so he steeled himself and left.
Okuyasu was watching the stairway as Josuke emerged from the upper level of the Higashikata house, his heart beating a little faster as he saw his friend. He held up a hand in a silent greeting, his mouth full of breakfast.
“Oh good, you’ve decided to join us.” Tomoko directed just a bit of sarcasm at her son as she finished getting ready for work, “Clean up the dishes before you leave, please.”
“Morning to you too, ma.”
“And don’t just let Okuyasu do it, either. I’ll know, because he does a better job than you.” She left the room before Josuke had a chance to defend his dishwashing honour, “Have a good day at school, boys. Love you, Josuke.”
“Love you too.”
“Thanks for breakfast, Tomoko-obasan.”
“You’re welcome!” She opened (and then shut) the front door and was gone.
Josuke tossed his book bag onto the floor, yawning as he sat down at the small Higashikata kitchen table. He began to shovel food in his mouth, trying to ignore the fact that Okuyasu was watching him eat. After a constant couple of minutes, he couldn’t ignore it.
“Dude, do I got something on my face?”
Okuyasu looked like he had snapped out of a trance. “Huh?”
“You’ve been staring at me since I sat down.”
Okuyasu looked a little flustered, “Ain’t my fault you’re so good looking.”
Josuke choked on his food for a second, coughing before he chugged his glass of water to clear the pipes. “Dude!”
Okuyasu leaned back in his chair, ignoring Josuke’s reaction. “Man, it feels good to be able to say that kind of shit out loud. Feels like I’ve been waiting forever to tell you that.”
Josuke looked at his friend (boyfriend), not entirely sure he knew what to say in reply. “...Really?” was all he could manage.
“Well, yeah. You look great every day, dude.” Okuyasu said in an absentminded tone, as if it was just too obvious. He pointed to Josuke’s now-empty bowls of breakfast, “Better start cleaning that up or else your mom’ll be pissed when she gets home.” He got out of his chair, collecting his own dishes to get them started.
Josuke sat still. “You know, if you’re just saying this shit to make me feel like everything is normal you don’t have to.” He took a deep breath, “I dunno if you really meant what you said yesterday because I don’t want to put you through this if you’re just doing it for me. Like, if you kissed me and meant it then you’re gay too and we’re gonna have to keep this a secret.” Josuke couldn’t bear to turn around and face Okuyasu. He felt extremely vulnerable, but he had to give Okuyasu a chance at a way out. It was only fair.
Okuyasu was silent for a moment, and then walked over to Josuke and bonked him on the head with his fist. “I ain’t the type of guy who lies to his friends. You should know that. If anyone calls you a faggot I’ll erase them with The Hand. If you keep this shit up I’ll erase you with The Hand.” He sighed, “I dunno why you’re so choked up about bein’ gay or whatever either. It’s just a word. If you still like me and if I still like you then it doesn’t matter what it’s called, right? Besides, if you were never really serious about girls in the first place it’s not too big of a change.” He reached past Josuke, grabbing his dishes and muttering something about doing everything himself as he took them over to the sink.
Josuke could feel tears pricking at his eyes. Crying first thing in the morning before classes was very much not great, so he blinked them away and got up from his seat. Okuyasu’s back at the sink looked so broad. Pretty sure that’s what girls think about their boyfriend’s backs...guess it’s ok for me, too. He stepped foreward, his mind racing as he rolled up the sleeves of his uniform. Mom’s gone...you can do this, Josuke...! He pressed his chest against Okuyasu’s back slowly, sliding his arms past the other teenager’s. He rested his chin on Okuyasu’s shoulder and huffed.
“Let me do my own dishes. Don’t be a dick.”
“L-let me get out of the way then!”
“I can see just fine.” Josuke replied by pushing Okuyasu against the counter with his waist, so he could actually reach past the edge of the sink.
“Jooooosuke! You’re playin’ dirty!” Okuyasu whined, although it was completely within his power to escape his current predicament.
“That’ll teach you to treat me so well.” Josuke teased, his worries finally washing away, much like the suds on his dishes as he held them under a stream of hot water. Okuyasu was right, he could totally own this whole gay thing, and even if it was weird at first, there was time. “I dunno what I did to deserve the nicest, best guy in the whole goddamn world, either.”
Before Okuyasu had a chance to reply, Josuke pulled his hands out from the water, and unceremoniously rubbed his wet hands all over the front of Okuyasu’s uniform.
“Dude!” Okuyasu yelped, “I just washed this!”
Josuke laughed, wrapping his arms around Okuyasu’s waist and squeezing. He wanted to hold on forever. Unfortunately for him, however, Okuyasu wasn’t entirely in the moment and was instead searching for a towel, or something similar to alleviate his moisture problem. Josuke heard the familiar sound of The Hand’s half-arc and also the familiar sound of kitchen accessories crashing to the ground.
“Ah, shit, sorry.” Okuyasu attempted to move to clean up after his Stand, before realizing he was still stuck in place. “Josuke, I know you don’t wanna let me go but I gotta pick that shit up, dude.” His tone was apologetic, and Josuke vocalized his displeasure with a loud groan, but let him go all the same. He looked at the kitchen clock, and left to go slip on his loafers at the front door.
“Let’s get going once you’re done, okay?”
Okuyasu appeared a moment later, Josuke’s school bag in his hand. “Forgot your bag, dude.”
Josuke nodded his thanks, taking the bag and spending an extra moment to check out his hair in a small mirror he had begged his mom to install at the door. Satisfied, he pulled open the door and walked out, knowing that Okuyasu would remember to lock it. There was a voice from behind him.
“Josuke?”
He turned, finding Okuyasu standing in the door frame, slight apprehension on his otherwise cheerful face. Somehow, he looked too big for the moderately sized door frame. Josuke was struck by the image of his friend, slightly hunched as was the typical posture for a wannabe thug, his wide shoulders not painting the picture of strength, but of awkward youth. Is this what Keicho saw, when he looked at you, Okuyasu? His thoughts were fleeting, however, and he drove them away to give a proper response.
“What’s up?”
“If...if it really does bother you, then I won’t tell anybody about what we’re doin’.”
Uwahh!! I’m sorry, I’m sorry! “I just kind of want to ease people into it, y’know? It’s not like I’m ashamed of you or anything.” He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed, but offering a smile to let Okuyasu know he wasn’t upset.
Okuyasu considered this for a second. “Makes sense, I guess.” He locked the door and stepped out of the frame, pulling it shut. “Ready to go?”
“Yeah, let’s get going. My homeroom teacher’ll seriously kill me if I’m late again.” He turned back to the street, ready to begin the daily trek. However, he wasn’t about to get very far. Before he had a chance to react, Josuke heard the telltale whoosh of The Hand, and he flew backwards, his head crashing into Okuyasu’s face.
Josuke fell on his ass as Okuyasu clapped a hand over his nose, blood smearing onto both his face and hand. Without missing a beat, Josuke jumped to his feet, ready to give Okuyasu the verbal beating of a lifetime, although it was forgotten the instant he saw blood on his face.
“Here, let me-” Josuke grabbed Okuyasu’s shoulder and urged him closer, Crazy Diamond appearing silently. “The Hand is just way too strong. The hell were you even doing with him?” Josuke paused, “You think Stands can even be male or female?” He mused on this for a moment as Crazy Diamond fixed Okuyasu’s nose, “If your Stand comes from you then it’s probably a dude, right?”
Okuyasu shrugged, prodding at his nose to make sure it was all fixed up. Despite Josuke’s well meaning attempts at banter, he still looked fairly disappointed that his plan to use his Stand to pull Josuke into his arms had failed so spectacularly.
Noticing the dejection on Okuyasu’s face, Josuke immediately devised a plan to do what Crazy Diamond couldn’t. He glanced around quickly, checking to see if there was anybody around. When he was satisfied that nobody was spying on them, he grabbed a fistful of Okuyasu’s uniform and pulled him close, planting a kiss squarely on his nose. Blushing fiercely, Josuke let go and turned away, starting to jog along the path to school. He didn’t turn around when he heard Okuyasu, following after him, instead hoping that his face would cool down first.
“Oi, Josuke! You think you can get away after pullin’ that?”
“I don’t see you doing anything about it!”
Okuyasu’s response was to jump on Josuke’s back, nearly sending them both toppling to the ground. He wrapped his arms around Josuke’s shoulders, giving his friend no chance but to grab on to his legs and support him.
“You’re fucking heavy, man!” Josuke laughed, adjusting until he could comfortably carry Okuyasu.
“One hundred percent muscle, baby!” Okuyasu threw an arm in the air and flexed.
Josuke carried him for a minute or two, before urging him to get off. “I swear, dude, if I’m late...”
Okuyasu laughed, giving up his prized seat. He sped up a little to walk next to Josuke, slinging an arm over his shoulders. We do this all the time, right? It’s normal, he thought, glancing at Josuke to see his reaction. Ah, he’s so cute... Josuke had a little smile on his face, and was leaning just slightly into Okuyasu’s arm.
“Josuke.”
“Yeah?”
“I really like you.”
“I like you too, Okuyasu.”
Josuke and Okuyasu walked to school together as they always did, and Josuke was only a few minutes late. (His homeroom teacher didn’t kill him, but he did make him stand in the hallway) When classes were finished, the two walked home together as they always did, although without Okuyasu’s arm around Josuke’s shoulders. (It was sore, Okuyasu had said) When they reached their homes, they didn’t linger. Tomorrow was not far away.