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Ever since Kakyoin was young, he’d known he had a soulmate. Things had turned up his room that obviously wasn’t his; a cap, a pin, a sticker. His parents hadn’t even had to explain the concept of soulmates to him, either; he’d grown up surrounded by soulmate culture and worked it out himself pretty quickly.
The older he got, the more he found things that weren’t his. At one point, it was simply a pen, engraved with the initials J.K. It was a small but crucial clue to Kakyoin’s soulmate, and he was careful to never lose it.
However, when a fellow student by the name of Jotaro Kujo saved him from Dio’s flesh bud, Kakyoin didn’t think anything of it.
*\\//*
Jotaro had been sure he didn’t have a soulmate. At least, he had been, until about a year ago.
He’d come home to find a single earring on his bed. It clearly wasn’t his; it was a pretty dangly thing, not at all Jotaro’s thing. Pink and silver, delicate and shiny.
Staring at it, Jotaro wasn’t sure how he felt. He’d been sure for years he didn’t have a soulmate, had come to peace with it even.
To find out he had a soulmate after all this time… Jotaro couldn’t decide whether to scream, cry or be happy. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if he wanted to know who his soulmate was.
About a year later, when the journey across Egypt began, Jotaro didn’t even notice that the same kind of earring that had appeared on his bed a year prior hung from the ear of Kakyoin Noriaki.
*\\//*
Too many times in his life, Kakyoin had found himself searching for his soulmate. He’d be somewhere, anywhere in the world, scanning the people that passed with a sharp gaze. He was just hoping to spot something that told him they were his soulmate.
Kakyoin worried, sometimes, that he’d never know. He was careful with his belongings, and, to his knowledge, he hadn’t lost anything in his life. However, he could only hope.
Years passed, one after the other, and despite it all, Kakyoin held out hope of finding his soulmate.
*\\//*
Too many times in his life, Jotaro had found himself locked in the small bathroom in his house, leant over the sink, clutching a knife until his knuckles turned white. He’d shake and rage and silently cry, banging his forehead against the mirror in agony.
Everyone had a soulmate except for him; would the world truly mourn the loss of him, if he lifted his hand just so, and let that knife blade kiss his throat? Jotaro was a coward, however, and anytime he raised the blade even slightly, he would back out, trembling and feeling smaller than ever.
Soulmates were something to be thought about bitterly when it came to Jotaro Kujo.
*\\//*
Kakyoin had never meant to let himself get too attached to the people he was travelling with. He knew any of them could die at any moment, and because of that, he’d built up some walls around his heart and mind.
However, he couldn’t stop himself from finding Jotaro intriguing. The taller, dark-haired, stony-faced student seemed almost void of emotion half the time, and Kakyoin found he was drawn to the mystery of him.
From what he could tell, Jotaro was either a master at hiding his emotions, or simply struggled to express them. He’d hide his face under the brim of his hat more often than not, and Kakyoin soon realised the puzzling mystery of the boy was not just intriguing him.
It was one night, only a couple of weeks into their trip, that Kakyoin had bolted awake, drenched in a cold sweat as realisation had hit him. He was falling for the apathetic teen, and he couldn’t stop it.
*\\//*
Jotaro found Kakyoin’s presence annoying. The other boy seemed to be around him as much as possible, and Jotaro was sick of it.
Sick of Kakyoin’s stupidly perfect hair, sick of his ridiculously pretty eyes. He was done with being worried about the smaller boy, done with the number of times he’d nearly lost his cool when Kakyoin was in danger.
Jotaro found Kakyoin gorgeous annoying, nothing more.
*\\//*
The night he and Jotaro first had to share a hotel room on their trip, Kakyoin lost one of his earrings. He scrambled around frantically for about half an hour while Jotaro showered, panic settling into every inch of his being.
He never went anywhere without them. His earrings were practically part of him, and he felt incomplete without them.
“Jotaro, have you seen my earring?” Kakyoin asked the moment the other boy returned, trying not to sound too panicked. Jotaro just raised an eyebrow at him, turning away.
Kakyoin tried not to sigh. He should have known better than to expect help from the other teen.
Kakyoin continued his search, only to be interrupted by a light tap on his arm a minute later. Lifting his head, he saw Jotaro holding out the very earring he’d been looking for.
“It was on my bed,” was all Jotaro said as Kakyoin took it. The taller boy moved away before Kakyoin had a chance to thank him.
*\\//*
Jotaro took a while to get to sleep that night. How had Kakyoin’s earring ended up on his bed?
He got a nagging sense of deja vu but had no idea why. Jotaro rolled onto his side restlessly. Kakyoin was always so careful with his things.
Surely he couldn’t possibly have left the earring on Jotaro’s bed at any time? Come to think of it, since when did Kakyoin even so much as glance at Jotaro’s side of the hotel room?
Rolling over again, Jotaro forced his brain to shut down. He needed sleep.
*\\//*
Kakyoin woke in the early hours of the morning in a cold sweat. J.K. Jotaro Kujo. Holy shit.
Jotaro was his soulmate. Or, at least, Kakyoin was pretty sure he was. The earring he’d lost had shown up on Jotaro’s bed, right?
He had one sure way to test this theory. Slowly, cautiously, Kakyoin crept out of bed. Jotaro didn’t stir, not even when Kakyoin leaned over to quietly snatch his hat from the bedside table.
Kakyoin then shoved it under Jotaro’s bed, hidden from view. If Jotaro was his soulmate, and he truly believed he’d lost the hat, then it would show up on Kakyoin’s bed sometime tomorrow morning… right?
*\\//*
Jotaro couldn’t find his fucking hat. He’d been certain that he’d left it on the table beside his bed, and now it was gone.
“My hat,” was the first thing he said to Kakyoin that morning. “It’s gone.”
“I haven’t seen it,” Kakyoin replied, looking and sounding like his mind was elsewhere. Jotaro sighed.
He’d lost his hat. What a great fucking start to the day.
*\\//*
About ten minutes after Jotaro stopped searching for his hat was when Kakyoin noticed it lay on his bed. Only just managing to stifle a gasp, Kakyoin quickly leaned over to knock it to the floor.
“Oh, Jotaro,” he said a few moments later, “It’s here.”
Kakyoin leaned over and picked the hat up in a smooth motion, then turned to hand it to Jotaro. He didn’t fail to notice the way the taller boy’s brow creased, or the traces of suspicion on his face.
“Thanks,” Jotaro said gruffly after a moment, turning away. Kakyoin let out a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding.
Jotaro Kujo was his soulmate.
*\\//*
Kakyoin had found Jotaro’s hat this morning. Jotaro hadn’t left his hat anywhere near Kakyoin’s bed. Or had he?
Jotaro let out a frustrated sigh as he walked through the town, looking for a place to get breakfast. Nothing was making sense, nothing was adding up.
First Kakyoin’s earring on his bed, now this. Were they both just that clumsy, as to leave their stuff in each other’s spaces?
They were both certainly tired enough. However, Jotaro had been sure he’d left his hat right beside his bed.
Jotaro rubbed at his eyes, yawning. Maybe he was just tired.
*\\//*
It was as the sun was setting and they had all returned to their hotel rooms that Kakyoin brought himself to approach Jotaro. He was fidgeting a little as he approached the taller boy, who stood out on the balcony of their room, but if Jotaro noticed, he said nothing.
“You ever wonder about your soulmate, Jotaro?” The moment the words left his mouth, Kakyoin wanted to take them back. Jotaro noticeably tensed up, and gripped the brim of his hat so tightly his fingertips turned white.
“No,” Jotaro growled, the single word coming out harsh and somewhat broken.
“Oh.” Kakyoin suddenly felt small, but he pressed on. “I think about mine all the time. If he’s smart, or kind, or handsome.”
“He?” Jotaro questioned, without looking at Kakyoin.
“Girls aren’t my thing.” Kakyoin leant against the railing of the balcony. “I’ve still got the first thing to ever show up from him.”
Jotaro didn’t say anything at this, but his gaze slid to Kakyoin as he raised a single, perfect eyebrow. The gesture held a question, and Kakyoin slowly drew the pen from his pocket.
He held it out to Jotaro, who took it gingerly, squinting at it in the fading light. Kakyoin didn’t fail to notice the way his eyes widened after a few seconds, staring down at the pen in mute shock.
“J.K,” Kakyoin murmured, surprised the whole world couldn’t hear his heart beating out of his chest. “Jotaro Kujo, right?”
The taller boy turned to stare at Kakyoin, gaze unreadable. The rose-haired boy swallowed harshly, nervously, worried that he’d crossed some sort of line.
He expected Jotaro to retreat into the hotel room, or to turn away, or something . What he didn’t expect was for Jotaro to let the pen clatter to the balcony floor and pull Kakyoin in close by the front of his uniform and press his lips to Kakyoin’s own.
After a moment of shock, Kakyoin kissed back gently, almost timidly. He cautiously slid his hand up to tangle it in Jotaro’s hair, and he felt the taller boy’s arms wrap tightly around his waist.
When they finally parted, Kakyoin let out a small, soft laugh. He leant his forehead against Jotaro’s shoulder, revelling in how the dark haired boy relaxed under him.
“I wish I’d worked it out sooner,” Kakyoin mumbled quietly. Jotaro’s arms tightened slightly around him.
“This explains the earring.”
Kakyoin lifted his head and laughed, cut off as Jotaro, his soulmate , pulled him and kissed him again.