Chapter Text
”Well, I mean I'm happy for them.” Noriaki said with a strained voice. ”But I mean. Why do they have to be so loud? It's not like we can sleep in tomorrow. What I mean is, they should also sleep. I mean, they are the ones who need to drive and so, neither you or me have a license. I mean...”
”I know what you mean, now shut up. You're not making it easier to sleep.” Jotaro tried to muffle the sounds from the next room with his pillow, but to no use. Giggles, gasps and several french words he didn't even want to understand easily slipped through the thin wall seperating the two rooms.
Noriaki sighed and turned in his bed. It was quiet for a minute before the unmistakable sound of bedposts hitting the wall rhythmically made the two teenagers jump out of their beds.
”Gonna get some air.”
”I'll come with you.”
”Need a smoke.”
”Air is nice.”
They quickly made their way to the hallway (not before Jotaro made a point in slamming the door to their room way to loud) and stopped right outside the main entrance. Not knowing where to go now, Noriaki vaguely gestured to the road, and Jotaro nodded. They started walking slowly around the hotel; it was a cheap and pretty nasty one, but it wasn't like they were in any position to be picky.
The taller boy fumbled with his pockets before he found his pack of cigarettes. He knew he should try to cut down, especially since Noriaki didn't like it, but who could blame him now, after what he had just experienced. Beside him, the smaller boy let out a small laugh.
”Yeah, I guess if not now, when?”
Jotaro exhaled a laugh through his nose. He loved how Noriaki understood his mind like that. They continued walking in silence until the cigarette was out, making their way up a small hill next to the hotel. There they could see the sea far away; illuminated by the moon it looked breathtaking. The teenagers stood there for a moment, just enjoying the view.
This trip had so many bad parts in it. Not only that they could get attacked pretty much anytime, but also the fact that they were going to fight an actual vampire, and that was if they were lucky enough to come to that. Jotaro tried to think as little as possible of his mother and what would happen to her if he would be unsuccessful; things like this, standing with his best friend looking at the ocean in the moonlight, helped a lot.
At least, he thought Noriaki was his best friend. He wasn't sure, he hadn't had many friends to begin with, so he couldn't really compare this to anything. Of course he had seen movies, and read books containing friendships, so he was pretty sure this was that.He wondered if Noriaki missed his friends back in Japan, and felt a sting of jealousy.
Will he still want to be my friend when we get back?
The tall boy felt a sudden need to know, but words! Why was it so hard to put his thoughts into words! He looked at the redhead and tried to come up with how to ask without sounding needy. He cleared his throat.
”Hey Nori.”
”Hm?” Noriaki blinked like he just had been really far away in his mind. He tilted his head slightly towards Jotaro to show that he was listening.
”What's the first thing you're gonna do when you get back home?”
Noriaki looked taken aback by the question but quickly gathered his expression and furrowed his eyebrows. He turned his gaze back at the sea and stood quiet for a minute before talking.
”Don't know. Probably apologize to my parents and try to make them believe whatever lie I'll tell them this trip was.” he chuckeled, but it wasn't a happy laugh. Jotaro frowned.
”What are you gonna tell them?” he put his hands in his pockets and turned so he stood facing the other boy.
Noriaki shrugged. ”Guess I'll figure that out on the way back. It's pretty unnecessary to think about now. I mean, it might turn out I won't need to lie, anyway.”
Jotaro didn't like how that sounded, he hadn't even thought about the others not going to go back. He only ever thought about if he didn't make it, but he suddenly realized how much more was at stake. What if he were to lose his grandfather? Or Noriaki? The thought filled him with dread and he felt cold.
”You're going to go back home when this is over. I promise.”
”Don't make promises like that.” Noriaki finally looked Jotaro in the eyes, gaze steady. ”Don't.”
”I'll make sure you get home.” Jotaro tried, but got cut off by Noriaki.
”Did you even listen? I knew what I signed up for when I started this journey. If I die facing Dio, I need you to understand that I did this fully aware of what could happen. I'm not planning on dying” he quickly added when Jotaro opened his mouth. ”but making naive promises is not going to make me feel better. I might die and that's a fact, and I'm at peace with that. I'm not your responsibility.”
Jotaro said nothing. That was not how he saw it. He didn't think it was naive to say something like that, it was encouraging. Being ok with dying sounded like already giving up, and to hell with that. He had so many thoughts in his head, but again, words! He admired the way words just came naturally to Noriaki and wished he could express what he had meant as well. Since he couldn't, he just shrugged and kicked at the ground.
”It'll be nice to go back home to your friends at least?” Jotaro eventually said without looking up.
Noriaki snorted.
”Sure. My friends. Sure have missed them.” he said in a sarcastic voice. ”What?” he added when he saw Jotaro's look.
”No, I just... Whatever.” Jotaro bit his lip, he had already talked way too much for one night. He nodded towards the hotel ”You think we can go back now?”
”Well, the avarage intercourse lasts for about five minutes, so I really hope they aren't some superhumans with superhuman stamina.”
Jotaro stared, shocked at what he just had heard. Noriaki had an amused smile toying at his lips.
”Five minutes??” he said more loudly than he had planned. The romantic movies he had been forced to watch with Holly always showed hours and hours of that. ”How do you even know that?”
”I read!” Noriaki's face turned red and he started to walk back to the hotel.
”You read about... that?” Jotaro teased.
”Shut up, it came up when I read about something else.”
Jotaro smiled and bit his lip. If this was what it was like to have a friend, he was never going to let him go.