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It was Jotaro who climbed the building to find the last drops of water slipping into the drain and down onto the street below. Joseph had pointed the place out to him. As he hauled himself over the edge of the roof, Jotaro saw the blood and with a stab in his heart, he thought that it was over for Kakyoin. He didn't even try to hope. When he approached the broken water tower, he expected his task to be retrieving the body of a fallen friend. His dear friend whom he wasn't prepared to say goodbye to. But as it turned out, he wouldn't have to. Because not only was Kakyoin alive, he was conscious. His eyes were blurry and a trail of blood leaked from the corner of his mouth, but when he saw Jotaro he smiled, even laughed silently.
"Kakyoin...!"
It was then that Jotaro saw the wound. Where the wound should have been. Where clothes had torn and bloodied, where skin had ripped and bones had cracked, a mass of shimmering green and silver metal lay like a cork in a bottle. Stopping up the bleeding.
"Did... You do it?" Kakyoin managed, still with a smile. "Did you figure it out?"
"Yes."
"Good."
Jotaro got to him before he dissapeared completely. Using his precise stand to pick up his friend, he snapped,
"Hey! Stay awake. If you fall unconscious you'll desummon Hierophant."
They got down off the roof. Well, Star Platinum got them down off the roof. Joseph hadn't expected Kakyoin to be alive either, Jotaro noted. They didn't say much. Back they went to the car, and off they went through the dark streets, heading for the nearest. Along the way, Kakyoin finally passed out, exhausted and pale but with a smile still clinging to his lips. For a moment Jotaro thought he could feel a cold hand as if reaching into his body and trying to stop his heart like he himself and stopped it earlier. But Hierophant Green did not dissapear. He realized with what was almost a shock that he could breathe out. Kakyoin was alive. Joseph, jiji, was alive. Maybe they could stay that way, just for now, just the two of them. At this moment, his grandfather was on the radio with the Other Car. He spoke exitedly. If only...
"Guess what?" Joseph said, swiveling in his chair to face Jotaro. He was grinning. "You'll never believe it."
Jotaro gave him a _look_ that perfectly conveyed, "speak, idiot."
"Polnareff's okay," Joseph hurried to start talking. "But that's not all! Guess who else made a comeback!"
"You... You don't mean..."
"Yeah!"
"You mean that Avdol is...?"
"Yeah!!"
Jotaro allowed a small smile to trace his face. He hurriedly lowered his hat over his eyes. Maybe they were _all_ going to be okay after all.
------
He didn't want to let go of Kakyoin, though. Didn't want to leave either of his friends' sides. He stayed in the room where they both lay, not letting anyone make him leave. That first night, Joseph, he and Polnareff ate dinner on the floor there. Iggy, despite his serious injuries, insisted on trying to steal Polnareff's food. The swordsman let him. After that they just... Hung around. Jotaro was useless with bedside manners, but what did it matter when the man occupying the bed was unconscious. Unconscious and dreaming, it seemed. Unconscious and twitching in his sleep as if still fighting some inner battle. Dreaming, fighting, digging his nails into his palms.
Jotaro didn't know what to do about that, so he observed Polnareff from where he sat. It was like an unspoken agreement between the two. Jotaro was looking out for Kakyoin, who knew what from. And Polnareff looked out for Avdol. He sat on the floor by his bed, watching his sleeping from, lost emotions flitting across his face. Jotaro didn't know what he was thinking, although he secretly wished he did. Sometimes Polnareff would mumble something, sometimes he would hit his forehead with his palm in the univeral sign of _stupid, stupid._ Only once did they speak, when Polnareff caught Jotaro looking at him.
"Well," he said. He sounded close to tears. "I just..." He looked between him and the sleeping Avdol. "I just wish I could, like... Hold his hand or something."
It took Jotaro a second. But when he understood, the statement seemed incredibly sad to him. Polnareff was technically allowed to do such things as hold the hands of recovering friends, but he couldn't, not with this one, because... The patient in question didn't have any hands.
"There is more to a human body," he said, wondering if it was the right thing to say.
"Of course. Hands are convenient, though," he said. "And traditional. Romantic."
Jotaro nodded.
A day went past. And then another. Jotaro slept just fine where he sat. Polnareff did not, and grew more and more numb as the last of his energy drained out of him. On day three, Joseph had to force him to go find somewhere to sleep. He didn't even try it with Jotaro. Just kept bringing them food to eat.
And then, on the evening of the fourth day, something finally happened. Only Jotaro was awake to witness it. But it was inevitable that Avdol would be the first to wake. He had the smaller wounds, as crazy as that seemed. He sat up with a gasp, and it seemed to take him several moments to realize he was safe. Jotaro watched him as his breathing slowed to an acceptable speed. Avdol was left staring down at his hands, or where his hands had been before. Lost in thought. Jotaro heard him sigh in the gloom.
"You're awake," he noted. Avdol jerked his head up to look at him, and then smiled, a small little smile that wasn't certain if it meant business or not.
"I am," he said. "I feel strange, though."
"You almost died."
That must have reminded Avdol, because worry swept over his features and he asked,
"Jotaro, is Polnareff okay?"
He tried to keep his voice casual, but failed miserably. Avdol was urgent, he was afraid. Jotaro could tell.
"He's fine. Just resting."
"Ah. Good. ...and the dog?"
"Probably sleeping under your bed right now."
"Alright. Kakyoin?"
"Recovering."
They shared a few seconds of companionable silence. The two of them quietly noted that, yes, _everyone_ seemed to be alive after all. It was comforting. But it only lasted a second or two before the door opened.
"Jotaro, I brought--" Joseph stopped dead in his tracks. He grinned. "You're awake," he managed. And the smile of Joseph Joestar was contagious, so of course Avdol smiled along.
"I am."
Joseph put an arm on Avdol's shoulder. "Knew you were gonna make it, kid."
_Kid._ Jotaro had never heard Joseph call Avdol that. He couldn't help but feel just a little bit jealous.
"Well," Avdol said, nodding his head in thanks. "I'm here."
"Ooh!" Joseph said. "I'm getting Polnareff. He's gonna love this. You should have seen him these past few days!" And he was gone. But the smile still lingered on Avdol's lips. He turned to Jotaro.
"What _has_ Polnareff been doing?" He asked, only a little bashfully.
"Watching over you. Staying with you."
His smile grew even more genuine, if possible. Maybe a little surprised. A little exited.
"Has he worried for me?"
"Yep." Jotaro couldn't quite bring himself to add that really so had everyone else. But nevertheless, he hid his eyes and smiled. It wasn't so bad.
"Hey, Avdol..." He began, planning to ask his friend about the circumstances surrounding his recent near death experience, but he didn't get further before the door slammed open with such force that it shook the floor.
"Avdol!"
"Polnareff!"
Polnareff crossed the room in a split second, swung himself onto Avdol's bed and reached out for his friend, who happily let himself be embraced.
"God damnit!" Polnareff said, but there was little to no anger in his tone. Relief, happiness, sure. Maybe a little sadness. Maybe a little fear. "You scared the shit out of me! Again! This is the second god damn time you've done this Avdol!" One of his hands came to rest on the back of Avdol's head. "You gotta stop dying on me...!" And suddenly he was crying instead, and granted, it was easy to make Polnareff cry, but Jotaro had never quite seen him like this. It was hard even telling wether he was crying or laughing. An overload of emotions, grief he had felt that now had nowhere to go, because the person he had grieved for was right there, alive, in his arms. Avdol just chuckled and let himself be hugged. If also a bit emotional, he looked nothing short of content. Joseph closed the door and locked it, and then pointedly turned away and went over to where Jotaro sat. Giving the two of the some pretense of privacy.
"I'm so glad you're safe, Polnareff," Avdol mumbled through the fabric of Polnareff's jacket. "So incredibly glad."
"Bastard..."
"Saps," Jotaro muttered. "Can't stand them." But he was still smiling to himself.
"Oh, I don't know about that," Joseph said playfully. "You aren't playing it entirely cool either, Jotaro." He nodded to the still sleeping Kakyoin. Jotaro had the fingers of his left hand intertwined with Kakyoin's. As Joseph noted that detail, Jotaro looked away, hoping he wasn't blushing or anything else equally stupid.
"He dreams," he mumbled. "And digs his hands into his palms. If I kept letting him do that, the wounds could have gotten infected."
Joseph scoffed. "Yeah," he said. "Right."
Night fell. After the total overload of emotions that had stolen over then both, Avdol and Polnareff fell asleep still tangled in each other, leaning against the backrest of the uncomfortable hospital bed. It might not offer much back support, but the group was used to sleeping uncomfortably, and besides, Jotaro assumed that the point wasn't exactly to sleep, but to fall asleep and wake up with the other person's still living breathing form reassuringly next to you. That's what he felt like doing, in the depths of his mind. But for now, it would do with sandwiches and alcohol-free beer that Joseph brought for the two of them. Iggy was lifted onto the table where he was given his own food to eat alone. Even the mean little dog seemed at peace with the world right then. _Maybe this isn't so bad,_ Jotaro thought. _Maybe, we are all alive and well and maybe we are okay after all. Maybe things will make a little more sense from now on. Maybe... Maybe we did it._