Chapter Text
When it is all over, when the killer's blood stains the asphalt in an ever spreading pool of crimson, Jotaro allows himself a quick one-two-three seconds to collect himself before moving onto the next thing. He knows from experience that you have to keep moving after these sorts of events, have to keep breathing and walking and talking if you don't want to sink.
The first thing he does is take a headcount, counting out where his friends and allies are. Koichi is fine, Rohan is fine, the little boy is fine. He can't see Josuke and Okuyasu though, and his heart skips a beat, remembering Egypt, and how he couldn't find him then, either. A bubble of panic wells up in his throat, an image of empty violet eyes flashing through his mind in an instant, and he rushes down the street, searching.
What he sees practically stops his heart. Okuyasu is cradling Josuke in his arms, jacket stained with blood and eyes wide with panic. Tears are tumbling gently down his cheeks, plopping softly onto the sidewalk and mixing with the sticky mess of red that's spilling out of his uncle. He whispers something that Jotaro can't hear, and Josuke weakly lifts a hand to cradle Okuyasu's cheek, lips moving in a way that seems like a reassurance. Okuyasu nods frantically, eyes locked onto Josuke's own, and Jotaro can see his shoulders shaking from where he is.
A medical worker has seen what Jotaro has as well, and he rushes forwards towards the two boys, coming to a stop in front of them.
"Are you one of the injured?" He inquires, and Josuke weakly nods, quipping that he hoped that would have been obvious.
Okuyasu doesn't say anything. He seems frozen, his eyes darting between Josuke and the EMT as if he can't decide which to focus on. Jotaro recognizes the look on his face. He feels threatened.
He strides towards the men, trenchcoat flapping behind him, as the EMT calls two coworkers with a stretcher over. The air seems baited, like a breath caught in someone's throat before they start to scream, and Jotaro can tell what'll happen before it does.
The second the EMT touches Josuke, Okuyasu roars in anger, The Hand bursting out of him and swiping the air behind the two boys to drag them backwards. The EMT looks shocked, and Okuyasu stands up, his grip on Josuke tightening as he continues to back away.
"You can't take him," he yells, although it sounds more like pleading, "you're just going to hurt him!"
The EMT lifts his hands placatingly, taking a step forward. "Sir, we're just trying to help," he says gently, "you need to let us do that."
Okuyasu growls under his breath again, shifting into a fighting stance, and then Jotaro is there, stepping in between the two men.
"Okuyasu," he says quietly. "You need to calm down."
"The hell you talking about?" He snarls, and Josuke lets out a pained little groan from in his arms. "I'm fine; I'm not letting them hurt him!"
"He's already hurt," Jotaro states, "he's bleeding out, actually."
Okuyasu's face twitches at Jotaro's words, and he glances down worriedly at Josuke's face, which is only getting paler.
"Josuke?" He whispers hesitantly. Josuke doesn't respond, and the panic grows in Okuyasu's eyes. "Dude, you gotta wake up!"
The EMTs behind Jotaro are getting antsy. He's not sure how long he'll be able to be in control of the situation.
"You need to let them take him," Jotaro continues, his voice soft. "I know it's hard, believe me. But they're just trying to help."
He thinks about how he fought off the paramedics that took Kakyoin's body away, how his grandfather and Polnareff had to hold him back out of his stand’s range as they folded his arms neatly over his chest and covered him with a sheet. He doesn't want that to happen to Josuke.
Okuyasu's eyes are just as panicked as Jotaro's were, his body just as shaky. It might as well have been him standing there-- sixteen, covered in blood, and having just lost his best friend. Something in his eyes finally changes at Jotaro's words. His grip on Josuke loosens, and he gently lowers the boy to the ground, stepping back for the EMTs to take him.
They swarm around Jotaro's sides like flies, quickly loading Josuke onto a stretcher, and Okuyasu flinches as they do so, seeming to shrink into himself.
Jotaro steps briskly around them and between them and Okuyasu, leaning down to meet Okuyasu's eyes directly.
"Don't look at them," he instructs. "Focus on me."
Okuyasu gulps, meeting Jotaro's eyes. His voice sounds more broken when it comes out now. "They messed up his hair," he says, voice wavering. "He's gonna kill them when he wakes up."
Jotaro nods understandingly, and then, since it seems appropriate, opens his arms to Okuyasu. The boy shatters like glass into his arms, starting to sob as he digs his hands into Jotaro's coat. Jotaro hugs him back, unsure as to what to do now, and settles for rubbing circles into the teen's back as he cries.
"He will wake up, right Jotaro? Right?"
"Yeah," Jotaro replies, not sure if he's lying or not. "He will."
He can hear the paramedics fussing behind him and then the sound of the stretcher scraping on the ground as they lift it. He knows Okuyasu can hear it too, and he holds onto him tighter as the teen tries to wrench away.
"You have to let them, Okuyasu," he says softly. "I know it's hard."
Okuyasu whimpers, trying to pull away, and Jotaro clucks his tongue irritably.
"They're taking him, Jotaro," he sobs, "just like they took my mom."
Jotaro freezes at that statement, mind racing. To his knowledge, Okuyasu doesn't have any parents, and his mind fills in the rest of the information for him.
"He's not going to die," he finally says. "They took my grandfather after my fight in Egypt, and he's still alive, isn't he?"
"Josuke's dad?"
"Yes. He's ancient, he's probably going to live forever."
Okuyasu doesn't seem satisfied with that answer, and whimpers as they hear the ambulance doors close. Knowing he can't do much to stop them now, Jotaro lets go of the teen, letting him finally look.
Okuyasu stands, frozen, and watches the ambulance drive off. The sirens start to blare from the vehicle, and Okuyasu visibly flinches at the noise, shoulders raising defensively. He takes a step forward, lets out a choked sob, and sinks to the ground. Jotaro notes rather morbidly that he's sitting in the sticky pool of Josuke's drying blood, and leans down, resting a hand on Okuyasu's shoulder.
"He'll be fine," he says softly. "He's very stubborn, as we both well know. He wouldn't leave us this easily."
Okuyasu keeps sobbing, and he crumples in on himself, arms raising to hug himself. Jotaro kneels beside him, rubbing Okuyasu's back as he continues to sob. He murmurs comforting words to the teen, not really knowing if any of them are helping, until Okuyasu's tears lessen.
"Breathe," Jotaro says soothingly. "Think of the ocean and how the waves go in and out. Breathe like the waves."
Okuyasu takes a shuddering, gaspy breath in, and Jotaro hums approvingly in his throat, feeling him starting to calm down a little bit.
"Good, like that. Keep breathing," he instructs, fumbling in his pocket for his stupidly massive Nokia. "Listen, I need to make a call. I am not leaving you. Stay right here."
He stands up, punching in Tomoko's number, and hits the call button, a deep sigh rumbling out of his throat as the phone sings to itself. Jotaro walks a few feet away and stands beneath a tree as the phone rings. She picks up on the second to last ring, a cheery "hello!" chirping from the phone's speaker, and Jotaro steels himself to break this woman's heart.
"Tomoko," he says softly, and Okuyasu stiffens slightly, recognizing the name. "There's been an accident."
He can feel the mood change, and knows as a parent what must be rushing through her head.
"Josuke is hurt. They took him to the hospital."
"What?" Tomoko whispers shakily. "When did this happen?"
"The ambulance just drove off. I wanted to tell you as soon as possible. I'm going to head to the hospital, I recommend you do the same," Jotaro says calmly. "They got to him pretty quickly, I think he'll be okay."
Tomoko draws in a shaky breath on the other side of the line, and Jotaro can only imagine how she must feel. He doesn't know what he'd do if Jolyne was hurt.
"Okay," she replies, voice catching. "I'll... Meet you at the hospital, then. But I'll want an explanation."
Jotaro hums in agreement, and Tomoko hangs up abruptly. He puts the phone back in his pocket and turns back towards Okuyasu, who's staring at him with panicked eyes.
"Was that his mom?" He asks shakily.
Jotaro nods. "Yeah, she had to know."
"Is she... angry?"
"...No. Well, maybe. She sounded more scared than anything. Why?"
Okuyasu looks away from Jotaro at the ground, focusing on the bloodstains that are beneath his hands.
"Because it's my fault," he whispers. "I should have tried harder to save him."
"Don't you dare say that," Jotaro snaps sternly. "That kind of thinking leads you nowhere."
"But it's true!" Okuyasu yells. "I was literally dead weight! If he hadn't had to drag me around he would have gotten less hurt!"
Jotaro takes a heavy breath in, counts, and then lets it out with a sigh.
"The only fault here lies with Kira. Josuke wouldn't have gotten hurt if the serial killer wasn't trying to hurt him. You had nothing to do with that."
Okuyasu makes a frustrated little noise in the back of his throat and clenches his fists, blinking back more tears.
"If I had just been stronger--"
"Don't." Jotaro interrupts firmly. "Don't do that."
Okuyasu sniffles and swipes at his eyes, and Jotaro puts a hand on his shoulder in comfort.
"Come on, we need to get to the hospital. You don't want him to wake up alone, do you?"
Okuyasu whimpers at that and quickly stands up, and Jotaro leads him away from the ambulances and all the people, glaring at the cop that makes the mistake of making eye contact. He takes him to the car he rented and opens the passenger door. Okuyasu gets in numbly, and Jotaro closes the door, crossing over to the driver's side and getting in.
He buckles himself, starts the car, and then leans over, pulling Okuyasu's seatbelt across him and buckling the teen in as well.
"Just because you're upset doesn't mean you can make poor safety choices," he says softly, tugging the belt across his chest more securely. "You can't go into shock. I only know how to take care of aquarium fish, not teenagers."
Okuyasu chuckles emptily at the joke, and Jotaro allows a small smile to slip onto his face before putting the car into reverse and pulling out onto the main road. The drive to the hospital is quiet, Okuyasu fiddling with his hands while Jotaro drives. The next step, he thinks is to let Okuyasu open up. He needs to stop prodding and meddling, as he is so prone to doing. The houses fly by as they drive, Jotaro going just slightly faster than the speed limit. He idly thinks that the rental company is going to be irritated about the blood, but compartmentalizes that thought for later.
"I'm sorry," Okuyasu finally says, breaking the silence. "I shouldn't have gotten upset."
"It's normal to be upset," Jotaro replies. "Your best friend was just hurt."
"No, not about that," the teen mutters. "Not him specifically, at least. The thing with the ambulances."
"Ah," the older man answers. "I see. Would you like to tell me what that was about?"
He has his suspicions, and they're confirmed by Okuyasu's next words.
"My mom, she... She was sick, and she had an episode," he starts out. "I was really little, but I remember that they took her in the ambulance and that was the last time I saw her. She died on the way to the hospital."
"That won't happen to Josuke," Jotaro replies quickly.
"...yeah. He's stronger than that," Okuyasu murmurs, resting his head against the window with a small 'thunk' noise. "He's way stronger than that. It was just... Scary, seein' him all covered in blood n' stuff. I got freaked out."
"I know what it's like," Jotaro says quietly. "You feel helpless."
"Yeah," Okuyasu replies. "Yeah, you really do."
The silence in the car stretches like a rubber band, and Jotaro realizes it's about to snap.
"...how do you know that, Jotaro?" Okuyasu asks quietly.
Jotaro tightens his grip on the wheel and swallows down the wave of nausea that creeps up on him. Okuyasu, this lonely, broken teenager, just opened up to him. The least he can do is return the favor, his sad attempt at comforting him.
"In Egypt," he finally says softly, "I lost someone very important to me. I don't want that to happen to Josuke."
"Oh," Okuyasu says. "Oh god, I'm so sorry, Jotaro."
"It's alright," Jotaro whispers. "It was… a long time ago."
"Did they… did they mean as much to you, as Josuke does to me?"
Jotaro snorts at that. How ironic, that across the world, after over a decade, history repeats itself with Josuke and Okuyasu as it did with him and Kakyoin.
"Yes," he finally says. "I suppose he did."
The rest of the drive is quiet. Jotaro is glad for this, as it gives him time to collect his thoughts, and time for Okuyasu to process his.