Work Text:
The doorbell rang at nine in the evening.
Jotaro dropped the cutlery first, worried. He wasn't expecting anyone that night. Cautious, he asked Marina, his wife, to wait. It could be some enemy, a Stand user. No one in their right mind would ring a house bell at nine o'clock at night, rain and thunder everywhere.
"Maybe it's someone needing help." Said Marina, drinking a sip of juice and asking her husband to see who she was.
“I wouldn't think of that.” Annoyed, Jotaro stood up at once.
“You're being selfish again.” Marina laid her arms on the table, looking at a gold bracelet on her arm. “Go look.”
Jotaro snorted discreetly. He hadn't spent 20 years of his life in that house protecting his marriage from Stand attacks and being treated like that.
Worried, he went to the door, watching through the reflection in the thick glass that ornamented the door a thin and suspicious figure.
Jotaro thought of his wife and thought of his 19-year-old daughter, asleep upstairs. Irene was tired, had had a long day at work and the man couldn't even think of a Stand attack hurting the two women! Behind him, Star Platinum materialized, defensive. He knows that neither Marina nor Irene will see the Stand, so he goes to great lengths to protect his family that he fought so hard to keep away from work involving the fighting spirit.
Star Platinum became even more defensive when the door opened, but something caused the Stand to retreat, as did Jotaro.
A red-haired young man had an open umbrella, a basket in his hands, carefully protected from the rain, with a bouquet of flowers inside. When the boy lifted his head, something went off in Jotaro's brain.
God, it was him.
“Hi sir, good evening.” said the boy, smiling exactly as he smiled at Jotaro in the nights of Egypt. "Is this where Mrs. Irene Kujo lives?"
Jotaro shook his head in affirmation.
The red-haired boy picked up a clipboard and held it out to the man. “Good, I have a delivery of Mister… Narciso Anakiss to Irene Kujo. Could you sign here, please?”
Jotaro's turquoise eyes couldn't focus on the clipboard or on the fact that that nosy Anakiss was once again sending flowers to his daughter, but on the boy with the haggard look, three curly locks on his forehead and red hair just like his.
"Sir, could you sign?" the boy asked, passing a strand of red hair behind his ear. “It's my last delivery of the day, I'm just waiting for you to sign so I can finally go home and sleep.”
The memories Jotaro was creating of him, Tenmei Kakyoin, were pushed aside the moment the boy's long, pale fingers clicked on the top of the pen, handing the object to Kujo. His beloved Tenmei died in Egypt in 1989, it wasn't that same boy at the door and Jotaro carried on, but his memories don’t. Jotaro tried to forget about Tenmei, but he couldn't, something in his mind kept pulling him to the past.
"Long day, isn't it?" Jotaro brought up the subject with the boy. It was definitely him, even the tone of voice was the same, how was that possible?
“Yeah, it's been a long day for me.” Said the redhead, his voice awakening memories in Jotaro. “But I'm happy like this, at least I have a job and a reason to smile at the end of the month. You know, money.”
Jotaro stared into the redhead's downcast eyes, dark circles adorning his skin. He saw in him all the flashbacks of Egypt, the nights in hotels, Tenmei's loud laughter, everything! It's him, there's no denying it! Kujo then thinks—
“How old are you?”
“Twenty.” Replied the young man, faithfully waiting for the pen and clipboard to be returned. “I know, I'm not ready for life yet.”
"I bet not, but please take care of your life." Jotaro returned the clipboard, crossing his arms. No, he just let Tenmei go once, he couldn't let go again! Restless, he took a step forward and his gaze startled the boy.
"Well..." said the delivery boy, handing the basket to Jotaro. “It was nice talking to you, good night!”
The redhead turned around, even the cherry scent was the same, the earrings, everything! Jotaro couldn't let him go, not when Tenmei was back home! His life without Tenmei was never happy, it was always a protective obsession for the two women of the house and in the last few years the marriage wasn't working out.
Now, his teenage love had reincarnated just as he preached in ancient Buddhist teachings. Tenmei, his flower that withered too soon, was back, this time blossoming into new flesh.
“I spent this whole time thinking you might be dead, but… it's impossible.” Jotaro said, going to the boy and lightly pulling him by the wrist. “I lost nights awake, sleep never visited me and my eyes got wet when I thought about the things we never did together.”
The boy furrowed his long red eyebrows, paying attention to what Jotaro was saying, now getting closer to him.
“You should never have left, but now you're here.” Jotaro pressed his thumb into the boy's soft skin. “You came home. Welcome home.”
The boy let go of Jotaro. That was getting too weird to the point of Jotaro himself asking for forgiveness.
"I'm sorry, Tenmei.” He backed away. “Have a good night.”
The redhead got even more curious. "Tenmei? I don't know who you're talking about.” The boy laughed, introducing himself next. “My name is Noriaki, I live downtown.”
Jotaro would have to let him go, at least for this night. The boy froze as he stood in the doorway of the house, the umbrella almost falling out of his hand.
“Try to remember which part of you was lost.” Jotaro asked, Star Platinum's hand touching Noriaki's face. "Stand users attract each other, don't they?"
Noriaki. The redhead stared hard at Jotaro, suddenly seeing in the stranger's irises disconnected fragments of something he never had, a part that was ripped from his chest like a ship being thrown overboard.
Nights in Egypt, trips on desert roads, comfortable trains, the streets of Cairo… he has never been to Cairo, but all that…
There was something else. Boys in uniform, a kiss, the pale hands holding the chain on the collar of the dark coat. The sight suddenly startled him, Noriaki wasn't prepared to see a kiss between them, but he liked what he saw, fragments of emeralds emanating from his body the moment he felt the touch of the other's lips against his...
A vision. A beautiful, terrifying vision containing a younger version of the man before him. He then got scared, because there was something there that was very similar to his reality.
“I had a déjà vu—” Noriaki said, closing his eyes and remembering above all his childhood, almost split in half like two timelines, where green ribbons surrounded his body in the solitude of school breaks.
“Me too.” Jotaro approached, his hands cupping Noriaki's face and pulling him close to him. Their foreheads came together and they both shared more memories together, the rain suddenly ceasing along with the memories of more kisses surging through their minds.
Noriaki didn't understand where it all came from, until he closed his eyes to contemplate the reason why those kisses made him more and more curious. He felt as if his body was boiling, the green sparks exploding and shooting out of his soul just like the tendrils that formed a web in his sight...
And that when he opened his eyes, he was also present in his real life. There was a green tentacle wrapped around a green humanoid's finger that Noriaki could suddenly see, like a purple ghost behind the man. He wasn't scared, because he knew he was the same one that was unconscious.
“I died?” Noriaki asked. "Tell me, Jotaro, did I die?"
At no point did Kujo say his own name to Noriaki. Even to sign the delivery, he signed as Irene's name.
"It's still too early for that, isn't it?" Jotaro let the words trail off. “I don't want to lose you again.”
Noriaki's hand touched his wrist. “I am not going.” He stuttered. “I mean, if I really am that Tenmei.” a green tentacle slithered out and wiped away one of Jotaro's tears. "Now I have to go, I need to rest. My day was very busy. Need to draw to relax.”
The same painful feeling that tore them apart in Egypt was the same the moment they pulled back. Jotaro let a tear fall, disguising it so Noriaki wouldn't see it. He was too early for so much information.
Before getting into the carrier's car, Noriaki rolled down the window and said “Ah, Jotaro, I live in the center of Morioh, on A3 street and in house 517.” Strangely, he gave Jotaro the whole address. "Come visit me one of these days. I'm Ryoko Kakyoin's son, we can talk more about the memories you and I have in common. I don’t know where it came from, but you were right in something. I know one Tenmei and him, Tenmei Kakyoin was my uncle.”
Jotaro opened his mouth in astonishment. Ryoko Kakyoin is Tenmei Kakyoin's sister! When he died in Egypt, Ryoko came to Jotaro to try to find out the truth, and he refused to tell her directly out of fear, as the young woman was pregnant at the time! Jotaro then distanced himself from the family, as he didn't want to hurt them further after revealing to Tenmei's parents what had happened to their son.
And Noriaki is Ryoko's son, meaning Noriaki is technically Tenmei's nephew! God, Jotaro felt a very strong shiver, the connection he had was finally explained. Even scared, he agreed, shoving his hands in the pockets of his patterned pants.
Before Noriaki left, he gave a smile and silly advice “Oh, don't wear that hairstyle. You wouldn't like him if it were today.”
Noriaki looked in the rearview mirror and agreed with Jotaro.
Those three curls didn't go together very well with his tired eyes. He then remembered the hairstyle his uncle Tenmei wore, suddenly thinking about why he had memories with that man named Jotaro. He repositioned his locks to form a unique, spring-shaped fringe. He smiled and said to himself "I think you'd like that, Tenmei."
The boy rolled up the car window and got out, driving slowly down the wet street.
Jotaro remained watching the vehicle until it turned the corner. He remained still, looking up at the overcast sky, and heard a voice behind him.
"Who were you talking to? Was it a girl?”
His eyes rolled back. Marina was behind him again. He showed the basket of flowers to his wife and explained, suddenly snapping back to reality when he saw a box containing a wedding ring inside the basket.
“Anakiss, you bastard…” He wiped the sweat from his forehead, but he shouldn't let his daughter's paternal jealousy prevent her happiness, he wants Irene to be happy.
But Marina was still upset. "What took you so long?" She asked. “Was it some monster in the end?”
“Good grief, stop being jealous.”
“Said the doting father who is jealous of his daughter.” She laughed when saw him looking at the basket, blaming Anakiss for that situation.
But Jotaro didn't think about Anakiss. He was thinking of Noriaki. Thinking of Tenmei, the connection they both have as Kakyoins, how much that Noriaki unlocked memories while with him, the souls were the same! This gave him an answer as to why perhaps he never saw Tenmei's soul ascend, while Abdul and Iggy's soul ascended.
Thinking that Noriaki was Tenmei's reincarnation made him thoughtful and curious, but he had a basket of flowers to deliver to his daughter.
He and Marina went back inside, all the while Jotaro Kujo was thinking about that redhead who had returned to him. If they could love each other again? He doesn't know, Jotaro tried not to think about it too much and let his mind wander to fanciful scenarios, but he was happy that Noriaki managed to rescue the memories of his former self and that he was Tenmei.
Memories of a teenage crush long gone, Jotaro was forty now, but memories of him were always there. The kisses, the touches, the caresses… He just wanted Noriaki to preserve those memories coming from Tenmei.
And if it were up to Jotaro, those memories would be saved for a long time yet, because his past love was back and he had to welcome him.