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At Avdol`s suggestions, the crusaders had made camp for the night. Not far from the Egyptian coast, miles away from any civilisation, five men sat at the campfire having just eaten. As per usual, Avdol and Joseph were discussing plans for the upcoming days with Polnareff interjecting every now and again with affirmations or complaints, usually about bathrooms and eating arrangements. Jotaro was trying to focus on their conversation, but his focus was waning, his attention being drawn towards Kakyoin, who was sat gazing at the flickering flames of the campfire, evidently lost in his own thoughts.
Kakyoin`s cherry red hair and his lavender eyes looked incredible in this light, Jotaro thought. If he was being honest, Kakyoin always made him feel something he wasn`t sure he had words to describe. It wasn`t quite admiration but it wasn`t entirely what Jotaro thought were normal friend feelings either, whatever that meant. Maybe if they weren`t on such an important mission… Maybe if the two had met under different circumstances…
“Yare yare daze” he muttered to himself for seemingly the hundredth time that day. He needed a break.
“Jiji I`m going for a walk. Don`t worry about me. If anyone comes at me I`ll deal with them” he called to his grandfather. The three older men discussing battle tactics around the fire all looked over at him with disapproving glances but knew better than to object and that the young man was right; he and Star Platinum could look after themselves. Kakyoin was dragged back to reality by Jotaro`s words as well, looking over at him.
“Jotaro- “he called. But with a swish of his long jacket, Jotaro wandered into the sunset.
Jotaro wandered for a few minutes, his head full of worries and thoughts. His mother and her emerging stand, Kakyoin, what awaited them in Cairo, Kakyoin, Dio, Kakyoin…
He sat on a nearby rock and sighed, staring at the peacefulness of the expansive dessert all around him, which perfectly contrasted how busy his head was. He tried to clear his thoughts for a minute, but one thought persisted. He knew deep down that those feelings brought to him by seeing Kakyoin pondering the flames earlier were something along the lines of a crush, as he`d overheard his fellow students back at school talking about those kinds of things before. But surely there wasn`t time for those kinds of feelings, right? They could put him at a disadvantage in the seemingly endless battles they`d been having to endure. And if he let something happen to the others, he wasn`t sure if he`d forgive himself.
He plugged in the headphones his grandfather had lent to him, slipping one side into one of his ears but leaving the other ear free to listen out for anything. Surely a song would help him calm down? It always seemed to. Scrolling through the list of songs downloaded on the small device, he saw one track that took him back to his childhood. It had been one of the songs his parents used to sing together when he was younger, before his father was always away doing some sort of tour or gig. He selected the song and pressed play.
Back at the camp, Kakyoin tried and failed to resume his trail of thought. He was worried about Jotaro. What must have been going on in his head to make him walk away from the camp like that? He knew the others always insisted upon everyone travelling in pairs in case of a stand attack from one of Dio`s followers.
Dio… Kakyoin`s memories of being under control were still haunting him somewhat. He remembered feeling empty and used, hoping that each time he saw Dio, he would receive some sort of affirmation from the vampire, some sign that this was right and that Dio cared about Kakyoin as much as he admired Dio, who seemed to be draining the man`s energy just as he did blood from his enemies and the occasional trespasser. He also remembered that Jotaro had saved him from this oppressive control and that he never wanted to feel the way he did under Dio`s control again. There was another feeling thrown into this mess not long after getting to know his saviour properly. Kakyoin adored Jotaro. Perhaps even loved him. He had never felt more comfortable than when Jotaro was around. He assumed, no, hoped that Jotaro felt the same way under that stoic exterior.
When Jotaro had walked away from the camp, Kakyoin didn`t entirely know why he had called after him. It was an almost involuntary response to his behaviour. He decided to follow what his heart seemed to be saying to him.
“Joestar-san I hope you don`t mind if I go make sure Jotaro is ok”.
After a nod from the older man, Kakyoin was off. Headed in the direction he had witnessed Jotaro walk away in a minute or two before.
A minute or so of walking later, Kakyoin heard a familiar voice coming from a shadowy figure perched on a rock in the sand. Jotaro was singing to himself. The melody seemed familiar to Kakyoin. He had no idea that Jotaro liked that sort of music.
“City of stars, are you shining just for me”,
A slow melody of a love song that Kakyoin had considered a great comfort in the past.
“City of stars, there’s so much that I can`t see”,
Kakyoin followed the melody in his head as he approached its singer.
“Who knows, I felt it from the first embrace I shared with you”,
Jotaro`s voice sounded beautiful, Kakyoin thought to himself.
“That now our dreams, they`ve finally come true” the redhead chimed in.
That definitely caught Jotaro`s attention. He watched as the redhead continued the verse while sitting in the sand next to the rock Jotaro had placed himself on not long ago.
“City of stars, just one thing everybody wants,
There in the bars, and through the smokescreen of the crowded restaurants,
It`s love, yes, all we`re looking for is love from someone else”.
Kakyoin`s voice gave Jotaro butterflies in his stomach. It helped to finally calm the cacophony of worries that had led Jotaro here in the first place. Jotaro decided to continue what had now seemingly become a duet between the two young men.
“A rush”
“A glance”
“A touch”
“A dance”
The two harmonised, continuing the song together, occasionally stealing glances at each other with Jotaro pulling his hat down in an attempt to hide the fact that his heart felt like it was about to burst as he sang with his companion.
“A look in somebody`s eyes,
To light up the skies,
To open the world and send it reeling,
A voice that says “I`ll be here”,
And “you`ll be alright”,
I don`t care if I know,
Just where I will go,
`Cause all that I need`s this crazy feeling,
A rat tat tat on my heart”
Kakyoin looked up at Jotaro, feeling warm from their duet thus far.
“Think I want it to stay!” Jotaro sang with as much power his voice could muster at that present moment despite feeling breathless at the way he and Kakyoin had been singing together. Kakyoin struggled to hide his blush; that line almost felt like a confession from Jotaro, despite Kakyoin knowing it was just the lyrics of the song.
“City of stars, are you shining just for me”, Jotaro continues.
“City of stars…”
“You never shined so brightly!” Kakyoin finished.
Jotaro sighed, with a look in his eyes Kakyoin didn`t know if he`d ever seen before. As the song came to an end, Jotaro stopped the music player and pulled the headphone from his ear. He turned to look down at Kakyoin and stood up. Kakyoin watched as he moved to sit in the sand next to him.
“I didn`t think you were that much of a singer” the redhead found himself saying to break the silence.
“Guess I am” Jotaro replied, still flustered that he had been found at what felt like a very vulnerable moment by none other than the man he had begrudgingly accepted was his first crush.
“Are you ok, Jotaro? It`s not really like you to walk away from the group like that. Wait did I catch you at a bad time? Oh gosh I`m sorry for interrupting you like this!” Kakyoin began to panic that he had upset Jotaro or crossed some sort of boundary with him.
“`S alright” Jotaro mumbled from under his hat. He steadied his breathing as Kakyoin reached out to him.
“Is it alright if I touch your hand?” the redhead asked, getting a nod in response. “Do you want to tell me what`s up?” he asked.
“Just thinking about stuff” Jotaro sighed. “About my mother and that stand slowly killing her, about how we`re inevitably going to have to fight Dio and we don`t know anything about him and how any of us could…” he continued, trailing off at the end, the thought evidently painful to say aloud. Kakyoin simply listened, his fingers intertwining with Jotaro`s in some attempt to provide comfort.
“Noriaki I…” Kakyoin`s eyes widened slightly at the use of his given name. “I`m scared of losing you! I`m scared, damnit!” Jotaro exclaimed before he could stop himself. The pair both gasped, Jotaro at what he`d just seen and Kakyoin at Jotaro`s unexpected almost confession.
“Jotaro…” Kakyoin was left almost speechless by the whole conversation, instead opting to shuffle closer to Jotaro, who squeezed his hand in response.
They stayed like that for a few minutes, hearts racing and Jotaro getting used to how close Kakyoin was to him. The silence was comfortable but carried the weight of many things that needed to be said. And so, Jotaro did just that.
“Hey,” Kakyoin looked at him. “I think I like you… more than the others I mean. I don`t know how to describe it but I want you to stay close to me.” Jotaro fumbled, opting instead to just bring Kakyoin`s hand close to his heart. Kakyoin smiled. This was what he was hoping for. He cared so much for Jotaro, loved him even. He voiced just that, pulling the now very flustered Jotaro`s hand to his face and kissing it.
“What does this mean for us?” Jotaro squeaked.
“Let`s stay close to each other alright? Let`s fight together as we always do. Everything else will come at your pace if you want it to, alright?” Kakyoin said, stroking Jotaro`s hand with his thumb as the hands stayed together. “Do you want to call me your boyfriend or is that too much right now?” He asked.
“I think I`d like that” Jotaro nodded. “Just please… Don`t die on me alright? I don`t wanna lose you.” He continued, voice shaking slightly.
“I`ll try my best, JoJo.” Came the reply. “Is it alright if I hug you?” Kakyoin asked. Jotaro responded by pulling his new boyfriend close to him. Sand was kicked up all over their jackets in the motion but neither of them were bothered in the slightest, enjoying the embrace.
This lasted for a minute or so before they decided to head back to the camp, still hand in hand to see the others getting ready for bed. Joseph was facing away from the couple, unrolling a sleeping bag as Polnareff and Avdol stood discussing something or other. The older two both looked surprised to see them holding hands. Avdol gave them a warm, knowing smile while Polnareff simply looked shocked and somewhat dismayed at this.
“Welcome back you two. I see Jotaro is feeling better.” Avdol smiled, glancing at Polnareff with a mischievous look on his face.
“Avdol how much do I owe you?” Polnareff asked his friend quietly, which resulted in Avdol shushing him.
Jotaro and Kakyoin looked at each other, realising that they were still holding hands and quickly separated, embarrassed. At that moment, Joseph turned around to see what the fuss was about.
“Ah finally I was about to send Avdol after you two. Glad you`re alright. Now, shall we get some sleep, you lot? We`ve got another busy day ahead of us after all.” He said before pointing everyone to their sleeping bags one by one.
As everyone started drifting to sleep, Jotaro smiled softly at his new boyfriend, feeling as if his worries had been calmed a lot by him. Kakyoin smiled back, extremely happy about the evening`s events as he drifted off to sleep.