Chapter Text
Years had passed since the dust of the Steel Ball Run trail had settled. America had moved on, Johnny Joestar had moved on, and Diego Brando—in theory—had also moved on.
Johnny’s life had mellowed into something warm and unmistakably ordinary. After the chaos and bloodshed of the race, he had found stability in Rina’s quiet devotion. Their ranch echoed with the small comforts Johnny once believed he'd never deserve—soft mornings, shared meals, horses grazing without the threat of violence around every corner. A life shaped by love instead of survival. A life where he could finally breathe.
Diego’s world was the opposite. England welcomed him back as a rising legend—an untouchable, magnetic, viciously talented jockey. He won races. He attended parties. He slept with men, women, anyone who could distract him for even a few hours. He became a myth dressed in velvet and champagne.
But at the center of all that noise was a hollow he could neither outrun nor drown. Every drunken night, every gilded celebration, every polished trophy felt like a cheap substitute for something he couldn’t name out loud.
He tried not to think of Johnny Joestar.
He failed constantly.
That impossible, infuriating, stubborn boy had carved a wound in him years ago and never returned to close it.
One night, as Diego sat alone in his manor—fire crackling, letters and invitations strewn around him like confetti he was too tired to celebrate—he realized he was done waiting for time to erode what he felt.
So he made a decision.
A reckless one.
A selfish one.
He had an assistant draft a formal letter, elegant and dignified, bearing the crest of the Royal Equestrian Association. It read:
“Mr. Jonathan Joestar,
You are hereby invited to England to serve as an honored guest and consultant for an upcoming international race…”
Polite. Professional. Impossible to refuse.
Only a few lines betrayed the real reason—subtle enough that Johnny might overlook them, desperate enough that Diego hoped he wouldn’t:
“Your insight would be invaluable to me personally.
There are things I would like to speak to you about—matters unresolved between us.”
Diego sealed the envelope with wax, pressing the stamp down with more force than necessary.
He didn’t know what Johnny would say.
He just knew he couldn’t keep living like this—surrounded by people, wanted by everyone, and still impossibly alone.