Actions

Work Header

Rating:
Archive Warning:
Category:
Fandom:
Relationship:
Characters:
Additional Tags:
Language:
English
Stats:
Published:
2019-07-02
Updated:
2019-12-23
Words:
7,409
Chapters:
3/?
Comments:
32
Kudos:
64
Bookmarks:
3
Hits:
696

Wandering about balls

Summary:

Josukes mind tends to wander, no matter if balls are involved or not.
This fanfiction is about Josuke Higashikata and his life and experiences with ADHD and how it affects his normal life.

Please note that I go a bit in depth about ADHD, and that I loosely based this off of my expirence with ADHD and how it affects me. I headcannon Josuke as having ADHD, and I fully understand if you disagree with that.

Notes:

Josuke: *makes an offhand comment about how his mind would wander*
Me: omg time to give u my disorder

Jokes aside, I haven't read many things that really just normalizes mental disorders like adhd and autism. Sure, I've read my fair share of "Jotaro has autism" and I adore that headcanon, but that's really it for things like this. So, here you go!
EDIT: Yall i was on tumblr and found a afhd awareness blog and fuckin found this and it made my fucking day same hc! https://yourfavehas-adhd.tumblr.com/post/185647037079/josuke-higashikata-from-jojos-bizarre-adventure

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

Josuke's mind tends to wander whenever ball shaped things are involved. Well, just about anything can send Josuke on an internal ramble that seems to bounce around as fast as a rubber ball, but balls do start these quests often. It's weird, yeah, but Josuke's mind just can't sit still. He can't sit still. Today Josuke seems to be more scatterbrained than normal, but Josuke doesn't know why.
"Hey, remember that one fight I had with a rat?" Josuke says.
"Uh, are ya talking about the one who had a stand?" Okuyasu asks and Josuke nods.
"Oh yeah, didn't you fight it with Dr. Kujo?" Koichi follows his other friends as he looks around. "Also, where are you taking me again?"
"We're going to Tonios place," Josuke sticks his hands in his pocket. "Also Jotaro let me keep some of the marbles we used."
"Oh sweet!" Okuyasu eyes Josuke's pockets. "Do you have it with you?"
"No!" Yes. Josuke enclasps the balls in his fist.
"Alright then. What's in your pockets then?" Okuyasus hand floats to a pocket, and Josuke slaps it away.
"..... Nothing. Nothing's in my pocket, why would you say that? Nope, all there is is my hand."
Koichi sighs. "You're terrible at lying sometimes, did you know that Josuke."
"Alright fine, I have the balls, happy?"
"Very." Okuyasu smiles. "Are ya gonna do anything with them?"
"Nah, not really." Josuke rubs the marbles with his thumb. "I don't fully know why I asked for the balls even, I just asked and he gave them to me."
"Can I have them then?"
"No, get your own Okuyasu."
"What?! Come on, please? Koichi, make Josuke give me some marbles."
"No, I'm not your babysitter. You can go get your own balls." Koichi says, as Josuke's mind starts to wander.
A small part of Josuke is yelling at him to focus, to stop daydreaming before you get out of the conversation, to just pay attention. Josuke constantly hears it, but no matter how hard he tries, he just can't. He can't help himself not to think. He can't stop his brain from wandering, balls or no balls. His thoughts just seem to roll away from him, just like the marbles in his hand.
Josuke's dad use to have balls with him. Well, not really balls, Jotaro said when Mr. Joestar was young he used to fight with clackers. Marbles are close enough to clackers, right? Clackers are just metal balls with string. If you just chop off the strings and dump both balls in red paint, they'll look basically identical. Heck, you don't even need to dump just the ball part, just dump the entire thing into it. Wait, the clackers would look like cherries if you did that. And, like, if you put enough ball shaped things in the paint, the paint would kinda look like cherry bubble tea. Maybe Tonio makes bubble tea, Josuke should ask.
"Hey, do you think Tonio has bubble te-"
"Josuke look out!" Koichi warns as Josuke trips over a traffic cone. Josuke crashes onto his arm as he winces.
"Shit, you okay bro?" Okuyasu asks as be extends his hand to his fallen friend.
Josuke rubs his arm. "Yeah, yeah I'll be alright. I might get a bruise though." Josuke grabs Okuyasus hand, and hoist himself up.
Okuyasu pats Josuke's shoulder as he says "We should get you to Tonios restaurant so he can fix you up. He can probably fix bruises, right?"
Koichi stares blankly at Okuyasu. ".... Is Tonio a stand user?"
"Yeah, didn't I tell you?" Josuke says and Koichi shakes his head. "Ah fuck, I knew I was forgetting to tell you something. Sorry Koichi."
"It's fine Josuke. What can Tonios stand do?"
"It's like, it's kinda like Josuke's stand but with food and it can heal small stuff. Like, Pearl Jam can make your nails harder or like, your skin smoother and things like that." Okuyasu lightly punches Josuke. "Josuke here got paranoid the first time we went and punched my spaghetti with Crazy Diamond."
"Wait, really?" Koichi glances at Josuke.
"Hey, give me some slack! I thought you were being attacked! If you thought I was eating something poisoned wouldn't you do something about it?" Josuke punches Okuyasu back, a grin forming on his face.
"Of course bro, but I wouldn't use The Hand to scrape your plate away." Okuyasu smirks.
"Oh shut up. Do you think Tonio has….." Josuke's forgetting the word. "Has, uh, that thing."
"What thing?" Koichi asks.
"You know, that thing." Josuke mimes a cup. "That drink with, like, stuff in it."
"You mean ice?" Koichi asks again.
"No, not ice. They're like small balls." Josuke scrunches his face.
"Oh, you mean bubble tea?"
"Yeah, thats it! Thanks Koichi. Does Tonio have bubble tea?"
"Maybe," Okuyasu shrugs.
"Probably not, we're going to an Italian restaurant, right? I don't think bubble tea's a Italian cuisine." Koichi says.
"Oh. I was just curious." Josuke mutters.
The three fall into a comfortable silence as the walk together. Man, Josuke was really craving some bubble tea. He remembers when he was younger, he used to hate anything that you could eat that was small. It always reminded him of his meds, and he would hate to take them.
"Wait… Shit my meds!" Josuke shouts.
"Your meds?" Koichi and Okuyasu echoes.
Josuke checks his watch. Looks like he has enough time to run home and take his meds before it fucks up his appetite or sleep schedule.
"Fuck me that's what I was forgetting, wait for me at Tonios I gotta go!" Josuke turns around and starts sprinting home. Thank god Josuke knows Morioh like the back of his hand, otherwise he would've been screwed. He scans the streets as he dashes by houses. He hops some fences and runs through yards, even when a shitty mangaka shouts at you for doing so. He passes Okuyasus house and checks his watch. 8:47. Yeah, Josuke has about 13 minutes until he can't take his meds, it'll be fine.
Josuke burst into the house. "Hey mom, where'd I put my meds?"
"I'll tell you when you take off your shoes," Tomoko says, cooking over the stove.
Josuke rolls his eyes as he pops off his shoes. "They're off, now can you tell me?"
"I don't know where your meds are."
Josuke groans. "Mom, that isn't helpful!"
"I'm not in charge of your shit, you find it yourself." Tomoko shakes her pan.
Josuke groans as he rushes to his room. He flings the door open and scans it. Even though his room is a complete mess, he knows where everything is. Kinda. If he was going to put his meds anywhere, it would be on his shelf. It's close enough to the door so that if he needed to grab it he could. It isn't there.
"Mom!" Josuke yells. "It isn't here!"
"Check the bathroom!" She yells back. Josuke rushes to the bathroom and opens that door.
The bathroom is always filled with bottles of any kind. Bottles of makeup, bottles of hair supplies, bottles of soaps and sprays, and there's probably even more bottles than Josuke could list. He rifles through the bottles, searching for the one he needs. He opens up the cabinet mirrors, he moves around some bottles, heck he even checks behind the shower but no dice.
"Mom it's not in the bathroom either!" Josuke yells.
"Oh. Where'd you last put it down?" Tomoko responds.
"If I KNEW I wouldn't have lost it!" Josuke looks at the bottles again.
"Don't give me that tone young man!" Tomoko shouts.
"Fine!" Josuke leaves the bathroom and enters the kitchen. He starts opening random drawers.
"Josuke, what are you doing?"
"Looking for my meds."
"So tell me, why are you looking for them in the utensil drawer?"
Josuke shrugs. "I dunno."
Tomoko sighs. "Where do you normally take your meds?"
"Uuuuuhhhh my room, the bathroom, and the living room."
"Where have you already checked?"
"The bathroom and my room."
"Sooooo?"
"I should check the living room?"
Tomoko nods. Josuke mutters a thanks and enters the living room. He immediately finds the bottle on the sofa. Why would it even be on the sofa? Whatever, at least he found it. He grabs the bottle and unscrews the top. He shakes out some pills and pops one in his mouth. He pours the unconsumed pills back into the container and checks his watch. 8:58. Josuke sighs in relief. Thank god he made it in time.
Josuke places the bottle back into his room. He doesn't want to misplace it again. "Mom, I found them. I'm gonna head out again, I told Okuyasu and Koichi that I'd meet them at Tonios." Josuke says while passing the kitchen.
"Okay, goodbye." Tonoko responds. "Don't do anything illegal, and don't get caught if you do."
"Yeah, yeah, I hear you." Josuke slips his shoes back on and takes a step outside.
Josuke hurries through the streets as he heads to Tonio's restaurant. Occasionally Josuke's steps would falter when something catches his attention, but he doesn't dwell on them. He doesn't want to keep his friends waiting. Josuke slips a hand into his pocket, waving at acquaintances with the other. His hand grazes the marbles.
Oh yeah, Josuke forgot he had those. He's surprised that he hasn't lost them yet. Heh, that's funny, Josuke should use that joke later. Josuke pulls one out and inspects it. Where did Jotaro get these things? He should ask next time he sees his nephew.
Josuke slips the ball back in his pocket once he reaches the restaurant. Josuke pushes the door open, the familiar tinkling of a bell greeting him.
"Oi! Josuke! Over here!" Okuyasu shouts, waving his hands wildly.
"Okuyasu, calm down, you're making a ruckus!" Koichi says.
Josuke smiles. Man, his friends are great. He walks over and sits down on his chair. "Hey."
"Hey dude, you missed drinks. I kept you a menu though, here." Okuyasu hands Josuke a menu.
"Oh, thanks bro." Josuke graciously accepts the menu and starts to read it. "So, does Tonio serve bubble tea?"
"No, it was the first thing we asked," Koichi responds.
"Oh. Thanks man." Josuke decides to just get a breakfast sandwich today. He isn't feeling too picky today. "Hey, I'm thirsty. Can I get your drink Oku?"
"Uhh, sure. Don't drink it all though." Okuyasu slides the glass to Josuke, and Josuke catches it.
"Thanks man." Josuke takes a swig from the glass, and passes it back. "What did you guys order, I'm getting the sandwich."
Okuyasu shrugs and Koichi says "Eggs and toast."
"Oh. Nice." Josuke taps his fingers on the table. Josuke isn't the best at waiting. He usually tries to fill his time with talking, but nobody seems talkative right now.
"So, Josuke, do you mind talking about something you said earlier?" Koichi asks.
"Sure, go on ahead." Josuke leans back in his chair.
"Um, well," Koichi lowers his voice, "It's about your medication."
"Yeah, what's up with that?" Okuyasu adds.
Koichi shushes him. "Not so loud!"
"That? I just forgot to take my meds, that's it." Josukes eyes wander around the room. Where's Tonio? Josuke should order soon.
"Well, it's not just that I want to talk about.," Koichi continues. "If you don't mind me asking, what are they for?"
"You don't need to tell us if you don't want to man. We're Here for ya bro, and we ain't gonna judge you about it." Okuyasu says.
"Nah, it's fine. I have ADHD and if I don't take my meds before 9 it just fucks me over." Josuke has given up on trying to find Tonio, he's just staring at chairs now. After a couple of seconds of silence he turns back to the table. He's greeted with his two friends staring at him.
"... What? Do I have something in my hair?" Josuke pats his pompadour. It feels fine. So why are they staring at him like that?
"Josuke, you have ADHD?" Okuyasu asks.
"Yeah."
"Since when??" Okuyasu questions.
"I dunno, since I was born? I found out at 11 if that's what you're asking."
"I'd never thought Josuke would have ADHD," Koichi says, probably to himself.
Josuke shrugs. "Eh, I don't really go around and advertise it."
"Wair, why don't you bounce off the walls then? I thought ADHD means you can't sit down or something." Josuke can tell Okuyasu doesn't have a good grasp about what ADHD is, especially after that comment he made.
"It's more like I can't stop moving. It's not that I can't sit still, it's just I can't stop moving, no matter how much or little I'm moving at a given second."
"Is there anything else you'd like to tell us about it?" Koichi asks.
"Uh, sure. Do you know how I said I can't stop moving? That's kinda the same with my brain." Josuke taps his head. "My brain goes a mile a minute. That sometimes makes me space out while in a conversation. Also it makes me do really stupid stuff when I'm really bored. Once I beat a bush to a pulp with Crazy Diamond because I was bored. Didn't I show you Koichi?"
"I don't remember." Koichi responds.
"Oh. Well anyway, sometimes I focus really hard on something because of ADHD. It can be helpful sometimes, because one time I got focused on cleaning my room and then I did it within a couple of hours. Sometimes it isn't. Remember that time where I could only talk about fashion for like, a week? Yeah, you can figure out why I did that now."
"Ooooohhhhh. Is that why you call Rohans outfits a tissue with a booger on it?" Okuyasu wonders.
"Nah, I just like dunking on Rohan. Oh yeah, daily reminder, screw Rohan he's a fucking bitch."
"Josuke, come on, Rohan isn't that bad." Koichi says. "If you get to know him he can be nice."
"Hmm, let me think about this." Josuke taps his chin with a finger. "Nope! Sorry Koichi, he's still a bastard."
"What?! You barely even thought about it!" Koichi exclaimes.
"It doesn't take me long to think about something." Okuyasu buts in.
"That's because you have a one track mind dude." Josuke jokes.
"Hey! I think about other stuff!" Okuyasu says.
"You only think about 3 things Okuyasu. Food, getting a date, and money." Koichi adds.
After that, Josuke's day went on as it normally does with Koichi and Okuyasu. They went to the arcade afterwards, and then crashed at Koichis place. Josuke's glad that the other two aren't making a big deal about Josuke having ADHD. Sometimes when he told his now ex friends about it, they'd treat him differently because of it. It would drive Josuke nuts. They'd sometimes treat Josuke like he's broken and he can't do anything right without some help. Some people treated him like a small child, and that was worse. Okuyasu and Koichi aren't treating him like he can't do anything complicated. They didn't bring it up to random strangers to excuse something Josuke did. They're treating him like he's just Josuke. Man, Josuke's friends really are the best.

Chapter 2: Firworks with Friends

Summary:

Josuke got invited to a Firework show by his friend Okuyasu. Little does he know, he might've bitten off more than he can chew.

Notes:

Hey remember how I put in the tag that this wasn't going to get angsty? This kinda got angsty in this one chieves. But it's nothing bad! Nothing like "oh having adhd sucks i wish i didnt have it" but more like "if i do not leave this place immediately i will perish". It also gets a bit abstract when Josuke starts to not feel so hot so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. A bit of a tone shift from last one as well, this one dips real hard. Also the tiniest bit of josuyasu is in here but it isn't so prevalent that you can't read it if you don't ship it.
Please enjoy this as much as it helped me to write this. If that makes any sense to you.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

"Okay, before you two leave, I want you to make sure you have everything you need," Tomoko says to the two teens in front of her.
"Jeez mom, we got it, you've asked us, like, 50 times already!" Josuke responds, a picnic basket in his grasps. "Besides, we got everything!"
Tomoko raises an eyebrow. "Do you have snacks?"
Josuke blinks. "Oh yeah, snacks, I forgot."
Tomoko sighs. "I swear, I keep on telling you, you need a list."
"But this works just as well," Josuke rushes into the kitchen and grabs the nearest edible he sees(a half eaten family sized barbecue chip bag).
"Thanks again for letting us go to the firework show Ms. Higashikata," Josuke hears Okuyasu says.
"Okuyasu, for the last time, you can call me Tomoko! Whenever you call me Miss and Ma'am, it sounds too…. Formal." Tomoko scrunches her nose.
Josuke returns, shoving the bag into his basket. "Okay, got the snacks, ready to go bro?"
"Always and forever bro," Okuyasu raises his hand for a high five.
Josuke delivers. "Hell yeah, bye mom!" He waves as he steps outside.
"Bye honey, don't do anything illegal, and don't get caught!" Tomoko closes the door, and the two boys start walking.
"Hey, ya think there's gonna be a food stand at the park?" Okuyasu asks.
"God, I hope not. I didn't bring any money with me."
"Oh, it's fine, I'll cover you." Okuyasu shakes his own basket.
Josuke eyes it. "What'd you even bring in that, I said I would bring the stuff?"
"Uh, nothin' much," Okuyasu starts to root through his basket. "I brought money, just in case, a throw pillow, a blanket, a cd player-."
"You bought a cd player? We're going to a fireworks festival, why would you even need that thing?"
Okuyasu shrugs. "You never know."
The teens fall into a comfortable silence. After a bit, the two arrive at the field, where others have started to settle down to see the show later.
"Wow, there's a lot more people here than I would've thought," Josuke scans the field.
"I mean, it's a firework show. It's a fun place to go to."
'It's a pretty good place to have a date also' Josuke thinks to himself. I mean, fireworks? Sitting close to someone? Chatting about nothing under the stars? Very romantic. Just like a cafe date. Oh wait, Koichi had his first date with Yukako at a cafe. "Do you think that Koichi and Yukako are here?"
Okuyasu looks at Josuke. "What?"
Oh shit, did he say that out loud? "Uh, do you think Koichi is here? With Yukako?"
"Maybe, do you see them?"
"No, it was just a thought. I didn't even realize I said it until you said something. They're probably off doing homework or someth-."
"There they are!" Okuyasu points at a small, silvered haired teen next to a long haired girl. "OI!!! KOICHI!!! OVER HERE!!" Okuyasu starts waving his hands wildly.
Josuke flinches. "Say it louder, why don't you," he mutters.
The couple turn around. Koichi waves at his friends, and Yukako says something. Koichi shakes his head, and she says something else. He shrugs, and ushers his two friends over.
"Oh hell yeah, lets go Josuke!" Okuyasu barrels over, Josuke following close behind.
"Hey guys, what are you two doing here?" Koichi welcomes.
"We could say the same thing to you two," Josuke says.
"Well we're here to see the fireworks," Yukako says. "I saw an article in the newspaper advertising this event, and I'd thought it'd make a wonderful date night. So why are you here?" Yukako smiles.
Josuke doesn't think that her smile is all that genuine. "Okuyasu invited me here. I don't know how he found the event, since I know he can't read."
"Shut up," Okuyasu smiles as he playfully punches Josuke. "I come here every year to watch the fireworks." Okuyasu sticks his hand into his basket and starts to retrieve his blanket.
"Dude, no. You invited me to the event, we get to use my blanket. It's only fair." Before Okuyasu could protest, Josuke whips out his blanket and lays it down on the grass.
"But bro, I invited you here. That makes me, like, the host. I can't have you use your blanket, that'd make me a shitty host."
"Dude, I already laid it out, it'll be fine. Besides it's only fair if I get the supplies, I'd be a shitty friend if I didn't."
"But-"
"Josuke, Okuyasu, I swear to fucking god if you two don't stop arguing over nothing and sit down, I will staple your mouth shut and force you to sit down," Yukako interrupts.
Okuyasu and Josuke sit down, embarrassed.
"So, uh, what kind of snacks did you bring Josuke?" Okuyasu asks.
"Barbecue." Josuke fetches them from outside of his bag.
"Oh nice, come to daddy." Okuyasu snatches them from out of Josuke's hands.
"Hey!" Josuke protests, as Okuyasu shoves a handful of chips into his mouth.
"What, do ya want some?" Okuyasu sprays crumbs everywhere.
Josuke makes a face. "Not if you do that," he teases, as he grabs some chips for himself. Josuke pops them into his mouth, looking around. "There really is a lot more people here than I expected," he comments to nobody in particular.
Koichi shrugs. "Well, it is a firework show. I would be surprised if there were less people here."
"Yeah, okay." Josuke would prefer it if there were less people here. It's kinda too loud for his liking here, and it doesn't help that people seem to be screaming. He can hear almost every conversation if he really wanted to. He can hear two kids argue about Pink Dark Boy, and the old people talking about scrabble simultaneously. It's disorienting.
Josuke leans back, his hand supporting him on the grass. The grass feels sharp against his fingertips. Someone probably cut it recently, he can smell the scent of cut grass nearby. The chips in his mouth start to taste stale, and he swallows. He sighs as he looks around the clearing yet again. Was it just him, or were there more people than he first thought? Like, WAY more. Doubled since the last time he looked up. And louder. It seems like everyone has gotten louder. Just So Much More Louder Than It Was. He starts to feel ruffled, like there's static tingling within his skin. Why is it so LOUD all of the sudden. Why are there MORE people? Did the grass start to feel SHARPER? "Hey Josuke, are you okay?"
Josuke blinks. "Uh, what?"
"Are you feeling alright? You don't look so hot," Koichi asks.
Josuke blinks again. "I, uhm, I'm fine." He blinks again.
"Are ya sure dude? We can leave if you want." Okuyasu places a hand on Josuke's shoulder.
Josuke smiles, hoping that his smile doesn't look as shitty as how he's feeling.
"If you say so. If you want to talk, we're always here for you." Koichi says.
"Hey look! The fireworks are starting!" Okuyasu points up, and Josuke's eyes follow.
A single line slithers through the air. Then it explodes, filling the night sky with blinding green.
Oh my god, Josuke can't do this. He just can't. There's so much. There's Just So Much Happening. There's Too Much Happening. He Can't. He Can't handle It. There's Just So So So So Much Happening. THERE'S SO MUCH. IT'S TOO MUCH. HE CAN'T. HE JUST CAN'T. He feels like he's going to cry. He feels like he's going to vomit. And the static. It's all over, buzzing and frying and cracking and crinkling. It won't stop. He feels so ruffled, he feels so out of it, it's like his soul is removed from his body, yet he still forced to feel what's happening. He has to leave. He needs to leave. He must leave.
He stands up. "Hey Josuke, why are ya standing up?" "Okuyasu, I'm so sorry but I can't. I just, I fucking can't." Josuke starts to stumble away. "Dude, what do you mean you can't? What's wrong?" Josuke doesn't answer. He doesn't even look back. He can make up an excuse or something later. Now he just needs to leave. Or hide. Of something, just something that isn't here. Josuke spies some porta potties tucked away behind a tree. That can do. Josuke walks over and slips inside. Luckily for him, there's two other potties, so he probably won't be interrupted. Josuke slams the seat down, and sits on it, his legs close to his chest. His hands are over his ears, and he's shaking. Since when did he start crying? He just wants this to stop. For everything to calm down, for him to calm down. Why couldn't everything be less intense? So there Josuke was, in a porta potty, wishing that he was anywhere else.
A sharp knock echoes through the plastic room. Josuke flinches at the noise. "I, uh, it's occupied," Josuke's voice quivers. Josuke's surprised that he manages to say anything at all.
"Oh damn, are ya actually peeing?" Josuke hears the faithful voice of Okuyasu.
He'd rather not have him seeing Josuke in such a sorry state. So he doesn't say anything.
Okuyasu jiggles the door handle,making a clattering noise, causing Josuke to press his hands over his ears harder.
"....... I could've sworn Josuke was in here…. Hey, whoever's in here, I'm coming in." Okuyasu opens the door, and Josuke turns his head. He starts to wipe his tears away.
"Oh. Uh, hey Josuke. Are you, uh, feeling okay?" Josuke wants to shake his head yes, he doesn't want Okuyasu to worry, but he actually shakes his head no.
"Oh. Uh, what's wrong then?" Josuke opens his mouth, but nothing comes out. He hears a firework whiz in the air and explodes. He flinches again, harder than the last one. He hugs his legs, tucking his head into his lap.
Okuyasu's mouth opens, forming a 'oh' on his lips. "Do you not like the noise? Of the fireworks?"
"Not normally," Josuke mutters into his lap.
Okuyasu nods. "Wait right here then, let me go grab something." He leaves, leaving Josuke alone for a minute or two.
Okuyasu returns, his basket in his hand. "You like prince, right?" He asks, rummaging in his bag. Josuke nods. "Alright, it should be somewhere, aha!" Okuyasu receives two things. A disc with something scrawled onto it, and a dvd player with headphones connected to it. He gently places them on Josuke's ears. "See? They were useful after all," Okuyasu jokes. Josuke weakly smiles. Okuyasu pops the disc into the player, and soon Josuke hears the familiar singing of Prince fills his ears. He closes his eyes, willing himself to get lost in the music.
He closes his eyes, letting everything else fade. He doesn't hear the whine or pop of fireworks. He doesn't hear the chatter of unfamiliar people. He doesn't the grass between his fingers. He doesn't taste barbecue chips in his molars. He doesn't see the sky light up with bright colors. He doesn't feel Okuyasu putting his hand on his shoulder, or feel the blanket Okuyasu covered the two with.
He only hears Prince.
~~~
After a while, Josuke starts to feel better. He isn't at 100 percent, but he's better enough not to fall apart if he leaves the porta potty. Josuke shifts, feeling the weight of the blanket encompassing his body. And there's a different weight, something on his shoulder. Josuke opens his eyes, and turns his head, almost smacking his cheek into Okuyasu's face.
"Oh shit," He mumbled. On a second glance, it looks like he's taking a nap. On Josuke's shoulder. It's probably best if he left that be for now.
Josuke pauses the dvd player and slips the headphones off. After a minute of listening, Josuke doesn't hear much of anything outside the plastic room. The firework show must be finished by now. If that's the case, the two should get going.
Josuke gently shakes Okuyasu. "Hey man, you gotta wake up."
Okuyasu snores.
"Dude, wake up." Josuke shakes harder. "Don't make me slap you."
With one more snort, Okuyasu rises, rubbing his eyes
"Morning sleeping beauty," Josuke gently teases.
"Uh, what?" Okuyasu groggily asks.
"You fell asleep."
"Wait, really? Oh damn, sorry about that."
"Nah, it's fine," Josuke waves his hand. "It's kinda late, you weren't really doing anything in here, I don't blame you. I'd probably fall asleep as well if it wasn't for your dvd player."
"Yeah, but like, I dunno," Okuyasu pushes his hand through his hair, dismantling his hairdo in the process. "You looked pretty freaked out, and you were crying, and just, I felt like I should've done more."
Josuke looks at his lap. "Well you did enough." He hands Okuyasu his dvd player back. "Thanks for letting me use this."
"Well, uh, it's no problem." Okuyasu takes it and slips it back in his basket. Okuyasu bunches up his blanket, and shoves it in his basket.
"I swear, if anyone was going to fall asleep while their best friend has an emotional breakdown, it'd be you," Josuke halfheartedly jokes, the ghost of a smile settling on his face.
"Is that what was happening?" Okuyasu stands, his basket swinging on his arm. "You were having a breakdown?"
Josuke falters. "Uh, no? I mean yes? Well, maybe. It's kind of complicated, and I don't even know if it's classified as an emotional breakdown. Mental breakdown, yes, but emotional? Mmmmmaybe."
"Then tell me."
"A-are you sure?" Josuke asks. Okuyasu nods. "Alright, if you say so Okuyasu…" Josuke takes a breath. "I think I got sensory overloaded earlier. Wow, you don't hear that word everyday, let me define that. So, you know how sometimes you can get overwhelmed because of work, or chores, or whatever? Okay so it's like that, but bass boosted, and getting overwhelmed for stupid reasons. There's a lot of reasons someone can get sensory overload, but I got it because there was so much people, and it felt like I could hear everyone. Oh yeah, sorry for making you skip the firework show."
"Nah, it's fine, I'm not gonna die because I couldn't see it. 'Sides, you come first."
"Oh. Thanks." The two stared at each other for a bit.
Okuyasu clears his throat. "So, is that like a ADHD thing, or like….?"
Josuke shrugs. "I mean, it's not just a ADHD thing, since I think autistic people can get overloaded, but yeah, it's a ADHD thing in my case."
"Oh." Okuyasu looks around. "Uh, do ya wanna leave?"
"Okuyasu there is literally nothing I want more in my life right now than to leave this tiny ass porta potty," Josuke kicks the door open, and hops out. Okuyasu soon follows, slamming the door behind him.
Josuke scans the field. It's a bit weird to see the once filled park almost completely empty. "Wait a second," Josuke's face scrunches together. "Where did my basket go?"
"Oh yeah, Koichi has it. I can go find it if you need it."
Josuke hums. "Nah, it's fine. I'm okay with Koichi having it, I'm just glad that it wasn't stolen."
"Yeah. There isn't anything left after the fireworks. Do ya just wanna head home?"
"Yeah, let's do that." Josuke nods.
The two start walking home, not wanting or willing to start a conversation.
When they arrive at Josuke's house, they look at each other.
"So….." Josuke looks at his door.
"Yeah." Okuyasu looks down.
"I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Bye Josuke." Okuyasu waves, and starts to walks away.
Josuke looks at Okuyasu and sighs. "Okuyasu, wait." Okuyasu turns around, and Josuke approaches him. He puts a hand on his shoulder, and looks in his eyes. "Thank you."
"Uh, for what?"
Josuke sighs, and waits for the right words to come to him. "Thank you…. For being there. Earlier. I don't know how'd I'd be if you didn't barge into the porta potty."
"Of course, anything for you bro." Okuyasu nods. Josuke nods back, and slips his hand off. Okuyasu turns around and walks into his house, Josuke's eyes trailing him.
Josuke looks at the door. And he smiles.

Notes:

If you couldn't tell I got sensory overloaded earlier and I started this to try and ground myself. Did it work? That is to be debated. Getting overwhelmed sucks and it's hard to explain it. At least, it's tough for me. How I explain it is that I'm a cat and someone just pushed my fur up and there's no way I can get it down. It feels wrong, and disorienting, and like how Josuke says it, ruffled. As like the last entry into this fanfiction, I don't know if I'm going to add an entey soon, or if ever at all. Hopefully I will, but realistically, maybe not.
As always, if you have any media that delves into adhd (besides pjo) and doesn't romanticize it, send it my way. I always love to hear about those stories!

Chapter 3: An eggcellent activity

Summary:

Josuke wakes up and he feels like shit. A friend meets up with him and help make him feel better.

Notes:

Hey! Guess who tried to push through an emotional rut by writing this!! It's ya boy! The tone to this is much more like the first chapter, since It's not talking about something as intense as sensory overload. This briefly discusses about how mood swings are way more intense in folks with ADHD. There's nothing as abstract as last chapter but I still enjoyed it.
I hope you enjoyed this as much as this helped me.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Josuke wakes up in his bed and he feels absolutely shitty. Yeah, everybody feels shitty when you wake up, but this is a different shitty. The 'I-Can't-Do-Anything-Productive' shitty.
Josuke hates it when he gets like this. He feels like his mind wades through sludge when he gets like this.
Josuke groans as he sits up. There's no use in delaying the inevitable. He glances at his clock. 6 am. He has about 2 hours to get ready for school, and 45 minutes to get there. He drags himself out of the comfort of his bed and throws on his uniform. He floats into the bathroom to make his pomp, his hands as heavy as dumbells as he works. After he finishes his hairdo, he looks at himself in the mirror. Compared to his recent work, his pomp looks like shit. He's too tired to fix it. He wanders out of the bathroom and heads to the kitchen. Usually he'd make his lunch and breakfast now, but no, he can't do that. He pours some cereal into a plastic box and calls that his lunch. He slips it into his bag. He goes over to the refrigerator and cracks it open. There isn't anything appealing besides old pizza. Pizza is a any time food, right? No matter, Josuke's going to eat it. And that he did. What a delicious and fulfilling meal. Josuke checks the time. 7:10. He doesn't usually have this much time to himself in the morning, normally he would kill to have 50 free minutes at the beginning of the day. Now it feels hollow. 50 minutes seems like an eternity when you feel like nothing.
Josuke spends his time in front of the TV, mindlessly flicking between channels, never fully settling on one. He gets clips of a news reporter talking about another missing person, some animated show about cutesy magical girl, a weird American tv show, all shows are the same.
After what feels like forever, his mom yells at Josuke. "Hey! Josuke! Your friend is here!"
"Which one?" Josuke grabs his bag. He puts it on.
"The girl one!" Josuke arrives at the door, Tomoko and Yukako waiting near the door.
"Oh. Uh, hi." This is new, Yukako usually doesn't walk to school with him. She usually waits at school to join the trio.
Yukako eyes Josuke over. "Hello there. I brought back your basket." She hands (more like thrusts) Josuke the basket from the fireworks show.
"Oh. Thanks." He places it on top of the shoe cubby and slips his shoes on. "Ready to go Yukako?"
"Yes." Yukako steps out of Josuke's way, Josuke walking outside.
"Bye Josuke! Have fun at school!" Tomoko waves the two teens out.
"You're embarrassing me mom!" Josuke says, hoping that nobody notices her.
"Love you two you little gremlin!" Tomoko closes the door.
The two teens start their walk. "Does your mother always do that?"
"Not if I leave my house early enough. God, it's so embarrassing, do you know how many times Okuyasu made fun of me for it?"
"I can imagine." The two fall into an awkward silence. What is there to talk about if you know next to nothing about the other?
"So. Uh. Yukako. If you don't mind me asking, why did you drop by my house today?"
Yukako checks her nails. "To return your basket. And to make sure you're okay after the fireworks fiasco." She points at his pompadour. "Your hair looks like shit. You're obviously not okay."
Josuke touches his hair. "Uh, wow. That's a lot to unpack."
"I have a lot to say."
".... Okay. First thing's first, I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me. Second thing, my hair's fucking amazing, how dare you insult it."
"Bullshit, you're clearly not fine. Or at least you're not feeling normal. Your hair's……… Fine, but it usually doesn't look look like that. It looks like you half assed your hairdo today, and I know you put a shit ton of effort into your pomp. So tell me what's wrong."
Josuke sighs. Does he really want to tell Koichi's girlfriend about his feelings? "How can you tell my hair's different?"
Yukako glares at Josuke. "My stand is Love Delux. It's literally hair. I know these things. Now quit beating around the bush and tell me."
Josuke forgot how intense Yukako can be. "Are you sure?" Yukako nods. "Okay, if you're sure about this. Uh, do you remember when I ran to the porta potty during the fireworks thing? Uhm, that was a result of a mental thing I have. ADHD. One really fun thing about having ADHD are the moodswings. One moment I can be on top of the world, feeling like the king of the world, and the next I'd hit rock bottom and feel like absolute crap. Take a wild guess on what I'm feeling right now."
Yukako nods. "I see. So you're feeling terrible right now."
"Yes."
"Do you want to go to school?"
"No, not really, no."
"Then let's not." Yukako veers left, grabbing Josuke's sleeve and tugging him along with her.
"Wait, wh-what? What do you mean?" Josuke wiggles a bit in her grasp, Yukako's fingers clasping the fabric like it's something she'd lose.
"Let's skip school. We can return if you feel better, but why should you do something you don't want to do? We'll do something fun to make you feel better."
Wow. That's actually pretty nice for Yukako to suggest. "But… do you really want to do that for me? We barely know each other, and I don't want you to get in trouble because of my stupid feelings."
"If you call your feelings stupid again I'm not going to let you go. Now come with me or else I'll force you to."
"It's true, but I won't." Wow, that's really cool of Yukako to say. Maybe Josuke didn't give her the credit that she deserves.
Yukako half leads half drags Josuke to the nearest store. "Hey Yukako, why're we here?"
"Supplies. What's your favorite snack?"
"Pretz. Are we just going to pig out on food?"
Yukako suppresses a smile. "Not just that. I'll be back in a second." She slips into the store. Josuke impatiently waits outside, tapping his foot against the ground as his mind hops from topic to topic. Yukako comes back, a plastic bag in her grasp. She looks in it for a bit, and hands Josuke a box of Pretz.
"Thanks." Josuke sticks his hand into his pocket.
"If you offer me cash Josuke, I'm going to break your wrist." Josuke slips his hand out of his pocket. "Good." Yukako retrieves some melon pan and rips off the plastic covering, taking a bite after she does so.
"So what are we doing?" Josuke asks, popping some sticks into his mouth.
"Something fun. You hate that mangaka who likes Koichi, correct?"
"Oh, you mean Rohan. Yeah, totally, fuck that guy."
"Well I'm glad to say that we're going to give him a gift." She shows Josuke what's left in her bag. 2 freshly bought egg cartons.
"Ohhhh." Josuke smiles. "Oh ho ho ho, I see where you're going with this."
"Well you better finish your Pretz soon, his house is up ahead." Yukako takes a big bite out of her chosen snack.
"Oh yeah. Okay." Josuke pours all the sticks into his mouth and start chomping down, earning a look of disgust from Yukako."...... What?" Josuke mumbles through half eaten food.
"That's disgusting. You're disgusting. Boys are disgusting."
"What, everyone does it. Besides, the only disgusting person here is you, since everyone knows melon pan's nasty." Josuke glances over to the other teen and sees her smile. Not in a happy 'oh I just saw Koichi' smile, but the 'you're going to die tomorrow' smile. "....... I'm joking! Haha, that was a joke. Melon pan is so good! I mean, mmmm, it just tastes soo yummy." Josuke says, lying through his teeth. Though Yukako looks like she doesn't believe Josuke, at least that made it so that she isn't mad at him.
Yukako finishes her bread and hands Josuke his carton of eggs. Josuke smiles his devilish smile as he pops open the carton. 12 beautifully rounded eggs stare at him. He picks one up, feeling the cool touch of eggshell against his hands. He rears back and chucks it, hearing the satisfying splat of egg whites and yolks hitting his target. Another egg flies by Josuke and splats next to his.
Wait a second, Crazy Diamond would be absolutely perfect for this! Josuke holds the carton in front of him, the pink stand materializing and picking up a few eggs. It throws all of them at the house, one egg breaking in his grasp. "Oh, eww, the egg got on Crazy D!" Josuke shakes his hand, feeling the slimy yolk on his arm.
"You're fine. Eggs are good for the skin." Yukako throws another egg. "Oh damn, I'm down to my last egg."
"You better make it count, Crazy D threw all of mine."
Yukako winds back, and before she could follow through, a door slams open. "Who. The FUCK. Has been throwing ROCKS at my HOUSE!" someone yells from behind the curtain. The green haired magaka sticks his head out and looks around, glowering more intensely when his eyes land on the pompadoured teen. "Josuke fucking Higashikata." He sneers. "I should've guessed. Nobody else would do something as juvenile as to egg someone's home."
"Hey screw you! I'm not alone! Yukako's with me!" Josuke points to Yukako and she waves.
"Yes, I see her. What happened to your little friend?"
"You mean Koichi? He's busy with other events." Yukako says.
"No not- the tall one with the lines on his face!" Rohan shouts.
"You mean Okuyasu?"
"Yes, him! What happened to that dolt?"
"Hey! Don't call my bro a dolt!" Josuke shouts. "Nobody's allowed to call him stupid!!!"
"Yes, he's about as smart as you Rohan. Maybe even more." Yukako muses, pressing the last egg into Josuke's hands.
"You take that back!" Rohan says. "I'm far more intelligent than you, Okuyasu, and Josuke combined."
"Sure. You're lucky I ran out of eggs to throw. If I did, I would throw one at you." Yukako says, elbowing Josuke.
Oh. Oh wait! Yeah, he should do that! Crazy Diamond takes the egg, and with a "DORA!" the stand throws the egg at Rohan. Rohan shrieks and slams the window shut, the egg splattering all over the glass. Josuke cracks up, laughing so hard that he's clutching his stomach. Yukako laughs as well. "Oh, that was so good." Josuke wipes a tear from his eye.
"It was." Yukako smiles.
Rohan opens the window again. His face is red. "I'm calling the cops on you!"
"Do it fucker, I know the law!" Josuke shouts back.
Yukako nudges Josuke. "This is technically illegal you know, we should leave." She whispers.
"Alright, got it." Josuke flips off Rohan and runs away, Yukako following close behind. God, that was SO FUN. Who knew Yukako hated Rohan? Josuke sure as hell didn't. Josuke weaves through the alleys and streets, smiling. Yukako was surprisingly fun! Well, funner than Josuke thought she was. He can see what Koichi sees in her. Of course, he would never date her, he'd rather die than date Yukako, but he sees how Koichi would fall for someone like Yukako.
"Let's stop at the park," Yukako says.
"Alright." Josuke turns and leads the other teen to the park, collapsing on a bench.
Yukako glares at Josuke. "I'd like to sit as well."
"There's the ground."
Yukako rolls her eyes and perches herself on the arm rest. "Did you have fun?"
"Uhh, yeah. That's the greatest thing we've done together."
"And the only thing we've done by ourselves."
"True." Josuke streaches his arms.
"Are you feeling better?"
Josuke sits up. "What?"
"I said, are you feeling better? Earlier you said that you felt like shit." Yukako hops off the arm rest and sits down next to Josuke. "Whenever I'm down I do something fun to pick myself up, so I tried that with you. I knew you hated Rohan, so I thought egging his house would make you feel better. So, do you?"
".........." Josuke vibe checks himself. DOES he feel better? ".......... Yeah. Yeah, I think I do. Yeah, I feel better. Thank you Yukako, honestly I didn't expect you to do this. I never thought you were this awesome."
Yukako suppresses a smile. "Well, thank you for the compliment, I enjoy your company as well. You want to go back to school?"
Josuke hums. "Would I be okay at school now? Probably yes. Do I want to? Uuuhhh, not particularly, no."
"Then we won't." Yukako leans back.
Josuke smiles. "My mom's gonna kick my ass when she finds out I did this."
"Then enjoy the moment while it lasts."
Josuke smiles. It always feels good to gain a new friend.

Notes:

Just as the previous fics were for, this was me very much projecting my experience onto Josuke. Recently, I've been hit with so many dips that just render me useless, I had to do something. This took me a while to write, since when I hit a low, the most I can do is sleep unless I'm pushing myself to do things. I didn't explain really what it feels like to hit a low, but for me it's hard to explain in words. It's like you're a rock at the bottom of the ocean, surrounded by inky black water, pushing down on you. You're tired of everything, and sometimes sleep doesn't much help your drowsiness. You feel like you're walking through molasses and you do not like yourself for it.
Anyway again if you see any media that has positive ADHD representation hmu!

Notes:

Josukes expirence is loosely based off of mine, like I've stated before. I've hoped you liked this fanfic as much as I liked projecting my expirence onto him lol.

Reflecting on this fanfiction before sending it out to the world, I think I wrote this because I don't quite like how there's a "stereotype" to adhd characters. Like, I have adhd and whenever I tell people they're usually surprised because I'm not a loud class clown and I get good grades. I think I'm sick of people not diversifying character traits when making an adhd character. Sure, percy jackson is an excellent representation of adhd, but you can only read the series so many times before shifting hyperfixations lmao. I guess what I'm saying we should have more people like how Josuke is portrayed in my fanfiction. People who you don't assume to have adhd until they tell you. At least, that's what I think. If you have any good books that have positive adhd depictions please hmu i need more than just pjo for my representation (even thiugh rick riordan is a genius author who i deeply respect)