Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Ah, it’s hot.” Josuke huffed and wiped his sweaty brow. He knew his extravagant dress didn’t help, but he didn’t have it in him to jeopardize his fashion. 

Morioh summers were killer. The sun was out to kill him, he swears it. Not even the breeze was giving them relief. 

Josuke breathed out as Okuyasu and him sat on the desks of a home room. They loved sitting on the windowsill but just touching the metal burned. They resigned to sit on the nearby desk tops.

Okuyasu wiped his own forehead, breathing out. 

“It’s sweltering.”

It was after school hours and they had nowhere to go- And with this heat wave, they didn’t really want to. Josuke wondered how long it would last.

Okuyasu answered his internal question. “Koichi told me this will go until Sunday!”

"I don’t think I’ll last that long.” Josuke breathed out. They had to go home at some point, he thought about getting ice cream on their way home. 

“Oh! We should get ice cream!” Okuyasu suggested.

“Stop doing that! It’s freaking me out!”

“Huh??”

Josuke laughed out, “You’ve been reading my mind. We hang out too much.” 

Okuyasu blinked but found himself chuckling with him.

Hot, sticky silence laid on them again.

The boy with the brilliant hair stood up suddenly. His eyes wide and grin curled.

“I’ve got it. Let’s go swim in the school athletic pool.” 

His friend gasped, struck speechless for a moment by such an amazing idea. “Can we do that!?” 

“No-But, yes.” Josuke shrugged. “No one uses it on Fridays. Pretty sure the swim club only practice on Wednesdays and Thursdays.” 

Okuyasu pulled his brow together, “I don’t know. What if we get caught? I don’t have a swimsuit, Josuke.” 

“Psh. We won’t get caught. You’re wearing underwear aren’t you?” 

Okuyasu concentrated. “Yes.” 

“Then let’s do it!” He probably wasn’t convincing to any reasonable person but it was to Okuyasu. The guy wouldn’t say no.

Josuke and Okuyasu walked casually down floors and hallways. Inconspicuous as they could get themselves, which was the two of them prowling with their hands in their pockets. Mean, uncaring looks on their faces. Maybe one half of them trying harder than the other. It didn’t matter, really. Was anyone truly scared of them? They hardly had a name for themselves.

To prove it, the small amount of people who still hung around the halls ignored them and that’s all they needed.

The bottom floor. East wing. The pool was on the far side. It was muggy and stuffy as they continued. The idea of jumping into cool water fueled every step of his designer shoes. Tiptoeing down the cream and blue painted hallways he’d sometimes look back and make sure Okuyasu was still with him. He always was. His bright eyes focused and body cautious. 

The entrance came up faster than he realized.

“Alright. Here it is.” Josuke approached the two large doors. 

In their context it seemed daunting. The simple blocks of metal and wood tainted with forbidden energy. Looked larger than normal. 

Okuyasu pressed on the metal handle and it only clunked against itself. 

“Josuk-“ 

“ DORA!” In an instant Crazy Diamond punched the double doors with a precise destruction. It slammed them open with a splintering crack of the lock.

It was loud.

Josuke and Okuyasu ran in and rushed to hide- There was a stack of life preservers! Josuke grabbed his friend and dragged him to duck behind it. 

The door glowed yellow and slowly returned to its original self. The thrum of his stand resonating with every molecule in the entrance- Including the lock.

Footsteps.

They brought in a breath. Okuyasu grabbed hold of Josuke back, the two meeting eye contact for just a second, then back to the door.

There was some muttering and then a jostle of the door. Whoever that was confirmed it was locked. Could hear some muttering, nothing intelligible. 

Footsteps left.

HAHAH.

Big grins crept along their faces and exhaled. Laughter bubbling in from the nerves. 

“We did it, Josuke!” 

“Yeah, what’d I tell you??” Josuke laughed and pushed at Okuyasu. 

They turned to their prize.

It was a large pool, the water crisp. Stagnate. The tile clean and labeled with metrics for educational purposes. As Josuke rubbed his hands together he decided they will not use this for educational purposes. 

They immediately started stripping. Their school clothes sticking to them uncomfortably as they peeled off each layer. Ugh, it was so hot. His skin was sticky with sweat- Could feel some drip down the back of his neck. Blugh.

Okuyasu tossed his shoes to his own pile of clothing. Bare except for his boxers, they were a dark green. The color wasn’t a surprise but the lack of creativity was. Was this the first time he saw Okuyasu’s underwear? 

The other boy’s muscular frame just being announced as he did stretches before running and doing a cannonball. The heavy splash filled the echoing room. Josuke stifled a snicker. His friend disappearing into the depths of water, swallowed whole. Ridiculously dramatic.

Shoes off, he pushed his clothes into its own pile. He wore briefs, not boxers. Light blue. Fixed them over his hips as Okuyasu popped back up from the water with a gasp.

Josuke didn’t jump in. 

He casually walked to the side of the pool, dipped on foot in, then crouched down. The water licked at his leg with the heavy disturbance from his friend. Put his other foot in. 

“Yo, Josuke-“ Okuyasu gasped out, spitting some water that got in his mouth. “What are you doing?? Jump in!”

He looked up. “Huh? Don’t be ridiculous- I’d ruin my hair.” 

“Ohhhh.” Okuyasu nodded. 

Josuke finally dropped himself in, careful to keep his head above water like he planned. 

Oh god, it felt nice. It chilled his body immediately. The water gently pushing at his body enough to force him to keep kicking to stay afloat. The muggy air still sat above the water, but his body was calmed considerably. Hell yeah. 

Josuke shut his eyes for a second to enjoy it. He heard plenty of splashing and swimming from Okuyasu doing God knows what. 

When he opened his eyes he was right next to him. Startled the shit out of him.

“Shit!”

Okuyasu grinned. “Sorry. Want to race?”

“Yes.” 

They met smiles and swam over to the side of the pool. Grabbed onto the smooth tile. Okuyasu seemed to keep getting mouth fulls of water, constantly having to spit it out. Kind of gross, mostly hilarious.

“I remember-“ He spit, “When I was younger-There was a pool my Bro would take me to. It got shut down because people kept peeing in it.”

“Aw, disgusting.”

Okuyasu laughed, “Yeah. I peed in there too, but it was just too many people doing it, I guess.” 

“Bro!”

“What! It was water!”

No point in arguing, only able to give an disgusted face and a held back smile. Okuyasus was full of teeth. No wonder he had to keep spitting out water.

Josuke looked over the expanse of the pool, it’s water sloppy and uncontrolled. Thought about rules. 

“Okay, three laps. Person who loses has to…” 

“Buy Tonio’s!” 

“Okay, but I always buy Tonio’s.” 

Okuyasu’s smile fell a little as his brain worked for a new reward.

“So loser buys Tonio’s!” Josuke finally let. “Because I know you’re gonna lose, I might as well get free food for once. I can already taste it. Should I get the spaghetti? Or maybe the cheese parmesan?”

“Bastard, as if! Let’s do this.” Okuyasu interrupted.

Like he’d ever lose. He can just use Crazy Diamond to help kick for him.

“And no using Crazy Diamond!!”

Shit.

He scoffed, how could Okuyasu think he’d do such a thing? “Like I’d have to, bro. But that means no using The Hand either!”

Okuyasu was terrible at pretending, even accidentally muttering a curse under his breath. “Okay, easy. Let’s just start.”

Josuke nodded with determination. They moved away from each other and gripped the side of the pool. 

“One.”

“Two.”

“Go!”

And Josuke immediately realized he was kind of screwed. 

He was never a really strong swimmer- He didn’t have a lot of practice. And he had to keep his head fully above water to not mess up his hair.

Without Crazy Diamond, the thought of losing was an actual concern of his. 

And it looks like Okuyasu has more experience. He went to that pee pool! His confidence was higher. But that didn’t stop Josuke, no. He wasn’t going to lose.

He just had to concentrate on his form. Or something. 

The water pushed at his body as he ripped through it. Just like any other sport, just keep breathing even and trust your body to propel yourself forward. He had this.

God, he could feel the water splashing at his hair. The humidity had put his style through enough trouble. He couldn't imagine the damage it was putting it in. But now wasn't the time to think about that. Future concern, future concern.

Josuke peeled open his eyes and looked ahead. There it was. The end of the pool. It gave him a boost of confidence and he pushed forward to slap it. Allowed himself to have a second to catch his breath, see where Okuyasu was. 

Damn it, he was already halfway across his second lap.

Josuke took in a breath of air and kicked himself from the wall for a boost. He had to catch up. 

Maybe if he just secretly used Crazy Diamond.

Just a little. 

Okuyasu wouldn’t notice. 

Josuke decided to do it. He felt a little awful for cheating, but come on, he had to even the odds a bit. His stand released from underneath his body, revealing only his legs. Just to help him kick a little bit faster.  But not too fast! It had to be a calculated rhythm. If he caught up too quickly it’d be suspicious.

Damn, this was so much easier. He felt like he glided through the water. His hair a lot less risking damage. It caught him up considerably.

Josuke slapped the edge of the pool of his second lap. Gasped for breath. Saw Okuyasu just a little bit ahead of him. Good. This is where he wanted to be. 

Josuke kicked off the wall again, but this time with a small added rush from his stand. Perfect. 10/10. His form was proving to be immaculate. Like he was doing this for years. If he didn’t have to risk his hair every Wednesday and Thursday he would probably sign the hell up for the swim club. Hell, make it into the Olympics. 

He knew he passed Okuyasu. He could hear the splashing just vaguely over his own.

He was almost at the end of the lap. He could feel it.

To insure his victory, he used Crazy Diamond to give him just a small extra kick to propel him forward. Worked. He touched the edge of the pool firmly and fell against it. The water shoved at his back to turn and grab for him instead, Josuke had to cling further on the edge of the pool to keep the riptide from pulling him back in.

He won. He did it. Albeit, maybe not the best way, but he did it. 

He turned to see how behind Okuyasu was but instead of seeing his struggling friend, he saw him there next to him with a shit eating grin. His cheeks flushed with exhaustion, heaving for air, but with a smug look on his face.

“You lost, Josuke!” He busted up laughing, “I told you! You were too slow!” 

His heart sunk and brain practically crashed. “Huh!? How?? You were behind me!” 

He just shrugged. “I’m just a faster swimmer, Josuke. Which means I WON. Tonio’s!” He laughed brilliantly and slapped the water in victory.

Something wasn’t right.

“You used The Hand, you ass!”

Okuyasu frowned. “No! Why would I have to use The Hand to beat you? Unless…?” His eyebrow raised. 

Fuck. He had him cornered. If he fought him on this it would only prove his fraudulence. He just had to suck it up. He knows he used The Hand. He must have.  The loud sound of splashing water would be the perfect way to hide the noise his stand makes. Easily would be able to swallow up the pool water to pull himself to the end of the lap. He knew he shouldn't have gone so easy on him. 

God damn it.

Fine, he won. Josuke didn’t need to say that out loud for Okuyasu to know it. 

Crazy Diamond’s strong arm scraped up a heavy amount of water and splashed Okuyasu with it. The kid’s scream muffled as he was dunked. Josuke practically cackled when Okuyasu popped back up with a harsh gasp. Sputtering and choking on water. 

“Josuke!!” He coughed, his voice rattled with irritation. Then he lunged for him. Josuke peddled back, laughing as the water angrily thrashed against them. 

Okuyasu was faster- Even if Josuke was, his stand would have made the effort worthless. He grabbed onto Josuke’s shoulder with intent to drag. 

“No, no, no! The hair, man! The hair!” He pushed back at Okuyasu. 

Okuyasu actually stopped. 

He really appreciated him. Damn it.

The water sloshed against them as they both caught their breath. With Okuyasu’s kindness, the water expressed its disdain. Echoing in the room trying to speak for them. Okuyasu’s hands were clutching onto Josuke’s shoulders still. His cheeks flushed from exhaustion, eyes red from the chlorine. Absolutely soaked, but his saliva that collected on his lips had a different type of shine to it as it dripped down his chin.

For a second, with him this close, Josuke felt his chest tighten up. An urge to just suddenly kiss him and see what Okuyasu would do. It was only for a second, but it was a second too long. 

Hold on, what the fuck. 

“Your hair’s already messed up, bro.” Okuyasu broke his thoughts. His innocent expression completely clueless from that dreadful urge Josuke just swallowed. 

He looked away and pushed himself from Okuyasu and fussed with his hair. “Shit.” 

“It’s not that bad! You did pretty good for swimming!” Okuyasu gave him a thumbs up, and even if he didn’t give him a reaction, he appreciated it.

“Let’s go. It’s getting dark.”

They dragged themselves out of the pool and found some towels. The pool was in a poor state, it still sloshing uncontrollably and a ton of it was over the sides. It’ll for sure dry up by the time the weekends done. He hoped.

“Ugh, we gotta wear our underwear back, huh?”

Josuke shrugged. “Just take ‘em off and ring them out, bro.”

Just two bro’s with their bare ass out, turned away from each other to ring out their soaked underwear. Somehow way more casual than it should have been.

“It’s still uncomfortable.” Okuyasu grieved, fixing his belt. Josuke ignored him.

Fully dressed now, and with Okuyasu helping Josuke get his hair back in order, they were ready to roll.

They walked home and Okuyasu stopped with Josuke when he reached his house. 

“Let’s do it again!” 

Josuke chuckled, “We’ll get caught, dude.” 

Okuyasu stuffed his hands in his pockets, his eyes drifted in thought. “Hm. You’re right. Well, I’ll talk to you later!”

“See ya.” Josuke nodded and entered his house. 

That night he couldn’t fall asleep. The heat was sticky and uncomfortable, but Josuke couldn’t bring himself to blame it on that. 

What the hell was earlier. 

He placed his fingers on his lips, felt the pressure. Again the idea of kissing Okuyasu. His lips would probably be chapped, right? Probably a terrible kisser too. This was all because of puberty anyway. Another excuse.

His hand formed into a fist and he laid it beside him.

Okuyasu was really warm. His grip was always pretty strong too. In a personal setting he could be genuinely sweet. Josuke really liked what they had. They didn’t have to make excuses for just being in each other’s space. They always just accepted it and let them enjoy the platonic affection.

Whatever this was, in his chest, what would it really change? What was the difference between romance and platonic between a friend?

The ceiling created shapes from the darkness. Swirling light and imaginary movement. He was exhausted but his mind just wouldn’t let him close his eyes.

Would Okuyasu even feel the same? 

What would he say? 

Where would this put him?

What if Okuyasu got a girlfriend? What would happen? 

That thought startled him.

Psh, Okuyasu with a girlfriend?

But what if? Why did the thought make him uncomfortably jealous? Who was he to him, truly?

Josuke rolled over and stuffed his face in his pillow. He didn't know if it were to force him to sleep or to suffocate himself to death. Maybe both. There goes his fantastic sleeping regime.

“Yo, Josuke— Oh my god! What happened?” His friend shouted in his face at the sight. Josuke with dark circles and zero energy. Hair almost a mess. Probably needing coffee- Definitely. Definitely needing coffee.

Josuke couldn’t even give a response. 

“Well, we’re going to Tonio’s so he’ll fix you right up, bro.” And with Okuyasu’s toothy grin he pulled Josuke with him. "You paying, of course. Since I won." 

Chapter Text

“Hey, wake up.” Josuke nudged Okuyasu, the boy leaning fully into him. The book on his lap slipping off as he relaxed. The pencil still in his grip. Okuyasu was shockingly good at being able to sleep anywhere. 

He had to nudge him again.

“Bro, wake up. My moms gonna kill me if we fail Chemistry.” 

That seemed to snap him from his slumber and he shook his head and yawned. “Huh?”

“ Bro.” 

“Sorry!! Sorry. What was the question?” 

Josuke looked over the papers they had sprawled over themselves and on the bed. Their own bodies being equally sprawled and equally messy. He found the page again with the question.

“We have to break down the structure of… Copper and Gold.” 

“Oh, easy, like currency, yeah?” His friend rubbed his fingers together. 

Did he intend that to be a joke or was he genuine?

Josuke decided not to figure it out, “Chemistry. Like, the shapes.” 

“OH, the shapes!!” Guess he was being genuine. His enthusiasm immediately turned into pain. “Why do we need to learn this??”

“I don’t know. We just have to. I got a B last semester and my mom flipped.” 

Okuyasu, a D student, nodded. “Y-Yeah. Thanks for helping. I ask my dad, but I can’t really understand what he says, and I get headaches on my own.” 

“Yeah, no problem!” Josuke nodded, “Not to mention, if you flunk, school would be totally lame.” 

And in the next moment Okuyasu sighed, “Can’t we just get Koichi to do this work for us?”

“Not the point. Okay, so the composition of..” Josuke looked down at the paper and squinted, “Of copper has two of these shapes.” He pointed at the paper. Traced along them and described what he understood. In a way it helped him study the more he had to explain it to Okuyasu. Things making sense as he had to simplify it. The other teenager concentrating and hanging onto his half confident words. Grunting in confirmation every time Josuke looked at him.

He even seemed to start to get the hang of it.

“Man, Josuke, you’re so smart. I think I’m getting it now.” 

“Great! We’ll pass with no problem.” Josuke’s smile curled and flipped onto the next page.

“Josuke!!” His moms voice cut in from down the hall. It jolted them both and looked to the door. “Josuke! Come clean up!” 

“In a second!!” He yelled back to her. Ugh. He’d have to get up.

Without thinking, Josuke just turned to Okuyasu and kissed him quickly as he got off the bed.

So casually smooched he wouldn’t have been able to describe the interaction. Like he had kissed his mom goodbye. 

Except it wasn’t his mother, it was Okuyasu.

The two of them were frozen, Josuke halfway across the room when it dawned on him. Pink Floyd playing through the small media player on his desk. A perfectly cued psychedelic guitar riff hit as his soul was left his body. 

He turned slowly and looked at his friend, he was bright eyed and shocked. 

His usually guttural noise of confusion, then a small, “Josuk-“

“Pft.” Josuke suddenly found himself sputtering. “Haha.” 

“Hahaha,” Okuyasu cautiously laughed with him. 

Whether it truly was funny or the fact that he was so incredibly nervous he just ended up in tears laughing. A growing pace from hefty huffs to heavy guffaws to outright gasping for breath. Okuyasu was losing it on the bed. Josuke didn’t know if the insatiable laughter helped the situation or not, but he couldn’t stop. The anxious bubbles in his stomach making his eyes water. He was wiping away tears and giving injured chuckles as his sides burned. 

Okuyasu was laughing, could consider it a smooth recovery.

“ JOSUKE, I SWEAR!!”  His mom yelled again from the kitchen.

It struck him from his laughter and straightened up, “I’m-I’m coming!!” He gave a few finally breaths and left. Okuyasu was still snickering as he closed the door. He and the music were muffled the moment he shut it behind himself.

Oh no.

With the silence, it was now horrifying. 

He slowly walked to the kitchen where his mom casually was making herself some tea. There was some cups discarded along with his jacket. A minor mess but there wasn’t a high tolerance for clutter, Josuke didn’t complain as he took care of the cups.

“Would you like some tea, Josuke?” His mom kindly offered.

“Nah- Nah, I’m fine. Thanks.” He collected his jacket, his eyes glazing over.

Her head tilted, an eyebrow pulled tighter, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” He reaffirmed. 

He took in a breath and turned back to his room.

When he opened the door, Okuyasu was shockingly normal. Josuke didn’t know what he expected. Maybe him gone, maybe him angry. Maybe…. Shit, he didn’t know. But he was none of the things that Josuke could or couldn’t come up with. Just simply sitting on the bed where he left him, actually doing some work. 

Josuke shoulders slumped before he straightened himself up again. Set his jacket down and joined him on the bed. 

Guess they could just forget about it. Thank goodness.

Josuke shut his eyes for a moment, the tension melting. The soft trumpet and synth coming to a full stop as the CD ended it’s last track. 

He peeked an eye open at the CD player across the room. Okuyasu was still scribbling away, his messy handwriting nearly illegible even on good days. Josuke sat up a bit more. Then up to his feet.  He had a full box of CD cases and he flipped through the selection. He was indecisive, wondered if Okuyasu had a preference. He didn’t get to ask.

“Yo, Josuke-“ 

He looked over, “Yeah?”

Okuyasu immediately stammered his words, scratching at his head. Oh no. Josuke tried to stay calm, just kept going through the cases. 

Then he asked it. “Why did you kiss me?”

Josuke clicked the CD player top open and took out the disk and replaced it with another Pink Floyd album. He carefully put the other CD back in its case. 

“Uhh.” Josuke tried to offer, his voice giving up on him. He choked on a breath of air as the player started up various samples of noise to turn into smooth guitar. 

“Er- I, Uh, haha.” He was sweating. He couldn’t look at Okuyasu. 

“Tell me why, Josuke!! Don’t be a coward, why did you!?” 

Josuke straightened up and finally looked at his friend. “Hey, don’t yell at me! I wasn’t thinking, alright!?”

They stared at each other for God knows how long, their eyes locked. He usually could figure out what Okuyasu was thinking but right now… he just couldn’t. It was freaking him out.

Then Okuyasu faltered. “Okay.” 

Huh?

“Okay?” Josuke repeated. 

“Well, I do things all the time without thinking.”

Josuke furrowed his brow, stupified. Okuyasu tapped his pencil on the paper in thought.

“Although,” A blush crept across his friends face. “That was- my first kiss, you know.” He pursed his lips, eyes tossed to the side.

“Shit. Okuyasu, I’m sorry- I didn’t mean to-“ 

“So you telling me it was a mistake is a really rude thing to do, yeah!? My first kiss was a mistake, huh!?” 

Josuke swallowed, “Okuyasu, hold on. Calm down.” 

Guilt sucked the soul further out of him. The calm beat and soothing voice of an English singer he couldn't understand rolled around his head with his emotions and thoughts. He was supposed to come up with something to say. But what? 

His own first kiss was with a girl in middle school. It wasn’t very good, he didn’t know what he was doing. He remembered he didn’t like the girl he kissed. He didn’t really like girls. 

Okuyasu listened to him, of course he did, and calmed down. Josuke knew it wouldn’t last if he didn’t say something quick. His friend was on the verge of bursting.

“W-Well,” He cleared his throat. “I can- I could.” He rolled his thumb over his knuckles. Keep eye contact, Josuke. Keep- augh, this was difficult. 

“I could try again but on purpose, yeah? Then it’ll be fair.” 

Okuyasu seemed completely taken off guard- And Josuke’s stomach sunk. What was the correct question? What had Okuyasu wanted him to say? Josuke felt like he was going to melt into the floor. Become a heap of nothing while Okuyasu watched.

Then his friend nodded. 

Huh??

“R-Really?” Josuke blurted out.

Okuyasu frowned.

Oh boy.

“I mean- haha. Yeah.” His voice gave a small crack and he cleared his throat. Okuyasu’s eyes were narrowed. Josuke took a couple steps forward.

He didn’t think kissing Okuyasu would be ever like this. 

Kind of wished it was in the pool… Where they were both happy. And that kind of pissed him off. Why should he give Okuyasu a kiss under these shit circumstances? It wasn’t romantic. Or cool.

He further closed the distance. Okuyasu stayed sitting on the bed with all the papers in his lap. Josuke leaned down, watched as his friend’s eyes closed and strained in preparation for something new. His eyebrows twitching in that way it did when he was nervous. 

He was so close to kissing him, could feel Okuyasu’s heavy, stressed breathing. 

He couldn’t do it. 

He dodged Okuyasu’s mouth and instead curved himself to fall into Okuyasu’s arms. Buried his face into his friend’s neck and hugged him.

“Sorry for kissing you so carelessly!” He grimaced as Okuyasu tried to jerk away.

“Wh- Josuke? What are you doing??” Okuyasu’s voice was that mixture of confusion and anger. Josuke didn’t let go.

“Please forgive me!” Josuke winced as he held his friend tighter.

Poor confused Okuyasu slowly patted him. “It’s… It’s okay.” 

Josuke finally pulled away fully. His hands grabbed onto Okuyasu’s shoulders to fully look at him.

“I don’t want you to be angry when you’re having your first kiss, Okuyasu. I don’t want it to be awkward either. You get first kisses when you’re at the end of a date by someone you like. I stole that from you.” Josuke shut his eyes and bowed his head. “I’m sorry!” 

When he peeked his eye open, Okuyasu’s eyes were wide. Then his brow furrowed.

“Idiot.” He said. A deep blush burned his cheeks. “Idiot..” He repeated.

Josuke carefully let Okuyasu go.

“If that’s the case then.” Okuyasu took in a breath of courage. “Take me on a date, then, dumbass!” 

If it was possible to swallow your own tongue, he was pretty sure he just did.  Okuyasu somehow could still surprise him, even with how well he knew him. 

His lips quirked up then it grew further and further into a grin.

“Yeah, okay!”

And they were laughing again, albeit nervously and built from the anxiety of the situation. It was laughter though and it felt exhilarating. His friend’s trust in him restored and it felt okay.

Josuke cleared up the papers and books and tossed them on the floor so he could sit next to him. He was done studying. He wouldn’t be able to concentrate for the life of him. anyway. He knew they should have just studied at Koichi's.

“Where should we go?” Okuyasu asked, his eyes up at the ceiling. He was a visual thinker, could tell by where his eyes landed when he was crunching thoughts or information. 

“There’s that carnival in town. Do you want to do that?” 

“Yes!! We should ask Koichi if he-“ 

Josuke frowned, “It’s a date, bro.”

“Ah… right.” And he chuckled.

The awkwardness of earlier somehow drained from them-The feelings folded up and kicked underneath the bed. The two of them just laying beside each other and talking and listening to music as if what transpired hadn’t.  Except a bubble of excitement at the idea of a date. The word alone got his stomach jittery. He didn’t know how he felt about Okuyasu, he didn’t know how Okuyasu felt about him. If Okuyasu got a date with someone else, it burned his chest. He’s never really had crushes on people except some celebrities that he kept quiet about. He wasn't sure how it was supposed to work.

He didn’t know how he felt about anything. Except that he'd probably do anything for Okuyasu.

At some point, in a predictable fashion, his friend inevitably rolled over and laid himself on Josukes chest. It was always platonic and now maybe it wasn’t. He wondered if Okuyasu understood the difference between the two. Josuke did as he always did, wrapped his arm around his shoulder and let his friend get comfortable. The music had stopped for awhile now. Just the sound of Okuyasu’s soft breathing as he cuddled into Josuke’s arms. It was too hot for blankets. The light was still on and he really wished it wasn’t. Almost felt inclined to yell for his mom to turn it off so he didn’t have to disturb Okuyasu. The guy was getting further and further comfortable.

He guessed what he was most nervous about was losing this. Wherever this took them, he better not lose this. 
Josuke pulled Okuyasu closer and shifted their position. His friend fast asleep, along with his arm. 

A date, huh.

Chapter Text

When Josuke opened the door, he was met with a grinning Okuyasu. He was wearing his normal uniform- Cleaned up no more than usual, which was his every day effort. It made Josuke a little flustered, himself deciding to go a little more- Er- Different. Instead of his school uniform he had a maroon sweater with a green, loose turtleneck underneath. His pants the new ones he purchased on a whim, a darker shade of the sweater he had chosen. His shoes were the designer he bought for special occasions. He felt wildly overdressed. 

“Oh- Uh. Hey, Okuyasu.” He chuckled nervously as he saw Okuyasu’s face drop in curiosity.

“Wow! You look nice, Josuke!” 

“Haha, thanks.. I was actually just about to get redressed. Just threw this on, haha.” And that was the biggest lie he’s ever told.

Okuyasu shook his head, his hands up, “No! Let’s go! If we don’t go now we’ll hit the lines.” 

Shit, he was right. “I know, I know. I’ll just be right back, okay?” And he shut the door on him. Immediately he heard him yelling his name. He ignored it.

Shit, shit, shit.

Of course Okuyasu didn’t have anything nice to wear. And if he did, of course he didn’t think to wear it.

Josuke tugged his shirt off and haphazardly knocked his shoes off. His free hand undoing his belt. This was a move he liked to call: Drop It Like It’s Hot. Somehow figure out how to remove his clothing as fast as he could, and all at once. This was its first debut. 

Now the dressing himself up was an easier task. With the amount of times he was running late for school he was fully skilled on putting his clothes on in less than a minute. 

He flattened out his shirt with a sigh. He would have liked to go out with him wearing nicer clothes. Maybe they would someday. Shit, it was their first date and he was already thinking of the future. Josuke shook the thoughts out of his head.

He rushed back to his friend, throwing open the door and fitting a pose. “Voila.” 

Okuyasu nodded with a thumbs up but excitement gone, “Josuke- We gotta go!”

“It was literally a minute and a half, there’s no way the place is packed yet.”

The place was slammed.

The two of them looked at it in a horrified shock. Okuyasu checking his watch to make sure it was right. 

“I told you, bro!”

He sighed, “Us being a minute and a half late is not why it’s packed. Just… There are more people this year?” 

They decided to walk to a nearby worker and figure out what went wrong. They were here when it damn opened. That should have given them at least an hour of cleared lines.

“Hey, sir. Do you know why it’s so busy?”

The bored janitor looked at them annoyed. He didn't respond right away, sweeping a can into a dustpan. “We opened at 9am this year.”

“HUH!?” Both Okuyasu and Josuke shouted in unison. The absolute horror. 

“J-Josuke- It’s 10 am.” 

Josuke huffed a breath, felt his cheeks redden in anger, “You opened at 10 last year! And the year before that! How the hell were we supposed to know!?” 

The janitor sighed, “It was on the brochure.” He pulled it from his pocket and handed it to him.

The two of them looked at it, scanning it intently. It sure did say 9 am. 

“Should we just wait until night then? Then it’ll be clear.” Okuyasu offered.

Josuke sighed. “No, we’re already here. We’ll just have to wait in lines.”

Okuyasu pulled out a paper from his pocket, “Well, what are we going to do with our plan, then?” It was a list of all the rides and a detailed schedule to best use of their day. Somehow since Josuke last wrote the thing, Okuyasu seemed to already have spilled something on it. The page wrinkled and ink warped.

Josuke paused, then cracked a smile. “Don’t worry… I wrote up a schedule just in case something like this would happen.” He reached into his pocket.. Found nothing. He checked his other pocket. An old receipt. “Ah, shit! It was in my other pants.”

“See! You shouldn’t have changed, Josuke!” 

“Whatever! Let’s just go and I’ll guide us from memory.”

The janitor sighed again as he scooped up some trash with his broom.

It wasn’t as bad as they thought, people were just starting to roll in. The lines hadn’t yet stretched around the coasters. They were just an hour late, they could salvage this. 

“Where do we go?” 

Josuke hummed, “I’m pretty sure we do this one first. It usually has the longest line by the middle of the day. It’s also next to that one, which has the second longest line.”

And it proved to be right. They got in the line just in time. Roughly twenty people piled after them. The two of them exhaling in relief.  The waits weren’t too bad even when they were. Talking and gossiping and joking around made the time go a lot faster. So fast, Josuke actually forgot this was supposed to be a date.

He wondered what the difference was. He was expecting them to maybe act different. Be more touchy feely? PDA was usually pretty annoying, he didn’t think he needed to subject anyone to that more than they already did from day to day.

They could hold hands maybe. Also not an abnormal thing between them. Going through crowds they needed it so they wouldn’t lose each other. But now it could hold a different context. A romantic context.

Josuke offered his hand casually. His cheeks reddening. Yeah, the context definitely felt different.

Okuyasu blinked. “Huh?”

“Hold my hand, dumbass.” He mumbled softly, his eyes off.

Okuyasu accepted his hand, “Ah.” 

The two of them kind of stuck blushing and looking around- All the people just existing there.

Josuke couldn’t do it, their hands feeling sweaty and their lack of chatter kind of freaked him out. He let go- His excuse being his need to stretch. 

“Ah, this lines taking forever, huh?”

Okuyasu stared at him for a second then turned his focus to the line. Bless his short attention span. “Yeah, is it broken? Use Crazy Diamond to get this line faster, Josuke!” 

“No way. The danger of it snapping under us is the best part!”

And they were arguing again and it felt natural. He was internally relieved on ten different accounts. 

The ride didn’t even end up being that good. They managed to make it on a couple of the good rides, and three times on the ones with shorter lines. If his memory served him correctly, now they had thirty minutes to get food, that was a 25 line limit and a 5 minute consumption time. Then a planned carnival games for an hour to let food settle so they wouldn’t puke on a ride.

“Josuke! Okuyasu!” A familiar voice called out to them and they turned around. Koichi’s bright face waving wildly as he ran up to them. 

Yukako and Rohan followed right behind. Yukako he understood, but Rohan? 

“Hey, Koichi.” He nodded to Rohan. “Are you all on a date?” Josuke grinned sarcastically and Okuyasu chuckled with him.

It got Koichi to blush and chuckle, “N-No. Well, yes. But Rohan invited himself to draw people throwing up.” 

Rohan fixed his art bag over his shoulder, not looking impressed. Not defending himself either. He really was here to sketch people throwing up. Weirdo.

Josuke straightened and nodded. “Want to come eat with us?” 

Koichi and Yukako were kind of intimidating- They were on a date too. Josuke and Okuyasu found themselves staring. Watching as Yukako was possessive of him, and so naturally held hands. Internally taking notes. They didn’t have to be like that, it was weird. At the same time, odd. Technically they were in the same situation, right? A date…

Koichi was talking about the rides he went on, and not going to lie, he wasn’t paying attention. He glanced over at Rohan and the man was giving him a look. Like he knew something was going on. Josukes cheeks reddened and he narrowed his eyes at him. The hell did he know?  He really hated that guy. And his stupid pencil and how he was paying as little attention as Josuke was. Sketching away.

“Oh, Koichi? Did you know they opened at 9 this year? -And because Josuke had to get dressed, we ended up being late.”

“Hey! That’s not true!”

With food in their stomachs and good conversation ending they needed to pack up if they were to stay on schedule. Already they were six minutes behind. 

Koichi piped up. “Do you want to join us?”

For some reason the question embarrassed him. Normally he would have said yes. Having more people would be a great asset to destroy lines. Especially Rohan who didn’t intend on going on any. He could wait in the longer lines and then swap out with whoever was done with their ride. Tons of strategies swam Josukes brain the moment he saw his friends. He wondered if Koichi got a child discount. Would Yukakko go on rides? Having two people who weren't interested would be very valuable in efficiency. Finding out which rides were worth it would be considerably helpful. That'd cut out a lot of line sitting. Oh, and Rohan would be great for holding prizes if they won anything from carnival games. 

But this was a date.

Okuyasu started to say yes- Josuke had to jab him in the stomach before he could finish. “N-No! Sorry. We’re on a tight schedule, haha. Uhm. We’ll catch you around.” He grabbed Okuyasu’s shoulder to pull him close with a fake grin.

Koichi believed them immediately, “Aw, okay! I’ll see you guys later." 

Yukako didn’t seem to care, or notice, grabbing Koichi’s hand instead. Rohan, on the other hand, stared at them with that same look. Josuke tried not to sweat under it. He finally turned and walked away and the two of them relaxed. 

“Man, what's his problem?” 

Okuyasu just stared at their friends as they left.. 

“Let’s go cheat at some carnival games.” Okuyasu just saying the words aloud shocked them both into reality. Their previous fake smiles turned genuine, devious.

They went off to go cheat at some fucking carnival games.

“Hey, Okuyasu, check this out.” He handed the 100 yen to the carnival attendant and waved Okuyasu over. An entire wall of balloons stood behind the counter. He had an array of darts, as well as his confidence.

“Man, I SURE am bad at games like this,” he wiped his brow. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to win anything.” And it was worth it to see Okuyasu snicker. 

The attendant looked about their same age, but exhausted. He set the timer. 30 seconds. Pop as many balloons as you can.

Crazy diamond grabbed the darts and aimed, flicking them like bullets. His precision was immaculate and fast. The colorful assortment of balloons held no match for him. The bursts echoed like a damn tommy gun. 10 seconds, it took him. Only stopped by the lack of darts.

The attendant was floored. Horror, amazement, impossibility striking his expression.

“Woah!! How did you do that, Josuke?!” Okuyasu leaned on the counter, counting the amount that he popped. “You got 28 of them!” 

He grinned, a bit bashful as he scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah, Jotaro taught me. I’ve been practicing on my off time.” 

“You need to teach me!” And by the time Okuyasu finished his sentence, the timer finally rang out.

The attendant was still shocked and he stuttered out a sentence. “I-I’ve never seen anyone use all of the darts… Please, t-take whatever prize you want.”

They both hummed in thought, looking up at the assortment of bears and stuffed animals. 

“Yo, dude! Let’s get the alien!” 

As they walked the strip of carnival games, Okuyasu’s arms slowly became more and more stuffed with prizes. Stuffed animals, cotton candy.  All trash, really. In the process they destroyed three games. Test of Strength, Whack a Mole, and the dunk tank. They were nice enough to use Diamond to fix it, at least. No matter any disaster, it was worth it seeing Okuyasu so damn happy.

Okuyasu handed Josuke the armful of prizes for a second. Josuke scrambled to catch all of them.

“Yo, bro, I’ve got this one.” And the curve of his lips, he knew he was up to something.

A basketball game. It wasn’t really a popular sport, he was surprised they had one of these. The point being to shoot as many in as possible, scored by skill and speed.

He handed the attendant his money and took the basketball supplied to him. His stand following his form to give him the skill to make it in. It didn't. 

Okuyasu grunted in surprise. His form was perfect. Josuke could attest to it. Even without the extra effort from The Hand, it looked like Okuyasu had skill. He grabbed the next ball and shot again. It hit the rim, looking like it’d go in, but still failed. He was given two minutes, and it was two minutes of failure. 

“I swear I’m good, Josuke.” Okuyasu stammered as the timer buzzed.

“Ahh, sorry.” The attendant sighed, not sounding apologetic in the least. “Looks like you didn’t make a single one in. Maybe next time, kid.” The man oozed slime, looked like his middle name was fraud. Even down to the mustache.

“Impossible! It must be rigged! There’s no way, you bastard. I’m gonna kick your ass-“ And Okuyasu started to climb over the counter and Josuke grabbed him and pulled him back.

“Hey, calm down, bro.” Josuke patted him and leaned into him. Mumbled against him. “Just check it out with The Hand.” He let go to see Okuyasu nod. His anger paused as he pulled out the stand. It was in his range and Josuke took out his stand too. Both moved up to check out the hoop. 

Okuyasu scrunched his nose, “Asshole. It’s not a real circle. I’m gonna kick his ass-“ And Josuke grabbed ahold of him again.

He gave him a smile and nodded his head to the basketball hoop. Their stands looked to each other, both grabbing a side of the odd oval and pulled it to it's reasonable circle. And then some.

Okuyasu’s frown lifted to a cheeky grin.

“Hey, dumbass!" He leaned on the counter with confidence. The attendant looked over, counting his bills. “I wanna play again!”

“It’ll be 500 yen.” The attendant practically yawned, outreaching his hand.

“Hm, how about we wager? How much is in your hand, sir?” Josuke asked blandly.

The attendant put his cash in his pocket. “15,000. What’s it to you, kid?” His eyes narrowed.

Josuke lifted his head and slid his arm over Okuyasu’s shoulders. “I'll match that and add 5,000 on top."

The attendant scoffed. “You’re not serious.”

He shrugged and searched in his pocket, pulled out his wallet. Removed himself from Okuyasu to pull out his summer savings. Set it on the counter. “High score is 200, yeah? He’ll hit 400. He was just trying to be bashful in front of me, but I think he's warmed up now."

Okuyasu looked horrified, “J-Josuke…” 

The attendant looked interested. Then laughed. His stupid toothy grin was obnoxious, could see the dental caps with how wide it stretched. He had just made Okuyasu look like an idiot. He really wanted to kick his ass.

“Fine. I’ll take it. What a stupid wager.” The man chuckled. “You better cough it up, little boy.” 

“I'll hold my word, sir.”

He looked over at Okuyasu, saw him pale. Sweating. Josuke grinned.

“What are you doing?” He mumbled to him. “400? I couldn’t make 100.”

Josuke shrugged. “He isn’t playing fair, we won’t either. We fixed the hoop, bro.” 

Okuyasu swallowed. “20,000 yen, though.”

Josuke chuckled and patted his back. “You can do it, Okuyasu.” 

And he watched as his praise alone brought Okuyasu confidence. He grabbed a basketball. 

“Start the timer, please.” He mumbled. His stance changing a little. Did a little wiggle in preparation.

The attendant looked smug as hell as he pressed the timer.

With the ring of the buzzer Okuyasu made his first shot. And without mistake it made it in! Josuke inwardly sighed in relief. Perfect. Their plan was going to work. 

Without Josuke even suggesting it, Okuyasu used The Hand to remove the air between him and the ball. Pulled it right back into his hands in less than a second and tossed it again. It was as if it didn't even leave his hands. It went in. The scoreboard trilled with a 4 point balance.

“Yes!! Keep going, Okuyasu!”

The attendant gasped, stood up from his chair as Okuyasu repeatedly made the shots. 2 minutes? It felt long with how many times Okuyasu made it in. Even a crowd began to form as Okuyasu played. 

“300 points! Keep going, Okuyasu!” 

Sweat dripped down Okuyasus face, but he kept going. Each shot successful and the repeated use of his stand removed the precious seconds of the ball having to bounce back to him.

The buzzer rang out and he cheered for him. Grabbed him into a tight embrace.

“450!!” He knocked his friend a step or two. The two of them laughing in absolute excitement, poor Okuyasu hardly able to concentrate on his win.

“I-Impossible! You cheated, you little shit! I know you did, that’s impossible! No one wins at this game!!” 

Josuke's smile curled, "Hah? No one? That's a bit odd, huh. To have no one win?" He  casually released Diamond and had him fix the hoop, returning it into its oval form. Hid their tracks.

The attendant visibly began to sweat.

“How would I have cheated, mister?” Okuyasu played dumb. “You saw me the entire time. It's a test of skill, yeah?"

“So... I believe you owe us, mister.” Josuke drawled out and outreached his hand. His other hand pocketing his original 20,000. The attendant was fuming, but finally gave in. 

“I want the bear too!” And Okuyasu pointed to the oversized stuffed bear that loomed over the stand. The attendant immediately obliged- Throwing it at him with an angry huff.

Okuyasu caught it and howled a cheer. They did a small dance. Bumped hips. Laughed brightly as the attendant shouted profanities at him.

Josuke forgot this was a date again.

He picked up the presents that Okuyasu accumulated off the ground and pushed past the awed crowd. Heard them all mutter in confusion as they tried to figure out how in the world he did that. It was a rotten win, but oh man was it fun.

“How did you know I would win?” Okuyasu had asked muffled, his face half in the fluffy mess of bear.

“I didn’t.”

He got to see Okuyasu blush. He got to see Okuyasu start to tear up. 
"Bro..."

“HEY, don’t cry! I would’ve killed you if you lost!” 

Okuyasu continued to sniffle, trying to hold it back. “I can’t- It’s just coming out.” 

Josuke huffed a laugh. Sighing as Okuyasu continued to choke up. “I’ll give you the money later when our hands aren’t full. Do you want to finish the night off with the Ferris wheel? I feel like if we do anything else, security is going find us and kick us out pronto.” 

“Mm, Mhm.” Okuyasu nodded and they traveled to the large structure. It was kind of out of the way. The line was short and full of couples. It was embarrassing. He was glad he had this junk to cover up his face. He thought about how he held his hand earlier. It made his chest flutter. Okuyasu didn’t seem to be flustered, his grip on the bear tight as he stared up at the large monstrosity.

The sun was starting to go down and the lights of the machine flickered on. With oranges and blues and neons lights, it was an interesting atmosphere. Before too long they were invited into the small car. All of the stupid crap in Josukes hands left at the bottom except for Okuyasu’s prized bear.

He sat the thing on one side and forced Josuke and him on the other. It stared its blank eyes right into Josuke’s soul as the weirdest third wheel he could imagine.

Okuyasu’s gaze was set out the window, his eyes big as he scanned the view. As it went up, it slowly made everything smaller and smaller. A three quarters to the top he felt Okuyasu grab his hand.

“Josuke.” And he turned to face him, his cheeks flushed. It sort of sank his chest. Reddened his own cheeks.

“Uh, yeah?”

“I don’t like heights.” He admitted.

Josuke blinked.

“Why did you agree to go on?” 

“I forgot until I got up here. Kind of freaky, you know? And this car doesn’t seem sturdy. It’s rocking. I feel kind of whoozy.” He huffed in distress. 

Josuke continued to hold his hand, but his flush was gone. “Please don’t throw up on me.” 

Okuyasu shook his head. “I won’t.” 

He sighed and took his hand and pulled him closer. Wrapped his arm around Okuyasu’s waist to lean into him. His other hand taking Okuyasu’s hand in his again. The other immediately leaned into it. 

This felt datelike. And it didn’t fluster him as it should have. Comforting him felt way more natural. Like he was protecting him. He noticed when the rocking of the cab worsened from the ride, or the wind, Okuyasu pressed closer. The sat in silence for a bit.

When they reached the top Okuyasu peeled himself from him a little. The sunlight dimming further down. A deep orange. Okuyasu’s nudged himself further to the side. Separated himself from Josuke’s grasp and dared to peak over the car.

“Hey, Josuke.” He called. 

“Hm?” His eyes were stuck on the view too. The last of the light showing the furthest reaches of the town. They were all ants. Going about their little ant lives. Having fun, crying, angry, or in love. It was weird to think about. Made him feel big and small at the same time. His world was right here while they were all down there. The cart rocked a little bit more as Okuyasu leaned over the edge more.

“Can you check to make sure that our car isn’t broken?” 

Josuke frowned, “Its fine, Okuyasu. They do check ups all the time.” He waved him off and got back to getting comfortable.

“It’s making a creaking noise.” 

“They do that. I’m sure it just needs some oil. Diamond can’t fix that.”

Okuyasu was still peeking over.

“You’re gonna fall if you keep looking over.” Josuke sighed. “Or worse, you’ll throw up. Idiot.” Damn it. So much for being romantic. 

Wondered if Okuyasu did feel anything. This was just to give him a real first kiss, right? Feelings didn’t have to be there, maybe.

“Yo, Josuke. I think there’s supposed to be a bolt there.” 

“If it’s missing, don’t you think the cart would have broke by now?” 

That proved a good point. Okuyasu seemed to ease.

He was suddenly acutely aware of the creaking. The imbalanced sway.

He sat up a bit and looked over the edge with Okuyasu. Crazy Diamond reached down before them and set its hand on the spoke. They both watched as parts were renewed, bolts revived. The tilt of their cab was corrected. 

They both blinked as they realized just how broken their cart was. 

Crazy Diamond left once it was fixed up and the two of them sat back down. Both imagining what would have happened if Josuke didn't have Diamond.

When Josuke looked over at Okuyasu, the boy was back to looking out at the sky. His fingers fidgeting. The Ferris wheel was making its descent. Josuke thought about the other couples. The expectations of a ferris wheel on dates. 

“Hey, Okuyasu.” 

Okuyasu turned. And with his attention, whatever bravery he had was sizzling into nothing. His cheeks red. Hilarious that their first kiss was completely absent. And now that Josuke wanted to do it on purpose, it was ten times harder. 

He wondered if he should ask first. No. That’d ruin it. The mood was perfect! He had this. 

“Josuke?” He furrowed his brow in concern.

He casually set his hand on his shoulder, his other hand reaching up to hold Okuyasu’s face. And he dipped in and pressed his lips against his friend’s.

Okuyasu had completely tensed up. Josuke hesitated to fully pull away. His chest absolutely crunched- trying his goddamn best to keep calm. 

Then he felt Okuyasu lean in and press his lips against Josuke’s. It was gentle and inexperienced. His lips were softer than he imagined. Weren't chapped in the least. Josuke tilted his head just a little bit and kissed him one more time. A bit smoother than just pressing their lips together, Okuyasu followed his lead. His friend was as stiff as a board. When Josuke pulled away Okuyasu was a blushing mess. 

Josuke wasn’t much better. Rubbed at the back of his neck, wondering if his heart was trying to break out of his rib cage. 

“Was, uhm... Was that better?” 

Okuyasu nodded. He had the bravery to grab his hand in his and hold it. They were quiet for the rest of the ride, looking at their feet.

When they reached land, Okuyasu practically kissed it. Groaning in appreciation of solid ground. His bear held tight in his arms. They were about to leave when security approached them. Then they were calmly escorted out of the fair with their loot. They had asked about the money too, Josuke claimed he spent it. Of course it was tucked in his shoe.

On their way home they talked about the entire day with excitement- Chittering about how fun it was to beat the carnival games, and which ride was their favorite. Okuyasu still mentioning how they should have kicked the attendants ass. He had a good point: They were going to get kicked out of the fair anyway, right?

Josuke helped Okuyasu get all of his prizes into his house into a large pile. Dusted their hands off with a good day's hard work. 

He was about to leave. Wish him good night. Run back home. But Okuyasu grabbed him. His cheeks flustered again. His house was always pretty dark, but he could still see him with the candles. 

He kissed him again. Caught him completely by surprise. 

Josuke could only smile sheepishly with a stupid blush on his cheeks. His heart again doing this thing where it decided to live in his stomach.

“Goodnight, bro.” 

“Night, Josuke. That was awesome, we should do it again."


”Yeah. We should."

When he got home it was still pretty early- Too early for bed- But he ended there anyway. Only greeting his mom with minimal dialogue so she wouldn’t get concerned. His thoughts so cluttered he couldn’t think of anything else. 

He put on Pink Floyd and laid in bed for the rest of the night. Let his brain consume the day. His fingers touched his lips, remembering how it felt when he did kiss him. Thinking on it, he was left with more answers than not. Wondered if it'd be weird tomorrow. If their friends will notice. Josuke only smiled to himself and he clenched his fist and held it against his chest.

“Yo, Josuke!” Okuyasu greeted first thing.

He sounded normal. Looked at Josuke normally.

“I’m going to meet up with Koichi, are you coming?”

Josuke blinked.

“Uhm. Sure.”

Okuyasu grabbed his hand confidently and pulled him along. Somehow ending with their fingers intertwining, and it didn't make their cheeks burn. Only made them smile.