Crashing Waves

Chapter Five

[3045 words]

The pitch black waters glistened in the moonlight, the lack of strong wind leaving the ocean still. I stared out into the darkness, Kakyoin to my right and Anne to my left, all of us crammed into the small lifeboat. It had been at least a day since the ship exploded and we'd started to drift the sea aimlessly. Anne was hogging the one blanket we had as she curled up in the corner of the lifeboat and slept, Avdol and Gramps had just fallen asleep a little while ago, and Polnareff had been out like a light for a few hours by this point. Kakyoin and I were the only ones still awake. We sat in silence for some time, before he spoke up.

"Jotaro." Kakyoin's soft, worried voice disturbed the serenity of the quiet waves, and I turned my head towards him a little. "Sorry, did I disturb you?" I shook my head a little, curious as to what was troubling him. "I've just been... concerned." He paused for a moment before going on rather suddenly. "I left my parents back in Japan without telling them where I was going. This journey's already put us in life-or-death situations plenty of times, and I just got to thinking... what if I die and they never find out? What if they never know that their only son passed away on a trip to Egypt to fight some century old vampire that's terrorizing his closest friend's mother? What if all of us die? What if-" I stopped Kakyoin mid-sentence with a firm grip on his shoulder, trying to reassure him, but what words could possibly be said to make this situation better?

"I won't let that happen." Kakyoin turned towards me and his amethyst eyes met mine, sparkling from the moonlight and -- the tears that threatened to fall from them. I had no idea what to say to him; the same thoughts were running through all of our minds, though not everyone would vocalize them like he had. A tear betrayed his usual cool demeanor and ran down his cheek, and before I could stop myself, I instinctively wiped it away with my thumb before it fell. Kakyoin's face froze in shock, maybe from the unexpected touch, maybe from the fact that he'd just started crying in front of me, maybe just from the sole fact that he was crying at all. I hastily pulled my hands away from his face and shoulder, accidentally brushing my hand against his soft red locks. His gaze darted away from my eyes quickly as he stared out into the night. An awkward silence fell over both of us as Kakyoin turned away from me. Shit, was that too much? A light pink dusted my cheeks, and I pulled my hat down to hide it. We sat in silence for what felt like an eternity, the only sound being the gentle waves that surrounded us.

I closed my eyes, trying my hardest to fall asleep. I felt bad about not being able to comfort Kakyoin at all--the guilt was eating away at me. He'd really dropped everything for me and my family in the blink of an eye. I understood he wanted his own revenge on Dio, but this was too extreme for that to be the only reason he left so much behind. He could be at home in the comfort of his own bed right now, or studying for exams coming up soon, or painting a beautiful landscape portrait under the moonlight like I know he would be doing right now if he could, or playing video games until he fell asleep in his room. He put so much at risk, coming on a trip like this; I didn't understand his motives for being here with our odd group, but I was by no means complaining about his company. It was pleasant, having someone my age here, and someone new that I'm close with no less. My train of thought was disrupted as I felt something plop against my right shoulder. Opening my eyes, I shifted my gaze to see Kakyoin's head resting against my arm. Is he asleep? He must be. Do I tell him to wake up? Do I let him sleep? I wasn't sure how to react. I was sure he didn't do it intentionally.

Too exhausted for much more thought, I closed my eyes again, hoping to fall asleep. The unfamiliar warmth of Kakyoin's lean body beside mine made sleep surprisingly come to me a little easier, and, shortly after, I fell asleep like the others.

---

My head was leaning against something warm when I groggily opened my eyes to the blinding water, brilliantly reflecting the dazzling pink sunrise. From my angle, it seemed that none of the others were awake just yet. Then, I grew suddenly aware of just what my head was resting against--a large, muscular arm belonging to none other than Jotaro, whom I'd cried in front of the previous night. Dammit. My face immediately flushed at both of those thoughts. Did I fall asleep like this? I know I didn't do this on purpose. Was he still awake when I fell asleep on him? If he was still awake, then why did he let me stay like that? I tried to sit up slowly and gently so that I didn't wake Jotaro from his slumber. Letting my gaze wander up to his face, it seemed a little odd, seeing him without his usual scowl, his face completely relaxed and calm. Jotaro began to stir from the movement, causing me to turn away immediately, my face only turning redder.