Intoxicating Infatuation

Chapter Four

Chapter Four:

Emilia wouldn't consider herself an avid reader, by any means, but secretly prided on the fact that she had been educated enough to read. The books in the Joestar manor were thick heavy volumes; they held a signature musty smell that seemed to accompany them no matter where you place them. It was rare that the girl found one that she particularly liked. Periodically she would find herself rereading the same ones over and over again. It wasn't until a few days ago that Emilia noticed Dio Brando also used the library. That was why Emilia decided to spend the day in the library with him. The girl had originally been wanting to spend it outside, but she wanted to go somewhere that she knew Dio would like as well.

That was how the two found themselves in the same predicament from yesterday morning; neither of them knew how to start their conversation. However, even if that was the case, the silence wasn't as awkward as yesterday. It was almost relaxing in a sense as the only sound traveling through the library was the light tapping of their shoes as they browsed the various books that lined the walls.

As Emilia ran her fingers across the slightly dusty spines, glancing through the titles, she found herself getting lost in thought. That morning, she found Jojo to tell him about spending the day with Dio instead of him. To say that he was surprised was an understatement; this would be the first time that they split up for the day. It was an odd feeling that rested in each crevice of her body. The anxiety of separation fluttered violently in Emilia's stomach and traveled its way to her throat, a journey that took no less than a second. After breakfast, as they waved awkwardly to one another, a twist of foreign emptiness tugged at her heart. She felt terrible to leave Jojo by his lonesome but didn't want Dio to feel left behind either.

Clearly not paying attention, Emilia let out a gasp, reeling her hand back as she felt it brushing up against another warm hand. Looking over wide-eyed at Dio, she flushed red as she noticed his unimpressed gaze.

"I'm sorry! I wasn't paying attention," Emilia squeaked out. The girl couldn't believe how many times she'd already embarrassed herself in the few days that he had been staying at the Joestar manor.

Shaking his head, Dio waved off her apology. "If I may ask, what were you thinking about?"

"Oh...nothing really. It's just the first time that I haven't spent the day with Jojo. It's a little weird, to be honest," Emilia muttered, embarrassed, rubbing her injured arm nervously.

Dio hummed in response, nodding. Silence hung in the air again as they went back to browsing.

"I'm surprised that you chose to spend the day in the library. From what I've noticed, you and Jojo spend most of your time outside." Dio's smooth voice broke the silence once more.

The flush on her cheeks darkened as she hesitated to answer. "You seem to come in here a lot, so I wanted to choose somewhere that you would enjoy as well." Emilia wasn't sure whether to be even more embarrassed or relieved when he started laughing.

"I wouldn't have minded if you chose somewhere outside. I only come in here in the morning and afternoons. Did you think that I just constantly spent my time in here?" Dio couldn't help but tease as he laughed.

Emilia found that the answer was even more embarrassed as she tried to stutter out a defense. "Of course not, but I wasn't sure what else you liked!"

"Well, if you would like to go somewhere else, then I could show you a spot that I found the other day." Dio offered once he finally quit laughing.

Emilia hadn't been expecting him to offer to take her to another place. However, she was excited at the prospect of seeing somewhere new.

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