A/N: For Josuyasu week day 1 prompt: Confessions.

Love's Epiphany

Thanks to some odd bit of fate, Okuyasu is the only one in the hospital room when Josuke wakes up. He's not sure where Tomoko went – in all his worry, he's been kinda out of it, and he knows that she must have told him, but he doesn't really remember, and so now –

Josuke's eyes are blinking open, looking a little dazed, and Okuyasu is all by himself in here with him and…it's just not right seeing Josuke lying there on a hospital bed, all battered.

Leaving to find Tomoko, or maybe calling a nurse, or at least seeing if Jotaro is still lingering in the hall are all things that Okuyasu feels he should do, yeah. But the longer he stares at Josuke, the heavier his heart pounds, and the less he wants to leave him alone.

"H-hey, Josuke," he says, wincing at how casual it sounds. His voice is a little hoarse from earlier crying and lack of use otherwise. He takes a half step away from his chair and towards the bed, getting the feeling he's in way over his head, somehow.

And then Josuke's eyes land on him. They're only unfocused for a half-second before welling up with tears – which sends an automatic spike of pain through Okuyasu's chest.

"Oku…" Josuke mutters, and wow Okuyasu thought he sounded bad. Josuke's voice is weak and rough, as if he'd been gargling glass.

Water is probably a good idea, right? That would help. Okuyasu should go find some of that. Except….

Except Josuke's fingers are twitching, and then he's reaching out as best he can with all those IVs, and Okuyasu has no choice but to get close. He crosses the distance to Josuke's bedside in two quick strides, and gently presses his palm overtop Josuke's grabbing hand.

"I'm here," he says, for lack of better words, and then adds, "it's okay," because Josuke still looks like he's about to cry, which makes Okuyasu's throat hurt.

"'M'ere." Josuke's lips barely move as he speaks, and he speaks so quietly that Okuyasu has to lean down so he can hear better.

"What was that, bro?"

A crease appears between Josuke's brows. Clumsily, he finagles his other hand out from under the blanket, reaching over to grab at Okuyasu's sleeve and tug. "C'm 'ere," he enunciates.

Okuyasu realizes then that he's being beckoned closer, so he shuffles forward to sit on the very edge of the bed as delicately as he can manage. The hand beneath his own twitches, fingers flexing; Okuyasu gives it a gentle squeeze. In response, Josuke's hand on his sleeve slips down to curl around over top of his, leaving his right hand sandwiched between both of Josuke's.

"Y'okay?" Josuke croaks out.

"Yeah," Okuyasu assures him immediately, "I'm fine." Because he is, aside from the worry swirling in his gut.

Still, Josuke looks unconvinced. His hands press in tighter around Okuyasu's. "Sure?"

"I'm sure." Okuyasu fights off the urge to kiss the back of Josuke's hand, not totally sure where it came from in the first place. How weird would that be? To just kiss his best bro like that…? "You fixed me up, remember?"

For some reason, Josuke makes a wounded noise at that. "Y'were – I was –" His chest is starting to heave just a little, as his breath speeds up, hands tightening even more.

"Hey, calm down, bro," Okuyasu tries to soothe, reaching up to rest his free hand on Josuke's shoulder, scooting closer. "I'm fine – we're fine."

Josuke only stares at him, though, with his watery eyes and his ragged breathing and his grip on Okuyasu's hand that's surprisingly vicelike for an injured guy. He seems to be thinking, his eyes drifting in and out of focus.

"I should go get someone," Okuyasu says eventually, when he can't take the awkward silence anymore. He pulls his hand back from Josuke's shoulder. "I'm sure your mom will wanna know that you're –"

"No!" Josuke coughs a few times after the outburst, one of his hands grabbing at Okuyasu's shirtsleeve again, fingers twisting in the fabric. "Ss…," he swallows, "please stay."

That's all it takes for Okuyasu to relent. He gives in and lets Josuke's persistent tugging pull him in closer. "Okay," he says, "I'll stay."

It seems to calm Josuke, his previously tense shoulders slumping. His hands maintain their hold on Okuyasu's right hand, though. "I…almost lost you," he says eventually, staring at where their hands are connected.

"Yeah, but ya didn't." Okuyasu puts his left hand atop Josuke's, so they each have a hand sandwiched between the other's. "You saved me. I'm right here, Josuke."

Josuke shakes his head vehemently – or, well, as vehemently as he can, given his current state. "Y'weren't, and I…I didn' get t'tell you," he pauses here for a deep, shuddering, breath, tears threatening to spill over, "that I love you."

Okuyasu's mouth goes dry, and he's pretty sure that his eyeballs bug out of their sockets. He…can't mean that in a romantic way, right? Besides, Josuke seems pretty doped up right about now, probably doesn't even know what he's saying. Yeah, that's it.

"I love you, too," Okuyasu's mouth supplies for him, "you're my best friend."

"No. I love you," Josuke insists, and now both of his hands are pulling at Okuyasu, ushering him ever closer. "I love you, an' I could'a lost you, an' –" The rest is choked off by a sob, thick tears spilling over at last, and Okuyasu's heart twists in his chest.

"Josuke…." He moves until he's close enough to try and wipe Josuke's tears away, although that only seems to make him cry harder.

"I can't lose you," Josuke whimpers, "I can't."

Okuyasu wants to be reassuring, really, he does – but it's hard not to cry when your best friend and most important person is. His eyes are stinging and his throat feels stopped up. "You won't. I'm not going anywhere."

A hand slips up his arm to grab at his shoulder, and Okuyasu obliges it by bending over Josuke until he can be pulled into a one-armed hug. This close, he can hear Josuke's hiccupping sobs with all-too-blatant clarity, mingled with mumbled endearments like "love you" and "please, please stay."

He doesn't know what to do except to continue rubbing the tears off of Josuke's cheeks, offering reassurances that he's not going anywhere, and that he loves him, too.

Eventually it seems to work, or maybe Josuke tires himself out, quieting down.

Okuyasu finds himself fighting another impulse to kiss Josuke, this time on the forehead, and it makes him wonder about that whole 'love' thing. He opts to press their foreheads together. …Their noses are brushing now, though, and it feels like this is maybe even more intimate than a forehead kiss, somehow. His bad on that one.

Maybe. Josuke does seem calmer, after all.

"I really love you, y'know," Josuke mumbles, sounding on the verge of sleep. "Dunno what I'd do if you…."

In his chest, Okuyasu's heart is doing all kinds of funny flips. He doesn't even want to think about life without Josuke. "…You're just sayin' all this 'cause of the pain meds," he accuses, half joking. He's not sure if he hopes that's true or not.

"Nah, dude." Through his obvious fatigue, Josuke somehow manages to pump his words full of offense. "I mean it. Love you."

And then Josuke is asleep, and Okuyasu finds himself with his face pressed into his best friend's shoulder, having an entire crisis and a half.

x

After a handful of days in the hospital, and a week's rest at home, Josuke is back in school, and Okuyasu is about ready to shake apart at the seams.

All this time – oh, yeah, Josuke's been back to school for two days, now – all this time, and Josuke still hasn't mentioned anything about their conversation in the hospital. Okuyasu finds it strange, and downright nerve-wracking.

Did Josuke forget? Do people do that? Confess their undying love (multiple times!) and then forget about it? Was it a mistake? Did Josuke somehow mistake Okuyasu for someone else…? Was it really all just the pain meds talking after all?

Okuyasu doesn't know, and he can't quite muster the courage to ask. After all, if Josuke doesn't remember, then reminding him would basically be Okuyasu confessing – to feelings that he hadn't even thought too deeply about until Josuke's confession, even!

…To be honest, he'd been taken by surprise at first…but after thinking about it – and thinking about it, aaand thinking about it some more until his brain hurt and Josuke was asking him if he was alright – Okuyasu has reached the conclusion that he very definitely loves Josuke back a whole lot, and has for a while now.

So. He had been hoping that Josuke would make a move, or give some kind of signal, or something, but so far no such luck. Once or twice Okuyasu catches Josuke staring, only for him to glance away immediately, a blush on his cheeks. But that's as close as they come.

And Okuyasu…isn't sure he should bring it up? There are plenty of 'what ifs' in this scenario, and they're all swirling around his head. The longer he waits, the more reasonable some of them sound.

But at the same time.

At the same time.

Josuke is staring at him again, on the way home from school, and since Okuyasu's decided to keep track, this makes the fourth time today alone. If his prediction is correct, and the pattern repeats, then when Okuyasu looks –

Yep, there it is. Josuke's cheeks go a bit pink, and he ducks his head away, suddenly very interested in his shoes.

The whole thing gives Okuyasu butterflies. He's probably going to start blushing, too, at this rate, and suddenly he can't stand to dance around this anymore.

"Hey, Josuke…?" he manages, after (more than) a few false starts.

Josuke's eyes remain glued to his shoes, hands stuffed in his pockets. "Hm?"

Gulping, Okuyasu figures he might as well just go for it. No time like the present. "What you said in the hospital…" he pauses for a deep breath, bracing himself, "did you, y'know…mean it?"

Even though he's been giving his feet his undivided attention, Josuke still trips over them at that. Okuyasu reaches out to steady him, gripping his shoulders, and now they're much closer, and face to face, and Josuke is blinking at him with wide eyes. "…Wha – what are you talking about?"

Ah, shit. Did he forget after all?

But…there's something almost eager about Josuke's face, and he's still blushing, so Okuyasu fights past his nerves to press on. "Y'know," he says, so quiet it's almost a whisper, fingers tightening on Josuke's shoulders, "when ya said you…l-loved me?"

Josuke's face flushes completely scarlet. His mouth hangs open for a moment before he forces words out. "I…that wasn't a dream?!"

"No, dude!" Nervous excitement winds through Okuyasu's stomach, setting his heartbeat to frantic. "You definitely confessed to me for real!"

"Oh thank fuck," Josuke breathes out on a sigh of relief, even though his blush doesn't really recede any. The tense set of his shoulders easing into something more relaxed. "I seriously thought I dreamt that – I've been thinkin' of a way to confess to you all this time!"

Tears spring up in Okuyasu's eyes, his emotions mixing and escaping. He can't believe his luck. This is real. His fingers tremble where they're still gripping Josuke's shoulders. "Y'mean it, Josuke?"

"Of course, Oku." Josuke is closer now, tentative hands settling on Okuyasu, one on his waist, the other cupping his cheek. "You're the…" his eyes flick down, and then back up to meet Okuyasu's, "the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love you."

Oh, Okuyasu is definitely crying now. In the middle of the sidewalk and everything. He pulls his hands off of Josuke's shoulders, scrubbing away tears with his jacket sleeve before they can even escape his eyes, bumping away Josuke's hand on his cheek in the process. "I love you, too..!" he manages to sob out.

There's a warm chuckle, and then Josuke's arms wrap tight around his back and pull him into a hug. "I remember now," Josuke says with a sniffle, "you cried the first time I told you, too."

Okuyasu, clinging to Josuke, wails, "So did you! And now, too…!"

"Sh-shut up, man!"

A/N: I've never written any Josuyasu before, even tho I've loved 'em since getting into JJBA years ago, but this year I caught wind of Josuyasu week in time, so I thought I'd give it a try.

Tho turns out I am...not sure of my Josuyasu abilities, uh. I wrote a oneshot for each day, anyway, and they're all titled after songs on my Josuyasu-flavored playlist. This one is Love's Epiphany by Men Without Hats (yes, the group of Safety Dance fame,)

Thanks for reading!