Barracuda
So this ain't the end, I saw you again today
I had to turn my heart away
Smile like the sun, kisses for everyone
And tales- it never fails
You lyin' so low in the weeds
I bet you gonna ambush me
You'd have me down, down, down, down on my knees
Now wouldn't ya, barracuda?
Joseph stayed in his bed for as long as he could manage. His head was pounding when he finally sat up, and he figured it was because of how much time he'd spent clenching his teeth in his sleep. The night had been full of stress dreams, waking up every hour or so, and feeling horribly sick to his stomach. Honestly, he still felt sick, and it was wholly unpleasant. Thinking about the evening to come might have been less worrisome if he hadn't been named Homecoming Prince. As such, Joseph was obligated to appear in the parade- with Suzie- and then at the dance later that night. He was supposed to go to the fair that afternoon, too. After everything that had happened the night before, he had no choice but to be around people that would dislike him, or even hate him, all day.
Maybe not. Maybe Suzie wouldn't even want anything to do with him. He grabbed his cellphone off his nightstand and buried himself back under the covers, taking a deep breath before he sent her a text. He wouldn't blame her for not even giving it a second glance, let alone responding.
hey suz, it said. how mad would you be if i just didnt show up today?
It was laughable, but he hit 'send' anyway and closed his eyes. His stomach was still churning.
Bzzt.
Oh… so she did respond. For a fleeting moment, Joseph considered taking his phone and chucking it across the room instead of reading the text. It wasn't like the phone itself was nice, or new, or expensive. He didn't even care much for using it. Maybe not having it would be better.
He finally gave in after about two minutes, opening the text with a sigh.
I need you here! it read. Was she already at the parade starting point?
The phone buzzed again a few seconds later, signaling a second incoming text.
The JoJo I know wouldn't let himself be embarrassed out of showing up to a big thing like homecoming, or the parade.
She knew he was embarrassed. That meant he must've really made a fool out of himself the night before… he wasn't surprised that it'd been so noticeable, but he wished it hadn't been.
ok, he texted back. Done.
He sat up in bed again, rubbing his eyes and looking around at the walls of his tiny bedroom. Two different pictures of REO Speedwagon were staring down at him, and those were just the ones he could see. Also in his line of sight was Boston, Judas Priest, Queen… that one poster of Fleetwood Mac. There was poster of The Doors over by his door, for humorous purposes, and Jim Morrison was pointing at him. The sight of it made him feel guilty. All those bands undoubtedly went through rough patches, and their records and pictures and autographs weren't on his wall for no reason. They were inspiring. If they could pull through their trials with the whole world's eyes on them, Joseph could stand to get out of bed and show up to a parade. Time to get up and be a Joestar.
He made sure to go into the living room and give Granny Erina a hug the way he did every morning before he did anything else, and she was a dear and didn't bring up anything about the previous night at all. She simply told him she was proud of him, and he went to make himself some toast. His stomach was too nervous for much else.
After a quick shower and getting dressed as hurriedly as he could without putting his shoes on the wrong feet, Joseph bolted out the door, where he had to pause to wash the losing score of last night's game (written in purple and orange) off all his car windows. Incredible. He knew exactly who would've done something like that, and it took everything he had to not walk to the end of the driveway and kick the mailbox.
The Homecoming Parade was awful. Being Juniors, Joseph and Suzie weren't required to dress up for their appearance in the parade, but they still had to sit awkwardly next to each other through the entire thing, and they'd been whispering when they could.
"I'm glad you showed up. Sitting here by myself would've been horrible," she whispered at him after the start. She was trying to smile and wave while she was talking, and Joseph was trying not to take the cold stares he was getting to heart. A man sitting along the side of the street with his wife whispered something to her as the float passed by, and Joseph was certain it was about him.
"It's horrible anyway," he replied, giving in and waving along with her, albeit halfheartedly.
"Sorry. But it isn't my fault it's not fun for you."
"It's not my fault, either!" Joseph stopped waving and turned his body in Suzie's direction, almost pleading with her.
"Really? Who's fault is it, then, Mister Fight Picker?"
"I didn't-" Joseph trailed off, looking down at his lap. When he continued, he was quiet.
"Are you kidding me? Can you not see how much of an asshole that Caesar guy is?"
Suzie didn't look back over at him."I don't know. He wasn't the one starting fights and calling names on the field last night. That was all you." She paused to blow a kiss at a little girl on the side of the street who was waving vigorously at her, and then finally turned back to Joseph, looking sad. "All I saw was him doing his best to not get angry, and you were doing the opposite. It was embarrassing. Did you think about how I would feel at all? You're my Homecoming date. I stood on the field with you, I'm on the float with you right now, and I'll have to show up at the dance with you later. You're in a horrible mood, and everyone is looking at you, and by default, me! It's embarrassing, JoJo. I'm embarrassed."
Joseph wasn't sure what to say in response, so he just sat there, picking at the start of a hole in his jeans and feeling sick again. It was too early in the morning to be feeling this down already. He was glad he only ate toast.
Suzie finally spoke up again with her eyes closed, trying to look and sound gentle. "You're welcome to stick around for the fair later, but I'm just warning you, Caesar will probably be there."
Joseph perked up at the sound of Caesar's name. "How do you know?"
"I invited him," she told him matter-of-factly. She stopped talking to smile bright for a picture someone was taking, and then continued. "He's been nothing but nice to me, and we're having coffee on Monday."
That was the last Joseph heard from her until the parade was over. He wasn't able to say anything else after that. The comment burned and it felt like his lungs had been dried out.
That son of a bitch. Joseph knew he was only taking Suzie out to get back at him. It was only to make him mad. He didn't care about her. Joseph cared about her. He'd been practically in love with her for years. This isn't how things were supposed to go. In fact, it was so far from the way things should be, that it was completely backwards.
Stay for the fair? Oh, he'd be staying for the fair. He had words for Caesar Zeppeli.
The rest of the parade was uncomfortable. It ended right where the fair began, so most of the other parade participants just went right on into the fair while Joseph and Suzie met up with other friends. Smokey was there waiting for them, and a few others, and Joseph was beyond relieved to see them. Finally, some people he could talk to that he knew wouldn't be angry at him or judge him too harshly. However, in what seemed to be a reoccurring theme in his life as of late, Caesar was also there, which was enough to ruin absolutely everything else.
Joseph didn't even want to acknowledge his presence, but in the worst possible turn of events, Caesar was fully ready to acknowledge his. After he'd taken time to give Suzie a hug- which made Joseph angry in and of itself- Caesar turned to him and smiled. An actual smile, perfect teeth and all, and then he spoke to him.
"Hey, Joestar." He blew a bubble with the piece of gum he was chewing, and popped it.
That was it. No 'surprised to see you made it out after last night,' or 'how's it feel to have an entire town hate you.' Nothing. He was probably just acting like nothing was bothering him because Suzie was right there, and that made things even worse. Joseph didn't say anything in return. He was too busy waiting for more foul play.
Once everyone else had walked ahead, Smokey nudged Joseph. "You okay, JoJo?"
"Totally fine," Joseph replied through clenched teeth. "I'm gonna kill him. How dare he talk to me like nothing happened. I swear to God, I'll-"
"Okay, so, not fine." Smokey grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, speaking to him again in a low voice once they were somewhat hidden behind the ticket booth. "What the heck happened last night? You were fine, and then you started acting like you were out for blood or somethin'. Like, you didn't even care about playing for the team. It was all personal. I'm not gonna judge ya, JoJo, but seriously. I'm sure you have your reasons…"
"I have reasons out the ass, Smokey." Joseph peered around the wall of the booth, staring at the others, watching as Caesar appeared to be making some sort of sappy comments about Suzie's hair. She was playing with the waves like she usually did when she was feeling flirty, and Joseph narrowed his eyes at them both. He smacked the ticket booth wall and then ducked back behind it, pleading with his friend. "You gotta believe me, Smokey. That guy is a grade-A jerk. He's after Suzie, and he's been… I dunno, trying to be better than me at everything for like a year now. Ever since he moved out here, and it's only getting worse."
"So, be better than him."
Joseph stone-faced him, but he felt a little offended. His best friend, the guy that was practically his little brother, just told him to get good. "It's not that easy, Smokes. It's like… no matter what I do, he has to find a way to make me look bad or make himself look better. I can't get away from it."
Smokey's nose scrunched up and he side-eyed Joseph with a laugh. "Are you sure you aren't, like… overthinking this? It kinda seems like maybe he's just a normal person and you're thinking about him a lot more than he's thinking about you."
"Don't phrase it like that."
"I'm just sayin'."
Joseph groaned and gave up, eventually walking out from behind the ticket booth and back over to where everyone else was standing.
The fair was horribly small, and it didn't have much at all in the way of rides; the town couldn't afford very much in general. Joseph couldn't complain, though. Because of his status and Prince and Suzie's as Princess, tickets had been free, and free things were often easier to enjoy. There was a ferris wheel, a few long strips of booths set up for games and prizes, and two little fun houses the kids always flocked to. A main stage was set up for various performances, and the rest was mainly food, usually overpriced. It was how they always made their money. Still, it was something to do, which was rare in and of itself. Usually, Joseph would have to drive an hour to find anything interesting at all.
"Back," he said, after rejoining the group. Total nonchalance. Nailed it. Smokey was at his side again moments later. "Sorry, got distracted. Where are we headed?"
"I thought it might be fun to walk around a bit and see what games they have this year," Suzie said gently, as if she was afraid of setting someone off. Joseph felt bad for putting her in the middle of his spat… he needed to try and keep his cool. It wouldn't be fair to leave her feeling so awful because of his own personal problems."I think everyone else already has their tickets, so we can go whenever we want!"
Poor Suzie. She seemed a little tense, being right in the middle of two boys who were quite obviously not okay with each other, but she was trying her hardest as usual.
Everyone agreed that checking out what all the fair had to offer that year was a good idea, and they spent a good amount of time just wandering the place. There were signs up for fireworks later that night after the Homecoming dance was over, and Suzie seemed excited about them. Joseph made a mental note to ask her after the dance if she was up for going to see the show. He knew she was disappointed in him, but maybe he could fix it… even with the possibility that she might never want to be more than friends.
Caesar was driving him insane. The amount of flirting he was doing was unnecessary, and it was making Joseph mad. He was smooth, taking Suzie's hand to lead her places but not trying to hold it any other time, making sure he always knew what she wanted to do next, and not worrying at all about himself… or so it seemed. Joseph was sure Caesar was only worrying about himself, and all this was just a means to get what he wanted, and what he wanted was to bug the shit out of Joseph, obviously. If Smokey wasn't there, Joseph would've left.
Caesar's presence made Joseph feel like garbage. The more they walked around the fair, the more he could hear girls chittering as they passed, and he was constantly catching bits and pieces of comments about Caesar. About his hair and his smile, about his money… everything that Joseph hated. His hairstyle was idiotic, the way he liked to flaunt his family's wealth was annoying, and the little bit of lopsidedness in his grin wasn't charming, it was ugly. But somehow, Caesar's expensive jeans and name-brand blue cardigan left Joseph feeling scrummy and self conscious in his football hoodie.
"Hey, uh… can I talk to you, Suzie?" Joseph eventually asked, after several rounds of games and being forced to watch Caesar buy her a fluffy pink helping of cotton candy. She kept staring at it like it was a goddamn bouquet of flowers.
"Sure," she said, picking a bit of pink fluff off the rest. She was so cute. "We'll be right back, guys," she told everyone before breaking away with Joseph and heading to a far off picnic table to sit down. She looked at him expectantly, continuing to snack on the cotton candy. She didn't ask what he wanted, and it was awkward.
"Suz…" Might as well cut to the chase. "You know that guy is trying to run my life into the ground, right?"
"JoJo… stop it. We just talked about this."
"I'm being completely serious. Man, I… I feel like a total jackass, but-"
"Well, you're being one, so I get it."
Yikes. Joseph felt his stomach drop, and it was hard to get his next few words out at first. "I messed up last night, I get it. I just… really don't like him. And… I dunno, seeing you so readily… happy… makes me worry," he explained.
"Seeing me happy makes you worry?"
"No! No." Joseph held his hands up, panicking slightly. "That's not… what I meant. I just don't trust him. I think the whole reason he's acting like this toward you is because he knows it'll piss me off."
"Why would it piss you off?"
There it was. In the middle of the fair, with young kids running around everywhere and the smell of funnel cake wafting through the air, Joseph had the chance to tell Suzie exactly how he felt about her. He drew a breath... and he chickened out.
"It doesn't matter," he said with a nervous laugh. "I…Maybe I'm just feeling protective over you."
"Well, stop it."
Joseph motioned toward her with a wave of his hand, feeling frustrated. "You know why he's being so nice to you, right? I mean… you're not totally unaware, are you? He's trying to sleep with you. I'd bet a million bucks on it."
Suzie's face got red, and she was suddenly extremely interested in dissecting the rest of her cotton candy. "JoJo… We haven't even actually gone out anywhere yet. How well do you even know him? It's only been a few days since he introduced himself to me, and he's been nothing but a gentleman."
"He's being a gentleman because he wants to get laid," Joseph whispered at her harshly. He was becoming increasingly frustrated.
"Oh, right. I forgot that men are incapable of being nice unless they want favors," Suzie remarked, rolling her eyes. "I'm not having this conversation. I honestly think the way he acts around me is refreshing. And you know what? Even if he was trying to sleep with me, if he kept going about things this way, I probably wouldn't mind!" With an exasperated laugh, she held Joseph's gaze. She sounded upset and bitter, and her eyes started to water, leaving him feeling guilty. "Stop making me mad at you, JoJo."
"Sorry, Suzie, I just…"
"You just what? You have an awful lot of excuses." She glanced over at Caesar, and then back at Joseph, before tossing her hair over her shoulder and standing up. "I don't want to be involved in this anymore. Hey, Caesar! C'mere!" She called out.
Joseph froze in his seat, feeling the urge to get up and run. Shit. He'd just tried to physically fight Caesar last night, and he'd seen the look in his eyes, and now Suzie was calling him over. If no one else had been there last night, Caesar would've taken a swing at him. Who knows how far it could've gone? He was making his way over to their little picnic table, and Suzie grabbed Joseph's arm, tugging insistently to try and get him to stand up.
"Both of you. Follow me," she said, traipsing a few feet away toward the ferris wheel, which currently didn't have much of a line at all. They both followed, Caesar like normal, and Joseph like a dog who'd just been kicked. He didn't have much of a choice- the girl had a terrifying grip, and he was still a prisoner.
Once they were stopped in front of the man running the ride, she turned to them and smiled huge, handing the rest of her cotton candy off to Caesar. "Take this. Okay, here's the deal! I was planning on having a good day today, and that's still the plan! From the sounds of it, you two have some issues regarding each other and no one else, and I'm not gonna let it ruin my day! So…"
She turned away from them and to the tanned and tattooed ride operator, pointing at both of them from over her shoulder.
"These two would like to ride together," she told him. She spun on her heel to look back at Joseph and Caesar, grabbing one of each of their hands in her own. "Work it out," she commanded in a low voice, still smiling.
She skipped back over to her picnic table of choice, sitting down and resting her head on her hands, watching them. They probably weren't a very interesting subject, standing there in mutual silence until the ride operator finally spoke up.
"So," he asked, sounding bored. "You two gonna ride or not?"
"No," Joseph said immediately, turning to walk away. Caesar grabbed his arm, and he felt a surge of anger and annoyance charge through his body, whipping back around to face him.
"Why not?" Caesar asked, laughing. His laugh was stupid. Nothing was funny. "You scared? I didn't know you were afraid of heights."
"I'm not," Joseph said, yanking his arm away. "I just don't want to sit on the damn ferris wheel with you. And don't touch me."
"You can just say you're afraid. Fear of heights is actually very common."
"Are you serious- fine. Fine!" Joseph pushed past him and sat down in the seat waiting for them, huffing. Caesar thanked the man and apologized to the people who'd gathered in a small line behind them, and then sat down next to him, getting comfy and shaking the whole damn carriage as he got comfortable.
"Stop," Joseph said flatly, refusing to look at him. They started to move upward, and Caesar laughed again.
"You are afraid of heights, aren't you?"
"I said I'm not. I just don't want you to shake the whole fucking… this thing is like thirty years old, at least."
As more people got on the ferris wheel, they started to get higher up, and the mock friendliness Caesar was showing was unnerving.
"Ah, right. I forgot everything around here was ancient and boring. Even most of the people." He shrugged and held the cotton candy Suzie had passed off on him out toward Joseph, snapping his gum. "Want some? I don't like cotton candy."
What kind of monster doesn't like cotton candy?
"No, I don't want any of the cotton candy that you bought for Suzie," Joseph said, finally turning to glare at him. His cool attitude was rage-inducing. It was the same way he'd been at the start of the football game, just more talkative. "What's your deal? Why are you being such an asshole?"
"Me?" Caesar asked, leaning back and letting his free hand dangle over the half wall. He blew another bubble with his gum and let it pop, shrugging. "What's up? Am I getting to you, Joseph?"
"No one calls me that."
"I know," he chuckled.
Joseph wanted to throw him off the ride from the top as soon as they got there. He was quiet for a moment, and then asked another question. "Did you write all over my car last night?"
"Ha, yeah. Did you like my craftsmanship? I thought it looked pretty."
"I don't get you," Joseph said, looking out over the town and trying to ignore how mad he actually felt about his car. From this height, he could see just how flat everything in the surrounding area really was. It was that way for miles. He couldn't really remember the last time he'd driven over a hill. "You act like you wanna ruin my life and kick my ass, and then when I get heated, you back off."
"I didn't have any intention of ruining your life," Caesar told him, still leaning back and staring at the clouds. "At least not to start. You're the one who took time and money to egg the front of my house. I thought it was immature, and I didn't even do anything in response, and then you were all over me at last night's game. I haven't done anything to you. Maybe I should."
"Are you kidding me?" Joseph leaned forward a bit too fast and shook their seat. "'Didn't do anything in response?' You wrote all over my car last night, and you started hanging all over Suzie as soon as you realized how I felt about her!"
"Ooh, a confession. I like this." Caesar sat forward as well, looking straight at Joseph, finally showing off some of that anger that had flashed in his eyes the previous night. "Do you really think I'm going after Suzie to get to you? Are you that self centered? Maybe it hasn't occurred to you that I actually like her, and that she's a person who can make her own choices and not your property to get defensive over."
He leaned back in his former relaxed position, and after a moment of silence, he spoke again, looking at Joseph out of the corner of his eye.
"Hit the nail right on the head about me wanting to kick your ass, though. Just give me a reason."
Caesar snapped another bubble and Joseph winced. He bit his tongue and stayed quiet, continuing to stare out over the flat nothingness he'd always called home, and for the first time in his life, he desperately wished he was living anywhere else.
(A/N: This chapter is actually only half of one very long chapter, and you should have the second half here in a few days. It's written and just needs to be heavily edited. Chapter title on this one is Barracuda by Heart!)
