Post 4: untitled, art by canvasrose, fic by dailinn

[fandomonymous]

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Bright summer light leaked into the manga artist's studio through the blinds, and the incessant chirping of cicadas had started to grate on his nerves. It really was summer now, but there was one thing more annoying than cicadas that he was grateful hadn't shown up yet—Josuke Higashikata. It wasn't that he hated the highschooler—although he would certainly never admit that. He had plenty of reason to hate the boy, and while 'hate' was not quite the word... he was a disruptive annoyance, and Rohan was glad he seemed to be keeping to himself recently.

His pen glided over the paper quickly, with precision, leaving the lines exactly where he planned them. The way the ink flew over the paper as he drew, most observers would think it would leave his desk and the artwork itself a mess, and yet, every drop would land exactly where intended. Alone, just that day, he had completed more work than most artists could even hope to finish with a team of assistants.

Yes... he was thankful for the recent peace in Morioh. Thankful that he hadn't decided to drop by. It was just a normal summer day, and Rohan intended to finish the manuscript he was working on—he hardly had anything left to draw. It was nothing for him. A small smile crossed his lips, an expression others rarely saw on him; for once in quite awhile, he was content.

He was so engrossed in his work, however that he'd failed to notice the slight creak of the door opening... someone was in his house. It was a slight lapse of his normally more observant nature, but it allowed the intruder to creep into his studio on light feet...

“GUESS WHO!” Hands clasped over Rohan's face tightly, covering his eyes. Mid-stroke, Rohan jerked his arm up as he drew, splattering ink across the page, and his desk.

He recognized the intruder's voice—it was Josuke.

“Oh? Are you sick or somethin'?” Josuke blinked, looking down at the artist, whose face had flushed the moment he heard the other's voice.

“Josuke, what the hell are you doing here!?” he pushed the highschooler off of him, pen still in hand, stabbing the other's arm as he did. He didn't care, the brat deserved it. He turned back towards his ruined manuscript page, and sighed in annoyance. It wasn't that it would take time or considerable effort to redo—but it was just another thing Josuke had ruined.

Even he didn't know why he had blushed when Josuke surprised him like that. Perhaps he was denying the reason.

Josuke laughed nervously, “You'e been holed up in your giant mansion all summer, aren't you bored?” Rohan had turned back towards him face scrunched up into a scowl. “I was just thinking, if you weren't dead or something, we could hang out?”

The truth was, Josuke's summer vacation had been pretty boring up until this point. It had reached that point where each day just felt like a repeat of the last. Nothing new, nothing different. It was another day, but it might has well have not been. Days starting to blend together... The worst part of summer.

“Why would I even want to be seen in public with a kid with hair as dumb as yours?” Rohan asked, grinning as he watched Josuke twitch, clearly trying hard to resist punching him in the face.

“I'll let THAT ONE slide for now,” Josuke forced himself to say, glaring darkly at the other, “But if you say another fucking word about my hair, I'll beat your ass until you can't move.”

“I'm so scared,” Rohan said with a laugh, “Just terrified.” He turned back to his desk, starting to clean up the mess Josuke had caused him to make. He tossed the ruined page and started cleaning the ink splatters off of the desk.

“I really don't want to go anywhere with you,” he finally added, putting his pen away and sitting at the desk once again, turning just slightly toward the boy.

“Aw, come on man, you can't really want to stay cooped up in here all summer, can you?”

“You know why I became a manga artist, right?” Rohan said with a sigh, “I don't like dealing with people. That includes you.”

Josuke crossed his arms and sighed, watching the frustrated artist clean up his workspace. Rohan's studio was usually a little messy, but Josuke had a feeling he was trying to look busy to deter him—which was the case. He decided that one way or another he'd get Rohan out of his house—after all, if he couldn't, what the hell else would he spend his afternoon doing?

“There's gotta be something I can do to get you out of this house,” Josuke said as Rohan continued to reorganize his desk.

Rohan glared back at the other from the corner of his eye. This was just getting unbearable. He didn't want to leave, and even if he was starting to consider it... no, he wasn't.

...But even if he had been starting to consider it, at this point it was a matter of principle. He couldn't give into Josuke, just the thought of that made him sick at his stomach. It didn't matter if he wanted to, his pride, something deep within him, just wouldn't allow it.

“No,” Rohan said flatly, “besides, you've already set me behind schedule, you idiot.”

“Come on!!” Josuke whined, “It'll take you what, 5 seconds to redo that page?? Are you fucking serious?”

“No.”

Josuke's arms dropped to his sides, hands balled into fists. Goddamn, this was going to be harder than he thought. They were both stubborn as mules; Josuke gritted his teeth as he tried to figure out how he would coax the other man out of his house.

“What if I told you that, if you come with me, you can experience something you've never experienced before to put in your manga?”

Rohan stopped moving. It was working! ...Josuke realized now he'd have to make a good guess at a thing a man a few years his senior wouldn't have experienced. How much had Rohan even experienced in his life? he wondered. Directly, that is. What if it was even less than Josuke had? That was a definite possibility, he realized. But what if he was wrong? It was starting to get more than a little nerve-wracking, but he had to keep his cool.

“......maybe,” he was starting to break. He really didn't want to give in, but he was curious what the highschool boy had in mind. What did he think the great Rohan Kishibe hadn't experienced yet? It might not be a complete waste of time. He dropped some art supplies into their rightful container, and then faced Josuke again. He leaned back on the desk, hands behind him supporting most of his weight. “Just what do you think is worth my time, though?” he asked, smirking a bit.

“Well, that's the thing, it's a secret. You gotta come with me, or you're never gonna find out.”

Hahaha I am so fucked if I can't figure out what to do, Josuke thought, without wavering, however. He was sure if he showed his nervousness, Rohan would just read him with Heaven's Door. Although he wasn't entirely sure that wasn't about to happen anyway. It was a big gamble. But that made it kind of thrilling, too. There was something exciting about messing with Rohan, moreso than anyone else he knew. That's why screwing with Rohan had been his first pick when he left the house that morning, desperate for something to do. He wasn't even sure why it was so exciting...

Rohan eyed the other cautiously. Josuke had definitely let down his guard, it was obvious. And Rohan knew he could take advantage of that if he wanted... although if he played along with the boy, he might have more fun, he reasoned.

More fun? He was a little disgusted with himself for that thought alone, but he couldn't deny that that was how he felt about it. Yes, he was just about to lower himself to playing along with a high school delinquent's game. It was time to swallow his pride and admit defeat, at least to himself.

“Fine,” he gave a concrete answer, and Josuke let out a deep sigh of relief. “However, if this turns out to be a waste of time, you will pay for it,” he said sternly.

“Right, whatever. So, you coming?” with that, Josuke was already heading for the door, grinning like an idiot. He did it! Step one complete!

His elation died down when he realized this just meant he had less time to figure out what he was going to do.

The two of them walked down the street, Josuke with his head lowered a bit, hands in his pockets, a few steps before the manga artist. Thinking hard. He knew he didn't have long before Rohan would give up on him and go home. He had to come up with a plan. He'd expected Rohan to put up more of a fight—maybe even a physical one. He'd come prepared for that, not for... this. It was awkward, and didn't feel right. He just wanted to turn around and scream “The hell is wrong with you!?” and even seriously considered it for a few seconds.

Rohan, meanwhile, started to regret following Josuke out. It didn't hurt to get some fresh air, despite the heat, and he probably would have been taking a break by now anyway, had he not been interrupted... but why did he do this? Was he just that bored himself? Or...?

“I'm going to turn back if this doesn't go somewhere soon,” he warned Josuke, finally. A bit of a bluff. Perhaps it would encourage him.

“Yeah yeah, I told you I'm not gonna let you know until we get there!” Josuke huffed, looking back over his slouched shoulders, “I'll make it worth your while!” He wasn't really sure if he could, though. What had Rohan not experienced? Especially in Morioh, the place he grew up? Damn, Josuke thought, I focused so much on getting him out of the house, I didn't realize how stupid I was being...!

“Idiot,” Rohan muttered, “You don't even know where you're going, do you?”

“Sh-shut up!! You're pissing me off, just be patient already.” Josuke straightened up, trying to look more confident, “I know exactly where I'm going.”

“Bullshit. But don't worry too much, I didn't expect that much from you to begin with.”

Josuke ignored him, walking with slightly heavier steps as they approached a small cafe, “HERE, we're going HERE.”

“...what?” Rohan blinked, staring at the cafe, and then back at Josuke. He stifled a laugh, “..you're kidding, right?” He laughed into a cupped hand, now staring incredulously at Josuke. “You think I haven't been HERE?”

“The cafe isn't the 'experience', dumbass!” Josuke yelled, grabbing Rohan's arm and dragging him inside. “Jeez, I know you think I'm an idiot, but...”

Josuke wouldn't let Rohan go, pulling him along as if fearing he'd back out at this point. Of course he wasn't planning on it, unsure at this point if he was still curious where things were going, or just humoring the other. They got a small table, out of the way in the corner per Rohan's request.

“So... an experience... in a cafe... Josuke, you realize I've had most of the menu here, and it's actually a little boring at this point. And if this 'experience' isn't food, well, then I'm going to assume you're just giving up.”

“No way man, I told you I'd give you an experience you hadn't experienced, okay? I'm gonna do it.” Rohan raised his eyebrows as Josuke continued, “But you've also gotta trust me, alright? I'm not screwing around.”

Actually, that's almost exactly what he was doing.

But he had formulated somewhat of a plan in his head at this point, and so far things were going exactly according to it. They each ordered a small item off of the menu, and got a glass of water each. Josuke took a long sip of water, shaking the table slightly when he set it down.

Rohan leaned back slightly, crossing his arms over his chest. “Well... I'm waiting,” he said simply.

The air was tense, and things went on like this for awhile. Their food arrived, and Josuke commented that Rohan's looked good. Rohan pointed out that Josuke had actually ordered the worst thin on the menu, although Josuke raised an eyebrow, stating that it was fine for him.

“You're just picky.”

“You're just unrefined.”

The thick, awkward atmosphere didn't seem like it was going to dissipate anytime soon. One of them would speak, the other would put them down in turn, and on and on it went for what felt like an uncomfortably long time, although they had not been there for more than half an hour.

Josuke fidgeted. It was starting to feel like going on a date with a super hot chick that turned out to be incredibly boring. Exactly like that. There was no foreseeable way out, and the tenseness just grew and grew, weighing on him like an invisible rock.

Rohan was starting to feel a similar weight building above the two of them, and was starting to get incredibly impatient.

This wasn't working out the way Josuke wanted it to at all, but he was stuck in the middle and had to follow through. He couldn't bail now. “So, uh, hey. Rohan. That experience I was talking about...”

Rohan perked up, waiting for the other to continue. He saw Josuke swallow, and the boy seemed to be sweating now.

“I wanted this to be a date,” he admitted, his relief at finally revealing his true intentions almost visible on his face.

Rohan blushed deeply, as he had when Josuke first grabbed his face from behind that morning. He covered the lower half of his face with one hand and looked down.

Although Josuke had expected the tension to start to dissipate at that point, he had made an incredibly foolish miscalculation. In fact, the atmosphere felt even more tense than before! Although admitting his plan had brought him some relief, Rohan's quiet reaction was starting to make him nervous.

Man, Rohan's right, you really are an idiot! Josuke thought to himself, starting to blush as well. “Hey, don't just......” he paused, “Dammit, say something already!!” He was definitely sweating now. The fuck was going through Rohan's mind? He wanted to know, he wanted any indication.

Rohan laughed, a touch of nervousness ringing through his laughter, “You don't think I've been on a date before?” He tried his hardest to regain his composure, the red starting to slowly fade from his cheeks. “My comic has plenty of female readers, you think I don't get asked out all the time?”

“Getting asked out isn't the same as going on a date.”

“You really think I haven't?”

“You have?” Josuke was legitimately surprised. It wasn't like Rohan was unattractive or anything, but well. He was Rohan.

“...if I hadn't, I wouldn't be able to write it,” Rohan said, starting to get visibly flustered. Josuke hadn't noticed yet, and Rohan hoped to keep it that way.

“Heaven's Door?” Josuke asked, leaning up over the table and grinning. Rohan was quickly losing his composure, but he still couldn't admit to himself the reason why—if he even realized it.

This was the first time he'd been on a date with... someone he liked.

“Anyway,” Josuke said, leaning back, far back on his chair, balancing on its back legs. “Uh... it's a date, okay. But if you've gone on a date before, I guess I'm gonna have to step up my game.” He looked away. This was starting to get really weird. He'd hoped the date would've been enough, but he realized now that he should have planned for this possiblity.

But had Rohan Kishibe really been on a date before? Really?

Rohan, meanwhile, ran one hand through his hair, leaning over the table with one elbow upon it. His expression was one of frustration and uneasiness, lips pulled tight and brow furrowed. He watched Josuke, whose eyes were plastered to the ceiling as if he were intently watching it. Of course, the other was lost in thought while the artist stared at him.

It hadn't started out as staring at Josuke in particular, but after awhile, he couldn't help it. Slowly, he was admitting to himself the reason he'd allowed the boy to pull him out of his house when he should have been working. Even if he hadn't realized it at the time... He'd all but memorized Josuke's form, if only because he'd been stuck cooperating with him, or forced to deal with him several times since they first met. It was true that Josuke had caused him a lot of trouble, and he probably wouldn't ever truly forgive him for burning down his house once before—but that troublemaking tendency was part of Josuke's charm. He watched Josuke sway towards and away from him on the back legs of his chair as he thought, never noticing the artist's eyes.

Arms crossed, Josuke smiled a bit suddenly. He let the chair flop down, front legs hitting the floor with a loud thwak!

“I got it,” Josuke said, leaning over the table again, nearly in Rohan's face. Rohan backed up, face flushing slightly as he reacted to the others' face filling his view.

“Don't DO that,” Rohan snarled at him, but Josuke ignored his words, talking over him.

“You ready to go?” Josuke didn't wait for a response, standing up and starting to walk out. Rohan had already paid, when it became apparent the teenager wasn't willing to foot the bill—Rohan knew he likely couldn't have afforded it anyway.

“You owe me for that,” Rohan informed him. Josuke waved a hand in the air, thinking the other would interpret it as 'I'll get to it,' when really Rohan just took it as an indication he'd never get that money back. “It's pretty rude to make your date pay, you know.”

“Hey, I'm not made of money!” Josuke stopped in his tracks, turning around. “Besides, it's worth it for a new experience, right?”

“You've yet to show me one,” Rohan pointed out.

“Whatever, c'mon.”

The two left the cafe, Josuke sure he'd get to an experience Rohan hadn't had if he just kept going... yeah. That was the plan. Rohan was growing slightly impatient, but no longer due to Josuke's company, but rather, well, waiting for Josuke to make the next move. Not necessarily in a romantic way. He really was eager to see if the other could find something he hadn't experienced, and well... if it was in a romantic way, he might just be able to manage it.

And if he did...

Josuke stopped abruptly. They were standing under a rather pitiful-looking tree. It was quite past the season for flowers to bloom, the summer heat was in full force. Even if it had been spring, Rohan was sure this tree wouldn't be much more impressive.

“So uh,” Josuke fidgeted, “I like you!”

“I've been confessed to before,” Rohan said dryly, “And much better than this, I might add.”

“Oh yeah!?” Josuke got in Rohan's face, putting only about an inch of space between them. Rohan could feel his breath on his lips, and didn't move. Josuke clenched his fists; it felt like time had slowed. Had Jotaro stopped time? Of course not, since he wasn't there, but it felt like it. Rohan patiently waited to see what would happen next. He grew increasingly uncomfortable with the passing seconds, but that's all they were—seconds. Seconds that felt like minutes, to the both of them. Two nervous young men, both with little experience in the way of romance (although perhaps Rohan had the upper hand, having read the deep, private details of many peoples' love lives up until this point).

After what felt like an eternity, but in reality only encompassed a few seconds, Josuke planted a kiss firmly on Rohan's lips, awkwardly at first, but then moving in closer, and wrapping his arms around the older man. He gripped him tightly, nearly squeezing him as he kissed him. An awkward, wet, inexperienced kiss. But Rohan returned it, with less feeling, but—it was a kiss.

Rohan Kishibe experienced something new that day—his first kiss.

Slowly, almost seemingly grudgingly, the artist wrapped his arms around the boy. Softly, without any real force. His hands rested gently on the point between Josuke's back and sides. He squirmed a bit in discomfort as he adjusted his standing position to better accommodate, and Josuke loosened his tight, tight grip.

Josuke had worried, honestly, that Rohan would fight him, pull away. That's why he held so tight. Although even after loosening his grip, it was still rather tight. He didn't want to let go. He broke off the kiss, but just kept holding onto Rohan.

“Stop it, you idiot,” Rohan finally said, face a deep red after a few minutes of hugging Josuke. When Josuke showed no sign of letting go, he tried to push him off. Josuke was definitely stronger than the artist, though, making it quite a chore. “If you don't stop, I'll make you stop!!” Josuke hesitated, but at this threat, did pull away.

The high school delinquent looked away, face slightly less flush than Rohan's, but still certainly red. “Uh, so yeah. New?” his eyes alone turned towards the other.

Rohan's face would have darkened if he could even blush more than he already was. Was he going to admit that he'd never kissed anyone before? Could he even admit that? If he did, maybe Josuke would leave him alone for today, but he was starting to wonder if he even wanted that now.

What was wrong with him?

“WAS IT NEW OR NOT?” Josuke demaneded, glaring at Rohan, panicking slightly. He'd go farther. He would do it. He was determined. But... his heart was beating so fast! He saw Rohan's lips move, but didn't hear the words. “Well...?” his features softened.

“It... might have been,” Rohan repeated, softlly, quietly.

“Maybe's not good enough, yes or no, gimmie a straight answer! Dammit, why are you so stubborn anyway?”

“I could ask the same of you!!” Rohan responded, and then he sighed. “I'm going home.”

Without another word, Rohan started walking back to his house, steps heavy, slightly upset. Josuke paused, watching him walk away. He didn't know now whether or not he should follow. His stubbornness said he should keep going until he got a definite 'yes' out of the artist. But part of him thought maybe he'd had enough fun for today. Maybe he'd messed with Rohan enough... maybe.

Rohan, on the other hand, was certainly done for the day. More than finished dealing with Josuke. Although...

Maybe he really wouldn't mind his company. If he just happened to follow him home. Maybe.

*

As he opened the door to his house, he caught out of the corner of his eye sight of the lost puppy dog who had followed him home. When Josuke realized he'd been discovered (which would have happened far earlier if Rohan had cared to pay attention), he looked away, hands in his pockets, trying to look as if he'd just happened to walk in the same direciton as the other.

They both knew that was bullshit. Rohan raised a hand up, beckoning like a maneki neko, a few swift motions before he walked in, not bothering to lock the door behind him. Now he would wait. He walked to his studio, leaving the door to that room wide open, and sat at his desk. He pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, and began drawing where he'd left off—redoing the page that Josuke had ruined earlier. He made it halfway through inks before he heard the door crack open just a bit more, and when he turned to look, saw the boy standing in the threshold.

“Aw man, I was hoping to surprise you again,” Josuke laughed; he'd known he wouldn't really surprise Rohan, but he honestly hoped the other would be more engrossed in his work, easier to at least catch off guard.

“What are you, stupid?” Rohan raised his eyebrows, twirling a G-pen in his right hand.

“Maybe,” Josuke admitted, shrugging. “But this idiot stole your first kiss, didn't he?” he asked, grinning, pointing at his face.

Rohan's face flushed again.

“I knew it!!” Josuke called out, taking that as proof that he was right, “I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!!” He laughed to himself, grinning at the sour artist, who then turned around, starting to draw again. He was way too flustered, though. His penwork was normally perfect, not a single line misplaced, and yet he couldn't focus enough, the line weights were all wrong, he pressed too hard here, too soft there.

He stopped drawing to examine his nib, which had a tiny speck of paper wedged in it now from the pressure. He let out a deep, frustrated sigh, and cleaned it off, setting it aside. Setting aside his unfinished manuscript page as well, perched atop the folder that held the other pages, he pulled out a fresh piece of paper.

Looking busy hadn't deterred Josuke before, but maybe the highschooler was finally tired of this game. Maybe.

He drew without thinking, a pretty easy thing to do when finishing a drawing takes little more than seconds. A defined, but youthful face appeared on the paper under his nib. Wild eyes full of emotion, the beginnings of a black gakuran... Rohan's face reddened. He finished the initial sketch with that absolutely stupid haircut.

Josuke.

“Whatcha drawin'?” the other inquired, leaning over the artist's shoulder, eyes wide. “Me!?” he grinned, grabbing Rohan's shoulders. “You got my face all wrong, though!! It's more like... this,” he traced his jawline with one finger. “You're makin' me look like a girl!”

“I've seen your face plenty of times, if you think I'm making you look like a girl, you must look like a girl,” he said, sounding as if he had a laugh caught in his throat with every word. “Or do you doubt the artistic ability of the great Rohan Kishibe?” He pushed the paper aside, turning just slightly toward the other, leaning back in his chair.

“You ain't that great,” Josuke said flatly, crossing his arms over his chest. He was smiling, though, “What kinda great man's never kissed anyone at your age? What are you, 30?”

Rohan ignored that comment, knowing Josuke was itching for a fight, trying to rile him up. “I don't have time to waste on romantic pursuits, when I can just experience them with Heaven's Door. Girlfriends cost money, and relationships take time.”

“You're gonna waste your whole life thinkin' like that,” there was a twinge of sadness in Josuke's voice.

“All I care about is being read,” Rohan said, turning back to his drawing, finalizing the lines, starting to fill in the solid black of the school uniform. “Nothing else comes close, and anything else is a waste of time. Research for manga, drawing manga, writing manga... I don't need love when I've got that.”

“That's kind of sad, man,” Josuke said quietly, “Like, legit sad.”

“Is it?” Rohan asked, placing tone quickly and expertly—Josuke hadn't even seen him take the sheet out. He was a master of his craft, no doubt, but the thought that his craft was really all he had... Josuke hadn't really thought about it before, honestly. He hadn't thought about how Rohan usually spent his days. He thought about the artist hunched over his drawing table every hour of every summer day—and not just the summer days, he realized. Every day. Every day for at least the past four years.

And it was true, even though Rohan could complete pages faster than any other manga artist in Japan—in the world, even—his life, although full of free time compared to others of his craft, revolved around writing manga.

He was happy with that.

Josuke didn't understand how he could be.

Josuke wrapped his arms around the other from behind, blocking his hand from the manuscript paper.

“C'mon, loser. Take a break.”

Silence. Neither of them said a word for the next few minutes. Rohan's drawing hand didn't move, suspended in air as if someone had stopped time, again. Feeling Josuke rest his head on his, Rohan had definitive proof time had indeed kept moving. But the two of them remained still, and silent, each lost in his own thoughts. Josuke tightened his grip, and Rohan slowly lowered his hand. The ink on the tip of the pen nib started to dry. The sun set, and the light leaking in through the blinds slowly dimmed, until there was only moonlight spilling through.

“Your manga will be there tomorrow, and the next day,” Josuke finally spoke, “Koichi's told me how fast you work, so don't bother lying to me and telling me you're not ahead of deadline.”

He was. He was several weeks ahead of deadline. He lowered his head a bit, hair spilling into his face, hiding his red cheeks. There was no fighting it now, was there?

“C'mon.”

With a sudden push, Rohan backed into Josuke's knees with his chair, and stood up. Josuke wanted to bitch at him about that, but... no, it just wasn't the time. He reluctantly pulled his arms off of the other, and let his hands find his own waist as he stood before the artist.

“What now?” Rohan asked, pushing his hair out of his face now.

“Dunno,” Josuke admitted, “But we'll figure something out, right?”

“Go home, you idiot,” Rohan said, looking a little bit disgusted. “Isn't it your bedtime yet?”

“You wish,” Josuke said, puffing out his chest just a bit, “You're not gonna get rid of me that easily.

Not tonight.”