Chapter 8: Mugshots

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"'He...'" you looked around the room, half expecting to see a ghost shaped like Josuke floating around.

"Here, I can kind of show you." Josuke pointed over to where the discarded towel had fallen. You gasped as it suddenly lifted into the air, folded and set itself neatly on the coffee table. "And uh, like this."

You looked at him strangely when you suddenly felt a tap on your shoulder. You turned to look for the source, but nobody was there. You glanced back at Josuke, at a loss for words. You eventually pried your jaw open. "So you ARE haunted, then."

"What?" He looked... offended? "No, that's like saying the thoughts in your head haunt you. It's not a ghost, it's just... me."

You sat in silence for a moment, just looking between Josuke, the mug and the towel when an idea struck you. You fished into your pocket and pulled out your phone, testing the buttons to see if they worked, but the phone stayed cold like last time. He was watching you, and you looked him dead in the eyes, snapping your phone in two at the joint. You tossed it to him. "Fix it."

"What?"

"You heard me. Fix it."

He looked at you confused, but he obliged. Like with the mug, the pieces of your phone fit themselves back together, Josuke tossing the repaired device back over to you. You flipped it open, and the screen lit up with a text from Junko. Your mouth hung open. "That's... that's amazing..." you turned the phone over in your hand, it looked as if it were never broken in the first place. You looked back up at him.

"I understand this is probably super freaky, but I'm not a monster." He pushed himself into a standing position, offering his hand to you. You looked up at him, his eyes betrayed no devil. You let him pull you up, and though he was a good half a foot taller than you, you didn't feel intimidated.

"I don't think you're a monster, I just..." you took your hand back from him and looked down at the floor. "I was scared. When I saw you-" you started to tremble as the memory of blood and screaming came flooding back. You gulped. "I uh, I guess I thought that you were some kind of demon."

"I don't blame you for being scared..." Josuke trailed off, but his eyes snapped back to you. "Wait, you thought I was a demon and you STILL came to my house?"

You were suddenly very aware of how close you were to him, and how you were positioned, stuck between him and the wall. "I guess so, I don't know why I did it though. When I ran into you earlier, I just... I couldn't see any ill will." You dodged your eyes to the side, your face getting hot as you felt his eyes on you, but you were fully invested in memorizing the grain of wood in the floorboards. "You sounded so sincere about wanting to help me."

Josuke took a step back, turning around with a hand on his neck. He was mumbling something that sounded like, "it's no problem."

Your phone, still in your hand, buzzed. You looked down to see another message from Junko.

"Hey, where are you? Please message me back, I'm getting worried."

You flipped your phone shut and started for the door to the hallway. "Hey, I should go, my host family is starting to freak out." You stopped in the doorway and shyly turned around. "Would you... mind helping me? I still don't know where to go..."

Josuke jogged over to the door and slipped past you, into the hall. You peeked around the corner and saw him digging through a closet. "I'd be happy to. And," Josuke shut the closet door, holding an umbrella out to you. "So we don't get wet."

You awkwardly grabbed the umbrella, folding your hands over the handle. "Um, do you... have two of them?" You knew the implications that sharing an umbrella would have.

Josuke turned a light shade of pink, apparently he did too. "Oh! Yeah, of course." He fumbled through the closet and pulled out a second umbrella. "There, all better..." he nodded curtly at you and motioned to the entryway, where your shoes sat in a puddle of water. "Here," he handed them to you, being completely dry once you took hold of them.

"Thanks." You slid them on and looked up to see Josuke opening the door.

***

The rain was significantly lighter as he led you through the residential streets, walking in almost complete silence apart from the sound of the pitter patter of the rain on the canvas canopy. You walked as far apart from him as you could, focusing on the ground. Besides the occasional "this way", there was no conversation between you two. Eventually, you started to recognize where you were, and you started to speed up, leading the way more than following.

"(Y/n)! Oh my god, there you are!" The air got pushed out of your lungs with a hearty "oof". Junko, barefoot and shaking, was holding onto like her life depended on it. You looked up, seeing the door to the Inoue's house open, Mrs. Inoue standing on the front step, relief in her eyes. Junko's voice was warbling. "I'm so sorry I hadn't told you I wouldn't be there sooner!"

"Hey, it's ok!" You patted her head, adjusting the umbrella to cover both of you. "I ran into a classmate and he helped me out." You gestured to Josuke.

Junko lifted her eyes to him, a watery smile spreading on her lips. "Thank you for keeping her safe." Junko grappled your hand, pulling you across the street. You tossed one last look over your shoulder, Josuke offering a little wave before he disappeared on the other side of the door.

A Crazy, Noisy, Bizarre Adventure (Reader x Josuke)-  Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Waar verhalen tot leven komen. Ontdek het nu