Chapter Text
From the moment he had to go to America, Joseph's days were way more entertaining than when he used to live with Granny Erina back in England. Hell, he was travelling AND beating up bad guys: what is there not to like?
He was having the time of his life, and these poison rings trapped inside of his body wouldn't prevent him from enjoying himself tonight. Or any other day for the matter.
Lisa Lisa had decided to give them a day off tomorrow – or rather, a morning off, so they could recover from their harsh but necessary training. So, with a bit of coaxing from (Y/N)'s part, they managed to convince Caesar to ditch the book he planned on reading tonight to go out dancing.
Joseph was already smiling as he left his room to go downstairs. How long has it been since he could interact with other people! Of course, he wasn't complaining about the people living with him at the moment, but some change in a while was very welcome. Besides, he'd get to see a whole new side about them, and it was the most exciting part.
On his way to the stairs, he heard some voices on the other sides of a door and stopped in his tracks. He recognised them as being (Y/N)'s and Suzie Q's, apparently hesitating between some outfits or some girly things like that, he assumed. Smirking, he dusted his shirt and pants (he decided not to wear the jacket: not keen on looking too stuck-up for such a casual event, and not wanting to be a living Casanova like Caesar either), adjusting his suspenders before knocking on the door. The whispers ceased, and a few seconds later, the door opened, but just slightly. He could only see half of Suzie Q's face, and as he tried to glance into the room, she positioned herself better to hide the contents of the room as best as her short stature allowed her to.
"Do you need something, Joseph?"
"Well, I was wondering if you needed some... Assistance, perhaps?"
A loud "GO AWAY" could be heard behind her, and both young people giggled at that. "No, I don't think we need your help, Joseph. Thanks for so gracefully asking."
"Hmmm." He looked her up and down, before settling his gaze back on her face. "You aren't changed yet? Not to put any pressure on you, Suzie, but you should hurry, the ball will start before us."
She frowned slightly, but it wasn't enough to completely dismiss this positivity of hers. "I'm not changed because I'm not coming. Lisa Lisa wants me to assist her tonight."
"What?! Come on, you can't miss that when the rest of us go!"
"And what? Risk being fired?"
"Are you saying a dance with me isn't worth being fired?" He wiggled his eyebrows, and, as he expected, a blush appeared on her face as she started to giggle.
"Aren't you tired of being such a DISGUSTING FLIRT?!" Suzie Q's giggle turned into a full laugh as the (H/C) haired girl shouted, still inside the room.
Joseph cleared his throat, and spoke with a deeper voice than usual, clenched fists on both of his hips and chest puffed out, and forced an exaggerated frown onto his features. "And aren't you tired of being such a STUCK-UP BITCH?!"
Suzie Q finally closed the door of the room behind her, laughing loudly as she then put a finger in front of her mouth. "Not so loud, Joseph!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Loud steps came from the room, and in a matter of seconds, (Y/N) appeared in place of the door, and Joseph had to look twice to register her new appearance: she was wearing a (F/C) skirt reaching her knees, and a bright white, sleeveless shirt, the collar thanksfully not going too far to be indecent. She was also wearing a pair of court shoes, the same colour as her skirt. Noticing his lack of reaction, (Y/N) closed the door, sending a glare towards the man. "What are you even looking at?!"
The brunette boy blinked, and even though he was astonished for a second, his playful smirk came back. "I didn't think you could look feminine in the slightest." As she took a moment trying to see if he was complimenting her or not, he turned the other way and started walking away.
In a few seconds, after this next sentence, she'd by his sides, gripping his arm tightly and looking at him, her (E/C) eyes shining with a certain emotion he was eager to see. He was sure of it.
"At least you tried."
His prediction happened to be true, as (Y/N) rushed to him, gripping his arm and hitting his chest as she shouted about how stupid and rude he was being. Her annoyance was evident in her eyes, which were topped by the biggest frown he has ever seen on her usually calmer face, and he couldn't help but gloat at this. In a swift movement, his hands were on her biceps to stop her from gesticulate.
"Relax, relax, I'm obviously joking."
She pouted at this, her frowning eyebrows still in place on her face. "Are you though?"
"I am, I swear! You look mighty fine, actually. It's a very nice change." He tried to look as honest as he could – or rather, as he was deep inside – and he could see her cheeks slightly redden. She must have realised that too, since she just turned her face away from him, getting out of his grasp and walking away from him, a simple "hmpf" escaping her lips. Joseph smiled.
He had been genuinely surprised to see her looking this feminine, even though he had tried to imagine her in a dress many times before. He was so used to her training with Caesar and him, wearing training trousers and t-shirts that he, sort of, considered her as apart from other women. She wasn't a normal girl, she was (Y/N)... Does that make sense? He didn't know for sure, but she was special.
After all, weren't every Hamon users special in their own way?
She had been training under Lisa Lisa even before Caesar joined them, and just like the Zeppelis and the Joestars, her family had history with stone mask users. Her grandfather, too, had been killed by a stone mask vampire, and her father decided to follow the Hamon user path. To do so, he went to Tibet in his teenage years, where he met Lisa Lisa, who had lived there all of her life. As the two of them went to explore the world on their own, he met (Y/N)'s mother, and decided to go back to Tibet with her so their children could learn how to defend themselves against the possible harsh future awaiting them. Soon after, (Y/N) made her grand entrance into the world, training alongside her father under Tonpetty, and then Straizo.
Needless to say, compared to him, (Y/N)'s ability to wield her Hamon abilities were way sharper than his, and she didn't hesitate to remind him of that as often as she could.
Now heading towards the stairs were (Y/N), Joseph and Suzie Q, in that order. While the first started going down, Joseph stopped in his tracks, turning around to look at the blonde girl, her eyes wide at the sudden stop. "You should really try to come with us, Suzie. It'll be a blast, and you know it. You're always working hard, you too deserve some rest."
She gave him a shy smile, something he could never be tired of. "I will try my best, but that's all I can promise you." She shrugged. "It's not like my work is as tiring as what you are all going through."
"But-"
"Shhh." She put her index finger on his mouth, which was quite the bold move coming from the usually timid young woman. "Just go enjoy yourself."
He would have liked to answer to her, insist some more, but his ears then picked up on some conversation coming from the bottom of the stairs..
'What? He was behind me, where is he?'
'He probably ran off somewhere, as per usual.'
Even the sigh coming after this comment was loud enough for him to hear.
Joseph took Suzie Q's hand and walked towards the stairs again, flashing the two people waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs a bright broad smile. "Waiting for me are we?"
The blonde man at the end of the stairs glared at him before scoffing. "Why are you saying that as if it's an accomplishment?"
"You know how celebrities make their audience wait for them? Your wait was compulsory, I'm sorry."
Both young people chuckled, telling him to get off his high horse already. Taking his jokester face off, he talked about what he called the 'Suzie Q predicament'.
Caesar looked at her, before setting his green orbs on Joseph, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Well, why not replace her? It'd be way more enjoyable for everyone if she was to come with us instead of you."
Everyone laughed at that remark except our brown haired protagonist, who instead made a sulking face: after all, he was the one who wanted to go outside in the first place! He'd go and dance the night away, meet new people and maybe hopefully hit on some girls, no matter what!
Jokes were put aside and soon enough, our trio started to head outside the doors towards the boat waiting for them. When they got onto the little boat, the sky was not yet wearing its sunset colours: they had plenty of time left. They could see Suzie Q waving at them for a long while until they were so far her silhouette became nothing but a point in the horizon.
As they were going towards their destination in the centre of the town, the main subject of their conversation was still Hamon and the way they had improved over time.
Joseph was praised by his two friends for his incredible improvements over time and his quick thinking, but still criticised some parts of his personality that could hinder his abilities' development. When he asked about what part it was, both of his friends immediately answered with 'the childish part', and the three of them laughed after he started to protest, listing all the times he wasn't as childish as they were saying.
Caesar received some admiration for his seriousness and his special move, and was reminded to consider this friendly rivalry of theirs as a way to improve himself and not to prove something to others: they were all in this together, and they should act together, not against each other to satisfy their own ego. That was something Caesar sometimes forgot about, and he promised them not to be too much into competition in the future.
(Y/N)'s strong control of her Hamon abilities was recognised by her peers, even though she thanked them by harshly hitting their shoulders (twice for each guy) after they added 'that's quite impressive for a girl' in unison. They then admitted that they wished she'd give up some of her "ways to control it": she was keeping her own tactics to herself, never giving her friends some extra advice.
To show that their advices would be taken into account, she firstly asked Joseph to stop rowing, taking his place at the end of the boat. She kneeled and leaned her chest over the edge of their boat, extending an arm to touch the water. A bit confused, her two male friends did as such, kneeling on both of her sides, and she started to gather her Hamon energy. A few small flashes of what looked like electricity started to appear around her fingers on the water, and after a few seconds, they felt the boat moving again.
When they realised the energy moving the boat was her Hamon gathered in her hand, creating an underwater force moving the boat, both Joseph and Caesar immediately immersed their hands in the water, excitedly asking her to teach them her trick. She smiled, and the rest of the trip consisted of teaching each other simple tricks like that.
Soon enough they reached the Venice "shore", and they just had to walk towards the centre of the city from there on. After 10 minutes of so, they spotted a group of young people who were apparently also looking for the bar where the ball was hosted. They ran towards them, asking for directions in Italian, and Caesar gently answered in Italian. Not Joseph nor (Y/N) knew what he said, but as soon as he was over with, the random young people looked at them with wide eyes. They all hushed one of them ahead of their group: a young girl with ginger hair and warm brown eyes. She looks shy, and after a few seconds and encouragements from her friends, she looked up, fixing her eyes on (Y/N). Was she more comfortable talking while looking at another female instead of a male? Maybe.
She spoke a few English words, put in a poorly worded sentence, but they still understood. 'Are you coming along with us?'
And so here they were, exploring the city with their new acquaintances who were determined to be tourist guides tonight. Narrow streets, Roman statues hidden behind what seemed like an abandoned hotel, delicious smells coming from restaurants that could reached by boat... After a long while, Joseph felt annoyance slowly rising up within: he didn't want to be rude to those awfully nice fellows, but hell, he got out to dance! If he wanted to learn something, he'd have stayed in Air Supplena!
He smoothly glanced towards Caesar to see if he was feeling alike, but not at all (sadly): the blonde wasn't bothered in the slightest by the apparent change of plans. In fact, he was listening to those improvised guides, and whenever they were moving from spot to spot, he would casually put a hand on (Y/N)'s lower back, accompanying her with a gentle whisper in her ear. Sometimes she'd giggle, sometimes she'd lightly elbow him, or just nod. Joseph had noticed that gesture about 10 minutes ago, and paid attention to that ever since: not only did it distract him from the now boring history lessons, he wanted to know exactly what kind of relationship tied his two allies.
Following her father's suggestion, (Y/N) had been training with Lisa Lisa for a year or two already when Caesar joined the party. They were already close when Joseph arrived, and Suzie Q told him they had only gotten closer ever since. "He had no other rivals when it came to her, so I guess it urged him to get closer to her", she had told him one day. Rivalry, once again. But he had to admit, Caesar took his sweet time with (Y/N). He was able to get any woman he wanted wrapped around his finger in an instant, for he had an undeniable charm and good looks on his side (Joseph admitted that, even though he felt like dying whenever he had to).
The only women he didn't trick like that were Lisa Lisa, Suzie Q and (Y/N). The closer women are to him, the more he respects them. Training with the (h/c) haired girl on a daily basis is probably what made him favour her instead of the blonde, blue eyed one.
Their relationship wasn't clear or any close to official as of yet, and it was still a bit confusing for Joseph. Sometimes he couldn't help but feel all giddy inside when (Y/N) flashed him a genuine smile deprived of any sarcasm or fake mockery towards him, or when she openly expresses how proud she was of him. He would like to know how she was past that attitude of hers she always showed him first hand, to see if she had any kind of insecurity (even if he wouldn't be surprised if she had none). Hell, being someone a strong person like her could rely on would be quite the honour, he'd feel proud of himself. However, he didn't want to have any kind of cliché love rivalry between himself and Caesar. They had more important matters to focus on.
Besides, it wasn't like Suzie Q deserved to be a second choice. So he decided to let things come by themselves: if one of them were to fall in love with him, he'd love her the best he could. They both deserved as much, no matter how different their personalities were.
Snapping out of his thoughts by the grumbling of his stomach, Joseph walked towards Caesar and (Y/N), who were standing at the front of the group. His brows furrowed before he started talking. "Hey, it's nice to learn stuff and all that, but I'm getting hungry. And I want to dance, god damn it!"
(Y/N) nodded, mentioning how they could always come back again to explore the city in the broad daylight. Caesar turned towards one of the Italian people, a young, brown-haired man who seemed to be the leader of their group. He nodded, in turn speaking to the rest of his friends before they started walking away again, gesturing for our trio to follow them. Seeing confusion in his companions' eyes, Caesar told them to relax. "They are leading us towards the party. We'll be able to eat something there."
After a few minutes that seemed like centuries for Joseph, they finally reached their destination: a large square with people already dancing the night away, a group of musicians and a singer were performing on the right side of the bar, which was opposite of where our trio had arrived. Their new Italian acquaintances urged them to come, two brown haired girls gripping Joseph's hands as they bypassed the group of dancers.
From then on, the night went by in a flash. Skirts flowing as ladies were twirling with their partners, mugs and glasses clinking as people were drinking, echoes of laughter rising in the air as stories were shared, kisses were given, and couples were going further away to get some private time together.
Some songs, some girls
Lots of drinks and lots of nights
Joseph had his fair share of dances already, be it on his own in the middle of their new Italian friends or with pretty girls. The music was energetic, the kind he listened to when he was in England and he got to fully enjoy in America. Being the only one in the group who had gone to the States, he started to properly show the audience the right way to swing and shuffle when the band started playing Benny Goodman's "Sing Sing Sing", a favourite of his. From then on, seeing the success it got and the number of people who rose from their seats to join the dancefloor, the musicians started to explore their American repertoire.
It wasn't the kind of music that was traditionally played in Italian town balls, so grandmothers could be seen opening their windows, staying there or calling their husbands over to see what was happening down there: what kind of music are young people now into?! It was so much different from the foxtrot dance people were into not so long ago, but which was still somewhat calm.
Joseph noticed that between two dances, and as he plopped himself on his chair, he waves at one of them. (Y/N) and Caesar joined him, and they all laughed when she closed her wood shutters.
"Offending Italian mammas now, are we? I swear, you are bringing the worst out of me." Caesar laughed, drinking a bit from his glass of wine.
As a response, Joseph raised his mug of beer. "What can I say? I always leave an impact on people."
"Bringing the worst out of people isn't exactly the best way to do it, though." (Y/N) winked, before considering the antipasti displayed on the table they sat at. Her hand grasped a grissini, and as she put one end in her mouth, Joseph, who was sitting across from her, quickly leaned over the table to bite the other end. For a few, tiny seconds they remained still, before he tilted his head slightly just so the breadstick would snap in half. As he sat down once more, he bit his end of the grissini, holding the other side with his hand, and started chewing, a satisfied and cheeky smile on his lips.
"Good or bad, what matters is that they remember me."
Still dumbfounded by his action, the (h/c) haired girl was still holding the breadstick between her teeth. Caesar laughed loudly. "You should see your face! Very nice move, JoJo!"
Said man was a bit surprised to hear his blonde sidekick approving of this, but he noticed the red tint on his cheek, the bright pink spots on both of his cheeks standing out more than usual. Right, he had drank a few glasses of red wine already. Hell, even (Y/N) had drank a bit more than usual already. What would he give to have tap shoes right now and make them try tap dancing with a few more drinks in their systems?
As if there was a God listening to his thoughts, a young, tanned man came out of a barely lit street, a huge wooden crate in his hands. He asked for people to move aside, placing glasses elsewhere as he put the crate on a table.
"What would be American music without tap dancing?! Come get your tap shoes if you dare!"
People were hesitant around him, eyeing the normal looking shoes with interest. Joseph didn't wait a second too much to be by that guy's side, immediatly taking a pair in his hands. "Where have you found all of those?!"
The young man chuckled. "My dad is a businessman who has a thing for American music. He brought that from one of his trips three years ago. What shoe sizes are you looking for?"
After a few minutes, Joseph came back to his table, slamming the three pairs of black, waxed shoes on the table. His two friends were apparently deep into a conversation, which was abruptly stopped by his arrival. Their eyes were going from his face to the shoes he was so proud of, and (Y/N) giggled.
"What is this now, you're offering us shoes? Is this an American custom to say you're glad to be here?"
Joseph shook his hand, beckoning them closer. They did as such, and he took one shoe, pointing at the heel. He brought it back towards the table and hit it with it. A light 'clack' sound was heard, and Joseph's smile grew larger.
"We're gonna dance, my friends."
"Yeah, that's the point of a ball, Sherlock" Caesar said, examining the shoes with heels.
"Not any kind of dance, though, Caesarino. We are tap-dancing tonight."
A few minutes later, tap shoes replacing theirs, the three of them went a bit away from the dancefloor. Joseph moved them beside him, explaining that he'd teach them the basics before properly going to dance ("Once you understand how the tapping goes, just do what your legs feel like doing!"). It only took approximately 10 minutes for (Y/N) to understand how to use the metal piece under the sole of her shoes.
So were our times
So were our lives
"I used to try and imitate Fred Astaire's dances in the movies I watched featuring him", she had said. "I guess I got accustomed to the moves, I just had to get the tap part done!"
However, Caesar took 15 minutes more to get it, and even then, his legs weren't fast enough to coordinate the taps with the music. (Y/N) was laughing, for her point of view was quite the hilarious sight: the huge, blonde and muscular man hesitantly tapping the point of his shoe on the ground, then doing so with the heel of it, not going too fast in order not to trip. He was a very good dancer when it came to more conservative dances such as the waltz or even foxtrot, but this... This was a whole new thing, and maybe even a nightmare for someone who wanted to be the best at everything.
Eventually, Caesar got annoyed by it, and stopped looking at his shoes to glare directly at Joseph's eyes, frowning. "W-well, if you're so good at this, JoJo, go ahead! I'll watch." At that, Caesar started leaving towards the dancefloor, or rather, towards his seat. He still grumbled along the way, something like: "This is a stupid looking dance anyway."
Joseph and (Y/N) looked at each other, the first shrugging and the second one giggling, and he took her hand to lead her not so far from the band, where the guy who lent him those shoes was already dancing with a female partner. A large ring of people was surrounding them, clapping and cheering as their steps sped up or slowed down according to the music.
As they joined the group of people and started clapping to the rhythm, Joseph leaned towards (Y/N), whispering in her ear.
"You said you're fond of Astaire's movies, right?"
She looked at him, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. "I sure am, but what are you plotting, JoJo?"
He rose his two hands in the air, feigning innocence. "Let's start with something easy enough. You surely know 'Swing Time', don't you?"
As soon as she said yes, he grabbed her hand and moved towards the band, telling something to the trumpet player. The hatted man nodded, and as the song came to a close, he gestured to his mates to come closer. Joseph led (Y/N) by the hand towards the centre of the dancefloor, where the shoe guy was. He turned his hand and looked at her from above his shoulder, smirking.
"I hope your memory of that movie is still intact. I'll be your Astaire for this dance, honey, so be my Rogers."
Now in the centre of the dancefloor were Joseph and (Y/N), side by side, and that tanned shoe guy with his female partner. Now that they weren't dancing anymore, they recognised the ginger girl from earlier, the one who could speak English. As the musicians were preparing their next performance, the four of them talked and introduced themselves. The tanned, black haired guy was named Marcello, and the girl, Guilia. They were childhood friends and had started to go to the same dance club a few years ago. While the ginger haired girl reassured (Y/N) that everything would be alright, for this dance wasn't as complicated as it seemed, the two men had a challenging tint in their eyes, smirking as they agreed to this: the best dancers would offer drinks to the other couple. Nothing too much, still acceptable. Friendly banter was always welcome, and dancing was a way of fighting Joseph found much more pleasant than what he is used to.
Both men glanced at the leading musician who was giving them a thumb up. They both turned towards their partner. (Y/N) looked intimidated by the setting: all eyes set on them, the band waiting for them to move, she wasn't so sure she remembered the dance from the movie, in the end. Joseph felt her uneasiness, and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Go with the flow."
He then turned towards Marcello, who was already looking at him. After five seconds, they nodded at each other, and their legs moved immediately, quickly, a nice alternation between taps and claps from their hands. A short sequence that got everyone's attention, in case they were looking elsewhere. Then the music started, and when he turned towards (Y/N) to jauge her reaction, he was satisfied: her eyes were wide, probably surprised by how fast and precise his movements were. He wasn't joking, after all!
Honestly, tap dancing had only advantages: you had all eyes on you, you looked swift, energetic and still classy... Guys envied your legwork, and girls envied your beautiful partner, often trying to be the next. What is there not to like?
Joseph didn't see time go by as he was focused on his partner and how she was doing. He had no doubt on his moves, for he had learned them by heart, but it was (Y/N)'s first time tap dancing, a Fred Astaire dance, no less! But she did amazing. After all, he thought of this dance because it didn't expect her to be actively dancing on her own too quickly: he had to lead her at first, just like in any kind of classical dance. A hand on her back and the other holding hers, he led her, the two of them skipping to the rhythm. It sped up, but never once did she falter. He did look at her but she had a focused façade on, probably trying to remember how the dance would go once his hands would be away from her.
As the dance went on, she started to grow confident, and soon, he was no longer leading her: they were finally dancing together, she put just as much initiative in the movements as he did, and he couldn't help but grin with pride. (Y/N) would take the role of Ginger Rogers to heart, as she started to smile and extend her arms wider, her body becoming lighter as they moved. It was a real blast, being able to dance and live this kind of life, a carefree one, even for the span of a night.
Futile teenagers,
To us everything was allowed
Between the Pillar Men still on the loose, the Stone of Aja they had to protect and the poison inside his body, it was so easy to forget that they were still really young, that they were closer to be old teenagers rather than young adults. Their life for now was just full of death, danger, training and secrets, full of mysteries, supernatural things and muscles. No time for joyful, happy-go-lucky banter, no time for dancing, concerts, cinema, music, things people their age were enjoying. This may be the only time they'd get before facing those half naked, muscular aztec vampires (what even were the odds of this happening really? If there was a God, why would he think such people were a good thing to have on Earth?!) and he was set on enjoying himself the right way before that.
After defeating them, there would still be that Dio guy to shut down if he was to come back, but he wouldn't stand a chance, really. Besides, Caesar and (Y/N) would be there. They'd all live a happy, joyful life together, dancing the night away if they want. Living a normal life. Growing old together, without having to face any more weird vampires or whatever. That's what he wanted, and that's what he'll get.
The dance came to a close, and people were clapping enthusiastically. Joseph was grinning and brought (Y/N) into his arms, embracing her. She laughed, her chest rising up at a faster pace than his against his body. It was her first tap dance, after all, no wonder she was trying to catch her breath. He got away from her, linking her arm with his as they walked towards their table. As they approached, Caesar clapped, standing up.
"That was very good. You were amazing, (Y/N)."
"Usually, you compliment the two dancers, Caesar. Not just one."
Caesar smirked at this, as he took one of (Y/N)'s hands to get her to her seat next to him. "You're so full of yourself, you don't need it."
They drank some more, and at some point a calmer, smoother song started to play. Caesar's head rose up, and he turned towards the (e/c) eyes girl, who had fully recovered from her previous dance.
"Now's my turn to show you how I dance."
She giggled, taking a sip from her glass. "I already know though, since we danced once or twice when the songs on the radio were fine by you."
"Yes but... It's different in the open air. Slow-dancing under the stars is a whole new experience."
With that, he took her hand, before turning towards Joseph. "We'll be off for a while, then. We can leave you alone for a bit without you doing reckless stuff, now can we?"
The brunette guy waved them off, before pouring some wine in his own glass. "Rest easy and go enjoy yourself. The only thing worthy of my interest for now is this beautiful bottle of Bordeaux wine."
(Y/N) chuckled. "Being drunk is considered a reckless thing, though. Don't do that."
"Yes ma'am."
Cheap kings
Helpless princes
And off they were, (Y/N) in the lead, and Caesar looked back at Joseph, a thankful nod headed his way. After that, his focus was solely on the girl beside him, and our brown-haired protagonist sighed in content.
A figure sat in front of him, blocking his view on the dance floor. It was Giulia, the red-head from earlier. She wasn't looking as timid as she was when they first talked, now that he had seen her dance (but mostly because she had drank a little since they had arrived: her wavy hair was now a bit dishevelled, the posture of her body lacking any kind of restraint).
"What are you doing alone, Joseph?"
He dramatically sighed, raising his glass to his eye-level and glancing at its content in a melancholic way.
"Oh you know, thinking about life, wondering if a war is to come, waiting to see if a girl would be gracing me with her presence to chat, what kind of cake I should shove in Caesar's face next... That sort of thing."
She leaned towards him on the table. "I've always thought that gorgeous men like you should never be left alone for too long, otherwise other women much, much more beautiful than me would take their chance. So here I am," she sat down again and extended her arms, presenting herself to him with a cheeky grin, "a girl willing to sit down with you and chat."
"You honour me." he laughed, and proceeded to pour some wine in an unused glass. "I thought your English skills were weak, but here you are, speaking perfectly to me."
"What can I say, alcohol does wonders sometimes."
"Then," he handed her the glass of wine, "if you drink more you might even gain a proper British accent on top of that."
An hour or two later, the bartender announced that his place would close, and that the evening had to come to an end. The three of them stood up, Giulia still sat on her chair, now dead drunk. Marcello arrived at their table to carry her home, and as Joseph started to take off his tap shoes, the tanned man shook his head. He told them to take it, as a reminder of tonight (it's not like he'll be in short of those anyway). As they tried to leave, the whole group of "party-goers" waved them goodbye: they had been noticed by everyone anyway, now nicknamed "the tap dancing trio" (yes, Caesar had tried to tap dance again. Yes, he didn't manage to do it properly. But he found a nice use of it while dancing a foxtrot with (Y/N), when they skipped: it wasn't as impressive as what Joseph can do, but he was pretty damn proud of himself, and so were his two friends. Hell, everyone else had noticed his improvement and cheered when he tapped three times in a row on the dance floor).
They talked vividly on their way back to the boat, a bit giddy from the alcohol they had drank. (Y/N) was a bit ahead of them, hopping up and down while singing some Italian song Giulia had taught her during the evening. From behind, Caesar sometimes shouted the correct pronounciation to her, and she would loudly grumble before resuming the song with a better pronounciation. Joseph and Caesar were giving each other dance tips, before the subject would drift away: how the weather would be tomorrow, how it reminded Joseph of when he first went to America, at that Caesar would tell about some weird stuff he saw when he was a delinquent in Rome... Many, many subjects, but never once was it sad or did it ruin the joyful mood. Laughter rang in the sleepy streets of Venice, echoeing as if the whole city was in a happy spirit. The darkness of some barely lit streets, the abyss-like water they saw as they crossed some bridges... None of that was scary. In fact, Joseph felt like nothing could threaten them, ever. Their surroundings, if anything, were so calm and still it was comforting.
They managed to found their boat, and Joseph offered to steer the boat. He sat down at the back of the boat, and waited until his two friends were in before focusing his Hamon energy into his hand, already grazing the water. The moon was full, and he kept looking at how it reflected on the sea. It was so still, the only sound being the waves he created and the soft song Caesar quietly sang in his native language.
"JoJo?"
Said man looked at his friend: (Y/N)'s head was resting on the blonde's shoulder, already asleep. Joseph had never seen Caesar like this: he was always so determined, and this state of mind could always be seen one way or another. In his eyes, in his posture, in the way he spoke. But now, all he could see was peace. Caesar was as still as the world around them, a soft smile on his lips.
"Thank you for suggesting this. We all needed that."
Our friends are our only riches
Joseph nodded, returning his smile.
"Once this is all over, we'll do that much more often."
Caesar nodded, and turned his head back again, staring at where Air Supplena was: they were getting closer, and the outline of the island was starting to appear. He put an arm around (Y/N)'s shoulders and gently stroke the top of her head.
That's said.
"We sure will."