Chapter Text
It was surprisingly warm for an October afternoon.
The leaves on the trees were turning vibrant shades of orange, standing against the blue sky dotted with a few clouds. For Jonathan Joestar, there wasn’t better weather to be outside and play rugby, but their coach had called the day before to tell him in a serious tone that practice was canceled. In three years at Hugh Hudson University, it had never happened: whether it rained or snowed, nothing mattered more to him than getting his players ready for the Inter-University Cup. He had even once come to practice on crutches to shout instructions! But it didn’t matter. The sun was shining too brightly for Jonathan to lock himself in the library with his archeology essay. Noticing a familiar face studying at a wooden table under an oak tree, he smiled and adjusted his blazer marked with two H’s.
"Can I sit here, Erina?"
The woman looked up. She always tied her blond hair in a ponytail when she studied, and Jojo indeed noticed a notebook full of notes open under her nursing book. Like him, she was a third-year student here and was working hard to get her nursing degree.
"Of course, Jojo!" She smiled, pushing her textbooks aside.
As if he had read their minds, a young man with long blond hair walked toward them and threw his bag on the table with a loud crash, earning him a glare from Erina.
"I swear, Zeppeli hates me," He grumbled. "He kept me after class again to lecture me!"
Robert E.O. Speedwagon was a year older: he had been held back during his second year for reasons that changed depending on who asked and shared his classes with Jonathan. The two had been teamed together at the beginning of the year for an assignment and hadn’t left each other ever since.
"Maybe he wouldn’t be on your back if you didn’t sleep in class," Jonathan suggested.
"Not my fault, I worked until four on Mr. Anderson’s essay!"
"Which wouldn’t happen if you didn’t do everything at the last minute," Erina added with a knowing smile.
Their friend dramatically collapsed on the table, and they pretended to ignore him to refocus on their lessons.
As a light breeze rose, a scent of violets tickled Jonathan’s nose, and he glanced at the young woman sitting next to him. Chewing on the tip of her pen, Erina tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before resting her hand on the bench next to his. His heart raced. Biting his lip, Jonathan slowly moved his fingers closer to his friend’s and gave them a light squeeze. Erina glanced at him, her cheeks flushed, before turning back to her textbooks. A tiny smile remained on their face as they continued their work.
"Seriously, Jojo? Hanging out outside after the big news?"
Jonathan jumped and let go of Erina’s hand. Too late! The newcomer frowned as he sat beside him.
Dio Brando... How does he begin to explain Dio Brando?
Dio was the future law department’s valedictorian and part of Hugh Hudson’s rugby team. He always behaved as if he were already a lawyer. Some described him as charismatic and hard-working, others as an angry and possessive demon. For Jonathan, he was a bit of both, and after knowing him for over ten years, he thought he ought to know. He was the one who gave him his first black eye, but also his first kiss. Although it wouldn’t happen again, Jonathan had made it clear.
"Why do you care?" Speedwagon straightened up.
"We just think it’s quite... thoughtless when you know what happened."
A dark-skinned young man took a seat next to him. Unlike his best friend, Enrico Pucci was a calm and methodical guy, someone who knew how to lie low and come back when no one expected him. He was a second-year theology student, and sighting him outside the library where he and Dio discussed philosophy was a rare occurrence.
"What happened?" Jonathan asked.
"Look."
Dio handed him the front page of a newspaper, and the three friends leaned over the table. Their faces turned pale. The night before, as the guards were walking around the campus to check for students frolicking behind trees, one of them had found the body of a young man near the rugby fields. His green sweater was covered in red stains where he had been stabbed multiple times, and a pool of blood had formed on his back. Jonathan’s heart sank at the sight of the victim’s picture, smiling at the camera without suspecting what fate had in store.
H"e was on the rugby team," He whispered. "A newbie."
"You didn't wonder why the coach canceled practice?"
He didn’t reply, his eyes fixed on the smile frozen in the photo. His name was Paul, and although Jonathan knew he was starting his second year, he had forgotten his major. However, he remembered other things.
Like when the young man told him he had wanted to join the team after seeing him play a game in his first year. Or when he had waited until the locker room was empty to confess he had feelings for him.
"Do the police have any idea who did this?" Erina asked. "And why?"
"Nothing at all," Pucci replied. "No witnesses and the weapon hasn’t been found."
"Outsiders can’t enter the campus at night, so it must be someone from Hugh Hudson."
Dio glanced at his friend.
"That was our first theory. But after all, anyone could have climbed the wall and entered the campus grounds."
Paul appeared to be a nice man with no apparent problems, so who could have wanted to kill him? Jonathan hoped it wasn’t related to his confession. Since the beginning of the century, views on same-sex relationships had evolved, but if it was almost over, too many people still frowned them upon, especially with the recent AIDS problem. To the point of stabbing?
"I think I’m going back to my room..."
Jonathan stood up, his face still pale. He quickly put his things away, followed closely by Erina and Speedwagon, who took the chance to complain about how nonchalant Dio and Pucci were. But just as they were about to head to the nursing dorm to walk their friend home, Dio grabbed Jonathan’s arm and said, "Jojo, do you have a minute? We can talk while we walk."
Jonathan looked at his friends. Speedwagon was trying to telepathically tell him to turn him down while Erina looked at him to see if he was sure about his choice. When he nodded, she took Speedwagon’s arm and left. Dio said goodbye to Pucci and turned to the brunet.
“Well, shall we go?” He said as he set off.
Jonathan pressed his lips together and hurried to catch up with him. The archeology department’s dorm had been built more recently than the others and was therefore the furthest away, so the journey gave them plenty of time to talk. Yet, they stayed silent for most of the walk, listening to the gravel cracking under their shoes and trying to ignore the growing tension between them. If Jonathan wasn’t mistaken, it was the first time in two months that they were alone together.
“This guy, Paul… Did you have feelings for him?”
Jonathan jumped. “What?! No, why are you asking that?”
“Then why do you seem so sad about his death?”
If those words had come out of anyone else’s mouth, Jonathan would have been surprised and shocked, but it was Dio they were talking about, so he skipped the surprise and moved to the outrage.
“What’s wrong with you, Dio? Someone was murdered on our campus, a teammate! Of course, it affects me, we knew him-"
“Barely.” He spat.
Rolling his eyes, Jonathan shoved his hands in his pockets.
“He loved you.”
He stiffened. “How do you know?”
“What do you think? I heard you.”
Here was why they had broken up. Jonathan knew his good and bad sides, but he couldn’t stand his jealousy anymore.
“So you also heard when I told him the feelings were not mutual!” He clicked his tongue.
The archeology dorm appeared in the corner of his eyes, and he sped up. But Dio wasn’t done, and in just a few steps, he caught up with him and grabbed his arm.
“Jojo, wait. Jojo!”
Jonathan’s hand hovered over the door.
“Hey, Jojo, I’m sorry, okay? I reacted like an idiot, someone died. It’s just that… When I heard the news, I thought of you. I thought What if it had been my Jojo they found dead in the grass? and…”
He bit his lip and let his sentence hang before looking at the brown-haired man. His amber eyes shone slightly, and Jonathan tried to ignore his increasing heartbeat and the butterflies in his stomach to search for a glimmer of lies.
“Dio…” He sighed.
“I miss you, Jojo. It’s been two months. Let’s give ourselves another chance.”
So few words, but enough to compress Jonathan’s chest.
“No. I said what I said last time. I mean, since we know each other, how many times have we broken up?”
“We got back together every time.”
“And yet, nothing changes. The same arguments, the same promises… I wanted to believe it too, but Dio, it’s time to admit maybe we were never meant to be together.”
The blond frowned. “How can you say that after everything we’ve been through together?”
“Come on, I don’t even remember who broke up last time!”
Dio averted his gaze.
“Listen,” Jonathan whispered, squeezing his arm. “We both hurt each other every time. It’s better that way. I’ll always cherish the good times we had together, anyway.”
He turned back to his dorm’s door. “I have to go now.”
Maybe it was a mistake. No, it was definitely a mistake, but Jonathan couldn’t leave Dio like that in front of the door.
“Alright, come here.”
He spread his arms and hugged him, trying to silence the little voice in his head, screaming not to let him go. The familiar rose perfume filled his nostrils, and he blinked a few tears away. He took that decision, and it was for the best. He was done crying. But Dio stayed motionless against him, and after a while, he gently pushed him away.
Jonathan looked at him. He had changed so much since they first met in elementary school.
At the time, Jojo didn’t understand why this boy who always raised his hand in class had taken a dislike to him as soon as he laid eyes on him and saw the brand logo on his t-shirt and sneakers. Then he learned about his family, about his father, who was an alcoholic and had been in and out of prison several times, and about his poor mum, who had lost her life under his blows.
He understood why the young boy often wore sweaters that were a bit ill-fitted, why he didn’t like going to the swimming pool where everyone would see the bruises dotting his back, and why he was so cruel to him, who came to school with his personal driver. But it wasn’t his fault his family had noble origins, and his father had made their fortune prosper in business!
After many fights, the two boys had gotten closer when Jonathan had confessed he had also lost his mother in a car accident, shortly after his birth. Dio even came to live with them for a while and Jonathan had never seen him smile so often.
When they had met, Dio had been taller than him. Not by much, but enough to inflate the blond’s ego. Then Jonathan had grown taller in his teenage years. Then it was Dio again. And once he was an adult, the brunet had finally won their competition with his height of 195 cm, versus 192 cm for Dio. Nothing could describe their relationship in a better way.
Jonathan smiled sadly before turning away. “Goodbye, Dio. Don’t stay outside too late.”
Dio didn’t reply.
Nothing screamed schedule hell like having four hours of lectures with the same professor in the morning and yet Jonathan never saw time fly with Professor William Zeppeli. A former renowned archaeologist, he had been teaching at Hugh Hudson for over ten years and loved to enrich his lessons with personal anecdotes straight out of an adventure movie. Jonathan always had questions, and he always had the answers.
But today, Jonathan would have rather been like Speedwagon, who had buried his head in his arms to catch a few hours of sleep.
Two days after Paul’s death, no suspects had been identified, and no witness had given clues to help the investigation. He had been stabbed, sure, but the murder weapon remained just as elusive as the killer. The day before, the rugby team and their coach had spent long hours in the locker rooms waiting for an inspector to question them one by one.
“The murder happened after your training.” The investigator had told them. “According to your coach, the victim was on cleaning duty that night, and that’s why he left the place after the others.”
If it was premeditated, then someone knew Paul would leave the locker room later. Many people could have known, a point Jonathan had explained before stating he hadn’t seen anything unusual. But since then, the murder haunted him. If he had gone back to get something that night, perhaps he could have prevented the tragedy.
Or perhaps he would also have been a victim…
“Class is over for today.”
Mr. Zeppeli’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he started to pack his books when the man called out his name. Covering his mouth to yawn, Speedwagon raised an eyebrow, but Jonathan motioned for him not to wait. With his bag on one shoulder, he went down the lecture hall’s steps and followed the professor into his office.
“Sit down, Jonathan.”
He complied. The situation was nothing unusual, as the two men regularly discussed topics covered in class, Mr. Zeppeli’s research, or Jonathan’s future plan. But he didn’t expect the question he asked him,
“Is everything okay? You were really quiet today.”
Jonathan sighed. He couldn’t lie to his favorite professor.
“I’m sorry, sir. It’s… It’s the murder. The victim was in the rugby team, and I can’t stop thinking about it.”
He bit his lip, pondering whether he should tell him about Paul’s confession, but ultimately decided against it.
Mr. Zeppeli squinted and leaned back in his chair. “That’s what I thought. I understand your feelings: a murder on our campus! I never thought something like this could happen here.”
“Do you think someone from Hugh Hudson did it?”
Zeppeli crossed his arms thoughtfully. After a few seconds, he replied, “Unfortunately, I don’t know, but I think so. Jonathan, do you know how many people study here?”
“Maybe fifteen thousand, twenty thousand?”
“Thirty thousand people. Add to that the staff and professors.”
Jonathan got what Mr. Zeppeli was trying to say. The number of potential suspects was dizzying, and catching the murderer would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. In addition, he pointed out that the place where Paul had been found was off-center from the main entrance, but also the walls surrounding the university. If the murderer was a stranger, they must have crossed many places before reaching him, and witnesses would have already told investigators they saw someone suspicious.
“Do you think they could strike again?”
“It’s too early to tell, but I hope not. All I can say for now is that according to the number of stabs that poor boy received, it was personal.”
Jonathan lowered his head.
“Don’t feel guilty about that, it wasn’t your fault, Jonathan.” He patted him on the shoulder. “I’m sure they’ll catch them quickly. In the meantime, stick with your friends and don’t hang around at night. I wouldn’t want to lose my best student.“
The corner of his lips finally rose.
Covering his mouth to yawn, Jonathan looked at his watch. Almost six o’clock. Around him, other students were putting their things away and empty the library shelves to get something to eat. It was time to do the same, his stomach loudly reminded him, and he closed his books and threw his bag on his back.
After signing the waiver to borrow a new novel, he pushed open the library’s wide doors and turned into an empty corridor. What were they serving in the cafeteria tonight? The thought of their chocolate muffins made him drool…
Picking up his pace, Jonathan had just walked past Mr. Zeppeli’s lecture hall when a loud crash startled him. He stopped dead in his tracks. It was late, his professor should already have left Hugh Hudson to go back to his wife and young son, so Jonathan frowned and tiptoed to the door. Pressing his ear to the wood, he held his breath.
The lecture hall was utterly silent.
Maybe he had dreamed it. But what if Mr. Zeppeli fell and tried to call for help? He had to be sure, so he pushed open the door and entered the room, enveloped in darkness. A strong metallic smell immediately stung his nostrils and he crinkled his nose.
“Sir?”
Jonathan searched for the light switch. As light filled the lecture hall, his eyes fell on Mr. Zeppeli’s figure, asleep at his desk. The sight could have made the student smile, but when he squinted, his mouth opened in a silent scream and his hair stood on end.
“Mr. Zeppeli!”
He ran to his professor and noticed the crimson ink staining the papers and forming a puddle under his desk. William Zeppeli’s head lay on the desk, his eyes glazed over, and his lips parted. On his back, four red spots were growing visibly, and the smell of blood made Jonathan gag. No, this had to be a nightmare!
“Sir, wake up! I… I’m going to call-”
Crack
Jonathan turned around, and a shiver shot up his spine. Before him stood a hooded figure in a black cloth, wearing a scary stone mask. In their hand was a knife, its blade still dripping with Mr. Zeppeli’s warm blood. Suddenly, they raised their weapon and rushed towards Jonathan.