PSEUMINO | VENTO AUREO

24 | fugo.

═ ☆. YOU UNLOCKED THE DOOR AT Fugo's knock before hoisting yourself above the door with a swing you'd made with White Satin. You bit your lip to keep from laughing as the door slowly swung open. Fugo entered, wearing a forest green sweater over a collared shirt and belted black pants,along with his signature strawberry sneakers. Almost immediately, Fugo glanced up and smiled at you.

"So this is your Stand, huh?"

"Oh come on, you can at least pretend to be surprised," you groused, carefully lowering yourself to the ground. So much for scaring the shit out of Fugo.

Fugo raised his arms as White Satin drifted softly around him, catching the light. "It's beautiful. You're lucky your soul decided to take on this form instead of something else."

You felt a jolt of regret, thinking of all the times when you'd wished White Satin was something else. From how Fugo had described his own Stand, it sounded like it was deadly to everything around it. That was supposed to say something about his soul, right?

Fugo's smile grew wider as White Satin settled onto his hair and shoulders. "I don't know what it is, but touching your Stand makes me feel so relaxed."

"You should be careful, though," you warned, stepping over the ribbons to grab your phone and wallet off of your desk. "Its edges are sharp. Don't cut yourself."

Fugo took the lengths of White Satin around his shoulders and tossed them up into the air, grinning as they drifted lazily down. Fugo looked like a child seeing snow for the first time. It occurred to you that this was his first time seeing White Satin. The novelty had worn off on you.

Fugo brushed the lingering pieces of White Satin off his arms. "Alright, you need to put your Stand away, or I'm going to be here all day."

You withdrew White Satin, thinking you wouldn't have minded letting it hang around Fugo all day.

"So you said you were having trouble finding a book for your research assignment?"

You groaned. "Yeah. I really need it, but it's like it doesn't exist. I can't find a copy anywhere."

Fugo looked thoughtful. "I have a book dealer we could go to. I've found some of the most obscure books at his shop. Whatever your book is, I'm willing to bet we can find a copy there."

You smiled at the words "book dealer". "For real? Where is it?"

"I can't tell you. I've been sworn into secrecy."

You laughed. "Is this really a bookshop, or is it a front for something?"

"You'll just have to come with me and find out," Fugo replied.

Fugo seemed different. Lighter. More boyish. It was as though your conversation behind the café had taken a weight off his shoulders. But, of course, he would seem like that when he wasn't constantly warning you about the people you were hanging out with.

Your second time in Fugo's car couldn't have been more different from the first. The radio turned on to an American pop music channel, and Fugo surprised you by singing along. His Italian accent softening the lyrics was so adorable that a tiny smile played on your lips the entire ride. Fugo liked to sing? And to American pop, no less? He seemed more like the classical music or obscure underground band type.

"You okay?" Fugo asked, looking at you from the corner of his eye. "You're pretty quiet today."

"Fine," you said automatically. "It's just that ..." you hesitated, wondering if you should tell Fugo about the two girls outside your dorm room.

"What?"

"Ever since I started hanging out with Giorno and Trish, people have been looking at me differently. There were these two girls who borderline harassed me the other day."