Aimless (JJBA)

9 Emptiness

Jotaro felt sick. This was the third day he decided to stay in. This time, he actually got up and locked his door. After that, he mostly stayed in bed.

It really didn't make a difference than going to work. He recognized that he didn't exactly get satisfaction from working. And it was better to just not feel the temporary pleasure and lose it immediately after. The loss hurts.

There was a knock at the front door.

...

The lock unlocked.

...?

"Dad?!"

... Exhale...

There was a knock on his bedroom door. "Dad, you're here, aren't you?"

He sat up, but when he did, the room around him spun. "Is anything wrong?"

"No, I'm okay," she said still behind the door. "Are you okay?"

...

"Dad?"

...

"Are you hungry?"

When was the last time he ate? He probably should eat. She asked for a reason, didn't she?

It was best not to waste her time.

"I'm going to use your kitchen, okay?"

He nodded despite her not being able to see him. He turned away from the door and closed his eyes. When he didn't have to get up often, it was easy to surrender to the need to sleep.

The next time he woke up, he heard the door slowly open. He turned seeing the door cracked open with Jolyne peeking through. He could smell the savory scent of the lunch she cooked.

It smelled nostalgic.

She came into the room with a plate. "Time to eat!" She made her way into the room, ignoring the few bags of chips and water bottles. She placed the plate on the bedside table. "You even wear your hat to bed."

A string extended from her finger and out the room. It brought back chopsticks and a bottle of water.

Jotaro saw, on the plate, traditional Japanese food.

His daughter tried cooking Japanese food for him. "I hope you enjoy it. I've been practicing." Considering that Jolyne was born and raised in the states, there was only so much she knew of her roots. "Come on. Sit up. You need to eat."

Groggily, Jotaro sat up. Right when he did, Jolyne sat the dish and eating utensil on his lap. He looked down at it.

It looked decent.

Jotaro took one bite. He stopped with the chopstick in his mouth and exhaled through his nose.

It was so good. It was so familiar.

Almost like Mom's cooking.

He glanced over at Jolyne.

Jolyne looked back at him with a proud expression. "I've been taking lessons from Gramma. She told me that you loved her food."

Something in his chest squeezed. It was so sweet, but it hurt. His throat began to hurt as he continued eating. He nose began clogging with every bite. His eyesight got more and more blurry.

By the time he was done, he wish he wasn't. He wiped at his eyes.

"Here," Jolyne said, passing him a napkin.

Jotaro wiped his eyes and nose as his breathing shuddered.

She moved the empty plate from his lap and replaced it with herself. She wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug and pat his back. She laid her head on his shoulder and patiently waited for his crying to past. "You know I love you, right?"