Self-love (Jjba Fanfic)

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I returned home that night and immediately looked into the box I had gotten. Inside was a stack of money that I can live on for a few months, a few photos, a letter, a small, thick brown leather journal with my name burned into the front in a beautiful font, and a shiny silver cross. I put the money in my safe and turned to the rest of the items in the box. I picked up a few photos and saw my mother smiling with sparkling eyes at the camera holding an infant me, my grandma holding me and looking down at me with nothing but love, and a mini family portrait of my mother and grandma with me a few days before my mother's death. I look at them with a tender gaze as memories come flooding back to me of my happy childhood on the island.

My reminiscing comes to a halt as I hear a knock at the door, and I go to it to see my old friend Robert e.o. Speedwagon through the peephole. I sigh as I put on my cloak before answering the string of knocks on my door: "Jesus Christ Speedwagon, it's almost 8 o'clock. Why are you here so late?" I say it in an annoyed tone. He gives me an apologetic smile before coming inside; of course, because we have known each other for so long, he knows he is always welcome here. "I got into a bit of a tussle earlier and got a nasty cut on my side," he said as he began to lift up his clothing to show me a long cut along his side. I shake my head and begin to take out my medical supplies to patch him up.

"At this rate, I'm going to have to charge you," I say in a playful tone as I clean the area. "How was seeing your old man?" He hisses out as I continue my work. I scowl under my hood. "He wanted to give me something my grandma left me and tell me he was cutting me off when he died," I explain as I wrap up his torso. "Ouch," he states as he checks out my work in a nearby mirror. "Will you be okay?" he asked as he turned to me. "I'll be fine; besides, his wife is so worried about her family's image that she was willing to pay me to shut me up," I chuckle out as I pack up the last of my supplies.

He laughs along with me and sees the box on the table nearby. "Hey, what's this?" he asks, reaching for the family portrait picture. My eyes widen as I snatch his wrist in a tight grip. "Back off!" I growled out as I threw his hand back away from the box. He looks shocked at my hooded face as he rubs his wrist and asks, "What's your problem?" He asks as he awkwardly looks at his wrist. I don't respond as I take the photos and put them back in the box. "It's personal, Robert," I say as I put the box in my safe, and it causes him to frown. "I've known you for years, Aliya, and you still won't show me your face or tell me about your family!" He sadly shouts in despair as he reaches for my arm. I sigh and turn to face him. "I'm sorry, old friend, but I can't..." I say softly as I put a hand to his upper arm. "I can't lose you because I know you will see me differently, no matter how long you've been my friend".

I let go and walked away from him to my room. "Feel free to spend the night; if not, then please see yourself out," I said as I closed my door. I wait a few moments until I hear a sigh and footsteps at the front door. Once I hear the clicks of the door opening and closing, I go back out of the room to open my safe to retrieve the box. I feel bad for being so harsh with him, but he is one of the few people in this world I love and trust. I bring the box to my room and remove my hood to go through the rest of the items. The book is the first thing I notice, so I pick it up and open it. The pages look fresh and slightly beige; there seem to be over 1000 pages. On the very last page of the book, there is a note in Spanish.

Hello, mi amorcito, I hope you enjoy my gift to you. Although he knew that hijo de puta well enough, he probably didn't give it to you until years later. It doesn't matter; what does matter is that this book is very special. I'm sure when you were here growing up, you heard from the people around us that I was a witch or a demon. I will neither confirm nor deny that, but I will say this book has magic. When you have a drop of your blood on the cover, the book will reveal pages on the people you will come across in your life and tell you important things about them. Beware of anybody whose page is written in red ink; you must stay away from them and their lives, or else your life will fall into a dangerous path. These pages will only be visible to you once you put your blood on the cover. I give you this to live the life you deserve since Jesus is the only one who knows what that man put you through. Please remember how much I love you and will always be there for you in spirit. con amor, abuleita.'

As I read the note, I began to weep softly into my gloved hand. The note my grandma left me was so bittersweet. I put down the book and went to open the letter, and the first sentence I read broke my soul.

'If you're reading this letter, Mi Nina, it means I'm gone.

Time skip.

I need to get out of here. I feel like I'm going insane, I think as I walk out of my home and back onto the dusty country-side road. My mind is still wrapped up in the recent news of my grandmother's death due to her old age and the flu. She knew I would have come back if I knew she was sick, I thought mournfully as I stopped by a tree to rest under the shade. As I rest under the tree, I hear footsteps behind me. At first, I didn't think much of it until I noticed they got faster and louder, as if the person was heading straight for me.

I was not in the mood to deal with anyone, so I just pulled out my hidden knife and turned around to point it at the person's neck as they got within arms length of me. To my surprise, it's the woman I helped yesterday. I think her name is Erina, I thought as I slowly retracted my knife from her stiffened body. "Um, you're the person who helped me yesterday, right?" she asked shyly as she fidgeted with the basket in her hand. I only nodded in response as I put the knife away. She brightened up and thrust the basket into my chest. "I wanted to thank you for helping me. So I've got you some fruits and treats!" She says happily, I just looked at the basket, and there was, as she said, fruit and sweets all put together nicely. I gave her a thumbs up as I put the basket on the floor on my side. "You don't talk much, do you?" she asked as she softly tilted her head in confusion. All I do is nod and lean against the tree I am under.

She gives me a small smile and holds out her hand, saying, "I'm Erina Pendleton, nice to meet you". I give her a small shake as I try to displace my voice like I did yesterday "Aliya.". She looks at me shocked as I tell her my name. Aliya, it's such a unique name," she says with a grin. "I hope we can become friends. Aliya, unfortunately, I'm leaving for India with my father soon." She says sadly "I'm so embarrassed that my first kiss wasn't with Jojo. I can't bear to be near him.". I stand there awkwardly as she explains her personal life. I am about to tell her I am leaving when she turns to me with a pleading look and says, "While I'm gone, can you please look after him? I know his home life isn't the best with his stepbrother running around. Since you have saved me, I think you can help him out while I'm not around" At this point, I'm at a loss for words. Is she asking me to watch over her boyfriend like a babysitter? a stranger who she has only met once? I look over at her to see if she is serious, and sure enough, she is.

I open my mouth to respond but get interrupted as I hear a man yell Erin's name, a blue-haired male running up the road from behind Erin. The blonde woman in front of me widens her eyes as she hears the voice: "That's him! His name is Jonathan Joestar, and he is 12," was all she said before she ran away from me. The boy slows down as he sees her run away from him. He looks at her retreating form sadly before his eyes travel to me. "Do you know Erina?" he asks as he makes his way towards me. I nod and pick up the basket on the floor. I go to turn in the direction of my home but get stopped by Jonathan grabbing my arm. "Do you know why she isn't talking to me?" he asks before looking to the floor sadly "She has been ignoring me all day".

"Dio Brando" is all I say to the boy in my fake masculine tone; the name seems to trigger something in him as he starts dragging me in an unknown direction. 

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