A/N: For Josuyasu week day 5 prompt: sick/injured.

Safe And Sound

He's adorable, and Josuke can't believe he's this lucky. To be able to walk to school every day, hand-in-hand with the cutest guy around….

And Okuyasu is extra cute today – even more than Ice Cream Monday level cute – because there's someone walking a puppy across the street from them, and Okuyasu is completely enamored.

Dark eyes had lit up the moment Okuyasu had spotted the dog, and his face had broken into a wide grin, attention grabbed. That had started him talking about how he's always wanted a dog, ever since he was a kid and his neighbors let him play with theirs. Apparently, it was so smart that it could find Okuyasu wherever he hid, even up a tree, and it would speak for treats.

Josuke lets him ramble. He's always content to listen to Okuyasu, and watch his animated facial expressions. His boyfriend is just so cute, and –

His admiration is forcibly cut short by a loud clang, a faint crunch, and Okuyasu stumbling back away from him. Josuke almost falls with him, but Okuyasu releases his hand in favor of pressing both of his own over his nose.

Now, Okuyasu is crouched on the ground as blood leaks from beneath his hands, and Josuke's heart is jumping into his throat.

"Holy shit, Oku, what'd you do?" That sounds a little rougher than Josuke means it to, but in his defense, Okuyasu is currently on the ground, bleeding. Josuke crouches next to him, pressing a hand to his boyfriend's back.

Okuyasu's only response is a litany of swearing, his eyes watering with pain. He tips his head forward, curling in on himself, and spares one hand for a moment to wave vaguely in front of himself before clutching it to his face again.

Glancing up, Josuke takes note of a precariously placed signpost that he's pretty sure is responsible for a broken nose.

"I was distracted by that dog," Okuyasu whines, his voice muffled and thick. "Why didn't ya warn me, Josuke?!"

"I was –" Ah, damn, Josuke can already feel himself blushing. Good thing Okuyasu is still curled forward, his eyes squeezed closed. "I was watchin', uh, you, bro. I didn't see it. I'm sorry."

For a terrifying few seconds, Okuyasu is quiet. "Oh," he says eventually. Slowly, he lifts his head, blinking wet eyes over at Josuke. "Well…can ya fix it?"

"Oh! Yeah!" Josuke snaps out of his embarrassment, remembering that he kinda has a job here, and he prefers when Okuyasu is not hurting. "Sorry – sorry. Lemme see. I'm real good at noses…."

With some coaxing, Okuyasu lowers his hands to reveal the crooked, bloody mess. Josuke winces in sympathy, summoning Crazy Diamond to work his magic.

"Geez, Oku, you really smashed it."

Okuyasu lets out a weak chuckle, holding still while his face is returned to normal: cartilage snapped back straight, blood sucking back into veins, with some droplets even picking themselves up off the pavement to return to their rightful place. It only takes a second for the injury to become an unpleasant memory.

"Thanks, bro," Okuyasu says as he experimentally runs his fingers over his nose, wrinkling it a couple times. "I still can't get over how amazin' that is."

"S'nothing," Josuke mumbles, standing up, "I like helping you." By way of demonstration, because he's smooth as hell, he offers a hand to help Okuyasu up. It's accepted, and Okuyasu hauls himself to his feet.

"…I just wish I could do the same for you."

And Josuke smiles, because, "You're better medicine than you think."

Okuyasu nods, and they carry on with their walk.

But his brows are scrunched in that way that means he's deep in thought, so Josuke vows to watch for obstacles more carefully from here on out.

x

A few days later, and the two of them are at Okuyasu's house.

Josuke is helping him make dinner – or, well, as much as Josuke can help, anyway. He's not too terrible of a cook, he doesn't think. It's just that Okuyasu is heaps better, so this stuff is usually best left to him, because he's been doing it longer. Not to mention the lessons he's getting from Tonio, and all.

As he learns, though, Okuyasu has decided to start passing the basics onto Josuke, who absolutely doesn't mind. Time spent with Okuyasu is always a treasure, no matter what they get up to.

(There's also the added bonus that Tomoko is grateful that he's not as useless in the kitchen anymore.)

So far, Josuke's favorite had been when Okuyasu taught him the proper way to chop vegetables. He had pressed close behind Josuke, chin on his shoulder and hands over top of his to guide them…this memory routinely comes back at the worst possible times just to inconvenience Josuke. Today, it seems, is no exception.

Sure, Josuke is trying to focus on chopping onions, but the flex of Okuyasu's arms as he gathers materials and ingredients is incredibly distracting. He's only wearing a tight tank top, and it clings across his back when he reaches, and rides up when he bends, and –

There's a flash of stinging pain in Josuke's finger, and he yelps in surprise, dropping his work in favor of clutching at his hand. Predictably, he's sliced open his pointer finger, and he sucks it into his mouth before it can drip anywhere.

"Josuke, are you okay?" Also predictably, Okuyasu is at his side immediately, reaching for Josuke's wrist to try and tug his hand out of his mouth.

Josuke complies, wincing as he does. It doesn't look too deep, but onion juice and open wounds don't really mix, as he's just found out. "I'm fine," he says, "just needs bandaged, probably."

But Okuyasu is scrutinizing the cut closely, frown between his brows as he turns Josuke's hand this way and that to observe it from every possible angle.

Looking down at him from his slight height advantage, Josuke promptly realizes 'oh shit he has cleavage in this shirt' – and then he's whisked away over to the sink, Okuyasu tutting as he rinses Josuke's finger with cold water. It's started bleeding again.

"That's the second time this week, Josuke," Okuyasu admonishes, swiping a thumb gently over the cut a couple times, "I told you: you gotta be careful with knives! Are you trying to lose a finger?"

Between Okuyasu's proximity, the careful touch of his hands on Josuke, and the mental image of slicing one of his fingers clean off, Josuke shudders for a multitude of reasons. "No," he promises, "I'm just a little…distracted, is all."

Okuyasu makes an indignant noise, as if he isn't accepting any excuses. He turns off the water, wraps Josuke's finger with a clean, dry washcloth and says, "Wait here," before hurrying off to the bathroom. When he returns, he's got antiseptic cream in his hand, and a bandaid between his teeth.

Feeling sheepish for hurting himself again because he can't stop staring at Okuyasu, Josuke dutifully keeps pressure on his cut until Okuyasu takes hold of his hand again.

"Sorry, Oku."

"Sorry's nothin'," Okuyasu grumbles around the bandage in his mouth, dabbing antiseptic onto Josuke's finger. Once it's re-capped and away, he unwraps the bandaid, tossing the garbage onto the counter for now. "Your other cut hasn't even healed yet!" He swaps his grip on Josuke's pointer finger to his still-bandaged thumb, holding it up to show him, as if Josuke had forgotten.

"It was an accident!" He can tell that Okuyasu is concerned – but Josuke's still not about to explain exactly why it was an accident. He plans on keeping that a secret for as long as possible.

Okuyasu grunts, grabbing for Josuke's finger again. The sheer amount of concentration on his face as he carefully sticks the bandaid on with just the perfect amount of tightness is endearing.

Josuke catches himself smiling softly, his heart aflutter, and that's…actually very embarrassing.

Pausing, Okuyasu seems to be considering the injured finger in front of him. He looks pretty deep in thought as he scrutinizes it, and Josuke is just about to ask if something is wrong (apart from the obvious, that is), when Okuyasu pulls it to his mouth to place a gentle kiss atop the bandage.

"You gotta be more careful," Okuyasu mutters, cheeks tinged pink.

Although, they've got nothing on the way Josuke's face flares up, flushed red as his embarrassment increases tenfold.

x

"Remember our budget, Josuke," Okuyasu says, turning to Josuke with his mouth set in a no-nonsense line. "You gotta save money to eat with, and some for the arcade – I'm not payin' your way again."

Josuke offers a dazzling smile. "But Oku –"

"No," Okuyasu says, even though he's definitely blushing at least a little, "d-don't get cute! You only have enough for one new pair of shoes, and you know it."

Swapping tactics and flipping his smile upside down, Josuke decides to try pouting instead. Okuyasu's always been weak for that, and if he keeps it up just a liiiittle more….

"S-stop it!" Okuyasu points directly at his mouth. "I know you're faking – and I told ya earlier, your mom'll kill us both if you blow all your money on clothes again!"

"Fine," Josuke says on a dramatic sigh, giving up his fake-pout for a real one as he slides lower in his seat.

It's time to give some serious thought to which shoes he wants more, in that case, and they're only five minutes out from S-City by now. He's leaning towards the pair that are a more expensive statement piece, but he knows Okuyasu will try to talk him into the cheaper pair that will go with more of his current wardrobe, so he has to prepare an argument for –

Okuyasu nudges him with an elbow, snapping him out of his thoughts. There's a considering frown on his face that has Josuke sitting up a little straighter. "I'll buy lunch," Okuyasu says with a nod, "and you just save enough for the arcade, okay?"

"Oh!" Although he had been pouting just a moment ago, Josuke really doesn't want to make his boyfriend spend unnecessary money on him. Even though things like shoes and lunch aren't unnecessary, but. "Oku, you don't have to, I –"

But Okuyasu shakes his head. "No, I really don't mind –"

"I know you got bills and stuff, dude, just because I have poor money management skills doesn't mean –"

"But this is a date, bro! S'only fair that I pay for somethin' for you…." Okuyasu looks down at his knees, a blush creeping up his face.

Josuke just barely fights off the urge to kiss his cheek. The fact that they're in a very public space right now is the only thing that holds him back in the end. He doesn't bother to fight off his smile, though, or the impulse to hold Okuyasu's hand.

"That's sweet, Oku. You're sweet."

"D-don't embarrass me!" But Okuyasu squeezes his hand back all the same.

The train slides to a stop, then, the doors whooshing open. Between Okuyasu being the world's best boyfriend, and the allure of the shopping district so close by, Josuke rides the wind of excitement right out of the car and onto the –

A loud thunk! interrupts his thoughts, and his forehead erupts into pain, his head jerking back.

"Josuke!" Okuyasu's still got ahold of his hand, thankfully, and uses it to pull Josuke onto the platform and further from the small throng of people trying to squeeze out behind them. This time, Josuke makes it out the door without incident, hunched over with his hand pressed to his forehead as he is.

"Josuke, what the hell?!"

Josuke grunts, because he does not, in fact, know 'what the hell', and he's got a massive headache, and his hair is brushing too close and too loose over his hand which means it's probably a mess, oh shit. He slips his hand further up, propping his drooping pompadour.

"Dammit," he grumbles, tugging his hand out of Okuyasu's grip so he can better attempt to fix his hair. It doesn't feel too bad, hopefully there's enough product in there to save it – he can't go all the way back home, but he can't be in S-City on a date with bad hair!

"Are you okay?!" Okuyasu asks, putting one hand on Josuke's cheek and the other on his forehead (which, admittedly, is throbbing, but Josuke has bigger problems).

Josuke tries to swat the hand on his forehead away, because it's impeding on his ability to fix his hair. But it's a warm comfort against the pain, and Okuyasu is being stubborn, so he ultimately lets it be. He can work around it, he supposes. "M'fine."

"Tsk…sure you are." That hand slides up a bit, nudging his pompadour out of the way as Okuyasu tilts his face into the light, standing on tiptoe to get a better look.

For his part, Josuke is forced to pause in his hair restoration efforts and endure the examination.

"S'probably gonna bruise, you know," Okuyasu says.

"Great," Josuke grumbles. He only hopes it doesn't swell too much – that wouldn't be a good look. A bruise, he can hide. More importantly, though: "How's my hair?"

That gets a huff from Okuyasu, and he pats at Josuke's cheek roughly. "It looks fine, bro, you look fine. How's your brain?"

"Undamaged, I think." Josuke squints in thought. He can remember his name, address, phone number, who Okuyasu is…that's how you check that kinda thing, right?

…In all honesty, he's still more worried about his hair.

"Good." Okuyasu seems to trust his reply, at any rate, which hopefully means they can duck into a bathroom to find a mirror soon. His hand brushes over Josuke's tender forehead again before retreating to cup his other cheek; both of Okuyasu's hands now frame Josuke's face. "How'd you do that, anyway…did you get taller or something…?"

Josuke's about to respond with a 'maybe', because he has had to buy a lot of new clothes, and his mom is ranting about growth spurts – but Okuyasu doesn't wait for a response.

Instead, he tips Josuke's face down so he can lean up and press three quick, light kisses across the forming bruise. "Be more careful, okay?"

"S-sure thing!"

x

The classroom concept of 'take one and pass the stack back' is, ordinarily, a simple one. They're just boring, school worksheets – maybe homework or something, Josuke wasn't really paying attention – but the way his hand brushes Okuyasu's as he passes the handouts back to him is nice.

It's so nice, in fact, that it steals his focus and zeroes it in on Okuyasu's reddening ears. Which, while more fun than class, also has the unfortunate consequence of him slicing his hand open on one of the handout sheets as he blindly hands them to the student behind himself.

Hissing quietly, Josuke inspects the shallow cut. It's right on the sensitive junction between thumb and pointer finger, a short line of red that can barely offer up even a drop of blood. Doesn't mean it doesn't seriously sting, though.

Okuyasu turns in his seat to check on him, and Josuke blinks at such a quick response. Before he can assure Okuyasu that he's fine, however, his injured hand is grabbed, and a kiss is dropped onto his palm.

The classroom is suddenly way too quiet around them.

There's not so much as a single shuffling paper to be heard.

Josuke can feel himself blushing darker and darker, and watches as Okuyasu does the same, the eyes of classmates boring holes into both of them where they sit.

But Okuyasu still hasn't let go of his hand. He looks halfway mortified, as though he can't believe what he just did.

…Understandable, considering Josuke's still working on wrapping his head around it.

And then the teacher clears her throat, and the class snaps out of their collective trance. Okuyasu whips back around, hunching insistently over his work, while Josuke ducks his head and tries not to smile.

x

There's a crashing noise from the kitchen, followed by a cluster of swearing from Okuyasu, which is accompanied by more banging around.

Wincing, Josuke pauses his game and scrambles to his feet. Their slumber parties can never be uneventful, can they….

"Oku, if you broke something, let me know so I can –"

"Everything's fine!" Okuyasu calls from the other room. "I just, uh…bumped the drying dishes, a little."

"Shit. Mom's favorite coffee mug didn't break, did it?" It's a matter of such importance, though – both because he fears his mother's wrath, and because he doesn't want Okuyasu to be hurt – that he makes a beeline for the kitchen before Okuyasu can answer. Crazy Diamond can clean up faster and alleviate both problems, anyway.

From the kitchen, there's the unmistakable heavy clink of glass on the dish rack. "Nah, it's fine! I did spill some cookies though…."

Josuke opens his mouth to say he can have Crazy Diamond restore the cookies to their previously clean, unbroken state –

– But what slips out instead is, "Ouch!" as he walks directly into corner of the coffee table.

That's what he gets for trying to take a shortcut between furniture instead of going around. He collapses onto the nearby armchair, clutching his shin and cursing his existence, because there's no way he didn't bruise the entire bone with that one.

Okuyasu, timely as ever, comes sprinting out of the kitchen. His wide, brown eyes are of course drawn to where Josuke's got both hands clasped over his leg. When he enters the room, he takes the long way around the furniture, because he's smart. "What happened?" he asks, brows creased in concern as he hovers over Josuke.

"Nothin'," Josuke grumbles through clenched teeth, "it was all that table's fault." He wants to kick it in retaliation, but doesn't want to risk potential damage to his toes.

"C'mon Josuke, lemme see." Okuyasu brushes his fingers overtop of Josuke's, and then pokes in an attempt to get them to move out of his way. He even goes so far as to kneel down to where he'll have a better view of the damage.

Sighing, Josuke does as requested, uncurling himself a little to make it easier for Okuyasu to see. "I already know it's gonna bruise anyway, dude, you don't have to –"

In a move that should probably not be surprising anymore and yet somehow is, Okuyasu leans close to kiss the bruise through Josuke's pajama pants. "There," he mutters, nodding to himself. Patting Josuke's knee, he starts to stand back up.

And that, like every other time, might have been the end of it, except that Josuke's curiosity gets the better of him. "Why do you do that?" he blurts out.

Okuyasu freezes in an awkward crouch somewhere between sitting and standing. "…Do what?" he asks, in a tone that implies he knows exactly what but is fervently pretending not to. Nevermind his telltale blush.

"Why do you, uh…" man, he can't believe Okuyasu is gonna make him say it, "…why do you keep, um, kissin'-me-when-I-get-hurt?"

There, Jouske said it. Now he can let out that breath he was holding and hope it takes away his blush. (It doesn't.)

At least Okuyasu is blushing just as much, if not more so than he himself is. "W-well…I…." Okuyasu clears his throat, makes a show of standing up and dusting himself off as he avoids eye contact. "Y'see, I can't heal like Crazy D can, so, uh, I thought…and you said I was good medicine," here, his blush darkens even more, and he starts to fiddle with his fingers, still stubbornly staring at the floor, "so I thought that, maybe I could do somethin' to help when you're hurt after all."

…Oh. That gets warmth spreading through Josuke's chest, joining the heat in his cheeks. He stands up, ignoring the twinge in his shin in favor of a sudden need to be close to Okuyasu.

"It probably seems stupid, huh?" Okuyasu rambles, staring at the ground. "But it's all I could –"

Wrapping his arms around Okuyasu, Josuke hauls him into a tight hug. "It's not stupid," he mumbles, pressing a hand to the back of Okuyasu's head when his boyfriend snuggles up to (read: hides his face in) Josuke's neck. "You're so sweet, oh my god."

Okuyasu lets out a couple flustered chuckles as his arms slowly come up to squeeze around Josuke in turn. "S'nothin', Josuke."

"Nah," Josuke rubs his fingers through the short hairs at the back of Okuyasu's head, "it's not nothin'. I mean it."

Okuyasu's hands fist in the back of Josuke's shirt. "…'Kay."

x

That evening, Josuke insists on sharing a bed – not that he thinks Okuyasu wouldn't want to, 'cause it's kind of a given by now – but because today has reminded him that Okuyasu is the absolute sweetest, and Josuke kinda wants to cuddle with him more than anything.

…Not that he phrases it like that. If he said something like that out loud he'd die on the spot, which would be very counterproductive, and is therefore not happening ever. At least not today.

Anyway, that night he crawls into bed after Okuyasu. He's always the second one in (it takes him longer to undo his hair) and Okuyasu always welcomes him with a sleepy "Hey, Josuke," as he slides under the covers.

But not tonight, it would seem.

Tonight, Okuyasu just stares at him, lying on his side with his arms crossed, fingers tapping against his elbows. He's got a contemplative look on his face as his eyes scan Josuke.

"Night, Josuke," Okuyasu says eventually.

"Goodnight, Oku." Josuke reaches over to brush some stray hairs away from Okuyasu's forehead, smiling when they shift back right away.

The atmosphere sure is peaceful, but for some reason Okuyasu isn't closing his eyes. He's too busy watching Josuke's face – which isn't at all uncomfortable, but it is a little worrying. Seems like he's been thinking an awful lot lately….

Josuke squirms closer to him, and is just about to put a hand on his shoulder, or maybe cup his face, when Okuyasu sits up.

Nighttime as it may be, there's enough light spilling from the moon and the hallway that Josuke can make out the way Okuyasu's throat bobs. He's afraid that means Okuyasu's gonna start crying, or run away, or something – but all that happens is a callused hand cupping Josuke's cheek with impeccable gentleness. A rough thumb pads at a spot beneath his eye, and then Okuyasu bends down to kiss him there.

"Okuyasu," Josuke breathes, his heart jumping pleasantly and stomach fluttering, "what're you –?"

Okuyasu insistently kisses the spot again, and Josuke suddenly recalls his fight with Surface, when he'd damn near stabbed his own eye out.

He still has the scar.

By the time it registers, Okuyasu is away again, shimmying down under the covers until his face is level with Josuke's legs (and he's been trying so hard not to blush, shit!).

Obviously, Josuke can't see what he's doing – even peeking his head under doesn't reveal much, because it's even darker under there. But he can feel a palm rubbing along the length of his thigh, and Okuyasu finds what he's looking for soon enough.

The scar where that length of wood had punctured Josuke's leg during the fight with Kira is big and rough enough to feel through his pajama bottoms. Okuyasu kisses that one, too.

From there, Okuyasu works his way up, feeling out Josuke's scars, or finding them by memory so he can press a kiss to each one. And Josuke almost wants to cry, because he's so gentle with these long-healed wounds.

None of them hurt anymore, but the act is undeniably soothing all the same.

After kissing scars on both of Josuke's shoulders, and his neck, Okuyasu goes back to the one beneath his eye again. "I love you," he mumbles. His cheeks are burning red, head ducking.

Although he feels a little like putty right now, Josuke sits up. He surges forward to kiss the center points of both half-moon scars on Okuyasu's face.

"I love you, too," he says, after pulling back.

Okuyasu's eyes look suspiciously wet, and Josuke's feel about the same – and then Okuyasu tugs him in to press their mouths together.

A/N: This is cliche…and all of these are just Josuke injuring himself while being distracted by Okuyasu…uh…my bad.

(Also, do you think Josuke uses Crazy Diamond to like. Fix all the crushed chips at the bottom of the bag. Or at least fuse them into a size more suitable for eating? I hope so tbh.)

Song title this time is Safe and Sound by Capital Cities.

Thanks for reading!