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Not that Dio liked rugby far from it, but it wasn't the worst thing he had ever done in his life, either. Not only was it a good exercise that helped keep him in peak physical condition, but it also allowed him to interact with a lot of rich kids who would be excellent contacts later on. The other advantage was having Jonathan under control.
Playing a team sport with him helped Dio understand him, although it's not like he lacked opportunities for observation. When he believed that the guidelines were given with good intention, he followed them and trusted them blindly. So the only thing I had to pretend was to do things with good intention and that's it. That in theory was easier than it was in practice, because even if Jonathan was still good-natured as always, the things they had done to him when they met still weighed heavily.
It was too obvious how he wanted to believe him rather than actually do it. He was not surprised either, if it were him I would never trust him either. But JoJo's heart was like that and he had to try to see the best in everyone, it was irritating. Sometimes it was funny to see how some tried to be smart with him because of his good disposition and found that Jonathan was good, but not an idiot and with his absurd ideas of chivalry and justice he never let people pass who tried to scam him. Seeing JoJo prevail over others when they thought him inferior was something he couldn't help but enjoy.
It's one thing for him, Dio, to like to make him look ridiculous and another thing for him to like others to do it. Sometimes he even took revenge without JoJo knowing, he was not entirely clear why he was doing it but he was doing it, it was as if they were getting into his territory. Of course Jonathan could never know, but it was something he just needed to do.
They had stayed up later that day because Jonathan had stayed to help pick up after practice and he had been carefully opening the locker of the last one who passed by when no one was around.
He met him at closing time and told him that if he could wait for him it would take a short time to change and they could go back to the student residence together. Sometimes he thought JoJo was keeping an eye on him, other times he preferred to think that he really liked spending time with him. He laughed at his jokes and told him his own, he had no reason to think that the rancor of years past was still strong in him.
When they came out it had started to rain, which was not uncommon in England either, but it was doing it with too much force and the door had closed behind them, so they saw each other in the street as it was pouring down rain. Only one look was enough for them to understand each other after so long, that is, they ran towards the small arcade that was a few meters away.
It was only a few meters, but both were completely soaked, it was better to wait there a little and wait for it to clear at least long enough so that walking did not resemble swimming on land.
The portico wasn't very large and neither of them was exactly small. Dio liked to think that they were both huge guys, but he was fully aware that Jonathan was beyond ordinary size. Jonathan's physique seemed to match his heart: huge. Forged to defend the weakest. Beautiful, a work of art.
His enormous body always emitted heat, even with the rain falling, Jonathan knew that Dio was chilly and he discreetly approached him to share a little of that heat. Anyone else who had tried the same would have been stabbed by Dio, but with Jonathan it felt right. Not that he had a problem with touching anyone, sex was not a problem for him, but with intimate contacts in general he did not feel so comfortable. Except with JoJo. The idiot was always playing when he spoke and that wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the fact that he wasn't just playing it with him.
The huge heart, the huge hands, the ... Well, they changed in the same wardrobe and JoJo wasn't used to being modest, one day she might kill someone with that thing. She was not fooling herself that he would not willingly volunteer.
He had such a big heart that he seemed to have room for everyone and Dio had never liked sharing. Sometimes he wanted to destroy him and leave him alone, that he only had him in the world. But if he did that JoJo would run away from him, so he had to proceed with caution.
He wished he could have ideas as clear with the son as with the father, killing George Joestar was no problem for him, but doing it with Jonathan... It didn't seem right. It was as if eliminating Jonathan was like ... Removing the blue from the sky, although seeing the leaden sky that used to reign in their land, turning off JoJo's bright eyes seemed even a greater sacrifice.
The rain hit his clothes and hair, usually wet people were horrible, Jonathan on the other hand... The clothes, hairstyles and arrangements were made to improve people, Jonathan was beautiful, simply. He could steal anyone's breath and even if he was Dio Brando and he was also beautiful and superior, he was still human and could not stop wanting to follow that flirtatious drop that had passed from his lush lashes to his cheeks and he was going to walk because of his sun kissed skin - how Jonathan got a tan in England was something Dio just couldn't understand - until he got lost under his shirt.
"Do you think we should run to the residence hall? I think we're going to get soaked here anyway, so maybe if we go we'll get more soaked, but for less time," Jonathan suggested.
Dio thought for a second about the residence, of course it could dry. And his followers would surround him. And Jonathan's friends until he said he had to go to study, lately he seemed too absorbed in his thesis. Jonathan would be either surrounded by people or away from him, but now they were alone. So even being in the rain, with the only warmth that Jonathan's proximity gave him, Dio told him:
"It's better that we wait a little longer here."
Jonathan nodded with that serene and cheerful face that he always used to have, although he got closer to Dio when he felt that he was shivering, knowing that he sometimes did things that he did not want to explain to him, nor was he going to ask him for explanations.
Sometimes all Dio needed was for Jonathan to stay by his side, and it was something Jonathan didn't care about.