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[unbreaker]

In light of some recent developments, I think I'm gonna postpone celebrating my 19th birthday. Didn't really have any special plans this year, anyway. I mean, what do you even do to celebrate turning 19 years old? The big one was last year, and it's kinda not the same without a few familiar faces hangin' around.

[...and with one familiar face hanging around that shouldn't be. Goddamn fiancee-kissing clone.]

Anyway, uh... FanPort's coming up! Kinda excited for that.

Well, for everything that's not the cosplaying shit, anyway. Think it's possible to put a ban on your image? Not feeling like seeing more than one of me runnin' around right now. Especially not with academy graduation happening next week.

Kinda hard to believe I'm that close to being a cop. Officer Higashikata. Gotta admit, it's got a good ring to it, yeah?

[Graduation does not guarantee a job, but whatever. He's committed. He'll find work before too long. If a BOGO sale at the mall doesn't distract him, first.]

Comments

[itstheirworld]

you could just go see a movie for your birthday.

I didn't know you wanted to be a cop.

[unbreaker]

movie watching is better from home tho

and yeah! i mean, for a while i wasn't sure, either. but i've been enrolled for a few months now at the academy. couldn't really see myself doing anything else, and i can protect heropa better this way.

[itstheirworld]

how is it different in your world?

that I can see. you seem like that kind of guy.

[unbreaker]

oh no no, i meant like...from the house, in front of the tv, lol
theaters are nice and big, but they're not as comfortable and they don't play the classics or the really hilarious b genres

uh...thanks! i think! you know what you wanna pursue?

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[fistofthejoestar]

Is it really next week? I hadn't realized that so much time had passed already.

[maybe he really was getting old, but 'this summer' had seemed so much further away when Josuke had first given him the graduation estimate. it almost feels as if they'd skipped through more than a handful of months.]

Perhaps I ought to give you your graduation gift a bit early, in that case. It seems fitting, given the day.

[unbreaker]

i know, right? feels like yesterday i enrolled. i keep thinking about that first job i had here...never thought i'd be moving on up like this.

and you didn't have to get me anything, old man! but i shoulda known you would.

[Jonathan can't resist an opportunity to be a perfect gentleman, after all. And Josuke doesn't have it in his heart to deny him the chance, either.]

what is it?

[fistofthejoestar]

I wouldn't say it's that much of a surprise.

[but then, he's always had unshakeable faith in his family. that sort of thing is too sentimental even for a birthday, however, and so he kindly keeps that to himself.]

There's no excitement in telling you outright, is there? If you're that eager to see I can bring it over now - provided you ask politely, of course.

[well, even on a birthday he can't help a little gentle teasing. it's tradition.]

[unbreaker]

well, if you're gonna bring it by, now's as good a time as any. i'm home and the gremlin's out torturing other people.

at least, i think she is.

i'll make some tea!

[anonymous voice ∞]

[blackhat]

Happy birthday.

[voice]

[unbreaker]

[It sounds familiar, but he hasn't heard the Man in Black's voice a lot, and it's been a while since the last time. All he's got is an uncomfortable itch at hearing it again...and the anonymity doesn't help.]

Yeah, thanks.

[blackhat]

You feelin’ any wiser?

[ He’s curt at a drawl, manners not quite what they seem. Familiar in that, too. ]

I’d buy you a beer but you’d probably try to -- take me in.

[unbreaker]

Yeah...yeah, I think I am.

[As in, that particular accent (and the dig that accompanies it) sounds more and more familiar.]

Never knew someone who pissed themselves so much at the idea of a fair fight before.

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[am_i_a_monster]

Happy birthday. I tend to think of every birthday as big. Celebrate it how you want.

And congratulations. Why'd you choose to be a cop?

[unbreaker]

every one? that's kinda nice. what do you do to celebrate them?

and thanks! it's kind of a long story, but the short version is this: my grandpa was a cop back home and he looked after our town. when he passed, i felt like it was my job to look after things in his place. heropa's no morioh, but it's my home now. i wanna look after it like i took care of morioh.

[am_i_a_monster]

Yeah, every birthday I have means I got to be alive for another year. I haven't actually celebrated the last couple of mine. But I used to do things. For my mom's last birthday, we were going to take a trip mountain climbing.

That's cool. Heropa needs people to look after it.

[unbreaker]

[Shit. That's heavy... But at the same time, Josuke can't help but admire that sort of forward-thinking.]

you should celebrate them, then! maybe do some mountain climbing here. there's tons of places that do the indoor variety.

[Annie showed him once. He wasn't good at it. It was embarrassing.]

yeah, i figured the same thing. the place seems to be at the heart of a lot of shit, huh?

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[jojoceanman]

Birthdays aren't really anything special once you get to a certain age. They're more exciting as kids.

[oh, and uh, happy birthday. except he doesn't actually type that because he's jotaro kujo, most emotionally stunted man in the joestar family. but if josuke took a look around his home, he probably found a plain white box on a coffee table that had his gift inside: a nice watch and a small post-card size drawing of his mother that jotaro got star platinum to create from his memory.

surely this gift could have come from absolutely anyone at all though, as jotaro didn't bother with a card or making it obvious it was him. how it even got into josuke's house to begin with is a mystery better left not solved.]

[unbreaker]

couple years ago i wouldn't have agreed with you. hell, LAST YEAR i wouldn't even have agreed. but i'm feeling it this year.

[He's feeling it because he's really not a kid anymore. At eighteen he still had room to be entranced by the novelty of being an adult because it was still new to him, but at nineteen the novelty has worn off. He's seen what this world is like, he knows where he stands within it, and what he must do to accomplish what he wants. He'll never lose the levity in his heart, the love and life that makes him who he is, but...he's matured. Not unlike the way he'd matured a little during the summer of '99.]

anyway. seems like some people knew without my saying anything.

[You can always trust family to do that.]

i think that makes it special enough.

[Translation: Thanks for everything, but you're not fooling anyone.]

[jojoceanman]

Some people have a knack for remembering those things.

[definitely not him, nope. he remembers no one's birthday whatsoever.

(he hopes josuke likes the gift, not that he will say it. again, most emotionally stunted.)]

What did you do last year anyway?

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[eloquentness]

Happy birthday! And congratulations on graduating the academy!!

I know we haven't met, but it sounds like you're up to some pretty exciting stuff.

[unbreaker]

thanks! and thanks again! i'm pretty excited about it all.


you new? hope everyone's treating you nice so far. some natives...and imports. can be kinda. you know.

[eloquentness]

As you should be!! Those are pretty awesome things. :)
Did you always want to be a cop, or was it something you learned about over here?

Thanks. So far, it's been pretty good, but yeah. Some of them can be... characters.

text;

[fridgeflower]

Wow. You have a lot going on.

Maybe you can mash your birthday and your graduation celebrations together. And do it at FanPort. Maybe host a look-alike contest.

[unbreaker]

i can't tell if you're joking or not...

the last thing i want right now is a lookalike contest!



mashing celebrations together isn't a bad idea, though. or it wouldn't be so bad if the dates were closer.

[fridgeflower]

I don't think anybody will be critical about the dates. You can just call it your Great Year Celebration! Or like... "Josuke's Entering Adulthood Bonanza!!"