“Oh, woah, look at these!”
Juuzou stopped at a charm store displaying wares outside on a table. He picked up a pair of shiny black ear piercings with three conical spikes dangling from the ring. His jewelry today was the same as yesterday when Ayu met him—just the four black studs in each ear and matching mouth piercing —but she could see how these spiky earrings matched his tastes. It was just a little step up from what he was wearing right now. Even so, Ayu couldn’t help but be a bit shocked. Juuzou adorning himself with something so out there was such a stark contrast from the sweater vests and dress shirts she remembered seeing him in.
“Do you… Do you like things like these, Hanazoe?” Ayu asked.
“Yeah,” Juuzou confirmed. “I have fancier stuff at home. See?”
He took out his phone and scrolled through for a moment. He then showed Ayu the screen. It was a photo of him wearing a dark gray Guns N’ Roses T-shirt, ripped black jeans, and a variety of jewelry. A spiked black choker swathed Juuzou’s neck, as well as a highly stylized silver cross on a necklace. The stud piercing in his mouth was connected to his left earlobe by a drooping black chain. His other ear piercings were highly varied as well. Two of the ones on his right ear were black rings; one was a metallic black diamond; and the last was a black chain that looped around to the backing. The other three piercings on his left ear were all spiked rings. Juuzou’s hair was still long in this photo, but shorter than it was currently as it only brushed up against his shoulders. He didn’t need to put it up in a half-updo yet. Meaning… This photo was probably taken sometime during his later junior high years, after Ayu left and they stopped talking.
“Woah…” Ayu’s head pounded from whiplash. She couldn’t imagine the person in the photo wearing something as spiffy as a sweater vest. “When… When did you start getting into this sort of thing?”
“After I started listening to a lot of foreign rock music,” Juuzou explained with a shrug. “This kinda just followed. Also, most of my friends at the time were really into piercing themselves. So I kinda ended up in the same boat. I did everything myself except my lip. Got that one professionally done.”
“Wait, so… Y-You pierced your ears yourself? How’d you do that?”
“Safety pin, ice cube, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol.”
“Wha—” Ayu’s jaw dropped open. “D-Didn’t that hurt!?”
“Oh, yeah,” Juuzou snorted. “Even with the ice cube, it hurt like hell.”
“Wow… W-What did your parents say? Were they upset?”
“Only about the fact that I got blood all over the bathroom floor,” Juuzou retorted. “Other than that, they haven’t given two shits about what I do since my first year of junior high!”
“Oh, i-is that so? Aha-ha-ha…”
Ayu forced herself to laugh. She remembered Juuzou’s parents distinctly as the hardworking and earnest Mrs. Hanazoe and the stoic yet friendly Mr. Hanazoe. The fact that this Juuzou was born from those two diligent adults almost made Ayu’s head spin. She looked back at his expression. The joy and excitement on his face was evident as he fawned over the punkish earrings.
Juuzou had changed, yes, but it wasn’t for the worse as Ayu initially thought. His appearance was radically different and that was what threw her off. He was still the same old Juuzou on the inside, wasn’t he?
Ayu noticed a stand of headbands and grabbed one. It was entirely black but decorated with a sparkly and glittery bow. Ayu held it behind her head so the ribbon was visible and declared, “Look! I’m copying you now!”
Ayu cringed at the joke. Oh, no, no, why did she do that? What was she thinking!? She wasn’t thinking at all! Why did she think that was a good idea!? Juuzou was definitely going to be insulted. He was gonna pull a face and call her weird or disgusting or—
Juuzou barked out a laugh and doubled over, clutching his stomach as the sound of joy bellowed out of his mouth. Ayu blinked.
“Oh, that was bad. That was really fucking bad,” Juuzou snickered.
“T-Then why are you laughing!?” Ayu protested, lowering the headband.
“You just said it aloud so earnestly… I couldn’t help myself. Oh, god.” Juzou recomposed himself. “Alright, I think I’m gonna get these. Can’t wait to wear `em.”
“Um… Wait, couldn’t you just exchange the piercings you’re wearing right now for them?” Ayu questioned.
“I could, but I don’t really wanna. Y’see how they were just lying outside like that? I wanna clean them with rubbing alcohol before I put `em on. I don’t wanna get my piercings infected. Some of my old pals kept forgetting to clean theirs and it turned into a mess.”
“Oh… Piercings are a lot more work than I thought,” Ayu realized.
“Yep.” Juuzou handed several bills to the older woman running the store. She placed his purchase in a small bag and presented it to him with a bow. He took it and stowed it away in his book bag. “Where to next? Just wanna keep walking around?”
“Sure!”