What do you think Rykiel's attitude would be if he fell deeply in love with someone?
It gives me vibes that his Brando genes might come to light or something (he has to have something from DIO, even a little, idk)
For questions like these, I like to think about what would influence the idea of love in Rikiel and his brothers to begin with. Our concepts of relationships are usually founded by what we see at home, so we start there: parents.
Rikiel's mother, in my headcanon, was a deeply troubled woman scarred by assault, manipulation, and deception from DIO, as well as her own underlying mental difficulties before her encounter with him (scrupulosity). She was neurotic, maladjusted to everyday life, and lacked the essential principles in order to be a good, or at least, decent caretaker. Her raising of Rikiel was more out of a duty to the world: "I must make this child good in every way that I remember his father was not." This came in the form of punishments that targeted Rikiel's well-being: no food, no privacy, no stability, etc.
He could be denied meals for as long as possible until his stomach couldn't help but break the silence of the home and demand what he was too weak to ask for. He was never allowed a door to his bedroom because his mother believed he was a wicked child capable of all the wrong that his father had harbored; She feared what he could be capable of if left to his own devices. He was forced to keep busy by cleaning the house, or fixing up anything that broke, etc., he was made to live by the words "The devil finds work for idle hands." All of this constant mantra spewed by his mother of him needing to do extra, to be extra in order to be good damaged not only his view of himself but also relationships in general.
Love is complicated and has always been complicated since he opened his eyes. His mother viewed men as malicious creatures and only trusted some for a few days before reverting back to her fears and pushing them away. His years in school were equally as confusing: little flings and quick break-ups left and right, tears and then anger and then moving onto the next in the span of a week. By the time he had moved onto gang work and abandoned a normal life, he jumped right into the cesspool of broken marriages, love built on lies, and sugar daddies paying their wives' carousel of addictions in order to keep them delirious enough not to notice the cheating.
Love isn't reliable, to Rikiel. In his mind, he's never seen a marriage that worked. He thinks the concept of a soulmate is utterly ridiculous and the concept of love is even more far-fetched. Maybe he'd be more in-tune with flings and one-night stands. Something to help with the stress.
Rikiel's biggest form of love is loyalty, as shown with Pucci, and in my headcanon for pre-stone ocean, Sports Maxx. He will die upholding the morals of the one he adores. He won't call it love, but it's close.
Does this mean he is incapable of falling in love? Definitely not. But it takes a lot of work and time in order for him to entertain the idea of a close, loving bond. Marriage would be even more of a challenging hurdle. It all really depends on who he's partnered with.
(I think he's DIO-like in relationships by enjoying being adored. He likes being on a pedestal, if he gives it a chance.)
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