by Guy Willard
He turned out the light and settled down into his futon. But after a while, Seiko spoke up again.
“Fumio-san, what are the secrets of keeping a man?”
“Secrets? I don’t know. If there are any, I’d like to know them myself. Why?”
“Well, I’m afraid I might not be giving Tatsuya as much pleasure as he’s used to getting…from women who are much more experienced than me.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s slept with so many women before that I…I might not have the sexual expertise required to satisfy him.”
“Seiko, if anything, it’s probably your innocence which appeals most to him.”
“Do you really think so?”
“Yes.”
“But he seems so unresponsive sometimes, as if he’s only going through the motions. Oh, it’s so hard for me to know what feels good for him, and what doesn’t.”
“You shouldn’t worry so much about the physical side of your relationship. Surely there’s much more to it than that.”
“I know. But I’m so frightened of losing him that I’ll try anything. Even—” After a brief hesitation she went on, “Fumio-san, this is so embarrassing to ask, but…are you good at…oral sex?”
“You mean fellatio? Well, I’ve never heard any complaints in that department.”
“Would you teach me, then? I’ve read in women’s magazines that the sexual act most enjoyed by men is fellatio, but that’s something I’ve never been comfortable with.”
“Can’t one of your girlfriends teach you?”
“No! I’d never be able to ask them about anything as embarrassing as this.”
Fumio sighed. “All right. Then go down to the refrigerator and bring back a fish sausage. And don’t let Mother catch you, either.”
“Thank you.”
She slipped out of her covers and stealthily crept downstairs, returning shortly with what he’d asked for. According to what Fumio had heard, gay men all over Japan regularly used a fish sausage as a substitute penis. It was perfect in every way: in length, thickness, texture, and even its flesh-toned color.
He took the sausage from her. “Now watch carefully….”
Holding it upright before him, he showed her how to use the tongue, lips, and saliva to excite it, and then handed it to her for a try. She proved to be an eager student, skillfully imitating what she’d seen him do. After watching her for a while, he took the sausage back from her to demonstrate the next stage. He taught her all the ways to lick and suck a penis, varying the angles, employing every part of his mouth in changing conjunctions to diversify and prolong the act for as long as possible. As they passed the sausage back and forth, her growing skill seemed to give her more confidence.
“Well?” she said, wiping the saliva from her lips. “Would you say I’m a good fellatrix by now?”
“There’s a final step that not many women—and very few gay men, for that matter—are able to do.”
She watched wide-eyed as he slowly pushed the sausage all the way into his mouth until most of it was down his throat. As he pulled it out again and handed it to her, she said, “How can you do that without choking?”
“You have to overcome your body’s natural gag reflex, but it can be done with practice. Once you’ve mastered it, though, I guarantee you can have any man at your feet begging for it.”
“Let me try it.”
It took her quite some time, but eventually she was able to take it down her throat. As he watched her repeatedly swallowing the whole sausage, Fumio murmured, “You’re thinking of him right now, aren’t you?”
She slowly pulled it out with a slight retching sound. “Yes. But weren’t you doing the same thing?”
“Of course.”
She put the sausage to her mouth again and began licking its tip in a lascivious manner. “Mmm….”
“Stop it, Seiko. If you keep doing that….” The truth was, ever since the start of the lesson, Fumio had found himself becoming quite aroused…and he suspected Seiko was just as excited by now.
Getting up to his feet, he slowly undid his yukata sash. “Well? Shall we put your newly acquired skills to the test?”
“I don’t mind.”
She laid the sausage down and knelt before him. As she did so, Fumio glanced down and saw that her nightgown had bagged open at the top, exposing a generous glimpse of her breasts. Something caught his eye and he knelt down to get a closer look.
“What’s wrong?” she said.
He started to undo her nightgown, but she resisted, apparently embarrassed at having her naked body seen by him. Fighting her resistance, he yanked the front of her gown open by force, then switched on the light so he could get a better look. Seiko, visibly ashamed, was trying desperately to cover herself with her hands, but he pulled her arms roughly away.
The smooth white flesh of her body was covered all over with kiss-marks—her breasts, shoulders, belly, inner thighs, buttocks—all the parts of her which would be hidden when she was fully clothed. Some of the love-bruises had been there for a while and were beginning to fade, but others were of much more recent vintage. And each of these marks—red, purple, brown, green, blue—identified a spot Tatsuya had kissed and sucked.
Fumio felt his mind grow hazy. He knelt down beside Seiko and put his own lips to one of the kiss-marks on her shoulder. As he sucked lightly at it, her whole body trembled. He moved to kiss another bruise, this one on her breast, just below the nipple. By now Seiko was quite openly getting excited by what he was doing. And of course it was Tatsuya she was thinking of. They both were.
Before he knew it, Fumio had completely undressed and was making love with his wife…as if he were a normal, heterosexual husband. Seiko’s responses were quite passionate.
He leaned down to whisper into her ear, “Go ahead, close your eyes and pretend it’s him. Say his name if you like.”
She shook her head and continued to whimper softly in pleasure, saying nothing. But as her excitement steadily mounted, he heard her voice cry softly into his ear: “Tatsu….”
At this, he became even more excited, stung into a furious passion. And though Seiko writhed madly about, emitting short, sharp cries which could surely be heard from down below, his erection remained firm. He felt able to continue making love with her forever. A magical power seemed to have taken possession of him. And then Seiko suddenly went stiff and arched her back with a whimpering moan. But it was Tatsuya whose body she was clutching tightly to herself as her belly shuddered again and again. Fumio himself could no longer hold back. Leaning down so that his mouth was next to her ear, he too cried out the name of his lover: “Tatsu….”
34
A few nights later, Fumio drove his car into the basement parking lot of Tatsuya’s apartment building and pulled into a space which he knew was always kept vacant. It was almost midnight, and all the other parking spaces were filled. He wondered how Tatsuya would react to this surprise visit.
He got out of the car and took the elevator up to the fourth floor. The thought that Tatsuya might be in bed with a girl at this very moment made his knees go weak. He found himself almost wishing there was someone there, a woman who was younger and more beautiful than Seiko.
He rang the doorbell, his heart pounding. There was a long pause, and just as he was wondering if he should ring again, the door opened. It was Tatsuya, looking a little tired. He didn’t seem surprised at all to see Fumio there.
“Hello, Fumio. Welcome back.”
“Thank you.”
Tatsuya was wearing a pale blue bathrobe over a pair of expensive-looking silk pajamas.
“Can I come in?”
“Of course.” He stepped back to let Fumio enter. “Sorry, the place is a mess. I was just getting ready to take a bath.”
Fumio gazed around at the room, instinctively searching for telltale signs of a woman’s presence.
“I’ll make you some coffee or something.”
As Tatsuya went to the ki
tchen, Fumio sat down on the sofa to wait. Within moments Tatsuya was returning with a coffee mug in his hand. “It’s instant—I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not. I like instant.” He took a sip. The coffee was piping hot.
Tatsuya sat down on the floor as Fumio set his cup on the table.
This was the first time they’d met since the start of Seiko and Tatsuya’s affair, and Fumio’s excitement was intensified by the fact that his friend was completely unaware that he himself knew all about it. He only hoped he could keep the secret from showing on his face.
Tatsuya looked sexier than ever. Perhaps his affair with Seiko had added an extra luster to his beauty, giving him an evil patina which made him even more seductive. Fumio wondered if Tatsuya got a thrill from meeting the deceived husband like this. As for himself, he was more than happy to be the sacrificial foil for this beautiful young man. If that was supposed to be humiliating, then humiliation was simply another name for love.
Tatsuya cleared his throat. “Doesn’t Seiko-san mind your being out this late?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, she might worry that you’re playing around.”
“Oh, we both allow each other as much freedom as possible. She’s always going out with her girlfriends at all hours. And during the day, she takes English conversation classes three times a week. Women these days are very independent. I sometimes think she enjoys seeing her friends more than being with me.”
Tatsuya laughed. “Maybe you’d better be careful she isn’t seeing another man.”
Fumio’s heart almost stopped. “Don’t worry. I trust her. Besides, I don’t think she’s the type who can hide something like that from me.”
“That’s true.” Tatsuya smiled. “I’m only joking with you.”
Fumio wondered why his friend was being so bold in his behavior, and it scared him. Could it be that Tatsuya was already prepared to break with Seiko, after having tasted all the thrills he wanted out of her? He might even be ready to acknowledge his guilt tonight, washing his hands of the whole affair by confessing everything to Fumio. Since he probably suspected that Fumio was gay, what did he have to lose?
Fumio felt as if an abyss was about to open up before him, threatening to swallow him whole. Steeling himself, he cleared his throat.
“As a matter of fact....” he began.
“Yes?”
“If you promise not to tell anyone....”
“I won’t tell.”
“I do have my worries about Seiko.”
“Worries? What kind of worries?”
“Well, I’d like to believe she’s being truthful when she tells me she’s going out with her girlfriends. But sometimes I wonder....”
“You think she might be seeing another man?” The expression of concern on Tatsuya’s face was strangely mixed with a look of expectancy.
“Yes.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m sure a lot of young husbands have that same worry. But it’s only because they love their wives so much. Do you have any reason to suspect her?”
“No. Just a feeling in my gut.”
Tatsuya looked straight into Fumio’s eyes. “If she were having an affair, what would you do about it?”
But before Fumio could reply, the telephone rang.
“Excuse me.” Tatsuya went into the bedroom to pick up the phone. “Hello?” He glanced briefly at Fumio and continued: “No. I’m not busy.”
Fumio took another sip from his coffee and pretended he couldn’t hear a thing. The coffee was less hot now.
Tatsuya sat back on the bed and crossed his legs, resting his head against the headboard. “Just getting ready to take a bath. What are you doing?” He glanced at his watch with a look of impatience. “Oh? All alone? At this time of night?” There was a subtle desperation in Tatsuya’s expression which Fumio found himself relishing. “No, there’s no one here with me.” Again, Tatsuya looked at Fumio. “I told you before and I’m telling you now, I’m all alone. Who else would be here at this time of night?”
Fumio watched the shades of anxiety passing across Tatsuya’s face as he listened to the reply.
“Look,” he said, as if interrupting the other party. “You probably don’t know how foolish you sound. If you keep up with these accusations, you’ll only succeed in putting me off. No one likes to be suspected of—”
Fumio finished his coffee and set the cup down on the table.
Tatsuya shifted the phone to his other ear. “You sound a little distraught tonight. Listen, I’ll call you back when you’re in a better mood. Goodbye.” He hung up and made a wry face at Fumio. “Women....”
“You were quite abrupt with her.”
“You have to be like that with them sometimes. They get carried away by their emotions and lose their grip. That’s one of the things I can’t stand about women.”
“You sound like you’re ready to break up with her.”
“Maybe I am.”
“Poor Seiko....”
The look of shock on Tatsuya’s face was delicious beyond words; Fumio wondered if, for himself, the whole thing came down to this single moment. Seiko had no idea that he was here now, so the phone call had been a coincidence. Some intuition had told him it was her on the other end even before Tatsuya had answered the call.
A little shakily, Tatsuya picked up a pack of cigarettes from the table and pulled one out, lit it. “So you know.”
Smoke curled out from between his lips. Fumio had never seen Tatsuya so cowed before, and was a little saddened by his hero’s disgrace. Maybe he’d spoken too soon.
Tatsuya took a long drag on his cigarette, then exhaled loudly. “Well, it seems the secret is out. I must look like a complete idiot to you.”
“Not at all. As I told you before, I’m unable to satisfy her in bed, so any woman in her shoes would probably have done the same thing.”
“And you don’t mind if she has a lover?”
“Not if it’s you.”
“Fumio, why did you come here tonight? Did the two of you plan it so you would catch me on the phone with her?”
“No, that was a surprise to me as well. I came here to ask you not to break up with her.”
“What?”
“Listen, Tatsuya, Seiko’s completely in love with you. It might have started out as a lark on her part, but right now she’s so in love with you that she’d do anything to keep you. And as her husband, I’m asking you: please don’t leave her.”
“But—”
“Tell me the truth, Tatsuya. Are you seeing another woman besides Seiko?”
“Yes. Remember that older woman you saw me with before, my former patroness? Well, she says she wants me to come back. Apparently the boy who replaced me doesn’t know how to keep her happy in bed. She was here with me all afternoon, and left about twenty minutes ago, just before you came. Look at this room. How do you think I can afford all this? I need her money.”
“Well, just tell me how much she’s paying you, and I’ll equal it. No, I’ll double it.”
“But where will you get such money? Surely you’re not that rich.”
“No, not yet. But I can get my father-in-law to part with the cash. I have my ways.”
“Do you, now?”
“Yes. Listen, since we’re already spilling our dirty little secrets, I might as well come right out and tell you something which you’ve probably already guessed by now. The reason why I married Seiko in the first place is because her father is in love with me, and wants to keep me close to him. Are you surprised?”
“Well, yes. I did suspect something of the sort because you never struck me as the marrying kind, to tell you the truth.”
“So you think I did it for the money?”
“I didn’t mean to imply that.”
“Listen, Tatsuya, I came here tonight because Seiko is worried that you’re going to dump her, and I don’t want that to happen. So I’m willing to do whatever it takes to keep you two together.”
“Well, well, this is unusual. Normally it’s the other way around: the wife allows her husband to have a girlfriend in order to keep him happy.”
“What are your feelings toward Seiko, anyway?”
“She’s very attractive, and sexy. And, as if you didn’t know, she’s very good in bed. I feel lucky and flattered that she cares for me.”
“Then you wouldn’t mind giving up the other woman for Seiko’s sake?”
“Of course not. On the contrary….” Tatsuya suddenly looked confused. “Wait a minute. There’s something here I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand?”
“Are you telling me you love your wife so much that you’re willing to let her have an affair with another man just because she can’t find physical satisfaction with you?”
Fumio knew he would never be able to explain how Tatsuya was the linchpin in his marriage with Seiko, the necessary glue which held it together...and that the arrangement he was proposing would only assure that the marriage would remain a happy one. Even more so if Tatsuya were to fall in love with Seiko….
“Yes,” said Fumio, “I do love her that much…in my own way.”
“In your own way? And what way is that?”
“Well, the truth is, I’m a….”
“Homosexual?”
Fumio, unable to reply, merely nodded. “How long have you known?”
“I had a suspicion about it from the moment we met, but I wasn’t completely sure.” He chuckled. “Do you want to know something? That night you wanted the ‘lesson’ from me in how to satisfy a woman…after the girl passed out, I was ready to do it with you, just like you wanted.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“But you don’t go for boys!” Fumio almost shouted.
“So what? Even a womanizer like me feels a little flattered when…well, when he suspects a certain boy is in love with him.”
“So you knew….”
“Of course. How could I not have known?”
“And yet you asked me to be your roommate?”
“Yes. In fact, I was surprised—and maybe even a little disappointed—that you never once made any moves on me during all the time you were living here.”