Orange Moon

by Barbara Sheridan

  “But it’s not a game, don’t you see? As crazy as it is, I’m in love with him, but he won’t love Toruhiko.”

  “But you can’t turn into Ryoko and give up your life, your career, stop being the wonderful man you are.”

  “But I want him, Sasao. I want to be with him so badly it hurts.”

  Sasao echoed Toru’s melancholy sigh and finished her tea. “There’s only one thing to do, I suppose.”

  “What?” Toru asked miserably.

  “Take you shopping for a dress to wear to that dinner.”

  Along with the usual high dose of tourists, Shinjuku was packed with shoppers and office employees who worked in the skyscrapers bordering the avenue. As one of Tokyo’s biggest districts for both shopping and businesses, the traffic never seemed to stop.

  Hidden under dark glasses and inconspicuous clothing, Sasao and Toru moved through the crowd and ducked into another one of the hundreds of shops and boutiques crammed into this corner of the city.

  “This better be it,” Toru grumbled. After visiting twelve shops already, he was getting pretty sick and tired of Sasao trying to stuff him into clothes obviously designed for someone about a third of his size.

  “Hey -- that last dress at Saks was nice.” Sasao held up the white shopping bag in her hand for emphasis. “I can’t help it if the dress looked better on me. The plunging neckline didn’t work wonders for hiding that Adam’s apple of yours.”

  “Can you say that again, but louder so everyone hears?” Toru muttered under his breath as he bumped her with his hip.

  Sasao whacked him back with the shopping bag. “But it’s true. And a choker might fall off too easily, so we don’t have a lot of options.”

  Toru sighed. Until now, Ryoko had always worn high-collared shirts or turtlenecks, clothing that wouldn’t fly for an evening out. Shit ... even pretending to be Ryoko, he wanted to look good for Hideki.

  “To-chan!” Sasao grabbed the sleeve of his jacket and pulled him to a mannequin almost right in the middle of the boutique. “This -- this is it!”

  The dress had the high collar Sasao had been looking for all afternoon, with a sleek black bodice ribbed with white bands that wrapped tightly around the curves of the mannequin’s figure. The skirt draped down from its hips to the pedestal in sheets of thin black silk. The sleeves were cut out at the shoulders and then ran down the length of the mannequin’s arms, flaring at the wrist with black and white lace.

  “That’s pretty sexy,” he agreed softly.

  “Would you like to try this on?” a salesgirl came up to Sasao. “This is a Mersacci original, but because the new line for the season is coming out, it’s at a very good price.” The girl reached into one of the sleeves and pulled out a red tag that was loosely sewn into the velvet.

  “A hundred and two thousand yen!” Toru whipped off his glasses to make sure he’d seen correctly.

  “Unbelievable, isn’t it?” Sasao grinned at the girl while she elbowed Toru roughly. “That’s practically giving away the dress!”

  The salesgirl nodded. “There’s a dressing room down there, if you’d like to try it on.” She pointed behind a rack of jeans next to the counter. “I’ll bring this down to you in just a moment; it’s the only size we have left.” The salesgirl frowned as she looked Sasao up and down. “It will be large on you, but I'm sure our seamstress can alter it.”

  “That's all right; I have my own seamstress.” Sasao dragged Toru to the changing area and pushed him into one of the booths.

  “Are you crazy?” Toru stared at her in shock. “That dress costs more than my fucking bass!”

  “Oh, like you’ve never worn an expensive Armani suit before, Mr. Rockstar.” Sasao placed her hands on her hips.

  “Yeah, but this is a damn dress.”

  “And it’s for --” She dropped her voice to a whisper. “-- Hideki. So there.”

  The saleswoman came back and offered to take Toru to a seat in the boutique’s waiting area, but Sasao grabbed his arm. “Oh, but I need the opinion of my friend, especially since he’s paying. He’ll help me with the zipper; you can go back and do what it is you do. Thank you!”

  Sasao pulled him into the stall and slid the privacy lock into place. “Try it on!” she grinned.

  “This is so not going to work,” Toru grumbled, trying to take his shoes off in the cramped space as Sasao squeezed back against the wall.

  “Would you prefer I left you in here alone?” Sasao scrunched up her nose. “It’s not like you’ve got anything I haven’t seen on other boys before.”

  “Does your mother know you talk like that?” Toru gave her a wry look.

  Sasao rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying you’re practically a brother to me. It’s not like I’m watching Kyoru undress.”

  “Kyoru?” Toru raised his eyebrows at her.

  “He’s very attractive.” A blush spread across Sasao’s cheeks. She added quickly, “He designs nice clothes too. You should ask him for some fashion advice sometimes.”

  “You’re trying to change the subject,” Toru pointed out.

  “And you’re trying to get out of putting on that dress,” Sasao countered.

  “Can’t I just buy it and try it at home?” Toru tugged off his shirt.

  “No, because if it doesn’t’ fit, there’s no time to come back and look for something else.”

  “I can borrow your --”

  “No. My favorite pink sweater will never be the same in the shoulders, thank you very much.”

  “Fine.”

  After much twisting and squeezing, they managed to get Toru undressed and into the gown. It was magnificent, with the cut accentuating all the right places even with the absence of a stuffed bra to simulate boobs.

  “You will stun him. Totally.”

  “Ryoko will.”

  “Well, yeah,” Sasao said, adjusting the skirt a bit. “With the wig on and makeup, it will be perfect. Absolutely perfect. He will want you so bad.”

  “Ryoko.”

  “Well, yeah,” Sasao said again with a sigh. “But you’re the one who insisted that that was enough if it was all you could get. Even though I think you’re full of it. Just tell him.”

  “I can’t --”

  “Is everything all right in there? Can I help?’

  “No, no,” Sasao said peeking her head over the door. “It’s perfect; we’ll take it! Can you write up the invoice? We’ll be right out.”

  Toru paid for the gown with the credit card issued to his record label as he often did, so as not to attract too much attention.

  Chapter Eight

  Hideki hadn’t paid much attention at the photo shoot at all. He got chewed up by the manager for it, too.

  The older man cornered him just as Hideki was trying to slip away and avoid the mini-press conference Nippon Entertainment had set up for after the shoot. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “I’ve got some things to take care of, Ikeda-san,” he said, brushing some of the hair away from his eyes.

  Ikeda shook his head. “Hideki-kun, you’ve been a mess this past week or so.” The manager folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t know if you realize this, but you’re the biggest draw for SundayEveryday.”

  “Yeah, I know ...” Hideki sighed.

  “But you’re lashing out against your band mates, ignoring important publicity dates!” Ikeda said. “This is unacceptable. You need to take a look at where you’re going with your career -- with the band and solo. There are important people you should be getting to know better and you’re not -- your mother told me all about the wedding, you see. There are --”

  Blah blah blah. While Ikeda rambled on, his passion for making money and creating stars taking over, Hideki’s mind drifted back to the night he met Toru.

  “Don’t tell me, let me guess. Your manager is a pain in the ass.” Hideki saw Toru standing in the doorway with that sweet, half-crooked grin on his lips. “They’re all like that -- it’s required training fo
r them.”

  Hideki chuckled out loud.

  “This isn’t funny,” Ikeda sighed. “That recording you made in the studio is being sent out to radio stations for review as a single. You could have that song out by the end of the week if it goes over well -- and that means working hard for that extra publicity.”

  Hideki bowed. “Some very special people helped me with that song, Ikeda-san,” he said softly, seeing only Toruhiko’s face. “It’s going to do well.” He turned to leave.

  “Wait -- come back!”

  But Hideki kept going and ducked out into the back lot behind the studio, his head a mess and his heart in even worse shape. Whenever he thought he had it figured out ...

  There was a message on his voicemail from Ryoko saying she would love to meet him for dinner. She sounded more cheerful than before, but still ... there was something different. Maybe she was confused about things. God knew Hideki was.

  He went home to get ready for his date and turned on the TV against his better judgment. As he showered, he caught snippets of the news and entertainment goings-on

  “The rumors don’t stop flying around Toruhiko Nakai from Child’sPrey.” Hideki turned off the water to hear the woman reporter better.

  “Our hotline has been flooded with calls that the bassist was seen in downtown Shinjuku earlier today -- and was involved in an argument with his lady friend. Could this mean the affair is over? And what about that mystery woman other sources placed Toruhiko with in Minakami?”

  “Minakami?” Hideki slumped back against the shower wall. Toru had been in Minakami? Hideki found himself wondering which inn the bassist had stayed at. If only they’d run into each other. They might have if things hadn’t happened with Ryoko.

  Damn.

  Hideki knew what he had to do. It was crazy, and if things went the way he was afraid they might, he’d feel like total shit afterward, but he had to do it. He had to go see Toru and find out if the older man had any feelings for him.

  * * * * *

  “What are you doing in there?” Sasao called, knocking loudly on the bathroom door.

  “Getting a shower ... and other things,” Toru muttered as he stepped further into the water stream to wash the cum from his hand and abdomen. It hadn’t been the most satisfying orgasm of his life, but it had been necessary. It was damned uncomfortable to be trussed up in that “brace,” and being with Hideki was sure to make him horny as hell, so he needed to alleviate as much pressure as he could.

  “Someone is at your door!” Sasao called.

  “Okay, okay!” Toru grabbed a bath towel from the rack and wrapped it around his hips.

  “I’ll get the dress ready,” Sasao said.

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Wait, wait!” She grabbed him and took two tubes of lipstick, daubing each one on upper and lower lips. “Okay, just checking the shades.”

  Toru gave her a harsh look and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, doing more to smudge than remove the lip coloring.

  He yanked open the door and damn near died when he saw Hideki, larger than life and looking hotter than sin in a sleek black silk suit with a crisp pleated shirt and perfectly knotted tie.

  So much for the masturbation helping, Toru realized as he felt himself grow hard once more. “Um, hi.”

  “Hi,” Hideki said. “Can I come in a minute? I need to ask you about something --”

  He broke off when he caught sight of a woman in the bedroom door who ducked out of the way. “You’re busy. Never mind.”

  “Hideki-kun. No, please come in.” The bedroom door slammed shut, and Toru winced.

  “No, I better go.”

  “You wanted to say something.”

  Hideki looked down at his feet and couldn’t help but notice Toru’s erection tenting the towel. “I just wanted to thank you again for your help on that solo project. There’s radio interest in the song you engineered for me.”

  Toru gestured. “Come on in; let’s talk about it.”

  Hideki shook his head. “No, thanks. I have a date I need to get to. If I’m not at the restaurant first, she might think I stood her up.”

  “She won’t mind if you’re a few minutes late, I’m sure,” Toru said.

  Hideki made the mistake of looking up.

  The erection pulled at the front of the man’s towel just as prominently as before, and now Hideki noticed the traces of lipstick on Toru’s mouth. An image of the woman he’d seen dash into the bedroom flashed through Hideki’s mind, and he imagined her giving Toru the same kind of blowjob Ryoko had given him.

  Oh, God ... the lipstick was probably all over Toru’s dick, too. Hideki imagined the smudges of that rich mauve color all over the man’s flushed, hard cock. His stomach twisted into a knot.

  “I’m so sorry I ever bothered you, Nakai-san.” Hideki couldn’t keep his voice from cracking.

  “Hideki-kun --”

  “There’s really nothing more we can do for each other.” Hideki bowed, unable to meet Toru’s gaze, and turned away.

  Toru started to go after him, to tell him everything, but stopped when he heard Sasao gasp and say, “Oh, my God ...”

  He closed the front door and rushed to the bedroom. “What?”

  She pointed to the television as an old black and white publicity photo appeared, superimposed over a live shot of police entering a small apartment building.

  Yukichi Fujita, a one-time film star renowned for his romantic leading man roles in the late sixties, had committed suicide. Fujita’s career had been all but nonexistent with only the occasional television drama role after his “fall from grace” -- the public acknowledgement that he was involved in a homosexual relationship. The revelation alienated his growing legion of female fans, resulting in smaller and more infrequent roles until he had to leave the business. Not entirely though, as Fujita-san had spent the last fifteen years as a custodian at the studios of NHK television.

  “It’s so sad,” Sasao said. “I remember growing up watching his old movies with my mom. She always liked him so much.” She cocked her head to the side. “Are you okay? What happened with Hideki? What did he want?”

  “He wanted to thank me for helping him at the recording studio. There was more, but he left. He said he was sorry for ever bothering me.” He dropped onto the edge of the bed. “Shit. I think Ryoko needs to blow off the date.”

  Sasao rubbed her hand across the tense muscles of his bare back. “Maybe Ryoko needs to be that friend she claims to be and find out what’s really bothering him.”

  “That’s the only way I’m ever going to be able to talk to him again, isn’t it?” Toru furrowed his brow. “Through Ryoko.”

  Sasao wrapped her arms around his waist to give him a comforting hug and rested her forehead on the back of his shoulder. “This is exactly what I was afraid of, To-chan. I didn’t want to see either of you get hurt.”

  “It’s too late for that now,” he whispered.

  “But even if Ryoko’s look is a lie, her heart is still yours.” Sasao climbed off the bed and grabbed his hand. “You’re the one he became friends with.”

  She pulled Toru up and stood him in front of the closet where the new dress hung from the top of the open door. “Hideki’s counting on you to be there for him, Toru. Even if he doesn’t know it yet.”

  * * * * *

  Toru grabbed a taxi to the quiet French restaurant that was tucked into an ultra luxury hotel in the Ginza district. One thing was certain, Hideki certainly knew how to treat a “lady.” This place was definitely a haven for celebrities, where staff and clientele alike were always on their best behavior. And where anyone even remotely appearing to be a reporter was politely but firmly denied admittance.

  Toying nervously with the small diamond pin Sasao had let him borrow, Toru entered and smiled at the maitre d’. “I’m meeting someone. Sakae-san.”

  The man bowed. “Yes, he’s waiting for you.”

  Keeping his gaze focused on Hideki in the distance, T
oru followed the maitre d’, pausing when he thought he heard a muffled “What the fuck?” from somewhere behind. He kept walking, praying that no one from his indie days was here tonight.

  His smile grew wide when Hideki looked up from his glass of wine and smiled back. He stood, taking Toru’s hand.

  “You look wonderful. Absolutely beautiful.”

  “Thank you. You’re looking quite handsome yourself.” Toru slid his finger along the lapel of Hideki’s finely tailored suit. “This is nice.”

  Hideki laughed softly while Toru sat. “My manager is kind of a pain in the ass, but he did give me some good advice about using my first big check to get a couple really good suits.”

  Toru laughed and raised his wineglass when the sommelier filled it. “To your manager.”

  He nearly choked on his wine a moment later when he heard an all too familiar voice.

  “Who the hell do we have here?”

  Oh, shit. Toru recognized Jun’s voice without even having to see his band mate's face.

  Hideki gave the man a perplexed look and then broke into a polite smile. “Jun-san, it’s nice to see you here.” He stood up and shook the guitarist’s hand as Jun came around the table, dressed in blue jeans and black silk club shirt.

  “So Toru’s still giving you some ‘help’ on your album, ne?” Jun raised his eyebrows over the top of his dark, “sexy rock star” glasses and grinned. Hideki’s smile faltered, and Toru felt his stomach sink straight to his toes.

  “No, no,” Hideki said quietly. “All of you from ChildsPrey helped me out more than enough already. I owe you so much as it is, without having to bother Nakai-san.”

  The guitarist scratched at the stubbly goatee on his chin and looked right at Toru with a smirk. “Oh, I get it,” he said with a sly look. “This is a kinky game, right?”

  Toru could’ve died right there on the spot. And he would’ve made sure to take Jun, that fucker, with him.

  Fortunately, Hideki took things just the wrong way. “Jun-san!” His jaw dropped open before he snapped it shut angrily. “This is Ryoko, a close friend of mine; if you don’t mind, please don’t be so rude to her.”