by Jet Lupin
“That’s what I have you for. You know how to work a room. Get them on your side. Then teach me. Having more friends certainly wouldn’t hurt.”
“You need more than friends, otouto. You need allies.”
“Then help me get those. For all our sakes.”
“You can be his publicist,” Phil chimed in. “Whisper in his ear what to say and what to do.”
Bas cupped his chin, regarding his reflection in the break front’s glass. “Yes, I suppose that could work. Good job, human.”
“Uh, my name’s Phil.”
Bas’ face wrinkled in distaste. “Can’t I call you anything else? That’s so… boring.”
Shige cleared his throat. “To get back to the matter at hand, do you think anyone will truly complain about your appointment and the new rules?”
“No more than they complained about Toshinori’s lack of control. People have taken to calling this area The Wild East since there don’t seem to be any real rules in place. No one runs their territories that way. Most would appreciate the structure. And others would have a problem with it.”
The nomads.
Vampires without territory, who traveled back and forth between domains. Usually, they had no issues. Sometimes, like Soldana, they just stayed. They weren’t normally a problem.
Abby had never told Shige about the unrest. Then again, if she had, Shige was so checked out, he wouldn’t have cared. He put Toshinori in charge, so it would be his problem. But he was dead leaving Shige behind to clean up his mess. Or was it Shige’s mess?
“There doesn’t seem to be much to do now other than wait until you can head back to America.”
But Shige had one last thing to go over.
“Tell no one about Phil’s powers. He’s with me, and that’s all anyone needs to know.”
“As if anyone would buy it. I’m struggling to believe it myself.”
“I’m serious. I have your word on this?”
“Yes, yes. You have my word. I’d say we could seal it with blood, but the same ichor already flows through our veins. But I’ll cut my palm if you require it?” There was no challenge in his voice, not a real one. Just fatigue.
“No. It’s not necessary.”
“If that’s all.” Bas scooped up his blanket and draped it around his shoulders. “I’m going back to bed.” With that, he swept out of the room, his blanket flapping behind him like a cape.
Phil let out along breath when they were alone again. “What a dick.”
“Oh, so you don’t like him?”
Phil rolled his eyes. “There wasn’t much to like. Let’s just say I get why you’ve avoided him for so long.”
He didn’t know the half of it.
“I noticed you didn’t tell him about Chiyo and Kaoru coming… Does he know?”
“No… He hasn’t known about Chiyo for her whole life. He has his secrets, and I have mine. They don’t all have to overlap for this to work.”
Phil leaned his head on his wrist. “What do we do now? I don’t think I can go back to sleep. Plus I’m finally starting to get hungry.”
“I can think of a few ways to kill time until they get here. Rosamund might still be waiting for her gunman to report in, so we have a little time. We could go sightseeing around the city, with an escort of course. We have to wait for nightfall for some of them.”
Phil sidled up to Shige’s side, a resting a hand on his belly. “But whatever will we do until then?”
Shige dropped a hand to Phil’s thigh and squeezed. “I can definitely think of a few things.”
Chapter 14
SHIGE
They emerged from the lower level of a department store into the crisp evening. Though the leaves had only begun to turn, fall was all around them. Halloween was behind them, and Christmas decorations were going up already. Shige missed the buffer of American holidays, with Thanksgiving delaying this a while longer. Time was moving too fast.
When Phil agreed to go sightseeing in Tokyo, this wasn’t what Shige expected they would do. A quiet dinner at a well-known, and expensive sushi spot, and now they were wandering down a street well off the beaten path. Tokyo’s streets were never truly dead, even in Shige’s day, but where they were now was a lot less bustling than the bigger areas like Roppongi or Shinjuku.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather go someplace more lively? I’m sure we can blend in fine in Kichijoji. Plenty of tourists there.”
Phil shook his head. “This is fine.”
“Then do you want me to arrange for one of the guards to escort you during the day? You could see the temples and the shopping districts. Get some souvenirs?” Everything was closed now. Tokyo Skytree, the museum based on that studio that only did cartoons and all the other tourist attractions. There was nothing to see now except for what the locals did as they went about their day. None of it was anything special. Shige would rather not, but he’d sacrifice his sanity for Phil’s sake if he really wanted that. This was just so boring. Were Shige in Phil’s position, he’d be ready to riot.
Phil chuckled, shook his head again. “What we’re doing now is perfect. Getting to spend time with you like this, like normal people,” he said, reminding Shige of how different their circumstances were. “I knew this wasn’t going to be a regular trip from the beginning. I thought ahead. I had Jonquil and Chiaki take pictures for me when they’ve gone out. I’ll have something to show folks when we get back. It would be a little weird if I came home without that much. Speaking of.” He fished his phone out of his jacket pocket.
Shige tried not to grimace as Phil herded him into position. The tower was behind him in the distance. He hated having his picture taken and avoided it when he could. He remembered when taking one took nearly an hour, time he could have spent running around causing a ruckus. Who wanted that? Now they were lightning quick, but the aversion stayed with him. But for Phil, he made the effort to stay put.
“Don’t look so sour. Relax your face.”
He wasn’t sure how he could change his face, but he made an effort.
Phil frowned, the phone in front of him face giving him a cycloptic visage. “Now you just look constipated.”
“I’m glad I don’t know what that looks like.” The idea was so distasteful, Shige wouldn’t think on it much longer.
“I’ll show you the picture later. Let me take a couple more.”
Phil joined Shige and bent his knees so they were closer in height. The scent of him, warm in the cold breeze, tickled Shige’s nose in the best way.
His arm extended, he directed Shige’s gaze to the camera in his hand. Did it count as a selfie if Shige was in the picture too? The camera made that clicking sound, one picture down. And then Phil kissed Shige’s cheek.
His lips were hot and unexpected. Shige turned to him, confused. Then the camera made that noise again. Phil grinned from ear to ear.
“Gotta enjoy the quiet while we can, right? Who knows when we’ll get the chance again?”
The way Phil said that, like it was expected, unavoidable, made Shige’s guts clench.
Phil was adapting to his new circumstances quickly. Shige never wanted him to change. When they dealt with Pampa, he hadn’t anticipated their current situation. How could he when the dead tended to stay dead? But there was no reason any of this had to be Phil’s problem. It wasn’t too late to remove him from the field completely.
He took Phil’s hand, his fingers brushing over the rough scars at his wrist. Scars Shige had put there.
“You know, I’ve been thinking…”
“Stop,” Phil said. “Stop thinking.”
“You aren’t even going to give me the courtesy of letting me finish?”
Phil touched his temple. “There’s no point. I can hear everything you’re thinking. That idea of yours is no good. You already tried to give me an out months ago, and that was the time to take it, but I didn’t. I’m here now. What happened to us being in this together? Did you not mean that?”
&nb
sp; Surely, Phil had picked up on his thoughts and knew he meant it then as much as he did now.
“You just never had a choice in all this. You’re risking your life, your safety, your career. Everyone you know is at risk. Knowing all that, are you really willing to commit to that much loss?”
“Of course not,” Phil said quietly. It was only then Shige realized he’d been talking loudly. “But throwing myself fully into this is the only way I can protect all of that.
“You’re right. I didn’t choose to get involved in this. But if I hadn’t, I’d never know why I have this power or how to control it. I’d still feel like a freak. I’ve learned so much, it almost makes it worth it.”
Almost.
Phil’s feelings were hard to argue with, but Shige had to make a case for common sense. Had he forgotten what happened? What Pampa did? How, in the circles they had to move in, he’d been seen as less than a sentient being? Shige needed to remind him of all of that, but the only thing that rose up in him to say was the most important part.
“I don’t want you to get hurt again. Last time… Everything that happened was my fault. I was careless. I put you in harm’s way, and I can’t let it happen again.”
Phil poked Shige’s chest, though, the many layers of clothes kept him from feeling the brunt of it. “That right there is why I’m OK going into this. You’re remorseful. You care about my well being, and I know you’ll do everything you can to protect me. That’s why I trust you. You’re why I’m still here.” Phil freed his hand from Shige’s grasp to lay it on his cheek. “And it doesn’t hurt that you’re dynamite in the sack, too.”
“You’re not so bad yourself,” Shige shook his head through his laughter. “I’d give my life for yours. I love you, Phil.”
Phil gathered Shige’s face in his hands and kissed him, his warmth, his breath invigorating Shige’s whole being. When Phil took his lips away, he was left wanting and cold.
“I love you, too. But I’d rather we both lived.”
“That would be ideal,” Shige said, breathless, “But if it comes down to it, I—” Phil cut him off with another hard kiss. That sat better with him than repeating his declaration. His lovers, his offspring, his peers all expected him to be more dominant, with his age and potential social standing. Letting Phil guide him was more comfortable, more right.
He never would have guessed he’d find that in his mousy nurse. Though, he wasn’t mousy anymore.
That grin Phil wore when he pulled back was downright cunning, brimming with his newly awakened confidence. Bringing him here was the right thing to do. Shige was sure of it.
“You know, back at Ten no Mon, that was my first time fooling around in a bath. I’ve never been in one big enough.”
“Oh?” Shige tried to gather his thoughts. It was one thing after another with the new Phil, kisses in the middle of the street, dirty talk. What was next? Thank god his coat hid his erection.
Phil’s arm dropped on Shige’s shoulders, thick and secure. “Yeah,” Phil said, that cheeky smile still in place. “Want to go back to Bas’ and see if we can find more places to have a few more firsts before we head home?”
Shige chuckled. The way he was talking, he’d helped cultivate a monster. “Do you even need to ask?”
PHIL
The plane touched down, jostling Phil awake. He couldn’t wait to be back in his own bed in his secure apartment, which was the only reason he could find for their deplaning being delayed.
“We’ve got some congestion,” the pilots said over the loudspeaker. “Some sort of celebrity or something is passing through, and the airport has the runway all jammed up. But we can sit on the tarmac until we can start moving towards our hangar.”
The airport did indeed look busy, and crowded from Phil’s window, but when wasn’t it?
Phil was eager to see Hugo again. The events in Japan distracted him, but he missed that goofball more than anything, though, he supposed he could wait a few minutes more. Phil’s phone beeped with all the messages he’d missed while they were airborne. Shige had moved up to the cockpit to talk to the pilots, Abby was on the phone, while Kaoru, Chiyo, and Jonquil continued to sleep. No one noticed Phil duck into the bathroom to check them. The most recent one was from Jerome, so he started there.
I knew there was something weird about him. Please let me know you’re safe.
That didn’t make any sense. Phil scrolled up, skimming backwards through more rambling messages until he found a coherent one. Have you seen this?
The link took him to a Twitter post with a video attachment. The caption was succinct.
“Bruh.”
The clip was grainy black and white security footage of what looked like a shorter haired Shige if you squinted and cocked your head to the side from some years ago. He entered an alley with a man. Their hands were all over each other, and Phil was starting to wonder why Jerome sent this to him in the first place. The man who might be Shige pressed the other into the wall, his face near the other man’s neck. The man gripped might-be-Shige’s shoulders. There didn’t seem to be a struggle, but when maybe Shige stepped away, the man fell to the floor. Maybe Shige’s face was dark from the mouth down, but he quickly wiped it away on his jacket sleeve. The subtitles on the videos said it was captured in the 60s.
The next clip was a picture of Shige in present day side-by-side with a still from the footage. The resemblance was hard to deny. But Phil still gave it ago.
That’s him! How is that him? Jerome had been losing his mind in the messages. Phil could easily side step this, tell Jerome it was impossible, which, if Shige was the age he claimed, it was. He shouldn’t have even been born yet, which he told Jerome as calmly as he could over text. But while Jerome might be swayed, others wouldn’t be so quickly driven off the trail. Whoever had brought this to the attention of the hordes on social media was trying to draw attention to Shige. Already people were adding their pet theories to the trend. Someone had linked him to Keanu Reeve’s vampire theory. Hoping it would stop soon was a waste of time.
It had to be Rosamund. But what was she after?
Shige met Phil when he emerged from the bathroom with a brow raised in question. “Is everything alright?”
Things were so far from alright. Phil couldn’t keep this from him, but how did you let someone know that the biggest secret of their life might be on display for everyone to see?
He’d hoped they’d have another few uneventful days before Rosamund made another move, but that was asking too much.
Things were about to get a lot more complicated.
Notes
Watashi wa pinattu arerugi ga arimasu. – I have a peanut allergy.
Kono shokuhin wa pīnattsu o fukunde imasu ka? - Does this food contain peanuts?
Midoriyama – Green Mountain
Ten no Mon – Gate of Heaven
Thanks for reading!
If you enjoyed it, please leave a review and
Follow Jet on Twitter, Facebook, or visit their website!