Chapter 03

NATSUO RAN THROUGH THE DAY on autopilot; recording, and taping sessions went by fast. Soon, he found himself walking home like every night, looking up at the stars he could see through Tokyo’s lights. Lately, he took the long way home by the train station.

Every night, he hoped to find someone there waiting for him. Despite it being well lit and crowded, the station felt dark and empty. He walked by the station, not giving it a second glance.

About a block away from the station, he noticed three guys following him. When they turned the same corner as him for the third time, he stopped.

“Are you following me?” he asked.

“You’re one of the Sacred Boys, right?” The one who spoke reeked of alcohol. The other two flanked Natsuo.

“Want an autograph?” Natsuo asked. He knew what they had planned for him. A bunch of stupid drunk men jealous of what he had. What made it worse, he had nothing for them to be jealous of. In fact, he wanted their normal lives.

“What do we have here? A stuffed animal?” One man grabbed the stuffed rabbit hanging partly out of Natsuo’s bag.

“Give it back,” he ordered.

“Does the baby want its toy back?” The man held the animal above Natsuo’s head as a taller bully would hold something he took from a smaller child.

“Does your girlfriend have a poster of me on her wall?” Natsuo asked. Having touched a nerve, the man flinched.

Natsuo reached up for the rabbit. One of the other guys behind him pulled back his fist to strike. Natsuo quickly dodged the attack and the one that quickly followed form the other guy.

“I trained to be a boxer for a drama,” Natsuo said, turning to the man holding the rabbit. “Didn’t watch that one? I’m sure your girlfriend did.”

A police officer on a bike pulled up ringing the bike’s bell. Natsuo was only distracted for a moment but it was enough of the man holding the rabbit to land a punch into his cheek.

“What’s going on here?” the police officer shouted, dismounting his bike.

Natsuo let out a sigh of relief, seeing the stuffed rabbit on the ground as the three men dashed off. He fell to his knees as the pain hit him.

“Hey! What happened?” The police officer approached him cautiously. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” Natsuo stood up, wiping the blood from his lips. “Those guys attacked me.”

The police officer stepped closer and Natsuo could see a deep scar on the officer’s cheek. The offer’s eyes widened. “Y-you’re…”

Natsuo picked up his bag and rabbit from the ground. “Then you know it’ll be best for everyone to keep this quiet.”

The police officer opened his mouth to protest, but nodded. Natsuo bowed his thanks and continued home.

When Natsuo entered his apartment, he tossed his things to the ground. He headed for the mirror to assess his wounds. His eye was already swelling and his fat lip wasn’t helping the look. He sighed.

He lay on the futon as Pooky came up, concerned, sensing he was hurt. He petted her to reassure her, looking at the stuffed rabbit next to him. As his thoughts wandered to his dreams, the doorbell shook the memories from his mind. His head throbbed as he jumped up to open the door.

A girl, a few years younger than him, stood at the door. She had tanned skin that matched her long, light-brown dyed hair, which was pulled back into an oversized black newsboy cap. Shock filled her brown eyes.

“Natsunii! What happened!?” she exclaimed.

“Come in, SaSayuri,” he said, stepping aside.

An idol in the same company as his, he took her in as a little sister when she joined. The nickname she had for him showed that she felt he was like an older brother.

“When did you get back?” he asked.

“Yesterday. I was busy today, but I wanted to at least stop by and wish you a happy birthday.” She frowned. “What happened?”

“Some guys attacked me on the way home,” he replied, as if it was a normal occurrence.

“Want me to call my mother?” she asked.

“No! It looks worse than it is. I don’t need a doctor.”

“Have you at least put ice on that eye yet?” She frowned.

“No. I just got home.”

“You’re helpless!” She walked to the fridge, pulling out ice and placing it in a bag. She handed it to him to put on his eye. “Keep it on for twenty minutes.”

“Thanks.” He laid down on his futon again. “How was your trip?”

“You know how Hong Kong is.” She sat down on the couch next to Pooky. “Why did those guys attack you?”

“They’re jealous.” He smiled at her. “Thanks for coming over. I needed to see a friendly face after that.”

“No problem. I’m sorry that happened on your birthday.” Her eyes fell on the gray rabbit sitting next to him. “Hey, Natsunii. What do you have planned for tomorrow?”

He stared up at her, thinking. “Nothing now. With this face I’ll go into work, get yelled at and then sent home to heal. Why?”

“I have some time off. Do you want to do something tomorrow? You know, for your birthday.”

“I don’t really like the whole birthday thing, so you don’t have to.”

“I just want to spend some time with you,” she said, pouting at him.

“What did you have in mind?” he asked.

“I don’t know, something fun. I’ve been cooped up for the last month and need to get out! I want to see the world again.” She smiled at him, knowing he knew exactly how she felt.

“Meet me at the studio tomorrow and after I get sent home, we’ll leave, okay? There’s a chance they might make me record, but with this lip, I don’t think so.”

“If that happens, it can’t be helped.” She looked at her watch. “I didn’t realize it was this late. I’m sorry, but if I go now, I’ll make the last train.” She gave Pooky one last pet and stood up.

He stood, the pain in his face and sides causing groans. Sayuri watched him, worried.

“I’m a fast healer. I’ll be fine tomorrow,” he assured her.

“Don’t push yourself, Natsunii,” she frowned. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yup, tomorrow!” He opened the door.

“Take care of him, Pooky,” she said, causing the dog to let out a quiet bark. “Goodnight, Natsunii.”

“Goodnight.” He closed the door and locked it.

He laid back down with the ice on his eye. He let out a sigh and looked up at the ceiling again. “Tomorrow…”

* * *

Seven laid awake, listening to the rain pound against her window. The rain wasn’t what was keeping her awake, her thoughts were. She was trying to figure out why she wanted to go to Japan. There was nothing special about Japan in her mind. She never really thought about it before. Aya was into Japanese music and she went back every summer. Besides that, Japan was just another place to Seven.

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I love your green eyes…

The man’s voice from her dreams ran through her mind again. As long as she could remember, she had these strange dreams. They started off at an airport and changed to a train station as she got older. The setting and the boy’s voice were all she usually remembered from the dreams. Something about that boy’s voice made her feel safe. She closed her eyes to sleep, but there were too many thoughts going through her head.

She turned over to look at the glowing red numbers on the alarm clock. It was two in the morning and she was still awake. She picked up her CD Walkman from the nightstand, placing the earbuds in her ears. When she had trouble sleeping, she listened to her father’s favorite album, Paul Simon’s Graceland. Listening to the album always comforted her by having some part of him with her. As the lyrics kept her mind from wandering off to places it shouldn’t and she drifted asleep.

The next day, Aya talked Seven into going to the mall after school. Seven hurried through the student parking lot. Thanks to some troublemakers, her last class was let out late.

“Surprise!”

David jumped out in front of her from behind a car. Her foot snagged on a large crack in the asphalt, causing her to fall into him. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her up. “Are you okay?”

“Nice catch Davis!” someone shouted.

“Seven points to Davis!” another roared with laughter.

A car horn sounded as Aya pulled up next to them in her car. Her eyes narrowed at David with his arms around Seven. “Sorry I’m late, there was traffic.”

Seven’s face reddened. A surge of fear shot through her body. For a moment, when she pushed back against him to let her go, his arms around her tightened in protest. The fear faded as he let go of her. She took a calming breath, pulling her shirt, which had ridden up slightly, back into place.

“Aya invited me along. I hope you don’t mind,” David said, his cheeks flushing.

“Of course, she doesn’t mind. Get in. We need to get going.” Aya shouted from the car.

Seating in the cars was always the same. In David’s car, Seven sat upfront with David. In Aya’s car, Seven was in the back and David sat upfront. Seven couldn’t figure out why David didn’t see that Aya liked him, or why he’d pick her over Aya.

“So, what are we doing?” Seven asked, wondering why David was tugging along on a girl’s shopping day.

“It’s a surprise.” Aya made eye contact with her in the rearview mirror and smiled.

“You’ll see,” David added, teasingly.

“You can’t just spring something on me. Can’t you just give a hint or something?” Seven pleaded.

“No, you’re way too psychic for that! Just sit back and enjoy the drive.” He chuckled.

When they parked in front of a large office building, Seven stepped out of the car, wondering what was going on. Aya and David stood in front of her with huge grins.

“The three of us are all set to spend two weeks in Japan this June!” he blurted, not being able to keep it in.

“All set? W-what do you mean?” Seven was confused. She hadn’t even come up with a plan to get the money. “I don’t have the money or a passport.”

“Maybe you aren’t as psychic as I thought. When I said I knew what to get you for your birthday…” He smiled proudly at himself, feeling like a prince who just saved the princess. “All you have to do is sign some papers and take a passport picture.”

“You have an appointment to get your passport. Which is why I cut last period to get your birth certificate and social security card from your mom.” Aya held up a large envelope.

“Wait, two weeks?” What was being said to her was sinking in. Guilt filled her. “That’s way too much!”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m pitching in too. Well, my dad technically, I’m using my miles to help with the cost. And it’s not as much as you think. We’ll be staying at my dad’s apartment in Tokyo for free.” Aya forced a smile.

Seven was aware that Aya's father was a touchy subject. When Aya was three, her parents separated. In exchange for not filing for divorce, Aya’s mother could start over with Aya in America. Her father thought it important for Aya to stay in contact with his family, so he paid for her to visit every year. However, now he was almost never there when she did.

The fact her friends wanted to do this for Seven overwhelmed her. She quickly wiped a tear away. “When do we go?” she asked.

“Monday after graduation, June seventh,” Aya replied.

Seven hugged them. “You don’t know how much this means to me! Thank you!”

They walked into the passport office. Seven filled out the paperwork, and took a passport photo. She sat in a daze of shock as they drove to the travel agency next. It was official, they were going to Japan.

* * *

Natsuo opened his eyes. His face still hurt a little. Pooky slept next to him to protect him through the night. He smiled and rubbed Pooky’s head, waking her up. “Thank you Pooky.”

He glanced at the clock and shot up, seeing he’d overslept. He threw on clothes, slipped on his shoes, and ran out the door. He was going to be yelled at for being in a fight, and he didn’t want to add being late to it. Last night, he just couldn’t get to sleep. Everything kept him awake—the pain in his face, Pooky’s snoring, even the ice in the bag on his eye melting.

His cellphone rang. He didn’t slow as he pulled it out of his back pocket.

“Yeah?” he answered, sounding slightly winded.

“Natsunii!” Sayuri broke into laughter. “I’d thought you’d be on your way. And from the sound of it, you’re running at full steam.”

“Oh, shut up!” he replied. “What do you want? As you can hear, I’m busy.”

“I wanted to warn you the bosses are waiting to talk to you. You better get here soon.” There was concern in Sayuri’s voice. “Natsunii?”

“What?” he asked.

“Will you take me to a theme park today? I want to go on some rides, like a normal person.” He didn’t answer. “Hello? Natsunii? Hello?”

He walked into the building through a side door. He saw Sayuri turned towards the wall in the lobby with her phone to her ear. He quietly snuck behind her to the elevator. He walked into the elevator before shouting at her, “Sounds like fun! Wait for me here!”

She wiped around to see him grinning and waving as the elevator doors closed. “NATSUO! You jerk!” she said into the phone before he hung it up.

As soon as he walked off the elevator, his manager was waiting and walked him to the boardroom where the most important people in the company were waiting.

After the meeting, Natsuo stood in the elevator for a couple minutes before pushing the button for the lobby. He was so angry he couldn’t think straight. When the elevator finally made it to the lobby, he saw Sayuri sitting with Kenji. Not wanting to deal with Kenji right now, he ducked down a side corridor to wait for him to leave. Their voices carried to him.

“The bosses needed to talk to Natsuo. You don’t have any idea what it’s about?” Kenji asked.

“He got into another fight last night,” she replied.

“Really?” The worry in Kenji’s voice surprised Natsuo. It was gone in what he said next. “Since I got the day open, want to go somewhere?”

“I made plans already,” she replied.

“Too bad. I’ll have to find another girl.” Natsuo heard a few footsteps before they stopped. “Remind Natsuo what he does affects me too.”

Sayuri let out a sigh as Natsuo heard the main door to the building close. He peeked around the corner, seeing he was right, Kenji had left.

“Sayuri?” he said, into the lobby.

“Ready to go?” She picked up her bag with a smile that went away as she looked at him. “What happened?”

“I’ll be driven to and from work every day. I’m to be back in my apartment by sundown if not at work. As for today…” He looked away from her, not wanting to see the disappointment on her face. “The car is already waiting to take me home.”

“What?” The disappointment was clear in her voice.

“I’m sorry. They’re not taking any chances with their number one group,” he mumbled.

“It’s okay. Can I go with you to your apartment and talk?” she asked.

He nodded, leading the way to the car. It was a silent ride to his apartment. He was so fixated on how much more confining his life was going to be, he just stared out the window. He didn’t realize it until he walked into his apartment and Pooky jumping up on him to greet him pulled him from his thoughts.

“Want a drink?” he asked, opening the refrigerator.

“Thanks, anything is fine,” Sayuri replied, sitting on the couch. Pooky jumped up, sitting on her lap.

He handed her a glass of chilled green tea, taking a seat next to her on the couch.

“So, what did you want to talk about?” he asked, the silence feeling awkward.

“I’ll just say it.” She took a deep breath. “It’s about today. I suggested to them you should be driven to work…” Her voice trailed off, seeing the change in his expression.

“How could you!? You’re the one person I’d expect to understand that I wanted to hold onto something that felt like a normal life!” After all the times they’ve talked to each other about how hard it was to be an idol. He couldn’t stay seated. He paced around the apartment before grabbing a beer from the fridge.

“I’m sorry! It was a huge mistake! I never thought they’d take it that far. If I could take it back, I would!” Her voice shook as she fought back tears. She got on her knees and lowered her head to her hands on the ground. “I’m sorry! I didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“Stand up…” he said, pulling her up to stand. “I know you’re just looking out for me. I forgive you.”

“Natsunii…”

He sat down, defeated, on the couch. “Walking to and from work was the only time I felt human. It was only a matter of time before it went away.”

“You’re not mad?” She slowly sat down next to him.

“No. I’m mad at my life.” He took a long sip of beer.

“What’s so bad about it? Aren’t you happy that you’re successful? Isn’t it what you wanted?” she asked.

“No. When I was six, my mother went away, and I had to stay with relatives. They didn’t like that they had to take care of me, so they signed me up for the talent company to make extra money for them. It wasn’t my choice. A few years later the company took me from them, bringing me here to the dorm. I’ve lived here alone since.” Pooky let out a bark. “Alone until Pooky found me,” he corrected.

He never told another soul that much about his past. He’d never tell anyone the whole truth about it. The company wanted to keep it hidden. Having someone know, even that much about it, made him feel lighter. He had known Sayuri for almost eight years and this is the most she’d learned about him.

“Why don’t you quit?” she asked softly.

“I couldn’t do that to Kenji. If I go, he goes.” He took another drink from his beer. “Life’s what you make of it, right? Well, if I made a life, it wouldn’t be this. I’d be going to Tokyo University working on becoming a lawyer or something. I’d have a girlfriend or maybe even a wife to come home to. Maybe I’d be going to school in America.”

“What’s with you and America? You talk about it a lot and you put a lot of English lyrics into your songs. You took those classes to improve your English, too.”

“I went there when I was little and….” He tried to find the right words, staring at the rabbit lying on his futon. “It left an impression on me.”

Her eyes followed his stare. She picked up the rabbit from the ground, looking it over. “You take this everywhere you go. You’ve had it as long as I’ve known you. I always wanted to know, what does the seven mean?”

He took another sip of his beer before taking the rabbit from her. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? Where’d you get it?” she asked.

“Maybe I’ll tell you someday,” he said, smiling as he placed it on top of the TV. “It’s a secret.”