A/N: Well, this chapter is FINALLY done…whew! My muse went into a turkey coma and just recently decided to return to work. Unfortunately, my muse does as she pleases. Yeah, that's it…take any complaints up with her.
Get Away From Me Kid, Ya Bother Me
Amane drove home lost in her thoughts. She opened the door to her one bedroom apartment.
"I'm home," Amane called out.
"How did the early morning shoot go? I missed you last night," Amane's current boyfriend said as he took her in his arms.
"It went well," Amane flatly stated, still lost in her own thoughts.
"Is something wrong?" he asked.
"Why?" Amane asked as she extricated herself from his arms.
"You seem…distracted," he said.
"Gomen, just thinking about my lines," Amane lied.
"Come to bed," he implored as he pulled her in the direction of the bedroom.
Amane stopped him and looked at her current seventeen year old boyfriend of six months. She thought, 'What's wrong with me? Why can't I stop thinking about Hikari?'
"Amane-chan? Bed?" he asked again, as he resumed pulling her in the direction of the bedroom.
"Hai, bed," Amane allowed herself to be pulled into the bedroom.
As usual, it didn't take very long before he was sound asleep. He always turned away from her as he slept so unlike Hikari, who wrapped herself around Amane as she slept. Amane looked at his smooth, slender back and suddenly felt a queasy feeling wash over her. She sat up and headed for the bathroom, but diverted to the kitchen for some tea instead. As she stared at the tea kettle, her thoughts ran amok.
'What's wrong with me? Why did I sleep with Hikari? I'm NOT that way!' Amane felt queasy again and fell into the closest kitchen chair.
'What's happening to me? How could I have been SO weak? I enjoy being with men,' Amane winced at her lie.
'I was tired and nervous, yes, that's why I was vulnerable to Hikari,'Amane once again winced at her lie.
'It was all Hikari's fault…that predatory lesbian,' Amane felt the briefest flash of anger, which was quickly replaced with a vision of Hikari calling out Amane's name as she brought Hikari to yet another climax.
The rattling tea kettle brought Amane out of her internalized homophobia. She prepared her tea. As she waited for it to steep, she was once again dragged back by her thoughts.
'Hikari…,' Amane thought and smiled.
"DAMN IT!" Amane cursed her thoughts and shook her head to clear it.
Back on the set, life wasn't treating Hikari any easier, just differently. Amane had been a wonderful lover, however a bit over-zealous, leaving Hikari sore in several places and physically exhausted. Hikari knew it was going to be a long day for her.
Nagisa unlocked her dressing room door and entered, half expecting to find yet another cast mate seated inside. She giggled to find it empty. After throwing her personal items on the couch, she settled in at her dressing table to quickly go over her script. A knock on her dressing room door startled her. She stood up to open the door, expecting to find Shizuma or Miyuki behind it, but was quite surprised to find Tamao.
"Aoi-san, may I have a word with you?" Tamao sheepishly asked, never taking her eyes off the floor.
"Suzumi-san, come in," Nagisa said with no anger in her voice.
Tamao entered and sat gingerly on the couch. Nagisa sat in her dressing table chair across from Tamao. Tamao remained silent for quite some time, just staring at the floor.
"Tamao-san? You wanted to talk?" Nagisa finally broke the uncomfortable silence.
"Hai. Nagisa-chan, I know what I did to you was mean, but I was SO hurt by your rejection, I could not help myself," Tamao blurted out, never raising her eyes.
Nagisa stared at Tamao wide-eyed and incredulous for several reasons, the least being Tamao addressing her as "Nagisa-chan."
"Gomenasai, Gomenasai. Is there any way we can get past all this and try to start fresh…as friends?" Tamao finally looked up and met Nagisa's eyes, which were surprisingly wet with tears.
'Toumori-sanknows her friend well,' Nagisa thought.
"Tamao-chan…Gomenasai. I never meant to hurt you. I honestly thought you understood and were okay with what happened between us at the resort. I like you. I have from the day we met, but only as friends. I'm sorry for throwing you into the set," Nagisa's tears flowed freely down her cheeks. She stood, walked over to Tamao, and knelt down.
As Nagisa and Tamao looked into each other's eyes, they silently accepted each other's apologies and hugged for several minutes, until a knock on the dressing room door interrupted the moment.
"Aoi-san, please report to the set," said Sakoi Masayuki's assistant through the dressing room door.
Nagisa smiled and looked at Tamao, "Shall we? Tamao-chan?"
Tamao smiled back, "Hai…Nagisa-chan."
The two re-newed friends reported to the set.
Tsukidate Chiyo sat nervously in her dressing room waiting to be called to the set. She wasn't nervous for the obvious reasons, because in her short sixteen years, she was already a seasoned actor. Thanks to her stage mother, Chiyo was acting from the age of five. Today, Chiyo was nervous because she had never performed physical comedy well and this episode was filled with it.
'I wonder what mother would say if she knew what this project was really about? I bet more than a few arteries would explode,' she thought and giggled.
While she loved her mother as any child loves a parent, she also hated her for depriving her of a normal childhood. Unbeknownst to her mother, Chiyo readily accepted this small role because of the lesbian theme.
'The ONLY good thing I got out of this damn actor's lifestyle was coming to terms with my sexual orientation sooner than most kids my age,' Chiyo thought and felt giddy at the prospects this project would afford her.
Her thoughts quickly went to the cute girl she met at the initial cast meeting, Byakudan Kagome. After discovering they were the same age, they spent the entire meeting talking and were inseparable at the resort. Their favorite game was finding new and creative ways to ditch their stage mothers, so they could be alone. As she remembered their time in the changing room on the beach, her face turned a deep shade of red. Her mobile phone chimed, letting her know a text message had arrived. She flipped it open and read:
Hi. R U on the set now? Good luck 2day. I miss U. Kagome
Chiyo smiled as she read the text message. She closed her mobile phone. A few seconds later, it chimed again. She flipped it open and read:
Leave Suzumi-san & Hanazono-san alone. I mean it. ILU.
Chiyo texted her reply to Kagome and closed her mobile phone. The blush that was fading was quickly renewed.
She thought about a certain night at the resort with Kagome. They had conned their mothers into letting them have an unsupervised sleepover in Chiyo's room. Kagome was lying in Chiyo's arms, tracing random patterns with her fingers on Chiyo's stomach.
"Chiyo-chan, the older girls completely ignore us," Kagome softly complained.
"Hai Kagome-chan. They treat us like we're little kids. You and I have been in the business way longer than any of them," Chiyo hissed.
"What do you think of the oldest ones?" Kagome asked.
"I think Hanazono-san is stuck up and Rokujou-san has a large stick up her butt," Chiyo laughed.
"Hai, I agree with you about Rokujou-san. I bet she would be a lot more fun if she didn't," Kagome laughed.
"It makes me wonder if she's any fun in bed," Chiyo said and pondered.
"Probably not," Kagome said and quickly added, "How many of them do you think are 'bians' like us?"
"Definitely Aoi-san and Suzumi-san, because I heard them going at it one night as I passed Aoi-san's room. I know it was Suzumi-san, because Aoi-san's a screamer," Chiyo laughed hard.
"Really?" Kagome made a face as she tried to picture Nagisa and Tamao together. She then started laughing hard.
The two girls laughed so hard they ended up in pain. Chiyo's pain was from the stitch in her side and Kagome's was from rolling off the bed. After Chiyo was able to control her laughter, she realized Kagome was now on the floor laughing. Chiyo moved so she hung over the side of the bed on her stomach. She watched Kagome laugh and smiled brightly. Kagome, finally realizing she was the only one laughing, looked up and saw Chiyo smiling at her.
"Chiyo-chan, you have the most precious smile," Kagome softly said as she scooted on her knees up to Chiyo.
Kagome held Chiyo's smiling face between both hands and kissed her softly on the lips. Chiyo leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Kagome's neck, deepening the kiss. Kagome stood and brought Chiyo with her, still locked in their kiss. Kagome got back on the bed pinning Chiyo underneath her. Kagome finally broke their kiss and looked into Chiyo's eyes, dark with desire. Kagome cupped Chiyo's cheek in her hand, which somewhat returned Chiyo to the present. As they looked into each other's eyes, they shared a flash of memory and began giggling, which quickly turned into laughter again. After several minutes of laughter, they flopped back on the bed and Kagome positioned Chiyo so she was spooning her.
"Chiyo-chan, besides me, is there any other cast member you find desirable?" Kagome softly asked in her ear.
Chiyo pondered the question and answered, "Kagome-chan, you know I desire you most, but if I had to choose another, it would be Suzumi-san or Hanazono-san."
"Why them?" Kagome asked.
"Suzumi-san, because if she can make Aoi-san roar like that, well…," Chiyo, remembering the sounds she heard coming from Nagisa's room, trailed off a bit and her voice took on a dusky tone, which Kagome immediately recognized.
"And Hanazono-san?" Kagome pressed, feeling a bit jealous.
"Hanazono-san for the obvious reasons…two to be exact," Chiyo laughed.
"Chiyo-chan! We're NOT supposed to objectify women!" Kagome scolded.
"Kagome-chan, I am well aware as women and especially as 'bians,' we're NOT supposed to objectify women, but it's just you and me right now," Chiyo defended her sexist behavior.
Kagome thought it over and in a sad resigned voice said, "I agree about Hanazono-san."
Upon hearing the tone in Kagome's voice, Chiyo picked up Kagome's hand which was resting on Chiyo's hip, and kissed the palm of her hand. Kagome smiled and kissed the side of Chiyo's neck.
"What about you Kagome-chan?" Chiyo asked.
"Minamoto-san," Kagome quickly responded.
"Why?" Chiyo asked trying to keep the jealousy out of her voice.
"She's beautiful and sexy," Kagome smiled broadly.
"I heard Minamoto-san and Toumori-san live together," Chiyo said unable to hide the jealousy in her voice.
"Chiyo-chan, I'm tired of this game. Can we go to sleep now?" Kagome yawned.
Chiyo reached down and covered them both. Kagome tightened her arm around Chiyo's waist and happily sighed. Chiyo leaned back into Kagome and quickly fell asleep.
Somewhere on the Ginza in Tokyo, Kagome's mobile phone chimed, letting her know a text message had arrived. She flipped it open and read:
The same goes for U & Minamoto-san. ILU. Chiyo
Kagome read the message and kissed the screen of her mobile phone before closing it.
Back on the set, Sakoi Masayuki was scratching his head in wonder as he watched Nagisa and Tamao deliver their lines.
'Am I in some parallel dimension? What happened between those two? One day Aoi-san is shoving Suzumi-san into the set door and today they are the best of friends,' Sakoi Masayuki shook his head as he thought. He was so lost in his own thoughts, he didn't notice the scene ended and he was being stared at by his cast and crew.
"NANI? Oh...CUT!" Sakoi Masayuki yelled to cast and crew.
From off the set, Chiyo waited and watched Nagisa and Tamao shoot their scene. She barely managed to keep her laughter and lust under control as she watched the two of them huddled close.
"Tsukidate-san, we're ready for you," Sakoi Masayuki's assistant said and touched Chiyo's arm, bringing her back to the present.
As she left her set chair, her mobile phone in her pocket vibrated twice quickly, letting her know a text message had arrived. She flipped it open and quickly read:
I have faith in U. Aishiteru, my love. Kagome
Chiyo quickly closed her mobile phone, smiled, took a deep breath, and knew she would do fine.
"ACTION!" Sakoi Masayuki yelled to cast and crew.
Chiyo was giving a flawless performance until she saw Miyuki. As soon as her eyes met Miyuki's she burst into a laughing fit that rivaled Yaya's.
"CUT!" Sakoi Masayuki yelled to cast and crew. 'What is wrong with my cast? Is someone handing out laughing gas?' he wondered. "Did you find something amusing Tsukidate-san?"
"Y…y…no Sakoi-sama," Chiyo barely got out between laughs.
"Aoi-san!" Miyuki softly growled through clenched teeth.
Several minutes passed and Chiyo wasn't showing any signs of getting her laughter under control. As Miyuki watched Chiyo's laughing fit, she could feel her anger building.
Miyuki finally reached critical. She stood, slammed both palms down on the table in front of her, and yelled, "Tsukidate-san! That is QUITE enough!"
She startled everyone on the set and scared Chiyo into silence.
"PLACES! ACTION! Sakoi Masayuki yelled to cast and crew.
They wrapped this scene and the next without any further incidents. As Nagisa, Tamao, Hikari, Yaya, and Tsubomi waited for the crew to finish setting up for the next scene, they sat around talking.
"Okuwaka-san, you're really seventeen?" Hikari asked incredulous.
"Yes I am Konohana-san. Why do you ask?" Tsubomi said.
"You just don't look it. Are you sure you're not more like thirteen?" Hikari asked.
Tsubomi, who has always been sensitive about not looking her age, was getting angry and her girlfriend Yaya sensed it. Yaya, who was standing behind Tsubomi with her chin resting on Tsubomi's shoulder, quickly wrapped her arms around Tsubomi and kissed the side of the younger girl's neck in hopes of defusing Tsubomi's anger. It worked like a charm
"Hikari-chan, how are your motivational exercises?" Yaya asked changing the subject as she suppressed her laughter.
Hikari stood silently blushing.
"Konohana-san? Konohana-san?" Nagisa repeated.
"I slept with Amane-san," Hikari quickly blurted out.
"NANI?" Yaya said as she repeatedly blinked in disbelief.
"Ootori-san? Heterosexual 'Gay for Pay' Ootori-san?" Nagisa asked incredulous.
"You're kidding, right?" Tamao asked.
"Ootori-san and you? Slept together? Like lovers?" Tsubomi asked.
"HAI!" Hikari said louder than she intended. She was clearly upset.
Yaya released Tsubomi and stood next to Hikari. She placed her hand on Hikari's shoulder.
"How?" Yaya asked softly.
Before Hikari could answer Yaya's question, the cast was called to take their places.
The remaining episode scenes wrapped smoothly and quickly, much to Sakoi Masayuki's amazement.
'I'm DEFINITELY in some parallel dimension,' Sakoi Masayuki told himself.
After the last scene wrapped, Nagisa, Tamao, Yaya, Tsubomi, and even Chiyo grabbed Hikari before she could escape.
"We can use my dressing room," Nagisa offered, but quickly changed her mind, "On second thought, let's use Hikari's. Mine is Tokyo Station at rush hour."
Hikari unlocked her dressing room door and motioned for everyone to enter first. All but Nagisa entered. Nagisa motioned for Hikari to enter before her, just to make sure Hikari didn't try to run. Yaya and Tsubomi comfortably cuddled on the couch. Tamao sat in the over-stuffed arm chair. Chiyo sat on the couch next to the lovebirds. Nagisa sat on the over-stuffed arm chair's arm. Hikari sat in her dressing table chair and felt the weight of the world upon her as ten eyes stared at her.
"Okay Hikari-chan, spill it and don't leave anything out," Yaya said.
"Sakoi-sama instructed Amane-san and me to stay close to the set for the early morning scene, so I chose to sleep in my dressing room. Apparently, Amane-san made a similar decision. I was so nervous I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk around the set. When I got to the gazebo, I found Amane-san there. She offered to share her blanket. One thing led to another and we ended up kissing in the gazebo. Not any of those peck-types either. I'm talking about full…deep…passionate kisses…," Hikari stopped when she heard Yaya giggling and glared at her friend.
"Gomen, please continue," Yaya apologized when she saw everyone glaring at her, including Tsubomi.
"Amane-san walked me back to my dressing room and kissed me good-night. I didn't want the night to end, so I pulled her into my dressing room…," Hikari stopped, wondering if she should continue or not.
"And?" Nagisa said impatiently.
"And we slept together," Hikari ended.
"No, no way. We want details," Yaya said.
Hikari deeply sighed and began, "After I closed and locked my dressing room door, I pulled Amane-san in for another kiss. She hesitated, but quickly gave in. While we were kissing, I fell back onto the couch and pulled her on top of me. Amane-san and I made love up until one hour before we were due on the set. For a self-professed heterosexual woman, she had some moves even I didn't know about. She's a VERY zealous lover," Hikari concluded.
Hikari unbuttoned the pajama top she was still wearing from the tea party scene and pulled it down just a bit to reveal several hickeys scattered all over and a few deep purple marks the other girls didn't recognize, on her shoulders.
"What are those?" Tsubomi asked as she pointed to the deep purple marks.
"Bruises," Hikari said and added, "I told you she is a VERY zealous lover."
"Ootori-san? A zealous lover?" Yaya asked incredulous.
"You can believe me or not Yaya-chan. It's your choice, but remember, still waters run deep," Hikari said.
As they all sat staring at Hikari, her dressing room door opened. Amane froze mid-stride with her hand still on the doorknob as she saw the crowd. She double-checked the name on the door and looked at Hikari, who still had her pajama top opened at the top and pulled down a bit. When Amane saw the marks, she quickly backed out and slammed the dressing room door closed.
"Amane-san!" Hikari yelled, lunge for the door, and opened it quickly.
Amane, who was leaning against the dressing room door, attempting to gather her wits about her, fell back into Hikari's arms.
"Amane-san, are you okay?" Hikari asked as she looked down at Amane and their eyes locked.
Before Amane could do or say anything, she found herself drowning once again in Hikari's big, bright blue-grey eyes that exuded warmth and a need. Amane involuntarily reached up, lovingly cupped Hikari's cheek, leaned up, and kissed Hikari. The ten eyes witnessing this widened as they watched the kiss deepen. Yaya was the first to motion to the others it was time for them to leave. All five women carefully stepped over the two lip-locked lovers in the dressing room doorway.
Nagisa and Tamao planned to go out to dinner, so Tamao followed Nagisa to her dressing room. As soon as Nagisa entered her dressing room with Tamao, she heard a familiar voice in the dark.
"Aoi-san, I thought I could trust you, but I was informed otherwise," Shizuma said from where she sat on the couch with her arms crossed across her waist.
Nagisa jumped and grabbed onto Tamao. She immediately fumbled for the light switch and turned it on. Shizuma was looking down at the floor.
"Hanazono-san, what are you talking about?" Nagisa asked. The genuineness of her tone told Shizuma the younger girl was truly surprised.
Shizuma slowly looked up at Nagisa. When she saw Tamao standing next to Nagisa, Shizuma rose slowly from her seat.
"Gomenasai Aoi-san, my mistake," was all Shizuma said to Nagisa.
"Suzumi-san," Shizuma said to Tamao as she brushed by her on the way out of Nagisa's dressing room.
Nagisa silently scolded herself for not locking her dressing room door.
"What was that all about?" Tamao asked still stunned by what just happened.
Nagisa grabbed her stuff, locked her dressing room door, and said, "Come on, I'll tell you over dinner."
Chiyo unlocked and entered her dressing room to find a wonderful surprise waiting for her.
"Kagome-chan!" Chiyo squealed and flew into Kagome's open arms.
"Chiyo-chan," Kagome managed to say before her lips were covered by Chiyo's.
Chiyo broke the kiss and asked, "What are you doing here? How did you ditch your mother"
"I told her I was sleeping over at your place tonight," Kagome smiled mischievously.
Chiyo flipped open her mobile phone and called her mother.
"Mother, I have an early morning shoot tomorrow, so I'm going to stay here tonight. Yes, there is plenty of security and my dressing room locks. Yes, I will be careful. Yes, I will call you tomorrow morning. Bye," Chiyo closed her mobile phone and smiled at Kagome.
Chiyo grabbed her stuff and locked her dressing room door. She slipped her arm into Kagome's and they left the set in search of food and the closest love hotel, not necessarily in that order.
In a Tokyo restaurant, Yaya was lost deep in her thoughts staring out the window at nothing in particular. Tsubomi felt like she was having dinner all by herself. Although Tsubomi tried and tried to bring Yaya back to the present, she was unsuccessful each time.
Tsubomi thought to herself, 'I could put a plate of snails in front of her right now and she'd probably eat it.'
A mischievous and slightly evil smile formed on Tsubomi's lips as she thought, 'We're not in a French restaurant, so snails are out, but we ARE in a Japanese restaurant.'
Tsubomi ordered a large bowl of Natto beans, Yaya's all-time least favorite food. When it arrived, Tsubomi mixed in every bit of wasabi she could scrounge on their table and placed the bowl in front of Yaya. Still looking out the window, Yaya plunged her chopsticks into the bowl, expecting Oyako Don. Tsubomi started in on her Teri Don, but watched Yaya intently from the corner of her eye. Yaya placed the chopsticks in her mouth, chewed, and swallowed the food. Yaya didn't react after several mouthfuls, so Tsubomi figured Yaya's mind convinced her she was eating Oyako Don and stopped watching.
"WHAT THE FUCK!" Yaya stood and yelled as she spit out the contents of her mouth.
Tsubomi didn't look up from her food, so Yaya knew who pulled this prank on her.
Yaya sat down and quietly told Tsubomi, "You do realize you're in VERY big trouble tonight and I will get my revenge?"
Tsubomi did not acknowledge hearing Yaya nor did she look up from her food. The slight shaking in Tsubomi's body was confirmation enough for Yaya.