Chapter Fifty-Five: Fax
Ash was awoken by seagulls squawking outside. The bright light shining in the windows and from the overhead light didn't help. Apparently, he and Eiji hadn't had enough wits about them to close the curtains or even turn off the light the night before. He felt strangely cold, only to realize Eiji had abandoned him and taken his blanket with him. Not that Ash had any memory of falling asleep. He only remembered he'd been quite happy the night before.
They had fallen asleep horizontally on the bed, feet hanging off slightly, with Eiji laying on Ash's bare chest. Now, Eiji was curled up like a cat by the headboard in a nest of pillows. All that poked out of his blanket was his head.
Ash's head pulsed with pain as he moved into a seated position. Across the room, he spotted an empty bottle of champagne and the bottle of mostly-full whiskey on the floor. His heart fluttered slightly in panic as he realized he was dressed only in his underwear, and Eiji's clothes from the previous night were scattered across the floor. Drunken Eiji was right; not knowing what transpired the night before made sober Ash quite uneasy.
His body ached, his head spun, and his sunburned skin felt too tight as he crawled to the top of the bed where Eiji lay curled up like a cat sleeping peacefully.
"Eiji," he nudged him. Eiji barely stirred. "Eiji," he repeated as he nudged him again.
Eiji groaned and threw the blanket over his head so that now none of his body was exposed. Ash nudged him again. Eiji made a small sound of annoyance but otherwise made no move to get up.
All Ash wanted to do in theory was weasel under the blanket with Eiji and fall back asleep, but now, his anxious brain wouldn't let him.
With his head spinning and aching, he stood. That's when he noticed it; Eiji's barely legible note from the night before.
AshWe didn't [have sex] looks that [way] but [we] didn't promise promise promise [I wanted] to [and I think you] did 2 [but we couldn't] brake the rools plz don't be [upset I'm telling the] truth I luv [you sosososososo much] I woodnt lie [I'm cold you're waiting for me] my head is [buzzing] bye [I'm going to bed]
Eiji Okumura
It took his tired brain three reads before he was able to translate it completely. But once he did, he couldn't help but chuckle as he imagined Eiji writing it with flaming red cheeks and dilated pupils and a slight sway to his step. He scanned the room for his phone because he just had to have a picture of it.
After a few minutes of searching, he realized his phone was most likely still in the pocket of his shorts. He checked it and sure enough, it was there, nearly dead from a night of not charging. He snapped a picture of Eiji's note. The note meant more to him than Eiji could know. It was goofy, but it showed respect and love.
He plugged his phone into the charger in the wall and climbed back in bed with Eiji. He lifted Eiji's blanket, eliciting a sleepy whine that stopped when Eiji realized Ash was simply joining him, rather than waking him.
"Yer feet are cold," Eiji complained, still half asleep.
"Cuz someone took all the fucking covers."
"Who would do such a thing?" Eiji joked sleepily.
"It's you, asshole." Ash nuzzled closer to Eiji, his cold nose pressing into Eiji's neck.
"Ah!" Eiji yelped. "You're so cold!"
Ash laughed, filling their blanket cave with warm air, and pulled away.
"But don't leave," Eiji whined.
Ash chuckled deeply and nestled closer once more. "Do you remember last night?" He asked, his voice still deep and gravely from sleep.
"Barely," Eiji answered. "You?"
"I remember you nearly drowning me in champagne but everything after that is a blur."
"I did that?"
"Spilled it all over me."
Eiji chuckled. "Ooops."
After a minute of quiet, Eiji rolled over to face Ash under the blanket. He reached out his hand and placed his palm against Ash's bare skin. "We didn't...did we?"
"No," Ash smiled and then yawned sleepily. "You wrote me a note, that's how I know."
"Oh my gosh, I did?"
"Yep. It was like deciphering code. Only more confusing."
"Poor us," Eiji scooted forward, head finding Ash's shoulder. "We probably wanted to so bad."
"Your note said we wanted to."
"Well," Eiji wrapped a leg over Ash's waist. "Nothing stopping us now."
Ash's palm found Eiji's hip. "Nothing stopping us now," he echoed with a smile forming on his lips.
Back in Izumo, Miyuki cursed as she looked in the guest bedroom's floor-length mirror. The pair of acid-wash jeans she ordered online were a size too big, even though the ones in her drawer at home, that were supposedly the same exact jeans, fit perfectly in a size two.
"What the fuck!?" She shouted into the mirror. Buddy lifted his sleepy head from the floor to see what was wrong. "Sorry," she told the dog through the reflection of the mirror.
She never cursed, before knowing Ash, her mother never allowed it. Now, Aki still scolded her, but there was never any heat to it. It was a motherly duty, nothing more. Everything Ash did seemed to get a golden pass. Miyuki was convinced he could sing a litany of curses right before her eyes and Aki would simply laugh and swat his shoulder.
Miyuki replaced the slightly too-big jeans with the leggings she had previously been wearing. She fished the return instructions out of the packaging. She had to go into her online account and print the shipping label herself. "What a drag," she muttered to herself. "Can't they just include one for me?"
She walked down the hall, Buddy instantly followed at her heels like the needy puppy he was. She tentatively opened the door to Ash's and Eiji's office. Inside, the once pristine place was now clearly well-used. There were two desks inside the humble-sized room. One was just a flat surface that was currently cluttered with mat boards, frames, and an array of photographs Eiji hadn't yet got to framing. The other desk housed a desktop computer and a printer with more buttons than a spaceship. She knew the ink alone likely cost more than the crappy printer she and Aki had at home. It was endearing, though, to know Ash bought such a nice printer so that Eiji could print high-quality photographs from the comfort of his own home.
The computer came to life as she wiggled the mouse. Password protected. Damn. All she wanted to do was print a shipping label and return her jeans.
She checked the desk drawer even though she was convinced Ash wasn't the type of person to leave a password lying around on a piece of paper. Knowing him, his computer likely contained important files of some sort. Stolen money and a faked death...there was likely more she didn't know about.
Her fingers hovered over the keys. What if his password was something super obvious like 'I love Eiji?' Maybe she could guess it.
No. Better not. He was also likely the type to get a notification if his password was entered wrong. If that was even a thing.
She checked the time. It was 1:32 PM, which meant it was 6:32 PM in Hawaii. She tapped her nails on the desk in thought. He was probably at dinner and wouldn't see a text until he and Eiji were back in their room...which could be hours, and the post office closed at 4. But he'd answer her call, she knew he would.
She took advantage of his protective spirit and called him.
It rang three times before he answered.
"Hey, what's up?" There were sounds of chatting voices and clinking silverware in the background. Her suspicions were correct, he and Eiji were at dinner.
The guilt in her stomach settled, at least he didn't sound anxious to be receiving her call. After all, she knew how he was, always expecting the worst.
"Um nothing much, I was just wondering if I could use your computer to print something."
There was a pause. The guilty feeling returned.
But then he sounded so calm when he finally answered. "What do you need to print?"
Shit. He suspected she wanted to snoop through his files. And could she even blame him? She already admitted to snooping through his room.
"I — look, it sounds stupid, but I ordered these jeans online and they don't fit and I just wanted to print a return label."
"Can't you— yes, thank you," she heard him say to someone else, likely a waiter bringing their food. "Can't you print it at your house?"
Miyuki glanced guiltily out the window. "Well, it's pouring rain here and I didn't exactly want to walk home right now. I was hoping it'd let up before I go mail this."
There was another pause.
"But— it's fine, it can wait."
"No, it's fine, it's fine. Just don't go lookin' through all my shit, okay?"
"Of course! I—"
"Don't say 'Of course!' like it's obvious. I know it will kill you not to snoop around through my files."
She blushed bright red. "It will...but I won't."
"Fine. Go ahead, use it."
"Well...can I...have the password?" She asked awkwardly.
"I don't say passwords over the phone. But it's taped to the underside of the keyboard." He made a mental note to change it when he got home.
"Isn't that kind of an obvious place?"
"Something told me to leave it for you before we left. Intuition, I guess."
"Oh. Well, thank you. I promise not to snoop."
"Good. Log out when you're done."
"I will!"
"Bye, Mi." With that, he hung up.
Miyuki set her phone on the desk and flipped the keyboard over.
'Chang Dai' the small scrap of paper read.
Miyuki stared at the words for a minute, trying to decipher what they meant. A quick google search didn't help. She shook her head and entered the password.
She kept to her word, strictly printing her label and then logging off. She grabbed her paper from the printer.
"Why did it print twice," she glared at the printer, "I thought you were expensive."
But the label hadn't printed twice. When she flipped to the second sheet, she realized it wasn't hers at all. It was a letter addressed to Ash. A fax actually, one that had printed the day after they left for their honeymoon, based on the date on the letter header.
Her legs buckled under her and she sank to the rug below her as her eyes began reading the letter. She promised not to snoop through his things...but this was an accident and her eyes seemed to be moving of their own accord.
Mr. Ash Okumura, Sorry for the delay in my response, I took some time off recently. Unfortunately, what you're asking of me is not exactly legal. As you know, same-sex couples are not allowed to adopt children in Japan, and, unfortunately, that extends to surrogacy as well. While some surrogates would be willing to lie on official documents, perhaps saying your wife is infertile, they are hard to come by. I, along with others, do not wish to risk our livelihood by breaking the law. The situation, however, is not hopeless, there are some options we can pursue. The first, and perhaps the most obvious, is seeking out another surrogate. As I said, many would not be willing to risk their livelihood for your request, but there are some who would. I happen to know one personally and I would be happy to pass her name onto you if this is the route you decide to take. She, however, is not of Asian descent and I understand that may be a deal-breaker for you. I would also be happy to ask around for you. It may take time, but I'm sure I could find someone who meets your criteria. The second option is to have children naturally. Allow me to explain. The law prohibits me to act as a surrogate for a same-sex couple. The law, however, does not prohibit me from having sex with a male who happens to be living with his roommate. And, by law, that's all you are anyway. Roommates. The law also does not prohibit me from giving birth in such a situation and letting the father raise the baby. I've done this once before for a client and I would be willing to do it again for you and your partner. I know it is not ideal, but your husband could be there and we could do everything on your terms. Again, not ideal, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I know you said money was no issue, but this option is also drastically cheaper than IVF. We could discuss it further if this is the route you choose to proceed with. Unfortunately, those are the only two viable options that come to mind at this moment. If I think of anything else, I will be sure to let you know. And if something comes to your mind, don't hesitate to reach out. I know this letter does not contain the answer you wanted but think on it. Take your time and consider the options. Reach out to me whenever you're ready. I look forward to speaking with you again soon. Sincerely, Yui SatoMiyuki read the letter with a gaping mouth three times before she was able to process it. She was glad this letter came as a fax rather than an email. Ash would have seen the email on his phone. If it brought tears to her eyes, she couldn't imagine what it would do to him. That's not something anyone wanted to deal with on their honeymoon. And the letter said the response was late...so he must have been expecting to receive it before he left...or maybe even before he was married.
She thought about what she would do if she were in his shoes. She'd probably go with option two. It was cheaper and not technically illegal. She thought of the gun he kept in his dresser drawer. The one he left for her to use. On second thought, legality was hardly a deal-breaker for Ash. And money was no object to the young multi-millionaire.
Sex on the other hand...well, Miyuki hardly knew all the details, but she was pretty sure it was something he only enjoyed with Eiji. She knew about the rape, abuse, and forced, and not so forced, prostitution. It had all been forced on him or done strategically for information so he could survive to see another day in the hell he was living. She didn't understand it completely, but she remembered when he told her his paraphrased life story. And she remembered bits and pieces of things he said to Eiji in her presence. Maybe he wouldn't even consider option two.
Or maybe he would. Maybe he'd consider it a necessary sacrifice. Maybe he'd involve Eiji, or let him be in the room, or...she shook her head and tried not to imagine her brother having sex.
"Ewww," she shivered and tried to think about anything else.
She crawled over to Buddy who was sleeping in the doorway of the office. She began to pet him lovingly. "Oh, Buddy, why is everything so complicated? Why can't they just adopt a baby like everyone else? We know they'd be good dads. I mean, look at you! Ash takes such good care of you! Imagine if you were a real human baby! He'd raise you so well…"
Buddy stared at her, cocking his head as she spoke to him as if he understood what she was saying. He pawed at her leg when she stopped petting him. Her hand returned to his fur.
"There has to be a third option, Buds...a better option. But if I think of it then Ash will know I saw his letter...but it's not like I tried to see it." She groaned and fell backward onto the floor. "UGH! Why is life so hard?!"
Something about the letter was bothering her. She sat and grabbed it again, rereading the first option. "Why did the surrogate have to be of Asian descent?" She asked aloud. She looked at Buddy who returned her questioning gaze.
"Ohhhhhh…" she said after a minute of thought. "He wants the baby to look like Eiji too...Ash's sperm...Asian eggs… that's about as close as they're gonna ge— unless... no… no, that could never work...right?"
"Mr. Okumura!" A woman called from the doorway of the front office. She had seen Ash and Eiji walking back to their room after the luau they attended that evening. It was Jen, the same woman who had seen them drunk the previous night. She ran to the front door upon seeing them and shouted for them.
Both Eiji and Ash responded to the name, turning to see who was calling them. She waved them over.
"I— uh— wanted to apologize for last night."
They stared at her with obvious confusion.
"Oh...perhaps you don't remember."
Ash spoke up, "Nnno, I don't think we do. Sorry for any trouble we—"
"Not at all. I wanted to apologize! You came here looking for more champagne because you said you spilled yours and neither of you realized there was a minibar in your suite. I called a security guard to escort you back to your room and…" she trailed off. It seemed like a good idea to flag them down, but now as she explained everything, she realized it was one of those things that was better in theory. "And well— I think I upset you—"
Ash nodded his head knowingly. "I freaked out over the word escort, didn't I?"
"Well… ye— yes," she replied awkwardly. "And I feel just awful about it—"
"It's not like you were trying to upset me. No harm done, I don't even remember." He really didn't remember, which made things worse. He hoped he hadn't reacted too strongly.
"Well, I really do feel just terrible all the same. And," she stepped inside the office again and gestured for them to follow her. "And on behalf of the resort, I'd like to offer you both a complimentary dinner at our finest restaurant and a voucher for a couple's massage and some snacks for your room." She handed them the vouchers for dinner and the massage, as well as a box of chocolate-covered strawberries, a bottle of wine, and a tin of gourmet popcorn.
Ash tried not to laugh at the irony of how much it would kill him to endure a couple's massage. She didn't know. How could she know?
"Thank you," Eiji replied for them both. "That is very kind."
"And if there's anything else you need, please don't hesitate to reach out!"
Ash bowed slightly as he would have in Japan. "Thank you. Sorry for any trouble we caused while we were drunk."
She chuckled, "It was actually quite entertaining. The night shift gets quite dull. And you were such lovely drunks." She chuckled again, "You were so happy to tell me your name was Okumura," she told Ash. "It was actually quite refreshing...to see people in love."
"But this is a resort...surely you see couples on their honeymoon all the time," Eiji said.
"Like I said, it was refreshing."
Eiji pondered her words as they walked back to their suite. He couldn't imagine marrying someone he didn't love. He couldn't imagine settling for anyone who wasn't Ash. He nearly tripped Ash as he suddenly wrapped his arms tightly around his waist.
"What?"
"Wanna do that couple's massage?" He teased, instead of saying what was actually on his mind.
"Hmmm let me think… Yeah, no...I'd rather set my skin on fire."
"Awww, really? I thought you'd love it." Eiji poked his side, "And then we could eat natto after?"
"Hardy-har-har."
"What? I'm serious!"
They carried on, chatting, joking, and teasing as they made their way back to their suite in paradise. Ash shoved Eiji a bit too hard and sent him stumbling off the path. Once Eiji regained his footing, he returned the favor, although Ash never wavered more than a foot out of line. From the eyes of any onlooker, they were very obviously two idiots, madly in love.