Second Serenade: Chapter 40

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That night, Kakegawa had a shoot and wasn’t expected home before 11 at the earliest. Waraiishi knew that—and still headed to Kakegawa’s apartment. The lights were on. He confirmed that the infamous Hashimoto was home.

Waraiishi took a deep breath and pressed the intercom. On the second ring, Hashimoto appeared. When he saw Waraiishi’s face, his expression turned wary.

“Huh? Kakegawa’s not here.”

Hashimoto snorted.

“He went out for a night shoot. Shouldn’t you know that, being his manager? What kind of training does your agency give you?”

Say one thing, and he’ll return ten. Waraiishi was overwhelmed right from the start. But he couldn’t afford to falter here. He took a step forward.

“That’s odd. I thought there weren’t any shoots scheduled for tonight.”

At that, Hashimoto’s shoulder gave a visible twitch.

“Maybe it’s a date. Well, even if it’s just you, would you mind hearing me out for a bit?”

“I…"

“Mind if I come in?”

It was part of the plan, sure—but he was also genuinely curious what the apartment of two men living together looked like. Inside was much tidier than he’d expected. Hashimoto turned off the computer screen on the desk.

Kakegawa’s lover wore a black T-shirt and jeans. Just standing there silently, he was still stunning—his face almost dazzlingly symmetrical and beautiful.

“So, what do you want? I’m working right now. If you could make it quick…”

Waraiishi held back from saying, You? Working? While unemployed?

“Nothing major. Just wanted to pass along a change in tomorrow’s schedule. The filming location’s been switched from Minamiyama Studio to Ikukawa Studio, and they’ll be shooting scenes 39 to 98 instead. Could you make sure he knows to memorize those parts? Man, Kakegawa-kun really is something else.”

“What do you mean?”

Hashimoto smoked a cigarette right in front of Waraiishi. Even that looked frighteningly natural on him.

"He's just a supporting character, but he's really standing out. Well, I figured that from the start. The director remembers his name and is fond of him. He's getting more screen time too. And since he's got a good personality, he gets along well with the filming crew."

"Hmm."

The response was completely indifferent.

"As his older brother, you must be proud, right?"

"Ridiculous. Is that all you came to say?"

"There are girls who come just to watch him on set. Even some young rookie actresses are paying attention to him, and it sounds like they're often going out together. It's gotten so frequent that one of the managers of the actresses told us to stop taking them out so much. Haha, it’s kind of a problem."

Hashimoto’s already irritated expression began to stiffen further. He didn’t seem like the type to hide his emotions well.

"Could you talk to him too? Ask him to dial it back a bit. You know how it is—coming from me, it might sound too harsh."

"That’s his own business."

Hashimoto barked, and Waraiishi simply shrugged.

"Come on now. He’s still just getting started, and things like this can cause trouble."

Hashimoto fell silent. Waraiishi had thrown in the spark. From here, it would unravel naturally. He could stir the pot a bit more later, once the time was right.

"Well, I’ll leave it at that. Please take care of the schedule arrangements."

In the end, not even a cup of tea was offered. Waraiishi stood up and left the apartment, feeling triumphant in front of the silent Hashimoto.

He’d been surprised when Kakegawa called to say he couldn’t come to work that day. The filming had been going smoothly. There hadn’t been any trouble so far, so with the phone in hand, Waraiishi had shouted:

"What are you talking about? You’ve got a lot of scenes today! You can’t just not come—"

"It’s serious."

Kakegawa’s voice was strained and desperate.

"What’s going on? Did someone in your family…?"

"Hashimoto-san is gone."

Kakegawa muttered it, barely audible.

"What? That’s it?"

Waraiishi let out a sigh of relief. He’d dropped that spark with Hashimoto just yesterday. The guy had reacted perfectly—almost too perfectly.

"Hashimoto-san’s never disappeared without saying anything before. Something’s definitely wrong."

"You really shouldn’t miss work over personal matters like that."

The call abruptly cut off. Waraiishi was taken aback by Kakegawa’s uncharacteristically rude behavior. Was he really not going to work? Kakegawa was stubborn once he made up his mind. Waraiishi made a U-turn and headed for Kakegawa’s apartment.

…Kakegawa was there. When Waraiishi pressed the intercom, he rushed outside, and when he saw who it was, his face fell in obvious disappointment.

"Still not back?"

Kakegawa nodded. Seeing his tearful expression, Waraiishi was suddenly reminded that the man in front of him was still just a twenty-year-old boy.

"He hasn’t been home since last night…"

"Maybe he went back to his parents’ place?"

"He can’t. Hashimoto-san’s come out to them."

Kakegawa said it plainly, without hesitation.

"Maybe he got in an accident somewhere… I couldn’t sleep thinking about it…"

His eyes were red. Maybe noticing Waraiishi’s gaze, Kakegawa quickly rubbed at them.

"Are my eyes swollen?"

"A little."

Kakegawa gave a sheepish smile. After that, his gaze dropped to the floor.

"What should I do… If something happened to Hashimoto-san, I…"

The cell phone on the low table started ringing, and Kakegawa leapt for it. After a few brief words from the caller, the call was cut. Kakegawa’s cries of “Director, Director,” echoed pointlessly into the air. Finally, he hung up.

"He’s at the director’s place… I’m going to go get him."

Waraiishi wanted their relationship to fall apart—but right now, he just wanted Kakegawa to get back to work. He tightened his grip on his car keys.

"I’ll drive. Since you found him, you can go straight to the set afterward."

Kakegawa looked like that was the last thing on his mind, but he gave a small nod.

The man whom Kakegawa called “the director” lived at the far end of a run-down shopping arcade. It was a battered old boarding house that had easily seen more than fifty years. When Kakegawa knocked on the door of the corner unit on the first floor, the warped wood creaked loudly as it opened. A scruffy, unshaven man appeared. His face looked vaguely familiar.

“Yo.”

The man gave Kakegawa a toothy grin. Sensing the man’s gaze shift toward him, Waraiishi hurriedly bowed his head.

“Who’s this guy?”

He pointed at himself as he spoke.

“He’s my manager,” Kakegawa replied.

“I’m Waraiishi. Nice to meet you.”

“Ah, I see.”

The man swung the door wide open. The back of his T-shirt was plastered with an obnoxiously large designer logo. He had a gaudy, tasteless look about him—the director—and at last, the man’s name surfaced in Waraiishi’s mind. This guy had to be Yamaoka Hajime.

Yamaoka shoved his fingers into his wild hair and gave it a vigorous scratch.

“That punk barged in here yesterday and said he didn’t want to go home, so I let him stay the night. I could’ve kicked him out, but he flashed a bottle of booze at me like a peace offering.”

Deep in the dingy room, a curled-up shape lay on the bed.

“We were drinking until morning, so he’s still asleep. You should take him home soon. He’s a damn loudmouth when he wakes up. First thing he did was start yelling about how filthy this place is. If you’re gonna bitch about it, don’t come here in the first place.”

Kakegawa kicked off his shoes and rushed over to the bed, finally looking relieved.

“He’s a rude, stuck-up bastard, but the fact that he got so jealous he couldn’t stand it and ran all the way here… I mean, it’s kind of cute, right? Though it’s a bit weird he came to me of all people. Doesn’t he have any other friends?”

“For someone like Hashimoto-san, it’s good he’s got someone like you he can really argue with. And despite appearances, I think he actually likes you quite a bit.”

The director tilted his head with a troubled expression.

“Oh yeah. He was bitching nonstop about how you lied about having work, or that you’re cozy with some actress. But man, he’s an idiot. Just look at you—he should know you wouldn’t pull something like that. Even with all the pampering you give him, this old guy still isn’t satisfied.”

Kakegawa chuckled a little and pulled the sheet off Hashimoto. Apparently already awake, Hashimoto hurriedly clutched the sheet to cover himself. Since he’d crawled into bed fully dressed, his shirt and everything else were all crumpled. Ignoring his protests, Kakegawa pulled him up and sat him on the bed.

“Good morning, Hashimoto-san.”

Hashimoto kept his head down and refused to look up. Kakegawa took his face in both hands and kissed him. Waraiishi’s eyes widened at the sudden move, while the director clicked his tongue in irritation.

“Do that crap back at home. Don’t go showing me weird shit first thing in the morning.”

Kakegawa didn’t seem to hear him. He firmly clasped Hashimoto’s hand.

“We’re going to work now. And you’re coming with me, Hashimoto-san.”

“Why do I have to go? I’m not going! Absolutely not!”

Hashimoto shook his head, nearly in tears.

“I don’t know who told you I was getting close with someone else, but if you’re so worried, then just come and watch me. Follow me around all day. Keep an eye on me so no ‘bad bugs’ can cling to me. Come on, do it.”

“I don’t want to…”

Kakegawa kissed him again.

“Show some guts. Put your foot down and tell the world you’re not letting anyone else have me.”

He gently stroked Hashimoto’s hair and pulled him into an embrace, full of affection. Just as things were settling into a sweet moment, the director’s gravelly voice rang out, fed up.

“Take him the hell home already, will you? Don’t bring your damn lover’s quarrel into my house, goddammit!”

◇:-:◆:-:◇

Kakegawa brought Hashimoto to the studio. Although Waraiishi was extremely reluctant, he had no choice—Kakegawa insisted he wouldn’t go to work otherwise. Waraiishi was at his wit’s end with this man who turned insufferably selfish whenever Hashimoto was involved.

As soon as they arrived at the studio, Kakegawa handed Hashimoto a folding chair—who knew where he’d gotten it from—and sat him down. Then, during breaks between his scenes, Kakegawa would come over to dote on his lover so excessively it made Waraiishi want to cover his eyes.

With a face beautiful enough to hold his own even among a hand-picked cast of actors, Hashimoto was often mistaken for a new actor himself. Once people realized he was an outsider, they would discreetly hand him business cards from their agencies. But Waraiishi had seen Hashimoto tear those cards into tiny pieces once the person was out of sight.

“You lied to me.”

Sitting in his chair watching the shoot, Hashimoto murmured without looking at Waraiishi, who stood beside him. Waraiishi feigned ignorance, though inwardly he flinched.

“I have no idea what you mean.”

“You knew about me and Kakegawa, didn’t you? And you deliberately said that to provoke me. You’re despicable. Because of you, I ended up showing a side of myself I didn’t want anyone to see.”

Breaking into a cold sweat on the inside, Waraiishi only shrugged.

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about…”

Hashimoto crossed his long legs.

“He does whatever I tell him to. If I told him to quit acting, he’d walk away from it today without a second thought. There were plenty of other agencies that wanted him. It doesn’t have to be yours.”

“Hey now, listen here…”

Waraiishi’s face paled. Hashimoto smiled coolly.

“You pissed me off. I hope you were ready for the consequences.”

Who the hell does this brat think he is? Waraiishi thought, but deep down he felt the future he’d envisioned begin to waver—the dream of grooming an actor who would make it on the world stage.

“Hold on, let’s talk this out…”

Hashimoto snorted through his nose. Waraiishi resisted the urge to strangle that slender neck of his.

“Well, depending on how you behave from now on, I might be willing to reconsider. Kakegawa seems to like you, after all.”

“I’m sorry… about earlier.”

“Hmph. If you want Kakegawa so badly, then don’t ever come near me again.”

Turning his back on Hashimoto, Waraiishi ground his teeth. That guy is a cancer on Kakegawa Susumu’s promising career. One day, I’ll make sure they break up, he vowed silently.

“Hey, go get me a coffee.”

A snide voice called out behind him. When he turned around, Hashimoto was pursing his lips and saying loudly, syllable by syllable, “CO-FF-EE.”

“I want a coffee. The unsweetened kind.”

Feeling like he might cry, Waraiishi ran off to the vending machine. When he came back with the coffee in hand, he spotted a girl sidling up to Hashimoto. If he remembered right, she was a new actress who had debuted this year.

“Hello.”

She was a cute girl who’d already made a name for herself in commercials. Waraiishi stopped in his tracks.

“Are you Kakegawa-kun’s friend?”

“More or less.”

Hashimoto smiled sweetly.

“If you’re his friend, maybe you’d know—does Kakegawa-kun have a girlfriend? He won’t tell me.”

“He does. I’ve heard he’s dating a real beauty.”

Hashimoto said it as smoothly as if it were the truth.

“He has a girlfriend, huh… Oh well, that’s fine. Say, could you give me Kakegawa-kun’s phone number?”

Hashimoto let out such an exaggerated sigh that the girl tilted her head in confusion.

“Wouldn’t it be better to ask him directly? Not that I think he’d give it to you. His type is more of the ‘pure and innocent’ kind.”

A slight shadow crossed the girl’s face. But Hashimoto paid it no mind.

“Hey, isn’t your makeup a little heavy? And for all that, your pores are kind of noticeable. Do you even take care of your skin? Skincare is just ba-sic knowledge for girls, you know?”

The face of the commercial idol instantly contorted into a mask of fury.

“You’ve got no right to say that to me!”

She stormed off in a huff. For some reason, Waraiishi felt a sense of relief. Realizing that Hashimoto’s sharp tongue wasn’t reserved just for him gave him a strange sense of reassurance.

When Hashimoto noticed Waraiishi, he yelled, “You’re late!” He snatched the coffee from Waraiishi’s hand and downed it in one go.

He’s a strange one, Waraiishi thought. With that kind of mouth, he’s probably surrounded by enemies.

“What are you staring at?”

Hashimoto glared at him and muttered.

“Nothing, really.”

Waraiishi had no idea what Kakegawa had felt when he fell for this guy… but he found himself becoming a little curious about this man named Hashimoto.

“You’ve got quite the personality, don’t you, Hashimoto-san?”

“So what?”

He replied flatly. That self-aware response struck Waraiishi as so unexpectedly funny that he burst into loud laughter in the corner of the studio.

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