From Japan to San Fran

I am wondering if a few of my readers are Anime fans. If so, they might see a nod & a wink towards the names of some popular characters from a few series. It is purely intentional and a great big "Chi" to all of you who enjoy this work. For those who aren't fans, don't worry – you're not missing anything that will detract from your enjoyment of the story. ~~BrettJ

For the first time in 2 years, Hideki Motosuwa woke up in a room that was not his private room in "the facility" or a room he shared with 4 others or even his room at his small apartment. The sun was streaming in the window and he could hear the noises from the street below. They were happy, joy-filled noises and for the first time in a long time, Hideki felt an emotion he had not enjoyed in some time – calm.

He liked San Francisco. He had only been there two days and its comfortable charms were winning him over. There was no pressure to conform, like there had been back in Japan. Here, Hideki could be himself. Now, all he had to do is figure out exactly who that someone was.

In Japan, he had been an "everyman", hiding in his cubicle, a one-time NEET with little hope for a bright future. Even Hideki himself had no sense of how that had been eroding away at his soul until they were carting him out of the office in a straight jacket. He was told lately that he had been dancing on his desk, singing the songs of a local Tokyo Pop artist with rather suggestive new words added. He didn't remember that, even now that was still a blank.

His parents came to see him and the shame in their faces was evident. It made his recovery all the harder, because he wasn't motivatedto. Why should he return to a job he despised and continue to disappoint his family? Hideki stayed in his room at the facility, rarely interacted with the other patients and progress seemed haltingly slow. His parents despaired the he might not get well for some time to come because he wasn't trying to get well.

It was his twin sister who proved to be Hideki's salvation. She heard of his predicament and her heart went out to him. Hisako knew that her brother would never be happy living in a restrictive culture like Japan, so she picked up the phone and spoke with her brother for a number of hours, listening to his woes in a way that no one had before. "As soon as you are well," She told her brother "I want you to come and live with me in San Francisco. Perhaps away from our parent's watchful eyes, you can become the person that you are meant to be."

Hideki's mood brightened and his attitude began to change that very day. He knew his sister's words had the ring of truth, for she herself had moved to San Francisco 5 years earlier after revealing her lesbianism to their disapproving parents. Every phone call he got from Hisako was bright and cheerful; she was not the glum, dour girl that had left Japan almost 5 years prior.

To further assure her brother's progress, Hisako called every other day. The doctors were amazed at his quick progress. He was interacting with others, he attended all of his therapy sessions, he was working hard to achieve a goal. His parents were pleased, happy that he would soon be able to re-enter society. Hideko had no intention of telling them the society he planned to enter was not in Japan.

When Hideki was released, he went home to his apartment. He didn't want to stay there a day longer than he had to, it was so tiny, so depressing, so ...practical. He settled things with his landlord and began packing up his things, doing most of it in secret. He had some vacation time coming so he didn't return to work, he had no intention of going back to that repressive environment. He kept his intentions a secret from the few friends that he had, knowing that many of them would try to talk him out of it. He had to do this thing. He needed to give this new life a chance. When all the arrangements were done, he sent a letter to his parents and the very next day, boarded a flight to San Francisco. Hisako told him she was looking forward to their reunion, they had not seen each other since she left years earlier. It was far too long for siblings who had once been so close.

Hideki enjoyed the experience of the airplane ride. He had been saving his money for years, anxious to take a vacation to somewhere – to anywhere – that would get him out of Japan. In the eyes of his countrymen, Hideki was just another one of millions. In another country, he would be interesting, exotic, a stranger in a strange land! He knew he was being silly, but for once in his life, he wanted to stand out from the crowd and not be just one of the throng.

The young woman who met Hideko at San Francisco International Airport was not someone he would have recognized at first. Gone were her perennial page boy hair cut, dark clothing and Doc Martens. This Hisako had long, dark flowing hair and was wearing a dress that hugged her shape nicely. She was wearing attractive makeup and high heels and looked very feminine. It was a welcome change and provided Hideki with the first of many smiles that would cross his face while living in America.

"I am so glad that you will be living with me," Hisako said to him in Japanese.

"You can speak English, you know," He smiled. "I was at the top of our class."

"I had forgotten that," Hisako smiled, hugging him again. "I'm going to do everything I can to make your stay here a happy one, I promise."

"I hope I can be as happy as you, you look wonderful and a lot more feminine than the last time I saw you," Hideki complimented her.

"That would be Yuri's doing," Hisako smiled again.

"Who is Yuri?"

"That would be me."

A very lovely young woman appeared as if out of nowhere. She stood a bit taller than his sister, around 5'8", Hideki would have estimated. She was wearing a snug pair of blue jeans and her hair was a lovely shade of auburn. She was also in heels and smiling. Hideki looked at Yuri and smiled.

"I'm Yuri Ito, Hisako's roommate," The young woman grinned as she held out her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Hisako has been waiting a long time to see her twin brother again."

Hideki wondered if "roommate" might also mean "girlfriend" but Yuri abused him of that notion as they went to the parking area to get Yuri's car. "We tried being girlfriends, but decided that we worked better as friends," Yuri explained. "Your sister says that I'm too high-maintenance."

Hideki still possessed some Japanese reserve, so he didn't ask a lot of questions, however, Yuri continued to volunteer answers. "I'm Japanese-American, although my mother was born in Kyoto, my father was born here and so was I. I've lived in Hawaii, Los Angeles and now here," Yuri told Hideki. "I'm going to continue to live here, I find as a bohemian, bi-sexual sculptor, I can be free to be myself in San Francisco," She giggled sweetly.

Hideki liked this girl and he was ready to learn more about her as they made their way to his new home. As before, he didn't have to ask Yuri anything, his new roommate-to-be was a bit of a chatterbox.

"I met your sister in art class, we were both in figure studies," Yuri told him. "We were sitting side-by-side and I commented that I thought the model was really hot. Hisako laughed and said she had been thinking the same thing. We kept whispering all throughout the class, I think we annoyed the teacher. After, we went for coffee and I found out that she was living in a dingy little place. As my girlfriend and I had broken up and I had a 3-bedroom loft all to myself, I invited her to move in with me. Like I said, we tried the girlfriend thing, but it didn't work out – no biggie. She's still my best friend, even if she does keep stealing all my lingerie."

"Nyah," Hisako said, sticking out her tongue. "It's all your fault, I blame you. Who was the one that told me I was very pretty and should be wearing feminine clothes? Who was the one that took me to Victoria's Secret and turned me on to all those pretty clothes? It's totally your fault Yuri, I can't help it if your sculptures outsell my paintings so you have more money to buy those things," Hisako teased.

The three roommates rode the old-style freight elevator up to their apartment. Hideki gasped when he saw his new residence, he had never seen so much free space in all his life. Everything was beautifully decorated; there was art everywhere and living plants, even a skylight. Already he felt his mood lightening and his spirits becoming freer.

"About those art classes you mentioned," Hideki asked the girls "Would it be possible for me to take them as well?"

"Are you an artist too?" Yuri asked him.

Hisako answered for her brother. "Oh yes, we have that in common. He's much better than I am; he used to do the most beautiful portraits until our parents insisted he pursue his studies in business. I'll make some inquiries and I'm sure we can get you in."

"That would be wonderful and once I settle in, I'll start looking for a job," Hideki said. It was then that he noticed the large grins on the faces of both his new roommates.

"You didn't tell him?" Yuri asked.

Hisako shook her head. "I thought I'd wait until we both could tell him." She faced her brother. "Yuri's family has a lot of money, in fact, they own this building. She's also becoming rather successful as a sculptor and my paintings are starting to sell, too. We have the same agent and we both have a fair bit of money in the bank. You won't need to work for a little while if you don't want to, you need to rest and enjoy life for a bit. If you want to help, you can do some laundry and cook and things like that – we're both sick to death of take out," Hisako laughed.

"Although to be honest, San Francisco has wonderful takeout," Yuri snickered.

"Yes, it does," Hisako laughed as she hugged her astonished brother. Hideki could barely manage to tell the girls how grateful he was and promised to do his share. Over the next several months, he began settling in. He loved the neighborhood and was making new friends. He felt as if he had come home and was certain that he would never return to Japan again to live. He had found his sanctuary in the United States with his sister and their friend.

Hideki took his new life to heart. Yuri and his sister took him shopping and bought him a new wardrobe. They insisted, telling him that he still looked too Japanese. "Arigato," Hideki smiled as he put on his first-ever pair of blue jeans. He started running and exercising and gained a bit of weight, a good percentage of it being muscle. He laughed a lot more and began using American idioms, although he liked the evenings at home where he and Hisako would still occasionally speak Japanese. Yuri was constantly asking them to do that more, hers was rusty.

They did manage to get him in to the art classes and he sped through them. The teacher praised his technique and his use of color and his fine eye for detail. The other students flirted with him, yet he didn't flirt back. He didn't understand why, some of the American girls were very pretty and he wasn't totally shy by nature. There was something holding him back and he didn't know what it was. Until he knew, he didn't think it would be right to date someone he wasn't that interested in.

One evening, Hisako and Yuri invited their agent over to dinner. Hideki was quite taken with Anne Williams, a tall, boisterous 30-year old redhead with an infectious laugh. Hisako and Yuri teased Hideki by flaunting their checks in his face. He nearly choked on his Sake. He had barely made that much money the entire previous year and this was for only a few pieces of art!

"These girls are very talented," Anne smiled as she looked around the apartment. She spotted a large, half-finished canvass in the corner of the room and went over to inspect it closely. It was a beautiful nude portrait of a young, attractive black woman. "This is a stunning piece of work Hisako, although it looks nothing like your usual work," Anne told her client.

"That's because it isn't mine, it's Hideki's," Hisako smiled as she indicated her brother. "He's far more skilled at portraiture than I am, he's been taking classes almost since he got here."

Anne was surprised and she turned to Hisako's twin. "If you finish this, I can sell it, I guarantee it," She told him. "You've got talent, real talent and you just saw the money I made for the girls and that isafter I've taken my commission. Would you be interested?"

Hideki took a good drink and looked up at her with an astonished face. "You really think I'm good enough to be a professional?"

"Absolutely," Anne told him. "I have a feeling your roommates think so too, I'll bet you that's why I got invited to dinner instead of them coming to pick up their checks. Let's have some dessert and talk, ladies, you're both very naughty women."

"Since when hasthat bothered you?" Hisako smiled, kissing Anne full on the mouth. When she saw her brother looking at them, she laughed uproariously. "Oh that's right, I've never told you. Anne is also my girlfriend, I met her about two months after Yuri and I ended it."

Hideki couldn't believe all of this, but he kept in good spirits and laughed.

"We'd be keeping it in the family if you allowed me to represent you," Anne smiled. "Hideki, how long would it take you to finish that painting and allow me to exhibit it in my gallery?"

"About 2 weeks," He said. "You can exhibit it Miss Williams ..."

"Anne."

"Anne ... you can exhibit it, I'm sure that will be alright, but you can't sell it. The young woman in the painting is one of the models for our class and she saw the work and asked if she could buy it from me as a gift to her husband for their 1st wedding anniversary. Of course, I was honored by her request and told her I would make a gift of it to her," He explained.

"That's a lovely gesture Hideki, let me just say that a painting of that size would sell for a lot of money ... a lot," Anne told him. "Can you paint another one quickly? I have a show in about 6 weeks," She asked.

Hideki sighed. "I'm sure I could under normal circumstances, but the classes have ended for the next little while and don't resume until the fall," He told Anne. "I don't have a model."

"Damn, what a shame," Anne said. "I know I could sell a painting of this quality, I'm certain of it."

"I can model for you," Yuri said as she came in from the kitchen with their dessert. "I've done it before, that's what I did before I became interested in sculpting. I'd be willing, that is, if you wouldn't be uncomfortable, Hideki," Yuri said, sitting down beside him.

Hideki looked at her pretty face and her dark eyes, the sweet smile and her legs that were tucked up under her. He looked at his friend and knew that she would make a wonderful model and like a bolt of lightning, another revelation hit him. He knew why he hadn't responded to any of the other women that were flirting with him.

He had fallen in love with Yuri.

Somehow, over the past few months, without his even knowing it, Yuri had wormed her way into his heart. It was ridiculous because she was his sister's ex and his dear friend, yet there it was – he was crazy about her. She was everything he needed and wanted in a woman and she was so sexy. He was sometimes driven crazy by the fact that both she and Hisako would wander around in scanty bits of lingerie and bedroom slippers. He didn't pay attention to his twin, but when Yuri did it, he always found himself looking.

Always.

He wondered how he was going to control himself if he was supposed to paint a nude portrait of this stunning young woman.

"Well Hideki – what do you think?" Anne asked. "You have your model, do you think you could finish the two paintings in time for a showing?"

He looked over at Yuri, who was smiling sweetly, oblivious to the temptation she was placing in front of him. It was a lot of money ... a LOT ... which would enable him to contribute to the household at last.

"Yes," He nodded, pushing his fears down. "I believe I can accomplish that and thank you for the opportunity."

"Thank you as well," Anne smiled at him. "It's always nice to have an opportunity to make more money. Oops, look at the time – I have to be getting home."

"You're not staying?" Hisako looked at her girlfriend plaintively.

"Don't give me that look, you naughty girl," Anne laughed. "I have meetings in the morning and the next day after. We can spend all of Saturday at my place, it'll give Hideki and Yuri some privacy, maybe he can work up some sketches," She suggested.

Hideki had simply sketched and then painted Donna, the model in the portrait. He hadn't put a lot of thought into the work because it was just an assignment for his class, although he had taken it a step further. For his debut painting, he knew he wanted to do something unique and as he looked at Yuri, an inspiration came to him. He would paint her in a pin-up style, something like Vargas or Elvgren. He would dress her in vintage lingerie and give her exotic beauty the showcase it truly deserved. He felt his pulse racing and Hideki dearly hoped he could rein in his passion and put it on the canvass, where it belonged. He said his goodbyes to Anne and sat on the couch across from his sister and Yuri.

"Wow, he's here just a few months and already, he's upstaging us," Yuri commented.

Hideki started to say something but his sister laughed and swatted her friend on the arm. "Relax Hideki," She told her twin. "Yuri's just busting your chops, you should know that by now."

"You really have become an American," Hideki smiled at her usage of the idiom.

"You betcha!" Hisako laughed as she and Yuri put the dishes away. Hideki hoped he could make all of this work out, it was important to him to make the girls proud of him and it was a matter of honor. He promised himself that he would do whatever it took to make his portrait of Yuri as beautiful as the woman herself – even thought the greatest of painters might have fallen short on that task.

That night, he found he couldn't sleep, so he got out his pads and some charcoal and sketched her lovely face from memory. With every line he put on paper, even at this early point, Hideki put a piece of his soul into the work. This was the most passionate he had been about anything in his entire life and he owed it to Hisako and to Yuri to make his debut devastating.

When Yuri saw the bleary-eyed artist in the morning, she was about to scold him for not getting enough sleep until she saw his drawings. She couldn't find the words. "These are wonderful, you've made me look so – so beautiful!" Yuri gushed as Hisako walked into the kitchen and started preparing coffee.

"They're not as beautiful as you," Hideki said and then he caught himself. "I meant to say – I haven't done you justice, they're just some preliminary drawings, I can do better."

Hisako went into the living area and winked at her brother. As twins, they had often been able to anticipate each other's thoughts and emotions. Did she know how he felt about her best friend? Would she care that every waking thought he now had was consumed by Yuri and likely would be over the next few weeks?

In class later that day and the following, he was able to add a lot more to the portrait of Donna. With the advent of Saturday, he put it aside. Hisako left early for her weekend with Anne, leaving him and Yuri alone. Hideki had everything all set up, a chair for her to pose in and the skylight left them lots of natural light. He was about to call for Yuri when she emerged from her bedroom. She was wearing a red silk kimono that was loosely draped around her. Her hair was perfect, not a strand out of place. She wore heels that were in keeping with the theme Hideki intended to portray, a mysterious lady of the East. She walked to the chair with a simple grace and let the kimono fall partially open. He gasped at her exquisite beauty and began sketching. She held the pose and over 2 hours passed without a word exchanged. Hideki felt as if he was on fire, but he drew like a madman before declaring he needed a break for some coffee.