Chapter 33
Denny’s lawyer is a true miracle worker, as he was able to get the charges dropped from Nicky’s case.
Gene sure is thankful, as now he won’t have to worry if Nicky can come with them to Europe for the next tour.
No charges means no holds barred—he’s free to go wherever he likes.
Apparently the lawyer was able to convince the judge that the weed Nicky had in his jacket pocket could mayhaps belong to someone else.
One can’t exactly prove the jacket he was wearing actually belonged to Nicky; he may have simply borrowed it, and the dope could’ve been planted.
The weed was found elsewhere in the house, and if it was in the jacket too, it might as well also belong to the house owner.
There was no paper trail to prove that any weed in his pocket was bought and paid for.
Furthermore, Nicky is making a name for himself working with the Dusty Brooms—there are fans waiting for him to perform, to record, to meet him even.
He has a prolific life to look forward to; he can’t waste his time sitting around in jail for something so small that may not even be his fault.
And so, Nicky gets to come home with the Brooms when they head back to Michigan at the end of the week.
But… so does Toshiko.
She had a productive week with Yasuhiro in LA, booking their own studio time to record a demo for a new English single: the song Gene wrote for her.
They pitched the demo to her American label, posed in multiple photo ops, sat down for interviews, looked at sales numbers and negotiated things—all which Gene is proud of her for doing in such a short amount of time.
But once done, she returned to be with Gene.
The bustling week of intimacy and music with Ray is gone.
It was nice while it lasted. But he knows he can’t have it forever.
Toshiko is none the wiser of what happened between them, not having a clue that Ray stayed in his room every night.
No, she simply flies back to Michigan with them as happy as can be that she can finally spend more time with her boyfriend.
Oh, it would break her heart if she knew.
As they settle in at their Lake Orion farmhouse, Ray doesn’t say much to him.
Every time Gene catches a glance, Ray has this peculiar look in his eyes.
One that has melancholy, anger, frustration, and worry.
What can Gene do, to mend that? There’s not much he can do, other than live life day by day. That’s all Ray can do, too.
Gene knew it’d be like this. Nothing is necessarily wrong in their lives. But his heart aches for a time that’s different, nostalgia for a feeling he holds dear.
Right now, Gene is sitting on the couch in the living room with Toshiko at his side, watching a game show on television.
The rest of the Brooms are elsewhere, either in their own rooms or out of the house for the moment.
He knows Ray is just in his room, probably avoiding being anywhere near Gene if Toshiko is also nearby. I can’t blame him.
“These shows are always so funny,” Toshiko says with a chuckle.
Her natural black hair is getting longer, past her ears now, mimicking the same bobby style she usually wears with her blonde wig.
“Most ‘game shows’ in Japan are quiz shows, and there’s not many.
Not like this, where people guess prices. ”
“Yeah, true,” Gene says, looking over at her on the couch. “But you guys have much more interesting cartoons than us Americans.”
“Un, you liked watching Mazinger Z a lot at my place. I think there might be some other shows of ours already in America that have English versions.”
“Yeah, I watched Speed Racer as a teenager. But I think that’s the only one… It’d be neat if they made more English versions.”
“In the meantime, you could work on your Japanese,” she says playfully. “I can teach you. Oshieru ga dekiru wa.”
He enjoys it when she speaks her mother tongue, always trying his best to understand what he can. “Ja, dekiru,” he says, unable to roll his R like she can.
They continue watching The Price is Right until the program ends. Another game show takes its place, but instead of focusing on it, Toshiko speaks up again. “I haven’t told you yet, but I will need to go back to Japan for Christmas and New Year’s.”
“Oh, really?” Gene turns in his seat to face her better. “No, I didn’t know.”
“I’m sorry I need to be away so much.” She pouts. “But my parents will want to spend time with me for Christmas, and I’m going to perform a live show for New Year’s. The countdown is big in Tokyo, and there are always many musical acts. I’m going to be one of them this year.”
“That’s great though, for your career.” Gene smiles.
“Yes, but I only have a little more than a week staying with you here in Michigan before I need to leave again. And I assume you’ll want to stay here in America, to celebrate Christmas with your own family.”
“That’s true.” Gene shrugs. “Well, you can always come visit again when you’re done with all that.
I don’t think we’ll be touring again for a few more months, especially since in February we’ll be attending the Grammy’s.
” Dennis had let them know the news while they were still in LA, how the Dusty Brooms were nominated for ‘Best New Artist’.
“Yes, that’s great. But… you really don’t mind that I need to be gone so much?” She tilts her head, brows creasing in concern.
If he’s honest, no, he doesn’t mind one bit.
He likes spending time with her, of course, but if she were always around like Carol was, he’d go crazy.
He’d never have any alone time with Ray if that were the case.
But should he really be wanting those moments with Ray, anyway?
Ray isn’t his boyfriend. He can’t just two-time a relationship like that and keep his girlfriend completely out of the know.
He wants to be respectful to Toshiko, at least when she’s around. He can’t let on that there’s something else going on behind the scenes.
“I mean… I’ll miss you when you’re gone,” Gene says. “But I also don’t want to get in the way of your career, either. I understand having obligations, and if you need to attend to them, you gotta do it.”
“Sou da ne.” She nods. “I enjoy making music, doing what I’m doing. As long as you’re fine with it, it should work out.”
“For sure.”
He can’t let on that anything has happened between him and Ray.
Not just for Toshiko’s sake, but for the band’s image, too.
He thinks of the guy from the Kilotones he punched—Jack Fisher.
The horrible words Jack had said to Ray.
What if instead of a picture of Jack with a bloody nose in that magazine, someone had snapped a shot of Ray sitting on Gene’s lap?
What if rumors started, mocking Ray and Gene for being queer?
While it is true he’s queer—he can’t deny his sexuality at this point—it’d be too dangerous for that information to become public knowledge.
It’s becoming more and more apparent to him why Ray was so hesitant to break up with Carol.
It’s why Gene himself wants to stay with Toshiko.
Not just because he likes her, but because if he’s with a woman, it’ll put him more on ‘the right track’.
There’ll be less rumors. They’ll be safer from ridicule.
It just can’t work out romantically between him and Ray; his own desires don’t even matter. They’re just best friends. That’s all they ever can be.
But he can try harder to make it work with Toshiko.
“You wanna head to the room? Take a hit with me?” Gene asks. Another substance crosses his mind, too, but maybe he’ll wait to have some of that whenever she falls asleep. He can take it with Nicky.
“Sure,” she says with a smile. “It’s nice to do it with you. I don’t smoke as often with Hiro.”
He chuckles at that. “Yeah, I get it. Well, alright. Let’s head up.”
Then he turns the TV off, grabs a bag of chips from the kitchen, and leads Toshiko upstairs to his bedroom.