The Anime Bar and Grille By Joshua Trujillo Episode 3: Passing Glances "C'mon Sensei," He said imploringly, "You've gotta quit drinking and go home." "Huh? Why?" "Because...uh-" Tommorrow was Saturday. No class. But then, at times like these, Masamichi Fujisawa had no class anyway. He was drunk-again. Makoto Mizuhara was trying to get him to peaceably leave the bar while he could. Nanami was there as well. Both had been having dinner, going over a couple of future episodes. Then Sensei stumbled in. He and Miz had been fighting lately and obviously she'd won this round. He dried off at the bar and proceeded to get very drunk. Sensei was alcoholic and needed help, but help was something Makoto had been told that he needed to do by and for himself. He'd become militant about leaving the bar and it took both of his students to keep the bouncers from tossing him out. The head bouncer, a Ms.Vincent, took pity on their situation and left it to them. She also phoned Miz. Makoto guessed that this might have happened before. Sensei began to chuckle. "You can't find a good reason to get me to leave. Well, fine. I know where I'm not wanted. I'll leave on my own," Fujisawa said. Makoto thought he might help him up, but Sensei brushed away any help. Even after he and Nanami stopped offering, he still brushed them off. In fact, he brushed so hard that the floor came up to greet him in it's own special way. There was a low moan from Fujisawa as he lay there. "Miz's carriage is out front," A short blonde bouncer said from the doorway. "Thanks May," Vincent said to her, "Makoto, can you get him out, or do you need help?" The other bouncers moved in closer. With the trouble that Sensei had been giving them, Makoto was quite sure they would help him out all right. "That's okay," He said to Vincent, "I think we can manage." Nanami got under his right arm and Makoto took the left. Heaving upwards, they were able to get a stable base under which they could drag him. Taking it slowly, they struggled under the dead weight to get him out. By the time they reached the door, Nanami was visibly tired and Makoto's arms were burning. Sensei was heavy. Must be from all the muscle mass. Sensei was also superstrong and therefore, superdense in mass. As well as in head, Makoto thought to himself. It seemed to go easier once they had him out. That and the night air helped both of them. "I need to pay the bill Nanami," Makoto said as they stood at the edge of the parking lot. "I've got him. Go on back and pay and I'll watch Sensei," Nanami said. "You sure?" Nanami nodded. Makoto shifted his weight out from under Sensei, who sagged a bit, but remained vertical. Makoto hurried back over to Rally, who was waiting just outside the bar. "I'm really sorry about this Ms.Vincent." "That's okay. You two seem really dedicated to your teacher," She said, accepting the money, "That's an admirable trait." "I don't really know how much-" Makoto began. "Don't worry about it," She said, raising a finger, "You're willing to pay for his...habit. Don't worry about this, okay? Oh, looks like the cavalry has arrived." Makoto turned as the carriage pulled around. The doors opened and disciples piled out. Makoto didn't see Miz among them, though he was sure he'd hear about this on the set. She was devoted, but her temper was something to behold. Shayla was worse though. He turned back to Rally. "Again, sorry about this and thanks," He said, bowing low. "Hey, don't worry about-" Rally was cut short as both of them heard a loud, low groan and a wet splat from behind him. Nanami then started screaming. Makoto ran over to her. She began shaking the larger chunks off and just made incoherent noises. Sensei was out. The disciples picked him up and shoved him into the carriage. Another disciple brought a large towel and gave it to Nanami. Makoto sighed. Apparently this had happened before as well. The carriage sped away and Makoto looked at Nanami. She had taken the towel and was trying to wipe some of the...off of her. Makoto could still see her shaking from sobs. He turned back to the head bouncer. "Uh, can we use-" He began to ask Ms.Vincent. "No. Sorry, take this one home," she cut him off. Rally, May and the others closed the doors as they retreated back inside. Makoto turned back to Nanami and sighed again. At the moment, he saw no other option... *** Makoto reached just inside the doorway and flipped the light switch on. Nanami had barely said a word on the way back to his place, but didn't argue the choice. He lived closer than she did. "The bathroom's in there on the right," He said quietly. "Thanks," She replied just barely enough for him to hear. She went past him and closed the door behind her. He sighed again and caught himself. He was sighing too much lately. Maybe it was age. "Just put the clothes in the basket and I'll get them washed, okay?" He shouted to her. There was a long, thoughtful silence. "Okay," She said, sounding like she had been crying again. Makoto went into his bedroom and got his robe. It was clean and big and made him look like a boxer when he put it on, so he knew that it would fit Nanami just fine. And at least she could wear that while her clothes were getting done. "Makoto, you can get the clothes now," She said. He started. Come in and get-? His hands became clammy at the thought, but he quickly banished those thoughts from his mind. She needed his help, not his lust. "Okay," He said. He opened the door and breathed out. The shower door was closed and the water was already running. He didn't even realize he had been holding his breath. "I'll put a robe you can use on the counter here, okay?" He said, putting the robe down. "Okay." He picked up the basket and turned to go. "Makoto?" He turned and saw that she had poked her head out the shower door and he realized that she had been crying again. "Sorry about all the trouble," She said looking down. So that's what had been troubling her. "Hey, don't worry about it," He said, smiling at her. "Thanks," She replied, smiling back. She seemed better. At least she may not cry again. "Hey, we're friends right?" He said, shrugging his shoulders. Nanami smiled again and went back to her shower. Makoto walked out and shut the door behind him. The laundry area was off of the kitchen area. He never really liked these apartments. They were fashioned after American apartments and were therefore not very convenient. It just didn't feel right to have to modify the bathroom in order to take a proper bath. He began to sigh, then caught himself and laughed slightly. He did like the fact that he could do laundry anytime he wanted. Also these apartments were relatively cheap. That was the reason he gave for staying at least. Makoto turned his attention into the livingroom and to his computer. It had become something of an active friend to him in these latest lonely days. It gave him entertainment and information without asking why. He liked that at least. Opening his e-mail, another surprise gripped him. He thought about sighing, but instead opened the letter. It was from Ifurita. She'd taken a job in Okinawa shortly after their breakup. She said they had offered her a job in National Defense, but she wouldn't explain any more. At least she was having fun. Makoto chuckled at this. They had been dating since the first series. Makoto felt that he scared her off because he was moving too fast. She was happy with the status quo, she didn't want to get tied down. Makoto chuckled again. Sometimes she asked for it though. He shook his head. Those thoughts weren't allowed in his head anymore, he wouldn't allow them. "Whatcha' doin'?" Makoto jumped in his seat. He almost fell turning in his chair. He'd been so engrossed in the e-mail that he didn't even hear her... He swallowed and tried to regain some composure. "The e-mail. It's from Ifurita." A look washed over Nanami's face. A mixture of anger and pain and possibly some hatred. Makoto wished he hadn't said it. That's what he gets for hanging around Ranma too much. "She having fun cheating on you again?" She asked, tightening the ties on the robe. "Nanami, c'mon. We didn't break up because of that. And...And that wasn't really cheating..." Makoto said. "Makoto! She was having more fun with the washing machine than she was with you!" "Nanami, that's enough! I just remember the good times, okay? Anyway," He said, softening, "Make yourself at home." Nanami felt deflated. She sat on the futon and just looked at him. Ever since Ifurita left, his confidence had been shot. Then he got a call saying that he'd get an opportunity to write part of the new series. He jumped at the chance and was alive once again. Nanami could see the excitement and hope alight in his eyes once again. It felt so good to her that he should finally be over that technobitch. A new actress had been cast in the role of Ifurita, so the old one wouldn't come back again, Nanami knew that much. Everyone felt so good about how the new series was going. Even Sensei and Miz, though they sometimes didn't realize or show it. The new series was like that. The last thing Nanami wanted was for that...that hussy to come back into Makoto's life and ruin him again. Nanami turned on the television and waited. *** Makoto didn't want to argue. He wrote Ifurita a small note and sent it off. He then shut it down and opened up the script that he had been working on. Another little something he hoped would branch out. It was a little techno for his style, but in the William Gibson arena, it would work wonders. About a reformed thief and her last heist of a piece of ultra-hightech hardware that others would kill to get back. He liked it and he was about half done. Time passed by quickly. He didn't notice when Nanami got up and put her clothes in the dryer. He never noticed really. Nanami was just always there. She had always been there. Whenever he needed a friend. Makoto stopped at that thought. They'd been sort of dating when all the craziness with the first series began. They drifted apart and he started to date Ifurita. He started to type again. He thought that it was probably out of loneliness or curiosity that Nanami moved in with Alielle. Alielle was a horndog and Makoto knew it. She and Nanami had broken up about a year ago when the second series began. Makoto stopped typing and sat back in his chair. He rubbed his right shoulder to work some of the stiffness out of it. He recently had taken up boxing. It was a really good workout, but it still hurt when he pulled something. Makoto read the last few paragraphs. It was a good stor- His thoughts were cut off abruptly as a pair of hands began to massage his shoulders. It was Nanami. Makoto tensed at the touch, but was quickly relaxed back down again. It felt good. She had strong hands, must have been all that service work. Makoto felt his mind begin to wander as the tension flowed from him. "Hey," Nanami said quietly into his ear, "Don't fall asleep on me yet." He looked up at her and smiled. Enough script for one day. He reached forward and shut off his monitor. He turned in his chair to face her. She stood straighter and had an odd look on her face. He knew he'd seen it somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place it. "Come watch a movie with me," She said, extending her hand. "Okay, which one?" He said, getting up. "Something American." "I didn't know you liked American films?" He asked, looking back at her. "Eye candy," She replied. Makoto nodded and put the video into the VCR. He chose one of his longer movies, something about the old American frontier and the natives there. Recent too. A pretty good movie if you liked subtitled works. Makoto moved to her side on the futon as the movie began. She didn't complain, so he didn't move away, but he didn't move any closer either. She could end up decking him. She might anyway. The credits rolled... *** She tasted so good. A kind of sweetness to an innocence. He knew she wasn't innocent. The lips he was currently enjoying had been places he'd rather not think about right now. It still blew his mind that they were even kissing. The movie was still going on, but certainly his concentration on the subtitling was...blown. With his eyes closed, he could only feel her moving. Probably to get more - hey, whoa! Those are...soft, Makoto thought. His eyes were open now. He could see that she'd indeed taken the liberty to make herself more comfortable. She'd opened the robe and had slipped his hand inside against her breast. He moved his hand over it, circling a finger around her nipple. She giggled slightly, breaking the kiss, and moaned softly. Nanami rocked her head back and forth slowly and finally rested on Makoto's chest. He thought for a moment. What would happen when I do this? He pulled her close with his free arm and turned her nipple gently between the fingers of his captured hand. There was a barely audible gasp. She pulled herself closer to him and grabbed the back of his head. Well, He thought, That had an effect! Pulling him more on top, she began to plant light pattering kisses on his ear and the nape of his neck, most of which he found highly erotic. Her breath raced as Makoto switched from one breast to the other. Her heart fluttered rapidly under his hard working hands. She pushed him back a little and ripped off his tie. She gave him that same little smirk from earlier. Now he realized what it was. It was when Nanami wanted something and she knew she was going to get it. She smiled as she undid his shirt. He placed it aside. Her hands forced his head back around again as she pulled him down on top of her. It was an awkward position, but he rather enjoyed it. She stroked his head as their tongues played together. She shifted her weight, able to get her hand free on one side, and balanced them both on the narrow futon. Makoto thought for a minute before proceeding. While this wasn't new to him, in fact, he and Ifurita had done this that would be physically impossible for Nanami, he hadn't done anything like this in quite a while. And he was remembering things on the fly. Or rather, on her fly. He chuckled once and caught himself. He looked at her and she raised a questioning eyebrow. He smirked and shook his head. He brushed the robe aside and lowered his head to her chest. He noticed that her chest had become larger, probably from the attention that Alielle would have given it. He began with the right breast, cupping the left in his other hand. His tongue brushed lightly across her nipple and, at least from his vantage point, she seemed to be enjoying it very much. He tried something else. Licking around the nipple, he backed off slightly and blew gently on it. A squeak escaped from her as she grabbed the back of his head and forced him back onto her chest. He obliged and licked back and forth, from one breast to the other. Ifurita had once called him weird, because he enjoyed foreplay so much. She thought it was weird because she processed pain and pleasure as part of some information gathering. Just like her attack power, pain and pleasure took more and more to actually reach her. Makoto wondered if he could somehow go into her processor and reset it. She received real fun from sex in the beginning, but got less and less enjoyment from it as the year wore on. He doubted she could have an orgasm now. The shifting of weight underneath him brought Makoto back to what he was doing. Nanami had settled into a more comfortable position, quite ready to let Makoto sit back and continue for as long as he wanted. The more he worked, the more she seemed to sigh. He thought, for one stupid moment that he might want to stop as continuing could cause hyperventilation. He got rid of that thought and began to move down her body. She knew what was, ahem, coming next. He slowly kissed down her stomach, marveling silently at how she had kept herself in such good shape. Of course, he was no slouch himself, but some of the other cast members really had to work to get back into shape. He hated to say it, but Miz had been one of the worst. He planted a kiss lightly on her navel. She gasped and looked down at him like he'd delivered an electric shock. This was something odd. It never had any effect on Ifurita, but then, after a couple of months, it took three lumberjacks and a midget to get any kind of reaction out of her. He did it again and Nanami jumped. She breathed out and bapped him lightly upside his head. "Stop that," She said. "Why? Does it feel good?" "Because I said so and yes." "If it feels good, then I find no reason to stop," Makoto said, kissing her navel again. He gently ran his tongue along the edge and was forced to continue down by a pair of hands on his head. Having reached her pelvis, she removed her hands and placed her legs on his shoulders. Makoto had once asked Ifurita why women did this and she had told him that it just felt natural, though she didn't know what that meant for her. Makoto obliged her in this position and licked lightly across her mound. Nanami shuddered and settled onto his shoulders more. He licked up and down faster and, sighing, Nanami moved on her own to his rhythm. She tasted funny. Not that it was any different from what Ifurita or any other woman he had ever dated was like, no it was almost like...He couldn't place it. Ifurita really didn't taste like a woman. She said that it was because her makers wanted her to be a war machine capable of reproduction, therefore, foreplay wasn't very high on their list of things to get right. He could understand that. Nanami was saying something, but Makoto couldn't make it out. She had begun to squeeze her legs together and unfortunately, his head was in the middle. He COULD tell that what he was doing, she enjoyed greatly. She bucked more and this time, her hands were back on his head, wringing his hair between her fingers. He responded by licking faster and that was all she needed. She squeezed her legs into his head convulsively and held him there for a good two or three minutes before relaxing. Good thing too, she had one helluva grip. *** Nanami lay back, panting. She looked down at him and unwrapped her legs. She felt slightly stiff, must've been from the adrenaline and other hormones unleashed in that fit. She blushed to think of what she had just done. She looked at Makoto. She had been squeezing his head a little too hard. His face was red. He'd better get ready, she wasn't done with him yet. "Okay," Nanami said, getting up. "Okay what?" Makoto said, trying to pick himself off the end of the futon. Nanami walked into the bathroom and emerged with a clean hand towel. She handed it to Makoto. He thought for a moment, then began to wipe himself off. He wiped off his face. And then his neck. And then his chest. Good God, that stuff went everywhere! Nanami was standing in the entrance to the bedroom, her back to him. "Makoto..." She said softly. His heart started to race as a part of the robe fell gently from her shoulder. What did she...oh, Makoto thought. He followed her quickly into the bedroom. *** Makoto came forward into consciousness as he felt Nanami shift her weight against him. He couldn't have felt more content. Well, okay he could, but those lumberjacks were the last things he wanted to see right now. Nanami reached up and idly stroked his chin. There was so much that was unspoken in her eyes as he looked down at her. So much said that this was right. "You know, you're clothes are wrinkled by now," Makoto said. Nanami laughed slightly. "Let'em. Hey Makoto?" "Hmmm?" "What would Ifurita say if she saw you now?" "Probably that he is just as much the fool that he was when I left," A familiar and quite pissed voice said from the doorway. Makoto and Nanami turned to see. It was Ifurita. And this was going to hurt...a lot.