BRONZE: COMMENTARY AND TRANSLATION by Serenade (wish4wings@yahoo.com) Updated 10 March 2000 Latest version can be found at http://members.xoom.com/fireflower/bronze BOOK 3 This is one of my favourite cover pictures. The delicate, expressive lines manage to capture in one shot the love and pain that is the essence of Bronze. ACT 3 CONTINUED Koji has arrived on the scene. Izumi stares at him, stunned. Izumi: Koji... How can you be...? Izumi cries out when Koji touches his face. Izumi must really be in shock, because when Koji leans forward and *licks* the wound, Izumi doesn't punch him out or even push him away. Izumi: What... what are you doing? It's only a scrape... I'm perfectly fine! Ouch... But Koji scoops Izumi up in his arms, to Izumi's horror. His face flushes scarlet with embarrassment. Izumi: What the... Put me down! He continues to protest as Koji begins walking down the street, still carrying Izumi. Izumi: Put me down! Hey! Slow down... don't rush! You... you didn't run out here in that state to look for me, did you? You idiot, you never stop causing scandals... Think for a moment - What if someone sees us like this? Izumi is clutching Koji tightly, his face almost buried in his shoulder. Then he realises that he's actually snuggled up quite close to Koji, and his face turns bright red. (Koji, too, is blushing...) Izumi: Put me down, you pervert! Koji takes Izumi to a hospital for treatment, wearing a really dodgy-looking disguise. Then they take a taxi back to Izumi's place, which is a one-room apartment above M's Bar. Izumi: The boss used to live here, so it's already completely furnished with a tv and a bed. Though it's pretty small... Well, there's nothing to be done about it. You can stay here for tonight. (It's already three in the morning!) I'll work out what to do tomorrow. Let's just sleep on it tonight. Hey! Take off your clothes! Koji points at himself questioningly, a flush creeping into his face. Izumi: You idiot! (Why are you blushing?) Your clothes are stained with blood! If you don't wash them now, you'll never be able to get the stains out. Is that what you want? Izumi continues to talk at Koji while he soaks the clothes in the sink. Izumi: Really! The shirt underneath is stained as well! Take it all off! Give it to me to wash as well. (The bathroom's very small, just be patient!) Izumi rambles on some more in the same vein, trying to mask his discomfort, while Koji seems to be developing a headache. Some time later, after Izumi has changed out of his work clothes, Koji emerges from the bathroom with a towel draped around his waist. It's a classic 'sex god' Koji shot: broad bare chest, loosely flowing hair, dangerous glitter in his eyes. It's enough to make any red-blooded female's heart skip a beat, and it seems to discomfit Izumi as well. He shoves a pile of clothes into Koji's arms, telling him to get dressed. Unfortunately, Izumi's clothes are a tad too small to fit Koji, which causes Izumi further embarrassment. Izumi: I... I'll buy some new clothes for you tomorrow! You'll have to cope until then! (Most men wear medium size!) (What's the point of growing any more than you have to?) [Minami Ozaki has an arrow pointing to Izumi with the words "wounded ego (smile)".] Izumi slams the door of the bathroom shut, muttering, "I can't stand this." Koji sits on the floor outside, and smiles helplessly. When Izumi emerges a short while later, he still looks mildly disgruntled. Izumi: Time to sleep. There's only one bed in here. You can have it. I'll be fine on the floor. There's no need to be polite! You've only just recovered from being sick! (Now get to sleep!) (I'm going to turn off the light!) (I said you don't have to be polite!) But Koji has ideas of his own. Ignoring Izumi's protests, Koji picks him up and dumps him onto the bed. Izumi, lying on his back, looks up at Koji with apprehension in his face. You can guess he's probably wondering whether Koji's about to make sexual advances towards him again. But Koji merely looks slightly sad, and turns away. Izumi watches as Koji walks over to the other side of the room, where he lies down on the bare floor. It looks as though his head is pillowed on Izumi's sports bag. After a few moments, Izumi calls out to him, his eyes avoiding Koji's. Izumi: Koji... Come over here. Even though the bed is small, it's better than being cold. Koji gives Izumi a look, then joins him in the narrow single bed. They sleep facing away from one another, each taking one half of the bed. Next morning, Izumi wakes gradually from a sound slumber... to find his arms wrapped around Koji's warm body. Koji is smiling gently and caressing Izumi's hair. Izumi flushes red again, and whacks Koji away. Izumi: Argh! Damn it! It's already 9 o'clock! (Were you the one who switched off my alarm clock?) Koji, in the background, is clutching his injured face: In the meantime, Izumi is rushing around getting ready to go out. Koji watches in puzzlement. Izumi: Today's the first round of the national competition, and it starts at nine-thirty! If I'm late, it'll be your fault! I'll be back before dark. Don't leave the apartment, understand? Wait for me to come back, and I'll make dinner for you, and get you some new clothes too. Okay, I'm off now! But Koji's standing there watching him with the strangest expression on his face. It looks like he's half-smiling, but at the same time it seems as if he's trying not to cry. Izumi can't help but be arrested by this. Izumi: What's the matter...? Didn't I say I'd be back real soon? Don't you... don't you trust me, even now? I'll be back soon! He turns to leave again, but Koji embraces him from behind. Izumi: Ko... Koji takes Izumi's right hand in his own, and turns it palm upward. And then Koji, who is unable to speak even a syllable to Izumi, starts tracing out words with a fingertip upon Izumi's palm. Izumi, clearly troubled, breaks away and rushes out the door. Koji's words echo through his head: Izumi and his team win the soccer match, thus making it into the second round of the competition. This time, Izumi's teammates are set on having him join them to celebrate their victory. However, when they look around, they find that their captain has already disappeared. They wonder what could have made him rush off without a word. Izumi, of course, has gone shopping for his new houseguest. He visits a supermarket called Peacock to stock up on groceries, muttering to himself as he browses the shelves. Izumi: I need to get something nutritious, and cheap, and plentiful... Which means it has to be... Curry. But that guy won't eat something like that... He's so picky with his food, it's unbelievable he's still managed to grow up so strong! [Minami Ozaki's aside reads: "Completely in Housewife Takuto mode." ^_^] After Izumi is done with the groceries, he passes by a shop selling designer label clothing. It has the sign GIANNI VERSACE in the window. Izumi: Poor unsuspecting Izumi enters the shop, welcomed in by a slightly startled sales assistant. Izumi starts looking through a rack of shirts. Izumi: Aha! I've seen him wearing this shirt! (It's certainly gorgeous enough!) (The pattern's unusual too...) Hey, this jacket suits him perfectly! (How much is it...?) Izumi takes a look at the price tag. And nearly has a heart attack. We next see Izumi standing outside the shop, red-faced with mortification, still carrying a bag of groceries in each hand. Izumi: [He's talking in yen, naturally. In terms of US dollars, the amounts are still in the thousands.] When Izumi returns to the apartment, he's still pretty flushed, but mostly from jogging all the way back. Izumi: I'm home! Damn! Who can afford a 280 thousand yen shirt? Do you always wear stuff that expensive? You've got to be kidding! 1980 yen clothes should be enough...! It is then that Izumi notices how silent and empty the apartment is. Izumi: Koji...? He drops the grocery bags onto the floor, and swings his head around frantically. Izumi: Koji? Izumi wraps his arms around himself, a lost look in his eyes. He sinks to his knees and begins to gather up the fallen groceries. Izumi: Really... He's forced me to buy too much food, just like an idiot... Now I've practically wasted my whole pay packet. What should I do now? If I don't eat all of this, it will just rot... A warm tear falls onto Izumi's hand. Izumi: I really am... such an idiot... The door creaks open. Izumi looks up, his eyes still gleaming liquid. Koji steps through the doorway, dressed in the same black outfit he wore yesterday, and carrying a bottle of wine. [Koji, you inebriate!] Izumi hurtles across the room and wraps Koji in a tight embrace. Izumi: You bastard! Why do you always have to make people worry about you? Didn't I tell you not to leave here? You weren't listening at all! People like you are what I hate the most! I almost lost my mind just then! Izumi holds Koji as though he'll never let go, and Koji returns the embrace. A tumult of thoughts is spinning in Izumi's mind. Izumi: <"It will take a miracle to wake him."> Overlaid with this last thought is a fleeting flashback of Izumi crying over the body of his murdered father. Izumi clutches Koji, shaking. Izumi: Koji begins to kiss Izumi, brushing his lips lightly over his face. Izumi yields to Koji's attentions. Izumi: Ouch... [Koji's holding him too tightly] Last night... how did you come to be there? You couldn't have heard me calling you. Koji responds by pulling Izumi close against him. Izumi: Ko... Look at you... You're crying again! Idiot... Koji... A grown man and still crying like this... Koji! Izumi lifts a hand up to Koji's face. Izumi: You're hopeless... Stop crying! Then a voice beyond the door calls out. Boss: Takuto! Are you there? There's a sudden loud noise from within the apartment, and it's a few seconds before Izumi manages to stick his head out the door, suspiciously red-faced and flustered. Izumi's boss simply wants to check up on something concerning the day's trading. He's noticed the noise though, and asks whether Izumi's keeping an elephant in the apartment. (Boss: "No pets allowed!" Izumi: "No, no, I was just hitting a cockroach!") When Izumi returns inside, he points at Koji as though directing a disobedient dog. "Go and sit over there! I'm going to make dinner!" Once the meal is ready, Koji and Izumi sit down to eat together. The silence is too unsettling for Izumi, who decides to switch on the tv. The news happens to be on, and the breaking story is about Koji Nanjo's mysterious disappearance, and the rumour that he has lost his voice. A television reporter interviews Hirose outside the front gate of the Nanjo family estate, but all Hirose will say is that Koji has gone off to recuperate where the air is cleaner. The news report also mentions the three reporters Izumi assaulted the other night. The report states that the identity of the assailant is unknown, but speculates that he was probably a member of Koji's horde of fans. On hearing this, Koji buries his face in one hand, muffled laughter escaping between his fingers. Izumi, of course, is mortified. Izumi: What are you laughing for? (I'm no Koji fan!) (I hit them by accident!) (It certainly wasn't because of you!) Then Izumi lowers his eyes, his tone becoming serious and reflective. Izumi: You losing your voice... was that because of me? Am I the one to blame? Koji glances across at him, but says nothing. Izumi: If that's the way it is, I won't ask you about it... If only you could speak, then everything would be all right. Say something! Anything at all! I feel very badly about it, did you know? I feel as though you blame me for it. Koji suddenly seizes Izumi by the shoulders, crying out soundless words at him. Izumi stares back in alarm. Izumi: Ko... Koji tries desperately to speak to Izumi, as though he wants to comfort him by fulfilling his wistful request. But not a sound emerges from Koji's throat. At last he bows his head in frustration and despair, while Izumi holds him. Izumi: Ko... Koji! Never mind, I won't pressure you! Let it be! I won't pressure you! It doesn't matter if you can't speak! Next, we see Hirose in his office, receiving some kind of report from his secretary. Akihito is lounging on the couch. The two brothers discuss various matters, including the missing Koji's whereabouts, and how strange and precocious he was as a child. Hirose seems coolly confident that he can resolve this latest difficulty. It's 11 o'clock. We see Koji sitting alone in the darkened apartment, waiting for Izumi to return. His thoughts are troubled by painful memories. Koji recalls Shibuya's words of rebuke to him: From Koji's wretched expression, it's clear he doesn't want to cause Izumi any further pain. He takes his coat from the wardrobe and slips on his shoes to leave. He's about to open the door when he remembers - Each memory seems to cut into him like a knife. Koji slumps against the wall in despair. Meanwhile, Shibuya drops by M's Bar, where Izumi is working. Izumi is startled, but he recovers his composure fairly quickly. Izumi: I was going to phone you. Shi: Really? How wonderful! Why? Izumi: I've picked up a dog that's come home with me. Shi: Oh, indeed? I know he must be a great inconvenience, causing other people headaches all the time. Right? Izumi: No, at the moment he's not any inconvenience at all. Shi: Oh? Really? Then will you take care of him for a while longer? How about it? (But you can't take him out for walks!) Shibuya beckons Izumi closer for a few words about money, and gives him a quiet warning to be careful. Then he slides an envelope across the counter towards Izumi. Izumi: What's this? Shi: Pet food money. That dog's expensive to look after, right? Especially when buying clothes. (You mustn't give this to him, or he'll spend it all at once.) Shibuya waves cheerfully as he leaves, while the boss reminds Izumi, "No pets allowed!" When Izumi finishes work, he treads his way up the stairs to his tiny one-room apartment. Izumi: As he enters, he sees Koji sitting on the floor by the bed. Izumi: Hey! Didn't I tell you not to wait up for me? (It's 3 o'clock!) Koji smiles ruefully, accepting Izumi's rebukes. Izumi himself seems aware that his feelings don't match his words. Izumi: The next day at school, Izumi is on the soccer field with Kunihide when they are confronted by Serika and Eri. Both girls have heard the rumours about Koji's situation and demand to know what is going on. Eri: He's a singer! How can he lose his voice? Does this mean no one will ever be able to hear his songs again? Eri talks about how important Koji's songs are to her, and how senseless and ill-fated it was for him to have lost his voice. Eri: What will happen if he can never speak again? Why did that accident have to happen to him? Izumi is clearly troubled by her questions, and they continue to plague him as he walks home from school. Izumi: In the midst of his reverie, Izumi is grabbed from behind and a hand clamped over his mouth. Man: Are you Takuto Izumi? Izumi: Man: Don't make any trouble! If you don't want to die a miserable death, then come along quietly with us. Do you understand? Izumi is not the kind of guy to come along quietly. He wrenches himself away before punching his abductors, sending them sprawling onto the ground. Izumi: Who are you guys? But then an unseen opponent hurls some kind of powder into Izumi's face, and as soon as he inhales it he collapses. Revealed is Akihito Nanjo, looking sour. He grabs the unconscious Izumi by the arm. Aki: Can't you even handle a single kid? Let's go! Later that night, Koji is sitting alone in the apartment again, waiting for Izumi to come home. It's 10 o'clock already. There's a sudden knocking at the door - it's Izumi's boss and one of the other employees, checking whether Izumi's inside. He hasn't shown up at work, and it doesn't seem like he's come home at all. The boss wonders whether Izumi's been in an accident. Koji keeps quiet, but his anxiety level is rising. A short while later, another knock sounds. Ser: Takuto, it's me, Serika! Are you there? Yuugo: Takuto! Boss: See? He hasn't come home. (It's very troublesome to me as well.) Ser: What do we do now? What do we do? Yuugo... Yuugo: Sis... While they stand fretting outside, the door swings open. A bleak-looking Koji stares back at them beyond it. Ser: M-Mr Nanjo! Excuse me, but is my brother...? Koji shakes his head. Ser: So that's it... Let's go, Yuugo. Yuugo: But Sis, why? It's that guy's fault that Dad's company is shutting down! Ser: Stop it, Yuugo. That's not how it is. Yuugo: Aren't the Nanjos of the [name?] company part of his family? On hearing this, Koji's eyes widen - and glitter. Deep in the offices of the Nanjo tower block, Izumi stirs, bleary-eyed. Hir: So you're awake! Izumi... Izumi finds himself lying on a black leather couch in a spacious office. Hirose is standing next to him, while Akihito is some distance away by the window. Hir: My younger brother behaved somewhat discourteously towards you. Please accept my apologies. Do you remember me? Aki: Hmph! Who said he had to resist? Izumi tries to get up, but he slides to the floor instead. Hir: The effects of the drug haven't worn off yet. Don't be so quick to move. Izumi: What do you want? Hir: We believe you may know Koji's whereabouts, so... Still on the floor, Izumi looks up with flashing eyes. Izumi: I don't know! Hir: Really? But aren't you and Koji good friends? Hirose catches Izumi's chin with a hand, tilting his face towards himself. Hir: Are the two of you physically intimate? Izumi widens his eyes, frozen. Hir: You're not going to deny it? Akihito bursts out laughing. Aki: What a joke! Hirose, you're not serious, are you? Hir: If it's true, what do you suppose the consequences will be? Izumi...? As Izumi stares at Hirose in numb silence, Hirose describes the inevitable results of their ill-considered relationship: both Koji's name and his family's reputation will suffer, Izumi's own soccer career will be tainted, and his beloved brother and sister will also be affected. Hir: Can it really be true that you love Koji so much you don't care if everything else is ruined? Before Izumi can collect his thoughts enough to form a coherent response, the door bursts open. Koji stands there, lightning in his eyes. Serika and Yuugo are behind him. Ser: Takuto! Izumi: What are you two doing here? Ser: Dad's fallen sick, and he's had to go into hospital! And the company is shutting down too... Serika and Yuugo explain to Izumi about the business dealings that have forced their foster father's company to the brink of financial ruin. Yuugo: It's all because of them! Takuto! Izumi: What are... you saying...? Hirose smiles rather smugly and mentions some company they've had some recent involvement with, casually explaining certain harsh economic realities. Hir: So that company has connections with you... I had no idea! Koji grabs Hirose by the collar, furious. But Hirose regards Koji without blinking. He knows who's holding all the cards here. Hir: Do you really think that's a good idea? Let go of me. Hirose says that he is willing to help Izumi's family, as long as Koji behaves obediently and returns home, to carry out the duties he has inherited, for the rest of his life. Izumi interrupts with an angry outburst, telling Hirose that he has no right to impose such conditions on Koji. He says that his own family's affairs have nothing to do with Koji, and that they can take care of themselves. Hir: Izumi... Shall I tell you how much money the [name?] organisation head owes? Four hundred million yen! Hospital fees are expensive too, And you've even lost the roof over your head now. Your precious brother and sister, they will have to bear the burden of this enormous debt their whole lives, till the day they die. Doesn't any of this matter to you? Izumi looks shocked by these revelations. He's starting to realise exactly how desperate his family's situation is. And then, unexpectedly, Koji kneels down in front of his eldest brother, his head bowed in submission. Izumi: Ko... Akihito finds it incredibly amusing to see the arrogant Koji finally humbled, but Hirose's own show of satisfaction is more restrained. Hir: Even though our father threw you out of the house, and let you go your own way, he still appreciated your talent, and he believed in you. That's why he wrote what he did in his will. He decided from the beginning that you would have to return home sooner or later, so you've been allowed to have your freedom all this time. Hirose stands in front of Koji's bowed form as he speaks, his arms folded, and the faintest trace of a smile on his lips. Hir: This isn't like you, Koji. But then, most people, when they've found their "one and only", will be inexplicably become stronger, or else turn as weak as an infant... Izumi steps forward, hands clenched into fists, unable to contain himself any longer. The words he speaks are perhaps surprising even to him. Izumi: Koji! You used to tell me... you would do anything for my sake. But no matter how much I cried and called, you didn't wake up! And now, once again, you won't answer me! No matter how much I plead with you to say something, you don't utter a single sound! Can it really be true... that you have nothing left to say to me? Don't you have anything to say to me? Koji is still on his knees, eyes staring at the floor, but it's clear that Izumi's accusations have struck him like arrows. There are tears in his eyes, and you can see his throat working to force words out. Koji: From... A faint spark lights up Izumi's eyes, as if he's been waiting for this. Koji: From beginning to end... I... I have only been... a burden to you... Koji looks up at last, the tears threatening to spill down his face. Koji: I'm sorry... But I still love you! Koji: I love you! All along, I have loved you! Izumi regards him with a remarkable measure of calm. His expression is hard to interpret - compassion, restraint, understanding, resignation. Izumi: Let's go home. Lend me your shoulder. Izumi staggers towards the door, Koji supporting him. They are trailed by an emotional Serika and a slightly unsure Yuugo. Hirose and Akihito watch as they depart. Aki: Hirose, are we just going to let them go? Hir: It doesn't matter... Koji will return before long anyway. That kind of love will soon destroy him. It's a hopeless love! He won't be able to bear having everything destroyed! END OF ACT 3 THE REST OF BOOK 3 TO BE CONTINUED...