Sumire never knew if it was coincidence, or if it was arranged to be so, but the love scene she and Nick had was to be both hers and Nick's final scene to be shot for the film. After they filmed it, they were finished, and they were excused to leave the set and the shoot.

"Toyama-san?" Sumire approached the assistant director carefully, not wanting to disturb her if she were busy, which she usually was.

"Sumire-san, how many times have I asked you to please call me Reiko?" the AD admonished, giving a light, playful slap as she smiled at the younger woman.

Sumire smiled and nodded, partly in gratitude, partly because of Reiko-san's strong accent. She was from Nagoya, and spoke Kansai-ben, which sounded very pronounced and twangy to Sumire's ear.

"I'm sorry, yes, Reiko-san," she agreed. "I was wondering if you'd had time to talk to Murakami-sensei about what I'd asked you? About this scene that's coming up between me and Nick-san?"

Reiko-san stuck her pen in her hair and nodded as she sat in her chair. All around them the crew worked on setting the lights, laying cable, taping it down, getting everything set just right.

"Yes, I did, and he doesn't care, he understands," Reiko-san assured her. "We planned to close the set anyway, to give more of a feel of intimacy. Once Sensei met you, he understood how quiet you were, how shy, and he knows that you would be more comfortable with me in charge rather than him. And whatever crew we need will all be women, too, okay?

"Hai, domo arigato gozaimasu," Sumire said, giving a deep, heartfelt bow. "Thank you so very much."

"I know you've never done a love scene or a nude scene, and I understand how awkward you must be feeling," Reiko-san said, putting a comforting hand on Sumire-s arm. "I can't imagine how I'd be feeling if I were going to do this, knowing that strangers and family all over the world were going to see me pretending to do the most private and personal thing two people can share."

Sumire took a deep breath and nodded again. "Yes, that's it. I'm so nervous. I couldn't do it with anyone but Nick."

"You'll get used to it," Reiko-san assured her. "Ten years from now you'll look back on this and laugh, love scenes will be so easy for you."

Sumire shook her head. "No, I'm not an actress. I'm never doing this again."

Reiko-san looked at her in surprise. "Oh, I don't believe that," she said, shaking her head. "You were meant to do this. You have natural talent," she added. "Now, go get ready, we start soon."

Sumire ran to make-up to tell Nick that all was well.

He leaned over from his make-up chair and pecked her cheek, which made the make-up techs smile at each other.

Nick saw this and grinned at them, which only made them smile bigger.

One of them said something to Sumire which made her laugh and shake her head, and even Nick could see the blush begin to creep out of the collar of her shirt. She saw him looking at her in the mirror and shook her head at him. He winked at her, which only intensified her blush.

"Nick, stop," she begged. "You're messing with my complexion and it's going to screw up my make-up."

"Tell me what you guys are talking about, and I will," he promised.

"She just said that I'm the luckiest girl in the whole country to get to go home and sleep with you every night," Sumire admitted.

"Is 'sleep with' really what she said?" Nick prodded.

Reluctantly, Sumire shook her head.

"So?"

"What?" Sumire was smiling, though she sounded defensive. "I don't know the exact translation. Let's just say it's a little risqué, and leave it at that, okay?"

"Okay, but only because you're so damned cute," Nick agreed, sitting back and closing his eyes so the tech could even out his skin tones.

He went and got out of his clothes after, and waited for Sumire, who took a little longer to get made up. When she was finally ready, they walked in their robes, hand in hand, across the yard and into the house where they were filming that afternoon.

"You feel okay?" Nick asked, squeezing her fingers as they walked.

Sumire nodded, taking deep breaths.

"I'm glad I'm doing it with you," she said again.

"Me too," Nick answered. He stopped walking, stopping her too. He kissed her, careful not to touch her anywhere but her mouth. She wore no lipstick in preparation of all the kissing they were going to do, so this was okay. "I honestly don't think I could stand to watch you film this kind of scene with someone else," he admitted to her.

"You've never seen someone you're involved with shoot a love scene with someone else?" Sumire found that hard to believe.

"I have, I have," Nick said. "But it didn't really bother me, that's what I'm telling you."

They'd arrived at the house. They carefully stepped out of their shoes and went in to the room with the tatami mats, which was all set up for their scene.

"Nick-san and Sumire-san have arrived, please close the set," Reiko-san called out. The two assistants began clearing the set, checking names off a clipboard, making sure everyone was leaving. Just seeing how carefully this was being done made Sumire feel better.

Nick was looking around, and something about his expression made Sumire feel funny.

"What?" she finally asked.

"Ahh, I wasn't going to tell you, it would only piss you off," Nick said, looking down into her eyes. "Oh fuck, Mimi-chan, you look fucking amazing, you know that?" Nick asked, stroking her hair. "I mean, you look good without make-up, too, but your eyes are just glowing today--"

"Nick!" Sumire gave him a shake. "Tell me!"

"That old pervy turd, Kondo, wanted to come and watch today," Nick finally said, shaking his head as if he still couldn't believe it. "He actually asked Murakami if he could. He told him he thought it would give him motivation for that fight scene on the bridge, when he chases me and tries to stab me? That it would make him hate me more to see me with the woman he wanted and didn't get to have."

"What?" Sumire couldn't believe it. "You guys aren't even doing that scene anymore, it got cut weeks ago!" She was indignant.

"I know!" Nick, too was indignant. "He acted like he didn't know that, but he did, the guy who was there? The guy who heard the whole thing and told me? He said he could tell that Kondo knew he was blowing smoke up Murakami's ass and was just trying to get onto the set to watch us get it on, can you believe it?"

Sumire shook her head.

"So what did Murakami-sensei say?"

"He told him that first, that scene had been cut, so he didn't need any motivation for anything, and second, Reiko was running the set for that scene, so it wasn't up to him, anyway, she was in charge, and third, it was a completely closed set, no exceptions, no men, except yours truly."

Sumire could tell Nick was furious, but she could also hear the smugness in his tone.

She leaned in and hugged him. "I love you, Nick," she murmured.

"I know," he answered in the same smug tone.

The set had slowly emptied around them, and things had gotten quiet and very business like. Someone flipped off the bright overhead light, so only the set lights were left.

"Oh boy, this is really happening," Sumire whispered.

"You bet your ass," Nick whispered back. He tipped her chin up so he could look into her eyes. "Listen to me, Mimi-chan. I got your back, okay?"

"It's not really my back I'm worried about," she quipped, though he could tell she was getting nervous.

"Well, I got your back and your front, both, so don't worry," Nick assured her. "I've done this lots of times, and I won't let anything bad happen."

She nodded, smiling her small smile. "Okay, Nick-san. Okay."

"Nick-san? Sumire-san?" Reiko-san gestured for them to come to where she was.

"So this is the pivotal scene, I know you both know that," she said. Sumire quickly translated after she spoke, doing it so efficiently that it didn't slow down her speech at all. "You've finally admitted your feelings, you've finally put aside the love you both feel for Hiro-san's character, and Sumire-san, you've finally decided to leave everything behind and escape with him to Edo. Nick-san, you're risking everything, your position, your family, your future here in Japan, to be with her. You don't know what will happen tomorrow, but you have tonight. And tonight might be all you have. This one time might be all you have." Reiko-san looked between Nick and Sumire. "I need to see that in your faces, of course, but I need to see it in your bodies, in your hands, your fingertips, you understand? In the curve of your back, the way your neck bends toward the other, yes?

Nick and Sumire nodded at her.

"I don't think it will be a problem because you have a relationship already, but you still have to act. We're going to do many takes, but I know you know, Nick, that usually the first take is the best, so give it to me, please."

She raised her voice to address everyone. "Actors in your places, please?" She clapped her hands together twice. "Lights up, please?"

She stepped back as the assistants took Nick and Sumire's robes. Nick was wearing a sock, and Sumire was wearing flesh colored underwear for these long shots, but they'd be removed later for the close ups.

They lay down, and looked at a monitor to watch the scene leading up to this one, so they could position themselves correctly for continuity. The cinematographer also watched from off camera to add her opinion as needed.

"Action!"

They began kissing, which at least felt natural to Sumire. For the long shots, they could just do pretty much what they normally did, Nick had told her. It was when they started filming the close ups that things would slow way down, sometimes grinding out for hours as they changed lighting and angles, getting their bodies sprayed to mimic perspiration and moisture.

"I love you, I love you," Nick murmured, kissing Sumire's collar bones.

She buried her fingers in his hair as she tipped her head back and let her mouth fall open.

"I love you, too," she replied. "I needed you. I didn't even know it, but I did, and you were here for me..."

Nick moved down her body, keeping his arm over her torso, covering her breasts from the camera's view, Sumire could tell.

She saw his eyes as his face hovered above hers for a moment. "I got you," he mouthed quickly.

Sumire nodded and closed her eyes, trying to move naturally and forget that that three people were watching her and the man she loved making love with no clothes on.

And within a a minute, she heard, "Cut! Again, please?"

"Take two!"

This was going to be a long afternoon.