I stared at the sign in front the building, the neon glowing in the fading light. Well, this was it. The place Chiba had told me to try to get a job at. Supposedly there was some illegal activity going on behind the scenes including the exploitation of minors. So why did I have such a bad feeling? Maybe it was the name, Ultimate Fulfillment. Maybe it was the looks I was getting from all the women going in.

"Oh well, might as well get going." Not knowing what else to do I went inside. The interior was plush, lots of velvet and silk in soft colors, flowers and crystal adorning every available surface. Everywhere I looked there were women being waited on hand and foot by good looking guys dressed in tuxedoes. The valet spotted me and trotted over.

"You must be Shibata. Mr. Yamamoto is expecting you. Please follow me."

I followed him down a narrow hall wondering if the man who had recruited me had called ahead. The valet opened a door ushering me inside. The office was sparse, just a desk and a couple of chairs. The man behind the desk smiled at me. Pushing the set of thin rimmed glasses up his nose he stood and gave me a short bow. I responded, watching him closely.

"Good evening please take a seat. We have a few things to discuss."

I nodded and sat. The valet excused himself the door clicking shut behind him.

"Well I must say that my rep was right to pick you. I think you will fit right in with us here at Ultimate." He stood up walking around the desk and sat on the corner. "If you don't mind could you stand up and turn around for me."

I did as he asked hoping my disguise would fool him. I was getting better at it. The jeans were a pair that Kojiro had picked out and I'd made sure to spike my hair.

"So, Taketora-kun, why do you want to work for Ultimate?"

I watched him closely as I gave my practiced answer. It wasn't that far from the truth, at least what my life had been like before . . . before I'd met him. He nodded as he listened, one finger tapping his chin.

"You do realize that you are underage to work here."

"I was hoping you could make an exception. I never thought a place like this would recruit me, but your representative seemed positive you would hire me."

He nodded again a smile playing across his bland features. "Well, Taketora I would be more than happy to make an exception in your case. If you would like you could start right away."

He stood and coming over put his hand on my shoulder. A little dismayed by the overly familiar gesture I tried to smile up at him.

"We can never let good talent go to waste. I'll show you where you can go change."

He led me out of the office and down another hall. "Our goal here at Ultimate is to give women that thrill of being with a handsome young man who caters to her every whim, listens to her, and basically makes her feel like a queen. However there are a select few women with more discerning tastes." He glanced down at me and I wasn't sure if it was a smirk or a smile on his face. "You Taketora, with your looks, are going to be serving the latter. Today we will start with your training in proper etiquette when dealing with these women. They are all wealthy and will shower you with gifts when you please them, never turn them down no matter how lavish the gift may seem. You will have to work hard to please them though. Ah, here we are."

He opened the door for me. I was still trying to take in everything he'd said as I looked around the dressing room. There were a few other guys lounging around in various states of undress.

One of them near the back, who looked like a more refined version of Kojiro, stood and sauntered over. "Is this the new hire? Getting them younger and younger aren't you, Yamamoto."

I swatted his hand away as he tried to mess with my hair. "I'm not that young."

He laughed, "He even sounds like a kid." Cupping my chin in his hand he grinned down at me, "I bet Ms. Norita will pick you right away."

"Alright enough playing around." Mr. Yamamoto clapped his hands together. "Ioshi, I expect you to teach him well. Go ahead and find him something to wear and show him to the guest lounge."

"Yessir. Common shorty." He gestured for me to follow him. "I don't know if we have anything your size though."

I soon found myself dressed in a smart suit complete with shiny shoes. It had taken him a while to find something that didn't look ridiculously large on me. Looking around the room as I dressed I could see why. The rest of them were tall and athletic looking.

"Jeeze you've got tiny feet, like a girl's."

I ignored the remark. Living with Kojiro had taught me that much at least. He checked his watch.

"It's almost time for our gals to arrive." He cocked his head as he looked down at me. "You sure you're ready for this kiddo? Some of these women are really hard to please."

I nodded, "I'll do my best."

He grunted and held up three fingers. "Three things to remember. One, you do what they ask when they ask. Two, you don't ask questions or talk unless they want you to. Three, never ever refuse to do something for any reason."

It didn't seem like this job was going to be that difficult. All I had to do was just make sure the women were happy. At least I hoped it wasn't going to be difficult.

"You got that?" When I nodded he went on. "Alright, another thing. Most of these women are foreigners, investment bankers and CEO's wives, celebrities, that kind so don't expect them to know much of the language. Let's go, we need to be there early to greet them as they arrive."

As we walked I wondered what it was exactly the Chiba was wanting me to look for. I'd already established that they were hiring underage boys to work, but other than having them serve alcohol I hadn't seen any other violations yet. What else could be going on to warrant this investigation? Drug trafficking? Illegal gambling?

Ioshi opened a set of double doors and I blinked at the sheer opulence of the room. It was sectioned off into six different areas, each with low tables and couches. Pillows littered the couches and floor around each table. Each section was a different theme ranging from traditional Japanese to American punk and were separated by movable partitions. There were already several men working laying out the table service and arranging pillows. In the low light it was hard to distinguish their features, but some looked much too young to be working here.

"Help get ready. When it's time I'll find you."

He disappeared into the back and I turned to find myself face to chest with another one of the workers. He scowled down at me and I took an involuntary step back. He looked more like a yakuza thug than a host, complete with earrings and tattoos just visible over his collar.

"So, Mr. Yamamoto hired us another kid." Grabbing the front of my jacket he hauled me forward. "Just don't screw up newbie or I'll personally make sure to rearrange that cute little face of yours."

He let me go and stomped off. I stared after him for a moment wondering if he was someone I'd need to keep any eye on. Ioshi reappeared beside me.

"Don't worry about Shohei, he's all talk. If you're wondering why someone like him is here, well let's just say that some women like their men rough around the edges." He jerked his head toward the entrance at the far end of the room. "Time to go shine, kiddo."

Giving me a slight push he headed for the two large wooden doors that marked the entrance to the private rooms. I followed unsure what to expect. Ioshi directed me to stand next to him as the rest of the hosts took their places to either side of the door. It felt like inspection day at the academy the atmosphere was so tense. With a click, the doors swung outward.

Five women stood on the other side of the entrance. We all bowed deeply and Ioshi stepped forward to greet the women. He said something in English then repeated it for the rest of us.

"Good evening my beautiful ladies. We are at your service for the night, please enter and pick your hosts."

One of the women, a tall blonde immediately stepped forward and took Ioshi's arm. Her blue eyes scanned the rest of the group coming to rest on me. Apprehension immediately bubbled to the surface. She sauntered forward to stop in front of me, her arm still in Ioshi's.

"You, what is your name." She spoke perfect Japanese with a slight American accent.

I swallowed, "Shibata Taketora."

She smiled at me, "Such a long name for a boy. Come with me, Taketora."

I bowed and followed the two of them. She choose the section decorated in lavish modern furnishings.

"Close the curtains Ioshi and then please get us some refreshments. Taketora you come sit by me." She handed me her coat and sprawled on the tan couch.

Hanging up her coat, I went and sat down. She smiled at me.

"You don't have to sit so far away." She patted the cushion next to her. "Come."

Taking a deep breath I moved closer not sure if I should look at her or not. She laughed and ran a hand through my hair.

"You are quite adorable little Shibata. It's been a while since Yamamoto had someone like you here. Why don't you take your jacket off and get comfortable."

Remembering Ioshi's admonishment I removed the jacket and laid it out of the way. When I turned back around her face was only inches from mine. I tried not to flinch. She gave me a slow smile her eyes wandering down as she did so.

"You know what I find so stressful about work Taketora?"

"No ma'am."

"I work with women all day. Beautiful pampered brats." She sighed and leaning forward laid her head on my shoulder. "As the head of Narcissi, I have to keep all my models in top form. Yet it seems like I'm always fighting an uphill battle. You would think that beautiful women would be more concerned about their appearance and reputation. But, I am beset everyday with crisis after crisis. That is why I love to come here. Instead of pretty young spoilt girls I get to be with beautiful young men who spoil me."

I chill went down my spine as her fingers laced themselves in my tie, "You will spoil me won't you Taketora?"

"Yes ma'am." The words were barely out of my mouth before I found myself pinned back against the cushions.