fate 26

They spent almost the whole day exploring; towards the end, Gohan and Videl noticed that Goten and Trunks were wearing out, so they decided to go back, Gohan still holding onto the box that contained the sapphire treasure. By the time they got back to Master Roshi's island, it was almost 10:00 in the evening. The sun had long set and night was reigning over the sky, sprinkled with thousands of tiny stars. They briefly talked with Krillin and returned the masks, whereupon Videl met Android #18. Videl found Android #18 cold, but not uncaring.

They would have stayed for longer, but Goten and Trunks were falling asleep on their feet. After changing into their clothes, Videl opened up the capsule that contained her jet plane and she and Gohan placed the two young children in the plane. After saying their goodbyes to Krillin and #18, Videl and Gohan left, flying off in the direction of Gohan's house. Gohan looked back at Goten and Trunks 30 minutes into the ride only to find them asleep, leaning up against each other. He smirked and faced forward again.

"They're out like lights," Gohan said, "They really wore themselves out today." Videl chuckled.

"Be happy they did. Putting them to be will be much easier and they might actually sleep until a reasonable hour tomorrow morning. But, still, they might not. They have a lot of energy, even for kids."

"Yeah, well I think it runs in the family," Gohan said cryptically. It was true; having Saiya-jin blood in them gave them an incredible amount of energy and level of stamina. Trunks and Goten really could keep going all day. Gohan himself, after years of training, had the ability to keep going through with physical activity for well over 24 hours, almost 36, a whole day and a half.

"So, I bet they were incredible troublemakers when they were younger?" Videl asked. Gohan sighed.

"What do you mean 'were'?" Gohan said and Videl laughed quietly as she flew.

"Oh, so they still like to create trouble, do they?" Gohan threw a look at Videl.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you forgot the towel incident already? That's mild for Goten and when he gets together with Trunks...well, let's just say that if you don't keep them occupied, you're in deep shit." Videl nodded.

"Yeah, I can imagine." Gohan shook his violently.

"No, you can't. Let me give you a few examples..." Gohan spent the better half of the two and a half hour ride explaining Trunks and Goten's escapades. Videl thought they were funny and entertaining; Gohan thought otherwise, often being one of the people who had to clean up after their messes. Eventually, they arrived back at the Son household and Trunks and Goten were carried up to their room for a second night in a row, being put into bed in their day clothes; Gohan and Videl just didn't have the energy to change their clothes for them. The two went their separate ways, Gohan to his bedroom and Videl to the bathhouse to take a bath.

Gohan changed into pajama pants, not planning to stay in them for long. The moment that Videl came back, he was going to take a bath to rid himself on the sea salt that he could feel in his hair. He was tired, becoming irritable, and the presence of the itchy salt in his hair was making him even more edgy. But, there was nothing he could do and wait until Videl got out of the bathhouse. So, he settled himself down on his bed and began to read. About a half an hour later, he heard someone knocking on his door. Removing his face from his book to look at the open door, he saw Videl standing there, wearing, once again, shorts and a tee shirt.

"Hey Gohan," she said, walking into the room and sitting on the bed, "Whatcha reading?"

"Nothing really," Gohan replied, "It's just easy reading." Gohan put down the book and got up, getting things ready to go and wash up.

"Hey Gohan, can I ask you something?" Videl said, her voice hesitant and almost timid. Gohan, not used to the tone of voice coming out of Videl's mouth, turned back to her, a concerned look on his face.

"Sure, you can ask me anything. What is it?" he said gently. Videl looked up at Gohan for a moment before looking away, as if she didn't want to ask the question, but had to anyway.

"Well, I was just wondering why you haven't told me your story yet; you know, explained to me why there are so many weird things about you," Videl said. Gohan sighed; he really didn't want to talk about that at the moment.

"Videl, the story, it's really long. It would take a long time to explain. Besides, I'm not sure if you would even believe half the things I told you." Videl looked up at Gohan, a hurt look on her face.

"I think I would believe more than you think I would. I saw you that day, Gohan, the day your mother and Bulma were killed. You were there; you somehow managed to turn your hair gold and you somehow managed to kill those two guys using tricks." Gohan looked away, pained that she had realized who the golden-haired warrior was.

"I'll find out eventually, Gohan, but I'd rather hear it from you and you know that." Gohan tried to speak, his voice constricted for a reason he didn't know; could it be fear?

"Videl," he finally said, "The story...it's very painful for me to tell. It's full with a lot of miserable things and memories that I've tried hard to suppress. It takes time for me to dredge up all of the painful memories that I've received since I was only 4. I'm...sorry, but you're going to have to wait a little longer, ok?" Without giving Videl a chance to say anything, Gohan walked out of the room and headed towards the bathhouse.

Videl didn't know whether to be mad at him or to be disappointed as she got off of the bed and moved over to her own room. Pulling down the covers, she climbed in and stared at the ceiling, wondering what about Gohan's life could be so bad. He seemed to be living a happy life now.

< But maybe it came at a price, > Videl thought, wondering, if that were the case, what the price was.

< What price would be high enough for those shadows to lurk in his eyes? I want to know...I NEED to know! > Her thoughts swirling around her, tangling amongst herself, Videl drifted off into a dream-filled sleep.

The next morning, Videl woke up to silence. There was no noise anywhere in the house.

< Hmm, maybe it's early, > Videl thought lifting up her wrist to look at her watch. Her eyes widened with surprise when she saw what time it really was. It was quarter after 11:00 in the morning.

"Holy shit," she whispered, "It's really late. I must have been more tired than I thought." She got out of bed and walked around the house, looking for signs of human life besides her own, but finding none. The kitchen was spotless; Gohan must have cleaned it up after breakfast. Not finding any of them anywhere, she went outside, only to find them not there either.

She searched for about 10 more minutes and, not finding them anywhere, decided that she was going to take a bath to wake her up. Grabbing a towel out of one of the linen closets, Videl walked into the bathhouse and locked it, making sure that no one could come barging in on her.

< Though if Gohan did, I wouldn't mind... > Videl thought before blushing and slapping her forehead.

< You're not supposed to think thoughts like that when his mother's away, you idiot, > Videl told herself, undressing and filling the bath with water. She stepped in, the hot water creating a mist around her, and allowed her mind to wander.

< Wonder where they went? Surely they couldn't have gone too far. But, where would they go? There aren't any places that I know of to go out here that are easy to get to...but Gohan and Goten know the area so much better that I ever will; they grew up around here. I'm a city kid, I'm not used to the layout of the countryside. But, still, I wonder what it would be like to live out here, > Videl thought, allowing her mind to wander down that specific path. She came to the conclusion that she could easily live out in the countryside; she'd just have to learn to adjust to it. It seemed like no time at all when she got out of the bath and redressed again. She thought that the others might have returned home, but, instead, she found that they were still gone.

< Gee, thanks for leaving me here alone, guys, > Videl called out to them mentally, as if they would be able to hear her. Sighing in resignation, she decided to give up on trying to find the others. She walked casually upstairs and into the guest room, getting dressed out of her pajamas and into regular clothing. Digging through her bag, she pulled out a book and walked outside, finding solace in the lone tree that stood in front of the house and finding comfort in the shade it offered. Sitting down underneath the shade, she opened the book and began to read.

She immediately became enthralled in the book, a psycho-thriller, and read through almost the entire book when a strong smell bombarded her senses. Lifting her watch to check the time, which was now about 1:00, she concentrated on the smell.

< Do I smell...fish? > Videl thought, standing up with her book in one hand. She walked closer to the smell and stopped, spotting the source. She didn't know whether to be mad or impressed. Walking towards the house, huge 6-foot fish trailing behind them, was Gohan, Goten, and Trunks. They spotted Videl up ahead of her and she raised an eyebrow, as if to say "Where have you been?" and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hey Videl," Gohan greeted, setting down his trail of fish, "How are you today?"

"Oh, I'm fine," Videl said sweetly, "I've been having a great time by myself, just so you know." Gohan looked a little sheepish as to what Videl was implying; she was a little miffed at them for not bringing her along.

"I'm sorry that you didn't go with us. We did try to wake you up, but you wouldn't. So, we left without you. To tell you the honest truth, I thought we'd be back much earlier than this, but Goten and Trunks wanted to stay, isn't that right, you two?" Gohan said, looking at Goten and Trunks, who were smiling widely.

"That's right," Goten said, "We wanted to stay by the river and explore!" Videl raised her other eyebrow.

"Did you two go exploring all day yesterday in the ocean? How much more exploring could you want to do?" Neither of the two answered; they were too busy obsessing over the fish they caught, which would be that night's dinner. Gohan shrugged.

"Well, that's kids for you; short attention spans. Look, I have to go gut and clean these. You're welcome to come with me, but I don't think you'd want to." Videl shook her head; if the fish smelled as bad as they did with their guts on the inside, she didn't even want to think about what they smelled with their guts on the outside.

"I'll leave that to you; I'll watch after Goten and Trunks for you while you go do that." Gohan smiled.

"I figured you'd say something like that," Gohan said, gathering up his, Goten's, and Trunks' trails of fish before taking them far behind the house.

"I'll be back, you two," Gohan said, "Listen to Videl, ok?"

"Ok," the two kids chimed, finding much fascination in a horde of bugs that dwelled underneath a pile of rocks. Videl watched them for a long while, amazed that they could find so much to do with a set of insects. About 40 minutes later, the two of them started fighting about what a particular bug was. Videl watched the situation closely; Videl saw the beginnings of a fistfight beginning between the two.

"Oh, you guys, that's enough," she said, walking over to the two, but they weren't listening.

"You take that back, Trunks. I'm not stupid!" Goten cried, pulling back his fist to hit Trunks with and lunging forward.

"No!" Videl cried out, stepping in between Trunks and Goten, thinking that Goten's punch couldn't affect her that much. Goten's forward momentum was too great for him to stop in time and his fist connected solidly with Videl's mid-section. All she felt was intense pain as she flew through the air, hitting the ground with a grunt. Goten looked beside himself with grief; he hadn't meant to hit Videl. Even Trunks looked guilty; he liked Videl and hated to think that he had a part in her getting hurt.

"Videl!" Gohan exclaimed, walking around from the back of the house after cleaning up from gutting the fish only to see Goten punch Videl in the stomach. He rushed over to her, helping her into a sitting position.

"Videl are you ok?" She coughed, trying to force air into her lungs. It looked like she had the wind knocked of her. Gohan looked away from Videl and focused on Goten, who looked like he wanted the ground to just open up and swallow him whole.

"Why'd you do that for?" Gohan asked, his voice a yell. Goten sniffed back a few tears; he hated it when Gohan yelled at him.

"I didn't mean to; it was an accident. I didn't want to hit Videl," Goten said, his voice small, "Is she going to be ok?" Gohan nodded.

"She's going to be fine. What happened, you two?" Eventually, he got the story out of the two. For some reason, he couldn't get mad at them. Gohan sighed.

"Look, I'm going to take Videl inside. Just stay out here and try to play nicely, ok?" The two demi-Saiya-jins nodded, incredibly relieved that Gohan wasn't going to get mad at them. Gohan took Videl into his arms and carried her into the house; she was still trying to regain her breath back. He brought her into the living room and set her down on the couch, noticing that she was regaining her breath.

"I shouldn't have stepped in, should I?" Videl said, coughing. Gohan nodded.

"No, you really shouldn't have. Videl, I'm going to lift your shirt to see the damage, ok? Tell me what hurts when I press on it." Gohan lifted Videl's shirt high enough to expose the large bruise that was forming there and a little above, in case there was other damage that he didn't see. He ran his fingers gently over her stomach, remembering the dream he had a couple of nights ago, and inspected the bruise.

"Ok, I'm going to press down now. Tell me if it hurts." Gohan pressed gently on the bruise, wincing as Videl's cry of pain reached his Saiya-jin ears.

"Ok, I take it that it really hurts right there. Let's see if it hurts anywhere else." Gohan moved his fingers away from the bruise, pushing down gently on unblemished flesh, noting when Videl said it hurt. After he was finished, he looked down at Videl. Gohan gave her the diagnosis, using what he knew from being severely injured himself.

"Well, my guess is that you've bruised some of your organs. You probably don't have internal bleeding, but I can't be sure about that. Just in case, I'm going to give you a Senzu bean. I'll be right back." Gohan ran upstairs, picking up the bag that was full with the magical Senzu beans. He probably had about 15 in the bag with Korrin growing more for him; one could never have too many Senzu beans. Pulling one out of the bag, he rushed back downstairs. He knelt besides the couch and handed the Senzu bean to Videl, who weakly put it into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed, moments later feeling her pain disappear. Videl looked down at her stomach and noticed that the bruise was gone.

"Well, that should take care of it," Gohan said, standing up and offering his hand to Videl. Videl took it and got to her feet.

"How do those things do that?" Videl asked.

"They're just special like that," Gohan said cryptically.

"And how did Goten punch me to hard?" Gohan shrugged.

"That also runs in the family, I'm afraid." At Videl's look, he continued to speak.

"I'll explain that when I explain everything else. Just don't think about it right now, ok? It'll all be explained with time." Videl followed Gohan's gentle orders and pushed it out of her mind. Together, the two walked outside, where Goten and Trunks were just sitting. Goten looked very afraid when Videl walked outside, like she was going to yell at him.

"You're not mad at me, are you Videl?" Goten asked, shrinking away from her as she walked towards him. She knelt down next to him and smiled gently at Goten.

"No, I'm not mad at you, Goten. It was an accident; it wasn't your fault." Goten smiled broadly.

"Ya mean it?" Goten exclaimed. Videl nodded and Goten threw his arms around her neck in a happy hug. Videl hugged him back, feeling a great deal of sisterly love for the little Goten. There was just something about Gohan's little brother that was hard not to love. The rest of the day went on without any incidents.

Goten and Trunks somehow roped Gohan and Videl into playing a whole assortment of games with them. By the end of the day, Gohan didn't know which group was more wiped out: the teenagers or the kids. Needless to say, Goten and Trunks went right to sleep at the end of the day, leaving Gohan and Videl alone to relax. The two were practically draped over the couch in the living room as Sunday came to a close.

"Well, it's been a long weekend, hasn't it?" Gohan said, half asleep.

"Yeah," Videl murmured, "Full of action movies, treasure hunting, punches in the stomach, and countless numbers of little kid games." Videl paused. "It's been a very long weekend. I don't think I have the energy to move."

"Ditto," Gohan said with a sleepy voice. Suddenly, Gohan felt a weight pressing against his shoulder and noticed that Videl had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Gohan smirked, almost asleep as well.

"Well, things could be worse," Gohan murmured, drifting off to sleep as well.

"I'll go get our brat; I'll be right back."

"And be quiet Vegeta. We don't need you waking up everybody." Vegeta snorted at his mate.

"I am a warrior, woman. I can be undetected if I wanted to." With that, Vegeta ascended the stairs, leaving Bulma and Chi-Chi in the front hall at 2:00 in the morning, Chi-Chi's bag at their feet.

"Well, it's been a fun weekend," Chi-Chi said, "Vegeta even behaved himself. How'd you do it?" Bulma smiled.

"I have my ways," Bulma said cryptically, even though Chi-Chi knew what "ways" Bulma was talking about.

"That easy to please?" Chi-Chi said. Bulma nodded.

"Oh yeah." Just then, Bulma noticed that there were still lights on.

"Chi-Chi, did you notice that the light in your living room is on?" Chi-Chi's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Oh, I guess it is. Maybe Gohan or Videl is still up." Chi-Chi and Bulma walked into the living room and were immediately shocked and excited.

"Oh my," Bulma said.

"That is so cute!" Chi-Chi said, her voice hushed as to not wake the sleeping occupants of the room. Cuddled on the couch were Gohan and Videl. They were both lying on the couch, Videl with her back to Gohan and Gohan with his arms wrapped around her waist. Gohan's back was pressed up against the couch as he held Videl close to him, one leg thrown protectively over hers.

"They're spooning!" Bulma said as if it were the cutest thing in the world. To the two grown women, it was.

"I have to take a picture of this," Chi-Chi said, digging out the camera she brought along with her for the trip just in case there was anything she wanted to take a picture of. Quickly taking the picture, Chi-Chi put away the camera and looked at the two teenagers.

"Look at how tired they look. Goten and Trunks must have wiped them out." Bulma nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I knew those two would wear out Gohan and Videl. It's a good idea that you suggested that Videl help Gohan. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to get Gohan up for another couple of days.

"I know," Chi-Chi said, still looking at the two. "What do you think'll happen when they wake up?" Chi-Chi asked. Bulma shrugged.

"I don't know. Let's not think about that, though. Let's just bask in the cuteness. Think of the picture that's going to make, Chi-Chi."

"It's definitely going into the scrapbook after they get married. If I do it before, Gohan'll find it and rip it out and it's too good a picture to ruin." Suddenly, Vegeta's voice broke in to the living room.

"Ok, woman, I'm ready to go." Bulma and Chi-Chi looked at Vegeta, who had Trunks slung over one shoulder and his bag in one hand.

"Can we go home now? I would like to get some sleep so I don't slow down my training tomorrow." Vegeta glanced at the couch.

"I hope your son is able to do some training tomorrow," Vegeta said to Chi-Chi, "A sparring partner might be nice." With that, Vegeta walked out of the house and over to the airbus. Bulma only shook her head.

"Well, I better go. I don't want Vegeta to be even crankier than he already is. I'll call you later and we'll get together over coffee in a couple of days, ok?"

"Right Bulma. Thanks for inviting me to go with you. I really needed it." Bulma smiled.

"No problem, Chi-Chi. See you later." Chi-Chi smiled as well.

"Bye Bulma." With a wave of her hand, Bulma walked out of the house and over to the airbus, shutting the door behind her as she went. Chi-Chi could hear the airbus take off and moved to find a blanket to drape over the two sleeping teenagers. Finally finding an available one, she covered them with it and, giving them a small smile, turned off the light.

"Good night, you two," Chi-Chi said, walking out of the living room and up to her own room, taking her bag with her.

The next morning, Gohan awoke to find himself covered by a blanket. Not only that, but there was also a comfortable weight on his right arm. Confused, he looked down to see that the comfortable weight on his arm was Videl and that she was sleeping, cradled in his embrace. He briefly wondered how they got like that and then realized that they fell asleep on the couch the night before.

< We must have moved into this position in the middle of the night without knowing it, > Gohan thought, noting how much he loved waking up to Videl in his arms. < I could wake up like this every morning, > Gohan said to himself. He smiled down at the sleeping figure in his arms before yawning. Closing his eyes, Gohan decided that he would get some more sleep.

< Besides, might as well enjoy the feeling of her in my arms while it lasts, > Gohan thought before he drifted back off to sleep.

A few hours later, Videl woke up, her eyes slowly opening. She felt warm and...extremely content. She felt a pair of arms wrapped loosely around her waist and turned inside the pair of arms to see Gohan, sleeping peacefully behind her, a small smile present on his face. She smiled in spite of herself. The look on his face was so calm and relaxed.

< He looks so cute when he sleeps, > Videl thought, bringing up a hand to trail a finger lightly down his cheek. Suddenly, the smell of food hit her senses and she found that she was hungry. Carefully, and regretfully, extracting herself from Gohan's arms, careful not to wake him up, Videl got off of the couch and walked into the kitchen to see Chi-Chi making breakfast.

"So, I see you're awake," Chi-Chi said when Videl walked into the kitchen, "Is Gohan still asleep?" Videl nodded.

"Yeah, he is. I just woke up. When did you get back?" Videl asked.

"Oh, about 2:00 in the morning. Vegeta and Bulma came by to drop me off and pick up Trunks before they went back home. And, in case you're wondering, it's about 10:00 in the morning." Videl looked at Chi-Chi with a confused look; Chi-Chi smiled at the look.

"Just in case you were wondering," Chi-Chi repeated. "So," Chi-Chi continued, "When are you leaving to go back home?" Videl shrugged.

"I don't know. In a couple of hours, I suppose. After I eat and get all my stuff together, probably." While the two women talked in the kitchen, Gohan was starting to wake up. The more his mind became lucent, the more he realized that his arms were empty. He felt the area around him and discovered that it was still warm.

< She must have just gotten off of the couch, > Gohan thought. He then heard voice coming from the kitchen, female voices. < My mom must be home and Videl must be talking to her. > Gohan got off of the couch and stumbled into the kitchen.

"Good morning, you guys," Gohan said, "I see that you're home, mom." He felt around the house, searching for kis. Upstairs, he only found Goten.

"And I take it that Vegeta and Bulma took Trunks home last night," Gohan said and Chi-Chi nodded in response. Videl looked over at Gohan.

"How did you know that Trunks was gone?" Videl asked. In his tired stupor, Gohan answered truthfully.

"I didn't feel his ki anywhere." Videl looked confused.

"His...what?" Videl asked. Gohan suddenly realized what he said and immediately panicked.

"Ah, just forget what I just said," Gohan said, his voice hurried. Chi-Chi only shook her head in pity as she continued to make breakfast. Videl's eyes narrowed in anger.

"No, you're going to tell what that ki thing is," Videl said, glaring at Gohan. Gohan glared back.

"No, I'm not." Their eyes locked, each one challenging the other to say something first. Videl backed off first, looking away from Gohan.

"Never mind, forget it," she mumbled. Chi-Chi smiled; they reminded her so much of Vegeta and Bulma at times, especially times like that.

< So, it does seem that Gohan has some sort of backbone when it comes to girls, after all, > Chi-Chi thought, < Though Videl will have no problem keeping him in line. > Chi-Chi giggled, both teenagers picking up the sound.

"What's so funny mom?" Gohan asked. Chi-Chi shook her head.

"Oh, nothing Gohan. I was just thinking. Don't worry about it." Videl and Gohan immediately calmed down and ate when breakfast was served. Goten, too, joined them, still half asleep, but he managed to wake up while he was eating. Much later, after Videl had gathered all of her stuff, it was time for her to go.

"Well, thanks for coming over and helping Gohan watch over Trunks and Goten," Chi-Chi said, watching as Gohan and Videl walked outside.

"It was no problem, Chi-Chi. I'll see you later, ok?" Chi-Chi nodded and Gohan and Videl walked out of the house. Videl pulled out the capsule that held her plane and expanded it.

"Well, I'll see you later too, ok Gohan?" Videl said, climbing into her plane.

"Wait!" Gohan said. Videl turned around and looked at Gohan.

"What is it, Gohan?"

"I think I'm ready to tell you, Videl. Are you free any time this week?" he asked. Videl, happy that Gohan was finally ready, thought about the rest of her week.

"I'm busy with my dad the entire week; he's going away for a long time, 5 months I think, to inspect all of his dojos, and we're spending a lot of time together before he goes. But, he leaves on Friday evening, so I'm free on Saturday. How does that sound?" Videl said. Gohan nodded.

"I'll stop by your house on Saturday around noon and we'll find somewhere nice to talk, ok?" Gohan suggested. Videl smiled and responded.

"Sure, that sounds fine. I'll see you then, all right? And you better not chicken out on me, Son Gohan!" Videl exclaimed.

"I don't think I will, Videl. I'm ready to tell you everything." Giving him one last smile, Videl climbed into the plane and took off, leaving Gohan to watch her leave. Chi-Chi came out of the house, having heard the entire conversation.

"Are you sure you're ready to tell her everything, Gohan? Even Cell?" she asked, concerned. Gohan nodded; throughout the day, he had done a lot of thinking. The more he got to know Videl, the more he trusted her. She had been incredibly trusting and patient; he thought she finally deserved to know.

< The final test of our friendship will be whether she still wants to be friends with me after she finds out. I hope she doesn't think I'm a freak, > Gohan thought.

"Yeah mom, I am. It's just time for her to know. I can't avoid it forever; she will find out eventually and I think I have a right to tell her myself." Chi-Chi smiled softly and put a hand on her son's shoulder.

"You know, she may not want to be friends with you after she finds out," Chi-Chi said warningly.

"I know mom. But, if she's my true friend, then she'll accept me for what I am and know that it doesn't change who I am." Chi-Chi sighed and removed her hand from his shoulder.

"I hope you're right, Gohan."