"My Hero"
Sharpner, wearing black jeans, combat boots, a dark tank top and a brown, long-sleeved, leather jacket, waited outside Orange Star High School beside his red motorcycle as other students filed out. He watched them leave before seeing Gohan and Videl walk out, smiling at each other. It turned his stomach and he tried to control himself enough to not go to Gohan and punch him repeatedly in his innocent-looking face.
"Yeah, c'mon, do it!" a voice said beside him as a miniature version of Sharpner in a Devil's costume appeared on his shoulder, "he deserves it for stealing your girl!" As Devil Sharpner finished, another Sharpner appeared on his other shoulder dressed in an Angel costume with a halo. "He didn't know that Sharpner loved her!" Angel Sharpner said to Devil Sharpner, "besides, even without him, you couldn't make Videl love y-" Sharpner raised his hand and swatted Angel Sharpner off his shoulder.
Ever since they got together, Sharpner had avoided them as best he could, only sitting next to them for the sake of Erasa, and also because he did not feel like getting new friends. Erasa, not wanting Sharpner to be alone, had begun spending more time with him.
Just then, his silver-edition Capsule Corporation phone beeped and he looked at a text from Erasa, 'I'm around back, can you come over please? :)'. Sharpner pocketed his phone before wheeling his motorcycle around the back of the highschool.
"Hey," Erasa said with a warm smile. Sharpner's mood seemed to lighten as he looked at her smile. "How was your radio shift and course?" he asked with a smirk. Erasa shrugged, "I got the day off from the radio and my guidance counselor course to spend time with you," she said then looked at his motorcycle, "oh wow, is this yours?" she asked as she ran her hand over the leather seat. "Well, not exactly, it's my father's," he informed her as he watched her inspect the motorcycle closer.
Erasa talked as she looked around the vehicle, "Hmm, a Capsule Corp Diavel. A four-valve desmodromic liquid-cooled ninety degree V-twin engine. Electronic ignition. A six-speed constant-mesh transmission with a wet, hydraulic multi-plate slipper clutch. A front brake, two by three two zero semi-floating discs, radially mounted four-piston with Brembo callipers and radial master cylinder. A rear brake… two six five millimeter disc, two-piston calliper." Her voice trailed off.
Sharpner looked at her in surprise, "you know motorcycles?" he asked. Erasa shrugged, "I remember reading about this in a Capsule Corp magazine once, what do you know about them?" Sharpner looked at the vehicle then back to Erasa, "um… it goes really… fast?" he asked. Erasa giggled, "So, what are we doing today?" she asked, holding her hands behind her back and leaning in close to him with a smile.
"Oh, um… yeah, I reserved us a table at the Satan Ball Restaurant at half seven, the table's on the second story balcony, before that though the carnival is up and running again after the World Tournament incident, I thought maybe we could hang out there for a while until it's time to go to the restaurant." He gave a smile and rubbed the back of his head before realizing he was imitating Gohan, then immediately stopped. 'Goddamn it, Brains, he's having an influence on me,' he grumbled in his thoughts.
Sharpner reached into a pouch hanging from the side of his motorcycle and took out a motorcycle helmet with an swan head design above the visor and 'Erasa' written along the bottom back of the helmet in medium gold metallic letters. "I uh… I got you this," he said as he handed the helmet to her. She looked at it and turned it around to see her name; she smiled happily and looked at him, "thanks, Sharpie, I love it."
Sharpner took a second helmet from the pouch, and placed it over his head. Its design having a bald eagle above its visor against a black background and a blood red 'S' on the back. He swung his leg over the motorcycle before sitting down, the motorcycle pushing down slightly due to his muscular build.
Through his open visor, he looked at Erasa, who carefully placed her helmet over her head. He held out his hand for Erasa to take, she smiled behind her helmet and took his surprisingly gentle hand before sitting gently behind him, the motorcycle remaining at its current height. "You might want to hold onto me when we go," Sharpner said with an underlining caring tone to his voice.
Erasa swung her arms around Sharpner's waist, pressing her ample chest against his back. Feeling her chest against him, Sharpner shut his visor quickly before he blushed. Mentally shaking himself, Sharpner revved up the engine and rode off towards the carnival with Erasa resting against him, her head placed on his back, over his low hanging hair.
Sharpner pulled up to the parking lot next to the carnival before they made their way into it, leaving their helmets in the pouch on the motorcycle. Erasa held tightly onto his bicep. They walked to an air rifle stand and Erasa gasped, "Ooh, Sharpie, look," she said, pointing to a large stuffed teddy bear hanging on the side of the stand, "come on, Mister Grumpy, let's play," she giggled as she looked at Sharpner's expression, "please, win me the big teddy please."
Sharpner handed the stand clerk a few Zeni and took up an air rifle, "just hit the targets and get a high score, purple targets are worth ten points, pink targets are twenty five and green targets, fifty points." The stand clerk said. Sharpner nodded to him before the game started.
Immediately, Sharpner shot several green target's before moving onto the pink targets. Erasa and the clerk watched in wonderment as the jock's aim hit each shot with unwavering accuracy, quickly gaining a large amount of points.
Erasa held up her new large teddy bear as Sharpner put the gun down. He turned to her as she hugged him, "thank you, you're so sweet," she said, her bubbly personality never waning. Sharpner tried hard not to smile but gave in as he returned her hug.
"Where did you learn to shoot like that?" Erasa asked as she broke away from Sharpner, who smirked slightly, "my father taught me when I was younger, he thought it would help me someday," he told her. "Your dad taught you how to shoot?" she asked. Sharpner nodded proudly.
Just then, Erasa shivered slightly. "You okay?" Sharpner asked. She nodded, "just a little cold, I should have brought a jacket." Sharpner rolled his eyes before taking his leather jacket off and placing it over Erasa's shoulders. She looked from the overgrown jacket that covered her to Sharpner, "won't you get cold?" she asked. Sharpner scoffed slightly, "the cold doesn't bother me," he said casually. Erasa smiled and hugged his arm, "thank you, Sharpie," she said as she looked at him with big sparkling blue eyes. Sharpner attempted to avoid her gaze.
They continued to walk through the carnival before coming to a haunted house. Erasa looked at him with a hopeful smile. "Alright, alright, we'll go to the… fake haunted mansion," Sharpner said as he looked at her smile. "It's a house," Erasa corrected him nicely. "Whatever," he grumpily replied. Erasa giggled slightly.
The man standing outside the house allowed Erasa to leave her teddy bear with him for safekeeping. Sharpner paid for both his and Erasa's entry. Erasa clung to his arm, "promise you'll protect me?" she asked him as she rested her head on his bicep. Sharpner smirked enough for Erasa to see and she smiled happily.
They cautiously walked through the haunted house, "hmm, reminds me of Resident Evil," Sharpner quipped casually. "What? You mean there's going to be zombies and hunters?" Erasa asked worriedly. Sharpner gave a humored laugh, "Nah, it's because nothings hap-"
He was cut off as a werewolf mannequin jumped out from a doorway and Erasa screamed, clutching onto Sharpner's arm harder and trembling. "Not… another… word… you jinx," Erasa said in a trembling voice. Sharpner looked at the visibly shaken Erasa and removed her hands from his bicep before pulling her closer, allowing her to hug his waist as he placed his hand on her back. Erasa's breasts again pressed into his body and he was thankful the dim and flashing lighting around the house masked his reddening face.
They passed under a portcullis before it came crashing down behind them, causing Erasa to jump in fright and the two to look back. "Okay, that's a serious health hazard," Sharpner said as his heart began increasing its beat. "Sharpie, I'm scared," Erasa said with a frightful glance around. "Stay close to me," Sharpner reassured her.
They made their way through the house as more and more jump scares appeared. Sharpner remained visibly unshaken while Erasa's body trembled, her arms remaining tightly wrapped around his waist, almost cutting off his blood supply to his lower body.
They emerged on the other side of house through the basement. "That was fun," Erasa said with a large smile. "You were trembling," Sharpner said in disbelief. "I had you to protect me," she said as she looked up at him with a grateful smile. Sharpner looked away from her, hiding his smirk, "come on," he said as he looked back at her, "let's get your bear back."
They retrieved the teddy bear from the front of the house and Erasa thanked the man for keeping it safe before moving on.
They entered a Ferris wheel and rode it to the top, "Sharpie, look," Erasa said as she gazed out the window behind her. Sharpner turned and looked out beside her. Erasa pointed out across the city, "look there's our school," she said. Orange Star High stood high over the buildings. "There's the police station," Sharpner said, pointing to the opposite side of the city. They began pointing out several other landmarks, making it a challenge to see who could count the most.
Just then, they realized the sun was setting behind them, they turned back into their seats as the sun bathed them in orange light and Erasa snuggled into Sharpner, "this is kinda… romantic, don't ya think?" she asked with a giggle. Sharpner smiled as he held her hand, they were alone now, out of sight, and he let his guard down. "Yeah," he breathed.
Several attractions later, they came across a High Striker that stood over three times as high as Sharpner. "Go on, I'll wait here," Erasa said as she looked at Sharpner's wanting expression. He grinned before walking up and grabbing a hammer. "Hey, buddy, you gotta pay f-" the clerk said before being interrupted by Erasa handing him some of Sharpner's Zeni, "this is for him." she said with a warm smile.
The clerk's slight outburst caught the attention of some passer-bys, who stopped and watched as Sharpner began twirling the hammer between his fingers, gaining its speed and momentum before it became a blur. He relaxed his muscles as he twirled it above his head before grabbing hold of the hammer with both hands and bringing it crashing down on the lever.
The bystanders looked on in shock as the puck shot up through the bell, breaking it off. Sharpner caught the bell with his right hand and turned to the clerk, "oops," he said confidently with a smirk before resting the bell on the clerk's stand. The clerk looked at him with a fearful expression, "here, take these, just leave me be, I did nothing." He shoved a large bag overflowing with teddy bears into Sharpner's hands. "Thanks," Sharpner said nonchalantly before handing the bag to Erasa, "here you go," he said with a smile. Erasa hooked the bags straps over her wrist before hugging him, "my hero," she giggled.
Seven rolled by and the two made their way back to Sharpner's motorcycle; they placed the bag of bears in the pouch as they took their helmets out and put them on. They sat on the vehicle, the large bear tucked in front of Sharpner, before they drove off towards the Satan Ball Restaurant.
Arriving there, Erasa handed Sharpner's jacket to the doorman, who bowed and hung it on a coat rack. An employee led them to their seats, on the second story balcony lookout under the stars. Sharpner pulled back Erasa's seat and she sat down with a warm smile as Sharpner took his seat opposite her.
A waitress walked up after they had looked at their menus. "'Allo, may I take your order?" she said in a light French accent. Sharpner let Erasa order first, "I would like a Celery Victor please, and a glass of water," she said nicely as the waitress scribbled on her notebook.
"And for ze gentleman?" the waitress asked. Sharpner held up the menu to the waitress, "everything on the main course, please," he grinned. The waitress looked at him wide eyed while Erasa smiled at him, knowing what he was like due to his antics during lunch. The waitress nodded before she took the menus from them and left them alone on the balcony. "This is nice," Erasa said as she watched the stars blink in the night sky, "just you… me… under the stars." Sharpner grinned, "I know how much you like the stars, so I did my best finding a good place for something to eat."
A sly smile crept onto her face, "I could think of something else to eat," she said with a flirty wink. Completely taken off guard, Sharpner's face blushed heavily; he could not hide it from her this time. "Ah ha, I knew it, you've been blushing all day," she said with a triumphant giggle.
Sharpner hid his face behind his hands as his heart pounded; he wanted to roar from embarrassment. "Please stop," he asked, his hands muffling his voice. "Sharpie?" she asked. Sharpner dropped his hands from his blushing face that began to subside. Erasa reached over and took his large hand in her small one, her soft touch calming him, "I'm sorry for embarrassing you," she said, her tone gentle and genuine.
He looked into her eyes, his heart skipped slightly before he looked away. "Tell me something in French," she told him, wanting him to get comfortable again. "Merci beaucoup, vous ne savez pas combien je me soucie de vous," he said nonchalantly. "What did you say?" she asked in wonder. Sharpner looked at her and grinned knowingly. "Sharpie!" she demanded. He chuckled through his teeth. "You big Meany," she said before sticking out her tongue playfully.
She sat back as their food came to them; a plate of Celery Victor was placed in front of Erasa while several plates of food were placed before Sharpner. The waiters bowed to them before leaving. Erasa picked up her fork and knife before gracefully cutting into her salad and placing the ingredients of celery hearts, veal, mild peppers and romaine lettuce onto her tongue. The mixture of taste slid over her taste-buds and she let out a moan of appreciation.
Sharpner rubbed his hands as he inspected his food before chowing down on Ramen, Dumplings, Onigiri, Anpan and various other foods. He looked up at Erasa as several strands of Ramen entered his mouth; she raised her head slightly as she took several sips of her water. He watched her throat expand and contracted as she drank before he gulped his food hard.
Erasa glanced over at him as he continued eating, taking interest in his current dish he was devouring. "Oh my, Sharpie," she said with a giggle, "I didn't know you wanted to eat Meshi." Sharpner immediately stopped and looked at the rice dish, before tossing the rice over his shoulder, landing it expertly in the trash on the other side of the balcony behind him.
Soon after, Sharpner wiped his lips of food as he stood up; gathering their many dishes from the table and Erasa helped him through the door as he walked through and placed the dishes on the tray leaving for the back room to be washed. He walked up to the counter and handed over the cost of their food before rejoining Erasa at the front door where he, again, helped her into his jacket.
Driving through the city on their way to Erasa's home, Sharpner noticed a large smoke stack over the rooftops. "Hold on," Sharpner called to Erasa before speeding up in the direction of the smoke.
They drifted around the corner to where a burning building lit up the street, a crowd of people stood outside while firefighters sprayed the building with water. "Where's Saiyaman?" one bystander asked as Sharpner and Erasa walked up. "There are children in there!" another called out.
Sharpner scanned the sky, looking for the tell-tale sign of green and red in the sky, however saw nothing. His fist tightened as he looked from the building to Erasa. He sighed before he took his phone, keys and various other valuables from his pocket. "Hold these," he told her.
Erasa took them from him, "why? What are you-?" she cut herself off as Sharpner took off, "Sharpner!" she called after him as he took off his tank top. He shoved the fabric into a stream of water from a hose as he passed before wrapping it around the lower half of his face, from the nose down.
He charged into the building as the bystanders gasped in shock. "Who's that guy?" "What's he doing?" "He'll get himself killed!" came their responses. Erasa clung onto Sharpner's jacket, before breathing his name softly.
He stayed low, ducking under smoke as falling debris could be heard around him. "Hey, anyone here?!" he called out. A scream came from upstairs; he looked to a staircase and made his way up it. Suddenly, the staircase fell from under him and he jumped into the air, crashing onto the upper floor as the staircase crumbled far below. "Not going back that way," he commented before continuing on.
He came to a closed door, another scream came from inside and, instinctively; Sharpner grabbed the metal handle before it burned his hand slightly. He stifled a yelp before he grew angry, "stand back!" he growled before charging the door, shouldering it off its hinges and falling to the ground on top of the wood.
He stood up as he noticed three children, a girl and two boys, huddled in a corner, shaking into each other's arms, their eyes fixed on the jock. "Hey, I'm here to rescue you guys," he said as he approached them, extending his arm.
The oldest, the girl around seven years old, took his hand and the middle child took his other, the youngest looked at him helplessly. Sharpner smiled as a Sayain tail snaked out from under his pants, "it's okay, this will protect you lil' guy, but let's keep this a secret, okay?" he assured the boy, who nodded apprehensively and allowed the tail to wrap around his waist and lift him into the air, the boy petted his tail and Sharpner purred slightly before shaking himself.
"Let's get outta here!" he said, taking a step forward before the roof in front of them collapsed, blocking their way as two propane tanks fell with the roof, "oh… damn!" he said in front of the children, censoring himself. He looked around to see a window, "no other choice," he resigned himself to the window as their only escape, "you guys better hold on!" he said as he braced himself and wrapped his arms around the two.
Erasa stood looking, her breath bated and her heart rate racing. "Come on, Sharpie," she whispered to herself. Suddenly, an explosion came from a second story window and she screamed, "Sharpner!" she called out as other bystanders screamed in alarm.
Just then, through the smoke, someone could be seen falling through the air. They came close to the ground and leaned into a roll as they hit the ground. Erasa ran up to the person as Sharpner set the children down, his tail quickly jumped back into his pants out of sight.
He looked up at the bystanders who cheered for him. Erasa stood in the front with happy tears running down her cheeks. She ran up to him, wrapping her arms around his large neck, "you almost gave me a heart attack!" she said affectionately. Sharpner coughed as he ripped his wet tank top from his face, the cutoff of soot from his clean lower face was clearly evident as he placed his right hand on her back, returning the hug with a smile.
Erasa stood with Sharpner who was advised the stay with the ambulance for rest and medication from the smoke. Just then, Saiyaman and Saiyagirl showed up, "what happened here?" Saiyaman asked the firefighter chief. "This young man saved the three children who were stuck in the building," the chief informed them, pointing to Sharpner who sat at the back of the ambulance, with Erasa cleaning his visible skin of soot with wet-wipes.
Saiyaman and Saiyagirl shared shocked looks between each other before approaching them. "You, citizen, you should not have done that," Saiyaman informed Sharpner with care in his voice. Sharpner narrowed his eyes as he took his breathing mask away. "Get bent!" he growled, "If it wasn't for me, those children wouldn't be here! Next time, focus on your job instead of being off with your girlfriend!" He was overcome by a fit of coughing. At his comment, Saiyagirl took a threatening step forward, only to be blocked by Saiyaman's arm; she looked at him as he shook his head.
"Sharpie," Erasa warned him, lifting his arm up to place the breath mask over his mouth again. She looked at the two heroes, "thank you for your concern, but Sharpie needs be cared for," she said with slight frost in her voice, "so please leave." The two looked at each other before nodding, "this isn't over," Saiyagirl warned them before they flew off. Sharpner looked at Erasa and smiled, she returned the gesture as she petted his hair, "my hero," she said affectionately.
Later that night, Sharpner lay in his bed, his phone in his hand as he looked at pictures of him and Erasa they took that day. Erasa had been dropped off by the ambulance on the way to Sharpner's home, after giving him a peck on the cheek she left and entered her house.
Just then, a text message popped up in his notifications and he tapped on it, his eyes were met by a picture of Erasa dressed in an opaque red nightgown sitting on the end of her bed, surrounded by her teddy bears while she held the large teddy bear in one arm and took a mirror photo on her phone with the other. Underneath the photo read the message, 'thank you, Sharpie, I love them:* '.
He smiled at her text and eyed her kiss emoji; he felt something inside him, a need for something. 'Anytime, babe, we should do something like that again.' He texted back.
La Fin