A/N First of all, this is a yaoi story about Goten and Trunks, who I happen to think go together like peanut butter and jelly. That means it's a boy/boy romance story. If you don't like that sort of thing, don't read it and please don't flame. This story will not exceed rating standards, but I've put it under mature for language. Reviews are appreciated as long as they aren't flames because you don't like yaoi stories. I've written other things on this site under a different pen name, and I assure each reviewer who does not leave an anonymous review will get a reply because I appreciate them. Constructive criticism is appreciated because that's what reviews are for! Anyway, sorry for the long note. Enjoy!

Also, for a point of reference, this story will take place entirely from Goten's point of view except for the brief introduction, which is from Trunks's perspective. Therefore, it is in first person.

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or any of its characters.

Love. Ha, what a stupid word and even stranger concept yet, for some strange reason, it seems to have an unequivocal place in the universe as the one thing that dominates the actions and intents of human beings. Okay, in lay man's terms, it's what totally fucks us all up, probably beginning when we start having hormonal surges in middle school. Actually, I'm not even too sure about when we start fantasizing about love and all that garbage. All I know is that for some reason, it's a condition that just about everybody wants to find themselves in, even if it isn't exactly the easiest thing to deal with. Let's face it, how many of us have fallen in love with someone, only to have our hearts yanked out and shot into a million tiny pieces? More times than you can count, am I right?

Do I sound just a little cynical about the love thing to you? Good because the truth is, I think humans have the concept so screwed up, they wouldn't even know what true love was if it hit them square on the head. I mean, get real. Giving flowers and chocolates does not equate to true love. Nor does having wild passionate sex. Oh yeah, those things can be helpful in a relationship but they're just that…things. They really don't mean anything unless you give them some sort of significance and honestly, how many people really give a rat's ass about a box of stupid chocolates? You eat them and the next thing you know, they're in the shitter. But anyway, I'm sure you've gotten the point.

But what exactly is the point that I'm trying to get across? Well listen up because here it is. Do I believe in love? Yeah, I guess I do, but not the commercialized crap that we've been fed ever since we were old enough to watch TV. It's not about giving stupid presents or professing your undying emotion. That kind of love usually ends up finding it's way to the curb, and believe me, I've been in enough relationships that have gone sour to know exactly what I'm talking about. True love is more like a state of mind that goes beyond giving and expecting something in return. It begins with putting your trust into someone. That might sound easy, but it's not. The thing is, once you do it, you'll know how wonderful it is, especially if that trust is reciprocated. Friendship, understanding, and the ability and the willingness to work on your relationship, even when things are rocky and it seems like the easiest route is to just quite. Last but not least, the desire to do anything in your power to make that one person happy, even if it means sacrificing your own happiness. That's what true love is people. And that's what I'm talking about: how I found out what it is like to finally fall in love with someone even if it was the last thing I really wanted or expected. It was Heaven and Hell all wrapped into one.

The phone is ringing off the hook. I can hear it before I even walk up the outside steps that lead to the front door of my small apartment in West City. Dropping my groceries outside the doorway, I fumble for my keys, swearing when they get caught on the inside of my pants pocket. I'm not usually a klutz, but sometimes, when something really important is going on, the fates have a way of giving me a hard time. It's all I can do not to just kick the door in. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, I pull my keys out, unlock the door and then make a mad dash for the telephone.

"Hello?" I ask into the receiver, feeling slightly foolish that I sound so out of breath. But seriously, having to try to answer the phone under such stressful conditions, who wouldn't be like that?

"Hey Goten! What's up? Been working out or something buddy?"

I laugh slightly into the phone and throw my cursed keys onto the small kitchen counter of my apartment. Moving the phone to my other ear, I cradle it against my shoulder and then go back to the front door to pick up my discarded groceries before someone decides to run off with them.

"Aww, nah, nothing like that."

Leaning over, I grab my groceries, slam the door with my foot and then make my way back to the small kitchen inside my humble home.

"You just called me when I got home and I couldn't get my keys out of my pocket, that's all."

"Oohhh, so, is there something you want to tell me?"

I can feel a blush starting to creep across my cheeks. There are things that I'd love to tell him, but I don't really think that they are things he'd particularly like hearing. Anyway, he just likes giving me a hard time because he knows he can. That's how it has always been between us: Trunks and me. This time, I decide to play ignorant.

"Uh, like what?"

"Like…why you were so desperate to answer the phone. Come on, you can't fool me with the dumb act. Who is she?"

Of course with him, it would have to be a girl. I don't think he's ever considered the fact that perhaps I'm not all that interested in girls during this point of my life. Still, I have to give him some sort of answer otherwise he'll just badger me until I do.

"Umm, no one really. I was just hoping that Centrix was calling me about an interview. I could really use a new job."

"Oh."

For some reason, it irritates me that he's more interested in my social life then that of my personal life and aspirations. Maybe it's because Trunks doesn't have a clue when it comes to how the real world works, being the heir to Capsule Corporation and all the wealth he's been privileged to since he was a baby. I, on the other hand, really don't have extreme intelligence to recommend me, and my family's been poor as long as I've been alive, although I can't say I ever lacked for anything. Even though the two of us practically grew up together and we've been friends as far back as I can remember, the gulf between our social status is like this ever widening gap separating the two of us, and it has only gotten worse the older we've gotten. But I don't want to bother him with my morose thoughts. Not now anyway.

" 'Oh,' is that all you can say?" I ask him while I start putting away the groceries into my fridge.

"Well gee Goten, if you really want a new job, I can get you one here at Capsule. Then you won't have to live in that awful place you call home. You could even come and move in here. We've got plenty of space."

I sigh. I know he means well, but that's where the gap I was telling you about rears its ugly head. Sure, it would be great to work for Capsule and move out of my tiny apartment. But the reality is, I'm not the kind of person that takes things without working for them. It just wouldn't be right. This is an old argument of ours and I'm not in the mood to talk about it with him. It's Friday night, and I just want to relax after having worked my ass off in sales today at the used auto lot I work for.

"Hello, earth to Goten? Are you still there?"

Rolling my eyes, I finish putting my groceries into the refrigerator and slam the door shut.

"Yeah, I'm here. Listen, I don't want to talk about this okay?"

"Well, avoiding it isn't going to make it any better."

I just ignore that comment and walk over to my futon, plopping myself down onto the mattress.

"So Trunks, why did you call me?"

I can hear a pause on the other end of the phone and I know he's trying to think of something to say, irritated at how I effectively changed the subject before he could put his two cents in. In that regard, he's a lot like his father. He doesn't like not having the last word, especially when he can lord something over someone else.

"Well, to see if you were up to anything tonight. I haven't seen you in a while."

"It's been what, like a week?" I ask him, leaning my head against the back of the futon.

"That is a while for us! Are you busy?"

I think about it for a minute. Am I busy? No. Do I want to go out clubbing to try and pick up girls? Not really. Am I going to go if he asks me to? Probably. Pathetic.

"Nah, I'm not busy. Just tired though. Today was rough."

"That's why I'm telling you to come and work at Capsule! You could be my assistant or something and you wouldn't have to actually do anything. We could blow off work and you'd still get paid."

There it is again. Like I said, Trunks doesn't like to take no for an answer, especially when he comes up with ridiculous schemes like getting me to work as his assistant. I know that it would never happen. For one thing, Bulma does all the hiring and she would never hire me in that capacity simply because she knows her own son too well. She would realize that it would be a blow off job. And secondly, I wouldn't feel right taking advantage of his family. It's the work ethic my Mom beat into me, even though I didn't realize I had one until I moved out on my own.

"Look Trunks, no offense or anything, but I don't want to work at Capsule. It wouldn't be right. So just drop it."

I can hear him take in a breath and I know my tone of voice wasn't the usually nice and naïve one I normally speak in.

"Shit, someone's in a bad mood."

"I'm not in a bad mood! I just want you to drop the subject, okay? God Trunks!"

There's a pause before he speaks up again. Letting out a frustrated sigh, I feel slightly guilty for going off on him, but he just doesn't know when to quit sometimes and if I don't get testy, he won't lay off. It's a lesson I've learned over time with him. If I want him to stop being the boss of me, I've got to stick up for myself. It doesn't mean I like doing it though. He's my best friend and I hate it when we fight, even over little stuff like this.

"Look, I'm sorry for being crabby. I just don't want to talk about it. Do you still want me to go out with you or are you pissed at me?"

"I'm pissed, but I still want to go out with you. I just don't see…"

I interrupt him before he can start in on it again.

"Fine, I'll change. Come over in about a half an hour and I'll be ready."

With that said, I hang up the phone before he can try to dominate the conversation. Throwing the phone over onto a nearby table, I get up and make my way back to the kitchen to fix myself a snack. Throwing myself into the rhythm of making a sandwich, I can feel the tension that seems to have soaked into my muscles start to seep out again. It's been like this a lot recently between the two of us and I don't think he even notices. What's more, there are other things that have started making my friendship with Trunks even more complicated, although it's all on my part and not on his. I sometimes wish things were as simple as when we were kids together. But we're both adults now and the reality of being an adult makes the thought about being a kid again wishful thinking.

Taking my sandwich with me, I munch on it as I take a turn into the small bedroom off the living room. My apartment isn't a bad place to live in actuality. It just isn't the roomy penthouse my best friend is used to. It's in a nice neighborhood, the rent is reasonable and I don't need a huge place since I'm a bachelor and don't have a lot of belongings. Sometimes I'd just like to ask him, what's wrong with living simply? For a while, I used to get so eaten up with jealousy over all the perks Trunks had when we were growing up, especially once we got into high school. But one day, I realized that being upset over such a trivial thing like whether or not I could afford to buy a new name brand cell phone or laptop or whether or not I could afford a car instead of using the transit system or my own man power to fly was just dragging me down. And since I made the decision to be happy with the gains I've made in my own life instead of comparing the material desires of mine with what Trunks has, I've been much happier. I just wish that he could see it too.

Shaking my head, its all I can do not to just collapse on my small bed instead of finding something in my messy closet to wear. I really don't want to go clubbing. I know that Trunks is just going to get drunk off his ass and flirt with anything that moves and I'm going to have to be his babysitter. And then he'll cajole me and try to get me drunk.

I used to think it was fun getting wasted with him. However, one day, I realized it wasn't fun waking up with a hangover so bad that I felt like I was dying. Or the few times I ended up in some girl's bedroom without remembering how I ended up there or if we actually did anything together. Maybe it's just the fact that I'm responsible for myself and I can't just blow stuff off the way he can. At any rate, I'm going to go because he's my friend and while I do complain a lot to myself about how things are between us, I do want to spend time with him. I just wish I didn't always have to share him. Maybe it's selfish of me, but the older I'm getting, the more I long for the way it was when we were stupid kids goofing around with our super powers.

Walking over to the closet, I curse when a pile of pants I threw up on the top shelf collapses and falls on my head. If my mom were here, she would have had a hemorrhage over how messy my closet is, but that's the nice thing about living on my own. I don't have to listen to her harp about my sloppiness or why I haven't found a nice girl to settle down with, like Gohan did. In fact, I've been avoiding home just because of that. I'm twenty-five years old and I'm still single. When Gohan was my age, he already had Videl and Pan. Sometimes, I am a little jealous when it comes to my brother, but then I think about how nice it is not to be tied down like that. Lately, however, I think the desire to finally have companionship in my life like the way my parents have it, or Gohan and Videl have it, is starting to create a void in my heart that I didn't know existed. And the scary fact is…

Relaxing my arms, I start pulling the few pairs of pants that are clinging to me off of my body, changing my thought direction. Dwelling on loneliness and lack of companionship isn't going to make it any better. So perhaps, even thought I'm not really looking forward to going out, hanging out with Trunks at a club is a blessing in disguise.

Finding a pair of cargoes and a decent looking button down shirt that isn't too wrinkly, I grab my clothes and a fresh pair of boxers and head to the shower to wash away the accumulated sweat on my body from trying to sell used cars in the heat of the summer. Stepping into the small bathroom that's off to the left of my equally small bedroom, I strip out of my work clothes and then turn the water to the shower on, waiting for it to get nice and hot before I decide to step inside.

Maybe it's strange, but sometimes, I catch myself looking at my naked reflection in the mirror. I've never really thought too much about my looks, having decided long ago that I was no where as near good looking as Trunks. I smile foolishly to myself. I don't know why I ever decided that Trunks was the epitome of what manly good looks were all about. I'm mean the guy is cursed with purple hair for fuck's sake. Yet, even to this day, I still find myself comparing looks with him and never quite measuring up. It's stupid, I know, but part of it is because as far back as middle school, he was the one that all the girls were after. And some of the boys too, although they were more discrete about it. And until I worked my way through community college, no one had ever given me a cursory look.

Still, I sometimes wonder…would he think that I'm attractive? I swallow heavily and try to ignore that thought while I bite my lip and stare at my reflection. It's another ridiculous idea, and I don't know where it has been coming from as of late. I've always liked girls…at least, I've always thought that I liked girls. The few times that I've gone out with them, I had a really nice time when I wasn't wondering if they were just going out with me so that they could get to Trunks. I'm sure you could see where that would put a strain on our relationship. And then somewhere along the line, within the last couple of years, that stray thought about whether or not Trunks would find me attractive started to creep into my brain. I blame it on the stupid girls I once dated, and I usually turn it off without a second thought, but sometimes, especially when I'm getting ready to take a shower, it will pop into my head and make me think about….things.

I have a nice, well-muscled body. My hair is kind of wild, but at least it's not purple. And I think that I have a nice smile. Yeah, I have a nice smile. Scratching the back of my head sheepishly, I pull away from the mirror and step into the shower. You're just being an idiot, I tell myself while I lather up my body and hair and then let the water rinse it all off.

Within five minutes, I'm out of the shower and dried off. Wrapping the towel around my waist, I grab my shaving supplies out of the small medicine cabinet above the toilet and then start removing the five o'clock shadow that's present on my cheeks and along my jaw. It's kind of strange actually. Gohan has always been blessed without having to shave much, and I don't think my dad really does either. The only one of the Saiyans that I've ever known to be able to grow a decent amount of facial hair is Vegeta. Yet, I've been cursed as well, most likely inheriting that trait from my Grandpa. Rinsing off my razor, I quickly slice the stubble of my cheeks, happy that I avoided cutting myself in the process. Splashing water on my face, the last of the shaving cream goes down the sink drain. With that accomplished, I decide to gel my hair so that my bangs spike out slightly. In a few minutes, my hair is done, my deodorant and cologne is on and all I have to do is pull on my clothes.

Grabbing the clean items off the toilet, I let the towel around my waist drop to the ground before sliding my pair of boxers up my legs and over my ass. Grabbing my pants, I do the same before I throw on a T-shirt and then put on my button down shirt, leaving a few of the buttons and the top undone. Picking up my dirty clothes from off the bathroom floor, I step out of the bathroom and throw them on the pile in my bedroom. Just as I'm about to grab my wallet, the doorbell rings.

Unconsciously, I smooth back my damp hair before I reach the door and pull it open, revealing Trunks who is dressed immaculately for a night out on the town. Internally, I frown, feeling like a slob compared to him, but his bright smile at the sight of me helps to push my negativity to the side.

"Hey Goten! Looking good! The girls are going to be all over you, my friend."

I blush slightly at his rather frank assessment and then step aside, letting him into my small apartment. He slides past slightly and then stops, leaning in close to my face as his nose unconsciously sniffs something. Feeling jittery, I back away slightly. Sometimes, whether it's intentional or not, he'll do funky things like that and it always has had the effect of making me nervous.

"Wh…what are you doing?" I ask, cursing when my voice cracks slightly.

"Are you wearing…. Cologne?"

Immediately, I feel like a complete dolt. Relaxing, I shove him away and smack him in the shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm wearing cologne. Do you have a problem with that? It's disgusting when you sniff me like that."

All he does his grin at me, his eyes expressing pleasure over the fact that he could make me squirm like a girl.

"Aww, come on Goten. You like it when I do that! Anyway, it smells good on you. I'm going to have to guard your back, my friend, because there are going to be swarms of chicks after you tonight!"

I want to tell him that I do not like it when he does weird shit like that and that I think he's exaggerating about the girls, but I just keep my mouth shut and head towards the open door of my apartment. Looking back at him, I use my eyes to convey that I'm ready to leave and get the night over with.

"Fuck Goten, you don't have to look like being swarmed by girls is a horrible thing. You need to lighten up, Chibi!"

With that said, he slides past me and exits my apartment, stepping down the stairs and unlocking his flashy silver sports car. Frowning, I lock the door and then follow him, getting into the passenger side of the car. Letting out a deep sigh, I bury myself into the cushions as he starts the car and then pulls away from the curb with a screech of rubber.

Have I already said that I'm not looking forward to this? I still think Trunks is oblivious to the real reason I've agreed to come, but the idea of keeping him from going off and doing something stupid with the multitude of girls that will be swarming him doesn't have a lot of appeal to it. I'm just doing this because he's my friend, and sometimes, doing something you don't like with the person you want to spend time with is better than spending another evening alone.

I hope you liked the first chapter! Please leave a review if you would like.