Disclaimer: Saiyuki belongs to Minekura Kazuya.
"I heard a voice."
Years ago, when Goku first came out of the cave, he didn't put any significance in that comment. Sanzo heard him, and Sanzo came for him. Of course, freedom didn't come without a price; now, whenever Goku enjoyed taking in fresh air, or gazing at the bright colors of a newly bloomed wildflower he was obliged to think of Sanzo. Not in a fully conscious way, but always, his mind would wander off and rest a bit on that familiar tenderness in his heart. Most of the time, the feeling was faint, but at times it would leave him overwhelmed with gratitude. The gratitude was funny; sometimes it made him happy. Other times, it left him struggling to keep hot tears back, taking in great gulps of air and fighting that aching sensation deep inside his heart. But still, Goku reasoned that it wasn't a big price to pay for freedom; besides, he wouldn't have it any other way.
Goku couldn't hear Sanzo's voice.
That part puzzled him. Sanzo always seemed to know what was going on in his head, but Goku never had the faintest clue of what was going on in Sanzo's. At first, he had tried; he had tried really hard to compensate for the lack of understanding by carefully observing Sanzo. That didn't get him very far though.
In the end, Goku decided that it was for the better that he couldn't hear Sanzo's voice. He liked it so much better when he could actually hear Sanzo's voice right next to him, by his side, that low voice forming the sound,
G
O
K
U
It made him happy, and when he could actually see Sanzo's figure along with that voice, he knew it didn't matter that he couldn't understand what was going on in the priest's mind. Sanzo could take care of himself, and he…
Well, Goku would never admit it to anyone, but he enjoyed being taken care of.
Just a little.