My second attempt at a oneshot and probably one of the best stories I've posted. Hope you like it! :)

Gohan was no ordinary 13-year-old. In his short amount of years, he'd become the most powerful being on Earth, defeated two powerful villains, and trained in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber for a full year. In addition, he was kidnapped by his uncle, trained by a "demon", and lost his father…twice.

Not exactly the typical upbringing, even by Saiyan standards. It had only been two and a half years since Goku's death, and despite how difficult it was for him to accept that Daddy wouldn't be coming back, he was managing. He even had a little brother named Goten, to keep him company. He was two years old, and was the spitting image of the father he never knew. This made Gohan feel closer to his dad at times, but on rough days it only made him sad. Chi-Chi did all she could to allow him to move on from the tragedy of which he was responsible for on the battle field, but for the past few months, nothing could lift the adolescent's mood.

Since he turned thirteen, Gohan spent seemed to spend more and more time in the seclusion of his room. He'd lie on his bed and stare at the ceiling instead of completing his studies like his mom asked. Sometimes she'd enter his room to find him gone. He'd return about an hour later and claimed that he was just letting off some heat, but that didn't lessen Chi-Chi's concern for her little boy.

He seemed to revert to his usual positive and innocent self whenever a guest came over. Often, it was Krillin with Android 18 (who was somehow pregnant…) or Bulma with Trunks. Gohan and Krillin had always gotten along. The abnormally short fellow had an odd sense of humour, but like Goten, made him feel closer to his father.

Bulma's three-year-old son, Trunks, was quite the character. Gohan could recognize traits from both Vegeta and Bulma. The child seemed quite fun-loving, but also very stubborn. His purple hair definitely came from Bulma's side, but his skin tone and the intensity of his eyes were undoubtedly Vegeta's qualities. Overall, Gohan enjoyed his company and found it rather amusing to watch when Goten and Trunks would play together.

The only people who never seemed to visit were Vegeta and Piccolo. Gohan sometimes overheard his mother and Bulma talking about Vegeta and how he'd adjusted to the death of his rival. From what he heard, the Saiyan Prince was rather de-motivated and wasn't training as much. This never gave Gohan any consolation for his dad's loss; if anything it made him feel gloomier. The idea of Vegeta without his determination was a terrible thought. Whenever he imagined it, he always saw images of the torture Frieza inflicted upon him so many years ago on Namek… It gave him shivers to think about.

In regards to Piccolo, however, Gohan was never worried about their friendship, no matter how much time they spent apart. He knew that since merging with Kami, his mentor enjoyed spending his time at the Lookout with Dende and Mr Popo. Piccolo had always promised to look out for the boy, and this gave Gohan a sense of security that not even his father could provide.

This isn't to say he valued Piccolo over his own father, not at all. His ways were just different. As stated, he was a mentor, a teacher, a friend. But his father had his upmost respect and gratitude for all his sacrifices, without a doubt.

Yet, despite being completely aware of the support around him, Gohan had been acting strange lately, and Chi-Chi didn't know what to do. Whenever she approached her son, he gave her a smile that would fool even the wisest of men, but it never tricked her. Nevertheless, he wasn't willing to open up to his mother, so she chose the next available subject: Piccolo.

One day, while Gohan was at school, Chi-Chi called Bulma to pick her up in the Capsule Corporation airplane, as it was much faster than any alternate vehicle, and asked that she bring her to the Lookout. Piccolo already seemed aware of the situation with Gohan, but his intuition told him it was just a phase. Chi-Chi was not going to buy that, however. She told Piccolo that he did not understand hormonal teenagers, and that the least he could do was talk some sense into the kid. Piccolo was not opposed to it, and complied.

Upon arriving home from school, the thirteen-year-old was surprised to find Piccolo meditating beneath tree outside his house. Ridding of his usual blank expression, Gohan felt a smile grow as he greeted his friend. "Hey, Piccolo! Long time no see! What're you doing here? Where's Mom?"

The Namekian rose to his feet, and offered the boy a smile in greeting. The setting sun created a shadow behind him as the trees glowed under the tired light of an ending day. "She's out with Bulma, but I'm here to talk to you. You've seemed out of sorts lately."

"Did she send you?" Gohan rolled his eyes and his smile dropped, which was something the Namekian had never seen him do with such…attitude.

Piccolo was figuring out how to phrase this. "It doesn't matter. I've come to talk to you about your father and the battle with Cell."

The teen sat down on a rock next to the tree. Piccolo had all the respect he could give, so he wasn't going to reject whatever he wanted to talk about. "Yes? What is it?"

"That's for you to answer." Is he really going to be difficult with me? "Whatever you say will remain between us. I will not tell your mother, or anyone else."

This seemed like almost the exact conversation he'd had with his mom a million times over. She would never understand, though. Even if she used to be a martial artist, she couldn't understand what it was to be a warrior who had the match won, but doddled and got someone killed. She could not feel his pain, nor did he want her to. Yet, the half Saiyan pondered as a warm breeze brushed against his face, would Piccolo get it? Gohan trusted him with his life, his training, and on occasion, his feelings too. The Namekian was the greatest friend he'd ever had. With that in mind, spilling his feelings didn't seem like such a bad idea.

"My dad didn't deserve to die like that. I was an idiot, and he suffered the consequences of my actions…"

Piccolo remained silent.

Raising his voice, he mourned, "Shouldn't it have been me? If anyone, I should've died! It was my decision not to end the battle when I could've!" The boy shuddered as his broken voice reverberated through the darkening woods.

Piccolo placed a hand on the boy's trembling shoulder. "Gohan, your father lived a very full and happy life. He did what he loved every day, he saved the world—the galaxy—on numerous occasions without breaching his moral standards. He also produced two children to carry his legacy. You think he is not satisfied?"

Gohan felt the tears welling up in his eyes, but he pushed them back. Of course, his father was rarely displeased unless people were put in danger. That's just the type of person he was. But it wasn't fair, that while his father fought every battle to the best of his ability, Gohan toyed with Cell for too long and got him killed. "He had two kids he won't even get to see grow up, Piccolo. And it's my entire fault."

The wise Namekian let out a slight chuckle, to the half-breed's confusion. Looking up into the sky, he stated, "Oh, he's watching, kid. He's watching with a smile on his face, just like he always has." As he turned to leave, he looked back at the child he had been taking care of for most of his short life. He could see the relief and happiness in Gohan's eyes. The two saluted one another before the Namekian took off.

In a place far away from Earth, there was indeed one man, one warrior peering down from above. And just like Piccolo had said, he was observing with a proud grin. "Stay strong, son. Stay strong."