Author's Note: Hello everyone! I know it's a little early, but I just had to write this little oneshot down before the idea could escape me! This is based on Trunks and Charisma's story in 'Charms of Sweetness' for those of you who are reading that. Don't worry, I will update CoS pretty soon. This story here really helped me get inspired again.
Anyway, it's not too long and not too much action goes on, but this occurs when Charisma and Mace are still together so I can't go overly romantic with Trunks and Charisma, just a little cute and sweet. I hope it's good and suits your taste. Happy Early Valentine's Day everyone!
From Me to You
It caught her by surprise. It was a pleasant surprise though. He stood there in front of her in the busy hallway of Orange Star Academy with a small box wrapped in colorful red and white paper. The cute little pink bow sat atop the small box complimented it well.
She remained with her eyes glued to it, her mouth hanging open slightly in shock. She heard him chuckle and it snapped her out of her daze.
"…Is there something wrong? It's not a bomb or anything," Trunks said with a joking tone. "It's not much, but I hope you like it."
Charisma shook off her surprise and reached out to grab the gift. She held it in her palms and stared down at it. "I can't believe you out of all people actually got me something. You've never done this before…"
Trunks looked away in a futile attempt to hide his blush. "Yeah, but my mother kept telling me it would be a nice thing to do, so I figured she might be right," he explained coolly as he leaned against the locker beside him. "I knew you'd probably like it, anyway."
Charisma smiled to herself, not even noticing how she was beginning to turn red. Trunks opened his mouth to continue speaking until he was interrupted by a voice that almost killed his mood.
"Happy Valentine's Day, my love!" a voice said smoothly. Charisma gasped lightly when she felt strong arms wrap around her shoulders in a backwards embrace. She turned her head and smiled.
"Good morning, Mace!" she greeted him with a warm smile.
"I hope you're ready for today," he said, completely ignoring Trunks as if he wasn't even standing there. His arms loosened from around her and she turned around to face him as he spoke. "I got you something really special. I hope you like it. I'll give it to you later when we go out."
Charisma's smile grew wider and she nodded her head. "Oh, I can't wait! Today is going to be wonderful!"
Trunks stood there with his arms crossed as their conversation continued. His eyes caught sight of Charisma holding the gift box behind her back, concealing it with her hands.
'Why is she hiding it?' he wondered to himself. 'Does it look suspicious?…Seriously, it's only a gift.'
"I'll make sure you enjoy ever second of it," Mace replied and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. He began steering her down the hall to walk with him. "It's getting late. We better head off to class."
"Right!" Charisma agreed and wrapped an arm around his waist in return. She turned her head to smile at Trunks and held up a peace sign. "I'll see you later, okay?'
Trunks huffed angrily as he watched Mace and Charisma disappear into the crowd of other students down the hallway.
….
The day went on as normal. Aside from first period math class, Charisma and Trunks remained separated from each other until lunch and then again after school.
After school, Charisma and Trunks met up with Misa and Goten. The four friends walked towards the front gate of the school and Trunks remained silent as the other three happily chatted and discussed their plans for today.
"I've gotten quite a few offers," Misa said with her head held high, completely proud of that fact. "It was hard to choose. They were all really cute, but I think I'm going with that guy who sits behind me in Chemistry class."
"That's nice!" Charisma responded. "I've got plans for today, too."
Misa grinned at her teasingly and elbowed her playfully. "Of course, you do. You're so lucky Mace is such a romantic!"
"I'm a romantic, too, you know," Goten said proudly. "I'm going to treat my date to dinner and a movie and some star gazing. She's going to love it! And she's going to get a really awesome present from me! I'll be surprised if I stay single any longer!"
Misa's rolled her eyes. Her cheeks flushed and she grumbled. "I wouldn't count on it. Yu probably won't even able to keep your eyes off the waitress!"
Goten sweatdropped and scratched the back of his head as he chuckled nervously. "I'm not like that…"
"Like hell you aren't!" growled Misa, crossing her arms.
Trunks felt as if he wasn't even there. At least, there wasn't anything he could contribute to this conversation. Charisma looked back at him and noticed the exasperated look on his face.
"Hey, don't look so down!" she said to him. "There's always next year, right? In fact, every day can be Valentine's Day, if you think about it."
Trunks scoffed. "I don't care for holidays like today. They're completely unnecessary."
"But they're fun," Charisma smiled at him before leaning in towards him with a whisper. "Thanks for the gift, by the way. I haven't opened it yet, but I'll open it when I get home!" She winked at him before walking off ahead of her friends as they reached the gate.
"I'm going off with Mace! Enjoy your dates, everyone!" Charisma waved at them as she ran off. Mace had his car parked at the curve, waiting for her to arrive. They greeted each other with a light kiss and he held the door open for Charisma when she jumped inside.
"What a guy," Misa swooned with her hands over her heart.
Trunks rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Let's just go."
…
Charisma was certainly treated to a wonderful night, including dinner and shopping at the mall with Mace. At the end of the night, he'd dropped her off at her house and walked her to the door.
"Thanks for everything! I had a wonderful time!" she said. She smiled at him and was just about to give him a kiss goodnight when he stopped her.
"Hold on," he said softly. "Don't think I've forgotten your gift…"
"Oh, I forgot about that," she giggled. He took her hand and placed a shiny ring with a small blue sapphire in the center. It sparkled magnificently like the ocean under the moon. "Another ring? Really?"
"It matches your eyes perfectly," he grinned as he held her hand close to her face to compare. "I couldn't stop myself from getting it for you. I want you to know how important you are to me. I'm looking forward to spending next Valentine's Day with you, too."
Charisma blushed shyly and nodded. "I do, too. Thank you for everything." They shared one final goodnight kiss before Charisma opened her door and went inside. She leaned against the door and stared at the ring on her finger.
After greeting her mother in the kitchen, Charisma walked up her stairs and entered her bedroom. She began removing her coat and emptying her pockets. She pulled out the small gift box out and smiled when she remembered Trunks' gift to her.
"Oh, this…" She excitedly removed the ribbons and paper and opened the box. She smiled to herself. "A crescent moon shaped charm…" She noticed a small piece of blue paper also inside the box beneath the charm.
Charisma sat on her bed and read it out loud. "Reach for the stars, Strawberry." A simple and even corny sentence, she had to admit. Trunks never seemed like the sentimental type anyway. But there was something about that message that couldn't be expressed with simple words. She felt happier than she would've thought such a small gift would make her feel. She couldn't describe how or why she felt overwhelmed with happiness.
It might just been her own paranoia, but Charisma at time felt as if they'd been drifting apart for the last few months since her birthday party. She'd noticed how they hadn't even been hanging out together like they used to and it bothered her. Not knowing if everything was still okay with him bothered her. He always seemed to be distant, even with Goten and Misa at times.
Maybe this was a sign that nothing between them would ever change, even though sometimes it felt as if change was inevitable. The warm feelings and affection that existed since they were children still remained, and it always would. If anything, the simple note and simple charm reminded her of their bond and friendship that would never die, no matter what.
Charisma snapped herself out of her thoughts and placed the moon charm on her bracelet dangling off her left wrist. She held her wrist up towards the lights and stared at it. She looked over at the clock on her nightstand. It's flashing digital display read 7:55 p.m.
"Oh, I've still got time," she said to herself and quickly put on her coat again. She ran down the stairs and out the door without even telling her mother where she was heading to.
…
Trunks found himself sitting alone in his room, casually flipping the channels on his TV with a forlorn look on his face. He didn't care much for holidays like Valentine's Day, but he didn't deny it to himself that he was feeling particularly annoyed today. He crossed his arms when he couldn't find a suitable show to watch and leaned against the headboard. His phone suddenly began chiming a tone and he quickly grabbed it out of his pocket.
"Charisma…" he read her name out loud.
'Are you still awake?' the message read. Trunks shook his head as if it were the most redundant question ever asked.
'It's only 8:30, of course I'm still awake,' he texted his reply.
'Good, so go open the door!' Trunks stared at her next message dumbfounded but hurried out of his room and down the stairs to the front door.
"Charisma?" he said her name in a bit of surprise once he opened it to find her smiling face on the other side. "Is this really the time to come visit?"
"The night is young! Does my presence bother you?" she said as she placed her hands on her hips. "And 'hi' to you, too!"
Trunks sighed and gestured for her to enter. "Come in. What are you doing here?"
"I just figured I'd come and give you my thanks," she explained, gripping something behind her, unbeknownst to him. They returned up to his bedroom and he stood awkwardly waiting for her to say something else. He was surprised to see her face suddenly fade to pink in an instant.
"What's wrong?"
"…Say…is it weird for a girl to get a guy a present?"
Trunks stared at her blankly, caught off guard by her question. "You came to ask for advice? I'm not the right person to ask this to, you know…"
"Oh, so it is weird?" she replied, looking up at him and frowned. She disregarded his last his last statement completely.
Trunks began sweating nervously and wondered why she'd ask him such a thing. "Well, um…I don't know," he tried. "I haven't really heard of a girl doing that…I mean, I wouldn't know…"
Charisma sighed and pouted. "…So it is? What a shame…that means I got you this for nothing…" She pulled out the red gift bag that she'd been carefully hiding behind her back.
Trunks just stared at her with bewilderment for a few seconds. His eyes traveled from her innocent blushing face to the equally red bag in her hands. "…Me?"
Charisma shyly nodded her head. "Yes…you, Trunks. I don't see anyone behind you."
Trunks slowly lifted his hands and took the bag out of her small hands. "…Thanks. I wasn't expecting this, Charisma…"
"So you're surprised?" she asked him and smiled with her cheeks still red. "I'm glad! Your gift really made me happy, I can't even describe it. I had to do something for you, too."
Trunks couldn't help but smile at her. She seemed to be honestly beaming with so much happiness it was difficult for him to not return the affection. Seeing her smiling somehow made him want to smile as well. He could never quite explain that feeling.
"I'm glad you liked it. I knew you would…"
"I didn't just liked it, I LOVE it, Trunks!" she corrected him. Her smile grew a little wider. "Reach for the stars, huh?"
Trunks blushed at her. He'd almost forgotten about the small little note he'd put in the box.
"You can be pretty sweet when you wanna be, Trunks," she chuckled at him and patted his shoulder.
Trunks blushed at her words and sat back down on his bed. "I know I don't say it enough…" He paused in midsentence, not sure if he should keep talking. He wasn't good at this kind of thing. She eagerly nodded her head like a puppy a few times in an effort to urge him to continue. "…but I'm glad we're friends, Charisma. Don't ever think otherwise, all right?"
Charisma took a deep, happy breath and smiled at him affectionately. She hesitantly took a seat on the bed next to him. "I am, too, Trunks. Thanks for always being there. Let's not let anything get in the way of our friendship, ever."
Trunks looked over at her and nodded. "Yeah."
They bumped fists together like old buddies would and she sighed contently. They sat together in silence with only the sound of the TV in the background. Charisma felt a little awkward and giggled in an effort to remove that feeling. "Well? Aren't you gonna open it?"
"Oh, right," he replied and slowly opened his gift. "…Food…?" His stared down at it. A bento box with grilled meat and vegetables and rice.
"What were you expecting? A diamond ring?" she scoffed jokingly. "And don't worry, I didn't make it myself. You're not gonna get sick or anything if you eat it."
"Good, good," he responded happily. "Don't want that to happen now." He continued reaching into the bag and pulled out a red heart-shaped box. "Chocolates, too, very nice."
"Yup! Is it obvious how terrible I am at getting you gifts?" she asked him and shook her head in her own disappointment. "I grabbed whatever I could think of. How is that you always know what to get me?"
"Getting gifts for you is pretty easy," Trunks chuckled and opened up the box of chocolates. "Oh, the fancy ones, too…"
Charisma peered over at the yummy looking chocolates. They seemed to sparkle in the light like her sapphire ring. Trunks was hungrily ready to take a bite out of one when he noticed her gaping face. He chuckled and held out the box to her. "Want one?"
"Hey, thanks!" she gleefully took one and put it into her mouth.
The chocolates ended up being for the two of them rather than just Trunks alone. Not that he minded her company or anything. They went on talking about complete nonsense and eating the rest of the chocolate for longer than they realized. Charisma casually grabbed her phone and noticed the time on the screen.
"Yikes! It's already 9:30! I better get home," she exclaimed. She stood up from the bed fast. A little too fast, in fact, and she immediately sat right back down. "Too many chocolates, too many," she grumbled and rubbed her stomach. "Whatever! It's okay! I'll be fine!"
She stood up slower this time and stretched carefully. "Thanks for sharing your delicious chocolates with me!"
"Thanks for eating them all," he rebutted.
Charisma pouted and stuck out her tongue at him. "Anyway, I'll see you later. I hope you like your gifts!"
Trunks walked her to the front door and watched as she exited with a small wave. She walked to her house across the street and quickly entered. When he returned to his bedroom, Trunks sat down on his bed and accidently caused the bag to fall over. Luckily for him, he'd taken the food out otherwise he'd be forced to eat it off the floor. Only now, however, did he notice another small gift that apparently had also been in the bag.
"Another present?" He grabbed the small white box and opened it. His eyes were greeted by the sight of a simple yet beautiful star pendent. "A necklace…?" He noticed a small note within the box as well, not different at all from the one he'd set in her box. Looks like she borrowed his idea.
'Let's reach for the stars together, Trunks.' Another corny, yet heartfelt note. Even with her sweet intention, Trunks couldn't help but notice it hurt him a little. He didn't know why, though. Regardless, he couldn't help but grinned at himself and scratch the back of his head. "Dummy."