II. Influence
Training made sense. So that's why Goku did it. Of all the things he learned about in life, training was the only thing to consistently make sense. Proper training equals proper results. Improper training equals improper results. So Goku developed a habit that whenever something in his life didn't make sense, he did something that did make sense, which was training. While most people when dealing with their problems would punch walls, wrote out their feelings, talked it out with other people, or went for long walks.
But not Goku. Goku trained.
So it was no wonder that in the middle of the afternoon, instead of going outside and enjoying his day off, he was sprawled out on his hotel room floor doing a round of a five-hundred sit-ups. He could've gone to the gym but he really wasn't in the mood to surround around other while working out. Easier to concentrate he deduced. There were no meetings today that he needed to attend, all of the paperwork he brought with him was done, and he had already sent out his confirmation letters for all of his obligations in the coming month. He had absolutely nothing else better to do with his time…
Well, that wasn't completely true.
He completely ditched Chi-Chi today.
It wasn't as if he were purposefully attempting to piss her off or lead her on. Quite the opposite. In fact, this entire ruse was just a beautifully constructed plan of self preservation for them both.
Something clicked last night and completely threw him for a loop. He wasn't sure what caused it—she'd been gone so long, she was wearing his jacket, they were both fooling around and flirting more than they should have been, maybe he was finally losing his mind—but he experienced an urge that was impossible to ignore, even now.
Besides, all he needed was for him to totally lose it and actually act on that urge when he saw her again.
Goku always had trouble with his impulses and not doing whatever he wanted to do. But this was something he was determined to control. He wouldn't jeopardize everything meaningful he had built with Suno, for whatever these feelings were that he was having for Chi-Chi. Plus, all his friends really liked Suno. He found a great companion, that got along with his friends, what more could he want?
"Your room is too fucking bright, Goku."
Goku heard all too familiar groan, and was greeted the sight of his disheveled scarred-face friend. Not enjoying being interrupted, Goku found himself slightly regretting the idea of exchanging each other's spare keys in case of an emergency. Because lately, the only emergencies were Yamcha needing Goku's assistance with his hangovers. Figuring Yamcha would be here for a while, Goku decided to concluded his training session for a bit and tend to his needing friend.
Goku walked over to the already prepared ginger tea on the hotel stove in his suite, "It's called sunlight, Yamcha. I can't turn it off."
"Well then close the windows or something. I'm dying over here."
Ignoring his friend's whining, Goku placed a cup of tea in Yamcha's hand, who had already manage to make himself extra comfortable on Goku's bed. Goku was slightly bitter at his friends comfort, considering he himself couldn't seem to find any comfort on the plush bed last night. Albeit it may have had nothing to do with the bed itself at all.
"Ah…ginger root with two tablespoons of honey. This is it. Good thing Chi-Chi left something behind that stuck with you, you know before she disappeared into oblivion."
Goku grimaced a bit at mentioned of Chi-Chi's name. He was acting in his best efforts to not think about the girl and here was Yamcha, ever so innocently bringing her up. Of all his friends, Yamcha seemed to be the only one who never adhered to the "See No Chi-Chi. Speak No Chi-Chi" rule that was dealt among his friends after the lack of contact from her absence. Bulma would rant that it was because Yamcha had his own commitment issues and saw Chi-Chi's behavior as acceptable. Immediately, invoking a lover's quarrel.
It was simple, Bulma had gotten attached to Chi-Chi, deeming her much less abrasive and easier to get along with than Launch, the other female in their dysfunctional friend group. After her disappearance, Bulma thought for sure that she would be the person Chi-Chi would have at least made some effort to communicate with, some nonsense about 'girl code'. Lets just say Bulma's pride took quite a hit when she realized that she had been left in the dust by Chi-Chi just like the rest of them. Even Krillin had a shared distaste for Chi-Chi's abrupt departure. Something about 'Leaving, my buddy, Goku in the dust,' another thing at the time, Goku didn't quite understand. He and Chi-Chi were never together, well at least in that way. However, they did spend a substantial amount of time together. Maybe that's where everyone got the notion that they were a couple. But Goku couldn't help himself, Chi-Chi was literally the best cook he's ever known and whenever he was around she always had little treats to appease his everlasting appetite. The only other guy Chi-Chi had been just as close with was Yamcha. The two just seemed to always be there for each other whenever needed and Chi-Chi being the only girl Bulma never seemed to care about spending time with Yamcha, helped a lot.
"Goku are you there, man?" Yamcha raised his eyebrow.
Drawing himself out of his thoughts, "Yeah man, what ya say?" Goku asked, trying his best not to seem distracted.
Honestly, Yamcha was disrupting Goku's strategy. Whenever Goku needed to figure something out he isolated himself until he solved it. And after everything that happened last night, isolation is exactly what Goku needed. But Yamcha wasn't leaving him much of a choice in the matter and looked as if he were making himself rather comfortable in his room, so Goku didn't see the point in bringing up his discomfort. It would have seemed strange if he kicked him out, anyway.
Goku was about to begin another conversation before Yamcha stared curiously at the tea than at Goku himself. Yamcha's stared to make Goku uncomfortable, he was about to say something but than Yamcha spoke up. "What were you doing before I got in here?"
Goku shrugged. "Training."
He was confused because he was positive Yamcha saw him when he walked in to the room. "No, I mean why did you stop?"
"I dunno. Just felt like it, I guess."
Yamcha stared at Goku as if he just told him that he was going vegan. "…Bullshit."
Goku frowned and averted his gaze. "I don't see what's the big deal," he muttered.
"Bullshit you don't," Yamcha insisted. "The sky could be falling and you wouldn't let it interrupt your training session. Matter fact the only time you let something distract from training, is when you're using it as a distraction yourself. I know you."
Goku frowned. "Does it really matter? You needed my help so I stopped, it really isn't that big of a deal."
Yamcha wasn't buying the story. In fact, Goku could have sworn that all of a sudden, confusion turned into recognition as something suddenly lit up in Yamcha's mind. Goku's widen eyes were already begging before Yamcha even got up from his seat.
"Come on, don't do it—"
Yamcha yanked open the mini-fridge door and smirked. "I fucking knew it. Your goddamn breakfast room service is still untouched. What the hell happened last night?"
"Nothing!" Goku stated, exasperated. "Why do you have to assume that something happened?"
Yamcha pointed to the fridge and smirked as if that was the only response he really needed to give. "Untouched. Again, I know you. Now, what happened to you?"
Goku huffed and ran his fingers through his unruly hair, quite roughly. What was he supposed to say? Hey Yamcha, you know how you brought up Chi-Chi, just then? Well, I saw her last night and seriously considered ravishing her after only hanging out with her for a few hours? And now, instead of realizing my stupidity, I'm still considering it. Even though I have a perfectly good woman back home.
No. He couldn't tell Yamcha that. Because again, despite everything, Yamcha still held Chi-Chi to a high regard and would flip shit if Goku even considered turning her into "the other woman". Even though Goku would never refer to Chi-Chi like that, even if circumstances would dictate that's exactly what she would be. He couldn't even tell Yamcha he saw Chi-Chi at all, Goku was still grateful Yamcha hadn't seen her himself, because he would've definitely made it his business to make sure all three of them hung out. Thus throwing another monkey's wrench in Goku's 'Avoid Chi-Chi' plan.
But…he needed to tell someone something. If only to keep his sanity in check and convince himself that he wasn't the only one and that he wasn't acting crazy. Yamcha was the less hysterical of all his friends, and if anyone could put his doubts to rest, it would be him. But he had to subtle and discreet. He was sure he could manage doing that, at the very least.
Just need to change the conversation, he told himself…Ah ha! He thought.
He spoke slowly. "I think Suno wants to get married."
If Yamcha was confused by the seemingly abrupt change of topic, he didn't show it. Instead, his features looked as if he was already to jump ahead with understanding of where Goku was going with the conversation.
"You sure?"
"I mean I think so. Last time we talked she keep saying we could 'focus on our future'…Something about after this trip and her graduation all the distractions would be gone." It wasn't a complete lie, Suno had said those things. But that wasn't something Goku really paid any mind to when she had been saying them. "It made me think about Tien and Launch falling out and him canceling their engagement. And they were together longer than me and Suno. I mean even you and Bulma aren't planning a wedding and you guys been together longer than any of us…"
A tired sigh—something that he wasn't accustomed from hearing from the energetic warrior—broke the momentary silence. Yamcha ran his fingers through his loose hair. "I mean…what brought this up?"
Me running to our old friend, that's what. "I saw a couple at the club…something bothered me…"
He was being vague—very vague. But he hoped that it was just the right amount.
Yamcha sighed again. "What's your question?"
His response was immediate. "I was just wondering why'd Tien call off the engagement. I mean Bulma's still pretty busy with Capsule Corp and you with our thing…But Tien and Launch seemed pretty set career wise, so why? Bulma told me you asked him."
The warrior shrugged and winced as he drank his tea. His headache must have been coming back. "Honestly? I'm not totally sure he told me the truth. Understandable, of course, but I could tell he really couldn't tell anyone the truth. Not even me, and we got pretty close after everything calmed down, you know?"
Goku nodded and urged his friend to continue.
"He explained that humans are innately incapable of being stagnant," he began explaining. "Whatever the hell that means. Personally, I think he was just coming up with excuses for himself. Relationships are hard work and discipline, something I know Tien knows all about, so I know that he's full of shit. But after I chewed him out about his lame ass excuses, he mentioned something else."
Goku was now actually intrigued. "What?"
Yamcha cleared his throat. "That everyone needs a full set to be happy."
"A full set of what?"
"He didn't tell me," Yamcha shrugged. "Tien's always trying to be philosophical," He looked up at Goku's and noted the confusion in the other's face. "Forget it, it's not going to make sense—"
Goku shook his head. "No, no, no. Keep going. Incomplete sets of something. And?"
"Just that when you don't receive a full set from someone, you go out and look around at other sets until you find the missing pieces that you need. That way, you're complete and ready to go."
Goku shook his head. It all sounded very cryptic—very Tien—and he wasn't sure he knew quite enough about this to fully understand it. "What did you say after that?"
"What do you think? That you start running into problems the minute you start mixing with more than one set. And it's selfish to only want someone when they have something to give you in return. Love doesn't work that way."
The way Yamcha face screwed up Goku almost regretted asking anything about the conversation in the first place.
"How's Launch?" Goku questioned.
Yamcha shrugged. "I tried contacting her, but you know she's never liked me much. She wouldn't even talk to Bulma about it. Not that I blame her…"
Goku never heard any of this. In fact, whenever Goku was with Tien after everything, all they did was train. Goku never really felt compelled to bring it up, wasn't his place. Sure, he was disappointed his two friends couldn't work things out. In Goku's eyes as long as the two people liked each other enough, everything would work out fine. He knew Tien still cared deeply for Launch, so what more could he need? But then again, that was the same question Goku had been asking himself all last night and early this morning.
Yamcha broke his train of thought. "You sure you're okay, man?"
"I'm fine," Goku lied immediately. "Guess I hadn't realized how much time was flying between Suno and me."
Yamcha let off a sly smile. "Time flies when you're in loooove," Yamcha couldn't help himself and let out a few chuckles.
Goku pouted. "Very funny."
Yamcha laughed and waved off the comment, downing the last of his tea and relaxing into his chair. At least Yamcha didn't have that intense look on his face anymore. He looked a little less on edge.
"Seriously, though," Yamcha asked. "You're good, right?"
The nod that Goku gave was incredibly forced, but he was at least thankful that it was realistic enough to pass Yamcha's standards and set the warrior's mind at ease. At least that makes one of them. Goku still felt strangely unsatisfied—as if all of his questions just kept splitting into two and multiplying faster than he couldn't keep up. Honestly, he sort of regretted asking in the first place.
His dilemma had unfortunately worsened, and it was bothering him more than he would have liked.
"So…where are we?"
Yamcha slapped Goku on the back, causing him to lurch forward. "The beginning of a very good night, my friend. Plus it'll get you out of your funk. Two birds with one stone."
"I'm not in a funk," he countered with a roll of his eyes. "I'm just tired."
"You tired?" Yamcha literally snorted.
This wasn't the evening Goku had in mind. He had expected Yamcha to still have the remnants of a headache so that he could stay home and be in peace. But what he forgot was that Yamcha ould negotiate trade agreements and win under the effects of a hangover. It would have been an admirable ability had that not also meant that he could go out and have fun for multiple nights in a row with no problem.
Goku groaned as he was shoved through the front door of the large establishment. He was supposed to be home figuring out a plan for himself, not walking into shady and mysterious buildings with no idea what he was getting himself into. Yamcha didn't give him much to go on. He insisted that he wasn't about to sit in the hotel all day and wanted to do something fun tonight even if it killed him. However, when it came to having a good time, Goku's and Yamcha's opinions varied immensely. Goku wasn't sure he was going to like what he was about to see.
Lo and behold, he was all too right.
He stopped, observed, and immediately ran back.
Unfortunately, Yamcha as directly behind him, and wasted no time pulling his friend back into the wretched place. Goku really questioned why he always let his friends have the upper hand outside of the ring.
"Oh, come on!" Yamcha insisted as he quickly wrenched him away from the exit. "You just walked in and haven't given it a chance yet. Don't tell me you're about to weasel out on me now."
Goku pointed his finger accusingly at the stage in the front of the room. "I am not staying here and watching that."
The room was dominated by a large stage that was currently holding three scantily clad young women dancing together in a way that was anything but innocent. Their legs were slipping out of the long slits in their dresses, which gave the men below them at the tables the opportunity to slip zeni into the purses strapped to their ankles. All of the waitresses were dressed similarly and carrying over drinks and food from the bar in the corner. They all walked by with leers and winks and Goku suddenly felt far too exposed in such a place. It didn't help that most of the patrons here were old men that were absolutely shameless about their staring. A bunch of Master Roshis.
He definitely could not stay here.
Yamcha looked offended. "How could you say that? These girls have been practicing all night to make men like us happy and entertained. Don't tell me you're going to let their efforts go to waste."
"I really don't think they need our help with that. And since when do you some to places like this?" Goku asked.
"Someone from that meeting yesterday told me that he comes here all the time to let loose a little steam," Yamcha explained to him. "I've actually never been here, but you were looking absolutely miserable. I figured this would cheer you up and bring out your fun side."
Goku stared disbelievingly at him. "How this is going to help me?"
Honestly, one minute Yamcha was speaking with him on a serious and honest level. Next, he was making a horrible situation even ten times worse by adding more potential guilt to the equation.
"It's going to make you forget about your issues and just live a little bit. You're nobody here. And us nobodies are just watching some very beautiful girls show off their skills. Why can't you enjoy that?"
Because I'm already having fidelity issues, Goku thought miserably. This was the last place he needed to be.
"It's just innocent fun. Just sit down and enjoy it."
"Yamcha I've never liked these things and you know it," Goku argued.
"Yeah, when you were like twelve. Pretty sure your sexual appetite has long since been awakened, " Yamcha laughed.
Goku ignored his attempts at lightening the mood. "Let's go!"
Goku honestly thought Yamcha was looking a little too excited for someone who had a girlfriend at home and Goku couldn't help grabbing his friend's wrist and stopping him from pursuing a girl who had walked by with no one next to her.
"Bulma?"
"Don't pull the Bulma card. It's not like I'm going to sleep with her or anything," Yamcha promised. "I just feel bad, you know? She's all by herself…"
"Don't even think about it," Goku scolded. Goku wasn't much of parental figure amongst his friends, but the last thing the world needed was a hysterical Bulma.
Yamcha rolled his eyes and wrenched his hand free. "Like I'd go that low as to screw some random prostitute. I'm just going to…hang out with her for a little bit. They're all gorgeous. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"
Goku paused his attempts at persuasion and couldn't respond to him. He shook his head and tried to force out a response. "But…you can't…"
And just like that, Yamcha disappeared into the night again.
The worse part of this whole thing was that he didn't trust Yamcha to keep his promise after seeing the way that he had stared at the women on the stage. It was pure, unadulterated hunger in his eyes and Goku wasn't sure if that was the look of a man that was intent on suppressing his urges for too long. He knew that Yamcha iked to preach the fact that he was always faithful to Bulma, but something about the way he immediately chased after that girl made it seem like he would have a lot of explaining to do afterwards.
Stranger thing was that Bulma seemed to be that way to at times. Readily seeking the arms of another handsome man, especially whenever she and Yamcha had an argument. The couple had this faulty and strange "Look But Don't Touch," rule that did nothing but got them mad at each other.
Goku thought about running after his friend, but thought against it. Why beat a dead stubborn horse. Besides, now that Yamcha was gone, maybe he could find a way to get out of here. He was completely uncomfortable at the moment and he really wanted to clear his head in a place that didn't reek of sex and alcohol.
Goku was about to get up and see if he could get himself a drink before a young girl—younger than him—dressed rather suggestively asked him if she could get him anything. Feeling horrible, he asked for some tea as politely as he could before settling back into his seat and closing his eyes.
He suddenly felt very filthy.
He didn't belong here. He didn't have the heart to partake in things like this. None of these girls appealed to him, what with their made up faces and desperate attempts at attention. He didn't think he could go through with something like this and was sure that he would prefer Suno's company to this. Surely, he didn't have the capacity for this sort of betrayal. So why was he so strongly doubting himself today.
The girl came back quickly and Goku was able to get a better look at her as she set the teacup down and began pouring the boiling water in front of him. She was no older than eighteen, although the make up she was wearing attempted to make her look a lot older. The dress was too low on top and too short on the bottom, and she already had a few zeni stuffed into her pockets and the little purse she kept clipped to her hip. He wondered if she even enjoyed having this job.
She finished pouring the tea and smiled at him. "Will you be needing anything else, sir?"
Goku sipped the tea politely and smiled kindly, but he needed to get away. The perfume from all of these women was giving him a headache and there were two people in the back corner who looked like they were about to start something that was better suited for the bedroom. Maybe he could find a nice little restaurant, have some dinner, and go home.
"You wouldn't know a quicker way out here would you?" Goku asked the girl. "I kind of don't want to push through all of those people." By now, the bar was so crowded that getting back out through the main entrance was a hopeless task.
The girl nodded. "Of course. I wouldn't mind at all."
Goku offered her the tea to take back, but she shook her head and sat down in front of him. "Finish. I can wait."
He raised a brow at the offer but didn't offer a response. He assumed she was just being kind and letting him finish what he had ordered. That or she wanted to collect the money from him once she was finished. She was giving him a strange look, however. She was smiling to herself and looked a little too happy to be sitting near him. He was about to tell her that he had no intention of taking advantage of her services, but he figured that ignoring the batting of her lashes and her attempts to push her breasts up higher would be enough of a message. Looking at these girls made him feel worse.
He finished his drink quickly and have her the empty cup to quickly return to the kitchen. The smell of this place was giving him a headache. It was a mixture of perfume, alcohol, and sex, and he didn't understand how people could spend so much time in a place like this. It was a horrid atmosphere and his head just kept pounding at the very thought of it. Maybe he was stressing too much today and it was exacerbating the headache. He really needed to get something into his stomach and go back to his suite where he could sleep off the horrible day.
The girl returned and beckoned him towards the back of the bar. Goku got to his feet and started to follow the girl to the back of the bar, probably where a back door was accessible. Finally, he could get some fresh air. The cold would do him some good.
All of a sudden, as if he had been hit roughly in the back of his head, his vision immediately began to swim. It started gradually, and at first, he thought that he had just momentarily dizzied himself. However, as he walked through the spacious room, figures started blurring together, and soon he couldn't see straight. He leaned over and clutched the edge of an empty table in order to collect his bearings. He blinked and shook his head a little but and excused it as a dizzy spell due to exhaustion. But the disorientation wasn't going away. He lifted a hand to his eyes and rubbed at them furiously.
"Sir…are you alright?"
No, he wasn't. He could feel his heartbeat in his head and he all of a sudden felt like he needed to lie down.
The girl had wrapped an arm around his shoulders and lifted some of his weight in order to help him walk. It seemed that she was quick to help him. Then again, how many drunk men must she have led out of here with similar symptoms? It must have been an automatic response, so he trusted her to lead him to the exit for now. This was not the night he was looking forward to tonight.
The lights were dimming and he assumed that they had entered a back hallway. She whispered for him to wait for a moment and left him against a wall. It was then that his body started to feel quite heavy. Standing was suddenly becoming very difficult and he could feel the limbs trembling. This wasn't normal, and definitely couldn't have been brushed off as simply exhaustion. Maybe he was sick? He had been overworking himself lately and staying late in meetings this whole week. Add in the fact that he hadn't slept much last night—his mind on stressful things—it would explain the behavior. It just bothered him how suddenly it had come over him.
The girl returned and whispered into his ear that she would help him until he was able to get somewhere where he could rest. Goku furrowed his brow. Why was she helping him so much? She didn't know him and he hadn't paid her any money for her efforts. She could have called another man—or her manager for that matter—to have someone kick him out and get him back to his hotel. Why was she being so attentive? And further more, why was it taking so long to get to this damn back door? His head was killing him and he couldn't barely see through his blurry vision. No, something wasn't right…
They entered a new room, and he heard the door shut along with a series of pops and clicks that he couldn't discern. Was it the lock to the door? But why would the lock be messed with? They should be outside, and they most assuredly weren't.
He was propped up against a wall and Goku wondered if they were outside. He blinked and forced his eyes to focus. He didn't look like he was anywhere near an exit. Instead, he was in a dimly lit room that reeked of incense and more perfume. The walls were covered in dark green paper and the floor was covered with cheap rugs. In the middle of the room was a large bed covered in pillows and sheets complete with a canopy of green satin.
His eyes widened. Shit…no she didn't…
In his confused state, it took him a couple of minutes to realize where exactly he ended up, but by the time the realization came to him, it was too late.
The girl came up from behind him quicker than his dulled senses could realize, and she easily shoved him into the bed. He fell on his back with a grunt and immediately sat up on his elbows to see the girl crawling over him with a predator's glare shining in her eyes. She did not hesitate in coming up to his ear and whispering slowly.
"I hope you don't mind, mister," she chuckled darkly. "I figured that you could use a little fun…"
Goku flinched when she felt her cold hands lift his shirt and start tracing patterns onto his abdomen. He immediately realized what sort of position he was in and immediately started panicking.
"What the…w-what are you doing…?" he mumbled. His head was hurting too much to think.
The girl smirked and shrugged. "What? You looked lonely. Besides, you're way to fucking irresistible to let go to waste."
She caught Goku by surprise once she started kissing down his chest and nipping the skin as she went down. Her lips were coated in makeup and he could feel it sticking to his skin unpleasantly. Goku could also hear the smacking sounds her lips were making each time she removed her lips from his skin. He was about to push back, but his limbs suddenly felt very heavy and for some reason, the room was heating up quickly. Despite how much he wanted to push the girl away, his arms wouldn't listen to the signals his brain was sending and the heat that was overcoming him was beginning to be too distracting.
"Hm…" the girl hummed over his navel. "I know you feel awful…the drug should be kicking in in a few minutes…just give it time. I'll make you feel real good soon…"
What? A drug? What drug?
Goku should have known. This was a horrible place. He knew that this wasn't where he wanted to be, and now he was stuck in a situation that he couldn't get himself out of. He could feel the sweat forming on his temples and he was too weak and disoriented to push this disgusting girl away from him. He started panicking once he felt her fingering the hem of his pants. He was absolutely helpless.
Goku tried to wriggle away from her. "H-hey, hey! This isn't funny…look I don't want any trouble—"
"Aw," she cooed. "You don't want any trouble? You're adorable…"
This girl might have been young, but she knew exactly what she was doing. He heard that these places trained their employees well before they had them go out and entertain guests, but this was ridiculous. Every time he tried to get up, she would press down on his hips and force him down while she continued her work. He cringed away each time her lips connected with his skin. He had only ever done this with Suno and he didn't want this to turn into something he was going to regret and feel guilty about for the rest of his life. But…he couldn't push her off.
"Just…get the hell off of me!" He growled in frustration. It was like trying to push a boulder off of him. He couldn't get his body to cooperate with him and help him out of this situation.
The girl scoffed and advanced back up to his neck. Her teeth lightly nibbled on the thin, sensitive skin and Goku cringed away from the sensation, his gut coiling and churning in disgust. "Are you kidding? You don't just come in here for a few drinks, sweetheart. Plus, I have a requirement to uphold. We're helping each other. Just shut up and enjoy it…"
No. No, no, this wasn't happening to him. Fighting back was absolutely useless at this point, and he hoped that he could at least talk her out of what she was doing. But he was failing under the power of her persistence. "But…I have a…"
He managed to find strength enough to nudge his neck away from her once he felt her kisses start to trickle to his collarbone. "A girlfriend?" she scoffed. She laughed and sat back on her feet as she regarding the motionless man. "God, you're serious."
The girl shook her head and started lightly trailing her fingers up and down his arms and stomach. "Let me tell you how things work around here. We keep secrets very well. We don't take names, we don't tattle, and we live off of your pleasure. That's all this business is. Your girlfriend doesn't have to know a thing, sweetie." She leaned to his ear, her lips pressing right up against the shell, and whispered as sensually as she was capable of doing.
"It'll be our little secret, gorgeous."
…what?
No, not this again. He wouldn't betray Suno like this. Not with this person of all people. The drug must not have taken effect fully yet, because while he couldn't get away, each kiss along his jaw filled him with a wave of disgust. He tried to shove again, but nothing was coming. He struggled more, but it only served to momentarily dissuade her. She took it as embarrassment and continued with her efforts with more fervor. Goku tried shouting from behind the locked door, but the girl simply laughed at his efforts as she reached once more towards his pants.
"Don't bother," she said, unbuttoning his pants little by little. "No one can hear you back here. Besides, that door's locked up tight." She patted the front of her dress and Goku saw that the key was peeking out from under the folds of her dress.
He tried to roll off of the bed, but he only managed to get onto his side and delay the girl even further. Maybe Yamcha would notice that he was gone and come and save him. At this rate, he couldn't get out of here on his own. He was too disoriented to do anything for himself, and soon this girl would be getting more than just a hefty sum of money out of him.
Suddenly out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the doorknob jiggle and shake. The metal clanged up against the frame of the knob and the attempts of the person on the other side of the door grew more frantic. The girl on top of him didn't seem to be paying the noise any mind, probably used to people trying to interrupt her while she was in the middle of a conquest. The hem of his pants was finally being peeled back and the monk closed his eyes and tried to wretch himself away.
Then, he heard a loud bang in front of him followed by a loud thump. He opened his eyes and saw that the door that had been rattling was now flung open. He got a good look at the hallway and saw that the doors outside looked similar to this one. He had been tricked into walking back into the private rooms. He wondered who in the world could have possibly found him here, but his thoughts were interrupted as he saw a fist collide directly with the side of the girl's head. She didn't even have time to shout in protest before she landed on Goku's chest completely unconscious. Goku struggled to support his weight on his elbows again and tried looking around the room.
He saw a slight figure standing in the corner of the room, still stuck in a very lax martial arts stance. They lowered their arms and advance towards him. His instinct was to back away again—afraid that this was another whore ready to finish what the first one started—but the person simply rolled the scantily clad employee on the other side of the bed and kneeled down next to him on the floor. Goku willed his eyes to focus.
The new guest cursed under their breath and placed a hand on his forehead. "Fuck, Son-Kun, you're burning up."
Even under his less-than-stable state, Goku recognized that voice anywhere and relief suddenly filled his body like a warm fire. "Chi-Chi…" he smiled.
The raven-haired girl nodded. "Lovely to see you again, too. Now stop talking will you? You've got a serious fever..."
He felt the girl try to lift him up into a sitting position and he groaned in protest at the exertion. "She…the girl…she…"
"Don't worry about her, idiot. Worry about the fact that I'm trying to save you, yeah?" Chi-Chi waved his continued questions away. She quickly removed her cloak and began patting the droplets of sweat that had formed on his forehead. He hadn't realized that he had been sweating so much and suddenly wondered what this drug would do to his body after it wore off. From Chi-Chi's worried expression on her face, he gathered that this was serious.
She got up and started throwing drawers open. She was feeling around the insides until she found what she was looking for. She pulled a cup from the drawer and advanced towards the pitcher of water that was on a table in the back. She poured him a drink, but not before she tasted it herself. She nodded—probably deemed it safe to drink—and thrust it into his hands.
"Can you hold that?" Goku nodded and gripped the cup to show her. "Good. Drink. All of it."
He immediately obliged and sighed as the water soothed the dry feeling in the back of his throat. He finished it all in one gulp. "Look…I wasn't trying to—"
"I know, I know," Chi-Chi interrupted. "The chicks here are ruthless. I've no doubt that hussy did this to you," she scowled at the unconscious prostitute. "Did you order anything?" She quickly questioned. "Food? A drink? Did she slip you anything at all?"
Goku nodded and slowly brought a hand up to his head. "Yeah…uh…a cup of tea. Tasted funny…"
Chi-Chi scowled bitterly and cursed again. "I'll bet it did…do me a favor and don't drink it next time?"
Goku nodded and didn't dare say anything. Chi-Chi was the last person he had expected to run into tonight, but had absolutely no good sense left to be scared or embarrassed in front of her right now. All he needed was to get out of this place and back to his hotel where he knew nothing weird would happen to him anymore. This was the absolute last time he listened to Yamcha. He had had enough of this and he did not want to run into any more trouble like this. He needed a bed, a shower, and a lot of sleep. No more night prowling. He was done.
"Can you walk?"
Goku nudged his legs and shook his head. Nothing was working and the heat was making his head pound even further. Chi-Chi rubbed a hand down her face and sighed in frustration. She tapped her feet on the floor and immediately advanced towards the girl on the bed. She dug through pockets until she located a small ring of keys. Deeming the find suitable, she returned to Goku's side.
Chi-Chi, though quite smaller than Goku, was thankfully very strong and managed to lift Goku up onto his feet and sling his arm over her shoulders. She wrapped an arm around his waist and helped him walk to the door with shaky steps. "Come on," she muttered. "We need to get you outside."
He was barely aware of where they were going, but Chi-Chi seemed to know her way around this place and had quickly managed to lead them down a hallway and passes a bunch of confused patrons and female employees. Goku was too busy nursing his headache and Chi-Chi was too busy trying to keep him upright. He was sure that his weight was slowly starting to become too much for her since he was so much taller than her.
With one hand, she fingered through a few of the keys on the ring she had stolen and tried each one on the lock. Goku didn't interfere with her concentration and simply focused on trying not to put too much of his weight on her frail shoulders. He heard the click of a lock and the hiss of success that left her lips. She managed to kick open another door and lead him into the dark alley along the side of the bar.
It was freezing outside, and he was pretty sure that he left his coat on the back of his seat in the main room. His vision was clearing up by now, and he noticed that Chi-Chi was worse off than he was. She was dressed only in sweatpants and a t-shirt. He saw her shivering.
He expected her to take him to a building or to a warmer place rather than the stone cold floor, but that was exactly where she gracelessly dropped him. He hit the floor roughly and groaned at the pain, but Chi-Chi quickly waved off his protests.
"The cold will sober you up," She explained. "You need to get your strength back so you can start walking again."
Goku knew after years of being her closest friend when to take her authoritative tone seriously or jokingly. This was one of those times where he didn't argue and simply trusted her judgment. He wondered how exactly she knew so much about this, but decided not to question her, since she seemed confident in her knowledge.
"Ugh…my head is pounding…"
Chi-Chi nodded in understanding. She settled onto the ground near him and rubbed his shoulders. "Just stick with it, Son-Kun. It'll go away."
That was easier said than done. The sluggish lethargy was slowly starting to fade away and was being replaced by a warm feeling spreading through the entirety of his body. It made him feel even hotter than before and he suddenly understood why Chi-Chi was keeping him outside.
They stood that way for a while. Goku was trying to ignore the heat building up in his body, and Chi-Chi alternated between rubbing his shoulders, his thighs, and his arms. At first, he didn't understand the actions, but he quickly realized what she was trying to accomplish. Small bursts of feeling were quickly starting to radiate through his nerves and he was able to move a few of his limbs without too much trouble. There was something strange about the way she knew exactly what to do and what to look for. It was as if she had done this a thousand times and had helped many people in ways similar to this one. What sort of people was Chi-Chi involved with here in the city. How did she learn how to do this?
Through the lessening of the pain in his arms and legs, he remembered that there was still a question nudging his brain. "Why were you even here?"
Chi-Chi scoffed and continued to massage feeling into his limbs. "I should ask you the same question, although knowing you, you were suckered in there by someone, am I right?"
Goku rolled his eyes but didn't have the energy to refute the claim. He might as well just let Chi-Chi win all of the arguments right now. As he always had.
Chi-Chi seemed to realize that Goku wasn't satisfied with her evasion of the question and sighed dramatically. She muttered something about that being good enough and stopped her ministrations. Goku immediately felt a touch better and silently thanked her for her efforts.
She turned her gaze in his general direction. "It was business. A guy owed me money," she explained briefly. "I heard he cheats on his wife here, so I paid him a visit. I happened to see you back here and decided to give in to curiosity, figuring I would surprise you." She laughed bitterly. "Thank goodness I did."
Goku ignored the latter half of the statement in favor of the former. "Cheats on his wife?"
Chi-Chi nodded. "Unfortunately. In fact, a lot of old bastards come here and leave their poor women at home. Tragic, isn't it?"
Goku nodded. It seemed like no matter what he did, things just kept returning the very subject that he wanted to avoid and not have to deal with. It was almost as if the universe wanted him to just own up to this and stop ignoring it. Not that this was easy to do now that his body was shutting down on him, but he supposed there was really nothing else he could do other than to confront it. Maybe then everything would calm down. Though, he sort of wished he was doing this under better circumstances. This wasn't exactly what he had in mind.
Either way, Goku relaxed against the cold stone of the building again, reveling in the chill it provided him with. "Thanks…for getting me out of there."
Chi-Chi shrugged her shoulders and smiled. "All in a day's work. I've heard it done to others and like hell, I was going to leave you in there."
"Really?"
Chi-Chi frowned. "I know I used to tell you that you were too naive and needed to grow up. But I didn't mean to this extent."
Goku groaned. "Obviously. But it wasn't my fault."
"Actually, it was," she answered simply. "You don't really need to worry at the nightclubs much. Bartenders aren't going to do much except wipe your drool from the counter once you finally pass out. Escort buildings like this one," she pointed to the building behind Goku, "are filled with cut throat bitches that take advantage of new customers and steal their money. You know, like you."
He figured as much. A guy that was sitting by himself and was not enjoying the scenery around him must have been a pretty easy looking target. He wasn't excusing the behavior, but he couldn't exactly blame the girl for trying.
"Do I really scream 'innocent loser'?" he replied sarcastically.
Chi-Chi shook her head and smiled, recognizing the diversion into friendly banter. "I would go with 'naïve pretty boy' personally, but you're your own judge," she shrugged.
Goku laughed. He looked up at her and noticed that she was smiling as well. Again, it was not a coy smile made in front of other people. It was a like a private little joke between them and Goku's heart swelled at the sight.
His fever was still raging and his body still felt very hot. He also noticed that his skin tingled wherever Chi-Chi ad managed to touch him earlier. His skin had become super sensitive, and he was all of a sudden aware of that the girl meant by giving the drug time to kick in. He assumed that waiting out the effects would be for the best, and Chi-Chi didn't seem in any hurry to leave him alone. Like a good, stubborn friend, she would stay until he felt better.
Figuring that he might as well use up the empty time that he had, he decided to stop bypassing what he had been attempting to avoid all day. With all that had happened, he figured that he might as well get this over with while he had Chi-Chi in front of him.
"Hey…" he muttered.
Chi-Chi wrapped her arms around her arms and started rubbing them up and down again, just like she did last night. He realized suddenly that she wasn't exactly properly dressed for the weather. "Yeah?" she whispered.
Goku took pity on her and took off the sweater he was wearing on top of his clothes. He threw it to her and told her to put it on before she froze again like last night when he had to give her his coat. She smiled and thanked him and he was suddenly overcome by images from last night that he had spent all day today trying to forget.
"I just," he began tentatively. "I wanted to say sorry…"
Chi-Chi frowned as she rolled up the long sleeves so that she could expose her hands. "For what? You didn't do anything wrong. I told you, I wasn't about to—"
"No," He stopped her. "It's not about this. It's about…well…I sort of ran off on you last night."
Lines formed on her forehead as she puzzled over what he had just said. She must not have realized what he was talking about for a moment, but suddenly recalled the event and her eyes widened in recognition. "Oh, that?"
"What do you mean 'Oh, that?' It was rude. I wanted to apologize."
Chi-Chi moved to sit directly across from him and tucked her knees up to her chest. "I mean…you don't really need to. I figured it was one of those Goku things that you do. Though…you seemed kind of freaked out. I was more worried than offended, I promise."
"Worried?"
"Of course," She exclaimed as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You ran off like you saw a needle or something. I figured something was wrong, but you were gone before I could ask."
Goku knew Chi-Chi well enough to know that she loved being nosy and digging into other people's business. It had more to do with the fact that she was good at it and less to do with the fact that she liked exposing people's problems. Whatever the reason, he heard the expectancy at the end of her sentence and knew that she expected him to meet her half way. She was worried and she wanted answers. He didn't expect her to be this satisfied with the events, but he also didn't want to have to explain anything to her either.
His body still felt feverish and his skin felt extremely sensitive and on high alert. The stones underneath him were bothering him more than they should have been and he was more aware of the fact that his body was tingling, his head was hurting, his body was thrumming with heat, and his vision was still sub-par. He could clearly see Chi-Chi sitting near him, however. She was dressed much as she was last night, right down to the carelessly fashioned bun that was starting to droop over her shoulder in tendrils of long hair. Her dark eyes somehow took on the translucent glow again, and suddenly the feelings he had felt wash over him were surfacing again. She saved him, she was worried about him, she showed him a good time last night, he loved watching her sit there and stay with him while he rode out this horrible drug in his system…
The feelings were coming full force again. Only this time, he wasn't running away.
Maybe this was what that girl meant about the drug taking its full effect, or maybe Goku was just so tired and stressed out from all of the day's annoyances and problems that he just didn't care anymore. But for some reason, all thoughts of the disgusting escort inside and Suno waiting dutifully for him at home just did not occur to him. All that he was staring at was Chi-Chi, wearing his clothes again, looking beautiful again, fussing over him like good old times, looking absolutely kissable…
"I'll tell you…but don't get mad at me, alright?"
Chi-Chi nodded and made no effort to rush him. There was a part of his conscience that was telling him this was a bad idea and that he should really think about what the hell he was doing and why it would only serve to make things more troublesome for him in the end. But he wasn't thinking clearly, and he decided to just completely ignore it and tell it to use its energy for something far more enjoyable and far more useful.
Functioning only on instinct, Goku finally allowed his feelings to completely take over and control him.
He rushed straight into her and grabbed her chin with one hand. She gasped at the sensation and immediately tensed at the action. Her skin felt cold against his heated fingers, and in his drug-induced haze, he realized just how close he was to her. His nose was touching hers and her lips were parted in surprise. There was no turning back from this, and he had no intentions of stopping now.
Goku traced her thumb over her bottom lip and was unable to resist the urge to slip the digit into the silky smooth skin on the inside of the plump lip. Chi-Chi's breathe hitched at the sensation and didn't make an effort to stop him, even though he knew her conscience was probably thinking along the same lines as him. If she had been keeping tabs on him through blogs, well then it was no surprise to anyone who Goku was dating at the moment.
His nails ghosted along her jaw and followed the bone from her chin all the way up to the back of her ear. She shivered at the contact and let in a sharp breath. It was a sensation that Goku himself enjoyed immensely and it seemed that Chi-Chi shared the sentiment. There was a light stain of color across her cheeks and her breathing was being replaced with panting as he continued to leave her in anticipation.
He felt her hesitate in her shock for a moment. She was still but her body relaxed. Goku couldn't tell whether it was on purpose or by reflex, but her tongue leaned forward so that the tip came into contact with his thumb. Goku didn't have the time to react to the 'invitation' before he removed his thumb and took her bottom lip in between his own.
Despite the raging heat that was building up inside of him, Goku settled for a rather leisurely kiss. He released her lip and opened his mouth and watched behind lidded eyes as Chi-Chi remained still. Goku carefully leaned in until their lips were only just brushing together and relished in the sweet anticipation he left them in as he hesitated for a moment.
His hand left her jaw and cupped her cheek in an attempt to maintain the beautiful contact that was making his head swim and the warmth of his body to travel downwards in a wonderful sensation that just felt…nice. A soft sigh escaped Chi-Chi's mouth when he pulled away and leaned in again. He tilted his head a little bit more to the side, allowing his mouth to open more and let the inner, more silken portion of their lips to slide over each other.
The cold didn't bother him as much as he thought it would, and Chi-Chi was more than comfortable clutching onto his shirt and shuffling her body closer to his. There was a wonderful sensuality behind the continued disconnection and reconnection of their lips, an intoxicating wave of anticipation every time their lips hung on the air and waited for another kiss to follow. Goku's head was swimming and he wasn't sure how much of these sensations he was able to take.
Goku guided his tongue in between her lips and traced along the length of her tongue—he wasn't all probing, but instead explored the space offered to him. Chi-Chi—the beautiful little creature that she was—immediately reciprocated and met him halfway in his explorations. Her tongue curled against his and she moaned into his mouth as his body immediately shifted closer.
The young man grew hungry after that and completely abandoned the leisurely pace. He gently nibbled on her bottom lip and made her open up for him more. Suno, he knew, hated the quick pace he sometimes undertook when he kissed her. She didn't like the desperation that sometimes overtook him and made him get a little insistent and rough with her. She hated biting and she hated his fast kisses. It was always slow and careful whenever they kissed.
Chi-Chi was the complete opposite and met him on every front he presented. He was quickly losing himself as he began feeling deeper into her mouth and opening her up wider for him to taste. She was an intoxicating specimen that was completely receptive to him. She moaned when he bit her lip and sighed when his pace quickened and his kiss grew hungrier and far more desperate. She pulled him closer and closer as the kiss continued on and he wondered whether or not they would be able to separate once they stopped.
His head began to swim and he could feel his lips swelling from the continuous contact. He left one last lingering kiss on her lips before he separated with a wet sound and left the girl panting underneath him.
Goku touched his forehead to hers and whispered softly. "That's why I ran away…"
Chi-Chi's wit must have melted away with the kiss because her response wasn't very coherent. "I…uh…what?"
But Goku couldn't explain any further. He didn't trust his mind to put on a filter in his dazed state. As it was, he was quickly losing his grip on reality and felt spots of darkness collecting at the corners of his eyes. He didn't think he would be able to remain conscious any longer.
Chi-Chi sensed his weight shifting more and more onto her. "Goku…"
"Sorry," he muttered one last time. His headache had reached its peak and his body couldn't handle the exhaustion any longer. His weight gave out from underneath him and he collapsed against Chi-Chi, completely unconscious.
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-WritersBlvd
