Disclaimer: I am far too lazy to come up with quite a complex series such as Dragon ball Z. I don't own it, nor do I wish I owned it, because that sounds like a lot of work...

Summary: 14 drabbles about Goten and Trunks' Valentine's Day.

Word count: 1365

Rated M for language, eventual sexual scenes, etc.

Our Valentine's Day

Drabble #2- Teddy Bears (Revised)

"Mr. Brief, I must insist that you allow me to deliver the meal to Mr. So—"

"No, Zareh, I'll only be a minute, I promise," Trunks assured, trying not to roll his eyes as he stepped out of the limousine. Out the corner of his eye he saw his new assistant—a very tall, Sudanese man in his late twenties—nod his head in understanding before he continued on his way. He liked Zareh—Trunks was not even an official member of the company and already Zareh was doing a much better job than even his mother's assistant, but gods could he be overbearing. Trunks was aware that he was quite busy today, but he was certain he had enough time for just a quick visit. Two days was a long time to go without seeing your fiancé.

So onward he walked, crossing through the automatic doors of the mall. On his way he pointedly ignored the stores covered in red flowers and hearts, and the girls who were unashamedly ogling him, until he reached the escalator that would take him to the lowest floor in the building. All the while he was holding a dyno-caps container, filled with the sandwiches that Goten had left on their kitchen counter that morning.

(In hindsight, Zareh was completely right about how inconvenient it was for Trunks to leave his rather numerous duties simply to deliver a forgetful Son his food when there was a perfectly functional food court just down the hall, but it was like he said, two days was a long enough time and he would take any excuse he could get.)

A few steps off the escalator and he was there. Yellow walls, a giant bear face, and blue letters stating: 'BUILD-A-BEAR WORKSHOP' stared down at him. He wasn't even inside yet, and he could already tell that every animal on every display case would be in some form of pink or red.

Trunks crossed into the store, almost immediately catching the eye of one of Goten's coworkers. He nearly tripped over a child on his way towards to her, making her giggle.

"Hey, Nathalie, do you know where Goten is?" he asked, raising his voice over the noise.

"I think he's working the cash register!" she called back.

He nodded and set off again. Once again, a child crossed unexpectedly in front of him, only this time, the little boy fell to the ground.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Trunks exclaimed, stooping down to lift the boy back onto his feet. The kid didn't even seem to notice the fact that his face had just smashed into the floor, as he was already running off, becoming lost in the sea of others who were around his miniature height.

Then it hit him why the store was so noisy. The place was packed. Sure, he had seen the workshop busy before, but nothing ever at this scale. There were people everywhere, their arms stuffed full of brightly-colored and heart-patterned animals.

There were so many kids.

That was to be expected of course, given that this was not only a toy shop, but a 'build your own' toy shop. Even still, he was quite frankly flabbergasted by the sheer number of three-foot-tall creatures surrounding him. They were all full of smiles and laughter—laughter so loud it was already beginning to grate on his nerves and he hadn't even been in here longer than two minutes. How could Goten put up with this for hours on end?

Oh right, the fool loved kids. All you had to do was look at him and instantly know that he was the kind of guy who had the genders and names of all his future children already picked out. Knowing him, he probably wanted like seven.

Suddenly, Trunks felt something funny and unpleasant bloom in his chest because seven? Seven?

Okay, maybe not seven, but definitely more than one.

That was way more than Trunks could even think of right now.

Trunks would be lying if he said he was particularly fond of children. He just wasn't. Aside from his sister and occasionally Pan, kids never even crossed his mind. Aside from the conventional thoughts of them being far off in his future, after he was settled in his career, was married, etc., he never gave them much thought.

Well, he supposed he had too now. If he allowed himself to think about it, they really weren't as far off in his future as he'd like to think.

No. He didn't have to. He was going to be soon married, yes, but that didn't mean they were having kids now. Goten was still considered a teenager for kami's sake! Sure, he can accept the fact that he shouldn't completely ignore the topic, but he didn't have to think so hard on it right this very second. They weren't having kids any time soon—that he was sure of.

But they would eventually, huh? At this point, he could not even hide behind the excuse of 'waiting until marriage', because soon he would be married and it would no longer be a matter of propriety, but rather simply of convenience.

He was suddenly struck with the urge to leave, and only the fact that he was still holding the food capsules kept him from bolting. It's been so long since he's been overwhelmed like this, and he would rather deal with the effects of its unexpected intensity when he wasn't surrounded by the six-year olds that caused it.

He found Goten easily. He was manning the cash register just as expected, a smile on his face making him look even more adorable in his uniform as he rung up the bill for an elderly customer. His English had improved greatly after living in the states for so long. It was such a shame; Trunks missed making fun of him in words he didn't understand.

Trunks waited until the woman was finished with her purchase before circling behind the counter. Goten's smile brightened even more.

"Hey, babe!" Trunks was pulled into a hug. "Thanks for bringing the sandwiches. You're a lifesaver!"

"You're welcome," Trunks stated, guilty that he could only return the hug half-heartedly.

"Are you okay?" Goten questioned, his brows dipping in concern.

"Oh, yeah I'm fine, it's just... there are a lot of kids today..." Trunks said. It was the truth.

Goten chuckled, and his smile turning to a fond one that had Trunks' unpleasant feelings deepening as he stared out at the children surrounding one of the stuffing machines. "Yup, it's pretty hectic but it definitely makes working more fun."

Oh, of course he would say that.

"If you say so," Trunks pulled free from the hug. "As much as I would love to stay and chat about snot-nosed brats, I've got to get back to work before Zareh comes to breathe down my ear again. Enjoy your lunch." He turned to go.

"Ah, wait! I got something for you."

Trunks reluctantly turned back. He watched as Goten kneeled and dug around the inside of the counter.

It was a few moments later when Goten popped back up, a bright grin on his face as he held out his arms. In his outstretched hands was a tan-colored teddy bear with a blue ribbon tied around its neck.

"As a thank-you for the lunch delivery: a baby for my baby!"

Trunks blinked a few times, staring at the smiley-faced animal and wondered why he was so surprised by it. It wasn't the first bear Goten had given him, but this time given his mental circumstances...

He takes the bear, and mutters: "You really are annoying."

"Annoyingly lovable?"

One day, they would come in here, and it wouldn't be for a work shift or a lunch delivery.

Alright, he's seen his Goten, and now it's time to go.

"Goodbye, Goten," Trunks says, kissing the happy Son quickly on his lips. Hoping a bit belatedly that no one noticed, he turned and made a beeline for the door, his new bear tucked protectively under his arm.

He's proud to say that he only stumbled over two kids on the way out.

End