Unsurprisingly, the next few days were fairly awkward. Trunks did everything in his power not to look his mother in the eye. If he needed something, he would ask for it in as few words as possible, hoping the conversation wouldn't return to "that topic".
Bulma tried her hardest to be warm and comforting, but understood that it would be hard for Trunks to accept the situation and didn't want to make things worse.
The day of takeoff finally arrived. Normally an event like this would have been met with celebration from the two, but instead it was very procedural. Minimal conversation was had as Trunks packed his stuff and Bulma made a few last-minute adjustments.
Trunks climbed the foot ladder and entered the cockpit. He waited for his final instructions before closing the dome and pressing LAUNCH.
"One last thing." she said, holding up an envelope. "Take this with you."
Trunks leaned over the side of the Machine and grabbed it from her stretched out arm.
He sat back in his seat and looked at the front of the white envelope. It just had "FOR LATER" scribbled on it in pen.
"What is this?" he asked.
"Don't worry about it now. Just open it up later." she said.
" Alright...?" he put it in his bag.
"I know things haven't been that great between us these last few days, but I just want you to know that I love you and I care about how you feel. I just don't want you to forget that on this trip, OK?"
Trunks blushed.
"I love you too, Mom.". He said, still unable to look her in the eye.
"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I was just telling you the truth."
"It's OK, I'm sorry for being immature about it."
"So are we cool?"
Trunks finally looked back at his mother to see her grinning from ear to ear. He reciprocated with a smile of his own.
"Yeah, we're great!" he said.
"Great! Now let's launch this sucker!"
Trunks nods and they continue to prepare the Time Machine.
Regardless of their blood relationship, Trunks and his mother really were best friends and it felt great to be on good terms again. This boost in morale made all the difference in the world as he got ready to confront the Androids once and for all.
He closed the glass dome and flipped all the necessary switches. All sorts of lights and colors spiraled around the inside as he heard his mother shouting the final instructions from the outside.
"ALL RIGHT! YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO!" she yelled. For a second she regretted not building an intercom into the machine.
Trunks got the message loud and clear as he slammed his fist onto the giant green button the would propel him into time and space.
A sudden burst of bright yellow light exploded and left with Trunks and the Time Machine in an instant. Everything fell silent.
"I love you so much..." Bulma said to the newly empty space.
The trip was instantaneous for Trunks. The Time Machine floated two hundred feet in the air above a large wasteland that he only recognized in his timeline as a canyon, thanks to the Androids.
He gawked at the sight. He opened the hatch to smell the clean air, something you couldn't always get in his future.
He sat an waited. He knew it would be a few hours before Goku returned from his trip to Namek, so he took this moment for himself.
He thought about his mother, and what they had talked about a few days ago. He wondered what would happen when he met his mother's younger self. She was out there somewhere, and it felt weird to think that he could theoretically be making love to that woman.
His stomach filled with butterflies. What WILL happen when he meets her? Will he feel differently about is mother's proposition? These questions began to feel all too real for him.
At that moment he felt a disturbing presence. Two relatively monstrous energies were hovering over the planet. He knew what it meant, but Goku had yet to arrive. It appeared as though Trunks would have to take matters into his own hands.
He landed the Time Machine and flew off to go challenge Frieza and King Cold himself. Something was definitely different about this timeline.