Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.
A/N: There's only one chapter after this one.
::Thoughts::
"Speech"
change of time and/or place
change of POV
The Trust Pact Chapter Four: Sunday
Regular POV
Videl woke up the next morning, feeling a slight pain in her ankle. Looking around, she saw Gohan asleep next to her. He was sitting on the floor with his head resting on the couch. His hand was loosely holding hers. Looking at her ankle, she remembered what happened last night.
::I got bit by a snake…and Gohan saved me,:: she thought. ::We're so far away from a hospital…I could've died.:: She let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding as she thought about how close to death she had come.
::Why was I so scared of it? I'm never scared,:: she wondered. She grinned as she heard Gohan's stomach growl. The demi-Saiyan's empty stomach woke him up a few moments later.
Looking over at Videl, Gohan said, "Videl, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Gohan. Thanks to you," Videl replied with a grateful smile.
Gohan let out a relieved sigh and said, "I was so worried I would lose you."
"You were worried?" Videl questioned. She was used to people actually caring about her.
"Of course. I don't want you to die…I care about you too much," Gohan said with a blush, looking away.
Videl smiled, squeezing Gohan's hand. "Thank you," she said quietly.
Gohan smiled as well, and said, "Don't mention it." He reluctantly left to clean up everything from the night before. When he came back, Videl was sitting up, examining the snake bite. Gohan bent down, removing the bandage.
"How did you know how to save me?" Videl asked.
"I read a lot," Gohan replied with a grin.
"Well surprise, surprise," Videl said while rolling her eyes.
Goten and Chi-Chi arrived at the house a few minutes later.
"Good morning, you two. Did you have a good night?" Chi-Chi asked, a suggestive tone in her voice.
"Mom!" Gohan said exasperatedly.
"Videl, what happened?" Goten asked, spotting the bite on Videl's leg.
"Videl got bitten by one of the saw-scales," Gohan explained.
"But I'm fine, now. Gohan fixed me up," Videl added, seeing the concerned looks on both of the others' faces.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Chi-Chi asked worriedly. She knew that they didn't have any Senzus, so Gohan must have gotten the venom out himself. Sure, she had confidence in her son, but still.
"Yes, Chi-Chi. I'm fine," Videl said with a reassuring smile.
"Alright, then. If you're sure," Chi-Chi said. Walking towards the kitchen, she muttered, "I swear…if I leave one of my sons alone for two seconds! All Hell breaks loose…"
"Did it hurt, Videl?" Goten asked, jumping into her lap.
"Yeah, it did. But not too bad," Videl said, trying not to scare the little guy. If she told the whole truth, she would've said, "It hurt fifty times worse than anything I've ever felt before." Which it did, no joke.
"I'm glad you're okay, Videl. You're really cool, and fun!" Goten said with a grin.
::I'm glad you're okay, too, Videl. I really don't know what I would do if I had lost you,:: Gohan thought. Videl looked at him with a grateful smile, and he once again blushed and turned away.
::Gohan really would always protect me, wouldn't he?:: Videl wondered. ::He saved my life last night…he understands when I tell him that I can't tell him my secrets yet…Wait a minute, why can't I tell him?::
"Gohan," she said aloud, "Can we take a walk? I want to talk to you."
Gohan nodded, telling Goten to go help Chi-Chi with breakfast. Videl led the way outside and to the lake with the waterfall. She sat down on the lake's bank, motioning Gohan to join her.
"Gohan, I…I think I trust you. I want to tell you everything…even if you don't want to tell me your secrets yet," she said.
::She…she's gonna tell me everything? After two days?:: Gohan thought, amazed.
"I want to tell you my secrets, too, Videl. If you trust me, I trust you," he told her.
"Thank you, Gohan. I didn't think I deserved your trust yet," Videl admitted.
"So…who goes first?" Gohan asked with a half-hearted grin.
"I will, I guess," Videl said. "But I'm starting with the small things. Er…actually, I don't know how to start…" Videl trailed off.
"I do. I'm the Gold Fighter and Saiyaman," Gohan blurted out.
"I knew it!" Videl exclaimed.
"Yeah…sorry I didn't tell you…but you promise you won't tell anyone, right?" Gohan asked.
"Of course I won't. And if you're gonna start with the big stuff, I guess I will, too. My dad didn't beat Cell," Videl said, waiting for Gohan's reaction. It wasn't exactly the reaction she expected.
"I know," Gohan said, almost non-chalantly.
"You know?" Videl asked, surprised.
"Yeah. And I know because…I'm the one who beat him," Gohan said.
"You're the 'delivery boy,' aren't you? I heard my dad talking in his sleep once. He was dreaming about the Cell Games, and how some 'golden-haired delivery boy' beat Cell," Videl asked/explained.
"Yeah, that's me. The pizza delivery boy, to be exact," Gohan replied with a grin.
"Gohan…can you tell me how your dad died?" Videl asked.
Gohan nodded and said, "It was at the Cell Games. First, your dad fought Cell. You probably saw it on TV. Cell beat him with one punch and Hercule said he slipped or something. After that, my dad fought Cell. He didn't die during the fight, though. He fought Cell for a while, but then quit, which isn't a normal thing for him to do. He said that there was a person at the Games that could beat Cell, and he said it was me. At that time, I wasn't even as strong as my dad, but he knew that when I get really mad, I get a lot stronger. I started to fight Cell, and he was beating me. I told him about my power when I get mad, and that I didn't want to kill him…but he wanted to fight me at my full strength. He attacked my friends, killing one, and I snapped. I powered up to a level far higher than his. I fought him, and I beat him easily. My dad and my mentor, Piccolo, told me to finish Cell off, but I refused, because I wanted to make him suffer. Cell took this opportunity to start self-destructing. I couldn't do anything, but my father could. He has a technique called Instant Transmission. He was going to use it to take Cell off of the planet. The last time I saw him was when he was standing in front of Cell. The last thing he said to me was that he was proud of me…and then he was gone. Cell, it turned out, was able to come back, stronger than before. I finally beat him…but it was too late. Dad was already gone."
By this time, a few tears had escaped from his eyes. He looked up at Videl upon feeling a soft hand wipe them off his cheeks.
"I'm sorry, Gohan," she whispered.
Gohan sniffed and said, "Don't be…I shouldn't get pity…it was my fault he died."
"No it wasn't, Gohan. Don't even say that," Videl said sternly.
"But-"
"No. It wasn't your fault. And you're gonna stop thinking it was, got it?" Videl said.
"Um…okay," Gohan replied, not really knowing what to say.
"Good. You're a great guy, Gohan. You don't deserve to have that kind of guilt on your conscience," Videl said. She was rewarded with a smile from Gohan.
"Shall I continue with my secrets?" Gohan asked, grinning goofily. Videl nodded, so he did continue. "This is the big one…I'm…not exactly…human."
"You're not what?" Videl asked.
"I'm not human. Well…I am half-human. But my dad came from a planet called Vegeta. He's a Saiyan. My mom is human, so I'm half of each, just like Goten. Bulma Briefs' husband is also a Saiyan, which makes their son is half and half, too," Gohan explained.
"Oh…isn't that interesting…" Videl said, a dazed look on her face.
"Are you freaked?" Gohan asked.
"No…not really. As strong as you are…I'm not really surprised," Videl replied. "I should tell you my big secret now…I've never told this to anyone. My dad is the only other person that knows…plus a few cops and doctors."
::Cops and doctors? Why do I get the idea this won't be a very happy secret?:: Gohan thought.
Videl took a deep breath and said, "My mom…she died when I was 10...she…she was raped and murdered."
Gohan's breath caught in his throat.
"My mom and I were home alone…it was a Friday night, and we were going to have a movie marathon. I was upstairs putting on pajamas, because I always fell asleep in the middle of one of the movies. My mom was in the living room when someone knocked on the door. She opened it…and the man came in. He had a knife. He threatened to kill my mom if she made a sound." Tears started to form at the corner of Videl's eyes. Gohan wrapped his arms around her and she sniffed, trying to hold the tears back. She succeeded, continuing her story. "The man…he cut Mom's clothes off, cutting her all over on purpose. But even through all the pain, she managed not to scream. She didn't want me to hear it. She knew I would come downstairs and try to help her, but I would only get hurt. The rapist took off his clothes next…and raped her. The reason I saw all this is because we have security cameras in the house, in case of robberies or something. Everything was recorded for us to look at later. A few years ago, I made my dad let me see it…anyway…after he…you know…I came downstairs. I was shocked at what I saw…and I was rooted to my spot at the bottom of the stairs. The man and my mom saw me. Mom told me to run, but he threw her down and got to me before I could get out of the house. I fought him…but even though I could fight, I was only ten, and I wasn't very strong yet. He stabbed me in the back with the knife…I heard my mom yell my name, and she managed to come over to me. The man stabbed her in the chest…and then he left. I…I tried to get to the phone, but I was to weak to stand up, so I crawled over to Mom. She…she held m-my hand and said that I was b-beautiful. She told me that she was proud of me…and then she…d-died…"
The tears she had tried to hold back now rolled down Videl's cheeks. Gohan held her tightly and said, "I know it hurts Videl. But I'm here for you. Remember that."
Videl nodded against his chest and said, "Thanks, Gohan." Gohan held her tightly and rocked her as she cried. It was the first time she had really let herself cry since her mother had died. When she was finally done, she felt loads better. Her tears subsiding, she looked up at Gohan and smiled.
"You're so great," she stated simply, making the demi-Saiyan blush. Grinning in an arrogant way, she said, "There's a scar. You wanna see?"
Gohan chuckled and said, "Sure." Videl pulled down the back of the collar of her shirt, showing him a long, thin scar in the middle of her back. Near the bottom, it widened considerably.
Running a finger over it, Gohan said, "He twisted it? Ouch." Videl laughed half-heartedly.
"So…we're friends now, right?" Gohan asked.
::Just friends?:: Videl thought before replying, "Of course."
"Yay!" Gohan said, making Videl laugh.
"Hey Gohan…do me a favor," Videl began, frowning.
"What is it?" Gohan asked.
"Don't tell your mom or Goten about my mom, okay?"
"I won't…but why not? My mom would understand," Gohan said.
"I don't know…I guess I don't want anyone but you to know," Videl replied.
"Alright. I'll keep it a secret. I promise," Gohan assured her.
Videl thanked and hugged him. After that, they started talking about the smaller details of their lives. They sat and talked for a good three hours, and then went back to the house.
Upon seeing Chi-Chi, Videl grinned and said, "So, your son's the world savior, huh?"
"He told you already?" Chi-Chi asked. Videl nodded.
A little while later, Videl was in his room, and Gohan was in the kitchen with Chi-Chi.
"So, Gohan. You told her everything, huh?" Chi-Chi asked.
"Yeah. Though she had a lot of it figured out already," Gohan replied.
"Did you tell her that you love her?" the eldest Son asked.
"What?!?" Gohan exclaimed.
"I know you love her. I've seen the way you look at her. And I'm guessing you were quite worried when she got that snake bite," Chi-Chi said.
"Well I was worried, but that doesn't mean I love her," Gohan said, lying through his teeth, and Chi-Chi knew it.
"Gohan, you love her. Admit it."
"Fine. I love Videl. But I can't tell her. I think she wants to just be friends," Gohan admitted.
"Just follow your heart, Gohan."
End of Chapter Four.
