A/N: Hey finally I'm back….I apologise for taking so long to update. Seriously...I haven't had the time... Hopefully you guys can forgive me. I had some very interesting feedback for the last chapter and loved reading each and every word. You guys are great motivation! I will be updating on my other stories over the next couple of days. The new chapters are nearly complete, so just wait a little longer…
I want to thank PanUchiha7105, Ant-Carrying-A-Rubber-Tree, Cosmic-lover, Panny, Rose and Dara for reviewing the last chapter. Thank you so much for your lovely compliments. I really enjoyed reading them especially the long detailed ones. I promise to update as soon as I can from now on. Please continue to show your appreciation and brighten my day with your reviews.
Also I have posted a new story... It's my first Naruto fanfic and it's a love story from Katsuki's point of view. She is a female character I have invented, who falls in love with Kakashi Hatake (one of my favourite characters.) I know some of you must be wondering why I've posted it without updating on any of my other stories. Truth is…I couldn't help myself. Please read it and review. I want to know what you think…
That's all for now! Let's get back to the story…
Dreaming of You – Chapter 7
Trunks stopped eating when he heard a thud and looked up. His eyes widened in surprise, when he noticed Pan lying on the ground and hurried towards her.
"Pan, are you okay?" he asked worriedly settling down next to her. She wasn't moving and her eyes were closed. He quickly realised that she had fainted. Lifting her head up, he placed it onto his lap and tried tapping her lightly on the cheek, hoping she would snap out of it. When his hand touched her cheek, he noticed her skin was hot.
*She's got a high fever…* he comprehended. Placing her gently on the ground again he got up and took out the capsule for the tent from his backpack. Tossing it onto the ground, there was the usual poof before the tent appeared. He returned to Pan and picked her up, carrying her inside. Her whole body was warm, making him frown with worry.
*Wondering around in that hot canyon in the boiling heat must have caused this and then she went and jumped into the river. Not exactly the best thing to do, if you're not feeling well* he thought to himself placing her on the bed. He pulled the covers over her body. Her hair was still wet and so were her clothes but he couldn't really do much about that. Hopefully they would dry soon.
He grabbed a bowl from the small kitchen area and poured some water in to it. After looking around he found some small towels, which he could use. Turning his attention back to Pan, he soaked the towel in the water before placing it on her forehead.
*This is what mum used to do when I had a fever…I hope it works* he thought. Every so often he would soak it in water again and put it back on her forehead. Eventually she stirred after some time and opened her eyes. He sighed in relief…she was okay.
"Trunks?" she said when she noticed him sat beside her. Feeling the wet towel on her forehead she picked it up and stared blankly at it.
"What's going on?" she added.
"You passed out. When I tried waking you up I noticed you had a fever" he explained. Realization dawned on her.
"That explains the wet towel on my forehead. Thanks for taking care of me…" she replied with a smile.
"Couldn't just leave you there, could I? So how're you feeling now? You should have told me you were unwell. We would have stopped earlier" he responded in disapproval. She glimpsed the concern in his eyes and felt touched. He really did care…
"I didn't realise…I thought it was only a minor headache. Oh well I'm feeling much better now. We better go search for the next dragonball…" she answered and attempted to get up. He stopped her and touched her forehead, only to discover that it was still warm.
"No, you need to rest. We'll continue tomorrow. The fever's still there" he told her firmly.
"I'm fine, really" she insisted but he wasn't having none of it.
"Get some rest Pan. You must be hungry…I'll take care of it" he responded. She sighed and agreed. He brought her food, which she ate and also took some painkillers for her headache.
"Thanks…the headache's already disappearing. I should get out of these clothes. They're still slightly damp" she said with a grimace. He nodded and left her to it. Walking outside to give her privacy, he sat by the river, looking out at the unmoving water. It was already evening, with the sky darkening. Another day was ending, shortening the time he had left with her by one more day… His thoughts were centred on her as usual. He simply couldn't get her out of his head.
*Should I confess my feelings…? I wonder how she'll react* he wondered not for the first time. It seemed that was all he could think about. He couldn't take this…pretence anymore, like nothing was even going on. She had feelings for him, he was certain of it. The only question bugging him though was why was she so bent on avoiding the topic. She must know that he liked her, he had hinted enough.
*Maybe I should just tell her how I feel and leave the rest for her to decide…" he speculated…
She had finished getting changed and climbed back into bed. Trunks was right. There was no point running around when she wasn't feeling so good. It was best to wait until she felt normal again. Luckily she wasn't feeling sick, vomiting was one thing she hated with a passion.
*Only four more dragonballs to go…then everything can go back to normal. This is turning out to be quite the experience…* she thought to herself. He was so close, yet so far…so far that as much as she wished, there was no chance of them being together. It was unfair…but who said life would be simple. There was no other choice…as much as she thought of ways this could work out, she always came up blank. He would return to his time and she would come back to hers. End of story.
It hurt…so much…somewhere inside her. All she could go on doing was pretend nothing was going on. It was for the best. True, they would suffer greatly but it wasn't permanent. Life would still go on…
"Can I come in?" he called out.
"Yeah I'm done" she replied. He walked inside with a smile on his face but looking into his eyes, she saw a different story.
"How's your headache?" he asked.
"Much better, thanks" she answered. The need to ask him what was bothering him was strong but on the other hand she wasn't sure if she wanted to hear his answer. It was selfish but necessary.
"Good…try to get some sleep. Your body will recover much quicker that way" he advised settling down on the end of the bed.
"I'm not really tired to be honest" she replied.
"Well there's not much we can do for time pass…" he proclaimed. She nodded in agreement. He was right, there really wasn't anything they could do out here.
"Um Pan…I need to talk to you about something" he said suddenly, turning to face her directly. Silence followed as he waited for a response. As the seconds ticked by she felt the nervousness appear and swallowed painfully.
"What is it Trunks?" she asked eventually, keeping her eyes firmly on the bed covers. The anxiety she felt wasn't letting her look straight at him, in fear that he would see her tension.
"This isn't easy for me to say…so just hear me out. The thing is…I'm in love with you Pan" he said with slight hesitation. Her eyes shot up to look into his, as they peered anxiously back at her. There was silence as each of them gazed searchingly at one another. His eyes clearly reflected his words but hers just looked taken aback. She had guessed that he had feelings for her but love…that was something she hadn't thought about.
So he was in love with her…and she knew deep down that her feelings were pretty much the same for him. It made what she was about to do even more difficult. She was going to break his heart and hers too. There was no way this could go on. It would only end in pain and that was that.
"Trunks…I don't know what to say…" she replied, suddenly at a loss for words. She knew what had to be said but simply couldn't find the words to express herself. Her gaze had returned to the bed covers, not finding the courage to look at him.
"I know this is all so unexpected and I'm not surprised to see your reaction. It's just that I've been feeling like this for a long time now and I couldn't keep quiet any longer. If you need time to think this over then it's okay. Just let me know when you're ready" he answered and moved to get up.
"Trunks wait…" she cried out making him pause. He saw her hesitate again and waited.
"I don't have the same feelings for you…I'm sorry" she told him in an emotionless voice. It was like his whole world came crashing down in that one instant. He looked away, fearing she would see the pain reflected in his eyes.
"I see…" he answered distractively. It was too much. He would never have guessed rejection would hurt this badly. He needed to get away and sort his head out.
"It's okay Pan…You should try and get some sleep now. I'll be back in a bit" he said and got up. She couldn't look at him. It would be unbearable to see the pain on his face. Even so, an image of him in pain was something she knew all too well from her dreams. She didn't answer and sensed him walk away. Turning away as well, her carefully composed face dropped and her eyes squeezed shut, struggling to keep herself in check. She wouldn't cry, no way. Tears wouldn't solve anything…
He walked outside barely noticing the darkened sky. His feet moved on their own accord while his brain was busy thinking about other things. So she didn't love him… His feelings weren't returned. He had thought he was prepared for any kind of answer from her but deep down he knew he had been lying to himself. The answer he had been hoping for was a yes but instead he got a no.
It didn't make sense though. He had clearly seen the tell tale signs. You didn't have to be a genius to figure out what they meant. She did like him, he was sure of it. So why had she said no? Could it be that she was thinking way ahead while he hadn't been. It was a bitter truth that he had been avoiding. It was something he didn't want to think about just yet... The truth that one day they would have to separate, never to see each other again.
He paused right before the river and sat down. Now that it was brought up, he really needed to think about it. They were from two different timelines and led separate lives, each having responsibilities that were unavoidable. So even if they had confessed their feelings for each other, where would this have ended? The answer hit him like a ton of bricks… It would have ended in nothing but pain…
The tears had ended up falling, even though she had tried her best to prevent them. She had hurt him.
"Pan?" she heard him say. Her body jumped, not having sensed him approaching. She couldn't let him see her. If he saw the tears, he would know something was wrong and start asking questions, which she didn't have the strength to answer. His hand touched her shoulder and she froze.
"Look at me" he ordered her. She shook her head so he ended up walking around the bed to face her directly.
"Are you crying?" he asked, as if he was seeing things. Getting no answer he lowered himself so his face was level with hers. His hand moved forward to wipe the tears away and she was forced to meet his eyes. In them she saw exactly what she had seen earlier and that instantly brought more tears on.
"It's okay…I know how you feel. I think I understand what's going on here. You do have feelings for me, don't you? You lied earlier because you were thinking ahead. You knew we would have to return to our timeline one day, which means there's no future for us. It's true, isn't it?" he said in a serious tone. She couldn't lie to him anymore and simply nodded.
"So you do love me…say it…I want to hear you say it" he demanded.
"It's true…I do love you Trunks" she said quietly. That was all he needed to hear. What happened next was pretty much waiting to happen. His face leaned forward and her eyes widened. She guessed straight away what was coming but didn't make any attempt to stop it. His lips connected with hers and instantly both felt like they had suffered an electric shock of some kind. They drew apart in surprise, after witnessing the strange feeling.
"Sorry about that…I couldn't help it" he said, all of a sudden afraid he had made the wrong move.
"Trunks…There's no way this will work out and you know it. If we pursue our emotions now, when the time to separate will come it's going to be even more difficult. We should stop this right now…" she replied urgently. He sighed.
*She's right…what was I thinking...* he thought to himself.
"I wish there was a way we could make this work…" he answered.
"So do I…but that's wishful thinking" she responded sadly…
That night they lay in their own beds thinking about what had happened earlier. Neither could sleep, with their hearts in turmoil. Both were slightly curious about the feelings which had stirred after their kiss, wanting more but afraid to make a move…
A/N: I know this is very short but I'm really sorry. As much as I want to continue I have other things which need doing. However, I have next weekend off and will update then so you only have to wait for another week or so, which isn't long. Hope you can forgive me…
So Pan and Trunks have confessed their love and even shared an innocent kiss…Don't worry it's not ending on just that, there's plenty more action on the way as both are drawn closer together. I hope you liked this chapter. Please review and put a smile on my face. Take care ^_^