A/N: Thanks to my readers, my reviewers ( Hybrid Thing, SamuraiGirl7, and Marada) and to my terrific beta; Lord Lazy Pants.
Paralyzer
Well I'm not paralyzed
But, I seem to be struck by you
I want to make you move
Because you're standing still
If your body matches
What your eyes can do
You'll probably move right through
Me on my way to you
I hold out for one more drink
Before I think
I'm looking too desperately
But so far has not been fun
I should just stay home
Finger Eleven
At lunch Gohan grabbed his lunch and the pill and ducked outside. He carefully swallowed the pill before sitting down to open his average sized lunch. He pouted at the meager proportions and set down to eat slowly.
As always, it was only a few minutes before someone came. Videl was in the lead, although reluctantly, followed by the two blondes.
Sitting down with a huff beside him, Videl started, "So Gohan, I still think your hiding something but," She took a big breath and Erasa nudged her, "I may have been a little unfair about it. So – well, I guess what I'm trying to say – I'm sorry."
Shocked, Gohan just sat there for a couple of minutes, until Videl spoke up again, "Well don't you have anything to say? Like you accept and you're sorry for being such a liar? Or maybe you want to spill this big secret of yours?"
"Well, I do accept your apology, but I'm not a liar. And I do not -" Gohan was cut off by his cell phone ringing in his back pocket and said, "Sorry, one second" before flipping it open seeing the number was Lime's.
"Hello?" He asked, everyone around listening intently.
"GOHAN, WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" Said the female voice from the phone. Gohan laughed nervously.
"Sorry Lime, what was I thinking about what?"
"GOING TO SCHOOL, AND IN SATAN CITY AT THAT! YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME, I HAD TO FIND OUT FROM BULMA WHEN I WENT TO VISIT YOU AT WORK!"
"I'm sorry Lime, I guess it just slipped my mind, I'm heading there in a couple of hours if you're still around, so we can talk then."
"You better! Or else I'm telling your mom about that. Goodbye." And with a click she hung up.
When Gohan looked up he saw everyone staring at him. Sharpener whistled appreciatively and before getting up to leave said; "Damn, that chick sure has some pipes. Sucks to be you! Man, you are whipped."
As Sharpener pulled away the two girls, one itching to ask questions about the call, and the other whining about her need for a tan, Gohan laid back and decided to get some sleep before his next class.
When Gohan landed outside Capsule Corp Lime was waiting. As soon as his feet hit the soft ground, Lime launched herself at him, at first giving him a hug before pulling back, grabbed his collar, and punched him with all her might.
'Explain yourself' was all she said as she stepped back, messaging her knuckles, wincing as her fingers brushed over the now tender flesh. Not really knowing how to explain, Gohan pulled her inside. As they were walking down the halls to Bulma's Lab, Gohan stuttered out a broken tale; his mom forced him, he was really sorry and he would do anything to make it up to her.
"Still," she complained, "I can't believe you forgot to tell me! You know… your best friend! Oh well, I guess you will never change. So how's- Oh Crap! Bulma told me to tell you that you're to go to the sales room!"
Changing direction, Lime and Gohan headed down to the product filled room. The sales room was were all the basic, and common Capsule Corp products were on display. Whenever someone wanted something that was custom made, or with alterations, one of the scientists, depending on what the customer wanted, explained to them whatever was closest to what they wanted and helped them find a compromise between the possible and the ideal.
As they set down the soft-carpeted hallway just outside the sales room Lime pulled Gohan to a stop.
"Here," She said, thrusting a simple look watch towards him, "Bulma wanted you to have it. Don't try it now, just wait until you get home, but put it on and press that red button. When the blue light flashes, press the top right button. Bulma has it hooked up so when there is a crime, the details will scroll across the screen. Now go! And I expect to see you down on your knees, begging me on my front porch to forgive you by Sunday. Got it?"
Waving to her, he watched as she pulled open a door, and flashed the bird behind her shoulder. Laughing he walked threw another door into the massive sales room and to the front desk.
"Ms Tankai, I hear you have a customer for me?" Gohan leaned forward across the counter and unknowingly looked charming. Blushing bright red, the middle aged woman pushed forward a clip board - which Gohan picked up cheerfully- and pointed towards a figure looking at the latest capsule cars.
Gohan walked up to the figure surveying the cars.
"Excuse me sir, I'm one of the scientists here. Can I help yo- SHARPNER?" Gohan stared at him, his jaw wide open as his peer turned around.
"Gohan!? You're a scientist here?! I thought you said you worked as a shipping boy, a janitor or something like that!"
Gohan mentally cursed. "Please," He begged, "You can't tell anyone. I'm already going to school against my will; I don't want this year to be hell on top of that! If people at school knew they'd think I was a huge freak."
The look in Sharpener's eyes clearly said 'and they don't already?' but instead he said; "Maybe. So what about that custom car I want - I'm thinking a lot like the XS 300 model, but with the extra features of the F 40 – Price doesn't really matter." Working out a compromise, Gohan pleaded with Sharpener one last time before he took the info down to the lab and shot of home.
When Gohan got home, he threw on a clean Gi and moodily started up his Gravity Chamber. Training under 1000 times earth Gravity, he quickly lost his thoughts of worry to the movements. He moved with un-human like speed and grace.
After what seemed like hours and hours of training, Gohan took a bath in the Son's outside bathroom and went inside to change into his pajamas.
' I really need to find us a better bath. It's so embarrassing when people show up un-expectedly. Maybe Bulma has on hand that can be added straight onto the house. Or maybe I can make one.' Hs thoughts drifting, he climbed into bed. Settling into the soft covers, he felt his watch catch onto the comforter. 'The watch!' he remembered as he hurried out of bed.
Pressing the red button as he was told, he watched as his pajamas flickered into a green and black outfit, completed with a red cape, white boots and orange helmet – antennae and all.
'Man, I look COOL! Wait until Videl sees me in this! Oh man! The… hmm… Great… Superman? No… the amazing flying … wonder? No… THE GREAT SAIYAMAN. Oh that is just amazing!' The ridiculously clad man thought posing in the mirror. It was another hour before he had stopped posing in every way imaginable and settled back into bed. All worries pushed to the back of his mind as he dreamed of his new identity.
When Gohan walked into the classroom early the next morning he was shocked to see he was early enough that only half the class or so was there. What was even more surprising was the girl sitting alone on his desk.
Approaching her cautiously, Gohan greeted Videl. "So," he said after a moment of awkward silence, "What brings you to my desk? Not that yours is so far away." Gohan glanced at the desk two down before looking up at Videl again. Her eyes were glinted with determination and the shoulders were squared.
"You are going to eat lunch with me today. You will not run away or make excuses. I will meet you on the roof 5 minutes after the bell. Understand?" She hopped off the desk and started towards Sharpener who had just entered the room. "Oh, and Gohan?" she called over her shoulder, "If I were you I would show up."
Gohan sat in class debating if he should meet Videl. It was twenty minutes until the lunch bell and he had still not decided. Chewing on the end of his pen Gohan glanced between Sharpener and Videl.
'Had Sharpener told her? Is that's why she's eating lunch with me? – No, wouldn't she have said something to make sure I come? Or maybe she's counting on me knowing that she knows. Was that what she meant when she said if she was me she would come?' Gohan rubbed furiously at his temples. He bit back a groan, but the blond girl beside him heard it anyways. Staring at him out of the corner of her eye, Erasa ripped a piece of lined paper out of her binder.
In her neat, girly scrawl Erasa wrote 'Are you ok?' before pushing it towards him. Glancing up at the teacher who was trying to explain a 'complex' theory to a girl in the front row he answered; 'Yes. Thanks.' Knowing his handwriting was messy at its best, he took care to make sure it was legible. Obviously put out by the length of his reply she tried again, 'Do you want to each lunch with me and Sharpener today? Videl said she was busy with something and wouldn't tell us about it. Not even me! How mean! (Joking! Haha)'
'So Sharpener doesn't know that Videl is eating with me. Does that mean he hasn't told them? Or maybe he just told Videl and Erasa doesn't know? Would he do that?' shaking his head to clear his thoughts he turned his attention to the paper. 'Sorry, I have a previous engagement. Maybe another day. Sorry!' he wrote feeling guiltier by the second as she frowned. Forcing a smile she agreed and began to pay attention again.
Swallowing hard – partially out of nervousness and partially because he was taking the food pill – Gohan pushed the roof door open, pitiful lunch in one hand the other clenching nervously. Searching the roof for any sign of Videl, and after finding none, sat down. He braced his back against the wall and looked over the city as the minutes on his watch ticked away showing four minutes had passed since the lunch bell. Gohan had made sure that he was early to avoid upsetting the blue-eyed fury.
When the door was pushed open to show a stoic looking Videl. With tensed shoulders, she swiftly seated herself across from Gohan, her back up against the thin pegs of the surrounding fence.
After a few moments of eating in silence Videl spoke the first words, "Listen, I know your hiding secrets, and I guess that's okay. I mean – I have things I don't want to talk about either," She looked down and glanced at the cell phone she was fiddling with - as if just realizing it - and put it down quickly. "But there has to be some sort of trust. Sharpener told me that you didn't even want to come to school – though he never said why," show frowned but continued none the less, " So what I'm saying is Erasa and … and I would hate if you were alone so … so – ughh. This sounds so… so…. sappy!" She slammed her fist into the ground as hard as she could without hurting herself too much in an attempt to collect her thoughts.
"So," Gohan continued for her hopefully, "You want to try and be friends?"
Videl muttered a small 'yeah' before looking up again, "Okay … so the point of this is you can't be my … friend… if you keep a lot of secrets. It's … I… I just don't –and can't- trust people who keep everything from me. I don't give my trust easily, nor do I forgive the others for the offences against me. And I can't just let someone hurt Erasa, she would never realize someone could hurt her."
Gohan was never a spiteful boy, even when Cell had killed thousands, he still wanted to forgive him, and let him change. So he couldn't really understand why Videl couldn't forgive, but nonetheless he nodded understandingly.
Now Gohan knew he had to tell Videl that he worked at Capsule Corp if he wanted to be her friend. There was too much of a risk that Sharpener would tell otherwise. 'But,' Gohan thought to himself, 'Do I really want to be her friend? Do I want it enough to risk consequences if Videl found out that I was keeping something like… I dunno… being an ALIEN from her?' He looked up into the hypnotizing blue eyes of the crime-fighting hero before him, and it was easy to answer. 'Yes' he wanted her friendship.
Okay… I was SO tempted to quote Pride and Prejudice here, and well… everywhere else in this story. So… if your familiar with the movies and the book you might see some lines that are really close. And if your not, it's a great book, so… Go read it:D
There should be some more action in the next chapter… and … please review to tell me what you think!