Chapter 11: Engaged!
Previously...
Her jig was up. Trunks finally knew of Pan's unrequited childhood love for him. Pan lay stiff in her bed, dreading tomorrow. Tomorrow was the official date of the engagement.
So it was true; Pan really did like Trunks. Her drunken self told him‒even his best friend Goten told him‒but being the dense person Trunks was, he wasn't convinced until his door was slammed right in his face...until he felt his cheek sting in pain from her slap in his face.
Numbskulled. Brute. A complete jerk. Trunks hit his head against his door. Not only had he ruined a lifelong friendship in the palms of his own two hands, but he'd been a complete ass to Pan. Of course he played with the feelings of a countless amount of girls in his past, but what he had just done to Pan, to toy with her feelings unknowingly for Dende knows how long, had him guilt ridden...and he wasn't exactly sure why.
Combing his fingers through his hair, Trunks began pacing around his apartment suite. After some time, he finally sunk himself into a sofa. Reaching into his back pocket, Trunks pulled his phone out; he then proceeded to dial Bulma.
"Just admit it, Pan, you love me," The lavender-haired man whispered into the girl's ear, sending a shiver down her spine. He began nipping lightly at the lobe of her ear.
"Trunks, stop," She hissed out of frustration. The man only continued to pursue her. She felt a cool breeze by her ear for a brief moment as he stopped biting at it, only until she felt the warmth of his mouth along her jaw line. He showered her mercilessly with kisses along her jaw, slowly yet surely tracing his way down to her collarbone.
"Please, Trunks," The raven-haired girl begged, her words denying her fondness towards whatever he was currently doing to her.
"Don't you like this, Pan-chan? Isn't this all you've ever dreamed of?" The man teased, his lips still hovering above her skin; his voice vibrating on her collarbone turned her body into what felt like jelly.
"N-no‒!" She denied again shaking her head until a yelp escaped her lips as the man now had her straddled above him; she sat perfectly between the man's legs, her legs on either side of him. The man sat up, startling the girl, before he ground himself against her.
"Ah," She gasped before clasping her mouth shut. Her insides began to bubble with a foreign feeling of warmth. Again, the lavender-haired man grinded against her, only this time, the raven-haired girl bit her bottom lip shut. Nonetheless, that didn't stop him from taunting her. his hips rose and fell again, a hardness brushing against her inner thighs. He lifted his hips one more time, yet this time, she unconsciously pressed her hips down on his, grinding back against him.
"You say you don't want me, Pan, but," He held her hips in place, pressing her firmly against him, making her feel just how really stiff he was, even if they were both fully clothed.
"Your body really says otherwise," He smirked, as he resumed his tantalizing actions.
"No, I, I-huuu" She began, shaking her head furiously as an attempt to refuse him, but her last thread of self-control broke when she felt his hips menacing her as he moved his lower region in a slow, circular motion.
"Say it, Pan. Tell me you love me. Tell me that you need me right now," The man said in a husky tone, continuing his actions.
"Mmm, I, oh, Dende," She moaned out broken words as she bucked against him.
"I," She uttered, her mind now too clouded with lust to say anything rational.
"Say it," He begged.
"I, l‒"
*Riiiiing* *Riiiiing*
"Kami-sama!" Pan jumped up, throwing the bed sheets off her, her face completely and entirely flushed.
*RIIIINNNG* *RIIIINNNG*
"Pan rubbed her eyes open as she picked up her cellphone from her night stand. Eyes squinting, she read the caller's name.
"...Capsule Corp?" Her brows furrowed into confusion. Her eyes shifted over towards her alarm clock, displaying a bright 6:45 am in red LED characters. Shrugging, Pan answered the call.
"Moshi moshi?" Pan answered in a questioning manner.
"Pan-chan! Oh Dende, please don't tell me it's true!" A feminine voice cried through Pan's speaker.
"Ohaiyo, Bulma-san, good morning! What happened?" Pan said as she sprung out of her bed. Bulma's voice was calling out to Pan in urgency.
"Trunks told me the news last night...oh please Pan-chan, don't leave us, we want you as a part of our family, we really do. You might have just been acting hastily, if you could maybe just reconsider the arrangement‒"
"Bulma-san, please, just calm down. What exactly did Trunks tell you last night?" Pan asked as she stepped off her bed.
"Well, he called off the engagement of course; I thought he said you and him talked about it before-hand?" Bulma responded, her sobs lessening in her speech.
"He did what exactly?" Pan tripped onto her bedroom floor, her heart sinking with panic.
"Bulma-san, please don't worry, please. I'm sure it was a misunderstanding. The engagement is still on, Bulma-san, I promise. I'll be showing up around noon today with Trunks to help set up the engagement at my parents' house." Pan explained. What in Dende's name did Trunks say? To say Pan was grossly infuriated at the moment was an understatement.
"Oh thank Dende! Kami-sama, I was so worried, Pan-chan! I'll see you and Trunks then with the others soon." Bulma said, her tone filling with complete relief.
"Okay, you too, Bulma-san." Pan said as she hung up her phone. She slammed her bedroom door; a mix of anger and confusion was running through Pan's blood as she went out her suite in a raging manner.
"Trunks, open up." She said as she hurriedly knocked on his door.
"Morning...what is it," Trunks said sleepily.
Pan stared angrily into Trunks' eyes, giving him a look of disgust before lifting her hand and...
*Slap!*
Across the demi-saiyan's face.
"What the hell, Pan?" Trunks responded, his face grimacing in pain; he grabbed hold of her arm that had just swung across to prevent her from doing anything else.
"Dende, how many times do I have to slap sense into you? Just what in the name of all Kais do you think you're doing, Trunks Briefs? Your mom called me this morning, nearly giving me a heart attack. The engagement is off?!" She yelled at him in anger, attempting to tug her arm away.
"Yeah, I told my mother last night. I don't see what the problem is. Pan, I can't let you go through this marriage knowing you can't tolerate the person you're stuck with for life. You deserve someone better than an ass like me. Pan, your freedom means more than this lousy arrangement. I really don't understand why you're upset," Trunks began.
"Who wouldn't be upset that their friends' whole career is on the line because of this? I'm not selfish, you idiot! You didn't even tell me anything about calling it off!"
"What career? What are you saying?" Trunks asked as his eyes widened, loosening his strong hold on her.
"Yours, you baka, you idiot! I know your job is on the line because of our marriage!" Pan screamed as she threw a number of punches and jabs at the man, knocking them both down and bringing Trunks' door down along with the weight of the two.
"You're so stupid; don't you care about your job the least bit? Don't be so selfless! You're job is worth more than my weak feelings towards anyone any day, Trunks," She said as she now weakly hit him while sitting in his lap, tears starting to form in her eyes. The lump resting in her throat came out; she tried to speak, but instead came out sobbing. Trunks' sharp features softened at the sight before him. She had found out; Pan's cries became muffled as he embraced her lithe body.
"How...how did you know?"
"...Bra told me," Pan lied. Pan attempted to pull herself away, before she was pulled back by Trunks, who embraced her even tighter.
"Wait," Trunks said, his voice muffled in Pan's dark, long locks of hair. His voice was pleading, as if he wanted to say 'let's stay here a little while longer'. What exactly was Trunks doing? Her brain, insisting on what he did to her last night was not acceptable, began to argue with her heart, whose strings were being pulled by the slightest gestures he was making towards her. The warmth between the two began to overwhelm Pan; suddenly remembering her dream last night, she peeled herself off of Trunks.
"We should start getting ready for the engagement at my place," Pan explained, averting her gaze from him as she left Trunks' sight before he could respond.
"Aaaand...perfect!" Bra mused as she placed one last pin into Pan's hair, which had been curled and updoed with an unnecessary amount of bobby pins.
"Thank you, Bra," Pan smiled at her best friend as she now began to dress her into her yukata for the engagement ceremony.
"Anything for my future nee-chan!" Bra giggled as she tightened Pan's kimono.
"Pan...I honestly have to admit, I never imagined you going through with this," Bra sighed as she looked at her beautifully dressed Pan-chan.
"Neither did I," Pan mumbled back.
"Pan, you seem down...is everything okay?" Bra said resting her hand on Pan's shoulder.
"M-me? Everything's just fine, Bra!" Pan exclaimed as she attempted to grin widely.
" Alright, Pan, let's go downstairs then," Bra replied, obviously not convinced.
Just as Pan and Bra were exiting her bedroom, Trunks appeared from in the bathroom, dressed sharply in a grey suit. The two looked at one another awkwardly, trying to avoid each other's gaze.
"Your lovely fiancé has arrived, Trunks," Bra said, pushing Pan forward, then leaving the two alone as she headed downstairs.
"Wow, Pan, you look...very bright, very red," Trunks said nervously as he tried to compliment her.
"Uh, thanks...you look very grey," Pan lightly laughed in response. It was amusing: Pan had never seen Trunks so nervous! She might have been crazy, but she could have sworn to Dende that she saw a faint blush on Trunks' two cheeks.
"Pan, you don't know how grateful I am for this," Trunks admitted as he grabbed Pan into a warm hug. Hesitantly, Pan too wrapped her arms around him. Trunks' body felt tense; Pan couldn't remember him being this...vulnerable...in this weak of a position, where he could have lost his whole career ahead of him...all because of her.
"I, I'm so sorry, about last night," he mumbled.
"Now isn't the time for that, Trunks," Pan replied in a dejected manner, freeing herself from his embrace.
"Let's go," Pan said as she started to head downstairs.
"We will now begin the Yuino* ceremony," the mediator announced.
The Briefs' family sat across the Sons, everyone clad in traditional clothing. Aside, there was a table full of neatly wrapped gifts for Pan and her family. Pan shifted uncomfortably as she was forced to sit stiffly for some time-not to mention she could barely breathe in a thick, heavy, yukata on this hot August day. Soon, the two families had exchanged all their gifts with each other, thanking one another as they did so.
"Congratulations, Ms. Son, Mr. Briefs. I wish you wealth and prosperity in your future; I'm honoured to have brought the two of you together," The mediator finally said, indicating the conclusion of the ceremony.
Pan stood up, her legs shaking, having been numb from sitting on them for what felt like hours.
"Omedetou*, Pan-nee chan! Congrats!" Bra rushed over to Pan, embracing her and Trunks in a tight, restricting hug.
"Arigato, thanks, Bra," Pan smiled half-heartedly, pulling back from the two as she took into realization that she was actually Bra's 'nee-chan' now. She would now have to be referred to as 'Pan Son Briefs'. Oh Dende, she didn't like the sound of that at all-the new name felt too jerky, too forced to be her own. Pan had finally made it...she finally was with the man of her dreams, just like her younger self wanted all her life! But why wasn't she off the walls happy like she thought she'd be?
"Pan-chaaan, did you hear anything I was just saying?" Bra exclaimed; Pan blinked her eyes furiously, Bra now having interrupted her thoughts.
"Ah...drama marathon?" Pan guessed dim-wittedly, embarrassed to have been completely zoned out.
"No, but that would sound nice another time," Bra sighed as she shook her head.
"...No, I'm sorry I didn't hear anything you said," Pan admitted as she smiled sheepishly.
"I said, come upstairs with me, we need to get you changed," Bra said as she linked her best friend's arm into hers, heading towards the staircase.
"Wait, what's the hurry for?" Pan said as she followed her friend up the stairs-she couldn't complain though, she was suffocated in this Yukata and couldn't wait to slip out of it.
Bra's eyes scanned around, making sure Trunks was nowhere near.
"We're throwing a little soirée for the new fiancés!" Bra giggled as she held both of Pan's hands in hers.
"Who? Which fiancés? Me and Trunks? Wait, what?" Pan asked as she tripped up the final step of stairs. Bra nodded her head and grinned slyly.
"I was never told this, Bra. I don't remember agreeing to have an engagement party," Pan sighed. Pan just wanted to go home and rest, not to stay up and party. The last thing she wanted to do was to celebrate her meaningless marriage with the man she had unrequited feelings for.
"I never told anyone, surprise," Bra replied as she turned the knob to Pan's door, Pan following in behind her.
"Bra, I appreciate that you're doing this, honest, but is it really necessary? I'm not down for partying, I need to be teaching at the Judo tomorrow morning," Pan justified, thinking of anything to get her out of having to attend the party.
"Pan, I'm getting tired of hearing your excuses. Now, I need to get you into this dress," Bra explained as she slid open Pan's closet door, reaching in to reveal a black body-con dress.
"Oh, Dende," Pan uttered as she saw the form-fitting dress panelled with leather.
*Yuino = Japanese engagement ceremony
*Omedetou = Congratulations
Yes, yes I've been missing in action for 4+ months...I tried to make it up though (suggestive eyebrow raise); I'm also already working on the next chapter so I won't let y'all down `3`
Again, merci for the support (big heeeart)
aishiteru all of u /even the ones who don't read this/
pce.