Disclaimer- I do not own DBZ or any of its characters

A/N- Yay! This chapter is longer to make up for the fact that the last one was shorter than usual xD I'm sorry that I didn't manage to reply to anyone's reviews, FF was really messed up for me in the last week. I'm sure most of you got the email for the last chapter 3 times... sorry about that, it wasn't letting me upload, and then when it did, it didn't send me an email. So if some of you didn't get it, just be aware that 27 has also been posted =D

Sorry if the next chapter takes me a little longer than a week, it shouldn't, but I have exams and everything coming up once again, blah! Okay, enough from me.

Enjoy (=

---------------On with the Story---------------

Last Time;

What did this mean? Did Trunks love her? Possibly. 'I can't be sure though. Just because he loved her the way Trunks(P) loves me, doesn't mean he has those feelings for me, I'm not her. Just like it isn't certain that this Trunks will love the Pan of this time like he says, she's not going to be me, he can't be certain that his feelings will be the same.'

Tears of frustration continued to flow as she tried to figure out what the right thing to do was. Would Trunks have told her to consider those things if he didn't care about her? Or was he just telling her that the girl didn't stay with him because she knew it was wrong to stay in a time that wasn't her own?

"What do I do..?"

Now; The Decision

Trunks touched down back at Capsule Corp and noticed that everyone who had decided to remain at CC had moved inside. He gave a short knock on the door before he walked inside and to the living room where he could sense everyone's Ki.

"Hey!" Bra yelled, "Where is Pan?"

Trunks frowned, "Thinking I guess."

"About what?! Did you tell her?" his little sister asked with a humungous smile.

"...No.. well maybe."

"What do you mean maybe?"

"I'm not sure if she'll figure out what I said or not."

Vegeta(F) rolled his eyes, "Pansy."

'Did he really just call me a pansy?' Trunks asked himself. 'He should really stop hanging out with Bra.'

It was noticeable to everyone how much Vegeta had changed due to the birth of his second child. He was a lot more calm and his presence held almost a peaceful nature. They hadn't caught him with a smile other than when speaking to Bra, but they noticed he smirked a lot more than often and liked to tease people. It might come off as rude or mean to some, but to the z-fighters who knew their Vegeta, they knew that this was a sign of being civilized and having gotten used to being with the group.

"What did you say to her?" Bra asked excitedly, drawing everyone's attention back to the love life of the future Trunks and the girl who they, at one point, had known as Pina.

"I don't know.. It's not important, but I needed to say something...."

"Why?" the blue haired girl asked in confusion.

"I don't know, that's not important either, I just did." He looked up at the roof, "She's coming back" he said as he felt her Ki approaching.

'That was quick,' he thought to himself. 'Maybe she realized already what I was kind of trying to tell her. I probably shouldn't have mentioned anything, but I'm sure Gohan would much prefer if I told her I loved her over losing her.'

They heard the door open before Pan entered and looked at Trunks(F), who was looking away from her. He was scared of what expression would be on her face.

"Hey Pan-Chan!" Bra exclaimed, pretending she didn't notice that her best friend had dried tears on her cheeks and puffy eyes. "Did you kick Trunks' ass?"

"Obviously!" Pan said with a grin, acting as if nothing was wrong. She probably would have gotten away with it too if the physical evidence of her sadness hadn't been left behind.

"That's my girl! I knew you could." Pan adored her best friend. She knew Bra knew something was wrong, and was thankful the girl was pretending that everything was fine.

"How are you feeling Uncle Goten?" she asked with a smirk.

Goten, who had been talking to his younger self and his mother and father before Trunks(F) had arrived, smiled at his niece. "Much better after the Senzu bean that I ate."

Pan laughed, "Vegeta got you that good eh? You looked a little worse for wear when you IT'd to the back of CC earlier."

Goten shrugged and grinned, "It's okay. It was worth it," he said with a smile directed at Bra.

Pan's heart clenched together in sadness as she saw the love and admiration between the two. Why couldn't she have something like that? Oh yeah, she could, if she stayed in this time.

"You okay Pan?" Bra asked as she saw the hurt and confusion on her best friends face.

"Huh? Oh yeah B, I'm fine, don't worry." She looked towards Trunks, he still wasn't looking at her. Was he mad because she had told him she was considering staying in the past? Maybe she should have told him that she only wanted to know what he thought about her staying, that might have went over better.

"Why don't you go lie down or something?" Bra suggested.

"Yeah," Pan nodded her head, "I think I'll do that." She slowly made her way upstairs, the whole time wondering why Trunks refused to even look at her.

She made it to the room that her and Bra had been sharing and flopped on the bed, burying her face in the pillow. A lot of things had happened already that day, and her body felt completely drained.

-----

"Aren't you going to go after her?" Bra snapped at her brother.

"No? You're the one who told her to go rest, I'm not going to go disturb her."

"She's SAD Trunks. Can't you just go be an idiot for a few moments to make her smile again?"

Trunks shook his head, "No."

"WHY NOT?!" the blue haired girl pretty much yelled in his face.

"Whatever fantasies you have about the way this is going to end Bra, you're wrong. I know what I'm doing, and I know that this isn't the right time."

"This isn't the right time to be her best friend? Just because it's not the right time to tell her how you feel doesn't mean it's the wrong time for you to go to her and make her feel better. Your best friend is in that room right now and she's not happy. Isn't it a best friends job to do whatever they can to make their friend feel better?"

Trunks looked like she had struck a nerve. It was like he had just realized that he had been too focused on his emotions to remember that she was still his friend and that she needed him right now. He gave a short nod of his head as he made his way up the stairs and to where he could feel Pan's restless Ki.

Bra snorted, "That was easy."

Goten rolled his eyes. "You really shouldn't meddle."

"I have to. You don't think they'd ever get together on their own do you?"

"Bra..."

"Oh come on Goten! You know they're perfect, and they both love each other. I don't see the problem."

"He was really hurt when Pan from the future left him. He did everything he could to make her stay with him, and it still wasn't enough. He's just scared."

"Well that's dumb. She's his Pan this time, she's not going anywhere."

"I know, but it's still hard on him. And besides, Gohan at least wants Pan to be 18 before they get together."

Bra snorted again, what was with Gohan needing Pan to be a legal adult? So what if Trunks was 14 years older than her, they loved each other and Trunks wouldn't have done anything with her until she was older, her brother has some class.

"Just give him the time he wants B, let him do it on his own terms."

"You mean on Gohan's terms."

"My brother wants Pan to be nothing but happy, he's just not ready to let her go yet. He cares a lot for Trunks and respects him and knows he'll be good to Pan –even if he doesn't have the best reputation with women."

"Just because he sleeps around doesn't mean he'd do that to Pan."

Bulma was eyeing her son, he was already somewhat of a womanizer, but she found it hard to believe that he would become as bad with it as her future daughter and Goten were making it sound.

"I know that B, and so does everyone else. Just let him do it his way."

Bra rolled her eyes, "Fine."

-----Trunks & Pan-----

Trunks made his way upstairs and followed Pan's Ki to the room she had entered. He stood outside the door for a few minutes.

'Should I go in there? I don't know if I'll be able to stay calm if she's chosen to stay here. Obviously she's made up her mind if she's come back already.'

He continued debating with himself before he decided to man up and enter the room. Knocking once he pushed the door open and walked in, finding Pan lying on her stomach with her face buried in the pillow.

"Hey," he said softly, not surprised when he received no answer.

He walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge as he began gently stroking her hair.

"Panny? Are you okay?"

Pan nodded her head but didn't respond. He knew that something was really bothering her by the way she held her arms tightly around the pillow. He silently wondered if she was really this torn up over whatever decision she had made.

He sighed and said softly, "Don't lie to me Pan-Chan. I know you too well; I know that you're tearing yourself apart inside. Talk to me, explain to me what's bothering you.

"...You already know."

He grabbed her and flipped her over, pulling her up into his embrace as he did so. "Panny. You're my best friend, I'm not letting you leave me."

Pan blushed slightly. "I'm not going to..." she whispered.

"What?!" Trunks exclaimed with shock as a huge smile overtook his features. "You've decided to come home?"

"Of course, you idiot," she said with a small laugh. "Who would keep you in line if I wasn't there?"

The goofy smile stayed in place as he laughed along with her. "I'm glad you've finally come to your senses. I was really worried that you were going to stay here."

She raised her head until her eyes were staring into his and then replied in a tiny voice, "I wasn't sure what I wanted. I was confused, and sad. I just enjoyed the feeling I got from being in this time I guess. I don't think there was any part of me that was really considering staying here, just part of me that wished I could."

Hurt flashed across his face for a second as he accepted her words. He knew that staying here probably seemed more ideal to a girl who thought she was experiencing unrequited love. If only he could tell her the way he felt about her, and that when he hugged her and comforted her, he only wanted to take away all of her pain and make sure she never experienced any form of it ever again.

"I'm sorry that I upset you earlier."

He looked surprised as he heard her speak. "It's fine Pan-Chan. I was just... sad when I thought you were going to stay here and I would never get to see my best friend again."

"You'd still have Goten."

Trunks rolled his eyes. "You know that's not the same. Goten is my best friend, the same way Bra is yours. But you and I, we're something different. It's like a whole new level of friendship when it comes to us. I trust you more than anyone, I always tell you everything. I don't tell Goten my fears, even though he's my best friend. And I know there are things you tell me that you will never tell Bra, just like there are things that you tell her that you'll never tell me."

"I probably eventually end up telling you everything that I tell her."

"Well there you go! You've just proven my point. You're the closest friend I have, and I couldn't handle losing you."

Pan sighed as she rested her head on his chest from the position in his lap, "I couldn't handle losing you either," were the whispered words that reached his ears and brought a smile to his face.

"Good. So what is bothering you then?"

Pan shrugged. "Like I said, it's just the part of me that wants to stay here is sad that I'm going home and things will change."

"There aren't many things that are different in our time line from this one."

The younger Demi-Saiyan couldn't help but sigh. He was definitely right, there weren't too many differences between their timelines, but there was definitely one that she found to be quite major. In one timeline, the boy who she loved with her entire heart loved her back equally. And in another, his love for her was probably even greater, but it was only the brotherly kind.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she finally responded to him once she realized he was waiting for an answer.

"Don't worry Panny, things will work out. Just have faith in the people you care about and I'm sure everything you want will one day end up being yours. Just because things are slightly different in our time, doesn't mean you can't make them the way you want them to be."

She put on a smile for his sake and nodded her head, "You're right Trunks. I know that going home to our time is the right thing to do and I probably would have ended up regretting it if I had stayed here in the past. I would have missed everyone way too much."

"That's my girl," he said as he playfully messed her hair up.

She scowled at him and scooted out of his embrace, even though she didn't really want to. "Shut it Boxer Boy."

Trunks laughed. "Awe, you know you love me."

"Oh please," Pan scoffed. "Me? Love an egomaniac like you? Never."

"Holy, break my heart why don't you." Trunks began to pout as he tried to keep a straight face.

Pan burst out laughing and Trunks soon followed her. They laughed together for a while before finally calming down.

"So much for your nap."

Pan shrugged, "It doesn't really matter, I can take one anytime."

"I'm probably more tired than you."

"I highly doubt that," 'I've been through quite an emotional roller coaster today' she added in her head.

"Welllllllll..." he dragged out with a smirk. When Pan raised a question eyebrow he suddenly pushed her off the bed and spread himself across the entire thing. "I think I'm just going to take my nap now, and here."

"WHAT?! That's MY bed Trunks!"

"What are you gunna do about it Pan-Chan?"

Pan got a mischievous glint in her eye as she jumped on her best friend and they began playfully wrestling for the spot on the bed. It went on for a few minutes before Trunks suddenly gave in, standing up while slightly panting.

"You definitely have too much energy for a person in need of sleep," he laughed.

Pan smirked in response, "You're just getting old."

Trunks rolled his eyes, "Riiight, me, old."

"It's true," she said, still smirking. "Why do you think you need a nap?"

He huffed a little, "I don't need a nap, I want a nap. I barely slept at all last night trying to figure out where you girls could be. And then early in the morning when I was finally about to fall asleep, Goten bursts through my door claiming he had this weird dream but he knew where you two were and that we had to hurry up and leave immediately."

"Excuses," Pan said with a laugh. He knew that she was only teasing him, that was just the way the two of them were. They made fun of each other's weaknesses and belittled their accomplishments. Only sometimes did one of them ever take it too far to the point where the other couldn't tell if they were kidding or not. Thankfully that didn't happen too often though, but it usually resulted in the same end anyway; a spar. The spar just happened to be more playful at certain times than it did at others.

He turned to the door and began walking towards it, "Have a good nap," he said as he exited, leaning against the wall once he was out.

He let out a breath that he hadn't been aware he was holding. Sometimes it really got to him how close they were. They didn't act anything like best friends, they acted exactly like a couple, and it killed him that he wasn't allowed to think of it like that. Sure best friends play fight and have tickle wars the way they do, especially since it's something they've been doing their whole life, but Trunks couldn't help but feel something more. He was pretty sure, that at least on his part, he just wanted to touch her. He loved rolling around on the bed with her a moment ago, fighting for dominance.

Shaking his head he tried to get the thoughts out of his mind. He felt slightly bad for being so weak, but nobody else had ever found it weird that they always seemed to be all over each other. He didn't always think of it this way, a lot of the times it just came natural to him to play fight with her. He suspected his current feelings had something to do with being in the past, and being jealous of the way he knew she felt about his younger self.

He was so happy she had decided to come home. 'I was really scared she was going to choose to stay here,' he thought to himself. He honestly couldn't imagine a world without her. He picked on her all the time and all they ever did was argue with each other, but that was just the way they were, and it worked for them. He loved when she would get frustrated with him and her cheeks would turn red from anger and she would puff them out as she tried to think of something she could say back to him.

He shook his head a few more times, reminding himself that she had chosen to come home, so he didn't need to think about how his life would be without her. He smiled a bit before making his way downstairs, not surprised when everyone just stared at him in a questioning fashion.

"She's fine," was all he said as he walked towards the kitchen.

-----

A/N- *sigh* They're so cute (= I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.

Remember, it's a Fanfiction crime to read and not review ;)