Hi everyone. I know it's been a loong while and you probably all hate me by now but here's another chapter. I've honestly been working really hard at the story recently and intend to finish it soon. The next chapter is already in progress. Hope you enjoy!

Last time...

"I-I want to meet him. Just the two of us," Hercule said after a long pause.

"Okay," Videl replied simply before dropping her arm and retreating to her room.

Once she got there, she flopped down on her bed, a small smile on her face. It had been a long time since she'd had such a productive talk with her father. She definitely hadn't planned it this way but they were taking a step in the right direction.

Chapter 41: First Date

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Brushing his limp lavender locks out of his eyes, Mirai stepped out of the steaming shower, his skin still burning from the scalding water. Grabbing a nearby towel, he wrapped it around his waist, shivering slightly as the piece of cloth created a slight breeze. He approached the mirror and, with a deep sigh, wiped away the fog from a section of it. He approached the mirror and, with a deep sigh, wiped away the fog from a section of it and leaned on the bathroom counter, his head resting in his palms. Staring at his reflection, he sighed again. He looked absolutely terrible- not a look you really aim for on your first date. He rubbed at his tired eyes, hoping somehow the action would reverse the slightly sunken look they had acquired.

Since he left the training grounds, he had tried tenaciously to get into contact with Lime but it seemed that every avenue he tried failed. She wouldn't pick up her phone, she was too far away for him to accurately pinpoint her position by sensing her ki and trying to talk to her telepathically only left him with a bigger headache than the one he already had. After his twentieth call went to voicemail, he received a brief text message from Lime- Can't talk now. Will see you tonight.

It relieved him to find out she was not in a ditch somewhere but the anticipation was killing him. 'Tonight?!' he had thought. 'I can't wait till tonight! We have figure out what we're going to do now!' Did she not realize they were going to have a quarter-Saiyan baby in a few months? What could possibly be more pressing than that? The seeming lack of concern on her part made him question the stability of their relationship. How was it that he was so worked up but she was not only calm but unconcerned? He hadn't even known what he was doing when he marked her as his mate until after the fact. It was like something took over his body. What if their relationship wasn't ready for this? Where would it leave them?

He had spent the afternoon training in the gravity room at a level that would make his father proud and perhaps a little jealous. After almost completely exhausting himself, he had dragged himself to the bathroom, washed the blood and grime off his body, then after trying unsuccessfully to contact Lime again, threw himself onto his bed where he proceeded to brood for the next eight hours.

Patting his cheeks, he untied the towel and dried what little moisture remained on his damp skin. He then turned the towel on his hair, roughly drying the lavender locks until they were only slightly damp. Grabbing a comb, he applied some moisturizer before combing his hair into its regular style. Dropping the towel onto his bathroom counter, he walked through the door to his room, put on some boxers and got dressed in a simple pair of black slacks and a navy blue button-down shirt. He reached for his cell-phone and sent a quick brief to Lime. 'I'm on my way'

Not wanting to deal with his mother and her never-ending teasing of his and Lime's relationship, he chose to exit through his bedroom window. He closed his eyes, reveling in the feel of the cool early evening breeze flowing over him. The weather than night was perfect, not too warm but not too cold. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky and bright stars and a crescent moon were already beginning to make an appearance. This was the set-up for a perfect romantic evening. Too bad they will be too busy discussing the baby to enjoy it.

In what seemed like no time at all, Mirai came upon the small enclave of houses that was Chazke Village. He touched down a little outside the village despite the fact that many of the villagers knew of flying people thanks to Gohan's heroic stunt seven years before. He did it to give Lime a few more minutes to get ready as well as to give himself a few minutes to clear his head. It amazed him how fickle his emotions were at times. All day he had been dying to see her, wanting to get this conversation out of the way as soon as possible. But now that he had time to think about it, the less he was convinced that he might have been wrong about the whole situation.

The minutes flew by and the next thing he knew he was standing in front of the Mizuki residence. Breathing deeply for the umpteenth time that evening, he raised his fist and knocked gently on the wooden door. It was time to face the music.

It didn't take very long before Akira Mizuki answered his call. The burly man smiled down at him and gestured for him to enter. "Mirai my boy!" he greeted jovially. "How are you doing this evening?"

"I'm doing fine, sir," he lied politely. He was doing anything but fine right now. "And how are you?"

The big man looked at him disapprovingly. "None of this 'sir' nonsense! Just call me dad!" he teased. The older man had known of the attraction the two younger people had felt towards one another and was happy they had finally decided to act on it.

"And you can call me mom!" Chiharu Mizuki piped up from behind her husband as Mirai eneterd the house. "It will be great practice for when you marry our Lime!"

Mirai blushed. "Um…I think it's a little soon to be talking about marriage. It's only our first date," he said, embarrassed as he glanced down the hall to see if Lime was coming. Never mind the fact that they were already married in the Saiyan culture, he wasn't quite ready to go through the very public human ceremony just yet. He guessed they would eventually, but then again, a baby wasn't in their plans for the near future either.

"Alright dear," the older woman said patting his cheek. "You two take your time. Just remember I'd like to see my grandchildren before I die!" Chiharu winked. "Anyway, I'm off to let Lime know you're here," she said before disappearing down the hall.

Mirai chuckled nervously. You won't have to wait that long…

"So how's the farm going?" Mirai asked Akira, making small talk as he followed the man to the sitting room, trying his best to steer the conversation away from him and Lime.

The two chatted for a few minutes, talking mostly about work when Chiharu walked into the room holding a camera. "Here she is!" the woman announced, looking like she was about to burst with happiness.

Mirai's jaw dropped as he looked at her. Having been aroung her for many years, he had seen Lime in various states of dress (and undress) but this outfit looked particularly astounding on her. She wore her aurburn hair curled around her shoulders, small ringlets framing her face. Her make up was minimal consisting of only a light blush and pink lipgloss. She was wearing a white halter dress which stopped an inch above her knees. It had a moderate V-neck and hugged her body at the bodice and flowed softly below the waist. On her feet were white wedge-heeled sandals. All in all she looked absolutely gorgeous.

Mrs. Mizuki snapped photo after photo, capturing Mirai's stunned face, Lime's demure gait and the delighted look on Akira's face. A full minute later Mirai recovered, standing to his feet and clearing his throat awkwardly as he realized he was staring.

"She spent hours picking out this oufit for you!" Mrs Mizuki interjected.

"Mom!" Lime yelled, absolutely mortified. She was sure her parents were on a never-ending quest to embarrass her.

"Oops! Sorry!" Chiharu said, although the look on her face showed she wasn't sorry at all. She walked over to her husband and gently pushed Mirai over to his girlfriend. "Come on! I want a shot of you both! This can be so the grandchildren can see their parents used to be cool once!"

Again the two young adults blushed and stood next to one another, plastering fake smile on their faces. But this didn't seem to please the older woman. "For Kami's sake act like you like each other!" she prompted impatiently.

The two looked at each other trying to figure out an appropriate way to pose for the camera when Mirai suddenly wrapped his arms around Lime's waist and pulled her in front of him, resting his chin on her left shoulder. Lime squeaked at his sudden movement and looked up at him, giggling as they made eye contact.

"Perfect!" Chiharu said, snapping away. "This is definitely one for the photo album!"

"Alright you two, get out of here! Have fun and I don't want to see you back here before 1:00!" Chiharu demanded practically shoving them out the front door.

"Have fun, you two!" Akira called as they got into Mirai's jetcopter.

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In half an hour, Mirai and Lime pulled up in front of an old brownstone building. Mirai got out of the sleek, black coupe, which he had traded the jetcopter for once they arrived in the city, and opened the door for Lime, escorting her to the sidewalk. He encapsulated the car and offered his date his arm as they walked up the steps into the building. The inside was modest but gorgeous. The interior walls of the building were also brownstone while the floor was shale. The windows were arches cut straight into the wall that opened and closed with large wooden shutters. Warm lights resembling torches were placed along the walls and there were several fireplaces littered throughout the building. Copies of renaissance paintings were also strategically placed on the walls while large stone pillars defined the space within the room. The bar and furniture were made of rich mahogany and they, along with the rest of the décor added to the medieval feel of the restaurant.

The two walked up to the host. "Ciao!" the host said excitedly. "Mirai Briefs! I can't believe you're here! Let me get you to your table. Atashi, would you please prepare the private booth?" He instructed a passing teenage waiter who seemed to be mesmerized by Lime.

"Y-yes, sir," the boy stuttered, a deep blush spreading across his face as he realized he'd been caught. He ducked his head and walked quickly past then to the back of the restaurant, nearly tripping over his own two feet along the way.

The host turned towards the couple and apologized for his employee's behavior. "I'm sorry about him, he's new."

In a few minutes, the couple was escorted to their table by the same young man who made sure not to make any eye contact this time. Apparently his boss had given him a thorough talking-to.

The two sat in awkward silence as the young man left to give them time to decide what they'd be ordering. The silence was beginning to wear on Mirai's already frayed nerves. He visibly tensed when Lime seemed to want to say something.

"Do you know what you want to order?" she asked casually. To be honest, Mirai hadn't even looked at the menu and impossible as it may seem, wasn't at all hungry either.

Mirai put down the menu a bit forcefully, trying and failing quickly to contain his frustration. "Seriously, Lime?" he whispered harshly so no inquisitive ears could pick up their conversation. "I have literally been pulling my hair out over this pregnancy deal and you're not even going to mention it?"

Lime's expression phased through surprise, anger and understanding in as many seconds before she placed her hand upon his closed fist gently. She leaned in closer and whispered with a smile. "I'm not pregnant."

It was Mirai's turn to ride the waved of emotion before the words finally clicked in his brain. "You're not pregnant? Really? You're not?"

Lime smiled and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I'm not," she said. "Hopefully we can keep it that way until we're both ready."

"No kidding!" Mirai said, finally cracking a smile. It was like a huge weight had finally been lifted off his shoulders. He shook his head, unable to hide the smile on his face. "This bond is going to be the death of me," he said.

"What makes you say that? Already having regrets?" she asked half-seriously.

"Maybe," Mirai teased with a smile before kissing her softly, assuaging her fears. "Seriously though, I swear I heard you say you were pregnant through our bond."

Lime's eyes widened. "You heard that? I'm so sorry! No wonder you were so freaked out! I thought you were just nervous about our date! I was busy with a photoshoot earlier which was why I didn't answer my phone. I really was thinking the worst when your mom came back with the results. She looked so damn serious! Scared the crap out of me!" she said, rolling her eyes and earning a smile from Mirai. He's mom's devious side tended to come out at the worst of times.

Mirai lightly kissed her again before relieved laughter bubbled out of him once again. This was freaking amazing! He wanted to run around the place yealling his excitement like a mad man but he knew neither his mother nor Lime would appreiciate it once it made the tabloids so he toned it down to controlled laughter.

Lime grinned at him and put her hand over his mouth to shut him up as he got a big loud. Her smile slipped from her lips as a thought crossed her mind. "What would you have done if I were pregnant?" she asked in a small voice, looking down at her glass of water.

Mirai took her hand from his lips and kissed the inside of her wrist, taking hold of her chin so he could look her in the eyes. "I would have stayed. I would be freaked out beyond belief and positive I would be using duct tape on diapers but I wouldn't have left you. We're bonded for life, remember? It's you and me for the long haul," he said, a small smile gracing his lips at the end.

Lime giggled at thought of Mirai trying to change a diaper but her features softened as she spoke again. "I thought it would break us, you know? I mean we haven't been together that long. What if instead of bringing us together, it tore us apart? I don't want to lose you."

"I know what you mean. I felt the same way but just know no matter how scary the situation, I'll never leave you," he said, kissing her forehead only to pull away when his stomach growled loudly.

His cheeks turned pink as he patted his toned abdomen. "Well I haven't had anything to eat sine this morning to we should probably decide what to order." he explained.

Lime looked horrified as she felt his forhead. "You only ate once today? Are you sure you're feeling ok?" she asked, both humored and concerned.

"I am now," Mirai replied with a cheeky grin and opened his menu, eager to find something to appease his protesting stomach.

They spent the rest of the evening talking and laughing, enjoying each other's company and discovering new aspects of the other's personality. When they had paid the bill, they walked out into the cool November night was unusually warm for this time of year promting Lime to suggest they walk the few blocks to the park.

Once at the park, the two sat next to each other on a pair of swings. Immediately, they got into a contest to see who could go the highest. Subsequent cheating by Mirai for using his ki caused Lime to kick off her shoes and begin chasing him around the park. Out of breath from both running and laughing the two staggered over to a park bench and sat wrapped in each other's arms as they looked up at the stars, pointing out the contellations they could recognize and making their own silly ones by the time their collective knowledge of astronomy was exhausted. By the end of the night the night sky had acquired a Piccolo-in-a-Massive-Turban, a Gotenus Ravenous, a Final-to-HFIL and a Frying Pan of Doom. All names were still in beta.

They were sitting in a comfortable silence, Lime leaning her head on Mirai's chest while he rested his chin on the top of her head. "You know there was a time when I sat kind of like this with someone." Mirai said, causing Lime to look up at him in surprise. He found telling her little stories about his past helped him with the pain and guilt he felt while simultaneously built their trust in each other. The more he opened up to her, the more she seemed to understand him.

"I thought you said you didn't have a girlfriend in your timeline," she said in a slightly accusatory tone. It wasn't that she was jealous. She was just upset that he lied to her.

"I never said she was my girlfriend," Mirai chuckled to his denfense.

"Oh," Lime conceded and laid her head on his chest once again. "Tell me about her," she murmured against his shirt.

"Well it was no doubt the saddest day of my life. The day Gohan died. I was feeling so alone. I mean the whole time I was growing up, it was the two of us against the androids and then all of a sudden… it was just me. My mom was like a zombie. Like his death paralyzed her. It was then that she poured everything into building the time machine because she knew all hope for us was lost. I think the only thing that kept her going what the hope that she could turn back the hands of time so we'd be ready for them that somewhere out there, there would be a version of ourselves living in peace," he said somberly.

Lime squeezed his hand, giving him support as his past demons afflicted him. "After mom fell asleep out of pure exhaustion I snuck out of the house and started running bawling like a baby. I didn't know where I was going or if the androids were around or not. To be hinest I didn't really care either. Then the next thing I knew I would myself on the ground with a girl on top of me. The first thing I would think of was how pretty she was. Then a realized my hand was in her chest. I thought she was going to start yelling at me but I guess she saw me crying and decided to hug me instead. We ended up lying on the ground and then she started making up ridiculous constellations just to make me smile. After that, she left. I didn't even get her name," Mirai said with a wistful smile.

Lime slapped his shoulder. "You shared a moment like that with a girl and didn't even introduce yourself?" she asked incredulously. "No wonder you didn't have a girlfriend! You have zero game!" she teased.

"Ah shut up," Mirai replied a small blush coating his cheeks. "I must have some game if I got you," he countered.

"Nope," Lime said giving him a peck on the lips. "I think it was your devasatatingly good looks that did me in."

Mirai looked at Lime scandalized. "Are you saying you only want me for my body?" he smirked.

Lime smirked back. "And what if I do?" she teased.

Mirai leaned closer to her, kissing her passionately until she was breathless. "I'll continue doing his until you love me…all of me, my sexy princess," he said, running his hand from her cheek, down her neck and between her breasts, never breaking his heated gaze on her.

Lime shivered. "I can live with that," she said, kissing him once more.

When the kiss broke Mirai commented. "She was about ten years older than me so it probably wouldn't have worked out then. So imagine my surprise when a few years later I walk into my den and find her watching TV with my sensei's younger counterpart and I'm the one a few years older than her," he grinned.

Lime pulled away from him, staring at him in disbelief. "You m-met me? In the future?" she asked.

Mirai nodded, smiling at her. Lime launched herself at him giving him a tight hug. "And here I thought I was the only one other than Goten without a future counterpart," she said.

"Yeah, I didn't tell you earlier," he replied. "I guess I was a bit embarrassed to mention it before. Well I think I should get you home. I think we managed to stay within your parents' curfew."

Lime giggled and shook her head. "My parents are insane," she laughed. Looking up at him she asked, "Fly me? I don't want to let go of you just yet," she said standing up.

Mirai chuckled. "Me either," he said as he scooped her into his arms. After checking to see if there was no one around, he blasted into the sky, erecting an energy shield around them so Lime wouldn't be bothered by the wind.

The ride was silent all the way to Chazke Village as Lime had drifted off about ten minutes into the ride. However, a smile still lingered on Mirai's lips as he looked down on the sleeping woman in his arms, chuckling in amusement at their relationship. How lucky he was that he managed to meet his first crush in an alternate reality and she was just as interested in him as he was in her? All too soon, they touched down in front of the Mizuki residence. Leaning down to her ear he whispered, "We're here."

Lime shifted in his arms before groggily opening her eyes as Mirai set her down. She smiled back at him, "Sorry I fell asleep. You're just too damn comfy."

"Mirai blushed a little. "I didn't mind," he answered.

The two stood, facing each other, an awkward silence building between them as the common first date nervousness overtook them. "So I had a really nice time tonight," Mirai broke the silence with the cliché.

"Me too. We should do it again," Lime responded in kind.

"We should," Mirai agreed. "Next weekend?" he suggested.

"It's a date!" Lime grinned brightly at him.

"So goodnight?" Mirai asked more than said.

Lime smiled at his shyness. "Goodnight," she responded.

Still Mirai stood in front of her, an unsure look on his face before he quickly leaned in and pressed a kiss to her cheek.

"What was that?" Lime laughed at his action and a furious blush flooded his cheeks.

"And I don't know why I just did that," Mirai said, finding his shoes particularly interesting.

"Get over here silly," Lime said before levitating to his level, wrapping her arms aroung his neck and pressing her lips to his in a breathtaking kiss. They stayed like that for a long while, immersing themselves in the taste of the other before they finally separated.

"Are we supposed to do that on our first date?" Mirai whispered as they pulled away.

"Mirai we've kissed several times, made love several times never mind the fact that we've been friends for three years and bonded for life. I think a real kiss on our first date is perfectly acceptable no?" she responded.

"Suppose so," he replied, staring at his shoes, he cheeks still a rosy hue. He was glad that in the darkness she wasn't able to see him that well. "It's silly. I have no idea why I'm so nervous."

Lime patted his cheek. "I am too. But like I said I really had fun tonight so we can count this date a success. We don't have to worry about what we're supposed to do. Let's just do what comes naturally." Lime said.

Mirai finally met her eyes and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right. I guess I just wanted everything to be perfect," he explained.

"And it was. I loved it," Lime reiterated.

Mirai smiled at her before sweeping her into another breathtaking kiss. When they separated he whispered. "Goodnight, my sexy princess."

"Goodnight, my dashing prince," Lime responded before she unlocked the door and entered.

The last thing Mirai heard as the door closed behind her was Chiharu's high pitched squeal as she begged her daughter for details.

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So that was it. Pure Mirai and Lime fluff, I know. More on Gohan and Videl to come in the very near future.

Review please and let me know what you think!