6- Three's A Crowd
"Trunks!" The woman stepped in front of them. She was grinning at him in a way that could only be labeled as flirtatious.
Pan felt herself glaring at the woman. Just who was she?
"Gia?" Trunks looked surprised to see her.
"Yeah!" She laughed with a nod. She eyed Pan for only a few short seconds before she turned back to Trunks. "What are you doing here?"
Trunks shook his arm free of Pan's grasp, and she felt her stomach dropping. Her heart thudded painfully. To Pan's surprise, he reached down and grabbed her hand and entwined their fingers.
"I'm out shopping with Pan," he smiled at Gia as he held out their hands.
"Pan?" Gia looked at her again. "Oh, yes! You're Goten's little sister, right?" She laughed. "Aren't you in middle school?"
Pan's eye twitched. "I've graduated high school," she nearly hissed.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Gia apologized, but there was a sneer behind her smile. "So are you back now, Trunks?"
"Yep," he nodded. He glanced at Pan, "come on."
Trunks pulled her further into the store, but Gia followed after them. Pan frowned at the woman. Couldn't she take the hint?
"You know, Trunks, I was quite disappointed that you didn't keep in contact with me after you left," Gia began. "I thought we had a connection," she smirked as she glanced at Pan.
Pan gritted her teeth together. Had Trunks dated this woman before he left? She could feel him squeezing her hand.
"Gia, we knew each other in high school, and we went on one date. I didn't think it was necessary to keep in contact," he huffed.
"Well, you were always anti-dating and marriage," Gia frowned. "No one's ever going to be able to tie you down," she said as she eyed Pan again.
Pan felt her jaw clenching at the smugness in Gia's face. She tried not to show that the statement bothered her. Did Trunks not like to date? Did she even have a chance with him? She knew they had flirted often since he had returned home, but she wondered if she was looking into it too much.
"I've never been anti-dating or marriage," Trunks informed Gia. "I've just been waiting for the right time. Now, if you excuse us," he said before he dragged Pan further into the store.
Pan glanced back at Gia as they walked away. She had a deep frown across her lips, and Pan fought off her snickers. "So," she began, "an ex?" She asked curiously.
"She wishes," Trunks snorted. "We went on one date right before I left, but it never developed into anything serious. Truthfully, the date sucked," he muttered. "She wasn't my type at all."
Again, Pan was curious to know just what Trunks' type was. Before she could ask, he chuckled and pointed behind her. Pan turned around and saw a shirt with a giant spider on the front of it. She let out a small gasp and took a step back into Trunks' chest.
"It's okay, Panna," his voice was right in her ear, causing her to shiver as her cheeks grew hot. "I'll keep you safe."
Trunks squeezed her hand, and Pan realized she was still holding onto it. "Trunks," she turned around to look at him. "Is it the right time for you now? For you to date?" She asked.
He let out a heavy breath. "Honestly, I'm not sure," he muttered. "But I think it might be."
Pan held her breath as Trunks reached a hand up and brushed some of her hair behind her ear. Her heart was going crazy inside of her chest!
"Hey! You two are still here, good!" Gia ran up with a smile.
Pan glared at her, and she could hear Trunks huff in annoyance. Couldn't that girl take a hint and take a hike?
"Listen, I just got three tickets to a movie that's playing called Hallow Graves-" she held them up. "Let's go see it. Take it as a welcoming back present."
"No thanks," Trunks sighed. "We're-"
"Oh, do you not like horror movies?" Gia asked Pan. "Are you scared of them?" There was a challenge to her voice.
Pan narrowed her eyes and huffed. "I'm not scared of horror movies," she spat. Pan knew that even if they told Gia that they had plans, she would turn it back to her just being scared. Pan refused to let that woman think she intimidated her. She looked up at Trunks, "Let's go."
"Are you sure?" He asked gently.
Pan was sure he was thinking of her nightmares, but she was okay. She could handle horror movies as long as it wasn't too gory and there weren't any creepy shadows.
"Yeah, I heard you talking to Goten about it the other day. Let's go watch it, and you can rub it in that you've seen it."
Trunks' lips twitched, and he squeezed her hand, "okay."
The movie had been playing for forty-five minutes, and Trunks wasn't surprised that it had turned predictable. The acting was too over-dramatic, and the gore was unnecessary. He would have to let Goten know that it wouldn't be worth the watch.
Trunks glanced over at Pan. He had checked on her continuously throughout the movie. He didn't understand why she was trying hard to prove a point to Gia when the woman's opinion didn't matter. Pan had her head tilted down as she played with a hole in her jeans. It was obvious she wasn't watching the movie.
On the other side of Trunks, Gia was sitting. She had tried to grab his arm earlier, so he made it a point of turning away from her.
Trunks leaned down closer to Pan. "Want to get out of here?" He whispered.
She looked up at him, and he could see her eyes widen. "What? I'm okay," she whispered back.
"I know you haven't been watching it, Panna. And it's okay. I think it's boring. I'd rather be doing something else with you."
Pan smiled at him softly. "Okay," she said. "I have to go to the bathroom before we leave."
Trunks smiled back, happy that they would finally be leaving. He stood up and helped Pan stand. She walked in front of him as they started leaving. They were only halfway out of the aisle when a cat-calling whistle came from behind them.
A wave of anger ran down Trunks' back. He turned his head towards the whistle as a low growl escaped his mouth. How dare some pervert do that to Pan! The whistling stopped instantly. Pan tugged on his hand and pulled him out of the aisle and into the theater's lobby.
"Give me a few minutes," Pan said before she headed towards the bathroom.
Trunks let out a sigh and leaned against the wall as he waited for Pan. She had only been gone a few seconds before Gia was marching up in front of him.
"What the hell was that, Trunks?!" She nearly hissed as her brows furrowed.
"What was what?" He asked.
"Back there in the theater-" she motioned her hand towards the theater they had left. "Did you growl?!" She raised an eyebrow. "I know you have had to notice that I've been trying to get your attention. Are you trying to make me jealous?"
"Are you fucking serious?!" Trunks straightened up as his eyes widened in shock. "Why the hell would I want to make you jealous? Can you not take hints?" He knew his voice was growing colder, but he didn't care. "I've been trying to get you to leave us the hell alone, but you refuse to go away."
Gia's eyes widened. "Trunks-" she began as she poked out her lip. "Come on now, don't be that way. She's just a little-"
"Shut the hell up," Trunks snapped. "You want to know something, Gia? The only damn reason I went out with you before I left was to try to stop myself from thinking about her," he admitted. "You say I'm anti-dating and marriage? I'm not," he shook his head. "I'm just waiting for her. To me, it will always be her. So stop trying to butt in," he growled out harshly. "Because I will never date you."
Gia looked stunned, and for the first time, out of words to say. She narrowed her dark eyes at Trunks. "You're such an ass."
"You can call me that if it makes you feel better," he told her unapologetically. "But I've never led you on to think there was anything between us. So who's the real ass?" He raised an eyebrow.
Gia huffed before she turned on her heels and stormed away.
"What was that about?" Pan asked as she walked back up to Trunks. "She looked like she wanted to slap you."
"I just told her I was never going to date her," Trunks shrugged innocently. He reached down and grabbed Pan's hand. "Ready to get out of here?"
"Yes!" She nodded with a sigh of relief. "Want to go get some ice-cream?"
"Sure," he nodded. He'd go anywhere with her.
Pan sat at the island in the kitchen and let out a soft sigh. She had told herself the movie hadn't bothered her because she hadn't watched most of it, but she now knew that was a lie. She had gone to bed and woke up not long after, covered in sweat from a nightmare.
She felt ridiculous for being scared of a movie that wasn't really that scary. Still, it had triggered her nightmares with its play on shadows and gore. She wondered if she should go to a doctor, but she knew she would feel silly and embarrassed for going to a doctor's office because she couldn't handle some nightmares.
The backdoor opened up, and Pan glanced up as Trunks walked in. She tilted her head as a feeling of deja vu rushed over her. Trunks turned around and smiled at her.
"You're still up? Good, I have something to show you."
Pan was surprised as he walked over and grabbed her hand. He led her outside through the backdoor. The moon was nearly full and cast a glow across the backyard of Brief Manor.
"Are we going on a midnight adventure?" Pan teased.
"Not tonight," Trunks grinned at her. "Tonight, there's a meteor shower."
"Really?" Pan gasped as she looked up at the sky. Stars shined brightly above them, but she didn't see any falling.
"Yep, and I know just the place to watch them."
Trunks led her further out into the backyard before he stopped in front of their old trampoline. It had two pillows thrown onto it as well as a blanket. Trunks let go of Pan's hand to jump up on the trampoline before he reached down and helped her up.
"I see you've found a place hidden from Bulma and Bulla's sight," she teased.
Trunks laughed, and Pan felt her chest tightening. "I would like to say I have, but trust me, Panna- nothing is ever hidden from those two."
He sat down, and Pan followed him and let out a giggle as she bounced. "The last trampoline we had, Goten and I broke it," she told Trunks with a grin. "We were fighting, and Mama got so mad at us."
Trunks flicked the tarp under them. "Mom made this one out of some super strength string or something-" he shrugged. "Dad and I used to break ours all the time, too," he smiled.
They laid down together, side by side, their shoulders touching. Pan felt excited and nervous at the same time. Being around Trunks did that to her.
It only took a minute before the first meteor fell across the sky. Pan let out an excited gasp as her eyes widened. Several more passed within minutes, each other ranging from colors of bright yellow, light blue, and even a dazzling green. They were all so beautiful.
"It's amazing, isn't it?" Pan whispered to Trunks. "I've seen stars up close, but seeing them like this is still so beautiful."
"Yeah," Trunks agreed with a gentle voice. "Truthfully, I like looking at the stars a lot better here on earth."
"Do you ever miss the Grand Tour?" Pan asked quietly.
"Sometimes," he said softly. "I miss the adventure of it and exploring new planets. I don't miss the near-death experiences."
Pan let out a laugh, "yeah, that was a little too much." She turned on her side so she could see him better, "but I missed being able to be with you every day," she said quietly. "You left so suddenly after the Grand Tour. Truthfully, I'm afraid you're going to leave again, and I won't see you for years," she whispered.
Trunks leaving had hit Pan hard. She had spent every day with him for a year, and then suddenly he was gone- out of reach and would be for five years. They had kept in contact through letters, but over the years, they had become sparse. Writing to him only made Pan miss him more, but he was back now and sitting so close to her that she could reach out and touch him.
Trunks turned on his side, so they were facing each other. "I missed you too, Panna." He reached up, his hand slowly stroking her hair. "And I'm not going anywhere," he promised.
"What if you get sent off again to help out CC Branches?" Pan asked.
"I'll make them send Bulla," he teased, and her lips twitched into a small smile. His hand ran down her hair and then her back until it rested on her waist. "Or you could come with me," he whispered.
"You would let me?" Pan asked curiously. The thought of traveling with Trunks sent her heart to skip a beat.
"I would most definitely let you," he told her. "I think you being with me would the only way I'd be able to go."
Pan smiled softly and cuddled close to him, so her nose was against his chest. Neither one of them said anything, and Pan felt her eyes growing heavy. She fell asleep for the second night in a row in Trunks' arms, and this time, under the stars.