"Pan! Wake up!" Pan recognized Bra's energetic voice as she sat up, rubbing
the sleep from her eyes. Morning. She thought with relief. At last! Morning
meant soon her parents would be here to pick her up and she could go home.
Far away from Trunks Pan reflected, a stab of sadness hitting her as she
saw him talking with Goten. Her teacher's cheerful voice commanded
everyone's attention as she hung up the phone she had been speaking into.
"Right, Trunks, Bra? That was your mom. She has arranged for a plane to
pick you up from the charter area of the airport. You can leave whenever
you're ready." After nodding to the Briefs siblings, Mrs Johnson turned to
the rest of the group. "As for you local guys, your parents have been
notified of the hotel and should be arriving to pick you up shortly."
Having completed her speech, the young teacher turned back to her notes and
shuffled through the papers. Bra, who had been speaking to Trunks, came
over to Pan. "Trunks says he's ready to go, so I guess this is it." Pan
nodded sadly. She was genuinely disappointed that Bra couldn't stay longer.
Bra brightened suddenly when she noticed Pan glance at Trunks and asked her
friend, "Do you want me to take a photo of you two?" Bra was a little
surprised when Pan shook her head sadly and told her, "That's not really a
good idea." Bra sadly regarded Pan's dejected look, and firmly decided to
beat out of Trunks just what he had done to her. Bra pulled Pan to her feet
to give her a hug. "I'll get Goku to Instant Transmission you guys all over
for a party or something, K? I don't know why we've never done that
before." "Sure." Pan smiled for Bra's benefit. "That would be cool." The
two friends parted and Pan busied herself sorting out her suitcase so she
wouldn't have to look at Trunks. As they left the room, Bra called back to
her demi-saiyan friends. "C-ya Pan, and cheer up! Bye Goten, it was great
to see you again!" Trunks was already out the door, having already said his
goodbyes. Pan waved to her friend and watched her disappear out the door.
Sighing for the millionth time on the short trip, Pan settled back onto the
coach to wait for her parents.
Pan raised her head from the pillow she'd been sobbing into. She felt terrible. It had been three and a half weeks since her parents had picked her up from the hotel. Fortunately for Pan, it had also been the beginning of the school holidays, so she had been free to sleep in every morning, mope all day and stay up late watching movies. It was about 5pm now. She had spent the day reminiscing, like every other day. Now she was hungry. She steeled herself for the questions that came every afternoon she ventured from her room for food. Pan cracked the door and scouted the hall. So far, so good. She thought as she slowly crept down the stairs. Pan was concentrating so hard on not making noise that she forgot to skip the second last step. Before she realized what had happened, the wood was creaking loudly and Pan could hear her mother's voice coming from the kitchen. "Pan, honey, is that you?" Videl called, hoping that it was. Great Pan thought. "Yeah mom. What can I eat?" Videl regarded her daughter thoughtfully as she came into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "There's that chicken curry we had last night. Rice's on the stove; I've just finished making your dad a 'snack'." Pan laughed, knowing full well what her dad's snacks were like. "K. thanks mom." Pan breathed a sigh of relief as her mom left without questioning her. The laugh must have reassured her. Pan thought, making a mental note to laugh around her mom in the future. Pan threw the curry in the microwave to re-heat and filled a bowl with rice while she was waiting. Taking a tray from the cupboard, she loaded it with the rice, curry, a packet of Doritos and the salsa jar. On her way out, she grabbed chopsticks from the draw and a two-liter bottle of coke from the fridge. Nothing beats being a teenage saiyan! Pan reflected happily as she imagined a human body trying to metabolize the food before her, the first thing she'd eat today. Carting it all up the stairs, Pan once again retreated to her room, closing the door behind her. She had just settled down on the floor before her bed to eat when she heard a knock at the door. Oh, no! "Pan? There's a letter here for you." Pan rose to open the door for her mom and take the letter in question. "Thanks mom, who's it from?" Turning it over, she read the name on the back. "Mrs Johnson!" tearing it open with Videl reading over her shoulder, Pan saw the A4 size paper had the picture that was taken of everyone outside the hostel in Fukuoka in the middle. Below the picture, their teacher had scrawled: A get-to-gather for these people on Friday 19th July At 3 Nightcliff Rd About 7:00pm BYO Drinks, Photos etc BBQ Provided
"That's a good photo." Videl commented, studying the shot. Pan nodded. "Mrs Johnson took it when we arrived at the hostel in Fukuoka." Pan pointed to the shot as she explained. "This is the front entrance. Further along here was us girls bedroom. We walked up that road to get there. And up that road we found a cemetery." Pan laughed as she remembered that walk. "The guys wouldn't go in with us. Chickens." Videl simply raised an eyebrow. She had been worried about Pan, but maybe it was unfounded. She seemed happy enough now. "Well, it's three days away. What drinks do you want? I'll buy them tomorrow." "Sprite and Coke'll do, thanks mom." Pan said as she watched her mom descend the stairs. She closed the door again, locking it this time. Settling back down in front of the TV with her back against the bed, Pan started eating, still holding the invitation. Her eyes kept drifting to Trunks, who was standing at the other end of the group, five people away from her. Swallowing determinedly, Pan nodded once and decided. That's it. I'll be seeing him in three days and I'd better be over him by then.
Satisfied with how she looked, Pan turned from the mirror and grabbed her bag from the bed. She had carefully considered her outfit, and now she was certain she would have the effect she wanted. After almost four weeks of melancholy depression, she wanted to see Trunks regret his decision of work over her. Pan had spent the days since she received her invitation outside enjoying the sun, which had thrilled Videl. So now, Pan's skin glowed with a healthy tan. Her raven black hair fell around her shoulders and framed her face perfectly. The top she had chosen was tight fitting and low cut. The light blue suited her perfectly and looked great with her jeans. Checking to see she had all her photos, she bounded down the stairs to find an adult to drive her. "Mom! I'm ready to go! Bye, daddy!" Pan shouted from the front door. "Okay, dear." Videl's voice grew louder as she neared the door. "Goten, are you coming with us or driving yourself?" Pan called back into the house. "There's a party later tonight I'm going to, so you guys can go ahead, I'll drive!" "K. bye!"
The mother and daughter drove in silence until they reached the suburb. "Have you got your mobile?" Videl asked as she swung into the driveway of #3. "Yeah. I'll call you when I wanna come home." Pan caught the slightly concerned look on her mother's face. "Don't worry, it won't be that late." Videl smiled as she relaxed. "I've learnt my lesson about staying out late with these people." Pan added under her breath. "What was that honey?" "Nothing mom! Bye!" Pan said, jumping out of the car and furiously thanking Dende that her mother wasn't a saiyan. Pan waved as her mom backed down the driveway, then entered the gate and found the path to the front door. "Hey, miss! Where should I put the drinks?" Pan asked Mrs Johnson, gesturing at the shopping bag she had brought. "Out the back, through there, there's an esky." Mrs Johnson said, pointing, before going back to her food preparations. "Thanks." Pan said, starting off through the house. It was a fairly open design, with a raised wooden section with a pool table. Near to an outdoor table, a man stepped forward and said. "More drinks, huh? We definitely won't die of thirst!" Pan laughed and agreed as she saw the mountains of soft drink beneath the esky lid. "I'm Peter, by the way." The man said. "Pan." She replied, smiling and returning to the group that was gathering in the kitchen. Geoff was already seated at the table, and as Pan took a seat, Bra appeared at the door. "Bra! How cool, you made it!" Rushing over to embrace her friend, Bra replied, "How could I miss this!" in a somewhat quieter voice Bra asked "Is Goten here?" Pan smiled and almost laughed. "Real subtle Bra. But at least you get to the point." Bra did a small mock bow and Pan laughed again. "He's coming soon." Bra couldn't contain her grin. As Pan resumed her seat at the table, Bra joined her, pulling several packets of photos out and laying them on the table. Pan pounced on them and handed hers to Bra. They were huddled over them, commenting and reliving, when Goten and Trunks walked in. Bra looked up and smiled at Goten. "Hey guys, glad you could finally make it." "Hey B- chan. Good ta see ya!" Goten replied, flashing her the 'Son' grin. Trunks raised his eyebrows. "B-chan now, is it? I'd better keep an eye on you, my friend." Trunks playfully punched Goten on the shoulder. "That you better, Trunks." Goten shot back, while the girls looked on, laughing. "And how you doing Panny?" Trunks looked sincere enough. Pan took a breath and looked him in the eye. "I'm doing fine." Sorry I have to lie. Would it make you feel better if you knew how hard it is? Just then, Geoff came up behind the girls from the back where he'd been talking to Peter. "Hey, photos!" He picked up Bra's and started flicking through. Michael had come in and heard Geoff, and he came round to look through Pan's photos while the girls were looking at his. Trunks joined Michael looking at Pan's photos. Pan tried to ignore him, but it was hard. She could hear every word they said. When Trunks exclaimed, "I remember this photo!" Pan's heart skipped a beat. She somehow knew which picture Trunks was holding. Turning and half-standing Pan asked, "What photo?" Trunks showed her the shot of them in Kyoto, the one where he'd held her over the rail. "Oh, that one." She said with a nod. She had been right. "Did it scare your mom?" Trunks asked, remembering what Pan had said that day. "You bet! "Who's that boy!" I believe is a direct quote." At this, Michael piped up. "Yeah, and you said, "Mom. I've got something to tell you. I'm getting married." " Everyone laughed, including Trunks and Pan. Pan feared everyone would hear her heart, it was pounding so hard. Little did she know, Trunks had the same concern. After everyone had seen the photos, they moved towards the lounge room and the pool table. Mrs Johnson suggested battle between Michael and Sean, and Pan and Bra. Bra was fairly eager for a chance to beat the boy's team at pool, but Pan held back. "I can't play. Seriously, I give a whole new meaning to the word 'suck'" "Hey, don't worry. So do I!" Sean grinned his support from the other side of the table. "Okay, I'll play." Pan caved, thinking it might at least be a laugh. Michael broke and sunk a big, so Bra lined up a shot for a little.20 long, embarrassing but fun minutes later, and the girls were ahead by one. Trunks had been talking out in the back garden with Shannon and Goten, but now he wandered through the lounge room. He came up beside Pan. "Whose turn is it?" He asked, directing his question at the whole group. "Mine." Pan said, stepping closer to him and holding out the cue she held. "Wanna shot?" "Sure." He grinned at her. "But I'm not very good." Quickly, he sized up the situation and expertly sunk a ball. Smiling slightly, he lined up his next shot. As he sunk the next ball, Michael called out, "Anyone worked out he's lying yet?" The group that had gathered around the table all laughed as he hand the cue back to Pan. She took it only tentivly, and he gently took her other hand and closed it around the cue. "You can do it." He whispered, before continuing through to the kitchen. Pan stared after him, breathless and confused. The game progressed to the girls favor, largely due to Trunks' contribution. Pan stepped back from the table after her turn and handed the cue to Bra, who would need it next. Trunks came up to Pan and put his hands on her hips. He was so close, Pan felt dizzy and unable to speak. Trunks kept his hands on her as he said, "How's the game going?" "Okay." She replied. Recovering herself she added "Thanks to you. You're amazing." Trunks grinned. His hands were still on her waist, and Pan knew she should say something like You know, you really shouldn't be doing that, but she just couldn't say it. After a moment more, Trunks moved her around so they had swapped sides and he flashed her a grin before going back outside. You just can't keep your hands off me, can you Trunks? Pan thought with a grin, before turning back to the pool table. She noted with relief that Bra was lining up a shot with her back to her, so it was unlikely she had witnessed what had just happened. Several minutes later, Trunks was back, this time with Goten. Pan was just stepping up to the table when she spotted him. "Hey, you want another go?" "Nah, you take the shot." He said with sincerity. "But you did so well! Come on, help?" she coaxed, while handing him the cue. "Okay, woman; you've convinced me!" Pan almost melted again, but hid it well as she stepped back to watch. Trunks, as expected, sunk another ball, and coincidentally, their last. Now Michael and Sean had two balls left and Bra and Pan were aiming for the 8 ball. Pan and Bra both attempted to sink it, but in the course of their tries, Michael and Sean managed to get their remaining balls. When it was Pan's turn again, she appealed to Trunks. "I know you can get this. Win it for us?" Pan tilted her head to the side and held out the cue. Trunks shook his head. "Nu uh. Pan, you can do this. Take the shot." Then it was Pan's turn to shake her head. "I can't. Goten?" Pan appealed to her uncle. He nodded. "Sure!" Goten was glad of the chance to show off to Bra. After lining up the shot like a pro, Goten sunk the ball and backed up, hands raised, ready to receive adoring praise. "Yesss!" Bra shouted, high fiving Pan. "We rock!" "Yeah, we're pretty good.at getting people to win for us!" Bra laughed and as a new game was set up, Pan turned to Bra. "Wanna wander?" Bra nodded. "Sure." They exited out the back, which they hadn't explored yet, and found a raised fishpond at the side of the house. Sitting down on the edge, they started talking, catching up on everything they had missed. After talking for close to an hour, they decided to head in and see if dinner was up yet; they were starving. As they entered the kitchen, they discovered they were just in time. Mrs Johnson was adding the last of the food to the table. Gesturing to a stack of plates at the end of the table, she said, "Right, everyone: help yourselves!" Pan loaded up her plate with steak, roast potatoes and salad. Bra joined her at the doorframe and they both headed out to the table in the back yard. Shannon and Sean were already there, and soon Trunks, Goten and Michael had joined them. They started talking about Cars, and MP-3 players. Pan tuned out and whispered to Bra, "And they say technology is my friend. Do you understand any of this?" Bra shook her head as Trunks cleared his throat. "Can I re-phrase that for you? Technology is our friend!" he said, gesturing at the rest of the guys. Damn. Forgot about the saiyan hearing. Pan sighed, and turned her attention back to Bra as they resumed one of their earlier conversations. At around 9:45pm, Michael, Goten, Trunks and Melissa said they were going to a party the next suburb over. Pan and Bra settled into the hammock out the front as the four started heading out. The group was standing right next to the hammock pan was in, and Bra had got out to rock it gently. Trunks was right next to Pan, and when he noticed, he quickly spun and grabbed both sides of the hammock, crossing them over. Pan grabbed his hands and tried to prize them off before she'd even thought about what she was doing. He released his grip, and Pan asked him, "Why do you keep doing that?" he shrugged. "It's fun." He said in a non-comittive way. "I'll see you at school, okay?" he said, his hands cupping her face, tilting it towards him. Pan remembered Bra telling her earlier that they were both transferring to Blue Star High. "Maybe." Pan said lazily, not wanting to show her happiness at this confirmation. "Bye!" he called back with a half wave at the girls. Pan watched until the darkness obscured him from view. Then a thought struck her. "Umm, hey Bra. How did you get here, and how are you getting home?" Bra pointed to her bag. "Mobile. Taxi. Airport. Jet." Pan nodded. "You?" Pan raised an eyebrow. "Mobile. Mother." "Oh." "Hey!" Bra looked up; Pan sounded like she'd had an idea. "Now that everyone's leaving or gone." "Yes?" Pan had a gleam in her eyes, and Bra was very curious as to what it meant. "How bout a game of pool?" Bra grinned, "You read my mind!" They both raced to the pool table and began setting it up for a game. The game itself proceeded pretty much how Pan knew it would. Slow - considering neither of them knew how to play. Pan had one ball left on the table when Bra sank the 8 ball. "What?! That's not fair!" Pan moaned, sinking to her knees. "She beat me." Bra just grinned. "Oh, well." Pan said, immediately brightening. Bra looked at her watch, and gasped. Oh, it's getting late. I'd better start heading home. Pan checked the time: 11pm. "I should probably ring my mom too." The girls found their mobiles and dialed their respective numbers. After they had arranged for their lifts, they said their thank-yous and good-byes before heading out to the driveway to wait. Their rides had arrived quickly, and before they knew it they were saying goodbye again, but in a few days school was starting up, and Bra would be there. So will Trunks.Pan impatiently pushed the thought aside. Climbing into her mom's car, Pan told her the necessary details that she would want to hear to forestall any unwanted questions; Pan knew her mother well.
Once home Pan, to tired for a shower, simply changed and fell asleep, knowing that everything she had achieved in the past few days, the peace she had obtained, was gone.
sniff Poor m-I mean Pan! Poor Pan.
Pan raised her head from the pillow she'd been sobbing into. She felt terrible. It had been three and a half weeks since her parents had picked her up from the hotel. Fortunately for Pan, it had also been the beginning of the school holidays, so she had been free to sleep in every morning, mope all day and stay up late watching movies. It was about 5pm now. She had spent the day reminiscing, like every other day. Now she was hungry. She steeled herself for the questions that came every afternoon she ventured from her room for food. Pan cracked the door and scouted the hall. So far, so good. She thought as she slowly crept down the stairs. Pan was concentrating so hard on not making noise that she forgot to skip the second last step. Before she realized what had happened, the wood was creaking loudly and Pan could hear her mother's voice coming from the kitchen. "Pan, honey, is that you?" Videl called, hoping that it was. Great Pan thought. "Yeah mom. What can I eat?" Videl regarded her daughter thoughtfully as she came into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "There's that chicken curry we had last night. Rice's on the stove; I've just finished making your dad a 'snack'." Pan laughed, knowing full well what her dad's snacks were like. "K. thanks mom." Pan breathed a sigh of relief as her mom left without questioning her. The laugh must have reassured her. Pan thought, making a mental note to laugh around her mom in the future. Pan threw the curry in the microwave to re-heat and filled a bowl with rice while she was waiting. Taking a tray from the cupboard, she loaded it with the rice, curry, a packet of Doritos and the salsa jar. On her way out, she grabbed chopsticks from the draw and a two-liter bottle of coke from the fridge. Nothing beats being a teenage saiyan! Pan reflected happily as she imagined a human body trying to metabolize the food before her, the first thing she'd eat today. Carting it all up the stairs, Pan once again retreated to her room, closing the door behind her. She had just settled down on the floor before her bed to eat when she heard a knock at the door. Oh, no! "Pan? There's a letter here for you." Pan rose to open the door for her mom and take the letter in question. "Thanks mom, who's it from?" Turning it over, she read the name on the back. "Mrs Johnson!" tearing it open with Videl reading over her shoulder, Pan saw the A4 size paper had the picture that was taken of everyone outside the hostel in Fukuoka in the middle. Below the picture, their teacher had scrawled: A get-to-gather for these people on Friday 19th July At 3 Nightcliff Rd About 7:00pm BYO Drinks, Photos etc BBQ Provided
"That's a good photo." Videl commented, studying the shot. Pan nodded. "Mrs Johnson took it when we arrived at the hostel in Fukuoka." Pan pointed to the shot as she explained. "This is the front entrance. Further along here was us girls bedroom. We walked up that road to get there. And up that road we found a cemetery." Pan laughed as she remembered that walk. "The guys wouldn't go in with us. Chickens." Videl simply raised an eyebrow. She had been worried about Pan, but maybe it was unfounded. She seemed happy enough now. "Well, it's three days away. What drinks do you want? I'll buy them tomorrow." "Sprite and Coke'll do, thanks mom." Pan said as she watched her mom descend the stairs. She closed the door again, locking it this time. Settling back down in front of the TV with her back against the bed, Pan started eating, still holding the invitation. Her eyes kept drifting to Trunks, who was standing at the other end of the group, five people away from her. Swallowing determinedly, Pan nodded once and decided. That's it. I'll be seeing him in three days and I'd better be over him by then.
Satisfied with how she looked, Pan turned from the mirror and grabbed her bag from the bed. She had carefully considered her outfit, and now she was certain she would have the effect she wanted. After almost four weeks of melancholy depression, she wanted to see Trunks regret his decision of work over her. Pan had spent the days since she received her invitation outside enjoying the sun, which had thrilled Videl. So now, Pan's skin glowed with a healthy tan. Her raven black hair fell around her shoulders and framed her face perfectly. The top she had chosen was tight fitting and low cut. The light blue suited her perfectly and looked great with her jeans. Checking to see she had all her photos, she bounded down the stairs to find an adult to drive her. "Mom! I'm ready to go! Bye, daddy!" Pan shouted from the front door. "Okay, dear." Videl's voice grew louder as she neared the door. "Goten, are you coming with us or driving yourself?" Pan called back into the house. "There's a party later tonight I'm going to, so you guys can go ahead, I'll drive!" "K. bye!"
The mother and daughter drove in silence until they reached the suburb. "Have you got your mobile?" Videl asked as she swung into the driveway of #3. "Yeah. I'll call you when I wanna come home." Pan caught the slightly concerned look on her mother's face. "Don't worry, it won't be that late." Videl smiled as she relaxed. "I've learnt my lesson about staying out late with these people." Pan added under her breath. "What was that honey?" "Nothing mom! Bye!" Pan said, jumping out of the car and furiously thanking Dende that her mother wasn't a saiyan. Pan waved as her mom backed down the driveway, then entered the gate and found the path to the front door. "Hey, miss! Where should I put the drinks?" Pan asked Mrs Johnson, gesturing at the shopping bag she had brought. "Out the back, through there, there's an esky." Mrs Johnson said, pointing, before going back to her food preparations. "Thanks." Pan said, starting off through the house. It was a fairly open design, with a raised wooden section with a pool table. Near to an outdoor table, a man stepped forward and said. "More drinks, huh? We definitely won't die of thirst!" Pan laughed and agreed as she saw the mountains of soft drink beneath the esky lid. "I'm Peter, by the way." The man said. "Pan." She replied, smiling and returning to the group that was gathering in the kitchen. Geoff was already seated at the table, and as Pan took a seat, Bra appeared at the door. "Bra! How cool, you made it!" Rushing over to embrace her friend, Bra replied, "How could I miss this!" in a somewhat quieter voice Bra asked "Is Goten here?" Pan smiled and almost laughed. "Real subtle Bra. But at least you get to the point." Bra did a small mock bow and Pan laughed again. "He's coming soon." Bra couldn't contain her grin. As Pan resumed her seat at the table, Bra joined her, pulling several packets of photos out and laying them on the table. Pan pounced on them and handed hers to Bra. They were huddled over them, commenting and reliving, when Goten and Trunks walked in. Bra looked up and smiled at Goten. "Hey guys, glad you could finally make it." "Hey B- chan. Good ta see ya!" Goten replied, flashing her the 'Son' grin. Trunks raised his eyebrows. "B-chan now, is it? I'd better keep an eye on you, my friend." Trunks playfully punched Goten on the shoulder. "That you better, Trunks." Goten shot back, while the girls looked on, laughing. "And how you doing Panny?" Trunks looked sincere enough. Pan took a breath and looked him in the eye. "I'm doing fine." Sorry I have to lie. Would it make you feel better if you knew how hard it is? Just then, Geoff came up behind the girls from the back where he'd been talking to Peter. "Hey, photos!" He picked up Bra's and started flicking through. Michael had come in and heard Geoff, and he came round to look through Pan's photos while the girls were looking at his. Trunks joined Michael looking at Pan's photos. Pan tried to ignore him, but it was hard. She could hear every word they said. When Trunks exclaimed, "I remember this photo!" Pan's heart skipped a beat. She somehow knew which picture Trunks was holding. Turning and half-standing Pan asked, "What photo?" Trunks showed her the shot of them in Kyoto, the one where he'd held her over the rail. "Oh, that one." She said with a nod. She had been right. "Did it scare your mom?" Trunks asked, remembering what Pan had said that day. "You bet! "Who's that boy!" I believe is a direct quote." At this, Michael piped up. "Yeah, and you said, "Mom. I've got something to tell you. I'm getting married." " Everyone laughed, including Trunks and Pan. Pan feared everyone would hear her heart, it was pounding so hard. Little did she know, Trunks had the same concern. After everyone had seen the photos, they moved towards the lounge room and the pool table. Mrs Johnson suggested battle between Michael and Sean, and Pan and Bra. Bra was fairly eager for a chance to beat the boy's team at pool, but Pan held back. "I can't play. Seriously, I give a whole new meaning to the word 'suck'" "Hey, don't worry. So do I!" Sean grinned his support from the other side of the table. "Okay, I'll play." Pan caved, thinking it might at least be a laugh. Michael broke and sunk a big, so Bra lined up a shot for a little.20 long, embarrassing but fun minutes later, and the girls were ahead by one. Trunks had been talking out in the back garden with Shannon and Goten, but now he wandered through the lounge room. He came up beside Pan. "Whose turn is it?" He asked, directing his question at the whole group. "Mine." Pan said, stepping closer to him and holding out the cue she held. "Wanna shot?" "Sure." He grinned at her. "But I'm not very good." Quickly, he sized up the situation and expertly sunk a ball. Smiling slightly, he lined up his next shot. As he sunk the next ball, Michael called out, "Anyone worked out he's lying yet?" The group that had gathered around the table all laughed as he hand the cue back to Pan. She took it only tentivly, and he gently took her other hand and closed it around the cue. "You can do it." He whispered, before continuing through to the kitchen. Pan stared after him, breathless and confused. The game progressed to the girls favor, largely due to Trunks' contribution. Pan stepped back from the table after her turn and handed the cue to Bra, who would need it next. Trunks came up to Pan and put his hands on her hips. He was so close, Pan felt dizzy and unable to speak. Trunks kept his hands on her as he said, "How's the game going?" "Okay." She replied. Recovering herself she added "Thanks to you. You're amazing." Trunks grinned. His hands were still on her waist, and Pan knew she should say something like You know, you really shouldn't be doing that, but she just couldn't say it. After a moment more, Trunks moved her around so they had swapped sides and he flashed her a grin before going back outside. You just can't keep your hands off me, can you Trunks? Pan thought with a grin, before turning back to the pool table. She noted with relief that Bra was lining up a shot with her back to her, so it was unlikely she had witnessed what had just happened. Several minutes later, Trunks was back, this time with Goten. Pan was just stepping up to the table when she spotted him. "Hey, you want another go?" "Nah, you take the shot." He said with sincerity. "But you did so well! Come on, help?" she coaxed, while handing him the cue. "Okay, woman; you've convinced me!" Pan almost melted again, but hid it well as she stepped back to watch. Trunks, as expected, sunk another ball, and coincidentally, their last. Now Michael and Sean had two balls left and Bra and Pan were aiming for the 8 ball. Pan and Bra both attempted to sink it, but in the course of their tries, Michael and Sean managed to get their remaining balls. When it was Pan's turn again, she appealed to Trunks. "I know you can get this. Win it for us?" Pan tilted her head to the side and held out the cue. Trunks shook his head. "Nu uh. Pan, you can do this. Take the shot." Then it was Pan's turn to shake her head. "I can't. Goten?" Pan appealed to her uncle. He nodded. "Sure!" Goten was glad of the chance to show off to Bra. After lining up the shot like a pro, Goten sunk the ball and backed up, hands raised, ready to receive adoring praise. "Yesss!" Bra shouted, high fiving Pan. "We rock!" "Yeah, we're pretty good.at getting people to win for us!" Bra laughed and as a new game was set up, Pan turned to Bra. "Wanna wander?" Bra nodded. "Sure." They exited out the back, which they hadn't explored yet, and found a raised fishpond at the side of the house. Sitting down on the edge, they started talking, catching up on everything they had missed. After talking for close to an hour, they decided to head in and see if dinner was up yet; they were starving. As they entered the kitchen, they discovered they were just in time. Mrs Johnson was adding the last of the food to the table. Gesturing to a stack of plates at the end of the table, she said, "Right, everyone: help yourselves!" Pan loaded up her plate with steak, roast potatoes and salad. Bra joined her at the doorframe and they both headed out to the table in the back yard. Shannon and Sean were already there, and soon Trunks, Goten and Michael had joined them. They started talking about Cars, and MP-3 players. Pan tuned out and whispered to Bra, "And they say technology is my friend. Do you understand any of this?" Bra shook her head as Trunks cleared his throat. "Can I re-phrase that for you? Technology is our friend!" he said, gesturing at the rest of the guys. Damn. Forgot about the saiyan hearing. Pan sighed, and turned her attention back to Bra as they resumed one of their earlier conversations. At around 9:45pm, Michael, Goten, Trunks and Melissa said they were going to a party the next suburb over. Pan and Bra settled into the hammock out the front as the four started heading out. The group was standing right next to the hammock pan was in, and Bra had got out to rock it gently. Trunks was right next to Pan, and when he noticed, he quickly spun and grabbed both sides of the hammock, crossing them over. Pan grabbed his hands and tried to prize them off before she'd even thought about what she was doing. He released his grip, and Pan asked him, "Why do you keep doing that?" he shrugged. "It's fun." He said in a non-comittive way. "I'll see you at school, okay?" he said, his hands cupping her face, tilting it towards him. Pan remembered Bra telling her earlier that they were both transferring to Blue Star High. "Maybe." Pan said lazily, not wanting to show her happiness at this confirmation. "Bye!" he called back with a half wave at the girls. Pan watched until the darkness obscured him from view. Then a thought struck her. "Umm, hey Bra. How did you get here, and how are you getting home?" Bra pointed to her bag. "Mobile. Taxi. Airport. Jet." Pan nodded. "You?" Pan raised an eyebrow. "Mobile. Mother." "Oh." "Hey!" Bra looked up; Pan sounded like she'd had an idea. "Now that everyone's leaving or gone." "Yes?" Pan had a gleam in her eyes, and Bra was very curious as to what it meant. "How bout a game of pool?" Bra grinned, "You read my mind!" They both raced to the pool table and began setting it up for a game. The game itself proceeded pretty much how Pan knew it would. Slow - considering neither of them knew how to play. Pan had one ball left on the table when Bra sank the 8 ball. "What?! That's not fair!" Pan moaned, sinking to her knees. "She beat me." Bra just grinned. "Oh, well." Pan said, immediately brightening. Bra looked at her watch, and gasped. Oh, it's getting late. I'd better start heading home. Pan checked the time: 11pm. "I should probably ring my mom too." The girls found their mobiles and dialed their respective numbers. After they had arranged for their lifts, they said their thank-yous and good-byes before heading out to the driveway to wait. Their rides had arrived quickly, and before they knew it they were saying goodbye again, but in a few days school was starting up, and Bra would be there. So will Trunks.Pan impatiently pushed the thought aside. Climbing into her mom's car, Pan told her the necessary details that she would want to hear to forestall any unwanted questions; Pan knew her mother well.
Once home Pan, to tired for a shower, simply changed and fell asleep, knowing that everything she had achieved in the past few days, the peace she had obtained, was gone.
sniff Poor m-I mean Pan! Poor Pan.