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PART 2 - THEIR SECOND FIGHT
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The Next Day
"Jeez Andy, what happened to you, you look like you got run over by a truck or something. Are you ok?" The short man stepped into her apartment and looked up at his girlfriend, frowning at all the cuts and bruises he saw on her face. She wore a white bathrobe and her dark pinkish hair was tangled with a few missed leaves from the night before.
"Yeah, I bet I look pretty awful," she touched some dried blood on her forehead and pulled a twig from her long hair. "I got in really late last night and I just flopped into bed. I barely had the strength to close the door behind me," She pointed to her apartment archway. "I've never been so tired before and I literally staggered to the bedroom. I fell asleep with my clothes and shoes on.
"Where did you go? An Andrea hate club meeting? Looks like some of the members started a fight and you got roughed up."
"Gee, thanks a lot Krillian," she rolled her eyes. "I just woke up, give me a few minutes?"
"Yeah ok," he still frowned.
She couldn't help smiling at him. "I'm fine, I'll tell you about it when I finish my shower. Once I rinse off the dirt, and get all the junk out from my hair, you'll see, the cuts aren't really that bad," she shrugged her shoulders. "Trust me, its not actually any big deal."
"When I see my girlfriend with dried blood on her face and bruises covering her arms I have a right to be worried." Krillian eyed her critically.
Andrea smiled again and rested her hand on his shoulder. She gave it an affectionate squeeze and turned to the bathroom. "There's some coffee in the kitchen and bagels on top of the fridge. Help yourself until I come out," she called behind to him. Krillian heard the shower being turned on and closed the apartment door behind him. He took off his jacket and hung it up on the coat rack by the wall.
Andrea stepped in and cringed as the hot water struck against her wounds. She stood still for a moment, gritting her teeth and waiting to get used to the hard spray. After a minute, she gently began to scrub off the caking of blood that coated several parts of her body. She tried to avoid her numerous bruises from the sponge, but every time her hand ran over a dark blue patch of skin she had to stifle a yelp of pain.
Andrea closed her eyes and raised her face up to the showerhead. I'll go back to the clearing and practice again tonight, she thought. As soon as I know I can do it, then this will all be worth it.
As a reminder of what she had previously endured from her failed attempt, her knee cracked against the shower stall and she couldn't suppress the small cry that escaped her lips. When it had stopped throbbing she rinsed off and washed her hair. A few stray twigs that had been overlooked proved very hard to untangle. She dropped the wooden bits and let them congregate around the shower drain. Turning off the water she picked them up and threw the small sticks in the trash.
Stepping from the shower, she looked in the bathroom mirror and frowned. Wow, I really do look terrible. She raised her arms and examined the cuts, finding them on her legs and back as well. She traced an exceptionally long gash along the length of her calf and sighed. Andrea wrapped herself in a towel and donned up her long hair in another, turban style.
When she got out, Krillian was sitting on a barstool in the kitchen with a coffee mug between his hands.
"Just a sec," she called. Andrea stepped from the bathroom and went into her bedroom to hurriedly get dressed. She closed the door and Krillian waited outside holding two cups of coffee. She rifted through her clothes, trying to find a shirt that had long sleeves and went past her stomach. She had to cover up all the bruises. Finally Andrea found a blue sweater and pulled it on. She walked over to her mirror and towel dried her waist length pink hair, brushing out the tangles. Then she made two braids and pinned them up in buns above her head. Andrea pulled on her favorite pair of jeans and surveyed herself. You don't look half bad anymore, she thought, eyeing the cuts on her face critically. Nothing you can do about them, she shrugged.
She opened the door and accepted the proffered drink from Krillian. He didn't say anything and waited patiently for her to tell him what happened.
They sat down together on the living room couch and Andrea told him about how Piccolo had been trying to teach her how to fly and then how she had tried learning herself. She left off the part where he had dropped her and sliced out the piece about falling through trees and coughing up blood the last time she tried to levitate.
"And I just have a few black and blues from falling a lot, that's all." She finished, touching her cheek gingerly. A large bruise proved where she had crashed into the hard oak.
"And that's why you missed our date. I was waiting for you at the restaurant for hours and after going through more or'dervs than I care to remember I paid for the check and left." Krillian said, sounding hurt. "You should have seen how the people around me looked over with pity. Please don't ever stand me up like that again."
"Oh Krillian," Andrea took his head in her hands and kissed him. "I'm so sorry, I thought you would just leave after a little while. I feel terrible, how can I make it up to you?" And then, answering her own question, "I know, how about we do something fun together. It can be your choice." She said smiling at him hopefully. "I'm really sorry," Andrea added contritely.
"Well..." he looked over at her and she gave him her best puppy eyes. "Yeah it's ok," he said waving his hand.
"Thank you," she pushed up against him and gave him another long kiss. "I really appreciate you being so understanding," she breathed into his face and giggled.
Krillian blushed from the kiss and put his arm over his head, Goku style.
Then he frowned. "I'd love to spend the day with you but I'm sparring with Gohan this morning,"
"That's fine," She said quickly, "I can just come with you and watch until you guys are done." Andrea smiled. Standing up, Krillian handed her his coffee mug and she put them in the kitchen sink.
They walked out of the apartment, holding hands, and she locked the door behind her.
-------
"Come on, is that the best you can do?" Piccolo blocked another punch and dealt several of his own. Gohan fended off the fists and leapt into the air, landing behind his mentor. Piccolo turned, but too late. Gohan tripped him and lunged on top of the Namek. Piccolo dodged and caught several intended blows and then threw the kid off. Gohan was pushed across the ground, but quickly recovered from the shove. They squared off, facing each other.
"Time for some ki attacks," Piccolo gave his custom half smile and powered up.
"Just watch this Piccolo," said the youngster, and Gohan followed his example.
They were interrupted from their training by a loud, over revved sports car suddenly stopping on the road nearby. The pair of fighters had gone somewhere remote to practice, but Krillian had managed to find a back road to get to them.
A couple got out of the car and Gohan waved excitedly, his spar with Piccolo momentarily forgotten.
"Hi Krillian! Hi Andy!" Gohan called. He turned to his green companion, "Hey Mr. Piccolo, have you met Krillian's girlfriend? She's really friendly and makes Krillian laugh a lot. Sometimes she even gets me out of homework, just to be nice. All she has to do is help mom clean." The boy said in an excited rush. "Plus, she really likes talking with me." Then the little fighter bent his head and whispered to his confidant. "When she comes to visit my house, Andy always brings me chocolate and she says it's our little secret. Wanna meet her?" Gohan asked, already starting up the hill.
Piccolo shook his head, "I know Andrea; we've run into each other before. I'll pass," he turned to leave.
"Aawwhh, Mr. Piccolo! I thought we could finish our fight! Please! Just hold on for a sec." The young half Saiya-jin raced to Krillian's car and started talking with the woman in animated hand gestures.
Piccolo shook his head. He was going to leave anyway when she spotted him. Andrea had hugged Gohan and told him how much she had missed him. He gave her a goofy grin and was telling her about something that happened to him last week. Andrea had started laughing and happened to glance down into the glen where the two combatants had been fighting. Her eyes fell on Piccolo and her laughter died abruptly.
The smile on her face disappeared and she glared down angrily at the Namek. Her brain raced with the insults he had thrown at her yesterday, and she felt her cheeks redden.
How dare he show his face after just deserting me! I'm going to go give that jerk a piece of my mind.
She stepped away from Gohan and pointed an accusing finger at Piccolo. She growled low in her throat and ran down the bluff, stopping a few feet in front him. Andrea tried to check herself but Piccolo stared coolly down at her and she couldn't take it.
"How could you do that? Just leaving me there! What if I hadn't known how to get home, I would have been lost in the woods when it got dark! And who knows what could have happened to me then! Rabid animals might have attacked me or I could've fallen in an underground pit. Or someone could have come out of the shadows and robbed me!" Her fists shook at her side.
"There are muggers in the middle of a forest?" He asked and raised his forehead where an eyebrow was supposed to be. "Yet again, I overestimated you. Thought you could handle a little walk at night. I forgot that you are only a woman, and an exceptional weakling, even by female standards. Andrea, you become afraid and fearful of the smallest shadow and cower behind your fragility," he turned to her contemptibly.
"You undoubtedly ran home crying, being overly dramatic and bawling that I had been so mean and rough with you. That just proves how feeble you really are," he crossed his arms. "When Gohan was four, I left him all by himself in the wilderness. Do you know what he did? He stopped crying and made the best of his situation. You, almost a grown woman, probably ran to your boyfriend," he pointed to Krillian, "and sobbed out how cruel and unfair I was. You complain that I insult you because of your inadequate sex and yet you have nothing to prove to me that you are anything but what I say you are. If you were a real man you'd take it in stride, but alas, your painfully obvious femininity shows that you are nothing worth any of my time," he gave her disappointed frown and looked over at Krillian and Gohan.
They stared at him in open-mouthed amazement and were just about to say something in Andrea's defense when she spoke up.
"I don't care what you say Piccolo," she said quietly, anger filling her voice. "Just because you are a close minded sexist doesn't mean I have to put up with your abuse. You're wrong, I'm a lot stronger than you think I am. I don't cry at the things you say, your insults are trivial and are merely banter that you use because you don't really know how to talk with women." Andrea arched her eyebrow condescendingly.
"You don't have a single decent bone in your body because it's obviously beneath you to treat someone as your equal. And I don't hide behind my supposed 'fragility.' You are completely off base. If you saw me without your prejudices you'd realize how flawed you're thinking really is. Piccolo, you're figuring me by my appearance, but you know what? My stamina and determination are my fighting strength and you can't see that. I am a formidable enemy; my gender doesn't weaken anything about me. You don't discern or understand who I am, if you did you'd see how misguided your views really are. Just because I don't know how to punch or kick you think less of me as a person. Well Piccolo, I don't want your respect, because if I have to look down on myself, and lose my integrity to meet your standards than it isn't important to me. You are a mean and judging man who bases everything on assumptions and I want nothing to do with you. You aren't worth my company and I'm leaving. I just wanted to come down here and get all that off my chest first," she finished and turned on her heel.
"I'm sorry Krillian, I'm not in any mood to have fun with you guys anymore, maybe some other time," she waved to them and started walking away.
The three men stared after her and then Krillian glared angrily at Piccolo. He ran after her and Gohan followed, looking worriedly over at his mentor before leaving.
Piccolo was the one who had been ready to storm off and he blinked in surprise that she had beaten him to it. Then, masking his face, he mounted into the air. Veering away, he sped from the practice field.
---------------------
PART 2 - THEIR SECOND FIGHT
---------------------
The Next Day
"Jeez Andy, what happened to you, you look like you got run over by a truck or something. Are you ok?" The short man stepped into her apartment and looked up at his girlfriend, frowning at all the cuts and bruises he saw on her face. She wore a white bathrobe and her dark pinkish hair was tangled with a few missed leaves from the night before.
"Yeah, I bet I look pretty awful," she touched some dried blood on her forehead and pulled a twig from her long hair. "I got in really late last night and I just flopped into bed. I barely had the strength to close the door behind me," She pointed to her apartment archway. "I've never been so tired before and I literally staggered to the bedroom. I fell asleep with my clothes and shoes on.
"Where did you go? An Andrea hate club meeting? Looks like some of the members started a fight and you got roughed up."
"Gee, thanks a lot Krillian," she rolled her eyes. "I just woke up, give me a few minutes?"
"Yeah ok," he still frowned.
She couldn't help smiling at him. "I'm fine, I'll tell you about it when I finish my shower. Once I rinse off the dirt, and get all the junk out from my hair, you'll see, the cuts aren't really that bad," she shrugged her shoulders. "Trust me, its not actually any big deal."
"When I see my girlfriend with dried blood on her face and bruises covering her arms I have a right to be worried." Krillian eyed her critically.
Andrea smiled again and rested her hand on his shoulder. She gave it an affectionate squeeze and turned to the bathroom. "There's some coffee in the kitchen and bagels on top of the fridge. Help yourself until I come out," she called behind to him. Krillian heard the shower being turned on and closed the apartment door behind him. He took off his jacket and hung it up on the coat rack by the wall.
Andrea stepped in and cringed as the hot water struck against her wounds. She stood still for a moment, gritting her teeth and waiting to get used to the hard spray. After a minute, she gently began to scrub off the caking of blood that coated several parts of her body. She tried to avoid her numerous bruises from the sponge, but every time her hand ran over a dark blue patch of skin she had to stifle a yelp of pain.
Andrea closed her eyes and raised her face up to the showerhead. I'll go back to the clearing and practice again tonight, she thought. As soon as I know I can do it, then this will all be worth it.
As a reminder of what she had previously endured from her failed attempt, her knee cracked against the shower stall and she couldn't suppress the small cry that escaped her lips. When it had stopped throbbing she rinsed off and washed her hair. A few stray twigs that had been overlooked proved very hard to untangle. She dropped the wooden bits and let them congregate around the shower drain. Turning off the water she picked them up and threw the small sticks in the trash.
Stepping from the shower, she looked in the bathroom mirror and frowned. Wow, I really do look terrible. She raised her arms and examined the cuts, finding them on her legs and back as well. She traced an exceptionally long gash along the length of her calf and sighed. Andrea wrapped herself in a towel and donned up her long hair in another, turban style.
When she got out, Krillian was sitting on a barstool in the kitchen with a coffee mug between his hands.
"Just a sec," she called. Andrea stepped from the bathroom and went into her bedroom to hurriedly get dressed. She closed the door and Krillian waited outside holding two cups of coffee. She rifted through her clothes, trying to find a shirt that had long sleeves and went past her stomach. She had to cover up all the bruises. Finally Andrea found a blue sweater and pulled it on. She walked over to her mirror and towel dried her waist length pink hair, brushing out the tangles. Then she made two braids and pinned them up in buns above her head. Andrea pulled on her favorite pair of jeans and surveyed herself. You don't look half bad anymore, she thought, eyeing the cuts on her face critically. Nothing you can do about them, she shrugged.
She opened the door and accepted the proffered drink from Krillian. He didn't say anything and waited patiently for her to tell him what happened.
They sat down together on the living room couch and Andrea told him about how Piccolo had been trying to teach her how to fly and then how she had tried learning herself. She left off the part where he had dropped her and sliced out the piece about falling through trees and coughing up blood the last time she tried to levitate.
"And I just have a few black and blues from falling a lot, that's all." She finished, touching her cheek gingerly. A large bruise proved where she had crashed into the hard oak.
"And that's why you missed our date. I was waiting for you at the restaurant for hours and after going through more or'dervs than I care to remember I paid for the check and left." Krillian said, sounding hurt. "You should have seen how the people around me looked over with pity. Please don't ever stand me up like that again."
"Oh Krillian," Andrea took his head in her hands and kissed him. "I'm so sorry, I thought you would just leave after a little while. I feel terrible, how can I make it up to you?" And then, answering her own question, "I know, how about we do something fun together. It can be your choice." She said smiling at him hopefully. "I'm really sorry," Andrea added contritely.
"Well..." he looked over at her and she gave him her best puppy eyes. "Yeah it's ok," he said waving his hand.
"Thank you," she pushed up against him and gave him another long kiss. "I really appreciate you being so understanding," she breathed into his face and giggled.
Krillian blushed from the kiss and put his arm over his head, Goku style.
Then he frowned. "I'd love to spend the day with you but I'm sparring with Gohan this morning,"
"That's fine," She said quickly, "I can just come with you and watch until you guys are done." Andrea smiled. Standing up, Krillian handed her his coffee mug and she put them in the kitchen sink.
They walked out of the apartment, holding hands, and she locked the door behind her.
-------
"Come on, is that the best you can do?" Piccolo blocked another punch and dealt several of his own. Gohan fended off the fists and leapt into the air, landing behind his mentor. Piccolo turned, but too late. Gohan tripped him and lunged on top of the Namek. Piccolo dodged and caught several intended blows and then threw the kid off. Gohan was pushed across the ground, but quickly recovered from the shove. They squared off, facing each other.
"Time for some ki attacks," Piccolo gave his custom half smile and powered up.
"Just watch this Piccolo," said the youngster, and Gohan followed his example.
They were interrupted from their training by a loud, over revved sports car suddenly stopping on the road nearby. The pair of fighters had gone somewhere remote to practice, but Krillian had managed to find a back road to get to them.
A couple got out of the car and Gohan waved excitedly, his spar with Piccolo momentarily forgotten.
"Hi Krillian! Hi Andy!" Gohan called. He turned to his green companion, "Hey Mr. Piccolo, have you met Krillian's girlfriend? She's really friendly and makes Krillian laugh a lot. Sometimes she even gets me out of homework, just to be nice. All she has to do is help mom clean." The boy said in an excited rush. "Plus, she really likes talking with me." Then the little fighter bent his head and whispered to his confidant. "When she comes to visit my house, Andy always brings me chocolate and she says it's our little secret. Wanna meet her?" Gohan asked, already starting up the hill.
Piccolo shook his head, "I know Andrea; we've run into each other before. I'll pass," he turned to leave.
"Aawwhh, Mr. Piccolo! I thought we could finish our fight! Please! Just hold on for a sec." The young half Saiya-jin raced to Krillian's car and started talking with the woman in animated hand gestures.
Piccolo shook his head. He was going to leave anyway when she spotted him. Andrea had hugged Gohan and told him how much she had missed him. He gave her a goofy grin and was telling her about something that happened to him last week. Andrea had started laughing and happened to glance down into the glen where the two combatants had been fighting. Her eyes fell on Piccolo and her laughter died abruptly.
The smile on her face disappeared and she glared down angrily at the Namek. Her brain raced with the insults he had thrown at her yesterday, and she felt her cheeks redden.
How dare he show his face after just deserting me! I'm going to go give that jerk a piece of my mind.
She stepped away from Gohan and pointed an accusing finger at Piccolo. She growled low in her throat and ran down the bluff, stopping a few feet in front him. Andrea tried to check herself but Piccolo stared coolly down at her and she couldn't take it.
"How could you do that? Just leaving me there! What if I hadn't known how to get home, I would have been lost in the woods when it got dark! And who knows what could have happened to me then! Rabid animals might have attacked me or I could've fallen in an underground pit. Or someone could have come out of the shadows and robbed me!" Her fists shook at her side.
"There are muggers in the middle of a forest?" He asked and raised his forehead where an eyebrow was supposed to be. "Yet again, I overestimated you. Thought you could handle a little walk at night. I forgot that you are only a woman, and an exceptional weakling, even by female standards. Andrea, you become afraid and fearful of the smallest shadow and cower behind your fragility," he turned to her contemptibly.
"You undoubtedly ran home crying, being overly dramatic and bawling that I had been so mean and rough with you. That just proves how feeble you really are," he crossed his arms. "When Gohan was four, I left him all by himself in the wilderness. Do you know what he did? He stopped crying and made the best of his situation. You, almost a grown woman, probably ran to your boyfriend," he pointed to Krillian, "and sobbed out how cruel and unfair I was. You complain that I insult you because of your inadequate sex and yet you have nothing to prove to me that you are anything but what I say you are. If you were a real man you'd take it in stride, but alas, your painfully obvious femininity shows that you are nothing worth any of my time," he gave her disappointed frown and looked over at Krillian and Gohan.
They stared at him in open-mouthed amazement and were just about to say something in Andrea's defense when she spoke up.
"I don't care what you say Piccolo," she said quietly, anger filling her voice. "Just because you are a close minded sexist doesn't mean I have to put up with your abuse. You're wrong, I'm a lot stronger than you think I am. I don't cry at the things you say, your insults are trivial and are merely banter that you use because you don't really know how to talk with women." Andrea arched her eyebrow condescendingly.
"You don't have a single decent bone in your body because it's obviously beneath you to treat someone as your equal. And I don't hide behind my supposed 'fragility.' You are completely off base. If you saw me without your prejudices you'd realize how flawed you're thinking really is. Piccolo, you're figuring me by my appearance, but you know what? My stamina and determination are my fighting strength and you can't see that. I am a formidable enemy; my gender doesn't weaken anything about me. You don't discern or understand who I am, if you did you'd see how misguided your views really are. Just because I don't know how to punch or kick you think less of me as a person. Well Piccolo, I don't want your respect, because if I have to look down on myself, and lose my integrity to meet your standards than it isn't important to me. You are a mean and judging man who bases everything on assumptions and I want nothing to do with you. You aren't worth my company and I'm leaving. I just wanted to come down here and get all that off my chest first," she finished and turned on her heel.
"I'm sorry Krillian, I'm not in any mood to have fun with you guys anymore, maybe some other time," she waved to them and started walking away.
The three men stared after her and then Krillian glared angrily at Piccolo. He ran after her and Gohan followed, looking worriedly over at his mentor before leaving.
Piccolo was the one who had been ready to storm off and he blinked in surprise that she had beaten him to it. Then, masking his face, he mounted into the air. Veering away, he sped from the practice field.
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