This is a T/P fic (Turnks/Paresu) so if you think you may have a problem with that, go away. I'm almost positive you won't like it. This is dedicated to the RestlessHeart for giving me the song for this fic. And for the pairing ideas... I wanna thank darkevilchic, Pan-san, and Paresu-chan for challenging me to write this. Thanks again ya'll!!
Disclaimer: I don't own nuttin'. Trunks, Pan, Goten, and Paresu don't belong to me, and they never will. You know who owns them if you're reading this anyhow. And I also don't own the song "
title: Just to See You Smile, Part One
by: Ashley
* * * * * * *
Just to see you smile
I'd do anything that you wanted me to
When all is said and done
I'd never count the cost
It's worth all that's lost
Just to see you smile
* * * * * * *
"Your niece and friend make such a cute couple," Paresu said admiring the other duo tickling each other in a nearby corner.
Goten rolled his eyes at the description of the two. He strained his neck to get an idea of her so-called definition of cute. His black eyes searched the back of the room for the two. A small smile came to his lips as he watched obvious adoration between Trunks and Pan. "They are okay, I guess."
Paresu turned to give her boyfriend a mock dirty look before laughing at his comment. "I think that's about as close to cute I'm ever going to hear from you."
"You're right," he said as he tightened his grip around her waist, "considering who it is that we're talking about."
She giggled and hit his arm playfully. "You can be so mean, you know. I bet nothing will ever separate those two."
"Just like us, you think?"
"Right. What can get in the middle between us anyhow?"
He smiled happily at her comment, hoping that she was right.
Pan pulled away slowly from her embrace with Trunks. His questioning look brought a small smile to her face. "Aww, don't give me that look, I think Uncle Goten and Paresu are talking about us."
Trunks rolled his eyes at the comment. He could've cared less if they were screaming out obscenities about them, all he wanted was to be close to Pan again. Grudgingly he pulled away from her and sat on the oppossite of the futon to discuss whatever the other couple were talking about. "Why do you care anyhow?"
Pan just shrugged innocently. "I don't know. Wouldn't you want to know what people where talking about if you were the topic of discussion?" She was his uncaring expression on his face and grew a bit frustrated. She jumped off the couch and pulled him up with her. "Let's go and find out."
Trunks let her pull him up and drag him across the room to complain and inquire facts about them from Goten. He watched in mild humor the way Goten stuttered as he tried to come up with some excuse. 'I can't believe this. Pan really takes things to the extreme. I bet it wasn't about anything important anyhow.' He diverted his attention elsewhere. He looked briefly at Paresu wondering why she wasn't saying anything to help him out. 'I bet she doesn't even care about him. Goten could probably do a ton better than that girl,' he thought a bit bitterly. He didn't know what was his problem with the woman, but for some reason he just didn't like her. He was snapped out of his reverie when Pan pushed him a bit. "Huh? What is it?"
Pan sighed but ignored his lack of attention. "I got to go, but I'll try to see you later on this week. Bye," she reached up to kiss his cheek before leaving the room.
Paresu looked after her boyfriend's niece watching her departure before turning to face Goten. "Goten, do you know where Mr. Gohan is? I need to talk to him about something with my business project."
Goten released his hold from around her to point to where his brother was. "I think Gohan's in the kitchen or close to it."
She thanked him gratefully before leaving to find his brother.
Trunks crossed his arms after Paresu left. "Don't you find it a little odd about Paresu asking Gohan for help in school? What is she, twenty-seven?"
Goten rolled his eyes at Trunks. His friend always thought the girl was strange in some way or another. "You know that she's an economics major and she just turned twenty-four. Don't get so hotheaded about things that aren't even there Trunks."
Trunks just snorted slightly. "Well, I'm just looking out for you. You trust people to much, it's going to get you in trouble one of these days."
"Are you serious? You looking out for me? That's got to be a first."
Trunks snorted. "See if I ever help you out with anything else again. It's not that I have a trusting problem, or anything like that."
"You are really pathetic, you know that right? Do you at least trust Pan?"
Trunks looked thoughtful for a minute before answering. "Of course I'm serious. Trust Pan? Would you trust Pan?"
Goten smirked at the counter question before chuckling a bit. "Okay, I understand about not trusting Pan, but there has got to be someone you trust."
"I trust my mom and you up to a certain degree, if that's what you mean, but other than that... no."
Goten shook his head. "You sound just like Paresu. I think she's going to tell me about her family soon, though. I just think it's sad, you two are a lost cause."
Trunks looked at Goten in confusion. He was about to ask about Paresu's mistrust, before she entered the room once again. He looked at the young woman, still unsure about what exactly to expect from her.
"Gohan helped me out a lot. Thanks for telling me where he was. I got to go home now, but I'll try and call you later. Thanks again." She gave Goten a bright, cheerful smile and shot Trunks a dimmer one before exiting the place.
Trunks looked at the girl in wonder before shuddering a bit. "The girl is something else, how can you be with her?"
Goten shrugged then smiled at his friend. "Because, she is that something else. Trunks you got to get to know her before you totally diss her. She's a sweet girl and I wouldn't trade her in for anything in the world."
Trunks rolled his eyes at his lovesick friend. He had warned him about falling in love. It was the worse thing in the world to put your heart on the line for someone. He had learned his lesson the first time.
"Goten, I'll catch ya later, I need to pretend to look over some proposals and reports so my mom won't get on my case." He bid farewell to his friend and left the Son residence.
Trunks walked to his office after he got the daily report from Meika and the mail. He opened up the door to his little hellhole obviously depressed to be back in the same office another day. He slumped into his chair and looked at the various proposals and presentations on his desk before shoving them out of his eyesight. "Why am I given this stuff anyway?" he mumbled under his breath. He skimmed through the day's mail before pushing that out of his way also. "What I wouldn't give for a distraction..."
Just then his comm-link buzzed. He pressed the talk button, preparing to tell off more company representatives. "Who is it this time Meika?"
"Sorry to interrupt you Mr. Briefs, but a young woman named Paresu is asking for you. If you would like I can..."
He hesitated for a minute before interrupting her, "--no, it's okay. Just send her in."
After that he canceled the connection. He sighed mentally and wondered why she would want to see him anyhow. 'What could Paresu and I possibly have to discuss?' He thought about reasons why the woman would want to meet with him before giving up the idea and deciding to ask her when she came in.
On the other side of the door Paresu went over the same question in her mind. 'Why did I come? What if he purposely tries to make me feel stupid? Goten always said him and Mr. Trunks were like one and the same, but what if it's not true? What if he doesn't want to help with what I'm planning? I shouldn't have came at all...' she pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind to prepare for the probable backlash that Trunks was preparing to give her. Carefully she knocked on the door.
She heard his voice telling her it was okay for her to come in. She opened the door still hesitant about what to expect from him. "Mister Trunks Briefs?" she asked timidly.
Trunks gestured her into his office. "Hey Paresu, come in."
She smiled and nodded before closing the door behind her. She decided it was best to try and forget her nervousness and put on her ditzy act, but failed at the process as she stumbled slightly when talking her seat. A small blush crept to her cheeks but kept her head lowered as she retrieved her belongings off of the ground. "I'm really sorry Mr. Trunks, I guess I'm kind of a clutz today. I'm just a little nervous becuase I showed up unannounced."
Trunks looked at the woman and noticed her obvious discomfort and moved quickly to help her into her seat. 'Why in the world is she here?' He hid his uncomfortable curiosity and put on a polite facade for her. "Don't worry about it. Just relax and you can begin talking whenever you feel like it."
Paresu nodded quickly and smiled thankfully at the other man. 'Maybe Goten was right about his friend, except about his comment on their personalities. It's almost hard to believe that they've been friends for over twenty years.' She pushed her thoughts out of her way again. This was not the time to let others know she was smarter than what met the eye. Careful to hide her true personality she smiled shyly at Trunks. "I'm sorry again Mr. Trunks to just show up without an appointment, but it was urgent that I see you now. I talked with Gohan yesterday and he agreed to it."
"Agree to what?"
"Gohan and I were thinking about throwing Goten a surprise birthday party. Since Gohan has a more hectic schedule than I do, I'm supposed to be the planner; but the problem is..."
"--that you need help, am I right?"
Paresu was taken aback by his statement. She mutely nodded. She fidgeted in her chair a little before settling back again. "So, do you think you could help me out?" she asked quietly still unsure about his actions.
Trunks rubbed his chin in thought. 'I can't believe she is willing to do something like this for Goten. Maybe she cares for him a bit, but I still doubt it.' He thought over it for a second and nodded. It would be an interesting experience to get to know her anyhow. "Sure, why not?"
She smiled thankful that he agreed to this. "I really appreciate it. I just only wish I had a thought of more ideas so we could get started on planning sooner. Do you have any ideas?"
Trunks smirked and moved out of his swivel chair. "I got a couple. I can probably get more if we get out of this stuffy office," he looked around the room before his eyes finally settled on her. "Have you had lunch yet?"
Paresu smiled at his suggestion. "If your appetite is anything like Goten's, I would pass but since I am hungry, lunch would be nice."
Trunks smiled. Maybe it would be nice to get to know the girl who had stolen his best friend's heart. 'She seems pretty cool, but I don't think she's being herself. The last thing Goten needs a fake girl; no matter how pretty she is.' He walked over to her seat to pull her up to her feet. "Any suggestions?"
She smiled and thought over the question for a second. "How about ice cream?" Paresu shook her head. 'Dummy! Why would someone like Mr. Trunks want to eat ice cream and sweets for lunch?' His voice drew her out of her metal chastising. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you."
His smiled warmed a bit at her sheepish grin. "I said okay. I know this perfect ice cream shop three blocks from here. I think if we hurry, we can miss the usual afternoon traffic." Trunks walked from behind his desk and grabbed her arm on the way out. Passing his personal assistant's desk her stopped briefly to give her a message.
"Meika, hold all of my calls until I get back from lunch." He gave Meika the instructions in a rush and headed out of the building with Paresu in tow.
It was a while before Trunks and Paresu were settled down in a window booth. Trunks ordered a strawberry float with a chocolate milkshake and Paresu ordered a vanilla cone.
"Thank you for taking me to lunch. You really didn't have to if you didn't want to."
Trunks shrugged nonchalantly. "It's no big deal, what's done is done. Now let's talk about Goten. When do you plan to have this little party?"
Before she could answer the waiter brought their servings. She took her cone from the waiter and licked it happily then settling back into normalcy. "Gohan was thinking the Friday before his birthday. It seemed fine to me, do you think so?"
Trunks nodded in between bites. He swallowed his current one before making an attempt to speak. "Well, what kind of party do you want him to have?"
"Well, I know that he likes the outdoors, so I was thinking of somewhere with a lot of trees and water. I asked Gohan if the lake near his mother's house would be okay to use, but I don't know. It just might be a stupid idea anyhow."
Trunks laughed briefly at how modest the girl was. "It's a perfect idea Paresu! I know he would love it. I can ask Chi Chi if she could supply the food and the basic needs and we can work on the decorations and inviting the people. So, how does that work for you?"
She finished her ice cream cone before he asked his question and was working on getting the excess remains from her face. "I think it's perfect too, Mr. Trunks. So when do you think we can begin the decorations and preparing without Goten noticing anything?"
"Paresu, before I tell you my idea, do you think you can call me Trunks? I'm not all that important so the mister really is unnecessary." He gave her a boyish grin to let her know it was just an attempt at being friendly with her.
She blushed faintly and bowed her head not being able to meet his gaze. "I'm really sorry Mr--I mean, Trunks. So what's your idea?"
He scooped up the last bit of his strawberry float then prepared to speak. "Well, I know Goten doesn't go down to the lake unless I skip work, so I guess playing hooky is out of the question for a few weeks. We can decorate the day before and he shouldn't notice anything out of the ordinary. I'm just a bit stuck on how we are going to explain us working together."
Paresu nodded looking briefly into his eyes before turning away. Quietly she said, "Well, I'm a student in business right now. How about my teachers mention that we need to get a temporary internship at some business or something like that. I ask Goten if he would help me out since I don't know any business owners and he sends me to you. But if you think it's too complicated, I would understand why."
"It's genius! You don't give yourself enough credit! I think it's perfect, but you gotta play your part right and try and ask him today if you have time so when we actually start working more with one another, it wouldn't seem fishy for us to be seen together."
Paresu was one step ahead of him as she pulled out her cell phone. "You have amazing planning Trunks," she smiled at him then dialed Goten's number on her phone. "Hopefully this will wor--," she was cut off when she heard a 'hi' from the other line.
Trunks watched the girl form an animated conversation with Goten on the other line. 'Goten is really lucky to have a girlfriend to care this much about him especially one like her. She's not what I expected at all. I guess she is pretty in her own way. She has that childlike innocence that makes her sweet in a way. I wonder...' he stopped his train of thought. He did not need to be thinking about his best friend's girlfriend like that, especially when they were probably going to be working pretty close the next few weeks. 'It's not like I totally changed my opinion of her. There's still something strange that about her that I can't put my finger on.'
Paresu flipped her phone shut and stuffed it back into her purse. She flashed Trunks a smile of victory. "It worked. He said he's going to call you for me and ask if it's alright. I think he'll call you soon."
As if on cue, Trunk's cell phone ringed. He smirked quickly at the woman who sat opposite of him before redirecting his attention to Goten on the other line. "Hello, who's this?"
Paresu smiled to herself as Trunks managed the conversation smoothly. 'I can't believe it! He lies so easily, I wonder how he does it. Maybe Goten will actually fall for this little thing. It would be great if he did... but what if he doesn't?' She went over possible reasons why Goten wouldn't take their little plan seriously, and his whole surprise party would go into shambles.
Trunks flipped the phone closed and was about to tell Paresu the news but saw the skeptic look in her face. He reached for her hand and rubbed it gently. "Don't worry. Goten asked me to be your sponsor for the next three weeks. He only had one request though."
Some of the tension eased out of her body but not by much. "What is the request?"
"That I try not to skip work for the duration of your internship."
Paresu giggled and carefully removed her hand from underneath his. "Well, I'll make sure to keep you in the office from nine to five."
Trunks groaned and hit his head against the table then lazily raised it back up again. "Don't remind me." He smiled as she laughed again. 'She has a pretty laugh. Maybe this temporary partnership may be good for us.'
"Trunks I really enjoyed having lunch with you. How much is my share of the bill?"
Trunks waved his hand in an uncaring manner. "Don't worry about it. It's on me, and don't try and argue about it either."
Paresu smiled kindly at him as she stood up and out of her booth. "Thank you, seriously. I really liked having lunch with you Trunks. I guess I'll be at your office in the morning. I need some time to explain to my professor about my new internship job. Maybe he'll cut me some slack and not give me a ton of work to do over the three weeks."
He smiled and threw a few bills on the table then standing up. "I had a good time too. Maybe we can do it again tomorrow or some other time. Don't worry about coming in a bit late; because I don't think I've ever been on time since I began working there. Do you live nearby?"
She nodded her head. "Yeah, I live up the street. Thanks again, Trunks." She shook his hand then left the small parlor.
Trunks looked after the girl in yellow and smiled. This was going to be a unique partnership. He walked out of the restaurant and headed back to work.
The next morning Trunks walked into his office in an obvious sour mood. 'I can't believe mom arranged that press conference this week! She knows I can't go through press conferences! I even told her about my sponsorship to Paresu too! I can't believe her suggestion, it's never go through.' He stopped by Meika's desk and asked for the day's schedule. He did his best not to rub his attitude on Meika. The last thing he needed was to hear her mouth.
Meika looked at her boss and rolled her eyes as she pulled out his schedule for the day. 'I wish he would move out of his momma's house, life would be easier for both of us.' She grabbed a pen just in case he decided to change something last minute. "Well, in fifteen minutes you have to go aver the stock reports; at eleven you have the Satan investment proposals in the conference room; at noon you have a meeting to discuss the possible addition of Johnson's Toy Company and..." Meika stopped speaking to look at her boss. She sighed at the pale young man in front of her and closed the book. "Mr. Briefs, you have a series of meetings from now until two, where you take an hour recess for lunch, and more meetings until five. If you really want to know the facts, I woul--"
"No it's not necessary, really," he gave her a boyish grin and laughed briefly. Meika always knew what he wanted and didn't want to hear. "Thanks again Meika. Is Paresu in?"
"If you're talking about that woman dressed in yellow, yeah. I think she's in your office."
Trunks grabbed his mail laying at the corner of her desk and headed for his office. He moved around a bit to support his briefcase and the mail to knock on the door.
Paresu said good-bye to Goten on the other line regretfully. "Don't worry Goten, I'll call you again at lunch time. Mr. Trunks is here and I need to answer the door. Thanks again for persuading him to sponsor me, I don't know where I'd be without you. Okay, I'll miss you too, bye." She flipped her phone shut and answered the door. "Good morning Mr. Trunks! Do you need any help with the things you're carrying?"
Trunks shook his head and mumbled no as he made his way to his desk. He threw all of his things on the desk and flopped down in his chair. "Paresu, what time did you get in?"
Paresu slid into the chair that sat opposite of him and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know really. I suppose it was close to nine when I came in. You didn't really specify a time and it's always better to be early than late."
He looked at the woman with a mix of wonderment and confusion. 'This girl cannot be serious. I need to check my things to make sure she didn't take anything later though.' He gave her a charming smile and nodded. "Well, that's a good rule to live by, I suppose. I'm really sorry to leave you alone by yourself like that. I guess you can come in at around eleven from now on. Check with Meika and ask for any reports from the Fisher Network. Those things are nothing really and you can work on the planning for Goten's party and you just give me anything you have problems with. Is that okay with you?"
She nodded hesitantly. 'I hope he thinks our plan will actually go through. I wouldn't know what to do if Goten ever found out,' she thought a bit worriedly. She looked back up at her companion and smiled a bit. 'But since Trunks is in charge of everything, it must go right. This plan wouldn't even be possible without Gohan and him.'
Trunks saw the way she smiled shyly up at him. 'I wonder if she thinks the same way about me that I do about her.' He crossed his arms and waited for anything else she had to say about anything.
"Trunks, I really do thank you for everything you've done for my idea so far. This is all becoming possible thanks to you." Her shy smile became more confident.
He uncrossed his arms and looked away slightly ashamed at himself. 'Maybe I've been wrong about her...' He retreated from his thoughts, he could think about her later anyhow. "That's sweet Paresu, really it is. I would stay and talk but I got to go to a meeting. You can order in lunch or go out, because I think I'll be in meetings all day." He opened his briefcase and shoved some papers, pens, folders, and a video game inside of it before leaving.
Paresu watched with amazement at his boss. She shook her head at the hero-worship that was beginning to come to her before going to get the Fisher reports from Trunks' PA.
That was part one, I really wanted to make this one whole thing, but I know I won't have the time to finish it if it's like that. Well, if you have any ideas, or anything that could help me make this better, just email me. Bye