Disclaimer: I'm not even going to bother, you already should know the drill by now. But for a quick overview.... I don't own DBZ.

A.N.: My second G/V fic. Hopefully it's even better then my first. Basically as a summary, Videl makes a decision based on what she thinks is the best course of action. But is it really? And how does it effect her and Gohan. I know this chapter is a bit confusing, but I think you'll get it as it goes on. Basically, you switch between the memory, and Videl and Gohan's point of view presently.

I totally had this done like four weeks ago, but then my computer busted down, and also I got grounded from the internet, so that's why it's been so long. Sorry folks, but I hope this was well worth the wait.

thinking : Videl's little evil side when you near the end, otherwise, at the beginning, it's her regular thoughts.

thinking: Videl's good side when you reach the end.

The Choice Is Simple

By ~Crystal Delphina~

Chapter 3: I Just Can't

{~*~} {~*~} {~*~}

"So you finally decided come back." Erasa smiled at her friend as Videl took her seat. "Gohan's came back today too. Good timing you guys." Videl nodded absentmindedly. Erasa ignored the nonexistent reply and decided a juicy piece of gossip would wake up her friend and make her pay attention.

"And did you hear? Gohan's leaving this week. Apparently-"

"What?!" Videl shouted, and dismissed the stares she got from people.

"Apparently," Erasa continued from where she had been cut off. "he is continuing his studies back at home. Too bad too. We were starting to get really close with the guy."

He's leaving?? Videl sat back down shocked. Erasa's talking faded into the background until she greeted a fellow classmate.

"Gohan! Hey, we were just talking about you." Videl's head jerked up to look at him. Their eyes met, and she immediately dropped her gaze. Gohan walked up the stairs and nodded his head in acknowledgement curtly.

"Hello Erasa... Videl."

They never spoke to each other after that.

{~*~} {~*~} {~*~}

Gohan leaned his brow against the cool locker and heaved a sigh. It had been a long day. All day long, he had avoided the questions about his leaving from his peers. And he had avoided Videl along with her troubled glances sent his way.

Today was his last day here. He had cleared up all the loose ends with his teachers. It was actually easier then he had expected it to be. However, the emotional attachments weren't as easy to finish.

Erasa, Sharpener, Kenji, Mae, and yes, even Videl (especially Videl). He had accomplished his mission here to make friends his own age. He would miss his newfound friends dearly, but also knew that he would get over it. It wasn't as if he was best friends with them or anything.

He closed his eyes and sighed again. He had cleaned out his locker, and he had returned his books. The school was empty now; the final bell rang nearly 15 minutes ago. He was alone in the hall, enjoying the silence while he created final memories of his time at high school.

"Can I talk to you please?" Gohan kept his eyes closed as her timid voice surprised him.

His emotions were so strong towards her. The hurt and anger from the rejection, but also the loyalty and love he felt towards her. She had sounded sincere enough.

"Go ahead." He didn't remove his head from the locker, and still his eyes remained close.

"Can we go somewhere more private?" Gohan didn't respond but merely began walking towards the exit, Videl following. Upon reaching the open air and sunlight, Gohan only gave Videl a sideways glance before taking off into the bright blue sky.

{~*~} {~*~} {~*~}

"Bulma, it's becoming worse. He demanded to leave the school and has been so hostile lately. He has even been snapping at poor Goten, and me for a matter of fact. I don't know what to do with that boy." Chichi ranted over the phone to her friend about her problematic son.

"And you say this all started Saturday night? How weird."

"I know. And you want to know what I think? I think that Videl did something when she came over earlier. I never have seen him this upset. He's almost acting as cold as Vegeta."

"HEY!!"

"Sorry, but you know what I mean. I'm just worried about what's going on. You think that maybe she's going out with someone from school?"

"Yeah, I could understand his reaction then. If he were to act like this over a single date or something, imagine him if she got hurt - or worse, died."

"Well I'd bet my best frying pan that we wouldn't be standing on this earth, much less anything else in this solar system." Bulma shuddered at Chichi's response.

"Good point, even as scary as it is. Well jealousy or not, the boy has got it bad."

{~*~} {~*~} {~*~}

She continued to play with the blades of grass beside her as the silence stretched on. It had been nearly five minutes now since they had landed in the lush green valley.

To her left lay Gohan, staring up at the sky like a hawk. Impassive, he had been like that since they landed, not even muttering a single word. His gaze was fixed on the slowly drifting clouds above.

"Gohan?" She willed herself to face him, although her voice trembled with a bit of fear. She remembered how the last time they had talked, that he had almost gone super in anger. She wasn't to thrilled to have those events repeat themselves.

This wasn't the time to be scared though. Besides, she was the great Satan Videl, never scared of anything in her life. This was not the time to be losing her cool under pressure. Just because he was upset didn't give him the right to ignore her and she'd make sure he knew it. Right after she regained her courage and skipped the fact that who she was next to someon who could destroy the very ground she sat on with his pinky.

"Gohan," she started again, making it known that she intended to say something after his name this time. "Why are you leaving school? It hasn't even been a full year since you arrived."

"It's quite simple. I can easily continue my studies at home and take the tests necessary to go to university. Besides, this way I can help my mom around the house, and take care of and spend more time with Goten. I'll also have more time to train, considering I've been slacking off.

"The original reason why I even went to Orange Star in the first place was to make friends that I could relate to age wise. Well I've done that. I don't see why I bothered in the first place though now. It isn't like I could ever become close to any of them considering my special circumstances. It really is better off this way." Monotone was clearly the theme today when it concerned Gohan's communication skill towards Videl. It was starting to frustrate her too. Talking to an emotionless rock could get extremely annoying.

"So this isn't about me?" She was skeptical those were the only reasons, especially since the whole thing had happened so quickly.

"Of course not," he answered quickly and seemingly without hesitation. It sounded rehearsed in a way actually. Realization dawned on Videl as the thought overtook her, and she realized he had been prepared and ready for her.

Of course, why didn't I realize this earlier? He had planned on me confronting him, and had practiced everything he was going to say. He knew exactly what questions I would ask, and he's can tackle every one of them without feeling. Shit, this doesn't make my situation good.

"Gohan, I want to say I'm sorry." More confident s the time ticked by, she actually took her first good long look at him. He was still watching those damned clouds.

"For what?"

"For acting the way I did towards you. I could have been more...rational then how I responded." Maybe this would get a rise out of him.

"Fine." This was becoming more exasperating by the moment. He was being about as responsive as jello.

He probably wouldn't care if the sky fell right now. At least he'd be the first to know. She added cynically.

"Aren't you going to apologize?"

"For what?"

"For how you acted of course. It takes two you know." She gave a loud sigh to try to relive her trying patience.

"Why? I have nothing to apologize for. I own up to how I acted and felt at the time, but will not apologize for either of them." She was finally doing it. He was actually starting to quicken in anger. Some emotion, no matter how possibly dangerous, is better then none I guess. I bet he wasn't prepared for that.

"You should still apologize," she muttered, forgetting that he could here her.

"I refuse to be sorry for being true to my feelings, unlike you of course."

"Unlike me?"

"Yeah, because you couldn't even give me a clear answer without stumbling over your own words." He sat up and moved so that he was sitting facing her. She in turn, turned a bit to do the same, and they engaged in a heated glaring contest while they argued.

"I already told you." She broke the eye contact by looking down and sighed. "I can't love you."

"And why not? You haven't explained that to me yet. It was on the tip of your tongue, I know it, and then you took it back. Obviously there is a reason since you said ' I can't' compared to 'I don't'. So what is it Videl?" The worst kind of love in the world is unrequited love, a love that you can want so bad, but can't have. It burns your heart from the inside out. Gohan couldn't stand the heart wrenching feeling.

"You'll hate the answer and blame yourself, I know you will." If he knew the real reason, he would only be able to assume that it was his entire fault. She couldn't put him through his own self-scrutiny like that.

"If you're going to at least deny something, give me the reason so I can feel better knowing."

"Gohan..." Unsure if she should really tell him, she nearly saw pleading in his dark eyes. The air around them seemed to buzz with the energy from the two emotionally charged teens.

She looked down again. If she was going to tell him the truth, there was no way she could do it looking into his eyes. Those eyes - those dark handsome eyes - would be the final straw to break the camel's back.

Damn him and his eyes, they only bring me trouble. I can never look at him when I have something important to say; otherwise, I basically lay out my heart and soul. With those onyx eyes of his, they can see every little detail about me, and my heart. It's impossible to lie to him if I look in his eyes.

"I can't love you because I don't want to end up getting hurt."

"Getting hurt?" The anger he felt before was slowly subsiding, as he tried to understand her reasoning.

"Look, you go into all of these honorable, dangerous battles. You've always managed to make it out alive, but I'm afraid that one of these days... you won't. If... If you were to leave me, I honestly don't know how I could go on Gohan. I'd be so heart broken that I might even do something that I wouldn't do under normal circumstances. That's why it's easier if we don't fall in love. I don't want to get hurt; that's already happened in my life from both of my parents. It really is easier if we just don't." Like before, Videl sounded as though she were trying to convince herself with her little speech, while tears threatened to spill at how she would give up the possible love of her life to protect herself. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew Gohan wouldn't put up with the bull she just spewed forth. She really did hope he would buy it though; it'd make it easier for them to spilt paths then.

"Videl," He gave her a pitying look as his anger melted and was quickly forgotten. He moved closer to her and reached out to take her hands into his own. The very action of his touching her, she finally broke down and cried at her heartache and what she was actually considering doing. He automatically pulled her forward and against him, wrapping his arms around her in a hug. She allowed this to happen without any resistance, and wasn't surprised when he had her sit in his lap like a child.

"I'd never hurt you, you know that right?" She nodded her head as she quickly began wiping away the tears. This wasn't helping her situation; it only gave him more to work with.

"I know that Gohan. But like I said, I can't allow myself to love you." This argument was getting harder and harder. She needed to wrap this up quickly and leave his comforting embrace and the large valley soon.

"You love me, don't you?" Gohan remained serious and comforting at the same time, his eyes examining her own.

"Yes..." She was unsure of her answer. It sounded as if it were a trial question, and her answer could send her up the river without a paddle. "but -"

"Then don't you fell that the joy of being in love for just only one day is more thrilling and important then years of loneliness and protection because you weren't willing to take a risk? Videl, I love you, it's plain and simple. Allow yourself to love. You've never been a quitter, and that's one of the many qualities I admire about you."

Don't let him do this to you Videl. Remember the pain you felt when your mother died? How depressed you were?

Yes, but Gohan...he just feels so right. I do love him, with all of my heart, and a day of his love would never compare to years without it...

You tried to freaking kill yourself Videl! And that was only over motherly love. A romantic love is much much more emotional, and especially with Gohan. As you said yourself, if he lost a battle, you know what you would try to do to stay by his side.

SHUTUP! JUST LET ME LOVE!

Videl's inner torment took its toll as tears began to make her vision swim again. That loneliness, the feeling of someone abandoning you, they all came back to Videl, and reminded her of her mother's death which lead to Videl's attempted suicide.

He'll end up leaving you, just like your mother did.

That little voice made her panic. She lurched forward, grasping onto his shirt and burying her head in his chest.

"Gohan, don't leave me. Please don't leave me. You have to promise that you won't just forget about me and take off." She cried tears of pain and fear, as she shook her head slightly back and forth. She faintly recognized his arms squeezing her even tighter against him, pulling her shaking form closer into his embrace.

"Videl, I'd never leave you, you should know that by now. I promise I won't abandon you," he whispered against her ear in earnest.

"But you can't promise that," Videl said sadly. She looked up at him with her glazed over eyes, and continued. "My mom made that same promise, but then she died." She tried to hide herself again amongst the folds of cloth, but he pulled her up to face him instead.

"You're right Videl, I can't control everything. But I'll try my best. Please Videl," He cupped her cheek with his hand to pull her closer. "just allow me to love you. Allow yourself to love."

Stop. Remember, you've never needed anyone, you're strong then that.

But that's not true. I do need Gohan. I've never felt like this before. You can't be alone forever; humans just aren't created that way, not even me.

He'll end up leaving you just like everyone else.

I've always been true to my feelings. I'm not going to go against that principal now. Videl finally won her emotional battle. She closed the gap between them with renewed confidence and relief.

The kiss was sweet and chaste, but got the message across. She broke the connection, but didn't move, just looked up at him.

"I love you Gohan," she whispered. He smiled down at her.

"I already knew that Videl. Like I said earlier, I love you too."

{~*~} {~*~} {~*~}

Well I hope you guys all enjoyed that. Technically that's the end, but for some odd reason, I wrote an epilogue... hmm...what to do, what to do. I mean I could put it here, though of course, the trash chute is always good, but you will never get to read it then. hehehe (give evil little smirk). Well maybe if I get enough reviews, I'll post the thing. Otherwise, up until now, the reviews have been great, and I'm enjoying writing GxV fics. I even received a great IM from someone...though of course I'm drawing a blank to their name (I'm sooooo sorry, you have no idea. Though of course you know who you are, so thanks for the encouragement).

As a second note, I already have another fic in the making, and the first chapter should be coming out in about two weeks at the least. And I'm considering writing a second chapter to Those Lonely Nights (check it out if you haven't yet, my first GxV ^_^). Just thought I'd tell you guys what to expect in case you're interested.