To See Your Face Again ch.3
Hey, everyone! Here is the third chapter of the fic. I know it might have sounded strange that the mothers sent away Bra, Pan and Marron, and took away their powers, but this is DBZ world, anything can happen. Remember that the reason they were sent away was to protect them from the war that was going on (more about that later) in their world. Also remember that Bra, Pan, and Marron all were sent to the regular world in their own individual space pods, and each one landed in a different area, so that's why they are not together (yet).So again, we don't own DBZ (or any songs used), Enjoy the fic.
(this chapter by Pan)
In the hall of a small Middle School in Toronto, a young girl sat on the floor leaned against the row of lockers. Her head bent slightly she played with a key-chain hanging from her jeans. Just then the door to the classroom opened and a teacher stepped out.
"Pan, would you care to explain why you punched Ahmed in the stomach?" asked the teacher.
Pan got to her feet and stared the teacher straight in the face, "I punched him because he deserved it. He insulted one of the people that I care about, and I don't regret what I did. I would do it again if I had to."
The teacher looked at Pan strangely, "What exactly did he say?"
"You don't need to know," said Pan walking past the teacher and into the classroom. She took her seat and turned to face the chalkboard with blazing eyes.
The teacher walked in, "Ahmed, I think you owe Pan an apology for whatever you said to hurt her feelings."
"Oh, gee Pan," sneered Ahmed, a big fat boy who was as ugly as he was fat, "I'm SO very sorry for saying that Trunks is a grape-headed freak who has disgusting hair and a big mouth, who is stupid, and who is as weak as an ant, and NOT EVEN REAL!"
The class erupted into laughter while Pan stood up slowly she turned towards Ahmed and was about to lunge at him with her fists flying, but the teacher grabbed the back of her shirt and said, "Calm down, Pan."
Pan stopped fighting and sighed. Why must it always be like this? Why don't they understand? They hurt me so much…
Pan put her hand back down to play with her key-chain and gasped when she felt it was no there. She looked back to see another of the boys holding it up grinning.
"Looking for this?" he taunted. He swung the key-chain back and forth teasingly, "Does little Pan want back her little super saiyan Goku key-chain?"
Pan bit her lip, afraid of what she would say if she opened her mouth. So instead of using words, she did the next best thing…she tackled the boy holding her Goku key-chain and snatched it away, punching him in the face.
"Bakayarou," she said, holding her Goku key-chain tightly, "Why don't you people just LEAVE ME ALONE!"
The class laughed as Pan ran from the room. The teacher shook his head, wondering if that girl would ever learn to control her temper.
Meanwhile Pan ran out the doors of her school and climbed a tree in her school yard. She sat in the tree and buried her face into her hands, thinking about what a wreck her life was. The children at her school all loved to tease her and make her life a living hell. They knew exactly how to make her angry and get on her nerves, because Pan had a weak spot.
Her whole life she had always been unpopular, but she didn't really care. She was a tomboy, and didn't like to hang out with the girls who wore skirts and talked about boys and makeup all day and night. But still…she would have been happy to have just one true friend…
Pan hugged the Goku key-chain closer, and closed her eyes. The only thing that had made her life have a meaning was the TV show Dragonball Z. She had never missed an episode, and she had memorized most of them by heart. She had watched the way the characters fought with determination and perseverance, she had observed the way that they sacrificed everything for the ones they loved. She had looked on in amazement as the great saiya-jin Vegeta had turned into one of the good guys…still maintaining his dignified pride.
And somewhere along the way, Dragonball Z had found it's way into Pan's heart. It had become a part of her, as much as her hand or foot. She didn't just watch DBZ, she felt it. She cried whenever Goku died, or Gohan was hurt, or Mirai Trunks told of his miserable timeline. She yelled whenever Vegeta stupidly made it possible for Cell to become complete, or when the idiot Mr.Satan/Hercule would take all the credit for being the strongest man, when he really was just a man with a big mouth.
Dragonball Z was more than just a cartoon to her. She dreamt about it every night, dreamt about being able to live in a world where she was appreciated, where she could have special fighting powers…
Fighting powers. Pan had always wondered why whenever she got angry she would lose control of herself, feel a sudden rush of adrenaline, and beat people up senselessly. Still, as soon as she calmed down and realized what she was doing, she would stop and feel her energy go back to normal. Sometimes she wondered if she trained hard enough she could someday become as powerful as the DBZ people, and control her anger.
She did train. All the time that she wasn't reading or writing DBZ fanfiction, or doing advanced studying, she would train with 25 pound weights…she couldn't afford more. She would do sit-ups and push-ups, work on her flexibility so that she could do back flips…all in the hopes that someday she would be worthy of being a DBZ character.
Pan held the Goku key-chain a little away from her and looked at it longingly. Goku was standing on the Flying Nimbus with one knee bent, his hair waving back, with his arm stretched forward. He wore a genuine smile of happiness on his face. Pan half expected a cute little Chibi Gohan to pop his head out from behind Goku's knee, and smile up at his father sweetly.
Pan wondered why whenever she watched the Son family…especially in the episode called "Memories of Gohan" where the Sons looked through the family album entitled "HOPE". Everytime she watched the Son family laughing, eating, Chi-Chi yelling, Goku forgetting, Gohan studying…The same thought would cross her mind. Why can't I be there? Why do I feel like I belong there? Why, oh, why can't my dreams come true?
She would place her hands on the TV screen wishing that she could just get sucked into the world…but she didn't. Pan, from the time she was little had never been happy… she had always dreamed up another perfect life in her mind. Pan had a great imagination, and before she went to sleep she would lie awake imagining all the things that she wished would happen in her boring life… battles and aliens and capsules and Trunks…
Trunks. Pan took off her dear blue knapsack that contained her most precious possessions, and opened it. She slipped out a picture frame and looked at it wistfully. Another faraway dream to make her heart ache. Trunks, in all his handsome splendor was smiling his "Cute Trunks" smile in the picture. Pan traced his face through the glass and smiled back at him. To her, he was real, and would forever be real.
She put the picture away in her knapsack, handling it as carefully and lovingly as if it was the real Trunks. She stood up on the tree branch and looked out at the clear blue sky. She put her arms out and inhaled the fresh air deeply, closing her eyes as a sense of peacefulness overcame her. Oh, if only I could fly! If only I could sail through the azure skies forever and never have to face humans again! Pan smiled as the wind blew against her skin.
*BRRRRING!*
Her eyes snapped open and she almost lost her balance on the tree branch. Pan glanced at her watch and immediately jumped off the tree branch and ran for the school. It was the lunch bell.
While Pan walked the halls towards the cafeteria, she could hear snickers and whispers being murmured. For some reason she could always hear when someone whispered something about her. It seemed that she had a sharp sense of hearing. Almost as sharp as her eyesight, that she used to look at the stars in the sky.
When Pan reached the cafeteria, she stood in line patiently waiting for her turn. Unfortunately, she had to put up with the kids teasing her all the while. When it was finally her turn, the cafeteria lady smiled at Pan…the first sincere smile she had received all day.
"Will you be having the usual, Pan?" she asked.
"Yes, please," said Pan, placing the five dollar bill on the counter.
The lady walked away and returned almost instantly with a large plate piled high with food, she handed it to Pan with some difficulty due to the weight, "Enjoy."
Pan took it easily and nodded, "Thank you Vince, I will."
Pan walked into the cafeteria eating space and took her usual space, a quiet corner where she could eat her food without people making comments. Of course it didn't stop them from making comments, but at least she wouldn't be able to hear them.
When Pan had finished her food, she went outside and climbed her special tree again. This time the school yard was filled with loud yelling kids so she couldn't think. Once more she went into her blue knapsack that contained her precious possessions, and pulled out her compact CD player. Her favourite CD was already in there so she stuck the phones in her ears and pressed play. Soon the sound of children yelling was drowned out by the sweet sound of Savage Garden's Music:
When you feel all alone,
And the world has turned it's back on you
Give me a moment please
To tame your wild wild heart
I know you feel like the walls are closing in on you,
It's hard to find relief and people can be so cold
When darkness is upon your door
And you feel like you can't take anymore….
Pan hummed softly along with the music. It expressed exactly how she felt inside. She forgot all about her surroundings as she leaned on her tree branch and listened to the song.
Let me be the one you call
If you jump I'll break your fall,
Lift you up and fly away with you into the night,
If you need to fall apart,
I can mend a broken heart,
If you need to crash,
Then crash and burn you're not alone.
Pan sighed. The only difference from her life and the song was that in the song, someone actually cared that the person was alone and depressed, and was willing to lift her up and fly away with her into the night. Pan wished that someone would lift her up and fly away with her into the night. Sighing again, Pan clicked the stop button on her disk-man and put it away into her blue knapsack. Jumping off the tree, Pan walked towards the school to face the hell that was her life.
After getting her books from her locker, Pan walked to her next class, math. Finding that the teacher hadn't arrived yet, Pan sat down at her usual seat. She sat tense, because she knew that something bad was going to happen anytime now. Pan glanced around anxiously. Suddenly she felt a pressure at her throat. She turned to see a girl yank off the locket she wore on a necklace at her throat… Pan gasped. That locket meant something to her…she didn't know what…but it was important.
"What's inside the locket Pan?" asked the girl, fiddling with it.
"NO!" shouted Pan, "Don't open it! I've never even opened it! Please! It's all I've got!"
"Really?" the girl pried the locket open, and Pan gasped. The girl frowned, "What the hell is this? I don't know why you keep this crap."
The girl threw it across the room, and Pan ran to pick it up. She had worn that locket for years, but never opened it, afraid of what she would find there. Now she stared in shock at what was inside it. A lock of purple hair beside the words "Love Forever". Pan looked at it in confusion, but then her mouth opened in shock as a memory came back to her.
*Flashback*
Trunks walked over to Pan and took her hands. They looked into each other's tearful eyes. No words were needed to be said, for they both felt the sorrow rip through their hearts. Trunks reached into his pocket and pulled out a golden locket on a chain. He placed it around Pan's neck and whispered, "I was going to give you that on your birthday, but now…Pan, you know how much I love you! Please, keep my memory somewhere in your heart. It'll take more than a needle and a world to separate us."
"Yes," whispered Pan, reaching up and brushing a strand of hair out of Trunks' eyes, "And promise me that wherever I am, we'll always find a way to each other?"
"Always," said Trunks, leaning forward till their lips met in a final sweet kiss.
*End Flashback*
Pan looked up, and found that there were tears in her eyes. He is real! Isn't he? That memory…was it a memory? Or have I watched too many episodes of Dragonball Z? I'm so confused! If he is real…then what am I doing here, while he is there?
"Hey Pan!" called one of the boys, snatching the locket, "I wonder how much this thing is worth? I wonder if it's real gold? There's only one way to find out, we have to split it open! What do you want with it anyway? It's ugly. Can I have it?"
Pan felt the familiar energy creep up on her and she could feel the strength of her anger running through her body, she was about to lose control again. That human better give me back my locket if he values his pathetic life…
The boy snorted, "You know, I don't want this stupid thing no matter what it's worth…It's touched you. You're a freak. You'll never fit in, and everywhere you go people will hate you. Just so you know, Dragonball Z is just a stupid cartoon created by a man who wanted to make money. And Trunks isn't real! You're so delusional. You'll never be loved. Here's your stinkin' locket."
He dropped the locket in disgust and Pan grabbed it. A thought crossed her mind, the human is right…no one will ever love me. Is he right about Trunks too? NO! He can't be right! He can't tell me that! Trunks is real…he IS real! Right? She looked at the locket for a second, and felt an unfamiliar sensation. It wasn't the normal energy…it was a sort of weakness…sadness… Pan continued to stare at the locket until she saw a drop of water land on her hand. She looked at it in confusion for a second, then gasped. It was a tear.
Pan looked up at the class in shock as some more tears fell down her cheeks. The class started laughing, after teasing her for so long, she had finally broken. The children had won, and for once Pan didn't have the strength in her to fight back. Pan couldn't take it anymore. She ran out of the class and out of the school. She didn't care that her books were in there, once she had her blue knapsack of precious possessions and her locket.
After she had cleared the school yard, she kept running. She normally took the bus home, but now she just kept running. After over half-an-hour of running she found herself in front of her apartment. She rubbed off her tears and looked at the door sadly. As soon as she entered that place her ears would once more be filled with yells and criticism. Her mother just didn't understand her.
Pan hesitantly took the handle of the door, entered, and said, "Hi, mom."
Then she ran for her bedroom and closed the door. She sunk back against it weakly. What's wrong with me? What has happened to my life? Why am I so confused? Nothing seems right! I don't fit in with the others…I'm so different. I don't have any friends. Even my mother… I feel like I don't know any of these people.
The locket…? What does it mean? What was that memory I had when I picked it up? Was it a memory? Why does everyone hate me? Why is it so impossible for me to find love? Like in that song…
Pan dug her disk-man out of her blue bag and on the same Savage Garden CD played a different track.
Am I all alone in the universe?
There's no love in these streets,
I have given mine away to a world that didn't want it anyway,
So this is my new freedom?
It's funny,
I don't remember being chained,
But nothing seems to make sense anymore.
Pan turned off her disk-man and put it back in her bag. Nothing does make sense anymore. What do I do? I need to find my self…the true Pan. Cause there is something wrong, I can sense it. This isn't all there is to my life. There is something missing! I know there is! And maybe if I found what was missing…then I could make sense of my emotions?
What do I do? Am I going crazy? I can't believe that I cried…I've never cried before in my whole life. I wonder if those idiot kids are satisfied now. They got what they wanted! I can't face them again. They will just hurt me more… why do I even have to live this hell? If I go back to that treatment…I don't know what I'll do. I can't go back…I can't stay…I have to move on. I have to search for the true meaning of my pathetic life. I know that this isn't where I belong…
I need to find my destiny, find out what love is, and how it feels to be loved. I have so many questions haunting my mind…I need to search to find the answers. It's settled then.
I'm running away.
Walking towards her dresser, Pan took off her blue knapsack of precious possessions and looked through it's contents. She decided that everything in there was a necessity. Her CD player, and all her Dragonball Z/GT items, her journal, her writing book, library card, some money, a hairbrush, bus tickets, a detailed map of the world, pencils, pens, scissors, glue, erasers, markers, matches, and a disk containing all the DBZ fanfiction that she had written.
Pan thought for a second…What else do I need? Let's see…matches will make fire, I need some clothes… Pan went to her closet and grabbed a pair of jeans and a red T-shirt. She put them on her bed, intending to change into them later on before she left. She stuffed some clean underclothes into her knapsack, along with camouflage shorts and tank top, in case she needed to blend into her surroundings (or look cool). She also put a small bottle of sunscreen and insect repellent. Noticing that her bag was almost full, Pan realized she could only fit a few more things in it.
She put some socks just in case the ones she was wearing got wet. She also put a little blanket so that she could keep warm. Pan lifted her piggy bank of the shelf and broke it. Counting the money, she stuffed it all in a pocket of her bag. It was a little over $650 dollars, and she supposed that it could last for a while…but then when it ran out, how was she going to get food? Weapons…
Pan walked out of her room and into the kitchen intending to get a good knife, but her mother stopped her on the way.
"Hi, Pan!" she said looking at her, "Where are you going?"
"For a snack," said Pan, "I'm starved."
"Well, want me to make you something?" asked her mother.
"No thanks, I'll get it myself," said Pan, and she looked up at her mom, and gasped at what she saw…the face of a stranger.
"Okay, then Pan," said her mom, "I'm going to go to sleep early okay? I'm not feeling well. Don't stay up too late…and yes, you can go on the internet, but don't stay on for too long."
"Okay, mom," said Pan walking toward the kitchen. Any doubt that had previously been in her mind cleared up. She was running away. Her mind was made up. Grabbing a knife out of a drawer, Pan suddenly heard her stomach growl. So she sat down with a huge plate of food and devoured it within seconds.
Picking up the knife once more, Pan also grabbed some chocolate…in case she needed energy. Stopping by the bathroom, she picked up her tooth brush, a tube of toothpaste, and a 2-in-one shampoo and conditioner.
Returning to her room and stuffing everything in her bag, Pan changed into her clothes that she had laid out. She took off her bandanna and put it in her pocket, because she would like it better if she mixed in with the crowd and didn't stand out. Looking in the mirror one last time, Pan smiled.
"I am leaving. I am running away," she whispered to her reflection. It all seemed so exiting and thrilling that Pan couldn't stop smiling. As she walked out of the apartment and closed the door behind her, she realized that she could never ever return. She smiled again.
Walking out of the apartment building, Pan strolled casually down to the bus stop, waited for a bus to come, and got on it. She paid her fare and sat down on a vacant seat. This bus was headed downtown…a populated area. From there she could go either south into the United States, west into Canada's Prairie Provinces, or east to eventually reach the Atlantic Ocean. No one would ever be able to find the elusive teenage girl, but she only hoped that she could find what she was looking for.
Whoa! One long chapter! Anyway, how'd you like it? Please review and tell us if you think something doesn't make sense so that we can explain it. And also tell us what you think about the fic! Next chapter is Bra's turn to write, so just wait, she'll be finished it soon… (and even sooner if you review!)