"Ugh! I can't hear a thing!" the nine year old crossed his arms and stepped away from the door. "Why does he always make me leave? What's going on out there?"
The teenager stared at him with a smirk, remembering all too well how he'd used to feel about being left out at that age. "I doubt its anything that interesting really," he placed the baby in his playpen.
"Yeah well I'm sick of being left out of everything!"
"You'd just get yelled at if you went out there anyway."
"I'm sick of that too!"
"I know, I remember. This is when Dad went through his transitioning phase, I think. He was always real snippy and I got in trouble for absolutely everything. Don't worry, it'll pass and then things will get better."
"When?" the nine year old placed one hand on his hip and tilted his head.
"When you're 11."
"Eleven! I can't wait that long!" Trunks complained. "You're telling me I won't be able to breath without getting yelled at until I'm 11?!"
"Chill! You're only getting yelled at because Dad feels guilty for ignoring you in the past. I think these are the years he's working through that and then your relationship will get a lot better."
"Well that's sure a funny way of showing it!"
"What's going on in here!" Vegeta's eyes were angered as he opened the door.
"It's me! It's all my fault...for the next two years!" nine year old Trunks followed his arms, looking at his older counterpart.
"Hey, I told you that in confidence!" the teenager was somewhat indigant. "I should have known I couldnt' keep a secret at that age!"
"Enough. You, come with me, you two stay here. And watch that baby!"
The oldest Trunks followed Vegeta into the kitchen and sat down across the table from him.
"Now what is going on? What are these bad years you keep talking about?"
"Oh...that's when I was between 8 and 10. It got better when I was 11."
"Why are they bad?"
"Because everything Idid was wrong and I got yelled at all the time," Trunks told him part of it, but ignored the other part. He hadn't ever told anyone more than that.
"What?"
"I figure now it must have been because you were going through a transitioning time or something."
"You're not telling me everything. I need more information in order to piece this together."
"I'm just not used to talking about this kind of thing. Don't you think it's kinda...dumb?"
"Forget what I think. Tell me. That's an order."
"Well...I guess it started with the Majin Buu stuff when I was eight and after you first said...well...you know what you said, Dad! Before you died. Anyway, I was preoccupied with that ever since and I was trying to...I don't know...gain your approval maybe?" Trunks rolled his eyes. "It sounds really stupid. I guess I just didn't know what you wanted from me and everything I did was the wrong thing. Either that or you just couldn't stand me."
Vegeta stared at him. He'd gone back to fix his child's life and yet he never realised he was right in the middle of making it awful as they spoke. "Go on."
"Night time was really bad though because I had really bad nightmares for the next couple of years. I didn't tell anyone...especially not you because I thought you'd be ashamed," Trunks looked away.
"Trunks, look at me. Why would I be ashamed?"
"Because they scared me...and sometimes I even cried," he looked down again. "I was sure you'd be ashamed to have such a wimpy son."
"What were these dreams about?"
"Lots of things really, but the worst ones were usually about Majin Buu eating mom and killing you...or sometimes I was fighting him and he was winning and you were watching in the background laughing or doing nothing. Or yelling at me for not being strong enough."
Vegeta sighed. "When did they stop?"
"I still have them once in awhile, but they became a lot less when I turned 11...actually it was after that day."
"What day?"
"Aw, Dad...this is too weird. I can't tell you any more. It hasn't happened for you yet..."
"Trunks, I want to know! I don't want you to live the rest of your life with these memories! I can't change your past unless I know now what to do!"
"I was watching TV and I had learned by then to give you full attention when you walked in the room. I got yelled at less that way. So I turned off the TV and asked if you wanted me to do anything and you said you wanted me to listen."
"...Yes, and what else?"
Trunks sighed. He hated revealing this. "You said you'd wasted the last 10 years where I was concerned and it had to stop and I needed to know that...well...how am I supposed to say this?"
"Just spit it out!"
"You said it was something you'd wanted to say for a very long time and you just couldn't bring yourself to do it..."
"Are you saying...is that the first time I told you...," Vegeta fought himself to say the words, "the first time I said I love you?"
Trunks eyes widened. "...Yes."
Vegeta looked away, feeling completely drained. "I spent two...or THREE...years trying to spit that out? Three years that I'm yelling at you all because I can't bring myself to say what I should have been saying from the day you were born? Trunks...come here."
Trunks turned his vision back to his father. He didn't want to go. It was too strange.
"For heaven's sake, come here! I want to tell you something!"
He wanted to say he could hear from where he was, but he didn't. Instead he stood and took a few steps toward his former father.
Vegeta wrapped his arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug. "Your past is going to change. When you return to your own time, you'll find you have completely different memories of those years. And they will be much better."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I'm pretty good about posting new chapters rather frequently, but I'm also working on "For The Love of a Child" and I've got a whole bunch of people waiting on it, so it's got first priority. Bear with me if it takes a little while to get another chapter of this out. It definitely wont take more than a week. Likely it'll only be a few days at most. BTW: This fiction is close to done so there really wont be THAT many more chapters of it... Probably only 2 or 3 more.
The teenager stared at him with a smirk, remembering all too well how he'd used to feel about being left out at that age. "I doubt its anything that interesting really," he placed the baby in his playpen.
"Yeah well I'm sick of being left out of everything!"
"You'd just get yelled at if you went out there anyway."
"I'm sick of that too!"
"I know, I remember. This is when Dad went through his transitioning phase, I think. He was always real snippy and I got in trouble for absolutely everything. Don't worry, it'll pass and then things will get better."
"When?" the nine year old placed one hand on his hip and tilted his head.
"When you're 11."
"Eleven! I can't wait that long!" Trunks complained. "You're telling me I won't be able to breath without getting yelled at until I'm 11?!"
"Chill! You're only getting yelled at because Dad feels guilty for ignoring you in the past. I think these are the years he's working through that and then your relationship will get a lot better."
"Well that's sure a funny way of showing it!"
"What's going on in here!" Vegeta's eyes were angered as he opened the door.
"It's me! It's all my fault...for the next two years!" nine year old Trunks followed his arms, looking at his older counterpart.
"Hey, I told you that in confidence!" the teenager was somewhat indigant. "I should have known I couldnt' keep a secret at that age!"
"Enough. You, come with me, you two stay here. And watch that baby!"
The oldest Trunks followed Vegeta into the kitchen and sat down across the table from him.
"Now what is going on? What are these bad years you keep talking about?"
"Oh...that's when I was between 8 and 10. It got better when I was 11."
"Why are they bad?"
"Because everything Idid was wrong and I got yelled at all the time," Trunks told him part of it, but ignored the other part. He hadn't ever told anyone more than that.
"What?"
"I figure now it must have been because you were going through a transitioning time or something."
"You're not telling me everything. I need more information in order to piece this together."
"I'm just not used to talking about this kind of thing. Don't you think it's kinda...dumb?"
"Forget what I think. Tell me. That's an order."
"Well...I guess it started with the Majin Buu stuff when I was eight and after you first said...well...you know what you said, Dad! Before you died. Anyway, I was preoccupied with that ever since and I was trying to...I don't know...gain your approval maybe?" Trunks rolled his eyes. "It sounds really stupid. I guess I just didn't know what you wanted from me and everything I did was the wrong thing. Either that or you just couldn't stand me."
Vegeta stared at him. He'd gone back to fix his child's life and yet he never realised he was right in the middle of making it awful as they spoke. "Go on."
"Night time was really bad though because I had really bad nightmares for the next couple of years. I didn't tell anyone...especially not you because I thought you'd be ashamed," Trunks looked away.
"Trunks, look at me. Why would I be ashamed?"
"Because they scared me...and sometimes I even cried," he looked down again. "I was sure you'd be ashamed to have such a wimpy son."
"What were these dreams about?"
"Lots of things really, but the worst ones were usually about Majin Buu eating mom and killing you...or sometimes I was fighting him and he was winning and you were watching in the background laughing or doing nothing. Or yelling at me for not being strong enough."
Vegeta sighed. "When did they stop?"
"I still have them once in awhile, but they became a lot less when I turned 11...actually it was after that day."
"What day?"
"Aw, Dad...this is too weird. I can't tell you any more. It hasn't happened for you yet..."
"Trunks, I want to know! I don't want you to live the rest of your life with these memories! I can't change your past unless I know now what to do!"
"I was watching TV and I had learned by then to give you full attention when you walked in the room. I got yelled at less that way. So I turned off the TV and asked if you wanted me to do anything and you said you wanted me to listen."
"...Yes, and what else?"
Trunks sighed. He hated revealing this. "You said you'd wasted the last 10 years where I was concerned and it had to stop and I needed to know that...well...how am I supposed to say this?"
"Just spit it out!"
"You said it was something you'd wanted to say for a very long time and you just couldn't bring yourself to do it..."
"Are you saying...is that the first time I told you...," Vegeta fought himself to say the words, "the first time I said I love you?"
Trunks eyes widened. "...Yes."
Vegeta looked away, feeling completely drained. "I spent two...or THREE...years trying to spit that out? Three years that I'm yelling at you all because I can't bring myself to say what I should have been saying from the day you were born? Trunks...come here."
Trunks turned his vision back to his father. He didn't want to go. It was too strange.
"For heaven's sake, come here! I want to tell you something!"
He wanted to say he could hear from where he was, but he didn't. Instead he stood and took a few steps toward his former father.
Vegeta wrapped his arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug. "Your past is going to change. When you return to your own time, you'll find you have completely different memories of those years. And they will be much better."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I'm pretty good about posting new chapters rather frequently, but I'm also working on "For The Love of a Child" and I've got a whole bunch of people waiting on it, so it's got first priority. Bear with me if it takes a little while to get another chapter of this out. It definitely wont take more than a week. Likely it'll only be a few days at most. BTW: This fiction is close to done so there really wont be THAT many more chapters of it... Probably only 2 or 3 more.