~All I Need For Christmas~
Videl spent Friday and Saturday at the Son house. After thawing off the river with ki blasts, Gohan, Goku and Goten had all wanted to go swimming, and Videl had been dragged into it. The water had been absolutely ice-cold, and she was in a bikini, but after five minutes or so her body was numb anyways, and she couldn't tell if she was cold or not.
Gohan was at the table eating lunch with his family. He and Videl were going to go swimming again later that day. The phone rang, and Chichi stood up to get it.
"Hello, Son residence... Oh hi Videl! Yup, Gohan's right here," Chichi said, handing the phone to Gohan, who was already standing at her side, waiting for the phone.
"Hi Videl!" he said cheerfully into the phone. His wide grin suddenly faultered and his joyous voice lowered to an almost inaudible whisper. "They have the results?.. They want you to come in to recieve them?... You want me to go with you?... Yes, I-I'll stop repeating you... It's just a bit to take in. Alright, don't worry, I'll be there for you. Shh... I'll be right there... Meet you at the hospital? Got it... Yup, I can be there in five minutes. See ya," he whispered into the phone. His eyes closed tightly as he hung up the phone.
"Gohan, do they know if she ha-" Goku asked. He was cut off in mid-sentence.
"Yes... But they won't tell her any of the results over the phone. They want her to go there and recieve them herself. Damn it!" Gohan cursed as he walked out the door, flying at an exhausting speed toward the hospital.
Chichi stood up and closed the door, which Gohan had left swinging wide open. "Well, I suppose we'll all have our answers soon..."
~The hospital~
Gohan landed softly in an alley and walked out to the front entrance of the hospital. Videl was already waiting for him, and when she finally saw him she ran forth, a few stray tears making their way down her pale cheeks. She threw her body against his, and a few seonds later he was rocking her, not caring who saw him. It was the entrance to a hospital, anyways. Would it really be that weird to see to lovers comforting each other? Apparently not as almost no one gave them a second glance.
"Shh..." he crooned into her ear. "Don't worry, I love you no matter what happens. Isn't that all that matters?" he asked. Her head slowly nodded, and they walked into the hospital, Gohan's arm around her waist, and Videl hugging her body ever closer to his.
The receptionist was the same one as the other day, and spotting Gohan and Videl she smirked. Gohan winced as he realized who she was.
"So, you two are actually an item?" she asked, leaning over the desk.
Videl blinked while Gohan blushed. "What do you mean?"
"This guy brought you in the other day, acting like he was gonna die or something with worry, and when I asked him if he liked you as more than a friend, he actually said no! Ha! I may be a blonde, but I'm not stupid. In case if he hasn't told you yet, he's frikkin head over heels for ya," she laughed.
Gohan was shifting nervously as Videl turned to smirk at him. "Hey, weren't you working in the ER on Wednesday?" he asked the receptionist.
She snorted. "Yeah, so? I work in the ER on the weekdays, and I work in General admittance on the weekends. Shitiest hours ever, but I suppose it worked out for a nice laugh this time. Anyways, I suppose you're here for your appointment Videl? Well, sign in here, and then go down the hall, take a left, and enter the sixth door on your right."
Videl nodded and took the papers, signing herself in. "Thanks... I guess..." she said, the previous smirk had left her face to be replaced by a look of something that resembled fear.
The receptionist noticed her look and leaned over the desk. "Hey, don't worry, I got a look at your files already, and, I know I'm not supposed to tell or anything, but it's not bad, but it's not necessarily good either. But don't worry, I think you'll survive."
Videl smiled half-heartedly at her. "I don't know if that's good or bad, but thanks I think," Videl said, pulling Gohan with her along the coridors.
Gohan sucked in his breath as he felt every sensation of the hospital for the second time in a week. He had officially decided something: He hated hospitals. Despised the damned things. They both stopped at the door. Slowly, Videl reached a hand up and opened it, walking down into the long quiet corridor. She walked over to a young man seated at a desk.
"Excuse me. My name is Videl Satan and I'm h-" she was interupted.
"Oh, you're Videl Satan. You look a bit different than your last publicity appearance... You know, at the tournament?" he said.
"Umm... Yeah, but anyways I n-" she was interrupted yet again.
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Hold on while I page the doctor," he muttered, pressing a button on an intercom and calling for Lucy. Quiet footsteps were heard from a the room one door down.
"Hey, lazy-ass," came the young doctor's voice. "You don't need to page the whole damn hospital for me, I'm not even fifteen yards away!" she yelled. Turning to Videl she smiled. "You must be Videl Satan. I'm Dr. Fikkin, but please call me Lucy, 'cause if you've ever studied German you know what that means. Anyways, please come into my office and we can discuss some of these results," she eyed Gohan carefully. "Is there any particular reason that you'd like him to come, or can he stay out?" she asked.
"He's coming. That's final, I don't care what you say..." Videl growled.
The Dr. held up her hands. "Don't worry, he can come, I just needed to ask. follow me," she said, leading them farther down the hall.
Videl's grip on Gohan's hand was so tight at this point that his hand was nearly broken. Slowly, he tugged it away from her a bit, and she caught the hint. Her grip loosened... Slightly.
"Videl that woman said you didn't have much to worry about, calm down," he whispered.
Videl's cheeks flushed slightly, but her grip did loosen more. Lucy lead them into a quiet office, and she shut the soundproof door. She waved for them to sit down as she sat down in a chair. They sat, both of them nervous as they held hands over the chairs.
"Alright. There's some good news and some bad news, but over all you were pretty lucky," she said, eyeing Videl as she pulled out a file stacked with papers. "One thing we did find out that you may be happy to hear is that you're not pregnant. I don't know if that had crossed your mind, but it was a pssibility."
Videl choked for a second but then leaned over, resting her head against Gohan's shoulder. "Thank god..." she whispered.
"I'll let you see the blood tests for yourself," Lucy added, handing the folder to Videl.
Videl stared at the manila paper in her hands. "Umm... Gohan, you look, okay?" she asked. She gently pushed the papers into his hands.
Gohan stared at it, but soon his trembling hands opened it, and his eyes scanned over the results. Hundreds of emotions crossed over his features. At first it appeared to be relief, then surprise, then fear, then, as Gohan seemed to think something over, he became apprehensive. Gulping he tried to stop the small beads of sweat from running down his face. "W-we-well, Videl, I don't think it's actually th-that bad... Here," he handed her the papers. leaning over, he whispered into her ear, "Don't worry, no AIDS, got it?"
The second she heard this, she smiled, and opened the envelope more willingly this time. Glancing over it, she spotted something she didn't quite understand. "Syphilis?" she questioned. "I've heard of it, but barely..."
Dr. Fikkin (Bwahahaha!) smiled. "Syphilis is another sexually transmitted disease, but this one is bacterial, and actually very rare. It is deadly, but only sometimes, and that only happens to a small percentage of people who contract it."
Gohan squeezed Videl's hand gently. "I actually read about it somewhere, and it's completely curable, you just need to catch it. Actually, if I'm not mistaken, then you still may not have Syphilis, 'cause sometimes you'll get positive results when you don't even have it."
The doctor blinked at Gohan for a moment. "Is there any particular reason that you seem so knowledgeable about it?" she asked, quite suspiciously.
Gohan laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "Nah, my mom just hasn't let me stop studying for the past 7 years, it's kind of hard not to learn at least something."
"Right. Anyways, it's true that false positive and negative results can appear. That's we're gonna take a bit more of your blood and give two samples to two different experts. That way, we can have two opinions. Oh, and you can take the bandages on your arms, legs and stomach off. I see you decided to stop using the crutches before we dubbed it safe," Lucy said pointedly.
Videl crossed her arms and growled. "I didn't need the damn things anyway," she muttered.
"I'm sure you didn't think you did. Anyways, seeing as we can't officially diagnose you with Syphilis yet, I'd like to take some samples of your blood," turning to Gohan she spoke. "You, sir need to leave. I have some things to ask Miss Satan, and I don't care who you are, you can't and don't want to hear them. I'll also need to look at a part of her body that I pray you've never seen, if only ever in your dreams."
Gohan's face paled. He must have lost at least nine shades of color. Slowly he turned to Videl to find her laughing. Shaking, he stood up and nearly ran from the room. Curious as to what he must have gotten himself into, he walked out the door that had originally lead them into the hall. He glanced up at the sign above it and read it.
~Gynecology Lab
` ` ` ` ` Dr. Lucy Fikkin
` ` ` ` ` Dr. Michael Shuft
~
Gohan gulped as he stared at it, and slowly leaned against the wall. He decided that he could let Videl come out of the corridor. She didn't need his support anymore anyways, besides, if he went back in there, he'd faint.
Videl walked back out, the smallest hint of a smile on her face.She knelt down near Gohan so that she was level with him. "Hey Gohan, you ready to go?" she asked. Her voice was small and distant, and Gohan looked up to study her face.
"What's wrong, Videl?"
"Nothing's wrong Gohan, why'd you think something was wrong?" she paused, "Sooo... I don't have AIDS?" She asked as though she were unsure, even though she knew that she didn't.
Gohan blinked. "No... You know that..." he finally stood up, taking Videl with him. His hands were resting on her shoulders. "And Syphilis can usually be cured, even if you do have it..."
Videl suddenly shrieked, throwing her entire body into Gohan's arms. She began sobbing against him, and he could do nothing except for blink in utter confusion.
"Videl, what on earth could be wrong right now?" he asked, pulling her back just enough that he could see her face, as well as the sapphire eyes.
"Nothing's wrong Gohan. Nothing at all..." she suddenly grinned. "I'm just relieved, that's all..."
"Oh... Well, do you want to come to my house? My parents have been waiting almost as anxiously as I have to know if you have AIDS," Gohan suggested.
"Umm... Sure..."
* * *
It was New Year's Eve, and Gohan lay on the couch, drumming his fingers across his knee until they were going numb. Hercule was throwing a New Year's Eve party, and he told Videl that she at least needed to make an appearance. Gohan and Videl did make plans, but they weren't getting together until eleven.
Gohan glared at the clock. 10:09, it read. He wouldn't even need to leave to pick her up until 10:45. There was another party with all of his family, but this time it was right at his house, and Gohan was left in a corner, waiting for the moment to leave and bring Videl back with him.
The phone rang, and Gohan fled to it, desperate for anything to tear him from the 'party', which consisted mostly of his friends and family talking, and Goten and Trunks plotting some disturbing mischief. He reached the phone and picked it up.
"Hello, Son residence."
"Gohan, please... Come now!" Videl's voice panted over the phone. A pure terror was in her voice, and she was breathing as though she were almost too scared to speak.
"Videl? What's wrong?!" Gohan yelped.
"Gohan, please, just come... AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! No! Get the hell away from me! Hey give me that, th- GOHAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" this was the last thing Gohan heard before the line went dead, but it sounded more as though the line was cut than that the phone was hung up. Gohan felt a deep sense of foreboding, and before the average human eye could follow, Gohan was out the door and on his way to Videl. None of his emotions separated themselves from one another, they all seemed to resemble fear.
~The Satan Mansion~
The phone was torn from Videl's hands as a group of perverted young men decided that it was about their turn to grab some of Videl. They were in a remote room of Satan mansion, and not a sound could be heard from this room, that's why Videl was there when she wanted to be alone.
She shoved one of them from her way and ran across the room, but with every motion she became more and more terrified, and when they began advancing on her, she found that she couldn't seem to fight back. All her knowledge of how to fight seemed to have been replaced by sheer terror. She could only think one thing. 'Please no, Please not again.' she repeated this chant in her head, and was soon mumbling it out loud.
There were seven or eight young men in this group. They varied in size, but they all had the same appearance, the same smell, and the same thing on their minds, however small those might be. The tallest one backed Videl into acorner, and watched with a sadistic pleasure as she whimpered. He placed his hand on the neck of her low-cut tank top, and then slipped it underneath. Videl's response to this was to jump away and fly off, but as she leapt up, she was pulled back down again. A hand was placed on her inner thigh, and she spun around, elbowing the culprit out of pure fear now, no longer by fighting instinct.
A shriek was elicited from her mouth as a blade was placed against her throat. The person who held the knife then procedded to slip his hand down her pants, earning him a kick in the groin. But as each one tried but failed to take her, she was weakened more by fear. By now she was crying as she tried to fight, although it was down to three of the original seven. She suddenly dropped down onto her knees, curling into a ball. She had reached her submission point, and she couldn't handle it anymore.
The leader of the group reached down to the frightened girl and dragged her away from the corner. He didn't seem to care for wasting time, and in a second he had pulled her pants and underwear down to her ankles, and was undressing himself. But he never had the time to finish, as before he had even the time to blink he was literally through the wall to the next room.
Videl was too scared to really recognize what had happened, or what was happening, but she collapsed again, crawling into a corner and pulling her clothes back onto her body. Whatever had stopped him from finishing was fine with her. She heard the remaining two of her attackers scream, and she was vaguely aware of them being thrown into the wall with the original, but none of it made sense. Videl's eyes closed as she wailed. She couldn't seem to stop, even when a pair of strong arms picked her up and carried her outside.
"Videl, Videl, c'mon, open your eyes. It's Gohan," a quiet voice whispered in her ear.
Opening her eyes, Videl realized that she was in Gohan's arms, floating outside the mansion. "Gohan," she whimpered. "Gohan, I'm sorry."
"What are you sorry for?! I'm sorry I wasn't there earlier. Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked, landing on the roof to her mansion.
"I-I'm sorry I didn't fight back... I... No... I'm not hurt..." she curled against Gohan's chest, pulling herself as close to his warmth as she could.
"Shh... It's okay... I told you I'd never let that happen to you again, and I still won't, understood?"
Videl swallowed many times, but eventually calmed herself enough to look up into Gohan's eyes, only to find them looking back into her own, filled with concern.
"I-I'm fine... Just... Just hold me, please," she cried.
Gohan's arms held her close, his own eyes held tears that he wouldn't allow to fall. "Videl... I don't want you starting to feel bad about yourself again, understood? You're perfect, and any man who can't see that and respect you for it, is.. Well, an idiot," he paused, "You're my perfect angel." One of his hands gently lifted her chin, and he pulled her into a gentle kiss. "Why don't we go back to my house? There's a party going on, and if you don't want to stay there, I'm sure we could find some quiet place to sit... You've probably had enough of this place anyways."
Videl's arms slipped around Gohan's neck, and she pulled herself against his body. "I don't feel like flying right now... Why don't you carry me?" she asked, a furtive smirk on her face.
"Uh...Umm... Ar-Are you sure?" Gohan asked as she leaned her head against his chest.
"Mm hmm..."
Gohan grasped her waist and took off in the direction of his house at a rather slow speed. He wasn't in any rush to get back there, he really just wanted to get Videl away from her house. He just wanted to keep her safe, and he knew that she'd at least be safe at his house... Unless of course Goten and Trunks decided to blow the house up, but that was no big deal, at least not if you're used to dealing with them.
Gohan landed softly in their yard sometime later. There was still some activity going on inside the house, but it appeared to have died down. Gohan lowered his energy, and he was thankful when Videl caught the hint and followed suit. He grasped her wrist and tried to sneak in through the back door without being noticed, for he didn't really want her to have to face the questioning of his friends, but with no such luck.
"Hey Gohan, Videl! Gohan what happened, why'd you leave so early?" Goku asked, coming up to them, a wide grin splitting his face.
Gohan was amazed at how oblivious his father could be sometimes. "There was some trouble at Videl's house, that's all, and I went to go get her a little earlier," Gohan responded.
"What kind of trouble?" Goku asked, his smile never once faltering.
Gohan's sigh was only audible to Videl. "Just... Umm... It was just bad, okay?" Gohan asked, looking pointedly into his father's eyes, trying to give him a silent hint. Goku didn't get it, but he did leave them alone, mostly to go find more food though. Grasping Videl's wrist Gohan lead her upstairs and toward his room. They slipped silently into his room, and Gohan closed the door behind them. Gohan finally looked back into Videl's eyes.
Tears brimmed the corners of her eyes, but still she didn't cry. Gohan wondered what was wrong this time, she normally wouldn't cry in public, but she was never afraid to show her emotions around him. Gently, one of Gohan's hands tipped her chin in his direction, but still her eyes wouldn't meet his.
"Videl, what's wrong?" Gohan questioned gently.
"N-Nothing... I-I-"
"Don't lie to me, please? Even I'm not that naive. You couldn't say anything that would make me think any less of you, so what are you afraid of?"
Videl's heart jumped, but still she held fast. "I... Gohan, I was scared. Damn it! Why'd I have to be so afraid? I could barely fight back because of it. I'm not used to being so scared... I don't like it..." The tears that had been threatening to fall, were now threatening even more. A single tear slipped down her cheek, but it was wiped away by Gohan's hand before it could travel the length of her cheek. Videl looked up sharply when she heard Gohan laughing. "What's so funny?! I thought I could trust you!"
"Sorry Videl, it's just, you need to stop being so proud for a second. So you were afraid, so what? It's not a crime, in fact, in your situation, it would seem weird for you not to be scared. Come on, whether you like it or not, you're human, and no matter what else I am, I'm human too... It's not that weird to show emotion you know, and sometimes you just need to let it out," he said, smiling warmly at her.
Knowing he was right, she closed her eyes, fighting inside herself. Eventually, she just gave up and let the dam break. Crystals poured as though through a waterfall from her eyes. She cried into Gohan's chest, and she could feel his hand rubbing her back soothingly. Looking up, she felt Gohan's hand wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Gohan," she muttered, her voice thick and hoarse, "Why couldn't all men be like you?" she asked quietly, leaning into his arms.
"'Cause then you'd never be able to choose," Gohan laughed. He pulled her with him over to the bed, where he lay across it, leaning on the wall. Gently he pulled her down to join him, her body laid across his own. He rubbed her shoulder while she relaxed against him, playing with the strap of her tank top. He finally noticed something and stared at her stunned. "V-Videl, what happened?! Why are you dressed up?! You... Uhh..." he said, finally realizing what she was wearing.
She had her hair pulled back with a silver butterfly barette, her hair having grown just barely long enough to hold one. There was the tiniest hint of blush on her cheeks, but no mascarra, for her lashes were full enough. Moving down, her shirt was a tank-top that hung low, loose around the neck, but tight around her stomach. Her pants were black and silky, tight around her thighs, but large and bell-like at the bottom. A slit ran up to her knee on each of the legs, simply adding to the flare. This entire ensemble was topped off with earrings, the tennis bracelette, and strappy black sandals.
"Do I really look that bad?" she inquired quietly.
"Bad?! Uh... No! I-I'm just not used to seeing you look like this. It's really not your usual choice of attire, ya know? Why'd you decide to change all of a sudden?" Gohan asked, continuing to blink at her.
She sat up a little bit, but looked away from him, deciding instead to study the blanket that she was sitting on. "I... Uh.. Umm... Well, you see, I actually just wanted to know what you thought of me like this. I mean, do you like me better in baggy clothes, or in this?"
"Why should I care? It doesn't matter to me what you look like... I mean, yeah, you look really nice like that, but you do in anything you wear, and even if you didn't, I wouldn't care..." he tipped her chin gently towards him, and their lips met in a passionate kiss. Gohan's hands rested on her lower back, pulling her gently toward him, while her arms were wrapped around Gohan's neck. Their tongues were soon in the other's mouth, but neither wanted to break the fiery embrace. Not much later, though, Gohan's lips left Videl's, only for his lips to kiss down her jaw and neck, and end up at her collarbone. He gently nipped the sensitive flesh at the base of her neck, and then sucked on the wound. He looked for any sign of emotion from her, but couldn't find anything. He noticed her hands were tense though, and he moved back up to her lips, not continuing to where that might have lead.
Videl pushed back just a bit, and studied Gohan's eyes quietly. "Gohan..." she muttered.
"Hmm?" he mumbled.
"W-Why'd you stop?" she asked, her voice not even a whisper.
"You didn't want me to go on..." Gohan said, slightly confused.
"Well... No, but I would have let you... I-If you had wanted to.."
"But you would've wanted me to stop... So why wouldn't I?" Gohan grinned, "I wouldn't force you to do anything that you didn't want to do, especially something like that."
Videl closed her eyes, before laying herself out across his body. Her eyelids closed, and as she was falling asleep, she was almost sure she felt Gohan kiss each of her eyelids, but she was tired... She just might have been dreaming.
Gohan had nearly fallen asleep as well, but he decided to make it at least slightly more comfortable for them both. He pulled Videl's shoes from her feet and deposited them on the floor, as well as his own. He then pulled the blankets from under them and covered their bodies with it. The only thing he didn't change was Videl laying in his arms.
* * *
Videl awoke to a warm feeling spreading through her body, followed by the realization of where she was and who she was with. For a split second she tensed up, and this was all it took to awaken Gohan.
"Huh? Wha- Videl?!" Gohan's groggy mind seemed to slowly process everything. "Oh... Uhm... G'mornin'?" he offered.
"Hmm? Well, that depends, are you gonna keep holdin' me?"
"Uhh... Would that make it a good mornin'?" Gohan asked, his brain still barely moving.
"Mm-hmm..." she responded.
"Then yes, I will..."
* * *
Gohan glared at his book. He'd decided to look through one of his science books to research Syphilis again. He'd found many things out that he had forgotten, one of the most important ones being the percentage of people who the cure worked for. Nothing was foolproof as Gohan knew, and he also knew that there was a small amount of people who couldn't be helped, simply because their bodies couldn't destroy the bacteria, even with the help of medication. Most of these people had an immunity deficiency, but it wasn't unheard of that a completely healthy person would get Syphilis, and they'd eventually die from it, even with treatment. Gohan continued glaring at the page he was on, which stated that there was a 97.9% success rate.
Most people would take this as a good sign, in fact, most would consider this the best news that they'd ever recieved. Pessimist or not, it was hard not to feel good with odds like that on your side. Gohan, on the other hand, felt that with the way his life always seemed to work out, Videl would end up being part of the 2.1% percent for whom the cure wouldn't work. He didn't even know if she had Syphilis yet, for they hadn't recieved the results yet, and yet he was already condemning her to death.
A phone ringing snapped him from his reverie. He dropped the book and grabbed the phone, temporarily forgetting about what the pages of the reference held.
"Hello? Son residence," Gohan said.
"Gohan, get your ass over here this second," Videl said calmly into the phone, but panic was evident in her voice.
"What?!" Gohan asked, genuinely confused.
"Just do it!" there was a click, and Videl was no longer on the phone.
Gohan blinked at it, but as soon as every thing registered he hung it up and ran from the house, praying that nothing was wrong, particularly something like what was wrong last time. When he reached Satan mansion, he flew high enough over the gates that the guards couldn't see him. He landed not long after and knocked heavily on the door, not as worried as he had been, because he could sense Videl's energy at it's normal level.
The door opened, and Videl stepped out. "Hey Gohan..."
"Videl?! The way you sounded on the phone I thought you were in trouble! What's up?!" Gohan gasped.
"Gohan, I just came back from the hospital... I was gonna call you, but then, I wasn't sure... So, I went alone. Gohan... I do have Syphilis," she whispered.
"What?"
"I h-" Videl was interrupted.
"I... I heard. Videl, I'm sorry," Gohan's hand came up to Videl's cheek and cupped it, as his thumb ran soothingly across her jaw. Videl's hand reached up and held onto Gohan's. Her eyes closed and a few stray tears fell from her eyes. Gohan's spare hand reached up and wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Gohan, I..." Videl started, but she was silenced by Gohan's lips closing over hers. A few minutes later he pulled back.
"Videl, I love you," he whispered.
"I love you too Gohan," Videl whispered. Soon their lips were together again, and they stood in Videl's doorway, their lips locked.
But of course, they were standing in front of the open door, and as Hercule walked past, he nearly had a heart attack.
"BOY, GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!" Hercule screamed, running over to the doorway and waving his arms around in exagerated circles.
Gohan and Videl's eyes met, although they never broke the kiss. Gohan smiled against her lips and pulled his hands off of her, obeying Hercule's command by 'taking his hands off of her'.
Hercule began shrieking unintelligible things at them, (Wait, when has he ever said any intelligible things?) while frantically waving his arms around. Gohan and Videl did eventually pull back reluctantly, and only because they needed air. Hercule glared at the two, his face red and sweaty.
"You, boy! You keep your hands and lips off of my daughter!" Hercule whirled around and walked back inside the house.
Gohan grinned and turned back to Videl. "You know, he didn't wait to see that I agreed."
Videl laughed and pulled Gohan into her living room. She pulled him down onto the couch, then sat down in his lap. She wrapped her arms around his waist while her head leaned on his chest. "They already gave me the dose of Penisilin, and the prescription... I'm supposed to go back on Tuesday... I guess we just kind of have to wait now..."
"Yeah," Gohan's voice was quiet and forlorn, but he chose not to mention what he had found in that book. One of his fingers gently caressed her cheek, and she closed her eyes against his hand. Gohan felt her body relax, and she fell asleep in his arms.
* * *
They returned to school on Monday. All the doctors at the hospital had been forced to sign a confidentiality sheet, and no one had breathed a word about what had happened to the media as of yet. And no one found it odd that Sharpner was continually absent. Erasa was ecsatic about a man who she had met in the Bahamas who happened to live in Japan. They were, of course, going out, and he was all she would talk about. Or sometimes she would simply drift off and begin mumbling his name, and Gohan found that it was eerily familiar, but he didn't know why. Videl even saw the name Rom written all over her notbook... Oh well, Erasa never did take good notes.
Videl went to the hospital on Tuesday, but came back shrugging. When Gohan had asked how it went, she simply sighed.
"They needed to take more blood samples..." she muttered.
Gohan grabbed her hand and gently massaged her fingers. He wanted to say that everything would be alright, that she'd be fine, but he couldn't bring himself to make false promises, and he wasn't sure whether she would survive or not.
Now Gohan sat on the couch, scanning the encyclopedia just for the hell of it, or more because he was bored out of his mind. He made a point of skipping over the entry on Syphilis. Goten was at Trunks' house, and Gohan had over heard their phone conversation. He felt very bad for Vegeta. ^-^; His mother was shopping with Bulma and 18, and his father was sparring at Capsule Corp. Gohan had wisely chosen not to go to Capsule Corp., on the off chance that he was one of the children's next targets.
His head snapped up as Videl's ki signature neared his house. It was lower than normal, but still moving at speeds that Goten could barely even reach as a Super Saiyan. Gohan was stunned for a moment, but soon he had reached the door and was waiting expectantly for her. 'What can be that urgent?! I think this is the fastest she's ever flown.... And that's saying something,' Gohan thought.
Videl dropped to the ground in front of him with her eyes filled with tears and windburns on her cheeks. She was ready to collapse, and Gohan caught her as she fell.
"Videl, what happened?! What's wrong?!" Gohan yelped, bringing her inside and sitting on the couch with her.
"I-I just c-came from the hospital..." she coughed, sitting up more in his lap.
"Wait, Wha-" A sinking feeling entered Gohan's stomach.
"Gohan, I just couldn't wait to tell you, I'm fine!" she shrieked, hugging him again.
Gohan felt ready to die. He had lost sleep over this, and just as all of the percentiles showed him, she'd be alright. He really needed to stop worrying about her. Gohan rocked her back and forth. He was crying as well by now, so he decided to do the only thing he knew to do, and he kissed her. A few minutes later they pulled back.
"Videl, I love you," Gohan whispered.
"I love you too, Gohan," her eyes closed and this is how they fell asleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, so I FINALLY finished. You know, I'm kinda sorry to see this go, but that's one less thing on my mind now. I have some thanks to give....
Thank yous to... Okay, i have 86 reviews, so I'm just gonna thank those of you who reviewed for the last chappy.
Thanks: Anonymous, DEE, Ranting Raving Jess, Tenshi Kami Chrissy, Bunny, Dark Emotionless Shadow, Lok, Village Idiot, Goku02, Holy-knight, and Mason! I have Ideas for a sequel, and If I get 100 reviews, I'll do it...
Peek into the sequel... If you review...
~This will deal with Sharpner's trial, the media out break, and Gohan and Videl's relationship... Plus a little on Erasa's relationship with the mysterious 'Rom' (Anyone know who he is?), and the jury who happens to be siding with... Sharpner?! Oh, and what's this? Videl's pregnant?! That won't help her case any...~
Oh, even if I don't get 100 reviews, I'll still write the sequel if anyone can guess who Rom is...
Besides my sister....
Oh, and Read and Review Bakura Twins ficcy called 'Demon Children Of the UnderWorld.' It's pretty good for her first fic. PLEASE?!
~Videl~ ~Z~
Videl spent Friday and Saturday at the Son house. After thawing off the river with ki blasts, Gohan, Goku and Goten had all wanted to go swimming, and Videl had been dragged into it. The water had been absolutely ice-cold, and she was in a bikini, but after five minutes or so her body was numb anyways, and she couldn't tell if she was cold or not.
Gohan was at the table eating lunch with his family. He and Videl were going to go swimming again later that day. The phone rang, and Chichi stood up to get it.
"Hello, Son residence... Oh hi Videl! Yup, Gohan's right here," Chichi said, handing the phone to Gohan, who was already standing at her side, waiting for the phone.
"Hi Videl!" he said cheerfully into the phone. His wide grin suddenly faultered and his joyous voice lowered to an almost inaudible whisper. "They have the results?.. They want you to come in to recieve them?... You want me to go with you?... Yes, I-I'll stop repeating you... It's just a bit to take in. Alright, don't worry, I'll be there for you. Shh... I'll be right there... Meet you at the hospital? Got it... Yup, I can be there in five minutes. See ya," he whispered into the phone. His eyes closed tightly as he hung up the phone.
"Gohan, do they know if she ha-" Goku asked. He was cut off in mid-sentence.
"Yes... But they won't tell her any of the results over the phone. They want her to go there and recieve them herself. Damn it!" Gohan cursed as he walked out the door, flying at an exhausting speed toward the hospital.
Chichi stood up and closed the door, which Gohan had left swinging wide open. "Well, I suppose we'll all have our answers soon..."
~The hospital~
Gohan landed softly in an alley and walked out to the front entrance of the hospital. Videl was already waiting for him, and when she finally saw him she ran forth, a few stray tears making their way down her pale cheeks. She threw her body against his, and a few seonds later he was rocking her, not caring who saw him. It was the entrance to a hospital, anyways. Would it really be that weird to see to lovers comforting each other? Apparently not as almost no one gave them a second glance.
"Shh..." he crooned into her ear. "Don't worry, I love you no matter what happens. Isn't that all that matters?" he asked. Her head slowly nodded, and they walked into the hospital, Gohan's arm around her waist, and Videl hugging her body ever closer to his.
The receptionist was the same one as the other day, and spotting Gohan and Videl she smirked. Gohan winced as he realized who she was.
"So, you two are actually an item?" she asked, leaning over the desk.
Videl blinked while Gohan blushed. "What do you mean?"
"This guy brought you in the other day, acting like he was gonna die or something with worry, and when I asked him if he liked you as more than a friend, he actually said no! Ha! I may be a blonde, but I'm not stupid. In case if he hasn't told you yet, he's frikkin head over heels for ya," she laughed.
Gohan was shifting nervously as Videl turned to smirk at him. "Hey, weren't you working in the ER on Wednesday?" he asked the receptionist.
She snorted. "Yeah, so? I work in the ER on the weekdays, and I work in General admittance on the weekends. Shitiest hours ever, but I suppose it worked out for a nice laugh this time. Anyways, I suppose you're here for your appointment Videl? Well, sign in here, and then go down the hall, take a left, and enter the sixth door on your right."
Videl nodded and took the papers, signing herself in. "Thanks... I guess..." she said, the previous smirk had left her face to be replaced by a look of something that resembled fear.
The receptionist noticed her look and leaned over the desk. "Hey, don't worry, I got a look at your files already, and, I know I'm not supposed to tell or anything, but it's not bad, but it's not necessarily good either. But don't worry, I think you'll survive."
Videl smiled half-heartedly at her. "I don't know if that's good or bad, but thanks I think," Videl said, pulling Gohan with her along the coridors.
Gohan sucked in his breath as he felt every sensation of the hospital for the second time in a week. He had officially decided something: He hated hospitals. Despised the damned things. They both stopped at the door. Slowly, Videl reached a hand up and opened it, walking down into the long quiet corridor. She walked over to a young man seated at a desk.
"Excuse me. My name is Videl Satan and I'm h-" she was interupted.
"Oh, you're Videl Satan. You look a bit different than your last publicity appearance... You know, at the tournament?" he said.
"Umm... Yeah, but anyways I n-" she was interrupted yet again.
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Hold on while I page the doctor," he muttered, pressing a button on an intercom and calling for Lucy. Quiet footsteps were heard from a the room one door down.
"Hey, lazy-ass," came the young doctor's voice. "You don't need to page the whole damn hospital for me, I'm not even fifteen yards away!" she yelled. Turning to Videl she smiled. "You must be Videl Satan. I'm Dr. Fikkin, but please call me Lucy, 'cause if you've ever studied German you know what that means. Anyways, please come into my office and we can discuss some of these results," she eyed Gohan carefully. "Is there any particular reason that you'd like him to come, or can he stay out?" she asked.
"He's coming. That's final, I don't care what you say..." Videl growled.
The Dr. held up her hands. "Don't worry, he can come, I just needed to ask. follow me," she said, leading them farther down the hall.
Videl's grip on Gohan's hand was so tight at this point that his hand was nearly broken. Slowly, he tugged it away from her a bit, and she caught the hint. Her grip loosened... Slightly.
"Videl that woman said you didn't have much to worry about, calm down," he whispered.
Videl's cheeks flushed slightly, but her grip did loosen more. Lucy lead them into a quiet office, and she shut the soundproof door. She waved for them to sit down as she sat down in a chair. They sat, both of them nervous as they held hands over the chairs.
"Alright. There's some good news and some bad news, but over all you were pretty lucky," she said, eyeing Videl as she pulled out a file stacked with papers. "One thing we did find out that you may be happy to hear is that you're not pregnant. I don't know if that had crossed your mind, but it was a pssibility."
Videl choked for a second but then leaned over, resting her head against Gohan's shoulder. "Thank god..." she whispered.
"I'll let you see the blood tests for yourself," Lucy added, handing the folder to Videl.
Videl stared at the manila paper in her hands. "Umm... Gohan, you look, okay?" she asked. She gently pushed the papers into his hands.
Gohan stared at it, but soon his trembling hands opened it, and his eyes scanned over the results. Hundreds of emotions crossed over his features. At first it appeared to be relief, then surprise, then fear, then, as Gohan seemed to think something over, he became apprehensive. Gulping he tried to stop the small beads of sweat from running down his face. "W-we-well, Videl, I don't think it's actually th-that bad... Here," he handed her the papers. leaning over, he whispered into her ear, "Don't worry, no AIDS, got it?"
The second she heard this, she smiled, and opened the envelope more willingly this time. Glancing over it, she spotted something she didn't quite understand. "Syphilis?" she questioned. "I've heard of it, but barely..."
Dr. Fikkin (Bwahahaha!) smiled. "Syphilis is another sexually transmitted disease, but this one is bacterial, and actually very rare. It is deadly, but only sometimes, and that only happens to a small percentage of people who contract it."
Gohan squeezed Videl's hand gently. "I actually read about it somewhere, and it's completely curable, you just need to catch it. Actually, if I'm not mistaken, then you still may not have Syphilis, 'cause sometimes you'll get positive results when you don't even have it."
The doctor blinked at Gohan for a moment. "Is there any particular reason that you seem so knowledgeable about it?" she asked, quite suspiciously.
Gohan laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "Nah, my mom just hasn't let me stop studying for the past 7 years, it's kind of hard not to learn at least something."
"Right. Anyways, it's true that false positive and negative results can appear. That's we're gonna take a bit more of your blood and give two samples to two different experts. That way, we can have two opinions. Oh, and you can take the bandages on your arms, legs and stomach off. I see you decided to stop using the crutches before we dubbed it safe," Lucy said pointedly.
Videl crossed her arms and growled. "I didn't need the damn things anyway," she muttered.
"I'm sure you didn't think you did. Anyways, seeing as we can't officially diagnose you with Syphilis yet, I'd like to take some samples of your blood," turning to Gohan she spoke. "You, sir need to leave. I have some things to ask Miss Satan, and I don't care who you are, you can't and don't want to hear them. I'll also need to look at a part of her body that I pray you've never seen, if only ever in your dreams."
Gohan's face paled. He must have lost at least nine shades of color. Slowly he turned to Videl to find her laughing. Shaking, he stood up and nearly ran from the room. Curious as to what he must have gotten himself into, he walked out the door that had originally lead them into the hall. He glanced up at the sign above it and read it.
~Gynecology Lab
` ` ` ` ` Dr. Lucy Fikkin
` ` ` ` ` Dr. Michael Shuft
~
Gohan gulped as he stared at it, and slowly leaned against the wall. He decided that he could let Videl come out of the corridor. She didn't need his support anymore anyways, besides, if he went back in there, he'd faint.
Videl walked back out, the smallest hint of a smile on her face.She knelt down near Gohan so that she was level with him. "Hey Gohan, you ready to go?" she asked. Her voice was small and distant, and Gohan looked up to study her face.
"What's wrong, Videl?"
"Nothing's wrong Gohan, why'd you think something was wrong?" she paused, "Sooo... I don't have AIDS?" She asked as though she were unsure, even though she knew that she didn't.
Gohan blinked. "No... You know that..." he finally stood up, taking Videl with him. His hands were resting on her shoulders. "And Syphilis can usually be cured, even if you do have it..."
Videl suddenly shrieked, throwing her entire body into Gohan's arms. She began sobbing against him, and he could do nothing except for blink in utter confusion.
"Videl, what on earth could be wrong right now?" he asked, pulling her back just enough that he could see her face, as well as the sapphire eyes.
"Nothing's wrong Gohan. Nothing at all..." she suddenly grinned. "I'm just relieved, that's all..."
"Oh... Well, do you want to come to my house? My parents have been waiting almost as anxiously as I have to know if you have AIDS," Gohan suggested.
"Umm... Sure..."
* * *
It was New Year's Eve, and Gohan lay on the couch, drumming his fingers across his knee until they were going numb. Hercule was throwing a New Year's Eve party, and he told Videl that she at least needed to make an appearance. Gohan and Videl did make plans, but they weren't getting together until eleven.
Gohan glared at the clock. 10:09, it read. He wouldn't even need to leave to pick her up until 10:45. There was another party with all of his family, but this time it was right at his house, and Gohan was left in a corner, waiting for the moment to leave and bring Videl back with him.
The phone rang, and Gohan fled to it, desperate for anything to tear him from the 'party', which consisted mostly of his friends and family talking, and Goten and Trunks plotting some disturbing mischief. He reached the phone and picked it up.
"Hello, Son residence."
"Gohan, please... Come now!" Videl's voice panted over the phone. A pure terror was in her voice, and she was breathing as though she were almost too scared to speak.
"Videl? What's wrong?!" Gohan yelped.
"Gohan, please, just come... AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! No! Get the hell away from me! Hey give me that, th- GOHAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" this was the last thing Gohan heard before the line went dead, but it sounded more as though the line was cut than that the phone was hung up. Gohan felt a deep sense of foreboding, and before the average human eye could follow, Gohan was out the door and on his way to Videl. None of his emotions separated themselves from one another, they all seemed to resemble fear.
~The Satan Mansion~
The phone was torn from Videl's hands as a group of perverted young men decided that it was about their turn to grab some of Videl. They were in a remote room of Satan mansion, and not a sound could be heard from this room, that's why Videl was there when she wanted to be alone.
She shoved one of them from her way and ran across the room, but with every motion she became more and more terrified, and when they began advancing on her, she found that she couldn't seem to fight back. All her knowledge of how to fight seemed to have been replaced by sheer terror. She could only think one thing. 'Please no, Please not again.' she repeated this chant in her head, and was soon mumbling it out loud.
There were seven or eight young men in this group. They varied in size, but they all had the same appearance, the same smell, and the same thing on their minds, however small those might be. The tallest one backed Videl into acorner, and watched with a sadistic pleasure as she whimpered. He placed his hand on the neck of her low-cut tank top, and then slipped it underneath. Videl's response to this was to jump away and fly off, but as she leapt up, she was pulled back down again. A hand was placed on her inner thigh, and she spun around, elbowing the culprit out of pure fear now, no longer by fighting instinct.
A shriek was elicited from her mouth as a blade was placed against her throat. The person who held the knife then procedded to slip his hand down her pants, earning him a kick in the groin. But as each one tried but failed to take her, she was weakened more by fear. By now she was crying as she tried to fight, although it was down to three of the original seven. She suddenly dropped down onto her knees, curling into a ball. She had reached her submission point, and she couldn't handle it anymore.
The leader of the group reached down to the frightened girl and dragged her away from the corner. He didn't seem to care for wasting time, and in a second he had pulled her pants and underwear down to her ankles, and was undressing himself. But he never had the time to finish, as before he had even the time to blink he was literally through the wall to the next room.
Videl was too scared to really recognize what had happened, or what was happening, but she collapsed again, crawling into a corner and pulling her clothes back onto her body. Whatever had stopped him from finishing was fine with her. She heard the remaining two of her attackers scream, and she was vaguely aware of them being thrown into the wall with the original, but none of it made sense. Videl's eyes closed as she wailed. She couldn't seem to stop, even when a pair of strong arms picked her up and carried her outside.
"Videl, Videl, c'mon, open your eyes. It's Gohan," a quiet voice whispered in her ear.
Opening her eyes, Videl realized that she was in Gohan's arms, floating outside the mansion. "Gohan," she whimpered. "Gohan, I'm sorry."
"What are you sorry for?! I'm sorry I wasn't there earlier. Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked, landing on the roof to her mansion.
"I-I'm sorry I didn't fight back... I... No... I'm not hurt..." she curled against Gohan's chest, pulling herself as close to his warmth as she could.
"Shh... It's okay... I told you I'd never let that happen to you again, and I still won't, understood?"
Videl swallowed many times, but eventually calmed herself enough to look up into Gohan's eyes, only to find them looking back into her own, filled with concern.
"I-I'm fine... Just... Just hold me, please," she cried.
Gohan's arms held her close, his own eyes held tears that he wouldn't allow to fall. "Videl... I don't want you starting to feel bad about yourself again, understood? You're perfect, and any man who can't see that and respect you for it, is.. Well, an idiot," he paused, "You're my perfect angel." One of his hands gently lifted her chin, and he pulled her into a gentle kiss. "Why don't we go back to my house? There's a party going on, and if you don't want to stay there, I'm sure we could find some quiet place to sit... You've probably had enough of this place anyways."
Videl's arms slipped around Gohan's neck, and she pulled herself against his body. "I don't feel like flying right now... Why don't you carry me?" she asked, a furtive smirk on her face.
"Uh...Umm... Ar-Are you sure?" Gohan asked as she leaned her head against his chest.
"Mm hmm..."
Gohan grasped her waist and took off in the direction of his house at a rather slow speed. He wasn't in any rush to get back there, he really just wanted to get Videl away from her house. He just wanted to keep her safe, and he knew that she'd at least be safe at his house... Unless of course Goten and Trunks decided to blow the house up, but that was no big deal, at least not if you're used to dealing with them.
Gohan landed softly in their yard sometime later. There was still some activity going on inside the house, but it appeared to have died down. Gohan lowered his energy, and he was thankful when Videl caught the hint and followed suit. He grasped her wrist and tried to sneak in through the back door without being noticed, for he didn't really want her to have to face the questioning of his friends, but with no such luck.
"Hey Gohan, Videl! Gohan what happened, why'd you leave so early?" Goku asked, coming up to them, a wide grin splitting his face.
Gohan was amazed at how oblivious his father could be sometimes. "There was some trouble at Videl's house, that's all, and I went to go get her a little earlier," Gohan responded.
"What kind of trouble?" Goku asked, his smile never once faltering.
Gohan's sigh was only audible to Videl. "Just... Umm... It was just bad, okay?" Gohan asked, looking pointedly into his father's eyes, trying to give him a silent hint. Goku didn't get it, but he did leave them alone, mostly to go find more food though. Grasping Videl's wrist Gohan lead her upstairs and toward his room. They slipped silently into his room, and Gohan closed the door behind them. Gohan finally looked back into Videl's eyes.
Tears brimmed the corners of her eyes, but still she didn't cry. Gohan wondered what was wrong this time, she normally wouldn't cry in public, but she was never afraid to show her emotions around him. Gently, one of Gohan's hands tipped her chin in his direction, but still her eyes wouldn't meet his.
"Videl, what's wrong?" Gohan questioned gently.
"N-Nothing... I-I-"
"Don't lie to me, please? Even I'm not that naive. You couldn't say anything that would make me think any less of you, so what are you afraid of?"
Videl's heart jumped, but still she held fast. "I... Gohan, I was scared. Damn it! Why'd I have to be so afraid? I could barely fight back because of it. I'm not used to being so scared... I don't like it..." The tears that had been threatening to fall, were now threatening even more. A single tear slipped down her cheek, but it was wiped away by Gohan's hand before it could travel the length of her cheek. Videl looked up sharply when she heard Gohan laughing. "What's so funny?! I thought I could trust you!"
"Sorry Videl, it's just, you need to stop being so proud for a second. So you were afraid, so what? It's not a crime, in fact, in your situation, it would seem weird for you not to be scared. Come on, whether you like it or not, you're human, and no matter what else I am, I'm human too... It's not that weird to show emotion you know, and sometimes you just need to let it out," he said, smiling warmly at her.
Knowing he was right, she closed her eyes, fighting inside herself. Eventually, she just gave up and let the dam break. Crystals poured as though through a waterfall from her eyes. She cried into Gohan's chest, and she could feel his hand rubbing her back soothingly. Looking up, she felt Gohan's hand wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Gohan," she muttered, her voice thick and hoarse, "Why couldn't all men be like you?" she asked quietly, leaning into his arms.
"'Cause then you'd never be able to choose," Gohan laughed. He pulled her with him over to the bed, where he lay across it, leaning on the wall. Gently he pulled her down to join him, her body laid across his own. He rubbed her shoulder while she relaxed against him, playing with the strap of her tank top. He finally noticed something and stared at her stunned. "V-Videl, what happened?! Why are you dressed up?! You... Uhh..." he said, finally realizing what she was wearing.
She had her hair pulled back with a silver butterfly barette, her hair having grown just barely long enough to hold one. There was the tiniest hint of blush on her cheeks, but no mascarra, for her lashes were full enough. Moving down, her shirt was a tank-top that hung low, loose around the neck, but tight around her stomach. Her pants were black and silky, tight around her thighs, but large and bell-like at the bottom. A slit ran up to her knee on each of the legs, simply adding to the flare. This entire ensemble was topped off with earrings, the tennis bracelette, and strappy black sandals.
"Do I really look that bad?" she inquired quietly.
"Bad?! Uh... No! I-I'm just not used to seeing you look like this. It's really not your usual choice of attire, ya know? Why'd you decide to change all of a sudden?" Gohan asked, continuing to blink at her.
She sat up a little bit, but looked away from him, deciding instead to study the blanket that she was sitting on. "I... Uh.. Umm... Well, you see, I actually just wanted to know what you thought of me like this. I mean, do you like me better in baggy clothes, or in this?"
"Why should I care? It doesn't matter to me what you look like... I mean, yeah, you look really nice like that, but you do in anything you wear, and even if you didn't, I wouldn't care..." he tipped her chin gently towards him, and their lips met in a passionate kiss. Gohan's hands rested on her lower back, pulling her gently toward him, while her arms were wrapped around Gohan's neck. Their tongues were soon in the other's mouth, but neither wanted to break the fiery embrace. Not much later, though, Gohan's lips left Videl's, only for his lips to kiss down her jaw and neck, and end up at her collarbone. He gently nipped the sensitive flesh at the base of her neck, and then sucked on the wound. He looked for any sign of emotion from her, but couldn't find anything. He noticed her hands were tense though, and he moved back up to her lips, not continuing to where that might have lead.
Videl pushed back just a bit, and studied Gohan's eyes quietly. "Gohan..." she muttered.
"Hmm?" he mumbled.
"W-Why'd you stop?" she asked, her voice not even a whisper.
"You didn't want me to go on..." Gohan said, slightly confused.
"Well... No, but I would have let you... I-If you had wanted to.."
"But you would've wanted me to stop... So why wouldn't I?" Gohan grinned, "I wouldn't force you to do anything that you didn't want to do, especially something like that."
Videl closed her eyes, before laying herself out across his body. Her eyelids closed, and as she was falling asleep, she was almost sure she felt Gohan kiss each of her eyelids, but she was tired... She just might have been dreaming.
Gohan had nearly fallen asleep as well, but he decided to make it at least slightly more comfortable for them both. He pulled Videl's shoes from her feet and deposited them on the floor, as well as his own. He then pulled the blankets from under them and covered their bodies with it. The only thing he didn't change was Videl laying in his arms.
* * *
Videl awoke to a warm feeling spreading through her body, followed by the realization of where she was and who she was with. For a split second she tensed up, and this was all it took to awaken Gohan.
"Huh? Wha- Videl?!" Gohan's groggy mind seemed to slowly process everything. "Oh... Uhm... G'mornin'?" he offered.
"Hmm? Well, that depends, are you gonna keep holdin' me?"
"Uhh... Would that make it a good mornin'?" Gohan asked, his brain still barely moving.
"Mm-hmm..." she responded.
"Then yes, I will..."
* * *
Gohan glared at his book. He'd decided to look through one of his science books to research Syphilis again. He'd found many things out that he had forgotten, one of the most important ones being the percentage of people who the cure worked for. Nothing was foolproof as Gohan knew, and he also knew that there was a small amount of people who couldn't be helped, simply because their bodies couldn't destroy the bacteria, even with the help of medication. Most of these people had an immunity deficiency, but it wasn't unheard of that a completely healthy person would get Syphilis, and they'd eventually die from it, even with treatment. Gohan continued glaring at the page he was on, which stated that there was a 97.9% success rate.
Most people would take this as a good sign, in fact, most would consider this the best news that they'd ever recieved. Pessimist or not, it was hard not to feel good with odds like that on your side. Gohan, on the other hand, felt that with the way his life always seemed to work out, Videl would end up being part of the 2.1% percent for whom the cure wouldn't work. He didn't even know if she had Syphilis yet, for they hadn't recieved the results yet, and yet he was already condemning her to death.
A phone ringing snapped him from his reverie. He dropped the book and grabbed the phone, temporarily forgetting about what the pages of the reference held.
"Hello? Son residence," Gohan said.
"Gohan, get your ass over here this second," Videl said calmly into the phone, but panic was evident in her voice.
"What?!" Gohan asked, genuinely confused.
"Just do it!" there was a click, and Videl was no longer on the phone.
Gohan blinked at it, but as soon as every thing registered he hung it up and ran from the house, praying that nothing was wrong, particularly something like what was wrong last time. When he reached Satan mansion, he flew high enough over the gates that the guards couldn't see him. He landed not long after and knocked heavily on the door, not as worried as he had been, because he could sense Videl's energy at it's normal level.
The door opened, and Videl stepped out. "Hey Gohan..."
"Videl?! The way you sounded on the phone I thought you were in trouble! What's up?!" Gohan gasped.
"Gohan, I just came back from the hospital... I was gonna call you, but then, I wasn't sure... So, I went alone. Gohan... I do have Syphilis," she whispered.
"What?"
"I h-" Videl was interrupted.
"I... I heard. Videl, I'm sorry," Gohan's hand came up to Videl's cheek and cupped it, as his thumb ran soothingly across her jaw. Videl's hand reached up and held onto Gohan's. Her eyes closed and a few stray tears fell from her eyes. Gohan's spare hand reached up and wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Gohan, I..." Videl started, but she was silenced by Gohan's lips closing over hers. A few minutes later he pulled back.
"Videl, I love you," he whispered.
"I love you too Gohan," Videl whispered. Soon their lips were together again, and they stood in Videl's doorway, their lips locked.
But of course, they were standing in front of the open door, and as Hercule walked past, he nearly had a heart attack.
"BOY, GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!" Hercule screamed, running over to the doorway and waving his arms around in exagerated circles.
Gohan and Videl's eyes met, although they never broke the kiss. Gohan smiled against her lips and pulled his hands off of her, obeying Hercule's command by 'taking his hands off of her'.
Hercule began shrieking unintelligible things at them, (Wait, when has he ever said any intelligible things?) while frantically waving his arms around. Gohan and Videl did eventually pull back reluctantly, and only because they needed air. Hercule glared at the two, his face red and sweaty.
"You, boy! You keep your hands and lips off of my daughter!" Hercule whirled around and walked back inside the house.
Gohan grinned and turned back to Videl. "You know, he didn't wait to see that I agreed."
Videl laughed and pulled Gohan into her living room. She pulled him down onto the couch, then sat down in his lap. She wrapped her arms around his waist while her head leaned on his chest. "They already gave me the dose of Penisilin, and the prescription... I'm supposed to go back on Tuesday... I guess we just kind of have to wait now..."
"Yeah," Gohan's voice was quiet and forlorn, but he chose not to mention what he had found in that book. One of his fingers gently caressed her cheek, and she closed her eyes against his hand. Gohan felt her body relax, and she fell asleep in his arms.
* * *
They returned to school on Monday. All the doctors at the hospital had been forced to sign a confidentiality sheet, and no one had breathed a word about what had happened to the media as of yet. And no one found it odd that Sharpner was continually absent. Erasa was ecsatic about a man who she had met in the Bahamas who happened to live in Japan. They were, of course, going out, and he was all she would talk about. Or sometimes she would simply drift off and begin mumbling his name, and Gohan found that it was eerily familiar, but he didn't know why. Videl even saw the name Rom written all over her notbook... Oh well, Erasa never did take good notes.
Videl went to the hospital on Tuesday, but came back shrugging. When Gohan had asked how it went, she simply sighed.
"They needed to take more blood samples..." she muttered.
Gohan grabbed her hand and gently massaged her fingers. He wanted to say that everything would be alright, that she'd be fine, but he couldn't bring himself to make false promises, and he wasn't sure whether she would survive or not.
Now Gohan sat on the couch, scanning the encyclopedia just for the hell of it, or more because he was bored out of his mind. He made a point of skipping over the entry on Syphilis. Goten was at Trunks' house, and Gohan had over heard their phone conversation. He felt very bad for Vegeta. ^-^; His mother was shopping with Bulma and 18, and his father was sparring at Capsule Corp. Gohan had wisely chosen not to go to Capsule Corp., on the off chance that he was one of the children's next targets.
His head snapped up as Videl's ki signature neared his house. It was lower than normal, but still moving at speeds that Goten could barely even reach as a Super Saiyan. Gohan was stunned for a moment, but soon he had reached the door and was waiting expectantly for her. 'What can be that urgent?! I think this is the fastest she's ever flown.... And that's saying something,' Gohan thought.
Videl dropped to the ground in front of him with her eyes filled with tears and windburns on her cheeks. She was ready to collapse, and Gohan caught her as she fell.
"Videl, what happened?! What's wrong?!" Gohan yelped, bringing her inside and sitting on the couch with her.
"I-I just c-came from the hospital..." she coughed, sitting up more in his lap.
"Wait, Wha-" A sinking feeling entered Gohan's stomach.
"Gohan, I just couldn't wait to tell you, I'm fine!" she shrieked, hugging him again.
Gohan felt ready to die. He had lost sleep over this, and just as all of the percentiles showed him, she'd be alright. He really needed to stop worrying about her. Gohan rocked her back and forth. He was crying as well by now, so he decided to do the only thing he knew to do, and he kissed her. A few minutes later they pulled back.
"Videl, I love you," Gohan whispered.
"I love you too, Gohan," her eyes closed and this is how they fell asleep.
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Okay, so I FINALLY finished. You know, I'm kinda sorry to see this go, but that's one less thing on my mind now. I have some thanks to give....
Thank yous to... Okay, i have 86 reviews, so I'm just gonna thank those of you who reviewed for the last chappy.
Thanks: Anonymous, DEE, Ranting Raving Jess, Tenshi Kami Chrissy, Bunny, Dark Emotionless Shadow, Lok, Village Idiot, Goku02, Holy-knight, and Mason! I have Ideas for a sequel, and If I get 100 reviews, I'll do it...
Peek into the sequel... If you review...
~This will deal with Sharpner's trial, the media out break, and Gohan and Videl's relationship... Plus a little on Erasa's relationship with the mysterious 'Rom' (Anyone know who he is?), and the jury who happens to be siding with... Sharpner?! Oh, and what's this? Videl's pregnant?! That won't help her case any...~
Oh, even if I don't get 100 reviews, I'll still write the sequel if anyone can guess who Rom is...
Besides my sister....
Oh, and Read and Review Bakura Twins ficcy called 'Demon Children Of the UnderWorld.' It's pretty good for her first fic. PLEASE?!
~Videl~ ~Z~