In the Eyes of a Child

Chapter One - The New Kid on the Block

Gohan's head was still throbbing as he walked towards the Satan Mansion. It had been almost two weeks since the accident they got themselves in, all because of Sharpner's stupidity and insane idea of fun. He sighed heavily, putting a hand on his forehead, as if trying to steady himself. He had insisted to pay Videl a visit since nobody had news of her since she was taken home by her father from the hospital.

When he arrived in front of the mansion, he could hear a few frantic screams and constant clattering of metals. His eyes narrowed slightly as he continued to listen to the sounds that came from the mansion. Heavy footsteps, falling objects and breaking porcelain.

Gohan grew very curious so he immediately rang the doorbell.

Nobody came to get the door.

He was surprised when that happened, for usually the maids in the mansion were very alert in terms of accepting visitors.

He rang the doorbell again.

And that's when a bruised young lady opened the gate, a sheepish smile on the face. "Yes?"

"Uh... what happened?" Gohan could not help asking.

"A little accident in the mansion," the lady replied. "Um... you're here to see Videl? She's..." she stopped to look back at the mansion. "... asleep."

Gohan blinked, then he smiled. "Just tell her that... I came."

"Sure thing," the lady told him.

He thought it was strange, since Videl was usually up early, but he turned around to leave, not wanting to disturb her.

When the gate closed, he heard a scream.

"WHY DID YOU TELL HIM THAT?!" a loud female voice shot in the air, though it seemed... younger. He spun around, his features depicting heavy confusion, when the scream was countered by a thundering male voice that could only belong to Mr. Satan.

"YOU ARE NOT GOING OUT, AND YOU ARE NOT MEETING ANYONE!"

"BUT I WANNA SEE GOHAN-KUUUUUUUUUN!!" the girl whined. "DADDDDDDYYYYY! I WANNA SEE GOHAN-KUUUUUUUUUUN!!!!"

"YOU STAY IN THE HOUSE!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!" the girl continued to whine. "I'M GONNA GO WITH GOHAN-KUN AND I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU SAY!"

Mr. Satan's voice was louder than ever. "FINE! GO WITH THAT GOHAN! I DON'T CARE! GO WITH HIM! TAKE YOUR BAGS, GO!"

"YAAAAAAAAAAYYYYY!!" her triumphant cheer thundered.

Gohan blinked.

The gate opened, and a raven-haired girl rushed out carrying a bag on each hand. The instant she saw Gohan, her expression brightened, and she ran towards him. "GOHAN-KUUUUUUUUUN!!!!" Videl yelled, then tackled him to the ground. "DADDY TOLD ME I COULD STAY WITH YOU! CAN I STAY WITH YOU, HUH, GOHAN-KUN? CAN I, PUUUUUH-LEASE?"

He blinked.

"Are you mad at me, Gohan-kun?"

"N-no, of c-course not," Gohan replied quickly, but he was still dumbfolded at the sight of the girl in front of him.

"So can I stay with you? Puh-lease?"

"I-I guess..."

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!" Videl screamed as she jumped up and down. "I'M GONNA BE WITH GOHAN-KUN! I'M GONNA BE WITH GOHAN-KUN!" she chanted.

"Poor child," Chichi whispered. "And her father's still very harsh towards her. Oh Gohan, you should take care of her! I want you to be by her side every single minute, and do not let her be gone from your sight for even a second!"

Gohan looked at his mother, resenting. "Mom, what if I go to the bathroom? I can't watch over her, I--- Okay, okay," he said quickly as he saw Chichi lift her ultimate weapon. The frying pan.

"That's better," Chichi said as she put the frying pan away, and then she sighed. "I should call Bulma and ask her if she can create a medicine or something for Videl," she told Gohan, but when she went to the living room to make a call, Goten and Videl were having a game of tug-of-war, the telephone stuck in between.

"I'm gonna call Trunks!" Goten blurted out.

"No, I'm gonna call Trunks!" Videl snapped.

"I'M GONNA CALL TRUNKS!"

"NO, I'M GONNA CALL TRUNKS!"

"YOU'RE NOT GONNA CALL TRUNKS COZ I AM!"

"YEAH, WHO TOLD YOU?!"

They glared at each other for a few moments, until Goten tugged with all of his might and he managed to yank the telephone into his hands. He then punched the all-too-familiar number and once it was picked up in the other end, he instantly started chattering. "TRUUUUUUNKS!!! Can you come over?" he paused, and then his excitement appeared as he tried to interrupt the other. "Oh oh oh do you know who's here?! VIDEL!"

Videl grabbed the phone and exclaimed, "HIYA TRUNKS!" Then her smile widened. "I'm here for the summer! Are you gonna come over, huh, are you?"

The demi-saiyajin put his ear close to the telephone, and when they heard Trunks yell of, "MY MOM'S LETTING ME!" they broke into a little victory dance until they stumbled on each other and they fell to the floor.

To keep his thoughts away from his girlfriend-turned-kid, Gohan started reading a very thick dictionary, trying to memorize every word, but to no avail. Videl's screams of, "GIMME GIMME GIMME!" and "MINE MINE MINE!" blew away his focus.

He couldn't help but feel angry towards Sharpner, the cause of their problems. If he didn't let his exciment hormone take over him, they wouldn't have been in an accident. And if they hadn't been in an accident, Videl would have been perfectly sane.

He resumed reading when a loud noise of interrupted him once again, followed by Chichi's furious yell.

"GOTEN! TRUNKS! GET IN HERE THIS INSTANT!"

Goten and Trunks came running to the front porch, where Chichi and Bulma were waiting. And they both didn't look too happy.

"What was that riot you just made?!" Bulma asked, glaring at her son. "I allowed you to come here, but even with me around you still manage to make such a riot! Didn't you put into your head the things I told you before?!"

"But mom---"

"You too, Goten! I kept telling you over and over to be careful when you're playing with Trunks! But look what you've done!" Chichi exclaimed with much anger. She then walked over to a little patch of land, her garden, and turned back to the two boys. "You tell me what you did to my pretty flowers or else I won't give you food for dinner!"

"Mom---"

"I don't want any lies!" Chichi snapped.

"And don't go turning around in circles, go straight to the point!" Bulma added with the same intensity.

"AND NO MORE BUTS!" the two mothers chorused.

"But mom---" Trunks and Goten blurted out together.

Chichi and Bulma stopped to glare at them.

"We did it!" Goten finally admitted, but then he looked at Trunks, as if asking for assistance.

"But it wasn't our idea," Trunks added, getting his best friend's message.

"THEN WHOSE IDEA WAS IT?!?" Chichi asked, bewildered and furious at the same time, ready to cry for what has happened to her garden. It used to be a very pretty one, with all sorts of stunning flowers of various species. But now, it was nothing but a patch of dry soil, the flowers uprooted and foot marks all over the ground.

The two demi-saiyajins looked at each other, Goten relaying an unheard message. Shortly after, Trunks nodded. Then, they both took a deep breath.

"It was Videl's idea."