In the Eyes of a Child
Chapter Three - Kiddy Games, Stupid Pets and Kidnapped Girls
He was on his feet in no time. Her scream just penetrated into his mind, and he was determined to be there for her, no matter how small the matter really was. He saw her huddled at a corner, in tears. Chichi just yelled at her and she was very upset. At first, Gohan didn't know what to do. Sure, he had seen Videl cry before... but he was dealing with another Videl now. He was now dealing with a side of Videl he hasn't seen, a part of Videl that was hidden underneath her headstrong facade.
He stood in front of her, still not knowing what to do.
Then, he sighed, knelt down, and hugged her. "It's alright, Videl. Mom was just upset, you know how naughty Goten and Trunks are. It's alright, don't cry."
"I was just asking a question Gohan-kun," she replied, still sobbing. "And she just yelled at me."
"Now, now, Videl, she didn't mean to yell at you. So don't take it seriously," Gohan said, attempting to calm her down, but it didn't work. Finally, he settled for something that worked wonders on Goten. He just hoped he'll attain the same end with Videl. He held her by the shoulders, and looked straight into her eyes. Then he smiled. "Wanna play? I'm sure mom wouldn't mind if I spend a few minutes away from my books! So what do you say?"
And it sure did it.
Her blue eyes were sparkling with excitement and delight that very moment. "Really, Gohan-kun?! You're gonna PLAY with me?"
"Sure, why not?" he replied. "What do you wanna play?"
She examined the ceiling for a moment, thinking, then she answered, "Tag!"
"Okay," Gohan said, then he helped her up. "Let's go outside and play!"
She quietly followed him outside, and then she shyly called out, "Gohan-kun...?"
"Hai, Videl-chan?" he replied involuntarily, and he was sorta taken aback because he called her Videl-chan. She didn't notice it anyway.
"I... I tried to make something for you," she began to explain. "But Goten and Trunks were so mean and they didn't get me any string... so... here," Videl quickly said as she handed him the bunch of flowers she was holding, and smiled. "I hope you like them."
Gohan grinned as he took his gift. "Ummm... thanks, Videl. I like them very much."
"You do?" Videl asked, brightening.
"Ummm... yeah, I do," he answered, then quickly changed the topic. "So, let's play rock-paper-scissors to determine who'll run and who'll have to do the catching. Okay?"
The girl nodded.
"ROCK-PAPER-SCISSORS!" they both hollered.
Gohan's was a rock.
Videl's finger was pointing on Gohan's fist.
"Uhh... Videl... what's that?" he asked, confused.
"A bullet! Bullets can go through rocks, right?"
Gohan nodded. "Well... yeah, they could, but..."
"So I win! I'll run, you catch me!" Videl exclaimed as she stuck her tongue out at Gohan, then sprinted away.
It took Gohan a second to realize what was going on. When he finally did, he burst into laughter, then he hurried to catch her. Of course, it didn't take him too long to do so. Then it was Videl's turn. However, because of Gohan's natural speed, she had trouble catching him. "Gohan-kun, slow down!" she called out.
Gohan grinned. "No way! You're it, you have to catch me!"
"GOHAN-KUUUUUUUN!! NO FAIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRR!!" she whined.
"Okay, okay, I'll slow down. But only because you asked me to, Videl-chan," he said as he slowed down a bit for Videl to be able to catch him.
And she did. She suddenly tackled him to the ground, and smiled at him triumphantly. "I caught you! Your turn!" she exclaimed, then she stood up and ran away. Gohan stood up and stayed in his position for about 15 seconds, and afterwards, that was when he started going after Videl. "You can't catch me, I'm too fast for you!" he heard Videl chant at a distance.
"We'll see about that, Videl-chan," Gohan told himself as he made a dash for it. He flew up to the sky, then made a sharp landing, reappearing precisely in front of Videl.
She was moving too fast that she was unable to stop, and she ended up bumping into Gohan.
"You're it," Gohan whispered.
She looked up and their eyes met.
And much to Gohan's surprise, her arms were around his neck a few moments after. As if on cue, he followed her lead. He wrapped his arms around her, and lowered his head...
She screamed, then she latched onto him on all fours.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!! GOHAN-KUUUN!!! THERE'S A... A..."
Gohan glared at Goten's pet, a medium-sized lizard, named Squirt. "Go away, Squirt," he ordered, and the lizard began scurrying away.
Great, that lizard ruined it...
"Oh yeah, I'm it!" Videl exclaimed as Gohan lowered her back to the ground. "Run, Gohan-kun! Or I'm gonna catch you in an instant!"
Gohan was still glaring at the scurrying lizard when Videl once again told him to run and hurry before she'd start running after him. He just grinned when he snapped back into reality. "Oh, yeah, I'll... run now," he said as he sprinted away. Damn... that would have done the trick! That would have brought Videl back into her right mind! I saw the look in her eyes, I saw the old Videl! The Videl I was with before the accident! But that stupid lizard... the next time I see him, I'm going to step on him!
He felt a sudden presence behind him, and he leapt into the air.
Videl fell, face flat on the ground.
When Gohan realized what just happened, he went back down and helped her up. "I... I'm sorry, Videl... I thought... someone was trying to... uhhh...."
"GOHAN-KUN YOU CHEATER!" Videl whined. "YOU'RE SOOO UNFAIR!!"
"I-I'm really s-sorry, Videl, I----"
She punched him.
And to Gohan's surprise, her punches were still powerful, for she threw a successive one at the demi-saiyajin in her anger. "You're so unfair, just because you're stronger and more powerful than me!! You're sooooo bad!!! You won't give me a chance!! You're just like Goten and Trunks, you don't care about women, YOU'RE SOOOO SELFISH!!"
"Videl, don't kill me!" Gohan exclaimed as he ran for his life.
Videl was hot on his tail. "CHEATER! CHEATER! CHEATER!" she bellowed from behind him, and then she leapt forward to get him.
She missed, and scratched her knee instead.
Gohan stopped and rushed over to her to check if she was alright, but she just glared at him. Then, she clamped her hand into a fist and attempted to hit Gohan.
The demi-saiyajin dodged it.
"COOOL!" she suddenly exclaimed, the excitement in her eyes apparent. "Gohan-kun, let's play fight instead! Come on! PLEASE?"
"You're not... mad at me anymore?"
Videl shook her head. "No, but if you won't play with me, then I will!"
"Okay, okay," he said, then he put up a mock fighting stance. "Ladies first."
"CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGEEEEEEEEE!!!" Videl bellowed as she ran towards him, but in a flash, she disappeared.
And then her leg hit Gohan's back, sending the young man on his knees.
Gohan winced, then turned to Videl. "Videl-chan, that hurt!"
"Serves you right," she sneered, but he made an abrupt move that Videl was unable to notice. He was holding her wrists now, and he was forcing them behind her back.
"OW OW OW OW OW!!!" Videl shrieked. "Gohan-kun, that hurt!"
"Serves you right," Gohan joked in reply, then he let go and ran off, leaving Videl who was smirking mischievously.
"I'M GONNA GET YOU FOR THAT!!" she yelled, then she started to go after him. He was moving fast, and she chased him from one hill to another, from one meadow to another.
But suddenly, Gohan had a strange feeling that she was going to catch him.
And indeed, she got him.
They were soon rolling down the hill's steep slope, and when they reached a stop, she was on top of him, pinning him to the ground.
"You won't get away this time," she warned as she pushed her face closed to his.
Gohan just smirked up at her, his dark yet inviting eyes attaching to her gleaming blue ones. He was seemingly searching for something beyond that pair of sky blue eyes he was looking out. Then, his smile widened. "I thought you wanted to play, Videl-chan?" Gohan asked. "Pinning me to the ground is hardly fair. Let's see if we can turn the tables a bit."
And with that, he brought his head up a little, and brushed his lips against hers.
Then in one swift movement, he rolled them over, and he got up, still smirking. "How about if we try to play something more... interesting?"
"How about hide and seek?" Videl asked as she sat up, her fingers daintily touching her lips. Her lips that Gohan just touched with his.
Gohan smiled. "Well, whatever you wish, Videl-chan. So, who'll hide?"
"I will, I will, I will!" Videl exclaimed, jumping up and down. "I'll hide, Gohan-kun!"
He nodded. "Okay," he said, then he turned around and covered his eyes. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!"
She was gone, but he could feel her presence. She wasn't too far, just a couple of meters away. Gohan moved slowly towards the tree where Videl was hiding, and he smiled. He quickly moved to grab her, but then he heard another voice.
"NII-CHAN!! GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!!"
He blinked. "Goten? What are you doing here?!"
"Hiding from mom," his little brother answered. "Tattle-tale Videl told her that we transformed and Trunks and I almost got hit with the frying pan. How about you, what are you doing here?"
"Videl and I were playing hide and seek... but it's strange, I can't feel her ki."
Goten shrugged. "Maybe she doesn't have ki," he replied.
"You're kidding," Gohan said, then he sighed. "But that's not the only thing that's strange. How in the world could she suppress her ki? She doesn't know how to that, I mean, completely supress her ki?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Goten blurted out, then he hovered in the air. "Well, I promised Trunks that I'll go to his place, so I'll go now. Good luck in finding her, Nii-chan!"
As Goten flew off, Gohan sighed and continued looking for the girl.
An hour passed, he still couldn't find her.
Gohan began to panic. He didn't know where she was, and he couldn't even sense her. Not knowing what to do, he ran home. "Mom!" he called out as he arrived. "Have you seen Videl?"
Chichi yelled from the kitchen, "I THOUGHT SHE WAS WITH YOU?"
He paled even more.
If Videl wasn't in the house, then where could she be?
He slumped on the couch and shut his eyes, not knowing what to do. They were playing hide and seek when Videl suddenly disappeared without a trace. He felt Videl's power level earlier, but it was Goten who was behind the tree, not Videl. Strange. Very strange.
His eyes opened as Goku entered the house, an extra-large fish in his hand. His father gave him a smile, but when Gohan did not react, Goku immediately knew that something was wrong.
"Hey, Chichi, I've got the fish!" Goku exclaimed, then he turned to Gohan. "Son? What's wrong?"
Gohan looked worried beyond belief. "Videl... she disappeared."
"Nani?!" Goku asked, surprised.
"Yes, and I can't even sense her," the other replied, then he narrated what happened before Videl's disappearance.
The phone rang.
"Hello?" Goku answered, as he was the one closest to the telephone. "Hold on," he said, then handed the receiver to Gohan.
"Who is it?"
Goku shrugged. "I don't know."
Gohan took the phone anyway, then asked, "Yes? This is Gohan."
Silence enveloped the Son house.
Then, Gohan paled.
"Gohan, what's wrong?" Goku asked, looking worriedly at his son.
The younger warrior could not find the voice to speak.
When he finally did, he whispered, "They have Videl."
