Last Time:
'Gohan,' he thought with unrestrained glee, 'At the end of this you're gone want to turn me into a Dende-ka-bob, but when you try to eat me, you'll choke on me!'
And so, he let out his newly-acquired evil laugh resonate around the lookout, "Muahahahahahahahahah *ick* ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah."
Behind him, Popo felt a shiver run down his spine. 'When he decided to get an evil laugh... he did a very good job."
Krillen and 18 were put in charge of the captives, and they would remain with them until their day was up. Gohan and the others returned to the school, much to Gohan's dismay. With a simple farewell, the Z fighters headed off for another exciting adventure at OSH.
~*~*~*~
Videl and Sharpener walked - albeit slowly – towards the cafeteria. It seems only a few of the students had been infected with "Cafeteria" fever, and so no teachers took notice. Hercule and the Satin city police had been called off; many figured the 'Cell sighting' was a just a false alarm.
So school had continued, minus 20 students, 2 demi saiyans, and a bunch of Career Day presenters. Videl sighed deeply, and stared awkwardly down at her feet. It seemed that the weirdest things ALWAYS happened to her! And none of them seemed to be good.
First, when she was 6, her mother died from strange, unknown disease: The thought still brought tears to her eyes. That caused her father to withdraw into his training gym almost 24/7 – she didn't just lose her mother, she lost her whole family. Then, finally, her father won the World Martial Arts Tournament. That was weird in itself, for at the age of 11, she couldn't exactly grasp the power that her dad had – she had forgotten that he trained in his gym, all she knew was that he left her alone.
And on top of that, suddenly she was thrown into the spotlight, the daughter of the World Champion, the man who saved them all. If they ever invented it, the world would have named her the luckiest girl alive. Yeah, right.
And now all this with Gohan, it was tearing everything she knew upside down. All these things she had deemed reality seemed to be so… fake. But then, when he smiled at her in his goofy way, it didn't seem that bad. Wait, hold up Videl. What am I saying? 'That goofy smile of his?' UH – I shouldn't have let Erasa talked me into seeing all those chick flicks with her. Next thing you know when I ask him out on a date, I'll wear a dress…
WAIT, ASK HIM ON A DATE?! I must be going insane!
Videl snorted to herself, and although it was quite loud, it was lost upon her companion, who was lost in deep though as well. Well, deep for him anyway, which is closer to not-so-deep than deep.
So, um… if Jenna goes out with me on Monday, and Kalyn on Tuesday, and Erica on Wednesday, that leaves me with 3 days to find a date for the dance on Saturday. Oh – I'm sooo cool it's not even funny. I'm irresistible with the ladies!
Scratch that, VERY not-so-deep. Sharpeners thought's are as far away from deep as a five-year-old boy with a plastic shovel trying to dig a hole to China is. End of story.
~*~*~*~*~
Videl shook herself out of her thoughtful reverie as her the cafeteria came into view. For some reason, she felt like she just didn't want to face the rest of the school. That thought puzzled her, for she had no reason to feel that way.
She resisted the urge to slap herself, and lifted her head proudly as she walked into cafeteria. Like it or not, she was the Champ's daughter, and no stupid inner-feeling was gonna make her bashful.
Beside her, Sharpener mirrored her movements, but not for the same reasons. This was Sharpeners world – his kingdom. There were babes to be picked up, nerds to be picked on, and food to throw. Ah, this was the life.
Both she and Sharpener got into the food line, but for some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling. In fact, it was getting louder. Her insides were practically screaming – GET OUT!!! After a long debate with herself, Videl resigned to the fact that this feeling probably wasn't going to go away, and decided to go and reserve a table for her and Sharpener (and Gohan, if he ever came back!) outside.
"Hey – Sharp. I'm not feeling all that great, I'm gonna skip out on lunch today. I'll go outside and find us a table though, okay?" Sharpener began to nod, but it slowly fazed out as a red-head walked by in a mini skirt.
"Sharp?" Videl sighed – this day wasn't going very good not good at all.
"Sharpener… oh Sharpener?" Videl cooed and adopted a sweet face, all the while her 'friend' stared over her shoulder at the swaying hips and barely-concealed butt retreating around the corner. He leaned over a bit to catch a last glimpse of the perfect figure, only to realize he'd bent down so he was eye-level with Videl. A very sweet looking Videl. Unfortunately, in Videl's dictionary, sweet can only be found when compared to sarcastic.
"Paying attention now are we? You know, Sharpener, I've been having a rather tough day, a very frustrating day…"
*GULP*
~*~*~*~*~
Gohan slumped against the tree outside. He and his friends had not been able to find a table large enough to accommodate them; and more importantly, their food. Therefore, they had chosen to set up a blanket underneath the shade of a large tree on the large campus of Orange Star.
He just wanted to get away. If his life could get any worse, he would rather share a room with Cell in HFIL.
Gohan sighed deeply, and glanced upward through the leaves of the tree at the cloudless sky. It seemed that the weirdest things ALWAYS happened to him! And none of them seemed to be good. [1]
It seems his whole life has just been one episode of weirdness after another. He had to rack his brain to think of all the different things that could be classified under 'Weird Shit.' Even so, he probably missed a few.
The Dragonballs, Nimbus, the Power Poll, Piccolo, the dinosaurs, the training, the flying, the friggin' tail… and that was before Raditz. Continuing; Raditz, being an alien, Dad dying, training with Piccolo, Nappa, Vegeta, the Ozaru formation, Dad being wished back, Namek, Frieza and his henchmen, Super Saiyain, being wished back to Earth…Dad's supposed death.
Gohan brought his head forward, only to bring it back sharply against the tree. The tree shook with surprising force, making him flash an apologetic Son Grin at the others, who were busy stuffing there faces. They quickly turned their attention back to the food, and soon as they did, Gohan's grin slipped off his face. He didn't feel like smiling. Reminiscing about the pain of losing his father (and more than once) wasn't exactly the greatest thing to think about. Looking up once more, he tried to focus on the more recent things in life, even if they weren't any normal than the others.
Because, on top of that, suddenly he was thrown into the spotlight, the 'nerd boy' and the object of everyone's attention, both good (girls) and bad (everyone else). He just didn't want it. He wanted to be normal, but he didn't think that would ever happen. If they ever invented it, the world would have named him the most non-normal boy alive. Lucky me..
At least he had some good friends, like Videl. People like her helped keep his less-than-real life at least somewhat stable. She didn't smile much, nor did she offer the warmest company, but he knew deep down that she tried her best, and for that, he valued her company greatly. When she smiled, this life didn't seem that bad…
Hang on – Gohan, what are you thinking!? Dende must be planting thoughts in my mind… right? If Videl knew I was thinking that, she'd want to punch me. Not that I wouldn't mind the close contact – ACK!! Stop thinking those thoughts. I must be going crazy!
Unable to convince himself of anything at the moment, Gohan got up and started his way across the grounds. Oblivious to the cries of 'Where you going?' and 'What are you doing, brat?' he kept going, not really caring where his feet were taking him.
~*~*~*~*~
Videl stomped out of the cafeteria, ignoring the stares of her fellow classmates. They had swarmed around her and Sharpener, but were now clearing a wide path for the obviously pissed off girl.
Sharpener was left behind, a Styrofoam tray (once covered in food) smashed down on his head so that it hung around his neck like a pillory [2]. A black eye was forming in his left eye; the other was covered – as was the whole right side of his face - in what looked like mashed potatoes, gravy, and salad dressing.
Videl took each step deliberately. Forget her previous thoughtful mood. Now she was just pissed. She fumed as she made her way down to the hallway. Unlike in the cafeteria, she wasn't oblivious to the chatter and the gossip that went on behind hands. Most didn't even bother the discretion, but pointed and stared at her.
Videl made her way towards the library; where she found a group of giggling preps, with their over-done makeup, fake smiles, jeans that allowed their ass to fall out when they walked. As she made her way by them, they stopped talking for a moment, allowing her the oh-so-wonderful knowledge that they were sizing her up. She passed them and walked right out of the library, trying as hard as she could to ignore their harsh judgments, which were not whispers.
'Did you see her hair?' 'How primitive!' Laughs 'Does she have to wear the same clothes everyday? Does she wash even wash 'em?' 'Probably not!' More laughs.
~*~*~*~*~
Videl ran into the bathroom, checking herself in the mirror. She didn't look that bad… did she? She tried to hold back tears. No matter how famous she was, no matter how hard she tried… she could never satisfy people. Could never trust them. Could never be herself with them.
After taking a few deep breaths, Videl felt her anger rise. She shoved open the door, and stalked out of the girls bathroom.
~*~
Gohan scowled at the smiling students that he passed. His depressing thoughts had turned into angry ones – an old habit he had yet to break. After the Cell Games, he became somewhat resentful towards everyone and set apart from his friends and family. His newly-found Saiyan powers had their side effects, and his Saiyan temperament became all too obvious. He had gotten over it in time, but he still had his moments. Gohan took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down but falling miserable.
~*~
Videl scowled, her hands balled into fists, she prepared to turn a corner.
And people wondered why she acted anti-social…
~*~
Still scowling, Gohan sharply turned a corner.
And people wondered why he acted anti-social…
~*~
*BANG*
~*~*~*~*~
[1] -
Any of his thoughts seem familiar? It's a random stroke of creativity, not uncreativity! Don't think I have nothing to work on – it's an artistic statement of repetition. Take that Mr. Harrison! XD
M.T. – For all of you that don't know Mr. Harrison, he is a certain someone's *points at S.E.* English teacher who told his creative writing class (And that certain someone) that authors should avoid repetition.
S.E. – *sulks* The jerk! Excuse me for having an opinion! It happens to be in my style! P.
[2] -
A pillory is one of those things that locks your hands and neck in, used in medieval Europe (England, mainly).
~*~
Okay… so notes, yes, it's been a long haul. For me, at least. This chapter isn't the funniest, so bear with me. (As if that wasn't obvious enough.) I needed at least one serious chapter for character build. So, this is it. For your utter enjoyment… Quickie Preview!
~*~
They found… Project 5002. What did it do? Where did it come from? How does it work?
They had no idea, but they name was so cool it just had to be the most awesomest of all awesome thingamabobs.
And of course, today also being one of the best days to torture Gohan *ever* - there was no doubt who was going to be Project 5002's next target. 'Son Gohan, we are Son Goten and Trunks Briefs, all our lives we have searched for the perfect mischief machine. You have killed our fun in the past, prepare to die!'
MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
~*~
From hear we go to… the rest of lunch! And guess who reappears after having been missing for half the story? Find out next time on Career Day!