Dealing with the past
Hi all. :-) (Peeks around the corner at the angry mob.) I'M SORRY!!! I know I haven't updated in a while but I've been totally preoccupied with my major responsibilities like school and work. I pretty much have everything in order now so I should be able to update sooner.
I don't own Dragonball/ Z/GT but I really wish I did!!! Can't say I own "Someone to Hold" by 112 either. (Sighs and sits on the floor in disappointment)
"…" is spoken, *…* is thoughts, **** is telepathic conversation, #### is flashbacks, is the song. Enjoy!!!!Yamucha quietly slipped out of bed, trying his best not to disturb the woman next to him. As he lifted off the bed she stirred but didn't wake up. He stretch and yawned, then proceeded to the kitchen. As he went down the stairs, he heard the television was at an ungodly volume and turned to some weird cartoon. He smiled as he saw black spiky hair not even two feet away from the television. He continued down the stairs and said,
"Hey little guy. Your gonna hurt your eyes sitting that close to the TV." Goten turned and smiled at Yamucha. He got up and ran to the man. Yamucha held his arms out and caught the little demi-Saiyajin in his arms. Goten nuzzled his head in the crook of Yamucha's neck then said in his broken toddler language,
"G'Mornin' Yam'cha!!! Pikachu is on." Yamucha smiled and ruffled the little boy's head and said,
"Well, go ahead and finish watching him but don't sit so close." He put the toddler down and watched him run back to the television and sit back down in his usual spot, two feet away from the device. He shook his head and said to himself,
"What a kid."
Yamucha entered the kitchen and saw Gohan quietly eating his fourth bowl of cereal. He walked past the young teenager and said,
"Good Morning Gohan." Gohan glared at him and snorted a curt 'hello' back. Yamucha knew not to say much to Gohan on mornings like these. Gohan was usually in a bad mood when he spent the night. ChiChi and Yamucha both agreed that he has come a long way and probably will begin accept the fact that they were in a relationship. Gohan looked at Yamucha then sighed.
*I might as well get used to the fact that he will always be around. It's been two years and he's still here. *
Gohan stopped eating and cleared his throat, breaking the odd silence in the kitchen. Yamucha turned his head slightly, wondering if Gohan was about to start with his usual tirade about ChiChi and him. Instead Gohan said in a low rumble,
"You're not leaving are you." Yamucha turned and looked at Gohan, not sure to be pissed at him or slightly intimidated.
"Um, I will after Goten's birthday party. Why?" Gohan looked at him slightly frustrated and responded,
"That's not what I meant Yamucha." Gohan ran his hand through his slightly unruly shoulder length hair, the gesture making him look a lot older than what he was. "You're not going to leaving mom, are you?" Yamucha leaned on the counter and sighed, thinking he and Gohan were going to have yet another argument. He said in an exasperated voice,
"No, Gohan, I'm not. I'm not leaving her and I'm not leaving Goten. I know you refuse to accept the fact that I'm around for the long haul but you're going to have to live with it. Your mother and brother make me happy and I seem to do the same for them. You may not want to hear it but I love your mom, I love Goten, I even love you although you seem to enjoy making life difficult for me. I've said this before and I'll say it again; I am not trying to take your father's place I just want to be here to love and care for you, your brother, and your mom. Is that okay with you?"
The room became silent and thick with tension. Both Yamucha and Gohan were staring at each other, their faces showing no emotion. The sound of Goten singing the Pokemon theme song very off key could be heard though out first floor of the house. Gohan raised an eyebrow and smirked. Yamucha internally cringed but his exterior didn't change.
*Vegeta is starting to rub off on him.*
Gohan turned and started to eat his now soggy cereal and said in a now slightly squeaky voice, indicating his voice was starting to change,
"I can accept that.", then gave a small, but friendly smile. Yamucha looked at the boy not knowing what to do next.
*What the hell was that!!! I was for sure he was about to start the usual weekly argument. He is becoming very weird. *
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ChiChi stood by the entrance of the kitchen listening to Yamucha's and Gohan's conversation. She was grateful Goten engrossed in his program and hadn't paid her any attention. She knew Gohan was going to be in his mood today and would probably sulk all day but she prayed that he wouldn't start an argument on his little brother's birthday. She listened quietly as a frustrated Yamucha told Gohan he wasn't leaving and heard him say he loved her. She didn't hear too much more after that because her mind when into freak out mode.
*He what!!! He's never said that to me! I know he loves the boys but I thought he just cared for me. Do I love him back? I'm not quite sure.*
"Hi mama!!!" ChiChi quickly turned to see Goten smiling brightly up at her. She lifted the little boy and smiled,
"Good Morning sweetie. How's my little birthday boy?" Goten tilted his head slightly, a gesture that showed he was thinking. He smiled and said,
"I'm three today. I'm okay!" ChiChi laughed although Goten's mannerisms that morning reminded her of Goku. Yamucha walked out the kitchen and Goten immediately jumped in the man's arms.
"Yam'cha I'm three!!!" Yamucha smiled and said,
"That's right champ! Why don't you go and asked Gohan to help you get dress. I'm going to take you to see Trunks in a little bit okay." Goten's eyes lit up at the thought of seeing his friend. He jumped down from the man's arms and ran to his brother. Yamucha and ChiChi watched him leave then looked at each other.
"I'm going to guess you heard the conversation."
"Yeah."
"Well, I'll tell you that was not the response I was expecting. I thought he was going to start yelling again." ChiChi grabbed Yamucha's hand and said,
"Let's just be grateful he's being nice on his brother's birthday. I'm sure he'll remember to continue the argument tomorrow." Yamucha smiled and kissed ChiChi on her forehead. Just at that moment Gohan walked pass them with Goten following close behind. He muttered loud enough for both adults to hear,
"Geez, if you're going to do that go back upstairs." ChiChi turned to give her oldest son a death glare only to find him smiling warmly at her. She smiled back and pulled away from her companion's arms. She then slapped Gohan on the behind and said,
"Go get your brother ready, kiddo." Gohan smiled brighter then looked at Yamucha and back to his mother,
"Yes ma'am."
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Bulma sat at the kitchen table staring directly at Vegeta. Vegeta looked at his mate and continued to eat his breakfast. After a couple of moments he looked at her again only to find she was still looking at him.
"What?" Bulma shrugged her shoulders and blinked but never said a word. Vegeta looked at her and frowned slightly. After looking at her for a couple more moments he decided she was being weird and went back to eating. In the mist of gulping down his eighth bowl of miso soup, Vegeta thought to himself,
*She 's probably working on that damn project again. *
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"Vegeta can you hear me?" Vegeta looked up forgetting to control the emotion on his face.
"So you've learned to talk telepathically. It's about time." Bulma smiled brightly knowing she had accomplished objective #2 in Project Vegeta.
"Now I can talk to you and make sure you don't ignore me." Vegeta smirked and immediately blocked Bulma out of his mind and said aloud.
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"Is that so? I can still block you out when I want." Bulma smirked back at him knowing she had a good leverage on him and said,
"Yeah, but now I could do a double assault on you. You won't be able to ignore me for too long before I drive you crazy." Vegeta looked at his cyan eyed companion and asked in a soft but still commanding voice,
"Why are you so doing this 'Project Vegeta' thing?" He knew the answer he just wanted to hear her say it out loud. Bulma turned a soft, but bright pink and replied as if she was a shy teenage girl,
"How do you know about my project?"
"You leave your silly plans all over the place. Have you forgotten I can read your native language now?" Bulma mentally slapped herself for not thinking he would read what she leaves down. Vegeta's dark brown eyes penetrated Bulma's soul and she blushed a little brighter. She quickly composed herself and said,
"I just want to know you Vegeta."
"You know me."
"You know what I mean."
"Do I?" Bulma rolled her eyes. She sighed and leaned back into her chair and sighed,
"I want to know what you feel towards me and Trunks. I want to know if the 'All Mighty Prince, no, King of Saiyajins' is possible of love outside the bedroom. Are you able to show your mate and son affection outside these walls? Tell me and I'll drop 'Project Vegeta'." Vegeta looked at Bulma and said,
"Maybe." He then went back to his almost cold breakfast.
Bulma looked at him and decided that continuing this conversation was a waist of breath. She got up from the table and start towards the stairs leading to the area her son and father were at. Before she could blink, Vegeta was standing in front of her with his arms folded. She looked at him and started to walk around him, not wanting to have a verbal spar right now. Suddenly, she heard Vegeta say in her mind,
*"Yes I am."* Bulma looked at him wondering if she imagined him talking.
"What did you say?" Vegeta's eyes shifted as if he was embarrassed then he said out loud.
"I am capable of showing affection to you and the boy while in the presence of others. But you know my affections don't come across the way you want." Bulma stepped back to study her common law husband's face.
"Vegeta, I just want you to say it to me once. Please." Vegeta jaw clenched slightly as Bulma waited patiently. After what she felt was a sufficient amount of time she muttered out loud in her scientific, business-like tone,
"Just what I thought." She then walked past Vegeta. He turned and said in a low growl, forcing the words out as if he'd forget them if he didn't say them,
"I love you more than I ever thought possible. You've corrupted me woman. It's not your body I only love, it's also your eyes, your voice, the way you sit at that computing device, the way you cook that god awful food of yours; everything about you. As for the boy, Trunks, he is a miracle you and I created. He is a perfect combination of us; 50% you and 50% me. You two are everything to me."
Bulma quickly blinked back tears that were fighting to some out. She turned to find her mate with an expression that resembled hers. She lifted her hand and touched his face and said almost in a whisper,
"I knew it all along. I just wanted you to say it", she then hugged him. He slowly lifted his arms and circled them around her waist and exhaled a breath he didn't know he was holding. They seemed to stay that way for a good while until they heard two giggles off to the side of them. Bulma turned her head and saw Trunks and Goten peeking around the corner. Vegeta groaned and the couple let go of each other.
Trunks looked at his best friend and said in a childlike whisper,
"They always does that Goten." Goten smiled at his friend and walked around the corner. He looked at Bulma said,
"Mama and Yam'cha was doing that this mornin'. Hi auntie Bulma! I'm three today." Bulma smiled as Trunks said,
"Mama I'm um", he started to hold his fingers up and said very loud, "FOUR!!!" Bulma squinted from the high pitch squeal her son made and said,
"That's right Trunks!" Bulma looked up from her child and god-child and saw Yamucha talking with her mother. He glanced over at her but continue to talk to Mrs. Briefs. Bulma looked at Vegeta and the two young boys and said,
"Vegeta, why don't you take the boys outside." Vegeta grabbed both Saiyajin hybrids and went out the back door without any argument. In actuality he enjoyed watching them at this age. Both boys were mystified by the man and seemed to do anything he demanded.
Bulma walked down the long walkway to the foyer where her mother and ex-boyfriend were talking. Once Bulma got close enough Mrs. Briefs quickly made up an excuse to leave. Bulma and Yamucha stood in the foyer in silence. Neither had really spoken to each other since he and ChiChi revealed their relationship two years ago. Bulma walked over to a picture and adjusted it on the wall. With her back turned to the man she said in the awkward tone,
"So, um, how are you doing?" Yamucha quickly responded in his 'post game interview tone',
"Fine, thank you for asking." Silence quickly returned to vast waiting area as both searched for something to say. Yamucha finally said,
"Um, as I told your mom, either Gohan or myself will pick up Goten and Trunks around 1:30. The birthday party will last a couple of hours and I'll bring Trunks back home. ChiChi said she will feed Trunks dinner also." Bulma looked at the man wondering when he became the responsible adult she was looking at now.
"Um, okay, I'll have them ready then. Yamucha looked down at the marble floor, feeling very uncomfortable around he ex-girlfriend, his current girlfriend's best friend. He turned towards the door and said,
"It was nice seeing you Bulma", then he started out the door. Bulma quickly turned and said,
"Yamucha wait. I want to talk to you. Please come in and sit down." Yamucha didn't turn around as he asked,
"What do you want to talk about?" He heard Bulma sigh and curse under her breath before saying,
"I want to know why." Yamucha turned around to look at the one he thought he would marry and asked in a slightly defensive voice,
"Why what?"
"Why ChiChi? She's my best friend, why not someone else?" Yamucha closed the front door and stepped closer toward Bulma.
"Because I felt in love with ChiChi, that's why. She comforted me when I was upset about you and him," he said as he pointed past Bulma. She turned to find Vegeta leaning against the wall at the end of the long hall. She turn back to Yamucha and rebuttalled,
"So are you doing this as a repay to her? I need to know." Yamucha leaned against a nearby wall and said,
"Bulma, I don't know how to say what I want to say." Bulma frowned slightly and said in the calmest voice possible,
"Yamucha, it's me. Just say what you need to say." Yamucha shuffled his feet and began,
"Bulma I've been in love with ChiChi since the day she and Goku got married. I kept telling myself that it was some weird fetish to be with a married woman, but as time when along I knew it was love. I never tried to act on my feelings because Goku was one of my best friends. But when Goku came down with that heart virus somehow ChiChi and me became close. I held her as she cried and carried her to bed as she fell asleep by his side, all the time wishing I could lie beside her. When Goku died, I felt it was my duty to protect and care for her and Gohan. That was before I found out she was pregnant. When I found out about Goten, I made a silent promise to be there with her every step and to make sure that she got through her husband's second death. I held my feelings back from her until she told me that she had feelings for me. Now that I have her, I won't let her go as long as she's willing to have me."
Bulma stood completely awestruck. She never suspected Yamucha having feelings for ChiChi for so long. She then asked a question that seemed to burn in her mind since his first statement,
"Yamucha, how do I know you're not on some woman marking game like you were with me." Yamucha looked at Bulma and said with a straight face,
"Bulma, I was with you off and on for 12 years. Five of those years I was 100% faithful to you although I looked at other women. The other seven, we couldn't go 3 weeks without you and me fighting about me being with some other woman. That started after Goku and ChiChi was married. Have you ever stopped to think about those other women? Who did they look like? I only dated women with brown hair and brown eyes. Since I've been with ChiChi I haven't noticed any other woman around me. The only one I see is ChiChi." Bulma held back her pain and anger to ask one more question,
"So are you saying you never loved me?" Yamucha looked at Bulma with pain in his eyes and said,
"Bulma I loved you with all I could give you but unfortunately my love for ChiChi was stronger than yours. Frankly, I settled for her runner-up; you." A single tear fell from Bulma's eye. Yamucha hissed at the sight. He turned back to the door and said before leaving,
"Bulma, I am sorry for all the times I hurt you. You didn't deserve my games. You were a good girlfriend and I hurt you and made you turn to him. Please don't hold anything against ChiChi about this." Bulma nodded and tried to say okay but the words wouldn't come out. By time anything had come out of her mouth Yamucha was long gone.
She turned to she her King standing about twenty feet away from her. The only thing she wanted to do is run into his arms but her legs gave way under her. Before she could fall she was in Vegeta's arms and began sobbing. Vegeta held her, completely silent. After a couple of minutes, she looked at him and said with a slight smile on her face,
"At least he was honest with me. When we were together, I couldn't even get that" and begin crying again. Vegeta held her a little tighter and whispered in her ear,
"Silly woman. You show too much emotion. You're showing how weak you are." Bulma laughed through her tears knowing that was he way of telling her to stop crying because he was there for her.
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Gohan quickly hung party streamer throughout the house as his mother began preparing Goten's birthday feast. He stopped hanging the streamers and floated to the kitchen to watch his mother. Before he entered the kitchen he looked around the first floor of the house as if he was trying to absorb the way everything looked.
*Everything is in its place, as it always is.*
ChiChi turned just in time to see Gohan lower himself onto the top of the refrigerator, sitting Indian style. She smiled at the sight she was seeing, her thirteen year old son sitting in the same spot he used to sit when he insisted on being in the kitchen as a little boy. She knew he only sat there these days when he wanted to talk to her one on one.
"What's wrong?" Gohan smiled slightly and shrugged his shoulders.
"Nothing, just wondering." ChiChi threw her son a suspicious look and replied,
"About?" The young man looked down at his mother and said in almost a whisper,
"You. I'm just wondering if you're happy." The widowed mother of two sighed and sat on the counter. She had an idea where this conversation was going but wanted to hear what her son had to say.
"Yeah, I guess I'm pretty happy. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, no reason. I was just wondering."
Mother and son looked at each other for a long moment. Gohan was trying to hide whatever sorrow that he thought was showing on his face. ChiChi was trying to figure what her son was thinking about. It wasn't like him to start elusive, philosophical conversations with her. Maybe with Piccolo or Dende, but not her. She took his unyielding stare as him wanting more information and said,
" If you're wondering if I still miss your dad Gohan, yes I do. Actually I miss him a great deal. This house doesn't have the same sense of light to it without him. But that not all bad. We have a lovely family. Me , you, Goten, and yes Yamucha have continued to make this house a home." ChiChi looked at her son trying to see if he was processing everything she was saying to him.
Gohan looked up at the ceiling concentrating on the pale yellow paint. To his mother it looked like he was talking to the ceiling, but in actuality he was weighing his options on life.
"I admire you mom. You somehow always seem to come out the strongest of all of us even though you down have the physical strength we have. You're the one that showed me physical strength doesn't mean everything. I guess that was the secret behind you and dad's marriage; he was the physical strength, you were the wills and brains, you both had the compassion and heart." ChiChi chuckled at her son's realization and said,
"Yeah, I guess you could say that. Let me tell you something about me and your dad and about our relationship. It's deep rooted. To the world we might not have shown a lot of public displays of affections, if we've shown any, but we loved each other deeply. Still do. We used to talk a lot mentally, and that was before we knew anything about a Saiyajin bond." Gohan blinked in surprise about his parents' love. ChiChi smiled at the memories of talking to Goku through thoughts.
"When Goku came back from Yardrat , we talked a great deal. One particular thing we talked about was what we would do if either one of us should die and couldn't be brought back. We both agreed that it was only fair to move on with our lives." ChiChi laughed a small bitter laugh but continued,
" Theoretically, it sounded okay. But when he died I thought I was going to die with him. But through a weird turn of events things worked out. It's not the life I initially hoped for but it's turning out to be a pretty good life." ChiChi looked at the teenage boy on top of her refrigerator who looked more like her than Goku and knew he was having conflicting feeling within. She sighed and leaned forward.
"Gohan, honey? Are you happy?" Gohan looked at his mom with glassy eyes and said,
" I don't know. I'm happy to have you and Goten. I'm even happy with Yamucha in our lives. But I feel like in some weird way I'm betraying dad by being happy. Like I should be dead with him. After all, he died from my mistake." A few tears escaped Gohan's eyes as he looked at his mother. ChiChi fought back the tears that burned to escape for her son's sake.
*Kami, is my son contemplating suicide? Please no.*
"Gohan, let me tell you something. You did what you were supposed to do. Fate determined that. Even if you didn't, your father and I would give ours lives before anyone or anything could take yours or Goten's life. That's what being a parent means. Sweetie no one resents you for what happened three years ago. Son, please stop resenting yourself. Goku, your father, sacrificed his life so you could live your life … happily. If there's something I can do to help you live happily, please baby let me know. I don't want you to be sad anymore." ChiChi's tears fell along with Gohan's. The boy choked back his sobs and said in a very cryptic voice,
"Don't forget to love me?" ChiChi looked at him quizzically, unsure of what he meant by the statement. Before she had a chance to ask him, Gohan left the house with the speed that would astound any living being on the earth, including Saiyajins.
After a couple of seconds, Gohan's statement struck ChiChi like a thunderbolt. She wailed loudly as she realized that her child was indeed contemplating suicide and was probably going to go through with it. She screamed to the heavens as loud as she could,
"Dende please stop my baby, your friend!!! He can't die!" She didn't notice that she fell off of the counter onto the floor while in her frenzy. She brought her knees to chest and said to no one in particular,
"He's my baby, I can't loose him too."
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High above the Son house a young God watched on in fear of what was occurring. Dende looked at Mr. Popo with panic in his eyes. The guardian keeper looked down at the lookout floor in sorrow.
The preteen Namekian looked at his mentor with tear filled eyes and screamed,
"Mr. Popo, please tell me what I can do!!! Gohan is going to go through with this!" The portly lookout keeper said in a low disappointed tone,
"There's nothing you can do Dende. You cannot interfere with a individual's life." Dende yelled back, sounding a lot like the kid he was instead of the God he portrayed,
"But this is Gohan!!! He's not just some 'individual'!!! He saved the Earth!!!" the young god began to cry as he continued,
"He's my best friend." Popo walked closer to the young guardian and placed his dark thick hand on the boy's shoulder and said,
" I am sorry Dende, but the rules still apply." The Namekian God jerked away from the genie-like being and yelled,
"I don't care about the damn rules!!! I'm going to save Gohan even if I have to go down there myself and stop him!"
Quit yelling at me!!! I'm writing the next part as we speak. I should have it up before Thanksgiving. I've updated 'Uninvited' and I'll have 'Saiyajin Revived' updated in the next two weeks. Please don't forget to review. PEACE!!! NaCoBeBe good to each other. May God, whether you cal him/her God, Shiva, Buddha, Allah, etc., bless the world.