Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z and I'm not making any money from
this.
Chapter 4: She's Not Gonna Steal You From Me, Is She?
Ring, ring!
....
Ring, ring!
...Shut up.
Ring, ring!
Shut up.
Ring, ring!
Shut UP!
Ring, ring!
The persistent ringing of my phone woke me up from my dream, and I groaned inwardly. Trust someone to phone up just as my foolproof plan for world domination was about to succeed. It's always the same, isn't it? If you're having a great dream, it's guaranteed that you'll either wake up or be woken up at the best part.
Ring, ring!
Oh, for Christ's sake.
I picked up the phone and grunted something that might have been a 'hello' into the receiver.
'Morning, Trunks!"
I was awake instantly.
"Marron?"
"Yep, it's me. Hey!"
"It's not morning," I grumbled.
"Hmm?"
"It's not morning. It's sixteen minutes and thirty six seconds past twelve"
Marron snickered on the other end. "Well, excuse me, Mr. Precise"
I yawned, shrugging, even though I knew she couldn't see me. I'm sure it was only ten in the morning a few minutes ago. I guess I must have been more tired than I thought. Goten had left to go help his mom out at home at about five past ten, and I'd just crashed out on the sofa and flicked through the channels on the T.V. What? I know I told Aya I was working, but that wasn't exactly a lie. I should have been at work at about half ten, but there you go. I know I was being a little bit inconsiderate, and mom was gonna phone up any minute now and scream at me for oh, at least twenty minutes straight, but to be honest I couldn't care less. I didn't even like the stupid job.
"What about you?" I asked, rubbing my face with my free hand. "Have a good time with Bob?"
"Bob?"
I winced. I hadn't meant to say that aloud. "Uh, never mind."
"Well, if you're talking about that guy I met last night, we didn't really click, you know?"
"Oh?" I tried my best to sound sympathetic.
"Yeah, he was a bit of a prat really"
"See, that's why you shouldn't pick people up in bars"
"Like you're one to talk" Marron laughed. "I got a call from Aya this morning. Honestly, Trunks, if I'd known about your sexual prowess sooner I'd have snapped you up for myself!"
"Well, you know now so come and get some!" I joked. I could hear her laughing on the other end and sighed. She was never gonna take me seriously. Just don't bother reminding me of the fact that I'm hardly ever serious when we talk about relationships, cause I know. Still, I bet even if I were serious she wouldn't take me seriously. Oh well, at least Aya was singing my praises.
"Seriously, she wouldn't shut up about you!" Marron laughed. She paused. "She's not gonna steal you from me is she?" I could tell by the sound of her voice that she was only half joking, and I smiled. She was adorable when she got all insecure. She's always been like that, come to think of it. My last Serious Relationship was with a girl named Jude, and Marron really didn't like her. She told me that she was afraid that Jude was gonna take me away from her, and that I wouldn't have time for her anymore. Jude, on the other hand, was convinced that Marron was trying to get in the way of her relationship with me. Eventually she gave me an ultimatum. It was either her or Marron. I think you can guess who I chose.
I don't understand it though, why do women feel so threatened by Marron? It's not like any of Marron's boyfriends have felt threatened by me, is it?
"No one could ever steal me from you, Maz" I told her sincerely.
"You mean it?"
"Of course I do" I said, grinning.
"How come you never get like this?" she asked curiously.
"Like what?"
"All insecure"
I laughed. "Because I know you're secretly in love with me and that's the real reason why you want to be with me all the time"
"Oh, you've found me out!"
For a brief moment, my heart stopped, until I realised that she was joking, and then I kind of calmed down. Well, a little. Then I felt the depression and self-pity settle in and sighed. Why does my ego have to be so damn fragile?
"Trunks? What do you think?"
"Huh? About what?"
"Honestly, I should come round and stamp 'Permanently out to lunch' on your head" she sighed, exasperated.
"Sorry, Mar. Hangover. What were you saying?
"Hangover? Oh...then I guess that's that plan out of the window"
"What plan?"
"I was wondering whether we could go out somewhere today, you know, just the two of us. I haven't spent that much time with you lately"
"Marron, we only went out last night," I laughed. "What's sparked this off anyway?"
She was silent for a few moments.
"When I was talking to that guy yesterday, he got really drunk and ended up telling me that he could never consider a woman as anything other than a potential sex object." she told me, then stopped, hesitating. "It...it just really threw me, I guess. I just want to be with someone who I know doesn't think of me like that. Someone who's never looked at me in a romantic way, you know? Someone I feel safe with"
This was probably the time to tell her.
"Marron, I..." I stopped. Then tried again. "I..." But the words just wouldn't come out. I couldn't tell her. I was too afraid of what she'd think of me if I did. "I...understand" I finished finally.
"I knew you would, Trunks. Listen, why don't we have a day where we just do whatever the hell we want. You know, like old times?"
I smiled, remembering how we used to be back then. It was when Goten and I were still in college and Marron had just moved out of Kame house. She didn't really know anyone, and since Goten was too wrapped up in his relationship with Paresu to have time for anyone, Marron relied on me. I was all she had. Everyone used to think we were a couple. Maz always used to laugh with me about that...
"So how about it?" she asked.
"Sounds good to me. It's been ages"
"Well it's settled then!" Marron said excitedly. "Today's gonna be an 'us' day! We'll go to the arcade, catch a movie..." she trailed off, and I could hear her giggling on the other end. "Hey, remember when you got your first set of wages from Capsule Corp?" she asked. I started laughing, remembering how we'd gone to Carnell's and bought a brand new motorbike, then how I'd floored it down the road with Marron screaming and clinging onto me for dear life. If she weren't so puny she'd have kicked my ass for that escapade.
"Yeah, I remember. Wanna try that again? I'll go slower this time, promise"
"Sure you will," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm coming over then"
"See you soon, Maz"
I put the phone down, a smile creeping onto my face. I'd missed those little 'us' days.
~~~~
A/N: I'm sorry it took me so long to update this one, guys! I've been in a little bit of an inspiration slump lately; hopefully I'll be back on form soon. Sorry if this chapter's a bit boring, I'm kinda trying to get some more of their pasts and feelings in, while still being entertaining. I hope I didn't do too badly. Well, bye for now, I'll try to update soon, and don't forget to review. Thanks to all you lovely people who have done so far, it means so much to me that you guys like this story. I was particularly happy to see Angie around here again, welcome back, hon, and thank you so much for your reviews! I've missed you and your stories.
Chapter 4: She's Not Gonna Steal You From Me, Is She?
Ring, ring!
....
Ring, ring!
...Shut up.
Ring, ring!
Shut up.
Ring, ring!
Shut UP!
Ring, ring!
The persistent ringing of my phone woke me up from my dream, and I groaned inwardly. Trust someone to phone up just as my foolproof plan for world domination was about to succeed. It's always the same, isn't it? If you're having a great dream, it's guaranteed that you'll either wake up or be woken up at the best part.
Ring, ring!
Oh, for Christ's sake.
I picked up the phone and grunted something that might have been a 'hello' into the receiver.
'Morning, Trunks!"
I was awake instantly.
"Marron?"
"Yep, it's me. Hey!"
"It's not morning," I grumbled.
"Hmm?"
"It's not morning. It's sixteen minutes and thirty six seconds past twelve"
Marron snickered on the other end. "Well, excuse me, Mr. Precise"
I yawned, shrugging, even though I knew she couldn't see me. I'm sure it was only ten in the morning a few minutes ago. I guess I must have been more tired than I thought. Goten had left to go help his mom out at home at about five past ten, and I'd just crashed out on the sofa and flicked through the channels on the T.V. What? I know I told Aya I was working, but that wasn't exactly a lie. I should have been at work at about half ten, but there you go. I know I was being a little bit inconsiderate, and mom was gonna phone up any minute now and scream at me for oh, at least twenty minutes straight, but to be honest I couldn't care less. I didn't even like the stupid job.
"What about you?" I asked, rubbing my face with my free hand. "Have a good time with Bob?"
"Bob?"
I winced. I hadn't meant to say that aloud. "Uh, never mind."
"Well, if you're talking about that guy I met last night, we didn't really click, you know?"
"Oh?" I tried my best to sound sympathetic.
"Yeah, he was a bit of a prat really"
"See, that's why you shouldn't pick people up in bars"
"Like you're one to talk" Marron laughed. "I got a call from Aya this morning. Honestly, Trunks, if I'd known about your sexual prowess sooner I'd have snapped you up for myself!"
"Well, you know now so come and get some!" I joked. I could hear her laughing on the other end and sighed. She was never gonna take me seriously. Just don't bother reminding me of the fact that I'm hardly ever serious when we talk about relationships, cause I know. Still, I bet even if I were serious she wouldn't take me seriously. Oh well, at least Aya was singing my praises.
"Seriously, she wouldn't shut up about you!" Marron laughed. She paused. "She's not gonna steal you from me is she?" I could tell by the sound of her voice that she was only half joking, and I smiled. She was adorable when she got all insecure. She's always been like that, come to think of it. My last Serious Relationship was with a girl named Jude, and Marron really didn't like her. She told me that she was afraid that Jude was gonna take me away from her, and that I wouldn't have time for her anymore. Jude, on the other hand, was convinced that Marron was trying to get in the way of her relationship with me. Eventually she gave me an ultimatum. It was either her or Marron. I think you can guess who I chose.
I don't understand it though, why do women feel so threatened by Marron? It's not like any of Marron's boyfriends have felt threatened by me, is it?
"No one could ever steal me from you, Maz" I told her sincerely.
"You mean it?"
"Of course I do" I said, grinning.
"How come you never get like this?" she asked curiously.
"Like what?"
"All insecure"
I laughed. "Because I know you're secretly in love with me and that's the real reason why you want to be with me all the time"
"Oh, you've found me out!"
For a brief moment, my heart stopped, until I realised that she was joking, and then I kind of calmed down. Well, a little. Then I felt the depression and self-pity settle in and sighed. Why does my ego have to be so damn fragile?
"Trunks? What do you think?"
"Huh? About what?"
"Honestly, I should come round and stamp 'Permanently out to lunch' on your head" she sighed, exasperated.
"Sorry, Mar. Hangover. What were you saying?
"Hangover? Oh...then I guess that's that plan out of the window"
"What plan?"
"I was wondering whether we could go out somewhere today, you know, just the two of us. I haven't spent that much time with you lately"
"Marron, we only went out last night," I laughed. "What's sparked this off anyway?"
She was silent for a few moments.
"When I was talking to that guy yesterday, he got really drunk and ended up telling me that he could never consider a woman as anything other than a potential sex object." she told me, then stopped, hesitating. "It...it just really threw me, I guess. I just want to be with someone who I know doesn't think of me like that. Someone who's never looked at me in a romantic way, you know? Someone I feel safe with"
This was probably the time to tell her.
"Marron, I..." I stopped. Then tried again. "I..." But the words just wouldn't come out. I couldn't tell her. I was too afraid of what she'd think of me if I did. "I...understand" I finished finally.
"I knew you would, Trunks. Listen, why don't we have a day where we just do whatever the hell we want. You know, like old times?"
I smiled, remembering how we used to be back then. It was when Goten and I were still in college and Marron had just moved out of Kame house. She didn't really know anyone, and since Goten was too wrapped up in his relationship with Paresu to have time for anyone, Marron relied on me. I was all she had. Everyone used to think we were a couple. Maz always used to laugh with me about that...
"So how about it?" she asked.
"Sounds good to me. It's been ages"
"Well it's settled then!" Marron said excitedly. "Today's gonna be an 'us' day! We'll go to the arcade, catch a movie..." she trailed off, and I could hear her giggling on the other end. "Hey, remember when you got your first set of wages from Capsule Corp?" she asked. I started laughing, remembering how we'd gone to Carnell's and bought a brand new motorbike, then how I'd floored it down the road with Marron screaming and clinging onto me for dear life. If she weren't so puny she'd have kicked my ass for that escapade.
"Yeah, I remember. Wanna try that again? I'll go slower this time, promise"
"Sure you will," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm coming over then"
"See you soon, Maz"
I put the phone down, a smile creeping onto my face. I'd missed those little 'us' days.
~~~~
A/N: I'm sorry it took me so long to update this one, guys! I've been in a little bit of an inspiration slump lately; hopefully I'll be back on form soon. Sorry if this chapter's a bit boring, I'm kinda trying to get some more of their pasts and feelings in, while still being entertaining. I hope I didn't do too badly. Well, bye for now, I'll try to update soon, and don't forget to review. Thanks to all you lovely people who have done so far, it means so much to me that you guys like this story. I was particularly happy to see Angie around here again, welcome back, hon, and thank you so much for your reviews! I've missed you and your stories.