Why, if it isn't you! Welcome! I know, I know...delay delay delay, but it
was worth it folks, I promise! I got a whole bunch of mental clarity going
for me right now, and I've also locked myself in my room until I get this
chapter done. No lie, except maybe I'll go out for potty breaks...
David Bowie: Make sure you don't vomit a crockle!
Kanojo: ...Who let David Bowie in the building?
Trunks: Don't look at me...I think it was that crazy friend of yours...
Kanojo: The one who tells me I smell like hippie juice (incense), and that she thinks I'm a Satanist?
Trunks: Bingo...but why in the world does she find you Satanic?
Kanojo: Not a clue...I'm nearly the exact opposite! -cough- Oh, right, story. Yeah. Well...read away...I guess...
******************************************
Trunks leaned against a pillar, outside of Capsule Corporation's main entrance, hands in his pockets. A very restless Goten sat on the hard concrete next to him, criss-cross applesauce (sorry, I couldn't help it...applesauce!). "Ugh...what are they DOING up there? Watching paint dry? Come ON!" Trunks shook his head. "Goten, has anyone ever told you that you're impatient?" Goten looked perplexed. "Impatient? What's that? Some kind of fish? 'Cause I may have had that before..." Trunks smacked himself in the forehead. Goten, like his father before him, was always thinking about food. "It means not able to wait or sit still without being drugged against your will beforehand." he began. "You may be thinking about carp." Goten blinked. "Oh...well, same thing. But still...what's taking them so long?" Trunks shrugged. "The female mind is an enigma...and no, that's not a kind of salami," he added, silencing any future questions about the unknown word. "Yeah...they're probably making themselves all purdy for us, you think?" Trunks was about to reply to this question, when a loud crashing sound caused him to jerk his head to the site of the disruption.
There, sprawled out on the payment, was a very mangled-looking pair of young women. One of which, was wearing one shoe. "Erm...you guys ok?" Goten questioned, concerned. "Oh yeah, just spiffy. Could you lend a hand, please?" Bra had asked the question openly, but she looked only up at Goten. He immediately grabbed hold of her hands and hoisted her up, back onto her feet. Trunks kneeled down, resting his hand on CJ's shoulder. "Hey, you alright?" CJ slowly lifted her head, and nodded. Rising to her feet, she just had to ask: "Hey, has anyone seen my shoe?" Bra called out a 'Yup,' then tossed it over to her. It appeared to be some form of boot, black, with all kinds of chaotic buckles and such. "Between you and shoe loss..." he kidded. She couldn't help but grin widely. Bra had tossed them to her as they were dashing out the door, and as she hopped along, attempting to put the shoe on, she tripped, crashed into Bra, who had chosen a more reliable pair (Mary Jane's with small skull-etched clasps), and the two had crashed right into the hard pavement just outside of the automatic doors.
"Well, I'm ready to go!" Bra said with glee. "Where are we off to?" Trunks shrugged. "Not a clue. I just though we could go wherever we get the urge to go...maybe have lunch in the park or something?" CJ nodded in agreement, but then realized something very important. "Hey guys...how are we getting from place to place? I mean...this is a pretty big city, way too big for walking. And seeing as how none of us are of legal driving age..." Trunks saw her point. "Well, I suppose we could take the Vespas. They're speedy little things." A few murmurs of 'Yeah' and, 'sure, why not?' were uttered, but their bubble was once again burst. "Sorry to say this, but there are only two of them, and I'm most certainly not going to even attempt running down the road after you guys."
Trunks shrugged. "So? We'll just share them. They're big enough for two." Goten backed away, waving his hands in front of him. "Sorry, but there's no way I'm going to get onto the back of your Vespa, looking like some kind of faggot on vacation." CJ coughed a small 'too late,' sending everyone into fits of laughter. Goten didn't catch on. "What?!" he asked, as the others wiped tears from their eyes. "Look Goten," Bra tried to explain, "what he means is: I'll get on the back of your motorbike, and CJ will get on the back of his! That way, we just look like your girlfriends." The other three turned a dark shade of crimson. "Heh, you guys are EASY to mess with!" she exclaimed, chuckling. Skillfully, she pulled a capsule from one of her hidden pockets, and two Vespas appeared, one green, one yellow. "So, are we off?" She climbed onto the back of the lime green vehicle, followed by Goten, who plunked himself down onto the bike. CJ followed suit, sitting down upon the bright yellow one. Trunks stumbled over to join her. "So, where to?" he asked. "Oh, I know!" Bra cried out. "There's this new place I've been wanting to check out, on the corner of 23rd and Key West."
"And what, may I ask, is this place?" Goten asked.
"You'll see, just drive!" Now, Goten knew well enough not to ask too many questions, so he started up his lime green minion of evil (not a clue where THAT one came from) and sped off. "Hey, where do you think you're going?!" Trunks shouted. He started up the bike of a banana tint, before turning to CJ. "It's probably best if you hold on to me. I'd hate for you to fall of...I'd be forced to recover lost limbs and such..." CJ chuckled a little, then slowly slipped her arms around his waist. He turned a slight pink. "Now, to catch up with the brainless bunch!" And with that, the Vespa raced down the street, slowly gaining on the other contraption that was speeding through the streets at an unusually fast rate.
When they had finally caught up with their companions, they were only a few blocks away from their destination. "So!" CJ called out to Bra, trying to make herself heard over the sound of the motors and the swift rushing of the wind. "How terrifying will this event be?" Bra turned to look at her, laughing. CJ could plainly see that her arms were wrapped snugly around Goten. "Lotsa lotsa torment! Corruption, annoyance, and all kinds of evil!" CJ laughed right along with her. "I'm going to have nightmares," she shouted. Bra grinned, but it was wiped right off her face as the Vespa came to a sudden, screeching halt. Trunks sharply turned his bike to where the other one stood and quickly stopped all movement of the vehicle. "No...not this," Goten began, his voice filled with fear, "ANYTHING but this!" Trunks trembled nervously. CJ blinked.
Oh, now what's so wrong about a karaoke bar?" she questioned innocently. "EVERYTHING..." Goten began to shake. "You're not really going to make me go in there, are you?" Bra was puzzled. She gave him her cutest, little-girl smile. "Oh Goten, you'll go in there with me, won't you? Pweeze Goten, pweeeeze?" Goten turned a bright pink. "Well, I...uh, you see..." But he was cut off. "Oh goody. Let's go!" She quickly grabbed hold of his hand and dashed inside, dragging him along. After watching this spectacle, CJ noticed that Trunks was still trembling. "Feel like escaping?" she questioned, though she already knew what the answer would be. "Yes, I most definitely do," Trunks replied, a wave of relief washing over him. "But, they'll hear the bike's motor...anything within the proximity of this block?" CJ thought about this, and then scanned the area. "Hey, there's a Kinko's. The most magical place on Earth, some call it. Why not head over there?" Trunks laughed, but seeing that CJ was already half way to the tall grey building, he dashed off after her. 'Kinko's? But...isn't that a copy shop?!' he pondered.
Stepping into the new area, he's beliefs were confirmed. It was indeed a copy shop, filled with Xerox machines galore. He spotted CJ near a machine in the far corner of the room. 'Well, at least it's better than karaoke...' he thought to himself as he shuffled over to her. "Check this one out!" she greeted, handing him a piece of paper that contained an image of a very squished, mangled-looking face. CJ's face, to exact. "Hey, I think my mom hit something like this with her car last week..." he said coolly. She put her hands on her hips, pretending to be insulted. "Very funny, now you make one, wise guy." Trunks grinned and stepped over to the machine. He squished his face on to the glass, shutting the top cover-like object as much as possible. CJ hit the large green button, causing a bright flash to sting his eyes. "Ouch," he mumbled, lifting his head out from under the cover-thing, (I must figure out what such a thing is called...) rubbing his eyes. "Serves you right..." CJ smiled as she spoke. She grabbed the newly printed paper. "Oh my, just dazzling." Trunks accepted the page from her, and lifted it up to look at it. "Wow, I am certainly one sexy man- beast." CJ bust into laughter. "I'd best not go waving this around...they just might snag me, and then have me appear on the cover of next month's 'Playgirl.' Best give it to you for safe keeping," he told her. She pretended to wipe tears from her eyes. "I'll treasure it always." she joked, folding the paper and stuffing in into her pocket.
"Think we should go get back to the moronic duo?" Trunks asked. CJ smiled a little, and then nodded. "Sure...they'll come looking sooner or later anyway..." The pair received some odd looks exiting the building, but it didn't faze either one of them. Stepping out onto the sidewalk, neither person could miss the fact that Goten and Bra were both sitting out on the sidewalk, near the bikes. "What did you break NOW Goten?" Trunks asked his friend. Goten shook his head. "This time, it was all her," he told him, pointing to the girl sitting to his left. "Alright," he continued, "then what did YOU break?" Bra stood up, on the defensive. "Hey, I was in there, singing a song, and then the score thing goes up, with a big, fat, 55 on it! Can you BELIEVE it? So, I got pissed off...and I kinda threw the microphone at the ground. The hole's no too awful big though!" Trunks sighed. "How typical of you. It's always something with..." Yet, his words were interrupted, not by speech, or mad cows creating a stampede, but by the sound of CJ's growling stomach. "Hungry?" Trunks asked her. She nodded, slightly embarrassed. Naturally, she was very hungry. She had cut her normal intake down by at LEAST 85%, if not more. Her stomach let out another loud growl. "Oh, shut up, you," she spoke to it. "Hey, I'm kinda hungry too..." Goten complained, though he had eaten a total of 47 pancakes for breakfast. And that was just the PANCAKES.
"Well, it's getting to be around lunch time...anyone see some form of food stop?" Bra surveyed the area. "There's a McDonald's over yonder," she stated. "Sounds good to me," everyone else said, all at once. Trunks chuckled. "Well, I'd call that a unanimous vote...McDonald's it is!" (A few moments later...) Upon entering the McDonald's, Trunks was relieved to see that there were few people in the dining area. Fast food places sucked when they were full of people. "You guys take a seat over there, I'll go order." The other three nodded in unison, relocating themselves to a booth in the far corner of the room. Trunks stepped up to the counter, for there was no line. Surprising for this time of day. "Can I help you?" greeted a very flustered-looking, purple-haired young girl (Would you look at that? It's me, at my McJob!)
"Yes, I'll take...oh, about 126 double cheeseburgers, 12 apple pies, and 4 twenty piece nuggets please?" The girl didn't seem the least bit shocked. She'd been having a rough day, and this kind of thing was bound to happen. "Would you like fries with that?" she asked brightly. "Sure, 16 of those...and an order of chocolate chip cookies as well." The girl handed him his receipt, and was about to give him his total, when a loud shout came from the kitchen area behind her. "ALRIGHT, WHO LOCKED A GIRL IN THE FREEZER?!" The girl lifted off her yellow "I'm lovin' it" visor and tossed it behind her. "That's my cue!" she said cheerfully, quickly dashing around the counter and out the glass front door. She was soon followed out by three others, all screaming various forms of 'Get back here!' Trunks shrugged, tossing two $100 bills onto the counter. That would be enough to cover it, he was sure.
Making his way back to the table, he heard a loud shriek come from somewhere near the kitchen area. It was no doubt a result of his very large order. Sliding into the corner booth, next to CJ, he couldn't help but smirk. "This place has really gone to hell," he plainly stated. "TELL me about it..." Bra mumbled. After a few moments of good-natured conversation, their order arrived at the table. It was all balanced onto one tray, which was so heavy that it had to be carried out by three grown men. As the three 'openly Saiyan' teens began to work their way down the cheeseburger pyramid, CJ slipped under the table, only to appear again, standing at the opposite side. (I always did this as a kid...) "Sorry, but I need to use the bathroom!" she called out, walking to the door on the opposite side of the room, and quickly entering.
Bra saw this as her ideal opportunity. "Look!" she called out, pointing in the direction of a large window. "It's...the apocalypse!" Goten and Trunks both turned their heads in the designated direction. "Hey, I don't see any apocalypse!" Goten stated, bluntly. "Where are all of the explosions, the chaos and turmoil?!" Trunks smacked himself in the forehead. Turning back around, he could see his sister stuffing something into her pocket. She quickly looked up and smiled innocently. "My, what's taking CJ so long in there? I'd best go check on her!" she said, her tone cute and clueless. "But...hasn't she only been gone like, 15 seconds?" Goten pondered. "Oh...right, well...uhh...girl talk! That's right, girl talk!" she exclaimed, following CJ's example by sliding under the table. Goten and Trunks exchanged knowing glances. "Women," they both muttered, continuing with their meal.
Several minutes later, the pair returned from the restroom, sliding back into their seats. "Enjoy your quality time in the loo?" Trunks asked jokingly. "Oh yes," CJ put in, "I've discovered that when I'm away from you two, my IQ goes up!" Goten glared at her. "Are you saying that I give of essence of stupidity?" CJ thought about this for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, something like that," This caused the entire table to erupt with laughter. But nothing good lasts forever. Not two minutes after the girls had returned, and Goten had finally stopped his pouting, a tall, dark- haired man who had been sitting in the opposite corner rose from his chair. He was wearing a black business suit, complete with a red tie. He stopped his slow march as he reached the table that out young friends occupied. Everyone looked up at him.
"Can I help you?" Trunks asked the man, confused. The man grinned widely. "Yes, I have a question for the young lady with the red shirt?" CJ's heart felt numb. This man frightened her. "Excuse me, but does the name Tyler sound familiar to you?" She was shocked. She dared not make eye contact with him as she softly shook her head no. "No you say? Well now, how about Chris?" Her eyes opened wide. He bent down, bringing his face closer to hers. She had no choice but to look into his eyes. They were a vibrant yellow, the color of the sun at midday. "You may try to hide yourself, but your new appearance doesn't fool me. Your eyes, my dear. Your eyes tell your story. I know exactly who you are. "I-I have no idea what you're talking about," she stuttered. "You never were a good liar," he sneered. "If I had the jurisdiction, I would bring you in right now." CJ bit her bottom lip. Hard.
Trunks took this opportunity to slide swiftly out of the booth he had been residing in, standing straight and tall, looking directly into the eyes of the man, who was only a few inches taller than he. "Listen," he began, his voice holding a small, yet noticeable amount of rage, "if you have any brains in your head, you will leave this building, and never bother any of my friends again." The man smirked. "Ah, the young Master Briefs. Playing the part of the hero, I see. I will gladly exit this establishment, but rest assured, I will be speaking with your little girlfriend soon." This nearly pushed him over the edge. "OUT!" he shouted, directly into the man's face. The mysterious man smirked, then slowly walked through the front door.
"Who WAS that guy?" Bra asked her, suddenly very worried. "Do you want me to go beat him up for you?" Goten asked seriously. CJ chuckled a little, her breathing pattern slowly returning to normal. "No, that'll be quite unnecessary. I've have no idea who that man was, but he's gone now, so I'm just fine." Trunks sat back down, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She looked slightly up at him. His eyes were filled with concern. "Thank you for getting rid of him," she told him, with gratitude. He just nodded, as if to say 'no problem.' After a few moments of silence, Bra decided to strike up a conversation. "So, let's head out, shall we? Time to plan out next move..."
As the group got up from the table, headed for the door, Trunks couldn't keep his wandering mind from irritating him. 'Who was that guy? She says she's never seen him before, but I know better. That was genuine fear in her eyes.' His thoughts were swimming through his mind at an uncontrollable speed. Something had happened to CJ, something terrible. He knew that he needed to know what it was, but he wasn't about to just come right out and question her. No, he wouldn't do that, but he WOULD find out what it was that haunted her. That almost unnoticeable darkness hidden in her eyes. He would find out what it all meant. He just hoped that time would come soon...
...before it was too late.
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Holy CRUMPETS everyone, this is the longest chapter that I've ever written...and it's not even that long! -sob- I really am trying...
...
Kanojo: Hey, where's Goten with a smart-alecky comment?
...
Kanojo: HELLO?!
...
Kanojo: But...I'm lost without the criticism! Oh...I need Goten...
Goten: Ha! I knew you needed me...
Kanojo: And your criticism is always greeted with a rash action by me, sooo...
Goten: Sorry, I've hidden the fishbowl.
(Meanwhile...)
Pan: So...are they madly in love yet?
Trunks: What does it matter? You've got me now, you know...
Pan: Yes, but I want Kanojo to have someone...she'll soon find out that I gave away Sean B...
Trunks: You mean, to that writer friend of hers? What was her name...Rug Doctor?
Pan: No, I think it was Dirt Devil...
Trunks: Eh...something to do with making your floors clean.
Pan: Well, I'll play the part of Kanojo...-ahem- So, you like? I worked crazy mondo hard on this one, you have to review or I'll go nuts. Alright, laterz!
Trunks: Wow, you're good at that.
Pan: It's a gift...and a curse.
(Note: 3,374 words yo! Trippin' bling fo' sheezy!)
David Bowie: Make sure you don't vomit a crockle!
Kanojo: ...Who let David Bowie in the building?
Trunks: Don't look at me...I think it was that crazy friend of yours...
Kanojo: The one who tells me I smell like hippie juice (incense), and that she thinks I'm a Satanist?
Trunks: Bingo...but why in the world does she find you Satanic?
Kanojo: Not a clue...I'm nearly the exact opposite! -cough- Oh, right, story. Yeah. Well...read away...I guess...
******************************************
Trunks leaned against a pillar, outside of Capsule Corporation's main entrance, hands in his pockets. A very restless Goten sat on the hard concrete next to him, criss-cross applesauce (sorry, I couldn't help it...applesauce!). "Ugh...what are they DOING up there? Watching paint dry? Come ON!" Trunks shook his head. "Goten, has anyone ever told you that you're impatient?" Goten looked perplexed. "Impatient? What's that? Some kind of fish? 'Cause I may have had that before..." Trunks smacked himself in the forehead. Goten, like his father before him, was always thinking about food. "It means not able to wait or sit still without being drugged against your will beforehand." he began. "You may be thinking about carp." Goten blinked. "Oh...well, same thing. But still...what's taking them so long?" Trunks shrugged. "The female mind is an enigma...and no, that's not a kind of salami," he added, silencing any future questions about the unknown word. "Yeah...they're probably making themselves all purdy for us, you think?" Trunks was about to reply to this question, when a loud crashing sound caused him to jerk his head to the site of the disruption.
There, sprawled out on the payment, was a very mangled-looking pair of young women. One of which, was wearing one shoe. "Erm...you guys ok?" Goten questioned, concerned. "Oh yeah, just spiffy. Could you lend a hand, please?" Bra had asked the question openly, but she looked only up at Goten. He immediately grabbed hold of her hands and hoisted her up, back onto her feet. Trunks kneeled down, resting his hand on CJ's shoulder. "Hey, you alright?" CJ slowly lifted her head, and nodded. Rising to her feet, she just had to ask: "Hey, has anyone seen my shoe?" Bra called out a 'Yup,' then tossed it over to her. It appeared to be some form of boot, black, with all kinds of chaotic buckles and such. "Between you and shoe loss..." he kidded. She couldn't help but grin widely. Bra had tossed them to her as they were dashing out the door, and as she hopped along, attempting to put the shoe on, she tripped, crashed into Bra, who had chosen a more reliable pair (Mary Jane's with small skull-etched clasps), and the two had crashed right into the hard pavement just outside of the automatic doors.
"Well, I'm ready to go!" Bra said with glee. "Where are we off to?" Trunks shrugged. "Not a clue. I just though we could go wherever we get the urge to go...maybe have lunch in the park or something?" CJ nodded in agreement, but then realized something very important. "Hey guys...how are we getting from place to place? I mean...this is a pretty big city, way too big for walking. And seeing as how none of us are of legal driving age..." Trunks saw her point. "Well, I suppose we could take the Vespas. They're speedy little things." A few murmurs of 'Yeah' and, 'sure, why not?' were uttered, but their bubble was once again burst. "Sorry to say this, but there are only two of them, and I'm most certainly not going to even attempt running down the road after you guys."
Trunks shrugged. "So? We'll just share them. They're big enough for two." Goten backed away, waving his hands in front of him. "Sorry, but there's no way I'm going to get onto the back of your Vespa, looking like some kind of faggot on vacation." CJ coughed a small 'too late,' sending everyone into fits of laughter. Goten didn't catch on. "What?!" he asked, as the others wiped tears from their eyes. "Look Goten," Bra tried to explain, "what he means is: I'll get on the back of your motorbike, and CJ will get on the back of his! That way, we just look like your girlfriends." The other three turned a dark shade of crimson. "Heh, you guys are EASY to mess with!" she exclaimed, chuckling. Skillfully, she pulled a capsule from one of her hidden pockets, and two Vespas appeared, one green, one yellow. "So, are we off?" She climbed onto the back of the lime green vehicle, followed by Goten, who plunked himself down onto the bike. CJ followed suit, sitting down upon the bright yellow one. Trunks stumbled over to join her. "So, where to?" he asked. "Oh, I know!" Bra cried out. "There's this new place I've been wanting to check out, on the corner of 23rd and Key West."
"And what, may I ask, is this place?" Goten asked.
"You'll see, just drive!" Now, Goten knew well enough not to ask too many questions, so he started up his lime green minion of evil (not a clue where THAT one came from) and sped off. "Hey, where do you think you're going?!" Trunks shouted. He started up the bike of a banana tint, before turning to CJ. "It's probably best if you hold on to me. I'd hate for you to fall of...I'd be forced to recover lost limbs and such..." CJ chuckled a little, then slowly slipped her arms around his waist. He turned a slight pink. "Now, to catch up with the brainless bunch!" And with that, the Vespa raced down the street, slowly gaining on the other contraption that was speeding through the streets at an unusually fast rate.
When they had finally caught up with their companions, they were only a few blocks away from their destination. "So!" CJ called out to Bra, trying to make herself heard over the sound of the motors and the swift rushing of the wind. "How terrifying will this event be?" Bra turned to look at her, laughing. CJ could plainly see that her arms were wrapped snugly around Goten. "Lotsa lotsa torment! Corruption, annoyance, and all kinds of evil!" CJ laughed right along with her. "I'm going to have nightmares," she shouted. Bra grinned, but it was wiped right off her face as the Vespa came to a sudden, screeching halt. Trunks sharply turned his bike to where the other one stood and quickly stopped all movement of the vehicle. "No...not this," Goten began, his voice filled with fear, "ANYTHING but this!" Trunks trembled nervously. CJ blinked.
Oh, now what's so wrong about a karaoke bar?" she questioned innocently. "EVERYTHING..." Goten began to shake. "You're not really going to make me go in there, are you?" Bra was puzzled. She gave him her cutest, little-girl smile. "Oh Goten, you'll go in there with me, won't you? Pweeze Goten, pweeeeze?" Goten turned a bright pink. "Well, I...uh, you see..." But he was cut off. "Oh goody. Let's go!" She quickly grabbed hold of his hand and dashed inside, dragging him along. After watching this spectacle, CJ noticed that Trunks was still trembling. "Feel like escaping?" she questioned, though she already knew what the answer would be. "Yes, I most definitely do," Trunks replied, a wave of relief washing over him. "But, they'll hear the bike's motor...anything within the proximity of this block?" CJ thought about this, and then scanned the area. "Hey, there's a Kinko's. The most magical place on Earth, some call it. Why not head over there?" Trunks laughed, but seeing that CJ was already half way to the tall grey building, he dashed off after her. 'Kinko's? But...isn't that a copy shop?!' he pondered.
Stepping into the new area, he's beliefs were confirmed. It was indeed a copy shop, filled with Xerox machines galore. He spotted CJ near a machine in the far corner of the room. 'Well, at least it's better than karaoke...' he thought to himself as he shuffled over to her. "Check this one out!" she greeted, handing him a piece of paper that contained an image of a very squished, mangled-looking face. CJ's face, to exact. "Hey, I think my mom hit something like this with her car last week..." he said coolly. She put her hands on her hips, pretending to be insulted. "Very funny, now you make one, wise guy." Trunks grinned and stepped over to the machine. He squished his face on to the glass, shutting the top cover-like object as much as possible. CJ hit the large green button, causing a bright flash to sting his eyes. "Ouch," he mumbled, lifting his head out from under the cover-thing, (I must figure out what such a thing is called...) rubbing his eyes. "Serves you right..." CJ smiled as she spoke. She grabbed the newly printed paper. "Oh my, just dazzling." Trunks accepted the page from her, and lifted it up to look at it. "Wow, I am certainly one sexy man- beast." CJ bust into laughter. "I'd best not go waving this around...they just might snag me, and then have me appear on the cover of next month's 'Playgirl.' Best give it to you for safe keeping," he told her. She pretended to wipe tears from her eyes. "I'll treasure it always." she joked, folding the paper and stuffing in into her pocket.
"Think we should go get back to the moronic duo?" Trunks asked. CJ smiled a little, and then nodded. "Sure...they'll come looking sooner or later anyway..." The pair received some odd looks exiting the building, but it didn't faze either one of them. Stepping out onto the sidewalk, neither person could miss the fact that Goten and Bra were both sitting out on the sidewalk, near the bikes. "What did you break NOW Goten?" Trunks asked his friend. Goten shook his head. "This time, it was all her," he told him, pointing to the girl sitting to his left. "Alright," he continued, "then what did YOU break?" Bra stood up, on the defensive. "Hey, I was in there, singing a song, and then the score thing goes up, with a big, fat, 55 on it! Can you BELIEVE it? So, I got pissed off...and I kinda threw the microphone at the ground. The hole's no too awful big though!" Trunks sighed. "How typical of you. It's always something with..." Yet, his words were interrupted, not by speech, or mad cows creating a stampede, but by the sound of CJ's growling stomach. "Hungry?" Trunks asked her. She nodded, slightly embarrassed. Naturally, she was very hungry. She had cut her normal intake down by at LEAST 85%, if not more. Her stomach let out another loud growl. "Oh, shut up, you," she spoke to it. "Hey, I'm kinda hungry too..." Goten complained, though he had eaten a total of 47 pancakes for breakfast. And that was just the PANCAKES.
"Well, it's getting to be around lunch time...anyone see some form of food stop?" Bra surveyed the area. "There's a McDonald's over yonder," she stated. "Sounds good to me," everyone else said, all at once. Trunks chuckled. "Well, I'd call that a unanimous vote...McDonald's it is!" (A few moments later...) Upon entering the McDonald's, Trunks was relieved to see that there were few people in the dining area. Fast food places sucked when they were full of people. "You guys take a seat over there, I'll go order." The other three nodded in unison, relocating themselves to a booth in the far corner of the room. Trunks stepped up to the counter, for there was no line. Surprising for this time of day. "Can I help you?" greeted a very flustered-looking, purple-haired young girl (Would you look at that? It's me, at my McJob!)
"Yes, I'll take...oh, about 126 double cheeseburgers, 12 apple pies, and 4 twenty piece nuggets please?" The girl didn't seem the least bit shocked. She'd been having a rough day, and this kind of thing was bound to happen. "Would you like fries with that?" she asked brightly. "Sure, 16 of those...and an order of chocolate chip cookies as well." The girl handed him his receipt, and was about to give him his total, when a loud shout came from the kitchen area behind her. "ALRIGHT, WHO LOCKED A GIRL IN THE FREEZER?!" The girl lifted off her yellow "I'm lovin' it" visor and tossed it behind her. "That's my cue!" she said cheerfully, quickly dashing around the counter and out the glass front door. She was soon followed out by three others, all screaming various forms of 'Get back here!' Trunks shrugged, tossing two $100 bills onto the counter. That would be enough to cover it, he was sure.
Making his way back to the table, he heard a loud shriek come from somewhere near the kitchen area. It was no doubt a result of his very large order. Sliding into the corner booth, next to CJ, he couldn't help but smirk. "This place has really gone to hell," he plainly stated. "TELL me about it..." Bra mumbled. After a few moments of good-natured conversation, their order arrived at the table. It was all balanced onto one tray, which was so heavy that it had to be carried out by three grown men. As the three 'openly Saiyan' teens began to work their way down the cheeseburger pyramid, CJ slipped under the table, only to appear again, standing at the opposite side. (I always did this as a kid...) "Sorry, but I need to use the bathroom!" she called out, walking to the door on the opposite side of the room, and quickly entering.
Bra saw this as her ideal opportunity. "Look!" she called out, pointing in the direction of a large window. "It's...the apocalypse!" Goten and Trunks both turned their heads in the designated direction. "Hey, I don't see any apocalypse!" Goten stated, bluntly. "Where are all of the explosions, the chaos and turmoil?!" Trunks smacked himself in the forehead. Turning back around, he could see his sister stuffing something into her pocket. She quickly looked up and smiled innocently. "My, what's taking CJ so long in there? I'd best go check on her!" she said, her tone cute and clueless. "But...hasn't she only been gone like, 15 seconds?" Goten pondered. "Oh...right, well...uhh...girl talk! That's right, girl talk!" she exclaimed, following CJ's example by sliding under the table. Goten and Trunks exchanged knowing glances. "Women," they both muttered, continuing with their meal.
Several minutes later, the pair returned from the restroom, sliding back into their seats. "Enjoy your quality time in the loo?" Trunks asked jokingly. "Oh yes," CJ put in, "I've discovered that when I'm away from you two, my IQ goes up!" Goten glared at her. "Are you saying that I give of essence of stupidity?" CJ thought about this for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, something like that," This caused the entire table to erupt with laughter. But nothing good lasts forever. Not two minutes after the girls had returned, and Goten had finally stopped his pouting, a tall, dark- haired man who had been sitting in the opposite corner rose from his chair. He was wearing a black business suit, complete with a red tie. He stopped his slow march as he reached the table that out young friends occupied. Everyone looked up at him.
"Can I help you?" Trunks asked the man, confused. The man grinned widely. "Yes, I have a question for the young lady with the red shirt?" CJ's heart felt numb. This man frightened her. "Excuse me, but does the name Tyler sound familiar to you?" She was shocked. She dared not make eye contact with him as she softly shook her head no. "No you say? Well now, how about Chris?" Her eyes opened wide. He bent down, bringing his face closer to hers. She had no choice but to look into his eyes. They were a vibrant yellow, the color of the sun at midday. "You may try to hide yourself, but your new appearance doesn't fool me. Your eyes, my dear. Your eyes tell your story. I know exactly who you are. "I-I have no idea what you're talking about," she stuttered. "You never were a good liar," he sneered. "If I had the jurisdiction, I would bring you in right now." CJ bit her bottom lip. Hard.
Trunks took this opportunity to slide swiftly out of the booth he had been residing in, standing straight and tall, looking directly into the eyes of the man, who was only a few inches taller than he. "Listen," he began, his voice holding a small, yet noticeable amount of rage, "if you have any brains in your head, you will leave this building, and never bother any of my friends again." The man smirked. "Ah, the young Master Briefs. Playing the part of the hero, I see. I will gladly exit this establishment, but rest assured, I will be speaking with your little girlfriend soon." This nearly pushed him over the edge. "OUT!" he shouted, directly into the man's face. The mysterious man smirked, then slowly walked through the front door.
"Who WAS that guy?" Bra asked her, suddenly very worried. "Do you want me to go beat him up for you?" Goten asked seriously. CJ chuckled a little, her breathing pattern slowly returning to normal. "No, that'll be quite unnecessary. I've have no idea who that man was, but he's gone now, so I'm just fine." Trunks sat back down, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She looked slightly up at him. His eyes were filled with concern. "Thank you for getting rid of him," she told him, with gratitude. He just nodded, as if to say 'no problem.' After a few moments of silence, Bra decided to strike up a conversation. "So, let's head out, shall we? Time to plan out next move..."
As the group got up from the table, headed for the door, Trunks couldn't keep his wandering mind from irritating him. 'Who was that guy? She says she's never seen him before, but I know better. That was genuine fear in her eyes.' His thoughts were swimming through his mind at an uncontrollable speed. Something had happened to CJ, something terrible. He knew that he needed to know what it was, but he wasn't about to just come right out and question her. No, he wouldn't do that, but he WOULD find out what it was that haunted her. That almost unnoticeable darkness hidden in her eyes. He would find out what it all meant. He just hoped that time would come soon...
...before it was too late.
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Holy CRUMPETS everyone, this is the longest chapter that I've ever written...and it's not even that long! -sob- I really am trying...
...
Kanojo: Hey, where's Goten with a smart-alecky comment?
...
Kanojo: HELLO?!
...
Kanojo: But...I'm lost without the criticism! Oh...I need Goten...
Goten: Ha! I knew you needed me...
Kanojo: And your criticism is always greeted with a rash action by me, sooo...
Goten: Sorry, I've hidden the fishbowl.
(Meanwhile...)
Pan: So...are they madly in love yet?
Trunks: What does it matter? You've got me now, you know...
Pan: Yes, but I want Kanojo to have someone...she'll soon find out that I gave away Sean B...
Trunks: You mean, to that writer friend of hers? What was her name...Rug Doctor?
Pan: No, I think it was Dirt Devil...
Trunks: Eh...something to do with making your floors clean.
Pan: Well, I'll play the part of Kanojo...-ahem- So, you like? I worked crazy mondo hard on this one, you have to review or I'll go nuts. Alright, laterz!
Trunks: Wow, you're good at that.
Pan: It's a gift...and a curse.
(Note: 3,374 words yo! Trippin' bling fo' sheezy!)