Note: So, I guess some people are confused about couplings here. Chi-Chi and Yamcha won't be "getting together" because of her marriage to Goku, and because she loves him very much. Yamcha just has hidden feelings for Chi-Chi, and it is an important part of this story. I have just put the characters as such because they are two of the main characters, that's all. Just to clear up any questions any of you may have. =) Enjoy

Chapter 2: Hardest Choice

Chi-Chi smiled softly and looked down at the children she held in her arms. They were beautiful, and exactly identical. Both of the children had quite a bit of hair on their heads that the doctor said was odd for children just born. She didn't care though, they were perfect just the way they were, but she couldn't help but feel terribly sad. The birth had gone smoothly, no problems, and her labor hadn't even lasted an hour. The birth couldn't of gone better, and everyone involved agreed. But the worry in the pit of Chi-Chi's stomach kept growing the more she looked at her children. They were completely identical, except that the baby girl she held had blonde hair, and her eyes had been a brilliant green, unlike her brother who had the dark black hair and black eyes of his mother and father. Chi-Chi closed her eyes and tried to stop the tears that threatened to fall.

She loved her husband, but she didn't want her only daughter to have to live the life she knew her son would. She was worried by the look of her daughter. Her sons had never come out this way, and no one in her family had ever had blonde hair, or green eyes. She was so confused of what it meant, and she was too scared to find out. With a small sob, she decided what was best for her daughter, no matter how much it hurt her.

Yamcha walked around the cafeteria whistling, walking past many choices of food that was laid out behind a glass screen. He was starving, but he was in such a good mood at the time that he really wasn't paying attention. Chi-Chi had asked him to stay with her. She asked him to hold her hand, and he got to cut the umbilical cord. It almost seemed like she was having his children. That they were starting the life he had always dreamed of. But once he saw Goten, the first to come out, he came crashing back to reality. He looked so much like his father, that Yamcha almost began feeling guilty. Slowly, Yamcha's mood began to fall as he remembered that Chi-Chi was holding her husbands children, and she would never be holding his. He sighed and picked up the first two sandwiches he saw and paid for them.

With a heavy heart he went back up to Chi-Chi's room expecting anything but what he saw. She was clutching her children and crying softly into them. He walked in and set the sandwiches down on the bedside table.

"Chi-Chi... what's the matter?" He touched her shoulder, hoping to make her look up at him.

"It's Goka... what am I supposed to do with her? She..." she choked out a sob and started to shake. The noise of their mother crying had woken the children. Yamcha reached out for Goka and held her in her arms as she started to cry. He rocked her back and forth a tried to shush her into silence. It worked surprisingly fast, and Goka fell asleep clinging to Yamcha's shirt. He smiled down at her and wished she could've be his.

Chi-Chi looked up at Yamcha and Goka and wiped away her tears as she rocked Goten. She bit her lip and let out a small sigh. I have to do it. I have to.

"Yamcha, I have a favor to ask you. Just know, you don't have to say yes, but it would help me so much. I know you noticed Goka's hair, and I saw the look on your face. I know you were thinking what I was thinking." She took a deep breath and continued, "Why is her hair blonde, and her eyes that green color? But honestly, I don't want to know. I'm afraid it means she will have to live a life that I don't think she should have to. I'm afraid she'll have to grow into a fighter because of her father, and because of her looks. That worries me Yamcha, it worries me so much, so I know I can't keep her. But I don't want to give her to a stranger." She looked up at his face, and saw that he would do it. She smiled softly to herself.

"Yamcha, will you please adopt her? I see how she acts with you, the way she clings to you. Look at her; she's sleeping so soundly with you, as if you were meant to be her father. I wouldn't ask you if I didn't trust you. I know you'll love her as if she were your daughter, that's why I know that she will be safe with you."

As Yamcha listened to her he seemed to loose touch with reality. All of a sudden the world was spinning all around him. She was going to trust her child to him; she was going to let him keep a part of her that no one else could share. She was going to give him the one thing he had always wanted from her, a piece of her heart. He knew he had to take her daughter, and love her as if they had shared her, and he knew he could do it. With a loving glance down to Goka, he knew he had to take her, and love her like her true father never could. He ran his hand along the smooth curve of her head and looked up to Chi-Chi.

"Of course I'll take her for you Chi-Chi. I understand why you want this and I think you're right. However, I think it's right that I do give her the option to fight, if she so chooses. But, of course, if you don't want me too..."

"No! No, if that is what she wants, then I think it is just fine. I just don't want her to be forced because of... her heritage." Chi-Chi knew Yamcha would never force anything on that baby girl. Now that he had agreed, she felt a huge weight being lifted off her chest. She knew her daughter would be raised to be a wonderful woman, and she knew she would be able to be a part of that girl's life.

"Yamcha... thank you so much... I owe you so much for this."

No Chi-Chi, you owe me nothing. You've already given me more than I deserve. He thought, looking down at the sleeping baby in his arms.