The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret

--The Art of Keeping a Secret, Lost--

"What's up? You two look like you've seen a ghost," Goku said as he approached them.

Bra wasn't quite able to say anything. As a matter of fact, there was a good chance that she had lost the ability to speak altogether. Goku had just called them out. How could he possibly know about them? Something had gone terribly wrong if Goku knew that they were "together".

"Dad, what are you talking about?" Goten asked, still shaken by what had been said.

Goku looked from Goten to Bra and then back to Goten. "I'm talking about what Pan was saying earlier," he told them.

Goten looked confused beyond compare. "What Pan was saying earlier?"

She should have known that this whole catastrophic unveiling had been caused by Pan. But how could that be? Pan knew nothing of their new relationship.

"Oh, that's right. You were writing your mom in when we were talking about it," Goku recalled. He looked at the ceiling.

Bra was beginning to feel light-headed. Goku knew. Pan knew. Gohan and Videl had to know. She wondered how they found out. She wondered who else might know. She wondered if her brother knew. She sure hoped her father didn't know. That was the last thing they needed.

"Talking about it?" Goten asked. He must have been just as stunned as she was.

"Yeah. She was saying that she caught you two kissing at school," Goku informed them.

Both Goten and Bra were speechless.

Goku grinned that ridiculous grin of his and marched off to the waiting area.

No way. No. There was no way in hell Pan could have seen them. That was all there was to it. But if Pan hadn't seen them kiss and said that she had, then what sense would that make? Bra was having trouble comprehending all of this. Why'd Pan have to go and tell everybody they knew? This just made things 10 times harder for them.

Goten looked at Bra with raised eyebrows. "Well...."

"Well..." was Bra's only response.

They were silent for a few moments.

"We've still got a lot of studying to do," Goten finally said.

Bra found herself staring at the floor. "Yeah. We'd better get outta here."

--at the library--

During the flight to their place of study, the two were silent. They were both trying to think of a way to get out of the mess they'd gotten themselves into. Would any studying really be done today?

It was almost 4:30 when the two arrived and settled into their usual room.

Bra flopped down in her seat and Goten leaned against the door. Silence still.

....

"How did this happen? How did we slip up like this?" Goten asked quietly.

Bra laughed sarcastically. "WE? How did WE slip up like this?" She shook her head. "YOU kissed ME, remember? I had a fool-proof plan in action and you decided that you couldn't keep your lips to yourself."

"Hey, I didn't see you trying to stop me," Goten said. He sighed. "Besides, that's not what this is about--"

"That's exactly what this is about. What else is it about?" Bra asked.

"Listen, it's not about what's already happened. It's about what's going to happen next," Goten told her.

Bra closed her eyes. "You're right." She laid her head on the table. "Of course you're right. What's done is done. Now we have to find a way to deal with it."

Things could never be simple for her. How did they let themselves get caught so soon after it all began? It was only Tuesday. What were they supposed to do? They were seeing each other...in a way. She was way too young for him. And her father would have him for dinner once he found out. Then there was the fact that Goten was now dating Paris as well. This was a ditch they'd both dug much too deep to get out of. Even with the ability to fly.

"Well, everybody already knows. So denial is out of the question," Goten said. He put his hands in his pockets.

"Everybody in your family knows. If we can keep it to just them knowing, it might not be so bad," Bra brought up.

"Why do we even care who knows? We should just tell everybody," Goten suggested.

Bra gave Goten a strange look. "What's wrong with you? Did you forget that I'm your student?" What was he thinking? Did he forget why they were keeping this all a secret in the first place?"

"Who cares about a stupid job if it means I can't be with you?" Goten asked.

He really wasn't getting the point. It wasn't just his job that was on the line if everyone found out about them. "Goten, listen to me. You will go to jail. Prison. P-R-I-S-O-N. Then you wouldn't have to worry about having a job OR being with me. Because you'll be incarcerated. Haven't you ever heard the statement: '15'll get you 20'? Well, 16 is just as bad."

Goten thought for a minute. "Oh. Right. Waiting another two years is better than waiting 20 years."

"So, we still have to keep this thing under cover," Bra added. "I don't think anyone at school knows except Pan."

"I hope so," Goten said. "But sometimes she likes to talk more than she should. We have to get to her before she gets to anyone else."

Bra nodded. There was one good thing that would come of this. She'd be able to express her feelings toward him around the people who knew. They all seemed pretty happy to hear that they were 'together'.

She looked over at Goten and saw that he was staring at her. "What?"

"Nothing," Goten answered. He looked at his Teachers' Edition, which lay on the table.

Nothing? Not with that look. That look was for something. She decided not to worry about it. She had other things on her mind. "So, what about the whole Paris thing? If you stop seeing her, everyone at school will suspect something. If you don't stop seeing her, your family will probably freak."

Goten shook his head. "Thanks for reminding me. We're supposed to go out tonight. I'd better call her and tell her I'll be late." He stepped out of the room.

Bra felt heat at the backs of her eyes. It was obvious what his choice was. She knew the two would be dating, but the reality of it only hit her just now. Goten was seriously dating his ex-girlfriend. What did she expect? For it to be a lie? It was what they'd planned.

Of course, she couldn't sit there and cry. It wouldn't solve anything. And it wouldn't make the situation go away. She wondered what would happen when the counselor kissed him. She wondered what would happen when that red-head offered her body to him. It was bound to happen eventually. And it sickened her to even think about it. While Goten was obviously not like any other man on the face of the planet, he was still a man. And every man had needs, just like every woman had needs.

Anger. Frustration. Jealousy. All of them began to swallow her. And as she sat in that lonely room, she decided that she should make herself scarce.

--back home--

Bra walked through the front door and slammed her book bag on the floor. Then she leaned against the door and took deep breaths to keep from crying her eyes out.

"You're home early," Bulma stated. Bra hadn't seen her mother sitting on the sofa, reading one of her science magazines.

Bra looked up at her and gasped.

Bulma finally took her eyes off of her book and eyed her daughter. "Is something wrong?" She put her magazine down and walked toward Bra.

"Nothing's wrong. Just stay away from me," Bra snapped.

"Your eyes look red. Have you been crying?" Bulma asked, walking toward her still.

"I said stay away!!" Bra shouted.

She ran to her room and slammed the door. She wouldn't cry. She would will herself not to cry. She continued taking deep breaths and went to her window. Looking at the sky usually calmed her....

After about five minutes of staring blankly at the clouds, Bra began to feel a little calmer. She looked down at the gravitron her father trained in and saw two figures standing beside it. One of them could only be her father. Funny. Her father wasn't one to have company over unless-- She took a closer look at the person standing with her father. Oh, no. Her nightmares were coming true much too quickly for her. The person talking to her father was none other than Goku.

--End The Art of Keeping a Secret, Lost--

--Hey, there again. After another long wait, here's another episode of The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret. Thank you so much for taking time out to read this seemingly endless story. Just let me know what you like and what you don't like.

--Thanks for the past reviews. Keep them coming. And while there are still a lot of unanswered questions floating around, I do plan on answering at least some of them. So don't lose hope just yet.

--What could her dad and Goku be talking about? Find out in the next episode of The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret.