Disclaimer: magic eight ball of life 'Guess WHAT! You just WON a drawing that entitles you to all the official rights to DBZ!' REALLY? magic eight ball of life 'NO! You'll NEVER own it!' Ok, so I don't own it.

Part Five:

I Hide Myself From You

Trunks bit his lip in trying to fight the temptation, Gohan was hard to resist. He knew his sensei didn't feel the same passion he felt. Trunks was like a younger brother to him, a best friend. "Gohan…" The sound of Trunks' voice was muffled as he buried his face on Gohan's shoulder. "I've missed you." Trunks pulled back and looked at his feet. He wanted so much more than companionship from him, but he knew if he ever mentioned it, it would ruin the friendship that they had.

"Trunks, what's wrong? Please, just talk to me…" Gohan was surprised to see how quite and introverted his friend had become over the years while he was in otherworld. Gohan pulled Trunks close again into an even tighter hug. He was surprised to feel Trunks trying to pull away from his touch. "Trunks, what's wrong?" he inquired again, but it was softer and more understanding.

Trunks shook his head. He had promised himself not to cry again, but it was so hard for him. How would Gohan take it? "I just missed you that's all." He spoke slowly in hushed tones. "I thought I'd never seen you again. It hurt so much, I've felt so alone." Trunks continued to stare at the floor and folded his arms over his chest as if he was trying to keep warm. He took a step back to put a foot of room in between him and Gohan. He wanted Gohan to hold him, but knew it would only make his craving of desire all that much worse.

Gohan slowly approached Trunks again, but didn't try to hold him. Gohan thought he was scaring Trunks away from him. Gohan wanted more than ever to console his younger friend, to be the one that held him at night, the one that truly cherished him, but he knew Trunks was pulling away from him because of his actions. "Trunks, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"Sorry for what, Gohan? You haven't done anything wrong." Trunks' eyes were trembling and stinging with the treat of tears, but his will was as strong as his father's pride as to let none fall. He'd be stronger than that, he had promised it for Gohan.

Gohan sighed in defeat and pulled away in resignation. "Acting weird, I guess." Trunks hadn't thought Gohan was acting weird, but didn't know exactly what was going on. "Bulma said she didn't mind if my mother and I stayed here for a while, since our home was destroyed, but I want to check with you. Do you mind if we crash here for a while? I mean, at least until I get on my feet."

Trunks smiled widely. Now THAT'S the Trunks Briefs I know. Gohan was glad to see that bright smile that his student had stunned him with so many years ago. It was one of the first things Gohan had loved about him. That bright optimistic smile, no matter how hard life seemed, that smile would be a beacon of hope. Trunks nodded in response to the question.

"They are going to start to try rebuilding the downtown city area and are asking for as much help as they can get." Trunks was surprised that everyone was working on rebuilding so soon. It had been yesterday's broadcasted news that the androids were defeated and they found scraps of metal that were the remnants of the demon duo's bodies. Gohan asked, "Would you like to work on one of the crews with me?"

"Yeah, I'd love that." Trunks said, hoping he hadn't sounded too eager. "I'm glad you'll be staying with us a while Gohan. We can finally get to spend some time together that won't have our attention so focused on training."

"Yeah." Gohan raised his head and sniffed the air. "Smell's like Mom's cooking something good for supper." The smell caught Trunk's attention as well. Their deep thoughts were interrupted by the loud growl, Gohan blushed as Trunks burst into a hearty laughter, it was so contagious that Gohan couldn't help but join in too. Bulma and Chichi wondered what their commotion was all about as the two of them strolled into the kitchen still overwhelmed by their amusement. Gohan finally sighed in contentment as his breathing regulated. The welcomed silence was disrupted by and rumble that had Trunks smirking at Gohan, turning him a brilliant shade of red in the cheeks.

Chichi sighed. "It's good to fell like things are close to normal again." She enjoyed cooking for her hosts, being that Bulma was never that good of a cook, and she once again reveled that there was someone their to enjoy her culinary talent. Gohan's growling stomach fooled her with memories, "You are too much like your father, Gohan." Chichi playfully mocked him, "Here I thought only Goku's stomach could get that loud." She smirked, as the gathered friends joined in convivial laughter. Having her son back in her life had been the greatest give she could have received. It was almost too much to ask for.

Bulma and Chichi sat in awe as the two demi-saiyans finished a bountiful amount of food in what had to be a record amount of time. The women relished the time they were able to spend at the dinner table talking. Gohan stretched back in his chair yawning. "I think it's about ready for bed, what do you guys say?"

Trunks chimed in, "I'm not in the least bit tired."

"That's because you had to pass out earlier, remember?" Gohan teased with a friendly smirk.

"Hey, that wasn't MY fault." The two volleyed insults playfully back and forth as they retreated to their adjoining rooms. The beds were on opposite sides of the wall, only inches of space between the two of them. Neither knew of the other's true feelings as the both felt the longing to be together. It was going to be a long night for them both.