Versus 4: Temporal Distortion
--No Recess--
Bra headed down the hall to her first class of the day. It was now her favorite class. After the weekend she'd been through, she thought she'd never want to come here again. But she'd finally worked things out with her favorite teacher. They were now unofficially officially together, whatever that meant for them. And she had nothing to worry about.
When she made it to the classroom door, she looked in and saw that Goten was cleaning out his desk.
Oh, no...
"Goten?" Bra said as she entered the classroom.
Goten looked up at her and sighed. But he smiled anyway. A fake plastic smile. "Hi, Bra."
Bra looked around at the things that were already in boxes. "Goten, no."
Goten went back to cleaning out his desk. "It's probably for the best. I mean, we knew what we were getting into."
"But, Goten...," Bra began.
"Besides, it's not like we won't get to see each other anymore. Just not at school," Goten said.
Bra sat in a nearby desk and hugged herself. She wasn't sure what to say or think.
They were both silent for a while.
"What...? How...?" Bra asked. "You were fired?"
Goten nodded. "It was only expected. The principal pulled me aside this morning. He told me that other teachers were saying that me and a student at the school had some kind of romantic relationship going on."
Whoa. That whole singing in front of a crowd thing had been a huge, HUGE mistake.
"So, I told him that it was true. There was no denying it. Especially when so many other teachers had called him about it this weekend," Goten continued.
Oh, boy. Teachers were there? Bra thought that there were only students at that club. She'd really done it this time.
"Goten, I'm so sorry. I didn't think before I did that," Bra told him. She looked at the floor. "I never wanted you to lose your job."
"Listen, Bra. I'd rather lose this job than to lose what you and I have. YOU are what really matters to me. I can always find another job," Goten assured her.
Bra couldn't help being angry at herself. She was smarter than this. It had been selfish to do what she did simply to get back on good terms with him. It cost him his job and any recommendations he may need in the future.
"And don't worry. You guys are gonna have a substitute teacher," Goten said. "I don't know what's gonna happen after that. Hopefully they don't stick all of you in Mrs. Fleckinstein's classes."
"I think it's Flinglestein," Bra corrected. She shook her head. "Anyway, I don't care about who's going to teach the class when you're gone. What are you going to do now that you don't have a job?"
Goten shrugged. "I'm sure something will come up." He started closing up his boxes.
Bra looked at him for a long time. "Goten, I'm sorry."
"There's no reason to be," Goten said. "I'd much rather have things turn out like this. You and I will be able to hang out as much as we want wherever we want and no one will be able to say anything. Well, except for the fact that you're under age. But it's better than any alternative I can think of. Try not to worry yourself too much about it."
She knew that he was right. Things had definitely turned out for the best for her. But Goten was now jobless. There had to be something she could do to help.
The classroom door opened and Pan stepped in. She seemed to be in a peppy mood. She made her way over to them and almost tripped over a box, but that didn't wipe the smile off her face. "Gooooooooood morning," she sang. She looked around the room and her smile slowly started to fade.
"Hi, Pan," Bra greeted sadly.
"Good morning, Pan," Goten said, sounding rather distracted.
Pan frowned. "Oh, come on. For a couple who's finally gotten back together, neither of you seem very happy. This is supposed to be a joyous occasion." She looked around at the boxes again. "Okay, what's this, Uncle Goten? Did you have something special planned for class today?"
Goten smiled sadly. "I'd like to tell you that's what it is. I really would. But the truth is that I won't be teaching this class anymore. I probably won't be teaching at all anymore."
"Why? What happened?" Pan asked.
Goten sighed and began to tell the tale.
Bra could only stand there and listen to Goten explain things to Pan.
"Can they really fire you for hear-say? I mean, there has to be some--" Pan began.
"I confessed to the relationship. I think denying it would have only made things worse for Bra and me," Goten told Pan. "But don't worry. Everything will work out. It's just a job. Don't get in a panic over a job."
Goten was right about that. It WAS just a job after all. Maybe she was overreacting about this whole thing.
"What really matters is that Bra and I can be together freely," Goten continued. He smiled and looked at Bra.
"Yeah, well, try not to take that to the extreme," Pan suggested. "She's still a minor, you know. There is a law against having sex with a minor. Consensual or not." She giggled a little.
Bra blushed deeply. She couldn't bring herself to look at Goten. She couldn't believe that Pan had just openly said something like that. Of course, this WAS Pan. She shouldn't be surprised by anything the quarter Saiyan said or did.
"Pan!" Goten almost shouted.
"Then again, what the law doesn't know, the law can't enforce, right?" Pan insinuated. She laughed out loud this time.
"Pan!" Goten almost shouted again. He looked around. "Listen, I want to make it out of here before any of the other students come in. I'm sure rumors will be flying all day." He looked at Bra. "You're gonna have a hard time today. I feel bad for you. People will want to ask you questions. Just try not to blow anyone's head off."
He took her hand and just held onto it for a while.
Bra looked into his eyes and was able to see a calmness there. A kind of relief. So much so that she could almost feel that same calmness and relief within herself. Maybe this was what it felt like to have a kindred spirit. To share some of the same emotions. To feel the same joys and the same pains. Maybe things were looking up for their relationship.
Bra smiled. "I won't."
Pan clasped her hands together and smiled at them. "This is great. I love seeing you two like this. I can't wait to tell my mom and dad."
The two just looked at her, then back at each other.
"I gotta go," Goten said. He finally released her hand. Collecting his boxes, he made his way out of the classroom.
Pan looked at Bra for a while after he left, but was silent.
This was a little shocking, so Bra started to get a little nervous. "What? What's that look for?"
"Are those or are those not hickeys all over your neck?" Pan asked.
Bra gasped quietly and blushed. There was nothing she could say. She'd forgotten about the passion marks that Goten had left after their two days of making out.
Pan giggled rather loudly. "I thought you two just talked. Talking doesn't make hickeys. And I could swear I saw some on him too."
Bra was speechless once again. She'd been called out and there was nothing she could do or say to deny it.
"That's so cute. You two make the best couple in history," Pan said.
Ironically, they did make the best couple in 'history'. It was too bad that their 'history' together was now over. She had rather enjoyed having Goten as a teacher, though she had to admit, having him as a boyfriend sounded better.
But then she thought back to why she and Goten broke up the first time before they even got together. Would her lack of life experience become a problem again? Or had they settled that issue when she was finally able to tell him that she loved him?
--End No Recess--
--Another long wait for yet another short episode. I'm sorry about that. This holiday season has been in shambles since before it even started. But I'm back together for the time being. And I know that this wasn't a very good episode, but there will be more to come.
--I won't complain about this computer anymore... sigh
--Thank you for reading this episode of Temporal Distortion and thank you for the reviews of past episodes. I always look forward to hearing from you. I know that sometimes there's not much to comment on, but whenever you do get around to commenting on something you see, it's always appreciated. You're a wonderful audience.
