Versus 4: Temporal Distortion
--Second Opinion--
Bra sat at the edge of her bed and looked at the engagement band she'd bought for Goten. She was nervous. Very nervous. So nervous that she almost wanted to forget about asking him to marry her officially. She pulled the ring from the little black box and sighed as she studied it. It was strange that something so small could signify something so enormous. And she wondered if this may be too big a step to take in their relationship, even though she HAD known him all her life. Pan had said it. She was only 16. She was still in high school.
But she'd never felt so sure about anything in her life. She was sure that the love between her and Goten was unconditional, everlasting. She was certain that they were meant to be.
Yet as she looked at this ring, she could understand why this may not work out the way she hoped. Goten had said to her before that he thought she should have more life experience before they got too involved with each other. For some reason, that seemed to have changed over the past couple of weeks. It was like something had changed Goten's mind about her gaining this life experience altogether. What could have done that? Did he see something different in her now than he did back when they'd first confessed their love for each other? Did he see something different within himself? It was a question she would surely have to ask him.
As for this symbol of endless love, she had not really thought this through. Once her mother got the bank statement for this month, she would wonder where $2,000 disappeared to. But that was something Bra could worry about later.
She placed the ring back into the little box and smiled to herself. She felt the tightening inside her chest. Her heart thumped like a boxer working on his punching bag. Her palms were a little sweaty. She'd never felt this way before. Not like this. And that is how she knew that she was doing the right thing.
Bra had already tested her game program on her computer. It worked just fine. She really was a genius. She'd never really needed any proof of it. She saw how intelligent she was every day. But if she did need one more bit of confirmation, this was it. She'd developed an entire game in less than 6 hours.
She burned it onto a DVD and put it on her bed. And she placed the tiny black box next to it. Organization was the key. She had to get everything organized in her mind. What was on her to-do list for today:
1) Write the game program. Done!
2) Go with Pan to pick out a ring. Done!
3) Make sure Goten and Trunks were still doing their brain wave tests. Done!
4) Copy and test the game to make sure it works. Done!
5) Burn the game to a DVD. Done!
6) Take a shower and get dressed.
7) Once the guys are done, ask them out.
8) Get in touch with Pan and Marron.
9) Go out.
10) Go back to Trunks and Goten's apartment for "the big surprise".
Bra sighed. She still had a long way to go before she could get this off her chest. Her best bet was to take it easy until it was time for "the big surprise".
--soon--
Bra headed to the kitchen wearing a pair of hip-huggers and a thin sweater. She put her hair up in a pony tail, which was a good sign that it was growing back pretty quickly. No need for formal dress. They were just hanging out.
She entered the kitchen and Goten was sitting there eating a few sandwiches. He was wearing a dress shirt and a pair of slacks. What was he so dressed up for?
"Looking good," she told him.
He looked up at Bra and with a mouth full of food, smiled.
Bra took another look at him and tried not to laugh, but it came out anyway.
Goten swallowed. "What's so funny?"
Bra walked over to him and wiped a big glop of mayonnaise off of his forehead. "You really need to learn how to feed yourself," she giggled.
Goten frowned. He looked at the mayo on her hand and without warning quickly put the finger in his mouth.
Bra looked at him strangely and blushed. Goten's behavior was so very peculiar lately. She wasn't really sure what to make of it.
"I have some good news," Goten stated after he pulled her finger from his mouth. He studied her hand for a while. "I got a job."
"Really? Wow, that was really fast," Bra said. So, that's why he was so dressed up. "Where are you working?"
"The local paper. Your mom put in a word for me and they called me first thing this morning," Goten told her with a smile. "I start tomorrow morning."
Her mother had sure been doing her share of 'putting in words' for people lately. First finding that talent scout for Eroder and now this. "Goten, that's great. I'm so happy for you." Bra smiled and threw her arms around him. This was a good excuse for her to want to take him someplace. "We should celebrate. All of us. It would be like old times. Marron, Uubu, Trunks, Pan, you and I could go out tonight."
"On a Tuesday...? Okay. Sounds great. Count me in," Goten said. "Uubu's back in town?" He put his arms around Bra's waist and sat her on his lap.
Bra nodded and put her arms around Goten's neck. "That's what Pan said anyway. That girl seems to know everything."
"Yeah. Everything except the right thing," Goten added with a laugh.
Bra laughed a little as well. "Good old Pan. I--"
The back door opened and none other than Vegeta walked in. He looked at the fact that his daughter was sitting on Goten's lap and he narrowed his eyes at him.
Goten smiled. "Hey, Vegeta. Long time no see."
Bra could see the quiet fury in her father's eyes. The man just couldn't get over the fact that she was dating the son of his rival. But it only made sense. Her father had always wanted her to be with someone strong. It made her wonder if it even had anything to do with the fact that this was a member of the Son family. He didn't really have this problem with her friendship with Pan. Her father had always had trouble with the idea of her being with the opposite sex, no matter who he was. Actually, she didn't really date anyone besides the one guy she took to Marron's fashion show (which couldn't really be considered a date at all) and Goten.
"Hi, Papa," Bra greeted with a smile.
Vegeta folded his arms across his chest.
She could tell that he had hoped his presence would at least cause them to change positions, but neither she nor Goten moved. They both simply smiled at him.
"Where's your mother?" Vegeta asked Bra.
Bra shrugged. "In her lab most likely. I haven't seen very much of her these last few days."
"Yeah, she's in the lab. She put Trunks under a while ago," Goten told Vegeta.
"I didn't ask you, boy," Vegeta said. It was his usual intimidating tone.
Bra frowned.
"Oh, someone's cranky," Goten observed.
She loved the way Goten was with her father. It was like he saw past her dad's hardened exterior sometimes. Or he just ignored it altogether. Goten stood up for himself when it came to her father. That was something that only a few people would do. She did it sometimes herself. Her mother was somehow a pro at it. Goku did it a lot. And surprisingly every encounter her father had with ChiChi, she'd stood up to him as well. Not even Trunks would stand up to their dad the way Goten did at times.
Vegeta only shook his head and walked away.
"Nobody shuts my dad up except my mom," Bra said to Goten after her father left. "And you."
Goten sighed. "I thought your dad might be warming up to me, but I guess he isn't."
"Don't worry about him. It just takes him a little while to come around," Bra said. "Did my mom happen to say anything about your brain waves?"
Goten shook his head. "All she said was that she would take a look at them later." He stood Bra up. "I'd better go get ready for tonight."
Before he could make his way to the door, Bra pulled him close and pecked him on the lips. "I'll convince Trunks to do the driving. I'll see you around 8."
"You know it," Goten said. He took one of her hands and just held it for a while. Then he left.
Bra sighed. Everything was going according to plan so far. Now all she had to do was get in contact with the girls...
--three way--
Bra was really just sitting there listening to Pan and Marron argue over the phone.
"For the last time, I am NOT going out with Uubu. I'm seeing Wes now. He just called me from Vegas, telling me how much he missed me. And I told him how much I miss him," Marron said. "I refuse."
"Come on, Marron. You wouldn't have to go as a couple. You could just go as friends," Pan suggested.
"Goten and Bra aren't just going as friends," Marron said.
"But Trunks and I are," Pan argued.
"If I go out with Uubu as a friend, it'll be depressing. I mean, he doesn't even know that we're not together anymore," Marron said.
Pan sighed. "Well, don't you at least owe him a decent breakup? You've been dating all your lives. You could at least break it off with him the right way. Especially if he thinks things are still okay between you two."
"I have to agree with Pan on that one," Bra finally added.
Marron gasped. "What is this? Some kind of ambush? I don't want to go out with him just to tell him that I'm seeing someone else."
"Marron, this is a very important night. If you two aren't there, things just wouldn't be the same," Pan told her.
"Look, I'll tell Uubu that we're finished, but I am not going out with him. And that's final," Marron said.
There was a short silence.
"What's so important about tonight anyway?" Marron asked.
"Well, I can't really say. It's a surprise," Pan told her. "If you were to come along, you'd find out."
Bra knew that it took a lot for Pan to keep that secret to herself. Especially from Marron. So she decided to do the next best thing. Besides, she could use a second opinion on the subject. "I'm proposing to Goten."
Silence again.
"Excuse me. I think I heard something, but I want to make sure that was what I heard," Marron said. "Could you say that one more time, please?"
"I'm proposing to Goten," Bra repeated.
"What do you think, Marron?" Pan asked.
Yet another silence.
"Bra, you're 16. You're still in high school," Marron said.
"Why does everybody keep saying that?" Bra questioned. "I know how old I am. I know I'm in high school. But I also know that I'm ready to make this kind of commitment."
"I don't doubt your feelings for Goten. I really don't. But getting married is a big step--" Marron began.
"They're not having the wedding anytime soon. Come on, Marron. Isn't it romantic? A young woman asking the love of her life to marry him," Pan sang.
"You haven't been taking advice from the girl who thinks a surprise fireworks display at a fashion show is a good way to have fun, are you?" Marron asked.
"HEY!" Pan protested.
Bra could feel a headache developing right at the front of her head. It was like Marron was calling her stupid or something. "Alright, Marron, listen up. You might not understand where I'm coming from with this, but I know what I want in life. A lot of people spend their whole lives trying to figure out what they want. They go out looking far and wide, but they can never seem to realize what it is in life that makes them happy. Well, what I want in life is right here in my face. What makes me happy has been here the whole time."
"Okay. I hear you saying all of this, but I couldn't help noticing that none of the comments you made had anything to do with what Goten wants," Marron said. "And that's half the problem in relationships these days. What do you think Goten would think about this?"
Bra took a deep breath. "Goten loves me and I love him."
"I don't doubt that you two are very much in love. Crazy in love. But you're not understanding what I'm trying to say," Marron said. "You're seeing this proposal from your side. Put yourself in Goten's shoes. What would you think if your 16-year-old girlfriend asked you to marry her?"
"He--" Bra started.
"You don't have to tell me. I just want you to think about it," Marron told her. "Relationships are more than just love."
Bra was about to say something when Pan jumped in. "You know what I think? I think that everything you just said has absolutely nothing to do with Bra and her relationship with Goten. This is about you and your relationship with Uubu. You're just applying it to her situation."
Bra looked at the phone, a little surprised. What Pan had just said made so much sense, Bra was surprised that she hadn't seen it like that herself.
"You want Uubu to understand how you're feeling in your relationship with him, which is why you started dating someone else in the first place," Pan went on.
Marron was quiet.
Bra was impressed. So Pan wasn't some 'relationship know-nothing'. Not even Bra had thought about the conversation from that point of view. Bra may have been a genius of a lot of things, but Pan seemed to be the genius of practicality.
"Now, I'll tell you what you both need to do," Pan continued. "Bra, the show must go on. Marron, you need to talk to Uubu. I mean, you need to sit down and have a nice long conversation with him. And I suggest you do it soon, because Wes'll be back from Vegas before you know it. You're gonna want everything to be in the clear when he gets back."
"Pan, when did you grow up?" Marron asked.
Pan laughed. "I didn't. And that's where I have the advantage." She laughed even louder.
"Oh, be quiet, Pan," Bra told her. "Alright, so it's just gonna be a double date tonight."
"Right," Pan said.
"Bra, I'm sorry I won't be there when you ask Goten to marry you. I'm sure he'll be thrilled," Marron told her.
"And now that that's settled, I'm gonna get ready for my night out and I demand that we have fun," Pan told them.
--End Second Opinion--
-- In case some of you have the kind of memory I have, this is in reference to when Bra was training back in Versus and burned off a lot of her hair. It happened pretty early in the series. Even though her hair isn't talked about much, it's still somewhat short, but as you can see, it is growing back.
--Yes, there's another wait before the big episode. I hate to do it to you. I was gonna add it to this episode, but then it would have been longer than I would have liked. But the next one is definitely gonna be the episode to catch. So stay tuned.
--Thank you all for the reviews, past and present. I can't believe I'm getting so many reviews these days. Must be the subject matter. Alright, I've heard some opinions about the whole proposal thing. What do the rest of you think? Ladies, is Bra crazy to want to propose to this guy? Gentlemen, what would you say or do if your girlfriend proposed to you? Let me know.
