"One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love." --Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus
Versus 4: Temporal Distortion
--Do It Again--
"It went to Goten? Your hidden wave went to Goten?" Bulma asked. She stood there and thought for a while. "Wait, you hadn't slept with him before last night, had you?"
Bra rolled her eyes. "Would you get past this sleeping together thing? This isn't about that." She picked up her first reading and her last reading. "Here's what I think." She held her readings side by side. "Dad brought to my attention that he thought it was normal to lose time. Especially when you're about to reach a new level of Saiyan."
Bulma looked like she was about to faint. "A new...?"
"That part of it isn't my concern right now," Bra told her. "What I'm concerned about is this whole time loss thing." She held up her erratic brain wave. "Here is when I was losing time. I asked all the other Saiyans if they'd ever lost time either around the times of their transformations or any other times. Every last one of them told me that they hadn't." She held up the normal brain wave. "Around this time, I stopped losing time. I haven't had a problem with it since."
"Well, that's good," Bulma said. She thought for a while. "Do you know what was causing it?"
"I think I have an idea of what was causing it. I think there are several things that led up to it," Bra said. She sighed. "It's just a theory, so bare with me. Dad mentioned that I was the last true Saiyan, but I think that was his way of telling me that I'm just as violent as, well, he is." She frowned. "Violent and without a real outlet. Just like him. Training isn't even enough to keep it in check. And so, as a result, we keep other things inside. A lot of our feelings. We don't talk much. Well, he argues with you a lot. I think that's what keeps him grounded sometimes. But I didn't have anything like that. Not at that time. I'd have these bouts of unexplained, misdirected anger. Seemingly normal teen stuff, but on a much more dangerous scale. And it caught up with me at the wrong time." Well, according to her father, she would have tried to kill Goten at some point or another eventually anyway. But leaving him there was the part she was concentrating on.
Bulma frowned. She didn't seem to be following her at all. Of course, that was probably because she'd never told her mother that she almost killed Goten.
"That's when I took this first test," Bra said. She held up the second reading. "Here's why I said that I gave my hidden wave to Goten. It's so simple, you're gonna laugh." She looked away. "This is around the time I finally told Goten that I loved him."
Well, she'd expected silence, and there silence was. Her mother was just staring at her for a long time.
"Since then, I haven't had time go by on me without knowing it. I haven't just been angry or violent for no reason. I don't train until I'm nearly dead anymore. I guess you could say that the only problems I have are normal teenage girl problems," Bra told her.
"So you think that all of this is because you hadn't told Goten you love him?" Bulma asked.
"Right. And I think that Dad has that hidden wave because he hasn't said it to you," Bra said.
"How do you know he's never told me that?" Bulma questioned.
"He said so," Bra answered. "One night I was talking to him about how I couldn't say those words for some reason. And he told me that I may never say them because he's never said them."
Bulma laughed a little. "But I know your father loves me. And he knows that I know."
"Goten knew I loved him," Bra said. "But it wasn't until I said it to him that I stopped having those time losses. He never said so, but I'll bet Dad still has them. Just like he still has that hidden wave."
"You've really thought this through, haven't you? I should talk to your father about this... It's the only logical explanation we've got left. And it all seems to line up so perfectly. I never would have pieced something like that together. Not even if I were in your shoes. You're such a little genius. Yep, you really take after me," Bulma said proudly.
Bra smiled. "What can I say? It's genetic."
--soon--
Bra had decided not to finish breakfast. She'd pretty much lost her appetite when she thought of what her parents seemed to be getting ready to do before her mother noticed she was there. She shuddered at the thought. Of course, it was that very thing that she and Goten had done just last night. She smiled to herself.
She walked into her room and looked at a note she'd left herself. It had Nick's name on it and the phone number to the hotel Eroder was staying in. It also had a list of times that would be good to call. And now was one of them. She should really check up on those guys. They were her first band friends. She'd really like to know how they were doing in Vegas.
Just as she decided to pick up the phone, it rang. She looked at it for a while. Maybe Nick had somehow read her mind and decided to give her a call. She picked it up. "Hello?"
"BRAAAAAAAA!" Pan's voice screeched.
Bra looked at the phone and frowned. Such a loud young woman...
Pan was supposed to be at school. What was she doing calling her in the middle of the day? What was she doing calling at all? She was on punishment.
"How could you do it to me, Bra?" Pan asked, sounding all weepy. "How could you leave me at this school all by myself? All by myse-e-eeeeelf," she began to sing.
Bra was sure that Pan was either as crazy as a loon or she had been popping acid. Either way, she was way too hyper today. "What are you doing calling in the middle of a school day?"
"Oh," Pan said calmly. "You know how these kids and their cell phones are nowadays. I borrowed one. Besides, it's lunch time. Hey, why aren't you at school? You don't sound sick or anything."
Bra wasn't about to tell Pan what had happened last night between her and Goten. The girl would really lose her mind. "I have a headache."
Pan was quiet for all of a second. "A headache? Your mom let you stay home because you said you have a headache? YOUR mom? The lady who promotes education above all things?"
"You're not helping my headache," Bra told her.
"Fine. I guess that's okay," Pan said.
It would have to be okay. She had already missed half of school.
"I was supposed to ask you how dinner went last night," Pan went on. "But you weren't in class this morning, so I couldn't. How did it go?"
Bra looked a little confused. She didn't remember telling Pan about the dinner. That little devil really had a way of getting information. "It went great. My parents were there and your grandparents were there. At first I didn't think my dad would be happy about it, but now, I can't be too sure how he feels."
"That's your dad, I guess," Pan added.
"Tell me about it," Bra said. "Your grandma gave me this beautiful ring that used to belong to her mother--"
"She gave YOU that ring? Aw, man. I thought she was gonna give it to me," Pan whined.
Bra sighed. "Relax. You'll probably get the ring your mom got..." She smiled. "Or MY grandmother's ring." Bra was sure that Pan and Trunks would end up getting married eventually. How in the world Trunks planned on tying that wild woman down was beyond her, but surely it would happen.
"Wha--?" Pan asked.
She could practically hear Pan blush over the phone. Bra was about to burst out laughing, but she contained herself. "Anyway, it was great." She was about to tell her that they'd pretty much set a wedding date, but she figured she would let it be a surprise for the next time she saw her in person. She wanted to see the look on her face. Maybe then Pan would understand how it felt to be on the receiving end of her surprise tactics. "Listen, maybe you should give that phone back to whoever you got it from."
"No, wait. I'm not done with you," Pan told her. "I was talking to Marron--"
Now how had she accomplished this when she was on punishment? Boy, Pan really knew her way around the system. Maybe she'd snuck out like she said she would.
"--and she was telling me that she spent some time with Uubu like we'd suggested," Pan continued. "And now he tells her that he's back for good this time. Sure, he said that the last time he was here, but this time it's official. He's even looking into getting a job and everything."
"Well, that's not so good for Marron. She's still with Wes," Bra said.
"Yeah, it's gonna be a shame when he finds out that she's living with Uubu," Pan stated like it was nothing.
There was that surprise tactic that Pan so loved to use on people.
"She's what?" Bra asked.
"She's in love with the guy. She couldn't deny it. And when she found out that he was really looking into settling down here, she started helping him find a place to stay. He asked her to move in with him and she said yes," Pan informed.
Bra was a little astounded. "I feel kinda bad for Wes. He left for only a week and now someone he thought was his girlfriend is living with another man. That's gonna hit him like a ton of bricks."
"It's kinda sad. I feel bad for him too. He's such a nice guy. A real gentleman," Pan stated. "Well, look, I gotta go. I just had to let you in on that bit of information. I'll just catch you at school tomorrow, I hope."
"Alright. See ya," Bra said. She hung up the phone and stared at it blankly. So Marron and Uubu were back together. Well, that was nice. But there was about to be one badly broken heart on the horizon. She would have to stay out of it. It wasn't in her nature to get involved in other people's relationships.
She would, however, call and check up on Eroder. If they were around, that is. She dialed the number and let it ring for a while. Once she was sure that no one was there, she was about to hang up when someone answered with a tired "Hello?"
"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you," Bra said. She couldn't be too sure, but the voice sounded like Todd's.
"Hey, is this that chic with the huge knockers from that gambling hall downstairs?" the voice questioned.
Yes, she was talking to Todd, the perv. "No, this is that chic with the blue hair from Capsule Corp. in your home town," she said.
"Oh, Short Stack?" Todd asked.
Short Stack?
"Nick was just saying something about calling your mom and thanking her for this gig," Todd told her.
"Gimme that," Bra heard someone else say. "Hello? Bra?"
This was Nick Carnage.
"Hey. What are you guys up to?" Bra asked.
"Nothing much right this second. But we've got some serious stuff lined up. I see you got that message," Nick said. "I didn't think you'd call."
"How could I NOT call my favorite local band?" Bra asked with a smile.
"It's great to hear from one of our hometown fans," Nick told her. "You know, we were just talking about how much we miss the local scene. We can really relate to our hometown audience. We love performing out here, but we're really proud of where we're from." He sighed. "We're being offered a record deal."
Bra raised her eyebrows. "That's amazing. You guys must be thrilled."
"Hm. Not as thrilled as you'd think," Nick said. "We took a look at the public rock scene and the companies that sign these bands. It would be great to get out there and become known all over the world. It really would. But after looking at what's going on in rock today, I know they'd trying to mold us into one of these manufactured rock bands. I don't dig that and neither do the guys. I think I prefer playing places like this whole Vegas thing and playing places at home. At least that way, we'd have more of a say in what we sound like. We wouldn't have all these different producers and managers trying to tell us what we should and shouldn't play, you know?"
Bra nodded, but she forgot that he couldn't see her. "I can understand that. A lot of people don't consider things like that when they accept these recording contracts. All they think about is the fame. They don't think about the down sides."
"Right. Now, I don't want your mom to think that we didn't appreciate this opportunity. It was a great chance to get out and do our thing in front of different people," Nick told her. He laughed.
"What? What's so funny?" Bra asked.
"Something else was weird about this whole gig," Nick said. "The talent scout thought that you would be coming with us. He thought you were in Eroder."
Oh! The night she sang for Goten. That was the night that the scout had come out to hear Eroder play. She wasn't really sure what to say about that.
Nick was silent for a minute. "Alright, man," she heard him say. Surely he wasn't talking to her. "Bra, I gotta go. It's pretty wild here. People are waiting at the jam hall just to hear us practice. I'll have to talk to you some other time."
"Alright," Bra said. "Take it easy." She hung up the phone.
Even if those guys turned down their record deal, they still had loyal fans at home. She could tell that they would stay true to the music. She would have to make a habit out of seeing them play every chance she got once they returned to the city.
She turned on her cd player and lay back on her bed. The last thing she'd left in her radio was Queens of the Stone Age's album Lullabies to Paralyze. It was funny how the name of this particular cd was also something they'd mentioned in passing during the last song of their previous album. Bra thought that was just keen.
--time passed--
Bra was hungry again, so she'd gone to the kitchen. Her mother was most likely in the lab doing something weird and her father was mostly likely out training still. This time there was nothing to stop her from getting a full meal in. She ate a wide variety of the things that awaited her in the refrigerator. She hadn't eaten like that in a while.
And now it was time for her to visit her soon-to-be hubby. She was a little nervous about seeing him for some reason. They'd had such a passionate night; she wasn't sure how to approach him. Would he even see her the same way? Maybe he'd gotten what he wanted out of her and never wanted to see her again.
Bra shook her head. That was ridiculous. He wanted to marry her just as much as she wanted to marry him. They were in love. They were friends too...
Yet, when Bra found herself standing in front of Trunks and Goten's apartment door, she was thinking really hard about turning tail and running. What did she have to be afraid of? She was Bra. Daughter of the prince of all Saiyans. She was a member of the greatest warrior race in the universe. She could overcome anything she put her mind to...
Goten opened the door. "Whoa."
Bra looked at him wide-eyed. How--?
"I get up to check the mail and look what I find," Goten said a little goofily. He smiled down at her. It was an uncomfortable, yet genuine smile. "Hi."
Bra smiled back a little nervously. "Hi..."
They both stood at the doorway for a moment, just staring at each other.
After a while, they both tried to speak at the same time. They laughed a little.
"Come in. Come in," Goten told her.
Bra did what he said and just stood beside their recliner.
Goten closed the door and leaned against it, seemingly in deep thought.
Silence...
"I really...really enjoyed last night," Bra said a little quietly.
Goten let out a sigh of relief. "Man, am I glad to hear that. I thought you'd be mad at me."
"Mad at you? Why would you think something like that? You made me feel... I've never felt that way before," Bra told him. She blushed and looked at the arm of the chair she was now leaning against.
"Well, for a minute there, I thought I'd hurt you or something," Goten murmured. He walked toward her. "I mean, especially when you said that you had to leave." He stood in front of her. "Besides, I...think I got a little carried away. It was your first time. I shouldn't have let that happen. I should have done things differently." He looked away and furrowed his brow.
Bra put her hands on his face to make him look at her. "Believe me, it was perfect. I thought you would have known that with all the...you know... And how much I...well..."
Goten smiled and put his hands on her hips. "And you're feeling okay? I mean, there was some blood. And then with the whole shower thing--"
Oh, yeah. The shower thing. After they'd worked up enough of a sweat, they'd showered together. To make a long story short, she'd just say that she almost drowned every time she took a breath.
All on her first night. She could see why he thought it had been a bit much. But not only was she was a willing participant, she'd instigated a lot of it. And feeling his touch now reminded her of all of it.
"I'm feeling kinda sore," Bra told him with a smile. "How about you?"
The front door opened and Trunks stepped in. He was home pretty early. Especially considering he was always putting in overtime and going to meetings. When he saw them there, he put his head down.
"Hey, Trunks," Goten greeted his roommate.
"Hey, Bro," Bra greeted as well.
Trunks looked at the two and put a hand to his head. "Listen, I'm really tired. Let me explain why." He put his briefcase down, sat on the sofa and put both hands to his head.
Bra could already tell that this wasn't going to be good.
"You two are too loud," Trunks said plainly.
Both Goten and Bra blushed deeply.
"Both of you are too loud. Next time you plan on pulling a stunt like that, go someplace else," Trunks went on. "Go to a nice hotel. Go home. Mom's got that place pretty much soundproof. Just don't stay here next time."
Bra frowned. "Shut up. We weren't even...together that late."
Goten couldn't even say anything.
"That may be true," Trunks told her. "But I had nightmares about it the whole night. Ugh! It was awful. My life may never be the same." He rolled his eyes.
Goten walked over to Trunks and put him in a headlock, laughing all the while. "Alright, out with it."
Trunks tried to escape, but it was no use. "Out with what? Get off me."
Bra looked confused. What was Goten doing?
"The least you could do is congratulate us on this very big step in our relationship," Goten said, spinning him around a bit as he spoke. The noogies ensued.
"Ow! Okay, okay," Trunks laughed. "Congratulations. You knew it was coming anyway. No need to be all abusive." He looked at Bra. "Is this the kinda husband you really want?"
Bra laughed. "If you're talking about a husband who'll kick my brother's butt, then yeah. And while you're like that, I think I'll investigate something I've been meaning to investigate for a while now."
Goten looked confused, but kept a hold of Trunks.
Bra got a little closer to Trunks. "Tell me, brother. What's the deal with you and Pan?" She smirked devilishly.
"What? We're friends," Trunks said.
"You kissed," Bra reminded him.
Goten looked surprised. "You kissed?" He held Trunks tighter.
"Ack! Okay, yeah. But honestly, I don't know where we stand. We haven't really talked about it," Trunks said, still laughing. "And that's the truth." He struggled to break free.
Goten looked at Bra with a smile. "Can we believe him?"
Bra thought for a while. "I guess."
Goten let Trunks go. "There. Don't you feel better now that it's all out in the open?"
Trunks adjusted his clothes. "Not really, no. And I still say you need to go someplace else when you're together like that. These walls are paper thin, you know." He turned up his nose.
"Come on, Goten. We'd be interrupted at my house. Maybe we can have some fun in the woods," Bra suggested. She almost couldn't believe what she was saying. Had she turned into a sex-hungry maniac already?
Goten looked surprised. "Uh, I thought you'd need a break after last night."
Bra folded her arms across her chest. "Do you need a break after last night?"
Trunks sighed loudly. "Hearing you two talk like that doesn't help my nightmares. I'm outta here." He went to his room.
Goten scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly as he watched his roommate leave. "Well, I don't need a break."
Bra smirked confidently. "Alright then. Let's get into it."
--the next day--
Pan looked at Bra for a long time. "You really did it? You and Goten really did it?"
Bra looked around the classroom. "Shhhh! Everyone in the school's gonna hear you."
Pan giggled wildly. "I don't care. This is great news. Does your dad know?"
"I don't know. I don't think so," Bra told her.
"Well, how was it?" Pan questioned.
"What? Do you know that you're asking about your uncle?" Bra whispered.
Pan rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I know that. I just wanted to ask how your first time was."
Bra turned in her desk to face the front of the classroom.
"Oh, don't you turn your back on me," Pan said. "You could at least tell me if everything I've heard is true."
"That's according to what you've heard," Bra stated, still facing the front of the classroom.
The other students started flooding in.
"Stop doing that," Pan told her. "You're not answering my question at all. I don't want details. Just tell me what it was like."
As the teacher entered the class, Bra turned to Pan and smirked. "It was like fighting. Only better." With that she turned back around.
"Wow. You've gotta tell me more, Bra. Come on." Pan tried to get her attention.
Bra had learned to ignore Pan for the most part over the years. And she did what she always did during this very boring history class, even when her now lover was teaching it. She sat in her desk and stared out the window, thinking only of who she'd always thought of at a time like this. Her Goten:
She imagined their life together. They would raise a wonderful family of mixed Saiyans and they would be strong. They could invite everyone to their home for reunions. And their families and friends would dote on their little ones and tell them about the old days.
And she and Goten would watch their children grow up. They'd have arguments over how to raise Saiyan adolescents and teens. Eventually the kids would decide what they wanted to do with their lives. They would soon leave the nest and she and Goten's life would start anew. After raising strong, intelligent children, they would be able to sit back and relax, knowing that their kids were going the right directions with their lives. Goten and she would grow old together and annoy each other with their quirks from time to time. It would be a fantastic life.
--End Do It Again--
--Thank you so very much for making it to the end of this series with me. You're too kind. You've done a great job with those reviews. Thank you so much.
--This whole chapter was kinda like one of those lame RPGs where you go around at the end and see what everybody's doing. You know what I'm talking about... Well, maybe you don't. If you do, you'd probably agree. If not, think of the end of the lamest movie you've ever seen, and it probably ended like this. But that's just my thought on it. Tell me what you think.
--What about Vegeta and all his ambiguity? Well, no matter what would have happened, he would have remained ambiguous. That's the way the Vegeta I write works.
--Someone asked if I would be doing another series. The answer to that question is this: I've been working on some things. So don't worry. It probably won't be as original (at least I hope it's original) as the Versus quadrilogy, but I'll still be writing.
