About It's My Life: I've always been intrigued by what happened during the seven years but not just to 18 and Krillin but everyone. How did Chi-Chi handle her pregnancy? What made Vegeta and Bulma decide to get married and how did Yamcha feel about it? Do Gohan even know who Videl was before he met her at high school? So, a while ago I decided to write my own version. Instead of a story this is more like an extended filler. The story is based on the song It's My Life by Bon Jovi as every chapter starts with a line from the song so I hope you all enjoy it.

Mailing List: I have a mailing list for all my stories so if you'd like to join it email me at bulma_for_vegeta@hotmail.com.

Disclaimer: I, of course, don't own Dragon Ball Z or any of its characters. I also don't own It's My Life by Bon Jovi.

It's My Life

Chapter 2: Hopeless Hope

~*~

No silent prayer for faith departed.


~*~

Though all was well in the world, it didn't necessarily mean anyone slept at night. Bulma tossed and turned, checking up on Trunks every ten seconds. Vegeta didn't come to bed until almost midnight. She couldn't sleep without him and it wasn't until she could snuggle into his arms did she relax. Surprisingly, he showed some compassion, wrapping his strong arms around her waist, bringing instant warmth and comfort.

Krillin was nowhere near as lucky when it came to companionship. He was up until well past midnight, mulling over the day's events. When he finally retired to bed, he didn't sleep. Instead, he lay there, on his back, staring at the ceiling. He just couldn't understand why 18 had come today. Finally, he fell into a restless sleep, dreaming about cruel sneers and warm kisses, his confused mind begging to make sense of something.

Gohan fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. His mother had spent almost all day teaching him new work and his mind was worn out. She had managed to find something that the child prodigy didn't know. Unit circles, Pascals Triangle and advanced trigonometry proved something of a challenge. Chi-Chi had informed him that the work he was doing was usually taught to eleventh graders, though some advanced tenth graders did know it. Still, he was obviously something close to four years ahead of himself.

Chi-Chi didn't sleep. Instead she silently congratulated herself for raising a genius. All the years of pushing Gohan had seemingly paid off. Though she had to admit she was finding it hard to find challenging study material for her son. She decided Bulma was her best bet. She was sure to have something Gohan wouldn't understand.

~*~

18 was sure she had trod on something alive. The squeal of her victim as well as the movement she had felt under her foot told her she had. So why couldn't she find the stupid animal? She gazed around aimlessly. It was no use; she couldn't see anything in the dark. For a moment, she silently wished Gero had given her advanced eyesight. She wasn't sure why she wanted to find her victim, she just did. Her uncontrollable emotions were really starting to piss her off.

She knew it was late. The change in the surrounding environment told her that. But where the hell was she meant to sleep? The last couple of weeks, she had managed to find a comfortable tree to sleep in before the sun went down. However, she'd had trouble finding dinner tonight and had run out of time. Anyway, what was she? A koala?

She thought for a moment. What was a koala? She was pretty sure it was an Australian animal. Maybe that was where she was? Australia! It would explain why this area seemed so unfamiliar. Maybe she had walked all the way to Australia trying to catch that damn rabbit. Nah, she thought, she was pretty sure there was water in between Japan and Australia.

She stopped thinking about Australia and koala long enough to realise something. She grinned to herself. She'd have to be really careful and make sure she got up before sunrise, so he didn't catch her. At least she could get some proper sleep. Despite all the odds that were stacked against her she had a feeling it might just work.

~*~

"Krillin!"

Krillin was pretty sure someone was attacking him. Either that or he was banging his head against something without realising it. He grabbed his head to make sure and waved his hand in front of him for good measure. He hit something solid.

"Ow, why'd you do that Krillin?" Turtle didn't look particularly pleased. Krillin shot straight up in his bed. He swivelled around to see Turtle on the floor next to him.

"What are you doing in here, Turtle?" Krillin had to admit he was pretty sure he had hurt himself more than Turtle. His hand was throbbing.

"I came to tell you that there is someone outside you might want to see," Krillin was out of the room faster than Turtle could say 'super speed'.

~*~

He had no idea what she was doing there. She was sound asleep on the beach chair, her head resting on her arm. Her hair was windswept, lying partially across her face.

He had never seen anyone so beautiful!

Reminding himself to breathe, he tiptoed in the sand across to where she lay. She didn't wake. Her skin appeared tanned in the morning sunlight. Having no idea what to do, he just waited, sitting on the end of the chair.

She woke slowly, as if she was still exhausted and was only waking up because she had to. However, when she laid eyes on him, she bolted upright.

"Shit," she cursed. She jumped up and dashed for the edge of the island.

"18, wait!" Her head flipped around, her hair whipping her face. She stopped, but she was ready to take off at a moment's glance. She was taking no more chances, she had already taken one risk and it had backfired.

"Please, don't go," Krillin's face begged her to stay more than his words.

"Why shouldn't I?" she growled.

"Come on, just have breakfast at least, this is silly."

"No!" 18 exclaimed, angry with herself more than with him, "I'm not meant to be here." She took off but Krillin fazed in front of her.

"Don't do this to me," she begged.

"When you were here yesterday, you told me to be more sociable. Now I am so can't you just give me a chance?"

Her breathing was shallow and fast and she knew he knew it. She was cornered in the worst possible way. She had to think of something to at least minimize the consequences of her stupid mistake.

"I'm not going in there," she declared in reference to the house. Krillin wasn't fazed.

"You don't have to, I'll bring it out to you." She sighed in defeat.

"Fine."

She followed him down to the ground and landed. He dashed towards the front door, throwing it open.

"Don't go anyway!" he exclaimed before disappearing through the door. She smiled weakly at his enthusiasm. Sitting down on the beach chair she had slept on, she waited.

It wasn't that bad, she decided. She was going to get a decent meal out of it, she had been able to sleep comfortably for the first time in as long as she could remember and oddly enough she felt good that she was here.

Catching her thoughts, she groaned out loud. What the hell was wrong with her? She banged her head against her fist.

"You know, that's not good for you, it apparently kills brain cells." Standing in the doorway with two plates in his hands, Krillin smiled at her. Not receiving an answer, nor expecting one, he walked towards her, careful not to drop either plate. He offered her one, which she took. He sat down next to her and began to eat his own meal. He wanted to say something, get some form of conversation going, but he was scared he'd put her off. In no uncertain terms did he want to put her off.

"Did you find your brother?" he asked finally. 18 shook her head.

"No, I have no idea where he went." The conversation lagged again.

"Do you have any idea where he would have wanted to go?" he pushed.

She shrugged, "He was kind of unpredictable, he could be anywhere."

Krillin refrained from rolling his eyes; it was obviously a family trait.

"Do you have any sibling?" she asked. Krillin glanced up at her, surprised.

"Um, no," he said, "My mother died when I was three years old and I was sent to the Orinji Temple." She nodded to herself, storing the information away for later use. She could never know when she might need it.

Krillin finished off the rest of his breakfast, as did 18. She had to admit, it was delicious.

Krillin knew their time together was drawing to close. He could feel a lump in his throat grow and he struggled to finish his milk. Oh, how he wished she would stay just a little bit longer. It was so awkward just sitting here with nothing to say. Would she just get up and leave just like that? Or was she finding this as hard as he was?

Plates aside, her hands folded in her lap, 18 had no idea what to say or do. She didn't even know what she wanted to do. A fleeting thought dashed across her mind and she did just that.

Bending down, she kissed his cheek, "Thank you," she whispered before jumping into the air and flying away.

"You're welcome."

~*~

Any mealtime at the Briefs residence was hectic but lunch was by far the worst. Vegeta was usually grumpy and hungry because he regularly skipped breakfast accusing Bulma of being too lazy to get up and make anything. Understandably, it was easy for Bulma and her mother to lose track of time. And Trunks.

The youngest member of the Briefs family was prone to exploring. With a house as big as the one he lived in, it was easy to get lost and the little tyke managed to find a new unexplored room every day. It was indeed a great adventure.

Today he was strolling a long corridor when he came to a door he recognized. He was sure it was the door that led outside. And that meant it led to…

"Dada!" Trunks exclaimed. Filled with excitement, he searched for a way to open the door. The handle was too high, close to twice his height. He could jump but not that high. He noticed a room just down the hall and he waddled down there. Its door was open and he walked in, looking for someone or something. In the corner he noticed a box. Upon a further inspection, he found that the box was empty. It wasn't very heavy and he began pushing it out of the room and towards the door.

Resting it against the door, he climbed on top of it. Reaching on his tiptoes, he could just reach the door handle. He pulled down on it and the door opened out in to the yard.

"Yay!" The little boy cheered. He jumped from his box and rushed towards the gravity room. Here posed another problem.

Trunks knew he couldn't get in unless he pressed the red button but the red button was even higher than the door handle. Disappearing back to the other door, he pushed his box to the gravity room.

Trunks climbed up on top of the box and stretched as far as could. No matter how much he stretched he was still too short. Cogs turned in his mind. The youngster smirked his father's smirk. He wasn't a Briefs for nothing. Hand outstretched, he bent his knees and jumped. For the briefest moments his fingers grazed the red button and the door was activated. He was in.

~*~

"Mom, have you seen Trunks?" Bulma asked her mother as she chopped onions.

"No, dear, he was here a minute ago," the older woman continued chopping. Bulma glanced around the room quickly. Panic filled her heart as she realised her son was missing.

"Trunks!"

~*~

Inside the gravity room, Vegeta was training not far from the door. He heard the activation button beep and he glanced at the door. Expecting it to be Bulma he gazed at his own eye level waiting to see the blue-haired woman. The door opened fully to reveal no one.

"Dada, Dada!" Vegeta's eyes flew to the floor of the doorstep, where he saw his son ready to take a step into the room. While it was still on 150 gravity!

Fazing out, he appeared in front of his son, grabbing the infant out of harm's way. Almost tripping over Trunks' box, he slammed the gravity room shut, as it continued to buzz away.

"Oh, thank God!!" Bulma wheezed and panted, exhausted from running from one side of the house to the other.

"What the hell do you think you're doing letting the boy wander around here like this, woman?! He almost got himself killed! Do you have a reason for this?" Vegeta was positively furious.

"No, I was busy making your lunch and I lost track of him!" Bulma was not happy that the blame was being dumped on her.

"That's no excuse, woman!"

"Look, just shut up, okay!" She grabbed Trunks from Vegeta and rocked the child against her chest, more for her own reassurance that Trunks'.

For his two cents, Trunks had no idea why his parents were fussing so much.

Vegeta turned around to return to his training, furious. Bulma lent forward and slammed the palm of her hand against a button on the wall. With his sensitive hearing, Vegeta heard the gravity simulator shut down.

"What the hell did you do, woman?!" Vegeta's mood was not improved by the current turn of events.

"I turned the gravity off. Lunch is almost ready, there's no point going back in there," Bulma glanced down at the box at Vegeta's feet, "What the hell is that box doing out here?"

"How would I know, woman, I was minding my own business in there," he jabbed a thumb behind himself, indicating the gravity room, "Till you let him roam around like a wild animal."

Ignoring the jibe, Bulma glanced at the junior Saiyan prince in her arms.

"Box, box!" Trunks chanted. Bulma laughed.

"Well, at least we know he gets his intelligence from my side of the family," she glanced up, awaiting Vegeta's reaction.

He scowled in response, "Are you suggesting I'm unintelligent?" His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"You said it, not me," she laughed all the way back to the kitchen, Vegeta's scowling face glaring a hole into the back of her head the whole way there.

~*~

Though only five weeks into her pregnancy, Chi-Chi knew from past experience never to underestimate a Saiyan pregnancy. She had decided it was better to be safe than sorry and had planned a second doctor's appointment only two weeks after her previous one. As no one was able to look after Gohan (though he insisted he would be perfectly fine by himself), she forced him to tag along too.

The appointment was routine, just checking on the basics in the early days. Considering all the stress, she had been under lately, Chi-Chi had decided she was taking no chances.

The baby was developing at a perfectly healthy rate. Of course, there was a slight abnormality at the base of the spinal cord, evidently the beginnings of a tail. Chi-Chi's doctor, an older, kind man that reminded Gohan of his maternal grandfather, was used to this abnormality, as he had experienced it with both Gohan and Trunks whom he both delivered. In a sense, he was the only doctor on Earth who knew of the Saiyan ailment, though he was in the dark when it came to the whole alien thing.

It wasn't until Gohan mentioned his father that the doctor realised there was someone missing from the small family.

"Where is your husband today, Mrs. Son?" Chi-Chi sighed sadly at the question she knew she'd receive a lot over the next couple of months.

"He passed away about a month ago," the doctor looked baffled.

"The baby is his, right?" the doctor asked cautiously.

Chi-Chi nodded, "Yes, it's his. The baby was conceived a couple of days before he died."

For his part, the mental picture that flashed across Gohan's mind was not pretty.

The doctor looked slightly relieved, "If you don't mind me asking, how did he die?"

"A mixture of an occupational hazard and negligent colleague," Gohan responded cryptically.

"I thought he was a martial artist?" the doctor pressed.

Chi-Chi coughed loudly and stood up, "Thank you, Doctor; I'll see you in another two weeks I assume."

The doctor, realising he had over stepped his boundaries, quickly stood up and held out his hand.

"That will be fine, just make an appointment with the receptionist outside," they shook hands and the doctor handed her a sonogram photo, "You might want this."

"Thank you, Doctor," Chi-Chi turned to the door, "Come on, Gohan."

"Bye, sir," Gohan waved cheerily, following his mother out the door and towards the front of the surgery.

After making a date for exactly two weeks time, down to the time and everything, Chi-Chi and Gohan left.

As she had promised a fancy lunch, Chi-Chi and Gohan headed out down the main street to the local all-you-can-eat bar.

"Mom, you know that doctor, did he deliver me?" Gohan asked, some way into their journey.

"Yes, he did. You and Trunks," Chi-Chi answered, curious as to where this conversation was going.

"Well, was Dad there when I was born, as in the delivery room," Gohan glanced up; worried he had upset his mother.

"Yes, he was," she whispered; pain shone through her eyes.

"Well, he'll still be there when you have this baby. He said he would watch over us. That's how he helped me during the battle." Gohan knew never to say the Cell Games out in public. Everyone was totally fixated on the belief that Hercule was his or her hero, not that Gohan minded. He didn't need reporters knocking on his door, trying to find out how an eleven-year-old boy could defeat a monster like Cell.

Chi-Chi looked at her son. Years of maturity most adults didn't possess flowed from this child who had barely lived a childhood. Four years of peace and seven of fighting had shattered the innocence of a child but created someone who unknowingly could be so wise.

She ruffled Gohan's gravity defying hair, "You're an amazing person, Gohan. And so was your father."

Gohan smiled warmly at his mother. He spotted the eatery they were heading for. He dashed ahead, after calling a quick thank-you to his mother.

Chi-Chi watched the boy run, carefree and happy.

Simplicity and maturity danced hand in hand.

~*~

So what do you think? I liked this one, sort of had a moral. And to the reviewer who commented on little Trunks, I hope you enjoyed his adventure today. Don't worry the adventures of Trunks will (hopefully) reappear. Fun for all, don't you agree?

Ratty