Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ/GT
Tomorrow Waits for Us
Chapter 6
Silence.
Silence, and small hands touching his own.
This was the world that Trunks inhabited. All that seemed to exist were Pan's hands.
He'd closed his eyes as he kissed her, and they were closed still. Darkness, silence, and the touch of two hands.
"Beat...beat...beat." His heartbeat intruded on his consciousness.
"Beat-beat, beat-beat, beat-beat." Pan's rapid heartbeat mixed with the sound of his.
The slither of bedding interrupted the silence, but it was a faint sound. He felt Pan's hands shift in his own, but this time she wasn't tugging them away.
Soft lips touched his briefly.
"I'm sorry I doubted you, Trunks." Pan said softly, her previous anger burned down to smoky ashes, leaving an aftertaste of regret. "I had no right to say those things to you."
Trunks opened his eyes to see Pan looking infinitely sad. His heart ached to see her in such a state. He pulled her into a hug, but was silent. I can't say anything...I buried these feelings for a reason. Now that the feelings were out again, Trunks feared that he would give in to them.
"Knock, knock!"
The silence shattered like a fishbowl hitting astone floor.
"Bro! Are you in there! Mom's looking for you!" Bra sounded winded.
Trunks let go of Pan, regretting that he couldn't do anything to reassure her. Pan looked irritated by the interruption. "Yeah, I'm here. What's Mom's problem?"
Bra opened the door, and poked her head in. "Mom wants to know where..." Her words trailed off as she noted Pan's general state of undress and his closeness to her on the bed. "Hmm. I'll tell Mom you're busy." She winked at Trunks, looking smug before closing the door.
"Bra!"
"What!" She called to him through the door.
"Tell Mom I'll be down in a few minutes!"
"Ok, but I have no idea why you'd want to!" She said, slyly insinuating the other things they could be doing.
"I'll take that under advisement," Trunks said dryly.
After Bra's interruption, Trunks turned and found Pan grumbling to herself. "I can stay here, if you want me to," Trunks offered.
"No." She breathed out a long sigh. "You should go to the party."
It was Trunks' turn to be puzzled. "Aren't you coming?"
Pan sighed gustily. "It's not the same without Grandpa. We try, but the spirit isn't there anymore.I know that Goten hates it, too."
"What's wrong with Goten?"
Pan looked at him as if he were stupid. "Goten misses Grandpa. It's no big surprise. He wasn't there for the first few years of Goten's life...BY CHOICE!" She said bitterly. "Then he ran off to train Uub." She chuckled darkly. "Uub isn't even strong enough to be the planet's defender, so that was a waste if ever there was one. Goten can't seem to get over it, though." Pan looked sad. "He really bothers me with his behavior, but I know that it isn't his fault. I love my Grandpa, but why did he do so many selfish things?"
Trunks pondered that for a moment. Goku never looked like he was doing anything selfish, but Trunks was a master of deception himself. "Goku.was the way he was. Just like my dad. Maybe it's a Saiyan thing. Maybe they didn't see anything wrong with they way they were. I guess nobody is ever completely good, or completely evil. That's all I can think of."
Pan's eyes took on a sly gleam. "So, what have you done lately that's evil, since nobody's perfect?"
I wanted to take advantage of a seventeen-year old girl. "I lied to Marron today. Does that count?" He asked flippantly.
She looked at him in surprise. "About what!"
"I told her that it wasn't possible for Buu to be resurrected in the other dimension."
"And she bought it! That's the most transparent lie I've ever heard!"
He smiled smugly. "Not the way I told her. Besides, I had help from your dad. It all sounded plausible when I stitched it together with one of his old stories." He paused. "What about you, Ms. Perfect?"
She scowled at him and then blushed. "I tried to slap you, didn't I? What more do you want!"
Trunks chuckled. Then he frowned at the still clammy Gi he was wearing. "I'm taking a shower, whether I'm going downstairs or not."
"Fine. Just leave me here with nothing to do." She mock pouted at him.
Trunks gave her an amused look. "This is your house too. You know that. Help yourself. You can probably raid Bra's room for clothes if you need to. I doubt she'd care."
As Trunks was taking a shower, he was considering what he was going to say at the party. I guess I should just go down there and spit it out, but that wouldn't be fair to Marron. Trunks knew that Marron had literally poured her heart and soul into the project, much the way that the alternate world's Bulma had when she built the time machine she called "Hope." This is her night. I have to make sure she gets all the attention she deserves.
As Trunks stepped out of the shower and toweled off, he imagined that Pan was watching a movie on his bed. As he walked back into his room, emptiness greeted him. She must be getting clothes in Bra's room.
Trunks grabbed some nice-ish clothes from his closet, and dressed as fast as he could. I hope they haven't all gone home already. As he walked down the hallway to atrium where they usually held parties, he started to hear muted chatter. Good, it doesn't sound like the party is winding down yet. He stopped in one of the guest rooms, and checked himself over in the mirror.
He straightened the sleeves of the black shirt he was wearing and adjusted the collar. Darn, forgot the belt...and the shoes. He opted to leave the shirt untucked, but didn't know what to do about the lack of shoes. I guess I'll have to go back. Good thing I checked before going down there.
When he walked back into his room, he heard the sounds of soft singing, along with the sounds of a bath running. He saw his shirt and the underwear Pan was wearing carelessly dropped on the floor on the way to the bathroom. He resisted the temptation to peek and searched under his bed for shoes.
The sounds of running water ceased, allowing Trunks to hear the song that Pan was singing.
All we have is this moment
The past is gone
The future will never come
Why do you hide from me?
In the past I've waited
The sands of time
Flowing though my fingers
All I have is now...
Pan's voice was haunting, conveying a strange mixture of hope and loss.
Trunks pulled on his second shoe and quietly left the room.
Trunks walked into the atrium where the party was being held. The roof was covered with a glass dome, but the brilliant stars were clearly visible through it. The large indoor area was like a garden, with grass and ornamental trees. Small, round tables were scattered randomly around the area, and hedges acted as partitions for those who wanted a bit of privacy. Areas like theses had once been the living areas for the thousands of pets his grandfather and grandmother had rescued. They'd all perished in Li Shenron's planetwide attack, and Trunks and Bulma didn't have the time to take care of new ones. Trunks could almost sense the ghostly presences, and hear the phantom chirps and meows. Damn Li Shenron. Damn him to the coldest reaches of Hell.
"Oh, Trunks! There you are! Where have you been!" Bulma greeted her son in a less than amiable fashion. He was used to it.
"I had something to take care of, Mom." Trunks replied absently. He looked around the open atrium in the center of the building, noting that Gohan and Videl were at one of the tables, both with a glass of champagne. His father was sitting against one of the palm trees, apparently deep in thought. Chi-Chi was fussing over the food, and Goten was laying on the ground, staring at the stars. There was a palpable aura of depression radiating from him. Trunks was shocked. I must have been deep in my own grave not to notice Goten's condition. Pan was right. He had no idea how he'd missed how messed up Goten was.
"...And I don't know how you're planning on..." Bulma trailed off as Trunks started to walk over to Goten. "Trunks!"
Trunks turned back to her. "What, Mom?"
"Where are you going!"
A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "I'll go greet everyone, and then I have an announcement to make. Fair?"
His mom frowned at him. "You're acting weird today! You and I are going to talk about this later!"
Great. Just what I need today. Hopefully she'll drop the issue after the announcement. "Fine."
As he walked over to Goten, he found the dark-haired youth staring at the night sky.
"Hey Goten." Trunks said quietly, taking a seat next to his old friend.
Goten looked over with a vacant stare, and then brightened slightly. "Hey Trunks."
Trunks stared at the brilliant stars, but couldn't really pick out the patterns. Astronomy wasn't his thing. "So, where do you think Goku is up there?" Trunks asked his childhood friend.
Trunks could feel Goten's frown, even if he couldn't see it. "Wherever he is, it isn't here." Goten answered bitterly.
Trunks smirked and glanced at his contemplative father. "I wouldn't know ANYTHING about what that's like."
Goten surprisingly chuckled. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that. Vegeta's the only person I know other than dad who can be in a room with you and totally not be there."
Trunks laughed hard at that, remembering Goku's constant daydreaming on the hunt of the dragonballs. "I keep thinking Goku's going to pop out of thin air and say 'Hey!' or something, and then ask where the food is."
Goten grew somber then. "I want to believe that too, but Dad doesnt take short trips. Who knows how long he'll be away this time?"
Trunks didn't know what to say to his friend. He knew what it was like not to have a father, but "Toughen up and get on with your life!" wasn't what he would have like to have heard in his friend's position.
"Goku will come back if he can." Trunks said, almost to himself.
Goten looked over at Trunks. "You think so?"
Trunks thought about it. Are we futility trying to keep him alive in our minds, or is he really just away on another adventure? "Yeah. I don't think he wanted to go, this time."
Goten sighed. "I hope you're right."
Geez, he really has it bad. "Did Bra stop by to harass you, yet?
Goten chuckled. "Not yet. Your Mom was upset that you weren't here, and come to think of it, Vegeta's been in a bad mood too." He he glanced up with a serious expression. "Was that you, earlier?"
Trunks restrained his shock. Of course he could feel it. Everyone here probably did. "Guilty as charged," Trunks answered wryly.
Goten was wearing a serious expression. "Why?"
Trunks made a face. "It's my problem, Goten. I wouldn't be any kind of a friend if I dragged you into this."
Goten smirked. "Any trouble that big will be everyone's problem."
"No." Trunks shook his head. "The trouble isn't here. Don't worry about it."
"Ok, it's your funeral."
"Thanks." Trunks said with mild sarcasm. He stared at Goten thoughtfully. "Are you dating anyone right now?"
"Not really." He looked over at Trunks curiously. "I never see you with a girl. How come?"
"I'm too picky," He answered easily.
"That I'll believe," Goten smiled. "I don't even see you out fishing, though."
Trunks laughed sarcastically. "That's because I don't have to. I swear that gold diggers can tell how much you're worth with one look. I'm sick of airheads and girls that just want my money."
"That's funny, considering that money wasn't worth anything six months ago." Goten's eyes darkened with a distant pain.
"I'm sorry about Paris, Goten."
Goten sighed. "It's a bad memory, Trunks, but no one did more than you to try and save everyone. I just miss her."
Trunks reflected again on Li Shenron's legacy. Paris died a year ago from one of the many waves of sickness that followed the dragon's defeat. That was no dragon... he reflected bitterly. Li Shenron was a perversion.
Trunks shook off the dark thoughts. "C'mon, Goten! Dinner awaits!"
Goten grinned lopsidedly. "Finally we come to a subject I like!"
Trunks listened to the faint sound of rain on the glass roof as he helped himself to the buffet that the caterers were setting out. He found himself next to Gohan as he was browsing the choices. "Hey Gohan, Videl!" He nodded politely to the middle-aged couple.
Gohan smiled slightly. "Trunks! What have you been up to?"
Trunks smiled wryly. "Work." Videl was wearing a stunning black dress, and Gohan was in a tuxedo. "You're both looking well."
"Thank you, Trunks." Videl said in her usual understated fashion. Trunks sometimes had trouble reconciling the loud and sometimes obnoxious teenager he remembered from his youth with the solemn and self-possessed woman that stood before him. She gave him a penetrating glance. "You seem a bit frayed around the edges." Trunks chuckled inwardly, laughing as much at himself as Videl's perceptiveness. He'd had a crush on her when he was younger, so she still had an odd effect on him now and then. It's ironic that she thought Goten and I were cute when we fused. I was so full of myself at the time that I barely noticed...
He mock sighed. "I'm afraid your lovely daughter's to blame..."
Videl and Gohan both looked stunned for a moment, but as Videl started to open her mouth to ask what Pan had done this time, Gohan started laughing. Then Videl saw Trunks' small smile.
"Oh, you!" Videl exclaimed, hitting him lightly on the shoulder. "You had me going for a minute!"
Gohan's mirth faded to chuckles. "You never change, Trunks!"
Trunks smirked at him, a perfect copy of Vegeta's. Gohan frowned at Trunks' sudden change of mood, and Videl seemed just as unnerved by the uncharacteristic reply as well. Gohan looked him over, more closely this time. "I guess things do change, huh Trunks?" Gohan said, now deadly serious.
Trunks' smirk faded into a laughing grin. "Yeah. You aren't a dork anymore, and I'm not an arrogant idiot."
Gohan frowned at him, but it smoothed into a wry smile. "You'll never let me live that whole Saiyaman thing down, will you?"
Trunks felt a kinship with Gohan now that he hadn't felt before. He could see the damage in the older Saiyan's eyes, both from the battles he fought and from the ridicule he'd endured in his younger life. Trunks could still picture how scared he'd looked when Buu had absorbed Piccolo and Gotenks. Even at the top of his power, Piccolo and all the others who'd condemned him in the past still brought him down. Trunks decided to forgive him.
Even if he HAD been a total geek.
Trunks laughed to break the tense moment. "You were having fun, right? What's wrong with that?" He smiled at Videl. "Tell me you didn't enjoy being Saiyaman 2."
Videl colored and laughed a bit in embarrassment. "You're right, it was fun."
Gohan wasn't amused. His eyes were very narrow at that point. "Something happened, didn't it Trunks?"
Trunks sighed, then smiled in bittersweet sadness. "Yes. Pan is an amazing girl."
Videl blinked. Gohan stared. Trunks felt like a total idiot for putting it that way, but he wasn't about to back down about it. Trunks smiled a twisted smile to the stunned parents. "Don't worry. I don't plan on doing anything about it." He paused, trying to find the correct words. "She helped me see something in myself today...something I was missing."
Gohan recovered first. He sized Trunks up again. "You HAVE changed...it was you earlier, wasn't it?"
"Yeah."
"What was it like?"
Trunks smiled blissfully. "I''m sure you feel it every time you tap into the powers the Old Kai catalyzed in you."
"I'm proud of you, Trunks. I know my dad would have been too, if he were here." Gohan frowned. "Why though?"
Trunks frowned. "You'll find out soon. Something's come up." When he saw Gohan and Videl sharing worried glances, he spoke up again. "Don't worry about it. It's not what you'd call close to home."
Videl shivered. "It'd better not be. You Saiyans don't attract small problems...they all have to be big enough to threaten the universe." She put a hand on Gohan's arm to take the sting out of her words. "By the way," Videl asked with deceptive casualness "Where is Pan right now?"
Trunks wasn't fooled by Videl's seeming mildness. This is just great. "She's in my room, taking a bath." Yeah, that'll go over well. Trunks kept his face smooth and his eyes mirrored. "She was training with my Father this morning. I think she's in Bra's room," He lied smoothly.
"Really..." Videl said, just as smoothly. "You're sure?"
"Not really." Trunks bit his tongue, trying not to say anything that would give the wrong idea about the situation. "That was just the last place she was headed."
Gohan watched his wife and Trunks' verbal sparring, not comprehending what was going on, but gave up after a moment as he began selecting food from the buffet.
Videl was watching Trunks carefully. "Do you mind if I go looking for her?" She asked innocently.
Oh Dende, NO! Trunks screamed mentally. How do I get myself into these messes! He continued to keep his expression unconcerned. "Of course not. Would you like me to help you find her?" He asked with false enthusiasm.
Videl's expression brightened, but her eyes were still hard. "If you could spare a moment, I think we should." She looked over her shoulder. "Gohan, could you get me something to eat? I'm going to look for Pan!"
"Of course, Honey."
Trunks and Videl headed back to the living area of the Capsule Corp. building. Trunks was not looking forward to what was going to happen when they got to his room. Videl walked beside him, her presence feeling like a lightning bolt seeking a target. Trunks began to feel stupid at that point. I have nothing to hide...but the situation with Pan could easily be taken the wrong way.
The background noise of the party faded into the background as they approached the living area. Videl abruptly stopped.
"Care to explain what's going on?" She asked him.
"Not in any great detail." Trunks replied coolly.
Videl cocked her head sideways. "You aren't doing much to reassure me, Trunks. I want to know if Pan is in danger."
Trunks shook his head disgustedly. "You and Gohan would be the first to know if she were." He gave her a suspicious look. "What do you really want to know?"
Videl stood her ground. "Did you or didn't you?"
"Mother!" Came Pan's surprising shout. She was walking down the corridor wearing her freshly washed street clothes. She looked more intense than usual. "Trunks, don't answer that."
Trunks spoke quietly after a deliberate pause. "You're right, Pan. No comment." He looked at Videl significantly. "One shouldn't be necessary."
Videl looked like she wanted to say something, but a tense and dangerous silence prevailed. Pan walked over to her mom, and took her hand. "C'mon, Mom. Let's go find Dad."
"Interesting."
Trunks turned around To see Vegeta walk out of the shadows of the one of the nearby doorways. Pan and Videl were just out of hearing range, on their way back to the Party. Trunks smirked at Vegeta's attempt to startle him. "Really?What part?"
Vegeta lookedsurprisedat Trunks'lack of reaction. His eyes suddenly narrowed. "So, Gohan was right. You've changed."
Trunks smirked harder. "Don't be too sure about that. I might not have changed at all."
"Don't play with me! What's going on!"
Trunks frowned at him in annoyance. "I was just about to announce it. Marron finished building the time machine."
"So what! She did that last year!"
Trunks glared at him. "Not that one. This one works."
Vegeta paled and clenched his fists. "She didn't..."
"Oh, yes." Trunks gave him a moment to let the information sink in. "I assume you grasp the problem?"
Vegeta glared out the window. "You'd better be in complete control of the situation. If Li Shenron finds a way into this dimension, I'm holding you and that stupid girl personally responsible!"
"Relax, it's covered. Besides, they're at least three wishes behind right now. I'm more worried about Babidi...I have no idea why he hasn't shown up there, yet."
Vegeta turned back from the window to glare back at him. "How are you planning to beat Buu if he's there?"
"The way Goku should have. I've ascended to Super Saiyan 3."
"We'll talk about this tomorrow." Vegeta had a faraway look in his eyes as he slowly walked off.