Trunks struggled to keep still. A part of him wanted to laugh it all off. Pretend as though it were just a joke and try to salvage his friendship. He cherished Goten above everything and would rather bite off his tongue than lose him. Still, a greater part of him wanted to see Goten's reaction. Hoped that something more would bloom between them. A chance Trunks had almost lost trying to look cool for the boy he was just now discovering he loved.

Goten locked eyes with his best friend. Trunks was serious. Those blue eyes told Goten that the only thing holding his friend back now was himself. He swallowed thickly and licked his lips unconsciously. He felt his face heat up a bit as he glanced down to Trunks' lips. Only to find the older man smirking before snapping up to look into mischievous eyes. He knows. Goten bit his lip. "We can try that kiss now, right?"

Instant relief flooded Trunks and his smile softened to a sweet curve. "Yeah, we can."

The two leaned in carefully. A jolt running through them as their lips touched. Goten flinching at the unexpected sensations that overcame him.

He was used to the sweet and awkward kisses he shared with Valese. An innocence that had the two giggling. Goten was never sure if he should take the next steps forward, or if Valese had been just as content with that much physical contact. He assumed she had been unsatisfied, though, given that he was now kissing Trunks. Which felt like a completely new experience.

Trunks had Goten red and melting. A fire spread deep within him and he felt a strange desperation to touch Trunks. How, he had no idea, but his hands kept grasping at Trunks. Pulling him closer. The kiss felt like more. More than whatever he had experienced with Valese. It felt right. As though a final piece of himself was found through that kiss.

It left Goten selfishly wanting more.

He pressed into the kiss. Hoping that the almost telepathic connection he always had with his best friend was still working. After all, it was no secret that Goten lacked the words to express what he wanted, but he figured that Trunks knew him well enough to understand the meaning he tried to convey through the kiss. He did.

Trunks entwined his fingers with Goten's and used his other hand to pull Goten closer. Holding his head as Trunks deepened the kiss. Sparks flew as Trunks realized that nothing compared to the feel of Goten's lips against his. He sighed into the kiss. Relaxing somewhat as he felt Goten follow his lead. Just as he always had. It was never Goten's apprehension that had him tense against Trunks. It was just that Goten genuinely had no idea what he should be doing.

When the two parted for air, Trunks took his time to take in the sight before him. Goten had that beautiful blush over half his face. His lips, glossed and swollen from the kiss, were parted from the harsh breathing. His eyes a little dazed. A small image of Goten looking up with heavy eyes flashed in the back of Trunks' mind. Trunks growled at his fantasy and attached himself to Goten's neck. Earning himself a startled grunt that quickly gave way to a soft moan.

Mine.

Goten felt the possessiveness behind the bite. Had his mind been a bit more sober, he may have gotten angry with Trunks about such a strange thought, but the sinking feeling of Trunks' fangs had Goten on cloud nine. He sighed and moved his hand to caress the back of Trunks' head. Fingers entwining with lavender locks.

Yours.

Trunks could feel Goten's hand move back down after a while and grab onto the back of his shirt. With little effort, the prince anchored himself on one hand as the other looped behind Goten. Pulling the other flush against him and causing another grunt to escape.

"Trunks, wait." Goten forced out a chuckle. He smiled reassuringly when he noticed the caution in Trunk's eyes. "I promise I'm not running away."

"Okay." Trunks smiled slightly before frowning again. "Something wrong?"

Goten blushed. "Not really. I mean, nothing wrong." He huffed. "I'm still not sure how I feel about you."

Trunks felt himself shatter. "Oh."

"I'm sorry." Goten looked away. He glanced down to where their hands were still connected. He gave Trunks' fingers a slight squeeze and smiled back at his friend. "Is it okay if we try this, though?"

"Try what?"

A blush took over Goten's face again. "I like being with you, Trunks. It sucks when we're not hanging out and I always worry you're overdoing it with school. Not sure if that means I like you but," he pulled up their linked hands and gestured at the connection, "I really like this. Kinda feels like this is where I belong."

Trunks was floored. He grinned at his best friend and nodded. Placing his other hand softly on Goten's cheek. "Sure, Ten. We can try this, and you're right. It sucks when I can't see you."

The two chuckled before leaning back in for a kiss. Goten let himself fully melt at the contact. He was sure he liked Valese. She was pretty and fun to be with. He always enjoyed spending time with her. Spoiling her and kissing her softly. Still, nothing beat the time he spent with Trunks. Goten was always disappointed when they had to part ways. Even if they would see each other the next day. Truth be told, their sleepovers were the only times he slept well. Knowing, and loving, that he would be waking up next to Trunks.

If he had to choose who to wake up next to every morning, he would always choose Trunks.

Goten gasped and pulled away. There was that same cautious light in Trunks' eyes and Goten was quick to hold his face reassuringly. He was looking at Trunks, now. Really looking at him, in a new light brought by that realization. "Trunks, I—"

"Goten?!"

"Mom?" Goten paled when he saw her in his doorway. He was usually careful in sensing her energy. Making sure to hide any evidence that he had snuck his girlfriend in before his mom reached his room. He burned as he noticed he had been too distracted kissing Trunks. That never happened with Valese.

"You!" She pulled Trunks by the ear and snatched him away from her son. "How dare you?!"

"Mom, wait!"

"We'll talk about this when your dad comes back." She shot her son a warning look before dragging Trunks out of the room. Practically tossing him out of the house. Even with all his saiyan strength, Trunks knew better than to try and fight an angry Chi-Chi. "As for you, go back home. Your mom will hear about this."

"Mrs. Chi Chi, please, let me explain."

"No! I don't want to hear anything a delinquent like you has to say. Get out and don't you dare come back! I'll have Goku kick you out every time!"

The door slammed and Trunks stood there. Unsure of what to do. His mom would surely be happy to hear of this turn of events. She always did like to boast about her predictions being right. Trunks liked Goten, had always liked him, and wanted to be more than friends with the goofy guy. There was no way his mom would be unsupportive of him. His father, however, might just try to kill him.

"Anyone but Kakarot's kid."

More like no one other than Goten.

Even with that sentence, Trunks noticed that his father had never stated a clear ideal behind homosexuality. The man seemed to hate everyone equally, with a particularly more elevated disdain for Goku. He sighed, if he doesn't kill me for being gay, he'll kill me for choosing Goten.

Well, there was no use waiting for his mom to call. He would just have to head straight over to Capsule Corp. and try to explain himself. How did his future-self come out to his mom?

Although not rare to receive calls from the Sons' house, Bulma could basically jot down the calls to a set schedule. So, seeing that Chi-Chi was calling her outside of that schedule was a bit odd. She placed the phone precariously on her shoulder and answered the call. Not bothering to pause on her modifications to the suit she made for Videl. "Hey, Chi-Chi. What's up?"

Bulma, you know I love you.

Well, that was ominous.

But I refuse to allow Trunks around Goten anymore.

Bulma blinked. "Um, not sure what he did but you do know I can't control him, right? He's a grown man now and lives at the dorms."

I don't care! Remind him he's never allowed to see Goten again!

"Okay, whoa! What's going on? Why are you so hostile to my son?" Bulma was on edge. Chi-Chi may have married the strongest man on Earth, who was more like a brother to Bulma, but even Goku would never be allowed to be so hostile to her family. Which included a very prideful husband that actually deserved the punishments he received.

I just had to pull him off of Goten!

Bulma huffed. Not this again. "Chi-Chi, they're half Saiyan. They're going to—"

"This isn't about them sparring! My Goten has a hickey!" Chi-Chi interrupted. Frustrated that Bulma had been so misunderstanding.

No way!

"Don't get so happy about this!" Chi Chi grumbled.

Sorry, but I called it a mile away.

"Well, don't! I'm serious, Bulma! I'll have Goku teleport him to a different planet if I catch him."

Bulma scoffed into the phone. "Is that a threat?!"

It's a promise!

The two hung up aggressively. Bulma knew they argued over the silliest things, just like their husbands did, but it still got to her. It hurt to think that the woman she considered a close friend was homophobic. To her son, no less.

She let out a long sigh before flinching as the door to her office opened. "Oh, Vegeta. You scared me."

"It's too easy to scare you." He smirked. One of his new hobbies was popping into her office unannounced. She would often scold him for scaring her, but more often than not it would lead to some great stress relieving sex that had both of them glowing after.

But not always.

Bulma swiveled in her chair and wrapped her arms around his waist, breathing in his scent. She loved the musk that came from the saiyan royal. She was a princess in her own way and was absolutely appalled by most smells that came from men, but not Vegeta. Whether he was fresh from a shower or had just finished training, Vegeta released a smell that she could only ever describe as him. Whatever it was, it relaxed her.

"Something bothering you?" He practically whispered as he brushed her hair out of her face. "I sensed your ki peak."

As tough as Vegeta was around others, he showed a surprising amount of devotion and love when they were alone. Bulma had asked him about it once. Already used to the man dismissing her and their son's existence, she had been rather unnerved when he made the drastic change. Vegeta had said that he realized he had failed as a mate and a father, and that it bothered him that he had to die to notice his blessings. It was why he refused to ignore it any longer and chose to devote himself in both roles.

She sighed. "You owe me fifty."

"Oh? And why is that?" Vegeta was immediately defensive. They placed bets often enough that he had no reason to question where the money was involved. He was just a bit of a sore loser and had a pathetic record of losing to her all the time. He was not liking the idea of another loss on his record.

"Chi Chi caught Trunks making out with Goten."

"What?!" He shouted. "Our son was with Kakarot's offspring?!"

"Calm down. I told you it would happen."

"You practically gave up after the girl appeared."

"That's another thing. We have to talk to him. It's one thing to like whoever you want; it's something completely different to do so while cheating on your partner."

Vegeta tensed. Bulma had a point. His father would have castrated him in front of his mate should he have done something so disgraceful.

Her next words pulled him out of his thoughts. "I wonder what got into those two. They both have girlfriends. While I certainly never expected this from Trunks, I'm genuinely shocked Goten also cheated. Valese was such a sweet girl, too."

"It's more like the boy upgraded. Trunks is a saiyan elite."

Bulma looked at her husband with an uninterested expression. "That's exactly the mentality we won't be giving our son." What really bothered her was that she momentarily agreed with her husband. Trunks was a total catch and, compared to Valese, was on a completely different level.

She was about to dial her son when Vegeta mentioned he was already at the door. Bulma sighed and got up. "Guess it's time."

"I can't believe you." Chi-Chi huffed as she paced around the kitchen. She had forced Goten to sit down and wait for his father. "Valese was such a nice young lady, too!"

"I know." Goten groaned. His intentions were never to hurt her. He really did like Valese. He was sure of that much, but he just happened to like Trunks more. Probably always have.

"Hey, Chi. Everything okay?"

Instantly, Goten's hand was on his neck. Covering the mark that had his mother screaming. He was already accustomed to his mom overreacting and blowing the smallest details out of proportion. He would have honestly been more surprised to find she was calmly supportive of him being gay. Or is it bi? Who knew? Regardless, he was just not sure if his dad would keep his regular happy attitude or would also disapprove of his new romance.

Goku was rarely ever disappointed in anyone. Unless their actions led to terrible consequences, Goku was a firm believer in mistakes being learning opportunities. Still, the disapproving glare Goku sported at that time could almost challenge Vegeta in how terrifying he could get. If Goku also disapproved of him being with Trunks… Goten refused to think about it. It was best to just take things one at a time, and right now he needed to defeat the hurdle that was his enraged mom.

"No! I just had to pull Trunks off our son!"

Goku arched a brow at his wife. "I don't get it. Trunks and Goten are pretty much equals. Even Vegeta's gotten on top of me during a fight."

Goten blushed despite himself. He knew his dad had not meant to give his son such a scarring mental image but, knowing what his mom really meant, Goten ended up thinking of the unimaginable.

"No, Goku." She sighed. Already frustrated with her husband. "They were kissing."

Goku paled. "I thought only girls can get pregnant."

"What?"

He sat next to his son and placed a hand on Goten's shoulder. "Listen, Goten. We're always gonna be here to help out. Uh, I'm sure Gohan can give you tips. Er, unless you need them from Videl."

"HE'S NOT PREGNANT!"

Goten had a hard time keeping from laughing at his father. The man sure had a unique talent in misunderstanding everything.

Color returned to Goku as he laughed awkwardly. "Oh, well that's good!"

"Goku, he was with Trunks."

"Yeah?"

Chi-Chi looked like she was ready to strangle her husband. "He's supposed to be with Valese."

Goten was not prepared for the way his father dropped his smile. The man looked pissed. "Is this true?"

"I, well—"

"That's wrong, Goten."

Goten felt destroyed. "D-Dad?"

"Your dad's right, Goten. I can't believe you were with Trunks. Poor Valese." She continued to go on about…something.

Goten was too focused on his dad to really hear what his mom was saying. He felt like a little boy again. The distance between him and his dad grew so much that it felt impossible to reach out now. Goku never looked away or showed any sign of disgust, but the look of absolute disapproval burned itself into Goten. His dad was the last person Goten wanted to disappoint.

"Goodness, Goten. I thought we raised you better. What made you think that was okay?!"

Silence.

That was all Goten needed. Just a little bit of silence. Still, his mom just went on and on. After hearing all he could, Goten stood up. Tears burning his eyes. "Why is it so wrong to like Trunks?! Bulma seemed to approve!"

"And look at the men she's been with! I say she only attracts trouble."

"Hey, Chi. That's not very nice."

"So? I'm right. That son of hers has always made Goten do—"

"He never made me do anything!" Goten growled. "I'm the weird one, okay?! I'm the one who asked him to kiss me. It's my fault!"

"Goten, don't cover for him!" Chi-Chi crossed her arms. "I know this was all his thinking."

"Shut up!"

His parents stared at him in disbelief. The angry look only gone for a second from Goku's face before he stood up to meet his son. His hair gold. "Don't yell at your mother."

Goten felt like shrinking away again, still not used to angering his dad to such a point, but he needed to be heard. Instead, he matched his father and went super. Taking a step closer to show he refused to back down. "Don't. That's all you can say. Goten, don't do this. Goten, don't do that. Goten, don't fall in love." He grit his teeth. "Well, I did! I like Trunks! I never meant to hurt Valese, but I can't ignore what's always been there!"

"Always?" Chi-Chi gasped. "How long have you two been like this?"

Her son blushed. "N-Not long, but I've probably always liked him, though."

"I can't believe this!" Chi-Chi went hysterical again. "Go to your room, young man! And don't think of sneaking out! I'll have Goku follow you and then you'll see what kind of trouble you'll be in then!"

Without even meeting their gazes, Goten turned away from his parents and ran to his room. Slamming the door. The only reason the house had not collapsed from the force was due to them having reinforced it long ago. Goten's premature development caused many accidents and high-expense property damage.

Goku saw the shattered expression on Goten's face. Despite the determined anger he tried to display, his son just had no way of hiding how hurt he felt. It made Goku grimace. "Think we were too hard on him?"

Chi-Chi huffed. "Not at all. He needs to know that what he did was unacceptable. I don't want this to ever repeat."

"Still," Goku remembered Goten's tears. "He looked really sad."

"Goku," Chi-Chi smiled and pressed a palm to his cheek. "I love how soft you can be on the boys, but I need you to be firm right now. Goten made a mistake. A big one. We need to teach him right from wrong, as his parents."

He nodded. "Okay, Chi. I'll follow you."

"Thank you."