Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z or any other character in this fic. Every character belongs to Toei and Akira Toriyama except for OCs. The only thing I take credit for is the plot.

Chapter 1

It was a cool, breezy night in the region of Mount Paozu. In spite of how dark it was, there were still wild animals moving everywhere and the birds were asleep in their nests. The sound of a flowing river could also be heard, breaking the still silence in the air. Given how calm the atmosphere was, one could easily say that everything is well. But that was only on the outside. Behind closed doors however, an ugly confrontation between a married couple had ensued right after dinner. The sad, heartbreaking truth is that everything was turning out to be in shambles as a once happy family was about to break apart.

Chichi gave her husband a hard slap across the cheek. She had tears streaming down her face and one could see that her eyes were red and puffy from crying so much. The Ox Princess stared down at her Saiyan husband who was clutching his stinging red cheek. There was no doubt that she was angry and frustrated with him.

Goku gaped at his human wife in astonishment, not expecting that from her. After recovering from the slap, he attempted to reason with her but she didn't want to hear it.

"I can't take this anymore! You're always running off to train and leaving me here all alone worried sick about my babies... always putting them in danger. I always worry that you won't come back alive!" Chichi shouted at her husband, her nostrils flaring in pure rage.

"But come on Chichi, please try to understand-" Goku tried to explain but the angry Ox Princess cut him off.

"My children should be getting an education, not fighting SPACE ALIENS! All I want is for us to have a normal life! Is that so hard to ask for?" The human woman cried out.

Gohan and Goten sat down on the stairs, watching the confrontation between their parents unfold before their very eyes. The older sibling wanted to get up and intervene, but something was seemingly telling him to stay where he was.

"Gohan? Mommy and Daddy are fighting again. It doesn't seem to be normal." Goten murmured as he held onto his brother's arm in fear.

"Yeah Goten... I know. I'm sure things will be okay. You know how mother is about wanting us to study and not train." Gohan said in an effort to cheer up his younger brother. The half-Saiyan addressed his brother with a saddened expression. "I wish things weren't like this though... I wish that mom would understand that fighting is in our blood. We have to train to protect the earth from the next big threat and that's something she doesn't seem to understand."

Goten simply nodded his head, not really knowing what to say at the moment to ease his own worries about the current situation at hand. "I know that too. I also wanna spend more time with Daddy but Mommy doesn't let me."

The older half Saiyan could sense that his brother was scared as he placed an arm around Goten to comfort him. His brother was upset about his parents arguments and Gohan couldn't even blame him for that. Goten loved both of his parents dearly.

"Everything's going to be fine."

"I hope so."

Deep down, Gohan wasn't sure if things were going to be okay. Goku and Chichi were arguing... but this didn't seem like one of their normal arguments. If he were being honest with himself, Gohan had a very bad feeling about this in the pit of his stomach. The half Saiyan was worried about both of his parents. Especially his father.

"Studying is more important than SAVING THE EARTH! I don't give a damn if the earth is in danger as long as Gohan and Goten stay in this house and study! When will you realize that!?" Chichi yelled angrily as she was staring into the eyes of her husband. "The fate of the Earth isn't important AT ALL! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME!?"

That comment hit him hard. He remembered Chichi saying something like this back when he tried to convince her to let Gohan train with him and Piccolo to prepare for the androids. The full blooded Saiyan stood frozen in his spot and then suddenly, he felt a surge of anger flow through him rapidly. Chichi never seemed to realize what was at stake and it pissed him off to no end. What kind of person would say that studying was more important than the fate of the Earth? Didn't she realize what could happen if the Earth is destroyed and every living being was wiped away from existence? Of course she didn't. His wife only thought about her own selfish desires.

Goku's face contorted into a scowl and then it turned into rage. But regardless of how angry he was, he had to keep his cool as he didn't want to do something that he would end up regretting later. He didn't want to do something which would end up hurting himself and their sons.

Chichi was about to talk again when she noticed the change in her husband's demeanor. She slowly stepped back as she looked at her Saiyan husband, who looked really pissed off. He was absolutely livid. And this was the first time that he had ever been angry with his wife.

"That's what you think huh? That studying is more important than the fate of the Earth? I don't think you realize that if the Earth is destroyed then neither Gohan or Goten would have an education. I want us to have a normal life, but if there's a threat to Earth again we have to be ready for it. If it wasn't for all that training we did, who knows what could have happened to the Earth. What could have happened against Cell, Buu, the Androids, Frieza and any other villain we've faced off against!"

The Saiyan Father was struggling to keep his emotions in check and he was slowly beginning to feel his rage consume him as he listened to his wife's insults.

Chichi was shocked by her husband's angry outburst. But nonetheless she wasn't going to let him win this argument. After all, she had always been the dominant one in this household and she was going to make sure that things remained that way.

"Don't try and make yourself look like the innocent one here. All you know is how to fight. You're a terrible influence on our two boys and you don't even support me in trying to get our children to study. You weren't even there for the first seven years of Goten's life because you chose to stay in the otherworld. Well, guess what? I'm not going to allow my children to grow up to become stupid, idiotic, worthless and good for nothing karate bums like their FATHER!" Chichi sneered. "That's what you really are! You're nothing more than a good for nothing karate-"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"

Goku's face was red with rage. The anger within him was starting to come out as he interrupted his wife in the middle of her rant. How dare she! After everything that he had done in protecting this planet, the citizens and lastly her, Gohan and Goten, this was how he was getting repaid? By being insulted? Goku could handle these kind of insults from Vegeta, Bulma and probably anyone else but to hear his own wife say that in front of him? Now that was a slap to the face.

Chichi was shocked by this sudden outburst. And so were Gohan and Goten. They had never seen a show of frustration on their father's usually relaxed face. However, Gohan was hurt that his mother would have the audacity to say that to his father after all the hardships they went through. At this moment, he really wanted to step in and defend his father but yet at the same time something was holding him back from doing so. It was something he couldn't explain into words. Goten didn't say anything but rather he chose to sit back and watch this whole situation escalate.

The look on Goku's face was one of anger, hurt and worst of all betrayal. How could the Ox Princess have the heart to say such things to her husband?

Goku was glaring daggers at his wife. He didn't think that he would ever have to do this but it was time. It was time to let out his hidden emotions. It was time to tell Chichi "his wife," how he has been really feeling throughout their marriage.

He was going to let it all out.

Goku's hands had balled into fists as he looked at his wife with intensified anger. Chichi's words have pissed him off and it was straight up disrespectful to hear his wife say these things. Back in the past, Goku was the one frightened by his wife's rage. But today was not one of those times. Today he would say his piece, and make sure she got it through her head.

"For almost the entirety of our marriage, all you ever really did was yell at me or keep Gohan in his room studying. You almost never let him go outside and have fun. Not to mention you made him study high school stuff when he was four years old. He was fu-"

Goku nearly voiced out that cursed word but remembered his son Goten was there. He figured Gohan probably knew this but he didn't want to use it in the presence of his youngest son. He was too young to learn these words.

Goku regained his composure and spoke again with so much malice.

"He was just four years old and you made him learn things that a high schooler would learn. You may have wanted Gohan to have an education, but you wanted it so bad that you didn't let him be a kid for once. You didn't let him have a childhood!"

Chichi opened her mouth to fire back but Goku wasn't in any mood for her bullshit. His own wife was disrespecting him and he wasn't going to stand for it any longer. She was going to hear exactly how he felt.

"Every time Gohan wanted to go outside and play with other kids who were his age, he would sneak outside. Every time Bulma would organize some kind of party and Gohan wanted to go, he would sneak out. Whenever we wanted to do a little bit of training, we'd have to sneak out. Why? Because you were too demanding, always wanting Gohan to study all the time. You barely even gave him any breaks. I may have missed out on the first seven years of Goten's life, but every enemy we've faced so far has been after me! I was afraid of being a target, that's why I stayed in the otherworld for seven years..."

He momentarily stopped speaking to wipe sweat forming on his forehead. Until now, he didn't realize that talking like this could be so energy consuming. Goku continued to speak while giving his human wife an angry glare he only gave his enemies.

"I tried to make it up to Goten by taking him out fishing or taking him out on camping trips. I love both Gohan and Goten equally! And you have the nerve to tell me I'm a good for nothing karate bum? Tell me something. If I'm a good for nothing karate bum, what does that make you? Oh wait, never mind. I'll answer that question. That makes you a nagging good for nothing housewife who does nothing but yell all day and destroy our sensitive eardrums with her nonsensical logic!"

Chichi had a hand on her mouth. But she quickly regained her ground. She didn't think that Goku would ever go against her as she always thought that her husband would obey her without questioning her decisions. It was unlike him to be yelling at her like this. Her husband had never said these hurtful words towards her.

"That makes me a responsible and loving mother who only wanted the best for her children! Who's the one cooking your meals for you? Who's the one doing your dirty laundry for you? Who's the one cleaning up after you? All you do is go out and train for Kami knows how long! Open those blind eyes of yours idiot. You've deluded yourself into believing you have the best intentions for your children when in reality, you really don't!" Chichi snarled at her husband, offended by his comment.

Goku was becoming even angrier and he could feel himself wanting to teach that disrespectful woman a hard lesson she'll never forget.

"I'll admit that I'm not perfect. I've made a lot of mistakes. More than I can count but I always try to do what I think is best no matter what you think. You may have been cooking my meals, you may have been doing my laundry for me, but what else have you done beyond that? You don't seem to appreciate the fact that I fight to save Planet Earth. Every time I return home, what do I get in return? Nothing but nonstop screeching. And even getting hit with that frying pan of yours. I can't get a single break because you're constantly finding something to complain about, always finding a reason to be mad at me!"

She remained silent, not knowing what to say.

"I cared about you a lot, I really did. But did you care about me? Or how I felt!? I never got a say on anything. Things always had to go your way!" He started to calm down a little. The anger seemed to disappear for a moment and was replaced with a feeling of resignation. "Honestly, being married to you was a total nightmare. I kept my true emotions hidden for the sake of Gohan and Goten. I wanted them to believe that things were going to be okay between us, but I guess there's no point in hiding it any longer."

At this point, Goku felt like he was going to break down but he had to stay strong no matter what the outcome was. He took a few steps back until his back hit the kitchen counter.

Gohan's hands were starting to feel numb. Goten's eyes were beginning to tear up as both could pretty much figure out what was going to happen at this point.

"This is hard to believe. I didn't think I'd ever have you talk back at me or disrespect me like that. But since it has come to this, I don't think we should be married anymore. Why should I stay married to a pathetic bum who doesn't even support me in trying to get our children to STUDY!? Why should I stay married to a PATHETIC BUM who doesn't even care about my views and opinions? Why should I remain married to a pathetic bum who can't even get a JOB, MAKE MONEY and SUPPORT THE FAMILY!?"

Her voice was beginning to feel hoarse from all the yelling but she couldn't care less as long as she got her point across to her Saiyan husband.

Goku was quick to take notice of how Chichi had emphasized most of her points. Talking their children into studying, getting a job and making money. Those were the three things she cared about. She didn't even bother to ask Gohan and Goten what they wanted to become and she only cared about him getting some random job on the street and making money.

He almost wanted to fight back. He almost wanted to tell his wife that she was making the worst decision of her life, and that things would change. Almost. But to be honest, he felt the same way too. He also wanted this. With the way things were turning out to be, there was no point in trying to keep their marriage intact. The Saiyan father knew that this was going to hurt Gohan and Goten a lot and he hated seeing them in such emotional pain, but he just couldn't do this anymore.

"I'm done with trying to pretend that things were going to be okay between us. I can see that you don't care about me, but you only care about me getting a job and making money. What about our sons? You've hurt them with your own selfish desires. You say that I don't care about my sons, but you're wrong. What I really want is for them to pursue their own dreams, even if their dream isn't to become professional fighters. You shouldn't force our sons to become scholars if they don't want to walk down that path. I know for a fact that becoming scholars isn't what they want, but you forced them to do endless studying! You've been wrong about so many things but for once, we've both come to an agreement on something!"

Goku spat out the last word with so much bitterness in his voice as he stared at his wife.

She folded her arms. "What would that be?"

"We shouldn't be married anymore. A divorce would be the best option. It's too bad it's come to this, but I believe that our sons deserve the very best. I care about them too even though you keep saying otherwise. Unlike you, I care about what they actually want."

Goku could feel his heart shattering into a million pieces as he looked at his two sons who were sitting on the stairs, watching everything unfold. He gave them a sad smile and made a gesture towards them. "Hey boys. Can you two please come over here?"

The two half-Saiyans slowly moved to the kitchen area where their two parents were. Goten was in tears and Gohan was attempting to console him while trying to keep it together.

"Mom, Dad please don't do this!" Gohan pleaded. He was also trying not to break down in tears like Goten already did. Their parents were separating and this was proving to be the hardest moment in their lives aside from fighting an evil villain.

"M-Mommy, Daddy please stay together.." Goten managed to say through his tears.

"I'm so sorry boys, but we just can't do this anymore." Chichi replied with angry tears streaming down her face. "I can't live like this any longer..."

"I'm sorry you two. Especially you, Goten. I missed out on the first seven years of your life. I always thought I was doing what was right for the sake of the earth and for our family, but according to her, I'm nothing more than a... karate bum." Goku had trouble letting those words out. His throat felt heavy. He almost didn't want to talk again for fear that he would also break down in tears.

"You two should go to sleep. We are leaving here tomorrow morning!" Chichi said, her voice firm and clear despite her tears.

"B-But I don't wanna go!" Goten wailed loudly as he ran to his father and held onto his leg so tightly. Mount Paozu was his home and his father meant everything to him. Ever since he met him for the first time, he had been the one to put a smile on his face every time he was feeling sad and dejected. Leaving here was going to be extremely painful for him. "I wanna stay with Daddy!"

Goku didn't know what to do in this moment. He had seen his youngest son holding onto his leg and managed to pry him away so he could pull him into an embrace, listening to his cries. The older Saiyan didn't care that his shirt was getting wet by Goten's tears. He wanted to savour every moment he had left with his sons before Chichi took them away from him. This was the most painful moment in his life and he was going to have to learn to live with it.

He tried as much as possible to hold back his tears as he maintained his strong grip on the distraught child.

Goten raised his head to look at his father. "Daddy, what's going to happen to you?"

Goku used his thumb as an effort to wipe the tears off his youngest son's face. He tried to give him a smile despite the predicament they all found themselves in.

Taking a deep breath he addressed his son. "Don't worry about me, little guy. I'll be fine. Just go with your mother. I promise things will be okay. This isn't the last time we're seeing each other, so promise me you'll stay strong."

Goten slowly nodded his head. "I-I will."

He smiled at his youngest before slowly placing him down on the ground and then he turned to look at his oldest son. This was going to be difficult considering Gohan became the center of the argument.

The two of them looked at each other for a few minutes until Goku took the initiative to speak, breaking the unnerving silence.

"Son, I know you weren't expecting to hear all that. I knew that your mother was forcing all that studying down your throat. You only did it to please her but deep down, you knew that becoming a scholar wasn't what you really wanted. You should have been able to make your own decisions at your age, but you couldn't because your mother was the one who was doing the decision making for you."

Gohan lifted his gaze up at his father in sadness as he was pondering over his next words, wishing that all this was a dream. He wished that he was hallucinating, but the reality of everything was hitting him so hard. He couldn't deny what his dad was saying. How was he supposed to move on following this?

"Yeah, that's kinda true. I did it to please her because I didn't want to get on her bad side. We both know how mom is when we don't do what she wants. I understand why we have to train. To protect the earth. This planet may be at peace right now, but we don't even know when another villain is going to attack the earth or wipe out everybody. We don't even have a choice when it comes to mother. She'll go to any extent to get us to do what she wants and just like you, I was too scared to talk back at her. Dad, I wish I had the courage to tell her how I really feel about this treatment but I guess I'm nothing more than a coward."

Goku was shocked to hear his son say that. Never in his life did he ever hear Gohan call himself a coward. The older Saiyan gripped his sons shoulder softly and looked at him, addressing him in a serious manner.

"Listen to me and I'm not joking when I say this. You are NOT a coward! You're an amazing person. It's unfortunate that things are ending this way between me and your mother, but don't you ever say that about yourself."

"You... you're right. I don't know what I was thinking." Gohan stared at the ground in guilt at his own words. Just what was he thinking?

"Hey." Goku called out and the Saiyan hybrid refocused his gaze back at him. "We may have found ourselves in a difficult circumstance but I'm proud of what we all achieved so far. I love both you and your brother with all of my heart." He ended that by giving his beloved son a soft smile.

Gohan didn't waste any time rushing into his father's arms, and Goku hugged his son tightly, encasing him like a blanket. "Dad, thank you so much and... we love you too!" He put all his energy into this, and he was instantly reminded of every single time that he was embraced. His father held him like this when he was a child, and did this once when they were on the Supreme Kai's planet. They were about to be separated against their will, and nothing could be done about it.

There were tears brimming in Goku's eyes, but he was refusing to cry. Not in front of his sons, because he was going to be strong for them. Father and Son let go of their heartwarming embrace and smiled at each other. Chichi heard what Gohan had said and as anticipated, her face was bubbling with nothing else but pure rage. There wasn't anything in this world that could hold her back from chewing out her older son for his words. She was not going to allow him to disrespect her like that after everything she did for him. She cooked for him, did his laundry and made sure he was receiving the highest-quality education there was.

"SON GOHAN, I AM YOUR MOTHER AND I KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU! WHY DO YOU THINK I MADE YOU DO ALL THAT STUDYING!? SO YOU CAN BECOME A SMART SCHOLAR AND NOT END UP LIKE A...!"

The two boys had to cover their ears because of how loud their mother's screeching was. It was enough to make one's eardrums go deaf. Chichi was once again interrupted by the angry Saiyan, who could not take anymore of her bullcrap.

"Keep that loudmouth of yours shut!" Goku spoke in a cold, commanding tone and it was enough to keep her silent. For now.

"We've heard enough. You've forced our children to do things they've never wanted to do for their entire life. Have you ever once stopped to ask Gohan and Goten what they wanted to become in the future? Of course not. The idea of Gohan being a scholar has been in your head ever since he was a kid. Ever since he was four years old. You overworked him to the point where he could collapse to the ground and now you're doing the same thing to our youngest son. It's like you had their entire future planned for them before they were born. Some people never learn a thing. Low and behold, it just so happens that... my soon to be ex wife is one of them!"

A red vein appeared on the angry woman's forehead. "HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT TO ME!"

Chichi's hand formed into a fist and she rushed towards Goku to punch him but he simply blocked the punch and bent back her fist to look at her. Seeing that it didn't work, she started taking out kitchen utensils from inside drawers and began throwing them at her husband in fury.

Gohan and Goten started moving back to avoid getting hit by the items thrown at such an alarming speed. All they could do was watch in fear as they bounced right off their angry Dad and crashed onto the tiled floor.

"I hate you, Goku. Do you hear me? I HATE YOU!" Chichi screamed at her soon to be ex husband who simply blocked the hits of various pots and frying pans, knowing that they wouldn't hurt him at all.

As the angry Ox Princess prepared to throw a spatula at her husband, Goku grabbed hold of her wrist, causing her to scream in agonizing pain so bad that she dropped the item on the floor. He didn't want to lay a finger on Chichi, despite the way things were turning out to be. The full blooded Saiyan let go of her wrist, not bothering to hide the anger and disappointment.

"Was this really your last resort? Throwing items at me? You've overstepped your boundaries this time." He pointed to the spectators who were upset by their mother's behaviour. "Look at our sons. Just look at them. Do you understand how they're feeling right now? You always used to tell me that I'm setting a bad example for our kids but what you did right now is exactly just that. Setting a bad example."

The Ox Princess turned to look at her two children who had hurt looks on their faces, causing her to lower a metal spoon she had managed to pick up and was about to throw. "Both of you, go to sleep right now. We're leaving first thing tomorrow morning!"

Before they left, Gohan embraced him once more. "Dad, thank you so much. You spoke out for me when I was afraid to. You've said exactly what I've been feeling the whole time."

Goku smiled at his son as he let go of their hug. "You don't have to thank me for anything."

He watched as the boys went upstairs to their room, leaving him by himself with his soon to be ex wife. She gave him a look full of hatred.

"I HATE what you've done to us. What you've done to our family!" Chichi cried out, beads of sweat running down her forehead. "The only reason why I was so hard on you was because I wanted you to support us."

"You were never appreciative of the fact that I was fighting to protect the fucking Earth!" Goku spoke harshly, causing the human woman to gasp at him as she had never heard him use such language before.

"At one point you wanted me to give up on fighting entirely so I could get a job and support our family. It wasn't that I didn't want to support us, but I'm a Saiyan. Fighting is in our blood. That's something you never seemed to understand, even after all the battles I've been in. You used to be a fighter yourself and it motivated you to chase after me until we saw each other again at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. But right now, I don't even know who you are anymore. After Gohan's birth, your character regressed and you became nothing more than a nagging housewife. During all the times I was gone, I'm willing to bet that you weren't actually worrying about me, but you were rather insulting me behind my back."

"I was a fighter, but I gave it up to provide for you and our children. But you on the other hand, are a good for nothing crazy battle ape with no education. You don't even understand the most basic things unless Bulma or those other thugs were to explain it to you." Chichi sneered.

He was easily able to pick up the hatred in her voice and had no intentions of trying to convince her even further, so he gave her a cold look before putting an end to this. It wasn't getting them anywhere and would only put more fear into his boys.

"Believe what you want. I'm not going to try and convince you otherwise. I'm disgusted to see that the woman who's supposed to be my wife has this kind of mindset. No matter how many times you try to convince me, I'm never going to give up fighting as it's been a part of me ever since I was a kid. You don't seem to respect that at all. Oh, and I DON'T want to hear another word. My patience has run out!"

His wife? There was emphasis placed on that as he now hated to even refer to her as such. He glared at her fiercely, as if daring her to test him. She opened her mouth to protest but then she closed it again. There was so much she wanted to say, he could tell. Presumably more derogatory comments or remarks aimed at him. But seeing how irate he was, gave her second thoughts about speaking again. Not that she was afraid of him, she just looked stupefied that he stood up for himself and the boys with no intention of backing down.

Chichi tossed the metal spoon with so much force that it bounced right off the wall and clattered into the sink. She glowered at her husband for a second before walking past him and disappearing into his bedroom... their bedroom.

Goku stood alone by himself in the kitchen as he was watching his wife walk away, wondering how things had come to this. After the defeat of Kid Buu, he thought that things would be back to normal. That he, Chichi and their precious sons would be a happy family again. But apparently not as she started bitching at him this evening when he brought up wanting to train Goten. He had talked about it with his son, and Goten was ecstatic at the idea of wanting to train with him. Goten wanted to spend time with him but of course, his human wife didn't allow it because she only thought about her own selfish desires. She thought about no one else but herself.

Their bickering just got worse from that point after his wife decided to bring up his mistakes and past events involving their older son.

He waited for a few minutes and decided to go upstairs. Before doing so, the Saiyan turned to look back at the kitchen utensils that Chichi was throwing at him. He wasn't in the mood to put them back in their appropriate places and just opted for going upstairs. He didn't exactly know why but he just decided to. He soon found himself exploring every area of it. The house that he was living in with his family... he was now going to be living alone in it since he and Chichi will soon get divorced.

Goku then stopped at his eldest sons room. After pressing his ear to the door, he could hear snoring and knew that his son was fast asleep.

The full blooded Saiyan soon found himself at Goten's bedroom door. He noticed that the door was slightly ajar and decided to enter. He opened it noiselessly and quietly stepped inside.

Goku took a seat down on Goten's bed. He took note of his youngest son's tear stained face and felt bad. He knew he missed out on the first seven years of his son's life and tried to make it up to him. Even though Goten didn't show signs of resentment towards him, he should have been there for him. He didn't have a father for the first seven years.

"I'm so sorry, son. I hope you can forgive me." He whispered, gently pushing away strands of his hair. "I should have been there for you. You needed a father but I was never there when you needed me the most."

He got up and slowly left the room, completely unaware that Goten had heard his words of regret. As soon as his father left the room, Goten opened one eye and he had only one thought in his head.

"I love you Daddy. I'm not mad at you."

It didn't take him long to appear in the living room, sitting on the couch where he decided to sleep for the night. There was absolutely no way he was going to sleep in the same room with Chichi, his soon to be ex-wife. The Saiyan got into a comfortable laying position, his hands propped up behind the fluffy pillow. He quietly willed himself to sleep even though he wasn't sure if he could sleep well with the events that had just occurred.


The next morning, boxes and suitcases were being dragged out of several rooms as Chichi and the boys were moving out of the house. Goku avoided eye contact with her the whole time that they were carrying their things out of the small home. He was woken up by his wife screaming at the top of her lungs for their sons to get up in order for them to start packing their things. The separation was happening this instant, and he couldn't go back to sleep while he was losing everything. To pass the time, he was currently sitting on the living room couch with his black, spiky hair covering his face that was filled with so much rage. He couldn't bring himself to confront his partner or start up a conversation with his children. Both options sounded too depressing so he decided to wait here for his children.

"That's the last of our stuff." Chichi said in a firm voice. She seemed to have recovered for the most part, but a part of her was still hurting. "Let's go, you two." The Ox Princess didn't even bother looking at her soon to be ex-husband the entire time she was gathering her stuff. "I can't wait to leave this crazy battle ape. He's a bad influence on you guys!"

Goku heard it and it caused him to clench his fists. He finally turned to look at his soon to be ex-wife with so much anger inside of him and addressed her with hate filled eyes. "No matter what you say, I don't believe I'm a bad influence on our sons. I did my very best, no matter what you think of me right now. Your opinion is what matters to me the least!"

Chichi simply discarded his words with her next response, choosing to focus her attention on the boys instead. "Did you two not hear me? Hurry up, we have to get going!"

"Big Bro, let's say goodbye to Daddy first." Goten told his elder brother, finding it completely wrong for them to leave without saying their last words to him.

"Of course. I wouldn't leave without doing that."

The two Saiyan hybrids walked over to their father who was seated in the living room staring at the ceiling blankly. The older Saiyan diverted his attention when he noticed his sons approaching him. It was breaking his heart to see them fully dressed and ready to depart for their new place of residence.

Gohan was the first to speak, and it took everything in him to not break down. "Hey Dad. W-We just wanted to say our farewells before we left." He felt his throat closing up and tears welling in his eyes, but he didn't want to cry about this.

Goku glanced over at his son and forced a smile at him, although Gohan could already tell that his father was hurting just by his posture. He was about to say something when Goten made one giant leap into his father's arms, and Goku willingly embraced him. A tear droplet fell down the boy's cheek until he started to sob uncontrollably. It hurt him to see his youngest son in this kind of situation. He hated the painful fact that they were going to be living apart from each other.

"So you guys are leaving?" Goku asked while holding the crying boy in his arms.

Gohan's gaze lowered down on the ground, feeling terrible that they were going to leave their father behind. "Yeah, but we'll try and visit whenever we can." It wasn't fair that they didn't have a say in where they could live.

"I'm really sorry that things got this bad between your mother and I. I've been married to your mother for so long but in the end, I guess things just weren't working out." Goku gave his sons a sad smile as he said this. He couldn't believe how much he had to endure for the past couple of years. "You two were the only reason why I tried to keep our marriage together."

Gohan threw his arms around his father. He had sacrificed a lot for both him and Goten, thinking only about them and not about himself. They were really going to miss each other. They sat by either side of him on the sofa as he held them tightly, kissing the top of their heads.

"Hey Daddy, were... were you in my room last night?" Goten asked suddenly, the tears still sliding down his face with no signs of stopping.

Goku stiffened. Goten had heard him enter. He thought he was asleep, but he was wrong about that.

"Y-Yeah I was." Goku answered his son with a sad smile as the tears in his eyes were threatening to spill. He didn't want to cry in front of his sons. He wanted to be strong for them.

"I'm not mad at you, Daddy. Gohan used to tell me nice stories about you and I think you're pretty cool. You're not the kind of person mommy says you are." The youngest son said to lighten up the mood, despite the fact that he was devastated right now. They all were.

Goku ruffled his son's hair, earning a small laugh from him. "Thanks, little guy. It means a lot to me to hear you say that." The boy grabbed fistfuls of his dad's shirt and nuzzled his face deep as the tears kept on flowing. He didn't want to go with his mother, his gut was telling him that he belonged with his doting father.

Goku prepared to address both of his sons in a serious manner. He wanted to make this quick before Chichi started screaming since he didn't even want to hear her speak again. He wouldn't be able to handle hearing her voice.

"No matter what happens from this point onwards, I'll always love you both. Never forget that. I'll welcome you two here again with open arms whenever you both decide to come back." Goku said, trying to smile at his sons but he was failing miserably.

"We won't forget that, Dad. You're an important person in our lives." Gohan tightened his grip around his father before addressing his brother.

He felt so numb that he almost didn't want to let go of his father's hug. Were they really leaving him behind? They stood from the couch as their eyes glanced over at their impatient mother who stomped her foot on the ground. Both felt a surge of fear as she was glaring at them angrily.

"Let's get going before Mom throws a fit!"

"Yeah, we should do that."

After saying their farewells to their father, the two Saiyan hybrids were soon out the door. Before closing the door behind them, Gohan turned to look at his father with a sad smile and hoped that he was going to be okay.

After that, Goku could hear the loud sound of a car engine starting up. He sensed the Ox King outside aiding them to load their stuff inside the vehicle. Doors shut tightly and the deafening noise eventually died down as his father in law drove away from the house. Now the Saiyan was all alone.

'Was this supposed to happen? I tried to do what I thought was best for the earth and this family. But I guess I wasn't. Why did this have to happen?'

The full blooded Saiyan looked around the house that he once lived in with his family. Now he was all alone. He was starting to miss the times he had with Gohan and Goten. All the fishing they did, all the camping trips they had been on... Even then they hadn't been spending so much time together because Chichi had been so hell bent on getting them to study.

And then for the first time in his life, Goku burst into tears. Was this supposed to happen? Was he supposed to lose his family like this? For goodness sake, he was a Saiyan. People who were a part of this warrior race weren't supposed to show such weaknesses as Vegeta once told him, and here he was. He was all alone. In tears.

"DAMN IT ALL. I'VE BEEN FIGHTING FOR MY FAMILY... AND THIS IS WHAT I GET IN RETURN!? THAT UNGRATEFUL BITCH!"

He let out a ferocious roar, banging his fists onto the coffee table as the tears were sliding freely down his face and dripping onto the ground. Planting his face on the wooden table, he continued to sob loudly with no one else around to hear it but himself.

Goku always had a way to fix things. But for once, he didn't know how he was going to make it through this predicament. He didn't know how he was going to do this alone.

(End of Chapter 1)


Author's Note: I hope you guys liked this chapter. I wanted Goku to have a backbone, stand up for himself and tell Chichi how he really feels about her but unfortunately, that cost him his marriage. There has never been an instance where Goku actually talked back to Chichi in the canon DBZ series so I was very pleased when I wrote this chapter. But as this story continues, a lot of things will change for Goku. Will it be for the better? Or will it be for the worst?