Outside the church in the dark of night, Gohan started his walk home. I forgot about the sunset at the garden earlier and now it's dark. Thank the gods the full moon isn't for two weeks.
He stepped with steady speed, bouncing thoughts back and forth in his mind. I really am his only friend? The only one he smiles for? Gohan's heart flitted. Oh no… I can't be doing this. If I am the only one he trusts, I can't be throwing this mess of affection at him.
Gohan froze when he heard footsteps behind him. He glanced around but no one was in sight. He tried to sense for any life but nothing still. My heart is beating so fast it must be messing with my head. He turned back to continue home when a hand grabbed his throat, pulling him into an alley and slamming him into a wall.
"You were wrong. It's not him." A strange man's voice spoke with such an unsettling calm.
Gohan's head thrummed from the impact, blood rushing through him. He gripped the hand around his throat but it didn't move or react as if his attempts were as effective as wind. What?! How strong is he? Gohan struggled to open his eyes and only managed to crack them. Through his fogged vision he spotted blonde hair, a woman was holding him to the wall.
He choked, running out of breath. Damn that's as long as I can go without air!
"His energy matched too well. He might know where to find him." The woman said. She loosened her grip just enough for a quick gasp of fresh air.
Gohan felt pain and relief as his chest filled fast. His focus cleared to reveal a man standing just behind the woman. They were perfectly symmetrical to each other with the exception of hair color, even the perfectly matched- Gohan's attention was immediately fixated on the stitching along their necks. With the surgical precision of a master, Gohan could almost applaud the work. He turned his eyes to the woman's and asked "What do you want?"
"Smart kid, getting right to the point." The man smirked. "My sister and I are on the hunt for someone. You resemble him quite well, so we're going to ask you. Where can we find the man named Goku?"
Gohan felt his whole body still at the name. Dad? Why do they want him?
"I can feel his blood quicken. He knows him." The woman laughed.
"Just point us in the direction and you'll be fine. Unharmed and let go." The man said.
Gohan grit his teeth. "I don't think I will."
"Wrong choice." The man smiled wider.
The woman punched Gohan in the gut, he grunted at the pain. I have to get out of this hold, I can barely breath let alone fight… but I don't know if I can match her strength. They're not normal people, not even a hint of ki or life energy. Are they part of past villains dad spoke of? They don't look any older than me.
"I'll take a wild guess… you're his son? About the right age if he had any. Fancy clothes, rich then. You probably still live with him having such privilege." The man scoffed as he pulled and examined Gohan's vest. He then asked in a hummed voice "Wheeere's Gokuu?"
She can feel my pulse, so if I lie they'll know! Gohan tried to pull her hand away again but failed to free himself. "I'm not going to tell you anything."
The woman released Gohan's neck just as the man's leg struck his ribs, knocking him to the ground. He was under the torrent of kicks from the man. Gohan braced as much as he could to regain his breath though it was near impossible as each inhale was forced back out with every attack. Dad could probably handle these two no problem. He still trains properly and has that secret group he mentioned. But if I lead them to him, mom and Goten will get caught up in it too.
All thought ceased as he was turned to his back and a kick planted firmly into his chest. Gohan screamed as ribs suddenly cracked and caved.
"Don't kill him yet." The woman suggested, a smile still played on her face. "Though the mouse doesn't squeak he always has to run back to his hole."
"I suppose you're right." The man sighed contentedly as he looked down on Gohan. "Goodbye for now kid."
Gohan groaned as he carefully turned his head to them. The pair walked away from him revealing numbers on the back of their necks. 17 and 18. Gohan did his best to remember them as darkness swallowed him.
Gohan didn't know how long he had been unconscious or if maybe he suffered internal bleeding and he was on his way to the afterworld. He only knew that he was warm, his mind lingering on his first thoughts after the conflict. A gentle comfort around his neck, finally being able to breathe sweet air. Like a kiss.
A worried vision of Piccolo accompanied the sensations, leaning so close over Gohan. Gohan hated seeing the strange emotion on his face but a part of him also felt some pleasure in it. He knew he wanted to pull Piccolo closer. If I am too far gone to heal, I guess this will be my last dream. Of course it would be now that I realize how differently I feel for him; midst my near death experience. Why I cling to him; leap at every attention he gives me. It's still too much on my heart to label it love or romance but I do cherish him; maybe even enough to desire… when did I become the kind of man who desired someone?
Gohan's heart stuttered at the thought of himself craving Piccolo to such a degree. The skipped heart beat was jarring enough to wake him. Slowly Gohan's eyes fluttered, adjusting to the dim light. He cautiously took a breath, placing a hand to his chest. No pain? But I am awake.
Gohan sat up and looked around the room, he didn't recognize the bare white walls, nor the mattress- more of a simple but plush mat- below himself. His vest had been removed at some point, leaving him in his looser shirt.
"Don't get up too fast." Piccolo's deep voice rumbled from behind Gohan.
"Piccolo?" Gohan turned quickly to see he was closer than he sounded. He sat cross legged on the large mat beside where Gohan's head was. Gohan began to burn with embarrassment to his recent thoughts but turned away when he saw Piccolo's stern eyes. Please tell me he didn't read my mind.
"You're at the church. It's the next morning, only another hour till the sun has fully shown over the buildings." Piccolo said.
"How did I heal so fast?" Gohan asked. He rubbed his throat checking for any soreness.
"A special bean called a senzu. Developed by master Korin to heal wounds and restore energy." Piccolo replied.
"That… sounds impossible." Gohan admitted as he tried to imagine such a bean.
"It's a special and rare technique to infuse his energy into the plant." Piccolo explained. "What do you remember from last night?"
Gohan stilled as he recalled the attack. "A man and woman, twins about my age. They pinned me to the wall and strangled me before I was even really aware of them. They kept me from being able to breathe properly and eventually kicked my chest in... I didn't have a chance to fight them off." He could see Piccolo tense more with each word. Gohan suddenly felt he had let Piccolo down. "I'm sorry, I know you trained me better."
Piccolo's eyes widened. "What are you sorry for?"
"I can tell you're upset. As your student and one of the strongest men on earth, I should have done better." Gohan lowered his head.
"I am upset but not because you didn't beat them." Piccolo said. "You're not an active fighter, I don't expect any of that from you. I'm angry that you were in that situation. You were barely alive when I found you."
Gohan forced a weak smile in attempts to lighten the mood. "I'm lucky you found me in time. Saving me once again."
"I almost didn't." Piccolo clenched his jaw, his voice raising to a growl. "Your chest was caved in, you couldn't breathe on your own! If I didn't provide air for you myself, you wouldn't have survived long enough for Mr. Popo to get the senzu from Korin! 'In time' would have been making sure you didn't get like that to begin with."
"You couldn't have known I was going to be attacked." Gohan stated firmly, hoping to quell any new guilt Piccolo could feel before it set in.
Piccolo scrunched his eyes shut. "I understand that but I…hmmf."
Gohan felt his resistance to answer further, to admit his fear that Gohan could have died, and only slid closer to Piccolo's side. After a moment he felt confident enough to turn the conversation down another tangent. Something that would be easier for Piccolo to talk about. "So what did you mean by 'provide air' for me? Is that a new ki technique?"
Piccolo turned his head away. His tone and body had softened some. "About that…"
"Don't tell me you won't teach me. Seems rather useful and if it's safe for me to spend time with you, it's safe enough for me to train again without any triggers. Last night proves that I need to toughen up." Gohan grinned.
Piccolo finally let slip a smirk. "As nice as it is to hear you eager to train again, it's not a ki technique."
"Oh? What was it then?" Gohan tilted his head.
"I had to manually breathe for you by forcing air into your mouth with mine." Piccolo put a hand over his chin as he watched Gohan. A knuckle pressed firm over his lips.
His mouth… to mine? The dream of warmth and a kiss refreshed vividly in Gohan's mind. His cheeks en-flamed in a deep blush as he gripped the blanket over his lap, bracing his now trembling body. How he hated that he was unconscious at the time it happened. "I think I might remember reading something like that in a book once."
"I shouldn't have said it. I knew you'd be uncomfortable knowing that." Piccolo sighed.
"I'm not uncomfortable, I understand it was an emergency. I just can't picture you doing anything resembling something so uh... intimate." Gohan lied, running a hand through his hair as such images of his imagination already running rampant in his head. Was it warm? Soft? Did he blush? Does he even blush? Gohan chuckled. "Thank you for saving me. Yet again."
"I was happy to." Piccolo whispered. His hand moved to his cheek and he glanced away, as if he were hiding his face.
In his surprise, Gohan stared at Piccolo. He struggled to hold back a giggle bubbling through him. Oh no. Oh no that was kind of charming. He pinched his cheek and rubbed his chin as casually as he could to smother the smile on his face.
"What's wrong?" Piccolo returning to face Gohan who was shifting strangely.
"Oh nothing." Gohan waved away the feeling as fast as he could. He cleared his throat and recalled a notable fact of the attack. "Before I forget again I should mention, I wasn't attacked randomly last night."
"What?" Piccolo instantly dropped all light emotion.
"They seemed to recognize my energy and kept asking where to find my father. It was less an attack and more an interrogation." Gohan explained.
"If they were looking for Goku, why didn't you lead them to him? He could have handled it or at least taken the danger away from you." Piccolo scowled.
"Because I would have had to lead them to my house where my mother and Goten are. I couldn't put them in danger too." Gohan answered. Piccolo slowly nodded and grunted in approval of the decision. "Also, they did intend to leave me alive. I think they wanted to follow me and let me lead them to him. Fortunately you brought me here instead of home."
Piccolo stood from the mat and began towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Gohan asked.
"Someone should tell Goku before this escalates." Piccolo replied. "I suspect he'll gather up the group and hunt down these twins."
"Wait, no one will be able to. They don't have energy we can sense. That's how they got to me so fast." Gohan spoke quickly before Piccolo left.
Piccolo froze, his hands tightening in fists. He took a deep breath before firmly asking "What do they look like?"
"The woman has blonde hair and the man has black. They have stitches along the clavicle and around the neck on the back of which each had a number. 17 and 18." Gohan described the aggressors. Piccolo returned to his seat on the mat, crossing his legs and closing his eyes. "Don't you have to tell my father?"
"I am going to tell Kami. He can update everyone." Piccolo stated, placing his hands together in his lap. "If I can't sense them, I'm not leaving you alone. So I'll tell him telepathically."
Gohan nodded. Though he had plenty new things to think about and distract him, he was more than grateful to have safe company after the attack. "Thank you."
"Get some rest." Piccolo said.
You are all precious beings, thank you for reading and reviewing if you choose
To Fairylily: You are too kind, I'm sure there are flaws here and there. My main concern is getting a good Piccolo character down. I'm so glad you like the story ^.^ lol everyone's gotta do what makes them feel better... like suggesting a harem fic over my gay one XD
I seriously should respond to more reviews, you're all truly beautiful. I reread them every time I sit down to write.