Piccolo kept as much of his attention outside of the carriage as he could, elbow propped on the bottom edge with his hand covering his mouth and chin like he was forcing himself to look out; to ignore everything inside the space. Gohan rested still on his lap, properly asleep unlike the miserable nap he had at the church. Chichi had continued to stitch and hum through the entire ride. Piccolo's ears and mind were grated at the sound. It was almost smug with how content it sounded from a woman he never received quiet from.

Sure she was civil with him but she always had an opinion, a command or some such to shout at him. She was always aware of every action he took or word he said. Criticizing and wary of him. He understood it well enough with his history, her mistrust in him was more than deserved. His brow twitched as he finally gave in to speak. "If you have anything to say just do so. Screaming is much preferred to this mock peace."

"It's not mock peace." Chichi said still focused on her embroidery with a smile. "I'm just content."

"Content or not, you always have something to say." Piccolo replied finally turning to her. "Even when things were just fine, you'd declare how you might have done it different or take credit for making it so."

"This is a moment when I'd rather not." Chichi gave her attention to him, her project falling to her lap. "It's too… perfect; and I'll explain it if you really want me to but seeing him just sleeping… This is the best sleep I've seen him get in weeks. You gave him that. I'll be frank, I never liked you before. I feared and hated you like anyone else, but opinions can always change. One just has to take note of any new evidence and admit the change, admit they're wrong. This is me admitting it."

Piccolo was stunned silent as he puzzled over it. Before he could manage to form a response she went on. "Whatever happened in those few years you both had together, you formed a bond he can't get from his family. Something no one can replace. Don't think I haven't noticed the small acts and gives you afford him. Now seeing you sacrifice your comfort and personal space to let him rest when he needed it and right in front of the lady who objected you the most is blatant evidence of your change. Though I may usually be sore about being proven wrong, I would rather correct myself when presented undeniable proof than stand on the rotten hill of denial."

After a long silent moment Piccolo looked back outside and said "Thank you."

Chichi grinned and returned to her project. The rest of the ride continued in accepted peace, only the sounds of thread tugged through fabric and Gohan muttering in his sleep were present.

Gohan was first faintly aware of the rocking sensation around him. Oh right the carriage… A sudden bump disturbed him from the fog of sleep. He noted how his head didn't hurt though the motion did send him back a bit sharply and he recalled resting in Piccolo's lap. Maybe if I pretend I'm asleep I can play it all off. When we arrive he'll just get out and leave me behind, nothing will need to be said. I won't have to stumble through words and he won't have to see me embarrass myself.

When he felt the carriage slow to a stop he waited. He could hear the horse being brought away to a stable he assumed but silence followed. Gohan took a quick glance around, Piccolo was still right there; one hand holding Gohan's arm as his thumb rubbed circles.

"Welcome back." Piccolo smirked.

Gohan sat up and rubbed his face to hide his blush. He then noticed the empty seat his mother had been in. "Where-?"

"She already went inside when we came up the front road. We agreed not to wake you up nor to have you carried in." Piccolo explained. "I also wasn't going to just leave you in the carriage to wake up alone much later not knowing where you were or where to go. You looked too comfortable anyway so I refused to move."

Gohan couldn't withhold his blush any longer at that. "If I didn't wake up just now, you could have been stuck like that for hours. Your legs haven't gone numb have they?"

"No, I would have been fine to sit here all day." Piccolo replied. "We don't have to go anywhere just yet, you have time to wake up fully. Or just hide if you're not ready to pretend to be cheery yet."

Gohan sighed. Of course Goten didn't know about their father yet and it certainly wouldn't help to put his own worry onto his brother. "That might be a smart plan, hiding until I can collect myself."

"They should be having dinner soon. You can sneak up to your room then when everyone is in the dining room." Piccolo suggested.

"Hmmm." Gohan agreed. He twisted his fingers together in thought. "Also… might be good to have that talk, before anyone else garners my attention. With all this time we'll have together here, it really should be had."

Piccolo grunted softly. "Alright. Getting you to your room then. Besides You should change out of that shirt soon, the giant hole in the back might worry anyone who sees it."

Gohan let out a gentle laugh. "Your gi isn't in the best condition either. The window shredded it pretty good in some places."

Piccolo smirked. "Follow me."

They stepped out of the carriage and around the side of the house, Gohan glanced at the large building now in view. It was even bigger than his own home and not even the largest on the property as he spotted more further behind it. "I heard it was huge here but it's almost like it's own small country."

"I've only been here a few times. The worst part is how sound travels in the larger halls." Piccolo grimaced at the memory. He led Gohan through the yard and into the house. His eyes were glancing around like he was tracking something. Gohan became confused as they turned down small halls only to rejoin the main one again further down. It was when Piccolo tucked them both into a nook behind a large statue and someone passed by them that he realized Piccolo was sensing out every energy, even the staff, and avoiding them.

Gohan smiled to himself. It was like a childish game of hide and seek. When they finally stepped onto the second floor, Piccolo took on a slower pace. "Everyone seems to be downstairs. Guest rooms are down this way."

It didn't take long for Piccolo to find the right room. Bulma had guests so often for business that she took a habit to label the doors with the guest's name; and on his own door in gold lettering was Gohan's name. He wasted no more time on going in, closing the door behind him and Piccolo felt like a wave receding. He could just exist in this space, it was his with his own name on it.

Piccolo walked to the dresser and after pulling it open he huffed. "Of course she thinks of everything except spare shirts."

"Oh no, really?" Gohan asked as he took his own glance at the empty drawers.

"Mmm, I might have enough energy to replace it myself. It was a long enough ride." Piccolo thought aloud. He looked over Gohan, measuring him mentally. "What color do you prefer?"

Gohan considered his answer. He usually wore blue but also having a shirt given by Piccolo, he could only think of it in purple. Then his reply seemed an obvious compromise. "I like blue and purple."

Piccolo then focused his eyes to the top of the dresser where in a flash of light, a simple white shirt and a vest in soft periwinkle appeared. Gohan gently traced the vest as his heart swelled. It was embroidered with purple and blue wildflowers elegantly framed with vines. "Thank you."

"It's nothing." Piccolo said as he focused his energy again and like at the dinner, his gi flowed and shifted to his usual work outfit for the coffee shop. Purple pants and shirt with an additional white vest. He kept his eyes closed, giving Gohan at least some hint of privacy to change.

"The attention to the embroidery is not nothing." Gohan said as he quickly removed his ruined vest and shirt to replace it with his new favored ones. He was glad he didn't have to replace his pants. "And it fits almost too well."

When he was sure Gohan was more or less done, Piccolo went to the door and turned the key that rested in it. He then gave it to Gohan. "No one can intrude now."

"Last time you gave me a key, it was so I could escape if I didn't feel safe with you." Gohan looked at the key in his hand before holding it out to Piccolo. "You should hold onto it for this conversation."

Piccolo considered for a moment before grabbing it and setting it on the dresser. "There. Out in the open for either of us."

"So…" Gohan stilled, convinced his body had forgotten how to function. His veins felt brittle, blood seemed to congeal in his heart as his lungs refused to take in air. This was it. The time to expose his feelings. He sat in one of the many decorative chairs to relax whatever he could.

"I should say mine first." Piccolo spoke up, taking the other matching seat. "The conversation we started after the dinner wasn't really finished. I just left. So we can start there and work towards what you wanted to say."

"Alright." Gohan nodded. He knew he'd need a moment to build his courage and he loved hearing Piccolo talk anyway.

Piccolo took a steady breath, his elbows on his knees as he laced his fingers together. "You understand how hard it is for me to open up emotionally and I pushed it too hard last time that I locked up; but I- I want you to know me. I trust you enough with it even though I'm still… terrified. The habit to stay away from everyone, to be cut out of everything is deeply ingrained in my blood. I know the way I left it must not have been comforting and only left you with questions."

Gohan listened patiently with a sad weight in his heart. He could barely stand to watch Piccolo struggle, seeing him tremble as he went on. Gohan took this moment to speak. "You said that sometimes you did give yourself the something you wanted. You wouldn't tell me what it was because you thought it was immoral. I had thought about what it might be and uh- some of them might have just been… a bit far fetched. It made me question what you thought I meant when I said that I wanted you to be selfish with me." Gohan tried to swallow his bundling nerves before continuing. "For years before you would usually seem fine to be alone, maybe even annoyed with my company; but that whole moment makes me wonder if… there are needs you're not taking care of. Or a feeling you're unsure of?"

"I… What I was going to say when I had said I was selfish enough, was that I more than enjoy every moment you give me. Every time you disregard what should have been the better choice to stay away from me, you grant a long hurting wish. You-" Piccolo halted, beginning to shake as he forced himself to continue. "… you've opened something in me and I feel full of some sensitivity so foreign but so very gratifying. I'm like a fly drowning in sweet water and grateful for every drop."

Gohan felt his heart pound so hard it almost hurt. His face burnt as he watched Piccolo try hard to form the next words, lips opening and closing a few times. "I'm afraid to look at this sensation any closer. I don't want it to turn into a deep void of greed demanding to own everything that is you. I've been fighting it. I don't deserve much and the time you've gifted me is already more than I need. So I don't want you to just give yourself to me."

The moment seemed to still. Gohan had listened to the words over and over, observing Piccolo's face and expression to preserve in memory. He never would have dreamed such vulnerability from Piccolo. He almost regretted speaking when he did. "So you're… scared of how much you want my company?"

Piccolo's eyes scrunched in pain and anger, jaw clenched with fangs bare. He trembled before answering "Yes, and I can't explain or understand why. I should be more than satisfied with any small time with you but something in me wants more and I can't let it have you. It's inappropriate. It's disgusting! You are your own person with your own time and friends and family. I can't just hoard you for myself."

Gohan thought hard about how he would word his response. After a moment he held his breath and forced himself to move. He knelt before Piccolo and pulled his hands apart. Gohan crossed his arms over Piccolo's lap and rested his chin on his arms.

"Gohan what-?" Piccolo asked.

"I want to hear you say all of the things you want of me. Even all of the small ones." Gohan interrupted, his voice was soft with patience. He made his position a prominent display of him being there to listen and understand. "I will sit here and wait until you feel like you've explained it all. I care for you a lot and I want to know everything you want and everything you fear so that I can help address it. Take all of the time you need because I am not going anywhere. I'm not going to touch that key."

"I-" Piccolo felt something in him shatter. Whatever held him together had broken and he could feel himself pouring out. He covered his face to maintain enough composure to talk and though he was still wary of Gohan's response he couldn't turn away from Gohan's eyes. Inviting and tender, it was what helped him continue. Removing his hands from his face, now flushed with purple, he said "I know I've said that I haven't earned the right to have you around but I want that. I want your attention, as much as I can get. I want your small affectionate gestures; like this one, or your hugs. I want to see you happy and safe. I want you to have everything you deserve but also to keep me as close as possible. I want to be there when you succeed in life, when you inherit the bank, when you find your own place in the world…"

Piccolo paused a moment when something unknown struck his heart. "When eventually you tie yourself to someone else and you work so often you barely see the outside anymore, I want all of that spare time. I don't even know what else it just... seems to go on. Like I no longer have a boundary between us and that can't be good for you."

Gohan blushed as he listened. He almost teared at the pain in Piccolo's eyes. "Maybe that boundary didn't disappear but… moved. So far it sounds like you just want me." He felt his blood burn at the thought but tried to stay calm despite every hair on his tail standing on end. "So if I did this…"

He grabbed Piccolo's hand and slipped his fingers in between each long digit. "Is that ok?"

Piccolo swallowed the lump in his throat and slowly tightened his fingers around Gohan's. He considered the sensation flooding his body and mind. "Yes."

"And if I came closer?" Gohan asked as he pushed himself up and nearer to Piccolo.

Piccolo stared deep into Gohan's eyes, so very close to him now he could see the small color shifts in the ridges of his irises. His response was a hollow "Yes."

"What if I said you can have all of me anyway?" Gohan flushed at his own words.

"But-" Piccolo began to argue.

"Piccolo I can't ever object to your requests because I want them too." Gohan said. "If what you're feeling is inappropriate or immoral, then I am a sinful demon fated to hell."

"No. You would never end up there." Piccolo growled. The idea was too impossible to even imagine.

"I- I love you. That's why I wanted you to be selfish of me. It's why I cling to every opportunity to see you or spend time with you. I think about you so much… and I have these thoughts that-" Gohan's voice cracked, his eyes more pleading as he pushed on.

Piccolo gave a comforting squeeze to Gohan's hand and pulled Gohan to sit properly on his lap. His face dusted in a purple blush as he spoke gently. "I think it's your turn now. To say all of the things… you want of me."

Gohan almost crumpled under Piccolo's touch. How is one supposed to just admit that? Even thinking it seems so obscene. He closed his eyes a second as he calculated his words as best as he could. "Everything might explain it best. Anything you will permit me to. I want to see you satisfied and happy. I want to make you feel things no one else can. I-I want to give in to you, I want you to be greedy of me."

Piccolo waited to hear more but in the silence wasn't sure how to answer with his mind buzzing so fast. He looked at Gohan, flickering back and forth between thoughts, watching him shift more and more on his lap. Loves me? Is that… what I've been feeling? They sound similar. He soon recognized that Gohan was trying to get off of him and gripped the back of Gohan's shirt to hold him still. "Where are you going?"

Gohan froze, his face bright red. "H-how can you leave when I've said too much if I'm sitting on you?"

"I didn't say that I wanted to leave." Piccolo whispered. He recognized a kind of calm come over himself, seeing Gohan as upset as he was. They were both terrified of what their feelings would do and he suddenly felt equal again to Gohan. His heart fluttered as he felt his appreciation for Gohan strengthened. Anyone else would have abandoned him but Gohan wasn't at all offended by Piccolo's obsession and in fact seemed to mirror it. "You're probably right that the boundary may have moved. If it can be set aside for my feelings, it can move for yours."

"But I'm admitting to something so… vulgar and lewd." Gohan choked on those words, almost having to spit them out. He looked like he was either going to explode or break down, Piccolo couldn't tell which.

"And I confessed my secret obsession over you, which I was convinced was vulgar but you accepted to easily. I may never understand why you feel this way for me but I know that you aren't lying about any of it." Piccolo replied. Both of his hands slowly traveled up Gohan's back, pulling him closer once again. "Hearing it feels good."

"You never mentioned anything lewd in your confession though." Gohan said, holding Piccolo's shoulders to brace himself and fight the tingles in his skin. "I would argue mine is worth running from."

"While you thought about what you felt and discovered it's depths, I locked mine away in a thick metal box. I did say that I don't know how far it goes, it's possible that it matches yours. If you want me to, I can try to figure it out." Piccolo suggested.

"You will?" Gohan asked weakly. Hope fluttered through him though he tried to reign it in. "I'll wait for your answer then."

"No." Piccolo couldn't stop the small smirk as he watched Gohan so embarrassed but so happy. "I want you to help me with it. You might have to take the lead sometimes and teach me."

"So you're suggesting an actual… exclusive courting?" Gohan felt a bubbly smile grow on him.

Piccolo blushed as his smirk thinned. "Yes, but is it alright if we don't tell anyone just yet? I know it's traditional for it to be done in view of family and friends."

"Of course." Gohan assured and then gave a nervous laugh. "I don't even think I could handle telling anyone anyway. It feels like so much and I can't even be sure this is real."

Piccolo pulled Gohan's forehead to his, antennae brushing through black hair. "Thank you."

Gohan closed his eyes and willingly drowned in the energy suddenly flowing between them. It was that honey sensation he sought after but somehow a near burning warmth in it, a new vigorous life to it like it had been spiced. He whispered softly as if he had just been caught in a nap. "Were you aware that your energy has something like a flavor to it?"

"Mmmm. Yours too." Piccolo's voice hummed, sounding even deeper into the connection than Gohan.

"I don't always notice it when I feel your energy." Gohan continued. "Honey. Honey and now I think there's cinnamon. It's so warm and comforting."

Piccolo was slow to respond as he soaked in what he loved "Wildflowers. The small ones on vines. The air around them is always fresher than anywhere else."

Gohan recalled something and without looking traced his vest again. "So it really wasn't nothing."

"No." Piccolo admitted. "Nothing I do for you means nothing, but it feels like it takes nothing to do them."

"Don't forget to do one of those for yourself every now and then." Gohan teased.

"I'm doing so right now." Piccolo replied, holding Gohan tighter to him.