Just A Taste

3: Sweet

AN: it's been almost 6 months ... lol

As Trunks drove home, he could feel her scent linger in the car for a moment too long. It stuck with him, the woman carried a heavy sadness that tore at him. His hand gripped on the wheel, squeezing it tighter as merged onto the highway. Why and how had she wound up in such a terrible situation floated in his head. He tried hard to take his mind off of the woman. This wasn't his problem to solve, she was her own person with her own problems. But that nagging emotion within him implored him to ponder more about the woman. Why was this so difficult for him? Trunks groaned as he pressed on the gas, feeling the uneven road beneath his vehicle jolt him and his car about in increased speeds.

Trunks had never been so worked up about an individual before and yet...

He came to a full halt as a deer scurried in front of his vehicle. His heart suddenly racing as the delicate animal crossed the road to the forest adjacent to the road. The shock paralyzed the Saiyan momentarily, his knuckles white from how tightly he gripped the steering wheel. He had been so deep in his thoughts, he hadn't been aware of the road ahead of him.

Marron slept snug while still in her uniform, atop the musty couch. The jingling noise of an unlocked door caused her eyes to flutter open, staring sleepily at the figure walking up to her. "Get up," the booming voice announced. "C'mon, get up."

He donned a leather jacket, with a white undershirt. His brown curls unruly atop his head. "Ryce?" Marron groaned as she rubbed her eyes. His enigmatic eyes stared into her, his hands gently placed at her side as he leaned closer to her. Alcohol. He went out drinking again, she can sense it in the gentle way his hands were running down her arms. Beneath this dingy yellow lighting, she could see the man she had fallen in love with...just barely slipping away from her as he began to mount her on the couch. Her hands ran atop his brown curls once more, undoing them one coil at a time.

He kissed her, gently. Marron's delicate hand barely touching the scruff of his trimmed beard. And though, despite this gentle caress from the man she claimed was hers...she couldn't help but feel empty. As Ryce crept his dexterous fingers up her skirt, she placed a hand firmly atop his, catching the green-eyed man's attention. "What's wrong?"

Marron could feel another wave of nausea wreak havoc through her. "I-" she paused for a moment, "I can't do this..."

Ryce pouted, tucking a strand of gold behind her ear. "Why not?"

She wanted to flee, make a run for it...and maybe, just maybe find freedom elsewhere. However, that simply wasn't the case. But she couldn't tell him the truth, she knew that in telling him she was pregnant she'd be cursing the future of a baby she didn't know if she even wanted yet. "I just- have had this really weird stomach bug..."

Ryce looked into her blue eyes, knowing damn well she was lying. Her shifty gaze was all too telling for someone who has been with her for so long. "Marron, if you didn't want to fuck just tell me," he grumbled taking the blanket from the couch and angrily marching into their room. "If you change your mind, you know where to find me," he grunted as he slammed the rickety door.

Marron frowned as she lied carefully on their couch, gently closing her eyes once more. Though in the deep crevices of her mind, Trunks Briefs floated about, charming her loveless life.

Valese and Launch eyed the blonde carefully. There was something different going on that day. The woman wore her regular hairstyle, however, the lipgloss and mascara were new additions that they hadn't seen in her before. She even carried herself with a more flirtatious attitude. The curiosity grew between the two women, had she been expecting someone? Had something happened last night when they left?

Usually, Marron was cheerful but never had she made herself up for any customer. As she had always said, "I don't get paid enough to get dolled up for some customers."

The curly-haired brunette tilted her head as she approached the blonde who was now standing behind the counter. "So, Mar..." Valese giggled as she leaned towards her, her yellow ribbon tying her ponytail together brushing on Marron's shoulder. "Dish! What happened last night?"

Marron began to laugh a bit too nervously, holding her note pad close to her chest. "Maybe...something happened..." Marron began, her eyes glistening excitedly... a sight that was rare to see. "But you two have to swear to not tell anyone."

Launch smirked, giving her thumbs up to the giddy blonde. "You can trust us, you're our only friend after all."

The younger woman scoffed as she leaned her cheek on her palm. "Well, remember that gentlemen that gave me the generous tip?" Marron began dreamily. She knew how she was behaving was wrong but having felt so alive in mere seconds she craved the feeling of such a mysterious individual around. "He..." Marron paused, unsure how to phrase it without upsetting Valese and Launch...after all she did refuse their offer to drive her home. "He saw me sittin' around after you two left and offered me a ride!" She exclaimed.

Valese smiled softly, "well...what happened after?"

Marron blinked out of her dreamy state. "Huh?"

Marron turned her head and quirked a brow, "h-huh?" She laughed, shaking her head profusely. "N-Nothing happened!"

"He just drove you home?" Launch asked, "No kiss, no fucking?"

Marron's face flushed violently, how could her coworkers be so crass? And here she was simply giddy about someone treating her like a human being. "No!" She exclaimed, "are you kidding, Ryce would kill me!" she silently exclaimed to the two women. "After all, he was a bit strange..."

Valese tilted her head. "What was he into feet or something?"

Marron was beginning to grow agitated at the women jumping to sudden conclusions. "No!" She shouted out, garnering the attention of the clients in the restaurants. "Er...he knew I was pregnant without me telling him."

Launch sat on the other end of the bar, scoffing at her. "Yeah right," the older woman snorted. "Ya look like a peacock ready for matin'"

Marron tilted her head curiously at the woman. What on Kami's green earth was she going on about? Sure Marron may have been blushing and maybe she decided to put a little more effort into her appearance, but who could blame her? She was excited at the prospect of crossing paths with an attractive individual. She flirted with the idea that perhaps someone would whisk her to some fairytale and, but of course, it was st that...a fantasy.

Nothing more than that, unfortunately.

Marron turned into the kitchen, taking out all of her ingredients as Launch handed her a slip with different orders. Marron's pies were nothing short of excellent, they were the delectable prize of the diner, and most of the locals were aware of such great cooking found here. She prepped the pan as she read the suddenly massive order that appeared. "F-Fifteen Pies?" Marron glanced at the order, somewhat slack-jawed. "Launch!"

Quickly the blonde popped up in the kitchen door, leaning her hip on the rickety doorway. "What?"

"What the hell is this?" Marron pointed to the massive order, "Who ordered this?"

Launch smirked and tilted her head to the side gesturing to a guest sitting alone in a booth. Marron watched the figure and quickly spotted the lavender hair peeking from the booth. "That answer your question?"

The younger blonde was completely flushed and in a total panic. "I think he wanted to talk to you, actually," Launch teased. "I told him you couldn't cause obviou-" Launch hadn't paid too much attention and hadn't noticed how quickly Marron's hands move as she worked on making the 15 different flavored pies.

"Did he now?" Marron avoided looking at the older woman. Her cheeks showed a flare of pink as she crimped the edges. "I doubt it's anything, maybe I forgot something in his car!" she exclaimed, half-heartedly chuckling.

Valese quickly sped into the kitchen as she grabbed the prepped pies and sped back out. "Sorry Mar we've got one hungry customer!"

Marron quirked her brow, peeking out of the kitchen, only to see said individual scarfing down his meal. She felt her heart nearly drop at how voraciously the man ate. How was it possible he wasn't overweight was beyond her. Trunks stopped, turning his head behind him noticing Marron standing idly behind the door before Launch pushed her out of the kitchen...and almost as if it were immediate, he motioned for her to come over.

Marron held her notepad close to her chest as she eased over to the table. The gentle smile on her face was truly a lie...her mind was running a mile a minute, wondering why he was there in the first place for another day in a row. He was a city man, wasn't he? "Why don't you sit with me?" He gestured over.

Marron curiously eyed her coworkers who gave a thumbs up from behind the counter. "Uh, sure," she slipped into the booth facing Trunks. "What's up?"

Trunks smiled, his elbows propped up on the table. "Turns out I'm going to move to this town until the branch is finalized," he stated simply. "That should be in about a month or two...so, I guess...expect me around."

The blonde stared at him a bit incredulously as he flashed her a toothy grin. His canines were far sharper than she initially noticed, how odd... "So, you called me over to tell me that?"

"I- well, no..." He responded, his gaze shifting away from her. She noticed his cheeks suddenly turning more red as he fiddled with the straw in his smoothie. "I was just thinking of last night y'know the baby and all," he scratched his cheek with his index finger before sitting forward. "Come work for my company."

Marron was taken aback by the forwardness, her mouth agape at the offer. "W-What?"

"Alright, alright, I may have been a bit forward there," Trunks admitted. He slid a file over to her, "look...you don't have to accept...hell you don't even need to open the file up, but try and consider it."

Marron looked at the yellow file and back up to the taller man. "L-Look, if this is about my..." she began before lowering her voice, "pregnancy...then you really did not have to do that...I am perfectly capable of taking care of things..."

Trunks breathed in deeply, he had calculated that the gesture may have struck a nerve. "I'm sure you are, I don't doubt it."

Marron glanced at him suspiciously, his hands traveled to the thick pink milkshake beside the pie she had freshly baked. Tentatively watching as he sipped whilst a storm of thoughts roared in her head. Why would he offer a job to her? Sure, she was a pregnant woman stuck in a restaurant that would take her nowhere, stuck with a no-good husband...but it was bold of him to believe that she would be practically crawling to him at a job opportunity. She carried at least herself with whatever pride she had left. Her hand traveled to the file, gliding it towards her.

"Look," Trunks began between swallows, "if you don't want to it's fine." He paused and took several gulps out of his drink.

She quirked her brow, he ate his food voraciously. People usually liked her food, but not to the degree where they were scarfing it down at inhumane speeds. She stole a quick glance at his slightly unbuttoned shirt, flicking her eyes toward the frothy pink milkshake he ordered. What kind of macho man orders a pink drink? She wondered, Is this what city men are like?

"This isn't anything weird is it?" Marron questioned, as she peeked inside the file. "Because I don't do that kinda thing..."

Trunks nearly choked on his food, before pounding a fist into his chest. "W-What?!" He exclaimed incredulously gathering the attention of everyone at the diner.

The blonde blinked a thick layer of red creeping on her cheeks. Did she just imply he was trying to solicit her for prostitution? She placed her palms on her newly hot cheeks, now not being able to look the man in the eyes. "S-Sorry, around these parts it's a bit common..." she responded in a hushed tone.

It wasn't uncommon for strange men to stop her on the nights she would have to walk on the highway to get home, thinking she was looking for something else. She didn't feel it was too far fetched for someone like him would try that. However, reading the situation she wished she didn't blurt out such stupidity because it was almost as if she was forgetting this man was the president of a massive company.

"It's fine, I understand," he responded, shaking off the sudden shock. "I just didn't expect it."

Marron smiled as she placed the file in her purse. "Well," she began as she traced her finger along the wax-coated wood, "I better head back..." she muttered.

"You'll get back to me?" He asked, glancing directly into her eyes making her freeze in place.

The blonde nodded as she got out her seat, "Y-Yeah, I will."

He dug into his coat pocket, handing the blonde a business card. "Promise?" Marron glanced at the card between his two fingers, gently taking it from his fingertips. "My personal cell is on there, don't leak it," he chuckled.

Marron nodded speechlessly, with a small smile creeping its way onto her lips. "Aha...yeah, trust me I won't do that," she stated before hearing Oolong yell for her from the kitchen, making the blonde jump. "That's my cue, gotta go...but I'll definitely get back to you, that's a promise."

AN: I started rewatching DB and DBZ so now I have inspo...follow on twitter for shitposts and fun like that! And also, please let me know what you think!