Videl was beyond shocked at the invitation to join the two. Despite her efforts over the past few months, Videl hadn't managed to find out any information about Gohan. And now, without even trying, an opportunity to gain answers was being dropped into her lap. If she weren't so concerned for Gohan's wellbeing (and slightly intimidated by the green man), she would certainly be jumping for joy at the prospect.
She looked between the two, trying to discern if they were hiding any reluctance. She didn't want to tag along solely because of their pity. But their expressions were genuine, and Gohan even offered a small (yet guarded) grin. Making up her mind, Videl nodded slowly. "I'd like that. Thanks…"
"Piccolo." The green man provided.
His name, alongside his appearance, was familiar. Thinking hard, she finally connected the dots, astonished at who stood before her. Demon King Piccolo had killed millions many years ago in an attempt to take over the world, not dissimilar to the ways of Cell. But regardless of any previous knowledge Videl had about Piccolo, this guy seemed different somehow, so she smiled weakly. He couldn't be all that bad if Gohan was friends with him. Right?
"Nice to meet you, Piccolo. I'm Videl."
Grunting in acknowledgement, Piccolo turned to Gohan. Once again, no words were spoken verbally between the two, and she could only watch in confusion as a look of understanding eventually passed across Gohan's face.
In the presence of Piccolo, Gohan's face was immediately brighter than it had been since Wednesday. Videl felt as though she had failed in her duties, unable to comfort Gohan despite the efforts she had made. Erasa was right. They didn't really know Gohan at all. It was sad to think he had an entire life – and an entire set of struggles – he kept separate from the person he was at school.
After a few awkward moments of rocking back and forth on her toes, lost in her own thoughts, their attention switched to her.
"Um…" Gohan spoke hesitantly. "So, Piccolo's going to go on ahead and we'll follow behind him on Nimbus."
Videl frowned, begging a further explanation.
"Nimbus is a, erm, flying cloud." Gohan offered, doing nothing to quell Videl's curiosity. She looked at him with one raised eyebrow, unimpressed. He sighed. "Here. It's better if you take a look."
And with that, Gohan turned to face the sky, cupping his hands around his mouth. Taking in a deep breath of air, the boy yelled.
"Come to me, Flying Nimbus!"
With wary eyes, Videl followed Gohan's gaze to look up at the clouds. A few birds flew on above them, but other than that, the sky remained unchanged.
"Um… What exactly are we waiting for?"
"Give it a sec."
A few more moments passed. Feeling impatient, Videl crossed her arms, about to call Gohan out for his bad attempt at a joke. But then she heard a whizzing sound, not dissimilar to the subtle hum of a jet copter. She narrowed her eyes, placing a hand over her forehead to block the glare of the sun. Then she saw it. A cloud smaller than the rest with a yellowish tinge, zooming its way directly towards them. She felt her jaw drop.
"You mean to tell me that's Nimbus?" she questioned doubtfully.
Gohan smiled fondly at the cloud as it pulled up beside them, reaching a hand out to gently pat the fluffy surface. "Sure is. Let's hop on." And with that the boy did exactly that, leaping into the air and landing on the cloud silently.
She bit her lip. "There's no way I'm riding on that. How are you not falling through?"
Her classmate shared a secret look of amusement with Piccolo. "Trade secret, I'm afraid."
Still hesitant, Videl supposed she didn't have much of a choice if she wanted to tag along. This was exemplified by Piccolo grumbling for her to "get the hell on with it, already." With one last frown of uncertainty, Videl took the leap. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable pain when she landed flat on her butt, but it never came. Rather, her feet landed on a soft and pleasant surface, sinking into but not falling through the yellow cloud. Unable to contain herself, Videl grinned widely.
"Alright, what are you waiting for?" She teased, following Gohan and sitting cross legged. "Let's get moving."
With one final smirk, Piccolo immediately blasted off into the sky. Even though she had already seen the man flying once before, it didn't fail to surprise the hell out of her. She screwed up her face, studying the sky for any wires or ropes to explain the phenomenon, but there were none. And before she could dwell on it for much longer, Nimbus was taking off behind him at a similar speed, eliciting a loud squeak from Videl.
Gohan simply looked back amusedly. "If you get a little scared, feel free to hold on to me."
She couldn't help it. She blushed bright red. "Shut up, I'm not afraid."
"Sure thing, Videl." Gohan looked away again, eyes focused on Piccolo who was slowly disappearing into the distance. Gohan seemed to know where they were going regardless, so she opted to remain quiet. Not for the first time that day, an awkward silence overcame them. Gohan began to slowly retreat back into himself, as though properly coming to terms with what had just occurred.
To her surprise, he soon spoke up. "I'm sorry." He said simply.
"Huh?"
"I'm sorry for earlier. I ruined your day."
"Don't be ridiculous, Gohan. You didn't ruin my day. You just got me a little concerned, that's all."
"Heh." Gohan reached back to scratch the back of his head. It felt weird watching it from this perspective.
Videl worried her lip between her teeth, unsure if she should push the conversation any further. She spoke quietly. "Did you… want to talk about what happened?"
Gohan looked down, tapping his fingers against Nimbus softly. "Maybe once we arrive at the Lookout?"
"The Lookout?"
"The place we're headed."
"Oh. Right. Of course."
The silence resumed.
Videl knew she was being annoying. It wasn't a particularly great time for small talk, but she genuinely couldn't contain herself. Glad that Gohan couldn't see her face, she spoke again. "So, about Piccolo."
Gohan remained silent, but she knew it was her cue to continue.
"Is he really who I think he is? You know… Demon King Piccolo?"
Her classmate sighed, as though expecting the question at some point or another. "Not quite." He explained. "He's technically Demon King Piccolo's son. But this Piccolo's never done anything bad."
Videl nodded. "Right. And you know each other because…" She still couldn't understand their relationship. How did a studious, friendly guy like Gohan come to be chummy with King Piccolo's son?
"He's my best friend." Gohan answered bluntly. And that was the end of discussion.
She could only exhale in resignation. Gohan's shy and secretive behaviour went much deeper than she initially thought. Her classmate obviously had some complex emotional issues he needed to work through, and she could only hope that her visit to this 'Lookout' would aid in helping him.
A/N: This story has received such a great response already and I'm so glad! Thank you to everyone for reading and leaving reviews – it's much appreciated. This story isn't intended as a long, high school AU so I'm sorry if it doesn't reach all your expectations in that regard. Also: Because it is told solely from Videl's perspective, many of your questions won't exactly be answered. Eg, why isn't Gohan angrier? What exactly is he thinking? Despite this, I hope you will continue to enjoy reading. Thanks again!