Thanks for the support. ShadowMajin was kind enough to beta read this chapter.
Chapter 4, See through
Goku had been watching the ceiling for at least twenty minutes, his mind blank and numb. There was hardly any sound in the sleeping house, only the rain tapping the windowpane of the bedroom and Chichi's faint breathing next to him.
He turned his eyes to her. Her hair was unleashed and the black strands spread on the white sheets were softly shining in the twilight. God, he loved when she let her hair free and he never understood why she was so concerned about fastening it tightly in some cramped hairstyle. There were so many things he didn't understand about her, and yet he could never have enough of her. Even now that they were divorced, he would show up at her place and end up sleeping in her bed on a regular basis. Rather ironically he realized he might spend more time with her now than when they were married.
She was like a necessary haven on his journey. Sure, she didn't seem very happy when he came and visited her. Most of the time, she would frown and glare at him. She liked to remind him they were divorced and he was no longer supposed to consider her place as his, but she always caved in. She let him in, she even cooked for him – he had noted that she always had extra food for him. Then, she would let him slip into her bed. In the morning, she would complain that she wished to be rid of him and sometimes she would even cry. Knowing her, he didn't take her fits of temper very seriously. She had always been acting that way. Even at the time they were married, she had often welcomed him with a frown when he came home and she had often cried over their disappointing marriage. The only difference was that she was now crying over a disappointing divorce.
Goku wouldn't be able to explain why he was so deeply attached to Chichi. He was pretty successful with women in general and he had many opportunities to get much nicer company. Yet, for some reasons, nicer company would never keep his attention very long. He was used to Chichi's bitching nature and he missed her when she was away too long. It was somehow like a curse in his life.
It all began like a fairy tale. Chichi was a Princess and she'd fallen in love with him, a simple boy living in the Mountain. However, instead of an happy ending their story had turned into the harshest slap life had ever given to him.
Although she was a King's daughter, Chichi had never been a typical princess. When she was younger, she had a liking for sparring and she insisted on attending public school with normal kids. That's how she met Goku when they were kids and they started dating in high school. He'd been so proud to be the one then. When they turned eighteen, they decided to get married. It had sounded like the most exciting adventure and the most outstanding idea in the world, especially since Chichi's father wouldn't let them live together as long as they wouldn't be husband and wife.
At that time, Goku had considered marriage like an endless feast where he would be served at will with his favorite dishes. He would have whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted it and as much as he'd like.
Chichi's father hadn't been very keen on the idea and he'd warned Goku that marrying his daughter meant dealing with her daily needs. Although the Ox King was pretty rich, he had clearly claimed that he wouldn't grant them any financial support. This had likely been his way to express his disapproval about their wedding, but since Goku's Grandfather had died a year earlier leaving some saving and a house, Goku had only regarded Gyumao's speech as a fair deal. Goku was able to take care of Chichi, so why not seal their love once and for all?
Goku had been a fool to think life was so simple. Handling a wife and building a family had happened to be far beyond his skills.
His Grandfather's money was quickly gone, especially when the house happened to need some serious fixing. Then, winter came. It had been a rough, harsh winter the likes only Mountains can make them. They had hardly enough wood to heat their place and Goku had to find a solution to get some more in order to avoid his newly bride to freeze completely. He sold the rabbits and the hen. Since it was nothing near enough, he also sold the little meadow where he used to play as a kid. Even then, the food they had stored couldn't make it and he had to go on a hunt every day. The winter was too cold to provide him interesting preys and he had a hard time catching them.
Six months after their wedding, Chichi was crying on a daily basis and mourning already over their disappointing marriage. She'd never stopped since then. They had some memorable fights as she was blaming him for getting no real job. Fact was there weren't many opportunities in the wild Mountain, let alone Goku hadn't learned any jobs. He had given a hand to the farmers for some physical works, but they wouldn't need him during the winter. He was getting hopeless, spending his whole day in the icy wind with the thin hope to catch some proper piece of meat and coming back home at night just to be welcomed with tears and reproaches.
At that time, he'd thought that things couldn't get any worse. They did though. Chichi was pregnant. It had been quite a shock to him. Of course, he'd known he would become a father one day and he'd liked the idea, but he had never figured out that it would come so quickly. Chichi and him had been sleeping together for years and he'd almost forgotten the natural consequence of such acting. Yet Chichi had stopped bothering about birth control since the wedding as she had deemed that no one would find it shameful if she became pregnant.
When they learned about her pregnancy, Chichi cried even louder and Goku remained speechless for several days. How could something like this happen to him? Happen to them? A year ago, they were carefree teenagers, getting wasted with their friends and having sex in the wood.
None of them ever mentioned the possibility of asking the Ox King for help though. When the winter gave way to spring, Goku loaded his grandfather's banger with everything he still had left including his wife and her rounded belly and he headed to anywhere else.
They stopped at the nearest town, a filthy place called Zuma. They sold everything they could – except for the car - and they gathered enough money to rent a room for two months. It meant nineteen-year old Goku had two months to find a job and make enough money to pay the third month. Chichi was willing to work as well, but her pregnancy wasn't doing too well and he wanted her to rest as much as possible, so he lied to her and told her he knew someone willing to hire him.
Thus, he'd found himself lost in the unfamiliar crowd of a town, clueless about what to do, but aware that he wasn't allowed to fail.
The only thing Goku was gifted for was fighting. His grandfather had taught him the basics and he had taken part in some local tournaments when he was younger. He'd always won and he'd felt that he was good at it. But then again, it had only been about local tournament and he wasn't sure if he would be able to compete with really strong guys.
Despite his reluctance and doubts, he went to the biggest Dojo of Zuma, which was indeed a humble club. That day was the day when luck decided at last to glance back at him. He happened to be able to beat every opponent the Dojo had to offer. He'd been quite bewildered about it to say the least. However, it had been enough to catch a manager's attention. That's when he met Yajirobe for the first time.
Yajirobe lent him some good money while Goku promised in return that he would never deal with any other manager. Thanks to that deal, he was able to have Chichi settled down in a true apartment even though not very classy. In the beginning, he had been hesitant to tell her where he got the money from and when she learned the truth, her usual frown showed up. Yet, she knew they hadn't much of a choice since they needed serious money to welcome their baby-to-be and she contented herself with Goku's promise to get a real job as soon as their situation would be somewhat steadier.
He did a few fight in Zuma and then in some other towns around. He was successful and Yajirobe was happy. Goku understood only much later that his so-called manager had swindled him the whole time, giving him very little from the money they'd been making. It didn't prevent Yajirobe from becoming more and more demanding, claiming Goku needed to fight more in order to get more money.
Goku was naïve enough to believe in that man and he accepted to fight in faraway places, which implied leaving Chichi by herself during several days. Goku didn't mind the fights. He loved them and he especially loved tournaments, but he was aware that Chichi didn't like that way of life. She was complaining about him leaving her alone while she was pregnant and bored to hell in their tiny apartment. It was again a time when she would cry every day.
Then one day, as Goku was back from winning an outstanding tournament, he found out Chichi wasn't there anymore. She was gone with the few clothes she still had left. Goku had become frantic. He'd felt as if his heart had stopped beating. He needed some time before he could gather enough wit and rush to the landlord living next door to ask about Chichi. The old man had blinked in bewilderment. "Your wife has been brought to the hospital very early this morning, I guess it was time for your kid," he explained.
Chichi had blamed him for being away while she was giving birth to their child, but her bad mood hadn't been enough to shadow the bliss Goku had felt the first time he saw his son. Gohan was everything. Even as a little pack of meat with his black hair standing on his head, he looked smart and beautiful. He was indeed smart and beautiful. His birth had been sunshine through the clouds of Goku's life. Even Chichi's bitching side seemed to melt away at his sight.
As if God himself had been touched by the little being, fate turned pretty kind to the family up from Gohan's birth. Some time later, Yajirobe had been successful to have Master Roshi acceptance to train Goku for the World Championship of Martial Art. Master Roshi was a legend in Martial Arts although he'd looked mostly like an old pervert when Goku first met him. The old man was reluctant to take any disciple on his tiny retired island, but he'd seen Goku on TV and he had agreed to teach him. It had been a great honor.
Goku kept an amazing memory of the six months he'd spent on the Turtle Island. Except for the fact he'd missed Gohan a lot and he had to endure Chichi's complaint and cries on the phone on a weekly basis, he could say this time had maybe been the most peaceful and cheerful in his life.
When he'd returned Goku had plain and simple won the World Championship. It was something of a glory day for him. Yajirobe passed out in shock and even Chichi had been jubilant. More than eight years later, Goku would still smile at the memory. It had been a great turn in the family's life.
They had moved to West City as Yajirobe deemed the World Champion couldn't live in such a bleak backwater like Zuma. Most of the Martial Artists were living in West City and so should Goku. Chichi and him didn't mind. West City was something more sophisticated than Zuma. West City also proved to be the town of sin and with some hindsight, Goku admitted he'd somehow lost there what was still left from his innocence.
He had everything. Money, fame, a great house, a wonderful son and even Chichi seemed to be happy for a while. She had definitively given up to her idea of working. She had to raise the kid, but even when Gohan was big enough to attend school, she liked it better taking care of their home and leading a quiet life. Goku suspected her to love playing respected wife of a world-famous Champion although truth was she hated fighting and the world of Martial Arts. She regarded all this as nothing serious and she couldn't stop reminding Goku that he had promised he would find a more respectable job.
Funny how, after all the years he'd spent with her, Goku was still unable to say what could make his wife happy. She'd been back to her bitchy mood some months after they had settled down in West City. Goku was working a lot. He was requested in many contests and shows and he had to train further in order to be able to keep his title in the next Championship that was to take place three years later.
In a way, his life wasn't very different from the hard days he had to spent in the snow on a hunt just to find a crying wife when back home at night. He could hardly save enough free time to spend good moments with his son. As the months flew by, the situation started to weigh heavy on his heart and things went gradually out of hands.
It all started with little things. Whenever he had a free night, he would spend it with other fighters, getting wasted in select bars instead of facing Chichi sulking face. At first, he thought it was just about unwinding, he would just come home as late as any other day and Chichi would believe he was somewhere at work – not that she cared so much anyway. The trouble was, she could smell the alcohol on him. So, he decided he would sleep in a hotel two blocks from his place every time he would drink too much. It didn't happen very often and each time he warned her in anticipation, making up a story and telling he would work in a faraway place and spent the night there.
He never knew if Chichi bought it. She never said much, just bitching as usual, saying he was working too much and he should study instead in order to get a real job and keep his word. Nothing new, Goku was doing no harm after all.
That was until the day he woke up next to a naked girl. Lucky for him she hadn't been the type to stick around for very long, but he'd felt dramatically bad nonetheless. He'd tried so hard not to get into such filthy situation. He'd literally cried over it as soon as the girl had left.
Ever since he'd become the World Champion, he'd had a hard time repressing his desire to yield into the lame temptation to pick a hot fan girl and take her to his bed. Yajirobe had mocked him for that. Goku had a natural liking for sex. It was nothing excessive compared to any normal person as far as he knew, but still it was a liking and since Gohan's birth Chichi hadn't been very responsive to his calls. He'd thought it was all about the birth and "women's matters" and she just needed time. After all, she'd lend her body to make him a wonderful son and he had no right to impose anything on her. Yet, her rejection in bed was becoming rather nagging. Furthermore, it hurt. Even when he had been back from his six-months training on the Turtle Island, horny like hell, she'd been pretty cold and he'd needed two days to coax her. In West City, their sexual life had turned to an endless desert with hardly some scrawny oasis up and there. Being torn between an iceberg at home and boiling hot volcanos at work, Goku was getting insane.
He could hardly remember the night with that girl. She was blond with red strands. Other than that, he wouldn't be able to recognize her. Yet, that wasn't the point. The point was he'd failed to his vow to have Chichi as his one and only lover. If she heard about it, it would ravage her, no doubt.
After that, he tried to spend more time at home and decided he would stop binging with his friends. However, he realized that he bothered Chichi by acting so. He stood constantly "in her way" as she liked to say. He'd taken once a day off especially for her. He'd intended to do things with her, beginning with some good sex in the morning. Instead of that, he found the bed deserted when he woke up. She'd left a note saying she had to drive Gohan to school and she had planned some shopping so she wouldn't be back until late afternoon. He'd felt hopeless and disappointed while eating the microwaved dish she'd left for him.
They didn't understand each other very well to say the least. Their relationship was nothing near the passion they had shared as teenager and Goku mourned that time deeply. He had the feeling that they had given up the fight at some point. He still cared for her, but he didn't know what he could do to please her. He'd never found out how she worked. The only thing he could say was that she seemed content with that routine of theirs. Him coming home late with a pack of dough, listening meekly to her reproaches while changing nothing in his way of acting, and asking for nothing in bed. He'd come to the conclusion that if it was her way to be happy, then so be it.
He left behind the guilt of having other girls while being careful about hiding it to his wife. He didn't do it to hurt her, he did it because – well, he needed it. Like some kind of hygiene. He would always pick up the type of girls with a look screaming "one night stand."
That's when he had been stupidly caught by that sneaky Lunch. He had freaked out. Just when he was entering a hotel's hallway with some promising girl, a simple hardly audible sound changed his life forever. Click. Click, click, click. He'd blinked in confusion and looked around. He'd found himself facing a woman with a camera in her hand. She was taking picture of him with his arm wrapped around the girl's shoulder. His first encounter with Lunch had been an electroshock.
He'd been so numb that he'd stood motionless, the girl still tightly pressed against him. Lunch had shot them for a while before looking up at him. She'd smirked at him. "Huh, your company doesn't look like Mrs Son at all, does she, Mr Champion?"
At that statement, Goku had been snatched out of his bewilderment and he had realized at last what was going on. He had dashed onto the photographer, but she was much quicker and she dodged his touch with a chuckle.
"Don't!" Goku exclaimed with a panic-stricken voice. Lunch froze and stared at him. Then she did something no reporter would ever do. Goku never understood why she did it. Was it about his pleading eyes and his helpless face? Was it that Lunch had been in a very romantic mood that night? No matter the reason, she threw a card with her name and number to him. "You'd like to buy those photos of you? They're for sale. Tell your bastard of a manager to call me."
He caught the card in flight while she sneaked outside the hallway in a blink.
Yajirobe had bought the pictures. Goku had been deeply ashamed to tell him his misfortune. He'd been even more mortified to know how much Lunch had been asking for them. However, this filthy deal had been mostly a great realization for him.
First, he'd been dumbfounded to find out that Yajirobe wasn't only a manager. Yajirobe was a businessman first and foremost and he would indulge into any underground business. Thinking about it, Goku ended up doubting Yajirobe hadn't been anyone's manager before they met in Zuma.
Not only that, but the pictures Lunch had taken showed Goku a lot more about himself. The more he watched them, the less he could believe they were picturing what he'd become. The setting of the hotel's hallway looked pretty much like a luxury brothel while the girl - well the girl was nothing near Chichi. Yet, the worst detail was still himself. There wasn't the slightest doubt in his eyes, he looked shameless and cocky as if he had good reasons to be proud to be there and to do what he was about to do. How could he? Did he stoop so low that it didn't matter anymore? And what if Gohan ever stumble across such inglorious picture of him? Goku couldn't believe all this was about him and yet he had to admit he was facing the truth.
The truth. Day after day, it became an obsession. Truth was that Yajirobe wasn't exactly a manager, but a nasty schemer swindling him, selling information to reporters and certainly dealing with other illegal crap. Truth was that Goku was growing tired of Martial Art because he couldn't find any fighter up to him since he'd defeated his only real challenger, the Demon King. Truth was that, except for the money, Goku was no longer the supporting husband he'd promised he would be and he was a distant father most of the time. Truth was his life was nothing near what he'd dreamed of.
His life had turned to some fake world and he'd needed Lunch's intervention to realize it. He found out that she was working quite ironically for a paper whose motto was to reveal the truth.
He'd nagged at Yajirobe to learn more about her - or about people doing the same work as her. How came he hadn't even noticed her whereas she'd been likely tailing him for a while? How came she could know exactly what hotel he would pick up this exact night with the girl? And how came she took an interest into him?
Yajirobe was pissed by his endless questioning and he gave him the address of a former famous reporter to let him know everything Goku should be aware of in order to avoid doing the same mistake again. Thus Goku met Korin.
Korin had retired, but as a reporter he'd belonged to a somewhat upper class than Lunch did. While she was an expert in chasing famous people from the entertainment industry, Korin had gone after politicians and businessmen and they were much rougher prey. Goku had listened to him for hours as he'd explained how he'd tracked them down to make scandals and scams plain for all to see.
Yet, even if Korin and Lunch had different targets, their aim had always been the same. It had always been for the truth to come out. Korin said it was all about "seeing things through the glaze" and Goku was hooked.
He would change his life. He would bring back a smile on Chichi's lips and a gleam of pride in her eyes. He would be a reporter and allow everyone to see things through the glaze.
Yajirobe had been mad when his Champion had claimed he would retire from Martial Arts six months before the next World tournament and he wouldn't even fight for his own title. The manager had yelled, begged, cried and when it had been obvious to him that Goku wouldn't change his mind, he'd just shrugged.
Chichi was on the moon when he told her about his decision. "Reporter" sounded so respectable in her mind, so highly intellectual. Goku had worried about his lack of skill for writing, but Korin had assured him he could content himself with leading investigations and snapping photos. Papers had a lot of gifted writers that were of no good in the field and they were able to write articles for him.
The old man had taught him the job for almost a year. The former reporter was baffled to find out Goku was very gifted especially when it was about hunting. Goku was completely thrilled by that part of the job.
He started his career with some petty subjects and he had a hard time selling them as a free-lance reporter. He quickly craved for more. He wanted to reveal an unsuspected truth, but that was easier said than done.
Goku needed to find a stunning topics. Something big. That's when he got interested into Lord Freezer. The man had such a dreadful fame, there were few doubts that he might have some nasty secrets needing to be dig up. Korin hadn't liked the idea. He'd deemed Goku was too novice at the job. However, Goku was fearless and he didn't listen to his teacher's advices. The Ice Emperor's son was just coming to West City for an official visit and the opportunity looked pitch perfect to start the work.
With some hindsight, Goku had to admit that this investigation about Freezer had been sheer madness. Freezer was a mysterious character, but he was mostly known to be dangerous and the risks Goku took to learn more about him had been insane. In the end, he'd only been able to make it because he'd met Vegeta on his way. Still, Gohan's life had been at stake at some point and the kid barely escaped an attempt of kidnapping.
It didn't prevent Goku from gathering enough proofs and pictures to unveil a real affair of state. When he was done, he went to Pilaf. Goku had considered that the Chief Editor might be reluctant to accept such an inflammatory reportage in fear for his own life, but Pilaf didn't. Pilaf just smirked. He bought everything Goku had to sell and he hired him as a regular journalist. He even offered a job to Vegeta in the process.
This glorious feat owed Goku his current fame as the best reporter in town. He was proud. He'd hoped Chichi would be proud too, but as always he was far off base. Chichi was nothing near proud or happy. She was angry and scared. She'd blamed him for shamelessly endangering their son and she'd decided she would divorce once and for all from her thoughtless husband who couldn't get a normal job.
Her decision has come to a blow for Goku after his great success as reporter and his recruitment as a regular journalist at Snapshot.
Once again, he felt as if his wife and him were living in worlds apart and he was hopeless to understand what she wanted. She asked him to move and he obliged with the secret hope that she would change her mind. Even the day they signed the divorce, he was still in disbelief that she could live without him.
As a matter of fact, much to her despair, she couldn't. And there he was once again, lying in her bed next to her sleeping body in a house that was officially hers, but that would always remained theirs.
Goku sighed. Maybe, if he could make it with that Bulma Briefs' matter, he could get enough money to take her back to Mount Paozu. They would have enough money to live properly and they would raise their son in the open nature. Maybe they would be able to go back to the start.
Mulling over this possibility prevented him from falling asleep. He sat up and tiptoed out of the room. He climbed down the steps with caution as not to wake up anybody and locked himself in the kitchen. He pulled a thick brief out of his bag and rested it down the table.
He didn't open it though. It was useless since he'd read the stack of papers hundreds of time. Everything was again about Bulma Briefs, or her supposed boyfriend. He'd gathered a fair amount of information about him and he knew by now that it would be quite easy to get in touch with the guy, but Goku would still be unable to come closer to the Heiress because she knew his face. Although his pride disliked the idea, Goku had come to the conclusion that Yajirobe was right. Goku would have little choice, but to team up with Vegeta - If only he wasn't such an ass.
Goku gave another sigh. Meanwhile, he needed to check out Yajirobe's information. Yamcha's team was playing a game the next day and if the heiress was his girlfriend, she couldn't miss it. He'll only have to wait for her.