Disclaimer: I am far too lazy to come up with quite a complex series such as Dragon ball Z. I don't own it, nor do I wish I owned it, because that sounds like a lot of work...

Summary: 31 drabbles about Goten and Trunks' winter as a couple.

Word count: 2065

Rated M for language, sexual scenes, etc.

Android 17 appears in this drabble. I wrote this story before Dragon Ball Super gave him a backstory, so his cameo shall remain.

Our First December

Drabble #30- Black Ice II (Revised)

When Goten wakes up, there is a bright light shining directly in his face. Once he's used to it, he looks over and blinks at the doctor fiddling with the desk next to his bedside. He was tall with straight, dark hair, and when he turned his face, Goten saw that he had icy blue, angular eyes.

Goten tilts his head. "You look... Are you related to—?"

"18? Yes, I am. Small world, huh?" The android says with a bit of a smirk.

"I guess so. You're... a doctor?" Goten doesn't know why he's surprised, it's not like he knows the man, or anything. He just goes by what he's heard of him.

"Four years of university and four years of medical school will do that to you."

"Oh, uh... alright then. So what hap—hey! Where are you going?" Goten calls after the retreating android.

17 stops in the doorway, and says over his shoulder, "May be hard to believe, but I've got other things to do, and you've got people here." Then he's gone, closing the door behind him.

Goten blinks. He is alone in the room for only a moment, when the door is being thrown back open.

"Trunks," Goten says.

Trunks exhales with no small amount of relief and closes the door behind him. He's nibbling on his lip as he crosses the room. "Hey."

Goten doesn't take his eyes off of Trunks as he sits down on the edge of the bed. "Is Marron okay?" he asks.

Trunks nods. "Oh yeah, she's fine; just a scrape on the shoulder. I'm pretty sure she's off somewhere, bothering 17." Trunks pulled his coat off and set it on the empty chair next to them. "He said that you probably have a small concussion, but aside from those scratches on your cheek, you're fine. I didn't call your mom, but if you wanted me to I—"

Goten waved him off. "No, I don't want to worry her."

"Okay." And then they are silent.

Goten used his hands to lift himself into a more comfortable position, but stopped when he felt an intense soreness. Looking over, he saw that he had bruises from his shoulders to his armpits.

"What happened here?" Goten asks.

"Oh." Trunks averts his gaze as his hand goes to rub self-consciously at the back of his neck. "I didn't notice until I got Marron out that you were still in the car. I kind of panicked, and well... grabbed you a little tighter than necessary when I pulled you out. That's, uh, why you've got the cuts on your cheeks. They're from the window glass."

"Oh," Goten says. A few seconds later, he starts to giggle.

"What?" Trunks frowns at him, looking slightly concerned.

"Nothing just—" Goten takes a deep breathe to hold in his giggles, knowing he must look completely insane. "I was just thinking about how we really aren't handling these seasons well. I mean, you with that heatwave, and me with icy roads. What's next? Us both getting attacked by a swarm of bees in spring?"

Trunks rolls his eyes but cracks a smile. "If anyone is getting attacked by a swarm of bees, it would be you. Seems fitting: your relationship with the woodland creatures coming back to bite you in the ass."

Goten laughs. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Trunks' face abruptly fell. "I'm sorry you got hurt because of me."

"Trunks it's not your—"

"It is," he insists. "I was driving the car. I should've known that the roads would be icy. If I had been paying better attention, none of this would have happened. You could have been really hurt."

"Look, I didn't notice the road was icy either, so if we're placing blame then I'm right up there with you. Besides, all I've got is a bump on the head and a couple scratches. I'm fine."

"Yeah, but still," Trunks mutters. Goten is rather sure there is nothing else he can say to ease Trunks' conscience, so he doesn't.

They are quiet again.

Goten scoots over the opposite side of the bed. Trunks—taking the hint—moves to lie down next to him. Their shoulders are pressed together, but Goten can't help but feel like they are so very far away from each other.

He remembers when it had been so easy to know what Trunks wanted. Trunks had always been defensive, but Goten still knew him. Now, Goten feels like he hardly ever knows what Trunks is thinking. That really scares him. What if Trunks was thinking that their relationship wasn't worth it? What if he thought they'd be better off ending it, before it got any worse?

Even thinking those things scare Goten, but he doesn't banish them away. The time for avoiding was gone. There is nowhere else to run, and it would be better to prepared for whatever outcome was ahead of him, no matter how much he knew it would hurt.

When Goten finally can't stand how quiet the room is, he forces himself to ask, "Do you not want to be with me anymore?"

Trunks is quiet, and a sick feeling settles in Goten's abdomen. He doesn't know what else to say, but he looks over anyway. He pauses, because Trunks' eyes are squeezed tight, as are his fists. Goten bites his lip, because he feels a knot forming in his throat.

Goten looks down at the bracelet around Trunks' wrist and he remembers so much. He remembers flying through fireworks, and watching the sunset, and eating ice pops, and catching fireflies, and sitting in the rain. He remembers snowball fights, and wild snowboard rides, and scary skiing, and kissing in the snow, and singing together, and warm fireplaces, and watching the dark sky.

Oh, the stars had been so beautiful that night. He wants so desperately to be able to go back to that moment underneath the stars, when it was just them and nothing else, no other thoughts than each other.

The emotions he had felt during those times, the love had experienced, was so real. They're both in too deep; they can never go back, and Goten doesn't want to. He doesn't want these things to become just fond memories. He wants to always have moments like these, to give special places in his heart for them and never let them go.

He can't pretend their problems are gone but he can fight them. There is more than enough fire left in him for that.

"I've never been with someone that was worth keeping," Goten says honestly.

Trunks stares at him, stupefied. "Worth keeping?" he says.

"Worth keeping." Goten nods. "I want us to work this out."

"Can we?" Trunks sighs, and his voice sounds so heartbreakingly defeated. "There's always going to be another problem, we're always going to keep fighting, we've already broken up before, and if we keep going like this, we are going to break up again. I hated those three days we weren't together. It hurt so badly. I don't want to go through that again, but I don't know what else to do."

"We have to try harder then, Trunks."

"How much harder can we try?"

Goten pretends he hadn't heard that question. He slides his hand over to curl their fingers together. "Just tell me everything you want me to know. Tell me what you want me to do. I promise I'll listen."

Trunks looks over at him. It's a moment before he replies, "You have to stop treating me like I can't take care of myself. If I ask you something, I want you to respect that, and quit running off like you always have to save my day. I want you to... I want you to stop treating me like I'm some prize you have to protect. I hate that, Goten. I know you don't mean to do it, but that's what it feels like and I hate it."

Trunks takes a deep breath, like a weight has been lifted off of him. His eyes are steady when he looks back at him. "I want you to stop letting other people come between us. I want you to understand that I can handle people who don't like me, but I can't handle it when you make everything worse. If you have a problem with my methods, then I want you to talk to me, don't just go off and do whatever you want and expect me to be okay with it. I'm not going to budge on this so please stop doing it."

Goten stares up at the crème-colored ceiling, processing what he's been told. After a while, he nods his head.

Trunks grips their hands tighter. "And what do you want?"

Goten's eyes stay on the ceiling for a second longer, before he trails them down to meet his eyes. "I want you to stop being so defensive all the time. I want you to quit keeping secrets from me. I want you to talk to me, and I promise to listen to you if you listen to me too. I know that you can handle yourself, but I want you to know that you don't have to. I want you to know that there is nothing you have to prove or whatever, not to me. I want you to understand that no matter what's going on, I'm always going to be here for you, and I'm not budging on that.

"I don't want to constantly worry about what he can or can't talk about," he says, but he thinks this might be equally for the both of them. "I want to feel like every disagreement is going to be our last. I want to feel like we are making each other better, not tearing each other down. I just want us to be together, but I can't do that by myself."

Trunks doesn't say anything, but he knows that his words were heard.

Goten's voice is soft as he says, "You never answered my question. Do you want to be with me? I'm willing to try, but are you?"

Trunks eyes are squeezed shut again, but his head nods fervently. "Yes, I want to try."

All of the tension immediately dissipates from Goten's body. He slumps back into the pillows. "Good."

Trunks watches him for a moment. Then he says, "I still don't like how you handled Akeno."

"You're not going to make me apologize to him, are you?"

Trunks actually contemplates it. "No, but seriously, don't do it again."

Goten breathes a sigh of relief. "I won't."

Trunks rolls over and presses his face against Goten's neck. "We're going to make this work."

Goten nods, wrapping his arms around him. "Yeah, we are."

"I love you," Trunks says against his neck, pressing little kisses there as his hands roam up Goten's side.

"I love you too," Goten says, but he's pretty sure that Trunks isn't listening to him. The other boy's lips are brushing against his neck and his jaw and his ear and cheek, and his knee nudges between Goten's legs.

"I love you. I love you so much," he hears Trunks say. Warm hands run up his pale chest and lips move against his own. Goten relaxes as Trunks tongue swirls around his mouth, relinquishing all control so he can simply enjoy the attention. There was nothing he loved more than having Trunks writhing beneath him, but this was a welcome change as well.

"Mr. Brief, I'm going to have to ask you to stop manhandling my patient."

Trunks' hand—which was trailing ever so discreetly past Goten's waistline—disappears in a flash as he jumps to his feet with a yelp. His face is a furious pink as he awkwardly apologizes.

17 barks with laughter, as does Marron, who is peering over his shoulder. Goten, with flustered cheeks, awkwardly laughs as well. Sitting up, he trails his eyes over towards Trunks. Despite the other boy's attention being elsewhere, and the intensely awkward atmosphere of the room, Goten couldn't help but grin like a fool. Goten figured that it didn't matter what they went through. It didn't matter what happened tomorrow, or any other day. They were strong enough to get through it, and weren't ever letting each other go again.

Goten figured that was enough of a reason to smile.

End