Chapter 5

"Thanks, Mr. Junior!"

Chi Chi was surprised at how well Bulma was doing. She herself was in the kitchen cooking, whilst Bulma ran tables. The way she spoke entranced people, and those that recognized her were even more amazed—it was also, consequently, one of the busiest times Chi Chi had seen for her restaurant. The heiress was bringing in people that would never have dreamed of stepping into some no-name Chinese place.

"This is pretty fun!" Bulma chirruped, pushing open the swinging doors as she entered. Her arms were laden with dirty dishes, which she deposited in the sink. "I mean, it's nowhere near as exhilarating as engineering a time machine—,"

"Is Capsule Corp doing that?" Chi Chi questioned in awe.

Bulma ignored her question. "But it's still pretty great. The customers have all been so sweet." There was that cat-like grin again. "I've even gotten a few numbers…" She patted her jeans pocket, where Chi Chi could indeed see crinkled up scraps of paper sticking out.

She clucked her tongue. "Now, focus. There's your next set of plates."

Bulma hummed, and scooped up the plates. "Soon you have to teach me how to run the kitchen. I've got some experience from my mother, you know?"

Chi Chi nodded, not really paying the girl any mind as she took the plates and dashed away. She was amazed, frankly, at Bulma's energy. Originally, she'd chalked it up to the heiress simply being younger, more full of life—then Chi Chi had discovered that Bulma was actually older than her… That had set her mouth in a harsher line.

She paused in her work, phone vibrating. Quickly, she pulled it out, opening up her messages.

Chi Chi immediately giggled, heart swooping as she saw the picture that had been sent to her. It was Gohan, cheerful face beaming even through what remained of his encounter with bullies. He stood, fingers spread into the 'v' for victory—he looked so much like his father there—and behind him, was Junior's massive frame, taking up the rest of the photo.

There was a message attached, which she checked after a fervid glance at the door.

'I made Mr. Junior let me borrow his phone! I'm working hard, mom! I love you!'

Chi Chi was certain that she would cry from this, but she quickly fanned at her eyes, smile broadening as she pushed her thumb down on the image. There was no hesitation as she quickly set this as her new background. Once it was in place, she wondered, briefly, if she should feel guilty. Her old one had been Goku holding Gohan as a baby…

But really, Gohan was much older now! She needed a more current image!

Hey, Cheech—I dunno about holding him… Aren't babies all floppy?

Her phone was soon back in her pants' pocket, as Bulma reentered, wondering where the next round of dishes was. Muttering quick apologies, Chi Chi moved back to her post, thoughts still aglow at her wonderful baby.

Gohan sat at the table, kicking his feet, textbooks sprawled out around him. Some of it was actually for class—the rest of it was stuff that he and his mother had laying around. A refresher course, of sorts, since he was unable to go to the library whilst their car was still out of commission.

He was scribbling away, watching as Bulma puttered around the place. She would occasionally stop and talk to him, but unless he was working on Science, she didn't seem to care. If he pressed her on it, she would stop and help him, but her face truly lit up whenever he moved onto anything in the realm of STEM-G.

"Is mom still cleaning?" Gohan finally asked, setting his pencil down. The woman glanced at him, and nodded.

"Yes—she won't let me help her anymore! I dropped one wrack of silverware down the garbage disposal, on accident, and suddenly I can't be trusted to do dishes anymore!" Bulma huffed in frustration, throwing down her rag.

Gohan giggled, recalling well enough the Incident. It had been over a week since Bulma had started here, and it had happened—he remembered coming home to frantic screaming, while Bulma and Chi Chi both had conniptions. Personally, Gohan had found it a bit funny—but he made sure to only tell Mr. Junior that.

For his part, the Namekian had found it hilarious too—Gohan assumed, anyways, since Junior had actually snorted, smile spreading across his face. That drew his memory to the lessons he'd been having with his alien companion, and the frustration that it brought.

Gohan found it very hard reconcile himself with the fact that he was actually expected to do something to these kids that were giving him problems. Defensive moves were easier to handle, sure, but that wasn't going to get him entirely out of the situation… If all he could do was dodge or deflect, then he was still going to be stuck.

It was a whole week after the incident, and Chi Chi couldn't afford to keep him out of school any longer. She'd taken him to a doctor—despite Mr. Junior insisting it wasn't necessary—and gotten a note for his injuries. That had given him this small grace period, but tomorrow…

He bit his lip. He was scared, there was no doubt about that. From the kitchen he heard Chi Chi rattling around, and hoped he could keep up his calm façade in front of her. Inside, he was an utter wreck.

"Where do they get you?" Junior had asked, watching Gohan carefully.

Gohan sighed, fiddling with a scab on his knuckles. "They take my lunch money at the beginning of the school day, but when I told them no… They waited until I was getting off the bus. They told me to walk with them, or they'd break into mom's restaurant…"

Junior had said nothing else, and merely returned to the self-defense lesson.

"Cheer up, kiddo!" Bulma's chipper voice was beside him again. Her smile was large and beaming. "You've been getting lessons from your weird neighbor, right? I mean—I'm sure that he's nothing special, but your mom seems to approve of him." She shrugged.

Gohan hummed something noncommittal, pencil swirling a little pattern in the margins of his paper. He sighed.

"Hey… If mom asks, I think I'm going to go to bed early, okay?" Gohan began closing his books, gathering his papers and pushing them into a binder. The heiress gave him a rather sympathetic look, and nodded, patting his head as he passed.

"I'll tell her, and you make sure to get a good night's rest."

Gohan had the strangest feeling that he wouldn't.

His stomach was a mess as he sat in his last class, sweat pouring down his shoulder blades. The teacher's voice was a heavy drone in his ears, and he couldn't even bother to listen as his fingers twitched nervously against the desk. Earlier, they'd found him, promising to ruin his face even more the moment he was alone…

Gohan found he couldn't quite swallow, his tongue sitting like a hunk of meat in his mouth. No matter what he did, he couldn't calm himself, couldn't collect himself. All day he'd been hearing kids muttering, pointing at his face, and steering completely clear of him. He didn't know what to do… he was worried that all the training he had done would be for nothing.

He'd disappoint Mr. Junior, for sure!

—and maybe he'll leave me, too.

No—he wasn't going to cry in the middle of class. He had to do this, had to be strong! His mother was probably sitting at home, worrying herself sick. Gohan had to be strong, had to be a big boy—!

The bell rang, and he practically leapt from his skin. He felt goosebumps break all across his flesh. Never before had he left a classroom so slowly, pushing books into his backpack, and slinging it over his shoulder in the slowest manner. He saw the teacher giving him odd looks, though, and decided to hurry it up.

He gripped the straps to his backpack, and resigned himself to his fate.

On the bus, he could hear their whispers behind him, felt a few wadded up pieces of paper smack into the back of his head. But that was nothing compared to what was coming… They were going to make sure that he didn't go back home without something to remember them by. He'd thoroughly pissed them off, there was no doubting that.

The bus rolled to a stop, and Gohan stood from his seat, legs still beneath him. He felt a strange calm, as if he'd ascended above fear, as if there was nothing left to feel. His brain had turned to static, as he heard several forms behind him, rising up to get off at the stop with him. There was nothing to do, as he passed the large mirror, reflection pasty as he tried to not look at the reflections of his adversaries.

His foot hit asphalt, his heart stopped, and a large hand rested on his shoulder.

Gohan stared, dumbly, up into the shadowed face of Junior. His hulking figure was there, looming up to its impressive height, black eyes boring down into Gohan's skull. The other children tumbled to a halt, and behind him he heard the hiss of the bus doors closing.

Tires churned, and soon it was gone, leaving a group of children staring up at a rather significant creature.

A girl from the group gasped, staring into Junior's face—Gohan missed what she said, but it sounded like it began with a 'p'? He refused to turn around, though, and instead stared avidly at Junior's sweat pants, unable to face his bullies. Even though Junior was watching him embarrass himself, he couldn't…

"Can I help you?" Junior snarled at the group, and Gohan felt pressure from the green hand holding him. He was maneuvered to Junior's side, where he quickly snatched at fabric, staring resolutely at the ground.

He didn't want the bullies to see him crying.

"We're… We're here to play with Gohan," a boy muttered, though he retracted when Junior snarled harshly at them. There was a scuttle of tennis shoes, as they seemed to regret their current position.

"Cut the bullshit you sniveling brats." Junior snapped, taking a step forward. More shoe sounds, as Gohan desperately held onto Junior's pants, unwilling to distance himself. The Namekian ignored this. "You," a green digit pointed at the girl from before, causing her to jolt in surprise, "do I even need to warn you what the hell is coming your way?"

"N-no," her voice was quavering in fear, and Gohan was shocked. He'd never heard these kids scared before, only ever hearing them confident, and vile. Part of him almost felt sorry for them—he knew first-hand how scary Junior could be, and he'd never spoken to Gohan the way he was now.

"Touch this kid again, and I will personally smear your faces across pavement," Junior's voice was low, and Gohan heard his fangs click. He felt a bit of panic rush through him—really, he shouldn't go that far! These were still kids and…

They scrambled, running desperately. Gohan watched their retreating backs, before he slowly drew his gaze up to Junior. The tears that he'd been hiding were still pooling up around his lashes, and he heard Junior audibly groan.

"Come on. Let's go to my shop. You need to settle down before your mom sees you." He allowed himself to be led into Porunga's Post, snot dribbling down his chin, salty tears coating his still bruised cheeks.

Once inside the flower shop, he clambered up onto his usual stool, and Junior stood next to him, hip leaning against the table as Gohan sat there, attempting to collect himself. However, all that trying to calm down did was make him more hysterical. He'd been so unprepared to stand up for himself, yet so certain that he'd have to! He couldn't reconcile what he'd been expecting to happen with what had actually taken place.

His sobs were loud and heaving, his back hunching painfully as he crammed his fists into his eyes. He'd been so scared… So scared that those kids would vandalize all of his mother's hard work, that they'd hurt him more than what they'd done the other day…

Junior coughed, rubbing at his nose. His glare was steady on Gohan's pitiful form, and Gohan bit his trembling lip, lapsing into hiccoughs as he recognized that look. He gave one more rueful swipe at his eyes, not caring how red and puffy they probably were. They already felt hot to the touch.

"Relax, kid. Nothing happened." Junior's arms were folded, gaze steady now that Gohan was collecting himself.

"I-I know… But… I-I was so scared a-and… Even though y-you spe-spent so much time he-helping me practice I wa-was still use-useless," Gohan felt another wave of sobs coming on, to which Junior returned to his prickly attitude.

"It's fine," he snapped, "I figured you'd choke. Naïve kid like you surrounded by a whole group—they targeted you for a reason. Because they knew you'd be easy…" Junior trailed off, shrugging. "It's what little shits like that do."

Gohan sucked in a shuddering breath. "But… I wanted to-to make you and mom proud and I…"

Fighting's like second nature, Gohan! See how good your ol' dad is? You'll be a pro—I know it!

Junior sighed, a long, drawn out thing. "Kid… your mother's happier that you didn't have to fight. She was never for the whole thing in the first place. To be honest, I had no intention of getting involved. But I went over there to give her a new batch of flyers…" he sneered "… damn woman was hunkered up in a booth, crying her eyes out. She'd sent her new worker on break or something, and was flipping the hell out over you." He shrugged, then, cheeks staining purple. "Figured after I saw that, nobody really wanted to see you fight anyways."

Gohan blinked, gnawing on his lip. "Mr. Junior…?"

"What, kid?" Junior snapped, looking incredibly uncomfortable. Gohan stood up on his stool, wobbling uncertainly as the Namekian watched him nervously. "The hell are you—?" He was cut short as Gohan leapt forward, tiny arms wrapping tightly around his green neck. Junior spluttered, eyes wide, but Gohan simply pushed his cheek against the surly shop keep's.

"Thank you, Mr. Junior…"

"Don't make a big deal out of it!" Junior snapped, cheeks a rather bruised color, and Gohan laughed.

Chi Chi closed early, despite Bulma's attempts to do otherwise. She needed to know how Gohan was doing! Earlier, Junior had sent her a text message, telling her that Gohan was fine and in his possession, but she didn't trust Namekian to handle the situation with the delicacy of a mother. She needed to be present, damn it!

She'd rushed next door as quickly as she could, slinging open the door to Porunga's Post. The chime was incredibly loud, clamoring in her ears as she ran straight into Gohan, his little head thumping against her stomach.

Alarmed, Chi Chi pulled back, eyes comically wide, like her son's. They stared at one another, and she glanced up, noticing that both he and Junior had jackets on, and were heading towards the door. Keys dangled from the shop keep's hands, and she stared, dumb.

"What are you two doing…?" Chi Chi asked, though her hands were immediately pressing Gohan's cheeks, fingers scrambling across him, checking for any new injuries. Through his smushed mouth, he managed to answer her.

"Mister Junior said we were going somewhere!" He seemed enthusiastic enough, while behind him Junior simply grumbled, one of his hands stuffing into his frumpy black jacket. Chi Chi lifted her gaze to the alien.

"Where… Where are you going?" she demanded, realizing rather belatedly that she sounded a bit accusatory. She attempted to relax, but she couldn't understand where Junior was taking him. She wanted to know what had taken place—what had happened! It didn't look like Gohan had been in a fight…

"I figured the kid would want to go out somewhere," Junior muttered, matching gazes with Chi Chi, though he looked a bit embarrassed. "Give him some time before he has to talk about it, since I'm sure he doesn't want to be bombarded with questions immediately."

His voice carried a certain meaning behind it, and Chi Chi felt slightly abashed. She looked down at Gohan, who was giving her a tiny smile, obviously pleading. Her shoulders heaved, and she assented, giving him a tiny nod. Of course he'd want to rest and have some fun before she attacked him.

"Mr. Junior said I get to pick—so I chose the arcade downtown!" Gohan waved his hands excitedly. "They have milkshakes, mom! And these cool things, where you put money in and it gives you a card that you swipe instead of quarters! Mr. Junior said I can have thirty dollars put on my card!"

Chi Chi gaped, then hurriedly glanced to Junior, who averted his gaze, scratching at the back of his head.

Gohan paused, brow puckering as he glanced from his mom to Junior. He then hummed, and bit his lip, eyebrows slanting at he glanced to the Namekian.

"Mr. Junior… could my mom come with us?" His voice was high pitched and hopeful, causing both Chi Chi and the shop keep to stiffen. She actually felt a bit nervous, and hurriedly rushed to stop Gohan.

"Now, honey, you can't just expect other people to—,"

"Fine." Junior shrugged. He was attempting to look cool and nonchalant, but to Chi Chi, he just looked stiff and awkward. His black eyes met hers, and he cocked a brow. "Well, Milk, it's up to you."

Chi Chi was shocked, and tried very hard not to look at Gohan's happy, pleading face.

"I—well, I'd have to change, baby, I don't want to hold you guys up…" Chi Chi shifted, combing Gohan's hair back as she motioned with her free hand to her outfit. She'd just rushed over here from work. She looked a mess, with her frumpy clothes and apron covered in various food stuffs. Her hair was shoved into a haphazard bun that was falling all around her sweaty face, and she felt disgusting.

Junior snorted. "Woman, I doubt changing your outfit would make you look any different—you'll look hideous no matter what."

She felt her temper mount, and she narrowed her eyes dangerously at Junior. Gohan interrupted her though, and huffed, tiny fists positioned on his hips.

"Please be nice!" Gohan pouted, lip jutting out. "I want to enjoy tonight, after today…"

That seemed to effectively alter Junior's position on the matter, as he heaved a sigh. "Fine. Gohan and me'll wait in the car while you get ready." Gohan cheered, hugging his mother before rushing outside. Chi Chi felt dumbfounded, and a little unsure of how to process what exactly was happening.

Junior's shoulder pushed into her as he headed towards the door, before he made a rather rude gesture for her to exit. Chi Chi returned it, and exited as well, turning to head for her own place.

"Try not to keep us waiting too long, Milk," Junior snipped, checking to make sure that Gohan was standing by the car, paying the two no mind. "If we're waiting for you to get decent, then we'll be here all night."

Chi Chi huffed. "That's rich—coming from you! You basically wear pajamas everywhere."

"These are Namekian style pants," he argued, returning her glare.

"Nice try, tough guy, but Gohan's been googling Nameks ever since he found out what you are, with my help. I know for a fact that they don't traditionally wear sweat pants."

Junior looked mildly affronted, to which Chi Chi smirked.

"22 to 3 now, I believe?" Chi Chi called over her shoulder, digging her keys out.

"You're making up some of those points!" Junior snarled, and slammed himself into the car before she could offer a rebuttal.

Chapter 6

"Pictures"

Gohan was flying around, little card swiping at every machine he deemed interesting. Chi Chi was watching him from the booth, where she slurped at her milkshake, fingers pinching the straw as she watched. It'd been a while since Gohan had been to the arcade, and she was sure that he was loving the hell out of this.

The family had stopped going once… Well, once the family wasn't really together anymore.

Across from her, a rather hulking figure was glaring at her, a cup of water in his hands that he was occasionally sipping from. Junior looked completely out of place, frame so wide that the booth didn't accommodate him, and with legs so long that his knees were jammed against Chi Chi's.

She pretended not to notice, out of courtesy.

"Thanks for the milkshake," she smirked, glancing at him. He sneered.

"Isn't that cannibalism, Milk?"

She rolled her eyes. "Well, you'd be aiding and abetting in a crime."

"Only because your damned kid begged me to buy you one too," he snapped.

"Whatever…" Chi Chi trailed off. "Though… I would like to thank-you. For doing this for him, I mean. This arcade thing." She sighed, brushing back a strand of hair behind her ear. It was still up in a ponytail, since she hadn't stopped to take a shower. "You dropped a lot of money here tonight."

"Some of which was unexpected," he gave her a pointed look. "And anyways, it doesn't matter to me. Hell, the brat can blow a hundred bucks here for all I care. So long as he doesn't do that crying shit anymore…"

Chi Chi found that the conversation was now turned to what she'd wanted to discuss in the first place… She wanted to know what had happened. She could acquiesce to Junior's earlier hints that Gohan was to be left alone for a bit (though now she had suspicions that the alien merely wanted her to wait until he wasn't present to avoid crying), but that didn't mean that she couldn't ask him about it.

"Did Gohan tell you about the encounter with the bullies?" she sprung the question—might as well, really. No point in beating around the bush. "I noticed that he doesn't have a scratch on him, so did it not come to blows? Has he told you?"

Junior held up one large palm, ending her questions. "It didn't come to a fight," he responded, then took a slow sip of his water.

"That's great!" Chi Chi smiled, sighing in relief. "I was so worried that those kids would do something to him while he was at school! There's no telling when they were planning on springing him…" her voice trailed off, features falling into a pensive frown. "Though, if they didn't do anything today…" she lifted her worry gaze to Junior, "do you think they're going to attack him another day?"

"They're going to leave him alone," Junior replied, staring ardently at his water. "I made sure of it, and I'll continue to do so."

Chi Chi stared blankly at him.

"I don't understand…?"

"A common occurrence, I'm sure," Junior drawled, though she noticed that he was very much so not looking at her.

"Seriously, what makes you so certain—weren't you the one that said we needed to careful, because of how awful and unpredictable these bullies could be?" Chi Chi pinched her straw forcefully, glancing to check and make sure Gohan was still within sight.

"Look I just—I took care of it, all right?" he was huffing, claws tapping angrily at the table, plastic chipping underneath his ministrations. "After I talked with you earlier, I realized that maybe my original plan for him to fight wasn't so good…" his voice trailed off. He resumed, forcing a rougher tone. "So I went out to the bus stop and… Spoke rather convincingly to the brats. Bunch of little shit heads," he sneered.

Chi Chi widened her eyes, staring at the shop keep. This morning…

"I brought more coupons," Junior shoved open the door, ignoring the CLOSED FOR LUNCH sign that was dangling in the door. He was stopped short, as Chi Chi hunkered over the table, bawling her eyes out, heaving as loudly as she could.

She felt so useless—so worthless—her baby was in trouble and what could she do? The responsible parent thing to do would simply land Gohan in hotter water in the future, yet Junior's plan was tearing her heart into pieces. Gohan was such a peaceful, smart boy—how could she ever imagine him fighting like a savage?!

—like his father?

No!

Chi Chi desperately tried to collect herself, swiping at her eyes, and attempting to summon up her usual glare. "Just, set them on the table, I guess. I'll make sure that Bulma is handing them out…" her voice broke, and she averted her face.

Junior groaned, threw down the papers, and crossed his arms.

"Listen, you moronic human, it's going to be all right. Have some damn faith." Then he'd stormed out of the store before Chi Chi could even summon her anger to the surface. The nerve of him, really!

"You…" Chi Chi's mind stuttered, and she stared at the awkward Namekian. There was a small beat of silence between the two, before she reached forward, small hand resting against his. The green skin was ugly and clashing, and she noticed that he was rather cold, but she resisted a shudder. "Thank-you…"

Junior squawked, and quickly jerked his hand away from her, face a burning violet. Both his ears and antennae fluttered, which made Chi Chi laugh. He was like a teenage boy! One little touch or show of emotion, and he was shaking in his shoes!

"Shut up," he snarled at her, just as Gohan approached. "Are you almost done?" Junior snapped, before he was promptly quieted by Gohan shoving a rather large stuffed dragon into his lap. The Namekian paused, staring down at the thing with a rather offended look on his features, glancing to Gohan.

"As a thank-you!" Gohan smiled, all of his teeth showing as he beamed up at the Namekian. "I named him Xuanzang!"

Chi Chi started at that, eyes carefully observing her son. She saw Junior's nose wrinkle as he picked up the plush, the tangling whiskers from the dragon trailing against his skin, its bright green and yellow coloring clashing against the alien's own skin.

"Weird name," Junior huffed, tossing the toy off to the side. Gohan didn't seem very surprised by this, as he clambered into the booth beside Chi Chi. He gladly finished the last of his mother's milkshake, smiling at her.

"It's the main character from Journey to the West," Chi Chi said slowly. "It's a rather important story to our family."

Son! Is that the only book you'll read! It's not even all that good.

Aw, Cheech, don't be like that!

She remembered the batter old copy that Goku had had since he was little. It was so grungy that the cover almost couldn't be seen, yet he'd insisted that he kept it. Every time he left, he took the stupid book with him. He always promised Gohan that he'd read it to him.

As far as she knew, he never had.

"I didn't know you'd read it, though," Chi Chi watched her son carefully, waiting for any emotion to play onto his face. She could see that Junior was losing interest fast in the conversation as he knocked back the rest of his water.

Gohan shrugged under his mother's gaze. "I read it online." His little shoulders hunched. "Thought maybe I would understand something."

Chi Chi remained silent.

"I didn't."

Junior stood from the table, attracting Gohan's attention. The little boy stood as well, making sure to shoot over and grab the dragon plush before the group left. Behind the boys, Chi Chi began to stand as well, smoothing out the crease in her pants.

"Wait! There's something I wanted to do before we leave!" Gohan clutched at the back of Junior's pants, ignoring the warning growl he received. "A photo booth!"

"No."

"Aw—please?"

"No."

"But—what about memories?"

"I'm sure your mind will be sufficient. Now. I've been courteous enough to deal with you and your damned mother for long enough." Junior folded his arms, obviously standing firm against any arguments.

"What's wrong," Chi Chi prompted, a glint in her eyes, "scared your ugly mug is going to break the camera?"

"No, I simply protest to the idea of being crammed into a small room where it'll smell like something curdled—you know what old age does to you." Junior sneered, and she could feel a flush of anger, creeping up her neck into her cheeks.

"At least I don't smell like rotten compost."

"Well at least I—,"

"It's fine, Mr. Junior," Gohan interjected, stopping the two adults from progressing any further. He hung his head, digging his toe into the carpet, as he tightened his hold on Xuanzang. "Don't worry about it." He gave a small sniffle, and purposefully kept his face turned down.

Junior groaned, loud and angrily, before throwing his arms in the air. "Fine, gods be damned! I'll take a fucking picture with you!"

"Watch your mouth!" Chi Chi gasped, but Gohan was laughing. He snatched up her hand, while Junior trailed behind, mouth hanging slightly open. Chi Chi heard him whisper something about "damn brat tricked me!"

"And!" Chi Chi glanced over her shoulder. "It's 24 to 3. Really, it's like you're not even trying."

"I'm not!"

She shrugged, smiling to herself as Gohan led them to the booth. He drew back the curtains, hummed thoughtfully, before motioning for Junior to enter ahead of them. The large Namekian obliged, though he was certainly cursing enough to send other families running away, with mothers clapping hands to their children's ears—Chi Chi included.

Junior was soon situated, knees crammed up, taking up the entirety of the seat. Gohan beamed, and clambered in as well, sprawling into Junior's lap. His head pressed against the Namekian's chest, stealing a hug from whining man.

"I decided to be nice to you and this is the payment I get," Junior snarled, face a flushed purple as he glared down at Gohan. "Ungrateful brat—that's what you are! I should have left you to those damn bullies. Maybe then you wouldn't be so clingy."

Gohan merely smiled, before poking his head out of the curtain again, motioning rapidly to Chi Chi. She stared, bemused, at her son and his motions. Surely he couldn't be asking her to get in too? Between Junior, Gohan, and the plush dragon, there was simply no room in there—she wasn't even sure how the three that were in there currently could manage.

"Please?"

Chi Chi groaned, but started to get in, just to receive a rather firm hand against her shoulder.

"Oh hell no. I have my limits, brat! I told you, I don't want to smell spoilt milk."

Chi Chi paused to sniff delicately, then pinched her nose. "Oh dear, and what is that rancid stench? Almost like someone left their greens out."

"You bi—,"

"Say that and I will cram this entire booth up a part of your anatomy I'm not even sure you have!"

Gohan sighed, pushed in his card, and apparently decided he wold take what he could get. The two adults behind him were stopping anytime soon. Insults were flying, but he attempted to enjoy himself. Situated in Junior's lap, he was able to pretend that there was nothing else happening. He and Xuanzang were posing merrily, while behind him the camera caught Chi Chi's red face shoved in the side, while Junior's purple one argued back.

And he was supposed to be the kid here.

But Junior had done a lot for him today—more than he could ever have imagined. The Namekian had looked so cool, standing in front of the bullies. Perhaps his memory was embellishing it a bit, but Gohan had been certain that no one could ever defeat Mr. Junior.

Well... No one except maybe Chi Chi.

It was time for the last picture, and Gohan dropped his dragon plush to the ground, and reached his arms up. He grabbed his mother by the shoulders, and heaved her inwards. The camera clicked, just as he gave his biggest smile yet. Chi Chi screamed, arms wind milling, as she ended up in Junior's lap, while the Namekian jumped, slamming his head into the ceiling of the photo booth, hands flying up as if desperately attempting not to touch the tiny woman now in his proximity.

Gohan laughed so hard his shoulders heaved, and his stomach churned from all the milkshake in it.

Bulma leaned her hip against the counter, listening to Chi Chi as she talked. All that Bulma knew was that her boss was currently on a rant from hell, thirst for blood as she streamed out a surprising amount of curse words about her neighbor.

Now, she'd never met the guy, but Chi Chi and Gohan sure talked about him enough. According to Chi Chi, this guy was surly, rude, an ass, and completely unfit for society. According to Gohan, the guy was a bit grumpy, but sweet, and always ready to help him.

She wasn't entirely sure who was telling the truth, though she supposed it was a bit of both, because every once in a while, Chi Chi would stop and sigh, fingers handling a dish, and she'd say,

"He did handle Gohan's bullying problem, though…" Then she'd lapse into a weird silence, followed by a "but!" before she'd launch into a new stream of complaints. Bulma chuckled to herself, and shook her head.

Maybe her reasons for joining on at this job hadn't been entirely pure—but she rather liked Chi Chi, now that the two had close contact. She'd known nothing about her before starting here, other than her relationship to Son Goku. After all, there wasn't much information on her or Gohan in all the articles she'd dug through. Apparently Chi Chi wasn't one for interviews—pity, that.

But Bulma was intrigued by their neighbor. Unfortunately, the only information Chi Chi ever gave on the guy was that he was a Namekian named 'Junior'. Not only was that not a Namekian name at all—it wasn't even a searchable name for anybody. She never got to see the guy, though. Whenever he dropped Gohan off, it was always when Bulma was busy, or after she'd gone home for the night.

Whatever, she guessed it didn't matter that much. Her whole point in getting this job was still Son Goku, and she a no-name Namekian didn't really matter anyways. She sighed, rolled her shoulders, and attempted to distract Chi Chi from more complaints about her neighbor.

"Hey, c'mon, you should teach me how to cook tonight!"

Junior always waited for Gohan at the bus stop now. He would stand, big and surly, in the middle of the sidewalk, arms folded. When he got off the bus, he knew he was safe, taking those few quick steps to reach the shop keeper. Ever since Junior's threat, the bullies had left him be, and he was eternally grateful.

"Hi!" Gohan greeted, tugging at his backpack straps. Junior merely grunted, giving Gohan a slight nod, before the two made their way to Porunga's Post. Inside, Gohan walked to the checkout counter, patting Xuanzang, who now took up residence next to the register—Junior had tried to fight him on that, but Gohan had insisted.

And won.

Gohan set about doing his homework, rushing so he could help customers in liu of Mr. Junior having any contact with them whatsoever. But—his grades came first, so he pretended not to notice the occasional people that left in tears every half hour.

Sighing, Gohan put his pencil down, lifting his gaze to Junior.

"What did that customer do?" Gohan asked. That woman had left in complete hysterics, almost tripping on her rush for the door.

Junior grumbled and flushed, shifting in his seat.

"What was that?" Gohan cocked his head to the side, unable to hear.

"Nothing, you damned brat!" Junior snapped, face flushing purple. Gohan watched as he tried to inconspicuously shift Xuanzang, wiping at the plush dragon.

Squinting, Gohan could feel a smile worming its way across his face, as he saw that Junior was attempting to get some sort of jelly off of the dragon, and he swore he heard him mutter something about 'stupid fucking woman eating her biscuit in here'.

Chi Chi Texted Junior—she had a sudden urge to know how Gohan was doing. Perhaps she was being overly cautious after this whole bully fiasco, but she just couldn't calm down. She assuaged herself with the fact that it was surely a normal thing for a mother to be overly concerned with her son's condition after such a thing.

It was a simple message, 'how is Gohan?' so of course—of course—he couldn't just answer her properly.

'How is not being nosy?'

Why—why did she have to become involved with such a dick? Especially considered a dick that was sometimes maybe kind of okay? But only where Gohan was involved, which is the only time it mattered, she supposed.

'Could you just answer my question'

She focused her attention momentarily on Bulma, instructing her around the kitchen. While they had a small moment to themselves, Chi Chi had been unable to really come up with an excuse for why the woman couldn't learn to run the kitchen. It was probably better this way, really. If Chi Chi ever needed to do something, it would certainly be better to just leave Bulma in charge for a moment.

'Gohan is currently dead. He annoyed me so I tossed him into a furnace.'

Chi Chi glared at her phone screen.

'Why must you be an ass?'

"Oh, Bulma! Check your rice! You don't want it to stick to the bottom of the pot," Chi Chi instructed, earning her a thoughtful hum. Bulma clacked around the tile, the banging of pot lids ensuring her that the woman was following her commands.

'I told him to stop talking. He didn't listen. Now he burns.'

'I'm going to burn the green off your face if you don't answer my question.'

"Hey, Chi Chi?" Bulma's voice drew her from her phone, and she glanced to the blue haired heiress. "Does your husband like, ever come home?" Chi Chi started, staring at the woman maneuvering around the pots. "It's just—oh, I noticed you had a wedding ring on, and yet… it's just you and Gohan here, right?"

"Oh that…" Chi Chi's laugh was nervous and faked. She didn't know what had brought this on. "Yes, he's usually busy with work. He's not really around all that much… You know, travels a lot, the like."

Bulma lapsed into silence, for which Chi Chi was grateful.

'He's fine, you damned worrying woman. Don't you have anything better to do?'

Chi Chi huffed. Bulma turned to give her a curious glance over her shoulder. She sighed, and waved her hand, motioning at her phone.

"Sorry, I'm texting Junior, and he's being his usual ass-faced self." A grimace stretched her features, and she pinched the bridge of her nose. The heiress hummed something, but turned back to the pot she was focusing on. She appeared to be almost done.

'Also, what kind of loving mother completely ignores the part where I burned him to a crisp? You should be ashamed.'

She rolled her eyes as she read that. Casting a glance to make sure Bulma was preoccupied, she snapped a picture of what was unmistakably her trademarked Angry Face, with a rather pronounced middle finger, and pressed send.

'I'm showing Gohan this picture. Negligent parenting, is what this is.'

In spite of herself, she smiled, just a teensy bit.

All right - new update. Please let me know what you think. We're getting close to some reveals for characters.