This chapter is dedicated to a wonderful person, "the-aquarian". She was a big part of the Chiccolo community, and someone that was always writing, and always reviewing. She even wrote a wonderful side-piece for IDAFT, and several things for Chiccolo Week over on Tumblr. She has since passed on, and she will be missed.

Chapter

"When"

Junior was to stay in the hospital for at least another day, before a Namek doctor could come and thoroughly check him out. While his anatomy didn't differ too drastically from humans, the doctor that was seeing him had informed him that they always wanted to have someone of the same species check that person out—for safety reasons.

Goku and Gohan were gone, under the guise of grabbing some ice cream. The boy hadn't been entirely eager to leave Junior's side, but Chi Chi had quietly informed him that the whole point of the excursion was for Goku to break the upcoming news to Gohan.

Junior had then urged Gohan to go along with his father, and Chi Chi had given Gohan a bit of extra money to grab Junior a smoothie. After they'd departed, Chi Chi seated herself at a chair by Junior's bedside. He was worried that conversation would be strained, but luckily enough Chi Chi merely informed him of what had happened at the fight—all while she attempted to contact Bulma, who was suspiciously MIA.

"So my father bet all of his money on me," Junior sighed, and shifted on the bed. Chi Chi's brow puckered up.

"Does that mean you've lost all your money, as well?"

"No," Junior shook his head. "My father and I have had separate accounts for a long time. He gave me a huge chunk of money whenever we separated, and then I had my own money from the fights." He shrugged. "It's no big deal."

"There you go with that," Chi Chi rolled her eyes. "But…" she propped her elbow up on the bed, while her chin nestled into the cup of her hand. She looked exhausted, rings under her eyes as she regarded Junior. He felt his spine attempt to get a bit straighter underneath her gaze. "I guess while the boys are distracted, we should talk…"

"You said you wanted time-"

Chi Chi crossed her arms. "And I still do but… I'm curious, I guess." It didn't fit her, but she looked small and insecure for a moment. "Why… do you want to be with me? I mean, I know you love Gohan." She smiled, and the creases around her mouth showed. Her dark brown eyes seemed to glow. "But…"

"Why you?" Junior grimaced. "Trust me, I thought the same thing when you said you liked me. After all, I'm big, green, and repulsive." He'd meant it to sound more like a joke, but his voice sounded so retched even to his own ears. They flapped against his skull, and he avoided Chi Chi's gaze.

"I mean… at first, I definitely thought that."

"Wow. Pep talk of the century."

"Oh, shut up." Chi Chi waved a hand through the air. "You know what I mean. You didn't like me at first, either."

He inclined his head. "True."

"Speaking of…" Chi Chi's had a wolfish grin on her face as she leaned forward. "When did you realize you liked me?"

Junior answered immediately. "When you punched Tambourine."

Chi Chi blinked, and stared. "It-what?!"

He felt a bit more embarrassed now at the eagerness he'd shown, but he nodded. "Up until then…" he gave a half-hearted shrug, "I didn't hate you. You and Gohan had already started growing on me. You two have a nasty habit of worming your way in." His sneer said disgust, but he could tell by the smile on Chi Chi's face that she didn't care. "Either way… when I saw you punch Tambourine..." Junior had to fight back the grin that threatened to take over his face.

Chi Chi arched a brow. "That… explains the telephone pole."

Junior glared at the wall. "Whatever. What about you?" He eyed her curiously, to which Chi Chi responded with a shrug, and a very eloquent-

"I dunno."

Junior stared at her. "What?" He couldn't force any emotion into his voice.

"You asked. There's my answer. I honestly don't remember. It was just… between you kind of growing on me, and all the time you spent with Gohan… Suddenly, you were there." Chi Chi laced her fingers together, staring avidly at her cuticles. "There was no epiphany-at least not that I remember. Looking back now there's just... You."

Junior felt his entire body warm. It had been a long time since someone had genuinely cared about him. Someone that wasn't family, and didn't have any obligations to him whatsoever. He felt a queasy kind of smile overtake his face.

"Wow, Milk. I give you an exact date, and all I get is some vague bullshit." He was still grinning, though, as he reclined back on his pillow. He had already lowered his eyelids, but he knew good and well that she had just rolled her eyes at him.

They lapsed into silence, and Junior found himself nodding off. Beside him, he knew Chi Chi stayed, her hand never quite touching his. Occasionally he'd hear her shift against the cotton sheets, but she was always there. At one point he heard Gohan and Goku return. He couldn't quite become lucid enough to hear that conversation, but he did feel the familiar press of Gohan clambering onto the bed. He was certain he felt a tear soaked kiss against his cheek from the little boy, just as Goku left once more.

As Junior napped, he realized how great it was to have them both with him.

"Bulma?!" Chi Chi's shriek woke Junior from his dreamless sleep, and he instantly tightened his arm around Gohan. The boy had obviously been asleep as well, as he was staring groggily at his surroundings, still unaware and not entirely lucid.

Junior saw the cause of the commotion, though-Bulma Briefs was in the hospital room, a huge grin on her face. She stood in all her glory, with a sheet of paper swinging from her fingertips. Her hair was pushed back into a fashionable gel, and her outfit consisted of at least eighty percent leather. She flicked her sunglasses off dramatically, making sure to time it perfectly with Vegeta, who stood behind her.

"Good morning Chi Chi, Slug Man the Barbarian," her grin was large. "And of course I see my little Saiyaman tucked back there." She wiggled one pinky finger at the still sleepy Gohan. "I would like to introduce you all to Mister Vegeta Briefs."

Vegeta pointed at his three audience members. "Please. It's Prince Mister Vegeta Briefs to you peasants."

"Ah-ah," Bulma tutted, "King Mister Vegeta Briefs."

Vegeta grinned back at the blue-haired woman. The expression was that of nightmares, but was obviously meant to be triumphant. "Of course. And-my queen."

"Please only refer to me as her 'her majesty', 'queendom', and 'bitchin' royalty'. Whichever you think the bank will let you print on my paychecks." Bulma turned to Chi Chi, who was still stunned by their appearance.

"I don't understand-last time we talked…" Chi Chi's voice trailed off. Junior furrowed his brow, but didn't ask.

"Last time we talked, I didn't have this fancy-shmancy paper in my hand." Bulma jutted her hip out, waggling her certificate for all to see. "Mind you, keep it on the downlow for me, okay? Mom's really set on this white wedding shit." She turned her blue gaze to Vegeta, who was looking entirely unapologetic.

"Bunny deserves this, woman. She does more than you ever will." Vegeta crossed his arms.

"And there we go," Chi Chi sighed. "I couldn't take much more of you two getting along."

"Yes, we're frightening together." Bulma inclined her head, a false woe crossing her features. "It's why we both agreed to never agree. Right, Veggie-dear?"

"That name is not for you," Vegeta snarled. "And you're awful uppity for someone whose hair looks like dish detergent."

"Like you even know what soap is, you big ape."

Gohan had finally completely woken up, and had pushed himself up to where he was kneeling beside Junior's ribs. His hands rested delicately atop them to make sure he didn't hurt Junior, while he tilted his head ever so slightly at the newly crowned King.

"Hey…. Mr. Vegeta…?"

"King Vegeta, boy." The proud Saiyan had a rather imperious look on his face as he regarded Gohan.

"King Vegeta," Gohan corrected himself. "We met another Saiyan… Her name was Cress. She was really excited that you got away. She wanted you to know that the other Saiyan's supported you."

Vegeta sat in stony silence for a moment, his eyes almost seemed to mist over as he stared at Gohan. His jaw set, his eyes closed, and he was instantly back to himself. "Well of course they support me. I am their King." He did, however, noticeably quiet down. He made no move toward Bulma, but his tail flickered just barely against her hip.

Bulma smiled at her husband, before glancing to where Junior was resting. "Well, now that I've stolen all the attention and have been properly sated…." she tilted her head. "How are you healing up?"

"Fine," Junior grunted, as Gohan settled back into his reclined position. "I'm supposed to be released within the week. They've just got to get a Namekian doctor up here." He shrugged. "I'll have to take it easy, but I don't see why they wouldn't clear me."

Bulma nodded, her heels clicking as she approached. "I couldn't exactly get you chocolates, and I didn't think flowers would go over well-"

"I would have thrown them back in your face," Junior told her with certainty.

"-So, I decided this super special awesome brand of Namekian geared sweets would do the trick for ya." She produced a plain package out of her pocket, with the words BIODEGRADABLE printed onto every inch available. She tossed it into Junior's lap, who gratefully accepted it.

"At least you didn't get me chocolate like Son did." Junior began unwrapping the sweets, and had to bite back a laugh as he saw Gohan curiously leaning closer.

"Son? As in Goku?" Bulma looked to Chi Chi, who gave her a quick nod.

"You're… not the only one with a big surprise." Chi Chi pushed a few pieces of hair back behind her ears. "Goku and I decided…" She glanced nervously to where Gohan sat. Both he and Junior were staring at her with unidentifiable expressions on their faces. "To divorce."

"Dad bought me ice cream to break it to me," Gohan supplied.

Junior lightly smacked the boy's fingers away from his sweets. "So you've been cashing in on dessert while I'm lying here in pain?"

Gohan feigned an innocent look. "No."

"You have had an awful lot of sugar, mister," Chi Chi drew her best Mom Look onto her face, and watched as Gohan scowled and wilted. It was clear he was still eyeballing the treats Junior was eating.

Bulma stood, brows arched, as she glanced between Junior and Chi Chi. "So….?" she drawled out.

"No," Chi Chi replied, hands clasped firmly in her lap. "At least…" her smile was soft as she looked to Junior, "not yet."

Chapter

"Going Home"

For once, Junior didn't actually hate that he had company. For all of their nuances, he actually found that he was quite happy. He had eventually caved and slipped Gohan some of the treats while Chi Chi wasn't looking, Bulma had started blasting obnoxious music out of her phone, which meant a nurse showed up, and he got to watch both Mrs. and Mr. Briefs attempt to pull rank on a very distressed Debra. And once, just once, Chi Chi had actually slid her hand over top Junior's, pressed for a total of two seconds-and in that moment, Junior knew he'd let Son Goku beat him to a pulp twenty more times over if it meant he got to see that smile on Chi Chi's face when she held his hand.

That same day, the Namekian doctor was able to make an early appearance, and Junior was released, with strict orders and check-up dates set. He was to keep physical activity to a minimum, and prescribed a decent amount of herbal pain medications. It was as he was headed out of his room, with Chi Chi supporting most of his weight, that their entire entourage came to a grinding halt.

In the hallway stood Freeza.

The lizard turned, his black eyes furious, and his painted lips puckered so tightly they almost disappeared. He saw them all, but it was clear that his immediate focus was on Vegeta. He barely glanced at any of the others, as his tail trailed dangerously behind him.

"Ah, Vegeta." Freeza's typical pompous voice sounded strained. It was clear he was attempting to force it, but was finding the facade rather hard to do. His teeth were a sharp white against his lipstick, and the pink lines around his face wrinkled up further at his forced attempts at joviality. "How nice to see you. I'm sure we'll be seeing you home soon." Freeza's gaze slid meaningfully to Bulma, who, to her credit, stepped out in front of Vegeta.

She didn't return the polite smile, and instead tapped her sunglasses thoughtfully against her cheek, before flicking them open, and sliding them up onto her face. Her tongue ran a quick circuit around her teeth as she slowly crossed her arms, clearly enjoying the way she aggravated the tyrant in front of her.

"Actually," she drew out the word, "we were about to head home."

"Good, then you won't mind moving out of the way so I can reach my little pet." Freeza's voice had dropped to a low hiss.

Bulma sucked through her teeth. "Mmm, nah."

"Beg pardon?!"

"I said nah - no, nada, not happenin'." She pronounced each syllable, rolling each of them off of her tongue. "Vegeta no longer belongs to you. He's a free man." Bulma lifted the certificate up high, waving it just above Freeza's height.

Every bit of pink seemed to drain from Freeza's skin.

"How… how dare you, you insolent…!"

Bulma turned, then, and it wasn't until her back was to Freeza that Junior saw how scared she really was. The glasses had been to act as a buffer. As they slid down her nose, he saw the draining effect being around Freeza had on her. Her bravado was still in check, though, through her profile. She moved towards Vegeta with a purpose, placed her hand on his shoulder, and kissed him lightly on the forehead.

"Vegeta can do whatever he wants now," Bulma spit out.

"Vegeta, don't you realize that this is just a new form of ownership!" Freeza was grasping at his own mask, fighting to remain in control. Chi Chi had both of her hands on Gohan's shoulders, and the two were sticking close to Junior. Freeza had yet to turn his attention to them. "You're still under someone else's rule. Dogs are never free."

Vegeta's face was bland as he regarded Freeza. "I suppose it's a good thing I'm not a dog, then." He said it slowly, and forcefully, his large eyebrows contracting overtop dark eyes. "And you're wrong. I can divorce the woman at any time. I can be my own free man." Here, he paused to look to Bulma. "But perhaps old habits die hard. I think I'm quite suited to this. I am a king now," he thumped his chest proudly, eyes glowing with the Saiyan's history, "and I have a queen. And I will spend my entire life finding a way to bring you and the rest of the pieces of shit you call family down."

Freeza recoiled with an audible hiss between his teeth. His tail slammed against the tiled floor as a nearby nurse let out a squawk. Freeza seemed to realize his temper was going to get him in trouble, as he attempted to reign himself in. A sneer appeared once more on his features as he turned to glower at Junior.

"Your miserable father is here," he spat out, with a finger jabbed towards a nearby room. "Perhaps you'd better say your good-byes." With his last nasty word Freeza blew past them. As soon as he rounded the corner, his tail disappearing, Bulma released a loud noise of relief.

Her knees appeared to be shaking as she rocked forward, pushing herself into Vegeta's ridiculous spikes of hair. The king let out at an agitated noise, and attempted to swat her away, but Bulma remained buried where she was.

"Geez… that little freak takes everything out of ya!" Bulma whined.

Chi Chi didn't respond, though, as she had pushed herself back into the support position for Junior. He was feeling a bit faint at the news about his father, and the hospital door loomed up ahead of him. Chi Chi muttered something about someone watching Gohan, before she started tugging him forward, her fingers tight on him as he was led forward.

The door was open, and inside Junior could hear the clamor of machines. The typical hospital smell filtered through his nostrils, coupled by what he could only define as decay. Another girl was in the room, her tear-streaked face supported by her hands as she rested against the blankets. And even though Junior knew it was him… he still couldn't recognize the man in the bed as his father.

He was thankful for Chi Chi's support, because he could feel his knees buckling beneath him.

He'd known about his father's condition, but hearing and seeing were two entirely different things. Junior's father had always been strong. He'd towered over him, even after Junior's last growth spurt. Piccolo was at least eight feet tall, with a boisterous laugh, and a voice that could be heard anywhere in their mansion. He remembered as a hatchling hanging from his father's shoulders, delivering punches with tiny fists against his father's large, bald head.

But now.

Now his father was an emaciated figure, one riddled with lines, wrinkles, and cuts. His hands lay curled at his sides, fingers turned in on one another, all four digits twitching pathetically. Gravity had grasped at each bit of Piccolo, dragging it all in on itself. His once proud figure was crested with a bulbous, misshapen skull that rested miserably against a pillow.

Junior stared, and felt hate well up like volcanic bubbles. He could taste acid at the back of his throat, and his ears pulsed with rage. How dare his father look as pathetic as that! How dare Piccolo lie there and do nothing! This was the man who Junior had aspired to be, and eventually, who he'd chosen to completely avoid. Neither of those plans ended in this type of revulsion-at seeing such a strong man cowed down by the passage of time.

"Junior." Chi Chi's voice was worried, and her brown eyes were tilted up towards him. With his weight against her, he couldn't really see her face, but he saw the ruffle of her bangs and knew. He made a noise-more guttural than he'd intended-and she helped move him further into the hospital room. They drew closer to Piccolo's resting form, and the girl finally seemed to notice them.

"Hi."

Junior stared at her. She bore a resemblance to Chi Chi, he realized. Their hair was similar, both with dark eyes that peered up at him. Her hands were small as they rested near Piccolo's, and Junior wondered who in the hell she was.

"Are you a friend of the Demon King's?" Chi Chi had apparently been wondering the same thing as she piped up from beneath Junior's bulk.

"I-no," the girl muttered. She tucked a chunk of hair behind her ear, and watched Piccolo's sleeping face.

"Mistress?" Chi Chi asked, and Junior almost choked beside her. So far as he knew, his father had never done anything like that in his life. It was one of the few Namekian traditions he kept-though he doubted it was on purpose. He'd once told Junior that the strongest children were bred from fascinating DNA, which you couldn't find through normal organisms.

The girl seemed just as disturbed as Junior was. Her entire face seemed to burn as she avidly shook her head. "No!" she shouted. She shot a nervous look at Junior, and seemed to collect herself. "Sorry, just…. No. I… well, I took care of him. My name is Mai," she shifted in her seat, and straightened out her army jacket. "I was hired by Freeza to watch over Piccolo."

Junior bared his teeth in a snarl. "So, you were the one slipping him pills?"

Mai flushed, and hid her face. "I… yes. I was. Freeza threatened my dog, and my best friend." Her fingers pushed together as she stared down at the sheet. "I tried to tell Freeza that it was no good but… I was ignored."

Junior wanted to tell her that he didn't give a shit about her, or her mangy mutt. But he could practically feel waves of 'shut the fuck up' coming from Chi Chi, so he kept his mouth closed.

"He's not the nicest old man," Mai said, "but it seemed a shame to leave him here all alone when he's dying."

Junior's throat constricted. He glanced at his father's face, and felt despair mounting.

"Are you… one of his son's?" Mai hazarded a glance at Junior. "I don't want to be rude or anything, but lots of your species look the same."

"I'm his youngest," Junior answered. His voice was gruff, and he could see her hesitate under his stare.

"Piccolo Junior… right?" Mai tilted her head. "He talked about you a lot. Has lots of pictures of you, too." Her thumb rubbed a circle against the inside of her wrist, and he could see her gnawing on her lip. "During his… episodes… he kept thinking that you were younger. But when he came back around…"

"He talked about what a disappointment I was?" Junior finished for her, and watched as she quickly ducked once more. He breathed out heavily through his nose, and gave a painful shrug. "It's fine. I knew how the old man felt about me."

Mai nodded, and tilted her head back towards where Piccolo lay. "The doctors said he… probably won't wake up again. They induced him into a coma. I offered to take him back to the mansion, but they declined my suggestion. He's to wait it out here until his functions finally shut off." Her voice was quiet. "If you have anything to say to him, I can leave for you."

Junior thought, for a solid moment. He could think of nothing to say. Everything was bitter and hateful. Finally, he pushed off of Chi Chi, and lumbered carefully towards his father. He crouched down, and almost toppled over from the effort, as he placed his hand down on the bed, right beside his father's. Even now, in his emaciated state, he saw that Piccolo's hand still far out-sized his own. Something far too bitter to be a smile stretched across his face.

"I hate you," Junior whispered. Because he did. Seeing his father lying here reminded him of all the shit Piccolo had put him through. All the rough training, all the unnecessary abuse, and above all setting a standard so high that Junior could never hope to meet it. He made a pained grunt, and Chi Chi was back by his side.

She stared at Piccolo, her face crumpled up with her own negative emotions.

"Let 'em out," Junior suggested.

"I hate him, too," Chi Chi grunted, as she helped hoist Junior back into position. "Dirty bastard's caused trouble to two very important men in my life." Junior felt his body grow warm at that, and he shuffled awkwardly above Chi Chi.

"I liked him," Mai muttered, and both Chi Chi and Junior turned sharply towards her. "Sometimes he would pet Shu. A few times he ordered me and Pilaf pizza." Her mouth wobbled, just a bit. "And then sometimes, between the drugs, he'd tell us about all of his sons."

Junior felt something flip in his stomach, and he decided that Mai was far better company for his father than he was.

He and Chi Chi left.

The restaurant was closed, but there was a congregation of people at Chi Chi's place. The family and friends booth was overflowing, and had since spread to several of the tables surrounding it. Junior sat propped up, taking up a whole bench by himself as he lay there pathetically, a smoothie right beside him. Across from Gohan was happily stuffing food into his face, while Dende chattered next to him-Nail had opted to stay at the colony and await Dende's return.

Vegeta and Bulma sat on top of a table together, even though Chi Chi had tried unsuccessfully to get them to leave it eight times by that point. The newlywed couple were both being horrendously obnoxious by loudly arguing about their current living arrangements, and how those were going to change.

"Just because we're married and we've kissed does not mean I will be sharing a bed with you, woman, you snore!"

"How dare you! I'm a beautiful lady! I do not!"

Bunny and Dr. Briefs sat near them, with Bunny eagerly contributing to the couple's arguments, and often making things worse. Just on table over hosted 18, Krillin, Yamcha, and Goku, two of which were looking exceedingly uncomfortable by Junior's presence. Satan sat a bit further away, an expression of discomfort clear as day on his face as he recognized many fighters who could severely injure him that were present.

Videl kept eagerly bouncing between tables, demanding autographs, attention, and stories. Chi Chi was doing her best to avoid the little girl as she immediately slipped into her Owner Mode, where she attempted to keep everyone's drinks full, and their food exactly how they wanted it.

Junior's recovery was slow, as he'd only been out of the hospital for a week. This party had supposedly been thrown "for him", but he had a sneaking suspicion that Bulma just wanted to have a get together. Why it couldn't have been at the mansion, Junior wasn't entirely sure, but it seemed that Son Goku probably had something to do with it, as he'd been whining that he wanted to have Chi Chi's cooking one last time before he hit the road once more.

"Mm-Mm!" he could hear Goku now, slurping up noodles in an aggressive fashion. "Cheech, you're the best cook in the whole world!"

"Thank-you, de-Goku," Chi Chi grinned, and there was only a bit of tightness around her mouth. Gohan decided to add his own contented noises to the mix, as he scooped up a fork full off of his own plate, and stuffed it in Videl's direction.

"C'mon, Videl," Gohan enthused. "You should eat mom's food!"

"No, thanks," Videl wrinkled her nose. "I dunno what that is, but I'm not eating it."

"And I thought you were a Saiyan." Vegeta gave a disgusted snort, that Videl returned with a flick of her pinky finger.

Videl returned to her task, which was gathering up autographs from everyone. She'd finally gotten the nerve to approach Android 18, whose lazer blue eyes had focused in on the child. Videl stuffed her notepad out towards 18, intent clear.

Junior was actually surprised to see 18 take the pad and pencil, hastily scribble something down, and hand it back with a slight toss of her hair. Videl seemed floored. Her jaw hung open, before she squealed and ran to Gohan, eagerly showing off her new prize. 18 shared a secretive smile with Krillin, who looked gob-smacked every time 18 so much as breathed in his direction.

"I thought Mr. Junior was your favorite?" Gohan asked, barely looking over at 18.

Videl made a noise of exasperation. "I mean-ugh, I guess? He doesn't do anything other than lay around your mom's apartment." Her gaze was accusatory when it turned to Junior.

"I just got the shit beat out of me," Junior protested.

"Whose fault is that?" she sniffed.

"Mine," Gohan said, rather morosely turning back to his plate.

"Or mine!" Goku cheerfully supplied, earning him a high-five from Yamcha.

Junior snarled in their direction, but was interrupted by Chi Chi's hips planted firmly in front of him. She glowered down at him, and gripped his jaw, holding him in place. Having her man-handled him spurred little butterflies in his stomach as she shook her head.

"Don't start anything at this party," she demanded, eyes narrowed. "Understand me, mister?"

"Whatever," he grumbled. But he had to fight to hide the goofy smile that threatened to overtake his features.

"Careful, woman," Vegeta drawled, "I think we'll see a drool puddle in the Namek's lap if you continue."

Both Gohan and Videl giggled together, as Chi Chi swiftly took her hand away. Junior's face turned purple at the accusations. He tried to ignore Dende's sweet smile.

"What'dya mean?" Goku asked, before he was grabbed harshly by both Krillin and Yamcha, who began to furiously whisper to him.

"Inter-species' relationships are all the rage now, darling!" Bunny crowed, her hands clasped together. "Though it does make ya wonder about their you-know-whats." She nudged Dr. Briefs, who covertly took a sip from his mug, pretending he didn't hear his wife.

Vegeta leaned towards Bunny, tossing his head back imperiously ."Yes, it's rather unfortunate, but Namekians actually can-,"

"Vegeta!" Chi Chi snapped, turning on the Saiyan with fire in her eyes.

"King Vegeta," Bulma corrected with a wide grin. The two women glowered at each other, before Bulma playfully stuck her tongue out. Goku's whispered conference seemed to end at about that time, and he was now staring at both Chi Chi and Junior with boggled eyes.

Chi Chi noticed, and buried her face in her hands. "What did you tell him?" she moaned, glowering at Yamcha and Krillin from between her fingers. Goku opened his mouth to eagerly answer her question, just to be immediately shut down by his friends who were attempting to save their lives from the increasingly agitated Chi Chi.

Junior sighed, dropped his head back, and wondered when the hell all this had happened. He was supposed to live quietly next door in his cousins' shop, waiting out the rest of his life without anyone around. He certainly wasn't supposed to have two noisy children clambering over him in an effort to prove who loved him more. He wasn't supposed to have blue haired people yelling at sentient monkeys. There certainly wasn't supposed to be his arch-nemesis, asking him if they could still be 'best-buddies' and pen pals while he was on the road.

And most of all, when everyone left, there wasn't supposed to be a woman standing there, dropping a swift kiss onto his forehead, saying "C'mon, let's go watch a movie."

He couldn't help thinking, I didn't ask for this.

But, I sure am glad I got it.

I originally had a really dramatic scene written for DKP and Junior and it just... didn't fit? So it was nixed in favor of Mai actually having a better scene with him.

Either way, there's one more chapter left - the epilogue.