NEW CHAPTER!
Holy crap! I accidentally posted the same chapter twice! Thank you Jbunni101 and Miharux3 for letter me know!
"Turkey, bread, vegetables, spices…Goku can you check the other cart to see if we got the cranberry sauce," Chi-Chi asked. About three full carts down stood Goku and Goten. Goku started searching through the cart in front of him.
"We have about twenty three cans," Goku replied counting with his fingers. Chi-Chi pouted.
"Goten, be a doll and get me ten more cans," Chi-Chi asked politely. "Goku, go with him to help carry the cans."
"Okay Mom," Goten chirped. He quickly disappeared with Goku behind him. Chi-Chi looked at the carts filled with food. This year the Son family will be holding Thanksgiving. The house was small, but moving the couch into Goten's room made the dining room just a little bit bigger. Bulma and her family were coming; Tien and Chiaotzu, and Yamcha were going to be there as well. (And Puar and Oolong of course!)
Bulma and Chi-Chi would rotate years for the holidays. Chi-Chi came up with the idea so the families could still be close. Since this Thanksgiving would be at the Son's house, Christmas was going to be at Bulma's house.
Sadly, every holiday that passed Chi-Chi could not stop thinking about her son, Gohan. She wondered how he was spending his holiday. Was he alone? Was he with a special girl? Was he ali-
Chi-Chi stopped her thoughts there. She wasn't going to finish that thought.
"Oh Gohan," Chi-Chi whispered to herself as looked at her reflection where the frozen vegetables were kept. "I hope your holiday is wonderful."
"WAH-CHOO!"
Chi-Chi looked over to where she heard the loud sneeze. Down further she noticed a man standing by himself with a cart. The cart wasn't very full. Chi-Chi noticed that they were the only ones in the aisle.
"Bless you," she shouted. The man turned around noticed who exactly was standing there. Chi-Chi recognized the man as well. "Oh Boss! It's nice to see you again!"
She quickly made her way over, knowing Goku and Goten would take a while to get the cranberry sauce. She noticed a box of cherry pie was on the floor.
"Uh…the sneeze came out of nowhere," Gohan said, looking down at the box. He bent down to pick it up, and then put it back in the freezer. He looked at Chi-Chi with a small smile.
Chi-Chi noticed that Boss didn't look well. There were bags under his eyes, his hair was more lose, and he was in gray sweatpants. He wore a darker gray jacket with a band tee-shirt underneath it. Every time she would see Boss he always made sure everything was perfect. This was a side she never seen before. It worried her a little.
"Are you feeling okay," Chi-Chi asked feeling his forehead. "Hm, you don't seem to have a fever. Are you eating well? Sleeping enough? Do you think you're getting a cold?"
You can always tell when someone is a mother with all the questions they ask.
"I'm not sick," Gohan said. "I'm…just not sleeping that great. The kittens seem to think 3am is the perfect time to play, and knock everything over. Vegeta usually bites Goku, and then before you know it they wake up the rest of the litter."
Gohan did not name the litter. One day he was walking and ran into Vegeta, who was with his family. Gohan mentioned the kittens, and Bulma and Trunks wanted to see them. Before you know it Chi-Chi and Goten appeared, which lead dragging his family and friends to see the kittens. Goten and Trunks decided to name the kittens for Gohan, which ended up being the names of the Z-gang. There was a Goku kitten, Vegeta, Bulma, Chi-Chi, Goten, Trunks, and a kitten named TJ.
Luckily, Gohan was able to name a kitten after his dead brother before his younger brother decided to name a kitten after his older brother. Each kitten matched each name. Goku liked eating, Vegeta liked to fight, Bulma wanted the attention, Chi-Chi was mean to everyone (just like Mama cat), Goten and Trunks enjoyed knocking things over, and TJ was a lot like Toki (Thank God!). At least the kittens knew the use of the litter boxes. Vegeta would sometimes poop outside the litter box, and knock Goku into the pile of poop. Fun times.
Chi-Chi made a face.
"I've done lack of sleep before," she said folding her arms. "What you have isn't sickness at all. Something's bugging you, isn't it?" Gohan brushed his fingers through his uneven hair.
"Mu-Ma has been sick," Gohan answered. "Last week she fell, blamed the ghost of TJ, and after she fell she really hasn't been well."
At the end of October Mu-Ma decided to meet Vegeta. She did this by herself, because she was bored and Gohan was working. When she went to see Vegeta, to put a face to the name, she also met Vegeta and Goku's family.
Yep. All of them.
Mu-Ma introduced herself, and once she realized the people she was speaking to were Gohan's real mom and dad, she got really friendly with them.
How friendly?
Mu-Ma and Chi-Chi had little "tea dates" twice a week.
Twice.
A.
Week.
Mu-Ma said that she and Chi-Chi were just two women who had things in common. Since Chi-Chi doesn't work, and Mu-Ma was home alone they decided to have little dates and discuss girly things. These "tea dates" just started, but ever since those dates Chi-Chi hasn't been so mean to Boss. Sure their first encounter wasn't as pleasant as Gohan wanted it to be, but Chi-Chi learned a lot about his past. It was the same for Mu-Ma when Chi-Chi told stories about Gohan.
The worst thing to ever come from those dates was old pictures. Chi-Chi had them one day to show Mu-Ma how Gohan looked as a baby. If, by any chance, Chi-Chi was a grandmother she hoped that Gohan's kids would look like him. That way Gohan could be found. Mu-Ma did feel bad hearing how much Chi-Chi missed Gohan. That is until Chi-Chi showed a picture of a younger Gohan.
Oh yeah. THAT picture.
Dressed up in a little blue suit, with a red bow, and his hair with the bowl cut.
Mu-Ma laughed for days. She couldn't keep it together when she talked to Gohan, let alone when he came over to see her. Mu-Ma then took Chi-Chi to meet Seymour. She wanted Chi-Chi to "get to know Boss" a little better, but she never really told Chi-Chi that. Mu-Ma would make up excuses to go places, and those places where most of Gohan's hangouts. The bar, the music store, and made Chi-Chi watch Gohan's band practice.
As Mu-Ma showed Chi-Chi these places, she also made sure to show everyone that picture of Gohan. Once Gohan realized what everyone was laughing at he tried to laugh with them. Small smile, small chuckle, but once Mu-Ma and Chi-Chi left the bar Gohan threatened to kill anyone who brought up that picture again.
It still gets brought up to this day. No one is dead, but Owen did end up getting his shoulder bruised from Gohan hitting him a little too hard. In Owen's words, "it was totally worth it."
Chi-Chi looked inside Gohan's cart. There was a box of stuffing, a small turkey breast, and canned peas. It was nothing compared to her three carts full of food.
"I hope she feels better," Chi-Chi said with a weak smile. "She canceled our last tea date because she wanted to catch up some sort of television shows."
"She hated how Dexter ended," Gohan mumbled.
"Tell Mu-Ma I said hello," Chi-Chi said. "She's a strong woman."
"She is. There's other things going as well, and working overtime is killing me. I decided to come to this store since nobody would recognize me, and I didn't have to look pretty. I didn't think I would run into people, especially people who live 500 miles away."
Which was true. Gohan was popular, and most people knew who he was. He always made sure he looked perfect before he stepped out the door. Gohan looked over at Chi-Chi's carts.
'I wonder if that's going to be enough food,' Gohan thought.
Chi-Chi looked over at her carts.
'I wonder if that's going to be enough food,' she thought.
"I better get going," Gohan said. "I need to drop these off at Mu-Ma's house and help her clean. Maybe rent a movie or something."
"I better make sure my husband and son didn't eat all the free samples of those mini sausages," Chi-Chi said. It has been a while since she last saw the two. "Tell Mu-Ma I wish her well."
"I will. Thanks Chi-Chi."
Gohan pushed his cart out of the aisle. He had a strange feeling in his stomach, and he didn't like the feeling at all. For some odd reason, picking out a dessert didn't seem as important as the thought going on in his head.
'I have to see Mu-Ma.'
Chi-Chi clenched the fabric above her heart. She, like Gohan, had a strange feeling. It was the same feeling she had when Goku and Gohan fought Cell. It was also the same feeling when Goku first took Gohan to meet his friend's at Master Roshi's house. Those times always ended the same.
Tears began to well up in Chi-Chi's eyes.
"All this time," she said as tears started to fall. "She wanted me to know her son. He's not going to have a family anymore." She clenched the fabric tighter. "Why…why is this hurting so bad?"
Gohan swung open the front door. Mu-Ma's house had an eerie feeling to it, and Gohan ran over to Mu-Ma's room. He saw her lying there as her oxygen machine quietly hummed. The TV was on, showing one of Mu-Ma's favorite soap operas. Gohan saw her lying there, breathing slowly.
He walked over to her, and pulled the chair next to her bed closer. He used both hands to hold her one. Gohan looked at her. Her once bright face was now a sickly white. She had on the same clothes as a few days before. Her hand felt cool, and dry. Gohan has never seen her this bad before. She was asleep, but Gohan still knew something was wrong.
Gohan grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.
"I was watching that," Mu-Ma mumbled. She opened her eyes and looked at Gohan. The life in her eyes was now a dark gray. Gohan forced a smile on his face.
"You're wasting electricity," Gohan quietly said. "You can't see the TV with your eyes closed."
"I can still hear it." She took the oxygen cord out of her nose. "Do you have all you need for Thanksgiving? I can't wait for that turkey."
"It's a small turkey breast, but it will be enough for the two of us." Mu-Ma nodded.
"I remember your first Thanksgiving dinner with us," Mu-Ma said closing her eyes once more. "TJ was pissed because you ate everything, and there were no leftovers. He complained the next day because he wanted a turkey sandwich."
"And he was pissed the next couple of years because I ate all the leftovers," Gohan said with a small laugh. "Remember the plate of ham he hid in his room so I wouldn't eat it?"
"It took me months to get rid of those ants in his bedroom. How can you forget that you hid a plate of ham under your bed, let alone not realize how bad the smell was. I wanted to kill your brother that day."
"You pushed him in a thorn bush, then started throwing rocks at him."
Mu-Ma quietly chuckled.
"It's called good parenting."
"The cops were called."
"I was only in jail overnight, and then they let me go."
"They let you go because I told them that you didn't take your medication that day," Gohan said. "And I had ant bites all over me. TJ claimed that he was trying to make an epic ant farm."
"Is that why I found sand in my closet that year," Mu-Ma asked. She sighed. "Your brother was a pain in my ass from the first day he came to my house. He stomped on my foot, shot rubber bands at me, and attempted to set my house on fire."
"We almost did," Gohan said. "Remember that science project that left the black stain about the oven?"
"That black stain is still above the oven. I see it every time I try and cook something. I bring out the video when I need a good laugh."
"Seymour kept his head clean shaved ever since." Gohan looked over at the frail woman once more. "I got canned peas for Thanksgiving. I know how much you like canned peas."
Mu-Ma smiled.
"You are such a good boy Gohan," Mu-Ma said opening her eyes. She looked over at Gohan and smiled. She removed her hand and placed it on Gohan's cheek. "You always think of others before you think of yourself. I'm really happy to have a son like you."
Gohan realized her ki was getting lower. He tried not to panic, but he could feel tears welding up in his eyes.
"You're going to be fine, right Mu-Ma," Gohan asked, his voice shaky. "We're going to have Thanksgiving, and eat canned peas, right Mom?"
Mu-Ma smiled at him.
"We're going to eat canned peas," Mu-Ma said closing her eyes. "And then we'll watch TV, and fall asleep on the couch." Gohan could feel her hand slipping.
"Mom!"
"It's okay Gohan. It's going to be okay my son. I'm just going to rest my eyes for a while."
Mu-Ma's hand fell on the bed. Gohan eyes widen as he felt her ki disappear.
"Mom," Gohan exclaimed checking her pulse on her neck. He couldn't feel anything. "Mom! Mom wake up!"
Her body was cold to the touch.
"Mom!"
Chi-Chi dropped a bag on the floor, containing biscuits in a can that opened on impact. Goku and Goten, who had a lot of bags on their arms, looked at her as her face went pale.
"Chi-Chi, what's wrong," Goku asked. Chi-Chi, who was in the living room, quickly turned around and ran out the door.
"Nimbus," she shouted as she ran. The little yellow cloud quickly flew to her side and lifted her up. Nimbus didn't need any direction as it quickly flew in the sky. "Go faster!"
Nimbus sped up. Chi-Chi knew she needed to linger longer at the grocery store. When she watched Boss rushed out she knew something was wrong. She had that bad feeling all day, and now it felt like her heart was about to rip out of her body.
Although she didn't know why it was hurting so bad. She didn't know Boss as well as Vegeta did, and they never went anywhere together. They never really talked unless it was a simple hello or goodbye. Chi-Chi could only assume it was the influence of his mother. She always talked about Boss growing up, how he was with his friends and family, and how much his brother was a big influence on Boss.
Mu-Ma never complained when Chi-Chi talked about Gohan. She always smiled, and assured Chi-Chi that one day Gohan will come back. Chi-Chi always felt better whenever she was with Mu-Ma. They had things in common, troublesome children and husbands.
"I married once, he divorced me, and the child we had was so much like his father," Mu-Ma said sipping her tea. "He was very mean, and did not care about anything. He married quickly, and had a child quickly. He said that he was going to be a parent, something that I never was. He never let me see TJ, and he would never bring him over. TJ's mother couldn't take it anymore and took a bullet to her head, his father soon after."
"Oh my," Chi-Chi gasped. "How did you manage?"
"TJ was young, spiteful, and very bitter. He did not take no for an answer, and he would get his way all the time. I couldn't control him…I wasn't his mother. I tried, but I was powerless. I hoped that maybe if he had a sibling, something his father never had, he would be a good influence."
"Did he change?" Mu-Ma slammed her tea on the table.
"That son of a bitch made Boss just like him! Here I am, a grandmother taking care of her grandson, and the idea to bring another teenager in the house was stupid! I don't know what I was thinking! Two teenage boys? I knew I should have adopted a girl!" Mu-Ma took a deep breath and sipped her tea. "Boss was very polite when I first met him. He had a good head on his shoulders, and that did rub off on TJ. TJ did get nicer, not as spiteful, and he loved his brother. He changed so much. He was still a trouble maker, but being together…as a family…it was warm."
"I think you did a fantastic job raising two boys Mu-Ma."
"Thank you Chi-Chi," Mu-Ma said. She put her cup down and looked at Chi-Chi. "I don't know when my time will come, but please look over Boss for me."
Chi-Chi blinked. She only knew Mu-Ma and Boss for a short time. Boss was an adult…sorta…so why did he need to be taken care of? He has a place of his own, friends, and a nice girlfriend.
"Oh Mu-Ma! You're still young and a fighter! You still have time."
Mu-Ma weakly smiled. She then finished her tea.
It was the last time she spoken to Mu-Ma. It was over a week ago, and it wasn't until now that Chi-Chi realized what Mu-Ma meant. She just wanted someone to make sure her son will be okay. Boss had all the friends in the world, but right now he had no family.
Chi-Chi jumped off of Nimbus and landed in the street. She watched as an EMT hopped in the ambulance, and drove off. Then she saw Boss, sitting on the steps, watching the ambulance drive away. His left arm rested on top of his knees, but his right hand was in his hair, clenching it tightly.
"Boss," Chi-Chi yelled.
Gohan turned his head and saw Chi-Chi. He choked back tears. What was she doing here?
Before Gohan could do a thing, Chi-Chi quickly ran to Gohan and wrapped him in a tight hug. Gohan could only do what any man would do…he hugged Chi-Chi back and cried. He released his tears he was holding back for many years. He couldn't cry when TJ died, and he couldn't show weakness in front of Mu-Ma or his friends. It was pride, and the fact that he didn't want to think about it anymore. He kept himself distracted so he didn't have to deal with it.
Gohan, out of all people, should know keeping things inside will eventually come out one way or another. At least this time he was with his mother, and not fighting Cell. He still had his mother kept some of his sanity, but he still wasn't ready to tell everyone who he truly was.
Right now he just wanted to be with his mother.
(PG)
The bar was quiet. Music played in the background, but it was low compared to a busy night. Seymour sat behind the bar, fumbling around on his phone. He hasn't heard from Gohan since yesterday. Videl, thankfully, let Seymour know that he was with her. Toki too.
Owen and the band, and Mai, sat at the bar each drinking a beer. There were fries next to them, but no one touched them. No one really spoke a word to anyone. The bar, as of right now, was closed. The bar was a better place to be anyway. Home wasn't comfort for some.
"You know…she would want us to get drunk off our asses," Owen said, spinning his glass on the bar. Ziggy nodded.
"Body shots off of Mai too," Ziggy added. Everyone nodded, but Mai. She made a face, then proceeded to roll her eyes.
Once again there was silence. Seymour, who knew Mu-Ma since he was a teenager, tried to think of things to say to cheer up the bunch. He just couldn't muster anything to say. He loses his best friend years ago, and now he lost someone he looked up to as a mother. It's hard to cheer up people when you can't be cheerful yourself.
Everyone snapped out of their daze when the bar door opened. There stood Gohan, soaking wet, with Videl, under an umbrella. No one said anything as they walked in. Seymour did, however, pour Gohan and Videl a glass of beer. After a few more minutes Vegeta came into the bar. He looked at the sad bunch sitting at the bar.
Seymour noticed Vegeta huff as he made his way in. This was more of a private thing, and why Vegeta was here Seymour didn't know. Seymour also noticed that Vegeta was dry, and he didn't have an umbrella. Gohan did mention that Vegeta was a saiyan like him, and more powerful. Seymour as seen Gohan's powers before, and he's seen how strong Gohan is…how strong Gohan was. If Vegeta was more powerful…
"Choice of beer Vegeta," Seymour said. Better to stay on his good side than bad. Gohan had to explain to Seymour why there was a hole on the ground in front of the bar when they opened. "And don't be an ass today."
Vegeta just glared.
"Just give me a damn beer," Vegeta said sitting next to Owen. (Seating went like this: Owen was near the door, Ziggy next to him, Moth next to him, Gohan next to Moth, and Videl next to Gohan. Mai moved her seat so she could sit next to Videl) "Why are you guys sitting around like a bunch of downers? Geez, you're acting like someone died!"
Apparently Vegeta never got the news. He was here for some drinks, and felt Gohan was nearby.
Gohan learned how to "imitate" ki. He had to figure out a way to mask it, and he couldn't hide it forever. When his friend Kyo died, Gohan learned how to copy Kyo's ki. It's was a way to keep his friend near him always.
"Yeah well, someone did," Seymour said slamming the beer on the bar. He was trying not to be so irritated. "Mu-Ma died yesterday. Show some respect and drink some beer."
"At least you know how to respect the dead," Vegeta said grabbing his beer. He took a sip. "I still don't understand why everyone is upset by it. You knew she was dying anyway."
"You heartless-"
"Don't even bother," Gohan said starring at his beer. "It's just how Vegeta is. He sees life differently than we do."
Seymour shook his head.
"He may see it differently, but if he's your friend then he can at least pretend to care," Seymour said to Gohan.
"I don't need to pretend," Vegeta said. "If he wants to feel better he can just sleep around like he always does."
Videl's eyes went wide. Vegeta soon realized what he said.
'Like he used to,' Vegeta thought realizing his mistake. 'Well…he's dying anyway, and he hasn't told her about his mates!' Vegeta took a sip of his beer. 'So why do I feel like crap now?'
Videl glared over at Gohan. She stood up from her seat.
"Have you been sleeping with other girls behind my back," she yelled. Gohan was slightly caught off guard. He stood up himself, in hopes to calm Videl down.
"I used to," he answered.
That wasn't the answer of choice, and that sure as hell didn't calm Videl down.
With his mind slightly in a funk, and his brain on autopilot, the answer he wanted to say was 'I used to seek comfort in sleeping around, but that was because I was dying,' or something. He really couldn't word what he wanted to say. He hasn't told her about his…uh…partners from the past. It wasn't the right place, or right time, and they never talked about taking THAT step further in the relationship.
"I never slept with anyone when I was with you," Gohan said, trying to fix this situation. "I did sleep with a lot of girls, but not while I was with you!"
"Slept with a lot of girls," Videl questioned. Seymour shot a look at Vegeta, but noticed that Vegeta looked…guilty? "So I'm just another girl you plan on sleeping with? Then what? Drop me off at the curb, never calling me again?"
"I wasn't going out with you just to sleep with you! I do want to sleep with you when I first saw you, but-"
Everything stopped when Videl slapped Gohan in the face.
"You're an asso," she yelled as tears fell freely down her face. "I hope you rot in hell!"
With that Videl stormed out of the bar. Mai quickly followed behind her. Gohan placed his hand on his cheek.
"…I wanted to wait until you were ready," Gohan finished. "Or something…" Gohan sat back down in his stool and looked at his beer. He took a deep breath and picked up his beer. "I gave it a shot." He chugged his beer down until it was empty. "Oh well."
Seymour noticed the change in Gohan. His eyes were dim, lacking life that he had mere minutes before. He remembered that look a few years ago when TJ died. He also remembered what exactly happened after that. Before Seymour could do anything Mai reentered the bar.
"It's really hard to run in the rain when your boobs keep hitting you in the face," Mai said shaking some rain out of her hair.
Everyone turned her way.
"Prove it," Owen said. Gohan hit Owen upside the head. "Ow!"
"You have a girlfriend," Gohan said getting up from his seat. "And she has a boyfriend. It's not nice to flirt with another guy's girl."
Gohan got up from his seat, and went behind the bar.
"My mother would want us to get shit faced," Gohan said pulling bottles out from underneath the bar. "And shit faced we will be."
(PG)
Inhaling the addiction, Gohan stood by his balcony in his black sweat pants. The balcony door was three inches open, just enough for the smoke to whisper its way out the door.
"I'm leaving now."
Gohan turned his head towards the voice. More drunk than sober, Gohan waved his hand towards her. He didn't know her name. She was in the street, having issues opening her car door. He walked over, placed his hand over hers, and unlocked it for her. When she saw him she gasped, his shirt soaked and his muscles exposed she instantly fell for his body.
Gohan traced his fingers across her chin, her umbrella shaking with anticipation. He casually walked away, tossing his jacket over his shoulders. He turned around and faced her once more, lifting up his soaking wet shirt, exposing his six pack, and wiping the corner of his lips. He smirked as he took a few steps back. He titled his head back, winked at her, and she found herself chasing after him.
They reached his apartment, and started to tear off each other's clothes. She hit the bed, he grabbed a condom, and fucked her.
Satisfied? Yes. Miserable? Of course.
This was…is his life. He tried the dating thing. It was good, enjoyable, but it wasn't him. There will always be a good blow, a good fuck, and he didn't need a girlfriend for that. He had himself, and that was all Gohan needed.
End of chapter.
-CrazyGohanGurl