You and I

Don't know much about your life.
Don't know much about your world,
But I don't want to be alone...
On this planet they call Earth

Chibiusa stared back at her own reflection, brushing gently through her hair. She decided to style it differently, looping it into two fishtail braids. She felt compelled more than ever to look her best.

Chibiusa lowered her head and reached into her dresser drawer, pulling out a small sticker photo. The photo was of her group of friends from that time at Tomodachi Sweets. That photo where she and Trunks were caught staring at each other and Momoko had drawn hearts around them. She recalled Momo-chan's words back then. You look like a couple. This photo existed now as it had then—it was proof that there was something between them after all. Chibiusa felt giddy, a large grin on her face as she giggled whimsically to herself. She couldn't wait for school today.

"Chibiusa! Are you up yet? You're going to be late!"

Chibiusa frowned then slapped the photo within her notebook. She snatched up her school bag, and headed for the kitchen. Usagi always said that. Are you up? You're going to be late. So annoying. With a yawn, slippers tapping against the floors, Chibiusa approached the dining table. Sitting there was her mother with a steaming cup to her lips; and, her father who was in the middle of removing an apron and pulling out his chair. Overcoming her confusion, Chibiusa greeted them with "Good Morning".

"Good Morning, Chibiusa-chan," Mamoru chorused.

"Ah! Papa made breakfast this morning," Usagi gloated, her lips curling like a cat. "Mamo-chan is so wonderful to his dear wife!"

Mamoru grimaced. "Well, since there were eggshells in the omelette the last time, I thought I'd—"

"Eheheheh!" A self-conscious Usagi smacked her hand against Mamoru's mouth to silence him.

Chibiusa shrugged, and took a seat at the table. Breakfast did look quite tasty. As she held her chopsticks to her mouth, however, it all felt surreal. This meal felt like something she had eaten before, but hadn't…something she remembered but didn't. It was strange. Chibiusa glanced up, casually observing the way her parents calmly ate. These people looked just like Queen Serenity…King Endymion. But they were Usagi and Mamoru. A clumsy housewife. A hardworking salaryman. They didn't "remember" anything. Even so, Chibiusa wondered if they even had something to remember. They looked like them but they were different — completely.

Mamoru glanced over. "Hm? Something wrong?"

Chibiusa shook her head, feeling flustered. She busied herself with another bite. She had to speak to Trunks. He never confessed to remembering, but she knew he must have. Maybe he had the answers she needed.

As students filed into the classroom, ready to start yet another Monday, Chibiusa came in eagerly, with a sense of purpose. She spotted Trunks already at his desk, rather early. She marched over to his desk with a large grin. Trunks gave her a bewildered look.

"Good morning, Trunks-kun!" she twittered, leaning in with hands behind her back.

He didn't respond right away, his face blank. Chibiusa felt foolish as he responded with a gruff and uncertain, "Morning."

Feeling dejected, she walked away to her desk.

"Good morning, Briefs-kun."

"Hi, Good morning."

Chibiusa twisted her head suddenly, having overheard. Mana had come in just shortly after her and greeted Trunks in her usual cool and casual tone. He had responded to Mana a little differently than he had to Chibiusa. Friendlier. Perhaps, with a little more enthusiasm. Chibiusa felt annoyance tug at her conscience. She turned back to see Hotaru looking at her curiously. Chibiusa masked her upset with a smile.

Still, she wondered. Why had Trunks responded so coldly?

It bothered Chibiusa that entire morning until the lunch break.

It was customary for the students to tidy their classroom after lunch, and as such her group of friends were hard at work cleaning together. As Momoko swept, Chibiusa noticed Trunks loading utensils on a cart. She stopped mid-motion.

"Chibiusa?" uttered Hotaru, noticing her distracted stare. The others stopped as well.

"Um, I'll be right back!" Chibiusa said reassuringly, hurrying over to Trunks, leaving the others watching after her.

"Where's she going?" asked Kysuusuke, exchanged puzzled looks with Hotaru and Momoko.

As Chibiusa neared, she could see Trunks had his head down, his expression intense with concentration.

"Hi!" Chibiusa said brightly, holding her hand up in a wave.

Trunks looked over, taken off-guard by her sudden appearance. "Oh. Hi, Chiba-chan."

She let out a deep breath. "I want to talk."

"Talk about what?" Trunks asked, sounding uninterested.

"…things," Chibiusa replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Like?" Trunks pressed, now sounding somewhat impatient.

Chibiusa was perplexed by his attitude. He was acting as though nothing had happened and it irritated her. "You're making this really difficult," she said with a slight frown. Her voice lowered, as she intoned, "Yesterday."

Trunks stared at her for a moment. His lips curled into a smile. "Right. Okay, sure we should talk about that, right?"

Chibiusa placed her hands on her hips. "Okay so first—call me 'Chibiusa-chan'. Chi-bee-usa," she emphasized, then brought a finger to her cheek, sighing airily. "In the past we were…closer, right?"

Trunks seemed immune to her attempt to act cute, turning his head away quickly.

"You know, lunch break is over and Sensei is going to notice you're not doing anything. Maybe we should talk another time."

"Oh right…" Chibiusa mumbled. She mused over whether she should grab a cloth and assist in wiping desks to at least appear busy.

"I have an idea. Let's go on a date," Trunks said, not looking at her.

Chibiusa stared, stunned. "Huh? A date?"

He sighed and glanced at her, having finally finished stacking wares onto a cart to be carried away. "That's what you want, right? Anyway, Saturday afternoon is fine."

Chibiusa scowled. "But that's so far away? We can't talk until then?"

"Nope!" Then he turned sharply, and shoved the cart away.

Chibiusa was left to watch after him. It was strange the way he had walked off, and responded so snappishly to everything she said. Nevertheless, he had asked her out. She clapped her hands over her mouth and her eyes glistened with excitement.

He asked her out!

Chibiusa turned slowly, her irrepressible smile faltering once she caught sight of Hotaru watching her.

"H-Hotaru?" she stammered.

"What are you doing, Chibiusa-chan? Aren't you dating Erishi-kun?" Hotaru asked. Chibiusa couldn't believe it. Hotaru had heard them, and though she couldn't place Hotaru's expression or tone, it sounded something like disappointment.

"We aren't dating," Chibiusa replied, turning her head away slowly.

"Then what happened?" Hotaru persisted. She reached for her hand to make her face her. Chibiusa turned, lifting her head to meet Hotaru's gaze. Just then, Hotaru froze on the spot, her violet eyes seeming empty and distant.

"Hotaru?" Chibiusa asked worriedly, glancing over her own shoulder to see if there was something or someone else she were looking at.

Hotaru's gaze refocused as suddenly as it had glazed over. Gently, she released Chibiusa's hand. She didn't speak right away as she lowered her eyes to the floor.

"Never mind," Hotaru uttered softly.

"Chibiusa! Hotaru! Our next class will start soon," Momoko called, now sitting at her desk.

The girls nodded and went to sit as well, but Chibiusa couldn't help but stare at the back of Hotaru's head, watching as her dark strands of hair swayed with her movements. What was that just now?

Every passing day was an exercise in patience, and every passing moment felt like torture. Time carried on as usual, mundane and routine. The walk to school, the morning announcements, the teachers lecturing, the shifting classes for P.E., lunch, chores, the afternoon clubs, the walk home, homework and bed. With the minutes gradually counting down, Saturday never felt like it could come soon enough.

It was the day Trunks looked forward to.

It was the day he also dreaded.

By Saturday afternoon, there they were: a boy and a girl sitting beside each other on a park bench, picking at their deep-fried snacks. They hadn't really spoken to each other, neither knowing what to say. Trunks figured Chibiusa must have been feeling shy. He on the other hand felt something else. "Uncomfortable" might have been the best word to describe it.

"So what kind of things do you like to do?" Trunks began, trying to initiate conversation.

Chibiusa looked thoughtful, her eyes gazing upwards to the sky. "Um, well I'm a member of the art club, so I'm there after school. On weekends, Hotaru-chan and me like to go to town sometimes and window shop. Or go for picnics. We also study after school — with Momoko and Kysuuke too, of course. Oh, also, sometimes I like collecting things with rabbits on it. Um, it's a little embarrassing admitting that, I guess."

Trunks nodded slowly, noticing that she was actually wearing earrings in the shape of rabbits today.

"How about you?" Chibiusa asked looking at him. He looked back at his food, avoiding any kind of steady eye-contact with her.

"Hmm. Besides judo club, and training at Turtle Hermit, video games. Definitely."

Chibiusa gasped at the disclosure. "You're part of the judo club? But aren't you professional already?"

Trunks shrugged. "Hm, yeah well I'm mostly there to make the school look good."

She nodded politely, "I guess you're an ordinary guy otherwise, right? But it's funny. Mother plays a lot of video games too even though she's an adult."

"Your mother, huh? What's she like?" Trunks asked, nibbling at remnants of his tempura.

Chibiusa rolled her eyes. "Oh she's really annoying. Well, I mean, she's kind of lazy and eats too much. She cries easily. And she doesn't do anything right," a small smile came over her, "but she means well."

"I see," Trunks responded, thinking about the Queen Serenity of the past. The contrast was noteworthy.

"What about your mother?" Chibiusa asked.

Trunks half-smiled, still avoiding her eyes. "Well, she's a genius, of course. She works a lot. She's busy. But she's always worrying about me and stuff. Which is typical for any mother, I guess."

Chibiusa looked at him with quiet interest, biting her bottom lip as though there was something she wanted to ask but couldn't. Trunks caught a glimpse of this but didn't press her as he finished the last of his food.

"Um," Chibiusa started, "Is it true what they say? You're really the heir to the Capsule Corp? To be so rich and powerful, it must also be lonely, right?"

Trunks paused mid-chew. Something wrenched at his chest at hearing those words. He swallowed then turned to look at her fully, his eyes large as he met her gaze. She looked back at him unwaveringly, though he could see her cheeks had tinged slightly pink. All those times she had been staring at him. All those many times before he wondered what she thought when she looked at him: is that what she thought? Were those looks of pity? Trunks didn't like the idea of being pitiful.

To say something like that so casually was…

"You never did answer my question from before," Chibiusa noted, shifting topics entirely. "About the past. You remember it, don't you?" Her expression was carefully neutral but sincere.

Trunks hesitated. "Yeah. I remember all of it."

She shut her eyes then swivelled away slightly, the side of her face betraying a large and silly grin.

"Don't you think it's amazing how things have happened? What are the odds that we'd find each other again like this? Like a second chance. A chance to maybe…well…" she brought her hands up to her face and giggled.

Trunks felt like his face was on fire. He hated the way she was so weird, embarrassing, awkward and at the same time, undeniably cute. He exhaled shallowly, running a hand across his face.

"Would you like to visit my house?" he asked.

"EEHH?" Chibiusa recoiled, near falling off the bench.

"My grandparents are home so…" Trunks added, feeling embarrassed for her.

She calmed slightly, dropping her hands to her side though they were shaking.

"Hehe, right! Of course."

You don't know about my past
And I don't have a future figured out
And maybe this is going too fast...
Maybe it's not meant to last

The walk went on for an eternity as Chibiusa's heart thrashed between her ears. Things were happening so quickly, she thought. But then she giggled to herself again. No. They were continuing something they'd already had long ago. This wasn't new at all!

Once at the gate, Trunks buzzed them inside and they passed security. Chibiusa could see that the property was enormous. She was first greeted by a garden. She noticed an elderly couple: a woman with light curly hair pinned on her head, busily watering flowers and a man with glasses, smoking a cigarette and admiring the landscape. These must have been the grandparents—the wealthy owners of Capsule Corp.

"Amazing," Chibiusa breathed.

She refocused on the front door which then slid open, and as they continued inside she saw it was stylish and futuristic-looking with fancy furniture, sleek, metallic walls and glossy floors.

"Whoa! You're house is so big! You really live here?" Chibiusa gasped, her voice echoing as she peered around in awe. "I've never seen anything like it."

They stopped at the centre of a large hall. Trunks' hands were in his pockets. "Hm. You've said that before."

Chibisua gave him a puzzled look, noting the strangeness of his tone. Had she said it before? This happened before? A painful, bothersome sensation came to her. She thought about asking about their parents, whether his current mother was like the one from the past. Instead, she was reminded of the last few moments before her past self, Princess Small Lady, had passed on. There were a lot of unanswered questions, weren't there?

"Trunks-kun," she uttered, noticing he was staring down at his feet. "Why did you do it? Why did you allow yourself to die?"

Trunks' head jerked up immediately, nose scrunched and face mangled in surprise. "What? You know?"

Unconsciously, Chibiusa rubbed at her arm, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I saw." She resisted against tears that threatened to pool in her eyes.

"But how? Frieza..." He trailed off. After a moment's silence, Trunks approached her. He caught her by the hand and gave a gentle tug. He began to walk and turn down another hall.

"Where are we going?" Chibiusa asked.

"My room."

"WHAT?" Chibiusa's heart skipped a beat. No way! This was definitely not a good idea—no way!

Not slowing down, Trunks glimpsed at her from the corner of his eye. "Ugh, are you thinking weird things again? I just need to show you something."

"I-I'm not!" Chibiusa stammered defensively, still feeling anxious though mildly embarrassed. "It's just you say it like that so…"

"My room is massive anyway. Not like ordinary rooms." Trunks added as they finally came to a door, his free hand rested on a control switch.

The door glided open and he released her hand, allowing her to enter in first. The room was in many ways a typical boys room in colours of blue and teal-green, with a desk, computer, bookshelf, large screen television, game console and models of cars, robots and action figures arranged neatly on shelves and display counters. Most jarringly, the room was gigantic indeed, a million times bigger than her room, perhaps large enough to be someone's whole apartment. Chibiusa took several footsteps, and then noticed something else; at the foot of his bed was a small grey cat, fast asleep.

"Hey! It's that cat from that time!" Chibiusa exclaimed, feeling perplexed and annoyed. She shot a glare at Trunks. "Why did you keep it?"

Trunks frowned and crossed his arms. "Ask her yourself."

"What?" Chibiusa couldn't fathom the absurdity of his response, averting her gaze to the cat which now seemed to be stirring from its nap.

"Diana. My name is Diana, Small Lady," the cat yawned.

Chibiusa gawked. Before she could fully process the implausibility of a talking cat, she was struck by what the cat had said. She knelt down, her red skirt billowing about her like a parachute as she observed closely. Diana returned the stare. This was Diana, her guardian Diana—in cat form.

"Why are you like this? What about your human form?" Chibiusa inquired, holding Diana from the sides and lifting her above her head. Diana squirmed.

"Uh, well in this life I only have a cat form, unfortunately," Diana murmured. "Can you put me down now, please?"

Not listening, Chibiusa remained puzzled and tilted her head to examine Diana from every angle. "But why are you here with Trunks-kun?"

Diana directed an evil smile at Trunks. "I wonder the same about you, Small Lady."

Trunks stumbled back, near tripping as he leaned against a wall. He quickly regained his composure while Chibiusa regarded him in wonder. Trunks had that unreadable expression once again.

He cleared his throat. "You know, it's late. Maybe you should go home, Chib...iusa-chan."

Chibiusa's eyes lit up. "You called me—"

"Uh, Diana, you should come along." Trunks turned his back to them suddenly as he crossed the room and headed for the door.

"Hey! Wait!" Chibiusa squawked agitatedly, feeling mildly offended about being cut off mid-speak and being suddenly kicked out of his house.

"Keep it down—my family don't really know you're here, you know?" Trunks snapped. "Anyway, I'll get the chauffeur to drive you. I'll come too."

Chibiusa's tiny mouth formed a pout. It was true that his grandparents hadn't really noticed her after all. Perhaps they wouldn't take too kindly to some girl randomly showing up. It was approaching dinner time as well, and Usagi wouldn't be pleased if she were late. So Trunks had a point. But he didn't have to be so rude, she reasoned. That wasn't very nice.

The pair rode in the backseat of a black luxury car, Diana sitting comfortably in-between, excited to be let out of the house. In spite of this, neither Trunks or Chibiusa said anything to each other until at last they had reached her house.

As they all stepped out of the car, Trunks motioned to the driver, indicating he wouldn't be long.

Chibiusa stood anxiously at her front gate. Across from her was Trunks, his hands again in his pockets and Diana sitting at his side, her tail gently swaying.

"So…" Chibiusa began, uncertain what to say next. This "date" wasn't quite what she expected. Most of it was spent in awkward silence. She had gotten a closer glimpse of who he was, but he was still closed off, as though he held back. She noticed Trunks was now looking over her head, taking in her house. She wondered if her house could really be that interesting. It was just a simple house, nothing compared to his massive family estate.

"Things have really changed for you, huh?" he said at last.

Chibiusa didn't reply. She wasn't sure what he meant.

"You have a normal family and a normal life. You really are an ordinary girl," he sighed. "Must be nice."

Chibiusa sulked. "What do you mean? You're ordinary too!" she averted her gaze away from him, feeling a blush creep up. "Well of course, to me you're special," she added.

Trunks groaned. "You just saw, didn't you? I'm the son of one of the richest families. How does that make me 'ordinary'? People idolize me and people fear me. And apparently on top of that I'm some freak who can fall from trees and not get hurt."

"I don't understand what you're trying to say," she said, her body still.

"Of course you don't. But I guess I should just say it clearly? I don't want to live that life again. Too many people suffered—I suffered."

That life?

"Are you talking about the past?" she asked but she already knew the past was exactly what he was referring to.

He continued, "You asked me why I killed myself? It's because I thought Frieza had killed you."

Chibiusa stepped forward, shaking her head hysterically. "But he didn't! It was a trick so I could escape to find you—so you could save us on the Moon from Frieza. But I didn't think…for you to do that because of me—"

Trunks was growing impatient. He wasn't listening to her. "Even before then I had to deal with nothing but crap from everyone around me for the sake of wanting to be with you. Everything fell apart when I met you."

"What are you saying? Are you blaming me?" she asked. The tears started in her eyes. It sounded like Trunks was filled with regret, regret about being together. But he couldn't mean that could he?

"That day our kingdoms were at war, you should've left with me instead of going back to the Moon. If you really cared about us."

Chibiusa's brows knit with frustration as she strained to remember. That day in question they had barely escaped the conflict. They had planned to run off together to a planet known as Jellybean, but the Princess had backed out at the last minute insisting she would convince her mother to change her mind about the Prince. He never believed her mother could ever accept him or the Saiyans. It turned out he had been right.

Chibiusa mumbled, her voice a whisper, "Things were complicated—"

"You made your decision then, so I'm making mine now. As Earthlings and in this life, this will be our last and only date."

The last words pierced like hornet stings. She heard what he had said, but she couldn't believe he was really saying it.

"You're breaking up with me?" The tears in her eyes stung as she spoke the words. Saying them felt unreal and she feared hearing the answer.

Trunks' tone was as cold as the response he gave:

"How can we break up? We're not really anything…are we?"

Diana stood on all fours glancing frantically between them as though she had something to say. Yet, she couldn't say a thing. Not in public.

A lump formed in Chibiusa's throat. "But don't you..." Love me. It was what she wanted to say but the words failed her.

He turned his head, evading her eyes. "I'm not the Prince of planet Vegeta. I'm Trunks Briefs of planet Earth. You and I are different people now. Maybe it's for the best we were given this second chance. Maybe it's a chance for us to make different choices, right?"

"No…" she pleaded.

"Maybe you should choose Erishi?" Trunks said casually with a shrug.

The tears fell and she didn't care to stop it. How could he say that? How could he?

She cried,"You idiot! Why? Why did you kiss me, then? Why did you make me remember if this was what you wanted?"

Trunks flinched, looking slightly uncomfortable as she had spoken so loudly. "I don't know. I don't really know why I did either."

Chibiusa lowered her eyes, glaring at the pavement. It still didn't add up. How could he say these things so easily, and give up so readily? Suggesting Hiro as an alternative was odd, wasn't it? Perhaps, she thought, there was someone else he loved. Mana. She lifted her head. Her lip quivered. "Is it because of Retasu-chan?"

Trunks scowled, appearing confused. "What? Why are you mentioning her all of a sudden?"

He didn't give her a chance to reply. He stooped, scooping Diana off her feet. Next, he placed her into Chibiusa's arms.

Diana looked at him, absolutely floored. The grey cat dared to speak, though quietly.

"You planned this, didn't you? How cruel..."

Trunks ignored Diana, his eyes rested on Chibiusa. "She's your guardian. She should be with you." With an air of finality, he turned and proceeded to his car, entering through the rear passenger seat.

Chibiusa hugged the cat in her arms. Her shoulders trembled.

"STUPID STUPID STUPID! HOW COULD YOU?!" she screamed out, watching helplessly through a misted, stinging curtain of tears as the car door slammed. The car disappeared down the street.

There were days when the sun was so cruel
That all the tears turned to dust
And I just knew my eyes were
Drying up forever