Ch 53

The Briefs and Son family, along with Baba, stood outside in the early morning to see Trunks and Goten off on their journey.

"Be safe you two," said Bulma as she looked at the two grown men before her and smiled.

"We will mom," said Trunks. "Don't worry."

"Don't tell me not to worry!" yelled Bulma as she felt her husband's strong hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry mom," said Trunks. "We are coming home in once piece."

"I'll miss you big brother," said Bulla as she hugged Trunks.

"It's only for a week. We'll be back in no time. Love you sis."

Bulla smiled. "Love you bro."

"Good luck," said Uub.

"Thank you Uub," he said as he shook his hand.

Gohan, Videl, and Pan came up to the couple. Trunks and Goten faced them, wondering what they would say.

"Have some fun on the trip," said Videl. "It doesn't all have to be serious."

"We will," said Trunks. "That's great advice."

"We love you so do whatever it takes to stay together," said Pan.

"Whatever it takes," promised Goten as he hugged his niece.

Gohan sighed. "I still don't know fully why you need this trip, but I support you're both in this decision. You've both been through a lot together and if this trips is what you need to get your relationship back on track, I'm all for it. Have a nice time."

"Thanks Gohan," said Goten.

"It means a lot that you support us," Trunks said as he saw his father come up to him.

"I don't need to tell you this but be on your guard. The universe is filled with enemies."

"Understood," Trunks smirked. "I love you to father," he said as Vegeta grunted.

As they took off, Trunks and Goten wondered what awaited them on their journey to the Library Of Universal Knowledge. While Goten was all smiles, Trunks had no illusions of what they would find out once they arrived.

Looking out into the vastness of space, Trunks concentrated on the destination. Goten had gone to sleep a while ago, but Trunks couldn't sleep. He had been in space before but this time he knew this journey could make or break his relationship with Goten. He sighed. 'It's not like we could escape our relationship fully.'

"Trunks?"

"Hello Baba, just keeping track of our flight trail."

"Oh I'm sure that's your reason," said Baba as she sat next to the demi-saiyan. "Sleep is important Trunks. It won't solve all your problems, but it will keep you alert if any danger comes our way."

"I know, but it will leave me time to think dark thoughts. This trip holds a lot of unknowns for us. I mean what if we don't get the answers we seek? I don't want to think about what it means for my relationship with Goten."

"You've been best friends for a long time. There's a lot of history there Trunks, and you have been there to reassure Goten that everything will be all right. You may be mates, but you started as best friends."

"What are you trying to say Baba?"

"You will always have your friendship no matter how dark things get. It was your very first relationship together."

"It would be hard to go back to that. All the feelings I've developed for him over the years, I can't just let them go. I have to make this relationship work, for better or worse."

"That's very noble Trunks but at what point do you realize its' over?"

Trunks shook his head. "It's never over. Will always be a part of each other until the day we die. We can find any spell in those books, but they can't change that fact. Our bond was created from the very first time we met eyes, before we became mates."

"Love is not for the weak. You are a strong young man."

"I've learned from the best, my parents. Their relationship has always been up and down, but they never gave up on their relationship, even though my father was a hard man to love in the beginning. They're still together today, and I'm sure many years to come. I want that with Goten."

"I hope this trip will open your eyes to different possibilities," said Baba.

"I don't know how open I'm going to be to the possibilities."

"You'll be fine Trunks."

"I hope so."

Trunks decided to take Baba's advice and get some sleep. There were three bedrooms on the spaceship, but he didn't want to sleep alone. At the same time he knew what would happen if he lied beside his mate. The urges would fill his body, and he'd start the cycle of violence upon his mate.

Walking towards the empty bed, Trunks took off his shoes and clothes and changed into gray sweatpants. Sliding under the covers, he sighed as he looked over to his side table at the monitor he made. It let him know if their were any problems with the ship and alerted him if the ship went off track. He must have been more tired then he thought as he closed his eyes and slipped into sleep.

Goten got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. When he got up, he couldn't be more grateful that Trunks had decided to take the third bedroom. At the same time he felt guilty for feeling the way he did. Turning the light off in the bathroom, he was going to go back to bed but decided to check on Trunks. 'I'll just see how he is and go back to bed,' he thought.

Opening the door as quietly as he could, he peaked into the room to see the silhouette of his mate lying on his stomach in bed. He smiled, thinking how cute Trunks looked when he sleeps. On closer inspection he could tell Trunks was being plagued by a nightmare. He shook his head. 'I can't. I know what will happen if I try to wake him up, but he's pain. I can't turn my back on him.'

Goten came over to his bedside and found an empty space on the bed to sit on. Placing his hand on Trunks' back, he rubbed up and down to try and sooth his mate. "It's just a dream Trunks. It's not real," he spoke in his ear and before he knew what was happening, he found himself flat on his back with Trunks staring at him with intensity in his eyes.

"Wh—what are you doing here?"

"You—you were having a nightmare, and I—

"It's too risky for you to be here right now. You need to go back to your room Goten."

"I—I know, but your nightmares—

"They're mine to deal with Goten. I'll be all right."

Goten got up and headed towards the door. "I'll see you in the morning Trunks."

"I know you were just trying to help. Thank you. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," said Goten as he closed the door behind him.

Goten felt his relationship with Trunks had taken a new turn tonight, and he didn't know what it would mean for them. Walking back into his room, he lied down on his bed and sighed. 'I know this trip will help us. It just has to.'

Shutting off the lights, he got comfortable in bed. He could feel Trunks' fluctuating ki throughout the night, and it kept him up for most of the night until it became steady. Goten fell asleep.