Stormy Dreams

by Game Gal

Chapter 27 finally is up! R&R! Now that everything is out in the open, how are Gohan and Videl preparing for the trial of the century? Will they make it through stronger then ever, or will external forces try and separate them? Read and find out. Don't forget to review too! :)

10. The Days After

Chapter 10

She ran. She didn't know where she was running but she had to escape the man trailing her. She was at the part in the nightmare where the piercing blue-eyed menacing man was chasing her. She panted as her breath started to get caught up in her lungs.

"What do you want from me?" Videl screamed in absolute horror.

"I'm going to kill you. Just like your worthless mother. This scene seems familiar. Oh I know how to make it perfect. You have to run up the stairs, I will shoot your leg and then you beg for mercy, but I don't give it," The stranger in the shadows said. The only thing you could see on him was a sick smirk.

As Videl was running the man threw something at her foot causing her to trip. She was now extremely scared. The man loomed over her. She saw his blue eyes.

"The fearless Videl. Reduced to this. And here I thought you were raised better" The man said as he raised a gun right to Videls forehead.

Videls eyes widened in fear.

"Good Bye!" The man said then pulled the trigger.

Now normally in Videl's dream this is where she'd wake up screaming with a cold sweat on her brow, but this dream was different.

Just as the bullet was supposed to strike her, a warm and bright light engulfed Videl. So bright she couldn't open her eyes to see where or whom it was coming from. When Videl could finally open her eyes, she was inside a house.

'Where the heck am I?' she asked as she looked around the room.

The house felt warm and comfy, and so familiar but different all at once.

She was slightly startled when she heard clicking of keys followed by a surprised 'hey' and the giggle of a baby.

She quietly crept over careful to make sure no one saw her. She stood for a minute to examine the house. She was in the living room. It was big. Not too big like at her old house, but it was larger than in Gohans house. It had a cozy air to it. A few love seats, a wooden rocking chair, a big plush couch with a big screen TV, and a fireplace. All around a nice looking living room.

It wasn't hard to tell that who ever had lived here had just recently had a baby, a playpen was near the corner of the room and an assortment of baby toys littered the floor. In the middle of the floor was a man with a laptop in front of him. But he didn't look like he was getting, much work done.

In his lap was what Videl assumed to be his daughter. She crept closer so she stood almost 3 feet in front of him and she cleared her throat. When he didn't look up she assumed he couldn't see her and it was a dream of some sort.

Videl had to admit the man was quite attractive. He had black spiky hair, his glasses were a little dorky, but the rest of his looks made it look adorable.

'He looks like someone I know! I can't figure who it is though!' Videl though a little annoyed as she studied the mans features.

He was wearing a navy blue sweatshirt and a pair of beat up blue jeans. Even though these clothes were semi lose, you could tell he had an excellent body underneath.

The little girl who was perched in her fathers lap reached up and grabbed her father's glasses.

The man gave a laugh

"Pan I need those back sweetie" the man said as the little girl put them on her eyes and blinked up at her father earning another laugh.

"Panny I really need my glasses back!" the man said with a big grin, His daughter in return stuck her tongue out.

"Ok if that's how you wanna play…" The man trailed off as he laid down the little girl and pulled her shirt up to show her belly and started to blow raspberries. (For any of you who don't know what a raspberry is its when you put your mouth on skin and blow making like a farting sound) The little girl let out a shrill of giggles as her father did this a few more times.

The man picked the girl up and propped her on his hip.

"Panny may I please have my glasses back?" he asked earning a pout from the daughter as the man gently took his glasses out of the small hands.

She gave a small glare at the man as the glasses left her hands.

The man gave a small sigh "You're definitely your mothers child" the man said as he shook his head.

Just as he said that the door opened.

The little girl gave a surprised look to the man as he smiled at her "Mommy's home!" he said as the little girl started to smile.

The man walked to the kitchen where the woman had gone. Videl followed him.

'That scene was so cute… I wish my dad was like that to me.' She thought with a pang of jealousy.

"Sweetie!" the woman said as she smiled and took the baby girl from the mans arms and hugged her gently.

"Thanks Gohan, I know you had to work but its a lot easier shopping when Pans not there. You know how sayians are with food," she said with a smiled as she leaned up and kissed him.

'THAT'S Gohan? Figures he manages to stay that good looking later on in life.' Videl thought as she watched the couple kiss.

"Lucky bitch" she mumbled as she gave the woman a once over.

She had to admit the woman was good looking. Long silky black hair bulled into a high ponytail, skin of ivory, shimmering blue eyes, and an amazing body to boot. For a woman who had recently had a baby… she looked damn good.

'Figures Gohan gets a hottie like her' she thought as her mood changed to crestfallen.

Gohan smiled.

"No problem V, I love being with Panny. It's so hard to believe that she was still in you 5 months ago. It seems like only yesterday you were pregnant He said as he kissed his daughters forehead.

'Not only does this bitch steal MY boyfriend, but MY nick name too!' she thought angrily as she glared at the woman nicknamed V.

"I remember when I was pregnant you were all worried about me, and at night you'd always rub my stomach and kiss it good night. You're such a dork sometimes Gohan… But I love you for it." She said as Gohan flashed his goofy smile.

All of a sudden another bright light flashed and Videl was in a white oblivion.

"Jeez… A person could go crazy in a place like this." She thought as she looked around. She stiffened as a figure started to approach. The woman turned out to be Gohans wife.

"I wanted to tell you that everything's going to be ok." The woman said earning a glare from Videl.

"Excuse me?" she said in an icy tone.

"I said everything's going to be alright. I know your problems with your dad, I'm just here to say you'll make it through fine" The woman said smiling at the teen.

"And How exactly do you know this?" she said confused, how did this woman know of her problems?

The woman gave another smile.

"Haven't you figured it out yet?" The woman said earning a raised eyebrow from Videl.

"I'm you! Videl. Only I'm Videl Son, not Satan."

Videls eyes widened.

"Are you serious?" she said, completely shocked.

"Yep. Now, everything will be ok, trust me Gohan will make things better. With your home problem and your confidence problem." She said as Videls eyes widened as she cast her eyes down.

All of a sudden Videl fell over as her eyes bugged out.

"Me…And Gohan…. Pan?" She stuttered out as realization dawned on her. She and Gohan had a kid!

The older Videl smirked.

"Oh yeah. And F.Y.I…" She smirked even wider "You're gonna have a hell of a good time with her creation" she said, as Videl blushed deep red.

"Now go, Gohan needs a good talking to" As she said that Videl felt herself give a jolt and she was awake in her bed, well the bed she was sleeping in.

"What the hell was that all about? And when did I ever work up the nerve to speak like that?" She questioned as she looked at the time and saw it was 3:45am.

Videl felt her headache staring to come on full force again. She decided to go and get another Sayian Tylenol from downstairs.

She padded into the kitchen and filed a cup up with water and took a purple pill and starting walking back but was startled as she noticed a figure sitting on the couch.

She walked over to it slowly and saw it was just Gohan so she relaxed a little.

He was half laying on the couch half sitting up. But it didn't matter Videl thought he looked adorable when he slept.

Videl sat down beside him and decided to wake him up and see why he was sleeping downstairs instead of in his room.

"Gohan" she whispered as she nudged him in the arm gently.

Gohan didn't respond.

"Gohan wake up" she said a little louder and nudged a little more forcefully.

All Gohan did was grunt and turn in the opposite direction.

Videl getting a little annoyed then said "Gohan wake up!" loudly but not too loudly to wake any additional people up and smacked him up side the head.

"Tuesday…. is applesauce day…" he mumbled out as he opened his eyes and turned and saw Videl in front of him with her eyebrow raised.

"Applesauce day?" she asked as he gave a perplexed look.

"Huh?" was all he said and she just shook her head.

"What are you doing down here?" she asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Oh… I just had a weird dream that's all" he said as he looked up at her.

"You and me both!" she said as she blushed a little.

"Oh yeah? Will you tell me about it?" he asked making conversation.

"Only if you tell me" Videl said a blush creeping up on her cheeks.

"Of course! … You first" he said as Videl rolled his eyes at him.

"Fine" she said as another blush crept up on her cheek.

"Well first it started out as a nightmare, being chased by that man who was trying to kill me, remember me telling you? Anyways, he had thrown something at my foot and made me trip then he held the gun barrel to my forehead and just, as the bullet should have hit me, a bright light flashed and I was inside this house. It had such a cozy feel to it. Anyways, when I walked inside I saw a man and he was playing with his baby daughter" she said as her blush started to get darker.

"They played for a few minutes, he was supposed to be working, and then the mother came home. And she said, "Thanks Gohan, I know you had to work but its a lot easier shopping when Pans not there. You know how sayians are with food" and then she kissed you," she said as Gohan took on a shocked look.

"You had a dream I had a kid?" he asked in a perplexed tone.

"Yeah" she mumbled out.

Gohans cheeks turned pink "Who was the mother?" he asked quietly.

"Well, she was short, she had blue eyes, pale skin, long black hair-" she was caught off by Gohan.

"What was her name?" he asked quickly.

"Um… you called her V," she mumbled as she blushed.

"V? But I only ever call…. You…. You and I had a kid together?" he said a little loudly, and then quickly covered his mouth hoping no one was woken up.

Videl leaned back on the couch and rolled her eyes " Gee… don't sound too thrilled to have a kid with me" she said in a cynical tone.

"No no! I didn't mean it like that! Honestly! It just caught me off guard….you and I had a kid…wow… What did she look like?" Gohan asked getting used to the idea.

"She was adorable! And I thought that before I knew it was our child, she had short black hair, she had your hair, but I think she had my nose. Her name was Pan…she was so cute!" she said as she remembered the adorable future baby

Gohan just sat there smiling, imaging this small baby.

However he was jarred out of his stupor.

"So what about your dream?" Videl asked.

"Huh? Oh my dream…uhh…" he stuttered

"Oh come on I told you about mine! You promised!" she begged

"Fine. I dreamt it was the cell games again. I had just killed Cell. Instead of everyone being happy everyone turned on me. They al were mad at me, everyone hated me. As years went on I was tormented by guilt and constant insults from my family and friends. Then I met you and everything was great. Dad came back from other world and everyone was happy again, however my dad was mad at me as well. Then they told you what happened and you said how you hated me and couldn't believe how I took such a great man away from the earth. There that was my dream," he said quickly.

They both sat there for a minute of silence then Videl sat up and sat on Gohan and grabbed his face.

"Don't you every say that. No one blamed you for what your father choose to do. I would never hate you, even if it was intention, there too much about you I like to focus on one small detail. Gohan it's not your fault. Get over it. We don't hate you." She said while holding his face.

"But-"

"NO buts, now say 'ok Videl you're right'," She said with a stern look on her face.

Gohan let out a small smile " OK, Videl you're right" he said with a smile as she smiled.

"Yeah I know I'm right" she said as she kissed his cheek.

"Hey why don't we head to bed now, I'm getting tired from the medicine." She said as she stood up and grabbed his hand.

"Wait before we go…" he gently pulled her back onto the couch.

"What is it?" she asked with a puzzled look.

"Why do you think your ugly?" he blurted out catching her off guard.

"Gohan, we already talked about this."

"Please, just answer" was all he said.

"I was raised to believe it, and it just kinda stuck besides, I think I could stand to lose a few pounds. I mean I hate my lower body, and don't even get me started on my abs-" Gohan silenced her with a kiss.

"Videl quite being so stupid. Now I want you to say Ok, Gohan you're right" he said with a small smirk.

Videl was quiet for a moment "Ok Gohan, you're right," she said

Gohan studied her features and could tell she was lying. But he'd work on that later.

Gohan lifted her up bridal style and started walking upstairs.

"You know I'm perfectly capable of walking by my self," she said as she crossed her arms.

"I know" was all he said as he open her door and laid her down.

"Good night." He said as he kissed her forehead.

"Good night" she said as he walked out of the room.

'I'm so lucky to have him…. Maybe just a few more pounds…' she thought as she drifted back into a peaceful oblivion.

Gohan lied down in his comfy bed. ' Videl I will get you to believe me no matter what' was all he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

Morning

Videl woke up after a peaceful sleep.

She sat up in her bed and stretched as she covered her yawn.

She stood up and trudged downstairs.

When she walked down stairs a happy Goku and Chi Chi greeted her.

"Good morning Videl" a happy Goku said from the couch.

"Morning Goku" she said as she gave a tired smile.

"How was your sleep? He asked as he looked back at forth from the kitchen to Videl.

"Well it started out a little rough, but then I was fine," she said as she rubbed the last bit of sleep out of her eye.

"That's good… Chi! I'm starving!" Goku wined as said woman exited the kitchen.

"Goku quit your whining, they'll be here in 30 minutes. Oh Videl, good morning, would you mind waking Gohan up? He's still asleep," Chi Chi said as she kept a watchful eye on her husband.

"Sure no problem" with that Videl walked right back upstairs.

Videl knocked on Gohan's door quietly and waited for a minute. After receiving no answer she slowly opened the door and saw Gohan lying on his side fast asleep facing her.

She smiled at how adorable he looked and slowly walked over and sat in front of him.

He traced her finger gingerly along his jaw line, marveling at the beauty of him.

She gently pushed him

"Gohan wake up…" she said as he started to stir

Gohan slowly opened one dark eye and saw Videl looking at him, an adorable look plastered on her face.

Gohan smiled and just starred at her for a minute.

"What?" she asked, her confusion rising.

"You" was all he said

Videl rolled her eyes " Yeah, yeah, I know morning breathe stinks, but I wanted to eat first!" she said trying to defend herself.

Gohan gave a small laugh,

"I could get used to waking up like this" Gohan said as he propped himself up on one arm.

"To morning breath?" she asked looking confused and disgusted.

"No, to you. My day seems better all ready just by seeing your face" he said as he stroked her cheek gingerly

Videl blushed heavily

"Has anyone ever told you, how beautiful you are?" he said as he leaned in to kiss her

"No" she whispered as he gave her a small kiss.

"Hey Gohan hurry up everyone's here and Ah!" Goku said as he walked in on the couple kissing.

Videl was about to pull apart when Gohan slowly did, a broad smile on his face.

"Am I interrupting something?" Goku asked as Videl blushed and Gohan grinned.

"Nope were done" Gohan said as he looked up at his dad.

"OK, well Gohan hurry up I'm starving!" Goku said as he went back downstairs.

Gohan stood up, still smiling.

"Come on, I'm hungry too" he said as he grabbed her hand and lead her down stairs.

"Morning everyone!" he said happily as he pulled out Videl's chair, then pushed her in and took a seat of his own.

"Morning Gohan" Chi Chi as she studied Gohans grinning face.

"Did you have a good sleep Gohan? You seem happier then usual in the mornings" Chi Chi asked as she sat down.

"My sleep was ok, but I woke up to perfection" Gohan grinned broadly as Videl blushed heavily.

Chi Chi raised an eyebrow "You woke up to perfection?"

Gohan glanced at Videl

"Yep, I woke up to an amazing beauty, something the gods would be jealous of" all Videl did was go darker.

Goku watched and knew exactly what Gohan was talking about, and what he was trying to do. Deciding to give Videl a break he spoke up.

"Chi can we eat yet! I'm so hungry!"

Chi Chi rolled her eyes "yes we can all eat now"

Breakfast went off without a hitch. Everyone made small talk about anything. Aaliyah was still in awe at the sayians eating habits.

Everyone had finished eating and headed to the family room.

"So when does everyone go to Bulma's?" Aaliyah asked, striking up a conversation.

"We'll leave in about an hour, then we'll eat lunch at my place" Bulma answered as she leaned her head on Vegeta who surprisingly did nothing.

"Alright" Videl said as she stood up, " I'm gonna go get ready to leave" Videl said as she stood up and started walking up stairs.

Goku looked at Gohan and saw the worry in his eyes.

Gohan slowly got up and followed her up stairs.

Gohan gently knocked on the door earning a 'come in'

He slowly walked in and saw Videl getting a few things together.

"Your sure you wanna do this?" He asked as she sat on the bed.

"No… but I feel bad. I mean he did help to give me life," she said ' but he has threatened to take it away' she thought morbidly.

"Promise me something though ok?" Gohan asked sitting beside her, her small hands in his large ones.

Videl gave a half smile

"Anything"

"Promise me you'll be ok. And if you get into trouble, or your dad lays a finger on you spike your energy or call me or something, I'll come to you in less then 3 seconds" Gohan said as he squeezed her hands.

Videl's heart melted at her boyfriend.

"I promise. And I promise I'll be safe, now do you want to fly me over or am I going by myself?" She asked with a playful smile but Gohans worried look didn't leave his face.

She saw his face and sighed "Gohan, I know how uncomfortable this is making you, but please, don't get so strung out. It's only for one night, no more. If I feel as though I'm in any danger I won't give a second thought to calling you. Now… will you escort me to my old house?" she asked with a small smile, trying to ease his fears.

All Gohan did was sigh and nod.

He picked up Videl's bags and walked downstairs with them.

Gohan walked to the front hallway and grabbed Videl's coat and brought it to her when she walked downstairs.

"Alright guys I'm going to take Videl home," Gohan said in a less then impressed tone.

Chi Chi's face took on a worried looks.

Videl smiled and walked up to Chi Chi.

"Chi Chi thank you so much for letting me stay here, you have no idea how much it means to me. I haven't had a Christmas this happy in ages." She said as she hugged Chi Chi

"Why are you leaving? You can't go back there!" She said in a worried tone

"I'm just going for the night, I've promised Gohan if I need anything I will call him." She said as she pulled away and walked over to Goku.

"Thank you Goku for letting me stay" she said as she gave him a hug.

"You're welcome anytime you want Videl, you know that." He said as he reciprocated the hug.

She nodded her head then walked over to her mom.

"Mom, I'm going to go home for tonight, I'll se you at Bulma's tomorrow alright?" She asked as she hugged her mom.

Aaliyah embraced her daughter and whispered "If you're dad gets rough at any moment I want you to come back to these people" she said just as she let go.

Videl looked startled for a moment and slowly nodded.

"Well everyone I should be going, the sooner I leave, the sooner I can come back, if its no trouble of course." She said as she put her hiking bots on.

"Videl, be quiet, we love having you here. You keep Gohan and Goten busy, hell you even keep Goku busy!" Chi Chi said as Videl thanked her.

"Good bye everyone!" Videl said as she waved and walked out followed by Gohan after receiving a simultaneous 'good bye' and a grunt from Vegeta.

Gohan was a few feet in the air as she jumped up and joined him.

They flew in silence.

Videl know this was eating Gohan up inside.

When they arrived at Videl's house they floated there for a minute.

Gohan embraced Videl, catching her off guard.

"Please stay safe," he said as he held her tight

Videl just hugged him back then kissed him.

Videl slowly pulled apart and gave a small smile.

"I'll be there early tomorrow morning I promise," She said as he kissed her one more time.

"Bye" she whispered as he gave a small wave.

She slowly crept through the front doors and closed them, leaving Gohan outside.

Gohan once again sighed and made his way to Bulma's.

Videl crept to the front of her house. She made her way up stairs doing her best to be quiet as she made her way up to her room.

She walked into her room; it was just as she left it.

Figured her dad wouldn't care to figure out where she was.

She put her bag down and lay on her bed for a minute.

Deciding she was hungry she decided to get and get something to eat so she made her way down to the kitchen to fix her up something. (The staff is on vacation)

She opened a cupboard and a few pots and pans fell out.

Videl cringed knowing that would catch his attention.

Just as sure as the sky is blue, Hercule came storming through the hall.

"Who are you and what the…. Oh its you. I thought it was someone important." He said in an icy tone.

"You shouldn't do that," he said as Videl lifted her eyes slightly.

"Do what?" she asked.

"You shouldn't be eating, you're already huge, all you're gonna do is get bigger and bigger and end up an even bigger loser with no love selling her self for sex." He said with a smirk on his face.

Videl lowered her eyes and started putting the pots away.

Hercule walked up behind Videl and smacked her outside the head, causing Videl to let out a yelp in pain.

"Now as punishment for you leaving the house earlier, I'm gonna help you out. I don't want you here that long so I'm going to help you lose weight. Now get your fugly fat ass up stairs and into a bathing suit, you're going to swim for 5 hours." He said as he pulled her up by the collar of her shirt and roughly pushed her towards the stairs.

"You know you're a lot like your mother, really…unfortunate. She was ugly and fat to. If it weren't for me, she never would have found love. Oh well, she's eight feet under now and right where she belongs." He said as he looked at his fingers.

Videl was grinding her teeth when she yelled "Shut up!" She said knowing full and well she was gonna get it for that.

Hercule walked up to her and loomed over her.

He clamped his hand over her mouth cutting off the air from her nose and mouth "Shut your mouth" he said in an icy tone as he shoved her against a wall, hard.

"Now get your fat ass up stairs and get changed, you need to drop some weight," he said as he released her as she fell to the ground to quickly get ready.

'Gohan why did I ever leave your safety?' she thought to her self as she made her way to find a bathing suit.

Gohan was getting this nervous feeling in his stomach.

Gohan was in the living room with Goku.

Goku watched as his son paced back and forth in the large furnished room.

"Gohan, you've been pacing for over twenty minute, your giving me a headache please sit down." Goku asked as he held his head.

"I can't sit down! I know something bad is happening to Videl. I just know it! Hercule's doing something to hurt her I know it!" He said as he stopped for a minute.

"And tell me what pacing is gonna do to fix it?" Goku asked as Gohan let out an exasperated sigh.

He sat down beside his dad.

"Sorry" he said in a quiet voice.

Goku gave a small smile at his son.

"Gohan I know you're worried about her, I am to. But she's a big girl and we have to respect her choices. You may not like it, but you can't stop her." He said as he pat his son's back.

"I know that! I would never disrespect anything she did I'm just worried." Gohan said with his head in his hands.

Both men sat there for a minute then Gohan stood up. I'm going to go work out, call me when its supper" was all he said as he walked off.

Goku gave a small smile at his son, and then walked off to the kitchen to get something to eat.

Videl, feeling a little self conscious about being in a bathing suit, wore a large shirt over top and fiddle with them hem as she walked into the pool room. Her father was already there glaring at her.

Videl's head was still sore from being smacked against the wall but she still slowly walked into the poolroom.

"Alright fat ass, you have 5 hours to swim, then I will punish you for leaving during a pervious punishment. And remember I have cameras in here so you stop you're in more trouble" he said as he slammed the door shut.

Videl sighed and dove in to start her workout.

Author: Ok I'm gonna skip ahead the hours because I'm not sure what to write.

Videl, exhausted crept out of the pool. She had gone swimming for long periods of time before but the was nuts!

She took a minute to catch her breath a bit then looked around to not see a towel insight.

She walked out of the room to see her dad standing there.

"Alright fugly, now as punishment you're not to leave your room" he said as he gave her that said 'do it now' and she obliged by going to her room.

She walked into her room and was startled to see almost nothing.

She had no covers on her bed; her windows were all open, only screens were there. She walked over to her closet for a change of clothes but it was locked!

So She was left in a freezing room, no covers, no warm dry clothes or towels or anything!

She was about to turn to open the door and grab something when she heard it click from outside.

"Good night" she heard her father say after the locking click and then she heard him walking down the hall way laughing.

Videl lay down on her bed, freezing her butt off.

"May as well try and get some sleep," she muttered as she cured up in a ball in an attempt to get some warmth, as she closed her cold eyes and drifted off into in frozen slumber.

Gohan lay in his bed, drifting in and out of sleep.

It was now about 2:30 am and Gohan still had that nagging feeling.

Gohan closed his eyes, finally feeling as though sleep would over take him when he heard a small knocking.

He sighed and managed to drag him self out of bed.

He walked over to the bedroom door, but no one was there, it was completely empty.

'I must be hearing things' he though as he drowsily made his was over to the bed again only to hear the noise again.

'Is that coming from the window?" he though as he opened the blinds to see a pale Videl there.

Startled he gasped and fell on the ground. He quickly recovered and opened the window.

"Videl? What are you doing out here at this time?" he asked as he studied her features.

"C-can I c-c-come I-in?" she stuttered as she shivered.

Gohan quickly ushered her in and turned on a light.

Gohan looked at her now more clearly, she looked really pale, her lips almost looked blue and was she wearing… a wet t-shirt? He though as he looked at her.

"Are you ok? He asked her quickly as he hugged her.

She felt like ice! Gohan now getting worried quickly let go of her and ran to his closet and pulled out a pair old pants and an oversized sweatshirt.

"Change" was all he said as he left the room for a few minutes.

He walked in 5 minutes later to see her sitting on his bed still shivering, her wet clothes in a heap on the floor.

Gohan didn't even have to ask her knew Hercule had something to do with this so he put the clothes in the bathroom and made Videl lay in his bed under all the covers.

Videl shivered violently under the covers.

"Videl?" Gohan whispered, but all Videl did was stare blankly ahead and shiver as she attempted to get warm

Gohan lay down beside her and held her in a hug.

Videl turned around so she was facing him and looked up.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as she put her head on his chest and continued her effort to warm up.

Gohan was more then confused by her statement, but decided to question it later; her well being was the most important thing at the moment.

Gohan held her tighter and rubbed her back util he was sure she fell asleep.

Gohans mind was still going wild trying to figure out why she apologized to him, but in the middle of his thoughts he didn't even realize he was drifting to sleep himself.

Gohan opened his heavy eyes and looked at the clock, it was 10:30 am.

'Man I don't usually sleep in that late' he thought as he looked at Videl.

She still looked pale but when he felt her face she felt pretty warm

He thought back to what her mother said and knew she'd only have a fever for a day or two.

In the middle of his thought she awoke and looked at him.

"Hi" she said quietly as her eyes adjusted to the light.

"Hey… wanna go get something to eat?" Gohan asked as his stomach made its presence known.

Videl gave a small smile. Her mind raced with what her dad had said last night. All those names. Maybe she should listen to him.

"I don't want to eat, but you go ahead" She said as she sat up.

Gohan gave a nervous smile but stepped off the bed and held out his hand.

Videl took his hand and hopped off the bed and smiled at Gohan.

They walked hand and hand down into the kitchen where only a few people were.

Chi Chi, Goku, Bulma and Vegeta were the only ones in the kitchen at the moment.

"Good morning everyone" Gohan said as he walked in with Videl in tow.

"Oh good morning Go-" Chi Chi cut herself off as she saw Videl walk in

"Videl? What are you doing here?" Chi chi asked as everyone gave a confused look in her direction.

"If it'd be alright I'd really rather not answer that" Videl said quietly as Gohan pulled a chair out for her.

Videl sat down and Gohan sat down beside her.

"Mom is there anything to eat?" Gohan asked diverting the attention from Videl

"Yes, you're lucky I save you some or you wouldn't have gotten anything at all!" Chi Chi said as she started bringing the plates over.

"Videl what would you like to eat? I wasn't expecting you here this early so I didn't save you anything" Chi Chi said as she brought the last of the plates in.

"Oh I'm not hungry thanks, if I could have just a glass of water, that'd be great" Videl said looking down, knowing all eyes in the room were on her.

"Your girlfriend looks like shit" Vegeta commented out of nowhere.

Gohans eyes snapped up and glared and Vegeta as Bulma smacked him on the head.

"Vegeta! Why the hell would you say something like that!" She seethed as Videl lowered her head.

"Ow! Woman! I meant she looks sickly pale! Look for yourself." He stated as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Bulma raised an eyebrow and walked over to Videl. She placed her hand on her forehead to feel it.

"Videl you are a little warm. I think you have a small fever, nothing to worry about though, it'll probably be gone tomorrow." She said as she lowered her hand

Videl was quiet for a moment, and then she took a sip of her drink.

"I'm going to go have a shower, see you guys in a bit" she said as she stood up.

Videl walked out of the room but then walked back in a few moments later.

"Uh.. I don't mean to bother anyone but can someone tell me what bathroom I should be using?" She said sheepishly.

"Oh! I'll show you your room" Bulma said as she started to walk to the girl.

"I'll come to!" Chi Chi said as they linked arms with the young girl and walked off leaving Goku, Vegeta and Gohan in the kitchen.

"Gohan, when did she get here?" Goku asked once he was sure the women were out of earshot.

Gohan was finishing off his last plate of food. He swallowed then answered.

"She was at my window at about 2:30 this morning." He said as he took a quick drink.

Vegeta pulled up a chair to hear the full story.

"What do you mean" Goku asked a little confused.

"Ok, at about 2:30 I heard this quiet knocking I opened the door to see what it was but no one was there, I had assumed I had imagined at but I heard it again. I was positive it came from the window so I went over to check and Videl was foating outside my window. I opened it up and let her in and gave her a hug because she as shivering so much."

"Why was she shivering?" Goku asked

"I'm getting to that. Anyways I hugged her and she was freezing. Then I got a good look at her. She was in a soaked t-shirt and a bathing suit! So I grabbed some of my clothes then had her change. I made her lay on my bed under all the covers and just before she fell asleep she whispered I'm sorry, then she was out" Gohan said as he stretched backwards.

"Do you know why she was wet?" Goku asked with an eyebrow raised.

"No I haven't asked her yet. I know it had something to do with Hercule though." Gohan said as he lowered his eyes to the table.

"She looks brittle" Vegeta said

"What?" Gohan and Goku said at the same time.

"I mean she looks too thin. Even with your oversized clothes on she looks too small." He stated in a clam cool voice.

"Now that you mention it, when I saw her legs, they looked scrawny…" he trailed off in thought.

"If you ask me, I think her fathers been feeding her lies and she's believing them and digging herself into a rut" Vegeta stated.

"How'd you know that?" Gohan asked a little disbelieving.

"I'm smart" was all he said

With The Women

"Alright Videl this is your room. It's right beside Gohans and Chi's. So if you need anything you can ask either of them." Bulma said as she opened to door to the large room.

Videl was surprised at its size. It was a little larger then hers. A king size bed was in the middle of the room with white blankets covering it. There was a computer, TV set, movie, DVD players and many other things like that.

"Here's your bathroom" Bulma said as she opened the door revealing a large bathroom with separate tub and shower.

"I'm sure you know how to work the tub's jets so if you need anything give me a call," Bulma said with a smile.

"Oh! Videl, Gohan brought clothes for you. He asked me to pack them, so I've put them in the closet and drawers ok?" Chi Chi said finally speaking.

"Alright Thanks guys," Videl said as she closed the door.

Once Videl was in the bathroom the older women exited the room.

"Chi! I just got a great idea!" Bulma exclaimed after the bedroom door was closed.

"You want grandkids right?" she asked.

Chi Chi gave her a stupid look.

"Well why don't we make Videl a dress that will knock Gohans socks off for Videl?" She said as she jumped a little.

"That's a great idea!" I have the perfect dress in mind! Once Videl comes out we'll get her measurements and get to work. We only have a few days till new years." Chi Chi said.

Videl sat in the hot bathtub, with the jets, un-knotting her back.

She lifted her hand and felt the back of her head and winced. She had a bump forming from where she had smacked her head last night.

She shivered a little as her fever perked up, but she also shivered because of last night.

Flash Back

Videl was curled up in a ball doing her best to have a good night sleep in the freezing weather.

She woke up with a jolt as cold water was splashed on her.

She sat up and saw Hercule standing over her with a large bowl raised, its contents was the cold water that now covered Videl.

"Don't worry fat ass I was just making sure you were in here!" he said with a laugh then walked out of the room, and locked her in.

'That's it!' she thought as she opened her window and flew out towards capsule corp.

'Maybe he's right… I should work out a little more. I mean what bad could come out of me losing a few pounds. Once I get out I'll go work out for a few hours.' She thought as she sat back and relaxed.

Videl finished her bath a half an hour later and changed into a pair of sweatpants and stuck Gohan's sweatshirt back on because she was a little cold from the fever.

She silently crept out of her room and started wandering the many hallways.

After searching for 20 minutes she found a room with some exercise equipment and decided to run on the treadmill.

"Hey mom, have you seen Videl? It's been almost 2 hours since I last saw her" Gohan asked as he walked into the kitchen seeing his mother and Bulma get dinner going.

"No sweetie I haven't seen her. But could you go look for her I think were almost done lunch" Chi Chi said as she pulled something out of the over.

"No prob mom" Gohan said as he walked out in search of Videl.

Gohan wandered around aimlessly opening and closing doors looks for Videl.

He stopped then smacked himself in the head 'Why don't I just sense her energy?' he thought to him self. After getting a lock on her he walked up to the room and opened the door.

There he heard music playing in the background, a sweaty Videl in the middle running on a treadmill.

He walked over, assuming Videl hadn't taken notice to him.

"Videl?" he asked startling her and causing her to scream.

She jumped off the machine panting, partly from being scared, mostly from the running.

"Gohan…. You…. scared the…. crap out of me!" she said with pants in-between.

"Videl what are you doing? You should be resting, especially with a fever," Gohan asked as she walked over and took a long drink of water.

"I was just getting a little exercise nothing wrong with that" she said as she threw away her cup.

"Then why wouldn't you do it in clothes that aren't so baggy and hot. And yes it is bad for you to exercise when you have a fever" Gohan asked as she sat down.

"I just…didn't want to wear tight clothes. And I didn't exercise to much, I just ran for a little while" she said as he sat beside her.

"Little while?" he questioned.

"2 hours isn't that long," she said as he gave her a funny look.

"Anyways… I'm not completely sure how to get back to my room, think you could show me the way so I can get into some clean clothes." She asked as she stood up and pulled him up with her.

"All right but make it a quick shower, lunch is going to be finished soon," Gohan, said as he led her out of the room.

They walked for a few minutes in silence then Gohan spoke up.

"Hey V, what are you going to wear for the New Years Eve bash? It's kinda formal attire. Do you have any fancy type clothes or anything?" He asked.

"Off hand I can't think of anything. But I'm sure I'll find something" When she answered they were at her room.

"You wanna like sit in here for a few minute I won't be long," she said as she grabbed a pair of lose pants and a sweatshirt.

Five minutes later she stepped out fully clothed and her hair dried.

"Alright, lets go!" she said as they walked down to the dinning room.

While they were walking Gohan once again spoke up.

"Hey Videl, how come you don't wear anything tight?" he asked. He could tell by the look she made he had touched a sore spot.

"I just want to fix a few things up first" was all she got out as Gohan came to an abrupt stop.

"Videl, why'd you come here early?" He asked

"Gohan…" she trailed off

"Videl, I've been very patient please answer, I want to help you." He said as he gave her a small hug.

"I got home and dad heard me when I knocked a few pans down. I was getting something to eat and he told me I shouldn't do that. Then he came up and smacked me in the back of the head and said he was going to help me"

"Why shouldn't you eat?" he asked perplexed

"I'll answer that later. Anyways, he started insulting my mom and I told him to shut up and he grabbed me and pushed me against a wall… If you feel my head you can feel where I hit…" She said as Gohan started to gingerly rub her head.

"Then he told me to get a bathing suit on so I did and I wore a shirt over top. He made me swim for 5 hours, and then said my punishment for leaving was to stay in my room. So I get to my room and all the covers were gone I couldn't get any dry clothes and all my windows were open. So I somehow slept for a few hours then I felt cold water being poured on me and he's like 'just making sure you alive' then he left laughing. Then I thought enough was enough and I came back here." She said as Gohan embraced her.

"I'm sorry Videl" Gohan said as he kissed her head as she returned the hug.

"Videl…. Did you dad insult your… Looks or anything?" Gohan asked a little uneasily, he felt her tense up and knew her dad had told her some lie about her looks.

"I'd really rather not talk about it now" she said as she gave him a quick kiss then they started back to the dinning room.

They entered the dinning room to see everyone sitting down waiting (in) patiently for them.

"Bout damn time!" Vegeta said as both of them sat down.

After that everyone started getting food on his or her plates.

Videl looked down at the food, temptation fighting to take over. To satisfy her self she grabbed a piece of bread and ate it slowly.

"Sweetie is that all you're going to have to eat?" Aaliyah asked as she watched her daughter pick at the bread.

"I'm not that hungry" was all she said as she drank her water.

"Videl! Bulma, 18, Aaliyah and I have been talking and we want to make you a dress for the New Years Eve bash! We just need you to come with us tonight to we can take your measurements. Is that alright?" Chi Chi said excitement clearly evident in her voice.

"Uh... You don't have to do that." Videl answered

"Nonsense, we want to" Bulma answered.

"What are you going to make it look like?" Gohan asked curious.

"Were not going to tell you, but I can assure you you'll want to jump Videl's bones after you see it!" Bulma answered with a snicker at the red teens faces.

After that lunch was pretty uneventful.

Aaliyah, 18, Bulma and Chi Chi ushered Videl up into a sewing room.

"All right Videl, we need you to wear this so we can get your measurement" Bulma said as she handed a bikini to Videl.

"Do I have to?" she asked a little nervously

"Don't worry sweetie it's just us here," Aaliyah answered as she pushed Videl into a changing room.

A minute later they heard Videl sigh.

"Promise not to make fun of me?" she asked meekly.

"Why would we…" 18 trailed off as Videl stepped out.

"Videl! Why don't you show this off more often?" Chi Chi asked in awe at the beautiful girl in front of her.

"Can we please get this done with?" she said as she stepped onto the platform.

They started measuring Videl around the waist and other places and writing them down.

Once they were done Videl quickly went back and changed into her baggy clothes then left the room.

The 4 women were silent for a minute.

"Did anyone else think she was…. sickly skinny?" 18 asked, trying to soften it for the girls' mother.

Aaliyah quickly exited the room.

"Wonder what that was all about?" Bulma questioned.

"I don't know but lets get to work on this dress!" Chi Chi said, excitement taking over again.

Aaliyah ran threw the hallways trying to find Gohan.

She said Goku and ran up to him.

She gave a small pant then taped him on the shoulder.

"Hi Aaliyah! How are things going for you?" Goku asked in a cheery tone.

"I'm fine Goku, thank. But I need to find Gohan, its urgent!" she said in a rush.

"Is everything alright?" Goku asked a little worried.

"For now yes and no" she said.

Goku took on a look of concentration

"I've got a lock on him, grab onto my arm and we'll be there in a minute" He said as Aaliyah grabbed his arm.

Aaliyah blinked then heard a surprised scream.

"Dad, what the heck are you doing here!" Gohan said from his spot on the ground after falling from the chair at the computer desk.

"Gohan! You NEED to help Videl! I saw her in a bikini!" Aaliyah said pausing to catch her breath.

Both Goku and Gohan raised an eyebrow.

"What's wrong with that?" Gohan asked.

"No, no, nothings wrong with that she looked great. But she looked too skinny!" She said

"What?" He kind of surprised.

"I mean she's getting to the point where she's too small! Hercule said something I know it. That's why she isn't eating! I'm worried she's going to develop some kind of eating disorder!" Aaliyah said as she grabbed onto him.

Gohan's face took on a serious look

"Aaliyah I promise you, I wont let that happen" Gohan said, a look of determination on his face.

There was a moment of silence.

"… What are you going to do Gohan?" Goku asked breaking the silence.

"I'm not sure, but I'm gonna do something" he said with a look of determination as he walked out of the room.

A Few Hours Later

Videl sat in the living room watching TV when Gohan sat down beside her.

Videl looked over and saw him starring at her.

She gave him a small smile

"Can I help you?" she asked with a playful smile.

Gohan returned the smile.

"Yes you can actually, go and get dressed, you and I are going out." He said never losing his smile.

Videl gave a confused smile.

"We are?" she asked

"Yep" was all he replied as he stood up.

"And where might we be going?" she asked again.

"It's a secret now get up and get ready," Gohan said as he offered her his hand.

Gohan walk off after helping her up.

"O…k… That was weird," she said out loud as she walked off to get ready.

About a half an hour later Videl saw Gohan putting his coat on.

He looked up and smiled at her

"You ready?" he asked his smile never changing.

"Yeah just let me put my coat on"

Once Videl had her coat on they both stepped outside.

Gohan leapt in the air surprising Videl

"Are you coming or what?" he called down.

"Coming!" She said as he jumped off and followed him to the unknown destination.

"So where are we going exactly?" Videl questioned trying to get some information

Gohan smiled again

"It's a surprise" as he said that he grabbed Videl and pulled her close so he could speed off.

A minute later they landed.

"You know if you wanted to speed up you just could have said something" Videl said as Gohan gently put her down.

"Well in the case, we both won," he said still smiling.

Videl took a look around and saw they were at the lake they skated on, on Christmas.

"Gohan what are we doing?" she asked confused.

Gohan pulled out a capsule and pressed it making a stereo appear.

He pushed play and just let the music come through.

He thought for a minute then smacked his head.

He clapped his hand twice and the whole area lit up with Christmas lights.

Videl gawked at its beauty. She couldn't believe how pretty it was. The ice glistened with all the colours of the lights and the snow illuminated with the same colours.

"Surprise" was all Gohan said as Videl gave him a big hug and kiss.

"Gohan its so pretty!" she said as she looked at the beauty before her.

"Hold on it gets better" Gohan said as he dug in his pockets and pulled out a capsule and threw it on the ice. A table popped out with 2 chairs and 2-lit candles on top.

He walked over and pulled the chair out and motioned for Videl to sit down.

Videl nodded in thanks then sat down then Gohan sat down in front of her.

He pushed a button and instantly the air around them was warm.

Gohan pulled out another capsule and there was a ton of food littering the table.

"Lets eat!" He said as he poured Videl a glass of water and stuck some food on her plate.

Gohan put a piece of food on his fork and put it forward towards Videl.

"Try this, I made it my self! Chicken Parmesan! I had my mom help a little. But it's my first time!" He said with a goofy grin on his face.

Videl reluctantly opened her mouth.

Gohan put the fork in her mouth as she ate.

"Mmm… Its really good Gohan!" she said as she swallowed the good food down.

Gohan looked at her poke her food a little.

'Oh no you don't' Gohan thought.

"Videl you have to eat what's on your plate, or you'll hurt me feelings!" He said as he watched her make a worried face.

"But… I'm not that hungry" She said

Gohan looked at her with puppy dog eyes and she caved.

"Fine" she said as she slowly started eating the food.

Gohan smiled in triumph.

They ate in silence for a minute when Gohan had to ask the question that had been burning in his mind since Videl came to him in the morning.

"Videl?" he asked

"Hm?" she replied as she swallowed a piece of lettuce.

"What did your dad say to you?" he asked.

"What…what are you talking about" she asked in a worried tone.

"V, you told me your dad said you should eat. And now you barely eat anything. I just hoped you'd trust me enough to tell me," he said as he made a sad face, hoping it worked.

Videl sighed.

"I trust you Gohan…" she trailed off.

"So, what did he say?" he asked smoothly.

Videl gave a little gulp but decided he deserved to know.

She heaved a sigh then spoke again.

"After I made the sound he came down and he's like 'Who are you and what…' then he realized it was me so he says' I thought it was someone important'. So I just ignored him then started putting the pots away and he said I should do that and I asked what and he goes 'You shouldn't be eating, you're already huge, all you're gonna do is get bigger and bigger and end up an even bigger loser with no love selling herself for sex'"

Gohan looked stunned for a minute and didn't get the time to remark because Videl continued on.

"I just kinda ignored him and continued with putting the pots away, then he came up and smacked me upside the head and said 'Now as punishment for you leaving the house earlier, I'm going to help you out. I don't want you here that long so I'm going to help you lose weight. Now get your fugly fat ass up stairs and into a bathing suit you're going to swim for 5 hours' then he kinda pushed me towards the direction of the stairs. I didn't mind he saying that I mean, a few pound never hurt any one"

"So, anyways, I started walking up the starts and he started saying how I was a lot like my mother and it was unfortunate. He said she was fat and ugly as well and if it weren't for him she would have never found love. Then he said o well she's 8 feet under and she belongs there. I wanted to break down and beat him up but I knew it would just be me that got it so I told him to shut up"

"He told me to shut my mouth then he shoved me against the way and told me to 'get my fat ass upstairs' and 'get changed because I need to drop some weight. And that's basically it, he called me ugly or fat a few more times, I don't remember which one…but yeah…that's it" as she started to feel her eyes get a little wet.

Gohan was stunned. He couldn't imagine any father or parent saying that to their only child.

"V… You don't believe him do you?" he asked softly as he reached for her hand.

Videl bit her lip then let a few tears slid down as she slowly nodded her head yes.

Gohan quickly got up and crouched down in front of Videl.

"Don't. Don't even go there. You know how beautiful you are." He said as she wiped a few tears away.

She shook her head as she desperately tried to stop the flowing tears "Maybe you need glasses."

He looked her straight in the eye. "Maybe YOU do. But you're not just beautiful because you're attractive -- which you ARE," he emphasized at her disbelieving look, "but because… because your eyes light up the whole room when you laugh. Because you never give up, even when it means putting yourself on the line. Because you care so completely about everyone else, making sure everyone else is happy." He kissed her softly. "Because you gave me the chance to be with you."

Videl looked away as he spoke, not fully believing him.

"Videl, I have never in my life thought there was a more attractive person then you. And your attitude worries me. You know what your mom came running to tell me today?"

Videl shook her head as she wiped her eyes.

"She came in, almost in tears because she said you looked so skinny. She said she was worried you were developing an eating disorder. I'm not the only one who thinks you look this good. And there are only two people who don't think this. You and your father" He said as he wiped a few of her tears away.

"Why would you believe him when he says that? You know it's not true." He said as he rubbed her cheek.

"Videl everyone is worried about you, even Vegeta said you looked brittle, and he an ass so him saying something like that, you know is serious. V, my family and friends care for you very much. And so do I. Please V, I'm begging you DON'T listen to your dad. Its all lies." He said as she looked away.

"If its so untrue" she said in a horse voice, "Then why is it said so often?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know why you dad says it. I think you are beautiful. Or pick any word you like; beautiful, hot, sexy, gorgeous, model material, pick anyone!" he said surprising himself as he didn't blush.

Videl gave him a small smile and hugged him lightly.

"No one's ever been this nice to me," she whispered as he hugged her tightly.

"V, I want you to repeat after me ok?" Videl gave him a funny look but slowly nodded.

"I, Videl" he said

"I Videl" she repeated

"Am unbelievably beautiful," he said as he looked at the face she made.

He hesitated for a moment then repeated.

"Am unbelievably pretty," she said quietly

Gohan smiled. "And I," he said once more

"And I," she repeated again.

Gohan let out a big grin.

"Drive Gohan wild" he said as Videl started to laugh a little.

Through her laugh she managed to get out what she was directed to repeat.

"Drive Gohan wild" she said between laughs.

"You know it!" he said with another smile.

"Now lets finish eating," he said as he once again sat down in front of Videl.

Back At Capsule Corp.

"Has anyone seen Gohan? It's been like almost 3 hours!" Chi Chi said as she walked into the living room to see the guys watching the Simpsons

"He went out with Videl" Goku responded barely taking his eyes off of the TV.

"Did he say when he'd be back?" he said around 9 maybe 10" he responded once again.

Chi Chi looked up at the clock at saw it was 9 o'clock now.

She walked out of the room to go and find Bulma.

She walked into a room with a desk I it and saw Bulma with her glasses on looking at drawing designs.

"Hey Bulma, what are you doing?" She asked as she walked over.

"Alright Chi, I think I've got the plans for Videl's dress. We're going combine everyone's idea. So our end result is this!" she said as she proudly showed Chi Chi the sketch.

"Wow…" was all Chi Chi said as she studied the dress.

"This is perfect! She's going to look so amazing at the New Year's Eve Party!" she said excitedly. (Ha, your not gonna know what the dress looks like yet!)

Back at Gohan and Videl.

Videl laughed as Gohan and her spun in a circle on the ice as they listened to the blaring music.

After they had eaten Gohan told her to put her skates on and they skated together.

Videl gave a small yawn as she and Gohan spilt apart on the ice.

Videl stopped as 'I want to break free' started playing. She watched as Gohan spun a few more times before falling on the ice.

She hadn't expected Gohan to fall at all so when he did she stood there for a minute and skated over to him quickly.

"Gohan are you ok?" she asked worriedly.

"I want to break free!" he started singing then laughed.

"I love this song!" he said with a laugh then sat up.

"Yeah I'm fine thanks!" he said his smile never leaving his face.

Gohan stared at Videl's eyes for a minute the looked down at his watch lazily.

"Oh crap!" he said as he jumped up, only to fall back down.

"What? What's the matter?" Videl asked.

Gohan gave a small laugh.

"I told my parents that we'd be home between 9 and 10, and its 10:30 now." He said as he slowly stood up.

"Have we really been gone that long?" she asked to no one in particular.

"Yeah" Gohan replied as he pushed the button for the stereo and started taking his skates off as Videl followed his lead.

Videl put her hiking boots back on as Gohan put the skates away.

He walked up to her.

"You ready?" he asked.

She nodded yes and he scooped her up in his arms and flew off.

"Gohan?" She said loud enough for him to hear.

"Yeah" he replied.

"Thanks" was all she said.

Gohan was pretty sure he knew what he was talking about so he just said a quick "You're welcome".

As they flew Videl started to feel a little drowsy. Eventually she fell asleep leaning on Gohan.

Gohan sped up as Capsule Corp. came into view then proceeded through the large front doors.

As he stopped moving Videl slowly opened her eyes.

"Are we back already?" she said drowsily.

"Yeah, I'm going to take you back to your room ok?" he asked quietly so he didn't disturb her.

Videl meekly nodded as he carried her to her room.

Gohan gently opened the large bedroom door and walked in.

He laid Videl on the bed and gave her a kiss on the forehead and then the lips.

"Good night V" He said as he slowly stood up.

"Night Gohan…. Thanks" she said as she smiled and waved to her.

Gohan quietly shut the door to Videls room and walked downstairs to the living room.

Gohan saw his dad in the living room and plopped down on the couch beside him.

"Hey Gohan, how'd it go" Goku asked as he flipped through channels.

Gohan sighed.

"I'm not sure… its kinda hard to tell whether she's believing me or not" he said as he rubbed his face.

"Why what happened?" Goku asked finally giving up on finding a good show at this time of night.

"She just told me how her dad last night, called her names like fat ass and fugly, and said it was a shame she looked like her mother, things like that. And she asked he that if there so untrue, why he said them so often." He said casting his eyes down wards.

"What'd you say to that?" Goku asked curiously.

"I couldn't answer it. I told her I didn't know why her dad would say things like that. But I told her how I thought she looked, and how a lot of people are worried about her, and how her mom said she looked sickly small. I got her to eat…I just hope it helped her enough." Gohan said as he covered a yawn.

Goku smiled at his son.

"You did good Gohan…you did good," he said as Gohan gave him a funny look

"I did good?" he asked.

"Geez…Gohan your grammar sucks maybe you should get some sleep." Goku said as he stood up and stretched

"But you just said-" Gohan was cut off by Goku

"Good night Gohan!" Goku said as he left the room

Gohan laughed at his dad then slowly made his way up to his bedroom.

Gohan reached his room and changed into a pair of pajama pants and a white muscle top, then climbed into the large bed and laid down right in the middle.

He put his hands behind his head and sighed.

'Videl, I really hope I helped you tonight. I'm really worried about you' Gohan though as he closed his heavy eyes, then fell into a peaceful slumber.

A small crying Videl went over to her dad.

She had been playing in the park when a little Sharpener told her she could play because she was an ugly girl. The small Videl had protested that she was pretty only to be ignored. Now seeking reassurance she went over to her father.

Videl wiped her wet eyes as she approached her dad who was sitting on the bench reading the latest news about him.

"Daddy?" she asked as she got her crying under control.

"Yes?" he asked gruffly.

"Am I pretty?" she asked as she played with a small piece of hair.

"No, Videl you aren't. But your mother believed that some day you might be" Hercule answered never taking his eyes off of the newspaper.

"Oh" The small Videl said quietly as she went to go and sit by her self by the tree.

Videl sat by the tree and cried quietly.

"Excuse me?" said a small voice.

The small Videl ignored it, as kept her head in her arms.

"Excuse me?" said the persistent little boy as he poked Videl gently in her arm.

"What do you want?" she said sadly.

"Why are you crying? Are you hurt" the boy asked curiously.

"No, my dad told me I wasn't pretty" she said as she wiped a few tears.

"Why would he say a mean thing like that?" asked the small boy.

Videl looked at the boy for a few seconds. She had never seen him before. He was small with black eyes, and jet-black hair, and he was really nice too!

"I don't know" little Videl said quietly.

"Well I think your pretty!" The little boy said as he blushed and he slowly leaned in and gave her a kiss on her cheek.

Videl's eyes spanned open as she sat up.

She lay back down and rubbed her face.

'I wish that kid was there when I was younger. Who would have thought one boy could make all the difference?' she though to her self.

'If I had met that boy when I was little, maybe I wouldn't be like this' she thought as she closed her eyes and sighed.

Videl sat there for a minute as realization dawned on her.

'The older version of me said Gohan could help me… maybe I had a dream and it was saying Gohan could make the difference…if I just listen…' she thought as she stared at the ceiling.

'Maybe I'm just reading into this too much…' she thought again, a battle waging in her mind.

'I'm going to try it' she said with a determined look 'I will not believe what my dad says' she thought confidently.

With a sense of renewed confidence she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Gohan was curled up on his side when he felt a finger poke his cheek.

He tried to ignore the poking but the persistent finger kept going.

Gohan slowly opened his heavy lashes to see Videl grinning wildly at him.

"…What?" he asked getting a little worried, he could remember the last time he had seen her like this.

"Good morning!" she said cheerfully.

"Aren't you in a good mood this morning" Gohan commented as he sat up in his bed.

"Yes, yes I am in a good mood" she paused for a minute as she gave his a kiss on the lips, catching him by surprise.

Gohan sat there with a shocked look on his face.

"And it's all thanks to you!" She said as she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

She started making her way towards the door then she turned around and threw him a grin.

"Breakfast is ready. And on the count of 3 I'm running to tell Goku he can have your share!" She said with another bright smile as she darted out of the room.

"Wow…she's so happy! Maybe I did help her after…. wait a minute she's giving my food up!" He though as he raced out of the room and chased her.

Gohan caught her just as she was about to run into the kitchen.

He ran up behind her and picked her up from behind causing her to squeal and laugh.

The squeal caught everyone at the table's eyes.

One thought was on their mind

'What got into Videl?'

"Good morning you 2" Chi Chi said as she brought in the last few plates.

"Good morning Chi Chi" Videl said with a grin as she took her seat.

"Well aren't you in a good mood this morning" Chi Chi said with a smile, it was nice to see Videl like this.

"I guess you could say I had a wake up call last night and I'm trying to amend my ways" she said with another smile as she gave Gohan a small wink.

"Well whatever it is, it's great to see you so happy" Chi Chi said as she sat down.

"Alright everyone eat!" Chi Chi said as everyone dug into the food.

Aaliyah sat beside 18, who were across Videl. Aaliyah had a giant smile on her face.

'Gohan you said you'd do it, and you did. I don't know what the hell you did, but I'm definitely glad you did it.' Aaliyah said as she smiled at the young couple.

Videl ate a small portion of food, but it was enough to fill her up.

Videl smiled to herself. 'This isn't as hard as I had expected… I guess it kinda does feel good to be this happy' she though as she picked up a piece of pancake and dipped it in syrup and stuck it in her mouth.

Meanwhile

"Where the hell is she!" Hercule seethed through clenched teeth.

Hercule was up in her room, looking for some kind of clue to give him a hint as to where Videl was.

He found an address book.

He looked through it.

"I knew that fat ass could have many friend. She's only got 4 names on here…. How the hell does she know Bulma Briefs?" He asked but dismissed it.

He picked up the phone and called Erasa.

"Hello?" a perky voice said on the other end of the phone.

Hercule cleared his throat.

"Uh yes, hi, is This Erasa?" Hercule asked politely.

"Yes, speaking" Erasa answered.

"Hi, Erasa, its Hercule, Videls father, I'm worried about her she left the house yesterday and hasn't come back. Is she at your place?" he asked playing the 'concerned' father act.

"No champ I'm sorry she's not here. She may be with Gohan; those two hang out a lot. Anyways I'm very sorry Mr. Satan but I need to go. Good luck finding her!" Erasa said.

"Thank you very much for you help, you have a good day now!" he said as he hung up the phone.

"So that bitch has found some guy to pay for her to sleep with eh?"

Hercule dialed the number to Gohan's house only to get the answering Machine.

"Hi, you've reached the house of Goku, Chi Chi, Gohan and Goten. I'm sorry that we're not here to answer you call right now, but for the next two weeks we'll be at Bulma's house. If it's an emergency please call Bulma's. Happy Holidays" Said a cheery Goku as the answering machine.

Hercule called the number that it said under Bulma's name.

Back at Capsule Corp.

Bulma was in her office finishing a few final details for Videl's outfit when the phone rang.

"Hello this is Bulma speaking" Bulma answered politely as she sketched down her ideas.

"Yes, hello Mrs. Briefs, I was wondering if Videl is there?" Hercule asked politely.

"Yes, may I ask who's calling?" Bulma asked not paying attention to the voice on the other end.

"Its Hercule, the worlds strongest man. Videl ran away from home and I'm worried about my baby…could I talk to her please?" Hercule asked.

Bulma's eyes snapped open as she dropped the phone.

'Shit!' she mentally cursed as she scrambled to pick up the phone.

"I'm sorry, she can't come to the phone right now, have a good day!" she said quickly and slammed the phone down.

"Crap" she said quietly as she smacked herself in the forehead.

She sat in her chair for a few minutes trying to think of something she could do.

'I can't tell Gohan, he'd flip out and Videl would get worried and Hercule seems to be a touchy subject for Aaliyah…. I guess I'll just have to tell Goku and Vegeta and just ask them to keep an eye out.' She though as she stood up to go search for the two men.

She walked to the gravity chamber and looked in. Of course, Vegeta was sparring Goku.

She punched the code in so the gravity would return to normal then entered the chamber.

Vegeta panted as he gave a glare to his wife.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked angrily, and then assumed it was something fairly serious because she never interrupted them.

Bulma glared at her husband then closed the chamber doors and walked over to the two men.

"I just got a call, someone asked if Videl was there then I said yes and I asked who was calling and then Hercule said he wanted to speak to her… HERCULE KNOWS VIDELS HERE!" She said as she tried to keep her voice down but failed in the end.

"And this is of my concern because…?" Vegeta asked as he crossed his arms.

Bulma put on a face that Vegeta could never resist.

"Vegeta, Hercule beats Videl, he put her down, and it's his fault she's so skinny! Please just keep an eye out for her. If you see something out of the ordinary check it out. Please" Bulma said with clasped hands.

"Don't worry Bulma we'll make sure she's ok. But why didn't you tell Gohan?" Goku asked as he wiped off some sweat

"I would its just… You know just as well as I do Gohan loves her. He'd go insane if he knew Hercule might be poking his fat head around. By the looks of it he already helped her with one major problem. There's no need to worry about another when we can prevent the stress" She said with a small smile.

"You got it!" Goku said as he gave a thumb up.

She looked at Vegeta and he sighed and grunted.

"Fine" he said quietly.

"Thank you sweetie, thanks Goku," she said as she kissed Vegeta on the cheek and gave Goku a small hug.

"Anyways, I'm going to go finish Videl's dress, she's gonna look so hot!" She said as she left the room to leave the men to do what ever they wanted.

Both men stood quietly before Vegeta spoke up.

"I may not like it, but I think you son has made a good choice for a woman" Vegeta said as he grabbed a towel and patted his face try.

Goku smiled proudly. "Videl is a perfect match for Gohan. She keeps him in line, and you can tell just by this morning he's helped her out a lot" Goku said, as his smiled never faded.

"If I didn't know any better Vegeta I'd say you like my son" Goku said with a sly smile.

Vegeta glared at Goku

"Good thing you know better," he mumbled as he left the chamber to go change.

Goten walked hand and hand with Gohan as they made their way to the back of Capsule Corp.

"Gohan will you give me a ride?" Goten asked excitedly as they walked towards Bulma's outdoor skating rink.

The group of them was all going to go skating together to celebrate the almost new year.

"You got it squirt," Gohan said as they walked into the backward.

Gohan opened the back door once he did up his coat and saw that everyone was already out there and…. Was that Videl?

He thought as he looked out and say someone doing an amazing skating routine

Gohan walked with Goten over to Goku.

"She's really good!" Goku said as he watched her perform.

Videl was skating to Queen's 'I want to break free', and she was doing it with way more confidence then she had her first performance.

At one part in the song, she stopped did a little dance then skated backwards and did a full backwards flip.

The whole while she did this, her smile never left her face and she never once looked down.

"Gohan, whatever you did it worked wonders," Goku said as he patted his son on the back.

"I didn't think she'd take it to heart. I thought I'd have to work at it." Gohan looked back out just as Videl was finishing her routine.

Gohan started tying up his skates.

Once he finished he stood up, just as he finished Videl finished and smiled at all the applauds she was getting.

She grinned wildly as she saw Gohan. She skated over to him.

"Hey you!" She said as she reached him.

"Hey" he said with a smile as she held her hands out.

"Lets skate!" she said as she pulled him away.

Gohan laughed as they skated together.

"Videl?" he asked as he slowly came to a stop.

"Yeah" she answered as she stopped as well

"Not that it's a bad thing…. but why the sudden attitude change? You went from all depressed to happy. I've never seen you like this" he said earning a smile from her.

"I'm listening to you. I thought about it and I had this dream. And in the dream one little boy made all the difference and thought it related to you. So I decided I'd try it out. Don't get me wrong I still have issues with my self…. but I'm actually feeling good about my self for the most part" She said as she leaned up and pecked him on the cheek.

Gohan smiled, feeling a sense of accomplishment then he felt Videl pull at him.

"Come on, I heard Gohan wanted to skate with you" she said as they went off again.

Meanwhile while everyone is skating the 4 women snuck off.

"Alright guys 18 and I have almost finished the dress. Tomorrow Aaliyah and Bulma are getting the shoes and jewelry correct?" Chi Chi said as they made their way to the sewing room.

They walked into the room and locked the door.

"Alright you guys ready to see it?" Chi Chi said excitedly

18 pulled off the sheet that was covering it as everyone gawked at it.

"Its so pretty!" Aaliyah said as she circled around the mannequin

"We still have to make a few alterations, and stitch some things up, but yeah that's basically it" 18 said proudly

"This is so hot! Gohan is going to go nuts!" Bulma said as the women started talking about plans of children in their future and other things.

After everyone had finished skating Vegeta went go to the gravity chamber when he heard the phone ring.

After it rang twice he grumbled something then answered.

"What do you want?" he barked into the phone.

"Hello sir, good after noon. Is Videl there, please?" the male voice responded politely

Vegeta was quiet for a minute. "Who wants to know?" he asked suspiciously

"I'm the Great Hercule. I'm her father, I'm very worried about her, may I please talk to her so I can make sure she's alright" Hercule responded once again playing the 'upset father' card.

Vegeta glared at the phone. He'd never admit it, but he had a soft spot for Gohan's girlfriend. He had never in his life seen a female quite like her. She could handle everything he threw at her. And he respected her greatly for what that jackass has out her through.

"Don't you dare call my number again you asshole" he said then slammed the phone down.

Meanwhile

Videl was in her room; she had finished skating about an hour ago and decided to go to her room.

Whenever Videl got really board she started to clean, so she did.

She started humming a tune as she made her bead

She stopped halfway through bed making and turned the radio on, hearing a song she liked, she cranked it and started singing along with it.

Wish I knew then what I know now
You held all the cards and sold me out
Baby, shame on you if you fooled me once,
Shame on me if you fooled me twice
You've been a pretty hard case to crack
I should've known better but I didn't and I can't go back

She sang as she went back over to the bed

Because the music was so loud she failed to hear a knock on the door.

Oooh, life goes on, and it's only gonna make me strong
Its a fact, once you get on board say goodbye cuz you can't go back
Oooh, it's a fight, and I really wanna get it right
Where I'm at, is my life before me, got this feeling that I can't go back

The last few lines were sun with out accompaniment. Videl jumped as she heard clapping behind her, and whizzed around to find Bulma standing beside the stereo.

"Bulma! You scared the crap out of me! I didn't know you were there," Videl said as she caught her breath.

"Gohan was right" Bulma simply stated earning a confused look.

"What?" she asked.

"He said you could sing really well, and you do. Oh! You should sing at the New Years Eve bash! This song is perfect for you!" She said with a giggle.

Videl blushed a little "I don't know Bulma, I kinda have stage fright, and I don't think it would be a good idea…"

"Nonsense, you'll have an amazing dress, and a beautiful voice to go with it" Bulma said as she wrapped her around the girl.

Videl hesitated a bit.

'Well…. I've tried some new things so far and they felt good. Why not?' she hesitantly

"Alright, but I want practice. I need to get over my fear." Videl said

"Ehehehehe!" Bulma squealed, " You're not going to regret this! Come-on lets go run through a practice quickly!" Bulma said happily as she pulled Videl's arm as she walked.

Videl sweat dropped but followed.

Bulma lead her a series of twists and turns until they reached the room beside Bulma's office.

They walked in and locked the door behind them. Bulma released Videl and started typing on her computer.

"Alright, this room is sound proof. So you could scream as loud as you wanted and no one would know. I've come here before, when Vegeta has done something to annoy me. Anyways, lets run through it. Do you know all the words?" Bulma questioned as she spun to face Videl, in her chair.

Videl nodded dumbly.

"Alright, lets run through it then"

Videl once again nodded dumbly as Bulma turned back to her computer and clicked on play.

Videl heard the music play and started to get a lump in her throat.

'No, I can do this'

In just as Videl was about to belt out a tune, Bulma stopped the music catching Videl by surprise.

"What's the matter?" She asked confused.

"I have a better idea," she said as she turned around and rummaged through a box then pulled out a pair of headphones.

"Put these on. They'll play the music in there, then I can hear you better" she said as she handed the head phones over to Videl.

Videl put them on and nodded. Once again the music started playing. Videl took a deep breath then sang.

You sucked me in and played my mind
Just like a toy you would crank and wind
Baby, I would give till you wore it out
You left me lying in a pool of doubt
If you're still thinkin' you're the daddy mac
You should've known better but you didn't and I can't go back

Bulma gawked at the woman as she sang. She had heard she was talented, and could tell by the bit she had heard previously, but it was amazing when there was no other sound.

Videl continued the song, never once opening her eyes.

Once Videl was done she closed her eyes tightly.

She peeked on eye open and saw a huge grin on Bulma's face she slowly opened the other eye then took the headphones off.

"What?" she asked.

"That was amazing! I knew you could sing but…wow!" She said as she hugged the teenager.

Videl smiled a little.

"Thanks" she said as she hugged back.

"You wanna hear the play back?" Bulma asked once again with a grin on.

Videl laughed a little.

"Alright lets hear it," she said as she sat on the extra chair.

All right guys, I'm going to leave it there because I wanted to post a chapter for my awesome fans! Thanks SOOOOOO much for being so patient, I hope you like it. Again I'm really sorry but I've been really caught up, especially now that exams are coming up and I'm not in a semester school.