Alright guys, here is chapter 19! Now I'd like to just say thank you to everyone who reviewed me; I absolutely loved it, you're all so sweet and I'm more then flattered that you all are enjoying my story as much as you say you are. Now I know people have commented on the length, but I'd just like to say that when I'm reading a story, if I have to wait for a chapter, I love it when the author adds a long chapter, one that takes more than ten minutes to read. I feel it helps keep interest alive as well as makes the wait worthwhile; just my opinion at least.
For those who offered their support, I'd like to say a sincere thank you; my life hasn't gotten worse for the time being, but I wouldn't say it's gotten any better, I'm hanging out in limbo.
Anyways, here is chapter 19, I hope you all enjoy it and once again…please read and review!
Chapter 19: Friday's Arrival
"Talking"
'Thinking'
Friday; a day that was highly enjoyed by teenagers in high school, however for one teenager, it was a day that he had been worried about for over a week. After the storm in the mountains last night, Gohan had been nothing but edgy, it was as if the gods or Mother Nature was trying to foreshadow something that was to come. Try as he might, Gohan couldn't help but feel uneasy this day, something about it just didn't give him a good vibe.
As soon as Gohan had woken up that day, he felt something in the pit of his stomach and no matter what he did he couldn't shake his uneasiness.
Videl hadn't seemed to be effected by his nervousness and was simply taking on the day as if it were another day. She was nothing but smile to everyone she saw, and was talking continually of how she was looking forward to the celebration at Bulma's after school.
She and Gohan had hammered out the details of what was going to take place after school today; Gohan would return home after school, and Videl would head to the library, do some research and take out history texts, then she would head over to Bulmas just as everything would be getting into full swing.
Gohan still tried to convince her to let him go with her, but she instead that she would be fine and that he would be needed to help lift and prepare everything since Bulma wouldn't be able to do much lifting now that she was carrying another child inside of her.
Much to Gohans dismay, the day was also flying by as well and before he knew it his final class for the day was reaching its last hour, meaning the end was near.
Gohan chewed the top of his pen as he tuned the teacher out and stared over at Videl who had been intently taking notes.
'I've got such a bad feeling about today' Gohan thought to himself nervously as Videl turned, as if sensing his eyes on her and gave him a quick smile before returning to taking her notes for biology.
'She seems so laid back, why am I so worried? This makes no sense. She's one of the strongest women I've ever met, she can take care of herself' he thought to himself, feeling a smile come to his lips as he thought about Videls flattering qualities.
Gohan stayed lost in his thoughts for the rest of the class, as he stared blankly a head as the teacher rambled on about cellular biology.
Videl looked up from her paper and noticed that Gohan seemed completely consumed in his thoughts. 'He seems so on edge today' she thought to herself as she took a quick glance at Gohan again and frowned at the blank expression on his face.
'I won't be gone long, I don't get why he's so worried' she argued with herself as she started to tune out the teacher as well, 'I do suppose he has some good reason to…I mean every time I've said that I'll be fine something has happened to me. But I haven't had anything bad happen to me since that dill hole shot me at the ball' she thought, having an internal conversation with herself.
'No things will be fine. I'll go to the library, check out the texts that I'll need for the project, then I'll quickly head over to Bulma's. No harm done' she told herself internally, nodded her head in agreement with herself.
"Huh?" She muttered out loud as she noticed her classmates were starting to stand up, she then noticed that Gohan too was in a confused state much like hers.
"Is class over?" She questioned no one in particular.
"Guess so" Gohan muttered quietly as he started to pack his stuff into his backpack, a solemn look on his face.
"Walk a lady to her locker?" Videl asked with a smile, trying to ease his worries as she extended her hand to Gohan.
"I'd walk my lady anywhere" he said with a smile as he stood up and gently grasped her hand as they started to talk out of the nearly empty class room.
They walked in silence for a few minutes before Gohan spoke up, starting a conversation. "So what is it again that you need to research?" he asked, nervousness clearly evident in his voice.
"I've got to write a report on the ancient ways for criminal codes. The teacher told us to start from mythological times, and go up to almost the middle ages. So I'm going to do research on Greek mythological creatures and what they stood for and how they influenced the criminal codes and laws, then make comparisons to the ways of the laws and criminal codes later in time, such as in the middle ages" she said as she tried to understand what was running through Gohan's mind at the time.
"Bulma probably has resources that could help you" he said, desperately trying to find a way to ease his uneasiness.
Videl let out a small laugh, "Bulma probably has sources dating from those times…but is gives a list of suggested resources and told us to limit ourselves to the sources that are in our library. Sweetie, I don't know why you're worried but I wish you wouldn't be" she said as she heaved a small sigh.
"I've just got a bad feeling is all" he said quietly as they slowly walked to their lockers.
"They need your help, and quite frankly I'm sure your mom could use your help in handling Goten and Trunks. Let's face it, Bulma isn't in the condition to chase after him anymore and you can help keep them quite to fight off her mood swings" she reasoned, as she thought back to a recent mood swing she had where she nearly threw her son threw a window.
They reached their lockers and Gohan silently went through and pulled out the text books he would need to complete his weekend homework.
"Are you mad at me?" she asked weakly as she put a few text books in her locker and double checked to make sure that she had her lists of possible books she could use.
"I'm not mad" he said quietly as he shut his locker and out his lock back on. "I'm just worried is all" he said as he looked up at her with sad eyes as she offered a weak smile.
"If I think I'm going to be late, I'll call you. You're welcome to text message me at any point and if for some reason I feel uneasy I'll take to the air or I'll call you. I promise everything will be alright" she said as she gently wrapped her arms around his trim waist.
"I do trust you, I don't know, something just doesn't feel right about today" he said as he returned the gentle hug.
"I'll try not to be longer than an hour, and at most it should take twenty minutes to get to Bulma's, it will be alright hun" she said as she leaned up and gently gave him a peck on the lips.
"You promise thing will be ok?" he asked.
"I'll do everything I can" she said with a small smile. "Now, would you care to walk a lady to the library?" she asked as she held her hand out.
"My lady gets what my lady wants" he said with a small smile as he grasped her hand gently and proceeded to walk down the hallway together and exit the school building.
The walk to the library was much shorter then Gohan would have liked but they quickly arrived. Gohan turned and gave her a meek smile and leaned forward to embrace her and capture her lips in a kiss.
"I'll see you shortly?" he questioned as he gently pulls his lips away from hers but still held her in a hug.
"You will indeed, and I'll watch you guys pig out as your poor mom slaves away on the barbeque" she said with a laugh as she squeezed him lightly.
"Bye" she said gently as she gave him a quick kiss and slowly pulled away from his embrace, much to his dismay.
"Bye" he said weakly as he waved and watch her disappear into the large building.
"You better stay ok" he said quietly as he turned around and went to find an empty alley so he could take off and arrive at Bulma's quicker.
~*~ At Bulma's~*~
Videl had been right when she said that they would need Gohans help to keep the chaos minimal.
He had managed to keep Trunks from tying Goten to the ceiling again with white streamers and had managed to stop Vegeta from fighting Goku. Gohan had seemed on edge and people were now starting to take note of it.
"Is everything alright Gohan?" Goku said as he placed a hand on his eldest sons shoulder.
"Something just doesn't feel right, I've got a bad feeling about today is all" he said as he tried to shake the thoughts out of his head.
"Is it about Videl?" Goku questioned lightly.
"Yea, I don't feel so comfortable with her being by herself" he said quietly as he stared at his feet, avoiding eye contact.
"I can completely understand that…but you've got to understand that she's a grown woman and she's perfectly capable of taking care of herself. She can put Vegeta in her place, I'm sure she can manage anything else that gets thrown at her" he said with a smile, remembering all the times Videl had put the prince of saiyans into his place.
"I know she's capable…just something doesn't feel right" he said as he sat on the couch and let out a defeated sigh.
"Just relax" he said, putting a comforting hand on his sons shoulder. "On a similar topic…how do you think you're going to give Videl her gift?" Goku asked with a grin, knowing what was to come.
"I'm going to throw her a surprise party and give her the gift there. Mom and Bulma are coming with me next week to go shopping, then when I find one that I like, 18 and Aaliyah are going to come to give me another opinion. They're also coming because I'm sure between the four of them, one of them will be similar to Videl's size. Lord knows I'm not" he said with a laugh and a smile, knowing what was to come.
"I can't wait to see her expression" Goku grinned excitedly.
"Yea…I've got it all worked out…she's going to be so surprised. I'm going to plan this surprise party better than anything I've ever done before" Gohan said with a grin as his father laughed.
"I'll be happy to help with anything that you may need assistance with" Goku said with a grin as he let out a laugh.
"Goku, Gohan!" the two heard Chi Chi yell as she walked into the room where the two were sitting.
"Can you help me bring the meat out so I can start barbequing? I'd ask Bulma…but she's starting to get cranky. And I mean real cranky" Chi Chi said as she rubbed her temple to emphasize her point.
The two nodded as they stood up and followed Chi Chi towards the kitchen. As they walked through the hallways, they looked out into the large backyard and noticed that Bulma was now holding Krillin off the ground by the neck of his shirt.
He waved his hands frantically as he tried to explain something but Bulma seemed oblivious to the fact and simply wanted to pummel the former monk.
Goku shook his head sympathetically, "I do not miss Chi being pregnant" he said quietly as he earned a laugh from Gohan.
"I don't miss it either. I'm still afraid to sneeze during the middle of the night for fear of getting smacked with that stupid frying pan" Gohan said as he absent-mindly rubbed his head.
"Just you wait till you have kids; if it's with Videl, she's already got a temper on her, only imagine what It will be like with her" Goku said as his smile turned to a frown.
"You're a dead man" Chi Chi chimed in as she turned to see her son go a bright shade of red.
"Word to the wise…if she wants anything at any time of the night...get it. It will save you from receiving an earful of unnecessary yelling" Goku said as Chi Chi smirked.
"I once sent your father out at four thirty in the morning because I wanted a Twix and mushroom smoothly. The sweetie went out and bought the chocolate and the mushrooms then even blended them together for me" Chi Chi said with a dreamy smile as they reached the kitchen.
"All that" she said as she pointed to the fridge full of food, " needs to come outside please" she said as she received a nod from the two and walked off to meet them outside so she could begin cooking the large mounds of food.
"I cannot wait to eat all this food. Just thinking about it is making my mouth water now" Goku said as he wiped drool from his mouth. He noticed shortly after he made that comment that if fell on deaf ears.
"Gohan?" he questioned, snapping his son out of his dazed stupor.
"Sorry dad" he mumbled as Goku gave him a worried look.
"Have you tried to contact her or anything?" Goku asked as he started piling plates of meat in front of him to carry out to his wife.
"I text messaged her and asked how things were going and she messaged me back saying all was fine and that it was boring as ever" Gohan said as he followed his father's lead.
"Just try and relax, I know you're worried, but try and take it easy. She said she'd be back within the hour, it's only been about an hour now; there's lots of books out there that could be useful, just be patient" Goku said as he placed a hand on Gohans shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "You'll be back to making out and planning that surprise party in no time" Goku said, earning a small blush from Gohan.
Gohan heaved a heavy sigh in an attempt to cover his blush, "if you say so dad" he said in defeat as he followed his father's lead outside.
~*~Elsewhere~*~
Videl heaved a sigh as she grabbed another big textbook. "I'm starting to wonder if getting involve in criminalistics was a good choice after all" she muttered to herself as she piled it on top of the other three books she was holding.
She brought it back to her desk and started to flip through the glossary. 'I love history and all, but even I'm getting bored with all of this' she thought t herself as she heaved an exasperated sigh and started sticking sticky notes on pages where she felt she'd find useful information.
She was startled by her phone vibrating in her pocket; she reached in and grabbed it, knowing it would most likely be a text message from Gohan.
She smiled to herself, she was right. "How are things going?" she read out loud, and then quickly started to message a reply back.
She rubbed her eyes, feeling a little drained from all this mental work. "Three sources down, five more to go" she said out loud as she started looking for new books in the library.
Before she knew it she had almost been at the library for an hour. She flipped through the pages in her books and nodded to herself in satisfaction as she continued to flip though pages, marking any section she felt she missed that may contain information that would aid her grade in her assignment.
"That should do" she muttered to herself as she started to pile the eight heavy books into her arms and carry them to the checkout counter at the front of the library.
"Doing a little research are we?" an elderly Hispanic woman asked from behind the check out. She gave Videl a once over and nodded as if she were approving of her checking the books out.
"Yea, I've got this big history project on criminalistics coming up, I figured I'd get a jump start on my research while I can and save me from scrambling for information and sources later" Videl explained as she brushed a piece of hair out of her face.
"Smart thinking for a girl your age, that boy of yours is clearly rubbing off on you" The elderly woman said with a smile as she gave Videl a small wink, causing the teenager to blush.
Videl knew very well that her relationship with Gohan was well known about. All of the school was surprised at the fact that Videl, the strongest girl in the whole school, was now dating who was commonly known as the smartest nerd in school. Most guys had figured Videl was a lesbian simply because of the way she brushed them all off or threatened them in the past, everyone wouldn't help but wonder just what it was that Videl found so fascinating about Gohan.
"His good habits are starting to rub off a little" she said quietly with a blush.
"That's a good thing dear, it could be worse; he could be into sex drugs and rock and roll" the librarian said as she continued to check out the other books that had been placed on the counter by Videl.
Videl couldn't help but laugh at the thought of Gohan being into all three of those things, "his mother would kill him if she thought he was into any of those things" Videl said with a laugh earning a smile from the librarian.
"Alright dear, the books are due back two weeks from now…now head on home, it's a Friday and the library is no place for a spunky girl like yourself" the librarian said as Videl flashed her a smile.
She piled the books into her backpack quickly, "thank you" she said as she allowed her grin to grow, "you have yourself a wonderful weekend" she said to the woman as she waved to her as she started to exit the library.
"Bye Videl, be careful walking home!" The librarian said with a friendly wave as she returned to doing her work.
Videl walked outside and felt a brisk March wind hit her face as she pulled her zip up closer to her body. She felt a smile come to her lips at the fact she's be back with Gohan soon and could start to relax and have fun.
'I bet he's worried about me still' she thought to herself with a small smile at how sweet Gohan was. She pulled out her phone and messaged him to say that she was leaving the library now and should be there within twenty minutes.
A few seconds later she received Gohan's reply. "Why don't you just fly here" she said quietly as she looked around and notice the street seemed to be alive with the daily hustle and bustle. She message him back saying there were too any people around; she then received another message saying he loved her and would see her soon.
Videl closed her phone with a smile on her face, 'life is perfect' she thought to herself, a small smile on her face as she started to walk down the street. She frowned as she noticed that construction was going on the road and knew it meant she'd have to take a different route or be incredibly delayed.
'I can go through the park, or down the alley' she thought to herself, stopping in mid walk as she attempted to assess which way would be safer. 'Park' she thought to herself as she nodded and changed her course of direction so she could cut through the park to get to Bulma's quicker.
She looked around and inhaled deeply as she stepped into the park. She always loved talking a walk through the park; the gardens were slowly starting to bloom and the trees were now heavy with their new leaves creating a darker atmosphere in the park. Small bits of light peeked through the leaves as she started walking through the shaded area.
She took a moment to absorbed her surroundings, but something felt off. "Where is everyone?" she muttered to herself as she looked around. Normally on a Friday afternoon, the park was littered with families and couples going for walks before it got too dark, but today it was empty.
She looked up and through the small exposed areas of sky between the trees she noticed it was becoming overcast, the sky was growing grew gray quickly as a cold breeze started to pick up.
She felt a shiver run through her body as she turned and picked up her pace, no wanting to get out of the park as quick as possible. Her eyes went wide as she heard a twig snap behind her and got the strangest feeling of déjà vu.
"I hate squirrels, stupid furry little buggers" she muttered to herself, hoping that it was simply her imagination. She continued to talk in silence; she continually scanned her view of the park in case anything was waiting ahead of her. She then heard another branch snap, this one sounding closer to her.
Not wanting to try and trick her mind into believing it was something else, she started to jog quickly in an attempt to flee whatever it was that was following her. She heard loud shuffling behind her and she started into a dash. However, no matter how quickly she ran the sound of the footsteps and twigs breaking was right behind her.
She heard a pause in the running; she had an internal battle as to whether or not she wanted to see what was following her. She turned around slightly as she kept up her pace and saw absolutely nothing. She slowly slowed down, inhaling deeply as she tried to catching her breath from the recent sprint.
Before she could react something grabbed her from behind and pressed something against her mouth and nose. Her instincts instantly panicked and she started breathing heavily as whomever it was continued to hold her tightly, preventing her from putting up any kind of a fight.
Her eyes opened wide as something came across her mind quickly. 'Is that chloroform?' she thought to herself as she quickly felt her eyes grow heavy and her body slowly becoming limp. As hard as she tried to fight it, the chloroform was clearly having its intended effect on her.
The last thing she heard before she lost consciousness was the sound of a sinister snicker, and then her body went limp in the arms of whoever was holding her.
~*~ Elsewhere~*~
"Ten minutes, she'll here in ten minutes" Gohan muttered as he checked the clock for the twentieth time in five minutes.
"Hey Gohan, I was thinking…did you want to throw Videl's surprise party here?" Bulma asked as she walked into the room where Gohan was. She wiped her lip to get rid of the crumbs from her sandwich and then took a seat next to him.
"That could work actually, there's much more room here for everyone" Gohan said thoughtfully, temporarily removing his thoughts from concern towards his girlfriend.
"Are you nervous?" She questioned, finishing up the last bit of her snack.
"I guess it's kind of a yes and no. You guys are alright to come out and go shopping next week right?" Gohan said as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.
"Oh course we are and trust me we're all excited, I know you're going to make an awesome choice. Your mom already spoke to the four of us; I may not be Videl size, but we think either 18 or Aaliyah might be. Your mother doesn't think Videl would be her size, she claims she's heavier and has a bigger hip span" Bulma said as she brushed all the crumbs off of her dress.
Gohan scrunched up his face in confusion, "mom is tiny…don't tell me she's going down the same path Videl was" he said in a worried tone.
"No no, with the way your father compliments her, not a chance. But she is like every other female out there and has her insecurities about the odd thing. I mean, I'm the richest woman in the world, and I'm self conscious of the fact that I'm getting fat" she stated bluntly as anger slowly started coming out in her voice.
"Bulma, you're pregnant, not fat" Gohan said as he heaved a sigh. "You can barely tell that you're pregnant from the back anyways" he stated as a look of surprise came across his features.
Bulma sent a glare Gohans way, "so you're saying I look fat from the front?" she questioned.
Gohan now realizing she was having a mood swing desperately attempted to calm her down, "I'm not saying that at all, you look like you're pregnant! And even then, you're barely showing" he exclaimed as he raised his hands in front of him defensively.
"So now you think my pregnancy isn't going as it should be then" she said, still giving Gohan a glare.
"Bulma, you're beautiful and I'm sure your child will be just as attractive. You are pretty" he said as Bulma gave him a big grin.
"Awh Gohan you're such a sweetheart" she said as she gave Gohan a hug and started crying gently. "I'm going to go and find Vegeta" she mumbled as she started rubbing her eyes in an attempt to get rid of the now falling tears.
"My god women are confusing" he muttered. He learned that when his mother was pregnant that the best way to defuse a situation when the woman is calling herself fat is to tell her she is pretty. Worked like a charm on his mother, and now he realized it works for Bulma.
'I wonder if I should tell Vegeta about that little trick' he thought to himself then laughed, 'nah, I think I'll keep quiet about it for now'.
Gohan got up from the room and walked towards the backyard. He noticed that everyone was talking animatedly amongst themselves. He looked over and saw Vegeta blushing wildly as Bulma hugged him and sobbed into his t-shirt talking about how sorry she was for trying to throw him out again.
He walked over to his mother who turned and gave him a smile. ``are we any more relaxed?" she questioned to him with a worried smile. The smile that had previously been on Gohans face now dropped into a look of worry.
"No, I wouldn't say that, I'm still worried. She should be here in…" he trailed off as he looked at the clock that was against the building, "five minutes at most" he said as his mother nodded in approval.
"You can't expect her to be that exact with her timing, give her an extra ten minutes before you start freaking out. You never know, maybe she rescued some kids kitten on the way here and it delayed her. The last thing I need is for you to go super saiyan and start blowing everything away when there's no need to" she said as she placed her hands on her hips and gave him a stern look.
"I only go super if need be" he said sheepishly as Chi Chi sighed.
"Just try and relax sweetie, we're here to have fun and we all know that Videl is more than just a strong, capable woman. She will fight through anything that comes up to her and she'll come out on top. RELAX!" she yelled as Gohan slowly sat down on a chair in an attempt to prove that he was trying to relax.
Gohan took in a deep inhale as he closed his eyes in an attempt to relax. He listened to the conversations around him; he listened to how Aaliyah and Yamcha were planning on going on a vacation together within the next few months, how 18 slapped master Roshi for drooling on her while she was tanning in the sun, as well as how Bulma would tell Vegeta to get out of her house, then three minutes later come back bawling her eyes out and telling him to forgive her.
He continued to listen to the conversations, keeping his breath steady as he attempted to relax and push out any unnerving images from his head. A few minutes later he felt a tug on his pant leg. He opened his eyes, hoping to see Videl, however he saw his little brother.
"What's up squirt?" he questioned as he pulled his younger brother onto his lap to talk at eye level with him.
"Gohan, where's Videl?" Goten asked with a pout. Goten would never admit it, but he loved Videl almost as much as Gohan did and he cared for her like a sister. When she wasn't around he missed her and worried about her when he was without contact with her for such long periods of time.
"She should be here any minute now squirt" he said as he ruffled Goten's hair.
"I feel something bad" Goten said quietly as he looked up at his older brother with scared eyes.
"I fell it too Goten, but all we can do is sit and wait" he said, trying to relax the boy as he attempted to calm himself down.
"Want to hear what dad and I did earlier?" Goten asked, a big smile quickly coming onto his face.
"Of course, what did you two do today?" he asked as Goten proceeded to tell him over the next fifteen minutes how they captured a spider, then put it in Vegeta's hair, then watched as Vegeta freaked out when it crawled onto his forehead, then proceeded to explain how their lives had been threatened yet again.
"Hey Gohan, I thought your mom said Videl was supposed to be here like twenty minutes ago" Aaliyah said as she came up beside the two brothers, interrupting their conversation.
Gohan looked over at the clock; it was indeed little more than twenty minutes past the expected time of Videl's arrival. Gohan was now overcome by worry.
He quickly closed his eyes and extended his senses in an attempt to feel Videl's energy signal, when he felt no signal, panic now officially started setting in.
He quickly set Goten down on the ground and moved quickly over to his father.
"Dad, I need you to try and sense Videl, I can't feel her energy signal and she's late coming here" he said as Goku nodded in agreement and closed his eyes in concentration for a few minutes.
A puzzled look came across his face, "that's so weird…I can't find it" he stated, watching his son gain a look of fear in his eyes.
"Gohan take it easy, give her a couple more minutes, you never know" he said as their conversation drew the attention of everyone in the backyard.
"Five more minutes" Gohan muttered as everyone now sat together, hoping to hear of good news for Gohans sake.
Everyone was now sitting together in a large circle, Gohan pacing in the middle back and forth. "Gohan, you've been pacing back and forth for the past ten minutes now…you're making me nauseous" Bulma said as she slowly rubbed her slightly protruding belly.
"That could be due to the fact that you're knocked up" Vegeta muttered as Bulma sent him a glare. He would pay for that and he knew it, he couldn't help but be entertained by the way her mood changed with the simplest comments.
"It's not like her to be more than half an hour late and now tell me something. She would have called, or text messaged me or something" he said as he continued to pace, much to Bulma's dismay.
"If you're that worried, try sensing her" Chi Chi offered as she watched her son shake his head.
"I've tried, I can get a reading on her energy signal, I can't find her" he stated, worry evident in his voice. He stopped pacing for a few moments and close his eyes again, desperately hoping he would be able to sense her energy signal, but yet again it didn't work; Videl was nowhere to be found.
"Gohan?" Goten questioned as he lightly pulled on his big brother leg in an attempt to get his attention. He waited a few moments, and then repeated this action.
"What is it Goten?" he asked, a little annoyed his brother was interrupting him when he was desperately trying to find his missing girlfriend.
"What about your watch?" Goten questioned as Gohan gave him a look of confusion.
"What about my watch?' he asked, wondering where the small boy was going with this.
"Doesn't your watch pick up police signals? Listen and see if anything is said about Videl" Goten explained as Gohans eyes snapped open wide.
"Goten, you're a genius!" he exclaimed as he gave his smaller brother a quick hug.
He quickly turned his watch on and listened intently, along with everyone else who was sitting in the backyard.
Everyone now and then a comment would be made about a domestic disturbance, or a speeding car on the highway, but nothing that would include Videl.
"Maybe nothing is going on for her to take care of?" Goku questioned, hoping that she would end up alright; he had grown to be very fond of the teenager.
Just as Gohan had opened his mouth to respond the sound of a frantic older man came through on the speaker in the watch.
"I need all units, I repeat, all units to the Satan mansion now" the vice said.
A collective gasp was heard from a few people. "Oh my god, please no" Chi Chi said as she covered her mouth in surprise.
"What's the problem chief? Over." A voice came through.
"People called reporting hearing shots fired at the Satan mansion. I repeat shots fired at the Satan mansion, I need all units report immediately" eh man repeated, his voice sounding more frantic each time he spoke.
"Gohan?" Krillin questioned gently as Gohan had appeared to be frozen in his spot.
Before another breath could be taken Gohan turned into Saiyaman and blasted off towards the Satan mansion, hoping to see Videl alive and well.
"I shouldn't have let her go by herself. This is all my fault" Gohan thought to himself, frantically trying to reach the Satan mansion as quickly as he could. He stopped in surprise when he noticed hundreds of police officers were now on the property of the Satan mansion.
Gohan was shocked at how quickly they reacted then moved into action, hoping to catch a glimpse of Videl, to make sure she was alright, to make sure she was alive.
He landed softly on the grass of the mansion and attempted to run into the building but was stopped by a group of officers.
"Sorry Saiyaman, this is a closed crime scene, you can't go in there for such a high profile case" the officers said as they blocked his entrance.
"I need to make sure Videl is alright, what happened" he asked as he tried to find a way in but noticed all entrances were blocked, including windows.
"I can not disclose that information, you're just going to have to wait until the press release" the man said sternly as Gohan felt his frustration.
"Is Videl ok?" he questioned more forcefully. The men remained quiet, not giving into the intimidating presence of Saiyaman.
"I can not disclose that information. Please vacate the premise" the officer repeated again, hoping to sound slightly intimidating.
"One Satan is dead" rang through one of the officers walkie talkie.
"Which one?" Gohan pressed, is fear now getting the better of his emotions.
"Mister Saiyaman, this is a hard time for all of us, but you're going to have to wait until the press release like everyone else in the city" the man repeated.
"Coroner on route….wait….call a bus, we've got one alive, just barely! We're trying to revive the other" another officer exclaimed, giving Gohan a sense of hope.
"Is it Videl, is she alive?" he questioned, desperately hoping someone would say 'yes Saiyaman, Videl is alive and well no harm done'. However with everyone avoiding his questions he felt as though his hope was quickly dwindling.
Gohans voice was interrupted by the sounds of screaming sirens as two ambulances came speeding onto the Satan property. Quickly the doors opened and paramedics burst towards the mansion with their gurneys.
Gohan waited rather impatiently as they rushed into the building, a few moments later two gurneys came out of the building, one with Videl and the other with Hercule strapped in. The two of them looked much paler than usual, both had their eyes closed, their faces each had blood on them as well as both had an oxygen mask with a re-breathing bag over their faces.
He studied Videl in horror; her ivory skin was now white as glue and she didn't seem to be moving and he couldn't see the steady rise and fall of her chest to see if she was breathing or not.
"Please, let me see her!" Gohan yelled as he tried to get through the throng of police officers blocking his path.
"Look, I can see you're concerned about Videl, Saiyaman, but for now we can't let you see her. Look, wait in the hospital, I'll inform the staff and then we can see if we can get you a visitation" the elderly police chief said, trying to calm the frantic teen.
"Is Videl alive?" He questioned quietly, his fear taking over his senses.
"I don't know if it's her or Mister Satan that's alive, we'll just have to wait and see" he said quietly as Gohan felt his world come crashing down. "We'll see you at the hospital shortly" he said quietly as he motioned for his men t securer the crime scene in order to allow for the C.S.I's to get in and work their magic.
Gohan slumped against a tree when he was told this, he had been so tempted to simply go super and burst through the doors, but he knew that could destroy evidence that they needed to help Videl.
He was jerked out of his thoughts by the vibrating and ringing of his phone. He quickly flew into the sky and pulled it out of his tunic.
"Hello?" he questioned in a solemn voice.
"Gohan, it's me" Goku said from the other end, "what's going on? Is Videl alright?" he asked, knowing everyone on Gokus end of the phone was just as concerned as he was.
"I don' know, they wouldn't let me into the mansion so I couldn't see her. All I know is that either Videl or Hercule is dead, they're trying to resuscitate whoever it is, and the other is just barely alive. I saw them both being taken to the hospital by a gurney, but neither looked responsive and I couldn't feel an energy signal from either" he said, feeling his eyes start to sting with hot, unshed tears.
"I'm sure Videl is the one that's alive, she's a fighter Gohan and there's no way she'd leave you without putting up one hell of a fight" Goku said, trying to calm his clearly upset son.
"This is really scary dad" Gohan said quietly as he felt hot tears slowly make their way down his cheeks.
"Where are you? We'll come and meet you. There's no reason for you to be going through this alone son" Goku said, his fatherly instinct taking over and not wanting Gohan to be alone in such a frightening experience.
"I'm going to the hospital" Gohan replied in a shaky voice, he simply allowed the tears to slow from his eyes and made no attempt to stop or hide them from under his sunglasses.
"We'll meet you at the hospital shortly alright? Hang tight for now. We'll get through this Gohan, I promise, and if something did happen to Videl, we'll wish her back with the Dragon Balls before you even get the chance to miss her alright?" Goku said, trying to reassure his son that things would work out in the end.
"Ok dad, I'll see you shortly" he replied in a quiet voice, then hung up his phone and flew the short trip to the hospital where Videl had been taken.
Gohan had made his way through the hundreds of reporters to sit in the waiting room, fortunately for him, Saiyaman had saved one of the nurses so she pulled a few strings and made sure that he could sit in the waiting room until he received news of Videls condition; whether she be dead or alive. It bothers Gohan how tight lipped they were being to say which one was alive and which one had been killed, but it bothered him more that no energy signal was being emitted from either of the two Satan's.
As he sat in the uncomfortable hospital chair, he felt someone jerk him out of his thoughts, startled he looked down and realized that his mother now had her arms wrapped around Gohan.
"It will be alright sweetie, we'll get through this" Chi Chi said as she hugged him tightly. All Gohan needed was a little skin contact to bring him to tears again and that was indeed what happened.
"Let it out Gohan, just let it all out" she whispered as she held him tightly and felt him return her grip as he cried into his shoulder.
Vegeta normally would have made a snide comment of how showing human emotions was a sign of weakness, especially one that involves blubbering like a baby, but even he held a degree of respect for Gohan at the moment. It was hard not knowing if a loved one was dead or alive, not a thought he ever hoped to experience.
After about ten minutes of letting his frustration and fears out through his tears he regained his composure, "how were you guys allowed in here?" he questioned in a strained voice as he tried to keep calm.
"I spoke to the head coordinator of the hospital; Capsule Corp is a big donator here and I told them I was with the family who had been taking care of Videl for the past year and that she was a family member of ours. As soon as that was explained, and that their funding would be pulled otherwise, they were more than happy to accommodate our little group" Bulma said as a smirk came to her lips. Oh yes, Vegeta was most definitely rubbing off on her.
"That's one way to get the job done. You could have always sent Vegeta to talk with them" Krillin said, attempting to lighten the mood, earning a few laughs in response.
"Gohan, I promise I'll make sure Videl is alright" Goten said as he stood innocently in front of his big brother. "I may not completely understand what's going on, but I hate seeing you like this" Goten said as he moved to sit on Gohans lap and squeeze him tightly in a hug.
"Thanks squirt" Gohan whispered quietly as he returned the hug from his brother. "You guys don't have to stay if you don't want to" Gohan said, as he looked up and the group, still keeping his sunglasses on.
"Gohan, we love Videl as well and want to make sure she's alright. You shouldn't go through this alone, it's much better to have a support system around you. Even the greatest of fighters knows when he needs help and quite frankly, this is a situation you shouldn't be left alone to face" Goku said as he placed a hand on Gohans shoulder and gave it a light squeeze for reassurance.
Gohan quickly realized that his father was right, he would have been completely petrified had he been forced to face this situation alone. Any time a thought came to his mind of not being able to save Videl, or it being his fault that she's dead someone quickly pointed out numerous reasons as to why there was no way he could of prevented this and id their best to try and assure him that she was most likely the one alive.
Gohan had gone to ask the nurse a few times if there was any new news on Videls condition, but he was always faced with the same response, that being "I'm sorry, but we cannot disclose that information for the time being".
He was completely heartbroken at not receiving any information so others in his family would opt to try and find out information as to keep Gohan in a relatively relaxed state of mind.
The large group had now been in the empty waiting room for almost three hours and all the nurses seemed rather edgy to talk about the Satan case, none of them wanting to reveal which one had lost their lives.
"Which Satan is dead?" Vegeta demanded to the scared young nurse.
"I'm sorry, but that information is not to be disclosed for the time being" the nervous nurse stuttered out.
"Is one of them dead?" he questioned, trying to find ways to receive answer, hoping his intimidation would work.
"Yes, one of the Satan's were shot to death" she said quietly, as she took a few slow steps back from Vegeta, then took off into a dash in the opposite direction.
"The idiot says one of the two was shot to death, but wouldn't say which one" Vegeta said as he returned to his seat Beside Bulma, where she quickly grabbed his hand and squeezed it in an attempt to quietly thank her.
"Did one of them look bloodier then the other Gohan?" Aaliyah asked quietly. She had been rather quiet during the whole event but she was more than scared for her daughter's life, especially knowing firsthand what Hercule was capable of.
"They both looked pretty bloody to be honest with you" he said quietly, trying to fight back the new onslaught of tears that was threatening to spill from his eyes again.
Chi Chi pulled Gohan's head so it was now resting on her small shoulder, "Gohan, if you need to cry, you go ahead and cry" she whispered quietly as she hugged her sons broad shoulders in an attempt to provide some comfort.
"I don't know what I'd do without her mom, I love her so much" he said quietly as his breathing began to get shaky as a few stray tears made their way down his cheeks.
"I know you love her sweetie, she loves you just as much. There is no way a strong fighter like Videl would give in so quickly, even if she did die, we both know she'd be fighting everyone in the other world to come back here and tell you to snap out of it and that she was alright" Chi Chi said with a small smile as she gently rubbed his shoulders in comfort.
Gohan soon felt himself drifting out of consciousness; it wasn't that he was physically tired, but emotionally he was completely drained. He let his eyes close gently as he rested against his mother's shoulder, in an attempt to claim a few minutes of sleep.
"Trunks, what are we going to do if Videl dies?" Goten whispered quietly to his best friend.
"We'll do what your dad said, we'll collect those dragon balls so fast, she'll be back here in no time helping us prank my dad" Trunks said confidently
"I'm scared, what if she's really hurt?" Goten whispered quietly.
"I'm not scared, she could kick anyone's ass" he said in an attempt to calm his best friend down.
"Gohan and my dad can't feel her energy signal" he whispered back, yawning in the process.
"We'll wish her back, she can't be gone. She just can't be, it's like some rule" Trunks whispered as he too felt sleep threatening to over take him.
"I'm going to sleep now Trunks" Goten whispered with his eyes closed as he covered another yawn.
"Me too…" Trunks whispered as he trailed off, sleep now whisking him away as well.
~*~ A little while later~*~
It had now been a little over three hours since the arrival of everyone into the hospital. Every channel that was being shown on the hospitals TV's were all head lining the same topic, that being how shots had been heard at the Satan mansion earlier that after noon. Then there was an announcement that one of the Satan's had been killed but the police would not release the information of which one had died until they were able to interview the survivor who was now in critical condition.
The news buzzed with who they felt could be the one who had died, and how tragic is was that someone had committed such a violent act against such heroic people. Next they talked about who could have committed such an act against the hero of the world, and his city saving daughter. The news broadcasts only served as fuel for the fire that was Gohans panic.
"We believe it will most likely be Videl Satan that is announced as the one who was shot to death. As tragic as it is, she didn't compare to her father's strength; he did after all save the world from the evil monster Cell" one news broadcaster said to a panel of other broadcasters as they debating about the whole incident that had taken place.
"I think it was gangsters who shot the Satan's, who else would have a vendetta against them except for the ones that Videl helped put behind bars?" Another responded.
"Do these people have no decency?" Krillin questioned out loud quietly.
"They're talking as if she's dead…but they don't know for sure" Aaliyah said as she watched Gohan keep quiet.
Gohan had been doing his best to tune everyone out, he continually silently prayed that Videl would be alright but he had a nagging fear in his head; Videl was the strongest female he knew, but even she couldn't stand up against the bullets of who ever had shot them.
~*~ Elsewhere~*~
Heavy blue eyes slowly opened as they allowed their eyes to adjust to the lights, ever so slowly skimming around the room to try and figure out where they were.
'what the hell?' they thought to themselves as they tried to get up but failed miserably, only being met by a large amount of pain coursing through their strong, currently heavy body.
"Saiyaman has been waiting in the waiting room for awhile now. Says he wants to see the survivor" One nurse said as she checked the blood pressure of the battered patient.
"Maybe he wants to interview them so he can get the bad guy, lord knows the police won't catch the jerk that killed such a poor innocent person" another replied.
Through lidded eyes, they reached out and pressed a button ever so gently, releasing a sound that caught the attention of the two nurses.
"Oh my god, your awake!" another exclaimed excitedly.
"Thank god, we'll all be safe now our hero is awake!" The other exclaimed excitedly as the other nurse rolled her eyes.
"Get…me….Saiya….man" came the staggered whisper from the patient through the oxygen mask that was currently covering their face.
~*~
Alright, that's it for Chapter 19! Bit of a cliff-hanger, I hope you all enjoy it. Questioned, comments and general feedback are all welcomed and encouraged.
Please, READ AND REVIEW!! Honestly, the more I get, the more motivated I am to type up an send out the next chapter.
Hope to hear from you all soon. Chapter 20 is in the works!