Secret Heart

Chapter 22

When she woke up, Videl was hoping that last night had been just a dream – or rather, a nightmare. But she couldn't ignore her heavy heart, and her still sore eyes reminded her of all the tears she had shed before falling asleep.

So, this nightmare was real; Gohan had really rejected her, when she'd finally felt ready to be with him.

She tried to fight down her tears, but there was nothing she could do. It hurt too much. She cried, shaking with sobs.

She didn't understand anything anymore. It didn't make any sense. Gohan loved her; he said it clearly to Goten the other night. Then why did he reject her?

Maybe… Maybe his feelings for her had changed. Maybe he only saw her as a friend now… But he had showed that he wanted to be with her only a few days ago; how could his feelings change in such a short time? And, he had kissed her back last night, and even seemed ready to go further. Let alone the lust she had seen in his eyes…

She didn't know what to think anymore. If Gohan loved her, he wouldn't have rejected her; it didn't make sense. But could his feelings for her really change in such a short time? It wasn't impossible…

Yes, that must be it. Gohan's feelings had simply changed. And if he had kissed her back last night, it was probably because of his teenage hormones. Nothing more.

Gohan didn't love her anymore.

He had spent the night on the floor, not having the strength to go to his bed. His back was sore, but it was the least of his worries right now. He couldn't stop thinking about what had happened, despite everything he did to forget. Gohan felt miserable; what he had done was terrible, and he knew that he lost the girl he loved forever. From now on, things could never be the same as before; from now on, he could never be with her, like he desired so much. He didn't even know if he would be able to look her in the eyes after what he had done to her.

What was worse, he had hurt the dearest person to his heart. He didn't even want to imagine how Videl must be feeling right now. And to think he'd have to see her during today's party…

Gohan sighed, finally deciding to get up from the floor which he had spent the night on. Massaging his sore neck a bit, the young Saiya-jin went towards the closet and found his clothes inside it. He then entered the bathroom which was linked to the bedroom; practically every bedroom of the building had their own bathroom. He took off his pants and boxers – his missing shirt reminded him that he had left it in Videl's room, and his face hardened when he remembered under what conditions, trying to dispel those thoughts.

Shaking his head sharply, Gohan got in the shower.

With some luck, a really cold shower would make him forget a little.

Reminding herself that Videl wouldn't be able to know where to go in the huge building that was Capsule Corp, Bulma decided to go see the girl in her room in order to show her the way. She was about to knock on the door of her room, when she heard an unexpected sound coming from the other side of the door. A sound she had no trouble identifying.

Sobs.

Furrowing her brows, the rich heiress knocked on the door and listened intently. The sobs calmed down little by little and, after a few moments, Videl's voice, that was meant to be neutral, asked:

"Who is it?"

"Videl? It's me, Bulma. Is everything alright?" The scientist questioned in turn.

Silence followed. Bulma insisted:

"Videl?"

"Yes… Everything is alright." The teenage girl's weak voice said.

Bulma's brows furrowed even more. Everything was obviously not alright; but what could have had happened since yesterday night?

"Can I come in?" She then asked.

"I… I need to get ready…" Videl replied after a few moments. "Could you come by later?"

Bulma sighed, knowing that she didn't have a choice. "Alright."

Inside the room, Videl listened intently as the steps of the President went away, and she sighed in relief. She hadn't been able to let her in, because then, she wouldn't have been able to pretend that everything was alright; not with her eyes that she guessed were red because of all those hours she had spent crying.

She then decided to get up and get ready. Taking what she needed from the closet of the bedroom, the young girl then entered the bathroom. She winced upon seeing her reflection on the mirror; it wasn't a pretty sight…

Letting out a deep sigh, Videl took her pajamas off then got in the shower, her muscles relaxing under the hot water. After about twenty minutes under the water, she got out of the shower, wrapping a towel around herself. Looking again in the mirror, the dark haired girl noted that her eyes were slightly less red and her complexion was less pale, which was already better.

She dried her hair quickly then got dressed. She had slightly hesitated, but finally decided to wear her usual attire: a loose, white shirt and black shorts. She didn't plan on staying for today's party anyway; why bother dressing up?

Videl then got out of the bathroom and sat down on the bed to wait for Bulma. A few minutes later, she heard a knock on the door and went to answer it, knowing that it was the Briefs heiress.

"Hello Videl." The President greeted. "Are you okay?"

"Actually I…" She hesitated a little, then resumed: "I'm not feeling very well today. I think I'd better go home. I'm sorry I can't stay longer."

"Oh. I see." Bulma then smiled to the girl. "I'll lead you to the exit, then. Follow me."

Videl nodded silently, walking next to the female scientist who was watching her from the corner of her eye. There was no need to be a genius to understand that something had happened, probably during the night. Bulma wasn't sure, but she had the feeling that it had something to do with Gohan. She didn't see what else could have made Videl cry; because it was obvious that she had cried. It was enough to look at her red eyes to understand.

However, Bulma wasn't sure that it was indeed Gohan the cause of Videl's sorrow. Thinking fast, she decided to see the girl's reaction if she mentioned the young warrior.

Watching Videl's reaction intently, Bulma asked her, looking unconcerned:

"By the way, don't you want to say goodbye to the others? To Gohan?"

At the mention of the boy who had broken her heart, Videl could feel her tears coming back.

No. She wouldn't cry, not anymore. Not for him. She was stronger than that.

So, breathing in deeply, the young girl managed to hold back her tears and replied, in her most neutral voice:

"I just want to go home, Bulma. Could you tell them goodbye for me, please?"

"No problem, I'll tell them." Bulma assured her. Now, she was sure of it; something happened between Videl and Gohan during the night. And if she couldn't get answers from Videl, she shouldn't have any trouble getting them from Gohan.

With that thought in mind, she led the young girl to the exit of Capsule Corporation.

It had been a while that Gohan was done getting ready. But the thing is, the young man couldn't decide himself to go out of his room to join his friends. He concentrated for a moment, and his senses informed him that some of the guests were already in the garden of Capsule Corp, probably having breakfast.

His stomach grumbled when he thought about the delicious cooking of Mrs. Briefs, and he looked down at his belly, frowning. It really chose the right time to be hungry. Why did he have to have such a huge appetite? His life would've been so much simpler if he hadn't been born a Saiya-jin.

If he hadn't been born a Saiya-jin, he wouldn't have to hide it from Videl. He could have been with her, without any secret to ruin everything. If he hadn't been born a Saiya-jin, he wouldn't have to abandon Videl last night like he did, and maybe… Maybe, instead of waking up on the floor with a sore back and a heavy heart this morning, he would have woken up beside the girl he loved.

But he was born a Saiya-jin, and because of it, he couldn't be with Videl. Why couldn't he be like everyone else? Why couldn't he have a normal life, without battles to save the world or a father constantly away?

Gohan sighed. Thinking like this was pointless. He was born a Saiya-jin and he could do nothing about it.

He would never be with Videl; he had to accept it.

That thought discouraged him even more. And despite his stomach's protestations, he decided to stay in this room for as long as he could.

It was then that he realized something. He couldn't sense Videl anywhere in Capsule Corp, or even in West City.

Videl left?

Concentrating more intensively he spotted Videl's Ki, miles away from West City. His heart clenched when he felt the pain emanating from the girl's Ki; he clenched his fists, cursing his origins. The dearest person in the world to him was suffering, all because of what he was. If only he had the courage to simply tell her everything.

He needed time. He wasn't ready to tell her, not yet. And maybe then, she would understand, and would forgive him.

Or she would reject him and would never want to hear from him again.

Letting out another sigh, Gohan finally decided to go out of his room and join his friends in the garden. He wasn't going to meet Videl now, anyway.

Finally, the party was over, and he could go home. Gohan didn't know how much longer he would have been able to pretend to be okay.

He got the capsule containing the Jet out, activated it and threw it, creating a cloud of smoke. Saying goodbye to his friends one last time, he climbed in the Jet to the diver's seat, followed by his mother and brother, and started the engine.

Bulma watched as the Jet took off and then flew away in the sky. She didn't have the opportunity to question her godson about what had happened with Videl, but it wasn't so bad, because she had the time to talk to Chichi about it before the young man arrived to the garden this morning. She was certain that Chichi would know how to make her son talk, and tell her everything afterwards.

She only had to wait.

"It really was a great party!" Goten said as he entered the house, his brother and mother behind him. "But it's a shame that Videl had to leave this morning."

Gohan's face hardened at the mention of the young crime fighter. Thinking about her was too painful, especially when he remembered the pain he had felt in Videl's Ki; the pain he had caused her.

Chichi noticed the sudden change in her eldest son at the mention of Videl, which only confirmed Bulma's deductions. Something definitely happened between her son and the teenage girl during the night, and she had every intention to know what.

"Goten dear, it's getting late; time to go to bed." She told her youngest son.

The latter sighed; he didn't feel tired at all. But he knew that it was pointless to argue with his mother, so he went up to his room, after saying goodnight to his family.

"I'll go too." Gohan said, about to go up to join Goten in their room. His mother's voice stopped him:

"Wait, Gohan." She said. "I would like to talk to you about something."

"What's it?" He asked, going down the few steps he had climbed up.

"Let's go to the kitchen; would you like some hot cocoa?" Chichi suggested.

"Um, yes. Okay." Gohan said, wondering what his mother wanted to talk to him about. It couldn't be about Videl, could it? How could she suspect that something happened between them last night?

Gohan shook his head. He was imagining things; it couldn't be about Videl. His mother, like everyone else, didn't suspect a thing. Maybe she wanted to talk to him about his studies, or about his crime fighting activities or something like that. Yes, that must be it.

To Be Continued…