I sighed as I lounged on the couch, watching out the window.
"So, how long have you two known each other?" Bulma asked, handing me a cup of tea.
"Since I was 8 and Trunks was 10," I said. "He found me."
"Found you?" she asked. I grinned as I let my mind drift back to that day so many years ago.
I was sitting in a cave, staring at the pitiful attempts I had made at a fire, shivering. I scrubbed my face, trying to brush away the angry tears. I was lost and alone, cold and hungry and most of all, utterly terrified. I jumped as I heard footsteps outside my little cave hide out, fear gripping me even more. Was it the androids?
I slowly turned my gaze to the mouth of the cave, sweat dripping from my temples. I saw, not the Raven and Golden haired twins of terror I expected but a boy, a few years older than I. His lavender hair danced lightly around his face in the breeze and his cerulean eyes gazed at me with unveiled joy that I didn't understand.
"I knew I felt someone here!" he said. I only stared at him.
"Why are you in here?" he asked.
"I-I live here," I said. The boy looked around the cave, his nose wrinkling.
"Uhm, it's...er...nice?" he tried.
"It's a cave," I stated.
"Don't you have a home?" he asked.
"No," I replied shortly. The boy drew back at my harsh response.
"Did the androids destroy it?" he asked, his eyes softening as he crept towards me as if he was approaching a feral beast.
"I just don't have one, okay?!" I cried angrily.
"Okay, okay," the boy said, moving closer still.
"What do you want?" I questioned.
"I want to help you," he said. I scoffed and turned away.
"I don't need help!" I spat.
"You don't want a warm bed and a nice meal?" he laughed.
"No!" I shot back, the word coming out in a sulky tone that made me blush. He laughed again, now standing right behind me. I turned and glared at him. He grinned at me, holding out his hand.
"Come on," he said. "I'll help you." I stared at his outstretched hand with trepidation.
"Why?" I asked. "You don't even know me."
"I can't just be nice?" he asked. "The worlds not horrible enough already without me adding to it?"
I stared at him, my mouth hanging open in shock. The words were said so carelessly yet they touched something deep inside me, sparking a single ray of hope that maybe the world wasn't as terrible as I thought. Maybe pain wasn't the only thing there was out there.
"Trust me," he said in a soft voice. I nodded my head, my hand sliding into his. He grinned and bent down, scooping me up into his arms effortlessly.
"What are you doing?" I asked, pushing against his chest, surprised to feel tight corded muscles there.
"Taking you home," he said, running to the mouth of the cave and blasting off into the air.
"Are we flying?" I asked with a shriek, my arms winding tightly around his neck.
"Yup!" he said. "I'm Trunks, by the way." My name came out as a stuttered cry as I quickly hid my face in his neck. I wasn't even sure he had heard it until he repeated it with a grin.
"That's a pretty name," he said.
"How can you fly?" I asked.
"I'm a saya-jin," he said.
"What is that?" I questioned.
"Basically a race of strong aliens," he said.
I had no idea how long we flew, it seemed like an eternity. We finally landed at the crumbling remains of a large building with the words 'Capsule Corp.' on the side. Trunks set me gently to my feet and took my hand, pulling me into the building.
"Mom? I need your help!" he called. From out of an adjoining room came an older woman with long blue hair. She looked between me and her son for a moment.
"Who is this?" she asked.
"I found her living in a cave," Trunks said. The woman's eyes softened and she moved closer to me, her hands reaching out to card through my dirt caked hair.
"Do you have a home, dear?" she asked. I mutely shook my head.
"Alright, lets get you cleaned up," she said, taking my hand and pulling me towards another room.
"Trunks, why don't you see if you can find some clothes for her?" she called over her shoulder. Trunks nodded and sped off to do as he was asked while I was lead to the bathroom.