Merry Christmas: Part 2
:*: Marron :*:
Here I was, sitting in Goten's room with Trunks and him arguing over how Santa used to exist and how he was able to get his work done in one night. I couldn't help but laugh at their child-like behaviors. Grown men arguing over Santa Clause.
I let my mind wander back a couple minutes to my conversation with Goten. He actually noticed my haircut. It may not seem like a big deal but for me it was. Growing up with these five hasn't been easy. They've all got one thing in common that I don't: Saiyan blood. They always played hard, whether it was teeball at Pan's, swimming at Bra's, or running in the hills at Goten's, they had that blood that made them do everything way better than normal people. Blood that instinctively pulled them towards each other. I was the daughter of an android and a human. Created in a lab to share my parent's traits. I am basically a lab rat with no special abilities.
Since our family's were so close the five of us were always together, my fondest memories were with them. But once adolescence hit, I became a different person. I met normal people who had the same abilities as me and I didn't have to sit back and watch. Boys noticed my blonde hair and growing body and stereotyped me. I let myself fall into that stereotype and became an easy high school girl. I partied, made out with complete strangers, and even lost my virginity my sophomore year. Things I am not proud of. Once word spread across campus I knew my four closest friends had already labeled me. Trunks was the first to find out, considering it was a senior I had slept with and he was a senior at the time.
He teased me about it, and it was killing me inside. I had a crush on Trunks for I don't know how long. Who wouldn't? He's gorgeous. And for him to just treat the fact that I had lost my virginity like a joke hurt me.
Goten, on the other hand, was more upset about it. Like an older brother. Like somebody who actually cared. I heard from Pan that he practically scared the shit out of the guy just by 'talking' to him about it. But being the dumb blond that I was, I looked past Goten's protectiveness and continued with my puppy love for Trunks. I guess I thought this was a movie where the jock always went with the cute blond. Overall, I think Pan is best for him. They both love sports and their personalities mesh so well together.
After that humiliating love triangle between Trunks, Pan, and I, I refused to let my heart go so easy again. Instead, I needed to act like a woman who deserved a great guy. I paid more attention in class rather than passing notes or texting male classmates and I stayed home when offered to go to a party. Marron was a completely renovated woman. Oh, and there is one more thing...
My English teacher noticed me squinting a lot in class... So I had to get reading glasses.
At first, I was absolutely adverse to it, but my mom helped me pick out a cute pair of black Prada frames and I must say I look pretty damn sophisticated in them. After that I decided hey, might as well chop my hair off. It was at my lower back, so I took off about five inches.
I liked the new me. All that hair made me look like a wild sex goddess, now I looked like I still had my innocence.
I found myself twirling my silk smooth hair between my fingers, smiling to myself. Goten. No, no, I'm not going to start obsessing over him now. I just never realized how observant or protective he really was. He puts on a front as a goof ball, but I know there's more inside. Besides, he'd be impossible to date. You can never tell if he's flirting or being nice, he's nice to everybody.
Sometimes I think that''s one of his downfalls. He didn't have a lot of girlfriends in high school. Now that I think about it, it's probably because he didn't want to break any hearts.
"Marron, if Santa had a 9200 v10 engine, could he or could he not get off the ground?" Goten asked, holding his hand to Trunks' face to keep from arguing back.
I actually found myself thinking about it. "I don't know! I'm a girl, why in hell would I know what a 9200 10v-"
"v10." He corrected me.
"v10," I glared back. "Why would I know what that is? Where's Pan and Bra?" I needed some normal people to talk to at this point.
"Bra should be here, they left right behind me." Trunks answered. "Pan should be here to, Gohan's the first one here every year, considering he's this dunce's brother."
Goten shrugged the comment off and snatched his phone from his nightstand. "It rang twice and went straight to her voice mail."
"You have been ignored my friend." Trunks teased him.
"Fine, you call her you love sick puppy." He did, and the same thing happened to him, then me.
"Maybe she's almost here." I suggested. "I'm going to go find Bra."
:*: Trunks :*:
"Right behind you." I followed Marron out the door, expecting Goten to be right behind me, but he was rather reluctant to join us. "Come on you anti-social bastard." I dragged him off the bed, pulling him out the door by his wrists.
"All I wanted was some time to myself." He whined. "My mom's gonna yell at me to do something else." He could act like that was his excuse to stay in his room, but I knew he didn't want to see Bra for whatever reason.
"Goten!" The three of us shrieked as his mother barged in out of nowhere. "You three get out there, we're about to open gifts."
"Chichi. have you seen Pan and Bra?" Marron asked.
"Bra's in the living room, Pan and them are running late, they'll be here soon." She's been in the living room huh? She's avoiding him as well. Interesting.
The living room was already crowded with familiar faces. My mom and Chichi were shuffling around the tree sorting gifts, and on the sectional couch there was Krillon, 18, my dad, Goku, Chichi's father, master Roshi, Yamcha and Rangiku, Yamcha's big breasted red-head girlfriend. Don't let her playboy looks fool you, she's got a heart of gold. Their two kids, Tai and Miki, were sitting on the ground where us 'kids' were assigned to sit. Tai was your average teen, 16, good looks, tousled brown hair, athletic, and Miki, his younger sister one year his junior, was more on the rebellious side. She had dyed dark red hair with heavy eye makeup and a stud piercing above her lip and a few in her ears. Cute girl for fifteen. They live in a different town so they don't go to Orange Star.
Bra was sitting next to Miki, Marron sat next to her, then Goten, followed by me. I was able to lean back against the edge of the couch with Yamcha above me asking me how everything was going with school and such.
Chichi and my mother began handing gifts out to everyone. They started slowly, waiting for Gohan, Videl, and Pan to show up. Fifteen minutes passed, and finally the room grew silent at the sound of the front door opening and closing.
"Oh, there you are!" Chichi ran to her son and daughter in law with open arms. Pan tried to get around them without getting tackled by her grandmother, but she failed and was hit with a grandma hug and a smooch to the cheek.
Usually Chichi was strict with her semi-formal dress code, but she didn't say anything to Pan who was dressed in jeans and a black band t-shirt with a black jacket she probably just got today. Once her grandma released her, she scanned the room for a place to sit and took a spot next to me, seeing as how it probably was the only space for her.
She mouthed the word 'hi' to us, then plopped down next to me, exhaling a deep sigh. Something about her looked... solemn. I nudged her with my elbow and whispered if she was okay. She nodded her head unconvincingly.
:*: Goten :*:
I was kind of nervous to see Bra again. I think I over reacted the last time I saw her a week ago and slugged her boyfriend or whatever he is to her. My memory to that night is pretty fuzzy considering my beverage intake, which also contributed to my behavior. Now I just felt bad. I hate seeing girls cry, especially over something I did.
I wasn't expecting her to forgive me, although I really wish that she would. I felt my heart rate increase as we neared the living room. I surveyed the room, looking over the several bodies for any sign of her blue hair, then I spotted her. Our eyes locked for a very brief moment. She quickly looked away, looking down at the ground with a somber expression. My mood plummeted. Luckily, Marron sat between us with Trunks on the other side of me. Marron wished her a merry Christmas and asked how long she had been here.
"Just like twenty minutes."
"Twenty minutes? You should've went to Goten's room, we were in there waiting for you and Pan."
"I was visiting with Miki and Tai."
A few minutes after we started opening presents, my brother and his family showed up. I chuckled as Pan made a face when my grandma planted a wet one on her cheek. We waved to her as she sat next to Trunks on the floor where we 'kids' were expected to sit.
After a half hour of gifts, the living room was trashed with wrapping paper and bows. Everyone started moving towards the kitchen to get food now except the seven of us who were stopped by my mom.
"Can I get you kids to clean up real quick and set up the tables and chairs?" Like we had a choice. She already had trash bags in our hands and was out of the room before anyone processed what she had said.
"Merry Christmas to you too mother." I mumbled. Everyone chuckled at my comment, except for Bra, of course. Trunks and Pan were in one corner of the room, talking quietly amongst themselves. Tai was chatting with Marron, and Miki and Bra remained silent while they collected fistfuls of paper. I hated the feeling of awkward tension, I wanted to make this right. I carefully put my bag on the floor and grabbed Bra by the arm, dragging her behind me out of the room. I quietly clicked my bedroom door shut behind us and turned my attention to her. She still wouldn't look at me.
"Listen, Bra. I know I messed up that night... I took it way out of hand, I should have controlled myself better. I know you're still mad at me but I just want to let you know that I'm sorry."
She eyed me with a bewildered expression. "You're sorry?"
"Well... yeah, I mean I did hit your boyfrien-"
"No, no, no," She waved her hands frantically in front of her. "He's not my boyfriend, he never was. Goten, I thought you were mad at me. I'm the one that should be sorry."
"But, why?"
"I didn't listen to you. You told me how awful he was and to stay away from him and I didn't. I thought you hated me after that night."
"Na, I could never hate you." I smirked at her. I swung my arm around her shoulders and walked her out of my room and down the hall, removing it just before we re-entered the suddenly clean living room. Now they were setting up the table and arranging the chairs around it. "Alright, good work crew." I clapped my hands together in triumph. They all scowled at me.
"Like you did anything." Miki mumbled.
"So misunderstood." I sighed. Bra laughed.
:*: Trunks :*:
Cleaning up the trashed room went by faster than I thought it would. I asked Pan what took her so long to get here, she just said they took longer than usual to get ready. Goten disappeared with my sister in the middle of cleaning, but we were done by the time they got back. Now all we had to do was set up the table and the eighteen chairs. Goten and I got it up in record speed, then we all arranged the chairs with six on each long side and three on each short side. Everyone came piling in just as we finished up.
The seven of us were the last to get our food and pick our seats. Not surprisingly, all the adults sat on one end and left us the other end.
On the first long end was Bra, Pan, Videl, Gohan, Goku, and my dad, then on the short end was my mom, Chichi, and 18, going on there's Krillon, Roshi, Rangiku, Yamcha, Me, and Goten, then Tai, Miki, and Marron on the other short end. Pan was directly across from me but seemed less interested in talking to anyone. Other than that, the room was roaring with voices and laughter.
By 8:30 the house grew less crowded as Roshi, Yamcha's family, Krillon, 18, and my parents left. Now there was just us five, Goten's parents, and Pan's parents. The four adults were cleaning the kitchen while we sat in the living room we were forced to clean after dinner.
"Is everybody staying here tonight?" Goten asked, looking over each of us.
"Yup." Marron murmured while humming to Goten's ipod playing in her ears.
"Trunks is my ride home, so if he stays, I stay." Bra answered.
"You act as if I'm forcing you to stay." Trunks tossed a pillow at her. "So yeah I guess we're all staying."
"I think I'm going home." Are heads snapped to Pan, the least person likely to leave.
"Why?" Me and Goten asked in unison.
She shrugged. "It's Christmas, shouldn't you be with your family?"
"That's never stopped you before." I added.
"Um hello, uncle speaking. You're at your grandparents house, I think that's still considered family."
She rolled her eyes. "I know that. I just want to go home." She mumbled, playing with the ends of her hair.
Goten, Bra, and Marron looked at each other as if she were insane. I, on the other hand, knew something was up now.
:*: Pan :*:
"Oh, Chichi, thanks again for dinner, it was great." My mom sang as they entered from the kitchen. "Pan, we're gonna head home now. Call us if you need a ride, okay?"
I sat up from my relaxed slouching position on the couch. "Actually I want to go home tonight."
"Oh." She sounded shocked. My dad shot Goten a brief glance, as if asking why I wanted to leave. Goten shrugged his shoulders back at him, meaning he didn't know why.
"Oh, Pan, let your parents have some time alone." Chichi patted my shoulder, then began shoving my parents towards the front door. "She'll be fine, don't worry about her." She told them. "Have a good night you two, merry Christmas!"
I remained frozen as I watched my parents walk out the front door.
It felt as is everyone was watching as if this was some movie or something.
"Mom!" I shouted, pushing past my grandma. I threw my arms around my mother and squeezed her tightly. "Take care of my puppy, okay?" I murmured into her jacket.
She looked bewildered. "Okay, Pan. Are you alright?" She whispered. "Is there a problem with one of your friends?"
I shook my head. "No... I was just feeling tired and wanted to sleep in my own bed, but I'll stay if that's what you want."
"Oh, Pan of course I want you to come home but I think you'll have more fun with your friends here. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay." I smiled just to see her smile and not feel bad about leaving me behind. I waved farewell to my dad and turned back to the house.
Everyone was watching, but tried to act as if they weren't by running back into the house. We passed time by listening to Goten play his acoustic guitar and Bra and Marron sang along.
I felt a tug on the sleeve of my shirt, and looked up to see Trunks standing in front of me, motioning me to follow him. I followed him into the kitchen where he sat at the table and kicked a chair out for me to sit in.
Oh God. He's going to ask why I've been so weird today. I tried to hide it, it was just so hard. I needed to know so many things, yet I didn't want to know.
"What's going on Pan?" His voice and his expression were full of concern, I couldn't look at his face anymore. I rested my head in my hands with my elbows propped on the table.
It took me a while to gather my thoughts. I didn't want him to know. I didn't want anybody to know. "I don't know. Everything was so great this morning. I got the coolest puppy from the most amazing man on Earth, I got to spend Christmas morning with my parents, then..." My throat was tightening up. I stopped talking, I wouldn't let myself cry.
I felt his warm touch on my shoulder, then up and down my back, trying to comfort me.
I didn't want to break down in front of him. "This is the shittiest fucking Christmas ever."
:*: Trunks :*:
Her chair fell to the floor as she stood from the table and stormed away from me. I followed behind her but stopped at the hall. She went into the guest bedroom, Gohan's old room. The guitar stopped strumming at the sound of the door slamming. I rested against the wall and exhaled, blowing the hair from my eyes. At first I thought that she was having second thoughts on us seeing each other again, but after watching her today, I knew it was much bigger than that. She's going to be a hard egg to crack
"What happened?" Goten appeared with his two minions behind him.
I shrugged. "She's really upset about something and said this is the worst Christmas ever." After a brief moment something seemed to hit him. He handed his guitar to the nearest person behind him, Bra, and headed down the hall.
:*: Goten :*:
As expected, the door was locked. Sure I could use some extra effort and break it loose but my mother would kill me, and Pan knew it. I lightly knocked. "Pan, please open the door."
A door opened from down the hall. "What's going on?" My mom peered out from her room.
"Nothing, I just... teased Pan about something and now she's mad at me." She scolded me with her eyes then returned to her room.
"Pan, I know what's bothering you. Please open the door." A few seconds passed and the door jerked opened.
"How can you possibly know what's bothering me?" She asked crudely.
"The day we left to Jianu Bay, Gohan told me everything." And with that, her guard cracked.