Hello y'all! Chapter 5 is ready, so here ya have it! I hope you'll enjoy it, cause as of now I will start branching out the actual plot a lot more. Characters are taking shape and things are stirring up.

If you can find it in you, please leave me with your thoughts. It would be highly appreciated.

Now please read, review and enjoy!

"What're you drawing?"

Trunks jerked up, completely caught unaware by the question coming from his left. Goten was staring at the doodles in the margins of his notebook, an eyebrow raised and a bemused smile curled around his lips.

The class around them was silent; most of the students were bent over their math exercises, some looking particularly strained and others giving off the impression that they might lay an egg at any given second. Trunks, however, was very good at the subject and had finished the coursework minutes ago. He had been scribbling ever since, hardly aware of what patterns he created with strokes of graphite.

"Nothing much," Trunks replied, shrugging his shoulders. "You done with the exercises?"

Goten shook his head. "No, but I'm a hopeless case anyway, so I figured I'd see what you're up to."

"And Jasper is doing what?"

To answer this, Goten jabbed his thumb to his right, where Jasper was staring at the formulas on his exercise sheet as though they were about to come to life and strangle him. Trunks bit back a chuckle and put his pencil down, blowing across his notebook to chase away the chippings.

"So, what're you drawing?" Goten asked again, eyebrows higher still.

Trunks rolled his eyes and turned his notebook so Goten could see. It really wasn't anything special. He had doodled some of the birds he had seen by the pond in the park. He had even added a bench where a faceless stranger sat, scattering lumps of bread. He heard Goten draw in his breath, as if Trunks had managed to create something amazing and mesmerizing, but he himself found the quality to be lacking. He had failed at capturing the proper contrasts, so the ducks' feathery wings seemed static rather than sleek and oily. Not to mention how much he had messed up the detailing on the duck in the corner, one as splendidly white as a set of teeth in a toothpaste commercial.

"Oh, wow," Goten said, looking impressed. "And you just whipped this up from nothing?"

"Eh, yeah," Trunks answered. He wasn't sure how he should deal with a compliment on something that he considered garbage. "But I can do better than that, if I try, I mean."

"I bet you can," Goten said, nodding appreciatively. "Hey, could I get you to draw the cover for my first novel?" he piped up, mirth sparkling in his eyes.

Trunks laughed. Sure, he could draw a little, but not that good. "Sure, but only if you write me a song I can use as an intro for my first anime series."

Goten slapped his hand on the table. "Consider it a deal."

"Quiet!" The teacher called them out from the back of the room. Goten started and dropped his head down, faking interest for the work at hand. Once it seemed that the coast was clear he whispered from the corner of his mouth.

"But seriously, you should do something with that. You'll make it big, I just know it."

"I dunno," Trunks said. "I've never given it much thought." Which he hadn't. He had always thought that he would succeed his parents in their endeavors at Capsule Corps. He had never questioned his future; it had always seemed obvious what he would end up doing in life. But Goten's question had triggered one for his own. Did he want to follow the trail laid out for him? To that he didn't have an answer.

"Well I'm not trying to force you or anything like that, I just thought you should know," Goten said, smiling.

Trunks was feeling somewhat overcome with this sudden attention. The only one who doted on him like that was his mother, and he would always try his best to flee whenever she got in one of her moods. But this was different. This was a compliment from, well, a friend. He'd never had one of those before. He could see the merit in them; so it wasn't that people enjoyed them without reason. Without his consent a little smile crept into his own features.

"So you want me to draw you a cover for a book, huh?" Trunks asked, toying his pencil between his fingers. "What's it about, anyway?"

"You can read it when it's finished. Until then my lips are sealed."

"That bad?"

"What? No!" Goten sputtered. "It's just that I'm the world's worst perfectionist. I want it to be spotless before I show it to anybody."

Trunks laughed. "I get it, I do. Just had to yank your chain there for a bit, I couldn't resist."

"Well screw you too," Goten said while bopping him on the shoulder, but he was also smiling nonetheless.

And then Trunks remembered the promise he had made Bulla that weekend. He turned to Goten with a degree of hesitancy; he hadn't asked anyone to come over to his house ever since he had gotten too old for play dates. At least not just to hang out. If he ever allowed anyone from his school over the threshold of his house, it was because there was some form of a project due.

So yeah, he was kind of nervous, but could you really blame him, the friendless rich kid with about as much social skills as a deaf-mute at a karaoke bar? Was it strange that he felt terrified at the prospect of basically asking someone 'Hey, I don't hate you as much as the rest, so let's be pals?'. Trunks himself thought that he had enough of an excuse to chicken out at this point. Too bad that he had promised. And he had promised Bulla. That was the definition of a binding contract.

"Hey, Goten," he asked, waiting for the other boy to look at him. He had to pause when dark orbs found his blue ones, finding it hard to concentrate with that stare fixed on him, as if Goten could see right through him. "I was wondering if you'd like to come hang out at my place sometime. You know, we could play some videogames, watch a movie, anything. Hell we can even go to the zoo. It's my fucking backyard for god's sakes."

Goten was silent for a second or two, those deep, probing eyes becoming vacant. He blinked twice as if he couldn't comprehend the words, and then his mouth fell open into a perfectly comical o-shape. Whatever he had been expecting, this wasn't it.

"S-Sure," Goten replied, stammering. "I mean, yeah, no problem, I'd love to."

"Great!" Trunks beamed. It was good to know that Goten was as flabbergasted as he was; for a second he had feared that the request would die on his tongue. "So how about you swing by next... Saturday? We'll have the whole day then. Oh, but wait, we do have to spend some time with my little sister, though."

Goten raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You have a little sister? What's she like?"

"She's like a tiny version of my mother. She loves everything pink and she has tea parties with her stuffed animals and she is the sassiest little shit I have ever gotten the pleasure of meeting."

Goten laughed. "Well I guess I'll survive it then. Your mother seemed pretty friendly, so as long as she doesn't take after you too much I'm sure I'll be alright."

Trunks sent a fake glare his way. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, you know..."

"No, I don't."

"Ah well, it's not important..."

"It is, just tell me!"

"QUIET!" The teacher yelled once more, silencing them both. Trunks gave up on trying to weasel anything more out of Goten and instead turned back to the drawing that now seemed a lot less awful. Sure, Beaker was still unrecognizable, but he hadn't yet sketched the crown of ruffled feathers in his neck, nor the gleam that made his red eyes shine like rubies.

Goten was right. Maybe he did have a knack for this. And maybe it was worth following his advice, even if just to try. The next few weeks he would start making the conscious decision to draw, no matter what it was. He'd read somewhere that in order for an artist to really flourish, they must find their subject. He would go looking for his. For now his muse seemed to live only through feathers and beaks, but who knew what else might cross his path?

For the first time ever, Trunks had no idea what the future held in store for him. And he loved it.

Sadie was having one of her more energetic days. Not that he minded, because she was a perfect counterbalance to his own laid back attitude, but damn woman, talk a little louder, will you?

Goten trotted behind the white-haired girl, only half-listening to whatever she was babbling about. Something to do with her parents deciding to refurbish the living room. Or about her dog dying. He still wasn't sure.

Neve seemed to be reading his thoughts. "A hundred zeni says I can make her shut up for a whole day."

Goten rolled his eyes and held out a hand. "Well then you might as well pay up now. She needs to talk more than she needs oxygen."

Neve chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you're right. It surprising to see how much a person can talk, huh?"

"It's also fun to see that between the two of you, you are the one with the hard on for gossip," Goten pointed out,

"The hell are you talking about?"

"Well, for starters, we're lagging back so Sadie can't hear what you have to say about her," Goten began to count on his fingers. "Not to mention how you filled me in on every single relationship this school has to offer." When Neve raised his eyebrows to show that he didn't understand, Goten scraped his throat and did the best impression of Neve that he could pull off. "'Miku has a thing for Kaito, but he doesn't know that. No, Kaito is in love with Sadie, but she has a boyfriend, so Kaito just screws around with Mel when he gets too frustrated. And ooooh, the rumours about Mel, darling, you wouldn't believe them. Word through the grapevine has it that she's fooling around with the son of the principal! Can you even believe it?'"

"Wow, hurtful," Neve said, laughing despite of himself. "And Mel is the principal's son's fucktoy. That one is fact. The others are perfectly free and unfounded speculations, thank you very much."

"Because that makes it so much better."

"I... You... It's like... Shut up!" Neve sputtered, much to Goten's amusement. "And besides, I only filled you in because you seemed part of the crowd that loves to gossip. You know, one of the ladies."

"What's that supposed to imply?" Goten asked, pulling up an eyebrow.

"Well... You..." Neve seemed a little hesitant, even going as far as glancing over his shoulder to see if no one was eavesdropping on them. The hallway behind them was deserted. Upon making note of this, Neve lowered his voice to a whisper. "You are gay, aren't you?"

Goten didn't know whether to feel offended or impressed. The logical thing to think was that Neve was making a stereotype out of him, but he had known the guy for about a month now and Neve wasn't a person who just jumped to conclusions. He wouldn't make a statement like that without having the means to back it up.

"Now you're being hurtful, with your stereotypes and whatnot," Goten replied. "But curious, what gives you the idea?"

"Oh, c'mon mate, like I don't see the way you look at Jasper," Neve stated matter-of-factly. "You're like a puppy waiting for a treat."

"Oh god, is it that obvious?" Goten moaned. "Damn it." It had been his intention to keep a low profile when it came to his... whatever it was called he was doing with Jasper these days. Perhaps it was one of his own prejudices at play, but he did not want to be branded 'that gay kid' so soon after coming to school. He had wanted to start here with a blank slate, and getting caught staring at the pretty boy all day long was not the way to achieve it. Goten made a mental note to pay more attention to that.

"Hehe, it's alright mate, it is," Neve consoled his worries. "You're not being too blatant about it. I don't think anyone but me has noticed it so far."

Goten blurted it out before he got a chance to stop himself. "Well, think again."

Neve gave him a puzzled look, then stared at him for a long time. Goten could almost see the gears in his brains churning, trying to put two and two together. When the realisation hit him, his eyes went wide and he gave a loud gasp. It even made Goten laugh.

"You..." Neve breathed, pointing at Goten with a finger that shook in excitement. "And him... Are you... Did you..."

Goten held up a hand to silence Neve, who, thank the heavens, did as he was told. "Now try again. What did you want to ask me?"

Neve exhaled sharply in an attempt to pull himself together and contain the raging beast that was his love for everything gossip. "So, you and Jasper, you are like, a thing or something?"

Goten glanced to both sides before replying. "I'm not really sure, Neve. We definitely like each other, but it's nothing official yet. Maybe it never will be."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Neve got riled up again immediately. "You two are the perfect match. Both musicians, both nice people. You're both the object of affection of every girl in the school, but none of them can have you, you're just made for each other."

Goten felt himself growing red. "Well if that's the case, how come no girl has stepped up to me yet?" But that wasn't entirely true, now that he thought of it. There had been a few girls who were very, very intent on stopping him on his way to wherever, just so they could strike up a little conversation. Goten would forget all about this, weren't it for the fact that Marron also belonged to this group. The blonde showed a level of interest in him that he had believed was only natural to her, that she subjected everyone she met to the kind of cross examinations that he had been enduring for a month now. But maybe this wasn't the case. Perhaps the way she blinked at him slowly when he talked, hanging from his every word, was a way for her to convey her desires. Just thinking about it made Goten feel uncomfortable.

Neve shrugged his shoulders. "Can't tell you for the life of me. But I do know that they all stare at you when you walk by. And some of the guys too. Holy shit, I still can't believe that you're getting it on with Jasper."

"Yeah, about that..." Goten said, stealing yet another glance around him. "Would you mind keeping that under wraps for the time being? I'm not exactly all that 'Out and Proud' yet, and I want to be the one who takes that step myself, if you catch my drift."

"Oh, sure man, no problemo," Neve assured him. "I'll keep my trap sealed shut." When Goten gave him a wary look, he mimed locking his mouth shut with an invisible key.

"Okay good," Goten said. "I'll try to speed things along. That way I don't have to torture you with keeping a secret for so long."

"Meh, I'll be fine," Neve said, waving his concerns away. "It's that Marron girl you have to watch out for. I've seen her floating around you and Trunks and Jasper during breaktime. Word has it that she's even more of a gossip queen than I am, so be careful what you say around her, she'll weasel anything out of you if you don't watch it."

"I'm not too afraid of her, believe it or not," Goten told him. "Sure, she has a lot of questions, but I don't think she has any idea-"

He would've gladly talked about how good Marron's investigative skills were some more, but someone pulled at his arm and dragged him into an empty classroom. For a second or two he was completely thrown off track, but then he realized where he was. He turned on the spot to holler at whoever had the nerve to manhandle him like that.

"I don't have any idea of what, exactly?"

Goten could only open and close his mouth like a fish on dry land. Marron was standing in front of him, her arms crossed in front of her chest and a bemused little smile playing at her lips.

"Let me help you finish that thought, Go," Marron said, smiling wider. Much like she had done with Trunks, Marron had given Goten a nickname as well. It wasn't as cringe inducing as the one that Trunks was forced to put up with, but it made his skin crawl nonetheless. "I have a lot of questions, but I don't have any idea..."

Goten tried not to gulp as his mind raced to find an answer. He could be truthful, but there was a very fat chance of hurting her feelings there, a prospect he didn't very much like. Sure, she could have her less pleasant moments, but all in all Marron was a very nice girl. On the other hand he could choose to tell her a lie, but he was a lousy liar. Strange, considering how much of his time he spent dreaming up fantasy worlds and lives of people who never existed in the first place.

After some deliberation he decided to go for the latter.

"That you have no idea what I'm getting Trunks for his birthday," he stated, staring at his feet and hoping that she wouldn't catch on. "And no offense, but you can be a little bit of a blab sometimes, so that's why I haven't told you."

Marron cocked an eyebrow at him, but she seemed to accept the answer he had given. When she made no further move or comment, Goten felt compelled to ask.

"So... is there something wrong?"

"Oh, no, not at all." Marron said, uncrossing her arms and clasping her hands behind her back. "It's just that I haven't gotten a chance to talk to you by yourself. We're always surrounded by people."

Goten felt the cinderblock in his stomach disappear and relief washed over him. "Uh, yeah, I guess you're right. So what did you want to talk about, then?"

"Hmmmm..." Marron was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet, giving off the impression that she was even younger than she actually was. She looked straight out of elementary school. "What was it like living in the mountains?"

"Not so bad, actually," Goten replied, very glad to steer the conversation away from dangerous waters. "We didn't have a supermarket five minutes away, but there was a village at the foot of the mountain, so we always had the essentials. And we had a forest for a backyard, so even if we were low on meat or something, Gohan and I could hunt for our food."

"Ooooh!" Marron cooed, her eyes big and unbelieving. "So you could survive out in the forest for years if you wanted to?"

Goten contemplated this for a moment, then said "Yeah, I suppose so. I'd need a few tools to really make it work, but I could manage."

"That's so cool!" Marron almost shouted. "Maybe we can go camping sometime. And you could catch our food and prepare it, wouldn't that be cool?"

"Uh-huh, freakin' wild."

Marron laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "I never knew you were that awesome, Go. You can take care of yourself, you play the guitar, you're smart, not to mention a cutie -Goten pretended as though he hadn't heard that last part-. You really do have it all, don't you?"

"Not everything," Goten was quick to point out. "I never had any real friends until I came to the city, so there's that."

Marron made a noise that reminded Goten of little girls when they see a litter of puppies. "Aw, really?" she asked, batting her eyelashes in a gesture that was surely meant to be compassionate. "I thought you'd have to beat off the girls left and right."

And there it was, that little loop that he had been dreading. Somehow they had managed to bring the conversation back to whoever's tonsils Goten preferred to eat. It may have been the conversation with Neve, but Goten was almost certain that he saw a glimmer of expectancy in Marron's eyes.

"Yeah, think again..." he replied, letting his sentence die without really finishing it. He took such a quick look at his watch that he wasn't able to register the time it displayed. "But hey, not to be a spoilsport or anything, but I have to get to French class in like... two minutes ago, so I have to split." He wheeled around without giving her the time to reply.

She shouted something at him as he walked out the room. "Don't buy Trunks a new controller for his console, I'm already getting him that!"

Goten raised up a thumb for her to see right before speeding off, glad to leave the talk behind him. Neve was right; if he didn't watch it, she'd weasel anything out of him for sure.

Trunks almost tripped over his own feet when the bell rang that Saturday. Bulla had left one of her princess dolls in the main hall, right outside of his field of vision. This resulted in him smacking his forehead against the front door. As common sense would have it he cursed at the top of of his voice before opening the door.

"Hey!" Goten greeted as soon as he got into view. Trunks smiled at his friend and gestured for Goten to step inside. It was a pleasant surprise to see that Goten's jaw did not drop at the display of wealth that was the main hallway. Then Trunks remembered that Goten had at least seen his mother's office, which wasn't any less lavish than this.

"Come on, I'll show you towards the kitchen first," Trunks told him. "The whole family is there, so I'll have to introduce you. After that we've got to spend some time with the little sis. Then we're scotfree."

Goten nodded and followed in his footsteps. The kitchen could be reached by taking the right door in the main hall, after which one had to walk through a corridor with about a trillion doors on either side. The one that led to the kitchen was the one in the far back. As soon as they passed through it they were greeted by a wave of noise.

Trunks had to resist the urge to sigh. His mother was doing her cooking, as usual; Bulma, though worth more than her own weight in gold, liked to take on some chores around the house. She always said that it helped her feel normal. Trunks never complained though, since she was a very good cook. Bulla was watching one of her shows and his father sat at the kitchen table, watching his wife run from here to there, smirking whenever she bent over to grab a pan or reached up to pick something off the spice rack.

Trunks scraped his throat and three heads turned his way. Goten was standing off to the side, looking somewhat forlorn.

"I brought a guest," Trunks said, gesturing at his friend. "This is Goten. Mom, you already know him. Bulla, you get to meet him in a little bit. Dad, this is the kid I told you about, Gohan's little brother."

Vegeta rose from his chair without saying a word. Trunks admired the way Goten kept his ground as Vegeta walked over. Though the man would never admit it to anyone outside of his own family, he had had a heart of gold. When it came to running the family business, he was ruthless. When it came to running the household, he was very hands on. Even if he had the tendency to be overbearing -as most fathers did, Trunks reasoned-, the intention was always a good one. Vegeta would be here to make sure that Goten didn't get any funny ideas, whatever those may be.

"Gohan's little brother, huh?" Vegeta asked, ignoring the hand that Goten had extended as a greeting. "So, do you have the smarts too, or was it just a fluke?"

Goten wasted no time in replying. He was so fast to Trunks was actually impressed. "Gohan's always been a weird one, Mr. Briefs. Compared to him I'm as dumb as a bag of bricks."

"Nonsense!" Bulma piped up, stepping away from the countertop and pointing at Vegeta with a ladle dripping with sauce. "And you leave that poor kid alone. He's alright, I waterboarded him weeks ago and he's not leaking company secrets. Lighten up, will ya."

Vegeta glared at his wife, then moved back to his spot at the kitchen table, paying no further attention whatsoever. Goten sent a baffled look Trunks's way, but the other could only shrug. His father was an oddball, there was no way around that.

He felt something tug at the leg of his pants. Trunks looked down and into eyes that were just like his own, though much younger and a lot more spirited.

"Can we go and play now?" Bulla asked of him.

"Sure thing, Princess," Trunks said, stooping down to her height. "But before we do that you should introduce yourself, don't you think?"

Bulla gave a sharp, brisk nod, then trotted over to Goten. She put a tiny hand forward, which Goten shook politely. "Hi, my name is Bulla!" she squealed. Her twin buns bounced up and down as she danced from foot to foot.

"Heya Bulla, my name is Goten, nice to meet you!" Goten replied, smiling at the girl. "Trunks told me all about you. Is it true that you have the best tea parties in the world?"

"Damn right!"

"Bulla!" Bulma yelled from behind the stove, her face concealed by the billowing steam rising from the pan in front of her. "Language!"

"Oops, sorry," she giggled. Trunks couldn't help it; he was laughing along with her. There was little doubt that she had picked up that piece of vocabulary from him. She corrected herself neatly while speaking again. "Yes, I have the best tea parties. Do you wanna see?"

"Boy, do I!"

"Then what are we waiting for?!" Bulla shrieked in excitement. "Follow me!" She jerked Goten along without warning, a small hand clasped around his index and middle fingers. She disappeared from sight, leaving Trunks alone in the kitchen with his parents. He wasn't aware of the smile on his face; it was good to see that Goten was so nice to Bulla. He did not have a whole lot of prerequisites when it came to choosing his friends -you know, other than them not being money-grubbing snakes in the grass-, but treating his Princess according to her given title was one of them. So far Goten was doing great.

"Mom, can Goten stay for dinner?" Trunks asked, knowing full well what the answer was.

"Sure thing, honey," Bulma replied. "If you want your Dad can get the stretch bed from the attic, should he want to spend the night as well."

"That's fine by me," Vegeta said, using one of his more threatening tones of voice. "But don't you think of getting frisky, alright? If you end of pregnant I swear that I will get the coat hanger myself."

If he had been drinking anything, Trunks would've done a spit take. "Alright Dad, I'll keep it in mind. Now, I should better go after Goten, before Bula attacks him with her glittery makeup kit."

Imagine his amusement when he walked in on Goten and his Princess sitting at a low, pink desk. Goten looked thunderstruck as Bulla hovered over his hands. An open jar of nail polish stood on the desk; Bulla was busy decorating Goten's nails as if it was the most important thing in life. Much to Trunks's pleasure she had picked up the exact same shade of hot pink that she always forced on him. He was halfway done with laughing he realized that he would be her next victim.

Twenty minutes later they were all sitting around a table as pink as the desk against the wall, Goten on one side, Trunks on the other. Bulla sat at the head of the group, looking out over the two boys and half a dozen stuffed animals. She was busy handing out plastic tea cups and saucers. Meanwhile Trunks could only stare at his own nails, which were now -you guessed it- a beautiful shade of hot pink. Terrific. Just great.

"Don't you smirk at me like that," Trunks hissed when he caught Goten's eye, who had spent the last fifteen minutes doing everything within his power to not burst out laughing. "You're even prettier than I am, so you have no right to laugh."

"Aw, Trunks, don't be mean to Goten," Bulla reprimanded him. "He doesn't mind, he said it was okay. Now be quiet or else I'll give your tea to Mr. Snugglebumps."

"Yeah Trunkie, be quiet, or else Mr. Snugglebumps will drink your tea," Goten laughed.

Trunks flipped him off with a polished finger when Bulla wasn't looking.

The tea party lasted well over an hour. Bulla kept pouring them make believe cups of beverage, which the two boys sipped with pinky fingers raised high. They listened to her rave about her dancing and horse riding classes, nodding at the appropriate times and feigning their incredulousness every now and again. It did Trunks good to see how well Goten was able to get along with Bulla. He catered to the girl's fantasies just right, allowing her to become more and more ecstatic as the hour progressed. He got an explanation as to how when they had managed to shake Bulla off, and they were on their way to Trunks's room.

"Gohan has a daughter too, you know," Goten told him. "She's only about a year younger than Bulla, so it's nothing new to me."

"Not even the nail polish?" Trunks asked, glaring at his still pink fingers. Bulla didn't have any, and Bulma had flat out refused to lend them her remover, with the added comment that they could both use a little 'prettying up'.

"Been there, done that," Goten replied. "Though Pan prefers orange and green."

They were still laughing when they had reached Trunks's room. The door had been decorated with about a million video game covers. Trunks had taken them from their containers after he no longer played them, opting to use them as miniature posters instead. He heard Goten whistle appreciatively.

"Very nice," Goten said, letting his eyes roam over the titles. "You have a good taste in games."

"Thank you, kind sir," Trunks made a small bow. "Now if you would please enter my dormitory, for there awaits an afternoon of cursing and rage quits."

Goten whistled once more upon entering the room. For the most part it stood in direct contrast with the house it was located in. Trunks had taken care to pick out the most shabby looking sofa that he could get his hands on, and the wallpaper was peeling in places. What wasn't shabby, not at all, was the television that took up the majority of the room. About a dozen different consoles stood in the dresser below it. Beide that dresser were about five stacks of hundreds of games. Yeah, it was pretty cool alright.

"Wow man, this is insane," Goten said. "I thought I had a nice set-up, but this is just crazy."

"Glad you like it," Trunks said, using the remote to turn on the TV. He also fired up the console that sat on top of the dresser. He didn't even have to put his favourite game in the tray; the other ones had been collecting a fine layer of dust, for Trunks never played anything else these days.

"Any game that you want to play?" Trunks asked, gesturing towards the stacks of games.

"Eh, you pick something first, maybe afterwards I'll have a look," Goten answered.

"Sure thing." Trunks picked up a controller and connected it to the console. He selected the square on the screen that read 'Play Game'. For a moment the TV went black, then a warhorn could be heard, the surround sound set giving off the illusion that it came from somewhere far away.

Big, bold letters flashed across the screen, spelling out the name of the greatest game that had ever been developed. BlasterSmash.

"You're fucking with me."

Trunks looked to his side, giving a puzzled frown. Goten was standing there, mouth agape and his gaze glued to the screen. He was still mouthing the words of his previous sentence, apparently completely baffled by something.

"Wassup?" Trunks asked. He felt the urge to nudge Goten in the shoulder to snap him from his thoughts. The answer came quicker than he had expected it.

"You play BlasterSmash too?" Goten almost shouted. He turned to Trunks with a look of ecstasy in his face. "Holy crap, that's fucking amazing. I've never met anyone who plays it in person."

"'Holy crap' seems a good choice of words," Trunks said, feeling stunned. "I've never met anyone who plays it either. Not in real life, at least."

"Uh-huh," Goten mumbled, his eyes back to the screen, seemingly unable to look away.

"Hey, if you want you can log in to your account," Trunks suggested, holding out a second controller. "That way you can play with your own character."

Goten nodded and took the controller from him, He had reached the login screen before Trunks even had the time to blink. Trunks almost dropped the controller in his hands when he saw the name Goten was entering.

"No way," he breathed. "Impossible."

Goten raised his eyebrows, now done with signing in. "What's the matter?"

"You're BansheeBlues?" Trunks asked, his disbelief growing by the second. "The BansheeBlues?"

"Yeah," Goten replied in a casual tone. "What's so special about that? I didn't even know that I had a reputation."

"Dude," Trunks said, trying his hardest to accept the reality of it all. "I'm Captain Underpants."

They could only stare at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Never had either of them experienced anything this surreal. When the silence was broken, it was Goten who spoke.

"Holy goddamn shit. Fucking hell." He exhaled a few times to pull himself together. "Just... wow."

"You can say that again," Trunks agreed. "I never expected you to be BansheeBlues. Come to think of it, it should've been obvious for me."

He would've explained just why this was so obvious, but Goten's laughter drove those thoughts from his mind.

"What?" Trunks asked.

"'Captain Underpants'," Goten wheezed, one hand on his stomach, his cheeks streaming with tears. "Please, please tell me that it's a play on Briefs."

"What else could it be," Trunks pointed out, now smirking as well.

"Oh, this is glorious," Goten said while trying to regain his breathing. He wiped at the corners of his eyes. "Just brilliant."

"I have to admit that this is a pleasant surprise, yeah," Trunks spoke his agreement. "Now, once you're done laughing, how about we kill some fuckmothering Tuffles?"

Goten's gaze hardened almost instantly. "You got it, let's get it on!"

And thus BansheeBlues and Captain Underpants were also friends in the real world. No longer was there a wall of pixels between them. Oh, those poor, stupid Tuffles. They wouldn't know what hit them before it was too late.

"Oh, this is so exciting, I can't wait to see your room."

"Yes, you've said that twenty times already."

"Well I can't help it, I feel like a young girl being asked to the barn dance come Saturday. You're making me feel all flustered, big strong man, you."

"Oh, shut your pie hole."

"Make me."

Goten rolled his eyes as he walked up the stairs, Jasper following in his footsteps. Jasper had been in on his decision to keep their... whatever on the downlow, but he was having a much harder time sticking to the plan than Goten. As soon as they were out of earshot he would start cooing all these sweet little words, giving all these compliments that would make the heat rise to Goten's cheeks. Goten was terrified that his mother would pick up on it; he still didn't feel ready to shower her with the disappointment of his coming out.

They had just returned from band practice. Jasper was still smelling of the sweat that accumulated all over him whenever he played drums. It was almost enough incentive for Goten to jump him on the spot, but with all of his willpower he managed to keep himself grounded. Even if the guys in the band knew about them, it was no reason to bother them by sucking face in the middle of rehearsal. But, to be fair, Goten's restraint wasn't much stronger than that. His fingers were already shaky with anticipation as he reached for the key to his room.

"I hope your bed is comfy," Jasper mused, talking to himself more than to Goten.

"You'll see in a minute," Goten replied, unlocking the door and swinging it open. "Enter, if you dare."

"Oh cool," Jasper said as he stepped inside. What it was that he found cool, Goten had no idea. There was hardly anything in his room. All he had was his closet, his gaming system and Banshee and her amplifier. That and three shelves crammed full of books. When he came into the room himself, he found Jasper staring at something else entirely.

"How delightfully cliché," Jasper said, pointing at the poster of the kitty on the branch. "I've never encountered one of these in real life."

"Good to know that I bring something new to the table." Goten laughed. "Well, this is it. It's not much, I know."

"Eh, it's got everything we need," Jasper replied. "There's music and there's you. I couldn't ask for more."

Goten hated how easily Jasper could make him blush. Here he was, growing red once more. Jasper noticed it -of course he did- and chuckled, walking over to Goten and wrapping an arm around him.

"Sorry, I know how much you hate that," he said, kissing at Goten's temple. "But you have to understand that I love it. I love it. You're so cute when you get all flustered."

"Just you wait," Goten said. "One day I'll manage to turn the tables on you."

"Keep on dreaming, doll."

And then they were kissing. Every loose thought was blasted from Goten's mind as Jasper's lips grazed against his. It had been too long. It felt like it had been eons since they could caress the other like that, to have their breaths mingle into a haze of ecstasy. They could steal a peck here and there at school, but only behind closed doors did they get the chance to shed their inhibitions like they were doing now.

Jasper pushed him back hard, causing him to stumble and hit his bed with the back of his legs. Goten allowed himself to fall back into the plushy embrace of his mattress. He hardly registered the soft crushing sensation of Jasper's weight on top of him, only the taste of his kiss and the roughness of his fingers sliding through thick, dark locks.

Like the week before, Goten grasped the collar of Jasper's shirt, pulling him in deeper and begging for more, his tongue dabbing at his lower lip, telling him to come out and play. Jasper obliged without a second's hesitation.

Goten didn't know what caused him to do so. It was like Jasper took all sense of reason away from him, leaving nothing but a shell of a boy lusting for another's touch. When he opened his eyes to find those green emeralds, Jasper's shirt was gone from his torso, now clutched in Goten's fist like a rag used to clean the kitchen. The sight of Jasper mesmerized him.

Jasper was lean, as most drummers were, but not overly muscular or broad. Pearls of sweat fell from his hair and onto his chest, his chiseled, toned, absolutely perfect chest. Goten followed one of the beads as it rolled across a nipple, over a scar that could've been the result of a particularly bad day at the playground years ago, falling all the way down to the fabric of his jeans. Goten had to do a double take when he saw what was below Jasper's belly button.

"Something the matter?" Jasper asked, picking up on his stunned silence.

Goten said nothing, but chose to brush his thumb over the words that spelled the name of one of the greatest songs he had ever heard. "At Last", the tattoo read.

"Oh, you like it?" Jasper queried.

Goten answered by raising his head up and kissing Jasper so hard that he was sure his lips would bruise. His hands raked over Jasper's shoulders, nails drawing red lines across the skin. Jasper only grunted against his kiss, even seeming to enjoy the mild prickling sensation.

A pair of hands found the buttons of his blouse, undoing them with a speed that he couldn't comprehend. Before Goten could stop to blink his chest was bared. Jasper lowered himself more, allowing Goten to feel a totally new sensation, the one of naked skins sliding together. He wouldn't be surprised if he was moaning at the top of his lungs.

Jasper was getting bored with his lips, it seemed. His ministrations travelled down, his smooches falling on Goten's jawbone and moving down towards his neck. This time he did moan. He heard Jasper chuckle at his own small victory, but Goten wouldn't have him lord it over him. He'd made him a promise after all. While Jasper was distracted with kissing his neck, Goten slid a hand behind the fabric of his jeans. Jasper gasped so loudly that Goten feared his mother had heard.

"What's the matter?" Goten asked, enjoying himself much more than he had expected. He gave the bulge in his palm the softest of twitches, delight filling him up as Jasper inhaled and shuddered.

"Goten, I..." Jasper breathed, unable to continue his trail of sloppy kisses. "What're you-"

Goten twitched his hand again and this time it was Jasper's turn to moan. The sound was like heaven. When the green-eyed boy had fallen silent, they passed a look between them, one that spoke of the lust that hung in the air, almost palpable to the touch. It was like torture, this tension, this expectancy of who would be the first to cave.

Jasper was the weak one, it seemed. It could have something to do with how Goten had a firm grasp on his cock, or maybe not. Either way he launched himself forward, clawing at Goten's hair and kissing him with a ferocity that was almost scary. But what was the most frightening was how much Goten was enjoying himself.

Jasper was suckling at his collarbone now, clouding his every thought and making his heart thump faster. Goten opened his eyes to slits to watch his lover at play. He could see Jasper looking back at him, a deep, penetrating green conveying every word unspoken. And, just behind that, there was something else.

Gohan was standing in the doorway, holding a tray with tea cups and biscuits, the look in his eyes spelling pure astonishment.

Goten hoisted himself up, pushing Jasper aside, who was still blissfully unaware of the situation.

Gohan scraped his throat. "Uh, so... Yeah... I'll just put these down..." He set the tray down on a stack of clothing. "...and I'll... I'll be on my way. Okay, right. I'm going now, right." And with that he strode off, leaving Goten mortified.