Say whaaaaaat?! Two new chapters within twenty-four hours? You're damn right, two chapters!
This one I like very, very much. I had a lot of fun writing it, so I can only pray that it is just as much fun to read.
Now please read, review and enjoy!
A week ago Trunks had been nervous about his birthday party. A few hours ago he had been biting his nails down to nothing. And right now, with the party in full swing, he couldn't have felt better about it. That may have just been the alcohol, but hey, if it worked, it worked.
He had decided to make it small, in part because he did not feel like cleaning up after a hundred people, and mostly because he despised most people anyway, so why the hell would he invite them to his party?
Trunks walked around the living room, talking to everyone present. It was surprising how social he became after only a few drinks; he had just spent half an hour talking with Tito and now he was deeply engrossed in a conversation with Neve. He had never known why Neve always dressed the way he did, as if he were some fifty-year old war veteran, but after the night had progressed Neve had felt it safe to let Trunks in on his reasoning. Poor guy, losing your father at such a young age must be terrible.
Other than Neve and Tito he had also invited Sadie. He had had some trouble adjusting to the girl's enormous amounts of energy; even Marron couldn't rival her. Last week had been a turning point, though. After Goten had received her emotional phone call, they had gone over in an attempt to comfort her. It had been awkward at first, for Trunks had never imagined her throwing herself into his arms, bawling her eyes out onto his shoulder. Goten had stood to the side surveying it all with a knowing smirk. If Trunks were to ask him, he would say that Sadie went for him because she harbored somewhat of a crush for Trunks. The boy himself had scoffed off the remark, but it became a lot harder to deny when her tears were staining his shirt.
All good and well, they had stayed with Sadie until late at night. The poor thing had been so distraught, her white hair a tangly mess and her eyes puffy and red. She had cried for hours, only because some son of a bitch had been unfaithful to her. Looking back on it, it made Trunks's blood boil. Sadie was a nice girl. And nice girls didn't deserve to be treated like objects. He had said this to Sadie too, though it had only sufficed in making her cry harder. She would later admit that this was because she found his kindness hard to handle.
Ever since then he liked Sadie a lot better. For some reason she seemed a lot less annoying, and yes, he had thought that of her once. In hindsight it was a very mean way of thinking about it; he had judged without really knowing her, and it was by getting to know her that he learned that all of this energy and this... this randomness was nothing more than a coping mechanism for her own insecurities. To make up for his behaviour he had started inviting her to sit with them during lunch breaks, and she had taken him up on the offer. As such she had also been invited to his birthday party.
Trunks excused himself with Neve, noting that they had been talking for quite a while longer than he would've been able to guess. He also noted that he was out of a drink, so he made to get himself a new one. Goten had helped him set up a long table on the side of the room and now it was littered with bottles, cups and bowls full of snacks. He walked over to it, perhaps not in the straight line that he was going for, but he managed well enough.
He was staring over the collection of bottles, trying to take a pick. He had downed a few wines already, but they were now beginning to grow stale on his tastebuds. He'd rather have something else, but the question was what exactly? It was an important question and he would have to choose with great care. So, what was it going to be? He had heard some good things about the passion fruit cocktail, but the chocolate liqueur was simply screaming his name. Decisions, decisions...
"Hey," a voice came from his side. Trunks raised his drunk eyes to meet Goten's. His friend was also looking quite inebriated. Earlier that night he had confided in Trunks that his mother would murder him if she ever found out that he had been drinking underage. Trunks had resolved the matter by offering him a bed to sleep in for the night. After that Goten had gone somewhat crazy, drinking everything in reach.
"'Sup," Trunks replied, grabbing the bottle of liqueur and pouring himself a glass. He held out the bottle to Goten, who held up his glass as a reply. Trunks gave him his fill and the two boys turned their backs on the table, gazing out over the party unfolding.
"See, I told you it would turn out to be a fun party," Goten said, his words slurring just the littlest bit.
"Yeah, you were right," Trunks agreed. It really was a fun party. "I'm glad that you kept my ass in gear, if not I probably would've called it off at the last second."
"Pfft, like I'm going to help you be antisocial," Goten laughed.
"Ugh, you won't let me do anything," Trunks joked. "You're like my mother."
"Oh please, you don't want me to go maternal on you."
"I really think I don't."
There was a small moment of silence during which a question popped into Trunks's mind.
"Say, have you talked to Jasper yet?" Trunks waved his glass at the boy in question, who was having an apparently heated discussion with Sadie and Marron. "I mean, about what we talked about last weekend?"
Goten shook his head. "No, I haven't. I was planning to, but..."
"But what?"
"I'm pretty sure that you don't want to hear this."
Trunks shrugged his shoulders. "You can always try. Besides, you have to have someone to talk to about relationships and stuff. Someone who is not your mother or brother."
"I guess you're right," Goten admitted. "Okay look. I think for about two weeks now Jasper and I have been boyfriends. We gave it a name and we decided to get serious about... well... us. It made me really happy, you know." A drunken smile split his face in half and Trunks could not help but mirror it. "The problem is though that so far I haven't really been able to call it an actual relationship."
"Then what it is?" Trunks asked while lighting a cigarette.
Now it was Goten's turn to shrug. "Attraction, definitely. Excuse me for saying it, but do you know how goddamn hot my boyfriend is?"
"I have noticed, yes,"
"Well, case in point," Goten said. "I'm just so flustered whenever we are alone that it's not even normal anymore. It's a lot of fun, don't get me wrong, but like I said, I can hardly call it a relationship. Whenever we get some time to ourselves we just end up groping each other."
"You say that like it is a bad thing," Trunks said, taking a swig from his drink. "Is it?"
Goten contemplated this for a minute. "Yes and no, I suppose." He too took a good swallow of his beverage. "For one it is really fun. We're young and it's perfectly understandable that we can't keep our hands to ourselves. Comes with being a guy, I suppose. The problem is that both of us were so convinced that we would do well in a relationship, only now that it comes down to it, there is no relationship. Do you understand?"
"Yeah, I do," Trunks said. "You don't really care that you aren't fully committed to one another, but you also don't want to pretend."
"More or less, yes," Goten said. "So there's that. And of course I tried talking to him about it, but every time I get halfway into the conversation he suddenly has his tongue down my throat and my pants are somewhere on the ceiling fan."
Trunks choked on his chocolate liqueur and needed Goten slapping him on the back to properly regain his composure. "I didn't need to know that!" he sputtered once he had gotten his breathing back under control.
"Hey, you were the one that told me to just get it off my chest," Goten pointed out. "Not to mention, you are also the one who bought all of this booze that is making my tongue loose."
"Right, sure, blame the birthday boy," Trunks said.
"Who else can I blame?"
"How about your own drunk ass?"
"Says the guy who has to grab the table for support."
"Oh, can it, you." Trunks emptied his glass and set it down on the table. "But hey, man, just so you know, you can talk to me anytime."
Goten smiled at him. "Thanks a lot, seriously. You were right, I had to get that out of my system." His eyes travelled over the party guests, lingering on Jasper. They were then enveloped in some sort of misty stare. Poor guy, Trunks thought. He really is head over heels. Too bad that it won't work out.
He had no idea where that snide and uncalled-for thought had come from, but as it repeated itself in his head, he knew that he was right. It made him feel bad for Goten. Jasper was a decent guy, but he wasn't right for Goten. He would end up hurting him one way or another. Trunks wanted to say this, but he realized that it was not his position to tell Goten what choices he made in his own relationship. No, all he could do was hear him out and stand at the sidelines. When it all went to hell he would be the first to rush to Goten's aid, but for now he could only watch and let him make his own decisions.
"Anyway," Goten said this loud enough for everyone present to hear. "I think it is about time for our birthday boy to unwrap his presents."
There was a murmur of agreement and before Trunks could blink he had been forced to sit down on the couch, a stack of gifts in front of him.
Unpacking took much longer than he would've wanted it. Marron insisted that he would unwrap her present first, which was the least surprising of all. A new controller for his console. Yay, he only had like six of those. Neve and Tito had split a present, a gigantic cardboard cutout of a standard Saiyan Soldier from BlasterSmash. Trunks smiled like a kid when he unwrapped it. It would look fantastic next to his television.
Sadie gave him a BlasterSmash themed present also. She had knitted him a scarf. Though it would be useless in the next few months to come, he could definitely see himself wearing it over the winter. She had embroidered the Royal Saiyan logo onto it, which made it freaking awesome by default. He pulled her into a hug to show his gratitude, but in hindsight he wished he hadn't. When he let go of her, her cheeks were a brilliant red. He immediately recalled what Goten had told him, about how she might have caught feelings for him. He had no desire to lead her on, especially not after such a rough breakup.
Jasper had done his best to find a proper present too, and he had done a decent job at it. He shoved a flash drive into Trunks's hands and explained shortly. "I know you and Goten always play BlasterSmash. He told me that you can upload an audio clip to your character that goes off whenever you have the last kill of the game. So here you go, Captain Underpants's very own theme song."
Trunks raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "You wrote me a theme song?"
"Well, Goten helped a lot, but yeah," Jasper said. "It's all about how awesome you are and how everyone should get on their knees and praise you as their new Saiyan overlord. Oh, and it's like three minutes long, so everyone in the lobby at the end of the game has to listen to it start to finish."
"Wow, that is fucking brilliant man!" Trunks said, clapping Jasper on the shoulder. He shot a glance towards Goten as well. "Thanks a million!"
But the gift-giving wasn't yet over, As it turned out, Goten had reasoned that his very own theme song wasn't enough of a present. He handed Trunks a large box that rattled with all kinds of items. Trunks almost ripped the box itself to shreds in his excitement.
What Goten had given him took his breath away. Inside was an enormous supply of different drawing equipment; pencils, erasers, different kinds of paper, calligraphy pens, coal, and so and so on. With this he could draw to his heart's content, trying out new materials and different styles whenever he pleased. When he lifted his head a smile covered most of his face.
"Thanks man, this is great!" Trunks said. It was hard to describe how touched he felt by the gift. Though everyone had gone through the trouble of finding him something that really fit his personality and his hobbies well, this was something else entirely. It did not build on something that was already one of his life's bigger successes, like his skills in BlasterSmash. This was something that encouraged the talents that he had yet to develop. It meant that Goten saw his potential more than he did, and that in itself was priceless.
He didn't care how awkward it would make him. Trunks dragged Goten into a bone-crushing hug, so hard that he actually heard him wheeze for breath. His smile still wouldn't fade away.
"Thank you so much, man," he said. Then he added more softly "You have no idea how much I appreciate this, seriously."
"S'all good," Goten said, returning the smile. "Just promise me that you will use them, okay?"
Trunks nodded. Oh, he would use them alright. He'd be damned if he did. And he knew just what he was going to draw as well.
Fast forward a few hours after the gift giving. More alcohol flowed as the night progressed and around midnight Goten was sure that he wouldn't be able to tell left from right. He was having a blast, though, so it didn't matter in the least. That was, if he reminded himself to drink a few glasses of water before bed, otherwise he wouldn't be feeling so on top of the world the following morning.
The one hitch in the evening had been his conversation with Trunks by the drinks table. Once he had admitted to his friend how he felt about his relationship with Jasper, he felt a strong desire to have the talk he had been planning on for a week already. The problem was that they would need their privacy. He still didn't feel completely ready to bring this news out into the world, especially not with an inebriated Marron skulking around. It would only look fishy if he were to disappear along with Jasper for who knew how long.
Another problem was that he craved for some affection from his boyfriend. Goten was feeling drunk and frisky and if it were up to him, he would drag Jasper into the next room without warning to tear all of his clothes off. That's when they circled back to the privacy issue. It made him sigh; keeping things secret was really hard sometimes.
He settled for watching Jasper from his spot on the couch, trying to do so with a bit of stealth as to not raise any suspicion. Whenever Jasper noticed this and looked back, Goten felt heat rise to his cheeks. The sight of those green eyes would make him feel flustered no matter the circumstances, but as it turned out it was much, much worse when you poured some alcohol into him. Damn his hot boyfriend and his pretty eyes.
It took a while before he realized that someone had taken a seat next to him. When he looked to the side at random, Marron was there, and she was very, very close to him. It was making him uncomfortable.
"H-Hey," He eventually managed. He scooted a little to the left to put some distance between them and he was thankful that Marron made no move to close it again.
"Hey," she parrotted. Then she hit him with a question. "Hey, would you mind coming outside with me for a bit?" She made to tug at the hem of her shirt. "It's really warm in here and I could use some fresh air."
Goten did not know how to respond. Truth to be told, he really did not want to go with her. Even before Trunks had told him about her intentions Goten had noticed the way she looked at him. Now that his suspicions had actually been confirmed, it was all the more obvious. Even in his addled state of mind he could tell that she did not want to go outside merely for the sake of cooling off.
Yet he couldn't tell her he knew that, and besides, he had been friendly with Marron up to this point, so there would be no use in going against that. So, with all of his good grace, he nodded, getting up from the couch and following her as she ventured into the kitchen where the back door would be. He caught sight of Trunks along the way, to whom he mouthed a silent 'help me!', but Trunks only looked at them in amusement.
He found Marron already outside, leaning against the wall with a cigarette clasped between her fingers. She looked at him with drunken eyes when he came to stand by her side.
Goten was at a loss for words. Nothing could make this situation any less awkward for him, nor was there anything he could do to stop it. He just prayed that Marron wouldn't try anything radical, because he simply did not have the nerve right now to tell her off.
"Goten, hey," Marron spoke up. "I wanted to tell you something."
Goten gulped. Great, here we go.
"Y-yeah," he said, hoping that she wasn't going to say what he thought she was going to.
"I've been keeping an eye on you ever since you started school with us," Marron admitted, dancing on the balls of her feet. "I'm usually really curious about new people, but with you it's... different." She was standing in front of him now. Very closely in front of him.
Goten tried to divert his look. "Uh-huh." God, she was much too close for comfort. "Different how, exactly?"
Marron acted even more rash than he had expected her to. He had looked away for the smallest of moments and when he turned back her face was not even an inch removed from his. And of course she kissed him. Before he could protest her lips were against his. One of her arms went around his waist and she sought out his hands, fiddling with his fingers.
Goten felt like the biggest bastard alive when he did not reciprocate. There was no reason for it; he did not need to feel bad for not doing anything, but he still did. Marron caught on after a few seconds. She stepped back and looked at him, the expression on her face a mixture of shock and disbelief. When he let his own eyes fall to the ground, she clapped a hand to her mouth.
"Marron, I..." Goten tried to find something to say to her, but the words would not come. How did one go about telling a pretty girl such as her that there was no attraction from his side? It would be a smack in the face either way.
"No, don't say anything," Marron said, her words turning to sobs. "It's not your fault. I know I'm annoying, okay? Trunks reminds me all the time. I just decide not to listen to him, but I suppose he was right."
"No! What?!" Goten laid his hands on her shoulders to make her look at him, but all she did was turn away. When he did not remove his hands, she walked away from him, sitting down on a bench a few yards further down the backyard. Some of the animals in the zoo-like constructions looked at her curiously. It was a strange sight, a lone girl crying on a bench, the silhouettes of lions and elephants draen against the horizon.
The backdoor opened and out stepped Jasper. The drummer looked around and spotted his boyfriend. A smile immediately erupted across his face.
"Goteeeeeen..." Jasper cooed. He was easily as drunk as Goten was, if not even more. "I've been looking for you, where were you?"
Goten did not feel like talking to Jasper just yet. He wasn't sure whether he was mad at him, because in some way this whole situation Goten was in was Jasper's fault. If he hadn't been so adamant on reeling Goten in, Marron wouldn't be crying right now.
Even so, Goten made no move to stop Jasper as he stepped behind him, wrapping both arms around his waist and kissing the top of his head. Goten was too drunk to really put up a fight. That and he still yearned for Jasper's touch, no matter his growing anger.
Goten made half a turn and kissed Jasper, pleasing his boyfriend for half a second before cutting the kiss off short. Jasper noticed this.
"Babe, is something wrong?" he asked, nuzzling Goten's hair.
Goten merely pointed in the direction of the bench. Jasper let him go without a second of hesitation once he saw Marron sitting there, sobbing into her hands.
"What's up with her?" Jasper asked this as if she had only had a hissy fit.
Goten whirled around and stared him down. His glare proved effective, for Jasper shrank back at the sight of it. "You," Goten said, poking Jasper in the chest with his index finger. "You are what's up with her." He lowered his voice. "Do you know what happened? She kissed me, that's what happened."
"No shit," Jasper said, looking stunned. "But how is that my fault?"
Goten had to take a step back at that remark. "Because of you and your stupid goddamn bet!"
"Oh..." Jasper said. His gaze travelled towards his feet and his shoulders slumped. "Oh."
"You're damn right, 'oh'," Goten bit. "What the hell did you expect would happen? Did you think that it was okay to let it all blow up in her face? Is this funny to you? Was this your idea of a fun little joke, have her make a move on the boy that she can't get just so he can step on her feelings?"
"No, Goten, I-," Jasper tried to tie a proper sentence together. "You've got this all wrong."
"Oh, so you didn't have a bet going?"
"Yes, but-"
"And it wasn't your intention to win said bet and lord it over Marron like you are the greatest thing since sliced bread?"
"Goten, please-"
"No, don't you 'Goten, please' me. I know all about this stupid fucking bet of yours. I've known so for a week, but I didn't say anything so far, because I thought that you would have the decency to at least make sure that something like this wouldn't happen. Well, I guess I learned something new today."
Jasper said nothing for a long time. All he did was stare at his feet, meanwhile managing to piss Goten off even more. He was almost looking for a fight now; the way Jasper was silently agreeing with him made him so angry that he wanted to punch that pretty boy face in.
"Goten, y-you're right," Jasper eventually said. "It was a really bad move on my part. I should've told Marron that our bet was off or something. I messed up."
"You're goddamn right, you messed up," Goten yelled so loud that he knew for sure that Marron had heard him. "And now you are going to help me fix it. Right now."
He did not give any further explanation. He just grabbed Jasper's arm and dragged him along to the bench where Marron was sitting. When she heard them approach she looked up with red and swollen eyes. Most of Goten's anger evaporated, but he was determined to hold on to some of it, if it was only for the sake of laying the beatdown on Jasper later on.
"Marron, hey," Goten said. He sank through his knees in front of her so he could look her in the eyes. She tried to turn away from him, but he wouldn't have it. He put a hand under her chin and made sure that she was looking at him before he continued.
"Hey, I want you to listen to me. You didn't do anything wrong, okay?"
"Of course I did," Marron sniffed. "I tried to kiss you even though you didn't want me to. How can that be okay to you?" She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. "I get it, okay! People don't like me an awful lot. It won't make any difference if you don't either."
"Marron!" Goten snapped. It got the desired effect; she looked at him with startled eyes. "I want you to listen to me, and really hear what I have to say, okay?"
She gave a small nod.
"Okay, good," he began. "Listen. Me not kissing you back has nothing, I repeat nothing to do with you as a person. Nothing at all."
"I-it doesn't?"
"No," Goten said, and he actually found himself laughing. "Marron, the reason I didn't kiss you back is... well... I'm not into girls, that's all. I'm gay, Marron."
She looked at him as if he had just said that pigs could fly. "R-really?"
"Yeah, really," he reassured her. "And Jasper has something to say as well." Said boy was somewhat slow on the uptake, so Goten nudged him hard in the ribs with his elbow.
"Huh, what? Oh, right..." Jasper let out a deep sigh. "Marron, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but, well, I should've called our bet off a while ago."
She looked up at him with misty eyes. "Ah, so you've won it, huh? When do I have to treat you to dinner?"
"How about never, and how about I treat you?" Jasper proposed. "It's the least I can do after behaving like such a gigantic asshole."
Marron gave a watery laugh. "Yeah, you sure can," she said. "Fine, you can treat me to dinner, I suppose. Congratulations on winning the bet, though, you got yourself a fine new piece of ass."
"Hey now, I'm no 'piece of ass'," Goten tried to act as if he was offended, but he was laughing before he knew it. "And besides, I'm still mad at Jasper, so he won't be getting any for a while."
"Aw, really?" Jasper whined. "C'mon..."
Goten gave him a sugary sweet smile. "Well maybe you should have thought of that before you used this 'piece of ass' for your silly little wager."
Marron laughed out loud. "Ha! You know what, screw dinner, this is sooooo much better."
Goten sat down on the bench beside her and took one of her hands in his. "So, are we cool? I'd hate to have to break off our friendship over this."
She wiped away the last of her tears. "Sure we are. I'd hate that too."
"Good," Goten said. "I need a good fag hag as it is."
She laughed again, this time a true sound to it. "I take it that I can apply for the job?"
"I'd say you are the only one fit for the job."
Marron smiled. "Thanks, Goten." She then hugged him out of the blue.
He returned the gesture. When they came apart she stood up, letting a pointing finger travel between Goten and Jasper. "Say, I'm going to go inside. Goten, please don't be too hard on Jasper, alright? I know it sounds mean that he approached you over a bet, but if that had been all he cared about, he would've thrown this in my face way before this."
Goten nodded. He supposed she was right. He watched her walk inside. He couldn't say for sure, but something told him that he had just made a valuable friend.
Jasper sat down beside him, silently wrapping his arms around him. Goten's anger was gone now, so he allowed it. Jasper was one lucky bastard; Goten was very bad in holding grudges. Perhaps that was why he yielded to his boyfriend's kiss so easily, or maybe it was just because he simply couldn't keep his hands away from him. For a second his mind circled back to the conversation with Trunks, about how his entire relationship with Jasper seemed to be based on physical attraction alone, but that thought was banished from his mind when Jasper's taste filled his mouth.
He drew back from the kiss after a few seconds, a smile on his face. He was glad that most of the damage control had been seen to, though he would still have to ponder some more about where his future with Jasper was headed. Not now though; he was far too distracted by Jasper's lips on his neck.
"Shouldn't we get back to the party soon?" Goten had the audacity to ask, but Jasper said all that needed to be said wordlessly when his hand disappeared behind the fabric of Goten's jeans.
"Okay, or maybe not... They can last a few minutes without us, I'm sure..."
The party was running on its last legs. Marron had gone home, stating that she should be getting some sleep if she wanted to get out of bed at all the following day. Neve and Tito had left much earlier on, since they had another party to go to somewhere downtown. Jasper and Goten were fast asleep; they had already dozed off on the couch once, so Trunks had appointed them a bed to sleep in.
The only person who was still there was Sadie, and Trunks had to admit that he was thankful for that. She had offered to help him clean up and he had taken her up on it. He was tired enough as it was, so the helping hand really managed to take off some of the workload. Besides, she was good company, so they didn't have to clean up in silence.
They had just put away the last bottles and dishes. Trunks was bent over the drinks table, rubbing furiously at some of the stains that had congealed onto the surface. Sadie was running the vacuum cleaner along the carpet to do away with the crumbs of what had been a million or so potato chips. All of this Trunks considered to be the product of a terrific night.
Not only did he have a wonderful time with his friends, he also got some awesome presents and somewhat of a new outlook on how he treated people. Call it cheesy, but he had learned life lessons and he was grateful for it. If he had to do it again tomorrow, well, he wouldn't do it again, because of hangovers, but next week... yeah, he'd definitely do it again.
The room fell silent; Sadie was done with the vacuum cleaner. Trunks was just about finished assaulting the table as well, so he tossed the rag he'd been using back into the bucket of suds. He'd put away the rest tomorrow, he was just too deadbeat to do it now.
Sadie walked over to him after clearing away the vacuum. A shy smile played her lips as she looked at him. "Hey," she said. "Thanks for a great night, I really needed that."
"Not a problem," Trunks said, returning her smile. "And thank you too for coming, I have to admit that I haven't always had the best opinion about you. I'm sorry for that, and I'm trying to change that."
Her smile widened. "Right back at you. You're not so much of a sourpuss as everyone makes you out to be." She leaned against the drinks table and parked a loose lock of her white hair behind her ear. "Say, I really appreciate that you came over last week, really. I was really broken up about Kaiden and when you and Goten showed up it was just a little too much for me. Thank you so much for sticking with me then, I don't think I can tell you how much it means to me."
"Then don't."
"Excuse me?"
"Like I said, just don't," Trunks said, giving her a reassuring look. "Sometimes it's best to not say anything. There are times where it's better to just act, or do something else to let people know you are thankful."
Sadie looked at him with weighing eyes. "You're right," she said. "You're absolutely right."
And then she was kissing him. It startled the life out of Trunks, but he made no move to stop her. She leaned against him and the coffee table behind him creaked, prompting Trunks to step away from it. Sadie gave him an uncertain look, but he took it away from her by dragging her over to the sofa.
He initiated this time, clashing against her lips and guiding her onto the couch with the gentle pressure of his hands on her shoulders. She was easy to oblige. Her hands were in his hair before he knew it. His own landed on her hips.
Sadie drew back and pressed her forehead against his. Her cheeks were red with a fiery blush. Slowly, ever so slowly, she removed her hands from his locks and put them on Trunks's own. She acted as his guide, placing one hand against her belly and putting the other just below her breasts. The look in her eyes told him that she didn't mind, that she wanted his touch. Trunks wanted to go further, lose himself in something physical. He had needed it more than he could ever realize, this closeness to another human being.
Only there was a problem.
Trunks scooted back on the sofa, stunning Sadie and leaving her with her mouth agape. He raised sorry eyes at her in the hope that she would somehow understand, even if he did not say anything, but she only looked hurt. It felt like a brick had fallen onto his stomach.
It wasn't that he didn't like Sadie. He liked her a lot, actually. Nor was there anything wrong with the way she kissed; the taste of her sweet lips was delightful, mesmerizing even. The only issue was that there was nothing. No feeling of desire growing in his gut, no growing of his arousal. This exchange wasn't stimulating to him. The right type of attraction just wasn't there.
He told all of this to Sadie, who was, thank the heavens, very understanding. After a while she would admit that she had acted irrationally as well, her actions fueled by a desire for closeness, much like how Trunks had felt. All of this raised a lot of questions, though. Sadie was a great help in organizing them for him.
"So," she said, biting her lower lip. There was a sense of awkwardness between them now, not because of the happenings of the night, but of the questions to come. "You don't like me 'like that'. Fine, cool. But it makes me wonder, though... what kind of girl would be able to make you feel anything for her?"
Trunks sank back into the couch and looked at her, his eyebrows lowered into a contemplative frown. Truth to be told, he'd be damned if he could tell her. His mother had asked him a similar question not too long ago and he hadn't had an answer ready then.
"I don't know," he eventually said. "I have never given it a whole lot of thought, if I'm being honest."
Sadie's eyebrows -white, to match her hair- arched. She sucked in her breath. "Ooh, okay." She gave him a fleeting look. "Sorry for asking this, but... did you ever consider that you just aren't that interested in girls?"
He had to blink at that. He had never even considered the possibility. Trunks had moved through his life without paying a whole lot of attention to the vaguer terms such as 'love' and 'happiness'. Yet, now that his mindframe was ready to deal with an issue like this one, it didn't seem all that implausible.
"I'm not really sure," he confessed to Sadie. "Maybe. I'm not a sexual deadpan, I just learned that."
Her fingers stroked the back of his hand, a knowing gesture that brought him comfort. A kindly smile was on her face when he turned to her. Well," she said, giving his hand a pat. "I think that you have some thinking to do. Just so you know, whatever you discover about yourself, I'm behind you."
Trunks returned her smile. "Yeah, thanks, say that after you plunge me into an existential crisis."
Sadie laughed. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I won't 'gay scare' you ever again."
"You better, Snowflake, you better."