Even a few days after that morning the post-it notes had not left Hana's mind. During every idle moment, her brain would churn into overdrive, turning each square of paper around and around, still attempting to make sense of it all. And she would've asked Piccolo except that she hadn't seen him in days. But he was around and she knew it, as evidenced by Gohan's absence immediately following his lessons.

Hana sat in the kitchen of the Son house one evening as she waited to walk to the bus stop.

"A party? Tonight?" She nearly laughed out loud. It was the last thing she expected to hear from Chi-Chi, but she was glad to. Anything to distract her from Piccolo.

Chi-Chi, elbow-deep in dishes, sighed and shook her head. "It wasn't my idea, trust me. It's my husband's old master, the turtle hermit, who's throwing it. Apparently everyone's going to be there. Of course Gohan's got his heart set on going, and I suppose it's been about a year since I've seen most of them, so I told him we can go for at least a little while."

"Oh, that sounds like fun," said Hana. "I hope you two have a nice time."

"Well, I was also going to ask—would you like to come?"

"Me?"

"Sure, why not?"

"I won't know anyone there."

"You know me and Gohan. And Piccolo if he shows up." Chi-Chi didn't seem especially pleased at the idea of Piccolo being there. Even Hana, at the mere mention of his name, felt a nervous jump in her stomach.

"You really think he'd go?"

Chi-Chi dumped more plates into the sink louder than she probably should've. "Oh, who knows with him." She tightened her apron strings. "So, what do you say? Want to come?"

Hana chewed her lip. A party would be an awfully big distraction. Lots of new people to take her mind off things. She looked down at her clothes, now lamenting her early morning decision to pair jeans with an old sweater. "I'd love to go, Chi-Chi, it's just—I'm not really dressed for it."

"That's all right." Chi-Chi was grinning as she turned from the sink and took Hana by the arm. "You can borrow something of mine."

.

.

Hana wasn't sure this was better. During the entire air-car ride she couldn't help but fiddle with the puffy sleeves of the dress and tug awkwardly at the neckline. Everything seemed just a bit too snug, a bit too revealing. And she was going to meet strangers in this dress. God, she was going to see Piccolo in this dress, wasn't she. The thought made her sweat.

"You look nice," said Gohan from the back seat as if sensing her discomfort.

"Thanks."

"Don't be nervous," Chi-Chi said. "This bunch is harmless. Idiots, but harmless."

They flew across the water for miles and miles, on and on into the coming sunset. Just as Hana was starting to wonder if Chi-Chi was lost, a small island appeared on the horizon. A few other air-cars were already parked on the shoreline. Palm trees were lit up with strings of blue lights, and paper lanterns were hung up around the roof of the bright pink beach house. KAME HOUSE was scrawled in red paint over the door.

Hana eased slowly out of the car to keep the dress from hiking up and fixed her hair in the side mirror. She'd tried to make herself look presentable before leaving the Son residence, but it just wasn't happening for her tonight. Her bangs were too unruly and her hair felt limp and lifeless. Now she was really hoping Piccolo would be a no-show.

The front door burst open and a woman maybe her own age with long teal-colored hair waved over at them. "Gohan! Chi-Chi! You made it!" She sprinted to the beach and smothered Gohan in a rib-crushing hug. "Ohh, it's so good to see you, short stuff."

"Y-you're squeezing me, Bulma."

Bulma caught sight of Hana and started to giggle. "Gohan, I think this girlfriend of yours might be too old for you."

Gohan went pink. "She's not my girlfriend, dummy."

"She's his tutor," said Chi-Chi just a bit pointedly.

"I'm Hana," she said with a brief bow, wary of the neckline of her dress. "Chi-Chi invited me."

Bulma was all smiles. "Well, I hope you came hungry 'cause we've got stuff on the grill that's almost done. Come on in, you guys! Everyone else is already here."

Inside, Hana was met with a handful of strangers—and also, surprisingly, faces she recognized. She remembered them, just as she remembered Gohan and Piccolo, from the broadcast of the Saiyan battle the previous year. There was Krillin, Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu. It was easy enough to recall their names, they'd been all over the news and the papers following the attack.

Except…wait, no, this wasn't right. Three of those men were dead. She'd seen in happen live on television.

"Uh-oh," said Yamcha, pointing to her, "I know that look."

Hana wrung her hands together. "I-I don't understand what's happening. You were dead. And you. And you." She looked to Tien and Chiaotzu.

The old man, Master Roshi, smirked from behind his mug of beer. "So you don't know about the dragon balls, eh?"

"The dragon balls—wait, like the old folk tale?"

"The very same," he replied.

"Except they're real," Krillin added.

Hana glanced down at Gohan, hoping he would let her know if this was all an elaborate prank. But the boy only nodded in earnest. God, so it was true. She supposed there were stranger things in the world—an old green man that lived in the clouds and served as God, for instance—but still, to think that the dragon balls were real and not just a children's story…it was unreal. She wondered how many other people knew, or if she were now privy to some confidential information. Except it couldn't have been that confidential if they just came right out and told her.

Shrugging it off, Hana introduced herself properly to everyone and bowed her head low.

Piccolo was nowhere to be seen. She felt relief untying the knot in the pit of her stomach. Bulma offered her a drink but she opted for soda instead. Getting tipsy in view of her employer and student didn't sit too well with her.

Various finger-foods were laid out on the table, and Hana helped herself to a heaping plate of cheese and crackers. She shoved a few bites into her mouth. She hadn't realized just how hungry she was. Master Roshi poured some drinks and Puar flew around the room to deliver them. Bulma raised her cup into the air with a, "Cheers!" and everybody drank.

"I can't believe it's been so long since we've gotten together like this," said Yamcha, reclining in his chair, boots on the coffee table. "It's kinda funny that so much has happened and we've been through so much, but all of us are still pretty much unchanged, y'know?"

Bulma scoffed at him and messed up his hair. "Leave it to you to die and come back to life and say nothing is different."

"And, dude, speak for yourself," said Krillin. "You lousy bums might be the same, but I've got a girlfriend now."

Yamcha rolled his eyes into the next province. "Really? We hadn't noticed."

"Don't pay any attention to him," Tien said to Maron. "It's been very nice getting to know you."

Maron grabbed Tien in an overly-affectionate hug. Hana couldn't help but notice how she pressed her cleavage against him. Neither could Krillin. "Aw!" the girl squealed. "Tien, you're such a sweetie. Krillin has the cutest friends."

Krillin's face was radioactive pink. Tien's wasn't faring much better.

"So, Gohan," said Bulma, changing the subject, "how's your training going?"

"You seem a lot stronger," Chiaotzu chimed in, and Tien, now recovered, nodded his agreement.

Gohan popped the cap off a bottle of soda. "It's going great! Mr. Piccolo's a lot stronger, too, so I've been able to improve faster than I ever could before. I've been trying to learn his makankōsappō technique, and I think I almost have it, but it's really difficult."

"I'm positive you'll get it in time," said Master Roshi. "You're your father's son, after all. You could probably master any moveset you wanted to."

"You really think so?"

"His studies are also going well," Chi-Chi snipped. "Hana says he's reading at a 10th-grade level. Isn't that right, Hana?"

Hana hadn't expected the conversation to swing around to her so soon. All eyes turned to her just as she crammed an undignified amount of cheese and crackers into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed down a gulp of her soda, nodding her head as she tried not to choke. "Y-yes, he's coming along swimmingly. I keep saying he'll end up teaching me eventually." She laughed a little but no one else seemed amused.

"I forgot, you can't expect this lot to care about such things," said Chi-Chi. "Bunch of uncultured swine."

"Hey!" said Oolong. "I resemble that remark!" This time, everyone laughed.

The conversations continued on and Hana was content not to be featured in any of them. It was entertaining enough just to listen in. Maron seemed to be out of the loop as well, and the two girls ended up sitting beside each other on the window seat making small talk. She was sweet enough, albeit a little ditzy and forward, and she smelled overwhelmingly of flowery perfume. The two of them talked favorite stores, makeup tips, ex-boyfriends—petty, entertaining talk that Hana usually didn't get a chance to indulge in. Maron was especially knowledgeable about fashion and spent a good ten minutes describing her ideal wedding gown down to the specific types of crystals sewn into the lace of the train. Hana hoped Krillin knew what he was getting into with this girl.

Eventually Bulma stuck her head in the house and declared that food was ready. Everyone hurriedly migrated outside to the long picnic tables. The sun was nearly set and the lights in the palm trees shone even brighter than before. Plates of chicken and ribs glistened with caramelized sauces. There were bowls upon bowls of baked beans, coleslaw, biscuits, even grilled corn on the cob.

Hana wolfed down an entire plateful and went back for seconds. Across the table, Master Roshi grinned toothily at her and adjusted his sunglasses. "My, my, if there's one thing I like to see, it's a girl with a hearty appetite!"

Bulma laughed. "She's too old for you, Turtle Hermit."

"So are you," he said, "but that doesn't keep me from trying."

Yamcha snickered and Bulma jabbed him in the arm with her fork.

When everyone began to slow down and fill up, Krillin banged a knife on his glass. "Before we finish eating, I think we should stop for a minute and think of the guy who can't be here with us. Goku, whatever you're doing up there, wherever you are, you better come back to us in one piece, you hear me?" He shook his knife at the night sky.

Chi-Chi clasped her hands. "Yes, Goku, we love you very much, and we're waiting as patiently as we can."

Hana gazed up at the emerging stars as the gathered friends echoed Chi-Chi's sentiments. She wondered if she would ever get to meet this Goku, or if he would ever return to Earth at all. She thought of Gohan and the father he missed every day. And she hoped the absence would somehow be worth the tears she now saw gathering in the boy's eyes.

Sudden music from the boombox pulled her from her reverie. Bulma turned up the volume and grabbed Yamcha and started to dance. "Yeah, Bulma's got the right idea," said Krillin, dabbing at his eyes. "Why the long faces, guys? Goku would want us to be celebrating. C'mere, Maron!"

Hana tapped her feet and grinned, watching these colorful strangers make fools of themselves on the beach. The alcohol was starting to kick in apparently. She almost hoped someone would ask her to dance. Maybe Tien. He seemed the shy type, though, and she wasn't exactly feeling her most confident either.

Someone tugged on the sleeve of her dress. "Oh! Yes, Gohan?"

"He's here," the boy said, low enough so only she could hear. "I can feel his ki."

Hana leaned in closer. "Who?"

"Mr. Piccolo."

He might as well have punched her in the gut.

Standing up from the bench, Hana made some weak excuse about needing to find the bathroom and fled into the empty Kame House. Inside it was dark, the only light coming from the palm tree lights through the windows. She checked her makeup in the mirror and raked fingers through her hair. It was quiet. There was space to breathe and collect her thoughts. Why couldn't her heart just stop pounding for a second?

There came a sound just outside the back door. She stopped dead. It had clearly sounded like a person's voice. She cracked open the door and slunk through to the empty side of the island. The only noise that greeted her was the gentle lapping of the ocean waves as they dragged across the shore.

She listened for a little while and then, content that it had only been her imagination, turned to go back inside.

"It's you." His voice raised goosebumps along her arms. Out from a gathering of palm trees came that familiar mantle and turban. It was too dark to see his face until he approached the blue neon sign above the back door.

"Piccolo," she said, tugging up the neckline of the dress, "um, hi." Of course it had to be him.

"I had a feeling you might be here."

"Chi-Chi invited me last-minute."

He studied her carefully, pressing his lips together. Hana thought he might make a comment about the dress, but instead he buried his face into the crook of his arm and sneezed. So that was the sound she had heard. He recovered and puffed out an irritated breath.

"I thought you said you didn't catch colds," Hana said, trying very hard not to crack a smile.

"It's not a—I'm not sick." He grimaced, flustered. "It's that woman Krillin brought with him."

"Maron?" And then it clicked. "Oh, her perfume. Yeah."

"That stuff is terrible," he said, punctuating himself with another gruff sneeze.

This time Hana did smile. In spite of the sneezing, he looked well—much better than the last time she'd seen him. His color was back in full force and the wounds on his head were almost entirely healed. It was incredible what only a few days could do.

"What?" he barked. "What're you smiling at?"

"Sorry, it's just…good to see you."

His scowl softened.

Hana played with the ruffles on the dress. If only she didn't feel quite so much like a sausage forced into its casing, maybe she would've had the guts to tell him just how much she'd missed seeing him lately. Or how often he'd been on her mind. Or how handsome he was under the blue lighting. How had she never noticed the chiseled angles of his cheekbones until now?

"Aren't you going back to the party?" Piccolo asked, breaking the lengthy silence. "I'm sure the last thing you want to do is stand around staring at me all night."

"Oh. Yeah." She shifted on her heels. She wanted to wait and see if he'd make a move to follow after her. "What about y—"

Piccolo sneezed again, loud enough to scare some birds out of the trees.

"—you." Hana bit down on her lip to keep from giggling. "Bless you."

"Pft." He was blushing. "Go on. I'll be there in a minute. I need to…get myself sorted out."

"All right." Hana curled her fingers around the doorknob, but paused before pushing it open. She had to bring it up, had to say something. And this alone time might be her only opportunity for days, weeks even. "By the way, about the other night…"

He just stared.

"It was…nice. Having you over like that. Next time you should stick around and let me cook you breakfast."

Piccolo frowned. "I don't—"

"Oh. You don't eat. That's right. My mistake." Hana let out a little self-depreciating laugh. "Still, you didn't have to go so soon."

"And leave in broad daylight?"

"Why not?"

Now Piccolo's ears were beginning to purple. "Don't neighbors start rumors about that sort of thing?"

"What, am I supposed to be embarrassed about having a friend over to my house?"

"A…friend?" he asked.

Hana mentally backpedaled like her life depended on it. "I-I mean…aren't we? I just assumed. We've known each other for almost two months, right?"

Piccolo seemed to be chewing the word over in his mind. She could almost see the gears grinding behind his eyes, and her heart flopped helplessly between her ribs as she waited for him to speak. Finally he crossed his arms and said, "I really have no use for friends."

"Oh." She hoped the disappointment wasn't showing on her face. "W-well, that's okay. We don't have to—"

"But," he continued, "I made an exception for Gohan. And I suppose I can make an exception for you."

And there it was—a grin. An honest-to-goodness grin. Right there on his gorgeous green mug. It was there and gone in a flash, but wow, what a flash.

"Friends, then." Hana held out her hand, hoping he might take the cue. After a second's hesitation, he clasped his hand around hers, giving it one firm shake before letting go. His skin was warm, and her palm was warm where he touched her. "A-after all," she said, "us teachers have to stick together, right?"

He grunted in agreement.

Hana couldn't keep her eyes off of him now. His entire being seemed transformed in the wake of that fleeting grin. His lips…how had she never noticed them before? They were smooth and sculpted and olive green, darker than the leaf green that colored the rest of him. And as she stood there, transfixed, she watched as he wet those lips with a pass of his tongue—his purple tongue.

She gulped.

Suddenly all she could think of were the notes he crumpled in her garbage can. She knew so little about him. So much of him was hidden below the surface, purposefully left vague, and those post-it notes were the perfect example. He had obviously wanted to say something, but decided to take it back, to keep it inside, a secret.

"Listen. Piccolo." Hana squared her shoulders, prepared to ask. "There's something I've been wondering about for the last few days."

The door behind her swung open, startling her into silence. Krillin popped his bald head outside. "Oh, there you are. We were worried you got lost or kidnapped by a mermaid." He chuckled and then saw Piccolo there, towering over him and glaring as usual. "Piccolo. You're here too."

Piccolo narrowed his eyes. "I am."

"Gohan's out front, y'know. You should come join us."

Maron bounded up behind Krillin. She threw her arms around his neck and smooched his ears. "Krillin, come dance with me some more!" Hana could smell the perfume again and she heard Piccolo sneeze behind her.

Krillin was pink all over and he stuttered, "A-all right, Maron, I'm coming." He let himself be dragged back into the house.

Hana went to follow after them, but Piccolo said, "Wait."

"Hm?"

"You wanted to ask me something."

Her mouth opened, hung open long enough for her to take a breath, and then closed again. She'd lost her nerve. "Oh. No, it's not important. Never mind. Let's go see Gohan." She smiled, hoping he would let it go.

He did. And when she turned to go inside, he ducked under the doorway and trailed soundlessly behind her.

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The party continues in the next chapter! Thank you SO MUCH for reading - y'all are the best. Next chapter should be up by the end of this weekend!