Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball Z – it belongs to its respective owners. This fan fiction is not a commercial project, and I am not making any money from writing it.

Warnings: Alternate Universe. Yaoi (male x male). Goten x Trunks and vice versa. Other pairings.

A/N: this chapter includes a sex scene, which, due to the ff net's policy had to be removed. You can read it on either ArchiveOfOurOwn or AdultFanfiction.

Barracks

by chayron (lttomb yahoo com), betaread by werewolfflutist

Part 73

Trunks awoke to Goten's voice calling him. He turned towards the sound.

"The siren went off a few moments ago."

From between the sheets, Trunks blinked at him sleepily, then nodded. Goten was already dressed in his uniform. Somewhere inside the prince's woozy head formed an idea that he should get an alarm clock. But what would be the use of it if he wasn't even able to hear the bloody siren?

"You alright?"

It took a couple of seconds for the prince to remember the possible reasons behind the question. Together with the memory of his limp dick and the weird fatigue, his face exploded red.

"Ugh," he grunted, pressing his burning face against the cool spot on the pillow. He exhaled into it, instantly warming it up. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Goten didn't seem to be convinced, but let it go. Trunks watched him walk out of the bedroom, then heard a tap open and mugs being filled. While Goten's back was turned to him, he moved the covers aside and glanced down at his proud morning wood. Well, at least one problem had only been temporary.

Soon the third-class was back with water, holding one mug out for him. Goten emptied his greedily and went to refill it. The third-class was obviously hungover.

"Serves you right," Trunks muttered quietly.

"I heard that."

Even after having spent most of his life amongst Saiyans, Trunks still couldn't get used to the fact that their hearing was at least three times better than that of an average Human. Goten had heard him mumble even through the sound of running water.

"Serves you right!" the prince repeated, louder this time. The past few days had been strange. He didn't quite grasp or understand what he felt or what was going on. There were so many conflicting emotions inside him that all of it had turned into a mess.

From the doorway, Goten gave him a look, then walked over to the bed. He put his mug down onto the bedside cabinet and sat down next to Trunks. The prince sat up to face him.

"I'm sorry about this," Trunks apologized again, gingerly touching the third-class's lip with his thumb. "Looks painful."

Goten's tongue flicked over the thumb, and Trunks' breath caught in his throat. "I'll make sure you have no reason to be so upset ever again." The look of mixed surprise, embarrassment, and delight on the prince's face made him smile. He kissed the thumb that was still pressed against his lips. "I'm afraid I have to go now, or Kyon will again accuse me of using connections. See you in the evening."

Trunks caught him by his arm as he stood up. "Just punch someone and you'll be sent to my office. We can talk then."

The third-class blinked at the serious look on the prince's face. Then he chuckled and kissed him on his lips. "I'll try not to."

The door closed behind Goten, and Trunks heard the third-class converse with the Royal Guards. The voices quieted down quickly, and he lay down again, closing his eyes and relaxing back into the bedding. He should have informed his bodyguards about Goten. Yet, it was apparent now that all of them already knew what the deal was.

Good for them, because he didn't. If he were completely honest with himself, he had to admit that he was freaking out. He didn't know how much of it was because of Goten or himself. There was a mess in his head, and he didn't know what had caused it. Perhaps everything had happened too fast. He had been courting Goten for a long time and now, when things were finally happening, this relationship, everything changed. Goten immediately took it as a given and was going with the flow again, which was very typical of the third-class.

What Trunks didn't understand was how Goten was able to switch from Dueri to him so quickly and easily. He was happy and even grateful for that, really, but how in the universe did that work? The thing that was freaking him out the most was the fact that now it was Goten who was in control. Their roles had reversed. Now, the third-class was the one with experience. What was more, he was a freaking Legendary! The being that everyone had idolized for about a millennium.

Trunks hadn't ever been in a relationship before. He didn't understand how Goten could be so at ease. Was this normal? He wasn't able to keep up with the third-class. He was still stupidly obsessed with Goten, lusted after him like crazy, easily got jealous of him, yet now all of it overwhelmed him. He hadn't even been able to get it up yesterday.

In spite of all his worries about their differences, Goten had easily promised to be faithful. Could he trust the third-class, who, very likely, hadn't even given it much thought? Trunks wondered why he hadn't been bothered so much before and had to admit that the answer was obvious – he hadn't exactly expected this thing between himself and Goten to ever work out. He had wanted it to work out, had been desperate for it to work out, and yet it hadn't seemed possible. And suddenly – wham! He had Goten in his arms, fucking his ass. This was kind of crazy. In a good way, but still crazy.

The prince rolled out of bed. He wished he could just take a day off. Yet, contrary to what he had told his father, his new position as a taisa demanded more of him than when he had been a shaii. He still had to make himself familiar with an enormous amount of documentation and the duties this promotion entailed. There wasn't anyone here who could help him out, either.

He quickly showered, dressed, brushed his still wet hair, and tied it into a ponytail. The desert heat outside was going to dry it in ten minutes. He took one more look at himself in the bathroom mirror, found himself presentable and went into the corridor to put his boots on. While pulling them on, he suddenly realized that his stomach had settled down; the bloaty gurgling and churning feeling was no more. Absently, he pressed his palm to his finally calm stomach and rubbed lightly, ruffling his shirt. His thoughts then went to Almanda Grendal and Kakarott Bardock. He hadn't had time to discuss the situation with Goten but could easily guess what the third-class's thoughts were. He had heard enough of Goten's drunk rambling yesterday. The two were selfish and irresponsible assholes. Almanda, the elite female with an influential father, was used to having things always go her way. But Kakarott… How dense can one be? From what he understood, they were going to keep the baby. What were they going to do if the tail was completely brown? Kakarott wouldn't even be allowed to acknowledge the baby. If he did, he would be sentenced to death. Were they going to paint the kid's tail for the rest of its life and lie that its father died in war? Was Almanda going to find some elite and talk him into pretending that the kid was his? Was Kakarott going to occasionally visit them? Officially, he was a third-class. He wouldn't be allowed anywhere close to an elite female.

Trunks clicked his tongue at himself. As if that had ever stopped him from pursuing Goten. He was being a hypocrite. But how did the two even meet? Must have been in Bruminan Station. Goten had mentioned something about his father being there. He could also remember Almanda being sent to Earth. They must have taken the same ship. Crazy stuff. What was the head of National Security going to do about his daughter having a Legendary third-class bastard kid? Crazy, crazy shit. Trunks patted his stomach, glad that he couldn't get himself into even more of a mess than he was in now.

He left his apartment. For a moment, he stood next to the closed door while blindly staring at one of his bodyguards.

"Sir?"

The prince's eyes rose from the armored chest of his bodyguard to meet a questioning gaze. "I need you to find out something." The bodyguard nodded. What was his name? Maraka Aibus? Trunks wondered for a moment then gave up. Currently, there were simply too many things to remember. "Trace the whereabouts of Almanda Grendal starting this year up till now. I want a complete report on where she went, which ship docked, who she slept with. Everything."

The bodyguard was giving him an uncertain look, yet, after a moment of hesitation, nodded. "Will be done, Sir."

Trunks could understand his reluctance. It was not every day that one was ordered to investigate the daughter of the head of National Security. The guard would have to explain who had given him the orders to be able to access the needed information. Oh well.

The prince went to have breakfast. The canteen was almost empty, the savars already helping with the base restoration. There were only two people inside: Ardema and Ardo. The two were sitting at the same table, but the atmosphere didn't seem to be friendly. Nor did it feel particularly relaxing. Trunks had seen the two Elites interact earlier and was of the opinion that the shaii was the one seeking out some sort of comradeship with the lecturer in ki-attacks, while Ardema merely tolerated him. Trunks could understand both of their sentiments. Ardema struck everyone as a strong, reliable, no-nonsense type and commanded respect. Once fully powered-up, he was truly scary. In general, people liked him even after he had gotten himself a second-class lover, which was impressive. The shaii, meanwhile, if one listened to Goten's opinion, was one sleazy drunkard, who didn't know his right from his left. Trunks had humored the third-class by agreeing, but the fact was that one didn't become a shaii while not knowing right from left. Unless one was either rich, or someone's protégé, or both. And he had checked the shaii's background, and the man was none of those. Trunks had a feeling that Ardo Marbus had something in store for the entire base.

Against his better judgement, the prince joined the two elites at their table. Since they were already on rather familiar terms, having spent some time sparing and conversing, not to mention the bedroom incident the previous morning, Ardema greeted him naturally and offered a good-natured smile, which the prince automatically answered. Yet, he couldn't help but wonder whether Ardema was after Goten or not. Ardo, meanwhile, visibly tensed, shot to his feet and saluted. The sour cream he was having with his pancakes splattered on the table when his hurriedly lowered spoon fell off his plate. The lecturer in ki attacks glared at the mess on the table reproachfully.

"At ease," Trunks said. "Let's skip the formalities in the canteen, shall we?"

"Uh. Yes, Sir!" Ardo said, sitting down. He looked around for something to wipe the cream off the table. Finding nothing, he tore a piece of his pancake and scooped the cream up. He pushed everything into his mouth and chewed.

Things worked a little differently in the Saiyan society than amongst Humans. Saiyans respected and bowed to strength. The stronger one was, the more powerful they became in a sense of money and status. From time immemorial, strength in a battle meant survival and, in turn, spoils of war. Saiyans, just as Humans, got jealous of each other, but they feared and respected strength. With time, Humans had toned down the need for physical strength by creating resourceful weapons. The Saiyan society, meanwhile had, more or less, remained the same. The stronger one was, the more respect they gained. Currently, the most powerful Saiyan was the Legendary, both of them. Then, in second place, came House Vegeta. Trunks couldn't stop thinking about it.

ooOoOoOoo

"What are you doing?"

"Writing a report to National Security about your daily activities."

Goten laughed at first, then realized that Kyon wasn't joking. Curious, he leaned over his roommate's shoulder. There were rows and rows of text, the page almost full.

"And what have I been doing recently?"

"A very good job at resurrecting the base," he said, and Goten's face suddenly lit up in excitement. "Just like all of us," he added, as he was certain that Goten was already dreaming of a pay raise. As if. "Shall I include your visit to the women's barracks?" he couldn't help biting out just to see that overly content grin slip.

"How do you know about that?"

"Oh, c'mon. Half of the base saw you follow Almanda. Then the other half saw you leave at night and follow the prince to his apartment."

The third-class grunted in disbelief. "Why the fuck isn't anyone sleeping at night? One would think they'd be dead tired after working their asses off on the construction projects."

"Says the guy fucking two people at once."

"Uhh… Now, that's a misunderstanding." Goten scratched the back of his head awkwardly. It was no wonder Trunks socked him. Not only did he make him jealous, but also made him look bad in front of the others. A prince could certainly do better than bed a two-timing, second-class asshole. "Hn…" Goten muttered, staring at the back of Kyon's head. "Shit."

Kyon turned to stare at him. "So did he really find you in the female barracks?"

"Yeah…" Goten touched his lip, which had almost healed. He grinned at the hazy memory. "He got jealous."

"He did that?" Kyon asked, looking at his lip. "Lucky you. If it had been me, I'd have made it look more painful than a bug bite. Would have tried to break your jaw, or at least knock out a tooth or two."

"I told you it's a misunderstanding. I'm not sleeping with Almanda. She's actually pregnant with…my father's kid."

His roommate blinked at him. "What?"

"She's carrying my brother or sister. Well, half-brother or half-sister."

Kyon was still staring at him, not sure whether it was a lie or the truth. "Oh fuck," he said finally.

"And fuck they did," Goten confirmed grimly.

"What are they going to do with the kid? Where…? Does your father…? Is he stupid or what? What is Almanda going to do? Is it…? He…"

"Yeah…" Goten drawled, nodding at the mindless tirade spilling from Kyon's mouth. "That's what I'm planning to ask him once I get my hands on him."

That would probably prove to be difficult. They had split, each going their own way, and while his father knew perfectly well that he was back on the base, he could only guess that Kakarott had returned to his own routine. Whatever that routine was. Kakarott hadn't ever told him. In any case, they were going to see each other during the wedding ceremony. He would be pissed as hell if they didn't invite him.

"How is your family doing?" he asked Kyon. "Got any messages from them?"

Kyon shook his head. "I didn't. But Ranvera checked their whereabouts a week ago, and my mom is fine. Not sure about two of my brothers, though."

Goten patted him on his head. "Let's just hope that they're still celebrating somewhere deep in a bar."

Kyon grunted. "If they actually are, they'll wish they'd died in the front lines once I get to them."

"How old are they again?"

"Fifteen and sixteen."

Goten whistled. "I bet you won't see them for two more months."

"That's what I'm afraid of."

Chuckling, Goten turned to go. "They'll return once they run out of money. Need to take a shower."

"Going to his apartment again?"

"Yeah. Need to discuss a few things."

Kyon's eyebrows rose and he snorted. "That's an interesting way to describe sex."

"Oh, we'll do that too. At least I hope we will this time."

There was a slight worry heard in Goten's voice that made Kyon wonder. Yet, he didn't want to pry into the budding relationship. Besides, he was a bit envious; Ranvera was being an asshole again.

"Just make sure to be a bit more discreet than your visit to the female barracks. The elites are gonna tear your balls off."

ooOoOoOoo

Trunks entered his apartment and stopped dead in his tracks. There was someone inside. He hadn't let go of the door handle yet, so he stepped back into the corridor, turning to his bodyguard. He opened his mouth to demand an explanation, then closed it.

"Your Highness? Is something wrong?"

Feeling like an idiot, the prince stepped back into his apartment and closed the door in the perplexed guard's face.

Goten was now standing in the middle of the living room, having left the sofa in order to greet him. "Hey."

"Hi," Trunks greeted back, bending down to take his boots off. He walked into the room, shrugging off his jacket. There was probably some tense expression on his face, as Goten was giving him a wary look.

"You don't want me to come here when you're out?"

Goten sounded confused and somewhat hurt. The prince shook his head quickly. "I was just surprised."

"Doesn't seem like it was a nice surprise…"

Trunks closed the wardrobe. He wasn't certain whether it was or wasn't. He didn't like his privacy invaded. But it wasn't that he didn't like Goten being here either. There just had to be some boundaries, some control that he kept losing. He turned to Goten.

"I was just surprised," he repeated.

"Why? We agreed that we needed to talk, and it's not like we can talk in the barracks with my roommates hanging around."

This was ridiculous. Trunks motioned at the sofa. "Sit down. Want something?" Then he saw that Goten had already helped himself to a can of beer from the fridge. It was out in the open now, standing on the table at the sink, the condensing droplets on its sides running down and pooling into a puddle on his pristinely clean table surface.

Goten followed the prince's gaze. It suddenly became very clear to him that he wasn't welcome here.

"Do you want me to leave?"

Trunks started in surprise. "What? No, I don't." He sighed and sat down next to Goten, leaning back into the sofa. "Listen, to be honest, I'm a little…" He was struggling how to put what he was feeling into words.

"Have you changed your mind and now are regretting the whole thing?"

Trunks glared at him. "No! Shut up and let me explain. It's… I think I'm a little bit overwhelmed. Everything's kind of happening very fast. It's not a bad thing, probably, but… I'm just a bit…freaking out at the moment? I think I want us to slow down a bit."

Goten looked at him, confused. If Trunks had been more versed in differentiating scents, he would have noticed how the third-class kept switching from confused to angry and then back again. Then his scent settled on utter bafflement and embarrassment. The only thing, however, that Trunks noticed was Goten's face turning red.

The third-class nodded slowly. "Alright," he said, having no idea why he had said that since nothing was alright. He felt like a complete and utter idiot for having risked so much just for a fling. Trunks had never promised anything different, yet he, like the idiot he was, had presumed that…

"Stop, stop," Trunks said, putting his hands up at the look on Goten's face. "You're clearly misunderstanding something. I'm just saying that I need a little bit more time to… I don't know… To process it all? To get used to this?" he offered with a motion at Goten and then himself.

"Get used to what exactly?" the third-class asked carefully.

"To having you around!" Trunks spat, his face turning red just as Goten's was a few moments ago.

The third-class stared at him, his brain working overtime. "Oh," he said finally. "Oooh," he repeated, wondering how he could not have realized it at once. He had seen and felt how reserved Trunks acted with everyone, and how he received the exact same mistrustful treatment back. The eager aggressiveness with which the prince pursued him had misguided him. He thought back to the beginning of his and Reyn's relationship. It had been building up slowly, he not even aware that Reyn had been courting him from nearly day one. The start of their relationship had been awkward at first, but he didn't remember that he had been rushed into things. Perhaps, he couldn't remember or hadn't even noticed or cared, or Reyn had just been too smooth. The thing was that Reyn and he, they had had an understanding of some sorts. Something that Trunks and he lacked, and which was making the other man insecure and mistrustful.

Goten nodded slowly. "I think I understand. You're freaking out, but you still want us to be together, right?"

Trunks' lips twitched, forming an involuntary smile. "Yes."

"Good. Then, what do you want us to be?"

Goten was staring right at him and, even more embarrassed, Trunks directed his look past the third-class's right shoulder. "Lovers," he said.

Goten nodded again. "I want the same. We can't announce it officially, but, between the two of us, this is the kind of relationship I've wanted from the start. I understand that you don't trust me much, and I can see why. Yet, as I said this morning, you are the only one. I, however, expect the same courtesy."

Speechless, Trunks could only nod. "Uh. Yes. Of course," he mumbled finally. He had never expected Goten to be so…direct. It was so surprising that he started to feel foolish.

"So…" the third-class drawled wistfully. "Slowing down… How do you imagine that?"

Trunks shrugged. He wasn't even certain what he meant by that. He just felt that there were too many things going on at once. They'd already had sex a couple of times, Goten fucking him like there was no tomorrow. How did one slow that kind of thing down? Besides, he didn't want to stop having sex. No way in hell. Then, what exactly bothered him?

"Are you, perhaps, still bothered about Reyn?" Goten wondered, and then nearly laughed out loud at the dumbstruck look on the prince's face; it seemed that he had hit the nail right on the head. Then he noted how the prince's eyes narrowed at him. Uh-oh.

"Yeah, it bothers me!" Trunks snapped angrily. "Reyn, Kyon, Ardema, Ranvera, Almanda, and whoever else roams the universe! You seem to switch so easily. You and Reyn had been pretty tight when I saw you last. How is it that you were able to drop him so easily?"

"Do you really want to go down this path? I picked you over him, and that should be enough for you to realize that no matter how much I liked him, you mean more to me."

"It actually makes me think that you're rather fickle."

Goten's dark eyes suddenly went ablaze. "Fickle?" he spat. "Seriously? Fickle? Fuck you! You were the one who kept talking me into dumping him, and now you call me 'fickle'?"

"Well, you did dump him!"

"The fuck's wrong with you?" Goten yelled at the other man. "I can't fucking believe this!"

"Argh!" Trunks groaned. He covered his face with his palms and rubbed. "I'm sorry. Let's just drop this. I'm not making any sense. I know it's stupid, but it's been bothering me all this time. Just forget it."

"You're seriously freaking out."

"I told you I was!"

Goten inhaled a few times in order to calm his nerves down. "Okay. Listen, it's really not in my plans to fuck you just for the hell of it and then to move on to the next target. I know a lot of people on the base think that about me, but it's utter nonsense. Besides, I wouldn't risk my life just because of some random fling!"

"I know, Goten," Trunks muttered. "Gods, I know all of that. Don't forget I was there when you were still a virgin. It's just that… Just give me a few days to process it all. Jesus, I can't believe we're having this conversation…"

The third-class stared at the palms covering Trunks' embarrassed face. "Apparently, we're having it a little bit too late," he said. "Would have saved you all this trouble. Who is 'Jesus'?"

"Ugh. One of the Terran gods. Err…a son of one? Part of the god itself? Uh. Himself? I don't think they've fully agreed on whether it's male or female, the god that is."

"Sounds confusing as hell."

"It's one of the main religions back there."

"Right. So, can I ask you what you want to do now? Or is best for me to leave for today?"

"Uh. No, don't leave."

"Okay. Then what do we do?"

The meaningful look with a naughtily raised lavender eyebrow made Goten chuckle; he had worried for nothing – sex was back on the menu. He reached out to the other man's face to cup it and leaned in for a kiss. Trunks met him halfway, their mouths joining. Goten's tongue slipped inside his, and the prince's eyelids slid shut. A few moments later, Trunks felt himself being maneuvered backwards into the sofa, his back sliding down and sideways. Goten's hands slipped under his shirt to stroke his sides and chest. The warm fingers teased his skin then moved south to work on his belt.

The following sex scene has been removed due to FanFiction's rating policy. If you want to read the scene, you can go to ArchiveOfOurOwn or AdultFanfiction.

"Yeah," Goten agreed. "Any chance we can repeat this in about ten minutes or so?"

"It seems to me that you'll be dead asleep in ten minutes or so."

Goten grunted. "Can happen, yeah. Did it feel as good for you as it did for me?"

"I dare say even better."

The third-class chuckled.

They stayed like that for a couple more minutes, just enjoying the afterglow and each other's closeness, then Goten rolled off Trunks, discarded the condom somewhere on the floor, passed the prince a few tissues to wipe himself with and settled next to him. Just as the prince had predicted, he felt sleepy. Drowsily, he stared at the other man's profile. Trunks looked different with his hair loose.

"Do you sometimes wish you had stayed on Earth?"

Trunks turned to see him better. They stared at each other, and he felt that he had fallen in love all over again. There were very few people who could understand him as well as Goten did. Only his mother, in fact, and even then, she sometimes missed completely what was going on in his head.

"Yes, sometimes," he answered truthfully. "But then again, I know I would have regretted it if I had stayed."

"Would it have made you feel as if you'd run away?" Goten mused. "Did you have a hard time on Earth too? You don't look or act like an average Human does, do you?"

Trunks shook his head against the pillow. "No, I don't. As a kid, I had difficulties with keeping my strength in check, and the tail freaked them out too. Not to mention me being able to fly." He fell quiet and didn't say anything else, but he didn't have to. There were many things Goten could presume.

Goten shook the gloomy mood off, smiled at the prince and raised himself a little to kiss him on the shoulder. "Well, I'm certainly glad you're here."

Trunks returned the smile and leaned in to kiss him, gently, playfully with all the gratefulness he had.

"I want to fuck you again," Goten informed him when their mouths parted.

Trunks rolled to his side and climbed on top of Goten. "Yeah. Fuck me again."

TBC