. . .

CHAPTER 4

Trunks fluffs the pillow on the hospital bed before allowing me to lie down. "The doctor will come in with your test results any minute. Just sit tight."

I take the pillow and squint at it. It's suspicious that Trunks is acting so nice towards me. Did he hide a whoopee cushion inside? I punch, poke and prod at the pillow until I'm satisfied nothing is amiss. Trunks watches quietly from the chair nearby.

I narrow my eyes at him. " You can drop the nice guy act. I still don't trust you."

Trunks massages his temples and focuses on the little girl sitting at the edge of the bed watching cartoons. "Fable. Turn that down please."

"No, turn it up Fable."

Fable turns around and looks at us, trying to decide which parent she should obey. She has big, dark eyes that look familiar to me, but not quite the same as mine. Her skin is a warm beige color which nicely brings out the warm brown hues in her hair. Her hair isn't fine like Trunks and it isn't straight like mine. Her hair has a thick, wavy texture to it.

Huh. You'd think Trunks could've hired a child actor that looks more like us.

"How old are you?" I ask for the sake of conversation. Maybe I can even get her to confess to the truth since Trunks refuses to admit his insanity.

Before Fable can answer, Trunks jumps out of his chair and talks over her." F-Fable, can. . .can you. . . um, please get me something from the vending machine?" He digs into his pockets and hands her a wad of money. She begins to ask him what he'd like but he pushes her out the door and says," Get me anything."

I regard him suspiciously as he leans against the door, obviously relieved she's out of the room.

"What was that about?"

Trunks smiles." What was what about?"

I squint. He's hiding something.

"She doesn't know how to count yet." Trunks laughs and sits at the end of the bed. I pull my knees close to my chest in response. He looks past me, at the blinds covering the window as he speaks." I know you can't remember things very well right now Pan, but you are her mother, you're supposed to know how old she is." His blue eyes flicker down to the gold ring on my finger." For her sake, could you pretend nothing is wrong? It would kill her if she found out her own mother can't remember who she is. And. . . we promised we wouldn't fight in front of her."

"We did?" I raise a skeptical eyebrow.

Trunks nods, still looking down at the ring on my finger. He smiles sadly." This isn't the first time you've wanted a divorce. . ."

Pfft. Even in his fantasies I want to divorce him?

"I'm not surprised." I say dryly. Trunks looks up at me as if he doesn't know what he did wrong. He's bullied me most of my highschool life, of course being married to him wasn't going to work out! Any idiot could see that. " So what did you do to cause me to lose my memory? Why can't I remember having our alleged daughter?"

Trunks clenches his jaw and he looks away at the wall." I didn't do anything. You're the one who can't handle life when things don't go the way you plan, or when somebody says things you don't want to hear. You completely tune out and pretend it isn't real or isn't happening- -"

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" I scream, covering my ears to drown out his voice. He's talking like he knows me when really he knows nothing about me! I just want to punch him every time he opens his mouth! "It's you're fault! I know it is! Everything is your fault!"

"What exactly is my fault Pan? What did I do?" Trunks asks, after prying my hands away from my ears. He pins my arms above my head, against the window behind me. My heart beat begins to quicken, which confuses me. My heart isn't pumping adrenaline through my body, which it normally would do when I'm preparing to fight. This is different. It's like the fight inside of me melted away under his touch. I don't like it.

"You're too close." I mumble.

He smirks when my eyes stray from his and roam to his lips.

"Am I?" He whispers, seductively, as his face draws closer to mine.

My body may have lost the will to fight but my eyes haven't. I glare into his hooded eyes, promising to bite his tongue off if he tries to kiss me again. Trunks doesn't see the threat in my eyes and moves closer, skimming his soft lips over the corner of my mouth. I don't move.

Trunks' eyes flicker up to mine, debating on whether or not he should kiss me. The corner of my lips curls upward, daring him to try it. A warm gust of air filters out of his nose as he silently laughs. Of course, my threats mean nothing to him. I'm the weaker one. What could I possibly do to him?

His lips close down softly on my lower lip. That's it! I can't take this anymore! My jaw lowers a fraction as I open my mouth, meaning to spit on him or make his lips bleed, but.. .

Something changes in Trunks. A part of him he'd been holding back takes control. He releases my arms, which he had pinned against the window, and kisses me fiercely, while running his hands over my body. I will my free hands to push Trunks off of me, to smack him or yank his hair out. My arms close around Trunks' kneck . Yes! Yes! Choking him is a good idea too- - No! What am I doing?

My arms wrap around Trunks and I pull him closer to me. I close my eyes as my fingers glide into his soft hair, but not to rip any out, just to caress. My body has betrayed me! I can't believe this! I try to yell at him to stop, but all that comes out is embarrassing moans, which fuels his intensity to keep kissing me, thinking I'm enjoying it.

.+.+.+.+.

Reluctantly, I let Trunks pull away from me, enough for both of us to breathe. His blue eyes are wide, liked he'd never experienced a kiss like that before. He did most of the work! Why is he the one looking like his lips were just raped?

All at once, I come back to my senses.

"Get off me!" I shout, pushing him away and into the wall. Was the wall always that close? I turn my head at the familiar doorway of my bedroom, where Papa is standing. His face is beat red, his eyes have shrunk in shock and his hand is clamped over his mouth.

"I'm back in my bedroom, but we were just in the hospital room…." I blink in confusion. Was it all a dream? I look at my hand. The wedding ring that had been infused to my skin is gone.

Trunks groans and stands up, tenderly rubbing his lower back where he hit the wall.

"You creep! I can't believe you kissed me while I was sleeping - -and in front of my Dad!" I cry, shaking my head wildly, desperately hoping this is also just a dream.

"I didn't do anything. I swear!" Trunks shot back, I can tell by his voice that he's just as surprised as Papa." We tried waking you up but nothing worked." Trunks holds up a jar in his hand." I was applying this cream around your eye when you just wrapped your arms around me and. . ." Trunks touches his lips to hide his giddy smile." I never knew you had feelings for me Pan."

No way! No way! Please no! Papa saw everything? He heard me making those noises? He saw me pull Trunks close to me? Nooooooo! Why couldn't he have just seen me fart in my sleep instead?

Trunks and I both look at Papa, waiting for his reaction.

Papa's face turns a corpse-white color. He points at us, replaying the horrific scene he'd just witnessed and runs down the hall screaming." VIDEL!"

Trunks shrugs, pretending not to be afraid of my dad, and dipss his finger into the cream and wipes it around my eye.

I pull away." What are you doing?"

Trunks doesn't get the hint that I don't want him touching me, or maybe he does and just doesn't care, since he reaches out and rubs the cream around my eye.

"Well a certain girl I know said she wouldn't talk to me unless I wiped off the black ring around her eye for graduation." He tenderly begins to stroke his finger in small circles above my cheek." I couldn't let that happen. I never want you to stop talking to me Pan."

"It's too late Trunks." This is it! Everything is back to normal." You've been a jerk to me for four years. I'm sick of it. In two months I'll be going to a college far, far away and I'm never coming back. We'll NEVER see each other again."

Trunks gives me a hurt expression. For some reason, seeing him like this makes me feel. . . sad.

"Thank you." I tell him, wrapping my arms around my legs to keep myself from hugging him. What is wrong with my body? I shouldn't be wanting to hug him or pulling him close for an intimate kiss. No. We're enemies. I'm just cold or something, that's all. " I really appreciate this. I'm glad I wont look like an idiot on the most important day of my life."

Trunks doesn't answer. His cool, steady blue eyes study me closely. " Why did you kiss me?"

I groan." That was a mistake. I was having a dream-"

"About me?" He smiles.

Heat rises to my cheeks and I look away from him.

"Was I good?"

"Don't you have something to do?" I ask, wishing he'd leave me alone.

"I already know the answer. The noises you were making was obvious I did something right." I glare at him. He laughs." Okay, okay I'll go. I don't want to stick around when your parents have 'the talk' with you. Unless you want me to stay?"

"And have you fill their heads with lies about us doing it? I'll pass thanks." I roll over on my side, away from Trunks. " Have a nice life."

The bed dips under Trunks' weight as he leans over to kiss my cheek. I don't slap him. I don't yell, I don't do anything at all except lie there, frozen in place. He rests his cheek against mine for a few seconds before pulling away. He quietly opens my window and flies out, back to Capsule Corp.

My hands clench over my chest. Why does it hurt so much?

Remembering my hair appointment I get up, brush my teeth and change out of my pajamas, stopping only to explain to my parents that I was dreaming about ice cream when I kissed Trunks. Papa calms down but Mama doesn't buy into it.

I reluctantly stop at the crosswalk on my way to my hair appointment. I'm tempted to just fly across the traffic. Across the street I see my Uncle Goten. I wave at him, trying to get his attention. The light turns green and I begin to cross, but stop in the middle of the road when I see a young woman with voluminous brown hair, walking beside my uncle, holding his hand.

"Valese," I whisper, unable to shake away the overwhelming feeling of dread.

.+.+.+.+.

And just like that, the illusion falls away, like soap being rinsed off a window, and I'm back in the hospital room, blinking dumbly back at Trunks.

My hands and legs are shaking, like I'd just witnessed something horribly unimaginable.