*Warning - Mature content!*
Smash!
The glass hit the wall and shattered into pieces.
Goku had dodged the flying object with ease, but there was no escaping the wrath of his wife.
"What the hell was that for?!" Goku shrieked.
"What was that for?! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" His tiny little irate wife bellowed. Goku ducked as a plate was launched at him, the piece of porcelain crockery crashing against the wall behind him.
She snapped. Kami, she snapped! He hadn't said a word to her about his absence since he came back, and she could not take it anymore.
"You left me ... for over a YEAR!" she screamed, grabbing her next weapon to catapult at the Saiyan, "and you just waltz in here like NOTHING HAPPENED!" She threw a serving platter at him next, the item skimming his shoulder and hitting the wall unit behind him.
"Whaddya mean, I just waltzed in here? I live here" Goku reminded her coolly.
"Oh, you live here?! Well you coulda fooled me, because I can't remember the last time you were HERE!" she yelled, launching a cooking pan his way. Goku stepped to the side briskly, avoiding the metal pan, flinching as it crashed loudly to the floor.
"Will ya stop throwin' things?" Goku calmly asked her, remembering their young son was asleep just down the hall.
"Why didn't you come home?!" she demanded, resting her one palm on the kitchen counter, her fingers tapping the surface impatiently.
"What?!" Goku abruptly questioned her.
"You heard me! Why didn't you come home when we wished you to?! Why did you refuse?!"
"'Cause I didn' want to at the time" he told her bluntly.
"You didn't want to come home?!"
"Well, yeah, I did wanna come home, but I just ... wasn' ready" he tried to explain.
"Wasn't ready?! Too busy enjoying your freedom, huh?! Enjoying your little Space adventure!" she spat.
"No, it wasn' like that"
"Too busy enjoying the lack of responsibilities as a father and a husband! Too busy having fun!"
"Honey, y'know that's not true" he tried to reason with her, cautiously taking a few steps closer to her.
"Then what was so damn important, that it kept you from your family this whole time?!" she demanded to know. Goku paused for a few seconds before answering.
"Nothin'" he lied.
"Nothing?! NOTHING?! YOU LIAR!" She screeched, grabbing a half full glass of juice from the side and hurling it at her husband. Goku remained in his spot and slapped the glass away from him, the item cracking from his touch and shattering onto the kitchen floor, juice spilling all over the tiles.
"Will ya stop?!" he ordered, a frown making an appearance on his face.
"Nearly two years, Goku! Do you understand how long that is?! Do you understand what you've missed?!"
"Chichi-" he tried.
"-You missed Easter, Halloween, thanksgiving, Christmas and new year! You missed your son's 6th and 7th birthday!" she ranted, storming across the kitchen towards him, Goku repositioning himself on the other side of the dining table.
"Yeah, I know, but-"
"-You missed out on time with YOUR family! Picnics, days at the beach, camping and spending time at my father's! All so you could have fun in Space learning some new stupid fighting technique!"
"It wasn' just some stupid technique, it was a valuable skill to learn from bein's on a planet I will probably never see again!" he explained.
"That was more valuable to you than being with your son?! Than being with me?!"
"No, honey, no, that's not what I'm sayin'-" he assured her, his hands coming up in defense in front of him.
"-No?! Then what?! There was obviously something keeping you away! So, spit it out!" she ordered, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I ... Well ... " he stuttered.
"Well, what?!" she spat with venom.
He couldn't answer her.
The truth was, he didn't know how to answer her. So much had happened to him over the last year and a half ... he didn't even know where to begin.
Chichi's blood boiled and her pupils become dilated.
"There's someone else ... isn't there?" she darkly whispered.
"What?" he asked in confusion, cocking his head to the side.
"That's why you stayed away, that's why you've been acting so secretive!"
"What are you talkin' about?" Goku questioned her again, still unsure to what she was getting at.
"There's another woman, isn't there?!" she snarled.
"Another woman?" he pondered ... his eyes then widening when he realised what she was insinuating, "Are you serious?!" he raised his voice, "You think I was with another woman?!"
"Oh, it all makes sense now!" she shook her head in disbelief.
"Are you actually serious?!" Goku questioned his wife again.
"You know, I didn't think Gohan was the problem, but it did cross my mind that you didn't want to come home to me" she muttered.
"Honey-" Goku tried again, stepping around the table to get closer to her.
"-Master Roshi made a sick joke, telling everyone that you didn't want to come home because of me!"
"What?! He said that?!" Goku choked on his breath, how could Master Roshi say such a thing?
"And he was right, wasn't he?!"
"No, Chichi, that's not true!" he tried to tell her gently, stepping even closer to her, his hands reaching out to take hers but she slapped them away.
"Do you have any idea how hard that was for me?! I had to stand there and pretend like everything was okay for our son! And reassure him that daddy wasn't abandoning us and what Master Roshi said wasn't true, when I was breaking inside! Because why didn't daddy want to come home?! Why didn't my husband want to come home?!" Chichi's voice cracked.
"Babe-" Goku's face saddened.
"-I mean, why would you want to come back to me? You've been across Space and probably seen loads of beautiful Space women who are stronger than me, who like fighting! Why would you want to come back to this?!" she rasped, pointing at herself.
"Chichi-"
"-Why would you want this controlling, nagging old housewife when you can have some strong, beautiful alien woman?!"
"Chichi, that's enough!" he told her.
"It explains everything! It explains why you won't talk to me! It explains why you don't want to be anywhere near me! You're distant with me all the time! You have completely cut me out!" she screamed, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"You ain't exactly been the most welcomin' since I came home!" he shot back at her.
"Really?! You didn't exactly come home spreading positive vibes, Goku! You completely dismissed my question when I asked you where you'd been all this time! Oh, and then you decided to spring it on me about the Androids! And Piccolo living with us for the next 3 years so you can train!"
"Androids are gonna come an' destroy the city, it was important I told you that straight away". A vein was protruding on her forehead at his point.
"I don't care about some stupid androids! And even so, they aren't coming for 3 years! You don't need to train every single day for the next 3 years!"
"We are trainin' whether you like it or not!" Goku put his foot down. Chichi grit her teeth and her hands balled up into fists at her sides.
"Why even bother coming home?! If all you were gonna do was train, why not just stay in Space with your new girlfriend?!" she spat.
"I had no idea about the androids until I came home, an' will you stop this crap about another woman?!"
"Oh, now look who's getting defensive! All because ya been caught out!"
"I ain't been caught out for nothin'! 'Cause it's not true!" he fumed, his body inching closer to hers.
"Then tell me the TRUTH! You're keeping something from me!" She raged.
"I already told ya, I just needed time to recover an' I learnt the instant transmission technique!" he shouted at her.
"You're a LIAR!" she seethed.
"Stop callin' me a LIAR!" he roared back.
"Maybe I should hop on that spaceship of yours and go and ask that alien bitch, maybe she will tell me what you've been doing!"
"Stop it!" he hissed, his hands now clenching into fists.
"You never wanted me in the first place! You married me to keep a promise!"
"Chichi, I'm warnin' you!"
"You're warning me?!" She almost laughed out as she fought back the tears, "What are you going to do?! Huh?! You gonna hit me?! Is that what she likes?! Being manhandled by you?! Because she's strong and I'm not?!" Chichi cried out, tears now falling from her eyes, "Why don't you just go back to Space! You obviously don't want to be here and you don't want me!" Chichi was about to turn her back to her husband when he grabbed her right arm and yanked her forcefully back around to face him.
Chichi gasped, her shocked tear-riddled eyes peering up to meet his.
"That is ENOUGH!" he commanded her, his strong grip tightening on her fragile arm, "How dare you say those things to me! Accusin' me of cheatin' on ya when I just saved the entire Universe from Frieza! It was the biggest fight of my life an' it took everythin' outa me, an' did things to me that you will NEVER understand!" his eyes narrowed at her.
"I have NEVER said that I didn' wanna be here! But from the moment I walked in here, all you've done is give me the cold shoulder! YOU are the one actin' like ya don't want ME!" Goku bellowed. Chichi saw red.
"I have tried talking to you and you won't open up to me! You're hiding yourself from me! You're cold to me! I don't feel like you want to be here and you're making me feel like you don't want me!" she cried again.
"I want you, an' only you!" he snapped at her, yanking her even closer to him by her arm, "It's always been you! I don't know anythin' else an' I don't wanna know anythin' else! You are mine! No one else! YOU!"
There was no response, only silence. Chichi's chest heaved, her heart pounded in her chest, his words ringing in her ears.
Their eyes were locked, their bodies only inches away from each other. This was the closest they had been to each other since Goku returned home, and yet ... they had never felt more further apart. The love that was normally reflected in their eyes had evaporated, their gaze now holding an unfamiliar icy hostility.
"Let me go" she lowly whispered.
"Let you go?" he questioned her, his voice barely above a whisper, "I just told ya that I want ya an' ... an' I'm here! I'm here, Chichi! I'm standin' here right in front of you! I don't wanna let ya go"
"Please" she breathed, "Let me go".
"An' then what? You're gonna walk away an' be cold to me an' we'll do this all over again in a few days?"
"No" she spoke calmly, trying to pull herself free of his steel hold on her, "We won't have this conversation again ... because what's the point? You don't wanna talk to me now, so you won't talk to me in a few days. Just go, Goku" she sighed, giving up fighting against his grip, her shoulders slumping and her eyes turning away from his.
"You want me to go?" he questioned her, anger evident in his voice. His little wife didn't answer him, her eyes just staring at the ground.
"Fine!" he exclaimed, letting go of her arm and turning on his heels, storming towards the front door. Chichi watched with a heavy heart as he opened the door and slammed it shut behind him, with such a force that it knocked their photo frames off the wall.
She slowly slipped into one of the kitchen chairs and let out the breath she was holding in.
And she cried.
She cried hard, her heart aching in her chest. Soft wails escaped her lips as she held herself and cried for herself and cried for her husband.
Now, more than ever, she needed him. And even though physically speaking, he was there, she felt his heart and his mind wasn't.
This wasn't the Goku she knew. This wasn't her Goku.
And it all came back to the same unanswered question...
What happened to him out there?
What happened to her Goku?
She closed her tired bloodshot eyes and let the tears stream down her cold pale face, her one hand cupping her mouth to muffle her cries. She hoped their argument hadn't disturbed their son.
Kami, she felt so empty.
She was a broken puzzle. And there were just too many pieces for her to pick up and put back together right now.
Goku stomped his way from the front door and across his front yard! He couldn't believe his wife! Who the hell did she think she was? Saying all that stuff to him! Like he didn't give a shit about her! Like he didn't miss her the whole time he was away! He growled under his breath, his nostrils flared, his jaw tight as he angrily paced back and forth, his heavy stomps denting the dirt beneath him.
"I can't believe she thinks I was with another woman!" he angrily drawled to himself, continuing his fast pace back and forth.
"Saved the whole damn Universe an' get accused of cheatin'!" he growled out, "We made vows!" He screeched out.
"After everythin' I been through!" He shouted to himself, but he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes dropping to the dusty ground beneath his boots.
After everythin' I been through ...
She doesn' know everythin' I been through ...
He hadn't told her what happened to him since Namek. She had no idea the physical and mental challenges he had to endure. And that wasn't her fault, that was his for not telling her. He puffed out his cheeks and let out a dramatic sigh and kicked the ground in frustration.
He was such a fucking dick!
God damn it! He screamed internally and he bounced on the spot for a brief moment, psyching himself up to go back inside to his wife.
Chichi had left the kitchen table and was resting her palms on the edge of the sink, staring blankly into the basin, her back to the door when Goku barged back in. The way he aggressively threw open the door had Chichi jump in shock, her body turning to face him from the kitchen sink.
Their eyes locked instantly, their hearts racing as both stood silently in the intense stare off. Chichi swallowed, licking her dry lips, the fierce glint in his eyes almost making her knees buckle. His gaze was wild and dangerous, he looked almost feral. She was taken aback when he suddenly marched over to her and all she could do was back herself up against the kitchen counter before he was right there in front of her and his one hand came up and gripped her by the back of her head and he smashed his lips against hers.
Her mind completely disconnected from her body, she lost all logical thought and reason. She moaned against his lips, the air around her becoming unbelievably hot, his kiss so rough, so commanding, so consuming, it completely took her breath away. His deadly hands wandered, tugging at her clothes and yanking her body flush against his as his tongue dipped into her mouth, swirling around hers, making her nipples pucker!
Nearly 2 years! It had been nearly 2 whole years since this man had kissed her like this! Since he'd touched her like this! But there was no gentleness to his touches, there was no taking it slow. There wasn't an ounce of romance. This was pure desperation. This was pure carnal need.
He launched her up onto the kitchen counter, completely disregarding his strength, her head slamming against the cabinet door behind her and cracking the wood before he slammed his lips against hers again. He roughly spread her legs, pressing himself against her in between them, his strength not passing her in the slightest, but turning her on. He ripped the top of her cheongsam open, buttons flying everywhere, and he yanked the cups of her bra down, his hands roughly grabbing her breasts, kneading them in his palms as he fiercely kissed her.
He rolled his needy hips against her, the unmistakable bulge in his pants pressing insistently against her inner thigh, his sensual actions making her whine against his mouth as she wrapped her legs impulsively around his lean waist. Her heady scent was making it hard for him to breathe, his heart pounding in his chest, his pulse thumping in his ears.
His massive hands dropped to her thighs where he swiftly pushed up the bottom half of her dress, Chichi lifting her bottom slightly for him so he could hitch it up to her waist. Lustful murmurs escaped them as he pulled down her soft, white panties, flinging them carelessly behind him. Her feverish hands were on him and quickly removing his belt, yanking his Gi pants and boxers down in one swift movement as he ravaged her with his mouth.
Their lips parted with a 'smack', and he spread her legs wide before taking his pulsing cock in his right hand and heaving himself straight inside of her. He sunk into her like a drowning ship, a deep groan vacating his lips, a soft moan escaping hers as he stretched her core. It burned, but it felt so damn good, she had almost forgotten just how incredible this man felt inside of her. He slowly pumped his hips, his heavy eyes preying on her, his hands grabbing her ass and spreading her wider for him.
"Goku" she gasped out, his slow, deep strokes sending bolts of electricity to every nerve.
Her needy fingers delved into his wild hair, hands fisting the hair at his scalp, clinging to him wantonly as he pumped his hips, the heat radiating off of his body hitting her in the face like an explosion in a furnace. His hold was like steel, his calloused hands burning against her skin as he tightly gripped her by her hips. She frantically yanked him to her by his hair and slammed her lips against his, a deep, guttural moan escaping the depths of his throat as she forcefully kissed him. Their tongues wrestled for dominance, moans and groans vibrating against lips as their mouths moved fervently against one another.
The need for air forced their lips to part moments later, their noses still touching, both of them panting heavily, their hot breaths fanning each other's faces as Goku picked up the pace. His right hand grasped her by her ruffled clothing on her back, pulling her to him, keeping her close to him, the inescapable need to have her as close as possible to him suddenly so overwhelming. As he thrusted into her a little rougher than before, her body lurched and the back of her head slammed against the cabinet again, and it bothered him, not only because it probably hurt his wife and he did not want to hurt her, but because the damned cabinet was getting in his way and getting on his nerves!
He effortlessly lifted her from the counter and roughly landed her on top of the firm, wooden surface of the kitchen table. She felt her breath hitch when he lifted her, his large size penetrating her even deeper than before, making her eyes cross. She gasped when her back hit the table, the coldness shocking her overheated body, her back arching slightly, the sudden feel of her husband pulling himself out to the tip then catching her attention.
The breath completely left her lungs as he roughly slammed back into her, her mouth gaped open, her heavy-lidded eyes meeting his - his eyes wild and unfocussed, his normally untamed, messy hair more ruffled than usual, his entire appearance completely disheveled as he fucked her on the kitchen table. She observed in a trance as his thick arms held her thighs apart, the veins in his arms protruding, his muscles flexing with every slam of his hips.
His hazy eyes roamed all over her body, her dress bunched up at her waist, her half-clad breasts bouncing with every lunge, her once neat bun now a tangled mess as it loosely fell around her flustered face. He'd never felt such a burning desire to have his way with her, to have her squirming beneath him, to have her begging for him! He was very aware that his son was asleep in the other room, but he wanted nothing more than to hear this perfect little woman screaming his name!
He drove himself harder into her, her little body withering beneath him, whining, her arms flailing around before her small hands grabbed his wrists, her fingernails digging into his taut skin as he bounced her faster and faster on his aching cock. She could barely control the sounds spilling out of her mouth, so she bit her bottom lip to try and subdue her screams, biting it so hard she could taste the blood on her tongue.
His thrusts became more frenzied as he laid into her, her breaths became shallow, her eyes rolling to the back of her head, her jaw slack as her orgasm suddenly and brutally crept up on her. She threw her head back, her back arching, a strangled cry escaping her swollen lips as she came, her husband dipping down to silence her and swallow her moans with an all consuming kiss. Her walls clamped around him, leaving him gasping for air, his hips going into overdrive as he desperately clamored for his own release.
The sweat run down the side of his face, his chest heaving, his hips bucking wildly, so much so she thought he was going to split her in two. She clawed at his shirt on his back, grabbing on for dear life as he buried his face into the crook of her neck. He grunted out her name moments later, his whole body trembling, his hips jerking as he released his long overdue passion into her. Chichi held him to her tightly as he slowed his pumping hips, both of them trying to catch their breath, their bodies doused in sweat from the passionate exchange.
She felt him lift her from the table, sitting her up and holding her protectively to his bosom where she let her head rest on his broad shoulder. She could feel his heart beating frantically in his chest against hers, so she tucked her hands under his Gi shirts and trailed her fingertips up and down his sweaty back to center him. They both caught their breath and she couldn't help but smile lightly as he nuzzled the side of her face with his nose, that little rumble in his chest calming her. She'd missed that.
He peppered sweet kisses on her shoulder, enjoying their intimate touches before gently pulling back to look at her.
"You ok? Didn't hurt ya did I?" He whispered gently to her.
"I'm okay" she whispered back. She was going to be sore tomorrow, but it wasn't the first time and she didn't need to worry him with that right now. She could handle it. He kissed her lips softly, his hands cupping her jaw, his fingertips lightly caressing her skin.
"I didn' mean to if I did. I just ... couldn' stop myself" he admitted quietly to her against her lips. He mentally chasised himself for his aggressiveness, knowing how fragile his little human wife was. He was so much stronger now, and he needed to keep reminding himself of that. He'd already made the mistake of hurting her once and that was once too many.
"I'm ok, Goku, really" she softly assured him. He embraced her once again and her eyes caught sight of the state of the kitchen.
"The kitchen is a wreck" she murmured against his shoulder. He couldn't help but snort into her neck, gentle laughter then erupting from her lips, both of them laughing and managing to find some humour in all of it. He pulled back to look at her once more and he gave her a small smile.
"Spose I better help ya tidy up, huh?"
"Yeah, probably" she smiled back. He kissed her lips once more before slipping out of her and reaching for his pants at his ankles and pulling them up. She shyly averted her eyes as he tied the sash around his waist and she fixed her bra before trying to do the top of cheongsam back up, then noticing her buttons were all ripped off. Goku realised, too, and he gave her a sheepish grin.
"Sorry" he murmured.
Goku bent down to pick up her panties and handed them back to her once she hopped off the table. She took them with a bashful expression, an self-satisfied look on her husband's face. Goku then took his attention to the kitchen table and he carefully shook it back and forth with his one hand, inspecting the legs as he did.
"I think it's ok" he shrugged.
"Lucky for you" she amusedly huffed out, "the cabinet isn't, though" she reminded him, his eyes tracing back to the cupboard on the wall which was dented in the centre, the wood cracked, the perfect outline of the back of his wife's head imbedded in it.
"Y'sure your head's okay?" He asked with concern.
"Goku, it's not the first time you've slammed me into a cupboard" she reminded him with a raised brow.
"Sorry. I'll fix it" he promised.
"You better do" she warned him, but with a playful smile on her lips, earning a small smile from him in return.
"I'll get the broom" he told her before walking off towards the pantry. Chichi made herself presentable before taking a trash bag from the drawer and helping her husband to clean up their mess. There was silence between them, an unspoken tension still hanging in the air, but it certainly wasn't as bad as it was before.
He'd been home two months now, and it felt like all the days were rolling into one. Goku was led on his back amongst the lush green grass of his garden taking some much needed downtime as he let his lunch go down. It was a sunday afternoon, so it was a day off from training and what Chichi called their "family time". His wife was reading with their son, so Goku took the opportunity to leave the house for a bit.
As he led there, letting the gentle breeze caress his skin, he closed his eyes and he thought back to nearly 2 years ago, where everything just started to spiral downwards.
His friends had been on his mind since he returned from Yardrat. He needed to talk to them, Krillin especially. He had a lot he needed to get off his chest. He'd been here before...
Flashback - Wukong hospital - 5 days in
"Can we talk?" Goku asked his wife, her eyes avoiding his as she rearranged his flowers on the bedside cabinet for like the tenth time since she'd come to his room. It was evening visiting hours and his wife had come to see him, but you could cut the tension with a knife.
"Not right now" Chichi quietly responded, before pouring some water out of the jug and into the plastic cup next to it, ready for him to drink.
"I wanna talk to ya now, Chichi" Goku told her, her eyes meeting his briefly to see the seriousness on his face, his tone matching it.
"What is there to talk about?" She questioned him as she turned back to the cabinet, placing the jug back down.
"Y'know what. Why are you so angry with me?" Goku asked her upfront.
"You know why" she whispered dangerously.
"Chichi, I really don't! I been dead for a year! I come back, we defeat the Saiyans an' suddenly you're mad at me! I thought you'd be happy to see me! What did I do?"
"You let that monster take our son!" She shouted at him, her body now turned to fully face him, her eyes ablaze with fury.
"What? When?" Goku asked her, confused by her allegation.
"After you and Piccolo defeated Raditz, just before you died, you allowed Piccolo to take Gohan so he could train him!" She reminded him. She felt herself getting angrier and angrier by the second as her husband lay there quietly, trying to remember what happened and when.
"Chichi, I never said Piccolo could take Gohan" Goku told her firmly.
"Oh, come on, Goku! You're gonna have to do better than that!"
"I'm serious!"
"You wanted to train him so bad! This was the perfect opportunity to get him into martial arts!"
"Ye, I wanted to train him! Me! Not Piccolo!"
"What I can't understand is why you'd be okay for Piccolo, of all people, to take him! After what Piccolo did to you! And you trusted him with our baby?!" Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes.
"Chichi, I promise you I never allowed Piccolo to take Gohan! I made a joke an' told my friends they wouldn' get yelled at by you, 'cause Gohan was okay! I wanted him returned to you!"
He observed as his wife calmed herself some, her eyes wide as she stared at him.
"Chichi, what did my friends tell you?" He was frowning deeply now.
"They ... they said that Piccolo took Gohan, and my father questioned Master Roshi where you were when this was happening and he said you were dying when it happened! You were still alive, so, I thought you knew..." she trailed off, her voice quivering.
"Chichi, before I died, Gohan was still there with Bulma! There was no mention of Piccolo takin' him! I didn' okay any of that! I swear to ya! I would never'ave let Piccolo take our son!" his little wife held her chest, this information clearly a shock to her.
"I was dead an' gone when Piccolo took him!" Goku clarified.
"Okay ..." she trailed off briefly, "What about when you were fighting Vegeta? What about then?!" she demanded to know.
"What about it?"
"You allowed Gohan to stay in the fight! He got hurt! When I turned up he was naked and unconscious! Why did you allow that to happen? Why didn't you send him away?!"
"Chichi, I did send him away! When I first got back I told Gohan an' Krillin to leave, an' they did! At some point durin' my fight with Vegeta, they both came back an' it's a good job they did, 'cause I was gettin' wrecked by Vegeta after he transformed! I probably woulda been dead again if not for Gohan an' Krillin" he explained, his eyes focused deeply on hers.
"I never wanted him there, Chichi, I promise you that! I'm real proud of his strength an' bravery, but I never wanted him in danger!" he assured her gently.
Chichi was silent as she wiped the tears from her face with the back of her right arm. Goku wondered what else his friends had told her, and this made him nervous.
"Chichi, how much do you know 'bout the Saiyans?" he asked her seriously. He observed as she looked at him, taking a moment to think about his question.
"Your friends ... they said that Saiyans are an aggressive alien race who are sent to conquer planets. They are war-hungry and will steal and kill, putting planets up for sale, not caring about the innocent inhabitants that live there." she recalled.
"Did my friends tell ya anythin' else?"
"No, why?" His friends were awfully good at not being honest with Chichi, so this didn't surprise him. He couldn't help but be irritated by it, though.
"The Saiyan that came an' took Gohan, the one I died with ... his name was Raditz an' ... he said he was my brother"
"What? That's impossible. You haven't got a brother" she responded, completely staggered by this.
Goku looked away from his wife, and he almost appeared ashamed.
"it's true, Chichi. I'm a Saiyan. I'm one of them. I'm not a human. I'm one of them..." he trailed off in a whisper, his eyes shutting, a pained look etching across his face. Chichi was shocked and didn't know what to think right now, she didn't have chance to take this all in, because right now she knew she needed to comfort her husband.
"Oh, honey ... it's okay" she gently soothed him, caressing his cheek.
"No, no, it's not!" Goku croaked out, finding it hard to keep his emotions in check, "They're bad people, Chichi! They kill people! Why would I wanna be one of them?! I don't wanna be one of them!"
"Goku, look at me" Chichi tried to make him look at her by cupping his face in her hands but he shook his head away.
"I can't ..." he spluttered out, "I just .. I just want things to be how they were before, when I didn' know. I wish I didn' know".
"Honey, you've just found out something huge! It's natural to feel this way, especially since the only other Saiyans we know of are not good people. I can't imagine how you must feel about that"
"It's not just that" he quietly told her.
"Then what, honey?"
Goku struggled to get it out and Chichi noticed his eyes were glistening.
"Goku..." she gently called his name.
But Goku couldn't get it out. He couldn't bring himself to say the words.
He killed his grandpa.
It was him.
He was a murderer.
"Goku ... honey, it's gonna be okay. It's gonna take some time for you to come to terms with this" She couldn't hold him, not when he was like this, wrapped up like a mummy in his healing bed. The best she could do was caress his cheek and hair. Goku closed his eyes, trying with all his might to not break down in front of her. His heart was pounding in his chest, his heart battling with his head to tell her the truth and just let it all out. Just cry! Sob! Mourn his grandfather all over again because he killed him!
"You're a good person, Goku. You are not like them." They sat in silence for a few minutes as Goku tried to compose himself, his wife's touch comforting him more than she knew, he just wished she could hold him.
There was suddenly a knock at the door disturbing them, to which neither of them responded to. A moment later it opened, and Master Roshi's face popped from around the door.
"I just wanted to see how you were doing, son?" he asked. The room was eerily quiet and Roshi felt he had imposed on something.
"I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?" Goku wanted to say yes, get out, leave him alone! He was so damn angry at his friends! He had never been someone who liked confrontation, he was very much a laid back guy and took everything in his stride, carelessly letting things going over his head. But he was finding this hard to just let go over his head.
Chichi tilted Goku's chin up so he could look at her and she gave him a small smile.
"I'll be back, okay" she told him softly, her hand leaving his face as she made her way quietly to the door. Master Roshi moved out of her way to allow her to exit and all Goku could do was longingly stare at the hospital room door as it closed.
"I know you've been in some pretty hairy situations, but I never thought I'd see you in one of these" Roshi chuckled out lightly, referring to the re-cooperating bed, as he walked over to Goku.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Goku instantly asked him, his voice dull.
"Tell you what, son?"
"That I'm a Saiyan" his eyes narrowed at Roshi, and it was quite intimidating
"You knew, didn' you?" Goku pressed.
"Well ... yes and no"
"I want the truth, Roshi" his words were like venom. And he never called him Roshi. He only addressed him as Master. Goku was pissed off. Master Roshi knew this day would come ... but nothing could ever prepare him for it. It was never going to be an easy conversation to have, because of what it would mean. Because of what it would mean for Goku.
"Son ... the truth is I didn't know for sure. I knew you weren't human, and that was made clear when I seen you transform into that ape creature for the first time. I wasn't surprised by it, you had always been different, a child with a tail, inhumanely strong. I had my suspicions for a while. But it wasn't until we met your brother that I knew for sure it was true".
"But you knew. You knew that I could transform into that monster ... an' you didn' tell me"
"Son, you were just a child. I had no reason to put that on you then".
"What about when I grew up? What about when we saw each other again at the 23rd Martial arts tournament? What about when I came to your island with my son? You had plenty of opportunity to tell me!"
"Goku, it's not as simple as that. It's not something you just bring up out of nowhere. Besides, you didn't have a tail anymore and as soon as you won the tournament, you took off with Chichi to marry her"
"That's your excuse?! You coulda come an' found me!"
"You had just gotten married, I wasn't going to come and disturb you. Besides, you made no attempt to come and find us, either" Goku detected a hint of resentment in Roshi's tone.
"I didn' come an' find ya 'cause I didn't need to! I didn' hide somethin' like this from you!"
Roshi begged to differ.
"You didn't tell us that you had a son. We had to find out at our reunion. You didn't even invite us to your wedding! We were your family before Chichi, and you didn't even think about us!"
"I didn't invite ya 'cause I didn' realise at the time that weddin's were such a big deal. I had no idea what I was really gettin' myself into. Chichi asked me if I wanted to invite you all, but I didn' think it mattered".
"Well, I can believe that from you. You really didn't have a clue what you were doing, so why would a wedding be important. But it's a little too late now, I spose. It's done"
"What's that spose to mean?"
"Well, you married her. And now you have a child with her. Gohan is a good kid, but you're stuck with her. You should have stayed in contact with us, we could have been there for you"
"I'm stuck with her? What do you mean I'm stuck with her? You say that like I don't wanna be married to her"
"Look, Goku, she's a very pretty girl and she's strong ... but she's not exactly the nicest of people. She is cold to us, completely shuts us out. She has done nothing but nag and be negative about everything that's happened. She completely disregarded you when you were badly injured laying on the ground, like she didn't care! She doesn't agree with you fighting, you even said so yourself at the reunion - she didn't want Gohan learning martial arts!"
Goku felt his blood boil.
"How dare you! How dare you speak about her like that! You don't even know her!"
"No, we don't! And who's fault is that?"
"You can't just blame me, when none of you made the effort to get to know her! Instead of takin' the time out to get to know her when I was dead, you decided to lie to her instead! You made her think I allowed Gohan to be trained by Piccolo! You made her think it was all my fault! You didn' tell her I'd died until she came lookin' for me! None of you had the guts to be honest with her! I died an' Gohan had been kidnapped by Piccolo! An' she had no idea! Do you understand what that did to her?!" Roshi could feel Goku's Ki elevating, he needed to try and calm things down a little. He took a breath and kept his cool.
"Son, she isn't the most welcoming, we were afraid-"
"-You were afraid?! Of what?! Tellin' the truth?! 'Cause you lied to me all these years!"
"No, Goku, you're taking this the wrong way-"
"-You lied to me! You all lied to me!"
"We didn't lie, son, we just ... kept it from you"
"Keepin' somethin' from me is not tellin' me the truth! So, to me, it's a lie! You kept it from me that I could transform into a monster! You kept it from me that I killed my GRANDPA!" Goku's breathing was ragged and Roshi took note of the tears threatening to fall from the corners of his eyes. And Goku never cried.
Roshi knew that Son Gohan was a very sensitive subject for Goku, always had been. When Roshi experienced Goku's Oozaru transformation for the first time, it didn't take long for him to put 2 and 2 together. From the stories Goku told him of the Moon Monster when he was a child, and experiencing the ape monster himself, it was all too painfully obvious what had happened to Goku's grandfather. And Roshi didn't have the heart to tell him.
"That's another reason why I didn't want to tell you, son. I knew it would crush you if you knew that you killed your grandfather".
"So you kept it from me instead"
"Son ..."
"You make a point of tellin' me how you were my family before Chichi, yet you kept this from me! You, my family, my best friends, you all kept this from me! Chichi is probably the only one in my life that has always been honest with me! I'm sorry I never invited ya to my weddin', I'm sorry I didn't tell ya 'bout my son before I met up with you all, but you have no excuse for hidin' this from me!".
"Goku-"
"-For so long, I worried that some monster was gonna come out from the mountains an' kill my family! I kept tellin' myself I would never let anythin' happen to them! That I would protect them an' keep them safe! 'Cause that's my job! I couldn' lose them! I couldn' lose anyone else! An' this whole time, it was me! I was the monster!" his voice cracked, and Roshi felt the most darkest of guilt weighing on his old shoulders.
"Goku-"
"-What if my son had looked at the moon?! What if my son had transformed and I thought he was the monster?! I coulda KILLED HIM!"
"Son, I'm-"
"-I want ya to leave"
"Son-"
"-Just go. I don' wanna talk to ya anymore" he roughly ordered, his head turning to face the other way, too angry to look at his former master. For a moment, Roshi stood there in silence, the sound of the machine bleeping on Goku's hospital bed being the only noise in the room. Master Roshi sighed in frustration, but honoured Goku's request and left the room, leaving Goku alone.
Goku stared silently out of his window, it was starting to get dark outside. As he lay there, festering in his anger, he felt exhaustion hit him like a mountain. From the fight, to his emotional stress and anger, it all finally got to him. His body was also in absolute agony, pain medication really wasn't quite hitting it. He fought his eyelids for a few seconds, but his exhaustion won out and Goku fell asleep.
It was almost 2 weeks later when Roshi decided to visit Goku again. Roshi learnt Goku had moved rooms and found him sat at the edge of his bed. He was no longer mummified and restricted to the coma bed, he was now able to move his body, although he was still badly injured and bandaged up, his left arm in a sling. Roshi knocked the door and opened it, peering into the room. Goku had his back to him and was staring out of his hospital window.
"Can I come in, son?"
"Sure" Goku murmured, still keeping his back to his former master. Roshi took a breath and entered the room, slowly ambling up to the clearly tense man on the edge of the bed. Roshi decided to sit next to him, both of them not saying a word for several seconds, their eyes both gazing out the hospital window watching the sun go down in the distance.
"I wanted to see how you were doing, I heard you'd gotten better. I guess them Saiyan genes come in handy" Goku said nothing.
"I also wanted to continue our conversation, if that's okay with you?" Roshi clocked Goku from the corner of his eye, the man said nothing as he continued to stare out the window.
"Things got a little heated back there, maybe we can try and talk about this properly"
"It doesn' change anythin'" Goku quietly threw at him. Roshi sighed inwardly. This wasn't going to be easy. Goku was a laid-back, free spirited person, who was happy go lucky most of the time. But the man was stubborn! So damn stubborn! It was a challenge to rise up against such a headstrong, determined man. When Goku had his head set on something, there was no changing it. This was going to be hard work.
"I want you to know that I only did what I did, because I cared about you. I've known you since you were a small boy, Goku, and you have grown into a fine man. I am very proud of you" Goku swallowed, his eyes now falling to his one free hand in his lap that picked at the material of his hospital gown.
"You have always been different, unique even. I knew this since you were a small boy. I always questioned myself if you were human, you were just too strong, amongst other things. When I witnessed your transformation for the first time, I was frozen, I was in shock, but putting everything together, it all made sense to me. I didn't know you were a Saiyan, I just knew you weren't human. That's when I realised what must have happened to your grandfather. I thought it would make no difference to your life, knowing this haunting secret, except hurt you, Goku. You no longer had a tail, so as far as I knew, you could no longer transform. I didn't know you had a son until the day of the reunion. When we questioned you, you told us that you all went to bed early and nothing had ever happened with Gohan and a full moon, so I wondered if Gohan could even transform at all, as he was half human like his mother. It all happened so quickly, all these thoughts and all these questions, and then Raditz arrived" Roshi explained.
Goku remained silent.
"I'm sorry I kept it from you, son. We all are. We never meant to hurt you". Roshi observed as Goku's eyes dropped back to his lap. Roshi decided to change the conversation slightly.
"You did a fine job, you know? Raising Gohan. He's a smart kid, strong too"
"Chichi should get the credit for that, not me"
"You raised him too, you're his father"
"I had no idea what I was doin'. One minute I'm agreeing to marry someone, next minute I have a son. Chichi was a natural. She just knew what to do. She always knows what to do. She's the best mom. I know she can be a handful, but she's the most carin' person I've ever met, an' I trust her with my life! An' if any of ya bothered to get to know her, you would see that".
"It's hard to see that when she's constantly angry and yelling at us" Roshi returned, a little nervous for Goku's recoil.
"Take a minute an' put yourself in her shoes. She's been through a lot over the last year. The last time she saw me an' Gohan before all this happened, was the mornin' of the reunion. We didn' come home to her that day an' she had no idea what happened to us. Then she finds out I'd been killed an' Gohan had been kidnapped by Piccolo. The same Piccolo who shot a hole through my chest at the tournament. She never got over that. It's one of the reasons why she stopped fightin'. Well, that an' havin' Gohan. She put all of her energy into bein' the best mom she could be for Gohan. An' lookin' after me ... an' let's face it, I'm no walk in the park". Roshi chuckled lightly.
"Well, that's true" Roshi agreed.
"She spent an entire year alone. I was dead an' she thought the worst of Gohan, bein' out there alone with Piccolo. He was 4 years old, Master Roshi. She went lookin' for him, went hikin' for weeks tryin' to find him, but she couldn' find him. She felt like she failed as a mom. An' the only person who checked in on her was her dad. No one else checked in on her. She's my wife ... an' not one of you went to see if she was okay".
"She could have come to us if she wanted to" Roshi added in. Goku snapped his head up to look at his former master.
"Why would she come knockin' on your door after the way you treated her? She found out the next day when she came lookin' for me an' Gohan at your house. That was when you finally come clean 'bout what happened. She knew you all knew what happened the day before, an' you didn' tell her! She was devastated. I spoke so highly of you all, an' how you were such great friends ... an' this is what she gets? Why would she wanna come an' find comfort in you after that?"
"Well ... I guess that's fair"
"You're still my family, all of you. But she is my family now, too. Gohan is my family. An' they mean everythin' to me. I woulda thought one of you woulda thought 'bout that an' at least visited her to see if she was okay or needed anythin'. Just somethin' to show that ya gave a shit"
"Goku, it's not that we didn't care-"
"-But you didn' care! If you cared 'bout me an' had any kind of respect for me, you woulda been there for her! She woulda seen what I seen, that you were good people! She wouldn'a painted this bad picture of you in her head!".
Roshi went silent and Goku stared back out of the window again.
"An' then there's my son. You allowed my son to be taken by Piccolo"
"Now, that's not fair, son. We stood no chance against him".
"Did you even try?! Did you put up any kind of a fight to stop him?!" Goku's fiery eyes were on Roshi now, putting him on the spot, holding him accountable.
"No" Roshi grumbled out. Goku's heart was heavy in his chest, an angry yet pained frown on his face.
"You just let my son get taken, just like that" he whispered, "My son, Master Roshi. My little boy, 4 years old! You did nothin' to try an' save him from Piccolo!"
"He said he wanted to train him for the Saiyans! We didn't think we had to worry about him killing him!" Roshi tried to reason.
"Ya trusted his word?! Just like that?! After everythin' he's done?!" Goku snarled.
"We thought maybe things were okay between you both, since he helped you fight Raditz!" Roshi tried to reason.
"Bullshit! You were there when we agreed a temporary truce! Piccolo made it clear he was comin' after me the moment we stopped Raditz!"
"Well, ye, but-"
"-You're just a damn coward! An' I never thought I'd say that 'bout you!" Master Roshi frowned deeply at the comment.
"You led Chichi to believe that I allowed Piccolo to take him to train him. I had to feel her wrath for that, when I done nothin' wrong! I was the one dyin' on the ground! I wanted Gohan to be returned back to her! I had to explain myself to her, 'cause none of you told her the truth! All 'cause you were afraid! I wonder how afraid my wife was, thinkin' she'd lost her son on top of losin' her husband! I wonder how afraid my son was, bein' taken away from his daddy an' mommy, bein' forced to fight by a monster!"
"We're sorry, Goku" Roshi landed on.
There was silence. Complete silence.
It was deafening.
"Can you ever forgive us?" Roshi questioned Goku.
"Not right now" Goku muttered, his shining eyes staring off into the distance once again.
End of flashback.
Another month passed by and training continued.
Goku stood upon the dusty ground, his eyes focusing on the sky above him where his son was training with Piccolo.
His eyes remained fixed on his son as he fought with Piccolo. He observed his every move, from his fist as it collided with Piccolo's, to his leg as he kicked at Piccolo's arm and his scrunched up face as he angrily glared at him.
He saw the bead of sweat as it cascaded down the side of his little face. He saw the darkness under his fiery eyes.
His little son was tired.
"You need to do better than that if you want to stand a chance against the androids!" Piccolo growled at him, kicking the small boy into the side of the mountain.
"Hey, Piccolo, take it easy" Goku warned the Namekian.
"NO!" Gohan yelled from the hole in the side of the mountain, pulling himself out of it as he panted.
"Gohan-" Goku tried to talk.
"-No! I don't want him to take it easy on me! I can do it!" Gohan interrupted him before flinging himself at Piccolo again. Goku exhaled through his nose, slightly irritated yet somewhat proud of Gohan's disobedience. He really was a tough little guy and extremely headstrong. He smiled lightly to himself, thinking about the person he got that from. 'Cause he really was everything like his momma.
Gohan threw punch after punch and kick after kick towards his first mentor, each one either missing him or being blocked. He was getting frustrated and he felt his body starting to tire down.
He felt the wind being knocked out of him a moment later, his little body hurtling to the ground below with a loud crash.
"Gohan! Piccolo, that was too hard!" Goku bellowed from the ground.
"Don't start that with me!" Piccolo threw back as he hovered in the air.
"I'm fine" Gohan groaned out as he climbed out from the small crater in the ground.
"I think that's enough now, Gohan" Goku told his son as he approached him.
"No, I can keep going!" Gohan tried to argue.
"Gohan, I've said that's enough. You're exhausted and your energy is dropping rapidly. You need to rest"
"You don't think I can do it?" Gohan angrily questioned his father. Goku was taken back by his son's tone.
"Piccolo knows! He trained me! He knows I can take it!" Gohan shouted up at his father as he perched on his hands and knees.
Goku was silent, his eyes narrowing at his son. Just rub it in that Piccolo trained ya, why don't ya, he thought to himself.
"Krillin knows! We fought together against the Saiyans and on Namek! You never seen me fight! Not much! You don't know what I can really do!" Gohan continued to raise his voice.
"Hey, watch who ya talkin' to with that tone" Goku told him firmly.
"You weren't there, dad! You don't know what I had to do! And it was never enough! I was never strong enough! Our friends died 'cause I wasn't strong enough! Piccolo died 'cause I wasn't strong enough! I couldn't stop Frieza! I couldn't stop Piccolo from being hurt! I couldn't save Krillin! I couldn't help you!" Tears were forming at the corners of his tired eyes as he vented his frustrations.
"Gohan, it was never your responsibility to save anyone! That's not on you! You're just a child" Goku assured him.
"You were just a child when you were saving the world!" Gohan reminded him.
"That was different, son! I wasn' fightin' aliens from another planet! What you are puttin' on yourself is way more than anyone can ask of themselves! Gohan, even I couldn' stop Piccolo gettin' hurt! I couldn' save Krillin from dyin'!" Goku added in.
"But you beat Frieza! You stopped him! You avenged Krillin!"
"Well, ye, I guess I did at the time-"
"-I'm your son! And I can't even defend our friends! And it's all I could think about since we came home from Namek!" Gohan groaned as he pulled himself to his feet, his breaths ragged, "Son Goku is my father and I'm a failure!"
"No, that's not true! You are not a failure, Gohan!"
"It feels like it! I kept having all these bad dreams about Namek and Frieza coming to Earth and killing mom! And I couldn't save her! So, I started training again! Then mom got mad because I was behind on my studies! I know I wasn't the nicest to her, I got mad at her and snapped back at her. I made her cry with things I said to her, dad, and I feel so bad about it!"
By this point, Goku had crouched down to sit on his heels, to be at his little son's height, his concerned eyes focused on his son as he continued to let out how he felt.
"When you didn't come home I thought ... I thought maybe you were disappointed in me" he whimpered out, his bottom lip trembling. This hit Goku hard and his once straight face completely softened.
"Gohan ... You could never disappoint me"
"I just-it's been so much, daddy and ... and I just ... I can't..." he couldn't finish his words as he burst into sobs, his entire little body shaking, the tears streaming down his face.
"Hey, hey, little man" Goku gently soothed his small son, scooping him into his lap upon the dirt terrain, "daddy got you"
"I'm ... sorry ... daddy" little Gohan hiccuped against his father's Gi shirts.
"You got nothin' to be sorry for, Gohan. Daddy's the one that's sorry. You've been through so much, I shoulda been there for ya" Gohan snuggled deeper into his father's chest, his small hands gripping his Gi shirts tighter, like he never wanted to let him go.
"It's okay, son. I'm here, i'm not goin' anywhere" he assured him through a gentle whisper as he tucked him in. Looking down at his little son, who was starting to drift off to sleep in his arms, he felt like he didn't wanna let go of him, either. Piccolo landed next to them a moment later, waiting for Goku to speak.
"I think that's enough for today" he quietly told Piccolo.
"He needs to toughen up, Son. You can't always be there to hold him"
"No, I can't" he agreed, "but right now I can" he carefully got himself up from the ground, his son completely out against his chest. Goku caught Piccolo's disapproving stare and Goku's face hardened.
"He's still just a kid, Piccolo. I want him to be stronger, to be tougher, but i'm still his dad"
"We talked about this, about you being too soft on him" Piccolo reminded him.
"Ye, we did. An' i'm tryin'. Ya wouldn' understand, you ain't got a kid". Goku peered down at his sleeping son and smiled warmly at him before removing his one arm from around Gohan and putting two fingers to his forehead.
"Ya comin'?" he questioned Piccolo. Piccolo supposed he could train alone for the rest of the evening, but it wasn't the same as training with Goku and Gohan. Maybe an earlier finish wouldn't hurt for one day, he could always meditate in the mountains. He placed his large, green hand on Goku's left shoulder and a moment later, Goku transmitted them to the Son garden.
When they arrived, Goku started to walk towards the house, but stopped suddenly, remembering the state he was in. He also remembered that things weren't 100% hunky dory with his wife. He turned to look at Piccolo, who was just as dirty, but he wasn't so worried about him getting into trouble.
"Hey, Piccolo, fancy takin' Gohan to bed for me? I'm filthy, an' Chichi will get mad if both me an' Gohan go in like this". Piccolo cocked an eyebrow.
"I'm filthy, too" he pointed up and down his own clothes, "besides, she will only scream at me if I try going in there"
"Go round the side of the house, his window should still be open" Goku told him, handing Gohan over to him, giving Piccolo little choice in the matter. Piccolo huffed, but accepted the child and the task at hand, before walking off round the side of the house.
This family are driving me crazy, he muttered to himself as he walked around the house to find Gohan's window. Lucky for Goku, he was right, Gohan's window was still open. It was also a pretty big window, so Piccolo could get in. He swung his leg over the window sill and ducked his head to get into the room. As he stood there in the small boy's room, he realised he'd never been in his room before and he found his eyes dancing around at all of his little belongings.
Piccolo didn't care for material things, but his curious eyes began to take note of the many items around Gohan's room. As he let Gohan snooze against his shoulder, he eyed some papers on the young boy's desk, next to his bed. He slunk over to it, idly flicking papers over to get a look at what was underneath. That's when he found a drawing of him. As he inspected the drawing, he took note of Gohan, Goku, Chichi, the giant man who visited occasionally and himself, all stood together outside the Son house. Beneath them were the words 'My family'.
Piccolo shuddered, a little uncomfortable by the prospect, already realising he'd been around this family too damn long. He shook his head and walked over to Gohan's made up bed. He yanked the covers back and carefully laid the small boy on the mattress. He pulled the covers over him and watched him as he gently snored, completely oblivious to everything going on around him. He found himself smiling a little, thinking about the silly little drawing. The boy was delusional, but he had a warm heart.
"What are you doing in here?!" A woman's voice suddenly angrily questioned him from behind.
"Goku asked me to bring him to bed. He said you won't be so angry if only one of them came in dirty. I'm leaving now" he quickly responded, making his way back towards the window.
"Wait!" Chichi called him, his palms against the window frame.
"Why'd you do it?!" Chichi firmly questioned him, stopping him from climbing back out of the window.
"Do what?" He threw back at her, over his shoulder.
"Save my son's life!"
Piccolo was silent, his back to her.
"You took him from me! You left him alone in the mountains for 6 months and then beat him as a form of training!" She rasped, "So, why save his life?! Why the change of heart?!"
"Because he changed me" Piccolo quickly responded, his back still to her. Chichi was silent as she took in his words.
"He's the first person that I ever considered a friend. I ... couldn't let him die" Piccolo admitted to her.
"And my husband? You saved him, too! You pushed him out of the way and took the shot from Frieza! Why?" She pressed.
Piccolo rolled his eyes. This woman asked a lot of questions. Piccolo exhaled, knowing she would keep pushing until he answered her.
"Because he was the only one who stood any chance against Frieza. And ... I couldn't let Gohan lose his father again".
"You're the one that killed him in the first place!" Chichi reminded him. Piccolo instantly turned to face her, startling her slightly.
"Because he told me to! He held that Saiyan down and sacrificed himself to save your son! I did what I had to do to kill the Saiyan!" Piccolo spat.
Chichi's heart pounded in her chest as she stared back at Piccolo.
"I don't regret taking him and training him" he told her.
"You call that training?! You abused him!" she shouted at him, as quietly as she could so not to wake her exhausted son.
"Call it what you like! I may have been hard on him, but I don't regret it! What's done is done, anyway, you can't change the past" he told her, "But, just know, that I would never let any harm come to him now" and with that, Piccolo left through Gohan's open window and disappeared into the trees.
A few days later, Goku touched down onto Kame Island, his boots crunching in the sand as he gently set foot on the grainy surface. He inhaled the salty smell of the ocean air, the gentle breeze caressing his skin and blowing his wild mane. He wasn't here for fun today, he was here to have a much needed conversation, but he couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of being there again.
"Goku! Boy, is it good to see you! I wasn't expecting ya!" Roshi chirped up from his magazine as he led on his deck chair.
"I wanna talk to Krillin. Alone" he told him firmly as he went to walk past his former mentor.
"Is ... everything okay?" The old man asked him, putting down his magazine. Goku hesitated for a moment. It wasn't his plan to have it out with Roshi today, but now he was here and staring at him dead in the face, he couldn't stop himself.
"You told Chichi that I didn' wanna come home 'cause of her" Goku stated rather than questioned.
"Huh?" Roshi uttured, genuinely confused.
"When you tried to wish me back with the Dragonballs an' I refused to come back, you said it was 'cause of Chichi, didn' ya?!"
"Well, uh, sorta, I-"
"-Why?!" he questioned him firmly.
"I was just joking, honest! I said you were too scared to come home to her after everything that had happened! I was just trying to lighten the mood!"
"Well, it didn' lighten the mood! Gohan an' Chichi were devastated when I refused to come home, an' ya think it's okay to go an' say somethin' like that?! D'you really think Chichi took that as a joke?!" his voice rose in anger.
"I just thought-"
"-Well, ya thought wrong, Master Roshi!" he interrupted him. He exhaled in frustration, " We had this conversation! Back at the hospital! Have you learnt nothin'?!"
"Goku-"
"-Is my family just one big joke to you or somethin'?!" Goku yelled at him.
"No! Of course not!"
"So, why do you keep treatin' Chichi like this?! She's a human bein' with feelin's too, y'know?!"
"I know that-"
"-I'm gettin' real sick an' tired of this Master Roshi! My wife didn' deserve any of this!" Roshi went to open his mouth, but he shut it, knowing whatever he said wouldn't matter. He also realised in that moment, just how much Goku cared for his wife. If the passion behind his words wasn't enough, the look in his eyes was. The old hermit had never seen that from him before, and it silenced him.
Goku shook his head at the old man, still frowning hard at him.
"I'm goin' to speak to Krillin" he declared, marching off without another word to Master Roshi.
As Goku made his way into the lounge area, Krillin was just coming down the stairs.
"I thought I heard voices" he commented, a big smile on his face when he saw his friend, but that vanished very quickly when he saw the ire on his friend's face.
"I wanted to talk to ya before, but I kinda got the feelin' you were avoidin' me at the hospital" Goku mentioned. Krillin sighed. He wondered when they would have this conversation.
"I guess I kinda was" Krillin admitted, scratching the back of his head, "I just didn't want any confrontation, especially after what Master Roshi said ya said to him. I guess I just chickened out"
"An' then I never got the chance on Namek..." Goku trailed off, his sad eyes meeting Krillin's. Krillin gave him a small, understanding smile.
"It's okay, Goku"
"No, it's not, Krillin. We needed to talk an' then I lost you an' I will never forgive myself for that!"
"It wasn't your fault, buddy! It was all Frieza!"
"I wasn' strong enough to save you! An' that haunts me to this day! You have no idea what that did to me, Krillin! I was so mad at you! An' then all I felt was guilt!"
"I don't blame you, Goku! I never did!" Krillin assured him.
"I'm so sorry Krillin, I'm sorry I didn't protect you"
"Goku, ya got nothin' to apologise for! I wish ya didn' put that on yourself" Krillin told him gently. Goku went silent and Krillin licked his dry lips.
"I'm sorry, too, Goku. For what happened with Chichi"
"You were horrible to her. All of you. An' ya lied to her. Why?"
"I have no excuses, Goku. We were wrong for how we handled things".
"Ye, ya were" Goku agreed.
"I really didn't think it was that serious between you two. I didn't think she meant that much to ya"
"I spent 5 years with her! Just me, her an' then Gohan! Didn' that tell ya anythin'? Of course she meant somethin' to me! She's everythin' to me! Her an' Gohan!"
"Well, I can see that now" Krillin admitted, shuffling awkwardly at the bottom of the stairs, "It's just how things were, like how you agreed to marry her when ya barely knew who she was! An' ya just ... I dunno, ya barely took anythin' seriously in life. I just couldn't imagine ya fallin' in love like that"
"No matter what ya thought, you had no right to treat Chichi the way ya did, Krillin!"
"You're right" Krillin agreed.
"You're my best friend, an' out of everyone I'm real disappointed in ya" Krillin hung his head in shame.
"I'm sorry, Goku" he murmured out.
There was silence for a few moments. Goku ran his right hand through his wild locks in frustration, unsure of what to say next. Krillin decided to make the first move.
"I know it's off topic, but, after seein' it the day ya came back, Super Saiyan is pretty cool. Thought you should know" Goku shook his head in slight amusement.
"Ye, I guess it is pretty cool"
"Weird seein' ya with blonde hair, though" he chuckled out.
"Ye, I was pretty freaked out when I first saw my reflection"
The topic of Super Saiyan brought Goku onto his next question, something else that had been plaguing his mind.
"Krillin ... y'know I'm not human, right?" Goku asked his friend. Krillin cocked an eyebrow, his head tilted, baffled by the question.
"Uh, ye, buddy. I was there when ya brother turned up" he reminded him.
"Ye, I know that, but, i'm not human, Krillin. I'm an alien" Goku told him again.
"I know, Goku" he said, still unsure as to what Goku was getting at with this.
"It doesn' ... bother ya?" Goku asked him, unsurely. Krillin took in the uncertainty on Goku's face and he was surprised by it. Goku was so carefree, he didn't care what anyone thought of him, but now ... he did?
"Goku, whether you're human, a dog or an alien, I don't care. You're still Goku. You will always be just Goku to me"
"Y'really don't care?" Goku wanted to check.
"We all talked about this, after you died. Honestly it made a lot of sense, you bein' from another planet. It was a bit of a shock at first, 'cause it never crossed my mind that you were an alien. I know I made jokes before 'bout you bein' weird an' bein' so different, but I never actually thought you weren't human. You were just ... Goku" he finished with a small smile. Goku couldn't help but return the smile, relief washing over him. As much as he was mad at Krillin, he wanted to feel accepted by him.
"Your mammoth stomach an' crazy genetics just suddenly made a lot of sense" Krillin laughed out. Goku huffed out a laugh too, knowing how right he was.
"Thanks, Krillin. Means a lot" Goku told him warmly. Krillin walked over to Goku, putting little space between them and raised his fist out in front of him.
"I really am sorry, Goku. I hope you an' Chichi can forgive us for everythin' one day. You're my best friend an' always will be, don't ever forget that". Goku smiled and pumped Krillin's fist with his own. Goku felt like a weight had finally lifted off his shoulders.
"Thanks, Krillin".
3 months had passed.
"I wish we had a car" Chichi quietly spoke to herself, watching a young couple fly down the dirt road just up from their home in the mountains. She sighed and sadly continued to walk home, groceries in hand. It was almost like a secret little fantasy of hers, for them to own a car and her husband be able to drive. Their life was far from normal, but to have just one little thing that was considered normal, just one ... she envisioned herself in the passenger seat, windows down, her hair blowing in the wind as her husband drove them somewhere special. He didn't need to drive them to a fancy restaurant or anything, just to have him next to her was enough.
Some time later she finally got home and Chichi found herself draped over the kitchen table, completely exhausted, paper bags full of groceries scattered across the table in front of her. She'd been to the market to buy groceries and was on her way home when she was chased by an obscenely large wild boar. Now, one would think with her martial arts skills and being married to Son Goku, that Chichi could have easily disposed of the beast, but she was completely worn down.
On top of being chased for miles on end, her feet aching, with several more miles to go to get back home, she was mentally drained and fed up of the same damn routine every single day. She only saw her son at dinner time where he would study and read, eat, bath and go to bed, and then on Sundays she would get the day with him. Her husband, even less so now he'd started to train some evenings alone with Piccolo. She finally had her family back together, but it was like they were never there.
It was just her ... on her own ... in their little empty house in the mountains.
She missed her family. She was glad they were safe and home, at least for now, but it just wasn't the same.
And it was slowly eating her that her husband still hadn't talked about his time away from their family. He still denied anything else had happened, but Son Goku was a bad liar. She knew something else happened to him out there, but he wasn't telling her. What could have possibly happened for him not to be able to tell her? Why now, after their many years together, was he suddenly not able to talk to her?
It took some time to gain his trust and get him to open up when they first married. It took even longer for him to talk to her about his grandpa's death. What on Earth could be worse than that? What wasn't he telling her?!
It was as if his ears were burning, because her big burly husband came bounding into the house with their son, Piccolo the green freeloader lingering by the doorway. She growled under her breath. Peasant. She supposed he wanted feeding tonight, too! Considering he could just live off water, he suddenly conveniently developed a liking for her cooking. It was bad enough he was practically living with them. He would sleep outside for the most part, but when it rained heavily, he would sometimes come inside and sleep on the futon Chichi put up for him. Not by choice. That was down to Goku's begging and puppy dog eyes. Honestly, didn't he have anywhere else he could go? Like off planet, preferably?
"Look what we caught, mom! And just in time for dinner!" her little son chirped, proudly showing off the enormous fish he'd caught. Chichi couldn't help but sigh, a tired smile praying on her face.
"Fish again, huh? great" she tried to humour him.
Her husband approached the table and began to strip off, dumping his stinking training Gi on top of her clean kitchen table surrounded by their groceries.
"Pee-yew! We worked up quite a sweat today!" he chirped as he dumped his clothes in front of her.
"I stink of fish" Gohan giggled to his father as he too began to strip off. Towels were hanging on the side, which Goku grabbed for him and their son.
"Hey, Chichi, can you wash these for us? Easy on the starch, though!" Chichi felt her blood boil, her teeth grinding together in anger. Easy on the starch?!Hold up, Mrs. Doubtfire! Who the hell was he talking to?!
Yet again, she had to wash his dirty clothes! Yet again, she had to fix them up because he wrecked them! Yet again, she would be the one cooking dinner and breaking down that stupid big fish they'd caught, whilst he relaxed in a nice hot bath! She would clean up after dinner! She would wash the dishes! She would read with their son! She would put him to bed! She would clean up the bathtub!
SHE. DID. EVERYTHING!
She'd had enough! She sprung to her feet, her eyes ablaze with fury as her husband and son were about to vacate the kitchen.
"Hold it right there!" she bellowed, both her husband and son turning to face her instantly, "let me get this straight, you want me to wash your clothes and cook dinner whilst you two have a nice hot bath?! Are you serious?!"
"But, we stink, Chichi, we need to wash up" Goku responded.
"Do you even care what kind of a day i've had today?! No, you don't! Because you haven't even asked! You just came bounding in here, dumping your dirty clothes on the table and walking straight back out again, leaving me to wash your clothes and cook this huge fish!"
"But, Chichi-"
"-I am exhausted! I was chased half way home by a wild boar, my feet are aching, I lost some of our groceries trying to escape it, and all because we don't have a car!" she fumed.
"Well, i'd offer to drive ya, Chichi, but I don't have a driver's licence" Goku told her cooly.
"Well, maybe it's about time you got one!" she retorted angrily.
"But, i'm training right now-"
"-You can take just a little bit of time off to go to driving school! You can train around it!"
"Aw, Chichi, do I really have to?" Goku whined. Oh, this was just typical Goku.
"I don't understand why you're the only man around here who hasn't got a driver's licence!"
"Piccolo can't drive, can ya?" Goku turned to face Piccolo. Piccolo's eyes bulged.
"LEAVE ME OUTA THIS!" He screamed at Goku.
"You can both put your training on hold and go and get your licenses!" Chichi demanded.
"Why have I gotta get one?!" Piccolo almost screeched out.
"You want to continue having free food, a place to stay and a training partner?! Then you are getting your licence, too!"
"God damn it, Son!" Piccolo grumbled at Goku, who shrugged innocently at him.
"Chichi, I could just fly you to the shops or you could take Nimbus. Y'know he's always there if ya need him".
"Well, that's more than what I can say for you!" she spat. Goku frowned slightly at her comment.
"I want you to get your licence and then we can drive to the shops. I don't see what the big deal is? I'm not asking you to save the World! I sometimes see the husband from the next mountain over, and he takes his wife everywhere! It would just be nice for once, for you to do that for me!"
Goku fell silent, mouth slightly ajar as he listened to his wife. The husband from the next mountain over? What husband? Who was this guy? How often did she see him? Had he been in their home? Was this a new thing? She hadn't mentioned him before. Goku didn't like it.
Chichi turned her back to them all and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Get your driving licences or you can cook your own food and wash your own clothes from now on! I don't see why I have to get lumbered with it all! You won't get a job, so it's the least you can do!" she turned to eye them over her shoulder, "understood?!". Both Goku and Piccolo nodded.
Goku eyed Piccolo as he stormed off outside, Gohan quietly following him. He took his attention back to his wife who angrily grabbed an empty wash basket and stuffed their dirty laundry into it. He wanted to say something, he wanted to question who this guy was she was referring to, but his son called him and his wife left the room.
Goku sighed in frustration and went to join his son in the outdoor bath. But, he wasn't going to let this slide.