Goku took a deep breath and exhaled, his blood smeared fingers twiddling together nervously as he stared at the screen in front of him. His heart was pounding in his chest, sweat droplets grazing the side of his face. He tried to swallow down his nerves, licking his dry beaten lips as he continued to watch the video screen in front of him, perched on the passenger seat of his spaceship. The once blank screen in front of him suddenly lit up and he smiled in relief.
"Hey, honey" he softly greeted her.
"Goku? GOKU! Omg Goku, you're okay! I've been so worried!" Chichi practically screamed at him. After hearing from their son that Goku chose to remain on Namek, Chichi rushed over to the other ship Dr. Briefs had been working on, to see if she could make contact with her husband.
"Sorry I worried you, Chichi"
"Why didn't you come home with Gohan?" she demanded to know, sitting closer to the screen, a frown on her face as she observed her husband's beaten state, his clothes all practically torn off. And she noticed another thing ... he looked absolutely exhausted.
"I wanted to finish my fight with Frieza" he knew she wasn't going to like that.
"Goku…"
"I needed to, Chichi" he interrupted her, a serious look on his face.
"Goku, we've talked about this. You risked everyone's life letting Vegeta go so you could fight him again. Because you wanted that thrill and to test yourself. You're doing it again" she tried to tell him gently.
"This was different"
"How? It's still an evil tyrant bent on killing everyone! Goku, this is insane!"
"I beat him, Chichi" he told her matter-of factly.
"Then what are you still doing there? Why aren't you on your way home?"
There was silence for a few seconds and Chichi almost thought they had lost the connection.
"Goku?" she called her husband.
"I'm … not sure I'm gonna make it home" he told her in a low, downhearted voice.
"What do you mean? Has the ship run out of fuel or something?" she wondered frantically.
Aww, his little wife was cute.
"Not exactly" he told her with a small smile.
"Then, what's wrong?"
"Frieza detonated the planet's core. It's going to explode at any moment and my ship is too damaged to fly"
This time Chichi went silent.
"What are you saying?" she barely whispered, her face turning to one of worry.
"I'm saying … I don't think I'm gonna make it, Chi"
Chichi's eyes started to shine and water.
"Goku" she whispered.
Goku smiled sadly at his wife.
"So, I guess I just wanted to speak to you, whilst I still could. And … just see your face again"
Chichi started to break down, a tear running down her face.
"Aw, c'mon, honey. I don't want my last memory to be of you crying. And you know I hate it when you cry" he gently told her.
Chichi tried to compose herself, swallowing down her wails, even just for him.
"Why does this keep happening to us? Why us, Goku? Why you? You're a good person!" she whimpered out.
"I guess sometimes bad things happen to good people"
"It's not fair" she cried, her bottom lip trembling.
"No, it's not" he gently agreed.
"I don't want to lose you again. I can't"
"You're the strongest person I know, Chichi. You were strong for me and Gohan when I died and Gohan was with Piccolo. You can do it again"
"I don't want to keep having to be strong, Goku!" she shouted, her voice thick with emotion.
"I need you to be strong, Chichi. For me. I need that from you"
Chichi closed her eyes and lowered her head.
"Chichi, look at me". He murmured.
After a few seconds Chichi slowly raised her head to look at him.
"You once told me that no matter how hard it is, or how hard it gets, we're going to make it".
Chichi smiled a small smile through her tears because he remembered her telling him that.
"And you were right" he continued, "It's been hard the last year, and we've barely had a minute to catch our breaths, but here we are. We made it".
Chichi choked back her sobs at his words.
"I'm sorry for what I've put you through. I never meant for any of this to happen" he told her solemnly, "A year ago everything was so simple. A year ago I thought I was a human…". Goku trailed off sadly.
"Human or alien …. It doesn't make any difference to me" Chichi assured him.
"You sure about that?" he asked her, cocking his eyebrow.
Chichi scoffed at him.
"Of course I'm sure! You're my husband and I love you! I don't care what you are! Nothing will ever change that!" She spoke with such fire in her eyes.
"There's my girl" he softly egged her on, "thought I lost her for a minute there"
Chichi couldn't help but huff out a small laugh.
The screen went fuzzy for a few seconds before Goku came back into focus, a loud rumbling noise echoing around his ship.
"Well, I think that's my cue to go" he told her.
"I don't want you to go" she whimpered.
"Y'know I have to go"
Goku placed his hand on the screen, his fingers delicately touching the glass where her face was.
"Y'need to stop getting so beautiful, Chichi. I swear you get more beautiful every time I see you" Chichi laughed at his words, the tears streaming down her face.
"You're an idiot" she cried out.
"I'm your idiot" he told her gently.
They gazed at one another for a few more seconds in silence.
"Can you do me a favour, and tell Gohan that I love him, and that I'm so proud of him" Chichi's heart imploded in her chest.
"I will" she croaked out.
"He's a great kid. We did good" he smiled proudly.
"We sure did" she smiled again at his words.
Silence reached them one last time.
"It's gonna be okay" he told her.
Chichi swallowed, another tear cascading down her pale face.
Her heart hurt. He looked scared. She needed to be strong for him right now. He needed her.
"I know. We got this" she whispered to him, her hand touching the screen in front of her.
Goku swallowed down the lump in his throat. His emotions were all over the place as it was. He needed to see her, to hear her voice.
In all his messes, she was the only one who could calm him.
"I love you" he told her softly.
"I love you, too".
He smiled warmly at her before giving her his signature wink. A wink that he reserved only for her. But in the blink of an eye, the screen went blank. The fuzzy display making a static sound, a sound that completely destroyed her.
The dam broke free and the tears came flooding through, a strangled cry retching from her throat as her blurry eyes continued to watch the blank screen in front of her. She felt physically and mentally deadened, she felt nauseous, she felt lost.
Her Goku.
She lost her Goku.
Goku took a shaky breath as he stepped outside his battered ship. His eyes slowly glanced around at the crumbling planet before him, lava spilling, fires spreading, electric bolts jolting from the skies, thunder booming.
He suddenly smiled a determined smile, his eyes glassy, his hands clenched tightly into fists at his sides.
No, this couldn't be it. He wouldn't let this be it. He had to try and get off his planet.
He had to get home. He had to see his son again.
He had to see her again.
He elevated into the air and shot off into the sky in search of another ship.
Chichi ... wait for me. I will find a way to come home to you.
It's gonna be okay.
