Please Friendzone Me!

Chapter 3

Poker Face

The morning following what happened in the storage room, Gohan came up to her when the bell rang for the break.

"Videl, I… I need to talk to you. Can we go somewhere?"

Around them, the other students bustled out of the room. Her fingers glided over the pages of her History book; she slapped it closed. "No."

He reached over and his hand grazed hers when she picked her pencil case; her skin tingled. She snatched her hand away and made the mistake to look at him.

"Please."

Damn it. Damn him and his puppy eyes.

With a sigh, Videl nodded and followed him out of the classroom. He led her to the roof.

She fidgeted with her hands as she waited for him to speak, her eyes darting around, trying to find something to focus on.

"Look, Videl…"

She pursed her lips and forced herself to look at him, silently prompting him to keep going. A gentle smile was curving his lips while his cheeks tinged with pink.

"I'm not expecting anything from you." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't get me wrong, I don't regret what happened yesterday, and I meant everything I said." He took a step toward her; Videl tensed when he leaned a little closer and lifted her chin, his onyx eyes twinkling in that special way that made her heart race. His voice lowered. "But I heard you, I get why you're reluctant. And I'm okay with it."

Videl stood frozen on the spot, unable to detach herself from those coal eyes of his. Short, shallow puffs of air slipped in and out of her parted lips at a more rapid pace.

His mere presence affected her way too much. How could she be so crazy attracted to this guy?

"I can wait," he went on softly. "If you need time to be mentally ready before you can accept my feelings, I will wait for you, Videl. Even if you end up rejecting me, I'll be okay." He cupped her cheek and stroked it with his thumb. His palm felt so warm and soothing. "I will always cherish the time we had, in that storage room. I know that you're not too thrilled about the way you feel about me, but…" His expression softened. "When you said all those things, even if you were ranting, even if it was out of frustration… it made me so happy. And I'm… really, really glad that… that I had my first kiss with you."

Her lips trembled; her eyes clouded over.

He was so unfair.

She tore herself from him and avoided his gaze, ignoring the painful protests of her heart. It was too much. Her feelings for him were overflowing. She couldn't handle them – didn't know how to deal with them.

"I… I…"

She couldn't come up with anything to say. She didn't know how to let go, how to give away the reins.

The wind rose for a few moments, and as she glanced back at Gohan, her chest throbbed and her eyes glazed over. His clothes rustled, and his jet-black, spiky hair danced to the breeze. Videl's lips parted. She didn't notice her pigtails swaying to the wind, couldn't see anything but the young man in front of her.

Gohan reached over and brushed her bangs from her eyes; the light touch of his fingers sent a shiver down her spine. She observed him silently, her chest heaving, blood pumping loudly in her head. He tucked her loose strands behind her ear. His gentle smile was making her feel weak in the knees.

"It's okay, Videl. I told you – I can wait. You don't have to say or do anything right now. Take your time. Gather your thoughts. Make your decision. I'll be okay no matter what, so don't worry about me and just do what's right for you, alright? I'm still here for you if you need anything. I'll always be there for you, Videl, no matter what."

The girl felt herself drown in his pitch-black eyes.

She never stood a chance against him, did she? Just whose idea was it to create this sweet, caring, and all-around perfect boy? How was it fair to everyone else? How was it fair to her? She never asked to fall for him, but did she ever have a choice? Nope. Her heart couldn't care less about what she wanted. It just chose to beat for Son Gohan, and she had no say in the matter.

"You're kidding, right?"

Videl closed her locker and turned to Sharpner. Hugging her books with her right arm, the girl was mindful not to lean on her bandaged left foot. The tall, long-haired, blond boy looked back at her with an eyebrow raised.

"What's so hard to believe? You weren't there when that bully tried to hurt Gohan, but surely you've heard about how easily he dealt with the guy, haven't you?"

"But… I mean, he's even stronger than you? How can that be possible?" Sharpner's voice rose as he spoke, and he was making wide hand gestures. "You might very well be stronger than your dad and become the next world champion!"

Videl looked away, hugging her books a little tighter. It would have been easy to explain how Gohan could be such a skilled martial artist if she could just say who his father was, but Gohan didn't want people to know he was the son of a former Tenkaichi Budokai champion. She, more than anyone, knew what it was like to be in the spotlight, so she couldn't blame Gohan for trying to avoid it.

"It is what it is." She shrugged.

"I can't believe it…" Sharpner crossed his arms and frowned. "Do you think he'll enter the next tournament?"

"I didn't ask, but I doubt it. He's not really interested in that kind of thing."

The thought that the best fighter she'd ever faced wouldn't be competing in the next Tenkaichi Budokai left a bitter taste in her mouth. Even if she did win the championship this year, the title would be meaningless if the strongest fighter out there wasn't even in the running.

But there was no way Gohan would want to participate. If he didn't want people to know that Son Goku was his father, he definitely wouldn't be interested in appearing on the most mediatized event of the year.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Sharpner agreed. "Kinda defeats the purpose of a world tournament if someone like him doesn't compete though."

She sighed. "Tell me about it. I wonder if there's any meaning to trying to win the championship at this point."

"Well, not all martial artists are interested in the competitions. There's nothing we can do about it."

Videl leaned back against her locker door. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Well, we should probably get to class." Sharpner smirked at her. "I'm here if you need to lean on me. Wouldn't want you to make your sprain any worse."

She rolled her eyes and started limping away in the direction of their classroom. "I'm fine. It's better that I keep it moving anyway."

Sharpner walked beside her. He quirked an eyebrow. "Says who? Aren't you supposed to get a lot of rest when you get a sprain?"

"Yes and no. Apparently, RICE isn't that good for you. I've looked it up, too, and Gohan was right. Aside from first-aid care, it's best to stick with METH. That's movement, elevation, traction, and heat."

"Heh. Figures a nerd like him would know better than the rest of us common people."

"You do realize you're talking about a guy who could easily kick your ass, right?"

Sharpner clicked his tongue. "It's unnatural. Nerds aren't supposed to be good athletes."

"Jocks don't have to be bad at school. I'm an athlete and I get decent grades."

Sharpner's gaze shifted past her on her right, into the adjacent corridor. "Speak of the devil." He raised his hand and waved. "Yo, Brains."

Videl froze. That was Sharpner's nickname for Gohan. Her body started reacting at the mere notion that the boy she liked was close by. She swallowed thickly and slowly turned to her right. A pink-tinted vision of Gohan was walking up to them.

She squinted – the light around him was too bright. What the heck? Why was he walking in slow motion? And how could he have the wind in his hair? The hallways didn't have any open windows, so that couldn't be possible. Videl rubbed her eyes and looked at him again. Her vision seemed back to normal now.

My God… This is worse than I thought.

"Hey, Videl, hey, Sharpner," Gohan greeted with his usual easy smile. Videl felt her face heat up just from that. He turned to her and tilted his head to the side. "How's your ankle? Did you keep doing traction exercises like I showed you?"

She averted her gaze, willing her face to go back to its normal color. This was bad. She was too aware of him, and he affected her way too much. At this rate, someone was going to notice that she was crushing hard on him.

"Yeah, I did…"

"And you went to see a doctor to get x-rays of your sprain?"

Her lips twitched for a smile. He was cute when he cared so much. "I have an appointment later today."

"Okay, that's good. Do you mind if I take a look at it? It's been less than a day, but the swelling should've gone down a bit."

"What, so now you're a medical expert too?" Sharpner jibbed, rolling his eyes.

"I wouldn't say I'm an expert, but I've had my fair share of injuries, so I do know a thing or two about treating a sprain."

"We better get to class anyway." Videl started limping away; Gohan jogged after her.

"Would you like me to carry your books for you? I wouldn't want the extra weight to press on your bad ankle."

"I can carry my own books." She clicked her tongue. It was starting to get a little annoying. She didn't have her leg in a cast nor did she need to use crutches. It was just a twisted ankle. "You don't need to baby me, Gohan. I'm a big girl."

He gave an awkward laugh and scratched his hair. "Yeah, sorry. I told you I'm a bit of a worrywart…"

She looked over at him and cracked a smile. "No kidding."

"Ah, you've got an eyelash here."

He reached over and gently brushed her cheek. A bright smile lit up his face as he showed her the fallen eyelash on the tip of his forefinger.

"Make a wish and blow."

She felt breathless. His light touch had been like a jolt of electricity, and her skin still tingled. Her lips parted as she was unable to voice a response. She just stared at him, feeling herself sink deeper and deeper into the blackness of his twinkling eyes.

Sharpner snorted. "You believe in that stuff? What are you, ten?"

"Whether wishing on an eyelash works isn't the point." Gohan shrugged. "It's just for fun."

The long-haired blond gave a smirk. "Doesn't take much for you, huh?"

Gohan chuckled, before turning back to her. Videl swallowed thickly as their eyes met once more.

"You don't think it's too silly, do you, Videl?"

She took a deep breath. She needed to calm down. Had Sharpner been paying attention, he would've already noticed that she wasn't acting like her usual self. She was lucky Erasa hadn't arrived yet – the perky blonde would have picked up on what was going on with her in a second.

Without a word, she blew on the eyelash. I wish I could control my own feelings.

Gohan beamed. "Did you make a wish?"

Her gaze trailed over his harmonious traits, before unwittingly pausing on his lips. Her chest tightened without her consent. Videl turned away and resumed limping toward their classroom.

"It won't come true anyway." If only it were that easy.

"Aww, don't say that. It's not like you to give up without a fight."

She considered him out of the corner of her eyes. "Yeah, you're right."

She might not be able to control how she felt, but she could at least learn to keep herself in check whenever she reacted to those feelings. Surely, with enough practice, she should be able to hide the way Gohan made her feel. She just needed to work on her poker face.

Videl squinted at her reflection and hardened her traits. To make the exercise more efficient, she pictured one of Gohan's effortlessly charming smiles. Her jaw tightened and she gripped the edge of the sink as she repressed her blush. It was still visible, but she was making progress.

She proceeded to recall how Gohan went and brought a stool to the classroom after the morning break. She saw his kind, gentle eyes as he gave it to her. She remembered how he expressed his worry for her ankle if she let it be while she sat in class all day.

Her expression started to reflect her emotional struggle, and Videl did her best to force it down.

This wasn't going to be enough. She needed a better way to suppress her feelings and stop them from showing on her face at all.

Her eyebrows scrunched up and her gaze dropped to the sink.

Maybe… Maybe she could go to her happy place? If she could just detach herself from the situation and let her mind wander whenever Gohan made her feel flustered, maybe that could work? It would be worth looking into.

It wasn't something she could practice on her own, though. While thinking about Gohan did provoke a physical reaction out of her, the intensity wasn't the same as when she interacted with him. She supposed she would have to give it a try tomorrow at school.

Videl limped on her way out of her personal bathroom and went into her bedroom. Collapsing on her swivel chair with a sigh, she rocked herself from side to side and stared off into space.

What was she supposed to do about these unwanted feelings, though? Should she just wait for this stupid crush to pass? Would it, really? Wasn't there anything she could do to speed up the process?

She leaned her head against the backrest and pressed her palms against her closed eyelids. She hated this. Feeling like this, being unable to control her own heart; how Gohan just had to flash her one of his easy smiles to make her feel weak in the knees. Was there really no way to stop herself from liking that boy?

Her cellphone vibrated in the back pocket of her jeans. Videl pulled it out and checked the name of the caller on the screen. She raised her eyebrows.

"Gohan?" she murmured. Why would he be calling her?

Her heartbeat picked up as she answered the call and placed the rectangular device against her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Videl, I hope I'm not calling at a bad time? It's Gohan, by the way."

Her lips started to curve into a smile. "I know. And, no, you're not calling at a bad time."

"Ah, good, good. I was just wondering how your doctor's appointment went."

"The doctor said it's a mild sprain, nothing serious."

"That's good to hear. And you got the x-rays done to make sure?"

"Yeah. I have them right here." She glanced at the large envelope sitting on her desk as she said that. "Or would you like to check them out for yourself?"

She meant that as a joke, but a long pause followed her rhetorical question.

"…Would you mind?" came the boy's hesitant voice.

She gave a laugh. "Gohan, you're too much of a worrywart. My ankle's just fine, and it should heal in no time."

"I know. And I know I'm being a pain about it, but I can't help worrying about you."

Videl leaned back on the chair and raised her gaze to the ceiling; she could feel a blush start to form on her cheeks. His words made her chest glow.

"And I feel responsible for your sprain…" Gohan went on. "If not for our spar…"

"I'm the one who didn't want to call it, remember? I know it would've been the reasonable thing to do, but if I could redo everything I still wouldn't have wanted to quit. I still would've tried to land at least one hit on you – and once my ankle's good to go, I'm definitely going to try again. So you better be ready."

He chuckled. "You're way too stubborn, Videl."

"What, you think I can't do it?"

"I think you can do anything once you've put your mind to it."

"Damn right."

Gohan gave a hearty laugh. Videl closed her eyes and smiled. He had such a cute laugh.

But then she jolted herself out of it. What was she doing, letting Gohan charm her again? She was supposed to put a stop to these stupid feelings, not let them grow and develop.

She needed to go to her happy place, to detach herself from the way Gohan made her feel.

"Still, um, would it be okay if I came over?" he asked. "I know I should just trust your doctor's word for it, but I'd be more at ease if I could see it for myself."

I'm with Mom and Dad at the amusement park, Videl told herself, conjuring the fond memory in her head. Mom is smiling at me and we share cotton candy. Dad is having churros and gives me some.

Her chest felt lighter already. It was working.

But, maybe she should test that method when she was in Gohan's presence, just to make sure. Talking to him on the phone was one thing, but going to her happy place might not be as effective when seeing Gohan in person.

"Videl?" he called softly after her long pause.

"Sorry. I'm still here. You can come if you want, I don't mind." A thought occurred to her. "Wouldn't it take you a while though, since you live in the mountain areas?"

"Ah… um… N-No, not really. It, um… It doesn't take me very long." She frowned at the hesitation in his voice. Why did he sound nervous as he said that? "Can you text me your address?"

"Sure."

"And, um, thanks for indulging me."

She chuckled in good humor. He was so cute. "No problem."

"See you in a bit, then."

They hung up, and Videl heaved out a dreamy sigh, placing the phone against her heart as she rocked herself from side to side on her swivel chair.

And then she stomped her right foot firmly on the floor to keep the chair still; her expression hardened. She needed to get a grip. She couldn't let her feelings get the better of her. She was stronger than that.

Besides, Gohan was just being his usual caring self – this wasn't even about her.

Her phone buzzed in her hand. She unlocked the screen and saw that Gohan had sent her a text. "Your address, please?"

She smiled despite herself as she typed her reply.

Videl sighed and set her phone on her desk. Her shoulders slumped. This wasn't going well for her. She liked him so much already.

The butler brought Gohan to her bedroom before excusing himself. Holding the door open, Videl stepped aside to let her friend in.

"Whoa… Your room is huge. Your whole place is like a castle."

She smiled at the awestruck look on his face as he looked in every direction, taking it all in. Videl supposed she was used to it by now, having grown up in wealth and luxury.

"My x-rays results are on my desk if you're still interested."

"Ah, right. Of course."

He flashed her a sheepish smile, scratching the back of his head in that endearing way.

Her insides melted. That adorable smile of his was going to be the end of her.

She averted her gaze and massaged her neck. This couldn't keep happening. She needed to get a hold of herself.

Happy place, she reminded herself. Mom, Dad, and I are on the roller coaster. Dad is screaming like a little girl while Mom and I laugh at him.

Her heart calmed down as she focused on that mental image. Videl sighed softly.

Meanwhile, Gohan had moved to her desk and picked up the large envelope with her x-ray results. She went to sit on her bed and watched him with a tranquil smile as he leaned back against the desk. He pulled out one of the black, laminated sheets and aimed it toward the light coming from the window, his brow furrowing as he studied the image. He did the same with the second x-ray result, took his time examining it, before putting the sheets back in the envelope which he set on the desk. He then turned to look at her and smiled.

"Looks like it's just a mild sprain after all. With the METH method, your ankle should heal within a week, maybe ten days at most."

"I told you it wasn't serious. Still, that's good to know. I would hate for this sprain to drag on."

Gohan stepped toward her and got down to one knee in front of her. "Do you mind if I take a look nonetheless?"

"N-No. Go ahead."

Like the day before, he lifted her foot and put it on his lap, before slipping her sock off. Videl swallowed, her face burning.

Mom, Dad, the amusement park. We… uh… We're…

Her mind went blank. Gohan's gentle touch was too much. His hands were big and warm, handling her with the utmost care as he slowly undid her bandage. She raised her gaze to his focused expression. Damn it, he was just too cute. How could she not be affected by that adorable face?

Happy place, happy place, she reminded herself. Mom is… hugging me. Yeah, that's an easy one. I'm in Mom's arms and I feel safe.

"The swelling's gone down a bit already. That's good." He raised his head to look at her, his frown melting away. "I think you can let your sprain breathe and leave the bandage off for now. But put it back on tomorrow at school; it's better if your ankle's kept in place while you move around."

Videl nodded her head. Gohan rose to his feet. He scratched his head. "Well, I've bothered you enough. I better get going."

"You don't bother me," she said before she could stop herself. Her cheeks reddened and she looked down, fiddling with her hands. Once again, she went to her happy place. "I mean, you came all this way, and you don't even live in the city. I should at least offer you a snack."

"Well, you know I can't say no to that."

She peeked at him; he had a big grin on his face. The girl wanted to swoon, but she caught herself and returned to her happy place.

Videl hoped that with enough practice, she would be able to bottle down her feelings completely in Gohan's presence. She didn't want the slightest hint that she liked him to show. Nothing but a perfect poker face would be acceptable.

Videl turned up the volume on her Bluetooth earphones, trying to cover the loud chattering in the back of the air shuttle. The seat next to her was vacant; Erasa had long since abandoned it to mingle with their classmates. She had invited Videl to come along, of course, but the raven-haired girl didn't really feel like socializing right now. She needed to save her energy and distribute it accordingly in the next three days, seeing as she would have no choice but to interact with her classmates during most of the field trip.

She gazed down at the ocean through the window. The early morning sun glistened on the dark blue surface, like stars shining in the night sky. A thin smile formed on her lips.

Someone tapped on her shoulder, pulling her out of her contemplation. Videl looked over and was met with Gohan's easy smile. He was standing by Erasa's empty seat, one of his hands holding the backrest. The girl pressed a button on the cord of her earphones to pause the music and pulled out the earpieces to show that she could hear him now.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" he asked. "It's getting a little too lively for me over there."

She cracked a smile. "Sure."

"Thanks."

Gohan settled down next to her, his gentle expression never wavering. He nodded toward her earphones. "What were you listening to?"

Videl pulled the cord from around her neck and handed one of the earbuds to Gohan. "Want to listen to it together?"

He nodded. "I'd like that, yeah."

His fingers brushed hers as he took the right earpiece. Videl immediately went to her happy place before the tingles on her skin could make her blush; her expression remained unchanged even as Gohan leaned closer so she could put the attached left earbud in place. Her heart rate was rising from being so close to him, still, but at least that wasn't something anyone else could tell just by looking at her.

She pressed the button on the cord linking the two earpieces to resume the song she had been listening to. Videl closed her eyes and focused on her happy place, picturing her mother stroking her hair as she helped her get to sleep.

Gohan's body heat felt really nice, and they were sitting so close that his scent was tickling her nostrils. It made her throat tighten up. He smelled like pine trees and fresh wind, mixed with a spicy fragrance, something masculine and raw. It was so damn attractive.

But, she could deal with it. In the past week or so, Videl had successfully mastered the perfect poker face. Nothing in the way she acted or reacted would ever give anyone a clue as to what was actually going on inside of her. As far as everyone was concerned, she and Gohan were just friends.

"I like the voice of the singer," the boy commented. "What's his name?"

She didn't bat an eye at the question. Sheltered as he was growing up, it wasn't unexpected for Gohan not to be familiar with pop culture. This wasn't the first time something like that happened, either.

"I don't remember his name, but he's the singer of the rock band Radiohead. They're pretty famous."

"Radiohead," he repeated, as though taking a mental note. "And what's the name of this song?"

"The Bends," Videl replied. "It's one of my favorites."

"I can see why. The lyrics are nice too, though they're pretty sad."

They kept listening to Videl's playlist together. She enjoyed making Gohan discover the music she liked, and her friend seemed to share her taste. Then again, she may be biased, but they were all great songs.

Erasa's head popped up over the backrests of the seats in front of them. She grinned. "Aww, look at you two bonding and being all cute. So precious."

Gohan gave a nervous chuckle. He tugged the earpiece out of his ear and pulled back from the girl, scratching his cheek. He was blushing a little. "Videl was, um, teaching me about music."

She almost melted at the adorable sight of him getting shy, but Videl caught herself like usual and didn't let her feelings show on her face. She paused the music and pulled out the earpiece as well.

"Did you get bored out there?" she teased her bubbly blonde friend.

"I was missing you, actually," Erasa beamed, ever true to herself. "But I see you were doing just fine without me."

"Do you want your seat back?" Gohan asked, starting to get up.

"Nah, I'm good here. Unless I'm interrupting your bonding time?" she added with a cheery laugh.

Videl smiled. "Of course not."

"What's everyone's getting so excited about back there?" Gohan asked, motioning to their lively classmates at the back of the shuttle.

"Aren't you excited about the field trip? The exhibition is gonna be amazing, we'll have plenty of time for sightseeing, and we'll get to visit the brand new arena of the Tenkaichi Budokai! Plus, the hotel has a pool! It's gonna be so much fun!"

Gohan let out an amused chuckle. "Yeah, I guess I'm pretty amped up too. I've never done anything like that before, going on a field trip with my class."

"Well, you're in for a treat! You're gonna wish you'd started public school years ago."

He grinned. "I already do. It's been pretty awesome, and it's nice to have friends my own age."

Erasa's eyes softened. "We're really happy to have you, too. You know, you're the first person to get close to Videl ever since her dad got famous"

His brow furrowed. "I guess that makes sense. Though, how people can't see what an amazing person Videl is, that's just beyond me."

The girl in question felt her heart skip a beat at his words. Her poker face was slipping – though she supposed that blushing in this instance could be viewed as a normal reaction.

"Thanks," she said softly.

Gohan beamed at her. "I mean it. I'm really glad I met you, Videl."

Her chest was glowing. Videl let herself drown in the boy's deep, pitch-black eyes, forgetting about her happy place – forgetting about everything else but him.

Goodness, she liked him so much.

"Aww, you're just too sweet," Erasa cooed, cupping her face. "I swear if you were into me, I would so jump you right now."

He flushed and averted his gaze, coughing into his fist. As clueless as he was, even Gohan couldn't miss that Erasa was hitting on him. The bubbly blonde knew that he wasn't interested – Gohan was probably too pure to think about romance at all. Still, the pretty blonde liked to have some fun with him every now and then and remind him that he was a catch. Videl could understand why she would purposely get him all flustered – Gohan's blushing face was just too cute.

She frowned as she looked down at her hands resting on her lap, balling them into fists. She wished Erasa wouldn't, though. Videl knew she shouldn't be feeling this way, and she hated that she was, but watching her best friend flirt so blatantly with Gohan just didn't sit right with her.

At least it cemented the fact that Erasa had no idea she was crushing hard on their spiky-haired friend. Her poker face was a definite success.

Her feelings weren't going away though. If anything, they were actually growing every day. She still wanted to be Gohan's friend; he was a great guy, and they really did connect. But, the more time she spent with the boy, the harder she was falling for him.

Surely, there had to be a way to get over her feelings for him. People got over their first crushes all the time. It should be feasible for her too.

But how? Videl had never felt this way for a guy before; she had zero experience with that kind of stuff. How was she supposed to figure it out by herself?

She glanced at Erasa, happily chattering away at Gohan about the field trip. Videl pinched her lips together.

Should she… try to seek some advice? Erasa would know what to do in this kind of situation. She was the type of person who got a new crush at the drop of a hat, and they didn't all pan out to something more. Like with Gohan for instance – although, Videl figured that Erasa's interest in the boy was nowhere near as strong as her own feelings for him.

Still. Erasa would know. She could help her get over Gohan, and then they could continue being friends and maybe even become best friends down the line. Genuine people like Gohan were so rare, and Videl did hope he was going to be in her life for a very long time. If she could just get rid of her unwanted feelings for him, everything would be perfect.

But… getting Erasa's help would mean telling her about her crush. Videl crossed her arms, her lips pursing. That was out of the question. Nobody could ever know that she was crushing on Gohan. Ever. No exceptions.

Looking at her blonde friend again, Videl chewed on the inside of her cheek. She still needed guidance though. Maybe she could work something out. Erasa didn't need to know who her crush was to help her deal with it, after all.

December 2, 2021