CHAPTER 11:
Just Deserts

The small chapel room in which Trunks and Pan resided was off to the left side of the entrance foyer. The medium-sized room looked like it was designed for smaller ceremonies. The ceiling was decorated with multiple patterns of colored cut marble tiles that made twirls from wall to wall. Looking up at the swirling artwork reminded Trunks of all the spinning that took place just several hours before, and the whole reason he was in this current mess.

For a little over two long hours following the chaotic end of the reception, Trunks remained seated cross-legged by Pan's bedside as she lay on the makeshift futon that Hikarroo had set up by the altar. There were two small prayer tables on either side of the futon that currently acted as nightstands on each side of her bed. Each table was covered with vases that contained white and red flowers. Their wedding gift crystals adorned the floor, tracing where it adjoined all of the walls, as if the carved glyphs bestowed blessings of health and recovery. The room smelled of incense and spice, which had been burned in short periods for health and fortune as Pan rested on the bed.

Both Trunks and Pan were still in their wedding outfits, and Trunks still found it funny that she looked like a pink dragonfruit crossed with balloon-animal grapes. He didn't know how to communicate that thought, though, so as Pan slept, he kept it to himself, and felt his lips slightly upturn every time he thought of her outfit under her blanket.

His heart and body pulsed a few times as he came to realize one of the feelings he felt earlier did not go away like he thought it might. Instead, it continually grew stronger.

He liked her. Gods almighty, he actually liked her.

The thought gave him a warm feeling that coursed through his body, and a new sense of confidence that he could open up to her. It began to dawn on Trunks that Pan had the potential to be an even better wingman than Goten, especially one day, when their relationship would be able to grow into its full potential.

She was young, but it meant that he had time with her - a whole lifetime. The warmth within him grew as he reflected that this wedding today was just the beginning. Pan was it - his match literally written in the stars.

He just needed to stop fucking it up.

As Pan slept, Trunks's eyes continued to focus just beyond her as he was lost in thought. In the past few hours, beyond the warm feeling that bubbled on the surface of his mood, he also felt that he was beating back an uneasy feeling that roiled deep in his gut. He greatly attributed the sensation to his worry for her health; but the true reality, if he were to be honest with himself, was that he was quelling nervous energy in anticipation of how she might react once she fully learned and processed his actions from their reception once she woke up.

Despite the fact that there was a time in his life when that exact prank would have been funny to everyone, Trunks knew that he went overboard this time, and in this place. He mentally kicked himself, because he once again allowed his temper to manifest itself - this time, as a prank. And this time, his temper also involved Pan. Whether or not she was okay with it, he knew he still owed her an apology…

… But gods, apologies hurt his pride so much. He hoped she'd keep a good sense of humor about the whole thing, and it could all just blow over. However, he fully anticipated that instead of getting a punch on the shoulder for being a jokester, he was going to get a kick in the rear for belonging in the doghouse.

He just needed to help her see that it really was the greatest prank ever, and while she slept, Goku and he were still laughing about it. It was hard not to find the humor in it all, considering that the whole story of the debacle had a hilarious epilogue that Pan had been missing during her slumber.

After Trunks had set her into the futon earlier, Goku had quickly gotten antsy waiting for Pan to wake, and so, unable to stand still as he rode a sugar high from the reception, Goku started venturing out for excursions into the lower terraces of the city, where he had reputedly discovered a "night market" that sold local trinkets, foods, and local crafts.

About an hour after Goku first left, he returned with a surprise that startled Trunks into a laughing fit. As it turned out, the ending of their dance was remembered as a religious event on the moon, which was already being memorialized among red wax figurines that Goku started to collect. It was from these figurines that Trunks and Goku quickly learned a fascinating anthropological discovery about Kikarrooans: they specialized in rapid, detailed carvings.

While it was evident within the architecture of the temple, it was a marvel to see how they applied their skills so quickly among the whittled and diligently carved statues that were already abundant in the night market.

It did not take long for Goku to realize that, on this moon, the wax statues held a particular significance within the society - they indicated a form of breaking news headline. Without a newspaper, radio or television sets available on the moon, the moonlanders communicated news and events through their wax carvings which acted as a quickdraw way to visualize the latest happenings, and also was available to melt and reprocess as a renewable resource to portray the latest messages.

Goku told Trunks that the whole market was littered with red wax carvings of their wedding and reception. All of the figurines were amazing, and it was incredible to see the detail that the moonlanders were able to capture from memory of Trunks' and Pan's faces. While the wedding ceremony figurines depicted their vows, Trunks' favorites, by far, were the reception figurines of their notorious end to their dance. The reception sculptures were wax hand-carvings of Trunks spinning Pan, with wax droplets indicating the beginning of a hurl. They were carving them out to be hollow inside, so they could be used as a pitcher.

Somehow word had gotten around about the events of the reception, and as the story traveled across the city, the message was skewed into a narrative that Pan used her "ability" to "shower the holy drink" upon the guests at the reception. The whole experience was akin to a baptism.

The entire concept of it was hilarious, that Trunks could not possibly imagine how Pan could wake up angry about it all. But the longer Pan slept, the more Trunks started to doubt his confidence in his feelings.

In the second hour of watching Pan, Trunks' thoughts shifted to justification for his actions. The truth was that the action to make her vomit needed to happen. Trunks realized, with strong resolution, Pan should be glad that she'd ever be able to wake up after the amount of alcohol she consumed. If she had not emptied her gut when she did, then Trunks would have had to force her to throw up and get it out of her system, and it ultimately would have been almost-as-equally embarrassing for her.

Trunks ultimately reassured himself that Pan had drunk too much, and she risked alcohol poisoning, and Trunks needed to help her expel it. Granted, he could have helped her in a more discreet fashion… but then again, he was Trunks Briefs, and pranks are what he was known for. And Trunks determined that he was happy that this situation happened.

Trunks resolved that it was a good thing that Pan learned exactly who she married. When it came to humor, he was not about to change for her. There simply was no way to rewire his head. She'd have to come to learn and accept who he was. And she needed a good lesson for what she did by forcing that kiss on him. In fact, Trunks already felt much better about it.

Then Trunks saw Pan's eyelids flutter, and all of his resolve went out the window.

He watched as Pan slowly opened her eyes, staring without seeing, at the ornately patterned ceiling.

Alright, Trunks did not feel better about it at all. He was about to be killed by this girl.

Trunks could feel his heart began to beat fast, and the whole script that he had in his head fluttered out of his mind as he watched her eyes turn toward him in slow motion.

He was still seated cross-legged in his dress, by her futon bedside, to her left. It was just Trunks in the room with her, along with the flowers and wedding crystal gifts scattered across the wall edges and nearby floor. When she killed him, there would be no witnesses.

He swallowed as he watched Pan groggily bring her right hand to her eyes. She squinted in the room's light, and a soft "ow" escaped her lips as she clearly winced.

Trunks wasn't sure what to do with his hands. They were on his lap, but he felt that maybe he needed to hold her hand for reassurance. He unconsciously reached for her left hand and took it as he continued to watch her.

Pan's eyes immediately went to look at her left hand in both of his, and then followed his arms up to his chest, and ultimately to Trunks' face, as if trying to remember who he was.

He noted her squinting, and realized she might have a hangover.

"Light too bright?" Trunks squeezed her hand gently, and projected a comforting smile.

Pan squinted, "Trunks, you're here…"

"Yeah," Trunks smiled reassuringly down to her. His insides churned with insecurity again.

With a groan and a heavy head, Pan lifted herself just enough to look around to see the flowers around her, and the chapel setting. She seemed confused and a little taken aback.

"What is this place?" Pan's brows knitted, and then her eyes went wide at seeing all the flowers and runes in the room. With a stricken expression as she sat up, Pan looked to the flowers, then to Trunks, then around the room again. "Am I dying?!"

Trunks grinned at the thought, and naturally went to make light of it, "Nope, you're still stuck with me for life."

The joke flew over Pan's head. She seemed dazed, and brought her hand away from Trunks' grip. She brought both hands to her face, and then grabbed her cheeks and pulled them down, as if her face were made of putty.

She mumbled as she clawed at her funny face, "I don't remember how I got here."

She looked downright ridiculous, and Trunks had to suck in his bottom lip to prevent himself from laughing at her.

"Well, I carried you." Trunks stifled a grin, and continued, "You uh… got a little sick at the reception, and uh, the incense and flowers here are their form of medicine."

Pan looked around slowly, still not absorbing Trunks' words. She rubbed her eyes, and still squinted, "Where's Grandpa?"

"He's been in and out. He'll be back soon." Trunks leaned back, watching her expression. He supported himself with his hands on the floor behind him. "He's been checking on you, but mostly he's been out enjoying moon's night life. In fact… he's been collecting some funny things for you."

"What? Funny?" Pan sat up, puzzled.

"Yeah, there are a bunch of wax figurines that have been going viral today."

"Huh?" Pan blinked, deadpan. She still had no idea what was going on.

"So…" Trunks cleared his throat, "... it turns out these moon people are expert carvers. Look what they're selling all over the city."

Trunks pulled a red wax figurine out from behind the flowers to show Pan a carving of their ceremony scene. The statue portrayed them looking in each other's eyes with their gowns in full detail, saying their vows.

Pan's eyes went wide and her mouth ajar. Trunks could see a sparkle light in her eyes in wonder and amazement. "Oh wow," Pan took the little statue from his hands, and turned it over a few times, inspecting the detail. She looked up to his eyes in marvel, "Is this us?"

"It sure is." Trunks smiled. And behind his smile, his teeth were clenched because he knew what was about to come. But, he needed to rip the bandaid off and address the wound, so he kept going. "And check this one out."

Trunks then held up the second figurine - the one that depicted the end of their reception dance. "The details on our faces are incredible." Trunks held up wax figurine and tilted it a bit as if observing its underside. "I hear these are popping up everywhere now, too."

Pan put the first figurine on the nightstand, and then took the new figurine to scrutinize it. "What is this?" She turned it over, and over again, her eyes filling with disbelief. "Is that us too?"

Trunks cleared his throat and leaned forward, bringing his right hand to the back of his neck to scratch his head. He knew what was coming. "Yes, it is, and I do want to talk to you about that."

Like a calm before the storm, Pan continued to process it, connecting dots in her head as she flipped and turned the figure again in her hands to identify the action captured in wax. Her tone was still confused, "What's happening here? I don't understand it."

"Well…" Trunks licked his lips in anticipation, "that one's meant to be a pitcher."

Pan looked up to Trunks, with a look that was quickly becoming a dangerous glare. "A pitcher of what?"

Trunks' face flushed as he realized she was savvier than she let on. "You uh… our uh… first dance."

Pan gritted her teeth, "What am I doing?"

Trunks suddenly felt flustered. He was facing the music. With a smile that was increasingly forced, and a bead of sweat forming on his temple, he awkwardly chuckled and cleared his throat, "Well, uh - you're baptizing the crowd."

Pan's face was flat and unreadable. The silence was a clear indication of how much trouble Trunks was in.

He did not anticipate the chill that he felt run down his spine. The air began to feel heavy and hot. Her eyes were indicating a hellfire with a blaze he was about to face. "And uh.." Trunks cleared his throat again and looked away abashedly, "We can talk about that."

Pan's eyes widened as it was evident the memory was coming back. Trunks could see her expression shift from his peripheral vision. His suspicion about her mood shifted into a form of dread when he did turn his eyes to her, and saw that her expression had dropped into a seething rage.

"Oh… my… gods…" Pan's eyes narrowed and her fangs were evident as the temperature rose in the room. She was emanating all kinds of heat.

"Yeah…" Trunks bit his lip.

"I remember now." Pan's chilling glare shot ice daggers through him as he began to sweat in the heat.

Then there was a lingering silence - a pregnant pause that hung in the air as they both looked at each other.

Trunks responded by shifting his lips, sucking in his cheeks a bit as he gave an understanding shrug that indicated he knew exactly what she was thinking. "Yeah, that happened."

Pan's voice was dark and steady, "I have no words for you right now," she declared, her gaze locked onto him with growing resentment. "I'm angry with you."

"I can see why you'd be mad. But!" Trunks raised his hands defensively, "If you keep an open mind about it, you'd realize that the act back there - that was funny, Pan! I mean," Trunks waved his arms up, "It was the most incredible shocker. They're going to be talking about that for years!"

Pan grimaced, "And I'm going to have to live with that memory for the rest of my life!"

"Come on," Trunks pleaded defensively, "Do you actually remember the details of it?"

"It doesn't matter!" Pan aggressively slammed the figurine down on her opposite nightstand. "Just knowing that you did it makes me feel disappointed with you!"

"What? Disappointed?!" Trunks' heart panged, and he was surprised that those words hit so close to home for some reason. He continued to feel defensive, and had to at least plead his case to defend his actions. "What we did was an amazing prank. One of the best of my life. It was thrilling."

"You made me vomit on everyone!" Pan's voice raised to screech, "It was humiliating!"

"HAH!" Trunks guffawed instinctively, then and immediately regretted it as he earned a death glare from Pan.

He took a breath, to steady his feelings. It was clear they were on different pages about the whole event.

Trunks looked down to prevent provoking her rage, and held his hands up in resignation. "Before you kill me - can I say something first?"

"No," Pan spat.

Trunks ignored her, "I just wanted to say that, for a minute, I pictured you like Goten. And Goten would have been totally cool with that."

"Are you serious?" Pan was appalled, "Did you ever do something like that to Goten before?!"

"Well no," Trunks looked up in thought, his hands still up, "Not that epic."

Pan glared at him, balling her fists as if she wanted to punch him, "What you did was evil."

"Evil?!" Trunks' eyes went wide as he realized the impression she had of him. He needed to clarify, "Woah woah, Pan! It was funny! Come on, nobody got hurt. Even Goku was laughing."

Pan slammed her fists down on her lap. "I don't care if Grandpa was laughing! He laughs at all kinds of stupid crap. But YOU!" She rudely lifted her right hand to point directly at Trunks' face, "YOU should have KNOWN BETTER!"

"I know! I know it's not an excuse, but I also did have some alcohol and -"

Pan seethed, "You're worse than a twelve year old kid."

Trunks raised his eyebrows and inhaled to rebut her claim.

"You're an eight year old!"

The shock of her words threw Trunks into a laughing fit. He didn't mean to burst out into an uncontrolled uproar, but he did. "HAHAHA!" That shit was hilarious. It was the funniest thing he had heard the whole night. His laughter came in waves of spasms. He couldn't stop.

Pan waited several seconds of Trunks' reaction to snarl, "And your sense of humor sucks."

Trunks still laughed and wiped his eyes, "What? I have a great sense of humor. Hahahaha…"

Pan looked deadpan into his eyes. "You're a hypocrite. And it makes me really mad."

Trunks raised his eyebrows and tightened his cheeks as he quelled the humor inside him. "How am I a hypocrite this time?"

Pan went back to pointing at him, though she did it more as a gesture this time. "You always claim that I'm impulsive, but you're even worse! You projected your idea of fun onto me without thinking about the consequences, and you hurt me. You need to realize that you're the problem here."

"But Pan," Trunks pleaded and squeezed the lap of his dress, "There wasn't actually a problem." He looked up, "I mean, I guess there was one for a minute," he looked to her, "But then you should have seen it - that Hikarroo guy pulled a 'Piccolo' - he just snapped his fingers," Trunks made a snap with his right hand as a sound effect, "and then everyones' outfits poofed right back to being all white again, like it was nothing. He was able to manifest outfits for them. It was really cool."

Pan's eyes went wide. "You think I'm mad about the outfits?"

Trunks felt confused. He was sure that the reason she was upset about the vomiting was because she covered everyone in her bile.

"Well, I mean," Trunks felt unsure of himself suddenly, "that'd be the biggest issue, I guess, other than mopping the floor. Right?"

Pan was back to glaring daggers. "I'm so sick of your inability to have empathy, Trunks."

"Huh?" Trunks was very confused now, and taken aback. "Empathy?" He was not expecting that.

Pan's grimace was contorted in her anger, "You think that the problem was that you left a mess all over our dance floor?!

"Well," Trunks let out a sharp sigh as he found his words, "Yes… that's what would make you embarrassed, right?"

Pan silently raged at him.

Trunks felt a need to continue, to defend himself, "But you should see what happened since then, Pan! The story got out, and now everyone's talking about it like a religious event. They're making even more of these figurines. Goku's out right now gathering a whole collection of them.

Pan broke into a whine, "A whole collection of my most embarrassing moment of all time?!"

Trunks shook his head and waved his hands in a cross-gesture. "Don't think of it that way, Pan! It was legendary."

Pan despaired as she flung up her arms, "You're the worst!"

Trunks broke out into a chuckle. He truly felt she was overreacting, and this whole scenario would blow over, and tomorrow would be just another day again.

Pan's lips tightened and her eyes went cold. "You're not even taking me seriously. And this is serious."

Trunks processed the whole moment through the lens of his humor. His voice was jocular as he addressed her accusations, "Yes I'm taking you seriously. You just need to lighten up a bit. I didn't hurt you, and nobody got hurt in the process."

Pan raised her chin defiantly, "You're a monster."

Trunks raised his hands in resignation as if he were raising a white flag. "Okay, fine, I'm a monster. I admit, you're not the first person to say that."

Trunks brought his hands down to push himself up to stand. As he rose, he smoothed out the gown around him, and brought his right hand to pat his chest. "However, with you, I'm a benevolent monster, and I'm going to be fair with you."

"Right. Fair." Pan looked unimpressed as she spat the words in a sarcastic tone.

Trunks paced to the window to look out at the darkly lit city lights, and then turned his eyes to her, "I know I deserve retribution. Just tell me what I can do to make you feel better. How can I redeem myself in your eyes?"

Pan still sat up straight. "What do you mean?"

Trunks leaned against the wall by the window, facing her fully and crossed his arms across his chest. "How do I make this even? I did you a slight, and now you can get me back."

"It can be anything I want?" Pan's eyebrows rose.

Trunks waved his right hand, "Mostly anything you want. I think retribution is defined by an act of equivalent punishment."

Pan tightened her lips in thought. "Give me a bit to think of it." Her eyes were pointed, "But I'll think of it. You have a number coming to you, Trunks!"

"Alright," Trunks brought his arms back out as a welcoming gesture, "And while you're thinking, can we at least get back to being friendly?" He grinned to her and his eyes sparkled, "I like being on good terms with you."

"Good terms?!" Pan seemed genuinely taken aback. "You've never been friendly to me."

"Well," Trunks strode back over to her, and plopped down by her side again. His grin widened as he looked into her eyes. "Things changed. I've decided I like you."

"You what?" Pan seemed incredulous and angry. "You like me now?"

"So," Trunks continued, disregarding her tone, "I'm going to be on my best behavior."

"Fat chance you're going to be good."

Trunks grinned at her and musically chimed his reply, "I'll do my best."

Pan could see that Trunks was being artificially sweet to her. It was a big plastic moment of a feigned friendship, and Pan could see right through his guise. He was either trying to be funny with her, or he was being super fake. Either way, Pan was not sure anymore if boxing his nose was enough to knock sense into him. He needed a harder punch.

"I'm starting to think that you're never actually going to change," Pan said honestly, with a tinge of resignation in her voice.

Trunks watched her for a moment, still seated cross-legged by her bedside, and rested his elbows on his knees. "I hope you don't really want me to change. I can be better, but I doubt I'll be different. But I know you'll eventually learn to accept me as I am."

"Yeah right," Pan scoffed.

Trunks gestured to his chest with both hands, and smiled knowingly, giving her a wink, "One day you might even appreciate me."

Pan just huffed. "You think you're being funny again."

"Nooo, I think…" Trunks looked up and then back to her, "... up until this point, you've just been seeing the worst of me." Trunks looked down with a shy smile and shrug, "I'm not all bad, Pan. I'm certainly not evil. If anything, you can think of me as…" He looked up again and tilted his head as if in thought, "... misunderstood."

Pan hooted, "Misunderstood!" She suddenly seemed very amused, as if Trunks hammered just the right nail. "Well," she looked to him with a coy grin, "I also feel misunderstood!"

"Right! So we can clear it all up together." Trunks seemed hopeful.

Pan's grin darkened to a true glower as she gestured around the room, "Right, so now that you're paying attention, Trunks, here's your first lesson about me."

"Huh?" Trunks blinked.

"The rest of the world is rejoicing and making toys because what you did was funny and memorable for them, I'm sure. I can get that. But within our circle of trust, you just damaged my trust in you."

Trunks looked down and bit his tongue.

Pan's fists tightened and she brought both of her arms to cross in front of her chest, in defensive body language. "You just hurt me a lot."

Trunks sighed.

"You're supposed to be on my side," Pan's eyes teared, suddenly upset at herself for allowing herself to show her weakness through the wetness in her eyes.

Trunks stopped, his eyes widening as he turned his eyes back up to hers, "But I am on your side."

"I don't feel like you are." Pan swallowed. "I feel betrayed. And I recognize it because of the sick feeling in my gut and my fast heartbeat, and the shaking in my shoulders because I feel repulsed by you."

Trunks' eyes widened more, and he felt a jolt of something in his body - a pulse of shame and a sense of abandonment. His world spun and his head suddenly slammed in on him like a waterfall of bricks that sunk into his gut and weighed his entire body down.

Remorse.

Trunks tried to swallow, but his throat suddenly felt dry and swollen shut. It sounded more like a gulp. His heart was racing, and his pulse made his head throb among the cold stone behind his eyes.

"I'm…" Trunks gulped as he tried to find the right word. The feeling was there, and the word was on the tip of his tongue. He just… had … never… actually… said it out loud… Not like this…

He struggled with the word. He felt it boil in his throat, and all of his energy felt like it was pinched in a bottleneck. He breathed, and stood, straightening his dress, and continued to choke on the word.

"Are you okay?" Pan seemed to realize Trunks' body language was off.

Trunks shook his head wordlessly, looking down. He swallowed again, and backed up. Then he silently turned and walked to the far window to look out at the nighttime city lights. "I'm…" he forced it out, "sorry."

"That sorry isn't gonna cut it," Pan sighed, "I don't even know what you're sorry for."

Trunks sensed a tar pit in his gut.

Trunks looked down, his eyes wildly trying to find the words in his mind as he felt emotional turmoil and held a poker face while trying to figure out which emotion to wear. Trunks realized he needed to speak like he did to Goten and Goku. He needed to figure out a simile or metaphor to which he could compare his thoughts.

He felt like he was on a rollercoaster. He knew things would go back up, but he also knew everything was about to go really far down. He winced, and tried his best to make sense of his feelings.

"I'm sorry … for the hangtime and plunge," Trunks managed.

"The what?" Pan raised her eyebrow.

"The rollercoaster." Trunks choked out, as if she could follow his thoughts.

"Huh?" Pan was clearly confused.

"The moment before the plunge, you know? You're looking down and you see the whole track ahead of you, and you know what's coming, and all you're doing is levitating in wait."

"What are you talking about?" Pan raised an eyebrow.

"The feeling that everything is going to go downhill, and you're just waiting for it, and it's all suspense, like dread. And all we can do is hold on, and maybe if we just don't lean forward, the plunge won't happen. Right? But it still will."

"Is this supposed to be an apology?"

Trunks swallowed. "I'm trying."

Pan's eyebrows frowned. "You suck at it. Have you ever actually apologized before?"

"Listen," Trunks looked down and then back to her, "I understand that you feel that I did not care about your feelings. And for that, you're right..."

Pan just frowned at him.

"... I didn't take your feelings into account, not even for a minute. You're right that I projected my humor and my own energy onto you." Trunks looked to her gravely, "And I did not consider the repercussions of how you would feel about your trust in me."

Pan sighed.

"And now the rollercoaster is going down," Trunks gestured to a falling motion, "And I see it now. You lost trust in me, and I'm going - whoo - down in your eyes." He emphasized his point with his hand dropping low, like an anchor.

Pan frowned at him a moment, and then sighed as a wave of understanding and fatigue washed over her. "I should box your nose for being a moron."

Trunks gave a hopeful grin, the glint returning to his eyes, "Please don't do that." He brought his right hand to his nose, "It would suck to get a nose job here. I wouldn't even know where to get a rhinoplasty done."

Pan hung her face in her hands, "You're so stupid."

Trunks then leaned closer to her as his eyes glinted mischievously and his grin widened into a teasing smile. "And besides… I'd prefer the figurines to have my normal nose."

Pan groaned, "You're trying to be funny again."

Trunks' grin turned lopsided to one side as he raised a brow, "I'm a funny guy when I lighten up."

"Aaaugh, I regret ever saying that to you!" Pan rolled her eyes and then opened her mouth to continue her reply, but then was interrupted by a loud burst as the double-doors to the room swung open with two bangs.

BA-BANG! The doors crashed open and shook the room a bit.

"Oops!" Goku laughed sheepishly as he entered the room, "I keep forgetting my kick strength."

Pan and Trunks both turned to Goku as he strolled in, looking mighty proud of himself.

"Trunks!" Goku's face was pure glee, like a kid after he just bought a bunch of toys and candy. He had a big red statue in his hands, along with a capsule he held in his fingers. "They made the figurines even more lifelike! You gotta see this. It's so funny!"

Trunks looked to what Goku was carrying, and his eyes went wide, momentarily forgetting the tension in the room, "Woah, they make them even bigger now?"

Goku grinned in exclamation, "Yeah! There's a whole huge fountain that the town is working on building right outside the temple. It's so cool."

Trunks gaped, "Woah, I want to see that!"

"No." Pan was adamant and pushed her covers back in the futon. "Tell them to stop."

Goku beamed as his eyes fell on his granddaughter, "Pan, you're awake!"

Pan roughly stood, with balled fists as she kicked around her dress. "Tell them to stop, Grandpa!

"But why?" Goku's eyes were filled with mirth, "Pan you should see it. All the figurines are interactive. They even got your barf coming out true to size."

Pan exclaimed, "What!"

Trunks immediately cringed, and started making desperate swipes and slices against his own throat, trying to exclaim with his body language to Goku to "zip it / kill it" as if he were slicing a blade.

Goku was oblivious.

"I mean look at this stuff!" Goku popped his capsule open, and several figurines of their wedding popped up all over the floor.

Trunks made a choking sound and desperately did the "kill it" motion again toward Goku, even more desperately trying to get in his sight. But the idiotic man-boy remained lost in his own little world, completely unable to read the room.

Goku quickly gathered the figurines, picking them up and placing them on the windowsill by Pan, for the whole group to see. The statues were large and were barely balanced along the windows. They depicted their wedding vows, and different characterizations of the end of their wedding dance. The biggest statue showed Pan's vomit as a spout coming from her, and poured liquid through it like a watering can.

Pan let out a deafening wail. "I'm going to dieee!"

Trunks changed his tactics as he pretended to calmly clear his throat and gestured to the statues with a tentative voice, "Goku, maybe put those away. She's not okay about this right now."

Goku frowned, "But I thought you thought it was funny."

Trunks cringed as he looked to Pan, and then back to Goku. "It is funny. But Pan …" Trunks gestured strongly to her with both hands, trying to emphasize his point, "... doesn't think it's funny."

Goku inquired desperately, "But why?"

Pan wailed in horror as the realization struck her. "Grandpa, you're as bad as Trunks!"

"Huh? Me?" Goku was confused.

Pan spun and pointed straight to Trunks, suddenly enraged again, "Trunks, you corrupted Grandpa!"

Trunks' eyes widened and he brought his hands to his chest, "What? Me?!"

"You were right about your hangtime rollercoaster!" Pan stomped her foot. "Down! POOF! I never want to see you again as long as I live!"

Goku gaped, "Woah, why are you mad?!"

"We are OVER, Trunks!" Pan stomped her foot again to make her point.

"What!?" Trunks felt desperate in shock, "How did this escalate?!"

Pan was done, and stomped her foot two more times. "O-VER!"

Trunks' expression turned from desperate to pained. It was clear that the word stung. "Pan…"

Pan swung her pointed finger to the doors. "Trunks, I want you out of here. I need to talk with Grandpa alone."

Trunks hesitated, looking to the door, then to Goku, then back to Pan.

Goku frowned with hopeful eyebrows, "You sure you're not overreacting, Pan? Trunks hasn't left your side for the past couple hours. Do you really want him gone?"

"No, it's okay." Trunks groaned and brought his hands up to show his resignation. "She needs time to process it." He paused and looked to Pan, "I'm sorry, Pan."

"I don't believe your apologies," Pan spat at him, "Don't talk to me."

Trunks shook his head with a sigh. "I'm going to be right outside if you need me."

Pan was curt. "I won't."

Trunks looked to both of them, "… I'll see you when you're ready to talk." He then turned and walked to the doors.

Pan snorted, "Just go barf in a ditch somewhere."

Trunks snorted in response, holding back a deep laugh as he closed the doors.

After the doors closed, Pan suddenly felt a wave of relief. Just being around Trunks elevated her stress levels beyond her realization. It was like she could finally breathe.

Pan looked to Goku, then back to the doors. "Grandpa, I figured out his retribution."

Goku looked to her blankly. "His what?"

Pan's lips tightened. "Can you kick his ass for me?"

"Huh?" Goku blinked.

Pan gestured with her hands to him and herself, then pointed out to the ceiling, "I need you to defend my honor and kick his butt to the next planet."

Goku seemed confused, "A whole planet over?! But who would fly the ship?!"

Pan shook her head, "I want him to suffer like I did."

Goku seemed confused and shocked, "Are you in pain?"

"No," Pan grunted and moved her right hand to point back at the door, "But he embarrassed me. I can't even look at myself in the mirror anymore!"

Goku frowned, "But what did he do?"

Pan stomped her foot again, "He MEANT for me to throw up! He was being really mean and bullied me!"

Goku frowned more deeply and spoke a little more slowly, as if trying to clarify Pan's intentions, "But that's not what he did. He was a little rough with you, I guess, but I thought you wanted to be one of the guys?"

"Not on my wedding day! And not like that." Pan harrumphed and folded her arms by her chest.

Goku raised his eyebrows and looked up in consideration, "Do you think Trunks knew how you'd feel?"

"Grandpa," Pan sighed, "Trunks is one of the smartest people in the entire universe. He should know better."

Goku shrugged, "But I just don't think he was trying to hurt you. He was acting pretty impulsively. I don't think he really thought it through."

Pan groaned, feeling outnumbered and betrayed by her own grandfather. "Why are you defending him?! Didn't you see what he did?!"

"I did! I was there!" Goku pleaded, "And it wasn't as bad as you think. After the whole dance, the little alien guy snapped his fingers and POOF everyone's outfits were all white again."

Pan stopped, in horror. "What…" She was shocked. "Are you… really just like Trunks right now?!"

Goku didn't seem to understand, so he just continued, "And anyway the story got out about what you did, and everyone is super psyched about it. I mean look at these figurines." He gestured to the ones he placed along the windowsill.

Pan made a small moan, "Oh my great gods this is so embarrassing."

Goku shook his head, "You were legendary! They're all talking about it."

Pan wailed in realization, "You're just like Trunks." She hung her head in her hands, "I can't live with myself anymore."

Goku smiled reassuringly, "Why don't you give Trunks a chance to apologize?"

Pan was livid against her hands. "I don't want to see his stupid face anymore."

Goku looked up in thought, and brought his right hand to his chin, "I could turn off the lights, I guess?"

Pan sighed and turned away from Goku as she raised her hands animatedly, "That's not what I meant. I mean I don't want to see him."

Goku frowned one eyebrow down in thought, "Is there anything that can make it better?"

Pan looked up and brought her hands together in thought for a moment. And after a few breaths, the idea came to her, and Pan felt it was a fair resolution.

She did know what she wanted.

Pan spun to Goku and gave him a confident smirk. "Give him a good punch to the gut." She mimed an uppercut to make her point.

Goku raised his eyebrows. "Well I could punch him… if that'll make you feel better."

"Yes!" Pan perked up excitedly. "Really?!"

"Just one punch?"

"Yeah!" Pan scrunched her nose as he did another uppercut in the air, "Make it feel real good."

"And then you'll be able to look at his face again?" Goku's tone was hopeful.

"Sure," Pan nodded once, with a vengeful smirk playing on her lips. "His expression will be priceless after that."

"Okay!" Goku beamed with such an excellent compromise. "One punch coming up!"

Goku hopped down from his chair and cheerfully made his way to the doors. He stopped to turn and wink at Pan, and then he slipped out into the hall. He left one of the doors ajar, so Pan could hear his footsteps walk shortly down the hall.

The footsteps stopped.

Pan heard Goku stop and say "Sorry, Trunks."

WHAM.

The whack of the punch reverberated in the hall, followed by an echo of "OOF!"

There was a loud sound of Trunks hacking, "Ah- hack-cough-cough-hack " and then a retching sound of vomit.

Pan was elated.

Pan had never felt so avenged before. She felt seen! She was practically seeing stars in her joy that Trunks got his just deserts! It felt like electricity poured through her whole system and raised her hair with pride.

Goku's voice echoed in the hall, "Pan forgives you now."

"Ahh, ahh," the sounds of Trunks being sick continued.

There was a hesitation before Goku's voice followed with, "I guess I'll go get a towel?"

Pan could hear Trunks hack again, and observed how his hacks became laughter. "Hah..haha.. Hahahaha!" Trunks wheezed, "Hahahahaha!" He laughed and coughed more, "Oh she got me back so good!" He laughed and hacked, "Hahahaha- cough -hahaha!"

Pan shouted loudly from the room in her most cocky voice, "Serves you right!"

Trunks' laughter still rang in the hallway. "Hahahahaha- cough-cough. Owwww! Hahahaa -oww- hahaha!"

Pan felt on top of the world, as if she held up a giant championship victory belt.

For a moment, she thought she started to understand Trunks' sense of humor, affirmed by his continual laughter as he recovered outside the doors.

She might get used to speaking his language after all.

–––––––

–––––––

–A: 11/17/23–

–F: 7/23/24–