Chapter 11:

Except that where they teleported to, it was a bit… cold.

Both of them stood atop a mountain of glistening white, watching the snowflakes fall gently to the ground. Before them, they could see trees covered in powder and a frozen lake stretching out for miles. With some effort, they could even make out Jingle Village. It was a very beautiful sight, but—

"Goku, I'm freezing!" Chi-Chi said through chattering teeth. While Goku's alien blood kept him from shivering as much as her, he did have the decency to blush with accidental guilt as he realized he didn't really think of the small human details. Still, he disappeared for a few minutes before returning with a puffy jacket, and a bag of other clothes and belongings.

She immediately donned the jacket and felt better. Goku even remembered to bring gloves and a scarf as he took it out of the bag.

"So what are we doing here?" Chi-Chi asked.

"When we had dinner at Gohan's a while ago, you told me that you wished we had gone on more adventures. And I'm sorry about that Chi, I really didn't know how you felt. So recently I thought, why not start now?"

Chi-Chi felt his words warm her up. "Goku…"

"I know it won't make up for the things I did," he continued, looking back out in the land before him. "But I hope you know I am trying."

She smiled, genuinely believing him. For the second time today, Chi-Chi let her defenses down as she was the one that hugged him this time. It was Goku's turn to cherish her touch, to have his heart soar. He wished it would never end.

But it abruptly did as he was shoved down to the snow. He looked up startled, and was met with a look of absolute wickedness and a mound of snow in her hand. "Snowball fight!" his mate battle-cried as she threw the snowball at his face and ran away. Goku only smirked in return. Fighting was his specialty.

The two of them had one of the best days they had in a long time. After sledding down Northern Mountain and visiting the locals at Jingle Village, the Saiyan took them to yet another location. That time, they walked amongst a whole field of wildflowers consisting of many colors and petal shapes. For lunch, he brought them to King Kai's planet of all places for a picnic (though lunch was unsurprisingly cut short by King Kai's wrath, much to Goku's dismay). Then they spent the rest of the day in Satan City where they walked hand-in-hand through the busy streets, Chi-Chi finding simple enjoyment in window shopping and even buying a new cream-colored dress for herself. She was also definitely impressed with Goku. He didn't seem to be bothered at all with the crowds of frenzied women at the department store (plus she secretly reveled in the fact that he paid no mind to a few women ogling at his physique).

It was late evening and they had just finished dinner at a cozy restaurant. Chi-Chi let out a huge yawn as they walked out the door. "Wow, I can't remember the last time I was this tired! And not from cooking for a ravenous Saiyan," she laughed.

"Me too, today was a lot of fun!"

"Yeah…" the pair continued to stroll down the street, walking off the food and enjoying each other's company. Chi-Chi anticipated to Instant Transmission any minute, and thank goodness; she would probably sleep the second her head hit a pillow. They kept walking until they stopped outside a grand 5-star hotel.

"Chi, I don't want this day to end," Goku said.

"Me neither, but I don't know if my body can handle more fun. I'm an old woman now," she joked.

Goku laughed in return, then his eyes twinkled. "Well, how about we stay here for the night then?"

After all that happened today, she didn't think she could be any more surprised. But here she was, eyes bugged out again. "What!? Are you serious? Goku… you're sweet, but there's no way we could afford—"

"Actually, we got a free room in the presidential suite, whatever that means."

"WHAT!? H-how…"

"Mr. Satan owns this hotel and he said we can have the best room here any time, for free!"

"Wow… That was very nice of him. But what about Goten?"

"He's at Gohan's and you know him, he'll spend a night at his brother's any time." His former wife still looked skeptical, so he took her hand again. "Honey… you deserve a night out for once. And you're already packed. If it's me that you're worried about, it's okay. I can sleep anywhere. I just want you to be happy."

Her heart beat a little faster. Were they ready for this next step? Was she ready?

She looked up at him, seeing the sincerity in his eyes. But underneath the sincerity, she saw something that she herself felt for a long time. Fire.

… To hell with it.

"Goku… Spend the night with me. Please… Don't go away again."

"Chi… I'll always be here, as long as you want me."