The wind was howling outside, and snow whipped furiously through the wind, lashing snowflakes every which way, flinging ice and color. There were no buildings nearby, no structures or life for miles in sight. The only evidence of life lay beneath the storm, beneath the storm. The intricate network of tunnels seemed of another planet, quiet and cool, they were an innocent reminder of the way things had been before the eternal winter. Inside the tunnel, the only evidence of the blizzard outside was the occasionally whisper of wind through the cracks lining the ceiling, dripping with sharp, angled icicles. The blue ice along the walls seemed to glow with some sort of internal illumination, and cast an unearthly hue onto the snow scattered ground that she walked upon. Other than the glowing walls, there was no light in the tunnel at all, except tiny escapes of light from outside, leaking in through the ceiling.

ChiChi wandered through the tunnel uncertainly, admiring the beauty of it. She had no idea which way she was going, or how far she had gone. The network of tunnels was so confusing that she had long since given up on finding a way out. She had been told to keep taking lefts, but she was afraid that when she ran from the cave in, ran away from Yamucha, she might have gotten lost, turned around in the many different chambers of the tunnel. It was so frustrating to know that everyone was here on the planet, and yet she couldn’t find any of them, not one friend. She looked over her shoulder, hoping to see Yamucha’s friendly face appear behind her, but she knew better than that. As much as she wished that it hadn’t of happened, it had, and all because of her. She shouldn’t have ran, should have stayed with Yamucha, helped him in some way, at least tried. But then again, he had done what he did because he knew there was no other right way. She had a family and a life, and Yamucha, as far as he thought, didn’t have anything. A sob caught in her throat, thinking about it, but she pushed it back down again, knowing that she had to be strong for him. If she wanted to honor his sacrifice, she had to be strong, had to make it out and survive. He died so that she could live, and she needed to stay awake, to stay alert and hopeful, so that she could do just that.

But she couldn’t concentrate on surviving, on living, until she found her Gokuu. She just wanted to find him, had wanted to find him since the very beginning. She had never needed him more than this. There had never been a time when she wanted to see his face so bad that she would have gladly given up absolutely any part of her. Nothing else at all mattered at this point except for him and being with him again. She didn’t care about what had happened in the past, how much she had been hurt by him before. The past didn’t matter anymore; she was a different person now. Whatever mistakes Gokuu had made were forgiven. She knew in her heart that Gokuu would never hurt her on purpose. He would gladly move mountains for her, do anything he possibly could to keep her safe and happy. Somehow during his absence however, she had just forgotten that.

She breathed in the cool, almost liquid air and closed her dark eyes. All she knew was that she was tired, both physically and emotionally, and all she wanted to do was be held in Gokuu’s strong arms. She wanted it so bad that the mere thought of it caused her entire body to tremble. She had been through far too much these past few hours, days, years….It seemed as though all of the anger and frustration she had been keeping inside had finally begun to eat her alive, tearing at her heart. She just wanted to fall asleep and wake up in a time where she was happy, warm, content. A place where she felt love.

Will I ever be in his arms again? She asked some unknown entity, raising her eyes to the shaft of light above her. She could feel the patch of light on her face, and could almost imagine that it was Gokuu’s hands there, warming her heart, framing her face like he used to do when they were together. She stopped walking, halted in her footsteps, her boots quietly stepping together on the icy floor of the tunnel. Maybe it was no longer up to her, maybe the entire situation was now out of her hands. She had to rely on a bigger power, something in life that she could always count on and always trust. With her arms wrapped around herself, she let the tears fall unabashedly, and closed her deep black eyes in silent prayer. With all of her heart, she prayed that she would find him, that her pain would finally end, and they would finally be together once more.

The tunnel was beautiful, he had noticed that from the first moment he stepped into it, from the entrance on the other side. He was flying through it backwards, backtracking along the paths, but not really caring to view the scenery. Right now, the beauty of the planet just wasn’t that important to him. He knew she was there, he could feel her heart beating from a mile away. He could actually feel her heart aching, could actually feel her crying for him in silence, praying that he would come to her. What they had ran very, very deep, and it was the most special, most precious thing in his life. They were one together. Without her to be there as a constant force in his life, he was absolutely nothing, he might as well just give up and die. She was what completed him, what made him the hero and the warrior that he was. And he had almost lost her, just that easily --- the most perfect thing in his life, she just floated away from him on a breeze.

With desperation, he flew through the still tunnel, dodging the low hanging icicles and letting the blue glow of the ice guide him through the darkness, letting the feel of her guide his heart. Glowing lights and flashes of crystal passed him by in a delicious whirl of blue and white, and the tunnel seemed to twist upside down and around him like a kaleidoscope. He wanted to call out, to let her know that it was okay, but for some reason, he couldn’t speak. He wanted to use Shunkan Idou and be at her side in a split second, but for some reason, he couldn’t seem to move his hands. They seemed to be locked at his side, tense with anxiety.

Closer now, he slowed down, not wanting to startle her by bursting in at full speed and nearly running into her. He could feel her so close, almost as if she were already there with him. He glided along through the freezing, still air, crystal light reflecting against his cheeks. He wasn’t quite sure what to say or what to do when he found her. The only thing he knew was that he wanted to hold her and cradle her and see her face again.

He really, truly did love her. Everything about her, from the way that she yelled to the way that she smiled. There had been so many that she had made him completely speechless, just by the way her eyes seemed to light up when she saw him or the way she hung laundry on the line with such precision. There had been times when he could actually feel her anger or her frustration, but along with that, he felt everything else too. When ChiChi was happy, his own heart filled with joy. When she started to cry, his ached right along with her, sorrow matching sorrow. And when she loved him, he felt that too, more than she could probably ever imagine.

If he wanted to really describe it, it would be that ChiChi absolutely fascinated him. She always would, he knew. That would never change, but from now on, he was going to show it. If she ever had any doubts about how he felt, she never would again. He would make sure of that.

He would never make her cry again, and if she was crying, it would be because she was happy, not out of sorrow. And if he ever had to leave, if he ever had to go anywhere, then he was taking her with him. He would kiss her every time she wanted him to, and he would hug her even more often. He would tell her that he loved her every single day, sometimes twice just in case she forgot. He would bring her flowers and tell her that she was beautiful, cook for her sometimes if she wanted him to, and he’d even do all the chores if she were tired. If she was scared he’d protect her, if she was lonely, he’d be there in seconds. Things were going to be different from now on, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. It wasn’t him making up for the things that he hadn’t done in the past, for all the mistakes that he had made. It was him knowing, feeling that he needed to make a change, and wanting to make her future (their future) a much happier, much brighter time.

Coming around a corner and into an icy cave-like clearing, he rose his eyes and found her, standing solemnly in the darkness with a small shaft of sunlight gleaming on her beautiful face.

He froze there, hanging precariously in midair, then dropped silently down to his feet.

She hadn’t noticed him yet, she was so immersed in crying, praying with her hands clutched together at her chest. With her dark, glossy hair loose around her shoulders, scattered with the shiny remnants of snowflakes and ice, she looked absolutely lovely. He didn’t know how to explain it, but there was something very different about her, very intriguing and strikingly special. It was as if she were a new person, one stronger, more confident, and more beautiful if that were even possible. And at the same time, the old ChiChi was there too, his familiar, warm and caring wife, whose heart literally beat in perfect rhythm with his own, so connected they were.

Still in prayer, her brows drew together, as if she had just now felt him standing there. Her eyes suddenly moved to meet his own, and her whole body seemed to freeze, dark lashes blinking against rosy cheeks. His heart leapt, then settled into a deep, familiar ache that he had come to recognize as the most sensational, perfect sense of love.

“ChiChi….” He more breathed her name than said it, his voice caught in his throat.

She blinked again as if she wasn’t sure he was really there, and then she rose her hands to her cheeks in a mixture of joy and surprise. “Gokuu!”

There was a blur, and all of the icy colors of blue and green around them seemed to melt away to nothing; the beauty of the tunnel faded away like rain. The cold, still air suddenly seemed to crackle with energy and light and everything was alive and warm and full. All he could see were her eyes, which looked exactly the way they had looked when she was young and full of life. The tired, drained look had disappeared, and was replaced with something so innocent, so pure and yet knowledgeable, that it left him speechless. She stared back at him, her eyes openly full of love, of relief at the sight of him.

There was one hesitant step towards her, another step, and then suddenly she was in his arms, and he was clutching onto her, his arms shaking, yet strong. She felt warm and soft against his body, so small and delicate, and it was so perfect, so amazing, that he nearly cried. His senses were flooded with everything that was her then; the smooth silk of her clothing, the gentle beating of her heart, the sparkling of tears in her eyes. He buried his face in her hair, loving the familiar, floral scent of it, the smell of her. His heart ached again, strongly and beautifully. It was something that he had felt a thousand other times before, but never found the importance of until this moment. He had taken it all for granted, he had never realized how much she was, how much she meant to him. There had been hundreds of kisses, thousands of hugs, millions of smiles and tears, moments of laughter and passion.

And he had missed it all.

“I’m so sorry, ChiChi. I am so, so sorry.” He murmured, holding onto her even tighter.

He was afraid to let go; afraid that she was slip through his fingers like sand and scatter in the wind. There was so much to apologize for that he didn’t even know where to start. He kept picturing her crestfallen face every time he left, every time his missed an anniversary, every time he didn’t understand something she had told him.

She had been so good to him, and he had completely disregarded her feelings and taken her for granted. And when he finally realized that, he missed her more than he had ever missed anything in his life. It was incredible how this one helpless, tiny woman could make his heart soar like crazy.

“Sorry for what?” She asked, looking up at him with an achingly adorable puzzled expression. “I’m just glad you’re here. I think the whole world could fall down around us right now and I’d still be happy.” She wiped away a tear with the palm of her hand, shaking. “You came, that’s all that matters. I don’t even care why. Maybe it was because you were thinking you’d find a good fight or you were thinking that you’d find adventure here….”

“I was thinking of you.” Gokuu informed her simply, and ran his fingers through her silky hair. “Just like I promised before….I was thinking of you the whole time.”

Surprise found it’s way into her deep black eyes and tears of joy sparkled down her smooth, rosy cheeks. “Really?” She whispered, her mouth barely moving as she spoke.

“Of course.” He affirmed. “I love you.”

She paused for a moment, hearing those words, then her face lit up with joy, tears falling harder now. She wrapped her arms hard around his neck, burying her face there as she cried, her arms holding him so tightly, so lovingly. “Oh, Gokuu, I never thought I’d hear you say that again. ”

He had come so close to losing her that it almost made him sick. He couldn’t bear the thought of anyone ever hurting her, or ever making her sad again. He had made mistakes, he had messed up, but now it was different. He had another chance to make it up, to be a husband, to be a father, and he knew that he was going to try with all of his heart. He had hurt both her and Goten, though he hadn’t known it until it was too late, and there was nothing more he could do about it. He had messed up so badly the past few years, thinking that he was doing the right thing, when all he was doing was just hurting his family even more. Protecting them was a wonderful thing to do, but if he wasn’t even there, then he might as well not be protecting them at all. He was hurting them more than any enemy ever could by leaving them like that. It hurt to think that he could never get those precious years back, but there were many more years left for them to live. And he knew that each and every one of them would be lived for her. He took her hands in his and brushed his lips against hers softly. “From now on, you’ll hear it every single day.”

Chapter 71
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