He watched her for a long while, silent and dark in the doorway. She had her back to him and she was busy with some sort of experiment, her turquoise hair pinned into a twist. Bending over the counter, she took notes with her legs crossed, tapping her sneaker behind her gently, absentmindedly. She was dressed casually in cutoff shorts that made her legs look long and soft and a blue tank top that stretched across her plump breasts. It was hot in her workshop and he could see that her peachy skin was taking on a dewy sheen to it. Every now and then she would lift a hand to wipe her brow or brush a stray strand of hair away from her face.

He wanted her.

He had wanted her for a long time now, though he didn’t know how it had started. Nothing visible had changed between them. They didn’t say anything different to each other, or act any different around each other. Every once and awhile though, she would look at him strangely, and though he was not familiar with human emotions, he could only assume that it was admiration. However, it was a different kind of admiration than what he was used to. He was used to being admired for his strength, for his nobility, and for his sheer power. She however, admired his personality, his dark sense of humor, and most of all, it seemed as though she admired him physically. There was no mistaking the look in her deep blue eyes when she saw him come out from practicing, his shirt off, his muscles tight, sweat shining on his skin. She wanted him too.

Vejiita wasn’t sure where it was going to lead or how it was going to end up, but that didn’t matter to him right now. There was a strange feeling when he thought of that, a strange feeling when his eyes met hers unexpectedly, but he couldn’t explain it --- didn’t know what it was. It was as though she were touching him all over, inside and out with just a glance, as though his heart was connected to hers. He didn’t want to think about it though. He didn’t want to complicate things further. All he knew was that he wanted to touch that soft turquoise hair and run his hands along her smooth skin. And if something else should happen along the way, he wouldn’t be too upset about it.

She turned away from her work suddenly, and caught sight of him lurking in the doorway. She was startled for a moment, and her blue eyes widened in surprise. Then he could practically see her mind working as she stared at him. She leaned back against the counter, her head titled to the side so that a single strand of turquoise hair fell into her eyes.

“Looking for something?” She asked him. It was a different voice than what he was used to. Deeper, softer, more inviting.

“Maybe.” He didn’t quite know what to say.

She smiled a light, seductive smile that made her lips seem softer and darker. “Maybe you were looking for me?”

“Maybe.”

Bulma sat up straight and put a hand on the back of her head to extract the pins that held her hair in place. She shook it loose to her shoulders then began walking towards him, her hips swaying. Her eyes never left his once.

The smell of her perfume hit him first, powerful and intoxicating, then she stood before him, her beautiful face merely inches away from his. He could see deep, deep into her eyes; could see longing in those different shades of blue. A thought occurred to him that perhaps his own eyes were showing that same longing, but he dismissed the thought as quickly as it came and continued looking at her. Her smooth cheeks were blushed pink from the heat, and her dark lips were parted slightly; he could smell the vanilla lip gloss that she wearing.

Gently, smoothly, he placed a hand on her waist, pulling her closer to him. She reached around him for the doorknob and pulled the door shut behind them, locking it.

Alone and silent, Vejiita sat on a mountaintop with his knees drawn up and his arms resting casually on top of them. He was high up in elevation, and although it was nearly summer now, it was still cold on his perch. The cold had not begun to seep into his skin though. He wouldn’t let it. Snow was falling softly and harmlessly around him, white specs landing on his clothing and in his dark hair. With the wind and the snow and the cold, it reminded him of another time, another world that was far away from them now. Or was it? He could still see the snowy planet every time he closed his eyes, and every time he took in a breath it felt as though he was taking in the bitterly cold air of Sukuashi.

And he felt her death, over and over again.

It was something that he felt he might never ease his mind of. The simple, sheer horror of seeing it had been enough to change him forever. He had gotten his revenge; he had killed Pi, the Saiya-jin that had taken his mate’s life. He hadn’t just killed her, he had destroyed her, with so much fury and pain in his heart that he could barely see. Afterwards, he remembered wanting to cry, wanting to just throw his himself down into the snow and shed tears unabashedly. He wanted to bury himself there, next to the bodies, next to the blood, and just die. But he couldn’t --- he had too much pride to let the others know how deeply it all had affected him.

Bulma had been everything to him. Not only his mate and life companion, the mother of his offspring, but she had been his one connection to this planet. Though he pretended to have other reasons, she had been the one and only reason why he had stayed here on Earth. It was true that he was comfortable here, but she had been the only reason for that. She had been the one that made him feel like he was not alone here.

And now that she was gone, he had never felt lonelier.

He had their children of course, but he certainly wasn’t ready to face that yet. If he thought about it, he had never been ready to face them. Bulma was always the parent that comforted them, that took care of them when they were sick or upset. When they fought, when they had bad dreams, when they were hungry or needed help with school, Bulma was always the one that they went to. She had been the one that had raised them into what they were. He really had no part in raising them. Although there were many things that he wanted to tell his children, he could never bring himself to do it. All the while watching Trunks grow up, he wanted to give his son encouragement, wanted to tell him how important it was to never let anyone steal your pride or your honor. He wanted Trunks to feel more powerful than anything, to know how special he was. Most of all though, he wanted him to never have to go through any of the things that he had gone through.

These were all things that he would always keep to himself; it would shake his pride to let someone know that he was ashamed of himself. He was ashamed of the death, of the killing, of the way that he treated people. He had begun his cycle of destruction early, because that was the way that he had been raised by his own father. He had been taught to kill, to destroy, to seek only power. But really, his life had been empty that way. He had never been happy with himself, never comfortable or content with life. A warrior has the loneliest of hearts, being far away from anyone and anything. Fulfillment and true self recognition only came to him when he realized that someone loved him.

It was Bulma’s love that changed him, that made him what he was inside and out. It was her simple touch that had guided him through the difficult first years on Earth. It was her deep blue eyes that saw him through all of the fights and death, and all of the good times as well.

He wanted Trunks to know, wanted him see what life was really like before it was too late for him to turn around --- before his destiny began to follow the line that his own did. He wanted Trunks to find his true self, and to know that he didn’t have to cause destruction and kill others to find it.

And he wanted him to know how proud of him he was. How his heart swelled when he saw him turn Super Saiya-jin for the first time, knowing that one day his little boy would reach levels of power that he himself could only dream about. Trunks had everything; the best of him and the best of Bulma. There was no end to his potential. But he had never told him all of this, had never even hinted that the boy meant anything to him.

Because although he was proud of Trunks, he knew that he himself was weak. He was too weak to show emotion, too weak to show true feelings like sadness and humility. Too weak to be able to take care of a son and daughter that meant so much to him. It would always be like this; it was too late now to change who he was. If he hadn’t have been raised to be what he was: a cold and ruthless Saiya-jin, he may have been able to change the course of events in life. But the time to change had already passed, and he was what he was. His heart had already been hardened and the walls that were thrown up around it were made of solid steel.

Only one person had ever managed to break through that impenetrable barrier, reaching in with soft hands and gentle intentions. She had been the only one to be able to make him feel, to make him see the world with open eyes. And slowly, little by little, she had touched his heart until he caved in and began to care for her. He had opened up hesitantly, frightened by the power that this beautiful woman had over him. And then like a dream, he fell for her. She became his hope, his life, his everything.

And now she was gone.

The night was warm and quiet, and Pan had been put to bed over an hour ago. The house had already been picked up and all the dishes had already been done, so they had the rest of the night to themselves, something that both of them enjoyed. They called it their own “quiet time”: the time when they could just sit with each other and relax. This time Videl had taken in some strawberries from her garden and placed them in a bowl on the coffee table. They were close together on one side of the couch; Videl’s legs were crossed over Gohan’s lap as she lay back against one of the plush pillows with a book. He was reading the newspaper, something that he did every night during this time. Music was playing softly in the background, a classical piece that was one of his wife’s favorites. He stared at her for a moment while he dipped his hand down to pick up a strawberry.

Her feet were bare and tapping each other gently to the rhythm of the music. She was wearing shorts and a tee shirt, a simple outfit, but something that he thought looked beautiful on her. Her short hair had been pulled back earlier, but because her hair was so silky, most of it had escaped, falling down around her ears. She was holding her book with one hand and munching slowly on a strawberry with the other. She was completely unaware of his staring.

He put the paper down, thinking about how much he loved her. What had started out as just a simple crush in high school had developed into so much more. It made his heart flutter just to think about the simple happiness of it all. He could think of nothing more pleasing than sitting on a couch with his barefoot wife and a bowl of fresh strawberries. He felt like Pan, growing up and seeing everything for the first time, thinking that everything and everyone was amazing and new.

Pan had been growing up so fast lately that he didn’t even want to blink for fear of missing something. Every day she learned something new, became more and more her own person. As a father, he was a little concerned, knowing that everything he did and said could potentially affect her life forever. She was at such a delicate age now, the age where you learned things, good and bad, and kept them in your memory forever. He didn’t want any of her experiences to negative. He himself had grown up in turmoil. Before he was barely old enough to realize what was happening, he was being kicked around by an eight foot, green alien dead set on training him to be a warrior. He didn’t mind Piccolo now, of course, but the thought of Pan going through the same thing was enough to make him sick. He almost didn’t want her to be a fighter at all, but he could already see in her eyes that she had the dream of fighting. She already looked up to Gokuu as though he were a god.

Videl looked up from her book at him, a look of contentment on her pretty face. “These strawberries are amazing!” She exclaimed, finishing the last of it off. “I picked them at just the right time.”

Gohan smiled at her. “They taste just like the strawberries from Okaasan’s garden. She used to have a whole patch growing, but every year Tousan and I would eat them all before she could ever pick them. She’d come outside and find us sitting there with our faces and fingers dyed red and her whole patch destroyed. We even ate the little green ones.”

She smiled smugly. “That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you what I had growing in the garden. I know your appetite all too well. All of you Saiya-jins can’t ever seem to get enough food in your mouths. I’m terrified that Pan is going to turn into a vacuum cleaner as well.”

“Haven’t you noticed?” He said with a smile. “She’s been eating more and more every day. I think she might be trying to be just like Grandpa Gokuu.”

“I know.” Videl smiled back softly. “She’s very fond of her grandfather.”

“What do you think about letting him train her?” He asked tentatively. Videl had been so protective of Pan lately that he was sure she would yell at him for merely suggesting something like that. But instead, she looked at him with eyes that were not angry, but instead thoughtful.

“I think it might be a good idea.” She admitted. “Though, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with her rushing off to save the world just yet. She will be a very powerful little girl though, and I would never want to deny her the chance to realize her potential. Besides, in these times, a girl needs to be able to defend herself properly.”

“Defend herself against what?” Gohan asked incredulously. Pan’s personal safety had never been an issue. “I’d protect her from anything.”

She gave him a secretive smile. “Can you protect her from boys? She’s going to start dating someday, you know.”

“She’s much too young for that, Videl.” He said, frustrated. The mere word ‘dating’ sent him into flurries of anger. He imagined that Pan would grow into a very beautiful girl, which worried him because he knew that she would probably have a whole slew of admirers. He didn’t care was the circumstances were, he just plain did not want her to be dating. There was no way his innocent little girl was going to go out with some rude, disrespectful punk. In fact, if any boy came to the door to pick up his daughter for a date, he would most likely slam the door right in his face.

“It’s already starting.” She told him playfully. “Do you know what she said to me the other day after we ran into Trunks at the shopping center?”

Gohan blanched. “What did she say?”

Videl grinned. “She told me that he was “very, very handsome; just like a prince.”

He gritted his teeth. The thought of arrogant, insolent, trouble-making Trunks taking his daughter out was enough to make him want to grab a gun and kill a certain half Saiya-jin before anything even happened. “That’s it. You’re not allowed to take Pan shopping with you anymore. He’s over a decade older than her!”

Videl put out a hand, laughing. “Calm down, sweetheart. It’s just a little crush. By the time she’s ten, she’ll probably think Trunks is nothing but an old man.”

“….She better.” Gohan mumbled, still angry.

“I’d want Pan to marry a nice, innocent boy. Someone just like you.” She said, and tapped his nose gently. “Someone who is sweet and kind, yet strong enough to protect her.”

Gohan buried his head in his hands. “I don’t want her to get married at all! Can we please stop talking about this?”

“Fine, fine….” She mumbled, then crawled up into his lap and popped a strawberry into his mouth.

He put his strong hands around her waist and although he was still stressing about Pan’s future romantic endeavors, he found it hard not to smile. His wife was so beautiful, with strawberry stained lips and her silky hair falling all around him. He kissed her softly, the taste of her mingling lightly with the strawberry in his mouth. Now that he thought about it, he wasn’t so sure he wanted to keep Pan in a convent after all. Love was a wonderful thing. If Pan could one day far, far, far in the future find someone to fall in love with, then that was okay with him. If they had even half of what he felt when he was around Videl, it would be enough.

Chapter 7
Previous chapter

 My guestbook -- Sign it!