Welcome to DBZ Love Garden

Trunks blinked, still hanging in the air. He pulled his hand away from his mouth and stared down at the bright red liquid drip from his fingertips. As the crowds of people several storeys below him roared, he carefully thumbed through the events of the past few minutes.

As he was flying toward Gohan’s school, he saw a guy fall from the top floor of a building. Acting on instinct, he snatched the man out of the air, thus saving his life. Only, that man turned out to be Gohan in some strange getup. Trunks suddenly saw stars as pain exploded from his mouth. As he recovered, Gohan’s weight lifted from his arms. When he opened his eyes again, the other half-Saiyan was nowhere to be found, ki hidden.

It took a second for Trunks to realize that he was just sucker punched.

“Hey!” he heard a shout from above. Looking up, Trunks gasped and held his arms out to catch yet another jumper, but the girl laughed nervously and waved her hands defensively. “It’s okay, I know how to fly.”

Trunks let his arms drop, only to lift his hand to his lip again. Still bleeding – ow! Yep, definitely hurts. Goddamn. Blue eyes watched the girl curiously as she spoke to the watch on her wrist.

“I’ll talk to him, Chief.”

“Thanks for your help today, Videl! If you see Saiyaman, give him our thanks, too!”

The girl – Videl – smiled at Trunks as she clicked a button on her watch.

“The officers on the ground down there told me you rescued Saiyaman.” It came out with an amused giggle. Trunks raised a lavender eyebrow.

“Saiyaman?”

“Yeah. Come on, I think we should talk.”

Trunks thought it over before following the girl through the air. Honing in on her ki, he found she was powerful for a human. She could give even Krillin a hard time if she really wanted to, but she was nowhere on the same level as Trunks or the other Saiyans.

“So, did you know that boy?” she asked as they flew high above the city.

“Yeah. He and I were friends when we were…” Uh… Well, they were friends when he was a kid, until he died, then he came to this universe and they were friends again when Gohan was a kid, now… “We’ve been friends for a long time.”

She gave him a suspicious look, as if testing him.

“What’s his name, then?”

Trunks hesitated, once again thinking it over. If Gohan was going by another name and wearing that weird uniform, he probably didn’t want people knowing his name, right?

“I don’t think he’d want me to tell you, but I know his name.” He returned her suspicious look, “Do you know his name?”

She giggled and dropped her suspicious expression, “Yes. He’s the one who taught me how to fly, actually. Listen, I know you’re no ordinary human.” She eyed him up and down as they soared leisurely through the midday air, “Tell me… Are you a Saiyan? You look like Bulma’s son.”

He smirked. So this girl knew about Saiyans! In that case, “His name is Gohan. I met him when he was 7 years old, but I’ve been gone a while. I didn’t recognize him in that weird outfit.”

She smiled back, “That answered one of my questions. I think you shocked him – he’s not used to being the one being rescued. I knew you were tough, because not just anyone can withstand a punch from him. How’s your lip, by the way?”

“It’s fine. If a split lip were all it took to take me down, I’d have died a long time ago,” he said with a little grin, remembering the surprised expression on the boy’s face. But, why had he hit him in the first place?

They stopped above a building – Orange Star High School. They descended and landed on the roof, where Videl turned to Trunks and held out her hand.

“My name is Videl.”

“Trunks,” he responded, taking her small hand into his, then released it. She turned her head curiously.

“You look like Bulma’s son, you have the same name, you’re obviously very strong… Where are you from?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

“Try me. Gohan’s told me about how he defeated Cell, about aliens from outer space, visiting alien planets, growing a tail, turning into a giant monkey, gigantic dragons that grant wishes… I’ve even seen what the otherworld is like, firsthand, before being wished back to life. Do your best to surprise me.”

Trunks drew his lips into a fine line. So Gohan told this girl about lots of things – but he wasn’t one of them?

“I’m Bulma’s son – the same kid you apparently know. I traveled here in a time machine from 17 years in the future. I first came back when Gohan was 7 years old to change history, because the world was about to be destroyed by two cyborg murderers named 17 and 18. Cell – that bio-cockroach monster – he was from my future, too. It’s my fault Cell attacked this world at all.”

Videl stared at him, periwinkle eyes wide, mouth open slightly. Trunks waited patiently for her to process it all.

“…So, what do I win?” he asked as she closed her mouth, finally blinking. She sighed and smiled a wry smile, shaking her head.

“Oh, there’s still a lot I don’t know about that boy…” She then crossed her arms and eyed the lavender-haired man, “Gohan doesn’t usually react the way he did to you. I’ve never known him to hurt someone he likes, much less run away from them…” She trailed off and straightened her body, glaring at him with intensity, as if trying to read his mind. Trunks was suddenly very aware of the pain still pulsing from his hurt lip.

“…You wouldn’t happen to have bad blood between you two, would you?”

Gohan groaned and fell back onto the Nimbus cloud as it carried him to Mount Paozu. After the bank incident, he spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around in the park in Satan City in his school clothes, keeping his ki masked and a tab on Trunks’s location. The time traveler stuck around his school the entire time, as if waiting for Gohan to turn up, until school let out. When Gohan never showed, Trunks lowered his ki, and that was the last Gohan knew of his whereabouts.

Gohan couldn’t turn up. He couldn’t face him. What would he say?

Thanks for catching me!

Sorry for punching you in the face!

I’m so happy to see you again!

What are you doing here?

Is there trouble in your world?

I’ve been thinking of you a lot.

I can’t get you out of my head.

I’ve missed you.

Why did you leave me…?

Groaning again, he rolled onto his side and drew his legs up to his chest. He knew that wouldn’t be the last of the time traveler. He’d have to think up some reason – some excuse not to see him. He had to avoid Trunks at all costs. Knowing him, Trunks would just decide to disappear back to his own universe one day.

The teenager’s throat tightened at the thought, but he swallowed it down and shook his head.

No more of that.

Nimbus slowed as it neared the Son home. He smiled, looking down at it as the deep red sun cast long shadows from the other side of the mountain. It was late in the day – surely his mother would be wondering where he’s been. He couldn’t possibly tell her he skipped half a day of school, so as he hopped off the cloud, he started thinking up excuses.

Deciding on one that involved Videl, Gohan pushed the front door open. His mother wouldn’t complain if he told her he was spending quality time with the girl – Chichi loved it when he and Videl spent time together.

All trains of thought stopped as he entered his home. Sitting on the living room floor with his little brother was Trunks. Not the kid – the time traveler. The very same Trunks that Gohan had literally just resolved to never see again.

With a little smirk, Trunks leaned back on his palms and watched Gohan squirm.

“Hey, Gohan!” he greeted cheerfully. Sitting on the couch behind the time traveler, Videl smiled at him as well and gestured to a very familiar yellow backpack. His backpack. The one he completely forgot about at school.

“Forget something?” she asked, but her smile faded and her eyes widened. She gave her boyfriend an apologetic look.

Gohan suddenly felt a very dark presence behind him. He feared turning around. Shoulders stiff and his head down, he knew what was about to happen.

“Gohan…” a dangerous female voice said. Gohan flinched. “In the kitchen. Now.”

Trunks grimaced, able to hear Chichi ream her son with perfect clarity from his place in the living room. He couldn’t help but feel guilty – after all, it was his fault that Gohan skipped class. The boy was clearly avoiding him.

…Not that Trunks could blame him.

He smiled without humor.

“…You aren’t a little boy anymore, Gohan! You should know how to be responsible! How can I trust you to go to class and stay there?! What do you think I’m paying all that tuition for?! For you to skip class or goof around?! I don’t think so! Am I going to have to follow you to school every day and pick you up afterwards? I have work to do, so I can’t waste time doting on my immature son who should know better at his age! Hey, are you even listening?!”

“Trunks!” a little voice called his attention back. Goten was smiling at him, “Daddy and my friend Trunks told me you’re really good at fighting! Did Vegeta teach you?” Behind him, Videl leaned forward to see his face.

“Ah – no, my father died when I was a baby, so I didn’t know him until I came to this world. It was Gohan who trained me to fight.”

“Gohan trained you to fight?” Videl exclaimed. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the boy in question perk up, only to be scolded by his mother once again for not listening.

“Yes. Gohan taught me everything – he practically raised me, him and my mom. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t know how to read or write. Or, well, I wouldn’t know how to do a lot of things, if it weren’t for him…” he let his eyes slide over to the chided teenager, who was staring hard at the kitchen table.

Videl giggled softly, glancing at Goten. “Sounds like you have a lot of respect for him. The Trunks in our world respects Gohan, too. That kid doesn’t listen to anyone except him, Vegeta, and Bulma.” She then cradled her chin in her hands, tilting her head. “If you and Gohan are so close, how come he didn’t come with you? It’d be interesting to see a Gohan from another world.”

Trunks again drew his lips into a line, “He died when I was 14. The androids killed him.”

The room was silent, except for Chichi’s berating. She didn’t seem to notice as she went on about how she worked tirelessly homeschooling her son only for him to try and throw it all away by skipping class and getting home late.

“…I’m so sorry,” Videl said softly, eyes downcast. To her surprise, she heard an amused snort come from the time traveler.

“No need to apologize. Gohan was my teacher; my best friend – he was an amazing person, and I appreciate everything he gave me and taught me. But he’s better off dead than in our miserable world. Everyone he loved was dead, so he’s up there screwing around with Krillin and his father. I actually got to see him again the time I died, when Cell killed me. He was happy.”

Videl was about to say something else when Gohan stalked through the living room, grabbing his backpack off the couch. Without saying anything, he disappeared into his bedroom. Chichi came out of the kitchen and heaved a tired sigh, giving the others an apologetic look.

“I’m sorry you had to hear all of that. I wish I could say it wouldn’t happen again, but knowing how airheaded he can be sometimes, it’s bound to.” She smiled then, looking over at her two guests, “You two are welcome to stay for dinner if you’d like! Goku might even come home tonight – he’s been at King Kai’s for the last week. I know he’d be thrilled to see you again, Trunks dear.”

Nodding, Trunks thanked her. He would be a fool to turn down a dinner made by Chichi.

Gohan didn’t come out of his room. After an hour and a half of playing with the youngest Son, Chichi called them all to eat.

“Gohan!” she shouted down the hall, but there was no response. Extending his senses, he could tell the teen hadn’t left. “Gohan, you come out here right now and eat with the rest of us!”

To no avail, Chichi returned to the kitchen with a sigh. “I’m sorry he’s acting this way. He’d rather sit in his room and pout than to be the adult he claims to be.”

Trunks shifted in his seat, poking at his food. Beside him, Goten was shoveling food into his mouth at a typical Saiyan rate and Videl was sitting across from him, frowning at her own plate. She had a concentrated look on her face. As they played with Goten earlier, Trunks decided he liked Videl. After all, a friend of Gohan’s was a friend of his. If Gohan liked her, she had to be a good person, right?

“It’s my fault,” Trunks admitted, catching Chichi by surprise. “I embarrassed him earlier, so he’s probably mad at me.”

“Oh Trunks, it’s not your fault. Gohan has always been kind of difficult. Even as a little boy, he was always running around doing whatever he wanted, whether or not I was okay with it. He’d yell at me and disappear from the house, then come back days later without telling me where he’d been. He’s calmed down a lot since Goku died, but he still has his moments.” She smiled over at her youngest son, who hadn’t even paused to breathe, “Good thing Goten’s so easygoing. I don’t know if I’d be able to handle two of them.”

Trunks frowned again, looking up at the closed door to Gohan’s bedroom. Honing in on his ki, Trunks felt the sour droop that occurred whenever something was bothering him.

“Not that I’m not happy to see you, Trunks, but what are you doing here?” Chichi asked, drawing his attention again. “Have you been by to see your mother at all?”

“Yes, I arrived this morning and met with her,” he said with a little smile. “She was excited to see me, as you’d expect. I saw my father and Trunks, too. It was a little strange to see him – after all, the last time I saw that kid, he was just a baby.” Chichi smiled and looked over at Videl, who was listening to the time traveler with intent.

“As for what I’m going here… Actually, I needed to talk to Gohan. See, I was hoping he would be willing to tutor me in a few subjects. Since I killed the androids, my world has been slowly rebuilding. I wanted to bring Capsule Corporation back, but I don’t have enough education in mathematics, sciences, or engineering for that to be more than a dream. Gohan was always innovative and he was talented in those subjects, so my mother suggested he tutor me.”

“Well, that’s noble of you to want to bring Capsule Corp. back in your world, Trunks, but Gohan is busy with his studies. He’s lucky I let him spend as much time with Videl as I do,” she smiled at the girl, who dropped her eyes and blushed. Trunks raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, Trunks, but I simply can’t allow Gohan to spend any more time away from his school work than necessary. What about your mother in your world? Couldn’t she tutor you?”

Trunks sat back in his seat, meeting Chichi’s eyes, “My mother has died. It’s only me.”

Her dark eyes softened and she placed a small, pale hand over her heart. “Oh, sweetie, I’m sorry to hear that. What happened? Is it something our Bulma needs to be concerned with?”

With a small shake of his head, Trunks gave a sad smile. His eyes drifted back down to his plate, noticing that Goten finally stopped eating long enough to listen. “It was asbestos exposure that occurred while I was fighting the androids and Cell. It wore down on her lungs over time. Because the world was still so underdeveloped when she was exposed, we couldn’t get her treatment before it was too late.”

“Miss Bulma’s not gonna die from isbestis is she?!” Goten exclaimed in a slight panic. He didn’t understand exactly what the older version of his best friend had said – other than the fact that Bulma had died. He didn’t want Miss Bulma to die! The woman was practically a second mother to him! Trunks chuckled at the boy.

“No, she’ll be alright. Capsule Corporation in this world was renovated a few years ago, according to my mother here. They don’t use asbestos in their construction or engineering anymore, so she’s safe. Though… her smoking probably isn’t helping her…”

Videl ate in silence as she listened to the others talk. This guy is a bundle of laughs, she said to herself, eyeing him while he wasn’t looking. He was definitely Trunks appearance-wise, there was no doubt about it. Their personalities, however, were what threw Videl off.

She knew Trunks, the kid. He was a spoiled, impudent brat who refused to listen to anyone except a handful of people. The two of them argued fairly often. When she and the boys were looking for the dragon balls together, before that Broly guy attacked them, the kid was practically unbearable. Though he was extremely strong, Trunks was a bit of a drama queen.

This person, on the other hand, was polite to the max. He sat with excellent posture, speaking gently and concisely, making eye contact, and swallowing his food before opening his mouth. The two of them couldn’t be more different.

What could have possibly happened that made Gohan react as dramatically as he had? As long as she’d known her boyfriend, he never treated anyone like that. Trunks seemed like a perfect gentleman –possessing many of the qualities Gohan boasted, himself. The gentle voice, the good posture, the good manners… Why would Gohan act this way?

“…About the tutoring, Chichi,” Trunks began, earning a stern frown for bringing it up again despite the fact Chichi had refused permission.

“I like you, Trunks, I really do, but I simply can’t allow Gohan to spend so much time teaching you to – …”

“Mother offered to pay him for his time,” Trunks continued, cutting her off gently. It was effective enough, as she stared at the boy with wide eyes. He let his eyes drift over to her again, “She said she’d even pay his tuition until he graduated, on top of regular pay, if he tutored me… College tuition as well, if he agreed to continue tutoring m – …”

“GOHAN! GET OUT HERE RIGHT NOW!”

Trunks, Videl, and Goten all jumped in their seats at the woman’s outburst. She stood from her seat, knocking it back with a clatter.

In his bedroom, Gohan cringed at the sound of his mother’s voice. She sounded shrill and urgent, but Gohan still took his time.

He knew he was being a brat. He knew he was being a brat in front of Videl, which he regretted. But he was unexpectedly ‘rescued’ by him, caught entirely off guard, and then thoroughly chewed out in front of him and his girlfriend by his mommy. Mortified, he couldn’t even make eye contact with his sweet little girlfriend before slinking off to his bedroom.

He sat up in bed and rubbed his eyes, grimacing as his contacts scraped. They were old and his last pair, and he didn’t have the money right now to get more. He’d have to switch back to his glasses soon. That meant he wouldn’t be able to change into his Saiyaman costume without being recognized – you can’t wear eyeglasses beneath sunglasses, after all. Saiyaman was the only reason he even wore his contacts in the first place.

…Not that that was a problem. Since he knocked Gohan’s sunglasses off his face earlier, Gohan wouldn’t be able to change into Saiyaman even if he wanted to. No sunglasses, no hidden identity. He didn’t have the money to buy more sunglasses, either. Videl would be able to handle bad guys herself until he could find the money to order new contacts, just as she was able to handle them for the years before they met.

He shook his head before looking himself over in the mirror. He looked pretty bad. Red face, messy hair, seemingly permanent scowl… It was his fault.

What makes that jerk think he can just waltz back into Gohan’s life?!

Whatever.

He can stay, but no one can force Gohan to spend time with him.

Gohan gave his face one last frustrated rub before finally exiting his room.

“GOHAN! I SAID COME HERE!”

“I’m here,” he replied as he shut his bedroom door behind him and sulked through the hallway. His face darkened when he met Videl’s eyes – surely she thought he was being a baby about all this. But she didn’t understand, and it wasn’t exactly something he could tell her. “I’m not hungry.” He avoided Trunks’s gaze at all costs, but he could still feel those blue eyes burning into him.

“Eat or starve, you’re a big boy and you can decide for yourself,” his mother said with a huff, crossing her arms. “But starting tomorrow, you’re going to be taking some time out of your day every day to tutor Trunks!” She gestured to the man in question as she spoke, looking at her son as if daring him to complain.

Gohan’s eye twitched.

“No discussion. After school tomorrow, you’ll go to Capsule Corporation. Bulma will tell you where you need to start.”

Taking a deep breath, Gohan swallowed down a defiant growl. They would definitely be having a ‘discussion’ about it later, and they both knew it. But neither were willing to get into a shouting match in front of their guests, on top of the ass-chewing Gohan got earlier.

Videl stood to leave soon after dinner, sensing the tense atmosphere between mother and son. Goten was blissfully unaware as he ran out of the house, aiming to explore one last time before bedtime. Trunks stood to leave, as well, and as he was thanking Chichi for the meal, he watched from the corner of his eye as Gohan led Videl to the front door.

“Thank you for asking Gohan to tutor you,” Chichi said happily. Trunks nodded, in the back of his mind knowing that he and the boy had never actually spoken. “This will be a great opportunity for him to revisit the basics! And the money is nice, too.”

Gohan suddenly leaned down and caught Videl’s lips in a soft, romantic kiss. Trunks froze entirely, hardly hearing the blissful noise Chichi made upon witnessing such a cute moment between her son and a young, sweet girl like Videl.

He felt ice fill his belly as the girl blushed and pushed Gohan away, whining his name softly and cutely with a little grin on her face.

“They’re just perfect for each other, aren’t they, Trunks?” Chichi asked, giggling as if she’d won a prize. Trunks couldn’t bring himself to answer, as he was pretty sure he lost all cognition.

“See you tomorrow,” Gohan said to her tenderly, stroking the curve of her slender waist before lifting his hand. She nodded and smiled, face a sweet pink, before waving to Chichi and Trunks on her way out.

When she lifted off toward Satan City, Gohan turned back to the house, his eyes finally landing on the time traveler. For the first time since Trunks ‘rescued’ him earlier that day, Gohan made eye contact with him, icy as it was. Then, slowly, he walked by them, ignoring his mother babble on about how perfect he and Videl were together.

“Bye, Trunks,” he dismissed in a low, dark voice, before brushing by him. Trunks stood there, staring ahead, letting Gohan’s words settle heavily on his chest. His lip trembled slightly before he swallowed, his dry throat scraping painfully with the reflex.

With a sharp turn on his heel, he grabbed Gohan’s wrist tightly in his hand. Chichi stopped her rambling, watching the sudden movement with curiosity. Gohan’s eyes were wide, his back still to the other hybrid, but he could somehow see that face so clearly in his mind. Trunks was frozen again, as if he hadn’t meant to reach out and grab the boy, but he recovered quickly enough.

“See you tomorrow, Gohan!” he said with confidence, giving the pale boy’s wrist a tight squeeze. Without further conversation, Trunks waved to the boy’s mother and left through the open door, blasting off into the night air.