Welcome to DBZ Saiyan Garden

“Yowch!” Trunks screamed as he dropped the flaming pan onto the neon green tile of the floor. He was wearing a white apron over his gray pants and dark blue turtleneck. His long, waist length hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail at the base of his neck. He looked at his bright red hand and blew gently on the scorched palm.

*Who picked out the tile for this floor?* The thought came suddenly to his mind and he began wondering if he’d been smoking something and forgot about it.

“What the hell is going on in here?!” a deep voice called from the doorway. “Um, your cookies caught on fire.” Trunks said tensely. As his father came into the room he found himself squished up against the wall, a very uncomfortable position.

*Why do we have such a small apartment?* he thought. *Oh, wait, because Dad won’t get a freaking job!* “Do you do anything but sit on the couch all day?!” Trunks screamed.

“What is your problem brat?!” Vegeta yelled back. The surly saiyan giving his son a look that could make the happiest person depressed.

“I DON’T KNOW! MAYBE IT’S THAT WE’RE LIVING ON BEANS!” Trunks shouted at the top of his lungs. His face was red from the exertion. He immediately started backing away from his father, afraid he wouldn’t have a head for very much longer.

“What are you doing?” Vegeta asked in a genuinely confused manner.

Trunks started to giggle, and not a guy like giggle either. It was the high pitched noise a girl makes when thoroughly amused. It was a laugh that had Vegeta considering if this, in fact, was his son. Then Trunks burst out and laughed so hard he almost fell over.

“What ARE you wearing?” questioned Vegeta, pointing at the white apron.

“Oh,uh.” Trunks turned a pale shade of pink caused from embarrassment rather than his heavy fit of laughter. “It’s,um,uh.”

Suddenly a big smile spread over Vegeta’s features. TRUNKS WAS SCARED. “You like someone, don’t you Trunks?” he asked in a silky tone.

“Uh.”

Vegeta smirked. “You do and I know who it is. It’s Kakkarot’s oldest brat, right?”

“Uh,huh.” said Trunks turning such a deep shade of red he put even the loveliest rose to shame.

“I knew it.” proclaimed Vegeta triumphantly. To Trunks’s everlasting amazement Vegeta pulled out his black leather wallet, and unceremoniously, dumped the contents into Trunks’s apron pocket. Then he mumbled “Go get him some cookies.”

Trunks would have died, had he not decided this was too good an opportunity to pass up by dying. He grabbed the money out of the lace outlined pocket *Since when was there lace on this apron?* and shoved it deep down to the darkest depths of his pocket. He took off the apron, turned and ran for the door, grabbing his brown trench coat as he went.

He got to the 7/11 and saw that Ranny was still working her shift. He now looked at what she had been wearing : a long maroon skirt made of sweater like material, and a black, sleeveless turtleneck sweater. Her hair was held up by the telltale black ponytail she almost always wore. She looked up from an issue of TEEN VOGUE and said, “Hi,Trunks. watcha’ need?” He blushed but got up his courage to ask her something he really needed to know.

“Um, Ranny, what gift would make you believe that somebody really liked you?”

She looked at him, silvery-blue eyebrow raised. There was a slow silence. “Well,” she said finally, “I think, that I would truly believe a man loved me if he gave me a promise.”

“What sort of promise?” he queried.

“The only promise worth believing, a kiss filled with his love. Nothing big, just a simple kiss that says so many things that words can’t.”

“Oh.” Trunks said. He just looked solemn, like a cold gray statue.

“I think Gohan might enjoy one.” Ranny said ever so softly.

Trunks looked at her and blinked. “What did you say?”

“I said, Gohan might enjoy a kiss, from you.”

Trunks’s breath caught in his throat, even as his face turned the brightest pink Ranny had ever witnessed on a man’s face.

“How did you know?” Trunks wondered.

“I’ve seen the way you look at Gohan,” she said quietly, “it’s the same way Goten looks at me.”

Silence and then. “You need to tell him Trunks before he gets away. Before he settles down with a girl. Buy him some cookies, his favorites are peanut butter, take them to him, and kiss him. Whatever happens after that depends on his reaction. Just be sure to tell him your feelings. That way, even if you get turned down, you won’t have to regret not telling him.”

Trunks thought about this for one second, then turned and walked to the cookie isle, picked some huge peanut butter cookies still warm from being baked. He walked to Ranny’s register and paid for the cookies, silently. Then, he leaned over the counter and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. He hugged her as he said, “Ranny, you’re a lifesaver.”

“Always happy to help a friend in love.” she whispered. He gave her a quick, small smile and walked out of the building.

Ranny looked around. She was utterly alone, again. She picked up the copy of TEEN VOGUE she had been reading and mused aloud, “I wonder when they’ll have the wedding.” After all, she hadn’t told Trunks that Gohan looked at him with love in his eyes. Nope that was her little secret. For a little while longer anyways.