Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Holding On ❯ 13 ( Chapter 13 )

AN) Hey everyone. Here's the next chapter.

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P an had returned to Capsule Corps to find that everyone was still occupying the small hallway. After a moment of hesitation she turned back and returned home, ultimately deciding that there were too many people present to carry out her plan now.

The house that she returned to was dark. Still uninhabited by anyone, and seemingly just as lonely and quiet as she felt. The moonlight that streamed through the windows cast eerie shadows across walls and furniture, creating a scene that much resembled condemned buildings where murderers and homeless people stalked in the darkness.

Ignoring the eerie feeling, she walked across the room, only the idea of sleep keeping her focused on climbing the stairs to her room. Her body was tired, and she was near exhaustion. It was the last time, she decided, that she would use up all her energy flying back and forth over such a large distance at such high speeds.

She walked like a zombie, making her way to the steps without being aware of anything. She didn't notice the blinking light on the answering machine, or the first step of the stairs, which she tripped over.

Muttering curses Pan stood back up. After recovering her balance she concentrated on lifting one foot, and then the other. At an annoyingly slow pace she made her way upstairs, finally spotting her doorway and giving a small smile of triumph that no one would witness.

Reaching her room she sighed and kicked off her shoes, completely comfortable in her safe haven. Scuffling her feet against the warm plush carpet, she closed the door behind her and sighed when she flicked on the light, illuminating the entire room with brightness. It was decorated much as it was when she was a child, except for a few new pictures and posters around the room, which Bra insisted she display to prove that it wasn't home to a tomboyish little 5-year old girl. Pan flicked off the light a moment later, deciding that it was too blinding.

She let her eyes drift about the objects scattered around the room. On the floor near her feet lay a small unidentifiable object hidden in the shadows that now basked the room. Bending her knees, she scooped her hands near the object curling her fingers around it. She couldn't help the small smile that formed on her lips when she recognized what she held. The small object that she now cradled to her chest was a stuffed bear, one that had been in her possession since she was born.

The bear of course was well worn with age, and had a couple stitches to mark former injuries where it bled soft cotton. It was missing one of its regular eyes, and in its place her mother had sewn a green button.

Pan stroked the small bear fondly and smiled. It was always there no matter what happened. She never let her friends know that she still owned the small affectionate sign of childhood, but she knew that she would never get rid of it.

"Huglesbee" she murmured fondly, pulling it closer. Her eyes again looked around the room, and fell to a complete stop at a picture on her night table.

She could barely hold back tears as the image displayed in the silver frame brought back memories that she had unknowingly buried in the deepest recesses of her mind. It was taken at a park, about a week ago, at a time where everything seemed to make sense. Taken at a time when she didn't have to pretend that everything was ok.

One of her arms let go of the bear, the other unconsciously tightening to the point where the animal looked as though it would burst and result in stuffing flying all over the room. With her free hand she picked up the picture and lay above the covers on the bed, resting her head in a mountain of fluffy pillows.

Holding the picture up, the moonlight cast a small glare, blocking out the faces. Pulling it closer to her face, the glare moved away and the picture was clear. She sighed.

'How could I have forgotten so easily? I was so busy with my own thoughts that I didn't even think about you! I'm not a very good friend am I? I should be mourning over you. But I can't, because every time I try and remember, and think about it, I start to cry. And I'm afraid that if I start to cry again, I might not be able to stop...'

She curled up in the bed glancing back at the picture with near surprise. There was now a drop of water covering her face, and then another covering Jeremy's.

That night Pan cried her to sleep, clutching her childhood friend 'Mr. Huglesbee' and a small-framed picture of Jeremy and herself.

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Capsule Corp....

It was the next morning when everyone woke up. Bra stirred slightly on the couch, wishing she could escape into peaceful slumber for a little longer. It was a very comfy couch. She knew that it was Tuesday and that she should go to school, but she truthfully didn't feel like it. She just wanted to hang around there and find out what was happening.

Goten woke up in a chair next to the couch feeling a pain in his neck from the odd sleeping position. He stretched and released a big yawn at the same time, reaching his arm behind his head and scratching the back of his hair. Bra giggled at the adorable way he looked. She sat up on the couch and copied his morning ritual or stretching and yawning.

"It's Tuesday. I gotta go to work, do you need a ride to school?" he questioned, standing up and attempting to smooth the wrinkles from his clothing.

Bra shook her head. "No, I'm not going to go to school today, I think I'll just hang around here and see how Mirai's doing," she said just as a person walked through the doorway and into the room.

"Oh no you don't young lady. This is your Senior year, and your last day of school. Go ahead, we'll take care of everything here." Ordered her mother, stepping through the living room and into the kitchen before she could hear her daughters reply. Bulma was on a mission, and the codename was Coffee.

Bra frowned but sighed in defeat. "Ok, I guess." She whined sleepily. "But I don't need a ride Goten, I'll just drive, that way I'll have a way to get home." she smiled, wondering why she didn't just accept the offer to be held in his strong arms. 'I think that I must be going insane' she thought to herself.

Goten smiled in sympathy. "I wish I could stay home too, I want to know when he wakes up, but work calls."

Bulma walked back into the room and towards her lab, carefully sipping from a cup of steaming coffee.

Goten yawned again while walking to the door. "Bye Bra. I'll see you later?" he asked, hinting a question of weather or not they would meet for a flying lesson.

"Yeah I'll see you later." she smiled. She didn't comment on the fact that she could already fly, and that the lessons would be pointless now.

Goten left the house, undoubtedly flying to his mother's for breakfast and to explain about what happened. He couldn't help but say a small prayer to Dende while he flew, praying that Mirai would be fine and everything would go back to normal.

Bra climbed the stairs to her room, repeating a hasty put-together before running for food and dashing out the door. It was her last day of school, and she was determined to try and enjoy it.

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In a nearby room lay an unconscious man with lavender hair, who unknowingly created quite an amount of worry by passing out. He was lying on a medical examining table, carefully being monitored by Bulma who kept pacing between typing at the computer and checking his heartbeat.

In a nearby swivel chair sat a sleeping Marron. She had stayed awake working with Bulma until 3:00 in the morning, but because she disliked coffee she fell asleep easily. She showed no signs of stirring from her present position, and Bulma couldn't help but check her pulse to make sure she was still alive. 'Yep, she still has a pulse. She is out cold.'

Bulma glanced at her son, immediately dropping Marrons wrist when she saw his eyes flutter. He was waking up. "Marron, Marron. Wake up!" she ordered, shaking her shoulder.

Peering through half closed eyes Marron groaned. "Just 10 more minutes, please!" Marron didn't get what she wanted. With a swift kick and pull, Bulma rolled the chair out from under Marron and dropped the blonde girl on the floor.

"What the...what did you do that for?" complained Marron, standing up and rubbing her eyes. She completely ruined the affect of sounding mad when she yawned and smiled a little.

"I think he's waking up," whispered Bulma.

Marron snapped her head in the other direction. Mirai had rolled over on his side and kicked some of the sheet off of him. "Well I suppose it's a good sign that he moved. He didn't move all night. He'll probably wake up in a little while." she asessed. Marron couldn't help but continue to stare, 'Whoa, he looks really cute when he's asleep..oh great what am I thinking?'

"I wish I knew what to expect." Murmured the youth's mother.

"You know more than expected Bulma. You said yourself that he will most likely suffer from a type of amnesia. So we just go along with it right? Just until we finish the cure?"

Bulma nodded her head. Both girls kept their eyes locked on the body in the center of the room. Their eyes widened as they witnessed him stir in his sleep and then lay still. It was definitely going to be a long day.

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(GT) Trunks, like his mother, was still awake. He was in his office typing up the final draft of their budget report. He had worked all night on it when his mother kicked him out of the lab. She said that he was annoying her by looking over her shoulder and asking so many questions. The only way that he could keep his mind off of the fact that Mirai was hurt, and the pain and sadness he remembered seeing in Pan's eyes, was to lock himself in his office and work continuously through his agenda for the next week.

He sighed and hit the send button, forwarding the report to his mother, major stockholders, and everyone else that required a copy. 'Well I'm done with that. What should I do now?' He glanced at his desk and frowned.

He had been working so hard last night that he even organized the desk. His usual system of digging through messy piles and drawers to find what he needed was changed. The stack that he made of things that needed to be done was completely empty. 'Great, I finished all the work I had this week. Now what am I going to do?'

Glancing at his wristwatch he frowned. It was only 10:00 in the morning. 'I might as well try and fix some breakfast.' he thought, feeling his stomach growl.

He walked out the door and smiled at his secretary, ignoring her puzzled expression.

She looked oddly surprised to see him, probably because he usually completely disappeared for most of the day. She couldn't figure out how he could leave his office with out her seeing. But somehow he did. Usually she would go in to hand him a report and the only trace that he would leave to show that someone was in the office would be the opened window.

"Hello sir." she chocked out, her voice sounding just as surprised as she was.

Trunks chuckled. "I'm not ditching work today," he assured her. "I stayed up and finished all the paperwork, including the budget. I'm going to take the rest of the day off. I've got a great idea, why don't you just turn on my voicemail and take the day off too. There's no more work to be done for now, so there's no use in staying." Trunks smiled and walked away.

The secretary just watched him leave and shrugged her shoulders. Who was she to question his odd behavior? She didn't mind having the day off.

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Pan was half-asleep in her bed when she heard the phone ring. She pulled the comforter over her head and tried to drown out the noise. 'I'll let the machine get it. If it's important then they'll leave a message,' she decided, waiting for the answering machine to pick up. When the ringing stop she pulled the covers down and curled up to her pillow. Surprisingly she felt pretty happy this morning, not quite awake enough to remember the previous day. She didn't notice the small picture frame and teddy bear on the floor near her bed, or the salty taste on her lips and skin from her tears.

She could barely hear the voice on the answering machine as the noise seeped through the thin walls. "Hey Pan, it's Trunks. I was just calling to see if you could help me make breakfast, but I forgot that you are probably at school. Call me when you get home."

'I don't think I'll go to school today. I doubt can handle another day of everyone apologizing about Jeremy and everything.' She thought, destroying her happy mood at the memories. She sat up in bed and blinked her eyes a few times, trying to adjust to the sunlight as it flowed through her window.

Pan groaned and looked at her watch through squinted eyes. It was 10:15. "What time did I fall asleep? It feels like I only got 2 or 3 hours," she complained.

She quickly remembered everything about Mirai and frowned. She had flown to Capsule Corp in a hurry the night before in hopes of carrying out her plan, but flew back home just as quickly when she realized that there were too many people there.

"I guess I'll have to get to work," she thought, deciding to put her plan into action.

Pan pulled herself out of the room and to the kitchen. She stood in the doorway for a moment in thought before she reached for the phone. Pizza would have to do for breakfast. After calling in a large order she fixed a glass of orange juice and set it on a table. Then she turned to the counter top and grabbed a few objects.

Sitting down with a pen and notepad, Pan started to write what appeared to be a list. She just sat there staring at the paper for a long time before she began to write, and then a minute later she crossed out most of her words.

Her face was laced with a look of concentration. She continued to write short phrases on the paper when she heard the doorbell. "Pizza" she thought excitedly, jumping up immediately to claim her meal.

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Trunks muttered to himself while he sliced the long loaf of bread and proceeded to layer turkey, lettuce, ham, and everything else he could find in the fridge onto the bread.

'I can't believe I called her. How could I forget she had school? I hope she's ok, she looked really upset last night.'

Trunks smiled at his huge creation, momentarily proud of his culinary skills. Then he swallowed it in two bites, smiling with satisfaction as it satisfied his Saiyan appetite.

Licking his lips he turned to stare at the plate holding two smaller human- sized sandwiches. 'This is for Mom and Marron, you will not eat it.' He commanded himself, quickly picking up the plate and moving to the lab before he had the chance to open his mouth.

"I come baring food." He lifted up the plate and smiled at the two women as he walked into the room. His eyes narrowed.. They were standing on the other side of the room staring at Mirai. Trunks glanced at his 'twin' curiously. "Is something the matter?"

Marron and Bulma just continued to stare, completely ignoring Trunks. "Hello?" he asked, walking in front of their view.

"What's so interesting?" he questioned when he saw that their eyes weren't locked on his 'twin' anymore.

"Mirai was moving, we thought that he might wake up." Explained Marron, reaching over and grabbing a sandwich off the plate Trunks was holding.

"Thanks for the food." Bulma said quickly, also grabbing a sandwich.

Trunks stared at the two women trying not to laugh. "Are you sure you two aren't Saiyans? Because you grabbed and ate that food faster then Goten does."

Bulma looked at him sharply but Marron laughed. "Well we haven't exactly eaten yet."

"Will you go away? We're trying to watch Mirai. We need to be there right when he wakes up." Said Bulma, trying to look around her son.

Trunks raised an eyebrow. "Well. if you keep staring at him, it will only seem longer until he wakes up. You know the old saying, 'If you watch a pot it won't boil.' What's the hurry? I mean what are we going to tell him anyways? If he doesn't have his memory then he'll want to know why he is here."

Bulma stared at her son for a moment with a blank expression before breaking out in a goofy smile. "Well, I didn't really think about what to tell him. Any ideas?" she asked, glancing at the blonde beside her.

Marron shrugged her shoulders and looked up in thought. "We could say that he was. walking by outside of Capsule Corp when some guys mugged him. It would explain the lack of ID and car keys and such." Offered Marron with a small smile.

"Then we can just say that he had a concussion due to the attack and would probably not remember the last few hours, including the attack or his visit to Capsule Corp." Added Trunks. Both looked at Bulma for her opinion.

Bulma smiled and nodded her head. "Good story."

The two women went back to their jobs at the computer, leaving Trunks alone and bored. "Well, Pan's at school, Mom and Marron are busy, Goten's at work, I finished my work, I guess that leaves.Dad. I guess I can spar with him for a while." He reasoned, pausing to make sure there wasn't an alternative.

Trunks left the lab and turned to his room. "If only I could remember where I put my training clothes capsule."

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An) Ok, nothing really important happened in this chapter. It's just setting a mood and filling in time so you know where everyone is and everything. In the next chapter, Bra and Goten meet for a flying lesson, Mirai wakes up, and Pan attempts her plan.

Read and review, I'll try to get the next chapter out soon.