Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Insomnia ❯ Part I ( Chapter 1 )

He can't sleep again. He's sitting at the computer, typing away. I've asked him what's wrong; if there's anything I can do to help, but he just tells me not to worry. He says he'll be fine and that I should get some sleep. Well I do worry, Gohan, and I find it difficult to sleep while trying to figure out why you won't tell me what's wrong with you. It would probably help him to just tell me what's keeping him up; what woke him. It's called catharsis, but Gohan doesn't like to let people shoulder his "burdens".

I don't suppose my telling him the sound of his fingers on the keys is keeping me up would stop him. He'd probably unplug the machine and take it to another room… or outside. He's oddly considerate like that. He'd never do anything to inconvenience someone. I blame Chi Chi. It's not a bad thing, really; it's nice to have a guy who knows what I like, or when to leave me alone. But sometimes, he takes it too far.

Like now. This is, at least, the fourth time he's gotten up in the middle of the night this week alone. The first time, he tossed and turned and tried to pretend he was sleeping, just so he wouldn't wake me. But I was up when he was; I could tell by the uneven way he breathed, the way his face was pinched in the dark.

"What is it?," I asked him, "You okay? Bad dream?"

He shook his head and turned on the bedside lamp. He looked sick; like he was ready to throw up.

"It's nothing," he said, smiling slightly, "I just can't sleep anymore."

"Did you sleep at all tonight?," I queried.

"Yeah. Yes, I'm fine, really. Go back to sleep. I'll just… I'll go get a drink and I'll be back soon."

"'Cause you don't look fine. What's wrong? You can tell me," I prodded him.

But he just smiled at me and turned the lamp off. I felt his weight lift off the mattress and in the two seconds it took my eyes to adjust to the newly darkened room, I watched him come around to my side of our king-sized bed. He leaned in and placed his hand on my knee. Leaning closer, he kissed my forehead, my cheek and finally my lips. I held him there; kept his lips and tongue locked with my own for long seconds, minutes. He pulled away first and ran a hand through my hair, resting it on the cheek he hadn't graced with his mouth.

"I'll be right back," he assured me, "It's nothing you need to worry about- it'll pass."

With that, he left the room and I heard him pad quietly into the kitchen. He didn't turn the light on in there; he knew I could see it if he did. I lay down again and listened to him open the glass cupboard. He poured himself a drink (most likely milk- it helps him relax) and then he was quiet. I strained for any kind of sound, any clue as to what could be bothering him, keeping him awake. But he was silent for over an hour, and I eventually fell asleep again.

When I woke up, he was sitting in bed next to me… and his eyes were shot through with bright red blood vessels. He hadn't gone back to sleep, and I swear, just before he fully registered that I was awake, that I saw fear in his eyes. What on Kami's green Earth could Gohan Son be afraid of? He's the strongest man in the universe, he can't be afraid of anything! I tried to tell myself that I had imagined it, but the image haunted me all week.

And now, he's at it again. I stopped asking two nights ago, which means I didn't say anything to him tonight-er, rather, this morning. It's three a.m., and he's been sitting there, typing away, for at least two hours. I can see his back silhouetted against the monitor, slightly hunched, the working of his shoulders barely perceptible as his fingers dance across the keyboard. I really want to know what he's typing, but he thinks I'm sleeping. That, and this is one of very few moments when I can see him off-guard. He's usually so composed, so in control; I hate to admit it, but his recent bout of insomnia has given me the opportunity to peek inside his armor.

Oh sure, you'd think a guy would share everything with his life mate, but Gohan manages to hold something back. He got it from his father, though you'll never hear me say that to him. He'd hate to hear that he picked up any kind of habit from Gokuu… especially if I noticed. It's crazy, I know, but I think he thinks I have a crush on Gokuu. And you know who told me this in the first place, who planted the seed? My dad, of all people!

This was at least three years ago, maybe more. We had been sparring one day… okay, he'd been kicking my ass around and scolding me for not training nearly as often. I called for a break and we were just hanging out in the G-room, me catching my breath, and him giving me dirty looks and a lecture. Half-way through, though, he stopped mid-sentence and started to tell me about the version of me from the future. I'd heard about him before, but Pops had some interesting things to tell me that day.

"Do you know why he came to our time?," Pops had asked me, both hands gripping the towel around his neck.

I shook my head, wondering where the hell he was going with that.

"He'd told us he had used the woman's time machine to save the world from those tin-buckets, but I know why he stayed so long," Pops' tone was almost… coy.

I have to admit, I was kind of scared. Anything other than anger out of my dad was something to keep all your senses trained on.

"So, uh, why did he come back?," I finally asked.

Pops smiled at me, and it was the creepiest damn smile I'd ever seen. He let his hands drop to his side and he walked over to me. I backed up a pace, but I was right next to the wall so had no where else to go. He leaned towards me and put a hand to the side of his mouth; like he was going to tell me a secret and the machinery wasn't aloud to hear it.

"The other Trunks came from the future because he wanted to meet Kakarot," he told me, "He wanted to meet Kakarot because he was in love with him."

I wish I hadn't fallen down; it really made me look stupid, and I couldn't- and can't- afford to look stupid in front of Pops. He frowned at me and walked away like he hadn't just told me the craziest thing I'd ever heard… well, aside from the whole 'Other-Trunks-from-the-future-who-is-better-than-me' thing.

I haven't stopped thinking about that since that day. I even told Gohan the first night we had sex. He laughed it off, but I could see something almost like jealousy in his eyes. And I've taken every opportunity since to remind him that I'm not that Trunks and that I've never had even a crush on Gokuu. I went through a weird phase when I was eight where I was convinced that I would grow up to marry my father, but that was it. …And pretty damn weird, now that I say it out loud. Shit.

So he's still typing, and I don't think I can stand it anymore. I hate secrets, especially when they're kept from me. And I've been so damn horny for the past three hours that I'm going to burst soon. That's it, Gohan- ready or not, here I come!