Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Learning To Love Again ❯ Second Wind ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: I'm sitting here at the computer at almost 1:30 in the morning, knowing very well I have to be up at 6:30 at the latest, just so you can have this chapter. I think we can do away with the formalities for once. Okay? Good.

A/N: Well, for once the delay was only about

Marron stopped brushing her hair, pulling it into a ponytail, holding it in her hand as her eyes drifted out her bedroom window, out to the ocean. Even after living with the tides her entire life, sometimes the simple beauty of the mixed blues and greens still left her speechless. To her, life without the ocean was like a life without friends and family. The ocean was her friend, dependable and strong. No matter what turbulences she found in her life, she always had the ocean. It never changed.

Catching herself staring out the frame as her arm went numb holding her hair behind her head, Marron quickly scanned her room for a scrunchy. Finding one atop her desk, Marron snatched the holder from its spot, quickly wrapped it around her hair, and smiled at her reflection in the mirror, happy she had been able to get all the bumps out of her style.

Turning, looking for her purse, Marron carefully smoothed her clothes. Once again, she was distracted from her activities, this time by an old photograph on her desk of her holding Pan shortly after her birth, while Gohan and Videl looked on proudly.

Things had been so different back then. There was a light, a spark in Gohan, which had been extinguished years ago. Then again, maybe things weren't all that different after all. Starting with that first encounter with the child, Pan had won Marron's heart, becoming the younger sister she never had. Even now, the two were very close; Pan confiding in Marron things she wasn't comfortable sharing with her father, Gohan. In a way, after Videl's passing, Marron had become the girl's surrogate mother.

"Marron! If you're going to go, you'd best go now!" Eighteen called from downstairs, making Marron blush at her most current thought, "Pan's mother, Gohan's wife? He was kinda cute at my age. Heck, he's more than cute now."

"Yes, Mom! I'm ready!" Marron called back, grabbing her purse, and quickly glancing in the mirror to check her blushing before walking out. With her face still crimson, she hoped to slip out the door unseen. She was not so fortunate.

"Hey, Marron! What's up with the blushing?" Oolong questioned as she stepped off the stairs.

"Uh, nothing," Marron answered, blushing more.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were running off to see a secret boyfriend and using going to check on Gohan as your cover," Oolong continued his pestering as Marron stepped around him, headed for the front door.

"Going to see Gohan again, eh?" Krillin asked, walking up late in the conversation.

"Yes, I'm going to Gohan's again. No, I'm not sneaking off to see my boyfriend," Marron clarified. "And no, I don't have a boyfriend," she added quickly, seeing the mischievous glint in Oolong's eyes, which was quickly replaced by a frown as she cut him short.

"Well, be careful, and call if you're going to be late so we won't worry," Krillin instructed, smiling.

Marron turned to her father. "Yes, Daddy." She bent and pecked his cheek quickly. "I love you." She quickly stuck her head into the kitchen, waving good-bye to her mother before walking out the door, climbing behind the wheel of her hovercraft, and driving to the Son's.

When Marron arrived at Gohan's she parked the car, took a deep breath, and walked to the front door, hastily pressing the doorbell. Marron looked in the glass of the window beside the door and quickly adjusted her hair and clothes as she heard footsteps approach.

"Marron!" Pan exclaimed. "You're back already!" The girl wrapped her arms around the woman, hugging her tightly.

"Miss me?" Marron asked, smiling at the warm welcome. No matter what, she knew there was one place she was always wanted and could feel at home no matter how hostile the rest of the world seemed.

Pan quickly released her and stepped back, putting on her grown-up face. "Well, it gets kinda boring when it's just me and Daddy. He's grading papers and he can't paint nails very good anyway."

"Oh?" Marron asked, stepping inside the house, closing the door behind her, and laying her coat and purse on the couch. "Well, if you need someone to paint your nails, I can do that, unless you've already made an appointment with your Uncle Goten," Marron joked.

Pan's sweet face contorted to a look of sheer terror. "No! The last time I tried to teach him to paint my nails, I ended up having my entire hand and arm painted blue, up to my elbow! That took so long to get off! I'm never doing that again!"

Laughing, Marron agreed, "I can see why."

Pan's eyes narrowed as she took on an angry scowl, not unlike her late mother's, giving the child such an uncanny resemblance to the woman; Marron felt goose bumps race up her arms, almost doing a double take to make sure it really was only Pan and not Videl's ghost or something else of a supernatural origin.

"Daddy told you. Didn't he?" the child demanded.

Quite somber now, Marron meekly nodded her head. "Yes, he did."

I'm going to have a talk with him about that." Pan put her hands on her hips. "If he told you, I wonder who else he blabbed to." Pan turned and began stalking to her room, disgusted.

Marron smiled sadly. Gohan hadn't told anyone but her. The only other person he might have considered telling since Videl, would have been Goten, but since Goten had been the transgressor, there was no need to do so. The only other person Gohan would have told would be Videl. Knowing Gohan's love for her and the peace he seemed to experience only after visiting Videl, Marron was pretty sure he still talked to her even if she couldn't answer him directly.

"Marron, are you coming?" Pan called impatiently from her bedroom door.

Marron shook her thoughts away, before looking into Pan's eyes. "Sorry, I'm coming." Marron followed the child into her room, smiling at the pink walls. Pan had hated the color pink from day one, throwing the pink hat placed on her head by the hospital staff to the floor until it was lost and replaced by a blue one. She had left it on then without complaint.

Even afterward, she refused to have anything to do with garments of that accursed color. Discarding even a blanket her grandmother, Chi-Chi, had painstakingly knitted over the course of several months.

Unfortunately for the young one, her room had been painted pink before she was even born and though her hatred for the color had been expressed to her family and friends relentlessly over the years, her parents had never relented and repainted it.

Almost as if reading Marron's mind, Pan voiced her thoughts, "The other day, Daddy suggested we paint my room so it's not so ugly." Looking around the room, Pan's face twisted in to a snarl as if she were viewing some hideous entity more disgusting than Buu, causing Marron to smile at her expression.

"That's great. Maybe I'll be able to give you two a hand," Marron suggested.

"That'd be great!" Pan beamed. "I love having you over!"

Marron chuckled at the child's excitement. "So, have you decided what color you want?"

Pan shook her head. "Not really. I was thinking black, but Daddy said no. Do you have suggestions, Marron?" Pan gazed at her elder with huge blue eyes, her mother's eyes.

Taking a seat on the bed and its lavender comforter, she contemplated how different colors would look and make people feel. Remembering a tiny smitch from a psychology class she had taken a few years earlier, Marron made her suggestion. "How about blue? It's pretty, and both calming and energetic at the same time."

Pan joined Marron, sitting Indian-style beside her. "Blue... Like the sky..."

"Or the ocean," Marron added, thinking of Kame House and how much she had missed that ocean during her stay on the mainland for college.

"The ocean!" Pan exclaimed. "That's it! I'll paint my room like the ocean so I'll always remember you."

"Awww. That's awfully sweet of you, Pan," Marron said, giving the girl's shoulders a good affectionate squeeze.

"I'm glad you like it, because I do, and I'm sure Daddy will, too. Now, can we paint our nails? I'm tired of Bra picking on them, saying her dad's got more girly nails than me."

Chuckling once again at the girl, Marron took the offered bottle of polish, luscious lavender, and began rolling it in her hands to mix it, thoroughly.

"Marron, what was it like going to college so far away?" Pan questioned as Marron unscrewed the brush and began painting the girl's left hand's nails.

"Well," Marron paused to collect her thoughts. "It was different. Sometimes I had tons of fun and sometimes I didn't. I enjoyed my freedom, but I missed my family, friends and the ocean."

"Did you miss me?" Pan asked. Though she was mature for her age and incredibly strong, and not just physically, sometimes she let things slip like little questions or comments portraying her true feelings and insecurities, reminding Marron she was still just a child.

Marron dipped the brush back inside the bottle, looked in the child's eyes, and nodded. "Of course I did. You're like my little sister." `Which would make Gohan like a father,' came her next thought as she began working on the next petite hand offered.

`Father?' Marron pondered. Gohan had always seemed more of a good friend than a father, especially since she had been the one to care for him over the past few years. Maybe he was like an uncle. Yeah, that was it. Gohan was like an uncle to her, almost like her Uncle Yamcha. She had always been close to both.

"You're a lot better at this than Daddy or Uncle Goten," Pan praised Marron's work.

"Well, I should hope so since I am a girl," Marron chuckled.

Pan pulled her hands to her face for a closer inspection of her nails. "I guess that would make sense. Maybe you could teach me your secrets sometime."

"No problem." Marron quickly turned her head as she heard the doorbell sound.

"Don't worry. I'll get that." Pan jumped off the bed and went to the door as Marron put away the bottle of polish and followed.

Reaching the living room, Marron was greeted by a male voice, "Well, if you want to go, you'd better go ask your dad, kid."

"Hang on just a minute and I'll be right back!" Pan said excitedly. As she passed Marron, she beamed, "Uncle Goten's here!" as she happily continued on her way to find Gohan.

Surprised, Marron put on a smile and stepped into Goten's line of sight. "Hey, Goten. What are you doing here?" Marron found herself fidgeting, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

Grinning from ear to ear in typical Goten fashion, he responded, "I'm here to get Pan out of the house. My big bro's a stick in the mud. A pretty young lady like her should be out hanging with a dashing uncle, not stuck at home with her fogy father."

Marron crossed her arms under her breasts and gave her best smirk. "Get turned down?"

Goten's eyes widened and he blushed in recognition of her words. "Gee, Marron. I...uh..." He scratched a sudden itch at the nape of his neck.

Unable to stop either her smile or chuckle, Marron decided to antagonize him a bit more. "So, now you're stooped to using your little niece to pick up chicks?"

Goten blushed profusely. "Well, I, uh...yeah..." He hung his head in shame causing Marron to giggle even more.

"Goten, it's okay. Honestly, I've used her to get dates, too."

"Really?!?" Goten's eyes snapped open, his amaranthine grin returning.

Marron simply nodded. "A word to the wise, go to the mall and buy her something. There are sure to be tons of chicks there."

"Great!" Goten's smile widened. "I'll be sure to have a date next weekend and Trunks won't even have to set me up!"

Marron was still giggling when Pan returned, wearing make-up.

"Well?" Goten asked eagerly.

"He said yes! Let's go, Uncle Goten!" Pan chirped.

"Woohoo! Great!" Goten hooted before heading to the car he had driven over. Lately his mother hand gotten on a "you need to behave more like a normal human" kick, effectively ruining Goten's flying time, at least until he was away from prying eyes.

Pan hugged Marron's waist tightly, "I'm sorry to leave you all alone with Daddy. He's not much fun, especially when he's working."

Marron smiled at the girl's thoughtfulness. "Some how, I think I'll manage." Brushing at a strand of hair, which had somehow evaded Pan's bandana, Marron ushered her out the door.

"Now you two have fun!" Marron waved. "And Pan, make sure your Uncle Goten behaves!"

Goten shot Marron an innocent "who me?" look before turning to make sure Pan was ready for take-off. Waving one last time, they were gone.

Closing the door softly, Marron got a dust cloth and bottle of Pledge and began dusting the house, beginning with the living room, moving on to the bedrooms, leaving Gohan's study for last so as not to disturb him.

Knocking softly at the door, Marron entered the study. Gohan, who was bent over a stack of papers, turned to look at her.

"Hey, Marron. I didn't even know you were here," he greeted her.

Taking note of his red eyes and the darkened circles beneath them, Marron nodded. "Yeah, I've been here a while. I painted Pan's nails before that brother of yours took her out."

Gohan smiled at her tone. "What's he done now?"

"Oh, it's not what he has done," Marron returned the smile, "It's more what he's going to do."

"Which is?" Gohan prompted.

"Why, use Pan to pick-up girls at the mall, of course."

Gohan chuckled. "Why does that not surprise me?"

Marron began dusting an old wooden chair in the room. "Probably because he's done it before."

"Good point." Gohan glanced at his work before turning his attention back to Marron, who had begun dusting his desk by that time. "Why don't you have a seat?" He motioned toward the chair she had dusted only moments earlier.

"Well, sure. I don't see why not." Marron took her seat.

Gohan smiled at her. "You just got back from college with your degree, and here you are, hanging around an old man and his daughter, taking care of them instead of out there," Gohan motioned with his hand, showing the whole world, "making a name for yourself." He shook his head a little before looking into her eyes. "I don't understand it, but I thank you, just the same. It just wasn't the same around here without you coming over."

Marron smiled kindly, though she had to admit the whole thing was freaking her out. She was sitting close to Gohan, but she always sat close to him since he was her friend, or was he? She wasn't really sure anymore just what she felt toward Gohan. Sometimes he seemed like a father, but that wasn't right. Then again, neither was he just a friend. The closest she could come to describing him was as she had said earlier, an uncle.

"It sure was dirtier," Marron cracked.

Chuckling, Gohan leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "No, it was something else, too. Since you came back everything seems," he paused, thinking of just the right words, "brighter, happier. I haven't seen Pan so excited or smile so much since you left. You're like a part of the family."

Marron smiled warmly at Gohan. "Thank you. That means a lot to me."

Shrugging, Gohan replied, "You mean a lot to us, especially to Pan. She really looks up to you."

Not knowing what she should say, Marron nodded her head, "Yes, I suppose so."

Gohan turned his face away from Marron and watched a squirrel looking for nuts. "What do you think about Pan? Like I've said before, she's to the age where she doesn't want to talk to me about certain things and some of them, I'm not sure I want her to. She's just growing up so fast."

Marron nodded again. "She's become a young lady, but she still needs you and she knows you're there, that's what matters. If you're worried about her, don't be. She's a good kid, and you've done an amazing job of raising her. Pan's just fine. She's not the one I worry about." Marron quickly closed her mouth and blushed, hoping against hope she had just thought, not spoken that last bit.

Turning from the window, Gohan gave her a curious expression. "Why would you worry about me? I'm an adult and doing fine." He smiled the infamous Son grin, but somehow it never looked the same on him as it did his father and brother, never as innocent, naive.

"Why shouldn't I worry?" Marron questioned, immediately seeing through his goofy grin, which faded quickly once he realized she wasn't buying it.

"Because I'm doing fine. As you said, my daughter is now becoming a fine young lady, a beautiful one if I do say so myself, and I have a good job to pay the rent and keep us fed. I'm great."

"Gohan, your smile never reaches your eyes," Marron hesitated, unsure whether or not she should continue until she received an encouraging nod from Gohan. "You seem to be okay, but I don't know, something's missing."

Marron watched Gohan closely, trying to gauge his reaction to her words, yet his face remained stoic until he sighed and looked directly at her. Though she knew he never had, nor never would mean her any harm, Marron felt herself quail slightly under his intense gaze before it faded, leaving only exhaustion, which was all too evident in his eyes.

"I'm just tired, Marron. Life has a funny way of doing that to a person. Destiny and fate work together on that. Sometimes you're given all you could ever want, only made too blind to see it, and sometimes," his tone changed, taking on a somehow more personal tone, "Sometimes you have it all and are allowed to see it for a brief instant before it is snatched away from you forever. Yes, Marron, life can make a soul weary."

Rising from his chair, Gohan's voice pulled Marron's thoughts away from his previous statement and back to the present. "I'm rather thirsty. Would you care to accompany me to the kitchen?"

Marron shook her head, stood and smiled, "Of course not."

"Very well then," Gohan smiled, yet his eyes still missed their old twinkle as he turned from her and started toward the door.

"Gohan?" Marron was unable to hold back her question after his smile had reminded her of her earlier remarks on it and his response about weariness.

Pausing, Gohan turned and looked at her seriously, in response to her tone. "Yes?"

Marron batted her eyes twice, collecting her thoughts and courage before crossing the small room to stand directly in front of Gohan, close enough to smell his aftershave mixed with the faint smell of laundry detergent. She looked up, into his eyes shyly, yet bravely in the same instant.

"Don't worry, Gohan," she spoke softly, feeling her hand rest itself on his chest where she could feel his heart beating just as quickly as her own. "You'll get your second wind. I have faith in you."

Gohan simply looked down at Marron, an unreadable expression on his face. Afraid she had said too much, Marron began to back away, only to have his hand tenderly, yet firmly, grasp her wrist.

Looking back up, into Gohan's sable eyes, Marron thought she saw something there, something new, something...alive, though she quickly forgot her inquiry as he leaned close, gently pressing his lips against hers.

At first, Marron could scarcely grasp what was happening. It wasn't every day she was kissed like this by a much older, handsome man, yet somehow it felt right, almost natural, as though she had been doing so for years.

As she pushed aside the feelings and sensations aroused from the simple feeling of his lips pressed so perfectly against her own, his arm around her waist, she realized this was Gohan, the man she had said was like an uncle less than an hour earlier.

As suddenly as he had initiated the kiss, Gohan ended it, pulling his head back slightly to look at Marron, who was torn between whining for more or running to the nearest sink to brush her teeth after being kissed so intimately by...family?

In the end, Marron's mind won over her confused heart and longing body, to blush liberally, the crimson staining what she felt must be her entire self right down to her bones and soul.

Gohan, sensing her discomfort, most likely from her blush, removed his arm from her waist, stepping back to give her room as he felt his own face grow fiery red. What was he thinking? She hadn't wanted him to kiss her. She was like family, almost a second daughter, and even if she wasn't, she would much rather be kissed by a handsome young man, such as Trunks Brief or his younger brother, Goten, rather than the older, broken model he felt he must represent.

"I, think I should pro- probably go now..." Marron stuttered. Her nervousness must have been more than she had at first thought. She never behaved like that. Besides, this was just Gohan, no cause to be flustered. Except he had just kissed her.

Gohan simply nodded, feeling the heat of his own blush cover his ears and neck. "If that's what you think you should do."

It was Marron's turn to nod, her ponytail bouncing. Strange, somehow Gohan had never noticed how shiny her hair was, like unto spun gold. Not only her hair, but every feature seemed to come into clear focus from her sapphire eyes to her curvaceous figure.

Feeling his eyes on her, being under his scrutiny, only made Marron more uncomfortable as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Realizing she might stand there all day waiting for Gohan to snap out of his trance-like state, Marron cleared her throat, causing him to look up, blushing even more deeply.

"Sorry," Gohan mumbled, stepping aside, allowing her access to the door.

"I," Marron started before she shook the thought away. "Good-bye, and tell Pan I'll be back soon, especially if she's painting her room."

Gohan nodded. "I'll do that, and yes, she is going to paint her room."

Glancing at her hands, Marron realized they were shaking, so she quickly laced her fingers, hoping it hadn't been apparent to the demi-Saiyan. She looked back at him. "Okay, and thanks. Oh, and be sure to let me know when you're going to paint. I want to help." Marron quickly stepped through the doorway, heading toward the front door.

A few steps behind so as to not make her feel crowded or uncomfortable was Gohan. "I'll be sure to do that."

In the living room, Marron gathered her things and continued to the door, pausing to turn back, only once she was outside. "I guess I'll be seeing you."

Gohan nodded.

"Well, good-bye." Marron gave Gohan a quick half smile before turning and hastily making her way to the car so she could leave.

Watching her walk away, the sunlight lit Marron's hair, almost momentarily blinding Gohan, reaffirming his spun gold thought from before.

As Marron flew out of sight, Gohan closed the door before going to the kitchen and getting a soda, returning to his study moments later.

As he sat, staring at the next paper on his desk, Gohan found his mind wandering back to Marron. What had possessed him to do such a foolhardy thing? Sure, when he had looked into her eyes, it had felt right, but he was sure it wasn't. Was it?

Of course not! "She's just a kid!" he spoke his thought aloud, his own voice jarring him from his cognition.

Glancing at the small mountain of work on his desk, he gave up working opting to start supper, knowing Pan would most likely be hungry when she got back, and Goten would probably stay over for supper as well.

Shaking thoughts of Marron away, Gohan put on a pot of rice.

A/N: Did anyone catch the rice thing? Don't ask, I have a very odd sense of humor, especially at 1:30 at night like it is right now. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. I especially hope it was good enough for you to leave me a review so I can read it and get this giant ego since Vegeta and I have a contest going on who can accumulate the largest ego in a month. ^_^ Thank you for your help and check back next time for more on the situation.