Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Restless ❯ Losing You ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Frederica
The chapter in which everything starts. Videl goes out and will never return anymore. Gohan receives the news from a colleague and breaks. What will he do?

Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Mystery | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.10.2005 | Pages: 6 | Words: 11.6K | Visits: 262 | Status: Completed

Restless by Frederica
Chapter 1: Losing you
> > > > > >
Gohan was staring deeply into the glass. The bottom of the glass was in his dancing hand, the wine was dancing in circles with it. Gohan was intensely staring at how waves of wine were dancing around in his glass. He had it under control. If he stopped moving his hand, the waves would stop too. Nevertheless, there were so many things he didn't have under control. One of these was his pretty wife, who he cared so deeply for. Videl… She had her arms wrapped around him and her chin was on his chest. She looked up with a desperate look on her face.
“Please, Gohan, please let me go out this once. We are only gong to Silver Creek to have a drink. Then we'll head home again. I promise I won't make it late,” she begged him. Gohan put his glass of wine on the table and rubbed his temples with his fingers, trying hard not to look in her beautiful eyes.
“But it is our little place. The place we met. The place we had our first kiss. The place I asked you to marry me. The place is so special. Only we know how special it is. We gave Silver Creek a meaning,” Gohan said. That was one part of why he did not want her to go with Erasa. He just didn't want to share it with anyone else. The other part was that something was not feeling right.
Silver Creek was a place by the water. It is just a small place with flowers and trees. It used to be a beach once, but eventually grass started growing, and everyone lots interest in the place. Except for Gohan and Videl. They both went there when they felt troubled. They would look how the moonlight was reflected by the water, and giving the creek a silver glow. One night they were both troubled, and went to Silver Creek. That's where they had met. They had sat down together and talked their troubles over. They talked about their lost hopes and dreams. They did not think that they would meet ever again, but destiny brought them together again at a wedding of a friend. They fell in love and got married eventually.
That moment, Sharpner and Erasa entered the building and knocked on the door. These two had fallen in love too, but they decided not to get married yet because they often argued. Sharpner and Erasa were a funny couple, just like Gohan and Videl.
“Hey, are you done having sex now? Erasa wants to go!” Sharpner yelled against the door. He obviously had not changed from being a big tease. Gohan and Videl had to keep back a laugh when they heard Erasa whispering his name through her teeth warningly.
“We were not doing…that! I told you I had to feed the baby!” Videl yelled back. She laid her hands on Gohan's lap and brought her face to Gohan's. She slowly kissed him. Gohan closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment as he kissed back.
“And Gohan gets to watch? That's basically the same…” Sharpner replied. Gohan opened his eyes and noticed a light blush on Videl's cheeks. They broke apart. Videl got off Gohan's lap and opened the door. Sharpner and Erasa stepped in. Gohan stood up too and received a friendly punch on the shoulder from Sharpner. Gohan tried to smile. He did not understand himself. He had married her, loved and cared for her always, then why did he find it so hard to accept her wishes this time? Was he becoming jealous? Thinking that these thoughts would not make him a good husband, he shook them away. He pretended to need to walk past her towards the cradle and laid his hands on her shoulder. He brought his face near hers.
“Go,” he whispered in her ear, and he continued walking towards the cradle. Videl pretended that she did not hear anything and she too continued walking around, but when Erasa and Sharpner were not looking, she nodded at him thankfully. Gohan bowed his head over the cradle and looked at the little baby girl. She was now two and a half months old. Her name was Ellony. The girl stared at him with her big blue eyes, she threw her legs around and held her small hands up in the air. Gohan held out a finger. Ellony grabbed it. Gohan rubbed her hand with his finger lovingly.
“Very good, Elle, but daddy's hands are still a lot bigger than yours…” Gohan said in a soft voice. The baby made silly noises and smiled at him, as if she was trying to talk back to him. Gohan smiled and picked the baby up from the cradle. He carefully laid the baby in his arms. Videl grabbed a black bag from the coat-hook on the wall and took her wallet out of a drawer. She then looked up at Gohan.
“Are you going to be okay? Please try not to crush the baby,” Videl said, smiling. Gohan was in no good mood and did not feel like laughing.
“It's not funny. Now go, and have fun, okay?” Gohan said, as Erasa took the baby from him. Videl walked over to Gohan and stood on her tiptoes to give him a small kiss on the lips. She then went to the baby and kissed Ellony softly on her forehead. She then took the baby from Erasa and handed her over to Gohan. Gohan then laid her back in the cradle.
“Okay then. Well, we will be back at about ten, I think,” Videl explained. Erasa nodded.
“What! You take three hours to go out for a drink and walk around a creek?” Sharpner exclaimed.
“Yes, I do! And you have no right of speaking, since you are always out a whole night to see a football match on television in the pub. A whole night for a match of one and a half hour!” Erasa exclaimed back at him.
“That is because we play a round of pool afterwards!” Sharpner yelled. Gohan and Videl looked at each other, with a hint of frustration in their eyes. Videl grasped Gohan's hand.
“Then what are these dancing bimbos doing there with these big breasts? Surely they are not just playing pool with you!” Erasa's face was turning red from anger now.
“I...“
“Okay, okay, okay! You guys should really go now, because Ellony needs to be fed by her mother in three hours, and if her mother is not there, she won't be pleased!” Gohan said. He laid his hands on Videl's shoulders and pushed her towards the door. Erasa and Sharpner followed. Sharpner kissed Erasa on the cheek.
“Have fun, honey!” he said.
“We will!” Erasa answered. Videl held her arms open to Gohan. Gohan embraced her and rubbed her back with one hand. She then kissed him on the cheek. Gohan kissed her back on the lips.
“Take good care of you and Elle, love,” Gohan's eyes shot wide open when Videl said that. He did not know why, but something about these words scared him. He did not want to start again, so he just shook the thoughts away.
“Sure, I will,” Gohan answered. Videl smiled, and laid her hand on Erasa's shoulder, to push her through the door. Gohan watched how Erasa and Videl walked trough the carpeted hall, which lead to a huge glass elevator. When they reached the elevator, Videl turned her head around once more to see how Gohan was still standing in the doorway, watching her. She waved at him, with a half-smile. Gohan put his hand up in return, but he could not bring himself to smile. They looked a while at each other, until Erasa grabbed Videl's hands while she was talking enthusiastically. Videl looked at Erasa surprised, and Gohan could tell that the smile she flashed to Erasa was a fake.
“Yo, what are we waiting for?” Sharpner broke Gohan's gaze. Gohan shook his head, as if he wanted to shake these strange emotions about Videl away. Gohan checked his watch. He was going to panic every minute Videl was late, he could already tell.
“Well, it's almost seven o'clock. I'm up for a drink. How about you?” Gohan suggested to Sharpner. Sharpner agreed. “However, I must bring Elle with me. If I don't, well…it's a baby, I hope you understand,” Gohan explained. Sharpner groaned.
“I hate kids! I'm telling you, as soon as Erasa wants to have babies, I`m leaving her!” Sharpner said. Gohan grinned when he took Ellony out of her cradle.
“You are so cruel! Trust me, babies are nice, but they just take a lot out of you,” Gohan answered while he tried to fix the baby up in the carriage, but she started crying. Gohan started making funny sounds, to try to cheer her up.
“These pregnancies are horrible too! These girls keep putting their frustrations on you, and you get blamed for everything. I swear to God, Gohan, not in a million years!” Sharpner said. By now, Gohan had managed to get his daughter into the baby-carriage and she had stopped crying.
“That's nonsense you are talking now. When Videl was pregnant, which is not that long ago, she was moody sometimes, but there were also many great times,” Gohan stated. He pushed the carriage through the doorway.
“Like?”
“Feeling how the baby kicked. Even when Videl still had a small stomach, you could feel something moving within her. That was just magical,” Gohan said. Gohan reached the elevator and pressed the button to make the elevator go down to his level.
“You have become such a dreamer, Gohan. I feel stupid hanging out with you,” Sharpner said. This did not hurt Gohan, but he did feel how he was getting angry.
“Well, why won't you go if you feel so stupid?” Gohan told him. Sharpner raised his hands up in defence while they entered the elevator, which had arrived at their level.
“I'm sorry, man. I didn't mean it like that. It's just that you have gotten so different than I thought you'd be. You know, working for a crime lab, I had expected you to be tough and a bit like an action hero,” Sharpner admitted. “And now that I see you again for the first time since a long while ago, you turn out to be such a perfect father. You are a family man and that is just not what I had imagined.”
“Well, you are not entirely wrong, you know,” Gohan pushed the button to the main floor, where the restaurant, the bar and the entrance to the building were located. “When I work, I am an action hero. At home, I am the family man. You caught me at home,” Gohan said.
“You call this your home? A hotel? A giant hotel?” Sharpner asked.
“Yes, but this hotel is perfect. On the first floor they have a playground for children and a casino. The restaurant has perfect meals, and I think it has four stars or something. Oh well, you find the quality back in the prices though,” Gohan admitted.
“Sounds good, but why do you want to live in a hotel?”
“Laziness. Videl and I first wanted to get an apartment, but we could not find one that easily. Since we really wanted to get away from our parents, we tried to rent a house. That worked, until Videl got pregnant. The house was too small for three people. Videl, with all the hormones, did not want to look for another house, so we decided on this hotel. We like it here. The employees here treat us like spoiled brats in return for a little money. We want to stay here a little longer,” Gohan explained. At that moment, they reached the main floor, and they got out of the elevator.
“Erasa and I do have an apartment, but this is much better! How can you afford all this?”
“Well, being a CSI-officer…I have nothing to complain about my income.”
“Really? You earn that much?”
“Well, Videl and I work shifts of sixteen hours a day. If we're unlucky, we have to work all day and night. So, we earn lots of money, because almost every day we work more than our contract tells us to do,” Gohan said.
“And now that you have Elle?” Sharpner asked curiously.
“Some things are going to have to change,” Gohan admitted. Sharpner nodded. They walked across a red carpeted floor, past the reception, to a big space which was occupied by tables. The bar was standing near the wall, with shelves full of different drinks standing against the wall. In the wall, there was a door. The kitchen lay behind the door. There were many personnel working at the moment. Gohan parked the baby carriage next to the bar. He folded his hands and waited until one of the guys behind the bar noticed him.
“Hello, mister Son. How may I help you?” the guy smiled friendly at Gohan. He was neatly dressed up in a hotel uniform.
“Well Fede, I'll just have an orange juice. What do you want Sharpner?”
“Perhaps you would like to try our excellent hot wine, sir?” Another guy jumped in between them.
“Sure,” Sharpner answered. The guy then questionably turned around to face Gohan.
“No, thank you. I still need to drive,” Gohan answered. Sharpner frowned.
“Oh really? Where to?”
“Now that you mention it…I don't know. I have this strange feeling. It has been there all day,” Gohan scratched his head. “Well, I still take the orange juice, I already had whine in my room.”
“As you wish, sir.”
“Oh, and could you also bring me the menu? I haven't had anything to eat yet,” Gohan asked.
“Certainly, sir. Please, follow me,” Fede grabbed two menus and started walking to the other side of the room. Gohan and Sharpner followed. Fede pointed to a table for two, which was nicely decorated by a table-cover and a candle. There was also some free space next to the table, where Gohan parked Ellony. Gohan and Sharpner sat down and Fede handed Gohan a menu. He also wanted to give Sharpner one, but Sharpner did not want one.
“No, thanks, I already had something at home,” he answered. Fede nodded and left. Gohan looked inside the baby-carriage to see how his daughter was doing. She was sleeping, thankfully.
“So, Gohan,” Sharpner started,”What case are you working on at the crime lab currently?”
“Well, there is not much that I'm allowed to say about it,” Gohan warned, “but it is about a group of youngsters who were found dead in a deserted area.”
“Bloody,” Sharpner commented.
“Well no, that's the crazy thing. No blood, not a clear, definite cause of death. That is what makes this case a mystery. I think that they were doing some kind of crazy ritual which got out of hand.”
“So…you're suggesting something…paranormal?”
“Oh, I don't know,” Gohan answered. The drinks arrived, and Gohan immediately took the glass and drank half of it. “I believe there is more to life than what we know now, but I'm not sure if it reaches as far as summoning the dead and the evil spirits. Well, if I don't find any clues soon, they are going to close the case, and it will add on to the list of the unsolved mysteries and crimes.”
“That's no good,” Sharpner also drank from his whine. Gohan shook his head.
“No, it's not. How is your job by the way?”
“Well, as a boxer I don't see as many special things as you do. In extreme cases, someone gets killed, and that's all out of the ordinary I see,” Sharpner explained. “Oh God, I'll get a midlife crisis if I keep going this way.” Gohan thought. What could he say about this? Sharpner had not gone to college like he had. Gohan was happy that a waiter came to him to take his order. Gohan ordered an asparagus omelette.
> > > > > >
“This is great!” Sharpner recalled a few hours later. Gohan was sitting on the bench outside of the casino with Ellony in his lap. He was not allowed to bring her in, so he decided to wait outside while Sharpner gambled. “I won five zeni!”
“Congratulations, we have a winner of the first prize!” Gohan muttered sarcastically. He had been waiting, and he was getting a little bored. He had expected the evening to turn out different.
“Hey! Anything is better than nothing!” Sharpner commented. “So? Shall we watch the football game in that `house' of yours?”
“Yeah, sure,” Gohan said. He rested his case. This evening was not going to get any better. He stood up with Elle in his arms and carefully put her bag in the carriage.
`I just wish that something will distract me from all this, just so I have something meaningful to do!' the minute Gohan finished this thought, his cell phone rang. Gohan took his cell phone from his pocket on his jeans. It was just an old simple telephone. It could call and receive calls, and that was it. It could not even send messages! Gohan checked the display, before he excused to Sharpner and walked away.
“Captain Brass, sir. I'd rather not go now because I'm out with a friend, and so is Videl, you see. We can't leave the baby behind, especially not with my friend around. I'd be happy to help when Videl gets back,” Gohan told his boss. He spoke in soft whisper, to make sure Sharpner could not hear him.
“You better sit down for a while, now, Gohan,” Jim Brass talked to him, “We found a body…”
“Well, I'll start on it as soon as Videl gets back!” Gohan replied.
“Listen Gohan, I have something to tell you which is not easy. Go and sit down, Gohan,” captain Brass told him. Gohan had a bad feeling about this.
“No, I don't want to sit down. Just tell me straight up,” Gohan commented.
“Gohan, I want you to sit down, NOW!” Brass demanded. Gohan was getting dizzy, so he was forced to sit down. He sat down on the stairs, gazing forward. “Are you still there?”
“Yes, and I'm sitting down now. Now tell me…” Brass was silent for a while.
“I am really sorry, Gohan. There is no easier way to tell you this, but you'll have to come to the office“ Brass said. Gohan did not understand why his head was acting so strange. He really started to feel sick.
“I just told you that I will come as soon as Videl gets back!”
“Videl is not coming back, Gohan,” Jim Brass shouted. He immediately felt sorry for raising his voice like that. “I'm sorry, Gohan. I'm really sorry. Of all people, you are the last one who deserves this.”
“Videl…”Gohan sank to his knees in defeat. He did not know what he felt. There was fear, a terrifying fear that he felt he was getting absorbed in. Gohan could not cry, because there was something holding him back. “It's not true. She's still alive,” he heard himself saying. He felt like he was not himself. Someone else had taken control of him. This calm attitude, this daze he was in, it was not him!
“I'm sorry Gohan, but it's true. Videl is dead. Some girl called Erasa phoned the emergency services. They came, and they phoned us. They were too late, Gohan. Videl was lying with her face in the water,” Brass told him. He closed his eyes in sorrow. The poor guy…why did this have to happen to Gohan? And why did he himself have to bring the news? Brass feared for Gohan's actions now.
“It is not true…It is not true!” Gohan shouted. There was a silence for a while.
“Gohan, she fell off the pier, and into the creek. She had hit her head on the pier and lost consciousness. She drowned, Gohan. I'm sorry. I will phone you later when we're back at the lab to—“Gohan did not let him finish, but turned the phone off. He certainly had forgotten about everything. He rushed to the stairs, and raced down. On the main floor, he ran past all the people who were staring at him curiously. He left the hotel and ran to his car, accidentally leaving Sharpner behind.
“Hey Gohan, wait!” Sharpner called after Gohan, but he was stopped by the cries of a baby. Gohan and Videl's baby to be exact. Sharpner slowly turned around. He could not just leave her there! With a disgusted face, he walked back towards the baby carriage. Gohan could better have a real good excuse for this!
> > > > > >
Meanwhile, Gohan jumped into his car and started it. He quickly accelerated and raced out of the street. He was driving way too hard, but he could not care less. His mind was all blank. All he knew was that he had to get Videl soon, to help her. He was going to the creek. She needed his help, but she was not dead! These stupid emergency people do not know anything these days anymore. Gohan passed the shops and the nightclub's on the left, and the protected nature environment on the right, as he was on his way to what was a beach once.
When he came close to Silver Creek, Gohan hit the brakes as he was about to hit a red car in front of him. Gohan cursed when he noticed there was a traffic jam up front. He felt himself getting dizzy again, so he stepped out of the car. He had to get there as soon as possible. Troubled, he looked around. There was a forest, and he noticed that there was a bright light shining up in the air. Gohan knew he had to get there. He slammed the door of his car shut, but forgot to lock them. He ran to the forest and immediately recognised the place. As a child, he had gone there several times.
Gohan started running through the dark forest, following the light that was shining through the leaves of the trees. His mind was still blank, and he did not notice how the branches of the trees cut his shirt and his arms. He ran to the light, often stumbling over the roots of the trees. When he finally came out of the forest, he looked around, but the light was gone! He noticed a group standing in a circle, surrounding something. Gohan stumbled towards is, not being able to walk properly, because he felt a sharp pain shoot through his ankle.
“Listen people, move away! We are investigating a crime scene here! Do not cross these lines, understood?” Gohan saw his colleague, Sara Sidle, pointing from the audience to a red and white coloured ribbon. She was standing in the circle behind the ribbon. She had a flashlight in her hand, and she was wearing gloves. The wind was tugging at her brown hair. When she looked up, she saw Gohan. She was surprised and shocked to see him. “Gohan! What happened to you?” Gohan stumbled towards her.
“Videl…is she…here?” Gohan tried to take a look at what lay beyond the ribbon, but Sara blocked him the way.
“Listen Gohan, you are not supposed to be here,” Sara told him.
“I asked you if Videl was here,” Gohan demanded.
“Gohan“ when Sara tried to calm him down again, he pushed her away and stepped over the ribbon. When he saw a body lying on the ground, Gohan walked to it and sank down on his knees. There was a petite girl lying on the ground. Her raven hair was plastered to her face. She was wet. Her eyes were closed. This was most definitely Videl. He noticed she had a big wound on the back of her head. Her skin was very pale. Gohan did not ask any questions, but he crawled towards her, as if he were in a daze. He took her in his arms. Another CSI, Nick Stokes, was standing in the corner and ran towards him.
“Gohan, don't do this! You are destroying the best evidence there is!” he yelled at Gohan, but he would not listen. He took her head in his hands and rested her body in his lap.
`I love you, Gohan. Take care of Ellony.' Gohan's eyes widened. Her mouth was not moving, but he was sure that he had heard her voice. She was not dead, he had been right all the time!
“She is not dead! Everybody! Did you not hear her speak to me just now?” Gohan hugged Videl's limp body to his chest “Come on, Videl. Keep talking. Tell them that you're alright!” but Videl would not speak. Sara looked troubled. Nick stopped in his tracks to Gohan.
“Gohan, she is not breathing anymore, and there is no heartbeat. She is dead!” and still Gohan would not listen. “Security!” two police officers ran to Gohan. They grabbed Gohan's arms and turned them on his back. This forced him to let Videl go. He decided to give in, and he stood up. He was supported by the strength of the two policemen.
“Videl, please…” he begged of her. When she was still lying lifeless on the ground, Gohan almost started to believe that she was dead. He felt himself becoming sad and angry. Whoever did this, would have to pay for it. However, he had no time to think this over, because a sharp pain shot right through his spine, as the officers started pushing him towards a police car. Gohan decided to cooperate, and when they released him from their grip, Gohan voluntary opened the door and sat down in the backseat. The police officers said nothing as they sat down in the front seats.
When they started the car, Gohan looked outside of the window. There lay a world of darkness outside of this car. Videl was gone. How was that possible? Videl was a perfect fighter. She was not the type of girl to get herself killed. Was there any evidence of a struggle? Was she raped? Gohan got scared. Where was Erasa by the way? Why did she not defend Videl?
“Where is Erasa?” Gohan asked. He moved to edge of the seat , until he was practically sitting in between the officers. The only thing that separated him from the officers, were the metal bars, which were in front of him. Gohan looked from the face of the officer on the left, to the face of the officers on the right, but no answer came from them. Gohan sat back in his seat again and gave up. He had a hard time to honestly believe Videl was dead. She simply went to the creek, and now this happened! How? Why? Gohan could not think of a single reason why someone would want to kill Videl. His precious Videl…
> > > > > >
When the car stopped in front of the police office, Gohan opened the door and stepped out. The police car drove away after Gohan closed the door again. On a normal day, Gohan would have waved at them with a smile on his face, but not today. He looked down at himself, noticing how torn his clothes were. The pain of his wounds had subsided when he was sitting in the car. All he knew was that he was having a nightmare. Hopefully, he would wake up soon. Gohan walked to the entrance of the police office, and he pushed the heavy door open. As soon as he got in, he noticed that Jim Brass was waiting for him in the waiting room. He had a cup of coffee and he seemed worried. Gohan walked to him, and of course, he did not look too happy himself either. Brass was shocked when he saw Gohan.
“Gohan! What the hell happened to you?”
“My wife was killed, so they say. That's what happened to me,” Gohan sat down and looked at Brass.
“Well, I'm really sorry, but I'm happy that you don't seem to devastated. Usually, people start to break down in tears and cry their hearts out. That makes it really difficult for me to talk to them.”
“I can't cry when I don't believe it's true. Videl spoke to me when I was on the crime scene. Dead people don't speak, you know? So either, Videl is not dead, or this is a nightmare.”
“I'm afraid none of these are true, Gohan. See…” Brass pinched him. Gohan rubbed his shoulder as he really did feel something when Brass pinched him there. “We'll go to the mortuary soon, to hear about Videl's death.” Gohan looked away. Well, if this was not a nightmare, she was not dead. It was as simple as that.
“Do as you please, but Videl is not dead! She spoke to me!”
“Well, when people hear news like this, their minds start to overload, and make people see things which are not truly there. You are in denial. Your mind is making things up.”
“I am not in denial! You are! You are denying that you made a mistake over a person who is not dead!” Brass grabbed Gohan's shoulders, and shook them.
“Listen, Gohan! Listen! Videl is dead, there is no mistake to it! She was murdered!”
“And what the hell do you know about it? You were not there when she spoke to me.”
“You were not supposed to go to the crime scene at all in the first place!”
“Whatever! You said that Erasa called the emergency service, where is she now? How is it that she did not get murdered?”
“I don't know Gohan, but she is in the hospital right now. She is very shocked, and does not remember anything at the moment. Can I ask you some questions, Gohan?”
“If you must…”
“Where were you at the time that I called you?” Brass asked him, afraid of how Gohan would react on this one. Gohan got very angry, and jumped up.
“What! Am I suspect now? Don't even try to fool me, because I recognise this procedure. I can tell you my alibi: I was at the hotel, in the casino. If you don't believe me, go get the security camera's tapes. I also have some pretty good motives why I would never kill her. First of all, she was my wife. Second, I love her more than anything else in the world. Third, we just had a child together! Oh God! I left her in the hotel with Erasa's boyfriend,” Gohan clasped a hand over his mouth in shock.
“We informed someone named Sharpner about Erasa's condition. He was her fiancé, she said…” Brass explained.
“Fiancé? I thought they were not ready for a marriage. But where is he? At the hospital?” Gohan asked.
“Yes, and I'm sure he brought the baby with him.”
“Well, I don't know. He hates children. Oh God, Elle probably already has the shaken-baby-syndrome. Videl would kill me if she would found out,” Gohan panicked. Brass stood up as well, and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“Gohan, I know it's hard for you to accept it, but Videl is dead! Please try to believe it, or you'll get hurt even more.”
“Videl is a fighter. She doesn't die that easily!”
“She did not die of natural causes. She was murdered, and as harsh as it may sound to you, nothing can bring her back to life!” Brass raised his voice. Why was it so difficult to get through to Gohan? Gohan was silent for a while, until he had an idea.
“Can I make a phone call?”
“Sure, you know the way…”
> > > > > >
“Dad? Hi, it's me! Gohan. I'm at the police station now and everyone is acting insane. They keep saying Videl is dead, but I saw her and she spoke to me! She is not dead! She can't be!” Gohan was standing in a phone cell, calling Goku.
“Gohan…I hate to bring you the news, but did you try to sense her energy?” Goku replied.
“I know it's gone and that means she's dead, but she spoke to me! How can dead people talk? Tell me!”
“Are you sure she spoke to you? Were you not imagining things?”
“Why is everyone trying to change my mind?” Gohan questioned. He heard Goku starting to sob quietly. What a shock! He is not even crying himself, how come that his father has less hope than he has. He heard Goku tell Chi-Chi that Videl was killed. They talked for a few seconds, until Chi-Chi too started crying. “Why are you all like this? Even if she were dead, we can bring her back to life, right?” There was a silence. “You know, all we have to do is to find the Dragonballs.”
“We can't son,” Gohan's eyes widened when he heard Goku say these words. “Unless you find out who the murderer is. Without the murderer's name and the evidence, the dragon cannot bring her back to life.”
“But I don't know who the murderer is; neither do I know how exactly or why she was murdered. Still, if we can find the Dragonballs, we can ask the dragon who it was!”
“The dragon does not solve riddles, Gohan, and it also takes a year to restore the Dragonballs after we used them. I'm afraid this crime has to be solved first,” Gohan sank to his knees. The phone was loosely lying in his hand.
“But what if the crime remains unsolved?” he heard Goku sob louder.
“Then I'm afraid we'll have to move on…” there was a small silence.
“Dad?”
“Yes, son?”
“She really is dead, isn't she?”
“Yes, she is, son. Do you want us to come over now?”
“N-no, I'll be fine,” Gohan said, before letting go off the phone. He remained sitting on his knees for a while, staring at the ground. He felt lost. What was he going to do now? He wanted to cry his eyes out, but he could not. He wanted to let go of all his emotions, but he started to feel sick instead and he turned pale. Eventually, he gathered all his strength and he stood up. He walked back to the room where Brass was still waiting for him. Brass looked up, worryingly.
“Captain Brass, can we go to the mortuary now?”
> > > > > >
Gohan was waiting outside of the room with Sara Sidle. Gohan was shaking with fear and sickness. In the car, he had to throw up several times. He was sick of despair. He wanted to grieve, but he could not. Doctor Al Robbins had given him a bucket, just in case he had to throw up again. Sara was sitting on the opposite side of Gohan, in the waiting room.
“I'm really sorry for your loss, Gohan,” Sara said.
“I don't want them to cut Videl open. I will not let them!”
“I understand, but you know you have no say in this. Videl was found in the water, and her bag was stolen. We think that someone hit her with a stick or something. She has two wounds on the back of her head. One because of a blow with something, and another because she fell on the docks with her head. Both of these wounds has wood splinters in them. We are just analysing everything now,” Sara said.
“I want this case,” Gohan said, angrily.
“I understand, but Grissom won't let you. You're not in the right condition to handle this case. As soon as you find the killer, you'll kill him or her yourself.”
“Is that so strange?”
“No, but that is not supposed to happen. You would lose your job and your baby…I think you will get some time off in order to get yourself together.
“I don't need a few weeks off! I just want Videl back, and I need the killer to get arrested, so that I can have a serious talk with him. A serious talk he will not be able to talk about after I am done with him!” Sara frowned.
“What makes you so sure it's a him?” she asked.
“I don't know. It might as well be a her. The reason why is what matters most, right?” Gohan's shaking got worse, and he bent over the bucket again. He threw up again. His face was pale, and he was sweating. “How long will it take them to examine her? I want to see her!”
“I know, Gohan. I know…” Sara said. She sat down next to Gohan and laid a hand on his shoulder. She looked up at his face, but Gohan was staring blankly at the wall. The door opened a few minutes later. Gohan stood up with a hopeful face. He held the bucket to his side.
“Please, doctor. Please tell me that you found something useful,” Gohan asked him. Sara sighed. Gohan was pleading for clues. She just hoped he would not be too disappointed.
“Well,” doctor Robbins scratched over his bald head. “Let's say I found something rather surprising…Come in,” He walked back into the room. Gohan and Sara followed. Gohan put the bucket on the sink, and then greeted Grissom, who was standing next to the table where someone was lying, covered in a white sheet. Grissom forced a smile. Robbins stood next to Grissom. He grabbed the white sheet, and pulled it down till Videl's chest.
“Are you ready for this, Gohan?” Sara asked him. Gohan kept staring at Videl's closed eyes.
“Yes.”
“Well,” Robbins pointed to Videl's head. “She has to wounds on the back of her head. One was because she was hit with a wooden item, and second was because she fell.”
“Yes, I know that already!”
“Well, what you don't know is that the first blow was the cause of death,” the doctor explained. Gohan frowned.
“Were their signs of a struggle? There must be!”
“No, there were no signs of a struggle. And that is for a good reason. Videl had taken drugs.” The doctor revealed Videl arm. On her upper arm was a small spot. Her skin was red and the vein was swollen. “…and she had a bad trip. Did Videl ever do drugs before, Gohan?”
“No, she didn't. She did not do this herself! What drug was it?”
“Heroine, one of the most killing drugs. This drug had to be inserted with a needle; she must have done it herself. However, she took too much and when someone also hit her with something, it was too much for her body to take. We found no water in her lungs, so she did not drown.”
“I don't understand this at all! Videl took drugs, and someone hit her with a wooden item? It does not make any sense! Why would someone hit her? Who would hit her?”
“My guess is the same person who hooked her on the heroine,” Robbins looked up at Gohan, ”That person gave Videl too much heroine on purpose. That is how things could have gone wrong.”
“Does that mean Erasa killed her best friend? Erasa was with her all the time! She did it! How could she?” Gohan said. He was getting confused right now. He had too much to understand all in one day.
“No, we questioned Erasa. She and Videl got in a fight, and Erasa left. Erasa returned later to apologise, but instead, she found Videl's corpse in the water. The security tapes are being watched right now. We have witnesses telling us that Erasa and Videl indeed were yelling at each other in some sort of restaurant, and Erasa left,” Grissom explained. Still, Gohan could not understand. He shook his head.
“I…I…don't get it anymore. This is all twisted!” he quickly ran back to sink, and threw up in the bucket. Sara and Grissom looked at each other for a while, not knowing what to do. Gohan washed his mouth when he stopped throwing up, and he turned around, angrily. “I want to see the report of her examination, alright?”
“I guess that could be arranged,” Robbins answered. Gohan nodded.
“Then it's settled. Could I be…alone with her for a while?” he asked Grissom hesitantly. Grissom nodded, and he gestured the doctor and Sara to leave the room. When they were gone, Gohan grabbed a crutch that was standing in the corner. He sat down by her side.
Gohan stared at Videl's face. She was almost just as pale as he was. He hesitantly touched her face, and pulled back when he noticed how cold she felt. He felt guilty, so he reached out for her again and cupped her cheek.
“Why, Videl? Why?” he spoke softly. “Why do you talk to me first, and now pretend to be dead? I'm losing it!” Gohan's hand ran down from her cheek, to her neck, to her arm. “How is it possible that you took drugs? That is not like you!” He ran his hands down over the white sheet, that was covering the rest of the body. When he reached her thighs, he stopped and pulled his hand back.
“The love we had, Videl. Is it all gone because you wanted to take on an experiment? And Ellony…you left us Videl! It is not the killer's fault! It is your fault!” he yelled. He heard noises outside of the room. He heard a baby crying. It was a familiar cry. It didn't take long before Sara entered the room, with his baby in a baby carriage. She held a red book in her hand. She sighed when she was standing in front of him. His hopeful face was so…heartbreaking.
“We found this at the crime scene. I thought that maybe you wanted to have this,” Sara handed it to Gohan, and left the baby standing next to Gohan. She left the room in silence. Gohan looked at the book in amazement. He ran his hands over the cover. It was the diary he gave her on the very first day they met! She carried this with her in her bag always!
Slowly, Gohan opened the book, and read the first sentence written on the first page. `The minute I saw him, I knew something was going to happen that would change my life…' Gohan closed the book again, and looked at Videl. He laid his hand in her neck for the last time. There was no heartbeat. He bent foreword, and shakily kissed her lips. He pressed his lips against her soft and cold ones for the very last time, and then he stood up and walked over to Ellony. When he looked in the carriage, he saw how much Ellony looked like her mother.
That was the moment when something snapped inside Gohan, and he finally allowed himself to cry. He cried a lot, he yelled and screamed and he threw up again. He looked at Videl. She was staring at the ceiling with her eyes closed. His face was pale, his heart was torn and his eyes were watery.
“How, Videl? How could you leave us like this?” Gohan forced himself to turn his face away from her, and he left the room, pushing Elle forward in the carriage. He was still crying when he joined up with the other CSI's outside of the room. Gohan knew that the only way he could ever get over this, was to find out what had truly had happened on this day, the fourth of April.
End of chapter
> > > > > >
So, how was it? I've just started writing, and it's the first time I've ever written something serious like this. If you have some usual advice for me so I can improve my writing, let me know! In case you were wondering, I used some of the characters from the tv program Crime Scene Investigation for this story.
Here are some questions which I'd rather answer now, before you have to ask them.
Why is the baby called Ellony, and not Pan?
I have a good reason for that. If you continue reading this story, you will understand.
The CSI stuff written in this story, do they work like this in true life too?
I'm afraid not. I made it all up.
Why does this story have the `romance' genre?
Because every second chapter of this story is Videl's diary. This is mainly about her life with Gohan, and that contains lots of sweetness. There is also another reason, but you will only find it out when you continue reading this story.
Why is Gohan's mind so complicated right now?
Because mine is too! Just kidding, no he's just really confused right now, but I think he'll get around.
When will you continue this story?
As soon as possible. The next chapter is about Videl's diary, and describes seven days of her life. However, reviews are a good motivation for me.
If there are more questions, or comments, please review!
Love,
Frederica