Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ What You Wouldn't Expect ❯ Who Really Has Who Wrapped Around Their Evil Finger? ( Chapter 40 )

Chapter 40: Who Really Has Who Wrapped Around Their Evil Finger?

 

Gohan came back several minutes later, a large tray in his hands stacked with numerous kinds of food. He stopped once he stepped into the warm room, scanning it for any sight of Videl. She wasn't there.

He sighed audibly, setting the tray on the bed and then getting down on his hands and knees, looking under it. He didn't know where she could be, but knowing her, she could probably get into the tiniest places known to man.

He started chewing on the inside of his mouth, thinking about where she could be. He looked in the bathroom, and then the shower, not spotting her. He tried not to think about her being in the shower all wet and covered in soapy suds and in his arms and—he stopped before he went any further.

"Videl? Come on, this isn't the right time to play games. You need to get into bed, and I still need to talk to you," he said in a monotonous voice, glancing around the room once more. He got the sudden impulse to look upward, and there he saw her, hovering in a corner of the room that was almost pitch black. He walked over to the small curled bundle, taking hold of her leg and pulling her down gently into his arms. She was still trying to stay in her protective little ball, and he didn't know why. "Shh, Videl, it's ok. See? You're here with me, no one is going to hurt you," he told her sincerely, giving her a warm smile when she peeked out from between her arms. She didn't return the smile.

He laid her gently on the bed, turning on the light. She suddenly shook her head, saying, "No, keep it off, Gohan. Please."

He obeyed, clicking it back off as he sat down next to her in the near-darkness. He was afraid of taking her into his arms of fear of what was wrong with her, and he didn't know what to do. All he could ask was, "Videl, what's wrong with you? Why are you all of a sudden acting all weird? What happened to you on Babidi's ship? Did they hurt you?" He saw her bring up her legs, wrapping her arms around them and keeping herself into her tight ball. He placed his hand on her back, feeling a small tremor go up her spine. It wasn't until he really listened that he noticed something. She was crying.

He slowly lifted her strong arms away from her long legs, drawing her against his body to hold her close as he leaned against the headboard of the bed. He positioned her until she was straddling his lap, her arms around his neck and her face concealed in his muscular chest. He tried to ignore that fact that her soft breasts were pressed up against his flat stomach, and just rubbed her back, murmuring soothing words of comfort to try and get her to calm down some. Usually when girls cry, they bawl, scream, sob, and all those other sounds that make men feel so horrible that all they want to do is soothe them and make them feel better. But Videl, she just cried, making no sound at all, just an occasional sniff, and even that was quiet. He was so used to Bulma and his mother crying and how they yelled and spazzed out that her crying made him feel weird. It went beyond the need to comfort and soothe. He just didn't know what to do.

"Videl, please, you can tell me what happened. I promise I won't get mad at you. It isn't your fault. You didn't do anything wrong," he whispered, rubbing her back up and down in slow movements that seemed to help some. He didn't really expect her to talk any time soon, but when she did, in that tiny little scared voice, he tightened his arms around her, wishing he could take all her emotional and physical pain into himself.

"You promise you...you won't hate me?" she whispered pathetically, not pulling away to look up at him. All she wanted to do was hold on and never let go.

His face went blank. Oh no. No. They didn't. They couldn't have....He closed his eyes, his hold on her growing gentle. They raped her. How could they...how could they do that? Not Videl...she didn't deserve that. She doesn't deserve anything but love. "I won't hate you, Videl," he said quietly, kissing her ear. "I won't ever hate you, not matter what."

He could tell with the way her shoulders were shaking that she was trying not to let up a fresh bout of tears, but it was hard. He sat there, holding her as close as possible without hurting her as she started.

"I wasn't going to tell you this," she said softly against his neck, staring at the wooden headboard he was leaning up against. She felt his body stiffen at her words, and she instantly regretted them. The only reason why she had hid when he had come back was because of this. She had known that someway he would pry it out of her, no matter how hard she tried. All he had to do was smile at her, and she would melt, and give up willingly. And that's exactly what had happened. She started stroking his shoulder, feeling him relax somewhat. She switched off the subject for a moment, asking, "Gohan, where's your tail?"

She felt something run up along her side and proceed up under her shirt, finding a comfortable place against the warm skin of her waist. She smiled grimly against his shoulder as he said gently, "Right there. If you want me to move it because you're nervous, just tell me."

She wondered why he was treating her so delicately, but she didn't ask him. She closed her eyes, trying to keep down the onrush of tears.

"They...they took me away from you. I was so scared, Gohan. I was all alone, no one cared, I was all by myself...." she said, wondering what he was thinking. He was silent and still beneath her, his right arm wrapped around her back, his tail around her waist and flicking her side from time to time, and his left hand rubbing up and down her back. She almost felt safe.

"They brought me into their ship, saying that they were going to kill me after...after the men had their way with me. They ripped off all my clothes, and left me standing there as they laughed. They laughed and laughed at me, Gohan, and they wouldn't stop. All I could do was cry, and they just laughed...."

He tried not to let his anger come to the surface as she started crying again, sobbing into his neck. He told her that it was ok, that she was here with him now, and that nothing would ever happen to her again. She sniffed loudly, almost making him smile as she continued.

"I started to scream. You know," she whispered, a small smile touching her lips, "those really annoying high-pitched screams that kill everyone's ears. I never did it before, but it seemed to work for some reason. They threw these rags at me, they looked like old grease cloths, but I was just grateful for anything to wear." She paused. "After that they dragged me into the deepest part of the ship, and it was so unbearably hot, and no one cared if I was dying from the heat. They chained me to the wall next to this big ball looking thing, and left me there for like three days, without food or water."

They were starving her?! No wonder why she is so thin....

"I thought they were going to let me starve to death, but they didn't. A few days later that Babidi guy came in with Dabura. They had a plan," she sneered, remembering exactly what they had said. "We are going to suck you dry of all your energy, my pretty, and you're going to be going through so much pain that you will willingly want to die once we are finished with you."

Gohan gritted his teeth, picturing Dabura's neck in-between his fingers.

"They jammed this huge knife-like thing into my side, and connected it to that big ball. They had this meter connected to it as well, or what they called, 'the meter to gauge your progress and how much energy you are giving Majin Buu'." She paused, sighing. "I was horrified, nevertheless. They were draining me of all my energy similarly like they had done to you, except mine was painstakingly slow. They said something about how I had to keep my energy up as they drained it at the same time, meaning that they would get more out of me. When they did you, they just sucked it all out, leaving you almost unconscious. But me, they fed me this stuff through all these long and dirty needles that kept my energy up, and also what made my hair grow like mad."

Gohan ran his fingers through her glossy hair almost as an afterthought. He had wondered why her hair had been so long. Now he knew.

"They were slowly killing me. I felt weaker and weaker everyday, and yet that Buu guy was getting stronger and stronger. I couldn't do anything but hang there, contemplating my death and all the things I regretted and all the things that I never...all the things I never got to do with you, Gohan," she said, pulling back to look into his eyes. He gave her an encouraging smile, dusting his fingers through her hair once more and then cupping her cheek in his hand. She leaned into his touch, closing her eyes. She knew now that she didn't feel almost safe. She was safe. She was safe here, in Gohan's arms. She didn't have to worry about the horrors she went through anymore. Gohan would never do that to her, nor would he ever let it happen to her again. He promised he wouldn't.

She opened her eyes, staring into his dark ones. They held so much emotion, so much of everything that it almost scared her, and she could see it even through the dim light. No one ever looked at her like Gohan did. He thought she was so beyond beautiful, so enticingly wonderful, that it made her the same way. She had always thought she was the "odd" one, the ugly duckling that everyone laughed at. But she knew better now. She knew by just looking at Gohan that she had been wrong. She closed her eyes again, feeling warm tears seep out of her eyes at the overload of emotion. "I'm so scared, Gohan," she whispered, not certain of what she was so afraid of. Of herself, or of him.

He brought her head back down to his shoulder as he stroked her hair, telling her that she would never have anything to be afraid of again. She nodded against his shoulder. She believed him.

"Videl, you don't have to say anything else. I understand."

She shook her head. "No, there isn't much left. Now that I got it off my chest, I feel better now. I want to tell you the rest."

He smiled against her soft hair. Earlier she hadn't trusted him enough to tell him, and now she did. He didn't know whether to be happy or be mad.

"Once I was on the brink of death they took that thing out of my side, saying that I wasn't of anymore use and that they needed someone with more agreeable power."

Gohan frowned. "What do you mean, 'agreeable power'?"

She shrugged. "They said something about how my type of energy refused to cooperate with the compatibility of Majin Buu's. They didn't know if it wasn't "pure" or "too pure". It was weird. I didn't understand it."

Gohan thought about what she had just said. Maybe it has to do something with her being half Barakian. Maybe they have some odd energy signature. Maybe that's why I can pinpoint Videl so easily. She interrupted his thoughts by continuing, her voice going quiet again.

"That was when the men started coming back. They ripped off my top again, and I couldn't do anything about it except try and kick, but then they would just try to...try and pry my legs open." She shuddered, her thighs unconsciously gripping his hips. His eyes widened, but all he did was sit there, trying to control his reaction to what she had just done. She went on, not even noticing his predicament as her voice went even lower. It would have been impossible to hear if he hadn't had Saiya-jin hearing.

"They...touched me, Gohan. They made me feel so dirty and disgusting...I found myself wishing that I would die, or that someone would kill me. I couldn't stand it, all I could do was lock my legs and try not to cry and laugh at the same time as they tried to get them open." She snorted in an unladylike way, and not caring. "Bastards weren't even close to being strong enough to do that."

Gohan was gritting his teeth so hard he thought they were going to break under the pressure. He just pulled her more tightly against him so he could find his own comfort, and give her some in return.

"One guy tried to rape me. He would have succeeded because he had all his other cronies there, holding me down." She drew in a shuddering breath. "But he didn't. I got free, and kicked him straight in the balls. I think I successfully smashed them into oblivion."

Gohan was so beyond happy that he wasn't that guy. If this wasn't such a serious situation, and had been any other time, he would have been laughing his head off. But not now.

"Are you ok, then?" he asked, praying.

She nodded. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. They beat me after that, using all these tools that I never even saw before, and had me screaming in agony. I couldn't hold back all those cries, even though I had promised myself that I wouldn't. I didn't want to let them know they were really hurting me, and give them satisfaction that they were. No one really bothered me after that, but that was only a day before you came and got me."

He had never been so pissed and upset in his life. However, he was relieved. She hadn't been raped, but sometimes rape isn't the worst thing. She had been molested by countless men, one after another, day after day. He blinked. I think I know now why she was so scared of my dad. But why isn't she scared of me? And why did she feel threatened by my own father?

"Videl, why are you so frightened of my dad? You know he would never hurt you. And why aren't you scared of me? I would think that you would be terrified of every man in the universe."

He felt her draw in a deep breath, and then let it out in a long sigh. "Because...I don't know. Maybe one day I will be able to explain it, but not now. Do you understand? You're...you're not mad at me?"

"Dende, Videl. I could never be mad at you. And you know that. What happened wasn't your fault, it was all mine that it did. It wasn't yours."

She pulled away, frowning at him. "What do you mean it was your fault?"

He smiled, running his fingers through her tousled hair. He just couldn't help himself. "I should have made you stay at Capsule Corporation. None of this would have happened."

She shook her head. "No, it wasn't your fault, Gohan. It was no ones fault. Let's just forget about it, ok? I'm...I'm fine now, and I'm with you. I know I'm safe. And I couldn't be happier."

Either could he. But there was something he had to do now. He felt obliged to tell her something himself now that she had told him her deepest and darkest secret. She had been afraid to, but now she felt better, and it was obvious. Maybe if he told her what was wrong with himself, just maybe...maybe it would make him feel better. That is...if she understood. He wasn't even sure if he understood himself.

"Videl...thank you for telling me. I promise I won't ever tell anyone, alright? It's just between me and you, no one else. Not even if we go our separate ways."

Videl felt something almost painful rip through her at his last words. He...he isn't thinking about leaving me now, is he? No...no, Gohan, don't do this to me. She felt tears pour down her face in an unstoppable river, and she let out such a loud wail that Gohan thought that something was seriously wrong immediately. "Videl! What the—what's wrong?!?!" he asked, almost yelling in his panic. She opened her mouth again and let out such painful sounding cries that he himself almost started crying. "Videl, stop, you're going to make me cry! Why are you crying?! Did I hurt you?! Did I say something wrong!? Dende, please stop crying like that!!" he begged, giving her a small shake. She didn't stop no matter what he said, just said through her wails, "Gohan, please don't leave me! I don't want you to leave me! Please...please...." She opened her watering eyes, seeing a horrified look on his face.

Gohan couldn't believe what he just heard come out of her mouth. "Videl! Why would I leave you? I didn't say that I was! I wouldn't ever do that! See? I'm still here, aren't I? You have to stop crying, ok? I don't like it when you cry, it makes me want to cry with you. And its not right for a guy to cry," he added, letting her fall back against him, holding him so tight it would have hurt a normal man. He let out a small laugh, rubbing her back as she hit his shoulder.

"Damn you, I thought you said—"

"Videl, don't even finish that sentence. I refuse to allow you to finish that—"

She pulled back, glowering at him as she poked him in the chest. "Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it? Tape my mou—"

He brought her up hard against him, covering her mouth with his to make her shut up. As he kissed her, he couldn't help but think about what a weird day this was. Weird morning, weird afternoon, and hopefully not a weird night. Although...maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing....