Out there chap4

Out there

Scott Douglas Davidson

Disclaimer: Oh, if only I did own them. But I don't. Sad, isn't it? I think I need to go sit in the snow for a while...

Warnings: Um... Close-minded teen, swearning, depressed 'Goku'.

Again, this is confusing. Oh, and you won't like this universe's version of Gohan, he's a jerk.

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Kokuu
Ko-ku-u
Empty space, empty sky

Chichi
Chee-chee
Slow; lagging

Hoshiii
Ho-shee-ee-ee
Dried boiled rice

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Kokuu sat on the windowsill, staring out the window at the falling snow, listening to his son swearing in the backroom as he did his homework. Chi-chi was cooking something in the kitchen. He could hear his father and brother arguing over who�d play who on the new street fighter game they�d bought. Kokuu sighed and leaned his shoulder against the window.

And this is the fourth universe since we started. Pretty good, ne?

"Kokuu honey!" Chi-chi smiled her usually bright smile at her husband, who grinned back more out of reflex than any real joy "I finished dinner! Come and get it!"

At the word �dinner� everyone else in the house had suddenly migrated to the kitchen table. Kokuu forced a cheerful smile onto his face and strode into the kitchen.

"You really outdid yourself Chi-chi-san!" Raditz dug into his food with gusto as Burdock laughed and started on his own.

Kokuu poked his rice around the plate and made a little smiley face with it.

"Hey father, you going to eat that?" Hoshiii asked Kokuu, holding a hand out. Kokuu sighed.

"No son." Kokuu handed Hoshiii the plate of food and set his chopsticks down "Excuse me."

Kokuu got up from the table and went over to the coat closet, grabbing a thin coat he walked out the front door and into the snow.

...

"Raditz, I think that�s enough for now." Burdock blocked his eldest�s attempt at getting more rolls.

"Father, what are you talking about? Usually we eat twice this much!" Raditz complained. Burdock merely pointed out the window at where Kokuu was walking away through the thick falling snow. Raditz set down his chopsticks.

"You know, maybe I have had enough. It was very good, Chi-chi-san." Raditz smiled politely at Chi-chi, who beamed back.

"Thank you Raditz-san!" she grinned, and set about cleaning up their spots as they left. Hoshiii snorted and took the rest of the rolls.

"Hello snow." Kokuu murmured under his breath as he strolled through flurries of it as casually as if it was a sunny spring day. A bird huddled in a hole in a tree looked down at him as if he were crazy as he passed it by.

"You don�t care a wit about my feelings, do you snow? I�m just another potential flesh ice-cube to you. I suppose it�s better than if you hated me..." Kokuu sighed. He felt he�d been doing that a lot lately. The wind whispered nothings around him as he walked.

"My son, he would hate me if he knew. I always hear him talking about how there are �those damned faggots� at his school. He rants on abut how he�d beat them up if he didn�t get in trouble for fighting at school. He�s stronger than me too, he�d probably do more than beat me up if he ever found out I liked guys..." Kokuu sat down on a large rock. A little gray island in the white of the snow.

"But you don�t care, do you, snow?"

"I don�t see him!" Raditz snapped at Burdock as they trudged through the wet, sticky snow. He was getting it in his pants and that was uncomfortable.

"Well we have to find him!" Burdock replied, miserable in his own way. He�d seen the visions of his son, motionless out in the snow. He had to find Kokuu before those visions came true.

"He�ll probably come back in a little bit, it�s too cold for him to stay out long." Raditz tried to reason.

"That�s the problem!" Burdock snapped, "It�s too cold and he won�t come back in! Damn it Raditz! The boy�s extremely depressed! You haven�t seen the scars on his arms! Gods, do you even pay any attention to your own brother?" Burdock growled in disgust and stormed off into the blanketing whiteness.

"What? Depressed? Scars? Father, wait!" Raditz ran off in the direction his father had disappeared in.

"I�m not waiting anymore, boy." came the answering growl.

"Well snow, it�s nice to have someone who doesn�t cuss up a storm when I tell them I like guys. None of my old friends believed me when I told them. When I finally convinced them, they all left in disgust. Yamcha even convinced Bulma to stop talking with me." Kokuu waved his hand lazily in the air, as if he was tracing out a pattern in the snowflakes.

"There you are, father! Mother was worried about you!" Hoshiii snorted, seemingly annoyed at the whole idea of making sure his father was alright.

"Hi son. I was just thinking. It�s nice to sit out in the snow, alone with your thoughts." Kokuu smiled, his gaze unfocused and his face pale.

"Dad, I think you�ve been out here too long. We should go back inside." Hoshiii took a hold of his father�s arm and pulled him to his feet.

"Well, we could do that if we knew where the house was." Burdock commented as he stepped close enough to be seen.

"And don�t ask me where it is!" Raditz added as he joined the group.

"Oh, I found you!" Chi-chi sounded proud and hugged her husband.

"Wait..." Hoshiii muttered to himself "If everyone�s here, then we can�t follow a ki signature back home!"

"...What now?!" Raditz groaned. A chunk of ice suddenly fell onto Burdock�s head.

"I�d say hail." the eldest Saiyajin commented, then walked off in a random direction "This way."

"Why this way?" Raditz asked as he led his brother and his brother�s wife after Burdock.

"Because there�s a cave in this direction." Burdock responded.

"How do you know that?" Hoshiii queried. Burdock grinned back over his shoulder at him for a second.

"I�m psychic, kid."

"Fine." Hoshiii folded his arms over his chest and huffed "If you don�t want to tell me than just don�t."

Burdock just shook his head and continued walking.

"Here you go; one cave we can shelter in." Burdock swept his arm, gesturing them all into the opening in the rocks.

"Don�t... Take me away from the snow..." Kokuu murmured weakly as his brother carried him into the cave.

"Dad, you were right, bro�s really out of it." Raditz looked down worriedly at his younger brother.

"Maybe you should start listening to me when I first say something from now on!" Burdock grumbled, walking over to check on Kokuu.

"Don�t... It�s quiet..." Kokuu mumbled.

"Damnit, I think we were almost too late. Come on, we have to huddle together to stay warm." Burdock took Kokuu and led Raditz to the back of the cave, sitting down and leaning against the back wall, holding his son closely.

"Hrmph, why should we cuddle up to you? Betcher one of those faggots, aren�t ya?" Hoshii snorted and sat down near the front of the cave. Burdock leveled a cold glare at the young demi-Saiyajin, but it went unnoticed. Raditz sat down next to his father and leaned against him as Chi-chi joined their little huddle.

Hoshii just sat by the mouth of the cave, shivering in the chill wind.