No time for Love
It was nightime in the Dragon Ball world, and it was one of the few
nights that people were actually paying enough attention to it to enjoy the
beauty. All over, people were taking moonlight strolls, or going to the beach,
or just being with one another. They had nothng to worry about this time. The
threats were gone. Majin Buu was gone, and there was finally peace after a
battle.. It was a time to be happy, a time to be together with loved ones...not
a time to do dishes.
Which, as luck would have it, is exactly what Chi-Chi was doing at that
exact moment. It hadn’t gone unnoticed to her that the night was so beautiful,
but she had other things on her mind. She had to finish cleaning the gargantuan
pile of dishes her husband and son had used just minutes ago, and then do the
gargantuan pile of laundry they left for her as well. Such were the duties of a
mother and wife. Mother and wife of two Saiyan-jinns no less.
Sighing, she wished sometimes that she could just go back to when she was
a kid. She had no responsibilities then. She didn’t have to worry about
supporting a growing boy, and making sure he got the education he deserves. Nor
did she have to worry about a grown man going off to get himself killed every
single day of his entire existence.
Goku....sometimes she caught herself wishing that he was just a normal
person. A banker, or a schollar or something that might set a good example for
their son. Sure, he saved the planet, but what about her? Looking outside, she
watched the slight wind rustle through the treetops. It was beautiful, and she
wished her husband was someone who would take advantage of a night like this,
and just sweep her away from it all. But he wasn’t, and maybe that’s why she
married him.
From the other room she heard a loud clinking sound, and Goku saying “Ooops..”
She sighed again, this time more frustrated than before. He probably
broke something, one more worry on her mind.
Seconds later he appeared at the kitchen doorway, indeed holding a piece
of broken kitchen wear. “Uhm...Chi-Chi..?”
“What?” She snapped, turning towards him irritatedly.
Goku looked extreemly nervous, and seemed to be holding something behind
his back. “I uhh....I uh....I’m sorry..” He said sheepishly, holding out a
dish that was split in half.
“Oh Goku!” She cried angrily, “That’s my china!” Then she
rushed up and took it out of his hand. It was broken beyond repair, and it was
one of her favorite dishes. Closing her eyes to try and channel the anger that
had been building up for the past few hours, she chucked the dish into the
garbage can. “Just...go...” She said with a dangerous warning in her voice,
that Goku reckognized immediately.
He looked extreemely distraught, but slinked out of the room silently. He
knew better than to try and apologize again when she was angry. He didn’t know
breaking one dish was going to upset her so much, it must be something else. His
theory was confirmed when he heard a soft crying noise from the kitchen. Chi-Chi
had never cried about any broken dish before, it was something else...something
big.
Inside the kitchen, Chi-Chi leaned against the sink, trying not to cry
too loudly. It was all just too much...Too much stress, too much to worry about.
Goku....Gohan....what about her? She was just about to continue sobbing, when
she heard a very soft and concerned voice from behind her.
“Honey?”
Chi-Chi looked over her shoulder slightly, then burried her face in the
counter, hiding her tears. Goku was back, and the last thing she needed was for
him to see her crying.
“Honey?” He repeated, taking a few steps forward. “What’s
wrong?”
She said nothing, just made a loud sniffing noise and started wiping her
eyes. She would have to save this anguish for later, when Goku never noticed.
“I-If it’s about the plate, then I’m really sorry...it was an
accident...” He explained, twisting his hands in front of him, nervously.
Chi-Chi shook her head, and sighed. “It’s not about the dish Goku.”
She turned to face him, her eyes puffy and her cheeks stained with tears. She
felt like crying again when she saw the look that came over his face. It had
been a long time since she had seen him this concerned about her. Goku looked
like his heart was breaking, and Chi-Chi knew hers was.
“Then what is it?” He asked, approaching her until he was standing
inches away, looking down into her shiny black eyes. He hated seeing her upset,
and hated that she wouldn’t tell him what was wrong.
She looked away from him, this was just making it worse. He never wanted
to know what was bothering her, and it allarmed her that he suddenly did.
“Don’t you have to go train Ubuu or something?” She said angrily, a few
more tears running down her cheeks.
Goku let out a little gasp, and even though she wasn’t looking at him
Chi-Chi could tell he was obiously hurt by what she said. That just made it
worse. Now he was hurting just as much as she was. “I’m sorry..” She said
quietly.
“Is that what this is about, Ubuu?” He asked, his eyes also mirroring
the hurt.
“No...not just Ubuu....it’s just...oh this is silly..”
Goku put his hands on his wife’s shoulders. Chi-Chi looked up,
extreemly surprised. It had been ages since he’d touched her, and it took her
a moment to remember how it felt to be in his arms. How warm it was.
“Tell me.” He said gently.
She took a deep breath and looked up into his eyes, trying to keep the
emotion out of her voice. “It’s just...you never seem to want to do anything
but..fight...I know it’s important to you, but shouldn’t I be too? And since
Ubuu has come along, all you do is be with him...He’s not your wife Goku! You
didn’t marry martial arts! You married me...don’t I deserve some
consideration?” She shouted, not angrily, but more emotionaly strained than
anything else. The tears started again, and she lowered her eyes, ashamed of her
behavior.
Utterly startled, and feeling absolutely wretched about the way he’d
been treating her, Goku encircled his arms around her, and gave her a big hug.
He hadn’t hugged her in a long time, and had forgotten how good it felt to
have her warm little body in his arms. “Chi-Chi...” He said quietly, guilt
overcomming him, he could only think of one thing to say, and it’s what he’d
been wanting to for a long time, but had forgotten about. “I love you...”
She sobbed even harder in his chest. Oh how she had needed to hear that.
She had wondered countless times if he still cared, and if he still wondered how
she was doing. It seemed sometimes like he loved Krillin-san more than her.
“Oh Goku, I love you too!”
He smiled, and released her slightly from his hold, looking into her eyes
again. He had forgotten how beautiful she was. He had forgotten why he married
her sometimes, and gotten so caught up in everything else, he forgot about her.
Leaning his head down, he kissed her softly, both of them surprised by how good
it felt.
“You know..” Chi-Chi said when the kiss was over. “I shouldn’t be
so hard on you, you do save the universe.”
Goku grinned, “But you’re more important to me than the entire
universe, I want you to know that. I won’t neglect you anymore.”
Chi-Chi smiled too. “I love you.”
“ And, I’m sorry I’ve had no time to love you.” He said
apologetically, hugging her again. There was a bit of silence, then Goku said
something that made Chi-Chi’s heart swell with joy. “Do you want to take a
walk?”
“Yes...yes I do.”
An old romance was
being rekindled...and it was about time.